Sorry for the wait! Shouldn't be as long for the next chapter, but I'm not making any promises.
Somehow, he wasn't entirely surprised by how Tony's return was welcomed. Judging by the funk McGee had been in and Kate's determined irritation with DiNozzo despite his absence, they'd decided to hide their relief at his early appearance rather than smother him with worry and affection and Gibbs didn't much mind letting them. The sooner DiNozzo was back to normal, the sooner the team was back to normal and babying his senior field agent wasn't the way back to normal.
He barely paid attention to the interplay of his agents, too sidetracked by the memory of the last time they were all in the squad room together. As the sheepish, repentant look that had graced Tony's face as they evacuated flashed through his mind, he ruthlessly shoved the image away, knowing it would only lead to further guilt-ridden memories from Bethesda, a dangerous path to follow. Instead he forced himself to forget the past for the time being and focus on the present, where all of his people, Ducky and Abby included, were safely where they needed to be.
Glancing up to monitor the situation, Gibbs caught the disappointed, almost lost look in the kid's eyes and wondered, though, if maybe McGee and Kate weren't taking it a bit far. Much as they needed the normalcy, some sign of appreciation and welcome was also necessary, if only because of the past few weeks' events. Barely paying any attention to Kate beyond a location, he deliberately tossed the truck keys to McGee, bracing himself for the further upset he knew would show in DiNozzo's expressive green eyes.
"Maybe I did die," he heard Tony mutter to himself, but waited till Kate and McGee were in the elevator to respond. They wouldn't understand but he knew his second would.
Grabbing his Sig and jacket, he stepped next to DiNozzo, seeing and understanding the preoccupation in his eyes. Not giving him enough time to dwell on recently acquired demons, he moved forward with his plan. "You feel that?"
"What?" Tony asked, confusion replacing bewilderment as he glanced over at his boss. The slap Gibbs delivered to the back of his head is different than usual. Not too hard but still attention-getting, it was meant to point out the obvious: DiNozzo was alive and his co-workers were very glad of it. "Oh." Realization began to dawn as he cut a glance at Gibbs.
"You're still alive," Gibbs assured him, before heading toward the elevator. "Welcome back, DiNozzo!" he called over his shoulder at the motionless agent.
He didn't need to see the small smile to know it was there.
By the time they all arrived at the crime scene, he could tell things had started to get better. McGee and Kate's behavior around DiNozzo had mellowed some, less harsh and more normal, as they figured out how much Tony hadn't changed, despite the plague. Shaking his head at their behavior, he left them at the truck gathering their gear, preferring they work out the rest of their kinks without his supervision.
Discussing the state of the car and the deceased, Gibbs felt a sense of blessed relief at how routine everything was. A relatively straightforward shooting made interesting by one victim's missing pieces for his team to focus on while settling back into their old rhythms was just what they needed.
Not that he'd wanted to be investigating the deaths of a pair of servicemen.
Turning from his conversation with Kate about the missing hands, he watched as DiNozzo started to make his way down the hill, barely paying attention to his footing as he read off the information he'd gotten from the local LEOs attending the scene. He'd seen Kate's foot slide earlier as she'd worked her way down to the car, knew from his own descent how deceptively steep the slope was. He'd just begun to think that maybe someone should warn him when Tony's feet betrayed him, tangling in the tall grass and each other, sending him tumbling down the hill.
He was frozen in place as his agent rolled down the hill, time stretching out so that each grunt and exhalation of pain seemed to echo in his mind. He could feel Kate's concern from where she stood next to him, wondered if this would be what it took for her to give in and let go of her over-exaggerated disregard for his return. They both stayed where they were, though, held in place by stunned disbelief until Tony rolled to a halt at their feet, groaning.
"Ow." The one, hoarse word spoke volumes and something in Gibbs' gut clenched at how tense DiNozzo's body was, as if the slightest movement would be agonizing. Instantly he was back in the hospital, helplessly watching as his agent struggled to breathe through the coughing, unable to take away the pain that wracked the younger man with each deep, sharp bark.
"You ok?" he asked, taking refuge in average, everyday gruffness. He felt, more than saw, the flick of Kate's eyes in his direction, her gaze filled with frustrated incredulity at his reaction even as she followed his lead and treated the situation as she would have in the past.
"Just tryin' to catch my breath," Tony muttered, his voice barely audible over the ambient sounds of the crime scene. Gibbs studied his downed agent for a second, watched as the stress lines around his mouth ease a little as the shock and pain of falling down the hill started to recede. When he was certain Tony really was all right, he turned to face the away from the crime scene.
"Should've taken that extra week off, DiNozzo," Gibbs mentioned casually as he started up the hill, knowing Tony needed the normal reaction as much as he did. He wasn't completely heartless, though. "Help him up, Kate," he instructed, even as he tossed out orders, steadily climbing the hill all the while.