Disclaimer: I do not own NCIS or any of these characters.
This story is set in an AU where Ari did shoot Kate, but the bullet only grazed her head and she is in a coma throughout season three. And, since this is my story and I can do whatever I want, I've made it Kibbs.
After 'Iced'
"Hey, Kate," Tony said cheerfully. "So, you'll never guess what happened a few days ago." He waited, but of course there was no response. "I got an 'attaboy' from Gibbs! And he didn't even headslap me. The attaboy, though, I did earn it. I mean," he hastily corrected himself, imagining her smirk. "Of course I earned it. I spent all night out in the cold looking for a murder weapon. And-you'll love this-I found three. Now if that isn't quality detective work, I don't know what is. And then," he continued excitedly, "we all got to rattle a suspect for hours, it was great. You should've been there, it was-" He stopped and glanced down at her. "You should've been there." He paused, suddenly depressed. "Well, now look what you've done, I was perfectly happy when I came in here, did you really have to ruin that?" He sighed dramatically. "Now I need a drink. Thanks, Kate." He imagined Kate pursing her lips at him, greatly annoyed, and he grinned. "We got him, by the way. Well, technically, we didn't get him, but the dirtbag has been dealt with. Did I tell you what he did?" The Kate in his head rolled her eyes and shook her head. "He killed three of his own compadres. All the rest you need to know is that his other pals didn't really like finding out about that." He had the decency to look a little sheepish when the imaginary Kate stared at him in horrified disbelief. "I guess you had to be there to understand." He frowned, and then continued, serious for once. "You need to wake up, Kate, we need you to wake up. In case you haven't noticed, you're missing a lot." Kate didn't answer, and Tony's expression turned glum.
A/N: Please review!