AN: I'm very sorry this took so long to get out. Last week was really busy and I didn't have much writing time. Thank you all so much for your comments and encouragement. There is only one more chapter left to go and I'm hoping to have it out in the next few days. I'm eager for the start of my next story. In any case, here's the next chapter. Enjoy :)

xxxxx

Tony finally managed to compose himself and pulled back from Gibbs, feeling utterly mortified over the way he had broken down. Senior field agents weren't supposed to cry in their boss' arms. I...I'm really sorry, boss," he said, staring down at the ground red-faced. "Why don't you take some time alone here. I'll wait for you back at the car."

Before Gibbs could say anything, Tony took off. Gibbs let him go, figuring he would give him a few minutes to get himself back together again and then he would be able to talk to him. After Tony had left, Gibbs turned his attention back toward the grave site. He knelt down on the ground and pulled out a few stray weeds that had sprung up. Between him and Shannon's mom, the site was always well kept up. He sighed to himself, thinking how different his life would have been had the tragedy with his family not occurred. Unfortunately, you couldn't change history though. He smiled thinking how Shannon would have loved Tony. She would have thought it amusing the way he could sometimes get under his skin. And Kelly...who knew what might have been if she had lived. He had lost her much too young. He had no idea really what kind of a woman she would have turned out to be. He blinked rapidly against the moisture forming in his eyes. It really wasn't worth thinking about. He spent a few more minutes alone and then slowly started walking back to the car. He had known Tony was feeling guilty over the fire, but he really had not had any idea of just how tortured the younger man had been and the depth of what he had been carrying around inside of him. He arrived back at the car and got in. Tony was sitting inside, staring out the passenger window.

"You okay, DiNozzo?" Gibbs asked.

"Yeah, I'm fine...I don't know what got into me. I'm really sorry."

"Why do you keep apologizing?" Gibbs asked. "You don't have anything to be sorry about."

"I acted like a fool back there..."

"Hey, there's nothing wrong with expressing your emotions," Gibbs stated, putting his hand on Tony's shoulder. "I'm just sorry you didn't do it sooner. I had no idea what was going on with you. You really should have told me."

"You said yourself you're not one to share your feelings, boss...No offense, but why would you expect that I would have talked to you about this?"

"You're right," Gibbs admitted, realizing that Tony had a valid point. "I guess maybe that's something we both ought to work on."

"Anyhow...it isn't really a very easy thing to talk about. I don't want to disrespect the memory of your wife and daughter."

"Come on, Tony...you and I both know that your nightmares are a product of your guilt and nothing more than that. I know you wouldn't disrespect them."

Tony nodded solemnly. "You're right...I wouldn't."

"And I think you understand now how I feel about you, right?" Gibbs prodded.

"Yes...I understand..." Tony looked down then back at Gibbs, almost appearing a little bit shy. "You know that my relationship with my own father isn't really the best...What you said...it means a lot to me, boss...and it goes both ways...I'm also honored that you chose to take me here."

Gibbs nodded. "That, in itself should tell you what you mean to me, DiNozzo." His voice was gruff as he spoke. "I want you to leave the guilt behind and move on from this."

"And what about what happened last night?" Tony asked. "Do I move on from that too?"

"Of course you do. I might have been upset with you, but I think I've made my point. Do you really think I want you to go around torturing yourself?"

"What about the head smacks?" Tony questioned, a faint smile on his lips. "Some could argue those are a form of torture, boss."

"Those are just to knock sense into that hard head of yours."

"Really? Sometimes I could swear you just do it for enjoyment."

Gibbs just smiled as he put the key into the ignition and started the engine. "Nothing wrong with enjoying your work, DiNozzo. Let's get moving. You can treat me to lunch before we swing over to the police station. Then I guess I really should think about doing some shopping for clothes and a few other things."

"Yeah? I don't suppose you want some company?" Tony asked.

Gibbs considered that for a moment before nodding. "I guess you can tag along if you like, but we're not going into any expensive designer stores or anywhere like that. I like what I like, basic, simple clothes. I don't need any fancy labels."

"We'll go where you want, boss. I won't say a word," Tony promised, managing to hold back a smirk. He didn't have to be told that Gibbs and designer clothes didn't get along.

After Tony gave his statement, they headed off to do some shopping. Tony remained true to his word, keeping his comments to a minimum and only making suggestions if asked. They picked up a pizza on the way back to Tony's apartment and settled down in the living room to watch some television.

"You did pretty well today, boss," Tony said as he took a slice of his favorite pizza from the box. "Those things you bought should hold you over for a while."

Gibbs nodded pensively. He still found it hard to believe that he was currently homeless. It was going to take some getting used to. "Yeah, I suppose they will."

"So when are we going to go back on duty?" Tony asked before taking a healthy bite of the pizza."

I'm going back tomorrow," Gibbs replied as he reached for a slice and placed it on a plate. "I figured you would want to take some leave."

Tony shook his head. "You figured wrong, boss. I don't need to take any leave."

"I think it would be a good idea, DiNozzo. You've gone through a lot over the past few days. Just take a day or two, anyway."

"No thanks, boss. What good is that going to do? I'm ready to go back to work. Besides, you need me." he added with a grin.

"You do realize you'll be on desk duty until that cast is off."

"We've been over that, boss. I understand I can't be out in the field with a cast."

Gibbs contemplated his senior field agent for another few moments and then nodded. "Okay then, we'll head in tomorrow morning. Be ready to leave here at 6 a.m. sharp"

"6 a.m., boss? Really?" Tony asked. "Um...isn't that a little early?"

"First day back, DiNozzo. Lots to do. You want to go in later on, that's fine, but if you're riding in with me, we're leaving early."

"That's okay. I'll go in early too," Tony said, forcing a bright smile. "I'll be all set and ready to go." It would be good to get back to work and start to put the events of the past few days behind him, even if it was at an ungodly hour.

xxxxxx

The next few months passed quickly. Tony had his cast removed and his wrist was as good as new. Gibbs was constantly meeting with contractors, going over details of the rebuilding of his house. A lot of it was going to look very similar to his own house, but he had decided to add a few new touches as well, including a large garage which he was going to use as a workshop for his boat building and other projects. It would be a lot easier than the basement to get the boats out once they had been completed.

A surprise housewarming party was being planned by the team for when Gibbs moved into the new house and they were planning on giving him special gifts to mark the occasion. Abby had arranged to have copies of Gibbs' family photographs artistically designed in a framed collage. Ducky was giving Gibbs the grandfather clock which had been prized by his mother for many years. Ziva had gotten a great deal on some weights and a weight bench and she and Tim were going to split the cost.

After much inner debating, Tony had decided to get Gibbs tools to replace the ones that were lost. He went to Sears and after spending a lot of time looking around and talking to an overly pushy salesman, he left the store empty-handed. He didn't know a whole lot about woodworking, but he was sure that Gibbs preferred more traditional types of hand tools, not the flashy power tools the salesman had been trying to sell him. It was still early on a Saturday morning and without even sure why he was doing it, Tony suddenly found himself programming Stillwater, Pennsylvania into his GPS.

It was a beautiful, sunny day and Tony felt relaxed and carefree as he drove along, singing to tunes on the radio and just admiring the rural scenery. It had been a long time since he'd just taken off on a road trip for no real reason whatsoever and it just made him feel happy. It was about 3 p.m. when Tony pulled up in front of the general store in Stillwater. He opened the door and the bells overhead jingled as he went inside. Jackson Gibbs was standing behind the counter. "Tony...is something wrong?" Jackson asked, greeting Tony warily. "Did something happen to Jethro?"

"No...No, nothing's wrong," Tony immediately assured the older man, cursing himself for not having called to let him know he was coming. Of course he wouldn't expect Tony to drive here out of the blue. What had he been thinking? "I'm sorry..I should have called."

Relieved, Jackson smiled and walked over to shake Tony's hand. "Don't be silly, you just surprised me. Its good to see you. Jethro isn't with you, is he?" Jackson looked over Tony's shoulder, hoping to see his son.

"No sir, he's not. He's working today, has a bunch of paperwork he wanted to catch up on."

"On a Saturday? He works too hard," Jackson said, shaking his head. "So what brings you out here, Tony? I can't imagine you were just in the neighborhood," he said, chuckling softly.

"No," Tony admitted with a smile. "It was a spur of the moment trip, but I do have a reason...tools."

"Tools?" Jackson asked, looking baffled. "Surely you didn't come here to buy tools?"

"No, no I didn't but I thought you could direct me on what to buy."

"Son, if you wanted to buy tools, why didn't you just go to Jethro?" asked Jackson. "He could have told you everything you needed to know. Not that I don't like seeing you, but its a long drive."

"I couldn't go to Jethro. The tools are for him," Tony said. He then went on to explain about the party and how he wanted to replace Gibbs' tools. "He's going to have a great space set up for his woodworking, with built in workbenches and shelving. He's probably mentioned it to you."

"Yes, it sounds like quite a place," Jackson said, nodding. "I'm hoping to get out to see it sometime soon."

"Anyhow, I want to get something that he'll really like and I don't know anything about it. I figured who would know better what to get than you?"

Jackson nodded thoughtfully. "I know of some places you could go. I wouldn't be able to take you out today, but we could go tomorrow morning if you'd like. There are some places I know of that have some great tools, older, handcrafted. I think we could find some that Jethro would love. Can you stay overnight?"

"Really? That sounds great," Tony said enthusiastically. "I can stay. You sure you won't mind?"

"Of course not, I've got nothing planned. Frankly, I'd love the company."

"Okay," Tony said, smiling. "Well, while I'm here, why don't you put me to work? I'm sure there are some things around here that I can help you with."

Tony and Jackson spent the rest of the afternoon chatting easily and working in the store. Finally, Jackson closed down the shop at 6 p.m. "So, what would you like for dinner, this evening?" he asked Tony, turning to him after he had put the closed sign up on the door.

"Oh, I don't want to put you to any trouble," Tony said quickly. "Anything is fine with me."

"I make some pretty good fried chicken if I do say so myself," Jackson said, smiling "How does that sound?"

"That sounds good. Tell me what I can do to help." Jackson started on the chicken and gave Tony a few tasks along the way including peeling potatoes.

"It sure smells good," Tony said approvingly as he set the table.

"Well, let's hope you think it tastes as good as it smells," Jackson stated. Finally, the meal was ready and the two sat down at the table to eat.

"Wow, this is really delicious," Tony said after he had eaten the first bite. "You've outdone yourself."

"Glad you like it."

"I do." They spent the remainder of the meal in companionable silence. Tony was so stuffed by the time Jackson had offered him a slice of apple pie that he wanted to decline, but it looked so good that he just couldn't. "Man, its a good thing I don't live here, I'd weigh about a thousand pounds," Tony patted his stomach contentedly. "That was truly outstanding. Thank you so much."

"You're very welcome."

"After such a delicious meal, the least I can do is take care of the dishes." Tony cleared the table and started to wash the dishes as Jackson grabbed a towel to dry them.

"So," Jackson began after the dishes had been washed and dried and the two men went back into the small living room. "You told me why you came here, but I still don't really understand why it was so important to you. Certainly there was some other way you could have found out about tools."

"I want to make sure he likes them...I know how important woodworking is to him," Tony said hesitantly. "I...I need them to be special. I know I can't replace exactly what he lost, but I'd still like to get something that he'll appreciate."

Jackson studied Tony closely. "You're not still blaming yourself for what happened, are you?"

"Still?" Tony asked, looking startled. "How did you know I was? I mean..."

"Jethro may have mentioned it a time or two," Jackson chuckled at the look on Tony's face. "We do talk from time to time."

"I know...I just...I didn't think he'd talk to you about me..."

"Why wouldn't he?" Jackson asked, his eyes serious and fixed on Tony. "You're very important to him, you know. He was worried about you."

Tony sighed and shook his head. "He's the one that lost everything, not me...he shouldn't worry about me. I'm fine."

"Maybe not quite as fine as you'd like everyone to believe?"

"Just because I want to get him some tools? Believe me, I'm fine now. I admit, I wasn't at first, but I can't change what happened. Its just what I said, I want to get him something he can really work with. Building boats and making things...its how he relaxes. It means a lot to him..."

"I know it does," Jackson said, nodding with a small smile. "And so do you."

Tony digested that for a moment then looked back at Jackson. "Its just that I didn't think he would talk about me to anyone...it surprises me."

"I am his father. We may not talk as much as other families, but we're trying to talk more these days, especially after all that has happened. I think we've both realized that life is just too short...I tried to get him to come and stay with me for a bit, but he wanted to stay with you. I asked some questions, put two and two together and you equaled four."

"Yeah, well...he's important to me too," Tony admitted. "He's done a lot for me, a lot more than my real father has...Speaking of which, I never called him. I need to do that, let him know I won't be back tonight."

"Won't he think that's odd?" Jackson questioned.

"Uh, no...not really," Tony smirked as he saw the look of understanding on Jackson's face then shrugged. "You know how it is."

He called Gibbs and then talked with Jackson for a while longer before the two men decided to call it a night. It was much earlier than Tony usually went to bed, but he was tired after the long drive.

"So...you can bunk down on the couch if you'd like...or, you can stay in Jethro's old room." Jackson chuckled at the way Tony's face lit up. "Bed's already made up."

"You're sure its okay?" Tony asked.

Jackson nodded. "Yes, its very okay. Way I see it is you're family now. No reason for you not to sleep in there. There are some sweats of Jethro's in the dresser as well if you'd like to wear them to bed. He left them here the last time he visited."

Tony said goodnight to Jackson then slowly entered Jethro's room, turning on the light and closing the door behind him. On first glance, the room was very plain which didn't really surprise Tony. There were two shelves on the wall which contained all kinds of wood carvings, tiny boats, planes, and race cars, all perfectly carved down to the smallest delicate details. Tony picked up the pieces, one by one, and admired the skill it had taken to make them. They really were beautiful.

His gaze wandered to the walls which were bare except for a marine recruiting poster and a couple of photographs of large boats. He then walked over to a desk which was in the corner of the room. He sat down in the chair, trying to imagine a teenaged Gibbs sitting here doing his schoolwork. There was a Stillwater High School yearbook lying on top of the desk. Tony smiled to himself, assuming that Jackson had put it there for him to be able to look at. He opened it up and slowly went through the pages, finally reaching the small photograph of Gibbs. He studied it closely, noting the serious expression on his face and how impossibly young he looked. Whereas a lot of the students had little sayings, quotes or private messages under their pictures, Gibbs only had his name. Tony actually would have been surprised if there had been some kind of a message underneath unless it had been one of his rules. He went over to the dresser and opened up the top drawer which was empty. The second drawer contained Gibbs' sweats which he changed into. He then climbed into bed, his mind full of thoughts about Gibbs as a boy. He still had many more questions than answers, but hopefully Gibbs would open up more about his formative years over time. It didn't take long before he contentedly drifted off to sleep.

The next morning, after a hearty breakfast consisting of Jackson's specialty pancakes, the two men set off in search of tools. It went very well. Tony watched in admiration as Jackson dealt and haggled, finding the very best tools for the best prices. The ones that were chosen looked beautiful, even to Tony's untrained eye. He was sure Gibbs would be pleased.

"Thanks so much for all your help and for letting me stay the weekend," Tony said as he shook Jackson's hand before getting into his car. "The party is planned for next Saturday. It would probably mean a lot to Jethro if you came."

"I'll try to make it," Jackson said. "This was fun for me, Tony. I can see why Jethro thinks so highly of you."

"It was fun for me too," Tony said. "Maybe I'll come out again sometime..." He nibbled his lip uncertainly when he suggested it, not sure if he was overstepping.

"I'd like that, Tony," Jackson said with an easy smile. "I'd like it very much. Maybe you could even drag that son of mine out with you as well."

"I'll certainly try." Tony said, smiling as he got into his car. He waved at Jackson before pulling away and started on his journey home.