Thanks all for the awesome reviews so far. Here is the next chapter.

Chapter 10- Reactions

Several hours ago back at NCIS headquarters…

Ducky furrowed his brow in concern as he watched a rather forlorn looking Abigail drift into to autopsy. He, like everyone else on the team was very protective of her and hated to see her upset. He knew exactly who this conversation was going to be about, the only reason that Abby would look this sad was when there was something wrong with either Gibbs or Tony, not that the others didn't matter, they did, but it was worse when it was either of the two. In this case he knew that it was Tony she was thinking about.

If he was honest he had seen how Anthony had seemed to be withdrawing from them, it was slow and painful for him to watch. He knew a few things about the younger agent that the others didn't, though he thought they could have at least noticed something from the way he had begun to act, I mean they were trained investigators after all. He thought back to something he had recently read about how the minds works under certain situations and understood a little how Tony would think the way he did, not that he hadn't before, learning psychology was turning into an interesting thing. It had all started after that dinner party; he himself didn't go because he had been looking after his mother. When he learned that they hadn't even invited Tony he was a little shocked, he was wondering how they could be so thoughtless. Couldn't they see that he would see it as being abandoned, again?

He had tried to speak to the other but they had been getting non-stop cases and hadn't found the time yet. But…each time Tony had come to him so he could check the recent wound he saw the man visibly pull him self away from everything emotionally. It pained him to see the usually cocky younger man so…lost? Almost without hope, but he had also seen the look that said he thought he actually deserved it. He had even stopped with the non-stop movie trivia; everyone knew that a silent Tony DiNozzo meant that something was wrong. Yet, nobody seemed to be doing anything about it.

Drawing his attention to the sad looking lab tech he wondered what she had to say about it, he could never be angry at her but…she had hurt Tony to, she had gained Tony's trust only for him to be let down by her in such a way that it had him thinking he meant nothing. Jethro had done the same but Tony hadn't shared as much with him as he did with Abby. But he knew that the effect was equally as damaging to Tony.

"What's the matter my dear?" Ducky asked soothingly. When she didn't answer straight away Ducky glanced at her, she looked as if she was trying to put into words what she was thinking. This being unusual for Abby, Ducky waited until she felt it necessary to voice what she was thinking. Finishing the last words of an autopsy he suddenly remembered he was doing, he put the file away and awaited her answer.

Abby searched around the room as if trying to draw strength from something there, however, all there was, was the cold shiny steel of the autopsy draws. The room was as silent as the death within it, the tension was building though, and it had been building in the building all week. When she had been in the bullpen recently she knew that something was going on, usually Tony would tell her everything that was going on. After he hadn't even come down to visit her three days after the dinner party she knew it was something they had done, something she had done.

Guilt crept throughout her, she hadn't meant to hurt her Tony, but she did, and she knew it. She knew that he would feel left out if he wasn't invited but Ziva had just sprung it upon them and they had just assumed that she had asked him as well. She was sad to see that he wasn't there but everyone else was, even Gibbs. Ducky wasn't there but he had been invited,…Tony hadn't even been asked.

She saw him as her best friend, her brother, they were like family and she had hurt him, even though she had promised that she never would. No wonder he hadn't come to her since she thought. He was always there for her when she needed him, and the one time that he truly needed her she…she had just left him and not done anything about the signs she had seen herself. She had seen the look of hurt in his eyes on the night after when they had told him, but had brushed it off, thinking he would get over it like usual.

But…they had all been having a bad time at the moment, some of them were still trying to move on from Kate and having to trust someone new, and get used to the new director. Tony had been there for them all, no matter what, he had lightened the mood when necessary and helped them through it. What had they done when he needed them…Nothing that's what. What made her feel even worse, he had had an even worse time of it lately, he'd been beaten up on the undercover op, lost his partner and even been framed for murder…Now all this; they had only made it worse. And they had smiled almost smugly at him when he realised that he hadn't been invited.

She hated everything she had done since, she knew why his insecurities would come up now, knew because he had trusted her, and knew because he had told her some of his past with his biological family. He needed to be wanted and they had made it look like he wasn't wanted.

"Oh my god Ducky what have we done?" she asked, her voice trembling a little. "He must hate us all." Her eyes glistening with tears as the guilt and fear of him running tore at her. Reaching to embrace her Ducky tried to calm her down.

"I don't believe that he does." She looked at him as if he were made, how can he not hate them. "I think that he believes that somehow that he isn't needed, so is trying to run so he can't hurt us."

"B-but why would he think us not wanting him would cause us to get hurt?" She was confused how could he ever think that he could hurt them.

"I think it is that he thinks he is worthless and has failed in everyone's eyes, you and I both know some of what his own father made him believe regarding failure." Suddenly it all made sense, if he thought he failed then he thought he was weak therefore not believing he was strong enough to protect them, so he would run so he wouldn't get them hurt.

"What can we do Ducky?" she asked.

Before he got a chance to answer, Palmer rushed into the lab telling them of Tony accident. Immediately they were out of the door and on there way. They could only hope that Tony would be okay, by the sounds of it he had managed to get hurt while interviewing a neighbour. Ducky cursed softly thinking that this little accident would only make Tony worse. Palmer was trying to comfort a somewhat distraught Abby; she knew what she had to do but hoped that she had the time to repair the damage they had done to one of their own.

Asking Mr Palmer to say behind he got himself and Abby into his Morgan, it was going to be a long drive but hopefully Tony would still be there when they reached him. It scared them not know what state he was in.

Abby watched the scenery going past with little of her usual enthusiasm, silent tears making tracks down her face. She needed to help Tony, he had to be okay. The questions going around in her head were scary so she tried to ignore them, knowing Gibbs was there this time didn't help though, if he was being his usual bastard self then Tony would run a mile. Though, knowing how much she knew Gibbs cared for Tony she knew that he would do the right thing eventually.

She noticed that it was overcast and a bit lifeless outside; she was suddenly reminded of the image of Tony sick and weak in a hospital bed. She had hated to see him so sick then but….but then she could help. Now….would he even what her help?

TBC

Okay so it was more of a filler chapter, but it just popped into my head and I thought that it may explain a little of his reactions. So who is it that was at the Door in the previous chapter lol you will have to wait until next time hehe. Thanks for reading.