This is being written in collaboration with my talented friend nightchild78. We are having fun bouncing ideas off each other, and sharing in the excitement of watching this story unfold!

Special thanks to Rose Malmaison for making the image to go along with this fic!

Categories: NCIS/Torchwood

Rating: M

Characters: Tony DiNozzo, Leroy Jethro Gibbs, Abby Sciuto, Tim McGee, Ziva David, Dr Donald Mallard, Jimmy Palmer / Jack Harkness, Ianto Jones, Toshiko Sato, Owen Harper.

Pairings: Tony/Gibbs, Jack/Ianto, Tosh/Owen.

Warnings: Swearing, slash, Mpreg, explicit sexual situations.

Spoilers: Set during the 6th season of NCIS and after Children of Earth for Torchwood. Mentions of the episodes SWAK, Boxed In, Hiatus Part 2, Escaped, Singled Out, Bury Your Dead, Chimera and Requiem for NCIS and for the episodes Cyberwoman, To the Last Man, Dead Man Walking, A Day In the Death, Exit Wounds as well as the whole of season 3 of Torchwood. Miracle Day never happened.

Disclaimer: We don't own these characters. We just like to play with them.

(Author's note: I would once again like to invite you to join my new Tony-centric LiveJournal community, being Tony DiNozzo. (beingtonyd) A place for fan fiction, discussion, and just sharing our love of this very Special Agent! I hope to see you there! )

RENASCENCE RENASCENCE RENASCENCE

Tony stared up at Gibbs, unsure just what to make of him anymore. He saw genuine love and concern in those steely blue eyes. Yet, until just hours ago, he was barely treating him like a human being. Not an adult one, anyway.

Thoughts and emotions overwhelmed Tony and, as Gibbs manipulated Tony's body - his fat, freakish, useless body - so that they were facing each other, Tony found his voice.

"J-Jet-wo."

Tony cringed at his baby-like speech, averting his eyes from Gibbs' gaze.

"Hey." Gibbs cupped Tony's cheek, staring at him intently. "I'm proud of you," he cooed.

Tony forced himself to once again look at Gibbs. Despite what Gibbs had just said, he couldn't be sure if the older man was gazing at him with pride or pity.

Tony just shook his head as he turned away, stifling a sob.

"Shh...it's okay," Gibbs whispered calmly, a hand gently resting on Tony's cheek, coaxing the pregnant man to once again look at him.

Tony's breathing slowly steadied, and he felt Gibbs' hand lovingly brush his cheek in a comforting gesture.

"You're doing so well, Tony. Taking such good care of our baby."

Tony once again shook his head.

"Oos-yess."

Tony hated the way he sounded. So awkward and babyish.

"No. No, you're not useless, Tony", Gibbs soothed, giving Tony's arm a reassuring squeeze before he proceeded to massage his belly. "You're providing a home for our baby to grow. And you're doing a great job. Do you realize that in spite of all you have been through, she has never experienced any fetal distress? Right now, she has all that she needs inside your womb. You may feel powerless, but you are sustaining a life, inside your body. How many other men born in the 20th century do you know who can do that?"

Tony's muffled sobs had died down to whimpers. He brought his hand down to touch Gibbs'. Their hands now resting on Tony's belly, the baby's lively kicks seemed to punctuate Gibbs' reassuring words.

"Right now, there is no one who is more important than you," Gibbs told Tony. Wiping away Tony's tears, Gibbs then left warm kisses where the tears has been, as if to somehow soothe his lover.

"I have a feeling I'm gonna have to throw out rule number 6 entirely when it comes to you, Tony," Gibbs sighed. "Because there's a lot I need to apologize for. Tony, I'm sorry I've been such a bastard to you over the years. I'm sorry for all of the hurtful comments I've made. I'm sorry for not appreciating all that you contribute to the team. And I'm sorry...I'm sorry I never bothered to notice how much you're hurting." Gibbs finished, his voice shaking.

Tony blinked, trying to make sense of what had just happened. Gibbs has just apologized. He had just done a lot of apologizing! What was happening? The handsome and caring older man in front of him looked like Gibbs. But he sure as hell didn't sound like him.

"Jet-wo?" Tony reached a shaking hand out to touch Gibbs' face. The touch was weak. As if a very small child were trying to comfort their parent. But Tony was a fully grown man, simply trying to make sense of a perplexing scene.

Gibbs latched onto the hand touching his face, kissing it. "Tony, I can't promise I won't screw up again. I probably will," Gibbs admitted. " But I'm gonna do my best from now on to take better care of you. I really don't wanna hurt you again."

"Yuh..." Tony began, stopping himself almost as soon as the sound left his mouth.

"What is it, Tony?" Gibbs asked patiently, noting Tony's frustration.

Tony shook his head. He couldn't speak again. He would only sound foolish.

Gibbs leaned in, kissing Tony's trembling lips. "Tony, your speech doesn't need to be perfect. I just want to hear what you have to say," Gibbs encouraged. He hoped that Tony knew there would be no judgement from him. Only love.

Looking back up at Gibbs, Tony slowly, hesitantly concentrated, forcing the words out of his mouth.

"Yuh..yuv you," he finally said, grimacing at the sound.

Gibbs' smile couldn't be any bigger as he heard the words escape Tony's lips, and a mixture of relief and pride washed over him. "I love you too," he said, giving Tony one more kiss before rolling him back over onto his side and positioning the pregnancy pillow between his arms and legs.

Wrapping his arm around Tony, Gibbs circled his lover's belly, enveloping Tony in the warmth of his love.

Sighing contentedly, Tony's eyes fluttered shut, and it wasn't long before both men were sleeping peacefully.

RENASCENCE RENASCENCE RENASCENCE

Monday morning was all about choices for Tony. Gibbs, Jack, Ianto, Tosh and Owen wanted to making sure that Tony felt he had at least a little control over his life. While he was unable to care for himself, he could still voice his preferences, thanks to the "talk tech", as Tony called it, that Tosh had so generously designed for him. And this new found freedom of expression gave Tony hope in a life that had made him feel far too helpless recently.

Sitting in front of the full length mirror. Tony examined his reflection. His first choice of the day had been to select an outfit for himself. Dressed in a light blue jumper and a pair of surprisingly stylish navy blue sweatpants, Tony was reminded what a kind and devoted friend Ianto was. The Welshman had sewn zippers into the side of all of Tony's pants, so that he could wear them over his catheter. It must have been a lot of work, and taken a lot of care. Unless one looked really closely, they wouldn't mistake the zipper for anything other than a seam.

Still, Tony couldn't help feeling a bit mournful any time he caught sight of himself. Large and round, hooked up to the oxygen tank attached to his wheelchair, he didn't recognize himself anymore. He felt hideous! When did he become such a helpless freak? Such a burden to everyone around him? Tony had been taking care of himself since he was 12. He had never needed anyone before and hated being at the mercy of others. And he was sure they would much rather be doing just about anything than taking care of him.

Tony noted the concerned expressions on Gibbs, Jack and Ianto's faces. They were the ones responsible for Tony's basic care. The bathing, dressing and so on. They were the only ones he felt comfortable enough to entrust those responsibilities to. Tony didn't want to add to their burden by letting on how sad he was. So he painted on a smile and typed a request into his device.

[ "I want breakfast." ]

Ianto nodded, smiling as he observed the proud look on Tony's face. "Would you like to select today's menu," he asked.

[ "Yes." ]

Jack and Ianto exchanged glances as Gibbs wheeled Tony away and they all made their way to meet Tosh and Owen in the kitchen. Tony seemed so much happier now that he could be included in conversations again. His language may not be perfect. Even when using the device, he couldn't always structure sentences properly. It took him a lot of effort, but at least he was able to get his thoughts across, even if they were often simple.

Once in the kitchen, Ianto and Tosh laid out various foods on the table, asking Tony to select what they should make for breakfast. Eventually, through a combination of hand motions and his talk tech, he selected bagels, eggs and orange juice. Narrowing it down to specifics, he was able to tell them that he wanted the eggs scrambled, and the bagels buttered.

As he watched Ianto and Tosh cook, while Gibbs, Jack and Owen looked after him, Tony felt gratitude wash over him. Just the day before, he had been so angry and frustrated. Tosh's talk tech helped to change that. Yes, the frustration was still present, but to a far lesser degree. Tony was being included again. Surrounded by people who cared about him, he tried to remind himself that they were doing the very best they could to better help and understand him.

Once breakfast was prepared, feeding Tony was a joint effort. Though Tony was unable to grasp food between his fingers very well, once Gibbs placed it in his hand, he was able to get it into his mouth. Often with a bit of mess. Sometimes he even missed. But nobody dared take away any bit of the minimal self sufficiency that Tony still had left. Moreover, it seemed that he was less clumsy with every new attempt, which was rather encouraging.

Drinks, and food that required the use of utensils, were fed to Tony.

After everyone had finished eating, Tony decided to take the initiative and made a suggestion for the next morning activity.

"Ba-by," he said softly, as Jack wiped some crumbs off of his chin.

Everyone turned their attention to Tony in surprise. Apart from Gibbs, the others had not yet heard Tony's attempts at speech.

"What about the baby?" Jack asked, looking up.

Tony decided to challenge himself further. He'd just have to get over his own self conscious embarrassment if he was ever going to speak again.

"Nah...mmm..." Tony screwed up his face in concentration, trying not to let his frustration get the better of him.

"Nah-mmm ba-by."

"You want to name the baby?" Jack guessed.

Tony nodded.

Gibbs sat down on the other side of Tony, smiling patiently. "Sure. We can do that today," Gibbs said agreeably. "Did you have a name in mind?"

Once again, Tony nodded. "Imm...Immi...jee..." Tony thrashed slightly, frustrated at his mind and mouth for betraying him.

Coming up behind Tony's wheelchair, Tosh gently put her hand over his, guiding it to the talk tech. "It's okay, Tony. Just be patient with yourself. Use this to tell us," she told him warmly, putting his hand on the device.

With a grateful smile, Tony glanced up and Tosh and nodded before typing out his response.

[ "Imogen." ]

"Imogen? That's a lovely name!" Ianto exclaimed, gently squeezing Tony's shoulder. "What made you choose it?"

Tony remained silent for moment, seeming to ponder his answer before he slowly typed on the screen.

[ "Sister." ]

"Sister? Whose sister?" Tosh asked.

[ "Mine." ]

"But I thought you were an only child," Gibbs said, perplexed.

Tony bit his bottom lip, as he blinked back the tears welling up in his eyes.

[ "Imogen gone." ]

No one was quite sure how to respond. Tony seemed genuinely upset, as if he were remembering something painful. But none of them, not even Gibbs, knew anything about Tony having a sister.

[ "I want alone. I want sleep." ]

"But Tony, you only just woke up - " Owen began.

[ "Sleep." ]

No one argued with him, though it seemed obvious that his need for sleep had nothing to do with his wish to be left alone. Lately, Tony's moods seemed to shift dramatically from one moment to the next and, though he had chosen the name Imogen for the baby, something about it seemed to remind him of an unhappy time in his life.

"All right," Jack finally agreed, exchanging a look with Gibbs. "Jethro and I will take you to bed.

As Jack and Gibbs wheeled Tony away, Tosh set her laptop on the table.

"It seems I need to dig further into Tony's background,"she said. She had managed to pull up Tony's personal health history, and she'd read up on Tony's parents. But she hadn't seen anything about a sibling, and she had never thought to look into it, simply trusting what she had been told.

※

Several minutes later, Gibbs and Jack returned to find the mood of the room somber.

"What's going on?" Jack asked, taking a seat next to Ianto at the table.

Tosh reached across the table and squeezed Jack's hand, smiling sadly at him.

"You would have had a granddaughter, Jack. Your daughter, Annabelle, also gave birth to a little girl, whose name was, as you must have guessed, Imogen. But...unfortunately, the child was stillborn. She never had a chance...Tony was only 5 years old when it happened."

Jack sat in silence, taking in this new information. He had never had the chance to know Imogen, just as he had never known her mother - his own daughter. But the bond of family could still be felt. The loss of not knowing still affected Jack. More importantly, the trauma Annabelle had suffered in losing this child had clearly left a lasting impression on young Tony, if the fact that he had never spoken of her to anybody was any indication of it.

"Jack? Are you all right?" a concerned Ianto asked, pulling his body close to Jacks, and practically sitting in the older man's lap as he looked at him with worry.

Jack looked up at Ianto, smiling, though his eyes were brimming with tears.

"Yeah," he said, his voice breathy. "But I think I'm overdue for another heart to heart with my grandson."

RENASCENCE RENASCENCE RENASCENCE

5 year old Tony paused in the doorway to the hospital room, waiting to see if his father was going to follow him inside. But the elder DiNozzo remained a few steps behind him. He looked annoyed and uncomfortable, his face frozen in a stormy mask. Simply mumbling something about having to make an important business call, he left the little boy alone see his mother.

Tony just stood at the door for a minute, unsure of how to proceed. Though he was too young to fully understand what was happening, Tony was a clever enough boy to know something was wrong. Very wrong. And his father's attitude wasn't to be expected from a "normal" dad.

His mother, unaware she was being watched, was crying softly. He'd never seen his mommy cry before. She was always the one to comfort him when he was sad. Seeing her like this, Tony felt afraid. Only something really bad could make his mommy cry.

"Mommy?" Tony called to her, his voice small and uncertain.

Annabelle looked up, smiling at her son through her tears. "Tony. Come here, baby," she urged, patting the small space next to her on the bed, just big enough for a young child to fit.

Tony climbed onto the bed beside Annabelle, clinging to her protectively. She always held him and gave him comfort when he was sad. Today, he was going to do the same for her.

"Where's the baby?" Tony asked, looking up at his mother as she pulled him close, wrapping her arms lovingly around him.

"Baby Imogen is with the angels, Tony," Annabelle said thickly, while hurriedly trying to wipe her damp cheeks with the back of her hand.

"Why, mommy?" Tony asked, blinking. "Why did Imogen go with the angels? Is she mad at us?"

"No, baby." Annabelle kissed the top of Tony's head, running her fingers through his light hair. "Baby Imogen is going to help the angels watch over us and keep us safe."

"Oh." Tony reached his tiny hand up to his mother's cheek, wiping away one forgotten stray tear. "Did Imogen make you cry?" he asked, almost angrily. He hated to see his mommy sad.

Annabelle laughed softly, in an attempt to reassure Tony. "No, baby. I'm okay. Now I have two angels with me. One in heaven, and one here on earth."

"Who's your angel on earth, mommy?" Tony asked, looking up with big, wondering eyes.

"You are, sweetie," Annabelle replied, giving her son an affectionate squeeze.

Tony smiled proudly. Then a thought occurred to him. "Mommy, if I'm an angel, why am I here, and not in heaven with the other angels?"

"Because this is where I need you, baby," Annabelle said lovingly.

"Mommy? Is Imogen staying with the angels?"

"Yes, Tony" Annabelle sighed. "She is."

"Not me," Tony said importantly, snuggling deeper into his mother's embrace. "I'm staying with mommy!"

"And I'm staying with you, baby," Annabelle promised. "Even when we're not together, I'll always be right here. "She lightly tapped Tony's chest. "In your heart."