A/N: I apologize for the wait. But I've been swamped with homework and tests and a whole bunch of stuff that makes me yearn for Christmas break. Cause this semester was CRAZY. So crazy that I have to DVR NCIS and wait till the weekend to watch them. I know. SADNESS. Anyway, this chapter's a bit longer than normal to tide you over until the next chapter, which will more than likely not be up until finals are over. However, I appreciate all the love and reviews and yes, when you get to the end of this chapter, many of you are gonna wanna throw tomatoes at me. However, just remember, if I die by tomatoe-induced drowning, then no one will ever post the next chapter. Okay, now off you go, go read. -runs and hides-

Chapter Thirty Two

It's quiet now.

But that's only cause it got really really loud, for a long time.

Cause this is what happened.

I went to therapy, like I always do and Jack took me cause he wanted to come.

Therapy was okay and PT was hard but OT makes me frustrated sometimes because I have to do different sort of things with my good hand which is hard because if though my good hand is good, it still isn't like it was before I broke my head. PT is about making me stronger and making my bad side better which is good cause my bad side needs to get stronger so I can get better but OT makes me write and tie my shoes and button my shirts and all sorts of stuff that my fingers don't like to do.

Baron was there, cause he comes everywhere with me, and Jack held his leash until I was done. After I was done, I went home but I was frustrated and I don't know if Boss knew cause when we got home, his shoulders were hunched like how I get when I'm frustrated.

I asked him about it, but he shook his head before giving me a big strong hug even though I probably smelled gross cause I was still stinky PT and OT.

But he said something that sounded really sad and I wasn't sure what he said cause he gave me one last hug and then went to the kitchen to make dinner.

I asked Jack about it but he shook his head so I took my shower and got in bed with Baron cause I remembered Jack and Elijah telling me I was gonna have to wake up really early the next morning.

It was super early when I woke up, and I had to wear those nice clothes Jack got for me and I didn't like them cause the tie made my neck feel funny and I didn't even get to wear my blue beanie, the one Ziva made for me. But I put the blue beanie in my pocket, just in case I got to wear it later.

Baron got to get dressed up too cause Jack helped me brush his coat and put on his blue vest just right.

Then we went to this building and I had to sit for hours outside the doors with Jack.

I thought it was gonna go on until it was time to eat lunch but then the doors to where everyone else had been walking into slammed opened.

And that's when the noise begun.

It's been an hour already and can feel his patience wearing thin.

"Special Agent Gibbs, based off the following criteria, I believe Mr. DiNozzo has a case," Senior's attourney said, looking at Gibbs over his reading glasses, "From what he has brought here today, I see that he was not notified when you initially filed for guardianship. Why is that?"

"At the time, I had no idea where Mr. DiNozzo was nor did I care to look for him. For as long as I've known Tony, Mr. DiNozzo has only been around once or twice. When he was injured, I already had his power of attorney. It seemed only right that I ensure that Tony was taken care off."

"I see," Senior's attourney nodded, opening a case file, "You Honor, if I may, I will be reading Anthony DiNozzo Sr's desposition. I quote: "I know it is true that I was not around often. My work takes me all over the country. Junior understood that and we talked quite frequently on the phone. When Tony was injured, I was out of the country and as I stated earlier, was not informed of my son's accident. However, once I heard, I came back as soon as I could" end quote."

The judge nodded, indicating for Senior's attorney to continue.

"Well as you know, it took my client a week or two to figure out what was happening with his son. But by the time he tried to see him, Mr. Gibbs already had guardianship and he was not allowed to visit."

The attorney paused and faced Gibbs again, "Did you deny Mr. DiNozzo access to his son Special Agent Gibbs?"

"No sir," Gibbs scowled, "When Mr. DiNozzo came back into town, about three months after Tony's accident, Mr. DiNozzo asked that I turn over Tony's care to him. It was that request that I refused."

"Why? You realize how odd it is, for a former employer to apply for guardianship, a role that is most often taken by the family which in this case would be Mr. DiNozzo."

"I didn't trust him. As far as I knew, Tony hadn't even spoken to his father for at least two or three months before the accident. And Mr. DiNozzo can be…well, I just didn't trust him with Tony."

"But he is Tony's father and as I understand it, Tony had a relationship with his father, whether or not it was a perfect relationship. And according to his deposition, Mr. DiNozzo saw Tony the night of the accident."

That revelation made Gibbs, as well as the rest of his family and friends, take in a breath.

"What?"

"That's all the questions I have for Mr. Gibbs your honor. I would now like to call Anthony DiNozzo Senior to speak, if I may."

Gibbs, who was still slightly shell shocked, stood from the stand and watched as Senior was sworn in and took his seat next to the judge.

"Mr. DiNozzo, please explain what happened the night before Tony's accident," Senior's attorney indicated for Senior to speak.

"I had," Mr. DiNozzo cleared his throat and used his hand to smooth down his hair before continuing. The move was so much like Tony that it made the hair on Gibbs' arms stand on end.

"We met at a bar, I believe the name was Irving's, right off Athena the night of Junior's accident. I had flown in that afternoon. I had a potential busy meeting in Italy and I was going to be gone for an extended amount of time. I came to visit Tony one last time. We…we had been working on mending our relationship. We were calling each other, talking much more than we had been, as my phone records would indicate. Anyway, that night, I was flying out on a red eye to New York to take care of some last minute details before leaving the country. Junior knew I was going to be gone so I told him that I would call him as soon as I could and not to worry. That was part of the reason I didn't realize he had been hurt until I contacted his old landlady."

The attorney nodded, wanting Mr. DiNozzo to continue. Gibbs was still in mild shock and could feel his gut churning. Tony had met with his dad the night of the accident. They had never figured out why Tony had gone out that night but-

"Your Honor," Senior turned minutely towards the judge before turning back towards his attorney, " Please understand. I am not at all displeased with what Mr. Gibbs has done for my son. When Junior became a cop, we decided as a family that he would always listed someone local, someone he trusted, as his power of attorney. I travel frequently and I never wanted to hurt my son with my inability to be there for him because of my travels. And I know I am not a perfect father. But just because I made one crucial mistake does not mean that I am not still my son's father. I have tried my best to stay current on what Tony has been going through and I have even purchased a home and made it fully accessible for Tony in Virginia, about an hour or so outside of D.C. I am not in this to gain from anything, and as you can see based on my financial standings that thanks to my business deal in Italy, I have more than enough means to financially provide for my son. It's true, that I have made some risky moves in the past with my money but after Tony's injury, I made sure that I managed my money to the point that I am financially stable and financially capable of taking care of my son. Just because Mr. Gibbs has a personal opinion of me shouldn't mean I shouldn't be able to see, or take care of my son."

"That is all your Honor," Senior's attorney said after a few moments of silence. Senior waited until the judge allowed him to stand before making his way back to sit next to his lawyer.

The judge nodded and continued to look through the papers in front of him.

"Tony was given a court appointed guardian ad litem a few weeks ago. Since then, she has been making observations and as you both know, she was the one who visited each of your homes and talk to the ward, Tony, as well. Because Tony has been declared incompentant, I will listen to her advice concerning Tony and both of you. Ms. Nemec, could you please come forward and speak."

Ms. Nemec, who didn't look the least bit nervous to be in front of the judge, smiled before turning to both attorneys.

"My name is Ms. Nemec and I was appointed Anthony DiNozzo Junior's court appointed guardian when DiNozzo Senior filed to regain guardianship for his son. I would like to begin by saying that Tony, who all he had gone through, is a very well-adjusted young man. He is very comfortable with Mr. Gibbs and his aid, Mr. Brooks as well as his former team, who he sees as a pseudo-family of sorts. However, what worries me is the instability Tony must contend with in concern towards Mr. Gibbs' jobs. While I admire his efforts greatly, Mr. Gibbs is not home for many hours of the day, often leaving Tony's care to his aid, Elijah Brooks. Also, Mr. Gibbs does not have a clear cut work schedule, and when questioned, not even Tony knows exactly when his guardian is going to be home or not.

"When I spoke to Tony in concerns of his father, Tony did not show one hint of suspicion or caution when I asked him if he would like to live with his father. While Tony's memory is shaky at best, Tony has a few fond memories of his father and overall, he speaks of his father with a very loving tone. That's not to say though, that Tony believes his father is perfect. However, in the small reunion I witnessed earlier this month, as well as Tony's interactions with his father before this hearing, I believe that Tony feels safe and comfortable around his father, and his father's head of staff, Sal Costa. I do not believe it would be majorly detrimental for Tony if Mr. DiNozzo did or did not receive custody of him."

And with that, Ms. Nemec stepped off the stand. The court room was engulfed in silence, as both parties waited for the judge to say something. After two minutes of looking the files in front of him, the judge sighed and nodded his head.

"Based off the evidence in front of me, Special Agent Gibbs you failed to follow the set guidelines for requesting guardianship. However," he held up his hand when Gibbs' attorney made a move to open his mouth, "From what I can see, Tony has not suffered in the least while in your care. Be that as it may however, whatever is decided today will be under a conditional agreement, until this case can be reviewed at a later date."

The judge sighed once more before speaking his verdict and banging his gavel.

The first court day was over.

"Tony," Gibbs said, lifting Tony up and giving him a big hug, "Everything's going to be okay alright? Everything's going to be just fine, you watch. Pretty soon, this will all be back to normal and you'll never have to wear these uncomfortable clothes again."

"Blue. Boss, what- I don't- Boss. What's wrong? Why are you crying? Boss," Tony's voice took on a note of sheer panic as he observed the tears gather in his Boss' eyes, "Boss. Stop it. Stop. What happened? Why did the doors make so much noise? Abby," Tony whined, fisting his good hand around Baron's leash, "What happened? Why are you sad? What's happening? I don't- Make it stop. Why-I don't like it. Stop. Boss, stop!" Tony gently shoved Gibbs in the shoulder when he wouldn't answer his questions.

"Tony, your dad is here," Gibbs said, gently taking Tony's hands in his own, "You said hi to him before the trial, do you remember that?"

Tony, who was approaching the point of being inconsolable, shook his head and tried to move away from Gibbs, "Stop. Stop. It's moving too fast Boss. Too fast. Shhh. Shhh. Stop. Stop. Stop."

"Tony," Gibbs said, squeezing Tony's hand until Tony looked at him, "Your dad is here. Do you remember?"

Tony shook his head before scowling, "Stop. Yes. Yes, my dad is here. I said hi to him and gave him a hug before you went in to those big doors."

"Okay Tony," Gibbs nodded, "Okay. Well we went behind those big doors to figure out who you get to stay with."

Tony shook his head, "But. But. But I stay with you Boss. Why…why?"

"Tony, your dad wanted you to stay with him too," Gibbs said, knowing his time was short. Tony would have to…would have to-

"Like Jack stays with you?" Tony tried to understand what was going on but it was too loud and too fast and something was wrong with everything, "Like that?"

"Yes, sorta like that," Gibbs nodded, "So the judge, the guy who we went to talk to, he decided that you should stay with your dad for awhile. Okay?"

"Like…like you and Jack?" Tony said again, rubbing his eyes. They hurt cause he was sad and he didn't even know why he was sad. He liked his dad. His dad was nice. But why was Boss sad? Did something happen? Was Tony's head broken again?

"Boss," Tony said again, "Why are you sad? Why is everyone sad? I don't understand. I want it to stop Boss. I want to leave now in our truck."

"We can't Tony," Gibbs brushed his fingers through Tony's hair, "You have to go with your dad right now. Not with me."

Tony looked at Gibbs for a few minutes after that before blinking and nodding his head, "Okay. Okay. Okay Boss. That's okay. Dad has a truck, not a car. I can ride in a truck."

"Tony-" Gibbs went to ask Tony how he knew Senior had a truck but was interrupted when his lawyer moved him aside.

"He has to go now Gibbs," Danny whispered, "Mr. DiNozzo's lawyer said they'll be by later today to pick up anything Tony might need. Elijah's already given Mr. DiNozzo all of Tony's medications as well as the schedule of when he should take them."

"But," Gibbs shook his head, suddenly feeling as if someone was purposely ripping out the last part of his heart, "When will we see Tony again?"

Danny shrugged, "That's up to Mr. DiNozzo now. The next court date is in two months, sooner if I can get the appeal to go through quicker. Don't worry Gibbs. I haven't given up yet."

"Tony!" a voice called out, stopping all the conversation in its tracks.

"Dad!" Tony said, his face lightening up when he saw his father standing a bit farther down the hall, "Dad, hi! You're here!"

Senior smiled and took a few steps to meet his son in the middle of the hallway, "Tony my boy, you look better all the time."

"Blue. Truck. Dad," Tony shook his head and smiled at him but frowned after a moment, his anxiety from earlier still making him nervous, "Am I going with you now?"

"Yes Tony, you get to come with me," Senior nodded, "Is that okay?"

Tony looked at Boss, who still looked sad, but Boss smiled at him and a smile meant that everything was okay. And besides, Tony loved his dad. He wanted to go with him.

"Tony, son? Is it okay if you come with me now?" Tony's dad asked again when his son failed to answer.

Tony shook his head and smiled, focusing on the person in front of him, "Yeah dad. That's okay."

It was really loud today. But then my dad was there and it got really quiet which was good cause when its loud I can't think and my brain tries to move faster than it should and that's when I get hurt or frustrated.

But I'm with my dad now. And my dad's house it really really nice. It's big and he's got lots of space to walk and look and I'm not really sure but I think I heard horses when Sal stopped the truck right by the house.

But it was my nap time and I went to sleep because I was tired now that everything was slow and I got to take off my nice clothes which hurt my neck cause they just do that.

Baron likes the new house cause after I woke up, me and him went outside with my dad and because its starting to get warm again, we walked around the house and even into the barn that my dad has.

When I was small, my dad really liked horses. He likes them a lot I think, cause he has two of them.

I didn't want to get to close to them cause Baron didn't want to get close and I told Dad that I wanted to go back inside.

My room is really nice. It's blue like my room with Boss but it's bigger and the bed is really nice.

I don't even have to climb up stairs to get to my room and Dad bought a bed for Baron but Baron doesn't use it cause he just sleeps with me in my bed.

And Dad's still helping me with my secret. Only it's not that much of a secret cause my dad's the one that's helping me with it. Which is good cause I wouldn't be able to do it by myself.

But it was a loud day.

I'm just glad it's quiet now.