~~~~****~~~~
After a large breakfast Tony and Jethro went outside, it was a crisp day but not too cold. They sat on the patio not really talking. Jethro was still surprised that quit often Tony was quiet. When Tony did finally say something Jethro had to keep from jumping.
"Ziva had an idea earlier."
"What would that be?"
"She wondered if the owners would let us rent the house till the papers went through. Said she was tired of calling over for me." Tony shrugged as if he didn't care one way or the other, but the truth was he wanted to, because then he would be able to sleep with Jethro every night.
"We can call the realtor and ask worst they can say is no. Might ask the others what they think about it."
"Yeah think Abby would be ok and obviously Ziva. Think Tim still needs time to find someone to take over his lease, Jimmy's fine. But we have talk to Ziva though I thought she couldn't get out of hers yet."
"It's Ziva, Tony."
"Yeah what was I thinking?" Tony asked dramatically laying the back of his hand on his forehead.
"Drama much Dinozzo?" Jethro asked lightly tapping the vampires head.
"Well yeah it is me after all."
Jethro chuckled. He had been thinking of something and with Tony mentioning Ziva's idea it was on his mind again.
"How did that Michele find you Tony?"
"I don't know Jethro I didn't ask. I was afraid to honestly. I really didn't want him to know about the rest of you. I couldn't keep him away from Abby since he was there when we got to the apartment. And I sure as hell didn't want him to know that there were five more of you guys. I didn't want Abby to text Tim, but she was being persistent."
"If you move to the house do you think he will show up there?"
"I don't know. I hope not. I need to see if I can contact them or something. I want this finished I guess."
"Do you want to head over there and see if he's there?"
Tony thought for a moment. As much as he wanted to be done with the other hemophages he didn't really want to see Michele again. "Yeah I guess while we wait I can change."
"And grab a bag."
"Am I staying?"
"Yeah you are." Jethro answered.
"Then I'm staying."
~~**~~
There wasn't anyone outside when tony walked to his door, Jethro two steps behind him. Tony was worried that Michele would be in his apartment, but when he found it as they had left it, he let out a sigh.
"I'm gonna hop in the shower. Then I'll pack."
"Works for me." Jethro said sitting on the couch. He picked up a magazine off the coffee table and began to thumb threw it.
Jethro heard the shower start and a knock on the door at pretty much the same time. He shook his head and answered the door with his hand on his gun.
"Michele ."
"I believe Tony called you Boss. Yes?"
"Yes but its Gibbs."
"All right Gibbs than. I will hazard the guess that Tony is the one in the shower."
"Yes so what have you decided?"
"Excuse me?" The blond looked very confused.
"Did you decide if Tony is one of you or not?"
"I believe that is a discussion between he and I…"
"Well save him telling me and tell me yourself because he will tell all of us anyways."
"Mr. Gibbs, I think you are under the mistaken assumption that I answer to you I do not."
Gibbs could see the worry in the French vampire's eyes, he may have 60 years on Gibbs, but he didn't have the combat experience that required the ability to shut down those emotions. After a moment Michele shook his head and said, "Fine Mr. Gibbs."
"Gibbs just Gibbs."
"Gibbs, we have decided that Tony is a new version of us. We would need to see his DNA to confirm it but we think this would explain his ability to drink other than while having intercourse and his ability to drink from either sex. It really has made no sense to anyone of us that we were limited to one sex or to drinking while engaged in sex to start with. The scientists we have hypothesize that it has to do with the emotions that are heightened during sex. But what I have wondered is why it would change our orientation."
"Excuse me?" Gibbs interrupted confused.
Neither had been paying attention to tony so neither heard him walk into the room.
"Michele used to be gay and now can only drink from women and someone else he knows went from skirt chaser to tie chaser."
"Tie chaser?" Gibbs asked with one eyebrow raised.
"Yeah, most men where at least one tie in their lives Gibbs."
Gibbs shook his head and Michele raised a shoulder as if he got the expression but didn't think it was very good.
"Whatever you knew what I meant."
"Only cuz I know you Tony."
"True to true, so what was the verdict?"
"This is why I didn't want to tell you alone Gibbs, now I have to repeat it."
Gibbs just stared and the Frenchman fidgeted and Tony tried like hell not to laugh but in the end, he failed. "Oh my god boss, this is to good it's like watching you in… well you know." Tony didn't want to give away any details really, until he knew for sure what Michele already knew.
"Yeah, I know." Gibbs said.
Michele merely looked angry.
"Gibbs does that to everyone, so get use to it. So what am I?"
"You we think are the new or next generation of hemophages, our scientist would like to have a sample of your DNA to confirm this."
"No."
"Excuse me?"
"I am no one's lab rat."
"It is only one vile of blood."
"No." Tony stalked back to his bedroom and all but slammed the door.
"I do not understand I why would he be…"
Gibbs raised a hand and Michele quieted, "Tony was sick a few years back, actually that what our doctor thinks triggered his, well this." Gibbs said, he didn't want to call it a mutation, but what did you call it.
"When he was sick, he was treated like a walking pin cushion for a long time. Not to mention he has a long-standing hate of the medical community that existed before he got sick."
"May I ask what he was sickened by, it may give a clue for our scientist to watch for in other hemophages."
"If it's his illness that caused his differences, then he is likely to be the only one ever."
"Why we need this information Gibbs."
"He contracted Y. pestis Michele."
"What?" Michele asked he was starting to feel as if that would be a permanent emotion when dealing with one of their newest members.
"The black plague, Tony contracted the black plague about 7 years ago."
"How, wait, no, this does not make any sense."
"Our doctor thinks that about a year ago it tried to reemerge, he thinks that's when Tony's genetic thing kicked in and kicked plague butt. Tony's lungs were damaged during his bout. Now they are like he never had it."
"The plague, amazing." Michele shook his head. "How is it Tony was the only one stricken? It was highly contagious as I understand it."
"Where we work, something like the plague is a possibility. We are prepared for such things."
"You don't want me to know much about him do you?"
"Michele we don't know you, I don't trust people I don't know, and neither does Tony. We take privacy, security, trust, and loyalty very seriously."
Michele nodded in understanding, the hemophages did as well, but he was sure their reasons where not the same as the men's reasons.
"I have a scientist and a doctor of my own, would you be willing to give us a sample of your blood or even a random member that can't be traced?" Gibbs asked.
"We have spent years tracking the genetic marker that cause the hemophagia, I am not sure your people would be able to find it."
"Oh I don't know. I think they would surprise you."
"Let me think on this it, would not be only my call to make."
Gibbs nodded once understanding Michele was not the leader or at least not the only leader.
"Is there some way we can contact each other without you randomly showing up at Tony's apartment ?"
"That can be arranged."
"I don't want you popping up out of the blue either." Gibbs warned.
"No Gibbs I do believe that would not be wise around Tony's family."
"You got that right." Tony said walking back into the room, "I don't want you near any of them."
"Tony we really do mean you no harm." Michele assured the young vampire.
"Look I don't want people I don't know in my life. I want to live it doing my job, taking care of what I need to take care of. I really don't want to be in some group, clan, coven, or whatever you call yourselves. I was only trying to find a way of not fucking my donors into oblivion when I was looking…"
"Tony we understand that, there are some hemophages that are outside of the clan." Michele tipped his head to show which term they used. "We only ask that if they come across someone new they let us know so that we can help them and try to instill into them the understanding of not taking this to the press or any agency that could cause widespread panic."
"Fine I'll give you a vile if you agree to give me a vile and I don't care whose."
"Like I told Gibbs it is not my call, but I will share this with the others and get back to you." Michele stood and pulled a card from his inside pocket. "This is the number of the office. If you ever need anything call there." turning over the card Michele wrote a few number on it and handed it to Tony. That is the extension you can use to speak to me directly."
"Fine." Tony walked to the kitchen wrote down a number and handed it to the vampire. "Call that number when you figure out what you're going to do."
Michele bowed his head and left.
Tony sat down on the couch waiting 'till he figured it was safe to talk to Jethro.
Jethro beat him to the punch. "Whose number did you give him?"
"The burn number Jenny gave me when I was undercover."
"You still have it?" Gibbs asked.
"Yeah I uh I well I had it transferred to another cell when that one got torched in the car."
Gibbs raised an eyebrow asking the question without speaking.
"It seemed like a good idea at the time, I really don't know why I did it, Jethro I it I just did."
"Well we'll chalk it up to a onetime pre-cog flash."
"Sure yeah exactly I saw this moment and knew I would need it like Nicolas Cage in Next."
"Tony." Jethro groaned.
"What I haven't referenced a movie all day."
"And you ruined it."
"I did not."
"You did to."
~~~**~~~