Author's Note: Thanks so much for reading! I really appreciate the reviews!
"It's late, Tony," Tim said as he unwrapped the fingers from his arm.
"One more game," Tony begged, trying unsuccessfully to pull him back toward the kitchen table where they had spent the latter part of their evening playing Operation.
"Nope, I've extracted my last bone," he insisted.
"As have I," Ziva added.
"And I must admit, Anthony, that the game seems a bit too much like work for me," Ducky smiled as he placed his hat atop his head. "And morning will be here before you know it, and I shall have to report to work."
"Say goodnight, Tony," Gibbs instructed, opening the front door for their guests.
Tony's lower lip pushed out a bit, and his arms crossed over his chest.
With one hand holding the door, Gibbs reached over with the other and rubbed Tony's shoulders. "Tony…"
"All right," he sighed, and then allowed a small smile to creep over his face. Nothing kept him down for long. "But you guys'll come back real soon, right?"
"Of course, we will, Anthony. I still have several stories to tell you. For instance, there was one time when -"
"Oh, look what time it is, Ducky," Tim exclaimed, glancing at his watch. "And tomorrow is a workday."
"Yes, yes, it is. Goodnight, Anthony, Jethro. Thank you both for a lovely evening."
"Super, coolo lovely," Abby expanded, leaning over and placing a kiss on Tony's cheek. "You totally rock with those shoelaces."
Tony rubbed a hand over his cheek, scrubbing at the smudge of dark lipstick, but he grinned at her. He liked Abby a lot, even if she was a girl.
"See ya' soon, dude," she promised, tucking her arm through Ducky's and heading toward the driveway.
"It was very nice," Ziva agreed. "I enjoyed it very much."
"Me, too, Boss. Tony, we'll catch more fireflies next time."
"And then will let 'em fly away, like we did this time, right Tim?"
He nodded. "Absolutely. Catch 'em and set 'em free. That's the way you do it."
"G'night," Tony murmured, leaning into the arm that Gibbs had wrapped around him.
A soft whisper of goodnights echoed back, and then they were in their cars and rolling out of the driveway.
Gibbs pulled Tony back inside and closed the door, making sure to turn the deadbolt into place. He was protecting more than himself these days. He rubbed his hand over the back of Tony's head. "Did you have a good time, Buddy?"
"Yeah."
"You tired?"
"Um-um," Tony admitted. "Can I have another cookie?"
Gibbs rolled his eyes. "No. You had four, which was two too many already."
"Please," he begged softly, trying to steer in the direction of the kitchen.
"I said no," Gibbs reiterated, pushing him back toward the bedrooms. "It's time to get in your pajamas and brush your teeth and go to bed. Can I trust you to get ready while I go finish in the kitchen?"
He felt the shoulders under his arm shrug and Tony nodded. "Yeah, you can trust me, Boss."
"I know I can, Buddy. I'll be there in a few minutes."
Tony continued down the hall to his room, and Gibbs stopped off in the kitchen. He cleared the Operation game from the table, started the dishwasher, and turned off the lights. By the time he reached Tony's bedroom, Tony had undressed and put on his pajama pants. He was in the process of pulling on the Spiderman t-shirt that he liked to sleep in. Gibbs reached down and picked up the discarded pair of jeans and polo shirt from where they lay strewn in the middle of the floor. He folded the jeans and put them on the chair in the corner. He dropped the polo shirt in the laundry basket in the closet.
"You can wear these same jeans to school tomorrow," he said, backing out of the closet. "And this shirt." He draped a white button-down shirt over the back of the chair.
"Okay, Boss," Tony agreed, heading down the hall to the master bedroom. Although there was a perfectly good bathroom across from his room, Tony insisted on keeping his toothbrush in Gibbs' bathroom. Once Gibbs had mentioned that fact to Ducky, only to earn a simple "The family that brushes together, stays together." Gibbs followed him to his bedroom and stripped out of his own clothes while Tony was brushing his teeth. He threw on a pair of sweatpants and an old t-shirt then joined him at the bathroom sink.
"Scoot over," he said, bumping Tony with his hip as he reached for his own toothbrush.
Tony tried to grin around the Batman toothbrush that was in his mouth. He bumped him back. "You… scoo over," he mumbled.
"Don't talk and brush at the same time."
Tony pulled the brush from his mouth and spit in the sink. "You do."
"Do nah," Gibbs insisted even as he did.
"Do too," Tony shot back.
"Nah."
"Too."
"Nah."
"Too." And then he began to giggle and wouldn't stop until Gibbs put down his toothbrush and rinsed his mouth. He handed Tony a paper cup of water.
"Rinse and spit," he instructed. And Tony did.
"Bedtime." Gibbs pushed him back along the hallway to his room.
"Read."
"Not tonight. It's too late."
"Story."
Gibbs smiled. "A short one."
Tony pushed back the covers on his bed and climbed in. Gibbs pulled the sheet up over him, and then sat down on the edge of the bed.
"A story about what?" he asked.
And Tony turned over on his side, burrowing his head close to Gibbs' knee. "About Kelly," he whispered. "Kelly and the angels."
~vVv~