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Gibbs was very quiet on the drive to Tony’s apartment. His mind racing and trying not to implode over the revelation that he was in love with Tony. He remembered being a lot like Tony when he was younger, when he hadn’t seen quite as many horrors and brutalities. He thought about meeting Tony in Baltimore and remembered being impressed by his natural investigative talents. But it was his personality and this light that seemed to emanate from him that drew Gibbs to him. And at the time the only way that Gibbs knew how to keep that light around him was to recruit Tony for his team. He smiled faintly as he drove, remembering the look on Tony’s face when he asked him to join his team, the beautiful smile and pure lighthearted joy illuminating his face.
Through the years he had seen a wide range of Tony’s smiles, but none had ever come close to that one. And though he had seen Tony happy, nothing ever seemed to bring that joy back to him. Gibbs rested his elbow on the car door as he drove, unconsciously rubbing his lips with his finger. His mind just wandering.
Gibbs was soldier, he was supposed to be able to accept losing men around him, but every time Tony was hurt or in danger, his heart would simply slam up against his ribs and stay there twisting in agony until Tony was safe again. He thought back to Tony’s battle with y-pestis. In the end Tony had almost lost that battle. When he had gone in to the isolation unit and had seen Tony bathed in that blue light he wanted to die himself if it would have saved Tony. And he remembered that there was flood of things he had wanted to say to Tony, to tell him how much he really meant to him, to tell him that he wanted to see him smile again, but in the end none of those things would come out and all he could do was tell him not to die and hope that somehow Tony knew all the things he just couldn’t say. And when he had touched him, he had willed some of his strength to pass to Tony, not realizing that it did.
He had never felt so helpless as that until now.
Gibbs was lost in his own thoughts and did not see the look that passed between Hades and Hecate in the backseat. He did not realize that his emotions were so strong that he was projecting everything he was thinking and feeling to them. He promised himself that this time he would tell Tony and pray that he returned some of the same feelings. He didn’t want to think what they would do if he didn’t.
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They arrived at Tony’s apartment building and got out, preparing to head upstairs. And Hades asked Gibbs with a jerk of his head, “A moment, Gibbs.”
Hecate shot Hades a look that he promptly ignored. The two men stepped away from the women and Hades met Gibbs’ eyes, “I have seen many things in my long stretch of days, Gibbs. And I learned long, long ago not to judge the measure of man by mere appearances, but rather by his actions and what lies in his heart. What you feel for Tony is good, and right. And though in this world…” he gestured broadly with his hand, “the love you have for him may be harshly judged by those with small minds and stony hearts never doubt in it. Some of the greatest loves I have had were found not in the soft arms of a woman but in the strong embrace of man.”
Gibbs swallowed roughly, “Why are you telling me this?”
“Because right now your heart and mind are screaming in conflict to all those around you. And there is a part of your mind that wants to run away from what this all means in shame. And I wanted you to hear from one warrior to another that there is no shame in loving Tony. What would be shameful is to be gifted a soul mate and to walk away from the purity of that bond. And make no mistake. You are bonded to him and have been for lifetime after lifetime. May I show you?”
Gibbs regarded the man in front of him, all traces of the cocky demeanor had vanished back in the basement and he now realized that he was in fact in the presence of a god. And this god was in his own way, giving him a blessing. And Gibbs found himself very much wanting to see what Hades wanted to show him. “Please.”
Hades raised his hands palm up, in a stance that was now familiar to Gibbs, who asked, “What does that mean?”
“Acceptance of who I am, what I am, and all that I can do.”
And though he suspected that there was more to it than that, there was a deep finality in those words that Gibbs just accepted and he placed in hands in Hades.
He was not prepared for the flood of images and sensations that hit him. It was flipping through the television channels at high speed. The images were of pairs of men, and though they did not look exactly like Gibbs and Tony there were enough similarities for him to recognize them. And he experienced them together throughout history, felt the joy when they found each other, and the agony when they lost each other, and the pain when they denied each other. And he smiled as he felt that familiar light essence that he associated with Tony.
The images faded and he found himself standing in the moonlight still clasping hands with Hades, who now wore a gentle smile and asked him, “So do you now know what it means to have a soul mate?” as he released Gibbs’ hands.
Gibbs looked down at his hands and nodded.
“Good. Now listen to me carefully. There will be things said and done soon that will make you fear for Tony. You need to trust in me that he is in no danger. There is nothing that Hirudo can do to harm him. But he will try and make you believe that he can. It is how he manages his mischief. You must follow my lead in what will transpire. Do you understand?”
Gibbs lifted his eyes to meet Hades’ once again and this time raised his chin confidently, “Yes.”
Hades clapped him on the shoulder, “Good. Now let us deal with this unwelcome mischief maker.”
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tbc....
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