This is an additional scene and a missing scene. I felt that we needed to see some of the aftermath of the mission.I had also started to write a scene with Tony and his therapist, but never really got that written. Thanks again to Rinne for helping me with the punctuation and for changing some of the awkward wording. Rinne's the best!
Epilogue
Tony was looking over the variety of cakes and cookies on the table, trying to decide what he wanted, when he heard someone clearing their throat. He turned to find himself face-to-face with Director Sheppard. The Director was acting nervously, as if she wished she were somewhere else.
"Welcome home, Special Agent DiNozzo," she said. "I'm very glad to see that you're okay."
Surprised, Tony smiled at the petite woman, and said, "Thank you, Ma'am. It's good to be back at work."
Nodding, she replied, "I'm sure it is."
"I wanted to thank you, for sending Special Agent Gibbs and Officer David to find me," he continued. "I don't like to think of what would have happened if they hadn't come and rescued me."
Sheppard's eyes widened. "He didn't tell you?"
"Tell me what?"
Coughing nervously, the Director seemed to be searching for the right words. Tony cocked his head, watching her curiously. Finally, she took a deep breath and said, "Gibbs and David went down against my orders. I'm afraid I had to weigh the risk of losing two agents, well, three, counting McGee, for the sake of one and didn't think it was an acceptable risk to take."
Seeing Tony's shocked expression, she continued quickly, "I'm sorry, DiNozzo, it was a decision based on the evidence we had at the time. I felt that if the people who had ambushed you and Agent McGee were capable of shooting McGee in the head and leaving him for dead, that they were capable of killing you as well. Of course, Gibbs disagreed and did what he felt he had to do." She looked down, embarrassed. "I had to put official reprimands in their files, even though they were successful. I can't have agents disobeying direct orders."
"Oh, right." Tony's voice was faint. "I see."
Clearing her throat, Sheppard straightened her shoulders. "Well, again, welcome back Agent DiNozzo." Nodding briskly, she turned and left the room.
Tony scanned the room, spotting the three other agents. Grabbing a beer, he went to join them.
"What's the matter, DiNozzo, " asked Gibbs. "You look like you've seen a ghost."
"I just talked to the Director."
"Oh?" Gibbs took a swallow of his beer.
"She said that she told you not to look for me. That you went against her orders."
Scowling, Gibbs shrugged his shoulders. "She shouldn't have said anything, you didn't need to know that."
"Oh, but I think I did." Tony's tone was incredulous. "You came after me, against orders, and you didn't even know if I was alive."
Gibbs looked at him sharply. "We knew you were alive when we left DC, Tony. I look after my agents, you know that."
Nodding, Tony looked down at his feet. "You got reprimanded," he said softly.
Gibbs snorted. "Do I look like I care?"
Tony looked at Ziva, who shrugged and said, "I'm just here on a temporary basis."
McGee just cocked his head. "Hey, I was down there anyway."
Seeing Tony's eyes get bright with tears, Gibbs grabbed both his shoulders and made him make eye contact.
"I do not leave my agents without support. I do not write them off. I do not let anyone hurt my best agent." Gibbs was stern, but reassuring.
"Your best agent?" echoed Tony.
Smiling, Gibbs released Tony's shoulders. "Yeah, but don't expect me to treat you any differently. You mess up, I 'll rip you a new one."
"Yes, Boss." Tony ducked his head, embarrassed. "I'll try not to make you do that."
"Damn right." Gibbs took another swallow of his beer and walked over to where Ducky was telling Abby about the study of insect lifecycles and how that helped in determining the time of death of a victim. Standing there, listening to his old friend ramble, Gibbs thought back to his meeting with the Director.
Earlier that month
When Director Sheppard called Gibbs into her office to "talk", Ziva and McGee stood to join their boss in what was most likely to be a heated reprimand, if not suspension or firing, determined to acknowledge their part in the unauthorized rescue mission.
"Where do you two think you're going?" asked Gibbs.
Ziva squared her shoulders. "With you, to talk to the Director," she replied. McGee nodded in agreement.
"No," Gibbs said firmly. "You are not. This is between the Director and me. I take full responsibility for anything that was done against orders."
"But..." began McGee.
"No buts," interrupted Gibbs. "You were following my orders. No more discussion." With that, he turned and headed up the stairs.
The atmosphere in the Director's office was tense as Sheppard and Gibbs faced each other, each simmering with anger that had been building for the past few weeks.
"Special Agent Gibbs." Sheppard's voice was cold and hard. "You deliberately went against my orders and risked the lives of two other agents."
"I went to retrieve Special Agent McGee, who was injured during a mission we sent him on. Office David accompanied me. While there, we happened to locate Special Agent DiNozzo. We had to liberate him from the hands of mercenaries, but there were no casualties on either side." Gibbs looked the Director directly in the eyes as he calmly stated the cleaned up facts of their mission. "It's all in my report, Director."
"That report was a disgrace, Jethro!" fumed Sheppard. "It neglects to mention that you were strictly forbidden from going there, that you commandeered a local agent and pilot and spent two days trekking through the jungle to conveniently 'find' Agent DiNozzo."
Gibbs shrugged. "That's how it happened, Jen. My agents will back me up on that."
Jen threw the report onto her desk. "Your agents will say anything you tell them to say, Jethro. What you did was total insubordination and you know it!"
"What I did was look after my agents. If I had done what you said and written DiNozzo off, he'd be part of the human slave trade, being forced to do God knows what." Gibbs was no longer bothering to hide his anger and contempt.
"What is wrong with you, Jen?" he asked. "You were a field agent, would you have wanted your teammates to leave you to your own devices? Would you have left your teammates out there..."
"I have the entire agency to think about, Jethro," she interrupted. "Losing three agents in pursuit of one is not acceptable."
Gibbs snorted. "Same old argument. "
Director Sheppard glared at Gibbs. She looked at him suspiciously. "Is there something going on between you and DiNozzo?"
Gibbs eyes went wide. "What?"
"You're very quick to defend DiNozzo, despite his juvenile behavior. You seem pretty fond of him." Sheppard had her arms folded across her chest.
Gibbs' expression was one of amazement. "Well, yeah, I like him, and he's a good agent. He has his faults, but it's not as if any of us is perfect. What are you suggesting, Jen?"
"You coddle him; you let him get away with inappropriate behavior, especially toward Ziva."
"Ziva can handle herself just fine, Jen, and believe me, I've called him on some of his behavior, but for the most part, he's just having fun and lightening the mood." Gibbs cocked his head. "You seem to be keeping an unusually close eye on how I interact with my team; specifically DiNozzo."
"I'm still getting to know my people, Jethro, and DiNozzo is an immature, smartass womanizer," she huffed.
"Yeah, he is that, but he's got the best instincts I've seen in an agent. He's more than the image he puts on, and if you'd take the time to know your people, you'd realize that, Jen."
"You never really answered my question, Jethro. Are you intimately involved with DiNozzo?" Sheppard said accusingly.
Gibbs ran his hand through his hair. "Why would you even ask that, Jen?" he asked, exasperated. "What in the world would make a thought like that enter your head?"
"You have a history of getting involved with your subordinates," she replied smugly. "You touch him more than you do anyone else on your team, with all those hits to the back of the head. You seem closer to him than I've ever seen you with anyone else, except for Ducky."
"The team is my family. Tony is a member of my team; he's been with me the longest. I trust him with my back. Do I care about him? Yes, of course, but caring about someone does not necessarily lead to a sexual relationship."
"It's a very strong indicator, Jethro," Jen sniffed.
Shaking his head, Gibbs replied, "I feel sorry for you, Jen. You have a very narrow view of what 'love' is. Not every glance or touch is an invitation to bed. Really, don't read so much into these things." Gibbs headed for the door.
"We're not through here, Special Agent Gibbs." Sheppard's voice was getting louder and shriller. "We still have to discuss the issue of your unauthorized mission."
"Do what you have to do, Jen." Gibbs had his handle on the door when Sheppard tried to stop him again.
"It's Director Sheppard, Special Agent Gibbs." Her tone made Gibbs stop and turn slowly.
"You said that the day you started, Director Sheppard," he said coldly. "And yet you don't feel obligated to call me Gibbs or Special Agent Gibbs unless you're flaunting your authority." Sheppard started to say something but Gibbs interrupted, "Your behavior toward me since you became the director has been the very definition of 'mixed messages'. You throw around outrageous accusations…" He stopped, realization showing on his face.
"You're jealous!" he exclaimed.
"What?" sputtered Sheppard. "Jealous of what?"
Gibbs laughed. "You're jealous of the relationship I have with my team, jealous that I'm closer to my team than I am to you, so you read all sorts of crazy, inappropriate feelings into that closeness."
"I am not jealous ..."
"Then why are you associating my fondness for DiNozzo with an intimate relationship?"
Sheppard's face was red with fury. "Your concern for your agent and your insistence on going against my wishes had the passion of a lover…"
"My 'passion' in this whole thing was the passion of a person who was worried about a fellow agent and a friend, something any normal person would feel." Gibbs stopped and looked at Sheppard with a mixture of pity and disgust. "I've had enough of this ridiculous argument. Like I said, do what you have to do, but be careful about any accusations you make. They could come back to bite you on the ass."
Gibbs pulled the door open and stalked out, slamming the door behind him.
Author's Chapter Notes:
A mission to South America turns into something unexpected.
Chapter End Notes:
The characters in this story belong to Bellisarius Productions and Paramount, except for the original characters. No copyright infringement is intended. This story is for entertainment purposes only; no money is being made. Huges thanks go to Rinne, who makes me look smarter than I am by clearing up my bad punctuation and asking me questions when the story doesn't make sense. She also helps when I just don't know how to get from Scene A to Scene B. hugs to Rinne.
A/N: Spanish is indicated by italics.
A/N: Spanish is indicated by italics.