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thefroggTitle: No Good Scheme Goes Unpunished, or When Sporks Fly, Chapter 6
Authors:![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-userinfo.gif)
fluffnutter and thefrogg
Fandom: NCIS
Beta: Each other?
Pairing: Gibbs/Tony
Warnings: Hurt/comfort, well-meaning hostage taking, coarse language, m/m sex
Summary: Abby, Ziva and McGee think Gibbs and Tony need to confess their true feelings to one another and set up a plan to force them together. Hilarity and angst ensue.
Previously:
Tony pouted. “I’m telling Gibbs on you.”
“Telling me what?”
Tony’s eyes popped open and drank in the sight of Gibbs blocking the Indian subcontinent. He grinned. “Ducky hit me. You should spork him, too.”
Gibbs snorted and dropped into a crouch. “Think I’ll give the man a reprieve, Tony.” He ghosted his fingers over Tony’s cheek, smiling as his lover pushed into the touch. “He start to panic?”
“Indeed,” Ducky responded as he repacked his stethoscope. “I trust you’ve made arrangements to get Anthony home safe and sound?”
Gibbs nodded and jangled the keys to the Spider. “Vance,” he said to Ducky’s inquiring glance.
“I don’t wanna see the director,” Tony whined.
“He doesn’t particularly want to see you, either,” Gibbs said, pulling Tony into a seated position. “In fact, he doesn’t want to see either of us until Monday at the earliest.” A nod at Ducky and the two men had Tony up, if somewhat unsteady.
“Boss ….”
“Not going inside, Tony.” He and Ducky moved toward the path that led to the front of the building.
Tony braced his knees, halting their march.
“Tony.”
Tony shook his head and dug in. His eyes squeezed shut.
“Tony.” Gentler this time. Callused fingertips rubbed against his nape.
“The car...I don't--” Tony whispered, the words trailing off as his breathing grew raspy again.
Gibbs moved close, his lips brushing Tony’s ear. “Vance took care of that.” A pause. “Baby, I promise. It’ll be OK.”
Tony sucked in a tiny breath, cursed the moisture that squeezed from his tightly-shut eyes. But Jethro promised. And he always kept his promises. Releasing the breath, Tony nodded his consent.
“Good boy,” Gibbs whispered, and they resumed their silent path to the front, where the promised Spider awaited them.
A few minutes later, Tony heard the creak of a car door. He started to tense, but Gibbs’ fingers were back on his nape, squeezing reassurance. “Sit, Tony.” And Tony obeyed. And continued to breath fresh air.
He cracked an eye, then sat up a little straighter. “Is this …?”
Ducky and Gibbs both chuckled. “Figures a car would snap you out of it,” Gibbs said, as he folded the driver’s side forward for Ducky. Once sure that both passengers were buckled in, he turned the ignition and put the car in first gear. Beside him, Tony’s eyes opened and drank in the clouds, the ashen pallor gone once more. “Scenic route, I’d say.”
Tony smiled. “Scenic route sounds great, Boss.”
***
"And just what do you think you're doing?" Vance leaned against the partition wall, waiting for an answer.
Abby jumped, nearly spinning herself off the corner of McGee's desk as she turned, clapping her hands over her mouth as a startled squeak escaped. Behind the desk, McGee swallowed hard, setting his pen down.
"Working cold cases, sir," Ziva said softly, indicating the short stack of folders on her desk.
"Yes, Gibbs told me. Except--"
"Sir?" Abby interrupted, unable to stop herself. "Is--is Tony all right? I mean, we haven't--"
"Miss Sciuto, you won't be working cases." Vance watched her wilt as he glared.
Abby blinked, color draining from her face.
"I assume you know where the cleaning supplies are?" Vance waited for her to nod emphatically, pigtails dancing. "Good. I want the forensic garage clean enough to be used as an operating room. Get to work."
McGee and Ziva both winced in sympathy as Abby slid dejectedly off the desk, watching as she disappeared behind the base of the stairs.
"As for you two..." Vance paused for effect. "While I'm well aware of Miss Sciuto's well-intentioned scheming, I expected better of you. It seems the only people on this team with common sense are Gibbs and Dinozzo. That's unacceptable."
McGee looked down at his desk. "Are we being fired, sir?"
"No."
"But you said--" Ziva started, confused.
"If this were my team, I'd have asked for your badges in a heartbeat. What you did wasn't just criminal. It was also incredibly stupid, and showed a marked insensitivity to your teammates' privacy and well-being. But this isn't my team." Vance let that sink in for a moment. "I don't want to lay eyes on you until Gibbs and Tony are back at work. That does not mean you're staying home," he added. "That means you, McGee, are spending your days in the gym training hand-to-hand, or on the firing range. As for you," and Vance sighed heavily. "You're spending your days in tech support, and I don't want a single complaint out of anyone, not you, not your coworkers, not your clients." He glared at Ziva until she slumped in her seat.
McGee fidgeted uncomfortably in the silence that followed, unable to make eye contact.
"Am I just talking to myself here? Get to work." Vance watched, gratified, as McGee and Ziva scrambled out of their seats, grabbing their belongings before all but bolting out of the office.
***
The scent of cherry blossom tickled at Tony’s nose as he settled deeper into the Spider’s soft leather seats. He hadn’t re-opened his eyes since they’d pulled from the Navy Yard, but curiosity tugged at him and he blinked into a vast expanse of blue and cotton, dotted by pale pink. They were on the parkway leading out of DC and into Virginia.
“Pretty,” he murmured, and relaxed further into the seat.
Gibbs’ white-knuckled grip on the steering wheel eased at Tony’s soft remark. He’d been driving for more than 30 minutes, waiting for his lover to respond. He’d been almost ready to pull over when Tony had broken the silence. Behind him, Gibbs heard Ducky’s echoing sigh of relief.
“Any place you’re jonesing to see?” Gibbs asked, going for casual.
A smile crept across Tony’s face. “Grand Canyon sounds good. Nice and open.”
Ducky chuckled in the rear. “Since you’re in such a jocular frame of mind, I don’t suppose you’d mind if I checked your heartrate, Tony.”
Tony arched his neck and peered at Ducky and nodded his consent. While the cool stethoscope slid down his shirt, he reached over and wrapped his fingers around Gibbs’ as they rested on the gearshift. Gibbs’ grip loosed a little more as a smile tugged at his lips.
“You want the Grand Canyon, I’ll get you to the Grand Canyon.” He looked over at Tony and entwined their fingers. “Might need to drop Ducky off first, though.”
“Yes,” Ducky agreed, withdrawing to the back seat again with a quick nod and smile to Gibbs. “Mother might be a bit cross if I failed to be home for dinner, but I think the Grand Canyon sounds just fine. I’m sure Director Vance would agree.”
Tony smiled at Gibbs and squeezed his hand before turning back to enjoy the open air and view. “Nah,” he finally said. “S’ok. I’m good here.”
“You sure?” Tony turned back to meet Gibbs’ eyes. He knew his lover would drop everything – including his NCIS career – in a heartbeat if he thought it was what he needed, and that alone was enough. “Yeah, I’m sure. But maybe a few more times around the block?”
“You got it.”
An hour later they dropped Ducky off at his home. The ME performed a final heart and blood pressure check and promised/threatened to drop in on the pair the following day. Then Gibbs picked random roads, following where they took the pair, until at twilight, as the air turned cool and Tony began to shiver, they found themselves in front of Gibbs’ house.
They sat in silence, both staring at the home with its walls and ceilings.
“I’ll get the camping gear out of the garage,” Gibbs said. He’d build a fire, lay down tarp and bundle them in all-weather sleeping bags. And tomorrow, he’d figure out a way to make his – their – bedroom glass-ceilinged. And then …
“Jethro.”
He looked over at Tony’s tired face. Tired, but resolute.
“You don’t have to …”
“Neither do you.”
Tony chewed on his lip and looked back toward the house. Then he looked back at Gibbs. “Your fence isn’t high enough.”
Gibbs’ brow creased. “What do you …?”
“And your backyard isn’t soundproof. And your neighbors are kind of nosy.”
Ah … oh.
Tony smirked. “I don’t think I’m ready for the tying me to the bed part, but fucking me into oblivion? I can get behind that. Or under it, as the case may be.”
Gibbs reached out and grasped Tony by the nape. Tony reached out at the same time, grabbing Gibbs’ jacket and their mouths met over the shift. It wasn’t much of a battle for control – Tony was too happy to succumb to Gibbs’ dominance, but it was he who pulled back first, breathless.
“Please,” he whispered. “Take me home.”
The climb out of the car was clumsy with haste, neither of them wanting to sacrifice physical contact. Laced fingers and shoulder bumps served to get them to the door, but once through, Tony froze, apprehension and fear bleeding back into his calm.
"Tony?"
"I--I'm..." Tony choked on the rest. Then he found himself backed up against the inside of the door, moaning helplessly into Gibbs' mouth.
Gibbs kissed him purring and pliant, hands kneading gently at his henley, before drawing back. "Think you can make it to the bedroom?" he whispered, nuzzling at one ear.
Tony hummed noncommittally, angling for another kiss.
Gibbs chuckled softly, kissing his neck, his jaw, the pulse at the base of his throat. "Hold onto me," he whispered, feeling Tony's hands fist in the cloth over his chest before taking a tiny step backward. The short, interminable trip down the hall was lost in a tug-of-war on Gibbs' shirt, in dozens of butterfly kisses peppering Tony's face and neck. "Stairs, Tony," Gibbs whispered, sliding his cheek against Tony's and stepping up the first one, then the second, Tony following automatically, one step below.
The next few steps went smoothly despite the awkwardness of the stairs, but once past the halfway point, the walls of the upstairs hallway closed in around them, and Tony started shivering. Instead of drawing attention to it, Gibbs just stopped on the stairs, curling one hand tight around Tony's neck and kissed him into stillness, kissed him until the fog of arousal had quieted the tremors. "Come on, Tony," he whispered, pressing forehead to forehead, "can't fuck you on the stairs, remember?"
"Rugburn." Tony gulped in air before continuing. "In interesting places."
Gibbs gave him a small smile. "My knees."
"You kind of forgot something." Tony rubbed his nose against Gibbs', good memories helping push back the apprehension.
"And what's that."
A mischievous grin spread across Tony's lips. "You're between me and the bed."
Gibbs couldn't stop the laughter that came then, low and gravelly, shaking his shoulders; he slid down the rail to sit awkwardly on the stair as Tony pushed past him, stopping two steps up to stare down at him, nudging him repeatedly in the back with one knee as he laughed until his cheeks were shiny and striped. The arms that came around his shoulders, the faintly stubble-rasped cheek pressed into his neck only served to further loosen the knot of impending dread that had taken up residence in his gut. "Tony." The name was breathless, nothing hiding the affection and love and utter relief in Gibbs' tone.
"Tell you a secret?"
"And what's that?" Gibbs craned his head, rubbing against Tony cat-like to nibble at his ear, content. He could feel the smile that stretched Tony's mouth wide against his skin.
"I'm willing to put up with the rugburn." Secret, maybe, but there was none of the urgency that had been there before, none of the fear.
That would come back, that was a given. But they'd be all right, they had other weapons now. Tony'd be all right.
Gibbs didn't give an answer, just turned partway in his lover's arms and buried his face against Tony's chest, holding on.
~~~the end~~~
Author's Note: Thanks for bearing with this exceedingly drawn-out story. While we aren't ruling out the possibility of a sequel, this is the final chapter for this arc.
Authors:
fluffnutter and thefrogg Fandom: NCIS
Beta: Each other?
Pairing: Gibbs/Tony
Warnings: Hurt/comfort, well-meaning hostage taking, coarse language, m/m sex
Summary: Abby, Ziva and McGee think Gibbs and Tony need to confess their true feelings to one another and set up a plan to force them together. Hilarity and angst ensue.
Previously:
Tony pouted. “I’m telling Gibbs on you.”
“Telling me what?”
Tony’s eyes popped open and drank in the sight of Gibbs blocking the Indian subcontinent. He grinned. “Ducky hit me. You should spork him, too.”
Gibbs snorted and dropped into a crouch. “Think I’ll give the man a reprieve, Tony.” He ghosted his fingers over Tony’s cheek, smiling as his lover pushed into the touch. “He start to panic?”
“Indeed,” Ducky responded as he repacked his stethoscope. “I trust you’ve made arrangements to get Anthony home safe and sound?”
Gibbs nodded and jangled the keys to the Spider. “Vance,” he said to Ducky’s inquiring glance.
“I don’t wanna see the director,” Tony whined.
“He doesn’t particularly want to see you, either,” Gibbs said, pulling Tony into a seated position. “In fact, he doesn’t want to see either of us until Monday at the earliest.” A nod at Ducky and the two men had Tony up, if somewhat unsteady.
“Boss ….”
“Not going inside, Tony.” He and Ducky moved toward the path that led to the front of the building.
Tony braced his knees, halting their march.
“Tony.”
Tony shook his head and dug in. His eyes squeezed shut.
“Tony.” Gentler this time. Callused fingertips rubbed against his nape.
“The car...I don't--” Tony whispered, the words trailing off as his breathing grew raspy again.
Gibbs moved close, his lips brushing Tony’s ear. “Vance took care of that.” A pause. “Baby, I promise. It’ll be OK.”
Tony sucked in a tiny breath, cursed the moisture that squeezed from his tightly-shut eyes. But Jethro promised. And he always kept his promises. Releasing the breath, Tony nodded his consent.
“Good boy,” Gibbs whispered, and they resumed their silent path to the front, where the promised Spider awaited them.
A few minutes later, Tony heard the creak of a car door. He started to tense, but Gibbs’ fingers were back on his nape, squeezing reassurance. “Sit, Tony.” And Tony obeyed. And continued to breath fresh air.
He cracked an eye, then sat up a little straighter. “Is this …?”
Ducky and Gibbs both chuckled. “Figures a car would snap you out of it,” Gibbs said, as he folded the driver’s side forward for Ducky. Once sure that both passengers were buckled in, he turned the ignition and put the car in first gear. Beside him, Tony’s eyes opened and drank in the clouds, the ashen pallor gone once more. “Scenic route, I’d say.”
Tony smiled. “Scenic route sounds great, Boss.”
***
"And just what do you think you're doing?" Vance leaned against the partition wall, waiting for an answer.
Abby jumped, nearly spinning herself off the corner of McGee's desk as she turned, clapping her hands over her mouth as a startled squeak escaped. Behind the desk, McGee swallowed hard, setting his pen down.
"Working cold cases, sir," Ziva said softly, indicating the short stack of folders on her desk.
"Yes, Gibbs told me. Except--"
"Sir?" Abby interrupted, unable to stop herself. "Is--is Tony all right? I mean, we haven't--"
"Miss Sciuto, you won't be working cases." Vance watched her wilt as he glared.
Abby blinked, color draining from her face.
"I assume you know where the cleaning supplies are?" Vance waited for her to nod emphatically, pigtails dancing. "Good. I want the forensic garage clean enough to be used as an operating room. Get to work."
McGee and Ziva both winced in sympathy as Abby slid dejectedly off the desk, watching as she disappeared behind the base of the stairs.
"As for you two..." Vance paused for effect. "While I'm well aware of Miss Sciuto's well-intentioned scheming, I expected better of you. It seems the only people on this team with common sense are Gibbs and Dinozzo. That's unacceptable."
McGee looked down at his desk. "Are we being fired, sir?"
"No."
"But you said--" Ziva started, confused.
"If this were my team, I'd have asked for your badges in a heartbeat. What you did wasn't just criminal. It was also incredibly stupid, and showed a marked insensitivity to your teammates' privacy and well-being. But this isn't my team." Vance let that sink in for a moment. "I don't want to lay eyes on you until Gibbs and Tony are back at work. That does not mean you're staying home," he added. "That means you, McGee, are spending your days in the gym training hand-to-hand, or on the firing range. As for you," and Vance sighed heavily. "You're spending your days in tech support, and I don't want a single complaint out of anyone, not you, not your coworkers, not your clients." He glared at Ziva until she slumped in her seat.
McGee fidgeted uncomfortably in the silence that followed, unable to make eye contact.
"Am I just talking to myself here? Get to work." Vance watched, gratified, as McGee and Ziva scrambled out of their seats, grabbing their belongings before all but bolting out of the office.
***
The scent of cherry blossom tickled at Tony’s nose as he settled deeper into the Spider’s soft leather seats. He hadn’t re-opened his eyes since they’d pulled from the Navy Yard, but curiosity tugged at him and he blinked into a vast expanse of blue and cotton, dotted by pale pink. They were on the parkway leading out of DC and into Virginia.
“Pretty,” he murmured, and relaxed further into the seat.
Gibbs’ white-knuckled grip on the steering wheel eased at Tony’s soft remark. He’d been driving for more than 30 minutes, waiting for his lover to respond. He’d been almost ready to pull over when Tony had broken the silence. Behind him, Gibbs heard Ducky’s echoing sigh of relief.
“Any place you’re jonesing to see?” Gibbs asked, going for casual.
A smile crept across Tony’s face. “Grand Canyon sounds good. Nice and open.”
Ducky chuckled in the rear. “Since you’re in such a jocular frame of mind, I don’t suppose you’d mind if I checked your heartrate, Tony.”
Tony arched his neck and peered at Ducky and nodded his consent. While the cool stethoscope slid down his shirt, he reached over and wrapped his fingers around Gibbs’ as they rested on the gearshift. Gibbs’ grip loosed a little more as a smile tugged at his lips.
“You want the Grand Canyon, I’ll get you to the Grand Canyon.” He looked over at Tony and entwined their fingers. “Might need to drop Ducky off first, though.”
“Yes,” Ducky agreed, withdrawing to the back seat again with a quick nod and smile to Gibbs. “Mother might be a bit cross if I failed to be home for dinner, but I think the Grand Canyon sounds just fine. I’m sure Director Vance would agree.”
Tony smiled at Gibbs and squeezed his hand before turning back to enjoy the open air and view. “Nah,” he finally said. “S’ok. I’m good here.”
“You sure?” Tony turned back to meet Gibbs’ eyes. He knew his lover would drop everything – including his NCIS career – in a heartbeat if he thought it was what he needed, and that alone was enough. “Yeah, I’m sure. But maybe a few more times around the block?”
“You got it.”
An hour later they dropped Ducky off at his home. The ME performed a final heart and blood pressure check and promised/threatened to drop in on the pair the following day. Then Gibbs picked random roads, following where they took the pair, until at twilight, as the air turned cool and Tony began to shiver, they found themselves in front of Gibbs’ house.
They sat in silence, both staring at the home with its walls and ceilings.
“I’ll get the camping gear out of the garage,” Gibbs said. He’d build a fire, lay down tarp and bundle them in all-weather sleeping bags. And tomorrow, he’d figure out a way to make his – their – bedroom glass-ceilinged. And then …
“Jethro.”
He looked over at Tony’s tired face. Tired, but resolute.
“You don’t have to …”
“Neither do you.”
Tony chewed on his lip and looked back toward the house. Then he looked back at Gibbs. “Your fence isn’t high enough.”
Gibbs’ brow creased. “What do you …?”
“And your backyard isn’t soundproof. And your neighbors are kind of nosy.”
Ah … oh.
Tony smirked. “I don’t think I’m ready for the tying me to the bed part, but fucking me into oblivion? I can get behind that. Or under it, as the case may be.”
Gibbs reached out and grasped Tony by the nape. Tony reached out at the same time, grabbing Gibbs’ jacket and their mouths met over the shift. It wasn’t much of a battle for control – Tony was too happy to succumb to Gibbs’ dominance, but it was he who pulled back first, breathless.
“Please,” he whispered. “Take me home.”
The climb out of the car was clumsy with haste, neither of them wanting to sacrifice physical contact. Laced fingers and shoulder bumps served to get them to the door, but once through, Tony froze, apprehension and fear bleeding back into his calm.
"Tony?"
"I--I'm..." Tony choked on the rest. Then he found himself backed up against the inside of the door, moaning helplessly into Gibbs' mouth.
Gibbs kissed him purring and pliant, hands kneading gently at his henley, before drawing back. "Think you can make it to the bedroom?" he whispered, nuzzling at one ear.
Tony hummed noncommittally, angling for another kiss.
Gibbs chuckled softly, kissing his neck, his jaw, the pulse at the base of his throat. "Hold onto me," he whispered, feeling Tony's hands fist in the cloth over his chest before taking a tiny step backward. The short, interminable trip down the hall was lost in a tug-of-war on Gibbs' shirt, in dozens of butterfly kisses peppering Tony's face and neck. "Stairs, Tony," Gibbs whispered, sliding his cheek against Tony's and stepping up the first one, then the second, Tony following automatically, one step below.
The next few steps went smoothly despite the awkwardness of the stairs, but once past the halfway point, the walls of the upstairs hallway closed in around them, and Tony started shivering. Instead of drawing attention to it, Gibbs just stopped on the stairs, curling one hand tight around Tony's neck and kissed him into stillness, kissed him until the fog of arousal had quieted the tremors. "Come on, Tony," he whispered, pressing forehead to forehead, "can't fuck you on the stairs, remember?"
"Rugburn." Tony gulped in air before continuing. "In interesting places."
Gibbs gave him a small smile. "My knees."
"You kind of forgot something." Tony rubbed his nose against Gibbs', good memories helping push back the apprehension.
"And what's that."
A mischievous grin spread across Tony's lips. "You're between me and the bed."
Gibbs couldn't stop the laughter that came then, low and gravelly, shaking his shoulders; he slid down the rail to sit awkwardly on the stair as Tony pushed past him, stopping two steps up to stare down at him, nudging him repeatedly in the back with one knee as he laughed until his cheeks were shiny and striped. The arms that came around his shoulders, the faintly stubble-rasped cheek pressed into his neck only served to further loosen the knot of impending dread that had taken up residence in his gut. "Tony." The name was breathless, nothing hiding the affection and love and utter relief in Gibbs' tone.
"Tell you a secret?"
"And what's that?" Gibbs craned his head, rubbing against Tony cat-like to nibble at his ear, content. He could feel the smile that stretched Tony's mouth wide against his skin.
"I'm willing to put up with the rugburn." Secret, maybe, but there was none of the urgency that had been there before, none of the fear.
That would come back, that was a given. But they'd be all right, they had other weapons now. Tony'd be all right.
Gibbs didn't give an answer, just turned partway in his lover's arms and buried his face against Tony's chest, holding on.
~~~the end~~~
Author's Note: Thanks for bearing with this exceedingly drawn-out story. While we aren't ruling out the possibility of a sequel, this is the final chapter for this arc.
