A/N: Set in season four, around the time Gibbs returned from Mexico.

Tony is not aware that Gibbs is back since he has been held hostage for four days. Gibbs has returned after finding out that Tony is missing and that no-one is really putting in much effort to help the team find him. In this story, Gibbs comes back to work and the relationship he has with Tony, while strained by the previous months of zero contact, gets stronger as Gibbs protects his senior field agent from further harm.

Tony still calls Gibbs his boss, mainly out of habit, not because he knows Gibbs has come back to NCIS.

Tony was exhausted and terrified. He had been laying in the hole in the ground for two full days already, not that he was aware of the amount of time he had spent in the dark ground. He could hear the people that were digging him out, but he couldn't hear the one voice he was desperate to hear. He needed Gibbs there, he needed the calm attitude that his boss exuded all the time. He needed the reassurance that he was going to be fine. But, unfortunately, as far as he knew, Gibbs was still in Mexico.

"Tony!"

Sudden hope filled Tony at the sound of his boss' voice. He couldn't yell anymore, but he was relieved to hear him. He hoped he wasn't just imagining Gibbs being there.

"Tony! We're coming!"

A moment later, bright sunlight hit Tony's face. He squeezed his eyes shut as the last of the dirt was taken off him.

"Tony, you're alright now. You're safe."

Tony opened his eyes a crack, surprised at how close the soft voice was. He turned his head to the side and found Gibbs right next to him. Confused, Tony tried to move his arm, which was already broken, and found that he was no longer restricted.

"Tony, stop moving," said Gibbs as he put an arm underneath Tony's back. "I'm going to lift you up, but you have to stay still. We don't know what injuries you have, okay?"

Tony nodded. His throat was dry and painful, and he wasn't interested in talking. He brought his arm back to his body and let Gibbs lift him into a seated position. They were still in the hole, but now that he wasn't alone, Tony was able to relax and let himself be taken care of. He could feel his boss' arm still around him, supporting his weight, and snuggled into Gibbs' body. He felt safe in that position. He put his head back against Gibbs' chest, his eyes sliding shut for a moment before Gibbs forced him to wake up. The steady beat of Gibbs' heart was relaxing, at least until someone else jumped into the hole with them.

"His name is Tony," said Gibbs quietly. "He's been missing for four days, the last two of which were spent in this hole. He lost consciousness a few times over the last two days, and he almost passed out again a minute ago."

"Tony," said the medic that had joined them, "I'm Jeff. I need you to stay awake for me. Can you do that?"

Tony shook his head, still resting against Gibbs. He could feel his fear melting away the longer he stayed propped against the Marine he looked up to.

"Can you try?"

"No," whispered Tony sleepily.

"You will stay awake, DiNozzo," said Gibbs gently.

"Yes, boss." Tony buried himself deeper into Gibbs' protective embrace. He didn't care what people thought right then, he just wanted to be closer to the person that had always had his six, had always been there for him, no matter what happened between them.

"Does he have any allergies?" the medic asked.

"No allergies. Morphine makes him loopy sometimes, depending on how he is. The worse his condition, the more likely he is to be calm with morphine. He's got scarring on both lungs- nothing too severe, but it's enough that he is seeing his doctor twice a year for check-ups from now on."

"What is the scarring from?"

"He had the pneumonic plague about a year and a half ago."

"Does he have any other problems because of that?"

"No. Tony's a healthy person normally."

The medic nodded. "Tony, I need to examine you. Can you tell me if you have any injuries?"

"My arm is broken." Tony held his left arm out to Jeff.

Jeff quickly checked over Tony's arm. It was definitely broken, and must have been sore. It was swollen closer to the wrist.

"Any other injuries?"

"I don't know." Tony was getting tired again. He tried to move closer to Gibbs, but there was nowhere to go. He was as close as he could get.

"It's alright, Tony," Gibbs said softly. He tightened his hold on Tony and wrapped his free arm around Tony's body to try and put some warmth into the younger man who was shivering against him. "Relax, I'm not leaving."

"You already did," said Tony, and Gibbs was sure he could hear hurt in the younger man's voice.

"I know, but I won't leave you again. I promise."

Tony nodded. He believed Gibbs, he always believed Gibbs.

"Alright, Tony, I'm going to check you now," Jeff said. "I'm going to start by listening to your heart and lungs. Try to stay still for me."

Tony shivered more as Jeff opened up Tony's dirty shirt and placed a stethoscope on his chest. He couldn't help squirming as the cold instrument moved around his body.

"Okay, I'm done, Tony. I'm done." Jeff put his stethoscope down and grabbed a blood pressure cuff. "Try to relax, Tony."

Tony tried, but he was getting scared again. He didn't want anyone near him except Gibbs. He wanted to close his eyes and pretend that this wasn't happening to him. As soon as the cuff tightened around his arm, Tony jerked away.

"Tony! What's wrong?" Gibbs pulled his friend back to him as Jeff took the cuff off. "It's alright, it's okay."

"I'm sorry," mumbled Tony. Tears were spilling from his eyes and he turned his head so that he was crying into Gibbs' t-shirt. He was clinging to his boss' top tightly without even realising it.

"There's no need to apologise, Tony. Tell me what the problem is."

"There's no problem."

"Don't lie to me. You got scared when the medic put the blood pressure cuff on. Why?"

Tony buried his face deeper into Gibbs' chest. "They tied me up with straps," he whispered.

Gibbs nodded in understanding. He looked at Jeff. "Can you hold off on checking his blood pressure for now?"

"Yes. I'll leave it up to the doctors."

"Can we request a doctor?"

"Yes. Are they at Bethesda, because that's the closest hospital."

"They are at Bethesda. The doctor's name is Brad Pitt. I'm not kidding."

"Alright. I'll get my partner to call through and ask for Dr Pitt. I'd like to get Tony out of this hole and into the ambulance. Do you think you could convince him to let us help him?"

Gibbs looked at Tony, who was still clinging desperately to his top. "I think it may be easier to just carry him to the ambulance."

"Alright. Do you want help with that?"

"I'll be alright. This isn't the first time I've carried a grown man around." Gibbs stood, bringing Tony with him. "Tony, it's time to go. I'm going to carry you now."

Tony nodded, but didn't let go. He allowed Gibbs to pick him up, and then he buried his face into Gibbs again.