Disclaimer: I don't own NCIS.

A/N: I'll be honest and admit that I'd almost forgotten all about this story. 2012, to say the least, has not been the easiest of years for me and my family. Sadly, had it not been for several recent story alerts, I probably wouldn't have uploaded this last portion of the story at all.

Epilogue

It had been so long that Tony couldn't remember the last time he'd felt this happy. Honestly, he couldn't really remember the last time he'd felt anything other than bitterness. Even if he was in a hospital bed, an IV plugged into his arm and electrodes attached to his chest to keep a running tab of his heartbeat, he felt good.

His father had just left, and the visit had been joyful. Senior had been ecstatic to see that he was up and about after a week of being free of the The Entity, and Tony had indulged him. He'd let his father fuss over how he looked, and listened as the man berated himself for not having thought about The Entity sooner. The old man's guilt was sincere, and Tony had felt awful for him. He didn't hold it against him. Sure, his father could have remembered the decades old threat to him, but he hadn't, and it wasn't going to change now. He'd come through with the information with enough time for Gibbs to show up and save him. That was good enough for Junior.

"Tony!" Abby squealed as she pranced into the room, and he would have groaned if he hadn't been so happy to see her.

From what Gibbs told him several days earlier, if it hadn't been for Abby, they both would have been killed by the psychopaths who had abducted him. Despite feeling better, he was still not feeling like his old self. Other than Gibbs and his father, he'd asked for no visitors. He should have realized that it wouldn't be very long before Abby forced her way in to see him.

"Hey Abs," he grinned at her, happily accepting the hug she gave him.

Gentle Abby made him want to laugh, and he squeezed her tight to let her know that she didn't have to handle him like a glass doll. She took the hint and gave him a good, hard, Abby squeeze.

"I'm so happy that you're okay! I was so worried about you. I'm so sorry I thought you ran off. I should have never thought that you would. I know you too well for that!" Abby gushed as she clung to him. "I never would have believed it if McGee hadn't kept insisting that you had. That bastard! How could he do this?"

"It's alright, Abs," Tony assured her, wrapping his finger around one of her pig tails and tugging at it playfully.

It really was alright. He had tried to be mad when he found out that nobody had been too concerned with looking for him, other than Gibbs. Something about being free had stymied that anger though. Perhaps he just knew how convincing a liar McGee could be now. He could say that he would never have fallen for McGee's tricks, but it would have been a lie. Over the years, even though McGee had been plotting his demise, Tony hadn't caught a single whiff of his bullshit. He'd trusted the younger man. He could see the signs now that he knew to look for them, but wasn't hindsight always 20/20?

"It's not alright," Abby shook her head against his shoulder, "but I'll make it up to you! I promise! When you get out of here, I'm going to put a GPS tracking chip on you. I'm never going to let anything like this happen ever again!"

"Let him breathe, Abigail," Ducky chastised her from the doorway. "He won't get home if you suffocate him."

"Hi, Ducky," Tony greeted the ME.

"Anthony," Ducky smiled gently, and as Abby jumped back, Ducky moved forward to pat his shoulder.

"Where's Gibbs?" Tony wondered, looking between the two.

His boss had left when Senior had walked in the room, giving them privacy. Tony had insisted he could stay, but he'd gone anyway. It had been hours now, though, and Tony was starting to feel a bit anxious. Maybe it was because Gibbs had saved him, or maybe it was because his boss made him feel secure, but Tony didn't want him to be gone for too long. Gibbs presence eased his anxiety, and Tony just knew in his gut that nobody was going to come back for him. McGee didn't have the advantage anymore, and he wouldn't take the boss by surprise again. Gibbs would protect him while he couldn't protect himself. When he wasn't there, Tony felt too vulnerable- like there was a target on his back.

"He's making a call. He'll be in here soon," Ducky assured him as he sat down in the chair that Gibbs had been practically living in for a week.

Tony nodded in understanding. Abby and Ducky kept him entertained with tales of the cases they'd been working on while he'd been away, and when Gibbs returned, toting an apprehensive Ziva with him, Tony's smile grew so large that his cheeks began to hurt. He was alive, and everything was going to be okay. Gibbs would keep him safe, no matter what.

The End

A/N: I hope this ending isn't too disappointing. Thank you to everybody who has read and left reviews, and I sincerely apologize for my lack of updates throughout the end.