a/n this turned into mostly a Tim chapter somehow... not quite sure how that happened. but without further ado...here it is

Tim couldn't face Tony, couldn't look at the face that was so bruised and the wrist in the plaster cast and the pain in his eyes when he moved wrong. He'd tried once, in the hospital. Tony hadn't even been awake or known he was there. He's stayed for two minutes before he's made some excuse for some tests and had the nurse wheel his chair back to the comfort and safety of his own room. He didn't remember much of the kidnapping through the haze of pain and drugs but he remembered a few things. He remembered Tony mocking the men, drawing their attention back from McGee. He knew the reason for him being relatively healthy was because Tony had distracted the men from him. Kept the pain and questions on himself. He was the reason for the pain his partner was in, because he was too weak to take it himself. Everyone worried about him as he withdrew, but he couldn't face them and the shame of how he'd let his partner down. Tony had taken all the pain, just as he had in Somalia.

"McGee." He heard Abby's voice call to him as he lay in bed, thinking.

He felt the bed dip as she lay next to him and curled to his side for comfort.

He felt her hot tears burn into his chest.

"I shouldn't have done something." Abby said in the darkness.

"What's that?" McGee asked.

"I hacked into the feed and watched some of it." McGee knew what 'it' was the footage of the hell he and Tony had seen in that small room. He rolled over and took her in his arms.

"We'll be ok." Tim told her.

"When I heard those men had you I was lost." Abby said in a low whisper. "Gibbs was so pissed I thought he might kill someone and Ziva….. I knew who she was before but she was scary. She was all deadly assassin and no emotion."

He raised a shaky hand to her hair and stroked it breathing in deep.

"Tony keeps asking about you. I don't know what to tell him." Abby said.

"I don't know Abbs. I'm trying." He knows he sounds weak and pathetic, even to his own ears, but he doesn't know what else to say. He doesn't ask what he wants to. About how Tony is. He doesn't know if he deserves the answer.

They laid like that, for the rest of the night, each drawing comfort from the other.

(-)

A week later McGee was woken by loud banging on his door. He had to pause for a moment to overcome the vertigo that was the last lingering side effect of whatever drug they had pumped him full of. He was shocked when he saw a pale and wavering Tony, with his wrist held protectively in the sling.

"To damn many stairs." Tony growled as he stalked into the apartment, pushing passed a surprised McGee.

"How'd you get here?"

"Ziva drove me. I figured I was driving her and Gibbs to distraction." Tony said grinning, as he sank into the chair with a sigh.

"Why are you here Tony?" the question was out of McGee's mouth before he had thought it through and he immediately regretted how harsh it sounded.

Tony's grin faded. "Because…" Tony paused.

"Because the last I can remember seeing of my partner was him being loaded into an ambulance and taken away. I guess I needed to be sure you were ok." Tony said, in a quiet voice as he stared fixedly at the floor.

"I'm fine." McGee said, wishing Tony would just leave, so McGee didn't have to face the pain he'd inflicted on his friend.

Green eyes, hard and angry, suddenly met his own. "Then you damn well could have let me know yourself." McGee took a step back as the anger in Tony's eyes burned into him.

"I…." McGee started, unsure, as he faced another side of Tony. Suddenly his own anger flared. His own hurt and confusion and pain.

"Right. But once more I was too weak." McGee shouted.

"Weak?" Tony asked, standing.

"You obviously think so. I remember what you did."

"I didn't do anything because you were weak, McGee." Tony shouted back. "I did that because I couldn't live with myself if I had let my friend get hurt." The second half of the sentence was said in a near whisper. Tony met McGee's eyes again "I've never thought you are weak. Nobody could be weak and have my back like you do. You were drugged and hurting. There was no way in hell those men were going to inflict more pain on you."

Tony waited a minute before continuing. "Those men are the ones that hurt me McGee. Not you. I did not stand up for you because I thought you were weak. I stood up for you because you are my partner and my friend and I knew that if our roles were reversed you would do the same for me."

They stood in a stair down for an eternity, a battle of wills happening. McGee finally sagged and he breathed out a ragged breath, releasing all the anger, sorrow, fear, confusion and guilt of the last few weeks. The battle over both men sank into the cushions and stared at anything but each other.

Both men were comfortable in the silence and understanding between them as they rested in that moment of peace.

"What a pair we make." Tony said after a while, never one for too much quiet. He was rewarded by McGee's answering snort.

"Shouldn't you be at the hospital?" McGee asked, eyeing his partner's pale face.

"I snuck out days ago. Fled to Gibbs' house." McGee smiled as he thought for a moment.

"Shouldn't you be at Gibbs' house then?" McGee asked.

"Nah. I needed to come beat some sense into you. Ziva helped me sneak out." McGee couldn't contain the laugh at that.

"Gibbs is gonna be pissed."

Tony's grin wavered for a moment before becoming fixed on his face once more.

"He'll understand." Tony assured McGee, closing his eyes.

"Doesn't mean he won't head slap you into next week." Tony's grin only grew in response, before his face smoothed out into peaceful lines as he fell into the rest that he needed to recover.

As McGee sat there in the dark he pondered how lucky he was to know he had a partner that would fight through hell to have his back. An honor he knew he would always repay.

a/n k i don't know that tim was completely in character with this but in my defense he was given some mystery drug and he had to watch his partner be interrogated by the bad people so...