NCIS: Ages & Stages: Growing Up McBaby

Chapter 14

A/N Thanks for everyone's patience regarding the wait for this chapter! It's extra long to make up for no update last week. Real life and work have been horribly busy. Thanks for all the lovely reviews, they keep me going!




XXX




Ducky sighed as the sound of the dial tone permeated his ear. Frowning, he handed Tony back his phone and sat down on the bed next to the younger man. He reached for the bottle of antibiotics on the table and was startled when Tony suddenly grabbed his arm. "Anthony!" The older man hollered and struggled to free his arm from Tony's grip.




"I'm not letting go until you tell me what that was all about."




Ducky huffed and tried once again to escape the clutches of Tony. Although the younger man was ill, nobody would have been able to tell by the strength with which he was holding Ducky's arm. Resigned to the fact this was a battle he wasn't going to win, Ducky cleared his throat and spoke, "You win, Anthony. I'll tell you what happened if you'll let go of my arm. You're squeezing too hard and my circulation is being cut off."




Tony released his grip and Ducky immediately rubbed his arm hoping to restore the blood flow. "Sorry, Ducky, sometimes I don't realize my own strength. I heard enough of your conversation with Gibbs to know that something's wrong." He yawned and shook his head, "My mind may be foggy because of all these drugs, but I can tell by your demeanor that you two had a disagreement."




Ducky knew it wasn't his place to tell Tony all of the malicious things Jack had said to Gibbs and decided a vague overview would have to do. Even though he'd seen Gibbs open up more to the entire team, he didn't feel it was right to share that kind of information. He picked up the bottle of antibiotics, unscrewed the cap and poured one into his hand. Handing Tony the medication along with a glass of water he sighed, "Take your pill my boy and then we can talk."Tony nodded, popped the pill in his mouth and took a hearty drink of water. Snuggling deeper into the pillows, Tony sighed in contentment when Ducky pulled the blankets up and tucked them in.




"You know I always appreciate you fussing over me Ducky, but I really want to know what happened between you and Gibbs."




Tony's eyes drooped as the effects of the medication began to kick in. He'd already had a dose of codeine and knew he would only have a few more minutes of consciousness. Ducky paternally ran his hand over Tony's forehead and brushed his hair off to the side. "You're burning up dear boy. I'll tell you what, how about you get some sleep and we'll discuss what happened between me and Jethro when you're feeling better."




"Oh no, no, no..." Tony rasped, fully opening his eyes, "I want to know now!"




"Very well then. You're right, Jethro and I did have a disagreement. He's not very happy with me right now for stating my opinion." He paused and took a deep breath before continuing, "Apparently Jack wasn't happy to hear that Jethro adopted Timothy and had hurtful words to say to both of them."




Tony felt his blood pressure rise as he thought about the fact that Jack had deliberately hurt his Tim and surrogate father. "What did he say?" He snapped, angrily wadding his fists in the sheets.




"I'm not sure how much of their conversation Jethro feels comfortable with me sharing, but I can tell you what caused our disagreement."