Bishop was waiting when Tony made his way out of the hospital and to her car. He gave Emma a hug and thanked her for her help before getting into the car.

"Hey, Tony. Gibbs asked me to take you to the school. The two boys really want to meet you still. Are you happy with that?"

"Very. And Bishop, thank you for this. You didn't have to do it."

"I know that. But you are my friend, and it will be nice to share the apartment with someone for a few days."

"You miss having Jake around, don't you?"

"Of course. I don't care what he did, I still loved him for a long time."

"Understood. I've been there before." He missed Wendy so much though he would never tell anyone about it. "So, how are you? You look like you've gotten some much needed sleep."

"Gibbs sent us all home after we finished processing the Barn brothers yesterday. I went to bed at seven thirty last night."

"That was really early."

"I know. But it was nice. I needed it." Bishop pulled into the school's parking lot. "We're here."

Tony climbed out and followed Bishop into the front office of the school. A smiling man was waiting for them and took them to an office without a question.

"Joseph, Matthew, this is Agent Bishop. She's brought someone for you to meet," the man said.

The two boys looked up with big smiles. They were holding cards, which they gave to Tony a moment later, along with tight hugs.

"Thank you, mister. You saved us," said Matthew once he finally let Tony go. "You didn't have to do it, but you did anyway. That was so brave."

"I would never let children get hurt. Are you both okay?" asked Tony.

"Yes," said Joseph. "We kept asking if you were safe yet. Our mums kept telling us to wait, but it was hard to do."

Tony smiled. He hugged the two children and thanked them for the cards, which were creative and sweet.

Two Days Later

Thursday morning saw Tony up bright and early. He had already made breakfast and coffee for Bishop and himself, cleaned the apartment and dressed for work. He wanted to still find a way to repay the kindness, but until he did, this was just as good.

"Tony? You're a bit eager to get back to work, aren't you?" Bishop asked as she entered the kitchen in her pyjamas. "Is that an omelette?"

"It is. There's bacon on the other plate and plenty of coffee to go around."

"Thank you." Bishop sat down to eat, her eyes widening as she looked at all the food Tony had cooked. "Why did you make so much?"

"I'll take the leftovers to work for Gibbs and McGee." Tony shrugged as he washed dishes. It wasn't the first time he had brought breakfast to work for the team.

When Tony walked out of the elevator, the first thing he noticed was everyone clapping. He looked around, and there was banner hanging from his desk that said 'welcome back'. A cupcake was also on his desk, and he was sure that it was from Abby.

"DiNozzo, well done!" someone shouted. "You saved those kids. You are a hero!"

Tony felt his face going red as he sat at his desk and everyone started chanting, 'hero, hero, hero'.

Finally, Gibbs stood on his desk and shouted, "that's enough! All of you, get back to work!"

Tony looked up as his boss came over. "Thank you for that."

"Relax, Tony. Nobody will bring it up. I made sure of it."

Tony nodded. "So, what are we working on today?" he asked, changing the subject and earning a chuckle from Gibbs.

The End