If you're seeing this, I'm sure you're confused, as I marked this as the last chapter, but WHAT? They're not together yet. And by now, you're likely assuming – as I'm sure you're smart people – that I won't be finishing this completely. And you're correct.

I'm very sorry as some of you have been here since the beginning, and some of you may just be finding this now. I lost interest in NCIS a long while back, and it got harder and harder to push out these chapters. And rather than deliver something I felt was subpar, I just... didn't.

Part of that was mental health, part of that was a busy life, part of that was just plain old procrastination. But, as to not leave you all wondering what happened, I've put the notes I had for this story into an outline, so you can see how I wanted it to go, how I planned for it to go way back when I started this story.

Vance low key admits to knowing about supernatural creatures in the world, offers Tony a job leading his own team in Spain, alongside the team tracking the port to port killer

Tony packs everything and leaves for Spain, save for a box of memories of his and Gibbs' that are too painful to take with him. He gives that box to Ami, who delivers it to Gibbs with her most threatening frown and a 'I'm not telling you where he went, he's your ex you figure it out"

Nobody tells him, obviously. Vance says its a 'need to know' and he didn't say goodbye to anyone else, save for Abby, who doesn't know where he is either.

After about a month, Gibbs is drinking in his basement, runs out of bourbon and goes to the cabinet to get some from his 'emergency' stash, finds the board he had peeled off of the boat after the events of chapter 14. He remembers that night and slowly remembers bits and pieces of their relationship.

Lots of cursing happens.

Gibbs returns to Night Delight, tells them that he remembers and demands to know where Tony is. Ami ignores him so he goes to Vance.

Barging into Vance's office he finds Tony Skyping with Vance, and later pieces together where Tony is, takes some leave and gets on a plane.

Gibbs shows up in Spain and hunts Tony down to talk to him and try and figure out how to make things right.

Unfortunately he shows up just in time to see Tony get shot, slammed into with a van as it's stopping, people jumping out and shoving him back into the van as it peels off. The last thing Tony hears before the door slams shut is Gibbs screaming his name.

Cue the entire team flying in to find him, and Tony's team being relocated to DC to pick up the slack there in the meantime.

It takes them almost a week to find Tony, and he's beaten, bloody and bruised, the gunshot is mostly healed, and he is starving. He's half rescued himself by the time Gibbs finds him. He makes a joke about Jethro looking good enough to eat. Well. It's sort of a joke. (not really)

Afterwards, Tony pulls Gibbs aside and explains how the bullet wound was healed.

Gibbs puts two and two together and realizes he's starving.

Gibbs lets Tony bite his wrist with an "I trust you"

After they've flown home Gibbs gives him headslaps for keeping this from him. Then they talk about their previous relationship and hesitantly consider rekindling it.

It ends with kissing.

I'd like to thank you all for all of the wonderful comments throughout the years, and I'm sorry to end it this way. I really am. It feels like a huge cop out. But at least this way there's some closure, yeah?

Much love,

Taku