Disclaimer: "NCIS" and its characters don't belong to me they belong to CBS and are being used without permission. Please don't sue because I have no money.

Childhood

Nine-year-old Tony DiNozzo picked up his backpack from the seat next to him and opened the door. The driver had picked him up from school and had taken him home. It was summertime and school was over for the year. He wondered if he would be shipped off to another summer camp this year. He opened the door and walked inside. He wondered if his father was there and his newest stepmother was there too. He went upstairs to his bedroom and changed into his other clothes and went outside to play. Often he wondered what it would be like to have a brother, or sister then he wouldn't be so bored. He would have somebody to play with. He didn't like his newest stepmother because the last time he was home she had hit him.

An hour later he went back inside and didn't notice that he tracked dirt inside. Going into the kitchen he took out a carton full of juice and grabbed a glass to pour it into. Putting the carton back he sat down at the table and drank the juice. When he was done he put the cup into the sink and then he heard his name being called.

"Anthony, come here." His stepmother yelled.

He walked out and stared at his stepmother, Angela.

She stalked up to him and slapped him across the face. "What is this Anthony?" She pointed to the dirt on the floor.

"I'm sorry."

"Oh, you're going to be sorry, Anthony." She slapped him again. "Now clean this up now." She narrowed her eyes. "And don't you dare tell your father about this. Not that he would believe you anyways." She said as she walked back towards the back room.

His face stung from the two hard slaps that he had gotten from Angela. He wondered if he would have a bruise and wondered what he would say to his father if he would ask. He remembered last time his father had looked at him and had obviously seen the bruise, but didn't ask. He wondered if his father even cared about him. The only time he had even talked to him would be to lecture him in his study after he had brought him his drink.

After cleaning the mess that he made up he went upstairs and decided to watch a movie. He loved movies and he often watched them to take his mind off of his stepmother. He hated her and wished that he could talk to his father, but he never could talk to him because he was never there, or he ignored him.

When the movie was over he went downstairs and made his way to the kitchen where the cook had just finished making their dinner. He went into the dining room and sat down at his chair that he has always sat in and waited for them to serve dinner. His stepmother was already there as well as his father. His father barely looked at him as he read the paper and waited for the dinner to arrive. He wondered what he would of said what had happened if his father even cared to ask him.

When dinner was over he went upstairs and put in another movie and settled down to watch it. When it was over he turned the T.V. off and put on his pajamas and went to sleep. He wished that his life was like some of those movies that he watched because then he knew that his life would turn out good, but his life wasn't like the movies. He hated being scared of angering his newest stepmother and wished that his Dad would care about him, but he never did. His Dad only cared about himself.

He made his way downstairs after changing into his clothes and sat at the table. His father was there reading the paper and his step mom was nowhere in sight. He was glad that she wasn't there. She had on more than one occasion used the belt on him and he didn't like her and the less he saw of her was good.

When breakfast was done he got up, but was stopped by his Dad's voice. "You will be leaving for camp in a week. Make sure you have everything packed."

"Yes, Dad." Tony said hoping to see his Dad's face, but he still hadn't put it down. He went towards the woods surrounding the house and started climbing his favorite tree. He sat there for the longest time looking around. People looked like ants when he was high above them. He remembered his Mom had called the fire department not because she was worried, but because he might get his clothes dirty. He wondered if his Mom ever cared for him. He hated wearing the sailor suits and hated being paraded around to her friends. He remembered she had him take piano lessons and he didn't like it either. He hated being hit on the hands when he made a mistake.

After spending what felt like an hour he climbed down and made his way towards his other place that he liked. The stream that was a run off of the falls even further up. He had never been up there, but he had heard about it from the gardener. He took off his shoes and socks and waded in the water for a bit and then sat by the bank to let his feet dry. When they were dry he went back to the house and he looked around to make sure he didn't make a mess and to make sure that Angela wasn't there either. He glanced at the clock and it was almost lunchtime. He had no idea that he was gone that long. One of the cooks was there and she was cooking lunch for his step mom when she got there and for him too. The cookies were on the bar and he grabbed one and ate it before anyone caught him. He smiled as he brushed the crumbs from his face and from his shirt. He then made his way towards his room and changed his room and then went into the dining room where he was the only one there. His Dad was already at work and his step mom was still gone, but not for long because a minute later Angela walked inside and sat down in her chair.

"Hello, Anthony. I hope you haven't made any messes today."

"No, ma'am."

"Good. Make sure that you don't." Once again she narrowed her eyes to him and looked at his clothes. He was lucky that he had changed his dirty clothes before he sat down, or else he might have been in trouble. "I hear that you are going to go to camp. If it was up to me you would not even be here now." She said and then turned to one of the maids who had put their lunches on the table. Tony turned to his food and ate making sure that he didn't get anything on the table, or on himself. Once when they had lunch he had accidentally tipped his juice over and it spilled on the table. Angela got up and hit him on the table. She had him get a towel and wipe it up and had one of the maids take it off of the table. She then grabbed his arm and led him towards the closet where she put him in and locked it.

"Maybe if you're in here you won't get into trouble."

"Let me out."

"Shut up, you brat, or I'll give you something to cry about." She said and then turned to leave. She went back to the dining room and finished her meal. After she was done she went to her room and changed her clothes. She waited an hour and then opened the door to the closet and let him out. He took off and made his way outside where he made a beeline for his favorite tree. He climbed it and looked around. He could see a few houses down and saw a father grilling what looked like burgers and a mother playing with her children. He wiped his eyes and wished that those people were his parents. They looked like they cared about their children. He wished that he had different parents, but what he had was a Dad that didn't care about his son and a stepmother who had hated him.

----

It was time for him to go to camp and he was packed. He brought his suitcase downstairs and made his way towards the car that was waiting for him. He knew that his Dad wasn't there because he was never there when he went to camp, or to boarding school. The Chauffer had put his suitcase into the trunk, closed it and opened the door for him to get into the car. He sat his backpack next to him and then buckled up. He watched as the driver pulled away from the mansion and made his way down the driveway. Tony turned his head and stared out the window.

It was time to go back home and he was kind of dreading it. He wondered if Angela was going to be there, or was she at one of her appointments. The driver took out his suitcase as he stood there. He took it and made his way to the door. He opened it and looked around. Nobody was there not that he expected it. He carried his suitcase upstairs and unpacked and then went downstairs. He wondered if there was a snack in the refrigerator. He made his way towards the kitchen when his Dad's voice stopped him.

"It's time to leave this house, Junior. Angela is no longer my wife and we are leaving in a couple of weeks. You need to pack up your things and we will put them into storage. We will be living at your Uncle's house for the time being.

"Yes, Dad." Tony said and he turned to go into the kitchen where there was a leftover cookies still in the refrigerator. He grabbed one and the juice and got a cup to pour it in. He put the cup into the sink and wiped his face and made his way upstairs. He looked around. He would miss this house, but he was glad to get rid of Angela.

---

It was a month later that his Dad had met someone else and had gotten married. He had brought a house and they moved in. He wasn't sure of his newest step mom. He remembered Angela was nice to him when his Dad was around, but turned mean when he wasn't around.

It was a week later that he had started to like his newest step mom. She was nice to him and she was even nice to him when his Dad was not there. She had made him laugh and she had liked movies too and would watch them with him. She had even let him hug her and she would listen to him if he needed to talk to someone. She would even play with him. One day they were even pirates. He loved her and she was a great step mom. He was glad that his Dad had married her. He didn't have to be scared anymore and for that he was glad.

The End