crossoverfic | [FIC] A Sympathetic Ear, PG, NCIS/House

Title: A Sympathetic Ear

Author:

wiccagirl24

Fandom: NCIS/House

Rating: PG

Warnings: Spoilers for the season finales of both shows.

Pairings: just friendship

Characters: Tony DiNozzo and Allison Cameron

Summary: It's been a long day, and Tony needs someone to talk to. Post ep for NCIS episode Hiatus

Disclaimer: These characters do not in anyway belong to me, and I am receiving no compensation for writing this fic except fun and maybe a few comments.

Author's Notes: Written for the crossover challenge at

ncis_flashfic. The idea of Allison Cameron and Tony being friends came to me, and this just tumbled out. I worked out a whole back story (Allison's dead husband and Tony being childhood friends) that didn't make it into the fic. Maybe I'll have to write another House/NCIS crossover.

Tony passes three bars on his way home from work. Each time he's tempted to pull into the parking lot a stop for a drink or two... or ten. He doesn't, though. Instead he drives straight home and lets himself into his empty apartment. Flipping on the light as he closes the door behind him, it's almost a surprise to find that everything looks the same. His whole world has changed in the last twenty-four hours, it seems like his home should be different too.

He heats up a carton of leftover chinese food more out of habit then any desire to eat. After poking at the contents for a few minutes with a fork- he never has mastered the use of chop sticks- he throws the almost full container into the trash. Restlessly Tony prowls around the apartment, opening doors and slamming then closed for no reason. He swears loudly and violently when he stubs his toe on a table and knocks his phone onto the floor. As he is about to return the phone to its cradle he decides that maybe hearing a familiar voice will help to dispel the restlessness that he's felt ever since Gibbs pressed his badge and gun into Tony's hand.

He doesn't stop to wonder who he should call. Almost of their own volition his fingers dial a string of numbers. He only calls her ever few months- never on holidays or birthdays because he doesn't want to infringe on those times he knows are painful for her- but he has her number memorized. After listening to the ring of the phone half a dozen times, he is about to hang up when there is a soft click and a breathless hello.

"I didn't catch you at a bad time, did I?" he asks. Its not until now that he looks at the phone and realizes how late it is.

"Not at all," she replies warmly. "I just got home from work. A minute sooner and I would have missed your call."

"That boss of yours works you too hard," Tony can't help but chide.

"No harder then your boss does." It's a running joke between them, comparing stories of their bosses. They long ago decided that if the two men even met they would either be instant best friends or sworn enemies. Not that there was much chance of that happening now.

"He's not my boss anymore."

"Oh Tony, what happened?" Allison's voice is full of empathy, and Tony knows that he made the right choice when he called her. He can't let anyone at work see how much Gibbs leaving has hurt him, not if he is going to be the boss now, but with Allison he can give voice to his concerns.

"He quit. It's a long story involving a coma and more then one bomb, but the short version is that he's gone and he's not coming back." It was the first time he had said that out loud, and just hearing the words made him wince. For five years he'd looked to Gibbs to lead the way, and now there was no one to guide him.

"Are you sure?" she asks. From all that Tony has told her, she can't imagine that his boss could stay away from work for long; it would be like House saying that he was giving up practicing medicine. "Could it turn out to be just a hiatus?"

"You didn't see him, Ally. There was this look in his eyes- he's done." He'd seen a thousand different expressions on his boss's face, but never the mix of resigned pain that he had seen today.

"You're going to miss him," Allison says knowingly.

"Yeah," Tony admits. "And I'm not the only one."

"How is everyone taking it?" Allison has never met the people that Tony works with, but she knows all about them from the stories he's told her, just as he knows all about Foreman, Chase, and Wilson.

"It's been a tough couple of days. I'm not sure it's really sunk in for everyone yet." Tony remembers the shocked look on McGee's face, the tight lipped reserve of the director and the tears in Abby's eyes. "At least not completely."

"It's going to be hard when it does," Allison said. She remembered the agonizing hours of sitting next to House's hospital bed- was that really only a month ago?- and imagines what Tony was feeling must be similar.

"He put me in charge." The weight of Gibbs' trust is both a comfort and a burden, and Tony isn't sure he will be able to bear the strain.

"Of course he did," Allison reassures. Under any other circumstances she would offer her congratulations, but she knows that tonight Tony isn't ready to accept them. "He knows that you are the best person for the job."

"I don't know if I'm ready."

"I do. You're a born leader, Tony. One of the first things Danny ever told me about you was that you were destined for great things."

"Really? I thought the first thing he told you was not to take anything I said seriously."

"Okay," Allison laughs. "Maybe that was the second thing he said."

Tony joins in with her laughter, and the knot in his stomach relaxes a little. "Thanks for that."

"I didn't do anything but listen," Allison says.

"That was enough." Tony settles down on his couch and props his feet up on the coffee table.

"I'm glad I could help." His laughter is a relief; she hates to know that he is hurting and she can't do anything for him but be a voice on the other end of a phone line. Tucking away her worry, she decides that what he needs is something to get his mind off the events of the day. "Now, do you want to hear about Chases latest run in with House?"

"Most definitely." Leaning his head back and closing his eyes, Tony grins. "So what kind of trouble did my favorite Aussie get into now?"