Little Lightning DiNozzo

Harry's 5th Birthday

When Tony woke up in his bed with a foot in his stomach and a little hand holding his shirt he was not surprised. He took a few moments just relaxing with Harry and thinking about how lucky he was to get that call a couple months ago. There has been a lot of ups and downs but they have been able to get through it together. He had a bit of a learning curve for what rules are appropriate for a 4 year old, then again when he realized Harry is a 4 year old abused child so he had to be very specific.

They created a list of rules that goes on the fridge where the punishment for each broken rule is written as well so he does not fear punishment. He sat down with Gibbs, Ducky, and Vance to discuss what rules are appropriate after realizing he never had these experiences growing up either. Harry was given a couple of chores as well, keeping his room clean and setting the table to dinner. The system has worked much better and they have been seeing Harry coming out of his shell more. Tony is worried about the time when he will start testing boundaries and how far he can go before punishment because he has been easy on his little bug so far.

He was shaken from his thoughts by another little hand hitting him in the face when Harry stretched. He rubbed his eyes and squinted up at his Daddy. Tony couldn't stop the fond smile on his face as he watched the little boy waking up.

"Good morning little bug. Happy birthday to you my big boy" Tony said, swiping the hair off Harry's forehead. He loved how cuddly Harry is now that he has come to trust him more.

"Good morning Daddy." Harry said, stretching like a little kitten.

"Lets go potty and go see if Jethro is up for some special birthday breakfast." Tony said lifting Harry to carry him to the bathroom. He sat him on the ground so Harry could go potty while Tony brushed his teeth. When they were done Tony switched and had Harry wash his hands and brush his teeth while he used the toilet. They made it downstairs to see Jethro sitting at the table with a coffee and a present in front of him.

"Good morning little man. Happy birthday!" Gibbs said as he opened his arms to hug Harry. Harry ran into his arms where Gibbs pulled him to sit on his lap. They had a conversation about what they wanted to do that day while Tony made some pancakes. Harry gets special chocolate chip pancakes with some whip cream. Harry decided he wanted Tony and Jethro to go with him to The Smithsonian's National Zoo so that he can see all the animals. Harry opened two gifts this morning but would open the rest after dinner when Ducky, Vance, his wife, and his kids would be over as well as Palmer and Breena.

Harry opened the gift from Gibbs first whip turned out to be a dinosaur puzzle kit that comes with three different puzzles. Gibbs and Tony had talked about playing games that will also help Harry in life such as mind games, puzzles, hide and seek, and eventually start learning self-defense and more. When Harry opened the gift in front of his Daddy he was super excited. He got a new shirt he wanted to wear today. It was a smaller version of his Daddy's NCIS shirt. Tony noticed that Harry loved when both he and his boss wore their NCIS merch home from work or around the house.

Harry immediately ran upstairs to change his clothing. Tony followed him up to help him bath while Gibbs cleaned up the kitchen. He was already dressed. He grabbed Harry's backpack and checked how many pull-ups were left, he grabbed a couple more to put in there along with another shirt and shorts for Harry in case he needed to change. He sat down in the living room waiting for Tony and Harry to come down. He looked around the room and was happy to see a toy chest in the corner and a couple new pictures of Tony and Harry or Tony, Harry and himself. He even put up a picture of the whole group from when they met.

Half an hour later they were in the charger on the way to the zoo. Harry was excitedly talking about the different animals they might see there. He was very excited about the pandas because they were able to watch them on the webcam on the website last week. They made it to the zoo and after waiting in the line to get in they got their admissions tickets and entered. They decided to go see the pandas first to get Harry's favorite done at the beginning. They made the walk with Harry holding both Tony and Jethro's hands walking in between them.

After exciting pandas they went to the cheetah area across from the panda cafe. Following that they followed the map to the different animals. Some of the favorites of them all include the american trail while including bald eagles. This turned into a great history lesson as well as a rare chance to see the majestic birds. Tony's favorite was the kids farm because he got to watch not only Harry's whole face light up but Gibbs carrying him to every animal petting them too. He got some great pictures of them together as well. Another fan favorite was the reptile exhibit. Harry loved the lizards because they looked the most like dragons in his opinion.

They made their way back home with Harry taking a nap in the car. Tony and Gibbs talked about what time Ducky and Palmer got there to set up the story. By the time they get home Ducky, Palmer, Breena, Vance, Jackie (his wife) and their children should be there for the surprise. When they pulled into the driveway Tony gently woke Harry up and Gibbs got out to wait for them. With renewed energy Harry went running into the house. They all agreed that they would not yell surprise as Harry was still very jumpy so they were all sitting around the living room.

They spent the rest of the night eating, playing games, opening the presents and watching a movie. Harry ended up getting so many presents he broke down. It took half an hour for Tony to convince him that it was okay and everyone gave him presents because they love him and he was a good boy, he deserved the presents. He got some more games, a few new books including the magic tree house books he found in a second hand book store once with Uncle Clive. Vance got him his own "field kit" to be just like his Daddy. It included a small sketch pad, pencils, crayons, and gloves. Harry is currently in a phase where he copies everything his Daddy does.

When Tony went to tuck Harry into bed that night with his new stuffed animals and his blankey Harry asked for a new story tonight. He wanted to know how his Daddy met his Mommy.

"Um, Okay bud. I was in England visiting my family for the Thanksgiving holidays when I first met your mummy. She was one of the most beautiful women I have ever seen. She had pale skin, beautiful red flowing hair and the greenest eyes. He was walking with a couple of other girls around her age in the park. She was sitting at a table reading when all of her friends had to leave. I approached her to have a nice conversation. She was really hesitant about talking with me because she had just had a fight with her boyfriend, your other Daddy, and they decided to take a break. She was studying to become a healer, I believe We got to know each other and I learned she was extremely passionate about helping people. She had a heart of gold. We talked throughout the whole time I was in England. We went out to the movies and out for tea and coffee. We got to know each other and had some fun until I had to leave. We had one last night where we spent it together. When I came back to the States we lost touch."

"It sounds like you loved mummy," Harry murmured, his eyes barely open.

"I did bud. I'll find a picture of her soon for you bug, okay. Go to sleep now. I love you. Don't let the bed bugs bite." Tony said.

"You too Daddy. Love you" Harry said as he drifted off to sleep. This would be the first night in a long time Harry slept with no nightmares. Just dreams of his mummy and Daddy.