Watch the first 20 minutes of S.W.A.K. Season 2 episode 22 of NCIS before reading this chapter.
If you can't, basically Tony opened an envelope containing Y-pastis, which is a kind of plague.

Tony's P.O.V.
"You may have a point." I admitted. 

"You're afraid aren't you?" Kate asked.

"Kate come on. Me afraid?" I asked, trying to sound nonchalant. "You ever seen me afraid?" I asked, trying to hide my obvious fear.

"Well, not when the danger's something that we can confront." Kate replied reasonable. I sat up intrigued by what she was saying. "But all we can do here is lie around, and hope that we're not infected."

"Now who's afraid?"

"Anyone with half a brain." Kate chuckled once. "I take that back. You're not afraid." Kate rolled over to face the wall instead of me.

"Ellie doesn't know yet does she?" I whispered. My eyes welled up with tears. I stood up, and walked over to Kate. "Kate, Ellie doesn't know." I repeated. My nostrils did that thing when you cry where they almost... twitch. "We need to tell her."

"We can't."

"We have to." I ran my fingers through my hair. I inhaled shakily. But we didn't.

A few hours later:
"Yeah so I opened it! What are you so upset about? It's not like you're lying..." But I cut myself off.

"Yeah. That's right, Trovolta. I'm infected too." Kate said, a sharpness to her voice I hadn't ever really heard before.

"Oh, Kate, I'm so sorry." I whispered back, not really sure how to reply to that. What were you supposed to say when you accidentally give the first person you've ever actually loved after your wife died and left you a single parent, the fricking plague?

"Well, you're going to be sorrier." She insisted.

"No," I said, sitting up slightly. "Don't tell me Gibbs got it?" I asked, fearing the worst.

Kate scoffed before replying. "No, no. Just us. But I am going to make your life Hell."

"How?" I challenged. "You can't be worse than plague... Maybe you can." I turned to doctor Brad, and chuckled once. "Maybe she can."

"I'm warning you, DiNozzo."

"Kate, I promise you. That you can't be worse than the literal plague." I turned to look at doctor Brad. "I need to make a phone call."

"I can't permit you to have a cell phone." Doctor Brad insisted, crossing his arms.

"Well can you make an exception? Or do... like an intercom or something?" I asked impatiently, coughing a few times.

"Who do you need to call?" Doctor Brad asked, walking out of the decontamination chamber.

"My daughter. I can give you the number, just... call. And fast."

Ellie picked up after just 3 rings. "Yellow!" She said brightly, drawing out the 'y' just a bit.

"Ellie?" I asked, coughing again.

"Um... dad?" She asked, apparently not recognizing my voice.

"Yes of *cough, cough, cough* of course it's me. Just, just listen for a second okay?"

"I'm all ears dad." She insisted.

"I-" I started, but then I cut myself off. Not with a cough, but on my own this time. "I need you to come and see me."

"Mr DiNozzo I don't think that-" Doctor Brad started, but he never finished.

"She won't come inside the decom chamber, but I can't explain it." I insisted, swallowing another cough.

"Sir, I really don't recommend that sh-"

"She's my daughter." I said sharply. "She has a right to know. And that right can only fully realized through having her here. Keep her outside, but let her see-" Another fit of coughing interrupted me again.

Ellie's P.O.V.
Normally I would never have had the guts to do it. I was in the bathroom during AP bio when I got the call. So I ran back to my classroom, hung the pass up on the wall (It was an old beaker with a hole cut into the neck so a chain could pass through), and grabbed my things.

"Ms DiNi?" Mr Reeze said, turning around to face me from where he was writing on the board. "Where are you going?"

"Mr Reeves, I'm sorry for the abrupt leave but I have to go. Quickly.' I explained hurriedly.

"And why is that?"

"Because sir, I just received information that my dad was just severely injured on the job. Well, maybe injured isn't the right word. Maybe infected is better. But I digress. I just received word that my dad has been infected with a genetically altered form of a virus terminated a long while back.

"I do need to go see him, and be with him during what are probably his last few hours. So if you'll excuse me, I must go now."

"Yeah, go, please." Mr Reeves agreed.

Jack grabbed my hand as I made my way out. 

"Text me okay? I want to know what's happened. And call me if you need me. I'll come get you. If needs be I'll take care of you okay?"

Tears. Already tears. Of course. Already that stupid water was being produced by my year ducts.

"Of course." I agreed. "Thank you. I love you."

"I love you too." Jack agreed.

And with that I was off.

I drove to the address, and walked to where I had been instructed. I knocked on the door, and a female doctor answered. "Are you Ellie?" She asked, and I nodded. I tried to get my id out but she said she didn't need it.

When I saw dad and Kate in the room I was confused at first, but when the female doctor explained what had happened, my eyes got wide and I started to shake. "Oh no," I whispered, walking to the doors of the decontamination area. I put my hands on the glass for a moment, before walking back to the door, and exiting the room again.

I couldn't do it. I just couldn't. I had already lost mum, Brock, almost lost Kaylee twice, and now I was going to lose either both Kate and dad, or at least one of them.

I sunk down next to the doors leading to the room holding the decontamination chamber, and pulled my knees up to my chest.

I was having a full blown panic attack. It was a larger panic attack than I normally experienced. This wasn't a plain panic attack. This was pure terror. Pure, unbridled terror.

I was crying. Not crying because there was no sound. My mouth was open waiting for the sound of the crying to come, but it didn't. It never did. My eyes were like geysers. I felt the tears leave my eyes, and I felt the slightly-salty tracks that they left. I felt them make my shirt and scarf wet. I sniffed, trying to keep the mucus from adding to the tracks on my face.

I felt like I needed to walk around, but I couldn't move. A brief choking sound escaped my mouth, and I felt strings of saliva running from the top to the bottom of my mouth, break.

I couldn't get air in my lungs.

I couldn't breath, either way. Not in, or out.

I was twitching.

But I couldn't move.

Tony's P.O.V.
I saw Ellie enter, talk to the female doctor, then walk up to the decontamination area. The light bounced off of the liquid being produced by her eyes. I saw her nostrils flutter momentarily as she sniffed. I tried to say something to her, but my voice caught.

She ran out of the room, covering her eyes. "I'm sorry Ellie," I muttered, still coughing. "I'm so sorry."

"Who was that?" Kate asked. I coughed again.

"Ellie," I replied in a whisper.

Ducky's P.O.V.
I walked down the hall to where Caitlin and Anthony were being held. There was someone sitting down next to the door, freaking out. She was most obviously crying.

I recognized the reddish brown hair, and the pointed black 4 inch heels she was supporting.

"Leah?" I asked, stopping in front of her. The girl looked up, then back down. She used her shirt sleeves to wipe her face. Making it free from tears, mucus, saliva, and also as a self calming technique. 

She sniffed, and stood up. She shook her head, sniffed, and smiled at me. "Yes Ducky?" She asked, sounding like everything was fine.

"Leah, it's okay to cry. Would you like to talk to me about it?" I offered.

I could see the smile on Leah's face break. The smile wasn't very convincing to begin with. I could tell that the act of her hiding her tears behind a fake smile was common for her to do. The smile looked real, but I could tell it wasn't.

It was like the smile was a sheet of glass in front of her. When I offered to talk about it with her, the glass -already thin- started cracking. Then it shattered, and the smile completely disappeared. 

Tears started falling from both of her eyes again. She walked forward half a step, and practically collapsed into my arms. She buried her face in my shoulder, and sobbed.

"I can- I- I- I can't lose him too. P- P- Please. Please, don't- don't let me loose h- h- him too. I- I-" And she just lost it.

"I know, I know." I whispered, rubbing her back.

Ellie's P.O.V.
I walked back into the room where the decontamination area is. I folded my arms, and sniffed again. I swallowed and got a closer look at what dad looked like. His eyes were sunken in. Puffy, purple, and not the shade of blue/green. His lips were pale and purplish, and his skin was... almost white.

"Oh, papa." I whispered, not caring about the tears anymore. Almost my entire face was wet now. Kate was standing next to dad and the doctors as dad coughed up blood. Kate had a mask on though.

Why would Kate have a mask if they were both infected? Wait... Kate isn't infected is she?

Kate left after the male doctor ushered her out. She pulled her mask off, and was obviously in distress too. The doors opened, and Kate fell into Ducky like I had.

I wasn't aware that I was biting my lip until I felt the small break of the skin on the inside of my lip break. I felt the blood run down my teeth. Blood has a very distinct taste. You never really think about it, but you can very clearly tell that you're tasting blood whenever it makes contact with the tongue.

My nostrils did that thing they do when you cry where they twitch. My eyes were burning from the amount of crying. I was numb. Just... completely numb. My throat was completely dry. My head was pounding. The space behind my ears hurt from the pressure I was putting on them.

My knees gave out, and my feet couldn't hold my weight anymore.

And I fell to the ground.

I tried to stand up again but I couldn't support myself like that anymore. I walked to the wall, and leaned against it.

I slid down the wall and pulled my legs up to my chest again. My head hurt like... like... like there was a cinder block bashing into my temples. I stood up again, using the wall for a brace. I had to stand. I just had to. I wasn't exactly sure why. But I had to.  I walked into the middle of the space not taken up by the isolation chamber, and took up my posture again.

Gibbs burst through the doors a few seconds later saying something in a harsh voice. He entered the isolation chamber without a though, or a mask, and started talking to dad. I didn't know what he was saying, but he gave dad a new phone, and gently slapped the back of his head.

Gibbs walked back out of the isolation chamber and over to me.

"He's going to be fine." He insisted

"How can you be sure?" I asked, sniffing again.

"Because the virus has a self destruct. Now wipe your eyes, he'll be okay." I sniffed again and used my sleeve to clean my face once more. "Come here," Gibbs whispered, holding his arms out to me. I walked forward a few steps and into Gibbs' arms. He wrapped his arms around me. I buried my face in his shoulder, and could find myself able to breath again. Even if shakily.

I pressed the number 8, and Jack pickled up immediately. I had waited until school was over to call to make sure he was available.

"Hey Jack?" I said, my voice not in any way steady yet.

Jack exhaled shakily too. "Are you okay?"

"Kind of? I'm still mid panic attack. Could you come over in about 10 minutes?"

"I would love to." He replied, hanging up the call.

I flipped my phone closed, and deeply inhaled, then sharply exhaled, and I entered the decontamination area.

"P-Papa?" I asked in a whisper.

"E-E-Ellie?" Dad croaked back, his voice weak and raspy.

"Are you okay?" I asked. "I was so- so worried."

"Yeah, I'll be okay." He insisted.

"Okay. You can't die okay. Promise me you won't. Because I don't know what I'd do if you died. Because I don't have anyone else. Dad, you're it. You're all I've got. You have to be there. Please don't die. Please."

"I'm not going to die." Dad replied as if it were obvious. "I'll get through this. Don't worry about me. I'm sorry I didn't tell you sooner though. You deserved to know as soon as I knew." (Okay, so Tony's still really sick, coughing, stuttering, and isn't 10000% clear as to what he's saying. But I find dialogue written like that really hard to read and I don't want that for you. So just imagine that he's still dying. ;) )

"It's okay dad." I insisted. "I get it. Just... get better. I'll make sure you're taken care of okay"

"Okay,"

"I love you. So much."

"I love you too." I grasped dad's hand for a moment, said 'I love you' in sign. He weakly signed it back, and I left.

I drove back home, unlocked the door, and sat on the couch waiting for Jack. Exactly 10 minutes after I had called Jack, there was a knock on the door. I stood up and let him in.

"Hey," I said lamely.

"Are you okay Anna? Is your dad okay?" My eyes started watering again, and I pulled Jack into the house. I hugged him. Tightly.

"Anna, I can't breathe." Jack said, tapping my back 3 times.

"Sorry," I mumbled, letting go of him. "You came,"

"Of course I came." Jack replied, closing the front door. "Do you think I'm stupid or something? Of course I'm gonna come. Especially after something like that."

I smiled weakly, and explained what happened. 

"I'm sorry babe." Jack whispered, hugging me again. We were together for another 5 or so minutes before Jack had to leave. "Call me if you need me okay? I love you."

"I love you too," I replied, and Jack left, closing the door behind him.

There was another knock on the door 20 or so minutes later. I opened it to find someone I didn't expect. "Tim?" I said curiously.

"Hey Leah."

"You want to come in?" I offered.

"Uh, sure." Tim agreed. I waved him in, and he entered. "How are you holding up?" He asked. "This whole thig has been, absolutely crazy, I know."

"Yeah, just a bit." I agreed chuckling.

"Do you need anything? Can I help you somehow?"

"Um..." I said thinking. "I could use a hug." I decided. Hugging Tim reminded my of hugging dad. Tim raised his arms, and I snuck in between them. He wrapped his arms around me, and I wrapped my arms around his back. "You feel like dad." I whispered.

"Should I be offended?"

"Not in the slightest."

"You know, you thought that as a kid too."

We broke apart, and I looked up at him. "What do you mean?"

Tim smiled at the memory and told the story of when Tony and the team were in Cuba and Leah had gone by Taylor: Abby's 'little cousin'. When Leah was upset about Tony not being here and Abby couldn't calm her down, Tim took a shot at soothing the 3 year old.

"Although you were super upset at first, you calmed down and fell asleep pretty quick. Apparently either my heartbeat, or breathing, or smell -gosh I hope it's not smell- reminded you of Tony and you slept for hours in my arms. I had to carry you around, and if I tried to put you down you started crying again."

Leah smiled, "How did you know it was me? You didn't know Tony had a kid."

"Abby told me about it a couple of weeks ago."

"That's a really good story. Thank's for telling me."

"Do you want to take a walk? Maybe, go and get some food?"

"I would love to." I agreed, smiling, and following Tim out the door after making sure I had my keys with me still.

Hehhehehhehehhehehehhehehehehehheheheheheehehehhehehheee

-Eliza

(2871 words. Cool.)