Work Text:
Wastrel
Tony glanced around at the homeless people that were loitering around the crime scene. They left plenty of space between them and the police tape, but it was clear they usually slept near here and weren’t sure where to go now. Tony knew that he could easily have ended up like them.
He’d started following his wastrel of a father at a young age. It was only when his father disowned him that he realized how much money he was wasting. Sure he’d been trying to get his father’s attention, but he’d quickly realized his father wasn’t worth much as he was always broke and decided to make a new better path for himself.
Con men were supposed to be smooth and Tony knew how to turn on the charm when he needed to, but he knew that wasn’t what was needed now. Leaving the rest of the team to handle the crime scene, Tony headed over to the homeless people. He was certain that at least one of them had seen something.
Feeling absurdly grateful that he hadn’t ended up one of them, Tony calmly explained what had happened and asked if they had any information. A few blustered and refused to talk, but Tony noticed the shy one. The one who looked like he had something to say, but was afraid to speak up.
Shepherding him out of the group, Tony took him back to NCIS headquarters and made sure he had food and water before asking any of his questions. By the time the guy’s story had tumbled out, he’d vastly overshared, Tony had felt more than a bit of kinship with the guy and wanted to hook him up with a job, so that he could get back on his feet.
