I'm not surprised this one took a lot out of you - it was so heartwrenching, so emotive I felt I was on the rollercoaster of my life. Tony's pain was palpable, and the pairing with him and Gibbs was equisite. 

It wasn't an easy story to read at times, but I couldn't stop until I reached the end. You are a wonderful writer and I love all your work, but I think this is the jewel of your crown.

Great job!

That was a gruelling read, such a hard and dark journey. so very worth it though. Made me laugh and cry, made me angry and hopeful too. Loved it totally. Feel like I have made the journey through the Heart of Darkness!!! So intense and painful, yet amazingly good at the same time.

I've never written a Fanfiction review before but wanted to send you a short note.

I found this story to be incredibly well written and moving, and I love how you write the relationship between Gibbs and Tony. All the team characters are so well expressed and little gestures, conversations and some humour appear very natural in your stories.


Your writing style is effortless and I have enjoyed reading all your stories.

Keep writing more Tony and Gibbs oriented stories. You have plenty of people keen to read more. Thank you!

Author's Response:

Thank you so much!

Wow, this is really good! Keep up the good work. I'm definitely going to check out more of your works. Thanks for the awesome story.

Author's Response:

Thanks so much! Hope you enjoy the other fics too :-)

I want to thank you for sharing this fabulous story. I grabs me and keeps me involved all the way through. Even when I know what is going to happen since I have read it so often.  It's one of my go to story for a little escape. As are most of your stories.

They characters are so well done and yet just enough different to make the story wholely plausible.  The little lighter elements make the darker ones stand out more.

Thank you again.  Kathie

EPIC! that is all I have to say

Author's Response:

Thank you!

for some unfortunate or fortunate reason, I, who thought I had read everything you have written, had not read this. I am so glad that I found it. It is extremely well written, like always. It is painful though, and yet I can't stop reading. I thought I should leave you a message half way through. you are an amazing writer.

Author's Response:

Thank you so much - it is a painful story but one I wanted to tell.

Hi Again! Thank you for your response to my review. Reading your reasoning about Gibbs' comment made me question my own reaction (it was pretty visceral) - I think I jumped directly to Tony's perspective without thinking about Gibbs' thought process in that moment. I totally get why Gibbs would react as he did and perhaps that was the best word to use - to disabuse Quinn violently of his misconceptions in a pithy succinct manner. Plus you are right, the place Tony comes to at the end of the story - looking from that moment retrospectively back to the time when the interview takes place - he was damaged in comparison. But he has risen above - with the help of Gibbs :) Wow. The depth of your narrative vision is truly striking. I'm in awe of you!

Author's Response:

Thanks! Nice to discuss the fic with you!

I have read this story three times (at least) and I am compelled to leave you the sincerest of compliments and kudos. Your version of Tony is brilliantly nuanced and sublime- damaged and yet stronger than any other fandom version of him I have yet to read (and there are many whump!Tony stories out there). Gibbs is pitch perfect - there is nothing about his characterisation that is out of place or that does not match canonical arc TPTB have created to for him. And your handling of sexual abuse and child prositution victims - and the scars they face in adulthood rings very true, trust me. Especially how Tony has learnt to deal with it by boxing it away - and how his memory gets triggered. Perhaps the only thing that strikes me as a little off is Gibbs' parting shot to Quinn in the interview - that Tony the adult is 'damaged'. Although I completely agree thats exactly what Tony is, I think if Tony were to hear Gibbs say that it would have devastated him. I think Gibbs, knowing Tony as well as he appears to do in the fanfic, may not ever voice such a thought out loud even if Tony wasnt around knowing how it might effect him. (I am explaining myself badly - but I just mean that for someone who works so hard to not be considered an abuse victim, to hear a comment like that from the person who means the most to them -it can get misconstrued in their head and I think Gibbs might know that - but then again Im buying into the whole Gibbs is omniscient and all knowing even when dealing with damaged Tony - which he clearly isnt..)Forget that though because everything ELSE (and even that) is absolutely breathtaking, thought provoking and beautifully crafted.

Author's Response:

Many thanks for your thoughtful review!

I do understand what you mean about the 'damaged' thing. I was very careful to call the story "Damage" and not "Damaged" precisely because I didn't want to label Tony that way. I wanted it to be about the damage, not the fact of Tony BEING damaged. But I think what Gibbs was trying to do in that scene was convey to Quinn that he'd had this terrible effect on Tony because Quinn seemed so deluded about what he'd done. And Tony at that point was feeling terribly damaged - the fugue states were massive signs of his distress and the fact that his coping mechanisms had broken down. I honestly don't think it'd have devastated him to hear Gibbs say it - he had that hand injury, and he felt like he was falling apart.

Okay, I hope you know this story was so good that I just kept reading this series all night and got almost no sleep. I couldn't put it down.

This story has brought me to tears, it made me angry at some points of the story, it made me laugh and smile but it mostly made me cry. This is a wonderful, amazing story that keeps you on the edge of your seat the entire time.

It takes you on an emotional rollercoaster and it made me feel like I was in the world of NCIS following the team on a case that uncovers something sinister. I've never read a story that makes you exprience such an overflow of emotions. You handled the subject of the story very well considering it is a sensitive and hard subject to write about. 

Amazing story Xanthe, a definite tear-jerker!

Absolutely perfect story - brilliant depiction of the whole team, heartwrenching emotions... well, I keep coming back to this story.