Who Knew? (6/?)
Title: Who Knew?
Fandom: NCIS
Genre: Romance/Friendship/Adventure
Rating: PG-13, T
Pairing: Kate/Tony, Abby/McGee, Jenny/Gibbs, Ziva/OC
Spoilers: Seasons 1 & 2 in particular. Season 3 sparingly.
Warnings: AUness, Babyfic
Summery: Kate has alot of adjusting to do. This includes a loss of a friend, a new relationship, a new team member, and a few other life changing events
Previous chapters
Chapter 6
When Kate woke up on Saturday morning, she wasn’t alone. It wasn’t the first time she had woken up with Tony next to her. During the first week of Tony’s time at home after the plague they had shared a bed. This was probably one of the few times where she had woken up without any clothes on.
The last time that happened was in Paraguay and the only reason why Tony didn’t get up before her was a hangover. Tony was actually an early riser which surprised Kate. She had learned from various overnight stake outs and nights at the office that Tony usually didn’t sleep a night though. He would sleep in batches. Never a complete 8 hour sleep in all the times she had to observe him.
Which made it very odd that she found him still asleep. Even when he was sick, he’d wake up before her. She could hear his heart beat softly under her ear as she used his chest as a pillow. His arms were still wrapped around her.
This was nice.
She moved her head to look at his face. His hair was growing longer again. She remembered how long it used to be. She kind of missed that, but she realized that after fifteenth million times getting teased about the length of his hair when working for a military organization…even a civilian operation… he probably wasn’t going to let it grow that long again.
She smiled as she inched closer to his face, kissing him to wake him up. Tony still needed to go to work for the briefings and aftermath paperwork for what went on yesterday. She had to go in and do her own paperwork, not to mention check her apartment.
She winced slightly as her shoulder reminded her that she wasn’t completely healed from her gunshot. The excitement of last night, learning she was finally free of Ari, had masked any pain she had felt, but she felt it now. Especially as Tony hugged her to him, still half asleep. The muscle stretched and the stitches as well. She’d have to take one of the pain meds that Jessica had handed her that she had assured her would be ok to take as directed.
In the past month her medication intake was high and so was the amount of time spent finding a medication that would work yet not cause problems with the baby.
That was another thing. She needed to start baby shopping. She was sure that Abby would want to go with her, and no doubt her mother and Amy. So after she finished whatever paperwork Gibbs had for her, since she had briefly been involved with the investigation, she’d go see if Abby had some free time.
Then probably pack for the trip to Pennsylvania for the funeral. Ken had scheduled the funeral on Monday so the agents who wanted to come could make the plans. It was a six hour drive, 12 round trip, so most were staying overnight at a hotel in the area. She needed to make reservations for herself and the others on the team, knowing that Gibbs, McGee and Tony wouldn’t think of it before it was too late. Abby might have looked into it already, but since she was involved in the case, probably not.
“Morning,” Tony mumbled, becoming more awake. He rubbed his face before taking a look at the alarm clock. “It’s early.”
“It is, but we have a lot of things to do. Besides, it’s about the time we get up for work anyway.”
“That’s the point. It is Saturday, Kate. We don’t have to go to work on weekends unless we are the on call team.” As Kate got out of bed, he rolled over and hid his head with a pillow although she could tell he was still watching her walk towards the shower.
When she came out, Tony was half dressed, and sitting on the bed, clearly not happy. She could hear Ben and Amy talking in the other room. She tossed the towel she was using to dry her hair in the basket near the door and walked to sit next to Tony.
“My Dad knows.” He looked over at her, clearly not happy. “Aunt Liv is visiting my Dad up in New York and she called to see if Ben had made it here ok and that he was still going to come to her house after he’s done with the conference. He let it slip that we were here for the weekend and that you were pregnant and she of course got excited. And My Dad caught on and now he’s on his way down here.”
“Well, he had to know sometime, Tony. Better now than when he gets a invitation for the kid’s first birthday party.”
“I just don’t want to deal with him. He never really got the whole idea of letting me live my own life. Its half the reason we don’t talk anymore. Every time we do talk, he always has commentary of what I’m doing wrong.”
“Gibbs does that too.”
“Believe me, Gibbs does not do it to the extent my father does. Gibbs might not approve of me flirting while at work or dating my co-workers,” he said with a brief smile in her direction. “But he usually lets me do what I want, and then let me find out if it was a bad decision or not. My Father is not so gracious. He’ll lecture me on my decisions.” He sighed and got up. “Well, I better get ready for work. Maybe if I can do the paperwork slowly enough I won’t have to deal with Dad till tomorrow. “
“Do you really think Gibbs doesn’t approve us being together.” Tony paused from where he was shuffling through his clothes.
“No. I think he has issues with the whole idea, but he could probably see it was inevitable. After all, even I saw it coming.”
“You did, did you? Do I want to know what you saw?”
“What? Are you going to tell me you didn’t notice the way things changed between us last year?”
“Changed yes, but that’s not an inclination that we would someday be in a relationship with each other. It just meant that we stopped pretending we weren’t attracted to each other.”
“I don’t think you noticed me, at least not like that, that first six months. You were a little preoccupied with a certain Special Agent in-Charge,” he teased. “Abbs and I had a bet going on for months wither you and Gibbs would break the ominous rule 12.”
“You thought I would get together with Gibbs?”
“Yep. Can’t say I’m glad I was wrong. Abby never collected though. I probably owe her fifty Caf-Popws by now.”
“By now.”
“We bet on various stages of your relationship. The only thing I got right was that you would have a kid by now, and considering its mine, not Gibbs, I probably lose that one too.”
“So, you had my whole life planned out with Gibbs?” Kate was starting to laugh. “And yet you still flirted with me.”
“I flirt with all beautiful women. And just because Gibbs liked you, didn’t mean I couldn’t either.”
“You flirt with anything female-like.” He glared at her for that one, which didn’t help her laughing. She knew that that was still a sensitive subject, which is why she hadn’t said it bluntly. “I’m glad you were wrong.”
“Me too,” he said affectionately.
“So, if you owe Abby Caf-Pows, what would she owe you?” She regretted the question as soon as he turned to face her with that smirk on his face. “Never mind, I don’t want to know.”
~*~
Kate had no paperwork waiting for her at work. In fact, as soon as she arrived, Gibbs told her matter-of-factly that she was not involved in the investigation, and therefore had no reason to even write up a report. Tony had given her the “That’s not fair” look before getting back to his own paperwork. However, before she left to go see Abby, she was called to the Director’s office.
She walked to the office, knowing that Gibbs and Tony were watching her form where they sat in the bullpen. She wondered what this was about. She knew she had to discuss with the director options about maternity leave, but wasn’t too soon for that?
She entered the office, saying hello to Cynthia as she past the secretary’s desk and moved into the inner office. She found Jen Sheppard at her desk, looking over papers.
“Sit down, Agent Todd. I’ll be right with you.” Kate did as she was told and looked around the office. The new director had been in office for only a few days but the difference was felt. Gone were the pictures and memorabilia that Morrow had kept. Instead it was filled with different pictures, and certificates. She noticed a few small framed photos placed around the room of Paris.
“Thank you for waiting, Agent Todd.” Director Sheppard came around the desk and sat on the front edge, near Kate. “I called you in here because I like to introduce myself to all my agents, and as you have been under protective detail recently I feel I wasn’t able to properly introduce myself.” The other woman smiled and Kate got the feeling the woman felt they had genuinely not gotten a proper introduction, despite meeting each other at the hospital. She took the offered hand and shook it.
“Congratulations on the promotion, Director.”
“Thank you. You can call me Jenny if you like. Just not in front of other agents. I have a feeling that as an agent under Gibbs supervision we will be seeing a lot of each other.” Kate raised an eyebrow at that statement. The Director walked back to where her chair was and sat down again. “I’ve also been informed that you recently found out you were pregnant. Congratulations are due to you as well.”
“Thank you. It looks like the news traveled fast.”
“I wouldn’t say that. I only found out about it because I overhead Agent DiNozzo and Gibbs discussing it at the hospital. They were very concerned about you and the baby.” It wasn’t said in a specific tone, but she could hear the question behind it. Was she involved with her superior or her partner?
“Our team acts as a family.” She did not deny or confess. The fact that she and Tony were together was their own business, and nothing that would affect NCIS. She didn’t feel comfortable enough with this woman to talk about it.
“That sounds like Gibbs. I read his profile that the former Director left for me. He wrote that he handpicked you and agents DiNozzo and McGee for his team, as well as the lab tech and medical examiner your team dealt with. “
“Did you know Gibbs before?”
“Yes, I did. I used to work with him myself. Which is another reason I asked you up here, Caitlin.”
“Kate.” Jen smiled.
“Kate, then. As you know, a Mossad Officer was working with us to investigate the murder of Rebecca Stanson. Ziva David has requested and received permission to act as a liason officer to NCIS. I wanted to ask you to help me make her feel comfortable here.
“You are assigning her to Gibbs’ Team?”
“Yes.”
“And you have talked to him about this?”
“Not yet. It is a done deal, and Ziva should arrive to begin as an investigator on your team within two weeks.” The statement told Kate that Jen was well aware Gibbs was not going to like this, no matter what he thought of Ziva (And from Tony, Gibbs seemed to respect the Mossad Agent’s abilities). Gibbs did not like someone choosing his team for him. But Jen was going to stand firm. She just wondered if Jen could stand firm against Gibbs better then everyone else. Because as far she knew, even Director Marrow let Gibbs have his way most of the time.
“I will try my best,” Kate said with a smile. She wanted to like this woman. She always preferred work where she liked her boss, and in the back of her head she wondered if she was going to do so here.
~*~
Kate was once again at an open air café, this time the one where she and Ducky had lunch on that day so long ago. Her eating partner this time was Abby, who had asked for every detail of what had happened in the Director’s office.
“So Ziva is going to be on the team.”
“Apparently. I’m not sure how long Gibbs will let that be.”
“Ah, I think Gibbs will surprise us. After all, Ziva seemed to work well with us on the Ari case, even if she was trying to prove he didn’t do it.”
Kate sighed. That was one of the reasons she was skeptical about being the one to welcome Ziva. There was the rational side of her that stated that Ziva was just doing her job, and it would be the same if someone had accused Tony or Gibbs of murder. She wouldn’t stop trying to prove their innocence no matter what the others said. But the irrational side of her wanted her to stay away. She defended Ari, and Tony was attracted to her.
Ok, that last bit was a little bit petty and defiantly on the completely irrational side. Tony had very strong views on loyalty and fidelity. Tony would not run off with the new girl just because she was gorgeous and had a sexy accent.
“The Director wants me to help Ziva feel at home on Gibbs Team.”
“She probably feels you would know best how to adjust to being a girl on the team. Warn her about Tony’s flirtatious ways, McGee’s sexy tech skills, and Gibbs unique way of leading the way.”
“McGee’s sexy tech skills?” Kate teased, wanting to get away from conversation about Ziva. “Are you two on again?”
“No, that ship has sailed, Amiga.” Abby said in her usual hyper way. But Kate was not a profiler for nothing. She could hear the ‘there is more to this’ tone to Abby’s voice.
“You never told me why you and McGee finally broke things off.”
“A cheerleader.”
“A cheerleader?”
“Yes. A Cheerleader. Peppy, college aged Cheerleader.” Abby slurped at her milkshake. “He flirted with her right in front of me. Like I wasn’t even there.”
“He probably was taking love advice from Tony, then.”
“Why, has Tony tried that on you?”
“Tony flirts with everything wearing a skirt, Abby. It doesn’t matter what the end result is, if you are female and attractive, you will be flirted with.”
“Including Ziva?”
“WHAT?”
“He didn’t, you know. He was too busy trying to find Ari and being mad at Ziva for thinking Ari was innocent.” Abby looked triumphant and Kate realized what had just happened. Abby had changed the subject similar to what Kate had done. The two woman stared each other down, before they started to laugh.
Who else besides your best friend could tease you about your love life and still be on your good side.
“He cares for you Abby, you know that?” Kate had noticed that McGee was head over heels for Abby. Even Tony had stopped teasing him about it. It was hard to watch sometimes. But if being together would make Abby unhappy, then it certainly wouldn’t make McGee happy. And she’d prefer if her two friends were happy.
“I know.” Abby sighed. “I know.”
That was the end of that conversation. IT was silent for awhile, both enjoying the outside air after being cooped inside for the last couple of days.
“I need to go shopping,” Kate mentioned after a few minutes of silence. “My clothes are starting to be a little snug.”
“Really? Already?”
“Well, they aren’t fitting me as well. I could probably go another week or so wearing them, but I think I better start looking for maternity wear before I start wearing sweatshirts and Tony’s dress shirts to work.”
“I know just the place. My friend Melody just had a baby and she found a store that she claimed had the most comfortable clothes that she was almost considering wearing them after the baby was born. And they were good clothes, not the kind you see that makes you look more like a house then you already feel like you feel.”
“Sounds great.”
“Come on, I’ll show you. I actually bought a pair of boots there. They were really comfortable. And just like I want them. Which is odd, you know. Buying maternity boots when you’re not pregnant. Do you think that means I have large feet? For that matter, why would someone pregnant want boots like that anyway?”
Kate was about to answer, smiling as she caught onto Abby’s contagious happy mood when she caught site of her mother out of the side of her eye.
Her mother was sitting across the restaurant, with a man she almost didn’t recognize. She remembered him from photos from Marrow’s office. Admiral AJ Chegwidden.
How did her mother know him?
.