Who Knew? (7/?)
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.
Tony swore he was in hell. Not only was he stuck doing mounds and mounds of back paperwork, going to meetings on the recent terrorist attacks and the report on the Ari situation, he had to deal with the fact his father was flying down from New York.
On Wednesday, things had been looking up. He had the weekend off, so did Kate and he was going to take her out to eat and then broach the subject of moving in together. They had been dating for a couple of weeks officially, and in a semi-relationship for the past two months. Maybe longer if you thought about.
In the past three days, he has had to witness a good friend die right next to him, have her blood on his face and have the instant thought of that could have been Kate! He had felt guilty about that, something he would have to deal with.
Then he had found out he was going to be a father. That had been...an experience. One which he was still processing. At first it hadn't even registered. Just that Kate was pregnant. He hadn't even thought to think of him as a possibility. He had just been worried about Kate.
And of course came the whole she was pregnant during the plague episode, which of course had thrown him into a panic attack. He had already been upset about her staying when he could have infected her. It hadn't taken him along time to figure out she was lying. If she had been infected, she would have been sick. The fact that he could of have infected her and the baby was scary.
He had left after they had realized they had been fighting for half an hour over things that weren't really fighting matters. Just little annoyances that since they were already mad at each other anyway, they might as well get out.
He hadn't slept much that night. He never really did. It was something he had developed in high school. Luckily he had it under control for the most part and actually got some sleep, but it was still not a lot.
He had a lot to think about, which hadn't helped things. He thought about the baby, and how that was going to change things. He thought about his relationship with Kate. The two subjects went back and forth in his brain, and he hadn't gotten to sleep till 3 in the morning.
One thing that had bothered him was that Kate had waited two weeks and hadn't told him. Had she not told him because she couldn't figure out how? Or maybe because she didn't think he'd want it or maybe she didn't want him involved.
It still bothered him, although he had pretty much ruled out the last couple maybes. She had told him she loved him, which was definitely a positive.
He had known he was in love with Kate Todd about a year ago. He had no idea when he had actually fallen in love with her, but he remembered the moment he realized it. They had been undercover in a club. Kate had been dressed in this outfit that he really wished she could have kept. It was a club dress, with its hem barely reaching an inch about her knees. It flowed from her waist, but was tighter from the waist up. The sleeves were full length, belling out at the end. It was various shades of blue and green. He was in a navy uniform, pretending to be Commander Anthony Martian. It had been fun playing date with Kate and he knew half the time he wasn't even acting. Neither of them were. The kiss knocked him off guard, and it was when Gibbs told them that they had caught the suspect and Kate pulled away that it hit him.
He hadn't wanted it to be pretend.
At first he brushed it off, thinking it was just lust. That had been standard in their relationship from the get-go. But he started to notice things that had nothing to do with sex. Things like how she had a special smile she gave when she had a lead, or when she was about to tease him. There was even a difference between the smile used to tease him and the one used when teasing McGee.
After the case of the Mummy Bride (not to be confused with the case of the Mummy Officer), he had pretty much come to the conclusion that whatever it was he felt it was not mutual. Kate wanted to be just friends.
However, that did not stop him from enjoying playing her boyfriend, even if it was for a mock-couple who wanted a paternity test. Or annoying her by coming into the bathroom while she was showering.
He did however try his best to show he wasn't even considering the thought of being with Kate. Gibbs would have killed him was his primary motive right after he just didn't want Kate to know he was serious when he said some of the things he did. Going after Paula was part instinct and part diversion. He wasn't that upset when she said no. Nor was he that upset that he didn't end up dating Amy. He was more upset by the fact that Kate seemed actually interested in Montelleone.
After that case, things just picked up and he didn't really have the time to dwell on it. First Ducky almost got exsanguinated, then McGee lost his quasi-girlfriend on a case. Despite his teasing, McGee was his friend, and Tony looked at him as a younger brother almost. It was his job to tease him, but it was also his job to support him when things went wrong and he needed someone there. He knew Kate felt the same way about the younger agent.
Then came the case of the Marine whose wife was sleeping with his best friend. Kate had just had to ask that question. Why hadn't he made a move on her if he thought she was attractive. He knew her. He knew she wouldn't be receptive. He knew she preferred guys like Gibbs or Harrison. Guys who were mature for their age. Ones whose hobbies didn't include watching every John Wayne movie and memorizing the lines. He knew that if he tried anything he would have his ass kicked by her, then by Gibbs, who probably add a pink slip to it.
He decided the best way to deal with this was go back to the same old interaction with Kate. Tease her, flirt with her, but always make it look like he was doing it more to annoy her then actual intention. This worked, although the tensions rose between them and even Ducky was going crazy trying to deal with them.
Then came Paraguay. Oh, did he love Paraguay. It was warm, it had been a case where the bad guy didn't get off scot free even if it wasn't though the justice system but by a sniper's bullet. And he and Kate hadn't kept up that wall between them that been holding them back.
Granted Paraguay was also the reason for part of the situation he was in, but that was another topic all together. The whole case had been different. Sitting in that car with Kate had been an interesting expirance. Nothing had happened, but something had changed. He still wasn't sure what. But they had flirted with each other, still saying no, but almost saying yes. And then Gibbs had let him choose who to take with him to Paragauy. McGee had been disappointed but the smile on Kate's face when he mentioned Paraguay where the weather was warm had been worth anything.
Kate had decided what happened in Paraguay stayed in Paraguay. Which he had agreed with, if only to save himself from the wrath of Gibbs. But eventually that had fallen though, especially after he got sick.
Kate had spent the week he was at the hospital visiting him. if she wasn't there, Abby or McGee were. She was the one who took him home. And stayed with him when she wasn't required for work. They both reconised that she was acting like a girlfriend, and both noted they didn't mind. Which made the relationship official.
He had been so happy to be back at work. After half a week of feeling like he was breathing though a straw, then another week or so with nothing to do but watch movies and hope Kate got home early, he was in need of something to do.
Kate had been excused from the case that day, looking a little worse for wear. Gibbs had teased her about her cold from a few weeks ago. Rebecca had been happy to stand in, her cocaine case was turning out to be fairly easy to process and Terry didn't mind finishing on his own.
He still hadn't been up to full strength, and that had been brought to his attention very clearly when he barely outran a bomb. Hopefully no one had told Kate about that yet. She'd kill him herself.
Then there was the roof. Becca had taken a bullet for Gibbs, and was joking about what she'd make Gibbs do to pay her back.
He hadn't even registered the bullet till he felt the blood splatter against his face. Gibbs had instantly gone for who had shot her, while Tony's first reaction was to look at her.
Becca lay on the ground, her eyes still looking at him, her mouth still formed into a smile. And she looked so much like Kate at the moment that his heart had just dropped. Gibb's whispered Ari brought him back into reality.
He wished he had been there when Ari was shot. The man had tried to kill Kate, Ducky and Abby. He had succeed in killing Becca. He wanted Ari dead almost as much as Gibbs did.
No one hurt Gibb's family and did not face the wrath of Gibbs. And Tony refused to let anyone hurt Kate.
~*~
Gibbs watched as Tony worked his way through the pile of paperwork. The younger agent's face seemed calm, but he could tell from years of knowing him that Tony was far from calm. He was agitated and a series of emotions crossed his green eyes as he worked through his report on the events of the past week.
This past month had been hell on his agents. Kate, Abby and Ducky had been attacked. Tony had nearly lost his girlfriend and had learned he was going to be a father. McGee was learning for the first time that it was very plausible one of these days one of them wouldn't walk back. Rebecca Stanton's desk stood empty and glaring. Terry was holding up fine, acting much like Tony was. If you don't focus on it, you don't have to deal with it. He had been throwing himself into a case until the Funeral on Monday. Gibbs knew Kate was still feeling a little bit of guilt since it was clear that Ari had believed that Becca was Kate.
The whole building was subdued. Becca had been friendly to everyone. It was always a hit to the stomach to loose a college, no matter how. The fact that Becca had been taken so soon, and in such a violent way had the whole agency thinking.
Gibbs turned his view to the staircase behind Tony where Jennifer Sheppard was watching his team. She smiled at him, recognizing that he knew she was there. There was sorrow in her eyes, and a look of sympathy for the people who worked here. She had never known Becca. Her first day of work had started with Becca's death.
He had to admit that he still felt a stab every time he saw her. His affair with Jen had not been casual. And he knew he still felt something for her, and he always would. She was the only person who had truly held his heart since Shannon had died. He turned to look at Tony again. He had warned his agents ever since Jen about dating co-workers, reworking Shannon's "Never date a Lumberjack" rule into the infamous "Never date a co-worker". But either the message didn't get through to Tony who heard it for four years, or there was something to Kate & Tony other then sexual attraction and a mistake that was going to effect them for years.
Having known these two people, he was leaning for the later. Kate did not do flings, and Tony did nothing but. But he knew things that others did not. Half the reason why Tony had so easily been convinced of working of NCIS was his recent break up with Natalie.
He had met Natalie once. When Tony was doing the final trip of moving to Washington she had shown up. She had read the write up about "Detective DiNozzo" finding a serial murderer in the Baltimore area. Apparently he was an assist. But the damage had been done and Tony mostly ignored the woman.
Natalie for the most part was gone, but every once and awhile she still called Tony when she figured a chance of pace was needed. She apparently hadn't gotten the clue. Reminded him of his third wife, who had finally stopped calling on their anniversary.
"Gibbs, can I have a word." Both his and Tony's attention where brought back to Jen, who stood more rigidly, which meant she had gone into Jennifer Sheppard, Director mode. Jenny mode was more relaxed but he wasn't seeing much of that part of her lately.
Tony looked over at him as he stood up and made his way towards the stairs. He almost stopped at Tony's desk, but he decided against saying anything to the younger agent till after his conversation. The last thing Tony needed was yet another person to confront him about his relationship with Kate. He'd deal with the fact they were breaking one of his rules later.
He got to the top of the stairs and followed Jen into her office.
"You wanted something, Director." Jen stood facing the window, one hand on her hip while the other rubbed her neck. She was clearly uncomfortable with whatever she was going to say.
"I've pulled out the files on your agents." She turned around to face him, leaning against the desk
"So I see." The pile wasn't hard to spot. Several inches thick, it sit on her desk, in the middle, half hidden by Jen's body. He almost wanted to get a triangle to see if it was perfectly angled as he thought.
"I would like to hear your thoughts on your agents first. You know them better then anyone else here at the agency. Probably better then I ever could even if I memerized every word."
"They are all good agents." Jen raised an eyebrow clearly wanting more. "What do you really want Jen? You know I wouldn't have them on my team if they weren't the best Agents I could have."
"I do know that. But I assume there is more to their skills then just complementing your gut instinct. Why don't we start with Agent Todd. What should I know about her?"
"She's a profiler, used to work for the Secret Service. Has strong skills in protection detail and is getting better with interviews and interrogations. She does have a flaw of getting too close to the victims or letting her personal experiences affect how she views them, but she's getting better and it rarely happens."
"She will need to go on Maternity leave in a few months. She hasn't reported her pregnancy officially, but considering its on her medical records that were sent here for injuries while on duty, I'd say it pratically offical anyway. Scuttlebutt is that the father is a fellow NCIS agent."
"He is." He wasn't going to tell her this. It wasn't any of her business. He knew both Tony and Kate could leave it out of the office. And if Jen thought the baby was his, well that was her problem, not his.
"Jethro."
"Jenny."
"You know I need to know who it is. Not only does it effect the abilities of your team, it also effects me as I have to arrange for paperwork for both of them."
"Never underestimate the government's ability to kill trees in its efforts to know everything. I'm not going to tell you Jen. Either ask Kate herself, or wait till Kate feels the need to tell you. Its none of your buisness. Its barely any of mine." He grimaces as he notices her triumphant expression. She already had an idea on who the father was. He just confirmed it wasn't him, which left her with one other person.
"How about Agent DiNozzo. Why is he on your team?" He continued to frown. Why was it that this woman had him spilling things even after he swore he wouldn't. All kinds of people tried to manipulate him into saying things, but there were only three who had ever succeeded. His mother, his first wife Shannon, and the woman standing in front of him.
"He has good instincts. Found him on a case in Baltimore. Figured he was better use to us then they were. He solved the case by noticing things that no one, not even the team I took with me noticed."
"So, he's basically you, just without the bitter outside due to years of experience." He didn't respond. "Agent McGee."
"Young, but he's learning. Has computer abilities matched only by my forensic tech. "
Jen waited a moment, but she knew from Gibbs' expression she was lucky she got the information she got. "Onto other matters. I have a case for your team, minus agent Todd. Since Agent Todd is going to have restricted field duty due to her pregnancy, I have a special assignment for her while you and your other agents along with Paula Cassidy handle this case." This was the part she dreaded. She really didn't want to tell him he'd be seeing one of his old suspects again.
~*~
Kate walked over to where her mother sat, Tasha seeing her just as she passed the table next to them. Her mother stood and smiled offering a hug to her daughter.
“Good Morning, Darling.”
“Morning, Mom. You never told me you knew the Admiral.”
“Oh, yes. A.J, this is my daughter Caitlin. She’s the one I told you about.” Kate almost groaned. Who knew what her mother had been saying about her.
“Pleasure to meet you, Caitlin. Congratulations on the new baby.” He pulled out a chair for her.
“Thank you.” She was starting to get tired of the congratulations, but she took the proffered chair. “This is Abby Scuito, a friend of mine,” she said as she motioned to Abby who followed her over to the table. The Admiral had pulled another chair out for Abby and moved down to sit next to Tasha, leaving Abby and Kate next to each other.
“Nice to meet you Mrs. Todd, Admiral,” the Goth said politely.
“I was just telling AJ here about why I’m in DC early. He’s visiting as well, you know. A good friend of his is getting married.”
“Bride or groom?” Abby asked, looking honestly interested. Kate found it slightly funny that for a girl who as a tad commitment shy the tech had a great love for weddings.
“Both actually,” AJ said with smile. “They were two of my officers before I retired from JAG.”
“Captain Rabb and Colonel Mackenzie,” Kate supplied, remembering a wedding announcement she had read in the paper a few days ago. Back when her life was not quite as complicated.
“Yes, do you know them?” He took a drink of his lemonade.
“No, but my boss does. Agent Jethro Gibbs worked on several cases with them I believe.”
“One could say that. It was a little over two years ago that Gibbs worked a case that almost put Harm in jail for a murder he did not commit. I have to say I respect Gibbs for his perusal of the truth. If he hadn’t reopened the case, Harm might not have had chance.” While the Admiral might respect Gibbs, Kate had a feeling that neither of them would enjoy a dinner together.
“So I suppose since I am able to see you this fine and sunny morning, they caught the bastard that was after you.” Nastasha’s tone of voice belayed more then the words the level of contempt she held Ari Haswari in for trying to hurt her daughter.
“Yes, he was caught last night at Gibbs house.” Kate decided it was probably not a good idea to share the case with her mother. Or the Admiral. “Director Sheppard is having a press conference on it later this afternoon.”
"Well, I need to go, My lunch hour is almost up," Abby stated apologetically. They probably would have never made it to the store before Abby's lunch hour was up even if they hadn't stopped by.
"May I offer you a ride to the Naval Yard?" The Admiral asked. "I am on my way there to visit some old friends of mine."
"That would be great, thank you."
The Admiral and Abby said their goodbyes, leaving the Todds sitting at the table. Tasha had planned on going to visit her daughter, but the fact that Kate was here now made that plan obsolete.
"We should go shopping. And I want you to tell me about this young man of yours. I didn't get a chance to met him the other day." Tasha grabbed her bag and started to stand as if to make her way to where the shops were. Kate stood as well, but didn't move from where she stood.
"Are you going to tell me how you know the Admiral?"
"We were friends."
"Really."
"Yes. I knew him in high school." Tasha's tone was one Kate recognized as the "I don't want to say this out loud, but this topic is closed" tone. Just the tone she had used when they asked her about what had happened to her husband. "Now where was this store that Miss Scuito mentioned?"
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.
Tony swore he was in hell. Not only was he stuck doing mounds and mounds of back paperwork, going to meetings on the recent terrorist attacks and the report on the Ari situation, he had to deal with the fact his father was flying down from New York.
On Wednesday, things had been looking up. He had the weekend off, so did Kate and he was going to take her out to eat and then broach the subject of moving in together. They had been dating for a couple of weeks officially, and in a semi-relationship for the past two months. Maybe longer if you thought about.
In the past three days, he has had to witness a good friend die right next to him, have her blood on his face and have the instant thought of that could have been Kate! He had felt guilty about that, something he would have to deal with.
Then he had found out he was going to be a father. That had been...an experience. One which he was still processing. At first it hadn't even registered. Just that Kate was pregnant. He hadn't even thought to think of him as a possibility. He had just been worried about Kate.
And of course came the whole she was pregnant during the plague episode, which of course had thrown him into a panic attack. He had already been upset about her staying when he could have infected her. It hadn't taken him along time to figure out she was lying. If she had been infected, she would have been sick. The fact that he could of have infected her and the baby was scary.
He had left after they had realized they had been fighting for half an hour over things that weren't really fighting matters. Just little annoyances that since they were already mad at each other anyway, they might as well get out.
He hadn't slept much that night. He never really did. It was something he had developed in high school. Luckily he had it under control for the most part and actually got some sleep, but it was still not a lot.
He had a lot to think about, which hadn't helped things. He thought about the baby, and how that was going to change things. He thought about his relationship with Kate. The two subjects went back and forth in his brain, and he hadn't gotten to sleep till 3 in the morning.
One thing that had bothered him was that Kate had waited two weeks and hadn't told him. Had she not told him because she couldn't figure out how? Or maybe because she didn't think he'd want it or maybe she didn't want him involved.
It still bothered him, although he had pretty much ruled out the last couple maybes. She had told him she loved him, which was definitely a positive.
He had known he was in love with Kate Todd about a year ago. He had no idea when he had actually fallen in love with her, but he remembered the moment he realized it. They had been undercover in a club. Kate had been dressed in this outfit that he really wished she could have kept. It was a club dress, with its hem barely reaching an inch about her knees. It flowed from her waist, but was tighter from the waist up. The sleeves were full length, belling out at the end. It was various shades of blue and green. He was in a navy uniform, pretending to be Commander Anthony Martian. It had been fun playing date with Kate and he knew half the time he wasn't even acting. Neither of them were. The kiss knocked him off guard, and it was when Gibbs told them that they had caught the suspect and Kate pulled away that it hit him.
He hadn't wanted it to be pretend.
At first he brushed it off, thinking it was just lust. That had been standard in their relationship from the get-go. But he started to notice things that had nothing to do with sex. Things like how she had a special smile she gave when she had a lead, or when she was about to tease him. There was even a difference between the smile used to tease him and the one used when teasing McGee.
After the case of the Mummy Bride (not to be confused with the case of the Mummy Officer), he had pretty much come to the conclusion that whatever it was he felt it was not mutual. Kate wanted to be just friends.
However, that did not stop him from enjoying playing her boyfriend, even if it was for a mock-couple who wanted a paternity test. Or annoying her by coming into the bathroom while she was showering.
He did however try his best to show he wasn't even considering the thought of being with Kate. Gibbs would have killed him was his primary motive right after he just didn't want Kate to know he was serious when he said some of the things he did. Going after Paula was part instinct and part diversion. He wasn't that upset when she said no. Nor was he that upset that he didn't end up dating Amy. He was more upset by the fact that Kate seemed actually interested in Montelleone.
After that case, things just picked up and he didn't really have the time to dwell on it. First Ducky almost got exsanguinated, then McGee lost his quasi-girlfriend on a case. Despite his teasing, McGee was his friend, and Tony looked at him as a younger brother almost. It was his job to tease him, but it was also his job to support him when things went wrong and he needed someone there. He knew Kate felt the same way about the younger agent.
Then came the case of the Marine whose wife was sleeping with his best friend. Kate had just had to ask that question. Why hadn't he made a move on her if he thought she was attractive. He knew her. He knew she wouldn't be receptive. He knew she preferred guys like Gibbs or Harrison. Guys who were mature for their age. Ones whose hobbies didn't include watching every John Wayne movie and memorizing the lines. He knew that if he tried anything he would have his ass kicked by her, then by Gibbs, who probably add a pink slip to it.
He decided the best way to deal with this was go back to the same old interaction with Kate. Tease her, flirt with her, but always make it look like he was doing it more to annoy her then actual intention. This worked, although the tensions rose between them and even Ducky was going crazy trying to deal with them.
Then came Paraguay. Oh, did he love Paraguay. It was warm, it had been a case where the bad guy didn't get off scot free even if it wasn't though the justice system but by a sniper's bullet. And he and Kate hadn't kept up that wall between them that been holding them back.
Granted Paraguay was also the reason for part of the situation he was in, but that was another topic all together. The whole case had been different. Sitting in that car with Kate had been an interesting expirance. Nothing had happened, but something had changed. He still wasn't sure what. But they had flirted with each other, still saying no, but almost saying yes. And then Gibbs had let him choose who to take with him to Paragauy. McGee had been disappointed but the smile on Kate's face when he mentioned Paraguay where the weather was warm had been worth anything.
Kate had decided what happened in Paraguay stayed in Paraguay. Which he had agreed with, if only to save himself from the wrath of Gibbs. But eventually that had fallen though, especially after he got sick.
Kate had spent the week he was at the hospital visiting him. if she wasn't there, Abby or McGee were. She was the one who took him home. And stayed with him when she wasn't required for work. They both reconised that she was acting like a girlfriend, and both noted they didn't mind. Which made the relationship official.
He had been so happy to be back at work. After half a week of feeling like he was breathing though a straw, then another week or so with nothing to do but watch movies and hope Kate got home early, he was in need of something to do.
Kate had been excused from the case that day, looking a little worse for wear. Gibbs had teased her about her cold from a few weeks ago. Rebecca had been happy to stand in, her cocaine case was turning out to be fairly easy to process and Terry didn't mind finishing on his own.
He still hadn't been up to full strength, and that had been brought to his attention very clearly when he barely outran a bomb. Hopefully no one had told Kate about that yet. She'd kill him herself.
Then there was the roof. Becca had taken a bullet for Gibbs, and was joking about what she'd make Gibbs do to pay her back.
He hadn't even registered the bullet till he felt the blood splatter against his face. Gibbs had instantly gone for who had shot her, while Tony's first reaction was to look at her.
Becca lay on the ground, her eyes still looking at him, her mouth still formed into a smile. And she looked so much like Kate at the moment that his heart had just dropped. Gibb's whispered Ari brought him back into reality.
He wished he had been there when Ari was shot. The man had tried to kill Kate, Ducky and Abby. He had succeed in killing Becca. He wanted Ari dead almost as much as Gibbs did.
No one hurt Gibb's family and did not face the wrath of Gibbs. And Tony refused to let anyone hurt Kate.
~*~
Gibbs watched as Tony worked his way through the pile of paperwork. The younger agent's face seemed calm, but he could tell from years of knowing him that Tony was far from calm. He was agitated and a series of emotions crossed his green eyes as he worked through his report on the events of the past week.
This past month had been hell on his agents. Kate, Abby and Ducky had been attacked. Tony had nearly lost his girlfriend and had learned he was going to be a father. McGee was learning for the first time that it was very plausible one of these days one of them wouldn't walk back. Rebecca Stanton's desk stood empty and glaring. Terry was holding up fine, acting much like Tony was. If you don't focus on it, you don't have to deal with it. He had been throwing himself into a case until the Funeral on Monday. Gibbs knew Kate was still feeling a little bit of guilt since it was clear that Ari had believed that Becca was Kate.
The whole building was subdued. Becca had been friendly to everyone. It was always a hit to the stomach to loose a college, no matter how. The fact that Becca had been taken so soon, and in such a violent way had the whole agency thinking.
Gibbs turned his view to the staircase behind Tony where Jennifer Sheppard was watching his team. She smiled at him, recognizing that he knew she was there. There was sorrow in her eyes, and a look of sympathy for the people who worked here. She had never known Becca. Her first day of work had started with Becca's death.
He had to admit that he still felt a stab every time he saw her. His affair with Jen had not been casual. And he knew he still felt something for her, and he always would. She was the only person who had truly held his heart since Shannon had died. He turned to look at Tony again. He had warned his agents ever since Jen about dating co-workers, reworking Shannon's "Never date a Lumberjack" rule into the infamous "Never date a co-worker". But either the message didn't get through to Tony who heard it for four years, or there was something to Kate & Tony other then sexual attraction and a mistake that was going to effect them for years.
Having known these two people, he was leaning for the later. Kate did not do flings, and Tony did nothing but. But he knew things that others did not. Half the reason why Tony had so easily been convinced of working of NCIS was his recent break up with Natalie.
He had met Natalie once. When Tony was doing the final trip of moving to Washington she had shown up. She had read the write up about "Detective DiNozzo" finding a serial murderer in the Baltimore area. Apparently he was an assist. But the damage had been done and Tony mostly ignored the woman.
Natalie for the most part was gone, but every once and awhile she still called Tony when she figured a chance of pace was needed. She apparently hadn't gotten the clue. Reminded him of his third wife, who had finally stopped calling on their anniversary.
"Gibbs, can I have a word." Both his and Tony's attention where brought back to Jen, who stood more rigidly, which meant she had gone into Jennifer Sheppard, Director mode. Jenny mode was more relaxed but he wasn't seeing much of that part of her lately.
Tony looked over at him as he stood up and made his way towards the stairs. He almost stopped at Tony's desk, but he decided against saying anything to the younger agent till after his conversation. The last thing Tony needed was yet another person to confront him about his relationship with Kate. He'd deal with the fact they were breaking one of his rules later.
He got to the top of the stairs and followed Jen into her office.
"You wanted something, Director." Jen stood facing the window, one hand on her hip while the other rubbed her neck. She was clearly uncomfortable with whatever she was going to say.
"I've pulled out the files on your agents." She turned around to face him, leaning against the desk
"So I see." The pile wasn't hard to spot. Several inches thick, it sit on her desk, in the middle, half hidden by Jen's body. He almost wanted to get a triangle to see if it was perfectly angled as he thought.
"I would like to hear your thoughts on your agents first. You know them better then anyone else here at the agency. Probably better then I ever could even if I memerized every word."
"They are all good agents." Jen raised an eyebrow clearly wanting more. "What do you really want Jen? You know I wouldn't have them on my team if they weren't the best Agents I could have."
"I do know that. But I assume there is more to their skills then just complementing your gut instinct. Why don't we start with Agent Todd. What should I know about her?"
"She's a profiler, used to work for the Secret Service. Has strong skills in protection detail and is getting better with interviews and interrogations. She does have a flaw of getting too close to the victims or letting her personal experiences affect how she views them, but she's getting better and it rarely happens."
"She will need to go on Maternity leave in a few months. She hasn't reported her pregnancy officially, but considering its on her medical records that were sent here for injuries while on duty, I'd say it pratically offical anyway. Scuttlebutt is that the father is a fellow NCIS agent."
"He is." He wasn't going to tell her this. It wasn't any of her business. He knew both Tony and Kate could leave it out of the office. And if Jen thought the baby was his, well that was her problem, not his.
"Jethro."
"Jenny."
"You know I need to know who it is. Not only does it effect the abilities of your team, it also effects me as I have to arrange for paperwork for both of them."
"Never underestimate the government's ability to kill trees in its efforts to know everything. I'm not going to tell you Jen. Either ask Kate herself, or wait till Kate feels the need to tell you. Its none of your buisness. Its barely any of mine." He grimaces as he notices her triumphant expression. She already had an idea on who the father was. He just confirmed it wasn't him, which left her with one other person.
"How about Agent DiNozzo. Why is he on your team?" He continued to frown. Why was it that this woman had him spilling things even after he swore he wouldn't. All kinds of people tried to manipulate him into saying things, but there were only three who had ever succeeded. His mother, his first wife Shannon, and the woman standing in front of him.
"He has good instincts. Found him on a case in Baltimore. Figured he was better use to us then they were. He solved the case by noticing things that no one, not even the team I took with me noticed."
"So, he's basically you, just without the bitter outside due to years of experience." He didn't respond. "Agent McGee."
"Young, but he's learning. Has computer abilities matched only by my forensic tech. "
Jen waited a moment, but she knew from Gibbs' expression she was lucky she got the information she got. "Onto other matters. I have a case for your team, minus agent Todd. Since Agent Todd is going to have restricted field duty due to her pregnancy, I have a special assignment for her while you and your other agents along with Paula Cassidy handle this case." This was the part she dreaded. She really didn't want to tell him he'd be seeing one of his old suspects again.
~*~
Kate walked over to where her mother sat, Tasha seeing her just as she passed the table next to them. Her mother stood and smiled offering a hug to her daughter.
“Good Morning, Darling.”
“Morning, Mom. You never told me you knew the Admiral.”
“Oh, yes. A.J, this is my daughter Caitlin. She’s the one I told you about.” Kate almost groaned. Who knew what her mother had been saying about her.
“Pleasure to meet you, Caitlin. Congratulations on the new baby.” He pulled out a chair for her.
“Thank you.” She was starting to get tired of the congratulations, but she took the proffered chair. “This is Abby Scuito, a friend of mine,” she said as she motioned to Abby who followed her over to the table. The Admiral had pulled another chair out for Abby and moved down to sit next to Tasha, leaving Abby and Kate next to each other.
“Nice to meet you Mrs. Todd, Admiral,” the Goth said politely.
“I was just telling AJ here about why I’m in DC early. He’s visiting as well, you know. A good friend of his is getting married.”
“Bride or groom?” Abby asked, looking honestly interested. Kate found it slightly funny that for a girl who as a tad commitment shy the tech had a great love for weddings.
“Both actually,” AJ said with smile. “They were two of my officers before I retired from JAG.”
“Captain Rabb and Colonel Mackenzie,” Kate supplied, remembering a wedding announcement she had read in the paper a few days ago. Back when her life was not quite as complicated.
“Yes, do you know them?” He took a drink of his lemonade.
“No, but my boss does. Agent Jethro Gibbs worked on several cases with them I believe.”
“One could say that. It was a little over two years ago that Gibbs worked a case that almost put Harm in jail for a murder he did not commit. I have to say I respect Gibbs for his perusal of the truth. If he hadn’t reopened the case, Harm might not have had chance.” While the Admiral might respect Gibbs, Kate had a feeling that neither of them would enjoy a dinner together.
“So I suppose since I am able to see you this fine and sunny morning, they caught the bastard that was after you.” Nastasha’s tone of voice belayed more then the words the level of contempt she held Ari Haswari in for trying to hurt her daughter.
“Yes, he was caught last night at Gibbs house.” Kate decided it was probably not a good idea to share the case with her mother. Or the Admiral. “Director Sheppard is having a press conference on it later this afternoon.”
"Well, I need to go, My lunch hour is almost up," Abby stated apologetically. They probably would have never made it to the store before Abby's lunch hour was up even if they hadn't stopped by.
"May I offer you a ride to the Naval Yard?" The Admiral asked. "I am on my way there to visit some old friends of mine."
"That would be great, thank you."
The Admiral and Abby said their goodbyes, leaving the Todds sitting at the table. Tasha had planned on going to visit her daughter, but the fact that Kate was here now made that plan obsolete.
"We should go shopping. And I want you to tell me about this young man of yours. I didn't get a chance to met him the other day." Tasha grabbed her bag and started to stand as if to make her way to where the shops were. Kate stood as well, but didn't move from where she stood.
"Are you going to tell me how you know the Admiral?"
"We were friends."
"Really."
"Yes. I knew him in high school." Tasha's tone was one Kate recognized as the "I don't want to say this out loud, but this topic is closed" tone. Just the tone she had used when they asked her about what had happened to her husband. "Now where was this store that Miss Scuito mentioned?"