Disclaimer: I own only what I make up.

Abigail "Abby" Aria Sciuto had always considered herself to be a smart person. A little strange because she marched to her own drum and spent many of her childhood hours wandering through junkyards to investigate damaged cars just for fun, but still quite smart.

She did, after all, grow up to be a forensic scientist with a total of three degrees. She also worked with the best people she'd ever known in her entire life, and together, they worked on chasing down an extra special brand of bad guy. Working for NCIS could be very scary at times, but she wouldn't trade it for anything else, especially when she thought about how protective she and her team were of each other. Her friends were her life, her family. She could never imagine working anywhere else.

But now, because of a 'hiccup' she'd recently experienced, Abby was on the front stoop of Special Agent Leroy Jethro Gibbs' house, positively soaked to the bone from getting caught in the rain pour that had started just as she'd exited the taxicab that had dropped her off, and she was beginning to question her life choices, and just how smart she actually was.

"Gibbs?" Abby called out as she entered and closed the door behind her. "Are you here? It's Abby, and I came here because I don't want to be alone and..."

Overwhelmed by the heaviness of her situation, Abby dropped the overnight bag she'd been carrying and broke down into tears. Her family, her actual family that had adopted her when she was a baby and raised her, was all the way down in Louisiana. She wanted very much to be with them at her childhood home of Number 18 Willoughby Place in Jefferson Parish, but up here, seeking out Gibbs at his house, which was a safe haven, was the next best thing. However, now that she had arrived, her floodgates were crashing open.

"Abby?"

She just about jumped out of her skin at the sound of her name being spoken, but that was because it had been said by the last person she was expecting—Director Jennifer "Jenny" Maeve Shepard had appeared in the front hall, having come in from the kitchen, and to top it all off, she was was wearing pajamas, a dressing gown, and slippers. In a word, Abby felt like her brain was melting.

"D-Director Shepard?" Abby stammered. "What are you doing here, dressed like that? Where is Gibbs?"

Realizing immediately that Abby was in some kind of trouble and that she was definitely distraught, especially because she had yet to move out of the darkened front hall, Jenny decided to be patient.

"I stay the night here sometimes, but please keep that to yourself. As for Jethro, he's down in the basement, working on the boat and probably didn't hear you because he's kind of in La La Land right now."

Abby couldn't help herself and asked, "Why's that?"

Jenny deflected Abby's question by taking a small step backwards into the living room and beckoning to her. "Why don't you come join me over in the light, Abby? Just leave your bag there there."

"Promise you won't judge me?"

"I promise I won't judge you." Jenny beckoned to her a second time. "Come on."

Stepping out of her rain boots, Abby walked from the hall to where Jenny was waiting.

When Jenny saw Abby, she finally understood why the younger woman had hid in the shadows—not only because was completely soaked from the rainstorm, but also because she looked like she'd been crying recently. She also had a darkening hand-shaped bruise across the right side of her face, lips, and chin.

She'd been hit.

Someone had hit her.

Someone had hit Abby.

Feeling horrified, Jenny called over her shoulder towards the basement, "Leroy! Get up here!" before turning back to Abby.

"Who did this to you?"

Abby just shook her head, feeling embarrassed and ashamed of what she was going to have to say. At the same time, Gibbs rushed up from the basement, having dropped everything at the sound of Jenny's tone.

Upon arrival, and upon seeing the sorry state that his favorite forensic scientist was in, his heart sank.

"Abs? What happened?"

Abby just shivered and rubbed hands on her arms, trying to keep warm. "S-so cold, G-Gibbs."

Working together, Gibbs and Jenny helped Abby out of her scarf, mittens, and jacket so she didn't overheat. When Gibbs found her a clean sweatshirt and a clean pair of sweatpants to wear, Abby accepted them gratefully. By the time she finished, she wasn't crying as much anymore, and felt like she was able to talk again.

"I guess I owe you two an explanation, huh?"

She said this as she sat on the couch in the living room couch with Gibbs and Jenny, the latter of whom wrapped a warm blanket around her.

"We're definitely not going to turn you away," Jenny said gently. "But we really like to know what's going on."

"And who hurt you." Gibbs added.

Abby took a deep breath and slowly let it out. "I started seeing someone a little while ago, and I haven't said anything because this was my first very serious relationship in a very long time, and I just wanted to keep things to myself."

"That's completely understandable." Jenny sympathized.

Abby's eyes filled with tears. "I really loved him..."

Gibbs reached over and wiped Abby's tears. "What's this guy's name?"

"Lieutenant Onyx Clarkson."

Gibbs' eyebrows shot up. "He's a lieutenant? On what ship?"

"Actually, it's more like file clerk at Fort Runnymede in D.C.. He used to serve on the U.S.S. Nevada."

"The ship that sank about three years ago after being torpedoed by pirates in the East Indian Ocean?"

Abby nodded. "Onyx was on its last mission before it sank, and when it docked here again, he was transferred to Fort Runnymede."

"What happened between you and the lieutenant?"

"We got into a really bad fight, and we broke up."

Now it was Jenny's eyebrows that shot up. "That still gives him no right to hurt you."

"I know, and I'm in shock because I've never been in a relationship that was even remotely violent. I just couldn't be alone tonight, and I didn't know where else to go."

Gibbs leaned over and gave Abby a fatherly kiss on the temple. "You're welcome to stay with us tonight, but just say the word, and I'll go find Clarkson."

"That's appreciated, Gibbs, but please don't!"

"Give me one good reason why not."

"Onyx has kids."

On Abby's other side, Jenny felt her curiosity pique. "Oh, really?"

Abby bobbed her head in confirmation and dug her phone out of her pocket. After a moment of searching, she settled on one picture in particular and settled on one picture in particular before giving the phone to Jenny.

"Here you go, director."

"Please, Abby—off the clock, it's Jenny," the director said as she put on her reading glasses and accepted the phone. "But who is this?"

Her words came out in a coo, and with reason—she was looking at a picture of an adorable little girl, whom, much to her surprise, had a rounded face, freckles abounding across the bridge of her nose and jet-black hair; she already looked like a miniature version of Abby. Atop her hair, she wore what looked like an antenna headband that went with the bumblebee costume that she was wearing. She was grinning into the camera, although in a comical way—she was both showing all of her teeth and wrinkling the bridge of her nose while also squinting so hard at the camera that you couldn't see her eyes at all.

"That's Rubyjane—she has a double name, but it's all one word, and sometimes I call her Ruby or RJ. She's a real love, and she turns three on Christmas." explained Abby. "She saw us fight and begged me to take her with, but of course, I couldn't, and now I don't know if I'll ever see her again."

Jenny passed the phone to Gibbs to let him see the picture and gave Abby a back rub, in between her shoulder blades to give her something to focus on.

"Where's her mother?"

"As I understand it, her name was Mara, and she was an ex-girlfriend of Onyx's who showed on his doorstep with a brand new RJ, in between coming back from the Nevada and his transfer to Fort Runnymede."

"How brand new was RJ?"

"Like, less than a month old. RJ is his daughter, that's for sure, but when Mara found out Onyx was back, she brought Ruby around to meet him."

Gibbs handed Abby back her phone. "But...?"

Abby pocketed her phone again. "But according to Onyx, he left the room for just a few minutes, and when he returned, Mara was gone, but Ruby was still there. Mara abandoned her at Onyx's place, and completely relinquished her custody."

"Where the hell did Mara go?"

"She turned out to be an addict, and she was found a month later, dead in a seedy part of Bloomingdale. Ruby has never known Mara, but it's just as well—Ruby paid the price for her mother's addiction."

"I'm almost afraid to ask how."

"Rubyjane is remarkably bright and loves to play dress-up, but she's almost completely deaf. Onyx wasn't able to afford hearing aides for her until she was almost two, though, so it's been almost a year since she's had them."

"Is she able to speak?"

"Yes, and she's very friendly, but a little bit loud, because she's still learning about things like indoor voices. She's also a very fast learner, so I've been teaching her how to sign."

Feeling overwhelmed by emotion again, Abby leaned back and quieted, gathering her thoughts. Gibbs and Jenny both felt like parents to the younger woman in that particular moment, more than they ever had before, but for as much as she had just told them, they had a feeling that Abby wasn't done yet.

After a few beats of silence, Jenny inquired, "You said that Onyx has kids, and in more than one; where is the second?"

Fingers trembling slightly, Abby framed her middle with one hand and pointed to it with her other.

"In here, not ready to be interrupted by the world until early May, at the very latest."

Jenny congratulated Abby and then hugged her for a moment. "We'll take care of you—the whole team will—but Jethro and I will look after you in the way that parents do since yours are in New Orleans."

Abby withdrew from the hug, her bottom lip wobbling. "Thank you, Jenny. That's more than I could have hoped for, and I'm so grateful."

"You are very welcome, Abby."

Gibbs reached over and tapped Abby gently on the shoulder.

Turning, Abby saw Gibbs' blue eyes looking deep into her own blue eyes. He didn't have to say anything—she knew him so well that she knew exactly what he was thinking.

"You want to know if I'm excited to be a mom, and you want to know what Onyx and I fought about."

"Yes."

"I'm over the moon to be a mom—I'd always meant to settle down with the right guy, get married, and have a few kids, but before I knew it, I was married to my job instead, and there was no time for kids. Rubyjane has taught me in her ways to stop and smell the roses."

"Does she know that she's going to be a big sister?"

Abby shook her head. "No. The only person who knows that I'm pregnant besides you two is Ziva, and that's only because she heard me retching in the bathroom yesterday morning. She helped me through it and even took me out to lunch later, but she's been covering for me ever since."

Bemused, Jenny commented, "Ziva's a good person like that."

"Uh-huh." Abby took a deep breath and slowly exhaled. "My fight with Onyx was about the baby: I told him I want to keep it, and he freaked the hell out and said something awful."

"Which was?"

"He didn't even want RJ to begin with and took her in because he didn't have a choice, but also that there's no way he's going to be involved this time, even financially."

"Abby, abandoning his child, even if it hasn't been born yet, is already a crime."

Abby gave another shaky sigh. "I know, but I still to talk to him at least one more time."

"Promise us you'll be careful?"

"I promise."

"Good girl." Jenny gave Abby another back rub. "Now—are you hungry?"

"Yes." Abby admitted.

"So am I." Jenny turned to Gibbs. "What about you?"

Gibbs nodded and stood to get the house phone, in its cradle on the other side of the room. "Yes, actually. How does pizza sound? The tab's on me."

Neither Abby nor Jenny had any objections.

Abby got very sleepy after dinner, even though it was only eight-thirty. Gibbs made up the spare bedroom for her, and after she bid him and Jenny both good night, she was asleep twenty minutes later, worn out by the events of the evening.

Gibbs and Jenny remained awake for a few more hours, although the conversation eventually turndown back to their house guest.

"When are we going to tell the team that we're together?" Gibbs asked. "I'm glad we are, but Abby knows now. Telling everyone else also means that I have to nix Rule 12. I've never nixed a rule before."

Jenny stretched out on the couch and put her feet up on the coffee table. "Hopefully, it's at the same time that we get to tell them that Abby's baby is getting a playmate from us."

It was true—Jenny and Gibbs had chosen to give things another go between them, and not long after, they found out that their love had made a baby. They were shocked because neither of them were exactly young, but once they were able to wrap their minds around it, they became excited. In fact, Jenny was in the process of packing things up at her house and moving in with Gibbs. Life couldn't be better for either of them.

"Deal." Gibbs agreed. "Our kid is going to be born into such a weird family, though."

"Definitely, but for as weird as everyone is, there's also more than enough love to go around. I couldn't ask for anything more than that."

"Neither could I, Jen. Neither could I."

The next morning, Abby woke with very little morning sickness, which was a relief, because she had no idea what the day was going to bring. If she was going to have another encounter with Onyx, the last thing she needed was to leave during their conversation so she could go vomit.

Abby had always found that getting dolled up when she was feeling down always cheered her up, and today was no exception. For starters, instead of wearing her usual black and white color scheme, she'd packed her favorite red tea dress with the purple polka dot pattern. On her legs were her favorite black tights with skull and crossbones all over them, a gift from Gibbs the previous Christmas. And instead of her standard fishtail braids, today she went for two top buns and bangs. She also went with her usual makeup scheme, thankful that the foundation and the dark lipstick did a very nice job of covering up the handprint that Onyx had left on her face. As for her accessories, she went with a black spiked collar and a matching pair of spiked bracelets. She was also wearing a pair of black buckle-up platform boots, telling herself that she should get as much use out if them as she could before she had to switch to a better type of shoe. But all in all, by the time Abby was finished getting dressed, she was feeling like herself again.

As Abby prepared to leave her bedroom, her overnight bag full again and the bed made, she caught of her baby bump in the mirror. She was twelve weeks along and sporting a bump, although its true size was obscured by the way her dress was designed.

Abby glided a hand over her bump, her heart skipping a beat when she felt how taut her skin was underneath her dress. Inspired, she looked down at her bump and spoke to it.

"I'm really sorry about how crazy things have been, but no matter what happens, I do love you."

The baby wasn't big enough to kick yet, but Abby could most certainly felt the wiggling, and she took that as reassurance that everything was going to be okay.

Down in the kitchen, Abby found Gibbs and Jenny in the kitchen—she was at the table, reading the newspaper, while he was at the stove, making something that smelled like oatmeal. Abby was also sure that that was toast cooking in the toaster.

"Good morning!" Abby said in a singsong voice as she sat down at the table.

"You're in a good mood." Jenny remarked in amusement, folding her newspaper closed and laying it down. "Feeling better, too, I see."

"Still sore from where Onyx hit me, but yes!"

"Abs," Gibbs said as he turned around from the stove. "How do you take your oatmeal?"

"With just a little bit of cinnamon stirred in! Thanks, Gibbs!"

"You're welcome." He turned back to the stove and began making her a bowl. "Sleep good?"

Abby nodded, even though Gibbs' back was to her. "I did—I think I all I needed was being near two people who will protect me and my family."

"We will always protect you, Abby. You're as good as our kid." Gibbs laid Abby's breakfast on the table in front of her. "Now eat up, hm?"

Abby thanked him and happily tucked in.

Abby rode to NCIS with Gibbs and Jenny, and things were normal between the three of them until they got to the elevator. Instead of going down to her lab, she continued on, seeing Gibbs off at the squad room before continuing up towards the catwalk level with Jenny.

Halfway there, Abby flipped the 'stop elevator' switch, bringing the lift to a halt.

Jenny was taken aback because Gibbs was the only one who did that to her. "Okay, Abby, you've got my attention. What's up?"

The goth put her hands on her hips and gave Jenny a sassy look. "When were you going to tell me that you're part of the 'older mom club,' too? We're only six years apart, you and me."

Jenny gave the expression of having her thunder stolen and a tone to match. "But how did you know? We were going to wait to tell everyone!"

Abby's heart jumped, and she clapped her hands together, now fit to burst with joy. "Ooo! You and Gibbs...?"

"Yes to all of that, but please don't tell anyone."

"I won't." Abby said promptly before turning sly. "And I figured it out because you had a tell, director."

Jenny's hands dropped to her middle, which, under her winter coat, was just sheltering her baby belly. But only just.

"Go ahead and tell me."

"It was the oatmeal—you don't like oatmeal."

"How did you know that?"

Abby gave Jenny a cheeky grin. "I'm a scientist with triple degrees—I'm very observant, especially when it comes to people I care about."

"Then that's that." Jenny chuckled.

"Uh-huh! Is it okay if I hug you?"

"Of course!"

The two friends hugged and after Abby started the lift up again, she waved goodbye to Jenny and finally pressed the down button for her lab.

She had only just gotten settled in her office and turned on her music when she noticed McGee enter, a confused look on his face and a gift bag in hand. All of a sudden, Abby felt like she was going to cry—she'd quite enjoyed the night she'd spent at the Gibbs-Shepard house because Gibbs and Jenny were surrogate parents, but McGee was her best friend in the whole world and she hadn't realized until then just much she had missed him while he'd been away.

Still, she kept herself together as she hugged him and he reciprocated the affection.

"How are you, Abby?" he asked sincerely. "My flight got delayed during my layover in Atlanta, and by the time I got home, all I do was set my alarm and pass out on my bed because I was flat-out exhausted. I would've called you, otherwise."

Abby raked the back of McGee's neck with her nails, knowing from previous experience that it was a weak spot. "It's okay, Tim, and so am I, now that you're back. I really missed you while you were in California."

Though not a bona fide scientist like Abby, McGee was just as observant as she was. As a result, he'd noticed that she'd behaving off-kilter for the past three weeks, and now, he was choosing his words carefully.

"I was only gone for a week."

"Yeah, but it felt like a lot longer because I always miss you when you go anywhere, even on a case."

McGee suddenly found himself having to fight the urge to kiss Abby. So he channeled his thoughts into saying something else.

"I know you, Abby, and something clearly happened to you in the last twenty-four hours. Do you want to talk about it, or see what I brought back for you?"

"I want yo see what you brought back!"

McGee had been away at a sci-fi/fantasy convention, and because he knew Abby so well, he'd known exactly what kind of souvenir she'd like.

"Here you go, Abby." he handed her the gift bag. "These are straight up your alley."

Abby accepted the bag and then paused. "How did you know to even come down here already?"

"About that—I was in the squad room for less than five minutes when I saw the director looking at me from the catwalk. She told me that if I knew what was good for me, I'd come talk to you immediately. Tony and Ziva laughed themselves silly about it, but ta da: here I am."

Satisfied by this answer and tickled that Jenny had waited McGee out on her behalf, Abby opened the bag and gasped at the sight of what she pulled out: action figure versions Molly and Ginny Weasley, from the Harry Potter books. Abby was deeply touched and she thanked McGee for being so thoughtful, but then the figures reminded her of her newfound role as mother, and of the baby in her belly and Rubyjane.

"Abby," McGee said in a tone of slight panic when he saw her abrupt mood change. "Seriously, what's the matter?"

"I broke up with—"

But that was as far as he got because McGee's phone chirped at him, indicating a text from Ziva.

"You gotta go?" Abby guessed as McGee read the message.

He nodded. "Mhm. According to Ziva, we have a new case."

"Okay, then have something for the road. And thank you for the action figures."

Abby hugged McGee close and then gave him a kiss on the cheek.

McGee returned the hug and then left.

On the way to the crime scene, McGee's head was in the clouds as he went over his conversation with Abby and tried to think of when would be the next time they could finish the conversation they'd started.

To his credit, he even ignored Tony and Ziva as they pestered him, trying to find out what had happened in Abby's lab.

Unfortunately, McGee was only jarred back to reality when he felt a head slap and saw Gibbs glaring at him.

"My bad, boss." McGee ducked immediately as Gibbs aimed another swat at him, reciting his rule about apology. "What have we got?"

To McGee's left, Tony chortled. "You're totally McSpace Cadet today, aren't you? Open your eyes wider—it's what we don't have."

McGee looked around and saw a few feet in front of them a huge pool of dried up blood with a trail of two pairs of bloody footprints leading away, towards the front door.

"Lots of blood, but no body. Who lives here, again?"

"A Lieutenant Onyx Clarkson, and his little girl, Rubyjane Lily Clarkson. She is nearly three." Ziva reported as she consulted her notes and then looked around. "I see plenty of indicators that a little girl calls this place home, but I do not see any signs of her being abducted, either, or that she has wandered off, so she must still be here."

"Let's hope so." said Gibbs, feeling a knot of dread at the thought of what Abby was going to say when she found out what was going on. "We were alerted to this case who heard Rubyjane crying and remembered that Clarkson is Navy. Spread out and proceed with caution so we don't spook Rubyjane."

They didn't have too far to look.

In a bedroom just off the main hallway, Ziva found an open door, and when she poked her head in, she saw Rubyjane sitting up in her bed, dressed in her pajamas and staring into space as she rocked back and forth, crying.

Ziva called out to Rubyjane, but the little girl didn't notice her or hear her because she didn't have her hearing aids in, so all she could hear was the sound of her own crying, but even that was distant.

Just as Ziva thought about how to back out of the room without spooking Rubyjane or attracting her attention, she saw an envelope taped just above the light switch next to the door.

It bore a message across the front: In case of emergency, call Abby.