One

He watched the scene unfold before him with a gentle smile on his face, not only was he grateful that a child was being safely returned to a loving home but he was also proud of the work his agents had done. He had had his doubts when they had brought the baby back to NCIS but they had proven him wrong and done him proud with how well they had handled having a baby around, especially when Torres had been so adamant that he wasn't good with children. He felt the woman beside him bump into him and his smile turned to a grin.

"Merry Christmas, Gibbs." She said.

"Merry Christmas to you, Jack." He replied turning to face her, "you still goin' skiing?"

"It's a bit late for that." She responded with a small shrug, "why, you got a better plan?"

"Oh, just thinkin' about that gift bottle you gave out." He said, raising an eyebrow at her.

"Kentucky's finest." She replied excitedly, "small batch."

"Oh, I'm gonna crack that." He said, "you in?"

She didn't offer a verbal response but the way she grinned up at him was answer enough, she let out a small laugh as she leaned forward and rested her hands against his chest. It felt like the most natural thing in the world to lean down and kiss her forehead before wrapping his arm around her and pulling her against him. He listened to the laughter of his agents as he held her to his side, it felt right.

They waited while Ellie and Nick finished speaking to the baby's parents, he watched as they both said goodbye to the baby. He could tell they were both struggling but was proud of the way they kept it together. Jack leaned further into his side as Nick and Ellie made their way back towards them.

"They did good." She whispered, looking up at him with her chin propped on his chest.

"Yeah." Gibbs agreed, giving her shoulder one last squeeze before letting her go.

He felt the cold on his side as Jack stepped away, she didn't move more than a few inches but he felt the loss of contact at his side instantly.

"You guys ready to go?" Gibbs asked.

"Yeah." Nick replied quietly.

"Are you still going to Palmer's tomorrow?" Jack asked.

She knew both he and Ellie were struggling with handing over the baby and she understood it more than she cared to admit and she also knew that they would both welcome the distraction.

"No, I'm going to let them enjoy their family time." Nick replied.

She could tell that that was only an excuse, she was willing to bet it was more that he didn't want the reminder of the baby that little Victoria would bring.

"What about you, Ellie, are you still going home?" She asked.

"I couldn't get a flight out until the twenty-sixth, I'm still going to go down until New Years." Ellie replied with a shrug, "my mom would kill me if I didn't show at all, she's already disappointed that I'm not going to be there for Christmas."

"Why don't you two come for the day tomorrow." Gibbs offered, "don't have a turkey but we can do steak."

He watched Ellie and Nick share a look before they both nodded.

"If you're sure you don't mind." Ellie said.

"Wouldn't've offered." Gibbs replied with a shrug, "be there for thirteen-hundred, we can watch that movie you like if you want."

He was feeling generous, he knew they were both sad about giving up the baby and shaken up after the shooting the day before.

"Miracle on 34th Street?" Ellie asked excitedly.

"Sure." Gibbs replied rolling his eyes slightly, "go home, get some rest."

He waited until they had said their goodnights and gotten into their vehicle before turning back to Jack.

"You ready for that drink yet?" He asked with a smirk.

"Absolutely."

N*C*I*S

He watched the flames dance on the hearth, Jack was next to him on the couch, wedged in the corner with her legs across the other side of the couch while he was sitting with his feet on the coffee table, both of them had their glasses in their hands. They weren't touching but they were close enough that he could smell the lingering hints of her perfume.

"This is some good stuff." She stated, looking at her glass.

"Yeah." Gibbs agreed with a chuckle.

"I needed it after this week," She added quietly, "I suspect you do too."

He saw her glance over at him and then over at the cradle that was still resting by the stair case. She knew how hard the holidays were for him.

"So…" She said slowly, "that purple heart that Palmer magically found for Kasie, it was yours wasn't it?"

He looked over at her and shrugged one shoulder, it had been his purple heart but he had seen how much it had meant to Kasie and Palmer and he didn't really need the metal anyway.

"A shrug is as good as a yes from you." She stated with a small chuckle.

"I didn't need it anymore." He replied quietly.

"It made Kasie's Christmas." She whispered, "Jimmy's too."

"Needed something good." He replied after a minute, "we had enough bad this week."

Watching that seventeen year old girl sobbing as she had given up her child, knowing that they had almost lost Ellie and seeing a Veteran end up dead for doing the right thing had been hard, knowing that he had done something to help Kasie heal and knowing that the baby had gone to a good home had been almost cathartic.

"Ellie." Jack guessed.

"We almost lost her, Jack." He muttered.

He hadn't thought before putting a bullet in Vicious' chest but when he had turned and seen Ellie's face, white and drained of blood his mind had jumped to the worst. Images of Shannon, Kelly Kate, Diane and Jenny had flashed through his mind in a split second and Ellie had joined them. He had rushed to her side in an effort to reassure both himself and her that she was fine. He had been so distracted making sure she was alright, putting himself at ease that she was still alive that he hadn't even thought to confirm that the man who had tried to kill her was dead.

"I know." Jack whispered, reaching over to rest a hand on his leg.

"It was too close."

He hated that he could actually feel a lump forming in his throat at the thought of losing his youngest agent.

"But she's fine." Jack reassured him, "everyone is fine."

"For now, what about next time?"

"We can't think like that." She replied with a small shrug, "we… just have to enjoy what time we have now." She finished quietly, "enjoy the little things."

He hesitated for a moment before wrapping his arm around her shoulders, he panicked when she leaned forward, afraid he had overstepped but she simply put her now empty glass down on the coffee table before she melted into his side and wrapped and arm around his waist. He ran his hand up and down her arm lightly and listened as her breathing slowly evened out.

He glanced down at her and admired the way the fire and lights from the Christmas tree reflected off of her blonde hair. He was a little alarmed by how right it felt to be sitting together in front of the fire, her asleep at his side. Everything in him demanded that he put some space between them, stop whatever was happening before it went too far. They were good friends and that was it, or so he thought. They had slowly been testing the line between friends and something more but he wasn't even sure what she wanted, it had felt so right to hold her hand in his, to intertwine their fingers but the way she had pulled away had thrown him for a loop. He knew he had rules for a reason, but looking at her sleeping form he couldn't for the life of him remember what those reasons were. He knew he would never push her, he would let her lead the way but he decided in that moment, that if she took the step into something more than friendship he would gladly let her, rules be damned. He was going to enjoy the little things.

Hey Everyone! So I guess I'll jump the gun and throw this up here for Tuesdays episode which was like… WOW! BEST EPISODE EVER! So this kind of started out as a one shot but I decided to publish it as an actual story because it… grew a little bit… It will just be a fluffy piece that I'll be publishing every few days until either Christmas or New Years (Just depends how long it is) I may still update Today's New Friends and Pushing the Limits but for now this will be my main focus, a Christmas present for everyone…. It will be as Canon as possible but it's going to take place starting Christmas Eve running through to New Years and will feature both Slibbs and Ellick (and Ellie's family… that's a bit of a hint as to what's going to happen.)

~Katie