Chapter 1: Ford

McGee sat at his computer staring at the screen with a pissed off expression, his jaw clenched shut. He rapped away at the keyboard. Ziva was at her desk, finishing cleaning her gun. DiNozzio was standing on his swivel chair, trying to balance on it, while at the same time, balancing a pencil on the bridge of his nose. Gibbs was not in the bullpen, but speaking with Director Vance in his office.

"What are you doing?" Ziva asked, setting down her reassembled, clean weapon and intertwining her fingers together on her desk.

"Wondering what it would be like to be a tight-rope walker."

"You are wondering how to walk on women's tights?" Ziva asked, confused.

"No, a tight-rope walker, like in a circus." Tony said.

"Oh!" Ziva said, excitedly. "Like clowns, trapeze artists, and when they shoot people out of cannons!" Tony stopped wiggling on top of his chair and looked down at Ziva, the pencil falling from the bridge of his nose.

"How do you know so much about circuses?"

"I remember going to them when I was a child," Ziva said.

"You liked going to the circus?" Tony asked incredulously. Ziva nodded. "The clowns always creeped me out," Tony said. "What about you, McGeek?" he said, looking over at McGee. McGee didn't even register Tony talking to him until three seconds afterwards.

"Huh?" McGee said. Tony rolled his eye and jumped off his chair landing with a thud.

"What are you doing that would cause you to tune me out?" Tony said, walking over to McGee.

"Someone has opened our files."

"What?" Ziva asked, joining Tony at McGee's desk.

"I've been trying to see who's been looking at them but I don't have the clearance to know."

"Whose files did they read?" Ziva asked.

"Everyone's," McGee said. "Every NCIS Agent in D.C. and L.A."

"It could have been Vance," Tony said.

"The Director knows everything about every NCIS agent; he does not need to look over every Agent's file," Ziva said.

"Excuse me?" A gravelly voice said from behind the three agents. They turned around (In McGee's case, looked up.) and saw a very pretty, petite, dark haired, young woman with stunning Green eyes. Tony practically ran to her.

"Hello, I am very, very Special Agent Anthony DiNozzio. How can I help you?" Tony asked, his tone made Ziva want to throw up.

"Hi. I'm Ford." The woman said, shaking Tony's hand.

"Got a first name?" Tony smiled at her.

"Ford is the first name," she said. Tony's face froze, still smiling. Ziva quickly joined them as Ford let go of Tony's hand.

"How may we help you, Miss Ford?"

"Well, I was hoping you could tell me where Director Vance is? I stopped in his office but he was not there."

"I'm right behind you, Ford," Vance said. Ford turned around and saw Director Vance and Gibbs striding up to her.

"Ah, Leon. How are you?" Ford said, embracing the Director.

"Much better, now that you're here. How was your flight?" Vance asked.

"I flew in on a Gulfstream with the Director of the FBI, Leon," Ford said, smiling. Vance cracked a smile as well.

"Not so enjoyable then," He inferred. "SECNAV has been breathing down my neck for the past few days."

"Un-amused by your choice of Assistant Director?" Ford asked. Vance nodded, then Ford nodded her head. "Want me to go ease their minds?"

"It would be greatly appreciated."

Ford nodded again and walked out of the bullpen and made her way up the stairs to MTAC.

"May I ask who that woman is?" Ziva asked the Director. Vance looked back to Gibbs and walked off. It was silent for a moment, then Gibbs said,

"Grab your gear. Dead Marine." Suddenly there was a wild scramble for each persons gear, except for Tony who was still frozen in place. Gibbs noticed this, coming over and slapping Tony in the back of the head, snapping Tony out of his trance. "DiNozzio, grab your gear!" Gibbs yelled, annoyed.

"Who was that woman, Boss?"

"The new Assistant Director of NCIS," Gibbs said, as though it was the most obvious thing in the world.

"The new… no way!" Tony said, slightly awed.

"Yeah, way. Now, if I have to tell you to get your gear again, I'll do more than head slap you!"

"What kind of woman has a first like 'Ford'?" DiNozzio wondered out loud. A dead Marine with a stake through his heart was on the ground and DiNozzio, McGee, and Ziva were taking documentation photographs of the crime scene.

"Uh, Doctor, what is he talking about?" Palmer asked, rolling up with the gurney and Dr. Mallard.

"I would assume Anthony is talking about the new Assistant Director."

"Time of death, Duck?" Gibbs asked, coming over from talking to the Marine's wife.

"Jethro, I just got here!"

"Okay, what about cause of death?"

"I would assume the cause obvious," Duck said, gesturing to the stake in the Marine's heart. "You know, this reminds me of a case in Germany where a man had been pushed off a roof and had been impaled by a lamppost----"

"Ziva, McGee," Gibbs called to the agents, and walked away gesturing them to follow him, leaving Tony to the mercy of Ducky's endless storytelling.

Ziva and McGee looked at each other and quickly caught up with Gibbs who as walking to where their cars were parked. "McGee, there is a file called MOONSTONE. The Government does not want anyone to know of it, but the Assistant Director has given me special permission to read it. The only problem is getting it," Gibbs said.

"Can the file be electronically accessed?" McGee asked, understanding that Gibbs wanted him to obtain the file.

"That's why I'm asking you to get it," Gibbs said. McGee nodded. "Do it when we get back to NCIS."

"Yes, Boss,"

"If you get caught, Director Ford will bile you out."

"Yes, Boss," McGee said, again, and turned back around to the crime scene.

"Ziva,"

"Yes?"

"Go back to NCIS. Stay with the Assistant Director until I have read MOONSTONE."

"Protection or surveillance?" Ziva asked.

"Both," Gibbs said and opened his car door, throwing the keys to Ziva. "Take my car back."

"You are sure?" Ziva asked. Gibbs simply stared at her.

"Yes, Gibbs," She said and got into the black car.

Ford retina-scanned herself into MTAC and went in. "Get me SECNAV, Please." Ford said to the MTAC operator.

"Right away, Ma'am." he said, and began to fiddle with the computer. Ford stood ten minutes waiting for the Secretary of the Navy, Andrew Paltoni to connect with MTAC. Ford's patience began to waver. She knew Paltoni did not like her, but that gave him no reason to make her wait. Another ten minutes rolled by. Ford began tapping her foot incessantly. After another twenty minutes, Ford finally sat down on the cushy seats and, of course, thirty seconds later, the gray haired Secretary Paltoni came onto MTAC's giant screen. Ford got up, and put on a headset.

"Director Ford," Paltoni exclaimed, surprised. "I was expecting Director Vance." Ford immediately picked up on Paltoni's regretful tone, and she didn't miss the look of malice that flashed across the Secretary's face. Boys will always be boys. Ford thought, inwardly shaking her head. Don't want to share their toys with the girls.

"Well, yes, Director Vance is busy at this time and asked me to speak for him."

"I must apologize for the delay. I was in a meeting," he said. Uh huh, and I'm Neil Armstrong. Ford thought, but kept it to herself and instead, simply nodded politely to Paltoni.

"What did the Director wish to speak about?"

"He has been concerned that you do not approve of his choice of Assistant Director of NCIS," Ford said, cleverly referring to herself in the third person, making it see that she was simply speaking formally, but on a satirical level she was actually insulting him. Luckily for her, Paltoni did not get the insult.

"Well, it is not that SECNAV does not approve of you, Director Ford, I am simply concerned with your… background."

"My 'background', as you say, should only serve to allay any concerns you have."

"How so?"

"It shows I can lead and unify many. I know when, and when not, to lay down the law. I will say no to employees should the good of NCIS and the United States benefit." Ford said.

"It also shows that you are capable of making difficult decisions, as you have made once before," Paltoni said. Ford's heart skipped a few beats as it always did when she remembered the "difficult" decision she had made once. "Should the same situation occur and you were forced to act, would you make that decision again?" he asked. Ford's stomach clenched.

"There comes a time where we all must chose the lesser of two evils for our country."

"That is not what I asked, Director," Paltoni said. "Would you, or would you not, make that same decision again?" Ford, after a moment, with a heavy heart, clenched fists, and glaring eyes, said,

"Yes."

For the first time in Ziva's life, she drove the speed limit. She did not want to even imagine what Gibbs would do to her if she wrecked his car. She knew something was up with the new Assistant Director. She had a feeling that Gibbs was involved, and possibly Director Vance was well. What was with her name? Ford was an American surname, not a woman's first name. "Definitely a conga-drum," Ziva said to herself, as she safely parked behind NCIS.

Ziva walked into the bullpen, set Gibbs' keys next to his computer, and walked up the stairs to MTAC to find Director Ford. Ziva got lucky; Ford was just walking out, as Ziva reached the top of the steps.

"Director Ford!" Ziva said. The dark haired woman looked up at Ziva and waved her over. "I am sorry for not introducing myself earlier. I am Ziva David," Ziva said, outstretching her hand. Ford immediately shook it.

"Assistant Director Ford, as Jethro has no doubt informed you." Ford said, smiling warmly. She called him Jethro. Ziva thought. They definitely know each other.

"This will sound awkward; Special Agent Gibbs has requested I accompany you for a time."

"Only from Jethro would I accept such a request." Ford said, and gestured for Ziva to go back down the steps first.

"Where are we going, Ma'am?" Ziva asked.

"Please, call me Ford."

"Forgive me, but I am not comfortable being on a first name basis with my superiors," Ziva said, after a moment. Ford laughed a little.

"Ford is technically not my first name. Nor is it my last."

"It is just your name?" Ziva asked, unsure if she fully understood what the Assistant Director was saying. Ford nodded. "Alright, Ford it is." Ziva said as they reached the bottom of the steps. Ford smiled at Ziva as Ziva asked, "Where are we going?"

McGee sat at his desk, finishing out printing a fifty page packet. McGee turned the pages over so he could not read them, took out a tan folder, and slipped the packet in. he waited a few more minutes for Gibbs to come by and sit down at his desk. It was approximately 21:00 (9:00 p.m.) hours. McGee got up with the packet and walked over to Gibbs' desk. Gibbs was quickly becoming annoyed with his computer.

"This is the folder you wanted on Petty Officer Buhler, Boss," McGee said. Gibbs had not asked for a file on their prime suspect Petty Officer Buhler, because DiNozzio had already given him it nearly three hours ago, so Gibbs realized that this was MOONSTONE.

"Good work, McGee," Gibbs said, taking the folder. McGee nodded and smiled, happy for the praise. "Track Ziva's cell phone," Gibbs asked.

"Yes, Boss. Where has she been, by the way?"

"With Director Ford."

"Ah, McGee said, understanding why Gibbs wanted to know where Ziva was. It took him all of thirty seconds to lock onto a location. "1509 17th St."

"Thanks," Gibbs said, grabbing his keys, gun and badge, and walked out of the bullpen.

Ziva really liked the Assistant Director. She was very funny and something about the woman reminded her of an old childhood friend that had died with her sister, Talia. There was something else that caused Ziva to identify with Ford, though Ziva took it with an air of caution. Ford, although she seemed to be a very happy woman, her eyes told a different story. Ford's green eyes told Ziva that she had seen and done terrible things that no one should ever do or see. Like Ziva. Her eyes also told Ziva that the Assistant Director did not get much sleep because of those things.

Ford had several meetings before they settled down to eat at Komi, a very good Greek restaurant. They had a meeting with the Director of the CIA, and Ziva had noticed that Ford had known the Director very well. Afterwards, they went to a formal luncheon with the Ambassadors of Nigeria and Chad and their families, where Ziva learned that Ford spoke fluent Arabic, but she spoke with a dialect that could only be found in Cairo, Egypt, and was not the standard Arabic taught to Americans. She learned Arabic in Cairo from the locals. Ziva realized. After the luncheon, Ford made a quick stop at an orphanage called St. Claire's Orphanage, where she would not allow Ziva inside, so Ziva did not know what Ford had been doing. After going back to NCIS, and meeting with NCIS: LA's Hetty Lange (Who is Los Angeles' Manager if Ziva recalled.) and Director Vance in MTAC, Ford requested they have dinner. Ziva couldn't refuse when she heard they were having Greek food.

"So, will you always be in Washington?" Ziva asked, finishing her dinner.

"I will be traveling back and forth between D.C. and L.A., switching off every month."

"Doesn't Los Angeles have a manager?"

"They do, and don't get me wrong, Hetty is a wonderful field manger and I love the woman to death, and my presence in Los Angeles has nothing to do with her way of running NCIS on the west coast. I am going there so NCIS can immediately deal with an impending crises on either end of the United States, should one occur, and Vance will not have to leave his post here in D.C ."

"Ah, I see now." Ziva said. Their waiter came around and gave them the bill.

"You may pay up front when you are ready, ladies,"

"Thank you," Ford said, and began to take her wallet out of her brown purse.

"Oh, no, Ford. Let me pay," Ziva said, and took her wallet out of her pocket.

"No, no, I insist." Ford said.

"How about you split the bill?" Gibbs said from behind the women. Ford looked up and smiled.

" A brilliant idea as always, Jethro, but I will have to ignore that one."

"Ziva, go back to NCIS, I'll take Director Ford home," Gibbs said, a half smile on his face.

"But----" Ziva said, but then Gibb's smile disappeared. Ziva took the hit and stood up and Ford stood up with her.

"Thank you very much for dinner, Director Ford," Ziva said, shaking Ford's hand.

"Thank you for attending dinner with me, Agent David," Ford said, understanding that Ziva wished to be formal in front of Gibbs. The two women shared a smile and Ziva walked out of the restaurant. Gibbs replaced Ziva at the right side of the booth, and Ford sat down opposite him. They stared at each other for a moment, until Gibbs asked his old friend,

"How are you Ford?"

"As good as I will ever be, Jethro. You?" Ford asked. Gibbs shrugged his shoulders.

"Well enough," he said. After a moment, Ford yawned and Gibbs' eyes narrowed. "You still have trouble sleeping?"

"I've always had trouble sleeping."

"Ford, you have to get something for that. You're tired as hell."

"I drink coffee every morning to solve that."

"Not very healthy."

"You have no room to talk. I picked up the habit from you."

"You still should see a doctor about your sleeping habits."

"I know."

"You say you know, but you never do it."

"I know that too," Ford said, smiling, and after a moment, Gibbs smiled to.

"I missed you, Ford."

"I missed you too, Jethro," Ford said, looking at Jethro like she had found a long lost father. Gibbs looked like he was talking with his daughter.

Gibbs took the file out of his coat, and set it gently on the table. "I haven't read it yet. I was wondering what I would expect to find." Ford nodded her head, and said,

"Jethro, remember the first time I ever worked with you and Jenny?"

"How could I forget? You ran us into an underground war bunker and wouldn't let us out for three hours, until your former boss came and took us all back to the states.

"Remember the first impression you had of me?"

"Yeah, I said 'no way this girl is CIA, she's barely even fourteen!'" Ford nodded her head, and pointed to the folder.

"MOONSTONE will explain why I looked so young among other things."

"Why do you want me to read this?" Gibbs asked.

"I got an e-mail from someone heavily involved in MOONSTONE that I trusted deeply two days ago, telling me that other involved in MOONSTONE that should be dead, isn't. Yesterday, the person that sent the e-mail was shot in the head."

"I'm so sorry," Gibbs said, sincerely. "You think you are next?" he asked. Ford shrugged her shoulders.

"It's complicated. But I would like you to do the investigation and for that, you'll need to be read in on MOONSTONE. I will explain this situation in full detail, if you will read it," Ford said. Gibbs looked from the file to his old friend and picked MOONSTONE back up and put it back in his coat pocket.

"I'm in."