Author's Note: My first NCIS fic, and this is a Mibbs fic people. So for those who dislike Hollis Mann, vamoose. And no flames. I like Hollis Mann. I think she's great for Gibbs, which is more than I can say for Samantha Ryan, but that's an entirely different matter. There aren't enough Mibbs fanfics here, and if there are, they're usually interjected with Jennifer Sheppard getting Gibbs in the end. I hope that this is ok, though. And do read, review and enjoy.

Disclaimer: I don't own NCIS or its characters.

'I love you Daddy!'

She couldn't speak, couldn't move, couldn't stop the recording; couldn't do anything. All she could do was watch with growing horror and sadness as the final missing piece from Jethro's heart revealed itself in a grand flourish.

She was dimly aware that he was there, sitting on the stairs leading down to his basement, listening forlornly to the only remainders that were left of his once perfect life.

'Why do we always end up in your basement, every single time?'

She remembered asking him that a while ago, before ex-wives and dead family came into the equation. He had shrugged then, smiling that little half-smile of his before handing her a sanding block and motioning her to work on his boat.

She'd always thought it was because he wanted to keep working on his boat.

Guess she knew why now.

Sure, he loved making boats, loved the feeling of the rough sand smoothening beneath experienced fingers and the gentle scrapping sounds as the boat started to take shape. But that wasn't the only reason why. In his basement, his turf, he'd always be surrounded by the memories he buried down here, of his beautiful wife and little girl. The recordings, the colourful lunchboxes little Kelly used with all her drawings in them; all of them treasured carefully, books Shannon used to read and write little notes in; they were with him, in this dark basement with shreds of wood scattering the floor. Maybe that's why none of his subsequent marriages and relationships ever worked out. Maybe he was just too wrapped up in his past, what he'd lost that he never really wanted to replace them again.

Hollis didn't know what to do, how to compete with memories and ghosts lingering in the background. And if she was honest with herself, she wasn't sure she wanted to.

She knew Jethro would never stop loving them; he was far too loyal to their memories. But all she was asking him right now, practically begging him was to be with her simply because he loved, or maybe just felt something for her.

She's heard DiNozzo and David whisper that she was 'ex-wife number 4', but she had hoped - or maybe it was just wishful thinking - that she'd somehow be better off than ex-wife number 1, 2 and 3. She was blonde for crying out loud! Surely that counted for something? Surely the fact that Jethro was interested in her despite the fact that she wasn't a red head like Shannon or his ex-wives meant that he wasn't seeing her as just another Shannon- replica, wasn't it?

She didn't know, and truth be told, she didn't think it mattered right now. Even if Jethro didn't see her as another replacement, that didn't mean he'd be content to just be happy with her. Only because she wasn't a red head named Shannon Gibbs, who had a little girl called Kelly Gibbs, with the angelic smile and played the piano, who called Jethro 'Daddy' and won 2nd place in piano recitals or drew colourful drawings of her daddy and mommy and her; just one big happy family.

The clock ticked on, and the silence only grew thicker and more impenetrable by the minute. Hollis was sure that if McGee witnessed this scene, he'd come up with some dramatic description like 'In a dark basement, with the eerie strains of a piano playing a childhood song, two figures with the weight of decisions to be made stood there, unmoving as they tried to understand what the next step would be. Would the King sacrifice yet another Rook? Or would the Queen make her appearance at last?' And she thought it probably would be an apt description. Would Jethro sacrifice their relationship for the sake of his memories, or would he finally let her in, even just a little, and there'd be no more ex-wives or broken relationships? Only the writer knew the ending to his story, and Hollis wasn't sure if Jethro even knew what the ending would be.

She wasn't ever one for silence and standing still and waiting. She still wasn't, even now. Taking a deep breath, she walked up to sit by Jethro and started to gather her thoughts. She had never begged, would never even consider it but like Ducky said, she'd never find anyone better than Jethro, and she wasn't going to let him go without a fight. Even if that meant begging him to try to let their relationship survive, she was prepared to sacrifice her dignity for this wonderful, insufferable man who had stubbornly eked his way through the tough persona she had erected in the Army.

Hollis had this perfect, fierce speech prepared in her head where she urged Jethro to try to fight for them, to let them be happy with what they had and to let it grow into something more. But the moment she opened her mouth to deliver that speech which sounded so wonderful in her head, her throat clenched horribly and dried up, and every single word she rehearsed in her head disappeared, leaving her gasping like a fish out of water. Yeah it sounded funny, but Hollis, in a fit of frustration, realized she was actually crying, something she had never done for anyone in her life, except maybe her father.

Furiously, she wiped those stupid tears away, embarrassed that this man could frustrate her to the point of crying. She started to speak again, determined to get the words out right this time, but before she could start, she was interrupted again, this time by a calloused finger held at her lips, silencing her.

She was startled to feel two warm hands grasp her own, and as she turned to face the one man who had really captured her heart in her life, she was surprised to see that in Jethro's baby blue eyes, tears glinted, sparkling brilliantly in the dark of the room.

He tugged her closer by him, and as she curled warily beside him, he brushed a strand of strawberry blonde hair from her face. 'I met Shannon when I was visiting my dad in Stillwater. I was 19 then, fresh into the Marines when I saw her at the train platform, red hair flaming as she ran to catch her train. In the end, she still missed it because her heels broke as she..'

For once, their roles were reversed. Hollis sat quietly as she listened to Jethro tell the story of how he and Shannon met, about Kelly and the colorful ribbons always entwined in her hair, how his world shattered and crumbled when he was notified of his family's death. She gripped his hands tightly as he went on about how he killed their murderer, how satisfied he felt, but it didn't bring Shannon and Kelly back.

Hollis didn't know how long they sat in his basement, just him talking and she listening. They didn't go to bed that night, and as the first rays of dawn shot into the open windows of Jethro's home, he pulled her up, out from under the pile of memories and into his kitchen where he made coffee and they talked about their plans for the weekend. They didn't talk about last night, about the little things Hollis learnt about Jethro and his life, and at 0700 hours they both left for work, with a casual suggestion to have dinner at the Italian restaurant they both liked later at night.

Later at work, when she received a text from Jethro - probably got Abby or McGee to show him how -, she smiled. Sure, they still had a long way to go, and she knew Jethro still had issues, perhaps one too many, that would have them at loggerheads in no time. She knew he still had plenty of secrets he didn't let her in on and probably never would, that he still needed to adjust to the idea that sometimes, silence isn't always the best solution. Hell, even his past relationship with the Director was another problem that might come back to haunt them. Problems, complications, conflicts; you name them, they were everywhere.

But as she giddily accepted his invitation to spend the night like some high school girl getting ready for prom, she realized she honestly didn't care. Maybe all his red-headed ex-wives and past girlfriends would converge on his doorsteps tomorrow, maybe the day after that he'd decide that their relationship wasn't worth the commitment and maybe after that she'd retire to Hawaii on her own, without him. She couldn't care less.

They had today, and that was all that she wanted and needed, and all that mattered in the world right now.

'See you tonight Jethro.' Message sent.