Title: Brunette
Fandom: NCIS
Pairing: Kate/Abby
Spoilers: No spoilers really.
Summary: Kate and Abby meet unexpectedly. Set sometime after 1.02, but before 1.03.
Rating: PG
Disclaimer: These characters belong to DPB, CBS, Paramount, et al. No copyright infringement is intended.


"What about the brunette over by the bar?"

Abby glanced casually over her shoulder and tried to figure out who Tony was referring to.

"Where," she finally conceded.

"Down by the end. In the suit."

"Oh." His choice caught Abby by surprise. She looked back over at him. "Are you sure?"

Tony nodded. "She kept glancing over here at you."

"She wasn't looking at you? She seems like more your type, Tony."

The amused grin he gave her was full of easy confidence. "Trust me, Abs. I know when a woman's looking at me. She was looking at you."

Abby glanced back over her shoulder and then frowned slightly. "She's gone."

Tony smirked slightly. So Abby was more interested than she was letting on. He should have known.

"She's dancing."

Abby swiveled around in her seat, glancing quickly to the dance floor, trying to pick the woman out of the crowd. She took one quick sip of her beer and flashed Tony a smile. "Don't wait up for me, Tony."

He laughed. "Never fear, Abs."

He didn't move as she walked away though. Instead he waited and watched. What he hadn't told Abby was that he'd recognized the woman. It was the newest member of their team - Kate Todd.

Abby danced through the crowd, moving with the pounding rhythm until she was dancing next to the woman who Tony had pointed out to her.

She was gorgeous, that much Abby could tell, but not much more. She flashed her a bright smile as the woman glanced in her direction. Abby froze. Her jaw dropping in complete surprise.

"Kate?" She shook her head, her pigtails swinging back and forth dangerously. "But Tony said-" She cut herself off in mid-sentence. "Oh."

The music which had seemed perfect a moment before suddenly seemed too loud.

"You want to go somewhere quieter?" Abby asked, yelling to be heard.

It took the look on Kate's face for Abby to realize how that had come out.

"To talk," she added quickly.

Kate surprised her by nodding and reaching out for her hand. Their hands fit together perfectly as Kate pulled her off of the dance floor. They staggered on to the street outside, stopping once the flow of people had thinned and the noise level dropped.

Awkward silence enveloped them for a moment, until Abby looked over at Kate, a bright grin taking over her features.

"Were you really checking me out? Tony said you were."

"I-" Kate frowned and Abby could see her weighing her decision to tell the truth or not. "Yes."

If it was possible, Abby's grinned widened.

"Cool." Abby paused. "You're pretty hot yourself."

Kate's laughter took Abby by surprise. "Thank you," she murmured softly, looking down at their joined hands. "So, if I were to ask you for your number right now and if maybe you wanted to go out sometime after work..."

"I would totally say yes."

Kate smiled. It was the first real smile that Abby had seen from her and she realized it made her even more beautiful.

"I'm going to hold you to that, Abby." She hesitated for a minute, her smile fading slightly. "What about DiNozzo? I-"

Abby squeezed her hand, cutting her off mid-sentence. "Don't worry about it. Tony won't say anything."
Kate arched an eyebrow in disbelief.

"He won't," Abby reassured her seriously and then flashed a mischievous grin, "I know many things Kate, even about Tony. He won't say anything because he knows that I'll spill his secrets if he does."

Kate looked at her with a whole new level of respect. "You're kind of an evil genius, aren't you Abby?"

Abby laughed and squeezed her hand. Together they walked down the street. It was the beginning of something beautiful.