A/N: Sorry for the delay in this one. A bunch of things were needing my attention. Thanks to everyone who has continued to leave reviews - you guys are awesome!

***JIBBS***JIBBS***JIBBS***

Jenny hurt for her husband. She was sitting on his bed, leaning her one hand over his waist on the mattress while the other one held his hand. She brought that hand to her lips, kissing it gently and then rested her cheek against it. "I love you," she said before kissing his hand again and holding it in her lap. "Is it just the team you don't want seeing you? Is it everyone you know? I want to understand what's going through your head."

"No you don't. My head is a very scary place right now."

She sighed. "It would really make life easier if you were closer to the house. I can't keep commandeering planes or helicopters, and by car it's about four hours. And at some point, the hospital staff is going to insist I take a shower even if you don't. Not only that, they're going to be sick of this suit. I know I am."

Gibbs motioned to the overnight bag. "Why don't you see what Cynthia brought you. You can use the bathroom right over there."

Jenny squeezed his hand one more time before she hopped off the bed and opened the bag. "It's a pair of yoga pants and a red sweater. Oh! And deodorant. I love her." She turned her attention back to her husband. "You know, I'm going to have to get her a great gift to make up for us traumatizing her earlier." She walked back over to him and he put his arm around her, resting his hand on her butt.

"How about if we traumatize her some more?"

Jenny smiled. She took her hand and caressed his forehead before she let her fingers settle in his hair. She then bent down over the bed so she could kiss him briefly. "I promise more later. Let me go change before they come back." Gibbs wouldn't let her go. "You are going to give me my ass back, right?" The smirk on his face said otherwise, so Jenny pried his hand off and scooted away before he could do anything about it.

"Taking advantage of my condition to run away isn't cool, Mrs. Gibbs."

"Ha," Jenny said as she closed the bathroom door behind her.

Gibbs smiled as he closed his eyes. That is until the scary thoughts made their way into his head again. Would his team still respect him? Would people pity him when they saw him? Would he have control over anything again? The thoughts must have been incredibly loud because he didn't hear someone walk into his room until they were leaning down talking into his ear.

"You will walk again. You got that?"

Gibbs turned his head toward the voice, startled. He looked at Tony's intense eyes, boring a hole into his own. The younger agent then lightly head-slapped Gibbs, shocking the older man.

His expression and voice remained steely and low. "I said… you… will… walk… again."

The two men locked eyes, Gibbs understanding. "I gotcha, DiNozzo."

Tony realized Gibbs did indeed understand and smiled. "Good." He turned to walk out and ran into Jenny coming out of the bathroom.

"Tony?" she called to him, her eyes wide in shock. When he didn't stop she dropped her bag and ran after him. "What's going on? What happened in there?"

He stopped walking and turned around to face her. "I was just returning the favor." When he saw her confusion, he continued. "Remind me to tell you some time about when I got the plague."

Jenny nodded. "Thanks."

He smiled. "Do you still need Cynthia? I figured I'd give her a ride back."

"I don't. Thanks for doing that." Jenny turned and headed back to her husband's room.

He was waiting for her. "I'm willing to go to Bethesda."

Jenny had no idea what just happened but she knew one thing. She was grateful to one Very Special Agent DiNozzo. She walked over to her husband, sat on the edge of his bed and reached for his hand. "Thank you. I appreciate it."

He sighed. "I really hate this waiting."

"I know. I do too." She looked around. "Do you want me to go find your doctor or your dad and Julia?"

He shook his head. "Please don't go."

Jenny squeezed his hand. "I wouldn't be gone long."

"What I mean is, we should probably finish our discussion from earlier."

She sighed. "Why?"

"Promise me, Jenny."

She did her best to look innocent. "I don't know what you're talking about."

"Look at me." She was sitting out of reach so he couldn't physically make her look at him. "Please." Reluctantly, she turned her head and looked in his eyes. "You worked too hard to get where you are to just walk away from it. Promise you won't let whatever ends up happening with me interfere. I will have lost enough. Don't make me drag you down with me."

"It probably won't come down to that," she insisted. "Hopefully SecNav will hire an assistant director shortly and then that will help free me up to be there for you whenever you need me."

He was having none of her rationalizations. It was important to Gibbs to know that Jenny would fight to keep her job. "Promise me."

She shook her head. "If it comes down to choosing between you and my job, it's no contest. How can you even ask that of me?"

"You can be so damn stubborn sometimes."

She smirked. "This coming from Mr. Flexible?"

"But that's me. You're supposed to be different."

Jenny shook her head. "Chauvinist." She sighed. "I will do my best, but if I have even an inkling that you need me or I can help you, nothing will be able to keep me from you. You have to know that, and you can't possibly not understand it. We both know you'd be the exact same way if roles were reversed."

He nodded silently, finally giving up. "Come here." Gibbs opened up his arms. She scooted down and then rested her head against his chest as he closed them around her. "I love you," he said, running his fingers through her hair.

She closed her eyes, bunching up his hospital gown in her hand next to her face. "I love you, too." They sat that way for several minutes, just holding each other close. "What are you thinking?"

"I'm wondering how I survived without you. I mean it. I really have no idea."

Jenny tilted her head back so she could look at him. She reached her hand up and caressed his face, smiling when he melted into her touch. "My years being far away from you were hard enough. Then those three years where you were nearby but almost farther away than before, were just utterly painful. The year when I knew you still cared but I wasn't allowed to ever see you again… well you learned what pure hell that was for me. And then yesterday, when I thought I might never see you again… Oh God, Jethro." She buried her face in his chest and he held her closer, if that was even possible.

"I'm so sorry you went through that, Jen. And then I had to go and be an ass and push you away. I'm sorry."

"Now that's what I like to see." Jack smiled, seeing his two favorite adults hugging each other as he walked into the room. He looked down at his granddaughter, cradled in his arms. "I told you it would all work out, Julia." He walked to the side of the bed that Jenny wasn't on and placed the baby on her daddy's chest, next to her mommy. "Now that's a picture."

Jethro glared at his father. "That you won't be taking because I'm only wearing a hospital gown." He then caressed his daughter's head. "Hey there, Jules. Did you have fun with Grandpa Jack?"

"She had a great time. Julia, tell that father of yours how you wrapped his doctor around your little finger and got him to chase down those test results faster."

Both Gibbs and Jenny's eyes widened.

"That's right. He should be on his way in here as soon as he gets them, said maybe a few minutes."

Jenny sighed. "Thanks, Jack. You both are pretty amazing," she said, rubbing her daughter's back. She looked up and saw fear on her husband's face. "What is it?"

"Only a few more minutes left to have hope for a good outcome before it's possibly wiped away."

"Now there you go, thinking positively again," she said, shaking her head. "Stop that." She poked him in the chest. "Hold your daughter, believe in her magic - and ours."

Jack smiled. "I told you… your greatest weapon."

Jenny was confused. "What is?"

Gibbs leaned down and kissed the top of her head. "You. You're my greatest weapon."

Jenny smiled at Jack. "Thank you." She then turned her attention back to her husband. "I don't care what the results say, we're going to make it through this." She reached for her father-in-law's hand. "As a family." Gibbs put his hand up to his mouth, trying not to laugh. "What?"

He shook his head and smiled. "When did you get so sappy?"

Jack laughed at his son's words and both endured glares from Jenny until she started laughing too. "Fine. I give up." She picked up Julia, holding her in front of her. "When you're old enough to start watching 'Sesame Street,' just know your father was the inspiration for Oscar the Grouch."

"Awww," Jack laughed again.

"This is great to see." Dr. Michaels walked in the room and smiled. He wasn't terribly surprised when the three adults froze upon seeing him. "Humor really is the best medicine."

Jenny quickly sat up, holding Julia tightly against her with one hand as she reached for her husband's hand with the other.

"Do you all mind if Capt. Gelfand joins us?" He motioned to the doorway.

Jenny turned around, saw Todd and smiled. She was relieved to have their own personal advocate there to explain things once Dr. Michaels left. She turned to Jethro and he nodded tightly, having nothing to do with Todd but rather his nervousness about the results.

"OK then," Dr. Michaels said, leaning against the wall. He looked at their worried faces. "It was reasonably good news."

Jack and Jenny both heard 'good' and breathed a sigh of relief. Her eyes lit up as they looked at her husband. But Jethro heard another word and furrowed his brow. "What do you mean by reasonably?" he asked.

"The damage should not be permanent. Over the next few days to a week, the swelling should go down and you should have feeling return."

Gibbs scrubbed his hand down his face. "I'm hearing a lot of 'shoulds' in there. Is there a possibility it won't?"

Todd stepped in. "Dr. Michaels, do you mind if I -"

"Please do." Frankly, Special Agent Gibbs intimidated Dr. Michaels a little bit so he was happy to have the captain intercede.

"No two patients are exactly alike. But on average, what he described is what happens. But it could take longer to bounce back than you think. You're not going to just get up and walk out of here in a couple of days. You're going to need physical therapy. How fast your recovery goes will be in your hands. But all signs point to it being a full one."

Jenny looked at Todd. "So is this what you said I should hope for?"

He smiled. "Pretty much. Why don't you all take a few minutes, and I'll come back to answer any of your questions."

Jenny was smiling. "Thank you so much, Todd, Dr. Michaels."

Both men nodded as they walked out of the room.

Gibbs leaned his head back, taking a deep breath before looking at his wife. "That was good news, right?"

Jack was incredulous. "Well, it certainly wasn't bad news."

Jenny could see something was nagging at her husband. "What is it?"

"I can't shake the feeling that there was something they weren't telling us. What about you?"

Jenny smiled and squeezed his hand. "Oh Jethro, we got our miracle. Let's grab it and hold onto it."

Her words would have put his mind at ease… if only he hadn't seen her right eye twitch.