A/N: This is a companion piece to my story "Return". You might want to read that one first but this will work as a standalone as well. My favorite couple and some hurt/comfort. Enjoy reading. :)

At Night

They had spent a few more days in Mexico with Mike and then headed to Alaska. Kate had booked a small cabin near Kenai Fjords National Park to spend their days enjoying the breathtaking nature and just being together again. In the quiet moments of their evenings in front of the fireplace Gibbs could see that Kate was still processing what had happened the past year. He vividly remembered how overwhelming it could feel to return from a deep undercover mission after all he had done some as well. But he had never come back from the dead and he never had to live with the knowledge that his family and friends thought that he had died. At that time in his life he had burnt all bridges after he lost his beloved family. Jethro knew that her family thinking that she was dead was what was haunting her the most. He could tell that she was both dreading and looking forward to seeing her family again.

He did not press her to tell him anything about her time undercover, knowing that she would tell him what she could and wanted eventually. During their first night in New York he had seen the scar Ari's bullet had caused when it hit her just below her Kevlar vest. How she had survived it was the only thing he had ever asked her. It had been obvious that it was not an easy topic for her to talk about but she had told him that although there had been a lot of blood, the injury itself had not been too serious and the surgery to remove the bullet went without complications, contrary to what they had been told. Still she had slipped into a short coma because of the loss of blood and she had needed some time to recover from it before she could start her mission to go after Sergei Mishnev.

Gibbs opened his eyes slowly and turned around, barely able to make out Kate's outline in the darkness. She had started tossing and turning next to him and he had woken up fully when she started mumbling incomprehensibly. It was not the first time she was experiencing nightmares in his presence. She had told him that they were haunting her regularly when he had stayed in her hotel in Mexico with her before they flew to Alaska. But now her breathing was laboured and shaky. She sounded as if she was shivering, almost desperately struggling to take a breath. She was moving frantically beside him and her movements were uncontrolled, as if she was trying to get away from some invisible enemy.

"You're alright, Katie," he said softly and placed a hand on her shoulder, not wanting to scare her in case she woke up. For a moment she seemed to settle back into sleep but then it started again and she pulled away from his touch. This time she was thrashing around as if she was fighting someone in her dream and her face was twisted with anguish.

"'S okay, Katie," Jethro tried again softly and placed a firm hand on her arm but it did not help. Caitlin was trapped in her dream and he was trying to figure out what to do to help her. He finally decided that she would probably wake up anyway and started to shake her shoulder, his voice more vehement when he spoke again, "Katie, wake up, Kate. It's just a dream."

After a moment she jerked awake and looked at him wild-eyed, breathing quickly. As far as he could tell in the darkness, she stared at him for a few seconds. He just pulled her into his arms and he was glad that she let him comfort her, some of the tension leaving her body immediately. For a moment he felt her heart racing while she was taking shaky breaths, trying to calm herself down. "Nobody's gonna hurt you here."

He finally felt her fully relax in his arms and lightly ran his hand up and down her back. She was wearing the old NIS t-shirt she had snatched from him in Mexico but he could not say that he minded much. Actually he liked it when she wore it and it was not only because he got a nice view of her legs that way. It made him feel like they belonged together since they had not reached the point to say 'I love you' yet or even define their relationship status. He was sure of his feelings for her and what he wanted this to become in the future. But at the same time he did not want to pressure her into anything. She had enough to deal with at the moment in addition to all the other reasons that should keep her from getting involved with him. He had always wondered why she had reciprocated his flirting when they had worked together, after all he was a bastard most of the time, three times divorced and almost twenty years her senior while she was beautiful, smart and did not have to worry about finding a decent man her age. After a while he felt Caitlin move slightly in his arms and he focused on her again. Kate lifted her head to press a light kiss to the underside of his jaw. "Thanks, Gibbs."

"Nothin' to thank me for," he replied in a hushed voice and placed a kiss on top of her head. He would do anything for her and helping her deal with a nightmare was not a big thing in his books.

"I wish we'd just stay here," Caitlin said after a moment and he had almost missed it, since her voice was barely above a whisper.

"We can come back here whenever you want," he replied and pulled her even closer. They had two days left here before they would return to Washington. Then she wanted to call her sister and make plans on how to approach her family, probably going to Indiana within the next few days. Although she had not asked or said anything in that direction yet, he had made up his mind about that topic too. In case she wanted him to come with her, he would. After all, he would do anything for her.