Five

Jenny had just finished pulling on a pair of comfortable pyjama bottoms, extremely grateful to be rid of her jeans, when there was a light knock on her door.

"The baby's asleep." Gibbs whispered, poking his head in, "the girls are just setting up the DVD thing if you're still up for a movie."

"I just want to change my shirt and I'll be right down." Jenny promised, trying and failing to stifle a large yawn.

"We don't have to do a movie tonight, maybe it would be better if you went to bed."

"You're doing it again." She warned gently, "I'm a bit tired but I'll live."

"I'm trying not too." He replied, his own way of apologizing without breaking his precious rule six.

"I know." She responded with a sigh, "I know you're trying and I'm trying to remember that, I just-"

"Want everything to go back to normal." Gibbs finished for her, "I don't think things will ever go back to the way that they were, Jen, normal isn't going to be the same now, we have to find a new normal."

"I know." Jenny admitted, "I know things need to change but I just don't want this to be a part of our new normal."

"What do you mean this?" Gibbs asked.

"You worrying about me, you never used to worry about me."

"I've always worried about you, Jen-"

"But you always trusted me enough to handle it on my own." Jenny cut him off, "it's like you don't see me as capable anymore."

"I know you're more than capable." Gibbs quickly assured her.

"Then what is it?" Jenny asked.

"It's not just us anymore." Gibbs replied with a shrug, "big difference between you not being okay then and now."

"I'm just tired, but I promise I will tell you if something is really wrong." She promised, looking him directly in the eyes so he knew she wasn't lying.

"Alright." Gibbs replied with a small nod, "I'll go check on on the girls."

"Where's Jake?" Jenny asked, digging through a drawer for her favourite shirt.

"He was taking a shower the last time I checked." Gibbs replied, "I'll make sure he's okay too."

N*C*I*S

After checking on Jake, Gibbs made his way downstairs, he stopped outside of the den and listened to the girls giggling. He couldn't hear what they were talking about and he was pretty sure he wouldn't want to know but the sound of them laughing together made him smile.

He let his mind wander as he listened to them until he felt a hand on the small of his back, he turned his head and smirked at Jenny who was watching him with an amused grin.

"It's a nice sound isn't it?" She asked quietly.

"Yeah, it is." He replied.

He draped his arm over her shoulder and pulled her into his side, his smirk changed to a grin when she leaned against him and wrapped her arm around his waist.

"It's weird to think that we made them." She whispered, "I can't wrap my head around it."

Gibbs grinned and placed a kiss on the top of her head, he silently agreed with her, he would look at Kelly and wonder exactly how he'd had a part in creating such an amazing person.

"If you guys are done listening to us and playing grab ass the movie is all set up!" Kelly called from the den, "we're watching the Incredibles."

"On second thought I have no problem believing she's yours." Jenny stated, rolling her eyes.

"I was just about to say she sounds like you." Gibbs replied with a smirk, "do you guys want popcorn?" He asked sticking his head into the den.

"Can you watch a movie without popcorn?" Kelly asked dramatically.

"See." Gibbs said looking at Jenny pointedly, "you sound like your mother." He called out to Kelly

Gibbs had been making an effort to refer to Jenny as Kelly's mother whenever he could, he knew that Jenny could never replace Shannon but he wanted Kelly to know that it was okay for her to see Jenny as her mother and he wanted Jenny to know that she was allowed to be a mother to Kelly, that he wouldn't be angry with her for it.

"You say that like it's a bad thing!" Kelly called back, "also you might be in danger now!"

Sure enough when Gibbs looked down Jenny was looking up at him with a raised eyebrow, but he could tell it wasn't because of what he had said but because of what he had referred to her as.

"Her mother?" Jenny whispered.

"No rule saying she can't have two mothers." He replied as he gave her shoulder a gentle squeeze.

"Thank you." She responded quietly.

N*C*I*S

Jenny cringed when she knocked a tin pie pan off of the counter, she had gotten up extra early to make a peach pie. It was the one thing she knew how to bake perfectly, it had been her fathers favourite and Dani had admitted that it was also one of her favourites.

"Not that I'm complaining but is there a reason you're making a pie at 0500?" Gibbs asked, his voice heavy with sleep.

"I'm sorry, I thought you slept upstairs last night." Jenny apologized quickly.

"I did, I was already up when you came down."

He had slept in the guest room the night before so he could be close enough to get up with Ava so Jenny could have a break, a move which had been pointless since Ava had finally slept through the night.

"Are you making peach pie?" He asked, looking at the ingredients spread out on the counters.

Jenny grinned at the excitement in his voice, barely noticeable to any other person but she knew him well enough to know how much he loved her peach pie.

"Yes, but it's for lunch." She said firmly, "Which means no you cannot have a piece for breakfast."

"I wasn't going to ask." He replied, somewhat sheepishly "do you need any help?"

"You could make coffee." She suggested.

"I meant with the pie." Gibbs stated.

Jenny only grinned and shook her head at him, she wanted to be able to say that she made the pie by herself; she wanted to be able to do this one thing, no matter how small, for her daughter. She worked on her dough while Gibbs prepared the coffee, within a few minutes he was sitting at the island with the paper and his coffee, reading and enjoying the companionable silence.

"Looks good." He stated as she added the top crust to both of the pies.

She had ended up making two pies, deciding that extra wouldn't hurt and would be good for lunches if it didn't all get eaten.

"Thank you, I can't do a lot in the kitchen but I can do this." She replied, placing the pies in the oven before closing the door.

Gibbs smirked and went back to reading the paper, he watched her clean up out of the corner of his eye and couldn't help the small chuckle that escaped him at the sight of her. She was still in her pyjamas with a white and red checkered apron over top, her hair was pulled up in a messy bun that was now streaked with white from the flour she had been using.

He was just about to turn his attention back to the paper when he noticed something dangling from around her neck. It took him a minute to place what it was but as soon as he did he reached out and gently grabbed the two rings that were dangling from a delicate chain.

"You kept them." He stated, gently turning the two gold rings between his fingers.

Jenny stopped what she was doing and reached up to close her hand around the rings, it had become habit to hide them, even when she knew it was pointless.

"I couldn't make myself get rid of them." She replied quietly, "especially not this one." She added, holding the engagement ring between her fingers.

The wedding ban had been NCIS issued for their undercover work in Europe, they had also been issued an engagement ring which she had lost when she had been shot, two weeks later Gibbs had replaced it with a different one.

"I know you don't want to get married but consider this a promise." He had said, holding out the box.

"A promise for what?" Jenny had asked, raising her eyebrow at him.

"A promise to be here, no matter what." Gibbs replied, "even when things get hard." He added, nodding at her leg.

"And when we go back?" Jenny asked, "when we're back in the office and the real world?"

"We figure it out, as a team." He'd promised.

And he had kept his promise, it had been her to run with things had gotten hard and she had always promised herself that eventually she would send the rings back. Then she had lost Lillian and they had brought her a small amount of comfort, and then she had gotten hurt in Cairo and she had clung to them as a reminder of better times, eventually it would have been weird to send them back so she hung on to them and only brought them out for luck or when she was feeling overwhelmed.

"You should take them back." She stated moving to undo the change, "I should have sent them back years ago."

"Do you still wear them?" Gibbs asked quietly.

"Only on the chain, when I need a reminder." She answered honestly.

"A reminder?"

"That at one point we were okay, we were good, everything was okay."

"We're good now." He replied.

"We're doing better but these last couple of years have been hard, Jethro."

"I don't think it was ever easy." He replied, "but we did it together, we've always done it together."

"To some extent." She said, grabbing his mug and taking a sip.

"We're figuring it out." Gibbs stated with a shrug, "nothing is perfect but we're a team."

"We are." Jenny agreed quietly.

Even when things had gotten hard they had managed to stay a team, nothing close to what they had once been but it was better than nothing. She had stood by his side when he had lost his memory and when he had left for Mexico and he had silently stood by her through the La Grenouille debacle, he hadn't been openly supportive but he had done everything he could to protect her from greater fallout, he had stood by her when everything had exploded two weeks ago and he continued to be a pillar for her.

"The promise is still there, Jen." He stated, "that hasn't changed."

"Thank you for that." She replied, playing with the chain.

"You could, you could still wear it if you want to." He added slowly.

She rarely seen or heard Gibbs hesitate about anything but she could tell that he had struggled to get that sentence out.

"Maybe when we're at home."

She knew she couldn't wear them at work, it would raise way too many questions but she couldn't see a problem with wearing them at home and she didn't want to hurt Gibbs' feelings or destroy what little connection they had by turning down his offer.

N*C*I*S

He watched her reach up and undo the chain, she carefully removed the rings and held them in the palm of her hand. He watched as she hesitated before sliding them on to her left ring finger and couldn't help the small smile that spread across his face. He had gotten so used to seeing them on that finger that he had had to adjust when she had come back to the states, her finger bare. They had been there since before they had become more than just friends and partners, a prop to help their cover, but eventually they had become a constant, a reminder that no matter what they were a team and seeing them on her finger now reminded him that even though their world was completely different they were still a team.

It had never been about marriage with Jenny, it had never been about replacing someone who was irreplaceable it had always been about teamwork, friendship and eventually love, the rings had never symbolized a real marriage but rather their commitment to each other as partners.

N*C*I*S

Jenny shifted Ava to her other hip and rolled her eyes as she listened to Tony and McGee bickering, they had just gotten home from church and everyone was hungry and antsy from sitting still so long.

"It's like having seven toddlers." Jenny muttered to the baby who was making a grab for her hair.

Gibbs was upstairs making sure Jake was changing out of and hanging up his church clothes properly, the girls, Palmer and Ducky were all in the kitchen setting the table and making sure lunch was ready and Tony and McGee were fighting over the correct way to build a fire. There were only two people missing from their gathering and from the streak of red that flashed past the window Jenny was willing to bet they had arrived.

She made it to the front door just in time to watch it fly open to reveal Emily Fornell.

"Sorry we're late, someone forgot we were supposed to come over." She apologized breathlessly.

"Hi Em, hello Tobias." Jenny greeted with a grin.

"Hi Aunt Jenny." Emily replied, "Where's Jake?"

"He's upstairs with your uncle, everyone else is in the kitchen." Jenny responded, stepping out of the way so Emily could take off towards the kitchen.

"How're you doin' Jenny?" Fornell asked, slipping off his shoes before holding out his hands to take Ava who went happily.

"I'm good, Ava finally slept through the night last night."

"Are you finally behaving for your Mom?" Fornell asked, brushing Ava's wispy hair out of her face.

"No but she slept through the night." Jenny replied with a laugh, "they're all really good." She added more seriously.

"You two got lucky." Fornell replied, "How have things been with Dani?" He asked quietly.

"Okay, she seems to get along well with the other kids." Jenny responded.

"And you and Jethro?"

"She likes Jethro." Jenny replied slowly, "I don't think she's too fond of me yet."

"You'll get there." Fornell promised, "she's a teenage girl, even in a normal situation she's not supposed to like you and this isn't a normal situation."

"That's the thing, it's not like she doesn't like me, she's just indifferent." Jenny replied, "she talks to Jethro, she likes Kelly, she doesn't seem to really connect with the baby or Jake yet but she'll talk to them, she doesn't talk to me unless she has to."

"It takes time, Jenny." He reminded her gently, "it's been a day, she's probably feeling overwhelmed and she's never been part of a family before."

"That's my fault." Jenny whispered, "what if she never wants to be a part of our family?"

"She will, you guys are pretty hard to ignore." Fornell reminded her with a grin, "this family is a circus but it's a circus you want to be a part of, no matter what."

"Maybe." Jenny replied, running her hand through her hair, "I just don't know how to help her."

"How did you help Kelly?" Fornell asked, shifting Ava to his other hip.

"I don't know." Jenny replied with a sigh, "I honestly can't remember, it was so hectic, with Jethro in the hospital and everything going on with work."

"You listened, you were there for her when she needed you." Fornell replied, "do the same for Dani and I'm sure it'll all work out."

"Thank you, Tobias." Jenny replied quietly.

N*C*I*S

"Alright!" Tony exclaimed loudly enough to get everyones attention.

They had just finished cleaning up after lunch and everyone was milling around the kitchen, debating what to do with the afternoon.

"We have a bit of a surprise for you and Jenny Boss-Man." Abby announced, "the kids already know about it and have agreed to help us out for the afternoon, all we need for you two to do is go upstairs and put on the outfits we laid out on Jenny's bed."

Jenny cast Gibbs a curious glance but he only shrugged, obviously just as out of the loop as she was. Abby clapped her hands together and bounced excitedly on her heels.

"Everyone else needs to run and get changed and we'll meet outside in five minutes, Jenny and Gibbs you guys have twenty minutes to get ready, make yourselves look pretty and don't ask any questions."

Abby had been planning this afternoon for the last two weeks, she had called in a good friend to come and take family pictures of the team and of Gibbs and Jenny and the kids. The only pictures they had as a family didn't include Dani and although they were nice Abby was sure that Jenny and Gibbs would appreciate having some professional family photos. Her only hope was that they would enjoy the surprise, Kelly had helped her orchestrate the entire thing, and thankfully the entire thing had come together without a hitch.

Abby watched Jenny open her mouth to protest but quickly held up her hand to silence her.

"We've got everything under control, you two go and get dressed, we'll see you in twenty minutes."

N*C*I*S

Jenny rolled over tucked her arm under her pillow, it had been an exhausting but very rewarding day. Jenny had been amazed when she had walked out the back door after lunch to find the entire team, including Tobias, Emily and all of the kids wearing relatively matching outfits. Almost everyone had worn jeans, some dark wash, some light, while Abby and Dani had both opted for black, everyone's shirts were varying shades of either white, blue or red. Abby and McGee had both worn dark blue, Abby with a black sweater over it and McGee with a black and blue striped tie, Kelly had opted for a white long-sleeved t-shirt with a red and black plaid scarf, Ava had been in a maroon knit dress with white tights and little brown boots, and Jake had worn a red and black plaid shirt while Dani had chosen a dark red knit dress with black leggings. Tony and Ziva had both worn white shirts, Tony's paired with a dark blue sports jacket and Ziva's with a pale blue cardigan. Jenny had ended up in dark wash jeans, a white long-sleeved shirt and a flowing red, white and navy blue tartan sweater vest, Gibbs had ended up in dark jeans and dark red and navy blue plaid shirt with his customary white undershirt showing. Tobias and Emily had both been in white shirts, Emily's had been paired with a black sweater and Tobias had worn a black jacket. Ducky had worn a white button up and the maroon suspenders and bow tie he had worn the day they had gotten the kids and Palmer had followed with a white button up and a maroon tie.

She had been amazed at how much thought they had all put into giving them the perfect gift, the kids had behaved amazingly throughout the entire process standing for pictures for over an hour before being allowed to go play. The team had hung around for another hour after they had finished taking pictures before going their own ways to finish what was left of their weekend.

Despite the exhausting day Jenny had been tossing and turning for the last three hours, no matter what she did she couldn't shut off her brain. She kept thinking about all of the possible outcomes of her meeting with SecNav the following morning, if she wasn't thinking about that she was worrying about how Dani's first day at a new school was going to go.

She sat up in surprise and flicked on her bedside lamp when there was a soft knock on her door, she climbed out of bed and grabbed the sweater that was hanging on the back of her bathroom door. She opened her door to her bedroom a crack and raised an eyebrow at Gibbs who was standing on the other side.

"I thought you were one of the kids." She whispered, she opened the door enough to let him in before she closed the door behind him, "is everything okay?"

"I was checking on the baby, heard you tossing and turning." He replied, "wanted to make sure you were good."

"I just couldn't sleep." She replied, "what about you, why are you up."

"No boat." He stated with a small shrug.

She knew he was having a hard time not having something to calm his mind, especially at night.

"There's bourbon in my office if that'll help." She offered.

She knew that he used bourbon to relax just as much as he used his boat, she had done the same thing and she wanted a good shot of bourbon more than anything at that moment.

"Nah, don't need it." He replied, "What about you?" He asked, noting the way she was grasping her forearms to keep from shaking.

It had taken him a week after he had gotten home to figure out that Jenny had given up alcohol, although she had gotten through the withdrawal he could still see the shaking when she desperately wanted a drink and he knew she smoked when no one else was around and she was desperate.

"I need it but I'll survive without it." She replied slowly, "I might go for a little walk."

"It's three in the morning, Jen." Gibbs pointed out with a raised eyebrow, "if you need a smoke just say you're going for a smoke."

"How did you-"

"You only ever chew gum after you smoke." He cut her off.

She had done a good job of hiding the fact that she was smoking again, he had only figured it out because he knew that the only thing she hated more than gum was having bad breath from smoking.

"I don't do it all the time."

"You don't need to defend yourself." He said quietly, "Everyone has ways to cope."

He had knew that he couldn't judge her, she had an overwhelming amount of crap on her plate and she had given up her greatest source of stress relief. She never let smoking become an addiction for her and he knew that, she only had a cigarette when she was really desperate, maybe five times a week at the most.

"I think I need to cope." She whispered.

She felt weak even admitting it but she was starting to feel more desperate the longer she stood there. It had been a crazy weekend and her body was exhausted, her mind however was running a million miles a minute.

"I'll go out with you." Gibbs offered, "could use some fresh air."

"Alright." Jenny replied reluctantly.

She grabbed her cigarettes out of her bedside table and dug around for her lighter before following Gibbs down the stairs. They made their way on to the back deck, Jenny took a seat on the step and lit her cigarette. She took a drag and slid over slightly when Gibbs settled beside her.

"It's been a while since we've done this." She muttered, "Serbia, I think."

"Yup." Gibbs replied quietly, "I think it was a bit colder though."

"I don't know, it's pretty cold tonight." Jenny responded as a shiver ran through her.

Gibbs hesitated for a minute before he wrapped an arm around Jenny and pulled her into his side, he felt her shiver again and gently rubbed his hand up and down her arm.

"This is feeling more and more like Serbia." She whispered as she took another drag, "are you going to try and get me into bed after this?"

"Only to sleep." He promised.

"How disappointing." Jenny replied sarcastically.

Gibbs snorted and pulled Jenny tighter against his side, he was glad that they were back in a place where they could laugh and joke together. He loosened his grip so Jenny could put out her cigarette, he dropped his arm when she moved to stand.

"As much as I want to stay out here it's a bit too cold for that." She stated.

Gibbs followed her back into the house and watched as she rubbed her hands together roughly, he reached out and grabbed her hands between his in an attempt to warm them.

"Are you sleeping on the couch tonight?" Jenny asked suddenly.

"Yeah." Gibbs replied with a shrug.

"You really should sleep in a bed, Jethro."

"Bed's too big."

Jenny nodded in understanding, she hated how big her bed felt, especially on nights when she was stressed or couldn't sleep.

"You could sleep in my room." She offered hesitantly.

She knew it was a bad idea, probably one of her worst but she just wanted a good nights sleep and the only night she'd had a good sleep had been when she and Gibbs had had to share a bed after he had come home from the hospital. They had both stayed on their respective sides of the bed and it had been completely innocent but it had been the best night of sleep she'd had in years.

"I'll keep my hands to myself." She promised, "I just figured the bed wouldn't seem too big then."

She didn't give him a chance to respond before she had turned and started making her way up the stairs, it took a minute but by the time she reached the top step she could hear Gibbs following her. She stepped into her room and left the door open so Gibbs could step in before she closed the door, leaving it open only a crack so she could hear if one of the kids woke up.

"You're not wearing those pants in my bed." She muttered, casting a glance at Gibbs' paint splattered sweatpants.

"Trying to get me naked?" Gibbs asked with a smirk.

"You're wearing boxers but nice try."

N*C*I*S

Gibbs grinned and pulled off his pants and sweatshirt so he was wearing only his boxers and a NIS t-shirt, he tossed them on the bench at the end of the bed and climbed into what had always been 'his' side of the bed and waited for Jenny to turn off the lamp on her side of the bed. As soon as the room went dark he rolled over onto his side and watched Jenny try to get comfortable.

"Sure you're going to be able to sleep with me here?" He asked quietly.

"Yes." She replied, rolling over so she could face him, "how's your shoulder?"

Gibbs stiffened slightly when she reached out and gently placed her hand on his injured shoulder, they hadn't talked about the shooting itself, they had been working on dealing with fallout but the actual event hadn't been discussed.

"Bit sore." Gibbs admitted honestly.

He had been doing his best to be completely honest with Jenny, he certainly wasn't an open book but if she asked a question he did his best to answer it with more than one word. He waited for her to drop her hand from his shoulder but she simply let it slide down to rest on his elbow. He could tell she was having a moment of internal conflict about what she was going to do next. He knew she secretly enjoyed it any time he initiated physical contact but she absolutely refused to ask for it. He knew she thought it was weak to need a shoulder to lean on, and she had never been a particularly cuddly person but after spending the last month of living with her he could tell that that had changed.

He decided to give her a break and rolled onto his back, he raised his arm in an invitation and smiled when she scooted closer to him and rested her head on his chest, her hand coming to rest over his heart. He debated making a comment about her promise to keep her hands to herself but he decided against it. He was enjoying having her so close and he didn't want to give her a reason to pull away, instead of making a comment he ran his hand up and down her side and listened to her breathing even out.

Hey guys I'm so sorry about the delay I've been insanely busy with school and work lately but I thought I'd give you your update tonight even though it's not Thursday, this isn't my favourite chapter but I didn't want to make you guys wait any longer so here you go! Thank you all for your reviews they make my day! (Please remember I don't own anything)

~Katie