Disclaimer is in Chapter 1.

Chapter 7

Rebecca drove back to NCIS headquarters. She'd had time to quickly be briefed on the Colonel – mainly what he looked like. Everything was above her clearance level…if you called "civilian" a clearance level.

She'd even made it to the airport in time to pick up her package...two to be exact. Both packages were sitting in the back seat of her rental 2006 Mustang. Not her usual choice of rental car, but she'd traveled enough to collect the necessarypoints to upgrade for her stay in Washington. And she decided to splurge a little...a girl only lived once, after all.

Luckily, she'd even had time to stop off at her hotel apartment suite to pack up the necessities like clothing and training supplies. Those were placed in the trunk, with enough room left over in case the team needed her to carry anything.

However, if Gibbs drove the way Ducky told her, the agents would probably want to keep all their bags and luggage for extra padding.

Flashing her temporary pass to Security, Rebecca pulled the gun metal grey car into the parking lot. There were still thirty minutes prior to their scheduled departure time, but it appeared the team was ready to go. They stood next to a car, arguing over who got the shotgun position.

Rebecca pulled into an empty spot across the roadway. She exited the car, ensuring that the two packages in the backwere secure.

Gibbs approached at the same time and winced at the arguing. Maybe it was his age, but this incessant whining and bickering was beginning to grate on his nerves.

"Enough!" He bellowed. "Ziva! You're up front with me…you can read the map better than McGee. McGee, see what else you can dig up on our Colonel while you're sitting in the backseat."

Tony raised his hand. "Uh, boss? What about me?"

"You ride with Rebecca. Make sure the two of you don't get lost."

Rebecca looked offended.

"What makes you think that we won't stay together on the roads?" She asked.

"I don't think you can keep up with me." Gibbs stated plainly.

Blue eyes challenged blue eyes.

Tim gulped visibly and hoped that the holy-crap handle in the back seat had been repaired since the last trip when he had ripped it off.

"Let's go, DiNozzo. We've got a spa to get to." Rebecca picked up the imaginary gauntlet of a perceived challenge.

Tony opened his eyes. Why did he have to ride with her? They were on a case and he got to drive with thegorgeous woman. He was trying to prove that he was an outstanding agent. Did Gibbs enjoy tormenting him? Did Gibbs enjoy throwing these obstacles at him?

Gibbs' mouth quirked up at the pained expression on Tony's face.

"Behave yourself, DiNozzo. You get lost and I won't assume it's because you mis-read a map."

"What if we run out of gas?" Rebecca asked innocently. She faked a yawn, stretched and draped her arm over Tony's shoulders.

"Oh my." Ziva proclaimed. "I do believe that Tony's met his match."

As the team separated to their respective cars, Tony shot one last glance back at Gibbs. He tried to interpret that look Gibbs was shooting him across the roadway. It seemed to say "I trust you but if you screw this up…" Tony didn't want to know what came after the dot-dot-dot.

He tossed his gear in the trunk and walked over to the passenger side. His hand touched the car handle, when he noticed the two packages in the back seat.

"What are those!" He gasped.

"My body guards." Rebecca replied smoothly.

"But they're…they're…."

"They're dogs, Tony. You allergic?"

"No…but they're…they're…"

"Doberman pinschers." Rebecca sighed. "We have a long car ride ahead of us. Will you continue to talk in incomplete sentences?"

"No…but they're…they're…"

"Accepted at the resort. I verified that they allow pets. Pets can actually be very relaxing and therapeutic."

"Okay…but they're…they're…"

"Their names are Athena, behind me, and Aphrodite, behind you….'Thena and 'Dite for short."

Tony looked wildly at her across the roof of the car.

"They're trained, Tony. They won't bite…unless I order them to. But I didn't that kind of thing would bother you."

He frowned and got into the car.

"What's that supposed to mean?" He asked as Rebecca started the car.

"I thought you liked biting." Rebecca grinned flirtatiously.

"I'm a good agent. I'm a good agent. I'm a good agent." Tony repeated over and over to himself as Rebecca pulled out of the parking lot behind Gibbs.