February

Washington, D.C.

Navy Yard

At the moment, standing in the parking lot where it was two degrees Fahrenheit with minus-15 wind chill, and a foot of snow on the ground, Kensi Blye was alright.

The southern California woman dealing fairly well with East Coast winter, she thought, was the only good thing that came out of her sojourn in Afghanistan. She was bundled up, wearing layers of clothing, equally ready to get in the building and warm up or turn around and drive to some crime scene in the area.

She was fine. Deeks concerned her.

He couldn't remember the last time he had been in cold weather below 40 degrees Fahrenheit that didn't involved him chasing some perp through a freezer. Kensi, Callen and Abby Sciuto (when Gibbs wasn't around) tried to prepare him for the D.C. winters:

Abby: "It's like standing in a freezer with the air conditioning blowing on you. And around you. And in the other direction. With snow. When there's snow. If you get enough of it, you can make snow angels."

Deeks: "That like making a snowman?"

Kensi: "No. You fall on the ground, in the snow, and move your arms and legs and make a circle."

Deeks: "In the snow."

Abby: "Yeah. It's awesome and fun!"

Deeks: "Sounds like an awesome way to get frostbite on your back and butt and the back of your legs. I can do that on the sand at the beach, where it's warm and sunny and I can go catch a wave. Do they even HAVE waves here? Or do I have to go to Florida for that-"

Gibbs: "You two are going to Rock Creek Park. Dead Marine."

As she and Deeks and Dorneget worked the Marine case, she quipped that Gibbs must finally be warming up to them.

Maybe it was that talk he and Hetty had in MTAC. But all anyone would say was that he seemed more focused on the day to day stuff, while keeping tabs on the search for Diane Sterling

Maybe it was the coffee machine Deeks bought from a local superstore two days after they landed at Andrews Air Force Base - and that Gibbs made use of it as soon as Deeks set it up in the bullpen.

Maybe Abby said something to the man, that he needed to lighten up, although she had yet to speak one word about the topic to them.

He was being cordial, and seemed to accept them working together as a team. But whether it was the curt greeting he gave them at Andrews, or what he said to them the night before, Kensi and Deeks knew he didn't apply of them breaking a rule of his that didn't really apply to them - nor to anyone else outside his usual team.

For whatever reason, he didn't want them - nor the LA team - in Washington, and no one on his team would talk about why that was. Apparently, they kept Director Vance out of the loop on that, too - he got shut down twice by Gibbs when he brought up the subject.

On the other hand, Gibbs wasn't objecting to them staying around.

Small victories, thought Kensi, as she looked around for Deeks. Where in heck was he? He was supposed to meet her in the parking lot.

She looked around, and saw what could only be described as a very, very bundled person standing in front of the entrance. It WAS colder than usual for the area, and she could see the cloud from his breath. He wasn't moving, however, and there wasn't a security guard nor agent in sight, both of which concerned her.

Good thing I'm early, Kensi thought as she approached the person. Deeks'll have to catch up to me. Maybe he's inside.

She approached the tall person, wearing three or four of whatever people normally wore. That included coats - the person had at least two on - and she noticed the boots.

Grey, furred, like the skin had been ripped off roadkill. Was this a homeless person, she wondered?

"Sir? Ma'am?" Kensi said, touching the person's arm.

"Hyyy Knns" she heard the person muttered. It sounded like a male, though what he said was muffed by the three scarves around his face.

"Hello? Are you alright?" Kensi said to him. "Is there something I can do for you? Can I take you inside and get you warm?"

The man moved his three scarves with his double-gloved hand to talk.

"Hey Kens," he said. "I'm getting warmed up."

A moment later, she realized it was Deeks, and punched him hard on his arm; he didn't feel a thing, with the two coats, jacket, sweater and long johns he wore.

"Deeks!" she said, astonished at the sight. "What in the world are you doing?!"

"Saving my energy and staying warm," Deeks said. "Conserving warmth."

"...say WHAT?"

"Conserving warmth, SnowFern. One corpse at a crime scene is enough. Nobody wants Ducky and Palmer thawing me out in the morgue."

"Then why don't you 'conserve warmth' like normal human beings - in a building with heat, where people don't wear four layers of...whatever you have on."

"That day I went to the SuperStore in Fairfax while you and Abby and Bishop had your girl's night out? I bought two hundred dollars worth of winter clothing."

"At the SuperStore. You paid two hundred dollars for cheap clothes?"

"Thrifty, Tiger."

"Apparently you're wearing all of them, too," she replied. "Not exactly NCIS approved."

"I'm standing out here to toughen myself up, adjust to the cold."

"In...that?"

"I won't adjust standing next to the heating vents, Kensalina-"

The doors opened, and to Kensi's surprise, Gibbs was there.

"Hey Boss," Kensi said, with a smile; God only knows if Deeks was smiling. "We catch a case?"

"Not a case," he said. "Grab your go bags. You two are with me."

Before either could say their gear was in the bullpen, Gibbs handed them their go bags; neither noticed he was holding both in one hand.

"Won't need the entire rack from SuperStore either, Deeks," Gibbs said, heading toward his car. "Leave your keys in your pocket. Put the bags behind the seat...you're riding with ME."

Kensi and Deeks looked at each other, and she grabbed his four-gloved hand.

"You waitin' on somethin?" he said, following up with his trademark glare.

"No Boss!" both said, running past him towards his truck.

He couldn't help but smile; slowly - very slowly - but surely, they were starting to grow on him.