The afternoon sun beat down with excruciating heat, and Jenny was thankful to be cool in the comfort of her office. Thank goodness for air conditioning. Jenny leaned back to relax against the leather cushion of her chair, smiling to herself. The meeting had gone better than anticipated; she had full support from an agency she needed, and commendations to boot. The most recent edition of Stars and Stripes lay open on Jenny's lap and she glanced down for a preview of the articles. Some retirements, a few announcements; nothing of importance, but still worth the reading. Until, of course, a knock came from the door. 'Why?' Jenny thought with a low grunt and a hint of bitterness. People always came at the wrong times.
She closed her Stars and Stripes edition, and folded it neatly, placing it on her desk under a couple files. "Come in," she called, folding her hands across her desk and looking up. She tapped her nails in slight irritation- a habit which, she couldn't help but think proudly of, Roselyn had picked up over the years. A small smile tugged the corners of her lips, but she fought it back. Whoever was behind that door would probably think she was crazy. Not that many people *didn't* think she was crazy.
Hollis walked in first, coming to stand just before Jenny's desk, followed quickly by Gibbs. So that's why there was a knock—Gibbs was behind her, away from the door.
"I didn't know we were collaborating on a case," Jenny greeted. Professional, as always.
"We're not," Hollis smiled gently. A few strands of her blond locks fell softly to the back of her neck. "We wanted to run something by you."
"Of course, Colonel Mann. What is it that I can do for you?" Jenny sat upright now, interested. She glanced from Hollis to Gibbs, whose upper left lip curled in his usual smirk.
"Well we wanted to discuss our plans with Roselyn this weekend."
"Jethro doesn't need my blessing on his plans for the weekend," Jenny smiled, a sort of 'half laugh' escaping her throat.
"Not about that; we just wanted your opinion on what you think Roselyn would like best. We'd like to take her to do some family bonding; I'd like to go to the Smithsonian, but Jethro wants PutPut golf."
Jenny tossed her head back with a hearty laugh at the idea; she could hardly see Roselyn golfing (unless she was putting the ball to aim at someone's groin) and the last time she'd been in a museum she'd hid in the bathroom until it was time to leave. Oddly enough, she'd learned two more facts than Jenny herself that day, AND made a new friend. When Jenny realized that Hollis was serious, she leaned forward, straightened her face, and glanced down at her Stars and Stripes again.
"What?" Gibbs asked, intrigued by Jenny's response. "You don't think she'd like to go PutPutting or to the Smithsonian?"
"It's your funeral…" Jenny trailed off. She put her glasses back on, and narrowed her gaze, her glasses coming to a rest on the bridge of her slender nose. She held the stare for a moment and then returned her attention back to the paper, silently leaning back in her chair and getting comfortable again.
Gibbs stared at Jenny, his smirk widening a bit. He glanced over his shoulder to look at Hollis; she seemed a bit confused by the response they'd gotten, but if she was, she said nothing. Hollis met his stare for a minute; both said nothing, both did nothing. Hollis rolled forward on the heels of her feet, hands clasped together behind her back. Still, nothing.
Finally, Jenny looked up to meet the stares. Silently, she diverted her gaze to the door; a quiet order to retreat. Hollis turned on the next heel roll, and Gibbs followed her out, closing Jenny's office door behind them.
Jenny laughed once again and shook her head. "Poor fools; she is going to tear them to shreds."
Roselyn stood in the driveway, dog on leash in hand, backpack over her shoulder, and ready to go. She was still in the jeans she wore to school, except they were now mucked with spots of dirt and slightly red from today's jell-o dessert, and she, as a whole, still smelled of today's mystery meat.
"Quit looking at me like I'm lunch," Roselyn muttered, glancing slightly at Tony Shepard-Gibbs. The dog held his stare, and his tongue flopped out to the side, drool dripping in heavy drops on the driveway. "You resemble Tony more and more every day. I really did pick a good name for you."
The dog wagged his tail and jumped up on Roselyn, his paws coming to a rest on her shoulders excitedly. He licked her face and then dropped back down, leaving two paw prints on her shoulders for memory's sake. Roselyn laughed and then glanced up as Gibbs' black SUV slowly pulled to a stop in front of the doorway. Gibbs honked the horn and Roselyn stared back in irritation. 'Not blind,' she thought to herself. "Come on Tony," she called, tugging on the German Shepherd's leash. The dog followed obligingly.
"Hi Roselyn…Oh honey, I'm allergic to dogs," Hollis said with a disappointed frown through her open window. "He'll uh, he'll have to stay outside at your dad's."
"Hi G.I. Bar"- Roselyn began, but stopped herself quickly. "I'm allergic to you, and Jethro still lets you inside."
"Roselyn…" Gibbs treaded warningly.
"I'm just saying, if we let her in then we have to let him in. Fairs fair," Roselyn shrugged and climbed in the backseat with the dog.
"Be nice Roselyn," Gibbs instructed with an entertained glimmer in his eye.
"I thought you told me to be honest," Roselyn sighed, feigning exasperation. "Which is it?"
"Both"
"I'm not a very good multi-tasker. Just ask Senora Hernandez…" Roselyn trailed
"Now what did you do to that poor woman?" Gibbs turned and held her stare.
"Don't worry, you'll be getting a call from the school soon enough, I'm sure."
"Should I ground you now and save time?" Gibbs smirked.
"I went over this with Jenny this morning; grounding me is, in effect, hindering my right to Due Process."
"We've gotta stop letting you hang out in the legal department," Gibbs muttered with a roll of his eyes. "Our country is big on justice; your sentence will fit the crime."
"I want a full jury of my Spanish class peers at my trial, and adequate representation."
"Will DiNozzo do?" Gibbs asked in amusement.
"No, I'd at least like a shot at winning. Who's lined up for judge duties?"
"Ziva" Gibbs responded with a shrug of his shoulders.
"Great, I'll be sentenced to death before the trial even starts," Roselyn muttered. "That won't do; I want McGeek as my council and Abby as the presiding judge."
"Any specific reason?" Gibbs bit curiously into her demand.
"Because everyone knows when your council is boinking the judge you have the upperhand. You'd know all about boinking and attaining the upperhand, wouldn't you Colonel?" Roselyn smirked, averting her gaze to Hollis. 'Let's see how well you withstand pressure, G.I. Barbie,' Roselyn thought deviously.
"Come again?" Hollis choked on her own saliva, her cheeks burning a bright red.
"Well I mean since you and Jethro are clearly"-
"Roselyn!" Gibbs cut her off. "That's another three weeks added to your sentence!"
"It'll never stick," Roselyn shrugged her right shoulder and leaned back against the leather interior of the back seat. "You interrogated me without proper legal representation. I can't be held accountable for what was said during our interview," she added, her lips tugging in a smug smirk. Ah, the sweet taste of victory!