Chapter 8

Nearly losing someone you love, someone you care about makes you realise how different life would be without them. Nearly losing Jenny made everyone realise how much she did for them, how even though she got so much stick from everyone she never stopped standing by them, even when they were in the wrong.

The night before the wedding!

"NO ABBY, no way, N.O!" Said Jenny as Abby held up a tiny dress which Abby was expecting Jenny to wear. Tonight was the night of Jenny Shepard's hen party, and Leroy Jethro Gibbs' Stag Party. Abby had planned the Hen party and Tony the Stag party. Abby had been given strict instructions by Jenny that it was to be a quiet ordeal and absolutely under no circumstances were there to be any strippers. But this was Abby, and the word quiet was not in her vocabulary. So, on that mid-summer evening Jenny was desperately attempting to persuade Abby that she was not wearing the tiny green dress which was being held up in front of her, while Abby was doing her puppy dog eyes. "Abby that may work on my fiancé, but it does not work on me! I can't wear it, I'm the director of a federal agency, I can't go out wearing that. Once upon a time maybe, but I am too old to wear it now."
"Jenny, firstly you are not to old, and secondly if Abby is making me wear a skirt, you are wearing that. NO ARGUMENTS!" With that Abby finally got her way. They entered a hotel lobby where Cynthia, Catherine (Jenny's best friend who was a C.S.I. in Vegas.), Stella (another of Jenny's friends, who was a C.S.I. in New York.), and Jo (an F.B.I. agent who Jenny had got to know very well over the years after the amount of encounters with the F.B.I. she had had.) where all sat on a comfy looking sofa. With this sight a smile broadened on her face. The evening started off quiet and Jenny began to consider the fact that her wishes may have been followed. "So, you're finally biting the bullet and getting hitched eh? Whatever happened to the ambitious work obsessed ~Jenny who was never going to get married?" Asked Catherine with a smirk on her face.
"Well, I suppose I just got sick and tired of having no one to come home to, I was so depressed. But Jethro, he's…different he knows me, and he knows that I live for my job and he accepts that, because…well he's the same I suppose." Replied a now very flustered Jenny.
"He got a single brother Jen?" asked Stella. As the evening continued so did the laughs, and when Jenny was virtually sure she had got here way, in walked Abby with a hunky man, who she introduced to be the stripper. 'She is so going without Caf-pows' thought Jenny, even though she did have to admit she quite enjoyed herself, and it was nice to let her hair down once in a while. After about an hour Jenny managed to sneak out so she could ring Jethro.
"Hey"
"Hey, Jen. Missing me already?"
"Wouldn't that boost your ego!"
"yer. So did Abby listen to your 'requests'?"
"Did she heck, she went and hired a stripper. Did Tony?"
"Nope, not gonna kill him to much though, he did get a red-head."
"Did he know, well you better not have enjoyed yourself too much."
"And what is I have?"
"Then I will unleash my load of C.S.I.'s, F.B.I's, N.C.I.S agents and forensic scientist on you."
"Okay, point taken, I haven't."
"Good. I'm gonna call it a night, don't stay up too late."
"Okay, I won't. Love you."
"Love you too Jethro, night."
"Night Jen." With that she hung up, turning around to see a smiling Catherine at the doorway.
"Now there's a sight I never thought I'd see: loved up Jen Shepard!" both laughed. "I'm happy for you Jenny, I really am."
"Thanks Catherine."
"Now, seeming as I am a single working mum, you got a picture of this fiancé of yours to show me?"
"You gonna believe me if I say no?"
"Nope."
"Didn't think so." With that Jenny handed Catherine her phone where on display there was a picture of Jenny with her head on Jethro's shoulder, it'd been taken when they had all gone out for lunch after she'd revealed she was ill . Upon seeing the picture Catherine smiled.
"You look good together, and you look the most relaxed I think I've ever seen you."
"I am, I've spoken with my boss. I'm moving back to D.C. told Jethro yesterday, no long distance relationship for us two. I want it to work this time, I can't go through losing him again, I love him."
"Well aren't you the lucky one!"
"Hey, there's gonna be plenty of single men at the wedding tomorrow, you never know, you might even get lucky!"
"Eeerrmm, I said I was a single mum. That doesn't mean I'm single."
"Spill the beans Willows. I can't see my fiancé tonight, so I want all the gossip from your relationship!"

Jethro hung up after talking to Jenny; Tobias Fornell was stood behind him. "Jen?" he asked referring to who had just been on the phone.
"Yer, Abby didn't listen about the stripper either."
"Honestly, I only think DiNozzo booked her because he wanted to watch a stripper."
"Yer, you're probably right. I'll have to make sure I get him back at his Stag do." The pair smirked.
"You think he's written his speech yet Jethro?"
"Has he heck! Doubt he's even remembered he has one to write. He'll most likely just come out with a load of movie quotes."
"If he does I've told him he's banned from field work for a month, on paperwork duty for a year, and I'll head slap him so hard his head'll shoot down to Mexico and back." With that the pair walked back into the party laughing at what the speech's tomorrow might contain.

The Day of the wedding!

Jenny stood in front of the mirror in her Paris apartment. They'd decided to have the wedding on the bank of the river, then spent=d a week in Paris, after all the city held so many memories for the pair. As she stood there looking at her white straight silk dress, with a loose neck line at the front, and only a gold chain with set crystals on her bare back, she felt waves of excitement, mixed with nerves pass over her. It was strange to think that only a few months ago she was nearly dying, a few months ago she was living alone in Paris after been shot in that Mexican diner, if somebody then had of told her that in a few months she'd be marrying the man of her dreams she'd have laughed. But she was.
"Auntie Jenny! You look pretty!" shouted Lindsey, Catherine's daughter. Lindsey's blonde hair was curled and she wore a green bridesmaids dress which was the same as her mums.
"Lindsey, you look so pretty too! And so does your mum."
"Thanks Jen, you look stunning, you got all your lucky things?"
"Something old: my gold earrings that where my mothers, something new: my dress, something borrowed: the gold hairpin that duck let me wear that's his mothers and something blue: is a ribbon on my garter."
"I think we're all se then, don't you missy?" said Catherine picking up her little girl as they headed out the door.

The ceremony was perfect, out in the open air on the bank of the river, the sun shone and all went to plan. Ducky gave Jenny away as she was like a daughter to the doctor, and Fornell and Tony where Gibbs' best men, with Ziva, Catherine and Lindsey ad Jenny's Bridesmaids. It was only a quiet ordeal with just the teams, Sec-Nav, and a few friends there. The reception was also out in the open air and although it was only a small wedding there were as always the speeches, which started off with tony:
"Well, when Gibbs asked me to write a speech, he gave me boundaries, which where no movie quotes, or and I quote 'you're banned from field work for a month, on paperwork duty for a year and I'll head slap you so hard your head'll shoot to Mexico and back' with that in mind I of cause filled it with quotes, until Ziv-ah made me re write it. When I first Joined NCIS, it was me, Gibbs and Stan, pretty much a week after I started Stan got relocated, then it was just me and Gibbs. It was hard at that time, being the major incident team and only having two members meant we had to trust each other, and over the years I've trusted him with my life on many occasions. It's not been easy, in my time we lost Kate, a woman the Boss considered his daughter, nearly lost Abby, I got arrested for murder, I still haven't forgiven you for that Fornell, and nearly lost our wonderful Director twice. But most of us are here today, but we wouldn't be if it weren't for the boss, a man I consider a second father to me. But I'd like us all to raise a glass, to the ones who we've lost along the way."

Then came Fornell:

"I've known Jethro for many years, I've unfortunately worked many cases with him, and god only knows how I haven't killed him yet. Jenny on the other hand has worked many more cases with him that I, not yet killed him although everyone knows argued with him a hell of a lot, so much that they're now known for their bickering. She's managed to tame him, than anyone can see, she's managed to look beneath that hard outside and see the caring man with in. So, to Jenny, and thank you for making him that slightest bit more bearable."

Next was Catherine:

"Now I may not know Gibbs, but I do know Jenny. She's a woman that is very private, not a lot of people ever get to see her relaxed and care free, but I can see from the wat she is around her husband that is just how she feels. Out of all my friends in high school, I may surprise you to know Jenny was not the Geek, she is exceptionally cleaver, but instead she was the boy magnet, whenever we'd go out clubbing as students, she'd have all eyes on her. In the end I gave up going out with her as I stood not a chance. When she joined NCIS I saw a different side to her though, I saw that determined side, and all of a sudden she transformed into this well…work obsessed woman. But seeing her now it's like a blast from the past, just sober and with a longer dress."
"Thanks Catherine, my boss now knows all about my student years." Laughs filled the room.

Then was Ducky:

"I view both Jennifer and Jethro as my children. I've seen them go through every emotion; I've watched Jennifer especially go from a young, ambitious probie to the director. I suppose I first met the true Jennifer and Jethro when we were in Paris undercover that is when I saw a side of them that very few people ever see, I saw them truly happy, and that's how they are now, and it's about time too."

Finally came Jethro:

"This woman sat next to me is the fifth wife I've had; after Shannon and Kelly died I never thought I'd love again, until I met this woman. I took we three ex-wives, a nine iron, a baseball bat and near enough a decade to realise it, but she is the one I want to spend the rest of my life with and that is what I plan on doing."

The rest of the afternoon went smoothly; the first dance was a surprise to most as it turned out Gibbs could dance. The evening brought Ziva and Pascal together, it saw Sec-Nav worry what NCIS was doing at the sight of half the agents sitting with each other, and it saw Jethro meat all Jenny's friends. It saw Mike getting drunk and DiNozzo hit on Catherine. But when it was time to see off the newlyweds everything calmed down.
As the white vintage car drove off with the kissing honeymooners inside Tony asked "Where are they actually going on honeymoon?"
"Paris." Ziva simply replied.
With a smirk on his face, and a glint of pride in his eyes Ducky said "Paris always was where they were best."

xxx

That has to be the longest chapter I've ever written. Anyway, there it is. Finished :'(
I want to quickly thank 'left my heart in paris' again for her reviews. Also you may have noticed Jenny's friends are from CSI and CSI NY. Hope you didn't mind!

Thanks for reading and I would love to hear what you've thought of the entire story!

xx