It was a well known and often cursed fact that when an agent at NCIS had plans, or an event, or even a particular longing to go home and crawl into bed, something inevitably happened. Whether it was a new case, or a fire alarm that disrupted everyone's schedule, or someone who escaped their escort and triggered a security alert throughout the entire building, something happened.
For Gibbs' team, that something was paperwork. They seemed to generate an unfair amount usually right around the time they desperately didn't want any. This time, it was Saturday morning. None of them were supposed to be here, due a rare weekend off this week. But their case hadn't wrapped up until late on a Friday night… so late, it had almost been Saturday. And although Gibbs had sent them home to sleep, the reports couldn't wait, not until Monday when memories would be inevitably hazier and other relevant departments would start to get antsy about the fact the proper documentation hadn't yet been officially filed. Which had led to the current situation, of all three team members sat at their desks on their day off, diligently typing up their reports.
Tony sulked about it, but eventually succumbed to his fate and once he had, worked with a surprising amount of focus. Kate broke records trying to type as quickly as possible and Gibbs… well, he didn't seem that affected.
His phone ringing didn't register as odd. It happened every day, after all, and it was only when he'd already picked up the receiver and had it halfway to his ear that he vaguely wondered who was calling his desk phone on a Saturday. "Gibbs."
"Jethro, please don't hang up. It's important."
It took him all of three seconds to recognise the voice. It took maybe three milliseconds for complete and utter shock to register, for his jaw to drop slightly as a sucker punch forced the air from his lungs. "Jenny?"
It might have been the fact his voice was raised. Maybe it was the tone of pure incredulity. Or maybe it was simply the fact that they were both desperate to be distracted, but Tony and Kate were both looking at him with matching expressions of curiosity and shockingly, Gibbs found he couldn't bring himself to care one bit.
"I know… I'm sorry. But I thought you'd want in… Jethro, you were right all those years ago. Michael McKidd is alive."
At first, her words barely registered. It was the sound of her voice that he could hear, the one he hadn't heard in almost five years. Even with the urgency running through the undertones, he was still getting over the shock of hearing it again. Until the meaning of what she'd just said hit, and then he was shocked for an entirely different reason. "What? How do you know?"
"Because I almost walked right into him an hour ago!"
This time, his silence was less about shock and more about considering. "You sure?"
"Jethro."
Any other time, he would have smirked at the exasperatedly warning tone in her voice. Now, it just sent a pang through him. "Where are you?"
"Cyprus."
"What the hell are you doing there?"
"On assignment." Meaning she couldn't be more explicit, he deduced.
"Gotta talk to Morrow," he said curtly, glancing at the number displayed on the phone and scribbling it down. "I'll be there soon."
He hung up without another word, mind whirring even as Tony and Kate continued to look at him interestedly. It was Tony who dared to speak. "We got a case, boss?"
"Look for flights to Cyprus. Today."
"Cyprus?" But unsurprisingly, there was no reply and baffled, Tony glanced at Kate. She simply shrugged.
"We'd better hurry up with these reports, then."
NCIS
It was less than half an hour later that Gibbs found himself in MTAC, cursing himself for not seeing this particular development coming. Seeing Jenny in person after a very long flight to get used to the idea was one thing- seeing her for the first time so suddenly, even if it was over a screen… that was something else.
He was stood backwards, hidden in the shadows and it wasn't by accident. Was it cowardly, to remain out of sight for as long as he could? Possibly. But he couldn't have done anything else. Too stunned, too hurt. And the opportunity to see Jenny without her knowing was too tempting, the chance to observe her without having to worry about being observed right back one that he simply couldn't pass up.
Morrow had remembered the case, after some prompting. Had remembered Michael McKidd. And his expression had narrowed, although Gibbs hadn't been entirely sure if it was at Jenny contacting him first or the fact that this case had emerged again.
"I take it you know how to contact Agent Shepard?"
Gibbs' expression was carefully impassive. "I have a contact number."
"Give it to me."
The phone call had lasted less than ten seconds. An order for Jenny to call into MTAC, a confirmation of the fifteen minutes it would take to arrange that. Gibbs was almost amused as he watched the director only afterwards remember to actually make sure MTAC was free, and then pretend that he'd known all along that it was.
Which had led them both here, to waiting for the screen to turn from darkness to light. Both silent, Morrow standing in direct view of the camera.
"Incoming call, director."
"Put it up."
Jenny was almost exactly as Gibbs had remembered. Her image flickered onto the screen, taking a few seconds to stabilise but once it had, he had no shame in staring, unseen as he was. Her red hair was pulled up into a ponytail, shorter than when she'd worked for him but no less vibrant. He had vivid memories of running his fingers through that hair, of mussing up styles simply to hear her squeal and protest. She was thinner than he'd ever seen, he noted, and she looked tired. Probably unnoticeable to most, but he knew her face, her eyes. Muted slightly by the camera, but undeniably pinched ever so slightly.
"Agent Shepard, report." If Morrow had exchanged greetings with her, Gibbs had missed them. She inclined her head, but Gibbs could see the tension in her, in the way she was sat, how her jaw clenched ever so slightly before she answered.
She was good, he could acknowledge with a small twinge of pride. Focused and professional as she relayed how she recognised the man, had managed to hide her reaction and avoid causing any sort of scene. Her information all relevant but succinct, no added flourishes. Her rundown didn't take long, thankfully, because he was too busy watching her and fighting back memories to focus on the details.
Morrow was grinding his teeth together. "You're sure it's him?"
She nodded, expression calm. "Sir, I spent weeks on this case. That man's face sat on the board for even longer. It's not one I'm likely to forget, or to mistake."
"I was afraid you were going to say that."
It took a beat for his grumbling tone to register, but when it did, she relaxed, leaning forward and quirking her lips slightly. "Sorry, sir."
"You have eyes on him, Shepard?"
"I spoke to the owner of the café, he's there at least four times a week. Sometimes more. I'm going to go back tomorrow, pick up his trail."
"Not without backup, you won't. Agent Gibbs and his team will be on the first flight out. I want you to wait for them."
"Understood, sir."
From deep in the darkness, it suddenly hit home that he was going to see her again. That Jenny would be in front of him, in person. That they were going to have to work a case together and even worse, it was with a team who had never met her, rather than the one who had been quite used to the antics of their boss and favourite redhead.
If there was a God, they were laughing at him.
It has been a very long time since i've written within the NCIS fandom! But I started rewatching while isolating, and here we are. I hope you enjoy x