It was a cold and rainy night, not uncommon for September in Washington D.C. People hurried by, trying to get home and out of the rain. Everyone had a place to go, except one small girl. No one took notice of her, and if they did, they decided she was a burden they did not want. She was a small girl, rail thin and had dusty red hair, a mix of her mother and father’s hair perfectly. But she had her father’s cool blue eyes (A/N: I think they’re blue, I can’t tell for sure though…) which starred out at the Washington Naval Yard. She’d done her research; the NCIS investigated Navy and Marine deaths and persons, so it was the perfect place for her to start. All she knew was that her father had been a marine in the Gulf War, her mother’s name was Shannon and her name was Kelly. She instinctively knew that was her name from the moment she woke up in the hospital. She wasn’t even entirely sure of her age, but the doctors had guessed she was around 15 years of age.

Flashback
She had woken up next to two dead bodies and in a pile of car parts and glass. There was smoke coming from the car parts. The eight year old girl was scared and knew no one. She didn’t recognize the dead bodies next to her, but she felt a slight tug at her heart when she looked across the street at the red headed woman. The next thing she knew, she was being taken away to a hospital. Since she was only eight, she had no form of ID, had nothing in any DNA or finger print database, so the doctors didn’t know what to do with her. She told them her name was Kelly. Once she had healed and was released, she ran away from foster care and lived on her own since she was ten.
End Flashback

It had been a lonely seven years. The foster family she was with was nice, but they had too many foster kids and couldn’t pay attention to each and every child. And Kelly was a determined little girl who was a marine at heart, just like her daddy. And that brought her to the Naval Yard. She had sat there for the past few days, looking at each man who walked in, trying to guess which one was her father. She saw a woman with a strange accent flirting with a very attractive man who had really fancy shoes. She could tell those two were in love and totally meant to be. She also saw a very weird woman who always had a black parasol with her and wore vintage black gloves up to her elbows. This lady scared Kelly more than the prospect of meeting her father, which was saying a lot as she was TERRIFIED.

“No, I must not let myself be overcome with fear. I am one of the few, the proud, and the brave. I am a marine’s daughter!” She berated herself.

“May I ask to whom are you speaking to my child?” A kind, semi-elderly man with a British accent asked looking down at her.

“Oh my goodness. I was talking to myself sir. I have to get the courage up to try and find and meet my father.” She explained, pulling on her hair slightly.

“Oh? And who might he be?” He offered her a hand up and tucked her arm into his elbow as they set off to the front doors of NCIS. “And don’t call me sir. It makes me feel… old. Please call me Ducky.”

“That’s the problem sir… I mean Ducky. I don’t know his name. All I know is that he is a marine, my mother’s name is Shannon and MY name is Kelly!” She finished with a million watt smile that resembled Jethro’s… when he actually smiled. This was what Doctor Donald Mallard noticed the most
.
“Do you know what your last name is by any chance mi’dear?”

“I don’t Mr. Ducky… I wish I did. It would make everything a heck of a lot easier for me!” She bounced in front of Ducky as he checked himself in and her as his guest. “So what do you do around here Mr. Ducky?” And for the moment, finding her father faded off as he told her all about NCIS and his autopsies.

Jethro sat at his desk absent mindedly looking at the flask his wife had given him years ago. He didn’t have flashbacks all that often, but today was just one of those days. Especially after he had seen a little girl enter with Ducky a few hours ago. He hadn’t said anything because he just assumed the girl was his niece or something along those lines. He would never even think that girl could be his baby girl. She was dead after all. Some mornings were harder than others, waking up in a bed alone and walking past his daughter’s room. He stayed in the same house, mostly because he wasn’t good with change.

But he did like one new change in his life, Colonel Hollis Mann. She wasn’t the regular red head, as per his usual choice. But he didn’t mind, in fact he quite liked that about her. The fact that she was considering retirement scared him, however. He was afraid that she would expect him home more and to not work as often. But he did love her and he was certain, that while Shannon had been his soul mate, he and Hollis could have a good life together.

Just as he was thinking about her, a call came in, a dead Navy Officer found in Quantico. He gathered his team and left. Shortly after canvassing the scene and getting the situation under control, Ducky and Palmer arrived.

“Hey Duck, how’d this guy die?” He was never one to beat around the bush and always right to the punch.

“Well Jethro, it looks like he was shot and then the body was dumped here. You poor thing. Palmer, get the gurney and get this poor fellow home. I have something I have to attend to however, so the autopsy might be a bit delayed.” Gibb’s looked at him oddly.

“Is that about the young girl you brought with you this morning?”
“Oh, you noticed her? She is someone I have to help. But you might want to come help her yourself Jethro…” With that, he drove back to the Naval Yard and left a very puzzled Jethro Gibbs.

A Few Hours Later

“Alright Abbs, whatchya got for me?” He plopped a Caf-Pow! in front of her.

“Gibbs! My ‘Gibbs sense’ didn’t go off! But you always know when I have something for you!” And she proceeded to tell him what she had found.

Just as he was about to leave, something she said stopped him ice cold. “Oh, Gibbs… Ducky asked me to run a DNA sample on this person and they are 97% related to you. So this person must be a sibling or cousin or something!”

“I’m an only child Abby…” And he took off to autopsy.

“Doctor Donald Mallard… who’s DNA did you ask Abby to run a DNA sample on and why? And most importantly, why are they related to me?”