"This is Tish."

"Miss McReynolds, this is Agent DiNozzo."

"I've been expecting your call."

"You have?"

"After your lovely gesture on Memorial Day, I expected that I would hear from you during the holidays."

"I know it's close to Thanksgiving and I apologize for the lateness of my call. I was wondering if we still had time to do something for Christmas, if you're not too busy. Some of our family would like to help."

"Are you available Saturday?"

Tony looked at Gibbs perplexed. "We can be."

"Could you meet me about eight-thirty?" Tish gave him an address. "And please, bring anyone who would like to help." After brief pleasantries, the call ended.

"What's wrong?"

"She wants us to meet her on Saturday. She said she had been expecting our call."

"Smart woman."

"Guess I'd better see if the gang is available."

"Good-morning, Agent DiNozzo, Agent Gibbs."

"Please, it's Tony and Jethro." Tony said as he performed introductions of the group that had assembled. "This is Abby, Tim, Jimmy, Breena," he pointed to the stroller Jimmy was pushing. "This is their daughter, Victoria. This is Leon, his daughter Kayla, his son Jared, Tobias and his daughter, Emily. We all work together." Gibbs wheeled up a large pram. "You remember, Zuma, of course. And last but most certainly not least, this is Linnie and Chris."

"Congratulations, again." Tish looked into the pram at the sleeping twins.

"Thank-you, again, for the flowers." Tony said sincerely. "And for arranging flowers for Hollis and Leland."

"It was my pleasure, Agent… Tony."

"I thought your shop was in Georgetown." Jethro looked around.

"There wasn't room to work there." Tish said. "A company offered to let us use this warehouse. Let's start in the office, I want you to show you something."

Tony was a bit leery of the sparkle in her eye, however the group squeezed into the office with the babies. On the wall hung four wreaths. Each was made of mixed evergreens. The first two were decorated with red and white poinsettias. The wreaths had large blue bows. In between the poinsettias hung small gold and blue Christmas balls. The two wreaths were almost identical except the red and white poinsettias were reversed on the second.

"I hope you don't mind that I mocked up these designs. I thought it would be nice to alternate the first two around the whole memorial."

"They're spectacular." Tony stared in awe. "Will there be time?"

Ignoring his comment, Tish pointed to the last two wreaths. "I know you have a sister and a friend, I took the liberty of making these special." The last two wreaths were identical. Tish had fashioned the evergreen wreaths into a heart shape before inserting white poinsettias with pink veins and pink carnations. Blue balls dotted the edges and a blue ball hung into the center with the words "In remembrance" and a yellow bow.

"Yellow for remembrance." Abby whispered.

"I can make changes," Tish offered concerned by Tony's lack of response.

Tony glanced helplessly at Jethro. His throat wouldn't let him utter a word around the lump. "What Tony isn't saying," Jethro began, "is that they are perfect just the way they are. I know Kate and Cassidy would have loved them." The others chorused their approval and Tony nodded with tear-filled eyes.

"Will there be enough time?" Tim was mentally calculating the number of wreaths needed.

Tish smiled, relieved that the wreaths met their approval. "Well, we have a few more volunteers who wanted to help out. I warn you it's a bit noisier out in the other room." With a deep breath, Tish opened the door to the main room and the Gibbs-DiNozzo family were stunned. Hundreds of tables were scattered around the warehouse. Each table was surrounded by people.

"What on earth?" Tony asked as the rest of the group's various exclamations faded into the noise. "I don't understand."

"Your blessing in May inspired a lot of people." Tish smiled brightly. "All summer I had calls about the memorial and contributions. Several children's organizations asked about donating time as their community service. There are volunteers from law enforcement agencies from all over the country. Florists, families, clubs, schools…" Tish saw the wonder in the group's eyes. Her heart felt full of happiness as she watched the men stare at what their generosity had started. "I was contacted by companies around the country wanting to help somehow. They donated the forms, the greenery, ribbon and poinsettias. The volunteers have been donating their Saturdays to construct the wreaths." She pointed to wear copies of the first two wreaths were scattered around the floor serving as templates.

"Will they last till Christmas?" Tim spoke up.

"Silk." Abby said breathlessly. The group turned to the goth perplexed.

"Yes, they are. The greenery will live without an issue. The concern was keeping the flowers alive with the fluctuations in the weather." Tish waved her hand towards the activity. "Out of the blue, I was contacted by a floral organization that said several of their members wanted to donate silk poinsettias. We hope to have these placed for Thanksgiving and they will last all season."

Tony turned and pushed into Jethro's arms. Dropping his head on to his husband's shoulder, he tried to hide his tears. It was too much for him to comprehend. Even Ducky was stunned in silence at the enterprise they were watching.

Tish smiled gently. "I was also contacted by several state memorials and they have told me that similar programs have started up in their areas. It's all thanks to you and Agent Gibbs…And of course, Zuma." The pup barked softly at his acknowledgement so as not to wake his brother, sister or god-sister. He did not, however, leave his post but stayed next to the pram watching over his babies.

"I never expected anything like this." Jethro rubbed Tony's back gently. "Is that a welder?"

Tish grinned as she followed his gaze. "Several volunteered to help fashion a hanger that could be inserted behind the memorial and would hang over the wall so that it didn't interfere with access. They coordinated with the memorial administration and came up with a design that was approved. We'll remove them and reuse them every year."

"Every year?" Tony lifted his head.

"After Debra Alfarone's interview, you wouldn't believe the donations I received." Tish admitted. "I contacted a local bank that volunteered to set up a fund for us. I expect we have enough for Memorial Day and Christmas for two years at least."

"I expect after my next story, there will be a lot more." A petite brunette and a tall gentleman dressed casually had approached the group quietly. "When Tish told me you would be here today I wanted to come and meet you. I hope you don't mind," Debra said. "I wanted to meet you and thank-you. Don't worry," she noticed Tony and Jethro looking around quickly. "No cameras. I took some footage as background for after the placement but I won't reveal your names."

"We appreciate that." Tony spoke up.

"Trooper Thomas, isn't it?" Jethro had been studying the man and had made the connection.

"Yes, sir, uh, Agent…"

"Just Jethro, trooper."

"Wes." He offered back. "I stayed in touch with Tish after Memorial Day. When I heard about all of this, I wanted to be a part of it. I even brought Edward's kids up a couple Saturdays so that they could help."

Finally taking pity on the overwhelmed group, Tish spoke up. "I see you all came prepared to work. So, how about it?"

With little discussion, the group dispersed throughout the floor opting to meet as many volunteers as they could. Periodically, they would drift to different jobs and tables. Abby and Breena proved deft hands at making bows. Jimmy and Ducky were excellent at wrapping the forms with the greenery. The rest helped attach picks to the poinsettias, the balls and bows. Tony found himself quickly moved from job to job and group to group leaving happy chaos, tangled wire, mangled poinsettias and crushed ribbon in his wake. Along the one wall, commercial size coffee and tea machines were kept full. A selection of snacks was also available.

Watching his husband carefully, Jethro made sure to talk with the metal workers and ensure that his husband would not be allowed within twenty feet of their towels and torches. Finally, Tony found himself, Zuma and the twins shifted into the one corner where some teens were watching over smaller children. They were showing cartoons on a portable television and were helping them with various crafts to keep them out from underfoot. Satisfied, that Tony and "Agent Zuma" had found the right niche, Jethro was about to devote himself to helping.

About eleven thirty, a delivery truck pulled up to the truck door. In short order, a buffet was set up along the one side of the warehouse. This explained the empty tables to one side. Debra drifted up to their table with the trooper. "Every Saturday, one of the local restaurants has been donating lunch for the volunteers. Mind if we join you?"

"Please." Jethro and Tony were busy feeding the twins while Palmer fed Victoria. After they finished, the Victoria and the twins were passed around to eager aunts and uncles while Jimmy, Jethro and Tony ate. Debra and Wes were accepted easily and joined in on the multitude of topics that were being discussed back and forth around the table. Wes managed to swap seats and ended up near Jethro and Tony.

"After I got back to Pennsylvania, I did a little checking." The trooper admitted. "I stumbled across Agent Zuma's fan pages and the AZ3G foundation. I don't suppose the foundation would know about the college funds set up for Edward's three kids or the "special retirement plan" that is paying Arlene a stipend that miraculously covers the bills."

Tony concentrated on watching Linnie "talking" to Grandpa Ducky. "Nope. Not a thing." Jethro simply took a sip of coffee and looked at the other man with a raised eyebrow.

"Didn't think so." Wes took a long sip of his own coffee. "If you did, I'd say thank-you. After Edward was killed, she was worried about how she and the kids would make it. It was a miracle that the ticket Edward bought for the Intrastate Law Enforcement Society Raffle was drawn for that new SUV. Funny, I couldn't find any documentation on the Intrastate Law Enforcement Society and no one at the precinct remembers buying raffle tickets."

"Imagine that." Jethro said dryly as Tony snickered.

"Gibbs…Gibbs...Giiibbbsss…"

"Yes, Abby." Jethro said patiently. "How much coffee have you had?"

"Only a cup or two…"

Jethro looked at McGee for confirmation and he held up six fingers. "Abs, no more coffee. And," as she appeared to argue, "no more Café-pow. Now, what did you need?"

"Did you hear? It's so cool. Did you know what Debra told us?"

Tony interrupted patiently. "Abby, we were talking to Wes. What did Debra tell you?"

"The Sisters and the choir are going to sing the day that the wreaths are hung. They've already got the permit and everything. Isn't that soooo cool?" Abby bounced in her seat.

"Very cool, Abs."

"I think we should be there, don't you? Oh, oh, oh and we could all dress up alike and we could…" Jethro nodded at Tim who bravely administered a Gibbs slap to the goth. Abby immediately turned and pouted at him. Tim simply gestured to Gibbs and she turned to pout at him.

Tony motioned to Tim and he tossed Abby's knapsack to him. "Abby…." Tony shook his head and looked at her with disappointment. "Three empty bottles and one, two, three, four empty candy bar wrappings…"

"I was excited." Abby said petulantly.

"I am confiscating this." Jethro took the bag and stuck it under the pram on the shelf with the twins' diaper bags. "No more caffeine."

"But, Gibbs…" Abby whined.

"You promised to set a good example for Linnie and Chris," Tony reminded her. "No whining." With a look at Jimmy, Chris was passed along and put in Abby's arms. Instantly, she became the model aunt and focused on her nephew. The Gibbs' turned to look at Wes who was now suppressing laughter.

"Sorry about that." Tony said sheepishly. "Abby can get a bit excited."

"It sounds like the event is going to be pretty big," Gibbs said.

"When will it be?" Tony asked.

"We thought the Saturday before Thanksgiving."

"A bit." Tish walked up to their table as the people at the other tables began to migrate back to the work area. She sat down at their table as Jimmy and Breena left Victoria with Ducky and headed off. Soon it was only Gibbs, Tony, Jackson and Ducky and the little ones left at the table with Tish and Debra.

"I know how you value your privacy," Debra began. "I will be covering part of the event for the station however, I will respect your desire to remain anonymous. To the viewers, you and your family will simply be more volunteers."

"When Debra asked to film some of the work leading up, I didn't tell her your names simply that you wanted to remain anonymous. She asked if she could meet you here before the big day."

"You have to admit that you and Agent Zuma have developed quite a following this year." Debra watched as the pup's ears flicked before he focused on the two babies again.

"Zuma, come here." Tony coaxed the pup closer. "Say hello to Debra. She's a friend." Immediately Zuma moved to stand between Tony and the reporter. He presented his ears for scratching.

"You're a handsome boy, aren't you?" she crooned.

"The whole thing was actually his idea at Memorial Day." With that, Tony told the story of how Zuma had started the event by stealing a rose and marking an unmarked section of wall.

"You are a really something," Debra gave him a hug. "He seems devoted to your son and daughter."

"Sometimes, I think Zuma thinks the twins are his." Tony laughed as he continued, "I swear he believes that Jethro and I are really caring for the babies on his behalf." Linnie, on Jethro's lap, fussed a bit. Instantly, Zuma headed for the pram. Poking his head in, he retrieved a soft pink blanket attached to the head of a stuffed rabbit. Taking it other, he pushed the blanket up onto Linnie's stomach where tiny fingers could grab the bunny and pull it up to her face.

"Wow." Tish looked at the pup who watched carefully to be sure Linnie was happy again. "He takes his job seriously."

"I better get back to the ribbon station." Debra rose reluctantly. "Just let me know how you want to handle the wreath laying. It's your call."

After she walked away, Tish pulled a bit closer and spoke softly. "She really has been above board on her coverage. I asked her not to show anything before the day. We already have so many volunteers and I don't think we could handle another big influx. We agreed on the details for the day we put out the wreaths. I apologize for taking over your gift. It just seemed to grow out of control."

Leaving Tony to handle the conversation, Jethro lifted his daughter over his shoulder as she began to croon. From practice, he knew his baby girl was on her way to sleep. In contrast, his son perched on Tony's lap looked alert and ready to party. Handing Rocky to Zuma, the pup settled down next to the pram and prepared for his own nap. Jethro knew the dog would protest he was on guard duty, if he could.

"It wasn't really our gift." Tony protested. "It was a group effort that day. And it was really Zuma's idea."

"But you paid for it."

"Because we could. Not because we wanted to… to…" Tony struggled to put into words.

"I think that's what really made the day so miraculous. You were there and you just did it. You encouraged the others to get involved and even suggested if they really wanted to help, to make donations for the future. It was a true act of generosity. You asked for and expected nothing." Tish had tears in her eyes. "Look at these people. They don't know you started this on Memorial Day. They aren't here for the chance to meet you. They aren't here for the publicity, they aren't here for the fame. They know that people here will be virtually unknown. Only a few have agreed to interviews with Debra. This is the essence of caring."

Laying Linnie in the pram, Jethro scooped up his son and began the task of encouraging his son to sleep. He continued listening to the florist and watching the emotions on his husband's face.

"Do you know that most of the companies that contacted me asked one thing? That they, too, would be anonymous. They aren't doing this to get something out of it. You and your husband started this and it's growing thanks to your example."

"The purest love." Jethro murmured.

"Jethro?" Tony asked quietly.

"It was something my mother used to talk about especially around the holidays." Jethro explained a bit embarrassed. He patted his son's back and avoided their eyes. "She felt that the purest love that could be shared was unconditional love. That where we did good for others with no expectation for return that was the example of the purest love we could show each other."

"That is what you showed that day and what they responded to. I am so grateful that I was there that day to see and be part of it. I can never thank you enough." Tish said earnestly. "And I am so glad you don't feel that I've ruined or stolen your gift. Will you come that day?"

Tony and Jethro looked at each other and she could almost see the conversation occurring between them. Finally, Jethro spoke up. "We'll be there and I'm sure the others will, also. No interviews. We're just volunteers that day."

"I think that the grandpas will sit this out," Jackson spoke up from where he and Ducky had been quietly conferring. "It will be easier if we take care of the little ones that day."

Shifting a sleeping Victoria to his shoulder, Ducky nodded. "There's a very nice coffee shop just down from the memorial. We can stop by and help for a bit and then we will retire there in the warm while you all work."

"Afterwards, we could have a family dinner at the and then stop by for a last look before going home." Tony exclaimed. "You'll join us for dinner, won't you?" He asked Tish.

"If you're sure," Tish was taken back at the invitation. "I'd be honored."

"I'll handle the reservations." Tony watched Jethro hand his determined son off to his grandfather in the hope Chris would fall asleep for his grandpa. "Guess break time is over. Maybe I'll visit the metal workers."

Jethro and Tish exchanged slightly horrified looks and Jethro gallantly stepped in. "No!... I mean, you were so good with the children earlier, why don't you help there? I'm sure some of the volunteers would love to try some of the other projects, too."

"Well, I guess I could." Tony looked longingly at the metal working area.

"I'm sure that some of the teens are ready for a break."

"Tell you what, you help out with the kids and I'll sneak you a muffin in a bit." Jethro promised.

"Make it two and you've got a deal." Tony agreed.

A few weekends later, the entire Gibbs-DiNozzo clan descended on the memorial. With the help of Linnie, Chris and Zuma, Jethro and Tony carefully placed the heart-shaped wreaths on Kate and Cassidy. Then, the little ones and Agent Zuma joined their Grandpas at a nice warm coffee house. The volunteers carefully began to install the miniature shepherd's crooks while some of the volunteers unpacked wreaths. Others began to hang the wreaths along the wall while still others followed along making sure that the ribbons and decorations were straight. As the group worked, the Sisters serenaded them with a mix of holiday songs.

The atmosphere on the block was intoxicating. Feelings of love, goodwill and remembrance had the groups exchanging stories of loved ones and singing along. Twitches of sadness came and went but were cast aside in exchange for feelings of sharing and love. Later, at a nearby steakhouse the Gibb-DiNozzo clan along with Debra, Wes and Tish enjoyed a nice meal. As they left the group separated with hugs and good will.

Abby and Tim had tickets for a show. Jackson and Zuma took the twins home. Debra had a lot of editing to do. Wes was headed back to Pennsylvania as he worked the following day. The Palmers and Ducky left to put Victoria to bed. Finally, it was just Tish, Tony and Jethro. Handing Tish an envelope, Tony gave her a kiss on her check before she drove off in her car. Finally, it was just him and Jethro. Linking hands, they strolled along the sidewalk back to the memorial.

As they walked along the memorial, Tony smelled the greenery and marveled at the beautiful sight. They paused at the entrance and Jethro hugged Tony from behind. "What are you thinking about?"

"How much Kate and Callie would have loved today. How lucky we are. What a family we have. This day was just amazing, don't you think?"

"You are amazing."

"Jethro." Tony laughed.

"It was amazing." Jethro admitted. "Ready to go home?"

Taking Jethro's hand, he nodded. Tony paused one last time to look at the wreath at the entrance of the memorial. "Thank you for your sacrifice. Good-night and God Bless." He whispered.