Early October in DC, the wind was colder, the leaves were golden and everyone was dressing warmer; all were confirmation that fall was well and truly here.

Penny walked down the street and passed all of the shops, dressed in her favourite pair of jeans, cream polar neck jumper, knee high boots, and her knee length red jacket. Her recently cut red hair, which she thought made her look scarily like her mom, was tucked into her black, berry hat.

She'd had her hair cut short after her operation, given that her shoulder length hair had looked strange with one side missing, so she chose to have the other side matching and got a basic pixie cut like Jenny had done several months previously.

After the explosion at NCIS, just over two months previously, things were beginning to take some form of normality. All the NCIS teams were still in porter cabins at the back of the destroyed building, which had basically been torn down and was being rebuilt. Neither Penny nor Jenny was back at work just yet, but both were due to start back in two weeks' time after Gibbs and Jenny returned from Paris.

Jenny and Gibbs were finally coming to terms with the loss of their baby, and found that they could now comfortably talk about. It didn't change Jenny's longing for a baby one day, but she'd come to realise that if it was meant to happen then it would happen.

Penny entered her Georgetown house and quickly wiped her feet on the doormat before closing the front door.

'Mom?' She shouted as she took off her hat and coat.

'I'm up here!' Jenny shouted back from her bedroom.

Penny ran up the stairs and walked down the hallway, turning left at the first door. She entered Jenny's room to find her packing her suitcase to go away the next day.

'Did you enjoy your walk?' Jenny asked, folding a red jumper dress into her suitcase.

'Yeah it was nice to get out of the house for a bit.' Penny replied as she flopped down backwards on the Jenny's very large queen size bed.

'How are you feeling today?' Jenny asked as she sat on the bed next to Penny, flopping down beside her.

'I'm OK, in fact I'm really psyched because I haven't had a headache at all today, and I'm feeling a little more like myself.' She replied with a large smile.

In the last few weeks Penny had been suffering from horrendous headaches after her operation, which was to be expected, and had caused Jenny great concern about her daughter. Her concern had become that great that at one point she'd even called off her trip to Paris, but Penny had persuaded her to go. Jenny had also been under immense pressure. She no longer experienced debilitating pain, and the bruising and swelling no longer affected her as much, although she did have to be careful as she was still a little stiff. Penny hoped that after her holiday her mom wouldn't be so uptight and paranoid, although she did understand how Jenny felt.

After losing her baby Jenny was terrified of losing Penny too, and given that that fear had almost come true when Penny had collapsed due to a brain haemorrhage, she felt justified with her concerns.

'Mom stop worrying about me, I'll be fine, I've got Abby to look after me after all.' Penny said as she looked at Jenny who was watching her with the same worried expression that had been securely fixed to her face since they'd left the hospital.

'I know, I know, but that doesn't stop me worrying. I don't want you to do anything stupid whilst I'm away; you've got to take it easy!' Jenny said in her half-mom, half-director tone.

Penny rolled her eyes in annoyance. Although she'd always been a Jenny's girl and had always loved being mollycoddled by her, not that she would admit that to anyone, it did annoy her that Jenny was being so protective. However, her annoyance disappeared when she saw her mom running her hand absentmindedly over her stomach.

'It'll happen one day, when it's supposed to happen, you know.' She said quietly, placing a hand over Jenny's.

Jenny glanced over to Penny and smiled weakly at her, hoping that she was right, but she couldn't help think sometimes about the baby that she'd lost, and the fact that if she hadn't have had a miscarriage she would have been about fourteen weeks pregnant, and would have just been beginning to show.

'Anyway, you and Gibbs are going to have a lovely time in Paris, he's got lots of lovely things planned for you.' Penny changed the subject, which made Jenny smile with excitement.

'I'm looking forward to it; he won't tell me what he has planned though, which makes me ever so slightly nervous.' Jenny replied. 'I hope he won't be late home tonight.' She added as she sat up and began folding more clothes into her case.

As if on cue Gibbs appeared in the doorway. He walked up behind Jenny and wrapped his arms around her waist, placing a kiss on her neck and cheek which resulted in a giggle from her.

'Yuk guys, get a room.' Penny said jokingly.

'Err Penny, you're in it.' Jenny said, placing her arms over Gibbs's, both smiling happily.

Penny thought for a minute, opening her mouth to reply but then quickly closing it again.

'Yeah I have no reply to that.' She said finally, admitting defeat.

Both Jenny and Gibbs smiled happily just as Penny sat up slowly.

'You all packed?' He asked Jenny, still holding onto her tightly.

'Yeah just about. How about you? What've you got left to pack?' She replied.

'Err…everything; but unlike you Jen, I won't be taking everything bar the kitchen sink.' He replied with a smile resulting in Jenny glaring at him and playfully slapping him on the arm.

Penny left them to it for a while as they mildly argued about what they were going to need whilst there, and what they were going to do, giving that Jenny still didn't have a clue what he had planned for her. She went into her living room and turned on her TV, flicking through the channels to see what was on. Just as she was about to settle down to watch a film the doorbell rang.

Trotting down the stairs she was excited to see Abby standing on the doorstep, a small suitcase in her hands.

'Oh my God Penny I am so excited about this!' Abby said as she threw her arms around Penny's neck in excitement.

'Herrow Abs, I'm totally psyched too.' Penny replied as Abby crushed her. 'Come on up, I was just about to watch a film.'

Penny took Abby upstairs and placed her things into the spare room, before they both settled down in the upstairs living room.

That night Jenny and Gibbs went to bed early as they had a very early start in the morning. They were both a little excited about taking a trip to the place that held so many happy memories for them both, and Gibbs was especially excited to see the look on Jenny's face when he surprised her with all of the lovely things he had planned.