A/N: This is a completely AU mini-series about the NCIS characters. Most of their usual character personalities apply, except they are all an actual biological family. Jethro and Jenny are married, and they have 5 children: Kate (age 11), Abby and Tony (twins, age 7), Timmy (age 5), and Ziva (age 2). There are various pets in some of the chapters, too. Jenny and Jethro are both NCIS field agents. I am not sure how many chapters there will be, and each chapter/story can be read and understood individually. Enjoy, and please review :]

BABYSITTER

As we were leaving work, my husband, Jethro, stopped me in the parking lot.

"How long has it been since we've been on a real date?" he asked me, pulling me in closer to him.

"Too long," I replied, "but with five children, it is too hard to find time."

"You know," he said, "The woman next door told me she has an 18 year old niece looking for a babysitting job. She gave me her number last week. We could call her."

I was hesitant, but finally my husband convinced me to call her. She excitedly agreed, saying she would love to watch our children the following night. I had generously offered her $20 per hour, but I knew she was in for a longer, more tiring night that she was anticipating. She had not met my children yet.

The next night, our neighbor's niece, Sadie, came over around 18:00. She had a backpack full of kid-friendly stuff. Someone had obviously prepped her in child care 101, which settled my stomach a little.

I introduced her to the kids, and, thankfully, they seemed pleased at the plan for the evening. Abby was already hugging her.

Getting Sadie alone, I gave her a heads up on what to expect from my kids.

"Kate will be your little assistant. She will not give you any problems. Tony is my biggest trouble maker. You will find a trail of messes everywhere he goes. You need to watch him carefully. Abby is the sweetheart of the group. Watch out for overwhelming hugs and kisses from her." Sadie smiled at that. I continued, "Oh, and she hates sleeping in her own bed. She will sleep just about anywhere in the house...the stairs, the couch, the kitchen floor...anywhere. Do not be alarmed by it. Also, keep her away from caffeinated drinks, or she'll never go to sleep. Timmy is usually fine, he likes video games. Just keep an eye on him. Last week he put a CD in the microwave. Finally, Ziva is very attached to Kate, as Kate is to Ziva. It is not really a problem, but do remind Kate that she needs to stop playing with her baby sister long enough to do her homework. You should not have to take care of Ziva much. Kate is very protective of her and takes care of her every need."

Sadie took a moment to process all the information I had just given her, and then assured me my children would be very safe with her.

Leaving my kids with a babysitter was something I rarely did. Of course they had been to day care centers and schools and stuff like that, but rarely an in-home babysitter without any real certifications. However, Sadie's responsible personality, and the fact that my kids were already excited made me feel much better about the situation.

Jethro held my coat out for me, and I was really beginning to look forward to our alone time. As I walked out the front door, I turned back one more time and told them all to have fun.

"We will!" Sadie said, Tony already trying to pull a DVD out of her hand.

*
After a wonderful child-free evening of kisses and cocktails, Jethro and I returned home to find the house completely dark except for a small light coming from the family room. Following the dim light, we entered the room to find all of the pillows and blankets from the whole house forming a fort that stretched across the room from the couch to the coffee table.

"Hello?" Jethro said, kneeling down to pull back one of the blankets that formed the door of the fort.

"In here, Dad!" said Timmy.

I got down on my knees and crawled in the fort behind my husband. It was very roomy and campfire-like. Quite cozy, actually. Sadie was sitting there with an open book in her lap and a flashlight in her hand. Each one of my kids, all wearing their pajamas and forming a half-circle around Sadie, had a flashlight too, along with a paper plate of S'mores.

I looked at Sadie, then at my kids. "Did we have fun tonight?"

I was answered by a chorus of "yes!" and "best night ever!" Apparently Sadie knew her stuff.

"We are having a great time, Mr. and Mrs. Gibbs!" Sadie said, "We are reading Curious George, at Ziva's request."

"Sounds like fun!" I said, "I will let you guys finish. Just make sure this all gets put away when you're done."

Jethro and I crawled back out, being careful not to knock over any parts of their fort in the process.

In the kitchen, I cleaned up the mess around the stove from the S'mores, then started making hot chocolate for Sadie and the kids.

Jethro walked up behind me and put his arms around my waist. I leaned in to his embrace.

"So," he whispered in to my hair, "Does this mean we get to go out more often?"

I smiled. Sadie was pretty good with the kids. She clearly knew what she was doing, and getting my kids to put their pajamas on and sit down to do a quiet activity was no easy task. I had to give the girl credit.

"I suppose it does," I replied quietly, and mentally I made a note to thank the neighbor.