SPOILER: KD is having a bad day, and the people on the West Wing are
suffering for it.

DISCLAIMER: I don't own the West Wing. They belong to Aaron Sorkin and the
wonderful people who make the best show on Earth. I still haven't figured out
who they are, and I probably should. I'll have to back and look at other
people's fics and find out.

NOTES: This basically the "Background" story. It gave me a chance to describe

KD's background a little more, but it still doesn't delve into the facts
revolving around the classification of her FBI file. That's yet another story
to come. <evil grin>

"The Morning Report"
Part 1

KD Brody sighed and eased herself back into the blue couch in her office.
She picked a page out with her fingers and slowly flipped it, her eyes moving
over the words. A gentle knock came at her door as David Beckwith leaned in.
She glanced over her shoulder to look at him.

"You've got a staff meeting." He said softly, as if he were afraid. She'd
come in that morning with a very lousy demeanor. She was bitter and was
constantly snapping at people while pushing them away. She was angry, people
mused, but why?

"Yeah, okay." She exclaimed as she pulled herself up off of the couch and
moved for the door. David moved out of her way and watched as she quietly
moved out into the hallways and started on her way on the way to the Oval
office where staff meeting were primarily held.

Kathryn Dylan Brody had been working at the White House for nearly three
months now. Since then, she'd gotten a boyfriend, seven interviews, two major
assignments that were still works in progress, an assistant and a reputation
in the political arena for loving to argue. Still, no one really knew about
her history. No one knew the truth about her family, or how she grew up. They
knew a bit. She grew up in New Hampshire, right next door to Jed Bartlett and
his family, or relatively closeby. She grew up practically as a member of
their family, learning the lessons of life from the Bartletts and from the
McGarrys because her parents were never home. If only it were that simple.
People also knew that she'd started college at 17 after being
emancipated. She became a political science major and graduated with honors
by the time she was twenty. She then went on to Medical school from which she
graduated at age 23. She moved to California to do E.R. work in Los Angeles,
and then moved to Montana to work as an executive political advisor for
Senator John Matthews. He lost his election three years later, and KD went to
the FBI academy where she excelled in criminology. She stayed with the Bureau
until earlier this very year, and then she got a job working at the White
house.

While she was in college, she held a temp job doing freelance reporting
for various newspapers and journals, giving her a reputation with the press.
There she met a young man named Danny Canconnon and started a still growing,
often fluctuating relationship. She continued to write an article every once
in a while throughout her life, and still does, much to the annoyance of her
colleagues. That was all the history anybody knew. That was all the history
KD wanted anyone to know. The Bartletts, the McGarrys and Danny Concanon were
the only ones who knew anything else about KD's past. Toby Ziegler was slowly
learning.

"Hey, Kody." Joshua Lyman exclaimed as he came up behind his newest
friend and colleague. Kody was the nickname that he'd developed for her after
mixing the letters of her name together. Donna told him that it was actually
quite clever. KD had actually reciprocated the favor by calling him Jolly,
for the first two letters in his two names. Only today, KD growled something
inaudible and continued walking. Josh raised an eyebrow.

"What's wrong?" He asked as he moved to walk alongside her.

"Nothing's wrong." She retorted sharply as they turned a corner and
approached the final twenty yards to the Oval Office.

"You sounded like Toby back there. Just growled something inaudible." He
exclaimed as they reached the door and moved inside. Leo, CJ, Sam, Toby and
Jed all sat in their little groups, talking amongst each other as they waited
for Josh and KD to arrive.

"About time you got here." Jed exclaimed as they moved into the room. KD
grunted another something inaudible and sat down on the couch with her agenda
in hand. Toby raised an eyebrow in concern and sat down in one of the
armchairs. Josh sat down in the other one while the others found seats on the
couches. Jed raised an eyebrow as well and then looked to Leo.

"What do we have to do today?" He asked. Leo checked his papers.

"We've got some vacancies that need to be filled. Now that we've gotten
our drug victory, and the F.E.C., we've got still more bills on the way." Leo
said after flashing a congratulatory grin to Sam and then Josh, both of whom
smiled proudly.

"Who gets what?" Josh exclaimed with a grin. Someone chuckled, someone
who was blatantly not KD, who was deep in thought on the couch, staring at
her agenda, but more obviously into space.

"Sam, get to work on don't ask, don't tell. We're putting it on the
table. Josh, you've got English as a national language coming up, plus we've
got word they're springing for school prayer. Might as well give you that
too. Toby, our agenda is going to be clean-cut. Whatever we're dealt, we'll
deal with, but in the meantime, our priorities are Sam's gig, the
environmental pitches that we've been working on, and somewhere in the
background we're going to start gearing up for the gun control and for
Homeless health care." Leo lectured, going into command mode. "KD, you want
to take those?"

"No." KD retorted darkly. Jed flashed a look to Leo.

"What?" Sam said.

"I'm not taking homeless health care." KD said sharply. Leo paled as he
realized his mistake.

"Of course. Um, you're working on the environment pitches anyway, right?
Josh, you can-" Leo started.

"Why not?" Josh exclaimed. "Why should I take on the extra work because
KD is in a sour mood?" He added, a little annoyed.

"Josh, shut up. We'll leave it for later. KD, you can start the gun
control stuff in your spare time, and I'll try and gear up on the homeless
health." Leo retorted.

"Leo, you've got enough responsibilities already dealing with what we
give you. You can't take this on. I'll do it." Sam interjected.

"Sam, don't ask is a big job. We'll split it down the middle." Josh
prompted. Sam nodded. Leo nodded as well and marked it down. KD sighed and
pulled herself out of her seat.

"I can't do this. Tell David whatever I miss." She exclaimed sharply and
practically stormed out of the room. Everyone, save Leo and Jed, stared after
her in awkward surprise.

"What happened?" Josh asked softly.

"We'll ask later." Jed murmured. "Everyone's entitled to a bad day."

"But she just stormed out of a presidential staff meeting. That's not
exactly what I refer to as a bad day." Josh muttered.

"Drop it and move on. CJ, let's deal with what you've got to say today."
Leo exclaimed, changing the subject. Jed's eyes moved away from the door
through which KD had just left to fall on the face of Toby Ziegler who was
still staring at the now shut door with a soft frown.

To Be Continued. . .