NCIS Fanfiction

Summary: Is this the end of Tony and Ziva?

A/N: pure Tiva. season 6 or season 7. NCIS and all characters belong to someone wealthier than me.

"Come on, Ziva. Just one more World Grand Championship!" pleaded Tony. "You may never get a chance again once you're back in Israel." A wist of sadness coursed through his voice. In less than an hour, his partner and sometimes lover, Ziva David, would be returning to Israel and rejoin Metsada, the operations branch of Mossad.

Ziva leaned against the edge of her desk and studied Tony carefully. He had that eager puppy dog look she always found charming. And, he was probably right. Once she was in the field again, there would be no time for such things as their weekly Air Guitar World Grand Championship. Such things were unknown to her just a few short years ago. Now, she cherished those moments. "One song only," she said, raising one finger in emphasis.

"It will be a great loss to NCIS when Officer David returns to Israel, Eli," Director Leon Vance said to his old friend, Eli David, Ziva's father and Mossad's Director. Along with Agent Gibbs, he was escorting Director David to the squad room where Ziva was waiting. The sound of loud music and singing came blasting down the hallway as the approached stairs leading from MTAC to the otherwise empty squad room. Few things in life surprised Leon Vance anymore, but what he saw was definitely one of them. "Well," he said turning to look at Eli, "you don't see that every day."

Tony and Ziva were jamming, air guitar style, to 'Panama' by Van Halen. They were prancing and strutting in the most outrageous style, behaving more fantastically than in any live performance he'd ever seen. They ended the song with a wild flourish and immediately burst out laughing. McGee, seated at his desk, just shook his head and continued working. Tony went over to his filing cabinet and pulled two bottled waters. He tossed one to Ziva and opened the other. "You've been practicing, I see."

Ziva shrugged noncommittally. She looked down and thought about all the things she was leaving behind. She looked up at the person she would miss the most.

"Hey, come on," said Tony, in a cheerful tone. "It's not the end of the world. There's always email and, oh, there's this wonderful gadget called the telephone. I think it has potential." Tony's enthusiasm was inwardly outweighed by the coming heartbreak. It must have shown in his eyes because Ziva cocked her head slightly and looked at him in a curious manner. "What?"

Carpe diem, she thought. She quickly walked over to him and embraced him. She pulled his head down to hers and kissed him with all the love she could muster. He responded by holding her close and poured his soul into his kiss.

"Awkward," said Director Vance as the kiss passed the thirty-second mark. He glanced at Gibbs, who smiled slightly at the spectacle. Director David was another matter. His face was unreadable, as always, but, as a father himself, Leon understood. "Children grow up, Eli."

"He is a good man," said Eli, referring to Tony. It was unclear to Gibbs and Vance if the comment was a statement or question.

"One of the best I've worked with," Gibbs said, turning to face Eli. "He's unorthodox but the results speak for themselves. You're alive right now because he saw what a dozen other agents missed."

Eli said nothing but proceeded down the stairs. "Ziva!" he called out.

Ziva pulled away from Tony abruptly. Her eyes expressed her sorrow at their parting. "Yes, poppa," she said dutifully, motioning to Tony to wipe her lipstick off his lips.

Eli waited by the window, studying them carefully before turning his attention to Tony. They were such an odd couple. She was Metsada, to the bone. Cool under fire, efficient and deadly. Tony was a narcissistic womanizer. On paper, at least. Gibbs was right about him, though. DiNozzo had displayed uncanny deductive reasoning skills during the investigation and even greater valor during the earlier gun battle.

Tony looked at Ziva, wondering what to say. "I love you," he said finally, in a bare whisper.

"I know," she replied, her eyes welling with tears. "Goodbye, Tony." She glanced over at McGee and nodded. "Goodbye, Timothy."

"Goodbye, Ziva," McGee replied, getting and moving over to hug her. "We're all going to miss you."

Ziva looked at Tony one last time, then walked over to her father. Together, along with Vance and Gibbs, the pair walked over to the elevators. A moment later, they were gone.

Tony leaned back against his desk staring off into space, wondering how much he had just lost. No woman, not even Jeanne, meant as much to him as Ziva. The emptiness in his heart was overwhelming. In his mind's eye, he remembered all the fun they'd had, the pranks they inflicted on McGee, the love and the sex. Ah, the sex. He made a mental note to see how much vacation time he had remaining. Maybe a trip to Israel was in his near future.

"I'm sorry, Tony," McGee said. "I guess it wasn't meant to be." When Tony didn't respond, he resumed working on his computer. "It's not like you two had a real future together, right?"

"Probie, you have no idea what you're talking about," Tony snapped at him. "We were made for each other."

"I'm just trying to say..." McGee tried to explain.

"I know what you're trying to do, McProbie. It's not necessary. There are some things that just can't be changed."

The elevator bell chimed several moments later. Tony saw, out of the corner of his eye, Gibbs walking to his desk.

Gibbs stopped abruptly at the entrance to the cubicle row. He looked at Tony and noticed how lost he looked. Personal introspection had never been Tony's strong suit. He wondered how much the younger agent had just learned about himself.

"What the?" exclaimed McGee.

Tony looked over at McGee to see what was going on. He then looked over at what McGee was staring at. Ziva, standing by Gibbs' side, smiling happily. "Boss?"

"Miss David will be working with us for a while longer," Gibbs said somewhat sternly. Tony's stunned expression was classic. "In light of recent events, are you two going to have a problem working together? The only PDA's I want to see around here are the gadget thingy's. Got it?"

"Yes, boss," Tony said, his smile coming back.

"Yes, Gibbs," Ziva affirmed.

Fat chance, Gibbs thought. He smiled slightly as he watched them staring at each other. "All right. I'll see you all on Monday at 0700." He made a slight gesture to McGee. "Come on, McGee. First round's on me."

McGee looked a little puzzled at first, then caught on to Gibbs' real meaning. Leave Tony and Ziva alone. "Uh, sure thing, boss." He quickly locked his pc and grabbed his gear. "See you guys Monday."

Ziva smiled knowingly. "See you later, guys"

When they were finally alone, Tony's curiousity got the better of him. "What happened?"

"As we were about to get off the elevator, Director David stopped me. He said that he saw a brighter future for me here. He then extended my tour of duty here indefinitely. He said he was interested in seeing how this joint NCIS/Mossad venture worked out."

"That old bastard," Tony said admiringly.

"I think it's the first time since I was a child that he saw me as his daughter and not an asset."

Tony held out his arms to her and she fairly leaped into his embrace. They kissed again, reveling in their togetherness. "I love you, Tony," Ziva whispered.

"I know," he said. "Just remember who said it first."

Ziva laughed and squeezed him. Hard. "Is it always going to be like this?"

"It doesn't have to be," he said.

"I don't want to fight any more," Ziva confided.

"Sometimes a good fight leads to greater make-up sex. At least, that's what my dad used to say," Tony said, grinning wickedly.

Ziva looked at him speculatively. "Autopsy?" she asked, demurely.

"Ducky and Palmer left hours ago," Tony thought aloud. "Autopsy."

Fin