Hi guys, sorry for the long break but I hope this makes up for it! Thank you for all the lovely reviews and I apologise for not replying to all of you individually, but I will as soon as my exams are finished!

I really hope you like this one and Please, please Review!

Never Alone

Ziva, as her feet continued to crunch against the freshly fallen snow which had cascaded down to cover the crisp Washington streets, wondered when exactly it was that she started to find comfort in solitude. Was it when her mother died? Or when Tali was ripped out of the world? Or when she pulled the trigger to kill Ari? Every death was another piece of her heart, no matter how dormant that part had been, being wrenched out and every time she had to stumble around trying to find the missing pieces and fill up the gaps. But as she grew older and her war wounds were deeper than she had anticipated, she realised, a little too late, that those gaps could never be filled, she would have to suffer through them- alone.

So was her mind set as she walked back, all those years ago, from Gibbs' house after she had shot Ari. She had not been used to the ice burning sensation as the snow fell onto her face, her unclad hands and tinged her ears. She felt it apt that she was to be punished, slowly but steadily, after killing her own sibling. She carried on walking through the unfamiliar streets, the street lights winking at her as she gazed at them through the pools in her eyes. But as if her tears were frozen by the cold, nothing came down, she did not break down, she did not bathe herself in the guilt that was threatening to overwhelm her- yet her father's words rang loudly in her mind – warriors do not cry. Sometimes she wondered whether he father ever actually had a heart or whether his had also been fiercely stomped just as hers had been- over and over again.

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"Ziva! Planet Earth to David! Hey Zeeeee-vah!" she was snapped out of her cold memory by a one Very Special Agent's incisive babbling. Casting her eyes up, she came face to face with the aforementioned agent's very, very close face. He leaned back when he realised he had her attention.

"Hey Ziva, what's wrong? I have been calling your name for ages" Tony looked at her face; he had not seen her like this in a long time. She had been steadily staring at her hands, nothing in them, just her hands for over 15 minutes. She looked up and his heart broke. Her eyes looked haunted, unshed tears lingered in her eyes; she cast her eyes down again and blinked quickly, trying to get rid of the cloud in her eyes. Suddenly his anger rose, the women he loved and cared for and would give up his life for in a second, was not allowed to have that look in her eyes, he had seen it too many times and he had thought he would never see it again.

He moved around to the corner of her desk so quickly and yanked her up so harshly that she was not expecting it. He grabbed her elbow and pressed the elevator button, ignoring the confused look she was sending him. He knew she could most likely kill him in less than a minute but right now he couldn't give a damn in the world. Two Probies stood in the elevator, evidently not needing to get off at their level, but the blazing anger in the Senior Field agent's eyes made them practically run out of the elevator. He barely waited for the elevator to make its descent before he hit the emergency switch with such ferocity it clanked against the metal panel.

He turned and looked at her ready to kill it or whatever was hurting her, but as he saw her face which now had streaks of silent tears falling down them, his heart broke yet again and he could not take it anymore. He stepped forward and pulled her into a tight hug, enveloping his arms around her thin frame, pulling her so close to him he could feel her heart beat through her satin shirt. Her muscles tensed at the sudden contact. They didn't do this, this was uncharted waters for them, and yet she had never felt such… rightness. He felt her muscles relax onto him and she buried her face into the crook of his neck and breathed out, her hot breathe sending shivers though both of them. She moved her limp hands from down her side and hugged him back with equal strength. They needed each other, he needed her and she needed him- of that much they were both sure of.

He turned his face into her hair and whispered into her ear: "I don't know what made you upset and I know we don't have to talk about it, but I need you to know this, you never have to go through any pain alone and if you even try, you know I will come knocking down your door."

She chuckled softly into his neck, the tension leaving her body as she slumped into him even more and at that very moment she realised, that she was wrong about everything, she was not alone, she would not have to find comfort in solitude, not anymore; she would always find comfort, support, the occasionally needed ass-kicking and most of all love, from the man who was holding, not only her body, but her entire being in his hands. Yes, she could never fill the gaps completely on her own, but she had no doubt that he would help to make her complete. He was her everything. She stuttered unsure of how to tell him the ocean of emotions threating to break through her. She looked up and saw him looking at her intently, his green, mesmerising eyes looking down into her very soul and suddenly it clicked in her mind- they were never one for many words.

Oh so slowly, she stood up on her tip-toes and brushed her lips over his.

"Te amo, Tony"

The kiss he returned was one was which broke down all the walls between them.

The little button right there, see, you can see it right there… Thank you to all!