A/N: I just can't stay away from these two. Plus, I had to give my own post Family First a try.
Sometime Soon
She heard Tali first.
Her exclamations of glee and wonder at the world were unmistakable. The noise filtered its way down the windy dirt road and from her seat in the back yard, Ziva did not miss it. That was her baby girl.
They had found her.
She rose slowly, afraid of moving too suddenly and breaking this illusion of perfection that was in front of her. Ziva walked to the top of the deck in an attempt to see them at the crescent of the road.
What she saw was not a distant Father returning his biological child back to her mother, but rather, she saw a little girl and her Dad together, searching for something they weren't sure would be found. They were a family. They were her family.
One of Tali's sandals slipped off her feet, but the little girl continued on unfazed, her curls bouncing in the wind and covering her face. Tony, only steps behind, reached down and picked the shoe off the road, slipping it inside his pocket without much notice.
Ziva's eyes welled. She had long feared that her own insecurities had irrevocably damaged Tony and Tali's relationship. But watching this scene from afar, she knew now that those fears had been unfounded.
For a moment, she wondered if it would be best to just leave them be. She carried the potential of so much danger with her. They'd be better without her.
But then she heard them open the gate and the small stones crackled under their feet as they made their way down the gravel driveway and even if she thought running was in their best interest, she was powerless to act.
They had found her.
"I think this is it, Tali." Tony picked his little girl off of the ground and slung her onto his hip. He asked her if she was ready, but Ziva sensed he was talking to himself.
And so she pushed the gate open and walked around the house to greet them.
Before Then
His back ached and his hips popped as he pushed himself off of his hardwood floors. He wasn't sure how long he had been sitting on the ground next to the portable crib that Jimmy and Breena had given him but his body told him that it had been far too long.
Tali had been happy all day, her smile wide and her giggles contagious. Senior was right. His confidence, boosted by the fact that his daughter clearly knew who he was, made her more comfortable and happy to be with him. She had relaxed just enough.
But then bedtime came around and nothing could soothe the little girl. Four days away from her mother was more than she'd ever endured and it was all so overwhelming. She just looked so scared.
That, and Tony assumed she was probably just a little bit jet lagged. He didn't think that international flights and two years old got along well.
Whatever the cause, Tali cried and cried for hours – just wailing for Ziva. And all Tony knew how to do was hold her close and say, "me too, baby girl, me too." He ran his fingers through her hair and rubbed circles on her back, but he wasn't Ziva. They both knew that.
Tony had put her in her crib once she'd quieted down. A kiss to her forehead and a long stare at his little girl, who he'd known nothing about two days ago, he thought she had finally passed out.
He was ready to himself.
But every time he went to walk away and go to his own bed, she began to whimper and Tony knew that an onslaught of tears were on their way. It broke his heart. And so that was how he found himself finally pushing his screaming body off of the floor at some ungodly hour in the morning. She was finally asleep.
Gibbs released Tony from his hug and with one final pat to the head – something that the second time still felt just a little too unnatural for Tony's liking – and Tony turned and headed for the stairs. He needed to get home. He and Tali had an early flight in the morning.
Halfway up the stairs, he paused and turned back to Gibbs. The man was already back sanding his newest vessel. Tony briefly wondered who its namesake would be.
"She called me Abba the other day." Tony mentioned.
Gibbs turned and smiled at him. "Ziver," was all he said.
Tony nodded and then continued up the stairs. He didn't know when he'd be back in Gibbs' house. He wanted Tali to know him and for him to know her. He meant so much to he and Ziva – in the good times and the bad. But there was so much to sort out first.
He had told Gibbs that – in not so many words. His old Boss preferred it that way. What he had not told Gibbs, what he had left out, was that he was now almost sure that the things that needed sorting were between he and Ziva.
Real, living and breathing Ziva.
The night they had caught and killed Trent Kort, Tony hadn't been able to sleep. Senior had known that would be that way and he had offered to stay, but Tony wanted to be alone. Alone with Tali, that is. This was his life now.
He had sat on the couch for hours just going through the two bags of things that she had. He didn't want her or any of her things to feel foreign. She was his and he was hers. They were going to do this.
He'd gone to prop the photograph of him and Ziva on the coffee table when the back had come lose, the photo sliding out. It had two missing screws.
And that was how he found it.
There were the numbers, staring back at him in her perfect, but rushed scroll.
It had taken him only twenty minutes to turn it into a phone number. The one of the hotel that they had stayed in while in Paris bringing Nora Williams home all those years ago. Ziva David wasn't staying there, but with a stroke of magic or divine intervention Sophie Ranier was.
He didn't ask for her room because some part of him told him that, that was not part of her plan and so instead, he had booked two plane tickets to Paris for two days later.
Tony shut Gibbs' door behind him and drove back to his apartment with only his own thoughts. The roads were clear – it was approaching midnight. He had waited until Tali was asleep before leaving.
He should have noticed the extra shadow in his living room window. Tony had made it a habit to always know what was behind his front door, but he had been lost in his own thoughts. And so when he opened his door, he was surprised to see McGee sitting on his couch, chatting quietly with Senior.
Tony sighed and rolled his eyes. "Really, Dad?" he asked.
"I'm sorry, Junior." He said. "But he called while you were out and I couldn't help but tell him that the two of you were leaving in the morning."
"I don't have a house phone."
"I called Senior." McGee supplied. He stood. "I wanted to know how you two were doing."
Tony sighed and ran a hand through his hair. "Tali and I are fine."
"And I wanted to see if you needed help in Paris."
Tony sighed again and looked toward his Father. Senior took that as a good time to go check on Tali and he disappeared into the other room.
Tony sat down on the couch and pulled the picture out of his pocket. He waited for McGee to join him before handing it McGee and telling him to flip it over.
McGee stared at the numbers before asking, "Phone number?"
Tony nodded. "I didn't tell Senior because he'd end up on my flight. He loves Tali and Ziva and me and he just wants to help, but I have to do this on my own."
"He'd said you needed some peace – that was why you were going to Paris, but I knew there was more to it." McGee handed the photo back to his friend.
"And he does, too." Tony responded. "But he's looking the other way."
"Have you thought of the alternatives?" McGee asked. "That she wrote the number at the time. Just to remember where you'd been."
"That's not Ziva." Tony said. He paused and stared at the photo before continuing. "Plus, I called. Sophie Ranier is checked in."
Tim's eyes went wide and he turned his body fully towards Tony. "Sophie?" he confirmed. "As in…"
Tony nodded. "She's there. She is."
McGee nodded and they sat in silence for a while. Tony knew how many thoughts were swirling through his head. After several minutes, Tim rose from the couch and headed for the door. Tony followed him.
"I miss her." Tim said. "Tell her that."
"I will." Tony agreed.
"I'd be there if you need anything."
Tony smiled, a rare genuine smile that he rarely let McGee see. "I know. Thanks, Tim."
Senior set Tony's suitcase on the sidewalk and looked wearily at his son. He was busy buckling Tali into her stroller.
"I guess this is it," Senior said. He looked down at Tali. "I'm going to miss her."
"We'll all be back as soon as we can, Dad."
A/N2: Been missin' ya'll. Let me know what you thought.