His heart was melting. His little daughter was no longer crying in his arms, but was now breathing in shakes: in, in, in, out, out, in, in, in, out, out. Ever since the plane had taken off, Tali had been rubbing her ear and crying for her "Ima". All Tony could do was to hold her. Eventually, another mother on the plane had offered him some baby Tylenol to give her. He had studied the label carefully, his heart racing at the urgent pitch of Tali's cry. Now, Tali seemed to be feeling better and was holding tightly to him, her face tucked into the crook of his neck.
Tony marveled at the feel of her in his protective arms - the weight of her, the warmth of her. He was filled with awe. She belonged here in his arms. It felt right. It felt like it was always meant to be.
"Abba is here" he ventured, the words sounding foreign in his ears, but a lump caught in his throat. "My tzipporit", he whispered, "my little bird".
He remembered an intimate moment with Ziva, late at night. She had come over after some recent betrayal by her father. They talked for hours. She recalled a happier memory from her childhood. Back then Eli had called her his little bird. Recalling Ziva's father, Tony vowed, My daughter will come first. Ziva's daughter will know she is loved.
Tony breathed deeply to match Tali's breathing, hoping to calm her. Slowly in, slowly out. In…. Out…In…Out… Tali responded, ever so slightly.
Tony was not aware of how much time had passed when the stewardess was tapping him awake. He startled and squeezed his daughter to confirm he hadn't lost her when he was asleep. Tali stirred only slightly, but did not awaken.
"We will be landing soon. Please bring your seat upright and fasten your seatbelt", the flight attendant said in an accent he didn't recognize.
Tony placed his daughter carefully into the safety seat beside him, and said a prayer that she would sleep through the landing. He moved the safety straps over her shoulders as slowly as possible. For a moment he thought she would wake up and he put his hand over her chest. "Sh, sh, sh, sh" he urged quietly and her body went still again.
The whole process of settling Tali into her seat had taken more than ten minutes as the plane descended. Suddenly they were touching down on the runway in Tel Aviv. He took his phone out of airplane mode, hoping it was not too soon. The phone suddenly went crazy with chimes and chirps as email and text messages were updated.
Tony took a peak, then sat bolt upright. There was an update from a message service that he only used with Ziva. He clicked anxiously on the app. Then the screen suddenly went dark.
"You are kidding me!" he cried out. "Battery!". Then repentantly, he looked to Tali. She was quietly looking at him with a worried expression.
"Everything is fine, little bird. I am sorry I scared you." Then Tony smiled, "Everything is going to be okay."