A/N- From the season four dialouge, it seems to me that Abby has to know about Ari, wereas Tony's mentions could be mere slips of tongue. So here is my take on that. R&R

Ziva David had been rather surprised when, upon finishing a case before 6 o'clock, Abby had invited her out for dinner. She had thought that Abby would still be anger with her after their fight during Gibbs' coma. As it turned out, she hadn't been to far off. That was exactly what Abby wanted to talk about.

In the weeks since Gibbs had left, Abby had spent quite awhile trying to understand. She understood his leaving, at least a little, but that did not mean she liked it. The next thing she had tried to understand was Ziva. Ziva, barely there for a year, and she gets him to remember? How? If Ducky and the Director couldn't do it, what could Ziva have said? And why, through Gibbs whole bout in the hospital, had she acted as though she didn't care? Try as she might, Abby could not piece together the puzzle that was Ziva on her own. So one night, when the opportunity presented itself, she asked Ziva to dinner.
Seated in one of Abby's favorite restaurants, both women quickly ordered, them sat back to await their food.

"Ziva" Abby ventured cautiously.

"Yes?" Ziva responded

"When Gibbs was, well- how did you make him remember?" Abby stared at Ziva, trying to read her eyes, hoping she had not asked some sort of forbidden question.

Whatever Ziva had been expecting, this wasn't it. Now what? A part of her wanted to tell Abby, needed so much for someone else to know, someone who wasn't in another country. Never one to act on impulse, Ziva was trying to concoct a believable lie when she looked at Abby. The other woman sat across from her, looking so trusting, so eager to listen. At once, Ziva knew that she would be telling Abby the truth that night.

"Ari" Ziva began in a whisper, finding that her voice was failing her.

"What?" Abby asked

"Ari" Ziva said a little louder. "I told him of Ari killing Kate, and-" She broke off, tears collecting at the corners of her eyes. "- and how I killed Ari."

Abby was stunned. Ziva had killed Ari? What was she talking about? Gibbs had killed Ari. Abby had seen the report, and more importantly, he had told her. Why would they lie? And there was something else. Ziva's tears. Ziva David, the super spy, the stone, was crying. And for who? She had never known Kate. For Ari? Abby felt the anger rise in her.

"If you killed him, why are you crying?"

Ziva looked at Abby her eyes clouded with tears she wouldn't, couldn't wipe away. Abby was supposed to understand, it wasn't supposed to be like this. But having already started, what could she do but answer?

"Abby" she began, her voice begging the other woman to understand "He was my brother."

Brother? Ziva had a brother? Ari was Ziva's brother?! And she had killed him, killed her own brother to save Gibbs. And all through Gibbs coma, everyone had accused her of not caring. She did care, she had proven it in a way no one else on the team ever had. She had killed for him, to save him. And this woman, of whom Abby's treatment had ranged from rude to downright malicious, she had avenged Kate. Abby slid to Ziva's side of the booth, hugging the woman as hard as she could. For the first time, Ziva returned her embrace wholeheartedly. Neither of them said a word, they simply sat there, crying in each other's arms, knowing exactly how the other felt.