I realize how much this chapter focuses on "Tiva", but I couldn't help it. They are really fun to write for and it helps give the first bullpen scene a little comedic touch as most episodes have that to open for great shows. I tried to keep the witty banter going with that classic Gibbsian intro. Hope I accomplished what I set out to do.

Ding!

The elevator chime greeted Ziva as she entered the bullpen. The NCIS headquarters at the Navy Yard in Washington D.C. felt more like home to her than her American apartment ever would. The skylight welcomed the sun, peeking in through the top floor ceiling and tinting the walls of the office building various shades of orange. She walked past the empty desk of her office-mate, her co-worker...her best friend, who seemed to be nowhere in sight. She looked on his desk. There was a note initialed "E.J." and a phone number.

"I see he is still keeping in touch with...her."

Ziva liked Agent Barrett; but, like many women, she had caused Tony much grief throughout their short, but involved, relationship. Tony was a good man. He was sweet and gentle, but even he had his faults. He was sarcastic and childish and prone to laziness if given half the chance to elaborate on the intricacies of cinematic history or television or anything that held his short attention span, (another flaw). Despite his human shortcomings, Ziva could not help but be drawn to her fellow agent. He was an intuitive detective and a highly-regarded member of the Major Case Response Team. He had even held seniority over operations during the absence of their team leader, Agent Gibbs. Above all, he was more alive, a better person, than any of her previous lovers had been. Yes; she loved Tony. He was her man, regardless of what she let anyone believe. She could not show her affections for him, however; it was a sign of weakness, she knew, to fall so easily for someone simply because you must spend time with them so often and for so long each day. Besides, there were rules. And it would never last. They were polar opposites, and Ziva would not allow herself to change. She could not lose who she was to the person she knew she would become if she was to open up and embrace a romance with the one person who truly loved her like no other being in this world. She knew he loved her too. That is why it was so hard; because it was just too easy. He was right there, everyday, and only three spoken words away from wrapping her in his arms and expressing his love to her from the depths of his soul.

Ziva's thoughts had drifted so far from those of the last thirty minutes when she had been admiring the beauty of the fresh spring day that she nearly jumped when Tony walked right up to her.

"Zeee-vaahh!" He spoke with charisma as he drew out the pronunciation of her name, another annoying, albeit charming, quirk of his.

"Tony! I did not hear the elevator. Trying to be Gibbs again, I see."

"What you doin', super spy?" Tony became suspicious the moment he laid eyes on her, walking up from behind and seeing her standing over his desk.

"Not a thing. Just wondering why I am first, and not McGee; he beat us here every day last week."

"I wouldn't worry too much about the probie, Probie. It's Monday. Nobody likes Mondays. And besides, I wouldn't want to come to work either, seeing that it's March eighteenth."

Ziva was lost. This happened frequently, but not quite as often as it used to, but her American co-workers still baffled her from time to time with their instances of alienating banter.

"March eighteenth? I do not understand."

"You know, the day after St. Patty's!"

"St. Patrick's Day?"

"Yeah." Tony looked at his partner incredulously. It was hard not to drag things out when it took Ziva so long to catch on.

"Don't you pay attention to national holidays, Ziva? C'mon, you're an American citizen now!"

"I thought," Ziva began as she used air quotations, "'St. Patty's' was an Irish holiday...why would Americans celebrate?"

"Everyone likes a good party." Tony had that glimmer in his eye...or a dirty thought on his mind, it was hard to differentiate between the two.

"You think McGee was out drinking last night?"

"Well, he IS Irish." Tony smirked, he had never seen his junior agent inebriated before. In fact, he wasn't even sure if it had ever happened.

"McGee would not do that on the last day of the weekend."

"Oh Ziva, you've obviously never heard of peer pressure."

A loud voice broke the chatter, "I'll give you pressure, DiNozzo. On the back of your head!"

"Coffee machine not working, Boss?" Tony could hear the agitation in the voice of the lead agent who was a man better not confronted without his morning cup of liquid caffeine and what little sustenance he depended on to get him through the day.

"I'll get the van." Ziva reached for her backpack.

"No, not yet." Gibbs placed a file on his desk, grabbed his cell that he had left in a locked drawer, and walked past the cubicles of clutter and up to the stairs that led to the Director's office.

"Where you going?" Tony inquired as Ziva grabbed her coat and headed for the elevator.

"Hopefully Vance will keep Gibbs long enough so that I can retrieve McGee before Gibbs notices how late he is."

"Gibbs already knows." Tony spoke words of truth. Gibbs knew everything. He must have had a one-on-one line with the other "man upstairs" because his expansive knowledge felt nearly omnipotent.

Conversations with Tony were always hard to time. He could talk for minutes and it could feel like hours, depending on the subject, or he could simply whisk you away with his smooth facade and keep you engaged in a limitless spell.

Before long, it seemed, Gibbs was back from the spontaneous meeting and passed both agents as he stepped into the elevator.

"I'm not waiting on you two."

Ziva and Tony rushed back to their desks to grab their gear. They were too late to catch the door, as their boss had let them slide closed, so they flew to the stairs, side by side. The two glided down the levels in synch like a pair of racing stallions. They were perfect together. It was a partnership that they cherished, but a relationship that they feared.

Thank you for holding on and being patient with me. I promise McGee with make his entrance during the upcoming crime scene sequence. Please feel free to review and send any critiques you have. I am still learning and getting situated in this world.