This was written before Season 9 even started airing and waaaay before the promo for "Desperate Man" was released.


Outside the room, Gibbs was waiting for her, checking his watch. When she stepped through the door, he looked up and his face froze, his eyes travelling over her and taking in her dress and hair and make-up. He swallowed thickly before giving her a lopsided smile that made her blush. She moved to stand next to him, feeling anxiety well up inside of her.

"How much time until the ceremony?" she asked him, regretting that she wasn't wearing a watch. Abby had insisted on her forgoing it, saying it would just make her more nervous. The way Ziva felt now, though, nothing could've made her more nervous than not knowing if they were behind on the schedule already.

"Relax, we're a couple of minutes ahead. I just saw Ray and Sean leave the house and go down to the gazebo." the silver-haired man told her. "Abby and Maria should also be in position already. Now we're just waiting until everyone settles down and then Tim will go down and give them the signal to start the wedding march."

Ziva slowly nodded, feeling her hands shake from nerves. She had never been as nervous, never in her entire life. Not when she had been doing ballet performances on stage, or when she had been trying out for Mossad, nor when she had had marksmanship exam and her recruiter had been breathing down her neck the entire time, or when she had been waiting for Ray to return home so she could tell him about the pregnancy. She reached up and almost rubbed a hand over her eyes before remembering she was wearing make-up. Gibbs gave a small chuckle.

"Relax, Ziver." he told her, and she rolled her eyes at him.

"Because that's so easy. How could you get married four times? I feel like I'm going to vomit." she said, trying to draw deep breaths. She leaned forward slightly, cursing the corset under her dress. To her surprise, she felt Gibbs' calloused hands on her shoulders, gently rubbing her soft skin. She looked up at him to see his face full of affection and a hint of worry.

"Deep, steady breaths. You don't want to start hyperventilating." he guided her through taking breaths until she was doing better on her own and the worst of the sudden nausea seemed to have passed. He waited until she drew herself up again before speaking. "It doesn't get easier with each wedding. People get nervous because there are no guarantees in life. No one can say you'll still be in love with him in ten years, or that you're both going to be alive at that point. Getting married means taking a chance, a huge one. You gotta have confidence in your love for each other and in your relationship, be willing to work on things. It's a commitment, one that's supposed to last 'til you die. That's a huge step to take." he told her, his voice soft.

"Do you love Ray?" he asked her, and Ziva felt a sudden wave of calm wash over her.

"With all my heart." she nodded.

"Do you think he loves you, too?"

"I know he does."

"Do you want to spend the rest of your life with him?" Gibbs pressed, and she found herself smiling at the prospect.

"Yes." she softly whispered.

"Then there's no need to be nervous or afraid." her boss told her, offering her his arm. She took it, accepting the bouquet of flowers from him before he nodded at McGee, who returned the gesture and then left the house. Gibbs guided her through the hallway to the back doors that led to the patio that overlooked the sea. They watched as Tim took his place next to Sean and the wedding march began to play. People in the audience rose, and Gibbs gently squeezed her hand before taking a step forward, out of the house and pulling Ziva with him. The first few steps she was concentrating on the floor before she looked up and saw Ray stare at her with love and adoration on his face. She found herself hold his gaze and the weight lifted off her shoulders. She didn't even register when they passed the row in which her father sat. Dimly, she heard the Justice of the Peace ask who was giving her away and Gibbs answered, letting go of her hands and taking the bouquet to pass it to Abby when she clasped hands with Ray, still staring into his dark eyes and feeling like she was coming home from a long journey, while the Justice of Peace started the ceremony.

"Ray and Ziva have decided to share their own vows with us." the Justice's voice broke through the fog in Ziva's brain. Her palms were sweaty and she felt lightheaded, though she was pretty sure that this didn't have anything to do with the pregnancy. Ray smiled at her, letting go of her hand shortly to wipe his at his pants. Apparently, she wasn't the only one being nervous.

"Ray, whenever you are ready."

Ray nodded and drew a deep breath.

"For the longest time, I watched my friends find love, get married, have kids. And I went from one woman to the next, trying to find that. But somehow, something was always missing. Until I met you. I never believed in fate or destiny, or any of these things." he said, his voice shaking slightly.

"But when I met you, I suddenly started to believe in soulmates. You complete me, Ziva. I know I don't tell you how much I love you nearly as often as I should, and I promise I'll get better. I love you, Ziva David. Everything you are, your smile and how it brightens my day, your eyes and how they make me feel like I'm the only person in the room at times, your humor and how you can make me laugh when I'm really down, your love and your belief in me, in us. I want to spend the rest of my life with you, as my beloved wife, my trusted friend and my loyal partner."

Ziva drew a shaking breath, reaching up to brush a stray tear from her cheek. She could hear Abby sniffle behind her, and Tim was looking suspiciously red-eyed, too.

"Ziva, whenever you are ready."

She had to shake her head and drew a teary laugh from the party before she closed her eyes and forced herself to calm down.

"I have been through a lot. And for most of my life, I watched couples from afar, elderly people, happily married with grown children, and I felt jealous, because I thought I would never be able to have this. It wasn't in my plan, and it certainly wasn't going to happen with my lifestyle. I honestly thought I would be dead by now." she said, shaking her head lightly to clear it from the dark thoughts. "But I am not. I survived. Somehow, I managed to get through this. And I had lovely friends, my family, that helped to build me up again. But despite their efforts, they couldn't mend every broken thing in my body. Bones heal, but hearts… not so much. And then I met you. And you were… different. You didn't run when I told you what had happened. You stayed. And more, you still tried to woe me. You always tried to make me smile and never demanded more than I was able to give. And before I realized it, I had fallen in love with you, I had fallen hard and fast like never before. I was afraid, afraid that my past, that I would somehow manage to ruin this." she started, pausing to swallow against the lump in her throat. "I love you, Ray. For everything you are. You make me believe in the good in people, in happy endings. And I knew that it wouldn't be easy with our jobs, but looking back… if I were given the choice to do it all again, I would, in a heartbeat. Because this is real, this is love, this is what I have dreamed off for so long. To love someone as much as they love me. And I promise to always love you, to be a friend, a confidant, a sounding board, a lover and a partner."

When Ziva had ended, Sean stepped forward and gave the rings to the Justice of the Peace, who held the box out to Ray. The groom took the ring and paused shortly before looking into Ziva's eyes.

"With this ring, I thee wed." he softly said, pushing the wedding band onto her finger. With a shaking hand, Ziva reached for his ring and took Ray's hand.

"With this ring, I thee wed." she repeated, easily sliding the ring onto his finger and feeling like an immense weight had suddenly been lifted from her shoulders.

"I pronounce you husband and wife. You may kiss the bride." the Justice smiled at them. Ray took a step towards her and gently cradled her face in his hands before brushing his lips across hers. What was intended as another chaste display of their feelings quickly escalated with the emotion they were feeling and Ziva found herself melting into his embrace, her hands tangling in his short hair as his came to rest on her waist as they continued to kiss through the cheers and catcalls from the audience. She felt Ray smile against her lips and happiness bubbled up deep inside of her, warming her soul. When they finally separated, she didn't dare look at the back of the seating rows, in fear of catching her father's eye and having the look in them ruin the moment for her. Instead, she stood next to Ray as they accepted the congratulations and hugs from their closest friends and the people she considered family. Abby was still crying when she hugged her, and Ziva felt herself tear up again, out of sheer happiness. To her surprise, Ray's mother was civil to her for once, shaking her hand and welcoming her to the family, though her tone remained cold. Well, Ziva was not going to ask for more right now, it was more than she had actually expected.

When almost everyone had spoken to them, she found herself face to face with Malachi again, allowing her former colleague to hug her.

"Mazel Tov, Ziva." Malachi grinned before thumping Ray on the shoulder, and rather hard at that. Some things would never change, Ziva thought, when she saw the glint in Malachi's eyes. Her attention, however, was immediately diverted to the man now standing in front of her. Her father. She swallowed thickly, thankful that her makeup would be hiding her sudden paleness. She felt Gibbs step closer behind her, ready to intercept. But Eli remained quiet and merely watched her face for a long moment before nodding, once.

"Mazel Tov, Bat." he said, extending his hand. Ziva could feel Ray shift next to her and quickly took her father's hand, shaking it. Once she let go, Eli turned around and stalked off, Malachi hot on his heels, but not leaving before he gave her an apologetic sort of half-smile that she knew he used to accompany the delivery things he couldn't change. Ray gently touched her elbow, stepping closer again, his lips near her ear.

"You okay?" he softly asked her, making it look like he was pulling a strand of her hair back up. She nodded, not trusting her voice at the moment, but squeezed his hand.

"So, how about we get this show on the road? There is food waiting for us at the hotel." Sean suggested.

"Food, thank God, I'm starving." Tony muttered, drawing a laugh from the team, including Ziva. He caught her eye and gave her a sheepish grin, but she merely winked at him, letting him know she appreciated his attempt to lighten the mood and draw attention away from her. Tony mouthed back a single word. Partners.


Also, in case you were wondering, this is actually already finished but listed as WIP because I still need to edit it. As it stands, there are a total 8 chapters plus the epilogue.