Not my best. This has been sitting in my drive for a while. wanted to do something with it.

"Everything in her life was gone, ripped from her! How do you think I would react to you showing up out of the blue? Hm? Tell me Ziva!" His voice angry, and laced with pure pain. The type of pain you get when you scrape at a thickening scab.

"I am not expecting anything from you! I am only asking for a chance to reach out and for you to take ...faith." Her head went down to look to her shoes. Anywhere but his face.

He closed his eyes, for a moment to take a breath out. Does she want honesty or strength?

"Do you know, Ziva, that I had to re-do a lot of my life and myself." He sighs, finding her eyes again, "You did that to me. And i won't allow you to do that to Tali."

"I won't. I want her and.."

He steps towards her, "What?"

"You."

She's laughing into the phone. Someone on the other side of the call being an idiot or telling a joke.

She shaches into his office with the phone connected to her ear, mouthing to Tony for him to pick up the phone. It was Gibbs on the other line. She hangs up with one last message to the man on the other line: "We'll be there as soon as we can. See you then."

"Gibbs wants us to make a trip down to Mexico." Her face turns serious. "He, uh, needs us...so he says."

He gets up from behind his desk. "Sound serious?"

"He didn't say. I just got the feeling, you know… we need to go see him."

So there they stood in front of the grey-haired man. He had an oxygen tube connected and wearing a robe over his jeans and t-shirt. He was able to move around after the heart attack.

"Doc said to take it easy. Hell, I've been taking it easy." He grumbled.

Ziva pointed out that it looks like he had been working on a boat outside. He shrugged it off stating that the boat had nothing to do with his heart and fitness. She rolled her eyes, "you are so stubborn, Gibbs."

Tony took a seat on the chair in front of the couch, "Well, this place looks comfy. Get a lot of fiestas around here?"

He lets out a low chuckle, "Nah, if you're looking for that go up the road. This place is quiet. It's nice."

"Yeah,just you and your bourbon.." Ziva shot him an annoyed look to let him to he needed to keep his mouth shut.

Gibbs cleared his throat and leaned forward, looking between the two of them. "So, where's Talia?"

"She's at her friend's house. Good people." Tony explained.

"Well I hope you can bring her with you next time you come down here."

"Of course." She happily answered.

"Listen I called you down here because my health isn't the best right now. And.. it just got me thinking. About Kelly, Shannon… and you two." Ziva and Tony glanced at eachother then back to the older man. "I'm proud of you, Ziva. And I am happy for you DiNozzo."

"Gibbs." She whispered as she took his hand.

"You did something I didn't have the gut to do. You found that one person you would die for. You fought for her even when they all turned away. I've always admired that."

"I followed your rules. Without them, I would have no code to question what you've been told" Tony interjected.

"I hope you made your own code."

" I did. It's your code, I just renumbered them." Tony mused.

After all three of them taking a nightcap, Ziva was in the shower when Tony had some time to speak with his former boss. The best boss he has ever had.

"Married life still working well for you?" He said while sipping on a cold glass of auburn liquid.

"It's been a rollercoaster, but the best honor of my life." Gibbs smiled at this.

"It has changed you."

"Tali changed me. But it was because I wanted to be everything she needed. She needed a father." He sighed, "I try."

"That's the only thing you can do."

"And Ziva… you know what it's like when you love someone so much that you just can't imagine a day without them. When you love someone so much that they become a part of you...even your identity.."

"I know. You should have seen yourself after she left."

"I didn't want to look at myself, Gibbs. I was just on autopilot."

"One question: Why didn't you try to get her back?"

He shrugged, "I guess when you love someone, you have to let them go. And, I could at least respect her wishes."

"You know damn well Ziva didn't want to be alone."

"By doing that, I believe she saved my daughter's life….and even if that wasn't the case...I can't save someone if they don't want to be saved."

"And ain't that the hard part?"

"It's the hardest."

A voice came from the bathroom, "Hey Tony, could you hand me my bag from the bedroom!"

"One sec!" He got up from the porch chair and looked back at his boss "Uh, thank you, Gibbs, for everything." The man smiled in solidarity.

They both had love for her. In different ways and in different experiences, but the deepness of love is that of fire.

"This is it. For better or worse, Ziva. You are sure I'm the one for you. There's still time to turn back and run out." He said in a joking manner.

She rolled her eyes, "And what about you? You still have time to pull out the 'commitment phobe' card and chase bikini clad ladies at a beach in Panama."

His hand threaded with hers as they walked into the courthouse. Before checking in, he stopped her and pulled her aside. "I love you."

"Well, I love you, too." Her smile; soft and bright.

He would do anything for her. She would do anything for him. And the two of them would do anything (even defy death) for their daughter.