A/N – Here's another one for you.

Disclaimer – I don't own NCIS or the characters

Chapter 26 - Almost Better

Washington, DC

Ziva's POV

Today was the third of three days of psychological evaluations. Here I was, sitting in the middle of it, when he started to ask about the end of my time with Saleem Ulman in the terror camp. I told him what happened, which was hard enough to endure. But, then the next question came.

"How does that make you feel?" he asked sincerely.

"Are you serious? How would you feel?" I asked him.

He looked at me concerned. I was completely calm as I asked him this. I only thought he was nuts for asking the question. I thought he was completely nuts, but I knew that the question had to be asked.

"Sometimes I do not feel safe in my own skin," I said honestly. "Sometimes it does not affect me but there are other times. I have nightmares sometimes. But I handle it."

"Do you handle it on your own, or do you turn to a friend for help?"

"I turn to a friend," I said as honestly as I could, but that caused a whole new plethora of my own personal questions to ask myself.

I turned to Tony. Was Tony merely a friend? One did not typically just kiss their friend seemingly out of the blue night after night. One did not share their bed with their friend every night. One did not walk so gently and gingerly around a friend constantly. One did not try to figure out everything their friend would need and make sure they had it. One did not offer their sanctuary to become their friend's sanctuary also. Especially when these two friends were of the opposite gender and so clearly attracted to each other.

"Okay," he said. "Do you become disoriented after a nightmare?"

"At first I did," I said. "But, my friend is always there for me. My friend has always been there for me. I know where I am and what happened when I wake up now. I am no longer disoriented."

"Is your friend a male or a female?"

"Male," I said through my teeth.

"Are you staying with him?"

"At the moment yes," I said.

"Are you confused at all by your friendship?"

"No," I lied. Yes, I was confused. We were so much more than friends. "What is there to get confused about a friendship?"

"Between a man and a woman, many things," the psychologist said with a smile. "Have you or your friend ever crossed a line that you were not comfortable crossing?"

"No," I said. That was not a lie, but that was because Tony and I were not just friends.

"Okay. All seems like you are thinking clearly," the man said. "You're free to go."

"Thank you," I said and exited the conference room that I was in.

I stopped on the catwalk. Tony was downstairs. I had to go into Vance's office as soon as the psychologist was done talking to him. The psychologist went right by me. Tony's eyes locked with mine and we shared a smile.

"DiNozzo? You going to focus or stare up at David all day?"

"Just making sure she's okay, you know?" Tony said with a smile on his face.

I was smiling when my eyes met Gibbs. I gave him a nod and smiled wider. Then, I turned to walk away from their eyes. I waited for Vance.

Tony's POV

"How's she been lately, since she called me the other night?" Gibbs asked, walking over to Tony's desk and squatting down so that the conversation became more private.

"Good," I said.

"She ever tell you what she was dreaming about, DiNozzo?"

My heart seemed to have skipped a beat. She had told me what the dream was about. But it had nearly killed me when she went into detail. And the dreams kept coming back. Every single night. They would get longer and longer each night, allowing her to sleep a little more and they increased her confidence as well as her desire and mine, when she told me about them. It had been two weeks since that first dream.

"Yea, she did," I admitted.

"All solved?"

"Solved, boss?" Tony asked.

"Yea. She okay with the dream?"

"Boss, she's still having those dreams," Tony said quietly. "Not going to push."

"I was going to say fix it," Gibbs said. "But, apparently she's not comfortable with going all the way yet. Not surprised."

"Boss?" Tony asked.

"Get to fixing it, DiNozzo. Make her comfortable," Gibbs said.

"Boss?" Tony asked again as Gibbs stood up. "Rule twelve?"

"Yea, what about it?" Gibbs asked curiously. "She isn't a coworker."

"And what happens when she is?" I asked, curious to know what he thought about this whole new situation.

"Tony, come with me," Gibbs said and walked over toward the elevator.

They stepped in. It started. Gibbs stopped it. Gibbs slapped him lightly on the back of the head.

"What was that for?"

"For not telling her how you feel yet," Gibbs said. "And for asking so many god damn questions in the squad room."

"Sorry, boss. I know you don't like details…."

"I'd like to know, what exactly you've done and if her dreams have gotten there yet?"

"Um… yes," Tony said quietly. "Her dreams are there. But, she's always so shocked and scared when she wakes up. Not comfortable with it, or something. Or afraid that she won't be. But, I... I don't push her, boss. I kind of let her take the lead."

"Ever think that maybe you need to take the lead and just monitor her for when she's uncomfortable. Come on, I know you two are basically psychic with each other and all that," Gibbs said.

"Sure, boss," Tony said, feeling uncomfortable talking about Ziva this way with his boss.

Ziva's POV

"It's in Gibbs' hands now. As soon as your application passes through, then we'll figure it all out," Vance told me and I nodded. "Already filled it out for you, just needs a signature."

He placed the application in front of me and I signed the bottom. I had also started the citizenship process

"Thank you, director," I said and left the room.

I went straight to the squad room and saw Tony and Gibbs coming out of the elevator. I walked up to them and they were both looking at me. I smiled and nodded. I practically had the job already. Gibbs looked up at the catwalk and nodded to Vance and Vance gave him a small nod and walked back into his office.

I threw my arms around Tony and he wrapped his around me. I smiled up at him. "Long as Gibbs is alright with it, I'm back on," I told him.

Tony bent down and pressed a kiss to my lips and I forced myself not to get lost in it, since I had been getting more and more lost every time we kissed. Though, I wished that Tony might take the lead a little.

"Gibbs will only have a problem with it if I have to watch this every day of my life. Honestly, if you need to do that while you're here, just go to the conference room, or the elevator," Gibbs said.

I pulled away from Tony, blushing and turned a smile toward Gibbs. There was no one else there. But, McGee came up then and looked at the strange way that Tony and I were standing. I saw him behind Tony and smiled.

"I miss something?" McGee asked, curious as to why I was in Tony's arms and looking at him like that.

"Too many things to tell you about now, McGee," Gibbs said. "You two, get out of here, McGee and I will finish up the paperwork."

I smiled at Gibbs and so did Tony. When I looked at McGee he was frowning in confusion and I nearly laughed.

"Wasn't she in Somalia like three weeks ago?"

"What's your point, McGee?"

"She looks like the old Ziva, but happier," McGee said to Gibbs.

"I'm still here, McGee," I said. "I am mostly back to myself, but happier."

Then the elevator opened, allowing me to leave him with his thoughts. Once in the elevator, Tony pressed his lips to me again, pushing my back up against the wall of the elevator and I smiled against his lips, before allowing our tongues to start their usual dance. His hands did not wander in the elevator, though I could tell that it was taking him some effort to keep them still. It was also taking me a great deal of effort to keep mine still.

When the door opened he pulled away reluctantly and looked at me with those fabulous green eyes.

"So, what the psycho want to know today?"

I frowned at him. "He asked about the remaining time in Somalia and how it made me feel," I said. "He said something Tony…."

"What?" Tony asked, seeing my frown. "What did he say that puts that confusion on your beautiful face?"

"He asked if I ever turned to a friend," I explained simply. "I fudged it. Tony, what are we?"

His eyes widened. "More than friends," he responded. "Ziva, would you be so willing to date me, honestly? I mean, I'm the guy with that reputation. I'm the guy who gets the girls and that's what they all know me as. They don't think I date. You never thought I dated. I mean, honest. Do you really want to go there, with me?"

I stopped him from continuing into his car and I pulled him to me. I pushed his back up against the car and looked straight into his eyes as I pressed my whole self against him.

"I think the more important question is, are you afraid of going there with me?" Ziva asked.

"No," Tony said and there was only honesty in his eyes. "I just thought… I just thought it would be a little soon."

I pressed my lips to his and ran my fingers through his hair then pulled back again.

"Stop thinking so much, Tony," I said to him. "Tell me how you feel. Show me how you feel. Get the point across, like you do when you are kissing me."

Tony closed his eyes and then opened them again and all I could see was love in his look. It made me smile. I could not help the smile on my face. My smile caused him to smile.

"In that case, Ziva, would you be my official girlfriend?" Tony asked and I nodded happily. None of this would be possible without his help and he knew that I trusted him. "I am afraid of screwing it up, Ziva. Obviously, my most successful relationship was an undercover one."

"If you're you, then there's no way that you can screw it up, Tony," I said. "Just don't try to not be you. I've been staying at your place for three weeks now. I know you. I know what you are like. Hell, I even know what you wear to bed. Except that I doubt you usually wear that much to bed when I'm not in the bed."

Tony's face flushed with red and I smiled as I brushed my hand against his cheek. I could feel that blood was rushing somewhere else in him too and I smiled mischievously and pressed a little more into him. He groaned, knowing that I was teasing him now.

"Ziva," he said warningly.

"I am getting better, Tony," I whispered to him, leaning up so that my mouth was right next to his ear. "I am getting better faster than I thought I would. Much faster. It's with your help, thank you."

I placed a kiss on his neck and felt him shudder beneath me and it only reminded me of last night when we were supposed to be sleeping. I had woken up from one of those dreams and nearly attacked him with kisses and he had shuddered just like that as I had trailed kisses down his neck before I stopped myself, unsure of how I should go about this when I was a little insecure about it after all that I had been through. I smiled at him.