Chapter 7

Reunited

December 2019

~~Navy Yard~~

Vance swiveled on his heels at the head of the conference room table and faced the members of the team surrounding the table, along with Ziva and Gibbs. "That concludes the briefing. You all may leave, now, except for you, Ziva and Gibbs."

The team muttered their assent and got up from their chairs and filed out of the room. As Vance watched them leave, he stood there, contemplating the recent events, his eyes caught McGee's for a very brief moment.

Gibbs glanced at Ziva, then swiveled his head toward Vance. "Everything okay?" he asked.

Vance looked back at Gibbs and smiled. "Just peachy. Just a little bit of unfinished business here." He then looked at Ziva, continuing to smile. He drew a breath, then said, "Thank you for everything you've done for all of us. Both of you, thank you for taking Sahar and her people down." Vance nodded once toward Ziva.

"Thank you. I couldn't have done my work without you, even if I did most of it on my own. Especially Tony, for being there and making me feel wanted and part of this family. I will cherish all of you with all my heart, no matter what. For whatever blowback I have caused toward the agency or any person that have known me, I am truly sorry." Ziva slowly took in a breath and let it out slowly, as she kneaded her hands together in her trademark anxiety mode.

Gibbs noticed it, and put his hand on top of hers, stopping her from kneading her hands. "Hey, no apologizing here. You did your job. You made sure that you did your job better than they did theirs. You done more than enough to prove yourself." Gibbs tilted his head toward Ziva and his lips curled into the slightest hint of a grin.

Ziva let out a sigh. "I never realized how much I had been trying to prove myself in the eyes of my Abba – even after he'd been shot up by – whoever." She threw up her hands and shook her head and plowed on ahead. "Anyway, the point is, you probably know me by now. If anyone had ever threatened my family – work family or no – I was not gonna stop until that threat had been eliminated." Ziva crossed her arms in front of her.

Vance smiled. "And you handled yourself admirably. And I'm very proud to have known and worked with you. The big reason that I asked you to stay behind after the debriefing, was that I wanted to talk with you specifically, and have Gibbs present." Vance smiled slightly to Ziva, then stood up and strode over to the file cabinet, and opened the top drawer. He rifled through the folders, smiling when he found the right set of folders. "Here we are," he muttered as he grabbed the folders and pulled them out of the drawer and pushed the drawer closed before he walked back to the table, holding the folders up in the air.

Ziva's eyebrows flicked upward as she smirked slightly. "More paperwork? But I thought we came to the understanding that I am no longer working here?"

Vance chuckled as he looked up at Ziva. "Well, just a couple of things I have to share with you." He held up a hand before Ziva could say anything, and said, "No, it's not about work. I know you've officially resigned from here, as well as the Mossad. But, keep this in mind. We'll look after you, always, as well as your family. I've always held you in very high regard, and so has your father. Us looking after you, I wouldn't have had a choice anyway, because it was not my request to say in the first place." Vance winked as he opened the top folder.

"Oh? What do you mean?" Ziva leaned toward the table, trying to get a peek of the contents of the folder.

"Well, for starters," Vance said as he took the paper out and handed it to Ziva, "you might want to read this and then tell me what you think."

Ziva reached out for the paper and brought it up to her. As she read the first few lines of the document, she let out a surprised gasp as she laid a hand on her chest. "This is from the Mossad." She brought the paper down to her side, then looked piercingly into Vance's eyes. She shook her head and sighed as she handed it back to him. "What is this doing here?"

Vance sighed. "Before everything happened, Eli paid me a visit." He got up from his chair and walked over to a nearby safe and unlocked it, and looked back at Ziva. "He wanted me to know how much he cared for you. That he realized how much... hurt... he has caused you." He turned back to the safe and opened it and pulled out a small box-like object and turned back to the conference table.

Ziva let out a small gasp. I've seen that box before, she thought to herself. But she didn't say anything, not yet.

Vance saw the look in Ziva's eyes and nodded to her as he sat down and put the box on the table in front of him. He let out a sigh and said, "He did not understand your friendship with Tony at first. But he was afraid to lose you. He realized that there was something about Tony that complemented you. Deep down, he really liked Tony, but couldn't bring himself to show that in public. He grew to love Tony for being a good friend to you, and he realized that whenever you were in a time of need, Tony was somehow always there for you. Even when you were growing up." He cracked a smile and his eyes twinkled to Ziva.

Gibbs blinked and looked at Ziva, but said nothing. His face slowly changed as the gears in his head started turning, as he started connecting the dots.

Ziva sat back in her chair, taken aback by what Vance had just said. "Wow, I didn't realize that. He certainly had his way about him that I didn't know about. Thank you for telling me." Ziva flicked her eyes toward the box. "What's that?"

Vance glanced down at the box in front of him. "More secrets. But this time, for you only. You see, your father had left this behind, and I didn't realize it, at first. I found it sometime after the fact and realized the importance of this, and so kept it safe."

"But -" Ziva spluttered a bit as memories of the farmhouse popped up into her head. She remembered that fateful day, clear as glass, how everything looked within that farmhouse moments before she had gone on the run with Tali. She remembered the warning message that she got, how she had to leave with very little time to prepare. "What did he leave in the box?"

Vance smiled gently at Ziva and opened the box. "A good part of what's in here is a listing of properties, accounts, assets left behind to you." He pulled out a sheet of papers with account numbers and handed it to Ziva. "Numbered accounts overseas and in the area here. You can access them anywhere in the world." He pulled out a tied-up folder and shook it in the air before putting it back in. "This contains all the information on various properties and assets located worldwide. Mostly overseas."

Ziva blinked at Vance. "But why would he leave all this information here? Besides the fact that he knew he was in danger?"

"Because that was also what other people was looking for. Access to the money, access to safe houses, you name it. And they thought that it was at the farmhouse all along, and when they couldn't find it, they blew it up." Vance nodded once to Ziva. "You were the target, but so was what is in this box."

Ziva let out a sigh and tilted her head to Vance. Flashbacks of her being on the run, hunting down various terrorists and taking them down filtered through her mind as she looked at Vance. "So that's why I was on the run and Tony found me in Cairo," she breathed out. "So you're telling me that what's in that box is the package deal? Tony being there for me as well?"

Vance smiled and, as he flicked a finger toward Ziva and said, "Bingo." But before Vance could continue, the phone rang. "Excuse me," he said as he strode over to the phone and picked it up and listened. "Right, I'll be there in a second." He put the phone down and smiled at them. "I've got to take care of a small piece of business." He put the folders back into the box and closed it and slid it over to Ziva. "That's yours now."

Ziva looked down at the box as she ran her hands gently over the top. "My whole life ahead of me, in here?"

Vance chuckled as he walked over to the door. "I'd say you're set for life now. And you're family to us now. Regardless of how you may think that your missions back then were a waste of time, I would have to say you've done your job very admirably. Beyond admirable, if I might say so." He smiled as he turned the knob and stepped out of the room.

Gibbs sat back and looked at Ziva. "Your father knew about Tony for a long time?"

Ziva smiled at herself, a small sad smile, as she reflected back on the times that she'd talked nonstop about Tony when she saw her dad again in New York City after his business trip. "The best memories of me and Tony together was in New York City. He'd shown me the city. The Empire State Building." She turned to look out the window of the conference room. "Enjoyed some pizza and ice cream." She let out a small chuckle. "My poor bodyguard had to deal with paying for everything, including the helicopter ride over the city."

Gibbs chuckled. "Bet your dad got on you for making the bodyguard pay so much," he said.

"Oh, on the contrary." She smiled and held up a finger. "He wanted me to tell him more about the city. Tell him about Tony."

Gibbs leaned forward and looked at Ziva, a small smile on his lips. "I didn't understand why you two seemed to click and break one of my rules on the job, not for a long time."

"At least we did our jobs," Ziva countered. "We did our best to keep our lives separate from the job."

Gibbs sighed. "I didn't want you to make the same mistakes I made. When I saw how closely you both worked together, I..." He drew in a deep breath and let out a long, drawn-out sigh, then stood up and walked behind Ziva as he walked toward the door. As he patted her on her shoulder, he whispered mostly to himself, "You two remind me of myself and Shannon and Jenny." He quickly walked out of the room, leaving Ziva alone in the room.

Ziva had heard what Gibbs had said, and she looked at him as he left the room. Definitely need to talk to him from time to time, she thought to herself. Suddenly, the door opened, and a familiar figure stepped through and closed the door behind him.

"Oh, there you are." McGee smiled at Ziva. "Wasn't sure if you'd already left the building yet or not. Ran into Gibbs and he said that you were still here."

Ziva turned to look at McGee and smiled. "Is everything okay? You sure came in the room all hot," she said.

McGee blinked his eyes and smiled. "You mean I came in all hot and bothered. No, it's nothing serious, but you'll see." McGee put his hand on the doorknob, and opened the door wide open. "Looks like you've got company."

Two small children walked through the door. Ziva gasped as she saw them entered the room, and sudden tears of happiness flooded her eyes as she smiled. She quickly stooped down and held her arms wide open. "Tali! Zack!"

"Ima!" Tali ran up to hug Ziva tightly, with Zack trailing behind, a bit slower and slightly more reserved. He picked up pace and ran up to hug Ziva as he started to remember who she was again.

Ziva buried her face into their necks, holding them as she sobbed gently, speaking softly in Hebrew. Ziva held them tightly in her arms. "I'm not going to leave you again, ever," she whispered to the two children.

As Tony walked into the room, he heard Ziva softly talking in Hebrew. He caught snatches here and there of what she was saying to the children. He stood a short distance away, looking at them, smiling at the beauty of mother with children, admiring the scene. A couple of moments later, he said, "Hey there, my sweetcheeks. Glad you're back."

Ziva looked up at Tony, a smile growing wide on her lips. She stood up and reached out to put her hand on Tony's cheek. She looked down at the children, then back up at Tony. A tear trickled down her cheek as she smiled at Tony and reached out and embraced him in a tight hug. "Oh Tony! It's so good to see you in person again! This is the best surprise, ever!" she whispered to Tony.

Tony smiled as he hugged Ziva. "Yeah. McGee called letting me know that you've been found. Made my way here as fast as I could."

"The young ones? Tobias and Zara, they're not with you?" Ziva stepped back and looked at Tony.

"Nah." Tony waved a hand. "Not gonna take 'em out in this cold. It's too cold for 'em anyway. They're with Ade right now."

"Savta's helping with 'em," Tali piped up. She looked up at Tony and Ziva. "We go home now?"

Ziva looked down at Tali and Zack. "Sure. We'll go home, but we'll say goodbye to everyone first."

"Yup," Tony said.

~~DiNozzo Farmhouse~~

Eventually, as Tony was driving back to the outskirts of NYC, they drove with very little conversation. Tony glanced over to Ziva and noticed that she looked as if she was deep in thought. "You okay, hon?" he asked quietly.

Ziva snapped out of her thoughts and looked over at Tony. "Fine. I'm fine." She turned to look out the window. "A lot on my mind," she said quietly.

"Yeah. I'm all ears if you wanna talk." Tony reached out and put a hand on hers, which stopped her from kneading her hands together from anxiety.

It took all of her strength that Ziva could muster to settle down inside, to push the anxiety back into the box from where it came from. "I've been gone far too long. Eight months." Ziva sniffled a bit and tried to hold back her tears, failing somewhat in the process. She turned to Tony and whispered, "Tobias and Zara, they're 11 months old now. Will they remember me? How will they bond with me again?"

"Hey, no, they'll remember you." Tony pulled the SUV over on a country road leading up to private property, and put it in Park. He glanced into the back seat, where Tali and Zack sat. He saw that Zack was sound asleep while Tali had been watching a movie on her tablet, her ears wired to the earbuds she was wearing. Satisfied that they weren't going to hear their conversation, he looked back to Ziva and reached out and gently pushed it up until she was looking into his eyes. "Look at me, please?"

Ziva wiped away a tear as she looked up toward Tony. "Am I a bad mother? I feel like I abandoned my babies," Ziva whispered to Tony.

"Oh no, Ziva, I don't think you did abandon them. You didn't abandon me either." Tony held his hands out in the air, palms facing Ziva. "Look, it was just how the situation happened that took you away from me and our children. But now you're back here with us, we have all the chance to be with our family."

"Our family," Ziva whispered to herself. "How will the young ones be when they see me again?" she asked Tony.

Tony smiled at her. "They're good kids. They might not take to you like Tali and Zack did, but they'll come around. I'm sure they never forgot you." Tony glanced into the back seat, then back at Ziva. "They would talk about you all the time. I let them because they missed you so much."

Ziva nodded and let out a sigh. "I'm still not sure how I would be able to bond with the children. Only way I'll find out is trying again, right?"

Tony sighed and nodded. "Yeah, well. I totally understand how you feel, about wondering if the kids'll bond with you again. We'll work on this, together, you and me both."

Ziva turned and looked at Tony, tilting her head in wonderment. "Wait, were you with the children all the time while I was gone?"

Tony gulped as he looked at Ziva, then turned and put the SUV into gear and started driving. "I wasn't always a perfect father, I'll admit that. Some days I spent my time away because I felt like I was better off doing than thinking. Not showing my feelings on my sleeve in front of the kids. Also, it was really hard for me without you there with me."

Ziva heard Tony's voice cracking ever so slightly, and realized that Tony had been struggling with very much the same things she was. Only that how he handled his anxiety and stress was somewhat different. She realized that the job, the recent kidnapping and her eventual running the terrorists into the ground had extracted an enormous cost on the entire family, not just herself. "So, you ran away from it all to look for... me?" she whispered.

"Yeah." Tony looked at Ziva, then picked up her hand and held it up to his lips as he drove on. He then put it on his chest and held it there, thinking deeply to himself. "Let's go home, shall we?"

"Sounds good," Ziva said as she squeezed Tony's hand reassuringly. "I'd love that very much."

"Great." Tony smiled at Ziva. "We'll go through this, together. As a family." He turned back to watch the road as he drove on.

~~DiNozzo farmhouse~~

Later that night, after they'd arrived, they pulled up into the driveway. Tony looked back at the two children; they had been asleep most of the way there. Now they were starting to stir. He said, "Okay, we're home now!"

Ziva looked back at the children and smiled. "I'll help you," she said to Tony.

"Righty-o," Tony said as he opened his door and stepped around to the back of the car and opened the door.

Tali clambered down off the seat and sprinted up the driveway toward the house. "We're home! Yippee!" she cried out.

Ziva chuckled as she opened Zack's door and reached in to pick him up out of the car seat. Her nose turned at the scent coming off of his blanket. She took a look at the blanket, which was heavily soiled from just constant use. She realized that he must have carried that security blanket everywhere he went. "Here we go, Zack. Ready to go inside?"

Zack started fussing, and pointed to his blanket. "Blanky?" he asked.

Ziva smiled and nodded to Zack. "Sure, we'll bring it inside. It's cold outside, anyway." She put the blanket over Zach, bundling him against the cold of the wind that whipped through the area every so often.

"Mm," Zack smiled and snuggled up on Ziva's shoulder, a bunch of her hair in his fist as he held it up to his nose.

Ziva felt the small tug as he held onto her hair, and closed the car door and started walking to the house, holding Zack in her arms. She made her way up the porch door, hearing Zack's breathing, his sniffing at her hair, and as she smiled, a tear trickled down her cheek as she remembered the last day that she had seen Zack. He had only been a short toddler, at barely two years old. He had certainly grown somewhat and was taller now."

"Here we go, Ziva," Tony said as he held the door open for Ziva. "Let's get inside before we get any colder."

Ziva smiled at Tony. "Home, at last." She walked into the house a couple of steps, glancing at Zack.

"Oh, hey there!" Ade's familiar booming voice flooded hallway as she walked out of the kitchen. She quickly made her way over to Tony and Ziva, a broad smile on her face. "Long time no see, Ziva!" She gently hugged Ziva and Zack so as not to wake Zack up.

Ziva smiled at Ade as returned the hug with her free arm. She stepped back and looked at Ade. "Far too long," she said. "Where are the babies? I want to see them." Her eyebrows raised questioningly, a touch of anxiety welling up inside of her.

"Oh, I just put them down for bed a few minutes ago. But you can go see 'em." Ade smiled and peered into Ziva's eyes wonderingly. "Glad that you're home safe again. Back with your family."

Ziva chuckled. "Yeah, me too." She turned and started walking down the hallway to the babies' bedroom. She looked down at Zack and said, "Let's get you cleaned up for bed, okay, Zack?"

"Yeth," Zack managed to say, as he held onto Ziva drowsily.

"Tali, go on ahead with Ima," Tony whispered to Tali, shooing her in Ziva's direction.

Tali looked up at Tony and smiled. "'Kay, Abba!" She quickly caught up with Ziva and trailed behind her to the babies' room.

Ade turned toward Tony with a slightly concerned look on her face, and asked, "Is she okay?"

Tony nodded his head as he watched Ziva walk into the babies' room and heard the door click closed behind her, then looked back at Ade. "Yeah. She's a little tired. She's been through a lot. Give her some time." He tapped his wrist, as if tapping a watch.

Ade's face changed and a knowing smile lit up her face as she nodded. "Understand. Well, I'll let you be with your family. Spend some time with her as well." Ade tilted her head and shook her head slightly. "Don't try too hard with her. I may not know what she's been through, but I can see it in her eyes. Be there for her, and don't ever leave her side. Ever again."

Tony sighed. "Yeah. It was hard when she got kidnapped that day. But I never gave up hope. Never stopped looking for her." He smiled at her. "Glad to know that my work had a positive result in this case."

Ade smiled. Just then, a faint sound floated through the air and reached their ears. She cocked her head toward the sound, then turned up her hearing aid until it started feeding back on itself, then turned it back down. "What's that sound?" she asked/signed.

Tony listened for a moment, then smiled. "Another thing I've missed hearing all these months. Ziva's singing to the children. In Hebrew."

Ade's face lit up in a smile. "Aww, cute! It's good to see her back here again. Will things come back to normal again?"

Tony chuckled slightly. "Yeah. Give it time. You can relax now. I think we'll be okay, now. You know, I never stopped to say thanks for being there for us. The kids especially. I know I tried, but I just had to do my best to bring Ziva home."

Before Ade could say something, the door to the babies' room flung open and Tali stepped out and called out, "Abba! Ima wants you!"

Tony's head spun around and he saw Tali standing in the hallway. He looked back to Ade and said, "Looks like my family needs me now." He shrugged and smiled at Ade.

Ade shooed Tony down the hallway. "Go, take care of 'em. I'll see you tomorrow." Her face lit up in a bright smile. "You know where I am if you need me."

Tony nodded and smiled to Ade. "Right. Let me get that for you," he said as he quickly strode over to the entrance door and opened it. "See you tomorrow. Good night."

Ade smiled at Tony as she stepped out. "Sleep tight. Sweet dreams. Good night," she said as she walked away.

"Right," Tony said as he closed the door behind him, breathing a sigh of relief. Finally, the whole family's back together again, he thought to himself as he walked down the hallway toward the babies' room.

Tali looked up at Tony, smiling. "We sing together this time," she said.

Tony smiled down at her and walked with her into the nursery room. "Sounds like a good idea," he said to Tali. He looked up to Ziva.

Ziva smiled up at Tony as she stood up. "She gone for the night?"

Tony smiled and nodded. "Yeah. She sure was surprised to see you back home, that's for sure. But she's really happy, too. Glad to know that you're okay."

Ziva smiled, then looked at the babies sleeping. "I got to sing them a song because they woke up a little when I came in here. They went right back to sleep." She looked back up to Tony. "My, how they've grown!"

Tony smiled. "Yeah, they picked up another few inches just in the last couple of months alone. It was like one moment you looked, they were babies. The next moment," he said softly, snapping his fingers, "they're yay high already." He held a hand up to about mid-upper leg height. "Next thing we know, they're gonna be running around the house. They're just now starting to pick up the walking concept."

Ziva chuckled to Tony, a soft laugh escaping her lips. "Let's let them rest now," she whispered to Tony as she carefully got up out of her rocker and tiptoed toward the door.

Tony smiled at Ziva, then said, "Okay, Tali, it's your turn." But as he turned around to look at Tali, he saw emptiness where she had been moments ago.

"Ima? Tuck me in?" Tali's voice floated down the hallway to their ears.

Tony chuckled. "Looks like Tali beat me to the punch. You wanna go ahead and take care of her?"

"What about Zack?" Ziva asked.

Tony tilted his head to Ziva and smiled. "We'll go together. I'll hold Zack while you tuck Tali in." He bent down and picked Zack up and cradled him in his arms.

Zack looked up to Tony, and said questioningly, "Abba? Blanky."

"Oh, where's your blanky?" Tony made a show of looking around for it. "I don't see it here?"

Zack let out a tired giggle, and pointed out the doorway.

"Out there? Let's go look," Tony said to Zack as he walked out of the room and smiled.

Ziva watched Tony leave the room and smiled and shook her head slightly. After they had left the room, she turned back to Tali and said, "Let's get you tucked in, alright?" She straightened the covers on the bed and then tucked Tali in. "Sleep tight, Tali. I'm here now."

"Ima? You stay wif us from now on?" Tali said, her voice soft yet plaintive.

Ziva smiled and nodded softly. "I promise I'll stay with all of you from now on. Not let anybody get in my way." She reached out and stroked Tali's hair from her eyes. "I'm proud of you for being a big girl," she whispered as she smiled to Tali.

Tali smiled up at her Ima. "Savta helped a lot. Abba was sad a lot when you were gone. He sometimes not home for all day and we stay with Savta all the time."

Ziva glanced up in the general direction of Zack's room, blinking her eyes, processing what she had just heard, then filing it away for now. She looked down to Tali and smiled. "Did Savta keep you busy? Watching TV, play time, taking you to school?"

Tali nodded. "I help Savta with the babies, an' watch TV an' play with Zack."

Just then, Ziva noticed something hanging from the headboard, and reached out and pulled it down. "That's my scarf. Did you take it?" she asked, smiling at Tali.

Tali nodded. "Abba let me hold on to it an' sleep wif it here."

Ziva tilted her head and looked at Tali, soaking in her features, the silkiness of her hair, her eyes. "The scarf helps you to sleep?"

Tali nodded and smiled at her. "I dream of you coming home when I sleep wif it."

"Oh. You missed me, right?" Ziva asked Tali, smiling at her, reaching out to stroke her cheek.

"I missed you that much," Tali said, holding her arms wide open.

Ziva smiled, then raised an eyebrow slightly. "Did you go to school?" she repeated an earlier question she asked.

Tali shook her head. "No," she said simply.

"Oh," Ziva said, sitting back, surprised at this revelation. "Why not?"

Tali sighed a little. "Teacher comes here," she said.

Ziva blinked at Tali. I'll need to talk to Tony about this, she thought to herself. "That's interesting. But it was good, though?" she asked Tali.

Tali smiled. "My teacher is fun! We play games an' we do coloring books. I know how to count to thirty, now."

"Oh, wow, impressive! Can you show me?" Ziva smiled at Tali.

"Yeah!" Tali reeled off the numbers, forward and backward to thirty.

Ziva smiled at Tali, and said, "Wow, I'm proud of you! Keep up the good work!"

"Yeah, she's been doing really good with that teacher," Tony's voice reached Ziva's ears.

Ziva turned and looked at the doorway, and saw Tony standing there, smiling at her, holding a sleepy Zack in his arms.

"Ima!" Zack blurted out as he held out a hand toward Ziva.

Ziva smiled. "Looks like he wants his Ima," she said as she got up from looking down at Tali. "It's Zack's turn, now, Tali. Good night, sweet dreams." She bent down and planted a kiss on Tali's forehead, then hugged her. "See you tomorrow."

"'Ni-ni, Ima. I love you," Tali said, returning the hug.

Ziva stood up looked back down at Tali and smiled. "I love you." She then blew a kiss to Tali, who caught it and planted it on her mouth, smiling back at Ziva.

"Ima!" Zack's voice became a little more insistent. He bounced a couple of times in Tony's arms, holding both arms out toward Ziva.

Ziva turned and looked at Zack, smiling. "Now, let's see what our boy wants now," she said as she walked up to Tony, holding her hands out for Zack.

"Here you go," Tony said, as he handed a squirming Zack over to Ziva. He let out a chuckle. "He's been calling out for you ever since I picked him up and walked him over to his room.

As Ziva got Zack from Tony and cradled him in her arms, a somewhat foul odor assaulted her nose as she walked out of the room. She paused and looked at Zach, and the blanket he had around him. She fingered the blanket, and held it up to her nose, whipping her head back at the stench coming off the blanket. "Tony! Did you wash this, ever?" she whispered to him.

Tony chuckled. "You try getting that blanket off of him long enough to wash it. He wouldn't let anyone touch it at all. I think it had something to do with your smell."

Ziva's mind was propelled all the way back to that fateful day where she had disappeared from the family. "I washed that blanket the day before. I put it in the car with Zack when he rode with you."

Tony nodded once. "The same day you disappeared, he held onto that blanket as tight as he could. Same thing with that scarf that I let Tali borrow."

"Well, they'll need to be washed. I'll take care of them soon," Ziva smiled at Tony.

"Only if you can convince 'em to let you. I tried, many times. They wouldn't have any of it. Took me a while to figure out that it had something to do with you. Your smell, maybe."

Ziva nodded to Tony. "I'm not surprised, now. I'll talk with them and I'll make sure that they are okay with me washing 'em."

Tony smiled as he and Ziva entered Zack's room. "Our boy looks like he's had a long day today. What do you say we tuck him in, and then we head on to bed ourselves?"

Ziva nodded and smiled at Tony, then she hugged Zack tight, and said, "Good night, I love you." Ziva smiled at Zack as she bent down and put Zack in his bed and planted a kiss on his forehead before covering him up in his covers.

A few moments later, Ziva and Tony walked into the master bedroom. As Tony continued walking toward the bathroom, Ziva stopped short and looked at the bed and let out a sigh, then started to slowly take her clothes off. "It's been a long while since I've been in this bed," she said, more to herself than to Tony.

Tony turned around and looked at Ziva. "Hm? What'd you say, honey?"

Ziva had just finished taking most of her clothes off and slipped on one of Tony's shirts that she found laying on top of a laundry basket. She clambered into the bed and pulled the covers over herself. "Oh, that feels so good to just stretch out in our bed," she groaned in pleasure as she stretched herself out.

Tony stood there, looking her over, smiling at her. "I've not slept in the bed for months either. Sure am looking forward to sleep in this bed again, with you." Tony turned and walked into the bathroom. He came out a couple of moments later, naked except for his pajama bottoms.

Ziva looked at the bathroom, dumbfounded, wondering. As Tony came back out of the bathroom, she scoffed and shook her head. "You slept where for months now?"

Tony blinked his eyes and shrugged as he pointed vaguely out the bedroom. "Out on the couch. Tried sleeping on the bed, but it just wasn't the same."

Ziva's mouth hung open. "You said months!? How can you sleep on that couch and be comfortable?"

Tony chuckled. "I managed. Wasn't the same, though. Felt weird sleeping in that bed without you." Tony walked up to the bed and pulled the covers back and climbed into the bed, flinging the covers back over himself. "But this, being in bed with you, feels tons better already," he said to Ziva, letting out a sigh of pleasure at the feel of Ziva laying close to him.

Ziva smiled and snuggled up closer to Tony, melting in his arms, letting his warmth soak into her muscles. "How I've longed to feel your touch again," she whispered into Tony's ear. She reached out to stroke his cheek. "Now, we can settle down, be a family again."

Tony smiled, basking in the warmth radiating off of Ziva's body. "You mean, when we're not fighting off bandits and terrorists and all kinds of evil? Yeah, that's why I told 'em I'm done with working with 'em. Cost us too much this time."

Ziva nodded. "I can't go through this again and have it affect the family again, not like this. They – Vance and Gibbs - understand where we stand, and for that I'm glad."

Tony smiled and brought her closer to him. "Yeah." He looked into her eyes deeply, as he reached down and allowed his hands to roam over Ziva's legs mindlessly. "Sure feels good to touch you, again."

Ziva smiled at Tony. "Feels good to be with you, again. Your touch, your smell, your eyes, your smile – everything about you, I've missed dearly all these months."

Tony chuckled and gently pulled Ziva partway on top of him and embraced her, kissing her. "Now we can spend our time exploring our love for each other," he whispered to her.

"But what about the kids?" Ziva whispered back, as she adjusted herself to where she laid more fully on top of him.

"Mm, that feels good," Tony said. He smiled up at Ziva and said, "Don't worry about the kids, they'll be fine. They're asleep, or should be by now." He looked up into Ziva's eyes, and saw how much she had so desired to be with him, how much she had missed him.

Ziva sat straight up on Tony and gently pulled her shirt off, exposing her breasts to Tony, smiling at him. She then laid back down on top of him, and whispered into his ear, "Make love to me, Tony."

Tony smiled as he whispered to her, "With pleasure. How I miss you." His voice came out with a slight catch in it. "I feel alive, again, with you in my arms again. It's been far too long."

Ziva chuckled and nodded her head as she put a finger on Tony's lips. "Way too long. Be quiet and touch me, feel me, make love to me." She bent down over Tony and gave him a full-on passionate kiss.

After a few moments, Tony broke for air, and after he took a deep breath, he said, "I love you, my sweetcheeks." He adjusted her position on top of him, and let his manhood enter her.

A bolt of pleasure shot through Ziva's body as she moaned. "Oh, Tony! I love you too!"

It seemed as the lovemaking took only minutes, but time had melted away into darkness as they spent their night together in bed, exploring the depths of their love for each other, before finally succumbing to sleep.

Ziva's eyes snapped open as she heard knocking on the door, then a faint "Ima!" calling through the door, then the knob being tried. She flicked her eyes over to the clock, which read just after six in the morning. She turned over to Tony and prodded him awake. "Tony? Kids are up now," she muttered as she sat up on the bed.

Tony let out a snort as he started himself awake. "But we just fell asleep not a long time ago?" he asked, a puzzled sound in his voice.

Ziva looked at Tony and smirked at him. "Well, your knee needed some attention last night, apparently. Let's get cleaned up before the kids break the door down," she said, before getting up and heading over to the bathroom.

Tony watched Ziva walk over to the bathroom, then reached out for her, just missing her. "Let's have some more fun," Tony whispered flirtingly to Ziva.

Ziva chuckled. "Maybe later," she said. "If you're a good boy today."

Tony chuckled. "Soon as we get cleaned up, I'll help with the kids."

Ziva smiled as she reached the bathroom door and looked back at Tony. "Sounds like a good plan."

~~A/N: Dear Readers, This is in around the time frame of season 17 on NCIS, aftermath of the time Sahar was killed. So this is Tiva reunion on this AU. There will be more chapters to come. Thank you for the reviews, tweets, messages, and kudos.