Chapter 2 – Travelers and Surprises UPDATED
London, January 2020. Abigail Sciuto is glued to the phone. Surely, Tony will have some news by now. Why has he not called her yet? She has been staring at her phone since New Year's. That is, she has looked at it more than the past year. Ever since she visited Tony almost two years ago, she has been praying, worrying about Tony and Tali and, not in the least, unnerved and on edge about the secret Tony entrusted to her and only her.
Paris, June 2018. Abby has made a huge life changing decision. After her newest best friend, Clayton Reeves, was killed protecting her from a shooter, Abby hung up her forensic scientist lab coat to pursue Clayton's dream of starting a non-profit housing project for homeless single parents. Clayton had lost his mother at a very young age. Abby had lost several of her coworkers at NCIS, including Kate Todd, Jenny Shephard, several agents when the Navy Yard was bombed, several others and Ziva David. Before moving to London, Abby desperately wanted to visit her best friend Tony DiNozzo who had left NCIS two years prior.
Tali is outside playing in the courtyard. Tony is happy to have Abby for company albeit under the sad circumstances of Reeves' death. He walks into the living room with a tray of goodies. "Your desk keeps buzzing, Tony," Abby probes as she tries to open the bottom drawer. "Oh, that's an old phone," Tony dismisses, but he quickly opens the drawer and the lockbox inside it. He pockets the phone conspicuously and says, "I'll be right back." He walks to the master suite leaving a suspicious look on Abby's face.
Tony returns just as Tali runs in all messy and hot from the dawning of continental summer. « Aba, qui était au téléphone ? »[1] Tony quickly switches the two phones in his pockets. « Personne. Tu veux boire quelque chose ? »[2] The four-year-old giggles as her father picks her up and she rubs her sweaty face on his stubbly chin. Abby watches in delight, glad that, unlike her, Tony does have someone to hold and treasure who reminds him of the loved one he lost. She joins them in the kitchen and says, "Does it hurt to see so much of Ziva in her, knowing she'll never see that?" Tony remains silent for a while. Then Tali, who quickly swallowed her drink, chimes in, « Imah nous reviendra après le travail. Sa mission pourrait prendre très, très longtemps. »[3] Tony's jaw drops. Abby looks at him incredulously as she reprimands him, "You told Tali what?!"
The first year, Tony had told Tali about Ziva's absence as if it were a mission. Lately, he had told Tali all about her mother, but nothing about the past two years. His father reminded him of how children's memories can be stronger than one thinks. So, Tony had decided to avoid the topic of Ziva's fate. Of course, he told his father that he felt Tali was not ready to deal with her mother's death. Junior did not trust Senior with this delicate information, and rightfully so. At present, facing Abby, Tony realizes that Tali may have an even better memory than either man had anticipated. Moreover, Tony suddenly feels the enormous urge to confide in Abby about the true events surrounding the mortar attack on Ziva's residence. But it is too risky to talk here, in the open, with Tali here, and their whole life in the balance. He feigns a remorseful expression and whispers, "It was not my intention to lie, but she is not ready."
When they drop Abby off at the airport, Tony suggests meeting in Amsterdam at the end of the summer, so they can "meet halfway and both have a few days vacation." Abby agrees. She swoops Tali into the air and tells her she cannot wait to spend more time with her 'niece'. Tali looks at her aba for a second. He nods. « Moi aussi, tante Abby. »[4]
November 2018. It is in Amsterdam that Tony discloses to Abby the truth about the lockbox phone. Under cover of the growing number of holiday events, Tony tells her that Ziva had used the mortar attack to fake her death. Equipped with hot drinks, they sit down on a wooden bench in a gated park surrounded by pigeons while Tali is playing in the sandbox. The air is crisp, but well above freezing point. Tony informs Abby that Ziva has spent over five years trying to identify and evade bounty hunters and the anonymous person who put the bounty on her head. "But please, do not look into this. Ziva assured me that these people will stop at nothing and she and I will not risk anybody to die for this." Of course, Abby has a million questions. Regrettably, Tony can only answer a few, because ever since he had successfully tracked down Ziva after the mortar attack, Ziva had kept him mostly out of the loop. And he had agreed to lay low for the safety of Tali. Abby swears she will do anything to protect her surrogate niece, and her father, one of her very best friends.
London, January 2020. "Abby speaking!" "Hey Abs, it's …" "Is she there? Is it over?!" Silence. Loud swallowing. "Ziva is coming home in two days," Tony says through his tears and then sobs. Tali jumps up and down audibly as she yells, "We made a video for imah, tante Abs!" "That is the best damn news in years," Abby exclaims almost in her old happy-go-lucky voice. How she would have loved to hop a plane and be there right away. Unfortunately, her newfound passion in London, can also be a hinderance. Abby is too busy with the shelter, both with daily operations and with constantly having to advocate and raise funds. Abby is glad that she, at the very least, was able to help put Tony and Tali up in a safe house when Ziva had told them to for the time being. This emotional phone call from Tony assures Abby that they no longer need to be in hiding.
טוני זיוה
Paris, February 2020. Ziva stifles another yawn, looks from Tony to Abby and asks, "So when was the last time you saw each other?" Abby wavers as she guesses, "About half a year ago?" "Sounds about right. Yes, Tali's birthday," Tony says as he squeezes Ziva's hand. Clarity and joy at the memory play on Abby's face, "Oh yeah, in the Netherlands. We took her to a theme park." Ziva looks disapprovingly at Tony complete with her familiar thin and narrow pursing lips, narrowing mouth. She raises the inner ends of her full and dark eyebrows, "You took our five-year-old to a theme park?" Cowering a little, Tony smiles and says, "Nothing like Disney World or so. There are a few rides, but most of it is dedicated to fairy tales and story displays." Ziva's expression softens as she sinks back into the soft pile of pillows. Fatigue helping her to leave the subject be. Relieved, Tony notices her swallowing away the twentieth yawn of the night.
They had had a few long days and nights talking, stealing couple's time, and wrestling Tali in the smallish master bed. As they were finally getting ready for bed, the phone rang and there was a gentle knock on the door. Leave it to Abby to arrive unannounced at the crack of midnight. Abby's ceaseless energetic personality persuaded Ziva to sit and talk some more. Ziva deflected Tony's concerned reminders of time, making an excuse of the two baskets of laundry she had been meaning to fold for two days. Abby wanted to hear all about Ziva's wellbeing and the events of the past few months. Luckily for Ziva, Tony encouraged Abby to tell her about Clayton's home for young families instead.
"So, what made you meet in the Netherlands?" Ziva asks curiously. Tony explains it was easy to get to from both London and Paris. Usually they would meet in Amsterdam. "But the park is even easier to get to. And Tali loved it sooo much!"
When Tali arrives downstairs the next day, she jumps for joy at the sight of Tante Abby. Only after a tumultuous embrace and their now signature little dance off and fist bumps, does the Mediterranean little beauty notice the decorations in the living room and dining room. Her eyes grow enormous as her throat prepares to let out an even bigger yelp of joy. "Shh," Abby quiets her just in time, "Let's wait for imah and aba to come down by themselves." But not ten minutes later, Abby says to her hopping, bouncing, and dancing niece, "Ok, I can't wait any longer. Let's go wake them up."
Tony inches down the stairs holding Tali while she is covering his eyes. Immediately following them are Ziva and Abby, who has her hands pressed against Ziva's eyes. Both Tony and Ziva have learnt over the years to simply go along with Abby's methods, as well as her surprises. And Tali has quickly taught her parents not to question her on that front either. When the couple is positioned facing the two decorated rooms, Tali exclaims at the top of her lungs: "Happy Valentine's Day, imah ve-aba!" Tony and Ziva start glowing as they take in the view. Both rooms are filled with banners, balloons, candles, stuffed animals and sweet treats. Tony shakes his head wondering where Abby has obtained all these items, and moreover how she could have brought them in unnoticed. Then, at the sight of two pairs of eyes full of anticipation, he turns to Ziva. They briefly look tenderly into each other's eyes. Then, Tony cups her cheeks with his hands and kisses her passionately. She reciprocates without delay pulling his hips against her, causing Tali to giggle softly, and Abby to let out a loud sigh of joy.
They spend the day eating too many cakes and pastries, fervently enjoying the time spent with each other. Abby had protested that she should take Tali out, but Tony had convinced her that Tali needed to be part of the love and joy her parents can now openly share, and that she has already missed her mother for too long. So, they break out the ice cream and soft drinks, skip every meal and play games all day long. Ziva gets her first taste of Twister and Tony and Tali teach Abby a Jewish game they learned. Towards the evening, Tony turns the living room into a theatre, with cushions on the floor for Tali. The first screening is that of Disney's Lady and the Tramp. Tali keeps turning around to see if her parents kiss whenever the dogs do and squeals in delight when they do during the restaurant scene. When Abby carries the sleeping girl up to bed, she whispers to Tony that she too will retire to bed.
Tony takes advantage of Ziva's short absence to quickly turn the living room into a more romantic scene. In his younger days, this was his specialty. Many a woman had been taken in by his marvelous ability to transform his date's living room into a sanctuary. When Ziva returns, there are countless candles burning all around the room, sending an aroma of irises, lilies and pomegranate to embrace her. Tony stands up as she enters the room. He gently takes her hand, kisses it and leads her to the sofa. She sits down with a mysterious smile fluttering over her face. Tony pulls up a footrest and lifts her feet into his lap. As he massages her tired feet, he inquires, "What would you like to drink or eat?" Blissfully Ziva declines, still full of all the treats, "Although, I would love some jasmine tea." He takes his time to finish rubbing in the orange scented oil. Before he leaves to make the tea, Tony ensures his ninja is comfortable, bringing her a blanket and an extra pillow.
The second screening of the night is Body Heat. Ziva remembers Tony telling her that it is his favourite sex movie. At that point, they knew each other less than a year, and they were trapped in a 40-foot sea container during a mission. That evening she had cooked him a meal for the first time, as an apology for not inviting him over with all their direct coworkers the previous night. Despite their intimate encounter while undercover earlier that first year, she had felt reluctant to let him in, afraid to trust him. They had had a platonic, sometimes inimical relationship. Of course, that had changed at the start of their second year working together, when Tony suddenly got the role of interim team leader. Their off-work friendship had quickly bloomed into a more intense relationship, only to be interrupted by his deep undercover mission, her failure to understand his feelings for the object of his mission, Jeanne, and the death of her friend, his mentor, NCIS director Jenny Shepherd. After that, they had both dated several people. Yet, thinking back to all the things that formed their relationship, Ziva can think of only a handful of things she might have done differently.
The film they both know so well by now, plays on in the background. The last hour of Valentine's Day passes as their most intense part of the Hallmark holiday of love. Another 'first' in their book as a family. The footstool certainly does more heavy lifting that night than ever before.
[1] French for "Aba, who was on the phone?"
[2] French for "Nobody. Do you want something to drink?"
[3] French for "Imah is coming back to us after the work. Her mission could take really, really long."
[4] French for "Me neither, Aunt Abby."
Chapter unfinished: more to come soon