"All right Small Fry, wanna run through it again?" Tony asked Tali.
Tali shook her head. Her little curls bounced.
"We got it," she said, confidence oozing out of her.
Nerves twisted in Tony's gut. He could not screw this up.
"Can I see the ring?" Tali asked. "Please."
Tony reached into his pant pocket and pulled out a familiar velvet box.
Tali's eyes lit up.
Diamonds were his little girl's best friend.
"Careful," he warned, as he handed Tali the box.
It was early December, Paris was grey and cold, but inside the apartment, it was bright. Each day of the previous week, Tony had come home with a new bunch of flowers for Ziva, wanting to bring some colour into their little apartment.
Each time he presented Ziva with her flowers, a smile would light up her whole face.
Winter was hard for her sometimes. She did not do well with the short days.
Tali opened the ring box carefully, and studied the ring.
"It's really pretty," Tali said. "The prettiest ring ever."
It would look beautiful on Ziva's finger.
"It is," he said. "It used to be my Moms."
He thought of all those times he had laid next to his Mom in bed, when she was sick. Her fingers had shrunk and the rings were loose. He spent hours fiddling with the rings while she slept. He would listen to each breath, grateful for just one more.
He was only eight he needed his mother. It seemed so cruel to take her away.
"Really?" Tali asked, excitement filling her voice.
Tali got so excited when Tony told her about his mother. She was desperate for stories of those who made her parents who they were.
"Yeah," he said. "I was surprised Pop-Pop kept it all these years. It's been a long time."
He was also surprised that Senior had never used it for any of the other wives or almost wives.
This was always her ring, Senior had explained when he gave it to Tony during his cut-short visit. I could never give it to anyone else.
The minute I met Ziva, I hoped she would wear this one day. I didn't think it would take a decade, but here we are, Senior had said as they drunk coffee in a crowded cafe. It belongs on her finger.
Oh how, Tony missed crowded cafes.
And his Dad. Skype was just not the same.
"Won't Ima want something new?" Tali asked.
Tony had thought about buying something new, but he wanted Ziva to have something with a story. To show her that no matter what their history, they would work through it together.
Their past was a part of them, but it did not define their future.
"No," he said. "Ima likes history. Remember all those museums we went to on our vacation."
Tali rolled her eyes.
Tony felt a warmth wash over him as he remembered their trip. He remembered Tali's squeals of delight as they ran into the ocean. He remembered the smile on Ziva's face when he appeared from his walk with ice creams for his favourite girls. He remembered Ziva's big floppy hat and huge sunglasses, and how she looked like a movie star when they took the train over the border to Italy.
Those memories would sustain him during what promised to be a grey and cold winter.
"It should be illegal to go to a museum two days in a row," Tali said.
Tony laughed. Ziva had already made a list of museums that she would be taking Tali too once they moved back to the states. Maybe, Tali would grow to love museums.
Tali closed the box, and handed it back to Tony.
"Daddy," Tali said, as she looked toward the door. Ziva was due home in ten minutes. Then it would be show time. "Why are you asking Ima now?"
Tony frowned.
"Because I love her," he said. "And, I know she loves me."
"I know that," Tali said. "But, we've had all of our birthdays together, Ima's been back home for a long time. Why are you only asking Ima now?"
Tony smirked. He'd been called out by his six year old.
He had been called out by his Dad during their last Skype session.
Even McGee had asked delicately over facetime, So, are you and Ziva going to get married?
Ziva had reminded him of her bare ring finger, as they enjoyed some time together while Tali was at school.
It was time.
"Did Pop-Pop ask you to ask that?" he asked.
Tali shook her head.
"Did Ima?" Tony asked.
Tali shook her head. More dramatically this time.
"I should have asked Ima a long time ago," he said, thinking of the olive grove. He should have stayed, no matter how many times she tried to send him away. "A very long time ago."
He had thought his job mattered to him then, but now he knew that his girls mattered so much more.
With the two of them he was home.
"Well, I'm six and a half," Tali said. "So yeah."
Tony stifled a laugh. This kid, his kid, was the funniest person he had ever known.
"Yeah," he said. "You know it was always my plan to propose to Ima, when she came back home to us."
Even after seeing his Dad treat marriage as disposable, and everything that happened with Wendy, Tony still believed in marriage.
He wanted to call Ziva his wife.
"Sometimes, I kinda forget she wasn't here for all that time," Tali interrupted, her voice getting soft. Her sad voice. "Then I remember, and I get sad."
Tony's chest ached. Tali had known too much pain in her short life.
He wanted to protect her from it all.
"I get sad sometimes too," Tony said delicately, "So, does Ima."
Tali nodded.
"We love you," he said. "You know that right."
"Yeah," Tali said, her face brighter now. "You haven't answered my question."
"What was your question again?" Tony asked, playing dumb.
"Why haven't you proposed to Ima, already?" Tali asked. "She's been home for ages."
Tony sucked in a deep breath.
"Well it's been a big year," he started. "We all had to get used to living with each other again, and Ima needed a little bit of help to fix herself up. Then we had that lockdown, do you remember that?"
"Of course I do," Tali said. "We got to watch movies everyday but we couldn't go out. Now we have to wear masks all the time."
There were talks of a second wave, every time there was a spike of cases. Tony did not want another lockdown.
"Yeah," he said. "There was a lot going on, and I wanted us to be all settled before I added another thing."
Tali frowned. She didn't get it.
"But, this is happy," Tali said.
"I know," he said, "but even happy things can be stressful. Just you wait until we plan this wedding."
"Ima says I can pick the cake," Tali declared.
He and Ziva were already calling Tali bridesmaidzilla, because she was much more invested in the details of the wedding than her parents.
"Yeah," he said. "You can."
A proposal had always been part of the plan. On those late nights, where Tali was asleep but he couldn't. Tony wanted to make up for all of the time they had lost. He would plan all the things he would say to Ziva, the minute she was back with them.
He had always had it in his head, that he would get on one knee, once Ziva had been home for a year. Once, they had found their new normal.
After their first Valentine's Day together, Tony had started to loosely plan a proposal for the following Valentine's Day. He had made sure that his Dad brought his Mom's ring on the transatlantic flight. When he had held the ring for the first time in forty years, he had known that it belonged on Ziva's finger.
Senior had said as much.
Then the global pandemic happened.
Then Tali jumped the gun, and forced them to talk about marriage. To his surprise, Ziva wanted to get married. He had thought he would have to convince her.
Then, they decided to try for another baby. Something that he had never thought was an option, but now wanted with his whole being.
Tony had woken up on the first day of December and decided that Ziva would have a ring on her finger before Christmas.
It was time.
They had wasted enough time, they could not afford to waste anymore.
"And, I get to wear a pretty dress," Tali said.
"Yeah," Tony said, as he fingered the ring in his pocket.
He knew Ziva's answer, but he was still nervous.
This needed to be perfect. Ziva deserved a proposal right out of a movie.
She deserved nice things.
"Daddy," Tali said again.
She had yet another question.
"Yes," he said, dragging out the word.
"When will the wedding be?" Tali asked.
"Well, Ima has to say yes first," Tony said.
"She'll say yes," Tali said.
He knew Tali had probably spilled the beans to Ziva during bedtime. They had been chatting about something very intensely the other day.
"How do you know that?" he asked.
"I just do," Tali said, looking at the floor. "She loves you, and you love her. So you get married."
"Okay," Tony said. "I hope you're right."
"So, when will you and Ima get married?" Tali asked.
"I dunno," he said.
"Tomorrow?" Tali asked.
Tony shook his head. He had looked into getting married in France, but it was too complicated.
He and Ziva had decided they wanted to do it in America. Surrounded by all the people they loved. All the people who had helped them along the way.
"No," Tony said. "Probably, when we go back to America. We would want Pop-Pop and all our friends to be there."
"When we go for spring vacation?" Tali asked.
There were tickets booked for April, for the first ten days of Tali's two week spring break. Providing there was no second lockdown they would be going.
"Probably not," he said, "We have a lot to do in those ten days."
They had to find a house, find a school for Tali, and Tony might even try to line up a couple of job interviews.
He had been content to slip back into law enforcement, perhaps getting a desk job among the pumpkin walls, but a night spent flicking through college buddies' LinkedIn profiles had inspired him to look into a different path. The laziest guy on his PhysEd course, now ran a disability sport organisation, after losing a leg in a motorcycle accident. One of the kids he coached had represented the USA in the Paralympics.
Tony and Ziva had Eli's blood money to sustain them, and could afford to take a lower paid job for the love of it.
Tony wanted to do something that helped people pick up the pieces and make something of the cards life had dealt them.
He also wanted to be home for dinner every single day.
Especially, if they ended up adding a high chair to the dining room.
"So, when we move back forever," Tali clarified.
Tony nodded.
Tali looked away from him. She was hot and cold about moving to the states.
She did not want to leave her friends, but she did like the idea of seeing her Pop-Pop more often.
"Yeah," he said. "Probably not until next summer at the earliest. Weddings take time to plan."
The wedding, when it eventually happened, would be the definition of low-key. Tony was partial to the idea of gathering all their favourite people together for another reason, and tacking a wedding on the end of it.
Ziva would be happy as long as they were married by a Rabbi.
"That's ages away," Tali whined.
Tony smiled.
Time had a way of expanding and contracting, all at the same time.
"It gives us lots of time to plan," he assured her. "Picking the cake is a big decision."
Tali nodded, and a smile dawned over her face.
"What happens after you get married?" Tali asked.
"What do you mean?" he asked.
"First comes love, then comes marriage, and then comes the baby carriage," Tali said. "That's how it goes."
Tony smiled, he and Ziva had always done things out of order.
"We already had the baby carriage," Tony said. "You're here."
Tali nodded.
"Flora's Dad got married again," Tali started. "And, she's getting a baby sister next year."
Tony's heart broke for Tali's school friend, whose parents had gone through a difficult divorce, and now lived on opposite sides of the channel. Tali's little friend had only seen her father on a screen for almost six months.
"Would you like to have a baby brother or sister?" Tony asked.
Tali shrugged.
"I don't like sharing," Tali said.
Tony stifled a laugh.
"I know," Tony retorted.
Sharing was a skill they were trying to work on. School had helped, but Tali's first instinct was not to share.
"But, I might be okay sharing you and Ima," Tali said. "As long as you still loved me."
Tony nodded,
"You are our favourite person in the whole wide world," Tony said, "We love you more than anything."
Love was a renewable resource. It was never divided. It only multiplied.
"Am I getting a brother or sister?" Tali asked.
"Not at this point," Tony said delicately. "But, maybe one day. If I could have another kid as cool as you, I'd be a happy Daddy."
"I want a sister," Tali said, "Boys are yucky."
Tony laughed.
He'd let Ziva know Tali's request.
They were in their second month of not preventing anything, and Tony and Ziva had spent a lot of the previous week in bed while Tali was at school.
It was just too cold to be outside to do anything, and the health authorities suggested avoiding crowds. So what were two people who loved each other very much to do
"You don't get to pick," he said. "It's a 50/50 chance, and it can go either way."
A quiet moment passed. The radiator hissed.
"You don't have any brothers or sisters," Tali said.
"No, I don't," Tony replied.
"And, Ima's sister died, that's why I'm called Tali," Tali continued. "For her."
"Yeah," Tony said softly. "Ima wanted to name you after somebody she loved very much."
"Do you wish you had a brother or sister?" Tali asked.
Tony sucked in a deep breath. The answer depended on the day. As a child there had been times when he wished for an older sibling to rely on, someone to explain why his Dad was like he was. Someone who was in his corner.
Other times he was glad it was just him, waiting for a car that never came.
"Sometimes," he said. "But, I've been really lucky. I've met some friends who I love like family."
Tali seemed satisfied with that answer.
"Like McUncle," Tali said.
It was one of the proudest moments of Tony's life when Tali called McGee, McUncle.
"Yes," Tony said. "Exactly."
He would give his life for Tim, and he knew Tim would do the same.
"Are we going to live in a big house, when we move to America?" Tali asked.
Tony thought of the real estate listings that he now scanned, while he drank his morning coffee, and the list of wants they had for the David-DiNozzo dream house.
Ziva wanted a place near a metro station, and she also wanted them to hold off on getting a second car. Tony knew that resolution would only last until the first snow fell. Still, he had focused the search to places that were a realistic walk to a metro stop on the red line. He had started following a blog that talked about the long-delayed purple line. He had become very invested in its stalled progress.
Tony wanted a space they could convert to a movie room, and a second bathroom.
Tali wanted a garden, so she could go outside everyday.
"Yeah," Tony said. "Probably not a big house, but definitely bigger than where we are now."
They were bursting at the seams of their little apartment.
"Is Pop-Pop going to live with us?" Tali asked. "You said we are moving to be near him."
"Pop-Pop has an apartment of his own," Tony said, thinking of Senior's tiny studio in a ugly high rise in Arlington. "And, we're not just moving to be close to him. McUncle and the twins live near D.C too, and Ellie. She's the lady who sent you all those books for your birthday."
There was also the Palmer spawn who was less than a year younger than Tali, Tony hoped those two would be fast friends once they were actually on the same continent.
"Are we going to have a garden?" Tali asked.
"Yeah," he said. "Probably."
All of the houses he had looked at had at least a patch of grass out the back. Ziva had started talking about growing vegetables and herbs. It turned out she had quite the green thumb.
"Can we get a puppy?" Tali asked. "Or even a big dog who needs a new home. I would help look after it."
Tony wondered if Tali would prefer a puppy over a sibling.
"Maybe," Tony said carefully. "It's a big decision that the three of us would have to make carefully."
"Ima wants a dog," Tali said. "Ima likes dogs."
"I know," Tony said.
He made a show of checking his watch.
"Ima,will be home soon," he announced.
Ziva had been sent out on an errand. They needed food.
Tony's phone buzzed, a message from Senior.
Calling Ziva now.
Senior had been employed in the plan, he was to call Ziva, to buy Tony ten minutes to get everything ready.
"I want to do one more dress rehearsal," Tony said. "This is a big deal, I want it to be perfect."
Tali pulled herself up, and ran her hands down her dress. It was a red velvet dress, brought the same day Ziva brought her opera dress, because Tali wanted something new.
"First, I tell Ima that she needs to get changed because we're playing dress up," Tali said. "Then when we come out, I tell her I want to show her my pictures because we're playing art gallery."
Tony nodded.
Tali picked up the paper that was laying face down on the couch.
"And then, I show her the pictures, there's five of them, but I have to show them in order, because each of them have a different word," Tali said. "It has to be in order."
Tali arranged the cards on the couch, in order.
"Let's practice with the cards," Tony said.
Tali nodded.
Tali moved the first card from the couch and rested it on the three dining chairs that had been placed together in front of the table, to serve as a ledge to display the art. One by one the poster sized cards were moved from the couch, turned them over to display the word, and put on the ledge. Each poster only had one word, and at least four of Tali's unevenly drawn hearts drawn on it.
IMA
WILL
YOU
MARRY
DADDY?
"Now, you practice your bit, Daddy," Tali commanded.
Tony lowered herself onto one knee, and pulled the ring box from his pocket.
Tali clapped her hands together, and bounced excitedly.
Tony's phone buzzed again.
Ziva's on her way.
"Okay kid," Tony said, as he rushed to put the cards away. "Ima's on her way. Remember, we've got to act normal."
Tali nodded.
Sweat ran down Tony's back.
His dress shirt was too tight, and his heart was in his chest.
It was game time.
The door of the apartment opened, and Ziva appeared draped in her huge winter coat. Her scarf was wrapped up to her nose, and a canvas shopping bag hanging off her shoulder.
"What is all of this?" Ziva asked, with an eyebrow raised.
"We're playing," Tali announced.
Tony moved across the living area to collect the groceries.
"In your nice clothes," Ziva said, "Daddy rather likes his sweatpants, especially when it is this cold."
Tony bit his tongue. Ziva had lived in exercise leggings during lockdown, but had only exercised for an hour a day.
Tony took the bag from Ziva's shoulders, and offered his arm for Ziva so she could take off her shoes. She hung up her scarf and coat, and unzipped her boots.
"Well, we haven't had a lot of chances to dress fancy this year," he said. "I wanted to get my fancy clothes out. It's a miracle they still fit."
He patted his belly for emphasis. Cooking had been Ziva's coping mechanism during the was more than happy to sample her culinary creations.
Ziva smiled. Her nose was red from the cold weather.
"No, we have not," she said. "If I had known we were dressing up, I would have gotten something much more fancy for dinner."
Tony peaked in the bag and saw the ingredients for risotto. Risotto was one of Tali's favourite meals.
"I think we can make this fancy," he said, as he moved across the living area to the kitchen.
Ziva moved across the living room, heading toward the cards on the couch.
"No, Ima," Tali said. "You have to dress up too."
Ziva frowned and looked down at her outfit. She was wearing her black turtleneck and jeans. The outfit Tony liked to call her Parisian chic outfit.
"Is this not fancy enough?" Ziva asked, with a raised eyebrow.
"No," Tali said. "You have to wear your opera dress."
Tali loved the opera dress. She asked Ziva to wear it all the time.
"That is very fancy," Ziva said. She moved closer toward the cards. "What are these anyway?"
"Art," Tali said. "We're playing art gallery, and you have to dress up."
Ziva turned slightly, and looked at Tony with raised eyebrows.
She did not really have to dress up, Tony would propose to her in pyjamas. Tali had latched onto the idea that they had to dress up. Sometimes it was easier to let Tali run away with her ideas.
"And, it's opening night, so you've gotta dress up," Tony said, putting on his play voice. "Miss DiNozzo's shows are very exclusive."
Ziva looked back at the cards, her face scrunched up with confusion.
"Okay," she said. "Would you like to help me get dressed, Tali?"
Tali nodded, and took Ziva's hand. The two of them disappeared behind the bedroom door. Tali chattering away.
Tony put away the groceries, and used a handkerchief to wipe away the sweat on the back of his neck.
The apartment was suddenly unbearably hot
Tali's laugh travelled through the apartment.
"You look like a real life princess, Ima," Tali said. "The prettiest princess ever."
Tony reached his hand into his pocket, and played with the ring box.
He ran through everything he wanted to say. Things he had written down over the last year.
You are the best mother.
You are my home, as long as I'm with you okay. Not just okay, better than okay.
You make me want to be a better man.
It all makes so much more sense when I'm with you.
"Daddy," Tali said, as she appeared in the living area, her white tights poking out form her new dress. "You ready?"
Tony nodded.
He was as ready as he would ever be.
Tali rushed back into the bedroom, and then came back out with Ziva.
The blue dress was even more beautiful than the last time she had worn it. She had let her hair down, and curls fell down past her shoulders. Ziva had put just a little lipstick on, and wrapped a scarf around her shoulders.
"Welcome to the David-DiNozzo art gallery," Tony said as he took his place at one end of the lined up chairs. "Miss Tali DiNozzo, our artist in residence, is debuting her sequential art. It's important that you watch the display to understand the message she is trying to convey."
Ziva smiled. A huge smile that ran right up to her eyes.
"Miss DiNozzo are you ready?" Tony asked.
Tali nodded. Her little hands were shaking.
She picked up the first card.
IMA
Ziva bounced on the balls of her feet.
Tony nodded at Tali, she picked up the next card.
YOU
Tony's face flushed red.
Tali's eyes went wide.
"It's okay," he whispered, leaning close to Tali. "We'll fix it."
Ziva's hand moved to above her mouth. Hiding a slight smile. She had caught on.
WILL
Tony quickly swapped the YOU and WILL cards.
Ziva stepped closer to the cards.
"Is this what I think this is?" Ziva asked.
Tony pressed his finger to his lips.
"You can't rush the art," he said.
Tali put the next card up, and smiled a huge toothy grin.
MARRY
Ziva placed both her hands on her face, and her eyes went glassy.
"Oh, Tony," Ziva said. "This is what I think it is."
Tali put the final card up, and looked at Ziva expectantly.
DADDY?
Tony got down on one knee and pulled out the ring box.
"Ima, will you marry Daddy?" Tali read aloud, the words all running together.
"You know my answer," Ziva said.
Tali grabbed Tony's phone from the table, and started taking photos as instructed.
"You have to say it," he said.
"Yes," she said. "I will marry you."
Tony slid the ring onto Ziva's finger. It fit perfectly. He knew it would, because he got the ring resized for her.
"I had this whole speech planned," he said, looking up at her."l wanted to tell you how much I wanted to marry you. I wanted to say how you make me want to be a better man, and how it all makes sense when I'm with you. I wanted to say that even with everything we've put each other through, I'd do it all over again so we could be here now."
He couldn't live without her. He had told her as much over a decade ago.
"I know," Ziva said. "I have known for a long time."
"Me too," he said, as a tear slipped down his face. "I should have done this a long time ago."
"We have never had good timing," Ziva said, as happy tears fell down her face. "But, I know that for a long time I was looking for something permanent, and it was so much closer than I thought. You and Tali, you are my home. My something permanent."
"Yay," Tali said. "Ima said yes."
Ziva offered her hand to Tony so that he could get up.
He pulled himself up, ignoring the spasm in his back, and looked at her.
She wrapped her arms around him, pulling him close.
"This was perfect," she said, with a sniffle. "Much better than anything I could have imagined."
"I wanted to make it special," he said. "For all three of us."
If the last year had taught him anything, it was that they needed to hang onto these special moments.
"It was," Ziva said. "Tali is going to have impossible expectations."
"Good," he said, "I only want the best for her."
Tali rushed toward them, and wrapped her arms around both of her parents.
"I helped," Tali said.
"I know," Ziva said. "I bet you were a big help."
Tali nodded proudly.
"Couldn't have done this without you, kid," he said, patting Tali's head.
Tali smiled at him. A huge toothy smile.
Not quite an hour later a photo went out to all their favourite people. It was a selfie of the trio in their fancy clothes, Ziva's had over Tali's shoulder. The ring glistening in the winter sun. Tali got to write the message.
Ima and Daddy are getting married … finally.
A/N:
I don't own a thing.
Proposal scenes are hard to write. They are very visual. I wanted Tali to be involved, and the scene just grew from there. So, dear readers tell me what you thought.
Thank you so much for all the kind words, reviews and tweets. I am so behind in review replies. Please know that I really appreciate each kind word.
The next (and final) chapter will be an epilogue type chapter. I'm a little sad that this is nearly over.