Chapter 39, Changes and Choices: 2053 – 2056
Abby flew east for Christmas 2052, to be with her NCIS family for the holiday. Tony and Ziva picked her up at Dulles on 21 December and took her to their house. Tim, Jimmy and Breena came over for dinner and the six friends stayed up most of the night talking and reminiscing.
On Sunday, the twenty second, they decorated the house for Christmas, putting up the tree and stockings. Abby hung Leon's stocking with the others who had passed and wiped tears from her eyes. At sundown, Tony began the Chanukah prayers as Ziva lit the shammus candle. They let Abby light the other eight candles. At dinner, she remarked on how the prayers and lighting of the candles had brought her peace. Ziva smiled at Tony, and hugged Abby.
The whole family had Christmas dinner at the DiNozzo house, and Tim set up a Skype call with Jared and Tori after the main meal. Abby watched as her grandchildren and great-grandchildren opened their gifts. A chorus of "We miss you, Granny," had Abby in tears again. Tim put a hand on her shoulder and squeezed lightly.
"I'll be home in three days," Abby promised the grandkids. "I will see you soon."
Later that night, as just Tony, Ziva, Tim and Abby were left in the house, Abby got quiet. Ziva sat next to her sister and put an arm around her. "What is it Abby? Can we help?"
"I don't know Ziva. I came back east thinking I might move here to be with my sisters and brothers, but my family is in New Mexico and San Diego. The kids missing me hit home." Abby had tears in her eyes.
"Go with your heart, Abby." Ziva hugged her sister, and Tony and Tim agreed. "If your heart says home is in Albuquerque, then that is where you need to be."
~TIVA~
In mid 2053, Rivka was promoted to a corporate position with the bank she worked for and the family moved to suburban Baltimore. John was offered an associate professor position at Johns Hopkins University. They moved into their new home over the Fourth of July weekend. Ziva and Tony were happy to have all of their children nearby and Tim also was glad to have all of his family close again.
In mid June, Abby had flown east with sixteen year old Jackie Vance, who was attending a summer program for high school juniors at Georgetown University. Levi was in the same program, and he and Jackie became fast friends. Jackie was staying with Tony and Ziva, and Levi began spending his time at his grandparents' house when not in classes. By August and the end of the summer program, the two were inseparable.
When Tony and Ziva took Jackie to the airport to fly home, Levi went along. Tony and Ziva discreetly gave Levi and Jackie some space and time to say goodbye. They promised to Skype each other and Levi gave her a peck on the lips. She kissed him back and both Tony and Ziva smiled at the young love.
~TIVA~
2053 blended into 2054 and then into 2055. Levi had been accepted at Georgetown as had Jackie. Ziva helped Tali plan the graduation party for Levi. They were all proud of Levi, who was valedictorian of his class of four hundred and seven students. With all of the family at the graduation, Levi had thirty five guests and his classmates commented that he had the largest "cheering" section of them all. Tali and Chaim got to stand on the stage with the principal to present Levi's diploma. Levi's valedictory speech had a family theme and he specifically thanked his immediate family as well as his Saba and Savta, and Grandpa Gibbs. He told the story of how Gibbs made a family and how he was very proud to be a part of the family of the heart. Ziva, Tony and Tim had tears running down their faces. Ziva was between Tim and Tony and took each of their hands in hers. The three sat with their hands linked for most of Levi's speech.
Lots of pictures were taken and Ziva and Tony's house was full of family celebrating. Levi got on a Skype call with Jackie at her party and the two made plans for Levi to meet Jackie at the airport when she flew in for the beginning of freshman orientation in six weeks.
~TIVA~
By Christmas, Levi and Jackie were constant companions, and he gave her a promise ring for Christmas. Abby, Jared and Tori were on Skype as he presented it to her. Parents and grandparents congratulated the two and Ziva whispered to Tony, "So the next generation of our family is again intertwining the branches."
Tony and Ziva flew to Israel three days after Christmas and spent their anniversary and the next two months in the farmhouse. On their anniversary, they had dinner in the olive grove, at their special place. They had put a marker in the grove the last time they were there, but out of habit, counted the trees and rows. The olive chicken was made with olives from their olive trees, and the wine was from a local vineyard. As usual, they ate dinner on the picnic blanket under the stars. Even though they had both slowed down with age, when they headed back to the house hand in hand, each walked with a quicker step in anticipation of the time to be spent intimately.
As they cuddled later, Ziva remarked on the young love of Levi and Jackie. "Remember when we were first together and we were not sure of why or how we were drawn to each other? I am so glad Levi and Jackie are able to acknowledge their feelings."
"Ziva, our journey together is ours alone. Thirty nine years ago, we pledged our lives to each other and made it official. However, we were one for so much longer. Even in 2005, I loved you. Fifty years; that's how long I have loved you." Tony wiped a tear from Ziva's face as he kissed her. "Ziva, I will be one with you for eternity."
Ziva smiled and wiped the tears from Tony's face. "You are a part of me, and I am a part of you. You know, when I first came to NCIS, I did not expect to live past my thirtieth birthday. You changed all that by loving me and being my best friend, my partner and my forever love." She leaned her forehead against Tony's and caressed his face as he caressed hers. "We are and always will be one. I love you so, so much, Tony."
One reason Tony and Ziva liked going to Israel for the winter months was the lack of snow and cold weather. While the temperatures in Israel were generally in the sixties during the day and forties at night, it was much better than the cold of the DC winters. When a blizzard hit DC on the last weekend of January, they were very glad to be in warmer weather. It took them four days to get hold of family to check on everyone. Most of the DC area had at least part of a day without power, and LJ and Savannah had been without power for three days. LJ had packed the family into his four wheel drive truck and taken them to his parents' house, knowing there was a generator to provide electricity. Levi and Jackie had shown up after their apartment lost power.
Tim had power the whole time and he and Sherlock and Watson blogged about the storm and Tim posted pictures of the cats looking out the windows at the snow. When Tony and Ziva saw the pictures, both remembered Ziva's first winter in DC and the snowman incident. They laughed about it yet again, and Tony reminded her about cuddling afterward in his apartment and watching a movie together. He asked her if she remembered the movie that they had watched. Without hesitation, Ziva replied, "Goldfinger."
When Tony looked at her in amazement, Ziva smirked at him, "Did you think I would not remember? It was time shared with you; of course I remember it." She brushed her lips on his and locked her gaze with his eyes. He fused his lips to hers and drew her to him. Kisses became more passionate and Ziva took Tony's hand and led him to the bedroom. Even after all these years they still wanted the physical contact and intimacy.
~TIVA~
Levi proposed to Jackie in the DiNozzo backyard at the family Labor Day picnic. Ziva and Tali were teary eyed, and Tali asked her Ima if she had felt that teary when she and Chaim got engaged. Ziva nodded yes, but then shared with Tali that her Abba had been the one to cry the most. He didn't want to lose his little girl. Tali smiled and understood. The first one to leave the nest of home was the hardest of all.
Abby, Jared and Tori shared the moment via Skype. Levi had asked Uncle Tim to set up the call to Jackie's parents' house, knowing her Granny (his Auntie Abby) would be there for the holiday. Tori and Abby wiped away tears as Jackie and Levi showed them the ring. "Ziva, give them hugs from me," Abby asked her sister.
"I will give them hugs, but they will not be Abby hugs," Ziva smiled at her sister through her tears of joy. Tony and Tim laughed, and Tali responded, "They'll have to wait for Auntie Abby hugs until the wedding!"
Levi pretended to back away, and then opened his arms, "Auntie Abby, you can hug me any time!" Everyone laughed as Ziva wrapped her arms around Levi, and he pretended to gasp. "Air, Savta, air!" Ziva hugged Jackie, "welcome to the DiNozzo family."
~TIVA~
Thanksgiving 2056 was subdued and more reflective than usual. Tali, Chaim, Levi, Jackie, Elijah, Noah and Elisheva all flew to Israel on the Monday before Thanksgiving. Chaim's father had a heart attack and then a stroke and was not expected to survive the week. Tali called Ziva on Thanksgiving Day to let her know that her father-in-law had passed that morning. He had been in and out of consciousness, but Chaim had a chance to say his good byes. The children would be flying home on Sunday, but Chaim was staying to sit Shiva with his mother and sisters. Tali would be staying for Chaim.
Tony and Ziva picked the five young people up at the airport on Sunday evening. Levi and Jackie drove back to their apartment from the Rubin house, and Tony and Ziva stayed with their grandchildren until Tali and Chaim returned a week later.
~TIVA~
Christmas at the DiNozzo house was the usual mayhem with children and grandchildren opening presents, Tim videoing it all and Tony and Ziva enjoying the sounds of their family together. The Skype call to New Mexico lasted nearly two hours. Ziva had hoped Abby would fly east for the holiday, but she had been suffering from dizzy spells since early fall, and her doctor would not clear her to travel. Jared and Tori had shared that they were trying to get Abby to move closer to them, but so far she had resisted. She did not want to leave the home she had built with Leon, saying all her memories were there.
~TIVA~
Tony and Ziva spent their anniversary and January and February in Israel as had become their custom. The dry air of Israel was more comfortable in winter than the cold air of DC. They had their traditional meal of olive chicken in the olive grove for both their anniversary and Valentine's Day. There had been a cold wind that night and Tony caught a cold. The cold turned into bronchitis and Ziva had to take him to the ER in Tel Aviv. He spent three nights in the hospital, on oxygen and antibiotics, to nip the beginnings of pneumonia and keep him breathing. Ziva spent the entire time by his side, calling and texting updates to her children in DC. Tali offered to fly over, but Ziva talked her out of coming. The hospitalization was more preventative and precautionary given Tony's history. Once given the clearance to fly, they headed home to DC.
A week after they arrived stateside, Tori called Ziva, worried about Abby. She had gone to visit her mother-in-law and found her on the floor in her kitchen. She had fallen that morning and broken her hip. Abby at first did not want to have surgery, telling Tori that she was ready to go to Leon. Jared and Tori sat with her and convinced her that she still had to go to Levi and Jackie's wedding. Abby agreed to the surgery, but was not very happy about spending time in rehab.
Tony and Ziva decided to fly to New Mexico and surprise Abby for her birthday, and Tim agreed to go with them. They arrived in Albuquerque on 26 March, the day before Abby's birthday. Ziva had let Tori and Jared know of the plans and Jared picked them up at the airport. He took them to Abby's house and handed Tony the keys to the house and to the car. He helped them settle into the two guest rooms, and programmed the address of the rehab center into the GPS in the car. He and Tori, with their three children still at home, would meet them at the rehab center the following day with a birthday cake. They had cleared the small party with the center.
Tori led them to Abby's room, entering first and telling Abby that they had a surprise for her. Jared walked in with the cake, helped by Patrick, Ashley and Andrea. Abby was glad to see her grandchildren, and as she hugged each one, Tori smiled. "We have another surprise for you."
Tony and Ziva walked in hand in hand, followed by Tim. Abby squealed as only she could and hugged her brothers and sister with tears in her eyes. "Happy birthday, Abby." Each one greeted their sister. Abby smiled at her wonderful birthday surprise. Tori later told her aunt and uncles that day had been the happiest and liveliest she had seen Abby in weeks.
"Then I am glad we came," Ziva replied as she hugged Tori. "We will be heading back to DC on the thirtieth, but we will visit each day to cheer her up." Tony and Tim nodded their agreement.
~TIVA~
Levi and Jackie were married in a ceremony performed by their Uncle Jimmy in the DiNozzo backyard on 31 July 2057. Tori and Jared flew to DC with their three younger children and Abby. Tali and Tori hugged and cried together as each watched her eldest make his or her vows. Later they reminisced and shared memories from when they were children with the family, how they had been the two oldest of the Gibbs' grandchildren. They shared memories of Grandpa Gibbs with their cousins and siblings joining in to tell stories of when they were children, including when Anthony had been scared by the lightning at the cabin and his hair all stood on end.