Chapter Twenty - "Won't Give Up"

Tony sat the entire day trying to think of what Gibbs had said to them 'Ziva resigned, she's no longer an NCIS agent'. The part of him that was mad at her was happy that he didn't have to deal with her anymore, but the other part of him was so angry with her for giving up. He almost didn't really know how to deal with this all. Somehow he found himself outside Ziva's apartment. How he got there he wasn't really sure, all he knew was she never gave up her apartment when she left. He some how found himself driving towards her apartment when he was done with work and then up the stairs and at her door. When he finally realized where he was he took a deep breath and knocked on the door. He could hear footsteps coming to the door and then the door opened.

"Tony?" Ziva questioned.

"We need to talk?" Tony said as he walked past her and into her apartment without even getting a come in.

"I thought we had said everything that needed to be said " Ziva said as she closed the door and turned to face Tony.

"I thought I knew everything about you" Tony said to her. "I thought I had this all figured out."

"I am not sure what you are talking about" Ziva said to him as she walked away from the door and into her living room. Tony followed behind her.

"This isn't the Ziva I know. She wouldn't give up that easily." Tony said to her.

"That Ziva doesn't exist anymore" Ziva said to him.

"The Ziva I know would put up a fight. She wouldn't let anyone tell her no you can't that. She wouldn't let me get away with the things I have said and done." Tony said to her. "She would stick to what she wanted to and not let anyone take it from her. She would come back swinging. I expected more from you. I want more from you. I want the Ziva who wouldn't give a damn if I hated her."

"She..." Ziva said to say, but Tony interrupted her.

"I want the Ziva who would kick my ass for no good reason. The Ziva who could kill me 14 different ways with a paperclip, the Ziva who says plastic silverware is not as safe as one thinks. The Ziva who is the weapon and doesn't need one" Tony said to her. "She is the one I want. She is the one I love. "

"She disappeared the minute Matt walked into her life" Ziva snapped at him not meaning too. "He took that all from me."

"The don't let him win. He's gone and he's never coming back" Tony said to her. "Fight back, become the person I know you to be."

"I can't be" Ziva said to him. "That person is gone."

"Then what is this?" Tony questioned as he pulled the letter out of his pocket and showed it to Ziva. "Why write this and give it to me? Just so you can say things you don't mean?"

"I told you I wrote it before I left" Ziva said to him. "I should never have written it."

"You're telling me this is nothing, it meant nothing?" Tony questioned her.

"I didn't say that, I just said I shouldn't have wrote it" Ziva said to him. "I wrote it before I left the first time, so much had happened and all I wanted to do…. At the time I felt it needed to be said"

"Maybe it shouldn't have" Tony said to her.

"You confuse me Tony" Ziva said to him. "First you want me to say something and now you don't want me to say anything. What is it you expect from me?"

"I don't know" Tony answered her. "I expect so much and yet nothing at the same time. You do these things that drive me crazy and I don't know how to deal with it all."

"Then why are you here?" Ziva said to him.

"Because I'm not going to let you give up everything because of some idiot" Tony said to her.

"I am not giving everything up because of you" Ziva said to him.

"I'm not talking about me, I'm taking about Matt. You are letting him mess with your mind and take away everything you have worked so hard for." Tony told her. "I'm not going to sit by and let that happen. You fight and fight like hell."

"Fight for what" Ziva questioned.

"For your job, your place back in my life" Tony said to her. "Your rightful place at NCIS. You need to fight for that place."

"Do I still have a place?" Ziva questioned him.

"You do" Tony said to her. "Just fight for it" Tony said before walked away and heading out of her apartment.

"She's really gone isn't she" Abby said to Tim. She couldn't believe it was Gibbs came down and told her. She was hoping it was something else, something that wasn't thing.

"She is, but only from the NCIS" McGee said to her. He had come down with Gibbs to tell Abby and stay after Gibbs left. "She's still in D.C and she's not going anywhere."

"But it's not going to be a same. She is supposed to be here with us" Abby said to him. "I love Missy, but it's not the same."

"I know, but it is what it is now" McGee said to her. "We just need to be there for her now."

"Does she even want us to see her?" Abby questioned.

"I'm sure she does. Abby she knows we don't hate her. I am sure she wants to see us." McGee said to her. "Why don't we call her and see if she wants to go out to lunch later this week?"

"Okay" Abby said. "That sounds good."

"Things will be okay" McGee said.

"Isn't that mine line?" Abby questioned.

"I thought maybe you'd want to hear it for once instead of saying it" McGee said to her.

"I hope it true McGee" Abby said to him. McGee then moved closer to her and pulled her into a hug.

"Things will be okay" McGee said to her again, before pulling away. "Maybe it's better this way?"

"How can you say that McGee?" Abby said as he hit him in the arm.

"I remember the last time Tony and Ziva were fighting, she ended up leaving the team and we all ended up thinking she was dead" McGee said to her. "What's to say if she came back Tony would forgive her and thing would go back to the way they were?"

"Maybe Tony would forgive her once she was back" Abby said.

"I don't see that happening at least no any time soon" McGee said. "I mean for two years we were even allowed to say her name around him without setting him off."

"Oh yeah" Abby said. "Well I can hope right?"

"Yeah" McGee said.

"This almost seems to familiar Jethro" Ducky said as he walked down the stairs and into Gibbs's basement. Gibbs was sitting next to her workbench with a glass of scotch in his hand.

"Ducky" Gibbs said.

"Timothy told me about Ziva" Ducky said. "How are you holding up?"

"You know better then that Ducky" Gibbs said to him. "No matter what Ziva is still part of this team."

"I wouldn't see it any other way" Ducky said to him. "But I can't help but wonder why you aren't as mad at her like Tony is?"

"It's a different story there Ducky" Gibbs said to him. "Tony has his reasons and I have mine. I don't trust Ziva any less. I just want to see why she did thing all from her point of view."

"You have to remember Jethro the type of person he can be" Ducky said to her.

"I remember. I know who she can be too" Gibbs said to him. "Ziva, there is no one like her. And once she's made up her mind there is no changing it."

"Sounds like someone else I know" Ducky said.

"This is different" Gibbs said. "It's always been different with her."

"And why might that be?" Ducky asked.

"As I said before she earned my trust. She's a part of this team" Gibbs said to him "There's nothing else to tell"

It had only been about and hour after Tony had left and once again they were in this do they hate each other, love each other, want to tare each other heads off place. She wasn't really sure how they had left things, but she knew things couldn't get any worse then they already were, then again they most likely couldn't get any better either. Ziva then noticed the letter on the floor, the one she had written and given to Tony. She walked over and picked it up, that when she heard the knock on the door. She put the letter on the coffee table and walked over to the door. She expected to see Tony standing on the other side ready for round... well she didn't even know what round they were on, some much has happened. When she opened it she got a bitter surprise.

"Hello Ziva" Ziva stood there not sure how to react.