One-shot number 9 already!
I have to give a lot of credit to AliyahNCIS, my beta, for this piece. It wouldn't be as good without you.
Enjoy!
With a lily in your hand/I leave, o my night love!/Little widow of my single star/I find you./Tamer of dark butterflies!/I keep along my way./After a thousand years are gone/
you'll see me, o, my night love!
There were lilies on her desk. Why were there lilies on her desk? Who had sent them? Did they know that lilies were her favorite? All of these questions assaulted Ziva as she walked into work that morning. She walked into the squad room, where nothing else was unusual except for the bouquet of flowers. They smelled wonderful! She did not see a card, so she had no idea who had left them for her. The only person who would have sent them was….but no. It couldn't have been him. He had been gone for months. There was no way that he could have sent the beautiful flowers. But she wished he had. She missed him so much, and it seemed like an eternity until she would see him again.
She was still staring at the flowers when Gibbs and McGee arrived, both carrying a coffee. McGee had an extra cup in his hand. He sent it down carefully in front of her, and she grasped the white cup emblazoned with the familiar logo. She brought it to her face and inhaled, it was her favorite tea. She sipped the hot brew, watching her co-workers. They were standing by Gibbs' desk, exchanging whispers too quiet for her to hear.
"Are you two sharing secrets?" she asked the two men. McGee started, blushing, but Gibbs was as stoic as ever. McGee moved to his desk and Gibbs booted up his computer. Ziva glanced at her inbox and sighed, there was paperwork. She hated paperwork. It had piled up in recent months with the caseload they had received, not only murders but some robberies as well. The other team assigned to similar cases was in transition, as the leader had retired and there wasn't yet a replacement to take over his position, so Gibbs' team had picked up the slack.
She set to work, ignoring her teammates. They were now exchanging instant messages; she could hear the soft tones made as new messages appeared on their screens. They were up to something, Ziva knew, but what she had no idea. She had a gut feeling, as Gibbs would put it, that it had something to do with her. She also knew that she should be remembering something, but she could not figure out what it was. She mentally went over her morning to see if she had missed something. No, that was not it. She had not forgotten anything in her daily routine. No appointments had been missed, nothing was out of the ordinary. Ziva shook herself; she was getting worked up over nothing. She continued on with her work, wanting to leave early so she could go to the gym, just like she did every Thursday when they didn't have a case.
After a few hours, Ziva was brought out of the zone of her work when her own computer chimed. It was a message from Abby. The forensic scientist wanted to know if Ziva would join her for lunch, claiming it had been much too long since they had shared a meal. Ziva knew her friend was exaggerating; it had only been a week. She said as much in her reply, but agreed to go out and suggested a new Thai place she'd heard about but not tried yet. Abby came back with the order to meet her in ten minutes and tell Gibbs they would be back in an hour and a half, because Abby was taking her shopping.
Rising for her chair, Ziva told Gibbs she was leaving for lunch, and he just looked up and told her to be sure she returned in two hours or they would send out a search party, the cost of which would come out of her pay. Ziva shook her head as she grabbed her things and went toward the elevator. It seemed Gibbs would never let her forget the time she had been suffering through a day at work with the flu, determined not to miss anything. She had gone home for lunch and a short nap, and had been awoken four hours later by an unhappy and worried Gibbs. Since then he reminded her to always come back to work.
When the elevator dinged and the metal doors slid open, they revealed the happy Goth who was the resident forensics expert. Ziva stepped inside, and pushed the button for the lobby.
"So tell me about this Thai place," were the first words out of Abby's mouth when the doors were closed and the elevator started to descend.
"All I know is that the food is supposed to be good and the atmosphere is relaxing," Ziva replied, checking for her keys as she spoke.
"Who suggested it?" was the next question.
"My neighbor. She returned the favor after I suggested a better pizza place when her delivery came to my door, more than an hour late."
"Who gave you the lilies on your desk? They're nice."
"What is this, twenty questions? No, I do not know who sent them, there was no note."
"That's too bad. Someone, it seems, went to a lot of trouble to send you flowers at work."
"And I have no idea who."
"You will find out soon enough."
"How?"
"They will send more." Abby had a smug smile on her face, and Ziva wanted to elbow her for finding this so amusing. She wanted to know who the flowers were from so she could figure out how to react to them.
The elevator reached their destination floor, and the two women stepped out after the doors had opened.
"Can I drive with you?" Abby asked. "My hearse has a flat. Again."
"Yes, but I am driving."
"Your neighbor was right, that was delicious," Abby said, sitting back in her chair, having just eaten every morsel on her plate.
Ziva smiled. "I enjoyed it too. Now, you mentioned something about shopping? I would rather we just go back to work, I want to finish my paperwork."
Abby shook her head and crossed her arms across her chest. "Nuh-uh, missy. We are going shopping."
"But I do not need anything!" Ziva protested, leaning forward.
"Yes you do!" Abby shot back. "You wear the same clothes all the time! You never go out anymore with the rest of us. You need new pretty work clothes. You'll feel better."
"Abby, the only new clothes I need are workout clothes. I do not need resale therapy."
"C'mon, please? Can we at least go shoe shopping?" Abby pleaded.
Ziva glared at her friend and co-worker. It was hard to deny the younger woman anything. She could use some new boots….
"How did we get from only shoe shopping to three entire outfits?" asked the incredulous Ziva as they carried their purchases to Ziva's car.
"Oh c'mon Ziva, admit it, you had a good time. Those black slacks look like they were made for you, and that red scoop neck? You'll have to keep the men away with the stapler."
"Then why are you insisting I wear them back to the office? I looked just fine in my own clothes."
"Trust me, it'll be worth it. The confidence boost of new, pretty clothes will make your day better."
"Oh yes, the paperwork will be so impressed." Ziva replied sarcastically.
Changing the subject, Abby asked "When we get back to the Navy Yard, will you help me carry my stuff down to my lab?"
Ziva wasn't surprised Abby had asked for help. The forensic scientist had bought more than she had. "Sure Abby, but why not take the bags straight to your car?"
"I have a flat, remember? The dealer has my car to repair it; they said they would have it back here by the end of the day."
"I will take mine down too, I do not want them near my desk. They will be too distracting when I am trying to work."
"Sounds like a plan!" Abby said enthusiastically. "You can come down and grab them after work."
Back at the navy yard, Abby and Ziva had to get their new clothes in the building, through security, and into the elevator. Ziva let Abby explain in her bubbly way why they had to bring all these clothes into NCIS headquarters.
Down the elevator went, and then they were out of the elevator and carrying the bags to the lab.
It was all dark, she couldn't see a thing. Then, all at once, lights came on and many familiar voices said in unison, "Happy Birthday Ziva!"
Ziva could not believe what she was seeing. All her friends from NCIS were there: the team, other agents she had befriended over the years, Ducky and Palmer, the Director. Even Nicki Jardine, the germaphobe from Counter-Intelligence, had come. She saw Fornell off in a corner, grinning. Abby's lab was covered in streamers, and a banner hung from the ceiling which read HappyBirthdayZiva at the top in bright red and blue letters. Something was scrawled underneath it in handwriting she recognized as Gibbs':Whetheryoulikeitornot. Ziva had to smile and wonder why they did this in the same heartbeat. She did not realize she had spoken that question aloud until it was answered.
"Because that is what friends do," Abby said, coming and giving Ziva one of her trademark bear hugs.
"And it's what teams do," McGee added, standing behind Abby and smiling in his quiet way.
"Because you're ours now, my dear," continued Ducky, looking pleased.
"This is what family does," Gibbs said, standing next to McGee. Ziva could see the pride shining in his eyes.
"Because we love you Ziva, that's why."
The final words came from behind her, and for an instant, Ziva did not know who had spoken. Then she recognized the voice and her head told her that it couldn't be him, that it wasn't possible, but her heart said it was. When she turned there he stood, much as he had looked when he said goodbye months before, except his hair was longer and his skin was dark from so many weeks at sea, the same man she had missed so desperately, framed by the doorway into Abby's lab, holding a lily in his hands.
Dropping the bags, she ran toward him, no, she flew, her feet barely touching the ground. "Tony? Tony!" she cried as he caught her, his arms strong and comforting. She buried her face in his chest, he smelled so good, like Tide and soap and just a hint of his shaving cream. Ziva clung to him, and he held her tightly in return. He was home, at last.
Finally, she let go so she could look up into his eyes. They had not changed, they were still the same warm green she remembered. "Why did you not tell me you were coming home? That your deployment was over?"
Tony chuckled. "I did, Zee-vah. I reminded you in the last letter I sent. But we both know military mail is slow. I take it you haven't gotten it yet?"
Ziva blushed. "I have not been keeping track of the dates."
"I can tell. The calendar is two months behind. Did you even remember today was your birthday?"
Ziva shook her head, blushing harder. "I did not like the reminder of all the days between now and when you were coming home, so I stopped using the calendar."
"It's a good thing you did, because it allowed us to plan this little party."
"Us?" Ziva turned in his arms to see all of the gathered friends grinning back at them, letting her know she was the only one who had been unaware. She glared at them, and then felt Tony's left hand shift, and realized he was holding something in it. She reached behind her and gripped it, pulling forward the lily.
"That's for you. Do you remember how the day before I left I gave you a bouquet of 11 lilies and I promised you the last one when I came home? Well, here it is." He had a sheepish grin on his face and Ziva smiled at him. "Do you like it?" he asked softly. She stood on her on her toes and whispered, her mouth close to his.
"Yes."
Then she kissed him, for the first time in six months, and it was one of the best she had ever had. She became aware of comments being made behind them, and when they stopped, he whispered, "Let's give the peanut gallery something to comment on." When she nodded, he kissed her again, and then bent her backward in a dramatic kiss like out of one of his movies. When the whistles started, Tony straightened her up and released her, then plucked the lily from her fingers and placed it in her hair. She smiled at him, and they went to the crowd of happy people.
Abby got everyone's attention and announced that there was cake and other various party foods to be eaten, and there was a rush for the food. Ziva stood back, watching, when she felt one strong arm snake around her waist, the other holding a plate with a piece of cake in front of her. She took it from him, and he smiled at her and kissed her gently. "Happy birthday," he whispered.
"Welcome home," she whispered back. Ziva rested her head on his shoulder. They stood like that for a moment, and she knew he was just about to kiss her again when she felt a hand make contact with the back of her head.
"Just because you two are married and he just got back from six months as agent afloat doesn't mean that you two get a free pass in the office. Don't let me see either of you until Monday after Abby lets us leave," Gibbs told them, and Ziva could hear him trying not to smile.
With a lily in your hand/I leave, o my night love!/Little widow of my single star/I find you./Tamer of dark butterflies!/I keep along my way./After a thousand years are gone/
you'll see me, o, my night love!/
This one-shot is my longest not for school writing yet. I got stuck somewhere around the second page of my Word document, and I figured it would be short, and then the rabid fluff bunny attacked and this was the result.
-The Lady Grace