Title: Illuminated

Author: IronIsraeliButterfly

Chapter Title: Strong Memories, Strong Ties, Strong Love

A/N: Probably the last chapter in Israel. And I might be biased, but I can't paint Eli as an SOB as most people do. Sorry! Also, you'll get mentioned if you can figure out the artist to this song! There's a lot of dialogue in this chapter and I wrote it to give Ziva a life before NCIS and Mossad. By the way, thanks for all the reviews. By the way, trivia question from chapter one was won by Ziver911. The one in this chapter is about Candid Camera. When did Gibbs mention it?

"You are still my strongest memory
whenever I close my eyes I see you clearly
Every time my heart just skips a beat
whenever you say my name I need you with me"

-Lily

Ziva and Gibbs ducked into a restaurant on the Tel Aviv-Yaffo coast where the tables and chairs were so close to the waterline that the shore lapped at their shoes like an enthusiastic puppy. Their happiness was over them like an exploded glitter bomb, radiated sunshine on everyone they passed. Gibbs had actually smiled at several people and tried speaking Hebrew to several people but had failed miserably. Ziva wanted to video his happiness to show the office that it was possible.

A man in a neat shirt and slacks came over to Ziva and double kissed on her cheeks, as was the Israeli and European custom. She greeted him in rapid-fire Hebrew, which Gibbs did not even attempt to understand. They talked for several moments, and then Ziva paused. "Sorry," she said, a rueful smile on her face, "where are my manners? Jethro, this is Yoram Gafni, my former brother-in-law, Yoram, this is Jethro, my fiancé. This is Yoram's restaurant."

An unexplainable look fleeted over Yoram's face like a deer that was there one moment and then vanished the next. As a sniper, Gibbs didn't like targets disappearing on him. Yoram sighed for a second and put a hand on Ziva's shoulder. "To us, Ziva'leh, you will always be family."

Gibbs smiled at his words. Ziva had been a part of something larger; she had been part of a family. Later that night, when she and Gibbs had parted, Gibbs walked around the cobblestone streets of Jerusalem, strangely pensive. His happiness had given way to a new emotion – curiosity. He had decided he wanted to find out more about Ziva's deceased husband. In doing so, he would find out not only about how he captured her heart but he would find out the Ziva before the whole Ari debacle, before Mossad, before her withdrawn and silent personality had come to light. He seriously wanted to meet a warrior, inside and out, who had exemplified giving one's life up for their country.

"So, did Shireet find out what she is doing in the army yet? Last time I spoke to her, she was expecting to find out two days ago, and I called, but I left a message."

Gibbs gleaned several pieces of information from Ziva had just said, but the most important to him was that Ziva was still in touch with her former in-laws. There was caring in her. Ziva turned to Gibbs to explain. "Shireet is Yoram's daughter. One of Yoram's sons is studying to be a chemical engineer and the other one is having his bar mitzvah soon, next week."

A look of pride came over Yoram. "She is going to be a fighter pilot, just like me. I still am in reserves, Ziva, would you believe it? A clunky old man like me."

"I'm in the Marine Corps Reserves," Gibbs said, "and you're younger than I am."

Yoram looked interested as he pulled up a chair. "My favourite American movie was A Few Good Men. What did you do in the Marines?"

"I was a sniper."

"My brother, Matan, he was a sniper. A very good one, you must know."

Ziva laughed. "That's because there are six boys in the family. Yoram, Matan, David, Shai, Eyal, and Eldan. By the time you get through with them, you have the entire army covered."

"Eldan really made us proud, Ziva. Jethro, I must tell you, you are one very lucky man. Ziva was the only woman he had to fight for. Really. She could tell you stories about the things he did for, but she played so hard, it was so funny. We all said, 'nu, Eldan, give it up, she's just a girl.' But then we met Ziva. Speaking of meeting people, I was at a function and I ran into your father. He said Amit was dead. Unfortunately, I am not sad to hear it. I hated him every since he gave me my first black eye when I was six."

Ziva smiled again. "Mazal, Yoram's wife, is the personal secretary to the Prime Minister. She's basically the Prime Minister's best friend, the only one he can trust. He tows her along to every event."

"And then there is me, stuffing pitas with falafel and humus while she has so much fun kicking it with the big names," Yoram said ruefully. "Speaking of stuffing pitas, I must go, but it was a pleasure meeting you Jethro! Come by soon!" and with that, Yoram walked away, muttering something about being a "pita-pusher."

"How did you meet Eldan?" Gibbs asked.

"On a bus."

Gibbs looked at her quizzically. He knew that most Israelis used the bus service, Egged, but he couldn't imagine Ziva meeting her husband on a bus. After all, he had met her on a mission from Mossad.

"There was a chartered bus from a designated point in Haifa to go to Eilat. I was supposed to meet some friends there. I got to the bus stop a little late and the last spot available was next to another soldier on leave. Remember that I was in all male, elite combat unit. I had all my two rifles, a handful of grenades and a Sig on me. He looked at me up and down and thought that I was a joke on a TV show that was very popular then, you know they play pranks and then the video you-"

"Candid camera," Gibbs supplied, a smile playing at his lips.

"He wanted to know if I was a joke. I said no. He was supposed to sing at a hotel for the weekend – he was somewhat of an icon, you know the teenage singer who then goes to the army and makes it a career. He was considered a true hero. Anyway, he and I started talking and five hours later, we decided to see each other again."

"And you played hard to get."

"I don't think I did. We were engaged pretty quickly, maybe after three months. It's hard having a relationship while both parties are in the army. We got married about two months later, and I joined Mossad as an ops manager. I got pregnant pretty quickly. It was the most wonderful time of my life. You know, he made a CD. It was a huge hit."

"I'd like to hear it," Gibbs said, finding it was true. "I met Shannon at a train station. I was this inarticulate marine who found himself faced this really beautiful, intelligent woman who asked me if I was a lumberjack. I got the idea of having rules from her. Anyway, we sat next to each other on the train and then we never looked back. She transformed me. I became a better Marine, a better person because of her."

Ziva nodded. There was no need to pretend that they had people they had loved in the past. Gibbs would never have to feel that he couldn't love Shannon because he loved Ziva. They feelings were not contradictory, rather, it added another dimension of his love of Ziva. There was no need for hiding behind a veil of "I don't need," or "I don't feel." They had finally found their answers.

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Gibbs was ensconced in one of those huge chairs that belonged to the first class section, Ziva perusing a Hebrew magazine next to him, the ring he had bought her initially sparkling of her ring. As he sipped his glass of water, he watched her. She was so beautiful when she read for pleasure. The worry was erased from her face. He put his arm around his shoulders, and drew her closer. She smiled up at him as she looked deeper into the magazine, which from what he could glean from the pictures, was about gardening.

"Planning on bringing my garden back to life?" he asked.

Ziva looked upset. "You let it die, Jeth?" She had spent a lot of time in the garden when she had lived at Gibbs's house, tending the plants and slowly reviving the dead vegetation and various floras.

He laughed. "I didn't tell the office that you're coming back."

"You told Vance."

"How do you know?"

"Vance is friends with my father, remember?" she reminded him as she turned the page. "I doubt, however, that Vance will tell the office."

"How do you want to tell them?"

Ziva smiled. "I have a couple of ideas."