Title: Illuminated

Author: IronIsraeliButterfly

Chapter Title: Bridges Over Waterloo

A/N: Wow, wow, wow! Thanks for all the positive feedback, especially to Clairebear, ZC, and fart fart. There's another couple of stories up, called "Trying Again," "Go Your Own Way," and "Maybe This Time," and (possibly) another two in the works. Yes, I am ambitious.

"I'm on your side
When times get rough
And friends just can't be found
Like a bridge over troubled water
I will lay me down."

-"Bridge Over Troubled Water"

"So, Tony, have you met 'the one' yet?" Ziva teased as she typed an e-mail. "I was away for six months, surely you met someone."

"He met twenty-seven 'someones'," McGee chimed in as he sorted through some paperwork.

"Hey, Probie! Stop going through my e-mail!" Tony exclaimed.

"While I don't do any federal offenses-"

"Just being you is a federal offense," Tony muttered.

"The only federal offense that's going down is that there's a murdered petty officer in Norfolk. Gear up!" Gibbs said, tossing his coffee cup into his garbage. "And Ziva, Vance wants you to stay here."

"Am I not cleared for field work?" she asked, already in mid-action for gearing up.

"He needs your language skills today."

Ziva looked unhappy, but she seemed to withdraw. "Okay," she muttered as she slid her gun back into her drawer, and walked towards the steps. "Tony… behave yourself!" she warned him as she stood on the landing.

Tony nodded and waved, effectively tripping over Gibbs's feet. Gibbs shook his head. "When will you ever learn?" he asked, sighing.

When Gibbs came home later that night, he found Ziva sitting on the couch, staring at a picture frame, a pensive look on her face. "Hey honey," he said, giving her a short kiss, and he sat down on the couch and pulled off his shoes. "What's that?"

"A picture that Jen gave me years ago, when we first met."

"Didn't you save her life in Cairo?" he asked, taking the picture frame from her and looking at it. It was a much younger Jenny, happier than he had ever seen her, posing with Ziva who wore a smile on her face. He recognized that smile. It was one of the first full blown smiles that Gibbs had given when he had emerged from his depression. It felt odd that he was smiling – those muscles had weakened from disuse. He had felt like a traitor, but he had also felt relieved that no lightening struck him down for being happy again. They seemed to be in Haifa, and it was a beautiful day. He could see the USS Carl Vinson behind them in all of its glory. On the bottom, in silver marker, he could see the words Jenny had written, in French. He remembered how the two would switch to French when they just wanted to talk. He sighed. Jenny and Ziva had been what Kate and Abby had been. His heart ached for his two angels.

"Pour vous, toute ma vie, de la lune et retour," she whispered as she ran her finger over the words, "For you, all my life, from the moon and back. God, sometimes I miss her so much."

"I do, too." He said, putting his arm around her shoulders. "What made you think of her today?"

"Working so closely with Vance. It bothers me that a man I know growing up is the director of NCIS. I don't know why. It also bothered me about Jen, but Jen was a friend of mine. Vance is my father's friend. Jen and Vance had such different styles. Good, but different."

"You approve of Vance?" Gibbs asked, his eyebrows shooting up.

"I understand your little feud started when he destroyed your cheese Danish. I thought you were a bigger man than that," she said, smiling wickedly.

"Rule fifty-two."

"I don't recall it," Ziva said, slightly confused. Gibbs smiled. She looked adorable when she was confused or was about to mess up an idiom.

"Never mess with my woman or pastries!" he said, and they broke out laughing.

"Sort of anti-climatic, don't you think? Women and pastries?"

"Really, my cheesecake?" he asked.

"My cheesecake?" Ziva spluttered incredulously. "That's worse than Tony's snugglemuffin."

"He called you snugglemuffin?" Gibbs asked.

"No, he called three women that yesterday. Three! He's worse than Charlie Harper."

"Charlie Harper?" now was Gibbs's turn to be confused.

"You know, Two and a Half Men, Charlie Sheen."

"You watch that?" Gibbs asked.

"In Israel its called shtayim v'chezi gevarim. Its big in Israel."

"Well, I'm big on the idea of getting dinner. Chinese okay?"

"Chinese is perfect." Ziva said, and he went to the phone to order. She smiled. Maybe there was nothing normal, but everything was perfect.

"Waterloo,

I was defeated, you won the war

Waterloo

Promise to love you forever more.

Waterloo

Couldn't escape if I wanted to

Waterloo

Knowing my fate is to be with you

Waterloo

Finally Facing My Waterloo."

-Waterloo, ABBA

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