Breena makes her contribution today :D and go easy on her; as far as this story goes, she's spoken to Ziva and most members of Team Gibbs only a few times.

Pairing: Breena/Ziva semi(demi)-canon friendship. Assume Palmer told her about the cancer.

Spoilers: None, unless you don't know who Breena is.

Thank you to everyone who read, reviewed, favourited, and set out alerts for the previous chapter! I really am blown away :O

I hope you enjoy this chapter! Please review!

-Soph

The door opens thirty minutes before Tony is due back, and she sees Gibbs's eyes narrow as he turns to it, ready to unleash headslaps for disobeyed orders. It's sufficed to say that all three occupants of the room – Abby, Gibbs, and herself – are surprised when Breena Palmer walks in instead.

They track her progress as she smiles very self-consciously and inches forward to park herself at the foot of the bed, looking as if she's trying to make herself invisible.

Gibbs taps Abby on the shoulder and tilts his head at the door. "We gotta get back to work, Ziver." He presses a kiss to Ziva's temple. "See you later."

Abby adds in another hug and another "Smile!" before she speed-walks after Gibbs. And Ziva does smile, because no one could ever refuse Abby that.

Breena, now the only visitor left, moves to sit in the newly empty chair. "Hey, Ziva," she says nervously, and Ziva is startled to find that there isn't a single trace of pity in Breena's eyes. Maybe Abby's right, after all.

Ziva's lips curl upwards to smile of their own accord. Palmer's wife has always been a nice woman. "Hello. How've you been, Breena?"

Breena cheers up at the prospect of someone else taking over the conversation. "Not bad. Jimmy and I got a new house the other day; we're redoing the kitchen a faded yellow. Did he tell you about it?"

Ziva chuckles. "No. I haven't…you know, spoken to them a lot lately."

Breena nods seriously. "I get it. Hospital visits."

"Yes. And…sometimes, I just do not feel like talking."

"It was that way with my cousin. She…had ovarian cancer too."

Ziva's breath catches, because this is the first time it's occurred to her that she's not the only woman with ovarian cancer. It's one thing to know the statistics; another to find an emotional connection. Breena may not know exactly what she's going through, but at least…at least there's someone. "Really?"

"Mmhmm. She was diagnosed four years ago…she's in remission now, but they're still monitoring her. She relapsed a year after the first time…it was scary."

"Oh." She holds back the shudder that threatens to run through her. "How much did they…cut out?"

"Well, they cut out her left side at first, but when she relapsed they removed all of it…cause it was dangerous. It might spread to her uterus. She had Stage III cancer."

"Oh…" Another shudder. "I'm sorry."

"She's not, though." Breena smiles faintly. "I mean she isn't happy about her cancer, of course, but now she says she doesn't have to worry about birth control."

"It is a pretty effective method of birth control," Ziva answers, more for the sake of making conversation than for agreeing. Because she doesn't agree, she can't agree; she still wants children.

Breena nods slowly. "How much of yours…did they remove?"

"Just the right side." Breena's eyes flick down in the same way that Tony's had, but when she looks at Ziva again, she has an understanding smile on her face.

"You can still have kids."

"Yes…technically."

"Technically?"

"Practically, I do not know if it gets any harder…I get fewer chances, yes? It might take longer for me. And if I relapse in the meantime…Abby's right, I need to move on and start incorporating this part into myself. But…it is still hard."

"Yeah." Breena shifts uncomfortably in her seat. "Uhm. I'm probably gonna end up telling you that my cousin faced this and my cousin faced that, and I don't wanna do that 'cause I don't really know that much. But I brought her number along, you know…in case you want it. If you want someone to talk to."

Ziva forces herself to smile. "Thank you."

Breena digs into her purse and pulls out a card with a name and phone number written on it. She hands it to Ziva.

"Will I be a bother to her?" Ziva asks, chewing on her lip at she stares at the card in between her fingers. So this is her reality now; calling other women with cancer and sharing experiences. The thought of that nauseates her. She's not ready for this yet.

"Oh, no. She went to this support group, when she was first diagnosed, and ever since then she's been trying to help, you know. She'll be glad to talk to you."

"Thank you," Ziva says again quietly. She has to do it, doesn't she?

"Ziva-"

The door swings open again, and Tony pauses mid-stride to stare in mild amazement at the scene. "Hi, Breena."

"Hey, Tony." Breena gives him a smile before turning back to Ziva. "Uhm. This is also for you. I made them." She digs into her purse again and pulls out a small bag of cupcakes this time.

"Oh…that is very nice of you. Thank you very much."

"You're welcome. I guess…I'll go now, Ziva…if you ever need me for something, don't be afraid to call. And I hope you get better soon." She pats Ziva's arm awkwardly before making her way out of the room.

Tony immediately reclaims his seat and Ziva's hand.