I have been so excited for this chapter! I was working on it last Wednesday, and I got into so many rabbit holes while learning about jousting. That being said, this is not perfectly accurate, I'm not going to try to hide that. I did my best and that's all I can do. In response to a review on one of my other stories, please remember, I am still a newer author, and sometimes have issues with punctuation and grammar. Spelling is even worse, but spell check is a life saver!

I hope you've been enjoying this story, please let me know what you think! sorry for the long author's note, here is the chapter!

-owl

Ziva's face went pale. Of all the things she would have expected Tony to ask her for, a date was not one of them. Tony himself was still grinning and Ziva was sure that if he did not stop grinning, she would make him.

"What do you say, Ziva?" he asked, even though she had made no sound.

"Tony," Ziva groaned in annoyance, clenching and unclenching her hands as well. "I really do not —"

"Life debt," Tony interrupted.

Ziva shoved him away from her, so that he fell over in his bed. "Fine, but I get to decide what we are doing."

He sat up again, sliding a few feet away from Ziva. "I won't argue with that, but maybe let's wait a day or two while I heal from my wounds."

"Sure, Tony. I will start thinking of something soon," Ziva said, standing up and walking towards the door.

"Where are you going? Do you not have anything better to do than hang out with me today?" he asked, mock hurt in his voice

Ziva rolled her eyes and left the room, saying nothing. Tony's guards nodded to her when she passed them, and she nodded back.

Ziva needed to meet up with Abby. She would be heartbroken if Ziva didn't stop in soon. As such, Ziva made her way to Abby's room. The guards were still outside her door, and didn't acknowledge Ziva as she entered.

The room was filled with sunlight. Olivia must have been through and opened the curtains. Abby's bed was made, and an empty tray sat near the foot of it. Abby was sitting, facing away from the door, tinkering with something on her desk.

"Abby," Ziva said, drawing her attention. "Earlier you said you wanted me to tell you about the meeting."

Abby jumped up from her chair and charged across the room, nearly knocking Ziva to the ground. "Yes, tell me everything," Abby demanded, pulling her to the couch.

"Ducky says that the assassins were sent by some of my father's adversaries. There was a letter with their signatures. Also, the attack was only on Mother and I."

"What is Dad going to do about this?" Abby asked.

Ziva shook her head. "I do not know. I left the meeting when they were discussing what they would do."

"Oh."

"What have you been working on, Abby?" Ziva asked, changing the conversation.

Abby perked up as she began talking about her current project. She was trying to see if tree leaves would have the same vein pattern if they were from the same exact tree, not just the same type. So far she was having issues tracking her progress.

After Abby lamented about her lack of results for a half hour, Ziva was able to return to her own room. There, she grabbed her armor and, after putting it on, went to the stables to get her horse. She had to practice for the jousting tournament that was in four days. And, she decided, that was what she and Tony were going to do for their date.

"Jousting?"

"Yes, jousting."

"Out of all the things you could choose from, you pick jousting?"

"Tony, you were the one who decided to let me choose what we would be doing," Ziva said, firmly ending the annoyed complaints from Tony. "I had been planning to participate in this one anyway. This time I will have someone I know to compete with."

They were in the castle stables, tacking up their horses. Ziva had the black stallion she normally rode next to her as she adjusted its saddle. Tony had his bay mare that he had ridden to Meadth standing next to him. He was also getting the saddle situated on his horse.

Ziva had chosen that they would be participating in the joust that day. It was a big festival, and Ziva had been planning on jousting anyway. The day was bright and there wasn't any wind at all, so it would be a good day for it.

To keep her identity a secret to the traveling knights, Ziva would always put her helmet on in addition to her armor before leaving the castle. Tony watched as she covered herself with chainmail armor and a helmet. She finished by putting her sword in the sheath attached to her belt.

"Wait, we're participating in the joust?" Tony asked. "I had thought we would be watching."

Ziva frowned at him. "From what you must have noticed about me as a person, you should have thought we would be participating. Let alone the fact that I am wearing pants and a shirt instead of a dress"

Tony grumbled. "I guess I should have expected this. Let me go get my own armor," he agreed. Then he ran into the castle to grab his own armor. After ten minutes, he returned to the stable, dressed in his armor. His helmet in his arms.

They finished tacking up and mounted their horses. The horses both had a light layer of chainmail armor. Ziva took the lead as they rode out of the stable and out the castle gates. The road to the village wasn't very long, and they were soon approaching the jousting arena. The closer they got, the more horses were there on the road with them.

"Why do you put on your helmet before leaving the castle?" Tony asked, steering his horse so he was riding side-by-side with Ziva.

"I do it so the knights that have traveled won't know I am a girl."

Tony didn't get the chance to respond as they entered the arena grounds. There were at least twenty tents set up for the jousters, spread around the main arena. The arena itself had stands for the crowds around it, and there was a separate segment of the stands for the royal family, in which there were only four thrones.

The ground was dirt, not even weeds daring to grow where they would be trampled by racing horses. Down the middle of the arena was the tilt that designated the two lanes used for the tournament.

"Why are there only four thrones in the royal box?" Tony asked Ziva as they rode through the arena to where there were two tents for them

"I never watch the jousting, I am always competing. Why would there be a need to have a throne that I never use?"

"I suppose."

They had arrived at their tents, and Tony had to give up any chance to talk to her until later as they had to finish getting ready for the tournament.

Too soon the bugle sounded, calling the participants to the arena to be presented to the villagers and the royal family. Everyone but Ziva had their helmets under their arms, letting the crowd see their faces. There were twenty-four riders in all, and as their names were called, they stepped forward and bowed to the king.

The participating knights of Meadth were called first, taking the first ten entries. They were all announced in the same manner; 'Sir whatever of Meadth.' Then Tony was announced, the eleventh to be so.

"From the Kingdom of DiNozzo, Prince Anthony."

Then the knights who had traveled to compete were called. 'Sir whatever of wherever.' and that group was the twelfth through the twenty-third entry. Ziva was the last to be called.

"And, finally, our reigning champion, in line to the throne of Meadth, Sir David."

Whenever Ziva participated in a tournament, she went by 'Sir David' to keep her cover. She could see Tony, mouthing to himself: 'Dah-veed' he was probably wondering about the name. Ziva resolved to explain later, for now her sisters had left the box to give their favors to the participating knights.

It had started as a fun thing for them to do when there was a joust in the village, they said, when they were four and six. Their father would have them watch the knights on their horses, then they would give the knight they thought would win whatever they had with them at the time. Kate said that it was often flowers or funny looking sticks they had picked up. There was never anything romantic about it, just something they did for fun.

When her father had first told her about jousting, Ziva had known immediately that she did not want to give favors to the knights, but to joust herself. Gibbs had let her do that, though she had only been allowed to join the tournaments after she turned fourteen. Before that, she helped bring lances to the knights and other things to help the knights.

Abby would always give Ziva her favor, and Kate would give it to the knight she thought would beat her. While her first few jousts Ziva lost, she had won or gotten very close to winning every time after that.

Abby grinned as she handed Ziva a pale gray-green scarf with embroidered arrows. This was a new favor, as, in the last three tournaments, it had been a black scarf with roses embroidered onto it. Kate gave her favor to Tony. From what Ziva could tell, it was a thin white cloth that had been embroidered with the family crest.

So, Kate thought Tony would beat her. Interesting.

Kate and Abby returned to their thrones and the bugle sounded again, calling the first pair to either side of the arena, and the other knights off the field.

Ziva turned her horse to the royal box and bowed. She had won the tournament, winning her final match by both knocking her opponent off his horse and shattering her lance. Her final opponent was beginning to stand up from where he had fallen from his horse. Sir Cassius of Jore bowed slightly to her as he left the arena.

Turning her stallion towards the tents, Ziva returned to hers to freshen up before the closing ceremony. Quickly running a towel over her horse, Ziva removed the sweat that had built up from running. Then, inside her tent, she removed her helmet and wiped her face clear of sweat as well. Then the bugle sounded for the final time for the tournament.

Returning outside, she replaced the helmet on her head. Ziva mounted her horse and led him to the arena once again. All the knights were in line, in the same order as the presentation. The biggest difference from the presentation, other than the dented armor and oddly-held arm, was that they all wore their helmets.

Gibbs and Jenny stood up and walked to the front of the royal box, hand in hand.

"Knights, thank you all for an entertaining afternoon," Jenny said. "You have all proven your courage and strength."

"Would the winner please step forward?" Gibbs asked, looking directly at Ziva, who urged her horse forwards until she reached the royal box. "You have gotten one of my daughters' favors. Would you please reveal yourself to the crowd?"

Nodding once to her father, Ziva gently turned her horse to face the crowd. She pulled her helmet off in one fluid motion, letting her hair fall out of its bun and fly in the slight breeze. There were gasps from the knights who had traveled to be there. The villagers, knights of Meadth, and her family all cheered for her.

Later that night, Ziva was talking with Tony in his room. While there was increased guard presence since the assassination attempt, Ziva was still good at sneaking through the castle. As such, she and Tony were still hanging out in the late evening.

In all actuality, Ziva was simply using the old servant passages. From where they connected her room to Abby and Kate's, they also connected to other parts of the castle. One of the passageways brought her directly to Tony's room.

Nobody knew how to get around the servant passages anymore. Ziva, though, before she was accepted by Abby and Kate, played in the passageways all the time. She was the one who taught her sisters how to get between their three rooms through them.

Tony had said he had some questions for her, so she was expecting a lot of them.

"What was the name they announced you with?" Tony asked her, sitting on the armchair across from the couch where Ziva sat.

"It was my father's name, I have taken it as my own for jousting tournaments."

"How many tournaments have you won?"

"All the tournaments in the last two years."

"Why do your sisters give their favors?"

"When they were younger, they gave them to who they thought would win. Since I've started participating, Abby has always given me hers, and Kate chooses who she thinks will beat me."

"I guess she was wrong today," Tony said, a hint of laughter in his voice. "You beat me pretty fast."

That was true. The match between Tony and Ziva was over in only a few minutes. Both of them had shattered their lances, but Ziva unseated Tony and won. Kate's face, Ziva had seen, was a mix of shocked and annoyed.

"She normally is, but they normally give me a better fight."

"Next time, I'll win."

"I will let you keep telling yourself that," she said, laughing.