Circumstances-4

Author's note: Hello everyone! It's been a while hasn't it? I'm writing this before my literature exam. I'm really counting on this test to pull up my average ._. I apologize for any weird mistakes because I didn't have time to check/reread this. My schedule has been CRAZY, so I don't know when I can post the next chapter. But I promise that I AM writing it:) I hope you enjoy this chapter!

Disclaimer- consider that if I ever write an episode of NCIS, all of Tony/Ziva's love interests, other than themselves, would be killed in unknown circumstances. Not so sure you want me on your writing team now, aren't you?

Chapter 4- Waiting

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"Abby, if you keep pacing the floor like that, you're gonna need some new tiling soon."

"Tim, now's not the time for humor!" All three heads turned to the younger boy, who didn't know how to react.

The room lapsed into a tense silence again as the children strained against the door, attempting to hear the discussion downstairs.

"What do you mean? Why was the body moved from the original scene? Why can't your people do anything about it?" The frenzied voice of Kate's mother drifted in through the door.

"We've been doing our best. You just have to trust that we are doing everything we can to make sure we find your daughter's killer." The calm voice of the policeman was harder for the rest to hear, but Ziva picked it up easily.

"What about forensics? Have they found anything yet?" It was Jenny's turn to question him.

"We're shorthanded at the moment ma'am. There's a lot of backlot so we haven't gotten the results yet." The policeman's voice wavered slightly as he apologized.

"Stupid people! I managed to trace the broken phone within minutes with a computer that belongs with the dinosaurs, and those people that have the newest hardware can't even work fast enough to help our friend!" Abby said, with much frustration.

She crossed her arms and retreated to the corner of the room to brood with her favorite stuffed hippo, Bert. The trio looked at one another, expecting one of the others to either go and comfort her, or go downstairs and speak their minds. Eventually, Tim drew the short straw and lost the staring match, and he went over to sit with Abby.

Ziva and Tony went down the stairs and were surprised by Gibbs, who had been waiting for them at the bottom of the stairs. "I was wondering when Abby or Ziva finally managed to convince you to come down. Turns out Abby won, then." The two glanced at each other before speaking.

"I think Abby should go and help the team in their forensics. She's like, a genius when it comes to those stuff."

"Gibbs, I want to request that Tony and I be allowed to assist in the investigation. The police said that they were shorthanded, did they not?"

Gibbs looked at the two teenagers, who may one day become the country's future law enforcement. They were looking at him excitedly, with the same sparkle in their eyes that he used to have when he worked for NCIS. How could he say no to them?

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"Ziva, I think you should go back to school."

"You do not get to decide what is best for me, Tony."

He gave her a half hearted glare in response to her deflection. It had been three days since the cops had 'closed' the case, or so they said. The agency had allowed them to assist with research and coffee runs, much like any newbie intern who didn't know too much about anything. The final conclusion was that it was a random gang killing, because they could not find the weapon, or any other kind of evidence that could bring up any new leads. To say the kids were disappointed, was an understatement.

"You shouldn't be sitting here everyday. It's not good for you to be alone all the time." Ziva looked up to see Tony standing over her. She sighed when she knew she had been caught.

"First of all, I do not simply sit here everyday. I am trying to piece together what went through her mind when it happened. And secondly, I like being alone." She shifted slightly in her position, not enough to change her posture, but enough to make it clear that he would not be in trouble if he sat down with her.

"She was scared, but she wanted to do what she thought felt right. Nothing else mattered. The stubborn girl. And no Ziva, you don't." He accepted the silent invitation, and slid down next to her.

"I meant when the bullet hit. I wonder what went through her mind. Was it regret, or pain, or simply reluctance?" She had a faraway look on her face. That alone scared him. She never showed her lines of weakness. She was always strong and alert; but now, as she was lost in thought, Tony realised that there were a lot of things he didn't know about her.

"Ziva... Stop thinking about that. C'mere."

She sighed and let him pull her head against his chest. Tony had discovered that Ziva had been skipping classes a few days ago and when he found her staring at the brick wall of the dumpster, he began trying to coax her out of it. He was the kind of person who never looked reality in the face, and always took things with a pinch of salt. Therefore, being where the shooting happened on a regular basis was slightly unnerving for him.

"Zi, come on, let's go some place else. Don't just sit here. You won't solve anything just sitting here doing nothing."

"There's nothing TO do, Tony. She's dead, and we can't do ANYTHING about it."

She sunk into his embrace unwillingly after a few minutes of him trying. He tried to pull her up, and she allowed him to do so, without attempting to kick him.

"You could try going back to class." Tony gave her a pleading smile that made her want to give in to whatever he wanted. However, she hid her emotions behind a stone wall and he gave up trying to get a reaction out of her after a while.

"Zi... You can't hide here forever." He knew that she had been having troubles, but she was in a different grade from him, and he couldn't do anything about it. Plus, she refused to talk to him about it. He knew that it was another of her defenses that she used, so he knew better than to push.

"I am not hiding."

The finality in her tone meant that the conversation was over. Tony sighed once more, with disappointment, and left her standing alone.

She would call him when she was ready.

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As it turns out, she ended up calling Gibbs first. Well, not exactly. She got sent to the principal for being truant on too many occasions, and her older brother was unable to make it. This was the one occasion that she actually felt fearful, she had seen the way Tony was headslapped. She let out a small groan when Gibbs walked in, ten minutes earlier than her estimated time. He shot her quick look, that made her look away with embarrassment.

"Mr Gibbs, I'm so glad you could make it. Please have a seat." Principal Vance gestured to the seat next to Ziva as he continued leafing through some papers. Ziva was getting impatient, and started shooting annoyed glances at Vance, until he looked up with a professional smile.

"Mr Gibbs, I apologize for the wait. Thank you for being the acting guardian for Ziva. I have some important issues to discuss today, and I'm glad that I will get to discuss them with a responsible adult." He said, without sparing as much as a look towards Ziva as he blantantly insulted her brother. He knew she was seething inside, but she dismissed it outwardly with a sharp hiss.

"Now, I can see that Ziva's a good kid. Her academic scores are always in the top 10% of the cohort, and her sports records are off the charts. However, I'd like to remind you that this school pays attention to the character development of each and every one of our students. Being reprimanded and punished for truancy doesn't look good in your record. " Gibbs shot Ziva a few glances, but they were met with blank stares.

"So, I'd like to make a proposition. I let all of this pass, because I want to give you another chance, and you will attend regular sessions with our counselor, on top of that, I want your class attendance to be reach at least 98%." Ziva looked like she was going to jump up and strangle him to death, damn the consequences. Gibbs quickly argued that 98% was a little far fetched, and that 80% would be more reasonable. Vance, however, was persistent. He refused anything below 90%, and so they had to make do with it.

"I am sorry, Gibbs. I did not mean to cause you any trouble." She said as they were walking to the car.

"Never apologize, it's a sign of weakness." He answered. Ziva was contented with that answer, and allowed a peaceful silence to settle over them. It didn't last long, though.

"I think you should go back to class." Gibbs said. She shot him a bewildered look, which he shrugged to. "No one said you can't think about the case DURING class. The principal won't get on your case as long as you go to class."

She was not surprised that he could read her just as well as Tony could. She was surprised that not only was he okay with it, he gave an out to her situation. Although she shouldn't have been shocked, she knew as well as everyone, that Gibbs had formed a bond with Kate long before she had arrived. It was no wonder that he encouraged her to figure out what happened.

He dropped her off at her house, where he got out of the car too. At first, she was confused. Was it customary American tradition to invite people for dinner when you haven't even cooked yet? She finally understood when she saw a backpack lying in front of her door. Gibbs immediately zeroed in on an open door of one of her neighbor's apartments. Ziva followed curiously.

True enough, they found Tony chatting up one of her neighbors that was relatively closer to his age than her other ones. Wendy, her neighbor, was teaching him how to play the piano. Gibbs marched straight in, told him to say goodbye, and then dragged him out of the house and headslapped him.

"Ow! I guess I deserved that, but Ziva didn't come back, and I was getting hungry. Wendy saw how long I was waiting there, and she offered me some food. Everything just went from there!" Tony rubbed his head and winced when he was met with the icy glares from both Gibbs and Ziva.

"Then tell me, how did you get from being a grade 5 pianist, to playing kindergarten songs?" Gibbs argued. Tony shrugged, but evidently got worried when he knew he was found out. He covered that well with a cheeky grin. "Well, I guess SOME things were exaggerated. She DID say I was a fast learner-ow!"

Although he anticipated the second headslap, he still jumped when Gibbs' palm landed on the back of his head. "Shutting up now, Gibbs." He said awkwardly when his father's attention travelled back to Ziva. "Take care of yourself, Ziver." He said, before walking off towards the stairwell.

"See you tomorrow, Ziva. Meet at the diner for lunch?" He asked, while his eyes followed Gibbs' back so he wouldn't lose track of him.

"I do not think I can make it. I have a counseling session after school. Sorry." She replied as she unlocked her door.

"Mandatory?"

"Principal Vance has requested for me to attend them." She replied hesitantly. She did not really like the idea of her telling Tony that she had been summoned to the principal's office, along with his father, although he was bound to find out soon enough.

"Alright. I'll see you when I see you!" He called as he began to run down the stairs. She smiled slightly, this guy could not resist the opportunity of quoting from one of his favorite movies. Her smile dimmed slightly when her eyes trailed towards the direction of Wendy's home. She didn't know how to feel about Tony flirting openly with her, but then again, who was she to say anything?

She was just the only girl that didn't manage to attract Tony's attention. Apparently, he was about to ask Kate out the moment he saw her, until Tim needed help. He would never know it, but she had really liked him. Wendy obvious got his attention fast, since he got her to open up her apartment to him after just a few minutes. She would never be able to be a part of his life like they could.

She was definitely not looking forward to the next day's activities.

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This was more like a filler chapter, and i apologize for the crappy ending, I didn't really know how to end it. Hope you enjoyed this chapter though, it sure was fun writing it;) i need to go and study now, so bye!

please read and review! And please let me know if you like it, or if you have any suggestions!

Until next time,

~Lianna