I am a horrible, horrible person. I am so very very sorry for not updating ive been ill and doing an impression of a beached whale for the majority of this week, and was off in Belgium the other week. And meanwhile, I have neglected this, after leaving you with a massive cliffhanger. Sorry.

I really hope this chapter has been worth your wait. Thank you so much for all your reviews, and all those opinions on whether you want Kibbs or Kari. In this chapter, some of that stuff will be resolved! i little bit resolved, not fully. it never is with NCIS, is it! :D

Disclaimer: not mine. still. but its a work in progress.

Chapter 6

"He's crashing on us, we're going to have to defibrillate."

"Are you sure that's a good idea doc,"

"Charging, 1, 2, 3"

"We have no choice"

"Pulse is weak, he's going he's going.

"Up the power, charged."

"No, no, NO!"

Out in the waiting room, Ziva now sat there, wringing her hands. It had been half an hour since the bathroom incident, and Ziva could have sworn that she had never felt a longer half an hour in her life. Gibbs next to her was as still as a statue, his eyes not moving from his chosen spot on the wall. It was so still, so quiet, both of them too deep into their own thoughts to even think about what the other one might be thinking. The silence deafened them. That was, until somebody crashed through the doors.

"OMIGOSH!? ARE THEY GOING TO BE ALRIGHT?"

Had Ziva not been so preoccupied worrying about Tony, she would have found something strange about the whole situation. A tall raven haired goth with a youthful radiance about her whizzing through the doors at a record breaking speed, crashing into Gibbs, who opened his arms out to her. Unfortunately, at that moment worry seemed to tinge the hazy aura, as she practically vibrated in fear.

Trailing behind her by a few steps was a young man, with sandy blond hair and deep green eyes. He may not have been as obvious with his feelings, but Ziva could tell that he was equally if not more worried than the girl.

"Hey, Abby," Gibbs said, standing up for the first time and pulling the nervous girl into a hug. Ziva forced herself to look away, even though she was curious as to what the relationship between the two was. It was too much of a father-daughter moment that she felt like she was intruding on by watching. So instead she looked back to the wall she had been studying for the past half an hour.

When the goth finally released Gibbs from her grasp, she fell effortlessly into the other mans arms, and the other man brought his arms around her shoulder in a way that seemed too effortless to just be something between co-workers.

When back in the younger man's arms, the goth seemed to notice Ziva for the first time.

"Gibbs? Who's that?" she asked, in the way a child did when with a person they didn't know. Ziva didn't know how to react to this, was she to pretend that she could not hear her, just like this woman seemed to want her to. Or should she just answer the question like it was addressed to her.

"Abby, this is Z-" Gibbs started.

"Ziva David," Ziva cut him off, "I am Tony's partner."

Abby's eyes widened at the statement, and Ziva felt the overwhelming feeling that she was back at school, on that fateful day that she was the new girl, and she was being stared at and scrutinised like a bug under a microscope. The other man seemed to sense her discomfort and cut in.

"I'm Timothy McGee. Or just Tim," he said, and Ziva smiled at him warmly.

"Pleasure meeting you. Tony has told me a lot about you."

"And yet he has told us nothing about you?" Abby said, still not fully trusting this woman. She didn't like to think of anyone going near her Tony. She was extremely protective of him, him being hurt before and Abby wanting to stop it from anything happening again.

Luckily, neither of them were forced into continuing the conversation, as the doors swiftly opened and the doctor walked in.

"Family of Caitlyn Todd?"

Gibbs could feel his heart pounding in his chest. It felt like that same moment when the bullet was just about to leave the barrel, all the pressure and fear pounding down on him before the final release. He was nervous for Kate, the thought of going a day without her making him sick to his stomach. He had never fully appreciated her constant present, but now the thought of being without her made his forever grateful. That one smile in the morning, and suddenly the dead body did not seem so bad. She was the thing that kept him sane. If he was stuck with only Tony, he would grow sick of his childish antics and probably kill him, and McGee's nervous rambling was tolerable in small doses, but was growing tiring. Kate was the one who kept him grounded and sane, the one who he could always rely on. And these feelings that he had been having, they didn't help the situation either. But at that moment, he was going to push those feelings aside. He would do anything for Kate to be alright, even if that meant crushing his feelings in favour of making her better.

"How is she?" Gibbs finally managed to push out, his voice sounded normal under the circumstances. Ziva was the only one who noticed his pulse fluttering under the skin of his neck.

"She received a bullet to the upper leg muscles. It was a clean shot, with not shards or debris getting in, and I predict a full recovery with minimal scarring if she recovers as predicted.

There was an audible exhalation of air as they all let out a relieved sigh of relief. One down, one to go.

"Can we see her?" Gibbs asked softly, and the doctor nodded.

"One at a time. But don't tire her out."

Gibbs nodded in thanks, and the doctor walked back off down the corridor. Following the doctor he reached the named door, and took a deep breath. He pushed open the door, half expecting the worse, and Kate lying prone on the bed. Unfortunately in some aspects, that wasn't the case.

"GIBBSY!"

He heard the childish squeal, and for a moment he thought that he had walked into the wrong hospital room. But there Kate sat, as clear as the sky is blue, an excited childish expression on her face, and a strange look in her eye. He turned back to the doctor and gave him a curious look.

"The painkillers," the doctor answered, "They'll wear off soon. You are fine to take her home though."

Gibbs was fighting a battle in his mind. He wanted to stay at the hospital to keep an eye on Tony's still uncertain fate. But with Kate apparently as high as a kite, they he wasn't comfortable leaving her with anyone else.

"Come on then," Gibbs said grudgingly and pulled Kate onto the wheelchair that the nurse had been kind enough to leave them. Abby chose that moment to burst into the room in a flurry of worry.

"OHMYGOSHKATE!" she squealed loudly, almost knocking him over and sending the wheelchair and Kate flying. Almost. It was only Gibbs' reflex catching of the wheelchair handles that prevented the mess that seemed inevitable. He sent Abby a stern glare, and taking the unsaid warning Abby took a precautionary step backwards.

"Abby!" Kate said, seemingly oblivious to her near death experience, and still as chirpy as ever.

Abby sent Gibbs a strange look.

"The painkillers," he explained, and Abby nodded in understanding.

"Should I take her home?" Abby asked, and Gibbs was torn. He wanted to take Kate home and wrap her in several layers of cotton wool and Kevlar to prevent Kate being hurt again. He shouldn't have let them go that morning. Realistically, he knew that there was no way that he was to know that the deceased estranged son in law would be mixed up with the wrong people, and be involved in a weapons trade. But it didn't make the feeling of guilt go away. That was the burden of being team leader, the captain of this merry ship of misfits. He had too much responsibility and control, and yet where it mattered he was powerless. Now Kate was as high as a kite, but would be fine in a few weeks, and Tony was still hanging in the metaphorical balance.

It was even worse, the fact that this was his Kate, the woman he had grow to have the strangest feelings for. She made him feel a strange fire and love that he had only ever felt once in his life. He had never thought that he had the capacity to love again, and yet there he was. But there wasn't just the question of his unsavoury past. There was that comment she had made just the other day about that Ari man. That Ari was a lot better looking than he was, even he could see it. And a lot younger.

Some people wouldn't consider ten years to mean anything, not if love prevailed. But It was not there opinion that Gibbs was vying for. It was the wishes of and affections of the one woman. And there she sat, as beautiful as could be, but as high as a kite in a hurricane.

"Gibbs?" Abby asked again, after Gibbs had failed to answer. Gibbs tried to shake himself out of it. Now was not the time to be thinking about his unruly emotions. Now was the time to look after Kate, when she needed him the most.

"What about all those stairs?" he said. He needed a legitimate excuse for going to look after her, and thinking about all those stairs up to her apartment, Gibbs thought that he was the better person for the job.

"Fineeee," Abby said, torn between her desire to help her best girl friend, and her need to know if Tony was going to be OK.

"Give us a ring if you hear anything from Tony," Gibbs ordered, and Abby saluted. Gibbs rolled his eyes, and looked down at Kate who sat there, staring intently out of the window. Gibbs followed her gaze to see what was captivating her attention. He was surprised to see a small squirrel with its cheeks full of berries running along across the tree. Gibbs almost didn't have the heart to ruin such unadulterated joy that was on her face. But he had no choice.

"Come on Kate, let's get out of here," he said gently, as if talking to a child. Kate pulled her gaze away from the window and pouted at him.

"Whyyyyyy?" she said, pulling the word out so it seemed much longer than its one syllable.

Gibbs just pulled the handles of the wheelchair, and before Kate could protest more, he wheeled her out of the room, and along the corridor to the lift.

After Kate pressed the button, (which she insisted on doing, and then squealed in delight when it made a noise), Kate fell strangely silent. Gibbs took it as the drugs beginning to wear off. And then she spoke.

"Gibbs?" she said, in an unsure voice, as if she was frightened that she was about to be told off.

"Yes?" Gibbs replied slowly.

"I love you," she said sleepily.

"I love you too," Gibbs said. All he could do was hope that she remembered that admission when she was back to normal Kate…

It was night-time by the time they got any news. Begin the only people in the waiting room, Ziva nad Abby knew that when the doctor came in, it had to be about Tony.

"Anthony DiNozzo?" the doctor said, and both women stood up in response. They hadn't said anything since the brisk hello, and there was a tension in the room was tangible. Abby clearly didn't trust this woman, and Ziva did not seem to care. All she cared about right then, was Tony.

"How is he?" Ziva asked calmly, and she could almost feel the hostile rays from Abby's eyes. That was her job, and Ziva had just taken it.

"I am unable to lie," the doctor said, and instantly both women braced themselves, "the wounds Mr DiNozzo sustained are extremely extensive. One bullet missed his heart and major arteries by a whisper. The others caused massive blood loss. The next few hours will be crucial in his recovery. I'm sorry I can't give you full answer, but in the morning I can be more certain."

"Thank you, doctor," Ziva said, and the doctor left. Abby was now full force glaring at her. Why did Ziva feel the need to thank the doctor who just delivered new that Tony might not be alright?

"I am going to see him first," Ziva said, not looking at Abby, and before Abby could open her mouth to argue, Ziva had already shot off down the corridor after the doctor.

Abby was furious. She was Tony's little sister, she should be the one who goes to see him first. And now this new girl thinks that she has the right to see him first? But apparently Abby had no choice in the matter. Sighing, Abby flicked open her phone to update Gibbs on Tony's status.

Ziva pushed open the door of the hospital room, and her eyes swam with tears. There he was, just lying there. She wanted to pretend that this was all pretend, that he was going to jump out of that bed, call it a prank and mock her for actually believing he was hurt. She could practically feel his arms go around her as he wiped away the tears that were threatening to fall, calling her silly all that time. She moved to the other side of the bed to the conveniently placed chair, and sat down. Still nothing. She slipped his cold hand into hers, and the fact that he didn't squeeze back sent her over the edge. The tears started falling, and when they started they couldn't stop. He had to make it, she didn't know what she would do without him. She had never really appreciated what all those little texts and moments meant until she thought of the fact that they may never share a moment like that again. She had never thought of him as such a big part of her life, and now with the thought of him not being there made her think that life wouldn't be worth it if he was not there. It such a small time he had become her everything. He had to be alright. He had to.

As the tears spilled down her face, she was too preoccupied to notice Abby standing at the door. If she had questioned Ziva's motives, she could now see them, as clear as day. Ziva loved Tony. And Ziva couldn't live without him.

Kari fans please dont hate me! *ducks flying projectiles