Chapter 3: Night 8, 25 December 2041
The DiNozzo house was full of activity and laughter as the extended family celebrated Christmas. Presents had been opened, little ones had squealed in delight when unwrapping revealed items from their wish lists and parents and grandparents beamed at the joy of the children.
They had Skyped with the Vance and Palmer branches of the family about 0900 after the first round of presents. Leon, Abby, Jimmy, Breena and Charles had flown to Okinawa to celebrate Christmas with Jared and Tori and their three kids. Kayla and Kyle and their gang had surprised everyone by arriving on Christmas Eve.
Christmas dinner of lasagna, salad and breads had been inhaled by the hungry crowd and the cookies, candies and cakes had been sitting out for dessert most of the afternoon. John, Rivka, Beth and LJ were enjoying their nieces and nephews. All four were down on the floor playing with the little ones and Christmas toys.
Ziva and Delilah watched as the grandchildren played. "I remember watching Tali, Anthony, John, Katie and the Palmer kids at Gibbs' house when they were the ages of Levi, Anthony, Elijah, and the twins," Dee commented. "It seems so long ago, but also like yesterday."
Ziva sighed, "That is true. I was so huge with the twins that Christmas. I thought I would get stuck on Gibbs' loveseat when Tony pulled me down to sit next to him for It's a Wonderful Life! When the children were little, I sometimes wished they would stay little forever. Now that they are grown, the best gift they have given us is the grandchildren. I thought I knew what pure love is with my kids. And then my grandkids came along and I learned all over again. The first time Levi called me 'Savta' I lost it…"
Tony came over with chocolate chip cookies in hand and offered one to Dee and to Ziva, "Yep, she was a blubbering mess." He grinned at his wife as he bit off about half of his own cookie.
"Oh, and you were not when he called you 'Saba?' Ziva winked at her sister as they each took the proffered cookies from Tony. "I seem to remember a certain someone having to go wash the dust rabbits out of his eyes."
"Da- arn dust bunnies," Tony changed his words when Elijah walked over after spying his Saba with cookies.
"Cookie, pweese, Saba?" Elijah reached up to Tony for the last cookie in his Saba's hand. "Toda, Saba." He grinned as Tony handed the little boy the cookie. "Mmm, good!" He ran off back to his new toys and his brother and cousins.
"You are a pushover, Tony!" Dee had never seen her brother of the heart say no to the grandkids. "Spoil every one of them every chance you get!"
"Guilty as charged!" Tony turned serious as Tim came over. "Speaking of those dang dust bunnies, are we going to make it through the candles tonight?"
"I have lots of tissues ready," Ziva sobered. "It will not be easy, but we will get through. I have talked to all of the kids and each of them wants to participate, including Chaim."
Tim nodded, "Good; it will be emotional, but we need to do it, for all of us." Dee agreed with her husband; the family needed the remembrance of their patriarch with the last night of Chanukah. "Leon is going to call in on Skype at 1630; it will be 0630 tomorrow over there, so I don't know who all will be awake. I have my laptop set up on the buffet hutch. It'll auto-answer."
"Great, that will give us time to get the candles lit before sunset at 1652," Tony had double checked the time again today. Ziva teased him that he was stricter about the sundown rituals than she had ever been. "That gives us about fifteen minutes to get everyone ready."
Dee moved over to Katie and Tali, who were chatting and comparing notes about the boys' preschools, "We have about fifteen minutes to get everyone to the dining room for the lighting of the menorah. Do you need any help with the kids?"
Katie handed Shannon to her mom and picked up Kelly, "Help me change their diapers, please, Mom. Anthony, go with Daddy." Katie nodded in the direction of the foyer bathroom and mouthed, "Potty,"to her husband.
"Good idea," Tali took Levi and Elijah to the bathroom by her parents' offices. Rivka, Beth and LJ put up toys while John helped his Dad with the Bluetooth speaker and mic for the Skype call. Tony and Chaim made sure all of the men and boys had kippahs as Tali and Ziva wrapped their tichels around their heads. Katie and Dee returned to the dining room with the twins just as Tim's laptop answered the incoming call.
"Hey, all," Leon's face appeared on the screen. "I've got Abby, Jared, Tori, and Jimmy here with me. Breena and Kayla will be here in a few. We don't have kippahs, but we do have hats."
Ziva lit the shammus candle, as Tony began the blessing for the candles. After the "Amein" from all, Ziva said the blessing for the miracle of Chanukah. She lit the leftmost candle, and handed the shammus to Tim, who lit the next candle. He passed the shammus to Tali, who in turn handed it to Anthony. As the candles were lit down the line each expression got a bit more somber. When LJ passed the shammus to his Abba, almost everyone had a tear or two on their cheeks. Tony lit the final candle, and gently placed the shammus candle back in the center.
The entire family on both sides of the world stayed silent for almost two minutes, lost in reflection and waiting for Tony to start the remembrances. Ziva wrapped her hand into her lover's intertwining their fingers and gently squeezed.
Tony swallowed and began slowly, "Family, this is what Gibbs did for us all; he made us a family. Somewhere inside that functional mute, he saw something in each of us that made him mark us as 'his.' I'm kinda glad that he stopped with the head slaps, though. I was starting to worry about brain damage, ya know?" Many of the others smiled through tears and a few snickers were heard from both ends. "Gibbs and I had some rough patches, but in the end he was still the closest thing to a father that I ever had. Thank you, Dad Gibbs! I love you." Tony wiped at his eyes with his free hand, "Leon?"
Leon clasped Abby's hand and felt Jimmy's hand on his shoulder as he began, "Gibbs and I didn't always get along. But when Jackie, may she rest in peace, was killed, he was my voice of reason in the midst of madness. He became the big brother that I never had. Leroy Jethro Gibbs, I loved you as a brother." Abby sobbed as her husband spoke and he turned and wiped her tears. "Tim?"
Dee put her hand in her husband's as he wiped his face and looked around the room. "I was terrified of Gibbs when I first met him. Those steely blue eyes had a way of piercing through anything. More than once, though those same eyes showed me more caring than I thought ever possible. In Paraguay, we were all we had to keep each other sane. Through Gibbs, I learned to love my own Dad as an adult. Thank you, Gibbs for making me one of your kids." Tim let out a sob as he squeezed Dee's hand. "Jimmy?"
"You think you were terrified of Gibbs? I was so scared of him that I hid from him on more than one occasion. Dr. Mallard couldn't quite understand why Gibbs scared me so. But over the years, he became like a father to me. I remember him giving me a pep talk when our adoption fell through; and the hug he gave me after I talked that kid off the ledge…" Jimmy started sobbing and couldn't continue. Abby took his hand as Breena hugged him.
"We loved him like a father," Breena added. "He meant so much to Jimmy after Ducky retired and passed."
"I miss him so much," Abby said through her tears. "He always had this way of knowing when I had some results for him in the lab. He'd show up just as I picked up the phone to call him. One time, he showed up and I didn't have anything. I felt like I'd let him down big time. And you know what he said to me? He said, 'It's okay, Abby. You will have something soon. I believe in you.' I guess what I miss most is…" she broke down, sobbing in Leon's embrace. "His… hugs…"
Everyone wiped tears as they listened to Abby's sobs. Ziva spoke next, "I do not know where to begin. In Abba, I found the father that I wanted for most of my life. Eli may have been my biological parent, but Gibbs showed me how love built a family." Ziva became silent, remembering that awful moment in Gibbs' basement when she had to choose between her brother and Gibbs. Tony sensed what she was thinking and wrapped an arm around her, placing a gentle kiss on her cheek. "I think he is probably looking on us now and saying how much he cared for each and every one of this family," her voice broke but she continued, "I love you Abba." Tony drew his wife into his arms and held her as she sobbed on his chest.
He nodded at Dee, and she spoke softly, "Gibbs was my man of honor; when I asked him, I wasn't sure how he'd react. When he hugged me and said 'yes,' I felt like a part of the family for the first time. Love you, Gibbs." She wiped at her eyes, "Kayla?"
"He told me to follow my heart; and when Dad got kidnapped that one summer, he was my rock." She nudged her brother.
Jared cleared his throat and replied, "When I was trying to find myself that year at the Community College, Gibbs told me to find something I wanted to do with all of my being. That's how I ended up in the Air Force. Thanks, Gibbs." He looked to his wife and three kids.
Tori wiped at her eyes, "That summer we all went to the cabin with Grandpa Gibbs, he was so understanding. When I told him about the kids at school teasing me about my parents' jobs, he explained to me that what they did for a living helped others and they were special people for the types of things they had to deal with. That and dancing with him at my wedding are my fondest memories!"
Tali spoke up next, holding her children close as she sat next to Chaim. "Grandpa could make me smile when all I wanted to do was be mad at the world. He had a way of getting me to talk about what was bothering me. Like Tori, I have strong memories of the summer at his cabin and also of dancing with him at my wedding. When he first held Levi, I thought my heart would burst. The love on Grandpa's face for his first great-grandchild was phenomenal. I wish my kids had more time with him!"
Chaim wrapped an arm around his wife and sons, "He was the only Grandpa I ever had. He welcomed me to the family that day Tali brought me home to meet you all. Thank you Gibbs for your part in making the woman I love!" He nodded to Anthony.
Anthony put an arm around Katie and looked at John, "Grandpa was our prank buddy, especially when we pulled pranks on Abba and Uncle Tim." John smiled through his tears and put a hand on his cousin's shoulder. "I know that he had my six more times than I can count. I hope I've made him proud. Love you, Grandpa!" he squeezed Katie's hand in his and turned to her.
She smiled at her soul mate, "Grandpa was the best. I remember the look on his face when we told him we'd name the twins after his long ago family. He hugged me and told me that I'd made that old Marine so proud that his eyes leaked. I love you, Grandpa!" Katie looked over at her twin.
"As Anthony mentioned, Grandpa was our prank buddy. A couple of times, he even took the blame for a few pranks that went sideways. Even though Dad and Uncle Tony knew who was behind the run-away yard tractor, Grandpa managed to get us off the hook on that one!"
Anthony glanced at his Abba. "No, Abba, Grandpa did NOT leave the tractor in gear accidentally…"
John finished, "Grandpa, I love you! Charles?"
On the Okinawa side, Charles stepped towards the cam. "Grandpa was the only one who didn't complain when I went through my rebellious phase. He thought it was funny when I had the lime green hair with hot pink spikes! He celebrated our individual personalities. Love you lots, Grandpa."
John put his arm around Rivka as she took her turn. "Grandpa always made time for each of us individually. Both John and I are twins, but in Grandpa's eyes, that never made a difference. He always encouraged us to be ourselves, whatever that self might be. I love you, Grandpa!"
Beth wiped at her tears as her twin nodded to her to signal her turn. "Grandpa gave the best hugs when I was sad or mad. He was the ONLY one I let get away with calling me Bethy-boo! I miss him. Grandpa, I love you." Ziva pulled her daughter to her in a hug and handed her a tissue for her tears.
Everyone looked to LJ, the last of the grandkids for his turn. He opened his mouth to speak, but couldn't. Tony put an arm around his youngest, drawing the young man into a side hug. "Grandpa was my painting buddy. He's the one who introduced me to art and the wonders of capturing the world in pictures. I looked at some of the pictures on Ima's computer earlier today, and going back to when I was about a year old, in almost every one of them with Grandpa, I'm in his lap, by his side or following him. Grandpa was my best friend for most of my life. I'm going to make him proud by doing what he only dreamed about; I'm going to make my art my life's work!" LJ choked back a sob. " I… love… my… Grandpa!" he broke down in his Abba's arms, sobbing against Tony's chest. Ziva reached over and rubbed a hand on his back.
The only sounds were sniffling and sobbing for about five minutes as each one of the family reflected on the man who created their family of the heart. Even the little ones were somber, sensing the mood of the group. Finally, Anthony IV broke the silence by asking, "Savta, are we going to eat supper soon? I'm hungry!"
The others laughed when Leon commented, "He's a true DiNozzo!"
Each of the family on the DC side picked up a cup of coffee or a glass of water or juice. The Okinawa side all had coffee cups in hand.
"L'chaim!" Ziva raised her coffee cup.
"To head-slaps!" Tony grinned through his tears.
"To Gibbs, to Grandpa," the others joined in to the toast to the man who was the foundation of the family of the heart that they had made.