Recap: Since Ducky was the one 'mean doctor' who was given the task to examine Ziva after she was turned into a kid AND Ziva didn't liked the pocking and prodding at all, she didn't wanted to have him near her afterward. Here's how he regained her trust.

~ Ducky's gift ~

xx

(Outtake 'Machine Of Evil')

"What is it, Ducky?" McGee asked as he subtly adjusted the webcam on his monitor in order to film the following moments.

"Something I wanted to give Ziva as birthday present. However, I don't think she would mind if I give it to her younger self."

Mini-Ziva still eyed the wrapped box, which the older M.E, had placed in front of her.

'You can open it,' signed Abby, having come to sit opposite Ziva in the middle of the team desks. The present between them.

Uncertainly the little girl nudged the packet.

Over their desks Gibbs and Tony silently watched the child's every move.

xx

As the seconds ticked by Gibbs diverted his gaze from Mini-Ziva to his old friend. He could see that the hesitation in the small girl's action was hurting the medical examiner, also he couldn't shake off the feeling that his friend was most likely assessing Ziva's every move.

Ducky, feeling Gibbs' gaze on him, looked up from the scene in front of him and into the blue eyes of the team leader, having a silent conversation.

"Come on, open it."

Abby's whispered words made the older men look at Ziva and the gift again. Pursing his lips, Gibbs soundlessly rose from his seat and stepped in front of his desk.

His movements caught Ziva attention and she looked up at him expectantly.

The gray-haired agent gave her a small smile before he sat down next to her. Making himself comfortable, he gently pulled the little girl onto his lap, letting her come to rest against his broad chest.

"Abbs," he pointed to the still unopened gift.

Wordlessly the grinning goth handed him the wrapped present.

Gibbs carefully rotated it, showing Ziva that it was safe to touch and placed it without further ado into her little hands.

The small girl craned her neck and looked wide eyed at him. Grinning back at her he took one end of the ribbon and placed it gently into Mini-Ziva's hand, probing her to hold it safely, he enclosed her hand with his own and made them both tug on the ribbon, losing the bow.

As Mini-Ziva played with the ribbon some more, Gibbs used the time and turned to his old friend, pleased to see Ducky smiling at the scene in front of him.

"Gibbs," Abby exclaimed impatiently, "We want to see what's in there!"

McGee and Tony nodded in agreement.

A deep chuckle ripped through the team leader's chest, causing Ziva to momentarily stop her playing and turn around to look at him confused.

"Time to continue," thought Gibbs and placed the little girl's hand on the edge of the wrapped present, where it was safely sealed together. Like before he then enclosed her hand with his own and together they teared down the first seal.

Mini-Ziva had observed his actions frowning, but when the paper ripped under their hands her interest was sparked once again.

Freeing her hand from his, she used both of her hands to rotate the present, peeking at the damaged part of the wrapping paper. Since she couldn't see anything else than the white underside of the paper Mini-Ziva grasped the varicolored paper between her little hands and more or less tore the rest of it off.

Tony, not having anticipated such a blunt move, chocked on his soda and coughed violently.

Meanwhile Mini-Ziva scrutinized the gift box in her hands.

Gibbs smiled as he saw the printed ballet shoes on the gift box. He remembered overhearing Ducky's and Ziva's conversation about his agent having taken dancing lessons when she was younger.

Not wanting to delay things any longer he opened the gift box for Ziva and lifted the object out of the box. Freeing it also of the crimson velvet protection bag, he finally placed it carefully onto the little girl's lap.

Meanwhile Abby had inched closer to the pair to get a better view on the present.

It was a wooden box, hand-crafted from high-quality burled elm wood with a highly figured grain, completed with a high-gloss finish. The hand-inlaid lid featured an intricate ballerina design, offset by a traditional border. The box had also four gold-toned metal feet.

"Ducky! It's beautiful!" Abby exclaimed in awe.

Ziva scrunched her face. While the picture of the ballet shoes caught her eyes, it was still a boring box for her.

Gibbs rested his chin lightly on the top of Ziva's head, careful not to put any pressure on the little girl's head, he studied the box also.

After a moment, in which Ziva didn't moved at all, he decided to nudge the lid of the box, hoping for a reaction from his small companion.

Intrigued Ziva lifted the lid a bit herself, just small enough that she could sneak a peek inside as she turned the box on its side.

However before she could shut the lid again, the gray-haired agent carefully pried the box's lid out of Ziva's grasp and opened the box fully, setting the box back on its feet at the same time. While now a soft tune began to filled the team's area, a smile lid up Ziva's face when she saw a traditional ballerina figure that turned to the music. Also she couldn't hear the tune it was playing, the movement of the ballerina fascinated her.

Excited Mini-Ziva turned her head to Gibbs, pointing at the small figure dancing on the toes inside the box.

"I see," he smiled down at her, hugging the small girl as she continued to be mesmerized by the ballerina.

"Wow, this figure is really detailed. It looks nothing like those cheap looking ones which you normally find in music boxes."

"The whole box is handmade," explained Ducky to Abby, watching Ziva trace the ballerina's outline as it turned once again.

"Great idea, Duck," commented Gibbs, receiving nods in agreement from his male agents.

'You should thank him,' Abby signed as Ziva momentarily looked at her.

Unsure, the little girl turned to Gibbs, who nodded encouraging at her, before he took the box out of her hands and lifted her back onto her own feet, gently ushering her into Ducky's direction.

The resident M.E. smiled reassuringly at the approaching girl who looked shyly up at him. Squatting down, despite his protesting knees, he was surprised when Ziva hugged him.

"Must have looked it up from you, Abby," commented McGee as he snapped another photo of the scene.

"I'll turn her into a hugger," the Goth smiled proudly but soon glared at the team leader, as Gibbs released something sounding like between a cough and snort as he tried and failed to hold his laughter inside.

"I'm sure you will, my dear," said Ducky and released Ziva out of his own embrace, letting her walk straight back to Gibbs and her new music box.

~ Fin ~