Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

He approached the door slowly, following behind a dutiful secretary who expressionlessly opened the door but did not announce his arrival. She stood in the middle of the room, papers and files strewn about the desk in front of her, reading a thick packet in her hand.

“Counselor David?”

“I am in the middle of preparing for a case, so whatever you have to say, please do so quickly,” she said, not even glancing up from her work.

“I’m uh…Special Agent Anthony DiNozzo, NCIS. We ran the investigation on the Simmons case.”

“I am aware of that, your name is on all of the files,” She looked up from her work with little amusement, “What can I do for you, Agent DiNozzo?” The lilt of her accent took him aback, his name sounded sexy coming from her mouth.

“We just wanted to make sure that all of our ducks were in a row, that your office got all of our reports, evidence.”

“An issue that could easily be solved with a phone call, and yet here you are.”

“Well the boss likes us to be…thorough.”

“Special Agent Gibbs, yes?”

“You know him?”

“I know of him. Tough ex marine, grey hair, steely blue eyes. Sends those who cross him running scared.”

“That’s our guy.”

“Hmph. He has a bit of a reputation around here.”

“The Great White has a reputation that extends to the entire tri state area.“

“I have heard that he would give me a particularly difficult time.”

“Yeah don’t worry about him, he has a thing about lawyers. Divorce lawyers in particular but really all lawyers are right up there with new people on the list of people Gibbs doesn’t trust. You just happen to be both.”

“Hmm. So what, he sent you to check up on me?”

“No, he just,”

“I may be new to this office, but I can assure you I am not stupid.”

Tony stared for a moment, not quite sure how to respond.

“Do not lie to me, Agent DiNozzo, I can already tell you are a terrible liar.”

He dropped the pretense and said honestly “Yeah, he sent me to check you out.”

“Interesting choice of words,” she teased.

“But,” he continued, ignoring her, “He has some reason to want to check into the prosecutor of the case, just to be sure. I mean, you do look pretty young.”

“I suppose I am young, compared to some people. You, for example”

“I’m not that much older than you.”

“And how old do you think I am?”

“I…plead the fifth?” He cringed slightly.

“You are invoking your right to not incriminate yourself?”

“I’m invoking my right to not answer a question that will clearly get me in trouble.”

“You are smarter than I gave you credit for,” she quipped.

“All part of the DiNozzo charm.”

“You consider yourself charming? I had not noticed. Tell me, what are some of your other self proclaimed charming qualities?”

“I consider myself to be passionate, well-mannered, considerate, I could go on.”

“I hardly think I have the time to hear them all,” she scoffed.

“We could discuss it later if you’d like, maybe over a drink?”

She stops shuffling the papers in her hands to look him straight in the eyes. “That was a terrible segue.”

“I’ve done worse,” he said lightly.

“That I do not doubt for a moment.”

“Terrible segue aside, would you like to go out for a drink with me?”

“Why? So I can experience the “DiNozzo charm’ for myself?” she chuckled.

“I haven’t heard any complaints yet,” he said confidently.

“And what would the ‘great white’ think of his senior agent seeing a lawyer of all people, hmmm?”

“Well he’s got a rule about dating coworkers and one against working with lawyers…but none about dating lawyers. What Gibbs doesn’t know won’t hurt him.”

“I hardly think he would be the one hurting should he find out.”

“You’ve heard about the…?” he made a slapping motion in the air.

She nods “In fact I’ve witnessed it.”

He tilted his head in suspicion “When have you seen Gibbs headslap me?”

“You should be careful not to incur his disapproval in public places…like court houses.”

“But that would mean that you’ve been on one of our cases before, and I know I would have remembered that.”

“How can you be so sure? One lawyer must be the same as any other to you.”

He scoffed, “Trust me, I would have remembered you.”

“I am not certain whether or not to be flattered or file a sexual harassment complaint,” she teased.

“I’d prefer the former if it’s all the same to you.”

She rolled her eyes, “Regardless Agent DiNozzo, it would be a major conflict of interest should we fraternize outside of this case.”

“And after the trial is over?”

She contemplated his question for a moment before answering. “Should you choose to return to my office after the conclusion of this case, I would not do anything to stop you.”

He smiled broadly. “Alright then.”

“Alright. If there’s nothing else,” she motioned to the door.

“I guess I’ll see you in court. And after,” he paused, “But if you need anything in the meantime,” he reached into his wallet, pulled out a business card and handed it to her, “Here’s my card.”

“Thank you, Agent DiNozzo.”

“Tony.” he corrected.

“Tony,” she smiled “I’ll be seeing you,”

“Yep, bright and early, Counselor.”

“Ziva,” she says quickly as he turned away.

He nodded, smiling broadly. “Ziva”

Chapter Text

The day could not be more beautiful. Sunny and 60 degrees, the rays beat down on the many inhabitants of the park, giving them one last taste of summer before the chill of fall settled in for good. Tony groaned as he stretched his calf just the right way, shifting less than gracefully from warrior 1 to warrior 2. Ellie chuckled beside him, bowing deeper into her pose. It was a tradition, every Sunday morning it was sunny and over 40 degrees, Tony and Ellie met to do yoga in the park. Sibling bonding time, she insisted, was the most important part of her week. His little sister had always had an uncanny ability to somehow get him to do anything she asked. Had to be the puppy dog eyes. You would think after 30 years he’d be immune.

A beautiful woman jogged through the park in long running pants and a green jacket, her long, curly hair bouncing with each step she took. “There she is,” Ellie said softly. His eyes shot up to search the direction Ellie was looking. "It’s She-Who-Has-Yet-To-Be-Named.“ she joked.

"I’m sure she has a name.”

“You’re just to chicken to learn it.”

He scoffed. “I am not chicken.”

“She runs past us every week, and every week you stare at her as she runs by and away.”

“I…yeah well…I think…I love her.”

“From a distance,” Ellie muttered as they stretched back up into warrior 1.

“I just need to figure out how to meet her.” His face was pinched in thought.

“You could…and bear with me because I know this sounds crazy…actually walk up and talk to her.”

“I can’t just walk up to her,” Tony said incredulously.

She craned her head back over her shoulder, frowning. “And why not?”

“She’s running, for one.”

“And if you were to walk up to her, she would stop,” She said as though it were obvious.

“I doubt that.”

“Ooh. Has your game fallen so far that you can’t even get a woman to talk to you anymore?”

“You talk to me.”

“I’m your sister, I’m obligated to talk to you.” Tony scoffs, affronted. “And because I love you. Because you do yoga with me.”

“Uh huh. And because I buy you breakfast.”

“That too.” She paused, moving into warrior 3. “You could go buy that woman breakfast…if you would just go talk to her.”

“I can’t just go up and talk to her, that’s a damn fine woman, I have to have a plan.”

“This is ridiculous.” Ellie said, breaking her pose and jogging up to the woman in question. She waved at her, and the woman slowed to a stop, pausing to chat with Ellie. Tony stood on his mat, watching the women interact. He shifted from foot to foot uncomfortably, waiting. Ellie pointed at Tony, and the woman looked over to him, curious expression on her face. He waved with an unsure smile. She smiled back, chuckling. Ellie said something else, causing the woman to laugh once again, and nod. Ellie beckoned him with her hand, increasing her speed when he didn’t move fast enough for her. Ellie grabbed his forearm when he was within reach, pulling him forward.

“Ziva, this is Tony. Tony, Ziva.” She smiled, clearly satisfied with herself.

“Hi,” Tony said with a charming smile.

“Hello.” She said, foreign accent lacing her tone.

Ellie looked between the two of them and quickly excused herself. “I’m just gonna go…over there.”

Tony turned his head to watch her go, and she gave him a thumbs up. He let out a barking laugh. He turned back to Ziva, trying to not look too embarrassed.

“Sorry about that. Meddling little sisters always think they know best.”

Ziva giggled, “I know something about that.”

“Oh good. We have something in common then.”

“I suppose we do,” She said with a smirk. His chest tightened. She was flirting with him.

“Would you like to talk about it over coffee?” He asked with a hopeful smile. One that she easily returned.

“Yes. I would.”

Chapter Text

The warm Israeli sun beat down on his shoulders, harsh even in the winter. He was looking for her, as usual. Since he’d left her behind he’d had a nagging feeling in his gut that wouldn’t go away. One that told him that he was wrong. That he shouldn’t have left her there, not in the state she was in. Not knowing how they felt about each other. He’d left his gear in the house, and after a quick inspection headed out to the grove, hoping she was still around her father’s home.

He scuffled through the property, the dust kicking up clouds around him, settling comfortably in his jacket. He brushed his shoulder but to no avail, he knew this would stick to him long after he got home. If he got home. He peered through the trees, looking down each row, hoping to catch a glimpse of her.

There she was, hair blowing gently in the wind, basket propped against her hip. She moved slowly but surely, the twist of her wrist practiced as she plucked the oranges from between the leaves. She stretched upwards, fingers just shy of a particularly delicious looking fruit. Tony walked up behind her slowly, reaching above her easily and taking the fruit. He brought it down just in front of her nose. She took it from him with a smirk, her fingers brushing his.

“An orange for the beautiful lady,” he murmured in her ear.

“Thank you,” she whispered. She dropped the orange into the basket, placed it gently at her feet and turned around smoothly, facing him with a sly but unsurprised grin. "Hello, Tony.“

He grinned back at her, reaching for her waist. His hands brushed against her, grazing the small swell of her stomach. His eyes darted down, widening visibly before his head shot up to look at her in shock.

"I was wondering how long it would take you to notice,” she smirked.

You’re…“ he stuttered, wide eyed.

"Pregnant, yes, she said calmly.

"And the baby is mine?” He asked cautiously.

“Yes. She is.”

He nodded slightly, as if everything was coming together. “So that’s what was with all the cryptic e mails.”

“Crypic?”

“I am going through many changes, I am not sure how I am feeling, this is going to change everything I thought I wanted.” He recited, imitating her, gesticulating with his hands.

“I do not sound like that,” she frowned.

“Well I don’t have the right chromosomes to sound any closer,” He stared her down for a moment, in challenge. “I thought you were in trouble. I thought something went wrong.”

“I can hardly say that everything is right.”

“Yeah well, this is actually better than what I was thinking,” he said, scratching the back of his head.

“And what were you thinking?”

“I don’t know. That you were sick, or that you had learned something else about your father, or that you had gotten attacked again. There were too many scenarios, and none of them were good.”

“I am sorry I made you worry.”

“You’re thousands of miles from home, Ziva. I can’t not worry.”

They remained silent for a moment. Ziva dug her hands into her pockets, trying to keep from fidgeting. Tony placed his hand on her stomach, stroking gently, reverently.

"You're pregnant."

"Yes."

"And it's a girl."

She smiled, "Yes."

“If I didn’t show up here, were you gonna tell me?” he asked quietly.

“Yes. I just...I was not sure how,” she said, resting her hands on her belly protectively, forcing Tony to drop his hand back to his side.

“A phone call would do,” he snipped.

“I was not referring to the method,” she bit back. She took a calming breath, not wanting their unexpected reunion to turn into a confrontation. “I was not sure what to say. I did not want to simply call and say ‘Tony, I’m pregnant but I am in Israel and I am not ready to leave, what should we do?”

“Why not?” He asked, trying to remain calm.

“I was not ready to tell you. I was not ready for what it would mean.”

“I would have dropped everything for you, Ziva. As soon as I got the phone call I would have come running."

“I know you would have, and there was a part of me that wanted that, but I could not.”

“You can’t just say that you couldn’t tell me about our baby and not tell me why.”

They fell into silence once again, the breeze whipping through the grove, rustling the leaves and kicking up the dust. He stared down at her, his eyes soft but demanding.

“I was afraid...I did not want you to feel as though you had an obligation to me - to us.” She said as she gently rubbed her belly. “I did not want to force you into something you did not want."

He stood silently in thought for a moment, "Do you remember the pregnancy pact case? You had to wear that big fake belly and we had to play happy family?"

A picture flashed in her mind I said it was a girl

"Yes, I remember."

"Ever since then, just seeing the smile on your face when you'd talk about our fake baby, I thought maybe, one day, we'd be doing it for real."

Her eyes widened.

“Ziva, you have to trust me. I want you, and her and this," he said tenderly, placing his hand on hers on her stomach. "I want it all.”

“I wanted to believe that, but when I made you leave…I did not know if you would want to see me after I pushed you away,” she looked down, refusing to meet his eyes, "I am not easy to love, Tony. I know that. I would understand if you did not want to try.“

He reached up to cup her jaw, stroking her cheek with his thumb, "When have I ever given you the impression that I don’t want you?"

"Never.” she whispered.

“Then why are you doubting it now?”

“I…I do not know.”

He leaned down to her, and kissed her soundly. She leaned into him, her stomach bumping his waist. He smiled into the kiss, his hand moving to her waist, stroking the side of her belly. He gently broke the kiss, tilting back to look into her eyes.

“Come home with me.” he said, his forehead resting against hers.

“I do not know if I can,” she said sincerely, “What if they do not want me to come back?”

“Are you kidding? Abs would start knitting baby hats the moment she saw you. McGee would get that big-eyed shocked look he gets and then feel uncomfortable about the fact that he knows we had sex,”

Ziva laughed, a smile breaking out on her face.

“And Gibbs. Just imagine Gibbs’ face when you tell him he’s gonna be a grandpa.”

She settled, her smile dulling but not disappearing, the anxiety she felt deep down unfurling itself as his words settled in. "He would like that, wouldn’t he?“

"I think we might even see him cry.”

“No.” she said in disbelief.

“His favorite daughter having a kid? I think that’s worthy of tears even from our fearless leader.”

“We should make a bet,” she teased.

“Oh no, I know better than to gamble with you.”

“If you truly think he is going to cry, you would not be afraid to bet me,” she said, taking his hand in hers and lacing their fingers together.

“Oh really, now? You seem pretty serious about this bet. Does that mean you’re coming home with me?”

She stood up on her tip toes, leaning on Tony for balance, and kissed him softly. “Yes.”

He smiled. They’d figure the rest out later. She was coming home, and that was all he needed to know.