A/N: Disclaimer: I own nothing, et cetera continuum ad infinitum...
1. My spelling is Australian/British-English NOT American-English.
2. Chapters will be short, but that should mean more, sooner :D
3. This is my first fic - I won't ask you to be too gentle, but please take it into consideration...
An undercover operation had ended badly.
Very badly.
And Ziva had taken its full fury head-on. When Tony found her, she was lying in a pool of her own blood, eyes glazing over.
He didn't have time to think or feel – only to function.
He watched in a daze as his fingers dialled 9-1-1, words tumbling from his mouth of their own volition. He knelt by her side for seemed to be an eternity, applying pressure to the ugly hole in her chest, praying and waiting anxiously for her next shallow breath.
Tony didn't notice the biting cold, or the falling snow.
All he felt was the warm, red slick beneath his hands. It just didn't seem to stop... her life was flowing out onto the ground, slipping through his fingers.
God knew just how helpless he felt.
An ambulance siren sounded in the distance, cutting through the chaos in his mind.
Relief shot through him – help was at hand. She could make it – they could make it. Tears stung his eyes, threatening to fall, but he blinked them away.
The siren drew closer.
Focus - I need to focus, I need to focus... I need- I need you to hold on, Ziva... they're nearly here...
Paramedics were kneeling beside him now. White gloved hands replaced his, moving with life-saving precision. He heard a voice, felt a hand on his shoulder.
"Don't worry, son... she's in good hands." But Tony hardly heard. His were fixed on his partner's face. She was so still, her olive skin so pale. Almost as pale as Abby's.
But not grey. Not like Kate. Not yet. Not ever.
He watched in a daze as they placed her onto the stretcher. She looked so fragile, so delicate. It hardly seemed real. The younger paramedic, a woman, shook him by the shoulders.
"Hey – you coming?"
Tony felt himself nodding as she helped him to his feet.
I have to look after her. I have to make sure she's safe.
A/N: Now you've read, please review :D I know that you know that you want to... *uses epic mind-reading ninja skills*