Long time, no see.

Author's Note at the bottom.

Twenty Two

"Anything ring a bell yet?"

Ziva glances up from where she kneels along the concrete; glancing around their daughter's head to shoot him a warning glare. He smiles apologetically in response, watching as she finishes looping their daughter's elusive shoelace into a tight knot. Her eyes narrow at the offending lace, as if daring it to come undone once more under her watch.

She hums neutrally rather than confirm or deny his question with a audible yes or no. Instead, she busies herself checking Piper's light jacket; pulling the zipper up an additional further inch, and an inch more than necessary for the mild, spring afternoon. Out of distractions, she gives the increasingly impatient little girl a bright smile, leaning back on her heels.

"Perfect." She affirms, dropping her hands to her thighs, and Piper, hopping from foot to foot, grins back at her. She chirps excitedly, and Ziva's eyes return to Tony's as he recaptures one of Piper's free hands. She reaches for her other, small hand the little girl proffers to her while giving a hastily uttered thank you.

Tony smiles at her over their daughter's head, and Ziva rolls her eyes good-naturedly as Piper resumes pulling them along the crowded street-side once more; weaving through and around other families and people out enjoying the beautiful saturday in the heart of D.C.

It was Tony's idea to head out for the day; affirming that spending the day visiting their familiar haunts would spur some of Ziva's memory into action, and also allow Piper to enjoy herself in the process. And while it was fun to watch their daughter's excitement build as they made their way to her favorite park, laughing and tugging at their hands, pointing at every which thing that captured her attention, Ziva couldn't quell the anxiety that was building with every step. While she was becoming more accustomed to her life as it stood now from day to day, it was much easier in the comfort of their home and the growing familiarity of Tony and their daughter's presence.

Out in the middle of the city, a world she remembers so little about, every unfamiliar sound, every movement, bombards her with other memories long before her life here, and Ziva finds she must check herself constantly. She feels like a recovering PTSD victim; She startles at every car horn, each siren that flares up and echoes through the city blocks, and she finds herself unable to tear her eyes away from the oblivious, happy little girl that skips between her and Tony; the thought of her stepping too far out of her reach in the hustle of the city streets could be just one step too many from safety and being able to protect her.

If Tony senses her anxiety in her silence, or her growing tension in the tightness of her grasp, he does well at ignoring it. He keeps up a running conversation with their daughter, even bringing the occasional strained smile to Ziva's face at their antics, her imagination seemingly limitless, and Tony's encouragement of it. He has Piper in fits of laughter by the time they reach the street corner from across the park, and when he sees Ziva tense and momentary pause as traffic shudders to a halt before the cross walk, he scoops their daughter up effortlessly against his hip; giving Ziva an easy wink and encouraging smile as he pulls her by the hand across the street.

He leads them to a small, grassy area that's far from the hustle of the city street and downright bare compared to the area by the crowded swing-set, and as Tony sets Piper down several yards from the playset, running after her towards the slide, for the first time since leaving their apartment, Ziva feels a sense of calm wash over her.

Though her stress leaves her for the length of the afternoon, the calm doesn't last.

It happens on their way back from the park.

"I think momma wants ice cream."

Piper smiles up sweetly at Ziva, and both her and Tony share an amused look over her head where she skips between the pair of them.

No doubt that she had spied the vendor from far down the street, they can't resist teasing her; even though Ziva sees Tony's resistance melt in his eyes the second her voice takes on its adorable tilt.

"Hmm..." Tony hums, shooting Ziva a look as their daughter watches their exchange expectantly. "I don't see any ice cream, do you, Ziva?"

Ziva pretends to cast her eyes around them, ignoring the vendor they near with every step.

"No," she shakes her head sadly, barely reigning in her smile. She does her best to look disheartened. "I suppose we will have to wait until we return home."

Tony grimaces, just as Piper begins to protest between them.

"That's a long time from now," He whines, and Ziva finally laughs as Piper begins tugging on both of their hands.

"Daddy," She pulls her hand from Ziva's to point down the street. "It's right there. Where we always go."

Tony chuckles, winking at Ziva, and as they approach the cart, he pauses while still searching his pockets.

"Uh-oh," He mumbles under his breath, looking up at Ziva with an apology in his eyes. "I left my wallet in the car," He motions across the street, several yards away. Ziva nods in understanding, motioning for him to go.

"We'll be waiting," She confirms, and Tony nods; a sneaky gleam in his eye.

"Order our usuals?" He motions between him and their daughter, whom Ziva's wrestling out of her jacket distractedly.

"Mint chocolate chip and strawberry." She replies absently, while she pulls Piper's arm free of another sleeve, and hands over to Tony to put in the car. She doesn't notice his knowing smirk until she turns back to him when he remains silent. She frowns at him for several moments, before a knowing look dawns across her features at her own words.

"Looks like the park is ringing a few of those bells in that pretty head after all." He winks, then looks to make sure there's a break in traffic, and leaves her standing there as he dashes across the street.

"What bells?" She cries after him in exasperation, but if he hears her, he chooses to ignore her. With a sigh, she gives into Piper's insistent hand tugging, and wander over to the vendor to place their orders.

She's not sure if it's the lack of Tony's ever grounding presence, Piper's constant chattering and pleads for her ice-cream, or the full force of the city surrounding her and suddenly hitting her at once again, but her anxiety begins to bubble once more as she stumbles over their orders and flavors and sizes while trying to keep Piper's hand tight in her own.

When the vendor hands over their cones, Ziva at lasts lets go of Piper's hand, for only a moment, directing a stern stay down at her as she turns her back, taking their cones one at a time from the smiling man. She sees Piper whip her head around toward the street out of her peripheral vision, searching for Tony no doubt amongst the the flurry of people moving in both directions on the sidewalk. As she exchanges pleasantries with the salesman, her anxiety only skyrockets as she sees a dark SUV peel off loudly from its spot on the street side; speeding into traffic and down their current road.

The moment she focuses on the man in front of her again to say thank you, she hears Piper's shout of "Hurry, Daddy!" and it comes from much too far away for Ziva's liking. She sees the SUV still gaining speed down the street, and when her head whips around to see Piper now at the edge of the road, waving toward Tony, an onslaught of memories at last rip through her.

But they aren't any she'd been so desperately trying to channel.

Suddenly, although it lasts only several seconds, she's no longer on the sunny streets of D.C. Her vision swims with memories of a day so long ago in Israel; a dark SUV creeping slowly along the street outside of her primary school. A sudden explosion. A blast that ripped through the sound barriers.

It reaches her now.

A strangled noise rises from her throat, and the next thing she knows is she's blinking rapidly, back on the street of D.C, and suddenly she's gripping a dumbfounded Piper in a vice-like grip by her arm. They're feet away from the curb now, and her face is suggesting that Ziva must have yelled harshly. Tony appears just as suddenly hovering above them, and his own face suggests that whatever she yelled, it wasn't in a language he understood.

But Piper's sudden watery eyes tells her that the little girl understood clearly.

"Ziva..." Tony pants, slightly breathless from running across the street towards them. His eyes are mournful and empathetic, but she shakes her head, looking back at their daughter and her tight grip on her arm.

She drops her hand, blinking rapidly as she feels her face flush red. Piper still looks stunned as she watches Ziva, leaning into the comforting hand Tony presses against her back.

Thrusting the cone of strawberry ice-cream into Piper's hand that's begun dripping slowly down the cone, Ziva straightens up; backing away from the both of them while still trying to calm her heart rate.

"I need to go." Ziva backs farther away; away from Tony's protesting, from Piper's sad, watery eyes. She turns her back on the pair of them, fleeing their gazes and breaking off through the crowded sidewalk. She walks until she reaches the end of the next street, turning a corner and drowning out the sounds surrounding her. She walks until soon, city turns to suburban, and the noise becomes only a dull echo ringing in her ears.

She doesn't realize it as her feet travel a familiar path that, while her mind doesn't quite remember, her body still does.

It's not until she's before his very house that she's pulled from her reverie; a quiet, always familiar Ziver calling out to her - memorable, no matter any lifetime.

She lets out a shaky sob; her voice shuddering with relief.

"Gibbs."

Hello!

A thousand apologies to those that have reviewed, loved, and begged for me to update this story. There really isn't a legitimate excuse for ignoring this story. The more I explored writing, the more I realized that I could write things other than fluffy, AU kid stories, and I've really enjoyed branching out and experimenting with different styles of writing and different types of stories. I told you, I haven't forgotten this one. It just took me a while to find some direction and inspiration again. But I want to thank you all a thousand times over for being so very patient and leaving all of the wonderful reviews that you have. I hope this chapter was okay, and if you're still with me, give yourself a huge hug from myself.

Much love,

jae