Merry Christmas! I didn't have the chance to update Wednesday because of severe writers block and then lost internet while traveling until today. So please just try to ignore my tardiness and focus on the adorableness that is Tiva? I wrote this during an eight hour car ride, during which I was this close to going completely Ninja-Ziva on my sisters… Although I did threaten them with paperclips more than once.

Disclaimer: NCIS isn't mine, but I'd love to know what's going to happen involving Ziva and Eli in the next episode.

"So, Eli, my son and your daughter. How's that for a connection?" Senior winked, sliding his suitcase under the seat in front of him. The flight attendant slid by, giggling when Senior flashed her the DiNozzo smile, before turning and offering the two agents accompanying them back to NCIS peanuts.

"Yes. Ziva is very professional. Although I am not sure your son has the same opinions on what is professional and what is not." Eli David replied, his expression darkening. "I do not approve on the way that Anthony is… rubbing off on Ziva."

"Excuse me, sir. Will you please buckle your seatbelt? We're taking off soon." The flight attendant said, brushing her hair behind her ear with another giggle.

"Why don't you buckle it for me?" Senior chuckled, raising an eyebrow at the agent across the aisle shooting him dirty looks. With a nervous laugh, she backed down the aisle, whispering to her coworker. "I'd be surprised if Junior wasn't rubbing off on Ziva!"

"Because Gibbs has decided to force them into every case together and convince Ziva to stay in DC?" Eli sneered as the plane lifted off the ground.

"And because Ziva seems quite smitten with my son. Eli, they're together." Senior chuckled, flashing Eli a charming smile.

"Together?"

"Yes. They're in a pretty serious relationship, and if I'm not mistaken, I think they'll be a few mini DiNozzos on the way in no time." Senior grinned, hoping to strike up a business deal over a friendly conversation about what they'd name their grandchildren.

The boomingslew of Hebrew curse words that flew out of Eli's mouth next could be heard clearly back in DC.

…..

Tony and Ziva sat in silence. Unlike the comfortable silence that accompanied their movie nights, when only the explosions and gunfire of James Bond could be heard in the apartment, this eerie quiet was nothing less than terrifying. Tony's heart was beating out of his chest. He'd told Ziva he loved her, and instead of a proclamation of her love yelled back to him, she sat beside him quietly, her face shrouded in shadow. He wondered if he should have taken Natan up on his offer to share a room with Leah, but knew that if he had, his life would be no easier. At least this way, Ziva finally, after years and years, knew why he was unwilling to live without her.

Meanwhile, Ziva's whole world had just been turned upside down and then flipped backwards in the matter of two seconds flat. He loved her. He loved her. He loved her. Tony DiNozzo loved her. On top of that, he wasn't dying, or only dating her because her father had ordered him to, or a killer. He was her partner, who she'd trusted unconditionally for the past 7 years with her life no less. And he. Loved. Her. So why couldn't she say anything?

It might have been the pure shock, or maybe the fear that if she said anything, the moment would break and something would happen to ruin it. Because of course she loved him to. It terrified her, but she did none the less. Taking a deep breath, and yelling at herself to man up, Ziva looked Tony square in the face and opened her mouth to respond.

"I- I love you… also."

RINNNGGGG! Tony fell off the bed in surprised, clutching his chest and muttering about heart palpitations. Ziva jumped about four feet in the air before reaching for the phone that was thumping up and down on the night stand with a shaking hand. Flipping it open, she pressed it to her ear with a grimace.

"ZIVA DAVID!" Tony's head poked over the side of the bed, his eyes widening with terror as he recognized Eli's gruff voice shouting at Ziva over the phone. It sounded like gibberish to him, but Tony knew without a doubt in his mind that Eli was probably uttering every cuss word he knew at Ziva.

"Father…" Ziva began as the curse words quickly turned to death threats regarding Tony's continuing existence on this planet.

"Ziva as soon as this plane lands in DC I'm coming back to bring you back to Mossad! Obviously the Americans have brainwashed you to think that this is acceptable but…" His words quickly regressed back to profanities and Ziva held the phone away from her ear, biting back a retort.

"Ziva?" Tony slowly climbed back onto the bed, his eyes roaming to room to check for bugs.

Suddenly, Ziva snapped and all the pent up anger she'd been holding against her father for years came rushing back to her. Al the memories of the thousands of times her father had harmed her or abandoned her flew into her mind. She was in her father's office, her heart pounding as Eli told her to take out Ari back in America. She was back at Mossad, meeting Michael Rivkin for the first time, unknowingly falling into the trap her father had set for her. She was in Tel-Aviv, discovering that her relationship was all part of a bigger picture. She was in Somalia, her life dwindling, wondering if Eli even thought about her anymore, or if everything was just part of the bigger plan. Blood ran thicker than water, but money and power could get both. Countless times, Eli had abandoned her, sent people to frame her, bring her back to Mossad, and shut her out. Ziva had grown up not expecting to ever have the chance at love, or even living past thirty. All of a sudden, she had that chance. Tony was all but handing it to her on a silver platter. And Eli was not going to ruin the thing she'd been searching for of years from her.

"No." Her voice was soft at voice, but it slowly gained volume as her Hebrew gained speed. "No, father. You cannot tell me what I can and cannot do."

"And why not? Ziva you are my daughter." Eli replied harshly, ignoring the uncomfortable looks Senior was giving him.

"Really? Are you sure? Because the past few years you have not been acting like it. I am only your daughter, it seems, when it is convenient for you." Tony's eyes widened and he glanced at the door, worried Natan would come bursting in any moment.

"Ziva, listen to me. These Americans-"

"No, I do not want to hear what you have to say about Americans. I don't care about your opinion anymore. Father, you may be blood, but you aren't family." With that, she snapped the phone shut and dropped it on the ground.

"Well, I'd safely say we're not going to be invited to spend Hanukkah with Eli anytime soon." Tony said, frowning when instead of throwing him out the window, Ziva cracked a very un-Ziva smile.

"No. I do not think so." Ziva replied, sinking back under the covers.

"So about that thing you said earlier…" Tony lay down beside Ziva, wiggling his eyebrows.

"Which thing? The part about Eli?" Tony shook his head, grinning. "The part about you taking a shower alone?" He rolled his eyes. "No? Then I do not know what you are talking about."

"Ziva, you love me, just admit it." He sighed, winking at her.

"I thought I already did?" Tony grinned at her, slowly inching his way closer. They were only millimeters apart when the phone let out another shrill ring.

"Okay, we really need to learn to put our phones on vibrate." Tony announced, sitting up and grabbing the phone. He whipped it open and slammed it down on his ear. "Hello? Can whoever's calling wait a few minutes? Thanks-" He was in the midst of ending the call when a voice emerged from the phone and sent chills down his spine.

"DiNozzo!" Tony pulled the phone back to his ear, biting back a groan.

"Boss! I was just testing the… phone skills that you taught us. Very effective, don't you think?" Tony chattered, eyes widening.

"Try that again and you'll find yourself using those 'skills' to direct people to the nearest Olive Garden." Gibbs barked into the phone.

"Yes Boss, got it Boss." Tony yelled, glaring at Ziva, who sat beside him snickering. "So, why'd… um... you call?"

"I just got a call from Eli David who seemed pretty pissed, that mean anything to you DiNozzo?" Tony's heart dropped. "He said something about the rotten DiNozzo blood tarnishing his family tree-?"

"Boss I-"

"DiNozzo, I don't care how pissed Eli David is, usually. But when you're in Tel-Aviv with his Mossad Assassins, getting death threats is a problem."

"It wasn't really my fault-"

"I don't care whose fault it was, DiNozzo. You're the Senior Field Agent and you should be looking out for your partner. Ziva might be able to kill him 19 different ways with a paperclip, but she's not invincible. Take care of her." With that, the line went dead.

Tony honestly thought Gibbs had just set a new record for words-per-minute. He needed to document this, or something. Abby would be beyond herself when she heard about this.

"Tony? What did Gibbs say?" Ziva questioned warily.

"He threatened to make me a telemarketer…" Tony muttered, groaning. Ziva snickered, ducking back under the covers. Tony slid beside her, raising an eyebrow. "Soooo, Zee-vah, where where we?"

"Go to sleep, Tony. You do not want to be tired if we are working with Mossad. Trust you."

"You mean trust me."

"That is what I said, Tony."

"No, you said- oh, never mind. Night Ziva…"

Ten minutes later, when Ziva's snores had successfully filled the room and were possibly rocking the windowpanes, Tony lay awake, staring at the ceiling with his hands behind his head. So much had happened in the past two hours. He still couldn't believe that Ziva had been having nightmares for the past three years and hadn't said a word. That was more believable than him admitting his… love…. for her. And her admitting it back.

…..

Tony and Ziva entered the Lobby the next morning with bags under their eyes and a fresh coating of dust covering their clothes. They'd locked their things up earlier in the hotel safe and were both eagerly looking foreword to the plane ride home at the end of the week. Natan and Leah soon joined them, sharing knowing looks with each other, each slipping various weapons into their clothing.

"So, you two had a lot of business to take care of last night?" Natan asked with a sly smile.

"Yes, we could hear you until very late at night." Leah nodded, raising an eyebrow under her dark hair. "What did you have to do?"

"Work related things." Tony replied, his stomach growling loudly.

"Really? Ziva, we could hear you especially. I actually thought about coming over myself and… joining the party." Natan said, his grin widening.

Ziva flashed him a smile, jabbing Tony in the side when he opened his mouth to tell Natan off. "Well, I am, what Americans call, a screamer."

Ah references to old episodes, don't you love 'em? I'll have the next chapter up by the New Year! Review!