PART III

Nearly an hour after her successful delivery, Ziva had been transferred back to her own room along with the twins. Anthony was happily sleeping in his plastic basinet alongside Ziva's bed while Asriyah was cuddling into Tony's arms while he stood in front of the windows. The lights of Washington sparkled in the distance as Tony whispered to his daughter.

"Now, you want to stay away from the Autopsy Gremlin as long as possible. Grandpa Ducky, he's a great guy, who will gladly talk your ear off if you let him. And since you can't get away from him, you'll be the perfect audience for his stories." Tony watched as his daughter just stared up at him, completely content to just be held and loved. "You'll meet all of them tomorrow. I'm sure Abby will be here at the crack of dawn trying to get her hands on you."

"She probably tried to get in already," Ziva smirked.

"Probably," Tony said. "But I bet that nurse kicked her out. You know, the scary one with the mustache."

"You are terrible," Ziva laughed.

NCIS*TIVA

They would find out the next morning exactly what happened. After a lengthy debate with Mrs. Agatha Reynolds, head nurse at Bethesda Naval Hospital Maternity Unit, in which Abby had begged an pleaded to be allowed a few precious minutes with Ziva, McGee had begrudgingly dragged Abby out of the hospital. He promised her they would return the next morning as soon as visiting hours would allow them. True to their word, both Abby and McGee pulled into the hospital parking lot at 9:58 am.

"Hurry up, Timmy!"

McGee shook his head, vaguely wondering how Abby could manage to outrun him in three inch platform boots. 'I really need to hit the gym again,' he grimaced as he ran to catch up with her. "Abby, slow down."

"We can't slow down, McGee! I want to see my niece and nephew!" As soon as the elevator doors opened the pair stepped inside and punched the button for the fourth floor. The metal box ascended far too slowly for Abby's liking causing her to tap her clunky toe impatiently. It took less than a minute for the elevator to reach its intended floor, but that was a minute too much for Abby. As soon as the silver doors opened, the Goth was taking off down the hallway toward Ziva's room.

"Back again I see," Nurse Reynolds called from behind the nurse's station desk.

"Did you ever doubt I would make it?" Abby asked incredulously.

"Not even for a second," she laughed turning back to her morning paperwork.

Abby quietly knocked on Ziva's door before poking her head into the room. "Ziva?"

"Who else would it be, Abby?"

The scientist stepped into her friend's room and looked around expectantly, her shoulders dropping as she took in the absence of her niece and nephew. "Where are they?"

"Who are the 'they' you are talking about?" Ziva knew exactly who Abby was referring to, but she decided to have a little fun at her friend's expense.

"The two cutest babies in the world!" Abby argued. "The mini ninjas! Where are they?"

Ziva laughed. "They are still in the nursery. The nurses will be bringing them down shortly."

"Oh," Abby set her bag down on the chair in the corner and seated herself on the edge of Ziva's bed. "Where's Tony?"

"I made him go get me some real food instead of the crap they have here."

"Breakfast burritos?" McGee asked to which Ziva nodded furiously. "Are you allowed to have that?"

"If I get them plain then I am allowed," Ziva sulked. "No onions, peppers, or salsa. Just eggs, cheese, and sausage." They spent the next few minutes discussing the office and what Ziva had missed in the last 12 hours, which really hadn't been much. Soon there was a soft knock on the door interrupting the conversation as two nurses entered pushing a basinet each.

"They're here for their morning feeding," the first nurse announced in a tone that was far too jubilant for such an early hour. "Which one would you like first?"

"Give me him," Ziva said as she adjusted herself on the bed. "He is easier to feed than she is." Ziva moved to pull her gown aside when she became painfully away of her teammate's presence. "Are you going to be okay with this McGee?"

The younger agent rubbed his neck in a nervous fashion. "Y-yeah I'm good. Don't worry about me." Abby shot him an amused look.

Ziva took her son from the nurse and adjusted him so he could breastfeed, smiling appreciatively when the nurse laid a blanket over Ziva's shoulder to keep her concealed. "Thank you," she whispered.

"Can I hold her?" Abby asked trying her best not to bounce around at the idea. Ziva nodded her consent and the second nurse placed the wiggling baby girl in Abby's arms. "Oh my God," the Goth cooed. "Ziva she is absolutely gorgeous."

"Thank you."

"Timmy, look at her," Abby said turning so that McGee was looking over her shoulder. "Isn't she adorable?"

McGee smiled. "She's a cutie. She looks just like you, Ziva."

"Thank you McGee," Ziva laughed. "I am just grateful that they both have Tony's eyes."

"You want to hold her McGee?" Abby asked. Tim nodded his head and Abby gingerly transferred Asriyah into his arms. "Watch her head."

"I know, Abs." McGee held the little girl in his arms and watched as her eyes connected with his. "Hey little one," he whispered. "I'm your Uncle Tim."

"But you can call him 'Probie,'" Tony joked as he entered. He paused behind his coworker to look over his shoulder at his daughter. "And how is my princess doing today?"

"Princess? Perhaps we should have named her Sarah then?"

"What did you name them?" Abby asked. "You never told us. Even when I begged."

Ziva smiled remembering all the things that Abby had offered her in exchange for the coveted piece of information. She still did not understand why her children's names were so important to other people. "Her name is Asriyah Caitlin DiNozzo."

"Aww!" Abby gushed. "That's a beautiful name."

"Asriyah," McGee repeated. "It's beautiful. What does it mean?"

"I have no idea," Ziva said. "It was my cousin's name. My Aunt Nettie's daughter. She was killed last year in a car accident." She shifted on the bed, pulling the little boy from beneath the blanket and laying him over her shoulder to burp before finally handing him off to his father.

"And this little guy here is Anthony James DiNozzo III," Tony said proudly. He gently turned Anthony in his arms so Abby and McGee could see him better.

"Tony! He looks just like you. He's like a little clone!" Abby reached her hands out, wiggling her fingers expectantly.

"I know. He's one good looking newborn," Tony laughed handing the baby over to Abby.

"Hey little guy. Oh you are going to be a heartbreaker." Abby cooed at Anthony making faces at the newborn. She spent the next few minutes alternating her attention between Anthony and Asriyah, pointing out the commonalities and differences between them. "Tony, can you grab my camera? It's in my bag," Abby asked, gesturing to the chair next to her.

Tony searched through the bag and pulled out Abby's digital. "Move closer so I can get both of you," Tony instructed. Tim and Abby took a few steps closer together. "Oh come on," Tony said, "closer. At least pretend you like each other." The moved even closer together and McGee used his arm that wasn't holding Asriyah to wrap around Abby's waist, pulling her flush against his body. The smiles that lit up both of their faces were exactly what Tony was waiting for as he snapped the picture without warning. Years later when Abby's middle was swelled with she and Tim's first born she would look back on that photo and smile.

I'm not particularly thrilled with this ending, but I rewrote the chapter 3 times and this is the best one. Let me know what you think!