This is a series of short one shots inspired by Ziva's line in Dead Air, "My father taught me." In my mind, this did not seem the kind of thing that Eli would have taught her, so this came from my idea of what he would have, and later, what her second "father" Gibbs, taught her.

DISCLAIMER: I'm only going to say this once, I DO NOT OWN NCIS! There, now that's out of the way, enjoy the story.

INDEPENDENCE

Ziva David was four years old when she learnt independence. She had been climbing trees with Ari in the garden, he might have been seven years her senior but her strong will and determination made her strive to be just as good as her brother at everything they did.

It was this fierce determination, she mused, many years later, that allowed her father to take such advantage of her.

On this particular hot Tel-Aviv day though, she had fallen from the tree that she was climbing. Though she had not fallen far, it had hurt and she ran into the kitchen, hot tears streaming down her cheeks.

"Aba! Aba! It hurts!" She wailed, as only a young child can.

Her mother stood from the table, her maternal instinct to comfort her child strong, but her husband placed a hand on her shoulder and shook his head.

Reluctantly she sat and watched, her heart breaking, as Ziva screamed and cried, tugging desperately at his leg as he ignored her.

"Aba! Aba! Please!"

The little girl had no idea how long it took for her to realise that she would get no comfort from either of her parents but when she did she ran, still sobbing, to her room, and cried into her last source of comfort, her stuffed toy dog, Bertie.

Bertie had disappeared just two weeks later but it had taken her a few months to realise that her father had taken him.

As lessons went it was effective, as after that day Ziva never tried to obtain comfort.

When she started school her teachers said she was tough and brave as, no matter how many times she fell in the playground, she never once shed a tear. She nodded and agreed, but it was years before she stopped wishing that they wouldn't call her brave, that they would've seen that, strong as she may have seemed, inside she was breaking.

As always, please review and any suggestions of lessons from either Gibbs or Eli will be much appreciated. Thank you!