Magnets

7. Epilogue

           

Following Ziva's instructions, Tony returns to the house in the desert. For a long moment he is transfixed by the wreckage, trying to imagine how she must have felt watching her life burn to the ground, trying to see that night's events.

He walks the perimeter and tries to guess which room was Tali's, which one was Ziva's. He stands at what was once the backdoor and remembers the conversation they had three years ago. He gazes across the land, trying to discern where the intruders were buried. He walks through the trees and wonders which one Tali fell asleep under.

Finally he has to remind himself that there is nothing to be gained from the past, and he walks to the nearest neighbor to ask about Alva.

They haven't seen the three-legged beast in weeks.

Discouraged, Tony walks back to the house, where he finds a dog sitting under the trees.

"Alva?" he asks softly, kneeling in the dirt.

The dog barks happily and runs to him.

"Let's go find Ziva and Tali."

****

They go to Paris without any real plans. It's better that way.

Tali and Alva love all the pigeons, and the two ex-agents spend many an evening watching them romp around the backyard.

On a warm night like this one, they sit on the terrace with a bottle of wine.

For the first time since they got to Paris, Ziva seems truly happy, truly relaxed. There's a glow about her that Tony didn't know he missed until seeing it now.

"Where do we go next?" he asks.

She shrugs. "I do not know. I think it would be best if we leave everything to chance. Our plans do not usually work out."

"I know one that did." He raises his glass and she eyes him skeptically. "This one. Finding you again. And you know what, if the next stop doesn't work out, we'll always have Paris."