A fanfiction writing project for fans of Tony and Ziva from NCIS (2003) running before the spin-off NCIS: Tony & Ziva drops, with new writing prompts every month!
We genuinely have no words to describe the joy that the success of this project has brought to the Tiva fanfiction community! It ( @tiva-challenges ) started in the wake of the unbelievable news that our beloved characters, Tony and Ziva, are finally getting their own, well-deserved SPINOFF! Our initial goal with these challenges was to help keep the fandom active and excited as we wait patiently (or not so patiently) for the show's release, and in that, we have truly succeeded! We can speak on behalf of all fanfiction authors when we say: Thank you to everyone who read, commented, and otherwise interacted with our fics this year! It truly means the world and inspires us to keep creating!
We have decided to put this project on indefinite hiatus, as its objective has been reached, and we're preparing for the surely groundbreaking amount of new content we're about to receive. Don't worry—maybe someday, when the dust has settled, new prompts will come... but until then, let's celebrate what we've achieved!
Monthly Breakdown:
August:
Our first ever challenge in August served as a test run, and was a resounding success! Inspired by the heat of the summer season, our prompt was "Tivali Summer Day" and added over 16,000 words of family fluff to the fandom! What a way to start out!
and the birds will sing our song in halcyon by indestinatus
la vie en rose by Whoa_MyNinja
Pictures in Paris by Shawneeleigh1234
ville de l'amour by ContentsPriceless
September:
September's challenge tackled a question we've all thought about: "Jet Lag: What Really Happened?" Evidently, this ignited the imaginations of many authors, as it received the most responses, with SEVEN new fics added to the Tiva tag. We may never know what exactly happened in Paris, but at least now, we have some ideas!
Crossroads by Mirandabelle
glitter in the air by Whoa_MyNinja
oh no, i'm falling in love again by benditlikepress
very far, over land and sea by softswans
What Happens in Paris... by Shawneeleigh1234
What Really Happened by ContentsPriceless
when you were mine in the dark by indestinatus
October:
In October, we began our "Tiva Seasons" series with the challenge theme "Tiva Seasons: Autumn." For this month, we wanted a more open-ended prompt, and so authors worked from a list of autumn-themed sensory prompts, leading to some darker themes, and some cozier themes too!
Better as a Team by Mirandabelle
blood is the life by ContentsPriceless
maybe we got lost in translation by indestinatus
You're Gonna Go Far by sheistheweapon
November:
Late in October, the Tiva fandom was *gobsmacked* by the first look at the upcoming NCIS: Tony and Ziva spinoff, thanks to a leaked trailer from Mipcom. This, of course, led to a ton of theorizing on social media. For our November prompt, it only felt right to build from this, encouraging authors to fill in some of the blanks from the trailer. Thus was born "Leaked: Spinoff Speculation."
A Better Mother by sheistheweapon
Amats by SamWhity
our blood and skin understood by indestinatus
soft light by ContentsPriceless
December:
For our final challenge of the year, we were feeling the holiday spirit! The prompt "Tony & Ziva: Holiday Magic" brought mistletoe, menorahs, and so much more to our screens. Who doesn't like ringing in the season with a good Tiva fic and a cup of cocoa? I don't know about you, but I don't think there can ever be enough Christmas fics.
if the fates allow by ContentsPriceless
One Step at a Time by Whoa_MyNinja
Some Gelt for your thoughts? by SamWhity
we should just kiss (like real people do) by indestinatus
Wrapped in Red by sheistheweapon
Janurary:
The new year began, and we were met with the unbelievable: this would be the year Tony and Ziva would grace our screens again! We returned to our "Tiva Seasons" series with the challenge theme "Tiva Seasons: Winter." It seems we all like a good Tiva snowed-in story, because this was our most popular prompt!
Anchor (when the waves come crushing down) by SamWhity
Folklore and Fairytales by Chemmie
Laila Tov by SamWhity
Love Can Be a Poison or The Sweetest Remedy by sheistheweapon
scenes from a snow globe by ContentsPriceless
the day we met, frozen i held my breath by ZeeVah_Ninja
the things that were young when you were young by benditlikepress
what's past is prologue by indestinatus
February:
The month of February arrived, and along with Valentine's Day, we shared a brand new, loving prompt. This month, we celebrated the complex love story of Tony & Ziva in all its intricacies! From first dates to marriage proposals to hurtful goodbyes, we explored all sides of being in love!
A Version Of Heaven by Mirandabelle
heartbeat by ContentsPriceless
it feels like the end of a movie i've seen before by lifelesswordscarryon
So full of love, I could barely eat by SamWhity
stitched with your colour by ZeeVah_Ninja
won’t you let me love you twice by indestinatus
you kiss me in a way that's gonna screw me up forever by Whoa_MyNinja
March:
What if we could go back to March? This month, we shared the prompt talked about the most (with good reason!) and tackled what would happen if one thing had change Tony & Ziva's whole story. From getting divorced to waking up from coma dreams, the prompt took us to stories we'd never imagined! Here's to the brilliant "what could've beens."
a sky full of stars by Whoa_MyNinja
dominoes cascaded in a line by indestinatus
Quick And Bitter, Slow And Sweet by Mirandabelle
Not So Faint Lines Led Me To You by sheistheweapon
our love runs hotter than a fever dream by is_this_just_fantasy
something permanent by ContentsPriceless
That hopeful feeling when Eden was lost by SamWhity
April:
Honoring April Fools Day, we figured we’d do something fun and different in honor of our favorite fools in love! Our only random words prompt instigated the writing craft and challenged us to explore our creativity.
Autruche by alecmattias
a sky full of stars by ZeeVah_Ninja
intertitles by ContentsPriceless
From you the flowers grow by SamWhity
Wrapped in A Little Black Box by sheistheweapon
May:
Springtime! The time when darkness and heavy clouds give way to new life and the fresh smell of promise in the air. With all the news of the upcoming spinoff and excitement building, we felt the springtime giddiness, concluding our "Tiva Seasons" prompts!
bigger than the whole sky by ZeeVah_Ninja
Flowers Grow in the Soil of Ashes by sheistheweapon
Heaven is not fit to house a love like you and I by SamWhity
on begged and borrowed time by indestinatus
June:
With the spinoff getting closer and closer, we ran to fill in the gaps that will surely be addressed this September. The Tiva story is full of missing pieces, but, in June, we were able to get a glimpse of some excellent explanations until we wait for the canonical truth!
Finding Forever by EleanorKate
May These Memories Break Our Fall by sheistheweapon
Sweet Disposition by indestinatus
The choiceless hope in grief by SamWhity
The harder the rain, honey, the sweeter the sun by SamWhity
Tu Me Manques by born30
July:
And, with a tight heart, we reach the end of our project. It truly all leads here: the opportunity to meet Tony & Ziva again after years of heartbreak. As a final bow, we were challenged with the prompt to unite moments in time and unfold their story. Here's to the most beautiful story of all: them!
continuum of us by born30
My peace has always depended on all the ashes in my wake by SamWhity
Rain in a Foreign Land by mykingdomforafic
The warmest thank you:
Here's to all the Tiva fans who have interacted with this project and given us the space to create. We can't wait to see what is coming our way! Thank you for all you do to help keep this fandom alive!
We may be taking a break, but please remember, you can always revisit our prompts! Challenges from previous months can always be added to, if the inspiration strikes!
Thank you, thank you, thank you!
We can't wait for what's still to come! Remember to leave some love for the authors, and we hope to see you soon!
They are ever-evolving: strangers, partners, friends, lovers, parents, but always on a continuum of intriguing attraction, someday promises, and love persisting - from the beginning to forever.
Part 1: Beginning
Tony found himself laughing, half at her diversion strategy and half because… Well, flirting with Ziva David, spy and assassin-apologist, was effortless. A thrill he wouldn't soon forget.
Life is always happening in the comings and goings. Here one day and gone the next. Somehow, they’ve managed to live their lives more in the absence of each other than she’d ever thought possible. Waiting another moment may be her undoing.
(Nine moments from Tony and Ziva’s lives as told through car rides and rain.)
TIVA CHALLENGES is a fanfiction writing project for fans of Tony and Ziva from NCIS (2003) running before the spin-off NCIS: Tony & Ziva drops, with new writing prompts every month! Organized by @television-overload and @indestinatus.
This is it. One of the last Tiva-less months in the year 2025. Soon, we'll have the spinoff to look back on, our hopes finally satisfied after so long of waiting. Look at us. Who would have thought?
It has been something like 4,290 days since Past Present Future first graced our screens and broke our hearts. In case you're curious, a person could have counted to a million approximately 373 times in that many days (if you don't sleep or stop counting for even a second, that is). But we have a feeling it will be well worth the wait.
So, with all that said...
JULY'S PROMPT:
Tiva: It All Leads Here
Additional information under the cut:
This is a special challenge, one that draws on the powers of nostalgia and the sense that everything has led to this moment. This month, you are tasked with writing a fic that takes place in at least two distinct times in Tiva's past, and ultimately shows how their story unfolded (fate, or no fate). The options are limitless.
From childhood to college to young adulthood to first meeting, on and on to the moment they find themselves in now, raising a child and growing old together—the only requirement is that you stick to canon (as opposed to AU) and juxtapose two (or more) different time periods in some way. You can either go back and forth, or write one, then another. It's up to you. Maybe you want to write a story in the 5+1 format (5 times, and then 1 time), or you want to draw a line between Tony's childhood and Tali's. We'll take it all!
Works will be revealed Friday, JULY 25th, at 16:00 GMT.
⏳️ The subcollection for posting this month can be found here. If you have trouble figuring out how to post to a collection on AO3, check out our tutorial.
⏳️ If you post yours here on Tumblr, make sure you tag us so we can share it! The tag for this project is #tivachallenges.
Lastly, as always, if you have any questions, please reach out, and we'll be happy to answer them! Happy writing!
Like a phoenix, Ziva David was reborn amongst the living, and Tony was glad to have her home with him and their daughter. The only problem? He can't stop being angry at her, too.
Or: the missing scenes from Ziva's reunion with her family in Paris and the realistic aftermath.
“For just a second, the apartment faded and she was taken back to a time when things had seemed so complicated because that version of Ziva had no idea what was to come.”
post 17x11 tiva story about that first fateful night ziva spends in tony & tali’s paris apartment
available to read on ao3: https://archiveofourown.org/works/66947155 📝
For the third night in a row, Tony DiNozzo didn’t sleep. He couldn’t. Not when his gut was telling him that something was left unexplained, something only he could get to the bottom of. And that motherless child deserved to see her mother. He deserved to have his answers.
17x11 + Tony calls Ziva before she lands in Paris, and they reunite
⤷ The harder the rain, honey, the sweeter the sun by @samwhity
Tony goes apartment searching after reminiscing about Cairo
⤷ Finding Forever by EleanorKate
The realistic aftermath of Ziva reuniting with her family in Paris
⤷ Tu Me Manques by @hopeless-nostalgiac
17x11 + Ziva's first night in their Paris apartment
⤷ May These Memories Break Our Fall by @sheistheweapon
13x24 + Tony goes searching for Ziva in Cairo
⤷ Sweet Disposition by @indestinatus
🌻 Heaven is not fit to house a love like you and I by @samwhity
🌷 bigger than the whole sky by @zeevah-ninja
🌹 Flowers Grow in the Soil of Ashes by @sheistheweapon
🌼 on begged and borrowed time by @indestinatus
“leave them to grow” leave ziva, tony & tali to grow through four springs where milestones are met, sometimes in unbearable circumstances & sometimes as a family of three figuring out their dynamics 🌹
read it on ao3: https://archiveofourown.org/works/66017863
summary: On the run, Tony and Ziva hide in a safe house in the countryside of France. Years into knowing each other, lovers wasn’t the right word to describe them. Safe-house roomies was a surprising definition.
AKA the night Tony makes Ziva dinner, and quiet conversation becomes more. Set in the spin-off universe. The scene in the safe house from the trailer.
TIVA CHALLENGES is a fanfiction writing project for fans of Tony and Ziva from NCIS (2003) running before the spin-off NCIS: Tony & Ziva drops, with new writing prompts every month! Organized by @television-overload and @indestinatus.
The spinoff is only a few months away (can you believe it??) With that in mind, this month's challenge has been the bread and butter of fanfic authors everywhere for as long as the art form has existed: yes, it's the age-old effort of filling in the gaps.
JUNE'S PROMPT:
Tiva: Missing Pieces
Additional information under the cut:
For this month's prompt, you are tasked with writing a missing scene (or scenes) from one of the following gaps in our show's canon:
🌿 Season 11 (before, during, or after 11x01/11x02)
🌿 Season 13 (before, during, or after 13x24)
🌿 Season 17 (before, during, or after any of the Ziva episodes)
There are countless missing scenes to choose from, so get creative!
Works will be revealed Friday, JUNE 27th, at 16:00 GMT.
🌿 The subcollection for posting this month can be found here. If you have trouble figuring out how to post to a collection on AO3, check out our tutorial.
🌿 If you post yours here on Tumblr, make sure you tag us so we can share it! The tag for this project is #tivachallenges.
Lastly, as always, if you have any questions, please reach out, and we'll be happy to answer them! Happy writing! 🍃
ONE WEEK until the spring fics are unleashed! It's been a busy, exciting month, but if you've written anything, feel free to share below so we get a taste of what we can look forward to!
🌸 Need a refresher on this month's challenge? You can find the original post here
TIVA CHALLENGES is a fanfiction writing project for fans of Tony and Ziva from NCIS (2003) running before the spin-off NCIS: Tony & Ziva drops, with new writing prompts every month! Organized by @television-overload and @indestinatus .
It's springtime! The time when darkness and heavy clouds give way to new life and the fresh smell of promise in the air. With all the news of the upcoming spinoff and excitement building, we're feeling the springtime giddiness, so without further ado:
MAY'S PROMPT:
Tiva Seasons: SPRING
Additional information under the cut:
🌸 This month, it's time for another "Seasons" prompt, and for May, of course that's spring! This prompt is pretty open-ended and up to you to interpret, but we'd love to see fics that take place during the spring season, with springtime vibes incorporated where you can. If you need inspiration, there's a prompt list below, but you are not required to use any prompts from this list!
🌸 SPRING PROMPTS:
1. spring cleaning
2. fresh air
3. rainstorm
4. new life
5. flower blossoms
6. thawing snow
7. garden
8. breeze
9. first sunny day
10. bees
11. st. patrick's day
12. april fools
13. passover/easter
14. allergies
15. growth
16. frangrance
17. umbrella
18. wildflowers
19. kite
20. daylight savings
21. spring break
22. baseball
23. bouquet
24. sundress
25. wedding
26. bicycle
27. birds
28. butterflies
29. flower crown
30. migration
31. metamorphosis
32. dawn
33. roots
34. fog
35. dirt
36. clouds
37. rainbow
38. animals
39. beginning
🌸 Works will be revealed Friday, MAY 30th, at 16:00 GMT.
40. frost
41. mother's day
🌸 The subcollection for posting this month can be found here. If you have trouble figuring out how to post to a collection on AO3, check out our tutorial.
🌸 If you post yours here on Tumblr, make sure you tag us so we can share it! The tag for this project is #tivachallenges.
Lastly, as always, if you have any questions, please reach out, and we'll be happy to answer them! Happy writing! 🌷
bubbles + thrive + ostrich → Autruche by alecmattias
easel + circus + secrets → Wrapped in A Little Black Box by @sheistheweapon
sizzle + telescope + thunder → a sky full of stars by @zeevah-ninja
yearning + reflect + funny → From you the flowers grow by @samwhity
pirate + whisper + catalyst → intertitles by @television-overload
Despite Tony‘s attempt at mediating, Tali had gone to her room and had closed the door behind her with a loud “thump”. Her mother, for her part, had gone straight to bed lamenting a migraine and lack of appetite. Tony, barely understanding what had happened, had been left with a whole pot of cholent for himself and no one to talk to.
This story was written for the April Prompt of the Tiva Fic Challenges Community - @tiva-challenges - on Tumblr: "Tiva-isms: A random prompt challenge".
Read here on Ao3
Tiva Fic Challenges @tiva-challenges - Tumblr Blog | Tumgag
