Disclaimer: Don't own these characters or their universe. No money is made off of this fanfiction.

A/N - And here it is. The fourth installment. Enjoy. :)


Jane Rizzoli stood in silence outside the observatory window of the pediatric unit of Boston General Hospital, watching her girlfriend, Maura Isles, with a slight frown. The frown wasn't directed toward Maura but the small eight-month-old baby girl sleeping soundly in her arms. As the doctor and his assisting nurse poked and prodded the adorable child for a response, Jane sighed, knowing that this was just the beginning of what promised to be a long day.

After being called out to a scene right in the middle of her day off, one of the few days Jane could spend with Maura alone, she had had to deal with a messy murder-suicide involving what looked like an abusive father and his fed up wife. Luckily, she had Maura with her to make the time go by faster. Jane had hoped that it would be a quick one-and-done case, something she could write a quick report with and get the hell back to bed, but Lady Luck had proven to be a cruel mistress.

Frankie, the responding officer to the scene, had somehow missed the baby amongst all of the carnage. It had been quite a shock to do the standard walkthrough of a homicide with Maura to hear a small plaintive baby crying in the nursery room adjacent to the crime scene. Jane had nearly killed Frankie for managing to screw-up the simple procedures required of being the first officer on a scene, but her main focus was on the young infant now under police care.

Jane had wanted to have a uniform drop the child of with social services but Maura – more so the child – had refused, passionately clinging onto the blonde, claiming Maura as her own for the time being. Any effort to take the Baby Jane Doe away brought a high-pitched squeal that made life difficult for anyone within fifty yards of the crime scene. Reluctantly, Jane was forced to wait for the coroner to pick the baby's parents' bodies up before her, Maura, and the happy baby could swing by social services at the hospital which was exactly what she didn't want to happen.

Maura was unused to working in the field. She didn't understand the critical separation between personal and professional, especially when an adorable orphaned Baby Jane Doe was involved. Not to mention, she had been making known lately her want for a child. Jane was beyond worried that Maura would get too involved, but she trusted that her girlfriend would maintain distance.

The kid is cute though, Jane observed from outside the window. Baby Jane Doe's button nose, rosy soft cheeks, and mop of fine black hair all added up to an adorable little girl that could easily create heartbreak. Watching Maura play with the giggling baby was beyond enjoyable, but she knew that it would have to end as soon as social services came to take the child away. It had to.

Sighing, Jane moved to open the door to the small examining room. Cooing sounds of baby speak assaulted her ears along with the smells of medical equipment wafted into her nose, bringing a sudden pang of pity for the child who seemed oblivious to the fact that she was now an orphan, alone in the big bad world. Poor little thing…

Jane shook her head, masking the sadness under a face of professionalism. "How is she, Doc?" Both Maura and the male doctor turned toward her in confusion. "Not you, Maura."

The doctor smiled. "I can't say conclusively until we get the blood tests back. Until then, she has a clean bill of health. Other than a fearful reaction toward men, the baby doesn't seem to be affected by everything that happened to her. The fear should diminish over time."

"Do you know anything about her name? We couldn't find any records in the home."

The doctor frowned. "That's the interesting part. Her birth records aren't in any hospital database."

In confusion, Jane narrowed her eyes. "How can that be? She had to have been born somewhere."

"Oh, she was born somewhere," he said, motioning for the nurse to hand Jane a small folder, "just not in the United States. Most likely her parents adopted her from another country, presumably from Japan. We found a copy of her birth record in a small hospital in Hokkaido. I put a rush on the records but that won't give us much other than what we already know, blood type, date of birth, name."

"Her name is something."

"Not really, Detective. The baby's name was probably changed by the adoptive parents upon reaching America."

Jane sighed. "So that leaves us in the spot we were in three hours ago. An eight-month-old baby with no name, no parents, no records. Great…"

"Boogoo…bat!" Baby Jane Doe exclaimed from Maura's arms with bright eyes, playing with the necklace around her neck.

So cute, Jane thought before returning her attention back to the doctor. "Have you tried social services? Adopting a kid from another country has to get them involved. They've gotta have something on their end."

"They demanded a court order."

"You've got to be kidding me…" Jane rolled her eyes in annoyance. "That's going to take days if not weeks to get. Well, are they going to, at the very least, come by and take the baby off of our hands? Or is that going to require a court order as well?"

"Well…"

Maura stepped forward, lifting her head from the burbling baby. "Jane…hear me out before you say no."

"No, Maura. Absolutely not. We cannot raise a baby, especially this baby."

"Why not?"

Jane sighed, turning to the doctor and his nurse. "Could you give us a minute?" she asked in a voice that warranted little discussion. They exited politely and the baby waved goodbye with a goofy smile that nearly caused a laugh to break from Jane's lungs but she recovered quickly.

"Honey," she pleaded. "There's no way this is going to work. You are the chief medical examiner and I'm a homicide detective. That means long hours away from the home."

Maura smiled smartly. "Pike's coming in to handle the workload for a couple of weeks. Cavanaugh will probably let you take some time off once we explain the situation. We can do this, Jane," she encouraged, stepping toward Jane. "Don't you want this? A child?"

"Of course I want this. For us, for you. I know how much you want a child. And you've been so patient, waiting for me to warm up to the idea but… This isn't the stork. The baby girl belongs to someone and it's my job to find who that is or, at the very least, someone who can." Jane moved to close the distance between them, caressing Maura's shoulder with a level of intimacy that came naturally. "Maura, I know you. You're gonna get attached and make things difficult when she has to leave."

Maura lifted one hand to move a lock of hair from Jane's conflicted face. The baby girl between them cooed happily, looking between the two women with a beaming smile.

"I won't get attached. We're just providing a temporary service. Nothing more," she said. "So you'll do this? You'll help take care of little Clementine with me?"

Jane made a comical face. "Clementine? What's wrong with Baby Jane Doe?"

"It's so impersonal. And since you found her…I just figured that she should have your name."

"Clementine isn't my name."

"Why don't you love your middle name, Jane? It's so pretty and feminine."

The baby – now named Clementine – grasped Jane's jacket, interrupting their discussion. "Mama! Mama!"

Mama…I'm not your mother, Jane thought weakly. But it was no use. With one word, the child had managed to do away with her defenses and make her feel emotions that were hardly productive toward temporarily raising a child. Those big eyes full of love… Ignorance was futile.

Jane sighed exasperatedly. "Fine. We'll take care of…Clementine. But you know what this means. All of the stuff we're going to have to buy-"

Interrupted by a squeal of excitement, Maura gave Jane a quick peck on the cheek. "I love you so much, Jane."

Clementine squirmed between them, forcing Maura to stand back. "Oh, Clementine, we didn't forget about you. You want Mommy Jane to hold you now?"

"No," Jane exclaimed adamantly. "I shouldn't. I…haven't washed my hands."

"Jane."

"What?"

"This isn't about you. This is about Clementine. Stop being difficult," Maura extended the beaming bundle of adorableness toward Jane, "and hold her. A baby's immune system is most critical around the six month mark. She's far pass that. No need to worry."

Reluctantly, Jane took Clementine in her arms. Stirrings of love bubbled in her heart, nearly bringing tears to her eyes. Was this the maternal instinct that her mother was always telling her about? The baby giggled, kicking her little sock covered feet, trying desperately to grab onto Jane's suit jacket again. Feeling this way about the baby worried her, but she knew not to become too attached to the point where it became problematic.

"You are too cute," Jane whispered, tickling Clementine's soft rosy cheeks. "I guess we're going to have to stop by the store on the way back home. Pick up some baby gear for you."