A Night at the Opera
By
UCSBdad
Disclaimer: Anyone care to guess if I own Castle or not? Rating: K Time: After season eight.
"I can't believe I let you talk me into this." He grumped.
Kate Beckett raised an eyebrow at her husband. "Oh? Well, I let you talk me into this." She waved her hand over her outfit.
"You look absolutely gorgeous. Magnificent, even. Yes. Magnificent."
She shook her head. "Castle, I'm a cop and I feel like I ought to be wearing a sign that says "Please rob me.". I have on over a hundred thousand dollars worth of jewelry." Kate tapped her emerald earrings, her emerald necklace, her emerald bracelets, and gestured to her emerald ankle bracelet.
Castle smiled at her. "You won't let me spoil you as I so badly want to. Can you blame me for wanting something in return for having to come here?"
"The jewelry is bad enough, Castle, but where will I ever wear a five thousand dollar dress or shoes that cost a thousand dollars?"
Castle nodded solemnly. "You're right. As soon as we get home, I'll take that dress right off of you."
Kate snorted. "And the bra and panty set you bought me costs more than most of the outfits I wear to work. Not to mention the silk hose."
"I'll leave the hose on." Castle said thoughtfully.
"And why are you so dead set against coming here? We're at the hottest Broadway opening in years, with front row center seats. I'd have thought you'd be in your element."
"The premise of this thing is absurd. I'm a writer, in case you forgot. I'd never have a character of mine do something as absurd as the plot of this mess." Castle shook his head sadly. "Broadway has fallen quite far since the good old days."
"Oh? What about Hamilton? A rap music opera about one of the founding fathers? Isn't that an unlikely hit?"
"That's based on fact. With some artistic license, of course."
"This one is based on fact."
"Whenever I hear that some movie or book is based on fact, I immediately assume that what they mean is that there is a planet called Earth and that humans live on it. The rest is made up. No, this is nothing like what Broadway used to be. Things were different. They were …magical."
"Oh, things were different, were they? Magical?"
"Absolutely."
"What about Oklahoma? Who would have expected urbane, sophisticated New Yorkers to go wild about a romance between cowboys and cowgirls? Or South Pacific? A musical comedy about World War Two?"
"You've been talking to my mother, haven't you?"
Kate nodded. "She was kind enough to babysit Lily while we're here. You know she wanted to come with us."
"Yeah. She'd be wearing one of her glow in the dark outfits and criticizing everything in a stage whisper you could hear in New Jersey. And I got her matinee tickets for Saturday."
"What about Nikki? Isn't she based on fact?"
"Beckett! You can't possibly compare Nikki Heat to this thing. I would never have written such a stupid plot for Nikki and Rook."
"Speaking of Nikki, she's gotten boring since she, and I, became mothers. The last book was a real snoozer."
"Boring? Nikki is never boring. She's just gotten more…sensible. She uses her magnificent brain, not her….physical attributes."
"So what's next? Nikki gives up her precinct to go to One PP as supply officer and tracks down a ruthless gang of pen thieves?"
"I haven't done any work on the next Nikki Heat book, but when I do, it'll be just as full of danger and derring-do as any of my other best sellers."
"It had better be, or I may have to start writing myself."
"Beckett, you're the cop in this partnership and I'm the best selling author."
"Don't you mean the ruggedly handsome best selling author?" She said coyly.
"That goes without saying."
"Shh. The overture is starting. Let's just sit back and enjoy Absentia: The Rock Opera."