This is just a little potential scene from the upcoming episode 3x13. If you haven't seen the promo pictures of the kiss or don't want to be spoiled (oops) please don't read any further. I'm not a particularly big fan of this piece but my computer is broke and I have to share with my mother so I've been writing random pieces out long hand and this is one of them.

Disclaimer: I own absolutely nothing.

Pain. Pure, unadulterated pain coursed through her veins and choked the air from her lungs. Her hands convulsed to the erratic rhythm of her heartbeat. Tears blurred her vision as she walked quickly down the dimly lit side street; her heels pounding out a staccato as she pulled at her jacket that was suddenly so very confining.

"Kate," He called after her. She could hear his footsteps merely moments behind her own as she turned to face him.

"Castle… I…" Her voice broke and she wrung her hands feeling like she had been stripped bare in front of a large audience.

"I know," His hand wove cautiously through her curls and cupped the back of her head to pull her flush against him, "I know. It's okay."

"It's not okay!" She fought against his grip as she sobbed, "He… why!"

"I don't know, Sweetheart," He traced circles across her back, "we'll figure it out."

"He killed her and she.."

"Shhh." He whispered and pulled back to wipe her tears. Her entire foundation had been shaken in the apprehension of her mother's killer.

She stood in front of him in a business suit with gun and badge holstered to her hip and yet she suddenly looked so much younger. She looked like the nineteen year old Katherine Beckett that he had only pictures of as her lower lip quivered, "It isn't fair."

"It's really not," He agreed, "I wish… I wish I could take the pain away but I'm really at a loss here, Beckett."

"New York Times Best Selling author is at a loss for words?" She chuckled in spite of herself.

"I just…" He reached out and guided a loose piece of hair behind her ear.

"Could you just," She faltered and her voice was breaking again, "could you just kiss me?"

He began to hesitate but the look in her eyes silenced any further inquiries. His hand slid further into her hair and his lips brushed gently over hers. She returned the kiss enfold after a moment of inaction She kissed him greedily; her fingers pulling at his hair and her lips tugging at his own. He wasn't a silent participant as his arms crushed her against him and their tongues danced the ancient tango.

When they pulled breathlessly apart he rest his forehead against his, "You know we'll have to talk about this, right?"

"I know," She kissed the underside of his jaw and took a moment to breathe him in before turning away. She sauntered off into the dark, back towards the flashing lights of the crime scene with a sense of self assurance. Her chest was lighter and though she was still wounded deeply, Kate Beckett knew that she could make it through as long as Castle was by her side.