And we're back! I couldn't give up this family for too long and I was happy to start back into this story as I have a lot of ideas that I still want to explore! So basically this story takes place almost a year after the last one ended on Amelia's 6th birthday, as I wanted to skip a bit of time! I really hope you all will enjoy it! Thanks so much for reading! -J
Chapter 1- The Big Six
"Mama! Mama!" Amelia ran towards the brunette detective who had just walked in the front door, home after a long day of paperwork. "Mama you're home!" She called, leaping into Jane's arms just as she bent to catch the little blonde. "You're home and tomorrow's my birthday!"
"Tomorrow's your birthday?" Jane gasped in mock surprise. "That can't be true!"
"It is Mama!" Amelia replied, looking a little hurt that her Mama seemed to have forgotten her birthday. "I'm gonna be 6!"
"6! Now I know you aren't telling the truth!" Jane continued to tease the little girl. "You cannot possibly be 6 years old! You're just a baby!"
"I always tell the truth Mama," Amelia said, looking incredibly serious. "Mommy says it's not nice to lie. I'm gonna be 6 Mama! You can ask Mommy."
"You can ask Mommy what?" Maura, who had taken the day off, asked as she came around the corner, greeting her girlfriend with a kiss hello. "What's wrong darling?"
"Mommy, I think Mama forgot my birthday!" Amelia replied sounding slightly scandalized. "She doesn't think I'm going to be 6 tomorrow, but I am. I'm not lying Mommy! I wouldn't lie!"
"Of course you wouldn't sweetheart," Maura chuckled kissing the side of her daughter's head, swatting Jane's shoulder. "Your Mama is just teasing you Baby. She knows that you wouldn't tell a lie. Don't you Mama?"
"Of course I do," Jane grinned, placing kisses all over Amelia's face until the almost 6 year old couldn't contain her giggles anymore. "Mommy's right Bug I was just teasing you. I know tomorrow is your birthday and you know what? I can't wait for your party!"
"Me either!" Amelia nodded with a big smile. "It's going to be lots of fun Mama! Everyone is going to be here!"
"They sure are," Jane replied, sitting Amelia down on one of the kitchen stools as she made her way to the fridge to grab a bear, smiling gratefully as Maura began to pull dinner, which she had kept warm for her, from out of the oven. "Thanks Maur."
"Long day?" Maura asked as she made up Jane's plate, placing it in front of the brunette who had taken a seat next to Amelia.
"The longest," Jane sighed. "I should have listened to you when you told me to keep up with my paperwork. By the end of the day my eyes were burning from all the files I had to read through, but I had to get through it all so I wouldn't have to go in this weekend."
"Yeah you wouldn't want to miss my party Mama," Amelia said, grabbing a box of crayons and some paper so she could draw while Jane ate her dinner.
"I wouldn't miss it for anything Bug," Jane smiled before turning her attention back towards Maura. "How was your day?"
"I got everything done that I was hoping to," Maura replied. "Everything is ready for the party and your Mother and I went over the menu again. I'm fairly certain she will be cooking all morning, but she's insisting on doing it all."
"Of course she is, she loves that stuff," Jane laughed taking another bite of her dinner. "And did you talk to your Mother?"
"She'll be here by noon," Maura nodded with a small smile, looking like she was trying to contain her own happiness at this fact. "It should be a good day."
"Of course it will," Jane was quick to reply, having been looking forward to her daughter's birthday all week. "It's going to be a great day."
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Full of excitement and anxious for her friends and family to arrive for her party, Amelia had woken up early the next morning, immediately making her way down the hall where her mothers were still sleeping. The couple, who had been up late talking, had tried to convince Amelia to go back to sleep, but had ultimately failed, eventually giving in to starting birthday pancakes despite the fact that they were both still exhausted.
Amelia's mood, which was even happier than usual proved to be contagious, Jane and Maura eventually waking up fully and enjoying a morning spent doing one of Amelia's favourite things: dancing. By the time the trio had finally collapsed on the couch in a fit of laughter, Angela had arrived in the kitchen, beginning her cooking while reminding the family that they needed to get ready.
Though Maura had wanted to dress Amelia in a dress, Jane, after many nights arguing about it, had eventually convinced her girlfriend that a dress wasn't practical considering all the games they had planned for the day, choosing a pair of leggings and colourful top instead. Maura, who was used to stuffy, adult birthday parties when she was a child, didn't truly know how to plan a 6 year old's birthday party, a fact, which Jane pointed out several times as she made treat bags and explained the rules to all the games they would be playing with Amelia's friends and their family.
"Grandma are you going to play with us?" Amelia ran up to Constance Isles, who was sitting in the kitchen with Angela. "We're gonna play musical chairs. Mama said it's lots of fun and Uncle Frankie and Uncle Tommy are gonna play. Do you and Angela want to play?"
"Oh…well…" Constance looked a little taken back, not quite sure what to say.
"Amelia, Grandma and Angela are busy right now," Maura saved her Mother the trouble of having to deny the little blonde. "Go play with your friends and your Uncles. Perhaps your Grandmother will participate in one of the other games," she said, Amelia immediately saying okay before running back to the family room where everyone was waiting for her. "Don't worry Mother, Jane is going to run a game of bingo later, I'm sure you can manage that."
"Thank you," Constance smiled. "She is awfully difficult to say no to."
"Oh you don't have to tell me," Maura laughed, taking a seat next to her Mother. "She's very happy you're here though. We all our," she placed a hand over her Mother's, Angela watching the interaction with a big smile on her face.
Though their relationship was nothing compared to Angela and Jane's, Constance and Maura had managed to mend their rather broken bond quite a bit over the last year. Constance still lived overseas, but was making visits to Boston a regular occurrence; checking in with Amelia as much as possible when she was away.
"Personally I think Janie is the worst at telling her no," Angela joined the conversation, looking to the family room where her children seemed to be having as much fun as Amelia and her friends. "That girl has Janie wrapped around her tiny little finger. All she ever has to do is call her Mama and Jane's practically mush."
"That is true," Maura agreed with a laugh. "Though she is getting better. I mean she wouldn't let Amelia stay up past her bedtime the other night no matter how much Amelia begged and she denied her a second helping of ice cream last week."
"Yeah and I bet she moped about it for hours afterwards," Angela replied, shaking her head.
"Until we went to bed," Maura chuckled.
"Mommy! Come play!" Amelia called from the family room, waving her Mother over enthusiastically, the group getting ready for pin the tail on the donkey.
"Well I must go play," Maura excused herself, giving her Mother's hand a squeeze before joining the party, Amelia immediately wrapping her arms around her.
"They are quite the family aren't they," Constance said as she watched her daughter and granddaughter with a smile on her face. "They're rather wonderful to watch."
"I couldn't agree more," Angela grinned. "They're all just so happy."
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"…Happy birthday dear Mia, happy birthday to you," the family and friends gathered at the Isles/Rizzoli household finished their song as Amelia blew out the candles on the chocolate cake in front of her.
The room erupted into applause; Amelia laughing happily as Jane quickly stuck her finger in the icing, wiping it on the little blonde's nose. "Mama!" Amelia gasped, as Maura was speedy in grabbing the cake and moving it out of the way, knowing how Jane could get carried away. "You got cake on my nose!"
"I sure did," Jane laughed, placing kisses all over the little girl's face before wiping the icing off for her. "What did you wish for Bug?"
"She can't tell you that," Korsak called from the other side of the table.
"Yeah Jane everyone knows that if you tell your wish it won't come true," Frost agreed.
"It's a secret Mama," Amelia nodded seriously, placing a hand on the brunette's cheek. "But I think it's going to come true."
"You do huh?" Jane quirked an eyebrow. "Well will you tell me when it comes true then?" She asked receiving an enthusiastic nod from her daughter. "Good," she gave Amelia one last kiss before Maura called for her to begin passing out cake.
"So Mia are you excited to play with all your new toys?" Angela asked as everyone began receiving cake. "You got a lot of stuff today."
"I love it all," Amelia replied with a big grin. "I can't wait to read all my new books with Mommies and I want to use my new telescope and I love all my new dolls," she rambled rather excitedly. "Oh and I want to watch all my new movies too!"
"You got a lot of new outfits for all your dolls too," Maura said as she rejoined the table. "You can practically have a fashion show with all the clothes your dolls have now."
"Oh I can remember you doing that when you were little Maura," Constance replied from where she sat next to Angela, surprising Maura, who wasn't used you her Mother speaking about her childhood. "You used to gather all your dolls and strut them down the hallways as if they were on a runway. I believe you even went through a phase of making outfits of your own. For a while I was rather convinced that you would pursue a career in fashion. Those dolls were your models."
"Well that explains where Amelia gets it," Jane laughed, placing a hand on Maura's knee underneath the table, knowing Constance's comment would make her girlfriend uncomfortable; that she wouldn't quite know how to handle the situation. "That also explains her flare for fashion now," she added, thinking of the countless dresses filling their walk-in closet.
"I could never get Janie to play with dolls," Angela commented. "I was so excited when I had a little girl. I thought I would get to dress her up and play dolls and have tea parties with her all the time but no," she scoffed. "Janie wasn't happy unless she was running around like a banshee in the dirt. I'm pretty sure she ripped the head off the head of every doll I ever gave her."
"Yeah and she used to hide them in my room," Frankie said, making the table laugh. "Used to find them in my drawers and under my pillow like every day."
"That sounds like Jane," Maura laughed allowing her hand to slip under the table, smiling as it joined with Jane's. "I'm fairly certain she's still happiest when she's running around in the mud."
"Without a doubt," Frost grinned, having watched his partner tackle suspects on various occasions, the brunette always standing back up with a look of joy on her face.
"Mommy can we go play now?" Amelia asked, sitting with her three best friends from school, girls who were regular visitors at their house since Amelia's 5th birthday party the year before.
"Go ahead darling," Maura nodded, smiling as the four girls ran off towards the family room. "I think perhaps we were boring them."
"Probably," Korsak laughed. "Can't imagine why they'd want to hang out with a bunch of adults."
"Yeah me either," Tommy agreed. "In fact I'm going to play with them," he excused himself from the table, the sound of shrieks and laughter filling the house as soon he made it into the family room.
"That boy needs to have children," Angela sighed wistfully.
"Tommy would make a wonderful Father," Maura nodded her agreement. "Amelia absolutely adores him."
"Yeah but let's give the kid time to really get his life together," Jane rolled her eyes, knowing her Mother simply wanted more grandchildren. "I mean the guy can't even do his own laundry. Bug Frankie if you want more grandchildren."
"Hey leave me out of this," Frankie held his hands up. "You always have to get her started," he whined getting up from the table. "I'm going to play with Tommy and the kids."
"I've no hope for those two," Angela shook her head dramatically. "Honestly am I really asking so much? You two will give me more grandchildren won't you?" She asked looking to Maura and Jane who seemed to freeze as everyone left at the table turned their attention on them.
"Oh…umm well…" Maura stuttered, not quite ready to talk about the idea of more children with anyone other than Jane; a topic, which they had spoken about on several different occasions.
"Come on Ma," Jane sighed in frustration. "We're not even married yet. Will you just give us a break?"
"Well I'm not sure what you're waiting for," Angela huffed. "I'm not getting any younger Jane."
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"Well little girl did you have a good day today?" Jane asked later that night as she and Maura tucked a rather sleepy Amelia into bed. "You looked like you had a lot of fun."
"I had the most fun," Amelia nodded with a yawn. "I love my birthday."
"We do too honey," Maura smiled, running her hand over her daughter's blonde hair. "But I think I would prefer if you didn't have anymore for some time. I'm not ready for you to get any older," she said. "I just want you to stay our little girl forever."
"Don't worry Mommy I'm still little," Amelia put her hand over Maura's with a sweet, tired smile on her face.
"Oh good," Maura chuckled, leaning forward and placing a kiss on the little girl's forehead, pulling back and seeing that Amelia's eyes were beginning to drift shut. "Time for sleep sweet girl. I love you."
"Love you too Mommy," Amelia replied sleepily as Jane moved in to give her a hug and a kiss of her own. "Love you Mama."
"Love you too Bug. Happy Birthday Sweetheart," Jane replied before following Maura towards the hallway.
"Mama?" Amelia called before Jane could shut the light off, the brunette looking back to find the small blonde's eyes open, gesturing for her to come back to her bed.
"What is it Sweetheart?" Jane asked, looking back to see that Maura had left them alone.
"Can I tell you a secret?" Amelia asked, keeping her voice low.
"You can tell me anything," Jane nodded, sitting on the edge of her daughter's bed.
"When I blew out the candles I wished that all my birthdays will be like today," Amelia replied, surprising Jane who was always amazed by just how mature the little girl was. "I wished that it would always be as fun and that everyone would always be there like today," she explained. "Do you think it will come true?"
"You know what Honey, I do," Jane smiled, leaning in and kissing Amelia's cheek. "In fact I'm going to make sure it does okay?"
"Okay Mama," Amelia nodded, her eyes once again falling closed, Jane sitting a few moments to watch her fall asleep before she quietly left the room.
Smiling to herself Jane made her way down the hall to the master bedroom, seeing the light on in the closet. "Maur?" She called out even though she knew the blonde was likely changing, as she went to grab something out of her jacket pocket.
"What was that all about?" Maura called back.
"Oh Mia just wanted to tell me something," Jane replied, not quite ready to share that piece of information yet. "Today was pretty perfect huh?" She said, making her way closer to the closet.
"I'm not sure it could have been more perfect," was Maura's reply. "I mean everyone was there; Amelia had a great time. I can't think of anything that would make this day any better."
"Well I could think of one thing," Jane called back, her voice sounding slightly unsure, possibly nervous.
"And what would that be?" Maura asked as she made her way back into the bedroom, freezing in place when she found Jane on one knee in the middle of the room, a small black box in her hand. "Wha…"
"Marry me," Jane's voice regained some of it's confidence despite the fact that her hands were shaking as she opened the box to reveal a sparkling diamond ring. "I love you Maura Isles. Will you marry me?"