Disclaimer: I do not own Body of Proof or any of its characters. This is essentially a Kegan story although there is definitely some Mommy in here as well. I still feel like Megan belongs to Kate, but I think I can grasp why she chose to be with Tommy. This story however, is a take on Megan regretting that decision. I'm not sure about a happy Kegan ending yet but there might be. It will not be a very long story either [since I still have all those other stories to complete #guilty] The story is set seven years after the season III finale, although it will include a great deal of flashbacks. I also killed a character I actually quite like, but I needed a reason for Megan to return to Philadelphia, so. Then finally: I usually write from Kate's point of view but this one is an exception.

The title as well as a huge part of the storyline are based upon a beautiful Axelle Red song, called Rouge Ardent. YouTube it.

With her green eyes open wide and her freckled little nose close to the cold glass, Megan Hunt stood in front of the mirror gazing at her reflection. She could not quite put her finger on it, but today there seemed something different about her appearance. Her red lips faintly parted, she let her fingers roam through the wavy strands of red hair. That was it. On that chilly September morning in her spacious bedroom, Megan realised the colour of her hair was somehow fading.

"Megs? You ready to go?" Tommy Sullivan was somewhat out of breath after running up the stairs to see what his girlfriend was taking so long. Megan could feel his muscular arms sliding around her tiny frame but even if her eyes were still focused on the reflecting glass, she could barely make out his presence. As for a fleeting second his lips came into contact with her elegant neck, Megan shivered as he softly said: "Honey? The cab's waitin'."

Still lost in thought, Megan turned around in his arms, facing him as she asked: "D'you notice anything different about me?" Tommy pretended to subject her face to a thorough examination before he smiled and simply planted the tiniest of kisses on her nose. Pulling her even closer so that she could see the honesty in his eyes, he stated: "Gorgeous as ever". Megan smiled, but the words did not warm her like they had years prior to this cold day in September.

It had been almost seven years since the pair had left Philadelphia, after deciding that in order to give their newfound love a shot, working together was no longer an option. With Lacey getting accepted into a prestigious art school in New York, Megan did not have to think twice about moving there. She told herself that it was the death of Peter that had driven her out of her job as a medical examiner, but deep down she knew perfectly well that there were other demons chasing her far away from the hospital.

At first NYPD had been reluctant to take Tommy on board again, but the truth was that he was a damn fine detective, who was soon to lead his own team. Unlike Tommy and Lacey, Megan struggled with getting used to her new surroundings. After a year of wandering around the house, transforming it into a home for the three of them to live in, Megan had begun to feel restless. No matter how good she had become at making jam from the fresh strawberries their garden provided, she knew she would never make a jubilant housewife and so she applied for a teaching position at the university. Despite her fear that she might need a recommendation letter from her former boss, Megan's name had done the trick for her and she had gotten the job without having to stir up the past.

Sure the seven years spent in New York were happy ones but there was a small part in Megan's heart that ached for a certain satisfaction that neither Tommy nor her job could grant her. Megan knew the feeling all too well: she had grown up on it. The mystery around the suicide of her father had lingered on her every move, just like leaving Philadelphia was doing to her now. There was this sense of unfinished business haunting her and when Tommy had suggested it was due to the loss of her familiar surroundings, Megan gladly blamed it on the city when in reality Philadelphia was merely functioning as a framework for the one thing that caused her all this distress.

Megan gracefully positioned herself into the cab that was to take them to the airport. Both Megan and Tommy had taken a week off to travel to Philadelphia to arrange the funeral of Megan's mother, who had passed away quite suddenly. Lacey was already in Philly with her father and his new wife. It had been over a year since Megan last set foot in Philadelphia and needless to say she was not exactly excited about this trip. She felt Tommy squeeze her hand once they were both seated in the back and she instinctively put her head on his broad shoulder. Traffic was playing all sorts of tricks with them, causing the short car ride to the airport to last longer than intended. Tommy smiled when he noticed Megan's breathing become heavier as she drifted off to sleep resting against him. While Tommy considered how well Megan had taken the sudden loss of Joan, Megan let her dreams take her back to her days in Philadelphia. In particular to the weekend right before she bid the city farewell.

Tommy had left Philly a few days earlier to work on his first homicide in the streets of New York, while Megan had stayed behind to take care of the last few arrangements that needed to be made before their relocation. Sensing Megan needed a moment of her own to deal with the new situation, Tommy had let his girlfriend stay a solitary weekend in their apartment. What he did not know was that Megan's definition of 'solitary' varied slightly from his own.

Her last Saturday on Pennsylvanian ground had started off with every intention of being spent all by Megan's self, but that all changed when the doorbell rang. Not expecting anyone and dearly wanting to be alone, Megan saw no aim in opening the door but the person on the other side seemed persistent. Grinding her teeth a little, Megan moved towards the door, which upon opening revealed her boss, Dr. Kate Murphy. While the redhead's face mostly read surprise, the blonde's face showed a sense of hurt, agony even. Holding a bottle of wine as her ticket to entering Megan's apartment, Kate slowly walked in without saying a word. "Hi.. Kate.." Megan smirked, lifting her eyebrows in minor puzzlement. Megan was not used to seeing her confident boss this way, causing her to stand uncomfortably in what used to be her own living room, observing Kate who had her eyes focused on the window. It took the blonde a minute to tear her eyes away from whatever she was watching, to turn around and directly address the other woman: "Megan.. There's something I need to tell you.."

R&R!