So... This is my first attempt at fanfic since I wrote a Troi/Riker story in the 10th grade (luckily, that particular piece has been lost somewhere in the dark recesses of the internet.) Please be kind.
More chapters to come, will eventually evolve to M rating in future chapters.
Disclaimer: I own nothing. All characters belong to whoever is in charge of that sort of thing. Please don't sue.
Doppelganger - Chapter 1
"Beginning autopsy of Jeanne Rodriguez..."
Even their initials were the same. Maura paused the voice recorder for a moment. Never in her life had she not been able to compartmentalize her work and her emotions - but this woman on the slab looked so remarkably like Jane... She shook her head as if to clear it, took several deep breaths as if to settle the darkness.
"Victim is female, 36 years old..."
"So she kinda looks like me! What's the big deal?"
Jane stared at the board.
"No, she looks like your twin. Did you see how pale Dr. Isles went when she did her initial exam?" Korsack's gruff voice belied his protective concern.
"I'm sure she's fine." but Jane bit her lip while her stomach did little circles around itself.
Not that she liked the idea of Maura being upset, not at all... but the possibility that Maura cared enough to be noticeably affected by a body that, admittedly, did bear a striking resemblance to her... the implications of that opened a door to all sorts of potential feelings the doctor might be keeping under wraps. If Maura was harboring anything like the sweet and swelling emotions Jane was constantly trying to keep at bay... well, that was almost too good to think about.
"I brought dinner. Since I know you worked through yours." Jane held up the take out bag, smiling in Maura's direction.
The medical examiner was still hunched over the body, intently studying something that was most likely very important but to Jane just looked squishy and vaguely unpleasant. When there was no acknowledgement, Jane added,
"It's healthy stuff. With quinoa. And sprouts. Mmm... sprouts. You luhhvve sprouts..."
Still no response.
"Maura!" Finally the doctor glanced up and Jane noticed the tiny ear buds she was wearing as she removed them.
"Oh. Hello Jane." Maura's greeting was less than warm. Not quite icy... but a far cry from what Jane was expecting.
"Dinner?" Jane lifted the bag in Maura's direction once again.
"Thank you. Could you just put it in my office please? I'm not at a good stopping point at the moment." She barely looked at the detective.
Jane was taken aback by Maura's coolness towards her, but she had a pretty good idea what was really bothering the doctor - and she wasn't going to be held outside the castle walls that easily.
After depositing the take out on Maura's impossibly neat desk, Jane walked back into the morgue. Maura was once again wearing the ear phones. Jane, undaunted, cupped her hands around her lips and yelled,
"WHATCHA LISTENING TO?"
With an irritated sigh, Maura ripped the ear buds out once again.
"Jane. I am in the middle of an important procedure."
"I can see that. Whatcha listening to?" Jane offered the doctor a lopsided grin.
Hard shell still not cracking, Maura shot hazel-eyed daggers at the detective.
"If you must know, I'm listening to a meditation guide. On detachment."
Feeling her own irritation surge, Jane fired back.
"I'd say you've pretty much got that nailed, Maura."
As soon as the words escaped her lips, Jane saw that they'd hit their mark... probably a little harder than she'd meant them to. Maura's eyes shone with the hint of tears for a split second before something like green fire took over, even as Maura's body language and voice became glacial.
"Detective. If you don't have anything to say related to the case, I'd like to return to the victim on my table." She put the ear phones back in place.
Jane knew Maura thought she'd succeeded in pushing her away with the cold, rigid dismissal. And with anyone else, she would have - but Jane saw right through the protective layer Maura tried to wrap around herself. Jane crossed the morgue in a few purposeful strides and pulled the ear buds out, forcefully enough that Maura let out a small gasp. Jane was almost nose to nose with the doctor and her voice was deep and serious, with the beginning edges of a growl.
"What the hell is going on with you Maura?!"
Jane was angry by this point, even though she thought she knew the root of Maura's detached coldness. She thought she knew, but she needed Maura to say it...
"Jane!"
The blonde doctor raised her voice - not quite to the level of a yell (at least not to Jane) - but definitely dripping with her own anger.
"Maura, please. I can tell when something's wrong. Best detective in Boston, remember?" Jane's voice softened a little, but, while her words carried some levity, her eyes were dark, intense and pleading.
"Maura, please."
Maura sighed again, though this time it was more out of resignation that frustration. She snapped off her gloves and tossed them into a nearby trash can. Wordlessly, she reached for a Petrie dish containing a small, blood-soaked slip of paper and handed it to Jane.
Though it was semi-obscured by the blood staining, Jane was able to clearly make out the message.
REMIND YOU OF ANYONE, DR. ISLES?
THIS IS JUST THE DRESS REHEARSAL...
Maura watched Jane intently, saw the slight stiffening of her jaw... the flash in her eye... the goosebumps along her arm. A split second later, however, Jane set the Petrie dish down.
"Ok, so we just have one more good reason to find the bastard." Jane shrugged like she hadn't just received a death threat.
"I found that inserted into the bullet hole through the victim's right oblique and small bowel... Jane, her wound is almost identical to yours..." Maura trailed off, paused and composed herself, reestablishing the detachment that kept her calm. Kept her safe.
"It's fine, Maura. We'll catch him, it's no big thing." Jane cloaked herself in confidence and swagger the same way Maura hid inside facts and behind sheets of ice.
"Fine Jane. I'm glad YOU'RE not upset about this. Will you please let me return to my work now?"
"Don't go all "Dr. Isles" on me again, Maura."
Jane grabbed Maura's wrist as she began to reach for a new pair of latex gloves.
"Don't shut me out... please. Tell me what you need from me..."
Jane could feel Maura's pulse racing under her fingers. It felt like electricity.
"I want you to admit that you're scared too Jane!"
to be continued...