A/N: I've returned and thanks to all checking out 'By the Blade'! Uh…not ready for the show to end and I'm excited for all the episodes coming up. Any who, this idea came to me and I've been thinking it out and I'm excited to show it to all of you because it's interesting. Also yes, it's Rizzles. Now, it's a bit AU for I've killed off the Jane's pregnant storyline and Frost and Susie being dead but Kent and Nina are in it. Also did anyone like cheered when Jane took that butthead down and when Maura went total badass? I know I did! Okay…control myself here…sorry, writer's brain is hyperactive LOL.
Summary:"Those clamorous harbingers of blood and death" - Macbeth. When murders appear to connect to Shakespeare's works, it's up for Maura and Jane to stop the killer while trying to figure out their feelings for each other. But, when it turns out that the murders happened before, Jane has to bring the original detective back but it's not without some family tension in the mix.
Disclaimer: I only own the storyline and any original characters. Everything else belongs to TNT, Tess Gerristen, Jan Nash, and anyone else who owns copyrights to the show. Also I do not own William Shakespeare's works…obviously.
"Some are born great, some achieve greatness, and some have greatness thrust upon them." – William Shakespeare
Ch. 1: Red Hands
Flashback- 20 years ago…
"No way?"
"Yeah, I ran like three blocks to catch him."
"What did he do? Robbery? Drugs?"
"Homicide."
"Damn…"
"Yeah and since I got him, Detective Moore let me watch the interrogation. It was so cool, Janie."
"God, I just want to get in the academy now."
"You'll be in soon. Three more years til you're twenty-one; you just focus on some of the community college stuff. You got two years and remember cuz, they'll give you a bit of hell cause you're a woman. Don't let them cause I didn't."
"A year on patrol and you already caught a lot bad guys."
"But, there's paperwork. The biggest bitch and speaking of which, I need to hang up cause if my CO doesn't see me working, I will be here late and miss dinner with Noah."
"Right. I'll call you later."
"Talk to you later, Jane."
She dressed in warm clothes; two layers of long sleeves and jeans while wearing a lumbar jacket and a beanie to cover her head. As she stepped outside of the large building, she noticed that the snow was coming down still but not as hard as before.
She should have left her shift earlier before the snowstorm hit Boston. It had gone and pass but now, it buried her car several feet under the snow. She could have wiped all the snow off but she wanted to get home like now.
So she decided to walk to her home, which was about three blocks.
It wasn't far so she began to walk.
Unfortunately, it was her last.
When she woke up this morning and she didn't see her bed companion, she figured that she had to get up and move. Usually, she would be up before everyone else but last night was a very fun but tiring day.
They had gone Christmas shopping much to her delight then afterwards, got a Celtics basketball game, which they won. Throughout the game and the shopping, her companion spoke about her many family memories and she enjoyed each tale for it fill the void that she had. The last couple years with her best friend's family made the holidays delightful and made her deep affection for her best friend bloom even more.
So when she didn't see her best friend still passed out, she decided to check out why.
"Ma, I'm not sure if that's a very smart idea," Chief Medical Examiner Doctor Maura Isles heard her best friend and secret crush, Detective Jane Rizzoli commented. She peered out, after getting dressed in a gray pencil skirt and teal blouse to see Jane dressed in her yellow V-neck shirt with her matching black slacks and blazer sitting on a stool while her mother, Angela, dressed in an apron, worked hard in the kitchen. "I mean, by all means, you, Frankie and Tommy should go to Uncle Pete's funeral but I don't think it would be a smart idea for me to go," Jane explained to her mother.
Angela huffed, "Janie, you haven't seen your cousins since you were still in the Drug Unit."
"Yes, with a very good reason. It's been a while also."
Angela placed the pancakes on Jane's plate and argued, "You never told me what happened. One moment, you two were like peas in a pod then poof!"
"Ma…it's complicated."
"It's complicated. Everyone tells me that! Did you know that she even stopped visiting her family for the last ten years?"
Jane ran her hand over her face and pleaded, "Ma, can we change the subject?"
Maura noticed that Jane was becoming tense, clenching her fist in frustration. Time to intervene, the doctor realized and stepped out of the hallway, greeting with a wide smile, "Good morning, Jane. Angela."
Jane seemed to relax at the sound of the honey blonde's voice and Angela backed off slightly. "Good morning, Maura," Angela greeted with a small smile. She then looked over at Jane and stated, "Think about it and also, I will be across town comforting your aunt Annetta and cousins, Nico and Angelica."
"Fine Ma," Jane replied as she focused on her breakfast.
Sensing that this was a thin topic with Jane, she decided to change the subject. "Jane, are we still planning on catching the play tonight," Maura inquired.
"Oh what play," Angela inquired, jumping into the conversation.
"We're going to see Shakespeare's "Julius Caesar" at BCU. It's a newer production and I invited Jane as my plus one."
"Shakespeare…"
The older Rizzoli looked at her daughter, prompting Jane to look up from her coffee to look at her mother. Noticing the disbelief, Jane retorted in offense, "Hey, I can sit and watch an old English play."
"Technically," Maura corrected, "it's modern English and did you know that Shakespeare created most of our modern vocabulary?" She then noticed the glare that Jane always gave when she was not helping the situation.
Angela looked at Jane and retorted, "That's why I'm surprised."
"It's Shakespeare," Jane shrugged. "It might extend my vocabulary." She then turned back to Maura and answered assuredly, "Yeah, I'll still be able to come."
"Excellent," Maura smiled widely.
At the sight of Maura's smile, Jane smiled back then returned to her breakfast. Angela continued to eye her daughter for a bit before she returned to her cooking. It seemed that Jane was willing to do anything that Maura asked and yes, she would whine about it but she would still go for Maura. She can name several times that Jane attended something that she didn't like but Maura liked.
Suddenly, both Jane and Maura's phones began to ring causing Angela to turn around and hand travel cups to the two as they answered, "Rizzoli."
"Isles."
R&I
In Jane's cruiser, they drove down to the crime scene. It was quiet between the two most of the drive but it was a comfortable silence. However for Maura, the silence left her with her thoughts and made her wonder about why Jane didn't wish to attend her uncle's funeral. She knew her best friend was a family person and when she stated she did not wish to attend the funeral, it confused Maura slightly.
Soon they pulled up to the crime scene with Jane turning off the engine to the car. She took in a deep breath then released it then looked at Maura who simply sat there. The silence was still there but this time, Jane knew it was shifting and she knew Maura's curious mind was going a mile a minute. She just had to wait for the question to arrive.
"Do you want to talk about it," Maura inquired finally, knowing that it was a safe question to ask.
Jane glanced at Maura with a neutral expression.
At first, Maura was expecting Jane to tell her that this was the situation for the curious doctor to mind her own business. But she watched Jane lean back in her seat and answered neutrally, "My Ma's sister's family and ours were pretty close when we were younger; she had three kids and Ma had us."
"She only mentioned two when we were home," Maura retorted. She cringed inwardly at the slip then corrected, "I mean…at my house."
"Yeah cause my older cousin…it's complicated but anyways, my Uncle Piero or Pete, as we called him, died from a heart attack."
"Oh Jane, I'm so sorry."
Jane gave Maura's hand a light squeeze and continued, "I haven't seen him in a long time nor my cousins due to some…issues. I had a huge falling out with one of my cousins and it's been nothing but tension since it happened."
Before Maura could get any detail of what the falling out was about, Jane stepped out of the car to see Frankie walking over. Maura stepped out as she heard Frankie ask, "Did you hear about Uncle Pete?"
"Yeah," Jane answered quietly.
"You going?"
Jane shook her head and Frankie sighed. "Just tell me what we got," Jane commanded as she began to walk toward the crime scene while placing her crime scene gloves on with Frankie and Maura following.
"It's a weird one," Korsak stated as he and Frost stepped forward and gestured to the body covered.
"What do you mean by weird," Jane asked as she lifted the yellow tap up for herself and Maura. She looked around, seeing the empty alleyway then approached the body with Maura. She lifted up the sheet to reveal a redheaded woman in a white night gown with red hands. "Is that blood," Jane questioned as she looked down at the body.
Maura crouched down and retorted, "As I've told you many times before, I will not know until I-"
"Get back to the lab. I know. I know."
Maura gave a playful glare at Jane then returned to the body. "It appears her neck is broken," Maura observed.
"Snapped?" Maura looked up at Jane with a 'really' expression. Jane raised her hands in surrender and continued to observe the body, noticing how the body was positioned as if the hands were emphasized for some odd reason. Then, she noticed a small object that seemed to be in the victim's hand. "Maura, what's that," Jane asked.
Maura turned her attention toward the hands, pulling out a small parchment paper that was folded. "How odd," Maura commented quietly. She watched as Jane began to open the scroll, prompting Maura to ask, "What does it say?"
"Act 2 begins BPD. A new cast, a new tale…tell me, detectives…how fair are thee? How quick is thy mind? Will you catch me in time," Jane read aloud. "Old English?"
"Modern English. Elizabethan era like-"
"Shakespeare," Jane concluded.
Maura gave a curious expression and answered, "Yes. But how did you conclude that?" Jane handed the note to Maura who took it into her hands and read the bottom part of the note, "Here's the smell of blood still: all the perfumes of Arabia will not sweeten this little hand. Oh, oh, oh!"
"It wasn't my favorite thing to read in high school but I know that's Shakespeare. Why else I would go with you," Jane commented.
"Because you love to come." Jane gave a small chuckle, not replying to the answer for it was somewhat true. She enjoyed going to Maura's fancy trips like the gala or a play. She wouldn't say it aloud, in front of the guys, but she knew that her coming showed Maura that she enjoyed it. Sometimes, it made her feel a bit uncomfortable but she still had fun "I'll analyze all of this in the lab." Maura then stood up from the ground as did Jane and began to walk out of the crime scene. When they reached the tape, she expressed to Jane and Frankie, who approached, "I'll start the autopsy immediately and look into that note."
"Thanks Maura," Jane smiled. Maura returned the smile and began to walk to the morgue truck with Jane's eyes watching her intently. Suddenly, there was a cough causing Jane to snap out of her thoughts and returned her attention to her younger brother.
He seemed to be smirking, prompting Jane to question, "What?"
"Nothing."
Jane gave an unsure look to her brother but decided to drop it. Focus on the case, she thought as she asked, "Have we found anything to identify her yet?"
"No identification at all. It's like she was walking around in those clothes."
"I doubt that." She looked around the area and stated aloud as Frost and Korsak were walking over, "Someone must have noticed something."
"We can do a canvas but how far do we go," Frost inquired.
Korsak looked around the area then replied, "We can go a couple blocks. Maybe check out some secret cameras."
"Okay, Frankie and I will walk up the block and you guys can walk the other way. I say we do maybe three blocks," Jane suggested. "If we don't find anything then we regroup and head back to BPD."
The rest agreed and Jane with Frankie began to walk down the street.
As they were walking, Frankie kept glancing at Jane every few steps, which, unknown to him, his older sister was noticing it. She stopped suddenly and asked upfront, "Do I have food on my face or something?"
"What? No," Frankie answered quickly.
"Then what?"
Frankie bit his lip then retorted, "Are you serious about not going to the funeral? I mean we were…like close to the man and all that."
Jane rolled her eyes, "Look I feel awful but if…like if our older cousin is there, it might not go well."
"You guys haven't spoken since you were in narcotics. She left for a reason, Jane and we know about it. Most of homicide knows about it."
"Frankie, we are going to change the subject now because I do not want to talk about this or about her."
Jane then resumed walking with Frankie beside her. They were quiet, looking for any sign that their victim came through until Frankie asked aloud and randomly, "Does Maura know that you dated women back in the day?"
Suddenly, Jane stopped and glared at him. "Do you ever shut up," she asked her brother in annoyance. "First, you talk about our cousin and now, you're asking if Maura knows if I dated women?"
"Well…yeah?"
Jane sighed in frustration. She couldn't believe that her brother was trying to have this conversation with her.
It wasn't a huge secret among the Rizzoli family for when Jane was in community college and the academy, she discovered her strong attraction toward women besides men. Her Ma wasn't sure how to handle the news of her being a bisexual but eventually, she realized that Jane was still her baby and could still have grandbabies. Her brothers didn't have an issue nor did her father, when he was around.
Some in BPD knew and truthfully, she didn't get shit from them except for Crowe but Crowe was a dick so she didn't give a damn. However, there was also a watchful eye over her in her earlier years until it disappeared. Once that vanished, Crowe tried but she developed enough in homicide to beat the crap out of him easily.
See, Jane dated some women and men but as the years went by, there weren't many men or women catching her eye due to a new medical examiner's arrival. She was single for a bit during homicide after narcotics didn't work out especially with Martinez. Later, she tried with Dean and that fell flat due to backstabbing and Maura and, she even tried to rekindle something with her high school boyfriend, Casey but that was a crash and burn real fast.
He disappeared and reappeared too much for Jane's liking.
Now, she just wasn't interested in having a romantic relationship with anyone else except Maura. She could only picture it now with Maura.
But, there was a small problem with that: Maura didn't know that Jane was attracted to women.
It wasn't like Jane was trying to keep it a secret but it never truly came up except that one time years ago, when they discussed about what type of women they would like. She didn't know why she didn't disclose to Maura that she found women attractive or at least, found Maura very attractive.
She just never did or she chickened out. Jane wasn't quite sure of which one it was.
"No, she doesn't," Jane answered her brother finally.
Frankie gave a confused look, "What? Why not?"
"Cause she's my best friend, I haven't had the time to tell her and I doubt she liked me back in that way." Why am I even telling him all of this, she thought.
"You kidding, right? You two stare at each other all the time with goo goo eyes. You are just stalling."
"Goo goo eyes really? What are you five," Jane retorted and resumed her walk. Frankie shrugged his shoulders, resuming his walk with his sister. Jane felt annoyance for her brother but continued to look for any sign that their victim was in the area. She then stopped at the sight of a dumpster that was opened slightly. "Look over there," Jane pointed toward the dumpster.
They walked over and placed crime scene gloves, flipping it open fully. "Bingo," Jane announced happily at the sight of the women's clothing.
"Hopefully, this is our Jane Doe's clothing."
"Hopefully."
Maura peered over the body, examining the exterior then brought the x-ray over it. As the picture appeared, her eyes widened in surprise and commented, "Interesting."
"Doctor Isles," she turned to see Kent and Susie entering the room. Since Kent's arrival, Susie had been mentoring the Scottish man to become an efficient medical examiner. Susie handed the clipboard to Maura and informed immediately, "We found out what was on the victim's hands."
"That would be," Jane inquired as she walked through the door.
"You have good timing," Maura complimented her best friend, taking the clipboard.
Jane smiled at Maura and looked up at Chang and Kent. "So minions of the lab, what's the red stuff on her hands? Blood? Paint? Lipstick," Jane listed.
"Actually," Maura retorted, "it is Allura Red AC."
Jane looked at Maura to elaborate but it seemed that Maura wasn't going to. "Okay, what is that," she asked the two lab assistants.
"It's food coloring," Kent explained. "Her hands were submerged in it long enough to make the color this tint of red."
"The note you gave us is still being processed and being cross reference with Shakespeare's works. I have a feeling it's from a tragedy," Kent voiced. "The words seem tragic."
"Her death is tragic," Jane retorted.
"True," Kent retorted.
Susie rolled her eyes and added, "We're also processing her clothes and so far, we haven't found much."
"Not even a wallet?"
Susie shook her head and Jane sighed in frustration, prompting Kent and Susie to leave the room. "Tell me there's an upside to all of this bad news," Jane asked Maura as she dropped her body into a chair.
Maura nodded.
"What?"
"Well, now that I know what's on her hands, I can do the fingerprints for you. Hopefully, she'll pop up on AFIS," Maura told Jane.
"I'm going to cross my fingers and toes."
"Did you know that when you did that it was a way to do the sign of the cross," Maura began. Jane rolled her eyes but smiled as she listened to Maura 'Googlemouth.' "It's a theory that Christians did it when Christianity was banned in its early stages."
Jane stood up from her seat and retorted, "Then I will hope Jesus and everyone hears me as I ask, do I have a cause of death?" Maura cringed and Jane whined, "Maura…."
"You can't rush science, Jane. I've told you this many times before."
"What do you got then," the detective asked as she walked over to the autopsy table.
Maura moved aside, letting Jane move closer as she pointed toward the x-ray pictures. She attempted to focus on what Maura was trying to say but despite the dead body and the smell of autopsy, Jane could still smell the scent of Maura.
It was a strong rose scent with cherries. It made Jane inhale deeper and take comfort in the smell until she remembered that she needed to listen to Maura.
Not zone out.
"You see these fractures in her ribs," Maura pointed out. Jane gave a somewhat verbal sound, letting Maura continue, "She has multiple fractures in her ribs, legs, arms. Just everywhere, Jane as if she fell from a high area and landed on impact."
"But it's not suicide?"
"Not at all," Maura then gestured toward the body and lifted the sheet to reveal multiple stab wounds in the abdomen.
Jane raised an eyebrow, examining the wounds. She noticed that there were no signs of bloodstains, which made it even odder. "Now, I'm very confused. Where's the blood," Jane inquired.
"We," Maura raised her scalpel, "are about to find out."
Jane grabbed an autopsy cover, placing it over her body as Maura began to do the y-incision. As the cut began to widen the body, she then looked inside and Maura stepped back in surprise. "Maura," Jane approached in worry.
"Her blood's been drained out of her body."
"What?" Jane peered inside the body to see that the body didn't have blood whatsoever in the body except on some organs but there was absolutely no blood in the body. "How much blood is in a person's body?"
"In men, it's 5.2 liters but in women, it's 3.3 liters. Whoever did this…they have to know how to drain blood from the body."
"Shit…"
"Language."
Jane glared at Maura, "Really? Right now?"
Before Maura could retort, Jane's phone buzzed and looked down at it. "Frost and Nina got something off the fingerprints," Jane informed as she placed her phone back. "Maybe we can get a lead and I can get Korsak and Frankie or even Frost to follow up with it so we can catch the play," Jane stated to Maura.
"Really," Maura asked in surprise. The M.E. was prepared for Jane to 'bail' and not attend the play due to the case. "I mean, Jane…I know that once you have a case-"
"Maura, I promised to go to the show with you. I'll check out this lead with the guys and see how it pans out. You finish the autopsy then go home and get all fancy and I'll pick you up. Okay," Jane told with her Rizzoli grin.
Maura returned the smile, "Okay. It's a date."
Jane's grin widened and agreed, "It's a date."
As Jane walked out, Maura made sure the detective was out of her line of sight before she giggled in giddiness then resumed her autopsy.
Flashback- 9 years ago…
Being a rookie cop, she got shit but she didn't expect the shit she was getting from Detective Crowe. He mocked her, insulted her and she didn't care but it didn't help with how people treated her especially in narcotics.
But, she learned fast to develop a hard shell. It was a boys' club when it came to detectives and the fact that she was going up in the ranks especially being the youngest person to go up them. Her family was impressed even her cousin was impressed cause she didn't get there that fast. She was praised and mocked but as her cousin and her mentor, Korsak informed her that it comes with the job and jealousy was a bitch.
She entered homicide to see her cousin's desk empty but the murder board was covered with the latest case. Korsak had recently moved in, joining the investigation and she wanted to invite the old man out to lunch with her cousin. That was until Crowe started again, "This is a guy's club, Rizzoli. Your cousin got lucky but I doubt you'll make it. Being a d-"
Suddenly, Crowe was wacked in the back of the head with a notebook. He cussed while his attacker commented, "Finish that sentence, Darren and I promise that the captain will have your ass."
"You're going to tattle, Devil?"
Jane's cousin flipped Crowe off in that instance and walked up to her. "So what brings you to my world, cuz," her cousin asked.
"I was going to ask if you and Korsak want to grab lunch," Jane inquired.
"Um…" her cousin glanced back at the murder board then answered apologetically, "Rain check, Jane? This one…I'm knee deep in."
"I get you. I have to do some undercover work soon. I got the short straw."
There was a small chuckle. "Don't worry. The boots are not that uncomfortable."
"Sure…" Jane then looked at the murder board and asked, "So what's that about?"
There was a small nonchalant wave. "I'll tell you about it some other time and Doolittle…he'll be here soon so chill at his desk."
With this, her cousin returned her desk and began to access her computer while Jane took a seat at Korsak's desk. She glanced up at the murder board once more to see quotations and ripped out highlighted pages.
Little did she know that the case on the murder board would change her cousin.
So some establishment here but you'll see how all of this connects. Also I love to hear your guesses on what plays I use. No cheating! So please review cause they are like cookies and I love cookies. See you soon!