To anyone who cares: I don't own these characters.
Chapter 1
Jane pushed her way through the glass doors of the morgue and found herself standing in front of a dead, completely nude, body. She hadn't visited the autopsy room more than half a dozen times, despite her years of experience with the Boston Police Department, so the sight was a little disconcerting. Here was yet another thing she was going to have to get used to as a homicide detective. Not to mention the smell.
Hearing the clicking of heels on the tile floor coming from across the room, she gratefully looked away from the dead man to discover the source of the sound.
Approaching the autopsy table was Maura Isles, the new Chief Medical Examiner. Jane had heard rumors about her, and it appeared everything she had heard was about to be confirmed. Dr. Isles wore a black skirt with a long silver zipper that stretched from the hem to the waist, where a silk sleeveless top was tucked in. Her hair was pulled back into a loose ponytail that swung over her bare shoulders. Darkly lined eyes zeroed in on Jane as she walked across the room, a severe look on her face.
"You shouldn't be in here," Dr. Isles said shortly, while she pulled a sheet up over the dead man's body. "I'm just about to start an autopsy, and I cannot be disturbed while I work." She rested her fingertips on the table and glared at the tall, dark-haired woman who had invaded her workspace.
Jane blinked, surprised that an M.E. would speak to a detective this way. No wonder they call her the queen of the dead, she thought to herself. She immediately felt defensive, and her heart beat rapidly, but she tried not to let it show. "I'm sorry, I wasn't aware . . ."
Dr. Isles interrupted. "You're the new detective, aren't you? Rizzoli?"
"Yes, ma'am, Detective Jane Rizzoli, Victor 825," responded Jane automatically, slightly flattered that the doctor already knew her name.
The doctor pursed her lips, and Jane felt flushed, wondering if she had gone overboard with "ma'am." The M.E.'s next words refocused her attention quickly, however. "Well, Detective Rizzoli, do you see that yellow light there?" She pointed at a bulb on the wall and waited for Jane's response.
Jane squirmed, feeling like she was back in the academy. She was entirely unsure why this woman was so prickly, but she didn't want to get off on the wrong foot so she swallowed her pride and nodded. "Yes, does that—"
Dr. Isles cut her off swiftly. "That light indicates that I am in the middle of an autopsy and must not be disturbed. I can't have impatient detectives hovering over me when I work, carrying with them potential contaminants and annoying me with useless questions. Luckily, I hadn't yet started with this case, but in the future, I would appreciate it if you would not enter this room unless the green light is on." She gestured toward the bank of lights on the wall.
"Of course, I didn't mean to interrupt your work, Doctor. It won't happen again," Jane responded as politely as possible, but made no move to leave. Not because she was trying to stand her ground, but because she wondered if the queen of the dead was supposed to dismiss her first.
The doctor sighed, and seemed resigned to the fact that she would have to delay her work. "Now, what can I help you with? I hope you aren't looking for results yet, because this case will mostly likely take several hours."
"Actually, I just need a first aid kit, and I was told there was one down here. I messed up my elbow tackling a perp earlier, and it keeps bleeding." Jane held up her arm so the doctor could see the gash across her skin, surrounded by a bright red asphalt burn.
The doctor's face showed sudden concern. "Oh dear, that definitely does need attention," she said, walking around the table to Jane's side and peering at the wound. "I don't think it needs stitches, but I should clean it up and bandage it properly. Come back to my office, please."
Dr. Isles began threading her way through the autopsy tables, and Jane followed behind her, grateful for the sudden change in the doctor's demeanor but still wary of the strange woman.
The M.E. pointed at a chair behind a low table for Jane to sit in, and bustled about pulling supplies out of drawers. "I heard about your encounter with the so-called perp earlier, but the other detectives didn't mention that you had been injured." Maura shook her head slightly and sighed.
"What other detectives?" Jane quickly piped up with a wrinkled brow, wondering who had been talking about her.
"Crowe and Masters, I believe. They seemed to find it inordinately amusing that you had to walk a nude man in handcuffs into the precinct. A man who was apparently nude when you tackled him, and received this injury," Dr. Isles said as she took hold of the detective's arm and began probing the wound.
Jane winced but then set her jaw, not wanting to show any weakness in front of this woman. "Yeah, well, at least I got the guy. I probably should have found him something to wear before I brought him in, but my partner said it was going to take too much time. His shirt covered everything anyway—well, almost everything," Jane snorted.
Dr. Isles suddenly stopped what she was doing and stepped back, looking at Jane again with severity. "Are you telling me that you approve of this sort of hazing ritual? I understand that these sorts of things are common in male-dominated professions, but I had hoped they would treat the first woman to join their ranks with a little more respect." The doctor shook her head and sighed while returning to her task, pulling out a tiny stone from Jane's arm with tweezers.
Jane's features betrayed her confusion. "What? What do you mean, hazing?"
The doctor straightened again, turning to pick up a bottle of antiseptic. "From the way the detectives were talking it sounded as though they had set the whole thing up just to see how you would react. It's rather barbaric, really, but I understand that it's typical male behavior."
"Shit!" Jane growled as the doctor swabbed her wound with antiseptic at the same time as she realized just what had happened with her supposed arrest just a few short hours ago. After the sting in her arm subsided, and hoping that the pricking feeling in her eyes wasn't going to develop into actual tears, she said through clenched teeth, "Dr. Isles, could you tell me exactly what Crowe and Masters said?" She blew out a frustrated breath.
The M.E. finished taping the bandage on Jane's arm and stared at a point just over Jane's shoulder as she recalled the conversation she had heard in the hallway. "Crowe said that he had gotten a buddy of his to wear some sort of compromised clothing—basketball shorts, I think—that would rip off. Then he and your partner—Detective Korsak, right?—got you to believe that he was a suspect in your case so you would chase him down and tackle him."
"Fuck!" Jane slammed her fist down onto the table, making the doctor's instruments rattle, and Maura jumped. "Sorry, Dr. Isles, but . . . just . . . fuck! I can't believe I fell for it! Getting me to cuff a naked guy—I had my knee halfway up his naked ass getting the cuffs on him, and they were all having a good laugh about it . . . fuck!" Jane slammed the table again, then sat down heavily and put her head in her hands.
Dr. Isles stood stock still, unsure of what to do. "I'm sorry, detective; I really thought you knew . . . should I not have told you?" The doctor looked genuinely concerned. She twisted the ring on her finger, then reached out as though she might pat Jane's shoulder in a gesture of comfort. At the last second she lost her nerve and pulled her hand back.
A few heartbeats later Jane sat up and sucked in a shaky breath. "No, I'm glad you told me." She stared absently at the walls of Maura's office, biting the corner of her lip. "At least now the joke's over and I won't make an even bigger ass out of myself." She stood up, wiping her palms on her pants, pulling herself together. "Sorry I disturbed your autopsy, Dr. Isles. And thanks for the bandage."
Jane took a step toward the door before the M.E. stopped her. "Detective, wait." Jane turned to look at the doctor again. It seemed the queen of the dead had disappeared, leaving a rather vulnerable looking woman in her place. Twisting her ring again, the doctor looked pained. "I'm really sorry, I didn't mean . . ."
"It's okay—I can handle it." Jane's face softened, and she gave a weak smile before turning to leave again.
Once again, Maura stopped her. "I hear a lot of things, you know—when the detectives think I'm not listening."
"Oh yeah? Like what?" Jane rested against the door, halfway out of the room but suddenly interested.
"I know Korsak is happy to have you as his new partner—despite the role he played in today's unfortunate incident. I heard him talking to another officer about it, and although I find it difficult to detect sarcasm in some instances, I am fairly certain that he was completely sincere in this case." Dr. Isles nodded vigorously to punctuate her point.
A genuine smile appeared on Jane's face, as well as a hint of color in her cheeks. "Thanks doc, that's really nice to hear. I'm going to have to figure out a way to get him back for this, but I think we'll get along as partners okay." She looked down and absently kicked at the door with her boot before turning to leave again.
"But . . . " The ME took a step forward to follow her, and Jane stopped again, waiting for this strange women to sputter out whatever it was she wanted to say.
"I think it's awful what they did to you, and since we're both new and we're both women, we ought to stick together, don't you think? Show these men a thing or two? Or, at least be . . . friends?"
Jane watched an awkward smile appear on the doctor's face before she responded, "Yeah, we should definitely be friends." She was surprised to realize that she actually meant it.
They walked back out into the autopsy room, Maura stopping at the table behind the dead man while Jane strode toward the door. This time, she was the one who turned back to lengthen the conversation yet again.
"Wait—Dr. Isles," she paused, choosing her words carefully, "if you're so concerned about us sticking together as women, why did you bite my head off when I came in here and give me that speech about the damn yellow light? Did those guys put you up to it? Get you to act like the queen of the dead just to make me look like an ass?" Jane's tone became increasingly accusatory and her voice rose.
Maura looked genuinely shocked. "No!" Her face hardened, and the features of the queen of the dead reappeared, but only briefly, before she tore her eyes away from the angry detective's and looked at the floor.
"I do hate to be disturbed when I'm doing an autopsy—and I just wanted to be clear about that. But I didn't mean to be so wrong-footed about it."
Maura looked up again before continuing. "I'm kind of awkward around people. I guess that's why they call me the queen of the dead."
"No kidding," said Jane flatly.
Maura looked stricken, and Jane felt her heart sink. "I'm sorry—they really shouldn't call you that."
"No, it's okay," said Maura, taking a shaky breath. "My therapist says I should just tell people that I have a hard time with personal interactions. I really am more comfortable with the dead than the living, you see, but I'm trying to change that." Maura looked up with sincerity in her eyes.
The two women held each other's gaze for a brief moment before they both looked away, slightly embarrassed. Jane was the first to recover.
"Okay, that's cool. I'll try not to bust in on any more autopsies, and you can try to relax a little, okay?
Maura beamed. "Yes, relax. I can do that." She let out a long breath, and then a nervous chuckle. "Well, it was nice to meet you, detective. I'm sure I'll be seeing you again soon."
"Yeah, nice to meet you too. And you can call me Jane, Maura. 'Cause we're friends, aren't we?"
"Absolutely." Maura smiled and nodded as the detective disappeared down the hall. The grin was still on her face as she changed into scrubs, prepared her instruments, and finally picked up her scalpel to start her work.
A/N: I'm really not sure where I'm going with this, but it will definitely lead to rizzles, albeit slowly. I get frustrated with the way the show's writers (and JT?) deal with Maura's character. Jane's character is fairly consistent, but Maura is all over the place, so here is my attempt to explain/fix/explore that. Let me know if you are interested in the idea!