For everyone who read 'Mouthing the Words', thank you ever so much! And a special thank you to coolgirlinms and IsabellaEvania who spurred me on through twitter to write this.
I hope that you will all enjoy the epilogue..

Mouthing the Words – Epilogue

The sky is already alight with the first, fragile rays of sun, a golden haze that seems to shine for them alone as Castle watches over his sleeping family, content to simply hold them close and allow the enormity of the past few hours to settle in his mind a little.
He knows that he should be sleeping too, that in a few hours they will be surrounded by the constant hustle of friends and family wishing them congratulations, but he cannot bear the thought of doing so. It would probably sound rather foolish to anyone else, but to leave the waking world seems like an impossibility when he is so completely in love with all that reality holds, with his beautiful Kate who lays cuddled to his side, exquisite in the barely morning light, and their baby boy, their tiny miracle, who sleeps soundly and exhausted beneath ivory blankets.

No, sleep would have to wait a while longer. His ever twirling mind taking him through a journey of the months that had lead up to this exact moment in time, every second seeming somehow perfect in that messy, unpredictable way of life.

The first few days after he had been discharged from the hospital had been the most difficult, awful in ways that neither had expected and pushing them both to the very limits.
Every morning Castle awoke to the feel of Kate hurriedly untangling herself from the duvet that never failed to twist itself around her long limbs, rushing to the bathroom with morning sickness that wracked through her already weary body with a force that left her trembling against the porcelain. Castle himself utterly useless as he tried to fight through the agonising pain of bruised bones and healing stitches, never quite able to reach Kate in time to hold back her hair and run soothing circles across her back as he had so desperately longed to be able to.

A week passed and his frustration had reached a point of no return, forcing itself out into the world with ugly words of anger and self-pity, hating himself for not properly being there for Kate. A cry for help that she answered not with her own cause for concern, but rather with the love that he felt foolish for not expecting; his extraordinary Kate Beckett shining through, easing herself gently onto his lap as she had held onto his left hand with both of her own, lips kissed warm and softly smiling against his palm, words whispered with an honesty that had brought tears to his eyes.
"It's ok," she had said, eyes burning bright with belief, "Everything is going to be ok. I know how horrible this must be for you, my beautiful writer who fancies himself Superman, but you have to give yourself a break. I know what recovery is like, how frustrating it is to be locked inside a body that isn't quite your own, but I also know that you have to give yourself time to heal, to let nature take its course. You don't have to worry about me, ok? I'll tell you if it's too much, I'll ask for help when I need it, but right now I'm doing fine, we're both doing fine. I love you, Rick. So stop beating yourself up, because I'm never going to stop. We're in this together, everything that life throws our way is ours to face, and maybe right now it all seems a little impossible, but it's not. Just think of everything that we've been through together, everything that we have survived; this is barely a ripple in comparison. I promise you, we can do this."

And, of course, she had been right. They found their way through the darkness, just as they always had, not for a second looking back as they ran fast into the wonderful life that was awaiting them.

~o~

Slowly the hardships had lessoned, day-by-day, week-by-week, every second becoming a little easier than the last. Castle's body healed with the help of physiotherapy and the magic touch of love and care, and Kate's morning sickness dissipated into a distant memory with the passing of her first trimester. The world was back in its rightful place, and my goodness were they grateful for that.

Castle had soon found himself back in the role of 'Superman' as Kate had so lovingly called him in that first week, always on the lookout for ways to make her life easier, to take care of her and their baby.
Some days she fought against him; needing to prove to herself as much as anyone else that she was still the person she had always been, strong and independent and capable of carrying the weight of the entire world on her shoulders if that was what was needed, but mostly she gave in to Castle, unable to resists his sappy smiles and puppy dog eyes. And really, when all was said and done, Kate couldn't ever deny the tiny flutters of joy that she felt each time that Castle had brought her a cup of tea to ease the boredom of paperwork or talked Gates into letting her leave work an hour early every now and again.

~o~

He remembers vividly the night that he had sleepily stumbled through to the kitchen in search of a glass of water, finding Kate sat atop the worktop, legs swinging absentmindedly to the radio that was playing out just loud enough to be heard and cheeks blushed cherry pink at being caught with a jar of peanut butter in one hand and chocolate spread in the other. Oh, how truly adorable she had been that night; laughter tumbling out from behind her hands as she had tried to hide her embarrassment, body heavy in his arms as she had fallen, still giggling, into his embrace.

"What can I say," she'd said, not a care in the world as he had passed her back the peanut butter jar that was hardly ever two feet from her hands during the last couple of months of her pregnancy, "our little Babba already takes after his Daddy. He hasn't stopped still all night, and then the minute the spoon hits the jar, he's fast asleep."

"That's my boy!" he'd laughed in reply, hands roaming freely across her ever growing belly, drawing her lips to his own for kisses that tasted of love and sugar and something altogether Kate. Perfect, completely and utterly perfect.

~o~

And then earlier that day as she had turned to him with wide eyes that read shock and excitement, the first twinge of pain making itself known to them both as Kate had sought out his hands from across the breakfast table, holding tight as she'd realised that they weren't just kicks that she had been feeling, but contractions.

They had spent most of the afternoon in the comfort of their apartment, both knowing that they had a long night ahead of them and not wanting to disrupt the almost ethereal calm that had settled over the day. But eventually they had given in, Castle never for a second letting go of her hand as they had waited for the car service that would take them to the hospital, grateful for the driver that would allow him to hold her close and whisper soothing words of love and life against her clammy skin.

Their baby was born into the world almost ten hours after their arrival at the hospital, Kate's pants and cries carrying her through the excruciating pain with the bravery and grace that Castle had fallen in love with all those years ago. Tears running freely down both their cheeks as he had pressed shaking lips to Kate's forehead, captivated by their beautiful baby boy as he had looked up at them through crystal blue eyes for very first time, stealing their hearts forevermore.
"We did it," she had sighed, words a jumble of laughter and disbelief, exhausted and blotchy with sweat and tears, and more beautiful than Castle had ever known, "we really did it!"

Castle is so deeply absorbed in his own thoughts that he doesn't feel Kate as she awakens beside him, her movements hazy with the draw of sleep and an ache unlike any that she has ever experienced before, making him jump a little as her words bring him back to their glorious present, "I think I've decided on a name."

"You have?" he asks, shifting back a little so that she can sit more comfortably against his chest.
They had decided on first names even before they knew for certain that they were having a boy; well, before Castle had known, Kate had never let go of her surety of their little boy, a fact which she was only too pleased to boast about when the ultrasound had revealed that she had been right all along. But choosing his middle name had proved problematic, none seeming to fit quite right, and after what had felt like weeks of trying to agree, they had both decided to simply wait until their baby's name found its way to them.

"Mmm'hum," she answers, "Henry Alexander Castle."

"Alexander?" he repeats, as if not quite believing he had heard her correctly.

"Alexander," Kate assures, tracing her fingers along his rosy cheeks that just peeked through the bundle of blankets, his ocean eyes so absolutely fitting the name that she had loved ever since Castle had explained the story of his given name. "That is, if you like it?"

"Oh, Kate," he replies, knowing that there aren't words enough in the world to express how truly in awe of her is, "it's perfect."

"I thought you'd like it." she giggles, already wistful with sleep as she nuzzles a little deeper into Castle's embrace, lips drawn to each other's as if by instinct.

"I love it," he breathes, words a whisper as Kate succumbs once more to sleep. Castle following soon after as he finally allows himself to fall asleep just as the world below awakens fully, the delicate kiss of Kate's lips still warm against his own, the very hopes and dreams of his soul beautifully echoed in the soft murmurings of their baby boy who lay safely tucked between them.

End.

Thank you all, once again, for being so lovely to my little story ..it really does mean the world.

Please do let me know what you thought of the epilogue?
Good or bad, all feedback is greatly appreciated.

Until next time,
Katie

Twitter: katieupatree