A/N So I offer up another R&I tale with my favorite dynamic duo. This is the sequel to "Everyone Wants Their 15 Minutes" quite simply because I can't help myself and be honest you all knew I wouldn't just leave you all completely hanging with that ending. If you haven't read "15" yet you probably should. It's not vital but it will be helpful as there will be some plot points here that assume you read the first story.

I'd attempt to promise light and fluffy but I've come to accept the fact that I just can't be trusted when I get going and I do get into cases and crime. Sorry. I'm deciding to just accept it as a flaw and move on. This is Rizzles and I'll try to do better about balancing Rizzles and crime. I'm a sucker for a happy ending (you should all know that by now)…so angst and drama will be had but it makes the happy that much more enjoyable.

Ok- I'm done rambling….please enjoy. Like I said….this is the sequel to "15 Minutes". As for timing…we will start at the end (or close to it) but then go back to the beginning. You'll understand as you read. Daily updates per usual.

Disclaimer: I don't own anything (sad but beyond true). Just having some innocent fun with my favorite crime fighting team.

Honor and Sacrifice

Chapter 1

December 2011
Boston, MA

It was barely 7 am when Sean Cavanaugh made his way up to his office. His day was packed. He had a bad habit of scheduling events, appoints and calls back to back and sometimes he paid a price for that efficiency. He already knew today was going to be one of those days. In his mind his schedule was going to go south by 11 am and if he was placing bets he felt there was a chance it was going to get messed up as early as 10:30 am. But, Sean would manage as best he could. It's what he did on an almost daily basis.

He exited the elevator and walked through the bull pen. It was a little too early for any of his detectives to be in and at their desks. The department did not have any active investigations at the moment. Rizzoli and Frost had closed their last case over a week ago. Crowe and Rodriquez had closed their last one five days ago. Sean was a little surprised that neither team had received any calls since but he didn't mention it out loud. He knew better than to jinx the quiet. In all his years on the force he understood to respect the quiet. Murder happens in its own time.

The department had been through some difficult times recently. The last few months had been hard on everyone and the quiet was welcomed. His detectives needed the break. He couldn't help but think of the last two cases Rizzoli and Frost had handled. Both cases had taken a toll on his detectives and he wasn't happy with how several aspects of the investigation and its fallout were handled. His unhappiness was one of the reasons his day was almost overbooked. He had been trying to get answers for what had happened and his patience had run out. He was going to get those answers today. People owed him, and his entire department, an explanation and come hell or high water Sean was going to get that today.

He was almost grumbling to himself as he finally entered his office and turned on the lights. He was also cursing himself for not stopping downstairs for coffee. He was going to need it before long. He rounded his desk and was about to pull out his chair when his eyes first caught sight of what was on his desk. He felt his heart drop into the pit of his stomach the very second his brain caught up to what his eyes registered.

"Son of a bitch!" he said out loud. He was normally reserved with his emotions and his temper but what was sitting on his desk was the last thing he expected and it sure as hell was the last thing he wanted. He took a deep breath and tried to steady himself. He then pulled his cell phone from his hip. He scrolled through the contacts finding the number he needed and hit send. "It's me. I need to see you in my office as soon as possible."

He listened for a few seconds and looked at his watch. It was now 7:02 am. "7:15? That's perfect." He hung up and took a seat in his chair. A random thought crossed his mind. He would have lost his own bet. His schedule was now completely jacked up and it was only 7:03 am. His only other thought was that he really wished it was 7:15.

For twelve long minutes he sat at his desk and stared at what was still just sitting there. He hadn't touched it. Almost like the act of touching it would make it real. He didn't want it to be real. So he just split his time letting his eyes shift from what was on his desk to his watch and back. For twelve minutes. Finally, there was a knock on his door.

"You wanted to see me Lieutenant?" asked Dr. Maura Isles.

"Yes, come in please," Sean said and indicated for Maura to take a seat.

Maura complied and entered Sean's office sitting down across from him. He looked angry. She could tell something was bothering him. "Are you ok?" she couldn't help but ask.

"At the moment, no I'm not," his answer was frank.

"What's going on?" she asked with nothing but concern in her voice.

He released a heavy sigh and looked at Maura. He finally made a move to touch the objects on his desk. He couldn't ignore them forever. He picked them up and displayed them in front of Maura. He saw the change of her expression before he even heard her gasp. Based on her reaction it was clear she hadn't known about this.

"So, she didn't tell you?" he asked.

Maura couldn't take her eyes off what was in Cavanaugh's hands. She shook her head. "No." She was quiet for a second but then added, "I knew she was upset but she never mentioned this."

Both Maura and Sean sat in silence staring at the badge and gun that apparently now belonged to the former Detective Jane Rizzoli. Each stared bewilderedly at the two items. Neither understanding fully what it all meant or what they would do next.

R&I

September 2011
New York, NY

"Marry me." Maura heard herself say it and was immediately frustrated with herself.

Ugh! Why did this woman have this kind of effect on me? Wrong! I did this all wrong! Again! First the boat and now this!

"Yes," Jane answered with a smile on her face that could light up the entire New York skyline.

"Damn it!" Maura muttered, she thought to herself.

"Umm….Maura you do know that traditionally the response to an acceptance of a marriage proposal is usually something other than 'damn it', right?" She was still smiling but was trying to understand the frazzled and dismayed look on Maura's face.

"Shit…" Maura said louder this time knowing she said that one out loud.

"It's not that either," Jane said almost laughing this time as it was very rare to hear Maura swear. But she was clearly thrown by something.

"No. I mean yes. I mean no. No. I mean….oh hell, just wait right here. One second!" Maura exclaimed and she retreated from the balcony leaving behind a now confused detective. Before panic could kick in for Jane Maura had returned and seemed slightly more composed than when she left. "Mau…" Jane started but was cut off.

"Just wait. I'm usually better with words but there is just something about you that can throw me into such a state." Maura let herself get resettled on the balcony and turned her full attention to Jane. "Somehow you seem to make me fumble the way I see certain things happening in my head. I need a do-again."

Jane bit down hard on her cheek to not laugh out loud. She had quickly figured out what had flustered her beautiful girlfriend and she didn't want to make her feel worse than what she was already feeling. "Sweetheart, you mean a do-over."

"Right. A do-over. I need one of those."

Jane in that moment had never seen Maura look so adorable, beautiful and sexy all at the same time. There was a look on her face that made Jane go weak in the knees. She struggled to stand upright. Clearing her voice she said, "You can have one." There was nothing in this world she would ever deny the woman standing in front of her.

That put a smile on Maura's face. And she visibly relaxed. "I'm sorry. I'm sorry I have to ask for a do-over. But like I said, there is just something about you and the effect you seem to have on me that throws me. Jane, I love you. I think I've always loved you. From the minute we met I knew there was just something about you that I was drawn to.

"I hadn't had many friends in life and most people never took the time to really get to know me. But then there you were. You were this force that was suddenly in my life and the most amazing part was that you accepted me for who I was. You weren't trying to change me. But you did change me. You opened me up to new experiences and made me less afraid of the living. You allowed me into your life and that opened the world for me. I had been alone for so long and suddenly I wasn't. I had you.

"Having you in my life has been the greatest gift I've ever been given because I keep receiving from it. Something every single day. First it was your friendship. Then it was your family. And then, magically, it was your love. I've come to depend upon you for so much. And as independent as I am the thought of depending on you has never once scared me.

"You speak so eloquently about the moment you knew you were in love with me I think it's only fair that I tell you the very moment I knew I was in love with you. And what's funny, or sad in an odd sort of way, is that I wasn't too far behind you in that realization. You said you knew you loved me when we were discussing the discovery that Colin was my half-brother. I realized that I loved you when I called you after Doyle took me from the morgue. I think you thought I was Doyle or whoever took me and the very second I heard what you said I knew I was in love with you. Do you remember?"

Jane shook her head no. She remembered the feelings she had of panic and fear. She remembered thinking she would do anything to get Maura back uninjured. But she exact words she could not recall.

"You said 'Whatever you want I can get it'. I was immediately thrown by both the tone of your words and the meaning behind them. I mean Jane in a matter of a half a second you made me feel so secure and wanted and loved. Just by offering someone you didn't even know anything they wanted. For me. I'd never had anyone willing to risk anything for me before.

"But there you were. Reacting on pure instinct and seemingly forgetting everything you were ever trained when it came to hostage negotiations. In that moment I knew I loved you. More than a friend. More than family. I wanted to be with you. And like you I thought about telling you how I felt but also like you I was afraid. Afraid you wouldn't see me in that way. Afraid if I mentioned it I would jeopardize the single most important relationship in my life. So I didn't.

"To think of how much time we both wasted. Foolishly, needlessly wasted. But now, I have you. In my life every single day and I don't ever want to be without you. I don't want a day to pass where I can't say I love you. Where I can't hold you in my arms. I want to start every single day with you being the first face I see. The first voice I hear. I want to end each day knowing that I'm the very last face you see and voice you hear."

This time Maura pulled out a box from her jacket pocket. Jane looked down at the box in Maura's hand and smiled. She had thought so but now she knew the exact reason why Maura had requested a do-over. She looked up at Maura who still had the most beautiful, open and loving smile on her face.

Maura slowly held up the box and opened it exposing a diamond ring. "Jane Rizzoli, you are the love of my life. My soulmate. My life just doesn't work without you in it. Would you do me the honor of allowing me to become your wife? Will you marry me?"

Jane's eyes were watered over but she would later deny ever being on the edge of tears. "Maura, the honor would be all mine. So, again, yes."

Maura slid the ring onto Jane's fingers. She then laced her fingers into both of Jane's hands and pulled her in for a long, passionate kiss sealing the moment perfectly.