Enchanted
By diav

Genre: Friendship
Rating: T
Characters: Jane Rizzoli, Maura Isles
Story Type: one-shot
Summary: Inspired by Taylor Swift's Enchanted. Jane and Maura meet for the first time. Not AU, but a mix of the TV series and novels' universes.
Disclaimer: I do not own any characters from the Rizzoli & Isles series, nor do I own the lyrics to Taylor Swift's Enchanted.

"This was the very first page, not where the storyline ends."

Maura closed her diary shut, put her pen down, and closed her eyes. She sighed and heard Bass thumping around in the kitchen. Her tortoise never knew when to not make noise, even at two in the morning.

She opened her eyes and still felt it. That warm, fuzzy feeling that lingered on from earlier in the evening.

Jane Rizzoli is an impatient woman. Some might say she's cranky, likes to get things done her way, and won't take crap from anyone. Only her partner Korsak had managed to keep her at the reins when times were tough.

Tonight, however, was one of those nights that Jane Rizzoli wished she was at home watching the Red Sox game with a beer in hand.

She and Korsak had been chasing drug dealers around Boston for most of the day and had missed out on Boston PD's induction ceremony for new employees.

Unable to really tell who was new and who was not, Jane found herself standing next to where all the alcoholic drinks were. Cavanaugh had warned Jane that, if she didn't show up for tonight's mixer, he would suspend her for a week.

So here she was, ready to suck up to whomever had joined the police department. She had heard that a new medical examiner and lab technician had been added to help with the Homicide case loads, but she didn't really care. As long as they did their jobs, that's all that mattered. So being at this social function was more or less a waste of her time. Really.

She shot down the snarky glances from Crowe and some other unnamed officers. They had been taunting her in the past few weeks about how she was the only female in Homicide and how she was "just a woman."

But this "woman" had managed to solve many cases since she joined the force a year ago. Not even the fact that she had helped Moore track down The Surgeon and put the psychopath behind bars. Her battle scars were her hands, which took several months to heal before she could go back to work. She had shown that she had more guts than the other officers, not needing to rub any Vicks under her nose to mask the smells of decaying flesh during autopsies and chasing down gangbangers down darkened alleys. None of this apparently mattered to the "guys," they were just waiting for her to trip and fall to give them something new to taunt her about.

So, yes, she really wanted to get out of this social call.

Until she saw her.

Smiling and laughing, the honey blonde seemed to be the centre of attention tonight. Another thing that made Jane jealous; all the guys seemed to be tripping over their ties for a chance to talk to this mystery woman. Of course, everyone but Jane and Korsak were not in their service uniforms. Who would've thought greeting new staff required such formality, Jane mused.

Maura noticed two officers not in uniform at this "party." In all honesty, she thought, she threw better parties. Her new lab assistant, Yoshima, had simply brought her up to the biggest room in the building and left her here to deal with the built-up testosterone level: suited-up police officers. It was distressing for Maura since she feared the living more than the dead; the living talked back and judged her when she least expected it.

Her other lab assistant was cozying up with a police officer in the corner of the room. Louise, her secretary, had skipped out on the party since her husband was sick and couldn't help her pick up her kids from school. So, Maura was left alone here with a bunch of men who seemed more interested in getting in her dress than the nature of her work.

Why do they all look at me like that, she wondered. It's not like they've never seen a woman in a dress before.

"So, want to have some fun tonight?" breathed the officer who had stalked up from behind her.

Maura turned around to face him and pinched her nose. He reeked of one too many beers and simply said, "Sorry, I don't like my men inebriated." She ironically went off in the direction of where she could find more alcohol but it was just a ruse to get away from that drunk officer.

Jane saw how the honey blonde managed to get away from Crowe. Despite the fact that he was good looking and often used his charms on women to get in their pants, he was an ass most of the time and treated women as objects. That being said, Jane was surprised by how effortlessly this woman walked away from Crowe. As she got closer to the refreshment table, Jane noticed that she walked with an air of refinement and poise. A bit arrogant, but still proper.

As the woman proceeded to get closer, Korsak sidled up to Jane and muttered something about the woman being the new M.E. Jane didn't hear him - she was entranced by the woman coming closer and closer. Korsak had said something to her but Jane was lost in her own thoughts. Miffed, the older man walked off to some other corner of the room.

The woman was now peering at the table, looking for something.

Jane cleared her throat. The woman looked up and gave her a quizzical look.

"Uh, what's up, doc?"

The woman continued to remain confused before she bit her lip and said, "That was colloquial for 'What's new with you,' right?"

Jane nodded since she was at a loss of words. She doesn't get slang, Jane thought. That's cute.

"Well, I'm currently looking for some wine, but all I see here is a haphazard selection of beer."

"You could just drink beer," mused Jane. She found the honey blonde's naïveté amusing.

"Oh, I don't drink beer," replied Maura.

"You don't?"

"I find a Pinot noir much better, and suitable, than the bland taste of beer on an occasion like this."

"There are different kinds of beer here."

"None of which I like."

"For a M.E., you sure are picky."

Maura had turned to look at Jane. The shorter woman's gaze was fixed on her before Jane mumbled an apology.

Maura shook her head and laughed. "I should have figured that a 'welcoming party' at a police department would not be as extravagant as, say, a gala opening."

"Uh, sure," Jane said before taking another swig of her beer.

"Since you know who I am, do I get the pleasure of an introduction or are you going to just stand here all night without telling me your name?"

Jane smirked as she put down her beer. "Detective Rizzoli." She shot out her hand and added, "Jane Rizzoli."

Maura took Jane's hand lightly and shook it. She made a mental note of the scars on the brunette's hands as she held her grip. "Maura Isles."

Jane looked into Maura's eyes and noticed that the shorter woman was looking right back at her. They somehow let go of each other's hands and Jane asked, "You from Boston, Maura?"

The medical examiner shook her head. "No, I'm from the San Francisco Bay Area, but I've moved around a bit ever since I was a child."

Jane smiled. "Maybe I'll give you a tour around some time." She threw out her beer bottle and added, "In fact, there's a pub down the street that has a good selection of wine. If you want, we can ditch this boring party and head over there."

"I appreciate the gesture, Detective, but it's getting a bit late."

"Please call me Jane," replied the brunette. "Another time, then. I think we should head home before any more of the guys come by and hit on you." She shrugged.

Maura nodded and went to retrieve her purse. When she came back to the table, she found Jane leaning against a wall.

"Got your things?" asked Jane.

"Yes," replied Maura. "You know, if you want to stay, by all means..."

"Stay and have to clean up the mess at the end? No way! I only came because Lieutenant Cavanaugh made me come."

"Well, it was nice to see another..." Maura paused, looking for a word.

"...woman here, right?" finished Jane. The brunette laughed. "Trust me, you won't get crap from any of them since you're not the only female detective in the force."

"I'm sure your colleagues aren't that prejudicial and discriminatory... It is, after all, the twenty-first century."

"That's what you think. They're just jealous I do my job better than all of them," retorted Jane.

Maura looked at the woman walking beside her. They had reached the staff parking lot and Jane seemed like she was hesitant to go find her car. She's proud and arrogant on the outside, Maura thought. She's probably just seeking acceptance with her colleagues.

Jane noticed that the honey blonde was eyeing her with curiosity. "What?"

Maura shook her head. "I just think you should take whatever comments your colleagues say in stride and not let them affect you. I'm sure you're a great detective."

Jane was going to say something sarcastic to tell Maura to mind her own business, but instead, she bit her lip and sighed. "Look, doc, I just think it's not easy for both of us to do our jobs since we're, well..."

"Women? I disagree, there are women who are medical examiners, women who are detectives and lieutenants..." Maura tilted her head in thought. "Although, in this case, it's situational. I did notice the lack of females in the department."

Jane shrugged at Maura's response and unconsciously began rubbing her hands. It wasn't exactly cold outside but still nippy.

Maura noticed the action and saw the scars on Jane's hands. She tilted her head to the side and mentally noted that it would be out of her place to ask about them. After all, they just met.

"Are you going to be ok getting home?" asked Jane.

"I should be fine," replied Maura. "I've had very little to drink tonight. Yourself?"

"I'm good." Jane made a motion to leave, but then paused. "Uh, I guess I'll see you on Monday then."

Maura smiled. "Only if you have bodies for me to examine."

Jane laughed. "Yeah." She rubbed the back of her neck and said, "Well, it was nice meeting you, Maura."

"Likewise. I'm sure I'll enjoy working with you."

Jane grinned as she fished her car keys from her pocket. "Yeah, me too. Well, good night." With a wave of her hand, she headed off in the direction of her car, leaving Maura to ponder about her new colleague.

"Hey Jane," called out Maura. The brunette stopped in her tracks and turned around. Although Maura couldn't really see her face in the dark, she could feel Jane's gaze on her. "If you ever want to, uh," Maura paused to think about she really wanted to say and what she should say. "...talk about anything, my office door is always open."

She could hear Jane's keys jingle as the brunette walked back over to her.

"Talk about what?" The look on Jane's face was somewhat unreadable as it was masked by confusion and annoyance.

Quietly, Maura said, "I noticed you've been rubbing the wounds on your hands. It's an indication that you are either uneasy about, well, speaking to me, or something is really troubling you."

Jane stared back at the medical examiner and sneered, "I don't need a shrink, Doctor Isles."

"Maybe you just need a friend."

With that, Maura walked off and disappeared into the dark, the only sounds that Jane could hear were the clicking of heels on asphalt, the jingle of car keys, the starting of a car, and the muffled sounds of someone driving off.

And then there was silence.

Jane paced around her apartment with her vacuum cleaner. It was 2AM and she was surprised her neighbour, Marissa, didn't knock on her door to get her to stop vacuuming. It was like one of those nights where she would stay up and think about a difficult case; except this time it was about one medical examiner who got under her skin.

"Who does she think she is, telling me that I need a 'friend' to talk with about my," she made air quotations as she said, "issues?" But then she dropped her vacuum cleaner since she used both hands. The vacuum landed on her foot.

"Ow!" she screeched. Tonight was just not her night, being forced to go to this stupid party and to meet this... This woman who had made her uneasy about everything about herself.

Sighing, she turned off the vacuum cleaner and lied down on her couch. She raised both of her hands and looked at them. The wounds were still healing and, whenever it was about to rain, they would ache. Right now, they were sore.

She rubbed her hands for warmth and got off the couch. Running a hand through her hair, she shuffled her way to the bedroom and lied down on the bed. She stared at the ceiling as she thought.

The medical examiner was, in her own strange way, rather blunt about what she had said to Jane. How many people in the department would Jane call her friend? Korsak was a good partner, but he was just someone she got along with at work; outside of work, they only went for a few drinks every now and then, talking about a Red Sox game or some other sporting event. Everyone else was just a nuisance to her.

So maybe Maura was right. She did need a friend.

Closing her eyes, Jane tried to wonder what kind of person Maura Isles was. Jane had noticed, when the doctor was looking for wine, that Maura had no wedding band. So either she's single or not wholly committed in a relationship. Or, she could be married with kids, just working to support the family. Jane groaned; why was she overanalysing her colleague? Maybe we're both spinsters, mused Jane.

And then there was the whole thing with how the doctor was dressed. Heels and a fairly conservative skirt; it looked like she came straight from a fashion shoot. It was no wonder that the guys were drooling over her.

The more amusing thing was that he doctor seemed to not be well-educated in the world of slang. Her bluntness had initially startled Jane, but the brunette waved it off as having to do with the fact that the doctor was from San Fran, or wherever she was from.

Still, Jane couldn't help but feel like she wanted to get to know the doctor better. On a purely physical level, even Jane was drawn to Maura's good looks - it wasn't lust or envy, but an appreciation of the feminine body. Unlike Maura, Jane was probably too tall or lanky for her male colleagues. Ok, so maybe it was a mix of envy and attraction, but Jane had never really made an effort to get to know her co-workers more. Except for that time she was lying in the hospital bed and Korsak was trying to cheer her up; very rarely did she expose any of her vulnerabilities at work since work was work, nothing more, nothing less.

So she felt kind of bad because she acted like an ass right before Maura left.

Jane groaned. Great way to start off this working relationship, Rizzoli. Really.

When Maura got home, the first thing she did was put out some food for Bass. Her tortoise was still adjusting to his new surroundings and had been thumping around the house trying to get his bearings. His appetite seems to be fine, Maura thought, maybe I'll give it some more time and he'll find his way around.

She made herself a light dinner, paired up with a 1999 bottle of Chateau de Vaux Les Haute-Bassieres, and then proceeded to replay the day's events in her mind.

The day started off well, she was introduced to the department and had noticed that she got many stares from the male police officers. Some even commented (out loud) that such a pretty woman should not be cutting up dead bodies. She had met her secretary and primary lab assistant, and they hit it off, so to speak. Yoshima was very precise in his work, she noted, as they immediately had a body from a hit-and-run that morning. Louise didn't give her too much trouble, and was very accommodating when Maura was puzzled about how to navigate around the building.

The day ran pretty smoothly until the evening. She found it silly that the Boston Police Department had held some sort of welcoming "party" for its new employees (some other new officers and skeleton staff), but she attended anyway since she had not met all of the detectives she would be working with. It must have caught her by surprise to see Jane at the party since she hadn't exactly seen another female officer or detective around the precinct.

To say that Maura was enchanted by Jane would be an understatement. The brunette appeared to be fierce and headstrong at first, but Maura could see that the detective was just putting on a facade for her coworkers. Perhaps the detective had been picked on by her male colleagues since she seemed to be the only female within Homicide, or she felt the need to put on a 'tough girl' act to show that females could do the job better than males. Whatever Jane's reason, Maura felt that Jane should simply be herself, regardless of the setting.

Yes, it was out of place to comment on it, but maybe the brunette needed a friend. Outside her professional life, Maura didn't have too many friends; in fact, she had none in Boston.

Her quirkiness, attention to detail, and the fact that she didn't mind cutting up bodies must have been the reasons as to why others avoided her. Her colleagues back in San Francisco had called her the "Queen of Death," and any one of her new colleagues who could do a Google search on her would find out this nickname. It would spread like wildfire and she would be ostracized, once again, from people who were intimidated by her. She was hoping this wouldn't be the case in Boston, but one can only hope.

Maura was glad that Jane had not brushed her off when they were speaking. In fact, she had noticed that the brunette was staring at her when she was walking over to the refreshment table. Maybe she was just shocked that I am the new medical examiner, thought Maura. After all, she's surrounded by so many men in her department that seeing another woman surprised her?

Maura smiled. Well, at least she knew that Jane was somewhat fascinated by her; she was honestly looking forward to working with the detective.

But the evening had ended on a sour note since Maura was so blunt. Think before speaking, Maura, didn't mother teach you better? The medical examiner sighed.

Being wonder struck by such a fierce woman only made Maura want to get to know her better.

"It was enchanting to meet you," Maura whispered as she crawled into bed, only to have a fitful sleep that resulted in her waking up to write in her diary in the wee hours of the morning. She chronicled the day's events and then paused at the part where her evening ended with her abrupt departure. Tapping her pen, she bit her lip and wrote:

"Even if we don't become friends, I'll spend forever wondering if you knew I was enchanted to meet you."

Author's Notes: Lack of realism? I guess, parties being thrown at police headquarters with boozed-up officers? Ah well, it's just fiction. :P

I realise that my headcanon is a mix of the TV show's interpretation of the duo with Tess Gerritsen's interpretations in her books, so this might seem a bit strange to have the combination of universes... Don't get me wrong, I like both universes equally, but both sort of lack certain traits; in my opinion, the TV series could do with a bit more character development, and the novels could have more interaction between Jane and Maura.

Alas, this is what I came up with as a balance... Hence Maura's origins from SF and the inclusion of Moore, Yoshima, and Louise are from the novels, and Maura's quirky personality is from the show.

Eh, the ending could use some re-work, since I'm not happy with it. But wow, I did not intend for this to be so long. I love how I've deviated so far from the song's original meaning too. I'll stop rambling now.

Please review as it is my first piece in the Rizzoli & Isles fandom.