Disclaimer: I don't own Castle. Sorry. I wish I did.
A/N: Fluffy, fluffy, fluffy one-shot. Morning with Brianna Leigh Castle. Please R&R! Xx-Cassie
Click. Click. Click.
Rick Castle was just barely awake. His arms were wrapped around his wife, whose back was pressed into his chest. He pressed a kiss to her chestnut hair as he took in the glowing red numbers on the alarm clock.
6:47.
And it was Saturday. Damn.
Click. Click. Click.
What was that sound?
He listened closely for a minute, and realized that the sound was that of heels on hardwood floors. But Kate was asleep, right here, so…Oh. Brianna.
Sure enough, moments later, the youngest Castle clicked into her parents' bedroom. Castle almost laughed out loud at the sight. 4-year-old Brianna Leigh Castle was dressed in a silver sparkly tutu, purple tights, her pink, blue, and yellow "Supergirl" tee shirt, and red sparkly cowgirl boots. She had clumsily fastened an orange bow in her strawberry-blond hair, and she was smiling brightly. A quiet laugh from Kate made Rick smile.
"Hi, Brianna," Kate said.
"Hi, Mama," Brianna replied. "Hi, Daddy."
"Hey, Princess," he yawned.
"Do you like my outfit?" Brianna asked, spinning in a circle. Kate laughed.
"You're very colorful, Baby," she said. Brianna laughed, too, a musical sound.
"I know. And SPARKLES!" she cried gleefully. Both of her parents laughed. Kate disentangled herself from Rick's arms as they both sat up. Kate held her arms out and Brianna made a running leap. She almost missed , but Rick laughed as he caught her and easily sat his daughter between he and Kate.
"You're up early, Brianna," Kate said as she caught sight of the time on the clock.
"I'm not sleepy," the little girl said.
"I see that," Kate laughed.
Brianna looked nothing like either of her parents. She had fair skin and blue-green eyes. Her hair was one of the few true strawberry blondes Kate had ever seen. Brianna had been adopted by the Castles at a year old, but she had lived with them since she was three months. They had chosen to adopt because Kate had wanted to . She had always wanted to adopt, she said, because there were so many children who got tossed around when there was plenty of loving homes she could have gone to.
Yet another example of her tenderness and genuine care for people.
So they had ended up with 2-month-old Brianna Leigh Black. The very first time Kate held the baby girl, she fell in love.
4 weeks later, she was living with them, and nine months after that, the adoption was final. Even though Brianna was young enough that they could've changed her name, they decided to keep it the same, except the last name which legally became Castle.
While Brianna may have looked nothing like her parents, personality was a whole different ball game. Brianna was just like her father when it came to her playful side. She already loved laser tag and could play spy for hours on end. She also had Rick's love for books and stories, as well as Kate's love for culture and travel. Brianna had already decided that she was going to "travel the world and learn 5 languages like Mommy." Her bedroom was decorated with sparkly posters of far-away places; Paris, Rome, London, Berlin. And Brianna adored sparkles. If it glittered, she loved it. The cowgirl boots had been the only thing she wanted when her fourth birthday had rolled around.
It didn't matter that Brianna wasn't theirs biologically. She was their daughter either way, and they loved her more than life itself.
They weren't the only ones, either. Ryan and Esposito had become 'Uncle Javi' and 'Uncle Kevin', Jenny and Lanie were 'Aunt Lanie' and 'Aunt Jenny', and Alexis was simply 'Lexi'. Martha and Jim were 'Grams' and 'Grandpa'. Brianna had the ability to melt everyone's heart. Kate often found herself thinking of both Johanna and Roy. She was sure they both would adore her daughter.
Just last week, Rick had taken his daughter to the library. He watched as she searched the aisles for a book, looking so excited. She was taking ages to choose. Then, out of nowhere, an older, white-haired man with twinkling blue eyes had knelt down in front of her, holding out a copy of "Charlotte's Web."
"Here," he said. "Ask your daddy to read it to you. I'll bet he can do really good voices," he added with a wink. Brianna smiled brightly.
"He always does good voices," she laughed. "Thank you!" she said as she waved and turned to run back to Rick. The man stood and made eye contact with Rick. Castle smiled slightly and nodded before he turned his attention back to Brianna. When he looked back up, the man was gone.
"Daddy?" Brianna asked.
"Yes?"
"Can you make pancakes?" she asked eagerly. Rick glanced at Kate, who grinned.
"It is Saturday," she reminded him. He smiled.
"Well then I guess I can manage pancakes," he said.
"Yayyyyy!" Brianna cheered. Castle smiled at the sound of her sparkly red cowgirl boots as she jumped off the bed and ran down the hall.