Patrick Jane wasn't a very complicated man, not by any means, but he sure had his moments. Today was just one of those days… He been particularly finicky about, well, everything. Something was on his mind, that everyone knew, so they let him slide. It was, if anything, the right thing to do.

He twisted the coffee mug he held in his hand, looking at the symbol on the Styrofoam material. "Awful stuff," he concluded and made a face that was just short of a grimace. "Oh, stop complaining," came the teasing voice of Agent Lisbon. She smiled a little and patted his shoulder. "Just be glad we're back. I hated Las Vegas."

They had recently come back from a rather long case that had dragged over two states. Teresa had convinced him to go with her to catch the murderer. After a long chase and some scrapped knees, the two managed to catch him. Of course, he soon went into the custody of the Las Vegas police department. Back home, the group made some deals, cut some tough decisions, all to just get a Mr. Jonathan Stewart back into the hands of the CBI.

With a job well done, Teresa and Patrick spent the rest of the day applying Neosporin to some serious injuries while drinking mojitos on the back deck at their hotel.

It felt good to be back in California though, Patrick had to admit. However, today was the party crasher. On this day, five years ago, Red John had been caught. It turned out that he was the attorney general, the very same man who had contacted Patrick online and told him to keep up the good work. 'Why would he care?' Patrick had thought at the time. It made no sense. How perfect for it to have been him… He ran the CBI, and in any case, the man whose family he had murdered was his employee. The mere thought filled Patrick's heart with rage. All along, they had chased ghosts, gone on rabid goose chases, all for nothing. He'd been under their noses the entire time.

Patrick had finally laid that one to rest, and with it, his lovely wife and daughter. Still though, he couldn't move on. No one take his breath away how Angela had. It just would never be the same… Romance, as it would seem, would never find him again. And for the time being, that was quite alright with him.

He turned to Teresa and smiled. "I'm glad to be back, too." He fixed the sleeve on his blue button down, rolling it back up again. "Let's get out of here then," Teresa decided and tossed his suit jacket at him, a little laugh bubbling up from within her. "You betcha," he said as he caught it and jogged after her out of that greasy little café.

They walked to her car together, a comfortable silence filling the air around them. It was just the beginning of Autumn. Some trees were beginning to turn vibrant oranges, reds, and yellows. "Fall is my favorite time of year," Patrick said as he closed his door. His friend nodded in agreement as she started up the engine, listening to it as it roared to life. His Blackberry dinged, annoucing a new message. He pulled it from his pocket and smiled when he saw who it was from. "What's up?" Teresa asked, her eyes flickering to him and then back to the road, as she pulled out of the parking lot.

"It's from a good friend of mine. Nothing bad, don't worry." He clicked on the link to his email and opened the message.

Jane,

Pat, man, I miss you. What's going on? It's been too sodding long. I miss hearing from you. I thought about you this morning, with it be being five years to the day of catching Red John and all. I hope all is well. Email me back whenever you get the chance. Things are finally starting to slow down around here, at the office, and I was wondering if you'd like to join my wife and I, and a couple of friends up at the cabin. Been a while since we've done that, huh, mate? Let me know what's up. Got a friend I'd love you to meet, his name's Sherlock Holmes. I've told you loads about him, just don't let those things stop you. Haha. You two are a like two peas in a pod, no joke there.

-Greg Lestrade

Patrick laughed a little after reading the message. "Looks like I'm going to London," he said as he watched some cars go by. Teresa raised her eyebrows at that, but eventually she let a smile slip. "Is that so? I'm guessing that email was from Greg, then?" He nodded his head, blonde curls falling over his forehead a little. "Sure was. He invited me up to the cabin again. God, it's been almost two years. I think I'm gonna go."

He could have sworn a little frown met her lips but he might have just been seeing things. "Good, you need some time off. Go." She reached out and patted his shoulder, a smile tugging at her lips. "Okay," he answered, nodding his head. "You won't miss me too much?" he asked, flashing that handsome grin of his. She laughed and shook her head in response.

"Tell Molly I said hello, if you see her. I loved meeting her last time I went up with you. It's been too long since she and I got together." He smiled a little, remembering that fateful moment when the two had met. They immediately struck it off. Best friends. The two were inseparable and still get together, even now.

He pulled out his phone out, opening his email back up again. He thought about what to say as the cursor blinked a few times. Finally, he wrote back. His fingers stoked the keys quickly as he typed; his mind totally elsewhere. He probably looked like a dork. Agent Lisbon always reminded him of how dorky his concentration face was. He had a habit of nawing at his lips and pursing them and things like that. Thankfully, this time she didn't say anything.

Greg,

Absolutely, my friend. I will take you up on that offer without a second thought. Just give me some dates so I know when. I've been good, thank you for asking. I should be asking you the same. How are things at the office? They must be good if it's all slowing down. I do very much want to meet this Mr. Holmes. Heard so much about him. Tell the wife I said hello and give me a call if you can, later on perhaps. I'll be out of work in a few hours.

-Patrick Jane