Author's note: This story is definitely AU. But Shay is still dead *sobs*. It takes place skipping some years, but there will be flashbacks in italics. Just some quick stuff..I have Dawson and Casey married (I may throw in a kid for them), Dawson remained a paramedic..and I think that's really it for now. Future chapters will be longer than this and have better flashbacks/more involvement with other characters. I just wanted a short intro done. I hope you like it!

Chapter 1: Ghost from the Past

The first time Kelly saw her was at Shay's funeral. She had been sandwiched between Leslie's mother and father. Her beautiful long blonde hair and big innocent blue eyes made her look just like his dead best friend. Did Shay have a cousin? He knew she had been an only child, so the young teen was not a sibling. This girl..she was like a carbon copy. Same bone structure, same slender build, the same beauty that caught people's attention. He felt so tempted to go talk to her. But by the time that he had gotten to give condolences to the family, she was gone. Severide hadn't seen the girl again after that until 7 years later.

Madison rubbed her hands together and blew on them to try to warm them up as she approached Firehouse 51. The wind whipped her blonde hair back from her face as she stopped to just stare at the building. It felt wrong yet right to be there. She had nothing to do with her placement at this firehouse, or else she wouldn't be there. Moving to Chicago hadn't even been part of her life plan. She had wanted to stay as far away as possible. Maybe it was just fate..or maybe it was meant to torture her.

"Do you need help?" Maddie nearly jumped out of her skin, not having expected anyone to approach her. She turned around to face a tall blonde man who had a welcoming smile on his face. She had seen him once before, but he was still a stranger to her. His facial expression quickly changed to a look of confusion and surprise. She raised an eyebrow, wondering what his problem was. "God, I'm sorry. You just look like someone I used to know." The man quickly apologized. She offered up a smile of her own and shook her head.

"It's ok. I'm not lost. I'm Madison, the new paramedic." She stuck her hand out for him to shake. He returned the gesture and led her towards her new firehouse. She walked beside him with her hands now shoved in her pockets.

"Well, it's nice to meet you, Madison. I'm Matthew Casey. Truck 81 Lieutenant. Just call me Casey. My wife, Gabriella Dawson, is your PIC. She's easy to get along with so don't worry. What firehouse were you at before you came here?" He glanced sideways at her. She looked rather young to be a paramedic. Appearance and age did not always match up though so he shouldn't judge her. She looked again at the lieutenant. So this was Casey. She had heard things about all of the people at Firehouse 51. And Dawson…she had heard so many stories about her. Working with her was going to be tough.

"I would hope you would say that your wife is easy to get along with." Madison joked. She breathed a sigh of relief once they were inside out of the cold, but it was clear that she was uncomfortable being there. "I was at Firehouse 17 in St. Louis, Missouri for almost 4 years. EMT since I was 16 and a certified paramedic by the time I was 18. " So she was young. Only about 20 years old. He watched as she bit her cheek, blue eyes scanning her surroundings.

"Since you were 16? Wow. Hey, how about I introduce you to the guys? Dawson should be here by now too." She shifted her shoulder bag further up her slender shoulder and nodded, a bit unsure. The young blonde girl was quiet as she followed Casey into the common room. There were guys and one girl sitting around talking as well as laughing. The whole room fell into silence when she walked in. Before Casey could say anything the man Maddie knew was Chief Boden walked in. He too stopped and looked at her. After clearing his throat he spoke.

"This is Madison Shay, the new paramedic on ambulance 61. We hope you make yourself at home here." She smiled a bit and waved to the guys, but they were too busy whispering to each other.

Kelly stood up and gazed straight at her. It was the girl from the funeral..what was she doing here? Maddie looked back at him, sighing softly in recognition. His face was one she could not forget even though she only saw him once before, just like everyone else at the firehouse. They probably did not remember her. But Kelly did. He looked like he had seen a ghost...

Madison gazed straight ahead at her mother's coffin as she droned out the sound of the priest talking. She didn't much care what he had to say. He hadn't known her. Then again, neither had she really. She looked over at the firefighters and the female paramedic who had to have been her mom's partner. They had known her mother well. They had been her family. As Maddie looked at them she caught the eyes of one of the men. He was gazing back at her with tears in his blue eyes. He looked so heartbroken. She quickly looked away and turned her eyes to the ground.

"Leslie's best friend, Kelly Severide, would like to say a few words." The priest spoke. The blonde girl looked up now, interested. It turned out that her mother's best friend was none other than the crying firefighter. His eyes met hers once more before he began to speak.

Madison shook her head.

"Um..maybe I should go.." She turned around but a voice stopped her.

"Shay? As in Leslie Shay?" The pain in Kelly's voice could not be mistaken. He had tried to move on for so long over his best friend's death, and now here 7 years later was the young blonde duplicate of her. She tucked her hair behind her ears and nodded slowly, looking down at the ground. She couldn't bear to see the hurt faces. The faces of people who didn't see Madison..they saw their old friend.

"Yeah..she was my mother. I know she used to work here at 51. You know what, I shouldn't have come here." Before anyone could stop her she walked out of the room leaving the shocked members of the firehouse in the wake.

AN: How Madison came to be and how she ended up at firehouse 51 among other things will be revealed later in the story. Would you be interested in me continuing this story?