Author Note: I went out for the day today and was about to write some of my chapter fic and realised I didn't have the notes I needed, so my mind ended up coming up with this...just a bit of random fluff. I hope you enjoy. Happy Easter, whether you 'celebrate' or not :) (I tend to just eat chocolate and spend time with family)
"Happy Easter," Jane said, placing a chocolate bunny on Maura's desk. She dropped into the nearest chair and fanned her face.
"What's this?" Maura asked, glancing from the bunny to Jane and back again.
"It's Easter, it's the middle of a heatwave, and you're stuck inside working."
"What else would I be doing, Jane?"
"Looking for eggs?"
"Why would I look for eggs?"
Jane tilted her head and stared at Maura until she stared back. Stalemate. Maura flinched and Jane sat forwards in her chair.
"Did you do anything normal as a kid?"
"What are you talking about, Jane?" Maura asked, replacing a couple sheets of paper in the file in front of her. "If you haven't forgotten, we have a case."
"I'm talking about egg hunts at the park, candy eggs scattered around your yard, what felt like hours of sitting through a service at church?"
Maura shook her head. "I usually got tickets to the ballet."
Jane's shoulder's sunk. "No candy eggs?"
"No."
The act of not searching for candy eggs at Easter was not what bothered Jane the most, it was the fact Maura seemed entirely unfazed by the idea. She sighed and sat up straight.
"Constance has a lot to answer for."
Maura's smile tightened. "It was the one night a year I knew I'd get to spend with her. Except for Thanksgiving."
"Right," said Jane, standing up and taking the files from Maura's desk.
"Hey, I need those," Maura said, standing up and moving around the desk towards Jane. She took a step back, holding the file above her head. "That's not fair, you're several inches taller."
"You're wearing heels," Jane said, stretching up to her tiptoes. Maura reached up, eventually dropping back to her lowest height and giving in. When Jane lowered her hand a little, Maura reached out and snatched the file from her grasp. "Cheater."
"Opportunist," Maura clarified. "If you don't mind, I have work to be doing."
"Surely you can take a lunch break," Jane said.
After a moments deliberation, Maura followed Jane out into the street. The heat hit them like the sudden blast of an opened oven and Jane regretted removing herself from the optimum temperature of Maura's office.
"Where are we going?" Maura asked once they'd been walking for a few minutes. Jane shook her head and marched onwards.
The park appeared in front of them. Jane wrapped a hand around Maura's arm and attempted to pull her towards the table set up by the park entrance; pink, green and yellow streamers decorated every inch of space along with a handful of balloons.
"We want to join in the hunt," Jane said, pointing to the flyer on the table and handing over a ten dollar bill.
The woman looked behind her towards Maura, her eyes travelling right around until they came back to Jane.
"How old are your children?"
"What children?"
"The hunt is for children," the woman said, pointing to the poster supporting her claim. "Adults are only permitted to take part in an observatory manner, with their own children."
"A what?" Jane shook her head and turned to Maura.
"Observatory," Maura repeated. "It means…"
"I know what it means, Maura," Jane said. "What sort of ass-backward rule is that?"
"Well," Maura began, but Jane cut her off again.
"I know, I know," she said, waving a hand in front of the woman's face and heading back out onto the street. It took her a couple of blocks before she realised Maura was not stood directly beside her. "Maura?"
"I'm here," she said, a few feet behind. "I had to give that poor woman a cheque for one hundred dollars. She's raising money for the children's hospital. She's a volunteer."
"And I'm a paying customer," said Jane.
Maura shrugged. "It doesn't matter. I don't need an egg hunt."
"Everyone should get to do an egg hunt in their life." Jane pouted. She wiped her forehead. The heat had barely dissipated in the half hour they'd been outside.
"I nearly had a hunt," said Maura. "One year, I think I was nine, we walked by the high school and children were running around searching for eggs. A woman asked if we were there for the hunt. Mother dragged me away and told me we had too many things to do that day. We went to a store and got new dresses for the ballet. I thought that was how everyone spent Easter. I always thought that after they found the eggs, the other children would go to the mall and try on dresses, too."
They returned to the police headquarters, Jane's fist clenched as she thought about the glazed look in Maura's eyes. She stopped on the bottom step and Maura paused beside her.
"I guess you should get back to work," said Jane. "I'll see you later."
"But," Maura began. Jane held up a hand and stalked off down the street.
The officers on the front desk were changing shift when Jane returned a few hours later. She greeted them as she usually did and took the elevator down to the Maura's office. She found her bent over a body, scalpel in hand, the wrist of her other hand disappeared into the man's abdomen.
"You should put a parental guidance sign on the door," said Jane, scrunching up her nose and turning away.
Maura pulled her hand out, bringing with it one of the man's vital organs. She placed it carefully into a metal dish and discarded the glove. She made a few notes on her paperwork and put the dish to one side.
"I'm nearly done, if you want to get some dinner," said Maura. "I'll just hand the stomach over to Steve to run some more tests."
"Maura," Jane stood with her hands on her hips. "Why would I want to fill my stomach when you've just removed the dead man's?"
"It's dinner time," Maura said, her eyebrows creased.
Once Maura had finished up for the evening they walked down to the parking lot. The evening brought a slightly cooler climate, though the direct sun still felt scorching.
"We're going back to yours," said Jane, climbing into the passenger seat.
"No dinner?" Maura asked.
Jane shook her head. "Not yet. I thought we could order takeout later."
Throughout the drive Jane flicked through the radio channels, trying to find something more interesting than the constant drone of the presenters talking.
"Must you do that?" Maura asked.
"Yes, yes I must," said Jane, switching it off and sitting back in her seat. She opened the window.
"When you do that the air conditioning system doesn't work effectively," said Maura. Jane sighed and closed the window.
At the front door, Jane stopped Maura from unlocking it. She placed a hand on each of Maura's upper arms and stared into her arms.
"Before we go inside we should go round to your back yard."
"Why?" Maura asked, her brow creasing.
Jane's smile widened and her excitement grew. "Because today you're going to have you very first egg hunt!"
"I am?" Maura's smile became uncontrollable, the corners curved without assistance.
They wandered around to the back yard of the house where Jane handed Maura a wicker basket.
"Are there any rules?"
"No, Maura," Jane said, giving her a quick push in the direction of the grass. "Go find yourself some eggs."
After a few minutes of cautious searching, Maura pulled up the bottom of her dress and knelt down on the grass. She reached into a carefully pruned bush and pulled out an egg. She stood up and in her hurry the egg crushed under her tight grip.
"Jane!" she shouted, dropping the egg on the floor and turning her attention to the clear liquid running down her dress. "Why are these real eggs?"
Jane shrugged. "I couldn't get any candy ones at short notice."
"My dress is ruined," said Maura, attempting to wipe it clear.
"I'll buy you a new one," said Jane, forging an apologetic smile.
"You'll buy me a four hundred dollar dress?" Jane glanced away. "I thought not."
"I'm sorry, Maur," Jane said. "I didn't realise you'd get it all over you. Now that it's ruined, you can carry on your egg hunt and if you get anymore on you, it's not the end of the world."
Maura raised her eyebrows, then rolled her eyes. "I suppose it's not my favourite dress, and it does given me an excuse to find something to replace it."
A few minutes later and Maura jumped up in glee once more, another egg rested, more carefully, in her hand.
"Come and see, Jane," she shouted, and Jane marched across the grass towards her. A rookie mistake. The second Jane got within a few inches of her, Maura's hand, and the egg, came smashing down on the side of her head.
"Oh you did not just do that," she said, rushing across the yard and dipping her hand into a water butt. She pulled out an egg she remembered placing there earlier, ran back across the grass and lunged it at Maura's body.
"No, Jane, no," Maura squealed, holding her hands up in defence. The egg smashed against her arm as she turned away.
The second egg covering her dress seemed to faze Maura less than the first. She stumbled across the grass in her heels, stopping momentarily to slip them off as she ran across the lawn in search of more eggs. Preempting attack, Jane ran in the opposite direction in search of her own eggs, finding two at the same time just as Maura threw one in her direction. It hit her square on her back. She sent both of her eggs flying back towards Maura.
"I took part in a sponge throwing contest in college," Maura said, jumping to one side as one of the eggs flew past and landed on the grass. She stepped out of the way as the second landed on the floor without smashing. "Not one sponge hit me."
The egg flew back towards Jane, landing on her hip. When she got over the initial impact, Maura had found another one and ran towards her, smashing it down on the top of her head before she could react.
"I thought you'd be better at this," said Maura, her lip curving up at one side.
"It is on," said Jane, pulling an egg out of a planter and grasping Maura's arm, smashing the egg against the side of her neck. "I won my neighbourhoods snowball contest six years running."
Eggs flew back and forth. Jane sprinted behind a planter, jumped onto a bush - much to Maura's dismay - and practically tackled Maura to the ground as she smashed another egg into her hair. Every single one of the eggs she threw landed on the floor, most of which smashed inches from Maura's feet. Those that survived were sent back until Jane could feel the egg dripping down her chin.
"I surrender," she shouted, falling onto the grass. Her heart raced inside her chest so loud that she could hear it thrumming in her ears. "Glad I never met you in a snowball contest."
"Thank you," said Maura, dropping to the ground beside her. "I didn't know egg hunts could be so much fun."
"I aim to please," said Jane, reaching out for Maura's hand. "They're not all like that, you know?"
"I know," said Maura, linking her fingers with Jane's. "If this is what I get for my first, I'm glad I missed out as a child."
Jane rolled onto her side, pulling their hands between them as she straddled Maura. She let go of Maura's fingers and wiped the egg from her face, pushing her hair back away from her cheeks.
"The best thing about using real eggs," said Jane, leaning down and whispering in Maura's ear. "Is that now we both need a shower."
She moved her lips towards Maura's, holding them millimetres away, breathing heavily against her mouth, until she pulled back.
"Jane," Maura said, her voice strained as Jane stood up beside her. She reached a hand out. Maura climbed to her feet. When she leant forwards to Jane, she took a step back towards the house.
"Catch me if you can," said Jane, staring into Maura's eyes and running off through the back door.
"Jane, come back," said Maura, her smile never faltering as she chased her up the stairs towards the bathroom.