Rick Castle adored all four of his children, but he had to admit to having a different kind of love for Alexander Beckett Castle, his youngest. Maybe it was knowing he was his youngest. Maybe it was his name; yes, Kate had rolled her eyes at him when he came up with the middle name ("Rick, he's going to get teased when the kids figure out his initials"), but he felt it was important that this child be a combination of the two of them. Maybe it was just the way he felt when he was with three year old Alex – like he could do no wrong (because by this point, any and all child rearing mistakes no longer felt like disasters).

Whatever it was, he and Alex were a team. Now that Hannah was in first grade, she and James were gone for most of the day. Alex did go to preschool two days a week, but the other three days were for them. Some days were blanket fort days, some days were treasure hunt days, some days were arts and craft days but Wednesdays were special – they were library days.

Of course, Rick could take Alex to any bookstore and buy whatever books they wanted. But Rick had grown up in the New York Public Library. When he was a teenager, he spent a lot of his down time there. When Alexis was younger, they spent hours there together; lost in the stacks, finding new thrills everywhere they looked. They first read Harry Potter there. They went to Narnia together, sighed over the Princess Bride and more. And when Jamie was old enough, he had brought him here too. Sometimes Kate would come and the three of them went on adventures. It continued when Hannah was born. Sometimes the whole family would go; sometimes he came alone with Jamie or with Hannah. Sometimes Kate would take one or both of the kids. They were a family that loved books and reading and they often did it together.

Now it was Alex's turn. Most days, it was just the two of them. Somehow, it had turned into Library Wednesdays; it had just made sense. They'd take the subway to the main branch of the library, and Alex would hold his breath as they saw the lions standing guard outside. He always had to rub them somewhere on the way in. He'd turn to Rick and say, "what are we going to do today, Daddy?" and then he'd grin. Rick loved that Alex was as excited to go into a library as he was going to the store or the ice skating rink or the beach or anywhere. Everywhere was somewhere fun to Alex Castle.

Today was a blustery day; maybe a good day to read Winnie The Pooh, thought Rick. But he turned to Alex as they entered and went to the Children's section. "What do you want to read today, buddy?" he asked the three year old. And then was thrilled with the answer.

"But Not The Hippopotamus, Daddy! I love that book!" said Alex. Rick smiled as he recalled the story by Sandra Boynton. It was a fun rhyming story, with wonderful pictures of animals during all sorts of things together.

"A moose and a goose

Together have juice

But not the hippopotamus."

Rick read the book as the two of them sat together in a corner. (In deference to his old age, they sat on an overstuffed chair; between his back and his knees, he knew he'd never get up from the floor). They got through a few of Ms. Boynton's delightful works. Alex's giggles of delight made Rick's day. After a while, the two of them put some of the books back, and checked a few out, because Alex wanted Kate to read them to him tonight. As it was getting close to the end of their school day, Rick and Alex left to pick Jamie and Hannah from school and then home to hot chocolate and homework for the two older Castles and some reading for Alex. A successful Library Wednesday, Rick thought. And he couldn't wait for the next one!

A/N: When one of my nieces was young, she loved Sandra Boynton a lot, and I read some of the stories so many times, I could recite them. But Not The Hippopotamus was a big favorite for a long time, so I picked that for Alex to love. (The words I quoted are from the book) If you've never read her stories, I highly recommend them!