A/N: WELCOME!
It has been in the family, but everyone has died before they showed the symptoms. One of them being Kate's mom. She'd been killed before anyone ever knew she'd end up getting sick anyways. When the couple first found out what was going on with Kate, they were devastated. Having a death sentence put on Kate, albeit long, was not something they had ever expected.
Castle was there when they both saw the signs. The kids all had been at school, and Kate was taking in a last cup of coffee before heading into the precinct for a few hours. Her hand shook so badly that she dropped the cup, hot coffee spilled everywhere and left a pretty bad burn on her hand. If it weren't for the burn, Kate would have pushed it off and ignored it a little longer.
The ER is packed when they arrive but since Kate had a pretty bad burn on her hand they take her in ASAP and get her all cleaned up and wrapped. They take her blood next and send her up for a CT. When she had told them why she had burned her hand and that a few other random times she had just started to pull up in her mind that she had these movements before, the doctors wanted to examine her further.
When the results do come back, it's clear that that's what Kate has. She's got the genetic markers, and her CT scan is clear that she has it. It's devastating news but with it being diagnosed early they can start her on some medication to help a little. There's no cure for this but medication can help lessen the symptoms a bit.
"I can't believe this Castle."
"I know me either. You are strong. I know you can handle this."
They know they need to tell the family and the kids sooner or later but are not sure how. This was all so new for the couple they needed a few days to let it sink in.
A few days have passed, and the couple is sitting in the living room with Alexis, Jim, and Martha sitting on the other couch across from them. The kids are off to school already which made it a little easier for Kate and Castle to tell the two adults across from them. They will tell the kids but figured having help from them would make it easier.
"I'm just going to say it." Kate sighs.
"I've been diagnosed with Huntington's disease."
"You what?!"
"Oh honey, I'm so sorry." Martha says, coming over and giving Kate a hug. She knows this must be hard for the couple.
"Oh, my Katie." Jim gasps, getting up and going to hold Kate. He feels bad because he'd wished he would have known this was in the family and that he could have helped her sooner.
"I'm so sorry baby; I wish I could make you better." He sighs holding her close.
They go over information and all the details, telling the three all the info they know and what will happen to Kate. She's going to start with the shakes, and then at some point she won't be able to walk, and during that, behavioral issues. It's going to be a tough road, but Castle knows it will be ok. Alexis is shocked to hear that Kate has 20 years left and wants to make it the best time she's ever had.
The kids get home from school, and the parents sit down with them trying to figure out how to tell them. The Older Lets are now 10, and the little Lets had just turned 5. The first thought was that Kate was having another baby. Castle quickly shot that one down sad that he had to do so. Just seeing their sad faces broke him inside.
They tell the kids what's going on, and they have plenty of questions. Some, Kate is not ready to answer, and some, Kate can't answer. This is hard for them, and Kate is worried it will take a toll on the kids. That their whole lives will be turned upside down. Kate tells them though that if they have any questions they can go to any one of the adults.
Knowing it's a lot to take in, Kate puts on a movie and lets the kids snuggle with her for a while. She knows they've got to be worried and wants to ease them with a movie. Rook comes over first and climbs on his mother, pulling her close.
"I'm sorry mommy." Rook sighs, burying his face into her chest. He can't hug her, but that's his way of doing it. She understands him and puts her arms around him.
"It's ok little guy; I've got this." She smiles and kisses his head.
A few days go by, and Kate is slowly getting worse. They've told the school, their close friends, and now are trying to figure out how to tell the public. Kate will get to work as long as she can, but they have backup in place just in case something happens. They want to tell the public and set them straight before it hits the news magazines, and they screw up all the details and then no one knows what's true anymore. They know things will get skewed anyways but the more info they tell themselves, the less hopefully it won't happen.
Putting into his news connections one of the major news stations picks him up and they plan on a major short story for the nightly news. This is hard for them, but they know they have to do it anyways. They are setting up for the interview two days later; the kids are with the grandparents so that they can do this without any hassle.
Standing up at the mic with one arm around Kate to hold her unsteady body he begins to speak. He tells them what's going on and that at this time he would like some privacy so they can finish figuring out a plan of action. He knows by bringing this out his family who is now already in the limelight will be more in the limelight. They have adjusted though, and sometimes Castle likes to poke fun at them.
By the end of the interview, Kate can barely stand on her feet, so Castle has them pull her wheelchair up off stage and he carries her to it. He knows in the future she will have a power chair when she can no longer walk, but for now, she has a simple chair that can just get her around places if she knows she's going to be tired that day.
It's becoming more and more of a struggle now. Things Kate used to be able to do on her own, she can no longer do or had major issues doing. For example, just brushing her teeth has become hard to do as her hands shake when she's trying to brush them. She makes a joke out of it, though, that she does not need a power toothbrush because her hand does all the work for her.
The kids are off to school, and it's now Kate's turn for a trip to her physical therapist. She's no ready because she knows that every time she comes home she's so sore. She wishes it were not like this, but it's what she's been given.
Arm around her, he takes her purse and slowly helps her to the car. It takes them longer, but he knows she's hurting and wants to be careful. Driving to the office, Castle gets out and then helps Kate out. They go sign in and are called back moments later. Castle helps her to the floor and Jane, their therapist starts with Kate's legs. That's mainly why they come so that Kate can keep the strength up in her legs as long as possible. They know though that soon enough, Kate will be in a wheelchair and still coming to work on her legs.
By the time they are done, Kate is in tears as the pain has become too much to handle. Castle gives her a pain pill and then helps her out to the car so they can head home. The ride home is usually in silence because Kate is too sore to say anything and Castle just wants Kate to have her time. He knows it will be a long road to adjustment, but they are slowly working on it.
Helping her into the house, he puts her on the couch for a nap, and he can go write. Kissing her, he smiles as she dozes off. He knows she's tired so he just lets her be. He wants her to get as much rest as possible. That will help keep her strength up.
She wakes up about an hour or so later just as the kids come in from school. Trying to sit up she groans softly as Brock looks up to see her struggle. He runs over and helps his mom up. She thanks him and gives him a kiss before he leaves. Moments later, Rook runs in with his bag over his shoulder and plops next to his mom. He's got a simple worksheet to do and wants her to help. As a present for his second birthday, the family was able to get him a prosthetic arm. It does not do much, but as he gets older, they can work with him to make it do more things. It's good though because right now he's learning to write. He can write his name. It's a little sloppy, but it's his name.
"Are you writing your name?" Kate smiles watching him as he puts the pad of paper on his lap.
"Daddy showed me how." He smiles as Tanner comes running in with his worksheet.
"Are you writing yours too Tanner?" She again as he sits on the floor.
"Uh-huh." He nods, scribbling with his left hand. Out of all the Castle family, Tanner is the only left-hander in the family. It was not an issue and quite honestly, Kate and Castle told him that he was special and not to worry about kids making fun of him.
"Where's Edgar?"
"Uh, don't know," Rook says not even looking up from his paper. They had been instructed to write their name three times and then try to write at least three people's names in their family. Tanner found this easy. His name had been rather easy to write with the double letters in the middle and also found it easy to write Rook's name as it too had the double letters. His only issue was trying to write Edgar's name. He had trouble writing his D's and the G's, but they had been working it. A little later, Edgar finally comes into the room with his worksheet. He's having Issues and Kate can't get on the floor to help him.
"Hold on Edgar, I'll get daddy." She says shifting.
"Castle!" Kate calls, her feet mindlessly tapping on the floor as she waits for him.
He comes out, and Kate explains to him what's going on, and he sits down on the floor with the two boys. Helping them, they work on writing their names for school and are doing pretty good. The older kids had been at the dining table working on their homework but seemed to have it down. Despite her still not talking, Kinley was doing pretty well in school. The family had been worried that she would not do well, but she listens a lot which helps.
Homework is finished soon after, and Castle lets the kids watch some TV while he goes into the kitchen to start on dinner. He'd made a batch of lasagna the other night for meal prep, and now all he had to do was to cook it. He cooks it and helps the family to dinner before putting them to bed and helping Kate to bed. She's exhausted by the time we make it to bed, and it does not take her long to fall asleep.