Disclaimer: The characters, characterizations, and basic premise do not belong to me. I am not using them for profit. The only thing I do own is James and a law degree.
A/N: I know the first chapter is short and sounds like it is going to a bad place, but trust me. Also, I might be looking for a beta. I've never used one before and I haven't been able to get a good feel for the ones listed here. I'm not looking for someone to harp on spelling or grammar (unless it's obvious). I have a weird writing style that I'd like to think works for me. But since this is my first R&I's fic, I would like someone to help with characterization and to help bounce ideas off of down the road. If you think that's you, I would love to hear from you!
The look on the brunette's face said it all. It was everything she had wanted to see, three years ago. Today, standing in the same place she had last left the greatest person she'd ever known, Maura Isles felt a rush of emotions so foreign to her that she had to place a hand over her chest to make sure the tachycardia she felt was real. She could feel liquid pool in her tear ducts as the gravity of the situation crashed down on her. Maura blinked, vision blurring temporarily before the tears spilled over onto her cheeks. She found herself unable to move, unable to will her $1000 shoes to walk across the floor she remembered all too well. In her head she was chastising herself. How many times had she had the same conversation? Over and over in her head she had prepared herself for this moment, told herself that an emotional outburst would not be permitted. But here, in this space, in this place she once called home, Maura's brain failed her. And then it was happening; long, lean legs quickly covered the space between them and thin, strong arms grabbed Maura, circling her waist, crushing her against the muscular body. Maura gasped, allowing her own arms to snake around the thin brunette, fighting to remove any space between them. She could feel the once soothing, gentle hands erratically roaming over her back, her neck, her arms, before finding rest in her now dark auburn hair. Maura let out a soft sob, burying her face in the crook of the soft neck she hadn't allowed herself to miss. She listened to the brunette's heart, beats matching her own, as if they had simultaneously run a race that was now coming to an end. Maura closed her eyes, clinging tighter to the soft black blazer, wishing she could somehow be closer, relishing in the brunette's warmth, her own body instinctively remembering.
And suddenly it was all over, cool air hit Maura as the brunette pulled back, untangling her hands from her hair. She un-balled her fists, allowing the blazer's material to slip from her grasp, she teetered uneasily on her heels as she moved away. She could feel hands, holding onto her arms, steadying her, and as she looked up into watery, questioning chocolate brown eyes, Maura felt apprehensive.
"Maura?" The brunette breathed her name, still close enough for Maura to smell coffee and mint on her breath.
"Jane." The name came out of Maura's mouth awkwardly; not having allowed herself to say it for the past three years.
She reached up with her left hand, wiping at the tears cascading down her face. And then she saw it, in Jane's face, all over Jane's face. She felt the strong hands drop from her arms, finding herself swaying at the sudden lack of contact. Maura looked down at her hands and remembered, for the first time since she'd step foot back in the precinct, her other life. The diamond glinted in the light that danced off its features and Maura felt her whole world crashing down. The raw, nagging feeling in her abdominal cavity became almost unbearable. She looked into Jane's eyes, once showing love, adoration, comfort, trust and affection, now only showed one thing: betrayal.