Fate's Heart Quickened
A/N: I liked the poetry of how the title sounded when Castle said it, so I kind of used that theme throughout this one-shot. The actual story has more to do with the magic shop and comic books than the Blue Butterfly though. This was just something that came to mind and was actually complete, so I am posting it. Short and sweet- I think :-D
Sometime In The Past
The bell over the door behind her jangled and little Katie Beckett glanced back quickly to make sure she was not in the way. What she saw made her stop dead. The sun shone full on the shop's front windows but was currently being blocked some by the Greek god strolling through the doorway, smiling and laughing with some other boys that Kate did not take any notice of. The sun on his back gilded his light hair and outlined his tall, slim frame. The boys entered the shop and Kate continued to gape at the one with the engaging smile and the laughing blue eyes. He had a livid pink scar, recently healed, on his forehead, but it did not detract any from his beauty. Not at all. In fact, it actually made him look quite roguish. Kate had recently learned that word from asking her mom about one of the grown-up books Johanna liked to read. She still had no idea what "Seducing" meant, but "A Rogue" had to be someone who looked like this boy, right?
He was not paying attention to where he was going, but he was talking over his shoulder to his friends and Kate was still too dumbstruck to move. He almost plowed right over her, but he caught himself before he could fall. His steadying hands on her shoulders made Kate's heart quicken.
Ricky looked down... and then down some more. And he finally found a cute little kid staring up at him with wide, startled green eyes. "You okay, Kiddo?" he asked in concern.
Kate nodded and just barely remembered her manners. "I'm sorry."
He knelt down on one knee so they would be at an equal eye level, his hands moving to hold her upper arms, before he smiled charmingly. "What are you sorry for, Sweetie? I'm the idiot who wasn't looking where he was going." He gave a bashful look and added, "I'm sorry for nearly tackling you."
Kate smiled at him and felt an odd warmth spreading through her flat chest. No boy, man rather, had ever spoken to her like she was a full grown woman before, but this beautiful creature was. The fact that she was only 12 made no difference. In some societies, unmarried girls her age were old maids. The fact that those societies had died out centuries ago was also irrelevant; Kate Beckett was a woman now. The fact that she was already wearing a training bra proved that, didn't it? The only other girl at school who wore a bra was Janie Sinclair, but she did not count. There were rumors going around that those were fake anyway. The point was, Kate had been trying to make her parents see her for the woman she was and mostly, they just laughed at her. Or they threatened to ground her if she tried to sneak one more tube of her mother's lipstick to school. But this boy, this nearly grown man whose eyes were bluer than her mother's most expensive sapphire earrings, was talking to her like a grown up, apologizing for bumping into her and holding onto her like she was a full grown woman. So with a vicious mental kick and a reminder to use her best, mature manners, Kate finally replied, "I forgive you."
His charming smile returned, happy about her womanly reply Kate guessed (or, well, hoped). "I didn't hurt you, did I?" He pressed and his eyes swept her body.
Kate felt another odd warmth then, beginning in her blushing cheeks and spreading throughout the rest of her, following the sweep of his eyes. Kate licked at her suddenly dry lips and reminded herself to be mature. "I'm quite well, thank you." He stood up then, releasing her arms and Kate wondered how to keep him talking to her. Remembering her manners was becoming harder the longer he smiled at her! But finally she asked, "Are you okay?"
He laughed then assured her, "I'm just fine, Sweetheart. But thank you for asking. And in the future, I promise I'll look where I'm going."
She gave him her flirtiest smile (the one she had been practicing in the mirror, copying what she always saw Janie doing) and looked at him through her lashes. "You do that," she said in the low voice that she had also been practicing that she thought sounded more like a grown woman than the little girl voice she usually had.
The young man laughed again and Kate felt inordinately pleased with herself for causing that sound. He reached out and ruffled her hair and normally, Kate would have been annoyed by such a demeaning gesture but the heat spreading through her at his touch made her feel like a woman. He had to feel it too, right? His next words seemed to answer her unspoken question. He was moving past her now to rejoin his friends who had walked away without him as he told her, "You're going to be a real heartbreaker someday, aren't you?"
Kate watched him walk away, a smile on her face and her heart racing quickly. She was tall for her age but he had been taller, his shoulders twice as wide as her and for once, Kate had not felt like a long-limbed freak around a boy. She had also felt safe, oddly enough, even though he was a stranger who had bumped into her. He had also caught her and protected her too, hadn't he? And he had been kind, he had apologized even.
Kate felt the solid presence of her grandfather approach and disrupt her from her musings when he growled, "What did that boy want?"
"He bumped into me on accident and then he apologized."
"Why was he touching you?" he pressed.
"He caught me so I wouldn't fall," she insisted defensively. Adults could be so overprotective sometimes!
"You shouldn't be talking to strangers, Katie."
She rolled her eyes but when she turned to look up at her grandfather, her wide-eyed look was one of pure innocence. "But Papa. He promised me free candy if I would meet him outside in his creepy van when you're not looking."
Papa's scowl lasted only seconds before the grin broke free along with a chuckle. "Point taken, Smart Aleck." He turned back to the display of magic tricks, grumbling under his breath. "Got a smart mouth, just like her mother."
"I heard that," Kate sang out as she turned to search for the boy in the magic shop.
"You were meant to," Papa sing-songed back as he continued to browse the tricks and illusions for more experienced magicians.
Kate meanwhile turned to scan the rest of the shop and her foot hit something soft. Before she allowed herself to look down, she found her young man, laughing in a corner with his friends. They were making their way to the register when Kate finally allowed herself to look away. A roll of papers sat at her feet and when she picked it up, she found it was a comic book and it looked to be homemade.
What kind of super hero is Captain Hammer? She wondered derisively until she realized this book must belong to the boy who bumped into her. It must have fallen out of his pocket with he knelt down to speak with her.
For a long moment, she looked between the book, the boy, and her grandfather, wondering what to do next. She could return the book and speak to the boy one more time, but it was possible that her grandfather would object. Or, she could keep the book and hold onto a piece of that beautiful young man for forever, but that was technically stealing, was it not?
Well, Kate realized she had to come to a decision quickly because the group of boys were paying for their tricks and were about to leave.
"You better hurry and return that book to him before that boy leaves," her grandfather warned, making Kate's mind up for her.
However, remembering his overprotective comments, she turned to raise a sarcastic eyebrow at him. "But Papa, I'm not supposed to talk to strangers," she said facetiously, using her very best Little Girl voice. She had been using that one on her Dad for years now to get what she wanted, though usually with a little less sarcasm.
"I'm standing right here, Sassy," he informed Kate with a scowl, trying his hardest not to show his smart mouthed granddaughter how charming and amusing he found her, sarcasm and all. "And if he tries to touch you again, I'll just whack him with my cane."
Kate laughed (her Papa didn't need, use, or even have a cane), then turned and hurried to stop the young man before he could follow his friends out the door of the shop.
"Excuse me," she called as he was reaching for the door.
Rick paused- the sun on him once again, making him look golden and tan and brilliantly alive, Kate thought- and turned to find the little girl he had nearly run over approaching him.
When she reached him, Kate held up his comic book and said a bit breathlessly, "You dropped this."
Rick patted his back pockets, even though he could see his book in the little girl's hands, then said, "Oh, thanks." He took the book and was about to turn to the door again when Kate worked up the courage to speak.
"What's it about?"
"Hmm?" Rick said, confused and thinking more about catching up with those jerks who kept walking off without him than about what some kid was asking him.
"The comic. What's it about?" Kate asked again and was very glad when she managed to gain his full attention.
Rick brightened and forgot all about his "friends." One surefire way to gain his attention nowadays was to ask him about the comic he had written earlier that summer. His friend Matty had done all the artwork but "Richard Rook," his new alter ego, had written the story of Captain Hammer. "It's a mystery," he told the inquisitive girl in an ominous voice.
The spunky little thing, Rick watched with amusement, crossed her arms and glared at him. "If you don't want to tell me, then just say-"
"No," Rick laughed. "The story is a murder mystery."
"Oh," Kate said, dropping her arms with an embarrassed blush. "That sounds awesome," she added in an attempt to redeem herself.
"Do you like murder mysteries?" Rick asked in surprise. Most of the females he knew did not even like mysteries, much less the murder variety, so he was surprised when this dainty little thing showed interest.
"Sure," she agreed eagerly and then made a face and admitted reluctantly, "Well, I'm not really allow... I mean, I've never read a murder mystery before, but it sounds really cool."
"Would you like to read this one?" Rick offered, holding the book out to her. Honestly, he was just flattered that someone was interested in what he had written and he had been jumping at any opportunity to show it off.
"Yeah," she agreed, nodding eagerly. "But aren't you leaving now?"
"You can keep it," he said.
"But it's yours," Kate retorted, stunned by this beautiful stranger's generosity.
"I have another copy at home," Rick replied dismissively and Kate finally reached out to take the comic book from him. But Rick held it tight and when Kate looked up at him in confusion, he smiled mysteriously. "Wanna know a secret?"
Kate simply nodded her head solemnly, her eyes wide.
And Rick thought he had never met a cuter kid. "I wrote this story."
"You wrote it?" Kate gasped, suitably impressed.
"I did," he boasted. "I'm going to be a famous comic book writer someday. Or a magician, I can't decide which."
"Can you do any tricks?" Kate challenged and both of them forgot that they were each still holding onto the comic book.
"Of course." Rick reached out with his free hand and produced a quarter, apparently from Kate's ear.
Unimpressed, Kate scoffed. "I learned that trick when I was five," she told him. Then she reached way up to his ear and produced a shiny gold dollar. "But obviously I learned it better." She rolled her eyes and mumbled derisively, "A quarter. Let's hope your writing is better than your magic," she teased and made Rick laugh again. She pushed the dollar into the boy's hand, alongside his rejected quarter, and blushed when her fingertips made contact with his warm palm. She pulled away quickly then remembered the comic and tried to take that with her.
But Rick held it tight and would not relinquish his hold. "Wait a minute. That comic is rated PG-13. I don't know if you should be reading it," he added sanctimoniously. Yeah, he could admit- to himself at least- that he was trying to get her back for her derisive comments on his magical talents. Most girls were impressed by his ability to produce money from various body parts, no matter how little it was.
"I'm almost thirteen," Kate retorted indignantly.
With a laugh he quickly tried to smother- women could be so touchy about their ages; they were either too old or not old enough and they never cared to have it pointed out to them- Rick finally released the comic book and held his hands up as if in surrender. "Oh, pardon me. I didn't realize I was speaking to a mature woman."
"And don't you forget it, Buster," Kate informed him haughtily as she clutched his prize to her chest.
Rick did not hide his laugh this time but told her, "If you were any taller, I'd be forced to kiss you for flirting with me so outrageously."
"Not unless you had my permission, you wouldn't, or I'd be forced to punch you in that pretty face of yours and give you another scar."
With his charming smile, Rick said, "I've been told my scar makes me look dangerous?" He raised one eyebrow roguishly.
Even though she knew he was mostly teasing, Kate considered him for a moment. "Yeah, it kind of does, but your smile gives you away." She smiled charmingly and added, "You're just a big softy, aren't you?"
"Not too soft, I hope?" Rick replied and then wanted to kick himself. At eighteen, he really should not be saying such things to an almost-thirteen-year-old, but naughty comments had become something of a reflex since discovering how much fun it was to make the pretty girls blush. So he put his hands to his flat belly, hoping she would interpret the comment as referring to his weight and not... something else. But the girl simply smiled, no hint of a blush on her pretty cheeks and Rick mentally sighed in relief. He could see the makings of a gorgeous woman but right now, she was just a very pretty little girl- emphasis on the girl- who knew a little too well how to flirt with a guy. Yeah, she would definitely be breaking hearts in no time. But not his. Rick's buddies had the grace to come back for him and unknowingly provide him an easy out to this conversation with a little girl.
"Ricky," one of them complained, leaning into the shop. "What are you doing? Come on!"
"I dropped something and this young woman was just returning it to me," He replied easily, smiling at Kate. Sure, he knew it was time to go and stop letting little girls practice their flirting on him, but his buddies had ditched him- yet again- and at the moment he was feeling more loyalty toward her.
Young Woman, Kate marveled happily. Either he had remembered their conversation and was teasing her a little, or he actually thought of her as a young woman and both scenarios were just fine with her. Those rude boys he had been with were leaving again and Rick was about to follow so Kate hurriedly called out, "Thank you for the book!"
Rick paused halfway out the door and turned back to give her a warm smile. "Sure thing, sweetheart. I think I got the better deal, though," he added, flashing her the gold dollar on his palm. Then he was gone and Kate was left standing there, a huge smile on her pretty face, his comic book clutched tightly to her chest.
XXXXXXXXXXXXXX
Sometime In The Future
Rick could hear her approaching behind him and figured now was as good a time as any to start complaining. "Babe, why are we doing this?"
"You asked me to move in with you," Kate replied, the unspoken 'duh' present in her tone. "And all the crap that comes with me." She set a load of packing boxes near him then came closer to help top off a half-full box with the books from her bedroom bookshelf.
"But not the furniture, right?" he asked anxiously. He did not know how much more space could logistically be created in his already cramped loft. She had pretty much been living there for months now; clearing up her stuff here and moving it was just the final formality to make their 'Living Together' official. And Rick could not be happier- but he still did not have enough space for all her crap.
"No, that stays here. It's not mine anyway; it came with the apartment."
"Oh good." He continued to pack books carefully in the box, no longer surprised but still inordinately pleased that of the books she kept in her room, closest to her bed and therefore the most accessible, the majority were his own. For some reason, that fact made him okay with the tedious task of packing her stuff but still, if he could get out of it by complaining a little and distracting his live-in girlfriend with kisses, he so would. "But I meant, why are we doing this? Couldn't we hire someone to do this for us?"
Kate scoffed and started on a mini-rant that Rick had already heard before. "If we hire someone to pack for us, what's next? You want to hire someone to get engaged for us? Get married for us? How about when we have kids? Did you want to hire someone to have them for us? Raise them...?" She kept going but Rick had stopped listening even as she had started. Even the fact that she was admitting to wanting to marry him and have kids with him- though not the first time she had done so, it still thrilled him every time she reiterated the desire- was not enough to rouse him from his shock.
Instead, Rick was gaping at a part of his past that he had once thought was lost forever.
"The Myriad and Varied Adventures of Captain Hammer," he read aloud quietly, and then marveled over his own pomposity as a young man. However even now, after all these years, Rick still thought the verbose title had a certain ring to it.
"Ooo, Captain Hammer!" Kate saw the comic book and gushed. "This was my first book that got me into comics. The author referenced a bunch of other superheroes, so I just had to go out and look them up."
"Green Lantern, Elektra, and Spiderman," Rick recalled aloud.
Kate turned to him with wide, surprised eyes and Rick finally saw it- the thing that he had forgotten, the reason Kate's green eyes had always haunted him, teasing him with half recollections and a vague sense that they had met once before.
"How'd you know?" she asked.
Rick disregarded her question and asked one of his own. "Where did you get this?"
"At a magic shop," she told him quickly, having never forgotten the cherished memory. "This gorgeous guy gave it to me when I was little because I told him he was pretty."
That's not why I gave it to you, Rick though but did not say aloud. The young girl he had met that day, so long ago, had gazed up at him with stars in her eyes and he had been just flattered enough that he wanted to give her something to remember him by. Plus, being a young man who had always craved the adoration of hordes of fans, the idea of starting with that girl as his first had appealed to him at the time.
"You gave him something in return, didn't you?" Rick finally asked quietly, his eyes riveted to Kate's face to watch as she made the same connection he had already come to.
"How did you know?"
He disregarded her question yet again. Her brilliant mind would come around eventually and answering her questions would have been a disservice. "What did you give him, Kate?"
"I..." Kate broke off, too shocked to really comprehend what was going on. When it slowly became clear, when the idealized memories reconciled with truth and everything that had happened since that long ago day, she finally said, "I gave him... my heart. I gave him my fantasies and dreams for the next ten years. I gave him every spare thought I had for months after he gave me that book." She took the comic in question and clutched it to her chest much as she had done when she was a star struck thirteen-year-old. Meanwhile, his hands free now, Rick dug in a pocket for his wallet.
"You gave him something tangible too, Katie. What was it?"
"I gave him a gold dollar," she whispered as Rick opened his wallet, reached his fingertips into a hidden pocket and held up an old, worn, golden coin. "Why would you keep it?"
"I don't..." he paused and frowned, realizing that it was not quite true that he did not know why he had held onto the coin all these years. "I think, even back then... I knew you were my fate."
Kate smiled mischievously and asked, "I think you mean 'Kate,' don't you? I'm your Kate."
Rick smiled, aware that she was referencing the time he had slipped and said her name instead of Vera's and then tried to cover his ass by claiming he had said Fate. To tell her he remembered exactly what she was obliquely referencing, Rick smiled too then put his hands on her hips to pull her closer as he said, "That does have a certain poetry to it."
Kate considered him, watched his lips as he drifted closer to her mouth, and asked, "Do you really think we were destined to be together?"
"No," he replied and before Kate could even frown, he corrected, "I'm sure of it. But then, you don't believe in magic and fate and destiny."
"Maybe I can," she whispered, her breath warm on his slowly encroaching lips. Her hands slipped up around his neck and she murmured, "I want to believe. Make me believe, Rick." She finally brushed her mouth over his, welcoming him with the barest of kisses- teasing him like she was so good at.
"Perhaps I could teach you a magic trick," he replied before reaching up and producing a quarter from her ear.
Kate smiled and said, "You still don't know how to do that trick right."
"How about this then?" Rick slowly reached up with his other hand and Kate felt the brush of his warm fingertips and cooler metal against her ear. Her smirk told him that she was expecting the gold dollar. So the undisguised shock on her face when he produced a sapphire engagement ring was doubly rewarding for him.
"I think you finally got it!" she murmured as she reached up for her ring. Castle took her hand instead and slipped the jewel onto the appropriate digit.
"How about you, Kate?" Rick asked and when she glanced at him for clarification, he asked, "Do I have you?"
"Always," she replied and though it was a single, simple word, the implications and the depth of emotion it was said with were anything but.