Author's Note: Spoiler alert for 6 x 06! This is my first ever fan fiction. I am a huge Jane/Lisbon shipper, and am full of anxiety about this season. This is my therapy - It's a follow up to Fire and Brimstone (6 x 06).

Disclaimer: If these were my characters, you would see this particular scene on TV in the next episode. But they are not.

A/N 2: I just changed the last bit of dialogue...It felt too long-winded and clunky. I hope this is better!
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Lisbon stared at the burning building, her ears ringing from the explosion and her eyes burning from the heat and smoke. Numbly, she rose to her feet, watching as part of the roof caved in.

"No," she whispered. The fire roared as the ocean breeze swept over it.

It was then she saw a familiar figure make its way around the side of the burning building. Relief washed over her, making her knees buckle. She sat down on the ground again.

Jane ran towards her with a shout.

"Lisbon!"

He came to a halt a few feet away, taking her in, quickly assessing any potential damage.

"You're okay?" He said it softly, tentatively.

She looked up at him for a moment without answering. Anger flashed in her eyes, and ignoring his question, she gestured toward the building.

"What happened here?"

"I don't know, exactly." He said it quietly, and sat down next to here. They watched the flames lick the sky. He was tense, unusually subdued. "I..I had them all here together. Even Stiles. I made them show me their shoulders." He then fell infuriatingly silent again.

"And?" Lisbon's voice was impatient.

"McAlister had the tattoo. But so did Bertram and Smith."

He turned and watched the confusion and anxiety wash over her features.

"What?" she asked.

"I don't know what it means. Not yet."

"So..what happened?"

"McAlister had a gun hidden in his boot. While my attention was turned, he took it out, fired a shot and ran to the back door. I went after him. I think Bertram and Smith may have followed. I'm not sure about Haffner and Stiles. I lost MCalister, and by the time I turned back the others were gone and the building exploded."

He sighed and looked down at the ground. "Things didn't exactly go as planned."

"Yeah. I guess not." She was silent for a moment, then added, "The part about ditching me went as planned."

"I'm sorry about that."

She laughed mirthlessly. "Sure you are."

"Lisbon, really, I...I didn't want to hurt you." She noted with satisfaction that he looked distinctly uncomfortable. Pinning him with her eyes, she spoke.

"You know what bothers me the most? You have always been able to read me like a book. You knew...you know what my feelings are. And you used them against me."

"No, Lisbon. Not against you. You shouldn't be here."

Sighing, she said, "I should have seen it coming. Well, I guess I know where I stand, and what to expect from you."

"You've always known what to expect from me when it comes to Red John." He looked at her intently. "But I meant every word I said to you on the beach."

"Except the part about the surprise," she said dryly.

"Well you were in fact surprised," he said reasonably.

She punched him in the shoulder.

"OW!"

"You deserved that."

"Yes. Yes, I did."

Sirens blared in the distance, getting closer.

He reached out and helped her to her feet. When they were standing, he didn't release her hand, squeezing it and saying simply, "I wish it were different. But if you really knew how I felt, you would understand."

With that, he turned and walked to his car, starting his engine and pulling out just as the lights of the first squad car appeared.