It's been like 5-6 years since I've flown so I imagine things are a little different now so I don't know if you can still pick your seats or not, but just pretend you can for this story please.

I do NOT own Castle.

"Are you sure about this, dad?" Alexis watched her father put one more item into his suitcase, then zip it up.

"Yup, I don't know if I will be able to do anything, but I have to at least try. Plus, the 'Heat Wave' producers have been trying to get me out to the set for months now, that's a perfect cover story. No one will ever know that I'm working the Royce case."

"Yeah, until you get caught."

"You have such little faith in me, I am not going to get caught." Castle turned from his suitcase and held his arms open. "Come, give your old man a hug. I'll probably be gone for a few days."

Father and daughter embraced for a few minutes, then Castle grabbed his suitcase with one hand, while keeping one arm around Alexis as they walked out into the living room.

When they came to a stop in front of the front door, Alexis turned to look at her father.

"You aren't leaving already, are you? Your flight doesn't leave for a few hours."

"Yup, I've got something to do before I leave, and you know how I like to get to the airport early."

She hugged him once more, then stepped back. "Alright, have a safe trip, and good luck!"

"Thanks, but I think you are going to need more luck than me," Castle chuckled at the confused look she gave him. "When you have to tell Mother that she can't have more than three guests at a time while I'm gone."

"Can't you tell her?"

"Sorry Pumpkin." With a quick kiss to his daughter's forehead, Castle headed out the door, and grabbed a cab to an apartment he had been visiting a lot in the last few months.

He could have just called her, instead of showing up at her apartment to see her, but he wanted to see for himself how she was taking Royce's death.

He wasn't stupid, he knew that everything she had said on the phone to Royce that day was the truth, and he knew she had to be taking his death hard, even if she wouldn't show it.

Especially since the Captain wasn't letting her work the case. Castle knew that she understood why the Captain wasn't letting her on the case, but he also knew that it had to be driving her nuts.

Which is why when he came to the conclusion that the most likely suspect had escaped to L.A., he had come up with the idea to do some detective work on his own.

After all, the Captain only kicked him out of the precinct, he didn't exactly say that he couldn't work the case. He may have hinted at it, but since he didn't outright say it...

So now he was outside Beckett's door, hand tapping out the 'Cops' theme until she answered it.

The door swung open, and she greeted him, already knowing who it was by the knocking.

"Castle."

"Hey," He tried- and failed- to peer into her apartment to check for signs of Josh without her noticing. "Are you busy?"

"No..."

"Perfect." Castle started forward and Beckett just moved out of the way, used to him barging into her apartment by now.

Once he was inside her apartment, he wasn't sure what to do so she ended up leading him over to the couch where they sat down on opposite ends, turning so they were facing each other.

"So? Care to explain why you are here?" She didn't have time to beat around the bush, she had packing to do.

"I just wanted to see how you were doing."

"With the case? I'm fine, it's not like Royce and I were that close anymore." A complete and total lie, but he knew better than to call her out on it.

"Well yes that, and to see how well you were taking the fact that you couldn't work the case."

"Ah well..." An involuntary glance over at the dinning room table had Castle up and standing over the table in seconds, looking at all her notes.

"I should have known you couldn't just leave it alone," He grinned over his shoulder at her before turning his attention back to her notes. "You're thinking L.A. too?"

"You were thinking the same thing?" She came over and stood next to him, gazing at all the papers she had spread out on her table before turning towards him.

"Yeah, it's the only thing that makes sense. At least with the little bit of information we have." Suddenly, something occurred to him. Something that could potentially ruin his plans. "Have you told the precinct about this?"

"Um..." Of course she hadn't, that could tip off the Captain about her plan. "No, not yet."

"Oh good," Castle let out a sigh of relief, and she looked at him questioningly. "Er uh, I mean-" He was saved from having to explain by her phone ringing.

Still keeping a suspicious eye on the writer, Beckett reached over and picked up the phone that was on the table, and after seeing Josh's name on the screen, she canceled the call.

"I can go, if you need to take that," Castle said after seeing her cancel the call. "I've got to head out in a little bit anyway..."

"No, it's okay. It was nothing." Now it was his turn to look suspiciously at her, so she turned and walked into the kitchen to get a drink to avoid his stare.

"Can I get you anything?"

"Thanks, but no. I've got a flight to catch. I try not to drink much of anything before I get on a plane, I get claustrophobic in those tiny little bathrooms."

Beckett stopped and turned around to face him with a raised eyebrow. "That flight wouldn't happen to be flight six two seven, would it?"

"Wha- wait, huh? How could you have possibly known that? Unless..." Castle trailed off, a ridiculous grin forming on his face. "You are planning to go to L.A. too! Ha! I think I'm becoming a bad influence on you, Detective. This is the second time you've gone rogue in almost three months."

"Yeah well... I haven't actually booked the flight yet. I was starting to have doubts about going, but if you are going, then I better go to keep you in line." As soon as she said she hadn't booked the flight yet, he zeroed in on her laptop and started looking at the flight information, fully intend on changing her seating to first class so that they could sit together for the flight.

"Flying first class? Feeling a little indulgent, aren't you Detective?" He said when he noticed that she had already selected first class.

"I'm not exactly fond of flying, so if I have to do it, I always get first class...What are you doing?" She could see things being changed on the computer screen from her position behind him, but had to get closer, and look over his shoulder, to be able to see exactly what he was doing.

"What makes you think I even want to sit next to you for seven hours?" He had been changing her seat, and though she didn't know where he was sitting, she assumed that's why he was changing it.

"Six and a half, actually." A blank stare was all the response he got. "We can build theory while we travel?"

"Give me my laptop, Castle." Pouting, he handed over the laptop so she could change her seat again, but instead of changing it, she just checked to make sure all the information was right before hitting the button to book the flight.

"There, now entertain yourself, without snooping through my stuff, while I finish packing and then we can share a cab to the airport. Or if you need to leave, that's fine."

"Nope, I'm good. I'm packed and ready to go, my suitcase is outside your door."

"All right, it won't take too long. I was almost done when you showed up."

"Take your time, we have an hour before we have to be there in time to get through security."

Nodding, Beckett headed into her bed room to finish packing while Castle settled into her couch to wait.