Author's note: thank you very much for the reviews and/or PMs, I appreciate them a lot. And yes, it's Rizzles endgame (but it might take a while to get there; sadly or not, I'm used to writing slow burns).

Chapter three: The Girl With the Tattoo

"How is... What are you looking for, Rizzoli?" Cavanaugh approached his employee's desk and motioned at the mess on top of it. "What happened there?"

"I'm looking for my wedding ring."

If Jane didn't even think at all about the potential consequences that such comment could cause, her boss reacted very differently to it. Confused, the lieutenant made a step backwards and looked suspiciously at her.

"Your what?"

Jane sighed – straightened back up – and was about to repeat her statement when she realized that Cavanaugh hadn't been told about Maura's latest crazy plan. There was no one to blame though as he had been absent for the past three weeks.

Uncertain of how to bring it up and not at all in the mood for an explanation, she waved at him to forget about it.

"It's a long story and I'm not sure you'll be eager to listen to it but to make it short: I'm somehow married to Maura."

"About time!"

Now that was not the kind of reaction Jane had anticipated. Taken aback at the lieutenant's remark, she shook her head at him and began to laugh. Nervously. Uncontrollably. She had heard about the bets but had simply assumed these were unwarranted rumors about her and Maura.

She worked in an environment dominated by men. Her friendship to the medical examiner was a logical source of ridiculous gossip and she didn't want to pay attention to these. She had better things to do with her time.

"Nope." Nervous laugh again. "Slight misunderstanding, here... I'm not really mar-..."

"Janie! The child you're currently raising with Maura is waiting for you downstairs."

Of course. Not bothering to turn around to face her mother, Jane closed her eyes and took a deep breath instead. She needed ten seconds of peace, if only in her head. First day at work since their foreign student had arrived and she had already lost her wedding ring, getting her boss confused about the whole thing in the process.

Slightly troubled, Cavanaugh made a step forward – as if to create a semblance of intimacy – and squinted his eyes at her. He lowered his voice just as a nervous smile appeared on his face.

"What happened here while I was in Washington?"

...

"Hey! How was your first day at school?" Jane grabbed Margot by the shoulders and rushed her out on the street. She didn't want to spend one more second inside the BPD building. Not after the very awkward conversation she had just had with Cavanaugh. "Did you make friends and all?"

The French girl didn't seem to mind Jane's behavior at all and followed her towards the Subaru. She looked happy, rather pleased with the way things that had turned in so far.

The weekend had gone fast but these two days had been perfect for the three of them to get to know each other better and the awkwardness of the beginning now seemed to belong to the past. Jane and Maura had even had time to teach the student how to take the subway by herself which Margot was very proud of.

"Yes, very much. Although... I have to admit that American schools are very different!"

Jane started the engine and drove away with relief. First day: over.

The diamonds of her wedding band caught the sunlight. She was glad to have found it back at the last minute but would have to find another place where to put it while at work the next time. A Red Sox box lost at the bottom of a drawer was apparently not the best idea she had ever had.

"How come? You don't have cheerleaders and science geeks in France? Maura was a science geek. Well... She's still one, let's face it."

Her head leaned against the car window – observing the streets of Boston speeding past in front of her – Margot giggled and shook her head.

"No, not really. I mean it's different. We don't have cheerleaders... We don't have a football team... But we have more homework. Also, it's cool to finish school so early. It's going to be hard for me when I go back to Bordeaux because the school day is a lot longer in France."

If she had had doubts when Maura had set out her plan, Jane had to admit that she kind of liked the idea, now.

Margot's presence into her life – into their life – brought an unexpected sweetness to it, some fresh air they might have both needed without even realizing it. It was easy to let life carry you into its whirl of stress and forget about the rest.

Way too easy.

"I never studied abroad so I can't compare but I know Maura went to a Swiss boarding school and it was a lot tougher than what I went through, here. And yet I was with the nuns! She must... Is that a tattoo on your ankle?"

Trying to remain focused on the road, Jane cast a second glance at Margot's leg. The teenager was wearing a skirt and had just moved on her seat in a way that had allowed the Italian to have a fuller view on her ankle.

"Yes. It is a present I got when I turned fifteen! A present from my parents. I had wanted one since... Forever! It is my name, in Japanese characters. Do you like it?"

Red light. Jane turned around – glad to bond with Margot during their ride back to Beacon Hill – and leaned over to observe the tattoo a bit more closely. She whistled in approval.

"You're lucky to have open-minded parents. Mine always refused I got one and now it's Maura who leads that little tattoo war."

Jane's laugh fell flat as she realized that she hadn't stopped alluding to her friend since they had left the BPD. What was going on? Was she unable to hold a conversation without mentioning Maura at some point? The thought itself made her feel uncomfortable. She tightened her grip on the steering-wheel and preferred not to add anything.

"Really?" Margot sounded surprised. "Why is Maura against it? She has one herself. It's not fair at all!"

The statement made Jane lose control of the steering-wheel for a couple of seconds just as the first streets of Beacon Hill appeared in front her. The car deviated slightly.

"Oh... She really told you she had one?" She coughed to hide her surprise.

Maura hadn't told her that she had a tattoo but since she was supposed to be her wife to Margot's eyes, she had no choice but to play a safer card with the adolescent. It was the kind of detail about her wife that she couldn't ignore.

"Yes. She told me about it yesterday at the museum when we were waiting for you. You had gone to the bathroom...?"

Jane nodded slowly and pretended to be focused on the road when the only thing she had in mind was her friend's tattoo. Where was it, exactly? She had seen her in a bikini - in her underwear - and hadn't spotted any.

As a conclusion came easily to her mind, Jane blushed and bit her lips.

Oh boy.

"And... Ahem... She told you what it was? And... And where it was...?" Playing it casual. This was how she had to do. Comforted by the idea, Jane relaxed a bit and even allowed herself to smile. "I am surprised she let you know. It's not something many people know about her."

"A mandala on her... Down there... By there." Margot vaguely motioned at her pelvis. "She had to explain to me what a mandala is because I didn't know. So why can't you have one if she has one? Does she regret it?"

Jane cut the engine after parking the car on the right street and looked straight in front of her. Now that was an excellent question. As a matter of fact, the bunch of information she had just gathered about Maura's tattoo would probably make her evening.

The devilish plan that began to form in her head echoed the smirk that was now playing on her lips. Oh yes. She would have a blast once her friend was home.

"Maura..." Jane sighed. As a matter of fact, she didn't have any fair explanation to give. Even if they had really been married, she still could have decided what to do with her own body. You are whipped, Rizzoli. Damn... Congrats. "She's a bacteria freak and there's not a single tattoo place in Boston she'd let me go to because they're not clean enough."

Lame excuse but she hadn't found any better – nor plausible – explanation to give. Margot seemed satisfied of it anyway.

She followed Jane to the door and happily welcomed a jumpy Jo Friday just as they came in. Jane dropped her keys on the console table before walking to the kitchen. She had not left work that early in months. It was almost strange to be home – or better said, Maura's home – before nightfall.

They had tried to coordinate their schedules to make sure that Margot would always have someone around. At least Jane's mother. Luckily enough, Jane wasn't working on any big case right now which gave her all the time to hang around with the teenager and ultimately plot her tattoo attack against Maura.

There was no way that she would let this piece of information die so easily. It was gold.

Speaking of the devil... Jane took her cell phone out of her pocket and opened the text message that her friend had sent her.

Chinese take outs, tonight?

M.

"Do you like Chinese food, Margot?"

The teenager walked to the kitchen where Jane was standing – Jo Friday in her arms – and enthusiastically nodded at her.

That's a deal, Little Buddha.

J.

Mandala tattoo war: officially declared. Jane rubbed her hands together, delighted at her best.