"I'm guessing there is a story you haven't told me yet"
Castle's brow furrows in confusion at his future wife's reaction to her nana's ensemble. He takes one last glance at the scene playing out in their living room, grimacing as he hears the very last note of I Will Always Love you. Well, actually, Mother and Kate's grandmother hit some letter of the alphabet with that note but it certainly was not one on the musical scale; not even close.
Kate slowly sinks against the door frame and falls to the floor as she hears the current song selection come to a close.
"Is it over? Please tell me it is over?"
Castle peeks back out the open door once again in hopes to confirm that the torture has ended. He breathes an elongated sigh of relief upon watching his mother get up from the piano bench and walk toward another area of the house.
"Mother has left the piano."
Kate laughs dryly into the phone as she places a hand across her eyes before releasing a long, grateful sigh in relief at hearing the madness is finally over.
"Thank goodness."
Castle nods into the phone as he closes the bedroom door and makes his way back over to the window, grinning widely at the sunshine peeking out from behind the clouds; all traces of the miniature storm have finally disappeared. The wedding can happen.
"So, care to tell me why Nana has on an old wedding gown?"
Kate leans back against the closed door and nods into the phone, instantly chuckling when she remembers that Castle cannot see her.
"I don't really know what it is, to be honest. Whenever she gets invited to a wedding or even hears the word, she instantly thinks that it is hers. So, she pulls her wedding dress out of the back of her closet and puts it on. There isn't really anything we can do about it except just go with it. Nana does not like to be corrected. There really isn't anything we can do about it."
Castle sinks his teeth into his bottom lip in attempt to suppress the laugh building up in his throat because that is, without a doubt, the most ridiculous thing that he has ever heard and coming from Richard Castle, that says a lot.
"That's new."
Kate chuckles at her partner's reaction, knowing immediately that he is trying his hardest not to laugh.
"It's okay to laugh, babe. The whole concept really is ridiculous, especially since Papaw is still alive."
Rick vigorously nods through the phone as he listens to Kate's explanation.
"Exactly! If he was no longer with us, it could be taken as a really eccentric, but still very sweet, coping mechanism. But since he is still here, it's just a little…how do I say this nicely…"
"Ridiculous?"
Kate laughs as she finishes the thought for him, completely agreeing with his logic.
"Okay, babe, we should probably get off the phone so that I can finish getting ready. Otherwise, we aren't ever going to get married."
"Yeah, you're probably right. Maybe we can get on with the show before something else has a chance to happen."
Rick regrets his word choice as soon as it comes out of his mouth. The moment the words are uttered, he hears the soft sounds of the piano beginning to play once more. The writer groans into the phone as he walks across the room back toward the door where he opens it to get a better idea of what is in store for him this time.
"Perhaps I have spoken too soon."
Kate moans into the phone as the beginning notes of the familiar tune of Gloria Gaynor's I Will Survive echoes throughout the large house.
"Oh no. Please, not again. I love your mom, and Nana, and Aunt Teresa, but my nerves absolutely can not take any more of that."
Castle's eyes widen at the sight unfolding before him, and he suddenly finds himself very grateful that his bride-to-be is upstairs and does not have a direct view of what is taking place. His mother has reclaimed her place at the piano while Nana and Aunt Teresa are posing on opposite sides of the coat rack. All three women are wearing a pair of hot pink sparkly sunglasses and have elegantly patterned scarves around their necks as they begin to perform some very elaborate show.
"Kate, honey, whatever you do, do not open the door. It is in your best interest to stay put and get dressed. The boys and I will put an end to this madness. I'll send Lanie and Jenny upstairs to help you. I love you. See you soon!"
Kate has just enough time to mumble an "I love you too" before Castle hangs up the phone. Shaking her head, Kate rises to her feet and haphazardly tosses her cellphone onto the bed.
The detective in her can't help wanting to know what exactly is happening downstairs, but she knows that Castle and the boys have everything under control.
Tossing all of her concerns and inane worries aside, Kate sets her mind on finishing getting dressed. She glances at her reflection in the mirror and smiles brightly upon seeing that everything looks perfect. All that she has left to do is to put on the dress, and then she can marry her one and done.
A loud commotion coming from downstairs brings the detective out of her reverie. Kate's brow furrows as she tries to figure out what is causing the noise, but fails.
"What the hell is going on down there?"
With one last exasperated sigh, Kate practically stomps toward the door of the bedroom. She turns the doorknob and flings the door open, not even caring about the noise that it makes. The detective trudges down the hallway and turns the corner toward the stairs, mumbling incoherently to herself with each step. Just as she is about to depart down the steps, Kate glances down into the living room. Her eyes widen, mouth falling agape, at the sight before her.
Esposito is lying in the middle of the living room floor in the fettle position as her Nana repeatedly thwacks him with her cane. After clearing her mind of the initial shock, Kate sprints down the steps and into the crowd of people. Castle, Ryan, and her father are all trying their hardest to make her grandmother stop; however, none of them have the slightest idea of what to do and it is as if their words are only encouraging her.
Kate gently puts an arm on her grandmother's shoulder and offers the older woman a warm smile. Nana reacts instantly to the touch and abruptly turns her head to see who is there; her features instantly softening upon seeing her eldest great-grandchild. The woman instantly drops the cane, and wraps Kate into a warm embrace, beginning to ask her all kinds of questions about how she has been and what has been going on in her life. The younger woman breathes a deep sigh of relief and gestures at the men to grab the cane and falls into a pleasant conversation with her great grandmother. At this point, Kate is extremely grateful that she was enough of a distraction to deter her grandmother continuing her assault on Espo.
Seeing an opportunity, Martha and Aunt Teresa begin escorting guests out towards the patio area in hopes that a change of scenery may do them all a bit of good. Kate gives Nana one last hug before Jim offers to escort her outside where the others are. The remaining five check on Esposito, whose pride seems to be more wounded than anything, thankfully.
"What the hell happened down here?"
Kate's gaze darts around the group as she tries to wrap her mind around the fact that her grandmother actually attempted to beat up one of her partners.
"Remember how you said that Nana doesn't like to be corrected?" Castle replies a few seconds later as he meets Kate's confused gaze.
"Yeah, but what does that have to do with any of this?"
"Well, our friend Espo here made the mistake of telling Nana that today wasn't her wedding day and that it was ours."
"Yeah," Esposito chime in after a couple of seconds. His features have set into a hard line; it's almost as if he should be pouting. "Apparently she didn't like that very much and just started smacking me with the cane. I didn't want to hurt her, so I just sort of took it."
Kate sighs and rolls her eyes, still completely befuddled by what has just taken place. Her lips curve into an almost pout as she maneuvers her gaze to meet Castle's and takes both of his hands in her own.
"Okay, I think we've endured enough chaos and insanity for one day. Can I please finish getting ready so that we can get married already?
The rest of the group takes that as their cue to leave and disperse to their correct rooms in the house. Castle chuckles at Kate's adorable pout and presses a kiss to the crown of her head before gently nudging her in the direction of the stairs. Kate smiles at the kiss and gives his hands a gentle squeeze as she begins to make her way up the stairs.
"KATE!"
A loud scream, followed by both Lanie and Jenny shrieking her name causes Kate pause. Lanie appears at the top of the stairs. Her whole face screams panic. The way her eyes are almost bulging out of her head combined with the slight tremor of her bottom lip causes Kate's heart drop and her stomach to violently churn. It most certainly does not help when Jenny follows close behind Lanie with a similar look of panic on her own face.
Kate instinctively takes a step back. She winds one of her arms through Rick's, giving his hand a hard squeeze. Kate swallows, her throat suddenly extremely dry, and slowly maneuvers her head to meet Lanie's gaze.
"The dress is ruined."
And there you have it!
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Thank you so much for reading!