Chapter Four:

This should make some of you happy! I couldn't stay dark for too long! Also, thanks for the feedback about pregnancy - never been there, but tried to be realistic as possible about Kate's feelings and emotions.

Three days later Kate walked into the loft, Chinese take out in hand. She was glad that there was no tension in the air, and that there would be no fighting tonight. She had seen to that when she had sat Rick down the previous evening for a sincere, honest talk.

Kate had promised to be more careful on the job, and avoid going out on round-ups or busts whenever possible. She would also make a point to try and call or text Castle several times a day to let him know what she was doing and that she was safe.

For his part, Rick agreed to try and cut back on his worrying and his obsession with calling Kate at work. He would try to start writing again, to help occupy himself and to get his editors off of his back. They sealed their agreement with lovemaking; the soft, intense, sincere lovemaking of their summer romance, the kind that they hadn't experienced in a long time.

Kate got chills at the memory. Her writer boy may be exhausted, impossible to reason with and at times borderline insane, but he had certainly not lost his touch in the bedroom, and so far her pregnancy hadn't hindered her enjoyment of his talents.

As she was standing there grinning at the memory, Castle looked up from his spot on the couch, his laptop perched in front of him. He looked weary, and Kate knew it was not from last night's bedroom antics.

"Hey,' she said softly, placing the bags she had brought in on the kitchen counter.

"Hey," he said back weakly. "Alexis is at the movies with friends to celebrate her calculus test score. She said she'd eat when she gets home." Rick stared back at the computer screen, concentration and frustration both evident on his face.

"I got her text message about her perfect score. She's such a smart kid." Kate glanced over and could see his laptop screen was blank. She sighed and tried to sound encouraging. "Rick, are you trying to write like you promised?"

"I'm trying, Beckett." His voice was flat. "How are you feeling? You were so nauseous this morning…I was worried."

"Rick, as I told you the twenty-three times you called, it passed quickly. And yes, I counted; it was twenty-three today, which is certainly an improvement over fifty!" She was laughing, trying to make a joke of it all.

But Castle took it hard. "Oh. I…umm, I actually thought I did better today. Damn. I really thought I did better." He sighed dejectedly, running his fingers through his hair.

Kate walked over and gently kissed the top of his head. "It's OK. I know you tried."

She noticed Rick reach down to close his laptop and knew that he was trying to hide his failure to write from her. She stared at him with genuine concern in her eyes, gently running her own fingers through his hair.

"Rick, you can't go on like this. I know you had another nightmare late last night. All of this stress isn't healthy. Not for me and the babies, not for you, not for us."

He looked panic stricken. "I know and I'm trying Kate, I really am."

"I know you are. It's going to be OK, Castle, really. We're both going to work on things; just liked we talked about." She could see he was not convinced and tried to lighten his mood. "Hey, I got your favorite take out!" She walked back toward the kitchen.

"I'm not really hungry, but thanks, maybe later." Rick continued to stare at his laptop that he had opened back up, trying to will some words onto the screen to please her.

Kate looked at the man slouched on the couch. Castle, her Castle, would have been smirking and giggling and preening like an excited six year old over the revelation that Kate brought him his favorite Chinese food. This Castle didn't even crack a smile. What had she done to him?

Kate spread the containers and the contents of her other bag out over the marble kitchen counter. "Castle, there's something I want to show you. Can you come over here, please?"

He got up obediently and walked over to the kitchen. He pecked her on the cheek affectionately, glad that at least the recent hostilities were behind them. Kate smirked as she saw his eyebrow go up in curiosity at the brochures spread out amongst the take out food.

"What is all this, Kate? Something for a case?" He sat down on the stool next to her.

"Nope."

Castle picked up one of the papers. "The School of Law at Columbia University." He read the cover. "Is this about your Mom's scholarship?"

"Trying to save money, Castle?" she teased.

"I don't understand."

"I don't think I can apply for it. Conflict of interest. I'm afraid we're gonna to have to pay full price." She said sarcastically.

"I'm not following."

"Tuition. Of course, that's assuming I even get accepted. I may even have to allow you to try and pull some strings to get me admitted to next fall's class. I'm way behind in the process."

"Kate, are your hormones causing you to hallucinate? Why are you talking about law school?" He was teasing her, but truly confused. She had never, ever talked about going to law school the entire time he had known her.

She continued, ignoring his joke. "And that means I have to take the LSAT in February. That's not much time to prepare." She sounded truly nervous.

"Kate, are you really talking about you going to law school? I mean, you're not making much sense."

"For the first time in a long time I'm making sense, Rick." She grabbed his hand and gently held it.

He stared at her blankly. "Explain it to me," he was trying to remain calm. Could Kate be seriously thinking about a career change? After all their arguing?

She looked at him and he recognized the well-known Beckett determination in her eyes.

"Rick, I think I want to be a lawyer. I may even want to be the damn DA someday. It's a total long shot and I'll probably fail miserably, but will you help me try?"

He opened his mouth but no words came out. He simply crushed himself into her chest in a fierce hug. And then Richard Castle broke down and cried. He sat there crying in Kate's arms for several minutes, while she simply stroked his neck and back and placed gentle kisses on the top of his head.

He finally looked up. "You don't have to do this, Kate." His voice cracked.

"You saying you don't think I can?" she said indignantly with a slight smile on her face, gently wiping the wetness off his cheeks with her finger.

"No! I just, I just want you to be happy…"

Kate leaned in so their foreheads touched, staring directly into his eyes.

"Rick, you deserve to be happy, too. So let me ask you, if I became a lawyer in the DA's office instead of being a cop, would you be happy?"

"Very." His voice was a whisper.

"You realize that Columbia is expensive, and if I get in I won't work at all for over three years?" Kate's voice was amused.

He grinned wickedly. "You can earn your keep with sex, Beckett."

It was Kate's turn to grin wickedly. "I can do that. Frankly, I've fallen behind in my payments for the last few months, and not because of the babies. But you, Mister, you have to start writing again! We're gonna need that money." She deadpanned.

"I can do that!" Kate saw a sparkle in Rick's eye for the first time in months. It was adorable.

"And the twins. You're going to have to really take charge. Law school will be so demanding. Longer hours than I'm putting in as a detective. Way longer."

Castle was jumping around their kitchen like a hyperactive child. "I'll be the nanny extraordinaire! And I can accept your long hours. Anything's better than thinking about you out there working murder cases." His voice dropped and he looked at her with mournful, haunted eyes. "Anything but that, Beckett."

"I'm sorry this has been so hard for your, Rick. And this whole idea is probably nothing but a pipedream and I'll end up falling flat on my face. But I want to try." She sighed.

"I'll help you study! I can be your tutor! And I'll start making calls tomorrow. You can do this. You will do this, Kate!" He was euphoric.

Kate took a deep breath, realizing that what she had been dreaming and scheming about for several days was about to start happening. "So do we have a deal, Castle?" She grinned at him.

"Deal, Beckett." He grinned back at her.

She reached over and shook hands with him in a slow, triumphant motion.

"We'll do it together, Rick." She said a renewed confidence in her voice.

"Always, Kate." Castle whispered back, for the fist time in months actually believing the special meaning those words held for he and Kate.

I know it's impossible to get into Columbia law, especillay late, (NYU is worse) but Kate is portrayed as brillant and determined, so that's where I put her!