A/N: Okay, so I really am rattling through this now. This is the last chapter, but I am going to write a short epilogue which'll be set just after 2x06 Black Gold and Red Blood. Mainly, because that episode fits so closely into the themes of this fic - the trust issues and all that - that I feel like I'd be foolish not to do so.

This part's quite brief - I don't feel all that confident in tying up fics, dammit. Oh well.

Thanks go to: Ebony10, Chiisana Minako, Viktorija, Divinia Serit, Penelope Louise, Frogster, Jadestar1981, yaba, anabella, HOUSEMDFanForever and cureless for reviewing Part Nine!

For Ebony10, whose reviews mean so much to me. I'm really glad you've enjoyed this.

x tromana

Part Ten

One Week Later

It had been a blessed relief to finally wave off Stewart shortly after arriving back at the CBI headquarters. He'd insisted upon doing the 'brotherly thing' and driving her to work before shooting off and catching his plane home. Stewart, the most caring and loyal out of her three younger siblings, was the last to leave and Lisbon, to be fair, was looking forward to not only being back at work (far too soon, according to Minelli and her doctors) but also having her place back to herself. She'd forgotten just how exhausting family life could be at times and had even surprised herself at just how much she craved some downtime alone. She didn't particularly like being fussed over - it made her feel like she was being crowded and belittled somewhat. But still, things were different since the last time she'd been at work: the after-effects of the Lorazepam had finally subsided, she was feeling significantly calmer and though she would be loathe to admit it, the week off had done her a lot of good. That didn't change one fact though: Jane.

Jane had split his time almost equally between spending time at work and time with Lisbon and her brothers over the past week. Slowly, but surely, he'd won over each one of her brothers and by the time each of them left, they were on the verge of swapping contact details and claiming that 'Tessa painted you all wrong.' Regardless of whether or not she had done that, things still weren't right between them. On numerous occasions, he used her brothers as an excuse not to talk and if they did have a quiet minute alone, he simply clammed up and refused to talk. He stated that there was a time and a place and that really, she should be focusing on her recovery and not silly little details like facets of his character.

'Well,' she decided as she strode into the bullpen, 'if I'm well enough to work, I'm more than well enough to talk.'

Rigsby was first to catch sight of her and gleefully, he threw his arms around her shoulders as Van Pelt and Cho approached more tentatively. After a short while, he realized just how inappropriate it was for him to be hugging his boss and let go. The goofy grin he was wearing didn't slip, however and Lisbon soon found that she was reciprocating it.

"It's good to have you back, boss," he enthused.

"I've only been away a week."

"Are you sure you're alright to be working?"

"I'm fine, Van Pelt," she started, pausing when she saw the aghast look on their faces. "Okay, it hurts a bit, but really, I'll go mad if I'm not doing something."

Lisbon quickly excused herself, wanting to get away from their scrutinizing gazes. She had already been through this when she had told Jane and her family and didn't feel like justifying her decisions any further. Besides, she had paperwork waiting for her. What with Blaise Porter being sent down for the theft and 'attacking' her, even though he had confirmed that he had seen the murderer at the scene five minutes before the murder occured and Jackson Kennedy for the actual murder, the case had somehow managed to generate more paperwork than the average. It was a good job she wouldn't be doing fieldwork for a while - it would give her a chance to catch up with it all. However, she'd barely settled down at her desk nor had a chance to pick up her highlighter when Jane, typically, barged in uninvited, proffering a blueberry muffin.

"Closed case muffin," he explained quickly. "We managed to save this one from Rigsby."

"Well, that must be some kind of miracle in itself," she replied with a smirk. "Thank you."

Jane shrugged and sat opposite her. Wordlessly, she handed him half of the muffin and they both devoured it quickly, in silence. After throwing away the paper case and dusting the crumbs off her desk, she leaned her elbows against the wooden surface, resting her chin on her laced fingers.

"You're looking better," Jane mouthed slowly.

"I feel better," she admitted.

"Good."

"Jane?"

"Yes?"

"Will you answer one question, just one, for now?"

"Okay…"

He agreed purely because he felt like he owed her that. In her week's absence, he had seen the team rally around her once more, finally willing to put the McTeer debacle behind them and realize that she was worthy of their trust still. It had been a shame that such a violent act had been required to do just that, but at least she had finally gotten them all, including Rigsby, back on side. And still, he was blaming himself for the fact it had happened in the first place. She wouldn't be in pain at all if he hadn't had a temporary lapse of judgment, but at least some good had come of it.

"Why do you hurt everyone who cares about you?" Lisbon asked quietly, after some consideration.

"I… I don't mean to…" he whispered.

"You don't want to lose anyone else you care about?" she asked tentatively and Jane nodded in response. "I'm not going anywhere."

"You of all people should know that you shouldn't make promises you cannot keep."

"I mean it, Jane."

"I'll leave you to it," he answered after approximately thirty seconds of silence, unsure of what else to say.

"Good, I have to see Dr. Bennett in an hour."

Jane nodded and disappeared back into the bullpen, stopping by the kitchenette for a cup of chamomile tea. He smirked; he had obviously just missed something - Rigsby had hidden his face in his hands and Van Pelt who had suddenly started typing furiously, had flushed a furious bright red. Cho, who was smirking behind the puzzle book he was studying, was obviously the perpetrator. As he settled down on the couch, he privately agreed with the Asian agent. The sooner those two just got on with it, the better. In this line of work, things could get strained enough as it was, as recently demonstrated, never mind having those two constantly denying their feelings. Okay, so things could get troublesome if they did decide to do something about it and Lisbon found out, but surely that was simply something they could deal with if and when it posed a problem?

"You okay, Jane?" Van Pelt quietly asked, quite suddenly.

"I'm fine."

"Now you're sounding like Lisbon."

Actually on time and for the first time, not completely dreading it, Lisbon knocked sharply on Alysia Bennett's office door. It wasn't exactly a pleasurable feeling when the psychologist answered but she didn't feel like turning on her heels and running away. Besides, she hoped that she would finally, finally be able to stop seeing her and actually get on with her normal life without the blonde asking her how she 'felt' about every little occurrence. Though she knew she had got somewhere since she started seeing the psychologist, she still didn't think that the exuberant blonde was actually doing much to help her.

"How are you feeling, Teresa?"

"Okay," Lisbon answered with a shrug, taking a seat without needing to offered. "Thank you for the well-wishes, by the way. There wasn't any need."

"How…"

"Oh, it's still sore," Lisbon replied, jumping in. "But it's a career hazard. I'll be fine."

"You say that a lot," the psychologist noted, with a shrewd smile.

"I know."

The appointment went swiftly and much to her relief, Alysia eventually agreed that they were unlikely to make any more progress so there was no point in keeping her on any longer. With a smile, she shook the blonde's hand and left as quickly as it was polite to do so. She wandered back towards the bullpen almost with a spring in her step. Almost, for if she had been even a little bit bouncier, she had a feeling that her ribs wouldn't be quite so forgiving. The injury wasn't playing up quite so much now, but Lisbon had decided it would be sensible to restrict herself from fieldwork within reason, just out of sheer common sense. Give it a week or two longer and she would be back to, well not quite normal, but back to doing everything she normally did. Her team had been more than accommodating already, something she appreciated, but was already beginning to find grating. It wasn't as if she was an invalid, after all. When Lisbon spotted Jane staring intently at Van Pelt, apparently distracting the red head from paperwork with some kind of magic trick, she couldn't help but smile slightly. He glanced up and offered her a sunny beam, which she tentatively reciprocated with a shake of the head before disappearing into her own office.

So, they weren't quite on the same ground as they were before the murder of McTeer and she doubted they ever would be. She was grateful; things could be a hell of a lot worse. At least they were heading towards patching things up and one day, with her fingers firmly crossed, she hoped things would be better.