A/N: Okay, who's in the mood for cotton candy? Because that's exactly what this chapter is. A giant mountain of sugary fluff. Get your toothbrushes ready, because this chapter is ready and willing to induce cavities. I think it's a little on the short side for this story's standards... but that's going to have to be okay. How much cotton candy can you really eat in one sitting anyway? ...okay, probably a lot. That aside, hope you enjoy it!

As amazing as the food at the last restaurant had looked and smelled, Beckett had to admit that she liked Esposito's plan for tonight better. It sounded more relaxing, more fun. A better plan for an evening sandwiched between two days of work. Castle's intentions had been good, but she really wasn't the least bit disappointed that the reservations had fallen through. She could get Castle to take her back to the first restaurant when it was just the two of them and they had more time. But Remy's, with its greasy food and relative lack of atmosphere, was more what she'd had in mind when Lanie had first suggested that the four of them go out together. It might've been less Castle's speed, but she knew it would be more comfortable for everyone else.

She stayed in the car for a second after they'd parked, letting Castle open the door for her. It wasn't that she was in a particularly patient mood, and she was perfectly capable of opening the door for herself, but as grateful as she was for the change of plans, it was clear that Castle was disappointed. She knew how important this night was to him, and she knew him well enough to understand that doing something as simple as opening the door for her would make it feel a little more like a date to him, which was what he wanted.

She slid her hand into hers as they walked toward the entrance. "This will be fun," she promised him for the second time now. "I know it's not exactly the evening you had in mind, but try to make the most of it, okay?"

He nodded. "Yeah, I'm sure it'll be fine. It'll be great." He forced a smile.

"We can do a fancy night this weekend if you want. Let's just have fun tonight."

He smiled, for real this time. "I can do fun."

"I don't doubt it." They walked into the restaurant and se immediately spotted her friends at a booth nearby. She and Castle had gotten held up at a traffic light, so she wasn't surprised that they'd arrived first. "They're there," she said, pointing them out to Castle.

"Great, let's go." They were soon sliding into the booth across from their friends, all smiles.

"We've gotta be the best dressed group in this place," Esposito noted a little proudly, glancing around at neighboring tables.

"Oh, we definitely are," Castle agreed. He smiled at Kate. "And you are definitely the most beautiful woman in this place. Although that would be true no matter where we went."

She rolled her eyes, but smiled.

"Oh yeah," Esposito agreed, nodding cluelessly until Lanie kicked him under the table. "Ow!" he said, rubbing his leg. She was still staring daggers at him. "Oh," he said, finally realizing his mistake. "I meant you, baby!"

"Uh-huh. You'd better have."

Castle laughed and smoothly changed the subject. "I'll pick up the tab for tonight, so go crazy. Get anything you want, as much as you want."

Esposito frowned. "You don't have to do that, bro."

"I want to. It's no big deal, I was planning on spending a whole lot more tonight than we could here if we tried. So try."

"We'll make every effort," Lanie promised. "Wouldn't want you to be uncomfortable."

"Excellent." Castle grinned.

A waiter showed up at the table then and took their drink orders. "And throw in an appetizer platter for us," Castle told him after giving his order. "Everything you have, and tons of it. We're celebrating here. And put the whole check on my tab."

The waiter smiled and nodded before disappearing toward the kitchen.

"So how's life in the morgue, Dr. Parish?" Castle asked a little teasingly.

"Cold," Lanie shot back. "And busy. Good to be out."

"Mm, sounds like someone's been slacking," he accused Esposito, smirking at the detective across from him. "Gotta get this girl out more often. She's gorgeous, I'm not sure what's stopping you."

Kate shot him a brief and teasing withering stare.

"You with the flattery tonight, Castle!" Lanie said. "I don't know where it's coming from, but I think I could get used to it. Mind if I borrow him sometime, Beckett?"

"Yes," Esposito put in, stone-faced.

Beckett laughed. "Sorry Lanie. You might be my best friend, but there are some things I'm not willing to share."

"Then I guess I'll stick with what I've got." She smiled at Esposito flirtatiously and he put his arm around her.

The appetizers came, and then the food, and Beckett found that she'd been right. Although maybe not Castle's definition of perfect, this evening came pretty close to hers. It was fun and it was relaxing. She couldn't remember the last time she'd seen Lanie outside of work, and the group dynamic with the four of them worked really well. They had enough in common that they had things to talk about, but were different enough that there was never a dull moment.

"Alright, phase two!" Castle announced when most of the food was gone and all four were incapable of eating another bite. "Drinks at the Old Haunt. On the house. I heard the owner is a very generous man."

"No, see, then we'd have to get up," Esposito groaned, one elbow resting heavily on the table. "And I really don't see that happening."

Lanie rested her head on Esposito's shoulder in agreement. "I'm game for going out," she clarified, "but can we maybe take a nap first?"

Beckett chose to stay vertical and out of the argument, but she tended to agree with her friends. She could easily fall asleep right here, right now. She looked at Lanie and then at Castle's shoulder. It looked comfortable.

Castle caught her glance and narrowed his eyes. "I'd hate to see you three on Thanksgiving."

"Bro, you don't go to a bar after Thanksgiving dinner," Esposito told him. "You turn on a football game and fall asleep on the couch."

"Well, then it's a good thing this isn't Thanksgiving," Castle said, standing. "Come on, up! And to the Old Haunt! The night is young!"

"How in the world do you have this much energy, Castle?" Beckett asked, standing up a little reluctantly. "You ate at least as much as we did."

"Lots of training," he replied. "And if we're gonna do this again, I recommend you three practice first."

"Oh yeah, practice eating tons of junk. As it is I'm going to have to work out forever to make up for all of this."

"You will not," Castle protested. "You'd look gorgeous no matter what you did."

"So you'd still find me attractive if I was two hundred pounds?" she teased.

"I'd still find you attractive if you were five hundred pounds."

"Okay," Lanie cut in, rolling her eyes. "Would you two stop being cute for a second and help me up? Otherwise we may never get out of here."

Beckett laughed and took one of Lanie's hands and Castle took the other. Together they jerked her out of the booth a little gracelessly, and probably with more strength than she would've liked.

"Whoa," she laughed, "a little insistent there, are we?"

"Hey, I'm up, I don't see much point in hanging around here," Kate said. "You too Esposito, let's go."

"Fine," he mumbled, pulling himself out of the booth. "To the Old Haunt?"

"To the Old Haunt," Castle confirmed.

"I feel like we should toast," Castle announced when they were seated at the bar with their drinks.

"Toast what?" Esposito asked.

"Yeah, come on Castle, you're the eloquent one," Kate reminded him. "Let's hear it."

"Okay, okay." He grinned. Obviously he'd already had something in mind, and had simply been waiting for an invitation. He cleared his throat. "To old friends and new relationships. The familiar and the uncharted."

"Perfect." Beckett raised her glass, and Lanie and Esposito followed suit. They all clinked glasses and sipped their drinks.

"So, I'd say this was a pretty successful outing," Castle said. "Even though everything didn't go quite the way I planned it. What's the verdict? Do we ever want to do it again?"

"Totally," Esposito said. "Lanie?"

"Definitely. Beckett? What do you think?"

She couldn't quite keep herself from grinning. "I think it's been a long time since I've had that much fun."

"So we'll score it as a victory?" Castle asked, now beaming.

"Mark it," Esposito confirmed. "And we'll do it again sometime."

"Great. And next time I'll make sure the reservation holds up."

"Or don't," Lanie suggested with a chuckle. "I liked the way it turned out."

"We could just go with more casual plans from the onset," Castle said. "Less stress for me that way."

"Ah, but the stress for you was part of the fun for us." Lanie smirked.

"You're mean," Beckett accused, hitting her friend's arm gently.

"Hey, admit that it was funny," she shot back.

"You were so mad, bro," Esposito jumped in, laughing. "I thought he was gonna hit that poor hostess girl for a minute. And then when I suggested we change plans I swear I saw my life flash before his eyes."

He rolled his eyes. "I wasn't gonna kill you, but I admit I did consider a little bodily harm…"

"Well, I'm glad you rethought that," Beckett smiled, "because then I would've had to jump in and save your ass, and I'm wearing the wrong shoes for a parking lot brawl."

"As if you wouldn't wear those shoes to work," Castle teased.

"I've never worn these to work," she said, glancing at her shoes to check that she was correct. "No, these aren't work shoes, these are going out shoes."

"What the hell's the difference if they're all eight inches high?" Esposito demanded.

"They're not eight inches… Lanie, a little help here?"

"The higher the heel, the closer to God," she offered.

"How do you argue with that logic?" Castle asked, smiling.

"I will admit," Beckett said, changing the subject back to where it had been, "that I liked it when you told the hostess that my hair was prettier than hers. Where on earth did that come from, may I ask?"

"The deep recesses of my mind," he said. "You'd have had to have been there."

"In the deep recesses of your mind? I'm grateful that I don't have that kind of access."

"As you should be." He sipped his drink.

"Anyway, we should probably be going soon," Beckett said. "It's getting late and we all have to work tomorrow."

"You're right," Lanie agreed. "Maybe I'll see you all tomorrow."

"If we get a new body," Castle said, a little too eagerly.

"It's a little sad that someone has to die in order for me to see my girl at work," Esposito said. "You know?"

Beckett nodded. "But it does tend to happen."

"And fortunately you can see me outside of work with no death whatsoever." Lanie batted her eyelashes dramatically.

"I'm lucky that way." Esposito smiled.

Beckett finished her drink and set the glass down on the bar. "Okay, we're out of here. Ready, Castle?"

Castle finished his as well and stood up. "Ready."

"Night, guys."

"Night."

Castle walked Kate back to her apartment and kissed her goodnight. She could've taken it further, but her internal gauge told her that for tonight, this was enough. So she told him she'd see him tomorrow and then floated into her apartment. Yes, that was exactly the term. Floated.

Maybe the evening hadn't been perfect. Maybe everything hadn't gone as planned. But she wasn't perfect. Castle wasn't perfect. Lanie and Esposito weren't perfect. No one and nothing in her life, or anyone else's, was. Perfection was an unattainable goal, although it was one that everyone tried to strive for.

So no, it hadn't been perfect. But it had been great. Fun. Exactly what she'd hoped it would be. She looked forward to many similar evenings and many different evenings. She just looked forward. For the first time in years, many years, when she pictured her future, she liked what she saw.

She looked at the leather notebook in its customary home on her coffee table. Part of her wanted to write. She wanted to get her good feelings down on paper, to bottle them and save them, to always have them at her fingertips. And Castle was right. Writing was powerful. It could allow her to do just that.

But as she looked at the notebook she remembered the purpose of the project she'd started. It was supposed to help her to remember her mother. To look into the past and keep the memories from fading. Right now, she didn't want to look into the past. Right now, she was happy in the present.

Regardless, she sat down on the couch and absently started flicking through the pages. And in doing so, she remembered another goal she'd had when she'd first started doing this. One that was only her own. One that she hadn't shared with Castle even though it directly related to him. To allow him to get to know her mother, the person she had been. To bring him into her past, and, in a more abstract way, to bring her mother back into her present.

Biting her lip, she picked up her pen. She reminded herself that she was partly doing this for her own reasons. She didn't necessarily need to stick to the same format all the time. She could almost hear Castle saying that writing was about creativity, that she could write whatever she wanted, even if it didn't necessarily make sense. He'd also insisted that this notebook was hers and hers alone, and that he didn't need to see everything she wrote in it. This piece, she was certain, was one that she would keep to herself. But she still wanted to write it. So she opened to a fresh page, took a deep breath, and began a very different kind of entry.

Dear Mom,

So I met this guy...

She crossed that out with a roll of her eyes and started again.

Dear Mom,

I wish you could meet

But that wasn't right either. She thought about her mother and she thought about Castle. She tried to think about what she would actually tell her mom about Castle if she had the opportunity. And she put her pen to the page once again. This time, she would write.

Dear Mom,

Remember how you used to tell me that, one day, I would meet someone who I would want to spend the rest of my life with? Someone who I knew would always be there for me? Someone who I could trust? Someone I was willing to work to understand and to keep around? Someone who would complete me? I think, and for the first time I actually believe, that I might've found him.

I wish you could meet him, because I think you'd really like him. He's… different. Different from anyone else I've ever known. He's fun. He's witty and he's smart, and he knows how to relax and have a good time. But there's another side of him, one that not many people get to know. He really cares about the people in his life. His family, his daughter… he has a daughter… and me.

He's sweet. He really knows me, maybe better than anyone else. He makes me happy. Happier than I think I've ever been. And that's really what it's about, isn't it?

I love you and I miss you every single day. There is nothing I would love more than to introduce Rick to you, and to let you get to know each other. I would love for you to know that for the first time since your death, I'm really happy with my life. I love my job, I love my friends, I love the relationship that I'm in, and I love the way I see my future. I hope that if you could see me, you would be proud.

Love,
Katie

A/N: How'd you like the cotton candy? That's what it was, am I wrong? :)

Some random thoughts about the chapter. Like I do.

I must admit that I love the end. I couldn't stop grinning for quite awhile after I wrote it. Just thinking about it I probably have a really ridiculous smile on my face. And yep, I totally do. Going off the cuff works for me sometimes. I had no idea where this chapter was going or what the writing part was going to be until I got there, but I like the way it turned out.

The rest of the chapter, I'm a little bit iffy about. I like parts of it, but I feel like other parts are a little (or a lot...) rushed (mainly the part at Remy's...) and I couldn't figure out how to fix that, so I ended up leaving it alone. So I know that parts of it probably aren't my best, but it is what it is.

One last completely random, all-me observation that probably only a few of you will get. I didn't completely realize it until I'd finished writing, but I really feel like parts of this chapter are a serious nod to my Gilmore Girls background. (Yes, you can have a Gilmore Girls background. And I do. It's how I started writing in the first place.) I noticed it the most when Castle started talking about training to eat lots of junk food... granted, I think it's in-character for him or I wouldn't have written it, but it's also quite Gilmore Girls-esque. And then there's just the fact that every time I write a lot of banter, especially when it's between more than two characters, let's face it, I know where I learned how to write it. :)

I quite enjoy reviews. Have I mentioned that lately? :P