A/N:) Yes, I know. It's been far far too long. And, totally loving the finale's title (they so got that from me :P) even if it didn't live up to my expectations. Anway, here's the third last chapter - the other two will be up soon because I have a lot of spare time after my exams, and I have most of it written up somewhere and a really good idea of where. Enjoy, and remember to review, to tell me what you think!

-Seven x x

The Why

I don't know what it was which had possessed me to invite Jane along to the party. Maybe it was so simple that I believed he still deserved justice, even if he had to settle for my version as supposed to his.

"Mr. Zelphino, my name is Patrick Jane." Twenty seconds in and he broke the most important rule. I could tell that things would go downhill from here. Again - why the hell did I think that this was a good idea? "But you already know that, don't you?" Zelphino smiled at Jane pleasantly, and I could sense the anger beneath Jane's cool exterior, but he reigned it well. I would have been impressed had I not been busy scheming on how to get everyone out of the room alive.

"Yes, I believe that you were on the news, a good while back. Your story hit me hard. You wife had been killed, if I remember correctly." Jane kept an impressively even keel, as he knew that Zelphino was merely trying to provoke him. "And your little girl... what was she... six?"

Leaning forwards, I fully intended on taking control of the interview, but Jane's foot knocking against mine shut me up. I did not know whether I was playing right into Jane's hands, or if he was playing right into mine. I knew from the moment I offered him this opportunity, that he would bring something out in Zelphino that I alone would not be able to, or Cho, or Rigsby, or Van Pelt. Nevertheless, hearing the way that Zelphino was talking, I was now torn between breaking neither man, ot breaking both.

"Zelphino, we have forensic evidence linking you to all sixteen of Red John's murders. There is undeniable proof that you planned them and Penny Lachney, executed them, but I'm not here to talk about that." I watched the two men closely, seeing nothing and everything as they locked eyes, battling for the upper hand. "I just have one question: why draw that face?"

Zelphino blinked. The least he had expected of Jane was a guilt trip, or perhaps some mind tricks to make him admit he had killed those people. Which he had, and there was no longer any point in denying. He still had a card to play, and he held it up his sleeve at the ready as he stared Jane out, brown - almost black - eyes to blue.

It was a simple question. A blunt question. Not about his motivations, or his morality, merely a question which had been bothering him. Every night Jane had slept - or tried to - with that face watching over him, and every night - if he slept - it was in his dreams, laughing at him.

"I understand the name. Red John. It wasn't just to show that you were the average guy; that we could never find you in a country of billions. It was your version of an inside joke. But the face? That, I don't understand." Zelphino's smirk - which was the only expression he had worn thus far in - had faded, and had been replaced with an expression of shocked realization.

"You never knew?" He asked, almost incredulous that what he saw as so glaringly obvious had been overlooked. "I thought that you of all people would understand."

"Me, of all people?" Understand what?

"My message was that I was never Red John, Patrick, I was just the man who did Red John's bidding." Jane seemed almost angry at the almost friendly use of his given name, but once more he hid it well."You were wrong about the name, Patrick. Red John was everyone - a man that you will never find in a country of billions because he was never the same person twice. The only thing that these men-"

"Your contractors-" Jane corrected coldly, but Zelphino continued all the same.

"The only thing that they have in common is that they are the face. They are the face on the wall who watches as the people they yearned to hurt inflict pain on the people around them, even after their death, or who smiles down on their defeated enemy."

"You are Red John. You killed those people." I said, struggling to understand a twisted man's logic.

"I killed those people, Agent Lisbon." The murderer turned back to Jane. "But Red John was Michael Falcon. Red John was the man who had your wife and daughter killed." Jane and Zelphino held out, each staring the other down, their eyes watering, both adamant to win the simple staring competition.

"John Zelphino, you are entitled to a lawyer. If you cannot afford one, one will be appointed to you. One of my agents will return shortly to state your accusations, and the evidence which we have against you."

"I know my crimes, Lisbon." Zelphino cut in, hastily. "Leave me and Patrick be, he wishes to ask me about his real Red John." I could see that he was baiting Jane, twisting him into asking him about the contractor who had ordered his wife and child dead, and no doubt into making a deal. He stood, suddenly, and I froze, unsure whether I would have to leap on Jane to stop him from leaping on Zelphino. But, much to my - and from the looks of it, Zelphino's - surprise, he merely smiled pleasantly.

"Actually, John, you and I have absolutely nothing to talk about." Jane chirped, and he sounded far too pleased with himself. "Now that you've answered my question, I will leave you in the capable hands of Agent Lisbon here."

"I can tell you the name of all of my clients." Zelphino jumped out with, though it was too quick. He was losing us, and he knew it, and he was going to say anything that we wanted him to, just to try and make his deals. Good luck with that, John.

"Listen to me, asshole." Kicking Jane's chair beneath the table with the air of someone no one wants to mess with, I leaned forwards onto the table. I was rather pleased to see that there was surprised and a tiny bit of fear in Zelphino's eyes. "I don't make deals with murderers." Jane seemed happy with my choice of words, if a little disturbed about the animosity of their deliverance.

"Your consultant will never know the Red John who killed his family." Zelphino sang, and his self-important crap, which had come back, was really starting to grate on my nerves. I felt silence behind me but I knew I would be admitting defeat if I looked around, signaling to Zelphino that he was in control. Would Jane really strike a deal with Zelphino, if it meant learning who had really killed his family?

"John, I'm disappointed in you." Jane finally broke his silence. "I thought that you'd have something better than that to convince me to stay." Zelphino's look could only be described as a glare, as Jane let out a tiny humorless chuckle. "You really think I'd fall for a contractor being the one to pay you money? We have tabs on all of your bank accounts, John. We know when payments are made and we can construct the why from the evidence you left behind. But you don't have a payment for my family." Jane rounded the room, standing behind Zelphino now as I stared him in the face, ignoring Cho's warning in my ear about Jane's proximity to the suspect. I guess I must trust him more than I thought.

"I do. It was in cash." Zelphino lied through his teeth - even I could tell, and I was no mentalist.

"No, what you did was personal." I joined in, earning myself a slight glance from Jane telling me that I was on the right track.

"I pissed you off, so you thought that you would destroy me." Jane came closer up behind Zelphino, even though his eyes never left mine. "And you know what, for three years, you did." It was wrong how proud his admission made Zelphino look. "But then I was able to pick myself up and make something of what was left of my life. And if I hadn't, we would not have known that you were responsible for the Red John murders."

"Karma, huh?" Zelphino joked nastily, and Jane leaned down, whispering something in his ear that even I could not hear. But Zelphino heard it, loud and clear, because his eyes widened slightly, no matter how hard he tried to control his emotions. Shooting Jane my best warning glare, he rounded the table, and stood once more beside me. Zelphino was silent, still dwelling on whatever Jane had said to him.

"One of my colleagues will be in shortly to help you with your legal needs." Even though I knew that the man had rights to a legal team, that didn't mean that I was happy about it. In my opinion, this man waived his rights the moment that he killed someone. Nodding to the window, to signal that it was Cho's time to shine, I started to walk away, holding the door open for Jane, who was oddly relieved to be out of the room.

I turned to him, once outside, and tried to keep my tone as snippy as possible.

"What the hell were you playing at in there? There were rules, Jane, and you disobeyed every single one of them." The smile on his face did not falter, and he stared at me happily through his blue eyes, which seemed clearer than before, as if the shadows behind them had left. "Jane, this isn't funny."

I am what some people would call an exemplary agent. I have a clean record, a long respectable record, and a commendation. I have reflexes faster than a cat on speed, but I still was unable to dodge as Jane pulled me into a full hug, so tight that my arms stuck out awkwardly in separate directions. Cho, smirked slightly as he walked past, and I shot him a glare before he disappeared into the interrogation room which we had just left.

"What was that for?" I spluttered, embarrassed as the agents all down the hallway raised their eyebrows at the exchange. Jane, as usual, just kept on smiling.

"For showing me what I really want. For years, Lisbon, years, I have wanted nothing more than revenge on that man. I didn't care about anyone except him, because he was the one who destroyed everything that I before cared about. I became obsessed. Then I met you. I know that I won't be ready for all the lovey dovey stuff that couples do, just yet, but I'm pretty sure that you've never been the lovey dovey sort." I nodded in confirmation, trying hard not to smile as I blushed furiously.

"Jane, what did you say to him in there?" I asked, not able to hold back my curiosity. Jane did not seem surprised that the question was coming, though Jane was never really surprised about anything.

"I might tell you some day." He procrastinated, strolling along the corridor with his hands in his pockets, with the air of a man who had all the time in the world.

"Why don't you tell me today?" I asked, matching him with my stride, and Jane sighed.

"I told him that I don't care about him anymore." I raised my eyebrows.

"And that's what made him go pale and hold the table so tight his hands went white?" I asked, critically, but Jane turned to me once more, nothing but truth in his big blue eyes. I noticed that we had somehow arrived at my office door, and I opened it, holding it open until he realized that I wanted him to come inside with me.

"He's spent months of his life making mine torture. While I was obsessed with finding him, he was obsessed with destroying me, every time that I thought I was making progress, he would show me that once more I was merely his puppet. That he was all I really cared about. That's all he cared about; he wanted the control and he wanted to watch me suffer as I disintegrated." Sitting down in my chair, he clasped his hands in his lap. "What might seem like a petty and childish comment to you, means the world to him."

"I think I understand." I sighed, and leaned against my desk, trying to frown at him, but being far too tired to do it with any real conviction. "You're in my chair, Jane." The smile was back, and I felt a small fluttering in my chest, as I had a brief flashback to when we had kissed.

"So?"

"So move." Jane looked like he was considering this for a moment, then grinned again.

"Make me." I rolled my eyes and rounded the desk, so we were facing each other, with nothing in our way. Inching forwards, I made no movement to actually touch him, so he leaned forwards, meeting me halfway. Jane took my hand, running his hands over the very unattractive scabs and scarred skin which had formed over the wounds which my Midnight Postman had inflicted. I had taken the bandages off, and he seemed contemplative.

"I guess we need to talk about that then." I sighed, not wanting to get involved in another investigation, so soon after the joy of catching Red John. Jane looked up at me, and his expression was worried.

"No talking, just promise that you'll get this taken care of. I can' t lose you now, Lisbon." That would mean that he'd lost everything. Red John, his wife, his child... he wouldn't be able to handle that.

"Jane," I began, taking my hand from his grip and glancing around my office at the pulled blinds, before walking straight up over him, as he leaned back in my chair. "the only reason that I didn't make this known was because I didn't want it interfering with the Red John case. Now, I have no qualms in calling this in." Jane smiled, almost proudly, before letting his eyes rove slightly over my body, which he realized was very, very close above his.

"What else do you have no qualms about?" He asked, cockily, and I raised my eyebrows, wondering if he was implying what I thought that he was implying.

"Mr. Jane, are you propositioning me?" I asked, pushing myself even closer to him, and his hands rose to my hips, a slightly hungry look flashing across his deepening eyes as he played with the material of my shirt.

"Miss Lisbon, whatever gives you that idea?" He replied, the playfulness in my tone causing him to shiver slightly. A woman hadn't made him feel like I did now, not for over six years. "I was merely asking a question!" And that smile... try as he might, he could never get the image of my face out of his head.

The look on his face told me so.

I was the only thing that had ever been able to force Red John's face to the back of his mind. The only thing which could make him forget.

Stretching slightly uncomfortably, but not caring, he caught my mouth under his, and I lowered herself onto his lap, melting into his frame. No. He didn't care about Red John. He was gone - his mystery was solved. The puzzle was complete and now it was going to be taped up in a box and left in the attic. Always accessable, when needed, but decidedly distant all the same.

Jane mumbled something suspiciously like 'Elephant juice' into my mouth.