A/N: So, the last chapter. I'm sorry if you don't like the way it ends, but I'm still working out exactly the way that I'd like Jane and Lisbon to end up show-wise, so this was the best way for me to reconcile with that. Thanks for staying with me the whole way, and if you've got suggestions for me to write in the future, I'd be happy to take some. P.S. I snuck in a quote from an obscure sci-fi show here that Zooey Deschanel starred in. Whoever catches it gets a huzzah.

Disclaimer: I do not own the Mentalist; that lucky boy Bruno Heller does, but at least my name isn't that of my friend's St. Bernard.

Lisbon awoke to the feeling of being watched, and as she sharpened her peripheral vision she realized that she was correct: the ever vigilant sleepless Jane, who was sitting in a chair about five feet away.

"How are you?" he asked. She gave him a pointed, I've-been-shot-what-do-you-think look, and he smiled. "Sorry. Force of habit."

"Not too bad." She tried to pull herself into a sitting up position, and gasped as pain lanced through her stomach. He was at her side in an instant, looking her over carefully. "Nix that," she groaned as he rang for the nurse.

After a quick test to see if she was healing normally, the nurse gave Lisbon some moderate pain medication and left, promising to check back later once she had numbed. Jane and Lisbon began talking about the case, and it was a good while before she remembered something.

"You said that there was one trigger that didn't really have to do with the case…but that would be helpful for me to remember."

She could see him swallow - was that nervousness? - before making a gesture for her to turn over. Seeing as a good percentage of her body was numb by now, this was slightly difficult but not too painful.

"Close your eyes." He murmured, and began massaging her back. Lisbon sighed, and he let her enjoy the feeling for a few moments before activating the trigger by pressing hard against her lower back and the space between her shoulder blades.

They were in her apartment, and Lisbon could hear the afterthoughts of her telling him just how much she wanted him…Lisbon cringed as she realized just how little clothing she was actually wearing, which would be practically none. She had missed something, but suddenly it wasn't important, as, without warning, Memory Jane slammed her back into the wall. She gasped from the pain, but he muffled her by capturing her lips in a kiss that would throw even Teresa Lisbon off her game.

"Why don't I give you a massage?" he purred, leading her towards her bed as he kissed her neck. She didn't reply. Couldn't, as a matter of fact; she was so ecstatic that he was finally giving in that she was taking complete notice of every sensation in her body, not daring to distract herself with words. As they reached the bedside, he picked her up and laid her face down and began massaging her lower back, then upper, then shoulders, and finally her neck.

"Oh, Patrick…Patrick that feels so good…" she moaned, reveling in the firm but gentle pressure of his strong hands on her back. She could hear that he was completely silent for a moment. When he continued, his voice was a little shaky at first, and then gradually grew smoother and softer.

"Listen to me, Lisbon…listen to my voice…can you hear me?"

"Don't call me that…" she murmured. Turns out snappy comebacks can't be blotted out. Take that, Nemosyne.

"Teresa…just listen to my voice…I only ask one thing of you: for you to just sink into the feeling of relaxation spreading through you. It makes you happy, doesn't it? To be this relaxed?"

"To be…you…relaxed…yes." She replied quietly, feeling herself stumble over the words as her mind struggled, the drug still in her system. She felt Jane's hands twitch, but then they pressed harder until she sighed, and he continued.

"Teresa, when you wake up tomorrow, you'll remember everything that happened tonight. You'll remember everything that Geoffrey Harrison said to you, you'll remember the fight in the parking lot, and you'll even remember-" he stumbled over the words, "trying to seduce me. You'll remember that nothing happened. But only if you want to. Only if you want to, do you understand? If you don't want this to ever happen again, then you don't have to remember. It can just fly away, like a little butterfly, into the back of your mind. And you can always trust me. Always, you know that, right?"

"Really?" She had heard that before, from her father, and it made her bristle and grit her teeth.

"Yes, Teresa, you can always trust me. Just relax." He was massaging her jaw now, and Lisbon could feel all the tension release. But his hands on her face, almost on her lips…it reminded her how badly she wanted him to kiss her, to hold her, to completely overpower her and captivate her…she felt herself waking up, becoming more alert; Lisbon knew that the drug was messing with her concentration.

"Patrick, you promised we were going to-" she felt herself saying anxiously.

"Ah, ah, ah, Teresa, don't put words in my mouth. I promised no such thing."

Lisbon tried to stand, angry, but Memory Jane wouldn't let her. He laid one hand on the small of her back and the other between her shoulder blades, rubbing in circles on each spot.

"Then promise this: don't you dare be gone when I wake up. If you're not here with me come morning, I'll shoot you." She said, settling back into the trance from the rhythmic motions of Jane's hands.

"I promise. Deep breath, Teresa." He said, pressing down hard as she did so, hearing her back crack and the tension knotting her spine release. She sighed contentedly. "That's it."

Lisbon was shocked as the memory ended. So when she had all but chased Jane out of her apartment…he was just keeping a promise! Immediately racked with guilt, she tried to sit up, tried to start apologizing.

"Lisbon…just let me talk to you for a minute, okay?"

Lisbon stopped moving, just laid there and enjoyed the feel of his hands, still resting on her back.

"It's all well and good, remembering and all, I mean, but…I can make you forget it all again. In a heartbeat. I want to go back to the way we were before, so we can both do our jobs. Because knowing everything you said…" he faltered. Was he making any sense? Don't second guess; solder on. "I never want to be a burden to you. I never want to be the reason that you maybe can't do your job. I want to help you, not hinder you. And if these memories-"

"Jane."

He stopped. Lisbon sat up, looking into his eyes with a smile…no, a smirk on her face. And then she started laughing. Jane was puzzled. Was she laughing…at him?

"Jane, I care about you. A lot. I've proved it." She gestured to her wound. "But I'm no giddy, wide-eyed girl skipping down a yellow brick road looking for all of life's answers. I'm content with being close to you. As co-workers, and as friends. The way we work…that's all we can be, for now. And after all, in the scope of things, this was just another case that took a slightly more…unconventional turn."

Jane hid his relief. Sure, he'd love to have her all to himself…but he wasn't ready for that yet. And neither was she. So, back to the good old days, then. That was just fine. Better than fine. It was perfect. Well, almost.

"If by 'unconventional' you mean 'drugged senior agent trying to seduce the pants off her consultant', then, yeah, unconventional, by all means."

Lisbon blushed and glared, throwing a punch at his shoulder which he dodged easily. So she'd manage to cover up the fact that what she wanted most in the world was a ring on each of their left hands. Well, that was a dream for another day. For now, the man she found herself closer to than a coworker or a friend had to avenge his family and forgive himself for what happened. Maybe after that…Jane knocked on the side of her head teasingly, but then backed up just far enough that she couldn't reach him to retaliate.

When Rigsby, Van Pelt, and Cho entered, Lisbon and Jane were bantering as usual. As if nothing had happened between them. In fact, to those three, nothing had. To those three, all that had happened was a freak drug used against their boss. And that would be enough. Rigsby crossed his arms, and the manta ray on his muscle could be seen swimming through his sleeve. Jane smiled, and looked at the tattoo again, realizing how ironic it was that the best option here had been with him all along: just keep swimming.