As Beckett said she "believes in the everyday magic of life in … the way that I feel when I hear Coltrane", this is from his album "The Last Trane". These vignettes come to mind when I hear the songs as played by John Coltrane.

This song is "Come Rain or Come Shine". Officially this was when Coltrane was a sideman for Donald Byrd but this was relabeled to capitalize on Coltrane's fame. You can hear the song as played by Coltrane, Donald Byrd, Red Garland, Paul Chambers and Louis Hayes on YouTube.

watch?v=71NoqZTjLI0

This song is by Harold Arlen and Johnny Mercer. A version of it being played by Wynton Marsalis and sung by Nora Jones is also on YouTube.

watch?v=MCj96k1A95g

Disclaimer: The characters are the property of Andrew W. Marlowe and ABC television. The lyrics are the property of their respective owners. No infringement is intended.

Transcriptions from scriptline dot livejournal dot com.

I'm gonna love you like nobody's loved you

Come rain or come shine

High as a mountain and deep as a river

Come rain or come shine

A/N: 4x20 The Limey

Kate pours two glasses of wine and hands one to her friend.

Kate says, "I'm telling you. Something happened. Something changed. It's been weird between us lately."

Lanie looks at her friend as if this shouldn't be a great revelation. "Lately?" Lanie says, pausing. "Kate, it's been weird for 4 years."

"No, this is different," Beckett says waving her arms as if to make a point. "He's different. It's like he's pulling away."

Lanie looks her friend in the eye and responds, "Well, can you blame him? He's probably tired of waiting."

Lanie takes a sip of her wine. Beckett pauses at her friend's observation and then tries to play it off.

"Waiting?" Kate asks. "Waiting for what?"

She tries to give Lanie an innocent look but Lanie is having none of it.

"What do you think? The guy is crazy about you. And despite your little act, you're crazy about him." Beckett glares at her friend. "Oh, what? Was that supposed to be some big secret?"

Beckett walks around her counter trying to be nonchalant, saying unconvincingly, "Yes."

Lanie glares at her friend disbelievingly.

"No," Beckett says as she sits at the bar next to Lanie. Then she lowers her voice. "Do you think he knows?"

Lanie smiles and says, "Do you remember how he used to be? Girl on either arm? You really don't see that guy too much anymore. Why do you think that is?"

Lanie pauses as Beckett bites her lip but doesn't respond. Lanie points at her friend. "He's waiting for you."

Beckett is still silent but she allows herself a small smile at Lanie's statement. Lanie gives her another pointed look.

"Yeah, but Lanie …"

"I know," Lanie says cutting Kate off. "You're dealing with stuff. But you cannot ask him to wait forever. Unless, of course, you're okay with him pulling away."

Beckett trying to convince herself, "What if it doesn't work? What if it ends up like you and Javi?"

"Well at least we gave it a shot," Lanie shrugs. "And so it didn't work out. So what? Now we can move on, give or take the occasional booty call."

Beckett smirking continues, "I just – I don't want to lose what we have, you know?"

A frustrated Lanie says, "Girl, please. What exactly do you have, really?"

Beckett pauses and thinks for a second. "A friendship."

"No. What you and I have is a friendship. What you and Castle have is a holding pattern. How long can you circle before the fuel runs out?"

Rick Castle stared at the blinking cursor on his laptop. It was taunting him. He needed to write. Gina was breathing down his neck for the outline for his next "Nikki Heat" book. He had hardly finished the last one before she was pushing him for the next one.

"Rick, you need to keep pumping these out," Gina said. "Your fans are voracious. They want a new one almost as soon as the last one is finished."

"Who do you think I am?" Rick asked. "Patterson? I can't pump them out like a factory! I'm not that kind of writer. I just can't write that way."

"Rick, you need to start thinking that way. You never know when your muse will leave you. Remember how you were before you met Detective Beckett? I know you know Martha told me what was going on. Being like Hugh Hefner in PJs all day but without the centerfolds. Come on Rick, let's ride this horse for a while longer, okay?"

"Okay."

So there he sits, staring at the screen. He leaves his laptop with the mocking cursor to pour himself a drink.

"I really thought we were getting somewhere," Castle thinks to himself looking at the latest book cover art for 'Nikki Heat'.

Then he remembered their confrontation in her apartment a year ago.

Castle turns to her, "No, you know what? I don't know what we are. We kiss, and then we never talk about it. We nearly die, frozen in each other's arms, but we never talk about it. So no, I've got no clue what we are. I know I don't want to see you throw your life away!"

Beckett responds angrily, "Yeah well last time I checked, it was my life, not your personal jungle gym. And for the past three years I've been running around with the school's funniest kid. And it's not enough."

"The school's funniest kid," he thinks. "That's all she thinks of me, still, after all we've been through, the school's funniest kid."

During that dirty bomb case, when she said in the decontamination tent, "I want them to be there for me and I can be there for them and we can dive in together." He had hoped that she would want to dive in with him, but now, he's sure it's not going to be.

He pours himself two fingers of Jameson's and takes a sip.

"Maybe," Rick thinks. "Maybe I should call Smith up and tell him I can't do it anymore. She just won't listen to me. But that is consigning her to death by that unknown person."

He pulls up his phone and looks at his favorite contacts. The top one is Kate Beckett.

Looking away, he sighs then thinks, "Suck it up, Rick. You know that even if she doesn't love you, you love her. And you can't live in a world without Kate Beckett in it. You have to try to protect her from the man behind all of this."

Standing up looking out the window of his office he comes to a conclusion.

"Even if you can't turn it off," he thinks. "You still need some contact with her. Be there for her but wean yourself from her. Love her from afar. And then tell her about Smith. Try to make her understand. You know that she'll be furious and maybe that will make a clean break, but you have to tell her sometime. And soon."

A/N: 4x21: Headhunters

As Kate Beckett entered the morgue to see her friend, medical examiner Lanie Parrish, Lanie looked up and said, "Where's your shadow?"

Beckett looked at her exasperated. "I haven't seen much of him since the motel murder that he showed up to with that, that flight attendant. I think suddenly he's grown tired of following me. He was really cold the last time I called him. He's said he's too busy. It's almost like he's found himself something or someone new to do."

"Kate," Lanie persists. "You know that I'm pulling for you two. Up until a couple of weeks ago I could see all the eye sex going on between you two. At times I'd thought you'd spontaneously combust."

"Lanie," Kate responds looking down at her feet. "He's pulling away even more. He says everything is okay but I can tell it's not. He's following that Detective Slaughter now being an idiot."

"You and I both know there is more to any story. Castle taught us that. Slaughter is that bad boy cop, isn't he? When you first met Castle was an apparent bad boy. Why did he appear to be a 'bad boy', hmm? Was it to keep his name in the papers to sell books? Why is he doing it now? Is it because you're preparing for a trial or is it something else?"

"Well …" Kate counters, "You should have seen him when I picked him up at his 'Derrick Storm' book launch party. Signing women's chests right and left."

Lanie glares at Beckett.

Lanie says to her best friend, "He raises an amazing daughter by himself. He puts his mother up in his bachelor pad without question after she is broke."

Beckett looks surprised that her friend knew this.

Lanie sees the surprise on her friend's face. "Alexis being an intern has been a blessing and not only because she's a hard worker. She has told me things. Anyway, he seems to have a reasonably good relationship with his ex-wives, and still works with one of them. He's surrounded by women who seem to appreciate if not adore him."

Becket shrugs and says, "Are you talking about Martha and Alexis or are you talking about his groupies?"

Lanie frowns, "Here's a man who grew up poor with a single mother. An actress single mother. He saw the sexism in the way his mother was treated."

Kate looks at her questioning.

"More Alexis."

"Oh."

"He worked hard at his writing to earn a good amount of money, but from all accounts, he knows and remembers where he came from. He doesn't flaunt his money. At least around the precinct."

"Yeah, but …"

Lanie is having none of Beckett's arguments. "What, he started following you around about 4 years ago? He barely knows you, following you around for what about 2 months or so? He spends somewhere around 5K for that gorgeous red dress …"

Beckett glares at her interrupting, "Now wait a minute."

"You very well know how much that dress cost. It wasn't any cheap dress with all that detail work on it."

"Come on, Lanie."

"Like I said, He spends about 5 or 10 thousand for that dress and entry into that dance theater fundraiser so you could solve a case?"

"Yeah, well …"

"Kate." Lanie's on a roll. "A year later, he drops $100,000 without question on a chance to find your mother's killer, and you wonder where his heart is?"

"He was invest…"

"He writes three books based on you and dedicates two of them to you. And you question his feelings?"

"But …"

Lanie continues, "Castle runs into a burning building to save your lily white ass, and you wonder if he loves you?"

"Now Lanie …"

Lanie interrupts, "Oh, please. Don't you 'Now Lanie' me, girlfriend. Man! If I had a man that did that much for me, I wouldn't be here talking to my girlfriend wondering if he cares for me like some love sick teen. I'd be getting my freak on with that man as soon as I could."

"Well, that's not me," Kate answers.

Over the intercom there was an announcement, "Dr. Parrish, Line 2. A Dr. Hawthorne is on the line."

"I know that isn't you, Kate, but maybe it should be," Lanie says touching her on her arm. "Anyway, sorry Kate, Dr. Hawthorne may have something on another case I'm working so I really need to take this call."

"Okay, Lanie." Kate backs off. "I'll let you go. Hope you get something useful from this."

"Yeah. Me, too. I'll meet you at your place? 7? I'll bring a red. Okay?"

"Sure, Lanie," Beckett smiles. "I'll talk with you then."

I guess when you met me,

it was just one of those things

But don't you ever bet me,

'cause I'm gonna be true if you let me

5x22 Still

Finally it was over. Castle and Beckett wandered over to Javi's car, lights flashing. They rested there only a moment before Captain Gates came back to the pair.

"Mr. Castle, Detective Beckett," Gates said addressing the pair.

"Sir?" They say simultaneously.

"Both of you need to be checked out by the EMTs. No arguments, standard procedure. If, and I emphasize if, the EMTs release you then I want you to go home and rest. I don't want you in until after noon tomorrow. Ryan and Esposito can handle the paperwork until you get back."

"Yes, sir."

The pair turn to walk to the waiting ambulances where they'll be examined.

"And Mr. Castle."

Castle turns back and looks at the Captain.

"Please draw a nice bath and a glass of wine for Detective Beckett. I believe she needs and deserves that, don't you?"

"Yes, sir." Castle says enthusiastically.

The pair walks toward the ambulances hand-in-hand.

It had been a physically and emotionally trying day. Beckett being stuck on top of the bomb, Castle feeling impotent for most of the day unable to save her until the last moment.

He felt impotent again when she started sobbing in the cab as they made their way to the loft. The adrenaline had worn off and the reality of almost dying in a massive explosion taking Castle with her overwhelmed Kate. He held her tightly as they rode in the cab, Beckett shaking from her sobs.

Once they arrived at the loft, her sobbing stopped. Her red eyes and mascara on her cheeks still showing the evidence of her crying. His shirt was also showing with wet spots and black marks. Eduardo purposely did not look at Kate only saying, "Good afternoon Mr. Castle, Detective Beckett."

The elevator arrived and carried them to the loft's floor.

Unlocking the door, Castle half carries Beckett into the loft apartment and sets her on the couch.

"Castle," Beckett says halfheartedly. "I can walk myself. I only said my legs were sore 'cause I stood still for so long."

"I know, Beckett. I just want to help."

Castle sits down beside her on the couch and wraps his arms around her.

She puts her arms around his neck, kisses him, then says, "You did more than help me, Castle. You saved me."

"Again," Castle teased trying to cheer her up after the emotions of the day.

Smiling, understanding what he is doing, she looks then at him incredulously. "Are you starting up with that again? How many times we've saved each other's lives? Really?"

"Well, by my count that makes the 12th time I've saved your life," Castle teased.

"12? Okay you said 9 after the New Amsterdam Bank case. What are the other two?"

"Well," Castle pondered. "There was the time that I shot out your seat belt when your cruiser was rammed into the river."

"Okay," Beckett said. "I'll grant you that one."

"I yanked you out of the way of the bomb blast that Smith left, killing Mattox."

"Okay, I suppose you're right about that one."

"And this last one. Keeping your spirits up. And figuring out the disarm code."

Kissing him, she teases, "Is that one or two?"

He pulls her into his lap on the couch, "Does it matter? You're here with me. That's all that counts."

You're gonna love me like nobody's loved me

Come rain or come shine

We'll be happy together, unhappy together

Now won't that be just fine?

A/N: 6x15 Room 147

Rick hugged his daughter for a long time and then released her, kissing her forehead.

"Is there anything I can help you with?" Rick said to Alexis. "Did you bring anything else?"

"No, dad," Alexis answers. "This bag is it. I'll get the rest of it over the next several days."

"I'll help," Rick says grabbing his daughter and hugging her again.

"I know, dad. Thanks."

"You hungry, thirsty?"

"No, dad. I'll just go to my room."

"That sounds great, Pumpkin. I'm glad you're home."

"Me, too, dad."

Alexis climbed the stairs to her room, Rick overjoyed that she was back living with them gently clapped his hands once. He then turned and smiled at Kate.

Beaming, he said, "Thanks, Kate."

"For what?"

"I'm pretty positive you talked with Alexis," Castle answered. "I'm not angry in the least. I'm very happy you did."

Beckett got up out of the couch and hugged him. "I was worried that the reason she wouldn't come back was because of me. I didn't want her to feel she couldn't come home. I would never get between you and your daughter."

Kissing her he says, "Thanks. I hope I never have to choose between the two of you. That'll be the death of me."

Kate smiled then hugged him. Being barefoot made it easy to hug him and put her head on his chest.

"I wasn't' going to be one of those horror stories," Beckett continued. "One of those wives who hate the husband's previous relationship kids. It ends up with everyone being unhappy and eventually breaks relationships. Or worse yet, leaves the wife angry and alone after the husband dies because his now grown kids want nothing to do with her."

"I know you wouldn't be," Castle answers. "Kate, this is overwhelming to me. By doing this, you've demonstrated farther than any words can express how much you love me. It leaves me humbled, that an extraordinary woman like you can love me that much."

Kate kisses Rick and says, "I do. I do love you, Rick. It took me a long time to acknowledge it, but I do. And I'm so happy for it."

Wrapping his arms around her waist he says, "I am, too."

The days may be cloudy or sunny

We're in or we're out of the money

But I'm with you always

I'm with you rain or shine

A/N: Sometime in the future

A black clad figure slowly walks through the graveyard. Her cane and grey hair the only indication of her age, her figure would still be considered youthful. The crunch of the gravel walkway and the singing of the birds was the only sound. The sun is shining brightly through the canopy of the trees. It is a beautiful spring day.

"The green grass would feel good between my toes," she thinks.

The figure stops in front two markers side-by-side, both in large letters saying 'Beckett'.

"Hi mom," she says. "Hi dad. It's Katie."

Kate puts her hands on the two gravestones willing her feelings through the cold stone to her parents' remains.

"Alexis sends her love to you both. Her daughter-in-law gave birth a few weeks ago. She's a grandmother again. That makes 4, 2 from each of her kids. Of course, that makes me a great-grandmother again, too. Hard to believe, huh?"

She turns to look at the almost clear sky. A few puffy clouds dot the sky. She closes her eyes and turns to the sun, warming her face.

Looking back at the pair of gravestones, she continues. "6 pounds, 7 ounces. A baby girl. They named her Martha. Not a currently 'flavor of the month' name. But in honor of Castle's mother."

She wipes a tear from the corner of her eye.

"Dad can tell you about her mom. I know you'd have loved her. She was a fine lady. I seem to remember you telling me of a play you saw her in."

The leaves around the gravesite rustle in the light breeze as if answering her 'Yes, I remember.'

"Lily is doing well. She also sends her love. She's finishing up her residency looking for a full time position. She really likes children, that's why she became a pediatrician. She told me that since she can't have any of her own, she'll make sure someone else's is well taken care of."

She wipes another tear from the corner of her eye.

"Reese is has his MBA. He quit his old job and went back to school. He's been interning at a medium sized company I'd never heard of until he started there. He's got a job offer from them as soon as he graduates. The bad thing about that is that he's moving to Dallas. He's used to the summers there so I guess he'll acclimate but I'll still miss my baby boy and grandchildren."

She wipes another tear from her eyes. Holding back on sobbing in front of the marker.

"Jake is moving up the corporate ladder at a start-up company. He became a computer whiz. He can almost make it sing with what he does with it. I can't understand any of it but he makes good money."

She pauses, snuffing her nose.

"He's getting married next year. I like her. But she's a lot like me I'm afraid. Headstrong. Stubborn. Yeah mom, I can hear you saying it, too. Just like 'Rebel Becks.' He still gets to see his children, that's a good thing. And his fiancée loves them too, which makes me glad. I didn't like his first wife. She's just an angry person. I never knew what Jake saw in her. But now she's someone else's angry wife."

She puts her hand on the gravestones.

"You're probably wondering why I … why I'm here today all dressed in black," Kate says as she starts to sob.

She looks away trying to control herself to continue.

"Oh mom!" She cried. "I buried Rick today."

She started to weep openly. Her sobs shook her body and she dropped down to her knees in front of the stones.

"Oh mom, I feel so lost without him." She says to the stone.

She starts crying more and the sobs continue to wrack her body.

She hears a voice in the distance call, "Nicki! Nicki!"

Just then a black Labrador comes and starts to lick her face. She starts to tearfully laugh as the dog continues to wag its tail so hard it is shaking the rest of its body.

Running, her owner comes up and says, "Nicki, did you knock this poor woman down? But, I see you've made a new friend. I hope she isn't been bothering you, ma'am."

Petting the dog's head Beckett turns to Nikki's owner and says, "No, she's an angel."

"Let me help you up," the dog's owner says.

"Thank you."

"Oh, you're Senator Beckett. Oh, I am so sorry for Nikki interrupting. And I am so sorry for your loss." Nikki's owner says.

Hugging the dog and then standing up with help from the dog's owner, she responds, "Thank you."

"I heard Mr. Castle had passed. Was today the burial?"

"Yes. It was."

"I hope the city honored him properly, with all the both of you had done for the city and the country for that matter. I read those articles in The Ledger some years ago. The obituary in The Ledger the other day repeated the highlights of them."

"Thank you. Yes, he was buried with full NYPD honors. The Secretary of Homeland Security and the Director of the FBI were at the funeral service in Manhattan but we had a quieter burial here."

"I'm glad. You both deserved that at least. Did I hear that he wrote 2 new books?"

"Mmhmm," Kate nodded. "He finished the final edits a few weeks ago. They should be out in a month or so."

"I'm looking forward to them," Nikki's owner said. "I always liked 'Nikki Heat'." Pointing to the dog, "That's who she's named after."

"Rick would be pleased."

"Thank you," Nikki's owner said with emphasis on the 'you.' "Well, I just be going. It was nice meeting you, Senator. And again, I'm sorry for your loss."

"Thank you." Beckett says.

The owner turns, pulling on the leash, saying, "Come on, Nikki. Let's go home. I probably have a treat for you somewhere."

Kate waves at the retreating owner and dog.

She turns to her parent's gravestones and says, "You heard I presume? Yeah, Rick wrote two more books. He had been working on both of them slowly, procrastinating as usual, but then we got the long face from the doctor. Lymphoma. That was a little more than 6 months ago."

She snuffed her nose, smiled and continued, "He announced it on his web site and his books started to fly off the shelves. He joked that 'this was my best career move since I convinced the mayor to let me follow you.' Even those books that he said 'only hard core Castle groupies read' were selling."

She started to cry again. In between sobs she continued, "He called it his ultimate deadline. Even worse than his ex-wife and publisher Gina, even though Gina had long since left Black Pawn."

She snuffed her nose. Opening her purse she finds a tissue and wipes her nose and eyes.

"I tried to convince him to just leave it but he was determined. He said 'I want to leave you and all the kids enough so that you won't have to worry about money. Well not worry too much.'"

Tears still flowing from her eyes, she paused and then says, "He worked on the books non-stop and got them done in 6 weeks. The editor worked fast, too. They managed to finish them before he went into the hospital."

She put her hands on the side-by-side tombstones. "He convinced his doctors to let him die at the house in the Hamptons. The hospice nurses were wonderful, caring. His last couple of days, he lay in his bed looking at the ocean enjoying the breeze. I think he was content. As unhappy as the rest of us were, I think he was as happy as he could be, given the circumstances. He was at peace."

She wipes another tear from her cheek. "And I guess that's all anyone can ask for."

She holds her cane and says, "I need to go, mom, dad. I'll come by again."

She slowly starts to walk away and then turns one last time to the gravestones.

"You know," she says. "His last words to me were 'I'm sorry that I'm leaving you,' He then put his hand on my cheek and said, 'but I'll be with you … always.'"

A/N: Thanks for reading! Sorry it took so long. Dealing with a hurricane and the aftermath is no fun.