A/N: A few people asked about the letter I alluded to in the last chapter. Long and short of it, I couldn't make it work within the chapter, so that's why it's not seen. However, I found a way to work it in later in the story, and I think it's more powerful that way. And that chapter is already written and if I ever get there, you will get to read it. Now, prayer circle that I can defeat some mad writers block? And amen.
She carefully adjusts the cranky baby on her hip, shushing him as she pushes the door of the diner open and steps inside, grateful for the air conditioning. While the loft is kept at an optimum temperature at all times, the humidity is high this year, leaving cranky, sweaty people in its wake.
She spies her dad at the back of the diner, having taken a table where they can both comfortably sit and keep the door in sight. Her cop instincts and his years as a lawyer leave them both less trusting than the average Joe, and sitting in a place where they can face the whole room helps with the vigilance.
"Look, there's your granddad," Kate coos, pointing as they make their way across the sticky linoleum floor. "Can you say granddad?"
"Gah dah," Finn garbles. He loves to imitate them and while he hasn't consistently spit out any words, he does well with syllables and basic sounds.
"Hey Katie," Jim greets, standing up to kiss her cheek and relieve her of the baby.
"Hi dad. Sorry we're late."
"It's okay. I figured you might be. Hey there Finn. How are you today?"
"Mmm-ppp."
"Fascinating," Jim chuckles, kissing the baby's forehead.
"So who do you think he looks like today?" Kate asks with a smile, sitting down and taking a long drink of the iced-tea her dad has ordered for her.
"I'm not sure. The chubby cheeks remind me of you as a kid, but the rest seems to be all Rick."
"Last week you said he looked just like me!"
"Last week he was screaming his head off."
"Yes, well last week he was teething and in excruciating pain. How dare you tease us, dad."
"They say "hell hath no fury like a woman scorned" but I just say "hell hath no fury like my daughter.""
"You're hilarious dad. Really."
He smiles and clucks his tongue at Finn, who is happily patting the formica tabletop and letting drool run out of his mouth.
"So, anything in particular that's giving you that wrinkle between your eyes?"
"You mean besides a case going cold and no more than three hours of sleep at a time?"
"Yes."
She levels her gaze at him, annoyed that he can read her so well, yet grateful that he's here, healthy, sober, and back to the dad she had as a kid.
"I've just been thinking a lot lately. About what I want to do career-wise."
"And you've come to some conclusions?"
She nods slowly, working her thumbnail between her teeth.
"I think I'm ready to move up. I mean, I passed the test. Sergeant's exam. Captain Gates says it will just be a matter of time before I fly the coop, so to speak."
"I would stop you and tell you how proud I am, but there seems to be something more."
She glances down at her son, smiling as he chews on a napkin.
"I was trying to decide what I want my end goal to be. Narrowing it down, I suppose. Went over and over it in my head for days, all while Alexis was second-guessing her choice about NYU. It was a fun few weeks in the loft, that's for sure. Anyway, she was telling me about a professor she had who was retiring this year. Apparently this woman had been teaching for forty years. She's had thousands of students pass through her doors, and I couldn't help but think how many lives she's touched. Directly though her students, and indirectly through all the people those students have gone on to help. And I was thinking that the job I do, the job I could do, is so important. It really is and I never want to forget that. But what if… what if it could reach further than that? What if I could equip more people to do what I do?"
He remains silent, knowing where she's going, but allowing her to get there herself.
"I've been thinking about what it would take to become an instructor at the academy. And not just one of the guys who's too fit for desk duty but not fit enough for the streets. What if I could challenge cadets to become better cops? Better than the ones before them. Better than the cops people fear, better than the cops who take deals and look the other way. I can get justice one family at a time right now, but if I can train five people, they can get justice for five families. I mean, it's simple math, right?"
She seems giddy over the idea, her eyes lighting up as she speaks rapidly, reminding him of days long gone by.
"I would still keep heading where I'm headed now. But somewhere along the line, I think I want to end up a little closer to left field."
He chuckles and reaches across the counter for her hand.
"Katie, I haven't seen you this excited about something work related for a long time."
"Do you think it's a good idea?"
"Of course it is. Equipping others to do the job as well as you do accomplishes a lot. I'm proud of you Katie. And your mom would be too."
"I hope so."
"You'll be safer."
"Yes. Much safer. And maybe it won't feel the same; I know I won't get as much personal satisfaction from a solved case, but it really isn't about me, is it?"
He shakes his head, moves the baby to sit on his other knee.
"Better hours too. Eventually at least. More time with this one here."
"And others."
His eyes snap up to her at that and she giggles, shaking her head.
"No, not any time soon. But eventually."
"You know Katie, you're going to choke on life if you keep taking such big bites of it."
She laughs, hearing the words in her mothers voice.
"You know, I actually said that to Alexis a few days ago. I didn't realize how much I sounded like mom until it came out of my mouth."
"You sound like her more than when you're being sassy you know."
"I know."
They slide into silence for a moment before picking up the conversation again.
"So have you told Rick about this?"
"Yeah. He's had to listen to all my pro-con lists and idea boards and brainstorming sessions. It was like the answer was there and I kept working around it. Poor guy."
"He likes listening to that, you know."
"I know. Do you think… dad, do you think that doing this is important-"
"Yes."
"Are you su-"
"Yes."
"Do you have any cons to add here?"
"I want you to be happy. If you're happy and content right now, then stay where you are. If you want and need more, go for it. Do what's going to make you happy. Everything else will come along the way."
"How are you always so certain?"
He shrugs and saves the sugar packet from Finn's hands.
"I go with my gut."
"Oh whatever dad."
They laugh together and he squeezes her hand again, glad that she's letting him in on this, showing him a new side to her. He can't believe he almost missed out on all of this.
He's been fighting his nap for half an hour now, wailing each time she puts him down, but pushing against her when she tries to rock him to sleep. He's not a disagreeable baby most of the time, and he usually goes down without a fight. But for some reason today is different and he whines and whimpers through every attempt to get him to take his nap.
"Okay fine, you win," Kate sighs, standing up from the chair and leaving his blanket behind. "Let's go bug daddy."
Finn's entire demeanor changes when they leave the room, as if he knows that victory is his. He babbles happily as they move downstairs, squealing when they go into the study and he catches sight of his father.
"Hey, are you at a stopping place?"
"Actually yes," Castle answers, taking the baby from her and kissing his full cheek. "What are you two up to?"
"He's stickin' it to the man about naptime."
"Nice job buddy. You show mommy who's boss."
"I'm the boss," Kate argues with a roll of her eyes. "He's just a little disgruntled about that at the moment. He'll get over it."
"I'm sure. So what should we do with the rest of our day?"
She shrugs.
"I thought about taking him for a walk but it's so hot out, I think he'll just be miserable."
Castle nods and stands up, heading for the kitchen while Finn giggles.
"Okay, we're going to need to change," he starts, opening a cupboard and pulling the flour down. "Grab some clothes you don't care about."
"Why?"
"And put your hair back. This is going to get messy."
She raises an eyebrow at him but obeys, moving into the bedroom to grab a pair of shorts and an old t-shirt, throwing them on before tossing her hair up into a braid. By the time she rejoins them in the kitchen, Castle has several bowls filled with what looks like different colored paints, and Finn is sitting in one side of the sink, letting water from the faucet run over his hands.
"What are we doing?"
"In the laundry room in that long cupboard, there should be a roll of butcher paper. Bring me that. And then grab some towels and a new diaper for the kid."
She sets off again, starting to understand where he's going with this, and looking forward to the absolute mess that they're all going to be.
"Alright, I'm going to go change real quick," he says when she returns. "Roll the paper out on the floor and dry Finn off."
She's laughing to herself now, obeying his instructions and just settling down on the kitchen floor when he returns. Finn is eyeing the bowls of paint curiously, tipping his head to the side in question when he's encouraged to dip his hand in. It takes some prodding, and it's not until he watches both of his parents finger painting that he seems to understand what they want him to do. He smiles, squishing his hand through the paint, then slapping it against the paper with a laugh. It splatters onto his bare legs and he lets out a deep chuckle, repeating the action with vigor, managing to get paint on his parents, who are both having just as much fun as he is.
"He's going to be covered in paint and he'll need a bath, and then I bet he'll go down for his nap. At which time you and I can clean up as well," Castle suggests with a wiggle of his eyebrows.
Kate snorts and nods in deep agreement, seeing once again that her husband really does qualify as a baby whisperer.
It's half an hour later when the front door opens and Alexis comes in, curiously following their laughter into the kitchen where she finds all three of them covered in paint.
"Wow," she laughs, coming around the counter to see better. "Are we going to frame that and pass it off as abstract?"
"The first one was better," Castle answers, pointing to the table where it's drying. "Before the colors kind of combined."
"Ah!" Finn shouts, reaching over to cover her leg in paint.
"No! Aw Bubsy, what was that for?"
He whimpers to be picked up, and she sighs and obliges, glad that she's in work out clothes instead of something nice. Though, she's certain she would have picked him up no matter what she was wearing. His smile is infectious and she can't say no to him when he flashes it at her.
"You guys look great," she grins, turning to look at the two adults. "Avatar?"
"The blue paint seems to be his favorite," Kate answers, her smile wide as she stands up and wipes her hands with the baby wipes that they'd thought to grab a while ago.
"You have a handprint on your butt."
"Castle!"
"Hey, you started it," he defends, pointing to the green streak in his hair. "You're lucky you didn't end up the same way."
She laughs as he picks up the large piece of paper, moving to put it on the other end of the table to dry.
"You know, I think I still have a few of your flour paint creations somewhere, Pumpkin," he notes, standing back to survey their work. "Though you were a little more structured than we were."
"I didn't like messy," she offers, shaking her hair away from her little brothers messy hands. "Why don't I go clean this kid up and you guys can deal with this?"
"That would be great, thanks honey," Castle says hurriedly, the brief jokes from earlier coming into his mind. "He'll probably need a pretty long bath. Lots of paint in his fat rolls and all that. Be sure to scrub!"
She raises her eyebrow at him but lugs Finn up the stairs anyway.
"Well I guess we'd better clear this up," Kate sighs, surveying the damage.
"You've got the green light from me."
She cocks her head to the side, wondering if he's going where she thinks he is.
"Though it might be better to clean ourselves up first," she says, testing the waters. "It's kind of a gray area."
He nods seriously.
"I'll be seeing red if it stains."
"Well don't be yellow-bellied about it. Get over here and help me."
"I'll wave the white-flag and do this your way. Then after…"
"Well tickle me pink," she states, her voice husky.
"Detective, are you working blue?"
Her eyebrow shoots up and she gives him a grin.
"Hmmm, puns as foreplay," she nearly purrs. "How colorful."
He laughs loudly and pulls her into the other room. Cleaning can wait.