"Even though my life before was tragic, now I know my love for her goes on."-Sleeping At Last
Maura had to admit, if going to a bar meant getting to watch the way Jane swigged beer, she would brave a hundred rowdy strangers. The brunette looked right at home in the well-worn pub. Maura felt predictably out of place at first, but the Rizzoli siblings had little ways of making her feel comfortable. Tommy caught peanuts in his mouth during commercials, and Jane excitedly threw an arm around her shoulders whenever the Sox got a hit. After twenty minutes, she settled into the atmosphere considerably.
Sipping on her iced tea, the strawberry blonde studied her friend. She noticed that even though Jane was very focused on the game, she'd glance around the room every minute or so, as if keeping track of the patrons. It wasn't an anxious action, but rather seemed habitual, subconscious. Interesting. Maura wondered, not for the first time, what life Jane had come from before turning up as her groundskeeper. A touch on her shoulder distracted her from her thoughts.
"Hey, can I get you another drink? Looks like that one's just about out." Maura turned in shock to see a young man, probably in college, with floppy hair and a friendly smile. She gaped at him, then her empty glass, then him again. Her heart sped up uncomfortably.
"Um," she managed.
Suddenly, a strong arm was around her shoulder. "She's good," Jane cut in, polite but firm. Maura gave her a grateful look, thankful she wouldn't have to stumble over a refusal.
"Uh, wasn't really asking you sweetheart," the man retorted, no longer smiling. A snide grin slowly stretched across Jane's face. Maura got the distinct impression of a wolf baring its teeth.
"Don't really give a shit. Sweetheart." Her voice was a somehow more threatening when it got soft. The man looked between them, face turning sour. "Right, didn't know it was that kind of bar," he grumbled, walking away.
Maura scrunched her eyebrows. "What sort of bar?" she wondered, looking to Jane. Her friend rolled her eyes. "The sort where Maura doesn't have to deal with douchebags," she said, ruffling the strawberry blonde's hair. Maura pretended to fix it with a huff, trying to hide the way her heart was suddenly fluttering.
"Yes well, I don't know why he thought it was a good idea to approach me anyways."
"You know, it's probably my fault. You look real good in that jersey."
Eyes widening, Maura blushed the same shade as the jersey Jane had finally convinced her to wear. She attempted to respond, but nothing came out.
Thankfully, Jane was busy buying her another iced tea.
The rest of the game went well, and both Rizzolis were excitedly discussing the win as the group walked out to the parking lot. It was only 11:00, but it was still later than Maura had ever been out, let alone with friends. She felt a great joy bubble up in her chest. Tommy lightly punched her shoulder, saying something about taking Maura's bar virginity. Maura blushed a little, but grinned. When the Rizzolis teased her, it meant she belonged. As they got closer to where the motorcycles were parked, Jane slung her arm over Maura's shoulders.
"Was it alright?"
"I loved it. Its definitely not the sort of atmosphere I'm used to, but it was so much fun."
Jane's dimples grew deeper. "Good. We'll make a Sox fan of you yet." Maura rolled her eyes, but tucked herself ever so slightly more into her friend's side.
"Are you sure you're okay to drive?" Jane had only had two beers during the whole game, but Maura was ever the worrier.
Jane snorted. "Please. I'm not a lightweight." Her eyes softened as she glanced over at her friend. "I wouldn't put you in danger."
Maura believed her. She had never trusted someone so absolutely before. The brunette had a way of making her feel safe, even in a rowdy bar.
Suddenly, Jane stopped, arm tightening around Maura. Following her friend's line of sight, Maura saw two rough looking men saunter up. One of them was staunch and balding, with two arms full of tattoos. The other one was lanky with an overgrown beard. Both of them were wearing leather vests and cowboy boots.
"What do you want?" Tommy barked. He sounded like a grown man, voice devoid of its usual jovialty. Jane quickly pulled Maura behind her, putting herself between the blonde and the two men.
"You Rizzoli's kids?" one of the men, the short one, growled.
Jane clenched her fists. "The fuck is it to you?"
The men stepped closer, the light from the bar illuminating them better. Maura could make out a red patch on each of their vests, with some sort of symbol. There were deep scars on both of their faces.
"You're Graham family," Jane growled. It wasn't a question. Maura noticed Tommy subtly reaching for his back pocket. The bearded man's eyes flicked to the young man, noticing the movement as well.
"You reach any further, boy, I might get jumpy." Maura's eyes widened as the man pulled out a gun from beneath his vest and pointed it at the younger Rizzoli. Tommy froze.
"What do you want?" Jane said lowly. The bearded man cocked his head.
"I wanna know why two Custos are this close to Graham territory."
"This is neutral territory," Jane hissed through clenched teeth. "We were getting a drink."
"Plenty of places to get a drink in Connecticut. Why here?"
"I like the beer on tap," Jane said wryly. The short man snorted.
"Right. I'm sure there's nothing suspicious-like about this at all."
"You got a problem with it, take it up with the treaty," Tommy spat.
The lanky man smirked, ever so slightly. "Oh, I believe you Rizzoli. I just don't know if bossman will. He might want us to check things out a bit more, just to be sure." The lanky man's eyes found Maura. He leaned around Jane to get a better look.
"Who's your pretty friend?" Maura felt her stomach drop.
"None of your business," Jane growled. "You touch us, you break the treaty."
"Sure," the lanky man laughed. "Unless you're about to cross into our territory. And," he said, eyes flashing, "the treaty don't say shit about her." He actually licked his lips. Maura suddenly felt nauseous.
"She's with us," Jane said slowly. "If you don't walk away now, we're gonna have a problem."
The bearded man stared hard at Jane, unmoving. No one spoke for what felt like an eternity.
"Well," he finally drawled. "I guess we're gonna have a problem then."
Quicker than a flash, Jane sprung forward, diving at the man who still had his gun pointed at Tommy. Maura screamed as a gunshot rang out, reflexively shielding her face with her arms. Tommy, however, had leapt to the side the moment Jane had moved, and the suddenness of her attack had skewed the man's aim. The younger Rizzoli whipped out a switchblade from his back pocket, advancing.
As Tommy began to grapple with the shorter man, Jane desperately wrestled over the gun with his partner. Though she had surprised him, her freedom of motion was limited by keeping the gun pointed away from her. Using her strength to keep his arm pinned to his side, she attempted to knee him in the stomach. He twisted and blocked it, throwing her off balance. Using this momentum, he brought his arms up and around her, pinning her to his front. Both their hands still clutched the gun, but he began choking her.
Before Maura could even step forward, Jane bit the man's hand as hard as she could. He cried out and dropped the gun. Whipping around, she elbowed him in the gut, breaking his hold on her. Maura darted forward to snatch the gun from its spot on the ground. She nervously clutched it, not trusting herself to point it at the man when Jane was so close to him.
Now free to use both her hands, Jane advanced in a fury. Ducking under his wild swing, she delivered a left hook to his face that caused a loud crunching sound. As his hands flew to his nose, she sent a second punch to his gut and then a third to his ribcage. He attempted to counter with a jab to her face, but she neatly dodged it. Faking a punch, she suddenly grabbed the back of his head and brought her knee to his face. Blood spurted from his nose, and he collapsed to the ground. Jane raised her foot, clad in her heavy biker's boots, and brought it down on his face, hard. The man's cries of pain were suddenly gurgles.
Maura wanted desperately to look away, sickened by the violent scene, but she was frozen like a deer in headlights. She could only stare as the man was beat into unconsciousness. Next to her, Tommy dropped the other man like a sack of potatoes. The younger Rizzoli leaned on his knees for a moment, catching his breath.
Jane finally stepped away from her opponent, chest heaving. Her eyes swept over her brother for a few moments, looking for any injuries. Satisfied that he seemed unharmed, she turned towards Maura. The blonde felt herself flinch, instinctively backing away. Jane's eyes widened.
"Maur," she said softly. "It's okay. I'm not gonna hurt you." She held up two hands covered in blood, as if in surrender. Maura blinked, but couldn't make herself move. Jane took a cautious step closer.
"You're okay," she murmured, voice soothingly low. "It's over now, you're safe." Maura found her muscles slowly uncoiling at the tone of Jane's words. She opened and closed her mouth, but still couldn't make words come out.
"Maura, sweetheart. Put down the gun." Maura looked down in shock to see that she was in fact holding the gun up, as if to shield herself. She instantly dropped it like it had burned her.
"Oh my god Jane, I'm so sorry, I didn't mean to-"
"Shh, its okay. You're okay. Can I touch you?" Jane was a few feet away now. Not even bothering with a verbal answer, Maura threw herself at her friend, wrapping her in a desperate hug.
"Oh my god, I'm so glad you're not dead," Maura whispered into her neck, beginning to cry.
"Hey," Jane murmured, rubbing small circles on her back. "Of course I'm not dead." She pressed a long kiss into Maura's hair. "I have to help someone plant Madonna Lilies tomorrow."
In spite of everything, Maura found herself letting out a shaky laugh.
Wow, this isn't me uploading new content 7 months later...
My life got insanely busy, and now its not, so I'm attempting to continue my crappy gay adventure. Forgive me.
Also, fight scenes are fucking hard dude.