Maura crawled out of bed and into the bathroom. After a 2 minute shower, she pulled on jeans and a loose sweater, and stumbled into the common room. She dragged herself upright and yanked her hair into a bun. Avoiding all reflective surfaces, she stuffed her wallet into her pocket, hid her red-rimmed eyes with large sunglasses, and began the short walk to the coffee cart, pausing every so often to allow alternating waves of regret and nausea to pass through her body.

She considered turning back, arranging to meet Jane another time, but something pulled her forwards. Jane was a force she was powerless to resist.

"What can I get you?" Jane asked, grinning in the morning sunshine.

Maura, seeing her for the first time in daylight, couldn't help but smile. Jane was tall, several inches taller than her, with curly dark hair escaping from its regulation updo. She wore the navy Boston Police Department uniform with confidence, with her top button undone and her thumbs tucked into her belt. She looked strong, and her features were sharp, but with an elegance that made Maura want to sketch them. Tanned skin, sparkling brown eyes, and a wide grin completed the picture, and Maura felt a blush rise to her cheeks as she realised how awful she must look in comparison.

"A flat white, please," she said, avoiding eye contact.

Jane took in the tight fitting jeans, honey blonde hair, and dark glasses covering tired eyes. Everything about Maura was neat and well presented, from her freshly-showered scent to her fashionably cut sweater. Apart from the glasses, there was no visible evidence of Maura's recent inebriation.

"I'm impressed you came out to meet me this early," Jane said. "I didn't think you'd actually say yes."

Jane ordered a double espresso and insisted on paying, since it had been her invitation. They sat on a bench, and Maura took a deep breath. She felt better after some fresh air, and the smell of the coffee soothed her pounding head.

"I don't have many friends," Maura blurted out.

Jane paused. "Neither do I," she admitted. "I mean, the guys at the station are okay, but I kind of made a name for myself at the Academy and I think it puts people off."

"A name for yourself in what way?"

Jane fiddled with the lid of her cup. "I guess I did pretty well… My Ma says I have a habit of intimidating people."

"I don't find you intimidating," Maura said.

Jane squared her shoulders and narrowed her eyes. "How about now?" she asked.

Maura laughed. "Now I'm terrified."

Jane relaxed into the bench again, and they both sipped their coffee.

"Did you always want to be a police officer?" Maura asked.

Jane shook her head. "Actually, I got into BCU. But my parents… I mean, I decided I wanted to get a job right away. And I've always preferred being up and doing something, you know?"

Maura nodded. "Many people are suited to more practical occupations. And despite a fairly widely accepted notion to the contrary, success in many practical occupations requires just as much knowledge and intelligence as more sedentary, studious roles."

Jane replayed this in her head. "So you're saying cops are just as smart as all the brainiacs round here?" she asked, gesturing to the BCU campus.

"I'm saying the most successful ones will be."

"What about you, did you always want to be a doctor?"

Maura thought about this. The truth was, she didn't know if she'd always wanted anything. She had been on track to become a doctor since she could remember, and she'd never objected to the plan. She had always preferred science and mathematics to the arts - she liked facts, solid answers, concepts she could trust.

"Medicine is an obvious choice for someone with my temperament and skills," she replied to Jane.

"Sure," Jane agreed, wondering if it was ethical to practise the interrogative techniques she'd been reading about on her new friend. She opted for pulling the most likely thread. "I guess your parents are happy with it?"

"Yes. It's always been what they expected of me."

"My Ma expects a lot of things. I think it's good for her to be disappointed now and then."

"I could never disappoint my parents," Maura said. "They've given me so much."

"Everyone screws up sometimes. You had to be taken home by a police officer last night," Jane pointed out.

Maura looked stricken. "They would be horrified to learn something like that." She looked around as if they might appear over her shoulder, judging her.

"Come on, really? You're 21, right? Everyone goes out drinking at 21."

"My mother didn't."

"You know that for sure?"

Maura sighed. Actually, she knew very little about her parents on a personal level. She knew her mother was an artist, socially important, wealthy, well respected. She knew her father was a biologist who lectured at prestigious universities and made important discoveries in rainforests. She knew they liked fine wine, sculptures, antique furniture, and pristine cleanliness. She knew they disapproved of mainstream plastic toys, like Barbie or Lego. But as people, especially as people before she had come into their lives, she knew almost nothing. To communicate this to Jane, she raised her shoulders in a shrug, and had the last mouthful of her coffee.

Jane studied Maura's expression, which would have been easier to read if Maura hadn't been wearing sunglasses. She finished her coffee as well, then tossed both cups into a nearby trash can.

"My lunch break's almost over, but I'm off tomorrow. We could meet."

"Tomorrow's Monday. I have classes, and then I have to study all evening," Maura said immediately.

"Wow, you were ready with that excuse!" Jane exclaimed. "What happened, did you see me in the cold, clear light of day and realise you find me repulsive without your beer goggles?" Jane meant this as a joke, but it masked real fear. Maura had needed her last night, or at least, Maura had needed someone. But last night had been an anomaly - had needing, or even liking, Jane around been an anomaly too?

Maura frowned. She thought Jane was joking, but she wasn't entirely sure.

"I find you quite pleasant, despite my sobriety," she said, hoping this answer would work either way.

It did. Jane relaxed, then grinned, back to her usual self-confidence. "Sobriety might be a bit premature," she teased, looking Maura up and down. "I have a breathaliser in my car though, so we could check."

"Will you ever let me live that down?"

"Honestly, Maura, you weren't that bad. I've seen worse. Hell, I've been worse. But that's a story for another time - but not tomorrow, because you have to study. How about Tuesday?"

"I have classes on Tuesdays too," Maura said, but there was a joking tone to her voice now.

"And let me guess, you have class Wednesday, Thursday and Friday too?"

"You are correct."

"And you're going to study every evening?"

Maura nodded. "Yes."

Jane had an idea. "This studying, do you always do it alone?"

"I always have done."

"But you're aware of the concept of studying with others, right?"

"Of course. But I find other people are often distracting."

"I happen to be the opposite of distracting."

Maura found this very hard to believe, but she smiled. "Is that right?"

Jane grinned. "Yup. So, how about I come study with you on Thursday after work?"

"What do you need to study?" Maura asked.

"I'll think of something. See you Thursday, future doctor."

Jane got up from the bench and strolled towards her car, feeling thoroughly pleased with herself.

Maura stayed where she was, wondering why on earth Jane seemed so keen to spend time with her.

BREAK

Jane stood, thumbs tucked into her belt, staring down 'John Smith' in his hospital bed. She had no sympathy for him.

"Mr Smith, where were you on the night of September 16th?"

"What day of the week was that?"

"Friday."

"And what time?"

"Walk me through everything you did that night."

"Very well. If it was Friday, I likely began my evening at the Founder's Arms."

"Likely? Were you there or weren't you?"

"As I said, it's likely that I was."

Maura took up her spot leaning against the windowsill again. It was fascinating, watching Jane in her element. Maura had never seen her do this before.

"Alright," Jane said, knowing witnesses would confirm this anyway. "And then what?"

"Well, if I was there, I probably ordered whisky. It was a Friday after all."

"Whisky. And then?"

"And then… I do not recall."

"You do not recall?"

"Precisely, I do not recall."

Jane held back an eye roll.

"Are you aware that on the evening of Friday 16th September, a man was murdered in an alleyway just yards from the pub you were in?"

"Murdered in the alleyway, or discovered in the alleyway?"

Jane narrowed her eyes. "Why do you ask?"

"Well… It occurs to me that on the evening you mention, there were several interesting events taking place. Who was the man that was murdered?"

"I think you know," Jane told him.

"Perhaps, perhaps not. I have a theory."

"You're under arrest for murder. If you have a theory, now is the time to share it."

"Alas, I cannot."

There was a pause, while Jane glared. Maura, who'd spent the last minute looking more and more like she was about to wet herself, motioned as surreptitiously as she could manage for Jane to speak to her outside.

"Is the pub you're talking about the Founder's Arms on Hopton Street?" Maura asked, practically bouncing with excitement that she might be able to help.

"Yeah, so?"

"It's almost funny, we were talking about it yesterday. That pub is two minutes walk from the Tate Modern."

"Maura, please don't tell me you interrupted my interrogation to bug me about going to a gallery."

Maura was offended. "Of course not. I interrupted you to tell you Mr Smith is toying with you. He enjoys knowing things you don't know."

Jane tried to speak a little more gently. "I appreciate your concern, but I knew that-"

"Yes," Maura said, on the verge of exasperation. "But I think I know one of the 'interesting events' he was talking about. There was a charity ball at the Tate on 16th September, my mother told me about it, she went to it and told me that during the ball, one of the alarms was triggered. It all came to nothing, and it could be a coincidence, but the painting that caused the alarm is called Red Sky."

Jane gaped at her. "Red Sky as in shepherds?"

Maura nodded. "And the way he speaks, his body composition… I thought perhaps he was a climber. But I think your suspect might be an art thief."

"I could kiss you right now," Jane said without thinking. "I mean, I think you just broke my case wide open! Sorry, about, you know, thinking you just wanted me to go to the Tate."

Maura grinned, pretending to herself it was about the case, and not about the kissing comment. "That's okay. And in a way, you weren't wrong. I imagine you will need to go there now."

"Yeah, as soon as I'm done with this Smith guy. Hey, you wanna come? You're good at this, you know."

"Good at what?"

"Police work. And you're so thorough, you're probably way more careful than my current forensics team."

"You're flattering me on purpose because you feel bad about being rude."

"Is it working?" Jane asked sheepishly.

"I'll let you know. Can we go back in? I want to see his face when we reveal his game is up!"

Jane laughed. "Cool it, Watson. Poker face. You just got us a bunch of cards he doesn't know we have, and I want to keep it that way. Far easier to catch him in a lie if he doesn't know what we know."

Maura nodded. "I understand. But, I should really be Sherlock. Of the two of us, I am clearly the genius."

"But you're the doctor. Just like Doctor Watson."

"If we're assigning characters based on careers, that would make you Inspector Lestrade."

"No, it would make me Sherlock Holmes, because he catches the killers, and so do I."

"It's often Lestrade who arrests them."

"I'd love to debate this with you for the rest of time, but we have a suspect to interrogate."

Utterly delighted that Jane had said 'we', Maura followed her back onto the ward, already looking forward to explaining to her Chief of Staff that she would need to take the rest of the day off to assist a police investigation.