PLANE

Chapter 8

Kate was down to just three days before her three weeks were up when they could risk opening the mirror again and allow her to go home.

She was sitting on the sofa after coming back from eating with Castle and Alexis. Rick sat down next to her and stroked her cheek with his knuckles. "You look worried."

"Not exactly worried, more concerned over what's going to happen when I get home. I'll have been gone for three weeks. From my job, my dad, and my friends. What am I going to tell them? What's going to make sense to them? If I tell them I've been living on another Plane of existence, I'll get locked up in a padded room.

"I'm going to need to come up with a believable story. One that can't be broken." Kate took hold of his arm and leaned into him. She had gotten used to talking to him. Really talking and telling him things. He knew all about her mother, why she had become a cop, what had happened to her dad. She even told him a little about the other Castle. That Castle was totally different from him and she had no idea if he had a daughter.

What Castle wanted to ask was if she really had to go back at all. But back there was her dad and all her old friends, so he couldn't do that. He was just going to have to risk never seeing her ever again. Three hours every three weeks was no way to live.

Rick studied her face. "How are you at lying and making it sound like the truth? If you're right about telling the truth, that would be horrendous."

Sadly, Kate knew she lied all the time. There was just something about this place that made telling a lie for her so hard. Telling one to Castle was even harder.

"I think I can manage. The only question is what to tell them? What would make sense to them? My captain knows people and can contact them to find out if I'm lying." Kate groaned and moved her hand to his crotch so she could feel him.

Rick raised an eyebrow. "Are you trying to start something?"

"Maybe." Kate bit her lower lip. Sex with him was the very best she had ever had and she was willing to get all she could get. Kate didn't know a man with a fake leg could move so fast but she squealed when suddenly she was in his arms and being carried to their bedroom.

.x{O}x.

Kate was lying naked next to Rick and felt really good. She had almost always enjoyed sex but there was just something about sex with Castle that was so much better. And if she wasn't mistaken, it was getting even better. This time she was on his bad leg side. That didn't always happen. She reached out to touch his fake leg. "It doesn't hurt when you walk?" Kate was finally in a good enough position to ask him about it.

Rick shook his head. "No, I barely even notice it when I'm walking save that it's stiff and doesn't bend any. It's actually made of Mithril. It's one of the strongest metals we have and it's extremely lightweight. It weighs next to nothing and yet is nearly indestructible. The Dwarves mine it while the Elves made my leg.

"It's actually connected to what's left of the bone in my leg so it won't come off. It's a neutral mineral which means my skin doesn't try to get away from it. Hence, not much of a gap between me and my leg. It's also the reason for the color. It's not real silver. That would make the leg weigh far too much."

"Mithril. You mean like out of Lord of the Rings? That's real?" She had never connected the two before now.

Rick looked puzzled. "I don't know what that is."

"Lord of the Rings. How do I explain it?" Kate left him, got up, and sat on her legs. She looked down at him laying on the bed. "It's set in a land called Middle-earth." Kate watched him shake his head. "There are Rings of Power. Elves, Dwarves, and Man. However, clandestinely an evil person named Sauron constructs a secret ring. He pours all of his evil into the ring. So much so that even if he died the ring could eventually bring him back to life. His ring gained power over all the other rings.

"He subverted the rings of man and turned them into evil like him. Then he started a war for control over all of Middle-earth. By sheer luck he had his ring finger cut off and he was killed. But the ring lived on. It took it I forget how many hundreds or thousands of years but it had a way to gain control over all that wore it.

"Eventually there was another war for Middle-earth." Kate gave her best shot at an explanation but watched Castle shake his head. "That's strange because it has Rangers, Wizards, Dwarves, Elves, Orcs, Goblins. Most people use swords, bows, and no real guns like mine."

"I don't know what to tell you. I don't know of a Middle-earth or the name Sauron. The rest of it is similar. Perhaps it's just Prime Material Plane imagination." Rick opened his arms and Kate willingly went back down to lying in his arms, perfectly content.

"We've always had fantasies that include a number of things that I've found here. Just not this city itself. The Wizards in these movies didn't really cast spells like you do. I mean, they had magic and used it, but nothing like here." Kate settled in a little deeper and was willing to close her eyes and go to sleep in them. It was safe and it was comfortable.

"So what are we doing for our date tomorrow?" It was going to be their last one before she left.

"Picnic by the lake. So bring your swimsuit. Unless you want to skinny dip." Rick grinned at her.

Kate raised an eyebrow at him. "I'm willing to take a few risks but that sounds like a big one to me. I think I'll bring a suit."

"Spoil sport," Rick teased. "Have you reached a conclusion if I can talk you into coming back and staying?"

Kate ran her hand across his bare chest. She loved the feel of his skin. "I know Setheldath will be disappointed, but I think Dragon Disciple is out. I'm not sure I want my skin to turn into scales, not to mention growing wings, and she didn't say anything about me growing a tail, so no." Kate had killed that one. Rick simply hummed and said nothing.

"That Hurler option even Alexis shot down, so that's out," Kate told him. "Granted, Ranger sounds interesting even after finding out I could learn to fight with two swords. It was just the idea of fighting with swords sounds a lot harder than even I'm thinking. Those things probably weigh several pounds each and I'm not sure I'm that strong."

"About four pounds each unless you find one made of Mithril," Rick confirmed.

"That pretty much just leaves Monk. I work out punching and kicking a bag at home so this is just a more advanced version of that. You think you can live with me having colorful tattoos all over my body?" Kate waited for him to answer.

"I will make sure I stroke and kiss each and every one of them. I don't love you for your body. Though I do love your body, but I love the you." Rick caressed her and Kate felt those words head straight for her heart. "I'll see if the Master has time to add you to his class in three weeks." Then Rick kissed her head.

"I'm not perfect, Castle. I have problems," Kate warned him.

"And you think I don't? You think Alexis doesn't? You think your friend Talia doesn't have problems? It's not having problems that's the issue. It's what you do to handle or correct your problems. Don't worry, you're more than perfect enough for me." Rick kissed her head again.

.x{O}x.

Their date had been GREAT! It was a real picnic on the grass. Walk down to the lake, go swimming, and have some fun. Because of his bad leg, Castle wasn't that great of a swimmer and she'd had fun racing him. Swimming around him. Dunking him in the lake and then laughing and swimming away as fast as she could to get away from him. Except his strength eventually caught up to her and she found herself trapped in his arms. The kiss that followed had gone straight to her core, passing through her heart along the way. Sex that night had been amazing yet again.

But today was the day; she had to leave. She was in their bedroom putting on her old clothes that still fit her but suddenly felt strange. Even a bit alien to her. Once dressed she walked out and found Castle and Alexis waiting for her.

"You look terrible, Kate." Alexis definitely wasn't a fan of those clothes.

"Thanks a lot, Alexis," Kate groused but then smiled at her. A quick transport trip to the right area and they were all inside the mirror room. It was there she found Talia who even had a combat suit on and a weapon on her back.

"I get the privilege of accompanying you to make sure your place is safe. Just touch the mirror to come back if something goes wrong. I will protect you," Talia told her and took her weapon off her back. "Then Alexis and I are going hunting for a Lich."

Kate was pretty sure nothing wrong was going to happen. They were going to be in her bathroom since it had a mirror. "Thanks, Talia."

"Alexis." Kate hugged her. "I'm not sorry I chased you down. I've loved being here." She was mostly hugging the combat suit she was in but it was still her.

"Just remember for next time, Kate, Zombies and far worse really do exist on the Prime Material Plane," Alexis warned her.

"I'll keep my eyes open." Kate moved to Castle next. She wrapped herself around him and felt herself begin to cry. It seemed like she was trying to rip her heart in half by leaving but she needed to do it.

Kate kissed him for what she meant to be the final time, but she kept kissing him. Then she moved her lips to his ear. "I love you." She could say it now. Now that she was forced to admit it, she could say it.

Rick's voice quavered slightly. "I love you too. The mirror will open again in three weeks, so be ready for us."

"I will be. I promise." Kate kissed him again, wiped away her tears and took a breath. "Ready."

"Your weapon, Kate." Rick handed it over and Kate ejected the clip to look at it and slapped it back in. She made sure the safety was still on and put it in her holster.

Kate watched Talia put on her helmet and charge her weapon. Kate didn't think she had seen anything like it. It was just a rod but suddenly two bright green lights shot out from each end so that the whole thing was now taller than she was.

Alexis put on her helmet and put her weapon in her hand and was going to be waiting for Talia to return. And then she would change the destination to start their hunt.

Talia went first. Kate followed in a minute and found Talia with her weapon in her living room. "So this is the Prime Material Plane. This place is different." Talia didn't want to insult her by telling her it was ugly and filthy; she didn't see why Kate wanted to come back here.

"It's home," Kate admitted and just then noticed that her power was off; was that good or bad?

"Remember, Kate, three weeks. I don't want to lose my best friend because I wasn't here to protect her. You haven't started your Monk training yet, so please, be careful." Talia gently squeezed her friend's hand.

"I will be. You be careful hunting down that Lich. He sounds far more dangerous," Kate pointed out. "Your Centaur boyfriend will be very unhappy if you get yourself killed or turned into an undead," she reminded her.

Talia looked uncertain. "I got to touch him finally and even taste him after he climaxed. It was different and I was right. He's big, like really big. Now I'm almost a little scared. I'm not sure I'm big enough for him."

"Just take it slowly. Your vagina will ultimately adapt to any size. A baby has more than enough space to come out that way so just go slow and let yourself adapt to him. You'll be fine." Kate had said that word again, the one she knew Castle hated.

"I'm going to miss you." Talia knew her leaving was going to hurt. "I need to go before I start crying into my helmet. Three weeks, Kate." Talia retreated to the bathroom, touched the mirror, and was right back where she had started. She watched Alexis adjust the mirror and then followed her through it. It was time to start hunting down that damn Lich and any Undead he had created.

.x{O}x.

Kate looked at her dad's watch to see what time it was. That was the funny thing about that place. They didn't seem to believe in clocks.

"HEY! I still have that chip in my arm." Kate examined her arm exactly where it should be and didn't see it since it was under her skin. "It can stay there." Because it was late enough, she searched for her key and walked out of her apartment, locked the door, and hurried downstairs to head into work.

It didn't take long to get to the Precinct and since she didn't have to go through the front desk she got in easily enough and was spotted first thing but not stopped.

Espo saw her first and yelled, "BECKETT!" He jumped up from his desk and intercepted her.

A second later Ryan was right behind him. "Beckett!" Ryan was all smiles.

"Where have you been?" Espo could almost shake her. "Captain Montgomery has had half the station out looking for you."

"It was scary, Beckett," Ryan blurted. "We found a lot of dead bodies near that old power station you took. You wouldn't believe what Lanie said about those bodies."

"BECKETT! MY OFFICE!" Roy had gotten up to find out just what all the excitement was about. He even waited at his door for her to show up.

Kate knew this was coming. She had come up with something but was sure it wasn't going to go over well with him. She went past him into his office and didn't see the looks Espo and Ryan had as they watched her and watched Roy close the door behind her. They would just have to wait to ask her after the Captain was done with her.

"Sit, Beckett." Roy went past her and around to his desk. He liked Beckett, he really did. She had such promise to her and her being here might mean he could protect her from Bracken.

Roy didn't sit. He was captain here and his best detective had gone missing for about three weeks, if not exactly three weeks.

"Glad you're back and safe. Now what the hell is going on? Do you have any idea what we found where you went?" Roy started there.

Kate just looked at him. "Dead people with their heads cut off, I'm guessing."

"Already dead with their heads cut off actually, according to Dr. Parish." Roy was still trying to solve that one. "How did you know and where have you been?" Roy finally sat down. He just couldn't find a way to stay angry at her.

"I encountered them before I encountered someone else." So far Kate was sticking to the truth. "As to where I've been, I can't tell you that."

"Try that again?" Roy glared at her. "Or would you like to be suspended after coming back?"

"I have my orders, sir; I can't tell you." This was where the lie came into play. The less Kate said, the less he had to work with.

"Come again? You do see the name on the door and on my desk, don't you? So who is your boss and lets you keep this job?" Roy questioned her.

Kate didn't even blink. "Captain, and you do, sir. It's just that I have my orders. You need to get them to give you enough clearance to let me tell you."

Taken aback, Roy was silent. What the hell had Beckett managed to get herself into with a case that suddenly involved dead people with their heads cut off? "Does this have anything to do with dead people that should have been buried in the ground and had their heads cut off?"

"Sort of, sir, and I'm sorry but I have my orders," Kate said, since yes, Zombies were involved.

"Okay, who are these people so I can get this all cleared up?" Roy would get them to explain why his detective had been missing for three weeks.

"I can't tell you that either, sir." She didn't actually have a name other than the ones she had learned over her last three weeks. And while there was a Castle here, he didn't know a thing and it might only make him mad.

"Beckett!" Roy was losing his patience with her. "Missing for three entire weeks and you refuse to tell me anything?"

"I'm not refusing, sir, I'm just following orders." Kate knew that explanation wasn't going to be universally accepted.

"Beckett, don't make me do this." Roy watched as she sat there and said nothing. "Very well, you are suspended without pay for two days. If I can't find someone to tell me what is going on in those two days it will be increased to one week. I'm not interested in their orders. You don't work for them, you work for me. They don't order you to do anything, I do," Roy informed her.

"Sorry, sir." Kate felt bad for him but if she even tried to tell him the truth she might still end up suspended…or worse.

"Arrange for a psychiatric review per regulations and when you are allowed back in this Precinct you can go down to the gun range and get recertified. For now, badge, weapon, right here." Roy tapped his desk.

"Yes, sir." Kate suspected that was coming. So she was up and put her badge and weapon down in front of him.

"Rest assured, Beckett, I find these people and I'll have their hide. No one just takes one of my detectives and gives her orders. This is not acceptable. You should have just told them to get lost. Speaking of which, get out. Two days or one week." Roy motioned for her leave.

"Yes, sir." Kate felt bad about it, but she didn't have a better idea. It also meant he wasn't going to find anyone, so it was already officially one week.

"I'm gone, guys. You're still on your own." Kate waved at them, glanced at her desk for a moment, and walked to the elevator. Now she needed to get back home but was actually thinking of doing some grocery shopping first. If she was going to be home for a week she might as well cook.

.x{O}x.

Opening her mailbox produced its own new kind of hell. It was stuffed and some things were folded in on others; it was all jammed into it, forcing her to take it all out…piece by crumpled piece.

With her groceries put away she began looking at her mail. Some of it was utter junk and went into one pile. She found two power bills. One was the original and the second was a late notice so she was being charged a late fee. The same for her water bill. Her place was paid for thanks to money from her mother's life insurance so she didn't have a bill for that. But she did have two bills for her phone and they were charging her a late fee as well.

"My phone!" Kate pulled it out and naturally, since she couldn't plug it in to charge it it was dead so into the bedroom she went to plug it into the charger for when the power came back on and then back to her mail.

Trash went into the trash and the bills got paid and back down into the outbox for pick up tomorrow. It was just she wasn't all that hungry. "Coffee, I need coffee." She had been drinking hot tea to get her caffeine fix. That had her looking at the bag. "One hundred milligrams per serving." She had been drinking 80 milligrams per serving. "This should hit my blood stream really fast," Kate said to herself.

.x{O}x.

She still wasn't hungry and the coffee was hitting her pretty hard. She found herself sitting in front of the TV and was channel surfing. "Screw this." Her phone barely had any life in it but she took it with her anyway and left to go to her dad's place. This meeting should go better…she hoped.