Fic Prompt from my bestie, lms2457: Castle arranged for he and Kate to babysit Sarah Grace, but he ends up in a meeting, and Kate ends up flying solo with a baby for the very first time ever. (Yes, I am sadistically sending you a kid!fic prompt. But you love me anyway...)

A/N: To explain, I have four kids and kid!fic isn't exactly my favorite to write, since I write to *escape.* But I won't deny my kids are awesome. They're bigger Castle fans than I am at the moment. lol

"No, Castle, you have to call and tell them you can't go," said Kate, "The only experience I've had with babies is when we kept Benny-"

"And you were a natural with him," he interrupted, more amused than he really should be, "I saw how you were with him when you thought I wasn't paying attention. Seriously, Kate, you'll be fine. Sarah Grace is asleep, and will likely sleep for at least another hour. When she wakes, you change her diaper, give her a bottle, and she'll probably be out again about thirty minutes after."

He took her hands and kissed the back of them, giving her all his best charm when he added, "I tried to get them to reschedule, but the next time open would interfere with next weekend, and we'd have to reschedule our trip to The Hamptons. Do you really want to do that?"

Kate sighed heavily and laid her forehead on his chest, pushing him back a bit with the action. "No," she said, her voice muffled, "but what if I break the baby?"

Castle laughed, and knew he was seriously risking his life when he did so, but it couldn't be held in. "You're not going to break the baby. Remember it was only me and Alexis for the first fourteen years of her life, and she's in one piece. If I can go that long with out causing serious damage, you can most definitely go a few hours."

"Good point," she finally admitted with a swat to his arm. "But most of Alexis' survival is due to her level of intelligence and common sense. Now go to this meeting so you can get back."

"Touche," he smiled as she started out the door, "I promise, you'll do fine. Just remember which end the diaper-"

Castle managed to shut the door just in time to block the baby rattle Kate threw at him. It was the closest thing that was safe to throw, and he really needed to be hit with something. There was no doubt in her mind that he knew about that meeting. It was some sort of plan for him to sway her toward having kids sooner instead of later. It had to be.

Or maybe it was the universe working against her.

Kate shook her head, wishing she could rid her mind of the crazy Castle mentality that had been planted bit by bit over the past several years. Unfortunately, she knew she was in way too deep for that to go away any time soon.

She went and picked up the toy, then walked over to the kitchen sink to wash it. After she dried it off, she peeked in on Sarah Grace, who was fast asleep in the play pen they had set up in Castle's office. Kate breathed a sigh of relief and put a movie on in the living room, making sure to keep the volum down so she could hear when the baby decided to wake up.

Almost an hour later, there was a slight sound coming from his office, and she stepped in quietly to check in. The little girl was awake and was looking around the room with her wide blue eyes. Kate could tell, somehow, that she didn't recognize the room and was about to cry, so she carefully picked her up.

"It's okay, sweetheart," she said and settled Sarah in her arms as she rocked her back and forth . The poor thing didn't look convinced and pouted, looking very much like she may burst into tears at any moment. It was uncanny how much she resembled her father, and it made her laugh a little.

Kate tapped her lightly on the nose and chin, "Don't fuss, little one. Don't fuss!"

She was answered with a look of surprise, then a giggle. Maybe Castle was right, maybe she was making babysitting harder than it actually was...

Then, Sarah took a deep breath and let out the loudest, most horrific sound Kate had ever heard in her life. She managed to set the baby back into the play pen before she dropped the screaming child. It was such a shock to her system, it was a wonder she didn't start screaming as well.

Kate changed the baby's diaper, then checked her onesie to make sure nothing was too tight on her. When it all checked out, Sarah was still crying, but not as loud, so she grabbed a bottle and a bib. It was close enough to her next meal time, so it couldn't hurt to be a little early.

As soon as she put the bib on little Sarah, the crying stopped and was replaced by some serious lip-smacking. "You're a hungry little girl, huh?" Kate asked as she picked her up again. "I've got just the thing for you, little one."

They settled in the rocking chair Castle had bought while they had kept Benny. He had held onto it, refusing to put it in storage, for whatever reason was going through his head at the time, and Kate was sure it was because he had this kind of nefarious plan in mind, like today.

Kate rocked as she fed Sarah and was amazed when the little girl locked eyes with her. She almost expected the baby to pull the bottle out and start chatting up a storm. She could almost imagine doing this with another child, maybe a boy, with bright blue eyes, maybe even green or gray, with a shock of reddish brown hair that wouldn't lay down properly.

"I don't have a gift with words like your Uncle Rick," she said quietly, not wanting to break whatever it was about this moment. "Or I would tell you a story. He's really good with that sort of thing, you'll see."

Sarah Grace continued sucking on the bottle for a time, her eyes still wide, but Kate could see how she was fighting to not close them. She must be getting full and sleepy, so she snuggled little Sarah closer and slowed the pace of her rocking.

The next thing Kate knew, she was humming a tune to the baby, something familiar, a lullaby of sorts, and she wasn't sure where it was from. She stopped, then tried again, relaxed into the melody and let it go, hoping to see where it would lead.

She closed her eyes and memories flooded her mind, and it was so clear, and so surprising, how she hadn't thought of this in such a long time. It was a tune her grandmother used to hum to her when they would visit her at her country home in Upstate. And for whatever reason, it conjured images of a pink and purple streaked evening sky with the moon peeking through the branches of an ancient oak tree that covered most her grandparent's front yard.

"See? I knew you'd do just fine," Castle said softly, loving the sight of Kate holding Sarah Grace. He kind of hoped he wouldn't have to wait too long for this to be their reality.

Kate's eyes popped open and he was surprised she didn't wake the baby. "How long have you been here?"

"Not long, but long enough," he answered, hoping to not kill the mood. "It was a beautiful song."

"Thanks." She smiled shyly as she slowly got up from the rocker. "I should lay her down. She should be resting good now."

When Kate returned, she stopped right in front of him, and he couldn't form the words that raced through his mind, he was so overcome with love and everything that was her.

Finally she rolled her eyes, "I told Sarah Grace how you were with words, about all the stories you'd tell her, and here you are..."

Castle pulled her to him and stopped her with a kiss. That was the best he could come up with and he could tell it was enough.