Alexis in the Night
By
UCSBdad
Disclaimer: In case you haven't heard, I don't own Castle. Rating: K Time: Late Season Six, perhaps?
Kate walked to the door, wondering who could be there at this time of the night.
"Hi, Mrs. Castle."
Kate laughed. "Hello, Alexis. I'm not Kate anymore?"
"Sure, but I thought you might get a kick out of being called Mrs. Castle. You haven't been a Mrs. For that long, you know."
"You're right. Although I've decided…No, we've decided, that I'll still be Detective Beckett at the precinct and Mrs. Castle elsewhere, and Kate to my family."
"In that case, hi Kate." Alexis looked around. "Are you alone? I mean, is dad here?"
"No, he isn't back from the book tour yet. He's going to call me when he's boarding his plane for home."
"Good! I wanted to talk to you, and I felt it would be easier to talk to you once you were family."
"Is it that serious?"
"Yes and no. Can we sit down?"
Kate led Alexis to the couch.
"Kate, you know that I wasn't very happy with you for a long while. I was afraid you'd get Dad killed. As the responsible adult in the family I felt it was my job to tell him that he was risking his life for you with no real evidence that you really cared for him."
"I did care for him, Alexis. More than you could have known. More than even I knew, if that doesn't sound too odd."
"Nevertheless, you did hurt him. You hurt him badly, especially when you lied to him about not hearing him tell you he loved you."
"I know. I was in a very bad place, then. It wasn't my finest hour, and I'm certainly not proud of what I did, but getting shot on top of everything else I was dealing with, everything was just too much. I needed time and space. And your father gave it to me. For that, I will always be thankful. And I will always remember how easily we can hurt each other, because we love each other so much."
Kate took a deep breath. "So, are you still mad at me?"
Alexis shook her head and smiled. "Since you two got together my father has been happier than I've ever seen him and since you've been engaged, he's been even happier. I don't know how he can get any happier now that you're married. If there's a Guinness World Record for happiness, I'm sure you two would hold it. And I'm very happy that you two are happy."
Alexis looked at Kate. "It's hard to see people you love hurting and not be able to do anything about it."
"I'm sure Rick knows how you feel."
"But do you? All the things that happened between you and Dad hurt you as well. You're very good at masking your feelings, but I've had good training. Dad usually wears his heart on his sleeve, but he can control his real feelings with the best of then if he wants to. And Grams is an actress. She's taught me a great deal about reading people. Looking for the real emotions behind the façade. I'm glad you're not hurting any more, Kate."
"I still feel the pain of my mother's death, but for years that was all I felt. Now I also feel joy, happiness and love."
"There's another thing, Kate."
"What?"
"You realize that I'm now on my third mom?"
"Oh, dear! Do I measure up?"
"My real mom, Meredith, has never really been a mom. She's capable of incredible generosity, and incredible selfishness. But mostly, she's capable of being elsewhere most of the time."
"I've met Meredith. I'm not sure I'd have picked her for a mother."
Alexis laughed. "You can't pick your mom, or moms."
"What about Gina?"
Alexis shrugged. "I liked her well enough, but she always felt that the main relationship in the family was me and dad, with her and dad in second place. I can't say that she was wrong, either. But it eventually did in the marriage, I think. There were other problems, but…She wasn't my ideal mom either."
"And me?"
Alexis looked at Kate for a long time. "Every once in a while, I think you'll be Mrs. Castle, my father's loving wife, most of the time, you'll be Kate, part big sister and part close friend, and sometimes you'll be mom. I hope you'll be mom more and more as time goes by."
"I hope so, too."
"In that case, welcome to the family…Mom."
"Thank you…Daughter."