Authors note: Thank you all for everything! The reaction to this story in not what I expected. It's probably going to end soon, but I'm going to continue it in a sequel. At least, thats what i'm thinking...Also, the bold part is her flashback.
Disclaimer: I own nothing (Sadly)
Kate smiled as she read the note, repeating the words "last clue" over and over in her head. She was overly excited, and in her excitement, had no idea where to go for her last clue.
"A good old fashioned duel" she repeated, walking back into the break room to make a coffee for her walk to wherever she had to go. She made the coffee and thought about her last clue, before pulling her phone out. She dialed Rick's number and waited for a minute before he finally picked up.
"Castle"
"Where am I supposed to go?" she asked.
"Now, what fun would it be if I told you where you were supposed to go? It would take away from the entire spontaneity of a scavenger hunt" he said.
Kate rolled her eyes and took a sip of her coffee. "Will you at least give me a hint? Please?" she asked.
"Fine, I suppose you can have one hint. Hmmm. Okay, I've come up with your hint. But I must let you know, I'm going to hang up directly after I say it. So with that, I'll see you soon Kate. Plaza" he said, and the phone went dead.
"Plaza, dueling… Oh!" she yelled, dropping her coffee on the counter. She knew exactly where to go. She shoved her phone into her pocket and ran to the elevator, bouncing up and down in excitement while she waited for the car to arrive. Kate wanted to see Rick, and she wanted to see him now.
As the elevator door opened, a uniform began to step out.
"Excuse me!" she yelled, pulling them out of her way to get into the elevator.
"Detective Beckett, where are you going?" the boy asked.
Her face lit up with a smile as the doors closed.
"Central Park."
When Kate left the precinct, she began running through the snow covered streets. It was difficult to run, in her four inch boots, through the snow, but she was determined to make it to the park in record time. As she ran, her phone began to buzz in her pocket.
"Beckett" she answered, breathing heavily as she attempted to run faster.
"You figure it out yet?" he asked.
"Maybe I have, maybe I haven't" she said, trying to come off sneaky, but it wasn't working.
Rick laughed into the phone and let out a huge sigh, smiling as well. "Alright then Katherine. I might see you soon. Be careful in the snow."
"See you soon Rick" she said, and hung up. Kate looked at the street signs she was passing. She was only about two blocks away from the park, but then she had to find him in the park. She picked up her speed and ran to the edge of the park, before she began thinking.
"Why would he pick the dueling case?" she thought to herself, walking through the park to where she remembered they'd found the body from that case. She kept contemplating the case in her head, running through everything that happened between them in those few days. And then one specific memory popped in her head that made her stop dead in her tracks.
She needed to talk to Rick about the case, and much to her surprise, his outrageous Steampunk outfit he wore as he answered the door, especially with the case they were working on. An old fashioned duel over a girl in Central Park. Working with Rick really brought out the odd cases, and this was one of their weirdest. But the extremely odd thing was the question she heard when she answered the door.
"How do you know when you're in love?"
She thought for a minute about the question, before responding.
"All the songs make sense"
Kate smiled at the memory, and began running again. All the songs make sense. She was beginning to realize everything that his scavenger hunt meant. She ran through the park until coming up upon one of the rock formations in the center of the park. He was standing in front of it, facing the rock, staring up at it. He had his hands in his pockets, rocking back and forth on his heels like he'd been waiting hours for her to show up.
"Rick" she let out breathlessly, before walking toward him. "Richard Castle" she called out and he turned around, smiling at her.
"You found me" he said, walking toward her. "Ready for your final pr-" he began, but she clapped her hand over his mouth.
"Rick, I love your way with words but I swear if you don't shut up" she said before crushing her lips onto his.