"Maura, look!" Jane turns Maura to look out the window.
"Jane!" Maura tries to look back, "After all this time, it still has to be a secret?"
"It's silly Maura, just silly stuff, no actual need to listen to it," Jane smiles and nuzzles Maura's neck.
"I want to watch this Jane, I miss her," Maura leans back into Jane.
"I miss her too," Jane turns to look behind, "secret whispers over," Jane kisses Maura's temple, "I am sorry Maura," Jane turns them around.
"Mommy's shy and doesn't always ask for kisses but you must always remember to give mommy kisses when you want to because mommy will never ask for them, that's what you told her, isn't it?"
"How did you know that?"
"She told me one day, that I can kiss her whenever I wanted to because she will and that she's guessing that mommy's shy, but wants mommy, wants me, to know that I don't need to be shy…"
"I just, wanted her to be sure to show you that she loves you so that you'll always know that she does and...she's...not a good secret keeper."
"She has kept the ones I asked her to though," she says, with a smug grin.
"Maura!"
"Thank you though Jane," Maura kisses the arm wrapped around her, "That's really sweet."
"You deserve only the best Maura," Jane sways them both, and kisses Maura's shoulder.
"You're both still the same."
They turn to face the voice.
Smiles.
"Sweetheart!" "Munchkin!" "Mommies!"
Hugs.
"Look at you, not a munchkin anymore," Jane looks at their daughter, from head to toe. She looks like her mommy, she thinks, with that hair and those eyes.
"Of course I'm not mama," she looks to her mother, still holding onto her mommy, both of them looking at her. Still so happy together; at least that hasn't changed; she smiles.
"Sweetheart," Maura breaks away from her observation of how despite having her hair colour, that hair of hers is definitely that of Jane's and that of her smile to say, "How are you here? You're supposed to be…"
"Dreaming? Mommy," she hugs her mommy, "It took me awhile but, lucid dreaming sort of works."
"I knew it will munchkin! So you can stay?"
"If I can keep it up."
"Then before all else fades away, tell me munchkin," Jane leans in to whisper to their daughter, "What did mommy tell you as a secret?"
She laughs and shakes her head. "Secret mama, secret."
"Fine," Jane kisses her hair and turns to Maura, "You know my silly secret with her but I'll never know yours Maura…" Jane smiles and gently kisses Maura's nose.
"It's not that crucial to anything that it requires knowing Jane," Maura squeezes Jane's hand and gently swings it.
"You're doing that thing again, where you-"
"Mommies?"
"Hmm?" Two smiles look up to face her.
"Dream. Time. Might I say what I came to say?" She smiles.
Two smiles, and two nods.
"Mama here, kept leaving little notes in my dreams for the past few weeks so-"
"That's why we got the warning letter Jane?" Maura says through her teeth to Jane. "That's dangerous and-"
"It worked, didn't it?" Jane placates Maura's worry with a kiss to her cheek, "I got our daughter here," Jane smiles.
"As I was saying," she continues and waves away the miniscule sorry her mommies send, "Mommy, mama, I don't blame you. Not one bit."
"Not at all, munchkin?"
"You don't blame us for not being there sweetheart?"
"Don't you remember what you told me," she reaches out to hold their hands, "When you told me why you gave me the name I have when I asked you both why?" She smiles.
"Jane," Maura says.
"Maura," Jane says.
"You placed them together, put your names together and made," she points to herself, "Me," she smiles, "Maurane."
"So that, I'll never be alone because I'll always have my mommies with me," she continues, "Even if it's just in a name." She kisses their hands and resists the urge to use them as swing chains; she has grown.
"Maurane munchkin, my lovely beautiful girl," Jane kisses the top of their daughter's head, "Thank you," Jane whispers into her ear, "Now tell mommy, please. She's been a little..."
"Mama," she whispers back, "You are very bossy." She smiles.
She walks the little way over to her mommy and wraps her arms around her.
"Mommy," she says as she looks at her mommy, "You are not any of your mommies or daddies. You are my mommy and you don't ever have to worry that I don't know that you love me or that you are like any of my grandparents, because you're not. It's not the same," she waits and makes sure her mommy hears, "you didn't mean to go away and it was only to protect mama, who wanted to protect us so, it's not the same, alright? I know you love me," she holds her mommy tighter, "I really do."
"Sweetheart," Maura kisses their daughter's temple, "Maurane, my beautiful clever girl, thank you," Maura frames their daughter's face in her hands, "Thank you for knowing that I love you, because I do and I'm so sorry that I'm not there with you, that we're not there with you," the hug tightens, "I am sorry."
"Maura," Jane settles herself next to the two most important persons in her life, "If anyone's sorry, it's me," Jane rubs at her palms, "I wasn't-"
"Mama," she looks at her mommies and smiles a sad tiny smile, "Mommy, what did I say?"
"That you don't blame us," Maura settles down next to Jane; hand in hers, fingers intertwined, palm to palm.
"Yes, and what's my name?" She smiles and points to herself.
"Maurane," Jane rests her head on Maura's shoulder and smiles at their daughter. She repeats their daughter's name, "Maurane Rizzoli-Isles."
"Exactly," she sits herself down in front of her mommies, "Tell me that's not already too much parental guidance just hovering over me no matter where I go," she smiles at her mommies.
"Someone thinks we're being too protective now Maura…"
"It is a possibility for her to react as such, to undergo stages of rebellion due to the changes her body is undergoing, the changes to her brain chemistry and hormonal changes. Not that it's entirely acceptable but we have to factor in that she's going through her pubescent stage Jane."
"Mommy…" she looks up and smiles at her mommy, "We were being sarcastic."
"Oh."
"Just because you're older now munchkin, doesn't mean you get to be smart with your mommy or me," Jane pokes their daughter's side gently.
She laughs and squirms away. "I never understood the significance of that though," she gestures to the bed where the memory versions of her family still sat, "But I do now."
They look up.
The handing of their mobile phones to their child; Jane's and Maura's to Maurane.
"You love your jobs, you do most certainly love each other," she sits up and holds their hands in hers, still held together, "But you love me enough to hand me all your time, all your attention every year, on my birthday."
"Thank you mama," she kisses her mama's cheek, "Thank you mommy," she kisses her mommy's cheek, "Thank you for loving me" She smiles at her mommies.
"Someone finally gets it," Jane teases, "All those nappies and food slobbers…finally, a thank you and might I say, that for this birthday of yours, we splurged quite-"
"Jane! You can't say that about-" Maura starts to say but stops at the held back laughter from her family, "You two are just two pea pods."
"Two peas in a pod mommy," she bites back a laugh.
"Maurane…" Jane gives a slight shake of her head and sighs, "Mommy and I have to go now..."
"Before a warning letter…" Maura says, soft to herself, "We have time to sing to her still right Jane? If she still wants us to?"
"Of course I want you to mommy!" She smiles, hopeful. "Can we mama?"
"Of course we can munchkin," Jane pats their laps, "You're always our little darling."
She rests her head on her mommies lap.
She no longer fits snuggly in their laps but, she likes it anyway.
She reaches into her pocket; some secrets aren't meant to be kept.
They sing her a lullaby and she sleeps.
She falls back asleep, in her dream.
Her fist uncurls and a note slides to the floor.
They pick it up and as she disappears, their dream trip concludes as well.
A/N: Hi there, thank you, for the time~