A/N:Any references to LETO (my primary story) take place 2 years prior to R& I and 1 year before Castle unless otherwise noted.
However, It is a total divergence from cannon from an undisclosed point after R&I season 3, Rockmund nut ball episode, and only references Castle after Beckett is healed from her shooting in Castle season 4. I deliberately left out any cannon from either series after that point because I haven't seen either passed what is mentioned above and I don't want to contradict the fine writers of each show. Haven't done a huge amount of research on SVU beyond my main story so I'll have no solid references there.
As far as Alexis at Columbia U, I had to look it up and I know I'm jumping a year or two but trust me, it worked better. So strap in and hold on, were going in.
Alexis was one of the last students to walk in to her biology course while in the company of her best friend Lizzy Beauchamp. Like Alexis, Lizzy was also from a wealthy family and held high marks in all of her classes. The daughter of a Wall Street stockbroker and his symphony violinist wife, Lizzy had been groomed her entire life to come to Columbia U to be a Doctor. It was something of a sore spot with her since she preferred Pre-Law more than Pre-Med. But knowing her academic score was reflective of her abilities, she had capitulated this year to her parents.
Next year she planned on applying to Harvard, but a good medical base would grant her a greater understanding of Medical Law so she studied in earnest.
"So did you hear the latest on Old Stoker?" additionally Lizzy could be a gossip. "I heard he disappeared for a few days for some medical stuff. Maybe he's getting a pacemaker."
Alexis sighed, "You really need to quit gossiping if you do become an attorney. Dr. Stokes went to visit his daughter in Houston so he can be there for her child's birth."
"How do you know?" she asked.
"Dr. Antonio was talking about it to Professor Logan this morning in the lab." She said as she took her seat.
"So who do you think is going to fill in for him?"
"Dr. Antonio was saying that they had a prominent doctor from a hospital coming in today but I didn't catch a name. But they probably over exaggerated anyway." Alexis could do a little gossip too.
"Students, please take your seats." A feminine voice called out from the back of the class.
Alexis turned to find a beautiful woman around Kate and Jane's age walk down the right side aisle carrying a messenger bag. It was not what Alexis had expected. She had been estimating some grey haired man with a slacking build and over inflated ego.
What she got was an attractive female, wrapped in expensive silk blouse and equally expensive knee length skirt with four inch heels. Her honey blond hair was stylishly curled and her hazel eyes were astounding. Her clothing was well fitted and hugged a toned and endowed figure Alexis wished she had.
"Good morning class. Dr. Stokes wasn't able to be here today because he is with his family celebrating the birth of his very first grandson."
She turned to look around at the class and Alexis started pulling out her tablet and computer.
"I will be substituting for him for the next three days and before we begin I thought I should introduce myself." She smiled warmly, "I am a Medical Doctor but my field of study is Medical Examiner and Pathology. Currently I am also a professor at Icahn Medical School at Mount Sinai Hospital, just down the street and my name is Dr. Maura Isles."
A loud crash sounded near the back of the room . Maura took two steps to the right to see a pretty girl with an unruly mane of red curls sitting in the aisle she had just walked down. Her chair was laid on its back and her school materials were scattered around her.
"Are you okay, Miss…?
"Ca.." she cut herself off from her near slip. "Kay, I'm okay."
"Alright, Kay." She said as she started up the aisle, "would you like someone to look at you."
She scrambled to her feet ant there were muted chuckles, "No, I'm okay and it's Alexis. Alexis Rodgers."
She quickly righted her chair and began to pick up her things, scrambling to put them back on the desk.
"All right Miss Rodgers, but if you need to go to the med station, I understand."
Alexis stacked her laptop and tablet on her desk and turned to her. "No Mau-err, Dr. Isles. I'm fine, really." She sighed as she rubbed her hands together, "I just lost my balance sitting down."
Maura put a hand on the young girls shoulder but she had caught the girl trying not to use her first name, as if she was familiar, "Well please be careful, Miss Rodgers. I haven't lost a student yet and I would hate to tarnish that record." She smiled warmly but something about those sea blue eyes told her that Miss Alexis Rodgers wasn't being honest about her fall.
Since she was most likely embarrassed at such a public fall she wouldn't wish to discuss it openly in class. Maura knew she would have to enquire further after class. "So as I was saying, I'm Dr. Isles…"
As Dr. Isles headed back toward the podium, Alexis couldn't help but stare.
Lizzy elbowed her, "Girl, what's wrong with you? You fell flat on your ass there."
Alexis hadn't even blinked, "I'm fine."
Lizzy elbowed her again, "seriously, what's up. You know her or something?"
"Leave it alone, Lizzy, just leave it alone." She tried to focus on getting her stuff in order while Dr. Isles went through a brief outline of her credentials, far briefer than most of the professors had when introducing themselves but Alexis wasn't listening, she didn't have to, she knew Maura Isles history as well as the doctor did, courtesy of her Aunt Jane's bragging about how Alexis Castle could be the Next Maura Isles, the most brilliant woman Jane had ever met.
The very woman who broke her Aunt Jane's heart.
As the class ended Maura stood up from the small desk and called out to the students who were packing up to leave, "Remember that the Cellular Biology Quiz is on Friday and Professor Stokes will be back on Monday."
She took a deep breath, "Miss. Rodgers could you stay for a minute?"
Alexis cringed as she almost made it out the door but got caught before she could escape. As the other students filed out there was the usual snickering and banter about how Miss Perfect had finally gotten in trouble but Alexis didn't care because she had a good idea what was about to happen. Lizzy gave her a sympathetic glance.
She sat down at her desk and waited for the others to finish leaving, Dr. Isles approached her then.
She calmly sat down at the desk across the aisle, hands folded neatly in her lap, "Are you alright Miss Rodgers?"
Alexis turned to stare at her and tried to keep her emotions off her face, "Yes, doctor. I'm fine."
"Because I have read Professor Stokes notes on all of his students and he is quite proud of you. His notes constantly refer to your focus and attention to be unrivaled in his class but what I have seen today was anything but focused and attentive."
Alexis gulped, "I am sorry, ma'am. I didn't mean to stare. I've just heard a lot about you and…"
"And?" she said patiently.
"And the woman I see isn't the same woman I have heard about over the last few years. I am trying to reconcile the differences."
Maura nodded, "Hero worship isn't something that is easily reconciled." She said, "regardless of all of the things you may have heard I am still just a person, just like you. The differences in the person and the hero can be quite extreme."
Hero isn't the word I'd use, she thought. "Yeah, I really should be going."
Maura stared at her nervous fidgeting, but her breath caught as she bit her lower lip close to the corner of her mouth. She then noticed the girls red hair was styled like the wild untamed curls Jane had naturally. The similarities were unnerving to Maura.
"I like the way you style your hair," she said warmly, "it reminds me of someone I used to know. Do you do that yourself or does someone style it for you?"
Gah, now she wants me to talk about Aunt Jane to her face. "My soon-to-be step mom and my aunt did it for me this morning." She twitched nervously and then there was that lip bite again.
Maura almost fell out of her seat when the girl started rubbing her palms with her fingertips. Alexis noticed what she was doing and quickly shoved her hands behind her back.
"Dr. Isles, I really have to go." She said gathering up her messenger bag. "It was nice to finally meet you."
Maura played a hunch, something she never did, "Just out of curiosity, how did you hear about me and my work."
Alexis froze at the door. She couldn't look back, she wanted to lie but she had too much integrity, "My Aunt." She turned around, her blue eyes intense. "She was a big fan of yours."
Maura stared at her, "I swear the way you are looking at me tells me that you know me in some way that is not academic."
Alexis rolled her eyes, "Really?" in a Jane tone, deliberately.
Maura's eyes narrowed at the attitude, "I am sorry Miss Rogers but I don't recall ever meeting you or any other Rodgers in recent memory so I am at a loss as to why you are giving me such a disapproving tone."
Alexis stepped back towards the door, "Well, Doctor Maura Isles, I apologize for giving you a disapproving tone. I will endeavor to improve my attitude and attentions for the remainder of your tenure here." She turned to leave before she really got going.
"Excuse me." Maura stood, "I truly do not know what I could have done to earn such disrespect from you but as your professor, however brief, you will not use that tone with me."
Alexis smirked at her with everything she had, "Really, Maur?" and walked out the door.
Maura was stunned at the smirk and the words, both of which only one other had ever given her.
Maura ran out the door after the girl, "Alexis."
Alexis dropped her head as she thought she had gotten away, again. She turned around to face Dr. Isles. "Only one other person has ever called me Maur. How could you possibly know that?"
"I told you, my Aunt." She said.
Maura took her by the arm and gently pulled her back into the class room.
Once inside she let go and stared at the young girl she had a feeling but she needed an answer, "You keep saying your aunt tells you about me but the only one who does the very same things you do doesn't have a niece, only a nephew and he's still an infant so tell me right now how you know me."
Alexis sighed, "I love my Dad, and I love his fiancé, but the one person that means everything to me is my aunt. She came to live with us almost a year ago, because of you. I should actually thank you because she's been an amazing influence in my life but I'd trade it all and give her up if you would just make it right. You want to know why I don't like you, because I've heard my Aunt Jane crying every night over you, begging God to make it stop hurting."
Maura deflated and sat down, "Castle, you're Alexis Castle." She turned away, unable to face the girl in the diary.
Alexis cringed at Maura's tone and the slouch in her shoulders. It wasn't in her nature to deliberately cause someone pain and obviously Aunt Jane was still a tender spot for her.
"I'm sorry," she said softly, "I didn't mean to come at you like that."
Maura whispered, "Believe me, I deserve no less."
It was that regretful tone that had tugged at Alexis's heart. Aunt Jane loved this woman and obviously Dr. Isles regretted her actions in the airport. Alexis's mind whirled at the new information and needed more.
"Can I ask you something Dr. Isles?" a small nod from Maura, "Why haven't you gone to her?"
"I did," she said softly, "I did. I went to her and Detective Beckett's work. She took one look at me and left."
How come I haven't heard about this? She thought. "When?"
"Before classes started, I wanted to apologize to her."
Alexis put her hands on her hips, "I wondered why she stayed locked in her room that night."
"I thought she hated me. So I left." Maura sighed.
"Well, for your information, my Aunt Jane has never once hated you even after you shattered her heart. I don't know a lot about what happened to you and her but I know that as much as you seem to regret whatever it was. Please, believe me when I tell you, she's had it a lot worse. I never once doubted my Dad's love for me, nor Kate's, but Aunt Jane has made sure that I never, ever felt unloved. Even when she could barely breathe without crying she was there for me, making sure she knew how much I was loved, and she's fiercely protective of me, scarily so. I love and adore Aunt Jane and I'm very protective of her, too. I'm sorry I came off hard on you, but all I can see is the woman who hurt the most wonderful person in my life."
Maura nodded at the young girl's words but Alexis waited a few minutes before standing up to leave. Maura caught her hand.
"Please, Alexis." She said, "Please tell me. How is she?"
Alexis hesitated. She wanted to jerk her hand away and leave but her heart ached at the pleading voice. It was her helping nature that caused her to pull out her iPhone. She opened the picture she had taken this morning before handing it to Maura.
Alexis was in the bathroom dressed for school, she had a wide smile on her face and her blue eyes sparkled in joy. She was flanked on either side by Jane and Kate, also dressed for work in white button up shirt. Jane's sleeves were rolled up to her elbows where Kate's were fastened at the wrist. Both wore black slacks and their badges and guns clipped to their belts.
Both were wielding curling irons as they worked over Alexis's hair into a style that mimicked Jane's unruly mane of black. Jane was posed as if she was trying to pull out a thick strand of hair with the curling iron and was wearing a goofy strained face. Kate was watching her partner in an opened mouthed laugh.
Maura touched the screen gently.
"She's doing a lot better." She paused, "She still cries before bed and sometimes when I ask about something related to you she gets misty but she's a lot better now than she was a few weeks ago."
Maura looked up, "A few weeks ago?"
A pained look came over Alexis before she spoke again, "Kate was shot again in the line of duty. I don't really know what happened but I know that they were in a bad situation and didn't think they were going to make it out. Aunt Jane wouldn't leave Kate and she ended up killing the guy. Kate says wherever Aunt Jane's heart was hiding it just… came back that day."
An image from the night Jane had killed Hoyt ran through her mind and the cold brutality that she had displayed when she drove the scalpel into his heart. It was the scariest thing Maura had ever seen short of the moment Hoyt had cut Jane's neck right in front of her. Maura had always taken comfort in knowing that Jane would kill to protect her. Now she imagined Jane having that look in her eyes while defending Kate and what that meant.
Jane made Kate her family and this girl was her family too.
"I'm happy that she's better." Maura looked up into those ocean blue eyes and she couldn't hold back her tears anymore, "She's amazing, Alexis. Please, whatever you do, don't do what I did. Don't ever lose her loyalty. It's not something she ever gives out lightly and once it's gone. You may never get it back. Always show her what she means to you and never hide it from her. She deserves to know."
The tears on her cheeks and pain in her voice made Alexis spin. This is not a woman who regrets losing her best friend. This is a woman who lost her soulmate. Alexis's eyes widened, JUST LIKE AUNT JANE!
Alexis reached into her messenger bag and pulled out her pack of pocket Kleenex she kept for her aunt and pulled one for the doctor, "May I ask you something personal, Dr. Isles?"
Maura nodded slowly taking the offered tissue.
"Do you love my Aunt Jane?" she asked nervously, "Like, as in really love her, like…"
Maura smiled sweetly as she dabbed at her cheeks, "With all of my heart."
Alexis reeled at the revelation. She handed Maura the packet and jogged out of the classroom.