A/N: Z- That's a great point about Olivia and Alex so I will clarify that in this chapter. But essentially the two biggest ships in L&O SVU is Benson/Stabler and Benson/Cabot. Since I have worked with police for a long time I know that relationships are never a good thing with your partner so B/S is impractical in my world. For the most part I follow cannon and Stephanie March has been in and out of the L&O franchise a number of times so it has caused a lot of angst in the fanfic world. One of my favorites is called Just a Crush by DragonKatGal and I loved it so much that I treat it like cannon. Set in the first season of SVU so the relationship is 9 years old in this setting and it's been a rough on and off deal. I'll dig into it for you when Jane and Maura go to bed tonight.
PS. Originally Thanksgiving was going to be a chapter long but it was expanded because My Muse had more to say and also in appreciation of your reviews.
To all of the folks who are following this story, I truly thank you for your interest from the bottom of my heart. Please feel free to post reviews because MJ and Z have had a lot of influence over this story and I welcome the inspirations.
Jane walked in to Alexis's room without knocking. Inside she found the young girl sitting on her bed with her back to the door, holding a picture in her hands. As she came in further she caught sight of the image captured there. Kate and Jane had taken Alexis to Yankee Stadium for a Red Sox Game. Jane was hugging Alexis tightly and covertly covering up the NY logo with her hand right after she had placed her Red Sox hat on top of the red head. As Kate had been hugging them both, she had been completely unaware of Jane's secret dis on the Yankees. Alexis had been laughing because she knew what Aunt Jane was doing.
It was one of the few pictures Alexis had where Jane was smiling fully and as such held a special place on her dresser next to the one of her, her dad, Kate, and Gran. Jane heard a slight sigh as she held the picture tenderly.
Jane stepped around the bed softly and sat down next to her. Despite the fact that she hated when her ma did it to her, she gently put an arm over Alexis's shoulder.
Alexis leaned into her Aunt's lean frame. Jane didn't say a word as she stared at the picture.
It was a few minutes before Alexis spoke, "You're going back to Boston, aren't you?"
Jane tugged her closer, "Eventually I'll have to go back but I really hadn't thought about it much."
"And then I'm going to lose my Aunt Jane." Her voice started to crack.
"Oh, baby girl." Jane leaned over to get a look at her face, "You'll never lose me. I'm always going to be your Aunt Jane." She lifted Alexis chin with a curled finger, "Always and my door is always open to you."
"I wanted you two back together so you could be happy again." she diverted her eyes before the next few words came out, "But now she's going to take you away from us and I don't like her for it."
She felt her eyes go wide as her eyebrows shot up. Alexis said us but Jane knew what she meant was me. "Lex, she's not going to take me away from you. Yes I love her and this past year, I felt like a piece of me has been missing and now I feel whole again. That doesn't mean I love you any less. In fact, I love you more because you helped make this happen."
Alexis turned to her, "You're going to leave."
Jane stared back, "I'm not going to make that call without thinking it through. You taught me that, kiddo."
She sat there in her Aunt's arms before she sighed. Jane couldn't help but feel for her. Even though Jane had only been here for just under eleven months, Alexis had quickly grown attached to the Italian. Rick had been concerned at first, especially due to the emotional state Jane had been in for the first two months. But as he watched how Jane responded to the young genius and helped bring Jane out of her turmoil, he began to appreciate the friendship that had grown almost overnight.
Especially when Jane had become protective of Alexis. Rick knew that Jane would never let anything happen to his only child, especially when he considered all of the things Kate had told him about Jane. Kate had been a little more cautious but eventually she too had seen the benefits to both of them.
Jane loved Alexis every bit as much as if she had been the one who carried her for mine months and it helped her come back from that place inside where she had hidden herself away.
Jane thought about what it would mean for Alexis if she did go back to Boston but it was a hard thought and Jane wasn't ready to face it. She knew she would have to soon but she needed Maura to help her face it.
"I'm not going back to Boston yet." She said softly, "We still have time to figure it all out, okay?"
Alexis sniffed and nodded slowly.
"Okay." She hugged her again, "So let me show you the Maura Isles that I know. I think that if you give her a chance, you'll like her too."
Dinner passed with lots of food, thanks, and praise to the chefs. The conversations were fun and pleasant and after everyone pitched in to help clean up. Colin's natural ability to talk about the past soon rivaled Rick's ability to tell fictional stories and they soon found themselves in the living room listening to one of Colin's stories.
"Somehow, because I really don't want to know, Kate and Jane got ahold of a case of these low powered Tasers. And we've been zapping each other all day like kids who are having too much fun with that really annoying toy. Elliot has just been going on and on about how Jane would be a better girlfriend to his partner than Alex." Colin turned to Maura who was sitting on the couch snuggled into Jane's arms, "Now mind you, this is Jane's second year at Springfield so its four years ago and Jane is continuing to argue with Elliot that she's not gay. Despite the fact that Liv is snuggled up to her much like you are and also mind you that Liv is damn near passing out and is just trying not to fall out of the swing at this point."
He took a sip from his beer and continued to tell his story. "So finally, Jane's pissed and Liv's had enough too. She kinda rolls her head to look at her partner and says, 'Elliot just shut up and let it go or I'm going to go find a real Taser.
Colin's finger pointed menacingly at the former Boston cop, "Jane doesn't even wait for him to open his mouth before she reaches in to her equipment, piled next to the lawn swing and pulls out a goddamn stun gun and slaps it into Liv's hand. Elliot opens his mouth and before he can say a word, Liv shoots him."
Jane tries to hide her smile in Maura's hair but fails as she pulls away, "Jane! You shouldn't have."
Her laughter bubbles out even as she tries to look stern. "Oh, it gets better." It's taking all of Jane's will not to laugh at the rest of Colin's story.
Maura looks around the room. Kate is chuckling quietly with her hand over her mouth while Rick is laughing at Colin. Alexis is sitting by the fire next to Martha staring at her aunt with disbelieving amusement. Frankie is shaking his head because he could easily see Jane handing a loaded Taser to a very intoxicated Olivia. She turned back as Colin draped an arm over a slightly embarrassed Olivia.
"Alright, now Kate jumps off of the end of the swing and staggers over to Elliot who's only half-conscious and twitching on his back behind the turned over chair. She starts smackin' his face to roust him. But she's smashed too so instead of that gentle tapping like you'd you use on a friend, her slaps are knocking his head back and forth, so she's shouting 'Stabler,' slap, 'wake up', slap, 'you okay?' slap." More laughter erupts around the room and now it's Kate's turn to look slightly embarrassed.
After a second he continues, "So he finally manages to nod his head as if he's sayin 'quit slapping me you sod.' The prongs are still stuck to his chest and the wires aren't broken either. Kate looks over the chair to the girls. But she's not looking at Liv, she's looking straight at Jane and says 'what the hell is wrong with you?' Janie girl here snatches the Taser out of Liv's hand and without missing a beat she says, 'a lot.' And hit's the button again."
"You didn't!" Maura gasps.
Jane tried to contain her amusement but couldn't, "I sure did."
"Jane that was mean." She slapped Jane's knee, causing more amusement.
"Everyone there thought it was funny so I'm going with funny." She said as she pulled the blond closer, "You should have seen him though. He was flopping around like a fish on the beach and it was a low powered Taser and she shot him first. Besides, it wasn't like he didn't deserve it."
"But Jane, You are gay." She said.
Liv chimed up, "Only for you, Maura, and Jane is right. He did deserve it."
Maura passed a look to Liv before turning back to her lover. "Sometimes your humor is completely obscure." She looked around the room to find everyone laughing. "Or maybe it could just be me."
Jane kissed her tenderly, "Don't worry, we'll get you on board in no time."
Frankie checked his watch, "Yeah well it's goin' to have to wait. Janie, we gotta call to make."
"Yeah." Jane's smile as she held Maura tightly was easily one of the most beautiful the blond had ever seen on her. "Time to tell her the good news."
Maura hid her nervousness behind her own smile as Frankie stood up and headed to the dining room. He pulled out his phone and began scrolling through his contacts. Jane stood up and helped Maura to her feet in a most chivalrous manner before heading off to follow Frankie.
"Hey Ma." Jane said into Frankie's phone, "Happy thanksgiving."
"Oh, Janie! Happy Thanksgiving. I was wondering when you'd get around to calling us. How are things going in New York?"
"Great Ma." She smiled to Maura, "Kate and Rick put together a great dinner and we have a bunch of friends over so it's kinda like a family thing."
"Oh well that's good." She said "I hoped that it wouldn't be just you, Rick, Kate and Frankie."
Jane looked toward her niece, "Aw c'mon Ma. Alexis is here, too. So are Colin and Olivia."
As Jane talked to her mother briefly about the dinner Frankie put an arm over Maura's shoulder. "Hey, you ok?"
She looked at him. "What do you mean?"
"You look a little pale." He said, "You nervous or somethin'."
She nodded and Frankie pulled her into a hug, "Don't worry about it. Ma misses you bunches and she'll be thrilled to have you back." He grinned at her.
"Ok Ma, hold on a minute." A quick glance at Maura told her Jane that she needed another minute. "Here's Frankie."
Frankie stepped over and took the phone, "Hey, Ma."
"Maur?" concern resonated in her voice. "Honey, talk to me."
"I haven't talked to her in months." She said, "I'm worried she'll be angry."
"Oh baby," Jane said a she took her hands, "She could never be angry with you. You're her favorite, you know that."
"Jane." Hazel eyes brimmed with moisture as they met deep brown, "I left without a word and haven't even called because I was too hurt to hear her voice or anything that reminded me of you."
"You've been gone three months, Maur" she said, "I did it for a year. I know it's hard but she loves you and I know that she misses you. Remember that it was my own mother banned me from coming home until I brought you with me."
Maura nodded but she wasn't quite convinced, at least until small, delicate hands slipped around her arm, hands that held no scars. Maura looked over to see Alexis.
"It's okay, Dr. Isles." She said, "I talked to Angela plenty of times and all I can ever remember her talking about is how she wanted to hear from you, to know that you were alright."
Maura stared at the girl in disbelief. Alexis had never really been friendly toward her, both in class and most definitely not tonight. The looks she had caught Alexis giving her weren't like Olivia's. Olivia was part protective, part jealousy but the older woman was obviously trying to be nice after their little talk. Alexis, however, had been trying to hide anger tonight.
But there was none of that now. Alexis looked at her in support. Maura wanted to ask about the change but Jane was smiling at her niece's encouragement. It was a step in the right direction for her and Maura.
"I promise." She said softly, "She wants to hear from you."
Maura looked from Jane to Alexis and back. It was unnerving to think of how similar they were looking at her. Maura blinked and nodded. "Okay."
Frankie looked up from the phone, "Okay Ma. So I'm gonna put Janie back on, Okay?"
He handed the phone to his sister and took a seat. He wouldn't miss this for season tickets to every Bruins game for the next decade. Jane put the phone on speaker and sat it on the table. Castle and Kate stood just outside the room but were equally interested.
"Okay, Ma." She said taking Maura's hand into hers, "I have someone here who'd like to talk to you."
Jane gave an encouraging squeeze and kissed her quickly. Maura took a deep breath and leaned over the table, "Hello Angela. Happy Thanksgiving."
A loud bang and clatter sounded over the phone. In the background they heard Sean's voice calling out her name.
"Angela, are you alright." Maura asked nervously.
Guilty looks were passed around the table and Jane cut in. "Ma? Ma, are you alright?"
"Sean," Angela shouted, "It's Maura! Where's the phone?! Where'd it go?"
There was some shifting and banging around from the other end until, "I got it. Here you go, babe."
Jane cringed at the endearment her former boss said to her mother.
An unsteady voice, "Maura? Maura is that really you?"
"Yes, it's me. Are you alright? Did you just become vasovagal?"
"Oh no honey." She said, "I was just surprised and I lost my balance for a second."
"Vasovagal?" Rick asked.
Jane looked back at him, "Fainted."
He frowned, "Wouldn't that have been easier to say?"
"Not for Maura." She smirked.
"Oh my god, Maura!" Angela said excitedly, "Honey, I was so worried about you." her voice turned sharply, "Maura Dorthea Isles! Where have you been, young lady?"
Maura stared at the phone with trepidation as she answered, "Um, New York City?"
"What is it with all of my kids?" she said vehemently, "They all end up leaving for that awful city."
"Ma!" Jane shouted, "That's not true. I did and Maura followed me, Frankie's just visiting."
"Until he finds a job there."
Kate chimed up from the back, "Angela, I don't have enough room at the 12th for anymore Rizzolis. One's already beyond the NYPD's budget."
"Thank you Katie. I appreciate it greatly." Kate's humor relieved a lot of Angela's tension.
It was a thankful look that passed between the partners as questions started pouring out of the phone for Maura. The others gave Jane and Maura some privacy as they talked to the Rizzoli Matriarch.
It was about a half hour of Colin and Rick exchanging stories in the living room before Jane came over to them. The look wasn't terribly happy.
A glance to Kate said it all, Come with me. Her eyes pointed out Rick and Alexis too.
Kate touched Rick's shoulder and called to Alexis as she got up. They made their way into the dining room where Jane and Maura sat next to the phone.
"Ok, there here Ma!"
"Alexis, you better get your butt up to Boston so I can thank you properly for what you've done for my girls." She said sternly.
Alexis blinked and looked at her Aunt who merely said, "Told ya."
"Rick, Katie?"
"We're here," Kate replied.
"Janie says she can't come back home yet. Something about a back log of cases?"
Jane groaned and dropped her head in her hands. Of course her mother would but in to her work.
Kate's heart skipped a beat as she thought about Jane moving back to Boston. It took her a second before she could answer, "Um, yes. Jane and I still have more than two dozen cases being prosecuted. Even if she was to put in for transfer, it would be two months before those cases reach conviction."
"Janie, I want you and Maura home as soon as you can get here." Her voice was authoritative.
Jane picked her head up and after a glance at Maura she looked to Alexis, then Kate. It was the hurt on her partner's face that caused Jane to stand up and lean over the phone.
"Ma, I'm not ready to come home yet." She said and turned to Maura, "I need to be here right now."
"Jane Clemen…"
"NO! MA!" the silence that followed was deafening. Jane took Maura's hand into hers and was given a reassuring smile as Maura stood next to her.
Maura nodded, "I'm with you, Jane. I'm always with you."
Jane looked at Kate and Alexis, but she spoke to her mother, "Ma, I know you miss us and I know you want us back in Boston but I can't leave right now."
"Janie, your family is here."
"And I have family here too, Ma." She said sharply. "I can't just leave Kate and Rick and Alexis. Besides, I still have some things I have to work out and now that Maura and I are together, we need to figure that out together."
"You can do that here, Janie."
"No ma. I can't." she said, "Kate and I are doing some real good for this city. Our conviction rate is really high and unsolved murders in Manhattan are going down. I can't abandon my partner like that. Kate's been the best partner I've ever had and I can't just leave her in this."
"What about Maura?" Angela appealed, "She's never liked New York."
"Your right, Angela." The blond interrupted, "I've never cared for New York but I'm here with Jane. I'll always be with Jane wherever she is. And I can't just leave my tenure in the middle of the school year."
Angela breathed in deeply. "Well, I guess I can't change your minds but damn it I want you both home for Christmas."
They looked at each other and then to Kate who was her immediate supervisor. Kate nodded.
"No promises, Ma but I think we can swing that." Jane said.
"I'll put in for the time off on Monday, Angela." Maura said.
"Katie! You get your family here too. I expect all of you here in Boston by Christmas dinner or they'll be hell to pay."
Kate cleared her throat, "I'll try Angela."
Jane rolled her eyes, "Okay ma, we relay need to get back to our guests. Give Tommy and Lydia and TJ kisses for me."
"And from me too, Angela." Maura said.
"Okay, but one more thing Maura." Angela said, "You call me Ma now."
Jane lay against Maura's soft curves later that night in Maura's condo. She contently traced patterns against her lover's smooth belly. Marveling had how the petite woman's toned body molded itself perfectly against her own as if they had always fit together. As if they were made for each other.
Maura, having regained control of her heart and her breathing after Jane's passionate love making, sighed contently as she ran her fingers through the tangled ebony curls that draped softly down Jane's back.
Three years it took for this to happen and if she thought about it, she could see the signs from when she had first met Jane in the Division One café. The day she had started her job as the Massachusetts ME. She had been standing in line for lunch staring at the sexiest woman she had ever seen. Who was arguing with Stan, the owner of the Division One.
At the time, she had been thinking what a shame that the beautifully tall brunette chose to exploit herself for money. Maura had never been so grateful to be wrong in her life as nearly a year later, Jane had come into the morgue for information on a cold case shortly after transferring into Homicide. Maura smiled contently at the memory and pulled her arms tighter around Jane.
"Hey, up there." Jane said softly, "Breathing is essential to the body."
"Sorry." Maura smiled at the woman she was in love with, "I was just thinking about how we met."
"Oh great." Jane rose up onto her elbow, "If you're going to ask me if I still have that hooker outfit, the answer is no and I'm out of here."
"No, my love." She smiled as she traced a finger along Jane's jaw. "About the next time we met."
"Oh." Jane thought about it too. "I remember."
Despite her quirks, Jane had asked Maura out to lunch that day. Who knew that that day would have set them both on a course to this?
"If I hadn't left for Mali…" her voice trailed off.
"If Ian hadn't come back, Maur, I don't think I would have had the courage to face how I feel, or to tell you."
"Would you have stayed with Casey?" She asked.
Jane thought about it for a second, "I don't think so. I think I might have for a while but I would have been lying to myself and to him." She cupped Maura's cheek, "You are the only one I have ever really loved like that. You said Ian was the love of your life."
"You said the same about Casey." She answered.
Jane nodded, "But you know what we are."
Maura shook her head, "Tell me."
Jane kissed Maura softly, "You are my soulmate." She kissed her again, "Two halves of the same whole. We've always hear those better half sayings but you really are my better half, Maura, and I don't like myself without you."
Maura pulled Jane on top of her before she rolled them over. Maura continued to lave her tongue against Jane's, breaking of only to nibble gently at her lip.
"I love you Jane and I'll never love anyone the way I love you." Maura said.
Jane smiled at Maura's declaration. She could feel Maura's warmth all the way down into that deep dark place in her soul where it hid. Even in that cold place, Jane could feel her love for Maura.
Never will she come to harm, so long as I breathe. The thought rolled through Jane like ice water down her spine. She should have been afraid of it but she knew that it was the truth.
"Do you think we were always supposed to be together?" It wasn't one of Maura's kind of questions but she asked anyway.
"Yeah." she slipped her arms around her again. "I think we were."
"Why." Jane knew it was that scientist mind of hers that needed to quantify the abstract.
"It just always seemed like we were drawn together and everyone around us seemed to know it too."
Maura thought about all the times someone thought she and Jane had something more than friendship but she couldn't remember the first time she had heard it. "Who do you think knew about us first?"
"Oh that's easy." Maura looked at her lover. Jane smirked as she said the name. "Olivia Benson."
It wasn't the name she was expecting. "How could she have known?"
"Keep an eye on that one." Jane said, "She's got a really scary gaydar. She knew for a fact I was gay before I did. Had me pegged the first day I met her."
"Gaydar?" Maura looked to her lover.
"Yeah, "Jane smiled, "Internal radar for finding gay people."
"Oh," She smiled at the term, "You met her in Springfield, right."
"Yeah, back in oh-eight."
"Jane! That was only a year after…" She stopped before she said his name.
Jane finished it for her, "…After Hoyt."
Maura shivered at the thought of the Surgeon and the memory of how Jane had killed him. She needed to change the subject so she asked about Liv.
"I know a lot about Olivia and a woman named Alex but tell me about them. Why is she so jaded?"
Jane looked at her as Maura settled into her shoulder. She sighed before she let out Olivia's secret. "Alex was ADA Alexandra Cabot."
"Of the BCU Cabot's?" Maura gasped.
"Yeah, the old man's only child." Jane said, "Alex has built her entire legal career or more accurately her whole life around one goal. She wants to be the DA for New York City. She had everything going for her but she didn't account for one thing."
"She figured out she was gay." Maura said.
"Nope." Jane said, "She's known that since puberty. Not many people around here would vote for a lesbian DA so she was determined to be married to her career. She got assigned as the official ADA for the SVU. She worked with Liv and the others a lot on cases and she fell in love. Alex has been torn between Olivia and her lifelong career goals and her family's expectations."
"But you said that Olivia has been with Alex since you met her."
Jane sighed, "Alex and Olivia have been through this since 2000. Liv says it's great when Alex is in it with her but then some job comes up and Alex jumps on it or they break up because of some political thing Alex is doing. It hurts Liv, whenever Alex does this and it pisses me off because in 9 years nothing has ever changed. They've been off and on more than ten times."
"If they got together in 2000 and its 2012, wouldn't that be 12 years?" Maura asked.
"Not when you take away the time Alex was in WitSec for three years." Jane murmured.
"Oh." Maura thought, "That makes sense."
"Yeah but the thing is, I really think Alex loves her but to be with Olivia means that she has to give up her dreams of being a DA."
Maura stared at her, "And because of the political intolerances associated with Alex's career, she has to be the one to give."
"Right." Jane said, "But Liv and I both figured out that being gay doesn't affect our jobs all that much. But being a lesbian ADA is political suicide for Alex. The only thing she hasn't figured out yet is that in politics, your dirty laundry always comes out eventually. I can't tell you how much dirt Kate and I dug up on politicians during our homicide investigations."
"Have dug up, Jane." Maura said.
"Cyborg." Jane quipped.
"Yes but you love your cyborg." She joked in a robotic monotone.
Jane smiled as she kissed her. "Yes I do."
A/N: Okay, so Thanksgiving is handled. I have an idea I'm working with My Muse on. We'll see how it plays out but I do know for sure that Maura in danger to reveal the darker side of Jane and some gruff from captain gates and definitely XMAS IN BOSTON! See ya soon.
Oh and by the way, the story is completely un beta ed.