Disclaimer: I do not own any part of Rizzoli & Isles. The characters belong to Tess Gerritsen, Jan Nash, Janet Tamaro, and TNT. I am in no way profiting from this. It's just for fun.

Some of you have mentioned wanting to know the whereabouts of a certain character, so this chapter is all about our favorite tortoise ;)

This picks up right at the end of the main story, the first few lines are the last ones from that chapter

Chronicles of TBU Ch. 2

Beacon Hill, 2039

"You know, we have a nice bed upstairs... You thinking what I'm thinking?" Maura wiggled her eyebrows suggestively, and Jane immediately took the hint.

"Hell yes." Jane jumped out of the chair, scooping Maura up into her strong arms bridal style, and carried her into their home as they both laughed.

"I love you, Jane."

"I love you too, Maur. Always have, always will."

Maura was still giggling as her strong armed wife carried her into the house, the two of them kissing and not paying much attention to their surroundings.

The former soldier's foot caught on something as she walked, and stumbled over, both women falling onto the floor as a result.

"Umf... Damn it, what the hell?" Jane grumbled as she got her bearings, then checked on Maura. "You alright?"

"I'm fine... What-" The blonde stopped as she looked around for the cause of their fall. "Oh, Bass! We must've tripped over him."

"Darn turtle has it out for me, that's why..." Jane huffed out, chuckling at Maura's narrowed eyes. She knew that look well. "I don't know what I did to him to deserve it."

"Maybe constantly calling him by the incorrect species?" Maura smirked, reaching out for Jane's hand to help her up as she stood from the floor. "It's been almost 25 years, a quarter of a century... And you still say it."

"I know, I do it on purpose to mess with you..." Jane replied. "But that hardly warrants me getting hurt. All I did for him and this is what I get?" She looked down at the large tortoise, whose head retreated into the shell. Jane was only teasing of course, she loved having fun with him. "Do you have any idea how hard it was getting him into the shelter with us? He was pretty damn heavy! Not to mention he kept trying to nip at my hands. Who knew turtle bites hurt so much?"

"Tortoise. Considering I was there with you, and Riley assisted, I remember that well. Bass and I are very grateful for what you've done for him."

"Yeah yeah... I'm just happy we were able to get him at all. When Dennis blew up the house, we both assumed Bass was here somewhere. Didn't cross my mind he was at the vet."

"That was rather fortunate..." Maura agreed, grateful she was able to hang on to her longtime pet and friend. "I was so shocked when I got the call, remember? We were just getting ready to discharge you from the hospital."

April, 2015 : Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston

"When do you think I'll be ok to go on rides?" Jane asked her girlfriend as the two packed up their few clothes into a bag, ready to finally leave the hospital.

"I wouldn't advise it for a while... You had quite a lot of damage, we wouldn't want you to wind up back in here. I'd say 3 months is the earliest to do something like that. That's actually perfect timing."

"How so?" The still healing woman wondered.

"It'll be in July, perfect beach time. The weather is usually beautiful around then... I can't wait for you to experience it all. Going down the boardwalk and into all of the various stores, trying out all sorts of delicious foods... I could go on forever."

"I don't mind, I could listen to you forever and never get bored." Jane winked, then smiled at Maura's adorable blush. The Italian zipped up her bag and walked over to her, brushing a hair out of her face. "I've read about the beach and have seen it in movies... It's supposed to be really romantic."

"It is."

"Let's go. Right now." Jane said suddenly, the idea of waiting a few months too much for her. "Maybe we won't be able to do everything while I heal, but a walk on the beach won't hurt any. If it gets too cold, I'll be chivalrous and put my coat around you."

"I've never done anything impulsive like that before..." Maura looked away shyly, but returned her hazel eyes to Jane's pleading puppy ones. "I love the idea, let's do it. We can rent a nice beach house for a couple months."

"Yes!" Jane pumped her fist happily. "I love you."

"I love-" Maura was cut off when her phone suddenly rang, the vibrating device sliding across the table it was left on earlier. "It's probably the lawyer again. We've been going over my parents assets nearly every day for almost 2 weeks."

"I'm sure it'll go on for a little while... Legal stuff takes some time to process from what I've heard."

"For some people it can, the courts drag cases out for years sometimes... But this lawyer has been with my family for my whole life, he wants to make the process done as quickly as possible for my sake."

"That's nice of him, and good for us since we're gonna need a lot money very soon." Jane commented, just as Maura picked up the phone to answer it.

"This is Maura Isles..." She paused for a moment, the other person on the other end greeting her as well. "Of course, Doctor Burke. I've been well, considering. Thank you... What?"

The shocked face Maura made concerned Jane, and she rushed right over to her side. Placing a hand delicately on Maura's as to not frighten her, Jane whispered "What's wrong?"

"Bass..."

"Your pet?"

Maura nodded, and a wide smile broke out onto her face. Doctor Burke had apparently given her very good news.

"How is he?" The happy woman asked. "Really? That's wonderful! When can I pick him up? Tomorrow sounds fine to me, thank you so much. Goodbye, Doctor Burke."

"Someone looks pretty damn excited right now." Jane grinned at Maura's obvious happiness.

"Bass is ok!" She beamed while jumping up and down, her infectious smile too adorable for words. "I don't believe it, but he is!"

"How? Where was he?"

"At the vet... Apparently he had an upset stomach so my mother took him there for me a few days before everything happened. She must not have told me because I always worry about him. When Doctor Burke heard about my parents deaths and me going missing, he's been taking care of Bass for me."

"That's great, Maur! We can bring him with us, I've always wanted a pet around."

"You'll love him. He's the sweetest tortoise, and very easy to take care of."

"I'm sure we'll get along great... So, we're able to get him tomorrow?"

"Yes. Oh, now we've got to get the room at hotel ready. So much to do. I'll need to purchase his strawberries and leaves, a new bed for him..."

Maura quickly gathered the rest of her stuff together while rambling on and on about preparing for Bass, practically flying around the room as Jane watched and listened.

Beacon Hill, 2039

"You couldn't leave there soon enough to go get him." Jane grinned at the memory, loving how excited Maura was that day at the hospital and the following morning on the way to get Bass.

"Of course. I've had Bass since I was only 16, I could never part with him if I could help it..." The doctor smiled fondly. "Since I've had him so long, I knew how to take care of him. If he needed any medical attention, I'm able to do that. His diet isn't very complicated either as you know, we were able to grow his food very easily. It's much better to do that now that we're above ground again."

"I've got such a smart wife." Jane nuzzled her nose against Maura's, the sweet and affectionate action warming both their hearts. "What would I do without you?"

"Mmm..." Maura hummed in happiness, wrapping her arms around Jane's waist to pull her closer. "I have no idea. I know my life would be pretty empty and dull if I didn't have you in it."

"Mine, too..." The taller woman whispered, leaning the rest of the way in for a soft kiss. Mumbling against Maura's lips, Jane said "I love you, so much."

"And I love you, too. More than you'll ever know... Come on, let me take you upstairs and I can show you how much you mean to me."

Jane pulled back from the kiss and let out a soft growl, playfully smacking Maura on her butt. "Let's not waste any more time, then."

As they started continuing their way to the steps, Jane stopped and pretended to be searching for something. With a smile on her lips, Maura knew Jane was about to make a joke. Rolling her eyes, Maura asked "What are you doing?"

"Checking to make sure Bass didn't set any more traps for me... I already fell down the steps once because of him, I still have the bruise on my leg!"

"Oh no you don't, that was almost 6 months ago!" Maura chided with a light smack on her shoulder, both of them laughing at the memory despite it being a painful experience. Luckily for Jane, she had a relatively soft landing and didn't get too banged up.

Maura started to push Jane up the steps, urging her towards the bedroom. As they reached the door, they heard a faint hissing sound coming from the bottom of the steps. Jane peeked around the hall and started laughing almost uncontrollably when she saw Bass looking up at her.

"Ya see? He heard me talking about him! He's planning something, I know it..."

"I've got something planned for you too but it won't happen unless you get in this bedroom."

Jane quickly sobered up and turned to see that Maura had already shed most of her clothing, leaning against the doorframe in nothing but her bra and panties.

Her brown eyes darkened instantly, and Jane tackled her onto the soft bed as their lips reconnected. The wild yet funny conspiracies about Bass temporarily forgotten.

Bass lives! How could I kill that little guy? I may be cruel to the characters in my stories sometimes, but never to the animals ;)

Thanks for reading and reviewing! See you next time :)