Chapter 49: First Day of School

A/N: I don't know if people care/are interested, but I joined Twitter specifically to post about my stories. I'd love to connect with readers. cloudyunicorn98 (because cloudyunicorn698 was too many characters ).

Also, I have no idea why I struggled with this chapter so much. It's not an especially important one (maybe that's why?). It more so has some necessary information, in addition to be a transition chapter, as opposed to being a pivotal chapter. Honestly, it probably has more to do with what's going on at work. {shrug} Anyway, I'm VERY SORRY for the delay.

I have one (most likely very crazy) week left in my current position. After that I'll have a little time before my new position starts (same employer), and I'm hoping to be able to use some of that time to write. I am in a wedding in early August, though, so that will take some time away from writing.

Maura: August, One Year Ago

Maura stood in the doorway of Sophie's bedroom, watching the little girl sleep. She looked so tiny in her big girl bed. Sophie had been asking for a big girl bed for weeks after one of the other kids in her daycare/preschool had switched, and finally Maura had relented. She recognized that Sophie was old enough, big enough, and mature enough for the transition, but Maura had to admit that it was hard for her. Her baby was growing up.

Of course, Maura wanted Sophie to grow up; she wanted her daughter to succeed. But sometimes, she found herself struggling with certain milestones. Since Sophie was born, Maura had tried incredibly hard not to compare her to her older daughters, but certain times were harder than others. Usually, it was the things she didn't expect – like the transition to a big girl bed – instead of the milestones she dreaded – like missed birthdays – that affected her more.

As she stood watching Sophie sleep, Maura also thought about how the twins would likely be starting kindergarten this fall. Maura still remembered her first day of kindergarten. She was so excited. Even at five years old, she loved to learn. The night before her first day of school, she could barely sleep as thoughts of what she might learn the next day and all the new friends she would make flew through her mind. The second part of her fantasies hadn't come true; she continued to struggle to make friends even when she was around kids her age. However, she never lost her love of learning. Now, she couldn't help but wonder if her now five-year-old daughters had a similar love of learning. She wondered if they were excited to start kindergarten.

Jane: August, One Year Ago

Jane looked up when there was a soft knock on her door just before it opened slowly. She bit her lip to hide her smile as Emma poked her head in the door, not yet daring to step all the way inside. Jane had been expecting this. She knew the girls were nervous about starting at a new school tomorrow.

"Mama?" Emma said quietly.

"Yeah, bean?"

"Can we come in?"

"Yes, come here," Jane said as she opened her arms. Emma ran over to the bed, quickly followed by Finn, and they both threw themselves into Jane's arms. Jane gave them each a kiss on the top of their heads as they settled into her arms. "Why aren't you guys in bed?" she asked, knowing the answer.

"Um, we, um, we want to go back to our old school," Emma said quietly into Jane's side.

"But you're big girls now," Jane replied. "Your old school was only a preschool. You're ready for kindergarten."

"But what if no one likes us?" Finn asked, her voice shaking slightly. "We don't know anybody."

Jane squeezed them both tighter against her. "It may take time, but you'll make friends eventually," she said. "But, you know, you two are really lucky because you already know your best friend is in your class."

"Cus Finn's my best friend?" Emma asked with a giggle.

"And Emma's mine," Finn added with a soft smile, reminding Jane so much of Maura in that moment.

"Yeah, you'll have each other, but I really want you guys to try to make new friends, too," Jane said. "Because, you know, the other kids probably won't have their best friends in the class. They're probably just as nervous as you are, but they don't know anyone, so I think you should try to be extra nice to the other kids and ask them to play with you guys."

"Yeah, that's true," Emma said. "We should make sure the other kids aren't lonely."

"Do you think they'll wanna play with us?" Finn asked, her nervousness returning.

"I think some of them will, yeah," Jane replied. "It's okay if some don't. It's just like in preschool; some kids play with some kids while some play with other kids, but what's the most important thing?"

"That everyone has someone to play with," Emma said smartly.

"Yeah, so what are you gonna do if you see someone sitting alone?" Jane asked.

"Ask 'em if they wanna play wit' us," Finn replied. "But what if they say no?"

"That's okay," Jane replied. "It's still their choice. It's just nice to ask."

"Yeah," Finn added.

"What're we gonna learn tomorrow?" Emma asked.

"Well, I'm guessing you'll spend most of tomorrow getting to know your teacher and your classmates," Jane said. "But this year, you'll learn more about reading, math, and science."

"But we already know how to read," Emma cut in.

"But not all kindergarteners do, so some will just be learning. The kids who know how to read will learn new skills to make them better readers."

"Can we help the kids who don't know howta read?" Finn asked.

"Yes, of course, as long as you do it nicely," Jane said.

"Cus needing help doesn't make you dumb," Emma said flatly, making Jane smile. She had always tried to instill the importance of helping others as well as the importance of asking for and accepting help in her kids.

"That's right," Jane said. "And then maybe one day one of the kids you help will help you when you need it."

"What if we don't need help?" Emma said defiantly.

Jane rolled her eyes. She wasn't sure if Emma sounded more like her or Maura in that moment. "It's not quid pro quo," she said exasperatedly.

"Huh?" Emma said, scrunching her little face in confusion. Okay, at that moment, Emma was all Jane. Maura would never be caught dead saying 'huh?'

"Don't keep score," Jane said with a chuckle. "Help people because it's the right thing to do, not because you want something from them in the future."

"Oh, yeah, okay," Emma replied as she tried – rather unsuccessfully – to stifle a yawn.

"I really think you guys are gonna like school," Jane said softly. "I know you're nervous, but so is everyone else."

"Yeah, 'm excited, too," Finn mumbled as she started to settle against Jane's side.

"Uh uh," Jane said, laughing as she pushed Finn back into a sitting position. "Sleep in your own beds tonight." She'd let them stay if she thought they really needed it, but she knew that even though they were nervous, they were okay.

"Okaaayyyy," they both said dramatically.

"Kiss," Jane reminded them, and they each gave her a goodnight kiss and hug before leaving the room. "Love you both."

The Next Day

Jane was nervous as she stood outside the school. She was bouncing slightly, standing there with Harper on her hip.

"Where's Emma and Finn?" Harper asked, craning her neck to look through the crowd of kids and adults standing around.

"School hasn't let out yet," Jane said. "They're still in the building."

"But there's kids," Harper said, not giving up her search for her two favorite people.

"Yeah, siblings," Jane said with a laugh. "Like you."

"Oh," Harper replied distractedly. Jane shook her head; Harper wasn't really listening to her. All she cared about was finding her sisters. "There they are!" she suddenly squealed, pointing across the yard before wiggling in Jane's arms to be put down.

Jane laughed and set Harper back on her feet. Harper instantly took off and ran to her sisters. She didn't even slow down as she got closer to them. However, Emma and Finn were expecting it, so they caught their sister together as she hurtled herself into their arms. All three girls were giggling hysterically when Jane got to them.

Finn extracted herself from her sisters and held her arms up for Jane to pick her up. She gave Jane a big hug before pulling back. She had a huge smile on her face as she said, "I love kindergarten!"

Jane laughed. "I take it you had fun today?" she asked.

Finn nodded vigorously, her smile never leaving her face. "Uh huh!" she said, speaking fast in her excitement. "Emma and I made three new friends! Alyssa, Michael, and Charlie. Not our cousin Michael. I mean, he's our friend, too, but he's not a new friend."

Jane laughed and looked down at Emma who had just hugged her leg. "Did you have fun, too, bean?" she asked.

"Yeah!" Emma said, a huge smile on her face, as well. Jane lowered down to the kids' level and set Finn on her feet before pulling Emma into their group hug as well. "Today was fun!"

"Ready to go home?" Jane asked as she stood back to her full height.

"Mmhmm," Emma said at the same time that Finn said, "Yeah." Harper grabbed both Emma and Finn's hands as she walked between them back to the car. The three-year-old had missed her sisters today!

Maura: August, Present Day

Maura woke up before her alarm. She snuggled deeper into Jane's arms and tried to get back to sleep, but after a while, she had to admit that she wasn't getting any more sleep. Today was everyone's first day of school – well, everyone but her – and she felt a nervous excitement about the upcoming changes to their comfortable routine.

Emma and Finn were starting second grade today, Harper and Sophie were going back to preschool, and Jane returned to work. They already had everything planned. Jane would drive Emma and Finn on her way to work while Maura took Harper and Sophie to preschool. Emma and Finn would take the bus home, and Jane would pick up Harper and Sophie on her way home from work. Maura was planning to run a couple of errands while everyone was gone, and she also had her next therapy appointment this afternoon.

Maura had really enjoyed being able to spend so much time together as a family over the summer. She really hadn't expected that before she and Sophie arrived. She knew she'd miss the time together, but she was also looking forward to life moving forward. She wanted a whole life with her family…with Jane and the kids…not just the shelter of summer vacation – that didn't mean she still wouldn't look forward to being able to spend more time together on school vacations.

Maura gently extracted herself from Jane's arms, trying her best not to wake the other woman. She left a soft kiss on Jane's cheek before making her way to the bathroom to get ready.

Jane was just starting to stir as Maura finished her morning routine.

"You're up early," Jane mumbled as she sat up and tried her rub the sleep from her eyes. The extra husk in Jane's sleep laden voice made Maura smile.

Maura walked over to the bed and kneeled on it so that she could lean over and give Jane a morning kiss. "I couldn't fall back asleep, so I decided I might as well get ready," she said, smiling at Jane. "I'll go start breakfast. Do you want me to wake the girls before I go downstairs?"

"Yeah, sure," Jane replied. Jane stretched her arms above her head, and Maura had a hard time stopping herself from pushing Jane back into bed and kissing the newly exposed skin above her waistband and then some. Jane must have caught Maura staring because she raised her eyebrow and said, "You alright there, Maur?"

Maura felt herself blush. They definitely did not have time for this right now. Okay, maybe she was going to miss the flexibility of summer more than she expected. "Shut up!" she said with a laugh as she turned to leave the bedroom, causing Jane to laugh as well. Just before she walked out the door, she turned around and flashed Jane a smile. "I love you," she said before disappearing into the hallway without waiting for a response.

All four kids were so excited that they were easy to get up today, and they had already picked out their first day of school outfits the night before. Maura made a healthy breakfast while they finished getting ready.

Thirty minutes later, all six of them were sitting at the kitchen table for breakfast. Maura unexpectedly felt tears burn at the corners of her eyes. She was definitely not expecting to be this emotional about the girls' first day of school, but she really couldn't believe she was here…that this was her life now.

Luckily, the girls didn't notice her getting emotional since they were all talking excitedly about school, but of course, Jane noticed. Maura felt Jane's hand find her own under the table and give it a gentle squeeze. Maura returned the gesture and leaned slightly against Jane's side. Jane turned and gave her a gentle kiss on the cheek but otherwise didn't say anything.

Maura was happy…so, so happy to be home, to be with her family, to be getting her kids ready for their first day of school alongside Jane – her Jane, her best friend, the love of her life.

Jane: August, Present Day

A week and a half later

"Hey! We gotta go or you're gonna miss the bus!" Jane yelled up the stairs.

"Coming!" Emma called back as she and Finn came bounding down the stairs. They grabbed their backpacks and hurried out the front door.

Jane followed quickly behind them. Emma and Finn were talking rapidly about – well, Jane really had no idea what they were talking about – as they walked to the bus stop. The first week and a half of school had gone well, and Emma and Finn had already made new friends in the second grade. It made Jane happy to listen to them, knowing they were doing so well. Even though she knew that moving them to second grade was what was best for them, she had still been nervous when school started.

She hadn't needed to be, though, because Emma and Finn were thriving.

Jane was the first to notice the bus coming down the street. She turned to Emma and Finn to give them each a hug and a kiss on the top of their heads. "Remember, mommy's picking you guys up, today, okay?" Jane said.

"'Kay," Emma said at the same time Finn said, "Yes!"

"Bye," Jane said, waving to both of them as they got on the bus. "Have a good day!"

Finn waved over her shoulder without looking back, but Emma turned and rolled her eyes at her mother. Jane tried to hide her laughter – Emma was so much like her it was scary sometimes.

Jane watched as the bus drove out of sight before she walked home. By the time she got home, Maura, Harper, and Sophie were already gone. Maura was driving them to preschool on her way to the precinct where she was meeting with Kent about possible job opportunities. Jane had to hurry in order to make it to work on time.

Jane was assigned a new school in the same district this year. So far, things had been going well, but she had to admit that she missed some of the kids she had gotten to know over the past few years at her old school. She understood, though, that as a part-time resource officer, she had to be flexible in where she was placed to ensure that the district had all schools covered. She was hoping to increase her hours next year when Harper – and now hopefully Sophie – started kindergarten, but she had agreed to a contract with the same hours as the past two years well before the end of the last school year. She worked 20 hours per week – seven hours on Mondays and Wednesdays and six hours on Fridays.

Maura hadn't yet decided what she wanted to do next, but they had talked about it a few times over the last two weeks. In the end, she decided that she wanted to take a couple of meetings – starting with a meeting with Kent, the current chief medical examiner and her successor – to see what options were available to her. Jane thought this was a good idea, but she hoped that Maura wouldn't just take a job because she thought she needed to do something.

Jane had just finished her lunch in her office when her phone rang. "Hey, Maur," she answered. "How was your meeting with Kent?"

"Hello, Jane," Maura replied, and Jane could hear the smile in her voice. "It was wonderful. Kent offered me the chance to consult on a case-by-case basis, at least through the end of the year. That way, I can continue to explore my options while also refamiliarizing myself with the medical examiner's office."

"That's great, Maur," Jane replied with a smile.

"There's just one thing," Maura added, a slight nervousness creeping into her voice.

"Yeah?" Jane asked.

"They'd like me to consult on a current case," Maura said quickly. "I don't have to. I can start with the next case."

"But you want to start now," Jane said knowingly, laughing lightly.

"Yes," Maura said with a happy sigh. Even though she had been home for two-and-a-half months, sometimes it still made her feel all warm and fuzzy inside when Jane knew what she was thinking before she said it.

Jane laughed, a little louder this time. "So, start," she said.

"I'm supposed to pick up the girls," Maura said. "Kent was hoping I could conduct a second autopsy to see if anything was missed. I should be done in time to pick up Harper and Sophie, but I don't think I would be able to finish the autopsy quickly enough to pick up Emma and Finn."

"Are you asking if I can pick them up?" Jane asked with a smirk.

"I…honestly, I'm not sure…" Maura sighed. "I want to do both, but I recognize that isn't possible."

Jane sat back in her swivel chair. She was now realizing the real reason Maura called – she needed help deciding. "Well, I can pick them up, if that's what you want, but it's also fine if you want to wait until the next case so that you can pick up the girls. It's okay to tell them you need more notice and that you have to pick up the kids.

"But, you know, there are two of us. It's also okay for us to rely on each other. I don't mind picking up the girls," Jane added. She could perfectly picture Maura chewing on her bottom lip as she tried to decide what to do. She decided to wait Maura out instead of offering any suggestions. Maura could only stand the silence for so long, and she would eventually make a decision.

"You really don't mind?" Maura asked tentatively. "Do you think the girls will care?"

"No, I really don't mind, and I can't imagine the kids will care."

Maura took a deep breath. "I'd really like to assist with this case then," she said. "It's very interesting. I wish I could discuss it with you."

"I know, I know, you can't talk about an active case," Jane said with feigned annoyance, making both of them laugh. "Alright, sorry, I have to get back to work, but I'll pick up all four kids. Text me when you know about what time you'll get home, so that I can time dinner…please."

Maura laughed. "I noticed the tagged on 'please' at the end," she teased. "Okay, I'll let you go. Thank you, Jane. Have a good afternoon."

"Thanks, you too," Jane replied. "Love you."

"Love you, too, bye, Jane."

"Bye," Jane added before hanging up the phone.

The rest of Jane's afternoon passed quickly and without incident. She was able to get out in time to make it to Emma and Finn's school for afternoon pick-up. Usually, when she had to work, she had the girls take the bus home (which they loved), but they wouldn't know to do that today. They were expecting Maura to pick them up. It wouldn't be the first time that a change was made during the day. There had been times the previous year where they had expected Jane and Angela had picked them up instead – particularly when Harper got sick last winter – and twice where they were expecting their nonna but Jane was able to get out of wherever she was early enough to pick them up.

Jane quickly found a parking spot at the school and walked up to the school to wait. Sometimes, she used the 'drive-thru pick-up,' as she called it, but if she had time, she preferred to park and meet them outside the school.

She was leaning against a pillar to the side of the sidewalk leading to the main entrance/exit of the school. She heard the bell ring inside the school, but she knew it would still be a few minutes before Emma and Finn got out. Her social butterfly daughters always took forever to say goodbye to all of their friends.

Jane spotted Emma, first. She was walking out with a little girl that Jane didn't know. "Em!" Jane called out to get her daughter's attention.

Emma turned at the sound of Jane's voice. She smiled and waved at Jane before turning back to her friend. The girls exchanged a few more words and a hug before Emma skipped over to Jane.

"What're you doing here?" Emma asked as she hugged Jane, flashing her a smile.

"Mommy's at work, so I'm picking you guys up," Jane said. "Where's Finn?"

"I thought mommy didn't work?" Emma said, scrunching her nose adorably in her confusion.

Jane laughed and pinched Emma's cheek, making her squirm away in laughter. "She's helping Uncle Kent and Aunt Susie. She used to work with them before you were born. Actually, she was their boss, but now she's just helping out for now while you guys are in school."

"Okay," Emma said as she turned around to look for Finn. "Where is Finn?" she added, stamping her foot on the ground in frustration at her sister's lollygagging.

Jane snorted as she tried to hide her laughter. It's not like she and Finn hadn't been standing in this same spot waiting for Emma many, many times.

"There she is," Jane said as she saw Finn come out of the school. Emma ran over to grab her sister and pulled her back over to where Jane was standing with Emma's discarded backpack.

"Hey!" Finn said indignantly. "You're not mommy."

"You should be a detective," Jane quipped.

Finn stuck her tongue out at Jane playfully, but Jane was expecting it, so she reached out to grab Finn's tongue before she could pull it back into her mouth.

"He-we!" Finn squealed around Jane's fingers. When Jane let go, Finn added, "Eww! Gross!" and pretended to wipe at her tongue, but she was laughing too hard.

"Alright, let's go get your sisters, you little goobers," Jane said, placing her hands on the back of each of their heads to direct them to the car.

It took almost another hour to get through the Boston traffic to Harper and Sophie's school, pick them up, and get home. By the time they were home, all four girls were bickering loudly, and Jane was doing her best to block them out – but her tolerance was waning.

"Stop!" Jane finally snapped. "Just…stop!" She rubbed her hands over her face in frustration. "I'm going to start dinner. Emma and Finn, go do your reading. Do you have any other homework?"

"No, just reading," Emma said quickly.

"Go," Jane said, trying and failing to hide her annoyance. "I'm going to make dinner. Harper and Sophie, please just go play in your room."

"But…" Harper started, but Sophie decided it wasn't worth the impending argument.

"Come on," Sophie said exasperatedly, pulling Harper towards the stairs.

"Fine!" Harper huffed; clearly, she wanted to be with Sophie more than she wanted to argue with her mother – although, it was a close call. Harper rarely passed up an opportunity to push Jane's buttons just a little bit.

When she finally heard the bedroom doors shut upstairs, Jane took a deep breath and leaned against the counter. She needed a moment to collect herself before she started dinner. After a few minutes, she was feeling calmer, so she opened the fridge to pull out the ingredients she would need.

Just as she finished getting everything out, her phone buzzed with a text from Maura. Another body had come in, and it looked like it might be related to the case Maura was consulting on, so Maura asked if Jane minded if she stayed for the autopsy. Jane could tell – even through the text – that Maura was really enjoying being back in the 'game,' so she told her to stay. It made Jane smile.

Even if she couldn't know the details of the case, Jane was looking forward to listening to Maura talk about work. She hadn't realized until today that she hadn't yet heard that certain spark of excitement that only found it's way into Maura's voice when she discovered something unusual or helpful to the case. Sure, Maura had found plenty of opportunities to googlemouth everyone in the family since being home, but there was something special about her 'case googlemouth.'

The kids bickering continued through dinner and bath time. Jane was ready to pull her hair out by the time she sent Emma and Finn to their room to read while she read to Harper and Sophie in their room.

"I love you to the moon and stars, my precious little one," Jane read the last page of the book I Love You to the Moon and Back, which had been Sophie's choice for tonight. "I love you both so much," she whispered, kissing the top of each of their heads.

"Wuv you, too, mama," Harper whispered, already half asleep. "Wuv you, Soph."

"I love you, too, Harper," Sophie said as she gave Harper a kiss and climbed over to her own bed.

"Night, night, note," Jane said. "I love you." She tucked Harper in and gave her another kiss before moving over to Sophie.

"Will mommy be here in the morning?" Sophie asked.

"Yes, she will be, and when she gets home tonight, she'll come in and give you each a kiss, okay?" Jane said.

"'Kay," Sophie said. She held out her arms and wrapped them around Jane's neck in a slightly awkward little-kid hug. "Love you, mama."

"I love you so much, noodle," Jane whispered, giving Sophie one last kiss before she turned off the lights and shut their door.

Jane walked down to Emma and Finn's room. She could already hear the girls arguing before she even opened the door. She took a deep breath, willing herself to have patience with them. She knocked lightly before opening the door.

"Mama!" Emma said indignantly. "Finn won't let me read the new Magic Tree House book even though she already read it!" Emma stomped her foot in frustration on the word 'already.'

"Finn, did you finish the book?"

"Yes," Finn said defiantly.

"Then, why can't Emma read it?"

"Cus I checked it out!" Finn snapped. Jane was confused. The girls shared books all the time – mostly Magic Tree House books since that was one of the few series they both liked. Who got to read it first had been a frequent argument in the past, but this is the first time one of them wouldn't share after they'd finished the book.

"Why does that mean that Emma can't read it if you've finished it?" Jane asked confusedly.

"Cus I checked it out!" Finn repeated, louder this time.

"So?"

"So, I'm responsible for it!" Finn said angrily.

"I don't get it," Jane said, losing patience. "You guys share all the time. It doesn't matter which one of you checked it out."

"I. AM. RESPONSIBLE. FOR. IT." Finn screamed, surprising both Jane and Emma. Emma's eyes went wide at her sister's outburst.

"Well, if that's the case, next time you keep a book too long, you can pay the late fees with your tooth fairy money," Jane replied firmly. She hoped that Finn wouldn't call her bluff. While she would technically follow through on this threat, they so rarely returned books late that it would be a very long time before they had to pay a fine.

"FINE!" Finn snapped and she threw the book at Emma.

The book hit Emma in the face. Luckily, the book was a paperback, so the damage was more to Emma's ego than her actual face. That didn't stop Emma from bursting into tears.

"Finley!" Jane scolded before she crossed the room and picked up Emma. "Let me see," Jane said gently to Emma as she pulled the little girl's hands away from her face. Out of the corner of her eye, Jane saw Finn scramble into her bed and under the covers, crying, as well.

"You're okay," Jane whispered, giving Emma a kiss.

"Finn's mean!" Emma pouted. Her tears were slowing, but her face was still red and blotchy as she leaned against Jane.

Jane sighed and walked towards Finn's bed. She sat down on the edge of the bed with Emma in her lap and pulled the blankets off of Finn. "Finn, baby, you need to apologize to your sister," Jane said, rubbing the girl's back. She knew she had to reprimand Finn, but the truth was, Finn's behavior was so out of the norm for her that Jane was concerned.

"Uh, uh," Finn whined, trying to pull away from Jane and Emma.

"Meanie!" Emma grumbled, burrowing further into Jane.

"Umph!" Finn half-heartedly protested.

"Finn, sit up, please," Jane said sternly.

"Don' wanna," Finn whined again.

"Finn," Jane said warningly, and this time, Finn didn't dare disobey. She sat up, facing Jane and Emma, but she crossed her arms defiantly in front of her chest. "Finn," Jane repeated. "What do you have to say to your sister?"

"Sorry," Finn said shortly.

"I don't forgive you," Emma pouted. Jane wanted to laugh, but she had to hold it in. Finn's sorry hadn't sounded genuine at all, but Emma's lack of forgiveness seemed even less so. Both of them were clearly getting over the fight, but neither one was willing to be the first to give in.

"Finn," Jane said, her tone leaving no room for argument, effectively letting Finn know that if she didn't apologize for real soon, she was going to be in even bigger trouble.

Finn sighed dramatically. "I'm sorry, Emma!" she wailed. "I didn't mean to hurt you. I'm sorry I was mean. You can read the book. I promise I'll never ever be mean to you ever again!"

Jane sniggered. "Well, maybe don't make promises you can't keep," she teased, making both girls laugh.

"S'ok," Emma said, moving from Jane's lap to hug her sister.

Emma and Finn hugged each other tightly until they were giggling loudly and fell into the pillows.

"Alright, alright, you two," Jane said, still laughing at them. "Come'ere for a second." They both crawled back towards her. Emma sat in her lap again while Finn leaned into her side. "Finn, baby, I know this wasn't really about the library book, so what's wrong? Did something happen at school today?"

"No," she said slowly. "I don't know why I got so angry. I just couldn't help it."

"Okay," Jane replied. "But you know you can talk to me if something is bothering you, right?"

"You can tell me, too!" Emma added.

"I know," Finn replied. "I'm okay. I really don't know why I got so angry. I'm sorry."

Jane gave each of them a kiss. She hoped that whatever was bothering Finn resolved itself soon, but she could tell that pushing tonight wasn't going to do any good. She was pretty sure that Finn really didn't know what was actually bothering her, which is why she took her anger out on her sister – her safe person. "Okay, do you guys want to read, or do you want to go to bed?" she asked.

"Whatever Emma wants," Finn said contritely.

"Can we read a little bit?"

"Till 9, okay? Then, it's lights out," Jane replied.

"Okay," they replied together.

Jane stood up and placed Emma in her bed, handing her the book that was still on the floor. "Good night, bean," she said as she gave Emma a kiss. "I love you."

"Love you, too, mama," Emma replied as she settled against her pillows and opened her book.

Jane crossed to Finn's bed. She pulled the covers up under Finn's arms and Finn propped her book on top of the blankets. "Are you sure you're okay, bug?" Jane asked again.

"Yeah, m'ok, I promise," Finn mumbled.

"Okay, I love you, bug. Night, night."

"Love you, too, mama."

They both had their noses buried in their books by the time Jane stepped out of the room and closed the door behind her.

Maura arrived home just before 10pm, and she was nearly bubbling over in excitement. She found Jane in the kitchen putting away the clean dishes from the just finished dishwasher. Maura wrapped her arms around Jane's waist from the back and kissed her cheek before resting her head on Jane's shoulder.

"Hey, you," Jane whispered as she turned her head enough to give Maura a kiss on the lips.

"Hi, love," Maura replied with a smile.

"Did you have a good day?" Jane asked, returning Maura's smile.

Maura reluctantly released Jane so that she could finish emptying the dishwasher, and she leaned her hip against the counter before answering, "Yes, it was wonderful. I didn't realize how much I missed the forensic aspects of my job."

"I'm glad you enjoyed it," Jane replied as she finished emptying the dishwasher and turned to give Maura her full attention. "Did you solve the case?"

"No, but we did find some things in the second victim that I believe will help," Maura replied.

"Are you going in again tomorrow?"

Maura took a deep breath and for the first time since she walked in the door, her smile fell slightly. "I'm not sure," she said. "I don't yet know how to balance work with our family life. I don't want to return to the hours that either of us was working before we had kids. I'm not even sure if I made the right decision today. I got caught up in the adrenaline of the case and my work, and I didn't want to leave. But when I realized that I wasn't even going to make it home before the kids went to bed, I-I don't know. I didn't like missing school pick-up, dinner, or bedtime."

Jane stepped towards Maura and pulled her in for a hug and a soft kiss. "You don't have to have it all figured out right away," Jane replied when they separated slightly, but they didn't release their embrace on each other. "Maybe finish this case, see how it goes, and then, we can sit down together and come up with a plan."

Maura nodded as she leaned in and rested her head on Jane's chest, tightening her arms around Jane's middle. "I do think, even with this case, I want to tell them that I have to be home for dinner and bedtime unless there is a true emergency," Maura said. "I'm just not ready to put work above family right now."

Jane kissed the side of Maura's head. "I'll support you in whatever you want to do," she said quietly. "We'll figure it out. Just remember, you don't have to do any of it alone anymore, okay?"

Jane felt Maura smile into her shoulder.

"But you should maybe be glad you missed tonight," Jane added with a laugh.

Maura lifted her head to look at Jane. "Why?" she asked, with a slight smile. "Were they not listening tonight?"

"They were just all over each other. It's not even that they weren't listening to me. They were bickering non-stop, fighting about everything. All four of them were getting on each other's nerves tonight. Finn was the most off though. I'm not really sure what's going on, and she didn't seem to be able to tell me. I think maybe something happened at school, but I don't know."

"Why do you say that?" Maura asked, her eyebrows knitting together in concern.

"She threw a book at Emma. It hit her in the face. She's fine. I made Finn apologize, and both of them seemed fine by the time I left the room. Usually, she would face more consequences for doing something like that, but it was so clear that something else was off that we just left it with the apology. I really don't know," Jane said with a shrug.

Maura sighed and pulled Jane back in for another kiss. She had missed being able to do this all day. "I'm sorry, love," Maura replied. "I really hope she's fine tomorrow and that she was just feeling off today, but if it's something more, we'll figure it out."

"I know," Jane replied. "Let's get ready for bed."

"Okay," Maura replied, releasing her hold on Jane. They walked upstairs in silence together and went about their evening routines.

"I love you so much," Maura whispered against Jane's lips when she joined her in bed, Jane having completed her evening routine quicker than Maura.

"I love you, too," Jane replied, pulling Maura against her as they settled in to sleep.

A/N: After realizing that this already long story was getting out of hand, I've decided to split the wedding into a sequel. I had considered cutting some of the smaller day-to-day interactions/chapters to cut it down and still fit everything into one, but after consulting a few of you (thank you lil_leels, Ronijn, and DirtyRobber), I've decided not to cut anything. That means this story will end around chapter 73-75, and I will build out the sequel a bit (which includes about 15 chapters that were planned for this story, plus some new ideas to make it more of its own story as well. I don't know yet how long the sequel will be.