Another Auld Lang Syne

by Castlefan6

Authors Note: Based loosely on the song Same Auld Lang Syne by Dan Fogelberg and incorporates scenes from Food to Die For. Beckett meets Brent Edwards at her HS Reunion, delaying Caskett if not derailing it completely. Also, we may take liberties with the events and timeline from Canon and use events to make this a more believable fiction, Warning THIS IS AU, with only brief flashes of Canon.

I don't own Castle; I use the characters for amusement purposes only, except the ones I create.

Present Day

San Clemente, California

Via Escorial Drive

Casa Castle Estate

Rick sat at his oversized desk, glancing out the huge picture window that allowed him a perfect view of the San Gabriel Mountains, snow still on the peaks even now in early May. He chose this site to build his home once he faced the fact, there was nothing for him in New York anymore. Alexis was now at Stanford, he bought Black Pawn Publishing and relocated it, and Gina with him to Los Angeles.

She was a hell of an editor, say what you wanted, and even though their marriage didn't work, they never stopped caring about each other. He was there for her wedding to Richie Roseto, and he was there again holding her hand when she had to bury her husband of only a few years after a tragic accident.

She had seen him through some tough times as well, Hell, she was the one who told him to guard himself against Madison Queller. She had been right, he was used in her effort to make Kate Beckett and her beau jealous, that really worked out well, hell they got married. As much as he didn't want to or would allow himself to admit but that had been the clincher to compel the relocation to Los Angeles. Martha was still in the Loft, acting, well, going through the pretense of acting to stay with her friends from the theater. Rick didn't blame her, at her age he only hoped he would be half as active, and twice as discrete.

As he looked out over the majestic mountains he thought about life and its twists. Now that the Nikki Heat series had been concluded and three films made by his own production company, he was wealthier than at any time of his life. He had been comfortable for years, but now, well he had the money for anything that he wanted for toys. As he always had been, he was still very generous donating millions of dollars, many times anonymously to worthy causes.

His estate had a private beach, as well as a private road to the San Gabriel Mountains through road, when he missed New York from time to time, a few hours riding through the mountains usually brought him back to reality, he was much happier here than he would have been in New York. He had lucked out, he would admit, ending the Heat series was the right decision, even though at the time he had no clue of what if any would be his next step.

His next character came to him from the strangest of places, a funeral. When Gina lost her husband, one of the mourners was the ER Doctor who had fought day and night to save his life but had all the cards stacked against him from the start. Rick was outside of the hospital, giving Gina some privacy, when he saw the doctor come out of the ER Doors, with tears in his eyes. Rick approached him to thank him for trying so hard for Richie and Gina.

FLASHBACK 4 MONTHS EARLIER

"Doctor Sayer, I wanted to thank you for Gina, and Ritchie, they're good people, and I know you did everything you could for Richie. I'm sure Gina would say thanks as well" Rick offered his hand,

The exhausted doctor looked up and tried to dismiss the water in his eyes, "You a friend of the family Mr., sorry I didn't get your name, but your face looks very familiar."

"You could say that I'm Rick Rodgers, and I was married to Gina a long time ago"

"You're Rick Castle then, right? I knew you looked familiar, and thanks for the kind words, but I knew from the beginning it was going to be a tough fight, he fought like hell, he just ran out of energy."

"Yeah, I'm that guy, but I try to downplay it, especially times like these, Gina needs the quiet now, to grieve in private and not all the paparazzi around her. Richie was the love of her life, and he deserves respect, not to be cheapened by someone hawking books or movies."

"I agree with that, I always try to provide at least dignity even in death, sometimes that's all I can offer, no matter how many resources we have. Some days it just gets to you, I mean all of us are human, we all have cracking points, and this one is pushing me close to mine."

"So, what do you do for R&R Doctor Sayer, if I may ask?"

"It's Mike, and to answer your question, I ride my bike, sometimes for hours or run on the beach but it's always so crowded and getting worse."

"Well, if you need to get away come on out to my place, I have a guest house, private beach and a private road that leads to the San Gabriel range, you're welcome anytime." Rick handed him his business card. "Just let Paula Haas my manager know of your plans when you want to come and she will get you all set up, leave me a voice mail and perhaps we could share a drink." Rick was sincere

"Wow, that's nice of you Rick, I mean I probably won't get a shift off till next week, I'm taking time off for the funeral, it's the least I can do to show my respects to Ms. Gina, she's gone through hell in a short time."

"Yes, she has Mike, and you're right, it would really make her feel special to see you there. Let me know if you need anything and I'll see you at the funeral."

PRESENT DAY

Rick smiled in a fond memory; it was the start of a great but short friendship. Mike kept his promise and did come to the funeral, riding his beloved Harley, surprising Gina with his compassion. He had visited the estate three times before Rick received word that Mike had suffered a head-on collision on his way to the ER on his day off to treat an overflow of patients, he didn't survive and it was almost like reliving Richie's death for Gina.

She moved in with him for a few months, she couldn't stand to be alone, till she finally was strong enough to stay in her new home, she had never returned to the home she and her husband shared. Rick had a Condominium built to her specifications a few blocks away from him, close enough if she needed him, far enough to maintain privacy for both, though neither were in a hurry to put themselves on the market again.

Gina had enjoyed a wonderful marriage with Richie, while Rick had faced the heartbreak once again with Madison Queller. It had started off on such a hopeful note, even though the pairing of them was unconventional, to say the least. She had been friends with Beckett from 9th grade, and apparently had stolen her boyfriend in high school. Rick closed his eyes once again drifting back to that time, was it only three years earlier.

FLASHBACK NYPD THREE YEARS EARLIER

Rick Castle was working harder than he had ever worked before to impress a lady, not just any lady, but the beautiful Kate Beckett, Lead Detective of the Homicide Department, 12th precinct. He had pulled some strings to get an opportunity to follow her around during cases, he called it shadowing, she called it an invasion of her privacy. Even though things had gotten off to a rough start, it seemed to be getting better, Rick would bring her latte with two shots of sugar-free vanilla every morning, some mornings he would include a freshly baked bear claw.

Coffee became their thing, their good mornings, and if he were reading her correctly little acknowledgments that she was beginning to feel something for him. He was gaining until that day, the day that Deming walked into her life, and ruined his. He went from partner status to a third wheel and was ridiculed not only by her new love attraction, but she also allowed her supporter Esposito to throw cheap shots every time he could.

That's how he had met Maddie, she owned the restaurant where a famous chef was murdered, and through the investigation got to know Rick as a friend. The pinnacle issue for her came when their High School Reunion was coming up and she knew her and Kate's old beau, Brent Edwards would be attending. Somehow, he had contacted Kate, and she agreed to meet him at the reunion.

Maddie, not to be outdone, invited the world-famous author Rick Castle to accompany her, and Rick accepted without knowing the full story. At that time, he thought it was a diversion to get away from the sickening sight of Beckett slobbering all over Deming on stairwells like high school kids. His fears were short-lived, as was Deming's shot at getting anything more than a few weeks of romps in the sack with Beckett.

It appeared old love was rekindled, hell blast furnace was more like it between Beckett and Brent, and to the surprise of many, the two were married after three months of dating. Deming was a sore loser and said many things about Kate, words he regretted when she became Captain of the 12th when Roy finally retired, and Captain Beckett-Edwards assumed command four months later. Deming resigned and took a job in New Jersey.

Maddie and Rick continued to date, although it wasn't anything near the feelings he had for Beckett, he knew Maddie was trying to learn to love him, and that was enough for now. He attempted to break up with her as he was making plans to relocate to California, but she surprised him and sold Q3 to accompany him. The one thing that kept them close was their sex life, which was remarkable, for both.

Gina had warned him, that Maddie wasn't in it for the long haul, regardless of the actions she had taken, but Rick didn't listen. That was two years, 7 months ago when he came home to find a letter addressed to him, apologizing for being a coward, but explaining she had to leave, and she was sorry.

That was about as far as Rick got with the letter before he filed it in his desk drawer, right along with the wedding announcement, invitation, and press clippings of Beckett's wedding and promotion to Captain. He hadn't spoken to her since he left the precinct during the Q3 murder, and she hadn't bothered to contact him.

He had been in New York and visited Roy and Evelyn Montgomery to present Roy with his retirement gift, a state-of-the-art fishing boat, with twin outboard motors, and a year's membership to an exclusive fishing club. He had enjoyed his visit with his old friend and loved that he was able to surprise him with the gift he had been secretly saving for.

"Rick, this is far too expensive, how did you even know this was what I had been stashing all my winnings away for?" Roy was almost in tears when he saw the gift.

"Well, I learned a lot from a wise Police Captain who told me to get someone something they mentioned when they thought we weren't listening, so I did. Hell, without your help, the 12th, LT and the rest of the crew, Nikki Heat Books and movies would never have been created, so why not share the profits."

"Rick, that's kind, but shouldn't the profits belong to Espo, Ryan, and Kate, I mean I didn't contribute a great deal to your books or the content."

"Well, I'll say this Roy, Kevin has a house now, Espo, even if I think he is an Ass, received a deposit to his savings account, Lannie was gifted with lifetime airfare for her and her parents to visit, and LT was given the Ferrari he always wanted but would never ask to drive."

"That's very generous of you Rick, but didn't you forget the muse that Nikki was based on?"

"Actually, my lawyers made three attempts to transfer money to her account, it was returned, we then sent her a bank check, once again, it was returned, and finally I set up a college scholarship in her Mother's name and received a note to stay out of her business, I was causing trouble in her marriage. So, I instructed the attorneys who called the Dean, we killed the plans, and sent her a letter of apology, everything was done through my lawyers so nothing more I can do"

"Wow, I'm sorry Rick, I wasn't going to say anything, but Lanie let it slip that the marriage isn't going so well, she thinks he's already cheating on her, and*"

"God, look at the time Roy, I have to go, but hey enjoy the retirement, and if you get out west, you know how to find me, Goodbye, Friend, enjoy life" and he was gone.

PRESENT DAY

Rick had returned from the visit with Roy and seeing the old stomping grounds without any of the heartstrings being pulled as he had thought might have been. He relaxed on his plane on the return trip, he used his private jet now almost exclusively, he was tired of airports and the hassles and hell Janet was one of the best pilots in the business.

As he was relaxing and doodling, the idea of a character came to him, he had written enough of the cop themed stories, how about the medical fallout from the domestic abuse, and senseless violence going on in today's world. He thought about Dr. Sayer, his smile and that big Harley, his efforts to save a stranger, and the reason he lost his life, on a mission to help others.

That's the moment Dr. Alex Menendez was born, dealing with the tragedy of life before someone lost theirs. He thought he would draft it out, and if Gina thought it was crap, he would keep looking for his next character.

He had typed the entire first chapter which gave the back story of Dr. M as he was called coming from migrant farmworkers, working his way through school and finally graduating at the top of his class. He wanted the character to have a positive influence on the readers, he was done with murder, especially after his own heart had been killed in such a callous manner.

He paused and re-read what he had written, and even to him it sounded like good writing, but Gina was the boss when it came to that. She had taken him this far, and he didn't make a professional move without her consulting him.

He was hung up on a title until he recalled a conversation with Dr. Sayer about allowing the patients dignity. The title he arrived at was Do No Harm, The Essence of a Doctors Soul where he could describe the actions of those who go to work each day, trying to save lives. All of them leave home knowing they will fail more often than they would like, but willing to take the heartache to save those who could be saved.

He was busy writing down notes for future chapters when Linda, the flight coordinator, and co-pilot came back to check on him.

"Rick, we'll be starting the descent in about 10 minutes, can I get you anything, a glass of wine, your single malt?"

"How about a water Linda, I'm working on something and I don't want it to be crap because of alcohol," he laughed

"Rick, 27 Best Sellers, I hardly think any of your work is crap, can you let me in on the new character and storyline? You're not resurrecting Nikki Heat, are you?" she blushed when she realized what she had said.

"God No, but thanks for letting me know just how well they would be received, just about like I thought. The new series is entitled, Do No Harm, The Essence of a Doctors Soul, and was inspired by the young doctor who worked so hard to save Gina's husband Richie, Doctor Michael Sayer. He told me that sometimes all he could do was provide dignity in death, but it was the last thing the person would experience on this earth."

"Wow, that's deep Rick, I think we all can relate to a Doctor who went way overboard in an effort to save or help a loved one, it's time they get their due, even if in a fictional book"

"Well, like murder, people are always getting sick, death and sickness will always be with us, so we need to get a handle on what those that work with it daily need for support. I think that if we can bring it to the attention of some, it will help a little"

"Rick, buckle up sweetie, but you're right, it will help a lot. Now let us do our job and get you on the ground and home safely, talk to you in a few minutes" she patted his hand and turned to walk to the cockpit, leaving Rick to watch the stars as they started their way down to the runway.

Something always touched him when he got this far, it seemed like the stars could just be picked from the air, they looked so close, another thing he never experienced in New York.

TBC