Summary: What if Beckett wasn't the one to get shot at Montgomery's funeral? What if Castle pushed her out of the way? Post-Knockout, Multi-chapter.

Disclaimer: I don't own Castle. Or the characters. Or the storylines.

A/N: So, for the longest time, my computer wasn't working. The one I'm using isn't mine. I was going to get Sarah (Castlewriter13) to upload, but then I used this random, old computer instead :P

I haven't really had any time to write, I have a ton of fics that I need to upload (they're handwritten, not typed so I would need to type them too). It's exam week (or weeks, I should say) so I;ve been studying a ton. I had this idea, though, and I had to write it down. Then, I figured...why not share it? So I did. Evidently.

I didn't want to jump on the 'Knockout' bandwagon, there are a LOT of fics, but this one's different. *shrugs*

This chapter's pretty short, but the other ones will be longer. I promise. I pinky-swear. And sorry for the somewhat long author's note.

Read on :)

Chapter one

Kate Beckett was numb.

She was standing in a cemetery, giving Captain Montgomery's eulogy, and she was numb. She looked up and saw Montgomery's wife crying. She saw his daughters and son. She saw Martha and Alexis, and Lanie and Esposito and Ryan.

"…and if you're lucky, you'll find someone willing to stand with you." she said.

Beckett paused, then turned her head. She saw Castle. He stood, staring back at her. He was standing by her.

She had pushed him away, told him that the two of them were over, and he didn't care. He called a hundred times, he carried her out of the hanger, he stayed with her. He stood with her, just as he always had. Just like he always would.

Beckett held his gaze for another second, then turned back. She continued her speech, still numb.

Roy was dead. He was gone. Roy, the father figure she had always looked up to. Roy, the protective captain. Roy, the man involved with her mother's murder. Roy, the hero. Roy, the mysterious third cop. Roy.

Out of the corner of her eye, Beckett saw Castle jump.

"Kate!" he cried, lunging for her.

His arms wrapped around her waist and suddenly they were flying through the air. He exclaimed in pain and went rigid. He landed on top of her with a thud and she rolled him off of her. She couldn't hear the screams around her, or see anyone else's face. All she saw was Castle's blood staining his shirt and her gloves.

Castle had been shot.

"Castle!" yelled Beckett.

He blinked at her, the lights fading from his eyes.

"Castle, stay with me, okay?" she pleaded with him.

The corner of his mouth turned up and he gurgled something at her. She knew he was gloating. He was gloating that she admitted she needed him. Suddenly, nothing mattered.

The sniper didn't matter. The screams around them didn't matter. The chaos didn't matter. Josh didn't matter. All she needed was Castle. She needed Castle because he was her partner, her friend. She needed him because she loved him. And now he'd never know.

"Rick." whispered Beckett. "I love you."

His eyes widened and he opened his mouth.

"Love…"

She waited.

He groaned. His eyes widened again, then closed. He stopped moving.

"Rick." She breathed. "Rick, come on, stay with me. Open your eyes."

A tear rolled down her cheek. She didn't know what to do.

Suddenly, there were strong arms around her, pulling her back. Esposito? What was he doing? She half-heartedly fought, but eventually let him win. He was too strong, and she was too feeble, too shocked.

Noise assaulted her from all sides. It was like someone turned the volume up. All the way up.

Ryan and some uniforms were chasing after the sniper, with Ryan in the lead. No one broke Beckett's family, killed Montgomery and shot Castle and got away with it. Not on his watch. Not ever.

Lanie…was suddenly there? Had Esposito really carried her that far? Lanie wrapped her arms around Beckett, holding her close. Esposito dashed off toward Castle again.

Alexis and Martha were huddled together, out of harm's way, sobbing into each other. Beckett pulled away from Lanie and ran over to them, Lanie following closely behind Beckett. Alexis threw herself around the detective. Tears coursed silently down her cheeks.

Beckett held the girl, worrying. What if Castle died? Then Alexis would have lost her father. She'd have to get through life without her dad. No dad to tease. No dad to hug. No dad to talk about boys awkwardly with, or to play laser tag with. No dad.

Sure, she'd have Martha, and her mother, but it wouldn't be the same. Castle and Alexis always had been close. They fit together in some weird, perfect way.

Alexis' life would come to a halt, and she's have to figure out how to go on without him. It would be hard. It might even be impossible.

It would definitely be impossible for Beckett. She had already lost her mom, nearly lost her dad, and she had lost Roy. Losing Castle would break her.

She was already broken, and Castle was helping her put the pieces back together. Without Castle, she wouldn't just break.

She'd shatter.

A/N: Edit: Thank you to everyone who told me that it was a funeral, not a wedding. I wasn't really paying attention when I was typing and I must have missed it :P