Disclaimer: Alas, Andrew Marlowe and I are not one and the same. Nor am I the corporation ABC. Thanks for making me all depressed, disclaimer. :(

Chapter Five:

Richard Castle woke, still sleepy, and blinked in order to clear his vision. In many ways, the night had seemed to drain him of energy.

But who could blame him? He thought with horror as the memories of his nightmare assaulted him – that damn man with the grey eyes…

As he went to stretch, he realized that he was not in his bed – or his apartment. It was Kate's place; the empty soul bowl reminded him of why he was there. He hoped her fever was gone, and turned to the space beside him on the couch. Alarmed by her absence, he jumped up and spun around.

The motion was rewarded by the sweet sound of laughter, the type that made his heart flutter. He'd know that laugh anywhere. There she was – behind her kitchen counter, cooking something, spatula in hand. "Hey, sleepy pants." She smiled, looked down at her concoction, and deftly flipped a pancake before looking at him once more. "Pancakes are okay, I'm assuming?"

He only nodded, still a little surprised at her good mood. For some reason, Rick had been prepared for the Kate of his nightmares – the one who would push him away, would break his heart, would leave him irreparable and begging for death. But this Kate was the one he loved, and finally a smile spread across his face. "Yes, that's perfect." He approached the kitchen, began to help her get breakfast ready.

It was remarkable how quickly they were able to fall into a rhythm; he would reach around her and retrieve an item, getting out of her way just as she needed access to the range. She could wordlessly point and he knew what she was motioning for. Kate had not realized how many hours Castle had spent at her place, but it suddenly became evident. He knew that she used the short glasses for breakfast, the tall ones at lunch and dinner, that she liked skim milk in her coffee but 1% with food, that she only used honey (which was hidden behind the tea packets in her cabinet) on her pancakes.

They had, for all intents and purposes, become partners in every respect.

The thought scared Kate – but if she was honest, it sent a thrill of excitement through her as well. Partners! With Richard Castle!

She could hardly have dreamt it.

Placing the platter of pancakes down before sitting herself, she motioned to the food. "Dig in!" Castle looked at her for a moment, as though debating telling her something, but it appeared the need for food won in the end as he helped himself to two pancakes and overflowed his plate with maple syrup. She shuttered and looked at his food, speaking with distain, "You're going to put yourself into a sugar coma."

He looked at her plate, motioned at the honey, "Like that's much better!"

"Yes, but I don't attempt to drown my pancakes in honey. What did they ever do to you?"

He was distracted from retorting by the bite of pancake he had eaten. "Mmhmm," he mumbled through a full mouth, "so good!"

Kate smiled slightly at the complement before schooling her features. "Oh come on, Richard Castle! Where are your manners? Eating with your mouth full?! For shame, for shame!" His reproachful look made her laugh, unable to keep up the tough guy act much longer.

Their breakfast was filled with pleasant conversation, and they cleaned up efficiently. It felt like only a few moments later when Castle lingered by the door, preparing to depart. "Castle… thanks for taking care of me last night. I needed to sleep off that fever and cold, you were right."

He looked at her a moment, measuring her patience with him. Could he broach the topic he had been thinking about all morning? She had just given him an opportunity, but he was sure it was not on purpose. Forcibly silencing the alarm bells ringing in his head, he took the chance. "Actually, speaking of last night…" he reached for Kate's hand, pulled her to the couch, where she stared at him. "What did I do?" Kate looked at him blankly, not understanding the question. He clarified, "In the nightmare," Kate stiffened, pulled away slightly, "In your nightmare, what did I do?"

Kate shook her head, looked away from Castle's prying eyes. "It doesn't matter. It was just a dream."

Castle's head moved to be back in her line of sight. "Hey, Kate. Listen to me. I need to know – because that was horrible." His voice dropped, trembled with emotion. "You were crying and were so very frightened, and then at the very end, before you drifted off, you made mentioned of me being there… and I can't bear the thought that I'd ever grace your nightmares. Please, Kate, tell me so I can dash away those thoughts."

She looked into his eyes, saw the tears shining in them. It would hurt him more not to know, she resolved, but she couldn't tell him the whole story. How he had been kissing her, how she had been so happy, before he'd turned, accused her of keeping him close yet still at arm's reach, a backup plan of sorts. She just couldn't reveal that – because it would be revealing that she loved him, and she wasn't ready for that, not quite yet. So instead, she described the end of the dream. "Castle… Rick… it's not important. Really. But… since you really want to know… You and I were standing in your flat, and every place you touched me, I'd go up in flames. Before long, I was standing there consumed by invisible fire and you just watched. It's not important. It's just a nightmare."

Castle knew this couldn't be the whole story – Kate had mentioned the nightmare version of him "writing a story" – but he had no doubt from the way she shivered at the memory that this had indeed happened. "Oh Kate, I'm sorry." He scooted forward and wrapped his arms around her, breathing in her scent. How could he fix this? How could he keep even the figment of him that existed in her subconscious from doing such terrible things? It was a horrifying realization when the answer appeared – he couldn't do anything. This was Kate's mind, her nightmares. He couldn't do anything to stop them; he could just do this… the hug afterwards, the reassuring partner, the never-failing friend, and hopefully, just maybe, the loving boyfriend and husband.

It was only with great strength that Kate was able to extricate herself from Rick's arms. She could have gotten lost in them multiple times over, but his question had sparked one of her own. "Rick, you had a nightmare last night too. You never woke from it, but I was wondering… what was in yours?"

He considered the question before answering, "There were a whole series of dreams. First there was this man – his eyes were as grey as cement, " he saw Kate start with surprise, and decided he'd have to ask about that once he was done his tale, "That's all I remember of him. And then Alexis got taken away because of a story I told, whipped cream wasn't invented – don't laugh, Kate, that is a nightmare!" He frowned at her, more amused by her reaction than anything else, before continuing. "My mother, in a casket, and," his voice dropped, and he found himself almost hoping the woman wouldn't hear, "I lost you."

She leaned forward; evidently, she had heard. "Lost me?"

Castle sighed, considered not answering the question truthfully. The thought was quickly dismissed. Gathering himself to tell the story, he realized he couldn't bear to tell it all – even the memory was too painful – so he trimmed it to its essentials. "I had you. You were in my flat, but then you said goodbye and left, forever."

Kate leaned forward, grabbed his hands. "I'm not leaving, you know. You're my partner. That's a bond that just doesn't break easily, I'm afraid." She said it lightly, hoping to get a smile from Rick, but it didn't work. "Hey. I mean it though. You are my one and only." She meant it in terms of their police work – he was the only partner she had ever taken, and she was happy with that – but as his face lit up she realized the double meaning. Oh crap, she thought, before realizing that perhaps – screw that, definitely – the words weren't a lie, even if applied to her personal life. He was her one and only, and she had known it for a while now, even if they hadn't dated yet. "Oh come on, Rick, stop looking at me like that!"

"Like what?!"

"Like a really delicious meal you want to eat."

"I do not want to eat you! Well…" he let the thought linger, both their minds instantly turning to images of them naked.

Kate recovered more quickly, "Why I never! Richard Castle, you have the dirtiest mind ever!" She glanced at her watch. "We should be heading to the precinct; the boys will be wondering where we are." she got up, grabbing her coat and her purse. Behind her, she heard Castle doing the same thing. She blushed for a moment in privacy at the truths she'd accidentally let slip, before heading to the door. Hand on the knob, she turned to look at Castle. "Ready?"

He was staring at her, before drawing close. "Just one more thing."

She glanced down at her watch, exasperated. "Make it quick. We've got a murder to solve." Murder… her mind started racing with the possible connections, and already she was thinking of a few leads they had not yet considered. Castle had been right, she needed the night's sleep to really make headway. Speaking of Castle…

Her vision re-centered on the room, and Kate was suddenly aware of how close Castle was. Only inches separating them, she couldn't help the way her heart began to race. His arms reached to either sides of her, his palms flat against the door, keeping him upright. He leaned his head closer, before saying softly, "Did what you said before mean what I think it meant?"

Her nostrils were filled with the scent of Richard Castle, and his lips were so close that if she just turned the slightest bit, she could capture them in a kiss. As it were, it took her two attempts to get her voice, but the resulting "Yes" was strong, confident.

She was, after all, madly in love with him, and she knew it without a doubt.

He smiled at her – oh, her heart lept at that, wanted to do anything to make him smile like that again – and he pushed back from the wall, looking at her for a moment.

"Well," he motioned for the door, "I thought you said the case was waiting." His voice dropped just a bit, got a bit huskier. "Partner."

Kate schooled herself, got her reactions in check. But this was going to be a long day if he insisted on tormenting her like this. She'd have to plan counteracts. Images of her brushing by his chair just a little too closely, playing with her hair, leaning over so he could see just a little too much cleavage… yes, she thought as she locked her apartment door and headed to the elevator, her partner just behind her, this new step could be very fun.

Author's Note: ALRIGHT! We reached the end... with fluff galore as I promised!

I was completely overwhelmed by the reception to this piece - when I initially wrote it, it was just a little fluff bunny banged out at work in response to a prompt on Tumblr. And now, thousands of words later, and dozens of followers/favorites, I can't believe it's grown to this. I'm such a proud mama. :)

I hope you all enjoyed the journey... it was REALLY fun to write! THANK YOU for sticking with me throughout the journey, for reviewing, for favoriting, for following. As always, reviews are much appreciated. If you're looking for more of my writing, I have two other ongoing stories and a one shot. Please check them out! :)