Hello everyone! I hope you're ready to enjoy another multi-chapter fic! I am planning on having fun with this one! I did my fantasy Season 8 some time ago, but this one is my fantasy seasons 1-7, if the show had been about Jane and Maura as a couple. It's also my chance to "fix" a few details I never thought made sense. I am not, however, writing a 100+ chapter fic, so not every episode will be represented, just the highlights! I will update as often as I can, but lengths between updates will probably vary (should usually be no more than a few days, which those of you who have followed my stories in the past are accustomed to).

As for why it's called Turn Left...
My fellow nerds will have already surmised from my username that I love Doctor Who. For the less nerdy among us, there is an episode of Who called Turn Left in which a character discovers what would have happened if, on an otherwise ordinary day, she had chosen to turn right instead of left while driving. Turning right would have prevented the series of events that led to her meeting the Doctor, and her not meeting the Doctor would have led to disaster. In the alternate timeline in which she turned right, she has to find a way to go back in time and make herself turn left. It's a great episode that really makes you think of the repercussions of seemingly insignificant decisions...like Maura's decision in the pilot to laugh off Jane's "is this your way of telling me you're attracted to me?" comment. On the show, Jane and Maura turned right when they should have turned left. In this fanfic, they turn left :)

Chapter 1

Episode 1.1: See One, Do One, Teach One

Almost dying could make you think some weird thoughts. Sometimes it felt like you had cheated death, that it would still come for you, that your days were numbered. Jane didn't really believe this, but the feeling had gotten stronger since Dr. Yeager's murder, since finding out Hoyt had trained an apprentice.

It was harder to be scared of doing the things you wanted to do when you felt like you were about to die. After all, you weren't going to be around to deal with the consequences. Maybe that was why she was suddenly thinking about going for it with a certain ME.

Or maybe it was because she hoped she was going to live, and she wanted it to be with Maura. Maybe that was why she was driving to Maura's right now.

Jane had been crushing on Maura ever since they'd started working together months ago. She was unbelievably attractive, plus smart, quirky, self-possessed…Jane had never met anyone like her. She'd never even imagined meeting someone liked her. She'd tried to ignore her feelings of attraction, which was what she was used to doing every time she had a crush. Her devout Catholic family was not going to take it well if Jane came out as gay, and none of the women she crushed on were ever into her like that anyway. She doubted Maura could ever be. She'd only gone on a few casual dates since Jane had known her, and those had been with men. She hadn't mentioned any dates in a while, though, and Jane didn't see what it would hurt to just spend time with her at the morgue whenever possible, often bringing snacks from the vending machine upstairs. She enjoyed it, and Maura seemed to enjoy spending time with her as well. Lately she'd been coming upstairs to hang out with Jane whenever possible. Jane had stolen a chair to keep next to her desk so Maura would always have a place to sit. She'd also started keeping hand sanitizer on her desk for Maura, since the doctor worried about germs a lot. Really, the two of them were becoming very close friends, in spite of the fact that they'd only ever spent time together at work. They kept saying they should do something outside of a crime scene sometime, but it had just never happened.

Something had changed, though, on Sunday night. Right there, in front of Dr. Yeager's dead body, Jane had asked Maura to reset her fractured nose. Maura had never really touched her before, other than to shake her hand when they met, and she hadn't been prepared for the jolt of electricity that went through her when she felt Maura's gentle hands on her face. And the way Maura had looked her right in the eye, Jane was sure she'd felt it too. Of course the pain of having her nose reset had ruined the mood, but Jane hadn't been able to stop thinking about it. Maybe Maura felt how she felt. Maybe it was time to get brave, to stop living her life according to how she thought others would react.

The next time she saw Maura was at the site of Yeager's dead body, which was found the next day. Jane had pulled up to the crime scene, knowing Maura was already there, and suddenly worried about how she looked. She dug into her glove compartment and found an old tube of lipstick, which she promptly applied, checking to make sure her hair looked okay before getting out of the car. Then Crowe annoyed her by immediately noticing that she was wearing lipstick and making a big deal about him. But she'd just shoved past the guys, quickly gathering the information she needed while making a beeline for the one person she most wanted to see: Maura.

It wasn't like she was going to ask Maura out over a dead body, but she was definitely considering doing it as soon as she had a chance, if Maura still seemed to be noticing her.

Then Hoyt escaped from prison and all hell broke loose. Now her entire family was at her apartment trying to watch over her, and her mom was ranting about not getting a good night's sleep since Jane became a cop. Jane ran away without a plan for where to go, but it came to her quickly: Maura. She'd never been to Maura's apartment before, didn't even know exactly where it was, but she'd called her up and Maura had said of course Jane could stay over and had promptly given Jane directions to her place. So Jane was heading there now, trying not to let her mind wander too much with thoughts of what could happen while spending a whole night with Maura.

When she arrived at the address Maura had described, she walked up and rang the bell, almost expecting to find Maura in her pajamas, since it was getting late. Instead, Maura answered the door looking positively stunning in a ruffled sleeveless top, tight white jeans, and stilettos. Who wore stilettos around the house? Jane didn't even wear shoes at home. Maura was also perfectly made up and had on some big diamond bracelet. Jane suddenly felt very underdressed in her sweatpants, tank top, and sweater, but nonetheless, she felt a strange sense of peace envelop her as she entered Maura's apartment. Refuge from the storm. That was what Maura had become to her, wasn't it? Maura was probably the weirdest person Jane knew – as she soon discovered, the woman had a giant tortoise running around her house, and didn't seem to understand why Jane found that so surprising – but she exuded a sense of sanity, of calmness, that made Jane feel like she was safe here.

After giving her a glass of water, Maura led Jane into her guest room. It was a big room for a spare, very feminine with a fireplace in one corner and a giant painting of a topless woman on the wall. For just a second, Jane's stomach swooped. Boobs. She has boobs on the wall. That means she must like girls, right? But then she reminded herself that artsy people were always hanging up nude paintings. It might not mean anything. Still, watching the blonde prepare a bed for her did have an arousing effect. Between the Hoyt nightmares and Maura's hotness, she doubted she'd get any sleep tonight, but at least she had a quiet place to rest.

As they talked, a thought kept pricking the back of Jane's mind. Maura really did look drop-dead gorgeous. It didn't make the least bit of sense that she had gone to this much effort to look good while lounging about her house alone at night. Okay, maybe Jane could believe that Maura's typical loungewear actually consisted of a frilly blouse and designer jeans. And she was pretty sure the makeup was the same as it had been at work, so maybe she just hadn't taken it off yet. The jewelry was a bit more of a stretch. Maybe she'd had that bracelet and those dangly earrings and that big ring on at work, but wouldn't she have taken it all off when she came home and changed into her more "casual" clothes? But okay, fine, maybe she just really liked wearing jewelry, even when she was by herself. But the shoes – that was the kicker. She knew Maura loved her fancy uncomfortable-looking shoes, but come on. Nobody would wear stilettos while relaxing at home. It was impossible to relax in those shoes. Maura was trying to look good, and it was working. Was it possible she was putting in the effort because she wanted to look nice for Jane?

But then the doorbell rang, and Jane's heart sank. Maura was expecting someone else; that was who she was all fixed up for. It was probably a man. When Maura went to answer the door, Jane poked her head around the doorway of the guest room, listening. Her heart sank even further. It wasn't just a man; it was fucking Agent Dean. He was interested in Maura, and she wanted to look cute for him. When he left and Maura started coming back down the hall, Jane hastily closed the door and jumped into bed. Maura knocked.

"Go away, I'm asleep," Jane called. This night at Maura's seemed a lot less exciting now that she knew the ME had a suitor. A suitor worth putting on stilettos for.

Maura ignored her, though, and came into the room. Then she did something very unexpected. Stepping out of those uncomfortable shoes, she got in bed with Jane. She did it casually, as if they did this all the time, sliding right up to Jane with their arms touching. Jane kinda wished she didn't have the sweater on now.

"Are we having a sleepover, or is this your way of telling me you're attracted to me?" Jane blurted out in amusement.

Maura looked at her. She opened her mouth like she was going to say something, and then she stopped.

"Yes?" said Jane.

"Um, well…to be honest…"

Jane's heart sped up. "Yeah? Spit it out."

"I do find you very attractive."

Jane stared at her. "Really?"

Maura nodded. "Is that…is that bad?"

Jane chuckled. "No, it's not bad. You're a hell of a looker yourself."

"You think so?" Maura smoothed her blouse with a pleased smile.

"You look gorgeous. Can I ask you something?"

"Sure."

"Did you dress like this because I was coming, or because Dean was?"

Maura's eyes met Jane's. Damn, she was beautiful. "Because you were. Why would I dress up for Dean? He was just dropping something off related to a case."

"What case?"

"I can't say."

Curious, but not the most important matter at hand. "So why would you dress up for me? I'm just running from my mother."

"I wanted to see if you would find me attractive."

"Well, mission accomplished. So what are you gonna do now?"

Maura held her gaze, a blush creeping into her cheeks. "Ideally, I'd like to kiss you."

Jane almost had to wonder if Hoyt had already gotten her and she was now knocked out and having a beautiful dream, except it felt so real. Not real like a realistic dream, but incredibly real, like her senses were heightened and she could feel everything – the comforter under her, the warmth of Maura's arm against her own, the air going in and out of her lungs, her heart pumping blood through her body. She had never felt more alive, or more present, than she did in this moment. It had to be real.

Jane shifted a little, turning onto her side to face Maura, and Maura did the same, her eyes full of hope. Jane reached out and ran her fingers through Maura's beautiful, shiny hair. It felt like strands of silk. Then she took Maura's perfectly made-up face in her hands and captured the lips she'd been dreaming about for months. Maura yielded with a soft moan, her lips plying Jane's, soft tongue requesting entrance. Jane felt her entire body light up with an arousal unlike anything she'd felt before. She ran her fingers lightly down a soft, toned arm as Maura reached for her, tugging her sweater down her shoulders. Jane pulled back, gasping for air.

"Are you trying to undress me?" she asked breathlessly.

"Is that okay?" Maura asked innocently.

Jane tried unsuccessfully to catch her breath. Life is too short not to say what you really mean. "Yeah. Yeah, it's okay."

Maura promptly resumed the activity of doing away with Jane's sweater, her lips trailing down Jane's neck and onto her collar bone as she did so.

"Have you done this before?" Jane asked, surprised by how natural Maura seemed.

"What, had sex?" asked Maura before moving her lips onto Jane's shoulder. Every spot her lips touched continued to tingle even after she moved on.

"Is that what we're doing?" Jane asked, equal parts alarmed and ecstatic.

"I hope so," said Maura, her soft hands gently creeping up Jane's tank top. Her fingers left what felt like trails of light behind them, and Jane knew she was going to let this woman do whatever the hell she wanted to her.

"Yeah, I hope so too," breathed Jane. She let her left hand creep slowly up the ruffles of Maura's blouse, giving Maura plenty of time to stop her, but of course she didn't. So that meant Jane had permission to cup a large, round breast through the material, to feel its weight, its shape. And that was exactly what she did.

"Yes, I've had sex before. Did you think I hadn't?" Maura seized the hem of Jane's tank top and lifted it over her head, revealing an old sports bra Jane had never really expected anyone to see.

"No, I was sure you had," said Jane, fumbling for the hook on the back of Maura's blouse. "Just not…"

"With a woman?" Maura quickly did away with the sports bra, tossing it to the floor.

"Yeah. Have you?" Finally getting the hook undone, Jane lifted the blouse over Maura's head and dropped it to the floor, hoping the fancy material wouldn't get too wrinkled. Maura was, of course, wearing a lacy silk bra. Jane paused for a moment to trace Maura's nipples through the material, feeling them stiffen at her touch.

"Mmm. No, I haven't. Have you?" Maura slipped her tongue down Jane's left breast and took an erect nipple into her mouth. Jane let out an involuntary moan.

"Ohh. Yeah. Yeah, I have."

Maura pulled back. "Really?" she said with an interested smile.

"Yeah." Jane unhooked Maura's bra and slipped it off, revealing two perfect orbs. "Damn." She reverently reached to touch them, cup them in her hands, feel their softness. She rolled the nipples under her thumbs. "Maura, you are so beautiful. I can't believe—" She rolled the blonde onto her back and tried to decide where to start. She knelt between Maura's legs and put her hands on her breasts, spreading her fingers out to cover as much ground as possible. She had long fingers, but she still felt like she wasn't covering much ground. She gave each tit a satisfying squeeze and then took hold of her nipples, tugging gently.

"How many?" Maura asked.

"How many what?"

"Women have you had sex with?"

"Fuck, I don't know. I wasn't making notches on my bed post. Just let me focus on you right now, okay?" She was going in. She ran her tongue around unbelievably soft skin before taking one pert nipple into her mouth. She alternated between sucking it and rolling it between her teeth, enjoying the sounds of pleasure coming from Maura. After a minute she moved to the other side, her hands wandering downward, over the soft skin of Maura's belly, down to her jeans. Suddenly feeling a sense of urgency, Jane undid Maura's fly and gave up her nipple so she could focus her energy on getting the jeans out of the way. Not surprisingly, Maura was wearing silk panties that matched her bra, and Jane could already smell her arousal. I did that to her, she thought, tugging the panties down. I made her feel this way.

Maura, now completely naked except for her jewelry, smiled up at Jane, spreading her legs a little more as if to offer herself up. Her pussy was swollen and glistening and so ready for Jane. She touched her, tentatively at first, then more confidently, caressing soft, wet folds and listening to Maura's soft cries of pleasure. She stroked Maura's clit and watched as she closed her eyes and threw her head back, arching her back. It was the most beautiful thing Jane had ever seen.

Her fingers moved to Maura's entrance and paused, her eyes asking a silent question. "Jane, please," Maura whispered breathlessly.

That was all Jane needed. She slid two fingers into Maura's wetness. She was unbelievably soft inside, and at first Jane just wanted to explore, to understand the inside of Maura. But Maura wanted her to do more, so Jane began moving her fingers, in and out, slowly and then faster, paying attention to the movements that made Maura cry out the loudest, learning her. I'm fucking Maura, Jane thought in amazement. After months of thinking about it, I'm finally doing it. This woman, laid out before her, was the most exquisite human being she'd ever met.

She kept working Maura, watching her every move, her every reaction, memorizing it, until the blonde closed up around her with a loud, sweet cry. Jane waited for her to relax before slowly pulling out, her fingers now glistening with Maura's juices. She lay down beside her and held her tight as she gasped, slowly coming down from her high.

"So you liked that?" Jane asked softly, feeling rather pleased with herself.

"Yes. Oh, Jane." Maura relaxed against her for just a moment longer, and then she lifted her head up, smiling seductively. "I'm going to give you an orgasm too," she announced.

"Oh really?" Jane actually didn't doubt that one bit. As turned on as she was, it would probably take about two seconds to put her over the edge.

"Yes, I am," Maura promised. She kissed Jane's lips, then worked her way down Jane's long neck, her chest, her stomach, planting sweet kisses all the way. Jane lifted her hips to make it easier for Maura to slide off her sweatpants and underwear, then watched in fascination as Maura lowered her mouth onto the part of Jane's body that most wanted attention just then. Her glittering hazel eyes made contact with Jane's as she made that first swipe with her tongue, watching for Jane's reaction.

She certainly had no reason to be disappointed. Jane immediately cried out, loudly enough to really hope the apartment was soundproofed. Encouraged, Maura continued licking, varying her strokes like a pro, watching Jane the whole time as she squirmed, her hands grabbing fistfuls of Maura's hair. Just when Jane didn't think it could get any better, Maura wet her fingers and slid them inside. That was enough to put Jane right over the edge. She came hard, no longer caring what the neighbors might hear as she screamed her ecstasy to the world. Maura kept working her with her fingers until she'd wrung every last bit of pleasure out of the detective, and then she stretched out beside her, surveying Jane's naked body and looking quite pleased with the situation.

"Tell me this isn't a one-night stand, because I really want to make this a regular thing," Jane rasped when she finally caught her breath.

Maura broke into a smile. "Jane, I never had a one-night stand in mind. I really care about you. I've felt a really strong connection with you ever since we started working together, and I'd hoped for a while that it might turn into something like this."

Jane smiled affectionately. "Me too." She snuggled up closer to the blonde, finding a strand of her hair to play with. "You certainly succeeded in taking my mind off Hoyt for a while. I wouldn't have thought it could be done."

"I hoped I've helped you to relax to you can finally get some rest." Maura tenderly kissed Jane's collarbone, her fingers lightly circling a naked breast.

"It's probably the most relaxed I'll ever feel with a serial killer stalking me." Jane kissed the top of Maura's head, and then a horrible thought occurred to her. She drew in her breath.

"What is it?" Maura said, lifting her head to look at Jane.

"It's Hoyt. He only kills couples, except for me. But if he finds out about you…"

"How would he find out? Jane, the only people who know are you and me, and we can keep it that way as long as we like. Tomorrow we go to work and we act like nothing happened, and in private we can do what we want. We're working as hard as we can to bring him and his apprentice down."

"Are you really sure you want to take that risk? If anything happened to you, I don't think I'd ever forgive myself." She couldn't explain why the mere thought of someone harming Maura in any way made her feel like there was a knife in her heart, but it did, and she certainly wasn't going to be the reason something happened to her.

"Jane, I'm not going to let Hoyt dictate what I do with my life. I want to be with you. Isn't that what you want?"

Jane lightly touched Maura's face. "Yeah. More than anything."

"Then that's what we'll do. He's not going to stop us from living." Maura lifted Jane's hand and kissed one of her scars. "Just relax, and talk about something else. So you say you've been with women before?"

Jane looked down. This wasn't something she talked about, with anyone, but there was no point keeping it a secret from Maura at this point. "I've kind of always liked girls, but I kept hoping it was something I could…get over."

"Because of being Catholic?"

Jane sighed. "I guess that's part of it, but it's not really that I think it's wrong. It's just, my family is pretty religious, and my early experiences were pretty disastrous."

Maura looked at her, eyes big and sad. "What happened?"

"Well, the first girl I had a crush on was my best friend, Emily. We were besties when we were little, anyway. Then in eighth grade, she got these big boobs, just seemed to pop up overnight. I couldn't stop looking at them, it was like my eyes just went there even when I told them not to."

"You do seem very fond of breasts," Maura observed.

"Yeah. Well, I tried not to be, but Emily noticed. She said it was creeping her out. Then she just kind of dumped me as her friend."

"Ouch."

"Yeah, it kinda broke my heart. I told everyone she didn't need me anymore because all the boys had started paying attention to her, and they had, but it wasn't really that. It was because she noticed I was paying the same kind of attention to her the boys were."

"That must have been very painful for you."

"Yeah, it was. I was at Catholic school, my family went to Mass regularly, so I knew I couldn't be gay anyway. I dated boys through high school, and I really liked some of them, so I told myself the thing with Emily was just a one-off. But then I went to community college, and there were quite a few hot girls in my classes. I was starting to think, you know, people come out, and their families freak, but then they get over it. Everything works out. There was this girl named Tina I got to be friends with. She had a boyfriend, but she flirted with me all the time, and I flirted back. She kept saying she wanted to try it with a girl. One night she got really drunk and we went to her place and started making out, and well, that turned into my first time with a woman."

"Wow. What happened?"

"We did it a bunch more times over the next few months, always when she was drunk. I was crazy about her, and I hoped she'd break up with her boyfriend for me, but she didn't, and she kinda treated me like a yo-yo most of the time."

"Like a yo-yo?"

"Yeah, one day we're best friends, the next she's barely talking to me. I could tell she felt guilty about what we were doing. But she complained that her boyfriend couldn't make her come, and I could, so when she'd get really horny, she'd hang with me and get drunk enough to forget her conscience. I should have known she was using me, but…"

"It's hard to see clearly when you're enamored with someone."

"Exactly. Then I made the horrible mistake of telling her how I felt. I wanted to know if there was a possibility of us being together, really together, because I was tired of being a yo-yo. She freaked and said it would never happen, that she loved her boyfriend, and she never really wanted sex with me, it was all me…which it wasn't. It was always her calling me, inviting me over when her boyfriend was busy somewhere else. But after she found out I was taking it more seriously than she was, she said we couldn't do it anymore."

"Did you stay friends after that?"

"No. At first she just gave me the cold shoulder, but when I tried to talk to her about it again, she said what happened with me just made her realize how important her relationship with her boyfriend was. Then she told our mutual friends to stop inviting me out because I made a pass at her. Trying to get out in front of the whole thing, I guess, so if I told anyone what we did, they wouldn't believe me. One of our friends lived in my old neighborhood, and somehow word got back to my mom that I was a flaming lesbian. She absolutely panicked, thinking I'd never get married or have kids and that people were going to beat me up for being gay, begging me to talk to our priest and try to be reconditioned or something so I could get 'back to normal.' I swore to her that the rumors weren't true and that I wasn't a lesbian at all, and then to prove it, I got a boyfriend. She felt so much better, and I promised myself I was going to find a way to be straight or else stay single forever, because otherwise I was going to drive away all my friends and disappoint my family." She heaved a sigh, still feeling the burden of all those years.

"But then there were other girls."

"Yeah. There were. But it was never serious." She stroked Maura's back, grounding herself in the feeling of the blonde's soft skin. "It happened the first time when I was 21. I'd just started at the police academy, and I was doing great there. I loved it. I was practically the only woman, though, and a lot of the guys hit on me. It was like they couldn't even see me as a peer; I was just eye candy to them. I overheard some of them saying they bet I'd find a man and drop out. Fucking infuriating. So I kinda put my spikes out, made clear I wasn't there to find a date. I was there to become a cop, that's it. They started calling me a dyke. And I thought, 'they're right, aren't they? I can't admit it, but I am.' And then I started thinking, I was a grown woman, I could get release if I wanted it. No one had to know. So I drove out to the suburbs one weekend, got a drink at a gay bar. A woman nearly twice my age showed up to buy me a drink. She was pretty butch, not really my type but kinda hot anyway, and we got to talking, and then she took me out back and fucked me against the wall. Never saw her again. A month later, I drove out to a different bar to see if I could pick a girl up. It really wasn't that hard."

"I bet it wasn't, for you," Maura said with a smile.

Jane chuckled a little. "It kinda became a pattern. I'd go months without doing it. I'd tell myself I wasn't going to do it again. But then I'd just kinda really feel the need for release, especially if I was stressed about something. I'd go out to the suburbs so I'd be less likely to be seen, find a hot girl, tell her a fake name, and we'd fuck. That was all it ever was, just fucking. I'd tell myself I just had to get it out of my system and I wouldn't do it again."

"When was the last time?"

"Had to be close to a year ago. Since I've met you, I haven't done it. I guess…I've been thinking about you. I don't want to fuck some random girl from a bar anymore. I kinda just want you."

Maura smiled brilliantly. "Do you feel like you're ready to come out now?"

"I just did, didn't I?"

"To me. What about everyone else?"

Jane sighed again. "Yeah, if I have a reason to. If you're gonna be my…girlfriend?"

Maura nodded. "I want to be."

"Then I have to come out, sooner or later. I'm not gonna force you to live in a closet, and I'm certainly not letting my mom keep bugging me about finding a husband when I'm already with the most amazing person I know. Times have changed a lot since I was nineteen."

"That's true," Maura agreed. "Women can marry women now, here in Massachusetts, and lesbian couples have children all the time."

"Yeah. I predict my mom would freak out for a few days, maybe a few weeks at the most, and then she's going to start bugging me to get married." Jane felt her cheeks redden at the thought of marrying Maura. She certainly wasn't ready to make a decision like that, but it was the first time she'd thought of marrying anyone without being disgusted by the idea.

"Well, nonetheless, I won't pressure you to come out to anyone before you're ready. I'm just happy to have the chance to be with you."

"Me too." Jane pressed her lips to Maura's forehead. "So what about you? What made you suddenly want to do this?"

"It's not really sudden. My first kiss was a girl, when I was at boarding school. We were about fifteen. She said it was just practice, because neither of us had kissed a boy before. There weren't too many opportunities at an all-girls boarding school. So we 'practiced,' a few times, and I quite enjoyed it, but I had a feeling I shouldn't tell her how much I enjoyed it. I didn't really think much of it at the time. In college I started dating men, and I quite enjoyed it. In med school I had little time for dating, though, and I developed an enormous crush on one of my female classmates. She never reciprocated my feelings. I don't think she ever really understood how I felt, thankfully, but she didn't seem that interested in me even as a friend."

"She didn't deserve you, then."

"Maybe not, but I was aware that my feelings for her were as strong as they'd been for my boyfriends. I knew then that I could be in a relationship with either a woman or a man, but over the years, I only seemed to have opportunities with men, and few of those turned into real relationships."

"That's hard to believe. Anyone in their right mind would want you, male or female."

"Well, only the males were pursuing me, and I've never been any good at doing the pursuing, whether for friendship or dating. When I try to be friendly, I just come across as awkward, I think. Women have never wanted much to do with me other than casual friendships or working relationships, and men seem to be primarily interested in my looks. My personality usually drives them away." She smiled up at Jane. "But not you."

"I love your weird personality," said Jane.

"And you pursued me. You come to the morgue and bring me snacks, and you called tonight asking to come over. I just wasn't sure if you were after friendship or romance."

Jane chuckled, running her fingers through Maura's hair. "I was after whatever the hell you were willing to give me."

"I'll give you anything you want," Maura murmured. "I'm so glad you came tonight."

"Me too." Jane held Maura tightly, protectively. And, to her surprise, she actually got some sleep.

~R&I~

A few days later, they were standing in Jane's trashed apartment with a dog and a baby tortoise.

A lot had happened in the time that elapsed, most of it not so good. The important thing was that Hoyt was back behind bars, a bit worse for the wear, and his apprentice was dead.

Agent Dean had turned out to be interested in Jane, not Maura, and she had blown him off very awkwardly, since she didn't want to say she was seeing someone. Hopefully things would be out in the open the next time he came to work on a case.

Korsak was hurt, but he was going to be okay. Jane was just keeping his new dog for him until he got out of the hospital. At least, she was pretty sure that was the plan.

The tortoise was completely unexpected. Apparently Jane's new girlfriend was the sort who gave expensive gifts. Really weird expensive gifts.

Jane and Maura had both been insanely busy with the case, what with a stakeout one night and Jane getting kidnapped the next night, so they hadn't had any serious quality time together since that first night. They'd snuck a few kisses during what precious few private moments they'd gotten, but that was it. Now they were in Jane's apartment together for the first time, and it couldn't have been less romantic. The place was utterly ruined, and Jane wasn't looking any better herself. She was filthy, with bandages covering a second-degree burn on her chest and a cut on her neck. To say she was also rattled was an understatement.

But Maura, quick to prove her loyalty, had shown up to help restore order to Jane's world, bringing with her the dog and the new tortoise. It was proof of just how quirky and sweet she was, and Jane had no idea how she'd gotten this lucky.

"So," Maura said, casting Jane a sexy smile as she pulled on some latex gloves, "where do you want me to start?"

Jane looked at her very carefully. "In the shower."

"Oh, okay." Maura began heading towards the bathroom.

"No." Jane put a hand on Maura's arm, stopping her. "I mean at your place. I need a shower, but, not here. This is a crime scene."

"Oh, you want to take a shower at my place?"

"Yes. And um, that's where I want you to start."

Maura studied her for a moment, perplexed, and then a smile spread across her face. "You want me in the shower with you?"

"Yes please. I could use some…stress relief."

Maura grinned. "Great!" she said. "Let's go!"