Chapter Eleven: Mistress Mary Quite Contrary

Author's Note: Turns out after I got the tenth chapter out of the way inspiration hit and I spat out over ten thousand words, shared evenly between fandoms and stories. Writers are weird. Stay tuned for chapter twelve later this week (or maybe tomorrow, I don't even know).

Ps. TEATEATEATEATEA

Rick stares at her, his face contorting with a set of dozens of emotions. He goes through happiness, and excitement and worry and panic, until he finally settles on flabbergasted. It takes them both a while to move, perhaps five minutes or so, before Rick takes a step forward and wraps his arms around Kate's waist. She buries her head on the crook of his neck, taking in his scent, and smiles. She's worried, yes. Scared, absolutely. But she's also immensely happy. She's getting another baby – they are getting another baby and she's so fucking lucky she can't even believe it.

They tell Gabriel the next day. They choose a place he loves – the Dylan's Candy Bar on 60th street – and prepare for the worst. Rick picks him up from school at 3:30 pm, and they meet Kate at the candy café at four. She's concerned, he can tell from the tapping of her nails on the table, and absolutely gorgeous. She always is, but he's sure this whole pregnancy thing is making her even more beautiful. He takes a deep breath and walks towards the table, taking Gabriel by the hand.

"Hey mommy." Gabriel says, his eyes tracing her features. He always did that. Always observed, let the details sink, always noticed. It's a very Castle-esque characteristic. He takes every image, every situation, and watches them long enough to capture the essence of each event.

"Hey, honey." She answers, letting her hand fall to her side. Rick takes a seat next to her, grabbing the free hand while doing so. He's just as nervous as she is, maybe more, and takes some comfort in the touch. "Castle and I have something we want to tell you."

"You're taking me to Albania for Christmas." He concludes, smiling. Albania – and all of its culture – are Gabriel's latest obsession. He's learning about it in school, he told them, and he's fascinated.

"What?" Kate questions, a chuckle escaping her mouth on the process "No."

"You're gonna get me that green-colored rabbit we saw on NatGeo last week."

"Gabriel, would you just let your mother talk?" Rick asks, his tone a tad harsher than he intended. He does that when he's preoccupied. His voice changes, his posture changes, and he gets a little intimidating.

"Are you dying?"

"We're not dying." Kate tells him "Quite the opposite, in fact."

"You're… borning?"

"No, but someone else is being born." Kate says, emphasizing the last two words. "Honey, we're going to have another baby."

"Like as human one?"

"We hope so."

"Will it have superpowers?"

"It's not likely, no."

"Eh, alright." Gabriel sighs "Do I get to choose?"

"It's more of a 'you-get-whatever-the-universe-gives-you' situation." Rick smiles.

"Bummer."

"Are you upset?" she asks, squeezing Rick's hand.

"Nah. I heard babies can do a lot of cool things. Like seeing ghosts and levitating. Maybe it can teach me."

"Yeah." Kate laughs "Maybe."

5 months later…

There's wisdom hidden behind the eyes of every child. They don't judge, they don't fake, they don't lie. They just are, and the consistency of living is plenty for their youthful beings. There is no person more pure, more truthful, more faithful or more fragile than a child. When you nurture them and teach them, show them the right path, and hold their hands until they're sapient enough to go on without the help, they thrive. Kate sees Gabriel thriving. She sees him growing, watches him learn, and holds his hand. She's saddened by the time she didn't do any of these things, but when Gabriel has a nightmare or throws a tantrum, she is reminded of just how much there is for him to learn still. She gets some of those feelings when the small baby occupying her uterus moves. She doesn't have a name yet, or even a solid, concrete, existence. For now, she's an idea. An idea worthy of plenty thought.

But it's on nights like this – when everyone's asleep and the only sound she can hear is her own breathing, that she gets more and more used to the idea of raising someone from scratch. She would teach her how to crawl, and how to walk. She'd teach her all about animals and colors and numbers and the first time she said 'mama', she'd be talking to her. She feels guilty of all of those things. She'll never forgive herself for abandoning him, ever, but she'll do everything in her power to make sure he – and his sisters – know that they're the most important things in her life.

It's eerily quiet, she reflects. Not only the apartment is quiet, but the city, too, and herself. She doesn't feel any particular need for noise, not at the moment, not when she's having one of the very few intimate moments with her soon-to-be-daughter. She takes a glance down at her stomach – at the green silk covered bulge to be precise – and smiles. A couple more months, she thinks, and the whole family will get a brand new chance of doing everything right. Gabriel will get a younger sibling, Alexis will get a little sister, and she and Rick… they get a new baby.

The silence is disrupted by the sound of heavy footsteps, and she turns around to see Rick coming into the room. His hair is insanely messy, and she's pretty sure that his pajama bottoms have a wine stain on them, but she doesn't care. He looks warm and she's cold, and the night feels a lot less quiet when he's around. He comes up from behind her and hugs her, rubbing his hands across her stomach and resting his head on her right shoulder.

"What are you doing?" he asks, creating a circular rubbing pattern on her stomach. The silky fabric of her nightgown feels good under his fingers, and he can't remember a time when he felt more peaceful. He loves her even more like this, with disheveled hair and sleeping attire, when she's no one but Kate. She's not Beckett, or detective, or Katherine, or anything else. She's just Kate. His Kate. The Kate he fell in love with, the one he falls in love with again every night. The woman he wants to marry, the mother of his children, the first person he wants to see when he wakes up and the last one he wants to see before going to sleep. She owns him, every part of him, and he's never been this happy to leave his future in somebody else's hands.

"Shh" She murmurs, placing her hands over his. She trusts him, with all of her heart, and she is so immensely thankful for everything. For him. "lower your voice."

"Sorry." He whispers in her ear, his lips touching the curve of her lobe.

"I think I know what to name her." Kate announces, in a barely audible whisper. Her voice – a mix of raspy, soft, and silky – is like the sweetest of all poisons. He wants to ask what she has decided, wants to know what she's thinking, but he doesn't want to discombobulate the gossamer equilibrium they have at the moment. He's content to just stay there, with her, with them, running his fingers through her stomach and listening to the soft beat of her heart. But he's too curious, too anxious, and too eager. He wants to know what she's chosen, wants to know why. He has this borderline pathological need to know everything about her, and this is not just her. This is them, this is theirs. She is theirs.

"Tell me." He says, his voice both soft and demanding, his fingers still tracing the same pattern across her belly.

"Mary." Kate breathed, the name leaving her lips as a hummingbird leaves its nest.

"Mary. I like it." He told her, planting a line of feather-like kisses on her hair.

"My mom's middle name was Mary." She says, her voice still unstable.

"It's the name of one of my favorite songs." He adds, not bothering to stop the kisses.

"My favorite book character."

"A really nice nursery rhyme."

"It means wished-for child." She said, releasing herself from his grasp and turning around to face him.

"I love it." He said, pressing a kiss to her lips "And I love you."

[…]

2 months later…

Mary is born on a Friday. It's late at night, well past eleven, when the little girl makes her way into the world. She has a powerful set of lungs and sky-blue eyes, and the feeling of love inside the room is so unbelievably ubiquitous Rick is sure he's about to explode. Her birth was quick and smooth, a few swift motions placing her in her mother's arms, and there's a tacit peace inside room 47 in the maternity ward.

Gabriel and Jim are the first to visit. The little boy is tired – it's almost one when they arrive – but the wide grin on his face reassures his worried parents. He's okay, and she's okay. They're okay, and their family is there.

"Hey, mommy." He says, planting a sloppy wet kiss on Kate's flushed cheek, his hands searching for the pink bundle softly asleep on her arms.

"Hey, baby." She answers, her voice slightly altered by the recent array of desperate screams, and adjusts Mary so that she's facing her brother. "Say hello to your sister."

It's hard to pinpoint what exactly Gabriel is feeling. His expression is a mix of happiness and worry, love and childishness, wisdom and pure innocence. He brings a hand to rest on Mary's carefully wrapped stomach, and runs his fingers through the fabric of her blanket.

"Hi, Mary." He says, his eyes trailing from her head to her body and from her body to his mother's face "She's very pretty."

Kate smiles at him and places a hand over his. His hand is warm under hers, his eyes decisive.

"We want you to choose her middle name." She says, taking a second to glance over at Jim and offer him a warm smile.

"Really?"

"Yeah." Rick answers, taking a seat on Kate's cot. "What do you think?"

Gabriel takes another look at the baby, focusing on her little face. She's pale and her face is a light shade of pink, soft strands of brown hair framing her chubby cheeks and delicate features. She's beautiful, he thinks, before turning back to his parents.

"Zoet." He announces, before spelling the name aloud "Z-O-E-T. Means 'sweet' in Dutch."

"Mary Zoet Castle." Kate says, with a smile. "I like it."

[…]

Author's Note: JAAISDHJKBDVHJBDSVKJSDVBDKSJBVSHFD he's back. Episode 8 was pure GOLD. I'm still trying to wrap my head around everything. Also, please review.

Ps. The baby episode is in a six days! I'm just too giddy for words.