Her hand is in hers.

The cloaked figure, stands before them, "One day. One day is all you have," the pained eyes and hurt voice reminds them again, "One day."

Jane feels awkward, and her limbs feel lanky. Maura compliments her long bones, her long limbs, and normally she would be secretly pleased, but now she only feels awkward. It'll hold, she comments to herself as she leaves the room, to go to Maura.

Maura's in the kitchen, washing up from the breakfast they had shared. Jane was her usual self, making a mess out of the peanut butter and fluff. She had insisted for Jane to use a separate knife for each different spread, but Jane had simply rolled her eyes at her and insisted that it'll make no difference anyway - it'll all go down to the same place Maura. She smiles into the curve of Jane's neck as she rests against Jane who's holding her close to her.

"Maura?" Jane whispers, soft and low, "I'm ready. Are you?"

Maura nods, and peppers Jane's jaw with kisses, "I am if you are," she smiles.

"Keep your eyes closed?"

"Do I have to Jane?"

"You don't have to," Jane traces Maura's brow, "But it'll be nicer if you do."

Maura smiles, "Lead the way then Jane," she kisses Jane's smile before shutting her eyes, "I trust you."

"I do too," Jane kisses Maura's forehead and contemplates carrying her, "I trust you."

Jane's hands are on her shoulders, guiding her along.

"Just a little while more Maura, and to the left a little," Jane is careful and detailed in all delivery of instruction. She has a firm hold on each of Maura's shoulder, and she had taken care to remove all possible obstacles or obstructions beforehand. Her hands never leave Maura's shoulders, and her fingers massage at Maura's muscles - it isn't tense, and neither is she. She's breathing easy.

Maura accustoms herself to having her eyes shut quicker than she would have anticipated, and she knows gleefully almost, that it's because she has Jane by her - Jane takes away the fear, of the unknown, of everything. She doesn't even encounter a single fleeting moment of worry, of banging into anything - Jane has a hand firmly on her back now, Jane has her back. "I have your back too Jane," her lips find Jane's upturned against hers.

"I know you do Maura," Jane wraps her arms around Maura, "You can open your eyes now," she steps a little away just so she can watch as Maura sees what she had built for her.

Maura opens her eyes, and it's a fort. The room she's in has a fort - a blanket fort.

Maura turns to Jane, reaches for her hand, before continuing her survey of the room. The room is dark, but the walls and ceiling are abundant with stars. The room is in the dark - Jane had boarded up the windows - but the fort in the middle of the room, is light.

"What do you think?" Jane asks, smile hopeful as she had watched Maura's eyes light up.

"I think that it's beautiful Jane," Maura smiles against Jane's, "You're beautiful," she traces Jane's eyes, Jane's matching smile, "You are beautiful, and I love you Jane."

"Maura," Jane traces Maura's eyes, "You," she kisses Maura's forehead, "You are beautiful, and you've made me beautiful." She holds Maura close to her, "I want all things beautiful for you," she whispers into Maura's hair, "I want to spend the rest of my life with you Maura," she presses her lips to Maura's temple. Even if we have to do it all in one day, words she does not say.

"Jane," Maura rests her head on Jane's shoulder and keeps her arms tightly wrapped around Jane, "I want that too, my whole life with you," she kisses Jane's shoulder, "And I'll spend my only day with no one else but you Jane," she tips on her toes to kiss Jane's temple, "You built me a fort," she allows herself a giggle, "Everything is beautiful because of you." She holds Jane closer, and tucks away the nagging ache of the knowledge that a day is just a day, that they only have today.

Jane places Maura's hand to her chest, "Maura," she smiles, "You've built with me, a home," she holds onto Maura's hand, "Shall we?" She gestures to the fort as she playfully bows. She feels the warmness building in her chest as she listens to Maura's laugh.

"You're my home Jane," Maura assures as she forces away a mental image of Jane on her once autopsy table with a firm squeeze on the warm hand guiding her towards their fort, their light, "Home for me is wherever you are and will be," she leans in for a hug before entering the opening of the fort that Jane holds up for her - and she sees blankets, pillows, and cushions.

"You should be pleased to know that this blanket fort is definitely better than any other forts you've ever had," Jane sits opposite a grinning Maura, "It's cool, and soft, comfy and not stuffy, which is the most important," she points at the hanging ornaments above their heads, "And I placed our tokens up above," her finger grazes at her token and Maura's, "I found mine in a bag of fudge clusters," she holds onto Maura's hands, "I know now why they're so familiar," she smiles at Maura looking up at the hanging tokens, "They're your favourite."

Maura looks away from the dangling bottle caps. Jane had shown it to her over breakfast and admitted that having suggested them keep the bottle caps was more than just a way for Jane to remind her to give beer a chance whenever they had a dispute over alcoholic beverages - Jane had wanted them to keep them, to remember the first beers they shared, as best friends, and as Jane had hope, one day more than friends. She had blushed then, and had removed hers from her pocket, explaining to Jane that she had kept hers close to her, and has it with her wherever she goes - and that she had Jane's name inscribed onto it, just so she can always have her best friend, and she too had hope, someone more - always with her. They had laughed, and lamented slightly at their foolish worries - they settled it all, with shared bites of peanut butter and fluff sandwiches, and a generous helping of kisses. Maura looks to Jane smiling at her, "I developed a liking to fudge clusters because they remind me of you," she holds onto Jane's hands, "All tough on the outside, but gooey and warm on the inside," she kisses Jane's hands, "You're my favourite Jane," she leans into Jane's welcoming arms, "You're my favourite too Maura," Jane plants the words and kisses to the top of her head, and their hands are holding onto each other's.

"So I'm crunchy on the outside?" Jane teases as Maura's laughter resounds in their blanket fort, "And you want to eat me," Jane hums to herself, "That explains now, all those fun facts you like to share about immunogoblin A," Jane laughs along to Maura's.

"It's immunoglobulin A Jane," Maura playfully rights.

"So you admit it then? You want to sleep with me," Jane smiles at Maura's gasp.

"I have only ever given answers oblivious enough with no intent to lie or deceive," Maura hides her blush by burying herself in Jane's hair.

"Clementine Rizzoli is clueless Rizzoli, and I eat kale because of you," Jane kisses at Maura's temple as her fingers twirl at Maura's hair, "I know I can't spend my life with you Maura," she keeps her arm firmly wrapped around Maura who stiffens a little, "But -"

"So you built a blanket fort to represent childhood, or parenthood, and if we reach the stage of immunoglobulin A tonight, you've secured for us society's indicative milestones of life," Maura rests her hand on Jane's chest as her words interrupt Jane's, "I love your beautiful mind even more for such ingenious thinking," she kisses the spot above Jane's beating heart, "We'll get to spend our lives with each other after all Jane," her smile falls at the tear-filled eyes looking back at her.

"I'm sorry Maura," Jane apologizes in a voice so soft, "I didn't win like the last time, I couldn't - I couldn't save you," she looks down as tears fall, "The dreams, they're real, and I didn't save you Maura, you died and we only have today."

"We could have had the real thing if - if I had won like the other time and, we would have this, all of this," Jane shuts her eyes and rests against Maura's shoulder, "We could have spent our lives together if I had won, if I had saved you," she holds onto Maura, holding onto her, "I'm so sorry Maura," she holds onto Maura - her best friend, the reason why she doesn't need to count to ten.

"You did Jane, you saved me, you won," Maura holds Jane steadily close to her, "You took the bullet for me, you protected me like you always said you would," she sheds her own tears, "I traded with death, to give you back the life you deserved, to have my best friend happy, and alive," her own voice is calm as she explains but she feels a mess inside, "I had you already, a best friend, a meaningful and purposeful life," she pulls Jane gently away as her hands frame Jane's face, "You won, you saved me, I'm the one who bargained and changed all you did, and I'm sorry Jane, I'm sorry for the nightmares I've caused you, for trading with you but," she presses her lips to tears, "I just want you happy, and I was foolish to not have known that I was it," her thumbs brush away at more tears, "I was why you're happy, and I love you Jane, but I can't have you die for me, I can't have you dead," she admits as tears cascade, "It was a logical decision and I'm so sorry Jane," she shudders into herself but Jane pulls her in, "I'm so sorry Jane," she cries against Jane - the reason why it's all worth it, why she's always home.

Jane holds a tearful Maura in her arms, and takes a moment to piece up the mystery, "My dreams aren't real, I saved you, but this is real," she kisses at Maura's hand, "I'm alive, and you are dead," she states the facts as Maura tenses again against her, "But you are here," she holds Maura closer to her.

"Not the most romantic proposal Maura but," Jane gently lifts Maura's chin and smiles, "You're right, that's why I built the blanket fort, and I've always been yours since I fell in love with you," she smiles and tries to keep the pain, the tension away, "I just want now with you, I just want all things to be beautiful for you, and for you," she kisses Maura's temple, "To be happy too, and that's enough for me," her eyes meet Maura's, "When you're happy, I'm happy Maura," she smiles.

Maura holds the shared gaze, "You did even the odds Jane, we're here," she pauses to sit up, "You are why we're here, your love," she blushes, "For me, our love, you won us this day, and I know you won more, and I caused you to lose."

"Nope, I feel like a winner right now," Jane wraps her arms around Maura, "I'm alive, and you're here," she smiles as she guides Maura to lay down next to her, "And we're in a really beautiful fort, we're winners Maura," she kisses Maura's temple, "You're my odds, and I won," she holds onto Maura's hands that find hers, "I got shot and I scored," she jokes and looks at Maura hoping for eased tension.

Maura looks at Jane, teasing smiling happy Jane, and rests her head on Jane's chest, listening to Jane's beating heart, as Jane wraps her arm around her, "Tell me more Jane? About our life together, if I wasn't quite the queen of the dead," she asks as the nagging ache dissipates with each beat of Jane's pumping heart - a day is enough, happy Jane is enough.

"We've already covered fantasy wedding and by default Maura, yes you can come, since you're the bride," Jane pauses to meet Maura's smile with hers, "We'll have it at a volcano called fenway park and the peanuts would burn, except that wait, you said dormant volcano so, let's decide on the cake first, or should we do attire? You want a dress with a train, and I am in my red sox gear, or maybe we'll have a softball team, and we'll wear our uniforms. Imagine Ma's face! Just you and me, and our children. We'll come home from work to screaming fighting children until their bossy mother, you," Jane laughs as Maura harmlessly slaps her arm, "Sits us down with vegetables for breakfast, lunch and dinner, and -"

"Having only vegetables is hardly nutritious enough Jane, we'll have to feed them burgers and fries, stuff them with ice cream," Maura supports herself on her elbow to look at Jane, "They'll be just like their mother, all roly-poly," Maura grins.

"Maura!" Jane feigns shock.

Maura laughs and lays back down next to Jane, and Jane turns to face Maura, "I'm not even close to done yet Maura," she snuggles herself against Maura, "We'll go jogging early in the morning, because we'll all have to train for the P.U.K.E. marathon, and we'll have little champions all around us, cheering for their mother who finally runs in those webbed shoes, you again," she presses her lips to Maura's dimple, "And we'll have holidays, with a luggage, at most two, for me and each of our child, but still be towing about sixty suitcases because their mommy dearest needs a pair of shoes for every day of our trip," she holds Maura close to her, "We'll grow old together, and be cranky at the neighbours, but never at each other," she holds Maura closer to her, "We'll go to bed every night together, because I will personally have Susie run all your test reports as fast as she can, and I'll have Rondo let the word out that no homicide is to take place after office hours, because detective Jane Rizzoli, wants to go home and cuddle with her beautiful wife, the queen of the dead," she kisses Maura's temple, "You're welcome to of course, add in more gifts like racing classes for me," she grins as Maura smiles back at her with watery eyes, "But it'll always be enough, for me, as long as you're happy Maura," she rests her head against Maura's chest, hearing a faint beat underneath, "I'm glad you did the trade Maura," she looks up to meet Maura's puzzled face, "I wouldn't want my life and soul, to belong to anyone but you," she kisses at Maura's moist dimple, "I'm never leaving you," she promises.

Maura listened and took in every word, savouring in the imagery that Jane had painted - a life of their own, a life with each other. She looks at their hands, held tightly together, and at Jane smiling back up at her, "You do make everything beautiful Jane," she traces the eyes that look back at her, filled with kindness and love, "I love you Jane," her smile meets hers, "I love you too."

Her hand is in hers.

The cloaked figure, greets them at their door as midnight draws near, "The day's almost up, the one day we all got to have," a cloak appears on a skeletal hand, "Ready to honour our deal Maura Isles?" Death asks in a voice again cold, but with eyes that shine, that glow, "Life and death met again, and will meet again," the hood is back up, as the scythe appears, "One day."

Her hand is still in hers as the cloaked figure disappears; and a note is left in death's place - 'Your love couldn't die, and I got too my one day. Life has a present for you - another day. Thank you. You evened the odds, for all lovers today.'

A/N: Hi there, thank you, for the time~
If you've read all of it and, is not at least, utterly disappointed, thank you for bearing through it all with me=)
Hmm. And now onto other fanfics where I should stop obsessing with love and its never really happening demise. Thank you, for the time=)