This is my new fic, it's very much a work in progress but I (mostly) know where this is going. Since this is an SVU fanfic there will be mentions of rape and sexual assault.

Hope you'll like it.

As always, I appreciate your comments.

You already know I don't own any of the characters who appear on the show.

Uncovering

It was a cold morning, one of those mornings that Amanda had to force herself to get up early to take Frannie out for a walk. She always felt guilty about cutting it short.

"You are such a good girl" she kneeled in front of the dog and patted her. Amanda grabbed something to eat. Her fridge was empty, something that wasn't unusual, but somehow still surprised her, as if it would miraculously fill itself while she was at work.

Amanda put on her coat "I will see you later" she smiled at Frannie and grabbed the keys from the counter. She had to hurry up, they had three open cases and both Fin and Carisi were away.

Fin was sick, he's been on leave with pneumonia for almost a week now. Amanda went to visit him a couple of times, he wasn't enjoying being stuck at the hospital with an IV drip of antibiotics in his vein.

"How are you doing without me?" he asked her.

Amanda was too tired to make a sarcastic remark so she gave him an honest reply "it's a little crazy, you know Carisi's gone too, right?"

"What?" he apparently had no idea about that.

"He broke a toe" she tried not to laugh, not that it was a funny situation.

"You've gotta be kidding me" Fin did let out a short laugh "so what, we are both on leave?"

"You'll get better soon, and Carisi…" Amanda shrugged "he told Benson he has some trouble walking, got crutches, I don't know what's up"

"It's just a toe, he's being over dramatic" Fin tried to sit more comfortably "how are you holding up? You're probably swamped"

"Don't worry about it Fin, just focus on getting better" it was getting late and she had to get back to her apartment so she stood up "we're getting someone to cover for a week or two"

"I hope you're not gonna like him more than me" he joked.

"Doubt that's possible" she smiled "but just to make sure, get well, k? I'm not ready for another partner"

The squad needed the extra help but they had no idea who would be joining them. Liv tried to make it clear to 1PP that they needed someone with a lot of experience, not someone you'd have to show the ropes to.

Amanda walked into the precinct and took off her coat and placed it on her chair and grabbed herself a cop of coffee.

"Hey" Nick walked in a few minutes later looking very tired. He walked straight to the fridge to get one of his disgusting energy drinks.

"How's it going?" she asked him "you look like you got no sleep"

"Four hours count?" he chuckled "I got called out on a scene last night, it was a complete mess" he leaned on his desk "I had to interview three witnesses, I think they were all lying, the victim wasn't saying anything, we'll see what the evidence has to say"

"You could have called me"

"I thought at least one of us should have gotten some sleep, we still have to work today, who knows if we will get help…"

"I hope so, Fin's doing better but it's gonna take time until he can get back to work" she shrugged "and Carisi…"

"Carisi" Nick muttered and Amanda smiled at him "he's got a broken toe, that doesn't prevent him from desk duty, right?"

"I don't know what's going on…Benson said anything about getting help?"

Nick shook his head "hope we're not gonna get some rookie"

"That would be just great, as if we're not busy enough as it is" she looked at the pile of files on her desk "you know where she is?"

"I have no idea" Nick raised his eyes to Liv's office, she hasn't mentioned anything about coming in late, but she had a lot going on right now, being short staffed really didn't help.

"Well" she gave him one of the files "we got some results back from the lab, got a DNA match"

Nick looked at the results "I will call Barba to get a warrant" he reached for his phone and dialed the ADA.

Liv walked in just as Nick had hung up and let Amanda know Barba will call when he gets the warrant.

Amanda gestured with her head at Benson who was talking to some guy who was walking next to her.

She was about to ask Nick if he thought this could be the replacement but she didn't get the chance because he got up, a huge smile on his face, and walked towards the two of them.

"No way, Harris!" he said.

The other man smiled right back and gave Nick a quick hug "Nick Amaro, we meet again"

"I take it you two know each other" Liv looked at Nick who nodded at her "well…" her phone buzzed and she looked at it "why don't you handle the introductions, I need to take this"

"So they assigned you here temporarily?" Nick asked the other man.

"I'm here to save your ass, heard you're going through some tough times"

"Don't ask" Nick shook his head and let out a chuckle "come meet the other detective in the squad at the moment" they walked towards Amanda and she stood up to shake his hand.

"Amanda Rollins" she introduced herself.

"Matthew Harris" he shook her hand "nice to meet you"

"So you two know each other?" Amanda's eyes were focused on Harris.

"We sure do" the men exchanged a look "we worked undercover together for a while, the MS-13 case"

"Two years undercover, right?" that was the first thing she'd learnt about Nick on his first day at SVU.

"I wasn't that lucky" Harris replied instead of Nick "left after a few months, but Nick here did a good job"

Nick chuckled "I think it's ok if you sit here" he showed him to Fin's desk, Nick was pretty sure Fin wouldn't like someone else sitting at his desk, he was kinda sensitive to it, hated to even move to a different one.

"Sorry this is not the best welcome" Amanda handed him a file "but we need all the help we can get"

"Don't worry about it, I'm all about work" he took it from her.

"If you could check the alibi of our suspect…" she started but he didn't let her finish.

"On it" Harris sat down and quickly went through the information in the file so he could familiarize himself with the case.

"Good news guys" Benson walked out of her office and they all turned to look at her "Carisi will be back the day after tomorrow, he's gonna be on desk duty for a while" she ignored the little smile on Nick's face and walked to Amanda to get an update about their cases.

"Rollins, once we get the warrant take Harris with you. Nick, follow last night's case, I will go to the hospital to talk to the girl"

It didn't take long until Amanda and Harris were on their way to make the arrest, Nick left before them to work on the case from the previous night.

A girl was found by three of her friends, she was raped and they took her to the hospital. She refused to talk to anyone so Nick tried to get some answers from her friends. But he soon found out that the phrase about having friends like that… was true. Even though they had tried hard, he could feel something was going on, he didn't believe a word they said, but he couldn't prove anything in the middle of the night. He had to interview each of the girls individually and knew it would take a long time.

"So you knew Nick during his beard stage?" Amanda asked as she sat down in the driver's sit of her car.

Harris laughed "mine was better" he said.

"Oh" she raised her eyebrows a little "so that's a requirement in narcotics then?"

"You're interested?" his tone wasn't serious.

"It would probably be suspicious if I show up with a beard" Amanda started the car and smiled at him.

"I think you could pull it off" he tilted his head a little as if he was inspecting her face.

"Yeah?" she glanced at him for a second before turning her attention back to the road "I was thinking about a different look"

"Then definitely go with the beard, it gives a sense of mystery" he touched his chin and tried to keep his voice neutral, but once in a while he let out a small laugh.

"I will take it into consideration" she said and a short while later she turned to him again "so you're still in narcotics?"

Harris nodded "yeah, but I was happy to help you guys out, a little change"

"It is different, that's for sure"

"Where'd you work before?" he asked.

"I came here from Atlanta, but I worked sex crimes there" she parked the car "it doesn't make any it easier, no matter how long you do this job"

"Makes sense" he nodded "this is our stop?" Amanda nodded and they stepped out of the car.

"Let's go get our guy"

They made the arrest and hurried back to the station. Since both Nick and Liv were still away Harris and Amanda had to conduct the interview.

"So Caleb…" Harris started. Amanda filled him in about the case earlier. It was actually a pretty straight forward one, they now had DNA and the victim had recognized the assailant "you told us that you have nothing to do with the rape"

"I don't" the man nodded.

"Then perhaps you could explain how your little swimmers were found in the scene?"

The man just shrugged and smiled at Amanda.

"It doesn't really matter anyway" Harris continued "we got everything we need"

"He's right" Amanda added "we can sit here in silence and you're still gonna go to jail. So if you're planning on not talking, we'd appreciate a warning" she stood up.

"I will tell you everything" his voice was lower and his grin wider "if this guy leaves as alone" he gestured at Harris.

Amanda took a moment to think about it and then nodded at Harris who looked at Caleb before walking out. He watched through the window as Caleb described, very vividly, the assault. He had to give it to Rollins, she just sat there, nodding once in a while. She looked calm and he wondered whether working at SVU made you numb. She did say it doesn't get easier. But maybe you just get used to it.

"What's going on?" Harris heard someone behind him and turned to see Nick.

"We arrested the guy, but he only wanted to talk to her" Harris explained.

Nick watched the rest of the interview, Amanda seemed to be doing great. A part of him was worried about her, they never really talked about the whole Patton ordeal. He didn't want to push it, they were back to being friends, kinda ignoring everything that had transpired between them, both the good and the bad. Nick wasn't sure how he was feeling about it, he wasn't sure how he was feeling about a lot of things at this point in his life. With so many changes, mostly bad ones, he knew he had to focus on doing better, at work and in his personal life. He just wasn't sure where Amanda fit into this doing better thing.

Nick and Harris watched as Amanda walked out of the interrogation room "I'm gonna get an officer to take him to booking" she let them know.

"Good" Nick nodded "Liv is still at the hospital, trying to get the victim to talk"

"You had any luck?" Harris asked.

"Some, but those girls…" he shook his head.

"I'll be right back" Amanda walked away to get someone to take Caleb to central booking.

Nick turned his attention to the interrogation room where Caleb was playing with his fingers, while Harris followed Amanda with his eyes as she walked away.

"You want to go get a drink later?" he asked Nick.

"Ha?" Nick turned to look at Harris, thinking about it for a moment "maybe one, I've been up most of the night"

"We have some catching up to do" Harris smiled and walked back to his desk.

"So the officer's going to take Caleb to central booking and we can help out with the other investigation" Amanda let him know.

Harris nodded "Hey Rollins, you want to go get a drink with me and Amaro later? He agreed to get one, but I'd love to stay out longer. Heck, I'm buying, you're in?"

"I've got somewhere to be" she replied apologetically "rain check?"

Amanda declined the offer not because she didn't want to go, she wouldn't have minded getting a drink with the two of them. Things between her and Nick might have been undeclared, but Amanda wasn't in a hurry to have the talk with him.

After Patton's trial had quieted down he didn't even mentioned their infamous bar fight, or the barely speaking to each other part. Things were back to some sort of a normal state between them and right now Amanda didn't want to stir things up.

But she had a GA meeting and she couldn't miss it.

"Well, if you change your mind…" he smiled at her.

Nick and Harris left the station before Amanda, she wanted to finish up some paperwork before heading to her meeting.

"Haven't changed your mind?" Harris asked as he put on his coat.

"Sorry" she raised her eyes to him "you guys have fun, see ya tomorrow"

"Bye Rollins" Nick said and turned to Harris "One beer" he reminded him.

"One beer, I know" they walked into the elevator.

Nick had never been at the bar Harris chose, it was a little fancy for his taste, but since Matt was buying, and he was heading back to his place soon, he didn't mind. Nick looked at him standing at the bar, ordering the drinks. Well, he was supposed to be ordering drinks but seemed more interested talking to a woman standing next to him. He couldn't see her very well, but she was blonde, wearing a way too short dress.

Nick yawned and was about to walk over there to just say goodbye but then Matt turned around, holding two beer bottles in his hands.

"Sorry it took so long" he sat down and handed Nick one of them, ignoring his frown.

"So how've you been?" Nick took a sip of the cool drink "I know we haven't been in contact for a long time but I take it you and Nancy broke up"

Matt glanced at the bar "we got a divorce more than five years ago" he smiled at Nick's surprised expression "rumor has it you and your wife split up too…Maria, right?"

Nick nodded "she moved to California with my daughter"

"And what about the other stuff?" Matt looked at the table.

"Other stuff?" Nick asked.

"You think I haven't heard? I doubt there's somebody who hasn't…I'm talking about you being arrested after beating up that guy"

Nick looked displeased but wasn't sure what to say so he just shrugged.

"Sorry, didn't mean to pry" he leaned in a little "or maybe I did, cause…"

"You thrive on the misfortune of others?" Nick didn't let him finish the sentence "it's been a rough patch but it's alright now, working hard"

"Sure seems like it, but I must say I like your squad"

"Yeah?" Nick took another sip, almost finishing his beer.

"I've been in narcotics long enough, I think it's time for a change"

"And you're thinking about joining SVU?"

Matt shrugged "we'll see, I've already talked about it with my captain"

"Listen Matt" Nick got up "I really hope it all works out for you, we'd be lucky to have you, but right now I have to get back home to catch some sleep, we'll catch up another time. Anyway, your girlfriend seems to be interested" he noticed the woman at the bar throwing glances at Matt once in a while.

"That's a good reason for you to leave, see you tomorrow" Matt said after turning his head to look at the bar.

"Knock yourself out" Nick gave him a slight pat on the back and headed towards the exit.

Amanda reached the crime scene at about 5 am, Harris was already there, waiting for her "good morning" he said, he seemed pretty cheerful for someone who had woken up just a short time ago, or maybe he ended up keeping Nick out for more than just one beer...she gave him a quick smile before turning her attention to work.

"Let's go talk to the coroner" Amanda said and Harris followed her.

"She's been dead for a few hours" he told them.

"Any ID?" Amanda asked even though from looking at the body she could see they wouldn't find any.

She looked to be in her early twenties, but was probably younger, the makeup added her a few years "She's probably homeless, or a working girl" the coroner said "look at her nails" he raised her lifeless hand and the detectives kneeled down to have a good look "vitamin deficiency"

"Cause of death?" Harris stood up straight and looked around the scene, the dead woman was half lying on the ground, her blonde hair was mostly red due to all of the dry blood, her clothes were torn.

"Blunt force trauma, can't tell what he used to kill her, but I can tell you she suffered" he placed her hand back on the floor gently, as if he was trying to preserve the tiny bit of dignity she had left "there are signs of rape, but I don't see anything helpful right now, hopefully we get more after the autopsy"

"Any witnesses?" Harris asked an officer who was standing nearby.

"No, a garbage track driver was the one to find her"

"And where is he?" the officer pointed at the driver's direction.

"I'll go talk to him" Amanda said "check out the scene?"

"I'm done here detective" the coroner looked at Harris.

"Can I have a moment before you take the body?" he asked "I'd like to take a look while it's still here"

"Sure" the doctor shrugged "I'll be right back"

"Thanks" he watchd the man as he walked back to his car.

Harris looked at the dead body, he wondered if they'll ever find out who she was, he doubted it, she didn't look like somebody would miss her enough to file a missing person report. Even if they get a name cause she had a record, it would probably lead them nowhere.

He looked around, the coroner was busy filling some forms, Rollins and the officer were talking to the man who had found her. Nobody paid any attention to her. He kneeled down again and took out a small plastic bag and a pocket knife. He cut a small piece of her shirt. It has already been torn, no one would notice a little piece is missing. He quickly placed it in the plastic bag and put it and the knife in his pocket.

"Thanks doc" Harris walked to the coroner "she's all yours"

"The driver said he didn't see anything" Amanda let him know "you got anything?"

"No" Harris shook his head.