Authors note: What if the boys were forced to have counselling after some episodes? The idea wouldn't go away and so this fic was born. An exploration of Lewis and Hathaway's relationship through the medium of therapy. Hathaway's S1 character is hard to peg, hope I did ok.

Enjoy. :)

Thanks are most definitely due to princessozmaofoz for her encouragement and help :) Any mistakes however, are mine and mine alone.

Oh and I'd like to point out that Hathaway's views of psychologists, are his not mine. :) I haven't met nearly enough of them to have an opinion :P

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"Counselling? But sir, I'm fine!"

"Hold on a minute Hathaway, its not my idea. Innocent insists, and while I would dearly love to see a showdown between the pair of you...I have no wish for my sergeant to get sacked when he's only just been hired." He smiled at Hathaway, hoping it was the right thing to do. The young man that was now working for him was an enigma, and Lewis had never been good at puzzles. He didn't know how he was supposed to have a duty of care for a man that gave no indication when he needed caring about. But the sergeant was witty enough, and clever enough, for Lewis to know that he'd make a good policeman.

"But why does she think-"

"Well a man did kill himself in front of us and effectively died in your arms sergeant. Might be that Innocent thought it would upset you? Either way, we've got to go."

"Well, I'm fine. And I'll tell this...this..."

"Dr Moreland" Lewis supplied helpfully.

"This Dr Moreland, that I'm fine. Bloody psychobabble people. They read out of textbooks, they aren't on the front line are they? They don't know how to help. They never have."

Lewis heard the implication in that last sentence but chose to ignore it, mindful that he had known this man a matter of days and probing into his private life was not the way to get him on side.

"I know, I know...but, well half an hour talking to this woman has got to be better than a week of Innocent alternatively shouting and giving us dirty looks." He saw the sergeant lips quirk up in a smile and grinned back.

"Come on lad, best get it over with", he walked out of the office, unsure what he would do if Hathaway decided not to follow. But follow he did and he could hear the leer in the voice that he couldn't see in the face.

"Woman, you say sir?" Lewis shook his head, like any young man...one thing on the mind.

"None of that Hathaway, any way, would you really want to go out with her. All your mannerisms, everything you say and do, telling her what's going on in that shaven head of yours?" He turned round and couldn't help but chuckle at the horrified look on his sergeant's face.

.

Despite all his pushing and encouraging of Hathaway, Lewis was nervous. He'd seen quacks before. They hadn't helped. When Val had died...they'd done little more than supply him with anti depressants and sleeping tablets. That wasn't any good. In the end he'd seen sense and thrown the sleeping pills away, resolving to get on with his life. It was still hard, of course it was, but now he had work, and someone else to worry about in his Cambridge educated young sergeant, he felt he could just get on with things. Hoping this doctor wouldn't screw up the precarious balance he had created, he took a deep breath, knocked on the door and walked in.

"Inspector Lewis?"

"Yes doctor."

"Sit down Inspector." He did as he was bid, biting back a chuckle. Hathaway would be sorely disappointed if he was anticipating a young, attractive girl his own age. Not that this-what was her name again?- wasn't attractive, just that she would be more attractive to someone of Lewis' years than James'. Unless Hathaway went for that kind of thing. He'd place this doctor at about forty years old, at least twelve years Hathaway's senior anyway.

"Robbie, please. Um, I'm not really sure why I'm here doctor?"

"Doctor Moreland. But please, call me Eileen." She saw him nod, glad that her hunch had been right, Robbie Lewis was a first name kind of guy. He seemed happy enough, but there was a wariness in his eyes that betrayed his feelings. Doesn't like or trust psychologists. It was written like a beacon above his head as clear as could be to someone with her training and knowledge.

"You're here because Jean Innocent told you to come here. You witnessed a death right in front of you."

"Nothing I haven't seen before, not even the worst one I've seen" She saw the disguised shudder. Oh I don't doubt it Robbie Lewis. But how many times have you shrugged it off?

"Nonetheless, its a traumatic experience. Its not something the average human sees often."

"You do in this line of work." He smiles sadly, "Still, I guess it keeps me in a job."

"It didn't affect you in anyway? I find that hard to believe Robbie."

"Seen it before, its never nice, is it? But like I said, seen it before...I'm not sure about Sergeant Hathaway though." Bingo, that's what's bothering him.

"Oh? What makes you say that?"

"He looked so shocked...He's religious, I think, I'm not sure how he feels about suicide. But he looked up at me, and he looked shocked."

Eileen nodded sympathetically and kept quiet, confident that Lewis would keep talking if she gave him space. She was right.
"I should have said something to him, I suppose, should have...I've only known him for a week. I know next to nothing about him, and I'm expected to know how to keep him calm during a suicide."

"Don't worry Robbie, that's what I'm here for." The inspector shook his head.

"I left him. I went to the hospital...the girl, you know...but I left him there on his own." Guilt, interesting, he feels responsible after just a week.

"Well, he's a detective isn't he? He will be on his own from time to time."

"Yes, But I shouldn't have left him after that. He's just a kid. Well, compared to me anyway, twenty eight I think he is. Just a lad really. That damn hair cut of his makes it worse of course." He chuckles slightly and Eileen feels herself smiling in response.

"Give it time Lewis, you're both finding your footing around each other. He won't mind. He'll probably feel proud that you trusted him."

"I didn't...I, well I did, but that wasn't why I...oh I dunno"

"Like I said, give it time. How do you get on other than that?"

"Ok. I think. I like him, he's a good lad. Bit religious for my liking but I can't hold that against him. He's got a sort of dry wit, he's a laugh. I don't know what he thinks about me though, Christ knows why he wanted to work with me."

"Well, you can't have screwed up too bad then can you? It'll work out Lewis. Now I think I better have the man in question in here before he finds some excuse to get out of this."

"Aye, he didn't seem keen. Thank you Do...Eileen." She took his extended hand, and shook it warmly.

"Send him in Lewis, lets see if I can't get behind the mask."

.

"Sergeant Hathaway" she greets him as he walks in, and gestures towards the chair in front of her desk.

"Doctor", he replies, all cold charm and politeness. Wouldn't like to have this one interrogating me when he's having a bad day. She can see how their partner ship will work. Lewis inviting confidences and the sergeant intimidating confessions out of suspects. She nods, and attempts to break the ice.

"Doctor Moreland...Eileen"

"James Hathaway." He didn't really want to tell her that, she can tell. But the politeness...defence mechanism?...Yes, that's what it is, made him give her that information. He's spent way too long hiding behind this mask. He's getting too good at it.

"James. I understand from your recent case-"

"-look, I really don't know why I'm here, well I do, Innocent. But honestly, I'm fine. Can I just go now?" Hmm, defence mechanism against his experience...or against people asking him questions? That's your starter for ten Eileen.

"You're fine?"

"Yes. Fine and dandy."

"So you weren't at all affected by a man killing himself in front of you, and then dying in your arms?"

"No. It's part of the job."

"Did Lewis tell you that?" There, a flash of expression across his face. Anger? Fear? She can't place it.

"No. Why would you think that?" Got him interested now. She knows that she'll have to deal with him in a very different way to Robbie Lewis. Hard and fast questions. She's going to have to annoy him to get a response that isn't too carefully controlled. Time to change tack.

"How many people have you seen die on the job James."

"...only Mr Denniston."

"Yet you're still ok with this? Being on your own with a dying man." Spot the deliberate mistake.

"I wasn't on my own. I was with Inspector Lewis. Did you ask him all this rubbish?" Smart lad. Not too smart though, he should have picked up that she'd know they were together, after all she did just interview Lewis.

"Of course. He was worried about you. He said you looked shocked."

"Well, I'm not completely devoid of emotion you know! I mean, it was unexpected. Of course I was shocked, but I'm not going to fall apart if that's what you're thinking." Doesn't want to be seen as weak. She knew that in actual fact, he wasn't all that affected by what he's seen. He's good at this, seen a psychologist before? Wonder why?

"What do you think of inspector Lewis?"

"You've got the files, you'll have seen that I wanted to work with him. Work it out yourself." Eileen sees this abrasive change in tone for what it is. He doesn't know why she's changed tack so strangely and its unsettled him.

I want to hear it from you. The files don't mean anything."

"He's...he's a good man. He knows what he's doing and he...well , he listens to me. He's a bit sharp, and he doesn't like religion. But he doesn't...he apologised for being rude about it. He's a nice guy. I like him. I dunno what he thinks about me. But he accepted me as his bagman, so I guess he's ok with me." She smiles, longest thing he's said all interview.

"I think that's all James. You can go now."

"That's it? Your sure?" She almost laughs, he couldn't look any more like a child waiting to be told he's grounded if he tried.

"Yes James." She stands up and offers her hand. Now the danger is over, he smiles his most charming smile and takes her hand.

"Thank you doctor" and with that he's gone.

She sits back down on her chair smiling to herself. The world-weary inspector and the enigmatic sergeant. Lewis is easy to read, he's grieving (she's seen the files, she didn't think that'd be a good icebreaker). James is harder. He doesn't like to give anything away. She's intrigued about what he's had counselling for in the past, although she doubts its going to be pleasant. And unless it crops up in the future, she doesn't reckon she's ever going to find out from the young man.

One things for sure though, Jean Innocent will be happy; those two are going to make a good team.