Starburst
by: raile

Summary: How to properly accessorize a Smith & Wesson? Why, with Prada, of course. (AU)
Disclaimer: The ones you don't know are mine, the ones you do aren't.
Rating: T, to be safe

Author's Note: This is basically me simply saying, "Ah, fuck it." This is my playground.
Also, unbetaed and probably riddled with typos.

-o0o0o0o0o-

Will Gardner came to a conclusion that particular morning.

And it was about time.

Literally, he meant that it was about time itself and often, he wondered what whoever was responsible for creating the 24-hour format thinking when he or she or they decided twenty-four was enough to begin with. God knows for him, a mere mortal, never found himself quite satisfied with the number of hours in a day.

How could they, those geniuses with god-like capacities in knowledge, could have come to a conclusion that twenty-four hours was suitable for a daily need? With half of that or at least a noticeable amount being set aside for sleeping—something Will would do without if it were humanly possible—how could a bunch of know-it-alls could have missed the mark so much?

Then again, Will thought, isn't this more like a God thing? If there ever was one, that is, and if there were, well, he was compelled to as the Big Man himself what He was thinking giving His most precious creations just twenty-four hours to get by. Surely, the All Powerful Himself could have given just a little bit more? Come on, even He needed, what, seven days to finish His Great Idea called The World?

Not that this means Will Gardner is a philosophical man, no. He isn't, not even while drunk.

Simply put, he's just a man running incredibly late for a meeting and trying to will an elevator to shoot right up to the 27th floor and cursing every inhabitant that stopped the car with each other floor underneath it. Thinking about such matters like time and who was more suitably to blame for his current predicament that was not him was his way of making sure he doesn't make an ass of himself by bitching at every person walking on and off.

Because god knows, even he had his moments.

And he did hate being late—especially if it's not of his doing. He preferred being prompt because you don't run a good business by being a Johnny-come-lately and he certainly isn't, not in any aspect of his life. Being a formidable name partner of a law firm constantly trying to stay afloat in the current economy does not include building a reputation for pissing off clients and wasting time. He is a man with a lot of reputation, both real and imagined/exaggerated, but having this particular one is not one he looks forward to having.

So it is completely understandable why he perfected the imitation of a bat out of hell the moment the elevator doors slid open.

And everything about time and the stupid nerdy accountants from the 14th floor was forgotten as he mentally readied himself for his meeting and taking comfort in the fact that his assistant was quite adept at taking care of clients.

Barely managing to react properly to employees taking the time to greet him in his wake, Will smoothed down the front of his tie and adjusted his briefcase in his hand. His assistant, as per usual, was seated at her desk, writing.

"Kate!" he called out as soon as he was close enough without sounding like a jerk of a boss. "Thank god, is my—"

"Yep," she smiled, "Your ten o'clock arrived on time and you're late, but I kept things cool. So you're okay. The gun expert—"

"That one!" Will huffed, regulating his hear to its normal rhythm to calm down, "Things alright? Because that goddamned Wannamaker would not shut up—we were stuck there for twenty minutes listening to him bitch about, oh, who cares? I gotta get in. Do I look okay?"

"You look great, but there's something—"

"Later, later—I'm really late and after my last expert witness jumped ship, this guy is the last on my list and if I don't get this one, I'm screwed."

"But Mr. Gardner, the gun expert—"

"Yeah, later, alright? Thanks, Kate!"

And with that, he headed straight for his office, leaving his pretty blonde assistant gaping at him. She bit her bottom lip, wondering if it was even important to mention to her boss a certain fact she was now sure he might have been misinformed on regarding his new gun expert.

Kate sighed and decided it didn't matter either way—he'd find out soon enough.

Shrugging, she went about her business, re-arranging her boss' schedule for the day and decided it was nearly time to order his lunch.

He'd find out for himself soon enough.

-o0o-

"I'm sorry I'm late, I—"

Will stopped mid-apology as his eyes fell on a pair of slender legs.

Gracile legs that were clad in a dark navy blue skirt resting above the knee that offered no doubt the owner of the pair were most definitely a woman. The rest that followed completed the stylish suit that fit the lovely, though perturbed, face framed with perfectly coiffed blonde hair.

He stopped, his mouth slightly agape, "I…"

"Mr. Gardner?"

"Uh, yeah, I'm, er," he stopped, "You're my ten o'clock? There must be some mistake, I—"

"I believe I am," she said, standing up as she checked her watch and he realized then how stupid he must look gaping at her, "Your office phoned me and set up the appointment. Your assistant informed me I could wait in here?"

"Yes, yes, of course…" Will said, only to trail off again as he looked at her.

He must have been staring a little too long because his current guest found herself picking up her purse from her seat and saying, "If this is a bad time, I think I'll—"

"No!" Will stopped, mentally slapping himself out cold as he moved, a little frantic now as it would appear he'd probably just chased off his last chance.

She stopped, a little startled as she moved half a step back and stared at him, eyebrows up and a guarded look appearing on her face. A lock of blonde hair fell across her cheek as she looked at him once more.

"I'm sorry," he said lamely, shaking his head, "I must look like…well, like a moron right now. I promise, I'm not. I think I'm just…off today and it's definitely not your fault at all. I'm sorry. Please, if you'll excuse my, er, spectacular display just now, can we start over?"

She only briefly hesitated before nodding, though obviously unsure of her decision, "Alright."

"Thank you," he smiled gratefully, adjusting his briefcase in his hand, "I'm Will Gardner and, despite evidence to the contrary, I actually am a very capable lawyer. More than capable."

She shook her head slightly with a small smile and held out her hand, "Diane Lockhart. And I believe you, Mr. Gardner. I've seen your work. Good to meet you."

They shook hands with matching grins and broke apart with a nod. Will gave out his best un-schmucky smile and gestured for her to take her seat again before heading towards his desk, "Please, sit. I'm sorry. I was just—"

She sat down, watching him closely in a way that had his spine instantly going ramrod straight. There was something about her eyes—they were sharp but not harsh, surely intimidating but not in any way near a mordant manner. She was obviously intelligent and quite the personality, even in her stillness and Will wanted to smack himself once more. How much of an idiot did he appear? He wondered belatedly as he gathered his wits about.

"I'm sorry about all this," Will shook his head at himself, smoothing down his tie as he pulled his chair forward. "I'm just…well, I have to admit…you're my gun expert?"

"Well, I wouldn't say yours just yet...but yes, I suppose I am."

"I'm sorry," Will smiled a little, "but you are definitely the one I'm supposed to meet with?"

She chuckled, the sound warm and genuine, "Oh, I think so, yes. I'm sorry I don't come with the prerequisite swagger and khakis. Is that going to be a problem? I must've missed the memo, I'm sorry."

"Oh, no apologies needed," Will grinned, "It's just that…when my friend suggested you, he never mentioned you would be, er, I mean…"

She nodded, "A woman."

"Well, yes," he admitted, almost sheepishly if Will Gardner could actually be sheepish, "Though I admit, I prefer…er, this over the aforementioned prerequisite swagger and khakis."

She let out that warm sound again, nodding, "Well, thank you. I rarely opt for khakis and if I ever do swagger, I'd prefer it not been seen by my clients. Who was this friend? I admit I was quite surprised to get a call from this firm. I can't say I've worked with you or your predecessors before."

"Detective De Luca," he answered, "He heard about my expert witness bolting and he was kind enough to recommend you to us. He mentioned you were in town for a while and we should see if we could get some time with you."

"Ah, Tony," she grinned, nodding. "That explains that. I'm guessing he told you to make a schedule with 'Danny'?"

"Yes, yes he did," Will nodded, quick on the uptake as ever as he realized what must have happened, "He did that on purpose?"

"Yes, he does, sometimes for fun, sometimes to teach the rest of his gender to be a little less…" she paused, looking at Will with amusement, "Let's say prejudiced."

"Ah, of course, consider me schooled then," he nodded then bit the inside of his cheek before speaking, "The way Tony spoke, it sounded like you're often away? He was quite generous praising your skills and reputation but I have to admit I can't say I've heard of you."

"I travel…a lot," she answered simply, "I offer services for consultation, sometimes with private clients, sometimes with law enforcement and from time to time I have speaking engagements, lectures and such."

"Ah, of course," Will nodded, "Well, right now, I have a case and, as I mentioned, my last consultant bolted at the eleventh hour and frankly, that was not a fun experience. We were granted a continuance but not much so I'm honestly pressed for time. You understand if I'd prefer to be frank now and ask should I worry about losing you to some…higher calling?"

Her lips curled at the corners as she shook her head slightly, though something about her reaction told him she was less offended and more amused by his candor. "No, right now I've decided to stay in Chicago for a while. I just spent the last five months in Virginia and while that's not as far as my usual routes, it's still quite the hassle."

"I'm guessing you working with the law enforcement?"

She nodded, "Yes. I was pulled out of a prior engagement in Dublin before I was, well, summoned back to the States."

Will leaned forward, genuinely interested, "That sounds pretty exciting."

"It's a living," she smiled wanly, "But the traveling gets old after a while so here I am. And from what I hear, there's no place like home."

"True, true," Will nodded, then picked up a piece of paper, and straightened himself. "So, your office sent me your fee…it was more than my last guy charged but look how that turned out."

"Yes, look," she nodded, her lips curling upwards in amusement, "They are rather high, compared to Mr. Guild's…"

He paused, waiting for her to make some justification or give him a sell job on why he should pick her anyway. But none of that came as she simply sat back and shrugged slightly, "So, what have you decided, Mr. Gardner?"

An eyebrow lifted and a slow smile crept across his face and he decided he might just like her with or without the consultation, "I think I might change my mind."

"Well, that sounds good."

"It does, doesn't it?" Will grinned, reaching across his table and offered his hand to shake and he decided he really did like her. "Shall we get down to business, Miss Lockhart?"

She matched his grin with a playful smirk, "By all means, Mr. Gardner. I'm all ears."

And right then Will wondered if perhaps this was the beginning of a beautiful friendship.

-o0o-

"Hi Kate."

"Mr. McVeigh! You're back!" the blonde smiled brightly. "We didn't think you'd be coming back until next week!"

"Me too, but I think I reached my limit out at the lake," Kurt McVeigh replied with his trademark half-smile, "Got back yesterday and I couldn't wait to get back here though god only knows why."

"Aww, and here I thought you missed us."

He smirked, "Maybe the people—some people—the rest? Debatable."

Kate nodded with a smile, "Well, we missed you too and since Annie never said a word about you dropping in today, you didn't tell her either?"

"Nah, it was more fun surprising her," he said with a grin, "She actually caught me downstairs."

"That explains why she's missing," the younger woman answered. "Anything I can do for you?"

"Nah, just wondering if Will's in?"

"He just came in from court—he got Judge Wannamaker," they shared a knowing look since Will's history and status with the said judge was known all too well. "But he's in with a new ballistics expert right now after Mr. Guild pulled out in the Forrest case."

"I heard about that," Kurt nodded, leaning against her desk. "Tough break. I think I got an email from Will about that. That little rat won't be coming through these doors again."

Kate smothered a laugh, "Yes, that was not a good day. But he got the new one by a recommendation from Detective De Luca so we're all hoping this replacement might do."

"I'll be hoping for the same too," Kurt pushed off the desk, "Well, I'll head back to my corner then and catch Will later. We need a win for the Forrest case."

"Should I tell him you're back?"

"Nah," Kurt grinned, "This surprising people thing is kind of fun."

Kate grinned, waving him off and more than glad to see he was indeed back from his annual getaway looking better than when he had left. She decided he actually did better this year, managing a whole two weeks off from work from his usual week.

Kurt McVeigh's trips were always scheduled for a whole month but it was usually a miracle if he even managed to acknowledge the retreat, let alone last the schedule through. The longest record, until this year, had been a whole week in the Bermudas, but many assumed that was only due to the fact that the plane he had been scheduled to leave on had been delayed a day, clearing a whole seven days off instead six. Kate was sure she knew no one else who was as allergic to vacations as her 'other' boss.

It was nice to see that actually did look rested and Kate considered it had been a good idea that he kept local, taking the two weeks off to the cabin at the lake he owned an hour's drive out of the city. She was sure the familiarity at least helped somewhat.

Everyone at the firm was well aware of why the breaks were scheduled to begin with, even though nobody dared to actually talk about it. It was common knowledge already why Will Gardner himself—a man who was nearly as allergic to vacations as his partner though for different reasons—insisted that the widower take the time off.

Still, the man had limits and Kate was sure two weeks was it for him. It was fine, as long as he actually relaxed and did something else than bury himself in work. He was too good a man to lose that way and she could more than agree he deserved whatever peace he could get.

Returning to her work, Kate decided that the firm definitely felt even better now—she liked it better when the gang's all here.

-o0o-

Cary Agos was particularly happy with himself that day.

Not only did he get the Wynant divorce proceedings settled with his client getting more than she ever counted on, but his services under divorce attorney David Lee had just also come to an end that day with the return of Kurt McVeigh. Sure David was seemingly warming up to him already and even hinting that he should get Family Law some serious thought, but Cary was more than glad to have his old mentor back.

Family Law brought in the money, yes, but Cary was much too unwilling to delve in that cesspool of misery that David Lee seemed to thrive in best. Not that he had any objections to racking up the billable hours and climbing faster through the ranks, but Family Law was exactly as he thought it would be—a pitfall full of crying jags, dramatic outburst and, well, as mentioned, misery.

He wasn't naïve, he knew what corner of the dirty alley lawyers strutted on, but he preferred being in the corner he was most comfortable in and that was not with crying former trophy wives and jilted lovers. He had had enough of that already through his own life with divorced parents, thank you very much.

That, and he was more than eager to stay under the tutelage of Kurt McVeigh. The man wasn't a saint but he was definitely not as bad as the other scum littering the streets of Chicago's law district. He was an excellent lawyer and a good man and Cary had been learning a lot already in the last two years he'd spent with him.

So, exiting that morning from the office of his newly returned mentor, Cary was in good spirits. He had welcomed Kurt back and they already had a meet set up with a client of his who'd been awaiting his return. Things were back on track, even though David Lee was still calling on him even as he and Kurt spoke.

"He's taken a shine to you, Cary," Kurt was saying as they both stepped out his office, "Make sure you're not leaving anything hanging there and clear it with David then we'll see what we can do for Mr. Hammett. I'm not officially back yet, but I'm here and we can come up with a game plan before anything else happens."

"That sounds great," the younger man smiled, more than sure he wasn't going to hit a snag with David Lee and unless the man gets that funny petulant feeling again, he was sure he'd be back to his old post before the day was out.

"And—oh, good, there's Will. Good."

Both men turned to see Will escorting out a woman down the hall from the small atrium between their offices. They weren't too far down yet for the two to catch just the laugh Will let out his head leaned close to the tall blonde he was walking with. Their backs were turned to the two but both Cary and Kurt observed them anyway.

Will and the woman talked briefly some more before shaking hands and the woman walked off ahead of him, leaving Will with a jaunty wave. He was still chuckling to himself as he turned around to walk back towards his office and wore that grin until he caught his partner ahead and made his way through without a second's thought, "Hey! You're back!"

"Yeah, got home yesterday," Kurt nodded, receiving the good-natured slap on the shoulder he got from the younger man, "I thought you were meeting with a ballistics expert?"

"Oh, I was," Will nodded his hello at Cary, "That was her and yes, he turned out to be a she and I think I definitely hired her. Paying her a mint but it'll be better than the crap Guild pulled on me."

"She got a name?" Kurt asked, mildly curious. She sure got Will laughing, that was for sure, and he wondered if the laughter was more for the conversation or the said mint she managed to get him to agree to.

"Diane Lockhart. If her background checks out, I'm definitely going to—"

Cary's eyebrows rose, "Diane Lockhart? The Diane Lockhart?"

"I don't know…how many Diane Lockharts are there?" Will asked.

"I don't know either but I do know one," Cary answered, "If it's the same Lockhart then I think that was the Gavel Breaker."

"The Gavel what?" Kurt asked, glancing at Will who looked just as perplexed.

"It's something I heard around Judge Van Slack's office while I was clerking for him," Cary began, "He told us a story about a lawyer with the same name getting Judge Jorgensen to break his gavel during a trial."

"Old Jorgensen broke his gavel?" Will asked, "William Jorgensen?"

"That one," Cary nodded, "I'm not sure if he was kidding, but Judge Van Slack said she brought a stripper into court and he stripped at her command for a case. It tore the roof off the place and Judge Jorgensen broke his gavel trying to get everyone to settle down."

Will laughed, "You're kidding, right? Why haven't I heard of this before?! Kurt? Jesus, a stripper?"

"Hey, I'm a transplant, remember?" Kurt said, shrugging. "But if that's the same woman…"

His sentence trailed off with a whistle as Will grinned like a kid who just discovered Christmas. Cary shook his head, grinning as well as he added, "Did I mention it was a male stripper and she practically had him streaking in court?"

"Holy crap!" Will said as both partners guffawed, "Yeah, I can see Old Bill Jorgensen breaking his gavel about that, god, I'm surprised he didn't have a coronary!"

"He went nuts and Van Slack said he just kept hammering away," Cary grinned, amused to find both men enjoying his story. "She was building a reputation by then, I think."

"I'd bet," Will answered, laughing still.

"But she disappeared or something," Cary shrugged, "Van Slack thought she'd be a big player in this city but she dropped off the map."

"And if that's her then I guess you got your answer now," Kurt said with a nod, "Is she good, Will?"

"Sounds like it," Will replied, more composed as well now, "She just finished a thing with some law enforcement agency, best bet it was something with the FBI or one of those three-letter guys, take your pick…hmm, before that, something in Europe. I'll have it all checked out but I'm feeling pretty good about this one."

Kurt smirked, "Even better now if you actually prove she's the Gavel Breaker?"

Will grinned at Cary, "Definitely."

"Then let's have it checked out," Kurt grinned, "I think I'd like to know myself."

Without another word, the older man went back into his office, leaving his partner and the second year associate outside. Both men shared a friendly look before parting, sporting grins of their own as they went back to their respective corners. The story was definitely amusing enough and for the men, proving it was the same woman would be a bonus.

For Cary, it was purely out of curiosity. He'd heard a great deal more about the woman beyond the gavel incident and she did have quite the promising career, providing all the stories were true. It wasn't unusual for history to turn out to be fables, to have truth and the possibilities of answers would be nice. Also, it would be good to know just what could get someone to give up such a promising future in her career like that.

Will and Kurt, on the other hand, were a little different with their eagerness concerning the matter being less career and history oriented. They were interested in the woman. If she was the same one Cary had just been describing and the events concerning the gavel actually took place, then getting to know her would indeed be more interesting.

After all, there was nothing like a woman with a great sense of humor and if she could get a man to streak around some old puritan's courtroom, it definitely meant she had an excellent one.

Will couldn't wait to find out for himself, wishing it was indeed the same woman.

He loved women with a wicked sense of humor.