Hello, fans of Psych and In Plain Sight! I and my dear friend Hannanball13 are so glad you decided to drop by and read this little fic. We've been working on it all day, and we hope that it will amuse you as much as it amused us to write it. She wrote our beloved inspectors Mary and Marshall, and I tackled writing Juliet, Lassiter, and Shawn. So without further adieu, read on and enjoy Crossing A Line!
So obsessedwithstabler had this really great idea- it was to pen this fic together, crossing over the worlds of our two dearest loves In Plain Sight and Psych. This is the result. I am proud to be working with her again, and hope you all enjoy this work very much! Enjoy, the FIRST EVER In Plain Sight, Psych crossover, compliments of obsessed and I!
-Hannanball13
Disclaimer: Not ours!
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Juliet O'Hara and Carlton Lassiter were not pleased.
After a two month investigation in a drug and prostitution ring, they were finally able to make an arrest. Owen Kloster was currently sitting in one of their holding cells, but instead of being able to build a case against him, one phone call had stopped the entire investigation in its tracks.
"He's in Witness Protection," Chief Karen Vick had told her two top detectives. "His handlers are flying up to retrieve him."
Naturally Lassiter had been infuriated. He knew what witness protection was, and he knew that this jackass would avoid prosecution and be rewarded with a new identity somewhere in the burbs in Colorado.
Bastard.
"I told you that douchebag Owen Rodham was trouble. I called it the day we instated him!" Mary scolded.
"Mary, for all intents and purposes it's Owen Kloster and he's your witness. This is your problem and I'm just along for the ride, because there are a few things they need authorized by me," Marshall Mann retorted, reaching the top of the steps. He held the door to the unfamiliar precinct open, allowing his former partner to enter before him.
"Oh how chivalrous. Why thank you, Sir Marshall. " She bowed and rolled her eyes in a sarcastic fashion. "Like you wanted to stay and work on that pile of paperwork lying on your pretty, little mahogany desk? Yeah right, Chief." She snorted, pulling out the case file. "They're just down here." Mary pointed in the direction they needed to go. Then she read through the file for a few more seconds. "Jesus Christ, Marshall is this the precinct where that asshat psycho Shawn Spencer works?"
"You mean psychic?" he asked hastily, his hands on his hips as they walked.
"No, I meant psycho. Everyone knows he's full of it."
Marshall turned a corner. "Have you no wonder, Inspector?" he asked teasingly. "Perhaps there is some truth to the idea."
"You've got to be kidding me."
"I'm not saying this Spencer character has such abilities. I am just indicating that I believe forms of telekinetic and psychic power could exist." He shrugged, following Mary through the building, glancing at different location markers as they passed.
As he peered around the wall, he caught sight of the desks and a few private, interrogation areas and two very stern, unhappy looking detectives, both bantering back and forth.
This was going to be interesting.
The call had come yesterday, and now he and O'Hara were waiting for the arrival of Inspectors Mann and Shannon, supposedly the best New Mexico had to offer. If they were so good, how had their little witness become entangled in and guilty of drug running?
Juliet saw the scowl on Lassiter's face and being the peacekeeper that she was, she offered him a smile. "Calm down, Carlton. We'll handle this."
"Right." He leaned forward in his chair. "You know as well as I do what's going to happen, O'Hara. They'll whisk their little pet away and give him a clean slate. This prick doesn't deserve it."
"I know he doesn't, but…" She suddenly looked up. "They're here."
Lassiter turned in time to see a tall, lean man with a gun and a badge clipped to his belt walk into the precinct. Accompanying him was a blond, buxom woman who was almost as tall as her partner. They both had no nonsense attitudes about them, and he immediately disliked the man.
Juliet got to her feet first and smiled at the inspectors. "Hi. I'm Detective O'Hara. This is my partner, Detective Lassiter." She had also noticed how tall the man was, and the expression on her face, so easily read by her partner, said that she was intrigued. "You must be Inspectors Mann and Shannon."
When the attractive, blonde woman came forward with a smile, Marshall was surprised. She took on a demeanor similar to his ex-wife's. He shuddered at the thought of Abigail.
"Yes, I am Chief Marshall Mann and this is Inspector Mary Shannon. What seems to be the predicament we have here?" he said with a smile, looking down at the lady who had introduced herself as O'Hara. He could feel Mary's glares from his side, burning a whole into the left portion of his face.
"You know sure as hell what's going on, Marshall!" Mary rebuked. "Kloster got himself into a mess and now we have to come to sweltering California to save his ass."
Marshall sighed. "So it seems." He took hold of Lassiter's hand. "How can we get this straightened out? I'd hate to cause you two anymore chagrin over this matter." He glanced over his shoulder, smirking at the blonde, blue-eyed stranger. As he did, he felt the grasp of the tall, black haired man tighten. Marshall pulled away, blushing.
Lassiter glared at the chief, but before he could speak, Juliet cut in.
"No chagrin." She gave Marshall a charming smile. "We have been investigating a drug and prostitution ring for the past two months, and it seems that your witness is involved up to his neck in it."
Lassiter scowled. "More like he's a pimp and a drug dealer."
"Carlton…"
He ignored her warning tone. "I'm not going to lie here, O'Hara. In fact, they shouldn't be here at all. This is our case."
Mary looked up at the angry detective.
"Okay, whatever stick you have up your ass, pull it out, because we're about to play the superior status card if you keep up your serious bout of denial…"
"Mary…." Marshall began.
"No, Marshall, he needs to hear this goddamn it!" She halted him with her hand, leaning in closer to Lassiter. "Owen may look like a little weasel on the outside, but believe me there's more to him than that." Mary looked down. "God, did I just say that?" she asked herself, sighing. "Anyway, there are about two hundred and fifty mobsters who want him anchored to the bottom of the ocean for some human trafficking debacle he got himself into. Without him, that whole case is flushed down the toilet and those bastards walk free to continue their worldwide shenanigans. Forgive me, but the fate of about a thousand young women, foreign and American, are more important to me than a few hopped up coke heads running around California."
Juliet looked at Marshall, who seemed both irritated and amused by his partner's outburst. They had been working this for two months, but Mary had a point. Their case was bigger.
Lassiter almost had a conniption when he saw the look on his partner's face. "O'Hara, don't."
"He's down in a holding cell." Juliet looked up at her partner. "Detective Lassiter, why don't you show Inspector Shannon the way, and I'll get Chief Mann started on the paperwork."
Lassiter's eyes turned a dark slate, and he blustered for a moment. But eventually he nodded curtly and swung an arm out, indicating that Shannon should follow him. "This way," he said through gritted teeth.
Juliet gave him an encouraging nod, and Marshall seemed to do the same with his partner. Lassiter and Shannon walked off together, leaving Juliet and Marshall alone.
"Sorry about my partner," Juliet said once Mary and Lassiter were out of earshot. "He can be... territorial."
"No apologies necessary. Let me say, Inspector Shannon can get that way as well, especially these past few months." Marshall hesitated, catching himself off guard. Why had that slipped out, he wondered. No one needed to hear a sob story, most definitely not a gorgeous woman. What he could tell, she was flirting. It was hard to be sure; he was around Mary all day, after all.
Divorce was a sad, disappointing thing. And his was no exception. Abigail had crossed a line; fits of jealous rage coupled with a little verbal abuse was no way for the first few months of marriage to play out. He had told her the truth. How Mary would remain nothing but a friend, no longer as close, but still there, maybe unfairly fading into the background. Mary Shannon did so gracefully, only bringing up personal life when asked of hers, only accepting invites on occasion and never giving one to him. If he were to be honest, the only woman he could stand being around lately was Mary. She didn't pry and she most certainly didn't bat her eyelashes or giggle incessantly at his little intellectual quips. Mary was nothing like Abigail was, and she was certainly nothing what this Detective Juliet O'Hara seemed to be.
Her sharp eyes briefly went to the tan line on his left hand before coming back up to his face. She had ended things with Shawn several months ago, and after spending some time reprioritizing, she finally felt like her life was back in order. Lassiter certainly seemed to be happier, and their partnership had never been better. "My partner used to be much worse in the beginning of our partnership. But he's calmed down in the past seven years." She chuckled softly.
"I'm afraid Mary has not really calmed down, except maybe in terms of her sarcasm, possibly in demeanor. You see, motherhood tends to change people. And considering it took her a little off guard, she has changed But, will always be the way she is- bitter and snarky, because that's just Mary. There's nothing wrong with that." He smiled, rubbing at his ring finger self-consciously, missing the heavy band that used to occupy it as he looked down to meet her probing eyes. "Sometimes people you never would think to have motherly instinct have the most." Marshall grinned wider. "Now, this paperwork…" he began, his eyes sparkling playfully. "Would you care to tell me where to put my John Hancock so we can get this show on the road?"
She flashed him a brilliant smile. Was he flirting with her? "Of course. I left it on my desk..."
Downstairs, Lassiter continued to scowl as he led Shannon to one of the holding cells. He was infuriated with his partner over laying down so easily, but he was also angry over her brazen flirting with Shannon's partner. She and Spencer had broken up months ago, and he couldn't have been more thrilled. She deserved so much more than that... asshat. She deserved a man, a man who would take care of her and love her the way she deserved to be loved. Not a little boy who needed to make every single situation all about him.
Once Kloster was in sight, Lassiter motioned to him. "There's your scumbag."
"Gee thanks. Hey, Scumbag!" Mary called. This was literally the last place she wanted to be right now, the last thing she wanted to be doing. "Get over here, Crapbag, before Detective Stick-Up-His-Ass has a fit." Mary glanced over at the man standing angrily in the corner, tapping his foot. "Hey Lassiter, what's your problem?" Mary yelled over her shoulder as Kloster sauntered his way to her. Mary was sure it was her and Marshall. That was his problem, Owen Rodham was their problem. That horrific display of sad flirtatious gestures just down the hall, that was what was bothering him. It was making him behave the same way she was.
Jealous.
Lassiter growled and stepped forward, grabbing Kloster and roughly holding onto his shoulders while Shannon slapped a pair of cuffs on him.
"I know what his problem is," Kloster sing-songed, earning him a violent shove forward from Lassiter.
"Hey, be easy with this douche for brains- he may be scummy, but he's worth more than your job." Mary snorted. "Scratch that, more than both your job and that blonde bimbo's combined." She was flipping through pages in the file. Distracted by the scribbling throughout, she barely realized the way his eyes had narrowed and how all of his anger stayed condensed in his gaze right at her.
"Insult my partner one more time," Lassiter snarled, "and I'll flush your case down the toilet personally."
"I'd like to see you try, you're lucky we didn't just whisk him the hell away like we should have. Boy, it would have saved us a lot of heart ache if we just left you and your floozy in the dark. Now get that pulsating vein back in your forehead, before I personally make the rest of your career a living nightmare." They were very close, face to face. "And invest in some breath mints," Mary spat, grabbing Owen by the collar.
Juliet heard Owen yelp from downstairs, and she swore. "Carlton..." Telling Marshall to follow her, she hurried downstairs and found Lassiter and Mary screaming at each other. "Lassiter!" Grabbing his jacket, she pulled him away from Mary and Owen. Then she pushed him back against the wall. "What has gotten into you?"
Lassiter thrust a finger toward Mary. "Her," he growled. He looked at his partner again. How anyone could use words like floozy and bimbo in connection with his Juliet was beyond him. He glared at Mary again. "You need anger management."
"I need anger management!? For Christ's sake! You've been smacking Kloster around since I got here! You have some serious issues you need taken care of. Maybe you should talk to your prissy partner!"
"Mary! You are out of line!" Marshall screamed. "Stand back!" He put his large paw on her shoulder and then turned to Lassiter. "That is quite enough, Detective!" he ordered, snarling between gritted teeth. He most definitely didn't like it when people accused Mary of anything, even if it was true. "You are very lucky, sir, that the Marshal Service was feeling gracious. Otherwise we could have relocated him with a snap of our fingers. We're working our way through red tape that we could have avoided!" Marshall shoved Mary further back gently, but firmly enough to make her understand it was time to simmer down.
She smirked, realizing Marshall was on her side. Marshall was always on her side.
"I had no problem until your little partner called Detective O'Hara a bimbo and a floozy." He leveled a cold look at Mary, but before the words he wanted to say could be said, Juliet interrupted him.
"Carlton, calm down." Her hands came to rest on his broad chest, and suddenly she understood. Nothing could get to him the way that would, even if it was just words. "Just relax..."
"O'Hara, I-"
"No. They're taking him into their custody and leaving." She could feel him slowly settle down under her gentle touch.
"That's right. We're getting the out of this Californian hell hole!" Mary rolled her eyes. "And-"
Marshall halted her just by touching his finger to his lips. "The paperwork is simple; I can take care of it myself, and as for Mary's words, Detective O'Hara, I give my most sincere apologies. There is no stopping her when she gets riled up, and that's not so hard to do. Unfortunately your partner seems to be a perfect trigger for her venom. We'll have to take care of this over the phone and e-mail so these two can't get at each other again."
Mary was getting angrier by the second. He was talking to this woman he barely even knew like that red faced, wannabe he-man Lassiter and her were two children. As if they didn't understand their back and forth. She barely noticed the similar way Carlton glared at his partner the way she did at her chief.
Juliet nodded in agreement. "That might be a wise idea, Chief. These two-"
Lassiter growled and glared at Mary again, and he received a firm thump from Juliet for his effort. "Hey!"
"Stop it, Carlton. Just stop it."
Muttering to himself, he heaved a sigh and shook his head. "I...apologize for my behavior, Inspector Shannon. It was unbecoming." His apology came through gritted teeth.
"I don't think unbecoming sums it—OUCH!" Mary rubbed her arm. Marshall had smacked her, hard, hard enough for her to pause and re-think what she was about to say. "I mean, no worries." She groaned. "Now can we just take care of this dirt bag? We're burning daylight here!" Mary whined, giving Marshall a thud to his shoulder with her clenched fist for revenge. Revenge not just for his words, but for his actions as well. Between Detective Bimbo and her best friend, Mary could have hurled. The two of them couldn't lay it on any thicker.
Slowly Juliet released Lassiter, and they were both secretly surprised when they mourned the sudden loss of contact.
"Inspector Shannon, why don't you take your witness outside while Chief Mann and I finish our conversation."
Lassiter stepped away, his skin still burning from the contact they had shared. Muttering something about paperwork, he passed the small group, but not before he sent a final scathing look in the direction of Shannon and Owen. Then he was gone.
Juliet looked up at Marshall. "I'm sorry about all that. It seems that our partners are similar to a kid playing with matches around kegs of dynamite."
Marshall watched as Mary hesitantly grabbed Owen by the cuffs and dragged him off, obviously cussing under her breath.
"I suppose so. Luckily, we know how to handle them when they get a little too hot." He winked, then bit his tongue, hoping he wouldn't blush.
Juliet blushed at his wink. "Which tends to happen too often." He was a very handsome man, with dark hair that he carefully styled and blue eyes that were kind and disturbingly attractive.
He chuckled. "You are so right." He flashed her his best smile. Was it right for him to think about this? This was an exceptionally beautiful woman in front of him, shouldn't this flirtatiousness just flow out of him? Marshall could tell her eyes were wandering, giving him a once over. He couldn't convince himself it was appropriate to do the same. Not only did he still feel married, but Mary was waiting for him. Wasn't it selfish they had shooed the other two law enforcement officers away just so they could gawk at each other like teenagers? He caught himself in a long and awkward pause, a situation he never found himself in with Mary. "Sorry, brought up some memories… A lot of Mary's insubordinations mostly." He waited for Juliet to take a whack at his choice of vocabulary. But, he knew it wouldn't come. She wasn't Mary.
"I take it she has a hard time behaving?"
"Aww, Jules, are you talking about Lassie again?" came a grating voice, and Juliet groaned.
"Shawn..."
Shawn Spencer skidded to a stop beside the man who was chatting with Juliet. He gave him a once over before sticking his hand out. "Shawn Spencer, head psychic for the Santa Barbara Police Department. And you are?"
Marshall was suddenly relieved Mary was gone. "I am Chief Marshal Mann, from Albuquerque. We are just taking care of a case and I'll be on my way. But, listen…" Marshall leaned in to this Shawn character's ear. "My inspector is floating around here somewhere. I'd steer clear of her or you're going to get an earful." Marshall pulled back. "It was a pleasure getting to make your acquaintance, Detective." He held out his hand for a hand shake after he had let go of Shawn's.
Shawn cocked his head to the side, clearly unfazed and not at all upset by Marshall's warning.
Juliet shook his hand, then motioned to the stairs. "Come with me, Inspector. I'll walk you out."
Shawn followed them up the stairs and outside, where Mary had just loaded their witness into the backseat.
Juliet turned and looked at Shawn. "Get back inside, Shawn."
Shawn held up a finger. "Nuh uh, Jules. We broke up, remember? And this is a public space, and a free country!"
"Shawn..."
Shawn couldn't help sizing Mary up, and the chief's warning went unheeded. "Hi there. Don't be frightened, but I, my dear lady, am a psychic!" He keenly observed the way she looked at the man beside him for just a little too long, and the way the chief's cheeks flushed slightly in response. Like a bloodhound on a trail, he persisted. "And the spirit world is telling me something!"
"Yeah, asssclown, and what are your made-up ballbag forces telling you? How much of an absolutely pathetic and outrageous imbecile you are? How much you are a disgrace to anyone in your precinct? Why do you get off on spewing this ridiculous BS when everyone is completely aware you're pulling everything out of your ass?" Mary was just getting warmed up. The gears were turning and her brain was now working to respond cunningly to any of this so called 'psychic's' wing bat claims.
Shawn remained completely calm, seemingly impervious to her venomous words as he held a finger to his temple. "Oh, is that so? Then how would I know that you want to bang Mr. Upstanding Chief guy here?"
Mary felt her fist clench, and her arm pulled back. The man, grinning and seemingly satisfied with her reaction, just stood in the line of fire. Clearly, he didn't think she would have done it. But, before Mary could understand why her blood was boiling and tears were stinging at her eyes, she felt his nose crunch under her knuckles and Shawn Spencer hit the pavement with a thud. "Blow off, Knob Job!" She growled, blinking away her tears. Her chief scrambled from Detective O'Hara's side to get to her.
"Mary!" he hollered, stepping over the groaning man who was clutching his face as he lie sprawled out on the ground. "What's gotten into you?" he asked, taking her hand into his and examining the bruises already forming on her knuckles.
Two months ago, Juliet would have been right there beside Shawn, helping him up and holding him tight. But she couldn't help but feel that he deserved it, and then she heard Lassiter shout her name moments before she felt his hand on her back.
"O'Hara, are you okay?"
"What are you talking about, Lassie?" Shawn groaned from the ground. "I'm the one bleeding!"
"You probably deserved it," Lassiter growled, looking Juliet over.
"I'm fine, Carlton," she said softly. "Mary hit him."
"Mary...?" It dawned on him, and suddenly he wasn't sure whether to hug or arrest the foul mouthed woman.
"I think I'm not the only who thought he had it coming…" Mary said, letting out a yowl of pain as Marshall gently forced her fingers to uncurl.
"Mary, we're going to need to ice it. Why would you hit him?"
Still no one looked at the man lying on the ground. Mary shot Lassiter a glare and then gestured to Shawn. "Someone should clean that scum off of the pavement. Or at least get him out of my sight. God, you are so lucky my gun was clipped to my goddamn belt!" Mary cringed as Marshall flexed her index finger. "Marshall, I'm fine." She wanted him to stop focusing his attention on her. She didn't need it right now, because she was already losing her control. And she wanted it back.
"Are you sure?" he questioned, looking at her with worry written all over his handsome features.
Mary pulled her hand away. "Hell of a force you have here, Lassiter. One of your team just went down like a pile of bricks. I didn't even hit him that hard," Mary teased coldly.
Lassiter looked disgusted at the implication. "He's not one of my team."
Groaning again, Shawn stumbled to his feet. "Of course I'm not, Lassiter. Which is why I have absolutely no problem divining that you are in love with Juliet."
Lassiter's jaw dropped as the young psychic made a hasty retreat inside. Crap on a crapping cracker of crap. He didn't dare look at Juliet.
Juliet's cheeks had been stained red, and she looked at the ground.
Mary didn't know why, but she felt a giggle rising deep from within her gut. It pierced the air with force, causing Marshall to jump. "You don't need to be a scamming psychic to figure that one out!" she laughed, holding her hand out awkwardly as she supported herself by grasping Marshall's shoulder with her uninjured hand as she doubled over.
The other three just stared at the hysterical inspector.
"It's been a long day, Mary. I think we need to get you home," Marshall began, putting his hand on the small of her back.
She burned under his touch. "I'm-" She gasped for air, "-fine." She composed herself. "Is it just mine or has everyone's personal barrier been destroyed today?" She was still in a sort of amused haze, but was now composed. She looked knowingly at Marshall and then at Lassiter.
Lassiter and Juliet still refused to look up, but they both muttered their affirmation. All it had taken was one nosy, loud mouthed psychic, and it seemed that everyone's secrets had been exposed.
Finally Juliet dared to look at her partner. It was as though a new light had been shined on him, and suddenly she understood. She really understood. "Carlton..."
He rubbed the back of his neck. "Yes, O'Hara?"
"We should talk."
"Maybe we shouldn't."
She reached out and grasped his elbow. "Oh, yes, we should." She gave Marshall an apologetic look. The flirting had been nice, but they both knew it would never go anywhere. They exchanged smiles before Juliet began guiding Lassiter back to the steps of the station house.
Mary and Marshall were left with only short looks for farewells. She cradled her injured hand in her other, looking at the small bloodstain on the concrete beneath their feet. "Marshall-
"Please… don't," he said softly.
Mary looked up curiously. Had she already offended him? Had the fact that she couldn't hide it anymore really affected him this much?
"Detective O'Hara was just fun," he said guiltily.
She couldn't believe her ears. Was he apologizing for innocently flirting with a woman? Was he actually feeling sorry for letting her be witness to something he hadn't realized caused her so much anger and hurt? How could he see right through her?
"You don't-"
"I do. I really do. Mary, it wasn't right for me to tell you those things when I went and got married. It wasn't. You are my best friend , you always have been and always will. And maybe it wasn't until now I realized that's not how it should be. Maybe Shawn was what we needed to stop pretending. I know, I sound so cliché and horribly mushy at this very moment…"
"Marshall, I get it. You're saying we can get past this, and it won't have to affect our friendship. The asshat may be right, but I don't want you to feel obligated to feel the same way."
"That's not what I'm saying. I'm saying the phony psychic has a completely valid interpretation. You won't say it out loud, but you love me." He paused. "And I haven't been able to say it out loud for fear of losing you, but now I suppose we can't just let everything fester right here California. We have to admit defeat from this sick game we've been playing." He sighed. "I- I love you," he finally whispered.
Mary looked at him. "Well, my hand hurts…" Mary began, but she could see he clearly wasn't amused. "Forgive me; I thought we were talking feelings. It doesn't have to be exclusively love, right?" Mary shook her head, realizing she wouldn't be able to wiggle her way out with any sort of humor. "Dammit. I- I love you too." She stopped, releasing the ancient air in her lungs that had been preserving itself for those words.
Marshall pressed his lips to hers, chuckling as they released from each other as he watched the perplexed eyes of their witness grow wider and wider. "You know, we have broken protocol countless times today." He smiled, opening the passenger's seat so she could enter the Marshal vehicle.
"When haven't we?"
On the steps, Juliet and Lassiter watched Mary and Marshall go, and once they had pulled out of sight, Juliet turned to face her partner.
"Let's go somewhere quiet, Carlton." Her hand reached out and gently squeezed his.
Lassiter made a brief mental note to send the idiot Spencer a muffin basket.
The End.
A/N: Well, there ya have it. The first In Plain Sight and Psych crossover! We hope everyone enjoyed this, and who knows? There just might be a sequel in the works... Thanks for reading, and please review!