It's the first day of the mentorship and Diego knows just how to impress Mia: with a visit to the courthouse.

Betaed by the wonderful dioscureantwins, who seems to have an infinite amount of patience for a fandom which isn't even hers XD; Her suggestions are always second to none. Thanks to slumber for the help with Americanizing this chapter. Any remaining mistakes are mine.

This fic is being cross-posted to AO3, should you want to read it there instead. Thanks for taking the time to read this story and I hope you enjoy it. Updates every 2-3 weeks.


"Nothing beats a great smile" - Karl Urban


Early Sunday morning found Diego lying in bed, staring at the ceiling.

Rolling to one side, he was faced with the quiet numbers of his bedside clock. Too early for a Sunday. While today should have been another day of well-earned rest, instead he found the thought of a long set of hours before him an annoyance. There was something he would much rather be doing. It felt wrong somehow to actually want to be at work instead of at home on a weekend, but… Well, it wasn't work he wanted so much as Mia.

I should at least get out of bed. Stop moping around like a teenager and actually do something productive. In response to this thought, Diego kicked his covers off and swung one leg out of bed experimentally. That's it. Now go get some coffee.

Some time later, after a slow struggle, Diego was dressed and seated on his sofa, watching the news. Well, watching wasn't quite the right word. Staring blankly at the screen while nursing a cup of now tepid coffee was more accurate. His dark eyes watched the moving images on the screen but didn't register them; his hands felt the cup they were holding onto but didn't move to lift it to his lips.

The problem was that none of his weekend activities seemed as interesting or as fun as they usually did. Yesterday, breakfast at his favorite café had been only mediocre rather than a weekend treat. Newspapers and television shows had failed to hold his attention. He had even skipped Jazz Night at the little dive he had discovered last month in favor of staying home and flicking through his current paperwork. He could almost picture Hammond shaking his head with disapproval.

What Diego really wanted was to get started with Mia. The image of her eyes looking up at him, her curves in that suit and her long hair… These pictures had been dancing around his mind ever since he had left the office on Friday. They were hazy and half-remembered, the impressions of them floating with the details just out of reach. Had he imagined freckles on her nose? Were her eyes a dark brown or closer to a warm hazel shade?

Diego finally sipped at his cup of coffee rather absently, thinking that at least he had a month to mentor her. A month of contact, and with nobody else to interrupt his quest of discovery. He smiled wryly to himself, trying to recall the last time a woman had captured his imagination in such a way. Finding that he couldn't remember, he shook his head and took a sip of coffee. It probably would have tasted halfway decent when hot, cool it was almost foul. Giving up, he set the cup down.

It was cloudy outside and the world looked gray as if the sun had decided it couldn't be bothered to rise properly today. Hardly the kind of atmosphere that made one want to run around outside, instead more encouraging of spending the day indoors. Well, perhaps he would do so. Maybe he would also try and get some work done, that would force him to concentrate. Deciding to indulge himself for a moment and combine work with play, Diego allowed his mind to drift. He started to think about what he wanted to introduce Mia to during their month together. His train of thought travelled to ways to find out more about her, avenues of conversation to pursue, places to show her, what cases they would have to work on together and how he could both impress and teach her something useful at the same time.

After a while spent lounging on the sofa, daydreaming and fading in and out of the news on the television, Diego moved to another area. His front room was part lounge space with sofa and television, part kitchen area with worktops enclosing the space, part dining room with a large circular table in one corner, hovering on the border between kitchen and living room. Diego used this table frequently as it was large enough for him to eat at, entertain at and work at. He spread out his case papers and a calendar, and started to carefully work out details. On a practical note, he would have to spend time introducing Mia to his work if she was going to accompany him, making sure that she was up to speed before they set foot in a courtroom. He would also have to make sure she had a nice balance between desk learning and practical experience. Oh, and of course he would be sure to pass on all of the essential information he wished he had had as a rookie.

Diego worked for a while and then ate a simple lunch of bread, soup and more coffee. As he moved to working on cases, he continued to toy with thoughts of Mia. When he finally stopped, it was dark outside, time for dinner and he felt a lot better, knowing what day it was tomorrow. That night, Diego went to bed early to make sure he was well rested.


Thinking that Mia would want to arrive early on Monday to make a good impression, Diego made sure that he had arrived and settled in even before that. As he heard the sound of high heels walking up the hallway, Diego quickly checked that his desk was in order, that there was a pen in his hand, and that he was carefully looking at his work. When he raised his eyes at her knock, he was greeted by the lovely sight of Mia Fey in the doorway. Her cheeks were a little flushed from outside and she carried the scent of the city's morning air about her. It hung around her slightly windswept hair, her suit and her thin fingers, wrapped around the cracked handle of her old satchel. Even so, she looked fresh-faced and ready, rare at this hour.

"Good morning, Ms Fey."

"Good morning, Mr Armando," Mia replied, inclining her head slightly. She was standing demurely with the satchel in front of her, apparently waiting for instruction.

Somehow, it didn't suit her to stand there in such a restrained way. "Relax, Ms Fey. I'm not going to bite you."

She unwound by only a fraction. "I didn't think you were going to, Mr Armando. I'm just keen to get started."

So am I. "It's still early. Can I offer you a coffee?"

Mia shook her head, her bangs fluttering. "No thank you."

Oh, that's right. In the meeting with Grossberg, she said she wasn't a coffee drinker. "How about a green tea?"

"I can get one myself, thank you."

"Good," Diego said with a casual smile, reaching for his own coffee cup. "Because I don't actually have green tea in here. But if we're going to be working together, then maybe I should make a point of getting some." As he took a slow, deliberate sip of his coffee, he kept his eyes fixed on her.

She was unfazed. "If it's too early for us to get started then, Sir, I have a few things to tidy up from last week."

"Certainly." Fascinating woman. His coffee was a little cool now, but it would do. Absolutely fascinating.

An hour or so later, Diego knocked on Mia's door. She was sitting at her desk, drinking a cup of green tea and reading something but she looked up somewhat eagerly when he entered. It was clear she had been waiting for him to come by, an idea which was pleasing to him. "Come on, Ms Fey," Diego said to her with an easy smile. "Get your things. We're going out."

"Sir?"

"To the courthouse."

She stood up at once. It seemed that Diego had definitely hit the right starting note.


Diego was certain that she had been to the courthouse before. All rookies had been given the standard tour at some point during law school, or spent hours downstairs in the reading rooms and probably watched one or two trials. Mia must be no different. Diego could imagine her in the half-light of a shaded reading lamp, her head bowed and her hair trailing across the pages of a law journal; he could imagine her in the peanut gallery, watching a trial along with the crowd, her face serious and her eyes absorbing every detail in front of her. Still, given her apparent excitement, it seemed as if this was her first trip to the courthouse. She was practically bouncing up the stairs as Diego walked leisurely behind her, trying not to pay too much attention to her swinging hair and her... skirt.

"It's nothing special," he said to her once he had caught up to where she was standing in the courthouse's main entranceway. "Not really. You'll probably be sick of it by the time your career calls for you to be here every other day, dealing with stressed clients and forgetful witnesses."

Around them, the courthouse was a humming hub of activity with officers in uniform, lawyers in suits, spectators heading towards whichever trial looked the most interesting and the occasional lost-looking person who seemed a little overwhelmed. They were all milling about the entrance hall, winding their way around where Mia stood. On a wall straight ahead was the courthouse directory, a large board filled with information and floor numbers, crowned with a plaque proclaiming the founding date of the courthouse with a heartfelt motto about justice and an engraving of a set of scales. A large staircase stood to one side, leading to the first floor but every now and then the ping of an elevator could be heard from the set of elevators to the right. Mia was looking around at everything, drinking in the sight of corridors leading to more rooms, other lawyers heading towards courtrooms and lobbies, all of the waypoints on the directory board, even the tiled flooring under her feet which formed a uniform and formal circular pattern. As courthouses went, Diego was sure that there were more fascinating ones and grander ones with a sense of ceremony, but the way that Mia's eyes were following all of the details and taking in her surroundings made him look around to try and see it all again, see exactly what it was about this place that had made him glad to choose this profession.

"I think it will be a while before I get sick of this," Mia was saying softly, watching a man and woman in suits head towards the staircase, chattering away about precedence and technicalities and submitting evidence into the court record.

"For your sake, I hope you don't." Diego was glad that Mia chose to walk up to the directory to study it, before she heard the lawyers switch to talking about that awful suit the defense was wearing.

The courthouse had several floors. Reading and archive rooms were downstairs and were usually filled with students looking up old records or current journals. The ground floor usually housed a friendly exhibit of some kind, often old documents of interest or curious but useless objects tied to the courthouse's history. Upstairs, one could visit the cafeteria and rub shoulders with tired spectators, keen visitors or broke defense lawyers; visit the executive common room where the VIPs usually took refreshments (if you could get past the bailiffs on the door) or even access the courtrooms themselves, the centerpieces of the building with their seats for audiences, desks for the defense and prosecution, witness stands and most impressively of all, the large, raised platform, seat and desk where the judge was able to oversee all proceedings and bang a heavy gavel with a sound that would ring mercilessly around the room. Neighboring the courtrooms were lobbies where those participating in the trials would wait to be called, half-empty rooms with floors worn from pacing. The higher levels of the courthouse saw offices that were restricted from public access. Diego had heard that there was a pretty roof garden up there for those who had been invited, but he wasn't sure whether that had just been a prosecutor yanking his chain.

"Where are we going first?" Mia had finished looking over the directory and had switched her attention back to the people in the entrance hall, particularly the stiff-backed bailiffs who were watching the crowds coming and going. "Will we get to stop by a trial later?"

"Yeah, later." Diego checked his watch. "We'll drop by something a little low-profile so we can get a good view. But first let's go upstairs to the third floor."

"What's on the third floor?" She craned her neck as she followed Diego, trying to scan the directory quickly.

"An empty courtroom and lobbies," Diego answered, saving her the trouble. "There's nothing in there for at least an hour according to the schedule."

"Are we allowed to go in? Just like that?"

Diego only smiled at her with a gentle shrug. "When there's nothing in session, we are. Mostly."


They reached the third floor, stepping into another entrance hall, on a smaller scale than the one downstairs. It was quieter up here with only one bailiff standing in front of the door to the courtroom, looking curiously back at them. Diego nodded to him, pointing to the shiny, round, golden attorney's badge he wore on his lapel. "Just taking a tour, you don't mind do you?"

The man shook his head and Diego gestured for Mia to step forward.

She went immediately to the hall's centerpiece, a small model of the courthouse inside a glass cabinet. Some of the other floors had display cabinets in their center, but this one was particularly interesting because of the amount of detail.

"I was here once before, but I never really got to look at this model all that closely." Mia had bent her head slightly to peer at the miniature before her, examining it with keen eyes.

Diego stood next to her, hands casually in his pockets, admiring her cute little nose as it pressed up against the glass, near a tiny tree. "No? It's quite well done. If you look carefully through the windows, you can see the shine on the judge's bald head."

She believed him for half a second as only a rookie could before she raised an eyebrow and went back to looking at the model.

"From this perspective, it doesn't seem so imposing, does it?" Diego continued, watching her shift her attention to the small plaque which proudly explained who had taken the time to construct such a thing and why. He watched her eyes move as she read the text, then watched her change focus again to look at the pictures on the walls and the doors leading to other places. It was rather enjoyable to observe her absorbing information; he could see her turning it over in her mind, considering everything carefully.

"It can get really busy up here if there's a celebrity on trial." Diego felt as if he had to explain, seeing Mia turn her attention to the solitary bailiff. "There are a few petty trials happening today. How long has it been since you were in the peanut gallery?"

"A while now." Mia shook her head as if displeased. "I did want to come down here more often, but sometimes just watching the trials felt a little…" Lost for the right word, she looked sheepishly at him.

Diego understood what she meant. When he had been studying, looking down at the lawyers doing battle had sparked jealousy within him, and a desire to prove himself, only furthered by the knowledge that he wouldn't get the chance to stand on the defense side of the room for at least a little while longer. Somehow, it had felt unfair – to be so willing, and yet to be so denied. The crowd's mutterings around him had only added fuel to the fire by interfering with his ability to pay attention to the cross-examination techniques – because of that, he had spent more time reviewing footage and transcripts than journeying to the courthouse. "Come on." He started to walk towards the defendant lobbies.

Outside of the lobbies were a set of vending machines, for both those working there and visiting.

"Courthouse specials?" Mia frowned as she looked at the proud advertisement on one of the machines. "What exactly does a Swiss roll have to do with the courthouse?"

"Don't knock it until you've tried it. They're actually pretty tasty." They were messy to eat but that didn't stop them being popular with visiting children or tired policemen.

"I'll pass on this occasion."

"Don't you like sweets?"

"I do, just… Not Swiss rolls that come out of vending machines."

"A woman with high standards, then," Diego grinned. "I'll have to introduce you to my favorite café. They make the loveliest little cakes there."

"As long as their strawberry desserts are up to scratch."

"Strawberry desserts?"

"They go surprisingly well with green tea. I'll have to introduce you some time."

It's a date. Diego nodded. "I'll hold you to that."

Moving away from the vending machine, he opened a nearby set of doors. The defendant lobby was a plain room with a small sofa to one side, a generic painting on the wall, a sad-looking pot plant in one corner and a television in another. The sofa had the invisible weight of many overburdened defendants on it and it sagged slightly, the cushions flat and the fabric worn. The drooping plant next to it only served to emphasize the sofa's threadbare look and feel. The television in the room was there to help people settle down, although Diego knew that sometimes it came in handy to keep one eye on the local news while waiting for a trial to start.

The windows were closed, and Diego caught his and Mia's reflection as they stepped into the room. He was taller than her by a head (not including the way his hair stood up in its charismatic way) and his bright red dress shirt stood out against her dark suit. He noted their other stark contrasts as well: he was tall and broad, she was shorter and curved; his own dark, unruly hair was the opposite of her straighter and neater strands; Mia's skin was porcelain against his own terracotta hue. The combination was strangely pleasant, and Diego paused briefly to look, turning his focus onto Mia. He only realized that he had fallen silent when he saw her reflection look enquiringly at him.

"It's not much in here," Diego said of the surroundings dismissively, turning away from the window. "But this is where you usually meet your clients before the trial starts, or where you meet them during recesses. It's supposed to be a plain waiting room."

"I see."

Diego led her out again and back down the corridor. "Ready to see the courtroom itself?"

At this, Mia's eyes lit up – exactly the reaction he had been hoping for. "Is the bailiff just going to let us in there?" She was trying to keep the hint of excitement out of her voice, but it wasn't really working.

"We can only ask." As they drew closer, Diego realized that he recognized the bailiff after all. He should press his advantage.

The bailiff looked at Diego suspiciously as he approached. "Yes, Sir?"

"My name's Mr Armando, remember?" Aware that Mia was watching, Diego gave his most confident smile to the bailiff. "I helped you guys out the other week when that witness tried to make a run for it."

"Oh, yes." After a moment the bailiff smiled back uncertainly. "I remember… That was a well-aimed coffee cup, Sir. What can I do for you?"

"I was wondering if you'd let us into the courtroom for a brief moment."

"Into the courtroom? What for?"

"I just want to show Ms Fey here where she'll be working in the future. She's a defense lawyer too, you know."

"You don't say?" The bailiff's eyes shifted quickly to Mia, who was doing her best to stand there politely and expectantly. "But… I can't just let you in here."

"It's only going to be for a short while."

"I… might get in trouble."

"You won't, I promise you. Nobody's going to come up here for a little while longer anyway."

"I…"

"Come, friend." Diego stood with his palms open wide. "I helped you last week; you can return the favor today. And you're not going to let me down in front of my lovely lady colleague here, are you?" When he saw the bailiff shuffle awkwardly, he knew he had nearly won. "Just five minutes. Session doesn't resume for at least another forty-five." Mia was playing her part by looking up at the guard a little pleadingly. Who could resist those eyes?

The bailiff couldn't, apparently. "Ok, ok, fine. But only five minutes."

Diego clapped the bailiff thankfully on the shoulder and ushered Mia into the courtroom.


It was always a little intimidating to step onto the floor for the first time. To begin with, there was the thought of all the people watching. There were two raised seating areas for spectators, formidable wooden walls behind the two attorney desks. They were usually filled with people who would watch keenly and closely, would chatter and call out, laugh and protest at points of drama in the courtroom until the judge banged his gavel. Being able to stand that many people both looking down on you and across at you from behind the prosecution side was always the first test, and one that rookies often struggled with.

The second test was holding your ground against your opponent. The prosecution side of the room was identical to the defense side, but when a prosecutor was standing there with sharp eyes and a smug smile, things changed. Diego remembered briefly the various prosecutors he had faced, each one bringing a different atmosphere to the room. The encounters hadn't always been pleasant, but they had been interesting at least. He wondered who Mia would have to face first.

The third test was dealing with the judge, the one with the most power and in the loftiest seat to demonstrate it. Taking a penalty from the judge was always trying the first time since it was a bruise to the ego more than anything, but seeing the judge rule your client 'not guilty' was always immensely satisfying.

Diego was reminded of another test as Mia walked over to the witness stand. Talking to the witnesses themselves and cross-examining them was always a unique challenge with every person that stepped onto the stand. I'm sure she can handle it, though. She's made it this far.

Mia was tracing a hand over the top of the curved wooden stand where it stood in the center of the floor. Diego watched as she did so, seeing her imagine how it must feel to be questioned here, flanked by lawyers and faced by a judge. He saw the thoughts cross her face, leaving traces across her furrowed brow. "No wonder people get so flustered when they stand here," she said out loud.

"Yes, it's hard when you're being interrogated by a fierce kitten on this side of the room." Diego strolled to the defense desk, slipping past the corded barrier and taking his place behind it.

"Kitten?"

"Would you rather I called you Rookie?"

"No, but 'kitten'?"

Oops. Diego shrugged nonchalantly. "All I'm saying is that you look sweet, but I'm betting you have claws." When she smiled faintly in response, Diego smiled back and gestured her over, pleased to have made a recovery from his slip of the tongue. "Come here, Ms Fey. You shouldn't be on the stand."

Mia approached the desk slowly to stand behind it, once again running a hand across the surface, as if testing the waters.

"No, not on that side, that's for co-counsel," Diego told her gently. He took her by the arm and moved her over. "Here. This is your place."

For a long while, she was quiet, surveying the desk, the opposing side, the spectator seat and finally the grand and imposing platform that housed the judge's bench. "When you're watching a trial, it's like everyone's in a little box. It's different when you're standing on the floor – everything seems so big."

"If you're down here and it feels too big, you need to shout loud and be strong enough to fill it."

Mia considered his words carefully, still looking at her surroundings, no doubt trying to picture how everything should be and trying to insert herself into that picture. "It just feels so… strange," she said finally. "To actually be here."

"But you are." Diego clapped a hand onto the desk with a solid bang that made Mia jump. He decided to try the word 'kitten' again, since it fitted with Mia's general curiosity and nervousness. "You can't act like a shy kitten now; save the nerves for an actual trial." Mia didn't flinch the second time. "If we're here, why not have a bit of fun?"

"Fun?" She looked for a brief moment as if the concept was foreign to her.

We'll have to fix that. "Yes." Suddenly, Diego threw one arm out, pointing firmly at the prosecution side. "Objection!" he called out loudly, with conviction. The word rang around the courtroom as Diego lowered his arm, satisfied.

"I'm not sure I'll be the pointing type," Mia smiled.

"Why not experiment?"

Taking a deep breath and squaring her shoulders, Mia prepared herself. Just as suddenly as Diego had, she threw her arm and index finger out towards the prosecution. "Objection!"

"Not loud enough," was Diego's comment.

Mia frowned and tried again, throwing her arm out once again. "Objection!" The echo of her voice danced around the courtroom like the notes of a piccolo. "There, was that louder?"

"Still not loud enough, and not forceful enough." Diego folded his arms and grinned at her.

He saw her tighten her jaw before the next attempt, as if determined that the third time was going to be the last. Out of nowhere, she slammed both hands down on the desk with a loud crash, leaning forward as if her stare could burn the prosecution to ashes. "Objection!" This time, her shout was stronger, filling the empty courtroom, a resounding blast of confident sound. As silence settled and she relaxed, Mia smiled, a full smile this time and the effect was electric.

Her lips turned upwards, her mouth opened slightly and her cheeks pinked and lifted in an expression of sheer happiness. Her smile lit up her entire face, spreading to her shining eyes. Her face had been lovely before, but now it was stunning, filled with warmth that couldn't be contained, radiating with a glow of joy. Her expression was bright, almost blindingly beautiful, full of satisfaction, pleasure and amusement and he could almost feel his very heart being lifted to match the corners of her mouth. His own mouth was smiling in response, as if Mia's was directly calling to his and he had no choice but to obey.

They were still grinning at each other when the bailiff opened the door. "Five minutes is up! You better get out of here!"

Diego had difficulty pulling his eyes away from Mia, but he did to nod his acknowledgement of the bailiff. When he turned back, her expression was fairly neutral once more, the ghost of her smile casting a faint blush across her cheeks. It was like a bright spotlight being switched off suddenly, leaving a faint impression on Diego's eyes. As they left the courtroom, Diego smiled at Mia again, hoping to invoke the same unbound expression he had just seen, but he only saw a timid upturn of her lip.

"Thank you, Mr Armando," she said as they headed towards the next part of their tour. "That was fun."

"Good," he said. "I'm glad it made you smile." He said it, and he meant it.


They slipped into a trial that was in progress, finding two seats at the back of the viewing gallery. As soon as they sat down, Mia leaned forward, casting a sharp eye over the players on the stage below.

On the defense side was a timid-looking, middle-aged gentleman, his gray suit only emphasizing the ghostly pallor of his face. His thinning hair was slicked back, with the intention of looking sleek and smart but instead it looked as if his hairline was retreating from the rest of his face. Wide and watery blue eyes blinked uncertainly as he spoke.

"Mr Timothy Shyling, of Markson and Markson," Diego murmured by way of explanation. "He usually likes to stay in the office and settle private disputes, which explains why he never looks quite comfortable in the courtroom."

Mia looked doubtfully at Mr Shyling, who was dabbing his forehead with a red handkerchief.

"The handkerchief was a Christmas present from his wife," Diego continued.

"Why does that matter?" Mia asked.

"Ms Fey, it's always important to note the details of your competition."

The prosecutor on the other side of the room was an older man in an eye-catching, grass-green suit with a tie the color of a ripe tomato. He was standing with his arms folded as the defense made a point. His eyes were hidden by an oversized pair of glasses, but the slight smirk around his mouth indicated the rest of his expression. On top of his head was a carefully crafted pompadour of dark hair that bounced slightly as he shook his head.

"Hee hee hee," the prosecutor chuckled once Mr Shyling had finished speaking. "I think you're forgetting something, Mr Shyling."

"A-and what's that?"

"That whether your client has a motive or not, he was spotted fleeing the scene of the crime by at least fifty witnesses! He ran through the main lobby and crashed into the tour group in the middle of it! They all remember him very, very distinctly." The smirk on his face sharpened.

"I was getting to that. First I was trying to establish that my client had no reason to—"

The prosecutor laughed again, a long, drawn-out snicker which made the defense flinch. "Your Honor, I can call those fifty witnesses if you'd like."

"That won't be necessary, Mr Payne." The judge, an old man with a magnificent gray beard, blinked with surprise, considering the impact of having so many people crammed into a lobby. "I won't make my lunch date if you do."

"Of course not, Your Honor." Mr Payne patted his pompadour in an expression of triumphant satisfaction.

"Anyway!" Mr Shyling said suddenly, trying to turn the conversation. "As I was saying—"

"That's Winston Payne," Diego told Mia, referring to the prosecutor who was still shaking his head at Mr Shyling's words. "He likes to call himself the 'Rookie Killer'. Whether he is one or not, I suppose you'll find out. He could be your first opponent."

"He… doesn't seem like much," Mia said, raising an eyebrow at Mr Payne, who was laughing again. His laugh was a little wheezy, and of a high pitch.

"Maybe not, but you have to admit that now the judge and everyone else in this room doesn't care about the lack of motive, but more about the masses of witnesses."

"But that was a low trick, he just—"

Mia didn't finish her sentence as Mr Payne filled the room with a screech. "Objection!" At the sound, which very much resembled a strangled cat, Mia started to giggle, clapping a hand over her mouth to suppress the sound.

"Quiet up there!" The judge frowned in Mia's direction.

She bowed her head as the trial resumed, Mr Payne neatening his tie and his hair in an effort to regain his lost momentum. His pompadour bounced as he did so and Diego saw Mia's shoulders shaking at the effort of holding in her laughter.

"Let's go, Ms Fey," Diego said in her ear quietly, relishing the legitimate reason to lean in close, but refraining from draping one arm around her shoulders. "If that made you laugh, then we had better leave before you see the rest of Payne's prosecution techniques."

"I'm sorry," Mia said sheepishly once they had left the courtroom. "It's just that his hair was bobbing up and down and when he said 'objection' it sounded—"

"I know," Diego interrupted with an easy smile. "Everyone knows, but Payne doesn't. Come on, let's go elsewhere."


"And this is the cafeteria." Diego said it as if he was announcing something special, even though he wasn't. The cafeteria was a spartan place, all easy-clean plastic chairs and tables dotted around a large room with pale walls and even paler linoleum on the floor. To one side was the service area with a small array of tired-looking sandwiches and cakes, some bottled drinks and behind the counter, a staff member waiting by a cash register and a coffee machine. At least this place served coffee, although you wouldn't know it to look at the staff member currently yawning while waiting for customers. The cafeteria's saving grace was that it had windows lining one side which provided a fairly interesting view of the street below. You could see pedestrians milling around, the tops of cars trudging through city traffic and the occasional sprinting defense lawyer, late to represent a client.

"Are we stopping here?" Mia stood out amongst all the shades of white and beige.

"Sure, why not? We've been here for a while, it's a good enough time as any to take a break." He led her over to the service counter, where she feigned polite interest in what was on offer. "Can I get you anything?"

"Do they do coffee here?"

"Yes, but I wouldn't want you to have your first cup with me at this place. Your first cup with me has to be special."

"What do you mean?" She eyed him with a little bit of suspicion, and Diego immediately noted that perhaps he had been a little too forward. But she didn't object to the word 'kitten'…

"What I mean, Ms Fey, is that I consider myself a bit of a coffee aficionado. If you're not a regular drinker, then I must insist that the first time you have coffee in my company that it's a worthy cup, rather than the awful stuff you find here." Was that a good enough save?

Apparently so because she nodded. "Fine. I'll just have a green tea, then."

Shortly after, they found a window seat. Diego admired how Mia managed to slide into her chair with a certain grace, not an easy feat given how awkwardly shaped the chair was. She sat with her back straight and one smooth leg crossed over the other demurely, reaching forward to toy with the teabag floating in the hot water. The steam rose in a string of delicate swirls to frame her face, wisps dancing around her cheeks. Beautiful. Thinking that perhaps it was indecent to stare, Diego reached for his cup of coffee and found it as tasteless as he had expected.

"Is the green tea to your liking, Ms Fey?" Diego asked after Mia had taken a sip.

She smiled wryly as she set the cup down again. "Green tea from teabags never tastes right to me. I suppose you could call me a green tea aficionado."

"You'll have to educate me."

"I'll educate you in the ways of green tea if you educate me in the ways of coffee."

"It's a deal."

They were quiet for a while, both looking out of the window. Or rather, Mia was genuinely looking out of the window, Diego was facing that direction just so he wouldn't be staring at Mia too much.

"So have you enjoyed this morning so far?" Diego asked, turning back to take another sip of bland coffee. Goodness, how someone could create such a flat and dull liquid and label it coffee was beyond him.

Mia looked as if she was thinking the same thing about her green tea as she drank some more. "Yes, it's been great. Thanks for taking me here, Mr Armando."

I wish you'd call me Diego, but we're not there yet, Ms Fey. "No problem. You seemed eager last week, it felt a little cruel to keep you in the office for a little longer after everything you've had to endure."

"Oh, it wasn't so bad." She shrugged a little, almost shyly. "I did get to learn a lot about filing systems and closed cases from Mr Hammond."

He wasn't sure if she was sincere, but he smiled anyway. "Well, at least you learned something. But hopefully with me you'll learn more."

"I hope so, too."

"If you're shadowing me, then that means we'll be working my current cases."

"What are your current cases?" She sat up a little straighter at the mention of cases.

"Oh a little of this, a little of that." Diego explained briefly the types of cases he had on his plate at the moment. Some of them weren't strictly cases; sometimes Grossberg Law Offices took the time to advise clients on contracts and other legal paraphernalia. As he talked, even though what he was saying was fairly routine, he noticed Mia paying careful attention and nodding along. She interrupted with questions every now and then, keen to know what she would be doing and when Diego answered that he would be expecting her to do some of the work herself rather than just watching him do it, he was rewarded with a smile. It was a gentle and satisfied one this time that gave Diego the impression that he was doing something right.

"Good, I like working." Mia had some more tea and to her credit, this time she didn't wince.

"Enough about work for a moment, we're supposed to be taking a break." Diego leaned back to survey Mia for a moment. "So tell me, where do you live? You must live fairly close if you were able to make it into the office so early."

Mia shook her head. "No, I live at least an hour away. I'm just used to waking up early, I always have."

"Have you always lived in the city?"

She shook her head again, bangs fluttering. "No, before law school I lived in a small town in the middle of nowhere. But I like living here; it was my choice to move after all. Not a lot of opportunities to be a defense lawyer away from the city."

"What made you want to be a defense lawyer anyway?" Diego studied her carefully. "It can be a thankless position. A lot of people want to be prosecutors rather than the underdog defense lawyer."

"What's with all the questions? This isn't another job interview, is it?" She tried to sound light, but he could tell that she was a little nervous. Perhaps he had touched a sore subject?

"I just want to get to know you better. We'll need to know each other if we're going to be working together so closely."

"Oh, I see. Well… As long as you share things with me too. If I educate you, then you educate me, right?"

"That sounds fair. It's another deal, then."

She nodded in agreement. "So… will you answer one of my questions?"

Diego noted how she had dodged his, but let it go. "Of course."

"Have you been at Grossberg Law Offices for long?"

"Several years, now." Diego remembered walking into the office for his own interview, trying to supress a laugh at being faced with Grossberg himself, an awkward and large man with a comical mustache and the tiniest pair of glasses he had ever seen. He hadn't quite believed that such a man was the leader of such a reputable firm, but as the conversation had progressed and Grossberg had gently but firmly taught him a few lessons in the short time the interview lasted, Diego had finally felt that there wasn't really anywhere else that he wanted to be. "Grossberg was my mentor for a while."

"Was he?"

"Yeah. Don't let his chatter about his health problems fool you, he knows what he's doing. Most of the time, anyway." He told Mia how Grossberg had been as a mentor: bumbling with a tendency to ramble but clever and thorough. Experience from a veteran lawyer like Grossberg was always valuable. "Then I worked with Hammond for a little while, but that wasn't as fun as working with Grossberg."

"It wasn't?"

"Only because at that time I was pretty certain that I didn't need a babysitter. Also, Hammond and I didn't see eye-to-eye on a few things, but that's nothing you need to hear about now."

"Don't you two get along?"

"Oh we do. Now, anyway. As long as we're not on the same case." Diego waved a hand dismissively, changing the subject. "So how are you settling in to your own office?"

They chatted for a while after that, Diego trying his best to ease Mia into a gentle conversation. He shared some stories about his own introduction which made her smile with sympathy and also amusement, particularly when it came to his own adventures with the filing system. Perhaps to humble him a little, Grossberg had insisted that Diego spent a few days with the filing clerks, who were undertaking some archiving. It had taken several washes to get the dust out of his clothes and he had gone back to Grossberg with Band-Aids on his hands from all the paper cuts.

However, as they talked, it seemed that Mia was more content to listen than to speak. When the conversation turned, her answers were carefully neutral and never revealed too much detail. Sure, she was speaking enough so that she wasn't giving one-word answers or responding with stony silence, but what she was saying was vague. So perhaps she didn't like talking about herself much, or maybe, as Diego suspected, she would have to warm up a little first. After all, it was only their first day together.

After a natural break in the conversation when Mia had been talking about the cost of public transport and traveling on the train (again, a topic that didn't cover anything too personal), Diego checked his watch. It was time for them to get moving. He said so, pushing his cup to one side.

"Aren't you going to finish your coffee?" Mia asked, swallowing the last of her green tea.

"I rarely do at this place. Getting coffee here is more of a way to facilitate conversation than to quench a thirst." He stood up, waiting for Mia to do the same before he started to exit the cafeteria.

"Want to watch another trial, Ms Fey? Somehow I don't think seeing Winston Payne in action was really the best example."

"No, that's ok. We can head back to the office now."

"I see. Did you enjoy our little field trip, then?"

"Of course." She smiled briefly again and although pretty, once again it was nothing compared to the full-watt beam he had seen earlier. "What will we do back at the office?"

"Oh I'm sure I'll find something for us to work on."

"Sounds good." She was still looking around, even now. "We'll be here again soon, anyway, right?" A little casual hope crept into her voice.

"Yes we will."

Mia comfortably matched his pace. She was nodding a silent 'see you later' to the building as they went through it, something that Diego found utterly charming.