"I keep screwing up," Amy shook her head, looking down at her drink.

"You did great today, don't beat yourself up. We got the daughter, and we couldn't have done that without you."

"I just don't know where the line is, you know. I'm not that 'eager puppy' the Lieutenant thinks I am. I'm not. But somehow, I always make a mess of things."

Julio looked at Amy and shook his head. "No. No, I'm not going to take that. You did one thing wrong, just one. You didn't notice we had a witness in the Murder Room. That's it. But we couldn't have done the rest without you. You were one of the leads in this case, didn't you notice? The Captain and Lieutenant asked you what to do. They trust you, and so do I."

Amy smiled up at him. This was starting to become a habit for the two of them, ending up in this particular bar to discuss the day's events. It was also becoming habit for Julio to talk Amy out of her melancholy when she make a mistake at work, which seemed to be almost every day.

"You always do that, you know, you always tell me I'm doing good. I just don't feel it."

"Do you know what the Captain and the Lieutenants are doing right now? They're telling a family that they'll never see their son again, but they're handing back their daughter and we wouldn't have been able to do that without you. I don't want any other back-up, that much I can tell you."

"Thanks Julio," Amy smiled, and took a drink. "It's different with you. I get so anxious around the rest of them. I know the Lieutenant didn't want me in the department. He..."

"Listen, listen" Julio stopped her by putting his hand over hers and squeezing. "There are a lot of things you don't know, and that's normal for the new person. I've known the Lieutenant for a lot of years, and he's one tough bastard, but I can see he's already warming up to you. Look, you came in at the same time Captain Raydor came in, and the Lieutenant puts you together in his anger. It's not you, it's just the timing."

"Why does he do that? I don't understand why he hates Captain Raydor so much."

"He doesn't hate her, he just thinks he knows more than her and that she should have stayed in FID and away from Major Crimes."

"I know there's history there. You said yourself the Captain has been around the department for a couple of years now, and no one liked it. But now it seems everyone except the Lieutenant is okay with her taking over. She makes me nervous too."

"Don't be. If there's one thing I know about both the Captain and the Lieutenant, it's this: they are both tough as nails but they respect a job well done. You do that job every time."

"I gotta say, it felt good being out in the field again. I felt like I was really doing something, you know? That's what I loved about SIS, that action. I felt like I was making a difference."

"Good. That's what you're supposed to think because it's true. There's not a single person in the squad I wanted out there with me besides you. I knew you had my back, even when I scared you." Julio chuckled a bit as Amy rolled her eyes.

"My god, I thought you were going to kill him right in front of me," she laughed in relief. "You're like this raging bull in a suit. Remind me never to get on your bad side."

"Couldn't happen."

"Thanks." Amy nodded and smiled, and tried to catch the server's eye for another round. "Okay, tell me something. Why all this tension between the Captain and the Lieutenant. I know he wasn't happy that she got his job..."

"She didn't get his job. He was acting, he was never promoted."

"Then why the hostility? People get moved around all the time."

"Well, like you said, there's history. We used to be different in the department, our old Chief had a way of doing things, and we ended up being sued."

"Right, which is why the Captain was hanging around."

"Exactly, and the Lieutenant decided she couldn't do anything outside of write in her notebook and quote the law. She was the enemy."

"But we're all in this together." Amy was confused. Try as she may, she still didn't understand what made the Lieutenant tick.

"He's just a cranky son of a bitch, he's seen too much and he'd be even more miserable if he retired."

"Right, because of all his ex-wives."

"Nah, that's just the excuse. The real reason is he's still that rookie that wants to make the world a better place, and this is how he does it."

"And how about you?" she asked, pretending to be innocent. "I saw the way you grabbed that girl today, it was personal. You don't get to save too many, do you."

Julio looked down at his hands and started twisting the ring on his finger.

"You never talk about her." Amy prompted gently.

Julio got a far away look in his eye. "No. I couldn't save her. She died for my job and I had two choices. I could either loose myself in grief and then we would both be dead, or I could work even harder to make sure someone else's family wasn't destroyed. I know what she would have wanted."

"You're still grieving for her."

"Yes and no. She's been gone over ten years. I laid her to rest. It's who she took with her that still hurts."

Amy was confused for a moment, then realization dawned. "Oh, I'm so sorry. I didn't know."

"No one does, and I'd like to keep it that way." Julio cleared his throat and looked both sad and menacing.

"But why?" Amy continued to push gently.

"Why? Because Provenza might not like his kids, but he has them. Flynn might not see his kids, but he has them. Tao might not understand his kids, but he has them. Even the Captain can relate to families because she has one."

Amy nodded understanding, "And it's easier to put it all on the line when there's no one needing you to come home at night."

"Exactly. I don't want their pity."

"Then why did you tell me?"

"Because I trust you with my life, and I need you to know what that means to me."

"I trust you too. Completely." Amy wasn't sure how to respond to Julio's honesty.

"Listen to me. You are not a screw-up. You're not overly eager. You are smart, and experienced, and resourceful, and you can still laugh and poke fun at the Lieutenant. You are my partner, and we're in this together."

Amy reached across the table and Julio met her half way. Squeezing his hand she smiled and nodded, "Okay!"

"Okay."