Crap, guys. I did it again. I made you wait forEVER to get an update =( (Hey, at least it wasn't a year this time.) But to make up for the last few months, I wrote you a pretty long chapter here! I really hope you enjoy it, and I look SO forward to reading your reviews. Love always, Amanda.

Cragen's POV:

"A psych defense?" Elliot screamed once we were in my office with Hunter and Harris.

"It's all right here, Detective," Harris's lawyer said, shoving a paper at Elliot.

I watched my best detective's face distort as he read through the doctor approved note.

"This is crap!" Elliot concluded as he chucked the paper back at the cocky lawyer.

"I'm sorry, Detective, but you simply cannot give my client a full sentence when he was clearly suffering from severe depression and accidental over-use of prescribed narcotics."

I stared blankly at him for a moment; he could not be serious.

"With all due respect, In all my years of working in law enforcement, this has to be the weakest defense I'd ever heard," I said, "And to see that a doctor approved this? That's crazy. Even so, there was no way this will stand up in court."

"And you must be forgetting about the fact that he escaped from prison?" Elliot shouted, "He's obviously going to have to go in for that!"

Hunter kept his gaze steady.

"I realize this, detective," he stated coolly, "But Mr. Harris only had about a year left to serve at the time he had escaped. When they take him in for inmate escape, that will only add an additional 6 months to his sentence."

"Uh-huh," Elliot sneered, getting more and more outraged, "And what about Olivia's case? You honestly think Harris is gonna walk on this one?"

Hunter smirked.

"No," he said, "But when the jury and a judge take Lowell's state of mind into consideration, they will have sympathy for a man who was the victim of a mental issue. He'll be out in 5 years, tops."

I braced myself, physically preparing to jump in and pull Elliot away from a fight which he looked like he was about to start. His face was red, his muscles tensed. I could practically see the smoke rising from his ears. But instead of pouncing on the puny lawyer in front of him, Elliot began speaking in the most intimidating voice I'd ever heard.

"No, you listen here, scumbag. The only thing the judge and jury are going to see is one of the most loyal, respectable, decorated officers in New York who has been brutally victimized by your sadistic pervert of a client. Olivia has her friends, her brothers and sisters in blue, and the law on her side. Lowell Harris has shredded lives because of what he's done, and I'll be darned if he's not dragged out of that court room with 25 to life ahead of him."

I stared at Elliot, radiating with pride. I couldn't have said it better myself.

Hunter, however, kept that same smug expression that made even me want to hit him.

"I guess we'll see in court," Hunter said, leading Harris out of the office and shutting the door behind them.

Elliot and I followed them out with our eyes and turned to each other when they were gone.

"This is insane," he said with a heavy hearted sigh.

I gave him a look of understanding, knowing full well he wasn't just referring to the psych defense.

"I know, Elliot," I consoled, "We're all feeling completely lost. We never imagined it would be Olivia sitting in the hospital."

Elliot sank into one of the chairs behind him and buried his head in his hands.

"I just don't have a clue as to what to do right now," he said, "I feel like there is no right thing to do in a situation like this. And.. I don't know.. I just feel.. Helpless. I feel absolutely helpless, and that's not something good to feel when it's your partner in trouble."

I took in a deep breath and sat down in the chair beside the hurting detective. I instantly felt myself slipping into father mode; a mode I've found myself slipping into a lot since becoming captain of SVU.

"Elliot," I said, "You talk to victims - and families of victims- every day of your life. And you're good at it."

"Olivia is better," he mumbled.

"But you know how to deal with them, El."

"Not when it's Olivia!" He said, shooting up from his seat. I was surprised to see tears in his blood-shot eyes.

"Yes, I deal with victims a lot, but never someone that I care about so much. Not when it's my partner. Not when it's my best friend."

"I know this is hard to understand when you're so close to the case, but every victim you see is someone's best friend, or daughter or wife. While each victimized woman has her own needs, what is the one thing that you tell every family member and friend to do?"

Elliot stared back at me for a few seconds.

"I tell them to just be there for her. To make her feel supported."

I stood up, placed my hand on Elliot's shoulder, and gave him a small smile.

"Maybe its time you started following your advice."

He stared at me for a while longer, then blinked and nodded.

Elliot looked at his watch.

"Almost six o'clock," he said, "I should probably go back and see Liv again."

"Wait up," I said, remembering something and walking behind my desk. I grabbed my jacket and put it on. Then I bent down to retrieve a small, brown teddy bear with the words "Get well soon" from the bottom drawer, "My hours are over, I think I'll join you. By the way… I've decided to put you back on the case."

Elliot looked surprised.

"Why?"

"I figure it will be the best way to make you feel like you are doing something helpful for Olivia," I said, "And we still need to get her formal statement. She'd probably feel most comfortable doing that with you."

Olivia's POV:

I laid awake in my hospital bed feeling stupid and dirty.

Stupid, because of the current situation. Being so overly eager to escape the confines of my safe hospital room, I'd over done it and fallen out of a freaking city bus. That Just spells out stupid, doesn't it? Its almost laughable.. It was my desire to get out of here so bad that got me back in.

I felt dirty because even after several days of being away from Harris and Parker, I could still feel them all over me. It's like they attack never stopped; I was still being violated. I shuddered as a wave of disgust washed over me. I hadn't been asked to give a formal statement yet, but I expected it any time now.

That was something I surely wasn't looking forward to. In addition to the fact that giving a statement would force me to relive this whole event in great detail even more than my flashbacks already did, I would be saying all of these things to my colleagues. The people I went to work with every day.

I expect captain to have Elliot orchestrate this one. After all, he is my partner. But honestly, when I think about it, I don't know which person from the squad would be best for this particular job. Telling the horrific events to any of them is going to be beyond awful, and I was so worried about their reactions. I'd never been so open, so vulnerable, in front of anyone at work. They would certainly be seeing a whole new side of me..

Knock knock.

I looked over to the doorway to see Captain Cragen and Elliot standing there.

"Come in," I welcomed them with my still-hoarse voice. I kept my face downward, still finding it difficult to make eye contact with them.

"How are you doing, Liv?" Cap asked gently. I didn't know how exactly to respond so he added, "Physically, I mean. How is your body?"

I sighed in relief, not wanting to explain anything that was going on in my head.

"It isn't bad now," I said, offering a small smile, "They've got me pretty well supplied with morphine."

"That's good," he said with a sincere smile. Then he brought a small teddy bear out from behind his back.

"Here," he smiled, "This is for you.. It's kind of cheesy, but it's all the hallmark store had."

I held the bear in my hands and felt myself beginning to smile.

"Thanks," I whispered, "It really means a lot."

I moved my hand to lightly grasp my sweet Captain's. I was genuinely touched at how much my team cared about me.

"Well, I have dinner plans with a couple of buddies from Brooklyn tonight," Captain said, releasing my hands after a few seconds, "I'd better get going.. Goodbye Liv. You're in my prayers."

With a smile, he left the room, leaving me and Elliot alone.

Being the observant cop that I was, the thick, square outline in Elliot's jacket pocket did not go unnoticed by me. It was a recorder.

"You didn't come here just to visit, did you?" I asked.

He looked confused for a moment, then patted his pocket and pulled out the tape recorder.

"Not just," he said, offering a small smile.

I sat up in bed and swung my legs over the edge of the bed, positioning myself across from Elliot who was now settled in a chair beside my bed.

"I knew this was coming," I sighed, "I just wasn't looking forward to it."

Elliot looked at me with the most caring, understanding expression.

"It won't be easy on either side," he said.

He held my gaze for a moment longer and then proceeded to hit the record button. We both had one thing in mind: get through this crucial step and move on to the next.

"Please state your name," he said, looking into my pained eyes.

"Olivia Benson.."

10 minutes later..

Elliot shut off the tape recorder and slid it back into his jacket pocket. The two of us sat in awkward silence for a few moments.

"So?" I said, expectantly.

He looked confused.

"So.. What?"

I looked down at my lap and then directed my gaze at him.

"Elliot, you know I don't want to be left out of this case. My own case,"

It was still weird saying that, "Fill me in."

Elliot sighed, a long, exasperated sigh.

"We haven't gotten either one to talk about what happened at the storage garage," he said, "but we have them for kidnapping a cop, at the very least. And after the rape kit results get back to the judge, that will be a given.."

He looked down at his lap for a while, but I never stopped staring at him.

"Have I mention how much I hate them for what they've done?" He said, plainly trying to get off the subject.

"There's something else.." I accused, "What aren't you telling me?"

He looked away and then regained eye contact with me.

"Okay, Harris's lawyer is going for a psych defense," Elliot sneered.

My stomach knotted and my face grew contorted into one of confusion.

"He what?" I asked, flabbergasted, "On what grounds?" I demanded.

"Something about him being under the influence of an accidental overdose," Elliot rolled his eyes.

My heart was pumping loud with anger.

"A courtroom full of pre-schoolers wouldn't even go for that!" I exclaimed.

"I know, I know," Elliot said, "We all know that. So there's nothing to be worried about. Everything is going to be okay."

I nodded silently, looking down to my lap again as Elliot tried to soothe me.

I wanted to believe what he was saying. Although I was sure Harris's pathetic psych defense wouldn't stand up in court, I wasn't so positive that 'everything would be okay'. As things stand right now, nothing is ever going to be okay. Never the same. Never again.