A/N: What deal? And Kathleen finally talks to her sister.

DISCLAIMER: SVU and characters belong to Dick Wolf. The story you are about to read belongs to Tstabler©

"Just remember what Trevor said, okay?" Elliot told his daughter, leading her into the courthouse.

Maureen nodded. "I know, Dad," she said. She squeezed his hand, and then looked over at Olivia, who was holding the baby in his carrier. "What happens if they say I have to…"

"We have a deal, Mo," Elliot interrupted. "Trevor just needs you to tell him everything, the whole story, and when he asks you questions, just answer them. Tell the truth."

Maureen nodded again as her father led her into the courtroom to meet Trevor, Casey, and the judge.

"I can't take Oliver in there," Olivia said, pulling back from them.

Elliot looked at her with wide, worried eyes. "Baby," he whispered, "I need you in there."

She shrugged and held up the baby carrier. "He needs me out here, El," she said. She looked at him for a moment, then sighed. "I'll stay in the back, and the minute he cries I'm gone."

Elliot nodded, then pulled her by the hand into the room with him. He sat with her in the back, near the doors, as Maureen walked toward Trevor and Casey.

It was a hard story to hear, as parents, listening to her detail her relationship with Nate. It hurt to listen to Maureen say she was desperate for his attention because he was a cop, like her father, and she missed him when he was gone. It was painful to listen to her tell them that Nate found out she was pregnant, and left her with a laugh and a gleam in his eyes, hoping to seriously hurt the two detectives he felt betrayed him.

Trevor asked her if she knew, if she was in on it, and when she said no, he was shocked. "Are you…are you sure?" he asked, stumbling over his words.

"My dad…and my mom, they're everything to me," Maureen said, trying not to cry. "Why would I intentionally ruin my life to hurt them? If I would have known all Nate wanted was to destroy them, I never would have…I thought he loved me."

Trevor looked over at Nate, sitting at the table looking pissed off and guilty. "Thank you, Miss Stabler," he said. "No further questions."

Casey cross-examined, being a bit more gentle than Trevor had, and in the middle of her questioning, little Oliver started to cry. Olivia looked around apologetically and brought the infant out into the hall, holding him.

She rocked him in her arms as he wailed, and she sat on the nearest bench, with a bottle and blanket, trying to soothe him. "Oh, sweet boy, what's the trouble?" she asked, looking into the deep blue eyes she hoped her own child had.

"I think he wants his mommy," a voice said.

She turned and tilted her head. "Hi, George," she said, nodding at the doctor. "Maureen isn't done yet."

"I know that," Huang said, sitting next to her. "I wanted to talk to you for a bit. How are you, Olivia?"

"Great," she said, smiling. "A little sick in the mornings, but it comes with the territory, right?"

George laughed. "I meant, how are you coping with Maureen? Raising her son while nurturing your own daughter?"

"It's a lot," she said with a sigh, moving Oliver into a more comfortable position. "It's my life, George. It's my job now, ya know? And whatever you've been talking to her about seems to be helping. She actually wants to feed him and hold him now."

"Good," George said. "So she hasn't told you she wants him to call you his mother, yet?"

Olivia blinked. "What?"

"We're working on it, but she keeps saying she would rather him think you're his mother. That's not changing, Olivia. No matter how much we talk, that's the one constant throughout her sessions. She does not want to be his mother."

Olivia blinked. "I thought this was temporary, George," she said softly. "I thought it was just post…"

"Most of it was," the doctor interrupted. "But as the depression faded, the teenager came back. She's not ready. Not physically, mentally, or emotionally. I don't think she will be until she grows up."

"Doctor Huang?" Maureen questioned, walking toward the bench.

Olivia stood, holding the baby. "What happened?" she asked.

Elliot kissed her, ran a hand down to her belly, and said, "She's not gonna be charged with anything, Nate's guilty on all counts. Sentencing is next week."

"Oh, thank God," she sighed, dropping her head to his shoulder.

"You ready to go, Maureen?" Huang asked, looking at the girl.

The teen looked up at the doctor, then toward her father. "You're coming back, right?" she asked.

"Of course, honey," Elliot said. "He just wants to talk to you for a little bit, make sure you're okay."

Maureen nodded, then walked away with George. Olivia looked at Elliot, sighed, and said, "She's not…"

"She told me," he said, taking her hand. "She just wants to be a normal kid for a while. I told her…I told her we'd take care of him."

She shook her head and looked down at him. "I don't know if I can do that, El. I can't handle him thinking we're his parents, when we have to give him back to her, I…"

"Baby," he said, pulling her close, "He's gonna know who his mother is. I promise, I just…I want what's best for her, and right now that's…I can't force her to do something she doesn't wanna do."

Olivia nodded, holding the baby boy between them. "How is he not going to think of you as a father?"

Elliot laughed. "Because I'm letting him call me 'Grandpa," he said, kissing her. He kissed the boys forehead, and then walked with Olivia out of the courthouse. They walked down to a café, where they waited for Maureen's session with Huang to end.


They had driven home in silence, no one daring to ask Maureen about her talk with Huang, and pulled into the driveway. Olivia carried Oliver up to his nursery immediately, with Elliot right behind her.

Kathleen took the opportunity to corner Maureen, stopping her in the middle of the kitchen. "Hey," she said, standing in front of her sister.

"Hi," Maureen said, raising an eyebrow.

Kathleen folded her arms and said, "You know they're having their own child, right? You know they're trying to help you out, but you're being selfish."

Maureen rolled her eyes. "I just listened to Doctor Huang tell me the same thing for an hour," she griped. "Why are you even…"

"Because…I wanna help." Kathleen sighed and reached for her sister's shoulder. "You've been through a lot and I've been a brat about it. I know you don't want to deal with this, at all, but is forcing Dad and Liv to do it going to help at all? If you need help, I'll help you, but they're gonna be parents, too. Liv is gonna be a mom, a real one, and we're gonna have another baby in this house in a few months that will need her undivided attention. She's gonna need you to step up and take responsibility for your son, Mo."

Maureen looked toward the stairs, seeing her father and Olivia walking down them, smiling and rubbing her belly. She smiled as she watched her father make funny faces at Olivia's stomach. "I know," she said. "I told Doctor Huang the same thing. I think…I think I'm gonna give him a bath tonight, change him, put him to bed myself."

"I can help you," Kathleen said, repeating her offer.

Maureen smiled. "Thanks, Katie," she said, hugging her sister.

Kathleen chuckled, and she said, "Let's go tell our parents they have the night off, huh?"

Maureen nodded, wrapping her arm around her sister's shoulders, for the first time really feeling like things were finally right. If only she could keep them from going wrong.

A/N: Olivia and Elliot get a night to themselves, and Maureen has an epiphany. Two left. Review here or on Twitter: TMG212