title: Next of Kin

author: SVUFanatic611

rating: PG

a/n: You guys are the best reviewers ever! Thanks for all the encouraging words! I love you guys! Thanx 4 everything! This chapter has E/O in it, but the next chapter will have more, some actual action.

disclaimer: SVU and its associated characters are not mine.

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1 Week Later

"What are you looking at, 'Liv? You've been at that screen for hours." Elliot said as he walked over to her desk to sneak a peek.

Olivia didn't want anyone to know what she was doing. "Ah…nothing, just surfing." She lied as she turned off her monitor.

"Come on, Olivia, I thought we weren't going to have secrets." Elliot whispered.

"Later." She replied, under her breath.

Before Elliot had a chance to respond, Cragen came into the squad room. "Okay, where are we on the Smith case, people?"

"Well, we've talked to the bartender and he remembers seeing our rape victim 15 minutes before…" Munch droned on.

Olivia drifted out. She was just so tired. She had slept a combined number of 20 hours that past week. But it was worth it. Corrine was completely moved in. Everything was set up. Corrine had been in her new school for four days and seemed to be adjusting pretty well.

"Hey, Elliot, Olivia, it looks like Munch and Fin got this. You just finish up your paperwork and you can go on home."

Olivia and Elliot had been doing that all day long, but if finishing it meant going home, it wasn't that terrible.

---

Both of them had been doing paperwork for hours. They were the only ones left in the precinct. Even the Captain had gone home.

"So are you going to tell me what you were looking at earlier or give me 'nothing' again?" Elliot finally said, breaking any comfortable silence that had existed just moments ago.

"Sorry about that. It's just when Munch knows something, the entire unit does."

"Well, neither Munch nor the entire unit is here."

"I was looking up Walter's case."

"Who's Walter?"

"Corrine's dad. He was murdered by the mob and no detective in California is really, truly working on his case, so I figured I would."

"Olivia, don't do that. Let the cops in California handle it. You have too much to deal with right now."

"Elliot, I appreciate your concern, I really do. But, it's not like I'm going there to question people. I was just looking at some of the facts of the case.

"So, what do you have so far?"

Olivia, surprised he wanted anything to do with this, answered. "Well, back in January, Walter took on a case against a huge mob boss, Vinny Versitoni. And, normally, prosecutors would just plea out notoriously evil people, in hopes that their life wouldn't be in danger. Walter wanted to fight this thing until the end. He never considered making a deal. He received several threats, but never quit. Well, two months later, he was shot twice in the chest."

"Where was the body found?"

"His office. He was working late. Everybody had gone home."

"How convenient. Who found the body?"

"Uh, Corrine did. She was worried when her dad didn't come home, so she went to his office."

"Did she tell you that?"

"No, I haven't discussed any aspect of the case in detail with her. I found out all this from a database from California."

"Speaking of Corrine, how is she?"

"She's doing pretty well. She's adjusting to her school pretty well, except for this boy that keeps bothering her. He just won't leave her alone. She says she going to give him a few more days and then he's going to meet her fist."

"She sounds feisty."

"She is, but in a way, I'm proud of her, showing the guy who's boss...oh my God, El', it's 2am. Let's go home."

"Yeah, to my empty apartment."

"Don't you have the kids this weekend?"

"Yeah, but I don't know what we're going to do."

"Why don't you come to my house for dinner Friday night? I think Corrine and Kathleen would get along and Corrine has to meet my partner sooner or later."

"Sure, why not? But, is this a date?"

"Sure…minus the five star restaurant, minus the fancy clothes, plus the kids. Sure, Stabler, it's a date…"she responded in a sarcastic tone.

"You know, I wouldn't mind actually taking you on a date…plus the five star restaurant, plus the fancy clothes, minus the kids."

"I wouldn't mind going…"

Elliot and Olivia exchanged slight smiles as they started to put their things away.

"May be this is a step in the right direction. Screw the personal policy. There is always an exception." She thought to herself.

"Okay, Stabler, you did well. You've been waiting to do that since the very day you divorced Kathy." Elliot thought.

"Goodnight, El'." She said she left the squad room.

"Goodnight, 'Liv." was all he could say as he watched her leave.

---

Olivia's Apartment
2:27 am

Olivia walked in, closed the door behind her, and as she turned, she found Corrine sleeping on the couch. She smiled and decided to wake her up and send her to her much more comfortable bed.

"Corrine, sweetheart" she said, stroking her back "C'mon, how about you sleep in your bed. How come you slept down here anyway?"

Corrine still sleepy, kept her face in the pillow, hiding her eye and the right side of her face. "Oh, well, I have a paper that you needed to sign."

"You know you can leave it on the table and I'll sign it when I get home. You don't have to stay up and lose sleep over it."

"I know, but I figured that once you saw it, you would want to talk to me about it and I didn't want to wait until morning.

"Where is it?"

"On the table" As Olivia got up, went to the table to get the paper, Corrine kept her right eye covered. Olivia read the paper and looked up at Corrine. "Well, your right, I do want to talk to you. Why don't you tell me what happened."

"Well, it was after gym. I was in the locker room when this guy walked in…"

"Is this the same guy who you were telling me about; the guy who was bothering you?"

"No…okay, maybe, yes. He started going through my bag and that didn't bother me too much, I don't have much to hide. But then, he started snappin' my bra strap and pulling up my shirt and then…I turned around and punched him. I just never expected that he would punch me back." At this point, Corrine stopped hiding her eye. She lifted her head from the pillow to reveal the black, blue, and purple eye.

"Oh, God!" Olivia said as she walked over to Corrine from the table.

"It looks worse than it feels."

"Still…"Olivia looked at the bruised eye and then went to the freezer to get ice. "So what trouble are you in?"

"2 days suspension for fighting."

"What about him?"

"4 days suspension; 2 days for fighting, 1 day for giving 'unwanted sexual advances' and another day for going into the girls' locker room."

Olivia made her way back to the couch with Corrine and put ice on her eye. "What did the principal say?"

"She, ah, scheduled a conference with you. I'm really sorry, I know you're busy, but I never think before I do things."

"Oh, it's okay. Tomorrow's my day off. I have time."

"I'm so sorry."

"Stop apologizing. It's okay. The only trouble I'm going to have tomorrow is listening to that principal. She's going to tell me what you did was wrong."

"I'm confused. Is what I did wrong?"

"Well, yes and no. It's wrong in the sense that you shouldn't go around punching people. But, I can understand why you did it. You stood up for yourself, maybe not in the best way, but nonetheless, I'm proud of you for not letting a man degrade you."

"You know, normal guardians would be furious right about now."

Olivia took Corrine' face in her hands. "Rule Number One: I'm not a normal guardian. Listen, why don't you go to bed, it's been a long day."

"Thanks Olivia." Corrine hugged Olivia and made her way upstairs until she turned around. "Goodnight, 'Liv."

"Goodnight. Oh, hey, Friday night, my partner, Elliot and his kids are coming here for dinner. He has a daughter the same age as you. It that okay?"

"Yeah, it sounds fun. Can't wait. Goodnight."

"Goodnight."