Give a Little Bit Chapter 6, a law and order: svu fanfic

It had taken a month to get the kids settled. Once the move was complete, Elliot and Olivia had to work out how they would juggle 4 kids, work, and life in general while also planning a wedding. Olivia, at one point, suggested they simply elope and call it good. A laugh and a shoulder rub from Elliot talked her down, and life continued.

"Hey," Lizzie said, coming in from school. She dusted the snow out of her hair. "I'm home!" she called.

"In here," Olivia said from the rocking chair in the living room. Allie was nursing calmly. "How was school, sweetie?"

"Good. This is my friend Alexis. Her mom never showed up to pick her up. I told her she could use our phone to see what's going on." Olivia nodded. "Lexi, this is my mom." Liv felt her heart swell a little at Lizzie calling her Mom.

"Hi, Alexis." The young girl waved. She picked up the phone and dialed a number.

"Mom, I'm at Lizzie's house." She gave the adress. "She wants to talk to you." Liv took the phone from the girl.

"Kathy? I'm on my way now. Don't you dare put my daughter in a cab-" a cold voice said.

"No, this is Olivia Benson," she said. "Elliot's fiance."

"Oh, thank God. Ms. Benson." Her voice was much warmer now, and filled with relief. "This is Jana Kirk. My ex-husband was supposed to pick Lexi up today. He must of forgotten. Thank you for letting her come in. I'll be there in an hour. I'm sorry I'm so far out, but I thought I had a few hours before he needed me to get there."

"Oh, don't worry about it! We're going to do homework as soon as Elliot and Dickie get in. Why don't you and Lexi join us for dinner?"

"That would be great. Thank you! See you in an hour," she said and hung up the phone. Olivia smiled.

"As soon as Allie's done eating, I'll get some dinner going. Go hang out and we'll work on homework while dinner's cooking. Sound good?" The girls nodded and hurried off to Lizzie's room.

"That's not your mom. Kathy is," Lexi said.

"Kathy, she who put you in a cab from Queens to get to your dad in Brooklyn? Not any more. Liv is marrying my dad and is adopting me, Dickie and Kathleen."

"Why?"

"Kathy's a psycho bitch. Olivia is my Mom now. Olivia is the coolest person I've ever met."

"Really? What's so hot about her?"

"She's a kick-ass detective. She's a cop! Mom arrests the pickle-dicks who hang around kids' school yards, and that scar on her neck? She was cut by a guy who was holding two kids hostage." Olivia felt the scar as she listened from the next room. She wasn't eaves-dropping. The walls were just thin. She didn't want to think about Gitano just now, and she didn't think his kids knew about it. He probably told Kathy, who told the kids. "The guy had a shotgun to my dad's head for half an hour while my mom tried to talk him out of killing him. The whole thing was just a decoy until the S.W.A.T. team stormed the place and killed him. And remember that Derek Lord thing?"

"Oh Yeah!"

"That was my mom's case."

"Liz, your mom is cool."

"Yeah, she is." Olivia almost cried.

"Oh, Lizzie?" she called. "Where's Dickie?"

"Dad picked him up. He's got a dentist thing today," she called. Liv nodded in rememberance. "Hey, Mom?"

"Hmm?" Lizzie just smiled at her.

"Love you."

"You, too, sweetie."

SVU

"How do you break a bracket on school lunch?"

"I didn't mean to."

"Didn't say you did. Just wondering how you did."

"Have you eating those things? The pizza could be a brick. The burgers are soggy. The chili dogs-"

"None of that sounds all that healthy!" Elliot said, puzzled. "Burgers and pizza? When did you last eat brocoli?"

"Jesus, I dunno, Chef Boyardi. When's the last time you cooked brocoli?"

"Point taken. We'll work on it." The two left the dentist office. "Hungry?"

"Nah, these hurt. Let's get a couple of beers?"

"Nice try. You're 13."

"Kids gotta try, Dad." Elliot laughed as they walked. "So, when are you gonna marry her and make her an honest woman, Old Man?" Elliot just laughed. "I'm serious! We're all really excited!"

"Olivia can't set a date. She's not ready to set a date. I don't know."

"Shall the Mini-Stablers step in and offer help to New Mom?" the boy offered, eyes twinkling with mischeif and delight.

"Sure. You do that, Dickie."

"Dad, when Liv adopts us, I want it to be Rick Stabler. I'm not a little boy any more, got girls I'm interested in. Kinda grew out of Dickie. And there ain't No Way you are calling me Dick. God in Heaven that would make high school suck more." Elliot considered his request. "Look, talk to Liv, and when you guys figure it out, lemme know. Cool?"

"Yeah, we're cool." His son's maturity often took Elliot by surprise.

SVU

"Hey, Mom," Dickie said, dropping into a chair at the table. He pulled books out and scattered them. "Liz, got homework for me?" he yelled through the apartment. "Bring your friend!"

"Dickie, can you keep down? Allie's asleep."

"Sorry," he said. He opened the many text books. "This shit's hard," he muttered.

"Watch it," Elliot said. "Remember guy talk is when the ladies aren't around. Keep the profanity to a minimum around Olivia and your sisters, son."

"Yeah, forgot. Sorry, ladies," he teased. "Mom?"

"What's up?" Liv asked, looking over the counter that devided the kitchen from the dining area.

"I hate math, that's what."

"Who has what due tomorrow?"

"I have this algebra, history work sheets, and a science paper." Liz got a folder with her homework papers.

"Which means, I have the same," her twin recalled. "As does Lexi."

"I'm gonna keep an eye on the food. Go be a teacher, Babe." Olivia smiled, kissed her Elliot and took her seat at the table.

"Okay, which is the hardest?"

"Algebra," the three answered.

"We'll do that first, so the rest seems easier."

"Why not do that last?" Liz asked. "That way we're not fried for history and science?"

"Do we all agree?" The kids nodded. "Okay. Science then."

Elliot listened from the kitchen. She was so good with the kids. It was fun for Elliot to listen to her teach them, help them...he loved her more with every second. Laughter from the dining table just made it secure in his heart that she was wonderful. Not only were his children doing homework of their own free will, but they were having fun. Deep down, he knew his kids were good, but in the last few years with Kathy, they hated school, locked themselves into their rooms, and just seemed miserable in general. Now they were trying to be good. It hit Elliot suddenly. They were trying to be perfect so Olivia would love them. They needed her because their own mother had failed them. He wondered if they fought when no one was around to hear them, or if they were angry and just held it in.

"Hey Dad?" Lizzie called. Elliot turned and smiled. "Can you help with the histroy work? Its on The Korean Conflict, and Mom said you watch enough MASH to help us with it."

"All right, Liz. Be right there." He took the dinner from the stove and set it to cool. "Dinner's done, and will be cool in half an hour, guys."

"I need to check on Allie," Olivia said, excusing herself from the group.

"Okay. What's to know about Korea?"

SVU

"Honey?" Liv whispered into Elliot's ear. "You awake?"

"Am now. What's up? Everything okay?" Liv nodded and snuggled closer. She kissed his neck and started to make her way down when they heard crying from the next room. "Mmm," he groaned. It took a full second for reality to hit them both.

"That's not Allie, Elliot." Olivia threw a robe on and made her way into Lizzie's room. Lizzie was sitting on the bed staring at the miror, crying. "Liz? Lizzie, sweet heart? What's wrong?"

"How could she leave me?" Lizzie whispered as Liv gathered her into a hug. "I hate her!"

"Lizzie, I thought you wanted this. I'm sorry, baby," Elliot soothed. "I think we just pushed too hard, Liv."

"I'm sorry, Daddy. I tried to be happy," she sobbed. "I'm really trying."

"Honey, if you aren't happy, that is okay. You are allowed to be mad, and hurt right now. Its okay to feel hurt and anger, Elizabeth. You father is very angry right now that your mom-"

"YOU'RE my mom, Not Kathy."

"Okay. Your father is very angry that Kathy hurt you. You father and I are both scared that you aren't telling us that you are hurting." Elliot could see that she was getting through to Lizzie.

"I'm scared."

"That's a good start. What are you scared of?"

"You and Daddy'll leave me. He left once, remember? My own mother just freakin left me! You're not my mother, what's stopping you?"

"Here's what is stopping me, Lizzie," she said, meeting the young girls gaze. "You may not be my biological daughter, but I love you more than any mother could love any child. I love you, and when people really love each other, they do what is best for them. You with me so far?" A nod answered her. "What is best for you is to have your dad and me whenever you need us. I swear to you, Lizzie, I will not walk away from you."

SVU

"Lizzie?"

"Hmm?"

"I'm Dr. Huang."

"We've met," she said, giving him the Stabler Smile.

"Your dad tells me that you and your brother and sisters call Olivia 'Mom' now."

"Yeah."

"How do you feel about that?"

"We love her. It was really suck-tacular living with Kathy, and she signed us over P.D.Q. when Dad asked. Kathy didn't want us, Liv did." Lizzie wanted to cry. "Kathy is frickin' crazy." Huang smiled lightly. "I take it by that grin, you've met her."

"Yes, and when I met her, she seemed all right."

"Can we get a second opinion?"

"You're sacrastic."

"You're observant."

"You're hostile."

"I'm pissed. There's a difference." Huang furrowed his brow. "Hostile is mean for no reason. I have every reason to be pissed."

"You have a point, Elizabeth. Can you tell me, though? Why are you angry?" Lizzie looked at him.

"First off, I'd like it if you call me Liz or Lizzie."

"All right."

"Wouldn't you be mad if your mother hated the two people you looked up to the most? I respect her opinion, Dr. Huang, but not when it comes between me and my father. She lied to us for so long and then left." Lizzie's eyes welled with tears. "I knew she hated me, but I didn't think she'd just leave me."

"Liz, after the years of verbal and emotional abuse, she resorted to physical abuse. What happened?"

"I told her I wanted to live with Dad and Olivia after they got married. She started yelling. Dickie tried to stand between us so she wouldn't hurt me, but she pushed him into his room. She beat the crap out of me," Lizzie was blank. Huang offered her a tissue. "She was so mean to Olivia, called her mother a whore, and said she wasn't raped, that she just had no idea who she did to get pregnant. I don't even know what the hell she's talking about. I told her that I just wanted Dad and Olivia, and she...she said she didn't want me to call her Mom any more."

"You feel she did that to hurt you."

"Yeah," Lizzie said. "Dr. Huang, do you know what Kathy was talking about? Liv's mom being raped and all...?"

"That's not something I'm going to discuss with you, Lizzie." She nodded silently. "Lizzie, why do you call Olivia 'Mom?" he asked.

"Because, I love her, and she's been incredible these last two years. While she was on ass duty, and Dad couldn't make my soccer games, she's there. She went to every game last season, even in the rain while she was pregnant. She stood there, cheering me on. She took Dickie and his friends to the video game arcade after school when he got an A on a test. AND she played! Just put Allie in the snugli and they played for an hour while Maureen, Kathleen and I went shopping. When I got my first period, Dad panicked. He got the wrong stuff, and Olivia just laughed at him. You'd think after 20 years of being married, and putting up with two girls through puberty, he'd get it right. Olivia went shopping for me."

"That sounds like Olivia."

"But why can't my mom be that way?" Lizzie asked, starting to cry. "I love Olivia, and I try to pretend she my mother, but she's not. I just...I'm so mad at Kathy for leaving us. Its like the divorce all over again." Huang nodded.

SVU

A/N: Next Chapter: Lizzie in trouble.