It was Christmas eve; she had promised Noah to take him to mass tonight and was hoping she'd get a chance to talk to Savina before going. She was invited to Christmas dinner at the Stabler household, along with Noah and Savina. But she wasn't sure how Savina would react. It was no secret the 22-year-old was no fan of her old partner, even when they were partners. But her animosity towards him had become more apparent since his unannounced return. Kathy's death not deterring in making her stand known.

Even at the funeral, she'd stood quietly next to Olivia as they lowered the casket into the ground; said her condolences to the Stabler kids, but when Elliot wanted to hug her in thanks, she stepped back, muttered a formal 'sorry for your loss' before she left.

But she had been distant with Olivia ever since; she barely spent any time at home, and she mostly spent it with Noah. She was even spending more and more nights away from home.

When Savina turned nineteen, she thought about moving out, getting her own place. But with her mother's job, it wasn't practical. She sometimes had to leave in the middle of the night, and knew Noah was safe because Savina was in the house. So, whatever Savina was willing to pay for rent, it helped them get a bigger place where the layout allowed Savina to have her own suit.

But since Elliot's return, it was as if this wall had gone up between her and Olivia. They barely said anything to each other that wasn't Noah related, school/work related, or to synchronize their schedules for the next day. Olivia hated it, but every time she tried to bring it up with Savina, the latter would brush her off, or come up with an excuse and leave the room. Olivia knew those signs, Savina had done this before. She'd shut her off like that before, and before she knew it, she'd collapsed and ended up in the hospital.

She asked Finn about it, but her friend told her not to worry. That her daughter was getting the rest she needed but might want some space to wrap her head around some things.

'She was never a fan of him, Liv. She wasn't all that unhappy about him leaving, give her a minute to adjust to his return.' He'd advised her gently. She knew him well enough to know that there was more to it than that, but she also knew that he would never betray Savina's trust. That if she wanted answers, she had to get them straight from the source.

And she had every intention of doing that.

She walked into the apartment, not entirely sure how to broach the subject of the dinner with Savina. Or any of the subjects she wanted to talk to her about.

Did she even want to go to that dinner? And if yes, why did she want to go? What was she trying to prove? And to who? To herself? To Finn? To Barba?

Barba…. the man who actually stood by her through thick and thin; through Lewis, both times; through Noah; through Savina; through Tucker…through many things that Elliot not only wasn't there for but didn't even bother to ask her about. And when she threw that fact in his face…. his question wasn't about Noah, or Savina – the one he supposedly watched grow up! No, it was about her dating life!

But then Barba defended Wheatley. And she felt betrayed, felt like her soul hurt her, like she was being abandoned all over again.

A small voice reminded her that even though Barba left the job, he never abandoned her. He never abandoned them. He was there for her son, for her daughter, for her. He let her know he was quitting, let her know he was making a change. Made sure he kept in touch, made sure to see her every chance he was in New York, before he settled back.

But a small fear inside her was always nagging her that he could leave her again. And while he never did, defending Wheatley felt worse.

But didn't Stabler actually walk away from her without a word? Didn't he stay away for a decade without a single word to her?

So, why was she so willing to forgive Stabler, but not Barba?!

She found Savina sitting on the couch, her laptop propped up against her knees, as her fingers moved over the keyboard quickly. She looked ready to head out, a red sweater that Olivia recognized as the awfully expensive cashmere sweater Barba got her last Christmas, along with black jeggings.

"Hi, sweetheart," she said softly, and Savina looked up from her screen, her hands moving towards her ears when she saw Olivia and immediately pulled the air pods out.

"Hey, mom," the brunette greeted softly, her eyebrows furrowing slightly when she noticed the exhaustion on her mother's face. "Everything okay?" she asked, as she closed the laptop, and got to her feet.

Olivia shook her head as she walked into the room and pulled Savina into her arms. Savina reciprocated the hug without hesitation, her hands rubbing Olivia's back comfortingly. "Can we talk?" Olivia mumbled into her shoulder.

Savina pulled back slightly without breaking out of her mother's arms, she saw many emotions swirling in her mother's eye. It was obvious Olivia had a lot on her mind, and Savina couldn't deny that she also needed to get a few things off her chest. She didn't want to keep going like that. She hated the gap that was growing between them, hated that Elliot Stabler was getting between them. But knew that her mother can't read her mind, so if she wanted this cold war to end, she needed to voice her thoughts.

But not tonight.

"Sure," Savina spoke softly, "how about after you and Noah come back from mass?" she suggested, and Olivia frowned.

"You're not coming with us?" she asked, and Savina sighed, shaking her head.

"Rafa is taking the red-eye to Florida to spend Christmas with his family, so we're having dinner together tonight before he leaves," she started, and she saw something flash in her mother's eyes, but she wasn't quite sure what it was. Guilt? Anger? Pain? Sadness? Longing?

"He's coming here?" Olivia wondered, and Savina nodded.

"Yeah, he'll be here any minute. He wants to give Noah his present, so I'll take him down to the lobby. Twenty minutes or so, and I'll bring him back up."

"So, you're free tomorrow night?" Olivia started.

Savina frowned, as she moved out of her arms, grabbed the empty mug on the coffee table and headed towards the kitchen. "Why would I make plans for Christmas? I'm spending it with you and Noah!" she said simply.

Olivia felt a pang; she was hoping Savina would agree to come with her, but she knew she wouldn't. But she wanted to give Noah the 'big Christmas dinner' experience.

Or at least that's what she was telling herself, to justify why she's willing to throw Barba's friendship away for Stabler.

"Elliot invited us to Christmas dinner with him and his kids tomorrow," Olivia told her, as she came back. She immediately saw the change in Savina. Her entire body language changed; her shoulders rolled back from their relaxed posture into a more defensive one; her soft features hardened as her eyes grew darker.

"You can take Noah, I'll be fine." She said simply, as she bent down to grab her laptop off the coffee table.

"You won't come?" Olivia asked softly.

Savina shot her a look that was so much like Barba, it broke Olivia's heart even more.

"Are you seriously asking me that, Mom?" Savina scoffed incredulously.

"Savina, it's Christmas!" Olivia pleaded.

"Yeah, I know that. That's why I didn't make any plans, so we can spend it together. But I have no intention whatsoever in spending it with Elliot Stabler, the ones from my childhood were enough."

It came out harsher than Savina intended, but it was the only way she could mask the pain she felt. She loved Olivia with everything and knew the matriarch Benson loved her and Noah more than life itself; but it always pained her how blind she was to how Savina felt around Stabler. Savina didn't really hide the fact that Elliot was not her favorite person on the planet, and it was obvious that she was always closer to Finn than him. She was never too comfortable being around him, especially socially. She barely tolerated his presence in the precinct, but she absolutely loathed it whenever she had to suffer his presence for something else. And she always voiced it somehow; 'does he have to come?' or 'do we have to go?' were her usual responses anytime Olivia told her he would join them for something, and the whining tone was hard to miss.

But for whatever reason, Olivia always made space for him in their lives. Savina was ecstatic when he left; she hated how hurt her mother was, but she eventually moved on and absolutely blossomed in his absence. But then he waltzed back in, bringing along all the chaos, demands, toxicity and havoc that he always did. And just like old times; Olivia slid back into her role as his junior detective, and willingly let him slide back into her life, and that of her children.

But Savina was no longer a child; she was an adult, and she didn't have to suffer fools anymore. Especially not on Christmas. And certainly not with the man who got into her mother's head so much that she threw away her friendship with Barba, who was everything Elliot Stabler never was, and couldn't even aspire to be.

"I know he's not your favorite person on the planet…" Olivia was interrupted by Savina's snort.

"You could say that again!"

Olivia was surprised at the barely concealed disdain in her voice. She knew she wasn't a fan of Stabler's, but when did it turn into such hate?

"Christmas is about being together," she tried, and Savina arched an eyebrow at her, as a humorless chuckle left her lips.

"Again, I'm not the one who wants to spend it with someone both my children can't stand," Savina snapped, immediately regretting her choice of words when she saw the pain on Olivia's face. "Listen, I'm sorry, I didn't mean it like that. Can we talk about this after Christmas?" she reasoned, "it was never a secret that I can't stand Stabler, and Noah isn't his biggest fan either. But if you want to go, that's your choice, and I would never take Noah from you on Christmas," she added, "but I'm not a child anymore, and I do have a choice, and I choose not to suffer his presence for yet another Christmas. Like you said, Christmas is about being together, but it's about being together with people who care about each other."

Olivia wanted to argue but couldn't find the words. Savina was right, in every word she said. She'd pushed Elliot into her life time and time again as a child, despite the many times she made it clear she didn't like him. She constantly whined whenever she had to spend time with him for whatever reason. Hated it whenever she would spend the night at Kathy's because the sitter couldn't stay overnight, and Olivia had to pull an all-nighter. Not because Kathy wasn't good to her, by her own admission, Kathy was wonderful. But it was because it meant Elliot had an excuse to be in Olivia's life. She was over the moon when she spent the five weeks Olivia was undercover in Oregon with Cassie Novak. She didn't see much of Elliot for five weeks, and she absolutely loved it.

So why was Olivia trying to shove the man down her throat once more? Down Noah's?

Twelve years of partnership didn't change Savina's mind about him, and she immediately took a liking to Barba after spending less than an hour with him in his office. And he was asking her about hearing a victim's outcry! But he was gentle, mindful of her age, choosing his words carefully to make sure he doesn't traumatize her in the process. He bent over backwards to make sure that Savina's name doesn't come up in trial, so she doesn't end up having to testify.

She still remembered her words about him to this day; 'I like him!. She had taken a liking to two other people this fast in her life; Finn and Haden. And those were the exact three words she said when she met Haden.

Just then Noah came out of his room, to show Savina something, and noticed his mother.

"Mom, you're home," he squealed, as he ran towards her, engulfing her in a hug that she very much needed.

She heard Savina's phone vibrating on the coffee table and saw the brunette grabbing it.

"Hey, Noah, why don't you go put your shoes on? Someone is in the lobby who would love to see you," Savina announced, and Noah immediately let go of his mother and whipped around towards her.

"Who?" he asked excitedly.

"It wouldn't be a surprise if I told you, you'll see when we get to the lobby." She avoided answering.

Noah immediately ran towards his room to grab his shoes, while Savina made her way towards her own to drop her laptop on her bed.

Olivia plopped down onto the couch and buried her face into her hands. She knew without a doubt that Noah will be ecstatic once he sees that it's Barba, she knew how much her son loved Barba, and how much Barba loved him.

And it made her reflect about Elliot and Savina when Savina was Noah's age; she couldn't stand Stabler, and he never put even a fraction of the effort Barba put with Noah and Savina.

And she was throwing away Barba for Stabler!

She was starting to debate going down to the lobby to meet Barba and talk with him when there was a knock at the door. She got up and went over, quickly checking to see who it was, a strained sigh escaping her when she realized who her visitor was. This wasn't going to end well.

She opened the door, and immediately noticed the displeased look on his face.

"Elliot," she said in defeat, trying to stop her mind from reaching a conclusion she didn't want to reach tonight, "what brings you here tonight?" she heard herself asking.

She saw a fleeting confused frown adorn his face at the lack of concern shown from her, and at the question, not her usual 'is everything okay?', but it was gone as quickly as it came, replaced by the suppressed anger and annoyance he's had since he walked in.

"What is that man doing in your lobby?" he demanded angrily, and for the first time ever, Olivia found herself annoyed with his intrusive tone.

"He's here to see Noah and take Savina to dinner."

Why was she explaining to him? She didn't owe him anything; she could have anyone in her lobby, and her apartment for that matter!

"You're letting this man be in their lives, Liv? After what he'd done," he growled.

"Elliot, Savina is a grown woman, she doesn't need anyone's permission about who she should or shouldn't let into her life," she spoke firmly, but he interrupted.

"You get a say about Noah, Liv. He's a traitor! Barba shouldn't be in Noah's life!" he barked, and she was starting to lose her patience with his audacity.

"Uncle Rafa is here? Is he the surprise?" Noah's excited voice came from behind Elliot. Olivia side-stepped him to look at her son, her heart melting at the excited look her son had at the idea of seeing his 'Uncle Rafa' again.

She saw a murderous glare in Savina's eyes, which turned into one of love as she looked down at Noah, who had rounded on his feet towards his sister, as he asked the last question.

"Yeah, buddy, he's the surprise!" she confirmed, smiling joyously at his glee.

"I'll go get his present!" Noah announced excitedly, as he ran back towards his room without waiting for a response.

"And he's buying him presents!" Elliot scoffed in disdain, and that was it for Savina.

"Zip it, Stabler!" she hissed, looking back towards Noah's room to make sure he still hasn't come out.

Elliot was taken aback, the shock making him speechless. Savina closed the distance between them in less than three purposeful strides, stopping when she was toe-to-toe with him.

"Listen to me, Mom may be letting you slide back into her life, while allowing you many, many liberties that you don't deserve for old times' sake; and whatever she's taking into consideration to allow you to bash Rafael like you are, when you're never gonna be even a fraction of the man that he is. But make no mistake that I don't give a flying fuck about any of it," she seethed, "so if you breathe one bad word about him in my presence, or Noah's, I will eat you alive!" she vowed.

"He betrayed you both!" he challenged.

Savina scoffed. "That's rich!" she hissed, just as her phone vibrated in her pocket.

"Hey, Rafa. We'll be right down; Noah was getting your present." She spoke into the phone.

"Come on, come on." Noah squealed excitedly as he ran towards the door. He skidded to a halt when he saw the adults locked in a battle of wills.

"Savina?" he called, his voice apprehensive, and that snapped Savina out of it. She gave one final look towards her mother, and saw a wide range of emotions flashing in her eyes. "I'm coming, honey." She told Noah, as she finally broke eye contact with her mother, and turned to face her brother.

"You didn't get him a Christmas present?" the 8-year-old wondered.

"Of course, I did. I was gonna bring it down later," she told him.

"Uh-uh," he shoved his present into her hands, "we'll give him his presents together," he declared, as he ran towards her room.

"You don't like me, that's fine. But Kathy didn't deserve this!" Elliot growled from behind her.

"Kathy deserved better than you!" she snapped, as she rounded again on him. "Your case against Wheatley was flimsy at best, and any public defender would've torn through it. But Wheatley wasn't planning on rolling the dice. If Rafa hadn't taken the case, he was going to hire Buchanan!" she fumed, her eyes cut to her mother's once more at the soft gasp Olivia released. "Do you think Buchanan would've given a damn about your career as he defended Wheatley? That he wouldn't have brought up your televised confession? That you left your fifteen-year-old alone in a motel room to go after Lewis? My hospital stay? The gun incident?" Savina listed. "And those are the things that are on the record, Mom." She reminded her.

Just then, Noah's bounding feet sounded on the hardwood floor, as his excited voice reached them. "Savina, let's goooooooo!" he urged, stretching the last syllable.

"Go get the elevator, buddy. I'll be right there," she instructed gently.

A hasty 'see ya later, Mom' was thrown over Noah's shoulder as he bolted out of the door, both presents in his hands.

"You don't think Buchanan wouldn't have let that interrogation tape play out until he's seen grabbing and shaking you? That he wouldn't have used that moment to throw your entire career into question? To eviscerate it? Undermine it? To make it seem like you're not in control of your own interrogation room? That your judgement is compromised? That you let him run the show when he has no business being anywhere near that investigation?" Savina challenged, noting how logic seemed to be returning to Olivia, while Elliot was not liking what she was saying.

"Rafa didn't stop the tape for his sake, he stopped it for yours. Because he took this case on to protect you, like he always does. His first priority has always been us, and he always did the right thing for your career. Even if it meant you getting mad – which you usually did – because you couldn't see past your own feelings for whoever the other man was to see that he truly stood to gain nothing from it." She reminded her. "If he wanted to make a name for himself with this case, he could've. But you and I both know that's not him. You just need to get your head out of the fog long enough to think straight!"

And with that, Savina headed for the door. "One more thing," she said, turning around, "when Finn met him before he barreled into your life, and told him that you know have a son. The first question he had for him was 'who's the guy?'" Savina recounted and saw Elliot's nostrils flare. And with that, she left.

"He's got her wrapped around his finger!" Elliot commented derisively.

Olivia ignored him, and walked towards her iPad, quickly logging into the lobby's security camera.

"Liv, what are you doing?" he asked, as he moved closer to her, looking at the screen in her hand. He saw Barba standing in the lobby, the gift bag he'd seen in his hand now on the floor, as he crouched down to catch a sprinting Noah.

"Uncle Rafa!" Olivia heard Noah squeal excitedly as he threw himself at the crouching man. She didn't need to see Barba's face to picture the face-splitting smile she was sure was on his face. Barba caught him with ease, wrapping his arms around him tightly.

"Hola, mijo," he said softly, as rubbed the boy's back gently.

"Mijo?" Elliot repeated in surprise, with a hint of disgust.

"I missed you," Noah mumbled into Barba's shoulder, making Olivia's eyes sting with tears.

"I missed you too," Barba spoke softly to the boy, finally pulling back from his embrace, "so much."

"You don't come by anymore," Noah chastised sadly, and Olivia could almost hear her heart crack in two. She heard Barba take a shuddered breath, before pulling the boy in for another hug.

"I know, buddy. But work has been keeping me busy," he lied to the boy, breaking his own heart, the heart of the fuming brunette standing with them, and the older brunette eavesdropping on their conversation through the lobby camera.

"You and Mom had a fight, didn't you?" Noah asked bluntly, and Savina chuckled.

Barba pulled back from the hug, and Olivia sighed sadly. She didn't realize her son picked up this much on Barba's absence.

"What makes you say that?" Barba wondered.

Noah started fumbling with the lapels of Barba's coat, before he looked back at a frowning Savina, who simply nodded.

"Elliot is here," Noah said, and Barba frowned.

"He's your mom's friend, he can come visit her. That doesn't mean she and I had a fight." Barba told him.

"He was saying mean things about you, and only Savina was angry. Mom was letting him," Noah relayed, and Savina groaned. "I don't like him." He concluded.

Barba sighed, before looking at Savina, who shrugged unrepentantly.

"Mijo, Elliot means a lot to your mother," Barba started, ignoring the gob smacked look on Savina's face, "he was her friend when your sister was even younger than you. He's going through a really rough time right now, and he and I don't get along very much. But I don't want you to not like him because of that," Barba explained gently.

"That's not why I don't like him," Noah shot back, and Barba looked at him questioningly.

Noah burrowed into Barba's arms once more, before mumbling, "he's scary. He scared me and Mom before."

The loud groan Savina released had Barba's eyes snapping up to meet her own, he frowned at the lack of surprise in them at Noah's declaration. It took Barba less than a minute to put the pieces together, before his demeanor changed.

"He woke up that night?" he asked, and Savina nodded.

"He saw the whole thing." She told him.

"Savina wasn't home, but I called her, and she came." Noah told him.

Olivia gasped softly, Savina had come to the apartment when Sargent Bell was there to pick up a drugged-up Elliot, and all she did was make her way to her room. When Noah didn't say anything to her, she assumed the ruckus didn't wake him, and she didn't breach the subject.

"Did you tell your mom?" he asked them both.

"Savina said she'll tell her." Noah answered, and the Cuban immediately looked questioningly at her. He didn't need to ask to know Olivia had no idea Noah saw the whole thing. Yes, Stabler had her under a spell. But he would like to think that the spell would break the moment her son was in danger.

"I told him to get back in bed, and by the time I made it back home, he was fast asleep. If I'd said anything that night, I would've lost it." Savina explained. "And hurricane Stabler doesn't leave much room for the rest of us to get in a word. Whenever she's home, she's drained that I just let her get whatever sleep she can get." She added.

"Why didn't you tell me then?" Barba questioned.

"Because you would've defended Wheatley for an entirely different reason," she drawled sarcastically.

He cocked his head at her, as he looked reprimandingly at her.

She rubbed her hands over her face. "I'm so sorry, Rafa. You know how dark my sense of humor gets when I'm on edge." She apologized.

Barba stood back up, keeping one hand around Noah – who now wrapped himself around the man's waist – and pulled Savina into a one-armed embrace. "Are you alright?" he asked softly, as her arms went around his torso.

"No." she confessed, careful to make sure Noah can't hear her. "But you and I have the rest of the night for me to unload it all on you. You two have twenty minutes, so…" she trailed off, as she pulled back from the hug.

Olivia's heart was shattering piece by piece, the tears she didn't want to fall were now pouring out of her eyes. Her son didn't think twice about confiding in Barba, but he wanted Savina to speak to her.

And Savina, her daughter wasn't talking to her because she didn't feel she was as important as her former partner. And Olivia was the one who made her feel that way.

"He was the only one who didn't treat me like I was just a part of the package that he had to deal with."

Savina's words about Haden rang in her ear as she watched Noah regal Barba with tales of what he missed since they last spoke. She could feel the anger rolling in waves off of Elliot, and the difference between the two men was a slap in the face.

Barba put an effort with Savina and Noah for Savina and Noah, Elliot only ever put any effort with Savina because she and Olivia came in a package. And he didn't even bother to ask about Noah.

"And he actually called to let me know why you two had to end things, others didn't even bother to call and let us know they're still alive."

Savina's dig at Elliot when comparing him to Haden came back to her as well, and the similarity of the situation wasn't lost on her.

She logged out of the feed, and put the iPad back onto the coffee table, as she sunk into the couch.

"Elliot, I don't think we're coming tomorrow," she started, and saw him open his mouth to argue. "I want some space, Elliot. I have let you take over the spotlight in my life for the past 10 months, and it has come at the expense of my children," she continued, "I can't let that happen again."

"Olivia, I'm sorry about that night. I didn't mean to wake Noah, and I certainly didn't mean to scare him." He defended.

"You shouldn't have come, Elliot. If you were lucid enough to remember my address, then you would've remembered your own training, and you should've done whatever protocol dictated. Coming into my home in the middle of the night while my son slept in the other room was not okay; me letting you bash Barba because he took Wheatley was not okay; being so blinded by your return that I forgot who stood by me for a decade when you weren't there was not okay; allowing you to ask about my dating life was not okay…." She listed, before he scoffed derisively.

"You're really taking Barba's side here, Olivia." He shot back angrily.

"You don't know him, Elliot. You don't know the man that I know; the one who is so selfless, so protective, so loving that he's willing to risk me turning my back on him if he took Wheatley on, but he still did it to protect me, my career," she spoke. "And the sad part is, I did turn my back on him. He tried to get me to see his side, but I let your perspective cloud my judgement, let it become my perspective that I accused him of betrayal."

Elliot opened his mouth to say something, when the jingling of keys stopped them both. Olivia quickly wiped her eyes just as two pairs of footsteps were heard. She could hear Noah's excited voice as he talked to Savina about his gift.

They both came into view, and she saw the newest Lego set in Noah's arms.

"Mom, look. Uncle Rafa got it for me," Noah squealed excitedly, as he ran over towards Olivia to show her. "He said we can FaceTime every night to build it together," he announced cheerfully.

Savina was watching them both and studying Olivia. Her mother seemed to suddenly carry the guilt of the world on her shoulders.

"Noah, why don't you go put that away in your room and give us a minute?" Savina suggested.

"Are you gonna get upset again?" he asked her.

"No, honey, I won't." She told him.

"Can I use your noise-canceling headphones then?" he smiled cheekily at her, and she couldn't help but chuckle.

"Yes, you can."

He fist bumped the air, as he quickly bounded towards the back of the apartment.

"That's your present," Savina started, as she handed Olivia a gift bag, "if you won't use it, just leave it on my bed." She instructed. "I guess I'll see you tomorrow, don't wait up."

With that, she turned around to leave.

"Sweetheart, wait," Olivia called, as she moved around Elliot. She was happy when Savina stopped and turned around towards her. "I…I'm so sorry."

It was all she could think to say at the moment. She knew they had a lot to talk about, but she couldn't let her daughter go out on Christmas eve mad at her.

At Savina's questioning gaze, she elaborated. "You shouldn't have had to keep it from me that Noah woke up that night; you shouldn't have to tip-toe around me when you wanna talk; you shouldn't have to spend Christmas with someone you don't like."

Savina frowned at the first two examples, was about to ask if Barba texted Olivia while they were in the elevator when she spotted the iPad on the coffee table, and it dawned on her.

"You were watching us?" Savina inquired incredulously. "You lost faith in him that much?" Savina breathed in disbelief.

Olivia shook her head adamantly. "No, of course not. I know he would never hurt either of you, he would do anything to keep you both safe," Olivia assured her. "I think I needed to see a few things for myself." She alluded.

"When Mass is over, if I'm not home yet just text me. We can talk before bed tonight," Savina suggested.

Elliot chuckled humorlessly, causing both Bensons to look at him.

"Something on your mind?" Savina wondered.

"You don't think you'll be back by the time Mass is over," he started, "what exactly is the nature of your relationship?" he inquired, the suggestive tone not lost on either of them.

Olivia was shocked that his mind would go there, while Savina was debating whether she should simply punch him, call him a pervert or be calm about this.

The 'Rafael Barba' in her won. "He's the one who was at my bedside in a heartbeat when I was hospitalized; who was at my beck and call while my mother was recovering from a horrific experience; one that you didn't bother to call even Finn to offer some help. And don't bother denying that you knew because with three adult children living here, it would simply be a pathetic attempt at best. In short, he's the father I always wished I had." She spoke calmly.

She knew the last declaration would cause some pain with Olivia, and she figured she can address that later, but she knew it would be the perfect rebuttal to Elliot's twisted allegations. And also the perfect insult, since Elliot wasn't it for her, but a man without children was.

"I'll see you tonight," she told Olivia, kissing her cheek softly, before she left the apartment.

Olivia had been studying Elliot closely as Savina spoke and saw the truth of her words about Lewis written across her face.

"Are you sure he didn't groom her?" he asked Olivia, once the door closed behind Savina. "I mean, you can't be too careful after that bastard Lowe." He told her.

"Barba is not Barton Lowe! He's not a predator, nor is he a danger to Savina or Noah." She shot back forcefully. "But it seems you are," she told him, "You shouldn't have come here when you were undercover, you could've put me, my son and my daughter in danger," her voice had gone from a shocked whisper to her 'Captain' tone, "you only care about yourself, Elliot. You claim to care about me, about Savina, about Noah. But like she said, you didn't even bother to check in on us when Lewis attacked, twice. But Rafa, he was here for all of it. Even when he left the job, he had the decency to let me know. And he didn't walk out of my life. And he didn't give me a letter that was dictated by his wife!" she spat the last sentence.

"Olivia…" he started, but she raised her hand.

"I think you should leave. And I think you should give me some space; you have a unit you can ask for help when you need it. I am not your junior detective anymore; I am not your partner. I have my own unit, my own family, my own life….and you are no longer the center of it." She told him, as she walked back towards the door.

"Good night, Elliot. And Merry Christmas." She said with finality, as she pulled the door open.

"Merry Christmas, Liv." He said softly, as he walked out the door.

She closed the door behind him and rested her forehead against it. She still had a few difficult conversations in her future, but she suddenly felt lighter.

She was hoping she hadn't completely ruined it with Barba.


So, I haven't really seen any OC episodes, and I skipped all the crossovers. If you can't tell already, I am NOT a Stabler fan, so I wasn't going to endure his presence again.

I haven't seen Barba's return either because I don't want to hate Olivia when I am still writing two stories about her, but she did need to get some sense knocked into her, and thought Savina would be perfect to do it.

This isn't really a sequel to Those Bonds We Make, as that will probably NOT follow canon.

If there's enough interest in this, I may post another chapter with Olivia's talk with Barba