Chapter 7: Custody
A/N: Did any Phoenix Wright fans catch VonKarma in this story? For those who don't know, she's a prosecutor from Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney. Thank you for the reviews on the last chapter! They motivated me to outline the rest of the story (yay for having some general direction!) Anyway, as always, read and review. Enjoy! ~platarozaluna. p.s. I've gone completely internet-y. I started a blog: "samsalena" on blogspot and I plan to put some story-related stuff on there, so, if you have a minute, check it out!
"Doing okay?" Rose asked, laying a comforting hand on Elliot's shoulder. He nodded quickly and bent down to get a drink from the water fountain in the respondents lobby. He leaned back against the wall and sighed heavily. "You don't sound alright," she said.
"I'm getting too old for this, Rose," he replied wearily. He looked completely and utterly defeated.
"Too old? You've been through so much. Don't give up now," she urged him.
"That's exactly it. I'm done with fighting," he sighed and slumped down on the bench in front of the courtroom, his head in his heads. Rose sat beside him and slipped an arm around his shoulders. Olivia made to join him, but Jack held her back.
"What are you doing?" she protested.
"Look," he said and she followed his gaze to Elliot and Rose on the bench. "If you always interfere, he'll never learn to trust her," he explained.
"Since when did you get to be so wise?"
"Since I -know- people."
Rose's head snapped up when the door to the courtroom opened. The bailiff stepped out.
"A verdict has been reached," he announced blandly, not expressing a trace of emotion to let her know either way.
"Come on, El, they're going to announce a verdict," she said and he got to his feet slowly as though he were made of lead and being taken to his execution. He sat back down at the respondents table and his eyes followed Rose back to her seat. He felt in his jacket packet, his fingers locking around a small rounded object. Olivia's badge. He prayed more than he had in a long time that he wouldn't lose them. He couldn't lose them, or he would have nothing left worth living for.
"After much deliberation, a verdict has been reached. The jury does not rule solely for the plaintiff or the respondent, but rather, a form of joint custody. Since the plaintiff is a stay-at -home mother not working long hours, she will have custody of the three youngest children, while the respondent has custody of the two older ones. Visitation schedules to be worked out between parties. Case dismissed," the judge read aloud and slammed down his gavel. Elliot didn't know exactly who had won or lost, so he remained where he was, donning a rather blank expression until he felt Rose's hand on his forearm.
"Hey dad, I'm going to get some stuff from mom's, I'll drive Kathleen over later," Maureen said out in the hallway and Elliot only nodded. When he saw Kathy shepherding his three younger children out of the courthouse, all he could think to say was
"You won."
"It'll be alright, El. You have visitation rights by law," Rose reminded him gently.
"Not the point," he grumbled, casting her hand away.
"Do you want to go get lunch or something?" she asked, thinking he could do well to relax a bit.
"No," he snapped more sharply than he had intended. There was somewhere else he needed to be.
A delicate breeze rustled the browning leaves on the trees, causing several to fall to the ground and crunch beneath his feet. It was a beautiful cemetery, he had to give it that. The air was crisp with a note of autumn to it. Fall had always been her favorite season-not too hot and not too cold, corn fields, pumpkins, Halloween, warm apple cider...she'd loved it all. He didn't even have to look for it...his feet carried him there of their own accord. Olivia Isabelle Benson. Somehow seeing it carved into the granite made it feel all the more real that she was never coming back. He traced the letters with his right index finger...thinking sadly about how cold they were. "I miss you," he whispered gently into the air. The wind whistled ominously, causing the branches of the oak trees to scrape against each other mournfully, as if they missed her too. Suddenly, the wind began to whip more rapidly and he heard a set of chimes chinking together in the distance. Thunder echoed around him and he hurried to his car before the storm moved in.
A/N: That was a short chapter, but I thought that was a good place to cut it off. Chapter 8 is a work in progress. I'm going to skip forward in time again—about a month or so I think. Get ready to imagine El in a pirate costume at a kindergarten Halloween party. I know the kids ages aren't proportioned as they should be, but let's say for the sake of this story that Eli is in kindergarten, Lizzie and Dickie are in fourth grade, Kathleen is a ninth grader and Maureen is a junior.
