EPILOGUE

'You'll like her, she's a great person and a fantastic detective,' said Cragen, leading the way through the precinct's maze of corridors. 'You transferred in from, what was it again, Queens Homicide?'

'Narcotics,' corrected Detective Christine Keller with a smile. 'I'm really looking forward to working with Detective Benson. I've heard a lot about her.'

'Yes.' Cragen paused and lowered his voice. 'Look, you might as well know. You're her first permanently assigned partner since she came back to work three months ago. She and her old partner worked together for nearly fourteen years, and they were very close.'

'What happened? He transfer out?'

Cragen tried to think how best to put this. 'He... well, he died.' Christine's jaw dropped and Cragen nodded. 'She was there. She saw the whole thing. There's only so much that she's told us, but the EMTs found her unconscious on the floor clinging onto him. He was already dead by the time they got there, and to be honest, given the amount of blood she lost, it's a miracle that she survived.'

'That's awful.' Christine couldn't think of anything else to say. She and her first partner back when she had joined Narcotics had been quite close, and it had been hard enough for her when he was killed in a botched drugs bust after just six months on the job with him.

'I know. He was a great detective and an important part of the unit. He's left a huge gap behind.'

'Well, I'll try and make the transition as easy as possible,' Christine assured him. 'For the first few days you'll barely know I'm here.'

Cragen smiled at her. 'Your captain said you were good.' They reached the doors of the squadroom and he paused again. 'I think you and Liv will make a great team. She's incredibly gifted at working with victims.'

'I hope so,' replied Christine. 'So, what's the plan in there?'

'Well, they all know you're coming, so I'd just go in and sit down and wait for them to come to you. All of us really liked Elliot. It'll take some time to get used to somebody else sitting in his chair.'

'Elliot Stabler?' Christine knew the name but somehow hadn't connected it with Detective Benson and this particular unit.

'Yes, that's right.' Cragen was mildly impressed. This girl knew her stuff, at least, even if she had transferred in from Queens.

'Wow. He and Detective Benson must have made quite a team,' said Christine.

'They did.' Cragen opened the door for her. 'But I think you two will as well, in time. She might be a little... prickly at first, so just give her some time to get used to you. Also, don't mind Detective Munch. He's rather... unique. Unusual.'

Christine laughed. 'Like that guy who hangs out outside the courthouse shouting at that tree?'

Cragen looked straight at her. 'More so.' He gestured to Olivia and then quickly retreated to his office to wait it out. He knew enough to know that he had to let Olivia handle this in her own way. After the previous few months, he'd consider it a roaring success if it ended with anything less than a fit of hysterics.

Olivia made her way reluctantly across the room towards Christine and stuck out her hand to shake. 'Detective Olivia Benson. Nice to meet you.' She didn't exactly sound sincere.

Christine ignored it and shook her hand anyway. 'Wonderful to meet you too, I'm-'

'Cragen told me your name,' interrupted Olivia. They stood in silence for a couple of seconds. Christine glanced down awkwardly and briefly noticed the end of a jagged scar visible above the neckline of Olivia's top, before Olivia yanked it up impatiently. 'A perp cut me,' she said abruptly, crossing her arms protectively in front of her.

'I once got stabbed in the leg with a lawn ornament,' offered Christine.

The corner of Olivia's mouth twitched. 'A lawn ornament?'

'Yes, when I was a rookie. I was chasing a car thief through Queens, got him cornered in someone's back yard, and he grabbed out for anything he could use as a weapon. Turned out to be a giant smiling flower ornament sticking out of the ground.'

There was another awkward silence. Olivia cleared her throat. 'You get him?'

'Yeah. Hit him with an ornamental gnome.' Christine smiled.

Olivia hesitated, and then smiled back. 'Why'd you transfer in? Cragen said you were Narcotics. That's a bit of a change.'

'Well, I saw so many women while I was working in Narcotics who had been assaulted by the men in the drugs gangs, and I wanted to help them and women like them. Sex was being used as a weapon, and that wasn't right. It just... bothered me.' Christine shrugged. 'It seemed more important somehow. I was going to work every day and wishing I could spend more time working with those women, and eventually my captain suggested a transfer to SVU.'

'You ought to talk to Fin,' said Olivia. 'He was Narcotics. You two could trade war stories.'

'I'll do that.' Christine shifted uncomfortably on the spot, wondering how to approach this. 'Look, Captain Cragen told me, and... I just wanted to say that I'm really sorry what happened to your partner. Even though I never met him myself, I knew of Detective Stabler by reputation.'

'Elliot was a great detective.' Olivia swallowed quickly and bit her lip. 'I miss having him around to help me out.'

'I know. It must have been awful.'

Olivia nodded. 'Yes.' She took several deep breaths and wiped the back of her hand across her eyes. Shit. Crying was the one thing she'd vowed not to do today. Christine put a reassuring hand on Olivia's arm and Olivia tensed, but didn't shake her off. 'I'm glad I was there though. I owe him a lot for everything he did for me. I'm a better person for what I learned from El. He helped me a lot.' She swallowed again. 'It's only right I was there.'

Christine understood. 'I know what you mean. My first partner in Narcotics died and I never could get over that I wasn't there to help, even though I couldn't have done anything. It's tough, and it's hard to make anyone on the outside understand.' She hesitated, and then decided to just go for it. 'Look, do you want to go and get a cup of coffee, get to know each other before we start working?'

Olivia nodded again. 'Yes. Yes, that sounds good. I'd like that.'

A/N: That's it, guys! I hope you all enjoyed it. I've still got a few others on the go and one or two in development right now, so if you liked this, there is still hope! Thanks to all the lovely reviewers, your feedback was invaluable.

(extra Meloni Fan Bonus Points if you spotted the Oz reference.)