Notes: Hey readers! I just wanted to let you all know that I am currently re-writing Partners! I have gone over this story so many times and found some mistakes that I really want to fix. So, without further delay... here is chapter two!

Disclaimer: I own nothing related to Transformers. Hasbro owns them. Not me.

Important terms:
Cervical fracture - broken neck
"Bag and tag" - collecting evidence and then "tagging" them with the appropriate information

"Are you ready for your first crime scene, inspector?"

"I think so, sir."

Orion lifted up the yellow crime scene tape and entered the alleyway, scrunching his nose at the smell that proceeded to assault him. Lacey coughed several times before she held her hand to her own nostrils and mouth. Despite living in London for most of her life, the inspector had to admit that Boston was very different. Orion eventually made past the smell and cast his eyes over to the dumpster where two of the investigators were searching through. The captain beckoned for Lacey to follow him. The two approached the body where the medical examiner, Ryan Hawthorne, kneeled over the young woman.

"Nice for you to grace us with your presence, captain," Ryan grumbled, hazel eyes narrowed. He was a man in early forties with dark brown hair with flecks of gray. He also had wrinkles growing at the temples due to his constant frowning and scowling. "I know the dead aren't always as fun as paperwork but at least they make life interesting." He looked up at the captain and then to Lacey. He pulled off one of his latex gloves. "And who might you be?"

Just as Orion was about to introduce the inspector, she beat him to it. "Detective Inspector Lacey Barton of London's Metropolitan Police. Chief Parks placed me to work under Captain Paxton," she said, shaking Ryan's hand. "Do you mind if I take a quick look at the body?"

Ryan gestured for her to kneel down. "By all means," he said.

Lacey knelt down and began her own assessment, pulling a pair of her own latex gloves from her back pocket and slipping them on. She then began to pick at the clothing, catching small fibers from the dress. The medical examiner stood up and then pulled Orion off to the side. When they were a few feet away, Ryan turned to the captain with a quirked brow and curious expression.

"London?" he asked surprised. "When did this happen?"

Orion lifted his gaze up to his friend and said, "This morning. Chief Parks felt the inspector would be a great asset to the precinct." He folded his arms over his chest. "He failed to mention that she would be the equivalent of a partner."

That quickly perked Ryan's curiosity by the obvious quirked brow. "A partner?" the examiner said. Ryan was working with Orion when the incident happened and he was just as surprised then as he was now. The doctor shifted his gaze over to the inspector before returning to Orion. "And, what do you think?"

Orion shrugged. "I'm not sure," he admitted. "We will just have to see what happens at this point."

As for Lacey, she bagged and tagged fibers, hair, and other items from the body and then handed them to one of the technicians to take. He had a confused expression and looked over to Ryan who simply mouthed to him, "She's new." The technician shrugged and then walked away, leaving Lacey to continue her investigation.

The blonde looked over at the corpse and bent down. Something felt different about this body, something felt off about her. However, she just couldn't put a finger on it. The woman tilted the corpse's neck to the side and gasped when she saw a small jagged L carved behind the girl's ear. Taking in the time of death and the dried blood on the victim's neck into account, this was done after she was killed.

"Doctor? I think you might want to take a look at this," Lacey called. Ryan and Orion walked over and crouched down next to the inspector. The medical examiner looked at the wound and nodded.

"Good observation, inspector," he murmured. Ryan motioned for one of the crime scene techs to take photos of the newly discovered wound. He then shooed the young female tech away and went back to inspecting the body.

"Cause of death?" Orion asked as he got to his feet. Lacey pulled off her latex gloves and ran a hand through her hair.

"Cervical fracture," Ryan stated. He pointed to the bruising around the corpse's neck. "There's distinctive bruising here so I'm assuming he was strangling her before he decided to break her neck."

"What about the time of death?" Lacey asked.

"Based on liver temperature, I would say your victim died between 12 and 1 a.m. this morning," Ryan answered. "Then again, I won't know any more until I take her back to the morgue. Adler!" He whistled for his assistant, Finn Adler, to help him. Finn was a fresh-faced young man, with floppy red hair and full-rimmed glasses. Ryan stood up and said, "If you will excuse us."

Orion and Lacey left the medical examiner to finish his work while his assistant and another technician helped move the body onto the gurney. They loaded the body into the medical examiner's truck and drove off in the direction of the precinct.

"Morning, captain," a male voice said.

Orion turned to see his senior detective, Preston Novak, approaching with an evidence bag that contained a cellphone and wallet. He was in his early thirties, black-brown hair, and amber eyes. The detective pulled out the wallet from the bag and grabbed the woman's driver's license.

"Morning, detective," Orion said in return. "Do you have an ID on the victim?"

Preston nodded and handed Orion the thin card. "Victim is Jillian Monaghan, age twenty-one, and an art major at UMass Boston. She was out with friends at the nightclub Good Life when she went outside to make a phone call; she never came back," he said. His eyes shifted over to Lacey who was looking over Orion's shoulder, taking a quick peek at the license.

"Has anyone talked to the victim's friends?" Orion asked as he handed back the license to Preston.

The detective nodded. "Esposito and Underwood have already gone to meet with the victim's friends. They said they would call if anything came up. And I've already talked to a few of the bartenders at the nightclub to see who was working last night." Preston said. He slipped the license into the wallet and then back into the evidence bag.

"Did they say anything about anyone paying particular attention to Miss Monaghan?" Lacey asked.

Preston cleared his throat and then directed his attention to Lacey. "No, according to them, she kept close with her friends until she went outside. They never saw her come back into the club," the detective replied. "They assumed she took a cab home."

Orion nodded. "Call Edwards and have him run a trace on the last number she called," he said. He then noticed Preston's gaze was set on Lacey. The captain cleared his throat and gestured to the inspector beside him, once again having to introduce the new recruit to another member of his precinct. "Detective Novak, this is Detective Inspector Lacey Barton from London. Inspector, my senior detective, Preston Novak."

Preston sent the blonde woman a respectable nod and shook her hand. "It's a pleasure to meet you, Inspector. I take it this is your first crime scene in the States?" he asked once they broke the handshake.

Lacey nodded. "It is. I was surprised that it was a murder," she replied.

"Well, I hope that this investigation will be quick," Preston said to Lacey. He turned to Orion, his expression turned serious. "I spoke to the manager of the nightclub and he said he would turn over security tapes from last night. I'll have Atchison take a look of those tapes."

The captain nodded. "Of course. That'll be all, Novak," he said.

Preston bowed his head and left the pair standing in the middle of the alleyway. A few of the technicians continued to bag and tag other pieces of evidence like gum wrappers and other samples while others took photographs of the crime scene. The captain watched them before he began to look around the alleyway, in search for any other clues. His eyes looked over the alley's walls and took in all the graffiti that was littered on the red brick. There was a great deal of stains and smudges on the walls, samples of them had already been taken by the field techs.

"I think he was hiding behind the dumpster before he grabbed her, captain," Lacey said aloud. The captain turned to face the inspector who was standing near the dumpster. "There's no other place he could have been hiding." She pointed in the direction of the captain. "She would've seen him because of the street lamps."

Orion turned around and saw the two street lamps, one by the alleyway's entrance and another near the end of the alley. The captain and inspector strode towards the dumpster where Orion knelt down. He searched for any signs of the killer's presence but found nothing. Not even a candy bar wrapper. For a dumpster, it was pretty clean. He looked up at Lacey and then stood up.

"Then he wasn't waiting long. He must've spotted her in the club and left before she went outside," Orion said. "He didn't leave the murder weapon behind so he must've taken it with him." He checked his watch and looked to Lacey. "We best get back to the precinct and notify next of kin."

The two left the crime scene and drove back to the station. After going through the standard security procedure and paperwork they made their way to the elevators. Lacey leaned against the wall of the elevator while Orion pressed the button for the fourth floor. When the doors closed, Orion stepped back and watched as the numbers began to increase... 1... 2...

"You know," the inspector murmured. "I have to say that your file said that you were - "

Just as they passed the second floor, Orion pressed the emergency stop button on the elevator, causing the lights to go out and the elevator to stop moving. Lacey jerked forward and grabbed onto the elevator's walls in alarm. The emergency power flickered on above them, like a homing beacon. The blonde woman glared at him and straightened her posture.

The captain sharply turned to Lacey. "You read my file?" he asked.

Lacey appeared offended and clenched her hands into tight fists. "I thought it would be best if I read about my future captain rather than be blindsided, sir," she explained. "In fact, it was Chief Parks who sent your file to me. So, before you ask the question, the answer is yes, I do know what happened five years ago. And for that, I want to offer my condolences."

Orion stared at Lacey for a moment, her green eyes meeting his own blue ones. He waited until the inspector pressed the emergency stop button again and the elevator began to move again. The captain remained silent, his eyes now on the elevator doors. Lacey unfolded her arms and dropped them at her sides; this wasn't exactly how she pictured her first day.

Both fell into an awkward silence, unsure of what to say to each other. Orion felt vulnerable after being told his file was read and even worse betrayed his longtime friend would be the one to encourage it. Some things were meant to never see the light of day again. He was sure to bring that issue up when he and Chief Parks met again.

The elevator came to a rumbling stop soon after, the doors squeaking open to show the booking floor of the precinct, although something seemed really out of place. Especially when a brutish man with wide eyes and his hands cuffed behind his back ran around the corner and, made a beeline for the two of them with a red-faced officer appearing behind him. "SOMEONE STOP HIM!" Another man bellowed as a second officer appeared.

"Inspector - "

Orion made a grab for her in hopes of pulling her out of the way but the inspector was too quick for him. Instead, she rushed forward and took the captain by surprise. As the large man approached them, the blonde woman slid forward and took out the large man at the knees. He fell forward and hit the ground but that didn't seem to stop him. He managed to get to his feet again, lunging at Lacey again who dodged his attack and punched him hard in the jaw. The sudden blow stumbled back but did not fall this time. Before he could make one last attempt, she sprang forward, grabbed the man's cuffed wrists, twisted them and shoved him onto the ground, face-first. She straddled his waist and let out a string of curses under her breath as she continued to shove his face into the tile floor. When the two officers approached, Lacey got back up to her feet and motioned for the duo to take the convict away. The two officers slowly drug him to his feet again and pulled him away from the scene.

"Holy shit," said a voice from behind her.

Orion looked up to see Jasper Delaney, head of special operations, with a bewildered look on his dark skinned face. He then folded his arms over his chest and whistled, shaking his head in disbelief. Lacey turned with her cheeks flushed from the sudden burst of adrenaline. She straightened her jacket and took several steps back to stand next to Orion.

"Damn," Jasper said. "Where the hell did ya learn how to fight like that?"

Lacey laughed. "You learn a few things when growing up with three older brothers," she answered shrugging. She strode forward and extended her hand for him to shake. "You must be Lieutenant Jasper Delaney. I'm Detective Inspector Lacey Barton."

"Just call me Jazz," came the reply. Jazz's dark brown eyes flickered with amusement. "So, you're the inspector from London?" He shook her hand. "Yeah, Prowler told me about ya. But he sure as hell didn't say anything about ya being a damn badass." His eyes shifted over to Orion who still stood in shock. "Mind if I recruit her for special ops, cap? Pretty please?"

Orion's expression quickly changed as he composed himself and walked up behind Lacey. "I'm sorry but the inspector is under my command," he said. He lifted his gaze to Lacey who was now massaging her knuckles from the punch she had delivered. "Impressive display there, inspector."

"Thank you, captain," she said with a grimace. Lacey bit her lip. "Now, could I please have an icepack? My hand is starting to throb," she stated with a sheepish smile.

"Of course," Orion turned to Jazz. "Would you take the inspector to get an icepack? If you need me, I will be in my office. I need to notify the next of kin for our victim." The captain quickly left Lacey in the company of the dark-skinned lieutenant who shook his head at the retreating captain.

Jazz then motioned for the inspector to follow him which she gladly did. They made their way into the break room where two other men were sitting drinking coffee. Both were special operations, judging by the amount of gear they were wearing: dark gray cargo pants, black t-shirts, steel-toed combat boots, and an assortment of weapons hidden on their person. One of them, a young man in his early twenties with brown hair, stopped drinking his coffee and looked up at Lacey. His companion, roughly around the same age with black hair, tied into a ponytail, and tanned skin, turned as well and placed his cup on the small table, his dark eyes sweeping over the inspector in mild astonishment. Jazz silently acknowledged the two of them, before grabbing an ice pack from the freezer and handing it to Lacey who placed it on her aching hand. Both men watched her pass, the dark haired man's gaze lasting a little bit longer than his companion.

"I wish you would have told me we were having the company of the womanly sort, Jazz or else I would have changed into more suitable attire for the occasion," an Italian accent flavored his words as he spoke in such a high-mannered way.

His boss shook his head, chuckling. "Only 'cause I know she's way out of ya league, Rossi."

The other man shrugged, looking amused. "It has not stopped me before."

Lacey couldn't help but stare at the man in shock. The brunet smacked his companion on the shoulder and glared at him. "And you wonder why you're still single." His hazel eyes met Lacey's green ones in apology.

"Sorry about my partner," the brunet muttered. He sent the man across him an icy glare. "He doesn't exactly have an off button." His said partner only rolled his dark eyes and drank his coffee in silence.

The inspector removed the ice pack from her hand and laughed. She brushed back her hair and shook her head. Lacey directed her attention to the black haired man and shrugged.

"Oh no, I'm incredibly flattered by your futile attempt but I must, unfortunately, admit that you are not my type. I prefer a man who is both a leader and who is loyal to his men. Not a womanizer," she said with a grin.

The man shrugged not at all fazed, still with a faint smirk on his lips. "Give me time and I can show you just how much of a 'leader' I can be."

The other man moved to smack his friend again but he was quick to duck, catching his hand and pinning it to the table. "Did you really think that was going to work the second time?" he asked him dryly.

Lacey chuckled and placed the ice pack on her hand again. It's like working with children only much more entertaining and less drool, she thought with a smile. She pointed a finger to the man who had been flirting with her. "You must be Mathieu Rossi. And you," she said, turning to the brunet, "must be Blake North." The blonde extended her uninjured hand. "Detective Inspector Lacey Barton; I just transferred from London."

"A pleasure," the newly named Mathieu said. He smirked, took Lacey's hand and shook it firmly.

Blake then shook the inspector's hand after freeing it from his partner's grasp. "First day on the job?" he asked before downing the last of his coffee and tossing it into the trashcan by the door.

"Yes, actually," she replied.

The sniper opened his mouth to speak but was cut off by his commanding officer. "Come on ya two, we better get down to the basement. We got some work to do and that means cleanin' your damn rifle, North." Jazz said, taking a sip of his coffee. The sniper groaned and rolled his eyes much to his friend's amusement. The lieutenant threw the inspector a grin. "I take it ya can make it to Paxton's office on your own?"

The inspector nodded and looked at the three special ops members smiling at them. Jazz led the duo out of the break room, leaving Lacey to continue icing her hand. After the numbing cold started to placate the throbbing, she placed the pack into the freezer again and left the break room, walking down the hall to Orion's office. She poked her head through the door and saw the captain placing his phone on the desk. He looked up at her and gestured to her hand.

"How's your hand?" he asked.

Lacey stepped fully into the office and closed the door behind her. She looked down at her hand and gently moved her fingers. It was sore and was going to be that way for some time, but it too would heal. Orion pulled out a drawer and tossed the inspector a bandage roll. Lacey thanked him and began to wrap her hand with the bandage. When she finished, she slipped off her leather jacket and draped it over her arm.

"It'll be sore but I've been through worse," she replied. "Were you able to contact her parents?"

Orion nodded and stretched. "They should be here tomorrow morning; they're flying out from Michigan," he murmured. He folded his arms behind his head and closed his eyes. "This has always been my least favorite part of the job; telling someone that you lost a child." He unfolded his arms and ran a hand through his hair.

"It's difficult, I know," Lacey spoke. Orion opened his eyes and looked up at the blonde, his expression curious. She stepped closer to the desk and shrugged. "I've never liked it either but it gets easier. Bringing their child's killer to justice is one of the best feelings in the world, captain."

They stood there in silence before the captain's door opened and revealed a young man by the name of Percy Edwards who had sandy blonde hair and glasses. He wore a sweater vest and gray trousers. Orion stood up and Lacey quickly turned to face the young forensic specialist.

"Sir, I ran a trace on the last number your victim called and it came back to a Darren Ward," Percy said, handing the captain a folder. "He has a record and has been arrested on multiple charges but his most recent was assault. He's been in and out of prison since he was twenty."

"Did you already notify Novak?" Orion asked as he skimmed over the file.

Percy nodded. "I did, sir. He's gone to bring Ward in, should be here in an hour."

The captain closed the folder. "Thank you, Mr. Edwards." The young scientist exited the office and closed the door behind him. Lacey looked to Orion who placed the folder on his desk and rolled up the sleeves of his shirt. She slipped on her leather jacket again and folded her arms over her chest.

"What would an art student be doing with a convict?" the inspector asked.

"I'm not sure," came the reply. "But, we'll find out soon enough."

Feel free to leave a few reviews if you want!

Character List:

Ryan Hawthorne: Ratchet
Finn Adler: First Aid
Preston Novak: Prowl
Jasper "Jazz" Delaney: Jazz
Mathieu Rossi: Mirage
Blake North: Bluestreak
Percival "Percy" Edwards: Perceptor