A/N: If you thought that the Lizzie Stabler arc was dramatic, hold on to your fucking hats, motherfuckers.

Stussy: If he shows up in the story, that is. He might make a brief cameo, but, as you'll find out, this arc isn't the main deal of the story.

steple: Wait, that's actually a wonderful idea maybe I should do that. I can bring Calvin back that way (woo!) Have I mentioned that I've never actually seen any episodes with Barba but I only know who he is due to the Law and Order Prosecutor Hotness Rankings on Buzzfeed? I hope my Alex can compare, but unfortunately, I'm gonna be fucking shit up this chapter. But thank you for your very kind words, they make me smile :)

Beyond The Sea x: You have no idea how much I love you for taking time out of your awesome story writing to review my fic! I'm a big fan :) And personally, I drive a BMW. 6 weeks old and needs a part replaced. Reliability my ass.

Shout out to AlOlLove and Liv-x-Case-Benson, although they don't write A/C (actually I lied, the latter has a few very lovely little pieces), their work has served as inspiration for getting me into the fandom, and the writing of this fic.


"Objection, Your Honor!" Alex jumped up from her chair. "The witness was not present for any of the aforementioned meetings, anything he says would be hearsay."

"Sustained. Watch your step, counselor." The judge warned the defense attorney. Alex was prosecuting a corrupt employee of the State Treasurer's Office, who had been caught embezzling. She had a slam-dunk case, and she expected a guilty verdict within 2 hours of deliberation. The People had rested their case earlier that morning, and the defense was on their last witness, an assistant to a co-worker of the defendant.

"No further questions, Your Honor." The defense attorney skulked back to the defendant's table, defeated.

"Your witness, Ms. Cabot." The judge beckoned Alex.

Alex rose, taking purposeful steps, her heels clicking loudly on the wooden floor of the courtroom. It was a favorite tactic of hers to establish presence, and intimidate witnesses. "You had access to the details of the account, correct?"

"Yes. I did." The witness replied calmly.

"On August 12th, did you review the status of the account?" she questioned.

"Yes."

"And what did you find?"

"There had been six withdrawals of roughly ten-thousand dollars each."

"Do you know who made those withdrawals?" She stepped closer, her voice softening.

"I do."

"Is the person who made the withdrawals in the courtroom?"

"Yes."

"Can you please point to the person who made the withdrawals?"

The witness pointed to the defendant.

"Let the record show that the witness has identified the defendant." Alex called to the stenographer. Turning back to the witness stand, she resumed her questions. "Who did you report these withdrawals to?"

"I-I didn't report them to anyone." The witness's face reddened.

"So you didn't think to tell anyone when several unauthorized withdrawals were made, to the tune of ten grand each?"

"N-no! What are you accusing me of?" He cried.

"Objection!" The defense attorney began to rise from his chair.

"Withdrawn." Alex interjected before the judge could make a ruling. "Nothing further." She strutted back to her chair, smirk firmly plastered across her face.

"We're in recess until tomorrow." The judge banged his gavel, and Alex was in the middle of gathering her papers when she was passed a note by a courier.

"Meet me in your office." Alex read aloud. Confused, she made her way to her spacious office, where a very stately looking gentleman was seated in the chair in front of her mahogany desk.

"G-Governor Bauer! What a surprise to see you!" Alex was flabbergasted.

"Jack, please. We're gonna get much better acquainted, Alex. Have a seat." The Governor grinned, gesturing to her chair, where she promptly sat.

"So, Jack. What brings you to my office?" Alex inquired.

"You did one hell of a job in there. Such confidence! Such strength in your words! No nonsense!" he praised. "I'd love to have someone like you working for me." he finished with a wink.

"Thank you, but I seriously doubt you came all the way out here to kiss my ass. What do you want from me?" Alex cut to the chase.

Jack chuckled at Alex's seriousness. "See, this is why I like you! Now, you know how the new year will be an election year?"

"Yes, I'm aware of that, Jack. I did pass state government in law school." Alex stated sarcastically.

"Well, I'm running again, but Lieutenant Governor Hadley has decided to announce his retirement. So I'm looking for a new running mate." He gave Alex a toothy smile.

Alex sat stunned for a few seconds before replying. "You want me to be your Lieutenant Governor? Are you absolutely sure?"

The Governor maintained his grin. "Sure as shit, Alex. You're tough, you're ambitious, and don't take no for an answer. As a bonus, you're still young and spry, and the people like voting for someone they relate to. There's nobody I'd trust more to be my second-in-command."

Alex sighed. "With all due respect, sir, are you sure the voters would be accepting of a lesbian in office?"

"Well, they certainly thought a lesbian Attorney General was no problem. You were elected, too, remember?" he replied.

"Look, Jack. This is a lot. I have a baby on the way, and now that we can get married, I have to pop the question. Can I at least think about this?" Alex asked.

Jack seemed nonplussed by Alex's reaction. "Certainly! How is that kid of yours, anyhoo?"

This time, Alex smiled. "As a matter of fact, I have to go pick up Casey, we have a doctor's appointment today."

The Governor clapped his hands as Alex turned to leave. "Kiss your girl for me, will ya? Happy Holidays!"

Alex felt especially romantic today, so on her way to Casey's practice, she stopped by the flower shop, and picked up a white rose. Silently slipping into her office, she overheard her girlfriend loudly yelling with Sherri.

"If Kressler files one more goddamn motion, I swear, I'll dust off my softball bat and bash his balls in!"

"I know! Lizzie's been waiting a month for trial, and she won't be able to get on with her life until Kressler stops this bullshit!" Sherri hollered back. Neither noticed when Alex dropped the rose on Casey's desk, and swiftly wrapped her arms around the redhead, dropping a few quick kisses on her neck.

Casey jumped, but broke into a wide grin when she saw who was behind her. "Hey baby! You scared me! You should know better than to frighten a pregnant lady!" She mock chastised, kissing Alex's perfectly shaped lips.

Alex grinned. "But you love me anyway." She kissed her again, slower and sweeter, resting her forehead on her girlfriend's.

Casey noticed the rose on her desk for the first time. "Is this for me? This is so sweet of you, Lex! God, I love you! Thank you!" She stood up and hugged the Attorney General, a couple of tears pricking her eyes, which Alex was quick to wipe away. "Sorry, hormones strike again!" She joked. "Let me go get a vase for this, then we can go!" She kissed Alex's cheek before sauntering out of the room. From her desk, Sherri had a stupid grin on her face after watching the exchange.

"You're certainly romantic today." She snickered. "Who knew that the Attorney General was a sap?"

Alex rolled her eyes. "I can still call your ass before the bar. Remember that." She moved towards the coat hook, grabbing Casey's coat as she returned to the room with a vase.

"Alex, be nice to my partner! Or I won't let the doctor tell you if it's a boy or a girl!" She threatened.

Alex feigned shock. "You wouldn't dare!" She held Casey's pea coat out, slipping the sleeves over her arms, before buttoning it up and kissing her forehead. "Shall we?" she took Casey's hand.

"We shall!" Casey winked, walking out with her girlfriend.

"Good luck, you two!" Sherri called out as they left.

As Alex pressed the button on her key to unlock the car, Casey noticed her hand quivering. "Hey, you're shaking." She took the key. "You seem nervous, I'll drive."

They got into the car wordlessly. As she started the engine, Casey groaned. "Sorry you had to hear that. That bastard Ethan somehow managed to afford Nathan fucking Kressler's rate, and he's putting us all in motion hell. At this rate, Lizzie's case won't go to trial until our kid starts kindergarten."

Alex didn't look over. "I agree, that sounds awful. How's Lizzie doing?"

Casey's mood visibly lightened at the mention of her young client. "She's been taking it tough, but she's doing a lot better than she was. She's staying with Liv and Calvin, and they've gotten to be such good friends. I managed to get her a restraining order against him, as well as filed a civil suit, which I expect him to settle if he knows what's good for him." She paused before continuing. "I've also been talking to her about what he did. More than anything, she just needs to hear that she isn't alone and she's gonna be okay from someone who's been there. I really don't mind being her shoulder to cry on. In fact, it makes me feel better about what happened to me, to be helping someone like I wish someone helped me."

Alex didn't respond. After a few minutes, Casey gently prodded her girlfriend. "You wanna tell me what's got you so worked up? It was only last month that I was the nervous wreck, and you got me through that."

Alex chewed on her lower lip. "Governor Bauer spoke to me today after court."

Casey's ears pricked. "Oh?"

Alex nodded. "He came to me to ask about next year. He wants me to be his running mate."

"Alex! That's so incredible and amazing and I don't even know what else to call it! Congratulations honey!" Casey was positively beaming at her girlfriend. "I'm so very proud of you right now, if I weren't driving, I'd be spinning you around and loving you until you begged me to stop!" She reached for the blonde's hand. "Please tell me you accepted?"

Alex inhaled. "I told him I'd think about it. You know, with Star Hitter coming along." She smiled at her nickname.

"Bullshit, Alex." Casey warned. "There's more to it than that. Keep talking."

Alex turned to look at Casey. "I guess I'm afraid of what we're gonna hear today. What if something is wrong? I couldn't possibly put you or Star Hitter on the back burner to run for office. You're far too important to me." She stroked Casey's cheek.

Casey nuzzled into her hand. "It'll be okay. You spent so much time helping me to believe that. And don't let me hold you back from doing something awesome. I want you to call him when you get home and tell him you accept. Just imagine, this little one having a very, very sexy Lieutenant Governor for a mama."

Alex smiled. "I love you."

Casey stopped at a red light, and turned to look at her. "I love you."

The last few minutes of the drive were spent in comfortable silence. They made their way into the office, and curled into each other while sitting in the waiting room, Alex stroking Casey's ruby locks, while Casey ran her thumb along Alex's hand. When they were called back, they were led not to an exam room, but the doctor's office. After a few minutes, Casey's doctor came in, and sat down at her desk, envelope in hand.

"Good afternoon, ladies." Dr. Koenig began. "Your amniocentesis results are ready."

Casey grabbed Alex's hand, and squeezed.

Laying the paperwork in front of them, she started to explain what they meant. "Alright, so this is your baby's karyotype. It's a visual representation of all your baby's chromosomes, which we use to determine major disorders, as well as gender."

Alex studied it through her glasses. "So do you know the gender?"

Dr. Koenig nodded. "Yes, see this pair of chromosomes at the end? These are the chromosomes that determine gender, and the first one is the X chromosome. If they look the same, it means your baby has two X chromosomes, and is a girl. If they look different, it means that the other chromosome is a Y chromosome, and the baby is a boy. Your baby has two X chromosomes."

"So we're having a girl?" Casey was ecstatic.

"Yes, you will be having a daughter."

Alex and Casey were grinning ear to ear, and they embraced, sharing a quick kiss. Casey turned back to the lab work. "I can't believe it. We're having a little girl." Her eyes rested on the doctor's, which seemed conflicted. "There's more isn't there?" Her heart sunk.

The doctor maintained her professional facade. "If you'll turn your attention to the twenty-first pair of chromosomes." She pointed to them with her pen.

Alex examined it closely. "It looks like there are three of them?"

The doctor kept a straight face. "That's correct. It's called Trisomy 21."

Casey and Alex looked at each other, and it was Casey who found the courage to speak. "What does that mean?"

Dr. Koenig composed herself, choosing her next words carefully. "There is no easy way for me to say this, and believe me, I wish I didn't have to. Ms. Cabot, Ms. Novak, your daughter has Down Syndrome."