Prompt #74: Elliot left SVU but he is still around New York and, most importantly, Olivia. They start dating and Olivia doesn't really think to mention it to any new team member. Yet one by one, they discover more details about her personal life.

Chapter Note: Reimagined from 13x15 - Hunting Ground

The Ties That Bind

Chapter One

Nick Amaro

~oOo~

He isn't sure what he was expecting to feel, now that he's actually killed someone on the job. Numbness, perhaps, or even anger or sadness at what his actions have wrought. But instead, there's a sense of calm as Cragen goes through the paperwork with him, line by line, informing him what the next steps will be in terms of his review.

'Olivia said it was a good shoot, and I've no doubt that it was,' Cragen's voice interrupts his thoughts. 'So hopefully this will all be sorted quickly, and we'll have you back on the next case as usual.'

Nick nods, his gaze slightly unfocused as he stares at the papers clutched in his fingers, waiting until this is all over. He'd initially rebuffed the idea of taking a few days off, but speaking to Maria over the phone has now lodged a deep desire in his heart to go home and give Zara the biggest hug possible.

He wonders also what it says about him that he doesn't feel guilty about shooting Graham Winger twice in the chest. A terrible man, for sure — one who had hunted down women and murdered them in horrific ways — but a living, breathing human being.

Except, the reason he feels no guilt is sitting at her desk still when he exits Cragen's office, the last team member remaining in the precinct, pretending to be working diligently even though he knows she would have finished her own paperwork a long time ago. Olivia glances over to him, checking his facial expression in a bid to see that he is alright, and then returns her attention to her computer screen.

'All go okay in there?' she asks, her tone falsely casual. Her hand is clenched around a pen, which she taps a bit too aggressively against her notepad as she speaks.

'All fine,' he confirms. 'Cragen's sure it will get reviewed and signed off quickly.'

'Good,' she says firmly. 'That's…good.'

There's more she clearly wants to say, but Cragen takes that moment to interrupt them, locking up his office with his coat in hand.

'What are you two still doing here?' he questions, raising an eyebrow. 'Get home, both of you - that's an order.'

'Yessir,' Olivia says, her lips tilted in a slight smirk as Cragen shakes his head at both of them before he heads for the lift. Together, they silently watch him leave.

Nick starts to pack up his bag, needing to keep his hands busy, even as he feels Olivia's gaze on his face. She shuffles over, perching on the edge of her desk as she surveys his own.

'I wanted to say thanks, again,' she says softly after a few seconds have passed. 'I know it's not easy doing what you did, so…sorry that you had to do it.'

He looks at her then, at the shining dark eyes she has trained on his, at the shadows that lurk behind her stare. She had been the one facing the barrel of the gun, her life flashing before her eyes. He wonders what she thought about in that instant, if she had any regrets or had simply accepted her fate.

'Sorry you were left alone in that place,' he murmurs, raising his arm to gently bump a fist against her shoulder. 'Should have stayed there and had your back.'

It's something that has been running through his mind since he got back to the precinct, the 'what if' question. What if he hadn't been there to take the shot? What if he had been a bit slower to discover the crawlspace? What if he had lost his Olivia because he ran into the woods rather than remained to help her with Hayley?

He doesn't know quite what he had originally expected of his new partner when he decided to transfer to the Manhattan SVU, but the Olivia Benson he had met on that first day had not fit any image that he'd held in his mind beforehand.

He'd heard about her, of course. Her and this entire unit — where instead of the average two-year career lifespan in special victims, the majority of the detectives had remained for years and years instead. He had figured they must be a bit crazy, or ridiculously dedicated, and either way, he had been filled with more anticipation than he'd ever admit now when his request to transfer had been approved.

There were rumors of his new team too, he'd been aware, because the NYPD is filled with some of the world's biggest gossipers. Grumbles about a Detective Elliot Stabler, who was either a savior of the innocent, or a violent, unpredictable crusader, depending on the person telling the story. A few months before he joined, there had been a shooting at the 1-6, and Nick knows that one of the key reasons a new position had even opened up in the first place had been because Stabler had quit the force in response. A young girl had died, and he guesses even the most seasoned, toughest cop could stumble after being responsible for that bloodshed, even if not everyone in the force had such a kind opinion.

'Poor Stabler,' some people would say, with a sad shake of their head. 'He was so traumatized, that he had to walk away from the job after all this time!'

'It was a bad shoot,' other people whispered, their voices soaked in judgment. 'The only reason he quit was that IAB would have had his badge anyway.'

Those were not the most salacious of stories, however. No, those were the ones where the name Stabler went side-by-side with the name Benson. Benson and Stabler, a tale of partners that were too close, a torrid affair, a jealous wife, and an ultimatum…While their names had casually been dropped into some conversations in the past, after the shooting these rumors seemed to take on a life of their own.

'Did you see Benson over at the 1-6?' one of his Narcotics buddies had asked another colleague, three days before his transfer. 'She's become a full Ice Queen now…guess cos she ain't getting fucked by her partner anymore.'

And maybe the stories were true — Nick had known other cops who had made bad decisions in their personal lives, including poorly-concealed affairs with colleagues. But he had been determined to start off his position in the new team on the right foot, which meant disregarding inflammatory rumors, no matter how much the angry, closed-off woman he meets on his first day very much gives the impression of someone going through a rough breakup or other personal issue.

'Can I ask you something?' he had asked Fin in those early days. 'What was the deal with Benson's partner? I…heard some things.'

Fin had shrugged, taking his question in good faith but clearly too smart to expand on any details himself.

'He was a good cop,' is all he had said. 'Him and Benson were together for 12 years. That's a decade longer than my marriage.'

Nick hadn't asked about Stabler again. And within a few months of getting to know her rather prickly persona, he had noticed Olivia softening somewhat — she'd been happier, calmer, less likely to bite the head off any of their suspects if pushed too far.

Now, of course, they work together if not seamlessly, then as good, steady partners. There's respect there — he has her back, and she has his.

Although he had almost failed on that task today, even as she shakes her head to rebuff his apology.

'Not your fault,' she grumbles. 'You were trying to find Winger.'

And yet, Winger had found her instead. Nick is suddenly filled not only with calmness over the fact he'd shot the man, but relief as well.

'It was a happy ending to the case,' she continues, straightening up and starting to gather her own belongings together. 'Hayley is alive and going to make a full recovery. Let's be grateful at that, and go home after this long, long day.'

The quiet atmosphere of the precinct allows the ding of the elevator to echo through the room, and they both look up expectantly. Nick imagines it's Cragen, returning to collect something he had forgotten.

Instead, a tall man strides into the room at a hurried pace, a leather jacket stretched across his shoulders, and a worried frown etched onto his face. He's not the usual type of person to be visiting SVU, and certainly not at this hour of the evening. Nick slides instinctively in front of Olivia, catching her slightly startled response out of the corner of his eye.

'Olivia,' the man calls out, ignoring Nick completely. 'Fin rang me. What the hell happened out there?'

Olivia lays her hand briefly on Nick's arm before stepping around him and towards the man, who has no problem walking close and grasping her biceps gently, as he focuses a laser-like gaze at her.

'El, what are you doing here..?' she murmurs, and Nick pieces together two things in quick succession — firstly, that she knows this man well, else she would have kicked him in the shin for pressing so tightly into her personal space, and secondly, that 'El' must be Elliot Stabler, as he lives and breathes.

'Fin said you had almost been shot,' Elliot grumbles, pulling her into an embrace. Nicks stares unabashedly at the two of them, waiting for them to remember he is in the room as well.

'Still…Didn't think you wanted to be back in this building,' she says, leaning back to search his face, and Nick remembers the rumors about the shooting, about the traumatic event that drove Stabler from the unit. Some stories must have been built on truths, after all.

'I needed to see you were alright,' Elliot states, no room for argument in his tone. Olivia pushes anyway, because even Nick knows that is in her nature. He wonders how overprotective Elliot can be towards her, if he was always like this as her partner, and if she loves or hates it.

'I was going to go home just now, you could have seen me later,' she grumbles. Something in those words has her raising her head, suddenly remembering they have an audience, and if it weren't such an awkward moment at the end of a rough day, Nick would have been laughing at her embarrassed expression.

'Uhhh…Nick, this is Elliot. Elliot — Nick. My new partner.'

Cold blue eyes are suddenly upon him, Elliot giving him a once over. From the way his expression darkens, Nick is found lacking.

'And where were you?' Elliot demands, stepping forwards. 'You're her partner. You're supposed to have her back in that room, not leave her alone to get targeted by a serial killer.'

Nick is ready for a fight before Elliot has even finished his sentence.

'You were her partner beforehand,' he snaps out. 'And where were you? Nowhere.'

The words are crueler than he actually means, but Elliot has pressed on the sorest spot of the day. Despite his apology to Olivia mere minutes ago, Nick allows the anger he feels towards himself and his own choices to bubble over, aimed directly at the man who had fired the first shot.

But Elliot doesn't bite back, turning pale instead as he takes the hit of Nick's words.

'Stop it, both of you,' Olivia snaps, standing in between them. 'In case you've forgotten, I can damn well look after myself. I don't need a dick-measuring contest going on.'

Her words break the stand-off, and they both look at her sheepishly.

'Liv, that isn't…' Elliot says, just as Nick also goes to apologize.

'Olivia…' he begins, but she holds her hand up to stop either of them from speaking.

'Elliot, Nick was there when it mattered, and I would be dead if not for him,' she continues firmly. 'And Nick, Elliot does have my back, even if he can't be on the unit any longer. Considering you're both important people in my life, you'd better start getting along quickly.'

Elliot sighs, his shoulders dropping down, and holds out his hand.

Not to be outdone in front of Olivia, Nick grasps it swiftly.

'Elliot Stabler, nice to meet you,' Elliot says, his voice tight but polite.

'Nick Amaro, likewise,' Nick says, perfect manners on display.

Olivia snorts, clearly not convinced by either of them, but rolls her eyes when they glance her way.

'I'm tired and I've had a shit day,' she announces, reaching over to grab her bag and coat. Elliot takes them from her chivalrously, and Nick knows it's a sign of how much she trusts him, that she easily allows the gesture. Elliot rests his hand on her back, face brightening at her casual acceptance, and it's clear that she's doing this more for his sake than for hers, letting him feel helpful in some small way — channel his protective instincts.

Nick feels a sudden burst of sympathy. He can't imagine being anyone's partner for over a decade, and then being forced to walk away from it all, especially not from Olivia. Besides, within two minutes of meeting the man, it is obvious that Elliot Stabler is in love with his ex-partner.

'Good night, Nick,' Olivia calls, unaware of the processing going on in his mind. 'Go home, too.'

He raises his hand in farewell, then hesitates.

'Hey Stabler,' he calls, and the other man pauses, glancing back over his shoulder with a questioning look. 'I've got her back, don't worry.'

He must seem serious and earnest enough that Elliot sees it for the olive branch it is, and he nods his head in acknowledgment.

'She is right here,' Olivia grouses. 'Let's go.'

Nick watches them leave, an ache in his chest as they march side-by-side, perfectly in sync. He misses Maria, wishes she would be home when he returns, so that they could read Zara a bedtime story together. But instead, he will have to take solace in being dad for the next few days whilst he is waiting for the review to be finalized, rather than dad AND husband.

It's actually a nice break, truth be told. He won't admit that to his colleagues, but when he returns to the precinct, there is an extra bounce in his step from the lack of stress and extra sleep he's enjoyed. He's not sure that he is supposed to feel so rejuvenated after shooting someone.

Olivia corners him by his desk, as soon as he wanders into the room, seizing the opportunity while Fin, Amanda, and Munch are bickering over the coffee pot to have privacy.

'I…uh…' she flounders, and Nick eyes her with curiosity. 'Look, I just wanted to say that Elliot and I aren't together-together, if that is the impression we gave you the other night. He's going through a tough time right now, and a divorce…we're best friends.'

Nick lets her hang for a second, his face blank, but when he sees her start to get slightly agitated, he allows his smile to break through.

'Sure thing, partner,' he says, dropping into his seat. 'I'm not about to say anything to anyone. Got your back.'

Olivia does not seem entirely sure, but she takes a deep breath anyway, and settles at her own desk, the matter settled.

Besides, even if they aren't in a relationship right now…Elliot is far too in love to let Olivia slip away from him. All Nick needs to do is be patient, and wait for Fin, the true gossip of the team, to confirm his suspicions when it finally happens.

The author of this SVU: The Rewrite story will be revealed in July