AN: Hello, everyone! I've been an SVU fan for as long as I can remember but this is my first time writing EO. It also has been a long ass time since I have written fanfiction but these two just begged me to - I simply had to come back.

Story is looking to be around 15 chapters, slow burn [because I cannot write a short story to save my life]. Looking to update once a week, finishing right around the time hiatus ends. Soooo, in the mean time, come spiral with me ;)

Are We Good?

Chapter 1 – 1998

"Captain, I don't need a partner." Elliot Stabler's voice was growing louder, as it did when he got frustrated. "I've been in this unit for 6 years now, let me keep working solo. I've held my rates since Pete left, what's the problem?" Stabler missed his old partner, sure, but he had a 97% closure rate back then and he's still got it now. In his head, a new partner would just hold him back.

"Elliot, the fact you've been here so long is the reason I need you take one of these new detectives." Captain Don Cragen sighed heavily; he knew trying to get Elliot to take a rookie wasn't going to be easy. Even though he was a great detective, he was one of his harder officers to work with; his temper getting the best of him at times. "This unit is tough; I need someone like you to…"

"Catch him when he falls? You know that's not my style, Cap." Elliot let out a sarcastic huff. His mind flashed back to the last tough case he caught. He managed to not only push his wife and kids away, but also find himself alone and at the bottom of the bottle.

"No. I was going to say, I need someone to show them how to handle all of this." He motioned vaguely around his office. "They're both just coming off patrol. I don't know their backstories or what brings them to this unit, but I've heard good things. They're good cops, Elliot."

Elliot let out a long sigh. He knew he could go the easy way or the hard with this but in the end, he was going to end up with a new partner. "Good cop or not; if I don't like my new partner, you're gonna hear about it. So, who am I getting? You keep saying both."

"His name is Brian… Cassidy." Cragen's eyes leave Elliot's to scan the file in front of him. "His last captain says he's driven, passionate. Did ok on the detective exam, he's just young, inexperienced." Cragen heard the eye roll come from Stabler from across the room. He knew Elliot wanted someone who could keep up, dive right in. "Give him a chance, Elliot."

"Fine." Elliot decided it best to keep his opinion under wrap for now, but Cragen best be sure he'll be asking for a new partner as soon as this newbie fucks up. "But who's the other one? Who's he with?"

Cragen switches manilla envelopes and scans a few pages. "Olivia Benson. Patrol since '92, great test scores, intelligent and great with family members so far. Finest candidate for a detective her last Lieutenant has ever seen." Cragen looks up from the file. "I'm putting her with Munch for now, get him away from working with the vics and families... I don't think I can take any more complaints about him talking their ears off with irrelevant information."

These details of the rookie got Elliot's attention. "Munch gets the all-star student and I get the class-clown, c'mon Cap." He's exasperated now.

"Elliot. There is no indication that he is going to have a problem or be a bad detective. I'll say it again, give him a chance. They both start Monday. Get it together by then and clean off that desk across from you."

The finality in Cragen's told Elliot he should leave the man's office.

He returned to his desk and sat down with a grunt. He stared for a few minutes at the desk that sat face-to-face with his own. "Fucker." He said to the vacant seat like it was the reason for all his problems.

Olivia's first day started as all others do. Rounds of introductions followed by everyone rattling off information she'll forget the majority of in the next few hours. She takes in everyone as she meets them, forming her first impressions quickly.

There is her new partner, John Munch. Old, been around the block quite a few times. Conspiracy theorist?... Captain Cragen, military man, for sure. Probably runs a tight ship… Jeffries, god the arms on this woman, she looks tough as hell. Cassidy, new, no clue what's happening.

The last person she is introduced to is a guy by the name of Elliot Stabler. He seems irritated for some reason when Cragen, who has been giving her the tour, introduces them. He stands up from his desk and reaches out a hand. The guy is six-foot, easy, military background obviously, and he's sizing her up as stands.

She reaches for the hand, locks his glare, and gives it as firm a grip she can muster, Elliot's hand being so much bigger than her own. He doesn't say too much as he returns to his seat but by the look in his eye, she's not at all what he had expected.

She knows this look well - Olivia knows she's attractive, too pretty to be a good cop, some think. It wasn't long after she got out of the academy that one patrol officer told her she wouldn't last more than 6 months. In that time, she had responded to shoot outs, murders, robberies, even a few arsons.

Now, almost 6 years later, and she couldn't be more passionate about her job. She loved being able to help people- that's one of the reasons she went for the Special Victims Unit in the first place. She's always connected well with the victims of the vicious crimes she's responded to. She found it easy to empathize and help them, many of them going through the worst day of their lives.

However, the way some of these guys around here were looking at her, she knew she had a long way to go until she was respected as a detective here. Her instincts also told her that she and Elliot Stabler were going to knock heads a bit first before either one trusted the other.