Law and Order fic: Showing the Elephant Out (Cyrus Lupo, Mike Cutter)
TITLE: Showing the Elephant Out (Sequel to “The Elephant”)
AUTHOR: 1000traenen
FANDOM: Law & Order
CHARACTERS: Det. Cyrus Lupo, EADA Michael Cutter
GENRE: Gen
PROMPT: 081. Risk
RATING: T (a bit o’ bad language)
WORD COUNT: 1353
WARNINGS: None
SUMMARY: Post 19x09 “By Perjury” with a minor reference to “Strike”. “You know, I was a bastard that day.” “Oh yeah? I hadn’t noticed.” Mike gets his chance to set things right with Lupo. Mike Cutter’s POV.
NOTES: For the 100_tales comm. Link to my table.
DISCLAIMER: Law & Order and all characters belong to Dick Wolf and NBC. I’m just playing nicely. I promise to put Lupes back where he belongs when I’m done.
---
“Sooner is better than later,” Jack said, suddenly appearing in the doorway to Mike’s office.
Mike looked up from the paperwork he’d been reading. Or pretending to read, anyway. He watched Jack take a step into the room, shutting the door behind him.
“What?” Mike finally asked, trying to think of what Jack could mean.
“During the strike, you reminded Connie that she would have to work with the detectives again. Well, I’m reminding you. They may have saved your ass, but it doesn’t change that things are… less than cordial between you and them, especially between you and Detective Lupo.”
Mike only nodded, Jack wasn’t telling him anything new. “So how do I fix it?”
Jack shrugged. “Besides talking to him, don’t ask me. I don’t know what you said that made things so chilly in the first place.”
With that, Jack left, shutting the door behind him. Mike knew Jack well enough to know that the DA knew exactly what was said that day in the very office he was occupying. And he knew that Jack’s recommendation to fix things wasn’t really a recommendation at all.
Mike picked up his BlackBerry, twirling it in his hand a few times before scrolling through the address book and finding Lupo’s cell number.
“Cutter, what a surprise,” he head the detective drawl as a greeting. “Don’t worry, if this case…”
“I’m not worried,” Mike cut in, he didn’t need Lupo making it harder than it already was. “I know you’re on a case so I’ll make it short. You and me… we need to talk. So what do you say we do it over a beer?”
Silence. “Make it coffee and you’ve got a deal.”
“Fine, coffee it is. I’ll give you a call later when I figure out when I’m getting out of here,” Mike said.
“Leads are slow on this one, so I’m sure it won’t be a problem for me.”
Once the End button was pressed, Mike set the BlackBerry down on the file folder he’d been trying to read and leaned back. Put him in front of a judge, jury and opposing council, he was fine. But something resembling a heat-to-heart or that might require an apology? This talk was definitely going to be outside of his comfort zone. But Jack was right- things were chilly. And he needed to repair the relationship with the detective, if only for professional reasons. But it wasn’t just professional, and Mike was acutely aware of that.
Even though he had work to do, this talk with Lupo dominated his thoughts. He wasn’t quite sure why he was so nervous, besides the fact that Lupo carried a gun and wasn’t happy with him. He sighed, and closed the file folder. He wasn’t getting anything accomplished by sitting there brooding, he needed to clear his head.
It was a short walk, and when he returned the office with courage mustered, he grabbed his things, tossed a casual ‘good night’ to Connie and Jack, and headed to the 2-7. On the way he realized that he should give Lupo a heads-up that he was coming, but never did. Faster than he realized, he was strolling through the squad room to the pair of desks that the detectives occupied.
“We got company,” he heard Bernard note, the younger detective looking up at him.
Mike stood a few feet away and watched as Lupo slowly turned around. There was nothing hostile recognizable on the senior detective’s face, but there was nothing overtly friendly either. Lupo’s face was barren of emotion, and the only clues were in Lupo’s eyes, which were narrowed and hard to read.
“I know I should’ve called…” Mike began, feigning a sense of confidence that he obviously didn’t feel.
“No sweat, we basically just got kicked out,” Lupo said. “No leads to follow now and she said something about catching up on sleep.”
Mike nodded knowingly. “You know the area better than I do, your call.”
Lupo turned for a second, and Mike noticed Bernard nod slightly. Then Lupo picked up a few things, grabbed his coat and stepped away from his desk.
“It’s a few blocks from here, but the weather seems nice enough. And I’ve been cooped up in here all day.”
They made small talk on the way, nothing about Lupo’s case or what Mike was working on. They came to a plain-looking diner, the type of place that Mike Cutter wouldn’t normally frequent.
“Decent food, but the coffee’s reliably not bad,” Lupo said with a tired smile.
“Not exactly a ringing endorsement,” Mike commented, looking around.
“Have you ever drank the coffee at the station?” Lupo asked. “Not bad is wonderful, comparatively.”
“I haven’t had the pleasure of the coffee at your place, but if it’s anything like at my office… I understand.”
They found a table that offered little in the way of privacy, but neither man cared. This was the type of place where people came and went all the time, and anonymity was almost a guarantee. It wasn’t until their food order was received that “The Talk” came. So as Lupo ate his pastrami sandwich, Mike could only pick at his turkey sandwich.
“Will you stop that?” Lupo asked with an air of impatience. “Just eat it already, and put it out of its misery.”
Mike had opened his mouth to make a smart retort, but snapped his mouth shut when he saw the tired, but amused expression on Lupo’s face.
“I’m really no good at this,” Mike admitted, not knowing what else to say.
“At eating?”
Mike looked up from his plate to meet Lupo’s eyes. “You know what I mean.”
“Yeah,” Lupo sighed. “I do, and neither am I.”
An uncomfortable silence engulfed the table, both men deciding that their sandwiches were suddenly quite fascinating.
“You know, I was a bastard that day,” Mike said, and Lupo looked up at him.
“Oh yeah? I hadn’t noticed.”
Mike snorted. “The fact that you were about to punch me says otherwise.”
“Thank Bernard for that,” Lupo replied. “But I wasn’t going to punch you, though the thought did cross my mind.”
Mike leaned back, his hands fiddling with his napkin. “That damn lawyer was beating me up at every turn. He was getting away with murder, and that smug… He knew it.”
“I didn’t quite help matters,” Lupo admitted with a shrug. “I don’t know… I just knew we needed the info and found a way to get it.”
“Still, I didn’t need to, as Jack put it, ream you out.”
“McCoy said something?”
“Well, I think I earned it with the trio of ‘reaming you out’, screeching at opposing council and the small matter of a contempt citation. Yeah, Jack said something.”
“Screeching? I find that hard to believe.”
“Believe it. It was not one of my finer days.”
“Yeah, well… Worked out in the end, I guess.”
“Yeah,” Mike agreed thoughtfully. “Had a decent ending. Imaging what those crime scene photos would’ve looked like in the men’s room…”
Mike shuddered at the thought, then looked Lupo in the eye. “Never really did say thank you for that, so… Thank you. For saving my life.”
“Just doing our job,” Lupo replied, clearly uncomfortable with the gratitude.
But Mike wasn’t going to let it go. He had something to make up for. “It was more than that. You knew, didn’t you? That he was going to do something?”
“He had that habit. Plus, there was just something shifty about him following you… the way he was walking… Yeah, we knew.”
The waitress interrupted them with more coffee, humming as she walked away. Once both had their coffees dressed to their liking, Mike picked his up.
“Here’s to finally getting him in the end,” Mike said, then quickly added, “And avoiding embarrassing crime scene photos.”
That brought a smile to Lupo’s face, “Here, here.”
They parted ways not long after, each going to their respective apartments. And the next time they had to work together, that distinctive chill in the air was replaced by a warmer, more comfortable atmosphere.
AUTHOR: 1000traenen
FANDOM: Law & Order
CHARACTERS: Det. Cyrus Lupo, EADA Michael Cutter
GENRE: Gen
PROMPT: 081. Risk
RATING: T (a bit o’ bad language)
WORD COUNT: 1353
WARNINGS: None
SUMMARY: Post 19x09 “By Perjury” with a minor reference to “Strike”. “You know, I was a bastard that day.” “Oh yeah? I hadn’t noticed.” Mike gets his chance to set things right with Lupo. Mike Cutter’s POV.
NOTES: For the 100_tales comm. Link to my table.
DISCLAIMER: Law & Order and all characters belong to Dick Wolf and NBC. I’m just playing nicely. I promise to put Lupes back where he belongs when I’m done.
---
“Sooner is better than later,” Jack said, suddenly appearing in the doorway to Mike’s office.
Mike looked up from the paperwork he’d been reading. Or pretending to read, anyway. He watched Jack take a step into the room, shutting the door behind him.
“What?” Mike finally asked, trying to think of what Jack could mean.
“During the strike, you reminded Connie that she would have to work with the detectives again. Well, I’m reminding you. They may have saved your ass, but it doesn’t change that things are… less than cordial between you and them, especially between you and Detective Lupo.”
Mike only nodded, Jack wasn’t telling him anything new. “So how do I fix it?”
Jack shrugged. “Besides talking to him, don’t ask me. I don’t know what you said that made things so chilly in the first place.”
With that, Jack left, shutting the door behind him. Mike knew Jack well enough to know that the DA knew exactly what was said that day in the very office he was occupying. And he knew that Jack’s recommendation to fix things wasn’t really a recommendation at all.
Mike picked up his BlackBerry, twirling it in his hand a few times before scrolling through the address book and finding Lupo’s cell number.
“Cutter, what a surprise,” he head the detective drawl as a greeting. “Don’t worry, if this case…”
“I’m not worried,” Mike cut in, he didn’t need Lupo making it harder than it already was. “I know you’re on a case so I’ll make it short. You and me… we need to talk. So what do you say we do it over a beer?”
Silence. “Make it coffee and you’ve got a deal.”
“Fine, coffee it is. I’ll give you a call later when I figure out when I’m getting out of here,” Mike said.
“Leads are slow on this one, so I’m sure it won’t be a problem for me.”
Once the End button was pressed, Mike set the BlackBerry down on the file folder he’d been trying to read and leaned back. Put him in front of a judge, jury and opposing council, he was fine. But something resembling a heat-to-heart or that might require an apology? This talk was definitely going to be outside of his comfort zone. But Jack was right- things were chilly. And he needed to repair the relationship with the detective, if only for professional reasons. But it wasn’t just professional, and Mike was acutely aware of that.
Even though he had work to do, this talk with Lupo dominated his thoughts. He wasn’t quite sure why he was so nervous, besides the fact that Lupo carried a gun and wasn’t happy with him. He sighed, and closed the file folder. He wasn’t getting anything accomplished by sitting there brooding, he needed to clear his head.
It was a short walk, and when he returned the office with courage mustered, he grabbed his things, tossed a casual ‘good night’ to Connie and Jack, and headed to the 2-7. On the way he realized that he should give Lupo a heads-up that he was coming, but never did. Faster than he realized, he was strolling through the squad room to the pair of desks that the detectives occupied.
“We got company,” he heard Bernard note, the younger detective looking up at him.
Mike stood a few feet away and watched as Lupo slowly turned around. There was nothing hostile recognizable on the senior detective’s face, but there was nothing overtly friendly either. Lupo’s face was barren of emotion, and the only clues were in Lupo’s eyes, which were narrowed and hard to read.
“I know I should’ve called…” Mike began, feigning a sense of confidence that he obviously didn’t feel.
“No sweat, we basically just got kicked out,” Lupo said. “No leads to follow now and she said something about catching up on sleep.”
Mike nodded knowingly. “You know the area better than I do, your call.”
Lupo turned for a second, and Mike noticed Bernard nod slightly. Then Lupo picked up a few things, grabbed his coat and stepped away from his desk.
“It’s a few blocks from here, but the weather seems nice enough. And I’ve been cooped up in here all day.”
They made small talk on the way, nothing about Lupo’s case or what Mike was working on. They came to a plain-looking diner, the type of place that Mike Cutter wouldn’t normally frequent.
“Decent food, but the coffee’s reliably not bad,” Lupo said with a tired smile.
“Not exactly a ringing endorsement,” Mike commented, looking around.
“Have you ever drank the coffee at the station?” Lupo asked. “Not bad is wonderful, comparatively.”
“I haven’t had the pleasure of the coffee at your place, but if it’s anything like at my office… I understand.”
They found a table that offered little in the way of privacy, but neither man cared. This was the type of place where people came and went all the time, and anonymity was almost a guarantee. It wasn’t until their food order was received that “The Talk” came. So as Lupo ate his pastrami sandwich, Mike could only pick at his turkey sandwich.
“Will you stop that?” Lupo asked with an air of impatience. “Just eat it already, and put it out of its misery.”
Mike had opened his mouth to make a smart retort, but snapped his mouth shut when he saw the tired, but amused expression on Lupo’s face.
“I’m really no good at this,” Mike admitted, not knowing what else to say.
“At eating?”
Mike looked up from his plate to meet Lupo’s eyes. “You know what I mean.”
“Yeah,” Lupo sighed. “I do, and neither am I.”
An uncomfortable silence engulfed the table, both men deciding that their sandwiches were suddenly quite fascinating.
“You know, I was a bastard that day,” Mike said, and Lupo looked up at him.
“Oh yeah? I hadn’t noticed.”
Mike snorted. “The fact that you were about to punch me says otherwise.”
“Thank Bernard for that,” Lupo replied. “But I wasn’t going to punch you, though the thought did cross my mind.”
Mike leaned back, his hands fiddling with his napkin. “That damn lawyer was beating me up at every turn. He was getting away with murder, and that smug… He knew it.”
“I didn’t quite help matters,” Lupo admitted with a shrug. “I don’t know… I just knew we needed the info and found a way to get it.”
“Still, I didn’t need to, as Jack put it, ream you out.”
“McCoy said something?”
“Well, I think I earned it with the trio of ‘reaming you out’, screeching at opposing council and the small matter of a contempt citation. Yeah, Jack said something.”
“Screeching? I find that hard to believe.”
“Believe it. It was not one of my finer days.”
“Yeah, well… Worked out in the end, I guess.”
“Yeah,” Mike agreed thoughtfully. “Had a decent ending. Imaging what those crime scene photos would’ve looked like in the men’s room…”
Mike shuddered at the thought, then looked Lupo in the eye. “Never really did say thank you for that, so… Thank you. For saving my life.”
“Just doing our job,” Lupo replied, clearly uncomfortable with the gratitude.
But Mike wasn’t going to let it go. He had something to make up for. “It was more than that. You knew, didn’t you? That he was going to do something?”
“He had that habit. Plus, there was just something shifty about him following you… the way he was walking… Yeah, we knew.”
The waitress interrupted them with more coffee, humming as she walked away. Once both had their coffees dressed to their liking, Mike picked his up.
“Here’s to finally getting him in the end,” Mike said, then quickly added, “And avoiding embarrassing crime scene photos.”
That brought a smile to Lupo’s face, “Here, here.”
They parted ways not long after, each going to their respective apartments. And the next time they had to work together, that distinctive chill in the air was replaced by a warmer, more comfortable atmosphere.