Her coffee in hand, Elsa made her way into the office. She bid a good morning to Mia when she saw her, and to a couple other associates whose names she was still having some trouble remembering. It was progress. She wasn't locked away in her office ignoring everyone else around her anymore, she wasn't the same person she'd been a year ago. She wondered how much of it was because she'd let her sister back into her life, and how much of it was unrelated. She supposed it didn't terribly matter either way.

She had a meeting at 9:30, and she was grabbing lunch with Anya at 11:00, but outside of that, she just had some files to go over and a couple phone calls to make. She'd been making sure to wrap up most of the work she had so that she'd be able to spend most of her time with Anna. She'd even bought tickets to a few Broadway shows that she was hoping Anna and Olaf would be interested in. Though one of them was definitely not Olaf appropriate. It had been a long time since her sister had last been to New York, and she wanted to make a much better impression this time.

Just after she hung up the phone with one of her biggest clients, having just finished arranging the merger that had taken almost two years to set up, someone knocked on her door. "Come in," she called, mentally ticking off that call from all that she had to accomplish this week.

"Hi," Mia Thermopolis stuck her head in the room, waving her hand. "Are you free?"

"I did say 'come in.'"

"Right." She opened the door the rest of the way and almost leapt into the chair opposite Elsa. "Can I pick your brain again? It's nothing major, I just wanted some help on this."

She didn't have that much left keeping her busy. "Sure. Lay it on me." She steepled her hands on the desk, staring over them at her apprentice. It probably came off a bit more imposing than she'd hoped, she was going more for wise and considering, but imposing was what she had the most practice at.

"It's a medical malpractice suit."

Elsa grinned. "What is this, your fourth one? You're starting to develop a bit of a name for yourself there. Did you just come in here to brag?"

"Maybe a little." She did her best to hide her smile. "That's actually how I managed to get this client. Well sort of, I guess that one was actually a HIPAA case. Remember the hospital you helped me sue ages ago? After they saw me in court against Josh, they swapped him out with someone higher up, who settled with me for way more than even favorable projections expected, just so they could drop the case and avoid any conflict with us. Then they hired me, well our firm, but still, me, as their lawyer. I actually brought in a huge client, it was a month ago, but I'm still so excited about it." She toyed with her curly hair, trying not to seem too full of herself.

"You should be. That's amazing." Especially for a first year associate. Holy shit, we're gonna need to keep an eye on her. She's partner material. Might even beat me as youngest to make it. "I'm really proud of you. I'd like to think I helped a little."

Her eyes widened. "You did! You totally did. I definitely couldn't have done it without you."

"You don't need to stroke my ego."

"I mean it. I was so nervous, all that practice with you made a world of difference. It's why I was hoping you could help out with this? I'm sure I'll be fine, I just wanted to make sure I hadn't overlooked anything. It's my first big case since they hired me on as counsel." She gave the biggest, goofiest grin, pulling her hand back to her side. "Please?"

"I already said I would. Now tell me already."

She leaned forward, conspiring with the partner. "Okay, so the hospital ran a test for this patient, it came up negative, everything should have been fine. They told him that and sent him home. Two months later, he was admitted into a different hospital and was apparently pretty close to death. He had to go on IV antibiotics for almost a month, when it should've been a pretty simple thing if we'd just caught it in time."

Elsa pursed her lips. "The test came back negative, it's not their fault if it was a false negative."

"Yeah, that's what I would have thought, but it looks like there's a lot of precedent saying otherwise. I'm just not sure how to proceed."

Elsa so rarely handled malpractice. "This isn't exactly my specialty. You may know more than I do here. What are the damages exactly? The medical costs for being in the hospital so long?"

"That and the loss of work."

"It might be worth it to just offer a settlement. Just cover all of the medical expenses and a reasonable estimation of their lost income. It's better than going to court and losing and opening yourself up to anyone else that feels their negative test results are also worth suing over."

"We're already pretty open to it from all the research I've found." Amelia chewed on a strand of her hair. This was not as easy of a case as she'd made it sound. "Dr. Gupta wasn't negligent though. She took every precaution to avoid this, it was just random chance."

"Then say that. It's all just going to depend on how sympathetic the opposition can manage to sound. They didn't die – the treatment was successful right?"

She nodded.

"Then all they can really argue is that they had to waste a month. It sucks, but it's far from the end of the world, and could even seem kind of petty as far as malpractice goes, if you can manage to hammer that point home without victimizing the plaintiff—" Elsa sighed. "Is it a judge or a jury?"

"A judge."

"That's better at least. It depends on the judge of course. Has one already been assigned?"

"Yeah, Judge Vasilovich."

A smile began to spread across Elsa's face. "Then you're fine. He's a good man, he'll rule based on the facts. Just don't bully the plaintiff and you should be good. He's a very fair judge, and the definition of no-nonsense."

She seemed relieved by that news. "Thank you."

"It's no problem. I'd still say it's worth it to offer a settlement, just to make it go away, maybe just do the medical expenses, and not try for the missed work. That way if they refuse, you can make it sound like they're being unreasonable. You already offered to pay for their medical expenses out of the kindness of your heart, and yet they still pushed for more."

"You really are the best."

She really does suck up a lot. I can never tell if it's genuine. "Go get ready for your case then." She drained her second cup of coffee. "I have a meeting I need to get ready for."

At 9:10, she walked into the conference room, finding people already waiting and just beginning to grow impatient. She took her time, pouring a cup of coffee from the pot in the corner, and leisurely making her way to the far seat opposite them. They could wait. "So, gentleman," she began, passing her gaze across the three men, "My client should be just behind me. I believe you had an offer for us."

Just as they started to talk, Ms. Porter walked in, taking her seat next to Elsa. "Don't let me interrupt," she said, projecting a tone of utter indifference.

The man across from them ground his teeth. "We just want our jobs back."

"I'm afraid that's not on the table," the CEO replied.

Elsa tapped her shoulder. "Let me do the talking, Jane."

She shrugged. "Fine. Then talk."

So Elsa talked. "No admission of guilt, and you're bound to confidentiality, but we'll waive your non-competes, and offer thirty thousand dollars apiece as severance. All sealed."

A look passed among the trio as they considered this offer. Elsa set three envelopes on the table, and two of them were promptly snatched up. Only the grimacing middle man remained, with a good deal of his power now stripped from him.

"This deal ends the second you walk out that door."

He looked between his two compatriots, betrayal clear in his expression. "What are you thinking?"

"Hey, I need to eat," the one on his left replied.

With an exaggerated groan, he took the last envelope. "Fine."

"That's what I thought. It was a pleasure doing business with you. Now get out of my building." They left with barely another word. It always felt weird to be that ice queen again, overpowering defenseless fools who don't even understand their own case or what they could expect for it. She'd grown so soft, so caring, and into a person she liked a lot more, but sometimes it was useful to still be able to do that. It was what people paid her for. Besides, if she hadn't, there wasn't a lawyer in the world who could've won the case if it actually went to trial. She had to shut it down, no matter what it took. "Ms. Porter, a delight as always."

"I bet you say that to all the girls."

"Only the ones who can afford me." Now I sound like a hooker. "I'm glad we were able to wrap that up quickly. That could have gone very badly for you."

"I know," she muttered, her indifferent facade falling, and revealing a chagrined expression. "It won't happen again. I promise."

"It better not. Next time I can't guarantee it'll be this easy."

"You're right." She choked back a sob. "I'm getting therapy. you won't have to deal with this again, the next time I call you, it'll just be that I violated some environmental regulation or something."

"See? That's much better, and it'll take longer and net me more hours, while risking far less harm to your reputation."

She offered a faint smile.

"Are you sure that was all of them? You haven't pulled this with anyone else, whether or not you fired them?"

"I'm sure, Elsa. I'm not an animal."

"Tell that to them."

Jane sighed, turning her gaze to the floor to ceiling window across from them, looking out over Hell's Kitchen. "I'm gonna get back to work. I left an extraordinarily expensive bottle of scotch in your office if that makes up for it at all."

"It's a start."

For once, she beat Anya to Oaken's. She went ahead and ordered for her, grabbing her a bagel and a coffee. Elsa had already had three coffees, so she decided to just go with a hot chocolate to accompany her chocolate croissant. She found their usual seats and waited while her drink cooled down.

A few minutes later, Anya walked in and found her. "Bagels?" She quirked an eyebrow. "I could've just gone to my usual place."

"If you wanted something else you should've gotten here on time."

She shrugged and took her seat, helping herself to one of the bagels. "Okay, this is actually pretty good. My place is still better."

"You can go order something else if you want."

"It's fine."

Elsa rolled her eyes. "Belle told me that your new client has a big class action suit coming against them. You sure you're going to be able to handle it?"

"We'll be fine. Don't go trying to steal them back for your firm."

"I wouldn't dream of it." She sipped her hot chocolate. It would be a fun way to mock Robert, but she didn't want to bankrupt her oldest friend. "But that's a lot for three people to handle. You should look into some outside help. You don't have the resources for a class action."

"I said we'll be fine," she snapped, tearing off a quarter of her bagel in a single bite.

"Okay." Elsa held up her hands in surrender. "I believe you." I suppose worst case scenario, I'll just snatch them up and hope that her firm can manage to recover. If she's not going to accept help, I can't force her.

"You better." She spread some cream cheese on the bagel. "You have anything exciting happening?"

"Just Anna. I'm minimizing my case load for the month that she's here. I'll probably just go in a couple times a week."

Anya's jaw dropped in a very obviously exaggerated fashion. "No way. I can't believe our workaholic Elsa is actually taking time off just to see her little sister. Have you been replaced with a pod person? Are you The Thing? Let me go grab my car lighter."

"There is no way your car has a lighter."

"Oaken, can I borrow a lighter?"

A booming chuckle echoes from the counter. "I'm not letting you burn my best client. Even if she's actually a shapeshifting monster, you're just going to have to put up with it. I need the income."

Anya glared at the massive man. "Well then when this horrifying abomination takes over the city, it's on you. We could have stopped her."

Elsa finished her croissant. "That horrifying abomination is right here."

"Are you going to open your entire head into a mouth and eat me?"

"Yes."

"Damn."

Elsa kicked her shin.

"I'm dying now. Oaken, tell Belle I love her." She placed her hand over her chest, sliding from her chair.

"I don't know who Belle is."

Her eyes closed as her head lulled to the side.

"Okay then, I'm gonna go," Elsa announced, draining her drink and standing. "Have fun being dead or whatever."

Anya sat back up. "Wait."

"Ah, a zombie," Elsa said flatly.

"Fine, I'll behave. I'm proud of you. I just can't believe how much you've changed. I remember a time when you would just ignore Anna, and everyone else, and bury yourself in your work. You're not a terrifying monster, you're just a lot more human than I recall you being." She gestured toward Elsa's seat.

Elsa sat back down. "Thank you. I think. That last part was pretty insulting."

"You literally stopped talking to me for a year because I quit working at your law firm."

"Okay. Maybe I deserve it. I was still human though."

"Barely."

Elsa groaned.

"Doing anything fun with Anna? Are Belle and I going to meet her? Tiana might actually go crazy with two redheads in the same place."

She shook her head at the image. "The last time that happened one of them was straight, she really might lose it. Just don't give in. I know she can be very persuasive."

"You think she'd really do it?"

She could only shrug. It was becoming harder and harder for her to tell just what was going through Tiana's mind when she was pulling that shit. "I honestly don't know. I don't think she would without my permission, but I'm not sure at just what point she'd stop."

"Well I'll try to keep my clothes on around her then."

"I appreciate that."

Anya stretched, checking the time on her phone. "I actually probably should get heading back. We have to get ready for that class action."

"All right. Good luck. I really do think you should look into bringing in another firm. It doesn't have to be mine, but that's a lot to handle."

Her eyes narrowed. "I know. You've said. I'll pay for lunch next time. You have a good one, let me know when I can meet your sister." She waved and made her way out the door.

Elsa waited until she was gone. She was worried about her friend and wasn't sure that she could avoid saying it a fourth time if she followed her out. "Have a good day, Oaken."

"Ja, you have a good day too, Elsa. I'll see you tomorrow."

She chuckled. He wasn't wrong.

Gaston barged into her office. "You're not gonna believe this."

Nothing good has ever started that way. "What?"

"Come on. We have to go to my office."

"Can't you just tell me?" She followed after the silent name partner. He wasn't exactly her boss anymore, but she still couldn't really refuse without making a whole thing about it. This better actually be something interesting. She racked her brain for what it could possibly be. Was it a new client? Was it his birthday? No, that's in October. What could he possibly need?

When they walked into his office, she found that none of her ideas were even close. It was, however, certainly interesting. "Hi." Eric Clements waved at her from the seat in front of Gaston's desk.

You've got to be shitting me. "What happened?" It's been four months. How much trouble could he have gotten himself into?

"The police may be looking into me for another murder. They haven't arrested me yet, if that's what you were worrying about. I just wanted to make sure that my lawyers were ready if it came to that." He smiled at her, and she somehow didn't punch him in the face.

Gaston took his seat and stared down at the young man. He looked like he was ready to rip him in half. "Right, I wanted you to explain that. Why might they think that you murdered someone else?" His voice was terse. Elsa couldn't recall him ever seeming that angry. She was half-expecting him to just light on fire. His face already seemed to be reddening, so it didn't appear to be outside the realm of possibility.

"Well you see, Vanessa ended up dead. I've no idea how it happened, obviously."

Elsa's blood ran cold. She sat on the edge of Albert's desk, her teeth bared as she glared down at Mr. Clements. "No idea? Just like the last time, then?"

"Exactly." He offered an affable smile, looking to all the world like an innocent man. That was exactly how he got off last time.

Elsa wanted to throw up. It wasn't like she hadn't gotten off guilty people before, but she had known, or at least suspected, that they were guilty. With Eric, while he'd rubbed her the wrong way, she'd genuinely believed in his innocence. She'd been relieved when they won. She'd felt like it had made up for losing Kuzco's case, that she'd made amends, kept someone out of prison who genuinely didn't deserve to be there. She'd give anything to reverse the two rulings. "What makes you think we'd represent you again?"

He quirked his head, staring up at Elsa, his brow knitting. "Why wouldn't you? I can still afford you, I promise."

"That's not good enough," Gaston growled.

"You lied to us," Elsa added, her eyes boring into her former client – she only wished it could be literal.

"I don't know what you're talking about." That same smile, as if he wasn't actually a monster. If only Anya was here to overreact and grab a lighter. That would be fun to see.

"We can't trust you," Gaston explained, doing his best to keep his voice calm. Elsa could see murder in his eyes, he really did want to wring Eric's neck. She felt similarly.

"I said I didn't do it."

"Exactly," Elsa replied. The emotion was gone from her voice. She'd be as cold as she needed to be to make it through this conversation. "Had you been honest with us, we could have served you properly, but instead you perjured yourself on the stand, and we had to put you up there. Our licenses could be on the line. No, more than that, because we got you off, an innocent woman is dead. That's on us."

"I never said she was innocent."

Elsa's nails dug into the table.

"Get out of my office," Gaston announced, rising from his chair and towering over the young man. "We're not your lawyers. You can find someone else who wants to deal with your shit. We're done."

He looked between the two of them, his mouth hanging open. "What are you talking about? You're lawyers. Why wouldn't you represent me?"

"I can represent a lot of disgusting people," Gaston said calmly. "You're not even the worst, but as my name is on the wall there, I get to decide who I take, and you're going to get out of here."

He scoffed. This was all just a joke to him, wasn't it? "Well if you refuse me now, then that's as good as admitting my guilt. You can't just do that. It would violate privilege, right?"

Elsa found herself smiling. She was enjoying his suffering more than she'd have ever expected. It was better than grilling that ex-drag queen had been. "If other lawyers decide to take your previous counsel refusing to work with you as tantamount to admitting your guilt, they're free to do that, but we're not telling anyone anything, and you're perfectly free to find counsel that's willing to represent you. It's just not us."

"But couldn't they use that in court?" He was fidgeting in his seat, swallowing, his mouth running dry. He must have been so sure that he could count on them to get him acquitted all over again.

"I'm sure the judge wouldn't allow it," Gaston said. "It just might mean a few other firms wouldn't want to deal with you. After all, if the best firm in New York doesn't want you, then obviously there's something wrong with you."

He gulped audibly, his mouth hanging open again. "You're kidding."

"Nope. Now get the fuck out of my office." He pointed to the door. "Or I'm calling security."

He looked between them one last time. Elsa and Albert both shook their heads. He wasn't going to receive any help there. He made his way to the door, but turned around. "You'll pay for this."

"Could I get that in writing?" Albert asked.

Eric slammed the door behind him. They could hear him stomping down the hall.

"I'm sorry, Elsa. I really thought he was innocent."

"I know, Albert. It's not your fault. I should've trusted my instincts. I knew something was wrong with him from the start." Her nails finally released the desk. There were scratch marks in the expensive mahogany. She felt a bit bad for that. "Sorry about the desk."

He shook his head. "Don't worry about it. It's easier to deal with than getting his blood out of the carpet. I just can't believe it. I thought if he was really like the police were saying, then that test would've shown it. To hate women that much, to treat them like he does, and to be able to just hide it. He makes the man I used to be look like a goddamn saint."

Elsa let out a shaking breath. That had taken so much from her. "I have some really nice scotch in my office that was a gift from another disgusting client. Want to go drain the bottle?"

With a heavy sigh, he nodded, and stood, following her to the door.

The scotch did little to numb their pain. They finished less than half of it, and found that they were still hating themselves and desperately wishing that they could violate privilege to make sure he was sent away for life. Unfortunately, it would not only have them disbarred, but fail to send him away, as they didn't actually have even a confession to offer. There was nothing they could do, even if they were willing to give up everything. He might get off again only to murder another woman, and it was their fault.

Gaston left to go back to his office. Neither of them wanted to discuss it anymore. They'd gone over everything, rehashing the details again and again. They should have known. It's just ridiculous! If I'd known he was guilty and gotten him off I'd be fine, but this, and knowing that because I trusted him another woman died, all of it is just too much.

She threw back another glass of scotch and grabbed her phone, calling back her last call, expecting it to be Tiana.

"Hey, Elsa." Anna's voice came from the phone.

Elsa stared at the screen. She'd called her sister. Anna was better at making her not hate herself anyway. "Hey," she all but sobbed, the word slightly slurred.

"Are you okay?" She sounded panicked. Now I'm worrying her.

"Sorry. Just a long day."

"Isn't it like two there?"

She pulled the phone away from her ear again, checking the top-right of the screen. It was 2:15 in the afternoon. "It's been a very long day then."

"Have you been drinking?"

Elsa stared at the bottle and poured herself another drink. "Yeah."

"What happened? Is it something with Tiana?"

She shook her head. Right. Phone. "No. Nothing like that."

"Then what?"

She leaned back in her chair, kicking her feet onto the desk. She could hardly be concerned with scuffing it at this point. "I was wrong about a client. I defended him, I thought he was innocent, and because of that an innocent woman is dead. I'd shut myself off for so long. Sure, I hated myself a little, but it wasn't like this. It shouldn't hurt this much."

A sob crackled through the speaker. "Oh my god, Elsa. I'm so sorry. I don't even know what. No one should have to go through that. Wow. Elsa, what can I do? I love you. It wasn't your fault. I promise. You didn't do anything wrong. Everyone deserves a defense."

"He doesn't." She swallowed the scotch. It still wasn't helping. "I should've just told him that his case was so perfect he didn't need a lawyer and should just go pro se. Then maybe he'd have lost and Vanessa would still be alive." I guess she didn't know any better either. She defended him too.

"Should I move my trip up? I can just come straight there. I want to be there for you, Elsa. You shouldn't be going through this alone."

She knew better than to shake her head this time. She wasn't falling for that again. "It's okay. You spend your time with your girlfriend. I've got Tiana here, I'll be okay. I'm not going through this alone, a friend of mine was second chair. We just spent a while commiserating over this. I'll be okay. I've done worse. I know I have."

"It sounds like the other times didn't hit quite this hard."

"They didn't."

"Any idea why that is?" She was trying so hard to keep it together, just so she could look after Elsa. It made her feel even worse. It was her job to look after her little sister, not the other way around.

"I just had a lot riding on this case. It made me feel better when I was really down on myself. I knew that I'd fought and won an innocent man his freedom. Even if he was a bit of a creep, he wasn't a killer. I trusted him. I was wrong. That doesn't happen to me. I can read people. I know when they're lying to me, and yet I accepted his."

"It sounds like he's a psychopath. Like full on Hannibal Lecter. It's not your fault that he manipulated you. That's on him."

Elsa sighed, staring up at the ceiling. "I know."

"Then stop beating yourself up. Is there anything you can do about it?"

"Not really."

"Then just let it go, he's already done enough to you, stop letting him do more. You did your job, even monsters deserve a defense. It's not a crime to trust people, there is nothing wrong with you. You just care about your clients. I'm sure that's a rare trait, and your clients are lucky to have you. Don't let the few bad ones ruin that. Don't let them change you."

Elsa snickered. "I mean they're pretty much all bad. Good people don't need lawyers too often, and they almost definitely can't afford me." She thought about Jane Porter again. Another despicable human being that she prevented from facing consequences.

She could picture Anna, tears pooled in her eyes, doing her best not to break down crying so she could talk her through this. "Even bad people deserve a second chance. Sometimes a third. I don't mean this guy, clearly he didn't. He's unrepentant. But because of you, I'm sure a lot of people have been able to turn their lives around."

She reconsidered Jane. She was seeing a therapist. Maybe she really would be able to change, and her remaining employees would be all the better for it. Say that to those three. Say it to Vanessa. "I don't know."

"Everyone is entitled to a defense, Elsa. You've told me it so many times. Don't stop believing it, okay?"

"It's not like I'm running a charity. I work for the monsters who can afford me."

"You're a partner now. I'm still not entirely sure how that works, but it means you're your own boss, right?"

"Yeah, mostly."

Anna must've blown on the microphone, as it crackled in Elsa's ear. "Then change that. Still defend the people that can afford you, they deserve it too, but do more free – pro bono, right? Do more of that."

She could. Elsa blinked, considering that. She would bet that Albert would be interested in it too. Neither of them wanted for much at this point, and they both seemed to feel a need to repent. They could do it. They already had a pro bono program for indigent clients, they could expand it, or just take some cases from it. "I should."

"Then do it. If you think you need to make up for that case, then you have a way to do it. Don't keep beating yourself up, just help more people. Better people."

Elsa was surprised to find herself smiling. She was still hating herself, and still quite drunk, but she was starting to feel a bit better. "I will. Thanks, Anna. I needed that. I love you."

"I - I love you too," she replied immediately, stuttering on the first word. "Now go take a nap and sleep off that alcohol."

Elsa had to give her that. "Whatever you say."

Anna gave something between a giggle and a sob. "Text me when you wake up, I want to know that you're okay."

"I will. I'll talk to you later, Anna."

"Talk to you then." They hung up, and Elsa decided that her chair was adequately comfortable. She closed her eyes, and between the alcohol and the long long day, she was out in a minute.