♛ ┇ ▒ ⋅⋅⋅ WALKER ENT. V. GREENFIELD CORP. ⋅⋅⋅ ▒ ┇♛

THE FOLLOWING IS AN AUDIO TRANSCRIPT OF THE GREENFIELD CORP. DEPOSITION, AUGUST 21st, 2011. VOICES HAVE BEEN DENOTED BY SPEAKER INITIALS. THIS IS CONFIDENTIAL EVIDENCE IN THE WALKER ENTERPRISES V. GREENFIELD CORPORATION CASE.

QW || Quinn Whitaker, Pearson Hardman Associate
LL || Louis Litt, Pearson Hardman Junior Partner

ER || Emily Reed, Renewable Energy Product Manager At Greenfield Corp.
JD || John Daniels, General Counsel for Greenfield Corp.

00:00

[scuffling noises, paper shuffling: deep breath]

QW: Good morning. Could you please state your name and occupation for the record?

ER: My — my name is Emily Reed. I work at Greenfield Corporation, and I... I'm the project manager for our new renewable energy project.

QW: Thank you. You are aware that you are being deposed in the case of Walker Enterprises v. Greenfield Corporation?

ER: Yes, I... why are you asking this?

LL: [sniffing] It's protocol, Ms. Reed. What, you've ever been deposed before?

ER: No, it's my first time —

LL: Okay, great. We'll be asking you questions that you must answer under oath. You understand?

[indecipherable noise]

QW: Don't nod, uh... just say yes or no.

ER: Yes. [breath] Yes, I understand. I... I was sent a form covering all of this. I signed it. Doesn't that... count?

LL: Oh, lovely. I wasn't sure it got to you on time, given your attorney's penchant for non-punctuality. [pause] So... during your time at Greenfield Corp., did you ever encounter confidential information — files, emails, blueprints, photos, whatever — pertaining to Walker Enterprises?

JD: How the hell is she supposed to know if it's confidential, Mr. Litt?

LL: Oh, I don't know, the big fat Walker Enterprises logo on all their proprietary know-how? Using her brain? And don't spit at me, Daniels. Polly works hard to clean these tables.

QW: Back on topic, please. Emily?

ER: No. I... didn't encounter anything.

[papers shuffling; something smacking the table]

LL: Then what's this?

ER: Those are... how do you have those?

QW: Uh, let it be known that the email chain between Emily Reed and a colleague has been shown to the deposed. [pause, paper shuffling] I am now showing the —

LL: In these emails, you explicitly discuss Walker Enterprises.

JD: Yes, in reference to trends of the industry. These two companies are long-standing rivals; I'd be shocked if they didn't talk about one another at some point.

LL: Do not coach your client's testimony, Daniels.

QW: [sigh] I am now showing the deponent the following: [shuffling] further communication records within Greenfield Corporation, the project's timeline, and the confidentiality agreement between the two following companies.

JD: None of this proves anything.

QW: You're right, it's largely circumstantial. But given the magnitude of the evidence that we have here and the small allotment of time that we've been provided for this deposition, we'd —

LL: [paper rustling] This paper in my hands is your prototype blueprint. Now, I have yet to run it by an expert to check for similarities to Walker Enterprises' prototype, but I'd like to give you a chance to beg for mercy bef—

—

"Wait." Mike paused the recording, spinning in his chair to look at Quinn with wide eyes. "You actually got the blueprint?"

"Yeah, dude," she said, taking a sip out of her coffee mug to hide her smug grin. "Well, I mean, it technically was my PI, but—" She fluttered her hand at him. "Just keep listening, would you? You're the one who wanted to hear it, anyway."

Mike glanced at the audio recorder. "I think I can guess how it finishes. Louis is dragging that girl. And you. I mean, did you manage to get a single full sentence out?"

Quinn snorted. "No, but the good news is that they decided to settle. And we didn't even have to pull out the ace in the hole." She set her coffee down beside Mike, who was sitting on her cubicle desk with a plain bagel sitting in his lap. "How're things going with the, uh... is it the solar-powered phone?"

"Satellite phone," Mike corrected, splitting his bagel and handing half of it to her. "I couldn't tell you how it's going, though, because Harvey kicked me out of the conference room. So I'm-uh... here to file a patent."

Quinn took a large bite of her bagel. "And you don't know how to file a patent."

"...No."

"And you want me to help you. File a patent."

Mike looked around the bullpen. "Can you say it any louder?"

She thumbed cream cheese away from her lips and took another hefty swig of her coffee. "Give me the rest of your bagel and you won't have to find out." His jaw fell open, but he did as she asked and slid off her desk. A smile tugged at her lips. "You could've just asked Rachel, you know."

His voice dropped to a low whisper. "I tried. She shut me out of her office. I don't think she likes me very much."

"Yes, 'cause you're a real charmer." Quinn shook her head before getting to her feet, grinning at Mike's offended expression. "I'd really like to help, man, but... I've got another case."

"What? Already?"

"Yeah," she said, rolling her eyes. "There's this second-year who's been giving me crap about it. Threatening my reputation — like it doesn't suck already. Apparently, everyone thinks I'm Louis' lapdog. It's like being a teacher's pet all over again."

Mike walked over beside her, leaning in. "You could always smoke pot in front of him."

"Not funny," she said, slapping his upper arm. "Go find some other associate who can help you file that patent. You already owe me way too many favors here."

"I could help with your new case in exchange," Mike prodded, leaning over so he got down to her level. "I bet there's a lot of papers. And reading. And words to memorize. And —"

She power-walked away from him. "Thanks for the bagel! It's really tasty!"

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THE NEXT DAY

"Oh, you look like shit."

Mike glanced to his left to see Quinn, approaching him with a pastel pink scarf wrapped around her neck. A taxi pulled off the curb as she got closer, tires squealing away into the early New York morning.

"Gee, thanks," Mike grumbled, handing some cash to the guy manning the stand and taking his coffee gingerly. "I haven't slept since... yesterday?"

"I don't think patents are that hard."

"Yeah, well... I wouldn't know," Mike said. She reached for his coffee and he jerked back, shooting her a dirty look. "Listen, whatever you do... if a guy named Gregory tells you he can help, he cannot help. I've been proofing his briefs all night."

"Bainbridge?"

"Wha — You know about it?"

"I'm surprised you don't."

"Well, I know now." There was a deep-seated exhaustion to his voice as he held his coffee close, appreciating the warmth as Quinn fell into step beside him. "You look... oddly well-rested."

"That's what happens when you settle a multimillion-dollar case," Quinn said, rubbing her under-eyes. "Victory kills my eyebags."

"From what I hear, it causes it, too."

Quinn jolted as Harvey materialized on Mike's left, squashing the male associate between the two of them. He was dressed in a dark gray suit with a blue button-down, crisp and clean as ever. If Fitz looked well-rested, Harvey looked like he'd just emerged from a ten-year coma.

"Congrats," Harvey continued, not looking at her but smiling slightly. "Louis took all the credit, by the way."

"Good," Quinn said, shoving her hands in her pockets and exhaling steam. "I told him to."

Harvey side-eyed her for a moment, before taking the coffee from an unexpecting Mike. "Well, aren't you humble?" He took a sip of the coffee as Mike stammered out a protest. "Anyways, Mike... where's my confirmation?"

"...What?"

"The fact that you don't know already concerns me." He didn't sound too concerned to Quinn.

"You mean the patent thing?"

"The patent thing is the only piece of paper that's holding up our deal from yesterday," Harvey clarified, effortlessly casual. Quinn, however, paled slightly. "Where is it?"

"It's on my desk." Mike sounded like he was lying.

Harvey didn't miss a beat. "Well, if it's not on mine by the time I get back, I'm gonna feed you to Louis and replace you with Whitaker here."

Mike immediately slowed to a stop, laughing nervously. "Yeah. No problem." He then turned and bolted back towards Pearson Hardman, pumping his arms like nobody's business.

Quinn kept walking, and Harvey arched a brow at her. "I hear you're working on the Mercer case now, right?"

"Trying, yes."

"Try harder," Harvey said, finishing off the coffee and throwing it in a trash can ten feet away. It rose in a perfect arc and landed squarely, much to Quinn's irritation. "That's my case."

"Then-uh... why is it in the associate pool?"

"Because it's not my case yet," Harvey grinned, still speaking with an air of nonchalance. "You find something I can work with, and I'll take Mercer on."

"Why would I —"

"Unlike Louis, I actually give credit where credit is due," Harvey said, stopping and turning to face her. "Plus, I hear you're his lapdog."

"Yeah, but that's not true."

His brows bobbed, but his expression was perfectly unimpressed. "Regardless of what you think, here's what I know: you're not gonna get far with Louis. The guy's like Pau Gasol. Great guy, great team... always choking up when the buzzer rings."

Quinn's lips quirked to the side, remembering the deposition. "Okay. Fine. Yeah. So... what? Am I gonna be working with you and Mike?"

"Not like it's new, Whitaker. As of right now, you've done more work for me than he has."

She clicked her tongue and looked away. "I'll keep you posted."

Harvey began to walk back towards the law firm, patting her on the shoulder as he smiled. "Yes, you will."

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a/n: well... i'm back! ish. i don't know when i'll update this story again, but hopefully soon. if it isn't apparent from my other author's notes, i've been working on a spn fanfic :)

i am always shocked that this fic gets soooo much traction with fans, because it was just a thing i wrote for fun. but all the votes and comments have encouraged me to keep trying at it (even if i'm not hyperfixated on suits anymore!)

go check out my other stuff, too... quinn isn't my only baby who needs love.

let me know if my 8-month hiatus has decreased the quality of mike and harvey's dialogue. :)