Quite frankly, Traci Harmon didn’t want another trainee. Beyond everything she and Alex Diaz went through and poor Maria being murdered on duty, she would much rather fly solo than have another rookie. But here you are, bright eyed and bushy tailed anyway.

Traci can take one look at you and decide that you don’t have what it takes to be a cop. You’re too innocent, too pure, too cheerful. The streets of Long Beach are going to chew you up and spit you back out - and it’s not even one of the worst beats to work. But it’s not like she can look at you and go, ‘Go home, boot, you’re not gonna make it.’ Lieutenant Bishop wouldn’t be pleased. So, she begrudgingly looks you over.

“Put your hair up. You’re going on patrol, not taking fucking glamor shots.” You mutter a quick, ‘yeah, of course’ as you begin to tie your hair back. Traci rolls her eyes and begrudgingly gets in the driver’s seat. You nervously follow after her.

“What rank did you finish your class in?”, she asks as she drives. It’s a question that she asks all of her trainees. It’s a way to gauge how much she’ll have to teach you and whether or not you’re a waste of time. You tell her you finished at the top of your class. She’s mildly impressed, even quirking a brow at you, but book smart isn’t always enough. Just because you could recite the information doesn’t mean you could practice it in the field. So, she shad nothing and keeps driving.

About half an hour later, Traci suddenly slams on the brakes. “Where are we?” You blink owlishly, your brain struggling to keep up with whatever the fuck is happening right now. Traci’s voice gets more insistent. “I’m shot and bleeding. You need backup. Where are we?”

It’s only then that you realize you’re being tested. You scramble for an answer, looking for any major landmarks, but you’re not reacting fast enough. You open the car door, moving to get out, and Traci shakes her head in disappointment. “Stop. Get back in here and close the door.”

You reluctantly do so. There’s silence for a long moment as the car door thuds shut.

Traci doesn’t really want another new trainee. She’d rather stick with Alex. They had a good thing going. But you were the niece of Lieutenant Bishop, and the woman only trusted you in Traci’s care. If anything happened to you… Traci shuddered at the thought. No doubt, Bishop would have her head. She may not have wanted you around, but Traci had to come to terms with the fact that you were her responsibility whether she liked it or not. So, she turned to face you with a heavy sigh. “I know that in the academy, they teach you guys all sorts of rules and what you need to do. I’m not saying that you shouldn’t do things by the book. You should. The rules are there for a reason. But you have to understand that things are a bit different out here than what you’re taught. You need to be aware of where you are at all times. Always check your street signs and landmarks, okay?”

You nodded and Traci started the car again, glancing at you from the corner of her eye. That was another reason she didn’t want another trainee. After what happened to Maria, she tried to become emotionally detached to everything. Instead, she found that she often got protective. And something as sweet and naive as you would become as easy as a distraction as the one that helped ruin her marriage. But Traci still isn’t ready to deal with her feelings for women or her affair with one, so she ignores that thought as the radio crackles to life for a 10-65. “Armed robbery. That’s near the homeless camp”, she mumbled as she turned on the siren.

Any thoughts of whether or not she’ll have to protect you in the field leave Traci’s mind as she speeds down the street, fingers clenched around the steering wheel. There’s no more room to theorize. She’s got to act fast and merely hope that you’ll be able to handle your own, at least once. “Just stay close to me, boot”, she sighs as you get close to the scene. There’s a crowd growing outside of the storefront that’s being robbed. “Don’t cause any trouble.”