FERN BAR!

Long shot of Alicia with her red wine, sort of luxuriating in the horrible infuriating mess of the world; finally she rolls her eyes a little and looks over.

Alicia: "Thanks for doing this."
Kalinda, so careful: "Having a drink? Why not?"
Alicia: "So um, we could get that winning bid invalidated."
Kalinda: "My husband's bid?"
(Have they ever said his actual name to each other? I love that.)
Alicia: "As his attorneys, he asked us to check into Streckler Automotive's payoffs. He never said anything about their partners' work histories."

They vibe at each other for a while. It's like coming home, watching them work out their conversation so quietly, without speaking. Knowing that whatever Alicia says next, it'll seem like a pivot, a change of subject. But it won't be. And Kalinda will be right there with her.

Alicia: "Do you love him?"
Kalinda: "...Nope. Gonna say no, honestly."
Alicia: "Then what."
Kalinda: "I have ... difficulty ... being away from him."
Alicia, again: "Is he dangerous?"
Kalinda, ashamed: "...Sometimes."
Alicia: "Shouldn't you stay away, then?"

Shouldn't you stay away, then? Is it that he gives you something you can't get somewhere else, or that he takes something away you don't need? Do you really need him, for that? Aren't you worth more than this? Aren't you at least as wonderful as I made you think you were?

Ladies. Ladies and their tigers.

But some have learned to ride:

PANEL ON THE MAINSTREAMING OF GENDER IN THE MILITARY

Kuhn: "And we're back. Just one more witness for the panel. Sergeant, thanks for returning from Afghanistan. We just have one quick question."
Sergeant Wade Compton: "Your Honor."
Kuhn: "What do you think of the mainstreaming of gender in the military?"
Compton: "What do I ... think?"
Kuhn: "Yep."
Compton: "Uh. It is good?"
Kuhn: "Thank you, Sergeant. You're excused."

It takes literally ever fiber in her being to control herself -- Alicia Florrick, I'm saying, comes close to losing her version of control -- and keep it to a simple, curt nod. But she can't stop herself from beaming up at Judge Kuhn, no matter how much Her Honor would prefer she not.

COMPTON TESTIMONY