Come and Go

TEASER: "Butterflies are free to come and go." Response to the 6-6-05 Unbound Improv Challenge.

RATING: M for language and sexual content

SPOILERS: Through Season 5.

DISCLAIMERS: Not mine for legal or fiduciary purposes, but in my fantasy world, it's another story.

AUTHOR'S NOTE: Reviews appreciated, archived at my site, and George Eads had better get an Emmy nomination for "Grave Danger." Lyrics quoted are from "Butterflies are Free" by Debbie Gibson. First and last lines given, 1000 word limit for the story itself; according to MS Word 2003, I made it with 4 words to spare.

CSI CSI CSI

"Did you know that there is a butterfly called Sara?"

Sara looked up to see Warrick standing in the door to the locker room with his arms crossed, watching her as she unloaded clean clothes into her locker.. "Anthocharis sara, the Pacific Orangetip."

He smiled and stepped into the room, closing the door behind him. "Nick and I want to get one for Grissom's collection, but we don't know if he already has one. Willing to help us out?"

She blinked. "What do you want me to do?"

"We were actually hoping that you could get him to tell you if he has one. Without asking." He sat down beside her and picked up her hands, holding them to his chest. "Come on, Sar. We need your help. Your team needs you."

She'd never seen or heard Warrick grovel before. She laughed, shoving him away. "Okay, I'll do what I can."

"Thank you, Sara! We won't forget this." He kissed her cheek, then bounded out of the room hollering for Nick.

CSI CSI CSI

A few days later, Sara and Grissom worked a case together along the shores of Lake Mead. Early morning boaters found the bound and gagged bodies of a man and woman on the beach under the chalk cliffs across from Temple Bar, Arizona.

"They couldn't have washed up over there," the local sheriff muttered under his breath as Sara and Grissom snapped pictures of the decedents. "Just half a mile and it would be an Arizona problem."

Grissom rolled his eyes at her from around the big digital camera he carried.

She smiled back. Movement behind his head caught her attention and she looked in time to see a butterfly alight on Grissom's back. She took a few shots before it flew away, but forgot about it as the day lingered well past the time her body screamed for sleep. She and Grissom had worked a full shift plus before the call came in and she knew he had to be as tired as she, maybe more so since he insisted on driving more than halfway while she napped.

It was after 4:00 when the sheriff's small boat ferried them toward the small town that served as the county seat. Grissom surprised her by putting his arm up behind her along the edge of the boat, more so when he nudged her to lay her head on his shoulder.

"I need a place to rest my head," he said, dropping his chin onto her head in as intimate a gesture as he had ever made.

Her insides turned to quivering mush when he stroked her bare arm. She closed her eyes and sighed, relaxing into him without thought. She felt him smile into her hair when he kissed her head.

The coroner promised them preliminary results in the morning and prescribed a full night's sleep for both of them. She was relieved, wanting the air conditioned room and the bed more than anything except Grissom. That she could admit that told her exactly how tired she was.

"Let's at least get the pictures to the lab," Grissom said, raising his camera bag as he fumbled with the other hand with the door to his room. "Wash up and come over to do that, then we can relax for the evening."

She just nodded, falling into her room gracelessly, breathing in the icy air. She downed a quart of water as she stripped for her shower, then let water as hot as she could stand wash away the grit and exhaustion. Only the questions she had for Grissom about his behavior on the boat kept her from crawling into bed despite his plans.

When he let her into his room, he smelled of soap and shampoo, scents that turned her on whether she wanted them to or not. His damp hair spiked a little, giving him a sexy edge that set her heart beating faster. If he really wanted to work, he wasn't making it easy.

Neither was it easy to concentrate on the digital transfer with him leaning over her, not touching but so close she swore she could hear his heart beating counterpoint to hers.

"Wait, Sara. What's that?" He pointed around her at the screen on his laptop.

She blushed. "I couldn't help it. The butterfly just caught my attention."

"I'm not surprised. It's your butterfly."

She leaned in to examine the picture. "Anthocharis sara."

"A long way from home. Like another Sara I know."

The tension swirled between them for the rest of the time it took to upload their pictures. When they were done, Grissom reached around her and closed the laptop. "Sara . . ."

She turned to face him. "Grissom?"

"Have you come back to me?"

The fire in his eyes and the hope in his voice thrilled her. "I never really left."

"'Butterflies are free/Free to come and go/Free to spread their wings/Know that I know/You'll come back to me/Cause love like butterflies are free.'"

She stood up. "Cite your source."

"Debbie Gibson."

Sara laughed, but her laughter turned to a moan of delirious pleasure when his lips descended on her throat, nibbling and kissing the delicate skin there. She launched her own erotic counterattack, lifting his head and melding her lips to his with ardor greater than any she had dreamed of in her many fantasies of this moment.

"God, Sara, if you only knew . . ." he whimpered as she lifted his t-shirt over his head and tossed it across the room.

Flesh met flesh as fingers and lips explored. Sounds of pleasure, surprise, and finally paroxysms of fulfillment marked the fusing of souls forever.

Sara lay in Grissom's arms afterward, happy in a way she had never been before. "Another sara for your collection."

"I have a lot of saras, but you're the most beautiful." She thought for an instant of Warrick and Nick when Grissom said, "Do you want to see my collection?"

--FIN--