Disclaimer- I do not own any part of CSI. All these ideas come from the voice inside my head….I mean my imagination. Lol -x-

Chapter 1 – Bad reception

She flicked through the pages of the magazine idly, not bothering to stifle the wide yawn she gave. Greg sat down next to her and tried to read the page before she once again turned it over. He soon gave up and returned to drinking his coffee and counting the ceiling tiles.

"Ok, what is this about?" Catherine asked as she entered the staff room with Nick a few steps behind. Sara looked up before shrugging her shoulders and putting the magazine away as they took their seats.

"We know as much as you do." Greg informed them.

"Whatever it is, it had better be good. It was the first good night's sleep I've had in ages." Sara mumbled, folding her arms across her chest tightly. Greg and Catherine nodded in agreement.

"Y'all should get up early like me. You know, go for a jog, take a shower and get some breakfast from that great place on the strip. Man, you can't beat it." Nick commented cheerfully, resting his hands behind his head, looking at each of them in turn, who were all responding with stony looks.

"But I er suppose each to their own. Hey, Warrick's here!" He called attempting to lighten the mood.

"Why are you so happy?" Warrick asked annoyance present in his voice. Nick's face dropped and resigned to sitting miserably like the others.

"What's going on?" Warrick asked.

"We don't know." Greg, Sara and Catherine replied in unison.

"Great. Tina wasn't too happy when I told her I had to go to work."

"Trouble in paradise already?" Catherine asked curtly. Warrick looked at her, trying to guess what she was thinking. Ever since she had received the news of his marriage she hadn't been acting the same around him.

"Course not." He gave a forced smile then paused before asking

"So you really don't know what this is about?"

"No!" They all replied loudly at him.

"It's about something very important." Grissom commented standing in the doorway, watching them all. He looked around at their expressions, his eyebrows arching slightly.

"What's up with you lot?" He asked, a small smile appearing.

"Getting up early on my day off." Sara replied through gritted teeth, which amused Grissom even more.

"I apologise for calling you all in on your day off and I promise you can go home and crawl back into bed once I've finished." He looked at Sara pouting and an overwhelming urge to join her washed over him. He pushed it aside and concentrated back on what he was saying. He walked further into the room and took a seat at the head of the table. He placed his hands on the table, arching his fingers together.

"Ecklie has given me some very important news." This caught the team's attention and they broke from their irritable mood, panic taking its place instead.

"Someone's been fired?"

"Ecklie's keeping the team split up?" Nick asked darkly.

"We're getting someone new?"

"Someone's leaving?"

"Ecklie's leaving?" Sara asked hopefully.

"You've been promoted?"

"One of us has been fired?"

"We're all gonna be moved to dayshift?" Warrick suggested, imagining nights at home with Tina. Catherine looked at Warrick, whose eyes had glossed over and rolled her own eyes.

"We're getting a pay rise?" Her eyebrows rose hopefully.

"Ecklie wouldn't think that's important. If he would even tell us in the first place." Nick commented and Catherine replied with a nod.

"True."

"You've been fired?"

"You're moving labs? Moving state?" Sara asked uncertainly her fingers crossed under the table hoping she didn't have the correct answer. Grissom shook his head gently and she discreetly breathed a sigh of relief.

"We've all been fired?"

"Maybe it would be easier if you let me tell you instead of trying to guess."

"Aw, but we were enjoying that." Warrick gave a small laugh and looked at Grissom who had a satisfied smile plastered across his face.

"I've just been informed by Ecklie that"

"Ecklie's been fired!"

"Greg, no-one has been fired!" Grissom replied laughing.

"You're going on holiday?" Greg asked, now running out of options after exhausting the possibilities of people being fired.

"I've just been informed by Ecklie that the hard work undertaken by the Las Vegas crime lab has not gone unnoticed. This is why we and the lab have been nominated for a RAFFSA." He finished triumphantly. The room fell into silence only broken by Sara's enthusiasm.

"That's great! What's it for?" She gushed.

"Um question: what is a RAFFSA?" Greg asked uncertainly, unsure if he had missed something important. Nick, Warrick and Catherine nodded in agreement.

"A RAFFSA is a Recognised Achievement in the Field of Forensic Science Award." Sara explained.

"Oscars for scientists." Warrick concluded

"It's a very high esteem for any lab to hold and we should be honoured to be nominated." Grissom commented. Sara looked across at him and saw the pride in his eyes. She gave a small smile to herself but averted her gaze quickly as he glanced across at her.

"I'm not being funny Griss and I don't wanna sound ungrateful; it's great we've got a nomination for an award. But, what has this got to do with us?" Nick asked. Grissom smiled.

"Well, who do you think Ecklie's asked to represent the lab?"

"You?" Greg suggested pointedly.

"Us!" Grissom replied loudly, his arms outstretched gesturing at the five stunned faces in front of him.

"When is it?" Catherine pulled her diary and pen out of her bag.

"We need to leave tomorrow." Catherine opened her diary then her head snapped up quickly.

"Tomorrow?" She said her voice squeaking slightly in surprise.

"What do you mean 'we need to leave tomorrow'?" Warrick eyed him confusedly.

"Oh right, I forgot. It's in Florida." Greg began to choke on the coffee that had just burned its way down his throat from shock. Catherine patted his back until his face had turned from a purple tinge to red.

"Sorry. I won't be able to come." Catherine answered.

"Neither can I. Tina would have a fit if I said I was going on a work related trip for however long to Florida." Warrick looked downhearted.

"Oh puh-lease! You've known the woman five minutes and you're already under the thumb! I would love to go and represent the lab, but my daughter comes first and she has important exams coming up. I'm not gonna leave her. If you don't go, it's your choice, but don't moan about it 'cause you've been given the chance." Catherine snapped at him angrily, causing the staff room to fall silent once again.

"Aren't all these awards things the same though? The winners know beforehand they've won. We obviously haven't." Nick commented, changing the subject, if only slightly.

"It's a science thing, they probably sit there on awards night discussing theories about who should have won and create a hypothesis on which they base the winners." Warrick joked dryly, trying to forget the comments Catherine had made. Greg began to laugh, causing Sara and Nick to join in. Even Catherine managed a smile. Grissom was the only one who looked unhumoured, offended and very upset. He heaved himself out of his chair.

"You can all go home now. Enjoy the rest of your day." He muttered walking out of the room, his shoulders slumped dejectedly.

They sat in stunned silence, their mouths falling open in surprise.

"What was that about?" Nick asked, frowning at the others who shrugged in reply. They turned and looked at Sara. She glanced at them and rolled her eyes.

"I don't see why I have to…ugh, never mind. I'll talk to him." She stood up and walked calmly out of the staff room, but her heartbeat quickened with every step she took.

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Well, hope you're enjoying it so far, I know there has been much going on but it does start moving slightly quicker after this!