Hey hey, it's me again with another installment of this series which is yet to sport a name...and probably never will...but that is neither here nor there. This is a fanfic belonging to me, unlike it's characters, it's setting, or anything like that. Heck, I don't even own the computer in which this is being typed. OK, seriously, appreciate this please, I had to deal with a little kid who doesn't know how to stop talking to write this...OH SWEET GOD...HAVE MERCY...Urgh, okay, venting done...okay, enjoy b'ys...Happy New Years and what not:D

It was early evening as a teenage girl walks along the street near a large school. She quietly recites her lines to herself as she turns a corner towards the familiar park, which houses a shortcut home. She carries a large bag with her on her back, and a script in her hand. She does not notice the children with their parents in the swing set, as they play carefree. She seems unaware to the world around her as she loses herself in her thoughts. She meets a boy of her own age carrying papers of his own on the path to which she greets and stops to talk for just a minute. Then she sets off again into the darkening night through a wooded boardwalk, oblivious of the fate that will come to her…

CHAPTER 1: CHANGE OF FACE

"WHAT?!" The team said incredulously to the face of their supervisor. The break room was stunned at what was just said. Nick and Greg's mouths fell open, Catherine and Sara stared penetratingly, and Warrick still could not comprehend it.

"Now stop that," Grissom said putting up his arm, "Let me finish. I said I was leaving, but not forever."

"Where are you going?" Catherine asked worriedly.

"Ecklie has me on a suicide mission."

Greg smirked in spite of himself. "Doesn't that mean that you wouldn't be coming back anyways?"

"Shut up Greg," Sara said punching him in the arm playfully. Greg grunted in pain. "Just because we're dating doesn't mean I won't hurt you, Sanders. Let Grissom finish."

"Thank you Sara. Now anyways, Ecklie has been informed by his superiors that we need to send someone to the schools about Nevada. This means that Ecklie has informed me that I need to go to some schools about Nevada and speak about Criminology."

Catherine eyed him suspiciously. "But you hate public speaking."

"Did I not say suicide mission? Anyways, I will be gone for two weeks. In the meanwhile, my position will need to be filled."

"Who is getting it?" Nick questioned. "Anybody here?"

"If I could choose it, yes, it would be someone here, but that's not in my jurisdiction. The state has informed Ecklie also that they will be sending someone to fill my place. His name is Charles Scoot."

Greg looked forlornly at him. "Oh no Griss, you didn't…"

Grissom turned to the young man. "Why shouldn't I have done Greg? Do you know this guy?"

Greg sighed. "You could say that. He worked with me in San Francisco, lazy creep, always blamed others for his messes, and through kiss-assing made his way to a supervisor position. He always made working there miserable. I don't know how the other CSI's dealt with him there."

"I guess there's an Ecklie everywhere." Warrick said. Just as that sentence finished their Conrad Ecklie came through the door with someone behind him.

"Gil, have you told them yet?" His slim face and hooked nose made him seem more menacing than he should have been, but just the mention of his name made people at the lab cringe.

"I just finished." He replied simply.

"Good", he said. He moved out of the way to reveal a man of about forty with coal-black hair and wrinkled face. His eyes were slits, his nose hooked like Ecklie's and ears that were very small. He was about 5'9", and he was a fair size of a person, far beating the rest of the Graveyard shift in weight. "Say hello to your new supervisor for the next two weeks, Mr. Charles Scoot." A mumble of almost inaudible welcomes met them. Then there was silence for a half a minute. "Well," Said Ecklie, feeling the tension growing, "I'll leave you to get acquainted. Gil, you need to be off, your plane leaves in an hour."

Grissom nodded, and turned to his team. "I guess I'll see you when I get home. You guys stay out of trouble, okay? I don't want to lose my best CSI's." Everyone nodded in a silent promise to Grissom. "Oh, and my last duty," he added opening his folder. "Here are everyone's cases. Catherine and Warrick, you get a DB on the outskirts of town, pretty straightforward as far as I can tell. Nick, you get a break and enter on the strip, and Greg and Sara, you get an assault on a teenage girl at this address. Sofia will be waiting at the scene." Each took their slip of paper, and headed out to get ready. Charles, whom will be referred to as Charlie, was also making an exit when Grissom grasped him on the shoulder. "I'd take care of my CSI's if I were you."

Charlie smiled a crooked smile with yellowed teeth. "Is that a threat, Mr. Grissom? If you're leaving, I don't think you're in that position. That team looks mighty interesting, 'specially the brunette and the blonde. I think I recognize them both…"

"If you do anything to get them in trouble or otherwise harm them, I'll make sure you know the consequences."

And before Charlie could reply, he left to follow Ecklie.

"It is him," said Greg hitting his head against the passenger side dashboard. "I thought maybe it was just someone else but it is him."

"Really Greg, is it that bad?" Sara asked as she made a left turn towards a wooded parking lot. "I mean he didn't seem too bad."

"That's what he does, Sara," whined Greg. "He sucks you in, and then he strikes! I swear he's evil. And he is an idiot, and a cheap swindler, and…"

Sara laughed. "Come on, sweet Sanders, we're here." She kissed him, hushing him as he relished her touch and smell. He hated the nickname, but it sounded like heaven coming from her, and she only used it when they were alone. "It'll all be okay. It's only for two weeks."

Greg gave her a sweet smile, and kissed her back. They both got out and headed to their kits, and then to Sofia. Greg looked over at his girlfriend and thought about how much she had changed in only a few months. With just a little bit of tender treatment, Sara had seemed to forget all her mental scars and let down her shield. "Hey Sofia, what's the deal this time?" He said as they approached the detective.

"Early this morning a jogger was making her laps through this path in the park when she saw something sticking out of the bushes. When she grabbed a stick and poked it, it twitched and moaned. That's when she called paramedics. They've already arrived and taken the body. It's a teenage Jane Doe…no ID yet. Here's where she was found." Sofia gestured to a spot on the ground that was caked in blood. The grass was displaced and leaves from nearby foliage were displaced. A large bag was thrown down to the side; it's contents strewn across the nearby area.

"Messy scene," Greg commented.

"Uh-huh," Sara agreed. "Well, I guess our first priority is to process this area. I'll take this place, the blood and the leaves and nearby area."

"I'll take the bag and clothes?" Greg questioned. Sara nodded. "But…someone needs to check on the girl. We need to collect a rape kit and all that stuff…"

"Sanders can do that," Came a voice from just behind them. They turned around and Greg groaned inwardly at the sight of his new supervisor. "I'll look at the bag and clothes with Miss Sidle."

"Is that such a good idea?" Sara said, eyeing Charlie sceptically. "I mean, isn't it wise if a female were to ask a female victim questions, especially if she was raped. It's just more appropriate for a woman to go."

Charlie screwed up his face in distaste, but then smiled wickedly. "Yes, quite right Miss Sidle. Sanders, take pointers from this girl. She was a great CSI back in San Francisco."

Sara gasped a second later. Greg looked to her to see if she was all right, but she was blanching. "I know you, don't I?" She asked. Charlie nodded. It hit her hard. "You worked with me at the Crime Lab at San Francisco…but soon after you were transferred there, I was transferred here."

Charlie nodded again. "Very good, Sidle. I'm pleased you remember me. I'm sure Mr. Sanders remembers me as well, right?" He gestured towards Greg who, with gritted teeth, nodded. "Ah, then getting to know my new team will be very easy indeed. Sara…may I call you that?" Sara simply nodded once. "Then Sara, please go to Desert Palms and deal with the victim. Sanders, deal with the clothes and bag, I'll take Sara's job. Go."

Sara took a long last glance at Greg, and then walked back to one of the officers who would escort her to the hospital. This glance did not go unnoticed by Charlie however. Greg sighed, and walking a few steps, dropped his kit and said, "Well let's get this started then."

Charlie never said anything, and that was fine to Greg. The less he had to speak to that man the better. But before long, Greg heard the dreaded voice. "So Sanders, how has your work been here? You haven't screwed up in the field yet like you did in the lab?"

"What are you talking about?" Greg replied icily.

"You know what I mean. It was you, who blew up the lab, wasn't it? It was such an outrage that all the crime labs this side of the USA heard about it."

Greg bristled at the accusation. "You know that it was Catherine, not I, who blew up the lab? And it was an accident. The burner was switched on by accident."

"Yeah, yeah." His taunting reminded Greg of a toddler. He did not even seem to acknowledge Greg had said something. "When I heard that it was in Las Vegas, I knew it had to be that Greg Sanders fool who blew up the rig."

Greg grunted and totally engrossed himself in his task. It seemed to shut up Charlie for the time being. He took photos of every article of clothing multiple times, and then carefully inspected it. They seemed completely odd to Greg. Inside was a very old, though beautiful, style dress, pale pink in colour with a sparkling gold strip of fabric running down the sides and meeting at the hips where it joined and ran down the middle. It seemed to have a few layers. There was also a matching pair of dainty slippers and a band for wrapping about the head. Greg pondered the reason for having it, but deemed it better to wait. Had Sara been there with him and not Charlie he would have asked her opinion.

Greg also cast about for anything else. Scattered a few feet next to him was a few water bottles, an extra change of clothes, and a make-up case. Greg documented these also, and then got up. There was no way he could get any fingerprints off of the surrounding forest. He glanced about again, and to his glee found a pair of deep shoe impressions ground into the dirt, hidden behind a large tangle of brush. As he took the impression, he also noticed that there was a piece of something on the ground. He collected this also, and with a grimace, he turned to Charlie.

"I processed this part. Think I saw where the attacker hid. What'd you find?"

Charlie sneered at Greg's complete ignorance to his taunting, but replied, "Well, I collected blood, and trace samples of hair, and I found this." He held out to Greg a thick document of paper. Greg made to take it, but Charlie whipped it out of his reach. "It's a script for a play. Romeo and Juliet. Seems like the kid was a budding actress."

"This could lead us to who she is. It also explains why I found an old style dress in the stuff that came from her bag." Greg looked to the sky as darkness shrouded them. Dark clouds were gathering.

Charlie grunted. "I suppose." A gust of wind blew through the area, causing Greg to shiver in the unexpected coolness. Charlie beckoned to the Tahoe. "Come on, let's get back to the lab. Maybe what Sara has collected will help us any. Meanwhile you start on the ID of our vic."

Greg nodded and followed obediently. "Maybe he isn't so bad after all." He thought to himself as he and Charlie drove back to the lab.

I hope this isn't too short...seriously, believe it or not, once school starts again, I will have plenty of spare time to write...haha, wow, that's not twisted at all. Okay, hang tight, and reviewing makes me feel better...so review:) I'll try and have a new one up...I dislike making people (if they are reading that is) wait for a new chapter. So, yeah, enough of this monologue! Until later people:D