Locket, Unlock it

"Hey Cath." Warrick smiled at the woman as she walked in.

"Hey Warrick, you okay? You look a little nervous." Catherine said in her usual way.

"I'm just a little tired is all." Answered Warrick.

"Alright, if you need me I'll be in the break room. I refuse to move unless Grissom comes and tries to pry me out of my swivel chair with a crowbar." She murmured, clearly wanting a day off. Same ol' Cath.

"I won't lend him mine then." Warrick called over his shoulder, chuckling at the image of Grissom fighting with Catherine over a swivel chair. Catherine would win.

"Much appreciated!" She shouted back as she opened the door and plopped down in the intended target. "Oh, that's nice."

"Hey man, did you give her the necklace yet?" An accent asked.

"No, not yet." Warrick grumbled.

"What? You chicken out on me?" Nick smirked.

"No, I just think I should let her relax for a bit." It was half true; she did want to relax, but he also hadn't racked up the nerve to give her the locket he bought. It was a plain silver, heart shaped locket, with a lily and vines on the front. It locked with a snap and had a special way of opening. He'd bought it for her after Eddie died, and just never got the opportunity to give it to her.

Buck-buck-bucawk!

Warrick glared at the Texan man as he did the chicken dance...while making chicken sounds...the whole Colonel Stokes meal-deal. Would you like hot, or extra crispy?

"Come on Rick, it's Catherine, what do you think she's gonna do, laugh?" Nick asked.

"Well she laughed when we had that vampire case where people were giving each other their blood." Warrick pointed out.

"Because it was a vile of human blood, not a silver locket." Nick stated flatly, stretching each word properly.

"Well, it's in my locker anyway." Warrick sighed.

"Your locker?" Nick asked skeptically.

"Yeah, why?" Warrick asked back.

"Dude, the locks on those things are broken."

"Since when?"

"Since yesterday, your day off..."

"What do you mean by broken...?"

"I mean, they're broken. If you close the door, it won't open..."

"You boys look like someone died...no pun intended...what's up?" Catherine asked the stunned looking men.

"Nothing." They both smiled innocently.

"Right, if you need me I'll be in my swivel chair...again." She waved.

"Aw man, why'd you leave it in there?!" Nick hissed.

"Why didn't you tell me the locks were broken before?!" Warrick hissed back.

"I didn't know you'd put Cath's present in there!" Nick huffed.

"What are you guys talking about?" Asked Hodges.

"Well, we...Hodges?" The man nodded. "What's that?"

"Oh! This is Yoshi, my new gold fish." He smiled.

"Why do you of all people have a gold fish?" Asked Nick.

"What? A man can't have a cat and a fish?" He asked outrageously.

"No." Nick and Warrick both dead panned.

"Hodges, you need a girlfriend. What about Wendy? I think she likes you." Nick suggested, putting his arm around Hodges' shoulder.

"What do you think Yoshi?" Hodges asked the fish, who blubbed a bubble in response. "I thought so too."

"Right, well, do you know when the lockers will be fixed?" Warrick asked anxiously.

"Supposed to be tomorrow, why? Which of you boneheads put something in there?" He laughed.

"Hey, I didn't know they were broken." Warrick barked.

"Sorry, but what's in there that you need so badly?" Asked Hodges.

"Nothing! Just, tell me how to get it open." Warrick sighed.

"I don't really know, you could try prying it open. Here, I'll help."

"You sure this is gonna work, Hodges?" Nick asked, handing the older man the crowbar. "Warrick, why do you have a crowbar anyway?"

"It's a long story, just pull." He sighed again.

"Pull!" Hodges cheered from the bench, holding Yoshi.

"What do you mean, PULL? Get over here and help!" Nick ordered.

"Fine, but I came up with the plan and Warrick supplied the crowbar, so I don't see why-"

"Pull!"

After a good half hour, they hadn't made any progress. The locker was still stuck tight and they were starting smell.

"At least we know our stuff is safe." Nick gasped.

"That's the problem right now." Warrick answered, also out of breath.

"Well, I'm out of ideas. See ya." Hodges waved.

"Get back here!" Nick shouted, though he found Hodges backing up anyway. Then he saw why.

"What are you guys up to?" Wendy squinted.

"We're trying to get Warrick's locker door open." Said Nick.

"And you tried prying it open?" She scoffed.

"Yes, do you have a better idea?" Warrick asked bluntly.

"Well, no, I was just going to say may should try getting something in the frame, like they do in the spy movies, when they slip the credit card through the door." Wendy suggested.

"What spy movies have you seen?" Hodges scowled.

"My favorite is Diamonds are forever." She shot back proudly.

"Please, that movie sucked." Hodges shook his head.

"Maybe it did, I just like it because the girl gets shoved out the window." She smirked. She looked down and saw Yoshi. "Hello."

"Come on Yoshi, you don't need to be scared of the mean lady." Hodges said in a baby voice, earning him blank stares and a chuckle.

"You named your fish Yoshi? Well I'm sure he'll like me more than you, just like my little Kobe." Wendy giggled.

"He's not your cat, and he does not like you better! He just likes your..." Hodges paused for a minute, his finger still in the air. "Chest."

"Well I'll take my chest over your gray hairs any day." She blushed, poking him in the chest and walking out.

"Hey!" Hodges spun Wendy around but in the process, started to drop Yoshi. "Oh!"

"Careful!" Wendy went to grab the bowl as well but instead just helped in hitting the bottom of the bowl and sending it flying.

"Oh great." Nick grumbled as the fish water rained over him in a huge splash. "This is wet, very wet indeed. And it smells."

"Hodges?!" Wendy asked in a slightly panicked voice. "Oh my god-he swallowed Yoshi!" She got behind him and did the heimlich maneuver, hitting his stomach at least seven times before the poor sucker finally came out...along with half an Egg MacMuffin and two grapes. "Are you okay?"

"Oh good lord." Hodges coughed, leaning over. "Can you punch through walls or what? I only needed Yoshi out, not my breakfast."

"Hey, I saved your life, you should be thanking me." She frowned.

"Sorry. Thanks for saving me and...Yoshi?" Hodges blinked as Yoshi was flopping about on Warrick's head, tangled in his hair.

"Here ya go little guy." Wendy said softly, putting Yoshi back in his refilled bowl. "That's better."

"Maybe we should leave you...three...alone." Nick shrugged.

"Good luck with the locker thing."

"Grissom?" Asked Warrick.

"Yeah?" He looked up.

"I need to get something out of my locker, but it's stuck like the others. Any suggestions?" He asked.

"You could try a mouse. They can eat through steel you know." Grissom smiled, fingering something behind his book.

"We don't really have time for that." Nick sighed, still drying himself off. He smelled of fish and middle aged sexual tension. Ugh.

"Well then I really don't know, now if you'll excuse me, I have a phone call to make." Grissom smiled at the men as they left. He picked up the phone and used speed dial one. "Hey.

"Hey, is he going to give it to her?"

"He left it in his locker, and the locks are broken." Said Griss.

"He really likes her, he'll find a way."

"Yeah, he will." Grissom chuckled, fingering his ring.

"I'll be home soon, tell them to get together before then."

"I will. Love you."

"Love you too, Gill. Bye."

"So...you need to get in here, because...?" Greg started.

"Can you get it open or not?" Nick and Warrick asked.

"Well, I'll see what I can do, but..." Greg got out a tool box with an unbelievable amount of unidentified objects.

"Now don't go breaking anything you can't fix." Brass scolded from the locker room doorway.

"Hey Brass, we're trying to get the locker to open." Explained Nick.

"Did you try giving it your number?" Brass chuckled.

"I think I..." Greg gave final tug on his thingamajig as it snapped in two. "Oh, never mind."

"What is all the racket? Can't a girl rest? First I see Hodges and Wendy cuddling a fish, then Grissom gives me some crazy message, and now I come in here to find you guys breaking into the lockers?!"

"We need something inside." Nick sighed.

"Oh, well here." Catherine picked up a hammer, looking at the head calmly.

Whap!!

All the men's shoulders jumped as she hit the locker with such force the entire door snapped off. The petit strawberry blond simply batted her eyelashes over her shiny blue eyes calmly and turned, giving Greg his hammer and shrugging her shoulders. "Problem solved."

"Okay..." Warrick went to see if she blew a hole through the wall behind it as well, but seeing as she didn't, the locket was sitting peacefully on the top shelf. "Cath, could you stay here for a sec?"

"See you guys later." Nick chuckled.

"Bye, Nicky." Cath called.

"Close your eyes." Warrick smiled as she did so without hesitation. He undid the clasp and put it around her delicate neck, taking her hair out of the chain and letting fall down her back again.

"Can I open them now?" She asked excitedly.

"Okay, you can open them now." He smiled.

Catherine looked to down to find a gorgeous silver locket around her neck. It was beautifully designed and seemed to be made just for her. A lily was on the front, and engraved on the back was a message.

To my Catherine, forever mine, forever beautiful

"Warrick, it's-" Catherine lost herself as Warrick leaned in and kissed her lips gently. She leaned into him, putting her hands on his jaw.

"I guess you liked it."

"The locket or kiss?"

"Both?"

"Both."