Title: The Evidence…Tells the Future?
Author: Miss Ellaneous
Disclaimer: Now, really. If I owned them, don't you think the show would have been canceled a long time ago?
Genre: Romance, W/S
Summary: A newspaper photograph reveals a connection between Warrick and Sara that no one knew was there.
Authors Note: OK, my first CSI fic, and my first fic of any sort in a long time. The idea is shamelessly borrowed from a West Wing fic I wrote ages ago, called "It Started With A Picture." Please forgive any technical/forensic errors you find, I have not the budget for a staff of technical advisors that the real show has. I have always been a G/S shipper, but the show doesn't seem to be going that way, and I keep seeing small instances of W/S connection. Though I suppose if you look hard enough, you could find any connection on that show. OK, off my soapbox and on with the show…
"Are they dating?"
Grissom heard two lab techs talking in the break room, and wondered who they were discussing.
"Those two? I don't think so."
As he rounded the corner, he saw them hunched over a newspaper.
"Yeah, I thought they hated each other, given their history."
"Well, you wouldn't know it from this picture."
"Indeed."
Grissom cleared his throat, and the lab techs looked up guiltily. When they saw who it was, they flushed even more. "Excuse me, do you have my results from the Evans case?" he asked, sounding annoyed.
"Th-the test was still running when I came in for coffee," one of the techs stammered "I'll just go check." And with that, both of them hurried out of the room. Grissom poured himself some coffee, and then, curious, picked up the newspaper. "The Napier case?" he mumbled, puzzled. The Napier case, which Warrick and Sara had worked on last night, involved a body found in a ravine. The case had gotten a lot of attention, because the body had been that of Rachel Napier, a local councilwoman. In this instance, the case had landed on the front page of the Las Vegas Times.
At first glance, Grissom didn't see anything noteworthy about the picture, anything that would have led to the techs' speculation. Warrick was helping Sara climb up from the ravine, one hand grasping her arm, the other holding his kit. He quickly scanned the rest of the front page, but didn't see mentions of any other crime lab members. He looked at the picture again…and then he saw it. Yes, it was a simple picture, one colleague helping another up a steep slope, but the looks on their faces, the gazes they had locked on each other, seemed to indicate so much more. It was subtle, you probably wouldn't notice it if you didn't know the people involved, but it was there.
Grissom was stunned. Was there something between the two of them? He knew-well, he thought he knew-that Sara has a crush on him. After she confronted him in his office, post-explosion, things had been strained between the two of them. Maybe even before that. He thought back to recent interactions between Warrick and Sara. He hadn't noticed any special relationship there. They worked well together, playing off each other's strengths, but that was just their skill and professionalism, right? The two them had their bad history, certainly, starting from Sara's joining the team. Warrick's recounting of the forgery case, when he had been left in charge, indicated some tension there as well. Then Grissom thought of the Barstow bus case. He and Warrick had been playing chess, waiting for the tire to collapse. Griss thought he was winning, when Warrick's phone rang. After a short conversation, Warrick hung up, said "Its Sara, she needs me" and promptly checkmated Grissom.
Was there something there? What was going on?
NEXT SHIFT
The next night brought relatively few cases and, as luck would have it, a chance for Grissom to observe his two CSIs in action. Catherine and Nick had cases in town, but Sara, Grissom, and Warrick were headed to the hills. A cabin that had been closed up for almost a year was recently re-opened by the owners, who found the bodies of several men and women scattered about the house, swarmed with bugs. Grissom, of course, was going for the bugs, but he felt he needed both Warrick and Sara to process the unknown number of bodies and the neglected crime scene.
The three arrived at the cabin to find the bodies of 4 men and 4 women in beds and sleeping bags around the cabin. At first glance, there was no obvious cause of death, so Sara and Warrick set about examining the scene more closely, while Grissom went to work on his bugs. As he worked, collecting examples of each bug species present, he observed his two CSI protégés.
They did work well together, all but silently processing the scene, almost in a choreographed dance. Rarely did they get in each other's way, and one usually knew what the other was up to. When Sara turned and asked "Hey, Warrick, can you hand me an –uh" Sara motioned, momentarily blanking on the word, Warrick handed her a bindle. A few minutes later, when Warrick discovered a hair caught on the utility closet door, about to slip off, Sara was behind him with tweezers before he even had to ask.
With the crime scene thoroughly document, and the evidence collected and ready for analysis, Warrick, Sara, and Grissom gathered back at their Tahoes before heading to the lab. Behind them, David and an assistant were loading up the bodies for transport.
"David says that it looks like they might have died from carbon monoxide poisoning." Grissom said. "Warrick, you thought the furnace might have been tampered with?" Warrick nodded. Sara chimed in "We've already called the work crew to bring it back to the lab. I didn't find any obstruction in the vents around the house, so if it is CO, the problem is probably there."
"OK, when we get back to the lab, I'm going to start time-lining the bugs. Warrick, will you check with David and Al on the autopsies, and Sara, get started on the furnace." Sara and Warrick nodded. "By the way, nice picture of you two in the Times yesterday. The sheriff will be pleased."
"We were in the paper?" Warrick asked, as Sara said "Huh?" Grissom handed Sara the paper, and Warrick moved to look over her shoulder. The two examined the picture silently for a moment, then Sara handed the paper back to Grissom. She glanced up at Warrick as she stepped away…and the glance held. The two gazed at each other for a moment, until Grissom cleared his throat. They looked away, and Sara said shakily "Glad to please the sheriff. We should go." With that, the three of them headed to the cars, lost in their own thoughts.
FINIS
A/N: Ta-Da! What do you think? I have some ideas about where this will go next, but thought I'd put this much up first.
