Stimuli Chapter 4, a csi fanfic

Disclaimer: I do not own CSI or any of it's characters. I do own Crystal. I also do not own Pain, by Three Days Grace, or Fire it up, by Black Label Society.

WARNING: This story contains Graphic femmeslash, many pairings unmentioned right now, illegal acts, bad habits galore, coarse language, violence, nudity... All the good stuff! A shout out to my Smexy Dutchie Guitar Beta, MBInc! And thanks to everyone who reviews, your support and reviews always give me a kick in the ass to get my ideas typed out quicker.

Oh, by the way, to anyone wondering what the pairing is... The only thing I can tell you for sure is that Sara is not getting hitched with a guy. Anything other than that is pretty much hearsay, because this is going to be one long ride of a story.

Author: Uriel Falcon

"You know something is alive if it responds to stimuli."

"You had absolutely NO RIGHT to talk to Crystal that way, she has done nothing wrong. She was not in contact with any evidence or incriminating information, and you know that. If you want to constantly be on my case, fine, but this is between us, it has NOTHING to do with Crystal. As for being a hussy, she is a respectable woman, and deserves nothing less from the likes of you. You know my personal record, my files. So help me god, if she is crying... Nothing on that file will even hold a match to the hell I will turn your life into, is that clear?" Sara growled, her eyes growing very dark. Ecklie gulped and nodded. With one last glare, Sara brushed past him, hoping that Sofia had caught Crystal in time.

Meanwhile in the break room, Ecklie was on the receiving end of what seemed like a thousand glares. Grissom took off his glasses and stood up to face Ecklie, his deep blue eyes gleaming brightly.

"Ecklie, you dipped to a new low. I don't want to see you near any of MY investigators for the next month. I could have you fired for harassment. Get out of my sight, you sniveling bucket of monkey scat!" Grissom's voice boomed through the room, and within seconds, Ecklie was gone. Greg slammed his fists on the table.

"Damn him! Crystal is such a nice person, how could he even say such a thing?" Greg exclaimed angrily. Nick put a hand on his shoulder.

"Tell us about her. She was friendly, seemed shy to me." Nick asked. Greg leaned on the table.

"She's sweet, a bit shy at first. She's a little insecure about being at the lab, as she said, she didn't want to cause trouble for Sara. Apparently, Sara got her out from between a rock and a hard place, so to speak. She's incredibly intelligent, I think she might have gone to medical school. She's a fast learner, too. I hope Sofia grabbed her in time, I'd hate to see Crystal leave because of that weasel." Greg answered.

"Let's hope so, because I'd really like to know this Crystal. If she makes Sara happy, then she's making me happy." Warrick stated sincerely. Catherine once again remained silent, thought she was steaming inside. What a bastard...

Sara walked down the hallway at a fast pace, searching out Crystal and Sofia. She opened the door to the women's bathroom, finding her query. Crystal's face was buried in Sofia's shoulder as she cried quietly. Sofia stroked her back, attempting to comfort her.

"Crystal, what Ecklie said to you isn't true, and I'm sure everyone is chewing him out as we speak. Sara wanted you here, so she brought you. She doesn't do something unless she truly wants to, kiddo. You have to believe me, she wants you here. Don't care about Ecklie, he's just a stupid, over pompous fuck who likes to piss people off..." Sofia explained, spotting Sara at the door. Sara quickly closed the distance, pulling Crystal from Sofia's shoulder onto her own.

Sofia took the hint and 'buggered off' towards the break room. Sara held Crystal tightly to her, dropping kisses on the top of the blonde's head. Her hands rubbed the younger woman's back, her tears slowly subsiding. Crystal looked up at Sara through tear filled eyes, her face flushed. Sara brushed a stray lock of hair behind the blonde's ear, cupping her face gently with her palm.

"Crystal, Ecklie had no right to say anything to you at all. You're beautiful, you're sweet, kind, you're perfect, Crystal. Don't believe anything that scum says. You're not causing me any problems by being here, no matter what he says. Please... please don't cry...Not over this, not over me, please..." Sara begged, her voice dropping to a whisper. Crystal rested her head underneath Sara's chin, gripping at the taller woman's shirt like it was a lifeline.

"Thank you for everything, Sara. I don't know how I'll ever repay you... You're the only one who's ever stood up for me like that. You make me feel safe... And I think I'm falling in love with you." Crystal admitted, looking up into Sara's eyes. Sara leaned down slowly, and captured Crystal's lips in a soft kiss.

"I think I'm falling in love with you, as well." Sara breathed out as they parted. Crystal couldn't help the smile that crossed her face when she heard Sara's husky voice. Crystal placed her head back on Sara's chest, feeling comfortable once again. Her tears were gone, replaced by what seemed to be a permanent smile. Sara kissed the top of her head, inhaling deeply.

"God you smell good. You must have been born on the beach..." She mumbled into Crystal's hair. Crystal laughed.

"Um, thanks, I guess?" She giggled out. Sara laughed deeply.

"Yeah, I guess that's a little weird... Let's get back to the break room. Don't worry about the others, I'm sure they chewed Ecklie out already." Sara reassured, leading Crystal out of the room with her arm slung across the shorter woman's shoulders. As they entered the break room, they immediately laughed at the sight.

Sofia was beating Nick in an arm wrestle, essentially toying with him a few centimeters before his ultimate defeat. Nick was red faced and sweating, while Sofia was just smiling away. Very lightly, she tapped his hand against the table.

"I win. Now hand over my 20 bucks." Nick grumbled while passing her a twenty dollar bill. Sofia shoved it in her back pocket, turning to Sara and Crystal.

"Boys always think they can win because I've got skinny arms." She reasoned, leaning back in her chair. Sara laughed.

"Well, you do have skinny arms... I can see where they made the error in judgment." Sara offered, pulling Crystal down onto the couch right beside her, tucked into her arms protectively. Crystal had no qualms about this, resting her head on Sara's strong shoulder. Sofia grinned at the little interaction, but kept any comments to herself. Instead, she offered Sara her normal sly grin, then returned to engaging in conversation with the boys. Catherine still remained silent, reading over a report she had to submit to the sheriff.

"Crystal, if it's not too much to ask, I would like to speak to you for a moment. Is that alright?" Grissom asked, holding his hand out to Crystal. She looked up at Sara, who gave her a nod of approval.

Crystal stood, and walked with Grissom into his office. She was amazed by the sheer amount of bugs in the room.

"Crystal, I would like to apologize for Ecklie, since he won't. He had no right to speak that way to you, and I assure you, I gave him a piece of the team's mind. I hope to see you again around here, Greg seems to enjoy your company, and I've never seen Sara so lively. You're good for her, and I do hope you stay." Grissom spoke, giving Crystal one of his 'Grissom' grins. She smiled right back.

"I will, Mr. Grissom. I understand now that it wasn't me, though I guess in a way I was a target. I will stick around, I really enjoy it here. And Greg's a hoot, a very intelligent guy with an eccentric side. Sofia is great, I really like her, too. Mia's an amazing woman, she's got wit when she wants it. Jacqui is hilarious, and Bobby is so sweet. Sara is probably the most incredible person I've ever met, and I know now that I don't have the strength to leave..." She answered, smiling sweetly. Grissom grinned, and reached back to his fridge.

"Great... Hey, do you like chocolate?" He asked, ever so innocently. Crystal nodded slowly, not getting the point. Grissom opened a jar, and offered her a piece of weirdly shaped chocolate. She immediately saw the cricket.

"Mr. Grissom, is this a chocolate covered cricket?" She asked warily. Grissom simply nodded, eating one himself. She smiled, and shrugged.

"You know, I've always wanted to try these..." She stated as she popped one into her mouth. She giggled.

"Crunchy."

Back in the break room, Sara was nervously pulling at the fuzz of the couch, wondering what Grissom was saying to Crystal. If he's telling her to go home, I'll squish his tarantula... Sara threatened in her mind, already imagining the look of utter horror on Grissom's face as one of his babies splattered under her thick boot. She looked up as Crystal and Grissom walked back in the room, both eating some sort of chocolate.

"Here Sara, you've got to try one of these, they're delicious." Crystal tempted, offering Sara a chocolate covered cricket. Sara blinked wide.

"Is that a cricket?" She asked bluntly. Crystal nodded, plopping down back into her spot beside Sara.

"Yup, they're crunchy, sort of like a coffee crisp. Come on, try one..." She teased, waving a cricket under Sara's nose. Sara's left eye twitched.

"You know, I think I'll pass on that..." She answered. Crystal shrugged, popping the cricket in her mouth.

"Suit yourself." She stated. Sara smiled, leaning her head back on Crystal's head. A cell phone suddenly rang out in through the air to the tune of 'Fire it up' by Black Label Society. Sofia grabbed her phone, and answered it quickly.

"Curtis... Oh, hi Mother. Yes... What do you mean, it blew up? Like, kabloomie? Oh, bother, Mother! I've told you a thousand times, unplug the vacuum BEFORE you start the microwave, otherwise you're going to short circuit your house! ...Yes, of course I'll fix it, but bloody hell, remember to unplug it this time! Alright... Okay... Pft, that's absurd and you know it...Yes...No...Argh, yes Mother... No Mother... Bye Mother..." Sofia slapped her phone shut, her left eye twitching slightly. Sara grinned.

"Your mom blew up the vacuum cleaner again, didn't she?" Sara asked between chuckles. Sofia nodded.

"I should just rewire her damn house. I've fixed the wiring WAY TOO MANY TIMES! For a top detective, she can't do anything with electricity... She says the current blew something off of the wall, so I bet it was a fair sized blast this time..." Sofia explained. Warrick laughed.

"Sometimes even geniuses can be absent-minded when it comes to wiring. You're lucky to be able to fix things like that without getting curly hair." He commented. Sofia huffed a laugh.

"I've been shocked pretty bad because of dear old mother... I was installing some lights in her bathroom, and she was going to flip on the fuse when I yelled down for her. I was almost done when I bumped my head on the ceiling. I yelled a nice curse word, which she thought meant to flip on the fuse... I got blown off the kitchen sink and halfway down the hallway." Sofia recalled, shaking her head. Nick blinked wide.

"That had to hurt... What'd you do after?" He asked. Sofia laughed.

"I lay on the floor until mom came up, asking what happened. I had to start all over again with a fresh set of lights because it had blown all of the breakers in the lights. And of course I had to, after all, it was my mother I was helping..." Catherine cringed.

"Nothing like home renovation to cause injury..." She stated as she washed out her coffee mug. Sara looked up at the clock, and jumped up, bringing Crystal up with her.

"SHIFT IS UP!" She yelled, ready to fly out of the door. Grissom smiled.

"Have a good night, everyone." He said as they all filed out quickly. Sara clocked out quickly, practically running to her car. Crystal jumped in as well, grinning as Sara peeled out of the parking lot after waving goodbye to Sofia.

Sofia smiled at her friend's enthusiasm while she unlocked her car. She slipped into what she referred to her 'Beat cop Bitch', or the car that she only used at work. After clicking the radio to a familiar station, she drove out of the parking lot, ready to go fix her mother's bloody wiring system. Sofia grinned at the song playing, feeling a smile creep onto her face.

Pain, without love
Pain, I can't get enough
Pain, I like it rough
'Cause I'd rather feel pain than nothing at all

You're sick of feeling numb
You're not the only one
I'll take you by the hand
And I'll show you a world that you can understand
This life is filled with hurt
When happiness doesn't work
Trust me and take my hand
When the lights go out you will understand

Pain, without love
Pain, I can't get enough
Pain, I like it rough
'Cause I'd rather feel pain than nothing at all
Pain, without love
Pain, I can't get enough
Pain, I like it rough
'Cause I'd rather feel pain than nothing at all

Anger and agony
Are better than misery
Trust me I've got a plan
When the lights go off you will understand

I know (I know I know I know I know)

That you're wounded
You know (You know you know you know you know)
That I'm here to save you
You know (You know you know you know you know)
I'm always here for you
I know (I know I know I know I know)
That you'll thank me later

Pain, without love
Pain, can't get enough
Pain, I like it rough
'Cause I'd rather feel pain than nothing at all
Pain, without love
Pain, I can't get enough
Pain, I like it rough
'Cause I'd rather feel pain than nothing at all
Pain, without love
Pain, I can't get enough
Pain, I like it rough
Cause I'd rather feel pain than nothing at all
Rather feel pain than nothing at all
Rather feel pain

Sofia turned a corner and broke onto the main highway, heading towards her mother's house. Since her house, along with the homes beside hers, was being fumigated, she had to move everything into storage and was currently staying with her nut bar of a mother. After that had been done, she had simply taken to parking in front of her mother's house.

I really hope she didn't manage to set something on fire... Again.

After a few hours of heavy duty shopping, Crystal and Sara returned home, plopping the bags down on the kitchen counter. They both collapsed onto the couch.

"I'm glad that's over with..." Crystal stated. Sara nodded mutely, dropping her head to rest on Crystal's lap. Crystal giggled at Sara. She obviously wasn't a heavy shopper. Crystal began running her hands through Sara's hair softly, closing her own eyes. Sara's eyelids soon became very heavy.

"As much as I love this, we should make it over to the bed. I think I'm gonna fall asleep..." Sara mumbled. Crystal agreed. After a few attempts, they finally stumbled down the hallway. Sara flopped onto her bed, grinning. Crystal grabbed a pair of her new pj's, and changed quickly. Sara fumbled into a pair of boxers and a t-shirt, managing to flop back into bed quickly enough. Crystal snuggled up to her, a tiny smile on her face.

"Goodnight, Sara."

"Mphahdfm." Sara mumbled. Crystal would have laughed, if it had not been for sleep taking over.

Next time, in Stimuli!

"My house blew up."