Disclaimer: I do not own CSI.

AN: Okay, I am planning to finish this by the end of the week. Just in case I haven't said so yet, I am not planning on doing season 7. Way too much negative material to manipulate favorably.

I walk past my office on my way to the locker room. Yes, shift isn't officially over yet, yes, I still have paperwork that needs finishing, and yes, Grissom is trying to get me to help him with one of his stupid experiments that puts the entire lab off some food group for weeks.

I've reached the point where I no longer care.

It's not that I'm tired, I'm just completely sick of any and all things work-related. Every once and a while that happens. Honestly, I wanted to be out of here several hours ago. The only thing that stopped me was my memory of Sara telling me about all of the different sorts of bacteria found at spas, and I couldn't think of anywhere else relaxing to go.

Of course, now I've decided that anywhere would be more relaxing than here at the morning. God, I'm sick of work. I need a vacation. I wonder if Sara and Linds would mind a trip to Hawaii? Probably not. …Especially since Lindsey has school. Okay, so no vacation. Great.

I stop walking for a second and run a hand through my hair. Maybe I should just go out, rent a bunch of sappy movies, get a gallon of ice cream, and sit on the couch for a few days while Sara and Lindsey whine about my horrible taste in movies.

Impulsively, I look into my office and glare at the ducks on my desk. The ceramic ones, at least. I actually like the rubber one. Not that it's actually on the desk. I keep it inside one of the drawers so that no one comments on it. I might like it, but it's still a bright yellow rubber ducky.

…That Sara's holding. Why is Sara in my office? I open the door and walk in, somewhat surprised when Sara doesn't bother looking up. She just sits in my chair, holding the duck in her hands. I go over to the desk and touch her shoulder cautiously.

"Sara?"

She looks up and drops the duck. I frown at the obvious stress in her eyes. "Sweetheart, what happened?"

She sighs and lets her head fall into her hands. "I screwed up the case."

I don't have to ask what case she's talking about. I'm glad I didn't have a major part in that case. Can anybody say 'reasonable doubt'? It was enough to give anyone a headache. Judging from Sara's expression, she got more than just a headache out of that mess.

"How?"

She scoffs and picks up the duck again, using it as a stress ball. I snatch it out of her hands before she causes it any permanent damage. She sighs again. "I let my personal feelings get in the way. I saw how smart Hannah was, and how Stacy tortured her, so I believed her when she said she killed Stacy."

I don't have to ask why she believed Hannah. I've heard little snippets of her high school life, and I know there were at least a few girls that Sara wanted to hurt because of the way they treated her. Looking at the case from that perspective… I can't blame her for believing Hannah.

"Then, after we arrest her, she says that Marlon really was the one that killed Stacy. Nick and—hell, Nick and Ecklie both agreed it was Marlon. I… didn't."

I interrupt her. I'm pretty sure I know what happened after that. I know that Marlon got off, and that we arrested Hannah. Sara must have talked to Hannah after the arrest. "Sara, it wasn't your fault. No matter what had happened with this case… look, I know you. Your emotions might have influenced your opinion as far as who was guilty, but if there had been a single shred of evidence that proved your opinion wrong, you would have let it go. You did not screw up the case."

Sara glares at the ceramic ducks on my desk, and I can't help smiling. I wrap my arms around her neck and sit on her lap. "Sara, even without your opinion, Marlon would have gotten off, and DA Sinclair would want to pin the murder on someone. Hannah would probably be on trial no matter what."

Sara seems to struggle with what I'm saying for a few moments before she relaxes slightly and hugs me back. She sighs into my neck. "Thanks."

"You're welcome." I lean back and look her in the eye. "Now, I was planning on skipping out of here early. Care to join me?"