DISCLAIMER: I own nothing here. Please don't sue my sorry butt!
A/N: This story has been re-published because I apparently accidentally deleted it months ago, and didn't realize until someone went looking for it. Hehehe. There are a few new chapters at the end as well. Thanks to TBAChikita for letting me know I was being hunted, and for finding the files on my PC! G
Chapter 1:
There it was. The golden fleece of thrift store shopping. The one find that makes your trip and time spent scouring racks of wife-beaters and moo-moos all worth it! A pristine pair of skin tight Dolce Gabanna pants. And it was all hers. Catherine folded the article of clothing over her arm, and continued to peruse the aisles. There was a certain high that went along with a great bargain. Thrift Stores around Vegas were unlike any others. Finding a designer top for two bucks was common place. And if you didn't mind previously worn-in shoes, the kicks were fine too. It's a good thing. Having been a well-paid stripper in her previous existence, she had grown accustomed to the finer things in life. Designer clothes, fine wines, and fast cars. These were her drugs of choice now. And thrift stores and outlet malls were keeping her out of the poor house. This was her diversion. . . along with her daughter.
"Cat?"
Catherine turned at the sound of a familiar voice.
"Sara! Never seen you in here before."
Sara already had a small stack of clothes slung over her arm as well.
"First time." She was a little apprehensive of her finds, and seemed to be trying to conceal them. . . which of course made Catherine even more curious.
"So!. . . What'd you find?" She eyed her colleague's bounty.
"Uh, well, a bunch of stuff. Just needed some casual clothes, and didn't want to bust the bank." Sara shifted a little.
"Uh huh. Let's see? I just found some great slacks." She proudly held up the slender black trousers. Sara seemed much less excited about sharing her own finds. Catherine's eyebrows shot up at the sight of a small red dress, a pair of black high heels, and sweater with a neckline that would threaten to let things fall out. She grinned.
"Hmmm! Well, I'm guessing those aren't for field work. . . unless you're going under cover again." She laughed, and Sara gave her a dirty look.
"Nope. I said they were casual." She groaned at the prospect of Catherine sharing this with the guys.
"Yeah! Well casual what exactly?" She couldn't help but laugh, and apologized immediately. "I'm sorry, Sara. It's really none of my business. Hot date?" She laughed again.
"OK, I'm putting these back." Sara made a move to dump her findings, but Catherine stopped her, and smiled.
"Oh, don't be such a baby. There's nothing wrong with having fun outfits for dates. Those are nice finds. Besides, we team up, we can find more stuff!" Catherine had definitely warmed up to her comrade over the past few months. She loved Nick and Warrick as well, but they weren't likely to go shopping with her. This could be fun. Sara wasn't terribly sure about this.
"Try this!"
Before Sara could duck, she was hit in the face by a periwinkle silk blouse.
"Periwinkle looks great on anybody. Plus, it beats those tie-died looking flower-power tops you wear sometimes at work."
"Hey! I like those. They're comfortable, and they're fun."
"They're ugly, and they make you look a refugee from a commune. Tell me you weren't raised in a commune?" This was much more fun than she expected. She felt like she was on one of those new shows.Stripper Eye for the Geeky CSI! Sara merely went along with it. It was kind of fun shopping with Catherine. It was easier to go along with Cath now, then put up a fight and hear more reasons that her taste in clothes stunk.
"No. . . but my parents were hippies." Sara grinned at Catherine's mild shock.
"Wow. I would've guessed they were professors or school teachers. Bet they're proud you became a vegetarian." She wheeled the newly acquired cart over to Sara who dumped her armload in with much relief.
"They don't know. My dad eats more red meat than Nick." She didn't look up as she spoke, pulling a Harvard t-shirt off the rack grinning. "How could anyone ditch their Harvard tee?" She tossed it into the cart to a frowning Catherine.
Catherine wondered what the parents of Sara Sidle must be like. She'd met Nick's folks, and they were exactly what she had expected. Warrick's grandmother fit him to a tee as well. She knew Grissom's mother was an antiques dealer. Also very appropriate. How do a couple of hippies end up with a daughter like Sara? She tried not to be so much the investigator, and put her mind back to the task at hand.
"Whoa! You've got to get this little number!" Catherine handed Sara a beautiful crimson button-up top, and a nice black pant suit with a ¾ length jacket.
"Great! I'll look like the feds."
"Gimme a break! I'd pay to see the look on the guys faces if you wore this into work tonight." She smiled at the thought of poor Greg's tongue hanging out. "It's very chic."
Sara held it up to scrutinize it. It was nice, and it looked very professional in a sexy kind of way. She was afraid she couldn't pull it off.
"I dunno. I might just look silly in this. Like I'm trying to be somebody else." She put it in the cart. Maybe she wanted to be somebody else for a change. "OK. That's it for me. Gotta get home and get ready for work."
"Great! I'm off tonight. But I'll see you tomorrow. Wear that suit!" She pointed a stern finger at Sara who rolled her eyes in response as they divvied up the cart's contents.
Chapter 2:
Sara examined the outfit in the mirror. The suit fit perfectly. The silk blouse was a bit large, but tucked in, you couldn't tell. The jacket was form-fitting, and still comfortable. She was relieved that the slacks had belt loops so she could attach her gun holster. No way was she wearing that uncomfortable shoulder holster again for an entire shift. They were nice- looking pants too. Much nicer than she would usually wear to work. It would probably be coated in luminol and powder by the end of shift anyhow. She decided to wear her hair pulled up and back. Might as well do this right. A little unsure about this still, she tucked a sleeveless t-shirt, and jacket into her duffle bag as a backup. Part of her was a little excited to be dressed so nice for work. Most of the police detectives wore suits every day. What was the big deal?
-~-~-~
As she walked through the halls towards the break room, Sara was very self- conscious about the looks she was getting. Even Archie looked away from his microscope as she passed. Greg popped out of his lab, and stopped her.
"You got an interview today or something?" He liked what he saw. Of course he like seeing Sara anytime, but today she looked right out of a magazine. Not the kind of magazine he fantasized she was in, but a magazine none the less.
"Nope." She smiled at him, and walked on. She had to admit that Greg's reaction had been fun, but she also wasn't sure she liked all the attention. It was a little embarrassing. She didn't think she was that great looking to begin with.
She sat down on the couch in the break room, and read through the case she had been working on the night before.
"Whoa!" Nick wolf whistled, startling Sara back to the present. He stood grinning next to her.
"Nice threads. You got an interview or something? Court date?" He sat down next to her to await the others.
"No." She laughed, and continued reading the file. She grinned as she noticed Nick casting sideways glances at her, trying not to ogle her outright.
Warrick and Grissom walked in and next. Warrick walked over to the table and sat down before looking up at his colleagues. Grissom, on the other hand, stood in the doorway appearing to be somewhat stunned. He stood there with his mouth open a bit, looking at Sara like she was a puzzle. Warrick noted Sara's new attire, and smiled.
"Nice duds. Due in court today?" Warrick grinned.
"No, and I don't have an interview either." She looked up at Grissom, who had finally come to his senses, and closed his gaping mouth. He walked in, and handed Warrick a folder.
"Nick, you and Warrick are on a convenient store robbery/homocide uptown. Sara, you're with me. We're taking Greg out today. We've got a DB out in the desert."
"Great. I'll go snag the labrat." Sara got up and headed out to Greg's lab, unaware of the three sets of eyes watching her exit the room.
"Ok. . .what was that?" Warrick looked around at the other two men, and smirked.
"Don't ask me. You sure she's not interviewing someplace, Grissom?" Nick laughed until he noticed that Grissom was not amused at the thought.
"No. Maybe it's laundry day. Nothing else to wear." He left the younger CSI's trying desparately not to laugh at his theory that Sara had exhausted every possible outfit, but a sexy business suit.
"Yeah, that's a possibility." Warrick laughed, and walked out followed by a chuckling Nick.
Sara walked into Greg's domain, bringing a bright smile to his face.
"Ah! We meet again!" He put the page he'd just ripped from the printer down, and gave her his full attention.
"Looks like you're with me and Grissom today out in the field." She smiled at him. For his part, Greg tried his best not to do a dance of joy. While going out in the field made him nervous still, he was very happy that it was to be with Sara. . . he was definitely hot for teacher. Even if Grissom would be there too.
"SO! You got all dressed up just to take me out in the field, and show me the ropes?" He wiggled his eyebrows at her suggestively.
"Yes, Greg. You found me out. That is precisely why I wore a nice suit today." She rolled her eyes at him, and handed him the folder on the case to look over in the SUV. "Although I will be showing you a lot of techniques tonight." She laughed and walked back out. She didn't need to look back to know he was following right behind her.
"And would any of those 'techniques' involve ropes and handcuffs?"
"Um, no. Sorry." Sara had to laugh. Greg was fun to work with. She actually looked forward to working with him out in the field. He was going to make a great CSI some day.
"Just read that file. It's always good to have as much information as possible going in, but try not to jump to any conclusions. I know that can be tough, but you get used to it. You just have to wait for the evidence to start talking to you." She smiled at hearing herself sound so much like a teacher.
If it had been anyone else but Greg, she would've felt odd training him. Greg was easy to talk to, and he already knew so much about the evidence. He just needed to learn about the collection process, and how to deal with being at an actual crime scene. She remembered back to when Grissom had taught her 'the ropes.' It had been a very exciting time for her. It was when she had really started to get to know Grissom, and respect him so fully. At that moment, it occurred to Sara. . .Greg looked at her very much the same way she had looked towards Grissom. She looked over at Greg for a moment as they were loading supplies into the back of the Tahoe. She knew he harbored a crush on her, and had asked her out several times. She knew he had been only half joking. She was going to have to be sure that Greg knew she respected him, and that he understood that she was his friend. After Greg called shotgun, Grissom shrugged, and got into the backseat. This should be an interesting shift.
Chapter 3:
"Gloves." Grissom gave Greg a stern look as he bent over the body.
Greg quickly pulled a pair of latex gloves from his vest pocket, and stooped down beside him. Sara snapped a few photos, and stepped back as Grissom began instructing Greg on crime scene techniques.
"Ok. First things first. We need to get a start on these footprint impressions. Here's a bag of dental stone. Add the water to the bag," Grissom carefully poured the water into the baggy, and resealed it, "and start massaging it for about four minutes. Should feel like pancake batter." He handed the baggy to Greg who started kneading it carefully. Greg was just barely able to contain his urge to squeal "My momma made Shake 'n' Bake an' Ah helped!" He figured it was best to tone down the humor with a dead body present.
"So this is part of the glamour that is field work?" Greg grinned at Sara who had finished setting up the tripod over the prints, and was snapping off photos.
"Yup. At least we've got other evidence to collect while those casts dry. Here." Sara moved the tripod after finishing the final shot, and knelt down by the first print. "Don't pour it directly onto the impression. That can destroy it. Pour to the side, and let it flow into the print." She watched as Greg slowly poured the dental stone into the print until it overflowed. "Nice!" Greg beamed with pride. Any praise from Sara was welcomed. Grissom stood over the two of them observing.
"Good job, Greg. Only about six more, and some tire treads to go." He smirked as he handed Greg a bucket to mix the next batch of stone up with.
"Oh, joy." Greg deadpanned. Sara followed Grissom over to the body.
"What've we got?" She looked up at David who was waiting for them to finish so he could leave. Grissom pulled back the sheet.
"Male. Looks like mid thirties. Gunshot to the back of the neck, execution style." Grissom stood back so that Sara could take photos. She quickly snapped off the necessary photographs, and went back to the Tahoe to ditch the camera and film.
"Looks like a body dump. This isn't the primary crime scene." Sara looked over Grissom's shoulder as she spoke.
"And you know that how?" Greg was eager to learn. He tried to get himself accustomed to looking at a dead body. It was a far cry from the trace lab.
"Not enough blood. No spatter. It's too clean. I'll wager somebody's having their trunk professionally cleaned today though." Sara looked up at Grissom, then at Greg who she could tell was being a trooper. She remembered the first few times she'd hovered over a dead body. Hers had been at the coroner's office though, not out in the field. The heat wasn't being kind to the carcass, and the smell was awful.
"Breath through your mouth. It honestly helps." She patted him on the arm, and pulled the sheet back over the body.
Grissom motioned for David to take the body. The trio leaned up against the Tahoe. It would be another half hour before they could be sure all the castings were good and dry.
Greg began patting out a drum beat on the bumper until Grissom glared at him. Sara snickered. She joined Greg's little improv by tapping her sunglasses against the back window. Grissom just rolled his eyes, and smiled.
"Bad boys, bad boys.whatcha gonna do?" Greg 'sung' to the beat as Sara and Grissom both were now laughing.
"Greg!" Grissom glanced over at him. Greg immediately stopped, still grinning though. He could tell Grissom wasn't actually angry. For some reason he wasn't as intimidated by his boss when he was actually out there, working with him. The first time he'd ever been out in the field he was terrified. He'd totally frozen up, and feared Grissom would never trust him again. When Grissom first approached him about going out in the field for training, he'd been thrilled.
"Times up. Let's get those castings back to the lab, and see what Doc Robbins has for us on our shooting victim."
~-~-~
As they walked into the office, Greg felt high on life. He was practically skipping down the hall beside Sara. Sara had shed the heavy designer jacket, and was now sporting a dusty coating of grit from the crime scene. She parted ways with Greg as he sat down in the DNA lab, but not before telling him what a good job he'd done. Greg didn't think he could be happier. . . unless of course Sara leaned down and smooched him. Yeah, that wouldn't hurt. He beamed at Archie who poked his head only to scowl at his overly happy expression.
"Sara." Grissom caught up with Sara in the break room.
"Yeah?"
"Nice job today with Greg." He still had his sunglasses on even though they were inside, and Sara worried he was getting a migraine. It wasn't a headache. He was, in fact, looking her over from the safety of heavily tinted lenses. A tinge of guilt crept in, but not enough to keep him from casually wiping a bit of smudge from her cheek.
"Dust." He said, nonchalantly.
"Ah." She was caught a bit off guard, but smiled.
"Nice suit." Grissom walked back out without another word. Sara stared at his retreating backside with a slightly confused look on her face.
-~-~-~
That afternoon, Sara found herself back at the thrift store.
"So! By your asking me to go shopping here again, I'm going to take a chance and assume you wore that suit last night." Catherine grinned at Sara who returned the grin and nodded.
"Yeah." She pushed the cart down the cluttered aisle.
"And?"
"And it was pretty comfortable. Everyone thought I had an interview though."
"I'll bet. What did the guys say?" Catherine wished she'd actually been there. Sometimes getting Sara to spill the beans was worse than interrogating a murder suspect.
"They asked me if I had a court date or interview." She laughed again, remembering Nick's wolf whistle.
"Hmmm. What did Grissom say?"
"Nothing. We had a DB out in the dessert. Just a normal shift. Although we did bring Greg out with us."
"You were out in the dessert dressed like that with Greg and Grissom?" Catherine stared at her, and smiled a conspiratorial smile.
"Greg did great. Grissom stood back, and let me do most of the training. It was nice."
Catherine just smirked. 'Yeah! I'll bet Grissom was really watching you teach.' She thought.
"Just a normal shift then?"
"Yup. As normal as a body dump out in the dessert can be."
"Ok, then why are we back here?"
"Do you wanna shop or interrogate me?" Sara gave her a warning look that said 'no more questions or I'll run away.'
In response Catherine handed her a black cashmere sweater.
"Nice."
Sara and Catherine continued down the aisle perusing the miss-matched lots.
A/N: This story has been re-published because I apparently accidentally deleted it months ago, and didn't realize until someone went looking for it. Hehehe. There are a few new chapters at the end as well. Thanks to TBAChikita for letting me know I was being hunted, and for finding the files on my PC! G
Chapter 1:
There it was. The golden fleece of thrift store shopping. The one find that makes your trip and time spent scouring racks of wife-beaters and moo-moos all worth it! A pristine pair of skin tight Dolce Gabanna pants. And it was all hers. Catherine folded the article of clothing over her arm, and continued to peruse the aisles. There was a certain high that went along with a great bargain. Thrift Stores around Vegas were unlike any others. Finding a designer top for two bucks was common place. And if you didn't mind previously worn-in shoes, the kicks were fine too. It's a good thing. Having been a well-paid stripper in her previous existence, she had grown accustomed to the finer things in life. Designer clothes, fine wines, and fast cars. These were her drugs of choice now. And thrift stores and outlet malls were keeping her out of the poor house. This was her diversion. . . along with her daughter.
"Cat?"
Catherine turned at the sound of a familiar voice.
"Sara! Never seen you in here before."
Sara already had a small stack of clothes slung over her arm as well.
"First time." She was a little apprehensive of her finds, and seemed to be trying to conceal them. . . which of course made Catherine even more curious.
"So!. . . What'd you find?" She eyed her colleague's bounty.
"Uh, well, a bunch of stuff. Just needed some casual clothes, and didn't want to bust the bank." Sara shifted a little.
"Uh huh. Let's see? I just found some great slacks." She proudly held up the slender black trousers. Sara seemed much less excited about sharing her own finds. Catherine's eyebrows shot up at the sight of a small red dress, a pair of black high heels, and sweater with a neckline that would threaten to let things fall out. She grinned.
"Hmmm! Well, I'm guessing those aren't for field work. . . unless you're going under cover again." She laughed, and Sara gave her a dirty look.
"Nope. I said they were casual." She groaned at the prospect of Catherine sharing this with the guys.
"Yeah! Well casual what exactly?" She couldn't help but laugh, and apologized immediately. "I'm sorry, Sara. It's really none of my business. Hot date?" She laughed again.
"OK, I'm putting these back." Sara made a move to dump her findings, but Catherine stopped her, and smiled.
"Oh, don't be such a baby. There's nothing wrong with having fun outfits for dates. Those are nice finds. Besides, we team up, we can find more stuff!" Catherine had definitely warmed up to her comrade over the past few months. She loved Nick and Warrick as well, but they weren't likely to go shopping with her. This could be fun. Sara wasn't terribly sure about this.
"Try this!"
Before Sara could duck, she was hit in the face by a periwinkle silk blouse.
"Periwinkle looks great on anybody. Plus, it beats those tie-died looking flower-power tops you wear sometimes at work."
"Hey! I like those. They're comfortable, and they're fun."
"They're ugly, and they make you look a refugee from a commune. Tell me you weren't raised in a commune?" This was much more fun than she expected. She felt like she was on one of those new shows.Stripper Eye for the Geeky CSI! Sara merely went along with it. It was kind of fun shopping with Catherine. It was easier to go along with Cath now, then put up a fight and hear more reasons that her taste in clothes stunk.
"No. . . but my parents were hippies." Sara grinned at Catherine's mild shock.
"Wow. I would've guessed they were professors or school teachers. Bet they're proud you became a vegetarian." She wheeled the newly acquired cart over to Sara who dumped her armload in with much relief.
"They don't know. My dad eats more red meat than Nick." She didn't look up as she spoke, pulling a Harvard t-shirt off the rack grinning. "How could anyone ditch their Harvard tee?" She tossed it into the cart to a frowning Catherine.
Catherine wondered what the parents of Sara Sidle must be like. She'd met Nick's folks, and they were exactly what she had expected. Warrick's grandmother fit him to a tee as well. She knew Grissom's mother was an antiques dealer. Also very appropriate. How do a couple of hippies end up with a daughter like Sara? She tried not to be so much the investigator, and put her mind back to the task at hand.
"Whoa! You've got to get this little number!" Catherine handed Sara a beautiful crimson button-up top, and a nice black pant suit with a ¾ length jacket.
"Great! I'll look like the feds."
"Gimme a break! I'd pay to see the look on the guys faces if you wore this into work tonight." She smiled at the thought of poor Greg's tongue hanging out. "It's very chic."
Sara held it up to scrutinize it. It was nice, and it looked very professional in a sexy kind of way. She was afraid she couldn't pull it off.
"I dunno. I might just look silly in this. Like I'm trying to be somebody else." She put it in the cart. Maybe she wanted to be somebody else for a change. "OK. That's it for me. Gotta get home and get ready for work."
"Great! I'm off tonight. But I'll see you tomorrow. Wear that suit!" She pointed a stern finger at Sara who rolled her eyes in response as they divvied up the cart's contents.
Chapter 2:
Sara examined the outfit in the mirror. The suit fit perfectly. The silk blouse was a bit large, but tucked in, you couldn't tell. The jacket was form-fitting, and still comfortable. She was relieved that the slacks had belt loops so she could attach her gun holster. No way was she wearing that uncomfortable shoulder holster again for an entire shift. They were nice- looking pants too. Much nicer than she would usually wear to work. It would probably be coated in luminol and powder by the end of shift anyhow. She decided to wear her hair pulled up and back. Might as well do this right. A little unsure about this still, she tucked a sleeveless t-shirt, and jacket into her duffle bag as a backup. Part of her was a little excited to be dressed so nice for work. Most of the police detectives wore suits every day. What was the big deal?
-~-~-~
As she walked through the halls towards the break room, Sara was very self- conscious about the looks she was getting. Even Archie looked away from his microscope as she passed. Greg popped out of his lab, and stopped her.
"You got an interview today or something?" He liked what he saw. Of course he like seeing Sara anytime, but today she looked right out of a magazine. Not the kind of magazine he fantasized she was in, but a magazine none the less.
"Nope." She smiled at him, and walked on. She had to admit that Greg's reaction had been fun, but she also wasn't sure she liked all the attention. It was a little embarrassing. She didn't think she was that great looking to begin with.
She sat down on the couch in the break room, and read through the case she had been working on the night before.
"Whoa!" Nick wolf whistled, startling Sara back to the present. He stood grinning next to her.
"Nice threads. You got an interview or something? Court date?" He sat down next to her to await the others.
"No." She laughed, and continued reading the file. She grinned as she noticed Nick casting sideways glances at her, trying not to ogle her outright.
Warrick and Grissom walked in and next. Warrick walked over to the table and sat down before looking up at his colleagues. Grissom, on the other hand, stood in the doorway appearing to be somewhat stunned. He stood there with his mouth open a bit, looking at Sara like she was a puzzle. Warrick noted Sara's new attire, and smiled.
"Nice duds. Due in court today?" Warrick grinned.
"No, and I don't have an interview either." She looked up at Grissom, who had finally come to his senses, and closed his gaping mouth. He walked in, and handed Warrick a folder.
"Nick, you and Warrick are on a convenient store robbery/homocide uptown. Sara, you're with me. We're taking Greg out today. We've got a DB out in the desert."
"Great. I'll go snag the labrat." Sara got up and headed out to Greg's lab, unaware of the three sets of eyes watching her exit the room.
"Ok. . .what was that?" Warrick looked around at the other two men, and smirked.
"Don't ask me. You sure she's not interviewing someplace, Grissom?" Nick laughed until he noticed that Grissom was not amused at the thought.
"No. Maybe it's laundry day. Nothing else to wear." He left the younger CSI's trying desparately not to laugh at his theory that Sara had exhausted every possible outfit, but a sexy business suit.
"Yeah, that's a possibility." Warrick laughed, and walked out followed by a chuckling Nick.
Sara walked into Greg's domain, bringing a bright smile to his face.
"Ah! We meet again!" He put the page he'd just ripped from the printer down, and gave her his full attention.
"Looks like you're with me and Grissom today out in the field." She smiled at him. For his part, Greg tried his best not to do a dance of joy. While going out in the field made him nervous still, he was very happy that it was to be with Sara. . . he was definitely hot for teacher. Even if Grissom would be there too.
"SO! You got all dressed up just to take me out in the field, and show me the ropes?" He wiggled his eyebrows at her suggestively.
"Yes, Greg. You found me out. That is precisely why I wore a nice suit today." She rolled her eyes at him, and handed him the folder on the case to look over in the SUV. "Although I will be showing you a lot of techniques tonight." She laughed and walked back out. She didn't need to look back to know he was following right behind her.
"And would any of those 'techniques' involve ropes and handcuffs?"
"Um, no. Sorry." Sara had to laugh. Greg was fun to work with. She actually looked forward to working with him out in the field. He was going to make a great CSI some day.
"Just read that file. It's always good to have as much information as possible going in, but try not to jump to any conclusions. I know that can be tough, but you get used to it. You just have to wait for the evidence to start talking to you." She smiled at hearing herself sound so much like a teacher.
If it had been anyone else but Greg, she would've felt odd training him. Greg was easy to talk to, and he already knew so much about the evidence. He just needed to learn about the collection process, and how to deal with being at an actual crime scene. She remembered back to when Grissom had taught her 'the ropes.' It had been a very exciting time for her. It was when she had really started to get to know Grissom, and respect him so fully. At that moment, it occurred to Sara. . .Greg looked at her very much the same way she had looked towards Grissom. She looked over at Greg for a moment as they were loading supplies into the back of the Tahoe. She knew he harbored a crush on her, and had asked her out several times. She knew he had been only half joking. She was going to have to be sure that Greg knew she respected him, and that he understood that she was his friend. After Greg called shotgun, Grissom shrugged, and got into the backseat. This should be an interesting shift.
Chapter 3:
"Gloves." Grissom gave Greg a stern look as he bent over the body.
Greg quickly pulled a pair of latex gloves from his vest pocket, and stooped down beside him. Sara snapped a few photos, and stepped back as Grissom began instructing Greg on crime scene techniques.
"Ok. First things first. We need to get a start on these footprint impressions. Here's a bag of dental stone. Add the water to the bag," Grissom carefully poured the water into the baggy, and resealed it, "and start massaging it for about four minutes. Should feel like pancake batter." He handed the baggy to Greg who started kneading it carefully. Greg was just barely able to contain his urge to squeal "My momma made Shake 'n' Bake an' Ah helped!" He figured it was best to tone down the humor with a dead body present.
"So this is part of the glamour that is field work?" Greg grinned at Sara who had finished setting up the tripod over the prints, and was snapping off photos.
"Yup. At least we've got other evidence to collect while those casts dry. Here." Sara moved the tripod after finishing the final shot, and knelt down by the first print. "Don't pour it directly onto the impression. That can destroy it. Pour to the side, and let it flow into the print." She watched as Greg slowly poured the dental stone into the print until it overflowed. "Nice!" Greg beamed with pride. Any praise from Sara was welcomed. Grissom stood over the two of them observing.
"Good job, Greg. Only about six more, and some tire treads to go." He smirked as he handed Greg a bucket to mix the next batch of stone up with.
"Oh, joy." Greg deadpanned. Sara followed Grissom over to the body.
"What've we got?" She looked up at David who was waiting for them to finish so he could leave. Grissom pulled back the sheet.
"Male. Looks like mid thirties. Gunshot to the back of the neck, execution style." Grissom stood back so that Sara could take photos. She quickly snapped off the necessary photographs, and went back to the Tahoe to ditch the camera and film.
"Looks like a body dump. This isn't the primary crime scene." Sara looked over Grissom's shoulder as she spoke.
"And you know that how?" Greg was eager to learn. He tried to get himself accustomed to looking at a dead body. It was a far cry from the trace lab.
"Not enough blood. No spatter. It's too clean. I'll wager somebody's having their trunk professionally cleaned today though." Sara looked up at Grissom, then at Greg who she could tell was being a trooper. She remembered the first few times she'd hovered over a dead body. Hers had been at the coroner's office though, not out in the field. The heat wasn't being kind to the carcass, and the smell was awful.
"Breath through your mouth. It honestly helps." She patted him on the arm, and pulled the sheet back over the body.
Grissom motioned for David to take the body. The trio leaned up against the Tahoe. It would be another half hour before they could be sure all the castings were good and dry.
Greg began patting out a drum beat on the bumper until Grissom glared at him. Sara snickered. She joined Greg's little improv by tapping her sunglasses against the back window. Grissom just rolled his eyes, and smiled.
"Bad boys, bad boys.whatcha gonna do?" Greg 'sung' to the beat as Sara and Grissom both were now laughing.
"Greg!" Grissom glanced over at him. Greg immediately stopped, still grinning though. He could tell Grissom wasn't actually angry. For some reason he wasn't as intimidated by his boss when he was actually out there, working with him. The first time he'd ever been out in the field he was terrified. He'd totally frozen up, and feared Grissom would never trust him again. When Grissom first approached him about going out in the field for training, he'd been thrilled.
"Times up. Let's get those castings back to the lab, and see what Doc Robbins has for us on our shooting victim."
~-~-~
As they walked into the office, Greg felt high on life. He was practically skipping down the hall beside Sara. Sara had shed the heavy designer jacket, and was now sporting a dusty coating of grit from the crime scene. She parted ways with Greg as he sat down in the DNA lab, but not before telling him what a good job he'd done. Greg didn't think he could be happier. . . unless of course Sara leaned down and smooched him. Yeah, that wouldn't hurt. He beamed at Archie who poked his head only to scowl at his overly happy expression.
"Sara." Grissom caught up with Sara in the break room.
"Yeah?"
"Nice job today with Greg." He still had his sunglasses on even though they were inside, and Sara worried he was getting a migraine. It wasn't a headache. He was, in fact, looking her over from the safety of heavily tinted lenses. A tinge of guilt crept in, but not enough to keep him from casually wiping a bit of smudge from her cheek.
"Dust." He said, nonchalantly.
"Ah." She was caught a bit off guard, but smiled.
"Nice suit." Grissom walked back out without another word. Sara stared at his retreating backside with a slightly confused look on her face.
-~-~-~
That afternoon, Sara found herself back at the thrift store.
"So! By your asking me to go shopping here again, I'm going to take a chance and assume you wore that suit last night." Catherine grinned at Sara who returned the grin and nodded.
"Yeah." She pushed the cart down the cluttered aisle.
"And?"
"And it was pretty comfortable. Everyone thought I had an interview though."
"I'll bet. What did the guys say?" Catherine wished she'd actually been there. Sometimes getting Sara to spill the beans was worse than interrogating a murder suspect.
"They asked me if I had a court date or interview." She laughed again, remembering Nick's wolf whistle.
"Hmmm. What did Grissom say?"
"Nothing. We had a DB out in the dessert. Just a normal shift. Although we did bring Greg out with us."
"You were out in the dessert dressed like that with Greg and Grissom?" Catherine stared at her, and smiled a conspiratorial smile.
"Greg did great. Grissom stood back, and let me do most of the training. It was nice."
Catherine just smirked. 'Yeah! I'll bet Grissom was really watching you teach.' She thought.
"Just a normal shift then?"
"Yup. As normal as a body dump out in the dessert can be."
"Ok, then why are we back here?"
"Do you wanna shop or interrogate me?" Sara gave her a warning look that said 'no more questions or I'll run away.'
In response Catherine handed her a black cashmere sweater.
"Nice."
Sara and Catherine continued down the aisle perusing the miss-matched lots.