Bear Witness
Summary: More bears than a circus act.
A/N: Part four. My very late response to the Unbound Challenge. First and last lines are provided. I forgot to thank my beta last week, so thanks to Ann, Burked and Marlou for their services on this and/or last week's chapter.
Rating: PG-13
Disclaimer: Pick you favorite disclaimer from any previous story and insert it here

Chapter 4

"Are you sure it doesn't hurt?"

Grissom turned his head towards the spiky-furred bear and frowned. The speaker was addressing the pink-bowed bear underneath him, and she responded by growling contentedly. Feeling a bit self-conscious and oddly in the mood for some honey, Grissom ignored them and lumbered towards the bathroom. This was his den, after all.

"Hey, it's Fuzzy Wuzzy!"

Grissom stopped and slowly turned around, his eyes wide-open. How come he'd never noticed Greg was a teddy bear before? And the female bear enjoying the young CSI's attentions wasn't Ursula – it was Sara.

Blinking wildly, Grissom stared at them in horror. He reached down to tug on the red shirt covering his belly, only to find he wasn't wearing one. And he had no fur. In fact, he was totally nude.

And Sara was laughing. At him.

"Oh, bother," said Grissom.

With a start, his eyes snapped open and he sat up quickly. His hands reached up to rub his face, and Grissom sighed. He'd suspected their surroundings would affect his dreams, but there was no way he'd been expecting something like that. An involuntary shudder ran through his body as he recalled the nightmare. Nothing like that would ever happen. Would it?

Besides Sara laughing at his nakedness.

Groaning, he closed his eyes briefly. This whole situation had been one embarrassing encounter after another. Unfortunately, it was on the verge of becoming worse. The liquids Sara insisted he needed to drink had worked their way through his system, and he really did need to get to the bathroom. All he had to do was figure a way of getting there with some shred of his dignity left intact.

He looked at the robe at the foot of the bed and immediately discarded that idea. It was see-through; even bundled up, it wouldn't provide any cover. His eyes darted to the figure next to the robe. Sara was leaning against the footboard, sleeping lightly. Despite the urgency of the situation, Grissom took a moment to watch her.

She'd wrapped one arm around the post, and had one leg hooked over the edge of the mattress to prevent being drawn into the vortex that was the center of the bed. Her free leg had drifted somewhat, and in the process, the towel wrapped around her waist had started to come undone, revealing a bit more of her legs.

With a raised eyebrow, he cocked his head to the side, enjoying the new view. Clearing his throat softly, Grissom pulled his head away. He was already embarrassed enough without his body joining into the game. Somehow, he doubted Sara would find that amusing. And if he didn't find a way to get to the bathroom, he was going to be even more embarrassed.

Grissom was ready to take his chances by strategically holding the pillows when he spotted his boxers folded neatly on the nightstand. His initial joy was short-lived after he realized they were also just out of his reach. Sara's legs were in his way of sliding close enough to reach them.

Moving carefully, Grissom inched his way as close to her as possible, taking care not to wake Sara. As hard as he tried, he couldn't reach his shorts. With a resigned sigh, he cautiously lifted up the covers and leaned over her, quickly grabbing his underwear with a triumphant grin.

Sinking back into the bed, he repressed a groan. Sara's eyes were closed, but a slight smile had formed on her lips. She hadn't gotten another look, had she? With as much decorum as possible, Grissom wrestled his way into his boxers beneath the sheets before making a beeline to the bathroom.

As he was drying his hands, he noted the towels in the bathroom were on the damp side. Looking around, his eyebrow went back up as he reconstructed what had happened. At some point, Sara had come in here and shifted their clothes around so they'd dry faster. She'd also used a towel to dry his shorts for him. Grissom shifted uncomfortably; for some reason the thought of her hands on his boxers was very flustering.

Before he could head back to the bedroom, the lights went out, and he swore loudly.

"You okay?"

"I'm fine," Grissom answered shortly. Having someone fuss over him was always uncomfortable, even if the person was Sara.

"Hold on. I have a flashlight in my bag."

Grissom stepped to the side, thinking he was clearing the way for Sara. Instead, they collided, and he automatically reached out to prevent her from falling.

"Hey! Watch the hands!"

It really wasn't intentional that his hands landed on her hips. But they had, and Grissom couldn't deny that there was definitely a spark building between them. He only hoped he wouldn't sneeze and ruin the mood.

"Your hands are on my chest," he pointed out.

"That's not the same!" Sara replied, rolling her eyes despite being in a totally dark room. Weren't motels supposed to have emergency lighting? She shifted her weight uneasily as she realized how much she was enjoying the situation.

"Well, my hands aren't roaming!"

Sara's head snapped to where Grissom's chest would be and noted that her fingers, in fact, had been trailing over the muscular flesh. Her palms rested against him, and she lifted her fingers quickly. What was she doing? What were they doing? She rolled her eyes again. It had been a long time, but not that long. She knew exactly what was happening – she just wasn't sure how it started.

"I wasn't complaining," Grissom chuckled.

Sara swallowed, and ducked her head bashfully. Even in the dark, she could tell they were moving closer together. Slowly, her fingers lowered back to his chest, fanning out slightly. She smiled as Grissom's hands tightened their grip. The tip of her tongue ran nervously over her lips.

And then the lights came back on.

Without the anonymity of darkness, they both stepped away, suddenly timid. They left the room together, trying to hide the smiles on their faces.