A/N: Here is the good Sara/Cath stuff! Lotsa Sara, lotsa Cath, lotsa Grissom. Enjoy. I couldn't remember where Catherine lives; all I could recall was 'Coral' so I just ran with it. If anyone knows what her address is, just let me know. Small spoiler for Pledging Mr. Johnson. Thank you so much for your encouraging reviews! x-sara-x sorry about such a lack of Sara in this part, but I'm saving her for later. Be patient!

Disclaimer: CSI: and all its, blah, blah, blah, you can find it in the first chapter. From my second chapter however, I do not own any of the Carpenter's songs, thought I don't whom they technically belong to. If you choose to sue me, you'll get about two dollars and all my Angelina Jolie photos. ;)

Kate enjoyed sitting in the DNA lab with Mia. Unlike most people, she patiently listened to Kate's questions and answered with a gentle, soft spoken voice. If Mia disliked having Kate sitting there with her, she was kind enough not to show it. But Kate got the feeling she was growing on the lab tech. She even went so far as to teach her the basics of DNA profiling. She'd watched in awe as Mia carefully collected evidence from swab Catherine had gotten from the scene and put it in the machine.

Meanwhile, Catherine stood in the evidence room looking over the things she'd brought from the store robbery. This looked like it was going to be an easy open and shut case. Prints on the doorknob, prints on the register, prints on the counter, all sent to Jacqui. All three bullets appeared to be from the same gun, so Bobby said. DNA from the counter where it looked like the guy cut himself on the corner. She'd taken a swab from the cut on her forehead but didn't expect much. According to Vega, the guy was single, no children, just had a brother in Henderson who was coming to ID the body as soon as they could find him.

"Catherine."

Catherine looked up to see Grissom standing in the doorway, holding a folder. "Hey. Just looking over my case photos."

"Yeah, get them to Warrick when he gets back."

Catherine blinked in confusion. "Give them to...what?"

"Warrick's the lead CSI on this."

"What!" She asked sharply.

Grissom reached up and pinched the skin under the nosepiece of his reading glasses, indicating a migraine on the way. Catherine felt slightly guilty for getting mad, but it was too late to stop now. "What do you mean Warrick's the lead CSI? This is my case. God, first you don't give me anyone, now you're taking the case altogether." She gritted her teeth, not wanting to yell at her boss. Giving a strangled groan, she pressed her fingers into the table until the tips turned white. Don't get mad, don't get mad, don't get mad, don't get mad. Silently, she repeated this mantra, praying she didn't strangle Grissom on the spot. "Would there be any reason you're taking me off the case?"

"Catherine, you were attacked." Grissom sounded surprised that she didn't seem to know.

"So? I can handle the case just fine." Catherine stepped forward until she was face to face with Grissom. The older man looked completely unperturbed. "You are not throwing me off of this case." She had no idea why she was so adamant about keeping this case, it would've been over very soon anyway. Maybe it was because of the attack, she wanted to finish what she'd started.

Grissom just sighed, removing his glasses to clean them. "Fine. Stay on the case, Warrick will help you. But at least take the night off. You need it."

Catherine's eyebrows rose in surprise. Grissom was actually telling her to take the night off? "Who are you and what have you done with my boss?"

Grissom gave that little enigmatic grin he got when he found something amusing. "I'll see you tomorrow night. Good night Catherine."

"Your concern is staggering." Catherine deadpanned.

"I'm sorry, would you like me to give you a ride home?"

Catherine gave him a playful punch on the shoulder before heading out. On her way to the locker room, she spotted Kate still in the DNA lab with Mia, sitting in one of the chairs, leaning her head on her arms, a dreamy look on her face. The cause of the look eluded her, but it was one of absolute rapture. With a wry grin, Catherine stopped in. Mia looked up from her desk and smiled. "Hi, Catherine."

"Hey, Mia."

Kate raised her head in the direction of Catherine's voice. "Ms. Willows, hi."

"Kate, please. Just call me Catherine from now on."

"Yes ma'am."

Catherine jerked her head in the general direction of the door. "I'm heading out, do you want me to give you a ride home?" The concern she was suddenly feeling confused the blonde. She'd only just met this girl and already she was offering to give her a ride home. This was the same girl who was supposed to be whiny and complain about everything. But here she was, feeling an almost protective feeling of Kate. Maybe it was just her mothering instinct kicking in.

Kate had shaken her head. "Nah, that's okay. I'll stick it out."

"Won't your parents be worried about you?"

Kate shook her head again, looking a little sad. "They're on an around the world cruise, won't be back for a couple months. I'm on my own right now."

Catherine felt another faint ping of mothering in her conscience. That was a lonely existence, just hanging around the house, waiting for the parents to return. She could almost relate, though her mother had never gone on any cruises, she'd just go out on the strip every night and wouldn't be back for a couple days.

Kate noticed the sorrowful look on Catherine's face and gave herself a mental kick for bringing up her parents. It looked like a touchy subject with Catherine. But, the older woman quickly shook it off and gave a lopsided grin, deeming everything all right.

"Okay, shift ends at 8 AM. Be here at 8 PM sharp. Got it?"

Kate nodded. "Yes ma'am."

Grissom sat in his darkened office, trying to ward off the impending migraine without having to resort to the medication. The noises of the lab did a little to soothe the pounding in his head, but not by much. Removing his glasses, he massaged his orbital sockets absently. Not for the first time, he wished he wasn't supervisor. He loved being a CSI, he loved working with his team, he just wished he didn't have to deal with everything else. The paperwork, the politics, keeping everyone happy. He knew he would get a chewing out from Ecklie once he found out he'd let Catherine stay on the robbery case. After she'd been attacked the first time, a corporate mandate had been put out that if a CSI was in any way attacked on a case, it was handed to another CSI on that shift. But he figured, to hell with politics. Catherine was a good CSI, she knew what she was doing and wouldn't let her personal feelings get involved on the case. At least, he hoped she wouldn't.

He couldn't help but remember the times her emotions had gotten the better of her and had thus made things go from bad to worse. He could still remember the argument they'd had in the parking lot when she told the husband of the woman they found in the lake about her affair. She'd made a cynical comment about living like him, like a hermit. Catherine never knew how much that had stung him, how much that hurt. He'd simply put on a neutral face and gave a perfectly sarcastic response, correcting her. He'd told her to never let personal stuff override her job, that he didn't. Catherine had leaned in, blue eyes fierce and calmly asked him what personal stuff. He'd passively brushed it off and walked away, leaving Catherine wondering. He and Catherine were yin and yang, top and bottom, day and night. She was heart, he was head, and together for nearly fifteen years they were part of the second best crime lab in the country, second only to Quantico.

But there he was, getting off his original subject again. Which brought him to the other woman in his life. Sara Sidle. His female counterpart, as much as she hated that expression. Sara was always the one to keep him on top, keeping him focused. When he'd first met this shy, honest doe-eyed brunette at a conference in San Francisco, he'd known there was something special about her. Throughout the entire conference, she'd done whatever she could to please him, to acquire his rare praise. He could still see her earnest brown eyes watching intensely, seeing if she'd done this or that right. He'd gone out of his way to compliment her; more than the other hopeful CSI's there, and they knew it. After the conference, they'd kept in touch, calling each other every so often to tell each other how it was going. About three weeks before the thing with Warrick and Holly Gribbs, she'd sounded off, almost tired, like she was wearing out. He'd taken it almost as a sign when Gribbs was shot, although it killed him to have to bring someone from the outside to investigate one of his best CSI's.

Then again, if that whole mess hadn't gone down, Sara would've never come to Vegas, would've continued at her job in San Francisco, and would've gone down in the continuous spiral she'd been slipping into at the job. Most importantly, she would've never met Catherine. So indeed, the ends did justify the means, in a wretched degree. After all this musing, Grissom was amazed to find his migraine reduced to a simple headache, something he could easily deal with. Pulling out the left side drawer on his desk, he grabbed a bottle of aspirin and popped two dry, hoping it would help. There was a light knock on the door, he saw the silhouetted form of Nick Stokes in the glass door. He opened the door spilling light over Grissom's office and paused.

"Whoa, who turned out the lights?"

"What do you need Nick?" Grissom called from the dark.

"Hey, Grissom." Nick settled into one of the chairs that faced the desk. "Man, is Catherine really all right? She looked a little spooked when she left just now."

Grissom's stomach twisted slightly; had it really been a good idea to put her back on the case? Taking a deep breath, he silently assured himself it was fine. Catherine was an adult too, she could handle it. "I'm sure she's fine Nick."

Nick looked at him, brown eyes worried, but being the good CSI he was, he didn't question his supervisor's judgments.

Across town at 1630 Coral Place, Catherine parked her car in the driveway and leaned back against the seat, taking a deep breath. She was okay, really. Just fine. This wasn't bothering her one bit. Bullshit, the voice in her head said calmly. And it was right. She could still feel the apprehension realizing the perp might still be on the premises. She could still feel the chill that swept through her when she realized the noise was coming from inside the store. She could still feel the anxiety at the thought of Kate getting hurt, though that did puzzle her somewhat. She'd only just met her then, and didn't really know her that well. Why did she feel this almost proprietary feeling toward Kate, why did she feel like she needed to protect her at all costs? It confused the hell out of her.

There was a knock on her window, scaring her half to death. Catherine started, looking out the window. Sara stood there, watching her worriedly. Lowering the window, Catherine grinned, trying to get her heart-rate down to normal after it had skyrocketed. "Hey, sweetheart. What's going on?"

"Warrick just called. Catherine did you get attacked on a crime scene?"

Catherine groaned inwardly, making a mental note to throttle Warrick when she got to work. "A perp blitzed me from behind. It's just a cut, that's all."

"He said you lost consciousness." Sara looked annoyed and worried at the same time. "Why didn't you call me?"

Catherine turned off the car and opened the door. "I didn't want you to worry."

"Well, I'm worried now." Sara glared at her, holding back the tears. "I don't know what I would've done if that guy really hurt you."

Catherine pulled Sara into a hug, careful to mind the cane that was held tightly in Sara's right hand. Sara held her close, as if she'd never see her again. "Are you sure you're okay?" She murmured.

"Aside from lack of oxygen, I'm fine." Catherine replied calmly.

"Oh, sorry." Sara pulled back, clearing her throat nervously.

Catherine noticed how tired the younger woman looked and tugged lightly on her arm. "Come on, let's get inside before you fall down."

Back at the lab, Kate was still in the DNA lab, listening eagerly as Mia spoke patiently about alleles when there was a knock at the door. Both looked up to see Warrick standing there.

"Hey, Mia. Did you get anything from the sample Catherine sent down here?"

Mia nodded. "Yeah, got a hit." She rolled the chair over to the printer where the readout had just printed.

Kate tried to stay out of Warrick's sight, she was still a little nervous from his outburst at the store. She tried to make herself look busy at the desk she was sitting in, but there was really nothing there except a few pieces of blank printer paper. Thankfully, Mia diverted his attention just then holding the piece of paper.

"DNA came back as one Robert Funt. They got his DNA when he was collared for assault a couple years back. Current residence unknown. It's circumstantial anyway, it only proves he was at the store and cut his hand on the counter."

Warrick nodded, studying the paper. "Not if those bullets come back to a gun registered to Mr. Funt." He looked up at Kate. "You want to help me check out the bullets?"

Kate felt her eyebrows raising. "You mean you're not mad at me?"

"About what?"

"About getting Catherine hurt."

Warrick sighed, thinking on his answer. "Nah. It wasn't your fault the officer didn't clear the scene properly. I'm sorry I got in your face like that, it wasn't my place."

Kate shrugged, just happy that the lab didn't hate her. "It's no biggie."

At the Willows' residence, Catherine and Sara were getting ready for bed. Lindsey had long since retired to her room for whatever teenage girls did before bed. Catherine emerged from the bathroom, teeth brushed, hair pulled back, and pajama clad, ready for bed. The cut on her forehead had gotten a little red, but so far no bruise had come up. Still hurt like a bitch though. Absently, she rubbed it as she sat down on the bed. Sara looked up from her book, and cocked her eyebrow in the look that was famously known throughout CSI.

"You're sure you're all right?" She asked worriedly.

Catherine laughed softly. Sara Sidle was not well know for just leaving things where they were. "I'm fine, seriously. It's just a little cut."

Sara frowned, marking her place and setting the book down. "I meant psychologically. This is the second time you've been attacked at a crime scene."

With a sigh, Catherine paused to think on her answer. It was the second time, but she wasn't sure how she felt about it just yet. She wasn't as scared as the first time she'd been assaulted, but the apprehension was there nonetheless. Glancing over, Catherine saw Sara watching her expectantly. With a lopsided grin, she changed her position until she was lying sideways on the bed, looking up at Sara. "I'm fine. I'm a little nervous about this, but it won't affect my job. Happy now?" To change the subject, she picked up the book Sara had been reading. "The Life Cycle of the Dung Beetle. Interesting bedtime reading, present from Grissom?"

Sara grinned wryly, putting the book on the table. "Yeah, Christmas present from last year."

Catherine rolled over, pulling the covers back for both of them. "Funny. I got one on the timeline of different species' larval periods."

Sara chuckled lightly, pulling the blankets up. Catherine sighed and leaned up, giving the younger woman a good-night kiss. She'd meant for it to be a short kiss goodnight, but Sara had leaned closer, lacing her fingers through the soft hair at the base of her neck, pulling close. Gently, Catherine put a reassuring hand on Sara's arm, letting her know everything was all right. Once they pulled away, Sara smiled slightly, embarrassed at her sudden insecurity. Catherine smiled back, silently comforting the brunette. The smile twisted into a lopsided grin as she moved forward to give Sara a light-hearted peck on the nose. "Sleep tight, sweetheart."

Absolutely exhausted, but happier than she had been in a long while, Kate flopped into bed at 8:46 AM. Kicking off her shoes, she snuggled under the comforter, normal clothes and all, too tired to change. A goofy grin spread across her face as she lay there, thinking about the previous night. She'd accompanied Warrick to ballistics where Bobby had indeed informed them that the bullets belonged to a Winchester rifle, owned by a Robert Funt. The same Robert Fun as on the DNA report. It appeared that this case was an open and shut. Still, Kate was just happy to actually be a part of something important. She knew that their workdays weren't as exciting as the one she'd just been through, but she had to admit, even the lab work was fulfilling and most people couldn't say that. As she drifted to sleep to the sound of a garbage truck banging around, Kate's last conscious thought was she couldn't wait to get back to work that night.

Mia is my favorite lab tech (apart from Bobby D...and Archie...and Jacqui...aw, heck, I love 'em all.) and I wanted to put a little of her in here. You'll probably find more of her as the story wears on. (I hope) Uh, the book title is mine, I made it up. I am so sorry it took me so long to update (and that it's so short), I had a terrible case of writer's block over the past few weeks. Please review and help inspire me!