Thanks for the reviews – it's always nice to know when people are reading and enjoying a story. The first few chapters are slow but it's going to get more interesting pretty soon. Here's the next chapter, let me know what you think!

Chapter 4 New Understandings

Sara's eyes fluttered open slowly and she saw Hannah, lying next to her, bright blue eyes staring straight at her. "Hey there," she greeted the little girl gently. "How did you sleep?"

"No more dreams."

"Good," Sara said. "Getting hungry?"

"Not really."

"Wanna eat anyway?"

"Do I have to?"

"At least a little bit, yeah," Sara said lightly. She sat up and ran her hands through her wavy hair and grimaced when she realized that she hadn't taken the time to straighten it after her shower.

"Your hair is curly," the little girl said with a giggle.

"So is yours," Sara observed with a smile. She stretched for a minute and rolled her shoulders, trying to wake herself up; it had been the first decent sleep she'd had in a while and her body wasn't used to it. "What time is it?" She asked rhetorically as she searched the room for a clock.

"Six and a half," the little girl proclaimed proudly.

"You can read that?" Sara asked in amazement after she noticed the wall clock. Hannah nodded and Sara smiled and then laughed. "You're just full of surprises. You know, it's called six thirty."

"Because it's thirty minutes in a half?"

"Right," Sara said, her mind whirling. How could this little girl understand so much when there had been no one to teach her? "Who taught you how to read a clock?"

"The library lady."

"Did you go to the library a lot?"

"Sometimes."

"Well, let's go get something to eat." Sara offered her hand and led the little girl to the kitchen where Grissom was sitting, reading something indecipherable. "I need to call my supervisor and tell him I'll be late," she said, jokingly. "Oh! Look here. It's my boss. Griss, I'm going to be late."

"Not surprised," he said absently. He finally looked up and observed the two ladies occupying his usually empty home. Sara was standing near the counter in her flannel duck pajama pants and a blue tank top while Hannah was dressed in a nightgown that was ill made and ill fitting. Judging from the bags he had already unloaded from his car, Sara had taken care of that small problem. The child would be wearing clothes worth more money than what he paid Greg for a year of overtime. "How'd you sleep?"

"Good," Hannah said happily.

"Great," Sara answered. "Your bed is comfy, Griss."

"Why do you call him Griss?"

"It's a nickname," Sara answered. She placed Hannah in a chair at the table and started in search of food.

"There's a casserole in the oven," Grissom said while observing Sara's search. She opened the oven and looked in, then looked back at him.

"It's vegetarian."

"Well, it is supposedly my fault you can't eat meat."

"And it actually looks good."

"I do know how to cook."

"It's a good thing, because we don't," she said in an exaggerated voice with a wink to Hannah. The little girl nodded and began to squirm in her chair, looking for something to do. It was an exciting and seemingly safe new world and she wanted to see every bit of it. She settled on investigating the mystery that was Grissom.

"What are you reading?"

"A magazine," Grissom answered. Sara, who was pouring drinks and dishing out the casserole, couldn't help but smile at the confusion in his voice. He didn't know how to answer the questions of a child. They were simple questions, but the answers were not always so straightforward.

"What's it called?"

"Forensic Science Monthly."

"What's that?"

"It's what I do," Grissom answered, looking to Sara for some sort of help. She simply smiled and continued cutting Hannah's serving into more manageable pieces. She set the dishes on the table and sat down next to the little girl, waiting to hear what would come next.

"Well, what do you do?"

"He solves mysteries," Sara answered for him, after he seemed at a loss for words. She didn't want him to mention anything about the many dead bodies they dealt with; a little girl didn't need to know that much. "And apparently, he can also cook. We can be the judges of that."

"It's hot," Hannah said emphatically.

"Blow on it first," Sara suggested. The meal continued with little conversation because, despite all arguments to the contrary, they were hungry. They were almost finished when Grissom broached a subject that had been on the minds of both adults since Hannah has first appeared.

"Sara, how would you like the day off?"

"That's funny," she scoffed.

"I'm not kidding."

"I have to go to the bathroom," Hannah explained before hopping off her chair and scampering down the hall. After she was gone, Sara turned to Grissom with a glare.

"Is this a 'the-woman-should-stay-home' thing?"

"No, it's a 'she-likes-you-better-than-me' thing."

"I'll stay with her," Sara agreed after a moment of thought. "But I still require your credit card."

"I knew that was coming."

"Your bug room is going to become a little girl's bedroom."

"What about my bugs?"

"They'll have to get used to living in the basement, like normal bugs."

"Sara—"

"Gil—" The discussion went no further because Hannah returned, her eyes wide in wonder.

"Sara, where does the tub go?"

"Where does the tub go?" Sara didn't quite understand the question.

"Well, I'm off to work. Catherine is picking me up so you'll have my car. Hannah, be good for Sara. Call me if you need anything." Grissom was exiting the room before the curious child asked any more questions; he was completely overwhelmed just from sharing a meal. He was used to being alone and it was going to take him some time to get used to answering to others and planning his time around other people.

"Chicken," Sara whispered jokingly as he passed. "Have a good night," she called after him. She turned back toward the little girl and found, as usual, that Hannah was staring at her. "So, what was your question?"

"The bathtub—"

"Where does it go?" Hannah nodded. "Well, the water goes into the sewer."

"With the rats?"

"I guess there could be some rats. But only the water goes down the drain, you know that, right?"

"Molly says that anything can go down the drain and that the rats can eat you."

"No," Sara answered with a firm shake of her head.

"No?"

"Can't happen," she assured the little girl. "Only water goes down the drain. I'm a scientist. I know these things." The child still looked skeptical so Sara led her into the bathroom and sat in the dry tub, fully clothed, with a squirming Hannah in her lap. The little girl was trying desperately to jump out but Sara held on. "Sit still. I'm not going to let anything happen to you." She turned the girl so that they were facing one another and she could see those bright blue, inquisitive orbs.

"Are we going anywhere?"

"No," Hannah said slowly.

"Watch." Sara started the tap, very slowly, so that only a cup or so of water filled the end of the tub. Then she stopped the water and placed her hand over the drain while the water slowly emptied from the tub. "See? My hand is still here."

"Are all tubs like that?"

"Yes," Sara answered firmly. "There's nothing to be afraid of."

"Are you sure?"

"I'm positive. I've been taking baths for 33 years and nothing bad has happened yet."

"Can we use the bubbles now?"

"We can use the bubbles now," Sara answered with a smile and a nod. They got out of the tub and she let it fill while she helped Hannah pick one of her outfits. The little girl was speechless at the sight of so many new clothes but eventually settled on a dark pink polo tennis dress, a white cardigan, and a pair of pink tennis shoes. After Sara threw on a pair of khakis and a black sweater, they were ready to go.