Hi Everyone! Thanks so much for reviewing! I'll warn you – I'm feeling extremely hyper today (it's the looming graduation --senioritis seems to beworse the second time around -- college this time)– so please excuse the silliness and long-windedness of both the chapter and the thank-yous that follow.

Chapter 10 Terrors and Tantrums, Day and Night

After dessert, the party died down pretty quickly and their friends began to head home. It was after ten by the time Sara had given Hannah a bath and gotten her ready for bed. Grissom was sitting on Hannah's bed, Little House on the Prairie in hand. The entire set of Little House books, several Madeline books, the entire Dr. Seuss collection, and a good number of Magic School Bus books, had been a present to Hannah from Brass and his wife as a 'room-warming' gift. Grissom had thanked them, teasingly complaining that now he would have to build more bookshelves. Hannah crawled up on the bed next to him and settled under the covers to listen to the story while Sara stood in the doorway, watching for a moment and then turning to leave.

"Sara," Hannah called in concern.

"I'm still here, baby. Gil is reading to you," Sara said simply.

"You too," Hannah said, emphasizing it by inching over to make more room for Sara.

"Sara might have other things to do, sweetheart."

"Oh, who are we kidding?" Sara asked as she stepped into the room and threw her arms up in mock frustration. "I have no life." She shook her head and smiled happily as she snuggled under the covers with Hannah and settled in to listen to the first chapter in the life of Laura Ingalls Wilder. After Grissom finished, Hannah of course wanted one more chapter. Just one more chapter.

"No more, bug," Grissom said firmly. "We'll read more tomorrow."

"But I want to know what happens," Hannah whined.

"Hannah, it's time for bed," Sara said, almost sternly.

"I don't want to—"

"But it's time," Grissom argued as he leaned down to hug her. "Good night, don't let the bed bugs bite."

"No bed."

"Good night," Sara said, ignoring the child's protests. She tried to hug her but when Hannah almost kicked her in an attempt to squirm away, Sara calmly stood up and exited the room, turning the light out and preparing to close the door.

"I hate you!" Hannah got the words out just before Sara closed the newly painted lavender door.

"That's okay. I love you enough for both of us," Sara replied calmly before stepping into the hallway and closing the door.

"She doesn't mean that," Grissom said softly as they stood in the hallway listening to Hannah cry mournfully.

"I know," Sara said sadly. They sat together in the living room, reading different books and sipping red wine while both thinking about the little girl who was still crying in her brand new bedroom. But they knew that there was nothing wrong; she simply did not want to go to bed and she had to learn that they were the bosses. A house run by a four year old wouldn't hold up very well. About half an hour after the fiasco, Sara and Grissom looked up because they heard the door open quietly. A minute later, Hannah appeared in the doorway, tiptoeing in her bare feet and warm cotton nightgown. Sara removed her glasses and set her book aside, waiting to see what the little girl was going to do. Grissom set his book aside as well and cleared his throat.

"I'm not supposed to be awake," Hannah whispered.

"No, I don't believe you are," Grissom answered calmly.

"I'm sorry," she said mournfully, her eyes cast to the floor. "I don't hate you. I love you too."

"We kinda knew that. But I'm always happy to hear it," Sara said gently. "But you have to remember, Hannah, when it's time for bed, it's time for bed."

"Okay."

"Okay." Sara hugged her closely and snuggled with her for a minute before Grissom spoke.

"Well, I think it's time for bed then," Grissom said, peering over his glasses at the little girl.

"I can't go to bed."

"Hannah, we just talked about this," Sara said warningly.

"I want to go to bed. But I can't."

"Well, why not?"

"The monsters might eat me."

"There are no monsters," Grissom said in a matter-of-fact fashion. He stood up and swung Hannah up into his arms before walking down the hall to her bedroom. Switching on the light, he carefully looked through every little corner and found that there were indeed no monsters. Sara stood in the doorway, watching the entire scene with a smile; she had never imagined that Grissom would be so good with a child, especially so quickly. After Hannah was back in bed, Grissom returned to the living room, where Sara was again reading her book, but he noticed that she was still at the beginning; apparently, her concentration was waning. The rest of the night was uneventful, as were the few days that followed. Hannah seemed to be doing well until later in that week, when Sara decided that it was time for her to go back home.

Grissom had just tucked Hannah into bed and returned to the living room to find Sara gathering the things that she had scattered around the room in the time she had been there.

"Going somewhere?"

"I should get home," Sara said nonchalantly. "I think it's safe to say she's settled in now. Don't worry," she added when she noticed his horrified expression. "I'll come back before shift tomorrow. I'll stay with her a few more days, until you find a sitter."

"You could always stay here—"

"This relationship is weird enough as it is," Sara commented with a smirk. "Something things need to be normal. Like me living in my apartment. And you living in yours."

"I guess you'll be glad to get back to your place."

Sara shrugged and said, "your apartment is nice. But I do need to get back."

'It's late."

"I'm a big girl Grissom. Besides," she added with a smirk, "we work at night. This is like morning to us."

"I'll help you with your bags—"

"Bag," Sara corrected him. "And I've got it. I'll call to say good morning to Hannah. She doesn't like to eat breakfast right away, but make sure she eats."

"I think I've got it," Grissom said, slightly amused. Sara spoke as though she had been doing this for 10 years instead of a few weeks.

"Sorry, I just worry—"

"It's okay. I guess I'm not the best candidate to raise a four year old girl."

"You're great with her. You two are going to be just fine. I'll see you later."

"Good night, Sara." He hugged her and kissed her gently; they were still getting used to the relationship and they still weren't completely sure what they were doing; especially since there was a child involved.

"G'night," she said before walking out the door and down to his driveway where her SUV had been parked. Grissom watched her leave and then closed and locked the door, all the while trying to shake the numbness that had fallen over him. Going into the bathroom, he noticed that she had left her toothpaste on the counter, her shampoo in the shower. He got ready for bed and got under his own blankets for the first time in over a week. As he settled in to read, he realized that his sheets smelled faintly of lilac; the shampoo that Sara had used both for herself and Hannah. Not much sleep came to Grissom that night as his mind swarmed with thoughts of the chaotic past week.

He must have fallen asleep at some point because he woke up the next morning thinking that he was having a heart attack. Once he opened his eyes, he realized that a teary-eyed Hannah was sitting on his chest. "You have to wake up. Someone stole Sara," she said mournfully. Grissom tried not to laugh; after all, the little girl was terribly upset.

"Hannah, no one stole Sara. She went home."

"Why?"

"Because she lives there," Grissom said patiently, shifting Hannah so that he could sit up. "Sara was just staying here for a few days until you got settled in. I think you knew that, sweetheart." Hannah didn't answer, her eyes simply started welling up again and she started sobbing with the appropriate accompanying wails. "Hannah, you can't be upset with Sara. She has her own life. You need to stop crying. Hannah, please." She was still crying, quite actively, when the phone rang half an hour later. Grissom was trying to get himself up and moving but that was difficult with the incessant wailing coming from his bedroom. Going into the living room, he picked up his phone and saw that it was Sara.

"Thank God," he said, before even greeting her.

"Hello to you too."

"Sorry, it's been a trying morning."

"Yeah, I can hear that. What's going on? Is that Hannah?"

"Yes. Your little angel has turned into a demon overnight," he hissed quietly, sure that the child couldn't hear him over her own tantrum.

"Gil!"

"Sorry, but it's true. I know we've only had her for a while, but I think she's a little spoiled."

"Are you suggesting that I spoiled her?" Sara's voice was dangerously calm and he knew better than to answer the question. After a moment of silence, she continued. "What happened?"

"She woke up and you weren't here. That's it."

"Should I come over?"

"Do you think we should give in to a tantrum like this?"

"Probably not," Sara admitted. "But I should have warned her I was leaving. She's so fragile right now. Let me at least talk to her."

"If she'll stop crying long enough," he said dryly. Walking back into the bedroom, he attempted to get Hannah's attention but she was ignoring him, crying whole-heartedly from her place in the middle of the bed while fiercely holding on to Griss.

"Hannah, the phone is for you. Hannah." Finally, he simply placed the phone on the bed in front of her and said softly, "Sara." Hannah sniffled a bit and then reached out suspiciously for the phone, which she eventually put to her ear.

"Hello?"

"Hannah, baby, what's wrong?"

"You left," Hannah accused.

"Yeah, I did. I'm sorry I didn't tell you I was going back to the apartment. But I had to."

"Why?"

"Because this is my apartment."

"Why can't your home be here?"

"Because I live here, sweetie."

"You can live here," Hannah persisted. "You and Uncle Gil can stay together."

"Sweetie, your uncle and I are only friends right now. I'm always going to be here for you, but I have to live at my place and you and Grissom have to live in his house. Do you understand?"

"No," Hannah said stubbornly. "I want you here."

"I know. And I'm sorry. I know it doesn't seem fair, but you can't always have what you want. You know you can call me anytime. And I will see you all the time, I promise."

"My throat hurts," Hannah informed her gingerly.

"That's what happens when you throw a fit all morning," Sara said, unsympathetically but gently.

"I want you to be here."

"Hannah, I'll be over when it's time for Gil to go to work. Until then, you be good for him. When I get there, we'll do something special, okay? But you need to stay with your Uncle Gil for now."

"Please, Sara," Hannah begged quietly.

"Hannah, I'll see you at dinner time," Sara said firmly. "I love you. Now, let me talk to Gil." Sara could tell that the phone was not exactly handed over gently, but it wasn't until Grissom got back on the phone that she was told it was thrown. "Do you really think I shouldn't come over?"

"If you come now, she'll think she can get away with this all the time. Why don't you come over at five? We'll all have dinner together before I go to the lab."

"I'll bring dessert," Sara said calmly, her head throbbing from the stress of it all. "Good luck with her."

"Thanks, I think I'll need it. Have a good day." Sara wouldn't have termed her day particularly good. She spent it attempting to catch up on all the things she had been neglecting while staying with Grissom and Hannah. Wash laundry, pay bills, make a few phone calls; it was a monotonous day and she was thrilled when she finally got ready to go back to Grissom's house. The moment she arrived, Hannah ran to her and clung to her side. Sara pecked Grissom on the cheek and handed him the small pie she had brought for desert before she leaned down and picked up the little girl.

Sara dropped a kiss on the top of her soft brown curls and followed Grissom into the kitchen, where he was just finishing dinner. "Did you have a good day?" The little girl nodded but Grissom raised his eyebrows suspiciously, indicating that it hadn't been anywhere near a good day. Hannah didn't talk much through the mean, which gave Sara and Grissom time to discuss the conversations they'd had with their friends the previous night. Eventually, it was time for Grissom to go to work. While gathering his things to prepare to leave, Sara noticed that Hannah was watching him like a hawk, her eyes following him constantly across the room.

"Have a good night," he said as he leaned down to kiss Hannah's forehead.

"You have to go?"

"I have to go," he answered calmly, looking at Sara questioningly over Hannah's brown curls. What was this about; she'd never seemed bothered before when he left, as long as she knew where to find Sara.

"You have to stay," Hannah insisted, taking his hand and attempting to pull him back away from the hall.

"Hannah, baby, Gil has to go to work," Sara explained gently, picking up the little girl and detaching her from Grissom. Before they really knew what was happening, Hannah had thrown herself into a frenzy, crying frantically and trying to break free of Sara's arms. Grissom stood nearby, looking on in horror, trying to understand what was going on. "Hannah, stop," Sara said firmly, not letting go of the fidgeting child. Twenty minutes later, Hannah had exhausted herself and was crying softly, clutching onto Sara for dear life. The sun had already set, leaving the Grissom living room in relative darkness since the adults had been too preoccupied to turn on a lamp. Having moved to the sofa, Sara sat in silence, her arms still wrapped around the sobbing little girl, while Grissom said motionlessly in a chair, his mind reeling.

An hour after he had originally attempted to leave the house, Grissom's cell phone rang from his jacket pocket. Moving quietly into the kitchen, he answered it gruffly. One of his coworkers was on the line, questioning his whereabouts. After all, his shift had begun almost an hour prior. He explained quickly that he wouldn't make it to work that night; there was a crisis at home that required his attention. He hated giving such fodder for the gossip mill but he wasn't used to coming up with cover stories and he wasn't about to start. After hanging up, he made his way back into the darkened living room and saw that Sara had laid the now-sleeping Hannah on the sofa and has moved to stand by the window.

Her slim figure was barely shadowed in the bit of light coming from the moon but he could see that her stance was rigid; full of stress and worry. He walked over to her and slipped his hands around her waist, wordlessly dropping a kiss on the top of her head and pulling her back so that she lay against him.

"I've never been so scared," she whispered hollowly.

"It was worse than this morning."

"What do we do?"

"I honestly don't know." After a few minutes of staring out into the chilly desert night, they separated and went about their business, he carrying Hannah to her bed and she trying to rearrange everything that had been toppled or disturbed during the little girl's tantrum. The little girl was apparently out for the night, a fact which allowed Grissom to go to work, leaving a very frightened Sara with a sleeping, but also very frightened, Hannah. Curled up with one of the books she had bought about raising adopted children, she kept vigil beside the sleeping child all night. She was just finishing her third book, No Ordinary Life, when Grissom arrived home from his abbreviated shift.

Sitting down next to her on the bed, he gently kissed her and then set the book aside, pulling her up into his arms and carrying her into his room. "You haven't slept all night," he accused as he laid her on the king sized bed.

"I was worried."

"You won't do her any good if you're dead on your feet."

"Griss, I need to be there in case she wakes up—"

"You'll be here," he said firmly. "I'll tell her that when she wakes up. Until then, sleep. I'm going to call the doctor, see what she thinks we should do."

"Wake me up if anything happens."

"I will," he promised, kissing her one more time. He was skeptical, but she did roll over and curl up on her side, attempting to sleep despite the worries flying through her mind. After consulting with a nurse and then Dr. Jo, it was decided that the three needed to come in to talk to the good doctor. She hadn't seemed terribly pleased when Grissom admitted that they hadn't yet inquired into the child psychologist. Hannah was still getting acclimated, the thought of the psychologist hadn't occurred to them lately.

I really appreciate the reviews and feedback that I get for my stories. Because of that, and the fact that I'm avoiding the paper I have to write and the crusades and the Albigenses. Granted, history interests me, but really, it's hard to focus on things that happened in the 1200s when you have so many things to do in 2005… so, in the name of procrastination (and a little too much caffeine, I'm going to try to reply to the lovely reviews I've been receiving.

Omusubi – I'm glad you like the story and I hope you continue to read fanfics – trust me, there are ones out there far better than mine. I have a few favorites bookmarked on my profile page, and there are some really talentedwriters on this site. Happy reading!

Ms. Elizabeth Granger – I'm so happy you think it's cute. I find myself 'awing…' as I write it too.

SpectralLady – Thanks for reading – you caught on right away – stay tuned – Hannah's issues will be revealed (and hopefully solved). Actually, I know they will be solved, because I'm the writer and I'm a sucker for happy endings.

MissJorja17 – I'm glad you're having fun reading this – I'm having a great time writing it – and reading the lovely reviews! Thanks again for reading and reviewing

Juwist – very astute observation : ) Don't worry, we're dealing with intelligent characters – they'll help Hannah.

ToMyGrave – Thanks for reviewing – I'm glad you're enjoying it. And if you like happy parts – keep reading – I like them too : )

Almeida's-Angel24 – thanks for reading – I'm happy you found my story too! And thrilled that you're having a good time reading it. And yeah, it would be great if the shows writers put them together. Until then, it's fun writing/ reading stories about them.

Niebezpiczny Ksiezyc – Thanks for reading and reviewing!

Neutrina – Merci – Danke – Thank you. Sorry, I'm in a silly mood – luckily, I don't know many more languages, so I'll stop with those three. Thanks for reading and reviewing.

Jtbwriter – You were quick to pick up on the changes in Hannah – it'll be explained soon. Thanks so much for reading and replying – it's great to know what people think.

jesusfreak30 – thanks for reviewing – yeah, in the story Hannah was hurt previously by grownups. But not by anyone from the CSI group – someone from her mother's less-than-appropriate group of acquaintances.

heartcat – Thanks for reviewing – I hope you liked the date chapter. Hopefully there will be more opportunities for me to write in little dates and things for them.

Diamond-girl-9 – Thanks for reviewing!

eac-dudette – I'm glad you like it so far – I agree that they're perfect for each other – and I'm happy that you like the addition of Hannah.

drakien – Thanks for reading and reviewing! I hope you're computer is working better now – they do seem to have minds of their own.

Mochaccino Love. – thanks! I promise, unless I leave a note at the end of a chapter, I'll continue to write more. Some updates are slower than others, but they usually come.

Mandy – yep, the all-important three small words. Glad you liked it : )

Guess19 – I think patience is a virtue. But it's certainly not one that I possess, so I don't blame you. I'll try to update quickly for you. Thanks for reading and reviewing!

Dew2adidas – thanks for reviewing – hope you like where the story is going.

Magick – I completely agree about the whole name thing. After I read it through again, I saw exactly what you meant. I meant for her to say it teasingly, but it didn't quite fit. Thanks for reading and reviewing : )

Thanks for the additional reviews and wonderfully kind comments from:

GSRbaby, c.roy, Dark-angel-ali, Sara, Smrozier, Kendra is cheese, Fanfic obsessive, csibugman, Denese25, vsky, Christiangirl, Saskia2, Natasha, lin, mooch, palephoenix, LadyBelle84, ThePinkLemming, djkittycat, forensicsgirl,