A/N: (Quite possibly the shortest a/n I'll ever write...) Embers of Eden is a song by Bruce Cockburn. I don't own it. Sadly. This chapter contains some Catherine/Sara friendship, and a hint more of Grissom confusion and angst… XD Oh, and for everyone who enjoyed the episode 'Gum Drops', gojoin the fanlisting! The link is in my profile!Please enjoy!

Chapter Title: Embers of Eden
Sara sat with a mug of hot chocolate on the oversized loveseat that faced the bay window she and Nick liked to look out of together. On her lap was an old photo album; a project that Aspen had talked her into compiling years ago. Truth be told, she wasn't a scrap-booking person. But she did it because it was their project. Something they did together.

Sara flipped the cover open. It had been almost seven years since she had last looked at the picture on the first page. Or any of them, for that matter. Somehow, she managed a smile back at the photo; portraying herself and an old best friend. Aspen stood beside her at the foot of the Golden Gate Bridge, the wind blowing their hair in their faces. Sara's arm wrapped around the tall blonde. Looking back on it, it wasn't until ten months ago that she'd felt as happy as she had when that picture had been taken.

Nick walked into the room with his own cup of hot chocolate, and Sara looked up with a smile. "Hey Nicky."

"Hey Sunshine." He took a seat beside her on the couch and she leaned into him. "Whatcha looking at?" Nick nodded in the direction of the colourful book she'd closed again as he'd entered.

"Oh… um… my scrapbook, I guess," she answered sheepishly. He took a sip of his hot chocolate and asked, pleasantly surprised:

"You have a scrapbook?" Sara smiled back at him and opened the cover again. It was the first time anyone but Aspen had seen its contents, and at the moment, she was glad to share.

"Yeah, just this one. I'm not really a scrapbook person, but it was something Aspen and I put together on Sunday nights. She has one too. That's us at the Golden Gate." She pointed to the panoramic photo she'd been looking at just before he came in.

"Wow, you look kind of different… really young, I guess." Nick commented without thinking. Sara elbowed him in the ribs and he spilled hot chocolate down his front.

"Sorry Nicky. Didn't mean for you to spill." She laughed, a grin escaping her lips for the first time in almost two days. He smirked playfully back at her, glad to see she seemed to be a little better. He placed his hot chocolate on the ground away from their feet so it wouldn't get hit before fussing for a moment over his white shirt, trying to soak up the chocolate stain with a large wad of tissues. Finally giving up, he pulled the shirt over his head and threw it over the back of the couch.

"Now we're talkin'." Sara commented teasingly, not at all hiding the fact that she interested. Nick chuckled and put an arm around her, kissing her softly on the cheek.

"So is this Aspen, then?" He pointed to the woman beside Sara in the photo.

"My sister... Yeah, that's her."

"Wow, you two are some knockout team. She's really pretty…" Nick said to himself. Sara smiled sadly, hearing his words loud and clear.

"Yeah, she is isn't she? I always wished I looked like her." Her fingertip caressed the woman's shoulder. She had bright blonde hair that reached mid-back, and the bluest eyes Nick had ever seen. A crystal white smile adorned her flawless face. What Nick really noticed, however, was how radiant Sara looked in the photo. She was happy. He wondered if she'd ever been that happy with him.

And the embers of Eden burn
You can even see it from space
And the great and winding wall between us
Seem to copy the lines of your face

Sara too stared at the photo; however her thoughts were occupied by times past. She laughed as she remembered something she hadn't thought about in years. Nick snapped out of his abstraction as Sara began speaking once more, hoping she hadn't noticed the longing stare he'd held on the page.

"I remember one day… we were on a case in an alley behind the headquarters of two rival fashion giants. DB dump… but there must have been 12 people who saw us through their office windows… they all came down to ask her if she was interested in modeling. Two of them got into a little catfight over it." Nick looked from the photo to Sara, chuckling. But part of him worried that she was talking about the woman as if she were still alive. "It was hilarious… she got all flustered too. I think it really embarrassed her."

Sara turned the page. A group shot of her old team back in San Francisco adorned the folio leaf, and a heading read The Team. Nick counted twelve people, four of which were obviously lab techs if their uniform white coats were any indication. Sara pointed to each person, explaining briefly who they were and occasionally what they were like.

"Over here on the far right is Blaze Evans… you know about him- Graveyard shift supervisor and Dactyloscopy expert… to the left of him are Adelaide, Michael and Helen… they're CSI's, but I didn't work with them very much. They were all really nice, though. Helen had a bit of a hot temper. Adelaide was transferred to Memphis just before I left. I'm right there next to Helen, and beside me is Aspen… On the bottom row... Julia is on the far right, and Neil is on the far left. Between them are our lab techs: Gary, Acadia, Bailey and Ryan."

"Wow, you had a pretty sizable team." Nick stated, noting their mere five CSIs in comparison.

"Mm, not really… we're really understaffed here. Which is why we always put in so much overtime." Sara adjusted her head in the crook of his shoulder and closed the book.

"This is so surreal. It's been almost two days, but I still don't think it's really hit me. I mean… I cry, but…"

"I know. It hasn't hit me yet either. I don't think I'll really believe anything is different until I wake up without my Sara in my arms." Nick frowned, but Sara gave a sad smile. He'd referred to her as his, and in the third person.

"Nick… will you still love me when I get back?" Sara asked him seriously. She wasn't looking for a compliment, but rather reassurance that he wouldn't leave her.

"Of course. Don't ask such silly questions, Sar." Nick chuckled and messed up her hair. She crunched her eyes closed, trying to keep it out of her eyes. When he finally stopped, she had a real authentic bed-head look going on. She patted the back of her head lightly, trying to reflatten her hair as he considered asking her the same question, but decided against it. As much as he needed the same reassurance, part of him didn't want to force such a promise on her… even if he knew she'd make it.

"Thanks, Nicky." Her tone was sarcastic, and she cocked an eyebrow.

"Sorry. But even with hurricane hair, you're still the most beautiful woman in the universe, Sidle." Nick grinned, closing in and capturing her lips in a warm kiss. "God, I'm gonna miss you."

"I'll miss you too… more than you can imagine." Sara kissed him back with equal fervor, her hands exploring his bare chest, fingers tracing every outline. She wanted to burn him into her mind permanently… and his being would always be with her…

"I'll come home as soon as I can."

And the awful tolling, and the cold rain outside…
And I cannot scrape this dream off my eyes…

The morning of her final day in Vegas, Sara made her last trip with Nick to the lab to clean out her desk and locker. The whole building was emotional as hell, even Ecklie and Sophia (to her honest surprise) seemed cheerless. Sara knew it would be her last chance to talk to Catherine before she left, so she flagged her down after she, Nick and Greg had emptied her small desk.

"Hey Cath, do you think I could talk to you for a minute?"

"Yeah, sure… do you need a hand with those?" Catherine saw Sara stumbling with a tall load of plastic crates and lifted one of the large Rubbermaid tubs from her arms. Sara sighed in momentary relief; the load had been extremely heavy.

"Yeah, that'd be great, thanks."

"Nick and Warrick should be helping you carry this stuff out." The blonde rolled her eyes impatiently, throwing a glance over her shoulder, trying to detect the pair.

"I think Sophia is having a word with them." Sara sighed, pushing her way through the glass doors of the lab to the parking lot with her box.

"Hm." Catherine grunted, suddenly blasé at the mention of Sophia's name. Sara smiled inwardly, having carried similar feelings towards the detective herself. Finally the pair made it with the Rubbermaids to Nick's department issued Tahoe. They slid their loads into the back without much conversation. When the task was complete, Catherine spoke.

"So, what's on your mind?"

Sara sighed, looking at her soon to be former coworker straight in the eye. "I know you and I haven't always gotten along well, and before I leave… I just wanted to apologize for that… I, uh… know that I can get unreasonable. I hope that maybe we can be a little closer now that we aren't really working together anymore."

"Wow." Catherine looked surprised, but there was a friendly smile on her face. "I… uh, I'm sorry too Sara." She sighed, choosing her next statement carefully. "…You're right… and honestly, I'm sure I get difficult too. This place doesn't exactly make it easier." The blonde chucked in spite of herself, putting a hand on Sara's shoulder and enveloped her into a hug. "Thanks, Sara."

Sara smiled, glad they were on the same page. Tears began to fill her eyes again, and she cursed inwardly- as much as she was now willing to be open with Catherine, she still wasn't ready to be seen crying. She swallowed the overflowing emotion as best she could and continued with a sniff.

"Look out for Nick for me, will you? We both know he's a real softy." Sara gave her a watery smile as they pulled away.

"Of course. And you look after yourself, okay? Call me if you need someone to talk to."

"I will. Thank you." Sara was mildly surprised to see tears welling in Catherine's eyes too, and she wasn't making any move to hide them. Guilt had began piling those familiar bricks upon her back again when Greg popped his head round the side of the Tahoe, causing both women to jump.

"Hey Sara, Warrick suggested I give you one of these to remember me by— oh, sorry…" The quirky lab tech-turned-CSI held out one of his glossy semi-pornographic magazines for Sara, but pulled it back when he realized Catherine was there. But the blonde was too quick for him.

"Oh, what's this, Greggo? Hmm…" Catherine snatched the magazine from his clutches and studied the cover with slight interest. "I thought the new Greg didn't read these anymore. Big and Juicy. Interesting." She cocked an eyebrow in his direction, reading out the cover, unfazed.

"Give-me-that…" Greg grabbed the magazine back from her and hid it behind his back. "I don't read them. I used to. It was a joke."

"I'm sure…" Catherine raised both her eyebrows suggestively and started back toward the lab. "I'll leave Greg to embarrass himself in front of you without witnesses, Sara. I'll see you in a few minutes, I think the whole team is coming to see you off at the airport."

"Okay, thanks Cath." Sara laughed, wiping tears of former sorrow and current laughter from her face before smiling at Greg and holding her hand out for the magazine.

"You don't want this thing…"

"What ever are you talking about Greg… I need reading material for the plane. And as you said, it's something to remember you by." She grinned, leaning on the back end of Nick's Tahoe. "I'm not leaving forever, you know." She added.

"I know. But I'll miss you." Greg handed her the magazine with a smirk and gave her a hug.

"Thanks, Greg… I'll miss you too. You have my new phone number. Call me, okay?"

"Will do. Do you have everything?"

"Yeah, I think so. Most of my stuff has already been shipped ahead of me… Nick is going to send these along tomorrow." Sara turned to close the back of the truck, and Greg stepped up to help her. She could do it alone and they both knew it, but it was a small gesture she appreciated none the less.

"C'mon, why don't you come say goodbye to everyone?" Greg suggested, putting his hand on the small of her back and guiding her back to the lab.

"Cath said they're all coming to see me off at the airport in an hour."

"Yeah, but still." Greg smiled in her direction, and she caught his eye.

"Okay."

"Look after yourself, girl. Come back soon." Warrick swathed Sara in a hug in the middle of the break room, where every person who'd shared a relationship with her had gathered: Catherine, Grissom, Nick, Doc Robbins, David, Archie, Mia, Wendy, Hodges and even Ecklie. Truthfully, she was surprised and a little overwhelmed that this meant so much to everyone that they were willing (and permitted by Ecklie) to take an hour out from what would be work or sleeping time to see her off.

"Thanks, 'Rick. You too. And keep my Nicky out of trouble." She replied, eyeing the man in question over Warrick's shoulder, a smile twitching at her lips ever so slightly. Nick grinned back at her and winked, savoring her use of the possessive adjective.

"I'll stay out of trouble… I don't need the king of trouble itself looking out for me." He joked. Sara threw him a look and moved on to Mia, then Wendy. She shared a hug with each of Doc Robbins, David, Archie, Catherine, and finally Hodges, who afterward looked far too pleased with himself than one should after a (barely) friendly arm lock. The whole room rolled their eyes inwardly.

Ecklie was next in line. "Bye Conrad." Sara managed a smile and pulled him into a hug. To her surprise, it was not returned halfheartedly.

"Take care of yourself. You'll get through it."

"Thanks. You too."

The whole room seemed to hold their breath when Sara reached the last person; Grissom. She hesitated for a moment and noticed that he did too, but they still pulled each other into close embrace. The hug was friendly, nothing more, and she could feel in his touch how difficult it seemed to be for him not to hold her closer.

And I can't scrape my eyes free of this dream…

'I'm sorry Sara,' Grissom whispered into her ear so quietly that no one else could hear. She frowned, her logic kicking in as she attempted to analyze what her supervisor had just said. When they finally pulled away, he spoke louder as if for the benefit of the room, not her.

"You're a great CSI Sara… and a better person than I could hope to be. Take care… come home soon." Grissom managed a sad smile, and for the first time in all the years she'd known him, his face bared real emotion; manifest and revealing. Pain. Sorrow. Guilt.

"Thank you." Sara answered, the sad smile she'd been wearing for most of the morning not leaving her face. She still wasn't entirely certain what he had apologized for- was he sorry for all the times he'd hurt her? Sorry for what they had and hadn't become? That half her old team back in San Francisco was dead? Not wanting to upset herself further, she forced the musings to the back of her mind, knowing full heartedly that she'd be foolish not to admit she'd be unable to prevent herself mulling over it later. But right now… she didn't want to think about him, or the past. What's done was done. Her thoughts lay on the future.

And the great and winding wall between us,

Seems to copy…

The lines of your face…

A/N: This isn't going to be GSR. Not even a little bit. :) Anyways, please tell me what you think- drop me a review! Thanks!

Until next time...

-Sahariah