Disclaimer: I don't own them, I didn't create them, and I don't profit from them. As always, coffee is on me if George and Jorja have the time.
Author's Note: This story is clearly AU and much of what will happen in here is probably out of character and is meant to be a bit of a spoof. It is only my imagination as to what I think some of them might be thinking and when this idea came to my mind, I just couldn't resist. Please keep in mind that the plot is completely contrived and this is meant to be fun. Any similarities to "Fantasy Island", Mr. Rourke, and Tatoo, are just coincidental.
The float plane slowly made its descent towards the lush tropical oasis below. The night shift CSIs had been sent to the island for a week of team building, something that Grissom had been especially skeptical of participating in given the daunting case load they all had, but the directive had come from the mayor himself and so off they'd flown to a remote island somewhere in the Caribbean.
"Can you believe that view?" Catherine sounded mesmerized by the azure waters and the lush green landscape ringed by sandy beaches as the float plane made contact with the surface of the water.
"I don't care how much team building we have to do, this is worth it." Nick was grinning ear to ear at the thought of getting to spend some time walking along the beach he could see out the window and maybe catching up on some sleep.
"It has potential." Sara chimed in, not really sure about spending an entire week non-stop with her coworkers. She wasn't sure how close they were all going to get, and she was especially cautious about opening up too much, even with these people that she'd gladly trust her life to.
"Potential my ass, I don't know how or why the department sent us here, but this is better than any vacation I could afford." Warrick had visibly relaxed since they'd landed and as the plane ferried to the dock that would lead to the island's only hotel, he was relieved that he had a week away from Tina. Things had been rocky of late and he needed time to clear his head and re-evaluate where he stood.
"Reminds me of a few weeks I spent in Bora Bora once." Grissom observed non-chalantly. The rest of the team exchanged curious glances; clearly there was much about Gil Grissom they didn't know. "Very interesting insect life in the tropics."
"Always the Bugman." Greg grumbled. He wasn't discounting the trip, he was however discounting the fact that he'd managed to score front row seats to a U2 concert that had a single show in Vegas on their tour and he'd managed to garner a date with an actual model to the event. Now she had the tickets and a date with someone named Kevlar.
"Suck it up man, you might just meet someone even prettier than Chichi." Nick knew that Greg was disappointed, but he also thought he was clearly losing sight of the potential of what lay before them.
"Her name was Chiliana." Greg growled.
"Greg, we're here for team building, I'm sure your girlfriend will understand." Grissom sounded as if the logic in that should be apparent to everyone.
A few minutes later the plane was secured to the dock and they began to deplane. As they walked up the dock with their bags, it appeared that there was a welcoming party standing there to greet them.
"Hello, I am your host Mr. LaRourke and this is my assistant, Henna Tatoo. Welcome to Fantasize Island." Mr. LaRourke looked strangely like Sam Braun, and his assistant Henna Tatoo, looked vaguely like Lady Heather. Mr. LaRourke continued speaking as glasses of champagne were passed out to all of the CSIs. "I will let you all get settled and then detail what is to come over the next week over lunch which will be served in the main lodge in about an hour." He gestured towards the thatched roof lodge off in the distance. It was surrounded by several cottages, which matched the architecture of the lodge.
"Thank you." Grissom spoke for all of them, as the rest of the CSIs sipped champagne and craned their necks to take in as much of the scenery as possible.
"You are Dr. Grissom, are you not?" Mr. LaRourke stepped towards Grissom to shake his hand. "It is a pleasure to meet you." He glanced around at the rest of the team. "And a pleasure to have all of you here. Your reputation as the number two crime lab precedes you."
"We are delighted to be here." Grissom wasn't sure he really felt that way, but since he really had no choice, he had decided that he might as well enjoy himself. Porters seemed to appear out of nowhere to carry the bags of the CSIs and as they followed they realized that they each had a cottage to themselves.
Sara in particular smiled; she really was looking forward to spending some quiet time alone as she followed her porter to her cottage. As she stepped inside she felt instantly at ease. The furnishing inside were exactly what she would have chosen if she'd decorated it herself. Yes, the week was starting to look promising.
She emerged a short time later and made her way over to the lodge. As she walked in the door, she found Nick and Warrick already there. "Hey, guys."
Nick grinned at her. "Hey, Sar. Isn't this place incredible?" It was clear that although Nick had come from a family who was well off that he hadn't ever been to a place quite like this before.
"I think I could live here." Warrick had an easy smile on his face and he was only half joking; he truly could envision himself living in a place like this. If for no other reason, he and Tina wouldn't be able to argue because they wouldn't be together.
"Mmm, it's wonderful." Sara closed her eyes for a moment and let out a sigh, she was content, this place was wonderful and she had suddenly realized that no matter what happened this week, she was glad these were the people she was there with.
Greg walked through the door next, with Catherine right behind him. "She's never going to go out with me again; you have no idea how hard it was to convince her to go out with me in the first place."
Catherine was trying to hold her smirk back as she dispensed a little motherly advice. "Greg, if she was that hard to convince she doesn't sound like she's worth your time."
"She's a future supermodel, Cath." Greg sounded exasperated.
"She's right man." Nick shook his head at Greg; as much as he had plenty going for him, his fixation on trying to attain women that clearly weren't interested in him was his downfall.
Grissom appeared next, donning his straw hat and looking rather excited at the prospect of taking a walk in the jungle around the resort area. "Well it looks like we're all here."
Catherine smirked at how he so simply stated the obvious sometimes, but before she could say anything more, Mr. LaRourke appeared.
"Ah, you're all here, please come sit down and I'll explain everything." He was smiling and yet there was something about him that made Grissom in particular wonder what they were all in for.
As they sat down, food began to arrive and Mr. LaRourke began to talk. "This week, you have come to Fantasize Island for team building. This will not be like any other team building experience you have had. This one will focus on you as individuals. Before you can become a cohesive team, you need to understand each of the pieces. Each of you will have the opportunity throughout the week to explore three of your deepest desires. I advise you to enter into them fully and not to hold back. In this you will begin to understand yourself, and in turn, understand each other better.
Each and every one of the CSIs looked uncomfortable; rapelling down a palm tree they had expected; this they hadn't. Grissom narrowed his gaze at Mr. LaRourke.
Mr. LaRourke gestured towards the table where they all sat to try and reassure them. "You have nothing to fear, the champagne you drank when you first arrived contained a harmless substance to help reduce your inhibitions throughout the week."
"You drugged us?" Grissom's shock was palpable.
"Dr. Grissom." Mr. LaRourke raised his hand and smiled, indicating that he had more to say. "As I said, it is harmless, and unless the desire that you share is also the desire of another in this group, there will be no memory of it once you leave." He gestured broadly and his smile widened. "What happens at Fantasize Island, stays at Fantasize Island."