Gil Grissom watched as Sara stood taking photos of a bird in a tree as they walked with Hank through one of the trails at Boulder Beach. They'd taken the weekend to camp and enjoy nature, just like Sara had suggested weeks before. Due to their on-call weekend schedule and Sara taking Warrick's so he could go on his honeymoon, it'd been pushed back a few weekends. Their walk was filled with enjoying the nature trail by finding insects for his collection and letting Sara take pictures of things around them.

"You seem to be enjoying yourself." He spoke as she lowered her camera.

Sara turned to see him watching her, Hank was sniffing around a tree but being patient for his humans to move. Due to the trip, her hair hadn't been straightened so it curled around her face. A smile seemed to just complete her carefree expression. "I am." Holding up the camera, she focused on him and took the picture. Looking to the screen, she nodded. "That's a good one."

He walked over and looked at the camera as she turned it so he could see. The photo showed him smiling at her while his whicker hat sat on his face. "You could have been a photographer."

"I was thinking of selling some of them." Sara stated while pulling the camera strap over her shoulder and across her chest. "The university has a program to buy stills for their campus art." They started walking on the trail again, "I could sell a collection of photos surrounding Nevada's nature."

Taking her hand, Grissom watched her as they continued walking. Hank just started trotting ahead as much as his leash would let him. "If you want to do that, you should do it."

"I was going to try to convince Ecklie to let me take shift photos for the upcoming year." Sara reached out and pulled on Hank's leash as the dog approached a cactus. "We haven't had a new photo for a few years. A lot of the teams have changed and each year LVPD take station photos but we don't. It doesn't seem fair."

Chuckling, Grissom squeezed her hand. "I'm sure if it's related to PR, he'd be more than willing to let you."

"He does like PR stunts."

It was getting cooler as autumn bordered into winter in Nevada's deserts so Sara sat outside of their tent in a sweatshirt and blanket. The stars were so beautiful and she enjoyed the fact that Grissom held her as they sat by their small fire pit provided by the campgrounds. Burrowing back into his chest, she leaned her head against his shoulder. Hank was in the tent snoring away, oblivious to their observations of the universe.

"Do you know the story of Ursa Major?" Grissom asked her in a whisper.

"I know it's also known as the Big Dipper but no, not the story behind it." She wrapped her arms around his tighter as he held her.

Leaning his head against hers, he proceeded to tell her the legend. "Zeus fell in love with a nymph named Callisto. His wife, Hera, was jealous so she turned Callisto into a bear. Callisto had a son, but when he came across his mother, he didn't know it was her so he tried to shoot her. Due to this, Zeus turned him into a bear also and hung them both in the sky as Ursa Major and Ursa Minor."

"I remember from my Mythology Class that Zeus was a player. He fathered a lot of demigods and had affair after affair." Sara lowered her voice a fraction. "That's about as far as we got into the Greek Pantheon." Her statement's end was filled with a yawn.

"You're tired."

Sara nodded, "a bit, we walked the trails and the beach today."

"Go ahead and get ready for bed." Grissom let her go, "I'll put out the fire and take care of the gear laying around."

"Okay."

The sound of a soft wind and warmth of a body around her woke Sara from sleep. She opened her eyes to see the ceiling of their tent. Hank was at the foot of the tent, asleep against their feet. Turning over gently, so not to disturb Grissom's sleep, Sara found herself smiling at the peaceful expression that lay across his face. As she propped herself up on one elbow, she ran the pad of her forefinger down his nose before turning her finger so the back traced his cheek. Running her finger along the edge of his beard, a smile emerged across her face as he slowly awoke. Eyelids fluttered before blue eyes emerged to land on her.

"Good morning." His voice was rough, full of sleep.

"Good morning."

Leaning his head back to look to the small pocket that sat above their heads, Grissom reached for his watch that lay among two books, his reading glasses, their phones, and two flashlights. Glancing at the dial told him they had slept longer than expected. Sara watched him put the watch down and relax back where he'd been seconds before. "We slept longer than we planned."

"There's no rush or schedule to meet." Sara ran her hand down his arm till their fingers met and she entwined them. "Just us and Hank."

At his name, the dog picked up his head before laying it back down since they weren't moving. Sara relaxed and laid her head on his shoulder, resting her hand against his chest. "How'd you sleep?"

"Quite well." Sara pulled her head up a fraction. "I always sleep better with you." Reaching her finger to his nose, she traced from bridge to end. "You slept deep."

He turned his head so their eyes met. "The sound of insects can lull me sleep but having you beside me makes my sleep lie on the edges of a coma."

"You say the weirdest things sometimes but they're always romantic." Sighing, she sat up fully and reached for the edge of the double sleeping bag they laid in. "I'm going to use the restroom. Why don't you start the coffee and breakfast."

Sara returned from the public restroom to see Hank on his leash and Grissom at their small firepit. They'd staked down the leash so he didn't go running off but the dog was more than content to just lay beside them. Grissom held out a cup and she took it, knowing it was tea instead of coffee since it was easier to prepare.

"Thank you." She sat beside him and took a sip of the hot liquid.

"I was thinking we'd just hang around here for the day." His eyes settled on her, "we brought Scrabble and our books."

Thinking about the idea for a second, she finally nodded. "We did the trails and beach yesterday so relaxing today sounds perfect."

The sound of laughter filled the tent as they sat with Scrabble between them. Hank was five seconds from snoring as Sara played 'vegan' on the triple word score. "That's 27 added to my 50, so 77."

"A familiar word for you." He laid out 'vixen' and Sara smirked. "That's 9, so I'm right behind you at 69."

Sara's mouth moved to one side as she thought, their tiles were almost out and her options were limited. "Okay, well this takes me to 80." She played an 'ar' on the e of his word.

Grissom reached out and cupped her cheek, causing her to look up at him inquisitively. "You look radiant."

"I look horrible. I'm in jeans, an old shirt, and my face is bare of any makeup."

"You've never needed makeup, Honey."

"I beg to differ." She sighed before speaking. "I'm just plain compared to some of the women at the lab and those we've come across on cases. Even Catherine agrees with me that Sofia is more beautiful than both of us."

He chuckled as he told her a quote. "'No matter how plain a woman may be, if truth and honesty are written across her face, she will be beautiful.'"

As always, his quotes made her smile. "Who said that?"

"Eleanor Roosevelt." He gave a half shrug, "it's not my favorite quote but it's the one that came to mind."

Intrigued, she met his eyes. "What's your favorite?"

"On beauty?" Sara nodded and he spoke. "'Everything has beauty, but not everyone sees it.'"

"Confucius." She stated with a smile, "so I'm guessing what you're trying to tell me is that beauty is subjective."

"And in the eye of the beholder." Taking her hand in his, Grissom brought it to his mouth and kissed her knuckles. "You could stand among models and still be the most beautiful there."

Sara shook her head and looked to the side before returning her vision back to him. "If anyone else told me that, I wouldn't believe them. You, however, actually believe it."

"I do. Ever since you approached me at the podium and asked a dozen questions, I've been entranced. I told you that meeting you made me appreciate beauty."

"I'm already in your bed Gilbert, you don't have to overdo the compliments."

"I'll always compliment you."

Returning to work that Monday was interesting as they found themselves dealing with a vehicular shooting turning into a burglary gone wrong. Sara was playing backup to Grissom and Catherine but she didn't mind, especially since she was feeling a bit sick. Returning from Mount Charleston after running down a lead, Sara barely made it to the breakroom trashcan as she vomited. After getting water to clean out her mouth, Sara sat down on the couch and put her head on her arms. It was only when her name was called that she picked up her head to see Catherine.

"Sara." Sara picked up her head to see Catherine. "Are you okay? Archie mentioned something about you throwing up."

"Hmm." She looked straight at Catherine. "Give me ten minutes and I'll start processing the trace evidence."

Reaching out, the redhead touched Sara's forehead. "You have a fever. Go home and rest, come back tomorrow if you're feeling better. If not, just call in."

Not feeling like arguing, the brunette nodded. "Okay."

The cold of the bed was a relief for Sara as she felt clammy and hot at the same time. She laid down and felt rather than saw Hank climb on the bed. He laid his head on top of her feet like he normally did. Allowing her eyes to close, Sara decided sleep sounded like the best idea. It was only later that she felt a hand in her hair and opened her eyes to see Grissom sitting on the bed beside her.

"Hey, Catherine said you were sick."

Sara nodded, "probably a stomach bug or the flu." She moved to sit up but he put a hand on her arm.

"Rest, I'm going to make you some soup." He brushed back her sweat-soaked hair.

After soup, electrolytes, and fever reducers, Sara just slept. She slept all day and woke when Grissom did two hours before shift. He woke early to make sure she got something in her stomach and was drinking fluids before change the sheets while she showered. Feeling well enough to stay awake, Sara leaned against the pillows and watched a Forensic Files. Grissom came into the bedroom before he left for shift and leaned over to kiss her forehead.

"Soup is in the fridge and there's extra Gatorade on the counter."

"Thanks. I no longer have a fever but I'm going to give it another day. I told Catherine I'd come in for just a half shift tomorrow."

He brushed back her hair, naturally curling since she hadn't straightened it. "Call me if you need anything. Doesn't matter what it is."

"I will."

"'I have chosen to be happy because it is good for my health.'" He quoted and kissed her forehead a second time.

Sara smiled at him, "Voltaire."

"Hmm, rest. Hank will keep you company."

Feeling well enough to return for a half shift, Sara made her way to the breakroom to make tea. She didn't feel like coffee at all, which made her know it was a stomach bug she'd had. As she steeped her bag manually, not feeling like letting it do so on its own, Hodges entered the break room and headed straight to the coffee machine.

"Mia said you went home on Tuesday, said you were throwing up." He shrugged, "are you pregnant?"

Sara looked up at him, "no, and even if I was, it'd be none of your business." She put up a hand, "look, the team jokes and plays around with the fact I'm dating Grissom. We accept that because we're family but they respect the fact we want privacy. Asking me to confirm or dispel a rumor is one thing Hodges," neither noticed Catherine entering the break room. "Digging into my personal life is none of your damn business. Next time you do, I'm going to report you."

"I didn't mean it that way."

She dumped the tea, not bothering with it as she near yelled at him. "You absolutely did!"

Catherine spoke up, "Hodges, don't you have a backlog of trace to run?"

"I'm going to go." He left the two women in the breakroom, coffee abandoned.

Sara turned to Catherine, "I'm sorry if I blew up at him, but he's the reason we have the damn rumor mill in the process."

"I don't care. Yell at Hodges all you want." She walked over and smiled at the brunette. "How are you feeling?"

"I'm fine, it was a stomach bug." She waved Catherine off, "where are we at the moment."

"Layout room, Gil and I were about to go over our timeline. You should join us."

Sitting on the couch after shift watching a nature documentary, Sara looked up when Grissom handed her a cup of tea. Sitting down beside her, he held out his arm and she curled up against him. Nestled against his side and his hand on her hip, she finally relaxed. Grissom put his glass of water aside and pulled the blanket from the back of the couch to place over their laps.

"I heard you blew up at Hodges today."

"He was asking inappropriate questions and with him being the main contributor to the lab's rumor mill, I lost it."

"Catherine sent him to Ecklie since some of the comments concerned me. He's been thoroughly chastised because even Ecklie felt it was uncalled for. Catherine said that if it had been anyone else, the questions wouldn't have been asked."

Sara sighed, "he's a good lab tech but he dives into people's personal lives without regard. Last week Jacqui said he was trying to pry into her personal life."

"If he does it again, he's going to have it notated in his file. He's been given his verbal."

Confused, Sara turned to him. "I got suspended twice, but I've had over a dozen warnings. Why hasn't my numerous outbursts been notated?"

"Because I shielded you a lot of the time." He kissed her temple, "Catherine probably will too. Like I did with her and Warrick at various points in the past. That's something Ecklie doesn't understand, that to be a family is to protect each other."

Laying her head against his shoulder, Sara closed her eyes. "I love you."

"'I would rather spend one lifetime with you, than all the ages of this world alone.'" He quoted and she smiled.

"Tolkien, I'm surprised you've read the books."

Grissom chuckled, "I read fiction if it's any good. I view magic as just science undiscovered."

"Good to know." She opened her eyes and pulled away, putting the teacup on the coffee table. "I'm going to go to bed."

"I'll be there soon. I still have to walk Hank."

She smiled, "alright, if I'm asleep don't wake me."

"I wouldn't dream of it my dear."

I noticed in the episode that Sara was only there a fraction of the time so I decided for her to be sick.

Let me know what you think of the chapter if you so wish.