nickngreg | (no subject)

CSI
Title: Into The Fire
Chapter: With the Dawn Comes Hope (14/?)
Pairing: Nick/Greg
Rating: PG-13
Genre: Angst, Drama

Previously: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13.

Summary: Nick and Greg start off again, while those in the lab hear from the forestry services.

Cross-posted at WMTDB.

14. With the Dawn Comes Hope

When Nick opened his eyes again, he was back in the coffin. He could feel the weight of the gun on his chest, taste the stale air, and had to shield his eyes against the sickly green light he was bathed in.

No no no this isn’t real!

He knew he was dreaming, but being lucid in such a dream state didn’t kill the fear that was forcing itself through his system and causing the bile to rise in his throat.

Wake up, goddamit!

Nick let loose a howl of agony.

“Nick…”

He turned his head to the left, and outside the plexiglass he could see Greg lying in the dirt, his face pressed against the glass as he tried to breathe.

And then the green light started to turn orange. He could feel the temperature rise, sweat beading on his skin. Greg pressed a hand against the glass as a wall of flame reared up behind him. Nick could only scream as the fire engulfed Greg, eating his skin away, charring him before his eyes---

“Nick!”

Nothing but dust remaining, blowing away as the flames began to lick the walls of his coffin, slowly cooking him...

"Nick!"

Nick opened his eyes, and this time it was for real. He was already trying to scramble away from the envisioned flames, but it was impossible as Greg was still wedged in against him. He opened his mouth, knowing he was about to let loose a primeval howl of rage and despair, but Greg grabbed him by the shoulders. He didn’t speak, only looked at him with empathetic and pained eyes. Nick felt his fear subside – Greg was alive, he was here with him, and he was out of the grave---

---except he wasn’t. He was in the ground, and he had to get out. He heard a whimper start in the back of his throat, and he hated himself for giving voice to it. He felt the weight of Greg lift off him as he disappeared out of the hole.

And he was alone again in the dirt.

A hand thrust out of the brightening sky, and he grabbed it with relief and felt himself once more being hoisted out of the ground, just like those months before. He scrabbled on his stomach and lay there, breathing heavily. All he could see was dirt and Greg’s knees, and then the touch of his hand as it stroked his hair.

“You haven’t had a dream that bad for a while.” Greg said matter-of-factly.

Nick felt like he was going to vomit. “It was bad.”

“I’m sorry I put us in there.” Greg whispered.

“It had to be done.”

Greg knew, but it didn’t stop his feelings of guilt. “Breakfast?” he suggested.

Nick half-groaned, half-chuckled at the thought of the sugary masses contained within Greg’s backpack. “I don’t think I could stomach any of that crap right now.”

“You need energy.” Greg started going through the backpack’s contents. “Here’s some plain chocolate. At least have some of that.”

Grimacing, Nick unwrapped the bar while Greg chose another one for himself.

“Any water left?” Nick asked.

Greg handed him a bottle, and they both looked at the meagre amount left within it.

“Shit.” Nick breathed.

“There’s about the same left in the other bottle.” Greg informed him.

“We need to find water.” Nick said.

“We need to find a lot of things.” Greg replied. “Like, an exit.”

“If Bugs Bunny was here he would just draw one on a tree trunk and step through it into the lab.” Nick grinned.

“Nah, he would probably make a left at Albuquerque and totally miss it.” Greg shrugged.

Nick got to his feet, shakily. “Hate to be the bad guy, G, but it’s light enough for us to get going again.”

“You’re never the bad guy, Nicky.” Greg reached out his hand so Nick could pull him up off the ground.

They left behind the hole in the ground, the source of their nightmares.

-------------------------------

It had been a long night, and they were well into a double shift as the sun started to make its presence known. Yet nobody, not even the lab techs, were starting to make noise about going home. Grissom doubted that even if he started pulling people aside and telling them that they should leave they would probably just assemble in the break room and wait for news to filter back, whether it be good or bad.

But tired eyes and pinched mouths were starting to become more pronounced. All televisions scattered throughout the offices were tuned into the local news channels, and people clustered around them in small groups between running tests and returning from crime scenes. Catherine and Warrick were back, and neither of them had come to report to Grissom yet. He could see them come in, exhausted, but they went straight to Sara for an update. He watched them sag visibly as Sara obviously told them there was nothing new to disclose.

Grissom sighed as Warrick stalked off to collect himself in some private corner. Catherine remained with Sara, her back deliberately set against Grissom’s office. Sara looked over her shoulder at one point to meet his eyes, and then quickly looked away again.

He knew he should call Catherine in, talk to her about her attitude, and once he had her calmed her down to discuss what he had found in Nick’s folder. He didn’t want to jump to conclusions, it was a dangerous thing to do in this line of work – so he would have preferred a colleague’s professional opinion. But he didn’t think Catherine was going to give an inch at the moment.

Greg Sanders’ file hadn’t given him anything out of the ordinary. His emergency contact details were still only for his parents, which added another question mark to the whole business. Why would Nick’s details ask for Greg to be contacted if Grissom was correct in what he was supposing, and not vice versa? Could it just be an oversight, as Greg was less fastidious with his paperwork than Nick was?

His thoughts were interrupted by somebody clearing their throat.

He looked up to see Catherine standing by the door, looking apologetic.

“Come in.” he said, in what he hoped was a conciliatory tone.

Catherine nodded, and sat down across from him. “Look, Gil. I’m sorry for what I said earlier.”

“You were upset. We all were.”

“Goddamit, Gil, stop being so understanding, I am trying to apologise here!” Catherine’s eyes flashed with anger again.

He held up his hands in defeat.

“Anyway, I planned on being angry at you for a lot longer, but I was standing out there watching the news, and I realised that it was useless to do so. So I came in here.”

Grissom nodded. “Apology accepted.”

“That’s it?” she asked, her eyes narrowed.

He nodded. “That’s it.”

She leaned back in her chair. “Huh.”

“Actually, I’m glad you came in here. I want to ask you---“

He was interrupted by Sara yelling Warrick’s name, then running into Grissom’s office while snapping her cellphone shut.

Grissom stood, his anticipated discussion with Catherine about Nick’s file forgotten. “What is it, Sara?”

Sara looked behind her, to see Warrick skidding to a halt at the doorway. “The rangers just called me. They were able to contain the fire near the Tahoe, but it’s only one of many fires spreading throughout the park.”

She paused for breath, only to have all three practically yell at her for more information.

“The Tahoe was empty. There is no sign of either Nick or Greg.”

“That’s a good sign, right?” Warrick asked.

Sara nodded. “Their resources are pushed to the limits, but they are prepared to let us come in if we stick to the areas they will allow us access to.”

It was the best news he had heard for hours. Grissom reached for the jacket hanging on the back of his chair. “We have a scene to process, and our friends to find.”