Title: Animal Planet, chapter 2
Author: anmani
Pairing: Nick and Greg, involves the entire lab
Genre: AU(Fantasy), humor
Rating: PG-13
Summary: Grissom gets a mysterious letter.
This is written as companion pieces by anmani and serenity151979.

Back in the hallway he tried to recall who else had been at work and what they had been doing. The door to ballistics was slightly ajar and he entered, curious to see Bobby. At first he saw nothing, and then a big fat tabby stretched a paw over the edge of the table. Grissom sat down to appear non-threatening, but the cat seemed oblivious to the fact that his presence should mean danger. Instead it stood and did a full body stretch. He was assessing the cat, guessing it was at least 20 pounds, when it started to purr.

The tabby jumped down and walked over to him, rubbing its cheeks against his jaw. Grissom dug deep in his knowledge of cats while he battled his instinct to chase the animal. There was no doubt to the tabby's identity, it smelled like Bobby Dawson. It wasn't something unique that did it, more the combination of human and gunpowder. The cat sauntered past him and he saw that it was missing its bits. Under normal circumstances he would just have filed it away under trivial knowledge. But there was nothing normal and the panic of not having his bits sunk deep into him.

'Breathe in, breathe out, breathe in, breathe out' He calmed down after many controlled breaths and started thinking about how he could verify if he still had his. Grissom decided to lie down on his side and was gratified by a full view of his privates. Before he'd thought about it he licked himself and found that indeed he had it all, enabling him to maintain the position as alpha male. He was rather startled by what he had done, some men would probably never leave the house if they had that ability.

Nick had already submitted to his leadership, but he wasn't sure about Greg and Jim. He shook his head and the ears flapping against his skull were something he still had to get used to. The tabby meowed and walked out to the group of animals waiting in the hallway. He followed and saw Nick get the same treatment from Bobby as he'd gotten. Still thinking about the alpha thing he walked over to the Doberman to establish the rank and Brass broke his gaze after just a few seconds. With that settled he moved over to the Border Collie and Nick had his tail between his legs in no time at all.

Both dogs still had their bits and just to be thorough he checked the horse, while trying to recall what a male horse without was called. The horse whose identity still escaped him was indeed a stallion. Grissom was convinced that the panther would also be fully equipped, but he still circled the graceful animal to find his evidence.

Greg however seemed oblivious to him and his investigation. Two short barks stopped the pup and he gained eye-contact that Greg just held. That could prove to be a real problem if Greg was an alpha in the making and he wanted to pick him up by the nape and teach him a lesson. A weak yelp from the Border made Greg turn away and Grissom started moving down the hall again.

It bothered him that he hadn't found Catherine yet, she should have been in ballistics if he remembered correctly. Something moved at the far end of the hall and he squinted to see what it was. It was a grey cat coming towards them and not just any old grey cat. It had such gracious movements that it was mesmerizing and the fur wasn't plain but shiny and nearly blue. Grissom knew that a dog shouldn't consider a cat attractive, but he couldn't help but gawk at the intriguing feline.

Grissom felt the black cat rub against his front in a most possessive way as the grey one approached. Suddenly the hallway echoed with a scream that could have gotten his attention back in the days when he couldn't hear properly. He spun round and saw the Border Collie cowering against the panther, and the horse with one hoof hovering in the air. The pup was at the Collie's side making the funniest sounds, but they seemed to have a soothing effect on Nick. The horse just waited for the fuss to die down before it put its hoof down.

'That boy should be wrapped in cotton.' Ever since Amy Hendler had held Nick at gunpoint, Grissom had felt protective towards the young man. Not that he'd been able to prevent all the disasters, but Nick was tough as nails and always found his way back. The sassy grey cat demanded his attention with a consistent purr and she waltzed right past him and over to the hurt Collie. The grey cat purred louder and licked Nick on the paw that he was favoring.

Grissom wrinkled his nose and sniffed in Catherine's perfume emanating off the grey cat. The actions of the cat and the smell were more than enough evidence to confirm her identity. He managed a few steps before he heard several sharp barks reaching some very high peaks. After listening carefully he decided that it was coming from the reception desk, Judy's place. Brass walked up to him and together they headed for the receptionist desk. On the desk was a small Yorkshire Terrier barking its head off.

He was known to be an emotionally restrained man, but had he been in his human form he would've laughed out loud at the little dog, complete with the coat done up in small curlers. Tentatively he walked over and put his paws on the desk enabling him to sniff to the Terrier and it smelled of Judy's obnoxious facial cream. The small dog stopped barking and just stared at him. She then jumped down on the chair and then onto the floor.

He surveyed the menagerie and wondered how he had ended up in a bad Disney movie. For a moment he wasn't sure what to do or where to go next when the smell of game took hold of his instincts. The urge to follow the scent overrode every sensible thought and he succumbed to it. Next thing he knew he was in Hodges lab and the smell was so strong and luring, but he couldn't see where Hodges was. Suddenly the pup swooshed past him and started barking, peering under a moveable unit.

Grissom got down on his belly to see what it was that had the Cavalier barking like mad. Under the unit was a rabbit, a fluffy grey bunny shivering and trying to back further away from Greg. Then suddenly the bunny jumped forwards and snapped after the pups paw. That only agitated the pup more and Grissom's patience was wearing thin, the bunny was his prey and not the Cavalier's. The thought made him stop in his tracks, but he stood and walked over to Greg.

A stern bark did nothing to get Greg's attention so he picked him up by the nape. The pup immediately relaxed completely and he carried it outside and unceremoniously dumped it next to Nick. With a huff he went back into Hodges lab and over to the moveable unit. The rabbit glared at him when he dropped to the ground once again and Grissom would have recognized that anywhere. He smiled inwardly over Hodges having become a bunny. Grissom got up and walked out of the lab relieved that he had gotten his instinct under control.

In the hall he was met by a Mexican standoff between the two female felines. Grissom sighed as he remembered that cats lives in matriarchate societies and knowing both women well, it just begged for trouble. Catherine was a family person and Sara the opposite. The panther and the Border paced uneasy around the two cats not really daring to go between. A mental nose pinch later he started to move towards the two rivals, but the pup beat him to it as Greg literally jumped Sara breaking the moment.

The black cat was all claws and teeth in angry defense. The grey cat gloated and he was really loosing his patience. The panther nudged Catherine in the side to move her out of harms way. The Border was whining as he circled Sara and Greg who were all fur and screams. Grissom jumped at the two fighting animals toppling them both over and he let out a series of profanities making the hallway echo of barks.

Now follow this link to its companion piece:

Greg's POV