Title: Dear Ms. Summers

Author: Jedi Buttercup

Disclaimer: The words are mine; the worlds are not. I claim nothing but the plot.

Rating: PG-13

Spoilers: B:tVS post-"Chosen"; CSI through 6.10 "Still Life"

Summary: B:tVS, CSI. Nick Stokes has a penpal. 700 words.

"Dear Ms. Summers..."

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"Dear Buffy..."

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"Hey, girl..."

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"...My job took me underground today. You might have heard about the case on the news? I can't really talk about it while it's ongoing, but yeah. It wasn't all that closed in, really, you'd think since I don't even have trouble with elevators I would be fine, but I got claustrophobic anyway. Couldn't stop thinking about all that dirt over my head. Freaked me out, like when those bugs crawled on me on a case a few weeks ago. It made me feel a little ridiculous, like I should be past this already.

"I know, I know, it takes time. Have to get back on the horse and keep going. This isn't the first time I've been through a major trauma, I know the drill, I'm sure you do too. Still. It helps to have someone to talk to about all this who really understands..."

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"...Tried the doing something different thing, like you suggested. Don't have much hair to cut off, though, and you wouldn't believe how ridiculous I'd look with it long, so I decided to grow a 'stache. Easier to get rid of than a tattoo if I decide I don't like it. I haven't made up my mind yet, though, whether I do like it or not; the guys in the lab are giving me grief about it.

"What do you think? Seriously, give me your unbiased opinion-- I'm sticking a couple pictures in with this letter, a before and after kind of deal. I'd ask Catherine or Sara, except Sara would probably just say, 'Well it looks different,' and Catherine's been distracted lately... did I tell you Rick got married?..."

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"...Yeah, things have been pretty awful around here the last week or so. I haven't seen much of the news coverage myself-- we've been pretty busy working the case, and the department's really torn up over it. The worst part's the way the neighborhood's reacting, it's like they'd rather the cops take the blame regardless of whether we were at fault. And there's other things going on with the case I can't talk about, that have us all pretty tense.

I appreciate the condolences, though. It helps to know someone out there's still thinking positive thoughts about us. I'll try to write more next week..."

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"...The pictures arrived just fine. Wow, I'm not sure whether to be more awestruck with the monuments in the background or the beautiful girls standing in front of them. I've been on a few trips with my family before, but never out of the States. How long are you and your sister going to be in Europe? I used up most of my vacation time this summer, but I'll have a few days coming up soon, and I remembered you said you had a friend living in the area. I guess I'm looking for an excuse not to fly down to Texas for the holidays; I've had about enough family smothering for one year.

"No pressure, though. Rick's already invited me to a party his wife's throwing, I can use that as an excuse to stick around Vegas. Which, speaking of, I took your advice about the 'lip ferret'. Jeez, I can't believe you actually called it that, crush a guy's ego why don't you? Rick laughed his ass off when I told him what you said. He'd been calling me 'Mustache Boy' for weeks.

"Anyway. You remember I told you about the guy who did it, how I visited his daughter in jail? I don't know why I went there, really, maybe I thought it would give me some sense of closure. She didn't really want to talk to me, but I told her not to take it with her when she got out. Well, she's out now. She showed up at one of my crime scenes, then stopped by the office a couple of days later to tell me she was thinking about what I said after all. I'm not sure whether I should feel hopeful I got through to her, or really creeped out that she's paying me all this attention..."

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"...Sincerely, Nick Stokes"

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"...Your Friend, Nick Stokes"

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"...Love, Nick"

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© 2005 Jedi Buttercup.