A/N: Here is the first installment of the new series I promised last week. I hope you enjoy! :)

The Bones in the Field

By 18lzytwner

Chapter 1

The Jeffersonian Medico-Legal Lab, Monday at 12:30 pm

Set after "The Pain in the Heart"

"Hey Bones," Booth said breaking his partner's concentration on the file that lay in front of her.

"Yes Booth?" She replied without looking up from the file, hoping to finish the paragraph she'd started.

"What is has marrow in it and mud on it?" He asked, playing a little game. Now Brennan looked up from her file and gave him a look.

"A bone?" She wondered, playing along.

"Exactly. Wanna guess where it was found?" He raised his eyebrows up and down.

"I suppose you're going to tell me either way," the forensic anthropologist was getting tired of this game very quickly.

"Fine be that way. Some kids discovered it while they were playing soccer. We're just waiting on you to come out and take a look," Booth told her.

"I'll grab my kit," Brennan stood from her desk, closed the file, and headed for the metal kit in the corner of the office. Once she had it in hand, she followed Booth out of the Jeffersonian.

"How exactly did they discover the bone?" She asked as the SUV pulled out of the parking lot.

"One of the kids was running down the field and he just fell over. At first the parents thought is was just a lump in the dirt but the boy who tripped over it said it felt too hard to be the ground. You know with all the rain we've been having, the ground isn't very hard at all," her partner explained at the red light.

"The ground is soft, ideal for digging. So they dug up the bone?" She inquired.

"The boy's father told him to stop being a wuss and kicked the little mound. That's when someone noticed something sticking out of it. The referees dug it up with their hands so game play could continue and they got a little more than they bargained for hence why I got a call," Booth said. Brennan gave him a look.

"Hence?" She raised an eyebrow.

"It's my word of the day, don't expect me to use it," he teased as they made another left hand turn.

"The local police arrived on scene and have everyone off the field," Booth continued as they made a right hand turn into a parking lot near the fields.

"I see that. If the bone is in fact human, we'll need to get the ground penetrating radar out here," she told him as they exited the government vehicle.

"Can Hodgins run that thing?" Her partner wondered.

"He's quite capable," Brennan assured him and the two crossed the nearest field and headed for the police tape.

"Agent Booth?" A man in a suit asked.

"That's me and this here is Dr. Brennan from the Jeffersonian," the FBI agent introduced his partner.

"Detective Paul Modeen," he confirmed before continuing, "I'm hoping we just called you out here on a wild goose chase,"

"Where is the bone?" Brennan asked, wanting to get right to business.

"In the ground. Once the refs saw it was a bone, they stopped digging and called us. The dispatcher told them to leave it where it was until an officer arrived," Modeen explained as he pointed toward the site, marked by orange cones. Brennan gave a nod and headed over to the area while Booth stayed to talk to the detective.

"So did anyone actually touch the bone?" The G-man wanted to know.

"I had both referees finger printed just in case they did. Both of them swear they didn't touch it," Paul said. Booth looked over and saw the two dressed in yellow and black and saw they couldn't have been more than sixteen.

"What age group game was this?" He asked.

"Seven and eight year olds. I think most of them have sworn off soccer already," Modeen shook his head. Booth nodded in agreement, knowing the kids must have been freaked out over the discovery.

"Booth!" Brennan's voice reached him from where she was.

"That can't be good," he muttered and ran out to her.

"This is a human bone. The right femur to be more exact," the forensic anthropologist told him.

"Shit. All right, you call Cam and I'll inform the detective we're taking over this case," her partner said. Brennan nodded and pulled out her cell phone. Within forty-five minutes, the team was out there and had set up a tent to examine the bone and any others that they found.

"Gauging by the length, I'd say adolescent teen female," Brennan told Cam as they stood under the tent together.

"How long was it in the ground?" The Head of Forensics asked.

"I need more to confirm the length of time. With no flesh or muscle still attached, I'd only be guessing, especially since it looks like the bone was cleaned before being placed in the earth," the forensic anthropologist shook her head.

"This has a very creepy vibe to it," Cam shivered to illustrate her point.

"Cleaned bones, means someone with knowledge of how to cut. There are no gouges or marks on the bones," Brennan handed the femur over and Cam took a look at it.

"Well that could be anyone who knows how to hunt or went to medical school to be a surgeon," Dr. Saroyan said.

"Still that narrows our suspect pool," Booth said coming up to them.

"Has Hodgins found anything yet?" Cam wanted to know.

"Nothing yet. I'm hoping he doesn't either," the FBI agent shook his head.

"Whether he does or he doesn't we still have a murder on our hands and more bones would improve our chances of catching the murderer," Brennan reminded him.

"This is true and someone who buries human bones at a kids' soccer field should definitely be caught but…" Booth didn't get to finish as a shout went up from across the field near one of the soccer nets.

"I've got something!" Hodgins called out.

"Grab a shovel," Brennan said as she quickly left Cam and Booth behind on her way to meet Hodgins.

"What is it?" She asked when she approached the entomologist.

"Definitely bone but I couldn't tell you which one. However it isn't buried that deep, so I'm sure we'll find out soon enough," he told her, pointing out the mark on the screen that indicated one foot.

"Where should I start digging?" Booth asked. Hodgins moved out of the way and used a can a spray paint to mark the spot.

"It's only one foot down, so be careful," his partner instructed.

"You might want to get some more FBI guys out here, otherwise it'll be a long night with you digging all by yourself," Cam commented as Booth started digging.

"Sounds like a good idea," he nodded as he dug up the dirt until he struck something with the shovel.

"I said be careful," Brennan gave him a look and quickly dropped to her knees to continue digging by hand.

"Sorry," her partner apologized. She ignored him and soon had the bone retrieved.

"Which one is it?" Booth asked.

"The left ulna, it appears to be similar in age to the femur," Brennan confirmed.

"Good work Hodgins. Now keeping walking," Cam urged the entomologist on.

"I look stupid in this outfit," he reminded her.

"More than usual?" She shot back which made Booth chuckle. Hodgins made a face and continued on.

To Be Continued...