A/N: Yeah, I'm definitely on a Bones kick. xD Anyways, here's my second pairing fic, but this one's longer -- meaning that there are more chapters on the way! :D I would absolutely love some constructive criticism, if'n you're willing to offer it.
I do not own Bones, the characters, or anything except my storyline.
Warnings: Multi-pairing fluff that escalates in one case to some tame slash. There, you've been warned! (:
Season 4/5-ish timing, and this is dedicated to my friend and recent crush Catherine.
"Cam, where is my assistant for today?" Brennan demanded as she stalked into the autopsy room. Cam looked up from the corpse she was examining, holding her bloodstained latex gloves away from her body.
"Now isn't really the best time," she replied, indicating her gloves and the cadaver.
Brennan ignored her. "I need an assistant, and whoever is due on the rotation hasn't shown up."
Cam sighed mentally. "I'll be with you shortly, Dr. Brennan," she said patiently, going back to the cadaver. She had expected Brennan to leave and come back later, but her colleague was still waiting in the doorway. Cam's dark eyes flicked to the door and the irritated Dr. Brennan again, and the sigh escaped her.
"Just…give me a moment." She straightened and inserted her right thumb under the rim of her left glove, removing it efficiently without soiling her hands. She repeated the procedure and disposed of the now-inverted gloves in a nearby biohazard bin. "Now, let's see who's in the doghouse today."
"Why would they be in a doghouse? They should be at work," Brennan insisted, trailing behind as Cam strode towards the forensic platform. They halted in front of a clipboard hung from the outside of the raised area.
"Today is Wednesday, correct?" Cam drew her finger down the list, her eyes skipping along the names. "It looks like Wendell's due in today."
"But Wendell's never late," Brennan insisted, treading on Cam's heels as the coroner turned to make her way back to her autopsy. "Sorry."
Cam stopped and turned to face her colleague. "I don't know where he is, Dr. Brennan, but following me like a duckling isn't going to help you find out." She closed her eyes for a moment and took a breath, then reopened them. "Go ask Angela to call him – make sure he knows he's on today."
Brennan strode away without another word. Despite her throbbing heels, Cam couldn't help but smile as she watched her go.
---
"How's it going?" Angela mounted the stairs to the forensic platform after swiping her card with the typical chiming sound.
"The tox screen results haven't come back yet, but so far it's looking like suicide." Cam propped her hands on her hips. "Dr. Brennan, you may strip what's left of the flesh now."
"Thank you." Brennan gestured to a gangly grad student standing nearby. The girl rushed over, nearly tripping over her feet in the process. "Miss Hansen, I will leave that to you."
"Y-Yes, Dr. Brennan," the girl managed, just avoiding biting off her tongue, which flicked out nervously to lick her lips every few minutes.
"There she goes again with the 'Miss' thing." Hodgins joined them on the platform as Brennan left with her grad student. Several of lab techs followed with the gurney and the red, mangled body.
"Where'd you find this one?" Angela's eyes followed the gurney. She looked faintly disgusted.
"Sewers." Hodgins answered quickly, avoiding eye contact with Angela as he thrust his stack of papers towards Cam. "Based on insect activity and the meal plans of the neighborhood rats, I'd put time of death around four to six months."
"Thank you, Dr. Hodgins." Cam took the papers and began flipping through them. "Tox screen suggests a possibility of," she glanced up at Hodgins, "suicide?"
"Might be." Hodgins shrugged. "There were high levels of antidepressants and mood stabilizers in her body at time of death, but not enough to kill her."
"It's a female, then?" Angela prompted.
"Yes, Dr. Brennan says late teens to early twenties," Cam replied, taking a nearby paperclip and clipping together the report in her hands.
"Oh, I forgot, Wendell called," Angela added. "That's why I came up here in the first place."
"Why is he not here?" Cam's dark eyes locked with Angela's.
"Apparently he has that stomach flu that's been going around." Angela grimaced. "The one Booth said Parker had?"
"Do you think I should call in a replacement?" Cam asked, nodding to Hodgins as he left the platform, leaving Cam and Angela.
Angela hesitated, her eyes following Brennan and her twitchy grad student. "Nah, I think Gracie's got it under control."
"And if she doesn't?" Cam arched an eyebrow.
An impish grin spread across Angela's face. "Then this'll be fun to watch."
The corners of Cam's mouth tucked downward in her typical amused smile. "Run along, you," she laughed, shooing Angela away with a flick of her wrist. Angela grinned over her shoulder and complied, flouncing down the stairs with the usual cheerful spring to her step.
A/N: Hit that review button, go go go! :D Thanks for reading!