1CHAPTER ONE

The Jeffersonian Institution was bustling as usual. Blue and grey uniforms strode across the grey and white tilted floor. Their speeds differing by who exactly they were and where they stood in the social hierarchy of things. Various screens lit up with varying shots of different angles of three skulls. It was clear that every employee was on the same mission. Well... Almost everybody.

Doctor Jack Hodgins sat back in his chair wearing a pair of thick rimmed black glasses with built in magnifiers that he occasionally used for examining certain bug life up close and hands on. But there were no bugs in sight currently. He had been looking at the same beetles for what felt like ages (at least to him). They had been stuck on the same case for about three days with nothing to show for it other than some beetles, a skull, and a number print that they managed to get off some of the remaining skin that had appeared to be a tattoo that one of Temperance's interns (whoever was on rotation) had discovered. Not that Hodgins cared. Tattoos were not his department. At least not on the clock.

No, today would consist of him goofing around with... Lance Sweets? Sure enough there the young psychologist sat across from Hodgins at a recently abandoned desk wearing a matching pair of dark rimmed glasses that he had clearly 'borrowed' from another desk. Lance held up a comic book, one of the classics: Batman, to which Hodgins was leaning toward and away from. 'Examining' it in a way. Lance's tie was unloosened and he was now sporting his own ID badge clipped on his right chest side, and he was also wearing Hodgins' on his left ear. Another productive day at the Jeffersonian.

Temperance Brennan, the forensic anthropologist, was located at least ten feet behind the two, leaning over a table wearing her dark blue uniform and gloves. Very enveloped in what she was doing with the skeletal remains and totally oblivious, or choosing to tune out, what the two young men were doing.

"Uneven." Hodgins declared aloud leaning back in his chair as if he were the champion of the day for some reason. Temperance meanwhile picked up what appeared to be a bit of bone from a finger, cleaned off from three days earlier.

"No it's not. No way." Lance countered bringing the opened pages to his own eyes. Having trouble with the magnifying glasses he used his left hand to lift them up and over his brow and proceeded to study the drawing that way, this time squinting as though he was trying to solve the most difficult of math equations. "Robert Kane would not draw Bat Girl's... Parts uneven." Sweets added defiantly looking to Hodgins like a kid ready to be spoon fed his usual conspiracy theory and stories. And Hodgins was ready to comply... For once.

"It's Bob Kane and of course he would." The scruffy Hodgins declared just as defiant as Sweets but with a little smile and a twinkle in his blue eyes. He leaned forward, his arms draped over his upper jean thighs that were exposed because he didn't button his work uniform the entire way. He hated conforming to what 'the man' wanted. "Cartoonists sneak in little flaws and secret jabs all of the time. Look at Disney movies. The night sky in 'the Lion King' read 'sex', the cover of that mermaid flick had a giant phallus on the cover not to mention the priest with the raging boner during the holiest of Disney ceremonies. It's an artist's conspiracy. Least publicized of them all." Hodgins concluded leaning back and letting out a drawn out sigh as though he had just finished having the best sex ever and needed a cigarette. Jack Hodgins loved his conspiracies and bashing the government, though it had treated him and his family very well, with their millions and their fortune.

"Did you know that Action Comics number one edition sold for 195,000 American dollars? And it wasn't even in mint condition. It was a 4.0 on the Comics Guaranty and that goes up to ten points!" Said a British accented voice and a messy brown haired young man came into view wearing a blueish-grey lab coat and black tie.

Mr. Nigel-Murray, the 'flavor of the week' (intern that is), hurried past, carrying a tray to Temperance. Standing upright and handing them to her very professionally though his head was turned to look at the two men unlike Dr. Brennan whom was very focused on what she was doing and didn't seem to mind that Mr. Murray wasn't even looking in the direction of the remains. Sweets and Hodgins both looked up, their interests peaked.

"Strangely not disappointing Mister Murray." Hodgins nodded over his shoulder, placing extra emphasis on the fake title that everyone had given the intern who was like a Snapple cap of knowledge. Every ten seconds there was something new. At least this time it was halfway relevant. Even negative Hodgins could appreciate the little things in life.

Nigel blinked dejectedly and turned back to watch Dr. Brennan's work, though he would still try and catch glimpses of the two men out of the corner of his eye. He wanted so badly to fit in but it seemed like everyone was totally against him. Was he really that awful? Everyone back at Leeds seemed to enjoy him and his knowledge, back there they certainly didn't refer to it as tangents like his boss Ms. Saroyan did here. And everyone else for that matter. That's why he had quit before but Saroyan had encouraged him to return. But why if everyone, including her, was just going to make fun of him all of the time?!

Hodgins turned his attention back on Lance, whom he found more and more tolerable as the weeks passed on, and used his sneaker clad feet to scoot over to the young psychologist who now had the comic opened in his lap, studying it intensively. Hodgins pointed at the picture. "As uneven as Booth's carpentry job on his porch."

"Being productive I see." Came Camille Saroyan's unamused voice from behind them. Hodgins on instinct immediately rolled his chair back to his desk, but not before snagging his ID right off of Lance's ear causing the young man to wince.

"Ow.." Sweets whispered with a childlike pout, frowning as he lowered his head, furrowing his brown in pain. That had stung. Luckily he hadn't he hadn't been wearing it like a real earing, also fairly lucky that his ears weren't pierced because he was pretty certain that he would have attempted it.

"Real mature you two." Came Angela Montenegro's, the facial reconstruction specialist and Temperance's best friend, from behind Cam. The women seemed to travel in pairs round these parts. Angela's face seemed very serious, but one look at her eyes and you could actually tell that she was genuinely amused. Her dark brown hair was pulled back and she wore silver triangle earings that shimmered in the lab lights. From beneath her own blue lab coat you could see a very artsy top with lots of floral colors that no one else could pull off other than her.

"Did we make it in time for duck-duck-goose?" Angela added with a drawn out tone to her voice, obviously chiding them. Crossing her arms over her chest and usual clipboard she rolled her eyes.

"Do I dare ask about the case? Or should I put any inquiries in panel form?" Cam phrased rhetorically trying to get back on topic as she nodded toward the comic book in Sweets lap. Sweets panicked as he picked it up and quickly shoved it beneath a few files on the desk

"The remains showed marks around the palms which we concluded were rope burns. Similar burns were also found around the remaining neck flesh. There were holes poked into his back skin and Mr. Murray retrieved a piece of paper with the numbers from his stomach after incisions were made and all preliminary tests were complete." Dr. Temperance Brennan, or 'Bones' as Agent Booth referred to her, rattled off like she had done a thousand times before. "The paper was analyzed by Hodgins and then sent off with Booth who brought it to the Bureau."

"Yeah. Two days ago." Hodgins interupted with a groan and rested the back of his head against the chair. When he got bored he got negative and snappy... More so than usual.

"Upon removal of the flesh the marks were found straight down to the bone. Indicative of... Mr. Nigel Murray?" Just like Temperance. Quizzing her students randomly during a big case just because she had no concept of time and social order.

Nigel blinked with confusion as he lifted his head to look at the group. No meaningless facts. No polls. No trivia. Just facts. He swallowed. "Torture." Short and sweet. To the point. And everyone seemed impressed that he had managed to do so.

"Well done Mister Murray." Cam nodded, obviously impressed looking down at her own clipboard and wrote something down before stepping toward the examining table. "Quite a way to go." She sighed before shaking her head, her black ponytail moving from side to side.

"Any word on Booth?" Temperance asked with a concerned look. Her partner had been gone for two days with the number back at the bureau and she actually felt out of place and horribly bored without him around. The simple study of anthropology that used to be so fulfilling was now mundane. She wasn't sure she enjoyed it.

"Not gone two days and you already miss me." Came the special agent's voice and the group turned to look at him. Temperance meanwhile kept her gloved hands up in the air as she looked to him from behind the goggles she was wearing. "Hey everybody. How are you doing?" But he didn't even wait for a response and instead focused his eyes on Temperance across the table. "So you missed me Bones?" He asked with a cocky grin, practically bouncing in his dress shoes.

"I merely questioned as to your whereabouts. I did not hint to an emotional connection or longing." Dr. Brennan shrugged her shoulders matter of factly as she turned away, removing her gloves and setting them on the tray that Nigel-Murray was holding.

"Alright Bones. I get it." Agent Seeley Booth sighed, shaking his head before he slid his large hands into his black pants pockets. He'd never understand the puzzle that was Temperance Brennan, she was a complete mystery.

"It's alright. She's just hiding her real emotions under the guise of work so she stays in familiar territory." Sweets explained and using his feet he pushed the chair in a circle, spinning around once like a little boy. Booth's hand immediately went out to stop the furniture from spinning.

"Find anything?" Angela asked, hoping to break the awkward energy that was taking over the group. Angela hated conflict, though she seemed to create enough of it. Some would call her a drama queen though she never started it on purpose. Trouble just seemed to follow her around.

"Not so much a something as a someone." Booth brought his hands out of his pockets and brought out a black phone, opening it up. Everyone was hanging on his words but Booth seemed unphased. Or maybe he just liked having the power. Bringing the phone to his ear he kept the conversation short and sweet. "Yeah. You can come in now." He hung up just as quickly and slipped the phone back into his coat pocket this time. Everyone was still oogling him. "The number is a code."

"Like, for what, a door?" Sweets chimed in, his hands bracing himself on either arm rest.

"If it's for a door I'm out of a career." Came a new voice. A few feet away from everyone else stood a young woman, very young, with brown hair to her shoulders. She wore jeans with patterned patches, a short sleeved band t-shirt with a sweater over it, and converse sneakers. Black rimmed angular glasses were hooked on the collar of her shirt. Across her chest was the strap of a mesh messenger bag. Stepping boldly toward the group she stood next to the rather professional looking Agent Booth who dwarfed her size (as she couldn't be more than 5'3). "It's a computer code."

"Ladies and gentlemen, meet Krys Robin. The newest and most cutting edge addition to the Bureau. A data specialist and computer hacker. She's been given to us on loan." Booth announced gesturing to the young woman beside him.

"Specialist? She looks twelve!" Hodgins exclaimed, rising to his feet and finally joining the group. Sweets meanwhile remained where he sat, glued to his spot and quiet as he observed.

"Saves me loads at the movie theater. Five fifty for kids. I also get to order off the kiddie menu." Krys quipped right back rather quickly. Clearly this banter thing was a speciality for her and she was unphased by any of the insults that were being shot in her direction. "I'm twenty, if that even made a difference. But I assure you by age sixteen I already accomplished more than you did at twenty eight... And that's being generous." A bit of a smirk to show that she was kidding and her hands moved into her jeans pockets, almost casually. "Hacked into the bureaus system when I was thirteen then reprogrammed it for them at fifteen. Occasionally I'll hack into systems and switch 'em around for fun on a Sunday. Anything else you want to know?"

Hodgins was speechless for a few long moments before he blankly shook his head. "Uh... No... That sounds... Really cool actually." Hodgins grinned. He liked hackers. They never tried to fit in with the crowd, and certainly shared his hate for 'the man'. Something he could relate to.

"You said something about a code?" Cam interjected, hoping to get back on topic. The case needed to be solved so they could all move on with their lives. "Please come with me." She didn't even wait for a response and began to walk away,. Krys followed.

Booth remained however and something seemed to catch his eye. Moving toward the desk where Sweets was he picked up the comic book and grinned like an eager schoolboy on Christmas morning. "Aw man. Batgirl?!"

Sweets sat upright. "Yeah. You're a fan?"

"Yeah. I used to have a bunch of these as a kid." Booth said whistfully as he flipped through the comic book before looking back up. "You know her boobs are uneven right?" Booth said with a silly little grin as though he had discovered the most amazing thing in the entire world. However the only person to smile in his direction was Hodgins who seemed very content, while Lance looked horribly let down, Angela looked less than amused, and Bones just stared at him in awe that a human being would ever say such a thing. Nigel meanwhile just pouted.

"What?" Booth exclaimed breaking the silence his eyes widened defensively as he tossed the comic in Lance's lap. "It's true. Just look! Everybody knows that."