My first numb3rs fanfic...i love colby, and i love megan (and miss her) so this little creation popped into my head. I love how they always tease each other, and even thouhg i don't have a funny bone in my body, i tried to duplicate it...a bit. More chapters to come, hopefully soon! enjoy and lots of r&r please!

Disclaimer: i dont own numb3rs, and no one from it....not even Colby.... :(

Too Many Trees...and One Hell of A Big Forest

"So what do you think?"

Megan blinked out of the reverie she had fallen into, shifting her gaze from staring aimlessly out of the car window to look at her partner. She sighed inwardly, not in the mood for conversation after the crappy note her day had begun on. After a morning shower that had been less shower and more pathetic drizzle, she had managed to break her favorite mug, cutting herself as she picked up the porcelain shards. And just as she had been fumbling to lock the door of her apartment on her way out, her phone had slipped from her grasp into a puddle. It didn't get wet enough to short circuit completely,but the screen had been reduced to a zigzagging myriad of colors that boded ominously about its ability to function properly. She had actually been looking forward to this two and half-hour car ride, because right from the moment she arrived at work, she wanted to take a nice long nap, and hope that whatever forces were taking pleasure in ruining her day had subsided by the time she woke up. But that was before she realized her partner was Colby, who couldn't go ten minutes, let alone two hours without talk.

"So?" He looked away from the road in front of them to glance at her, awaiting an answer. She didn't blame him for trying to strike up a conversation, because she was usually a talkative person, and she knew that while she would have very readily taken a nap, Colby didn't have that option in the driver's seat. So she humored him, smiling a little. "What do I think about what?"

"The case. Do you think he's out here, or are we just taking a scenic two-hour drive?" Colby's eyes scanned the land before them. They were driving along a narrow road that cut straight through the heart a huge forest, the car bumping and lurching as the tires rolled over the uneven, rocky road surface. Trees stretched above them, reaching high into the blue, growing thickly and close together. It looked kind of intimidating, Megan observed, this army of dark trunks crowding around them, closing in so there was no escape. Megan tore her mind away from this thought quickly, focusing on Colby's question.

"Well, you know what Charlie's math predicted…he calculated the radius of possible ground that could have been covered compared to areas that he could not have accessed or where it was impossible to go, using some theory-thing or other."

Colby grinned his amused half-smile. "I'm glad I'm not the only one who refers to them like that."

Megan shrugged, a small smile playing on her lips. She didn't pretend to understand math, especially not Charlie's.

"But seriously…there's acres and acres of this forests, and its not exactly one of those nice, I-can-see–for-miles forests either…" His eyes fell on the tightly growing trees, huddling secretively and casting their shadows onto the forest floor. "All we have to go on is a 'general idea', as Don called it, and who knows how big of an area that is? Even if the guy is in this jungle somewhere, I doubt we have much of chance of finding him." He shrugged.

Megan nodded. She had always had faith in Charlie's math, but now that they were actually in the forest, witnessing how huge and overgrown it really was, she had to admit their chances were pretty slim. "It's a hit or miss, but think about it; if we find this guy, not only do we close the case, and put him behind bars, we avenge little Julia, Caroline and Sophia's deaths, and probably prevent countless more. So I guess it's worth a shot, don't you think?" Megan turned to look at Colby again, who nodded grimly, sobered by the mention of the victims, two six year old girls who had been found beaten to death on a playground, the M.O. of the murderer matching a cold case of another little girl's death from a few years back, bringing this man's body count to three innocent children.

They drove for another half-hour, chatting lightheartedly and watching the consistent blur of green outside. The sun rose to its peak in the sky, but it was barely visible through the cieling of leafy tree branches.

Colby felt his stomach rumble, and he realized how hungry he was. Craning his neck to look into the backseat behind him, he saw what he was looking for. "Hey, Megan, pass me that box of Cheez-Its behind you."

Megan laughed humorlessly. "Oh, no, no, no. You are not eating while driving."

Colby groaned. "C'mon, I can multitask!"

Megan glared from the corner of her eye. "Colby, I believe you, I really do, except when I'm having a day as horrible as this one, and while we're driving on dirt path as bumpy and winding as this one, and where the tiniest swerve off the road would land us into one of those trees that I know are just WAITING for us to smash into them... I'm not in the mood to die so you can cram some Cheez-its into your mouth."

Colby chuckled under his breath, sensing that pressing the topic further would not be a smart move, since Megan's heels looked as if they could cause some unwanted pain if jabbed at his foot. Instead he changed the topic.

"Aren't we entering Charlie's 'general idea' zone soon?"

Megan leaned forward, scanning the forest that filled their sight through the windshield, and then fell back into her seat with an annoyed sigh. "I can't tell. Everything looks the same."

"More of a "no idea" than a "general idea", then…"

This day really does suck, Megan thought gloomily to herself. "Charlie and his equations…yeah I'd like to see him calculate a radius or whatever out here…everything's always perfect on his chalkboard…"

Colby looked over at Megan, surprised, since she usually persistently supported Charlie's math and never doubted where it led. He decided to tease her a bit, to lighten the dark mood that had fallen.

"Heh, too bad the Professor isn't around to hear his star pupil talk like this…maybe I should tell him…"

Megan grinned, swatting Colby's shoulder playfully. "You wouldn't."

"And why is that?"

Megan smirked evilly at him. "Cuz I know too much."

He sighed in mock-disapproval. "Always gotta bring the black-mail into it, do you? So cruel, Reeves, never letting me have any fun."

She laughed for what she realized was the first time today. "Granger, it's the only thing that keeps you in line."

Colby laughed as well, and was about to answer when he saw a dark shape beginning to emerge out of the overwhelming greenery surrounding them. "Hold on a sec…" Megan turned and followed Colby's frozen gaze, finally noticing what had caught her partner's eye. As they drew nearer, she realized what it was, and she smiled. Maybe this day was getting better after all.

hmmmm, what could it be?...the next chapter will have the answer....

R&R!!!