A/N: Wow!!! I got soooo many reviews! Everybody who reviews, gets electronic ice cream! This chapter builds up to the HA part which is going to be major HA. Read on!
Disclaimer: Bones is still not mine. No 'extra' characters in this chapter.
Previously:
"We have a young female coming in," sheBrennan said. "Zach I'll help you clean the bones, and then we want tissue markers on the skull for Angela. Hodgins, I got you some soil samples and there was a beetle on the rib cage."
Zach nodded and went to the closest table to await the delivery. Angela nodded and went back to her office. Hodgins muttered: "Wow, a beetle? And it's not even my birthday" and returned to his microscopes.
Chapter 2: A Familiar Face
Zach knocked on Brennan's door, feeling slightly nervous. Normally he didn't have to go to her office.
"Come in," called Brennan. Zach pushed the door open and stuck his head around it.
"Dr. Brennan, the bones have arrived and Dr. Hodgins has started analyzing the soil samples," he said quickly.
"Okay, can you start the preliminary exam?" she asked. Zach nodded. "I'll be right there."
Zach nodded again and went back to the platform, where the skeleton had been placed out on the table. He pulled on a pair of latex gloves and started looking over the bones as Brennan came up to the platform. She grabbed a pair of gloves and joined her grad student at the table.
"What have you found Zach?" she asked.
"The victim is indeed female, between the ages of 25 and 30," Zach replied. "I haven't yet found cause of death."
"Okay, good work."
Zach picked up the skull and examined it closely. He looked inside and found something worth finding.
"Dr. Brennan, I think I just found the COD," he said, handing Brennan the skull.
"Discolouration, not congruent with being buried for a long time. It looks like she was hit from behind with something," stated Brennan. Booth came up the stairs behind them, but he was unnoticed.
"So that would be blunt force trauma to the head?" he said, making Brennan and Zach jump.
"God Booth, don't do that!" cried Brennan. "And yes, it would be blunt force trauma to the head, but she was hit multiple times before the fatal blow." She snapped off her gloves and turned back to Zach. "Zach, I want you to see if you came pull anything off the skull where she was hit for Hodgins, and then could you clean the bones and then lay tissue markers on the skull for Angela. Come get me when you've got the tissue markers down, and I'll check them. Any questions?" Zach had a confused expression on his face.
"Dr. Brennan, she looks familiar to me," he said. "Like I've seen her before."
"I thought so too," replied Brennan.
"What is it with you squints and 'she looks familiar'?" Booth asked. "Don't all skeletons look the same?"
"To the untrained eye, yes," said Brennan. "But your facial structure, for example, is different to Zach's. Families have similar facial structures and identical twins have identical facial structures." Brennan paused for a moment. "Why are you here Booth?"
"I was planning on dragging you out of the lab for lunch," he replied.
"Oh. Wong Fu's?"
"Sure, grab your coat. By the way, I'm driving."
On the short ride to Wong Fu's, Brennan was trying to explain to Booth what happened to the victim. He just wasn't getting it. Booth pulled up in front of the restaurant and got out of the SUV. Brennan followed him inside and they took their usual places at the bar.
"G-man!" called the owner, Sid. "And Dr. Brennan! Here for lunch?"
"You betcha Sid," replied Booth.
"Either of you going against my better judgment and ordering?"
"Not us Sid," said Brennan. Sid nodded and looked at them for a couple minutes, before disappearing to the back. Brennan and Booth chatted for about 10 minutes, until Sid came back, but this time with food.
"For the G-man, meat-lovers pizza. I figured you wanted something meaty, but simple," Sid handed Booth a medium-small pizza before turning to Brennan. "And for the good doctor, a big bowl of hearty vegetable soup. Good for the heart and the mind." Sid handed her a bowl filled with delicious looking soup.
"Wow, thanks Sid," said Brennan, picking up her spoon.
"Yeah, this is delicious," agreed Booth, who had already taken a big bite out of his pizza. The Dynamic Duo ate in silence, glorifying the delicious food. They were almost finished when Brennan's cell phone rang. She sighed and flicked it open, not looking at the caller ID.
"Brennan," she said.
"Dr. Brennan, there were no particulates on the skull, but I found something on her left humerus," said Zach.
"What did you find?"
"It looks like our victim was shot in the arm, but it only scraped the bone, so she was probably trying to get away."
"Okay, good work Zach. We'll be back soon." Brennan ended the call and drained her soup bowl. Booth finished his pizza off and stood up.
"Ready?" he asked.
"Yup," answered Brennan. Booth tossed some bills onto the bar and called to Sid.
"Thanks for the food Sid!" he said.
"Later G-man!" called Sid. Booth placed his hand on Brennan's back as they walked towards the SUV. He let her go and slid into the driver's seat.
"So…care to tell me what Zach said?" Booth asked.
"He said that there were no particulates on the skull, but there was a scraping on the left humerus, like she was trying to get away from a bullet," replied Brennan.
"So, she was most likely shot in the arm and then hit repeatedly on the head?"
"Yes."
"That sounds like a homicide," said Booth. "And that puts it under FBI jurisdiction, along with the fact that she was found in Virginia, just over the border."
When they were back at the lab Brennan found tissue markers laid on the skull, waiting for verification.
"I laid the tissue markers and I collected some of the dirt build up in the bullet wound and gave it to Dr. Hodgins," said Zach at top speed.
"Okay, the tissue markers look fine," replied Brennan. "I need you to find out approximately how long ago she died, and I'll get the skull to Angela."
Brennan pulled on a pair of gloves and picked up the skull. She walked down the steps and towards Angela's office.
Brennan walked into her best friend's office and handed her the skull. Angela flipped the page in her sketchbook, where she had been drawing, but not before Booth had a glance of what she had drawn. It was of him and Brennan walking towards the door. As usual his hand was on the small of her back, but Ange had drawn a calm, peaceful, but secure expression on Brennan's face. His thoughts were interrupted by Brennan's voice.
"…so we'll need a face and a reconstruction for the skull," she said. "We're going to need the 3-D reconstruction so we can run scenarios."
"Okay, I'm on it Brenn," replied Angela. Brennan left and headed towards her office, with Booth following. He followed her into her office and sat down on her couch.
"Booth why are you still here?" asked Brennan, yet again interrupting his thoughts.
"Because this is usually when you ask me questions about the case, and I answer them, and then you say that it's just my gut talking," Booth answered. Brennan sighed and leaned back in her chair. She opened her mouth to say something but was interrupted by Hodgins knocking on the door.
"Come in!" she said. Hodgins opened the door and walked in. He held up a small container.
"The build-up in our very small bullet wound did not come from where our victim was found," he stated. "I compared the sample Zach gave me with the soil sample you gave me, and found that the build-up came from an area near Aberdeen, Maryland."
"It's just crossed the border," said Booth. "Now it's really in FBI jurisdiction."
"Have you analysed the beetle yet?" asked Brennan.
"Not yet, but I'm getting right to it," Hodgins replied. "Oh and Zach said that you should come see something." Hodgins turned to leave and was followed by Booth and Brennan. Hodgins hopped up the steps and returned to his microscopes. Booth was about to swipe his card when Angela called.
"I got your face Brenn!" she said and handed Brennan her sketch pad. Booth looked over Brennan's shoulder at the drawing. They both stared at it and then at Angela, and then back to the drawing.
"Ange, did you look at the picture?" asked Booth, still staring.
"Of course I did," replied Angela. She was confused. "Why did I do something wrong?"
"I think you did," said Brennan, quietly. "Ange…you drew yourself." She turned the pad around and Angela saw her own face staring up at her, drawn with her pencils.
"No…" whispered Angela.
A/N: Ooohhh…suspenseful. That would explain the 'same face thing', but yeah, I still have to get to the HA part. It's coming people!!
