Okidokie, guys! Here's chapter five. Um...people are enjoying this, right? Cuz I'm not getting many reviews or even people watching or favoring this. Please, review, I don't want to quit this story because it has barely begun and nothing especially good has started. If you have some constructive criticisim for me, I'll accept that too. Flaming in inappropiate. Anyway, this is the new segment. I hope you enjoy. if you do PLEASE REVIEW~!

Chapter Five: Truths and Lies

Why had she asked to witness this? It was heartbreaking. Saddening. Nevertheless, if she was going to act as a criminal forensic anthropologist, that meant that she was going to have to act sad when pretending to break the news to murder victims' loved ones and that she had to see what it was like. That didn't make the situation any less painful to see.

Twisting a thick tress of light hair in her long index, Kristen forced herself to watch as Booth and Dr. Brennan told Connor's mother that he was found dead in their neighbors' pond. The poor red-haired woman was in hysterics, her heart breaking piece by piece with Booth's every gentle word and Brennan's stone-faced ones—there was hint of compassion to her beautiful eyes, though. Kristen was watching from behind the one way glassed window of the federal bureau's interrogation room.

"Did your son have any enemies, Mrs. Reilly?" questioned Booth.

"M-Miss," she corrected through her sobs, there was a slight Irish accent.

"Excuse me?"

"M-Miss. It's Miss. Reilly. My hus-husband and I-I split up wh-when Connor was j-just a baby."

"Oh, I apologize, Miss. Reilly."

"I-It's o-okay. But n-no. Connor w-was an ab-absolute sw-sweetheart. Everyone l-loved him. Everyone. E-Even his girl-girlfriend's ex-ex-boyfriend." Miss. Reilly explained, tears cascading down her freckled cheeks.

That caught Booth's attention. "Ex-boyfriend?" he questioned.

"Y-Yes. Willow w-was originally d-dating th-this boy Billy be-before she met my son." Miss. Reilly paused to sniffle, wiping her eyes. "B-Billy is a b-boy on C-Connor's basketball team. Th-They didn't always get along entirely, even th-though they were team-teammates, but they respected each other. B-Billy didn't really treat Willow v-very well, so Willow f-fell in love with Connor and n-naturally Billy wasn't pl-pleased. Th-They fought for a while, but th-they got over it." Miss. Reilly gazed up at Dr. Brennan and Booth with glassy gray orbs, a look of realization on her face. "Y-You th-think th-that would be considered a-a motive?" she asked aghast.

"It very well might be, ma'am." the ex-sniper responded seriously. He rose to his feet. "That is all for now, Miss. Reilly. Thank you for your help and we apologize again for your loss." Brennan and Miss. Reilly stood up with him.

"We will keep in touch with you as much as possible. We will find out what happened to your son, Miss. Reilly." Brennan said softly. At that, Kristen noticed that Booth was holding back a smile of approval.

Sniffling again, Miss. Reilly thanked them both glumly then, left the interrogation room. Booth and Brennan joined the young blonde waiting in the other room. She looked up at them curiously. "What now?" she questioned.

"We go back to middle school." Booth announced. Both women didn't seemed to enjoy that idea too much.

"Dude, you are screwing up big time." Hodgins said aloud, him and Zack being the only ones on the Medico-Legal Lab's floor platform. Angela was in her office fiddling with the pictures Kristen had taken, Hodgins was looking at Connor's tox-screens and Zack was looming over the skeleton—what else was new?—looking for the cause of death and the possible murder weapons—so far he could only find feathers in the victim's nose and throat.

Furrowing his brows in confusion, Zack lifted his head and looked to his friend. "Are you speaking to me?"

Hodgins rolled his eyes, slouching in his chair. "Of course I am, man. There's no one else here."

"There are other scientists here. There's one, there's one," Zack pointed to all the passing people in blue lab coats. "There's--"

"Okay, okay, enough. I was just talking to you." Hodgins sighed deeply in frustration.

"I see. You should be more specific."

"Anyway, like I was saying you are screwing up big time."

"Excuse me?" Zack frowned.

"You're messing up. Making a huge mistake." Hodgins pointed out, trying to not let aggravation overwhelm him.

"With the bones? I certainly don't think so. I never make mistakes." countered the taller male.

"I meant with Kristen!" the blond man exclaimed in exasperation.

"Oh." Zack said. "How am I "screwing up big time" with Kristen?" Those words sounded less natural than they did when Hodgins had said them.

"She thinks you hate her." replied Hodgins.

Now, that surprised the young genius. His eyebrows shot up in such emotion, but that was the only change to his usually stoic face. "She…she thinks I hate her? As in loathe? Detest? Despise? Abhor?" he questioned slowly.

Hodgins gazed at him oddly, not knowing why the Zack just listed all of the synonyms of the word hate. Nonetheless, he nodded. "Yeah, and she's pretty upset by it."

"She doesn't seem troubled to me."

"That's because Short-stack is an actress, she can pretend that she's not, but she is."

"But I don't understand where she'd get such an impression."

"It's not like you have been the most welcoming person since she started hanging around here. You're avoiding her like she's the plague. You are basically being a jerk to her." Hodgins stated.

"I did not mean to behave in such a manner, but I do not know why it is bothering her so much." Zack mumbled, staring down at the bones on the metal table.

"Because she likes you, dummy!"

"I am not dumb. My I.Q. is above 163, so that's not--"

"Zack! You're missing the point! Kristen likes you!"

"She does?"

"Yes!"

"…Then, why did she "blow me off" as you so put it?"

Sighing deeply, Hodgins rubbed his temples with closed eyes. "I made a mistake. Kris didn't do it on purpose." he began. "She went to the club without her mother's permission, so when her mom found out, she got into big trouble. Her mom took her phone, car, and computer away. So that's why her mom answered instead of Shorty herself."

"…I see…" was all Zack could utter. It did make a lot of sense; it seemed a lot more logical considering how friendly Kristen behaved towards him and how hard she tried to get him to talk to her.

"Yeah, and she's feels really bad about it, man," Hodgins gave his friend a firm look. "So stop being such an asshole to her."

Staying silent, Zack contemplated what his co-worker had told him. Kristen liked him, it had all been a misunderstanding. So there was no reason to think she wasn't interested, right? Or was that not the concept at all? They had fun at the club, right? Even Zack enjoyed himself despite his unfamiliar environment and social awkwardness because Kristen had made him forget all that and helped him have fun. So did that mean they could be friends? Or…what? He did not entirely understand. This was another one of those times where he wished he understood women like Hodgins and Booth did.

Either way, Kristen did not hate him and that made him feel…better. Happy, maybe? Did that make any sense?

"All right. I will try to be more…friendly towards her from now on." Zack announced stiffly.

Hodgins gave him a strange look again, but was smirking slightly. "I swear you speak another language sometimes, Zack." he chuckled with a shake of his head before returning his attention the computer.

Zack made a face.

"Honestly, Goldilocks, how do you manage such a thing?" Booth asked with a shake of his head as he helped Kristen off the ground of the parking lot of J.T. Miller Junior High School—the school Connor Reilly attended.

"I don't know, it just happens." Kristen grumbled, rubbing her sore knee that had hit the sidewalk in front of the school. She had tripped on the curb.

"No, tripping on a curb does not just happen." the FBI agent retorted, placing his fists on his hips. The blonde girl shrugged, her cheeks flushed embarrassed as people—very few thankfully—who had passed by and had seen the incident snickered.

Brennan chimed up, "Kristen may have a balance problem."

"That could be it, but not really. Kris dances." her partner pointed out.

"Well, she may have also fallen because she leaves her bootlaces untied." The brunette pointed to Kristen calf-high sepia-colored boots.

Booth gazed down and scowled. "Yeah, that definitely could be it. Tie your shoes, Goldilocks and hurry. We need to speak to Connor's girlfriend and possibly some of his teammates, including that Billy kid." he ordered.

"Yeah, yeah, okay." Kristen sighed and rolled her ocean green hued eyes. She sat down on the curb and moved the hem of her white sundress, so she could tie her shoes. Once the twenty-one-year-old was finished, she rose and stepped onto the curb only to almost slip again. That time, luckily, Booth had caught her, grabbing her elbow. He looked down at her in scolding while she smiled up at him innocently. "Sorry." she apologized shyly. Shaking his head, he let her go and headed towards the girl. She made a face. It's not like I fall on purpose…

"Are you alright, Kristen?" asked Brennan, looking at the girl with furrowed brows.

Kristen looked at her slightly surprised. Had the older and much taller asked if she was okay, like she cared? Don't get her wrong, the blonde didn't think Dr. B was heartless or anything, but Kristen kind of thought she didn't particularly like the actress all that much. So the blue-eyed woman asking about her well-being brought a smile to her mildly tanned face.

"Yeah, I'm chill. No worries." she answered cheerfully.

"You're cold? Is your jacket not heavy enough?" Brennan said quizzically.

Kristen laughed and grabbed Brennan wrist gently tugging her the front doors where Booth was waiting for them. "No, no. It means I'm fine. Thanks for asking."

"Oh, I see." was all Brennan said, the two woman joining the only male of the group.

Once they caught up with him, the three entered, stepping into a long hallway lined with dull green lockers and doors leading into classrooms. They had to stop at the school office first to notify the principal that they were there and why. The principal, who was a graying, stout woman was devastated by the news but allowed them to carry on with their business wishing them the best of luck and saying she'd tell the rest of the staff.

Since it was the middle of the day, the majority of the students and staff were in the cafeteria eating lunch; the rest were residing in the hallways chatting animatedly, going through their lockers, or were in class. It reminded Kristen of her college since such things never changed through the grades yet, at the same time, the environment felt very different compared to her college experience. That was probably because memories of her junior high school years were coming back to her and well…her middle schools years weren't amongst her most favorable memories. As it would seem, from Brennan's tense shoulders and her pursed lips, pressed in a very firm line, middle school hadn't been one of her favorite places either.

Booth must've spotted the females' behavior as they walked through the hallway, getting curious looks from boys and girls, because he inquired of them, "Why are you two so edgy?"

"I hated middle school." admitted Kristen. Her shoulders were hunched, her army green hoodie's hood was over her fair head, and one of her hands was tucked into her jacket's pocket while the other's index finger—her nails being painted a subtle gold today—was twisted in a strand of her long, straight hair.

"I have to concur with Kristen's statement." added Brennan, she didn't look quite as rigid, but she didn't look pleased.

"Oh." he said softly. He frowned a little, but didn't press the matter further—they probably wouldn't tell him anyway, at least not Kristen.

Ultimately, they reached the cafeteria and their ears were instantly bombarded with shouting, laughing, talking, clattering of trays, and of rickety lunch tables and benches. Also, their noses were engulfed the smells of various foods—it was easy to tell who was eating the cafeteria food, though as it never smelled tasty or looked it either.

"So what does Willow look like?" Brennan asked as they peered over the many heads in search of the young girl.

"Mmmmm," Booth mused, his keen orbs looking about. They narrowed when saw a small group of girls were all mostly wearing dark clothing, but had incredibly sad expressions on their faces, especially one. "Over there. Back table on the far right." he said aloud.

With that, the three went over the group of girls, who immediately stopped talking—speaking in somber, hushed tones—when the three adults approached. Though, they probably had stopped speaking because Booth looked so intimidating—completely in agent, crime-fighter mode.

"Hello, girls. I'm Special Agent Seeley Booth of the FBI," Booth stated, flashing his badge with an expert flick then, closing it in the same manner. "These are my associates, Dr. Temperance Brennan and Kristen Faust." Brennan gave a curt nod and Kristen sheepishly waved.

The girls muttered cautious greetings. Booth cleared his throat. Their scared greetings struck a sympathetic cord in him, they probably knew what was going on, but remained emotionless—he had to. "Which one of you is Willow Yates?" he asked, peering at each of their faces closely.

"M-Me," a mousy, short-haired brunette, who had those rare and pretty purplish eyes, said, raising her hand. She didn't look more than twelve-years-old, but had a maturity to her face."I'm Will-Willow."

"Do you mind if we ask you some questions in private?" he said.

Willow looked to her friends, whose expressions were full of concern. Then, she looked back to Booth, Kristen, and Brennan. She deeply frowned and swallowed multiples times before saying almost inaudibly, "Yeah, sure."

Nodding, Booth ushered the young girl out of the cafeteria and the four headed outside to the back of the school where there was a small basketball court, a kickball field, and playground. There were some dark blue benches spread about and Willow, Booth, Brennan, and Kristen chose one and sat down on it—Kristen and Willow on one side and Booth and Brennan on the other.

"Willow, do you know why we're here?" Booth questioned, his big hands folded on the table in front of him.

Willow had her head hung very low, her hands clenching and unclenching her skinny purple jeans. "…Because of Connor, right? I don't know how or why, but he's dead, right?" she whispered, her voice shaking.

"Yes," the only male there nodded.

"He was actually murdered." add Brennan bluntly, but with no ill intent. Booth shot her a look nevertheless.

Willow's head shot up, chocolate wisps falling from her white face. Her eyes were wide, glassy. "C-Connor was…murdered?" she choked out. When Booth, Brennan, or Kristen didn't answer instantly, Willow knew the answer and her voice grew frantic, "How? Why? What happened?"

"That's what we're trying to figure out, Willow." Kristen said gently, watching to hug or how the girl's hand on impulse. Willow was too young and fragile looking to be going through such a thing like her boyfriend being dead, killed. It wasn't fair and broke Kristen's heart. Is this what Dr. Brennan, Booth, and the squints dealt with everyday? Was she going to be able to act as cool-headed with her character in the TV show as Booth and Brennan were right now?

"Connor's mother said that you had dated someone before him. A boy named Billy, right?" Booth queried, getting straight to the point. He honestly wanted to visiting interrogating the girl before she burst into tears. She may be a possible suspect and could lie to him, but he didn't like making young girls cry.

"Yeah, but…what does Billy have to do with this?" Willow's thin eyebrows creased at her small forehead. Her eyes grew again with awareness. "You don't think Billy's a suspect, do you?"

"It's very possible. Miss. Reilly informed us that Billy and Connor did get along very well, especially after you and Billy ended your relationship and began one with Connor. He could've possibly still be angered by the situation." the oldest female explained seriously.

"No! Billy wouldn't do such a thing! Yeah, he was ticked 'cuz of the whole thing, but he got over it! They apologized and everything! Sure, they're been best friends or anything, but Billy would never kill Connor! Never ever!" Willow cried, standing, her hands clasped to her chest. "I promise!"

"Willow, calm down, please." Booth said as comforting as possible, a bit taken aback by the young girl's outburst.

She blushed from her outburst, the pink color being very predominant on her delicate cheeks. Willow apologized softly and sat back down. Kristen placed a hand on her shoulder, giving her a reassuring smile before retreating her hand to her lap. Willow just looked at her then, to Booth and Brennan. "Besides, there's no way Billy could've killed Connor nor anyone from their basketball team. 'Cuz Connor's been in the hospital for the past month." Willow confessed, her voice shaky.

"He was in the hospital?" said the other three with confused expressions. Miss. Reilly hadn't said anything about that.

"Yeah, since the basketball season started. His mother never told me what he had, but she said he was very sick and had to be kept under constant watch at the hospital two blocks down. I visited Connor a couple of times and asked his doctor and his nurses what was wrong with him, but they said they didn't exactly know. One minute he was completely fine and the next, he wasn't. Apparently, he had to take a lot of medications and stuff. It was really weird." Willow explained. Brennan, Booth, and Kristen exchanged glances. Willow spotted their look and arched a brow. "Do you think the hospital killed him by overdose?" she asked.

"Maybe…" Booth mused, a strange look in his dark, narrow eyes. He then, rose to his feet. "Thank you, Willow, for all of your help."

"We are very sorry for your loss." Brennan added, almost automatically, but with a hint of sincerity. She and Kristen stood as well.

Willow got up too and bit her lip before hesitantly saying, "When you find out happened to Connor, will you please tell me?"

Booth and Brennan looked at each other, wondering if it was such a good idea to get a kid so young involved whether it was her boyfriend or not. However, without missing a beat, Kristen said confidently, "Of course. We'll keep ya posted."

Willow smiled a little at the blonde girl—Kristen was just a little taller than her, which Kristen found very annoying, but kept to herself—while Booth and Brennan stared at her mildly shocked. The two young people exchanged phone numbers and with that Kristen, Booth, and Brennan left the playground and the school, heading to the car—they'd interrogate Billy later when school got out.

Booth turned to Kristen and placed a hand on her covered head with a small smile. Kristen peered up at him curiously. "That was a very good thing you did back there, Goldilocks. That kid could use someone like you right now." he praised, tousling her hair beneath the hood from on top of it.

"Yes, getting comfort from someone older and wiser than her, especially of the same sex could be very good for Miss. Yates." Brennan concurred with a pleasant smile of her own. That was just before her cell phone went off.

Blushing, Kristen made a face and swatted Booth hand away. "Don't make such a big deal out of it. Willow deserves to know what happened to her boyfriend that's all." she mumbled embarrassed.

"Well, according to Hodgins," Brennan cut in, her lovely face serious again. "Connor had had a lot of varied medications in his system and said that Zack claims that the feathers in the victim's throats and nostrils that asphyxiated him were from a pillow. Both pillow and medications are from the hospital, St. Catherine's, two blocks down from here."

"So Willow was telling the truth, right?." Kristen said, letting it all process. She turned to Booth, who was rubbing his chin, a pensive expression on his handsome face. "Does that mean Miss. Reilly was lying to us? She didn't tell us her son had been in the hospital up until his death. She just immediately assumed it was Billy or lead us to believe that." she pondered.

"That is very possible." Booth said, Brennan and Kristen looked at him intently. He looked between them. "First we have to interrogate Billy, confirm his innocence then, confront Miss. Reilly about why she just so happened to skip such an important piece of information before visiting the hospital."

Brennan and Kristen nodded with only one question in Kristen's mind, Who is lying and who is telling the truth?