Introductions

A two-shot, from my Vignettes collection over on FF.net, slightly tweaked. Naturally, I don't own the characters *sigh*.

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Ch1--Introduction

“Dr. Brennan, this is Special Agent Seeley Booth of the FBI. He’s replacing Agent Dimitri,” Goodman said. “Agent Booth, Dr. Temperance Brennan, our forensic anthropologist.”

Booth held out his hand; she regarded it curiously--and warily?--before nodding. “Agent Booth,” she said, not extending her own gloved one in return.

Goodman sighed and shook his head at her. “Amicable, Dr. Brennan--remember?”

She gave him an opaque stare, then nodded reluctantly at Booth before bending back over her worktable and its skeleton.

“So,” Booth said, trying to get a feel for her once Goodman had left. Cullen had said she was supposed to be brilliant, and her reports from the earlier cases certainly seemed to support it. Water cooler talk, on the other hand, had indicated she was a complete pain--stuck-up, aloof, a bitch, the Ice Queen: you name it, she had been called it. He knew a number of agents had failed to get along with her, but… Well, they weren’t him. Not to brag, but he had a way with women. And for all that she was some brilliant genius scientist-squint, she was still a woman. Right?

She hadn’t responded to his tentative overture, though. Not a good sign. He squared his shoulders and cleared his throat. “Ahem.”

“Yes, Agent Booth?” she asked coolly, not lifting her eyes from her work. “If you’re coming down with a cold, please step away from the remains before you compromise them.”

“I’m fine,” he assured her. “Um, so. May I call you--”

“‘Dr. Brennan’? Yes, that would be acceptable.” Now she looked up at him and it was just like the challenges in all the old movies; he could almost hear the swords clash.

“That’s a little formal for two people working together,” he said. “What do your friends call you?”

“Since we are unlikely to become friends, but merely collaborators, I would say it doesn’t matter. Zack!” she suddenly called and one of the squints working at some strange machine (too complex for a simple microscope) joined her, young and lanky and awkward.

“Yes, Dr. Brennan?”

“Did you look at the ulna on this skeleton? What did you see?”

The boy rattled off a long string of squintese in response, and Booth watched, still seeking clues. He prided himself on reading people, but she wasn’t giving him much. Pretty woman, brainy, lots of ice was all he had so far.

“Very good, Zack,” she praised him at the end, a small genuine smile crossing her face. Booth’s eyebrows rose; so she wasn’t completely the Ice Queen. “Oh, and by the way, Zack, this is Agent Booth. Dr. Goodman informs me he is replacing Agent Dimitri. Agent Booth, my assistant and intern, Zack Addy.”

Zack nodded at him; he reminded Booth of a young stork, ungainly, unfinished. “Nice to meet you, Agent Booth,” he said. Like his boss, he didn’t hold out a hand, though it wasn’t for the same reason, Booth was sure. Addy struck him as someone not comfortable with people and normal behavior, while Brennan was more impatient and snotty with them. He began to understand why the other agents gave him such sympathetic looks. If all the squints were like this, he wasn’t going to be spending much time here.

She sighed, and he was aware those clear eyes were looking at him. He smiled at her, his best charm smile; her expression didn’t even flicker. “Zack, why don’t you go get Hodgins and Angela so we can complete the social expectations. And tell Hodgins I want those reports for the NSA case. I want to get them out of here.”

“And who are Hodgins and Angela?” Booth asked as the kid turned and left the platform.

“The rest of my team,” she replied absently, already bent back over the table. “It would be more efficient for them to come here rather than for me to escort you around. I'm quite busy at the moment.”

His eyes narrowed at that. “Dr. Brennan,” he started, but was interrupted by the beep of the access reader and a woman’s voice.

“So, sweetie, what’s the big news? Oh,” she murmured, dark eyes taking him in appreciatively. “I think I see. Dimwit no longer with us?”

“Something like that,” Brennan murmured. “I’ll explain once Hodgins gets here.” She lifted a bone and examined it. Another beep made her lower it again and regard Addy and another man, shorter and bearded, as they came up the steps. The other man brandished a file.

“It just finished, Dr. Brennan.”

“Good. I’ll take a look at it as soon as I’m done here.” She straightened up. “The FBI has sent us a new agent.”

“What, again?” Hodgins said in disbelief. “They’re going to run out at this rate.”

She shrugged. “That would be their problem, and not ours. Agent Booth, this is Angela Montenegro, our forensic artist and facial reconstructionist, and Dr. Jack Hodgins, our particulates expert. Ange, Hodgins, this is Special Agent Seeley Booth. If you would explain to him our routine, I need to get this report done. And don’t touch the bones, Agent Booth.” She stripped off her gloves, caught up the file, and disappeared. Leaving Booth absolutely dumbfounded.

“Why would I want to do that?” he asked with distaste plain on his face.

“Eh. Some of the previous agents tried,” Hodgins said, folding his arms. “Only once, though.” Angela smiled and rolled her eyes.

“Bren is very particular about these things,” she added. “Handling them with bare hands tends to leave skin oils and so forth on the bone which interferes with her examination.” She looked him over. “You look smarter than Agent Coffey, at any rate.”

Agent Coffey, Coffey… Wasn’t he the one out on medical leave for a dislocated shoulder a month ago? Oh. Oh! He shot a quick glance over his shoulder in the direction she had headed. When he looked back, the older squints were grinning.

“Yep. Bren’s a fighter,” Angela told him. “I’m in a bit of a lull right now, Agent Booth--or is it Seeley?”

“Booth’s fine,” he told her.

“All right then…Booth. Like I was saying, I’m got some time, so let me give you the grand tour.” She tugged at his arm, guiding him off the platform.

The men watched them go, then Hodgins spoke. “How long do you give him?”

Roughly, the flip side of ch1...

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Ch2--Mirror

Temperance Brennan didn’t pay any attention to the electronic beep that indicated someone had come up on the platform--the medieval skeleton in front of her was far too absorbing, not to mention Dr. Goodman had indicated a certain amount of dispatch in making her assessment was required.

“Dr. Brennan,” the man himself said, breaking her concentration. “This is Special Agent Seeley Booth of the FBI. He’s replacing Agent Dimitri. Agent Booth, Dr. Temperance Brennan, our forensic anthropologist.”

She looked up; the agent held out his hand to her. “Dr. Brennan.”

Idiot, she thought. Can’t he see I’m wearing gloves? “Agent Booth,” she replied, deciding it wasn’t worth removing one just to replace it. He was just another coccygodynian from the Hoover, so far as she was concerned.

“Amicable, Dr. Brennan--remember?” Goodman reminded her with a long sigh. She gave him a long look, silently reminding him of his own wishes about the skeleton, but he kept looking at her. Stifling her own sigh, she nodded at the agent briefly before turning her attention back to the skeleton.

“So,” he started. She ignored him for the moment, there was something unusual on the left ulna…

He cleared his throat in a sound reminiscent of illness. “Ahem.”

“Yes, Agent Booth?” she asked, still engrossed with the anomaly she had found. I wonder if Zack saw it... “If you’re coming down with a cold, please step away from the remains before you compromise them.” Hmmm. An indention; perhaps a weapon? A misericorde or perhaps a pavade? I suppose it could have even been a steel-tipped quarrel near the extreme end of its range. Whatever it was, it struck hard enough to leave this mark and crack the bone.

“I’m fine,” he said hastily. “Um, so. May I call you--”

“‘Dr. Brennan’? Yes, that would be acceptable.”

“That’s a little formal for two people working together,” he said. “What do your friends call you?”

Of course, he would be the inquisitive one, she thought, resigned. Four other agents from the FBI and not one has the time to exchange pleasantries and this one has to know everything. Not that he’ll be any more accommodating than the others. “Since we are unlikely to become friends, but merely collaborators, I would say it doesn’t matter. Zack!”

“Yes, Dr. Brennan?”

“Did you look at the ulna on this skeleton? What did you see?” She took her teaching responsibilities far more seriously than she did the forced links between the museum and law enforcement. And Zack had the potential to become a good forensic anthropologist--certainly equalling Dr. Stires and maybe even matching her. It would be a crime on her part to neglect that, to not help him develop his skill.

Zack bent over the skeleton with her and pointed out the same indention and crack she had seen, speculating on the causes. “It could have been a lesser blow than you postulated, Dr. Brennan,” he said respectfully. “I noted there’s significant bone marrow edema, indicating a long healing fracture, that potentially weakened the rest of the bone.”

“Very good, Zack,” she praised him at the end, smiling at him. And the agent was still there, watching them. Why doesn’t he leave?

She was sure she had detected discomfort or some other negative reaction to Zack’s speech, however. Continued exposure would send him packing. I think that’s how Ange phrased it…

Too, he was beginning to remind her of several males she had dealt with over her life--overbearing, chauvinistic, full of themselves. The kind who think they’re irresistible to women. She flicked a glance at him as she introduced him to Zack. Admittedly, he was rather attractive in his way; symmetrical, apparently well-structured. Angela would probably be all over him.

And when he gave her that smarmy smile, she knew she had classified him correctly. “Zack, why don’t you go get Hodgins and Angela so we can complete the social expectations. And tell Hodgins I want those reports for the NSA case. I want to get them out of here.”

“And who are Hodgins and Angela?” Booth asked.

“The rest of my team,” she replied, returning her attention to the skeleton. There were other aspects of it to analyze, such as how the age indicated by epiphyseal fusion did not match that of the cranial sutures. “It would be more efficient for them to come here rather than for me to escort you around. I'm quite busy at the moment.”

“Dr. Brennan,” he started to say in what she read as an annoyed voice, but was interrupted by the beep of the access reader.

“So, sweetie, what’s the big news? Oh,” Angela murmured. “I think I see. Dimwit no longer with us?”

“Something like that. I’ll explain once Hodgins gets here.” She lifted the radius and examined it closely, running her fingers along the surface, searching for anything deviating from the normal. The access reader beeped again and she carefully set the bone back down. Hodgins gave her a nod, brandishing a file.

“It just finished, Dr. Brennan.”

“Good. I’ll take a look at it as soon as I’m done here.” She straightened up. “The FBI has sent us a new agent.”

“What, again?” Hodgins said in disbelief. “They’re going to run out at this rate.”

She shrugged. “That would be their problem, and not ours. Agent Booth, this is Angela Montenegro, our forensic artist and facial reconstructionist, and Dr. Jack Hodgins, our particulates expert. Ange, Hodgins, this is Special Agent Seeley Booth. If you would explain to him our routine, I need to get this report done. And don’t touch the bones, Agent Booth,” she added, thoughts of that one agent--she couldn’t remember his name--who had dared to handle the evidence with bare hands drifting through her mind. She stripped off her gloves, caught up the file, and headed for her office, relieved that she didn’t have to waste time on Seeley Booth.

As she sat at her desk, she caught a glimpse of Angela leading Agent Booth off the platform, and absently wondered if he would hold out any longer than his predecessors.

---

coccygodynian--from coccygodynia, a pain in the region of the tailbone (coccyx). Stole the word barefaced from Drums of Autumn, by Diana Gabaldon. But please don’t ask me to say it out loud!

That's an interesting take on their first meeting, now the question is could we beg our Queen to continue this just a couple more chapters? Say another double shot of fic-love showing their viewpoints of working an actual case together? Just askin' because honestly that intrigues me...

RM

It's so strange remembering that, oh yeah...these two used to basically hate each other when they first started out. Of course that did not last long, but none the less it's interesting to get a glimpse at their interactions and what might have been giong on while first meeting one another.

Dawn, I'd not give much thought to how they began, except a little recently since the speculation about there being an episode prequel to the pilot. I find your take on it really interesting. The cognizance on both their parts of the charm/smarm smile - lol. But the thing that made me squee just a little was right at the end ...

... relieved that she didn’t have to waste time on Seeley Booth.

As she sat at her desk, she caught a glimpse of Angela leading Agent Booth off the platform, and absently wondered if he would hold out any longer than his predecessors.

She was already thinking of him as Seeley Booth, not Agent Booth, was distracted/jealous enough to notice Angela leading him around, and was already spending time wondering how long he'd be able to stick around.

In her world I'd almost call that love at first sight! At least that's my take on it.

And Lord knows her rebuff of him has him piqued for the challenge!

Oh, I like that word too ... coccygodynian.
This is the closest I can come to trying to say it ... (kŏk-sĭ-jŭ-dĭn-ē-ŭn)

DBCrazy wrote:Oh, I like that word too ... coccygodynian.
This is the closest I can come to trying to say it ... (kŏk-sĭ-jŭ-dĭn-ē-ŭn)

Oh good Lord. I can't even begin to say that right but I tell you what I'd love to hear is DB/Booth trying to say that on the show. I still crack up over his "Frankie Alabama" comment.

RM

THX1138 wrote:

DBCrazy wrote:Oh, I like that word too ... coccygodynian.
This is the closest I can come to trying to say it ... (kŏk-sĭ-jŭ-dĭn-ē-ŭn)

Oh good Lord. I can't even begin to say that right but I tell you what I'd love to hear is DB/Booth trying to say that on the show. I still crack up over his "Frankie Alabama" comment.

RM

Frankie Alabama? Huh??

See, I told you ... me and trivia don't mix. Give me a tongue twister any day!

DBCrazy wrote:

THX1138 wrote:

DBCrazy wrote:Oh, I like that word too ... coccygodynian.
This is the closest I can come to trying to say it ... (kŏk-sĭ-jŭ-dĭn-ē-ŭn)

Oh good Lord. I can't even begin to say that right but I tell you what I'd love to hear is DB/Booth trying to say that on the show. I still crack up over his "Frankie Alabama" comment.

RM

Frankie Alabama? Huh??

See, I told you ... me and trivia don't mix. Give me a tongue twister any day!

*sigh* I do this only for you Sherry, only for my trusted Chamberlain:

Season One, The Woman in the Garden - Booth collecting Brennan to question a suspect in the murder of Maria Vargas

Hodgins: Yeah, and here’s the kicker. There was also evidence of genetic material from a franklinia alatamaha on his shoe.
Booth: You’re kidding. I’m in shock, Frankie Alabama, you don’t say.


RM

It should be of note that episode also marks the first time we here the words "Charm Smile".

THX1138 wrote:

DBCrazy wrote:

THX1138 wrote:

DBCrazy wrote:Oh, I like that word too ... coccygodynian.
This is the closest I can come to trying to say it ... (kŏk-sĭ-jŭ-dĭn-ē-ŭn)

Oh good Lord. I can't even begin to say that right but I tell you what I'd love to hear is DB/Booth trying to say that on the show. I still crack up over his "Frankie Alabama" comment.

RM

Frankie Alabama? Huh??

See, I told you ... me and trivia don't mix. Give me a tongue twister any day!

*sigh* I do this only for you Sherry, only for my trusted Chamberlain:

Season One, The Woman in the Garden - Booth collecting Brennan to question a suspect in the murder of Maria Vargas

Hodgins: Yeah, and here’s the kicker. There was also evidence of genetic material from a franklinia alatamaha on his shoe.
Booth: You’re kidding. I’m in shock, Frankie Alabama, you don’t say.


RM

It should be of note that episode also marks the first time we here the words "Charm Smile".

Oh, thank you, Your Majesty!!

I don't know how I could have missed such a wonderful line from my favorite special agent! Now I'm going to have to make time to re-watch that episode, tonight, hopefully.

And that's a nice little tidbit about the infamous Charm Smile line. Thanks for sharing!

DBCrazy wrote:

THX1138 wrote:

DBCrazy wrote:

THX1138 wrote:

DBCrazy wrote:Oh, I like that word too ... coccygodynian.
This is the closest I can come to trying to say it ... (kŏk-sĭ-jŭ-dĭn-ē-ŭn)

Oh good Lord. I can't even begin to say that right but I tell you what I'd love to hear is DB/Booth trying to say that on the show. I still crack up over his "Frankie Alabama" comment.

RM

Frankie Alabama? Huh??

See, I told you ... me and trivia don't mix. Give me a tongue twister any day!

*sigh* I do this only for you Sherry, only for my trusted Chamberlain:

Season One, The Woman in the Garden - Booth collecting Brennan to question a suspect in the murder of Maria Vargas

Hodgins: Yeah, and here’s the kicker. There was also evidence of genetic material from a franklinia alatamaha on his shoe.
Booth: You’re kidding. I’m in shock, Frankie Alabama, you don’t say.


RM

It should be of note that episode also marks the first time we here the words "Charm Smile".

Oh, thank you, Your Majesty!!

I don't know how I could have missed such a wonderful line from my favorite special agent! Now I'm going to have to make time to re-watch that episode, tonight, hopefully.

And that's a nice little tidbit about the infamous Charm Smile line. Thanks for sharing!

Np, it's what I do.

RM

Much as I hate to contradict my beloved King and co-ruler, I have to make a correction. The 1st reference to the Charm Smile was actually in Superhero in the Alley, where she says to him, "Don't use your charm smile on me." It's right in the beginning, when she and Zack are looking at the body; Booth says "Maybe pull a quick ID?" and offers her the smile. And from her own smile, I'd say she's not objecting to it then!

Glad everyone liked that word--it just seemed like something Brennan would think. Enough syllables to choke a horse, clinically anatomical, etc, etc.

And I'll see about the actual 1st case, Rob. Hmmmm... I should make you write the one that made her want to cut off all contact with Booth, where she ID'd everything from the x-rays ("last case," remember?)

dawnsfire wrote:Much as I hate to contradict my beloved King and co-ruler, I have to make a correction. The 1st reference to the Charm Smile was actually in Superhero in the Alley, where she says to him, "Don't use your charm smile on me." It's right in the beginning, when she and Zack are looking at the body; Booth says "Maybe pull a quick ID?" and offers her the smile. And from her own smile, I'd say she's not objecting to it then!

D'OH! So right you are my shrewd and ever observant Queen! I always forget about that episode. (locates wall, pounds head) Stupid.Stupid.Stupid King.

[color=indigo]And I'll see about the actual 1st case, Rob. Hmmmm... I should make you write the one that made her want to cut off all contact with Booth, where she ID'd everything from the x-rays ("last case," remember?)[color]

I'll take that challenge, let's see what I can do with it my Queen and I'll get back to you.

RM