Jeffersonian Institute Medico-Legal Lab

[argyle_princess]

For the most part, Hannah has spent the first two days of her internship shadowing someone while they went about their regular routine. Usually, she follows Tempera--errr, Dr. Brennan, but also Ang--Ms. Montenegro and Dr. Hodgins and even the newly PhD'ed Dr. Addy. (Dr. Addy did not, contrary to confindent predictions, have kittens. But he also didn't know exactly how to deal with a sixteen-year-old intern, so he just talked very fast at her about whatever he was doing. Hannah caught about a fifth of it, understood maybe half of that, and tried not to smile.) She even talked briefly to Dr. Saroyen, who first asked how she met Dr. Brennan, and then tried to steer her towards pathology.

But there are times when people are doing things she really can't shadow -- because she lacks security clearance or because they require a level of concentration that doesn't lend itself to explaining as you go along or simply because there are some things you just don't show a sixteen-year-old intern, no matter how interested in forensic anthropology she is. And usually that means she's just off shadowing someone else, but now they're all reviewing something on the Angelator that Hannah can't see for at least one and possibly all of those reasons.

So she's settled at one of the couches on the balcony that overlooks the lab with coffee and her laptop. She's making notes on what she's seen and what she's learned, because she has a report to write when she gets back to Neptune. And if she finishes that, she has a pile of journal articles she's supposed to read. Or, you know, try to read.

Comments

[paladinsuitsyou]

And here's someone else who might have kittens at seeing a blonde 16-year-old Californian at the Jeffersonian Institute: Special Agent Seeley Booth.

He's here (ostensibly) to check out some of the loose ends of the last case he'd worked, but really, it's to visit Cam and see if he can talk her into having lunch with him.

Hey, what's the point of working with your girlfriend if you can't drop in on her unexpectedly and take her away from all this?

But before he can even make it into what he's always secretly thought of as "The Inner Sanctum," he spies a girl he's never met before. She's pretty, fashionable and seems to be engrossed in a journal article on something that would probably make him say "Ugh."

"Hi," he says, a bit cautiously. She could be family of someone deceased or otherwise distraught. It's best to tread lightly until he figures out what she was doing here.

[argyle_princess]

Hannah looks up. Roughly three seconds of quick assessment follow -- he's made it past security in a federal building in DC, so he can't be a completely random stranger, but there's no lab coat and no Jeffersonian staff badge, and he just doesn't look squinty enough to work here. But he also looks like he knows his way around.

Then he gets a bright smile and an offered hand. "Hi. I'm Hannah Griffith. And I'm going to guess that you're Agent Booth."

[paladinsuitsyou]

Booth takes the hand - after all, she's just a kid, and there's no need to be rude. Not yet, anyway.

"I am," he says, and he's giving her the hard, inquisitive stare of someone who is completely confused but refuses to show it. "And what is Hannah Griffith doing at the Jeffersonian, and how does she know my name?"

She certainly doesn't seem to be a grieving family member.

[argyle_princess]

"Oh, I'm sorry," she says. "I just assumed Dr. Brennan would have mentioned me. She mentioned you, which is how I know your name. And I'm here for a week doing an internship sort of thing."

[paladinsuitsyou]

"She didn't." Shortly.

"A week-long internship? I didn't know the Jeffersonian offered those. Or had any jobs for teenagers. Mostly it seems work around here is restricted to people have at least two degrees."

He's not being too much of an asshole about this, but he is deeply curious. The girl can't possibly be out of high school. What is she doing here?

[argyle_princess]

Hannah was warned to expect an interrogation. So she just shrugs slightly and sort of explains.

"Um, I don't about know about what the Jeffersonian does or doesn't usually do. And it's not an internship like, you know, Dr. Addy had. It's just a week to learn about it and see what it involves and everything. Dr. Brennan invited me."

[paladinsuitsyou]

"Right," Booth says, puzzling over this for a minute.

"And how do you know Dr. Brennan? Because she never has mentioned you, but she must like you enough to invite you here for a week."

Seems a little funny, doesn't it?

[argyle_princess]

"Did you wanna sit down?" Hannah asks, with a gesture at the other couch.

Or is he hoping he looks more intimidating with the looming?

Hannah will have to give him that he looms very well.

"I read her book, found her e-mail address on the Jeffersonian website, e-mailed her to tell her I liked it, and it sort of . . . I think snowballed is probably the best word."

[paladinsuitsyou]

"Lucky girl," Booth says, and his voice is still a tiny bit ominous, but he unstiffens enough to sit down. "How're you liking it here so far?"

[argyle_princess]

"I'm enjoying it. Everyone's been really nice, and it's really interesting, you know? Like, there's so much you can tell. And you never think about, I don't know, you break your arm when you're four and that leaves a record. It's really neat."

She gives him a slightly mischevious smile.

"Sure you don't want my social security number and mother's maiden name? Or will you get those on your own?"

[paladinsuitsyou]

Booth smiles back, a bit embarrassed. "If it comes to that, I'm pretty sure I can find you. But if you'd like to make it easier on me, you can tell me your criminal history and how you broke your arm when you were four."

He likes the kid enough to tease her a bit, which is a good sign. Still, it is strange that she's here. He's definitely going to have to talk to Brennan about her.

[argyle_princess]

He gets a grin.

"One parking ticket. I let the meter expire because I lost track of time. In San Diego, two months ago. I paid it."

Her personal criminal history is pretty dull. You have to go a branch up the family history for anything interesting.

"I fell off the jungle gym on the playground.

"570-00-0120. Denenberg."

[paladinsuitsyou]

"That's very responsible of you," Booth says gravely, but the corners of his mouth are twitching in an upward direction. "I'm glad to hear you're such an upstanding citizen."

He taps his head. "It's all up here now. You'd better continue with that virtuous behavior."

[argyle_princess]

"I'll do my best," she says.

"Still, if I'm going to do anything, better now, right? While it's still a juvenile offense. Which only gives me about a year and a half left to pull off a life of crime."

[paladinsuitsyou]

"That's true, but you might find you like a life of crime, and be spoiled for anything else," Booth says, laughing. "I hear it's addictive. And I'd hate to see the world lose a promising forensic anthropologist so early."

[argyle_princess]

"Yeah. It's like smoking. Hard to get used to, isn't half as cool as you think it's going to be, gets you hooked, ruins your life and just might kill you. Best not to start."

Hannah doesn't smoke. It doesn't go with running.

[paladinsuitsyou]

Booth has never smoked for much the same reason. Even in war zones, it was just never his thing. Messed up his concentration, too.

"So true," he says. "And you see people doing it, and they think they are so much cooler than anyone else. All it ever made me want to do was laugh at them. But then, I'm kind of an asshole like that."

[argyle_princess]

Hannah laughs.

"At least you can admit it," she says. "I've known some assholes who couldn't. It's like the first step, I think. To . . . something.

"So can I ask how you fit into the picture here, or is that all classified and need-to-know?"

[paladinsuitsyou]

"If only we knew what," Booth says, putting on a wistful tone. "Then I'd know where I was going."

He shurgs. "Nah, it's pretty straight forward. I'm basically a liason between the Bureau and the Jeffersonian. I run a lot of cases where I need the help of Dr. Brennan, and since we work together pretty well, I tend to get assigned to those cases. It's easier to just say she's my partner, but that's not exactly official."

[argyle_princess]

"Do you like it? Working with the . . . what is it she said you called them? Squints?"

[paladinsuitsyou]

"Didn't used to," Booth says. "Hated them all the first time I met them. I thought they were weird and kind of creepy."

Pause.

"They grew on me. Like moss."

[argyle_princess]

"Dr. Hodgins' area of expertise, then. Slime and particulates. I think that's where moss would go, anyway."

She grins.

"They are kind of weird."

[paladinsuitsyou]

"Yeah, they definitely are. I mean, I never imagined anyone would specialize in slime. Not that it isn't useful, just...not my thing, really."

He's much more into the "catching the bad guy" part than the "figuring things out by science" part.

[argyle_princess]

"Which, I'm gonna guess, is why you're the FBI side of things, not the Jeffersonian side of things.

"I've always liked science. I think it's kind of amazing that you can use it for something like this."

[paladinsuitsyou]

"Exactly," he says, beaming at her. "And it's why Brennan and I make a good team."

He looks around the Institute, with its glass and chrome, its vaguely chemical smell. "This place really is pretty incredible. And I think it's pretty cool you're interested. You into more the crime-fighting side of science, or the more wide-ranging kinds of things Brennan and her team do? Because the Bureau's always looking for a few good scientists, too."