Thanks to my two betas Melissa and Kim for working with me on this story!

That you get an idea to what extend these chapters are discussed with my two beta-readers, I'll give you an example. Oh, and if anyone can make sense of the problem we're discussing, please do!

M: Is that how it works? Also, was she a doctor? I know she was a cop and a coroner...but I don't recall her being a medical doctor. Of course, I could also have a terrible memory. And it occurs to me that you might have to be a doctor to be a coroner, but again...it's one of those things I don't know. You did just rewatch these episodes, didn't you? Anyway, just thought I should comment regardless.

J: That is where I might mix up Fanfiction with the show. I just know that somewhere someone mentioned that as a coroner you are a real doctor and that license obviously needs to be renewed every few years in the US. So if she does that she would still have the license. And in 4.18 it was mentioned that she worked as a doctor at the hospital. That's the only way I can make sense of that. Over here those are two different things. Ok, both study medicine but really early in the studies they learn different things and you can either be a doctor or a coroner. I'll check what google has to say… Here it says that in the US: "Many jurisdictions have replaced the elected coroner with a Medical Examiner (often referred to by the initials "M.E."), who must be a physician, and is most often a specialist in pathology or forensic medicine. In some jurisdictions, a medical examiner must be both a doctor and a lawyer. The medical examiner is most often an appointed official. This has been part of a move toward professionalizing a job increasingly involved with advanced scientific techniques. In larger cities (for instance, New York City) and more populous counties, the post may be that of "chief medical examiner", heading an office with M.E.s and deputy M.E.s on staff to handle individual cases." So I think it could work that she still has her license

M: Okay, well that sounds reasonable then. The only question I would have about this, then, is that I've always been under the impression that she only worked as a cop and a coroner. So while she technically could have worked as a physician, I don't know that there's evidence that she has. HOWEVER – that being said – we don't really know a heck of a lot about Cam's past to begin with, so if it's never been expressly clarified, then I say you can run with it :).

J: I know what you mean and to be honest I think she needs to be at least 60 to be able to have done all the jobs they gave her. In the beginning she informs Brennan and Hodgins that she worked for 2 years as head(chief?) coroner in New York and before that only as coroner. Then Booth mentions that she was a cop once and in epi 4.18 they say that she worked as a doctor in the hospital, together with Andrew Welton. I have NO idea how to make sense of that because she can't be older than 40 on the show. It's a bit of a headscratcher...Honest answer: I don't know and will shamelessly use this the way I need it ;)

K: I'm pretty sure in Doctor in the Den Booth said she was a doctor at the hospital where she worked with Andrew.

This is set after episode 4.18

Chapter 1: Grounding the boys

With the folder that contained the results in his hands he entered her office without knocking, knowing that if she wanted to be left alone she always closed the door. The door was open though so he just entered but stopped when he saw that she was talking very animatedly on the phone while sitting halfway on her desk. He saw that her black pumps were sitting next to her desk and she dangled her bare feet back and forth, showing off her black painted toe nails that had some glitter on them. He decided that he could just come back later, after all the results weren't that important- the guy was dead for 60 years now so what was a few minutes more without Cam knowing about the particulates he had found on the guy's clothes?

She saw him though and waved, signaling that he should come in. Quietly he walked over to her desk and sat down in her chair, knowing that if she had any objection she would tell him, just as she always did. She merely raised an eyebrow and he took that as a good sign and started to play with the back of her chair, seeing how far he could lean back. She stopped him by placing a hand on the chair and giving him a stern look before she returned her concentration to her phone call.

"So what now? You want me to do it all by myself? Sir, I have a twelve hour day at work and then you want me to empty a whole house by myself? Yes, I know that there are other companies, but over the years I have tested them all and I don't want anyone else in that house. If anything breaks my daughter will kill me," she said frustrated and Hodgins gave her a questioning look at which she only rolled her eyes. "Yes, ok, I will keep that in mind. The next time someone dies I will ask your permission first," she said angrily. "God damn it," she cursed when she slammed the speaker back on the cradle before she took a deep breath and turned around to face him fully. "Yes, Hodgins?" she asked, trying to appear calm and relaxed but he could see that she was far from it.

"I have identified the particulates from John Doe 399-1. Nothing spectacular though. I just thought you'd like to know," he explained and handed her the folder with the reports.

"Thank you," she said and placed the folder on her desk without even looking at it, which wasn't like her and didn't go unnoticed by her colleague.

"You're ok?" he asked her.

"Yeah, sure, just a bit annoyed," she admitted, slid off the desk and put on her shoes again.

"Anything I can do?" he asked with a smile that was both friendly and suggestive, a typical Hodgins smile.

"If you don't have a moving truck and about twenty strong men at your disposal I doubt that there's something you can do, but I appreciate the offer," she smiled tiredly.

"Then there apparently is something I can do. The Cantilever group has its own moving company, which means that I have my own moving company. When do you need us?" he asked grinning and stood up.

"Uhm… this weekend?" Cam said totally surprised.

"Ok, done deal. Send me the details via email," he grinned smugly and walked to the door. "And black toe nails Dr. Saroyan?" he asked when he turned back around in the doorway.

"Michelle told me it's totally "in" now and insisted. I didn't have a choice," she explained with a smile.

"Oh the joys of parenthood," he laughed and left her office to get back to work.

~*~

Hodgins stopped his truck in front of the house number Cam had given him. He knew that this wasn't where she lived but rather Andrew's old house. The moving truck with the helpers parked behind him and he got out of his car and made his way up to the house. He knocked two times and waited until he heard Cam's voice from inside.

"Come inside, it's open," she yelled and once again he did as she told him. He walked in and found himself directly in the living room. The place was packed with boxes and when he lurked around the corner he found Cam crouching on the floor in front of another box which she tried to seal with duct tape but had no success because the box was too full. He did a double take when he saw her because he had never seen her in anything else than business clothes. This time she wore blue jeans, a simple black shirt and sneakers. Even her hair wasn't as perfectly done as he was used to; it was simply wrapped in a sloppy pony tail.

"Hey good morning, Hodgins," she grinned and tried once again to close the box.

"Morning Dr. Saroyan. I think I can help you with that," he replied and leaned with both arms on the box to hold it closed.

"Thanks. And now that we're out of the lab it's Cam," she told him, sealed the box and stood up. It was weird for both of them to be together outside of the lab, which they both knew was stupid, because they always spent so much time together in the lab. Brennan was always with Booth and since Angela's and Hodgins' breakup he couldn't go to her either. So whenever he needed someone to talk to or someone to spend his break with he usually went to Cam. Another thing that made it easy for both of them to hang out was that they were each other's boss. While Cam was his boss by definition he was her boss because he donated all that money to the Jeffersonian. Strictly he paid his own paycheck, which was so confusing that he didn't want to think about it. He had once said that he didn't want to be anyone's boss and he still stood by that however it made Cam less scary being in his position.

"Ok, Cam, then where's Michelle?" he asked and put his hands in the back pockets of his jeans while he rocked back and forth on his feet.

"Oh so that's why you're here, you're just curious," Cam laughed and turned to a bookshelf that was still filled with books and photographs.

"You didn't honestly think that I was here to help? I'm a scientist I need to gather information," he replied and unfolded another box so he could put it together.

"Michelle is upstairs packing her personal things," she explained then.

"Everything else is done?"

"No, there's still Andrew's bedroom. I don't want Michelle to pack those things because I am scared what she might find and I can't bring myself to go in there, even after all these years," she sighed.

"If you want I can pack his things. I mean, I did not know him and I'm a guy," he said sheepishly.

"I'd like that," she replied and looked relieved.

"I'll just go outside and tell the guys that they can already put all those boxes in the truck. Any furniture?" he asked.

"All of it. Michelle doesn't want to give anything away. I guess I have to put it in my basement until I find a storage space to rent. But the house needs to be empty after today, the new owners are moving in tomorrow," she replied.

"I know I have to find another reason to justify that offer, but if you want you can put the furniture into one of my garages. Zack's stuff is still in there as well, so one more set of furniture more or less…" he trailed off.

"Thank you Hodgins," Cam replied emphatically and threw the first few books into the box.

"I'll be just a second," he said and made his way outside. When he came back with the guys in tow the formerly empty box was now filled with books and Cam stood next to it, a picture in her hand and a sad expression on her face.

"Cam, anything they need to know?" he asked her and she slowly looked up.

"Uhm…" she cleared her voice, "just don't break anything," she said in an attempt to joke. When the men made their way to the kitchen, she and Hodgins were alone once again. She held the picture out to him and he took it from her.

"Fell out of one of the books," she said while Hodgins looked at the picture that showed Cam and Andrew at some kind of party.

"Nice picture," he said simply because he did not know what else to say.

"What's a nice picture?" a voice suddenly came from the stairs and a second later Michelle came around the corner.

"Michelle, meet Dr. Jack Hodgins. Hodgins, that's Michelle," Cam introduced them and they exchanged a somewhat awkward handshake before Michelle took the picture from Hodgins.

"Where was it?" she asked Cam while still looking at the photo.

"It fell out of one of the books," she replied.

"I bet dad stuck it in there because he knew I never looked into his medical books. That's my favorite picture of you two and I used to have it up in my room. One day it was gone and I thought I had lost it," she said and her eyes filled with tears. "I miss him so much," she sniffed and the first tears fell.

"Oh honey," Cam said and wrapped her arms around the girl and held her. Hodgins was wrapped up in awkwardness once again. For one he had never heard his boss use any term of endearment with anyone and then he couldn't stand crying women.

"I'll be, uhm, upstairs, you know… packing," he told Cam and pointed towards the stairs.

"Ok," she replied without looking at him and placed a kiss on her daughter's hair.

~*~

"And then these two idiots blew up the head because they thought we could get a face like that," Cam said while she took another bite of her veggie pizza. It had taken Michelle and Hodgins an eternity to get her to eat pizza and not salad and finally Hodgins had convinced her with a statistic on how many calories an average salad dressing had.

"Ok, that is disgusting," Michelle said but laughed as well. Hodgins had started to talk about another experiment he was planning and because of that Cam had started to tell Michelle about Hodgins infamous experiments.

"It was worth a try, right? It might have worked," he tried to defend himself but had to laugh as well.

"Oh no, it couldn't," Cam shook her head.

"Did we ever tell you about the time when Zack and I fed a frozen pig through a wood-chipper?" he asked Cam excitedly.

"Oh my god…. Hello, we're eating lunch here," Michelle groaned and threw her piece of pizza back in the box.

"Why would you two do that?" Cam asked though and that was Hodgins' signal to start his tale.

"We had been working on this case where we had found shards of bones on a golf course. There had been a plane crash and during the investigation we suddenly found these bones. Because the people on the plane had been some important Chinese guys Goodman told us to investigate those bodies only and do the fragments later. Brennan wasn't ok with that and so we secretly looked into those bones fragments. Zack and Brennan found out that the guy had been frozen and fed through a wood-chipper, Booth got us the only wood-chipper big enough in the area and we needed something to compare the pattern. Alas we fed the pig through the wood-chipper," Hodgins said proudly.

"That sounds just like you two. I bet you made a big show out of it," Cam said and watched Michelle who had started to eat again.

"Only problem was that Goodman arrived that moment and boy was he pissed," he finished, laughing at the memory.

"You weren't working at the Jeffersonian back then?" Michelle asked Camille.

"No, I started working there only two years ago. I worked as a coroner in New York before that," Cam explained.

"But you were a doctor before right? I remember that you and dad always told me that you were going to the hospital. Or did you just say that while you actually worked at the morgue?" Michelle wanted to know.

"No, I really worked at the hospital, that's where Andrew and I met. I could still work as a doctor if I wanted to, I still have the license," she replied and took a sip of water.

"Why don't you?" Hodgins asked curiously.

"Well, after Andrew and I broke up I knew that I couldn't work with him anymore and so I went looking for a new job. A friend of mine told me that there was an open post as a coroner in New York so I took it and moved back to New York. And experience shows that I am a better coroner than doctor," Cam finished with a smile and raised her eyebrows.

"So what is your job Dr. Hodgins?" Michelle wanted to know. It was the first time she directly addressed him. They had worked in uncomfortable silence the whole time and she was giving him kind of weird looks he wasn't able to place.

"I am the bugs and slime guy at the lab," he replied.

"Bugs and slime?" she asked and wanted clarification.

"I am an entomologist, amongst other things. I identify insects or any kind of particulates and use the data to tell time of death or place of death, for example," he said and felt somewhat relieved that the teen was finally talking to him, not that it mattered.

"So there's you and Cam and … who else is working at the Jeffersonian?" her investigation went on further.

"Then there's Dr. Brennan, the forensic anthropologist and Angela, she's doing facial reconstructions and everything that has to do with computers. And agent Booth from the FBI as well as several interns," he informed her.

"If Booth knew that you just added him to the squint squad he would shoot you," Cam laughed and Hodgins joined her.

"Well, he doesn't need to know, right?" he said somewhat flirtatiously

"What's the squint squad?" Michelle interrupted the look that crossed between them.

"We are. It's Booth's name for the people working at the Jeffersonian because we squint at things," Cam said and closed her nearly empty pizza box.

"And all of you worked on my dad's case? What did you do, Dr. Hodgins?" Michelle asked and Hodgins identified the question as a challenge. He looked at Cam who looked just as lost as he did. He did not know what to say because he didn't really want to give the teen all the gruesome details of her father's body.

"Well, I was able to tell that the murderer of your father had something with her that was made out of snake skin. And that whoever attacked him tried to save him," he said without giving much detail.

"How can you tell that from bugs and slime?" she asked but before Hodgins could talk about tiger urine, a shoe lace that had been imbedded in the lung and particulates in the wounds Cam jumped in.

"Honey, I already told you everything you need to know about your father's case. Let's just say that Dr. Hodgins was very helpful in finding out that Nancy killed your dad, ok? Now we should pack those last boxes and then move everything over to my place," she ended the questioning and Hodgins breathed out in relief

"Ok, I'm gonna get rid of these pizza boxes and then help the guys carry the stuff outside," he said and hurried off with the trash.

"Is he your boyfriend? You keep giving each other these looks," Michelle asked in a snotty tone as soon as Hodgins was out of sight.

"No, he is not. He is a colleague who was friendly enough to offer his help with this mess here, so I don't appreciate your attitude. And even if he was, Michelle, I don't think that would justify your behavior. I was your dad's fiancée years ago and I know that he didn't stay alone after we broke up and neither did I or will I, ok?" Cam said in a tone that was only too familiar to her co-workers. It was her "I'll take New York action if you don't do what I say- tone" and Michelle looked taken aback at first but didn't dare to go on.

"I'm sorry," she said sheepishly instead and got up to pack the rest of her things. Cam sighed deeply when her daughter walked up the stairs and decided that she needed some kind of stress relief or her head would explode. This moving operation combined with a petulant teenager was just too much. She walked through the kitchen and picked up her handbag then walked out on the patio and leaned against the wall. She knew where she had hid her stress relievers and took the packet of cigarettes and a lighter from one of the inside pockets and lit a cigarette. Greedily she inhaled the smoke and blew it out slowly and with closed eyes.

"Hey, I didn't know you're smoking," Jack Hodgins interrupted her time of silent meditation and relaxation and she opened her eyes.

"I usually don't… I mean I'm not… I only smoke when I am stressed or extremely annoyed," she admitted.

"Well, for Michelle, the moving guys and me I honestly hope you're just stressed. It's a lot of stuff they have in this house," he said and leaned on the wall beside her.

"I'm fine, really," she said when she saw his worried look but inhaled the smoke deeply once again.

"You know, I used to smoke in my teens," he admitted.

"Really? You were a rebel, too?" she asked with a smile, threw the cigarette on the ground and grinded it.

"You might not have noticed but I still am," he grinned with raised eyebrows and she laughed out loud.

"I am aware of that Dr. Hodgins. However at the Jeffersonian you're a rebel inside the lines I drew and only there," she laughed, patted his shoulder and walked back inside.

~*~

When they reached the house where Cam's condo was Hodgins had to admit to himself that he was excited because he was curious. He had tried to picture her apartment several times the way one pictures an apartment of a colleague when he mentions it. In his head Cam's apartment looked somewhat like the Jeffersonian: Very modern, lots of chrome and steel, little color.

That was before though. Before he had come to know her better and before he had seen her in those jeans and T-shirt. For him that had been evidence that she was different in private than she was at work. He had had glimpses of that every now and then at the Jeffersonian when her tough exterior cracked and the affectionate, sincere and vulnerable woman shone through.

Now he wasn't surprised when they stepped out of the elevator into a cozy and warm penthouse that was both modern and homey and somehow just Cam. The living room had a dark wood floor with deep mahogany furniture to match. The highlight of the room was a huge red sofa that stood opposite a large flat screen TV. It made him laugh out loud because that was just so Cam.

"What?" she asked confused when she heard him laugh and set her bag down on the kitchen counter before she turned back around to face him in the living room.

"Nothing, it's just… a red couch, that is SO you," he said still chuckling.

"What is that supposed to mean, Dr. Hodgins?" she grinned and swatted his arm playfully before she turned to Michelle. "You want to arrange your stuff yourself or do you need help?" she asked her.

"I'll do it myself, at least in my new room. You have everything else covered?"

"Sure. There are empty shelves on the book shelves for yours and your dad's books, there's space for your things in the bathroom and I bought a new PC for your room. First we should let the guys set up your bed and your desk," Cam replied and Michelle nodded and leaned her head against Cam's shoulder for a moment. When she stood back up straight Cam pulled the hair-band from her hair, shook it out and then tied it back up in a pony tail, including the strands that had fallen out before.

"You should let your hair down more often, it's pretty," Michelle said and tugged playfully at Cam's hair.

"Maybe, but it sure isn't practical," Cam protested and adjusted the pony tail.

"What do you think Dr. Hodgins? What's better? Hair down or up??" Michelle asked and took Hodgins off guard. He had still been mentally occupied with the picture of Cam shaking out her long black hair and now Michelle seriously asked him to pass judgment. Was she crazy? This was a question he could only answer the wrong way and they all knew it. So he decided to be honest, just like he always was.

"Oh no, I am not answering that question because there are only wrong answers. I intend on keeping my job," he laughed it off a bit awkwardly but was relieved when he saw that Cam was laughing as well.

"We should start working, otherwise we will never be done," Cam sighed then and looked around her living room where the helpers had already started to put several boxes.

"What do you want me to do?" Hodgins asked and glanced around the room, leaning a bit forward so he could glance around the corner in another room which he identified as Cam's workroom.

"You're looking for compromising material in case I want to fire you again?" Cam grinned when she saw curiosity written all over his face.

"Sure, one can never have enough information about one's boss. It could come in handy one day," he nodded with a mischievous smile.

"You know, with a family like mine every possible compromising piece of evidence about me is locked away somewhere safer than the Gormogon vault," Cam grinned. "You want the grand tour?" she asked then.

"Sure, maybe I'll find something anyway," he agreed and followed her through the apartment.

~*~

The next Monday at work Cam tried to keep cool, but honestly the new "Chili con Carne" case together with the presence of the fact- telling Vincent Nigel-Murray was driving her crazy. This guy just couldn't shut up. She tried, she really tried to not let it get her but sometimes it was just too much. She had spent the whole weekend packing and unpacking boxes while trying to keep a moody teenager in line and now that she was back at the lab they got this complicated case and Vincent Nigel-Murray as an intern.

The only light on the horizon this weekend had been Hodgins. It had been fun having him around and after a while he even got along with Michelle which had set the stage for some funny anecdotes and serious mocking. She was grateful that he had been there, not only because he had organized everything with the moving company but also because he had kept them from mourning and weeping. Andrew was dead for barely two weeks and Michelle was still devastated. It made her sad seeing the girl she always considered to be her daughter so sad. Hodgins had been able to lighten the mood and so the moving had gone without many breakdowns or tears.

The day at the Jeffersonian had started with the new horrible case and she knew that she wouldn't be able to go home early that day as she had planned. Her frustration about that had vanished temporarily when she had witnessed Angela telling Hodgins to leave town because of her father. Of course the entomologist hadn't listened and basically just ignored his ex-girlfriend's advice. That together with her un-scientific theories about the murder had unnerved Booth which had also been some kind of entertainment. After that it had been all work, one call from her sister and one from her father both asking her how she was and how she was doing with Michelle. Their advice on how to raise a teenager had brought her frustration level back up and by noon she knew she needed a break or she would slap someone.

At noon that day she made her way outside to get the much needed relaxation in form of cigarettes. She had told Brennan once that she only smoked when stressed out, although she doubted the doctor had understood that she had been talking about herself, and she still stood by that. However since Andrew's death she was basically always stressed and was smoking more than she ever had before.

She stepped out onto the terrace of the Jeffersonian that was usually deserted and immediately lit a cigarette. This was her favorite spot because she could just relax and be Cam as opposed to the tough Dr. Saroyan she had to be all day long at the lab. She groaned when she heard the door open behind her but didn't turn around. Wasn't it possible at this damn institute to be alone for a second?

"Stressed or annoyed?" she heard a voice and turned around without hiding her cigarette. He knew already that she was smoking so no big deal. Also he wouldn't lecture her or present her with stats about how unhealthy it was.

"How about both?" she replied and turned back around to look over the Jeffersonian's garden.

"Oh wow, that bad, huh?" he asked and leaned against the railing beside her.

"Yeah, and you? Hiding up here from Angela's father?" she teased him.

"Oh come on, Angela is totally exaggerating. How bad can a sixty year old Texan be?" he asked.

"Well, despite his age he somehow is family and family can be cruel," she said with a nod.

"How did it go with Michelle yesterday?" he asked immediately.

"Ok, I guess. She spent most time online chatting with some friends and later complained about the vegetable lasagna I made for dinner," she said and blew out some smoke.

"Vegetable lasagna sounds good," he shrugged.

"She was right it was horrible. I burned it and I put too much salt into it. I am a horrible cook," she admitted.

"Who is the guy?" he asked with a smile.

"What guy?" she wanted to know and shot him a confused look.

"You know the saying that when there's too much salt in the food that the cook is in love," he grinned smugly.

"Oh please," she snorted, "that would mean that being a bad cook would be a good thing for my love life". Hodgins only raised his eyebrows challengingly and grinned when he realized that he made her blush.

"Let's get back to work, shall we?" she asked and put out her cigarette. She took some chewing gum out of her pocket and offered one to Hodgins which he took.

"Thanks. Oh and I meant to ask you: Can I borrow Nigel-Murray for a while? Brennan isn't here anyway and I could use his help," he said while he walked beside her back into the building.

"What are you planning, Dr. Hodgins?" she asked, and reverted back to using a more formal manner of addressing him, without any teasing undertone. They were back in work environment and so they needed to maintain their professionalism once more.

"Oh, just a small experiment, nothing big," he said a bit too nonchalantly and hurried off when he saw that Cam's eyebrows raised dangerously and her mouth opened to ask more questions.

~*~

She had known it. The second Hodgins had hinted that there would be an experiment she knew that this would be another disaster. She had intended to take a closer look at what he had been planning but she had seen Dr. Brennan enter his lab and had thought that she would take care of everything that was irresponsible. Now the lab was in lock down once again and Brennan had run out with Booth, leaving it to her to talk to the two delinquents.

The two had just stumbled out telling everyone that they were ok, while the smoke wavered out after them. When she came to a halt in front of them she placed her hands on her hips and noticed with satisfaction that they looked kind of scared, especially Mr. Nigel-Murray.

"You know you're grounded, right?" she asked them and they both only nodded. "What have you done this time?" she asked and looked over to the lab where glass lay all over the floor as well as parts of plastic.

"We wanted to prove that a meteorite hitting a frozen body can result in Chili con carne," Hodgins explained and pointed to the various items in the lab. With one look she knew what they had done and couldn't believe it.

"You two were actually stupid enough to fire a cannon indoors? What were you thinking? And why did Dr. Brennan approve of it?" she asked and gesticulated with her hands.

"Actually, she did not really approve of it but told us that we could get the same result mathematically," Mr. Nigel-Murray replied truthfully what earned him a nudge in the ribs from Hodgins.

"You two are not allowed in the same room anymore after you clean this mess up. Am I clear?" she asked them and again they both nodded. She turned around and walked away with a small smile on her lips and shaking her head about the amusement Hodgins had provided her once again.

~*~

When she walked past the "Bone-room", as she secretly called it, another hour later she did a double take when she saw Hodgins and Vincent Nigel-Murray in there together. She wasn't surprised that Hodgins didn't really take her seriously, but found it strange that the intern obviously ignored her orders. They were standing with their back to her looking at the screen and discussing something so they didn't notice her coming in. Secretly it amused her that Hodgins tried once again to do as he pleased because that gave her the opportunity to show him once again who the boss was. With a smile threatening to break out and a smug jaunt in her steps she walked into the room.

"What did I tell you?" she asked them, crossed her arms in front of her chest and waited for them to turn around.

"That we aren't allowed in the same room without supervision," Hodgins began slowly and a little more quietly than he usually talked and so she put her hand to her right ear, just as she would do with a little kid that needed to confess something.

"Why?" she asked in her best kindergarten teacher voice and nearly giggled when she saw Hodgins opening his mouth to say something and then close it again.

"Because we were stupid enough to fire a cannon indoors," the intern went on shyly and looked to the floor when he was done speaking.

"And?" she went on, enjoying this way too much. Hodgins was observant enough to realize that this situation was not as dangerous as it seemed to be.

"You're here which, which counts for supervision sooo," he said exchanging a look with Mr. Nigel-Murray. She only looked at him with raised eyebrows and he knew that it was maybe better to do as she told him. "I leave," he just said and hurried out of the room while she grabbed a pair of gloves to inspect what these two had done in the room. The intern explained to her what was strange about the bone shards and together they got the idea that maybe the body had been deep frozen and then dropped. She couldn't hide her smile anymore when she gave Nigel-Murray permission to confirm with Hodgins and so she turned around and left the room.

"In the same room? Just to be clear," he asked when she was already outside.

"Any damages come out of your pay," she replied and walked to her office, laughing quietly.

~*~

A few days and another unlucky Hodgins experiment later (this time he had thrown a frozen turkey from the platform and the frozen bird had hit Angela in the head) they had finally solved the case about the woman who had become Chili. She was glad that she would have more time for Michelle now. They had been apart for ten years and except for breakfast and dinner they hadn't spent much time together these past few days. It was strange living with someone else in her apartment and took some adjustment for both of them. There were still some unpacked boxes in her living room and she was looking forward to unpacking them so her home would finally look like her home again and not like some storage place.

She had declined the invitation to the celebration at the Founder's Fathers and went home instead. She ate with Michelle, took a long and relaxing bubble bath and went to bed early, looking forward to a long nights sleep.

That sleep was interrupted by her beeping cell phone at three in the morning. Disoriented at first she looked around the room and groaned when she saw what time it was. Who was calling her at that time of the night? There was no way in hell she would go back to work now, no matter what emergency.

"Yah?" she mumbled when she saw "unidentified number" on her display.

"Cam, it's me, Hodgins," she heard the familiar voice of her co-worker.

"What? I am not going to the lab now. No way," she grumbled.

"Can you please pick me up at the airport?" he asked and she noticed a frantic undertone in his voice.

"What are you doing at the airport?" she asked and sat up.

"I just got back from Texas," he said.

"What were you doing in Texas?" she asked already tired of this game.

"I don't know, ok? I don't know. I don't know how I got there or what I did there, I only know that I woke up in the middle of nowhere with a huge tattoo on my left upper arm saying "Angela forever"," he said and got more and more upset.

"Oh boy. The father?" Cam asked and couldn't suppress a giggle.

"Don't laugh at me, ok? You owe me! So please come and pick me up," he said in a tone that sounded strangely like whining.

"Ok, Hodgins calm down. I'll be there in half an hour and after that we're even," she said. She hung up with a huge smile on her face and suddenly didn't care anymore what time it was. One could say anything they wanted about Hodgins, but he was never boring. And boy, would that tattoo provide teasing material for the next ten years at least.

TBC