Bones Episode 5.03 The Plain in the Prodigy

BRENNAN examines a human mandible nestled amongst the train tracks in Virginia. It appears that the victim was dead before being dumped on the tracks. The remains were then dragged and the corpse broke apart as it smashed against the rails. Bones could be scattered for miles. BOOTH must divert all trains so they can search for the rest of the body.

Later, several FBI Techs join Booth and Brennan on the tracks. Brennan is glad to see Booth wearing his "Cocky" belt buckle again. She likes it because it is "Boothy." Brennan examines a femur with a bone cyst. The cyst resulted from a parasite not often found in the United States. She also locates a pelvis and a tibia. The victim was a teenage male.

CAM walks with MICHELLE. Michelle mentions her upcoming school dance. Can she and her boyfriend Perry stay out all night? Cam says she'll think about it. PERRY WILSON pulls up in his car and Michelle gets in. Cam waves goodbye but is troubled when the pair stop to make out. Uh-oh.

At the Lab, HODGINS and CLARK sort through the evidence from the train tracks. Hodgins grabs a box of vine clippings while ANGELA claims the skull. Clark believes the victim was beaten based on perimortem fractures. Angela notes that the clothing scraps found on scene look hand stitched. Cam arrives to learn that the victim may be from another country. "When do teenagers start having sex?" Cam blurts. Angela guesses this is about Michelle. Clark hurries off to supervise in the field and avoid this conversation.

In the Bone Room, Brennan is baffled. According to her isotope analysis, the victim grew up in the United States. Yet, she can find no evidence of pesticides, processed foods or contact with electricity. It's as though he grew up in the 1800s but died two months ago.

In the Autopsy Room, Cam reads Talking to Your Teen about Sex. Brennan interrupts. Further tests have shown that their victim is Amish. Booth is checking Missing Persons.

In Booth's Car, Brennan looks at a picture of LEVI YODER. His parents reported him missing two months ago. Levi has a DMV photograph so he must have been on his rumspringa. Brennan explains that a rumspringa is "a period when Amish youth are encouraged to explore the outside world." Afterward, nearly 85% of them return home.

At the Yoder Residence, DANIEL and REBECCA YODER are devastated. Levi went to Washington with Josef Beachy, another Amish boy. He called weekly to check in. Neighbors allowed Daniel and Rebecca to use their phone. When Levi stopped calling, Rebecca contacted the Beachys. She discovered that Levi and Josef were no longer living together.At the Lab, Angela informs Cam that the track on which the body was found is used by southbound trains. The body likely came from the north. However, the tracks branch out into dozens of other lines so they still have plenty of searching to do. Angela asks about Michelle. Are she and Perry having sex? Hodgins interrupts. There is carbon, nitrogen, oxygen and sulfur on the bones. The victim was hooked beneath a coal car.

At the Yoder Residence, Booth and Brennan search Levi's room. Under the bed, Booth finds a wooden box filled with stones. There are blue feathers glued to the top of the box. Rebecca enters. She asks Booth for the photograph of her son. Booth hands her the last picture of Levi. Rebecca weeps, cradling her son's image.

Outside, Booth and Brennan encounter an Amish girl, SARAH. She asks about Levi but her brother calls her away. Booth slips the girl his card before she heads off.

Booth knocks on the door of an apartment. JOSEF BEACHY answers, a bong in hand. Inside, a wild party rages with Amish guests. Booth tells Josef that he is coming with them. Brennan gets the last word. "This is not in the proper spirit of rumspringa!"

At the FBI, Josef explains that Levi moved out because of the parties. They didn't keep in touch. Josef remembers that Levi would disappear for hours at a time. Josef suspected that Levi didn't plan to return to Amish life.

At the Lab, SWEETS examines the rocks from Levi's room. Hodgins didn't discover anything unusual about them but Sweets has the answer: a piano. There are 52 light rocks and 36 dark rocks, just like the keys of a piano. "The songbird feathers are further signifiers of music." Levi kept them hidden because the Amish are not supposed to play instruments. Levi had a job in town. Perhaps someone there taught him to play.

An exhausted Clark joins Brennan on the Forensic Platform. Brennan believes that the body was face up when an exposed gear lever hooked the sternum. Brennan has not found cause of death yet so she wants Clark back in the field. They need the rest of the bones. Clark does not want to venture outside of the lab again but Brennan insists.

In the Autopsy Room, Michelle visits Cam. Did Cam think about the dance? Cam asks Michelle outright if she is having sex. Michelle doesn't think this is Cam's business. Cam is not her mother. With that, Michelle storms out.

At the FBI, Booth speaks to ELEANOR TURNER. Levi worked for her husband and she gave him free piano lessons. He was a prodigy. Eleanor suggested he explore music on his rumspringa. They kept in touch for a while. Levi sent her was a DVD. His friends were helping him audition for the National Conservatory.

At the Lab, Angela uses the DVD footage to locate Levi's apartment. The images outside the windows are not enough until she hears something on the recording: a train. The apartment is next to the tracks. Angela takes into account the architecture and she is able to pinpoint the location of building.

At the FBI, Booth and Brennan address KAREN LIN and TONY SALINA. They were both on the DVD with Levi. Karen explains that Levi moved into her apartment. They met at the Conservatory and "adopted" him. Karen gave him a gold medal she'd won as a kid. It wasn't real but it was his good luck charm. They had no idea he was dead. Karen thought Levi had gone home. Days before his audition, she saw an Amish man walking into their building. She assumed it was Levi's father.

Booth and Brennan pay a visit to Daniel Yoder. Daniel is upset. He would never hurt his son. Rebecca defends her husband: Daniel has not left the farm in years. Brennan tells them about Levi's audition. They are bewildered to learn that their son was a musician and had secretly been taking lessons for years.

In Booth's Car, Brennan mentions that Cam thinks Michelle may be sexually active. Brennan lost her virginity when she was 22 though she advised Cam to tell Michelle that seventeen and a half was a good age. Booth was having when he was 16 but he doesn't believe Michelle should be. Sweets calls Booth. Sarah is waiting for them at the FBI.

In the Conference Room, Sarah explains that she and Levi were in love. She knew that he was pursuing music and began to worry that he might not return to the community. She shared her fears with her brother, Amos. Later, Amos left for the day on business. When he returned, he told her that Levi might never come home again.

At the Lab, Clark, Angela and Hodgins explain cause of death to Cam. Karen Lin's apartment is on the fourth floor. Underneath her balcony, there is a dumpster. Hodgins swabbed the injuries to the skull and found a powder coating used on dumpsters. FBI Techs found a dent on the dumpster as well as dried blood which is a match to Levi Yoder.

At the FBI, AMOS explains that Levi was going to abandon his sister. He went to his apartment to make him come home. Levi tried to explain about his music but Amos didn't understand. So Levi played for him. Amos had never heard anything so beautiful. He agreed to care for Sarah so Levi could pursue his gift.

Michelle finds Cam at the Diner so she can apologize. She knows Cam was looking out for her. Michelle shares that she and Perry haven't slept together. Perry wants to but Michelle isn't sure if she does. Is that weird? Cam assures her it's okay to wait.

On the Forensic Platform, Clark reassembles the bones found in the wheels of the train. He recovered fragments from the left arm, left hand and right foot. Brennan notes there are fractures on the hand that occurred prior to death. Angela believes the lid of a keyboard caused the injuries. There was only one spot open at the Conservatory. Tony was already in but Karen was auditioning. She could have injured Levi to stop his audition. When he didn't back down, she killed him.

At the Lab, Booth finds Perry waiting for Michelle. He makes sure that Perry knows he is a trained sniper and that Michelle deserves respect. Perry hears him loud and clear.

In the Interrogation Room, Karen relates that she wasn't competing with Levi. Her grandfather worked at the Conservatory. She didn't have to audition. Karen has no knowledge of Levi's injury. The last time she went to her apartment, Levi's things were there but Levi and his money were gone.

Cam speaks to Booth and Brennan on the phone. FBI Techs found a keyboard at the Conservatory with dried blood on the lid. They also found fingerprints. They are a match to Levi. Why would Levi injure himself? Booth believes he was planning on returning to the community. He wanted to ensure he couldn't change his mind. Booth realizes that they never recovered Levi's money or the medal from Karen. Was this all about the money?

Booth leads a YOUNG THIEF into the FBI. Residents of Karen Lin's building reported items missing around the time Levi died. They tracked down the robber and arrested him in Baltimore. He makes a full confession. Levi was struggling to hang on to the medal from Karen when he fell over the balcony.

At the Yoder Residence, Booth and Brennan tell Daniel and Rebecca that their son planned to return home. Brennan produces a portable DVD player so Rebecca and Daniel can watch their son at the piano. They are mesmerized.