Ok, I own nothing. But I wish I had Whedon's genius. And an Angela Montenegro of my very own. As stated in the preview, this is a maybe oneshot. I have an idea to continue this, but I am a notorious procrastinator. And I'm lazy. But anyway, let me know what you think.
The man stood in the shower, enjoying the simple pleasure of hot water streaming down his body, steam filling his lungs. For so long, he had not been able to feel either except in the most distant of ways. Cutting off the water, he grabbed a towel from the rack and started drying off, still savoring the feeling of steam in his lungs. He wiped away the steam from the mirror and grabbed his shaving cream. After applying it to his face, he reached for the razor. He carefully ran the blade over the day's worth of stubble on his face. When he was finished, he studied his face.
Staring at yourself in a mirror. Such a simple act, but for the longest time, one denied to him. If anything could have been seen, it would have been his thousands of victims. It was amazing how much a simple thing like his reflection meant to him.
Now, because of four people, he could look himself in the eyes. Whistler had pulled him out of his misery and self-pity. Buffy had shown him that life was worth fighting for. Doyle had given him a real mission worth fighting for. Cordelia had shown him that life was worth living.
And so the being formerly known as Liam, then Angelus, and finally as Angel had been granted his Shan Shu, his new life. The Powers That Be gave him another chance.
Liam O'Donnell had died centuries ago.
Angelus had stuck around for a long time but had finally been defeated.
Angel had gained redemption and fought no more.
All that was left was the soul of an old warrior living a new life. A life granted to him by the ones who manipulated his old one and the woman/demon who loved and understood him best.
All that was left was Seeley Booth. Special Agent with the FBI. Working with the world renowned forensic anthropologist Dr. Temperance Brennan and her squad of super squints at the Jeffersonian institution. Former Army Ranger sniper with a son by a woman he wasn't married to.
This life was created by The Powers That Be with input from his own personal guardian angel, Cordelia Chase. She had come down in the darkest moment in the alley, as he was struggling out from underneath the dragon he had just slain and was about to have to face another wave of Wolfram and Hart's horde. Spike, Gunn and Illyria were nowhere to be seen, either still fighting or already fallen. Cordelia had come down in all her radiance and suddenly he was alone with her.
As she was describing the new life he would be living, he had to ask why. "Buddy, you looked after me for so long, now it's my turn. You deserve this. And you better believe I'm gonna make sure those guys aren't gonna screw this one up. I'm one of them now. They let me take over for the bitch that took my body and screwed us over. Or at least kept there from being an us. But forget that. You will have plenty of opportunities for new relationships. Don't let them pass you by. You can get groiny all you want, no worries. Except, you know, STD's."
The life of an FBI agent wasn't a simple one and he still had to "fight the good fight" as Doyle would have said. Few knew his true nature and false memories had been implanted to keep his cover complete. Those that knew only knew because of their positions of the FBI Supernatural Task Force. But Riley Finn, Kate Lockley, and Charles Gunn all knew that he should only be contacted as an extreme last resort.
The Powers, beings of balance that they were, had made sure that his new life had similarities to Angel's life. His guilt over the torture and murder of Angelus' reign transferred into the guilt of a soldier who had killed. It was a different kind of guilt, though. Yes, he had killed men and even some women, but it was always in the line of duty and always soldiers. So the guilt was tempered.
The life even included a son, an idea of Cordy's he assumed. He had missed out on Conner's childhood. He wasn't going to miss out on Parker's.
Yet for all of Cordy's influence, The Powers That Be had made sure that he was still serving on the side of good. Investigation wasn't really his forte, but centuries of stalking his human prey as well as years working with the Angel Investigations crew had given him insight into the human mind. A year in the bowels of Wolfram and Hart had given him knowledge of the legal system and the ways criminals tried to get around it.
Nothing, however could have prepared him for working with the Jeffersonian crew. The collective I.Q. of Bones' team was more than the population of most towns. Fred would have fit in well with this group. Especially Zack. In fact, the team seemed to be a mixture of the crews he had worked with previously. A smarter mixture true, but the personalities were all there. Again, he wondered if it was by design. Another attempt by Cordy to take care of him? She had changed so much since her high school days. The former queen bitch of Sunnydale High School was now the kindest, most compassionate, and newest member of The Powers That Be, taking the place of the being known as Jasmine.
He shook his head. Thinking about the past would only distract him from the present. He had come too far in integrating into this life to be dragged back into his old one.
The ringing of his cell phone shook him out of his reverie. Toweling off his hair, he walked out into his bedroom and grabbed the phone and checked the caller I.D. Cullen. Just great.
"Booth, grab your squint and get your asses out to the Washington Monument. The restoration team found a body. Pretty gruesome. Right up her alley."
"Yes sir."
With that, he slipped back into character.
Time to go to work.
