Spoilers/Timeline: None/Set in future; Booth and Brennan are in an established relationship.
Disclaimer: Bones does not belong to me. Title taken from Keith Urban's song of the same name.
It wasn't the religious aspects of the holiday that confused her. Well, except that, yes, they did. What logical person could believe a man rose from the dead after three days? Still, she had managed to come to terms with it, recognize that this kind of faith was important to some people - to him. It would never be something she could engage in, but she could accept it.
No, that wasn't her problem with Easter. Her problem was the Easter Bunny. Not the rabbit himself, though, she could see how a large anthropomorphic rabbit might frighten children. It was that, along with the chocolates, candies, and small presents, the Easter Bunny brought eggs. Eggs.
She couldn't get past it. Why would a rabbit - an animal that spent the majority of its time hopping around and munching on grass - deliver eggs to small children?! She understood that rabbits were a symbol of fertility just as eggs were, but combining the two? It just wasn't natural.
"Bones, ya in there?" Booth's hand waved in front of her face, jolting her from her thoughts.
"Yeah, just thinking."
"There's a surprise." He settled on the stoop, gazing up at her until she finally lowered herself.
"It's not like I have any control over it. The brain is-" She stopped, noticing the amused look on his face. "You were kidding."
"I was. I know that pretty brain of yours never stops."
"I'm glad Rebecca let you have him for Easter break." She leaned against him, eyes following Parker's progress across the yard. Booth had woken at five a.m. to hide the brightly colored eggs. Thankfully, they weren't the actual eggs they had dyed two days earlier; Parker had stepped on at least three of them so far.
"Me, too." He glanced at her before looking back at the yard. "He liked dying eggs with you."
"I enjoyed it as well. It's quite amazing to see just how creative children can be. I never would have thought to dip the same egg in every color of dye."
"Maybe, but you did think of using rubber bands to make stripes on the eggs."
"That's only because I read an article in the paper about utilizing everyday objects to create interesting designs." She let out a small sigh.
"Hey," He turned to face her, still watching Parker out of the corner of his eye, "you're doing great. He adores you."
"Yeah?" She looked up and smiled as Parker came running towards, curls bouncing in the bright April sun.
"Yeah."
"Dad! Dad, this one has Bones' name on it!" Sure enough, Parker had found the one egg Booth didn't want him to find. He was certain he'd put in a place Parker wouldn't look but, apparently, he'd underestimated him. His son: the future investigator.
"Thanks bub, why don't you give it to her?"
"Alright. Here ya go Bones." He handed her the egg and plopped on the grass investigating the eggs in his basket. "I should have ten, right Dad?"
"Yeah."
"Booth?" She was staring at the plastic egg, looking at it as though it was a bomb.
"Go ahead, it's not going to bite."
She considered it for another minute and then, slowly, cracked it open, three dark chocolate truffles and a slip of paper fell into her lap. She picked up the paper, eyebrows crinkling as she read the words scrawled in his messy hand: thank you.
"For what?"
"For being here despite-" He glanced at Parker, the Easter basket, and back to her. "for..." The words stuck in his throat and he gulped, trying to gain his footing.
Her mouth turned up and she leaned in quickly, fingers twining his hair, as she whispered 'anytime' against his lips.
