The Body at the Campsite

By Joey

Disclaimer – I don't own Bones or any of the characters or any of the books, or merchandise (well accept for a single copy of the Season 1 DVDs). Please don't sue me, I'm trying to save for when I start Grad School this fall.

This first chapter has been sitting around for a while (I think I started it last summer…) and I finally resurrected it and fixed it up and thought I'd put it up there for some motivation to continue. I have the story kind of planned out (as in I know the case, just not sure where the characters will take me on the journey.)

"Over here! Over here!" Booth watched with a tried smile as Parker ran off in front of him towards a small clearing in the forest. There was a small wooden post sticking out of the ground designating the location as campsite 21. Off slightly to the left of the campsite sat a small fire pit that was currently filled with leaves left over from winter.

May long weekend, the first weekend that most people haul out their camping gear for another season, had come and gone. However, this campsite didn't appear to have had any use since the end of the camping season the year before.

Not that surprising, Booth noted to himself, as the first time he'd ever found it had been a complete fluke. It was a registered campsite, it just wasn't the first one you'd stumble across. And, when you have to hike in, most people stop at the first empty campsite they can find.

Although at the moment he didn't blame them. He'd started realizing part way through the hike that taking an almost seven year old to a hike in campsite isn't the most intelligent idea he'd ever had. The only thing Parker was carrying was a small backpack stuffed with his favorite stuffed animal, a scruffy looking elephant, and a bottle of water. Then add in the fact that quite early in the hike Parker had decided he was tired and Booth had had to carry him as well.

But in the last ten minutes, as they'd finally neared the campsite, Parker had gotten his second wind, and Booth had been more than ready to put him down.

Now, as Booth entered the campsite he let everything he was carrying fall loudly to the ground. He gave a slight groan as he rolled his shoulders desperately trying to relieve the stiffness that had settled in from having so much weight placed on them for an extended period of time. What he wouldn't give for a massage at the moment, having Bones run her hands over his shoulders…

Shaking away the not so pg thoughts that were creeping into his mind, he shifted his thoughts to their upcoming anniversary. He still found it hard to believe how quickly their first anniversary as a married couple was approaching. Three years ago if someone had told him that he and Bones would end up married he would've clapped them on the shoulder, laughed and told them "right" with a quick eye roll. It made the approaching anniversary even more shocking. What a milestone! That is what a milestone it will be if they actually make it (a possibility he was starting have some doubt in). They were only a month away and recently things had started to go downhill. Just small fights over insignificant issues that were slowly blowing out of proportion. The kind of fights they use to burst out laughing during once they realized what they were actually fighting about.

He knew he shouldn't be letting himself get lost in these negative thoughts. After all, this was his first summer with Parker. Rebecca and him had been actually getting along in the last year and half or so. Once he started dating Bones it seemed that things between him and Rebecca just fell into place. No longer did they look at each other as potential partners or linger over thoughts of what could have been; instead they knew for sure that they were heading off on different paths. Of course Parker would always keep the two of them tied to each other.

Parker and Bones had grown very close over the course of his relationship. A fact that still surprised and confused everyone. Brennan had always insisted that she didn't get along with kids. That they didn't understand each other and that she didn't know how to 'talk at their level.' But Parker was a very curious kid always asking questions and didn't seem to mind the long scientific answers that Brennan would produce. In fact, it just produced more questions from the little boy as he struggled with learning about the world around him. As he often told his dad (and anyone who would listen) "Bones is the smartest person in the whole world!" When Booth would pretend to be offended by the comment, Parker would reply in a serious voice "It's okay Daddy, Bones says that there are different kinds of smart, I'm sure you're smart in one of them."

And so, to celebrate the start of his summer with Parker, Booth had decided to take Parker on a manly adventure: a hike-in camping trip. Of course the trip originally wasn't going to be manly, as he'd asked Bones to come with him and the three of them had been organizing the trip for the past month. But as the situation between him and Brennan seemed to worsen, Brennan announced that she could no longer afford to take the week off work and that the two of them would have to go without her. While Parker was upset, he was appeased by the fact that he would get alone time with his father, and knew that he had the rest of the summer to badger Bones with questions. Booth on the other hand, had just sighed and nodded resignedly without putting up much of a fuss.

He had wanted to beg her to come. To remind her that this would be a perfect opportunity for the three of them to bond together and for the two of them to spend sometime without the added pressure of work surrounding them. But one look at her face when she'd announced her decision had convinced him that he would be wasting his time and that the request would have turned into another one of their long drawn out battles of words. It wasn't worth the argument, and maybe the time apart would allow them to put things into perspective.

He was drawn from his thoughts as Parker attempted to climb on him in a bid to gain his attention. He pulled Parker from his legs, tossing him lightly into the air before catching him and resting him on his hip. "So bub, what do you think?" Booth watched as his son surveyed the campsite from his perch with an air of seriousness.

"I like it," Parker declared. "When are we going swimming?"

"Not tonight," Booth replied, raising a hand, in the universal 'wait' sign, as Parker opened his mouth to argue. "We've got to set up the tent, gather wood, and cook dinner." He pointed to his backpack, "we've got hot dogs for tonight!"

Booth set Parker down on the ground, and pointed over to a clump of trees to the left. "How about you gather up some wood and place it next to the fire pit. I'll start getting our tent set up." Parker nodded, solemnly accepting his task, before racing over to the clump of trees and gathering together a small load of sticks. He then slowly and carefully carried them to the fire pit, trying not to drop any, before hurrying back to repeat the task.

Booth watched his son carefully repeat the procedure a few times, before turning to his own task. He pulled out a tarp first, setting it over the ground before unpacking the tent on top.

He managed to get the tent mostly erected when he noticed the noise level had been dramatically reduced. Booth stood up, swinging his head from side to side as he tried to spot Parker. Spinning slowly in a circle, he finally noticed his son lying on the ground, head buried in the bushes at the base of a couple of trees, staring at something intently.

"Hey bub," Booth walked over to his son, "what're you looking at?"

Parker reached forward and carefully picked up something that initially looked like a large grayish stick. "Look Daddy," he pulled himself up to his knees, "a femur!"

"What?!" Booth barely managed to keep himself from shouting as he sprang across the rest of the area separating him from his son.

"It's a bone daddy," Parker replied matter-of-factly, turning around and holding out his 'prize' to Booth. "Bones has been telling me all about the bones in the body. Did you know that an adult has 206?! This one looks like a femur. They're the largest bone in the body!" Parker stared up at his dad, a proud grin on his face for remembering all that information.

Booth carefully lifted the object from his son's grasp, giving him a weak smile. It took him only a few seconds to confirm that it was in fact a bone. Having worked with Bones for over two years, he had picked up a few skills. However, unlike his son, he wasn't sure if what they were looking at was a human bone or animal.

Booth squatted down by his son, looking him straight in the eye. "Did you find any other bones?"

"Uh uh," Parker shook his head wildly from side to side causing his curls to bounce crazily. "But I haven't made it very far into the bushes yet," he continued as he lowered himself back to the ground ready to dive farther in.

Booth grabbed him by the back of his shirt, hauling him to his feet. "That's okay Parker. Let me take a look first, the bones might be from an animal."

"You're wrong daddy," Parker shook his head and waved his finger, but moved aside to let his dad at the bushes. "That's a femur. That's a leg bone daddy and that's from a human!"

"Let's not jump to any conclusions bub, let me take a quick look first," Booth parted the bushes in front of him.

"I'm right!" Parker shouted. "I know I am. Bones said I'm really good at looking at bones!"

"I'm sure you are, but we just want to be sure before I make any phone…" Booth trailed off, having finally pushed far enough into the bushes to have seen enough. "Never mind, lets find the cell phone."

All reviews are greatly appreciated. While I love knowing that you thought the chapter was a 'good start' or 'interesting' or 'absolutely worthless,' I really like comments that tell me areas I can improve in or things you'd like to see. Or, if that's not up your alley, let me know how your day went. J