Author's Note: This story is a quick one shot companion piece to "A Very Boothy Thanksgiving." If you have read that story you might recognize this scene. Thanks to all who have read and reviewed and alerted this week. I hope this will bring some laughter to your Black Friday. I will be sleeping in. :)
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That commercial had been on every five minutes for the past eleven days. That stupid commercial with its flashing lights and dancing babies and rapping Elmo doll. Okay, so maybe it wasn't literally every five minutes but that's how it felt to Brennan. Her daughter had the same inclination to watch television that her father did. She would watch it endlessly if Brennan would let her. Which is why she didn't let her.
But that commercial had caught her eye and now every morning the first thing out of her three year old mouth was "I want Elmo." Conversely the last thing out of her mouth every night was "Mama, I rwelly want Elmo." As annoyed as Brennan was becoming by that stupid little red dancing, singing doll, she couldn't deny the look of sheer joy in Alice's green eyes every time she saw it. She'd squeal with delight when she heard the first strands of the music start to play and rush to the television. There she'd stand in front of the big screen and dance along with the song, screaming, "Wook Mama! Elmo! Elmo!"
"Alice, the doll will not be able to dance like it does on the commercial."
"He sings Mama!"
"You already have several dolls that sing."
"I want it!"
"There's no practical or educational purpose to that toy."
"Plwease Mama, I wuv you." Alice completed the plea by climbing into her Mother's lap and placing a sloppy wet kiss to her cheek.
As much as Brennan insisted that they not spoil their children, the kiss put her over the top.
Her daughter was getting that doll.
Brennan started her research online, but found that Rapping Elmo would not be available until Black Friday. Even then it would only be carried by Target. As much as that seemed like an unreasonable if not illegal monopoly on a toy, she knew what she had to do. And who had to help her.
The store would open at four am, and Brennan pestered her sisters-in-law into leaving the house by two, even though they assured her that there wasn't any need to be in line that early. Leaving Alice cuddled up in bed with Booth, Brennan slipped out of the house in the middle of the night. She was a woman on a mission.
When they arrived at the Target in Silver Spring, shortly after two, they were almost thirty people back. If looks could kill neither Amy or Padme ever would've made it out of that line.
"I'm cold," Padme whined from behind layers of coat, scarf and ear muffs.
"I hate Target," Amy chimed in from her seated position on the sidewalk.
"You two have been trying to get me to come shopping with you on the day after Thanksgiving for several years now. I did not expect you to be this unpleasant."
"We don't usually come with diagrams and graphs Tempe," Amy held up her copy of "Black Friday Mission: Elmo." The document was four pages in length and bound with a blue cover.
"We are not leaving this store until we secure one of those dolls. It was in our best interests to come with a plan."
As Brennan gave her lecture, a grey haired lady, probably in her mid-60's attempted to sneak into line ahead of their group and the fifty or so people that had gotten in line behind them.
"Excuse me. But social etiquette dictates that one gets in line behind the last person in said line," Brennan moved to stand so that the woman couldn't enter.
"But this is my daughter, she was saving my spot," the lady pointed to a red headed woman in front of Brennan.
"I do not know what 'saving your spot' means. This is my spot. As far as I am concerned, your spot is back there." Brennan pointed to the back of the line. Amy and Padme pretended not to notice what was happening.
"We're just here to get a Rapping Elmo."
"As are we. Now if you would kindly walk to the back of the line."
"I'm just one person, it's not like I'm not going to end up getting the last one."
"It's the principle of the matter. Now either go to the back of the line or I will call my husband. He works for the FBI."
"You'd have me arrested for cutting line?"
"Ah, so now you admit it?"
Before the woman could respond her daughter took her by the hand and left their place in line, "Mom, I think she's serious." She cast a nervous glance back at Brennan, "We'll both go."
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At ten minutes till four, Brennan roused Amy and Padme from where they were nearly asleep huddled under a Flyers snuggie. After her altercation with the grandmother who tried to cut line, the other ladies in the crowd had taken a wide berth and they'd had room to get comfortable. Or as comfortable as one can be while sitting on concrete at four am on a late fall day in DC. "It's almost showtime, get ready."
"You are really into this," Amy yawned.
"Listen, we get in, we get Alice's Elmo, then we can proceed to do whatever the two of you need to accomplish today." Brennan was doing leg stretches as she talked, "Now, are you both sure that you understand the plan?"
"Why are you stretching?" Padme asked.
"People have been known to be ran over and trembled to their deaths in a rush for the door at these events. I will not be unprepared by having cold muscles. Perhaps the two of you should stretch as well. Now, the plan?"
Amy referenced her map (which was found on page two, section B of her mission packet), "The dolls are in aisle three, about half way down, there should be a large display in the middle of the aisle."
Padme chimed in, "Amy is going to stand at the entrance to aisle three and try to slow down other customers. I'm going around to the far end of the aisle and waiting. You're going to head straight to the Elmos and grab one."
"Exactly."
Amy perked up as the doors opened, "Ok, here we go, now I'm getting excited."
"Operation Elmo, here we come," Padme joked.
Once the line started moving, there was very little pushing or shoving. The security guards around seemed to be keeping the crowd relatively quiet. This was much to Brennan's dismay, she had watched several videos on YouTube and it had seemed much more adrenaline filled than this.
A man standing behind the girls in line overheard Padme talking about Rapping Elmo and asked where in the store they were located, as they walked into the building.
"They are in aisle eleven," Brennan said without flinching.
Amy and Padme exchanged bewildered looks. Brennan did not lie. Ever. They hadn't even been sure that she knew how to lie. But she had lied without another thought. Things had just gotten serious.
Brennan picked up the pace until she was almost running. The others got caught up in her excitement and sped toward their locations as well. As Brennan headed down the aisle, Elmo dolls in sight, Amy noticed a rather large lady barreling in the same direction. She quickly grabbed a Barbie Doll from the shelf and slapped it against the woman's stomach as she spoke, "Hey, is this the Winter Fairy doll?"
"How would I know? I'm here for an Elmo."
"Oh, is there a new Elmo this year?"
"Everyone knows that there's a new Elmo this year, now would you please get out of my way?" The lady didn't stand around to mince any more words, she continued down the aisle. Amy could see a large group of women crowded around the Elmo display but she had lost sight of Brennan.
Padme however still had her sister-in-law in sight. Brennan had just emerged from the chaos surrounding the Elmo display. She was carrying one of the dolls when a little boy around six tried to grab it out of her hands.
"Excuse me, this one is mine."
"But I want it."
"I cannot help what you want, go get your own."
The little boy looked to the crowd of people around the other dolls and decided he'd rather steal Brennan's. Padme realized that she had to do something before Brennan ended up in a fist fight with the child. As he pulled at the doll Padme shouted "Over here."
Brennan heard Padme's voice above the crowd and after successfully yanking Elmo from the kid's hand she tossed it over his head to Padme. She caught it like a football, putting the skills she learned during all those backyard pickup games the family had played over the years to good use.
With Padme still clutching the doll to her chest like a cherished diamond, the two ladies walked away from the crowd and after retrieving Amy, they went to the checkout line to purchase their prize.
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The sun was just rising when Brennan made it back home, Rapping Elmo firmly in hand. She walked in, secured the doll in the entry way closet and then found Booth sitting on the couch with Alice watching cartoons.
"Mama," Alice took off and jumped into her mother's arms. "I thinked that you left."
"Mama had to go get something very special baby, are you having fun with Dad?"
Brennan said as she reached down to pick her up the little girl.
"Uh-huh, we is watching TV. I seed Elmo again."
"Did you see Elmo? Is Daddy going to help you write a letter to Santa Claus to tell him that you want Elmo?" Brennan had agreed to go along with the myth but Booth had been placed in charge of the details.
"Yes," Alice said as she laid her head down on Brennan's shoulder.
Brennan carried her over to the couch and sat down beside of Booth.
"Bones, what's wrong with your hair?" Either she had forgotten to brush her hair that morning or something had gone terribly wrong with her style after she left the house.
"There may have been a bit of a scuffle in the store."
Booth examined her arm as she settled in on the couch with their daughter. "Is that a bruise?"
"Perhaps."
"Wow. And I thought you said that you'd never go shopping on Black Friday?" Booth watched as his wife pulled their daughter's own unruly brown hair into a ponytail holder that she had been wearing on her wrist. "You're a push over when it comes to her, Bones."
A commercial came on the television and the familiar music began to play. Alice wiggled her way out of her mother's lap and ran to dance in front of the screen. Squealing, "Elmo," as she ran.
"Well, Booth, some items are certainly worth the trouble. Even if I think the toy industry is taking advantage of the consumer with such restrictive practices."
As they watched their daughter laugh and dance along to the ad, Booth pulled Brennan against his side and smiled as he placed a kiss into her hair, "Yes, some things certainly are worth it."