I'm glad the first chapter went over as well as it has. I was curious to see if this one would be to everyone's liking. I have decided to make this a three chapter story, and I hope that you all enjoy this second installment. It's deeper than most of what I write. Gregg.
Disclaimer: I don't own, or profit from, these characters or franchise. No copyright infringement is intended.
Booth had trained people to be snipers before. He had done so out of duty, not out of a desire to turn someone into a sniper. He recognized the need for snipers from a military standpoint, and also from a need to make sure that someone who is untouchable, that needs to be removed from certain situations, is eliminated. It didn't take away from the emotional costs, but he did understand the need. Now he was training Bones. That was something that he had never thought would happen, but once he got into the training, he knew it was the right thing to do.
He began the training by going over the material that had nothing to do with any particular weapon, though that would figure in soon. That was learning to go over intelligence files on potential targets, examining possible locations for conducting the op, learning to identify multiple ingress and egress points, and various methods of camouflage depending on location and surroundings. Bones began to understand just how complicated and detailed the work was.
He also began working with her on developing her senses, especially her hearing. The main issue was sound differentiation, and training yourself to phase out the sounds you expect and focus on the ones that signify potential hazards. He also worked with her on silent approaches, and that was a fun couple of days as he took her to various locations with different types of ground cover and potential items that produce alerting sounds.
Booth had to admit after the first two weeks that Bones was an exceptional student. Not that he expected anything different as she was the most brilliant person he knew. Her photographic memory was also a huge benefit, especially when it came to going over intelligence and examining photo imaging.
Then came dealing with the weapons. He first instructed her, without any near them, of the main weapons of choice for snipers. Then he chose three that he wanted her to be able to use. The first one was .338 Lapua Magnum. The second was the M110 SASS .308. The final one, and he hesitated, but he wanted her to know what snipers were capable of, was the M107 LRSR .50 caliber. During this, he lectured on what a two person team did, and how they each had defined roles to play, but it was also a very symbiotic relationship in how the objectives were achieved. He noted with a grim, but pleased, satisfaction that she paid especially close attention to the elements of what made for a successful two person team. In many ways he hoped that it confirmed for her that their own professional partnership had some seriously well developed elements in other settings.
When he felt she had learned as much in class as she could, he deemed them ready for the field. He called up General Harding and arranged to have one of the field sniper ranges reserved for the following week. Bones, he could see, was beginning to see the seriousness in all this, and her wariness was beginning to show. He had a feeling that he knew what it was, but he wanted to wait until she had shot the weapons at a target before discussing it with her.
"Do most military snipers make their own ammunition?" Bones asked one evening a couple of days before they were going to go on the field range.
"Quite a few do," he replied, closing the magazine he'd been reading. In his minds eye he saw himself preparing his own ammunition for each of the missions he'd been on as a sniper. They were not some of his fonder memories.
"Did you?" she asked, pressing further.
It was a legitimate question, and he was not going to hold back that kind of information. "Yeah, I did," he told her. "But not for the reason you may think." He paused for a moment before continuing. Many snipers made their own rounds because it assured them of what they were firing, rather than be dependent on some factory model round, but his reason was different. "I had personal issues about being a sniper even before I went on my first mission, so I decided to learn how to make my own rounds so that no one but myself had blood on their hands. It may sound a bit ridiculous, but it was how I felt."
"Teach me," she said, a serious glimmer in her eyes as she said that.
Booth looked at her and saw that she was not going to take no for an answer. Sighing, he nodded. "Okay," he agreed. "I'll show you how tomorrow, and you will make the rounds for the three weapons that you'll be using."
The next day Booth spent the morning showing Bones how to make her own ammunition. He carefully made sure she understood the exact calculations for the load and how to make sure that the pressure utilized in pressing the projectile with the casing was done precisely and safely. The way he explained it was that it was similar to how she worked on her bones. There were precise methods and calculations that had to be taken into account in order that accidents that could result in injury, or faulty results, were avoided. He could tell that she was beginning to appreciate the scientific nature of the whole business. He only hoped that by the end of it she understood the inner aspects of what all this meant, too.
That afternoon he went to see the one person he would ordinarily avoid like the plague on such subjects. Sweets. His nerves were ramped up a bit knowing that the next day would be the day he took her to the field range and spent a couple of days working with her on moving with stealth in the field, and also to get a better appreciation for ones surroundings. He was also going to have her outfitted in military field fatigues with all the accouterments that he ordinarily had with him when on a mission calling on his skills as a sniper.
"So, what can I do for you, Booth?" Sweets asked, taking a seat in front of the man he genuinely admired, yet feared all at the same time.
Booth laid out what he was doing with Bones, and why. He appreciated the fact that Sweets let him get it all out without interrupting. Then he asked his one question. "It's probably too late in the day, but am I way off base with this?" he asked.
"Do you have nightmares about your experiences in the military, specifically your missions as a sniper?" Sweets asked. He'd never really asked anything like this of Booth before, but this was too important to let go, and Booth had opened the door.
"I don't know a person who's ever been in combat that doesn't have nightmares, Sweets," Booth told him, giving him a look that told the younger man to tread carefully. He knew that he had been the one to open this whole can of worms by coming here, but he was still wary of Sweets even though he knew it was his own damn fault for pressing Bones that one night in front of the Hoover.
"Have you had any nightmares since you and Dr. Brennan became involved?" Sweets asked, getting a bit more direct.
The whole deal with Broadsky had brought a lot of old personal wounds to the surface, and some nightmares. Nothing so serious as to disturb Bones, but he had had some nights that had been tougher than others.
"Yeah," he reluctantly admitted.
"Dr. Brennan is very hands on," Sweets began to speak in his professional mode. "Because of her difficulties identifying with emotional issues, she relies on empirical evidence to create those identifying points. By showing her what a sniper does, you may be able to give her a tangible look into what drives your nightmares, nightmares which could have an impact on the long term stability of your relationship."
"So, I'm right?" Booth asked, deliberately wanting this dumbed down.
"Yes," Sweets replied.
"Good," Booth said, but still sat there brooding. He decided to ask the question that was really bothering him. "Sweets. I know this is going to be opening up a lot of old demons in me. Bones is going to want to talk about a lot. What if I'm not ready?"
"Who's the one person you trust above all others?" Sweets asked him.
"Bones," Booth said, his tone making it sound as if it was the most ridiculous question in the world.
"Then shouldn't you be willing to show that trust, especially now that you are in a serious relationship with her, by being willing to answer her questions about your past that you've generally avoided before?" Sweets questioned, slightly on the rhetorical side.
Booth despised the fact that once again he was listening to Sweets doling out relationship advice, but on this one he was willing to listen. The kid was right. He should trust Bones enough to talk to her openly about these things. When she finished her "field training" that week he would talk with her. Until then he would go back to being the teacher and make sure that she ended up being very adept at what a sniper does. He stood up.
"Thanks, Sweets," he said, leaving the still surprised Sweets to his own shrinky thoughts.
A/N: I should have the final chapter done and posted day after tomorrow. I hope you enjoyed this one, despite it being more on the serious side. Gregg.