I decided, during a long night of being miserable again with the flu, to write a short epilogue to this one since I mentioned that the following day Booth was retiring from the FBI. I couldn't resist writing about his final day at work. I hope you enjoy it. Gregg.
Disclaimer: I don't own, or profit from, these characters or franchise. No copyright infringement is intended.
Seeley Booth, Deputy Director of the FBI, second only to the Director, made his way to the main conference room. It just figured. His final day and then retirement. It was supposed to be one long love fest from the first moment, but he'd been forced to work on a mountain of final paperwork his last day. Then he thought he'd catch a break and be able to spend some time bullshitting with the guys in Homicide, but that had been trashed when the Director had come in and wanted a full on briefing on all his ongoing work so the guy was up to speed in case the new Deputy Director wasn't up to snuff. Now, when he'd thought that he might catch a break and relax, some asshole had called him down to the main conference room for a briefing on something that he wouldn't even be around for! It had to be God's punishment for all those impure thoughts of the last thirty some odd years that his priest hadn't done a good enough job on absolving him of when calling him a pervert everyday at confession. Did he mention that he still went to confession everyday when it came to Bones? Thoughts, actions, you name it, the impure stuff just rolled right along. Thank God he would be heading home tonight and spend the rest of his life making time with his wife, who was still the most beautiful woman in the world in his, admittedly, very biased opinion. He about had a heart attack when he opened the conference room door and a massive shout of "SURPRISE!" greeted him.
"Well I'll be damned!" he said with a smile as he saw all the people there. Then he noticed the guys in the black suits and one man in particular next to Bones. He straightened up and almost saluted. "Mr. President!"
The President of the United States, a young man who was very popular and doing a good job in Booth's opinion, made his way over and shook his hand.
"Deputy Director Booth," he said warmly. "I just wanted to spend a few minutes and thank you for your service all these years and let you know that you will be missed."
"Thank you, Sir," Booth replied, not knowing how to accept such a compliment all that easily.
"I also have something that is long overdue for you, and your former team of Squints, I believe they were called," the President continued.
"About time," a much older Jack Hodgins said with a smile. His curly hair and beard were now snow white, as was the hair of his wife, Angela who was at his side.
"I still have my gun, Hodgins," Booth said with a small glare. This was the President, after all!
The President laughed as he saw the Secret Service tense at that statement, though they knew not to do anything as most of the people in this building were armed as it was their job to be. "Don't worry, Mr. Booth," he said. "I know all about Dr. Hodgins and his frustrations with the government. By the way, Dr. I enjoyed your latest book on conspiracy in the military. I don't agree with it, naturally, but I did enjoy it."
Jack chuckled as he saw Booth continue to glare at him. Booth had not liked his latest conspiracy book at all.
"Jack," Bones warned with a smile. She could see Booth getting a bit "frustrated" and brought it to a halt, despite the good humor of the President.
"Sorry, Dr. B," Jack said, a smile on his lips.
"Well, let's get on with this, so you can all enjoy this little celebration," the President said with a smile. He liked this group and their obvious closeness. "I'll keep this a bit informal. To Dr. Saroyan, Dr. Hodgins, and Ms. Montenegro-Hodgins, I am pleased to award you, entirely too late, in my opinion, the FBI Medal of Distinguished Service, and the FBI Medal of Merit. Your work a number of years ago as a team under the leadership of Deputy Director Booth and Dr. Brennan was exemplary, and made this country a safer place. It's a personal honor to be able to award you these long overdue awards."
Saroyan, Hodgins, and Angela were in a bit of shock as the President pinned the two medals on them and handed them the cases and citations. It had been a long time since Booth had finally taken well deserved promotions and the Booth Brennan crime solving partnership had ended.
"Now for the remaining two honorees," the President continued. "I am doubly pleased to award the following three awards to Deputy Director Booth and Dr. Temperance Brennan. For your conspicuous bravery and dedication to duty I am pleased to award you both the FBI Medal of Conspicuous Valor. In addition for the work you did in conjunction with the three other honorees, you are also awarded the Medal of Distinguished Service and the Medal of Merit. As I mention, all of these awards are long overdue, but it is my honor and privilege to award them to you."
For the next ten minutes the group talked with the President about their long ago work and then the President left them to their celebration. The Director of the FBI also took his leave and the group, along with an older Dr. Lance Sweets, and an elderly retired lawyer friend by the name of Caroline were able to visit and enjoy.
"So what are you going to do now, Seeley Booth?" Caroline asked, giving him a suggestive elbow to the ribs and a nod to Bones.
"You do realize that me and Bone have been married for over 25 years now, don't you?" he said with a roll of his eyes. The length of time it took for him and Bones to get together was still a running joke among friends. After all these years he still couldn't believe how stupid he and Bones had been.
"Why would she not realize it as she was at the wedding, Booth," Bones asked, a quick smile at her friends letting them know she was teasing him.
"A regular shotgun wedding," Hodgins chuckled as the rest laughed.
"Don't remind me," Booth shuddered. He could still remember Max, may he rest in peace, finding out Bones was pregnant a couple of months after they began their relationship and giving him a pretty graphic outline of the consequences if he didn't get on the stick and make his daughter an honest woman. At the time he hadn't known who to be more afraid of, Max or Bones, who he didn't know whether she would castrate him or not for even mentioning the word marriage in the same sentence as a discussion about their relationship. In the end he'd been more afraid of Max.
"My Father only wanted what was best for me," Bones defended Max, who had passed away a few years before.
"Threatening to torch me if I didn't marry you mucho pronto is not something anyone wants to have as a discussion piece, Bones," Booth informed her.
"At least he didn't threaten to cut your cajones off with a rusty scalpel," Sweets shuddered. Now that had been a conversation that made him revert to being a baby and pissing down the legs of his pants profusely.
"He did?" Bones asked, shocked.
"For causing Booth to blow it and press you that night on a relationship," Sweets told them. He saw Booth's glare from the corner of his eye and cringed. They may be long time friends, but obviously the G-Man was still a bit peeved over that one.
"But I was the one who was to blame," Bones shook her head. "I was the one who foolishly said no and caused all that happened afterward."
"Yeah, but I left out the small bit of info that I was in love with you when I asked you to give us a shot," Booth reminded her. Now that was a night he hadn't thought about in a long time.
That old, deep regret she always felt when thinking of that time came to her, though she controlled it. The talk the day before with Joy had been beneficial in more ways than one. It had allowed her to think of all the good things that their relationship had given her, despite the regrets. "But I didn't have to hurt you so horribly when I said no," she said softly, leaning into him a bit, loving the feel of his arm going around her shoulder.
"Long forgotten and forgiven, Bones," he told her and leaned down for a kiss.
"So what are the plans for retirement, Big Guy?" Camille Saroyan asked. She'd retired the year before and was enjoying her time with her husband and her grandkids. Michelle had four pre-teens she was able to spoil rotten.
"I want to take Booth on a year long archeological dig in Central America," Bones told them.
"Which is why I am in charge of retirement planning," Booth interjected, to the amusement of everyone in the room.
"The exercise would do you good, cher," Caroline said with a smile.
"I am in top physical condition, thank you very much," Booth defended himself. "You can even ask Bones."
"Well, your sexual stamina is lagging a bit these days," Bones teased with a wink to everyone.
"Bones!" Booth hissed. "Do you mind? There are other people around and my stamina is just fine, thank you very much!"
"There's no need to be embarrassed, Booth," Sweets said, taking up the joke. "I can probably help you with just a few counseling sessions."
"Absolutely not!" Booth huffed. No way was he going to see Sweets about any kind of sexual dysfunction, especially where there wasn't one to begin with!
"Well I guess that means Hodgie is the new king of the bedroom then, since his stamina is awesome!" Angela said with a wicked gleam in her eyes.
"Hodgins," Booth glowered.
"I know, I know," Hodgins sighed. "You've still got a gun. Sorry, Ange, but your personal stud is not the El Supremo of the bedroom."
"Phooey," Angela pouted humorously.
"I expect Booth will be spending all his free time in my study with me while I try to get some work done on my novels, and anthropology articles," Bones told them. She said it in a tone that implied she was genuinely looking forward to it.
"And we'll be putting in a wall mounted big screen TV in there," Booth said slyly.
"We will not be putting such a useless thing in my study," Bones shot back. "I will never understand men and their toys."
"Well, what do you expect me to do when I'm in there bugging you?" Booth needled. He could see that the whole group was amused. Good. The old banter and bickering was as effective and fun as ever.
"I have a wide assortment of reading material in my study, or you may do what you do for me everyday," Bones told him with a soft smile.
"And what's that, Bones?" he asked.
"Be my eye candy," she said with a kiss on his jaw as she leaned up and in a bit. "I even have the loin cloth purchased for you to wear, or better yet, you could be nude when in there with me."
"I don't think so, Bones," Booth decreed on the nude eye candy part. Eye candy he could deal with, but be nude so far from the bedroom? Not happening.
"I think with that rather disturbing image, we should head out," Hodgins said with a smile. "Congratulations, G-man. You've earned it. Give me a call this weekend and we'll go to a game and have a couple beers."
"Great!" Booth said with a smile. He spent a few minutes fielding hugs and handshakes from everyone until it was just he and Bones left. "Well, Bones?" he asked.
Bones smiled. "Let's go to your office," she replied.
"What the Hell for?" he complained. "I just got done finishing a mountain of paperwork there and all my personal stuff is already at home."
"Call it eliminating a minor regret," she said slyly.
"Huh?" he asked.
"Fantasy number one?" she said with a wicked tone and a wink.
His jaw about hit the floor. Fantasy Number One! His only unfulfilled Bones fantasy! Sex on his desk at work! Oh happy Day!
"After you, Bones!" he said as he ushered her out of the room with his hand, as always, on the small of her back.
Bones smiled as they walked to the elevator. She may have some regrets in life, and one very deep one, but that didn't mean she couldn't work on making up for it with some energetic fun with her own private sex machine who went by the name Seeley Booth. With him by her side, even the deepest regrets seemed miniscule compared to the real happiness she had in life.
A/N: There it is, the epilogue. I thought a scene with the Squints would be nice, and a chance to have a bit of humorous fun. I also wanted them to get the rewards that they should get for the work they did. I wanted to show that while Bones was more introspective and accepting of the past, she and the rest were all essentially the same at heart. I hope you all enjoyed this one. Gregg.
