AN: OMG! I may have some very, very good news tomorrow...EEEEKKKK! I've got the BEST internship interview coming up! Though if I do get the job, I will have to stop writing fanfic during the duration of the internship. I'm writing like crazy so I'll be able to have this story done by the new year, which is when I would start. But I'm getting ahead of myself here. All I can do is hope...

Chapter 25:

~Saturday Morning~

The next morning came early. It was Saturday. Normally the partners would have the day off, unless someone had found a body. It was even supposed to be Booth's weekend with Parker. But the degree of difficulty of this case combined with the media circus caused the pair to have to put in a full weekend of work. Luckily Rebecca was understanding when Booth called her last night. She was going to let him have Parker the following weekend instead.

Brennan stretched out on the bed and tried to stifle a yawn. Although it was morning and she should feel well rested, her activities with Booth the prior night allowed for very little sleep. "What time do we have to meet up with Sweets this morning?"

"We're gonna pick him up from his place on our way to the lab. I'll call him when we're ready to leave," Booth answered. He leaned over a claimed Brennan's lips with his own.

"Mmmm...good morning," Brennan sighed contently.

"Have I told you how beautiful you look in the mornings with your hair a wild, untamed mess?" Booth asked.

"Nope," Brennan replied. "And you better not say it again." She jokingly hit Booth on the arm before rolling out of bed.

"Say what? That you're beautiful?"

"No, that my hair is a mess," Brennan stated. "It's the morning. Of course it's a mess. But I don't need to be reminded of that. And add the fact that we engaged in a few very satisfying rounds of intercourse when you dragged me home from the lab last night..."

"When I dragged you out of the lab?" Booth asked incredulously. As I remember it, you were all too willing to leave once you realized what would happen when we got back here."

"You have a very valid point," Brennan conceded. "Now, why don't we go take a shower." She leaned down to Booth, who was still on the bed, and possessed his lips in a searing kiss of passion.

"Together?" Booth asked hopefully through her kisses.

"Of course," Brennan replied, pulling him up from the bed. "Conserve water." She pulled back from Booth and sauntered into the bathroom. Booth got up and stood there, dazed. When she realized that Booth hadn't followed her, she stuck her head out the door. "Are you coming, Agent Booth? You see, I've been a very, very bad girl..."

"Oh hell yeah," Booth choked out through his desire. He chased after her into the bathroom.

oOo

"Did you call Sweets to let him know we're on our way?" Brennan asked for the third time.

"No, I'll call him when we get in the car," Booth replied. "Now, are you sure you're ready to leave this time?"

"Yes, Booth," Brennan replied as she rolled her eyes. "You don't have to treat me like a child. I simply forgot to grab one of the case files. It only took us a minute to come back inside to get it."

"I know, but you're sure you have everything this time?" Booth asked. "I'd hate to show up at Sweets's place and have to drive all they way back here."

"Booth!" she scolded. "I've got everything." She shot him a glare before making her way down the hallway and toward the elevator. "You coming?" she called over her shoulder.

Booth jogged to catch up to her. Once he did, he wrapped his arm around her shoulder and kissed her cheek. He bent down and whispered into her ear. "God, you look so hot when you get annoyed with me."

Before the couple got to Booth's SUV, they were interrupted by the sharp ring of his cell phone. He pulled it out of his pocked and answered it without looking at the caller ID. "Booth."

Brennan watched as Booth's expressions changed throughout the duration of the phone call. She couldn't tell who was on the other end of the phone, but clearly Booth was agitated with the caller.

"You know I've gotta work all weekend," he replied to some comment made by the caller. "What do you mean you've gotta go outta town?" He was quiet for a few seconds. "Brent! You can't take care of your kid because you've got plans to spend all weekend in bed with your fiancee?"

'Ah, so that's who Booth's talking to...' Brennan thought. Booth opened Brennan's door and walked over to his side of the SUV.

"To hell with alone time!" Booth went quiet for a while as he listened to Rebecca. He hopped into his side of the car. Brennan noticed how Booth's demeanor changed from frustration to pure anger "He's my son! Of course I want to spend time with him! Don't ever doubt that!"

Brennan tried to mind her own business, so she pulled out the case file she had almost forgotten in her apartment and began making notes on it.

"You really are something, Beccs," Booth exclaimed. "I'll be there in 10 minutes." He hung up the phone and threw it into the cup holder.

"Was that Rebecca?" Brennan asked, although she knew the answer.

"Yeah," Booth replied. He started his car and pulled out of the parking lot.

oOo

"Daddy, is Dr. Sweets gonna be my babysitter again today?" Parker asked from the backseat of Booth's SUV as they pulled up in front of Sweets' apartment building.

"No, bud. Sweets is gonna be with me and Bones today," Booth replied.

"Oh," Parker said. "What are we doing today?"

"Well, Parker," Brennan said. "You're father and I have to work today, so we're gonna bring you into the lab. You can spend time with Dr. Hodgins and Angela today."

"Is Morgan gonna be there?" Parker asked, suddenly excited.

"I do believe she is scheduled to work today," Brennan stated. She smiled at Parker and then leaned in conspiratorially. "She almost always works on the weekends."

"But why would she always work on weekends?" Parker asked. "That's dumb. Weekends are supposed to be for having fun."

"Well, Parker," Brennan answered. "You see, she's a full time student and she works 3 jobs."

"Yeah, she probably works more than Bones does," Booth said.

"That's really dumb," Parker said. "Do you think I should do something nice for her so that she can have fun today, instead of working?"

"I think that'd be an excellent idea," Brennan said. "I'm sure Cam wouldn't mind it if Morgan took a few hours off to spend some time with you. Perhaps you could take her on a tour of the museum?"

"Yeah!" Parker exclaimed. "Can I do that dad, can I?"

"You sure can, bud." Booth said. He smiled at Brennan and mouthed the words 'thank you' before leaning in to kiss her.

"Eeewww...get a room," Parker joked.

The partners pulled apart, laughing.

"Where the hell is Sweets?" Booth said aloud, looking out the window towards the apartment building.

"Perhaps you should call him again," Brennan said. "Maybe he doesn't realize we're here."

"There he is!" Parker said, pointing towards the man who was running toward the SUV. The back passenger side door opened and Sweets hopped in.

"About damn time, Sweets!" Booth said.

"I'm sorry about that Agent Booth. I got caught up on a phone call with one of my patients," Sweets apologized. He looked over at Parker. "Since when is it FBI protocol to bring a child into work?"

"Can it, Sweets," Booth retorted. "Parker is with me for the weekend."

"I'm merely stating that I don't think it's wise to bring him out into the field with you and Dr. Brennan," Sweets said.

"Oh, he won't be in the field with us," Brennan replied.

"You do realize that this weekend is meant for me to determine whether or not your personal relationship will affect your work out in the field," Sweets stated.

"Yes," Booth answered. "Bones and I will be doing field work. But Parker will be at the lab."

"Oh," was all that Sweets could say as they drove toward the Jeffersonian.

oOo

"Morgan!" Parker exclaimed as he ran through the sliding glass doors leading to the Jeffersonian's Medico-Legal lab.

"Hey there, Baby B," Morgan said with a smile. "What are you doing here?"

"I'm chillin out with Dad today. But he's gotta work, so he wants me to hang around in here," Parker explained.

"Oh, I see," Morgan said, looking over Parker's shoulder to see Booth, Brennan, and Sweets walk into the lab. "Hey, Agent B. Dr. Brennan." She purposefully ignored Sweets.

"Hi, Morgan," Brennan replied. "Can we ask you to do a huge favor for us?"

"Keep the little man, here, occupied while you're busy solving a murder? Sure, no problem."

"Thank you so much," Booth said. "I owe ya one."

"Hey, Parks?" Morgan asked. "You feel like watching a movie with me? I'm sure Angela won't care if we take over her office for a few hours."

"Yeah!" Parker exclaimed. Morgan stepped aside, signaling Parker to lead the way. He stepped towards her and paused for a moment as he contemplated his next move. He grabbed Morgan's hand and held it as he led her to Angela's office.

"Now that is about the cutest damned thing I've ever seen," Angela said as she walked up to Booth, Brennan, and Sweets.

"Yeah, my kid's got it bad," Booth replied. "Damn he's growing up fast."

"I think it's sweet," Brennan stated before moving into her work mode. "Do we have any more developments this morning, Ange?"

"No. Just what we got last night," Angela replied.

"Alright." Brennan was disappointed, she knew this was gonna be a long day. "I'm going to take another look at the victim's injuries. Maybe I'll find something that I've missed. Ange, could you and Cam track down Mr. Bray and Mr. Nigel-Murray for me?" Angela nodded and then walked over toward Cam's office.

"You really think you're gonna find anything, Bones?" Booth asked. "You've looked and looked and looked. I don't know that there's anything there, if you haven't already found it."

"What else do you expect me to do, Booth? I can't just sit around. I need to do something."

"Yeah, I know," Booth nodded in agreement. "I'm gonna have the FBI send over the rape files, so I can take a look at them. Mind if I use your office?"

Brennan walked up to Booth and wrapped arms around his neck, placing a short, sweet kiss on his lips. "Not at all. Let me know if you find anything." Booth nodded then kissed her cheek. Brennan turned her head and whispered into his ear. "And take Sweets with you. I don't know if I can deal with him today." She backed up, looking meaningfully into Booth's eyes.

"I'll come out in a little while to check up on you," Booth said.

"I don't need anybody to check up on me, Booth," Brennan argued with a gleam in her eyes. "But if you were implying that you'll come out to see if I have found anything new pertaining to the case, then by all means do so."

Booth threw her a cocky smile. "Alright, Sweets! You're with me." Booth walked away from Brennan, with Sweets trailing behind him.

"That was very interesting," Sweets commented.

"What was interesting?" Booth asked, holding the door to Brennan's office open so that Sweets could come inside.

"You're little exchange with Dr. Brennan," Sweets stated.

Booth groaned and rolled his eyes. "I thought you were here to be a silent observer. Silent being the key word. Silent, as in not commenting on what you see."

"Certainly," Sweets said. "We can discuss these things in my office on Tuesday morning."

"Looking forward to it," Booth sarcastically said as he sat down on Brennan's couch.

oOo

"Booth." Booth answered his phone, glad for the interruption. He and Sweets had been studying the rape case files for roughly 5 hours, minus the hour long lunch he had taken with Brennan and Parker at the diner. It was just shy of 3 o'clock and Booth couldn't wait for this long day to be over. "Yes, sir. I'll be right over."

Booth shut his phone before turing to address Sweets, who had been looking at him with curiosity. "Cullen needs me back at the FBI. Another DVD was sent. You stay here looking over the files while I go pick up the DVD for Angela to analyze."

"Yeah, sure thing," Sweets said. "Did you want me to tell Dr. Brennan where you are going?"

"Yeah, could you? Cullen wants me to get to the FBI as soon as possible. I'm not sure I really have the time to talk to Bones about it." Booth put on his coat and quickly made his way out of the lab.

Sweets stood up from the couch and decided to go look for Brennan. Before he made it out the door, Brennan stormed into her office.

"Where is Booth going?" Brennan demanded. "I swear, if you said something to upset him..." She took a menacing step toward him.

"Calm down, Dr. Brennan," Sweets coolly replied. "Cullen called. Booth has to get to the FBI. Apparently the killer sent yet another DVD."

"Oh," Brennan said. "Then I'm sorry for my brash behavior regarding you."

"It's okay, Dr. Brennan," Sweets assured her. "I understand your protectiveness towards Agent Booth. Though I did find it interesting-"

"Not now Sweets," Brennan complained. "I can't handle your psychological guesswork." She buried her face in her hands, in an effort to try to block out Sweets's ramblings and to try to ease the headache that had formed over the course of the day. She took a deep breath before bringing her head up to look at him again. "Have you found anything helpful in the files?"

"Not much," Sweets admitted. "Though it is enough for me to add more to the psychological profile I have been creating."

"And how's that coming?" Brennan scoffed, sarcasm lacing her voice.

"Dr. Brennan, I would think that by now you'd seen enough evidence to support the fact that my area of expertise does indeed help Agent Booth and yourself with your cases."

"Although in the past they have been of some help, I am reluctant to admit that they hold real value to our overall efforts in solving crimes," Brennan explained. "And with this case, you have been of absolutely no help whatsoever. Possibly even a hinderance to the process."

"Is there something you'd like to discuss with me, Dr. Brennan?" Sweets asked. "I'm sensing that there is something besides these murders that has occupied your mind."

Brennan crossed her arms over her chest and raised one of her eyebrows, as if daring him to continue.

"Dr. Brennan, I know that you have been under a great deal of stress lately," Sweets began, ignoring the glare Brennan was sending him. "Your life has changed so much in these past few weeks. How have you been coping with these changes?"

"Coping?" Brennan inquired. "You make it sound like these changes are bad."

"That's not at all what I meant, Dr. Brennan," Sweets said. "You have always been an extremely strong and independent woman. Now, you have to learn how to depend on Booth, and how to be slightly more open and vulnerable with him. For someone like yourself, that has got to be very frustrating. Even if it is what you ultimately want."

"That holds absolutely no meaning to me," Brennan stated. "Now I really must go find Angela to inform her of this new DVD that Booth will be bringing back to the Jeffersonian. I also have to make sure that Parker will be nowhere near us while we begin to analyze it." Brennan stormed out of her office, eager to get away from the annoying psychologist. She walked over to Angela's office, instantly calming down at the sight that greeted her.

Angela's entire office was covered with a large tarp, leaving no surface unprotected. In the center of the room stood a large easel, holding an equally large canvas. Angela, Morgan, and Parker were standing in front of it wearing large garbage bags to protect their clothing. Loud music was coming from the speakers on Angela's desk. The three of them were singing and dancing along to the music as they painted. Brennan was amazed at the innocence that a child could bring into a place filled with the stresses and frustrations that came with solving murders.

Before Brennan could clear her throat to make her presence known, Parker's dancing (well, jumping) caused him to turn around and see her standing in the doorway. "Dr. Bones!"

"Hey, Parker! Are you having a good time in here with Ange and Morgan?" Brennan inquired.

"Yeah!" Parker exclaimed. "We got bored watching movies, so Ange told us we could help her paint!"

"I hope that's alright," Angela said. "They were really bored. I made sure that his clothes couldn't get any paint on them, and it'll wash off of his skin and hair."

"It's fine, Ange," Brennan reassured her friend. "I'm sure Booth won't care. Thank you for doing this."

"Are we leaving Dr. Bones?" Parker asked. He looked over to Morgan. "Can Morgan come with us? Or does she have to stay here and work?"

"We're not leaving yet, Parker," Brennan said. "Your father is on his way back here from the Hoover with some new evidence for us to review. I was merely going to suggest that when he gets back here, perhaps Morgan wouldn't mind taking you on a tour of the museum."

"Cool!" Parker said. "Would ya do that, Morgan?"

"Absolutely. Sounds like a lot of fun," Morgan said. "Why don't we get this garbage bag off ya so you can go get washed up." Morgan helped Parker take off the garbage bag, and then he made his way out of Angela's office and towards the bathrooms.

"What's going on, Bren?" Angela asked as soon as she was sure that Parker was out of ear shot.

"Another DVD was sent to the FBI. We need you to analyze it," Brennan explained. "Which is why we need you, Morgan, to take Parker away for a few hours. I don't want to risk him walking in and seeing any of that."

"Yeah, no problem," Morgan said.

"Booth should be here shortly," Brennan stated. "We should probably get this placed cleaned before he arrives."

oOo

"He's getting more elaborate in his torture," Angela stated. "It's not just a physical beating and rape anymore. A baseball bat isn't the only weapon now, either."

"Why didn't that show up on the bones?" Brennan asked herself as they re-watched the DVD for the 4th time. There should be indicators on the bones of a knife attack."

"How come Cam didn't see it before you removed the flesh?" Booth asked. "I mean, there had to be plenty of open cuts on the skin, right?"

"It appears that the knife activity was localized to an area that was already completely eaten or decomposed by the time we discovered the body," Brennan explained. "There wasn't any indication of a second weapon used during the attack."

"That poor girl," Angela sobbed as the video showed the girl finally begging for death, after many vain attempts to beg for her life.

"Ange?" Brennan asked. She took a few steps closer to her friend.

"I'm fine," Angela replied. "I'll continue trying to pull anything from the DVD. You guys should go find Parker and bring him home for the night. I'm pretty sure he and Morgan crashed in your office about a half an hour ago."

"Ange-" Booth tried, before being interrupted.

"Spend time with your son, Booth," Angela said. "I'll be fine here with this. If I need anyone, I've always got Hodgins."

"Okay," Booth conceded. "But don't work too much more on this tonight. It's starting to get late, you should take some time to rest. Come back tomorrow morning and work some more. You may be able to find more once you're rested and looking at it with fresh eyes."

"Yeah, I won't stay too much longer," Angela assured him. "Hodgins wants to take me to a fancy late night dinner tonight."

"Good," Brennan said. "You deserve it." She took a step closer to Angela. "Thank you so much for doing all of this. I know it affects you more than me. Thank you."

"Yeah," Angela said. "I hate doing it. But if it'll help lead up to this sick, sadistic bastard, then I'm all in."

Brennan closed the distance between herself and her best friend, pulling her into a hug. After a few minutes, Brennan pulled back and turned towards Booth. "You ready?"

"Yeah, lets just go see if we can tear Parker away from Morgan," Booth laughed. Booth and Brennan walked together out of Angela's office. They made their way over to Brennan's office, quietly sneaking in to find Parker asleep on the couch. Morgan was sitting on Brennan's desk and talking quietly with Vincent. "Hey, he didn't give you much trouble today, did he?"

"Not at all, Agent B," Morgan said as she hopped off of Brennan's desk. "He's sweet. I think I wore him out though." Morgan grabbed Vincent's hand and walked closer to Brennan. "Dr. Brennan? Do ya care if Vincent leaves with me for the night? One of my roommates is moving out tonight, so we're kinda throwing her a goodbye party."

"That's fine, Morgan," Brennan answered. "We've done all we can for the night. Though I expect you to be here early tomorrow morning, Mr. Nigel-Murray."

He nodded his head. Morgan and Vincent said their goodbyes and quickly left the office.

"Do you think you'll be able to wake him?" Brennan inquired as she watched Booth kneel next to his sleeping son.

"I don't think so. He's pretty out of it," Booth commented. "I'll have to carry him to the car. Get Sweets, tell him we're leaving."

About a half an hour later, the partners had dropped Sweets off at his apartment with assurances to pick him up again the following morning. After the relatively short drive to Booth's apartment, Booth handed Brennan the keys and walked around to the back seat. He picked up his not-so-little-anymore sleeping son and began to carry him into the building. Parker stirred, mumbling something incoherently.

"What was that, bud?" Booth asked.

Parker slightly lifted up his head off his dad's shoulder. "How do you know you're in love?"

"It's just something you know," Booth said, quickly glancing at Bones. "You feel it in here." Booth pointed to Parker's heart. "And in here." He pointed to Parker's head.

"I think I love her," Parker said. "She's pretty. And nice. Fun too." He let his head fall back onto his dad's shoulder and fell back into a peaceful sleep.

Brennan unlocked the door to Booth's apartment and held the door open for Booth. He carried Parker inside, and then Booth and Brennan tucked him into his bed. They stood by the doorway for a few minutes and watched him sleep.

"God, my little boy's growing up so fast," Booth whispered to Brennan. He wrapped his arms around her waist from behind, pulling her in closer.

"He's getting older, Booth. That tends to happen," Brennan explained. "It's only to be expected."

"I know, but it doesn't make this any easier," Booth replied. He was silent for a few moments. "He told me he thinks he's in love."

"I know." Brennan stated. "I heard." She turned around and wrapped her arms around his neck. "You should be proud he believes in love. After all, you're the one who taught me the importance of it." Brennan brought her face up to meet Booth's, connecting his lips with hers. "Come on, we should get to bed."

AN: I'm gonna be honest right now...delving into the world of fanfic has been one of the best things I've done this year! Thank you to all who read and review :D