(Harbingers in the Fountain)
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I don't own Bones.
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Avalon Harmonia knew that Angela worked for the Medico-Legal Lab in the District and she had connections with the FBI. She had met Angela in a park while the artist was drawing still-lifes and she had been drawn to her because of her brilliant red aura. People with brilliant red auras were very passionate, sexual, full of energy and competitive. Avalon didn't meet a lot of bright red auras and was fascinated with those mortals that carried an aura around like that.
Intrigued with Avalon, Angela had soon found out that her new friend was psychic and that she could read the future and the past by using Taro cards. One day, she found a lot on her mind and asked her friend Avalon to give her a reading. She wasn't sure what she was looking for, but she didn't think it would hurt to get professional help.
Aware that her friend seemed to be troubled, Avalon graciously agreed to meet her in the park. "So, you want to know about the future or the past?" Sometimes her clients and friends didn't know what they wanted and it didn't hurt to try to pin it down. "I think it's easier if you just let me read the cards and see what they say, but it's up to you."
"That sounds okay." Angela was anxious about her friend, Booth. He was working part time at the Hoover and she didn't know if he was ever going to work with them again. Brennan seemed to be quiet and sad about the situation and she wanted to help them as much as she could.
Pulling her cards from her bag, Avalon laid the deck on the table between them and asked Angela to pick four cards and place them face down on the table. After that was done, she gave her friend a slight smile and turned over the first card. "Hope, you're blessed. You've gone through a terrible life challenge but you haven't lost hope, that's good."
"I broke up with Hodgins and then Roxie. I . . . I had a rough time after that, but Hodgins and I have come around to being friends again, so I can see that."
"The second card is change . . . you need to be positive, it's time for you to replace the old foundations of the past with something that is more genuine."
"I'm worried about someone I work with." Angela knew the cards were for her, but she needed to know if Booth was going to be alright. If he wasn't then it would affect Brennan and she didn't want Brennan to be sad or unhappy. She deserved to be happy.
"I'm doing a reading for you, Angela . . . The third card is the fool. The fool is there to show you that you can never really tell what lies ahead and you can only greet it with joy and the fourth card, the death card . . . you're going through a major change a transformation. Don't be afraid of the future, you're opening the door to new life events."
She could see the cards were speaking to her about the ups and downs she'd gone through in her relationships lately. She had made a drastic change in her life because Sweets had recommended it and had been celibate for a while, but she still didn't know if that was helping her in anyway. "My friend Brennan is living with a guy named Seely Booth. He had brain surgery and she's worried about him. He's changed. I could tell just by the way he was dressing that he'd changed, but anyway, I need to know if he's going to recover enough to work with Brennan again. He works for the FBI. She really hates working with anyone else and we're all just worried I guess."
Avalon could see that her friend was anxious, so she cut the cards again and pulled up one card. "The knight of swords . . . I think your friend Seeley will be fine. He's determined to reach his goals and there is absolutely nothing to stop him." This Seeley Booth person seemed interesting and Avalon hoped she'd get to meet him some day.
Relieved that Booth was going to be okay, Angela exhaled deeply. "This is a weight off of my mind. Thank you."
"You're welcome."
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Avalon had known Angela long enough to trust her with a huge secret. This secret had been preying on her for a few years and she knew that if she didn't do something about it soon, nothing would change and her sister would not get the justice she needed to move on peacefully to the next phase of her existence. Reticent, she told Angela about the mass grave under the Teversham fountain. She didn't know if Angela had any clout at where she worked, but her cards had told her to trust Angela and she did.
She didn't know it, but this case was the first one Seeley Booth would be involved in since his brain surgery.
"I don't believe in psychics, Bones." Booth had found the grave Angela had told them about using a ground penetrating radar device. Suspicious, Booth knew that he was going to need to talk to Avalon Harmonia. He was more inclined to believe that the 'psychic' knew about the bodies because she had helped put them under the fountain.
"Yes, you've said often enough that there is no such thing as coincidence and I agree with you." Brennan had stared at the screen showing bones below her feet and hoped that Angela wasn't allowing herself to be used by a mass murderer. "We need to dig up this area and exhume the bones."
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Not surprised in the least, Avalon was soon sitting in an interrogation room at the Hoover sitting across a table from Agent Seeley Booth. "You're the man that had brain surgery that Angela was worried about . . . pick a card." She placed her deck of cards on the table and waited for the agent to pick up one.
Impatiently, Booth picked the card from the top of the deck hoping to move the interview along. "How did you know that the bodies were under the fountain?"
"I'm psychic." Fascinated, Avalon stared at the card for a moment then looked at the man sitting across the table. "You're worried that you lost something, but you didn't lose anything."
"Look, I don't need you to do a reading for me, okay? I want to know how you knew about the bodies under the fountain." He was trying to be patient, but Avalon telling him she was a psychic wasn't an answer he was willing to accept.
Amused, but trying to hide it, Avalon leaned on the table and tried to be serious. "It's all in the cards, Agent Booth. Everything you need to know is here in the cards."
Since he wasn't going to get anything else from her without some piece of evidence to force her to admit what she knew, Booth stood up. "I'm going to talk to you again. This isn't over."
Waving her hand towards the door, Avalon smiled. "I'm sure it isn't."
Once she was out of the Hoover, she walked down the street to her car and drove over to Pershing Park, parked her car and found a bench to sit on. The day was warm and the sky was a clear blue color, no clouds in sight. After a while, she shifted on her seat and turned to face the steps leading up to the statue. "Why are you following me?"
Surprised that she could see him, Teddy smiled and moved closer. "Am I following you?"
"I think so." The young man standing before her was wearing an army uniform and she was intrigued. "I saw you at the Hoover when I was talking to Agent Booth and now, I see you here. I think you need to tell me who you are and why you're following me."
A cocky grin of confidence on his face, Teddy moved over to the steps leading up to the statue of John J. Pershing and sat down. "My name is Theodore Parker, but my friends call me Teddy . . . You were talking to Seeley Booth. He was a friend of mine."
"I see. Does he know that you're hanging around him?" Avalon always found it sad when she came across a soul that hadn't moved on yet.
"He used to before his brain surgery." Teddy sighed. "I thought I'd move on after he had his tumor removed, but I'm worried about him. He . . . he's changed. He seems . . . confused I guess is a good word. He has to be recertified so he can carry a gun again, but he's not doing well. He's practicing and he's getting better, but . . . well, he's not as good as he used to be and he's forgot things. His girlfriend is helping him, but I don't know . . . I need to know if he's going to be alright before I leave . . . he did me a huge favor when I was killed by making sure I wasn't left behind. Rangers never leave anyone behind, but he was by himself and he had to carry me the whole way to the helicopter. I got a proper burial and my parents don't have to worry about where I am, but . . . He's got me worried. I want him to be happy, but he's not happy. He's sad. He shouldn't be. He's living with a woman he loves. He has a great kid and a good job, but he's not happy. I think that surgery messed him up and I don't know what to do about it."
She knew that the young man was concerned, but his priorities were skewed. "There is nothing you can do about it. You're not supposed to be here." She had seen this before and she always had a problem convincing the confused soul that they should move on. "Agent Booth will be alright, I promise. He just needs time that's all."
"Well, I have time, so I don't think I should leave until I know for sure he's okay." Teddy clasped his hands together and looked at his boots. "He's had a hard life and this brain tumor is just more of the same, I guess. I really admire him most of the time . . . He's not perfect." Teddy laughed. "Yeah, no . . . he has a temper, but he doesn't mistreat people. He's a gambling addict, but he doesn't gamble anymore. He kind of hates smart people except his girlfriend is the smartest person I've ever seen. He's what you'd call a walking contradiction. He blamed himself for a long time when I was killed, but that was my fault not his. I got to tell him that when he could see me and I think he accepted that. One of his biggest problems is he takes responsibility for things that have nothing to do with him. He's kinda like Atlas with the world on his shoulders . . . I just wish he could be happy again. He was real happy when he got together with his girlfriend, but since he's been operated on, he's got this gray cloud hovering over him."
Patiently, Avalon waited for Teddy to tell her all the things he needed to say. Once he stopped, she stood up, moved over to where the spirit was sitting and sat down next to him. "You're a good friend, I can tell, but Teddy . . . Seeley needs to live his life and you need to move on to the next phase of your existence. You said he used to see you and you talked to him. That's good. You got him to accept that your death wasn't his responsibility. I think you've done all you can do don't you think so? He can't see and hear you anymore. You said so yourself. Why don't you give me a message for him, I'll make sure he gets it and you can move on to where you're supposed to be. If everything works out, you may see him again some day when he moves on from this plane of existence. What do you say?"
Trying to do the right thing, Teddy finally nodded his head and stood up. "If you could, I need you to tell him that Teddy is fine and tell him that the next time he's in trouble, he needs to duck. I think that will say it all. It was nice meeting you Avalon. I've never met a psychic before."
With a feeling of satisfaction, Avalon watched Teddy move up the stairs and once he reached the top, he stepped into a wall of white light. Once he disappeared, the light winked out and she knew that Teddy was where he was supposed to be. "Bye Teddy."
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Working on the case with Brennan had felt right to Booth and his uneasiness had started to leave him. Fairburn had agreed to let him back into the field after Sweets' recommendation. He still needed to pass his recertification, but he was confident he could pass it. He wasn't the shot he used to be, but he was working with someone he trusted and his shooting was improving.
His memory problem didn't seem to be as bad as he had first feared. He knew how to do his job and so far, nothing that was being asked of him was beyond him. It seemed that a lot of the things he had forgotten were things he had learned as a younger man and not something from the recent past. He could live with that. If he came across something that he really needed to know, he was confident he could relearn it whatever it was. His surgeon said he was doing great and there was no sign that his tumor was making a try to come back.
His biggest cheerleader was Brennan and he appreciated the things she did for him. He was wearing his crazy socks and his colorful ties and that seemed to ease the worries of those around him. He had yet to wear the cocky belt buckle that was sitting on his dresser, but that was because he didn't feel cocky. The brain tumor had sobered him up in a way that reminded him that he was mortal and he didn't have complete control over his life. Something as simple as a brain tumor could have killed him, so he didn't want to take anything for granted. Maybe someday he could wear the belt buckle again, but for now, there was nothing for him to be cocky about.
After he had come out of his coma, he'd found himself wishing for the life he had dreamt about when he had time to think about it, but as the weeks came and went, the dream seemed to fade a little. That world wasn't the bright and shiny bauble it had been. Real life was starting to dominate his thoughts and he found it ridiculous to long for a make-believe world. He had everything that he had ever wanted, a woman in his life that he adored and loved, a son that brought him joy and a job he was good at. He was making a difference in the world. With the help of Brennan and the scientists at the Lab he was taking killers off the street and the victims of crime were getting justice. His world wasn't perfect, but it never had been. He didn't believe that anyone had a perfect life and if they said they did they were probably lying. He was a realist and he accepted that life had it's ups and its downs. He was alive and he was relatively happy or at least it felt like he was happy. He could live with that.
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In the end, they arrested Alexander Gallo for fraud, amongst other crimes, but not for murder. Brennan wasn't satisfied, but Booth was. "Come on Bones. The guy is going to get 100 years at least. He's never going to get out of prison and that's a win as far as I'm concerned."
She conceded that life in prison was still punishment. "Yes, I suppose so." Brennan spied Avalon leaving the elevator and walk through the bullpen towards Booth's office. "I'm sorry we couldn't get Gallo for killing your sister. Sometimes you have to just settle for the second-best situation. I'm sorry too, for how we manipulated you into scratching his face.'
Shrugging her shoulders, Avalon let them know that she wasn't upset. "It was rational. You needed his DNA and his skin under my fingernails gave it to you. I understand."
Glad the case was over Booth clapped his hands together. "This is usually when we go and get a drink to celebrate. You can join us if you want to."
"Nah, that's okay." Before leaving the couple, Avalon smiled at Booth. "I talked to Teddy the other day. He told me to tell you that he's fine and the next time you're in trouble you need to duck."
A chill running down his spine, Booth stared at Avalon with his mouth open. For a few moments he was speechless. "Uh . . . you saw Teddy?"
"Wait, are you saying that you conversed with Teddy Parker? That is impossible since he's dead." Brennan didn't know what game Avalon was playing, but she didn't like it all. Teddy had been a manifestation of Booth's tumor and she didn't want anyone confusing Booth about that.
"Yeah, I saw him and he wanted me to give his message to Agent Booth before he moved on." She could see the disbelief in Brennan's face and the confusion in Booth's. "Teddy is fine, Agent Booth. He's finally moved on which is what I am sure you wanted him to do."
Afraid to believe the psychic, Booth shrugged his shoulders. On the ship, he had thought that Teddy was a ghost as well as when he'd seen him in the cemetery. Later, when Teddy appeared in the interrogation room, he thought that his old friend was just a delusion because of his brain tumor. Now Avalon was telling him that she saw him. It was just too confusing. "Um, do you want to go and get a drink with Bones and me?"
"No, I have things to do." Avalon knew that Booth would never acknowledge what she had said and she was willing to accept that. "I'll see you around, Agent Booth . . . oh, that dream you had, it was just a dream Agent Booth. Don't let it make you sad. You're doing okay in this life and what more can you ask for?"
"Nothing." Booth agreed. He had given up on the dream. This was his life and it wasn't a bad life after all.
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Let me know what you think of my story. Thank you.
A/N: part of this chapter was based upon a suggestion by lauwy.
