(After season 12)
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I don't own Bones.
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The doors at the main entrance to the Lab looked the same, reinforced bullet proof glass because it wasn't a good idea to just let anyone with a gun be able to shoot the glass and just walk in. Booth had agreed with Hodgins that the glass should be bullet proof, but he managed to make Hodgins see the logic in having a manual override of the door. Electronic overrides could be compromised and he never wanted Brennan or anyone else to be trapped in the Lab again. The manual override was just inside the Lab to the left of the door and ready to be used in an emergency.
Once through the doors, Booth stopped a few feet inside and looked around. "So, the walls are still glass." He wasn't sure he liked that. The original glass walls had been tempered glass which was one of the major reasons why he, Brennan, Hodgins and Angela had not been cut to ribbons when the explosions blew out the glass walls and ceiling. "Maybe they should have put up solid walls instead . . . you know for protection . . . glass . . ."
Jack Hodgins had spied Booth and Brennan enter the Lab and quickly wheeled down the hallway over to where they were standing. "Booth, Dr. B glad to see you . . . what do you think, nice huh?"
Brennan smiled at the temporary head of the department while shifting the box she held in her hands. "Booth doesn't like the glass walls. I for one do like them. I think it's practical."
Not sure why Booth objected to the use of glass walls, Hodgins twirled his chair partially around so he could look down the hallway. "The walls are tempered glass just like before. If they shatter no will be at risk of being shredded."
The image of Brennan lying on the floor in the near darkness, unconscious on a pile of glass, pieces stuck to her face and embedded in her hair just made him hate the idea of glass walls even more. "It's your Lab, I'm just saying that solid walls would be less of a risk."
"Maybe, but slivers and splinters of wood can be just as dangerous a projectile as slivers and shards of glass." Hodgins knew that Booth had never been a fan of the Lab and it looked like the newly refurbished Lab wasn't popular with the Agent either. "We still have privacy blinds so each room can be shut off from the rest of the Lab if the occupier of said office wants to use them . . . As you can see the ceiling has been replaced with tempered glass too. The original glass in the ceiling wasn't bullet proof as we all know." The image of Vincent Nigel-Murray lying on the floor of the platform in a pool of his own blood flashed in everyone's mind. That was a memory that would always be with them. "Yeah . . . um, come on lets go see Dr. B's office." Twirling his wheel chair further around, he started to roll down the hallway.
Amused with her friend's enthusiasm, Brennan followed the entomologist down the hallway, Booth following a little behind her. The box he was carrying was heavy, but he didn't mind. Brennan was also carrying a box, but it contained lighter items. She'd had to replace a lot of items that the old office used to have like a new afghan, an extra set of clothes that Brennan liked to keep in her office just in case of unfortunate accidents, a box of tea bags, two mugs and a box of granola bars. The box also contained Jasper the pig and the broken clock that she wanted to put on the wall behind her desk as a reminder that they had all survived a terrible event and that their world had not ended at 4:47 in the afternoon a few months ago.
Booth's box contained some books, a laptop, a few flash drives containing research Brennan was doing for her latest book as well as lesson plans for the upcoming school year. The box also contained an electric kettle to heat water, so Brennan could make hot tea whenever she wanted it and a container of very expensive coffee that Booth refused to buy when they went shopping. He made Brennan pay for it since it was such a ridiculous price.
As they all approached the office, Brennan noticed that the lights were on in the room. From the hallway, she could see that the room contained a fairly large desk and a comfortable looking chair although she would reserve judgement until she actually sat down on it. There was a new stuffed couch in the place where her old couch had once stood. She noticed it was a dark rust color and thought it was quite pleasing.
Once she was inside the room, she stopped and took in the new shelves taking up space on two of her office walls, most of them were bare. It still upset her that the rare antiques that used to preside in the room had been damaged or destroyed. She glanced quickly to where her aquarium containing her iguana used to be then looked away. The poor creature had died in the explosion and she had vowed to never keep a pet in her office again.
The sound of Booth clearing his throat reminded Brennan that the box he was carrying was heavy and his back muscles might be protesting at the strain being put on them. Hurrying past Hodgins, she moved over to where her desk was and placed the box she was carrying on top of it. Booth followed her over to the desk and placed his box down next to it.
"Seems kind of bare in here." Booth's gazed around the room and noticed a small figurine sitting on the middle shelf along the back wall. Curious, he walked past Hodgins over to the shelf. "Hey, Brainy Smurf." The sight of the little plastic figure pleased Booth and he reached up and picked it up. Turning to face Brennan, he grinned. "Hey, you thought you lost this."
Excited, Brennan hurried over to where Booth was standing and took the Smurf figurine from Booth's hand. "I couldn't find it in the rubble. I thought I'd never see it again."
Hodgins stayed where he was and saw a tear slip down Brennan's cheek. "One of the workers found it. He kept it and when he started putting up shelves, he made sure to place the Smurf on that shelf so it wouldn't get lost. He said he had one of those when he was a kid and he liked the idea that Brainy Smurf had survived the explosion. It sort of became a mascot for him while he was working in the office. I think he wanted to take it home and I told him he could, but he decided that Brainy Smurf belonged here at the Jeffersonian."
"Well, I'm glad he didn't take it home." Brennan brushed the tear from her cheek and stared at the plastic figurine in her hand. "It was a gift from Booth."
"Oh, I'm sorry. I didn't know." Hodgins had seen Brainy Smurf in Brennan's office for years, but he hadn't realized that it was gift. "Well, it's a good thing Bill didn't take it with him then."
"Yeah." Booth took the figurine from Brennan and placed it back on the shelf. "It definitely belongs here." Turning to face Brennan, Booth gave her a warm smile. "Welcome back to the Lab, Bones. I know you've been anxious to get back to work."
Brennan stared at Brainy Smurf and nodded her head. "Yes, it's where I belong Booth. This is who I am."
Slowly shaking his head, Booth touched the side of her face. "You belong wherever you want to be, Bones. This place isn't who you are, it's just what you do."
A few years ago and Brennan would have disagreed with her husband, but she knew what he meant now. Booth was right, her job was forensic anthropology, but who she was was Temperance Brennan. An independent woman, strong and quite capable of handling anything thrown at her including being a mother, wife, lover and friend.
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