The second part of the date...

Tiny droplets of snow seemed to be suspended in the frigid night air as Booth and Brennan stepped out of the diner. Like thousands of tiny glittering crystals, the snowflakes reflected and diffused the light from the lamp posts lining the sidewalk, creating an ethereal atmosphere among the golden halos and deep blue shadows along the side street they were to travel.

It was almost ten o'clock that evening, and apparently they were the only souls brave enough to venture into the rundown neighborhood at that time of night. There were no cars passing by...no noise from any of the nearby duplexes and apartments...no sirens in the distance...nobody else in sight. The bustling city with all its clamor seemed to fade into the background, leaving the two of them with only each other for company as they walked along.

As far as Booth was concerned, spending that evening with Bones had taken on an almost magical quality. It was like the past six months...the six months from Hell...had never happened. They were enjoying each other's company once more, laughing as they chatted about odds and ends, as if nothing...or no one...had ever come between them.

He found he couldn't take his eyes from her. She was radiant...her cheeks flushed a soft pink with the cold...her blue eyes sparkling...the tiny snowflakes glistening in her auburn hair and on the solitary daffodil blossom she held in her hand...she was so incredibly beautiful, like something out of a dream.

When was the last time I saw her this happy? This carefree? He smiled as the memory rushed back to him. It was Christmas dinner last year...when we were all there in her apartment…she loved having everyone over that night, no matter what she said about not wanting to celebrate the holiday…

His heart thumped wildly as he remembered how she'd been undressing him to collect evidence as she invited him to Christmas dinner...and then, sitting at the dinner table, he'd winked at her...and she'd given him that crooked little smile…

We were so damn close to being a couple...to being us, like we're meant to be! We were almost there...and I fucked it up so badly. I should've realized how that Heather Taffet case affected her...I knew Bones was suffering from all the stress, and I charged ahead anyway, thinking only of myself...I was so afraid to lose her, and then I almost did anyway...but maybe now I have a second chance...

Lost in his memories, Booth wasn't paying much attention to where Brennan was taking him as they strolled down the sidewalk. At that moment, he didn't care. All that mattered to him was being there with her. She could've led him down the road to perdition, and he would've gladly followed her without a second thought, as long as they were together.

She stopped suddenly and turned to him, pointing at the large structure in front of them. "There...look! Isn't it beautiful?"

The large stained glass window above them seemed to be glowing from within, as if it was illuminated by some unearthly light source, and the misty weather seemed to enhance the luminous jewel toned panes, making them almost come alive in the shimmering snow frosted air.

In the center of the circular window was the Blessed Virgin Mary, serene and beautiful in her bright blue robes, gazing out at humanity with a holy love as she sat enthroned with her Child on her lap, His hand raised in blessing. Apostles and angels surrounded the Rose, praising God for His Glory...for the gift of His Son, born incarnate of the Virgin, the Child who was destined to be the Savior of the World.

Overwhelmed with awe, Booth was speechless as he stared up at the sacred image. "Oh, Bones…," he breathed quietly. "...it's so...beautiful…"

"I thought so, too." Smiling, she took his hand and led him around to the side of the building. "Look...there's a saint in every window…"

He nodded as he read the saints' names in each lancet. "St. Thomas...St. Matthew...St. Vincent De Paul…"

"Wait!" He gasped suddenly as a realization struck him. "So this is St. Vincent's Church?!"

"Yes, of course!" Brennan giggled as she pointed to a large sign on the churchyard's corner. "It's fairly obvious, isn't it?"

"Oh...yeah…I guess so." Booth suddenly looked over his shoulder, hoping they were really alone. I really don't need to have a visit from Sister Philomena right now, okay, Lord?

Surprised that Booth suddenly seemed so nervous, Brennan shrugged. "Given your faith, I thought you'd enjoy seeing these windows, so I wanted to share them with you. It's such a lovely old building…especially when the windows are backlit like this. " She hesitated slightly before continuing. "I suppose I consider looking at these stained glass windows to be somewhat analogous to looking at Christmas lights on buildings."

"Yeah, you're right. They're beautiful, and I'm glad you brought me down here to see them." Smiling bashfully, he gently squeezed her hand. "I guess I'm just surprised that you'd think these religious themed windows are so interesting…"

"I can appreciate their artistic merit, even if I don't believe the stories that are associated with them." As they moved around to the opposite side of the church, Brennan pointed out another window. "This one with the image of St. Francis Xavier was installed as a memorial. It was commissioned by one of the church's more important founding families." She gestured towards another window, which portrayed St. Clare. "All of these windows were made by the Grassi company in Italy and then brought across the Atlantic by cargo ship to be installed here when the church was being built in 1898."

"Wow...so they're over a hundred years old? And they're still in great shape, aren't they? Amazing. The colors are still so rich..." Pleased that he was still holding Brennan's hand, Booth began to relax a little bit. "The inside of the church, in the nave...it's real pretty in there, too, with its high ceiling and all the dark wood against the white plaster walls. The statues of the saints in there are old, and the altar is original. It's got some really ornate carvings with gold overlay on them and this giant crucifix hanging over it." He hesitated slightly. "How do you know so much about the windows? Did you do a search on the internet?"

"I've done some online research, yes...but my interest was piqued when my dad and I walked down here a few nights ago." She pointed into the darkness at the end of the street. "There's a Christmas tree lot down there, and we were on our way to get a tree when we stopped to admire the church. As we were looking at the windows, a nun came up to us and offered some information about them."

Booth felt a cold shudder run down his spine. "This nun...was she young, and dressed in a dark habit? Cheerful? She's kinda petite, right?"

"Yes." Surprised, Brennan arched an eyebrow at him. "Do you know her?"

"Sister Philomena? Yeah, I've met her." Running a hand over his face, he exhaled slowly. "I was walking down this street on my way back to the Hoover one night when I literally ran into her and knocked her down. That's how I know what the inside of the church looks like. I went inside to check on her...you know, to make sure I hadn't hurt her."

"She didn't tell us her name.," Brennan said slowly, wondering why Booth seemed so edgy. "She did say that she was worried about the church building being torn down…"

"And with good reason, it seems." Booth shrugged as he looked up at the rose window again. "I talked to the priest assigned here, Father Silvestri...he thinks the diocese may want to shut down this parish and combine it with St. Martin's, so who knows what'll happen to this building."

He looked up at the rose window again, still in awe of its beauty. I don't remember it glowing like that the first time I was here, but I was really down, wasn't I? Maybe that's why it looks different tonight...because now I'm so happy…

His musings ended abruptly when he realized Brennan was talking to him. "What?"

"The man at the tree lot said the same thing about this place, which is unfortunate. Not only is it a beautiful church, but, according to him, it would be an ideal place to house a food pantry…"

"You're right!" Suddenly, Booth smiled happily. "You know what? I think I know someone who might be able to make that food pantry happen."

"Who?" Curious, Brennan snuggled next to Booth, hoping to wheedle it out of him. "Tell me…"

"I will when I know for sure. Besides, I may need your help, so…" He brushed a strand of hair from her face. "...so, um...thanks for bringing me down here to show me these windows. I enjoyed spending time with you here...you know, listening to you tell me all about them..."

Brennan blushed slightly. "You're welcome. I enjoyed this evening...and our first date…"

He nodded as he pulled her closer. "Yeah, me, too…"

"Can we have another date sometime soon?," she asked quietly.

"Well, we're going to Parker's play and to the FBI Christmas party…"

"That's not what I meant." Smiling, she gazed into his warm brown eyes. "I'm talking about just you and me…you know, simply talking with each other..." She kissed his lips gently. "...like this…"

"Oh…well, yeah, of course!" Grinning, Booth took her into his arms and kissed her tenderly. "Me and you...we can date like this whenever you want…we can talk...and, you know, talk some more...and whatever else you want to do..."

Giggling, she leaned into him as he put his arm around her. "Excellent. Walk me back to my car?"

"Okay...let's go…"

Sighing happily as he glanced back at the glowing church windows, Booth chuckled to himself. "Thank you, Sister Philomena, wherever you are…"


A/N: more to come soon. If you have time to review, I'd appreciate it. Thanks. Laura.