Here we are. at the final chapter. This is the last of our 31 words.


Seeley Booth smiled to himself as he walked across the bull pen towards his office. It was a bitterly cold day in the middle of January, and the weather forecast had called for freezing rain, but he knew it was going to be a great day.

Unlocking the door, he walked in and put his coffee mug on his desk before hanging up his overcoat. It was a part of his routine...a routine he cherished. It seemed like things in his life were finally back to normal...at least as normal as they could be when a guy was in charge of the Major Crimes division.

He logged on to his computer to check his email, pleased to find a note from Director Rollins. The Director had the good manners to express his 'surprise' at Booth's mention of a 'romantic relationship with Dr. Brennan'. However, given their impressive rate of solving crimes, the FBI in its wisdom had decided that their relationship hadn't really violated the 'no dating within the division' rule, since she was 'technically an independent contractor', so there was no real reason to 'cease and desist' being involved in their work partnership. The Bureau wouldn't care what they did on their own time as long as their 'conduct in the field remained strictly professional'.

"Right." Booth chuckled softly as he read the message. "In other words, they need me and Bones to be happy because when we work together, we get results in my division. Well, if it's going to be to our advantage to handle it that way, that's good enough for me."

He rose from his desk, grabbing his coffee mug before ambling over to gaze out of the window. He felt a sense of peace, relieved to be able to acknowledge that he and his Bones were a couple...partners in every sense of the word. It had been a long time coming…

Even so, he couldn't help but be somewhat annoyed with himself. "How much time did I waste getting to this point? All those stupid mistakes I made...we might've been a couple years ago if I'd handled things differently…"

He paused, remembering something his grandfather had told him when he was a young man.

We can't change what's already happened, Shrimp. All we can do is hope to avoid the mistakes we've made in the past, so we can have a better future.

"Maybe that's what that song means…," he muttered to himself. "We'll drink to the days of Auld Lang Syne...times in the past...so we'll remember the good and bad that's happened then, and hope for better things to come…"

He'd be the first to admit he'd been very lucky that his Bones had loved him enough to overlook the Hannah fiasco. "Maybe I'm not just lucky...maybe 'blessed' is a better word...but no matter what, I'm gonna make sure my luck holds with Bones...I'm never gonna take her for granted...I'm never gonna give her a reason to think she's made a mistake by loving me…she's always gonna be first in my life...my anchor...my reason for living..."

His musings were interrupted by a voice from the doorway. "Good morning, Seeley…"

"Hey, Avalon." Turning to face her, he smiled as he pointed to a chair. "What's up?

"Oh, nothing, really." She grinned at him as she made herself comfortable. "I just thought I'd see how things were going with you and Temperance."

Laughing out loud, he arched an eyebrow at her. "Don't you know? I would've thought you'd found out everything from your cards."

She nodded with a chuckle. "Well, the 'lovers' card has been coming up quite frequently when I check on you, so I suppose things are going well, right? Lots of passion between the two of you?"

Thinking back over the long New Year's holiday he'd spent with Bones, he had a hard time keeping his goofy grin in check. "You might say that."

"I thought so. The cards have also said that there's been an agreement made between you two…"

"We've decided to let everyone know we're a couple, if that's what you mean." Booth cleared his throat softly, unsure of how much he wanted Avalon to tell him about what she knew. I hope she doesn't bring up our sexy role playing stuff...not here at the office...maybe I'd better change the subject. "So...um...that nun's ghost I saw? Remember? The one I ran over? Well, I think she finally made it up to Heaven…at least that's what I think happened on Christmas Eve."

"Of course she did. She'd completed her task, so she left the earthly plane to receive her reward." Avalon studied Booth with a practiced eye. "What about the old gentleman?"

"You mean Ben? Last time I was at the church, he was still there. It looked like he was having fun playing with the tools...you know, he's been doing stuff like hiding them from the guys working there..."

Nodding slightly, the psychic considered Booth's words. "He may be bound to that place. Perhaps he was happy there in life, and he sees no reason to leave...although once the remodeling is complete he may decide he's ready to go on. It can be hard to say with his type, but if he decides to stay, I'm sure he won't cause any real trouble...maybe just a bit of mischief."

Surprised at her comments, Booth grimaced slightly. "How did you know about the remodeling job at the church?" Suddenly he smiled. "Oh, right...you're a psychic, and you saw it in your cards. Duh." Laughing, he shook his head. "That whole situation at St. Vincent's was kinda weird, you know? I mean, I'd walked past that old church hundreds of times and nothing ever happened, but then one night, because of that random encounter with Sister Philomena's ghost and then me going into the church to check on her, it turned out that we were able to save the building from being sold and start up a community food center based out of it. I mean, it was like the building was calling out to me that night, you know? It's hard to explain." Sighing, he crossed his arms over his chest. "I just hate to think what would've happened if I hadn't talked to the priest about what was going on…we would've lost those beautiful stained glass windows and all that history..."

She regarded him with surprise. "Do you really think those events were random?"

"Well, yeah...of course they were, right? I mean, it's not like buildings can choose people to help them if they're in danger of being torn down…" He started to laugh, but paused when he saw she was serious. "Wait...so you're saying...what? That God chose me to save St. Vincent's or something like that? No way…I just did what anybody would do...I helped out some people in need..."

"All throughout our lives, we're all given chances to do things that make a difference in the lives of others...things that maybe make a small difference, like when you help a friend with a personal problem, or maybe things that make a big difference, like solving crimes...or maybe things like saving a grand old building and then using the space to start a food ministry. We all have to make a choice...do we dare to take the chance, knowing we may fail, or do we play it safe? As far as I can tell, Seeley, you're sometimes willing to seize the chance to help someone, even if you might fail, so the situation around St. Vincent's was presented to you...perhaps by God, or perhaps by the spirits inhabiting the building. It's also true that many pious people have passed through the place, leaving their spiritual energy imprinted on the structure. As empathetic as you are, that may have made an impression on you, and it's possible that strengthened your desire to help them. The point is that no matter how you look at it, it wasn't a just a set of random circumstances…"

"I don't believe it." He was clearly astonished by Avalon's explanation. "You mean...things worked out because someone or something knew I'd help save St. Vincent's? Nah...it can't be. That's just crazy…"

"No, it's not crazy. Trust me...you weren't selected at random. Some power from the Universe selected you to help, because it knew you'd do your best to get things done..." She smiled happily at him. "...just like your first encounter with Temperance wasn't random. You two were meant to be there from the beginning…and I think you know that, don't you?"

"Yeah, of course." He nodded in agreement. "I've always known...I told her as much, too...that it was fate, us meeting the way we did, but you know Bones. She said that was ridiculous…"

"Well, you and I know better, and maybe that's good enough…"

Their conversation was interrupted when Brennan appeared in the doorway. "Hello, Booth...oh, hello, Ms. Harmonia. I'm sorry...am I intruding?"

Booth stood up to greet her with a hug. "Hey, Bones…"

Avalon quickly rose from her chair as well. "No, of course you're not intruding. Anyway, I was just leaving." The psychic smiled pleasantly. "It's nice to see you again, Temperance."

"Thank you. It's nice to see you as well." Noticing Avalon's dreamy expression, Brennan tilted her head to one side. "Is everything okay?"

Watching as Booth's pink aura swirled with Brennan's golden yellow glow, Avalon nodded. "Things are perfect. Goodbye…"

Still bewildered by the psychic's statements about his being chosen to save the church, Booth cleared his throat. "So...what's going on?"

"Nothing...I just wanted to see you, that's all." Brennan kissed his cheek gently. "Since the dedication of the new parish hall and food pantry is at 7 o'clock tonight, I think we should have dinner at the diner and then we can walk down there afterwards..."

Booth laughed sarcastically. "In the sleet? Seriously?"

"As I recall, you didn't mind the snow that evening when we walked down to see the church after our 'first date'..."

"Well, since it was our first date, I wanted to impress you, okay?"

"So...are you telling me that since we're now a committed couple, you don't have to impress me any more?" She pretended to glare at him. "So the thrill is gone already…"

"C'mon, Bones...you know better than that…"

"Good. Besides, you know how romantic it is to walk down that street in the dark, correct? And you enjoy looking at the windows…"

"I suppose that's true…" He reached out to take her hand. "And even though it's gonna be really cold, I'll have my love to keep me warm…"

"Both on the walk down there...and afterwards, when we get home…"

Booth chuckled. "Hey, wanna break out the lab coat and the nerd glasses again? Maybe we can add your black lace lingerie into the mix, too..."

She gave him a flirty wink. "You've anticipated my suggestion for this evening's entertainment…"

He rubbed his hands together with glee. "I can't wait…"

They both laughed, happy to bring the many and varied pieces of their separate lives together, combining them as if to make an entirely new and lovely work of art…

…like a glorious stained glass window…

...or a beautiful crazy quilt.


Thank you for following along with my story. I've appreciated the kind reviews. Laura