(Spaceman in a Crater)

A/N: I updated chapter 34 last week, but due to FFN having serious problems, no emails went out letting anyone know it was available. I highly recommend that you go back and read chapter 34 before you read this chaper. FFN was broke for over a week and several of my stories were updated during that time.

Thank you for reviewing my story. I appreciate it.

I don't own Bones.

Oooooooooooooooooooo

Assistant Deputy Director Triche stared at Booth and knew that they'd both have to see Deputy Director Bishop as soon as possible. "There is a no fraternization rule, Booth. You know that."

Since he was already committed on this course of action, Booth shrugged his shoulders. "Yes Sir, I do, but Dr. Brennan doesn't work for the FBI. She's a contracted employee. She works for the Jeffersonian Institute."

"So you and Dr. Brennan have been living together for ten months?" Calvin Triche wished he'd followed through on that vacation request. He could be on some beach drinking rum and Coke and not having to deal with this. "If you were so sure that you weren't doing anything wrong why hide it?" Furious that Booth would pull such a thing, Triche tried to keep calm. Booth was one their best investigators and there were rumors that the CIA was headhunting Booth at the moment. He didn't know if that was true, but the last thing he wanted to do was lose his Supervisory Special Agent. The FBI was still dealing with the fallout of Deputy Director Kirby's murder and the fact that several FBI Agents had been fired and charged with numerous crimes because of Booth's determination to look into the murder of former FBI Agent Delaney. He had continued that investigation even though Kirby had suspended him without pay. The fact that Kirby had turned out to be a murderer himself and part of the corruption had shaken the FBI to the core and they couldn't afford to lose any more good agents, especially the one that had revealed the corruption in the FBI in the first place. That would just be a Public Relations nightmare.

Since he knew it was possible he might lose his position with the FBI because of his hidden relationship with his partner, Booth decided that honest answers were warranted. "Dr. Brennan is a best-selling author. She has two books on the New York Times Best Sellers list right now. She also has millions of fans and those fans are very nosy. Bones . . . Dr. Brennan wants to keep her private life private. Also we both agreed to keep the relationship private so that we could prove that we can work together as professionals while we're still having a romantic relationship. There have been no complaints that I know of about Dr. Brennan or me. Our conduct has been purely professional and our solve rate has continued to climb."

Triche knew that nothing was going to be done to Booth or his partner, but he had a role to play and right now that was one of an outraged Assistant Deputy Director. "You may return to work. I have to take this to the Deputy Director and I'm sure the Director will have a say in this too."

Uncertain about his future, Booth stood up and walked over to the door. Before he left, Booth glanced back at his supervisor. "If you wish me to resign, let me know . . . I've been approached by the CIA and they're interested in hiring me. I thought you'd like to know." Booth knew that his career and his partnership were on the line, so he played the one Ace he had up his sleeve. What he had said was true and he would leave the FBI if they made him choose between his Bones and the FBI.

The rumor about the CIA confirmed, Triche nodded his head. "I'll pass that along too."

Oooooooooooooooooooo

After working on a case all morning, Booth returned to the Hoover while he waited for Brennan and her squints to give him more information before he could continue to work on the case. A note taped on his PC told him to go to the Deputy Director's office as soon as he came back. Here we go.

Before he left his office, he ran a comb through his hair and ran a shoe brush quickly over his shoes to get rid of the dirt clinging to the leather. He knew he was just delaying the interview, but he needed a moment to calm down. Booth was certain that he would either be looking for a new job at the end of that meeting, been demoted to the bullpen and his partnership gone or he'd be told his position was safe. Three possible outcomes and he had no clue which one would prevail. He wasn't sure he'd accept the demotion if that was the final decision. First he needed to find out what his fate was and then decide.

After he arrived at the Deputy Director's office, Booth knocked on the inner door and waited since Bishop's personal assistant was at lunch. To his surprise the door opened and the Deputy Director stood aside. "Booth, get your ass in here."

That greeting rather disheartening, Booth stepped in and noticed that Director Ross himself was sitting on the couch near the window. "Sir, I was told to come see you when I got back."

The Director had arranged to be notified as soon as Booth had driven into the parking garage, so he could be at this particular meeting. Now he sat back and watched his Deputy Director deal with it. His intention on being there was to lend weight to the meeting, but not to control it.

Deputy Director Bishop moved behind his desk, but did not sit down. Instead he leaned on the desk top with his knuckles. "Is Dr. Brennan pregnant?"

Surprised that that was the first question he was asked, Booth calmly shook his head. "No Sir."

"Then why tell us about this now?" The Deputy Director was curious about what had trigged this confession. Ten months was a long time to keep a secret, but he didn't see why the secret couldn't have continued. "What made you come forward now to tell us about this relationship?"

His back straight, his hands crossed in front of his waist, Booth explained the situation. "When I was kidnapped by Gallagher, Bones . . . Dr. Brennan tried to get some information about my circumstances from the FBI. They refused to tell her anything since we're not related . . . That upset her and when she told me about it, it upset me. She had a right to know what the FBI was doing to find me. As it is, she and her squints found me instead. We talked it over and we've decided to come forward about our relationship. She doesn't want to go through what she went through when I was kidnapped ever again and I don't blame her. I'd want to be kept in the loop if she was in trouble."

"I see." Bishop sat down and motioned for Booth to sit down. He had no intention of staring up at his agent. "Why shouldn't I fire you?"

Booth sat down, but didn't relax. "I'm a pretty damn good investigator. Dr. Brennan and I have the highest solve rate on the Eastern Seaboard. We've captured a serial killer amongst other criminals and we've closed cold cases that have been languishing in the cold case files for years. Dr. Brennan doesn't work for the FBI. She's a contracted forensic anthropologist that works for the Jeffersonian Institute. You may of course fire me since I don't have control over that situation, but Bones . . . Dr. Brennan will not work with any other FBI Agents . . . well to be more truthful, no FBI Agents will work with her, so you will lose her expertise. If that is your intention then of course you can fire me or demote me and take my partner from me. The FBI will lose."

Booth hesitated, but decided to put all of his cards on the table. "Deputy Director McKnight of the CIA and Deputy Director Darouse of the NSA have contacted me in the last few weeks and have asked if I'd be interested in working for them. If you fire me or demote me I will take one of them up on their offer."

The last bit of news was not surprising to either the Deputy Director or the Director. They had both been warned by the Directors of those agencies that they were offering Booth a position at their agency and they were going to try their best to tempt him to accept. "Do you plan to accept either of the offers if I don't demote you or take your partner away from you?" That was the question Director Ross had been waiting for Bishop to ask.

"No Sir, I like the FBI, but if you fire me, demote me or take my partner from me then yes, I will take the offer from the CIA." Booth was calm and knew that his future wasn't very bleak. As long as he had Brennan in his life, he could make adjustments to his career. "Deputy Director McKnight has promised me a raise and the title of Senior Supervisor."

That revelation was enough to make Director Ross angry. Damn CIA. Always trying to poach my best agents. Fuck! Worried that Booth might change his mind and leave once he had time to think about it, the Director knew that it was time to stop that exodus as quickly as possible. Giving a small wave of his hand to get the attention of the Deputy Director, Ross spoke directly to Booth. "You're right, Dr. Brennan doesn't work for the FBI and the non-fraternization rule obviously doesn't apply . . . As you know we've been through a firestorm here at the Hoover. Kirby is dead and fifteen agents have been arrested on charges of corruption and numerous other charges. We're looking for someone to replace Assistant Special Agent in Charge Hadley and I was thinking you might fit the bill. Are you interested?"

Not sure if he should be surprised or not, Booth was careful not to smile. "Yes, Sir."

"I'll bet." The Director knew how to play the game and Booth had won. "Alright, as of today that's your new position. No need to move to Hadley's old office. Your office is good enough."

Shocked at this turn of events, Booth nodded his head since he liked his office just fine. "Thank you Sir."

The meeting over as far as the Director was concerned, Ross stood up, walked over to where Booth was sitting and waited for the man to stand. After they shook hands, the Director shook his head. "Don't disappoint me Booth. If you and that partner of yours are unprofessional in the field, I will take your partnership away from you. Your partnership is on probation for the next six months. Don't fuck this up."

"No Sir." Booth watched the Director leave the room and then turned to face the Deputy Director." Will that be all, Sir?"

"You certainly came out smelling like roses." Deputy Director Bishop had known about the planned probation and the fact that it was just a way for the FBI to save face. The promotion had been talked about and Bishop knew that it had hinged on whether or not Booth was tempted to leave the FBI. "You have a case you're working on don't you? I'm late for lunch."

Booth took the hint and left.

Oooooooooooooooooooo

Entering the Lab, Booth walked jauntily to Brennan's office and found the office unoccupied. Moving over to the platform, he found his girlfriend standing next to a steel table, looking at a femur or something like that. After he was up on the platform, he called out to her. "Bones, we're good. The meeting turned out better than I thought it would."

Happy to see Booth and grateful for the good news, Brennan took her sterile gloves off and threw them in the bio-waste bin. "That's good to hear. Our partnership is still intact?"

"Yeah of course." Booth was so happy he wanted to grab Brennan up his arms and swing her around, but he knew that she would hate it and it would be unprofessional. "Oh and I got a raise and a promotion. You're looking at the new Assistant Special Agent in Charge. I'm in charge of Major Crimes."

Happy for Booth, Hodgins stood up from the small table he had been working at. "Hey man congratulations."

"Thanks." Booth glanced at Hodgins and smiled. "They had an opening they needed to fill."

Cam moved up the staircase and congratulated her friend. She had overheard the conversation while she was talking to a tech below the platform. "Congratulations, Booth."

Booth's grin made his face look beautiful and both Brennan and Cam felt their hearts flutter just a little bit. Brennan moved over to where Booth was standing and kissed him on the cheek much to the shock of Hodgins and Cam. "We can make our announcement then." When Booth nodded his head, Brennan turned to face her puzzled supervisor. "Booth and I are in a monogamous relationship. We have been for ten months. The FBI has given its approval. There are no non-fraternization rules here at the Jeffersonian, so there should be no difficulties about that."

Taken by surprise, Cam shook her head, thought it over for a few seconds and smiled. "Well congratulations you two. To say the least I am surprised, but anyway congratulations."

"Thanks Cam." Booth stood with his hands in his pockets and continued to smile. "You won't have to worry about our professionalism. Bones and I will be professional at crime scenes." Booth turned and lost his smile. "Bones, we're on probation for the next six months. If we behave in public then the FBI won't break up our partnership."

"Well that shouldn't be a problem since we've been very professional since we started having sex together." Brennan moved back to the steel table and placed a new pair of gloves on.

His eyes widened a little, but Booth wasn't really surprised. Brennan was blunt and he loved that about her, even if she did say things that embarrassed him sometimes. "Okay, well I have to head back to the Hoover. I'll see you this evening."

Brennan turned and smiled at her boyfriend. "Congratulations on your promotion Booth. It is well deserved."

Proud of his relationship and his promotion, Booth nodded his head and turned to move back to the staircase. "See you tonight Bones. We'll celebrate then."

Unable to wait any longer, once Booth was down the staircase, Hodgins took off his gloves, raced across the platform, down the staircase and practically flew towards Angela's office. "Angela! Angela you are never going to believe this!"

Oooooooooooooooooo

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