(Double Trouble in the Panhandle)

A/N: Remember my story is AU.

I don't own Bones.

Ooooooooooooooooooooo

Sweets had heard about the case that Booth was working on and decided that the Agent might need some advice, wanted or not. Making sure Booth was alone in his office, the psychologist straightened his tie and entered the room. "Agent Booth, I heard that you and Dr. Brennan are working on a case that involves circus people. I'd like to volunteer my expertise. "

Surprised with the offer, Booth smiled as he leaned back against his chair. "And what would a kid like you know about circus people. Going to circuses doesn't make you an expert you know."

Used to Booth's ways, Sweets ignored the mocking smile and sat down on the chair across from the agent's desk. "You may not know this, but I'm adopted. My birth mother was a psychic who worked the circus and carnival circuit in Florida. When I reached the age of my majority I tried to find her, but no one would talk to me. They're a close-knit group and they don't trust outsiders. I never could find out what had happened to her and they didn't care."

"A psychic huh . . . so what's your advice? I have the murder of two young women to solve." Booth pursed his lips. "If they're close lipped I may have to go undercover with Bones . . . If we're circus folk they might talk to us then."

Alarmed, Sweets started to protest. "They're going to know if you're an outsider. You don't even know the lingo."

As he rubbed his chin, Booth thought about his options. "We could do it . . . I could come up with an act. I just need to see if Bones is willing to do it."

A feeling of frustration growing in him, Sweets crossed his arms against his chest. "You won't get anywhere. You don't know anything about the circus."

"You know what Sweets, you can help." Booth leaned forward on his desk and glared at the younger man. "Instead of telling me that I can't do something, why don't you come up with reasons why I can do something. You say you've been around circuses, so we'll use your expertise. Bones and I will call you while we're undercover if we have any questions. If it works, great . . . if it doesn't work, well at least we tried. Those twin girls deserve justice and I'm going to try to give it to them."

"Fine, I'll be on call." Sweets still thought it was a mistake, but if Booth was determined to do it then so be it.

Ooooooooooooooooooooo

Their case didn't really work out the way they had thought it would and the victims turned out to have died in an accident. They hadn't been murdered at all. Still it gave closure to their family and that's what mattered to Booth and Brennan. Surprisingly, they'd had a lot of fun going undercover and they both agreed that they would definitely have to do that again.

Once they were back home, Booth invaded Sweet's office while he was in session and much to the psychologist's annoyance, his patient took one look at Booth, got up from the couch and left. "Agent Booth, I have office hours. Please do not barge in here and interrupt my sessions."

Ignoring the younger man's indignation, Booth tossed a manila envelope onto Sweets' lap, turned and left. If the boy wanted to be shitty with him, then Booth wasn't hanging around.

Very annoyed with Booth, Sweets was tempted to toss the envelope in to the trash, but thought better of it. Since he had over an hour before his next patient was scheduled, he opened the envelope and found ten sheets of paper inside. Curious he started to read them and soon found himself in a state of shock. Quickly reading through the pages, when he reached the last page, he found the most important piece of information at the bottom of the page and felt an overwhelming sadness wash over him. Unable to prevent them, he felt tears start to streak down his cheeks and heard himself sob. Sitting on his love seat for several minutes he let himself grieve knowing that he needed to do it for his mental health.

A half hour passed and finally the young man placed the papers back in the folder, stood up and grabbed some tissues from a box next to his couch. After he blew his nose several times and ran several clean tissues across his eyes and cheeks, he felt calmer. Checking his watch, he knew there was no way he could have a session with his next patient, so he placed the envelope on his desk, stepped outside his office and spoke to his receptionist. If she noticed his red blotchy face and red eyes, she chose to ignore them and started to call the three patients that were scheduled for that afternoon and rescheduled their appointments.

Since he didn't want to talk to Booth looking like a mess, Sweets walked down the hallway to the restroom, washed his face and the back of his neck and felt a little refreshed. Carefully combing his hair, he made sure he was presentable for his upcoming conversation with Seeley Booth.

Oooooooooooooooooooo

A quick knock on the door frame, Sweets entered Booth's office and closed the door behind him. Clearing his throat, he stared at the Agent in Charge for several seconds, not sure how to proceed.

Booth had known that Sweets would show up sooner or later, so he was prepared. "Come in, Sweets. Want to talk to me?"

"Uh yeah." For a few moments, Sweets stood by the door, frozen in place.

Certain he knew what the boy was going through, Booth tried to be patient. It wasn't every day that someone dropped a bomb on you and sometimes you had to deal with things whether you were prepared or not. "Want to sit down?"

Slowly nodding his head, Sweets walked over to Booth's desk and sat down facing the agent. "I read the papers."

"I figured."

"Yeah . . . how did you get that information? I've been looking for years?" Sweets was still stunned with what he had read and he was having a hard time concentrating.

Booth shrugged his shoulders. "I'm an FBI Agent. If I really want to know something I have ways of finding out. You don't really need to know who I got involved in finding that stuff out. You just need to know that it's authentic and you can trust what you read."

"I . . ." Sweets wasn't sure what he wanted to say. Maybe thank you? "Yeah, um, thank you for finding out for me. I've tried for a few years to find out what happened to my mother, but . . . anyway now I know. I guess I really am an orphan now. My adopted parents were old when they adopted me and they died right before I started working here. Now that I know that my mother is dead . . . I'm alone."

Sympathetic, Booth leaned forward on his desk and gave the younger man a rather sad smile. "You needed to know. I found the envelope on my desk this morning when I came in and after I read it, I thought you needed to know as soon as possible. I'm sorry for your loss, both for your biological mother and your adopted parents. It's tough to lose a parent."

"Your father is still alive . . . your mother walked away from her family when you were a kid and far as I know she's alive too." Sweets didn't seem to have control over anything he said. "At least you knew your real parents and you had a grandfather that loved you. I loved my adopted parents don't get me wrong and they loved me, but you still have a family and I don't, so you don't really know anything about losing a parent."

Not sure why he wasn't angry with the younger man, Booth decided that perhaps it was because the boy hadn't said anything that wasn't true. On the other hand, he couldn't let what Sweets said go unchallenged. "Yeah, having my parents in my life was great. I was beat by old man more times than I could count. What's a few broken bones here and there? The young heal quickly right? . . . and yes, it was great that my mother walked out on me and left me and Jared behind with a sadistic bastard. Lucky me, lucky us."

Embarrassed, Sweets realized that he had humiliated the older man after he had gone out of his way to actually help him. "I am so sorry Agent Booth. I don't know why I said those things . . . I wasn't thinking really . . . I just found out my mother is dead and I just . . . I didn't mean to say those things really . . . Thank you for finding out about my mother I do appreciate it. It was a great thing to do for me and I didn't mean to pay you back by being so mean to you . . . I'm sorry."

Booth could see that the youngster was upset for talking to him the way he had and he didn't see any reason to not forgive him. "Look we all say things we don't mean when we're given a shock. Just forget about it. I'm glad I could give you some closure."

Thankful for Booth's kindness, Sweets stood up and nodded his head. "Thank you."

"You're welcome." Booth watched the younger man move slowly over to the door and stopped him before he reached it. "You're not alone Sweets. You have friends, don't forget that . . . I haven't seen my father and mother since I was a child. As far as I'm concerned, they aren't part of my life, so they might as well as be dead. Yeah, my grandfather saved my life and took me and little brother in to his home and he raised us. We were loved, just like you were with your adopted parents . . . the thing to remember is you have to create your own family. I found Bones and we created our own family. You can do the same thing. You don't have to live in the past. I don't, Bones doesn't . . . well she does, but not the current past just the ancient past . . . You're young. You'll find someone someday to share a life with and you'll have a family that you can count on."

The agent's words were spoken softly and with sincerity which Sweets appreciated. It appeared that Booth had forgiven him for lashing out at him and was willing to help him. "Thank you. I'll remember that."

After the psychologist was out of the room, Booth sat back against his chair and sighed. He hadn't meant to talk to the boy about his parents and he knew that some of that stuff was in his personnel file, but it was something he didn't like to think about. He had learned as a young man it was better to live in the present than it was in the past. Sweets was going to have to learn that lesson on his own. He was young and it would take time, but he'd eventually get it.

In the meantime, Booth considered himself to be a lucky man. He had found someone that loved him and was willing to put up with his shit. He didn't need his parents and he was doing well without them. He knew that not everyone found their soul mate, but he had and he was eternally grateful.

Ooooooooooooooooooo

Let me know what you think of my story. I appreciate it.