A/N: as a little girl, I loved the story of the ponies that live on Assateague and Chincoteague Islands in Maryland and Virginia, so I had to add them to this story.

It was a warm summer's day as Booth drove the SUV south down the Maryland coast toward Assateague Island. The family had a full day of activities planned for the excursion, and Christine was chattering excitedly about their upcoming adventures.

"Mommy, are we really gonna get to see the wild horses? That's so exciting. I love horses. I wish we could have a horse. Maybe we can buy one here. Daddy, did you know they have a horse auction here every year? Maybe we can buy a baby horse and then it can grow up and I can ride it. That would be so much fun. Can we get a horse, Mommy? Please?"

Waving a toy horse in the air, Hank squealed with delight. "Wanna horthy, Mama. Wanna horth."

"As I'm sure you realize, Christine, our neighborhood is not zoned for livestock nor large farm animals. Perhaps when we get home after our trip we can investigate the possibility of riding lessons. You might like dressage." Brennan turned to smile at her daughter. "However, horses are very expensive to maintain, so learning to ride a horse is expensive. I think you'll need to think of a way to earn some money if you'd like to have some lessons so that you can help pay for them. I'm afraid Hank will have to wait a few years before he can learn to ride."

Booth grinned at his son in the rear view mirror. "That's okay, isn't it, buddy? We don't want to learn sissy riding anyway. Me and you are gonna be cowboys, right, Hank?"

"Cowboys, Daddy. Wanna be cowboys." Hank laughed happily as his daddy sang Happy Trails to You. "Wanna horth, Daddy."

"Yeah, I know you want a horse, Tiger, but you heard Mommy. We don't have room for a horse, but we're gonna see a lot of horses today, okay?" Booth smiled as he turned to his wife. "So you know where we're going, right?"

"Yes. It's only a twenty minute drive to the visitor's center. We can look around there for a few minutes before we take the boat tour. After the tour we can look for shells and swim for a bit before we set up our camp." Brennan checked the GPS on her phone. "It should be up here on the right."

Because it was the middle of the week, there were fewer visitors than normal at the nature center. The woman at the information desk made sure that Christine and Hank had coloring books and postcards to help them remember their day at the Assateague National Seashore. "Here you go...here's an identification chart to tell you what kind of shells you might find.", she said, handing the paper to Brennan. "A lot of the shells might be broken, but occasionally you can find some nice ones. You might also find some crabs, so be careful."

Brennan chuckled as she pointed to Christine's bandage. "I think she's already learned that lesson."

After a few minutes of looking around, it was time to check in for their boat tour. The pontoon boat had a broad, flat deck with seating for several people. Hank and Christine were buckled into their life jackets, and it was time to go look for Assateague's wild horses.

The large boat cruised slowly through Chincoteague Bay, looking in all the nooks and crannies of the barrier island for places where the wild horses might be hiding. Suddenly the tour guide pointed to his left. "There they are…"

A group of seven horses were grazing peacefully, seeming to be unconcerned by the intrusion of the two legged animals staring at them. There were two foals in the group, frisking as they followed their mothers from one patch of grass to another.

Speaking softly, the guide explained the local legends about how the horses got to Assateague. One story was that they came from Spanish galleons that had been destroyed by the fickle Atlantic weather. The other legend was that English settlers hid their horses on the island to avoid paying taxes on them.

"Mommy, look at the spots on that one." Christine pointed to a large paint horse. "It looks like that horse is wearing a brown jacket."

"Those markings are quite unusual, aren't they?" Brennan chuckled as the horses became inquisitive. "I think the horses are going to come look at us like we're looking at them."

The group of horses ambled over to see their visitors but soon lost interest when they realized they weren't getting anything to eat.

"Mommy...I can almost touch that one…", Christine whispered.

"They are very close. Oh, look at Daddy...he wants to take a picture of you and the horse."

Hank, in the meantime, had decided that maybe he didn't like horses after all. Put off by the snorting, neighing, and head bobbing of the large animals, he clung to his mother's leg as he tried to hide from them. "Don't wanna horth, Mama."

"It's okay, Hank.", Brennan chuckled. "They won't hurt you. They're just curious about us like we are about them."

Still unsure, Hank peeked around his mother's leg, watching as a large horse sniffed at the boat's canopy. "Big horth, Mama. Is he hungry?"

"Maybe, Hank, but horses eat plant materials, not people. See? The captain is giving the horses some apples." Brennan smiled at her son. "Horses are nice, Hank."

The tour continued, and the visitors saw several herds of wild horses, as well as dolphins and a wide variety of shorebirds. Watching the scenery go by as the boat moved around the bay, Booth put his arm around his wife. "This was a great idea, Bones. Christine will get to see a lot of horses this way."

"It's peaceful being out on the boat, letting someone drive as we watch for animals and enjoy the scenery." Brennan leaned against her husband, smiling as their children laughed at the antics of the dolphins who came up to the water's surface. "Perhaps it's nice to let others be in charge for awhile."

"I'm gonna remember that, Bones." Booth grinned as he gave his wife a kiss. "Next time we have an argument, I'm gonna remind you that sometimes it's good for someone else to be in charge."

"It doesn't have to be a bad thing. There are other situations when I like to have someone else to be in charge." Squeezing his thigh, she gave him a flirty wink. "Too bad we're going to be sleeping in a tent with the children tonight. I guess we'll have to wait until tomorrow night to prove that axiom to be true."

Groaning softly, Booth wondered if he needed to change his plans for the sleeping arrangements that evening, but Hank had been thrilled with the idea of living in a tent for a day. "Okay, we'll wait until tomorrow night...but then we can take turns being in charge, okay?"

Oooooooooo

After a day of looking for horses and playing in the warm ocean water, it was time to settle down for the evening. Booth pulled the SUV up to the ranger station at the Assateague National Seashore campground area so he could pay the entry fee, and soon the family was driving around the grounds looking for a suitable site.

Pulling up to a level spot, Booth got out and looked around. "I think maybe this'll be a good place. It's not far from the outhouses, but it's up wind of them so we won't catch the smell." Grinning as he parked the car, he handed Christine the tag for the stake. "Go put this on that big piece of wood out there so everyone knows this is our spot, okay? Then you and I can unload the truck while Mommy and Hank make our sandwiches.

"Okay." After running to put the card on the stake, the little girl came back to the truck with smile on her face. "Can I help you put the tent stakes in, Daddy?"

"We'll see. They're kinda big, and I have to use a big hammer. I think it would be better if you hold the tent stakes and then hand them to me. That way they won't get lost." Seeing her disappointment, Booth gave his daughter a pat on the shoulder. "You'd have to keep track of the number to tell me if I got them all in the ground. It's a big job. Do you think you can do it?"

Christine stood with her hands on her hips, glaring at her father. "Of course. I'm seven years old, Daddy. I can count to a thousand if I need to."

"Well, I hope we don't have to hammer in that many stakes." He grinning at his miniature Bones, he handed her a long slender canvas bag. "See if you can drag this bag to that flat spot over there, and then we can start putting up the tent. I'll carry the cots over since they're heavier."

Hank watched the tent raising with great interest as he munched on some veggie chips. "Wanna sleep in the tent, Daddy."

"Me and Sissy have to put it up first, okay?" After studying the large canvas square, Booth held his hand over his eyes and squinted toward the ocean. "Okay. I want the doors of the tent to face east and west so the sea breezes can come through and cool the tent this evening..."

Brennan seemed to forget all about letting someone else be in charge as she watched her husband and daughter set up the tent. "I really think it makes more sense for the side of the tent to face the east. If there's too much wind, it might lift the tent off the stakes and blow it away."

Booth grimaced at his wife. "Who's the Ranger around here? I've lived in lots of tents over my Army career, and I know how to pitch a tent."

"And who's the one who understands aerodynamics, Booth? You've said yourself that you have only a rudimentary understanding of physics…" Brennan glared at her husband. "I want to make sure we have an adequate shelter to sleep in tonight."

"Just trust me, Bones, okay? I've spent a lot of time in tents, and I know what I'm doing."

"I believe you, Booth, but I'm not sure your time in Afghanistan has prepared you for the differential heating of the land and the ocean, which causes the formation of strong sea breezes after the sun sets and the water releases its heat which it has stored during the day."

"What? Do you really think I understand all that sciencey mumbo jumbo? I'm just going with my experience here, okay? Just trust me on this. I know what I'm doing when it comes to setting up a tent. So me and Christine are gonna handle this, and you and Hank can make us some sandwiches." Pulling one of the corners away from the tent, Booth turned to his daughter. "Hand me a stake, Sweetheart…"

Oooooooooo

It was late in the evening, and the children were tired. After playing in the sand around the tent and roasting marshmallows, it was time to go to sleep. Booth had set up a lantern inside the large six person tent, shining it on the four cots set up inside. "Okay, so Daddy will sleep on this end and Mommy will sleep on that end, and the kids will sleep in the middle so they don't go wandering off in the middle of the night without us knowing about it. Does anyone need to go to the bathroom first? Okay, good. I'm gonna pull back the tent flap and zip the fly on this side, and Mommy, you do that side...good. Alright, everyone...night-night...sleep tight."

"...and don't let the sand fleas bite…", Brennan giggled.

"Right. Okay, now, go to sleep. The sun will wake us up early tomorrow."

"Did you lock the car?"

Booth held up the keys and hit the button, making the SUV's horn beep. "Yeah. Good night."

Gentle breezes wafted through the zippered screen for the first few hours as the family slept, cooling the warm stuffy air inside the tent to a more comfortable temperature. As the night wore on, however, the winds became increasingly stronger. Soon the tent was pulling against its stakes as it was lifted up by the wind whipping through. Finally one of the stakes holding an outer corner of the tent popped out of the sand, causing the side of the tent to flap in the breeze.

Frustrated and not a little irritated by the fact that his wife might actually be right, Booth grabbed the lantern and the hammer so he could pound the stake back into the sand. He nodded with satisfaction as it held for a few minutes, only to have the stake on the opposite corner pull loose.

Cursing to himself, he pounded the rest of the stakes in thoroughly, making sure they would hold, only to have one of the poles supporting the top of the tent give way in the wind. He tried to grab the top of the tent to keep it from collapsing, when the other pole gave way. Picking the poles up, he tried to insert them into the flanges sewn into the top of the tent, but the top of the tent refused to hold still long enough for him to support it so he could stick the ends of the pole back into the sand.

"Booth...Booth, what are you doing? Why is the tent falling down?" Brennan sat up on her cot, holding the tent up with her arm. "Booth?"

Puffing out an aggravated sigh, Booth threw the tent poles aside. "Okay, everybody out of the tent." He pointed his key fob at the SUV, unlocking it. "We're sleeping in the car tonight."

Booth and Brennan helped Hank and Christine out of the tent and carried them to the truck. After reclining the seats, Booth rolled down the windows part way and the family managed to go back to sleep for a few hours.

After a breakfast of cereal early the next morning, Booth set the tent back up. "Okay, kids...you can play in the tent for a few hours before we go back to the beach house…"

Parking himself in a nearby folding chair, Booth crossed his arms over his chest and settled down to have a good pout.

"What's wrong, Booth?" Brennan pulled a chair up next to him. "The children are having fun playing in the tent. They seem to be enjoying it immensely."

"I know, but we would've had more fun if we'd gotten a good night's sleep in the tent first." Booth studied his fingernails. "I guess maybe I should listen to my wife once in awhile…"

"Perhaps." She patted his arm. "But, as I recall, I don't always listen to you very well, either." She laughed at his annoyed expression. "I didn't want to come to the beach house at first, but as it turns out we're having a wonderful time. I think maybe we're just so used to thinking for ourselves that we don't listen well to others."

"Yeah, you got that right." Booth chuckled as he shook his head. "What a pair…"

"Yes, we are, aren't we?" Brennan laughed as she bent over to kiss her husband. "Let's go back to the beach house. I need a nap."

Booth arched his eyebrow at Brennan. "I do, too...eventually…"