A/N: Check it out, I'm updating earlier than I said I would. Oh yeah baby, I'm actually being punctual for once! Worship at my feet, little children, I kick ass!! Ok, maybe took that one a little far... In case any of you have forgotten, Nate just attacked Brennan and was about to shoot himself when Booth jumped in, the gun went off & Brennan went down. Which would be a big opps... Now on with the story (be warned, it's a long one...). Thanks for reading!

Even when he realised that the gun was pointing right at him, Booth couldn't stop running towards it. He wouldn't have even if he was able to. His partner was lying on the ground, bleeding her last, and it was all Nate's fault.

No it's not Booth, it's yours. If you hadn't pushed him…

Ignoring the voice in the back of his mind, he swung an arm up as he charged forward, knocking the gun out of Nate's hand before he could do any more damage. Swinging his other arm around, he used his elbow to deal a swift blow to his former mentor's face as the momentum of his charge kept them both going.

His rage at boiling point, Booth grabbed Nate by the throat and slammed him on to the hood of the car behind him.

His grip tightening to the point his knuckles were turning white, Booth kept on squeezing.

This is all Nate's fault, all of it. First he hooks up with Katie in Quantico to kill anyone they please, then he turns up at the lab to terrorise Angela and now he's shot Bones. He deserves everything he gets, the son of a bitch.

Gasping for air, Nate clawed at Booth's hand but he was too weak to do any real damage. His eyes wide and increasingly bloodshot, he stared up at his protégé with such intense fear that it scared even Booth.

It scared him because he saw himself in Nate's eyes, he saw the man he was on the verge of becoming.

I'm not a killer, not like that. In the Army, I was doing my job, I was protecting people. Hundreds of people lived because I took out a select few. It was war. This is… This is just revenge. This is wrong. He's the killer, not me.

He loosened his grip but as Nate gasped for air like a fish out of water, Booth still held him down.

But you're the one who got your partner shot, Booth. You're the one who really hurt her.

Swallowing hard, he reached around behind him, grabbing the handcuffs from his belt. Snapping them over Nate's shaking wrists, Booth finally released his grip on the former agent's neck.

"You make one move and I swear to God I'll kill you."

Nate just nodded, his raspy breath echoing round the parking lot as Booth retrieved both their guns and deftly pocketed them.

Somewhere in the distance he could hear shouting and the pounding of feet but he barely even noticed. In front of him, he was facing his worst nightmare, the image that had woken him in a cold sweat on more nights than he could count.

Oh God, I'm losing her…

Falling to his knees, he clutched his partner's hand for dear life, gently stroking her hair out of her face and away from the angry red bump to the side of her head.

"Temperance?"

She was barely breathing, her chest rising and falling hardly at all. The fear in Booth's gut threatened to take control as he stared down at her, the woman he loved more than anything in the world. The woman he had always loved, even before he knew her.

Carefully applying pressure to the wound in her abdomen with one hand, he still kept a firm grip on her with the other, letting his fingers intertwine with hers even though they were both now slick with blood.

The tears welling up, he was vaguely aware of someone nearby yelling for an ambulance and the chatter of frightened voices. He couldn't hear what they were saying, he didn't care.

"Temperance, can you hear me? Squeeze my hand if you can, ok? Come on, squeeze my hand…"

He stared down at their interlocking fingers, waiting for a sign he feared would never come. Swallowing back the tears, he tried to keep his voice steady for her sake. In case she could hear him, he didn't want to scare her.

"Temperance, please, come back…"

Still, he got no response. He felt a hand on his shoulder but he jerked himself free of it.

Whatever they want, they can wait. I can't leave her, not like this.

Desperation began to overtake his fear.

"Bones?"

His voice cracked with the emotions that raged within him, the fear, the anger, the guilt, all ready to burst.

"Bones, come back to me…"

His voice was barely above a whisper as he felt the hand on his shoulder again, pulling him away. But nothing in the world could take him from that spot, nothing but her.

Leaning over his partner, he prayed to the God he was well aware she didn't believe in, prayed that He would save her, that He would protect her where he himself could not.

Protect her? That's a joke. I'm the reason she's lying here now. I might as well have pulled the trigger myself.

Biting back the tears, he squeezed her hand tight.

"Please? Oh God, please don't do this! Brennan, come on! You've gotta come back. What am I gonna tell Angela, huh? And Zach? What am I going to do?"

He didn't care who was watching or listening around him, just as long as she could hear him. It had taken him over two years to say the things he really needed to say and now he was about to, he was ashamed of nothing.

"What will I do if you leave me, huh? What the hell would I do? You can't do this to me, not now, not ever! We're partners, Temperance, we're not supposed to do things without each other. You can't leave me… Please… You just can't…"

His breath hitched in his chest as he realised just how much he needed her to stay, how much she really meant to him.

"Bones, you're everything to me. Everything. Without you… God, I can't even imagine being without you. So don't do this to me. You've always been a fighter, don't quit on me now. Who else is going to tell me when I'm being an alpha male, or make fun of my socks, or follow me around begging for a gun, or listen to my jokes and pretend like they're funny? Who's going to be there when I really need someone to talk to, someone who'll just listen and won't judge me? Someone who understands me, who understands what I want and what I need. I want you Temperance, I need you. I always have. Because… Because I love you."

He didn't notice the tears rolling down his cheeks, he couldn't feel the eyes on him from the concerned FBI agents all around, he couldn't feel their sympathy. None of that mattered. Not to him, not then.

"You're my Bones, I need you. Please, just open your eyes. Wake up and call me a typically overprotective alpha male with anger issues or whatever the hell you want, just wake up. Ok, Bones? Just do that for me, please. Ok? Open your eyes now, open your eyes…"

This time, Booth didn't shrug off the hand on his shoulder. He didn't know how to. He was numb to everything but the cold hand grasped within his own.

I've lost her…

As Cullen crouched down beside him, his hand gently squeezing his agent's shoulder, Booth couldn't bring himself to look away from his partner.

"Seeley, I'm so sorry."

Sirens echoed through the parking structure as the ambulance finally arrived. Booth just clutched on to her hand, refusing to let her go.

"No, she can't… She wouldn't give up, not her, not Brennan."

He felt the strength of Cullen's gaze weighing heavy on him so turned to meet his eyes. What he found there wasn't just sympathy or remorse, it was understanding.

He's lost the girl he loved too. His daughter. Her pain was done to her, it was a crime, just like this… He understands.

Booth opened his mouth to speak but no words came out. There was nothing he could possibly say in that moment, nothing to describe the emptiness he felt. Cullen just nodded slowly, gently patting his shoulder.

"You've just got to let her go, Booth. I'm sorry but you've got to."

He shook his head, clutching her hand all the tighter as he kissed her forehead gently. Behind him, Cullen's solemn voice carried with it the weight of the world.

"I'm sorry Booth but it's too late. She's gone."

oo00oo

Temperance Brennan felt warm, strangely warm.

It was almost as if she was being smothered in an enormous duvet while still drifting somewhere between being asleep and awake.

Asleep… Am I asleep right now?

She couldn't resist the smile pulling at her lips as she began to realise just how calm she felt. She was completely at peace with herself, with the world, with everything.

She was happy.

I must be asleep…

Slowly, Brennan managed to tear her eyes open and stare up in to the bluest sky she had ever seen, its only blemish the faint wisp of a cloud sailing past above her head.

How did I get here?

Hang on, where exactly is here anyway…?

She sat up quickly, feeling the coolness of the grass underneath her and turning her head to see how far the green spread around her. She winced at the sudden movement, a hand gingerly feeling the slight lump on the side of her head. It was sore and incredibly tender, sending a searing pain through her entire body as the pads of her fingers brushed against it.

With the pain came a flash, an image, a sense of unease. For the briefest of moments, she saw a dank and dreary concrete structure in front of her as clear as day, but it disappeared as quickly as it had come.

I'm not supposed to be here…

The warmth of the afternoon sun hanging heavy in the sky melted away the queasiness which the image brought with it, the beauty of the world around her all but silencing the nagging little voice in the back of her mind.

This isn't right. I'm not supposed to be here.

Slowly, she clambered to her feet, taking in deep breaths of the fresh country air. Stretching out her languid limbs, she winced at the sudden pain in her abdomen. Her hands instinctively flying to the affected area, she looked down to examine what was wrong. As the throb in her stomach reached an aching crescendo, Brennan got another flash.

She was still staring down at her stomach but now it was a deep red, the vibrant colour providing a stark contrast to the solemn greys around her. Someone was standing over, someone who sent a shiver down her spine.

Blinking rapidly, the image faded away again, leaving the anthropologist finding herself standing amidst the most incredible natural beauty she had ever seen. A slow smile spreading across her lips, she turned her face to the sun, letting its warmth wash over her and sweep away the vestiges of fear left from the strange image in her mind.

This is all just too perfect. I'm not supposed to be here.

Somewhere not too far away, a voice was calling to her. Spinning around, she stared into a forest of green hues, the branches swaying in the gentle breeze. She took a tentative step forward, one hand still covering the sore area in her abdomen.

"Hello?"

This is wrong, this is all wrong…

Another flash came, this time of two blurry figures colliding and fighting in front of her. She couldn't make out who they were before the image faded but they seemed incredibly familiar.

Closing her eyes, she sighed heavily as she tried to drive the fuzzy pictures from her head.

What the hell is going on?

Again, she heard someone calling her name. Swallowing hard, she took another step towards the trees.

"Hello? Is someone there?"

Still the voice called to her, though she couldn't make out what it was saying. Stepping forward, a growing sense of unease surged through her veins. It was almost as if with every step she took closer to the forest, the darker and more foreboding it became.

"Who's there? Show yourself!"

There was something familiar in that voice, its warm tones soothing her jagged emotions.

"Temperance, please, come back…"

This isn't right… That voice…

"Come back where? Where am I supposed to be?"

She was almost at the edge of the forest now, its long shadow sending a chill through her every muscle.

"Bones… Bones? Please, come back to me…"

Brennan froze on the spot.

Booth… Booth's calling for me…

She looked back over her shoulder at the beauty behind her, the sun warming everything it touched. Turning back to face the ominous forest looming over her, she felt cold and clammy, the throb in her stomach getting worse and worse the closer she got.

But Booth's in there, I can hear him. He needs me. I'm his partner. That's what I do. That's why I can't stay here.

Swallowing back the fear and apprehension, Brennan held her head high and jutted out her jaw in a gesture of defiance as she marched in to the threatening forest.

Where ever Booth is, that's where I need to be…

That's where I'll always be.

oo00oo

"I'm sorry Booth but it's too late. She's gone."

Cullen's words echoed in Booth's ears as he stared down at his partner.

She's always complained when I've tried to protect her, always said that she was perfectly fine on her own. I guess she was right. All this time I've been trying to be the big hero and protect her from all the crazies when the very person I should have been protecting her from was right here. I should have protected her from me.

I did this. This is my fault. I killed her.

With a shaking hand, he carefully brushed away the loose tendrils of her hair, desperate to hang on to her for even just a second longer. Clutching her hand to his breast, he kissed her fingers and closed his eyes as his silent sobs rocked him to and fro.

"Booth…"

With his eyes still closed, he froze. It seemed like even his heart had stopped beating. Slowly, he raised his head, furiously blinking back tears as he found himself staring in to the most beautiful blue eyes he'd ever seen.

"Bones?"

Oh my God, she's alive, she's ok!

She smiled, though it obviously took her a lot of effort.

"I heard you."

The grin spreading from ear to ear, Booth squeezed her hand as he leaned forward to hear her better.

"Yeah?"

"Yeah. You were telling me to come back, right?"

He couldn't shake the grin off.

I don't think I've ever been as happy as I am right now.

"Yeah, I sure was."

Her smile widened and despite the pain she was obviously in, she raised her arm to cup his face in her hand.

"You didn't really think I was going to just leave, did you? You can't get rid of me that easily, Booth. We're partners. You're stuck with me…"

Laughing heartily, he took both her hands in his own and he kissed her on the forehead, on the cheek, on the tip of her nose. His face hovering barely inches above hers, he flashed her his biggest charm smile.

"Well Bones, that's just the way I like it."

Without a second thought, he kissed her full on the lips. Feeling her tense up beneath him, he backed away, just like he always did, just like how he always hid how he really felt.

But seeing her delicate features scrunched up in pain, none of that mattered.

"Bones, what is it?"

Her eyes screwed shut, she let out a long breath through gritted teeth. Slowly, she opened her eyes but only to glare up at him.

"You do remember I've been shot, right?"

With a sheepish grin, he shuffled back, waving over the paramedics as they weaved through the parked cars.

"Yeah, well, it's not like you're ever gonna let me forget it, are you?"

Despite the pain, she grinned at him, their hands still clutching on to each other for dear life.

"Well, I think this proves just how much I need a gun in my line of work…"

Somewhere behind them, Booth heard Cullen snort with laughter.

"She never quits, does she?"

Booth didn't take his eyes off her, swearing to himself he never would again.

"No, she never does."

Thank God…

A/N: I know it was a long one kids so thanks for bearing with me. I was going to split it in two but then it would have ended the chapter after Booth basically says goodbye and I didn't really fancy being killed by you lot... Oh, and apparantly the link wasn't working to the Top 5 videos so if you go to my profile page, it's on there. Thanks to everyone for voting, and for reading this. You're all ace.