Title: Small Favors
Rating: Still PG
Disclaimer: I own nothing, no money is being made for anything at all.
Authors Note: Thanks to all reviewers, I heart you all.
Chapter Three: Sub for Santa
Her alarm clock went off at five forty five, as usual. She opened her eyes and was a little disorientated, looking at the boy who was sound asleep next to her.
Carefully she slid out of her bed, grabbing her clothes for the day and she quietly got into the shower. As the warm water began to wake her up more fully, she began to realize that she was making a habit out of breaking habits. Instead of her usual eight minute shower, she took a fifteen minute shower. She had a feeling that today, being Christmas Eve, wasn't going to be normal.
Wrapping a towel around her slim frame, she opened the door to check on Parker. He still had his head on her pillow, a small smile on his face. With a sigh, she returned to the bathroom, quickly running through her morning routine before carefully placing a coat, gloves, socks and shoes on the boy. Making sure she had a change of clothes and his backpack, she carried him out to the SUV.
She arrived at the Jeffersonian at 8:24 am, having to pick up her assistant on her way, she was thrown out of her habit by twenty four minutes. Putting the car in park she turned to her sleeping assistant, shaking him gently. "Zack."
"I'm awake." he said clearly unsure of where he was.
She got out and carefully lifted the sleeping child from the car seat. She headed towards the lab with Zack in tow. Upon reaching the elevators, Angela met them carrying a box of donuts.
"Aw how cute." She said about Parker asleep, head on her best friends shoulder. "He's such an angel."
Brennan's face grew into a smile. "That he is."
"Do you know when Booth will be back?" asked the artist, ruffling the blond hair. Zack pushing the elevator button, it immediately opening. The trio stepped inside.
"He called last night, he said it should be later today." Answered Brennan. "He is supposed to call later."
"Oh. What are you supposed to do with Parker? Don't you have that meeting with the Department of Eurasian Artifacts." asked Angela, they exited the elevator and continued to make their way towards the lab.
"Booth said just to let him play his game and have you and Zack check up on him." She explained, gaining nods from her staff. She reached her office and she layed the boy on her couch, taking off his coat and boots, she covered him with a blanket.
Angela watched, sitting on one of the consultation chairs, with a smile on her face. "You may not believe me, but motherhood suits you." She commented. Brennan didn't say anything, as she sat at her desk. "I'm serious sweetie."
Brennan looked at her best friend, still unsure of what to say. "I haven't got a clue as to what I'm doing, Angela."
"Its because its natural to you." Said Angela. Brennan was still confused, yet another habit she was forming. "There is an anthropological reason for woman to feel that they must care for the young."
She was using her words against her, damn her, even though it wasn't all anthropologically correct. Angela still had a point. "I don't know, Angela. Who would really want to bring a child into the world after all that we see?"
"Sweetie, I understand that your confused. This child, and don't forget his gorgeous father, has turned your world upside down. You would travel to Hell and back for him. . . ."
"Of course I would." She said, interrupting the artist. "He would do the same for me."
"Yes he would, sweetie. And that is why the two of you. . . " She was interrupted again.
"Dr. Brennan." Came Parkers voice, she gave a sigh-saved by the small one.
"Good morning, Parker." Responded Brennan, standing up and kneeling next to the boy. "Did you sleep alright?"
He nodded, and took in his surroundings. "Where are we?" He asked.
"We are at the Jeffersonian. I've got to go to a meeting, Angela is going to stay with you until I get back." Said the doctor, ruffling his hair. "Then we can go on a tour."
Again he nodded excitedly, and Brennan went back to her normal height. She grabbed her blue lab coat and left the office.
Angela looked at the boy with a smile on her face. "Ok, Parker. Let's have some fun."
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At the end of an hour, Parker sat contently on Angela's couch drawing, fully dressed. Angela was at her desk, working on her latest project as her cell phone began to ring. Looking at the ID screen, she answered it. "Booth, sweetie."
"Hi Angela. Do you know where Bones is?" He asked, sounding upset on the other line.
"She's still in her meeting. What's wrong?" Her grin started to fade, and she began to prepare for the worst.
"The earliest flight I can get is at midnight, with a layover in Boston." He said. "I won't get here until 3:20."
"I'm sorry, sweetie." She said with sympathy, knowing how important spending Christmas with his son meant to him. "Couldn't you go federal on anyone for an earlier flight?"
"I did, it got me the midnight flight." He gave an angry sigh.
"Do you want to talk to Parker?" She said, matching his sigh. She handed the phone to the boy.
"Daddy!" he said excitedly, Angela watched as his smile faded and tears began to well up in his eyes, as his father tried to explain his situation. The boy said nothing, but disappointment filled the room. "Alright Daddy." He handed the phone back to Angela, and returned to his seat, trying not to cry.
"Seeley?" She asked.
"I'm here. It was supposed to be our first Christmas together." said Booth who was fighting his emotions as well.
"Is there anything I can do?" she was heartbroken for her friend, who happened to be infatuated with her best friend.
"Just tell Bones to call me when she gets a chance."
"I will dear." and he hung up, normally she'd be offended, but it was of special circumstances. She sat her phone down and looked at the boy.
Luckily for her, Brennan stepped in the door. "They are setting up a skeleton that I need authenticate." Despite her lack of knowledge on the emotions of a five year old, her maternal instincts kick in. "What's wrong?"
The dam broke, and Parker's tears began to fall with full force, he ran to her. She responded by picking him up, he was crying on her shoulder. It was the first time, she could remember, the boy crying.
Angela gave her a sad smile. "Booth called, he wasn't able to get a flight until really late."
She nodded and turned her attention to the sobbing boy. "Its alright, Parker."
"Daddy promised me that we would spend Christmas together." He cried, face red and streaks of tears running down his face.
"Parker, you dad loves you very much. He tells me that all the time." She started. "He would do anything to be here tonight, if he could, and I know he has done everything thing he can to get the flight he has."
"But he promised." He repeated.
"I know Parker, and he is really upset that he broke his promise to you." She said softly. The boy was fighting to comprehend the meaning of it all. "That means you and I get to spend Christmas Eve together."
Angela smiled from behind the two. Realizing that it only took a child to bring the spirit of Christmas to Temperance Brennan.
The boy didn't know what to think about her proposition. "What about Santa Claus? He won't know where I am. Mommy took me to see him and I told him that I was spending Christmas with daddy."
Brennan didn't know what to say to the boys inquiry, Angela stepped in. "Santa always knows where you are." She said as Brennan sat the boy onto his feet, he immediately went back to his drawing. "Wait here Parker, I need to have a word with Dr. Brennan." The two woman walked out of the office. "That was sweet of you Bren."
"What I only calmed him down." She responded, her cheeks turning red.
"You put aside your beliefs on this holiday, to make that little boy happy." She said, and Brennan got an idea.
"I need you help." She said firmly, it was a moment to savor, it wasn't every day that she asked help from her best friend.
"Anything."
"I need your help making Christmas." She said, then started to ramble. "I don't know where to start. . ."
"Of course sweetie." Angela smiled, not a year ago the two of them were laying on the floor in her office, the roles reversed. "I will help you, but do you have a plan?"
"While I give him the tour, I'll give you money to go get a couple of gifts that little boys like and a tree, with the lights and decorations." She said nervously. Angela had to admit that her friend had a knack for knowing when to step in and help, and she never did it without falling. "Take Zack with you, he should know what preschool age boys like. I'll even let you drive Booth's SUV."
"You had me at shopping sweetie." She had a grin on her face, as the Director of Eurasian Artifacts came up to the pair, expecting Brennan's full attention that she wasn't prepared to give to the man. "Go play with your bones, I'll take care of everything."
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Another hour passed and Brennan was hunched over a table trying to figure where and when the skeleton came from. Basic knowledge of the field told her that it was a man about thirty-three. She was told that he came from the early sixteenth century, found near Norway. The apparent cause of death was undefined. The fact of the matter was: she was bored.
As she began do figure out the particular cause of death, little footsteps coming from Angela's office neared her.
"Dr. Brennan, Dr. Brennan! Look what Angela let me wear." He said excitedly, running towards the working woman, wearing a matching blue lab coat accompanied with the words P. Booth written on medical tape, in Angela's fancy writing."
"Wow, don't you look great." She said, looking up from the skeleton.
Parker blushed. "What are you doing?" He was on his tip toes trying to get a look at the body.
"I am trying to figure out who this guy is." She said, picking up the boy and setting him on his chair to give him a better view. He stood up to get a better look at the bones. "He lived over five hundred years ago."
Parker was intrigued by it. "What's his name?" Innocent enough.
"He doesn't have a name yet, you can give him a name if you want." She said with a smile.
The boy thought hard about the man on the table, and a smile came to his face. "Rupert." He said officially.
"Rupert? Alright." She said softly.
"What's that?" He asked pointing to a random part of the bones. She began to explain the bone structure of the human body.
As she did so, Angela watched the pair. Grabbing her camera, she took a picture of Brennan telling the boy her knowledge of the human structure and Parker watching her with interest. She turned to her office and loaded the picture onto the computer. She sent it to Booth's cell phone caption of Booth and Brennan, hoping it would make him feel better.
Angela returned to the table, Brennan and Parker were standing at. "Sweetie, I'm going to go out. Can I borrow the SUV?" She asked, speaking in code, hoping Brennan would catch on. Holding her breath, she was handed the keys.
The two waved as Angela left, taking a confused Zack with her.
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It was three hours when Angela returned and being the person she was, she stopped at Brennan's apartment to 'hide' the gifts for her, and set up the Christmas tree, which stood waiting to be decorated. Returning back to the lab, her cell phone rang.
Again it was Booth. "Sweetie, did you get my picture?" It was an obvious question.
"Yes, that boy is amazing sometimes." He said, she knew he was smiling. "But I do worry that he's going to become a squint, with Bones' influence."
Angela laughed, "I know, that boy just loves her. Despite her constant phrase that she isn't good with children, she is quite amazing."
"I know." said Booth softly. Throughout their partnership, she was always the one who got the children to talk to her. He didn't know if it was her experience in the foster care system or if it was a natural maternal instinct. Yet she still denied her ability and didn't want children. Maybe this time with his son would change her mind, fingers crossed.
She knew what was on his mind. "Well I've got to go, she's got to take your son back and decorate a Christmas tree."
"A Christmas tree? Bones doesn't celebrate Christmas." He said, slowly.
"No, but she believes in you. She bringing Christmas for Parker, because she knows how important it is for you." Explained Angela.
"I don't know what to say." Said Booth. "Listen Angela, I found another flight to D.C. which leaves at eleven and will land at Andrews Air Force Base at one thirty."
"You used your military privilege?" She asked, he was desperate to get home.
"Yeah, now I want it to be a surprise for them." He said, mischievously.
"I'll pick you up and you can surprise her." She said, he was about to comment about military access, when she beat him to it. "Don't worry, my mother was in the navy, I've got clearance."
"Thanks Angela."
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Angela gave back the SUV to Brennan, with instructions as to where the presents were hidden, and she left. Twice in two days before seven, habits were becoming a thing of the past.
She made it back to her apartment, as the boy watched contently out the window in the back seat. She was smiling, they had barely made it through the museum because of the hour they spent going over 'Rupert'.
They reached the apartment, it was quarter to five, traffic was horrible. Opening her apartment door, the sight of a ten foot Christmas tree stood in the corner of her apartment. His eyes lit up. "Where did this come from?"
And she responded, a non-Brennan comment. "Magic. Now lets decorate it." Opening a box of white lights as he opened a box of ornaments.
Lifting the boy, they strung the lights on first, followed by the ornaments. She sat on her couch watching him carefully place them on the fake pine tree. Her cell phone began to ring.
"Hello?" She didn't look at the ID.
"Merry Christmas, Bones" Said the voice, playfully.
"Hey, Booth." She said, her smile growing bigger. She wasn't going to say that she didn't believe in Christmas, in front of the boy.
"How are things going?" He asked.
"Things are going great, just about to make dinner." She said, standing up and going into the kitchen. "How about you?"
"Good, but eating Pizza Hut on Christmas Eve, isn't my idea of a great way to spend the holiday." He said with a chuckle.
"How about you talk to your son, that'd make you feel better." She asked.
"Yes, but thank you Bones for all that you've done for me this week. It means the world to me."
"Its been my pleasure, Booth. I haven't had a Christmas like this in fifteen years. Its me that should be thanking you." There was a 'door nob question', a 'but' that didn't get said. 'The it would be better if you were here,' but.
She handed the phone to the boy, who immediately began to explain his experience at the Jeffersonian.
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The night flew by in a blur: dinner, making cookies for Santa, watching How the Grinch Stole Christmas on her computer and their nightly rituals began once again. By eight thirty, Parker slept peacefully in her bed, due to the long day at work, she chuckled at the thought and she went back into the living room, eating the cookies and placing the presents under the tree, she began to work on the latest chapter in her book.
The time still flew, and before she knew it, the clock chimed signaling that it was two a.m. and she got up to go to bed. There was a slight tap on her door.