A/N: I don't own anything. Well maybe the writing but the characters or songs. Nope not a one.
The armada of vehicles en route to the Hoover Building from the Jeffersonian resembled that of funeral procession. It was a funeral of sorts, for the current state of their partnership was going to die. The next incarnation of what the phoenix would look like depended solely on the strength and determination of the combatants, friends, and partners.
There were only two outcomes and both involved bruised egos that neither alpha personality wanted. For as much as they each wanted to win and prove their superiority over the other, there was a sense of dread because of how things will end. Neither of them really wanted to hurt the other, aside from the rare spanking fantasy they individually shared, and both of them refused to back down due to their stubborn natures.
Once parked, all of the people who wanted nothing more than to see this monumental battle started to make their way to the small gymnasium in the back of the building that was used for training simulations.
"I just told Sweets what's going on and he said he'll be right down," Angela said to Cam and Hodgins.
"I called Director Cullen and he said he wouldn't miss this for the world," Cam replied.
As they started filing into the gym, they noticed that there was a steady stream of people entering through side doors all eager to see the renowned scientist lady who most of the agents feared do battle with their golden boy and future director.
Booth had removed his sport coat, tie, button down shirt, shoes, and socks leaving him in his tank top undershirt and his dress pants. Brennan had removed her jacket and her jewelry and her shoes.
They started circling each other, each trying to intimidate the other, when the main door to the gym opened.
"Stop!" Cullen shouted as we walked over the partners. "You can't do this yet." He pointed to a few men and ordered them to unroll the padded mats that were resting against the wall of the gym. "Now before you start, you need rules."
"No," Sweets interjected. "With all due respect Sir, what aspect of their partnership leads you to believe they're going to follow any rules you put on the table? And besides, you know they're not going to kill each other."
"I'm starting to like him," Hodgins said.
"Ok then," Cullen said. "Does that sound reasonable to you two?"
They both nodded having yet to break their eye contact intimidation prefight battle.
"Okay then," Cullen said. "Try not to hurt each other too much. I don't want a reason to have to report this. Let's get it on!"
She immediately took a step forward squatted and tried to sweep his legs with her outstretched leg. He just jumped from one foot to the other clearing her leg with ease as if he were simply jumping rope.
She stood back up and gave him a shocked expression surprised at how agile he truly was. She knew he could move but she had never seen him before move so effortlessly while still in complete control of his body. Then she noticed he hadn't even taken his hands out of his pockets yet.
"You missed," he said with a smirk.
Her face scrunched up and she lunged at him with a flurry of punches and kicks that he deftly blocked using his forearms and shins as shields.
"Remember in The Matrix when Neo and Morpheus are fighting and how fast it all looked," Hodgins asked. "That was nothing compared to what we're seeing here."
She spun on her heel to kick him in the chest but found herself with her back on the mat as he caught her foot and lifted causing her to lose her balance. He quickly took a step back to stay out of her reach.
"What's the matter Booth?" she asked while she returned to her feet. "So far you're only playing defense."
"A wise man once said that a great defense is generally better than a great offense," he retorted with his charm smile.
She quickly changed her plan of attack to submissions. She knew that he would counter any hold she got on him so she figured that she should let herself be countered with a decoy move only to immediately counter him in return.
She reached for his wrist but he quickly grabbed her arms and pulled her into him turning her in the process so he held her in a reverse bear hug with her back against his chest and his hands holding onto her wrists as her arms were crossed over her chest.
He held her there for a few seconds before the potpourri of fragrances of her perfume and girly shower products attacked his nose. He found it deeply intoxicating and tilted his head down to her hair and took a deep inhalation while his eyes fluttered to the back of his head. 'God she smells amazing,' he thought.
'That son of a bitch is smelling my hair,' she thought. She quickly stomped on his foot which released her from her Booth prison. She grabbed his wrist and started to spin away from him with enough pressure to pull him on his back. She straddled his arm while applying more pressure on his wrist so he would submit.
It didn't take long to realize that when she first straddled his arm for leverage, that his arm was actually quietly resting between her legs. She turned her head back to look at him to see if his pain was enough for him to submit.
She was shocked to see him smiling at her but she regained her focus when he winked at her. She felt him trying to move his body while not putting more pressure on his wrist.
With his free arm he reached up and grabbed the waist of her pants and pulled. He could see that her balance was off enough so he pushed towards her knees with his chest and felt his restrained arm slide between her legs so his elbow was right at her womanly center. He quickly rolled his torso back away from her knees and lifted her over himself so he could place her on her back on the opposite side from where he had been standing.
He rolled to his knees while his unrestrained arm slid behind her neck. He pulled her neck forward while rolling her up from the cradling position he had her in to essentially the tightest ball a person could roll into. He leaned his weight on her upturned legs so she couldn't escape.
"Doesn't that resemble one of the Karma Sutra positions?" Cam asked.
"I have no idea, but Jack, we're going to try it tonight," Angela said to her fiancé.
"Sounds like a plan Stan," he replied with a smile.
"Booth," Cullen said. "You can get off of her now."
"Not yet," Booth replied. "She hasn't submitted yet. I think she's trying to figure out if she can still escape or not."
He looked down at his captured prize and smiled while she continued to struggle. He lifted her up off the ground and stood up while still holding her.
"You know Bones," he said with a smirk, "I can hold you like this for quite awhile. I wouldn't even need to break for eating because I'm sure someone would feed me so I don't need to use my hands. I bet I could even get someone to feed me pie and wouldn't it be a shame if some of it missed my mouth and landed on you."
She grunted in response and struggled mightily try to get him to loosen his grip slightly enough to gain the leverage she would need to break free.
"That sounds like a great idea," he said with his charm smile. "Hey Sweets, do me a favor and go down to the diner and get me a piece of pie will you? I'll be waiting right here."
With that she pinched his arm resulting in a resounding "Ow!" She then started plucking his arm hairs hoping eventually that he'd let her go so she wouldn't have to submit to defeat. Defeat was not something that she could compartmentalize.
"Thanks Bones," he said. "Now I don't need to get my arms waxed."
She pinched him again, "Ow!"
He tightened his grip a little. "I'll tell you what," he said, "I know you're too stubborn to submit and I know realistically one of us will have to go to the bathroom soon so I can't continue holding you in the position. We're only left with one option; a stalemate. I'll agree to let you go if you agree that we can call this a draw and we can think of another way to settle this."
She nodded her consent and he let her unfold and drop gracefully to the ground. She was grateful that she would get a second chance to prove her mettle. Now she just needed a way to prove it.