Author's Note: Next chapter. I was able to crank this one out pretty fast, but things are really getting busy for me, so I'm not sure when I'll be able to update next. Hopefully something else will get updated soon though.
I do not own Bones or any of its characters.
Thank you to everyone who is reading/following/reviewing this.
Nertooold54: Hmmm, that would be an interesting meeting, wouldn't it? ;)
Writerchick786: Haha, well interestingly enough, I've often thought that Brennan always did show an odd sort of respect for Sweets simply because she's one of the few characters who consistently will use his doctor title and because she has admitted that Sweets is a genius (although according to her he's twisted his intelligence to the point of "uselessness"). I see their version of bickering being much like the one Booth and Sweets have or even B&B have. Brennan just choose to go after his discipline instead of his age like Booth does. There is still a lot of affection there though...I'm also a huge fan of the "human polygraph" comment and enjoyed that episode in general. :) I've often suspected that this was a talent Sweets had for a long time...Feel free to keeping flinging story prompts my way. I welcome the suggestions and sometimes they are just what I need to get inspired...
Rankor01: Yes! That is exactly the vibe I was going for with the interrogations. :) I had a feeling that Sweets was one of those kids who would be eager to please and/or interact with his teachers when he was growing up...It's true that I don't use Daisy all that often right now, but you are right in thinking that there's always the possibility that she might show up...
Lives in the now: I think Sweets' knack for reading people is an innate trait that Booth and him share. Sweets has had a lot more formal training to hone his skills, but Booth has a lot of natural talent too. Thus, I imagine Booth was able to sense quickly that Sweets' ability to read people went beyond his studies (and it may have played a small role in why Booth was wary of him at first). As to what will shake him out of his amnesia...hmmm...:)
TimeWitch93: Amnesia can be a funny thing. Some people remember due to reliving traumatic events and for others it's just a simple but potent trigger from everyday life. Others never regain their memories (not that that is going to happen here...). But I will say that I do have an endgame in mind and it will play out eventually...
D: I entirely agree with your reasoning as far as why the Jeffersonian gang has fewer issues with Sweets solely based on age. I remember how Brennan mentioned in the first episode Sweets appeared in that she didn't care how young he was (because it made no difference in regards to her opinion about psychology). She (and the others in the lab) have probably seen other prodigies in their time. But I picture that being a different scenario in the Bureau, and I think it would be interesting if they addressed this in canon...While I was writing this, I thought about how I had a chance to address one of the reasons why I think Sweets became so invested in B&B's relationship. I always thought it was interesting how fast he became supportive of the idea of them as a couple, and it occurred to me that perhaps their relationship reminded Sweets of the other great romance he had watched over the years: the one between his parents. I've often thought that part of the reason Sweets is a romantic is because he modeled himself after how he saw his father treat his mother and the dynamic they had. And I believe he's searching for something like that for himself...
Peanutmeg: Thanks for the review. :) I love watching interrogation scenes with B&B and/or Sweets on the show, so I couldn't resist throwing one of those in this fic. I hope you enjoy the next chapter too.
The Confusion in the Duckling—Chapter 5
Sweets sat in Booth's office behind the agent's desk, tossing a ball from Booth's desk up into the air over and over. Just outside the room, Booth and Brennan watched him while they talked.
"I don't know, Bones," the agent said while rubbing the back of his neck. "Do you think maybe we should give him another conk to the head? See if that shakes him out of it?"
"Giving Sweets another head injury is not the answer," Brennan frowned. "You need to stop using cartoons and television shows as scientific reference points. I've said this before."
"Well what do you suggest?"
"I'm not sure," she responded. "But I do know that another blow to the head could have serious complications: concussion, intracranial bleeding…."
"All right, I get it," Booth said while holding up his hands to stop her. "I just…I just wish that there was something we could do to help him."
"I know," Brennan nodded while looking back at Sweets. "I wish we could help him too." The two of them ended up watching the psychologist for a couple moments before they turned back toward each other.
"Have you thought about where he should stay tonight?" Brennan asked. "He probably shouldn't be alone."
"Yeah, I know," Booth sighed. "I guess he can stay with me."
"I think that would be best," the anthropologist replied. "He seems to be more comfortable with you than anyone else right now."
Booth nodded in agreement, but secretly he had his doubts. He had noticed how edgy and uncomfortable the therapist often was around them ever since this had started despite the fact that Sweets had tried to conceal it with his good behavior. The agent knew that this was mostly due to Sweets' childhood traumas combined with the fact that they were virtual strangers to him now. He began to wonder how deeply ingrained the psychologist's lack of trust and uneasiness around unfamiliar people were.
'How's he going to get better if he's always nervous about the people he's around?' Booth asked himself. 'I need to find a way to let him know that he can trust us. But how? Especially since the only people he probably trusted at this point in his childhood died years ago.'
"Booth?" Brennan asked, noting his introspective expression.
"Yeah, ok. I'll swing by Sweets' apartment and grab a few things so that he can stay with me," Booth said, shaking himself a little. "I'll get him something to eat, keep him company, and we'll figure out what else to do tomorrow. All right?"
"Ok," she said. "I'll go back to the lab and see if I can find out anything else that might help on the case. Oh, and I left those things from Sweets' apartment in your office. You might want to try and see if they help at all."
"I'll do that. Thanks Bones," Booth said as he watched her leave. After she was gone, he headed back into his office. He walked in to see Sweets still sitting at his desk, but now the bag that Brennan had left was sitting next to him, and the therapist was reading a book. When Booth got closer, he saw that Sweets was reading his own book, The Art of Evolutional Profiling, which had helped the psychologist obtain his position at the Bureau. Sweets looked up from the page he was on as the agent drew closer to him.
"Did I really write this?" he asked.
"Yeah, you did," Booth chuckled. "Don't ask me about it though. It was a little too squinty for me."
"Squinty?" Sweets asked, furrowing his eyebrows.
"Never mind," the agent said as he walked over to his desk. Sweets hopped up and moved to pace around the room while Booth sat down.
"Did I write any other books?" the psychologist asked.
"You know what, let's change the subject," Booth said as he glanced at a couple of files stacked on his desk. "You're going to need a place to stay tonight where we can keep an eye on you, so I thought that you could stay with me. Does that sound ok to you?"
"It's fine," Sweets nodded.
"Great. We'll just pick up a couple things from your place on the way home," Booth said as he placed his files off to the side. "Hey, are you hungry? I could order some stuff some stuff for dinner. How does Chinese sound?"
"I'd love Chinese," Sweets said with a slight smile. "If…if that's ok with you."
"Sweets, it's fine," Booth insisted. "I wouldn't have offered if I didn't want to do it. Look, I'll tell you what, I'm going to let you decide what we do after I get out of work. Whatever you want to do tonight is fine by me."
"Really?" the therapist asked, his face lighting up.
"Really," Booth grinned back. "Have you got something in mind?"
The psychologist looked thoughtful for a moment, but then he started to smile again.
"Well…when I was checking out Angela's….Ms. Montenegro's computer, I saw some sites on the internet," Sweets said. "Did you know that they made three more Star Wars movies?"
Two movies and several paper cartons of food between them later, Booth was slumped down on the couch in his apartment. Sweets was sitting next to him and was continuing to discuss the films he had just seen in a voice that was a little too animated for the agent right now.
"That was so epic," the psychologist gushed. "I mean they talked about the Clone Wars in the other movies, but it was so cool seeing how all that got started."
"Yeah, that's great Sweets," Booth yawned. Despite his tiredness, he had to admit that it had been fun watching those movies with Sweets. Sometimes it reminded him of evenings spent with Parker, just hanging out and watching something together. But now the agent was becoming exhausted from the case and from dealing with the situation that Sweets was in. Booth stood up and stretched.
"I need to get some sleep," he said. "You should get some too. "We're going to have a lot to do tomorrow so we will have to get an early start."
"Ok," Sweets said, suddenly much more subdued.
"Are you going to be all right out here on the couch?"
"Sure," the psychologist said. He laid down and stretched his long limbs out as best he could. "It's pretty comfortable." Booth went over and grabbed a quilt from a nearby closet and tossed it over to him.
"All right, then I will see you in the morning," he said. "Then I'll take you out for some breakfast….Good night Sweets."
"Good night Agent Booth," Sweets called out as Booth left the room. "And thank you."
Booth walked into his bedroom and collapsed onto his bed. He was so tired he started to fall asleep the moment his cheek touched the pillowcase.
Booth was still fast asleep a few hours later until a scream woke him up. Startled, he bolted out of bed and went out to the front room, turning on a small lamp along the way. He looked over to at the couch and saw that Sweets was no longer there.
"Sweets?" the agent called out as he scanned the darkened room. A sniffle caught his attention, and Booth slowly walked over to see the psychologist huddled up in a corner. His knees were drawn toward his chest, and his face was buried against his legs.
"Hey, are you all right?" Booth asked him. Sweets sniffed again and nodded all while not lifting his head.
"I'm sorry that I woke you up," he mumbled, his voice muffled by the fabric of his lounge pants.
"Never mind about that," Booth said. "What happened?" Sweets finally looked up and swiped at his wet, red-rimmed eyes with his fist.
"I…I had a nightmare," he replied while trying to avoid looking at Booth.
"A nightmare huh?" the agent said as he sat down beside him. "Guess that will teach you about watching too many sci-fi movies right before bed." Booth was trying to lighten the mood, but it was clear that Sweets was having none of it.
"I know it's dumb," Sweets said. "And I know I'm too old for stuff like this, but sometimes…I have dreams about Andrew."
"Andrew?"
"My biological father," Sweets whispered. "He…he's not a good person."
Booth clenched his jaw. He had heard from Brennan and Wyatt along with Sweets himself about some of the details of his early childhood. These facts along with the description Brennan had given him of the therapist's scars had been enough for Booth to figure out that Sweets was probably making a vast understatement about the man.
"I was adopted a few years ago," Sweets continued. "I know I should have mentioned that before, but Mom and Dad…well they are my real parents. And they adopted me legally so…."
"It's ok, I understand," Booth assured him.
"It's not like I have these dreams all the time," the psychologist said. "It's just sometimes…when things get really bad or intense for me…it just comes up again." Sweets shook his head.
"I'm sorry," he said. "You don't want to hear all this. It's stupid, I know."
"No Sweets, it's not stupid," Booth countered. "And don't go thinking for one moment that it is, all right?"
The therapist gave a half-hearted nod in response, and Booth began to wonder how long it took for these nightmares to abate…if they ever did at all.
Booth stood back up and patted Sweets on the knee. To his relief, the psychologist didn't flinch this time.
"Come on, back to the couch," he ordered. "You still need some sleep."
"Ok," Sweets said as he slowly got to his feet. He trudged over and plopped back down on the couch and began to fumble with settling the blanket back over him. Before he could finish, Booth grabbed it from him and with a quick shake, he was able to fan the quilt out and envelop the therapist back into it. He then sat down onto a chair next to the couch. Sweets looked over with a puzzled expression.
"What are you…?"
"I'm just going to stay here until you fall back asleep," Booth answered.
"You don't have to…" Sweets began.
"No arguments," Booth replied. "Just lie down and go back to sleep."
Sweets curled up under the blanket and began to close his eyes.
"Agent Booth…thank you," he nearly whispered.
"You're welcome Sweets," Booth murmured. "Now, try and get some rest, and I'll see you in the morning."