Your reviews were absolutely amazing once more! Today was a bit hectic, so to make up for posting this half a day late, we're giving you an extra long chapter again. In which... Elena finally learns who made her! Let's just dive right in, shall we?

Chapter 24

Today, Hank had a check-up at the hospital. Since Jared had to solve an emergency situation at work, Booth went with his grandfather, leaving Brennan and Elena with a day to themselves. Like every morning, Elena had snuck into their room and snuggled inbetween them. After breakfast, the men had left, and Brennan and Elena got ready for a day at the beach.

The weather was very nice. Their bag was packed with food, towels, and books mainly, and the beach was nearly deserted. That seemed strange, but Jared had told them that most people would be working, so they'd have the beach pretty much to themselves.

Brennan set up camp as Elena kicked off her slippers and started running around in her bright red dress. She did the gymnastics tricks she'd copied from the girls in the playground at home, and Brennan had to laugh with happiness and love as she watched her daughter.

Elena returned and insisted on going into the water together. Even though the water was cold, Brennan agreed to go in for just a little while. They quickly dried themselves afterwards and played with a ball. They had lunch and Elena wanted to cuddle, so they lay down on the plaid and did just that.

"Mommy, I love you," Elena said as she held her mother tightly. "And Grampa Pops. And Uncle Jared. And Booth. Why isn't Booth my uncle, Mommy?"

There it was. The questions finally started coming. But Brennan wasn't worried about the timing; she'd been meaning to tell her daughter sooner or later. "Because he's not, honey."

Elena frowned. "But then what is he? Is he your boyfriend, Mommy? Like Uncle Russ is Emma and Hayley's mother's boyfriend?"

Brennan gently stroked Elena's back. "Yes, he is. We like each other a lot. Do you like him, too?"

Elena nodded. "I love him," she told her mother. "He should be our family, too."

Brennan was thrilled with that answer. "Elena, do you remember how babies are made?"

Elena started to tell her. "Yes, you need a boy and a girl, but only really tiny parts of them, and then you put it together inside the girl, and then she's pregnant and the little ball will grow until it's a baby."

"Exactly," Brennan complimented her. "You know that you were in my belly when you were growing into a baby, right? But we are missing someone. Because in order to have you grow in my belly, I needed a tiny part of a man, right?"

Elena tought about that for a long time. "And the boy's called the father," she said, "But who is your boy, Mommy? Because I was made of a boy also."

Brennan took a deep breath and kissed her daughter's cheek. "It's Booth, sweetheart. Booth made you, too. He's your father."

Brennan held her breath as she awaited her daughter's reaction. Finally, it came. "Oooooooh," Elena smiled as she finally got it. "Now I understand," she said. "That's why he's not my uncle, because he's my father. But shouldn't I call him daddy? Why didn't he tell me?"

Brennan held her daughter tightly and kissed her face. "He thought it would be too big of a surprise to you. I thought the same, but now you know. Are you glad that Booth's your father?"

Elena nodded vigorously. "Yes, I love him," she said earnestly. "Does he love me, too?"

Brennan smiled. "Very much. He thinks you're the sweetest girl in the world."

Elena chuckled, happy that her father thought such nice things about her. "But if he's my daddy, why did uncle Russ live with us and not Booth?"

Brennan was glad she was able to answer all of her daughter's questions. "Because he didn't know that you were growing in my belly, and he had to take care of Grandpa Pops because he was ill. But eventually, he came to look for us, and he was so happy to find out that you were his daughter."

Elena smiled, feeling happy. "I'm also very happy. Are you, Mommy?"

"Yes," Brennan said without a second thought. "And now that Uncle Russ is going to live with Aunt Amy and Emma and Hayley, Booth can live with us, or we can come live with him so that we can be a family. Is that okay with you?"

"Uh-huh," Elena said and turned on her back, lying on her mother's body. She looked at the beautiful blue sky above them and the oddly-shaped clouds that floated by. "I want to get into the water again."

"But you said it was freezing!"

"But I want to get in."

Brennan sighed, cringing at the prospect of getting into the cold water again. "Okay. We'll get in, count to ten, and get out."

Elena climbed off her mother and started running towards the ocean. They filled the rest of the afternoon with more games, gymnastics and reading. When the wind became chilly, Brennan packed their stuff and they walked back to Jared's house.

Booth and Hank had come home after their visit to the hospital. Everything was okay and they were expected back in a few months. Booth helped his Pops to get settled so he could have a nap. Once he was sure that his grandfather was asleep, Booth went looking for his girls. The door opened and Booth took in their wet hair. "You two sure are brave. Isn't the water freezing?"

"It was a bit cold, yes, but Elena really wanted to get in, so we went twice for ten seconds. The sun was quite warm, luckily," Brennan told him as they took off their cardigans and got rid of the sand on their feet.

Elena could hardly contain herself. She pressed past her mother and went inside. She took Booth's hand and dragged him over to the couch, where she hopped onto his lap and couldn't sit still. She just looked at him with a big smile on her face.

"You sure look like you had a lot of fun, princess." When she wouldn't sit still, Booth wrapped his arms around her. "Is there something you want to say, darling?"

Elena took a deep, excited breath. "Are you my daddy?" she asked him, her stomach doing flips inside her tummy. She was so excited!

Booth's heart fell into his stomach, but he tried not to show it. He looked over at Brennan, who was busying herself, so he looked back at the girl in his lap. She looked happy. "Yes, princess. I am your daddy and you are my daughter. And I am very proud of you."

Elena jumped up and wrapped her arms around Booth's neck. "That makes me so happy!"

"Me too, darling. I love you very much, baby." Booth told her, holding her close to him, breathing in her sweet, innocent scent.

"But what do I call you now?" Elena wanted to know, truly confused. She looked at him.

"You can choose. You can keep calling me Booth, but if you want to, you can call me Dad, too."

"Okay," she nodded, and embraced him again. "I didn't know that you made me," she chuckled. It was such a strange idea to her. "Do you know that I lived in Mommy's belly? Yes, I was growing there until I was a baby," she told him.

Booth was slightly horrified and slightly amused by the idea that Temperance had talked about this with their daughter. "I didn't know that you lived in Mommy's belly until I came to visit you for the first time, but I'm glad that Mommy and I made you, baby." Booth could feel a blush colouring his cheeks. "And now, you have to have a nice warm bath and then a nice warm cup of hot chocolate, because else, you're going to get sick."

"Sometimes I get sick," Elena told him after having hugged her father for a while longer, "And then I stay in bed and I get better and I read a lot of books."

"Staying in bed and reading books is fun," Booth gathered that she didn't feel much for his plan of a hot bath, but he had ways to convince her. "How about you make a deal with me?"

"What's a deal?" she wanted to know. "Will you make hot chocolate?"

Booth chuckled. It figured that she would know where babies come from, but not what a deal was. It saddened him for a brief moment, but he ignored it and continued with his conversation. "If you behave like a good girl and have a bath, you can go to your reading corner in your room and read lots and lots of books. And yes, I will make you hot chocolate."

"Will you make me a bath?" she asked him as she placed her hands on either side of his face and squeezed so his face looked all weird. It made her chuckle.

"Would you like that?" Booth asked as he wrapped his arms around her tiny body, holding her to his chest. Exactly where his little girl belonged.

"Yes. I had a lot of fun on the beach with Mommy, and I want to have fun with you," Elena said as she crawled into her daddy's chest. He was so big and warm, like a bear.

She plastered herself against him and Booth carried her upstairs, into the bathroom. "You know, since I'm your daddy, that means that Jared is your uncle, too. And that Grampa Pops is your real great-grandfather. Isn't that nice, baby girl?" Booth opened up the faucet and made sure the water wasn't too hot. "Do you want bubbles, sweetheart?"

"Yes, a lot," she smiled excitedly.

At that moment, Brennan had finished unpacking their beach bag and stuck her head around the corner. "You okay?" she asked Booth more than her daughter.

"We'll be fine." Some of the warmth and cheerfulness left his voice. Booth watched Brennan pale a little bit and instantly felt guilty.

"I told her because she asked," Brennan said. "I hope you don't mind."

Elena was taking off her clothes. "I'm getting bubbles, Mommy!"

Brennan smiled at her. "That's nice, honey."

Booth poured some of the liquid into the bath and turned the faucet off. "Maybe you should continue here," Booth spoke softly.

Brennan shook her head. "No, you do it," she smiled at him. "If you need help, I'll be downstairs, but I think you've got this."

"Is that okay, princess? If I help you this time, instead of Mommy?" Booth checked.

Elena looked at both of them, wondering if everything was okay. They could act a bit strange sometimes. She nodded her head.

"Have fun, sweetheart," Brennan told her daughter. "Everything's all right." With that, Brennan went downstairs to make tea.

"Come on, let's get you in the tub before the water gets cold. So, what did you and Mommy do on the beach today?"

Elena finished undressing and carefully climbed into the bath. She sat down in the water and smiled at the bubbles. She scooped up some foam and put it on her head. "Look!"

Accepting that his daughter was too preoccupied with the bubbles to answer, Booth sat down and scooped up some of the bubbles. He gathered them around his cheeks and chin and then slowly removed his hand. "Look! Daddy has a Santa beard!"

Elena laughed hard. "You should wash my hair, Daddy. I'll tell you a story."

"I'd love that, princess." Booth reached for the shampoo. "Lean your head back and keep your eyes closed," Booth instructed her gently.

Elena did as he told her and covered her eyes with her hands. "I have a lot of hairs," she said. "And they get tangled if you don't brush them."

"Mommy has long hair, too," Booth agreed as he tenderly washed his daughter's curls.

"Yes, it's beautiful," Elena agreed. "Shall I tell you a story now?"

"Yes, please." Her acceptance of him as her daddy was truly heart-warming and made Booth relax completely as he enjoyed himself with the mundane but wonderful task of washing his daughter's hair.

"Once upon a time," Elena began, "there was a pirate named Mommy. And there was a Zorro. And they liked each other and they were a boy and a girl. They wanted to make a princess. A little part of the man went with a little part of the girl like this." Elena clapped her hands together and interlaced her fingers. But then the Zorro had a grampa and he got sick, and the Zorro didn't know that Mommy was making a princess in her belly. And the princess was growing in Mommy's belly until she was a baby. One special day," Elena paused to gather some suds, "One special day, the Zorro came back because his grampa was all better. The princess and Mommy really loved him. They went to the beach and Mommy and the princess played a lot of games, and the princess wanted to go in the water even though it was cold. Mommy was very nice and they went twice into the water. It was fun. Then they talked about that Zorro was the princess's daddy and they went home. Then the Zorro put the princess in bath and they lived happily ever after. The end!" She threw two hands-full of suds in the air.

Booth chuckled. "Well done, princess." He gathered some water in a cup and covered her eyes with his hand. "Hold still, I don't want you to get soap in your eyes."

Elena sat very still. When he was done with her hair, she said, "It was a true story. Did you like it?"

"Yes, I liked it very much. But you forgot something. Zorro loved the princess and the pirate very, very much." Booth gently kissed her forehead, "You know that, right?"

Elena looked at him and whispered, "Are you the Zorro?"

He whispered back, "Yes I am. Are you the princess?"

"Yes," she chuckled, "And Mommy's the pirate lady. And you love us very much."

Booth nodded. "And you love me." He drained the water after a few more moments and went to get a few towels. He placed one on the floor in front of the bathtub and held the other. He waited until most of the water had disappeared. When Elena stood and stretched out her arms, he leaned down and lifted her, wrapping her in the fluffy towel.

Elena let her daddy dry her. "Can I put on my nightgown and my princess slippers?"

"Yes, you can." Booth wrapped a towel around her hair and wrapped the other towel around her. He lifted her back into his embrace and carried her to her very own princess bedroom.

Her daddy helped her in a fresh pair of underwear and her favourite blue nightgown. It was very warm. He put the pink princess slippers on her feet. "All done," Elena said.

"Do you want to start reading?" Booth asked her. "I'll bring you your cup of hot chocolate. Just like I promised."

"No, I'm tired. Can we all drink it together? Where's Mommy?"

"Mommy is downstairs. You can go cuddle with her on the couch."

"Will you make her hot chocolate, too?" Elena asked him as she raised her arms, wanting him to carry her.

"If Mommy wants hot chocolate, I will make some for her, too. And for Pops of course."

"Yes," Elena said and grabbed Moby. "Then we can go down."

Brennan was sipping her tea on the couch when Elena and Booth entered. Booth seemed happy, she was so glad about that. Elena was happy, too, it was obvious. "Do we have a clean and fresh Elena?" she smiled.

"Yes, we do. Not that stinky little monster you brought home," Booth teased as he lifted his daughter and sat her down on her mother's lap. "I'm going to make hot chocolate. Do you want some? Or would you like some tea?"

"I just had tea. Can you watch Elena? I'm going to take a shower as well, before anyone calls me a stinky monster, too." Brennan wrapped her arms around Elena and peppered her with kisses, making Elena laugh.

Booth busied himself with making hot chocolate for everybody, Pops having joined them. Pops had taken out his dominoes and was teaching Elena how to play as Booth got started on dinner.

Brennan took a warm shower and dressed in some comfortable clothes. When she came back down, Elena was enjoying herself and Booth was making dinner. "Can I help?" she asked him as she stood behind him, wrapping her arms around his waist.

"Nope. You should have fun with your little girl."

"Our little girl," Brennan corrected him. "She doesn't need me right now, Hank's engaged her in a pretty intense game of dominoes. I hope you're okay with my telling her you're her father. She asked why you weren't called uncle so I either had to tell her or come up with another lie."

"Okay. I understand that she cornered you, but please, we make the decisions together from now on, okay?"

"Yes. You don't have to worry about it, Booth. I really am taking your opinions into account." Brennan let go of him and leaned against the counter. "What are you making?"

"Rice with chicken and veggies. Want to try it?"

"Sure," she said. He cooked very well.

Booth scooped some up in a spoon and held it out to her. "Here, be careful, it's hot. How does it taste?"

She blew over it and took a bite. "Really good," she nodded. "Excellent," she smiled.

As Brennan set the table, Booth scooped up the plates and filled their glasses with water. Everyone came to sit at the dinner table, Hank said a prayer and then they dug in. "Do you like it, Elena?" Booth asked his daughter.

Elena had just bitten into a piece of chicken. "A lot," she said and continued to eat.

"Elena," Brennan said, "Don't speak with your mouth full."

"Okay," Elena said, then realised she'd just done it again. "Sorry," she chuckled as she covered her mouth with her hand.

"Those are no manners for a princess," Hank pointed out as he looked at his great granddaughter. A blush covered her cheeks and Hank winked at her, then focussed his attention on his grandson. "This tastes good, son."

"Is Jared still working?" Brennan wanted to know.

"Yes, he is. He's just started a new project. The start of a new project always needs more attention. Jared likes to do the start himself, just so he knows everybody is clear on what is expected," Hank told her.

Brennan nodded that she understood. "This is really a beautiful place to live. Elena and I enjoyed ourselves at the beach today."

Elena made sure she emptied her mouth before speaking. "Grampa Pops, did you know that he made me?" She pointed at Booth and smiled.

This time it was his grandson's cheeks that turned red. "Yes, darling, I knew that Shrimp is your father and that I am your Grampa Pops. Isn't that nice?"

Elena nodded. "Really nice. He washed my hair but we forgot to comb it."

"If you go and get your hairbrush after dinner, I will comb it," Hank offered with a big smile.

"Okay," Elena agreed with a smile. "I'm almost done."

After dinner, Hank brushed out Elena's hair, taking his time while Booth and Brennan did the dishes. When Booth noticed her shivering, he frowned. "Are you cold?"

"No, not really. It hasn't been a very hectic day, but I guess I'm still not over my fatigue from preparations for finals. I tire too easily, I feel old," she joked.

Booth wasn't joking, though. "You don't look so good." He stepped towards her and lightly pressed his lips to her forehead. "I think you're running a fever." He turned around. "Pops? Where is the thermometer?"

"Upstairs in the bathroom, Shrimp. You okay?" Hank looked up from his brushing duties.

"It's not me I'm worried about," Booth mumbled as he dried his hands. "Please go and sit down on the couch," he told Brennan, then went upstairs.

Brennan decided to do as she was told, since she didn't want to get into an argument with Booth. She wasn't used to giving in to illness. She'd always ploughed through it.

Booth returned with the thermometer and handed it to her. "Here. You should really check your temperature. How do you feel? Headache? Sore throat? Anything?"

As he asked her, she realised she didn't know. She'd taught herself not to listen to her body, because she didn't have the time and energy to take care of it the way she probably should. "I feel fine, I think," she said.

"You think?" Booth shook his head. "We are going to bed early tonight." Checking the time, he turned to Elena. "Darling, if you want to, you are allowed to read until 8 PM, but we are going to go to bed after Grampa Pops has finished brushing your hair, okay?"

Elena looked at him. "Okay, Daddy," she said and giggled because she used his new name.

Booth smiled and leaned in to kiss her cheek. "That's my girl. Now," he turned around and looked at his other girl, "what's the verdict?"

"Apparently you were right," Brennan told him as she looked at the figures on the thermometer. "Well, at least now I have time to be sick, I guess."

"Okay, well, up to bed you. I'm going to finish doing the dishes, tuck our little girl into bed and then I'll be with you."

"Yes, sir," she said and kissed Elena's head as she passed her daughter. "Booth - I mean Daddy's going to put you in bed, is that okay?"

"M-hm," Elena agreed as Hank brushed her long, brown curls. She enjoyed the feeling, it was like a massage.

"All right, sweetheart, Mommy's going to bed, too. See you in the morning," Brennan smiled. She kissed Hank's cheek and then Elena's again before going upstairs. She put on her nightgown and brushed her teeth, then went to bed. It was warm and comfortable, and she suddenly felt how tired she was.

Booth went back to the dishes and Hank continued to brush his great-granddaughter's beautiful hair. When they were both done, Booth lifted his daughter into his arms and carried her to her bedroom.

Elena wrapped her arms around Booth's neck as he carried her upstairs. "I love you," she told him as she rested her tired head on his shoulder.

Booth's heart warmed at her words. "Are you tired, baby girl? Because I can just stay with you until you fall asleep? Like Mommy does."

"Yes, please," she whispered. Her daddy was very strong. He could carry her all the way up the stairs and probably around the world, too.

Booth took her into the bathroom, where they both brushed their teeth. When she was completely ready for bed, Booth carried Elena into her bedroom. He tucked her in and lay down on the bed next to her. "Goodnight darling." He kissed her cheek and tenderly caressed her back as she fell asleep.

Elena felt completely safe and at ease with her new daddy. She was glad she had a real father now, because uncles were never really yours alone. Elena yawned and snuggled up against Booth's chest as she fell asleep.

Booth had to manoeuvre quite a bit in order to get up and return to his room, but he managed it without waking up his little girl. He went downstairs to make sure that the doors were locked. He kissed Hank's cheek and wished him a goodnight, then he went upstairs.

Brennan had fallen into a slumber. She woke up when Booth entered, though he tried to be quiet. "Hey," she said, "Is she asleep?"

"Yes, she is and by the looks of it, so were you. I'm sorry I woke you up." He changed into his pyjamas and crawled into bed with her. "You should get some more sleep."

She snuggled up against him. "Thanks for taking care of us," she whispered.

"You don't have to thank me for that," he wrapped his arm around her shoulders and pressed a kiss to her forehead. She was still a bit warm. "Why wouldn't I?"

She shrugged. "I don't know. It's a good question, I guess." She crawled into him. "I'm finally warming up, now," she smiled.

"You have a fever, which means you were too warm in the first place," he chuckled but held her closer. "What do you want to do when we go back home?"

"Live with you," she said immediately. "Do you want to find a new apartment or use one of the two we have now?"

"I have two bedrooms, a big living room, a bathroom and a kitchen. It will do for now. Will Elena be okay with that?"

"We'll see. I don't know yet where Russ plans to live with Amy and the girls. Things are going to change anyway, we'll have to work through it. Besides, I think she'll like living together as a family. She can be sure that you're hers. With Russ, she could never be sure."

"Well, I am hers. I'm her father, so she is always going to be stuck with me. We will discuss it further in the morning, you should rest."

"It'll be okay. Eventually, we'll all be okay. We have each other," Brennan said and kissed his chest.

"I just don't want to confuse her by not living together as a family, and I don't want to make things difficult for her by moving out of Russ's house if she doesn't want to go. You're right though, we'll see. Goodnight, baby."

"I'm not your baby," Brennan mumbled in protest.

Tenderly, Booth kissed her. "To me, you are, darling."

"Elena's your baby, not me," she insisted.

"You're not an infant of course, but I love you, as much as I love her. Which makes you my baby, too," Booth countered.

"I'm too sick to argue with you," she sighed as her eyes were falling closed again.

"Plus, there is nothing to argue about." He kissed her again. "I love you."

She didn't think about what she was saying, and just said what came to her. "I love you, too, Booth."

Booth snuggled closer to her and kissed her again, his arm going around her waist. "Rest now, I want you to get better."

She nodded against his chest and trusted he'd keep them safe tonight like he'd done ever since he had been with them. She could finally truly relax.

Booth felt her relax and enjoyed the moment as he held her. He loved her and she loved him, too. It was time to move in together. And time to give their family a start, to find out once and for all if they could be happy together.

We are dying to know what you thought about this. One of the biggest issues of this story got fixed in this big chapter. We hope it wasn't what you were expecting, in a good way. Please share your thoughts on this! We'd love to hear from you :).