A/N: Ok, this is my first attempt at a multi-chapter Bones fic, so be gentle! The idea came to me driving home from work, of all times. Anyways, reviews are welcome and treasured. I don't own anything in this chapter or any following. Thank you, and enjoy!

The Sand Man by Jremme

Chapter 1: A family affair

Devon Fitzgerald happily dug in the sand on the beach in Marathon Florida. The 6 year old was having a great time. It was his first real vacation, at least the first one he could remember. His parents had told him of others when he was younger, but he couldn't recall any of them. He was going to build the biggest sand castle on the beach. He returned his mother's wave and continued digging vigorously in the sand.

He dug deeper and deeper, creating a good sized pile of sand to use in his sand castle. After about a half hour of digging, his plastic shovel connected with something hard, and he felt a burst of excitement.

"Buried treasure," he thought, digging even more furiously than he had before. His excitement gave way to confusion and then wonderment at his discovery. He ran over to his mother.

"Mom, mom, I found the coolest thing in the sand!" He grabbed her hand and dragged her over to the hole he'd dug to show her what he had unearthed. His mother's eyes grew big, and she gasped, covering her mouth with a hand, and trying not to let her son see how scared she was.

"John?" She called her husband over. Devon's father came jogging over, stopping abruptly when he saw what his wife and son were looking at.

"I'll go find someone," he said nervously, and headed off to find a lifeguard who could contact the proper authorities; leaving his family gazing at the clean white skull Devon had dug up.

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"Hey, Bones!"

Dr. Temperance Brennan sighed, trying to let the irritation at the nickname slide off her back. She should have been used to it by now. She lifted her head from the skeleton she was studying to face her partner, Seeley Booth, as he trotted up the stairs to the platform she was currently occupying, her team hovering around her awaiting orders.

"Do we have a case?"

"Technically, you do. Little boy unearthed a skull at a beach in Marathon, Florida. Local authorities are handling the case, but they want you to come down as a consult to help identify the victim."

"Why don't they just send everything up here?"

"C'mon, Bones, it's Marathon! In the Florida Keys! Who cares why they're not just sending them up here? You should be jumping at the chance to get away from all this." He gestured at the door, on the other side of which was cold and wind.

"I rarely jump, Booth. If the local authorities are handling it, why are you here?" Brennan asked. She had done consult work on her own before, and was a bit confused as to where Booth fit in with all this.

"I explained to them over the phone that you and I are Siamese twins; if they want you, they get me too. Part of the package. They weren't overly thrilled, but they agreed."

"The correct term is Conjoined twins, Booth, something we most certainly aren't. You could have just as easily explained that we always work together instead of lying to them."

Booth chuckled to himself. Good ol' literal Bones. She never disappointed.

"Well, I also had to promise to let them hold the reins," he admitted.

What did horses have to do with anything? "I don't know what that means."

"It means that I will allow them to be in charge of the investigation. I'll sit idly by, hopefully on the beach, while they conduct everything how they want."

"And you actually agreed to do that?" She knew it would be difficult for Booth not to take charge of the proceedings.

"I did. Like I said, it's the Keys. I'll do about anything to get out of here at this point. Anyhow, our plane leaves at 6, so be ready."

"I will. I just have a few things to take care of here, and then I can go home and get packed." She returned her attention to the skeleton in front of her, which Booth took as a sign that they were done for now. He turned and left the platform, back out into the cold.

The second the door had closed behind him, Angela Montenegro swooped in next to Brennan. As usual, she had heard everything, and she gave Brennan a huge smile before she spoke.

"Sooo, you and Booth in the Florida Keys, huh? Sounds romantic. White sand, crystal clear water, Sex on the Beach." Her smile faded into a wicked grin.

Brennan's eyebrow quirked up at the last mention, and she awarded her best friend with a Look.

"What was that last one? Because if you're implying what I think you're implying, know that I have absolutely no intention whatsoever of having sex on the beach, with Booth or anyone else. This is business."

"Oh, you thought I meant…no, no, no; I was talking about the drink," Angela's tone of voice, grin, and twinkling eyes gave away the fact that she had definitely NOT been talking about the drink.

Brennan shook her head at Angela, and then concentrated on finishing her work. Zach Addy, who had observing her inspection, took a breath, mulling his words over in his head before speaking.

"Have a safe trip, Dr. Brennan. I assure you that I can handle things while you're away. Can I put the tissue markers on that skull now? Don't worry about anything. I'll call you if I need anything." He moved his hands toward the skull on the table, and Brennan let him take it.

"I know you're capable Zach. I'm not worried." She removed her gloves and after saying good bye to Angela, Hodgins, and Zach, made her way out of the Jeffersonian to get packed.

"Don't forget to pack a bikini!" Angela yelled after her. Then she turned to Hodgins. "She'll forget to pack one. I know it."

"She said it was business. Why does she need a bikini for?" Hodgins looked puzzled.

"So she can look sexy for Booth, of course." Angela rolled her eyes. She loved Jack dearly, but sometimes he could be so oblivious. Men; they didn't know anything. She wished she were going with them, if only to give them that gentle push into a real relationship. Gentle push? Who was she kidding? A great big shove was what was actually needed. Or maybe she could just stick big magnets on them both so that they could be stuck together. She giggled at the thought of the magnets pulling them together, Brennan protesting all the way.

She blew a strand of hair out of her eyes in exasperation at her friend's constantly ignoring all the signs of her partner's feelings for her. Then she was struck with an idea. She had vacation time coming. She smiled at this prospect, and looked over at Hodgins.

"Do you have any vacation time saved up?"

"Yea, actually I do. Why?"

"Because I think we're due for a romantic getaway, don't you think?"

His blue eyes widened and a grin appeared on his face. "Yea, I totally agree with you. Where and when did you have mind, because Paris is really nice in the springtime."

"Actually, I was thinking of more like…now. In the Florida Keys. Marathon, to be exact." She looked pleadingly at Hodgins.

"This wouldn't have anything to do with Booth and Dr. Brennan going down there, would it? This is a romantic getaway for us, and not some chance for you to play matchmaker?" He wrapped his arms around her waist and kissed her lightly on her lips.

Angela smiled at him. "Can't it be both?" She kissed him back, deeper this time, knowing full well she would get her way. They didn't pull apart until they were aware of a pair of eyes watching them. They turned to see Zach, looking at them with his head tilted slightly to the side.

"I was merely observing the technique you were using. Don't mind me."

"How long were you standing there?" Hodgins asked.

"Long enough to know that you're planning to fly down to Marathon for a romantic excursion and that Angela is going to engage in manipulation, prodding, and most likely a host of other things to try and ease Dr. Brennan and Agent Booth into a relationship."

Hodgins shook his head at Zach in exasperation and turned back to Angela, his forehead resting against hers.

"All right, you win. We'll go." He backed away from her a bit, and looked at Zach. "See you later, Zach man. Looks like we have a flight to catch tonight. Are you done here, Ang?"

"Yea, I can't do anything else until Zach finishes the tissue markers anyway."

They collected their coats and left, leaving Zach alone on the platform.

He looked around, confirming the fact that he was by himself. He stood rooted to the spot for about 5 minutes, thinking before reaching a conclusion.

He went and grabbed his coat, heading out the door. He wasn't going to be left out this time. He, too, had a plane to catch.

Minutes later, Cam strode out of her office to see how the team was doing. She walked to the platform and noticed the lack of people. Where was everyone? She glanced at her watch. Well, it was later than she thought, so they all must have left to go home. She was a little surprised that Brennan hadn't stayed late, but then again, she'd put in a lot of hours lately, so she was probably feeling exhausted. Cam sighed, and walked back to her office to lock it up so she could go home for the night.

A/N: Well, how was it? Hopefully, it wasn't too bad. Let me know if you think I should continue or not!