Well, we have reached the end of the story...hope you enjoyed the journey :)

Brennan sat on the couch in her office with her laptop open to a blank word document, and a pile of notes in various forms, most written on colored post-its, a few on Disney Princess stationary, and some on loose-leaf paper and napkins, in front of her. Her focus was split between the blinking cursor and her almost twelve-month-old twins, who were crawling around in a blowup kiddie pool a foot away where the coffee table usually stood. She looked up again quickly when she heard Blue scream, only to find the brunette, brown-eyed baby girl smiling and pulling on her brother's dark blonde curls. She let out a breath. "Lu, don't pull T's hair, please."

In response, Blue stared at Brennan and squealed. "Mama!" She planted her hands on the floor of the pool and picked herself up, getting into a 'downward dog' pose before inching her hands and feet closer together and standing up. She clapped and marched in place. "Mama!"

Brennan sighed, smiling at the infant, who was itching to take her first steps unassisted. "Hello, Lu."

Blue fell back down onto her butt and crawled over to the edge of the pool. She tumbled out, sprawling across the rug, giggling.

Brennan shook her head. "What are you doing?"

Blue covered her eyes with her hands and then pulled them away. "Boo!"

Brennan looked from Blue to Bear who was sitting quietly in the kiddie pool stacking his rubber blocks. The babies couldn't be more different. While they both inherited Booth's warm brown eyes, Bear favored Brennan and Blue was the spitting image of her father. Bear was quiet and Blue was loud. There was no question who the alpha twin was; Blue established herself as the top dog early on. She was always stealing Bear's toys, climbing all over him, pulling his socks off, yanking on his hair, and demanding attention from everyone. She even took off his diaper a couple of times. She was small, but she was a force to be reckoned with. She earned herself the nickname Hurricane the second she started scooting around. Booth liked to joke that she was singlehandedly responsible for every gray hair on his head. She preferred messy foods, puréed peas, avocado, and spaghetti amongst her absolute favorites.

Bear, on the other hand, was a very calm baby; he was their thinker. He always had a serious expression on his face. He'd take all the toys out of the toy bin, look at them for a second or two, and then place them to the side until he found the one he wanted the most. He said 'Mama' months before he learned 'Dada'. He didn't lose interest in things as quickly as his sister; he was fine playing with the same toy for hours and almost always sat for an entire story, especially if his big brother was the one reading it to him. He was their laidback baby, but he had a mischievous side to him. The laundry basket was his favorite place; he'd climb into a basket full of clothes (clean or dirty) and bury himself in it or he'd just sit in it and throw as many articles of clothing out of it as he could before he was caught. He refused to eat anything besides cheerios and chicken nuggets, so meal times were a bit of a struggle.

Brennan felt a light tugging on her shirt sleeve and when she looked down, she was staring into the dark eyes of her daughter. "Yes, Lu?"

"Hi!" Blue climbed into Brennan's lap and snuggled in close.

Brennan wrapped her arms around the infant and leaned over, kissing the top of her head. She adjusted the purple bow in Blue's hair and her work was forgotten as she rocked the baby back and forth.

Bear crawled over seconds later and squeezed his way onto Brennan's lap.

The twins promptly fell asleep and Brennan realized she was stuck. They were heavy sleepers (thankfully), but she wasn't about to risk it. She wasn't even technically supposed to have them here, but the daycare was closed for at least a week due to necessary renovations, Booth was in meetings all day, and Max was unavailable, so she had no choice. It helped that Blue and Bear were cute because Cam couldn't resist their chubby cheeks and leg rolls.

Brennan scooted back and propped herself up against her couch, keeping the twins as still as possible. She sighed and closed her eyes. Her editor was just going to have to wait for the next three chapters. Though it didn't pay the bills, being a mother was her most important job and it took precedence over everything else.

Brennan had fallen asleep and was woken up by a flash going off. She groaned and opened her eyes, blinking. Feeling the weight of the babies still on her lap, she turned her head towards the door and whispered, "Did you just take a picture, Angela?"

Angela smiled, nodding. She sat on the couch and showed Brennan the picture of the sleeping trio. "You guys are so cute."

Brennan smiled. "Will you send me that picture? Oh, and send it to Booth, as well. He's in meetings all day and he always says how much he misses the babies when he's at work."

Angela nodded. "Will do, Sweetie, but seriously, those little babes are adorable. They make me want another one."

"Thank you?"

Angela laughed. "So they've got a big birthday coming up."

"I am aware, Angela."

"Have you and Booth discussed how you're going to handle that? I mean, they were born more than a month apart. That's got to complicate things, right?"

Brennan nodded, smoothing her hands over each of their heads. "Booth and I think it is important to celebrate their birthdays separately; however, we still plan on having joint birthday parties. On their actual birthdays, we will be having a special dinner as a family. When they get older, they'll be able to choose where we eat and what we do on those days."

"Have you thought about their first birthday party?"

"Booth wants to 'go big'. He says it's an important milestone, especially because of the circumstances surrounding their births. I am not discounting the significance, but I do not believe having a huge party is necessary."

"Oh, come on, Bren."

Brennan shrugged. "What? These kinds of celebrations are for parents, relatives, and close family friends. Just as funerals are for the living, not the dead."

"You did not just compare a kid's first birthday party to a funeral, Sweetie."

"Lu and T won't remember it."

"Who cares? And so what if these parties are for the parents? You survived the first year, that's worth celebrating." Angela paused. "Speaking of that, I have a present for them."

Brennan raised an eyebrow and cocked her head. "It's not their birthday yet, Angela."

"I know, but I can't wait. It's for you, really."

"Me?"

"And Booth. Wait here."

Brennan smirked. "Where am I going to go, Angela?"

"Good point, Sweetie." Angela stood up and headed over to the door. "I'll be right back." She quickly went to her office and returned with the present, a dark blue blanket draped over it. "Since you've got your hands full, I'll do the honors." She yanked off the cover to reveal a large canvas with an enlarged picture of the babies in footie pajamas, Blue in pale pink and Bear in light grey. They were outside, sitting in the grass. In front of them was a framed picture, split in two, showing them as newborns in the NICU.

Brennan gasped, her eyes drawn to the framed picture. She'd almost forgotten what they had looked like then. Blue was intubated in the picture and looked so fragile, not like the laughing, wide-eyed girl sitting in the grass reaching up to catch a butterfly that was flying above her head. Bear was deathly pale and wore an oxygen mask, looking nothing like the chunky, bright-eyed boy staring right into the camera. "Angela—." She swallowed, blinking back tears. "I—thank you."

"You're welcome."

"When did you—when was that picture taken?" Brennan asked, referring to the one of the babies in the grass.

"I did a mini photoshoot about a week ago. You and Booth were out saving the universe. I've got so many other pictures. I saved them on a disk for you."

Brennan nodded. "Thank you. I—thank you. I love my gift, Angela. I mean, their gift."

Angela smiled, setting the canvas down and leaning over to hug Brennan. "They're great models, Bren. I can't believe it's been a year. It's crazy." She paused and sat down on the floor. "So back to the party. Let's talk themes—." She was cut off by a knock on Brennan's door. She slipped out when Booth entered.

Brennan looked up and smiled, not expecting her husband. "Hello, Booth."

Booth narrowed his eyes at his wife. "What's wrong? You were crying."

She shook her head. "I'm fine. Angela just—she gave the twins their birthday gift early." She motioned to the canvas leaning up against her desk.

He walked over to it and picked it up, taking a closer look. He swallowed and shook his head, his eyes darkening as he focused on the framed picture. He refused to go there. They were fine. Everything was fine. Blue and Bear were no longer those small, fragile newborns. He looked away and then refocused on the most recent photograph of the babies. He reached out and brushed his hand across their enlarged faces, a single tear running down his cheek. Even though it was only a picture, he knew Blue was laughing. Bear was having a stare down with the camera, most likely oblivious to everything else around him, including his sister.

"Booth?" She called to him. He hadn't said anything for at least five minutes and she was concerned.

He cleared his throat and looked at her. "I love you."

She raised an eyebrow. "Where did that come from?" She sighed. "I love you too, Booth."

He came over to her and fell to his knees. Overwhelmed, he pressed his lips hard against hers and kissed her. He pulled away and then planted soft kisses to each of the twins' foreheads.

"Booth, stop, you'll wake them."

He shook his head. "I don't care, Bones." He kissed them again and again and then settled on the floor beside her, his back against the couch, his shoulder touching hers. "Look at them," he said, taking Blue's tiny hand in his hand. The baby stirred slightly, but remained asleep. He ran his thumb over her fingers and let out a breath. "Just look at them."

She glanced down at Blue and Bear and ran her hand over Bear's blonde hair.

"Thank you, Bones."

"For what?"

"For them, for Christine, for being there for Parker, for giving me all of this. Just thank you."

She let her head fall to his shoulder. "I should be thanking you, Booth. You gave me a family. You gave me my family back." She let out a breath. "We can do the big party. If that's what you want, we can 'go big or go home' or whatever it was that you said."

He nodded.

"Christine suggested Candy Land when I was tucking her in last night."

"Not now. We'll talk about that later."

She nodded. "Okay." She paused. "What time does Parker's flight come in?"

"Six."

"I'm looking forward to seeing him again."

"Me too, Bones, it's been too long. It'll be great to have the whole family together." He shook his head. "We're a family of six. I still can't believe it, Bones. I was happy just having Parker. I thought he was the only kid I was going to have and I was okay with that. I'm a father of four. Wow. Pops would have loved these guys. Blue looks a little like Grams."

She smiled.

"I hope he's proud of me."

"He is." She closed her eyes. "I miss Hank, too."

"If we have another boy, you think we could name him after Pops?"

Her eyes popped open and she stared at him. "If we have another? We are not having any more children, Booth. It hasn't even been twelve-months and three is plenty."

"I'll settle for a dog."

"A dog." She smiled. "Yes, a dog. Okay. Someday."

He nodded. "Then that's settled. We're getting a dog."

She laughed, rolling her eyes. "I said someday, Booth, not now."

"Someday, today? What's the difference?"

"We'll discuss this again once Lu and T are potty-trained."

He looked down at the babies. "All right, you two, get up. We've got some work to do. Operation 'Get Blue and Bear Potty-Trained ASAP' is a go."

She pushed against his shoulder. "Booth, stop. You know they're not ready for that."

"I'm joking, Bones. I don't want these two to grow up any faster than they already are. I'd freeze time if I could."

Their moment was broken by Blue stirring on Brennan's lap. Without even opening her eyes, she reached for Booth and mumbled 'Dada'.

He picked her up and held her against his chest, her head against his shoulder, her face pressed into his neck. He rubbed her back and kissed her hair. "Hi, Blue," he whispered, though he knew the baby had already fallen back to sleep. "That's my girl."

Brennan shifted and repositioned Bear so that he was cradled in her arms more. She looked down at the sleeping boy and brushed her thumb across his chest. If only she could freeze time, as well.

THANK YOU! Until next time...