Welcome to The Junge by a380fan posted 12/09/2007

Posted 13/09/2007 09:50:42 PM
by a380fan

"Welcome to the jungle,
we got fun 'n games..."
- Guns'n'Roses

Hey folks. I'm posting my fic, which from Chapter 11 on, will be a proper joint fic between Red and myself.

For the first ten chapters, it's mostly my writing with Red's edits and her writing mostly all the fluff.

Title: Welcome to the Jungle
Author(s}: a380fan / Hot-Blooded Productions (a380fan/RedRider)
Rating: Teen/ PG 13

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Welcome to the Jungle



Welcome to the Jungle: Chapter 1 (Originally by a380fan, edited by RedRider6612)

The fuselage of the Boeing 747-300 glinted in the early morning sunlight. It slowly aligned itself over the runway. It was still several miles out, and still very high. The pilot de-throttled the four jet engines as he closed in on the airport. Just as the runway was coming up underneath the nose of the plane, it dipped suddenly, soaring down from over a thousand feet to the ground and the runway in seconds. The pilot jerked the brakes on and the plain shook as it rapidly slowed down. A good deal of the passengers on-board weren’t expecting the sudden dive, and expressed their alarm, and in some cases anger, for the sudden dive.

One of the passengers was Dr. Temperance Brennan, physical-turned-forensic anthropologist for the Jeffersonian Institute in Washington, D.C. She was sitting in the second row of the plane, next to the window on the ‘jumbo-jet’s’ left side. She had been surprised by the sudden dive and assumed the pilot made a mistake. She brushed her shoulder-length brunette hair out from her eyes and turned to the man in the seat next to her. While she was alarmed and rather angry. her neighbor was calm and composed, seemingly expecting the sudden dive.

“You would think they would train pilots on how to land before they let them fly multi-million dollar machines,” she said indignantly.

“Well, ya know what Bones? Would ya rather get shaken up a bit, or have this ‘multi-million dollar machine’ fall from the sky as a chunk of twisted metal, taking you with it?” Special Agent Seeley Booth replied. “They do that so our ‘buddies’ with the RPGs don’t blow up every plane that comes in here.”

“Oh.” She replied. “Well they could have warned everyone. And why didn’t you tell me this earlier Booth?” she said, annoyed at her friend and partner for knowing something she didn’t.

“I forgot. I remembered a few hours ago but you were asleep, then I forgot again,” he said, shrugging. They continued bickering as the plane taxied to their gate. One of the flight attendants spoke over the PA system.

“May we be the first to welcome you to Baghdad. Its 3:30pm local time, forecast is saying temperatures around 53 degrees Celsius. We thank you for flying Emirates, and hope you enjoy your stay.”

Posted 13/09/2007 10:05:33 PM
by redrider6612

Woo-hoo! Yeah! So glad you're posting this here.

Posted 14/09/2007 07:26:05 PM
by bandbi

Looking forward to where you go with this

Posted 14/09/2007 09:32:56 PM
by a380fan

Hey folks,

Here's chapter 2 of Welcome to the Jungle:

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Chapter 2

Chapter 2

“What’s that in American?” Booth asked.

“It’s Fahrenheit, not American, Booth.” Brennan replied, her tone and the look on her face screaming smug.

“Whatever Bones. How hot is it in ‘Fahrenheit’?” Booth said exaggerating Fahrenheit.

“About a hundred-and thirty degrees.”

“Right… I remember the Iraqi summers a bit too well.”

“You’ve… right.”

They deplaned where they were met by a well-dressed Iraqi and four Marines. The Iraqi extended his hand.

“Hello, I am Yussef Mohamed Jassim,” he said in perfect Oxford English.

“Dr. Temperance Brennan, and I’m Special Agent Seeley Booth.” Both replied as he shook the man’s hand. He noticed Brennan giving him a dirty look. Probably because he introduced her he figured. Yussef then shook Dr. Brennan’s hand. The Marine extended his hand as well.

“Colonel Riechler,” he said as he shook Booth’s, then Brennan’s hand. He glanced at Booth. “What and when?” He asked.

“75th Rangers, Operation Desert Storm.” The Marine nodded.

“You are leaving via military convoy at 1300 hours today. You will be briefed in further detail at the embassy, which is where we are going now. Any questions?”

“How long will it take us to get there?” Brennan asked.

“Several hours. All right, let’s move.”

-------

They had met with the embassy’s CIA attaché, where they were further briefed as to what they would find. They were well-fed and packed at 1240 and ready to leave. They had both showered, separately of course, and felt refreshed and good. Until they stepped outside that is. The heat hit them like a freight train of fire. They immediately decided to wait inside.

Ten minutes later a row of armored Humvees pulled up outside the embassy. In the center of them were two black Land Rovers. The odd shape of the cars revealed their added armor. Booth put his and Brennan’s stuff in the back and hurriedly hopped in the back beside Bones. He closed the door quickly and savored the air conditioning.

When he opened his eyes he saw that in the two front seats and the rear-left window seat were men in black suits. He sat in the right window and Bones sat in the center of the spacious and well furnished car. The man in the passenger seat introduced himself.

“Rick Miller, Department of State Security. I’m in charge of protecting you from here to Karkuk, at which point the Marines are going to be solely responsible.”

“Who’s in the second Land Rover?” Booth asked. Brennan had pulled out a book and was reading it avidly. She was in a huff over being left out of the conversation.

“Yussef Mohamed Jassim and his assistant.”

“Who is he?” Brennan asked. “I mean what does he do, how is he involved?”

“He’s the under-secretary of the Ministry of the Interior.”

“Ah.” Brennan nodded before going back to her book.

The man next to her picked up a compact sub-machine gun and checked the chamber as the convoy started moving.

“Is that an MP7?” Booth asked him with interest. The man nodded. “Isn’t it still experimental?” Again the man nodded. Booth decided to leave Mr. Personality alone for a while. He turned his pent up energy towards Bones.

“Hey Bones.” She looked up at him, apparently aggravated. “Whatcha reading?” he asked, flashing her a famous ‘charm-smile’.

“A novel,” she said turning back to her book.

“What’s it about?”

“The TWA Flight 800 disaster.”

“Oh yeah? Who’s it by?”

“Nelson DeMille. Can you leave me alone now?”

“Sure. Well one more thing, what’s it called?”

“Night Fall. Leave me alone.”

“Okay okay…” he replied, exasperated. He gazed out the window. Mr. Personality reached in the back and brought out two large vests. He handed one to Booth and one to Brennan.

“Put these on now. We are about to leave the Green Zone. They must remain on and snug at all times.”

Booth slid his flak vest on over his head and tightened the Velcro straps on the side. He then turned to help Brennan, who slapped his arm as he reached to help her tighten the side straps. Mr. Personality then handed Booth a gun.

“Sig Sauer p220.” Booth took it and checked the magazine before putting it in a built-in holster in his flak jacket. Brennan turned to the man.

“Why don’t I get one?” she asked, angrily.

“We were informed that Agent Booth was here as your body guard, and we couldn’t get him a diplomatic pouch to put his firearm in.”

“I. Don’t. Need. A. Body. Guard.” she said slowly, her fury bubbling over like a pot of boiling water. “I am perfectly capable of protecting myself at all times, and therefore need a firearm.” She turned to Booth. “Is that why you came, to act as my body guard?” She was nearly yelling.

“Well… yeah. I guess.” She exploded.

“I have told you again and again that I don’t need you to protect me, damn-it Booth!”

Booth’s own anger overflowed at this point.

“Yeah! That’s right Bones. You didn’t need protection when the Gravedigger kidnapped you, you didn’t need protection when Keaton nearly fed you to dogs, you didn’t need protection when Howard Epps tried to kill you. No Bones, it seems you’re perfectly capable of protecting yourself.” He did yell. The Department of State security detail looked away uncomfortably.

Brennan’s jaw hung open. She started to make a reply but couldn’t. Booth turned partly in his seat so his back faced Brennan. He gazed out the window, taking short jagged breaths as he tried to get his anger back in check. She forced back tears. She had no clue why she was nearly in tears over his anger. But she acknowledged his points, and felt bad for offending him and not showing gratitude for the times when he had been there to protect and also comfort her. She slumped back in her seat, her head dropping forward so her chin rested on her chest.

Posted 16/09/2007 00:31:50 AM
by a380fan

BUMP!

Posted 16/09/2007 02:56:12 PM
by a380fan

Hey folks,

Here's chapter three. As always thanks to RedRider for being my uber beta, and for severely re-hauling all the fluffy stuff in these chapters.

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Chapter 3

They had made it to Mosul, which was where they would be spending the bulk of their time. They had remained silent for the rest of the trip, both of them regretting their actions, both too stubborn to apologize. They were checked into a suite at a smallish hotel in the small city. There was a small kitchenette area, which opened to a living room with an ancient looking TV and a few beaten up couches. Two separate bedrooms led off on either side with a bathroom connecting them. Booth took the smaller of the two rooms by silent agreement between them, and each had closed the door to their rooms, sealing off communication between them.

He decided he’d be the bigger person and go and apologize. He made for the door to the sitting room, but before he could touch the handle there was gentle knocking from the other side. He opened the door.

“Booth. Before you say anything please listen. I really appreciate how… how you’ve saved my life before.” She paused and stared at her feet, looking for the right words. “What I said earlier… I guess I didn’t mean it.” Booth cut her off.

“You guess?” He said incuriously. “You know Bones, don’t apologize unless you’re really sorry.” With that the door closed in her face.

A deep pain started in her stomach and spread. An iron hand seemed to squeeze her chest. She had slight difficulty breathing, and she felt dizzy, nauseous. She knocked on the door again.

“Booth! Please let me in. I really am sorry, I want to talk to you please.” She was almost frantic. She tried the door. Locked. She knocked again. “Booth, please!”

“Good night doctor Brennan.” He called out. She froze. He never called her ‘Dr. Brennan’. It sounded like an obscenity coming from his mouth. She was ‘his bones’. She went back to her room and opened the bathroom door. She was about to splash some cold water on her face when she noticed the door leading to Booth’s room from the bathroom. She tried it. Unlocked. When she walked in, Booth was sitting on the bed with his back to her. He had been putting the Sig the Department of State security agent had given him on his night stand. He sighed wearily and dropped his head in his hands.

“Booth…” He jumped slightly. He looked back at her for a second, shook his head, and returned it to his hands. “Booth. Really, I’m sorry. I appreciate everything you do for me…”

“Whatever you say, Doctor Brennan,” he said wearily.

“No… you call me Bones, Booth,” she managed to say past the lump in her throat, moving around the end of the bed toward him.

“Right then, Doctor…” He was interrupted as she dropped to her knees in front of him and grasped his wrists, trying to force him to look at her. His eyes went wide at the sensations that were radiating from her touch. Her mouth dropped open and Booth knew she felt it too. His breath hitched at the look in her eyes.

Brennan was tempted to remove her hands, separate herself from him. Protect herself against the pain of the day when he would abandon her like everyone else. But she didn’t.

“Booth. I’m really, really, sorry. I appreciate everything you do for me. And… And….” She half fell, was half pulled into his strong comforting arms. She started crying against her own will. She was pulled deeper into his arms as a strong yet gentle hand stroked her hair.

“Shhh,” he murmured softly. “It’s okay, Bones.” He continued to stroke her hair as she clutched at his back.

Finally she pulled back and looked up at him with tears standing in her eyes. “Don’t do that again,” she ordered with a tremor in her voice.

Booth looked puzzled. “What?”

She took a deep breath, blinking the tears away. “Shut me out. I—I can handle anything as long as you don’t shut me out,” she admitted unwillingly.

His eyes dropped to her lips, then shot back up to her eyes. His heart squeezed at the fear he saw there. “I’m sorry. It won’t happen again,” he said softly.

She studied him for a long moment, then nodded and pulled away, standing to go. His arms felt unbearably empty as she moved toward the connecting door. She was gone before he could think of anything more to say. Sighing with frustration, he fell back on the bed. What was he gonna do now?

Posted 16/09/2007 03:52:58 PM
by bandbi

Great job!! I loved the fact that when he didn't call her Bones she freaked out!!

Posted 29/09/2007 11:13:06 PM
by a380fan

BUMP

Posted 04/10/2007 03:27:59 PM
by miller0259

More soon please!!!

Posted 01/12/2007 02:01:58 AM
by miller0259

*frowns and taps screen* hello? no update? I haven't forgot about this fic despite my lack of bumping....

Posted 01/12/2007 08:07:31 AM
by nane

miller thanks for bumping it up. let me bump too. Where are the other chappies? Just red the beginning, great and promising so far...You call me Bones... great line

Posted 01/12/2007 12:25:04 AM
by ToZiKa

I so love this fic.
Actually it is my third attempt to read this story...the first two where back at the boneyard.
And I hope to finish reading this time.

osted 01/12/2007 08:00:00 PM
by Glug Glug Woohoo

Oh I want you to continue this ASAP!!! I love it! I didn't start reading it at the boneyard but now I am hooked!!!

Posted 05/12/2007 08:32:57 PM
by a380fan

It's been abandoned. I'll speak to my partner in crime, though, and if she's up to continuing then I'll (we'll) try.

-flyboy

Posted 05/12/2007 08:33:42 PM
by a380fan

Oh, and dig my new fic: Learn To Fly, here, at the Boneyard, and on FFnet.