beltbucklerebel | Paradisa Application

NAME:Kyra
JOURNAL:

kyronae
CHARACTER NAME: Special Agent Seeley Booth
FANDOM: Bones
CANON: He’ll be coming from part way through The Hero in the Hold (4x13), right when he wakes up from being kidnapped by the Gravedigger.

WHAT THEY LOST: The memory of his younger brother, Jared Booth. Growing up, Booth made it his responsibility to protect Jared from their father. Losing those memories will make it much harder to explain his motivation for a number of his actions. It also removes memories of nearly all the family he has left ...and it will (possibly) make Sweets tear his hair out once he realizes what his favorite patient has lost.

ABOUT THE CHARACTER: On the surface, Seeley Booth is that guy. Attractive, athletic and admired in his field, he seems like someone who has always had things the easy way and his cocky, overconfident demeanor does little to dissuade the illusion. His view of the world is one that is very carefully defined. When someone steps outside the roles and lines he expects, he can be derisive to the point of mocking, calling them freaks, insulting their choices, or simply refusing to try and comprehend the reasoning behind it.

With time, however, it becomes apparent that the brash mask is just that… a façade. In truth, Booth has a surprising amount of empathy and understanding. As a special agent for the FBI, he’s able to turn that understanding to his advantage in order to get to the truth in each of his investigations. Whether he’s mocking or sympathizing or threatening, Booth almost always has a reason behind his actions. And in personal matters, he’s quietly sensitive, doing his best to keep his friends and family happy while mostly keeping his efforts under the radar.

It’s his relationships that define him. Booth is, and always will be, a protector. Fiercely loyal, he does everything in his power to make sure that the people (and the country) he cares about are happy and safe. Growing up as the son of an abusive alcoholic, Booth would put himself between his father and his brother in an attempt to keep Jared safe. As a soldier, he was a respected leader and risked death in order to carry a mortally wounded friend back to his men when a sniping mission went bad, taking responsibility for Corporal Parker’s death even though there was nothing more he could have done. He runs background checks on the romantic interests in his friends’ lives, threatens anyone who poses a danger to them, and will put himself in the line of fire without hesitation if it means saving their lives. While he’ll risk his own life, he’s very reluctant to take someone else’s if he doesn’t have to. An excellent shot and an ex-army sniper, he’s taken many lives in the name of his country and he won’t flinch at killing if it’s the only way to keep his people safe. But life is a precious thing to him, and he keeps a tally in his head of all the people he’s killed. He admits to having killed 50 people when questioned by the FBI psychologist, Gordon Gordon, but throughout the series it’s clear that he often bears the guilt for the deaths of those who he didn’t actually kill, such as Corporal Teddy Parker or the serial killer Howard Epps, so that total may or may not be accurate.

His partnership with Dr. Temperance Brennan (who he’s nicknamed Bones), seems to be full of contradictions. While she’s pure logic and reason, he survives off of instinct and emotion, relying on his “gut” to tell him when a situation has turned sour or a suspect is or isn’t guilty. And the two of them are constantly at odds, whether it’s over techniques for ferreting out the truth, religion (a constant sore spot for Booth), how to handle their friends, or their own tumultuous attraction for each other. But more than a contradiction, the two of them form a balance. Despite her matter-of-fact exterior, Booth is able to see the vulnerability in Bones and he does what he can to keep her safe, both physically and emotionally. He often pretends to understand less than he does, allowing her the satisfaction of being the intelligent one, and he denies any attraction for her to protect both of them, understanding that Bones’ own, troubled background would make that kind of commitment too hard and compromise the partnership and friendship they’ve both come to value so much.

Finally, as much as Booth struggles to keep his personal life and his professional life apart, they often bleed through into each other. Concerns for his son, his devout faith, and his loyalties can have drastic impact on the decisions he makes, and when personal and professional interests collide, the personal almost always win out, regardless of the risk to his career.

THIRD-PERSON WRITING SAMPLE: The opening bars of “Stand by Me,” spilled out over the crowd in Caritas, an anxious young man beginning a surprisingly sweet solo as Booth flipped through his wallet. Or, more accurately, stopped flipping, his eyes settled on the photo of him crouched next to a curly haired boy, both of them grinning like fools as Parker held up a signed baseball.

There was a glass at Booth’s elbow, scotch on the rocks, which he’d almost forgotten about… but he reached for it now, grateful for the smooth warmth of the alcohol. It was a welcome contrast to the cold fear that lurked underneath his humor and his anger, desperate fingers sneaking out every time he thought too long or too hard about Parker. His son, alone, without him there to protect him.

“Booth?”

The familiar voice snapped him out of his thoughts even as he snapped the wallet shut, glancing up at Brennan with a wide grin. “Bones! About time you showed up.” He nodded towards the stage. “What do you say you and me show these losers how it’s really done?”

Brennan frowned, considering the stage. “Is there a contest going on? Because they can’t really lose if there’s nothing for us to win in exchange.” She paused. “Besides, that young man is quite good.”

Booth sighed, shaking his head with a fond smile. “Not losers like that, Bones… Losers like- You know what, never mind. I’ve already signed us up, anyway. C’mon.”

“Now?”

“Yes, now.”

“But I just got here.”

“So you shouldn’t have been late.” Grinning, he took her by the elbow, gently guiding her away from the table and towards the stage, one hand smoothly pocketing his wallet and the picture it contained.

FIRST-PERSON WRITING SAMPLE:
Okay, this whole hallucinating a magic castle mess is a barrel of laughs, but I’ve had just about enough. I want my badge, my gun, my kid, and my feet back on the ground of the good old U. S. of A. And don’t give me any of this crap of there not being a way out. If there’s a way in, there’s a way out. End of story.

Though, the whole wishing thing? As far as hallucinations go, I gotta say, this one’s got its perks. I haven’t had a hot dog this good since the time Pops took me to Chicago to watch the Steelers dominate Soldier Field.

INTENT: Booth’s voice is distinct from the rest of my cast and I love the balance of knight in shining armor and smart-ass that’s intrinsic to his character. He’s interesting and fun and I’m looking forward to seeing how he handles incorporating the magic of Para into his rather narrow worldview.