#saroyan

http://agcfresno.org/wp-content/uploads/2014/12/Shout-Armenia-full-essay.pdf

Today marks 104 years since the start of the Armenian Genocide. Around 1.5 million lives were lost, and the survivors, the lucky ones, scattered around the globe. Over a century later, fewer than 30 countries recognize the Genocide, and there are more Armenians in the Diaspora than in Armenia.

Brennan

General

You’re her younger sister

When your parents left, you were actually split up by the foster system; as soon as she turned eighteen, she found you and petitioned for custody, which was granted

You hit Russ in the face when you saw him again

You also hit Max in the face when you saw him again

She taught you how to handle and shoot guns in case you ever needed to protect yourself

Thanks to her, you’re fluent in English, French, and Spanish

She has intimidated away more than a couple of significant others. You’re not mad about this because she usually doesn’t do it on purpose.

You’re not a forensic anthropologist, but because you listen to her talk and helped her study, you can follow along pretty well when she talks about work

You didn’t push her to do anything, but you’d really rooted for her to get with Booth and were so happy when she finally did

You’re the go-to babysitter

Parker, Christine, and Hank all adore you

With the Team

You were never a secret; Brennan didn’t talk about you a lot, merely because it wasn’t professionally relevant, but she had a photo of the two of you on her desk and mentioned you in passing a few times

You actually met the team because someone tried to hurt Brennan and she worried you’d also be a target, so you went to work with her

Angela decided instantly that you were gonna be friends. You did not get a choice

Booth started out babying you like he babied Jared, but over the years he started seeing you as an individual adult rather than just his partner’s little sibling

Hodgins made the mistake of flirting with you once and the look Brennan sent him could’ve made even Pelant pause

Cam likes your company because you’re more social and less work-oriented, so you kind of balance out Brennan

You really encouraged her to go to her therapy sessions with Sweets, but the one time he tried to psychoanalyze you, you made sure he knew not to do it again (you eventually ended up good friends though)

For some reason, the squinterns are all really surprised to find out Brennan has a sister. You secretly enjoy announcing it casually and watching their shocked reactions

Zach was your favorite (much like he was Brennan’s) and you never really got over his betrayal

You’re not close with many of the squinterns, but you’re friends with Wendell and Jessica

Booth

General

Again, you are the younger sibling - the baby of the family

Jared never quite grew up until he was out of the house, but having you as well as Jared to look after made Booth grow up super fast

He was able to relax a little once his grandfather took you all in, but he never stopped being wary and overprotective

When you moved out after high school, he called you every single day (sometimes just to remind you to lock your doors and keep pepper spray)

You were really into police shows as a kid, but Booth took it a step further and became a fed after his time with the army. You’re very proud of him

You’re also proud of Jared, of course, but given the stupid decisions he’s made, you’re a little more reserved

Booth told you when he was going to propose to Rebecca. He also crashed on your couch when she said no

Same with Hannah

And with Brennan, during that awkward time when Pelant forced him to be the one calling it off

Like Brennan, he would’ve also taught you to shoot

You’re also the one who was left to stage an intervention when you saw his gambling become a problem the first time around. He got help, but it was hard for him to admit at first and your attempted confrontation made a rift between you two for a long time. Once he started going to meetings and got his equivalent of a sobriety coin, you made up

You slapped Jared so goddamn hard when he got a DUI - you also slapped Booth for protecting Jared from the consequences. You’re not kids anymore, Jared needs to be an adult and take responsibility

You’re not as religious as he is, but you’re happy to be Parker’s godmother

You encouraged him to go to therapy with Sweets because you’d had counselling before and it had really helped, so since you wanted him to, he went

With the Team

Being the sister of a field agent means you’re usually pretty safe, but sometimes bad people want to hurt you to get back at him. You met the team when Epps threatened you, and Booth had you stay in the lab with Cam and Hodgins until it blew over

Cam was super nice and great company, especially since you’d already known each other from when she’d dated Booth

Hodgins was eager to get blackmail stories

Honestly, you could tell he was stressed, but his attempts at lightening the situation really helped you stay calm and you couldn’t thank him enough for that

He and Zach became fast friends with you, to Booth’s chagrin

It was hard for you to tell what Brennan thought. For a while you assumed she didn’t like you very much, but you had no idea why. Booth had to explain that it was just the way she acted, and she actually liked you more than she liked him sometimes

You actually became pretty close with Brennan and took martial arts classes together

You’re not as close with Angela, but you get along well when you do spend time together

You and Sweets bonded pretty quickly. You suspected more than once that he was envious of the connection you had with your brother, but he was never obvious about it. To be honest, he seemed lonely sometimes (a lot) and you felt bad for him, and were really happy when you saw him start to seem less alone

Your favorite squint has been Finn because he really reminds you of Booth. Booth would never agree, but Finn’s willingness to pick up a weapon and threaten his dad to protect his mother made you think of Booth standing up to his father and taking the brunt of the abuse to protect you and Jared

Wendell’s a close second, since he and Booth played hockey together

Angela

General

You’re an avid supporter of her artwork

You didn’t date as much as Angela, to dad’s relief

You got tattoos together (not matching) when she turned eighteen

Angela was not the only one that had to change their name when they turned eighteen

She literally came out to you by asking if she left her girlfriend’s bra in your laundry by accident

She was originally going to study computer science at MIT, but you convinced her to follow her passions and she chose a school that also had a great art program

You liked Roxie, but you didn’t think they’d last. Just from an outsider’s perspective, you could see how their lifestyles didn’t quite line up

You’re the protective older sister who freaked out about her working on murder cases at first – it took a while for you to calm down and be chill with it

Hodgins asked your permission to marry Angela, to which you replied, “eh, you’re okay, I guess,” and then warned him that if Ange ever found out he’d asked anyone else for her hand, he would be sleeping on the couch for weeks

You were the maid of honor at her wedding

You host sleepovers for Brennan’s and Angela’s kids so that they can go out sometimes and just have fun

She keeps teasing you about having your own kid whenever she sees you playing around happily with Michael Vincent

With the Team

You met Brennan and Booth in the desert when Ange’s then-boyfriend was murdered by drug smugglers and they came out to investigate the crime

You were apprehensive of Brennan, but then saw how much she loves Angela and got all on board with that friendship

You got really close with Brennan and bonded a lot while taking martial arts classes together

You got along great with Booth right from the start, thanks to similar senses of humor, values, and interests

Hodgins tried to impress you because he wanted Angela to have another reason to like him. He tried to lean on the back of a chair, the chair rolled on its wheels, and he went flying to the floor

You thought Zach was “kinda cute, in the lost puppy sort of way” but you were never really friends with him

You started out purely professional with Cam, but that came to a screeching halt after an eventful girls’ night out

Your genuine interest in psychology makes you Sweets’ favorite

You double date a lot with Wendell and his girlfriend

Angela would never let you hear the end of it if she found out that you and Aubrey go to sci-fi conventions together

Your favorite intern is Arastoo – you have a liberal arts education, much like Angela, and you loved to have scholarly discussions about things like religion, conflict theory, and literature with him

Hodgins

General

Despite having an inheritance of your own, Hodgins doted on you with his money, being nearly ten years older than you

He used to put various bugs in your bedroom as pranks. His choice to study entomology was not a surprise by any stretch of the imagination

Your prank wars were legendary

When you were bored, you’d make up puzzles (usually by inventing cyphers or using anagrams) for each other to solve and then passing letters in them until that system got boring. Hodgins loved it, since he loved the stories of your cryptologist grandfather

Your first pet was a puppy. His was a snake, not poisonous but pretty big. You were tentatively open to the reptilian pet until you heard panicked yapping and ran in on the constrictor snake looking about to crush your puppy. The rules regarding that snake’s freedom were very strictly tightened and you hated snakes ever since

Hodgins was the best brother. You were picked on at school for being a rich kid, and he knew what that was like, so he’d take you to get clothes at places like Walmart, Sears, and JCPennys. He’d help you buy school supplies at Office Max. He chose your first car and gave you something that didn’t attract a lot of attention, all so you could fit in easier

The conspiracist hobbies are not new. One time he asked if you were in the Illuminati??? Like??? And he seemed disappointed when you said you obviously weren’t?????

You went spelunking together in caves, pretending to look for pirate treasure, and even went scuba diving off the coast of Hawaii

He kept “subtly” pursuing you to be a scientist like him for a long time before finally resigning to just be supportive

After your parents’ deaths, you traveled around, seeing things for a while before you finally felt ready to settle down again. Hodgins never objected, never nudged you to come home, just asked for souvenirs or suggested new destinations, and when you were ready, he housed you until you found your own place

He always gives your significant others a shovel talk. Even when the first time he saw your significant other was at his own wedding, he stopped to give a short “don’t you dare hurt her because I have the best lawyers” talk before running out of the church with Ange

You offered money to help them when Hodgins and Angela were broke. You’re sure he wouldn’t have accepted it if he hadn’t had a family to think about, but you were happy to help

With the Team

You met the team when you walked into the lab with a visitor’s pass to complain that his then-girlfriend had gotten your phone number somehow and wouldn’t stop trying to use you as a messenger

You and Booth like each other a lot more than Hodgins would prefer. He’s all “government stooge” while you’re like “cool so you catch bad guys” and it takes a while for your brother to get used to it

You, Zach, and Hodgins all made up the Jeffersonian’s “Golden Trio.” You and Hodgins were hit hardest by Zach’s betrayal, but you were really confused by how to feel at first. Knowing that Zach had injured himself badly for the sake of keeping Hodgins safe made you feel grateful, even though you knew you should be angry

Cam is a bit exasperated by you because you urge Hodgins to do more experiments so that he has more fun stories to tell

Angela quickly found things you had in common (even before she and Hodgins were dating) to make friends with you, and now you’re glad to actually be sisters

Brennan likes to teach you things when you listen, but other than occasionally babysitting for her and Booth or drinking together at Founding Fathers, you don’t see much of each other out of the lab

You were always one of the nicest ones to Sweets, and although you never wanted to talk to him about Zach, you didn’t ice him out. Hodgins seemed to think Sweets thought Zach could be replaced. You knew better and were just glad to have friends to help you not feel alone

Hodgins and Aubrey get along well enough, but not as well as you and Aubrey do. Pizza restaurants, cinemas, and coffee cafés are your favorite places to hang out together

Angela’s dad admitted to you that he’s chill with Hodgins now, and just terrorizes him for amusement. You died laughing

Your favorite of the squinters are Vincent and Finn – the latter because of just how nice and genuinely happy he always seemed to be, and the former because you admired how willing he was to compromise, and to be corrected and learn from his mistakes

Cam

General

You’re the middle sister of three

You never clashed as much with either of your sisters as they did with each other

Your parents would never admit it to anyone, but you’re their favorite because you caused a lot less drama as a teenager than either of your sisters

Cam would tell her parents that she was still dating Booth even after they’d broken up just so they’d leave her alone about finding a partner, and you managed to get sucked into it and would make up long-winded stories about times you’d crashed their dates or gotten pulled into an argument that ended happily or something, and your parents always bought it

The worst part about being the sister of a pathologist was when you swapped phones for a couple days during her ME training and had to explain to a friend why there were photographs of corpses in various stages of autopsy in your camera roll

She helped you learn Spanish, but you’d spent more time in Mexico and even vacationed in Spain for a while, so you ended up being more fluent

You learned from her example to be confident and strong, and you were eternally grateful for that

She’s also the one that taught you how valuable it is to be educated and motivated. Though your parents always supported your goals, it was Cam how showed you how to achieve them

Cam moved to DC around the same time you did, so it was nice to live near family again

She complained to you about her power struggle with Brennan when she started at the Jeffersonian, and you would sarcastically agree that it must be really frustrating to have a headstrong, stubborn person insisting they know what’s right (it was funny to you because it sounded like she was finally learning what it had been like to deal with her for the last twenty-some years)

Her breakup with Arastoo was so sad that it made you cry, and you were really psyched when they got back together

Maid of honor at her wedding with Arastoo

With the Team

Your first time meeting the team was at a Christmas party Cam invited you to at the Jeffersonian to celebrate the staff. It was fun to meet her friends, especially Angela, who was a lot of fun and not at all the kind of person you expected to meet at the lab

Angela and you were fast friends

You were kind of friends with Booth ever since he dated Cam, but you didn’t chat much between their breakup and her move to DC. It was one of those halfway-friendships where you’d say hi occasionally but usually just kind of mutually ignored each other

Hodgins once said he was surprised you’re not a stick-in-the-mud like Cam. Cam overheard. Hodgins stammered through his words to apologize

Although it surprised you, you were also quick to bond with Brennan. You’d admired her from the beginning, since it had to take a very intelligent and dedicated person to be a legitimate rival to your sister

You literally never met Zach until he was in the hospital for blowing up his hands. Cam asked you to help watch over him in case whoever had sabotaged the experiment came back, so you joined their rotating shifts, along with the security guards outside his door, and thought he’d seemed kind of sweet… you changed your mind when you heard he killed and ate people

You also didn’t interact much with Aubrey. Not that there was anything you had against him, you just didn’t share as much in common and weren’t in positions where you had to talk to each other very often

You got coffee with Sweets a few times, since you were both relatively new to the city, and for a long time you both felt like outsiders whenever you visited the Medico-Legal lab (you because you weren’t a scientist, him because the team was standoffish and a bit exclusive after what happened with Zach)

Arastoo is your favorite because he’s your brother-in-law

Your favorite squints that you’re not family with are Clark and Vincent. Vincent was always super friendly and made you feel at home whenever you visited. Clark was always pleasant to be around - always more than civil and very respectful, but professional, as well.

Sweets

General

You were the older sister in this case, and you were always very protective. Your parents were crueler to you than they were to him because you were older

You’re the reason you escaped them - you realized you could get help when you had infected injuries on your back and called CPS yourself

The couple who adopted you were the sweetest ever and they didn’t even hesitate to take in both you and your brother. From that point you grew up safe, healthy, and loved

You would tease him mercilessly sometimes

He tried to give your first boyfriend a protective shovel talk, but it was when he was about eleven and so it really wasn’t as intimidating as he’d have hoped. He was basically a scrawny, four-foot-tall beanpole trying to tell a football player to have you home by nine “or else”

You both went to college intending to study psychology, but you trained in different fields and your focus shifted, so it’s in your background but it’s not your practicing focus

You shared an apartment when your parents died and he moved to DC. You went with him and looked for job opportunities there

Even after you were employed, you kept living together because it was economical and you felt better living with him than you would’ve alone

Once he started dating Daisy you realized it was in everyone’s best interest that they had more privacy, so you found your own apartment

When Olivia accidentally shot him, you kept making sharp, sarcastic replies because you were pretty pissed. If you can’t aim for the right person, you shouldn’t be allowed to carry a gun

His breakup with Daisy left him moping on your couch for weeks. It was pretty pathetic but you were nice enough not to tell him that

You had never been more scared than you were when the subway line derailed while he was on it. He was shaken up that he’d seen someone die, but as selfish as it might have been, you were just glad that your brother was safe

The worst day of your life was when Booth called you to unsteadily, shakily, ramblingly tell you that Sweets had been murdered on the job

With the Team

The worst part of his job was how his “teammates” treated him. For a while you resented the Jeffersonian team, because you could see how sincerely Sweets was trying to help, and he kept getting belittled and dismissed - if not for his age, then for his profession, his looks, his geeky interests, or simply because he wasn’t Zach, and they had wanted the bad guy to be the new outsider instead of their close friend, and it wasn’t fair to your brother at all

You met the team unwillingly, only because Sweets really wanted you to, at Founding Fathers one night. It was hard to reconcile the arrogant, rude people you’d imagined with the compassionate, friendly group you saw

Booth was probably the one that took the longest for you to warm up to. While he accepted and grew more and more like a mentor to Sweets, you couldn’t quite forget that his snide insults had been the worst for your brother to hear

By the time several years had passed, you grudgingly admitted to yourself that Booth was kind of like the big brother you’d never had, looking out for both of you and doing an unprecedented background check on your dates

You weren’t sure what to make of Brennan. It took you a long time to get used to her, but you realized pretty quickly that when she said insulting things, she didn’t usually understand that she was being mean, and that made her easier to forgive than Booth. Soon you started actually enjoying her company - her bluntness meant you never had to guess at what she thought or felt

Angela was the sweetest, and although she teased you a little, she never did it with bad intentions. You liked her practically right off the bat and you were personal friends before you really knew what happened

You never got close with Cam, but you have each other’s phone numbers in case of emergency and sometimes go to see movies or events that others aren’t interested in

Hodgins would indulge your morbid fascination with reptiles and bugs, but kept pestering you to hold them. Your hell nos were a source of amusement for him.

He was one of the worst about Zach, so you ended up losing your temper with him once. He admitted he’d been a jerk, apologized to you, apologized to Sweets, and all was good

You never got the chance to meet Zach, but you heard a lot about him. Aside from the part where he was found criminally insane, he seemed like a cool guy

Daisy always annoyed the hell out of you. She was too preppy, too loud, to scattered, and not humble in the least. Sweets thought these were endearing traits, but honestly you just wanted her to shut up

Your favorite squint was Vincent. His youthful enthusiasm to learn and help reminded you a lot of Sweets, and his death hit you really hard. Wendell was a close second, in part because he was just so mature and responsible while still being playful and relatable

Aubrey

General

You’re his older sister who had to step up and really help your mother with raising him after your father abandoned the three of you

Your special nickname for him is “Jay” and he doesn’t let anyone else call him that

He’s super protective of you and kind of feels like he needs to pay you back for all you did to help him get where he is

You’re so proud of him for taking the trauma caused by your dad and using it as motivation to become a cop when he easily could’ve let it make him bitter and mean

You have lots of movie marathons and binge sessions together

There is a lot of car and home karaoke, and you always poke fun at him for his college a cappella

You tease him about Jessica, but in actuality, you think they’re adorable together

He used to talk about culinary school when he was younger. That’s how much he loves food

As soon as he was released from the hospital, you nearly killed him yourself for using his survival as bait to the bombers

You took him to all of his physical therapy appointments and follow-ups while all the injuries from the shrapnel were healing

He was reluctant to take over Booth’s office when the older agent retired, but you encouraged him to take the offer and accept the promotions. You knew he deserved the acknowledgment and recognition

The two of you have a very close relationship and very few serious arguments, and when you do have disagreements, you’re careful to keep it private

With the Team

You met Sweets when you were helping Jay move to DC and became friends

You cried with Jay for hours when Sweets died

You met the rest of the team while in protective custody during the Pelant scare

You were so thankful to Brennan for accepting your brother and helping him to transition into the new job. He’d been really excited to work with the Medico-Legal team, but when Booth shut him out, you could tell it really disappointed and hurt him. If Brennan hadn’t been so helpful, you didn’t think he’d have been as happy

With Booth, you share an earnest sort of kinship because you both have experience growing up a little too fast to take care of a younger brother

You’re also really close with Hodgins, because he felt awful for Jay being injured protecting him from the bomb

Of course, you also got really aggravated and snapped at Hodgins to get his head out of his ass when he was being a douche and making everyone miserable instead of coping with his paralysis

While in the waiting room after the bomb went off, waiting for word on Hodgins and Aubrey, you and Angela wordlessly comforted each other. Without ever talking about it, you became really close friends

You bonded with Cam over the dumb teenage decisions of both Aubrey and Michelle

Your least favorite squintern is Clark – you’d heard only good things about him from everyone, but when it turned out he covered up a murder… well, your opinion went down quite a bit

Your favorite squintern is Jessica because she’s fun, smart, and surprisingly intuitive. You think she makes a good couple with Aubrey, and you’re also kind of relieved that she speaks her mind. No one ever has to wonder what she’s thinking because all you have to do is ask

Zach

General

You have a huge family, so you’re just one of many sisters

However, you are the one closest to Zach, because you don’t mock and taunt him for being awkward, nerdy, for studying dead people, etc

He likes engineering because of you. One of your other brothers broke a robotic toy when you were six, and you were so upset that Zach fixed it for you. He found the mechanics fascinating and that’s why he got a degree in engineering

You got such good grades in your science classes because Zach always helped you

Lots of long sci-fi marathons together

You’re always giving him advice on communication, friendships, relationship problems, etc

Likewise, he’s always giving you advice and help with studying, choices on your education, practical matters, etc

You stayed with him and Hodgins when you were in town, since you never had the time to visit for more than a few days

You were so scared when he went overseas that he’d be hurt

You moved closer to DC when he was incarcerated so that you could visit him, and you make sure to see him at McKinley several times a week

He told you he didn’t kill anyone, but when you tried to tell others, no one believed you because a) you’re his sister and b) you’re not a professional or an authority

You always make sure to give cards and presents on holidays and birthdays. It’s hard for Zach to do much but he likes to order presents to your address since he can’t go shopping, and he makes cards by hand as a form of physical therapy

With the Team

You met the Jeffersonian team when you visited Zach on the Christmas when they were quarantined

You liked Hodgins right off the bat because he was so friendly with Zach, and you knew your brother had a hard time making friends

You had a great respect for Brennan before even meeting her because of Zach’s high esteem for her

Brennan was impressed by your studies and intellect and you became casual friends, though you got a little closer to each other after Zach’s arrest

You don’t really have much of a relationship with Cam

You’re incredibly grateful to Booth for saving Zach’s life when he triggered the bomb Epps set

Angela adored you right from the start and liked how you and Zach were so close compared to most siblings

You were sad that Zach was an accomplice, but incredibly thankful to Sweets for not giving up on him and continuing to talk to him at McKinley. Later on, when you were trying to tell people Zach was innocent, Sweets was the only one who believed you

The team got a lot closer with you as you all had to struggle to deal with Zach’s betrayal

Creí que nunca iba a morir...

Santa Lucía, Canelones, Uruguay.

(Gin)