Title: LEANING II - The Seduction Posted 12/01/02 Author: FatCat (feedback to FatCat926@msn.com) Website: Please visit the wonderful home Donnilee has created to house my stories at http://donnilee.tripod.com. Just follow my name to find my stories. While you are there, take a peek at the variety of other stories Donnilee has at her site. Thank you Donni! Rating: NC17, Implied violence and loving sexual conduct Category: X(sorta) MSR, RST Spoilers: No Requiem, season 8 or season 9 in this world, but you will find bits and pieces of The Unnatural, Orison, Never Again, Pilot, all things, Fallen Angel, well you get the drift-seasons 1-7. Archive: As you wish, but please keep my name attached and let me know where to visit. Summary: The relationship that was exposed in Leaning I continues to develop, despite a non-X-File case and an outside threat to their commitment. Disclaimer: They aren't mine nor anyone's but CC, Fox, 1013, DD, and GA's. These works are used without permission-no infringement intended. Author's Notes: A special thank you to Donna for the use of the names for Charlie Scully's family. Visit her site at: http://www.donnas-stories.com/ When I think about the unknown Scullys, I always think of Donna's beautiful portrayal of Mary, Will, Sam, and especially, Charlie. And most of all, a big THANK YOU to Frohike-Beta Extraordinaire. Without your honesty and talent, this wouldn't be nearly as readable and Lord knows, I wouldn't enjoy this nearly as much! XXXXXXXXXX "Dana, how are you dear?" Maggie Scully asked as she slipped into the booth to join her daughter for brunch. "You look.... wonderful!" Scully laughed and blushed as her mother scrutinized her. "I can't put my finger on it, but you look different. Is that a new jacket?" Maggie watched her closely as she tried to identify the difference. "No, I got this years ago. Nothing is different, Mom. It must be the lighting in here." Scully wasn't ready to share her secret yet, but she couldn't stop smiling. 'Mulder loves me,' she thought. 'Mulder wants to make love to me. Fox William Mulder wants to make my fantasies come true. Hoo Boy!' "Come on, Dana. What's going on? Did you and Fox just complete a case? I know something is up. You are positively glowing." Maggie was sure of her ability to read her daughter's body language. "I'm just happy to see you, Mom. Mulder and I have been in Cheyenne for a couple weeks. We did solve the case, though I can't really tell you much about it." "As usual, Dana. I know. Procedure, protocol, privacy. I got the same thing from your father all the time. Well, I'm hungry. How about you?" Maggie knew if she could bide her time, Dana would eventually let her know what was happening. Dana and Maggie ordered and spent the next twenty minutes catching up on all the family gossip. When their food came, they continued to chat, enjoying the beautiful day. They were contemplating dessert when a young boy Scully recognized ran up to the table. It was Poorboy, the young entrepreneur from their night of batting practice. He grinned at Dana and Maggie. He snatched off his cap and thrust a spray of dark purple lilacs tied with a ribbon of gold he had been hiding behind his back towards Dana. "For the Lady." he said and ran back out the door. Dana had automatically reached to accept the lilacs. The fragrance filled the entire area. Everyone at the other tables was watching her and she could feel her face heat in a deep blush. "Oh my!" Maggie exclaimed. "They're beautiful. Do you know who they're from?" Scully buried her nose in the beauty of the spray of lilacs. She nodded and smiled a secret smile. 'So this is Mulder's idea of courtship,' she thought. 'Nice. Very nice.' "Do you know what they mean in the language of flowers, Dana?" Maggie busied herself with her cup of coffee. Her eyes were glowing over the rim. Now she had some idea of what was going on. Dana had realized that she was in love with Fox. And apparently Fox was in pursuit of his heart's desire. "No. Do you, Mom?" Scully couldn't wipe the smile off her face. "Purple lilacs mean first love." Maggie said quietly. "Don't tell me that young man is in love with you?" she gently teased. "No, he was just the messenger." Scully gazed at her mother for a moment before continuing. "Mom, I... this... this whole thing is so new, I don't think I can share right now," she whispered. "As soon as I know what's happening, I'll tell you, okay?" Maggie smiled and patted Dana's hand. "You know I only want to see you happy, Dana. I'll be here to listen whenever you're ready to talk." "Thank, Mom. I love you." Tears sparkled in Scully's eyes, but the smile on her lips soothed Maggie. They ate their dessert in a comfortable silence. Scully's glance continued to dart to the spray of lilacs as if they were gold. "Do you need a ride home, honey?" Maggie asked as they left the restaurant. "No, it's only a few blocks and I think I need the walk after that dessert." Scully replied. "Call me, Dana. I'm going to talk to Charlie later tonight and I'll let you know all his news." Maggie said automatically. "Sure, Mom. I love you. Bye." Dana and Maggie hugged before they parted. Scully strolled down the street after watching her mom pull away. She was surprised when she caught more than one man smiling and flirting with her. 'Mulder was right, I am oblivious,' she thought with a sigh. "What's a beautiful woman like you doing out alone on these unsafe streets?" a familiar voice came from behind her. She turned slightly to look at him, but kept walking. "I bet you say that to all the women you try to pick up on the street." "Naw, just the ones I love." Mulder grinned. "Oh, and how many women have you said 'I love you' to today? Don't tell me, I'm only one of many. Has anyone else fallen for this line lately?" Scully smiled as she teased him. "Lately?" he pretended to contemplate the extravagant number. "Just one. But she's the one I want to practice with for the rest of my life." Scully stopped dead still in the middle of the sidewalk. She examined his face for any sign that he was teasing her. She wasn't sure if she was happy or scared to death that his last statement had sounded suspiciously like a proposal. "You should be careful, Agent Mulder. You just might get exactly what you think you want," she buried her nose in the flowers again and darted a glance towards his face from under her lashes. "Oh, God, Scully. Look at me like that again and we'll be arrested for lewd public behavior." Mulder groaned as he slid his arm around her and started walking again. "You play dirty, Scully," he whispered as they walked. His words spoken softly against her ear caused a shiver of desire to snake down her spine and settle between her thighs. "Do you like the posy?" Scully lifted the lilacs to her nose and inhaled deeply. "I love them, Mulder." "Do you know what they signify in the language of flowers?" Mulder's voice was low and intimate. "Mmmm. My mother told me a meaning. What do they mean to you?" Scully smiled at him. "Purple lilacs given to a woman signify first love," Mulder said. "I'm in love for the first time, Scully. You are my first and only true love." "Mulder," she breathed. "I love you too." They stood on the sidewalk lost in each others eyes as the Saturday morning shoppers streamed by. They were so obviously in love, everyone who passed by them had a smile for them. Everyone except the grouch who brush by them and grumbled, "Get a room!" Scully startled and began to blush. She turned to continue walking home and Mulder, holding her hand, walked with her. "Are you doing anything this weekend-I mean, do you already have plans for this afternoon?" Mulder asked as they strolled towards Scully's apartment. "Just the usual. Weekend stuff." Scully said. "Scully, other than flying off on a case with me, I don't know what you consider weekend stuff. Isn't that funny? We've known each other so long, yet we still have so much to discover about one another." Mulder squeezed her hand and smiled to let her know he was looking forward to all the discoveries ahead. "Well, I have to clean and do some laundry. I have to go shopping and pick up my dry cleaning. I have to... What? What are you grinning about?" Scully smiled at the goofy grin Mulder was giving her. "I suppose you have something exciting planned?" she teased. "I do, as a matter of fact." Mulder said mysteriously. "And so do you!" "I do, huh?" "Yep, how quickly can you pack your bag for a couple days?" Mulder asked. "Mulder, I don't want to work this weekend. I want to spend time with you, but not working." Scully said gently. "Did I say that this was for a case, Scully?" Mulder's grin stretched even bigger. "Just dressy but comfortable casual clothes, Scully. How about it?" Scully tapped her cheek with the sprig of lilacs, pretending to take a long time to think about his offer. As much as she wanted to shout 'YES!' and jump into his arms, she wanted to tease him even more. "I think I could clear my busy schedule, but mind you, Mulder, there better not be an E.B.E. in sight the entire weekend." Mulder crossed his heart and held his hand up as if to swear on a bible. "This weekend is for us. I already called Skinner and asked for Monday off, too." "Did you ask for me?" Scully was surprised. "No, but when I asked, he said I might as well tell you to take the day off and relax. Something about accrued comp time being out of sight." "Okay, it's settled. I'll just call Mom and let her know I'm not going to be home and I can be ready in twenty minutes after we get to my place." They smiled and began walking a little faster. About a block from Scully's building she slowed. "Oh, look, Mulder. There's an open house for the apartments in this building. Can we stop for a moment? I've been watching the workers for months. Whoever bought this place did a complete makeover on the apartments." Scully's hand slid up Mulder's arm to his bicep as she slowed down. "Do we have time?" "Sure, as long as we get there by dark, we'll be fine." Mulder was careful not to give away a clue as to their destination. Scully and Mulder climbed the ramp that had been installed to replace the steps. "Handicap accessibility. That's good." Scully muttered. They walked through the entry and were greeted by a representative of the rental management staff. "Hello, folks. May I help you today?" A sleek blond woman spoke directly to Mulder, completely ignoring Scully. Mulder smiled hello then looked to Scully to handle things. "Yes, we noticed the open house sign outside and would like to look at your two and three bedroom apartments." Scully said crisply. "Oh, yes, of course." Blondie said as she offered her hand to Mulder. "Well, my name is Tami and I would be happy to show you what we have available." Mulder held Scully hand even tighter and gestured to let Tami know that he wasn't able to shake her hand. "Thank you, Tami, but if you can point us in the right direction, we would like to check them out alone before asking any questions we may have." Scully said as she began gathering the glossy materials displayed for all guests. "Yes, well. Of course. The two-bedroom model is on the second floor and the three-bedroom model is on the fourth floor. Both are accessible by the elevator located to your left." Tami's demeanor was definitely cooler than when she first spied Mulder. "I can't take you anywhere, can I Mulder?" Scully teased as they rode the elevator to the fourth floor. "What? I didn't say a thing." Mulder pulled his puppy-dog look on her. He was totally innocent this time. "I know. Thank you for that. You can't help it if you're so gorgeous women fall all over you everywhere you go." Scully whispered as she stood on her tiptoes and kissed his cheek. "Was she one of the 'Leaners', Scully?" He teased her. "I would call her a wannabe 'Leaner', wouldn't you?" she said with a laugh. They found the three-bedroom apartment easily when they reached the fourth floor. It was beautiful. The entire apartment had been updated. The kitchen was large and well planned. The living room had a small balcony and a fireplace. The master bedroom was spacious and the master bath was a dream. There was a walk in shower and a huge garden tub for soaking. Scully stood before the tub as if mesmerized. "What are you thinking about, Scully?" Mulder wrapped his arms around her from behind. He feared she was thinking of Donny Pfaster. "I was thinking how wonderful it would be to soak in that tub. My whole body would float." Scully whispered. "Just think of sharing it with a friend." Mulder gave her a teasing leer. "Oh, you!" Scully laughed. She was in a wonderful mood and his teasing was adding to it today. The other two bedrooms proved to be smaller but adequate. Each had a decent view and good closet space. "Would you like to live here, Scully?" Mulder quietly asked. "This place must cost a fortune." Scully whispered to Mulder. "And what would I need with all this room." Her answer saddened Mulder for a moment. She was thinking of the children she would never have. Children that could fill this apartment and make it a home. "Yeah, but would you like to live here?" Mulder pushed. "If I had someone to share it with, I would. How about you?" "Anything's better than my place, Scully. I've been thinking of hanging a number dispenser outside my door and letting the criminal element it attracts get in line." Mulder shrugged. "Are you thinking of moving, Mulder?" Scully was surprised. "I'm always thinking, Scully," he said cryptically. "Let's look at the two-bedroom model and get going." They both agreed that the two-bedroom apartment, while nice, was definitely not as impressive as the three-bedroom model. They were both glad that Tami and the other sales representative were busy when they walked back through the entry. "Well, they did a beautiful job on this place. Thank you for taking the time to check it out with me." Scully said as they walked home. "It looks like a great place to live, Scully. Did you see the security system on the front doors and there were cameras in the elevators and entry too." "It's all nice, Mulder. Now let's get home so I can pack." Mulder and Scully walked the block to her building. Mulder hesitated at the entry. "You know, Scully, if I jog on down to the market and pick up a few snacks while you're getting ready, we could get on the road faster." "You're right, Mulder. By the time you get back I should be ready." Scully smiled. She was standing on the step above Mulder and for once their eyes were almost on the same level. Mulder leaned towards her and brushed his lips against hers, gently. "I'll be right back." Exactly nineteen minutes and twenty seconds later, he was at her door. He raised his hand to knock and she opened the door smiling. "Right on time, Scully. I'm impressed." He grabbed her bag and walked ahead of her out the door, waiting while she locked it. "Are you going to tell me where we're going, Mulder?" "Maybe," Mulder teased. "When we get closer to our destination." Scully laughed with him and they walked down the hall holding hands. Two hours up the road they were having a heated discussion on the merits of the coffee from Starbucks versus the coffee from Dunkin Donuts when the muted sound of a cell phone ringing surprised them. "Scully, I left my phone at home, didn't you?" Mulder asked. "Uh, no. I couldn't reach my mom so I brought my cell phone to call her later. That might be her now." Scully scrambled to extract her cell phone from her purse. "Oh, no! It's Skinner." "Don't answer it." Mulder immediately said. "It's a weekend, and we deserve time off." "Mulder, I have to. Skinner doesn't know that I have plans with you." She apologized as she answered, "Scully." "Agent Scully, good. I thought I wasn't going to catch you either. Agent Mulder is off on a mini vacation so I left a message on his machine. We have a situation in Los Angeles. Section Chief Taylor has specifically requested your help with a series of murders that involve the victims being kidnapped without a trace. The bodies are turning up, exsaguinated and displayed in a ritualistic manner, in public places all over the greater LA area. He asked for your expertise as a pathologist and for Mulder to help with the profile. Do you know how to get in touch with Agent Mulder?" "Uh, yes sir, I can contact Agent Mulder. When do you want us to leave?" "I have arranged a red-eye flight for you both at 10:30 tonight. If Agent Mulder can't make that flight, he can call and I will have Kim make the arrangements at his convenience, but they need you there at 8:00a.m. for the autopsy. I have the file here at the office. You'll be working with Chief Gibson of the LAPD. I'll leave it at the front security desk for you to pick up on the way to the airport." "Very well, sir. I'll be by to pick it up." Scully sighed. "Scully, I'm sorry to intrude on your weekend. I know I told Mulder to let you know you could have Monday off as comp time, but there is an immediate need to stop these killings before the press gets hold of this information and the public goes into a panic." "I understand, Sir." Scully said. "I know you understand, Scully, I just hope I can convince Mulder that this wasn't a plot to keep him from having a vacation." Skinner actually chuckled. "I think you've got your hands full there, Sir." Scully agreed and then hung up. She closed her eyes and exhaled deeply. "What time do we leave?" Mulder asked. He began to slow down to take the next exit. "We have a red-eye flight at 10:30 tonight." Scully could feel his disappointment. "Mulder, I'm sorry." "I know. There will be a next time." Mulder tried to smile to ease her distress. "Where are we?" "Philadelphia." Mulder said. "Do you want to stop and get something to eat before we head back?" "No! I've added Philadelphia to my list of cities I don't ever want to visit again. Let's turn around and stop in Delaware. I saw an interesting seafood place just over the border." Scully tried to salvage their afternoon. She reached across the seat and rested her hand on his thigh. "Are you going to tell me where we were going or are you going to use it for a surprise some other time?" Mulder contemplated his answer before replying, "I want to keep it for another time, but I don't know if we'll make it there anytime soon..." "Come on, Mulder, you know I don't like not knowing things. I'll just keep guessing and try to trick you into telling me." Scully interjected. "Agent Scully! This is a whole new side of you I've never seen," Mulder laughed. "I'll bet you snuck down to peek at your Christmas presents in the middle of the night when you were a little girl." "I learned from the best! Melissa and I would always wake up in the middle of the night and go down to scope out the presents." Scully laughed. "Come on, Mulder. Where were we going?" "I have to think about this for a while, Scully. I suddenly find that I like knowing something you don't." Mulder teased her fingers then gathered them into his hand. He lifted her hand to his mouth and kissed the back of it before settling both their hands back down on his thigh. "Let me know when we get to the exit for the restaurant." Scully blushed as she watched him kiss the back of her hand. It was such as small gesture, but it set off fireworks in her soul. They were really going to do this. Mulder wanted her as much as she wanted him. Amazing. She stared at him until he glanced at her and smiled. She smiled back and squeezed his fingers. They drove on in companionable silence. They found the restaurant and only had to wait a few minutes to be seated. They were led to a booth and Scully slid in. She was surprised when Mulder slid in next to her instead of across from her-surprised, but pleased. She smiled at him to let him know his gesture was welcomed. They ordered and sat quietly for a few minutes. Scully was looking around the restaurant at all the decorations. The entire area they were in was decorated in a nautical theme. Pictures of old whaling boats and antiques from days gone by covered the walls. Mulder watched Scully. When she felt his gaze on her, she turned to look at him. "I was going to take you to Mystic, Connecticut," he said quietly. "I knew that you would love it there. I had a room booked at the Steamboat Inn, right on the wharf." He picked her hand up and brought it to his lips. "I had a dinner cruise booked for tomorrow. We were going to sail around the entire bay. It's a full moon tomorrow night, Scully." "Mulder, that sounds wonderful." So this was a Mulderish idea of romance. Very nice, indeed. "Have you been there before?" "Yes, I used to go there with my cousins for vacation when I was growing up. They lived in Mystic and I usually spent at least a couple weeks every summer with them. There are a lot of great nautical museums in the area." "We'll have to make sure we get up there sometime in the future," Scully was even more sorry she had answered her phone now. Instead of spending the rest of the weekend in a romantic bed and breakfast, she was going to be in the autopsy bay, searching for forensic evidence to stop a killer. She gave a rueful sigh. "We'll have other times, Scully." Mulder said as he slid his hand up her shoulder and caressed her neck. He lowered his lips to kiss her and she closed her eyes. The sound of the waitress plopping down their plates of food interrupted the kiss before it began. "Let's see. You had the grilled flounder and you had the steak, right? Do you need a refill on the iced tea?" She continued to prattle, ignoring the romantic moment she had interrupted. She slapped down their tab and told them to give her a 'holler' if they needed anything else. Mulder and Scully looked at each other and broke up laughing. "I didn't know we were that far south, Scully." Mulder commented dryly as they began to eat. "Southern is a state of mind, Muhl..der." Scully drawled. They ate their dinner leisurely, but realized they were on a time- table. They decided that Mulder would wait at her apartment while she packed so that they could leave for the airport from his house. By 10:45 that night they were on a direct flight to Los Angeles. Because the flight was not full, they were allowed to stretch out across the three seats in their row. "Scully, why don't you try to get some sleep? You have to do an autopsy at 8:00 in the morning." Mulder said as he pushed up the arms to the seats between them. "What about you? Aren't you tired?" Scully wanted to be convinced to stretch out and sleep. "I'll rest better knowing that you're getting some sleep, partner." Mulder held up the blanket he had requested from the attendant. "Put you head here, Scully. You can use me anyway you want." He said with a teasing leer as he patted his thigh. "Careful, Mulder. We're not up to the mile-high club part of our relationship yet." Scully teased back. Mulder gave her a delighted smile. "Scully! You're teasing me." "What's the matter Mulder?" Scully said as she spread the blanket. "Can't take it when it's dished back?" "Not at all, I like it when you tease. I always knew you had it in you. After all, you were brought up with two brothers. I bet you gave them hell on a regular basis." Mulders eyes glowed with admiration. "You'll have to ask them, Mulder. I seem to remember being an ideal sister." Scully said with a straight face. "Dream on, G-woman. Dream on." Mulder was suddenly short of breath. Scully had laid her head down on his thigh and was actually going to sleep there. "Mmmm... Night Mulder." He reached up, turned off the overhead light and redirected the ac vent away from Scully and towards himself. He was suddenly warm. He had his gun and holster in his carryon bag under the seat in front of him so he slipped out of his suit coat and spread it over her. He loosened his tie and pushed his seat back to rest. Mulder accepted the pillow the attendant offered and closed his eyes to shut out the rest of the world. If he concentrated he could pretend that it was just another night and he and Scully were sprawled out on his couch, asleep after watching a movie. Each time he inhaled he got a faint whiff of her perfume. The warmth of her face pressed against his thigh felt heavenly. He realized that he was stroking her hair and stilled his hand. "Mmmm... Mulder, don't stop. Feels good." Scully whispered. He lowered his hand to begin stroking her hair again and felt her leaning into his touch. He could swear that the groans of pleasure she gave sounded like she was purring. "Sweet dreams, Scully. I love you," he whispered. "Love you," she mumbled. She looked so soft and angelic. Mulder knew he was the luckiest man alive. They slept. XXXXXXXXXX "What do you mean my bags are not here?" Special Agent Dana Scully said coolly. "I was on a direct flight from Washington, DC to Los Angeles. My partner's bags are here. Our bags were checked in at the same time, by the same porter. They had the same tags on them. How can my bags be in San Francisco?" The embarrassed clerk had no answers for her, only apologies. "I'm so sorry Agent Scully, apparently they were left on the plane due to a mix up. We'll be happy to deliver your bags to your hotel as soon as they're returned. I'll call San Francisco as soon as possible to make sure they pull them and send them back." Scully was too tired to discuss it any more. "Mulder, will you give him the address of the motel from the file. I need to find a restroom." Mulder quickly gave the address to the clerk and accepted another apology on behalf of his partner. He picked up his bags and walked in the direction that Scully had gone. He seated himself on a bench outside the ladies room to wait for her. He had already picked up the rental car keys while she had been trying to find out where her luggage was. "Mulder, do you have any quarters?" Scully had a pink glow to her face as she held out her hand for the change. "Sure," he said as he stood up, dug all the change he had out of his pocket, and held it out to her. "Thanks," she said and walked back into the ladies room. Mulder sat there and tried to figure out what she was doing when it hit him. 'Damn! What bad luck for Scully. No wonder she was so tired,' he thought. He had been aware of Scully's cycle for years now. At first it had been a self-defense maneuver. His Scully was usually even tempered and level headed, but along about their second year as partners he had begun to note a definite pattern in her behavior and realized that certain times of the month it behooved him to tread lightly. She would kill him if she ever realized how aware he was of every part of her that she allowed him. Their revelations of the past week had opened up a whole new world of Dana Scully for him to explore. He was looking forward to the experience. He was also disappointed that their weekend getaway had to be canceled. He knew that Scully would have loved Mystic. He had a lot of fond memories of his summers spent with his cousins. Mulder considered his plan of action again. He wanted to court Scully. They had been partners for years, and during that time he had fallen in love with her. He remembered how he wanted to dislike her when he had read her profile after being informed she was to be assigned as his partner. Rewriting Einstein, such impertinence! But she was strong and bright and willing to listen to him. She didn't agree with him easily. She made him work for every inch of respect and acceptance. But she was willing to be open with her support and respect as their partnership grew and cemented. Now she had let him know that his love was returned. All it took was a blindly jealous moment and a physical assault on another agent to get them together. Even now, instead of making love to her as he wanted for so many years, he had delayed by declaring that he wanted to court her. If he was completely honest with himself, he realized that part of his hesitancy was a delaying tactic. He couldn't believe that she loved him. She was everything he ever wanted but he knew she could do a lot better than loving him. This small delay was to give her time to reconsider her commitment to their relationship. He was terrified that she would back off, yet nearly paralyzed with fear that she wouldn't. He had never felt worse in his life. He had never felt better in his life. The uncertainty was driving him crazy. He wanted to court her in ways that hadn't been tried before. He knew that Scully was not a material woman. Anything she wanted, materially, she had made sure she could provide for herself. The lilac had been a stoke of genius, but the weekend at Mystic had tapped the entire supply of romantic plans he had been able to come up with. He didn't want to resort to the old standards. Flowers delivered to work, candy, cards, strip-o-grams-none of these were Scully enough. He would have to put their plans on the shelf while they were on this case. It looked like an ugly one. He hoped their budding romance could survive the demands of the job. By the time Scully joined him, he was studying the file again. She was glad that he was preoccupied and not letting that genius brain of his consider what she was doing in the rest room for all this time. Just her luck. No luggage meant no clean clothes or feminine supplies. She had bought several with Mulder's change and hoped they would last her until she either got out to go shopping or received her luggage tomorrow. "Mulder, I'm ready." Scully said. She pulled her briefcase and purse over her shoulder and started to walk. At least she still had her laptop and makeup. They moved together through the airport. Neither was aware of the admiring glances from the men and women around them. Their entire concentration was on each other and making sure they were aware of any danger. Within an hour they were in their rooms. Mulder had asked for a traveler's kit at the front desk and she at least had shampoo, cream rinse, toothbrush and tooth paste. She rinsed out her panties and took a shower. By the time she was done, she was almost numb from exhaustion. Without her suitcase, she didn't have pajamas to wear. She had hung her suit up on the back of the bathroom door to steam some of the wrinkles out as she showered. It was the best she could do tonight. She turned off the bathroom light and walked to the bed with her towel wrapped around her. There on the bed was a pair of Mulder's boxers, a tee shirt, and a comb on top. He had left them for her while she showered. Her heart swelled with tenderness. Mulder was such a contradiction. He was sometimes the most intense and self-centered person she had ever met. Yet at other times he boggled her mind with the tenderness and thoughtfulness he displayed towards her. She sometimes wondered how this man who had received so little love and acceptance in his life could be so thoughtful and loving. Most times he hid the inner core of tenderness from her and the entire world, but she had caught glimpses of it over the years. The care and involvement he had exhibited with the victims and survivors of crimes they encountered had been her first clue. Scully dressed and quickly combed through her hair. She looked towards his room but there was no light under the connecting door. She would thank him in the morning. She crawled into bed and called the front desk for a wake up call. She needed to be at the morgue by 7:50. Scully was finishing her makeup when she heard a soft knock on her door. "Scully, you decent?" Mulder peeked around the door and when he saw the coast was clear, he stepped in. Mulder's eyes glowed as he drank in the sight of Scully dressed in his clothes. It was so intimate and trusting and at the same time, sexy as hell. He had a couple cups of coffee and a plate with several breakfast items on it. "I thought you might want a cup of coffee and a bagel or a roll before we go." "Thanks, Mulder, but I need to get dressed if I'm going to get to the morgue on time." "I already ate, Scully. I'll drive and you can eat on the way." Mulder assured her. "Okay..." she said and stared at him. "What?" Mulder teased. "What?" "Mulder, I need to get dressed." "Okay," he said as he settled down on the bed to watch. "Mulder! Out!" Scully scolded him. He walked towards the connecting door and sighed. "The thrill is gone, Scully," he pouted as he slouched through the doorway. "Mulder, shut the door." Scully laughed at his posturing. "Oh, and Mulder?" "Yes?" His head popped back around the door with a hopeful expression on his face. Scully was standing right by the door and surprised him with a quick kiss. "Thank you for the clothes and the comb last night. I really appreciated it." "Anything for you, Scully." His eyes twinkled at her as he bowed and shut the door. Scully quickly dressed, but was not happy with her appearance when Mulder knocked on the door and told her they needed to get moving. "I hate going to work looking like this. I'm sorry I checked my bags. If we didn't know that we were going to be here for more than a few days, I would have had everything I need in a carryon." She fussed with her shirt, but it obviously was not going to do. "Mulder, do you have a plain white tee shirt with you?" "Uh, well, yeah, I guess." "May I wear it today. This will never do. It's bad enough I have to do an autopsy wearing heels, but I'll be darned if I'm going to meet the head Coroner for Los Angeles County wearing a soiled, wrinkled white blouse." Mulder quickly retrieved a white tee shirt for her and said, "I'll wait out in the car, Scully." She quickly changed, tucking Mulder's tee shirt into her pants and blousing it slightly to look more feminine. She could smell Mulder on the shirt. This must be what he slept in last night. A warm feeling filled her heart. The two agents reached the morgue right on time. They were directed to Dr. Spears. Scully wondered if this was the same Doctor Spears she knew in medical school. As they entered the office indicated, a tall exotic black woman with sharp, inquisitive brown eyes and a warm smile stood up and greeted them. "Dana, what a coincidence. When I heard the name Scully I immediately thought of you, but dismissed the thought. I was sure that you were settled somewhere in your own cardiology practice married to..." At the panicked look on Dana's face she altered her greeting to ".... another doctor." Alicia stepped close to hug Dana. "Alicia! What are you doing out here in California. I thought you were strictly a New York kind of woman!" Dana teased back as she hugged her old friend. She was more relieved than she could say that Alicia hadn't mention Daniel. "That was before I spent five winters there, Dana. I decided that the culture available was not nearly as attractive if you had to mush through a foot of snow to get out to see it. California has been my home for several years now. But what about you? Special Agent Dana Scully? Give girlfriend!" Alicia was intrigued. "You're not the only one that can change her mind, Alicia. I decided cardiology was not as interesting as forensic pathology and when I was approached by the FBI during my residency, I chose to use my skills where I could make the biggest difference." Scully said and glanced at Mulder. He was standing there politely with a look of pride on his face that made her feel good all over. "Oh, I'm sorry. This is my partner and friend, Special Agent Fox Mulder. Mulder this is Alicia Spears. We were in medical school at the same time." "Agent Mulder. It's good to meet you. Any friend of Dana's is a friend of mine." Alicia shook hands with the tall, attractive agent. "Dr. Spears, please call me Mulder," he said. "And you are to call me Alicia." She smiled. Alicia Spears was a very intelligent woman. She prided herself on being able to read people from their body language and speech patterns. She was sure there was more than just a professional relationship between her friend Dana and this "fox" of a partner of hers, but she would pursue that when they were alone. "I'm sorry that Doctor Mailer could not meet with you two this morning. He was called to an emergency budget meeting with the barracuda... I mean with Ms. Adamson, our County Auditor. He said that he will stop by as soon as the meeting is over." "Thank you, Alicia. Mulder and I will be grateful for any help he can give us." Scully said. "Glad to meet you, Dr. Spears...Alicia," Mulder said as he shook her hand again. "Scully, I'm going to headquarters and check in. I'll be back in about two-two and a half hours." He silently asked her if that was agreeable with her. She smiled her agreement and turned to Alicia again. "If you could show me where to change, I'd like to get started on the autopsy." Mulder turned and left as the two women walked down the hall to the dressing rooms. Less than an hour later, Scully was in agony. Standing on the cement floor of the basement in her heels was making her miserable. Her back hurt, her hips hurt, her knees hurt, and her feet were killing her. "Dana, why don't we take a break?" Alicia asked. She had been watching Scully's technique and was quite impressed, but she knew how standing for hours in the wrong shoes could affect ones concentration. "Alicia, that sounds like a great idea." Scully said as she stepped back and pealed off her gloves. She moaned as she sank down on the bench by the door and slid off her shoes. "Dana, I have to tell you," Alicia hesitated then continued. "I have never seen an autopsy as thorough and painstakingly done as your work today. I don't mean we do shoddy work here, but I must compliment you on the scope and depth of your knowledge of criminal pathology." "Thank you. I got into this business to make a difference to the families of the deceased and I have certainly had an education working for the FBI in general, and with Mulder specifically." "Oh, I didn't know he is a doctor of pathology too." Alicia said. "That must lead to some very interesting discussions." Scully laughed, "He's a doctor all right, but not of pathology. He's a psychologist, specializing in criminal profiling. And as far as interesting discussions, you could say we certainly do have them." Alicia looked at her questioningly. "You disagree with your partner?" Dana laughed and said, "Disagree, argue, fight-all of the above, but in the end we always seem to come out on top. Mulder is a brilliant man and he makes these incredible leaps of logic that have given us the highest solve ratio in the Bureau." "I take it you have nothing to contribute to this solve rate?" Alicia asked dryly. "Oh, of course. Mulder says that I make him work to prove his theories. You know me. I am the scientist, he's the dreamer. Together we've found a way to build a strong partnership." Dana explained. "How do you balance your romantic involvement and your professional relationship? I've always thought that it would be too difficult working with the man I love." Alicia asked innocently. "Mulder and I don't have a romantic involvement, Alicia. We're partners." Dana answered automatically. "Dana, I haven't seen you in years, but I know that's not the complete truth." Alicia smiled as she continued, "I've not seen two people more suited to one another in my life. You have a connection that shines to anyone looking for it. I'm stating the facts as I see them, Dana, not pumping you for gossip." "Busted," Dana laughed. "We've been partners for over seven years and I have to admit that I do love Mulder. Until recently, I thought it was as a partner and a best friend. We've just admitted to each other that our feelings are deeper-that we are in love with each other. But we've not acted on it yet." "You're scared of the duality of the relationship?" Alicia asked. "No, believe it or not, I was afraid to tell him how I felt, but now I'm okay with crossing the line between best friends and lovers." "Don't tell me that gorgeous man is afraid of commitment? I would believe almost anything but that. He doesn't look like the type that would wait this long and then be skittish about saying 'I do'!" "We haven't gotten that far, Alicia!" Dana blushed. She then told Alicia all about the events of the previous week, starting with Mulder punching Agent Harrison because he was 'leaning'. By the end of her tale, Alicia was practically rolling on the floor. "Girlfriend, stop. Stop!" Alicia held her sides and laughed. "I can't take any more." "Well, that's really all that happened, except for Mulder's courting efforts." Scully smiled with her. "What kind of courting has he done? Most women would give ten years off the end of their lives to have that man in love with them, let alone actively pursuing them." Alicia said. "Well, it's really just starting. He had a young friend of his bring me a spray of lilacs at the restaurant where my Mom and I were eating brunch." Dana sighed, remembering the previous morning. "And we were going to Mystic, Connecticut for the weekend, but we got this call." "What were the lilacs for?" Alicia asked. "They symbolize first love in the language of flowers." Dana said. "Wow. I guess, he's not afraid of commitment." Alicia commented. "We should get back to work, this UNSUB won't be caught without more clues than we have now." Dana said as she stood up to slide her feet back into her shoes. A knock on the door surprised both women. They turned to look towards the door just as Mulder poked in his head. "Uh... Scully, you got a minute?" Mulder smiled at her and nodded to Alicia. "Sure Mulder, come on in." Scully said. "Uh, could you step out here for a moment, Scully?" Mulder stepped back through the door. Dana and Alicia looked at each other and shrugged. Scully stepped out the door and walked a couple steps to Mulder's side. "What's wrong, Mulder?" "Ummm, nothing's wrong, Scully. I wanted to give you this." He held out a handful of plastic bags, displaying various logos. "What's this, Mulder?" Scully started opening bags. "Well, I knew you didn't have your comfortable shoes with you, so I went to a mall and bought you some." Mulder still seemed to be a little uncomfortable as he continued, "And there's a few other things there I knew you would need before you got your luggage." Mulder's voice trailed off. Scully flashed a smile at him and noticed that he looked as if he just might be blushing. "I... um... need to get going. I'm meeting a Lieutenant R. E. Ellis at the latest crime scene. He supposedly has found a new angle on the ritualistic display of the victims." He held out the rental car keys. "I had one of the other detectives meet me here so I could leave the car with you." "Thank you, Mulder. I'll call later and find out where to meet you." Scully slid her fingers over the keys, stroking gently against his fingers as she did. Their fingers caressed and then slid slowly apart. "Do you want to get some dinner later, Scully? I saw a couple interesting places we could go tonight." Mulder stepped closer to Scully and leaned down to whisper in her ear. "Yes, I'd love to go out to dinner with you." Scully blushed when she realized how breathy and girlish her voice sounded. "Good," Mulder said as he gazed into her eyes. 'I wonder if she would let me kiss her here?' he thought. "Good," Scully said back as she stood immobile. 'I wonder if he'll kiss me here?' she thought. "Excuse me, Dana. Do you want to finish this up later when you get your luggage?" Alicia asked with a sparkle in her eye. Scully and Mulder were jerked back to the real world instantly. "Oh, no. That's okay. Mulder brought me a pair of shoes." He gave her a boyish grin and bid the two women goodbye. "Dana, I'm sorry if I interrupted you two." Alicia grinned. "No, that's all right. We were discussing the case. Mulder and another agent are going to meet Detective R. E. Ellis at the latest crime scene. Apparently he has a new insight on the ritualistic display of the victims." Scully walked over to the bench to see what Mulder had bought for her. "What's in the bags, Dana?" Alicia asked. "A few things Mulder picked up for me." Dana said as she pulled a pair of new K-Swiss shoes in her size out of the top bag. "He knows your shoe size? Well, well, Ms. Scully. What else does he know?" Scully grinned but said, "He has an eidetic memory, Alicia. All he needs to do is to see something and he can remember it forever." Scully dug through the other bags, crowing with delight as she pulled out several different pairs of socks, and in another bag, a new blouse and a pair of silky man-style pajamas in a deep rich plum and several pairs of underwear that she did not remove from the bag. "Oooohhhh! Sexy!" Alicia teased. "Tease all you want, but they're my favorites in a color I've always wanted," Dana said, quickly shoving the pajamas back into the bag to cover the panties. "What's in the last bag?" Alicia was determined to know everything about this little shopping spree. Scully innocently dumped the last bag out and gasped. "Oh. My. Goodness." Alicia said and broke up laughing. Dana Scully was blushing as hard as she ever had in her life. There on the bench was a package of lady's disposable razors, a can of shave cream, a new hairbrush, a bottle of her favorite lotion, a box of bubble bath, a tube of her favorite toothpaste, floss and a package of mini-Milky Way candies. The last thing to fall out of the bag was a box of her brand and type of tampons. She quickly scrambled to shove everything back into the bag. "Well," Alicia said as she wiped the tears from her eyes. "I guess he doesn't have a commitment problem, after all." "Why do you say that, Alicia." Scully said, trying to keep a stoic look on her face. "Well, honey, any man that not only knows what kind of tampon to buy for his lady, but will do it without being asked is head over heals in love with said lady." Alicia gently smiled at her. "What are you two waiting for anyway?" "Mulder wants to court me, he said." Scully whispered. "He says it's important to him to..." her voice gave out and tears filled her eyes. "He loves me and wants to make our beginning a romantic time to remember." "Well, if you ask me, Dana, I think romance is highly overrated." Alicia stated. "No, you don't understand. We've had so many hard, hurtful times in our years together. He wants to make this a time of romance and discovery. A time to remember." "Dana, I'm not usually one to stick my two cents into anyone else's romantic dealings..." Alicia began before a loud snort from Dana stopped her in mid sentence. "You aren't?" Dana sniffed, thankful for her friend's attempt at humor. "Oh, okay. Well, I am one to poke my nose into other people's business, but I do have a valid opinion on romance." "Let's hear it," Dana said as she started pulling on her new shoes and socks. "I think romance is highly over rated when it's compared to things like commitment and understanding, and to love. I'll take those any day over romance." "What do you mean, Alicia?" Scully was listening intently now. "I mean romance is all fine and good, but not everyone's idea of what's romantic is the same. Take me for instance. I think it's silly to kill flowers to celebrate your special anniversaries. Cards are just another waste of good trees. Jewelry is a very personal item that simply cannot be bought for a woman without said woman along to approve." "Well, that certainly narrows the definition of romance down for you, doesn't it?" Scully said as she pulled on disposable booties over her new shoes. "Yes, well, my idea of romance is never having to pump my own gas." Alicia said with a sparkle in her eye. "Oh, that's a good one." Scully smiled. "What I mean is I would rather have a man who is concerned with making my life happy than one who wants to take moonlight swims and screw like bunnies on a public beach at midnight. It's always my luck to be arrested for licentious behavior and get my name in the paper under the criminal activities section." Alicia frowned at Dana before giving in to her laughter. "I think life is too short, Dana, to waste a minute of time you can spend together." The sad tears in Alicia's eyes told Dana more than she knew. "You'll never be sorry for the things you do with your loved ones, only the things you didn't do." Alicia saw the empathy in Dana's eyes and turned away. "Now, how about finishing this autopsy so that you can go meet up with that hunky partner of yours." "Right. I'll be interested in hearing Detective Ellis' new angle on the display of the victims. It may give us something to look for in the data on the other autopsies. Mulder seemed to think he had a hot insight to share." The duo worked efficiently for another forty five minutes and finished up the autopsy. They were discussing the latest crime scene when suddenly Alicia stopped and gaped at Dana. "Oh my God! Did you say Detective Ellis?" "Yes, Mulder said it was Detective R. E. Ellis. Why?" "And Mulder told you this Detective Ellis was a man?" "Well, yes. Mulder didn't talk to him directly, he was told about the detective's new slant by another of the agents on the case." "Dana, you have to leave." Alicia gathered her possessions and pushed them into her arms as she led her to the showers. "Alicia, what's the rush?" Dana was shocked by her friends behavior. "Detective R. E. Ellis is definitely not a man. Detective Rhiandel Erica Ellis is all woman. As dangerous as they come to any male crossing her path. She doesn't care if they're married, engaged or single. As long as they're good looking and breathing, she'll screw them." "Alicia!" Dana was shocked by the vehemence in her tone. "Dana, don't give me that shocked look. They don't call her Randy Ricki for nothing!" "I trust Mulder, Alicia. He's not the type of man to give his heart to one woman and his body to another." "Honey, Mulder won't have to do any giving of anything to anybody. That woman is a vampire, a succubus, a bitch in heat. If she sets her sights for your man, you're going to end up mad or crying." "Did she steal your man, Alicia?" Scully asked as she removed her shoes and put them back in the box. "No. My man was dead before she transferred into the district. But she ruined the lives of two of my best friends and indirectly caused one of them to die from A.I.D.S." "Oh, my word! How did she do that?" "My Jackson had two friends that were a long term couple. They had been together for several years and considered it a marriage. They were both my mainstay when Jackson was killed while on duty three years ago. Well, Randy Ricki saw Tommy at a beach party I had a couple years back and got it into her head that she had to have him. She pursued him with everything she had until Tommy gave in and made love to her during a time when he and Frankie were fighting. He had been very happy with Frankie for years, like I said." "Go on," Dana said as she stepped into the shower and removed the scrubs, tossing them into the laundry cart next to the shower door. "Well, Frankie found out and it just about killed her. Something like this had happened before and the guy had ended up dumping her. She broke up with Tommy and went on a binge; we didn't see her for over two months. By the time Tommy found her, she was strung out on drugs and half dead." "Frankie was terrified of giving Tommy a disease, so after they patched things up they decided to wait for two clean blood tests before resuming their physical relationship. It's a good thing they did because Frankie became increasingly ill and was diagnosed with A.I.D.S. shortly after words. She died within the year." "How sad. How's Tommy holding up?" "I don't know. He disappeared several months ago. I think he went back east, but no one's heard from him. I still blame that she-cat for the whole disaster." "I can see your point, but what does that have to do with Mulder and me?" "Dana, I'm not trying to plant doubt in your mind about Mulder's commitment, but I want to warn you. Randy Ricki is dangerous. And I can guarantee you that she'll take one look at that tall drink of water of yours and decide she's in love!" XXXXXXXXXX Special Agent Fox Mulder slouched in the passenger seat of the standard Bureau issued Taurus Sedan. He and tried to concentrate on the stream of information that seemed to go on forever from Agent Ron Fielding as he drove, but his thoughts kept returning to Scully. "The UNSUB has left little or no evidence at the scene...." Mulder's mind hared off. This guy didn't have anything new to add to the reports in the file, but for the sake of Inter-Office Cooperation he nodded and grunted at the appropriate intervals and let this rookie talk. What was weighing heavily on his mind was the shopping he had done for Scully. It all started innocently enough. He knew she would be in agony trying to do the autopsy in her dress shoes. Even though her heels were only a couple of inches high, it would play havoc with her back and legs and feet. He had decided to make a run to the local mall for shoes when he had driven past it on the way to the field office. They were open early for a big sale and he decided he could get in and out quickly. That was his first wrong assumption. After checking in with Section Chief Taylor and agreeing to meet R. E. Ellis at the latest crime site he asked Agent Fielding to meet him at the morgue in an hour and a half and took off to get those shoes for Scully. He knew exactly the size and style of her favorite shoes for the autopsy bay. He went into the huge sporting goods store there and picked them out right away. Socks presented a bigger problem, but he merely snagged several different styles and colors and stuffed them in the basket with the box of shoes. As he was walking back through the mall to the exit he spied the "Foxy Lady Boutique". The name caught his eye first, but the display of lingerie soon had him hooked. While he was in that store he picked up several pairs of sexy panties for Scully and hesitated over purchasing the matching bras. He decided that discretion was the better part of valor and left the bra section with only a sad glance. After all, she couldn't wash out her panties every night until her luggage was returned, could she? His next find was a pair of silky men's-style pajamas that were in several jewel colors. He knew that these were Scully's favorite sleepwear and chose a color he knew she didn't have and moved on. It was more difficult for him to purchase her a blouse. There were so many to choose from, but most of them exposed more skin than his Scully would like. He finally found a sedate white blouse that would go with all her clothes and met the dress code Scully adhered to as well. He was done-or so he thought. Down the street from the mall was a K-Mart. Mulder remembered that Scully wouldn't have any toiletries until her luggage was delivered. He found himself briskly walking up and down the personal care aisles. He threw a package of lady's disposable razors and a can of shave cream into the cart. He quickly tossed in a bottle of lotion he had seen in her bathroom, a tube of her brand of tooth- paste, floss, and a new hairbrush. He didn't know if she would even like the bubble bath he chose, but knew she would probably need a good soak after all morning on her feet. He came to a halt in the feminine hygiene aisle. He stood there contemplating the odds of surviving if he bought Scully some of the products he knew she had lost with her luggage. He finally recognized the box of her brand and type of tampons and tossed it in the cart. He hesitated by the Midol, but decided that that was just too personal. If she felt the need for pain relievers, she would have to find a first aid kit somewhere. As he approached the check out aisles, he picked up a package of Milky Way miniatures. Mulder smiled as he thought about the contrariness of his Scully. She would turn down a Milky Way candy bar every time, but put the miniature size out and she would eventually eat the whole bag. Mulder got in the shortest line and checked the time. He would get to Scully right on time to have a few minutes with her before meeting his ride. When his turn came, he unloaded his items onto the check out stand. As he put the last item on the stand, the lady behind him cleared her throat and made a loud "Hurmp!" sound. Mulder glanced at her and before he could smile she said, "This is an eight item or less aisle and you have nine items." She stared at him accusingly. "Sorry, I didn't notice. It was the shortest line." Mulder said placatingly. "Well, that's not good enough. You should have to go to another register. Miss! Miss, you tell him. I am sick and tired of people thinking they don't have to follow the rules. That's why our society is going to hell in a handbasket! No one follows the simple rules any more." She halted to draw in a big enough breath to continue. Mulder was stunned by her outburst. He exchanged looks with the clerk who seemed to be as embarrassed as he, but was somewhat sympathetic to her view. Mulder was flabbergasted. He just wanted to check out and get to Scully. He put his left hand on hip and ran his right hand through his hair. The check out clerk gasped and began to check out his purchases. The woman behind him charged off toward the Service Desk, loudly demanding to see the manager. He didn't have a clue why the clerk had changed her mind, but was glad he was almost out the door. That's when it happened. Every man's nightmare. The clerk could not get the price for the tampons to register on the scanner. She got on the intercom and requested a price check for them, describing in detail the brand and size. Mulder could feel every eye in the immediate area staring at him. As the seconds slid by, he began to perspire. He had never been this embarrassed or nervous in any hostage situation he had been in. He was ready to tell her to forget the item when the intercom blasted again. "Is that the regular, regular slim, or the easy glide applicator regular?" a disembodied voice bellowed back through the store intercom. "It's the regular slim in the pink box-thirty count." His tormentor responded. "This is the kind you wanted, isn't it, sir?" All he could do was nod. He could feel the pink creeping up his neck to his ears. If he ever got out of here, he swore to himself that he would never purchase any feminine supplies again for the rest of his life. But even as he thought it, he knew he would do it in a heartbeat if Scully asked him to. The kind of intimacy that implied made any humiliation worth while. "Okay! Got it! That's $4.99. unless it's the box with the special offer for the personal purse carrier, and that's $5.29." "Uh, sir, did you want the special offer box? For just thirty cents you can have the carrier. I'm sure Sadie would be glad to bring one up for you." "No, that's perfectly all right. Just these." Mulder managed to choke out. "Certainly sir. That will be $32.57." Mulder handed her a fifty and waited for his change. As he stood there, the manager of the store and the woman who had verbally attacked him came charging up. Mulder took his bag and started to leave when the manager grabbed his arm and spun him back towards him. Mulder's jacket flared out and the manager got a look at the gun he was wearing. He turned a ghostly white and started to stammer, "We don't want any trouble here, just take what you want and get out quietly." Mulder stared at him for a moment and then realization dawned on him. He reached into his left inside pocket to get his identification and the manager staggered back and almost fainted. "Sir, I'm just going to get my ID out." Mulder assured him. He continued to slowly reach into his pocket and pull out the leather wallet with his FBI credentials in it and presented it to the terrified man. "I'm with the FBI. I have no intention of pulling my weapon. I'm only here to shop." Mulder was amused at the immediate change in the man. After apologizing profusely, the manager walked away, the argumentative customer at his heels. "I don't care if he's with the CIA and the Secret Service. He could be President of the United States and that doesn't give him the right to have nine items in an eight item line...." The woman kept after the harried manager as he scurried back to the Service Desk. Mulder made a beeline towards the door. He was thanking his lucky stars that this was LA and he would probably never see any of these people again when a woman called out his name. "Fox! Fox is that you?" Mulder turned automatically towards the woman only to groan inwardly. Tara Scully. He could only hope that she hadn't seen what he had in his bag. Could this day get any worse? Though Bill Scully had been a thorn in his side from the first time he met him, Tara had always been friendly. He couldn't brush her off without giving Bill more to hate him for, so he stopped to talk a moment. "Tara, what are you doing here in LA?" Mulder smiled at her. "I should ask you the same question. Is Dana with you?" Tara asked as she glanced around. "No, she's at the county morgue right now, performing an autopsy." Mulder replied. "Oh, I bet you're here to investigate the serial killer they have up here, right?" At Mulder's nod she continued, "Well, they should catch them soon with you two on the case. Good luck to you both." "Thanks, Tara. I'll tell Scully I saw you." Mulder said as he tried to ease away. He was losing time with Scully standing around here talking. "Make sure you tell her to come on down to San Diego before she leaves. We're only going to be here for a few days. My mom and dad are here while Bill is out to sea. We're doing the tourist thing up here in LA. You know, Hollywood and Vine, Mann's Chinese Theater and Rodeo Drive. Oh, there's mom now." Tara placed her hand gently on Mulder's sleeve and turned him towards an older woman approaching them. She looked like an older Tara and had young Matthew in the cart with her. "Tara, there you are. There's mommy, Matty," she said as she pulled up along side them. "Did you hear the commotion at the registers just now? The clerk did that to that poor man on purpose you know. They love to embarrass men when they're buying feminine hygiene supplies. They do the same to women who come through with prophylactics or jock straps." Tara's mom rattled on. "I know because my best friend back home is a clerk at the local K-Mart and they always are on the lookout for someone to tease." "Mom, I would like you to meet my sister-in-law, Dana's partner, Fox Mulder. Fox, this is my mother, Olivia Banks." Tara quickly spoke before Mulder could be any more embarrassed. She knew he was the brunt of the joke at the register. She had watched the whole thing and was amazed that this man did not just walk away from the entire mess. Bill certainly had never bought supplies for her. Dana was a lucky woman. "Huh. That's what they're calling it now a days, is it?" Mrs. Banks scrutinized Mulder. "Dana is in the FBI, Mom, remember. This is her FBI partner, Special Agent Fox Mulder." "Oh, yes. Bill's had a few things to say about you, Mr. Mulder, but I certainly won't hold that against you." Mrs. Banks said with a twinkle in her eye. "My daughter seems to think highly of you and so does Maggie." Mulder smiled and nodded his thanks. "I have to get going ladies and gentleman." He winked at Matty who tried to wink back. "I am meeting another agent and going out to the crime scene in a few minutes. It's been nice meeting you Mrs. Banks. Nice to see you Tara. I'll make sure Scully gives you a call before we leave. Bye Matty." Mulder walked away quickly, but not fast enough to miss hearing Mrs. Banks' remark to Tara. "Isn't that the man who bought the feminine supplies? Well, well. Unless he's going to use them to clean his weapon, Dana is a lucky woman." Mulder broke into a run. His humiliation was now complete. He just knew that Mrs. Banks would tell Bill in some way or another and he would never hear the last of this. What had started out as a thoughtful idea had turned into one of his adolescent nightmares. He remembered his mortification when his mother would make him do the shopping and these types of articles were on the list. After he got his license and his car he would actually go across on the ferry to shop in one of the larger grocery stores to keep from being seen purchasing her necessary items. He hadn't heard Tara's reply and felt grateful for that. Even as he contemplated the morning his discomfort dissolved. All he had to do was remember the look of surprise and love in Scully's eyes when he handed her the bags and it made any personal embarrassment he had suffered worth while. 'After that little incident, my day has to get better, doesn't it?' he thought as they pulled up to the crime scene. Thirty minutes later, Mulder knew that there was a God-and somehow he was on His personal hit list. His day had progressed from humiliation to distaste, fast sinking down to primal fear. Mulder moved away from Detective Ellis once again and thought 'What do I have to do to give this woman a clue?' "Fox..." "That's Agent Mulder, if you please." Mulder interrupted her. "Agent Mulder," she said with a knowing smirk. "We really should go over the backgrounds of all the victims once again to make sure I haven't missed anything. We could go to dinner and discuss the case in depth." R. Erica Ellis was desperate to get Special Agent Fox Mulder away from the crime scene and concentrating on her. "Detective Ellis..." "That's Ree to my friends," she interjected as she leaned into his personal space. "Detective Ellis," Mulder said pointedly. "I am meeting my partner for dinner and going over the case. If we have any further questions for you, we'll contact you in the morning." Mulder walked away to take another look at the chalk markings of the exact location of the victim's body. 'Where are you Scully? You can come rescue me anytime,' he thought. Detective R. E. Ellis knew she was a beautiful woman. She had long chestnut hair and huge brown eyes rimmed with long black lashes. She was tall but slender. She had a fantastic figure topping off legs that went on forever. And she was used to having her way with any man she wanted. Her therapist said she was mentally ill. What was it he called it? Addicted to sex? That's it. She liked the term nymphomaniac better than sexual addiction. She knew what she wanted and pursued it until she got her way. It had always been that way for her. She decided she wanted to pursue a career in law enforcement and did so with as much single- mindedness as she now pursued the men that enflamed her libido. She always got her man both in her personal life and on the job. Chief Gibson knew her sexual proclivities, but was willing to turn a blind eye to her after hours pursuits as long as her solve rate remained the highest in the division. But in the pursuit of Fox Mulder, she knew she was going to have to put forth more effort. She was sure she would bed him in the end, but he seemed to be immune to her charms. His resistance would only make the win even sweeter. She decided to go with the direct approach. Obviously innuendo and hinting wasn't enough with this man. She walked quietly up to him and stopped just before touching him. "We could be so good together, Agent Mulder. I have a hot tub and a California King sized bed and I want to share them with you," she whispered into his ear. Mulder pulled away from her and stared at her with disdain. "Detective Ellis, I'm..." "Taken? I don't care. What she doesn't know won't hurt her," she purred. "I'm going to forget you said that." Mulder moved away in disgust. "I'm more than taken, Detective Ellis. I'm committed to the one person in the world that makes me complete. I wouldn't do anything to mess that up." He moved further away again, but she once again pursued him. "Agent Mulder, Fox, I can make your wildest dreams come true." Mulder smirked at her and said, "Unless you can morph into a grey alien and beam us both directly to the office of the President of the United States, I don't think you have what it takes to make my wildest dream come true." "Oh, I get it. Spooky Mulder. You're not interested in what I have to offer. 'One person' in the world? Come on Agent Mulder didn't you ever want to have sex with a beautiful woman?" He glared at her and decided to be brutally honest with her. "Yes, I have wanted several beautiful women in my life, but right now there's only one person for me. She's the one I want to spend the rest of my life with. She's the most loving, intelligent, loyal and beautiful woman I have ever known. I will do nothing, NOTHING, to mess up my relationship with her. And even if I didn't have a chance in hell with her-if she could never love me like I love her- I wouldn't accept your offer. If I couldn't have heaven, why would I want anything less? Now can we get on with this investigation?" Mulder turned and walked away, not noticing Scully standing a few feet beyond the retaining wall where the body was found. "Mulder." Scully said quietly. Mulder turned and saw her walking to him. With her back to the other officers, she let a beautiful smile formed on her lips-all her love for him shining like a beacon in her eyes. "Scully," he growled. She was wearing the new blouse he bought for her. As she stepped closer he leaned into her and whispered, "Tell me you are wearing a pair of those lacy things I bought you." "I thought the black ones were especially attractive," she whispered back, darting a glance up at him from under her lashes. Mulder wanted to groan. She was so damn sexy. But they were on the job and he knew she would only play so much. "Do you need me to rescue you from Randy Rickie?" Scully asked quietly. Mulder barked out a laugh. "Where did you hear that nickname?" Scully blushed and told him about the conversation with Alicia about their misunderstanding on the sex of Detective R. E. Ellis. "Yeah, well, I was surprised too, but I think I have it handled. Just keep your eyes open. She's not exactly the type to take no for an answer. I was really sweating it before you got here." Mulder grinned. "I think you were holding your own, Mulder," she smiled back. "How much of that did you hear, Scully?" Mulder was curious. "Everything from the 'what she doesn't know won't hurt her' sentiment." Scully placed her hand on Mulder's arm. "God, I love you Mulder, and I want to get back home so we can move this relationship along. Right now let's capture a bad guy, partner. Alicia and I were able to glean some new information from the autopsy we completed." Mulder stared into her eyes for a long moment then nodded and turned her towards the other officers. He guided her to them with his hand on her back. His thumb rubbing gently on the elastic of her panties. "This is Agent Scully, and she has some insights for us on the latest victim. I've seen everything that I need here, so I suggest that we all go back to the field office and meet with the others in the team." Everyone agreed and disbursed to their cars. Detective Ellis gave Mulder and Scully a long considering look before shaking her head. 'Nah, it couldn't be his partner. Surely the woman he picked would be more like me,' she thought. She decided to try again later. Right now she wanted to catch the killer or killers and show up Mr. Special Agent Fox Mulder and his little partner. While they drove back to the field office, Scully called Alicia. She fielded several questions about her first impression of R. E. Ellis before getting down to the business of asking her to bring the files on the other victim's and joining them at the meeting. Mulder wanted to ask Scully what Alicia had to say, but decided to wait until later that night to talk about it with her. Mulder and Scully discussed the autopsy and threw ideas back and forth as to the meaning of the new details. Scully wanted to go over all the other autopsy reports with Alicia to see if her findings were consistent with the other pathologists. If her slant on the possible weapon used held with the other autopsy findings, it would give Mulder a new angle on the probable motive and hopefully this case would be drawn to a quick conclusion. XXXXXXXXXX Four frustrating days later, yet another daily meeting was over and everyone had their latest assignments. Mulder and Scully drove back to the motel to change and go out to eat before working for the rest of the night. Even though Scully and Alicia Spears had proven that the weapon used was a surgical scalpel during the first team meeting, the motive behind the killings and any possible connection of the victims remained a mystery. Almost as soon as Mulder pulled away from the parking lot of the LAPD headquarters, Scully was asleep. He drove back to the motel and parked. She didn't wake up until he gently rubbed the back of his fingers against her cheek. "Scully, wake up. We're here." Mulder was amazed at the softness of her skin. He wondered if she was this soft all over. She rubbed her cheek against his fingers and smiled up at him. Her eyes opened slowly. "I can't believe I fell asleep that quickly," she yawned and prepared to get out of the car. "Scully, we don't have to go out to eat tonight. I know you're tired. Why don't I run back to that Chinese place we tried a few nights ago and pick us up something to eat. By the time you take a bath, I'll be back with the food." "Mulder, you asked me out to eat and I accepted, days ago. I know the case has gotten in our way and postponed our date, but I want to go out with you." Scully insisted. "I know you do, but unfortunately, we have a lot of work to do tonight and you're exhausted. I'm tired myself. What do you say, partner? Let's just eat in tonight. I promise to take you to a nice place before we leave." Mulder coaxed. Scully smiled and placed her hand against his cheek in a loving caress. "You're so good to me, Mulder. What would I do without you?" Mulder was surprised to feel himself blush. Her soft words of praise warmed his heart like nothing else could. "Come on, Scully. Move it, or I'll have to carry you into your room," he said with a wicked grin. "I'm going, I'm going!" Scully climbed out of the car and stretched. "A bubble bath does sound nice," she said remembering the box of bath salts in Mulder's surprise packages. When they got into their rooms, they immediately opened the connecting door. Mulder carried the files into Scully's room and placed them beside her laptop. "I have a message," she said. "I hope it's the front desk telling me that my luggage was finally delivered. Her smile confirmed that was the case. She started to put her shoes back on, but Mulder stopped her. "I'll run get it, Scully. You go ahead with your bath. I'll leave it on your bed before I pick up the food," Mulder said as he headed toward the door. Dana Scully just stood and stared at his retreating back for a moment. Was it her imagination or was Mulder acting... different? She shrugged and turned to the bathroom to start her bath water. Melissa's voice popped into her mind. [Maybe it's because you're finally letting him get close to you.] She shook her head and thought 'Mulder is one of the most self- centered people in the world, he has to be acting strange.' She started the hot water and sprinkled in some of the bath salts Mulder bought for her. She hated the way Melissa would pop up in her mind sometimes. It always seemed to happen when her heart was involved. The Melissa's voice persisted. [Maybe because you've told him how you feel, all his tender, possessive feelings for you are coming out.] Melissa always felt that Scully and Mulder were soul mates. 'Maybe he's feeling guilty over being attracted to Detective Ellis,' Dana shot back mentally. She never could let Melissa have the last word. [Do you really think he would lie to you?] she nagged. [Why do you love him if you believe that he would lie to you?] 'No,' Scully thought, 'No, but he'd probably think I am losing it if he knew I was mentally debating with a voice that sounds like my deceased sister's over his behavior.' [Give it up, Dana, you know I'm really here. You just can't prove it scientifically so you refuse to accept our connection. If you want I can go away and you'll never have to listen to my opinion again. Just say the word.] Dana did not respond. She really didn't want to lose even this tenuous, imaginary connection to her sister. Melissa took another approach. [That's better. You know, Danes, Randy Ricki has certainly laid it all out on the line with Mulder. Any red-blooded male would be attracted to her. Mulder's nothing if not all man.] 'No, Mulder would never deceive me over someone like her.' Scully scolded her sister as she removed the last of her clothes and stepped into the silky bathwater. Melissa knew how obstinate Dana could be. [Maybe he's going to meet her for a quickie. Maybe he's not even going to pick up food. You know how men are once they think they have you, they need to go on to the next challenge.] 'No! Mulder's not like Jack or Daniel. He loves me. He will never hurt me.' Scully was sure of his feelings. [Then why have you held him off for so long? Why are you letting him stall now?] Melissa trapped her. 'I'm not. He wants to court me. He said so.' [Isn't it convenient that you don't have to open up to him yet. Are you afraid you aren't woman enough for a man like Mulder, Dana? You're afraid he'll grow tired of you as soon as he really knows you?] she gently prodded. "No!" she practically shouted. Dana blushed and realized she had spoken aloud. 'No. Mulder loves me and I love him.' [Then do something about it Dana,] Melissa challenged. [Here's your chance.] The voice faded as a small knock on the bathroom door startled her. "Who is it?" Dana called. "Scully, it's me. Did you call me? I thought I heard you say something." Mulder called through the door. "Mulder, come on in. I can't really hear you through the door." The lie came easily but made Scully blush. "Umm... Scully, did you call me?" Mulder poked his head around the partially opened door. "No, I didn't, but come on in. The draft is giving me chill bumps." Another lie, Scully thought. It wasn't the draft that gave her the shivers. It was Mulder standing there looking at her like a she was the only woman in the world. "Scully, I put your suitcase on the rack at the end of the bed." Mulder managed to say as his eyes drank in her beauty. She lifted her leg and ran the soapy rag down her calf, pausing to rub the arch of her foot. "Mmmmm... My feet are in a lot better shape than they would have been if you hadn't bought me those new shoes, Mulder. Did I tell you how much I appreciated that?" Mulder jerked forward like a puppet on a string. He fell to his knees beside the tub, mesmerized. Scully watched his eyes follow her every movement. "Maybe you should take off your jacket, Mulder. You don't want to get it damp in here." Scully whispered. Like a robot, Mulder ripped off his jacket and tossed it towards the door, his eyes never left her. "Mmmmm...Mulder, would you mind massaging my feet a little?" Scully asked. Mulder jerkily moved his hands toward her feet but quickly drew back when she said, "Maybe you should take your shirt and tie off so that they don't get wet either," her voice was soft and enticing. "And you should hang up your pants on the back of the door or you'll need to get them dry cleaned." She watched as his eyes widened and dilated. He moved back to the door and toed off his shoes before stripping off his pants, hanging them, his shirt, his tie and his jacket on the hook on the door before turning to face her again. Scully slid lower into the water and smiled as she watched him undress. She flipped on the hot water. The sound of the water seemed to startle him out of his complacency and he moved back towards the tub. "Lose the socks, Mulder." Scully growled. "And while you're at it, why don't you remove your tee shirt, too?" "Jesus, Scully." Mulder moaned. "A man can only take so much you know." "I thought you could take anything I dish out, Mulder. Don't tell me you regret telling me you love me." Scully teased as she raised her other foot up and let the bubbles and water run back down her leg. "No," his voice trembled as his eyes followed the line of her leg, back down to the water. She knew he was hoping he could see through the bubbles. "Mulder, that didn't sound very reassuring," she ran her toes over the edge of the tub. "Don't you want to massage my feet, Mulder?" A strangled noise was all that he could make, but he moved to grasp her foot and began to massage it. "Ummm... Mulder. That feels heavenly, but maybe if you..." she let her suggestion trail off. "If I what, Scully?" Mulder sounded as if he were in a trance. "I was wondering if you wouldn't be more comfortable if you were sitting in the other end of the tub. That way you wouldn't have to stretch over the edge of the tub to reach my other foot." Scully said carefully. "You're always so logical, Scully," he said as he slipped his boxer's off and slid into the opposite end of the tub without giving her more than a peek at his package. Scully's feet slid up to rest on top of his long legs as he moved them to each side of her body. "Jesus, Scully, you're so tiny we both fit in this tub with ease. Just imagine what it would be like in that huge tub in the apartment we looked at yesterday." "Ummmm... that would be heavenly, Mulder." Scully was determined that she wasn't getting out of this tub until they made love. Melissa was right. She had allowed him to court her because it gave her more time to think about everything and try to do the logical best for them both. She was sick of logic. She was sick of being afraid Mulder would be killed before she could tell him how much she loved him. She was sick of being lonely all the time she wasn't with Mulder. She was sick of dreaming and fantasizing about making love to Mulder. She wanted the real deal and she wanted it now. After all they weren't technically on the Bureau time right now. They were allowed some free time each evening, even when they were on a case. And if she wanted to spend her free time making love to Mulder, she was absolutely within her rights to do so-as long as Mulder wanted her. She didn't think getting him to agree would be a problem. She let her foot slide up his thigh and slip down between his legs. Mulder visibly shivered and closed his eyes. "Oh, are you cold, Mulder? You can let some of the water out and turn on more hot water if you like." Scully smiled. "But you really should not be at that end when you do it. After all, you don't want to risk getting scalded by the fresh, hot water do you?" Mulder shook his head. "What do you suggest I should do, Scully?" "Well, you could get out, but then you just got in," Scully teased. "Maybe we could slide around together until you were behind me and I could control the water from back here." "Ulp... You want me to get behind you?" Mulder whispered. "I don't know if that's a good idea, Scully." He felt the little control he was holding on to slipping away. "Yes, I think that's a very good idea. You could just shut your eyes and slid on back here if you are worried about my modesty." She took his hand and pulled him towards her. Their bodies pressed together for a moment as they slid up and down the tub to change places. Scully leaned forward and flipped the lever for the drain letting an inch or two of water out before shutting it again. She turned on the hot water and let it pour in. She reached over the edge of the tub for the box of bath salts and sprinkled a little more under the running water. Then she leaned back and snuggled against Mulder's chest. She could feel his erection slide into the crease of her butt, on up her back a ways. Whoo, boy! "Uhh... Scully, maybe you shouldn't slide up my chest like that." Mulder said. "Why, Mulder," she teased. "I'm just trying to move around to mix the hot water evenly." "Ugmmnn... yeah." Mulder gasped. Scully had wiggled her bottom up against him and by his response, she knew he was scared he was going to lose control and humiliate himself. She took pity on him and moved forward to turn off the water. "I thought you were going to give me a massage?" Scully whispered. "I was going to massage your feet, but I can't reach them now. How about if I massage your back?" Mulder growled in her ear. He began to work the muscles of her upper back and shoulders, relaxing them with his strong touch. "Mmmmm.... feels wonderful." Scully practically purred. "Keep that up for about a year and I'll be satisfied." Mulder continued to rub her shoulders, working up to her neck. His calloused hands were rough enough to cause a delicious friction against her skin that sent shivers of arousal through her body. He continued down her shoulders to her arms and on down to her hands. As he stroked and massaged back up her arms, his fingers brushed against the sides of her breasts underwater. Scully softly groaned and rolled her head back against his chest. Mulder let his hands slowly slide over to cup her breasts, raising them from the water enough that they could watch his next move. "I love your breasts, Scully. They are lush and perfect and so damn beautiful." His lips brushed her ear as he spoke. Scully was enthralled by the sight of his large hands caressing her breasts. His thumbs began to stroke across her nipples causing them to rise up into tight little buds of sensation. "Oh, Mulder..." she softly groaned. "Scully." Mulder said. He moved his right hand down her body, stroking and teasing her until he reached her apex. His large warm hand moved to cup her mons, fingers sliding down to stroke her clit and on down to slide into her. "I want you Scully. And you want me. Why have we waited so long?" Mulder growled against her ear. He slid two fingers into her, searching and finally finding her g spot. His thumb began to flick against her clit as his fingers continued to slide in and out, driving her crazy. "Oh, Mulder." she groaned even louder. "Scully?" "Mmmm... Mulder!" Scully moaned as she came as hard and long as she ever had in her life. The pounding on the bathroom door and Mulder's muffled cry of, "Scullllyyy! Are you all right?" woke her. 'Oh, my God! It was all a dream!' she thought as Mulder pounded on the door again. "I'm fine, Mulder! I was just... I must have fallen asleep and had a dream. I'll be out in a minute." Scully stammered out. "Are you sure you're okay?" Mulder sounded like he was leaning against the door, ready to come to her rescue. Scully blushed deeply, but then began to smile. "I'm really okay, Mulder. Did you get the food?" "Yeah, I went to that little Chinese place back down the road. Are you ready to eat?" "I'll be right there." Scully said as she flipped up the stopper in the tub. 'Well, so much for communing with Melissa,' she thought as she pulled the shower curtain shut and turned on the shower to rinse off. Melissa's laughing voice sounded in her head. [That's what you think, sis!] "Missy?" Scully whispered. "Is that you?" [You don't have to speak out loud, Dana. Just think what you want to say and I'll hear you.] 'This whole thing with Mulder is making me crazy,' Scully thought as she quickly dried off with the thin towel. [Not, really, Dana. I've always been here for you. You just haven't been open to me before.] 'And now that I'm thinking about a relationship with Mulder, I can hear you? Does that mean I'm crazy to be involved with Mulder, or just plain crazy?' she mused as she combed her hair. [You are not crazy because you hear me and you're not crazy to become romantically involved with Fox Mulder. You can hear me because you need to right now.] 'So when I don't need you...' [Your rational mind blocks me out.] Melissa finished for her. 'Do you know how crazy that sounds?' Scully chuffed mentally. [No more crazy than believing in little green men.] Melissa laughed. "Grey," Scully corrected aloud. "Scully? Did you say something?" Mulder was back by the door. "Not really. I have to put on some lotion and get dressed and I'll be out in a couple minutes." Scully heard Mulder groan and mutter something about "...way to give a guy a mental picture..." and move away from the door. 'So why are you here then, Melissa?' Scully asked as she spread some of the lotion Mulder bought for her on her legs. [Because, Danes, sometimes you need a good kick in the behind to get you moving. I figured a few well-phrased words from me would help you realize what you're missing.] 'And that would be?' Scully pulled on her pajamas. [Well, for heaven's sakes, Dana! What are you waiting for? That man in there loves you. I knew it as soon as I saw your auras together when I was alive.] 'And...?' [Ahhh, Sweetie, life is too short to postpone happiness. This case is going to take a horrible toll on Mulder unless you go into that room and claim him as your lover.] 'How in the world can making love with Mulder change the course of our investigation, Melissa?' [I can't tell you much more, Dana. It's not allowed. But every thing you need to solve the case is in the next room.] Melissa evaded. 'Of course it is, Missy! Mulder is what we need to solve the case.' [No, Dana, you both must do this and it could be tonight. You must open yourself to Mulder completely and the answer will come to you.] "Scully? Are you almost done? Should I open up the food?" Mulder called through the door. "Yeah, I'll almost through." [Gotta go, sis. Remember "carpe lucubratio"] 'Wait! Melissa! Will you come back?' [When you need me, Danes, I'll always be here for you. Now go get him!] Dana Scully stood looking at herself in the mirror. 'Am I going crazy? Melissa talking to me? Telling me to make love to Mulder or he will be stressed by the case? Melissa spouting Latin?' A knock on the door and Mulder poked his head in the open doorway. "Scully, are you okay?" "Yeah, Mulder, I am. I was wondering how you would translate, 'carpe lucubratio'?" she smiled up at him. "Well, you're the doctor, Scully, but if my memory serves me, it would translate roughly into something like 'seize the night'. Although I'm not certain that that's the proper conjugation to use in conjunction with that verb." Mulder had a confused look on his face. "What made you think of that phrase?" "You wouldn't believe me if I told you, Mulder. Let's eat." As they ate and then began to work on the case, Scully thought about Melissa's words. "Mulder, do you think life is too short to postpone happiness?" Scully asked out of the blue. Mulder raised his eyes to stare at her for a moment before replying, "Well, I've never been the kind of guy to eat dessert before dinner because life is short, but..." "But?" Scully prompted. "But, yeah, recently I've come to believe that you should allow yourself happiness-you should actively seek it. Does this have something to do with your 'carpe lucubratio'?" Mulder asked. "Yeah, something." Scully said, but barricaded herself behind the case file again. Mulder could see that she was thinking about something other than the case, but decided that she would share her thoughts when she was ready. It was almost eleven when both of the agents were ready to call it a night. Mulder stood up and stretched, a slice of bare skin flashing before Scully's eyes. 'Tonight, or Mulder will be hurt deeply by this case. What did Melissa mean?' "Goodnight, Scully. I'll see you at breakfast." He stood there as if wanting to say or do something else and then turned to go. "Mulder!" Scully called. He turned and waited for her to continue. "Umm... Mulder why don't we relax for a few minutes? See what's on television or something...." Scully was at a loss as to what she wanted to say. She only knew that she did not want him to leave yet. "Sure, that sounds good." Mulder picked up the TV controller and sat down on the end of the bed. He shot a quizzical glance towards her and asked, "Something special you want to watch?" "Anything but the news. How about something mindless?" was her reply as she walked towards the bathroom. "I'll be right out." "Sure," was Mulder's automatic reply. Moments later she had not returned and Mulder became worried. He walked to the door and knocked. "Scully? Are you all right?" She opened the door quickly and he stepped back automatically. She still had on her pajamas but had taken off her robe. He could smell her toothpaste and hand lotion as she walked by him. "Mulder... I need to talk to you about something-something very important," she said as she turned off the television. "Sure, Scully." Mulder returned to the end of the bed and sat down. "Mulder, do you ever think... I mean, have you ever imagined..." she walked towards him and stopped only when she was standing right in front of his legs. Mulder had to look up to watch her face. Scully was secretly amused by the switch in their heights. It was strange to have Mulder looking up at her for a change. "Mulder, when you came back from getting the food and woke me up I was dreaming," Scully tried again. He nodded as she continued, "I was dreaming about you." Mulder's eyes widened and then narrowed suddenly. A predatory look on his face gave away his thoughts. "What were we doing in this dream?" "You were massaging my feet at first." Scully blushed but continued. "And, then, other parts of me." "Do you dream about us in the bathtub often?" Mulder asked as his hands came up to wrap around her waist. She was distracted by the feeling of his hands on her. She was surprised to see that his hands were large enough to completely enclose her waist. "Scully?" he prompted. "Do you dream about us in the tub often?" She nodded, "Yes, it's one of my 10 favorite fantasies." "Fantasies? I thought we were talking about dreams," Mulder leered. "Well, this time it was a dream," Scully bit her bottom lip. "But sometimes I have fantasized about us in the tub." "Scully," Mulder said as he laid his head on her breast. "It's one of my top twenty too!" "What? Not one of the top ten?" Scully teased. "Well, no. I do, however, have a shower fantasy in my top ten," he laughingly admitted. "But right now I want to know about your dream." Scully started to tell him the highlights of her dream but stopped. "Mulder, I don't want to talk about a dream, I want to talk about us." Mulder didn't interrupt her, so she continued, "This is really hard for me, but I need to tell you how I feel before I loose my courage again." She moved down and straddled his legs, sliding forward to snuggle her stomach against his, trapping his cock between her center and his stomach. She could feel the heat of his erection build against her center. Mulder groaned as he wrapped his arms around her. "Sccuuullyy." "Mulder when you said you wanted to court me, did you really mean it, or was it just a way to stall and give me a chance to back away gracefully?" Scully jumped right in to the hard question. Mulder gazed deeply into her eyes as if searching for the meaning behind her words. "I... I do want to court you. I feel like we've gone through all the bad times and none of the simple, silly, happy times people in love get to experience. But, the truth is, that, well... yes, I was giving you a way out. I know you deserve a lot better life than I will be able to offer you-hell, than I have dragged you through for the past seven years." Mulder hesitated as he saw the pain in her eyes. "God, Scully! It's not that I don't love you. I do! I love you so much that I sometimes can't breath at night thinking that you might not return my love-that maybe you've had enough and you've left me. I've tried to let you go. I want you to be happy, to have all the happiness you deserve, but I'm... I'm such a selfish bastard that I can't. I can't lose you. I'd die inside if I lost you Scully. That's why I wanted to give you time." Mulder stumbled to a halt. "Time for what, Mulder?" Scully whispered. She searched his eyes for the truth and found it shining there as his words pour out. "Time to find a way to pull back. To let me know what exactly you wanted from our relationship." Mulder continued, "Time to reestablish our partnership and friendship if you didn't want to be romantically involved with me." Still Scully didn't speak, so he continued, "I can't lose you, Scully. If you decide that you wanted to continue like before, I would have backed off and never mentioned it again. Anything, just as long as I get to be in your life." Scully looked at Mulder for a long minute before speaking. Her gaze was unreadable and the expression "enigmatic Dr. Scully" flashed through Mulder's mind. Poor Max. The heat of his arousal was slowly dissipating. Scully was stunned. How could this brilliant, loving man not know how much she loved him. She had said the words. They had kissed and talked about it-and still he was this insecure. Scully cursed everyone that had ever hurt Fox Mulder. Beginning with his parents to Phoebe Green, every unknown hurt inflicted by unthinking co- workers, Diana Fowley, Bambi-every one of them could go to hell. How had this man, this good, beautiful man grown up against such odds? She felt humbled that he loved her. Could she have grown into as good a person as he with all the odds against her? She didn't know and was thankful to God that she wouldn't ever have to find out. She realized that she had been thinking too long when she felt his erection begin to disappear. She snuggled closer to him and rubbed her center against him, causing an instant reaction on his part. "Mulder, I love you. I will never leave you. I know that you love me-warts and all. And I love you just as you are. I wouldn't change a thing about any of the time we've spent together." "Not even the fluke man thing?" Mulder teased. "No, not even that. It's us. I value every minute with you. I was so afraid that all I would ever have was your friendship and your partnership. That you would find someone to love and leave me." Scully buried her face against his neck. "Oh God, Scully! Never. Only you-always you!" Mulder groaned. Her soft lips on his throat excited him as she spoke. "But, Mulder, I have to tell you. I'm tired of waiting. I sick of being alone and lonely when I'm not with you. I don't want to wait any longer to be together. I love you, Mulder and I want the real you in my arms and my bed. I'm through with fantasies and dreams. I want the flesh and blood man in my life. Make love to me, Mulder. Seduce me, love me, complete me." Scully kissed her way up his throat to his chin with the last few words. Scully drew back and stared into his eyes for a moment. She slowly leaned toward him to kiss him. The kiss started soft and sweet, but didn't stay that way for long. Mulder opened his mouth under hers and her tongue flew in to mate with his. Back and forth they battled, kissing and plundering and rending apart all the barriers they had previously erected to keep them apart. Scully's fingers raked through his hair, making him tremble from head to toe. Mulder's hands stroked and touched and worshiped every one of her curves he could reach. "Oh, Scully, love you... need you... have to be in you..." Mulder managed to say. Scully was fiercely kissing him and attacking his clothes at the same time-refusing to lose the contact of her lips to his skin. "Clothes, Scully." Mulder groaned as she slid down his body, kissing his chest and abs on her way to relieve him of his pants. "I'm trying, Mulder," she said in between kisses. "Move your ass." Mulder leaned back on his hands and lifted his hips to help remove his pants and boxers and groaned as her lips brushed his cock as she continued to undress him. "No, not my clothes, your clothes, Scully. I want your clothes off, now." Mulder reached down and began pulling at the buttons on her pajama top. He couldn't make his fingers work on the small flat buttons and in his desperation, grasp the bottom ends of the top and ripped it open. Scully finally lifted her lips from Mulder's skin, letting her eyes drift down to the scraps of cloth that was all that was left of her pajama top. Her eyes got even bigger and her lips formed a silent 'O' as she swept her glance from her bared breasts to his body. "Jesus, Mulder!" Mulder was terrified that he had ruined everything until he realized the hot look in Scully's eyes was not temper, but arousal. He continued his assault on her pajamas, stripping both her bottoms and her underwear off in one strong pull. "Mulder, you're beautiful," Scully responded as she moaned and pulled his head down to hers. She latched on to his lips and gave Mulder the hottest kiss he had ever experienced in his life. Her little tongue stroked against his lips and he fell into the spell of her kiss. Long moments passed as their lips dueled and stroked and caressed. Mulder felt her fingers raking against his scalp. How did she know? He loved having her touch his hair. She always seemed to feel comfortable stroking his head when he was hurt and it had never failed to make him feel loved-cherished. Now however, it only added fuel to the fire that was consuming him. Desire. Hot and hard and out of control. He tried to slow down, but as soon as his mind would remind him to slow down and make this first time about love and an experience to remember, she would moan again or stroke her hot little body against him and he was once again spinning out of control. Scully was drowning-dizzy and breathless and hopelessly lost to the sensations of her body. Her lips were on fire. Every square inch of her body that was in contact with Mulder felt charged with electricity. Every part that wasn't, lusted for Mulder's touch. Even her fingertips seemed to feel the current of love that flowed between them. And suddenly it was too much. The heat that pounded through her settled between her legs and she could feel her sex swell and moisten. Mulder drew back and stared at her. He sucked in several deep breaths of air. Scully saw his pupils dilate even more as he began to smile. Scully had never seen Mulder like this. She thought she knew everything there was to know about this man-her partner-her best friend. She had been through so much with him, but this smile was new. It was a predatory-one could almost call it wolfish. A fissure of excitement ran through her body, making her nipples even harder than they were, and on down to her cunt. She felt the dampness between her legs increase and begin to slide down her thighs and up the crack of her ass. Mulder breathed deeply. He could smell her-smell her excitement. His smile widened. His vision narrowed and all that was left in his world was Scully-her beautiful, sexy body, her lips, her scent. Scully. And nothing or no one was going to stop him from sinking into his mate and fucking her until they became one. "Mine," he growled as he pushed her down on the bed beneath him. "Mine," he said again just before his lips began to kiss hers. "Mine," his hands stroked down her body to tease and caress her breasts, followed closely by his mouth. "Mine," she said as she wrapped her fingers around his cock and used it to relieve the ache in her sex. "Forever," he said as he drew back and gazed deeply into her eyes. "Always," she said as he waited for her response. "Now," they said together. Scully thrust her hips up as he tried to slide into her slowly. "Jesus, Scully. Slow down or one of us is going to be very disappointed for the next hour or so," Mulder panted. Scully gave him a seductive grin and tightened her muscles around the head of his cock. "I want all of you right now, Mulder, but you're right. It's been a long time for both of us." Mulder bit his lip in concentration as he eased into her. She was so small and tight and every so often she would tighten her muscles around him. He had to fight to keep from coming-struggling to think of something other than the soft, desirable woman under him. His woman. He grunted as his cock slid to a stop-before the last inch or so entered her. He had anticipated that she would be too small to take all of him and began to move his hips back to stroke in again. Before he could move out of her, Scully wrapped her arms around his ribs and stopped him. "Wait, Mulder," she murmured as she moved her legs up his body. He automatically hooked them over his arms and was shocked when he slid into her until his balls brushed against the cheeks of her ass. Mulder closed his eyes and threw back his head. He felt his breath shorten to a gasping pants and fought again to still his over- whelming desire to come. Scully tried to relax, to allow the sensations and emotions that were flushing through her body to calm. She had never been this excited. Mulder was in her. His balls were brushing her cheeks and his cock was filling her-almost to the point of discomfort. She tried breathing slow and steady but found it too hard to concentrate. Mulder. Everywhere she was surrounded by Mulder. He had slid her legs up to stretch open wide, propped against his shoulders. He was leaning on his elbows, with his fingers wrapped in her hair. She could feel the skin of his smooth chest as he slowly rocked in and out of her, lightly stroking against her breasts. Every few strokes he would twist his body and the hair that marked his man- trail down his torso would scrape across her nipples and belly, and she would moan. His pubic bone stroked against her clit on each stroke in, causing her to tuck and roll her interior muscles all along his glorious cock. She could feel his breath wash against her ear. His height would not allow him to stare into her eyes unless he moved up to support himself on his arms. She was glad that he also felt the need to be connected as much as possible. Scully turned her head slightly and began to kiss his chest and neck and whisper words of love to him. "Yes, oh God, Mulder, I love you. I have needed you for so long. No one else, ever again-just you. You're my heart, my life, my beautiful love." She thought he was shivering with arousal until she felt his hot tears roll through her hair and reach her scalp. "Mulder!" she pushed up on him, needing to connect with his eyes. "You're crying!" Scully was stunned. Everything felt so good, so right to her. Why was he crying? Mulder's breath came in shivering gasps. He closed his eyes to keep her from seeing his pain, but she wouldn't stand for that. She wrapped her arms around him and began to stroke his back. "Mulder, don't shut me out. Why are you upset?" Mulder opened his mouth, but no words came out. He was over- whelmed. How could he tell her everything he was feeling? He had never experienced unconditional love before. No one had ever loved him like this. He was beginning to wonder if anyone except Sam had ever loved him in his entire life. "I... I love you Sc...Scully. I'm not upset. I... I... feel so happy that you love me. I've loved you for so long... So long..." Scully smiled and pulled him down to give him a kiss. Scully punctuated each word with a kiss, "I...Love...You...Fox Mulder." Her kisses turned to small nips and bites as he flexed his cock inside her and her arousal level took another leap. "I will always love you. I have always loved you. I thought I was in love before, but I know now that I wasn't. I've never trusted anyone with my heart before, Mulder. I held a piece of me back from Daniel and Jack and Ethan. That's why the relationships failed. I have never allowed myself the luxury of a complete surrender to love. But I give all that I am-all the love I have in my heart to you." "And I love you. Oh God, Scully, I... I surrender everything to you-my heart, my soul, my body-only you." Their lips met in a long, soulful kiss that sealed the vow their words made. When they parted both were smiling. "That sounded like a commitment to me, Agent Scully." Mulder was back to his old self, couching his real feelings in humor. "Is that what you want, Mulder?" Scully asked quietly. Mulder searched her eyes for a moment and nodded, "Yes." "Good. Because that's how I meant it." Scully smiled. Mulder was incredulous, "You will marry me?" "I thought that's what we just did, Mulder. Vowed to spend our lives together." "Yes, a commitment to each other, but I want the world to recognize our marriage. I want to legally marry you so no one can ever shove me out of your life again-never separate us. I want every man you meet to know that you are mine and I am yours, forever." "Mulder..." Scully began but stopped as she thought about his words. "Yes, Mulder. I will marry you, formally, but right now, I want to finish consummating our commitment." She wiggled under him, sending waves of arousal throughout his body. "My Scully, my wife." "Move your ass, husband. I was working on an incredible orgasm before we got sidetracked, and you're just the man that I need to get it back." Scully's smile faded as Mulder thrust into her. All humor washed away in a fresh wave of desire. Mulder buried himself in her heat, amazed that anything in this world could feel so good. His strokes were strong growing in intensity as the feeling of imminent release grew. He tried to slow down, to concentrate on Scully instead of the heat flaring up his spine and the pressure in his balls. "Mulder..." Scully groaned. "What?" he managed. "Nothing. Just... Mulder." Scully said as she clenched around him again. "Scully, stop. I'm too close," Mulder gasped. Scully pulled her legs down his body and in a move that would make her old combat instructor at Quantico proud, flipped Mulder over on his back. She slid up his body to kiss him before beginning to rock over him, sliding the entire delicious length of him almost completely out before snapping her hips down and completely enveloping his cock. Mulder bask in the heaven of her movements for a moment, letting his eyes take in the incredible scene before him. Scully. His Scully-his mate, writhing and undulating over him, a look of pure ecstasy on her face. Scully was bracing herself on his shoulders, preventing him from touching anything but her legs and thighs. "Mmmmm, Baby, you feel so good." Scully said staring down into his eyes. Mulder's arousal escalated several notches. 'Baby.' She had called him Baby. Damn, could this get any better? He raised his knees up and growled, "Lean back against my knees, Scully." She slid her hands down his chest and out to caress his ass and thighs as she leaned back as he requested. Mulder was overwhelmed by the erotic picture she made. He could see the smooth muscles of her stomach flexing in tandem with the sleek muscles of her thighs as she rode him. His eyes wandered down her body to the sight of her tight little cunt enveloping him and sliding up, in a hypnotic rhythm. He moved his hands to stroke every part of her body that he could reach. He started at her knees and let his fingertips wander up her thighs, up the outside of her hips to completely encircle her waist. His hands held still for a moment when her voice penetrated the fog of lust he was surrounded by. "Mmmm... Mulder, God I love your hands." Scully groaned. "Scully..." he said as he used his thumbs to encircle and tease her navel, eliciting another moan. Storing that piece of knowledge away he continued his exploration of her body by moving his hand up from her waist to gently cup her breasts. He used his thumbs to stroke over her nipples, reveling in their hardness and her escalating moans of pleasure. Mulder knew he wasn't going to be able to stave off his orgasm for much longer. There was no way he was going to leave Scully hanging-not this first time-not ever. He moved his right hand back down her body coming to rest below her navel. He was sure it was just his imagination, but he could swear he could feel the length of his rod stroking into her, so deep and far up inside her that he could feel it on the outside. The visual alone almost caused him to loose all control and drove him to move his fingers down to stroke through the crisp curls hiding her sex. Scully gasped when he found her engorged clit. He began to circle and tease it, not quite touching it-driving her crazy. She began to buck and thrust harder and faster on him, milking him with the tight clench of her interior muscles each time he hit a certain, particularly sensitive spot. "Mulder, please..." she groaned. "Please what, Scully?" he panted. "Please, Baby, make me come," she whispered. "Oh, God, Scully!" Mulder said as he brought his thumb down directly on her clit and stroked it back toward their joining. He thrust his cock up, filling her completely. Scully screamed his name and began to tremble-her breath became short gasping pants. Though she had quit her stoking movements her interior muscles continued to grasp him, milking him and Mulder felt his cock pulse as he pumped his release into her womb. He came hard and it felt so damn good that he found himself panting and laughing and moaning her name again and again. "Scully! Oh Damn, Scully! Never felt this good. Never Scully, only you. Only you, Scully. Love you, love you, love you." Scully lowered her body to cover his, still joined to him. He wrapped his arms around her and lowered his knees as she slid her legs between his. She snuggled up on his chest as if they had been making love for years. They languidly touched and kissed and stroked each other as their bodies cooled from the exertion of their lovemaking. Mulder could feel Scully begin to relax and drift off to sleep. He raised his lips to hers once more before sliding to his side and moving her to snuggle into the curve of his body. He flipped the covers back up over them and moved away, slightly, to turn off the light. Scully woke enough to feel his body moving away and slurred, "Muller, don't leave. Stay." "I have no intention of leaving Scully," he smiled. He turned off the light and returned to her side. "Good night Scully." She snuggled up to him and he could swear she sounded like she was purring. Like a baby cat. Mulder found himself lying there in the dark with an idiotic grin on his face. 'I wonder if Scully would shoot me again if I called her Kitten,' he thought. He laughed softly aloud. He wasn't that brave. Maybe after they were legally married he could try it out, but right now he wasn't brave enough-even if she had called him Baby. She was so adorable when she slept. He pulled her closer to him and relaxed, allowing her steady breathing to soothe him to sleep. His last thought was that he would do anything for this woman, his love. XXXXXXXXXX Scully was dreaming and she knew it. She was in her bedroom at one of the many bases where her father had been stationed during her teen years. Melissa suddenly appeared at the door with two bowls of ice cream. After she shut the door she ran across the room, handed Dana her bowl and spoon and jumped onto the bed beside her, snuggling under the covers. "Okay, Sis. Give. All the details. Is Mulder as good in bed as he looks like he'd be?" Scully smiled. This was so Melissa. "You know I'm not going to tell you anything, Mel. Besides," she said as she licked her spoon, "I thought you were the all-knowing, all-seeing spirit?" Melissa huffed a little and then began to giggle. "I would never watch something as personal as..." she sputtered to a halt as Dana's eyebrow rose towards her hair line. "Okay, okay, so maybe I would, but I didn't. I mean, this was your first time with Mulder and I... I respect your privacy, Dane." Melissa said sincerely. "I know you do, Melissa," Scully said. "So?" "So?" "So how was it? Did the earth move? I mean, after all these years it damn well better be good." Melissa was loosing her patience. Scully licked her spoon and dipped up another delicious bite, watching Melissa surreptitiously. "Dana!" Scully dissolved in a fit of laughter. "It was..." she stopped and stirred her ice cream. Now Melissa was giving her 'the brow'. "It was different than I expected." Scully blushed and looked down. "I can't believe it wasn't good! Oh, Dana what happened?" "Oh, I didn't say it wasn't good, I said it was different than I expected." Scully said quickly. "I mean, I thought it would be a little awkward, you know, we've never done anything like this with each other before, but it wasn't." Melissa's frown turning into a huge grin as Scully continued, "It was incredible. It was as if we were totally in tune with each other. Every touch, every kiss was... perfect." Scully had to laugh aloud with happiness. "Oh, Danes, I'm so glad." Melissa had tears in her eyes. "You finally have found the happiness you've always deserved." "Thanks, sis. Now, why are you back? What's this all about?" "What do you mean? Can't I visit my sister after the biggest night of her life?" Melissa stalled. "I know you Mel, you want to tell me something that you have been forbidden to tell me directly. Am I right?" Scully took another taste of the ice cream. She had used up a lot of energy with Mulder and was starving. Melissa's eyes filled with tears, "That's what I miss about being with you, Danes. No one ever knew me better than you." "Is it about the case?" Scully asked. Melissa neither denied nor agreed with her question so Scully knew that she was on the right track. "You said that we could solve the case tonight and everything we needed was in the room with us, is that still true?" Melissa just moved her index finger to tap the end of her nose. "So what are we missing?" Scully mused. "The only thing in the room other than Mulder and I and the standard motel equipment is my lap top and the stack of files I requested from Alicia." Once again, Melissa smiled at Scully and she knew she was on the trail. "Is it in the data base from Alicia I downloaded?" Melissa gave a slight shake of her head. "Is it in the case file we're working on?" Negative. "Is it in the files I got from Alicia?" This drew another finger to the nose gesture from Melissa. "So I'm missing something in the files..." Melissa was shaking her head again. "Not in the files? Well, where? On the files?" Melissa's eyes glowed with excitement. "Something on the labeling of the files, hey? Can you be more specific?" Melissa opened her mouth, but stopped and looked as if she were listening to a voice Scully couldn't hear. "Sorry kiddo, I've stretched it as it is." She gathered up their bowls and slid off the bed. "I've gotta go, Danes. I'm really happy for you." "Melissa, don't leave! I won't ask about the case any more. Stay." Scully wasn't ready to give up this dream. "Time for you to go back to sleep, Sis. I'll be back. Remember, I'm always here," she tapped Dana's temple. "And here," she pointed to her heart. "Love you Little Sis." Scully felt an overwhelming urge to sleep cause her eyes to close and when she opened them again she was in bed with Mulder. She glanced at the clock and saw that it was only 5:10. She began to contemplate the information Melissa had given her in her dream. The warm feeling of contentment at seeing her sister again, gave way to the dissatisfaction of not being able to solve the clues that Melissa gave her. Something on the labels of the files was the clue to solving this case. Scully couldn't stand it any longer. She slid out of Mulder's embrace and smiled when he grumbled and pulled her pillow into his arms. She shivered and realized that she was standing there naked watching her partner snuggle her pillow. She quickly pulled on her robe and walked the short distance to the small table where they had been working on the files. She looked at each file and found nothing unusual with its labeling. She arranged them on the table so that she could look at all of them at once and stood staring at them. "What are you doing, Scully?" Mulder's gentle voice came from behind her. She turned slightly to watch him rise, naked, from the bed and walk over to stand behind her. He moved like a great cat, comfortable in his skin, warm and silky and graceful. He wrapped his arms around her and hugged her back against his body, sliding his hand inside the front of her robe. "I just have the feeling we're missing something, Mulder" She wasn't ready to share her vision of Melissa with him yet, but she knew she would. If anyone would understand, it would be Mulder. "I'm getting a feeling about you, Agent Scully. Come back to bed." He kissed her ear and tried to draw her away from the table. "Wait, Mulder. I feel like it's right in front of us, and if we think about it we'll find the key to the case." She rubbed the top of his hand that was wrapped around her waist. Mulder lowered his head to her shoulder and they stood there together for several minutes. Neither talking, but both taking comfort in the closeness of the other's body. Scully felt Mulder's cock stirring to life as he continued to stroke her breast and rock them slowly back and forth. "Let's go back to bed, Scully." Mulder whispered against her ear. "We'll get the bad guy later." Scully smiled and nodded. "Just let me stack these files up again and I'll be right there." Mulder squeezed her and moved towards the bathroom. Scully gathered the files up and shuffled them to stack them neatly. "Ouch! Damnit!" She cursed. "What's wrong?" Mulder charged out of the bathroom. "Oh, nothing, really. I just got a cardboard paper cut. I hate it when that..." "Scully?" Mulder moved closer to check on her. "Scully are you okay?" "Yeah, Mulder. I'm fine..." Scully didn't even notice him wince at her reply. She was staring at the drop of her blood that was on the top file folder in the stack. Her eyes grew wide and she began to paw through the stack. "Mulder look! I think I've got it. It was so obvious! Why didn't we see this before?" she rambled. "What? What do you see?" Mulder knew she was onto something. "The files of all the previous victims. It's there on the labels. Here, take these files and check in their medical history." Scully frantically passed him a couple files as she pulled on her glasses and began to leaf through another. "Check what? What am I looking for?" Mulder asked. "Oh, just find the medical report and fold the file back to the first page. If I'm right we have our connection." Scully quickly check from one file to the next. When she was done with the last file she pulled off her glasses. She gave him one of her 1000 watt smiles and said, "We've got it." "You know who the killer is?" Mulder sputtered. "No, but I know what the connection between the victims is. Look at this," she held up a file. The dried drop of her blood still stained a yellow and red label. "This is a how they mark the files when there is a biohazard involved." "Biohazard?" Mulder questioned. "If the victim has A.I.D.S. or other communicable diseases, the files are marked with this label. There is a corresponding label on the individual door panel in the morgue and on the tag affixed to the body." "And all our victims have the same biohazard label on their files. What is it, Scully?" "Well, all seven of the victims have Hepatitis C and one also has A.I.D.S. The victim I autopsied had Hepatitis C. Alicia and I had to take special precautions and use a special protocol to dispose of the scrubs and equipment we used." "So all our victims had Hepatitis C..." Mulder mused. "Yes, and all the bodies were not violated in any way beyond the necessary cuts to drain all their blood." "Did you confirm if they had all been drugged?" Mulder asked as he yawned. "Don't do that!" Scully yawned back. "Yes, all of the previous victims had been drugged. The toxicology report from the last victim wasn't back by the time I left, so we'll have to check it later." Scully yawned again. "Come back to bed, Scully. We can't contact anyone until at least 7:30 or 8:00. Let's get another hour or so of sleep and then look over the files again." Mulder guided her back to bed after she nodded in agreement. "We at least have somewhere to start, now." Scully said. Mulder slid her robe from her shoulders and tucked her into bed. "Nice job, Agent Scully," he said as he kissed her. She was asleep before she could respond. Mulder slid into bed beside her and pulled her into his embrace. He rested his cheek against her hair. He knew he wouldn't go back to sleep, but wanted the warmth and comfort of her soft body as he contemplated this new piece of information and how it fit into the profile of the UNSUB that he had been forming. He closed his eyes and let his mind go over all the information they had collected, piecing it into the picture he had from the file Skinner had given them. He began to make mental notes of questions he wanted to have answered right away. If everything fell into place when he had his answers, maybe they could prevent any more deaths. Scully stirred against him and muttered, "Love you, Baby." Mulder smiled. XXXXXXXXXX By noon, the majority of their questions were answered and Mulder had completed his profile. Not only had he completed it, he had a suspect identified. The evidence all pointed to a prominent doctor from Bel Air named, Jordan Knapp. At least to Mulder, the evidence clearly indicated that he was their UNSUB. "What the hell do you expect us to do, Mulder, arrest one of the leading Oncologist in Southern California on a mixed bag of circumstantial evidence?" Chief Perry Gibson demanded. "No, I said that I want each of the three people on this list given 24-hour undercover protection and a stake out done on Doctor Knapp." Mulder patiently stated. "Do you know the kind of manpower that would take? I can't justify that kind of expenditure on a hunch from a hot shot profiler from the East Coast." Gibson sputtered. "Which part of this request is the hardest to accept, Chief?" Mulder asked quietly. "The part about embarrassing and possibly angering a prominent citizen or the part about the hot shots from the East Coast coming in and saving your cookies?" It was during this exchange that Scully entered the room-a thick file in hand. "Ah, playing nice with the local talent are we, Mulder?" Her off-hand remark broke the tension in the room and everyone cooled down considerably. "I'm just saying, Agent Mulder," Chief Gibson stressed, "I need more than circumstantial evidence to justify staking out Dr. Knapp." "I think we have our connection, Chief," Scully said quietly as she walked toward Mulder. Mulder smiled and knew that his partner had once again found the hard evidence he needed to support his theory. His smile telegraphed his pride in her abilities to her, making a small flush of pleasure spread across her cheeks. Scully cleared her throat and began to speak to the entire group. "Dr. Justin Knapp was engaged to a Melinda Curry, a lawyer with the Attorney General's office in Los Angeles County. Ms. Curry recently died from complications directly connected to Hepatitis C, a condition she contracted through the use of tainted blood during an emergency surgery she had over a decade ago." "All that does is connect her as a victim of Hepatitis C." Agent Fielding interjected. Scully gave him a cool look over the file before continuing. "Ms. Curry was also involved in the final test for a new drug to treat Hepatitis C that our victims participated in. She, unfortunately, was one of six of the participants that died during the course of the testing. I contacted Dr. Albert Remmy of the University of California who was heading the study and found out that Ms. Curry was allowed to participate in the test as a favor to Doctor Knapp." "Agent Scully..." Detective Ellis interrupted her. "That still does not give him the motive for killing seven people." Alicia Spears spoke up for the first time and said, "Let Agent Scully finish." Scully smiled at her and continued. "Dr. Remmy was deeply distressed over Ms. Curry's death. He and Doctor Knapp have been friends for years and the sudden loss of Dr. Knapp's fiance has severely affected their friendship. It seems that even though Dr. Knapp got Ms. Curry into the program, she was somehow chosen to be in the test blind group." "Oh my God!" Alicia said. "That means..." "What?" Chief Gibson sputtered. "What?" "Let me clarify. When a drug is tested there are usually at least three groups of subjects. Group A will receive the new drug, Group B will receive the current standard medical drug or procedure, and Group C-the double-blind, control group-will receive a placebo." "And all the victims were in Group A, weren't they Scully?" Mulder stated. "Yes, all the victims were in Group A and had been showing marked improvement in their health. The three individuals on Agent Mulder's list are the last of the group that is still living and are in imminent danger." "It all makes sense now," Alicia stated. "Well excuse me for not seeing the reasoning here," Chief Gibson huffed. "Please explain for us poor laypersons." Scully smiled and looked to Mulder to combine all the evidence to his profile. Mulder returned her smile before stating, "Dr. Knapp was in love with Ms. Curry and in his desire to prolong her life got her into the program his old friend, Dr. Remmy, was heading. But there was a mix up and instead of Ms. Curry receiving the new wonder drug, she was given a placebo. Her health deteriorated and she subsequently died. Dr. Knapp became distraught and when he realized that she was not one of the recipients of the life- extending drug, he felt that the other ten had robbed him of his only chance at happiness. They had to be punished so he devised a scheme to remove what should have been Ms. Curry's from them-he took their lives in return and stole back the blood that carried the life saving drugs." Mulder stopped and gathered his thoughts while the rest of the participants in the room considered his words. "This theory is backed up by the MO of the killings. All the bodies were found drained of blood and ritualistically displayed, yet there was no evidence of sexual or physical abuse. The incisions were clean and indicated an UNSUB that was familiar with surgical instruments. Each patient was heavily sedated, indicating a lack of rage or aggression in the actual murder, yet displaying deep anger and long-term planning. It was a painless death for each of the victims, but death nevertheless." "But, why? Why would he do something so horrific? So against his entire life's training?" Detective Ellis couldn't understand the reasoning behind Justin Knapp's actions. Mulder hesitated a moment then said, "He did it for love." "Love? He murdered seven people and planned on killing another three for love?" Agent Fielding asked. "Four." Mulder stated. "He was going to kill the other three participants and then kill himself." The silence of the room was palatable. Finally, Chief Gibson sighed and said, "I'll have guards placed on the final three potential victims and a warrant issued for Dr. Knapp. You will handle the interrogation of the suspect, won't you Agent Mulder?" Mulder shook his head. "No, I think Agent Scully should handle the questioning of Dr. Knapp. I believe he will respond to her better. She is a doctor and he will respect her credentials." "But you are also a doctor, aren't you Agent Mulder?" Detective Ellis asked ingenuously. "Yes," Mulder countered. "Yes, I am, but I believe Dr. Knapp will respond to Agent Scully as a woman as well as a fellow professional. Agent Scully is one of the best agents I have ever had the privilege of working with and is an expert at extracting confessions." "Fine, I'll issue the warrant." Chief Gibson said as he rose. "I'll let you know as soon as we take him into custody." XXXXXXXXXXX By six o'clock that evening the case was over. Dr. Justin Knapp had been apprehended in the apartment of Marion Jeffries, one of the three remaining test subjects. He had already sedated her, but she was rushed to the hospital and was expected to recover with no lasting effects from the experience. Dr. Knapp was arrested and after being interrogated by Scully, confessed to all the deaths. He was transferred to the mental ward of the County Jail and was put on death watch. Mulder and Scully were back at the police department finalizing the reports needed by the locals. They were both hungry and exhausted and wanted to get back to their motel for the evening. Scully decided to run over to the morgue to say goodbye to Alicia Spears but assured Mulder it would only take a few minutes. Mulder stepped into an empty office next to the bullpen to call AD Skinner to let him know the investigation was over and to make arrangements for a few days off. He wanted to surprise Scully with a side trip to San Diego to visit with Tara and Matthew. The fact that Bill was out to sea had nothing to do with his desire to surprise her. Mulder was staring out the window at the early evening sky after completing his call when the door to the office opened and shut. He smiled and turned, expecting to see Scully. But as he took in the sight before him, his smile faded. "Detective Ellis. What can I do for you?" Mulder asked politely. "I think you should ask what I can do for you, Agent Mulder," she said as she began to unbutton her jacket. "Detective! Stop that at once. I told you I'm not interested and I meant what I said." Mulder began to edge away from the predatory woman who was stalking him around the desk. "I know what you said, Mulder, but I also know you don't mean it. You just want a reason to justify our sex. I'm okay with that. I want you and I'll do whatever it takes to have you." She had shed her jacket and pulled her blouse out from her skirt. This was obviously a planned attack-she had removed her nylons earlier, and if Mulder had to guess, he would bet money that her panties were already gone also. The smell of her arousal began to fill the room. Mulder backed away from her, keeping the desk between them. He desperately glanced right and left, but she had strategically positioned herself to trap him. "Shit!" he said as he realized he was going to have to hurt her to get out of the room. "I really don't need this, Ellis." Detective Ellis just laughed again and began to remove her blouse. Mulder was not fool enough to turn his back on this woman, but he did look away. "Come on Mulder. You know you're just playing hard to get." Detective Ellis taunted him, sliding her blouse down her arms and lifting her hands to cup her bare breasts. "You're a man, Mulder. Tell me this isn't exciting you." "Detective Ellis, this goes beyond sexual harassment. I am not going to have sex with you." Mulder said without looking directly at her. "What are you going to do, Mulder? Let all the other men out there know that you weren't man enough to take on Randy Ricki? Can't get it up? Don't worry Mulder, as soon as I get my hands on you, you'll spring to life and forget every other woman you've ever been with." She kicked off her shoes and stalked towards him. "I have no ambiguity about my manhood, Detective Ellis. I learned that I don't have to go around proving it with every attractive woman I meet when I was about 17 years old." Mulder bluffed, "I will take action against you." "What's the big FBI man going to do, Mulder? Bring me up on charges? If you think you and the Ice Queen are a joke now, Spooky, wait and see what happens if you try to charge me with harassment. You'll never live down the embarrassment." Mulder had made up his mind that he was leaving the room even if he had to drag the half dressed detective with him. "That's it, I'm out of here." He lowered his head and began to walk toward the door. He heard Detective Ellis lunge towards him and Mulder expected all hell to break loose any second. He was right-all hell did break loose, just not the kind of hell Mulder feared. The sound of the office door slamming against the wall and shattering the glass insert was loud enough to draw the attention of all the officers in the bullpen directly outside. A few even drew their weapons, anticipating a terrorist attack. The loud screech of pain that echoed throughout the office immediately afterwards made Mulder's head snap up. The sight before him made him gape in amazement. Detective R. E. Ellis was immobilized against the desk. Scully stood over her and to one side-left hand fisted in a death grip in Ellis' hair and right hand snapping her handcuffs on the larger woman's wrists as they were pinned behind her back by her own blouse. "Are you all right, Mulder?" Scully's voice vibrated with anger. "Uh, yeah. Great timing, partner." "Yeah, well, now that you've found the love of your life, I couldn't very well let you get raped on the job, could I G-Man?" Scully yanked Detective Ellis up and shoved her towards the door. "Umm, Scully? Don't you think you should, you know, cover her up or something?" Mulder gestured towards her jacket. Scully glared at her prey for a moment as if considering her options before speaking, "Nah, every man out there has probably already seen anything she's got." Scully manhandled the larger woman out into the bullpen where a chorus of cat calls and whistles followed them all the way up to Chief Gibson's office door. "What are you doing, Agent Scully? The Chief will never take action against me. He'll never take a man's word against mine. He's my father!" she sneered. "He may be your father but he will have to act on this. Assault on a federal officer is a felony and I am placing you under arrest." Scully hissed at her. She pushed her against the door to the Chief's office and said, "Oh, and let me assure you, Detective Ellis, Agent Mulder may be too much of a gentleman to bring up charges against you, but I am not. Remember me? The Ice Queen?" Scully reached around the younger woman and opened the door. She pushed Detective Ellis into the office and slammed the door shut, effectively ending the show. Several of the men in the bullpen moved closer to the door to try to hear what was going on, but Mulder stopped that when he moved to stand directly in front of the door in the most threatening pose he could muster. The grin that slid onto his face every so often spoiled the effect. It was almost an hour later when Scully exited Chief Gibson's office alone. Mulder caught a glance of Detective Ellis crying on Chief Gibson's shoulder as she shut the door. "Ready to leave, Partner?" Mulder asked as he scanned her for any signs of injury. "Yes, more than ready," Scully smiled gratefully up at him. They gathered their possessions and walked out of the office together. The buzzing of the men and women in the bullpen grew louder with every step towards the door they took. One of the task force members stepped towards them as they waited for the elevator. "Uh, Agents, I'm Sergeant Jeff Levy, and I just wanted to tell you how much I appreciated working with the FBI on this case. It was great working with two professionals like you. And a special thanks to you, Agent Scully." Jeff Levy blushed and walked away. XXXXXXXXXX Mulder and Scully did not speak as they continued on their way back to the motel. The silence in the car became strained and uncomfortable. Mulder had not been able to look directly at Scully since they had entered the elevator. He knew he needed to maintain a professional persona until they were alone-it would be important to Scully. But if he did more than glance at her, he knew that he was going to lose it. He wanted her. No, he absolutely ached for her. He knew he was a sick man, but every time he watched Aggressive-Scully, something snapped inside him. The things that made him a civilized man broke away and something primal took over. He wanted to make love to her. Mulder snorted to himself. Forget that. He wanted to fuck her- plain and simple. He wanted to grab her and throw her up against or down on whatever surface was available and bury his cock in her so deeply that she could feel it pound against her heart as he stroked into her. He wanted to bite and kiss and touch her bare skin. He wanted to suckle at her breast and make her groan with pleasure. He wanted to feel her take control of their mating and wrap those strong sleek legs of hers around his waist. He wanted her to milk every drop of cum he had in his body with the muscles of her cunt. He wanted to mark her as his and have her stake her claim on his body in return. And then he wanted to start all over again. He had been shocked when Scully broke in and took down Detective Ellis. Up until the moment he opened his eyes and saw Scully standing over Ellis like a wildcat protecting her mate he had felt absolutely no physical excitement. R. E. Ellis was a beautiful woman but she had left him cold. He had finally warmed his soul with the flame from Scully's passion and everything Ellis had to offer seemed to be a pale, frosty imitation. But as he watched Scully cuff Detective Ellis and man-handle her all the way to Chief Gibson's office he had struggled to control the erection that tented his pants. Thank God all eyes were on Scully and he had a few moments to bring himself back under control. When the door had slammed, he moved to protect her back- as she had just done for him. And now she would not look at him-not even a glance. Mulder felt a chill of fear snake down his back. What if she thought he was a willing participant in the scenario that had just played out? What if she had changed her mind? What if she didn't want to continue to develop their relationship? What if she couldn't handle even being his partner? What would he do if she left him? Mulder felt the icy fingers of fear immobilize his vocal cords. The silence deepened. Scully had not been able to do more than glance at Mulder since they had entered the elevator. Oh, God! What must he think of her? Losing her control and putting on that display of jealousy and unprofessional behavior- what had she been thinking? Well, if she were truthful with herself, she really hadn't been thinking. She had come back from saying goodbye to Alicia to look for Mulder. No one could or would tell her where he was, but they had looked at her with either pity or amusement. She had a bad feeling about the situation. She decided she was asking the wrong question. She had approached a female officer that had made no bones about her disdain for Detective Ellis and asked her point blank where Ellis was. The woman had stared at her for a moment and then directed her to the closed door of the office across the room. As Scully turned to walk away, she had touched her on the arm and said quietly, "Be careful Agent Scully." Scully had felt a fissure of fear slide down her back and had automatically reached behind her to check her gun and handcuffs. As she had quietly walked up to the door indicated she knew Mulder was in the office with Detective Ellis. She had listened at the door long enough to realize it was not his idea to be confined behind a closed door with Ellis and had opened the door to make her entrance. The sight of R. E. Ellis standing half naked before Mulder stroking her own breasts and taunting him had both paralyzed her and made her see red. Mulder's final words 'I'm out of here.' freed her from the paralysis that had held her. She had thrust away the door and stormed up to her adversary grabbing a handful of hair in her left hand and ripping the neck of her blouse down enough to trap her arms at her sides. Scully barely registered the sound of the broken glass or the squawk of pain her attack drew from Ellis. When she had her cuffs on Detective Ellis she found enough courage to glance at Mulder. He was gaping at her, a huge erection tenting the front of his dress pants. Pain rocked Scully's body. Mulder was turned on by Ellis. Her bare breasts were beautiful. How could he resist her lush beauty? She was his type, after all. But he had not been participating in the seduction, she tried to calm her insecurities and let her righteous anger regain control. She had marched Ellis to the Chief's office and handled the rest of the confrontation as coolly and professionally as she could. But now that they were alone, now that Mulder couldn't look at her, she knew. She had ruined their budding romance. She had proven to him that he was about to lose his level-headed partner and she couldn't help but think that he was wondering if the trade off of partner for lover was an equitable deal. The silence continued. XXXXXXXXXX As soon as they got to the motel, Scully left the car and practically ran to her room. Mulder's long legs kept right up with her-he didn't want her to shut him out completely. Scully turn as she entered her room, surprised that Mulder had followed her in the door. "Mulder, I need some time..." "Scully," Mulder began. "I... I need a shower, Mulder. Can you understand that? After everything that happened today, I need to get clean." Scully whispered the last statement. "Fine, I do too. I'll come back over as soon as you're done and we'll decide what to do next." Mulder said. He was relieved that she hadn't said that she would see him in the morning. Maybe if they ate and relaxed a little, they could talk about the experience with Detective Ellis and get beyond it. He moved to the connecting door, but stopped. Scully nodded reluctantly and had begun to close the door when Mulder halted. "Scully, are we okay?" The fear in his voice made her lift her eyes to his. The pain she saw there went a long way to alleviating her own fears. "Yeah, we're okay. We need to talk, but I think we're okay." Her faint smile was returned by Mulder's. He stepped towards her and placed a tentative hand on her shoulder. She turned into his arms and the hug they shared was gentle and loving. XXXXXXXXXX Scully had decided that she needed more than a quick shower and had filled the tub for a long soak. Mulder's knock on the bathroom door did not surprise her. He was anxious to talk and wasn't going to let her postpone their conversation. "I'm soaking, Mulder. I'll be out in a while." She said through the door. "Are you hungry, Scully?" Mulder opened the door a crack and asked. "Yes, I am actually." Scully was surprised that she was starving. "How about I go down the street to the KFC and get us a couple dinners?" "Mulder, deep fried chicken will kill you one of these days." Scully gently scolded. "Don't worry, Scully, I'll pull the skin off and just eat the chicken." Mulder lied. "I'll take cole slaw with mine," she said. "No fries." "Be, right back," Mulder chuckled and left. 'I'll be here waiting for you, Fox Mulder.' Scully thought. As she continued to soak, she thought about Detective Ellis and Mulder. She couldn't blame Ellis for wanting Mulder. He was eye candy to begin with and when you got to work with him and know exactly how intelligent and special he was, it was difficult to believe that any woman would not want him. Last night he had pledged his heart and soul to her. Things would work out-they had to. He said he wanted her, even if he was excited by the sight of a lovely woman like Ellis. He said he loved her and she was going to focus on that. Suddenly refreshed, Scully left the tub and completed her bedtime preparations before Mulder returned. They ate while watching the news, not surprised that it was full of the capture of Dr. Knapp. After they had cleaned up and Mulder had taken their trash out the dumpster in the parking lot they settled down on the bed to talk. Neither one knew how to begin. The silence stretched and began to become uncomfortable again. Both Agents screwed up their courage and started at the same moment. "Mulder..." "Scully..." They laughed and tried again. "Scully, I'm sorry..." "Mulder, I'm sorry..." This time Mulder placed his fingertips on her lips and started. "Scully, me first. I'm sorry I behaved so unprofessionally earlier. I know you saw my erection. I couldn't help myself. I know how important it is to you for us to comport ourselves in a professional manner and I let you down. Now you." She kissed his fingertips gently and held his hand as she spoke. "I am sorry that I behaved unprofessionally. I was furious with that woman and I allowed myself to let my personal feelings interfere with our partnership. I know that you depend on me to be the level-headed one and I lost it today. I just couldn't bear to see that woman flaunting herself in front of you and taunting you. I don't blame you for becoming excited. She is quite beautiful..." "Wait a minute, Scully. You think I was excited by Detective Ellis' bare breasts?" Mulder asked in astonishment. "Well, yes. After all, she is your type..." Scully began. "Stop. First, let me assure you that I have no interest in R. E. Ellis, and frankly, Scully, telling me she's my type is something of an insult to my manhood." Mulder teased her. "I did not get excited by the vision of Ellis's bare breasts. I was extremely turned on by the red-headed wildcat that charged into that room to protect her man." "Me? You were turned on by me going commando on Detective Ellis?" Scully gasped. "What can I say, Scully. It always turns me on to see you 'Go Commando'. Why do you think I never schedule my recert for the hand-to-hand training at the same time as yours? I always want to watch you. A Scully aggressive mode has always been a big turn-on for me. Another time I will tell you about fantasy number eight and number fourteen." "Then why were you so silent in the car?" Scully asked. "I thought you saw my erection and was upset with my unprofessional behavior. I was scared that you would change your mind about trying to work out a relationship and a partnership. I don't want to lose you Scully-as my partner or my mate. Why didn't you say something?" Scully blushed and looked down, "I thought you were having second thoughts about our relationship. I... When you didn't look at me or touch me, I thought you found me... well, lacking." Mulder groaned and pulled her into his arms, "Scully! I couldn't look at you for more than a second at a time. And as for touching you, if I had laid one finger on you, even on your back like I normally do, I would have ended up ripping off your clothes and fucking you in public." Her gasp was loud in the room. "I wanted you so badly, Scully, I didn't trust myself not to rape you." Scully was quiet for a moment, searching his eyes for the truth of his statement. "It wouldn't be rape if I were tearing at your clothes too, would it Mulder?" she asked solemnly. She was answered by Mulder's delighted smile. Their lips met in a long kiss. A kiss that led to another and another and another as they made love throughout the night. Their bodies had surrendered to exhaustion and the night was long gone when a knock on the door woke them. It was mid-morning and Scully came awake with a start. "Housekeeping! Housekeeping coming in!" The knock sound again. "Mulder, get up! The housekeeper is at the door." Scully pushed him awake. "Tell her we don't want any," Mulder mumbled into his pillow. "Mulder! Get dressed and get out of here." Scully was frantically trying to get him to wake up. "Scully, just tell her we're checking out in a half hour and to come back later." Mulder stood up and stretched. Scully stopped mid-stride to gaze at him. He was nude, and the morning light made his skin glow with a golden color that made her mouth water. His hair was tousled and he had a slumberous, sensual look in his eyes as he started to move towards her. "Mmmm... Scully skin." Scully looked down and realized she was as naked as he was. The door handle wiggled again and she could hear the housekeepers keys jingle as she started to open the door. Scully quickly moved to the door and said, "That's okay. We're going to be leaving in a few minutes. Both this room and number 109, will be vacant in a few minutes." "Thank you!" came the pleasant reply. "Uh oh, Scully. You shouldn't lie to people like that." Mulder moved towards her with a gleam in his eye. He pulled the 'Do Not Disturb' sign off the inside knob and carefully placed it on the outside. "What do you mean, Mulder? We have to check out in just a little over an hour." Scully said. "Yeah, but I have no intentions of checking out of this room until we get to fulfill fantasy number three by taking a shower in that great big tub together." Mulder pulled her against his body and began to kiss her neck. "Number three?" Scully muttered. "What happened to number one and two?" She was kissing him everywhere she could reach. "Number one was fulfilled by our first night together." Mulder pulled her towards the bathroom. "And number two?" Scully smiled. "Number two was fulfilled around three o'clock this morning." He waggled his eyebrows at her. "But I think I could go for that one several times a week." Scully blushed, but nodded. "Me too. Now let's work on number three and get out of here. We have a plane to catch." An hour later, Scully was finishing her packing while Mulder checked them out. She pulled her cell phone off the charging wire to pack and was surprised when it rang. "Scully." "Dana! I caught you. Did you have your phone off until just now?" Maggie asked. "I've been calling since last night." "Mom, I'm sorry. We wrapped up the case last night and my battery was almost totally dead so I put it on an overnight charge. Is something wrong?" "No, dear, but, I have a surprise for you." Maggie laughed. "A good surprise or a bad surprise, Mom?" Scully smiled as she teased back. "A good one, I hope. I'm out here in San Diego for a surprise birthday party for Tara and she just told me she ran into Mulder in Los Angeles. Are you both still there?" "Yes, we are. But we just wrapped up the case and were getting ready to leave for DC." "Oh, dear. I was hoping that you two could come down and join us. Charlie and Mary are here with the kids. Tara's parents, Mr. & Mrs. Banks, are here too. It was all planned by Billy to surprise her. It certainly would be perfect if you could join us for a couple days. Do you think you could get some time off?" Scully was at a loss. She really wanted to see her brother Charlie and his family, but knew Mulder wouldn't be thrilled about visiting Bill. "I don't know, Mom. Let me see what I can do and get back to you." Scully said. Mulder walked back in the room as she was saying goodbye. "Was that your Mom?" Mulder was concerned by the sad expression on her face. "Is everything all right?" "Umm.. Oh, yeah, everything is fine. Mom's actually down in San Diego for Tara's birthday. Billy arranged for her parents and Mom and Charlie and his family to fly in for a surprise. Mom just was asking if I... we could join them for a few days." "What did you tell her, Scully?" Mulder asked. "I told her I would see what I could do." She replied. "I don't know if I can get hold of Skinner before our flight. What time is our flight by the way?" "Well, that's something you and I need to talk about," Mulder stalled. "You see, with all the excitement of yesterday, I forgot to tell you what I was doing in that office in the first place." Scully waited for him to continue. "I had called Skinner and reported that the case was closed and the arrest was made. I also asked him for a few days off-you know-to replace the long weekend we lost when we started the case." Scully began to smile, "And?" "And, he said we could fax in the completed report including the expense report today or tomorrow and have the rest of the week off. We don't need to be back to DC until Monday." Mulder smiled back at her. "Mulder, you're a doll! I can't wait to see everyone." Scully was grinning. "I'm glad you're going to get to spend some time with your family, Scully." Mulder said with a smile. He picked up her suitcase and walked towards the door. "Wait a minute, Mulder. What do you mean I'm going to spend time with my family? Where do you think you're going? You are a big part of my family, Mulder. If you aren't going, I'm not going." Scully said decisively. "Scully, you know Bill doesn't like me and I don't want to ruin your time with your family." Mulder tried to reason with her. "Uh uh, Mulder. I finally get a man to ask me to marry him-one that I adore and want to spend the rest of my life with-and he doesn't even want to go with me to tell my family about our engagement." Scully teased him. "Sculllyyy!" Mulder groaned. "Are you going to be one of those wives that have their husbands wrapped around their little fingers?" Mulder was teasing her and loving every minute. Scully gave him an appraising look before answering, "No, I'll let our little girl have that privilege." Mulder felt tears gather in his eyes. "Sure of that, are you?" he whispered as he wrapped her in his arms. "Yes, someone I trust told me not to give up on a miracle. I believe whether we adopt or are blessed with a baby, we will be parents eventually, Mulder, in God's time." They embraced for a long moment, then Mulder leaned back to look in her eyes. "I guess, we should stop at a jewelers on the way down to San Diego and pick out a ring for you. I can't have my fiance show up with a bare finger. Bill will really want to kick my ass if he thinks I can't even buy you a ring." "Does this mean you'll go with me to San Diego?" Scully smiled up at him. Mulder gave her a squeeze and moved towards the door with the final suitcase. "Yeah, Scully, I'll go. Call your Mom, but don't tell her our news yet. I want to watch Bill's face when you tell them all together." "I don't even know that Bill will be there, Mulder. The last I heard he was going out on maneuvers." Scully began to dial Bill's number. "Ah, the things I do for love," Mulder heaved a huge sigh as he quickly vacated the room. XXXXXXXXXX Their drive to San Diego was relatively easy. Scully pointed out various landmarks that she remembered from when Captain Scully was stationed at Miramar. Both Mulder and Scully were at a loss as to which of the many jewelry stores to go to for Scully's ring. Neither one of them had a clue about shopping for jewelry. Mulder had wanted to go to a jeweler on Rodeo Drive in Beverly Hills, but Scully absolutely refused. Finally Mulder called the Lone Gunmen. They were their best resource when looking for clues-maybe they would have some insight as to where to stop. Scully was astounded when Mulder called the guys. She was sure three confirmed bachelors wouldn't have a clue about jewelry, but once again Mulder's intuition paid off. They called back in a matter of moments with directions to a surprisingly reputable establishment in San Diego and instructions to speak to Jocko. Jocko was a tall, thin man with an honest face and the spiel of a used car salesman. After they introduced themselves and told him what they wanted he walked them over to a flashy display case with two comfortable chairs in front of it. The overhead lighting made the diamonds displayed sparkle like small stars. Scully was still skeptical that this man wasn't going to rip them off and glared at Mulder to let him know that she wanted to leave. Mulder smiled gently at Scully, reassuring her that everything would be okay. "Now, Mr. Mulder, exactly how big a diamond did you have in mind?" Jocko's jovial voice boomed. Mulder wanted to give Frohike's cousin a chance so he told him the truth, "I don't have a clue, Jocko. I want whatever Scully likes, but neither one of us knows much about diamonds. That's why I call my friend, Frohike, and asked where we should go. He said his cousin Jocko would give us an honest deal." "Melvin? Melvin Frohike is a friend of yours?" Jocko's voice was suddenly quiet and reserved. "Yes," Mulder confirmed. "Just a moment, folks. I'll be right back." Jocko walked into the back room. "Mulder, I don't like any of these rings. They're all too big for my hands and I'm sure they're way over priced." Scully whispered. "Just a minute, Scully. Let's see what this guy has to say," Mulder answered. They walked around the store for a few minutes, waiting for Jocko to come back. He finally reappeared and motioned for them to come to the counter. "Ah, Mr. Mulder, Ms. Scully, please follow me," he buzzed the gate that separated the display area from the work area and back room. "I just spoke to Melvin and confirmed that you are indeed friends of his. I have a room in the back where I keep the kind of gems I am sure a couple like you would be more interested in." He led the way to an office with a huge safe in the wall. "A couple like us, Jocko?" Scully said suspiciously. "Yes, you know. Hard-working, honest, employees of the FBI." Jocko grinned, "Friends of family." He seated them before a table covered with black velvet and then opened the safe to pull out a large, flat box and a rack of envelopes. Mulder and Scully looked at each other quizzically. "Now. Here we are. Just what kind of ring did you have in mind, Ms. Scully?" "I don't know. Truthfully, I've never given it any thought." Scully blushed as she answered. "Well, why don't we get to know each other for a few minutes and perhaps I can get a sense of the true you and the kind of gem that will personify the real Dana Scully. Would you two like a cup of coffee or a cold beverage. I have sodas and bottled water available." They all decided to have a cup of coffee as they talked. Scully had set aside her cup after a few minutes. She was surprised when Jocko took left her hand in his and examined it closely with a jeweler's loupe. "You hands are very strong, yet soft. You maintain them with care, but not flash. You are a forensic pathologist, you say? What interested you in the FBI?" On and on the questions continued. "When did you meet Mr. Mulder? "Where did you go to college?" "How long have you been engaged?" "Where did you study medicine?" "When did you realize you were in love with Agent Mulder?" "When is your birthday? Agent Mulder's birthday?" "What is your favorite color?" "What is your favorite flower?" "When do you plan to marry?" He questioned Scully in a rapid fire manner-almost as if he were badgering her to tell him everything about her in fifteen minutes. And all the while he held her hand in a friendly, yet professional grip. Mulder began to lose patience with his questioning. Jocko seemed to pick up on his mood change immediately and finally finished the inquisition. "Well, Ms. Scully, I believe I know what you are looking for." Scully's lips curled up at the corners of her mouth but her eyebrow showed her skepticism. "Really, Jocko? Am I that transparent?" "Not at all, Agent Scully. You are a very complex woman. I get the feeling everyone thinks that Mr. Mulder is the mysterious one, but you, Agent Scully are an enigma wrapped up in a puzzle and hidden in plain sight." Jocko laughed. "An apt description," Mulder interjected. Jocko smiled at Scully and continued, "You are a very forthright person, yet you value tact. You are a scientist, yet you believe. You care deeply for others, yet hide this caring behind a mask of professionalism. You are loyal, selfless and insightful. You have a genius IQ and have never failed to attain any goal you've set your heart on, yet you have sacrificed much to follow this man. You seek the truth and love and in Agent Mulder you have found the one soul on this earth that can give you both. I have only scratched the surface, Agent Scully. You are a very deep, complex individual. And one of the oldest souls I have ever had the privilege to encounter." Scully was blushing and uncomfortable by the time Jocko's description ended. "So you learned all this from my hand and your questions?" Jocko nodded and began to unlock the flat box as he answered, "Yes, your hand and your answers, and the fact that I am probably one of the few true empaths you will ever meet." "What was wrong with the jewelry out front, Jocko?" Mulder was curious. "Nothing. Not a thing!" he quickly assured them. "For special customers, though, I have a better grade of diamond available. But first, the setting." He flipped the case open and turned it so that Mulder and Scully could see the selection of settings available. "These are beautiful, Jocko, but here are so many of them." Scully said. "Not to worry, Agent Scully. I have narrowed your selection down considerably already." He plucked three setting out of the case and reached for her hand. He slid the first on her finger. It was a perfect fit. "Do you always get a perfect fit the first time?" Mulder mused. "I try." Jocko smiled. He slid the first off and handed her the second to try on. After a few moments he gave her the third setting to try. "What do you think, Scully?" Mulder asked. "I don't know Mulder. They're all lovely and they are the right size for my hands, but..." "But something is not perfect." Jocko confirmed. He sprang up and walked back to the safe, returning with a small black box. "This design is one of my originals. It haunted me until I made it up, but it's never been just right for any of my customers. Perhaps this is for you?" Jocko opened the box to reveal an absolutely stunning ring. When Scully offered her left hand to try on the ring, it was trembling. Jocko held the ring box out to Mulder and let him place the ring on her finger. It fit perfectly. Mulder held Scully's hand as they stared at the ring. It was a simple band in white and yellow gold and had three diamonds. The band was mostly white gold and the center diamond was a square, brilliant cut stone of about a carat, mounted with an invisible setting. There was a yellow gold X on either side of the center diamond, flanked by two more square, brilliant cut diamonds, slightly smaller. The entire mounting was enclosed in a thin yellow gold frame. The ring was perfect for Scully. Mulder gazed into Scully's eyes and said, "We'll take it." Scully was shocked by his words. "Mulder, you don't know anything about this ring." "I know it's perfect for you, Scully. That's all I need to know." Mulder kissed the back of her hand. She gave him an affectionate but scolding look and then turned her best bartering glare on Jocko. "Why don't you tell us about this ring before we make any hasty decisions." "A wise choice, Ms. Scully." Jocko seemed amused by their words. "This is a design that came to me in a dream about six months ago. I couldn't shake the vision of the design and it plagued me until I actually sat down and created this ring. You will notice that the center diamond is almost a full carat and the side diamonds are each seventy points. I chose each diamond carefully to be attuned to the setting." He continued to lecture them on the importance of the 4 C's of diamond buying, finishing up with, "These diamonds are all flawless, grade D, brilliant cut square diamonds. They will retain their value forever. The invisible mounting will allow you to wear this ring as you would a plain gold band. Once you put it on, you will never have to take it off. I suggest that you get it engraved before the wedding." "That's very interesting, Jocko, but you forgot one thing." Scully said with a smile. "Oh, whatever could that be, Ms Scully?" Jocko seemed puzzled. "How much?" she asked. "Scully," Mulder interrupted her. "Jocko, could we have a moment?" "Of course, Mr. Mulder." Jocko took no offense. He replaced the tray and the rack of diamonds in the safe and spun the lock after shutting the door. Both Agents grinned when he shrugged and said, "Insurance company rules." He stepped back up front to give them the privacy they needed. "Scully, I don't care about the cost. You obviously love the ring and you're going to wear it for the rest of your life. The cost is of no concern." "Mulder, I don't want you to go in debt to buy me a ring. Yes, I do love this ring and it's absolutely perfect for us, but I am not marrying you for the ring." Scully firmly stated. "Oh course not, Scully. Everyone knows it's my body you're after." Mulder teased. "Scully, let me do this. I know we haven't discussed this before, but I'm not exactly poor. When Mom and Dad died I inherited a lot of land and money. We don't have to worry about anything, Scully." Scully stared at him for a long moment before nodding. "If you want to buy this for me, I accept. I don't think that we could find another ring more appropriate for two Agents in the X-Files." Mulder kissed her softly. "Thank you, Scully. Thank you for choosing the X-Files and especially for choosing me. I love you, Scully." "I love you too, Mulder," Scully said as she looked at the ring on her finger again. "Now that we've found my perfect ring, what are we going to do for you?" "I don't know. Let's ask Jocko." Mulder went up front to get Frohike's cousin. They explained that they wanted a band for Mulder and Jocko's eyes lit up. "I have the perfect compliment to your ring in mind for Mr. Mulder. Just follow me." He led them back out the to main display area and motioned for them to sit down. Jocko pulled out a tray of men's rings and swooped up the ring for Mulder to try. It too was a precise fit and absolutely perfect. The band was wide and made from the same combination of white and yellow gold. The four diamonds on the top were triangular instead of square and mounted invisibly in a yellow gold X. "This is a little under two carats total weight. but the color and clarity match Ms. Scully's ring." Jocko was pleased with their response. Mulder said, "We'll take them both" and pulled out a card from his wallet. Jocko smiled and accepted the card and the two rings and moved back into the back room to clear the transaction. He was grinning widely when he returned. "Would you perhaps want to have the rings engraved while you wait?" Mulder and Scully exchanged glances and said yes at the same time. First Mulder with Scully's ring followed Jocko back to give him the words for her ring. Then Scully followed with Mulder's ring. They decided to share the inscriptions on their wedding day. XXXXXXXXXX The next two days passed in a blur. Mulder and Scully had chosen a motel off base and used the privacy to complete the reports Skinner needed right away. The time spent with the rest of the Scullys had been surprisingly pleasant. Mulder had been thrilled to find out that Bill Scully's ship was still out on maneuvers. Charlie and Mary Scully and their boys, Will and Sam were openly accepting of his place in Scully's life. The only problem he had was remembering to call Scully, Dana. Every time he called her Scully, unless they were alone, several people would respond. Thursday was Tara's birthday and Mr. & Mrs. Banks insisted on taking everyone out to dinner. They had chosen a family-friendly restaurant that catered to kids, but managed to maintain an excellent variety of food for adult tastes. Everyone had a great time, but the kids were anxious to get home to have cake and ice cream as promised. Tara was the first one in the house and her squeal of surprise caused Scully and Mulder to rush the door right after her. The entire family crowded in behind them just in time to see Tara and Bill Scully in a passionate lip lock. Their kisses and murmured words of love were interrupted when Matty got a look at the man who had his Mommy wrapped around him. "Daddy! Daddy! Daddy!" Matty pulled away from Maggie and launched himself at his father. Everyone started laughing and talking at once. Mulder stepped back out into the hall to close the door. He was sure Bill Scully didn't want his homecoming spoiled right away. Tara was laughing and crying and kissing Bill and Matty. "Oh, Billy, you made it. I was so sure we were going to be apart this year. I thought that's why you made sure everyone was here for me." Several passionate kisses later she continued, "And you even managed to get Dana and Mulder here. Bill Scully! You're the best!" Mulder could tell by the pained look on Bill's face that he hadn't even registered the fact the he was in the house. Mulder was waiting for the explosion when he got the shock of a lifetime. "Hey, he's family Sweetheart! If Dana loves him, then I couldn't very well exclude him from a family gathering, could I?" Bill gave Mulder a look that threatened all types of bodily harm if he did anything to burst Tara's bubble. Maggie had tears in her eyes when she smiled up at her son. "Let's have that cake and ice cream now, before one little guy has to go to bed." "I'm not tired, Gramma! Honest!" Matty said with a big yawn. "Let's go sport! Cake and ice cream and how many candles for your Mommy? Twenty-one?" Bill lifted his son up on his shoulder and lead the way to the dining room. Everyone was seated and enjoying dessert. Tara had opened all her presents and the family gossip had started over coffee when Scully squeezed Mulder's hand before clearing her throat. "Mulder and I are getting married tomorrow," she said casually and took a sip of coffee. All conversation in the room ceased. The silence was so deep that you could hear the rustle of clothing as heads turned towards them. Dana couldn't help herself-she had to pull their chains a little more. Everyone was gaping at her as if she had grown a second head. "We don't know if we want to get married here or drive over to Los Vegas and find an Elvis Chapel. What do you think, Mom?" Mulder knew what she was doing and chimed in "Oh, Scully! You know what I like." He then turned an innocently curious face towards Maggie, presumably waiting for her input on their choice. Everyone began to talk at once. Maggie calmly stood up and walked over to Dana and Mulder. She hugged Dana and then kissed each of them. "Do you think you could find a Catholic Elvis in Las Vegas, dear?" she said with a twinkle in her eye. Everyone broke up laughing and the congratulations began. After the kids were put to bed, all four of the Scully women claimed the kitchen as off limits for the men. They had some serious planning to do and wanted the men out of the way. Mulder was uncomfortable being sent to the living room with the two Scully brothers at first, but they found a showing of "The Dirty Dozen" just starting and settled back to bide their time. "Lee Marvin was great in this movie." Bill said. "I liked him in Cat Ballou better," Charlie countered. "I liked him in Paint Your Wagon with Clint Eastwood," Mulder couldn't resist. Both Scully men frowned at him and he laughed and recanted. "Actually Delta Force was my favorite Marvin movie." "Yeah," Charlie grunted. Dana Scully suddenly appeared at Mulder's side. "You okay, Scully?" Mulder asked. "I just needed to step away for a moment. Do you want to go outside?" Scully obviously needed to talk to him. They walked out the door and down the sidewalk for a way. The street was dark and the stars were bright above. "Mulder, I'm sorry," Scully started. "Sorry? Sorry that we're getting married tomorrow?" Mulder stopped suddenly. "No, no!" Scully said emphatically. "I'm sorry that my family has taken over the plans for our wedding day and you're being left out." "Scully," he said as he lifted her hands to his lips. "I love you and your happiness is what's important to me. I want our marriage to be about you and me and how we feel about each other, but I understand that there's more to a wedding day for the bride and her family. You are my family, Scully. Anything you want is all right with me. I just want you." "Mulder," Scully laid her head on his chest. "Just keep reminding me why I love you so much, will you?" "No problem, partner. Wait until I get you back to the motel a little later and I'll be happy to remind you all night long." Mulder wrapped his arms around her and kissed her. "Ummm... Mulder, about the motel? My mom wants me to stay here tonight so that we can get an early start on the preparations in the morning," Scully said. "Did you agree?" Mulder asked. "Well, I said I would talk to you about it. Mulder, I don't want to be separated even for one night, so I have an idea." "Let's hear it. I don't want to be separated either," Mulder agreed. "I think we should let Tara and Bill use our hotel room and we could both stay here tonight." "Where would we sleep?" "Well, that's the only down side. We'd have to sleep on the couch in the living room." "I can live with that, Scully. That's a lot better than going back to the motel room alone." Mulder smiled at her. "I've slept alone for most of my life, and I don't want to do it any more." "Yeah and gives you brownie points with Bill too, huh?" Scully teased him. "Well, I'll take all the help I can get right now." They turned and walked back towards the house. Scully stopped suddenly and asked, "Speaking of sleeping alone reminds me that we haven't decided where we're going to live. We need to think about this so we can make a decision before we get back. What are we going to do about all your stuff? And all my stuff and..." "Scully, Scully, hold it. I have something to tell you," Mulder said, trying to soothe her. "Do you remember that apartment down the street from yours?" "The one we looked at together?" she asked. When he nodded she said, "Of course, who could forget a place like that?" "Well, when you were packing, I went back and put a deposit down on it. We can move in as soon as we get back and finalize the deal." Mulder thought for a moment that he had made a mistake by telling her about the apartment before the wedding when she didn't say anything. "Were you so sure about my feelings for you, Mulder?" her voice was unsteady as she spoke. "No," he responded. "But I was sure about my feelings for you." Scully pulled him to her and silently hugged him. "So, we're really going to do this tomorrow?" Mulder leaned back and asked. "Yeah, unless you're having second thoughts and want to back out now. We really are." She smiled up at him. "Nope. No second thoughts," he smiled back and drew her into his embrace again. They stood quietly for a moment, just enjoying the peace of the night and the comfort of their embrace. "Mulder?" "Hmmm?" "What did you have engraved in my ring?" Scully asked. "I thought we were going to wait until the wedding to share." Mulder teased her. "I'll tell you what I asked for in your ring if you tell me mine." Scully ran her hands up his chest and around to the back of his neck. "You first, Scully. What did you choose?" Mulder coaxed her. "Always," she whispered. "And you?" "One word, Scully." Mulder said as he leaned down to kiss the only woman in the world for him. "Forever."