TITLE:   Conhouse - Chapter Nine
RATING: NC-17

Disclaimer: Fox, Chris Carter and 1013 own them ALL, ***except Lena Conhouse,
she's mine, and of course, Wanda, who is mine in the literal sense.***


Lena let Wanda in through the downstairs door, then walked into the bedroom.
Dana had already shed her robe. She was laying on top of the bed's comforter,
belly down, looking at the picture of Lena's parents.

"You're not planning on thinking about..." Lena asked, warily.

"No, no." Dana laughed. "I was just wondering who this woman is. Is it your
Mom?"

"No. It's my step-mom, Judy. My Dad married her about 3 years ago."

"Do you like her?"

"Very much. She keeps him normal... ish."

"Is she aware of his..."

"Nope."

Lena had moved to the side of the bed. She lay down beside Dana with her head
propped up on her hand.

"Are you thinking about doing to me what you did to me last night?" Dana
asked, putting the picture back on the night stand.

Lena nodded slightly. "Would you like me too?" She was whispering.

"Yes." Dana lowered her voice to a whisper, matching Lena's sudden intensity.

"Do you like it when I talk to you while I touch you?"

"... yes." Dana rested her head on the backs of her hands and looked into
Lena's eyes.

Lena ran her hand from Dana's shoulders slowly down to the dip in her back.
She leaned in to Dana's ear and whispered, "I adore you..."

Dana sighed deeply and let her eyes slip closed.

"And I am amazed... that you picked me..." Lena whispered as she ran her hand
down over the swell of Dana's ass to the back of her knee and up again.

Lena got to her knees on the bed and shed her robe, letting it fall to the
floor. She straddled Dana's hips, sitting down on her fully, then laid herself
out on Dana's back.

The groan elicited from Dana's lips made her head swim with desire. She
consciously chose not to read any thoughts from Dana, she wanted to feel her
way through responses. She ran her hands over Dana's arms then back to her
shoulders. She brushed auburn strands off of the back of her neck and ran her
tongue lightly along Dana's skin, stopping at her ear, "... you are so
soft..."

Lena let her hands glide down Dana's sides. She could feel her own wetness
start to rub off onto Dana. She moved her hips slightly, sliding herself
gently along the crack of the other woman's ass. She felt Dana push her hips
back up against her. A sweet 'ohhhhhh god' from Dana rang in her ears...
making her slide against her again.

"... Lena, god... that feels incredible... "

Her nipples were grazing Dana's back, her hips moving slowly against her ass.
Lena sat up, slightly, and the change in pressure was overwhelming,
"ohhhhh..." she sucked in a breath through clenched teeth...

"... don't stop Lena... please..."

Lena sat straighter, her hands resting on either side of the dip in Dana's
back. Her hips moved of their own accord, her clit captured between the cheeks
of Dana's ass.

"... can you feel that?..."

"... yes... you're so hard..."

Lena laid fully against Dana's back once more, her hands ran down Dana's
sides. She pushed her hips into her ass again, and when Dana's hips lifted off
the bed to meet her thrust, she slipped her hands beneath her.

"... ohhhhhh... " Dana let out a choked moan as Lena slid a finger into her.
The fingers of her other hand found Dana's clit and she rubbed it in slow
circles.

"I want you to cum with me Dana... can you do that?"

"... yes... "

She pushed her clit into Dana, wanting her to feel it hard against her. Dana
clenched her ass and captured it, pulling it back with her as she pushed
herself down into Lena's fingers.

"Jesus... Dana... oh god..."

Dana's hands came up, she grasped Lena's face and the back of her head,
craning her neck to kiss her. Their tongues met. Dana's fingers sliding into
Lena's mouth. Lena kissed her mouth and fingers at once, running her tongue
over both. Each continued riding the other and they came together, as they had
promised each other, moaning into one another's mouths - hips rolling in
release.

"...I can't believe what you do to me..." Lena whispered, rolling off of
Dana's back after slowly withdrawing her fingers. "No one has ever made me as
hot as you do... how do you do that?"

"Mmmm, I don't know, but I like it... I like it." Dana whispered back, her
back suddenly cold. She shuffled a little, getting under the comforter. She
held the covers up and Lena snuggled in with her. "Get closer..."

Lena scooted into her. She reveled in the feel of the warm arms around her. "I
can't believe how good you feel. I could get so used to this."

"That's the plan." Dana stroked her back softly, breathing in deeply, loving
the smell of her skin.

"So you're sucking me in are you?"

"In a manner of speaking, yes."

"Lulling me into a sense of safety? So you can... let's see..."

"Steal your dog?"

"Too obvious."

Dana laughed. She had no idea what she was saying. It didn't matter. This
silliness was all she could muster after having every synapse in her body fire
at once. She was thinking of the definition of an orgasm that she and Melissa
had looked up in the library when they were in their teens. It had said
something that ended with, 'resulting in a feeling of euphoria and
relaxation'. For the first time she knew what that meant. It made her smile.

"So which are you little white girl? Relaxed, or euphoric?"

"Both."

Lena responded by laughing and sighing at once. The resulting noise making her
sound simple minded. "My god Dana, you killed some of my brain cells."

"Dork." Dana whispered, and kissed her on the forehead.

Lena laughed out loud.





It was early afternoon and the two women were out on the boat, lying in the
sun.

"So, tell me about your family Conhouse. Who can do what?"

Lena looked over at her, smiling. "Now don't beat around the bush Dana..."

"Come on - spill it."

"Well, let's see. Where to start? My Dad is able to do just about anything.
He's had nearly 65 years to develop his skills. He's proficient in all types
of clairvoyance, including, but not limited to, thought transference,
automatic writing, tachometry, telepathy, and remote viewing. Now Brian, on
the other hand, has struggled with his abilities for most of his life. He's
tried to suppress them, although, as a result of that, his unconscious mind,
his dreams, mostly, are filled with real life events. He's been in and out of
counseling most of his life. Lately, I think, he's been able to control his
depression with medication."

"Is he alright now?" Dana was looking over at Lena, her brow furrowed.

"Yes. I think so, anyway. The last time I talked to him was a couple of weeks
ago. He seems to be able to sleep now, and he was cheerful. He had met
someone, which I think probably makes him happy. He's gay, also, by the way.
He lives in California."

"What does he do?"

"Set designs for award shows. He was a theatre queer."

"No kidding."

"No kidding."

"Wow."

"Yeah."

"Where does your dad live?"

"He lives in Delaware. A place called Harmony Hall, this big farmhouse that's
an historical site. It was weird how he got the place. He and I were really in
to doing a family genealogy a couple of years ago and we found out that this
historical site called Harmony Hall was owned by a General Conhouse back in
the late 1700's. We went to the site and found that the county was taking bids
to lease it out. Dad bid on the lease and he got it. He and Judy have been
there for a couple of years now, restoring it to its original style. It's not
far from here, about an hour and a half. I'll take you out there some time."

"Was it in bad shape when they moved in?"

"Oh yeah. They lived in one room for the first year while they tried to make
the others livable."

"Tell me about your abilities. I know you can read my mind... when I want you
too." Dana shot her a smile. "What else can you do?"

"Just about everything my dad can do. I haven't developed as much as he has, I
mean, it takes me longer to get answers sometimes."

"Can you move objects?"

"Yes, but it takes forever. The kind of concentration I need to have in order
to do that takes several hours to obtain."

"Can you read objects?"

"Like hold something in my hand and tell you where it's been?"

"Yes."

"Yes, I can."

"I've heard about remote viewing but I'm not sure I know exactly what that
is..."

"It's the act of traveling outside the body to a remote location. You
visualize the location, gather your senses, and push them forward in your mind
and out toward the location you want to view. I could talk you through it
sometime, you may be able to do it."

"Really?"  Dana wasn't buying it.

"Really. It's a process, not so much an ability."

"Did you ever worry that you wouldn't be able to get back into your body?"

"Once. I was terrified; just kind of hovering above myself."

"What did you do?"

"I tried to remember what it felt like to lift my arm. Before I knew it, I was
laying in bed with my arm straight in the air."

Dana shook her head, "Incredible. And you think you can teach me how to do
that?"

"Yes, I think I could."

"How? What's the process?"

"Well, I lay on my bed and relax. First, I tense and release every muscle that
I have, starting with my toes and working my way up to the top of my head. I
tense my toes tightly, hold them, then release them, then I move on to my
feet, then my calves, etc., the idea being that I become aware of every muscle
and therefore am able to completely relax every muscle. After every muscle has
been tensed and released I then pull all five of my tangible senses to my
sternum. I do this by concentrating on my sense of touch by feeling the bed
beneath me, then I visualize the sense running up my arm, across my chest, and
hovering at my sternum. I then go on to my sense of hearing, taste, sight, and
smell, centering them together. Then I visualize the place I want to go, take
a deep breath, and push, mentally and physically. The senses travel off by
themselves."

"Incredible."

"Yeah. It's a cool thing."

Dana continued her interrogation, "Where's your mom?"

"My mom?" Lena looked pained; "I don't know where she is."

"Did something happen to her?"

"Sort of, she's got addiction troubles, drugs, alcohol, your typical
dysfunctional stuff."

"I'm sorry."

"It's okay. She left when I was five. I was heartbroken for a long time, but I
think I've made my peace with her."

"Your dad raised you alone?"

"Yep, he's my hero. I was lucky to have him."

"Are you a daddy's girl?"

"Yep, just like you."

"Yeah." Dana smiled at her slightly, remembering Ahab. She wondered something
briefly, then shook her head as if to shake the thought away.

"You can ask me Dana." Lena looked at her pointedly.

"What?"

"The question... about Ahab."

Dana looked startled, then whispered, so that Lena could barely hear her, "Can
you?"

"Yes. I can. Melissa too."

Dana's eyes filled with tears. She felt her throat seize. "Where are they..."

Lena felt tears come to her eyes too. "Heaven. They're together."

"Can you see them?"

"Sometimes, behind you... when you're thinking of them. Ahab rests his hand on
your shoulder." Lena closed her eyes, her head shivered.  Melissa... she's got
her arm around you when she's here. She's taller than you, longer hair..."

Dana's eyes were wide, she let tears stream down her face, disbelieving,
shaking her head slowly...

"They love you..." Lena's eyes opened. "Oh god Dana, I'm sorry, I didn't mean
to scare you." She was suddenly terrified that she'd said too much. "Are you
okay? I'm so sorry."

Dana spoke through her tears, "How do you know... where they are?"

Lena smiled softly at her; "I wouldn't be able to see them otherwise."

"Do you see anyone else?"

"Let's save that for later, ok?"

Dana stared at her for a moment, wanting desperately to know if she saw Emily.

"Later Dana..."

"So there is a heaven."

"Yes, and a god, and everything else that's good."

"You must be religious?"

"Not really. There is a theory that god is in everything. God, from my
viewpoint, is the collective consciousness or rather, the collective memory in
every living thing. It's not a guy with a white beard, unless, of course, you
want it to be."

"So the bible..."

"I honestly don't know. I don't know the how or why of the way things work.
But I do know that death isn't the end, and that we have nothing to be afraid
of."

"Do you think being gay is a sin?"

"No. I think it doesn't matter. I think that love is a gift, in whatever form
it takes." Lena took a breath. "Dana, I'm not some kind of messiah. I can't
tell the future. I can't say that the end is near. I've got very little
knowledge of religion." She rested her head in her hands.  "I guess what I'm
trying to say is that I'm just a person who happens to be able to use more
parts of my brain. Just a person, nothing else, really."

"So you don't think you were put here to make a difference?"

"I think we all were, I just think some people choose not to."


Dana thought about it for a second. She looked at Lena, drying her tears with
her fingers. "So that's the key? You use the parts of your brain that are
dormant in other people?"

"I believe so, yes. That's it, no frills."

"Have you ever had a CAT scan or any other brain function related testing?"

"No, but I was hoping you could do that for me."

"Of course I will."

"Thanks."

Dana pulled back slightly. She looked into Lena's eyes thoughtfully for a
minute. "I feel like I should call Mulder."

Lena's eyebrows raised. "Do you want to head in?"

"Yeah. I keep getting little pangs of guilt when I think about him. I'm
worried that I didn't take enough time with him yesterday, I was in too much
of a rush to get back to you." She smiled at her.

Lena got up and pulled the anchor in and they made their way back to the dock.

Soon they were back in Lena's living room. Dana was fishing through her bag.

"I think, if you don't mind, that I'll call him and see if he wants to go to
dinner. I feel like I need to talk to him before we meet in the morning."

"Oh that's right, I'm supposed to be in your office first thing tomorrow to go
over those files. It could be mighty painful if he's angry."

"He's usually very professional. I think he'd keep things impersonal enough to
get by."

"That could be even worse."

Dana shrugged. "Lena, did you see anyone around Mulder?"

"Yes, a couple of people."

Dana looked at the floor.

"But not his sister Dana, not Samantha."

Dana let out an audible sigh of relief.

"Do you have any idea where she is?"

"Not yet, but I think that I will."

Dana nodded and dialed the phone.

-end-

TITLE:   Conhouse - Chapter Ten
RATING: PG-13


"So Scully, how was your night?"

They sat at a small table by the window. Their wine had already been set in
front of them, food was ordered and presumably being prepared.

"Good Mulder." She knew, or thought she knew, what he was getting at, but
thought that maybe he didn't know how to ask.

"She's an amazing person."

"Yes," Dana tried to be casual, "she is."

"Listen Scully, if your inviting me to dinner is some kind of mercy mission
you don't need to bother. I'm a big boy, I can handle this."

"It's not a mercy mission. I just didn't feel comfortable with the way I left
things yesterday. I appreciate that you gave me your stamp of approval to go
back to Lena's Mulder, I just don't feel right about being sketchy with you
regarding my relationship with her."

"So, you've upgraded to a relationship?"  The pain in his voice was palpable.

She sighed, then regarded him honestly, "Yes."

"That was quick."

She was going to argue, but realized that he was right, it was quick.

"I suppose it was."

"Scully, are you sure you can make a decision like that over the course of a
weekend?"

"Well, I know it sounds unlike me, considering my history of careful,
intentional living... but, yes... I think I can make a decision like that over
the course of a weekend. In fact, I already have."

Mulder stared at her across the table. His expression was unreadable.

"And I'm hoping that it won't be a burden on the relationship I have with you,
work or otherwise."

"We have no relationship other than work Scully. It's the thing that binds us
together."

"And I don't see why that should change.  Do you?"

"In my mind, no. In my heart..."

Dana dropped her gaze to her wineglass. She ran a finger around the mouth of
it. She was thrown by Mulder's statement, considering it.

"Scully, I'd be lying if I said that I had never considered kissing you. As a
matter of fact, I've considered it often over the past few years."

She looked up at him.

"I thought about it all night and I tried to figure out why I had never done
it."

"You did. Once." She stated, seriously.

He smiled at her, "Once, I tried."

She smiled back.

"And failed." He said.

"After that," she said, "I just thought it wasn't meant to be."

He sighed. "That's one way to look at it."

"How did you look at it Mulder?"

"Like I couldn't do anything right. Like I have no luck and bad timing."

"Well..."

"Well, now I know that I've blown it."

"No Mulder, you haven't blown it." She regretted her phrasing when she saw the
hopeful look in his eye. "What I mean to say is that I would have blown it for
you. I'm..."

"You're what?"

"A lesbian."

He was shocked, and... angry, "Scully, one weekend does not a lesbian make..."

"Mulder listen, it wasn't just one weekend. I had experiences... in college.
Attractions..."

"You don't have to tell me this."

"But I do. I don't want you to think that Lena is out there recruiting. She
didn't seduce me Mulder... well... anyway, she wasn't the first, exactly."

He was looking down now, staring at the tablecloth. "So, you're telling me
that I would never have had a chance to begin with?"

She sighed, "Well, you may have had a short run, but I would have been setting
us up for failure from the beginning, and we would have ruined a brilliant
partnership for a lie."

"Well, there's not much more to say then, is there?"

"Yes. There is. I need to know if you have any prejudices I should be aware
of."

"Oh Scully. I never could. Especially against you. If I do have any
prejudices, I'm unaware of them, and you can correct me along the way."

She smiled at him. "You're pretty amazing Mulder."

"I am?"

"Yes. You're complete lack of malice humbles me."

"Really. Well, good. I'm not always an asshole."

"I know that."


The waitress delivered their food and Scully watched Mulder shovel some into
his mouth. It was a relief to her. She knew that he wouldn't eat if he were
upset, the fact that he was able to was a clear indication that they could get
through this.

He noticed her staring at him and raised his brows, questioning.

"Have you named you tapeworm yet Mulder?" She asked.

He smiled at her and tapped her wineglass with his own.

She knew then that everything was going to work out.




Dana called Lena as soon as she got back to her apartment.

"Hello?"

"Hi."

"How'd it go?"

"Well, ok, I think."

"Hmmm."

"He hesitated when I used the word 'relationship'. He was surprised."

"Is he okay?"

"Well, he ate."

"And that's good?"

"Yes, that's good."

"Are you okay?"

"Yeah, yeah, I am. What have you and the wonder dog been up to?"

"Wrestling."

"Who won?"

"The pawed one."

"Good for her."

"She's got a mean sleeper hold."

Dana smiled into the phone. "I miss you."

"I miss you too. I'm feeling needy and clinging. Not sure it's a good look for
me but I can't help it."

"I could be there in half an hour."

"I would love that, but it would be a huge hassle for you, wouldn't it?"

"No, I could get some clothes together and get ready for work at your place in
the morning."

"You're sure it's not a pain?"

"I'm sure."

"Do I sound desperate?"

"No more than I feel."

"Then come here."

"See you soon."




Monday - 8:10 am


Mulder was sitting at Lena's desk when she walked into her office.

"Good morning Mulder." She eyed him warily.

"Good morning."

They stared at each other tensely.

"Listen Lena, I'm not here to cause trouble."

"That's a relief. I hate trouble." She smiled tentatively, placing her
briefcase on the edge of her desk.

He smiled back. "Scully means a lot to me Conhouse."

"You mean a lot to her too. She was worried about you this weekend."

"I know, and I appreciate that. I also appreciate that she is the consummate
professional, and that our work environment could be jeopardized if I chose to
be an asshole about your feelings for each other."

Lena continued to stare at him, knowing there was more.

"So, I'm not going to be... an asshole."

She smiled. "Okay, well, then I won't be an asshole either."

"I would be, that is, if I thought you weren't good for her."

"I understand."

"But I have to admit, I haven't seen her this happy in a long time."

Lena smiled, she tried not to look to pleased with herself, but she was...
quite.

"Conhouse, I have worked with Scully for over 5 years. This morning, when I
came into the office, she was humming."

"Humming?"

"Yes. Humming. I didn't even know she could hum."

Lena tried not to smile wider. "That's odd."

"Yes. It is. And when I asked her =what= she was humming, she replied, under
her breath, I assure you, 'that French sex song'."

Lena pressed her lips together, trying to suppress a laugh. "French sex
song... hmmm."

"Any idea what that could be?"

"No Agent Mulder... no idea."

They regarded each other for a second, then his face broke into a smile. "You
comin down to the dungeon to look at some files this morning?" He got up from
her desk and walked to the door of her office.

"You bet. Just let me check my email and I'll be right there."

"Okay, see you later."

Lena waited to make sure the Mulder was out of earshot and she started to
laugh. She pounded her palms lightly on her briefcase and stomped her feet in
unison. "Too funny..."

"Your job brings you that much joy Conhouse?"

She looked up to see Skinner in her doorway.

"Yes sir."

He scowled. "Well, let's hope it continues to."

Lena quickly made her way around the desk to her chair, adjusting her skirt as
she went. It had ridden up slightly during her foot pounding. "What can I do
for you?"

"I'm wondering where we stand on the DNA testing."

"I have samples from all new agents sir, half of them are completed. I should
have the other half for you be the end of the week."

"Good."

"Is there something in particular that I should be looking for in the
samples?" She got some strange images from Skinner, mostly blocked, but some
were slipping through. He was looking for oddities in the DNA testing; it was
not routine, as he had led her to believe.

"Not yet Agent Conhouse. I'll let you know when I want you to extrapolate."
And with that he walked out.


She watched him leave. 'Thank you Agent Conhouse,' she thought, 'good job.
appreciate the hard work... you look nice today... is that a new suit?...'
then, she simply mouthed the words 'Dick head'.

Finally alone she unpacked her briefcase, looking through her daytimer to map
out her day. She could start the next set of DNA testing now, then go down to
the wonder twins office and be back up to the lab in the afternoon to set up
the next group of DNA tests. She was determined now to get the rest of the DNA
run by Wednesday. Maybe Mr. Surly would cheer up a little if she came in under
the wire.

She walked out into the lab area to set up the DNA blocks. It took her half an
hour. Finished, she stripped off her lab gear and left a note on her door that
read, "Need me? Page me." With her pager number written below it.



She knocked gently on the door to the office and heard Mulder say, "come in".

She entered, looking briefly toward Scully, then to Mulder, and sat in the
only chair available. "Hello family."

"I have presents for you." Mulder said, grabbing some files off the debris
field on his desk and reaching to hand them to her.

"For me?" She smiled. "You shouldn't have."

Dana sat at her desk watching them interact. 'It's going to be okay.' She
thought. She let her eyes wander the length of Lena's crossed legs. She had
left that morning before Lena was dressed and hadn't seen this suit. Lena's
skirt was shorter than anything Dana would dare wear. It was camel colored,
resting above her knee when she stood. But when she sat down, it rode up. Not
too much, but some. And Dana liked it. She had on a matching blazer and a
shirt that was also camel colored. Her nylons and heels matched perfectly and
the overall effect elegant and professional. And she had just put on her
reading glasses. Scully felt her abdomen warm slightly with desire. She
quickly looked away, to Mulder, to see if he had noticed. He seemed unaware.
When she looked back to Lena, she was surprised to have her gaze met. Lena
regarded her over the tops of her glasses, her eyes narrowing slightly. Dana
felt wetness pool between her legs. Lena smiled slightly and looked back down
to the file in her lap.

"Mulder, do you have access to the logged evidence in this file?"

"You mean the swatches of cloth?"

"Yes."

"I can get access."

"Good. I think that would help."

"Tachometry?" Mulder asked, surprised.

"Yes."

He looked at Scully, smiling in slight wonderment. He mouthed the word 'cool'
at her and she smiled.

Lena looked at Mulder again; "You haven't identified one of the girls?"

"I was hoping you could do that."

"I believe I could, if I had the fabric heart from her clothes."

Mulder picked up the phone and dialed, "I'll have someone bring it over."

As he made his request Dana spoke to Lena, "Those little girls were brutally
murdered Conhouse."

"So the file says."

"Can you figure out who the girl was without having to see her killed."

Lena smiled, "I think so. Don't worry."

Dana did not smile back.

Mulder hung up the phone. "It's on its way."



The FBI courier showed up an hour later with the evidence pouch in hand.
Mulder signed for it and carefully removed the fabric heart from the plastic
bag. He handed it to Conhouse, then sat at his desk, watching her intently.
She held it in the palm of one hand and ran the fingertips of her other hand
over it slowly; her eyes closed.

"Uh... six... she's six years old... she was on her way to the bus stop..."

Dana was concerned; thinking that Lena was leading up to the murder.

"Kelly... her name is Kelly... she's from Virginia... Chapel Hill, I think..."

"Are you getting a last name?" Mulder asked.

"...It's ... Westfall... Kelly Westfall." Lena opened her eyes. "Kelly
Westfall."

Mulder got busy looking up the Chapel Hill police department while Scully made
arrangements to have the girl's skeletal remains sent to Lena's lab. They had
to verify dental records, assuming there were some, before being able to
notify the victim's family.

Three hours later the women were in the lab, Kelly Westfall's remains lay on
the table in front of them.

"Poor baby." Lena said. "So little."

Dana placed her hands on the table and looked into Lena's eyes. "Did you see
it?"

"No, I saw her parents briefly. I could see her walking to the bus stop. She
was singing to herself. She never saw him coming."


"Well, the dental records faxed over by the Chapel Hill PD are a match." Dana
said as she examined the small teeth. "She hadn't even lost all of her baby
teeth yet."

She sighed and placed the skull back on the table.

"Is Mulder calling the parents or is he having the Chapel Hill PD take care of
it?"

"He's going to let them handle it, they seem to know the Westfall family
pretty well."

"I wonder if it's true that it's better for the families of missing persons to
know what happened to them. I mean, it kills their hope for finding the person
alive... and to realize what kind of horrors that little girl saw before she
died. It must be awful."

"I don't know. I've watched Mulder struggle for years not knowing where his
sister is."

"Why do you think he hasn't asked me about her yet?"

"I'm not sure. Maybe he doesn't want to know."

Lena nodded. "Well, it's his call. I'll wait until he's ready."

Scully nodded in agreement, then looked at her watch. "Are you hungry?"

"Mightily, what time is it?"

"Two. Let's go round up Mulder and get something to eat."

-end-

TITLE:   Conhouse - Chapter Eleven
RATING: PG-13


Monday - 2:30 pm


Mulder was under the gun to finish a field report he should have gotten to
Skinner the Friday before. As a result, he begged off on lunch and the women
walked to a nearby deli to pick something up.

As they walked back to work Lena suggested that Dana go wait in her office
while she scared up something for them to drink, and they could eat together
at her desk.

Dana opened Lena's lab door and immediately noticed a man, with his back to
her, leaning over Lena's desk with her lap drawer open.  She set the food bag
down on the nearest file cabinet and walked to the office door. In her best
strong girl FBI voice she said:

"You there, what are you doing in here?!"

The man turned his head slowly, his warm brown eyes resting on her.

"I'm filling my daughter's desk with candy." He lifted his hand and shook a
small brightly colored box at her, "Nerds, actually. They're her favorite. I
paid for 4 years of braces and this is my reward." He shook the box again and
shrugged, "Nerds."

Dana smiled. "Mr. Conhouse?"

He turned and offered his hand. "Call me Steve, please." His smile was
brilliant. Both of his large warm hands encircled Dana's at once and he shook
her hand sincerely. His silver hair was thinning on top, short and swept away
from his face. She could see all of Lena's features mirrored in his face. He
was tall and trim like Lena also.

"Mr... Steve, I'm Dana Scully, I'm a colleague and friend of your daughter's.
It's so nice to meet you."

"Thank you Dana, it's nice to meet you too. I apologize for scaring you. I
stopped by Lena's this morning to kidnap Wanda for the day and was just going
to leave the candy there, but I though it would be more of a surprise if I
could hide them here instead."

"Nerds huh?"

"Yeah, she chews these things up like they're out to get her." He smiled. "Is
she around?"

"Yes, she should be here any second. We were going to have lunch at her desk.
Would you like to join us?"

"Oh, that's sweet, but Wanda is in the car and I worked her into a frenzy
saying the word 'walk' over and over again. I'm afraid if I leave her there
too long she'll figure out how to drive and head to the park on her own."

Lena walked in, smiling. "Dad?"

"Hi honey."

She walked to him and they hugged each other.

"What a great surprise!  You've met Dana?"

"Yes," he looked at her and smiled, "she's great."

Dana blushed furiously, suddenly aware that it was possible that he knew she
had spent the last two nights with his daughter.

"What are you doing here?"

"Well, I was telling Dana, I stole Wanda and was going to take her to the
park, but I stopped to do a drive-by 'nerding' first."

"You did?!" Lena skittered around her desk and yanked open her lap drawer.
There, in all it's glory, was a pile of little boxes of differently flavored
nerds.  "You!" Lena said it loud, pointing at him, "Are the one that is the
best."

He looked at Dana and said, shrugging, "She loves me."

"It's true Dad, I do."

"Hey, I saw a list of groceries on the counter at your house that smacked of
Laverne."

"Oh yeah, I have to pick those up for her and drop them off on my way home."

"Well, I did that already." He smiled at her a little, looking shy.

"You did?" Lena wrapped an arm around his shoulders.

"Yep. I thought maybe I'd just get it out of the way for you."

"Well thanks Dad"

"Your welcome. You know I love her. She's so..."  his hands waved slightly in
front of him,... "little." He said it like he was talking about a puppy.

"Did you watch you're back?"

"Yep, got out without an incident."

Dana tilted her head at Lena.

Lena explained, "Laverne has a crush on him."

Dana nodded, "I see."

Her dad looked vaguely embarrassed, "Well, I've got to get back out to Wanda.
I'm keeping her, by the way. I'll bring her back Wednesday."

"Okay. Give her a smooch for me."

"I will honey. Dana, it was great to meet you."

Dana was engulfed in a hug. Steve squeezed her lightly then stepped back,
giving Lena a hug as well.

"You two have a good day."

"See you soon, say hi to Judy."

"You bet, bye."  He walked out, waving behind him.



Dana watched him leave, then turned to Lena. "He's wonderful."

"Yeah, he really is."

"He seems so gentle... and sweet."

"All that and he shows up bearing Nerds. Gotta love it."

Dana smiled at her. "You have any other addictions I should be aware of
Conhouse?"

"Hmmmm. Probably." She smiled wolfishly at her, "I'll tell you about them
later."

"Do you think your Dad knows about us?"

"I think so, yes. He hugged you."

"He did, didn't he?"

"He sure did. He wouldn't have done that if he didn't approve Dana."

"You're sure?"

"I'm positive. He can tell so much from a person by just looking in their
eyes. He must have liked what he saw in yours."

"I'm glad."

"I knew he would love you, and Judy, well, she'll fall all over herself when
she meets you."



"Why do you say that?"

"Because you and she have something in common."

"Which is?"

"Well, she always tells me that my dad and I are exactly alike, and that she
wishes I would meet someone and bring them to dinner once in a while so that
she has somebody to commiserate with."

"Commiserate about what?"

"How hard it is to put up with a Conhouse, I guess."

"Have you ever brought anyone home for her to meet?"  Dana's eyebrow jutted
up.

"No, no I haven't."

"So I'd be the first?" Dana smiled triumphantly.

"Yes, you'd be the first."

"Does Judy know that she'd be commiserating with a woman, as opposed to a
man?"

"Yes, she's aware of that."

"Well then, I'd like to meet her."

"Really?"

"Yeah, maybe we should offer to pick Wanda up on Wednesday night and take them
to dinner."

Lena looked at Dana. "Are you sure?"

"I guess I am." She looked surprised at her own words.

Lena looked equally surprised, "I'll call them tonight and set it up."

"Hey, since Wanda is away for the next couple nights, why don't you spend the
night at my place?"

"I'd love to."

"Good." She found that the longer she looked at Lena the more she wanted her.

"I'll go home and get some clothes for tomorrow and meet you there after
work."

"Why don't you bring a couple day's worth?" Dana looked into her eyes.

"Ok." Lena was losing herself in the smoky timbre of Dana's voice... she let
her eyes rest on Dana's lips.

Dana whispered, "I'm finding myself not wanting to do anything at all that
doesn't involve you. You need to let me know if you start to feel suffocated."

"Suffocated is the last thing I'm feeling."

"Do you know that I'm desperately in love with you?"

Lena's breath was knocked from her body. "I like to hear you say it."

"I am, desperately."

"I'm in love with you too."

"You don't know what you're doing to me, do you? I've never had anyone in my
life like you. Never felt this way about anyone. The more I find out about you
the more in love I am."

Lena sighed deeply. "Are you worried about the way you feel?"

"A little, I guess. Not worried exactly. I feel a little overwhelmed by the
strength of my feelings."

"Tell me if you want to slow down. Or if you need time to yourself, ok?"

"Yes. I will. You have to promise that you'll do the same."

"Deal."

Dana looked over her shoulder quickly, out into the lab. Once she had
determined that they were truly alone, she leaned into Lena and kissed her
gently on the lips. Lena kissed her back.

"We should eat huh?"

"I guess so. I left the food on the file cabinet. I thought your Dad was a bad
guy so I set the bag down in the lab; I was getting ready to kick his butt."

"Tough ass."

"That's right, don't forget it Conhouse."

Dana walked out into the lab and retrieved the bag. She walked back in and sat
down. They talked quietly as they ate, trying to decide what to do that
evening. Dana watched Lena as she opened a box of purple nerds and shook some
into her mouth.

"Do I need to go over the evils of sugar consumption with you?"

Lena chewed the nerds up, smiling at her. "Have you ever tried these things?"

"Nerds?" Dana looked dyspeptic.

"Yeah."

"Uh, no. I rarely get cravings for potentially harmful purple dye covered
sugar granules."

Lena cracked up.


"What does your afternoon look like? Are you busy?"

Dana thought for a second. "No, I think I could actually be out of here by 5
tonight, unless something comes up."

"Well, I've got another group of DNA blocks to run for Skinhead... but I
should be able to get out by 5 too, if I start now. I could be back to your
place by about 6. Can I bring anything?"

Dana smiled, "Nope, just you."

"Ok, then it's back to the lab. I'll see you later."



Dana made her way back to her office, thinking along the way that she should
do some grocery shopping on her way home. She glanced at her watch, 3:15. Six
o'clock seemed like a long time away.  She sighed. It was her every intention
to get everything she would need for the evening on her way home, so there was
no reason for them to leave. She wanted to get Lena into her apartment and not
let her out until they had to leave for work the next morning. She thought
about how Lena's legs looked in her high heels, the calves flexing as she
walked, the professional air she had as she sat in her and Mulder's office
that morning reading files. Those reading glasses...  Then she pictured her
naked, Lena's long legs straddling her as she rubbing herself against her bare
ass.  She wondered if there was a way to lure Lena to her bedroom while she
still had that suit on, maybe she'd have her put on the glasses too. Mmmmm.
She pictured them in her bedroom, running her hand up under Lena's skirt to
her ass...

She realized with a start that she had walked past her office door and was
nearly to the exit door at the end of the hallway. She shook her head
slightly, turned and walked back.  'I am so whipped...' she was thinking, as
she opened her office door.

-end-

TITLE:   Conhouse - Chapter Twelve
RATING: NC-17


Dana was putting groceries away when her phone rang. She crossed the room and
reached for it just before the machine stole the call.

"Hello?"

"Hi."

"Hi." Dana was surprised by Lena's voice.  "Are you lost?"

"Nope. I just pulled off of the highway. I'm about 5 minutes away." Lena
paused for a second, then continued, matter-of-factly. "Just long enough for
you to unlock your apartment door, take your clothes off and get into bed."

Dana stopped moving. She felt her face warm and her eyes closed of their own
accord. It took her several seconds to find her voice, and when she did it was
only a whisper, "ok."

She heard the dial tone and hung the phone up, then walked to her front door
and unlocked it.

Her heart had started to race and her legs felt wobbly. She could feel her
nipples tense under the silk shirt. She had been thinking about getting Lena
into bed most of the day, and apparently Lena had been thinking the same. When
in her life had she felt so governed by her attraction to another person?
Never, she thought. Never so enmeshed in another, so completely willing to
hand over the reins to someone else. Of course, no one else had ever had the
courage to take her on... to see how far she would let them in.

She looked quickly at the groceries on the counter to see if anything needed
refrigeration, and determined that nothing did, and if something turned,
well... whatever.

She walked into her bedroom and started undressing. She was thinking of Lena's
camel suit, her legs in those heels... she wished she had remembered to ask
her not to change before she came over, and to wear the reading glasses. God
she loved those glasses. She wondered briefly what kind of Freudian slip lived
behind her eye wear fetish.

With every layer of clothing that was carefully hung in the closet Dana got
wetter. She kept imaging Lena in that office chair, the way she looked at her
over her glasses. There was something erotic in the way Lena had caught her
staring, first on the boat, then in the office. Dana had never let herself be
so blatantly obvious about her attractions. She had always prided herself on
being subtle. So much for that, eh? Of course, with Lena, subtlety was lost in
her ability to tell what Dana was thinking at the instant she thought it.
Sometimes at least. And Dana didn't waste time blocking her feelings towards
Lena. She had no need to protect herself from that, knowing it would never be
used against her, at least not in an unpleasant way.

She lay on top of the comforter naked.  She reached down and ran a tentative
finger lightly over her pubic hair. She felt her clit jump, then a wave of
light spasms make their way up her stomach.

"Starting without me Ms. Scully?"

Dana looked up to see Lena, and noticed that she was indeed still dressed in
the suit, and, she had her reading glasses on. Her lips were pursed and she
was watching Dana's hand as it ran between her legs.

"Couldn't help it. It's that suit..."

"Like it huh?" Lena's voice was deep; she walked slowly to the bedside and sat
down on the edge.

"...and the glasses..." Dana looked at her. She felt dangerous, letting her
finger sink in between her lips. She gasped, her lips slightly parted.

Lena reached down and gently stroked Dana's breast. She plucked at her nipple
with her thumb and finger then leaned down and ran her tongue over Dana's
lips, "You're incredible, so hot..."  Dana's mouth was the most kissable Lena
had ever witnessed... pouty, full lips, warm and so soft...

Dana's fingers found Lena's thigh and she pushed her skirt up slowly. Hidden
beneath the professional facade of the camel suit was a beige garter. Dana's
eyes opened wide and she forgot what she was doing. She sat up to get a better
look beneath Lena's skirt, pushing it up farther.

"You've had these on all day?" Dana whispered intensely, her brow raised.

"Yes."

"And you didn't tell me?"

"Now when would there have been a good time to blurt that out?"

Dana regarded her seriously, a look in her eye that Lena hadn't seen until
now. She pushed up against the headboard to sit taller and stated, "Show me."

"Show you?"

"Yes. Stand up and show me."

"That sounds like an order." Lena's eyes narrowed.

"It is."

"Oh." Lena felt her body react, her nipples stiffened and she shivered
slightly with arousal. She stood, her hand coming to her face to remove her
reading glasses.

"Leave those on."

Lena smiled. "Alright."

She stood next to the bed and lifted her skirt. The intensity of the moment
made her skin burn. She spread her legs shoulder width apart. An undercurrent
of mild embarrassment was flooded away by the urge to continue the voyeuristic
exercise by touching herself. She resisted, wanting desperately to have Scully
say the words.

"Higher."

She pulled the skirt higher, up around her waist. She had exposed her garter
belt completely, as well as her damp silk underwear.

"Very nice." Dana's voice was strained slightly, she struggled for control,
wanting to grab her and rib the underwear off. She swallowed before speaking,
"Take the skirt off..."

Lena reached and pulled the skirt down, then unzipped the side and stepped out
of it, laying it across the chair next to the bed.

"Now... please... the jacket and blouse."

"No need to be polite baby."

Dana raised a brow, a smile playing at the corners of her mouth, "NOW." It was
a spoken command, no louder that the previous ones, but somehow more intense.

Lena took a sharp breath. She took the jacket off slowly, then the blouse.

"It was wise of you to keep this to yourself all day." Dana pushed her legs
over the edge of the bed. "I'm certain that I couldn't have made it through
had I known about them." She reached out for a strap, wound her fingers around
it and ran them up the length of fabric.

Lena leaned into the touch. She couldn't wait a second more, and brought her
own hand down between her legs, stroking the fabric at the front of the silk
panties.  She was certain now that the entire crotch was wet; in fact, she
could feel that it was.

Lena watched as Dana lowered her blue eyes to the wet place between her legs.
She watched Lena stroke herself slowly.

"Come here."

Lena took two shaky steps toward her in the heels. Dana's hands came up to her
ass. She ran her fingers along the line of the underwear and pulled them down
slowly and Lena stepped out of them. She stood in just her garters, hose, bra
and heels. She felt decadent and incredibly turned on.

Dana's hands came back to her ass and her head dipped between her legs. She
captured Lena's clit in her lips and began to suck roughly on it. Lena threw
her head back and grabbed the back of Dana's head simultaneously. She pushed
herself into Dana's mouth.

"Oh my god Dana..." Lena thought she might pass out. "All day... I've wanted
this all day..."

Dana sucked on her relentlessly, her fingers inside her now, two maybe three,
Lena couldn't tell for sure, she just felt ...filled. Dana slid them into her
again and again until Lena's moan became a continual sound. She her clit swell
and her abdomen tense until her orgasm tore through her violently. Her
internal muscles seized on Dana's fingers. She could hear Dana's voice, it
seemed far away, "Oh honey... I love you... love you... more... can you give
me more?"

And the fingers were driving into her again, she cried out, nearly sobbed, her
hands reaching out, grabbing Dana's cheek and pulling her mouth to her again.
Dana willingly obliged, taking her in, sucking with that beautiful mouth, the
exquisite lips...

Lena felt the first interrupted orgasm return three fold and threaten to
explode, she held off for one second, two... then it was ripping through her
again. She drove her clit against Dana's lips and felt herself come almost
violently.  Then Dana's sweet voice, her arm hugging her ass, "... adore
you... god what you do to me..."

With surprising strength Dana nearly lifted Lena onto the bed, Lena's knees
having threatened to give out beneath her. Dana draped herself over the still
trembling woman, murmuring in her ear, "I can't believe you... garters...
you're going to kill me, you know?"

"Oh we can't have that."

Dana smiled and Lena quickly kissed her, "I love the taste of your smile
Dana."

The words were so simple, so sweet. Dana felt tears well in her eyes. Emotion
>from somewhere deep inside swept her up in a wave and seized her, intense and
surprising in its strength, "I don't know how it happened so fast, it's not
like me... at all..." she smiled a little, "but I love you."

"Oh honey, I love you too."

"Don't even think about disappearing, okay?"

"I wouldn't dream of it."

"Perfect." Dana whispered, kissing the side of Lena's mouth.

A shrill ring sounded in the bedroom and Dana moaned.

"My, but that's loud." Lena had damn near jumped out of her skin. "Hoo  shaved
a couple months off my life expectancy."

"Sorry, I keep it loud so it wakes me."

"And say, oh I don't know, maybe a neighbor if you don't hear it?"

Dana smirked at her and leaned over her body to pick up the call.

"Scully."  She listened for a second, looking at Lean and mouthing the word
'Mulder'. "Yes, I actually did have some plans for the evening Mulder, but it
sounds like you need help."


Then, a second later:

"Yep, I can get a hold of her."  Dana looked at Lena and smiled; she received
a wink in return. Lena took advantage of her position and ran her hand over
Dana's ass. She looked up at the woman on the phone and stopped, Scully had
turned into an FBI agent before her eyes; rolling off of Lena into a sitting
position beside her.

"What have you got?"  Her brow furrowed and her lips came together in a purse
as she spoke into the phone.

"And they haven't found the girl?" Scully looked downright concerned.

"Yeah." She scribbled a couple lines on a pad of paper at her bedside. "We'll
meet you there in about 20 minutes."

She leaned back over Lena and hung the phone up.

"We've got to get dressed."

"What's up?"

"A family near Georgetown was assaulted this afternoon. A little girl was
kidnapped, but not before the assailant killed the father and a little boy.
The mother is still alive, but she's been non-responsive to questioning."

"Oh god, any idea who or why?"

Dana looked at her intently as she retrieved some clothes from her closet.
"No, but the circumstances are unusual."

"What?"

"The assailant made the mother pick who was going to be killed and who was
going with him."

Lena grimaced, "Oh god."

Dana grabbed her gun and badge from her dressing table. She held the gun in
front of her and checked the clip. "Did you bring your issue?"

"My what?" Lena was concentrating on getting dressed.

"Your issue? Your weapon?"

"Weapon as in gun? Christ no!" Lena looked anxious. She had fished through her
bag for clothes and was pulling on black jeans. She smiled weakly at Scully,
giving her a somewhat apologetic look.  "But I brought a really cute little
'Liz' sweater "

Scully shook her head.  "You don't have a gun?" She tried not to appear
incredulous, although in truth she was.

"No, god, they're so dangerous." Lena laughed uncomfortably.  "I mean really,
can you see me with a gun?" She pulled the short sleeved black sweater over
her head and grabbed the camel jacket she had worn that day, quickly checking
the inside pocket for her money clip and credentials.

Scully shook her head, "We..." she sighed, "we have to get you a gun if you're
going to be in the field Conhouse."

Lena shivered slightly, "You think?" She followed Scully to the front door,
rattled. She had her hands out in front of her, shaking them as if they were
wet. "With bullets and everything?"

Scully murmured as she held the door open for Lena, "Yes, bullets and
everything, maybe even a  holster."

"Well," Lena sighed, "if I have to get one I'd like it in some other color
than that icky gunmetal."

Dana stopped in front of her car to look directly at Lena.  "You can't be
serious..."

Lena smiled at her and winked.  "Come on girlfriend, Mulder's waiting."

Scully shook her head as she got into the car, "...dork."

Lena chuckled.




End - Chapter 12

TITLE:   Conhouse - Chapter Thirteen
RATING: NC-17


Scully pulled in behind several police cruisers that were parked on a tree-
lined street near Georgetown. The neighborhood was dotted with upper middle
class homes, and people were out on their lawns in the dusk looking to the
home that was surrounded by police tape and flashing lights. Children rode
their bikes past the police cruisers, trying to get a glimpse at the activity
occurring around the front door of the large ranch home.

Lena and Scully both placed their ID's inside out and stepped out the car, in
search of Mulder.

"He's probably inside." Scully stated simply, flashing her ID at several of
the officers that surrounded the front porch.

Lena had started to concentrate the minute Scully turned the ignition off. Her
mind searched the landscape of the front yard, opening to the possibility of
any random thought from victim or perpetrator. Scully tapped Lena's arm and
handed a pair of disposable rubber gloves to her.  She took them, slipping
them on out of habit more than conscious action.

As the women made their way through the front door Lena stopped. She rested
her hand on the handle of the screen door, standing in place, not realizing
that she was blocking the entrance for two policemen who nearly ran into her.
Her stomach flipped as she saw a gloved hand turn the knob. She got nothing
more from the killer himself, feeling only certain that it was a man.

Scully was staring at her intently when she came back to the present. She
shook her head slightly and turned to see the two men in uniform behind her.
She mumbled an apology and walked into the room behind Scully.

"You okay?" Scully had hold of Lena's elbow.

"Yeah." Lena visualized a gate in her mind opening again. She was flooded with
images of the two children. They looked startled, but not frightened. The boy
even seemed to be smiling.

"I think it was someone the family knew." Lena made the statement to no one in
particular, ignoring the fact that next to Scully stood two uniformed
officers. Lena sensed that the perp and the children had moved away from the
front room into the kitchen, and her feet seemed to move of their own accord.
She picked up random thoughts from the boy, and unknowingly followed his exact
path into the kitchen, and ultimately to his death.

She stopped in the kitchen door, again to the surprise of Scully and the
officers that trailed closely behind her. She was vaguely aware of Scully
asking the uniforms some questions. Who called in the original 911? Where was
the mother when the officers first arrived? Had anything been touched or
moved?

Mulder was on the other side of the large kitchen. He was looking down at a
body of which Lena could only see the feet, the rest hidden behind a chopping
board island that sat in the middle of the room. He looked at Scully and
nodded; she walked to him carefully, not wanting to step in the pools of blood
that were drying on the linoleum floor.

"Mulder, where is the boy?" Scully asked.

"He's in the dining room. The mother moved him, apparently. We're not sure yet
why."

"The blood spatters would indicate extreme violence. The patterns here on the
refrigerator are wide."

"It looks like the father was stabbed repeatedly. The perp rolled him over.
His wounds are probably in his chest and abdomen. I asked the officers to wait
until you got here to flip him over."

"Let's take a look. Step back a little Mulder, it's probably going to be
messy."
She put on a pair of rubber gloves and handed a pair to him.

He put the gloves on and stepped around the body, pulling the shoulder back as
Scully pushed the man's hips over.  The body thumped onto its back.  What had
been the abdomen of the victim was a mass of gore and blood. The amount of
stab wounds impossible to determine through the minced flesh.

Mulder covered his mouth and nose, "Jesus."

Scully leaned over the body, lifting the eyelids of the victim, then looking
closely at the wound mass at his middle.  "This man must have been stabbed at
least 30 times. It's going to take a while to determine exactly how many, if I
can at all. And the trajectory will be hard to figure out too, there's no skin
left intact here around the opening."


While the partners were examining the father Lena ran her gloved hands over
several items in the kitchen.

She saw the father with the girl in his arms, tickling her lightly. He kissed
her forehead and sat her down on the center island, her little feet kicking
back and forth in the air. He was talking to someone then, smiling. The mother
stood behind him. She had a sack of potatoes in her hand.

Dinner, they were making dinner for the killer.

"He was here for dinner." Lena said it louder than she meant to, the words
reverberated back at her.

She looked up to see Mulder and Scully staring at her; she ignored it, walking
to the refrigerator and resting her hands on its door handle.

Scully could tell that she was nearly unaware of her present surroundings. She
walked over to Lena and again grasped her elbow. "The blood Lena, don't walk
through the blood."

Lena looked at her with vacant eyes. She registered her comment after several
seconds and looked down at her feet, seeing that she had just missed a large
puddle of blood. Her jacket was dangerously close to brushing against the
blood spattered on the front of the refrigerator.  She let Scully lead her
away from the spot slowly. Her feet felt like they were not her own. "Scully,
take me to the son."

"Lena, I think you should "

"Please. While his body is still in the house. It's important that I see him
while he's still here. I'll get a better read."

The tone of Lena's voice chilled Scully to the bone. She nodded and looked to
Mulder to lead them. Gently they both led Lena to the dining room where the
boy's body was lying.

His body was in much the same state as his father's. He was on his back, his
small face void of life or expression. Lena stared hollowly at his small hand.
She knelt down and reached for it, holding it where it sat against the wood
floor.

Her head snapped back and her eyes closed. She was unaware, but Mulder had
fallen to his knees behind her, in an effort to hold her upright. Her head had
smacked his chin when the flash came stronger still.

Betrayal, terror  the little boy was crying. No no no no   this didn't happen
to his family  it happened to other people's  TV people

Scully watched as Lena's face contorted in anguish. She panicked and grabbed
her upper arms, shaking her. "Lena, stop! Come back. Lena!"  The woman didn't
seem phased by Scully's strong admonitions. Her head slumped onto Mulder's
shoulder. Scully tried to pry her hand from that of the dead boy's, but it was
like a vise.

  his father hung onto the refrigerator door and it was like a movie  at first
Danny thought it was a trick  Cook had done a trick and it was  a little too
real and too scary  but then he saw his Dad fall forward  and he thought
wildly that they must be in on it together  Cook and his dad had somehow
gotten together and come up with this trick  but then he saw his Dad's face
and he knew it wasn't a trick   and then Cook took that knife and stabbed his
Dad until Danny could see guts  his Dad's guts

Lena was sweating and twitching in Mulder's arms. Dana continued to yell at
her; she was too far in to hear.

And then Lena saw his mother  crying and pleading  'No! No! You fucker  I
can't god don't make me I can't  why are you doing this?!   she looked at her
daughter  crying and screaming and spit flew out of her mouth and Danny
thought that she looked wild, like an animal  and the knife was at his throat
then at his sister's  and he could feel the strong arms around them both  and
his sister was smashed against him  then his mother's hand came up and the boy
saw her finger point to him and the knife flashed   up to it's hilt in his
belly  he felt it burn  but it didn't hurt  he was surprised that it didn't
hurt  and he was going to tell his Mom that it was okay because  'momma it
doesn't hurt  it's warm but it doesn't hurt ' and he looked at her and tried
to be brave  he wanted to smile but he couldn't feel his face  and everything
was fuzzy  and then his sister screamed


Lena stood suddenly and Mulder was knocked backward. "Get these people OUT OF
HERE!" Lean snarled, she pointed at the policemen who lined the doorways to
the dining room. "NOW!"

Scully turned to them, "You heard her, OUT!"

She watched them scramble and reached out to Mulder to help his stand up,
"Lena, what is it?"  Scully was now actively frightened.

"He's still here." She looked at both of them with ferocity. Both agents
reached instinctively for their guns. Lena shook her head at them, "Not the
killer."

"Wh " Mulder was confused, adrenaline racing through his system.

"Danny." Angry tears streamed down Lena's face. She was sickened by the horror
of the crime, enraged at the violence inflicted on the 7-year-old boy. "I need
some time. Please. Stand by the doors. Don't let anyone in."

Lena pulled a chair from the table and sat it down with a hard thud. She
pushed the dining table away with such force that it smashed into the wall on
the other side of the room, leaving a deep dent. She then moved the chair to
the center of the room and sat in it, eyes closed tightly.

Scully stood between the kitchen and the dining room, her back to Lena. Her
jaw clenched and unclenched. This was not protocol for a homicide
investigation. She worried that the officers who now congregated in the front
room would take issue with their sudden dismissal. She glanced over her
shoulder at Mulder. He stood watching Lena from his doorway; his back to what
she imagined was a family room. She noticed suddenly that his features were
changing, lightening. She craned her neck further and saw Lena in the chair,
her face lightened too, with a warm golden light that emanated from the far
ceiling corner of the small dining room.

Dana surprise manifested in an unspoken 'oh' left on her lips  then fading.
Her eyes filled with tears.

Lena could see him now. Frightened, he stayed in an upper corner of the room.
Horror played across his face as he sobbed silently.  She concentrated on him
until she knew she was visible to him. He stared at her; terrified that she
was another part of the nightmare he had witnessed hours before.

She looked at him, smiling gently, "Come here Danny. I won't hurt you."

The boy stayed where he was. His small mind unable to comprehend what had
happened to him, to his family.

"Please Danny. It's over now. I promise."

His need for comfort overwhelmed him and he finally took her at her word,
slowly moving into her arms.

Dana watched as Lena spoke. Her eyes were closed tightly, arms held out in
front of her. It took several minutes, but the soft light seemed to float
toward her, and she gently wrapped it in her arms.

Mulder watched from his post soundlessly. He was vaguely aware that some of
the officers had crept back into the family room behind him, but he refused to
move his eyes from Lena. He would rather risk her being angry with him than
risk missing what was the closest to the paranormal he had ever seen.

As the agents watched Lena began to gently rock her body in the chair. She
held Danny close and he relaxed in her arms. She knew that feel of his small
warm body was just a phantom feeling to her senses. He cried softly against
her, she saw the tears but could not feel them, they were small beads of light
traveling down his face.

"Danny, you need to go to your Dad. He's waiting for you."

"My mom though  she needs me I think  and Ruthie  "

"I'll take care of that. I'll find Ruthie." Lena nodded toward Mulder and
Scully, "See honey, I have lots of people to help me." Lena tipped back to
look in his eyes. He was fading slowly, the light was now showing through him
in small bright pinpoints. His resolve was fading as well. "Your Dad needs
you. And he's waiting."

Scully could see him then. A small translucent shape in Lena's arms, his hands
clasped behind her neck. She sucked in her breath as he looked directly at her
and then over to Mulder, her eyes wide. Her quick glance at Mulder revealed
that he too was stunned. He looked back at the boy in wonder. Tears streamed
down both of their faces. Several of the officers were now standing directly
behind Mulder. Scully heard one of them whisper to himself, 'sweet jesus', his
hat clenched in his hands.

The boy looked directly into Lena's eyes, his form shimmered slightly, more
light coming through him now, "It was Cook " he said, then he disappeared
completely.


End - Chapter 13

TITLE:   Conhouse - Chapter Fourteen
RATING: NC-17

_______________________________________________________________________

Monday evening - 8:47 p.m.


Lena sat in the chair, still holding her arms around what was now simply air.
She let them fall to her lap. Her chin dropped to her chest, her eyes closed.
Scully watched her carefully for a few seconds, not knowing what she needed.
She wondered if trying to comfort her would be futile considering what had
just happened. She walked slowly to the chair, leaning over when she got near
Lena to try and read her features. There was nothing there to read. Lena
looked as if she were sleeping. There were no more tears, no evidence of the
rage that had gripped her prior to sitting. She was quiet.

Mulder had come to his senses and was pushing back a small throng of
Georgetown policemen. The uniforms let themselves be shushed back outside,
they being as confused by what they had seen as the agents were. Mulder noted
that everyone who witnessed Danny had the same look of wonder and disbelief on
their faces, everyone but Lena, that is.

He walked back into the dining room and found Scully crouched on the floor
next to Lena's chair.

"She ok Scully?"

"I can't tell. She hasn't moved. I think we need to get her out of here
Mulder." Scully brow was considerably furrowed; worry clearly lined the
features of her face.

Lena lifted her head slightly. Scully turned back to her. She brushed a strand
of long dark hair from her face, "Lena?"

Lena seemed to be waking from sleep. She stretched her neck back, opening her
eyes to look at the ceiling, then noticed Scully crouching next to her she sat
up straighter, "Did you hear that? Cook. Danny said it was Cook."

Scully breathed a loud sigh of relief. "We heard him." Scully grasped her hand
and squeezed lightly, then let go. "Are you alright? You seemed to be out
cold." She was checking her forehead as if for a fever.

"I'm fine, I think. A little woozy." Lena pressed her fingers to her forehead
and seemed to be pushing on it, " little headache ".  She scooted forward in
the chair, signaling to Scully that she wanted to try and stand up. Mulder
leaned over and grabbed her elbow and soon she was upright on wobbly legs.
They didn't hold long, however, and she fell against Mulder. He held her up,
putting his arm around her waist.

"Maybe this isn't such a good idea Conhouse."

She regained her strength quickly and took a few tentative steps toward the
front door, "Get me outta here, please." She shot Scully a pleading look. That
was all it took, and the red head was at her side along with Mulder, guiding
her toward the door.

A policeman near the front door saw them coming out and quickly opened the
door for them. He looked at Lena as if he had never seen a woman before and
she knew immediately that he had seen her interaction with Danny.

"They saw it happen?" She whispered into Scully's ear.

Scully looked at her for a second; afraid of how she'd react, "Yes."

"Shit." Lena whispered, sighing heavily.

"I'll talk to them." Scully offered it up in apology.

"No, don't. I think it's better to let them wonder. Don't confirm or deny
Dana, please."

Scully nodded mutely. Mulder helped Lena sit down sideways in the driver's
seat of Scully's car. "I think one of the uniforms has a thermos, you want
some coffee?"

"That would be great Mulder, thanks."

Scully stood staring at her, her mind a tangled mess of love and terror,
wonderment and denial

"It's still just me." Lena was staring back at her now. "Just me Scully, not
anything else. Just me."

"Has that happened before?"

Lena stared at her, not speaking.

"So it has." Dana shoved her hands in the pockets of her jacket, looking back
toward the house, then back down at Lena.

Mulder was back, hands filled with cups, three to be exact. He handed one to
Scully and another to Lena.

"I gave the name Cook to the GPD, they're canvassing the neighborhood. We're
going on the assumption here that Cook is the perp's last name." He looked at
Lena for confirmation and she shrugged.

"I'm not sure. Other than Danny's account of what happened, I got very little
in there. I never saw the guy, only gloved hands, and a large kitchen knife,
like a butcher knife or something. I really need to see the mother. Is she
still despondent?"

Scully became agitated. "I think you need a break Conhouse."

Lena's head snapped up to look at her. "I appreciate that, I do   but Ruth is
still alive Scully. I know it. I can't afford a break, none of us can."

Mulder looked from one woman to the other. "Conhouse, I agree with Scully."

Lena squinted her eyes at him.

"Let us talk to the mother. You can go back to Scully's and regroup."

"I'm not ungrouped Mulder." Lena's voice raised slightly.

Scully looked at him, "What do you mean by 'back to Scully's'?"

Mulder tilted his head and gave her a 'give me a break' look and she dropped
it. He looked at Lena again and she sighed.

"You're right, I know you are. I don't know who I'm kidding, I can hardly
walk." Lena closed her eyes and let her chin drop to her chest. "I don't know
why that wipes me out so much, but it does."

Mulder put his hand on Scully's shoulder, "Take her home and I'll see you at
the Georgetown PD in about 20." He walked off briskly in the direction of his
car.

"Scoot over." Dana tapped her leg and Lena scooted across the middle console
into the passenger seat. Dana hopped in and started the car. She pulled out
and they made their way out of the neighborhood. "Are you feeling any better?"
She stole a quick glance at her passenger.

"Some, the coffee helps."

They sat in silence for a moment.

"There are some nerds in the glove box," she paused, "if you need them."

Lena smiled over at her, "You stashed nerds in your car for me?"

Dana kept her eyes on the road, saying seriously; "It's my angel bait."

Lena laughed out loud, "Now what did I tell you about that? Just me,
remember?"

"I'm not buying that line anymore Conhouse. I know an angel when I see one."

Lena was laughing again, but stopped when she realized that Dana wasn't. "You
can't be serious?" She stared at the redhead.

"I think the lady doth protest too much." Dana looked over at her, a brow
raised.

Lena stared back at her for a moment, then out through the windshield. Neither
of the women talked for the rest of the short trip to Dana's apartment.

She pulled in to her parking space and handed her apartment key to Lena. "I'll
have to get one of these made for you." She held onto Lena's hand when Lena
reached for the key, rubbing it softly for a moment, trying to work up her
courage.

"I know you don't want to talk about this right now Lena." Dana looked down at
their clasped hands, "And I know that you've already explained to me what you
think it is that gives you your abilities." She looked into the exhausted
woman's eyes and sighed. "But I think that it's a little more than mere brain
function, and I think you know it."

Dana watched the other woman's expression carefully. She knew there was
something else there, not just a lame medical explanation that had no basis in
the Celestial. People just didn't lead the recently deceased to heaven; they
=just didn't=.

All of the stories of angels' interventions had come alive when Danny had
looked at Scully. He had looked =right at her=, and it was at that moment that
she realized. It was at that moment that she knew Lena was more than just a
medical anomaly, a mere human product of increased brain activity.  She had
watched Danny glow and soften in Lena's arms. Lena had been the conduit
through which he had broken out of his immobilizing terror to move onto his
father.

Lena's jaw clenched and she looked down a their entwined fingers. " 'Angel'
...  is such a loaded word," She said in a strained whisper, "there should be
another term for it."

Dana's hairs prickled slightly, she felt chills rise up her back and over her
scalp. She tried not to show Lena that she was stunned, in shock. She
swallowed hard, keeping her eyes cast down. She had no idea what to say to
Lena, none. She was trembling uncontrollably.

"Don't shut down on me now Scully." Lena's voice was soothing, but it raised
Dana's hairs even more. "It's still just me "

Dana looked cautiously up at her. She wasn't glowing. Wings hadn't
mysteriously sprouted on her back.

It was just her. Just her Lena.

"I was right." Dana whispered, her eyes filling with tears.

Lena bowed her head slightly, "In a way, yes, you were right."

"Oh my god " the words faded on her lips as they came out.

"There are all kinds of angels Dana, I happen to be the earth bound, human-ish
kind."

"I can't believe this." Dana's mouth trembled and tears streamed down her pale
cheeks.

"But the brain function thing, well  that was true. That's the medical part of
the angel bit. I'm sorry that I lied to you Dana, I shouldn't have." Lena's
hands clenched hers tighter; "It's just that I fell in love with you. I didn't
want to scare you away."

Dana couldn't speak.

"I know it's a lot to take in." Lena sighed, tilting her head and trying to
get Dana to look at her. "Look at it this way, it sure makes the lesbian thing
pale in comparison, eh?"

Scully let out an involuntary 'HA' at the comment. This was all so incredible

"You know, things aren't any different that they were a few hours ago. I'm the
same person Dana, and I assure you that I am, for the most part, just a
person. I can explain it to you a more later, but suffice it to say that I
love you, regardless of my many labels."

Dana nodded a little. She was thinking, 'I have questions '.

"Well, I get left in the dark a lot darlin  I'm not sure how many I'll be able
to answer." Lena shook her hands a little. "You should go to Mulder. He's
probably wondering where you are."

Dana nodded numbly at her.

"You okay to drive?"

"Wh  yeah  I think." She stared at her.

"Hurry back, ok?" Lena got out of the car and walked slowly to the front door
of the apartment building on unsteady legs. Soon she was through the door and
out of sight.

Dana sat staring after her from the car. She finally pulled herself together
enough to pull out of the lot. Her mind spun as she drove

___________________________________________________________________________

11:30 p.m.,  Georgetown Police Department

"Scully, what took you so long?"  Mulder looked irritated. "And why didn't you
answer your phone?" He started toward her down the hall, pulling her with him
as he made his way out of the building.

"I  uh " She just stared at him, unable to complete her thought. She patted
her pockets and realized that her phone was missing. 'Must have left it in the
office' she thought, more than a little angry with herself at being so scatter
brained.

"They moved the mother, she's at Bethesda. She was in shock and the EMT's
missed it. I have no idea why they think she wouldn't be in shock, after what
happened. One of the officers here told me that she was mumbling at the scene.
She told them that the killer made her pick which of her kids would die  and
then she just  she shut down. They brought her here hoping she would be able
to tell them more, but she never came back around." He looked pissed. "We need
to get to the hospital. Follow me over there."

______________________________________________________________________________
___

They walked into the hospital side by side. Mulder approached the desk
flashing his badge and a nurse showed them to a room at the end of the
hallway.

They peered through the window of the room's door. The woman on the bed was
gazing lifelessly at the ceiling. Her eyes were vacant and she wasn't blinking
at all. The agents opened the door slowly and approached her bedside.  Scully
picked up the woman's hand and squeezed it, getting no response.

"Mulder she's catatonic."

"Shit, maybe we should have let Lena come Scully. This woman isn't going to be
able to tell us anything."  He turned and walked out of the room.

They stood together in the hallway.

"Has the GPD come up with anything on 'Cook'?"

"No. No one in the neighborhood saw anyone enter or leave that wasn't a part
of the family, and no one seemed to know who 'Cook' was either. They're trying
to get a hold of the victim's extended family now. Hopefully one of them will
know who this guy is. The trail on Ruth is cold, no idea where he may have
taken her."

Mulder's phone rang and he quickly answered it, "Mulder."

"And she's the sister of the father?"

"Ok, what's the address?"

"Thanks, we're on our way."

He hung up and started walking; Scully had to trot after him to catch up.
"They've located the father's sister in Georgetown, let's go."

______________________________________________________________________-


Marsha Tinstel's residence - Georgetown



"Mrs. Tinstel, I realize this must be awful for you, but we need to ask you
some questions." Scully stood in the entryway of the small home, looking
sympathetically at the woman who had just been told by two uniformed police
officers that her brother's family had been devastated.

"Sit down, please." The woman was wiping tears from her face.

"We need to know if you ever met a Mr. Cook at your brother's house, or
possibly someone who goes by the name of Cook?"

"No," she shook her head, searching her memory. "No, I never heard any of them
talk about a Mr. Cook. Is that who did this to them?"

"We think so Mrs. Tinstel."

"I can't believe this." The woman sobbed. "Things were going so well for them.
Bob had just gotten a huge raise, they moved into that house  he worked so
hard all of his life to get to where he was, and finally he could relax a
little and enjoy life, the kids " she paused, "He always wanted to be well
off, you know, have the better things in life? But he was willing to work for
it, and he did, that man worked like a dog."

Scully looked down at the floor, waiting for the woman to recover some. Mulder
looked over at her, shaking his head.

"Did your brother have any enemies that you're aware of?"

"NO! God no. We had a birthday party for him about a month ago and finally had
to shut the doors of the banquet hall because it was full! People loved him
he had no enemies."

Mulder took a business card from his wallet and handed it to Mrs. Tinstel.
"We'll leave you alone now, we're very sorry for the intrusion. Please call me
immediately if you think of anything else."

"I will. Find Ruth, please."

"We're doing everything we can." He said. And they left.

__________________________________________________________________________

"What now?" Scully asked as they walked to their cars.

"We need Lena."

Scully nodded at him. "Let's go."


__________________________________________________________________________

Lena heard the door open and looked toward it from her spot on the Dana's
couch.

"Anything?" Her face was hopeful.

Mulder looked at her, defeated. "No."

Lena punched a fist into the palm of her hand. "I should go see the mother."

Mulder smiled at her, "I was hoping you'd say that. I'll drive." He wagged his
eyebrows at Scully as she reached for Lena's jacket, handing it to her.

Lena winked at Scully behind Mulder's back, "Thanks."

Scully smiled in spite of herself as she closed the door behind them.



End - Chapter 14

TITLE:   Conhouse - Chapter Fifteen
RATING: anywhere from PG to NC-17 - it's a crap shoot


Lena walked out of the mother's hospital room several minutes later shaking
her head. "She's gone. Her body is there but her soul seems to have just
disappeared. I couldn't get anything."

"Dammit!" Mulder turned in place, his back to them. He was chewing on his
knuckles. He turned back around, "that was my last idea."

The three of them stared at each other for a moment. Finally, Scully broke the
silence. "I think we need to find a place to sit down, eat something,
regroup."

"Good idea. Come on." Mulder led them out of the hospital.


They sat at Scully's dining room table together. Mulder flipped through the
pages of her phone book, looking for the number to a Chinese restaurant they
usually ordered from nearby.

"Scully, what is that place called? I can't find it." Frustrated he handed the
phone book to her. He looked at Lena and said, "It's going to be another half
hour after we order before we'll get anything. We should have just gone to a
restaurant." His stomach growled as if on cue and he patted it. "You know, I'd
pay good money to someone if they'd come here and make dinner."

She nodded, "Me too, I'm starved."

Mulder stopped cold where he stood, his arms came up to Lena's face and he
cupped her cheeks with his hands.

"Jesus!" He yelled.

Lena was startled. "No Mulder, I'm Lena, Jesus had facial hair "

He ignored her. "What if 'Cook' wasn't the guy's name?!" He yelled louder, his
arms were now extended out in front of him. The women just stared at him.

"What if =cook= is the guy's =JOB=?"

Realization crept across Scully's face. "That would explain why they let him
in, the knives " She grabbed her phone, shoving it toward Mulder  "Call Mrs.
Tinstel, ask her if her brother ever had a cooking service."

Mulder walked into the kitchen and made the call.  The woman looked at each
other with more hope than either had allowed themselves to feel since they had
walked into Danny's house.

Mulder sprung out of the kitchen, "Mrs. Tinstel said that Bob had gotten a
gift certificate from someone at his birthday party last month. It was for a
cooking service, he liked it so much after the first time that he decided to
have them come every Monday night, to give his wife a break from cooking. It
was one of the 'finer things in life' deals he wanted to give to his family."

Lena put her arms up, "Score!"

Scully looked at Mulder, "Does she remember the name of the service?"

"No, but she remembered who got the gift for Bob. I have the number of that
guy right here."

"Call it Mulder."

He disappeared into the kitchen again for several minutes, making two more
phone calls, and reappeared with a small sheet of paper. He waved it in the
air, "The address for 'Personal Chefs Cooking Service'. Let's go get Ruthie."


End - Chapter Fifteen

TITLE:   Conhouse - Chapter Sixteen
RATING: anywhere from PG to NC-17 - it's a crap shoot


Mulder drove his car and Scully followed with Lena in hers.  The women sat in
silence while she drove. Lena spoke finally.

"You're like Sabrina."

Scully looked at her, trademark brow raised. "Beg pardon?"

"You know, the smart one."

Scully smiled slightly, "From Charlie's Angels?"

"Right. You keep Mulder and I from skittering off like two bimbos in heels."

Scully didn't look at her as she responded, "Someone has to, it scares me when
I think about how alike you two are." She paused for a second, "Except, of
course, Mulder is from =around here=."

Lena winced.

Silence again. Scully turned to Lena, opened her mouth to say something, then
thought better of it and turned her attention back to the road.

Her mouth opened again, "You lied to me."

Lena closed her eyes. "No one is free from sin Ms. Scully, not even those put
here to guard against it's worst forms."

"I don't give a shit that you sinned," she stared at her intently, "I'm pissed
because you lied =to me=." Dana pointed at her chest.

"I'm sorry Dana. I'm ashamed and I'm sorry. I really believed that I couldn't
tell you. You would have thought I was crazy. I tried to tell you the truth in
small doses."

"So were you ever going to dose out the last part?" Scully jaw tensed.

"I guess I was playing by ear. I really did think you'd think I was crazy."

Scully considered that for a second. Lena was right, she would have thought
she was crazy.  "You're right. I would have, I'll give you that much."

Dana drove in silence. Lena held out her hand and after a second, Dana grasped
it. The redhead eyed her, "Is there anything else I should know?"

"You mean about me?"

"Yes. About you."

"Well..."

Dana looked at her cautiously, "Well what?"

"I have every piece of music ever recorded by Anne Murray." Lena shrugged.

Dana regarded her seriously. "Snowbird?"

"Yep, 'You Needed Me', 'A Little Good News', 'Walk Right Back'...  I've got
all of them." Lena leaned over and placed her head on Dana's shoulder.

Dana smiled slightly, using just the corners of her mouth. She brought Lena's
hand up to her lips and softly kissed it.  "You're a piece of work."

Lena let out a long held relieved sigh. "Thank you."

Dana rubbed her cheek on Lena's forehead, "Are we gonna find Ruthie?"

"Not sure  yet."

Scully realized the Mulder's car had slowed. They had turned into what she
would consider a 'fringe' neighborhood. Some of the small houses looked well
kept, some, condemned.

"I think we're here." Dana sat up in the driver's seat and took Mulder's lead,
turning off her lights.  They rolled slowly to a stop behind Mulder and she
turned off the ignition.

Scully met Mulder between the two cars, Lena on her heels.

"Which one is it?" She looked around.

"That one, there. No lights on." Mulder pointed to one of the less well kept
houses, a small cape cod.

"How do you want to do this?" Scully felt adrenaline rush through her for the
upteenth time that night.

"I think we should have Lena go to the front door and knock. You go to the
west side of the house and start looking through windows, I'll take the east
side."

She was confused, "Why knock?"

"We need to get the guy isolated Scully, we need to know where he is, and
above all, we need to get him =away= from Ruthie, assuming she's in there with
him."

"She is." Lena said, raising the hair on both the agents necks.

"Is he with her?" Mulder leaned down, looking at Lena intently.

"Yes, basement I think, we've got to move now."

"Scully, here, call for backup." He handed his phone to her and she dialed 911
quickly, giving the information to the DC PD and telling them to contact the
Georgetown police as well.

"They're sending over all available units in the area, lights off, no sirens."

"Good. Lena, position yourself at the front door. Let Scully and I get out of
view and then knock, make it loud."

"And what if he comes to the door?" Lena looked frightened.

"Your car broke down, you need to use his phone."

"Ok."

Scully stared at her, she leaned toward her, whispering, "Are you sure you
want to do this?"

"No options." Lena shrugged slightly. "Is now a good time to mention that
bullets do the same thing to me as they would to anyone else?"

Scully looked at Mulder, "Maybe we should wait for backup."

"No time." The whispered response came from Lena as she was making her way
across the street toward the house. Mulder and Scully trotted after her.

Lena stood at the front door, in the dark, working up her courage. She could
sense Ruthie inside, the girl was cold, cement  there seemed to be cement. She
was crying, although intense dehydration in the 4 year old made them dry
tears. Lena tipped her head back and made a silent statement, 'courage,
bravery  now would be a good time for a transfusion my friend'.

And then it was there, the feeling of floating, being filled.  She mouthed the
words 'thank you' and balled up her fist, using the back of it to pound almost
violently on the door.

Both Mulder and Scully heard the banging. Scully saw a flash through the
dimness inside the house. He was coming to the door. Her heart hammered in her
chest.

Mulder had made his way to the back of the house, to the back door. It was
locked. He pulled his b&e lock tool out of the large inside pocket of his coat
and started in at it. The door handle lock clicked opened easily, but the dead
bolt was going to take him some time

Scully made her way along the outside wall at the west of the house so she
could listen to the exchange between Lena and the perp. She heard Lena's voice
first.


"Hi, I know it's late and I'm so sorry to bother you, but my car just pissed
out on me and I'm wondering if I can borrow your phone?"

Nothing. Scully's heart started a slow sink.

"Sir? Your phone?"

There was a loud scuffling and Scully heard the front door slam violently. She
ran around the corner   'let her be there  please  let her be there

Lena was gone.

"Fuck!" Scully ran to the door, quietly making her way up the steps and
checked the handle. Locked. Shit.

She made her way, crouching under the windows, back to the door Mulder was
working on.

"He took her."

"Shit! Scully, help me with this." He had the lock tool in one hand and a
small screwdriver in the other.

"Shoot it off Mulder!" Scully whispered intensely.

"We can't do that, we don't want him to know we're out here! If he hears us
shoot the lock he may kill both of them."


Lena was thrown to the floor of the basement beside Ruthie. She looked at the
small girl for a second, taking a mental inventory of her cuts and bruises,
and determined that she was at least physically all right.

"You are one stupid bitch." Cook said, jeering at her. "I mean for christ's
sake, I probably have the only house on this block without one fuckin' light
on, and you come here for help? Dumb ass."

"Well, now that you put it that way " Lena shrugged. She wasn't frightened
anymore, now just mildly irritated.

Cook was surprised by her response. He walked to her and punched her in the
face without ceremony.

Lena's head snapped sideways and she let out a yelp, shocked and in pain,
stars burst behind her eyes.

Cook stood, rubbing his hand. He was a squatty little troll, balding, chubby.
Kind of a Captain Kangaroo lookin' guy, Lena thought crazily as she rubbed her
cheek where he had bashed her.

"Who are you with? Am I fuckin' surrounded or what?" Cook yelled at her. He
looked like he was coming in for another punch.

Lena put her hands up, "Not the face Captain, for god's sake, I've got a small
fortune in dental work here."

He was incensed. A large foot crashed into Lena's stomach and she was suddenly
grateful that she hadn't eaten since noon. The pain was excruciating, but she
knew that if she kept him distracted long enough Mulder and Scully could get
in unnoticed and take him down.

"I'll ask you again."

Lena tried in vain to get a breath, "I'm alone, all right? I'm alone. I was
working on a hunch "

He reached into her jacket pocket and pulled out her badge. "FBI," he threw it
back at her, "whoopty shit."

She rolled to a sitting position, holding her stomach where he had kicked her.
She looked up at him, then over to Ruthie who was now pasted against the wall,
trying to appear smaller than her tiny frame.

"Well, looks like you should have called for backup." He smiled at her. "What?
You surprised that I believe you? Well I do. I think I'd have a gun up my ass
by now if you'd been smart enough to call for help. Dumb ass."

"Don't call me that." She had to keep his focus on her and not Ruthie. "Dick
weed."

He laughed, crossing the room again, and grabbed her by the hair, pulling her
head back. "Well, you just keep showin' me it's true now don't you?" His hot
breath smelled of dead things. "Where would you like you're next bruise?"

She could feel her scalp ripping free of her cranium. She said flatly,
"Surprise me", enjoying the look of sheer confusion on his face.

He head butted her instantly and she fell to the floor lifelessly, nearly
knocked out. The ripped skin across her forehead sent ringlets of blood onto
the floor.

"Surprise." He mumbled, walking away toward Ruthie. Lena could see him grab
the girl by her upper arms and pull her into a standing position. She was
shaking violently in his grasp but her small face seemed not to register
anything. She was beyond emotion, apparently, and the fact scared Lena to
death.

Lena bent her arms, trying to gain purchase on the concrete floor and lift
herself up. She felt Scully, suddenly, talking to her. She looked toward the
door at the top of the steps but didn't see her there, and she realized that
Scully's voice was coming from inside her, 'we're in, hang on baby, we're in."

"Thank god." Lena whispered, and let herself slump back to the floor. Her eyes
slid shut and she lost consciousness.



Mulder put his palm on the basement door handle, testing it, he turned to
Scully and mouthed the word, 'unlocked'.

Slowly  slowly  he turned the knob in his hand and pulled the door back,
peeking down the stairwell. He could see Lena sprawled on the floor, blood
seeping from her forehead. He watched her for a long moment, and closed his
eyes in relief after seeing her chest rise and fall in rhythm.

He turned to Scully, "She's alive. On my count." And he tipped his head toward
the basement. She nodded, holding her breath.

On three he burst down the steps, taking all of them in nearly one leap, and
trained his gun on Cook, "STEP AWAY FROM THE GIRL!"

Cooked turned from Ruthie, a look of defeat and disgust on his face. Mulder
approached him carefully, turning him to face the wall and cuffing him. He
turned and called up the steps, "WE GOT HIM." Three uniforms that Scully
recognized as Georgetown cops came down the steps to take Cook. One of them
read him his rights as they pulled him up the steps.

Mulder had Ruthie in his arms as he crouched beside Scully and Lena.  Scully
had Lena's head in her lap, trying to rouse her. "Lena  Lena."

Lena's eye opened, the other tried, but was swelled shut from the punch. She
didn't say anything. She raised her hand toward Ruthie and the girl just
looked at it unresponsively. Lena let her good eye go to Mulder, "lay her on
me." The words were slurred some, her mouth was bruised. Mulder looked at
Scully briefly, and seeing no objections in her eyes he carefully placed the 4
year old on top of Lena.  The little girl stiffened at being let go, her eyes
sparked with alarm and she hung onto Mulder's shirt, pulling him to her as he
tried to pull away.

Ruthie then seemed to have heard something familiar and her face suddenly
turned to Lena's. She stared at the bruises and touched her fingers to the cut
on Lena's bloody forehead. Quietly, she relaxed, laying down across Lena, her
small head resting under Lena's chin. She appeared to have fallen asleep.

Lena's looked again at Mulder, "You can take her now." He reached for the
sleeping girl, picked her up and handed her to a policeman who stood nearby,
waiting. The girl was taken upstairs to a waiting ambulance.

Scully whispered to Lena, "We need to move you, get you some medical
attention." She was sick with worry. The injuries that were apparent were
severe and the ones that weren't apparent scared Scully to death.

"No hospital." Lena said, trying to sit up. Mulder instinctively grabbed for
her arm, helping her. Scully grabbed at the other. They had her standing.

"You have to, you could have broken bones Lena."

The injured woman shook her head, "No breaks, just bruises." She seemed to be
standing more on her own. "No hospital Scully. My work-ups would draw
attention."

Scully looked at her in realization. "Oh." She looked at Mulder and he
narrowed his eyes. She knew an explanation would have to be given to him
sooner or later. She picked later. "Come on Mulder, let's get her back to my
apartment."

He opened his mouth to demand and explanation and got an icy look from Scully.
Scolded, he just said, "ok".


End - Chapter 16

TITLE:   Conhouse - Chapter Seventeen
RATING: anywhere from PG to NC-17 - it's a crap shoot


The three made their way back to Scully's; Mulder in his car, the women in the
other. Lena lay across the back seat, every bump making the pain in her head
and stomach flair. Scully leaned to look back at her when traffic allowed,
taking in her injuries and making mental notes of what to check Lena for when
she got her home.

Scully pulled in beside Mulder in her parking lot and they both carefully
carried Lena inside. Scully unlocked her door as Mulder held Lena up, then
went quickly inside to drawl a bath for the beaten woman.

Fifteen minutes later Lena sat on the toilet slumped over as Scully tried to
pull her pants off.

"Lena, I've got to get these off if I'm going to get you in the tub. I know it
hurts but I need to see your injuries and get you cleaned up." She got no
response. Lena's face was terribly swollen, her left eye all but closed. The
ripped skin at her forehead was now blackened with bruises and dried blood.
She was bent over, holding her stomach. Scully gave up on the pants for a
second to dig through her medicine cabinet.

"Lena, here, take these." Scully handed her two pain killers. "I keep them
around for Mulder. Guess it never occurred to me that I'd have to use them for
anyone else." Scully smiled at her slightly. "How do you feel?"

"I feel... like I pissed off a cook and he beat the crap out of me." Lena's
head came up slightly and she tried to look at Scully, but she couldn't quite
make it. Scully went back to work on Lena's pants and underwear, finally
working them down her legs and off.

"Well, the cook will be charged with a double homicide and attempted murder.
Granted, you look worse, but I'd say overall that he lost the fight." Dana
carefully pulled Lena's jacket from her arms, then went to work on her
sweater. "What's the penalty for roughing up an angel? It's must be pretty
serious." She tried to look in her eyes, carefully lifting her chin.

"Mimes, an eternity of mimes and bagpipers." Lena winced as Scully pulled the
sweater over her head. "God is gonna be pissed..."

"Bagpipers?" Scully thought that maybe Lena did have a concussion after all.

"Yeah. Know why they walk around while they play?"

"No, why?" Dana carefully took off her bra.

"To get away from that noise."

Scully laughed and kissed Lena's hand. "Come on, can you climb in here?"  She
tried to pull her into a standing position and couldn't seem to get her to
stand. "Lena I'm going to call Mulder in, is that ok? I don't want to hurt you
any more than I have to, and I think he could help me lift you into the tub."

Lena nodded.

"Mulder!" Scully yelled over her shoulder and she heard him walk to the
bathroom.

"Yeah?" he called through the door.

"I need your help, can you come in here?"

He cautiously cracked the door open and saw Lena naked on the toilet. His
first instinct was to shut the door.

"Mulder? It's okay. I need you to help me lift her into the tub." Scully
appreciated his sense of honor, but she didn't have time for it.

He carefully opened the door again and stepped into the bathroom. Together
they lifted Lena into the tub. Scully gave him a grateful look, "Thanks." She
smiled slightly and Mulder left the bathroom.

Lena lay back in the tub, letting the warm water soak away some of the pain as
Scully gently washed her.

"This would be so erotic if I had all my piece parts working." Lena said as
she let her good eye close.

"Well, when you heal up you're fair game." Dana kissed her gently then washed
the blood from her forehead.

"It's good to be me." Lena tried to smile.

"Lena, can I ask what did you do to Ruth back in the basement?"

"Made her forget."

"All of it?"

"Most of it, the worst of it. What she does remember will be like a movie.
Like she's watching it happen to someone else."

"So you took the pain away?"

"Yeah."

"Why can't you do that for yourself?" It came out more harshly that Scully had
intended it to.

Lena's head rolled toward Scully and she opened her eyes. "I can't take away
bruises and blood."

"I'm sorry, that came out wrong. It's just hard to see you so battered."

"I understand." Lena held out her hand and Scully took it. "I seem to have a
better record with emotional scars and not so much the physical ones."

Scully nodded. "Let's get you dry."

Lena was feeling better, the drugs having set in, but she was suddenly aware
of how tired she was. Scully dried her off and put her in an old pair of her
flannel pajamas, then walked her into the bedroom and tucked her into bed.

"I love you."

Lena closed her eyes and smiled, "I love you too."

"Get some rest."

She turned off the lamp by the bed and went into the kitchen.

"Thanks for your help Mulder."

"Is she all right?"

"She's fine. Bruised and cut up, but fine."

"Surprising, really, considering what she went through." Mulder paused.
"Scully... what is she?"

Scully took a sudden interest in her feet, considering his question. "I
think " She raised her eyes to look at him, "you should let her tell you that
when she can."

"It's more than we thought isn't it?"

"Yes."

"Has she told you?"

"Yes."

"But you can't tell me?" Mulder was hurt, and it registered in his eyes
although he tried to hide it.

"It's not my place Mulder. It's  not like anything we've dealt with before.
Please, don't be angry, just know that I would tell you if I thought I could
make sense of it, but  I can't. I just don't know. I'm  I just don't know."

Mulder knew what it was. He wasn't sure he could ever fully comprehend it, but
he knew. "It's okay Scully. It's all right. I think I understand."

She let out a relieved sigh, grateful to be off the burner. "You want the
pillow?"

Mulder smiled at her. Regardless of the situation he could always count on her
to take care of him. "Yep, and my blanket?"

"Top shelf of the coat closet. I'm going to take a shower. Do me another favor
and check on Lena while I'm in there? I not convinced she doesn't have a
concussion and I'd like to keep an eye on her tonight."

"Sure."

"Thanks." Scully let her hand rest on his arm for a second and then walked
quietly into the bathroom. A minute later he heard the water start.

Mulder stood in the bedroom doorway and watched Lena sleep. He walked to the
bed and sat down on it's edge. Lena stirred slightly, looking up at him.

"Hi, you feel any better?"

"Define better."

"Less dead?"

Lena smiled, "Yes. Dr. Scully cleaned me up."

"She's done it for me more times than I can remember."

"Lay down with me?" Lena said.

Mulder hesitated for a split second, then lay down next to her on the bed.

She rolled toward him, laying her bruised head on his arm. "Much better."

Mulder smiled. "You scared us today."

"Don't you mean I scared =you=?"

"Okay, me. I thought we'd lost you when I saw you on the floor of that
basement."

"That guy was a bully."

Mulder laughed, "The king of the bullies."

"Thanks for saving my scrawny ass Mulder."

"Any time Conhouse, any time." He thought for a second, and decided to push
the envelope. "Thanks for showing me how people get to heaven."

Lena let his comment soak in, then said, "So you caught that huh?"

"Yeah, I caught that. It was hard to miss."

"Intense isn't it?" Lena cuddled up closer to Mulder and he let her form her
body around his. He felt warm. It had been years since he'd reveled in the
feel of another warm body. The brief times that Scully had allowed him to hold
her were few and far between. He let his lips close gently on Lena's bruised
forehead. He felt for a moment like he had Samantha back; that he had her
small warm body to keep safe. The feeling made his heart lurch in his chest.
The thought of Samantha made him... so sad, but strangely enough also
incredibly happy.

That's absurd, he thought. I don't know what =happy= is.

"Oh but you do. At least, you're starting to figure it out." Lena whispered to
him.

Mulder wondered if he had said it aloud, then remembered...

"Is that why you're here?" He whispered back, pushing a little farther.

Lena smiled against his chest. "I'm here to make a family. That's how it works
Mulder. If you don't have a family to keep you safe, protect you from those
that would do you harm, then you make one ...out of the people you love."

A tear made it's way down Mulder's cheek.

"Mulder, my sweet man," Lena whispered, "you have too many tears stored up
inside of you. I've been counting since we've met and I've only seen you part
with 4 of them. You've got a lot left. If I were you, I'd let some of them go.
You'll never be safer than you are right now."

Her words had a deep impact and a sudden sob wracked his chest. Lena held him
tightly, ignoring the pain in her stomach, and wrapped her arms around him
like he was a child, letting him pour out the infection that had wormed its
way around his heart. She whispered to him as he cried, telling him that he
was loved, that he had sacrificed too much in his lifetime, and finally that
they would find her...

'they would find her...'

And when it registered to him... when the words repeated themselves in his
head and he realized what they meant, his crying stopped, and he pulled back
to look into her eyes.

Lena nodded at him.

And he smiled.

"You of all people are due for a little joy, don't you think?" Lena whispered,
squeezing him tightly.

Mulder put his head back down and Lena lay hers on top of his arm. He pulled
her closer to him and felt sleep caress the edges of his mind.

__________________________________________________________

Scully stood in the doorway of her bedroom where Mulder had stood a half hour
before. She looked at the two of them huddled in her bed and smiled. 'Like
puppies in a litter' she thought. Her two favorite people in this life,
clinging together in her bed  it was amazing.

She walked quietly to the side of the bed that appeared to have some room left
and pulled the covers back, carefully lying down next to Lena's warm body. She
cuddled up against the sleeping woman's back and felt a hand rub her leg
gently.

"You smell good." Lean whispered, leaving her hand on Scully's leg.

"I showered."

"Did you see what I found wandering around the bed a little while ago?"

"I noticed that. Does he snore?"

"Not sure. He hasn't yet."

"That's a blessing."

"I heard that." Mulder whispered from his spot on the bed.

Scully reached across Lena to squeeze his arm, "Night Mulder."

"Night Scully."

Lena wiggled in further to the warm spot between them and smiled to herself.
She thought of the words spoken to her some months ago, before she came here,
before she knew anything about these two, other than their names.

'Finally ' she thought to herself, 'We're getting somewhere.'

And she drifted off to sleep.



End - Chapter Seventeen