From reevesl@pilot.msu.edu Thu May 15 08:03:39 1997 Newsgroups: alt.tv.x-files.creative Subject: Liaison III 1/5 by Danielle Culverson From: reevesl@pilot.msu.edu (Lisa Reeves) -------- Please note: I DID NOT WRITE THIS. This fanfic was posted to the x-files-fanfic mailing list; all stories posted to this list are forwarded to this newsgroup unless the author specifically requests otherwise. For information on this mailing list, and how to subscribe, point your browser to: http://mail.utep.edu/~trevizo/x-files . If you don't have web access, send a note to gossamer@birdfeeder.com with "subscribe request" in the subject, and I'll send you instructions. Please reply to the author, not to me. I will attempt to pass along any feedback that comes to me; however I do NOT guarantee I'll be able to do this. If you're missing a part, please contact the author, drop me a note at reevesl@pilot.msu.edu, or check one of the archives. For a list of archive locations, send a blank e-mail to archivefaq@akamail.com. ---------------------------------------------------------------- Subject: "Liaison III" (1/5) by Danielle Culverson This is the third story in the "Liaison" series written by Danielle Culverson. She would love comments at her address: smythja@aston.ac.uk Remember, I am only posting it for her - she is the author. This a fiction story based on the characters created by Chris Carter. No infringement of copyrights held by 10/13 Productions, Twentieth Century Productions, or Fox Broadcasting is intended. All unrecognised characters and plot-lines belong to me. Names, characters, and places exist solely within my imagination, or are used fictitiously. No connection to any person, living or dead, is intended, and any resemblance is entirely coincidental. Feel free to distribute, but please keep me as the author. Rating - PG Classification - S, R, (T). Summary - Mulder and Scully call on their alternates, Fox and Dana, for help when Mulder's life is threatened. No spoilers. - I suggest you read "Liaison" and "Liaison 2" before reading this. Thanks to everyone who wrote requesting a sequel, and in particular Gerry Hill, whose constant ideas, inspiration, and constructive criticism keep me writing. Danielle Culverson. Liaison 3. (Part 1/5). A dark-haired man and an auburn-haired woman sat in plastic-covered chairs in the second floor outer office. The woman wore a bottle green trouser suit, and sat upright in her chair, a folder clutched on her lap. The man at her side wore a black suit, and slouched in his seat, his knees apart. His dark hair was tousled, and his hazel eyes held more painful memories in their depths that seemed possible for a man who looked so young. The identification badges they both wore clipped to their jackets identified them as Special Agents Fox Mulder and Dana Scully. Across the room from them, a middle-aged woman with permed hair that was dyed ash blonde sat at the secretary's desk, her long fingers tapping on the keys of her word processor. Fox Mulder glanced at the half-open vertical blinds at the window, down at his watch, and then across at the secretary. As though on cue, her intercom buzzed. "Sir?" the woman activated the unit with one hand. "Are Agents Mulder and Scully there yet?" asked the distorted but unmistakable voice of Walter Skinner. "Yes, sir. They arrivced nearly ten minutes ago." "Send them in." Mulder and Scully were already getting to their feet as the secretary turned towards them to invite them to enter the inner office. Scully nodded to the woman as she and her partner walked past her and went into the inner room. Assistant Director Skinner was a balding ex-marine. He sat behind a shiny oak desk, his back to the window. His grey jacket hung over the back of his swivel chair. His shirt was as neatly pressed as it he was still in the forces. Light from the fluorescents overhead glinted on his glasses as he looked up from the document in front of him, and gestured to the two FBI agents to sit down on the two chairs in front of his desk. They took their accustomed positions without a word. Mulder's eyes involuntarily strayed to the filing cabinet just behind Skinner. He knew that the personnel files were kept in that cabinet, and idly wondered what was written on his. What was the Assistant Director's "official" opinion of "Spooky" Mulder? Mulder knew his ideas and methods were unorthodox, and this had led to his detested nickname, "Spooky", but he didn't care. A few lucky contacts in Congress, some shadowy high-ups who wanted his work to continue, frequent perfect suspect profiles, and a good case-conclusion rate had so far kept him in his job, but he was perfectly aware that the line he was treading was not only thin, but close to it's elastic limit. Skinner studied the two agents before him carefully for several long moments, and then sighed regretfully. "Before we begin this discussion," he started, "I'd like you to know that I just completed a check of my office for listening devices, found two, and removed them." He pointed to a small amount of ground-up metal in the ash tray. Scully raised her eyebrows, but neither she nor her partner said a word. "I've received some disturbing intelligence reports," Skinner continued, "and while they principally concern *you*, Agent Mulder, given the nature of your work I thought it best that you were both informed so that you can take appropriate action." "Informed of what, sir?" Scully asked, growing a little impatient with Skinner's cautiousness. "That an attempt will be made on Agent Mulder's life in the near future. - Certainly not in the next week, but almost definitely within the month. - And the forces involved are not the sort to give up easily. "I'm working on neutralising the threat, but it will take a couple of weeks, so during that time you will need to take some sort of action to protect yourself." Skinner spoke to Mulder, who nodded, a little uncertainly. - Apparently his thin line was closer to breaking point than he had thought. "Any suggestions, sir?" Scully asked. Skinner shrugged. "You two are into the realms of extreme possibility. - I was hoping you could work it out." At a wave of dismissal from the Assistant Director, the two agents got to their feet. "Thanks for the warning, sir." Mulder said, and then turned to follow his petite partner to the door. * * * Scully closed her front door behind her, and turned to watch Mulder cross her front room to the sofa. She entered the room behind him as he sat down heavily with a sigh, and asked plaintively, "Why do I feel like everyone's against me?" Scully smiled at the familiar Mulder whiney tone she heard in his voice. She didn't have to see his face to know that he would be wearing his puppy-dog expression as well. She moved to the two-seater sofa, and sat down on his right, slightly turned towards him. When he didn't move from his position, his head cradled in his hands, which balanced precariously with his elbows standing on his knees, she recognised that underneath his charade he was afrais, and behind his biting humour, he really was feeling inadequate and isolated. Unconsciously knowing that this was one of those rare times when one of them needed physical comfort and reassurance, she reached out and coaxed his hands from his face, holding them tenderly in hers. Finally he turned his head towards her, and she saw gratefulness and understanding in his hazel eyes. They both so seldom initiated physical contact, despite being so close emotionally as partners, that whenever they did touch, it always felt special. Scully supposed that this was due to the close friendship which had sprung up around their professional partnership, although more often than not, as now, it was their work which drove them to seek physical reassurance from each other. - Just a simple touching of hands seemed to achieve so much. "What are we going to do?" Scully asked finally. Mulder shrugged, and shook his head hopelessly. Silence reigned for a few minutes while Scully lapsed into thought. "They're trying to kill you to stop our work." she said finally, "So it our work was no longer a threat, there would be no need to kill you. - Perhaps if you were thrown out of the FBI..." "I think I'd *rather* be dead." Mulder commented dryly, and somewhat unhelpfully, "I need to be able to continue our work after all this has been sorted out." Scully nodded. "Okay, but how about if Skinner made a fake excuse to throw you out?" "Someone would catch on. - It's got to *look* right." Scully nodded again, "So we need to make it *look* like you are thrown out..." she trailed off, and their eyes met again. Then they both spoke together. "Fox and Dana." * * * Scully sat with her laptop computer open on her desk in the cramped basement office of the J. Edgar Hoover building. Powering the machine up, she waited while it went through it's virus checking systems, and then looked up at her partner, who was standing just behind her, anxiously looking over her shoulder. "And you say *I* do too much overtime." he joked half-heartedly when he saw her looking. She smiled. - It was 11.21pm, and they had come in to the office in order to contact Fox and Dana, their alternates in a parallel dimension. The computer signaled it's readiness with a single beep, and Scully turned her attention back to it. Removing two small pieces of tape from the keys she hadn't used for a long time, she pressed "Ctrl-alt". A couple appeared in the room, just to the side of Mulder and Scully. They had the exact appearances of the two FBI agents, and they were locked in a passionate kiss. Mulder cleared his throat. Fox and Dana broke their embrace, and glanced at the other pair of agents in surprise for a moment, before smiling. "Mulder and Scully, - how nice to see you again." Dana greeted them. They had resolved on using first or last names only on the first time they had met, in order to avoid confusion. As the two groups faced each other, they might have been looking at mirror images. However, Fox and Dana were intimately involved in their world, and engaged to be married. Mulder and Scully maintained that although their alternates had found happiness in their romantic relationship, *they* were quite happy with things the way they were. "Sorry to drag you over here like this." Scully began to apologise. Fox waved a hand in dismissal. "It's okay. - This inter-dimension thing fascinates me." "I had noticed." Dana said archly. "It's just that someone's trying to kill me, *again*." Mulder explained. Fox nodded in understanding. "We thought that if it appeared that Mulder had been fired, his death would not be necessary. That would give Skinner time to neutralise the threat, and then Mulder could be reinstated." "Only we need it to *look*, but not *be* real..." Mulder added. "So that's where I come in." Fox caught on. "We don't have a definite plan yet..." Scully began, but Mulder raised a hand to silence her. "We do now, it Dana will agree." he said, glancing at the petite auburn-haired woman standing opposite him, "I thought of it when I saw you two embracing. - Everyone knows the Bureau's protocol about inter-office relationships, and if Fox was to take my place working with Scully..." "And it looked like they were romantically involved, Fox would get thrown out." Dana concluded, nodding. "As Skinner had met you before, we can explain what's going on to him at the beginning so he can back us up at the end." Scully put in. Fox nodded in agreement, and glanced at Dana. "Is this okay with you?" he asked. She met his eyes, and nodded. "Sure, - as long as you remember it's *me* you're engaged to." "As if I could forget..." Fox leaned towards her, and they kissed again. Mulder and Scully looked at the appearance of it, then glanced at each other, and smiled. * * * The door of Assistant Director Skinner's office opened, and four people moved in silently. Two dark-haired med were followed by two auburn-haired women, and the last woman to enter silently closed the door. The leading man turned to each of his companions in turn, and indicated an area of the room. They spread out, searching every corner, piece of furniture, and fitting. The products of their search, - four small metallic devices, - were placed in the ashtray on the Assistant Director's desk ten minutes later. One of the auburn-haired women picked up a solid-looking paperweight from the desk, and crushed the small objects. Scully put the paperweight down, and turned to her companions. Mulder shook his head in disbelief. "Amazing how fast *they* work," he said, "Skinner only cleaned this office yesterday." "He should be here soon," Dana put in, glancing at her watch, which showed 7.12am, "if he follows the same schedule as our Skinner." "He does." Scully agreed. She and Fox went to get two more chairs from around the long mahongany conference table, and put them in front of Skinner's desk. Then all four agents sat down to wait for their superior. The door opened to admit Walter Skinner a few minutes later. His normally impassive expression left him for a moment, and his race registered surprise when he saw the four people waiting for him. Then he recomposed himself, closed the door, and approached the desk. Shrugging off his black overcoat, Skinner asked, "Are we okay to talk?" "We're already checked the room." Mulder said, pointing to the ground up listening devices in the ash tray. Skinner glanced at it, and nodded. "Agents Mulder, Mulder, Scully, and Scully, I presume?" he asked, and the corner of his lip twitched up very slightly. "Protection, sir." Fox replied. "Agent Mulder?" Skinner glanced at Fox, and then towards Mulder, "Or Agent Mulder?" It was clear the Assistant Director was uncertain which of the agents in front of him were under his command. "Sir," Scully spoke up, "to avoid confusion, perhaps during this meeting you should address us as we do." Glancing along the line to her right, she made the introductions, "Fox, Dana, Mulder, and myself, - Scully. - Mulder and I are the agents you saw yesterday." "Right." This explanation seemed to have cleared Skinner's confusion, and he proceeded, "I gather this is about our discussion yesterday?" "Yes, sir." Scully nodded, "We've formulated a plan to prevent Mulder's death being necessary." "I am going to take Mulder's place over the next couple of weeks." Fox put in. "And he will work with scully, and endeavour to be thrown out of the Bureau." Dana added, "Then Mulder no longer appears to be a threat." "And as Mulder will have done nothing wrong, he can be "reinstated" when the threat has been neutralised." Fox finished. "Just how will you "endeavour to be thrown out of the Bureau?" Skinner asked Fox. "Umm... we think it's best you don't know that yet, sir." Mulder answered, "- So your reactions are more normal. - Just remember that whatever happens over the next two weeks, it will be Fox and Scully who are working together." Skinner looked uncertain, but he nodded in unwilling agreement. - He knew these four must have *something* up their sleeves... End of part 1. I'd greatly appreciate any comments or constructive criticism from fellow X-Philes. Email me at . Danielle From reevesl@pilot.msu.edu Thu May 15 08:03:32 1997 Newsgroups: alt.tv.x-files.creative Subject: Liaison III 2/5 by Danielle Culverson From: reevesl@pilot.msu.edu (Lisa Reeves) -------- Please note: I DID NOT WRITE THIS. This fanfic was posted to the x-files-fanfic mailing list; all stories posted to this list are forwarded to this newsgroup unless the author specifically requests otherwise. For information on this mailing list, and how to subscribe, point your browser to: http://mail.utep.edu/~trevizo/x-files . If you don't have web access, send a note to gossamer@birdfeeder.com with "subscribe request" in the subject, and I'll send you instructions. Please reply to the author, not to me. I will attempt to pass along any feedback that comes to me; however I do NOT guarantee I'll be able to do this. If you're missing a part, please contact the author, drop me a note at reevesl@pilot.msu.edu, or check one of the archives. For a list of archive locations, send a blank e-mail to archivefaq@akamail.com. ---------------------------------------------------------------- Subject: "Liaison III" (2/5) by Danielle Culverson This is the third "Liaison" story written by Danielle Culverson. She would love to hear your comments. Her address is: smythja@aston.ac.uk Remember, I am only posting this for her. She is the author. This is a fiction story based on the characters created by Chris Carter. No infringement of copyrights held by 10/13 Productions, Twentieth Century Productions, or Fox Broadcasting is intended. All unrecognised characters and plot-lines belong to me. Names, characters, and places exist solely within my imagination, or are used fictitiously. No connection to any person, living or dead, is intended, and any resemblance is entirely coincidental. Feel free to distribute, but please keep me as the author. Danielle Culverson. Part 2/5. * * * The door to the forensics laboratory opened, and Special Agent Fox Mulder walked in. His hazel eyes quickly scanned the room, and settled on Scully. She was standing with a middle-aged, dark-haried man, looking into a microscope. As he started to approach her, she sensed his presence, and looked around. Scully smiled at Fox, and greeted him, "Good morning, Mulder." "Morning, Scully." his voice was low, and his hazel eyes bored into her. When Mulder did this to her, she normally felt that her space was being invaded, and he could read all her thoughts in her eyes. Now however, she didn't feel that, and supposed it was because she knew this man wasn't her partner, and because he didn't know her quite so well, despite the fact that he knew her alternate intimately. "How's it going?" Fox asked. Scully shrugged. "It's okay. - The bloodwork is the same as that from the other two victims, and the unusual compound we identified is similarly degraded. I was just taking a look at a sample of brain tissue, with Agent Kamble." she indicated the man at her side. "Creutzfeld-Jacob disease again?" Fox smiled slightly as Scully shook her head, and indicated the microscope. "Thankfully not, - take a look." Fox moved closer to her, and peered down the microscope at the piece of whitish tissue. He moved back again, shrugging, and rested his hands on the bench the microscope stood on, which was quite tall to prevent the technicians, who were usually on their feet, having to bend over. He glanced around the lab at the other technicians working. Then he lifted his right hand, and rested it gently on top of Scully's left, which was resting on the bench next to it. He felt the muscles in her hand tighten very slightly, and then relax again. Her face did not change expression. "I should go and complete our expenses sheets for the case." he said quietly. Scully nodded. "I'm going to wait here for the DNA checks, and then I'll come down." she told him. He started to move away, but his eyes remained locked with hers, and his hand lingered on hers just a few moments longer than necessary. Then he turned and left the lab, and Scully turned back to the microscope. * * * Fox and Scully strolled down the tarmac path towards the Jefferson Memorial, walking very slightly closer than Scully normally walked with her partner. It was lunch time, and the area aroung the Lincoln Memorial, the Reflecting Pool, the Washington Monument, and the Jefferson Memorial was busy with business people on their lunch hours, and tourists. Jefferson was usually slightly more tranquil that the other monuments, but not on a fine day like this at lunch time. And Fox and Scully weren't looking for tranquility today. - They were looking for a place where people knew they often went. - Fox sat down on a bench which overlooked the Tidal Basin, and watched Scully as she walked up to the railings and looked over. Then she turned and walked back to him. Out of habit, she asked, "Is this seat taken?" "No, but I should warn you, I've been receiving death threats." Fox gave the expected answer, - apparently he and Dana did this too. "Well, I'm armed, so I'll take my chances." Scully commented, and sat down beside him. After a moment's thought, she leaned against his side, and rested her head on his shoulder. Almost unconsciously, his left arm moved to rest across her shoulders and draw her against him. In this apparently intimate position, their conversation might have seemed surprising to any listener. "Dana and I actually solved this case already. - The deaths are being caused by chemical experiments being carried out on crops. The chemicals are getting into the human food chain, and causing the symptoms you've recorded." "Don't suppose you found out who was behind the experiments?" Scully asked. Fox shook his head slightly with a smile. "Nope, but I can take a good guess in the right direction." There was a short pause, and then Scully spoke. "How are your plans coming on for the wedding? Have you and Dana set a date yet?" "Not yet. - It's been a bit busy in our world." Scully nodded, "I know what that's like." "What about you and Mulder? Are you involved at all?" "Romantically?" Scully gave a small laugh, "No, I told you, we're happy as friends. - There isn't anything more for us." "Are you sure?" Fox persisted, "That first time I met you, when I thought you were Dana... You seemed perfectly willing to go along with everything." Scully said nothing for a moment, "I guess I was just so surprised by it all. - I couldn't believe Mulder would do something like that." "But at the time, you did." Fox pointed out. Scully didn't answer. She wasn't sure herself precisely why she had allowed herself to kiss Fox, believing he was Mulder, and to allow him to remove her clothes. She wasn't sure what she had been feeling when she pulled off his shirt, and then he had carried her, half-naked, into her bedroom, laid her on the bed, and then lain down next to her. It was something she had never allowed herself to analyse fully. "Good afternoon, "Spooky", Agent Scully." a voice said from nearby, with a hint of amusement in it's tone. Scully looked up, startled, to see Agent Greeber approaching. She sat up quickly, pulling away from Fox as though she shouldn't have been sitting so close, - which was exactly what she wanted Greeber to see. "Come on, Mulder, we ought to be getting back." she said, rising to her feet, glad for the chance to change what had become an increasingly disturbing conversation. Fox got up with her, and they turned to walk in the direction Greeber had come from, back towards the J. Edgar Hoover building. * * * Mulder came out of Scully's kitchen with a mug of coffee in one hand, and one of herbal tea in the other. He passed the coffee to Dana, who was sitting in one of the armchairs. Then he took a seat on the couch, and glanced around. He sighed. "It's eating at you, too?" Dana asked. Mulder glanced over at her, a question on his face. "What?" "Knowing what they're doing. - What they're pretending to do. - And not being able to be a part of it." Mulder stared at her for a moment, and then nodded. He supposed it must be hard for Dana, having her fiance pretending to be having an intimate relationship with a woman who was so much like her that if they should decide to make the swap permanent, it would be unlikely that anyone would realise the difference. "So why are you two still denying what's between you?" Dana asked, her voice breaking into Mulder's thoughts. "Huh?... Oh, I told you, Dana. - There isn't anything between me and Scully." "If there isn't, why is the knowledge of what they're doing freaking you out so much?" Mulder sighed. - Dana may not know him as well as Scully, but she was still extremely perceptive of his mood. "I don't know. - I'm just hoping that this works properly, and nothing goes wrong. - It must be difficult for you though." Artfully, Mulder turned the conversation around. Dana shrugged. "I admit, I don't like it. - I know Fox will be faithful to me, but it still *feels* strange." Mulder nodded, and then said playfully, "They should be the ones worrying, not us. - After all, they've got all the Bureau watching their every move, while we're here all alone..." Dana smiled, "Yes, I guess it goes both ways." "So why don't we forget about them for a bit, and watch some t.v.?" Mulder suggested. Dana shrugged, and then nodded in agreement. "Sure. - Why not?" She reached over to turn the t.v. on, while Mulder found the remote control. He flipped across the channels until he found an old black and white romance film that was just starting. Knowing that Scully loved these films, and guessing that Dana did too, he left the film on. * * * Fox sat alone in the X-files office, carefully reading a case-file that had been sent down from Mulder's colleagues upstairs. One thing both he and his alternate did well was spotting links in cases which had come to a stand-still, and this meant that they were frequently asked to have a look at a case which had come to a dead end. - Despite their colleagues' distrust of them, they all found need of Fox or Mulder's talents at some time or another. The office was dim as usual, and over-warm. A fan on top of one of the three metal filing cabinets lined against the wall to Fox's left gave a small flow of air in the basement room. The desk he worked at was covered with papers, old memos, sunflower seed shells, and pencil shavings. - It felt just like his own. The door opened, and Scully came in. She had spent the afternoon in the pathology lab, carrying out an autopsy. She nodded to Fox, and smiled slightly as she took her black overcoat from over her arm, and hung it on the coatstand just inside the door. Then she moved towards her desk, and glanced at her watch as she sat down in her imitation leather swivel chair. It was 6.27pm. "How was the autopsy?" Fox asked, swiveling his chair to face his partner. She shrugged. "Just another electrocution." she said, "Anyone could have done it. - I don't know why they asked for me. - What are you working on?" "The Donalds case for Agent Stanton." Fox replied, glancing back at the case-file on his desk, "He asked me to take a look and said he'd be back before he leaves tonight to pick it up." Scully nodded, "I've got to complete the autopsy report, but then we can head back to mine if you want." Fox nodded. From the corridor outside came the sound of footsteps. Fox and Scully's gazes met, and they both rose to their feet. Stepping close together between their desks, they linked their hands at their sides as though by a prearranged agreement, and waited for their visitor to arrive. Agent Stanton opened the door after a perfunctory knock, and opened his lips to greet his colleagues, but then froze without speaking when he saw them. Their eyes were locked together, and they were standing so close together that their bodies were touching in places. At the sound of the door opening, they somewhat belatedly moved apart, and Stanton saw Mulder bow his head a little as he turned towards his desk to collect the case-file the agent had brought down for his inspection earlier. Scully, apparently a little flustered, sat down at her desk, and appeared to give great concentration to an autopsy report there, which she plainly hadn't started work on yet. Agent Stanton's attention was drawn away from her by Mulder. "I've looked over the case," Fox told Stanton, "and I believe that you'd do well to look into this delivery service, - "Rapid Reply". - I've made a few other notes through the file as well, but that's about the best lead I can offer you." Stanton nodded, glanced across at Scully again, who still had her head down, and then left the room without a word. As the door closed behind Stanton, Scully looked up from the report she found herself unable to concentrate on, and a smile broke onto her face. When she met Fox's eyes, she started to laugh, and soon they were both enjoying the joke. "I couldn't believe the *look* on his *face*!" Scully gasped, and Fox nodded. "I guess it'll make for some interesting gossip around the office." he agreed. By agreement, neither of them mentioned that it was actually a charade, in case their office was bugged. Scully looked down at her autopsy report. "I don't think I can write this now." she sighed, "I'll bring it home with me." Getting to her feet, she dropped the report into her briefcase which was at the side of her desk, and went to the coat-stand to retrieve her overcoat. Fox collected his too, and they exited the office together. Five minutes later they were crossing the second storey of the FBI car park towards Scully's car, when Fox whispered, "There's someone a little way behind us. - Want to give them something to look at?" Scully smiled, "Okay." She too had heard the distant footsteps. Stopping by a pillar, which didn't quite afford them any shelter from inquisitive eyes, they turned to face each other. Scully wrapped her arms around Fox's waist, and he cupped her head tenderly in his hands, before lowering his lips onto hers. Scully barely noticed the sensation of the lingering kiss, - her concentration was on the footsteps she had been hearing. She heard them slow, and stop a short distance away, but managed to refrain from turning her head to see who was watching them. Then Fox pulled away, and they continued walking. As the footsteps behind them resumed, Fox murmured, "Not a bad day's gossip-mongering." Scully smiled. End of part 2. I'd greatly appreciate any comments or constructive criticism from fellow X-Philes. Email me at . Danielle Culverson. From reevesl@pilot.msu.edu Thu May 15 08:03:48 1997 Newsgroups: alt.tv.x-files.creative Subject: Liaison III 3/5 by Danielle Culverson From: reevesl@pilot.msu.edu (Lisa Reeves) -------- Please note: I DID NOT WRITE THIS. This fanfic was posted to the x-files-fanfic mailing list; all stories posted to this list are forwarded to this newsgroup unless the author specifically requests otherwise. For information on this mailing list, and how to subscribe, point your browser to: http://mail.utep.edu/~trevizo/x-files . If you don't have web access, send a note to gossamer@birdfeeder.com with "subscribe request" in the subject, and I'll send you instructions. Please reply to the author, not to me. I will attempt to pass along any feedback that comes to me; however I do NOT guarantee I'll be able to do this. If you're missing a part, please contact the author, drop me a note at reevesl@pilot.msu.edu, or check one of the archives. For a list of archive locations, send a blank e-mail to archivefaq@akamail.com. ---------------------------------------------------------------- Subject: "Liaison III" (3/5) by Danielle Culverson This is the third story in the "Liaison" series, written by Danielle Culverson. She would love to hear your comments at smythja@aston.ac.uk. Remember, I am only posting this for her; she is the author. This is a fiction story based on the characters created by Chris Carter. No infringement of copyrights held by 10/13 Productions, Twentieth Century Productions, or Fox Broadcasting is intended. All unrecognised characters and plot-lines belong to me. Names, characters, and places exist solely within my imagination, or are used fictitiously. No connection to any person, living or dead, is intended, and any resemblance is entirely coincidental. Feel free to distribute, but please keep me as the author. Danielle Culverson. Part 3/5. * * * Scully entered her main room having just changed out of her restrictive work clothes and into jeans and a shirt. She glanced at Mulder, who was sitting on the sofa, his long legs stretched out in front of him, and his hands clasped behind his head, and then moved to an armchair to sit down. Dana and Fox appeared in the doorway, Fox too having changed into some clothes he had borrowed from Mulder. "We're going out for a bit." Dana told the seated partners. Mulder nodded, understanding the couple's need for some time to themselves. A moment later he heard the front door close after them. He turned his gaze towards Scully. She seemed hardly aware that their alternates had just left, and was staring intensely at nothing. "Scully?" Mulder asked, concerned about his partner. She made no response. "Scully, are you alright?" Scully's head snapped up, and she pinned him with her icy gaze, "Why shouldn't I be?" she asked sharply. He shrugged. "It's just... you seem... a little distant." Mulder paused for a moment, "You know, this situation is a little strange, with you working with Fox, and me being here with Dana, and everything. - It's only to be expected that we'll both find it a little difficult." "Why should I find it difficult?" Scully snapped, "Fox is just like you." "Except that he's in love with a woman who in many ways is just like you." ""In many ways"? - You prefer Dana to me, do you?" Scully's voice was plainly angry now, and Mulder found his own anger rising, and also, oddly, his protectiveness of her. "No, Scully, that's not what I'm saying..." "So what are you saying?" Scully rose to her feet, her hands clenched on her hips. She was half-uncertain why she should be angry. Somewhere just underneath her anger she recognised with surprise a fear of rejection, and a barely contained jealousy, although why she should have these feelings she didn't know. Mulder didn't rise from the sofa. "I'm saying that it's difficult, that's all. - Dealing with two people who are so much like us, but who have such a completely different relationship. - When Dana looks at me, I know she's comparing me to Fox..." "So what?" Scully retorted childishly, "When Fox looks at me he's comparing me to Dana." Mulder swallowed, that comment cutting him much deeper than he would have expected. Why should Fox's comparison of Scully with Dana, the woman he loved, affect him this way? He wondered if his comment had affected Scully similarly. He opened his lips to say something, and then his eyes met Scully's. She was clearly waiting impatiently for him to speak, but suddenly he couldn't get any words out. She stared at him for a long moment, and then sighed heavily and stormed out of the room. A moment later the front door banged, and Mulder heard Scully's car start outside, and drive away. He took a deep breath, and lowered his head into his upturned hands. * * * Mulder was woken by the sound of the front door closing, and only then realised that he'd fallen asleep on Scully's sofa. He sat up, bleary-eyed, and called out. "Scully?" "Afraid not, it's me and Fox." came the voice which sounded so much like his partner. Mulder gave a quiet sigh. A moment later the couple came into the main room. "Where is Scully, anyway?" Fox asked. Mulder shook his head. "I don't know. - She... she went out." He lowered his head, "Okay, we had an argument, and she left. - I don't think she'll be back for a while. She was pretty angry." He glanced at his watch, and saw that it was after midnight. "She won't be back tonight now. - I doubt she'll even come into the office tomorrow." "What were you arguing about?" Fox asked. Mulder shrugged hopelessly, and answered in a defeated tone, "I don't know..." "If Scully isn't going to turn up at the office tomorrow, you and I will have to carry on the charade." Dana stated. Mulder and Fox both looked up in surprise. "Really?" Mulder hadn't even thought about the office situation, and was surprised she would be willing to go along with it. Dana nodded. "And don't look like that, Fox," she added, "It's no different to what you and Scully were doing." Fox, appropriately reprimanded, remained silent, and the agreement was made. * * * Mulder entered the X-files basement office, and nodded to Dana, who was seated at Scully's desk, working on the two forensics reports due to be sent upstairs that afternoon. She looked up from her work, and gave a small smile which made something in Mulder's chest tighten. - He so rarely saw Scully's beautiful smile. Perhaps Fox saw Dana's more. Mulder's gaze moved quickly over the room, checking everything was in place, and lingering slightly on Dana. She was wearing Scully's navy blue skrt and jacket, with a white ruffled-neck blouse beneath. The outfit was pleasing to the eye, and elegant. It looked just right on her petite figure, and the colour brought out the blue in her sparkling eyes... Mulder stopped himself. It was bad enough thinking like this about Scully. She was far enough out of his reach. But with Dana, - she may look exactly like Sculy, but that didn't excuse his staring at her. - She was Fox's fiance, and he had to keep that in mind. Scully looked up and gave Fox a brief smile when he came into the office. It was 11.21am, and he had spent most of the morning in a bureaucratic meeting she imagined he must have hated as much as her partner would have. She watched as he moved to Mulder's desk, and sat down, before returning her concentration to her work. She hadn't got as much done as she had hoped to this morning, as her thoughts had been filled with images of her and her real partner, and memories of their argument the previous night. After leaving her house she had driven around Annapolis for some time, trying to organise her thoughts. Finally deciding she was unable to go back and face her partner until she could face herself and explain why she had run away from him, she had checked into a hotel, where she had spent most of the night awake, trying to work out why Mulder's words about Dana comparing him to Fox had hurt her so much, and why she should have felt jealous of him spending time with Dana. She had been unable to answer her questions, and had finally fallen into a tormented sleep. On waking that morning, she had felt little like spending another day of pretended romance with a man who looked so much like her partner, but had come to the conclusion that if she didn't go into the office someone might suspect something, which would put both Fox and Mulder in danger. So she had gone in. Mulder, at his desk, was aware that Dana wasn't getting on with her report properly, but put it down to her uncertainty in his dimension. His thoughts turned worriedly to his partner, and he wondered where she had spent the night. Perhaps she had booked into a hotel, or gone to her mothers. He supposed she would be back at her house by now, but that wouldn't help him to make up after the argument, as he and Dana would be staying at his apartment from now on anyway. - Something Fox and Scully had already planned out. Realising his own work was also going nowhere, Mulder turned towards Dana. "Want to go for lunch?" he suggested. She shrugged. "Okay." and got to her feet. She picked up her handbag from the side of the desk, and crossed the room to meet him at the door. Down the corridor from the office, the elevator was waiting for them. "Spooky." Mulder commented with a smile as he waited for Dana to step inside, and then followed her. They turned to face each other as the doors closed. "Let's give them something to look at upstairs." Scully said quietly, stepping up to Fox. He looked down at her with an unreadable expression in his eyes as she wrapped her arms around his waist, and tilted her head back in readiness for his kiss. Mulder found his arms almost unconsciously encircling Dana, and he was surprised that she was comfortable with enacting this "romance". He supposed that it must be easier for her, having been in a romantic relationship with Fox for a long time. Repeating to himself over and over again that this was his alternate's fiance, he did as she was apparently expecting, and kissed her. After a few moments the kiss deepened, and when the elevator doors opened on the ground floor level, Agent Kirren and Maggie Braithwaite who had been waiting for it, were left in no doubt as to what the "Spooky" partners were doing. The two agents broke apart in feigned embarrassment, and with varying degrees of blush hurried out of the elevator and across the ground floor of the J. Edgar Hoover Building. Several other people had seen what had happened, and more than the usual number of whistles followed them across the room. At Fox's side, Scully was feeling confused. She walked with him without seeing where she was going, her thoughts tumbling over themselves as she tried to compose her emotions. When Fox had kissed her she had felt something, and it hadn't just been the firm pressure of his lips, or the electrifying tingle of his tongue touching hers. It had been something much stronger, much deeper, and much more primal. She hadn't noticed anything like it during the kiss they had shared in the FBI car park, but maybe then she had been too preoccupied with what they were doing, and their silent observer. She felt the eyes of her colleagues boring into her, and it felt as though every one of them could see into her heart and know the truth. - That the man at her side was another woman's husband-to-be, and that she had been so deeply shaken by his kiss that her legs were trembling slightly. She was glad when the doors at the far side of the "bull-ring" closed behind them, and provided relief from the inquisitive stares. They headed towards the FBI cafeteria. * * * Mulder entered the basement office shortly after Dana the next morning, and hung his overcoat on the coat-stand. The night had been uneventful, with both of them being fairly silent and keeping to themselves. They had watched some t.v., and then Dana had gone to bed early, taking his bed while he, as usual, took the couch. From the shadows beneath her eyes, Mulder suspected that neither of them had slept well. Dana started to speak, "I was thinking we should..." Mulder raised a hand to halt her, one finger to his lips. Moving quickly to his desk, he picked up a yellow legal pad, and scribbled a line on it, before passing it to her. "Their ears are everywhere." Dana nodded in understanding, and wrote her remark on the pad below Mulder's. "I was thinking we should try something new." Mulder glanced at the pad, and wrote, "What do you have in mind?" "Well, we don't get many visitors down here, so it's the perfect opportunity for a couple who want to get to know each other better, like "us"." Mulder smiled faintly, seeing where she was heading. He scribbled another line. "Perhaps we should arrange for a visitor." "No, that might give us away. - We'll just wait and see who turns up." came Dana's reply. He looked over at her, and she smiled wickedly, and slipped her maroon jacket off. Then she pulled her light pink blouse free of her skirt, and started to undo the buttons at the neck. Mulder felt his face growing hot, and quickly turned away. He removed his own jacket, undid his tie and let it hand loose around his neck, and then unbuttoned his shirt. He glanced over at Dana, and saw her pull the gold barrette holding her hair so that it was lop-sided, and her auburn locks fell over her face when she tipped her head forward. As Mulder disposed of the sheet of paper they had been writing on, she went to the door and opened it a little, so that if anyone should knock it would swing open. Then she returned to her desk, and calmly got on with her work. Mulder took a little longer to recompose his thoughts, having been surprisingly affected by her blatant unbuttoning of her blouse. Nearly an hour later, Scully heard footsteps approaching the office. She glanced over at Fox and saw that he had heard them too, and was getting to his feet. She quickly got to hers, and he pushed her over to the wall, pinning her against it. Almost roughly, he kissed her on the lips, one hand straying under her loose blouse, and a moment later a hard knock at the door sent it flying open, and the two agents hurriedly broke apart again. Agent Walbrook stood in the doorway with his mouth hanging open in surprise. The scene he had been greeted with when he had reached the office was quite plainly "Spooky" Mulder and Agent Scully enjoying a rather passionate bit of rough-and-tumble in their secluded basement office. When they pulled apart in horror at the realisation that they had a visitor, he saw that Scully's hair was all over the place, and her blouse unbuttoned all the way down the front. Mulder's clothes were in similar disarray, but he ignored this as he approached the agent, quite obviously trying to take Walbrook's mind off what he had just seen. "What do you want?" Mulde snapped, as behind him, Dana feigned embarrassment, and buttoned her blouse. "I... er... came to ask you to look over this." Walbrook held up a case-file that had been dangling limply from one hand. "Okay, you've brought it, so scat." Mulder snatched the file, and then shooed Walbrook out of the office. The startled agent went without a word, and Mulder turned to smile at Dana as she finished fastening her blouse. From the other side of the office, Scully smiled back. End of part 3. I'd greatly appreciate any comments or constructive criticism from fellow X-Philes. Email me at . Danielle Culverson. From reevesl@pilot.msu.edu Thu May 15 08:04:12 1997 Newsgroups: alt.tv.x-files.creative Subject: Liaison III 4/5 by Danielle Culverson From: reevesl@pilot.msu.edu (Lisa Reeves) -------- Please note: I DID NOT WRITE THIS. This fanfic was posted to the x-files-fanfic mailing list; all stories posted to this list are forwarded to this newsgroup unless the author specifically requests otherwise. For information on this mailing list, and how to subscribe, point your browser to: http://mail.utep.edu/~trevizo/x-files . If you don't have web access, send a note to gossamer@birdfeeder.com with "subscribe request" in the subject, and I'll send you instructions. Please reply to the author, not to me. I will attempt to pass along any feedback that comes to me; however I do NOT guarantee I'll be able to do this. If you're missing a part, please contact the author, drop me a note at reevesl@pilot.msu.edu, or check one of the archives. For a list of archive locations, send a blank e-mail to archivefaq@akamail.com. ---------------------------------------------------------------- Subject: "Liaison III" (4/5) by Danielle Culverson This is the third story in the "Liaison" series, written by Danielle Culverson. She would love to hear your comments; her address is smythja@aston.ac.uk. Remember, I'm only posting this for her. She is the author. This is a fiction story based on the characters created by Chris Carter. No infringement of copyrights held by 10/13 Productions, Twentieth Century Productions, or Fox Broadcasting is intended. All unrecognised characters and plot-lines belong to me. Names, characters, and places exist solely within my imagination, or are used fictitiously. No connection to any person, living or dead, is intended, and any resemblance is entirely coincidental. Feel free to distribute, but please keep me as the author. Danielle Culverson. Part 4/5. * * * Scully and Fox entered the FBI cafeteria, and found a small table in a fairly secluded corner. Scully sat down to reserve the table for them, while Fox collected their lunch. He returned a few minutes later with a tray supporting two polystyrene cups of coffee, a bowl of vegetable soup and some cheese and tomato sandwiches for Scully, and a plate of sausage and chips for himself. He placed the tray down on the table, and proceeded to very ceremoniously lift off the cups and plates. Scully smiled at him as she opened a paper napkin and laid it across her knee, keenly aware of the eyes of her colleagues that followed her every move. The cafeteria wasn't busy yet, but it soon would be. There were about thirty agents scattered through the room in pairs and small groups. The room was warm and steamy from the kitchens behind the food hatches which ran alond one end, and it smelled of vinegar like the roadside diners Mulder frequented. The tables were plastic coated chipboard, with little to tey and disguise the fact. The chairs were plastic, and the popular rumour was that they were designed to be uncomfortable in order to discourage long lunch hours. Glancing around the cafeteria, Scully saw Agents Kirren and Stanton watching them. The partners in the Violent Crimes Unit were two of the friendliest towards Mulder and Scully, and this was noticeable in their slightly surprised expressions as they saw the "partners" sitting together, as opposed to the look of contempt on most of the other faces turned their way. A few tables over from Kirren and Stanton, Scully saw Maggie Braithwaite and Cecilia Douglas. They were secretaries for some of the Bureau's "paper-pushers". They kept glancing over at Fox and Scully, and then leaning across their table to whisper to each other, and laugh. Scully smiled internally, pleased to see the charade was working. - It was easy to forget that her partner's life depended on this working properly, - and Fox's too for that matter. Fox slid into the chair opposite Scully, and began eating his meal with a hearty appetite. Like her partner, Scully noticed he ate as though food was in short supply, and he never seemed to suffer indigestion. Agent Luton and Agent Ellis came into the cafeteria, and seeing the "partners", altered their route to pass Fox and Scully's table. "Go for it, "Spooky"!" Luton exclaimed, slapping Fox on the back as he passed. "Nice one, Mulder." Ellis added, and followed his friend to the food hatches. Scully raised an eyebrow, and glanced significantly at Fox as they moved away. On the other side of the room, Kirren and Stanton had just finished their meal, and they too detoured to pass Fox and Scully's table as they left the cafeteria. "How long's it been going on?" Kirren asked, matter-of-factly, her eyes on Scully, who blushed and looked down. "I don't know what you mean." she replied. "Oh, come on Dana, everyone knows you and Mulder have got something going. - It's just how you kept it quiet for so long that's got me confused." "There's nothing "going on" between me and Mulder." Scully replied, and lifted her head slightly, although she didn't meet the eyes of either of the two agents standing over them, who were scrutinising their every move. "Sure." Kirren said sharply, and then turned away. Scully swallowed. - Nancy Kirren was a good friend of hers, and she hoped she wasn't going to lose the friendship through this charade. Stanton followed his partner out of the cafeteria, and the door had barely closed after him when it opened again to admit Greeber, Walbrook, and Tamworth. "Well, look who it is. - The love birds!" Greeber exclaimed. His colleagues looked over to see what had caught his attention, and a knowing smile flickered over Walbrook's face. The three of them took a table one over from Fox and Scully, and it was plain from the start that their conversation was focused entirely on the two "Spooky" agents. Scully could hear only a little of what they were saying, but the glances over, the whispered comments, and the laughter were quite obvious enough in themselves. She looked up and saw Fox looking at her. She could tell he had something in mind, and although she didn't know what it was, she nodded her head in willingness to go along. Mulder waited until a loud burst of laughter came from the agents at the nearby table, and then got to his feet abruptly. Taking Dana's arm, he urged her to get up also, and led her quickly out of the cafeteria. Wolf whistles from Greeber and Tamworth followed them out. * * * Once Mulder and Dana were safely back in their office, they broke into silent laughter. Although fearful of breaking their cover, they still couldn't contain all their mirth at their colleagues' reactions to their "romance". Dana sat down at Scully's desk, wiping at her eyes with a paper hanky, as they were damp with unshed tears of laughter. Mulder sat at his desk, and rested his head in his hands, his elbows resting on the desk. There was a knock at the door. "Come in?" Mulder called. The door of the office opened to admit a familiar figure. "Frohike? What are you doing here?" Frohike, possibly the weirdest, although the least paranoid of the Lone Gunmen, closed the door carefully behind him, and his eyes lingered on Dana before turning on Mulder, almost angrily. "Why didn't you tell me?" he demanded, "I thought we were friends?" "Tell you what?" Mulder feigned lack of knowledge. "Tell me that you two were an item. - You *know* I've always admired Agent Scully," at this, he turned towards Dana slightly, and inclined his head slightly in a gentlemanly show of respect, "but you don't bother to inform me that you've got a relationship going." "Frohike, we don't..." "Don't try and deny it!" Frohike cried, apparently slightly distressed, "I know what's going on. - I've got more reliable sources in the Bureau than you two, you know." Scully watched this outburst in silence, and wondered whether is was due to the fact that she was apparenly no longer even remotely available to Frohike, or the fact that he hadn't been told that she was "in a relationship" with her partner. Scully's attention was taken off the increasingly heated conversation between Fox and Frohike by the phone on her desk ringing. She picked it up, while trying to listen at the same time to the argument going on on the other side of the office. "Scully." "Dana?" Scully's attention was immediately focused on the phone call as she recognised her mother's voice. "Mom? - Hi, how are you?" "I'm fine, honey, but I'll be better when I know how *you* are." "Mom?" Scully was puzzled. "I've heard a rumour, Dana, that you're involved with Fox. - Romantically involved, I mean." "Mom!" Scully exclaimed, "Where did you hear that?" "Oh, I've got a friend who knows a friend." Margaret Scully answered cryptically, "And I've always had a feeling about you two. - So, is it true?" Scully thought quickly, trying to decide whether or not she should admit what was "going on" to her mother. Finally she decided on a compromise. "Well, sort of, Mom. - It's a bit delicate at the moment. We're having to redefine our relationship,... we're both still finding out feet at the moment... I don't precisely know *what's* between us..." Scully trailed and was pleased to hear a satisfied sigh at the other end of the line. Well, it wasn't precisely true, but it wasn't a lie either, and it seemed to be enough for her mother. The sound of the door closing startled Scully, and she realised that Frohike had just left. "Well," Margaret Scully said finally, "you'll keep me informed of what's going on, won't you?" "Sure, Mom." Scully replied, "I'll call you in a couple of days. - Bye." "Bye, honey." The line disconnected, Scully put her phone down, and across the office her gaze met Fox's. * * * Mulder sat alone in the J. Edgar Hoover building cafeteria, a polystyrene cup of strong coffee on the table in front of him, untouched. His elbows rested on the table, and his head in the palms of his upturned hands. He looked the very picture of a man struggling between two desires, and not coming to a conclusion about which he wanted most. "Mind if I sit down?" Mulder looked up to see the figure of Assistant Director Skinner standing over him, and groaned inwardly. "No, sir." Skinner sat down opposite Mulder, and put down his own polystyrene cup of coffee. Then he winked at the agent. Mulder blinked. - Had he just seen *Skinner* wink at him? - His thoughts tumbled in confusion until Skinner said abruptly. "I've been hearing rumours, Agent Mulder, and I don't like them." "What rumours, sir?" Mulder asked innocently. "You know perfectly well what rumours. - Rumours of you and Agent Scully being involved in a personal relationship outside your professional one." "If that was true, sir, - which it isn't, - I don't see what business it would be of yours." "Agent Mulder, Bureau protocal quite plainly states that..." "Bureau protocol! - What does that matter, as long as our work isn't affected?" "You admit the relationship, then?" "No, I do not! And I resent your suggestion on behalf of Agent Scully and myself." "Agent Mulder, if something *is* going on, I suggest you consider your future very carefully, because if I shoul ever find out officially that there is anything between you and Agent Scully, I shall be forced to..." "What?" Mulder cried, "Report us to those high-ups who keep pulling your strings? They're probably the ones who started the rumours, - they've been trying to get me out of the Bureau for years. - So why don't you push off and leave Scully and I alone!" Mulder got to his feet abruptly, and stalked out of the cafeteria. The silence behind him as he left was deafening. * * * Mulder entered the J. Edgar Hoover building alone the next morning, Dana having gone in a little ahead of him. The usual whistles and stares that followed him were doubled today, and as he crossed the ground floor "bull-ring" he was aware that every eye was on him. The whistles and calls subdued a little when Mulder saw Skinner coming out of the corridor next to the elevator he was heading for. The Assistant Director moved quickly towards the agent, and intercepted him. "I have a new case for you, Agent Mulder." were Skinner's only words as he handed Mulder a case-file, and then moved on. Mulder tried not to show any interest until he was safely inside the elevator, and on his way to the basement. Then he opened the file, and his eyes fell on a small piece of paper, folded twice. He opened it up. "At 1.40pm I will send Agent Starley to basement filing room 2a as a witness. You and Agent Scully go to the room at 1.55pm, and engage in a romantic interlude without acknowledging Agent Starley's presence. I will arrive at 2.05pm, and discover you." Mulder's eyebrows rose as he surveyed the contents of the note. The doors of the elevator opened on the basement, and he stepped out, walking quickly to the X-files office. Entering, he moved to Dana, who was seated at the computer, - she had taken her lap-top home previously to do some work, and so was resorting to the old machine in their office, - and handed her the note. She scanned it quickly, and then turned in her seat to look up at him in surprise. * * * At 1.50pm, Scully glanced across at Fox, and saw him looking at her. Their eyes met, and they got to their feet simultaneously. He took her hand in his as they moved towards the door, and she felt the electric tingle of his touch. They went out into the corridor, and along it into the little-used filing and storage area of the basement. Coming to room 2a, Fox opened the door, and Scully followed him in. Mulder glanced around the room, and saw no immediate sign of anyone. - Good. - Dana closed the door behind them, and they turned to each other. "Dana," Mulder said softly, aware he was "performing" for an audience, "I can't stand all this pretence. - Being with you all the time, and not being able to tell anyone how I feel about you." "I know, Fox." Dana responded, "I feel the same, - but we both know *they* would throw you out if they found out we were involved like this." Mulder had taken both of Dana's hands in his as he spoke, but now he lifted his fingers to caress her face. Her skin felt so soft beneath his fingertips, and when she looked up at him her eyes were so full of caring, that try as he might to deny it, he didn't need to pretend as he murmured words of adoration to her. "I love you." he said quietly, looking into her eyes. "I love you, too." Scully responded, wrapping her arms around Fox's waist, and allowing him to tilt her head at a suitable angle as he lowered his lips onto hers. Despite the fact that she knew it was a charade, she couldn't help but feel that what they were doing was forbidden, and this increased her excitement as his arms wrapped around her, his lips pressing firmly onto hers, and then parting to deepen the kiss. She found her heart and body responding to his advances, but although she knew she was embracing another woman's husband-to-be, she couldn't push her unprofessional feelings aside. The only light in her dark situation seemed to be the knowledge that all too soon it would all be over. A creak indicated that the door was opening again, but neither partner acknowledged the impending presence of another person on the scene. The basement silence was shattered a moment later by the angry voice of their superior. "Agents Mulder and Scully! - I will speak to you in my office, *immediately*!" End of part 4. I'd greatly appreciate any comments or constructive criticism from fellow X-Philes. Email me at . Danielle Culverson. From reevesl@pilot.msu.edu Thu May 15 08:04:01 1997 Newsgroups: alt.tv.x-files.creative Subject: Liaison III 5/5 by Danielle Culverson From: reevesl@pilot.msu.edu (Lisa Reeves) -------- Please note: I DID NOT WRITE THIS. This fanfic was posted to the x-files-fanfic mailing list; all stories posted to this list are forwarded to this newsgroup unless the author specifically requests otherwise. For information on this mailing list, and how to subscribe, point your browser to: http://mail.utep.edu/~trevizo/x-files . If you don't have web access, send a note to gossamer@birdfeeder.com with "subscribe request" in the subject, and I'll send you instructions. Please reply to the author, not to me. I will attempt to pass along any feedback that comes to me; however I do NOT guarantee I'll be able to do this. If you're missing a part, please contact the author, drop me a note at reevesl@pilot.msu.edu, or check one of the archives. For a list of archive locations, send a blank e-mail to archivefaq@akamail.com. ---------------------------------------------------------------- Subject: "Liaison III" (5/5) by Danielle Culverson This is the third story in the "Liaison" series, written by Danielle Culverson. She would love to hear your comments at smythja@aston.ac.uk. Remember, I'm only posting this for her. She is the author. This is a fiction story based on the characters created by Chris Carter. No infringement of copyrights held by 10/13 Productions, Twentieth Century Productions, or Fox Broadcasting is intended. All unrecognised characters and plot-lines belong to me. Names, characters, and places exist solely within my imagination, or are used fictitiously. No connection to any person, living or dead, is intended, and any resemblance is entirely coincidental. Feel free to distribute, but please keep me as the author. Danielle Culverson. Part 5/5. * * * Mulder entered Skinner's office after the Assistant Director, and Dana followed him, closing the door carefully behind her. The two agents stood in front of Skinner's desk, but were not invited to sit when they superior seated himself. Looking up at them, he winked, tapped one ear, and then proceeded with his tirade. "Can either one of you offer a reasonable explanation for what I just saw downstairs?" he demanded, and barely giving a pause to allow them to answer, continued, "I come upon you in a little-used filing room, quite obviously... involved, with each other. Is there any reason why I should assume there's any more to this than meets the eye?" He looked from one agent to the other, but neither made an answer. "Agent Mulder, perhaps you can explain to me why, when I asked you yesterday, you denied having a personal relationship with your partner?" "Because it was none of your business... sir. It's not affecting our work." "The hell it's not, Mulder! - Were you working when I found you just now? Researching a case? How long has this been going on?" Mulder and Dana glanced at each other, uncertain what to say, but Skinner continued. "Some time, by the looks on your faces. - And who initiated this... involvement?" "No-one." Dana answered, "No-one initiated it, sir, - it just happened." "Just happened? - Like that passionate kiss downstairs just happened?" "Things like that do just happen when two people are in love, - but I don't suppose you'd know that, sir." Mulder muttered. Skinner's eyes widened, and he reddened slightly. "That's enough, Agent Mulder! - You are suspended from your duties pending an inquiry into this incident, when your resignation will almost certainly be requested. - You are dismissed. Mulder glared at Skinner, and then turned and stalked out of the room, banging the door hard behind him. Scully watched Fox leave, and then turned back to face the Assistant Director, who was now a little calmer. "Agent Scully, while I am certain that you were as much involved in this relationship as Agent Mulder, looking back over you record, I know that before being partnered with him you were a first class agent. Since then, however, you have been involved in multiple breaches of Bureau regulations and protocol, and I have reason to believe, even federal crimes. However, I believe this was all due to Agent Mulder's influence, therefore I am not going to suspend you, but you will have to undergo a probationary period, during which you must stay completely within the Bureau's regulations, or suffer the same action as Agent Mulder. Do you understand?" "Yes, sir." Scully replied. "Very well. - Dismissed." Scully turned and left the office. She met Fox, who was waiting for her outside. "What happened to you?" he asked. "Skinner believes it was your influence that led me astray, so I'm on probation." she replied. He smiled faintly. "Of course, - "Spooky" Mulder's fault as usual." "I suppose we should go back and meet up with the others now this is over." Scully suggested. Fox nodded. "Okay." They walked away from the Assistant Director's office together. * * * Scully walked up the path to her house, and produced a set of keys to open the front door. Fox followed her inside, and they checked the house over for listening devices before speaking a word. - It took nearly two hours. - Finally sure that they were safe to talk, Scully turned to Fox, and commented. "I wonder where Mulder and Dana are? I thought they'd be here." Fox looked puzzled, and started to raise his hand in question, "Well,... I'm Mulder... and I thought you were Dana?" "No." Scully shook her head in confusion, "I'm Scully." "But..." Mulder trailed, "... when we argued, and you stormed out..." "I went to a hotel for the night, and went straight to the office the next morning." Scully supplied. "I didn't think you'd come back. - Dana and I decided to continue instead of you and Fox, so I thought it was Dana I've been working with." Scully shook her head, "No, - I've been there all the time, - but if Dana was supposed to meet you at the office, then where are she and Fox now?" Mulder shook his head in defeat, "I've no idea, Scully." He sat down heavily on her sofa, and rested his head in his hands. Then he lifted it to look up at her again. "I'm sorry about the argument, Scully. - I didn't mean to upset you. - I... What you said about Fox comparing you to Dana really bothered me, and I'm not sure why." "It's alright, Mulder." Scully sat down on the sofa next to her wayward partner, and took his hands in hers, "What you said about Dana comparing you to Fox bothered me too. - But it doesn't matter." Mulder looked down at her hands, enclosing his, and smiled slightly. "It's funny, every time we did something to increase the charade, I felt something that was far more than I should have felt for Dana. - I kept pushing it away, because I was with Fox's fiance, but all the time it was you." Scully stared at him, "You felt that too? - The first time we kissed after you must have taken Fox's place, I noticed something which was much more than had been there on the first time I had kissed Fox. I too kept pushing it away, because I thought you were Dana's husband-to-be." They sat and stared at each other for long moments without speaking, and then Mulder broke the silence. "Scully, what are you saying? Do you want there to be a personal side to our relationship?" Scully pulled her hands from Mulder's, and looked down, unable to meet his gaze. "I... I don't know." she admitted, "I..." Mulder understood without her having to say anything else, and took her hands, encompassing them with his larger ones. "This has been difficult for both of us, with the death threat, and the pressure to the get the charade right, and not daring to talk about it at all. - Perhaps we should give it some time, and see how we feel in a few months when everything had settled down. - Meanwhile, let's find out what happened to Fox and Dana. Scully nodded, and got to her feet to retrieve her lap-top from the table where she had left it. Pressing "Ctrl-Alt", and, on inspiration, "Home", she transported Fox and Dana back to her apartment. The couple appeared at the side of the room, talking, and looked around in surprise when they saw they were back in their alternates' dimension. "Welcome back." Mulder said dryly. "What happened to you?" Scully added. Fox rolled his eyes, "Just after Mulder left for the office the day after you argued, someone broke in here. Dana and I hid..." "In your closet." Dana admitted to Scully. "... He appeared to be looking for some information, and seeing your lap-top computer, he switched it on, and must have pressed "Ctrl-Alt", because we ended up back in our dimension." "What happened here while we were gone?" Dana asked, "Although I can see you didn't get killed yet." "Scully and I each believed we were working with one of you, and carried on the charade. I've just been suspended, - but Skinner believes it was *you* he suspended, Fox, and besides he knows we were only acting." "You mean you two continued to pretend to be a couple?" Dana asked, incredulously. "Well, what else could we do?" Scully countered, "We didn't know who we were with." "And they say they're completely professional." Fox commented with a smile, "That there's nothing romantic in their relationship." "There isn't!" Scully protested. Dana just smiled. "So, when all this has blown over, Skinner will announce my reinstatement, and everything will be back the way it should be, - with, and without your help." Mulder nodded towards Fox and Dana. They smiled. "Always glad to be of help. - I guess we should be getting back now, though." Dana said. Scully nodded, and her fingers rested over the buttons on her lap-top. "Whenever you're ready." "Just don't forget to keep in touch." Dana said, and nodded. Scully hit "Ctrl-Alt", and Fox and Dana vanished. She turned towards Mulder. "I just hope we don't *need* their help again in the near future." she said. Mulder smiled. The End. I'd greatly appreciate any comments or constructive criticism from fellow X-Philes. Email me at . Danielle Culverson.