From: ephemeral@ephemeralfic.org
Date: 23 Dec 2002 22:04:33 -0000
Subject: The Lord of Misrule Pt. 1/4 by Dyann Zimmerman
Source: direct

Reply To: philer@onemain.com


TITLE: The Lord of Misrule  Pt. 1/4
AUTHOR: Dyann Zimmerman
RATING: R/NC-17
KEYWORDS: MSR; RST; Holiday-fic. Not even the
smell of an X-File in here.
SUMMARY: Mulder and Scully spend the holidays
together and discover what they want out of
life.  Schmaltzy, smut-filled fare.
DISCLAIMERS: Please sue me.  I'd love my
fifteen minutes.
AUTHOR'S NOTE: Lord of Misrule (master of
revels); In Europe in the 15th and 16th
Centuries, somebody appointed to organize
celebrations, especially at Christmas.
E-MAIL: philer@onemain.com


DANA SCULLY'S APARTMENT
DECEMBER 21st, 11:07pm
The television was on; tuned to something
that Mulder was watching and something that
Scully was paying no attention to whatsoever.
He was already in bed, laying flat except for
his head which was propped against too many
pillows.  Scully was piddling around the
bedroom, putting away the dry cleaning,
getting out the clothes she had decided she
wanted to wear for her last day of work
before the holidays.  The television was
barely audible to her, but Mulder chuckled
away at something every couple of minutes and
she began to wonder what he was laughing at.
"What on earth are you watching, Mulder?" she
asked as she was crawling into bed, noticing
a rather common looking woman on the screen
doing nothing more than sitting behind a
desk.

"'Sunday Night Sex Talk'," he answered,
reaching to grab the remote to turn up the
volume.

"Mulder, it's Thursday..." she said flatly,
fluffing her pillow behind her, figuring he
was just trying to get a rise out of her.

"I know, but I think it's a repeat.  You've
got to watch this, Scully.  This woman is
hilarious... and you just might learn
something," he said, wagging his eyebrows at
her.  Scully looked at him suspiciously
before glancing toward the television,
finding herself watching it.  Mulder watched
her, witnessing her expression grow into
total incredulity within the short time span.

"Mulder, who... what IS this?" she asked,
looking at him, unbelieving that she had just
heard the little old lady give a detailed
dissertation on the advantages of cock rings.

"She's a 'sex educator'" he smiled to her,
the teasing gleam sparkling in his eyes.

"In other words, she has no credentials and
is a self-appointed 'expert'," she said,
moving to lay down further in the bed.  "If
the woman was actually trained, she might
point out a few of the potential dangers of
her little toy there...," she finished,
turning over to pillow her head on her arm.
"Goodnight, Mulder."

He turned off the television and the bedside
light and snuggled up behind her, wrapping
his arm around her waist as he kissed her
neck.  "I like your form of sex education
better, Scully.  It's hands on," he teased
her.

She finally chuckled, covering his hand with
hers, bringing it to her mouth to kiss his
fingers.  She turned on her back to look at
him, lifting her head to kiss him lightly on
the lips.  "I'll miss you while I'm gone,
Mulder," she said, a true sadness to her
voice.

"How long will you be gone?" he asked, his
hand instinctively rubbing her stomach
through her pajama top, his other hand
propping his head up to look down at her.

"We'll leave Saturday and we should return
Tuesday, Wednesday at the latest," she
answered, her fingers subconsciously rubbing
his chest.  "It depends on what Mom wants to
do.  She's a little nervous about spending
the holidays with Aunt Olive... afraid she'll
be in the way of their family celebration, I
think."

"But it's her sister..."

"I know.  I keep trying to remind her of
that.  If she really wants to feel
uncomfortable about it, she ought to be me
for a few days," Scully chuckled.

Mulder had been invited to go along but he
felt Scully was just being polite, not
wanting him to feel excluded, but not really
expecting him to go.  Her aunt had been
widowed during the past year and asked months
ago for Margaret and Scully to come to her
home in Pennsylvania for the holidays.
Margaret had not known how to say 'no' and
Scully had not known, at that time, how much
she would want to be at home for Christmas...
with Mulder.

"I just want to be here with you, Mulder..."
she said softly, snuggling close to him,
lifting her leg over his hip as she slipped
her arms around his neck.  "I want to have
Christmas with you."

"It's just a day, Scully.  If you get back on
Tuesday, then we'll call that day Christmas.
If it's Wednesday, then Wednesday will be
Christmas... for us.  Okay?" he said lovingly
to her, giving her a soft, but lingering
kiss.

"You would be welcomed, Mulder.  You are with
me and that's all my family needs to hear,"
she said, her way of asking him, but not
pressing it.

"Yeah, tell that to Bill," he kidded her.

"He won't be there.  He was delayed on his
ship and won't be ashore until at least the
28th," she smiled at him.  "You'd be safe."
She saw a bit of dejection in his expression,
knowing that he really hadn't had much
experience at family holiday happenings and
worried that he felt he wouldn't be wanted.
"You are always wanted, Mulder.  Don't ever
think that you aren't..." she whispered to
him before kissing him firmly, holding him
tighter to her.

He returned her kiss, easing her down onto
her back, slipping his thigh between her
legs.  "I love you, Scully," he said into her
ear as he nuzzled her neck.

"'love you, too," she mumbled, unable to
speak much more when his hand moved to her
breast.  She could feel his breath quickening
against her chest as he moved down to
unbutton her top.  His mouth felt like all
she ever needed when he began to lick and
suck on her nipple, his hand massaging her
other breast.

Soon, all clothing was relinquished and the
sounds of their lovemaking echoed in the
darkness of her bedroom.  He came first and
helped her to climax with his fingers, not
much being required.  He rubbed his palm
against her slowly, softly, to help her come
down after, something he always did and
something she always needed.  She fell off to
sleep quickly, her steady breaths floating
lightly over the hair spattering his chest.
He lay there thinking... about her and how
sad she had seemed that they wouldn't be
together for Christmas...

DANA SCULLY'S APARTMENT
FRIDAY, DECEMBER 22nd
6:07pm
Scully was able to leave work a little early,
things being fairly slow just before the
holiday.  She and Mulder had joked that they
seemed to be about 20% of the total work
force on duty at Hoover that day.  She had
left Mulder in the office to finish a few
reports that were due the previous week so
that they would, at least, be turned in
before the beginning of the New Year.  She
had gone home, a thousand things on her mind,
and had begun to pack, do some last minute
laundry and wrap a few left over presents.
Mulder was due over later with dinner and
they would have the rest of the evening and
night together before she had to leave the
next morning.

When Scully had finished packing her smaller
bag, her underwear and pajamas all neatly
stored and had selected a couple of things to
hang in her garment bag, she noticed it was
after 7:30 and Mulder still hadn't arrived.
Snow had begun to fall mid-afternoon, but the
accumulation hadn't been much when she had
driven home a few hours ago.  She opened her
front shades and could see the snow
continuing to fall against the glow of the
streetlight.  She hoped to herself that
Mulder hadn't been involved in an accident or
wasn't hopelessly delayed in clogged traffic.
She had everything finished for her trip and
wanted him there.

Her thoughts had no more than entered her
head when she heard a key in the lock and
turned to see Mulder enter the apartment...
carrying take-out in one hand and a large
suitcase in the other.  He moved to give her
a quick kiss as he sat down his bag and
kicked the door shut with his foot behind
him.  "Sorry I'm late, but the restaurant
took forever," he said, moving into the
kitchen to set the take-out on the counter
next to the sink.  "It's goddamned cold out
there, Scully.  I think my voice raised an
octave just walking from my car to your
door."  He was chattering quickly, only then
noticing her still standing by his suitcase,
looking at it.

"Mulder, what's this?" she asked, nodding her
head toward the luggage.

"My stuff... clothes.  Thought it would be
better for your Aunt Olive if I didn't wear
the same underwear for four straight days,"
he said, moving to her.

"Mulder, you don't have to do this..." her
voice soft and tentative, a tone Mulder
rarely heard from her.

He laid his hands loosely on her hips,
looking down at her with the smile that
always just made her melt.  "That's what
people do, Scully.  They go to each other's
class reunions even though they know they'll
be bored stiff; they go to movies they don't
want to see; they go to Aunt Olive's for
Christmas..."

Scully returned his embrace, then moved back
so that she could look at him.  "Or chase
aliens they don't want to chase..." she said,
smiling to him, then moving up to kiss him--
hard.  "What'd ya bring for dinner?" she
said, finally going to the kitchen to look in
the sack he had brought.

"Scully, right now, I'd rather have dessert,"
he said, putting his arms around her waist
from behind, kissing her neck.

"Let's eat first and have our dessert in bed,
okay?" she answered, looking back at him.
"Besides, you'll need your nourishment for
tomorrow," she joked, before turning around
to kiss him.  "And for later tonight if
you're good."

"So who else will be there... at your aunt's,
I mean?" he asked.  Mulder put a couple of
plates on the table and emptied the takeout
into serving bowls while Scully opened a
bottle of chilled white that she had almost
forgotten she had in her refrigerator.

"Most likely, all three of my cousins.  Betsy
is great... you'll like her.  Her brother,
Tom, is... quiet, I guess you would say, but
a bit 'different'.  I kinda think you two
might just hit it off, Mulder," she said,
being a bit mysterious.

"Different, huh?  Is that your way of telling
me he's as weird as I am?" he kidded her.

"You'll find out, Mulder... Soon enough," she
smiled.

"Anybody else going to be there?" he asked
then, his mouth full of salad.

"Well, yes... my other cousin... Ruth," she
said hesitantly.  Mulder noticed her
reticence to mention the last one, his
curiosity beginning to peak.

"What?  Is she the one they keep in the
basement or something?" he asked.

"No such luck..." Scully answered, almost
under her breath.  "To be frank, Mulder--
she's a bitch.  A gossip mongering, petty,
childish woman...  And I don't like being
around her," Scully finished, her mood now
serious.  "She has caused me grief at times
in my life, Mulder and I just choose not to
spend any more time with her than I have to.
But this trip meant so much to Mom..."

"I'm sure things will be fine, Scully.  It's
Christmas..."

DANA SCULLY'S APARTMENT
SATURDAY, DECEMBER 23rd
7:05am
"Mulllllder... God... Ohgod..." she moaned,
her arms wrapped around his neck, her legs
around his waist.  His hands were under her
bottom, her back against the tile of the
shower as he pumped into her, the sound of
her back squeaking against the ceramic
echoing in the stall.  The water that was
cascading over them went unnoticed as her
climax hit, the pulsing of her inner muscles
sending him over the edge shortly after.  He
managed to sit down on the ledge, still
holding her now limp body on his lap.

"Jesus fucking Christ, Scully..." he managed
to blaspheme through his rapid breathing.

"Mulder..." she chastised, her face still
buried in the crook of his neck.

"Sorry.  Guess that isn't exactly appropriate
Christmas language, huh?" he teased,
lightening the intensity a bit.  "And, I
would guess, not the kind of thing Aunt Olive
would find humorous."

"How perceptive of you..." she said, finally
raising her head to look at him.  "Twice last
night and once this morning... I just hope to
be able to walk when I get to Aunt Olive's,"
she joked as she stood, reaching for the
shampoo.  He took it from her, squeezing out
a small dab in his hand and began massaging
it into her hair.  She leaned back against
him, feeling his love throughout every nerve
of her body, hoping his love for her would be
enough to get them through the next few days.

HOME OF MARGARET SCULLY
SATURDAY, DECEMBER 23rd
11:33am
Mulder and Scully had finally gotten dressed,
after another detour to the bed before
loading the car with luggage and packages.
She kept telling him that they were going to
be late, but provided no real resistance to
his physical advances and his suggestion that
they have 'one more for the road', as he so
delicately put it.  The snow had stopped and
most of the streets were generally passable,
but the temperature had continued to drop
during the night and it seemed like it had
taken forever for the car to warm up and the
windows to defrost.

When they pulled into Margaret's driveway,
she had looked out the window wondering whose
car it was.  When Mulder exited the driver's
side, Margaret's curiosity was even further
peaked, an instant fear coming over her that
something had happened to her daughter.  But
when Scully stepped out of the passenger's
side, she grinned to herself and hurried to
the door, pleased to see that Mulder had
agreed to join them for the holiday.

After loading the car and heading out to I
270, Mulder settled in for the drive and
expected Scully and her mother to talk most
of the way while he tuned them out and just
drove.  But they were barely on the
interstate before Scully nodded off to sleep
and Maggie began to converse with him about,
of all things, his work.  It seemed that
Scully had shared a lot more with her mother
than he would have ever expected and Margaret
was noticeably more open minded than her
daughter about strange things that went bump
in the night.

"Your work seems so fascinating, Fox.  I know
Dana thinks so," she told him, surprising
him.

"She's said that to you?" he asked.

"Many times.  I couldn't tell you the number
of times that she has called me after
returning home from a case and rattled on for
ever about you... what you do," she relayed.
"I knew she was in love with you before she
did."

"I think everybody did," he chuckled,
remembering all the years he dropped hints
that Scully didn't take.  Maggie continued to
tell him stories--of Scully's youth, med
school, her trials and tribulations--things
that Scully had never really mentioned.

"She loves you very much, Fox.  I have never
seen her happier... more content.  I know she
is... guarded with her emotions sometimes...
keeps things bottled up.  But don't ever
think that just because she doesn't express
it that she doesn't feel it," she finished
quietly.

"Mrs. Scully, I know Scully has always
been... reticent to let her feelings show, to
express what she is really feeling
sometimes," he said.  "But not with me... not
anymore."  'If you only knew' he thought to
himself, feeling a subtle rush thinking of
just how 'expressive' Scully had been in the
shower that morning.

They drove for almost another hour before
Scully woke up, immediately disoriented and
wanting to know where they currently were.
"Not too far from the Pennsylvania border,
Scully," he told her.  "We should be in
Somerset in about 45 minutes.  You need to
stop for anything?"

"No, I'm fine.  I'll take a drink of your
water, though," she told him, reaching for
the bottle he held between his legs, the cup-
holder full of half-empty coffee cups.  After
taking a drink, she returned the bottle to
the place she had found it, giving him a sly
grin before kissing him quickly on the mouth.
And Margaret watched the whole interchange
silently, surprised, but pleased at seeing
her daughter so relaxed and affectionate with
him.

"So, Mom.  I assume you have figured out that
I won't be staying at Aunt Olive's with you,"
Scully said, turning to her mother in the
back seat.  Her mother nodded and smiled
slightly, having realized that fact, almost
as soon as she had seen them arrive at her
house.  "We'll find a motel."

"Got one.  The Keystone Inn.  Ever heard of
it, Mrs. Scully?" Mulder asked, knowing
exactly what was going through Scully's mind
at that moment.

"No... and it's 'Margaret'--please."

"Mulder, I swear if that place has stained
sheets or deer antlers hanging over the bed,
I will be sleeping with my mother at Aunt
Olive's," she grumbled at him.

"Scully, you have no faith in me," he teased,
glancing at her next to him.  "If you're not
a nice girl, Santa may just take your
Christmas present back to Fredrick's of
Hollywood," he said, reaching over to wiggle
his finger in her ear.

"Uh hum... I am still here," Margaret said,
slightly embarrassed by their personal
interchange.  Scully leaned her head against
the headrest, closing her eyes and telling
herself that this was going to be one
Christmas to remember.

HOME OF OLIVE KELLY
SOMERSET, PA
SATURDAY, DECEMBER 23rd
6:31PM
The three of them had arrived about 3:30 and
it had taken Mulder four trips to bring
Margaret's stuff and all the gifts into the
house.  The snow had started again about half
an hour before they arrived, so he found
himself cleaning the sidewalks and wondering
if coming with Scully was going to be much of
a holiday.

Scully's aunt had been very cordial to him
and seemed to be a nice, conversational
person.  He thought she looked like Scully a
bit, making him realize that Scully resembled
her mother's side of the family more than she
did her father's side.  The four of them had
had a great dinner, Olive proving to be a
terrific cook and insisting that he eat
seconds and thirds of just about everything.
But he sensed that Scully was uncomfortable
for him, sure that she would probably rather
have been in Idaho.

Mulder had been his mischievous best, finding
every way he could to keep Scully on edge,
doing things to her just out of the view of
her mother and aunt.  He'd reach under the
table and pinch the inside of her upper thigh
just as she was telling her aunt some unknown
story; he'd drop his napkin on the floor and
bite her knee as he bent over to pick it up;
she'd be sitting quietly and he'd offer
something like 'Hey, Scully, why don't you
tell your aunt about the Tooms case?',
leaving her to dig her way out.  He realized
if her stares could kill, he would have been
dead several times over.  But he also knew
she was enjoying every minute of it, even if
she would rather die than admit it.

Finally, Scully had offered their good-byes,
and had almost pushed Mulder out the door and
to the car.  She had gotten inside and left
Mulder to clean the snow from the windows and
waited silently as he pulled out of the
drive.  Finally, when she looked at him, the
goofy expression on his face, like a kid with
his hand caught in the cookie jar, was more
than she could take.  She burst out laughing-
-and laughed out loud for a good two miles.

"Mulder, I ought to kick your ass," she said,
still unable to stop smiling.  "I think my
Aunt is, at this very moment, asking my
mother if the two of us are on drugs or
something."

"I am, Scully... the drug called luuuuuv," he
teased her, his goofiness making her laugh
all over again.

THE KEYSTONE INN
SOMERSET, PA
SATURDAY, DECEMBER 23rd
11:21pm
They had barely made it in the door and put
their luggage down before they made it to the
bed, Mulder mercilessly tickling and kissing
her beyond what she could tolerate.  "Please,
Mulder.  Let me get our clothes unpacked and
get a shower before you get any big ideas,"
she told him.  He eyed her for a moment
before relinquishing his hold and let her up
from the bed.

Scully had been pleasantly surprised about
the Keystone Inn.  It was quite nice, elegant
actually, and he had gotten a suite, so it
had a small living room almost separate from
the bedroom and bath.  It even had a
fireplace and a small balcony, but a lot of
good that would do them in December, she
thought.  Scully had gathered her things and
had definite plans to soak and relax for
awhile and read a little on the book she had
been working on for a few days.

When she finally made her exodus from her
cavernous haven known as the bathroom, she
seemed to exit in a puff of smoke as the
built-up steam escaped into the room with
her.  What she saw when she came into the
room was unexpected and just further evidence
that Mulder had yet to grow beyond
adolescence.  A small lighted plastic
Christmas tree sat proudly on the dresser,
the lights softly twinkling.  And Mulder
reclined on the bed, his head propped on his
hand, his total attire consisting of a Santa
hat, the fur ball on the end seemingly moving
of its own volition, and a small red ribbon
tied around the end of his semi-erect penis.

Scully shook her head, her chin touching her
chest as she began to chuckle, thinking to
herself how she would have never imagined
herself choosing a man like Mulder to be her
life's mate.  She moved closer to the bed,
finally looking at his reclining form, him
smiling like a Cheshire cat.  "You're proud
of yourself, aren't you, Mulder?  You think
that your little... thing here is just going
to make me fall into that bed with you so
that you can have your way with me, don't
you?" she said, trying to hold back the smile
that he recognized was actually there.

"You don't say 'little thing' to a naked man,
Scully," he said flatly, patting the bed next
to him.  "C'mon, Scully, fall into this bed
and let me have my way with you..."  She
laughed then, again shaking her head at what
an absolute nut, albeit lovable, sexy, nut he
was.  She dropped her robe as he lifted the
covers before they crawled under them
together.

Scully scooted toward him, laying her head on
his chest as he reclined on his back.
"What'd ya get me for Christmas, Mulder?" she
teased.

"You mean we're exchanging gifts this year,
Scully?  You forgot to tell me..." he teased
back.

"I know what you're getting," she teased
coyly.

"I know what I'd like to have..." he told
her, turning to his side, causing her to roll
to her back.  He smiled at her, then moved to
kiss her as he massaged her breast, moved his
thigh between her legs.

"I think you know you're gonna get this
anyway," she kidded him, returning his kiss.

"Oh, I've got you a gift, Scully.  It's
something for a cold lonely night..." he
teased as he continued to move his hand, kiss
her neck.

"Mulder... if you got me anything that could
be even remotely construed as being... um...
personal in nature, pleeeease do not give it
to me at my aunt's house," she begged
kiddingly, but not so kiddingly.

"Well, one present is something you might...
oh, use in bed," he told her, his kisses
moving down her neck to the tops of her
breasts.

"Ummmmm," she moaned as he began kissing her
nipple before taking it in his mouth.
"Please, Mulder, save--oh!-- that--umm...
gift for when we're alone," she finished, her
breaths quickening as his hand moved between
her legs.

"I just hope..." he said softly, kissing her
abdomen, causing her to shudder."...that...
um, god, you smell good... your present, uh,
fits your, you... that it isn't too large,"
he said, accentuating his last word.  Various
images of what possible large thing she could
use in bed Mulder had bought her flashed
through her mind until his fingers slipped
inside her and all thoughts went south.

"Mulder, stop teasing me," she told him, her
fingers slowly stroking his scalp as his
fingers slowly stroked her, his kisses now on
the inside of her thighs.  "Please don't...
oh, god... anything in front of... oh, right
there... the others," she said, almost
moaning, but warning him one last time not to
embarrass her in front of her family.

He looked up at her, seeing that her eyes
were still open, and gave her his best shit-
eating grin.  "Let's just say you'll be able
to feel your present here," he said, kissing
her thigh.  "And here," kissing her mound.
"And here," kissing her abdomen.  "And let's
not forget here," he finished, kissing her
breast.  Then he kissed her on the mouth as
he reached for himself and found her opening,
entering her slowly, feeling her shudder
again.

"God, I love you, Mulder," she managed to
say, her eyes closing, already finding
herself very close to climaxing, trying to
hold back a little longer.  Mulder put his
arms under her, holding on to her shoulders
as he began to move a little faster,
thrusting deeper.  She kissed his neck, his
shoulder, her hands feathering up and down
his back.  He grasped the underside of her
knee, pulling her leg up and out away from
her body and that was all it took.  She
gasped, her muscles tightening, her toes
literally curling and, as usual, her breath
stopping until she fell over the edge.  He
could feel her heart pounding against his
chest, her inner tissue massaging him in
waves, his resolve to take it slowly for a
while now gone.  He finished fairly quickly
after she did, emptying into her in several
sharp thrusts, his breaths ragged against her
ear.

They lay together afterward, holding each
other under the warmth of the blankets, her
head on his chest, her leg between his as she
lay half over him.

"That was better sex than what I had with
that woman in the elevator this morning,
Scully," he said in his best monotone.

"Good.  You were better than the bellhop from
last night, too, Mulder," she said dryly, not
missing a beat.  She gave him a small smile,
kissing him before laying her head back
against his chest.  "'Night, Leroy-- I mean,
Mulder," she said, him feeling her smile
against his chest.

"'Night, Louise..."

HOME OF OLIVE KELLY
SOMERSET, PA
Christmas Eve, 9:13am
The family breakfast reveille had been set
for 8:30, Scully's cousins to be present with
spouses and various offspring as well.  But
Mulder and Scully had been 'sidetracked'
before leaving the motel, before leaving the
bed, actually.

"Mulder, I don't think we've had as much sex
since we've been together as we've had in the
last few days," she told him after they had
finally dressed and were on their way to
Scully's aunts.

"The holidays bring out the best in me,
Scully," he joked, not having really thought
about it until she mentioned it.  "Are you
complaining?"

"No!  No..." she smiled to him.  "I just hope
the reason we are so late isn't written all
over our faces when we get there."

But it was, Scully unable to hold back a
blush when her mother had asked her about
their late arrival.  Cousins Betsy and Ruth
were there with their children, Betsy's
husband to arrive later in the day.  Tom and
his wife were also there, their only son
spending the holidays with his fiance' in
Greenwich.  Ruth had grinned at them, eyeing
Mulder up and down, making an offhanded
remark, her statement of 'If I had that, I'd
never get out of bed, either.' embarrassing
Scully even further, particularly when Mulder
just shrugged.

Ruth and Tom still lived in Somerset, Betsy
having moved to Philadelphia where her
husband was a professor of anthropology at
the University of Pennsylvania.  Betsy was a
Clinical Social Worker, doing part time work
with adolescents and actively raising her two
children, now adolescents themselves.  Ruth's
husband was an accountant, Ruth choosing
childrearing as her full-time profession,
well, secondary to stirring the social pot
around Somerset, Scully figured.  Ruth's
three children, unfortunately, appeared to be
chips off of her block, fairly rude and sulky
the few times that Scully had been around
them.  Tom and his wife ran a bed and
breakfast, the Pines, and owned and operated
a small chain of bookstores.  He essentially
ran the Pines, his wife preferring the
traveling involved in taking care of their
stores.

Everyone had exchanged hugs, some welcomed,
some not.  Margaret had poured Mulder and
Scully each a cup of coffee and offered
coffee cake which Mulder took and Scully
declined.  "We're kind of just getting our
day lined out," Olive had said to them,
trying to change everyone's focus away from
Mulder and Scully's late arrival.  "What do
you two need to do yet today?"  Scully had
explained that she had a couple of things to
pick up, Betsy saying she did also.  Tom had
mentioned to Mulder that he was going to the
gym for awhile, so Mulder had found his
escape, giving Scully an obvious kiss before
he left, just to pull her string.

"So, Dana, how long have you been seeing
Fox?" Betsy asked her, dipping her teabag in
the hot water of her mug.  They had stopped
for a small lunch before shopping, wanting a
respite from the cold and the flurried snow.

"Seeing?" Scully asked, a chuckle to her
voice.  "I've known him for nine years; he's
been my partner," she said, glancing up from
her wassail to look Betsy in the eye for her
reaction.

"Really?  You've been together for nine years
and this is the first I've heard of it?"
Betsy chided.

"Well, if your definition of 'together' is
what I think it is, then we've only been
'together' for about six months," Scully
confessed.

"You seem very happy, Dana.  I'm happy for
you," she said sincerely, always having felt
closer to Dana than she had her own sister.

"I am, Betsy... happy, that is," she smiled,
more to herself than her cousin.  "We're very
different and never in my life would I have
ever pictured myself with a man like Mulder,
but I never pictured myself as ever being
this happy, either."

Scully and Betsy had picked up a few last-
minute stocking stuffers and Betsy had
dropped Scully off at the motel to clean up
and change and wait for Mulder.  The family
would meet back at Aunt Olive's for dinner at
6:00 to eat and exchange gifts and go to Mass
at midnight.  Betsy's family had gotten a
motel also, the teenagers preferring it so
they could play in the arcade room and swim
in the pool.

Scully was in the shower when Mulder arrived
in the room, just stepping out of the bathtub
when he stuck his head in, seeing her in her
naked glory.  "Mmmm, Scully..." he teased,
moving toward her in his perspiration soaked
t-shirt and sweats.

"Don't you touch me," she said, slipping her
robe on as she stepped back from him.  "We
don't have time and you smell like three-day-
old socks."  He smiled at her, stripping off
his clothes and stepping into the shower as
she dried her hair.  She was dressed in her
slip and bra when he finally came out of the
bathroom, scrubbing at his hair with a towel.
Her back was turned, but she was watching him
in the dresser mirror, having a sneaking
suspicion he was up to something.  He walked
up behind her, putting his arms around her
from the back and rubbing himself against her
slip.  "Don't even think about it, Mulder.
You are lucky I am still speaking to you,"
she said, putting on her earring as she moved
away from him.

"Scully, I was just kidding with you.
Sometimes you're a little uptight, you know.
Your family could care less," he said,
referring to the fact that she was the only
one embarrassed by their late arrival and his
various jokes and open signs of affection.

"Put some clothes on, Mulder.  We're due at
six and we are not going to be late," she
said, stopping in her tracks, putting her
face in her hands.  "Goddamn, I sound like a
shrew."

Mulder moved over to her, gathering her in
his arms, holding her close, rubbing her bare
back.  She just held on to him, realizing
Mulder was right; she just needed to relax.
"I'm sorry, Mulder.  I'm always so on edge
when Ruth is around and it's stupid.  Just
plain stupid," she finished, moving back to
look up at him.

"You wanna tell me about it?" he said
quietly, going to the closet to get his
clothes.  She slipped on her skirt, a mid-
calf length black wool, and a deep burgundy
cashmere sweater, the scooped neck showing
off her cleavage quite nicely, he thought.

"She told my parents about Daniel," she said
bluntly, bending to pull the bottom of her
slip down evenly under her skirt.  She sat on
the edge of the bed, slipping into her shoes,
reaching for her watch on the nightstand.
"It caused a rift between my father and I
that I'm not sure ever totally closed,
Mulder.  And it was nothing more than a fun
afternoon of gossiping to her."

"I'm sorry, Scully," he said, slipping on his
sweater, moving to sit next to her on the
bed.  "But our relationship is different.  We
have nothing to hide or nothing to be ashamed
of by arriving late for breakfast because
we've been making love," he said, taking over
for her, fastening her watch around her
wrist.  "And besides, ole Ruthie just ain't
worth it, Scully.  She doesn't deserve a
second of your time."

"I guess I have been blaming the messenger
some, haven't I?" she admitted, holding his
hand, rubbing her other hand over the back of
his.  "I just want to have Christmas with
you... and Mom."

"Next year, it'll just be us... you and me.
How's that sound?" he asked her softly, the
sweet look on his face making her feel she
could never love him more than she did at
that very moment.  She stood and moved in
front of him, between his legs, pushing him
backwards onto the bed before lying on top of
him.  She kissed him hard, passionately, her
fingers caressing his face, sliding through
his hair.  He lay there stunned for a moment,
finally moving to embrace her and return her
kiss with an equal amount of fervor.  She
stopped and pushed herself up with her hands,
giving him one last intense look before
extracting herself from him and standing.

"Come on.  We need to get going..."

Continued in Pt. 2

TITLE: The Lord of Misrule Pt. 2/4
AUTHOR: Dyann Zimmerman
E-MAIL: philer@onemain.com


HOME OF OLIVE KELLY
SOMERSET, PA
Christmas Eve, 6:23pm
They were gathered in Olive's dining room,
the kids in the family room, eating their
dinners while watching an old Christmas movie
with Barbara Stanwyck.  The doorbell rang and
Olive smiled a knowing smile, it very obvious
that she was expecting the person who had
arrived.  She opened the door and in walked
Bill, the snow blowing in the door with him.
"Bill!" Margaret gasped, immediately jumping
up and running to greet him.  "How did you
get here?"

"Good luck and lots of connections, Mom," he
said, returning her hug.  Scully had followed
her mother and embraced him, sincerely glad
to see him.  "You look great, Dana."

"I thought you were still out, Bill," Scully
said, her arm still around his waist as they
walked further into the house.

"I've been in port for several days, but we
were on high alert and restricted to the
ship.  I called in a few favors and was one
of the few that got a 48-hour leave," he
said, removing his coat and gloves.  He was
all smiles as he walked into the dining room,
until Mulder stood and turned around to face
him, Bill totally ignoring him.  There were
other greetings and hugs, everyone making
room for him at the large table, Olive
getting him a plate and a glass of wine.  "I
called Aunt Olive yesterday and we devised a
plan," he said, looking pleased with himself.

Mulder and Bill continued to ignore each
other, not particularly rudely enough to be
seen by others and unnoticed by everyone but
Scully.  "This is such a nice surprise,"
Margaret said to no one in particular.
Scully squeezed her mother's hand, giving her
a confirming smile, hoping for her mother's
sake that her son behaved himself.

They finished dinner in good humor, everyone
seeming to enjoy each other and the
conversation.  Even Ruth was fairly subdued,
finding nothing available to irritate anyone
with.  Everyone moved to the living room to
exchange gifts, the kids getting theirs and
heading back to the family room, having cared
less what the adults had yet to open.


Several gifts were passed around and opened,
Mulder and Scully buying her mother a round
trip ticket to San Diego to see Bill, its
significance somewhat lessened by his
surprise arrival, but none the less
appreciated by her mother.

Margaret had gotten Scully a few smaller
things and Mulder a nice leather athletic
bag, a suggestion from Scully.  And much to
their surprise, Margaret had gotten them a
gift certificate for a trip to a beach house
in North Carolina for the weekend of Scully's
birthday; the gift earning her a snort from
Bill and a 'well, well, well' from Ruth.
Scully ignored both and after thanking her
mother for the joint gift, gave Mulder a
lingering kiss in front of Bill, Ruth, God
and everyone, a gesture that made Mulder
practically grin ear to ear.

Mulder picked up a beautifully wrapped
rectangular box and handed it to Scully and
she gave him a larger box, wrapped in New
York Knicks paper.  "Where'd you get the
paper?" he asked, genuinely impressed.

"Knicks.com," she answered quickly, smiling
at him.

Mulder opened his gift, the box containing
several things; a sweat suit, another pair of
his favorite running shoes and two Oxford t
shirts from his alma-mater, more items she
was able to get on the internet.

Mulder gave her a kiss as a thank-you and
then looked at her expectantly, ignoring the
roll of Bill's eyes.  "That's the gift I was
telling you about last night, Scully...
remember?" he said to her, the smirk on his
face, coupled with his words, causing her to
blush across her exposed chest straight up
her neck to her fair cheeks.  She hesitated,
truly afraid that she was about to be
embarrassed beyond belief.

"Ooooh, come on, Dana.  Let's see what Foxy
got you," Ruth tantalized, recognizing
Scully's discomfort and Bill's escalating
irritation.

Scully looked at Mulder, seeing in his eyes
that it was really okay, so she began to tear
the paper, staring at the box before suddenly
lifting the top from the bottom to expose--
pajamas... flannel men's-styled pajamas.  The
overwhelming relief on her face made him
laugh, which made her laugh and the two of
them sat there on the couch laughing to
themselves like there was no one else in the
room.

Even though the joke was the best part, they
were actually quite nice pajamas... the
creamy chocolate satin piping striking
against the soft butter color of the flannel.
"Ralph Lauren... Nice, Mulder," she said,
moving to kiss him lightly on the lips, an
action that drove Bill from the room, his
mother following quickly to the kitchen after
him, something that, unfortunately, wasn't
lost on Ruth.

"Bill..." she warned, seeing that he was
steaming.

"What, are they going to screw on the floor
next?" he said to her, pouring himself a
glass of wassail from the punchbowl on the
kitchen counter.

"Oh, Bill, stop it," Margaret said, losing
her patience with him.

"Well, hell, they're practically making out
on the couch," he said interrupting her.
"He'd better not be staying here... If he is,
I'll get a motel."

"He already has a motel, Bill, if it were any
of your business.  Listen... Fox makes your
sister happier than I have ever seen her in
my life and I'll not have you spoiling that.
Do you understand me?  Bill?" she said, her
eyes telling him that she meant business.

"I'll leave it alone--for now," he finished,
leaving the room, giving Ruth only a glance,
her spot just outside the kitchen door
insuring that she had heard everything.

A little before 11:30, everyone divided up to
go to Mass, Bill driving Olive and Margaret,
Mulder and Scully taking their own car so
that she could drop him off at the motel on
the way.  The snow had picked up during their
few hours in the house and the accumulation
appeared to be at several inches by that
point.

"Why don't you let me drive, Mulder.  Then I
can just drop you off at the motel," she said
as he started to head to the driver's side of
the car.

"I've got it," he said, getting into the car
after opening the door for her.

"I'm proud of you..." she told him, reaching
for his hand.

"For what?"

"For not saying anything to Bill.  I was
about ready to slap him myself, so you showed
amazing restraint," she said, smiling to him.

"I'm not a total lout, Scully.  I can be
normal when coerced," he smiled slightly to
her.

"Coerced?" she asked, knowing full well what
he was insinuating.

"Yes, if I want keep my balls," he said
flatly, his humor eliciting a laugh from her,
despite the crudeness of it.  "...And have
some purpose for them later tonight."  She
chuckled again, squeezing his hand again,
wishing they could just go back to the motel
and have their own Christmas.  She leaned her
head against the headrest, enjoying the
beauty of the snow flying into the headlights
of the car, suddenly realizing he hadn't made
the turn to their motel.

"Where're you going?"

"With you to church," he said matter-of-
factly.

"Mulder, you don't have to do that...  It
doesn't bother me that you don't believe in
what I believe in... my religion," she said
softly to him.

"I'm not converting, Scully," he smiled to
her.  "I'm just accompanying you to Mass on
Christmas Eve because I want to be with you."

"Gee, Mulder.  Christmas at my aunt's...
dealing with Bill... going to Mass...  I'm
gonna owe you big time," she smirked at him.

"BIG time... and I'll collect later," he
grinned at her.

"Deal..." she smiled before settling back
against the seat.

ST. PETER'S CATHEDRAL
SOMERSET, PA
Christmas, 1:04am
After Mass, the family was gathered in the
foyer, discussing various ideas for the day's
activities and all agreeing to meet around
9:00am for breakfast, several gifts having
been saved for Christmas morning.  They were
all buttoning up, moving to exit the church
when Bill spoke to Scully.  "Dana, you can
ride back with us.  Then Mr. Mulder doesn't
have to go out of his way," he said, his
whole demeanor condescending.

"We're staying at the Keystone, Bill," Mulder
told him, figuring he'd just lay it on the
table.

"We're?" Bill asked like he was speaking to a
dumb child.

"Yes, 'we're' Bill," Scully answered.  "And
we'll see you for breakfast," she said,
taking hold of Mulder's hand moving toward
the large ornate doors to leave.

Bill grabbed Mulder's arm, turning him
around.  But before he could say anything,
his mother's voice stopped him dead in his
tracks.

"William Douglas Scully!  You are in church!"
she whispered as vehemently as she could, the
others looking on in stunned surprise.  She
stepped between the two men, looking half
their size, and turned toward Mulder who was
still staring at Bill.  "We'll see you two in
the morning.  Goodnight, sweetheart," she
said, giving Scully a soft kiss on the cheek.
"Now, go on."  Mulder reached around and over
Scully to open the door, pulling his collar
up as they exited into the blowing snow.

KEYSTONE INN
SOMERSET, PA
Christmas, 1:40am
They had been fairly quiet on the way to the
motel, Mulder needing to concentrate on his
driving, the roads becoming more snow-packed
and hazardous in just the hour they were at
Mass.  When they got back to the motel,
Scully had had a bit of a cry while alone in
the bathroom removing her make-up, readying
for bed.  She came out in her new pajama top
and panties, forgoing the bottoms for
tonight.  "You like?" she said lightly to
him, turning around to show him.

"I like," he said, already having the fire
going, processed logs having been furnished
with the room.  She sat down on the couch,
wrapping her legs underneath her, pulling the
afghan off the back of the couch.  Mulder
went back into the bedroom area to retrieve
the plastic tree and plugged it in next to
the end table by the couch.  He turned off
all of the lights in the room and found a
station playing Christmas music on the clock
radio next to the bed.  He snuggled up next
to her, covering them both with the afghan.

"I'm sorry about Bill..." she told him, a
sadness to her voice that he didn't want her
to shoulder.

"Scully, let it go.  It isn't something that
is ever going to change and he doesn't bother
me.  The only thing that bothers me about the
situation is that it bothers you... I know
you've been crying," he said softly, bending
to kiss her temple.  "Let's just be together
tonight and enjoy this."

"And this is nice, Mulder..." she said,
leaning her head against his shoulder as he
wrapped his arm around hers.  The fire
flickered an orange glow around the room, the
colorful tree lights casting just enough
light so that they could see each other
easily.  "Where'd you get the tree?  And
when?" she asked, wondering how he'd sneaked
it in without her noticing.

"Wal-Mart... just before I picked you up to
go to your mother's.  Henderson had one on
his desk and told me it came with the lights,
ornaments, including the special little
plastic star on top... all for five bucks,"
he joked.  "Nothin' but the best for you,
Scully."

"You make a girl feel so special, Mulder,"
she teased back, giving him a kiss, rubbing
her hand on his thigh.  "You want to open
your other presents tonight or tomorrow?" she
asked.

"It doesn't matter to me, Scully.  It's been
so long since I've actually paid much
attention to Christmas, that I defer to you,"
he told her, truly indifferent about how to
do things.

"Well, if we open them tonight, then we can
sleep in longer tomorrow..." she told him,
moving off the couch to retrieve the bags
containing their gifts.  They each dug into
the bags, sorting the gifts into separate
piles, examining each one like little kids.
"Open this one first," she said, handing him
a small sized box wrapped in solid green
paper.

He grinned at her, ripping the paper and
ribbon off quickly, opening the white box.
It was an ornament; the first issued Hallmark
Star Trek Enterprise.  "Scully... where the
hell did you get this?  This is nearly
impossible to find..." he told her, knowing
she had to have paid several hundred dollars
for it.

"Tom found it.  He does a lot of antiquing,
for their bed and breakfast and I've had him
on the look-out for the last couple of
months," she said, enjoying seeing him happy.

"Scully, I know about how much this had to
have cost... you really shouldn't have," he
told her, lifting her chin for a soft, slow
kiss.  He reached over to the tree, plugging
the ornament into the light string, all of
the ship's lights illuminating.  He hung it
on the tree, the ornament proving to be way
too heavy as the small tree plopped over,
causing Scully to snicker, then feeling sorry
for him at the disappointed look on his face.
"I'll just set it on the table," he said
slightly embarrassed.  "You're still gonna
beam me up, aren't you, Scully?"

"Maybe later..." she said, smiling at him.
Mulder sat a fairly large box, wrapped in
Santa Clause paper that any two-year-old
would love, on the floor in front of her.
She continued to smile at him, a 'what IS
this?' look on her face.  After tearing the
paper from around the box, she used her
fingernail to slice the tape that held the
flaps together.  She opened it only to find a
slightly smaller wrapped box sitting inside.
"Is this a scavenger hunt, Mulder?" she
asked, unable to remove the smile from her
face.  She lifted the second box from the big
one on the floor and tore the paper off
slowly, tentative about what she might find
inside.  As she expected, she found another
colorful box inside, again, only slightly
smaller.  "Mulder, is there actually
something in here or is this your version of
putting coal in my stocking?" she teased.

"Patience, Scully.  Patience..." he said,
moving the empty boxes out of her way.  She
opened three more boxes before finding a red
envelope with only her name printed on the
front in his handwriting.  "There is
something in there, Scully," reading the look
on her face that she thought his joke might
just be an empty envelope.

Scully opened the envelope finding a gift
certificate for two for the poshest day spa
in Washington--- the full treatment.  "Wow,
Mulder..." she said, touched by the fact that
it was for two so that she could take a
friend.  "Thank you.  I'll probably need this
as soon as we get home from this trip," she
kidded, leaning to give him a kiss.  "For
two... you can go with me."

"Uh, uh.  Slightly too girly for me, Scully,"
he answered, handing her another box, much
smaller, the wrapping very obviously done by
him and his manly fingers.  Scully thought to
herself how much she liked what his fingers
were capable of, but realized it wasn't gift
wrapping.

"Another one?" she smiled at him, having some
difficulty with the ribbon that was tightly
tied around it.  Once the paper and ribbon
were removed, she opened the lid and lifted
the tissue paper, finding a gold bracelet,
plain, but classically beautiful.  "Mulder,
it's beautiful..." she told him, the facets
cut into the edges of the gold sparkling from
the glow of the fire.

"Read the inscription," he told her.

Scully lifted the bracelet to an angle where
she could see the underside, speaking aloud.
"Marry me?" she read, her voice soft, almost
unbelieving.  She almost gasped, her hand
automatically going to cover her mouth.
"Mulder...  I... I don't know what to say,"
she said, her voice breaking.  "You surprised
me with this...  We've never talked about
marriage."

"Let's talk about it now, then," he told her,
moving closer to her, putting his arm around
her shoulders, afraid he'd done the wrong
thing.  "I love y---"

"Yes," she said, interrupting whatever it was
that he was going to say.  "Yes..." she
repeated, moving to straddle his lap, her
arms wrapping around his neck as she buried
her face into the crook of his neck, her
tears starting to flow.  "Yesyesyesyesyes,"
she said, kissing his neck, moving back to
look at him, kissing him softly, but
passionately on the lips.

"You mean it?" he said, his voice trembling
now, too.

She leaned back from him, looking at him...
smiling at him.  "Did you actually think I'd
say 'no', Mulder?" she asked softly,
sincerely questioning if he really thought
she didn't intend to spend the rest of her
life with him.

"Well... I hoped you wouldn't, but I didn't
really expect you to answer so...
immediately.  I mean, you analyze everything,
Scully," he said quietly to her.

"I don't put what I feel for you in the same
category as the paranormal, Mulder...
although maybe I should," she teased before
giving him another lingering kiss.  He smiled
that smile and her body almost dissolved
against him, her head falling to his
shoulder.  "God, I love you..."

He stood up, holding her against his body,
hers almost dead weight except for her legs
wrapped around his waist.  He could hear her
soft sobs; feel her tears against his neck as
he walked toward the bed.  He laid her down,
kissing her before he stood and walked around
to the other side of the bed.  He pulled his
slacks off, almost forgetting his socks;
Scully hated to see him in his underwear with
socks.  He pulled his sweater off, watching
her laying there watching him, hearing her
breath beginning to quicken.  He crawled onto
the bed, moving over to her side, bending to
kiss her softly.  "Let me undress you,
Scully..."  She gave him a quietly assured
smile, his confirmation that she trusted him,
loved him beyond what he had ever imagined.

They made love three times during the rest of
the early morning.  Slow and loving; frantic
and passionate, their last time them
pleasuring each other separately.  They had
never had oral sex in isolation, having
always previously pleasured each other as
foreplay before intercourse, needing that
closeness to finish.

Scully had stirred in the middle of the
night, opening her eyes briefly, finding
Mulder just watching her, the colors of the
still-lit Christmas tree reflecting in his
eyes.  She smiled at him, reaching her hand
up to caress his face, her thumb rubbing
across the bone of his cheek.  He kissed her,
moving his body over hers, his hand slipping
between her legs as he continued to kiss her,
his tongue tangling with hers.  She reached
for him, moving her hand from base to tip,
squeezing and releasing him softly as she
did.

"Lay back, Mulder," she whispered to him,
moving under him so that he would roll to his
back.  She laid over him then, moving down
his body, kissing and licking him as she
went, hesitating at a nipple, his navel.  She
took his tip in her mouth, sucking lightly as
she massaged her tongue against it.  She held
onto the base, moving her hand up and down as
she continued to suck him, swirl her tongue
around the underside of the ridge.

She licked up and down his length, massaging
his scrotum, running a fingernail lightly
against his perineum, her last gesture
causing his hips to buck forcefully.  "Jesus,
Scully.  Goddamn..." he said, barely able to
speak between his panting.  "I'm really
close... uhhh, god... if you want..."  She
continued to alternate between sucking him,
taking him in as far as she could, and
licking his length.  "...to change your
mind," he panted.  "You'd better do it
now..."  She gave him and extra hard suck,
pumping his shaft with her hand, getting so
wet herself that she felt her fluid start to
leak onto the inside of her thigh.

"Oh, shiiiiiiittttttt..." Mulder gasped as he
let loose, Scully covering him with her
mouth, taking most of it in, massaging a few
errant drops into his abdomen with her
finger.  She crawled up over him, lying on
top of his body as he tried to breathe again,
her body needing satisfaction soon.  He
grabbed her bottom, squeezing her cheek
before sliding his hand down, his finger
slipping inside her.  "Doing that turned you
on that much?" he asked her, feeling how wet
she already was just from pleasuring him.
She nodded, her head lying on his chest, her
fingers playing with his nipple.

She moved up on him, her head now buried near
his neck, the feel of his chest hair moving
against her breasts giving her goose bumps.
He rolled them onto their sides, kissing her
before moving down her neck, rolling her onto
her back.  He continued kissing and licking,
lingering on her breasts only briefly before
kissing his way further down her abdomen,
lifting her now-limp legs over his shoulders
before settling at her center.  He inserted a
finger, then added a second as he licked her
labia, his other hand holding her lips open
to expose her engorged clitoris.  He could
feel the muscles of her thighs beginning to
tighten against his face, moving one finger
out of her to open his palm against her as he
continued to lick.  He pushed against her
anus with his now-free finger, but stopped
after her immediate response of "Mulder!"
sounded like apprehension rather than
pleasure.  He began moving his finger to
search for her g-spot as he finally took her
clitoris in his mouth to suck it, his slight
nip of it with his teeth sending her
skyrocketing, her hips coming up off the bed.

"Mulder, God!" she panted, her orgasm so hard
it felt almost painful.  "Please stop for a
minute... I can't..."  She couldn't finish,
her body still shuddering, her internal
muscles throbbing against his fingers.  He
let her come down for a few moments and then
licked her softly, removing his fingers to
massage her lightly, slowly, helping her to
try to come down.  He moved up to lay his
head beside hers on the pillow, her eyes
still clamped shut, her breath still coming
in hard pants.  He placed his hand on her
heart, feeling it pumping, at least, double
its usual rate.

"You okay?" he said softly to her, his hand
smoothly running over her stomach, her
abdomen, taking her hand in his to kiss her
fingers.

Finally she opened her eyes taking a couple
of seconds to actually focus and look at him.
He thought if at that moment, he looked up
the word 'sated' in the dictionary, he would
find her picture there.  "Mulder..." she
said, her voice barely more than a breath.
"I have never climaxed that hard in my
life... never."

He smiled at her, kissing her softly.  "Oh, I
don't know, Scully.  Does the floor of your
living room ring a bell?" he reminded her.

"Close... but not... oh, god," she said,
taking his hand in hers and moving it between
her legs, clamping her eyes closed again.

"Still need some help?" he asked her quietly,
rubbing his palm against her slowly, feeling
her labia still twitching.  He helped her to
finally come down, Scully moving to lie half
over him, burying her face against his
shoulder, seemingly embarrassed at her
display.  "You're so beautiful when you come,
Scully," he told her, trying to alleviate
some of her shyness about it.


She chuckled against his chest, snuggling
closer to him as he pulled the sheet and
spread over them.  "You have such a way with
words, Mulder," she said, lifting up to give
him a kiss, laying her head back against him.
Mulder knew her, knew that she would be
asleep as soon as she laid her head back
down.  And she was.

HOME OF OLIVE KELLY
SOMERSET, PA
Christmas Day, 11:21am
On the way to her aunt's, Mulder and Scully
figured they had probably slept a total of
about an hour and a half, given the late hour
they'd gone to bed and the hours they'd spent
making love.  They had giggled about it in
the car, not necessarily because it was so
funny, but probably more due to the fact that
they were punch drunk from being so tired.
Scully had been serious when telling him she
was going to call her mother and cancel for
the day, but Mulder had talked her out of it,
convincing her that it might hurt her
mother's feelings and certainly wouldn't
endear him any further to her brother.

Despite the accumulating snow, they had made
it on time, Ruth making a comment
congratulating them on that fact.  Bill was
on the phone to his family when they arrived,
all of them already up, despite California
time.  Betsy's children had opened their
remaining gifts and were still in their
pajamas watching TV in the family room, while
Ruth's offspring were playing some new video
game they had gotten that morning.  Mulder
and Scully had saved a couple of gifts for
each other-- clothes, CD's, alien socks-- and
were both sitting at the kitchen table having
coffee and various breakfast foods that Olive
and Margaret had enjoyed making.

The whole morning had seemed like something
out of a 50's sitcom until Bill had overheard
Scully telling her mother about her
bracelet... and its inscription.  "Dana...
what... what are you going to do?" her mother
asked, looking at her daughter and Mulder for
a response, the smile on her face growing by
the second.

"Well..." Scully hesitated, smiling at
Mulder. "We're going to get married...
sometime... We haven't exactly discussed when
yet," she chuckled nervously.  "It sounds
weird to even say it."

"Weird is my business, Scully," Mulder joked,
trying to ease some of her discomfort.  He
reached to rub her back, smiling to her in
comfort.

"Weird is right," Bill said, entering the
room after hearing most of the conversation.
"This will not happen, Dana.  You are not
going to be shackled to this... this weirdo
for the rest of your life!"

"Bill, enough!" Margaret told him.

Scully stood, moving to leave the room, to
not give him opportunity to make a scene.
Bill grabbed her arm to restrain her from
leaving, ready to say more to her.  But
before he could speak, Mulder stood and was
next to her in an instant.  "Bill, take your
hand off of her," Mulder said calmly.

"Mind your own goddamned business.  You
aren't part of this family now and you aren't
going to become a part of it," Bill told him
as if he would command it, it would
automatically happen.  Scully had already
pulled her arm away from him, leaning into
Mulder's side, her anger having changed into
hurt-- hurt that her brother would behave
this way toward her.

Mulder wrapped his arm around her and spoke
to Bill calmly.  "Bill, this is our business.
You don't get a vote," Mulder said.  Bill
reared back to let loose with a right cross,
Mulder ducking at the last minute and Bill's
swing grazing the side of Scully's cheek.
She stumbled slightly, but Mulder whirled to
catch her, grabbing her around her waist with
one arm.  "Scully, you okay?" Mulder asked,
helping her to sit on the closest kitchen
chair.  She nodded, not really hurting
physically, but stunned that her problems
with her brother had finally escalated to
physical hostility.

Mulder turned to look at Bill, just standing
there, almost as stunned as Scully.  "If
Scully and your mother weren't here, I'd--"

"Bill, get out of this room-- now!" Margaret
said, stepping between him and Mulder,
physically pushing Bill from the room as he
stared back at Mulder before finally glancing
at his sister still sitting in the chair.

"You okay, Scully?" Mulder asked again
quietly, bending down to look at her cheek.

"I'm fine.  I'm... a... it just startled me,"
she said sadly.

"Scully, I think it would be best if I
leave," Mulder said sincerely.  "You need to
be here with your family, your mother.  I'll
go back to the motel and see you later this
afternoon.  We can have some time then."

"Mulder, I think it's best if we both leave.
You aren't leaving without me and if I have
to so much as look at my brother..." she
said, unable to finish her sentence, knowing
there could be many options to fill in the
blank.  "WE are together, Mulder.  I love my
family, but it is US now.  You and me," she
said, laying her palm against his cheek,
giving him a soft kiss.

Margaret returned to the kitchen, sans Bill,
the sadness reflected in her eyes.  "I'm
sorry," she said softly.  "Are you alright,
Dana?" she asked, tilting her daughter's face
toward her with a finger under her chin.  "Is
it going to bruise?"

"No, Mom.  It'll be fine," Scully said,
barely able to look at her.  "And you don't
need to apologize for Bill."

"Well, maybe I do, Dana," she answered,
sitting in the chair next to her.  "I let him
take on that 'man of the house' attitude when
your father would be away and after he
died... well, your brother has just gotten
out of hand and for that, I'm sorry."

"Mom, I think Mulder and I will go...  We
have a nice room at the motel-- Mulder even
brought a tree-- and we'll get room service
and have a nice day alone," Scully told her,
trying to convince her mother that they would
still have a holiday.

"Dana, I don't want you spending Christmas
day in a motel," Margaret said.

"We won't be, Mrs. Scully," Mulder said,
Scully glancing at him not quite
understanding what he was getting at.  "I can
get the lodge this afternoon if we want it."

"Then you go," Margaret said, standing to
look at him.  Scully looked at both of them
like they were speaking French, wondering
what 'lodge' they both seemed to know about.

Finally, Mulder addressed Scully, knowing she
was in the dark about what he was referring
to.  "I have a lodge reserved for us through
New Years, Scully.  I was going to surprise
you tomorrow, but I think it's best if we go
today."

"What?  Where?" Scully asked, standing to
face him.

"Not far from here.  Near the Laurel Ridge of
the Alleghenies.  We can be there in a couple
of hours."

"You had this all planned?" she said,
beginning to smile at him, then looking at
her mother.  "What about Mom?"

"Bill can take me back to Washington.  Tom
had agreed to, but I think Bill needs a few
hours alone with me," she said sternly.  "And
you two go out the back door.  I'll... no,
Bill will make apologies for your exit.  Now,
go--- and enjoy yourselves."  Margaret kissed
and hugged them both, giving her daughter an
extra smile, hoping that, someday, she and
Bill would be able to be brother and sister
again.

Continued in Pt. 3

TITLE: The Lord of Misrule
AUTHOR: Dyann Zimmerman
E-MAIL: philer@onemain.com


STONYCREEK LODGE
NEAR MT. DAVIS, PA
Christmas day, 6:10pm
The lodge was absolutely beautiful,
breathtakingly so, Scully thought.  Their
drive from her aunt's house had been equally
scenic, the snow continuing to fall, but the
roads were easily passable; the tourist area
fully prepared for the weather.  They had
gone to the main lodge to register, but
Mulder had rented one of the individual
cabins.  The bellhop had taken their luggage
to their cabin, Mulder and Scully choosing to
walk the relatively short distance from the
main lodge to their location.  They were
close to a ridge overlooking the Stonycreek
River and a beautiful glacial lake.

Their cabin was classically built of logs
with a full porch across the front and a two
story deck off the back.  The front door
opened to a great room; kitchen, living room
and dining room all one open, flowing area
with a cathedral ceiling.  The second story
bedroom was a loft opening into the great
room, the stairs made of logs as well.  In
the corner of the main room was a large stone
fireplace; the end of the cabin overlooking
the lake made almost totally of glass.  The
cabin wasn't huge but the openness and the
double story of windows made it look much
larger than it actually was.

"Mulder, this is absolutely breathtaking,"
she told him after the bellhop had left.
"How did you know about this place?"

"You know how resourceful I can be when I'm
on a mission, Scully," he kidded, walking up
behind her to put his arms around her waist.
"Just call me the Lord of Misrule himself."

"And Mom was in on this..." Scully stated
more than asked.

"Yeah, kinda.  I was going to wait until you
returned from your Aunt's and then surprise
you.  But then when I decided to go along,
that I realized you really wanted me to go, I
moved the reservations up a couple of days.
Your cousin Tom was going to take your Mom
back to DC," Mulder finished, kissing her
temple.

"And the Christmas tree?" she asked,
wondering if all the cabins had a live,
decorated tree.

"Well, let's just say I owe our bellhop a
major tip when we leave," he said, almost
embarrassed at what he agreed to pay for this
little favor. "We can do what we want here,
Scully. We have the cabin until the 2nd and
have full access to the main lodge."

"I want to see the bedroom," she said
suddenly, grabbing his hand and almost
pulling him up the stairs.  The room was
beautiful as well.  A massive rustic wood
four poster bed was centered in the room, a
home-made wedding ring pattern quilt covering
it.  Another fireplace was situated in the
corner and the large glass doors at the end
of the room opened onto the balcony, complete
with a wood-burning heater for winter use.

"Whatdya think, Scully?" he asked, hopeful
that she was happy and had had some time to
put the confrontation with her brother out of
her mind.

"Bed.  Now," she said, already pulling her
sweater off over her head.

"I guess that's a vote of approval?"

After they had christened the bed... and the
Jacuzzi in the bathroom, they had checked the
refrigerator for food, finding a few basics,
including frozen pizza in the freezer.  They
had opted for the pizza and were sitting on
the couch in front of the fire, both of them
in their robes, their feet propped up on the
coffee table.  "Merry Christmas, again,
Scully," Mulder told her, tipping his beer to
touch hers in a toast.

"Merry Christmas to you, too," she said,
giving him a quick kiss.  "What a difference
a few hours makes."  She smiled a bit of a
wicked smile at him then but he saw her other
reference reflected in her eyes.  Only a few
hours ago, she had had one of the worst
incidences in her life and now here they
were, still sated, enjoying a meal together
alone in a beautiful, secluded log cabin,
watching the snow softly fall.

STONYCREEK LODGE
MAIN LODGE
December 26, 9:02am
They had spent much of the night on the
couch, finally waking when the fire had gone
out and Scully felt a chill.  They decided to
go to the restaurant in the main lodge for
breakfast, wanting to check things out, see
what was going on for the rest of the holiday
week.  The breakfast buffet had been huge,
everything available from fresh fruit, which
Scully opted for, to made-to-order omelets,
which Mulder ordered on his second trip
through the line, having loaded up on just
about everything else on his first.
The dining room was crowded and only a large
table with two other couples seated at it was
available.

Mulder and Scully had barely introduced
themselves and sat down when the older couple
left, having finished their breakfast.  "So
where are you from?" Scully asked the couple
still seated at the table with them.  The
couple was from Chicago, having heard about
the lodge from friends of theirs who live in
Philadelphia.  Both were professionals, Jack
being an editor for publishing company and
Beth being an occupational therapist at a
Chicago hospital. They had two daughters, one
six and one nine, both staying back in
Chicago with Beth's mother, giving the couple
a short vacation to enjoy some time together.
They had taken the red-eye and were getting a
bit of breakfast before heading to their room
for sleep.

"FBI, huh?" Jack asked.  "Sounds exciting."

"Sometimes too exciting," Scully responded,
smiling at Mulder.

"So, you getting away from the kids for a
little R & R, too?" Jack asked Mulder,
pouring himself another cup of coffee.

"Uh, no... no.  We're just... well, were just
here to have things a little less exciting,"
he answered, smiling uncomfortably at Scully.

"We spent Christmas in Somerset with my
family and Mulder surprised me with this
little vacation," Scully filled in.  "We're,
um... I guess you could say we're celebrating
our engagement."  Mulder looked at her and
smiled, still not believing that they would
actually be married at some point.

"Congratulations!" Beth said, lifting her
orange juice in a toast.  They all toasted
with their juice and coffee and enjoyed over
an hour's conversation, all four of them
hitting it off well, immediately enjoying
each other's company.  Beth and Jack were
staying in the main lodge and finally went to
their room for some sleep, the four of them
planning to meet for dinner at eight.

"This seems weird, Scully," Mulder said as
they were walking around the lodge, seeing
what was there.

"What seems weird?"

"Us... as 'us', doing something so normal as
meeting another couple for dinner.  I've
never really been a part of a 'couple'
before, not in the classic sense anyway," he
said, a bit of melancholy to his voice.

"Have you?"
"Well, yeah.  I guess Ethan and I were a
couple... in the classic sense.  We had
friends; socialized with other couples," she
said, looking at him.

"Did you like that?  I mean, have you missed
having that kind of life?" he asked, Scully
knowing exactly what he was hinting at.

Scully stopped, moved to look directly at
him, making him look at her.  "Mulder, as
I've told you before, I wouldn't change a day
of the life I've had with you--- none of it.
Even all of the bad things that have happened
to us... it all led us to where we are right
now," she said, moving her arms around his
waist.  "And... I'm about as happy as I can
stand right now."  She kissed him lightly
then, not being one for very much public
display of affection.

"Mean it?" he asked softly.

"Mean it."

They toured most of the lodge, a huge
monstrosity of a building having been built
after WWII when the returned soldiers had
been booming babies.  The main lodge had
originally been a family-oriented winter
vacation spot, but over the years, it had
become more upscale and most of the
activities were for adults, not really
catering to children.  Most of the individual
cabins were built later and were used year
round.  The neighboring mountains provided
winter activities and the lake was used for
both winter and summer events.  So the place
was a quiet goldmine, a well-kept secret that
wasn't far from several metropolitan areas.
Places like that usually became touristy
after a while, but somehow, this place had
remained a secluded little paradise.

MULDER & SCULLY'S CABIN
December 26, 11:42pm
The dinner with their new-found friends had
been nice, the couple proving to be
interesting and Jack having almost as sick a
sense of humor as Mulder.  Scully had laughed
until her face hurt, the three glasses of
wine she had enhancing her mood quite a bit.
Not only her mood at dinner, but after they
had returned to the room, Mulder realized
that her libido had been enhanced as well.

"Mulder, if you aren't in this bed in five
seconds, I'm going to use alternate means,"
she teased, Mulder still in the bathroom.

Finally he came out, his Santa hat and little
red bow in their appropriate places, the
plastic Wal-Mart tree in his hand.  "Remember
this outfit?" he asked, her laughter echoing
throughout the bedroom.

"You can keep the hat, but the bow is in the
way," she said, still laughing at his
silliness.  "Now, get-in-this-bed."  He
plugged in the tree, setting it on the
dresser.  The bow and the hat came off and
were tossed on the bedside table before he
crawled in under the covers beside her,
snuggling against her already naked body.
"Ummmm, you feel good," she said, snuggling
into him.

Mulder could taste the wine as he kissed her,
surprised she had drunk as much as she did.
He could barely take his eyes off her all
evening, enjoying watching her have a good
time, talking with Beth, laughing at his and
Jack's sick jokes and double entendres.  "You
were so beautiful tonight, Scully," he said
to her, kissing her nose as they faced each
other.

"Mulder, that was the same outfit I wore
Christmas Eve," she replied.

"I wasn't talking about what you were
wearing, Scully.  I was referring to how you
were acting; how much fun you were having;
how relaxed you were.  It was nice to see,"
he said softly to her, kissing her forehead.
She moved further on top of him, kissing him
thoroughly, her tongue exploring every corner
of his mouth, finally sucking on his bottom
lip.

"You make me so happy, Mulder.  I love you,"
she said before kissing down his neck, moving
down further to find his nipple, sucking it
into her mouth.  She nipped at it, realizing
she'd bitten a little too hard when he
flinched.  "Sorry," she chuckled, still on a
bit of a wine high.  His hands rubbed her
back, massaged her bottom until she had moved
far enough down that he couldn't reach her
any longer.  She took him in her mouth,
sucking him, swirling her tongue around the
head.  Her hands didn't stop, rubbing his
abdomen, his thighs as she continued to suck
him, finally kissing his testicles, an action
that got her a laugh.  She moved up over him
then, laying flat on top of him, kissing his
lips.  "I love doing that," she told him,
truly enjoying making him feel good.

"And for that, I am sincerely grateful,
Scully," he smiled at her.  She sat up then,
reaching behind her to take him in her hand,
centering him before sliding down slowly,
taking him in easily due to her wetness.
"Uhhhhh, Scully..."  She began to move up and
down, leaning forward onto her elbows,
continuing to undulate on top of him.

"Bend your knees..." she said, her voice
barely more than a whisper.  She pushed
against them, giving herself more leverage,
pumping harder, her breasts rubbing back and
forth against his chest.  "Jesus... you feel
so good..." she breathed.  He put his hands
at her waist, letting her know he wanted her
to sit up and she complied.  He counter
thrusted her movements, their coupling
becoming faster and more vigorous.  "Oh, God,
Mulder... I'm almost there," she panted.

Mulder moved her bottom only slightly and
that was all it took, her orgasm almost
catching her by surprise.  "Uhhhhhhhh, God,"
she managed to groan after she was beginning
to come down.  He held onto her, pumping up
into her, his release following soon after,
filling her in several hard pushes.  He
relaxed his knees, pulling her down to him,
enveloping her in his arms, holding her to
him as he tried to catch his breath.  He
could feel her smile against his chest,
thinking to himself that he would keep that
smile on her face for the rest of their
vacation.

STONYCREEK LODGE
Four days later
December 30, 3:30pm
"Shit, Mulder.  Help me get out of this
thing," she said, unable to get the ice-
packed zipper of her snowsuit to open.

"What's it worth to ya?" he teased, already
stepping out of his.

"Come on, I'm freezing," she said, her lips a
delicate shade of blue.  "I want to get into
a hot shower."

Mulder helped her out of her rented suit, her
underclothes consisting of a pair of
sweatpants and a t-shirt.  They had gone
snowmobiling, the snowy landscape beautiful
and the ride exhilarating.  Scully had been
doing great until the leg heaters on her
machine quit working and the six mile return
trip to the lodge had practically made an ice
cube of her.  Mulder had gotten the shower
warm for her, Scully stepping into his
embrace as she stood into the stream of
water.  "My ass has no feeling, Mulder," she
said, finally getting some feeling back into
the rest of her from the shower and Mulder's
embrace.  He rubbed and squeezed her bottom
trying to help her circulation and just
enjoying rubbing and squeezing her bottom.

"Warm yet?" he asked, continuing to rub her
back, down her arms.  She stepped away from
him then, looking up and giving him a
grateful smile.

"Yeah," she answered, reaching for her
shampoo.  "Wash my hair?" she asked, handing
him the bottle.
They finished their shower, him exiting
before she did, leaving her to just stand in
the hot stream for a little longer.  When she
entered the bedroom, he was squatting in
front of the fireplace, encouraging the
kindling to start.  "What do you want to do
tonight?" she asked him, squeezing her hair
dry with a towel.

"Are you serious?" he replied, smiling at
her.

"Well, besides that..." she said, knowing
what he was insinuating.  She sat in the
chair next to the loft railing, watching him
fiddle with the fire he was still trying to
start.

"I don't know.  Beth and Jack invited us to
go to dinner."

"Do you mind doing things with them, Mulder?"

"Mind?  No, why would I mind.  I actually
like them," he said, finally getting a flame
going.

"I know you planned this vacation just for
the two of us..."

"Scully, we have plenty of time to ourselves.
Having a dinner or two with them is fun.  It
keeps us from getting sick of each other," he
teased.

"There's also a movie being shown in the main
lodge tonight," she said, still sitting, just
watching him move around the room in his
nakedness, admiring his body, his lack of
modesty.

"Yeah?  Something good?"

"Well, probably not something you have in
your video collection, but something in
keeping with the season... 'Holiday Inn'" she
said tentatively, knowing that Mulder would
rather have his teeth drilled than watch some
sappy musical.

"Oh, Scully..." he groaned, finally finding
his robe and coming to sit in the chair next
to her, looking proudly at his fire.

"Beth and I could go.  You and Jack could
go... do whatever.  I wouldn't hate you for
it," she smiled.

"So we're meeting them then?" he asked,
reaching for her hand.

"Yeah, let's do..." she said, standing,
bending to give him a quick kiss.  "I need a
nap.  Care to join me?"  He followed her to
the bed, both of them dropping their robes,
sliding in under the covers, snuggling
together to stay warm.  Scully dropped off
quickly, Mulder not even feeling like a nap,
but never wanting to pass up an opportunity
to snuggle with a naked Scully.

SNOWCAP LOUNGE
STONYCREEK LODGE
December 30, 10:32pm
Mulder and Scully had napped for almost two
hours, Scully actually waking before Mulder
and calling Beth to confirm dinner plans. The
dinner had been delicious, the conversation
entertaining and the four of them had enjoyed
all of it.  They all agreed to skip the
movie, opting instead for the music of the
jazz quartet playing in the lounge.  They had
managed a table toward the back so they could
talk over the volume of the band and had all
sampled the hotel's homemade eggnog.

"We don't socialize with other people much,"
Mulder had answered when asked what they did
for fun when at home in Washington.  "We work
a lot... and well, we don't advertise our
relationship around town."  Beth and Jack
looked at him a bit blankly, not quite
understanding why.  Scully jumped in,
thinking they could be getting the wrong
idea.

"We're partners... at the FBI.  So we don't
really want the powers that be to know that,"
she clarified.

"Oh...  And a relationship between partners
is against the rules, I assume?" Beth asked.

"Well, not exactly," Scully began, glancing
toward Mulder for help, him just giving her a
smirk.  "We wouldn't get fired, but they
could split up our partnership and we don't
want to be assigned to different sections.
Our work is... um... unique."  Mulder smiled
at her, telling her 'good job' with his
expression.

"Unique?  How?" Jack asked, his curiosity
peaked.  Finally, Scully looked at Mulder,
her expression telling him to handle this
one.

"We are assigned to a section that gets the
cases that are considered unsolvable; that
may be... unusual in some way," he explained,
Scully relieved he hadn't used the word
'paranormal'.

"Wow, that sounds fascinating," Beth
commented.  "Makes our lives seem rather
mundane," she chuckled.

"I could use a little 'mundane' once in a
while," Scully smiled, deciding it was time
to change the subject.  "Let's dance,
Mulder," she said, hoping he was in the mood.
They had never really danced together before,
not really, and she wasn't sure Mulder even
liked to dance.  She was wrong.  He had a
great lead and his rhythm made her wish they
were back in their cabin, alone.

"Mulder, you never cease to amaze me," she
said in reference to his skill, enjoying
dancing with him, being held by him in
public.  She wasn't much on public displays
of affection and seldom cared what other
people thought but had to admit that she kind
of liked the other women in the room watching
her handsome partner.  "Every other woman in
this place is jealous of me right now,
Mulder.  I don't know if you realize that,"
she teased him.

"Yeah, right, Scully.  They don't know I
chase aliens for a living," he snorted.

"Well, I do and you are the sexiest man in
this room... and very good on your feet,
too."

"I was one of those geeky kids in dance
school, Scully.  You're the only one I've
ever told that to, so if it gets out, I'll
know where it came from," he teased.  The
music stopped then, the band going on a
break, Mulder and Scully returning to their
table.  Jack had bought another round and the
eggnog seemed a bit heavier on the rum than
it had during the last round.

"I really don't drink much," Scully said.
"So after this much eggnog, I ought to sleep
really well tonight," she joked, taking
another sip.

"Not if I have anything to say about it,"
Mulder joked, Beth and Jack laughing, Scully
reaching to smack his arm.

"Keep that up, Mulder..." she said, her
warning clear to him, Jack and Beth
continuing to laugh.

The four of them stayed in the lounge for a
while longer, sometimes talking, sometimes
just listening to the music. Mulder and
Scully danced again when the band began
playing a very bluesy version of 'God Rest Ye
Merry Gentlemen' that was 'let's go back to
the room and fuck' music if there ever was
any and Mulder was definitely ready.

"Scully, you may think I'm good on my feet,
but if I don't get you horizontal in the next
five minutes, I'm taking you right here on
this dance floor," he whispered into her ear,
their bodies moving slowly, pressed together
closely.  She tightened her arms around him,
pushing herself against him, not really
deliberately, but feeling a bit inebriated
which always made her more openly amorous.

"After the song.  This has always been my
favorite Christmas carol," she said, looking
up at him, her look he recognized as a kiss
request, which he obliged.

"I think it has just become mine, Scully," he
whispered to her, the tickling vibration of
his voice against her ear felt all the way to
her groin.  After the song, they went back to
the table, Scully gathering her purse, taking
one last sip of her eggnog before announcing
they were calling it a night.

"Will we see you tomorrow night at the New
Year's party?" Beth had asked her.  There was
a formal celebration in the main ballroom of
the lodge the next night, complete with
fireworks at midnight.

"Ummm..." Scully hesitated, she and Mulder
having discussed celebrating alone in their
cabin.  "We haven't decided yet.  Are you and
Jack going?" Scully asked, Mulder and Jack on
the other side of the table discussing
something or other.

"Yeah.  We've been married almost fifteen
years, Dana.  A New Year's Eve alone doesn't
hold the appeal it does for you two," she
kidded, knowing full well what Scully was
thinking.  Scully laughed then, realizing
that fact.  They said their goodbyes, Mulder
and Scully enjoying their stroll back to the
cabin, a light snow falling, sparkling
against the moonlight.

"I think I'm drunk, Mulder," Scully said
after the cold night air hit her.

"Really?" Mulder chuckled, looking down at
her as she walked beside him, leaning into
his side.  "You seemed okay inside... a
little tipsy, maybe."  Scully didn't say much
more as they walked to their cabin, Mulder
dropping his keys before unlocking the front
door, fumbling a bit with the lock.  He
laughed to himself, feeling a bit silly at
being so anxious to get Scully into bed.

But as soon as he opened the front door,
Scully ran toward the stairs, running up them
two at a time, heading straight for the
bathroom.  She had thrown her pashmina toward
the bed, slinging each shoe off before making
it to the bathroom.  She almost fell to the
floor at the base of the toilet, for once
thankful that Mulder had failed to put the
seat back down.  Barely making it in time,
but luckily doing so as she began to wretch,
barfing every ounce of her eggnog into the
porcelain that had just become her best
friend.  Mulder could hear her throwing up as
soon as he reached the top of the stairs,
moving to the bathroom quickly, hoping to
help her.

"Leave me alone, Mulder," she said between
heaves, embarrassed that he was seeing her
sick.

"Scully, let me at least hold your hair out
of the way..." he said calmly to her,
gathering her hair in his hands.  She heaved
several more times, less and less coming out
of her each time.  Mulder managed to wet a
washcloth with his free hand and wiped the
back of her neck and her forehead before
giving it to her.

"Can you help me up?" she said finally, her
voice so soft he could barely hear her.  He
slid his arm around her waist and lifted her
to a standing position, closing the lid of
the toilet as he flushed it, setting her down
to steady her.  She was exhausted from her
vomiting, her body dehydrated and shaking
from her exertion.

"Okay now?" he asked, squatting down next to
her to look at her directly, brushing her
hair away from her face.

"Yes... I think," she said, trying to give
him a small smile as she continued to wipe
her face with the cool cloth.

"Let me help you out of your dress, Scully,"
he told her, reaching behind her to unzip it.
She stood, stepping out of her dress as he
helped her.

"I think I'll take a shower..."

Mulder had gone back downstairs, making sure
their cabin was locked for the night,
returning upstairs with a glass of Sprite for
her, finding her still in the shower.  He
took her robe to her, checking to make sure
she was doing okay.  He returned to the
bedroom, plugging in their little tree and
getting undressed to his boxers, hanging his
suit and her dress in the closet.

Finally, she emerged from the bathroom, a
towel around her hair, the sash on her robe
only loosely closed.  He could tell she was
still embarrassed, not really making eye
contact with him since she'd come from the
bathroom.  "Scully, it's no big deal.  It
happens to all of us.  Those last eggnogs
were a little strong," he said, trying to
comfort her.

"Well, I feel stupid, Mulder.  And I'm
sorry..." she said, dropping her robe and
climbing into bed, the cool sheets feeling
good against her skin.

"Nothing to be sorry for, Scully," he told
her as he crawled in next to her.  "How do
you feel?"  He propped his head on his elbow,
looking down at her as she rolled to her side
to face him.

"I think I feel better lying on my side," she
said, realizing she still felt nauseas.  "I'm
sorry I spoiled our plans..."

"Plans?" Mulder asked, not understanding what
she meant.

"What we were talking about on the dance
floor," she reminded him.

"Oh, those plans...  I just want you to feel
better, Scully.  I'm sure we'll have time for
more... plans," he kidded her, accentuating
his last word.  He kissed her goodnight,
tasting toothpaste and Sprite, as she rolled
over to her other side, fluffing the pillow a
bit under her head.  He spooned up behind
her, laying his arm over her, lightly rubbing
her stomach.  "This help?" he asked.

"I don't think so, Mulder.  It seems to be
better the more still I am," she said, just
needing to sleep at that point.  He moved his
arm lower, wrapping it around her hips as
they both fell off to sleep, both hoping her
nausea had gone.

MULDER & SCULLY'S CABIN
STONYCREEK LODGE
New Year's Eve, 7:34am
"I feel... like crap," she moaned, rubbing
her eyes, finally able to open them.  Mulder
was sitting on the side of the bed, two
Tylenol and a large glass of ice water all
ready for her.  She took the pills with
several large gulps of the water, giving him
a shy smile that told him she was still
apologizing for the previous night.  "You are
an angel, Mulder," she said, sitting up to
give him a kiss.

They went downstairs, Mulder having made
coffee and Scully could hardly get to it fast
enough.  "How long have you been up?" she
asked, noting he had several things for
breakfast already out on the counter.

"Oh, an hour or so, I guess-- you need to eat
something, Scully," he interjected, thinking
of that hot coffee going into her very empty
stomach.

"Toast... only," she said, giving him a weak
smile.

Scully's stomach had settled about midmorning
and she and Mulder had retired to the couch,
Mulder leaning against some pillows, Scully
leaning against Mulder.  The television was
muted to a morning news program, but neither
was paying much
attention to it, both of them reading.  The
fire in the fireplace would pop every now and
then, an errant voice carrying just right
across the ice being heard from the skaters
on the lake.

Scully's mind wandered, worrying about her
mother, how things with Bill and the rest of
her family had ended.  She had called her
mother after she had returned to Washington,
her mother reporting that Bill's mood hadn't
improved much, his opinion that he deserved
an opinion about Scully's relationship not
changing.  Her mother had seemed fine, but
Scully knew she was distressed about the rift
between her children.  "Thinking about your
mother?" Mulder asked out of the blue,
rubbing her thigh.

"Mulder, how do you know that?" she asked
incredulously, turning between his legs to
look at him, wondering sometimes if he could
read her mind.

"You haven't turned a page in five minutes
and I know the deal with Bill is still
upsetting you," he said, closing his book and
tossing it on the coffee table.  She set her
book next to his and turned around fully,
reclining against him, laying her head
against his shoulder.  Mulder wrapped his
arms around her, rubbing her back, over her
bottom, feeling her sigh.  "It'll work out,
Scully."

"How do you know that?" she asked sadly.

"Because you both love each other... in his
own way, he loves you," he told her, bending
to kiss her forehead.

"He wants to control me," she stated.

"I don't think that's it, Scully.  I really
don't.  If it was just control, he'd pull his
macho act with everything, not just when I'm
involved," he said.

Scully moved up to straddle him so that she
could look in his eyes.  "You think it's just
you?  Why?" she asked, truly unsure why he
thought that.

"Because of your sister.  He blames me,"
Mulder told her flatly.

"You think so..." she said, not really
believing that Mulder would take on this
blame also.

"I know so.  He told me so," Mulder confessed
to her.

"When?" she asked quietly, but disturbed that
Bill had done so.

"When you were sick... in the hospital.  He
blamed me for that, too," Mulder told her,
still lazily rubbing her back.

"Oh, Mulder, I'm so sorry... You know I don't
feel that way... or my mother.  You do know
that, don't you?" she said, her eyes pleading
with him to believe her.

Mulder looked in her eyes for a moment,
searching for any sign that she wasn't
telling him the whole truth and found none.
"Yes... yes I do, Scully," he said, pulling
her closer to him, embracing her tightly.  "I
love you, you know."

"Yeah, I kinda figured that out," she smiled,
moving to kiss him, wrapping her arms around
his neck.  She wiggled slowly against him as
she continued to kiss him, their tongues
leisurely enjoying each other.  He pulled at
the hem of her top, Scully finally letting
him lift it off over her head, not wanting to
break their kiss.  As soon as he unfastened
her bra, he bent his head to take her nipple
in his mouth, sucking it hard, nipping at it,
then laving it with his tongue.  "Mmmmmm,"
she hummed, her whole body beginning to hum,
her back arching as he repeated the process
on her other breast.

Scully moved her hands under his t-shirt, her
palms smoothing his stomach, his chest,
pressing her thumbs into his nipples.  He
pulled his shirt off, his expression serious,
his passion causing his breath to quicken,
his heart to pound.  He rolled her over on
her back, standing from the couch, pulling
her jeans and underwear off hurriedly, not
waiting for any assistance from her.  He
pulled his sweats off with one hand, reaching
down to stroke her face with his other.  He
joined her on the couch, lying over her,
kissing her again, hard, forcefully, reaching
between her legs to feel for her readiness.

"God, Mulder, I want you," Scully panted.
His fingers found her dripping wet, her
passion as obvious as his.  He moved himself
to her opening and entered her in one
forceful stroke, her back arching, her eyes
closing in near ecstasy.  He pushed in as far
as he could go, easing back out slowly,
almost pulling all the way out before pushing
in slowly, deeply again before pumping
several times quickly.  He rotated his hips
against her, pushing against her pelvic bone,
then undulating in more quick thrusts.
"Mulder, I can't keep up," she tried to tell
him, unable to match his changes in speed and
position.

"That's the point, Scully," his voice deep
and breathy.  He put his right, then his left
arm under each of her knees, pushing them
forward until her thighs were almost parallel
with her body, then increasing the speed of
his thrusts, a move that sent her over the
edge.

"Mulderrrrr! God..." she whimpered.  "Oh,
God..."  Her body spasmed, almost convulsed
as she climaxed, her inner muscles grabbing
him hard in quick squeezes, her whole vulva
quivering.  Mulder held himself as still as
he could until she could focus again, letting
her ride out her orgasm.  "My knees..." she
said, her voice barely a breath, barely able
to breathe herself.  He released his hold on
her knees, her legs falling limply to the
couch before he began moving in earnest
again, feeling the muscles of his abdomen
tighten, his testicles constricting so tight
he thought they would explode before he came.
He thrusted only a couple of more times, his
hips snapping against her as he erupted, his
deep groan echoing in the silent room.

"Uhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh, fuuuuuuuuckkkkkk," he
cried out, his breathing almost as loud as
his groan.  His body was quivering against
hers, Scully holding him, smoothing her hands
up and down his back, one foot rubbing over
the back of his thigh, his calf.

"Um, Mulder, on your side, honey," she said
to him softly, his body weight becoming too
much directly on top of her.  He shifted,
carrying her with him, holding on to her
until he was flat on his back and she was
lying on top of him.  She laid her head
against his chest, her ear over his heart
listening to the pounding beat, knowing it as
a sign of how much he loved her.  Her leg was
between his, feeling their fluids on him
against her thigh, the feeling giving her
another shiver.  She smiled when he pulled
the afghan from the back of the couch over
them, knowing he was mistaken about the
reason for her shiver.

"You okay?" he asked her softly.

"Yeah, why wouldn't I be?" she responded,
kissing his chest.

"I, uh, that was a little different for us,"
he said, testing her response.

Scully moved, just enough to prop herself up
to look at him before kissing him softly.
"Yeah, it was.  Care to tell me what spurred
your... urgency?" she asked, smiling at him,
letting him know she liked it.

"You.  You and your little wiggle.  Not one
of your more subtle moves, Scully," he said,
giving her his little smirk.

"It worked, didn't it?" she said, sliding
down to lay her head back on his chest,
smiling to herself.

Continued in Pt. 4

TITLE: The Lord of Misrule
AUTHOR: Dyann Zimmerman RATING: R/NC-17
E-MAIL: philer@onemain.com


MULDER & SCULLY'S CABIN
STONEYCREEK LODGE
One hour later
They were napping, at least Scully was;
Mulder was just biding his time until she
woke, hoping for a replay of an hour ago.
They still hadn't dressed, just enjoying
lying skin to skin... being lazy.  Mulder was
giving thought to waking her, teasing her
about drooling on his chest, when he heard a
loud knock at the door, startling him.
"Shit!" he said, trying to move up a bit to
see over the back of the couch.

"Mmmmmm, Mulder, don't wanna get up yet," she
mumbled against him.

"Scully, someone's at the door!" he whispered
to her.

She jerked up, looking into his eyes with her
startled ones.  "Shit!  Mulder, pick up these
clothes," she said as she scrambled off of
him.  The sound of another knock quickened
their movements even more.  "Get some pants
on!" she whispered loudly, gathering her
clothes and running up the stairs to compose
herself, Mulder not missing a glance at her
naked form leaping up the wooden staircase.

"Just a second...," Mulder yelled to the
mysterious visitor at their door.  He yanked
up his jeans, zipping them and pulling his t-
shirt over his head almost simultaneously.
He lifted a couch cushion and tossed his
boxers and socks under it, spotting Scully's
bra at the last minute and tossing it there,
too, before hurrying to open the door.

"Hi.  Is this a bad time?" Jack asked, him
and Beth standing in the blowing snow,
shivering, noticing that Mulder seemed a bit
off kilter.

"No... no. Um, come in. Come in," Mulder
said, finding himself stuttering like an
idiot.  "How about a beer?"

"Sounds good," Jack answered, looking around
the cabin.  "Nice place."

"None for me, thanks," Beth said.  "Where's
Dana?"

"Um... upstairs.  She's... uh, taking a
shower, I think.  She should be down in a
little bit," Mulder answered, ushering them
into the living room area.  "What brings you
two out and about?"

"We had been, um, napping and decided we
needed some fresh air, so we walked over here
to see if you and Dana were going to the New
Year's Eve party tonight," Beth said.

The three of them sat down, Jack and Beth on
the couch and Mulder in one of the side
chairs facing them.  Suddenly, Mulder noticed
a healthy third of Scully's bra hanging out
from underneath the couch cushion, very near
Jack's right leg.  Then, he heard the sound
of Scully's bare feet against the wood of the
stairs, turning around to see her descending,
dressed in her jeans and a clean sweater, her
hair combed, pulled back with a headband.

"Hi," she said, coming into the living room,
sitting on the arm of Mulder's over-stuffed
chair.  "What are you two doing out?"

"Came to see if you guys are going to the big
party tonight and... to see what one of the
cabins look like, if the truth be known,"
Beth admitted, smiling toward Scully.

"We hadn't really talked about it..." Scully
said, glancing at Mulder.  "I mean we talked
about it, but hadn't really decided."  Mulder
nudged her, Scully looking down at him
wondering why he had done that, noticing him
trying to indicate something to her with his
eyes.  But when Jack moved his right leg to
cross it over his left, she saw it; saw her
taupe, lace bra hanging out from under the
cushion of the dark brown couch.

Scully's blush was noticeable, Jack and Beth
suddenly feeling uncomfortable, realizing
there was something going on that they
weren't privy to.  Jack stood, taking one
last swig of his beer, holding his hand out
for Beth to get off the couch as well.  "I
guess we need to be going," Jack said
uncomfortably, taking Beth's hand.  "Maybe
we'll see you tonight..."

Their uncomfortableness was palatable and
Mulder and Scully both felt it, neither
wanting their new found friends to feel
responsible.  "Look behind you," Mulder said
to them out of the blue, glancing toward the
errant bra, Scully staring at him with a
'what the hell are you doing?' look if there
ever was one.  Beth and Jack turned around,
of course, seeing the bra hanging out from
under the cushion, both of them
simultaneously putting everything together
and coming up with the obvious conclusion.

There was dead silence in the room for a few
long seconds, then both of them lost it,
laughing out loud, Beth holding her stomach
as she laughed.  Scully turned to Mulder, her
looking at him with the stare of death until
he gave her his typical Mulder smirk and she,
too, began to laugh, despite feeling her
blush heat her neck and face.  "Mulder, did
you have to do that?" she said, shaking her
head.

"Good one," Jack said, still smiling, raising
his hand to give Mulder a soft high five.
They walked toward the door then, Beth and
Scully lagging behind them a step or two.

Beth looked at her and smiled, Scully's
embarrassment still present in her
expression.  "Don't worry about it, Dana.
Jack and I were um... 'napping' just before
we came over here..."

HARMONY LAKE
KEYSTONE LODGE
New Year's Eve, 2:17pm
After Jack and Beth had gone, Mulder and
Scully had decided to stop by the main lodge
for lunch and noticed the skaters on the
resort's lake.  Rented skates and all, they
had enjoyed a leisurely skate, enjoying
watching the children; enjoying skating with
each other, holding hands.  Scully was a good
skater, having had access to an indoor rink
when living on the base in San Diego.  Mulder
had only skated a few times before, but as a
natural athlete, he didn't embarrass himself.

"I think this is the best Christmas holiday
I've ever had, Scully," Mulder told her out
of the blue.  When he did, she slid to a
sudden stop, took his face between her gloved
hands and kissed him firmly on the lips,
seemingly totally oblivious of everyone
skating around them.  He had grinned at her
after she moved back and began skating,
pleased that she was giving up some of her
reserve about being openly affectionate with
him.

"What was your favorite Christmas, besides
this one," he smiled to her, still holding
her hand as they skated.

"Oh, I guess I'd have to say..." she thought
a few moments before finishing.  "...when I
was six.  It was before we moved to sunny San
Diego and were living in Annapolis.  Of
course, I didn't know it was my best
Christmas at the time..." she smiled.  "But,
we had snow; we went to New York to see 'The
Nutcracker'...  I think my parents knew at
Christmas that we would be moving to San
Diego that February, but we kids didn't know
it yet.  Christmas just never seemed like
Christmas again after that year..."

They skated over to the refreshment area,
Mulder getting two hot chocolates before
joining her at a table near one of the
heaters.  "Favorite Christmas gift," he said
to her, his statement actually a question.

"Besides my bracelet?" she smiled, giving him
another kiss.  "A ten-speed red Schwinn
bicycle when I was in third grade.  I had
hoped and hoped for it, but didn't think I
was going to get it.  And by that age, I knew
Santa wasn't going to help me out," she
kidded, looking at him, her non-verbal
request for him to answer the same question.

"Besides my Star Trek ornament?" he smiled.
"I guess it was... when I was thirteen.  My
grandparents got me a motor scooter---best
gift, worst Christmas.  It was the first one
after Samantha was gone.  Talk about
Christmas never seeming like Christmas
again..."  Scully laid her hand over his,
Mulder bending to give her a quick kiss.  He
was enjoying being able to do that.
"Favorite Christmas... movie."

"That's easy.  'White Christmas'" she said
quickly, smiling proudly.

"Yuk.  Why that one?" he asked, unbelieving
that she had picked something that sappy.

"Missy and I used to sing that 'Sisters'
song.  We thought we were damn good at it.
And every year, my parents would listen to us
do it just like we were actually good at it,"
she chuckled.

"Movie still sucks, although Rosie Clooney
was pretty hot in that, now that I think of
it," Mulder kidded her.  "Best movie, no
question, is 'It Happened on Fifth Avenue',"
he said, just knowing she had never heard of
it.

"Mulder!  No, you haven't heard of that
movie!" she said, standing, incredulous that
he had named an obscure movie that she had
only ever seen twice.

"You've actually seen that movie?" he asked,
almost disappointed that he hadn't stumped
her.

"Yes.  Yes...  We saw it on the late-night
movie as teenagers and loved it and then
never saw it again until I was in med school.
Missy, Charlie and I were home, at my
parents' house, for the holidays and we
actually caught it again and were so
excited..." she said, unbelieving that she
and Mulder would both know that little known
movie.

"Don DeFore," he said.

"Gale Storm," she said, challenging his
obscure knowledge.

"Alan Hale, Jr.," he countered.

She thought for a moment, racking her brain,
trying to come up with just one more star of
the movie... and couldn't.  "Bastard," she
teased, smacking his arm as he grinned at
her.  "Favorite song?" she asked quickly.

"None of them.  Christmas songs are
quintessential schmaltz, Scully."

"No fair.  You have to pick one, even if you
consider it the lesser of the evils," she
told him.

"Uh... 'God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen'" he
replied.

"Mulder, you just said that because I already
told you it was mine," she said, feigned
disgust in her voice.

"Well, I'm hoping that you are ready to go
back to our cabin and that answer will help
me get lucky," he kidded, smiling his silly
smile at her.

"Mulder, when have you NOT gotten lucky with
me?  Particularly on this trip?" she teased,
truly wondering.

"Good point, Scully," he said, figuring he'd
better let it drop or he really wouldn't get
lucky.  Mulder stood, taking her hand before
they skated back toward the exit.

MULDER & SCULLY'S CABIN
KEYSTONE LODGE
One hour later
Scully was puttering around the kitchen,
gathering a few things from the refrigerator,
scouring the cabinets for a skillet and a
spatula.  "What are ya doin'?" Mulder asked,
walking up behind her, laying his chin on her
shoulder.

"Making an omelet; I'm starving," she said,
breaking two eggs into a bowl.

"You didn't eat much at lunch."

"I still didn't feel too well.  I think the
fresh air did me good.  Certainly made me
hungry," she continued, whipping the eggs and
pouring them into the hot skillet.

"Made me hungry, too," he added, kissing the
side of her neck.

"I'll make you an omelet.  What do you want
in yours?" she said, not understanding his
meaning, until she turned around to look at
him.  "Mulder... Do you ever think about
anything but sex?" she teased.

"Not when you're around," he smiled.  She
turned back to her cooking, adding cheese to
her almost done egg mixture.

"So, that's all I am to you, huh?" she asked
kiddingly, flipping the edge of the omelet
over the other, removing it from the burner.

"No, not all.  You are cooking me an omelet,
aren't you?"

"Damn it, Mulder!" she laughed, smacking him
with a towel, going after him as he dodged
her first attempt.  She chased him around the
counter, into the living room area, facing
off from him across the couch.  "I WILL get
you."

"Is that a threat, Scully?" he teased.

"No.  It's a promise," she smiled to him,
turning her back to him to return to the
kitchen area and to her omelet.  But before
she made it, she felt his arms grab around
her from the back, lifting her, her back
against his chest, her feet dangling.
"Mulder, put me down!" she laughed.

He hiked her up a little higher to get a
better grasp on her as he carried her toward
the stairs.  "Down is the operative word
there, Scully."

"Mulder, my omelet," she said, absolutely
caring less about it, but just keeping the
banter going.

"Your mid-afternoon snack will be served in
the bedroom," he told her flatly.  She let
him carry her, not even keeping up with her
feeble efforts to get out of his grasp.  She
let her head fall back against his shoulder,
turning to kiss the side of his neck.  He
reached the bed, freshly made by the hotel
staff while they were out, and laid her on it
face down.  He laid over her, kissing the
back of her neck, rubbing himself against
her.  "You want to get naked with or without
my help?" he asked her.

"Without.  It's faster that way," she
answered as he let her up, both of them
undressing quickly and jumping back onto the
bed.  They turned to their sides, looking at
each other for a few seconds, both beginning
to smile at each other.  "We're pathetic,
Mulder.  We get away like this and all we do
is screw like a couple of bunnies..."

"And you think that's pathetic?" he kidded.
"Pathetic, Scully, is that we let seven years
go by before we did this the first time."

She laughed, then moved closer to him,
wrapping one arm around his neck, the other
around his waist as she kissed him softly.
They kissed leisurely for several long
minutes before they intensified, Mulder's
hand drifting down her back to massage her
bottom, then pulling her leg up, over his
waist.  He pulled back to look at her,
finding the look of arousal in her eyes
almost overpowering.  He grasped her thigh
then, moving it off of him to maneuver her to
lie on her back.

Scully looked at him, his deep love and
desire for her mirrored in his eyes as he
looked at her, her body.  He stayed on his
side and smoothed his hand over her; her
stomach, her breasts.  He caressed her skin
with his palm, up her arm to her neck, then
running a finger down between her breasts all
the way to the auburn hair between her legs.
He bent to kiss her, his hand sliding between
her legs as she opened them to give him
access.  She thought his first touch always
felt like an electrical shock, her hips
reflecting what her body was feeling as they
trembled.

They made love slowly, neither in any hurry
to climax, just enjoying the feeling of each
other's skin, the movement of each other's
body.  They lay together afterwards, still
petting each other, kissing, allowing their
breathing to slow, their bodies to cool.
"That was nice," Scully told him softly,
stroking her hand over his stomach.

"Nice?  I'm not sure that's a compliment to a
man, Scully," Mulder teased, kissing her
forehead as she lay in his arms.

"Well, it should be," she answered quickly.
"We don't always have to go at it like it's
an athletic event, Mulder."

"Is that what you think we do?" he asked, not
sure what she was meaning.

"No... no, I didn't mean it that way, really.
I just meant that achieving an earth
shattering orgasm doesn't always have to be
our goal."

"But orgasm is the ultimate goal, Scully.  At
least it is for a man.  You don't have sex
with a goal not to finish.  I doubt a woman
would want that either," he noted.

"I'm just saying that the means can be the
goal as well as the end... sometimes.  Sex is
a physical thing to men; it's an emotional
act to women, Mulder," she said, snuggling
closer as she lay close to him.  "That's all
I'm saying."

"Do you think I ignore your needs, your
emotional needs, when we make love, Scully?"
he said, a note of hurt to his voice.  "Or
that there is no emotion in it for me?"

"No!" she answered quickly, sitting up to
look at him.  "Mulder, you are the most
attentive, thoughtful... loving man I have
ever known or could ever imagine, for that
matter," she said, making sure he understood.
"Sometimes I feel selfish because you are so
devoted to pleasing me that I sometimes
wonder if you are being as satisfied as I
am."

Mulder laughed, looking at her like she had
just sprouted horns.  "Scully, all you have
to do is touch me and I could die a happy
man.  I still can't believe that you even let
me in the door let alone in your bed," he
said, caressing her face.  "Just being with
you satisfies me beyond words..."  She smiled
at him, laying over him to kiss him softly.

"Come on, let's get ready and meet Jack and
Beth, at least for dinner," Scully said,
moving to get out of the bed.  "We don't have
to stay 'till midnight if we don't want to."

Mulder grabbed her hand as she moved to
stand, causing her to turn to look at him,
see the loving look in his eyes.  "What?" she
asked softly.

"I love you..." he said simply.

Scully bent to give him another light kiss.
"On second thought, we could even skip
dessert..."

MAIN LODGE
KEYSTONE LODGE
New Year's Eve, 9:40pm
"I feel absolutely decadent," Beth said after
taking the first bite of her Bananas Foster,
the smell of the burning liqueur still
permeating the air.

"I don't," Mulder smiled, taking another
large bite of his Creme Brulee.  The four of
them had had a meal fit for the Queen's court
and were making their way through their
second bottle of champagne.  Mulder re-filled
his glass, offering to top off Scully's.

"No thanks, Mulder.  That stuff goes right to
my head.  I'll save another glass for
midnight," Scully said, smiling to him, not
wanting to spoil their plans with a repeat of
the other night.

"I heard that the band playing tonight is
kind of a staple here at the lodge," Jack
said, wiping his last bite of dessert from
his lips.  "A lot of swing, big band stuff
mostly... but supposed to be good."

"I think a bunch of drunken people on New
Year's Eve would probably think a dead
Lawrence Welk sounded good," Mulder joked.

"So are you two gonna stick around until
midnight?" Beth asked, smiling at Scully.

Scully looked at Mulder for confirmation, but
recognizing, by the look in his eyes, that it
was totally up to her.  "I guess we'll hang
around for a while, okay?" she said,
answering Beth, but asking Mulder.  The four
of them enjoyed a little more conversation
before moving to the main ballroom which was
already starting to fill.  They were seated
at a nice table, more toward the back than
the front which was perfect for them, not
wanting to be too close to the band's
speakers.

The band had proved to be as good as Jack had
heard it was, complete with audience sing-
alongs that even Mulder had found
entertaining.  Scully had giggled at Mulder's
reticent participation, but loved him all the
more for staying with her and, at least,
acting like he was having fun.  And, as
predicted, horns and blowers and confetti
were passed around to everyone and, as
predicted, no one could resist testing them,
the sounds of horns and noisemakers
permeating the room above even the volume of
the band.

"Having fun?" Mulder asked into Scully's ear.
Beth and Jack were dancing, a fast dance that
Mulder had vetoed.  He had scooted his chair
close to Scully's, his arm over the back as
she leaned into his side.  She looked up at
him, smiling, reaching up to remove a
lipstick smudge from the edge of his lip with
her thumb, residue from an earlier kiss.

"Yeah.  You?" she asked, still smiling at
him.

"Believe it or not, I am," he said sincerely.
"But I'm looking forward to getting back to
the cabin, too..."

"Me, too," she said, smiling at him again,
rubbing her hand lightly up and down his
thigh.

"You want to go now?" he asked.

Scully looked at her watch, seeing that it
was only about ten more minutes until
midnight.  "It's only a few minutes until the
new year.  Let's wait.  Okay?" she said.

"Okay.  Then we can go back to the cabin and
welcome in the new year with a bang..." he
grinned to her.  She rolled her eyes, but he
could see that they were smiling, Scully
having exactly the same idea.

Mulder and Scully went to dance, Scully
wrapping her arms around his waist.  Her head
was against Mulder's chest, her eyes closed,
almost oblivious to the fact that the song
had stopped.  Mulder lifted her chin with his
fingers, noticing the look on her face and
realizing that she may not make it the
remaining few minutes until midnight after
all.  "You still here?" he chuckled to her.

She slipped her arms around his neck and
kissed him, her hand now caressing the side
of his face.  "Let's go..." she said, her
arousal very recognizable to him.

Then the bandleader announced for everyone to
get ready, only one minute to go until
midnight.  "Come on, let's ring in the New
Year and then we'll go," he said, taking her
by the hand to return to their table.

"Ready?" Jack said, handing Mulder and Scully
a noisemaker or two from the table.

*Ten, nine, eight...* the announcer began to
count down.  Everyone was standing,
noisemakers in hand waiting to do what it is
people do at the first second of a new year.
*Seven, six, five...*  Mulder wrapped his arm
around Scully's shoulder, she wrapping hers
around his waist as she leaned into him,
surprising herself that she was so
disinterested in the festivities and just
wanting to be alone with Mulder so suddenly.

*Four, three, two, one-- Happy New Year!!!*
Scully tossed her noisemaker on the table,
instead wrapping her arms around Mulder's
neck, her lips immediately to his.  He
wrapped her up in his, his embrace so tight
he lifted her feet from the floor as they
continued to kiss, totally unaware of the
deafening noise going on around them. They
were still kissing when the band began to
play the perennially schmaltzy 'Auld Lang
Syne', Beth and Jack's midnight kiss ending
several seconds earlier.

"Hey, you two," Jack said, tapping Mulder on
the shoulder.  "We're gonna go..."  Mulder
and Scully finally stopped kissing, Mulder
letting his grasp slacken, her feet finally
returning to touch the floor.  Scully grabbed
his hand, smiling toward Jack and Beth,
almost forgetting that she and Mulder were
actually with other people.

"Yeah, us, too," Mulder told them, handing
Scully her purse, unsure if she even
remembered she had one with her.  The couples
said their 'good-byes', Jack and Beth leaving
for home the next morning.  They vowed to
meet there again sometime, all of them
meaning it, but knowing it wasn't likely to
happen.  Mulder and Scully rode the lodge's
trolley back to their cabin, the snow falling
lightly, the temperature hovering just below
freezing.

When they entered their cabin, the tree was
lighted and a nice fire glowed in the
downstairs fireplace, seemingly dancing to
the slow melodies of the Christmas carols
playing on the stereo.  "Mulder?  How did you
do this?" she asked, smiling to him.  Mulder
figured he owed the bellboy so much anyway,
what were a few more bills.  He wanted
everything perfect.

"I have my ways, Scully. Remember, I'm the
Lord of Misrule..." he said, helping to
remove her coat and hanging it on the hall
tree just inside the front door.  "Let's go
sit by the fire for a little while..." he
said, taking her hand.

"What are you up to, Mulder?  I thought you
wanted to... get into bed as badly as I did,"
she said to him as she followed, stepping out
of her heels before reaching the couch.

"All in good time, Scully," he said, smiling
at her as he tossed his jacket over the back
of a chair.  They sat on the couch, Mulder
moving as close to her as he could, his
expression growing more serious.

"Mulder, is there something wrong?" she
asked, unsure what all this production was
about.

"Scully... I... I was serious about getting
married," he said, taking hold of her hand.

"As was I, Mulder.  I hope you know that..."

"Well, I don't want to hide it.  I mean, I
want us to be just like any other 'normal'
couple," he said, not quite making his point
clear to her.  "That's what I've felt like
here, Scully.  Not having to hide our
relationship...  And I don't want to go back
to Washington and have to suddenly start
hiding it again.  I don't want to do that
anymore," he finished.

"Mulder, first of all, we'll never be like
any other so-called 'normal' couple-- I'm
glad to say.  But I have enjoyed being...
open about our relationship.  I never really
thought that aspect really mattered, but
after these few days, I don't think I could
go back to all the subterfuge either," Scully
told him, leaning her head against his
shoulder.

"Scully, look at me," he said to her, Scully
raising her head to return his look.  He
reached into the pocket of his pants and
opened his hand to her, a small green velvet
box resting in the middle of his palm.

"Mulder..." she said softly, recognizing the
type and size of the box for what it was.
Mulder opened it, revealing a large emerald
ring, two diamonds on each side down the
sculptured gold band.  "Oh, my god..."

"I didn't want to get anything too
traditional," he said quietly.  "I had it
made in a little jewelry shop near 'M'
street."  He took it from the box, taking her
hand to slip it on her trembling left hand.
Scully looked at it, thinking about what the
ring meant as the tears she had been holding
slipped down her cheeks.

"I love it... you," she said, turning to him,
holding his face in her hands as she gazed at
him, smiling before kissing him softly,
lingering a bit before pulling away.  "We'll
get married as soon as you want, Mulder."  He
kissed her then, wrapping his arms around her
to lift her fully onto his lap without
breaking their kiss.  "Mmmmmm, Mulder.  'You
remember how you promised me we'd ring in the
new year...?" she mumbled between kisses.  He
had unzipped her dress just enough to slide
it off her shoulder and was kissing her
there, across her chest to the tops of her
breasts.  "I'll meet you upstairs..."

Mulder turned off the tree and closed the
doors of the fireplace before making sure the
doors were locked.  When he got upstairs,
Scully was in the bathroom, so he built a
small fire and plugged in his little plastic
tree that he knew would become an annual
keepsake.

Scully came out of the bathroom naked, his
Santa had proudly perched atop her head, her
finger immodestly twirling his little red
bow.  He smiled, practically leering at her,
frozen in his spot in front of the dresser.

"You are way over-dressed for this occasion,
Mulder," she smiled at him, turning down the
blankets of the bed and crawling in.

"Well, you stole my outfit," he was able to
joke.  He pulled off his clothes in record
time and practically jumped into the bed with
her, immediately snuggling up to her, kissing
her neck, her lips.

"How long have you been carrying this ring
around, Mulder?" she asked as he continued to
nuzzle her neck, taking off her had and
tossing it across the room.

Mulder looked at her, laying his head next to
hers on the pillow as she rolled to her side
to face him.  "Two years," he coughed out.

"Two years?!" she gasped.

"I've loved you for a very long time,
Scully," he said softly.  "The ring helped me
to have hope."

"I'll love you forever..." she said, moving
to kiss him softly.  She moved on top of him,
rolling him to his back, still kissing him
soundly, their tongues vying for control.  He
wrapped his arms around her, rubbing her back
down to her thighs.  She spread her legs,
moving her knees to the bed, lifting herself
over him as he held his penis for her.  She
centered herself and then slid down on him,
both of them sighing at the sensation.  She
didn't move for a few seconds, just savoring
the feeling of him inside her.

Mulder held on to her waist as she set up
fully, feeling his length push against her
cervix.  "God, you feel so good," she moaned
as she began undulating against him.  She
placed her hand on his stomach, holding onto
his sides as she began moving up and down on
him.

"Jesus, Scully..." Mulder sighed, his head
tilting back onto the pillow, his eyes
clamping shut.  "Uhhhhh, just like that..."

She smiled, watching him, feeling her arousal
soar seeing his reactions to her movements,
her loving of him.  She bent forward a bit,
her hands sliding to his shoulders, causing
her clitoris to rub against his pubic hair.
She pushed harder, feeling the eminent
release of her orgasm spiral within her
abdomen.  She moved her hips side to side a
couple of times and that was all it took, her
hips jerking, her thighs trying to squeeze
together against his.  She held her breath
while her muscles clamped him, the tissues of
her fleshy folds throbbing against him.

"Ohhhhhh, god..." she finally breathed, her
body melting to lay over him, the hair on his
chest against her breasts giving her entire
body goose bumps.  She tried to start pumping
against him again, but he needed more.

Mulder rolled her off of him, onto her
stomach, then laying half over her back, his
erection rubbing against her hip.  "Is this
okay?" he asked, not knowing if she would
want to finish this way.

"Whatever you need..." she answered softly,
barely more than a breath.  He moved her
knees forward, raising her bottom into the
air as he moved over her, bending to kiss the
back of her neck, behind her ear.  He held
his weight on the hand of his outstretched
arm, using his other hand to find her opening
with his penis.  She was still incredibly
wet, confirming to him that she just wasn't
doing it this way to please him.  He slid in
easily, moving his arm to hold her around her
abdomen.

"Oh, my god..." she said as he began to pump,
the feeling of him very different than he
felt in the other positions they had tried.
He moved his hand, fingering her clitoris as
he continued to move in and out of her and
she climaxed again as soon as he pushed hard
on her engorged bud.

"Ohgodohgodohgodddddddd..." she cried, her
body shuddering, barely able to handle the
sensations he was creating in her.  He held
onto her hips, shifting his weight from his
arms to his knees as his thrusting became
harder, his hips slapping against her firmly,
as she tried to keep from screaming,
literally screaming.

He could feel his orgasm in every muscle of
his body, his semen erupting into her with
every thrust he could manage.  She collapsed
under him, the words of her whimpers
indiscernible to him, the sound of his
rushing blood almost deafening to his ears.
He managed to shift most of his weight to his
side before collapsing on top of her, his
penis slipping out of her as he did.  She
reached back to stroke him, feeling both of
their fluids on him, now on her hand.  He
knew what she was asking for when she did
that and reached between her legs to stroke
her softly, helping her come down.

Mulder shifted to his back, his breathing
still erratic and labored as she rubbed her
palm against his length one last time before
lying next to him, the feeling of her new
ring against his sensitive skin sending
little shock waves through him again.  Her
head dropped to his shoulder, the muscles of
her body so sated, they barely responded to
what her brain was trying to tell them to do.
A few minutes passed before either one of
them said anything.

"Scully..." Mulder sighed.

"I know, I know..." she said, the movement of
her lips against his skin tickling him.  He
moved to lay her on her back then, shifting
to hold his weight on his elbow so that he
could see her.  Their eyes held each others,
both of their smiles growing in tandem.
"That was... I don't even know what that
was," she smiled, her voice still not much
more than a breath.

"I think that is what's known as ringing in
the New Year with a bang," he teased, bending
to kiss her softly.  "God, we're good
together..."

"Yes, yes we are..." she said, snuggling into
him as he wrapped his arms around her.  They
lay there together, watching the snow fall
lightly outside their window, hoping that
their lives together would be half of what
they had found during this last week.
Somehow, they both knew it would be...

The end

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