Date: Tue, 13 Jul 1999 15:18:13 GMT
From: shoshana <shoshana1013@excite.com>
Newsgroups: alt.tv.x-files.creative

TITLE: Rivalry (1/1)
AUTHOR: Shoshana
EMAIL ADDRESS: shoshana1013@excite.com
DISTRIBUTION STATEMENT: Anywhere
SPOILER WARNING: 6th season, excluding Biogenesis (which occurs in the
fall of 1999, according to my universe).
RATING: PG
CONTENT STATEMENT: VA
CLASSIFICATION: VA
KEYWORDS: Mulder/Scully UST
SUMMARY: Mulder and Scully return to the office; a visitor stops by.
DISCLAIMER: These characters do not belong to me.
NOTE:  Third in a series: The sequel to "Renewal."


Rivalry
By Shoshana

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
July 6th, 1999, 10:00 a.m.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Mulder unlocked the door to the office and flipped the lights on.  He
shucked his suit jacket off, hanging it on the coat rack near the door.
 He sniffed the air, smelled familiar perfume, and immediately
stiffened.  Diana.  She had been here.  Was she still here?  Why the
hell hadn't they changed the locks on the door?

How predictable that she still wore Chanel No. 5 after all these years.
 He knew it wasn't Scully's scent.  He had inhaled that earlier, for all
he was worth.  Their 'walk' had given him the opportunity to gaze at her
unabashedly and be close enough, long enough to revel in her smell.

He wasn't familiar with the name of Scully's perfume, and he'd never
asked her what it was.  He should know by now.  He'd seen the bottle
countless times on the road.  But the shape of it was unfamiliar, and
the name upon it was in an abstract cursive script that required close
observation.  And he'd always been afraid she'd catch him poking through
her personal items.  He made a solemn vow to discover what it was as
soon as possible, then rush out and buy her an ounce or two.

He'd certainly felt like buying the world for her just twenty minutes
ago when they returned from their walk.  'If you're going to stick
around with me.'  The words kept tumbling through his mind.  He had not
mistaken their meaning, no doubt of that.  We're going to stay with each
another, no matter what.  She had invited him into the rest of her life,
in that offhand way she was so damn talented at.

Scully was still retrieving whatever she'd said she needed from the
third floor lab.  Not much time to reflect on what the hell Diana was
doing in our office today.  If it had been her.  It had to be, unless
someone else had a key he didn't know about.  They hadn't been absent
from the office all that long for their walk.

The scent was fresh, he knew that; his investigative abilities weren't
that rusty after the three day holiday weekend.  He remembered Diana's
devotion to Chanel No. 5, that she never left the apartment without a
dab behind her ears.  And he thanked whatever god was listening that the
fragrance held no attraction to his senses anymore.  None.  Any
lingering attraction to Diana, as a friend, a woman, or a colleague, had
been killed by her betrayal of his trust.

Scully arrived back at their office to find Mulder leaning back in his
chair, deep in thought.  "Hey," she said quietly.

"Hey yourself.  Did you get what you were after?"

"Oh yeah..., I think I did," she said cryptically.

She'd been able to think of nothing but Mulder the last half hour.
She'd sat in the laboratory, waiting for results from last week's
autopsies, musing about him, and his sweetly, stupefied reaction to her
statement, 'You really ought to spend more time with my Mom.'  Yep,
nothing declares your love for a man more than suggesting that he spend
more leisure time with your mom.

But she did get through to him.  Mulder didn't miss much.  At least, he
hadn't this time around.  They'd always had the oddest ways of
expressing affection for one another, obscuring their meaning in the
turn of a phrase, the movement of their eyes, the brushing of their
fingers against one another.  She'd been so lonely this past weekend,
despite her mother's company, and she'd decided that they'd danced
around this bonfire for too many years.

Mulder's voice broke her reverie, "Scully, someone was here while we
took our stroll..."

"Who?!"

"I don't know for sure.  I can't be sure.  It might have been Diana,
Scully..."

"But, she hasn't been heard of since February."

"When I came in earlier, the place smelled of her perfume.  Please,
don't quiz me on how I know that, I just do.  She's worn Chanel her
whole life.  It's distinctive, and she was here, I know it."

"She has a key?"

"We never changed the locks, Scully.  I know it sounds idiotic, but we
didn't.  I don't know where to find her.  She's missing from work.  Her
apartment was cleaned out from top to bottom.  I would like to find out
how she had the temerity to waltz in here without our knowledge, but I'm
not confident I will."

"Tell Skinner."

Mulder laughed.  "Based upon what?  I smelled her perfume?  He'll have
me in restraints before noon.  No, I think I may call the guys and have
them do some detective work for us.  Ahem,...you know that kind of
*illegal* stuff we were discussing earlier?"  They smiled at one other,
the discussion fresh in their minds.

"Yeah, Mulder.  I think I'll just see no evil, hear no evil if you don't
mind.  What I don't know about their methodology can't hurt me.
So...what else do you want to tackle this morning?"

"Besides my partner?"  Scully threw daggers at him with her eyes.  "Hey,
you left yourself open for that one!  I couldn't resist that..."

His whole countenance bespoke an innocent joy; pestering her with inane
jokes was something he'd really missed last weekend.  She sighed, giving
him her I'm-being-tolerant smile and sat down at her desk, powering up
her laptop.  "O.K., Mulder, let's not waste the entire morning.  What's
the agenda?"

"Expense reports, insurance papers, leftover mail, miscellaneous
research, just the usual.  You tell me where to start...my mind is still
on a park bench, gazing into the Reflecting Pool..."

"I have a good idea where your mind is, Mulder, and it's not gazing into
that damn pool..."

"Ms. Scully!  Now who's wasting time on innuendo?"  He grabbed some
files from his desk.  "Look, I'm going to the Archive and do a little
research.  That way you can get started on whatever you like.  I don't
think we're going to get anything done in the same room with each
other."

"Mulder...," she protested, rolling her eyes, then shaking her head.

"That's not to say you're not a pleasant distraction, Scully.  I just
want to give you a chance to breathe..."

"My respiration is doing just fine, Mulder.  Alright, O.K., as long as
you're going to abandon me to my own resources, why don't you run over
to 'Au Bon Pain' and buy us some lunch around one?"

He seemed pleased with this compromise and he grabbed his files, placing
them on her desk while he pulled his jacket off the coat rack.  By the
time he turned back around, she was standing by the desk, files in hand,
mischief in her eyes.

"And don't forget my latte, O.K.?"

"Wouldn't dream of it, Scully..."  His hand brushed up against hers as
he retrieved the folders, and though what he really wanted to do was
take her in his arms and kiss her tenderly, all he really had the nerve
to do at the moment was throw her a goodbye smile and fly out the door.


Scully sat back down in front of her laptop and started looking through
her E-Mail.  She didn't get far before she heard a knock on the door,
which Mulder had closed behind him.  Scully yelled "Come in!" and
resisted an audible gasp when she saw who it was.

"Hello Dana, is Fox here today?"

"Diana," was all Scully said, angry at the presumptuousness of this
woman.

"I'm really sorry to disturb you.  I know you're probably curious where
I've been, Dana."

"Actually, I haven't given it much thought, Diana.  We knew you were
still alive, and that was sufficient knowledge for me at the time."
Scully knew she sounded bitchy.  She just didn't give a damn anymore.
This woman would never get the better of her again.

Diana tried to ignore her jab and said, "So, I guess it's obvious that
Fox is not around this morning.  Could you please give him this number
to call me at?"  She cautiously placed the piece of paper near the
laptop, and retreated to the door slowly, standing up to Scully's now
venomous gaze.

"Sure, Diana. I'll make sure he gets it this afternoon.  Goodbye, now."
 She dropped her eyes back down to her computer, avoiding further
conversation.  Diana voiced a stiff goodbye and disappeared through the
door.

As soon as Scully was positive that she was long gone, she stopped
typing at her keyboard, slumped down in her chair, staring at the phone
number Diana had left.  She grabbed her cell phone, dialed Langley, and
asked him to call her back as soon as he traced the number to a
residence.  Within minutes, he called back with an apartment address in
D.C. proper, probably a condominium, in a fashionable neighborhood near
The Watergate, Diana's old building.  Scully asked him to find out
anything else he could, if he could and hung up the phone.  It was going
to be a long afternoon, she thought, returning to her laptop and her
E-Mail.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
1:15 p.m., the office
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Mulder arrived back at the office, lunch in hand, whistling to himself
some unknown tune.  He deposited his packages on an empty table,
wondering where Scully had strayed off to, since her laptop was still
running, still logged onto her password.  He'd just been seeking a peek
at what she had been working on when she returned, ignoring him and her
fragrant meal.

She resumed her seat in front of the laptop, taciturn, obviously
disturbed.  Mulder stood in front of his desk, observing her peculiar
behavior, debating whether it was worth asking why she was so pissed off
at him, as he was fairly certain he was going to hear about it soon.
His curiosity got the better of him and he asked, "Um, Scully?  Did
something happen while I was gone?"

"Yes, Mulder.  Something most certainly did," she replied, her voice
barely qualifying as a whisper.

He advanced closer to her side of the room, worry overcoming any fear of
Scully reprimands.  He leaned against the filing cabinet a few feet away
from her perch and looked down at her, trying to meet her gaze.
"So...what the hell happened?"

"Someone stopped by.  They left you this."  She handed him Diana's
telephone number and averted her gaze, staring vacantly at her laptop.

"Oh shit, Scully! Goddammit!"  He knelt beside her, his face level with
hers, placing one gentle hand on her right shoulder, silently
encouraging her to look his way.  "If I had known...I would have never
left you here to deal with this by yourself.  What the hell did she say
to you to get you into this mood?"

Scully swiveled her head, rotating her torso so that she could address
him directly.  Her head shook in denial as she said, "Nothing, she said
nothing.  She was utterly polite.  She didn't say anything harsh or
untoward.  She just stated that she thought we were probably curious
where she'd been.  She asked where you were and she left her number.
That's it, that's all."

Mulder sighed, balancing his hand on the back of her chair, as he said,
"That certainly can't be all, Scully.  You're not the picture of
merriment here..."

She pursed her lips, debating her next words carefully.  He wasn't
letting her off the hook easily; his presence beside her palpable
evidence of his concern.  She couldn't help but fidget with her suit
jacket, aware of his intense gaze, his body beside her, sweaty from his
foray out into the D.C. humidity.  She felt skittish as a pony,
unreasonably nervous this close to him, but unwilling to obscure her
feelings on this matter.

She finally broke the silence.  "Diana was as cool as a cucumber.  I was
not particularly civil, though not rude either.  I just let her know
that we assumed she was alive somewhere."

"Oh, I bet you did!"  he said with a hearty laugh, pulling himself up
from his crouching position and leaning against the wall near the door.
 Scully couldn't resist a half-smile, her lips puckering, stifling a
full-fledged grin.  Mulder might as well be a telepath, the way he read
her mind was uncanny, perturbing at times.

Mulder nonchalantly removed his jacket and threw it over a stray chair.
 He was still chuckling, envisioning Scully and Diana, claws extended,
each attempting to maintain a sedate composure in the presence of their
rival.  He'd never admit it to Scully, but he was really getting turned
on by this, his ex-girlfriend in thinly disguised confrontation with his
best friend, soon-to-be-something-else partner.

"What's so funny, 'Chuckles'?" Scully inquired.

"Uh, nothing," he replied, stifling his laughter.  Jeez, be careful
Mulder, she's going to see right through you one of these days and kick
your ass to Timbuctoo.  But, God he was getting a charge out of this...a
jealous Dana Scully was sexy as hell, and he was counting on prolonging
the antipathy between the two of them till the cows came home.

"Mulder, if I wasn't so otherwise trusting and confident in your own
moral rectitude, I'd say you were getting a real charge out of this, in
a depraved, Mulder kind of way..."

She was grinning from ear to ear now, watching the color rise in his
cheeks, overwhelming that flattering tan that he'd picked up last
weekend.  Ha, ha, gotcha Mulder.  Finally busted.  Actually, he appeared
so mortified that she wanted to embrace him, tell him that she secretly
relished the interest he took in her fits of envy.  Just another sweet
revelation of how much he did care for her...even though she strongly
suspected there was something kinky going on in there somewhere that she
could just as well do without.

"Scully, let's have lunch."

"Changing the subject, poopyhead?" she said, smiling broadly.

He closed his eyes, laughed and countered, "Yeah, honeybunch, I am!
Look, I'll have the Lone Gunmen find out everything about where's she's
residing, etc."

"Been there, done that."

"You have?" he said, a look of amused disbelief sweeping his face.

"Yeah, I've been nothing but efficient around the office today.  Anyhow,
you did say earlier that you were going call the three stooges sooner or
later.  Sooner definitely came when she strolled through that door,
Lazarus come back from the dead."

"Want to open an X-File on it, Scully?"

"Mulder, let's just have lunch."

fin