From: ephemeral@ephemeralfic.org
Date: 29 Nov 2003 03:30:57 -0000
Subject: TO TAME THE WILD FOX
Source: direct

CHAPTER XXXV

FEBRUARY 13, 2001
SAN DIEGO HILTON, ROOM OF GEORGE HALE
4:30 P.M.

I clicked off the DVD and pulled off the headphones.  I thrust 
myself away from the desk and stalked to the window.  I was furious 
and didn't know where to direct my anger.  I kicked the chair by 
the window and it felt good.  I knew I had to get out of that room 
and work off this anger somehow or I was going to wind up trashing 
it.

I quickly changed into my sweats and running shoes.  I picked up my 
room key and my cell phone and took off.

*****

Over an hour later, I returned to my room.  The overwhelming anger 
I had felt was gone.  All that was left was a desire to see Scully.

I showered and dressed in my jeans and a tee shirt.  I sat back 
down at the desk and forced myself to watch the rest of the 
surveillance DVD.  It ended this morning when the entire Scully 
crew had gone to the San Diego Zoo.

I needed to talk to Scully.  She didn't know it but she was
registered in the room next to mine.  I knew she wasn't back yet.  
She never left her mother's house until the kids were all asleep.

I had to know what she was going to do about William.  I had to
know what we were going to do about us.

I unlocked the adjoining door on my side.  I picked up my keycard,
my lock pick and the ice bucket and walked out into the hall.  No 
one was around so I casually let myself into Scully's room.

I didn't turn on the lights.  I checked the time and decided that I 
had a good half hour before she returned.  I sat down in the chair 
in the corner and made myself comfortable.  I would wait.

*****

I heard the keycard in the lock and checked my watch.  I had been 
waiting exactly 32 minutes.

She walked into the room and went straight to the bathroom, not 
turning on the lights.  I heard the toilet flush and the shower 
come on.  I began to harden.  A vision of my Scully peeling off her
clothes and climbing into a warm shower, naked and pink, flashed 
through my mind.  I wanted to strip down and climb in with her.  
Only a second vision of her screaming like Janet Leigh in Psycho 
stopped me.  I stood up and adjusted myself so that my jeans were
more comfortable then sat back down to wait.

*****

Dana Scully stood under the hot spray of the shower, willing 
herself not to start crying again.  She had cried all the way back 
to the hotel from her mother's house and all she had to show for it 
was a throbbing headache.  She needed to decide what she was going 
to do about William.

Each time she was with him her desire to tell him that she was his 
mother grew.  He was a wonderful little boy.  Gentle and caring,
smart and strong, he was everything she had prayed her child would 
be when she first found out she was pregnant.

Dana turned off the water and got out.  She quickly finished her 
nightly routine and walked out of the bathroom wrapped in her robe.
She was drying her hair as she walked across the room to turn on 
the lamp by the bed.

She bent over and wrapped her hair up in the towel she carried and 
untied the belt of her robe.  She started to slip out of it when 
she heard a moan from the corner.  She froze.

*****

"Don't stop," a voice from the dark growled.

Dana jerked her robe back up and twirled around, recognition 
dawning as she moved.  "Jesus!  Mulder, you scared me," she gasped 
and backed away from him.

"How did you know it was me?" he asked as he rose and stalked her 
around the bed.

"I didn't until you spoke," she replied, pulling the robe tighter 
around her body.

They stood staring at each other for several minutes, noting the 
changes in each other.  She was thinner than before, but her 
weight was distributed differently.  He had added a lot of muscle
since the last time she saw him.  Her hair was longer and a darker
red.  He was tanned and healthy looking, but his face had aged, she
noted.  His hair was long and still a dark brown, but she wouldn't
have been surprised to see a few strands of grey in the sunlight.

"You've changed," she said finally.  Her hand reached up to touch
his face, but the passion that flared in his eyes scared her.  She
didn't make contact, but moved on to his hair instead.  "Why the 
long hair?"

"It was my only form or rebellion at one time, and I got used to 
it.  It's something of a trademark now."

"'Dark and dangerous D. K. Williams'," she quoted one of the news
articles she had read about the Inauguration.  "'Was in attendance
with the lovely Lt. Carma Anderson, right hand to William's 
Assistant Director, Jason Whiting, on his arm.'"

"You've done your homework," he growled, crowding closer to her.

"I had a lot of catching up to do," she said as she moved away from 
him.  "I wanted to know why you were at the Inauguration under an 
assumed name, especially after I read your obituary."  Her voice 
had taken on a bitter tone.

"Scully ..." 

"I prefer to be called Dana," she interrupted him.  She desperately
needed to put a little distance between them.  When he said 
'Scully' in his honeyed growl, it was all she could do to keep from
throwing herself into his arms.

His eyes flared again but he nodded and began again.  "Dana, a lot 
has happened since you were taken."

She snorted, "I can imagine."  The image of Mulder and Carma 
Anderson at the Watergate flashed through her mind again.

He glared at her and continued, "I'm sure you can, but it's nothing
like what the tone of your voice implies."  His anger was rising to
match hers.

"Oh, really?  Well, why don't you tell me about it?  Why don't you 
tell me why you 'died' in a drunken automobile accident with 
another woman?  Why don't you tell me about the 'lovely Lt. 
Anderson'?"

He stalked over to her and pulled her into his embrace.  Scully 
thrust him away and glared up at him.  "Don't touch me!" she spat.
She tried to hide her weakness behind her anger.

He had been trying to hold his temper.  He knew that she was 
hurting.  She had no idea of the living hell he had been through, 
but her words pushed him over the edge.  "I will damn well touch 
my wife any time I choose," Mulder hissed as he wrapped his hand
around her neck to pull her closer to him.

A flush of desire washed over her.  She had to keep her head.  He
was too intoxicating.  She acted without thinking.  Her right hand
flashed out and slapped him on the face.  

He reeled back a step and glared at her, rubbing his cheek.  "What
was that for?" he sputtered.

"I told you not to touch me, Mulder."  Her blue eyes flashed at him
angrily.

She knew she had made a tactical error as white hot rage flashed 
across his face.  He grabbed her and lifted her so that they were 
nose to nose.  His grip matched that of Daniel's during their 
fight.

Her bruises had healed, but the need to be free from his grasp made
her frantic.  She tried the same maneuver she had used on Daniel, 
but it only served to enrage him.  He lost all control.

He threw her down on the bed and covered her with his body to 
control her struggle.   She was years away from her hand-to-hand
combat training and her efforts only fed his anger.  She couldn't
escape.

"What do you want to know, Scully?  How I faked my death with Diana
Fowley because I couldn't bear to continue living without you?  How
I tried to kill myself with alcohol?  How about if I tell you how 
many nights I've been alone?  Two Thousand, three hundred 
fourteen!" he yelled.  "While you were living happily ever after as
Mrs. Doctor Daniel Waterston, getting your brains fucked out on a 
regular basis, I.  Was.  Alone!"

She quickly did the math as she stared at him for a long, silent 
moment, contemplating his words.  "Who were you with on the two 
thousand three hundred fifteenth day?" she asked.

He jerked back to stare at her incredulously.  She could see the
sparkle of humor light up his vivid green eyes.  "No one likes a 
math geek, Scully," he growled as he lowered his lips to kiss her
neck.

*****

She was lost.  She wiggled her arms free and curled them around his
neck and shoulders.  He didn't resist as she drew him up her body 
to kiss her lips.  Just before their lips met she drew back and 
whispered, "What took you so long, Mulder?"

Dana stared up at the only man she considered to be her husband as
he processed her last statement.  She tugged the rubber band from 
his long hair and let it fall down around his shoulders.  One more
tug against his shoulders and his beautiful lips lowered to hers
moving from her neck to her lips, wiping all thoughts from her mind
with hot, needy kisses.  She threaded her fingers through his long
hair and held on.  His kisses were so familiar yet different.

Mulder had seduced her with his mind when they were first partnered
and with his kisses when they began to dance around their 
attraction.  A brush of his lips in her hair as he comforted her, 
an occasional kiss on the cheek hello and a soft, romantic kiss to 
the back of her hand goodbye, had driven her crazy for the touch of
his lips on hers.  She had actually planned an elaborate seduction
that had been thwarted when they were suddenly called away on a 
case out of town.  She had been crying in her shower over lost 
chances when he had slid in behind her, naked and aroused.  He 
turned her to face him and began kissing all thoughts of denial 
from her mind.  His kisses were hot and arousing, but there had 
been an underlying fear of rejection, a tentativeness, that had 
made her feel bold and wanton as she'd kissed him back.

This was not her Mulder.  He was not the tender, passionate, 
considerate but needy lover she remembered from their marriage.  
He had changed.  This man was everything and nothing like her 
Mulder.  His desire for her was burning with an intensity that 
threatened to overwhelm her.  He was gentle, tender and loving, 
but underneath all this, she knew he had a driving need to prove 
that she was really alive and still in love with him.  His desire 
to assert his right to make love to her, to possess her body, to 
possess her love underscored his every action.

Daniel had claimed to love her but in reality had wanted to own 
her.  He wanted control of her mind and body but didn't care if 
she loved him or not as long as she was faithful to him.  

Mulder wanted everything from her, and she, God help her, wanted to
give it to him.  But she was terrified by her passion for this man.
Their kisses became fierce and challenging.  He pulled at her robe,
trying to connect with her bare skin.  He moved his hand down along
the line of her hip, to the hem of her robe.  He slid his fingers
under the terrycloth and began stroking the back of her knee.  A 
shiver of passion swept through her body and she tried to move to
allow him better access to her.

He thought she was trying to move away and pulled her back, sliding
his hand up her thigh and cupping her derriere with his hand.  He 
pushed her against his erection and groaned.  She fought down a 
fissure of panic as she tried to move again, feeling trapped by her 
robe and his embrace.  She moaned and he kissed her again.

Flashes of memories began to overpower her passion.  Hands, 
touching her against her will.  "Mulder, stop."  She became frantic 
to escape from the helplessness that she felt.  Visions of Daniel 
trying to hold her against her will, segued way into the masked 
strangers that had held her captive.  The one that came in the 
night and touched her while she was bound, his hands on her, his 
pants still on, zipper open, his penis aroused.  Flashes of her 
fear for the safety of her unborn child, her terror, her revulsion,
gave her a strength she normally wouldn't possess.  "Stop!" she 
screamed as she thrust with all her might and pushed Mulder off 
her.  

Fear overwhelmed her.  She had to get away.  "Don't touch me again, 
you'll hurt my baby!" she shouted. "I'll kill you if you ever do 
that again!"  She scrambled up against the headboard of the bed.  
She was panting, her eyes flashed right and left, seeking a way to 
safety.  Her hands curled into fists as she gathered her feet 
under her, ready to jump and run.

Mulder took one look at her and knew that she was not reacting to 
him but to previous events.  He slid back to the end of the bed 
and assumed a non-threatening pose.  He did not speak.  He doubted 
she would hear him even if he did.

Her breathing finally began to slow as she realized this man was 
trying to show her that he would not harm her.  He was not going to 
grab her.  He had slid back away far enough that she felt a 
semblance of comfort.  She made an effort to steady her breathing, 
to calm down.  She stole a quick glance at her assailant and 
realized that she had made a mistake.  This wasn't the masked 
assailant she remembered.  This was Mulder.  He would never hurt 
her or their baby.

Tears began to roll down her face as she realized that it was all a
flashback.  "Mulder, I'm sorry.  I just couldn't handle being 
confined, even by you.  It was awful.  I felt ..." she fell silent.

"Tell me," he gently prodded.

She let her legs relax and slid down to sit on the bed with her 
back to the headboard.  Her tears continued and she relaxed her 
fists to wipe them from her face.  Her breathing came in great 
shuddering sobs as the memories, both good and bad, washed over 
her.

"They ..." she hesitated.  "They held me down and examined me while 
I was pregnant.  I think one of them came into my cell and raped 
me."

Mulder closed his eyes and groaned.  When he looked at her again 
she saw a blood lust in his eyes that she would have sworn he was 
not capable of.  "They're all dead, Scully.  Everyone at the 
facilities in this country was killed when the aliens left.  The 
records left there were appalling.  I think that even the aliens 
knew they deserved to die.  Even the men we arrested in New York
are dead.  They were found dead in their cells just this morning."

She began to sob harder.  She hated the look of pain in his eyes.  
She held her arms out to him, but he hesitated.  She crawled 
towards him and he met her half way.  He wrapped her in his arms, 
lying down across the bed,  and held her as she cried.  She told 
him the rest of her memories, the ones that she had not allowed 
herself to think about previously.  They laid like this until she 
cried herself to sleep.

*****

I couldn't believe all that she had gone through.  Yeah, sure, I 
had lost my wife and child to a crazed henchman for the Consortium,
but I at least had my memories.  Even if all I did with them was to 
crawl away and hide, I wasn't as bad off as I had believed at the 
time.

She had survived after having everything stripped from her.  The 
processes they had subjected her to had robbed her of her family, 
her husband and child, even her education.  And if all that wasn't 
bad enough, one of them had raped her while she was pregnant and 
restrained.  Still, she survived.

She'd fought her way back to become a fully functioning human 
being.  She had found a way to support herself before Waterston's 
arrival.  I was so proud of my Scully.  My beautiful, brave Scully.
I had run away, tried to commit suicide by alcohol.  Not my wife.  
She had picked herself up and carried on.  My love.  My little 
Irish warrior.

She had faced the return of her memories alone.  Her own 'husband' 
was part of the nightmare, yet here she was, lying in my arms, 
trusting me to protect her while she slept.

I pulled away from her enough to focus on her individual features.
She was so beautiful, I could almost forgive Waterston for lying to 
her in order to keep her.  What wouldn't I do to keep her with me?

She stirred and opened her eyes, smiling up at me.  "Hi."  Her 
voice was low and still sounded sleepy.

"Hi.  Go back to sleep if you want to," I said.  "I've got you.  
You're safe here.  Even safe from my wicked desires."  I waggled my 
eyebrows, hoping to insert some humor into the situation.  I had 
made up my mind that she would initiate any future sexual contact 
between us.  She didn't need another Neanderthal trying to force 
himself on her.  It would be hard, but I was determined to wait for 
her.

*****
 
Dana Scully was dreaming again.  She was held safe and warm in the 
arms of the man she loved.  Daniel?  No, not Daniel.  He had 
betrayed her and lied to her.  Who then?

Mulder.

Mulder was holding her in their bed.  She was safe and warm.  She 
slowly drifted to the surface of her dream and realized that she 
was truly safe in the arms of her Mulder, but they weren't in their 
home.  They were in a hotel in San Diego.  She opened her eyes and 
looked up.  He was gazing at her with an open expression of love 
and admiration on his face.

"Hi," she said.

"Hi.  Go back to sleep if you want to," he offered.  "I've got you.  
You're safe here.  Even safe from my wicked desires," he teased.

Dana smiled up at him as she touched his face with her fingertips.  
"What if I don't want to be safe from your desire?"

He smiled at her and kissed her forehead.  "I want you, Dana, but I 
don't think you should rush into anything.  I love you.  I'm 
willing to wait."

She smiled back at him and cupped his cheek with her palm.  "I love 
you Mulder.  I'm not afraid of you or your love."  Her eyes clouded 
as she said, "I am just as surprised by my response to being 
trapped in your arms as you are.  I really hadn't remembered the 
details of my captivity before.  I knew I was held in an eight by 
ten foot room, but ..."

"But you repressed the details?" Mulder finished for her.

"Yes," she whispered and then swallowed so hard Mulder heard her.  
"I blocked out the details of my time in captivity."

"Scully, if they weren't already dead, I would find them and kill 
them with my bare hands," he swore.

"Mulder," she sighed.  "It was only one of them that assaulted me 
physically.  He was a nameless, faceless assailant.  We'll never 
know who it was and you did say they were all dead, right?"

He nodded.

"I'll be all right.  It was just the shock of the memory coming 
back," she said as she cuddled closer to him.  She stroked his 
chest with her fingertips.

"Dana," he began.

She smiled as she interrupted him.  "I really don't want you to 
call me Dana.  I was just being ornery." 

His answering smile was like sunshine on a dark day.  "Scully, I 
want to let you know that I'll wait until you're ready to make love 
again.  You call the shots from here on out."

"Mulder, don't you want me?" she blurted as tears filled her eyes.

"Jesus, Scully!  Of course I do!  I ache to kiss you and to bury 
myself in you so deeply that you'll never want another man again.
But as much as I want you, I love you more.  I love you enough to 
wait until you're ready."

He moved slowly to kiss her, giving her space to move away if she 
felt trapped.  He was surprised by the feel of her naked body 
cuddling against his as she deepened the kiss.  He pulled away and 
looked down.  She had wiggled out of her robe as they were kissing 
and he now held his nude wife in his arms again.  He felt alive for 
the first time in years.

"I want you now, Mulder.  I'll always want you."  She pulled on his 
hair, rolling him onto her again.  He stared down at her, thinking 
of how many times he had dreamed of this moment.  He leaned down to 
kiss her, still holding back, not wanting to overwhelm her.

Their kiss was soft, sweet, loving.  They both needed to reconnect 
after everything that had happened earlier.  She felt her desire 
for him flare again.  But along side the passion was a little black 
line of fear that threatened to overtake her as he once again 
settled between her legs.

"Mmmmm Mulder," Scully groaned.  She needed to say his name, to 
make sure it was him.

"Hum?" he grunted.

"Nothing, just Mulder," she said.  Their kiss deepened once again.  
Her tongue fought for control with his.  Their lips parted and 
their teeth gently clicked together.  They smiled, still kissing.  
She let her hands roam over his back and up to thread through his 
hair.  

"So soft," she murmured.

"God, Scully, I missed touching you," he responded.  He felt his 
control slip a notch.  His hands stroked everywhere.  He was 
pressing her down into the mattress with his hips but moved up on 
his elbows.  He let his hands cup her breasts and thumbed her 
nipples, promising himself hours to kiss and lick and suckle them, 
later, much later.  For now he wanted to bury himself in her so far 
he touched her heart.  God help anyone who tried to separate them 
again.

He didn't realize that his touch had become possessive again, 
almost harsh.  She was breathing hard and he thought she was as 
ready as he was.

She began pushing against him, frantically.  "Mulder, wait!"

He realized the change in her voice right away and flopped over on 
his back.  "Damn it!  I'm sorry, Scully."

He lay there staring at the ceiling while she tried to slow her 
breath.  He knew she needed time, but he was so damn horny that he 
had let her convince him that she was all right.  Well, it 
certainly hadn't taken much to convince him of anything that was 
connected to loving her.

Dana Scully laid on her back near tears.  What the hell was going 
on?  She loved this man.  She wanted him.  Why was she having these 
flashes now, of all times?  This was Mulder.  This was the man she 
loved like no other.  She could understand if it were Daniel.  He 
had proven himself to be untrustworthy.  But Mulder was not Daniel.  
Mulder was the only person, other than her mother, that she trusted 
completely.

She fought back the tears and turned her head to look at him.  He 
was staring at the ceiling with a blank look on his face.  Scully 
knew that it was his  'panic face'.  He was terrified that he had 
scared her again.

"Mulder, I'm okay," she said as she let her hand slide across the 
bed to touch his.

He didn't answer her.  And she knew that he was more upset than she 
at first believed.

"I'm okay, really," she began.  He turned an unbelieving face 
towards her.

"I didn't say I was fine.  I said I'm okay.  It's just that ..."

"Scully, even though this happened years ago, your memory of it is 
fresh.  It couldn't be any worse if it had happened yesterday.  I 
should know that.  I shouldn't have forced myself on you."

"Mulder," she breathed.  His pain was palpable.  She turned over on 
her side, facing him.  He wouldn't look at her.  She stared at him 
for a long time, trying to understand what was happening when her 
answer came to her.

"Mulder, take off your clothes."

"No," he said.

"No?" she repeated.

"No," he said with a nod.  "I think you need time, Scully."

"I think I know what I need, Mulder.  And right now I need you!"  
She got up on her knees and pulled him to an upright position.  She 
threaded her fingers through his long hair and smiled into his 
eyes.  "I think I can really get used to this."

He gave her a slight smile and she felt the tension in her stomach 
relax and then tense up again.  He wasn't going to fight her, that 
relieved her, but, he was a damned sexy man, maybe even more so 
than when he was younger.

Her hand slid down his neck to the opening of his tee shirt.  She 
let her eyes wander down his body and back up, lingering on the 
bulge of his erection.  "I think I know what the matter is, 
Mulder."  Her eyes were sparkling and her lips twitched in 
suppressed humor.

"Oh?" Mulder asked.

"Yes.  You aren't naked."

"Scully, you need time to get over the memories of what was done to 
you," he began.

"Mulder, the man that ... raped me, never removed his clothing.  He 
would come in the middle of the night.  He must have been a guard 
or someone with access, but he never took enough time to do more 
than to expose himself."

"So you think the feeling of cloth against your skin is the 
problem?" he brightened.

"I think so.  Just to be sure, move back against the headboard," 
she directed him.  "That's it.  Now, help me out here," she 
requested as she stripped off his shirt.

She flicked open his snap and slowly pulled his zipper down over 
his erection.  She pulled on his boxers and jeans as he lifted his 
hips.  She was very careful to ease over his cock.  She grinned as 
she said, "Wouldn't want to handicap our first time together in 
over six years." 

He smiled back at her but kept his twitching hands at his sides.

She pulled on his shoulder and moved him forward, placing a couple 
of pillows between his back and the headboard.  "Comfy?" 

He grunted and she took it to be a yes.

She pushed him back, and sat back on her knees just staring at him.  
He was magnificent.  His shoulders were broad and heavily muscled.  
His chest was well defined and his washboard abs were definitely a 
turn on.  The hair on his chest was slightly thicker than before, 
and the line that trailed down to his cock was also darker and 
thicker.

She let her gaze rest on his cock.  It was fully engorged, standing 
at attention.  As she continued to stare at it a small drop of pre-
cum seeped out.  He was more than ready for her.  She wanted to 
kiss his entire body, to take him in her mouth, to taste him, 
letting her fingers touch and knead his balls, but she knew he was 
too close.  

She glanced down his legs to his feet and back up again, all the 
way to his eyes.

"Like what you see, Scully?" he teased.

She smiled and placed her hands on his shoulders to brace herself 
as she straddled him.  "Of course I do, Mulder."  She smiled at 
him.  "I always have," she said as she slid her body up his thighs 
a little way letting his cock brush against her curls.

His eyes trailed down her body to the place where her curls tickled 
his cock.  His eyes widened, "When did you start trimming your 
mons, Scully?"

She wondered how he was going to take her answer.  "Daniel liked it 
like this."

"What about you, Scully?  Do you like it?"

She shrugged.  "Not especially.  It was a lot of work and now that 
I think about it, it was just another way for him to exhibit his 
control over me.  What about you?  Do you like it?"

His hand lifted off the bed a few inches, then he forced it back 
down.  He looked into her eyes and shook his head.

"Mulder?"    

"It's up to you, Scully."

"Oh, come on, Mulder.  Be truthful with me.  I need that from you."

He was quiet for a moment, glancing back down and then up into her 
eyes.  "It doesn't do anything for me, Scully, but I think I hate 
it just because Daniel forced you to do it for him."

She smiled at him, at last.  Her Mulder would always answer her 
truthfully.

She leaned forward and gently kissed his lips.  "Thank you."  She 
leaned back and they stared into one another's eyes for a long 
moment.

I want you," she said.

"Are you sure, Scully?" he replied as his heart raced.

"I just need to take things slowly, at my own pace.  Do you think 
you can do that for me?"

He nodded.  "It's all your show, Scully.  I'm yours," he said 
sincerely.  "But if you want to stop at any time, that's okay too."

"Shut up and kiss me, Mulder."  She leaned forward and kissed him.  
It began as a soft, sweet kiss of exploration, but quickly advanced 
to a deeply passionate kiss.

He pulled away and said, "Be gentle with me, Scully."  He was only 
partially teasing.  He didn't want her to do something that would 
push him over the edge and allow him to scare her again.

She smiled as she leaned down and sucked on his top lip, running 
her tongue between her teeth to smooth it as she nibbled.  She 
moved to his bottom lip and kissed and nipped and sucked for a 
moment.  She was imprinting him on her senses again.  He tasted 
like Mulder.

She moved her mouth to kiss and tease his ear before sliding down 
to bite and kiss his neck.  He squirmed under her, breathing hard.  
She always had loved kissing and biting his neck, mostly because it 
turned him on so much.  She had reveled in giving him love bites, 
just below the line of his shirt collar, when they first became 
lovers.  She knew it was not evident to anyone but her and Mulder, 
but it was a mark of possession that he wore proudly.

She sucked in a deep breath.  This was Mulder.  Only he had this 
particular scent about him.  It changed occasionally, with his 
after shave, but the underlying scent that was pure Mulder was 
there.  God, how could she let Daniel touch her when he didn't 
smell like this, like her mate.  Tears came to her eyes and she hid 
her eyes there, at the jointure of his neck and shoulder, fighting 
for control.

"You didn't know," Mulder said quietly.  He could still read her 
every emotion.  "You wouldn't have stayed with him if you had 
remembered."  He lifted his arms to hug her, "You didn't stay with 
him as soon as you did."

She smiled against his skin and nodded.  She knew he was right.  
"Thank you," she whispered against his skin.  

He shivered at the touch of her lips and let his hands drop back 
down to his sides.  "Nothing but the truth," he whispered.

She gave one more nip to his neck and moved back a little to look
into his eyes.

"I love you, Mulder," she stated simply.

"I've never stopped loving you," he said.  "I think I've loved you
forever."

"Oh, Mulder," she leaned forward and kissed him again.  All doubt 
and fear gone.  This was Mulder, her friend, her partner, her 
lover.  Her Mulder.  

She moved up on her knees and slid forward.  She positioned her sex 
over his cock, hesitating at his quick inhalation.  "What?" 

"Are you sure you're ready for this, Scully?"

"Mulder, I've never been more ready."  She leaned forward and began 
to kiss him again as she slid down his cock until she bottomed out 
against his balls.

"Oh, God, Scully!"  He was trembling with the effort it took not to 
come immediately.  "Don't move!"

"What?" she teased.  "Don't move like this?"  She slid up and 
forward, letting her clit slide across his pubic bone as she 
stroked upwards.

"Shit!  Scully, I'm going to come right now and end everything if 
you don't stop for a moment."

"Mmmmm.  Mulder, I don't want to stop.  I need you to hold on for 
just a few minutes, but I promise, it won't take me long."  She 
slid back down almost crying out in pleasure when his cock raked 
across her 'g spot' on the way back in.

"Scully, damn it.  Stop." 

"No, I can't!"  Her movements became feral.  She pumped up and 
down, letting his cock fill her on the down stroke and tease her 
when she moved upwards.  Their first joining became one purely for 
sex.  She moved over him, milking him, using all her strength to 
take him.  It was hard and fast and greedy.

Perfect.

His breathing had become as erratic as his heart beat.  He was lost 
in a haze of lust and heat.  This was his Scully.  His wife.  He 
finally had her right where he wanted her.  Over him, milking every 
emotion and every bit of cum in his body out though his cock.

"Scully," he warned.

"Come for me, Mulder.  I need you to come now," she demanded.  She 
felt the heat in her legs as they tensed and finally, finally, a 
great wave of release swept over her.

She began to whimper and cry as he thrust his hips up, holding them 
against her as she quaked around him.  She could feel the spasms of 
his release and imagined his sperm shooting into her.

He gasped and fell back against the bed, panting.

He had never lifted his arms to touch her during their entire
joining.  She fell against him and finally his arms embraced her.  
She felt sated and safe.  They held each other and talked for a few 
moments before they made love again.  Gentle words and touches, 
nips and bites and long, slow, wet kisses that fueled their passion 
until they were exhausted.  The only words spoken were those of 
love and encouragement.

"Yes, like that." 

"Oh God, Mulder."

"I love you, Scully."

"There, right there."

"Harder."

"Mulder!"

"I missed you so much.  Loveyouloveyoulove you!"



CHAPTER XXXVI

FEBRUARY 14, 2001
SAN DIEGO HILTON, ROOM OF DANA SCULLY
3:00 A.M.

I woke up around three o'clock, thirsty, horny, and having to pee. 
I had used up a lot of fluids, sweating and cumming twice tonight 
already.  The bathroom need was also understandable.  The horny 
part surprised me.  I'm not old, but I'm closer to 40 than I like 
to think about and it surprised me that I had reloaded this 
quickly. I contemplated my surprise, until I looked down at the 
woman in my arms.

Scully.  She was more beautiful than I remembered her.  Her hair 
was longer and darker, but our hours of activity had made the curls 
she fought so hard to tame take control.  Her porcelain skin was 
framed in titan curls, her long dark lashes lay on her cheeks that 
were reddened by my whiskers.  Her full, berry-red lips were 
swollen with more evidence of our passion.

She muttered something that sounded like my name and moved over on 
her back.  Her left arm flopped up to lay by her head and her right 
one moved between our bodies.  Her fingers curled around my 
erection and I gasped.  I took a quick look at her face to see if 
she was awake, but she wasn't.  She was still sound asleep.

I hated to move away from her touch, but the need to use the 
bathroom overpowered my other two needs.

I got up and used the facilities, drinking three glasses of water 
before I pour a fourth and took it back to the bed.  She stirred as 
I got back in bed.

"Mmmm, Mulder?  What's the problem?"  She sat up and slid back 
towards the headboard.  Her hand reached for the lamp, but I 
stopped her.

"Don't turn on the light," I said.  "I was just in the bathroom.  I 
brought you a drink of water."  I handed the water to her and she 
smiled before downing the entire glass.

"That was good," she said as she stood up and stretched.  "I'll be 
right back."  She padded, naked into the bathroom, not shutting the 
door all the way.

I heard the shower come on and thought, 'Oh, no!  Not without me, 
you don't!'  I waited until I heard her slide the shower curtain 
back into place and quietly walked in to join her.

Bathroom sex.  Scully hadn't forgotten that I love to make love to 
her in the shower.  Jesus, what did I do to deserve this woman?

"Mulder?  Are you going to stand out there all night, or are you 
going to get in her with me?" she teased.

I pushed aside the curtain and climbed into the tub.  I didn't 
notice before, but it was one of those huge garden tubs with a 
shower at one end.

I slid my body against hers, back to front, completely wrapping my 
arms around her.  "Is this okay?  Scully?"  I couldn't shake the 
fear that she would panic again.

"Mulder, I can guarantee you that this is not just okay.  This is 
perfect."  She turned around in my arms and hugged me back.  I 
haven't had sex in the shower since the last time we were 
together."

I must have looked surprised because she said, "And don't even 
think of bringing up anyone else's name while we're in here.  Do 
you understand?"

I nodded.  I not only understood, I was grateful.  I know she 
didn't remember me during her marriage to Daniel Waterston, but the 
thoughts of my wife, my mate, being touched by another man made me 
alternately sickened and enraged.  Waterston knew.  He knew who she 
was and that she was married to me.  Granted, he probably read and 
believed the obituary for Fox Mulder printed in the newspapers, but 
he still knew that she would never have chosen him if she had her 
memory back.  I wanted to wash away every touch of his hand, 
figuratively and literally.

I reached over her head and picked up her shampoo.  It was a citrus 
blend that was new, but pleasant.

"I've used this since I left the hospital years ago.  I think it's 
time to buy something else," she said sadly.

"Stay right here," I ordered.  I got out and strode into my 
bathroom.  I pulled the towels off the rack and picked up my bag of 
toiletries.  I wasted no time getting back to Scully.

"Let's use this," I said as I climbed back into the shower with my 
shampoo and cream rinse.

"Mulder, I didn't know they still made this," she exclaimed.  "I 
love this shampoo.  I used it for years to take away the smell of 
the chemicals used in the autopsy rooms."

"I know," I said quietly.

"Oh, Mulder," she hugged me.  "We've lost so many years."

"Scully, Baby.  Don't cry," I hugged her tightly.  "We're together 
now, and we'll have plenty of time."

She sniffed and nodded, moving back to wet her hair.  I poured the 
shampoo in my palm and waited for her to step forward again.  She 
started to turn around and I stopped her.  "I can reach," I said as 
I pulled her body into contact with mine.  I lifted my hands and 
began to shampoo her hair.  It was a little awkward, but the 
feeling of her naked body pressed to mine from breasts to thighs 
made it more than worthwhile.  I massaged her scalp and my erection 
strained against her when she groaned in pleasure.

"This feels so good, Mulder," she said.  She rubbed her breasts 
against my chest and her belly against my erection.

"What?" I gasped.  "What are you referring to?  The shampoo job or 
the full frontal body rub?"

"Mmmm.  Both," she teased.

"Step back and rinse," I said.  She obliged me and moved forward to 
wrap her arms around my torso again.

"Repeat or cream rinse," I asked.

"If it prolongs the pleasure, repeat, please."  

"You got it."

I lathered up her hair again and concentrated on massaging her 
scalp.  She reached up and got a double handful of lather and used 
it to wash the hair on my chest.  The feel of her fingers running 
through my chest hair and around my nipples, ratcheted up my 
arousal.  Her nails scraped over my abs, following the contours 
across and down the middle of my belly towards my cock.

"Rinse," I growled.

She smiled up at me as she stepped back to rinse.  I let my eyes 
drift down, watching the flow of water as it streamed down out of 
her hair and down her body.  The bubbles from the shampoo finally 
ended and the water ran clear again.  It was as if everything went 
into slow motion.  I watched the water pour down, splashing and 
skittering over her hands.  It fell slowly to caress her breasts in 
a clear sheet.  It was almost as if I could see every drop 
worshipping her body.

I fell to my knees and wrapped my arms around her.  I brought my 
lips to her navel and let my tongue move through the drops to taste 
Scully.  She sucked in her breath and it made her stomach concave.  
I nuzzled her navel again and pulled far enough away to get clear 
of the flowing water.  Her stomach was concave, her muscle tone 
made her as strong and sleek as the day she was abducted.

As the water splashed down her body, I could see a flash of silver 
here and there.  When I turned her towards the light she murmured 
in distress and tried to turn away.

"Scully?"  I needed to understand her every mood.

"I'm not the same, Mulder," she said cryptically.

"I can see that, Scully, you've lost a lot of weight and developed 
a much more toned body."  I smiled to let her know I liked the way 
she looked.

"That's not it," she said.  

"Tell me?" I asked as I stood up to look into her eyes directly.

"It's silly," she said looking away. "Vain."

I lifted her chin to force her to look into my eyes.  "Nothing that 
you think or say is inconsequential or vain to me, Scully.  Its 
just part of you.  I love you, even the tiny little part that is 
vain."  I smiled back at her as she relaxed.  "Tell me?"

"I, I have stretch marks.  It was the first thing I noticed when I 
began to heal.  I asked Regan and she checked it out for me.  When 
I first was found at the hospital, they did a complete work up on 
me.  I had given birth less than a week before.  They thought I was 
an escapee from some satanic cult that had killed the baby.  They 
thought that was why I was catatonic."  She shivered and said, "It 
set me back almost three months.  I withdrew and mourned the loss 
of a child I didn't remember.  I was so depressed."

I knelt down and let my fingers slide over her abdomen.  There were 
faint silver lines.  I tried to imagine how she had looked when she 
had been full of our child.  It was beyond my imagination, and I 
felt cheated.

I stood up and kissed her.  "I wish I had been there to see you 
when you were so full of the new life we made," I said.  "You must 
have been beautiful."

She lowered her head to my chest and the water sluiced over the two 
of us.  "I wish you had been too, Mulder." 

I ran my fingertips over the marks that spread from side to side on 
her lower abdomen.  She pulled away, turning slightly.

"Scully, don't hide from me," I urged.  When she didn't respond, I 
lowered my lips to her ear and whispered, "Did he think they were 
ugly?"

She nodded.  "He was a fool, Scully.  He was just jealous because 
he hadn't planted his seed in your body.  He would have thought 
they were wonderful if they were from his child."

She looked back at me for a long moment, as if considering my 
words.  The light of her smile slowly dawned on her lips.  "You're 
probably right, Mulder."  She pushed her face against my chest and 
hugged me tightly, and I held on to her for a few, blissful 
minutes.

"You know, even if this is an upscale hotel, this hot water will 
run out eventually.  I need to put the cream rinse on your hair and 
we need to get clean."

She nodded against my chest and turned around.  I put creme rinse 
on her hair as she lathered up a washcloth, quickly and efficiently 
washing her body.  When she turned around to face me again she 
handed me the cloth and rinsed her hair.  I washed from my neck to 
my feet quickly, stepping into the water as we traded places.  

She poured shampoo into her hand and then glared at me as she said, 
"You're too tall!  I can't reach your hair, Mulder.  You need to 
get down on your knees."

I was happy to oblige her, especially after she placed a bath towel 
on the floor of the tub and told me to kneel on it.  She made short 
work of shampooing and rinsing my hair and I stood up to give her a 
thank you kiss.  I adjusted the water to hit farther back in the 
tub where she was standing and fell back down on my knees.  She 
thought I wanted another round of scalp massage, but I soon 
convinced her that what I really wanted was something much more up-
close and personal when I kissed her belly, following the faint 
silver lines to her trimmed curls.

I slid my hands off the cheeks of her ass and down the outside of 
her thighs.  I gently pulled on her legs, sliding her feet into a 
wider position.  I looked up her body and smiled, "As good as the 
scalp massage felt, Scully, I've got other goals in mind right 
now."

Her blue eyes darkened as she realized exactly what my devious mind 
was thinking.

"Do you think you're going to score, Mulder?  Do you think you'll 
go ... all ... the ... way?"  The last word was more a moan than an 
actual word.

I had slid my fingers up the inside of her thighs and parted the 
lips of her labia, exposing her soft pink clit to the flow of the 
water.  I didn't bother answering her with words.  I was going to 
let my tongue speak for me in a non-verbal manner.  I began to 
stroke her clit, licking and sucking alternately.  She was still 
sensitive from our other two bouts of lovemaking so she was quickly 
at the brink of another orgasm.  That's when I backed off.  I began 
to lick and kiss and touch every area of her sex except the one 
that would drive her over the edge.  I wanted to extend her 
anticipation, hold off on her gratification until she was frantic 
to come.

"Mulder, please," she groaned.

"Please what, Scully?" I said as I slid my finger into her.  I 
crooked it a little to rub against the front wall of her vagina, 
quickly finding her 'g spot'.

"Uhmmm," she moaned again as she began to move her hips, trying to 
create more friction between her sensitized walls and my finger.

I decided that that wasn't going to happen.  I slid my finger out 
as I surged to my feet.  I pulled her left knee up and placed her 
foot on the edge of the tub as my body slid up hers.  I stopped as 
the head of my cock touched the lips of her vagina.  I looked into 
her eyes again, wanting to make sure she was ready.

The look of passion and love in her expression nearly bowled me 
over.  My grip on her leg slipped slightly and she dropped down 
onto my cock.  I drove  into her, stopping only when I was fully 
seated.  I was immediately scared to death that I had hurt her.  
Her quick intake of breath and the way she dropped her head on my 
shoulder seemed to confirm my worst fear.  I started to lift her 
off my shaft, afraid to look down, afraid there would be blood if I 
did.

She quickly inhaled and I was sure she was going to give me hell, 
but when I started to lift her she said, "No!  Don't!"  

I wanted to beg for her forgiveness when I felt it.  She began to 
quake and shiver as she moaned my name, "Mulder!"

She threw her head back and the look of bliss on her face was 
almost more than I could stand.  My knees felt weak, but I 
redoubled my effort not to move.  She was coming!

One stroke and she was over the edge.  Jesus!  I had never felt so 
afraid and so damned smug at the same time before in my entire 
freaking life.

Scully's orgasm wasn't long but it was intense.  I began to loose 
control as the walls of her vagina squeezed me rhythmically.

She dropped her head back on my chest and she began to kiss me.  
"I'm sorry, Mulder.  I couldn't help it.  I was so close and when I 
slipped and you slid into me, it was perfect."

She was apologizing to me?  I quickly kissed.  "I'm glad it was 
pleasure not pain."

*****
 
Scully smiled up at him and said, "All pleasure for me, but I'm 
afraid I left you hanging."

He shook his head and lifted her from his body, slowly.  She 
tightened her muscles around him and he groaned as she slid off 
him.  She snuggled up close to his body.  "I love you, Mulder."

He hugged her back fiercely.  "I love you."

He turned to shut off the water, but her touch on his arm stopped 
him.

"Not yet," she murmured.  She turned her back to him, facing the 
back of the tub.  Then she looked over her shoulder.  "Are you 
game?"

He snorted a laugh that quickly turned into a groan.  His Scully 
was nothing if not inventive.  She had grabbed the handicap bar 
that spanned the back of the enclosure wall and bent over waggling 
her beautiful, heart-shaped bottom at him.  He squatted down to rub 
his erection along the crease of her sex but before he could make 
contact, she quickly stepped up on the narrow cutouts on each side 
of the tub, effectively raising her to exactly the right height for 
him.

"Jesus, Scully," he groaned.  He grasped her hips in his hands and 
slid all the way into her.  He could feel his balls sway gently 
between his splayed legs.  The water from the shower spray hit him 
in the middle of his back splashing up and over his shoulder, 
chilling Scully.

He reached behind him and hit the shower head.  "Better?"  She 
flashed a smile of contentment over her shoulder, and began to 
wiggle beneath him. 

He took the hint and began to slide slowly in and out.  He started 
slow, but quickly sped up as every nerve ending in his body went on 
alert.  He became hypersensitive to each touch, each stroke.  He 
realized that he could inventory each and every touch his body 
felt, the feeling of her ass as it rubbed against the hairs on his 
crotch and abdomen, the skin of her hips beneath his fingertips, 
the feeling of bliss that the softness of her inner thighs created 
as they rubbed the front of his thighs.  

The water from the shower hit him in the lower back and he could 
almost feel the individual drops as they flowed over his ass and 
onto his balls. His movements became harsher, quicker.  He leaned 
forward, craving more of her skin.  He slid up her back, never 
slowing the pistoning of his hips and grasped the bar with one 
hand.  He didn't want to overburden her with his weight, but he 
needed to feel her against him from chest to knees. 

He let his other hand slide up from her hip, past her waist to her 
breasts.  They were jiggling sweetly in time to his strokes.  He 
let his fingers play with her nipples, dragging a low moan from her 
as he did.

"Scully, I've missed you.  I've missed this.  I love making love to 
you in the shower.  Hell, anywhere.  But I dreamed of this so many 
damn times."

Words became impossible as his hips sped up and his breathing 
became labored.  He was close to coming but he wanted to bring her 
with him if possible.  He let his hand slide down her body, through 
her curls and let his fingers begin to manipulate her clit.  Her 
soft little Scully-sounds let him know that she was close again.

His stokes became erratic and she began to moan almost constantly.  
He let his lips kiss and nibble her shoulders and neck and just as 
he came, he bit her neck.  She exploded in a mind-numbing orgasm as 
he pumped into her.  She could feel his strokes drive his semen out 
of her, letting it roll down her legs.  She could feel the muscles 
in his thighs shaking.

"Mulder," she panted.  "It's okay, lean on me."

His breath was harsh against her back.  He was spent, and could 
barely hold himself up.  He rested his weight against her enough to 
give his quivering legs a chance to get some strength back.  He 
laughed and said, "Good.  If you didn't I'd be on the floor of the 
tub."

She laughed with him, sliding off the niches to stand flatfooted in 
the tub.  She felt his breathing slow and he groaned as he stood up 
straight.

"Jesus, Scully.  I'm not as young as I used to be.  You almost 
killed me that time."

She turned and smiled up at him as she slid her arms around him.  
"Lean on me, Mulder.  It wouldn't do for you to fall in the tub and 
get a concussion on our first night back together."

He answered her smile then sobered.  "Are we together, Scully?"

She nodded and said, "I don't think we were ever really apart, 
Mulder.  We just couldn't find each other for a while."

They hugged until he became aware of the cooling water again.  "We 
better rinse off and get out.  I think we actually drained the hot 
water tank!"  He sounded proud of himself.

They quickly rinsed off in the cooling water and stepped out to 
dry.  They decided that it would be best if they each dried 
themselves.  If they didn't, they were never going to get back into 
bed.

They straightened up the covers and crawled back into bed.  They 
were asleep almost immediately.

*****

I jerked awake and looked at the clock.  I was in another hotel 
room and it was six-thirty and still dark.  The voice of the Priest 
echoed in my head.

"Dust to dust, ashes to ashes.  Dear Lord, please accept the souls
of Dana Scully-Mulder and her unborn child into your arms.  Wrap
them in your love and keep them in the ever-lasting glory of your
presence.  Amen."

The familiar feeling of loss and pain began to sweep over me.  I 
raised my hands to my head, trying to push the words out of my mind 
with the pressure I applied.  Tears leaked from my tightly clenched 
eyes.

"Mulder?"  

Jesus!  Now I was hearing things when I was awake.

Quiet movements to my left made me jerk to look that way.  Flashes 
of my fiasco with Carma Anderson prompted me to ask myself 'What 
had I done now?'

I was shocked to find myself looking into the face of the one woman 
on earth that could ease my pain.  Dana Scully looked up at me and 
smiled.  "Mulder are you all right?"  Her hand lifted to my face.
"You're crying!"

I shook my head, still trying to rid my mind of my old nightmare.  
But this time I knew it was just a dream.  Proof of that was lying 
right next to me.

She snuggled up against my side and I wrapped my arms around her.

"Tell me," she said. 

"I ... I can't," I stammered.  How could I tell her how I had been 
haunted by the words of the Priest over their graves?

"Tell me, Mulder," she ordered.  "It will make it easier to forget 
if you share it."

I hesitated for a moment, unsure if I could say the words out loud.  
She slid up higher in the bed and wrapped me in her embrace.  I 
laid my head against her breast and suddenly the words started to 
flow.  As I told her the details of the dream and how they haunted 
me, I could feel the power of it slipping away.  Somehow 
sharing my nightmare with Scully diminished the dream's ability to 
control me.  Her arms tightened around me and she let her hands 
stroke me, gentling my breathing.

"I used to dream too, but I never was able to remember what I 
dreamed about.  Thank you for sharing this with me, Mulder."  She 
looked down at me and said mock-sternly, "You have to promise to 
forget this dream now.  It's the past and it obviously wasn't 
true."  Her expression softened and she continued.  "I'm right 
here.  The thought that you've blamed yourself for my abduction for 
all these years hurts me."

I started to speak but she interrupted me.  "I have not once, since 
I've remembered the details of what happened, felt that it was your 
fault.  We both knew the dangers of our jobs.  We just didn't 
realize how evil the people we were working to expose really were."

She kissed my eyes and my nose before gently and sweetly kissing my 
lips.  "I love you Mulder.  But as important as the past is, I'm 
not going to give it another thought.  I want to live for now, for 
our time together."

"Scully," I groaned.  How could this woman be so perfect?  I felt 
the rise of my erection against her leg and she pulled back looking 
at me in wonder.

"Again?  Mulder, I think I'm beginning to believe that you were 
alone for the entire time we were separated, but I don't really 
think we need to make up for all six years tonight," she teased.

She scooted down and we kissed for several moments before making 
slow, sweet love.  She pulled me over on top of her and even though 
I was afraid that she would once again feel trapped, it felt so 
good.  Our movements were slow and languid, each kiss and taste an 
expression of the deep love we both felt.

When we were done I moved to slide off her, but she held me in 
place.  "Stay, please?" she said.  

"You won't feel trapped?" I gently questioned.

"No, you feel wonderful," she sighed.  "I don't feel trapped, I 
feel safe."

My heart thudded double time for a moment.  Her words of love eased 
my fears, but I had to ask, "Aren't I too heavy for you?" 

"No, I don't want you to leave.  I want to fall asleep just like 
this, with you inside me."  Her drowsy voice banished the last of 
my concern.

"Love you, Scully," I said.

"Love you, Mulder."  She was asleep.  Within moments, so was I.

CHAPTER XXXVII

FEBRUARY 14, 2001
SAN DIEGO HILTON, ROOM OF DANA SCULLY
9:00 A.M.

I answered the telephone automatically.  I had been on call so long
during my stint as Deke Williams, I didn't give it a second 
thought.

"Yeah?"

"Oh, I'm sorry," Maggie Scully's voice said.  "I must have the 
wrong room."

She hung up and I groaned.  "Shit!"

"Who was that?" Scully asked.

"Your mother," I grinned.

"Mom?"  She sat up and the covers pooled around her waist.  The 
morning sun through the curtains gave her skin a creamy glow.  That 
is, the places that didn't show red spots from my five-o'clock 
shadow.

"What did you say to her?" she asked as she scrambled to pull on 
her robe.

"I didn't say anything.  She assumed she had the wrong room number 
and hung up."  The phone rang again as I finished.

Scully grabbed it before I could react.

"Hello?"  I acted as if I were going to wrestle it from her and she 
moved away.

"Hi, Mom," she said as she stuck her tongue out at me.  "You must 
have.  Today?  I think I'm going to hang around the hotel for a 
while, you know, do some research, on-line, about my options."  

She paused, listening to her mother speak.  "I don't know, Mom.  I 
need some time to think.  I know they're going home in a couple 
days, but I really don't know what I'm going to do.  Listen, tell 
everyone hello for me and give them my love.  I'll call if I'm 
going to come over later, okay?"

"I love you too, Mom."  She hung up and stared into space for a 
long time.  When she looked at me again, she had tears in her eyes.  
"Mulder, we have to talk."

I knew I wasn't going to like what she had to say.  I rolled off 
the other side of the bed and headed for the bathroom.  "I'll be 
right out."

*****

Dana watched Mulder close the door to the bathroom.  She knew he 
wasn't going to like hearing everything she had to say.  She 
decided to order breakfast.  Mulder was always in a better mood 
after food and after sex.  She blushed just thinking about last 
night.  Damn, the man was insatiable.

She heard the shower come on and knew he would need some clean 
clothes.  She pulled on her robe and moved to open the adjoining 
door, taking a chance that the other side would be unlocked.  She 
checked the wallet on the dresser and confirmed that it was 
Mulder's.  She didn't want to pilfer some other man's possessions.  
She laughed to herself.  Of course it was his.  Where did she think 
he went last night, naked as a jaybird, when he brought her 
favorite shampoo back to the shower?

When he stepped out of the bathroom with a towel wrapped around his 
waist, he spied his clothes laid out on her bed.  "Thanks, Scully," 
he grinned and dropped the towel.  She took a long look at his 
body.  He had a few new scars, but nothing major.  She continued 
her perusal, confirming the thoughts she had last night.  His 
stomach was ridged and flat.  His chest was better developed as 
were his arms.  He looked as if he worked out every day.  As her 
eyes swept his body, he hardened again.

"Mulder!" she purred and stepped closer to him.  He grinned and 
tried to pull her against him.  "Happy Valentine's Day, Mulder."

"Scully?" he growled and reached for her robe belt, ready for a
taste of his valentine treat right then.

"You better get dressed, lover.  Breakfast will be here any 
minute," she stroked his cock once before dancing away and slamming 
the door to the bathroom.

"You're a damn cock tease, sometimes, Scully," he shouted at her as 
he pulled on his briefs and jeans.  "A real, little cock tease," he 
whispered to himself and laughed as he finished dressing.

About fifteen minutes later, there was a knock on the door.  
Thinking that it was breakfast, he opened the door without looking.

"You!  You're supposed to be dead!"  A fist smashed into his face, 
and Mulder went down like a ton of bricks.

The bathroom door opened and Dana stepped back into the room.  She 
saw that the hall door was open but she didn't see Mulder.  As she 
stepped closer she saw him lying on the floor with blood pouring 
from his nose.  She jerked the door open the rest of the way to see 
who was there only to be confronted with a thoroughly angry Bill 
Scully.

"You said he was dead, Dana!  You lied!"  Bill pushed into the room 
and slammed the door.

"I never said he was dead," she said as she wiped the blood from 
Mulder's face and tried to staunch the flow still pouring from his 
nose.

"You did, you said ..."

"I never said Mulder was dead, only that I read the obituary for 
Fox Mulder."  She pulled Mulder's shoulders up onto her lap, 
pinching his nostrils together.

"Don't try to confuse the issue, Dana.  He took one look around and 
realization dawned.  "You fucked him?  You took this bastard back 
into your bed after all these years?  After everything that's 
happened?"

"Ummm," Mulder groaned and interrupted her next sentence.

*****

I came to with Scully's fingers pinching my nose.  It hurt like 
hell so I tried to pull away.  

"Don't move, Mulder.  You're still bleeding," she said.

I laid back and opened my eyes.  Bill Scully was standing over us, 
his face red and his hands fisted.  Every cell in my body screamed 
for me to get ready for a fight.

"Why the hell did you sucker-punch me, Bill?" I said instead.

"What the hell are you doing in my sister's life again?  Haven't 
you screwed it up enough?"

"Bill, that's enough!  What are you doing here, by the way?" Scully 
asked as she helped me up and over to the bed.

"I wanted to talk to you about ..." he hesitated.

"About our son, William?" I interjected.

Bill growled and came at me again.

Scully threw me a surprised look but stood up to halt his advance.
A knock on the door successfully drew his attention away from me.
"It's our breakfast, Bill.  Have you eaten?"  Scully was trying to
calm us both down and I decided to cooperate as long as Bill did.

"No," he said shortly and walked over to the window to get his 
anger under control.

I watched him breathing deeply, trying to calm down and part of me 
was pissed that he wasn't going to jump me again.  He had a couple 
of inches on me, but I had more solid muscle and knew I could kill 
a man with my bare hands, if I had to.  'Not that I would kill 
Scully's brother,' I thought.  I just wanted to inflict some 
serious hurt on him.

The waiter spotted the blood on my shirt and the other man standing 
at the window.  His eyes widened in fear.  He set up the table 
quickly and left before Scully could give him a tip.

"I don't know about you, two, but I'm starving."  She winked at me 
and began dishing up a plate of food.  "There's plenty here, Bill.  
Help yourself."

I thought her brother was going to leave, but he just grunted and 
poured himself a cup of coffee.  I went into my room to change my 
shirt and came back, half expecting him to be gone.  He had moved 
the desk chair up to the table and filled a plate.  I pulled out 
the last empty chair and dished up some food.

We ate silently.

As Scully poured us all a refill on the coffee, the tension seemed 
to escalate.

"I came here to ask you not to tell the rest of the family that 
William is your son," he blurted.  "I talked to Tara last night and 
told her the whole story.  She cried all night.  William is her 
oldest child as far as she's concerned.  If you take him away, 
she'll never get over it."

I watched him as he spoke to Scully.  He was telling the truth.  He 
loved William as much as any of his own children.  Both Tara and 
Bill would be hurt if William were taken away, but they would get 
over it.  They had six others kids, counting the twins on the way.  
Scully and I had one.

"Frankly, I'm not worried about you and Tara, Bill.  My main 
concern is William," Scully said.

I looked at her, waiting for her to continue.

"I don't know what to do.  Last night, I had decided to hold off on 
mentioning it to the rest of the family until I contacted Mulder.  
But even though he's here now, we haven't had a chance to discuss 
anything."

Bill's loud snort made her blush.

"I have to let you know, Dana, I'll fight you for him.  The only 
home he's known is with us.  Tara is his mother and losing him 
could cause her to lose the twins.  Don't take him away from his 
brothers and sisters."  It was as close as Bill Scully would ever 
come to begging.  He stood up and walked to the door.  "I'm going 
back to mom's.  We're going to stay for dinner tonight but I have 
to report back to the base the day after tomorrow."

He walked out the door without another word.

*****

Dana gathered her courage and asked, "How did you know about 
William?"  As she spoke other questions began to surface.  "How 
long have you known about our son?  Why didn't you let me know 
before now?"

The questions began to tumble from her.

"Whoa, Scully!" he said putting up his hand to stop her questions.
"I just found out about William yesterday," he assured her.

"Yesterday?  How?"  She knew she wasn't going to like his answer by 
the way his eyes slid away.  "Mulder, how did you find out?  And 
for that matter, how did you find out I was alive?"

"I found you the same way you found your family.  Through the 
Gunmen," he admitted.

"I should have known they would run to you right away," she 
said.  "How did they know how to contact you as D. K. Williams?"

"It's a long story," he hedged.

"I have lots of time," she said as she settled back to listen.

*****

I walked over to the window and tried to gather my thoughts.  I 
wanted to tell her everything, but it really was a long story, and 
I was tired of being cooped up inside on such a beautiful day.  I 
walked over to the dresser and picked up her purse.  I handed it to 
her and said, "Let's go."

"Where?" 

"Anywhere," I replied.  "A park, the zoo, the beach.  I just want 
to get outside in the sunshine."  I pulled her coat from the closet 
and held it out to her.  When she accepted it, I strode into my 
room to get my shoes on and grab my coat.

She glared at me but stood up after putting on her shoes and 
slipping on her coat.  "This isn't a way to get out of talking to 
me about everything that's happened, is it?"



CHAPTER XXXVIII

FEBRUARY 14, 2001
Pacific Ocean Park, San Diego, CA
10:30 A.M.

We wound up at the beach.  We walked and talked for hours.  We ate 
and we talked.  We bought a blanket and sat on the beach and 
talked.  We were still talking when the sunset.

I told her about my life.  How desperate I had been to find her.  
How we had found the planted proof of her death.  How her mother 
had held a memorial service.  How I had started drinking.  How 
Diana had contacted me, giving me proof of the existence of 
extraterrestrials on the earth, but how little that meant to me 
compared to her death.  How Diana had begged me to help her 
disappear and how we had faked our deaths with the help of the 
Gunmen and unknowingly, Senator Richard Matheson.  How I had 
hidden in Belize until I was kidnapped by Matheson's men.

She told me about waking up at the hospital and learning to speak 
again.  How Regan had gone from being her doctor to being her best 
friend.  How difficult it had been not remembering her past, but 
knowing that she had borne a child just weeks before she was 
found.  How painful it was to accept the futility of trying to find
her child without any clues whatsoever as to the location of the 
birth or even the sex of the child.  How Daniel had found her and
courted her.  How she had married him, not realizing how controlling
he was until his lies came tumbling down.  Her shock at remembering
everything after seeing Spender on the news.  Her pain when she saw
the news report of me at the Inaugural Ball with another woman.  How
shocked she had been at their first meeting when she realized that 
William was our son.

I told her about my role in the destruction of the Consortium.  How 
Richard Matheson was involved with the plans, but not how he 
figured into my life.  That was a conversation for another day.  
How I had contacted the Gunmen and how I had enticed them to join, 
secretly, with government forces.  I told her about planning Wild 
Fox and how I felt on the day of the Inauguration while I watched 
it all come together.  How miserably I had failed at my one sexual 
encounter with Lt. Anderson at the Watergate.  How stunned and 
happy I had been by the Gunmen's call.  How hard I had worked to 
get everything cleaned up and in the hands of others to finish so 
that I could come for her.

She talked about finding out about the death of her father and how 
much she missed him.

I told her about Samantha, that she had died when she was 14 under 
strange circumstances.  How my father had been killed by a double 
agent.  How my mother had committed suicide after being diagnosed 
with inoperable cancer.

She told me about her nieces and nephews and how sad she had been 
when she found out she wouldn't have any more children due to 
Daniel's vasectomy prior to their marriage.

I told her about the surveillance DVD.

That's when the conversation ended.

"You ordered my privacy to be invaded?  You bugged my mother's 
home?  You saw everything?"  Her voice rose with each question.  
She stood up and marched back towards the parking lot.

"Scully wait!"  I grabbed the blanket and took off after her.  
"Scully, damnit!"  I caught her and pulled her to a stop.  I wasn't 
even breathing fast, but she was crying so hard she couldn't catch 
her breath.

I pulled her to me and held her for a moment.  "Scully.  I had to 
do something.  I couldn't get away until a few days ago and I 
needed to know what was happening.  I didn't get to look at it 
until yesterday afternoon when I got in town.  Please, Scully.  As 
soon as I saw it, I knew we had to talk."

She continued to cry for a moment, then her tears slowed and came 
to a halt.  It always killed me to see Scully cry.

"Let's go back to the hotel, Mulder," she said in a cool, rational 
tone of voice.

It always scared me shitless to watch Scully shut down like this.  
Dread filled my heart.  Her voice was quiet, completely devoid of 
emotion.  She had closed herself off from me again.

I drove us back to the hotel and followed her as she walked quietly 
up to her room.  I started in the door behind her but she stopped 
me.

"I need some time, Mulder.  I have to think."

I pushed by her, dragging her into the room and slamming the door 
behind me.  "No."

"No?"

"You heard me, no.  There are some things in life you have to think 
about Scully and others that you know right away what's right and 
what's wrong."  She stared at me, waiting for me to continue.  When 
you found out about Daniel's lies, did you 'think' about it before 
you acted?  Did you have to have some 'space' before you could 
decide what to do?"

She glared at me, refusing to answer.

"Answer me, damn it, Scully!  Did.  You.  Have.  To.  Think?"

"No!  What he did was wrong, evil, and selfish," she answered.

"Of course it was, and you knew that right away," I agreed.

She nodded, trying to follow my logic.

"Then why would you have to think about our relationship?  Were you 
coerced into marrying me?"

"No."

"Did you lie to me when you told me that you loved me, then or 
now?"

"No, of course not!"

"Do you still love Daniel?"

"Don't be ridiculous, Mulder!" she spat.

"Then what is there to think about?  We belong together, Scully.  
We stood up in front of your family, the law, and your God and 
declared that love until 'death do us part'.  What in the hell is 
there for you to think about?"  I was shouting at her again.  I 
couldn't help it.

I had just spent the last six plus years isolated, thinking that 
she was dead, and I didn't see any reason to leave her alone now.  
We needed to think and talk this whole situation through, together.

"That's just it, Mulder.  You are legally dead.  And I've been 
living as another person since the birth of our son.  We aren't 
Dana and Fox Mulder.  Our son isn't William Mulder.  He's 
William Michael Scully.  He has a father and a mother and brothers 
and sisters and a life that you and I haven't shared with him.  I 
don't know what to do about our son, and while I'm with you, I 
can't think objectively about him."

Her words shocked me, made me think.  I knew by the expression on 
her face there was more coming.

"We were together for less than three years.  We've been apart for 
over six.  You are not the 'Mulder' I married and I certainly am 
not your 'Scully'."  She began to cry.  "All I can think about when 
I am with you is how much I love you and want you.  How angry and 
hurt I am at the way we've been forced to live our lives for the 
past six years.  Don't you get it, Mulder?"

"Ah, shit, Scully," I said as I took her into my arms.

"I don't want to leave you, Mulder.  I don't ever want to be 
separated from you again.  I know we belong together, but we both 
need time to get to know each other again."  

I considered her words and nodded for her to continue.

"I need time to think and I need to sleep.  Those are two things I 
don't seem capable of doing when I'm near you."  She smiled up at 
me.  I grinned back.

I suddenly realized that I had smiled more with Scully in the last 
two days than I had in the last several years.  "All right, Scully.  
I'll sleep in my room.  I'll give you the space you need tonight, 
but I want you to think about something that is important to me."

Her smile faded as she concentrated on my words.

"I want my family back.  I have gone through hell during the past 
several years.  Working to destroy the Consortium, I have put my 
life on hold and I can't live like that any longer.  I need you and 
I need our son.  From what I've seen of the boy on the surveillance 
video, he's a well-adjusted, happy, little boy.  For that I will 
thank Tara, and even Bill, for the rest of my life.  But, he's our 
son."  I smiled again.  "If nothing else that means he'll probably 
thrive on change and the unexpected."

Her smile was back, but I could see by the dark circles under her 
eyes that she had reached the end of her endurance.

"Take a bath, think, go to bed.  Just don't ask me to stay away for 
long," I begged.

"Mulder," she hesitated.  "Why don't we meet downstairs for lunch 
tomorrow?"

"What time?" I asked.

"Let's shoot for one," she smiled.

I gave her a swift goodnight kiss and walked towards the connecting 
door.  

"Mulder?" 

I turned back to her.

"You need to consider what you're going to do, too," she said.

I nodded and walked through the door, closing it behind me.  I left 
my side of the adjoining door open.  If she needed me, I wanted her 
to know that I was there for her.

She had given me something to think about.  What was I going to do 
now?



CHAPTER XXXIX

FEBRUARY 14, 2001
SAN DIEGO HILTON, ROOM OF GEORGE HALE
11:47 P.M.

I turned over, punching my pillows again, trying to get 
comfortable.  Scully's words kept circling my mind.  What was I 
going to do?

Fox Mulder was legally dead.  D. K. Williams was retired.  My 
credentials were for a George Hale.  What was I going to do about 
William?  What name was I going to offer him?

I tried to think through these problems methodically, but each time 
I began a logical line of thought, my mind would wander back to the 
night before, making love to Scully.

I finally fell asleep for a while.  When I woke up it was after 
four A.M.  I decided to give Richard Matheson a call.  He was 
always an early riser, and he was a good listener and problem 
solver.  If I ever needed his help, I needed it now.

Our conversation was not long, but it was productive.  He listened 
to my woes and proposed a surprisingly easy answer.  I am Fox 
Mulder, no matter what was revealed to me previously, he assured 
me.  He suggested that I resurface as Fox Mulder, FBI Agent and let 
the Bureau help with my reinstatement.  He would speak to the 
Director and let him know that I had been undercover as D. K. 
Williams for all these years to plot the downfall of the 
Consortium.  He knew the Director was an ambitious man and would 
welcome a chance to cooperate if it made him and the Bureau look 
good.  He suggested that I call Walter Skinner.

I was surprised at his idea, but the more I thought about it, the 
better I liked it.  I was touched by his final offer.

"Fox, you do know that I am willing to testify for you if there is 
a custody hearing, don't you?  I know what it feels like to be 
separated from your family.  I don't want you to have to go through 
another moment of pain.  If anyone deserves a happy ending, it's 
you."

My voice was low, emotions threatening to take away my ability to 
answer him.  "Thanks," I said.  I could say the word I wanted to at 
the end.  Dad.  This was a public phone line and who knew how many 
people were listening?  I knew he heard my unspoken thanks.  

"You're welcome ..." he responded.

Bill Mulder may have loved my mother, but I had never received one- 
tenth the loving support from him that I'd been given so freely by 
this man in the few years I had known about his place in my life.

"I need to think some more before I talk to Scully," I finally 
said.

He agreed and we said goodbye.

My next call was to Walter Skinner.  I gave him the story that 
Richard and I had concocted.  Even though I know he knew it was 
bullshit, he went along with it.  He had never contacted me during 
my years as Director of the Homeland Anti-Terrorist Commission, but 
he had made a comment in passing to Byers once, something about how 
familiar I looked.  He asked me to tell Scully that she was welcome 
to rejoin the Bureau as well.  I always knew that Skinner had a 
soft spot in his heart for Scully.

I had the ball rolling to resurrect Fox Mulder from the dead and to 
reinstate me with the FBI.  I wanted to claim my wife and my son.  
I needed to be alive in the eyes of the legal system to do that.

I called the guys and let them know that they needed to work up a 
back history for me, coordinating with my undercover story.  They 
were delighted that I had seen Scully and gladly agreed to set up 
the paper trail that I would need.

I had nothing to do but wait until our lunch date.  I fell back 
asleep for a few hours.  I wanted to get in a workout before I met 
Scully for lunch, so I set the alarm clock in the room.  I fell 
asleep with a smile on my face.



CHAPTER XL

FEBRUARY 15, 2001
SAN DIEGO HILTON LOBBY
12:55 PM

Dana Scully stepped off the elevator and looked around.  She was 
not truly expecting to see Mulder waiting for her.  His idea of 
being on time in the past had always included a 30 minute window on 
the late side.

She stopped by a grouping of palms as she spotted him.  He was 
talking to a tall, thin blonde who obviously had a death wish.  She 
was flirting outrageously with him, laughing and placing her hand 
on his chest, his arm as she spoke.  She had moved into his 
personal space several times, but Scully noticed that he always 
frowned and moved away, looking over her head as if searching for 
an escape route.

Scully decided that she had seen just about enough of blondie.  She 
marched up to Mulder and stepped between him and the blonde bitch.  
"Are you ready to go pick up the children, Father Mike?" she said 
sweetly.

The blonde stopped talking mid-word.  "C...children?" she finally 
sputtered.

"Why yes, Father Michael and I always bring children from our 
parish here to swim in the pool.  By the way, I'm Sister Mary 
Katherine and you are?"

"I'm out of here," she said and did a quick about face, practically 
running through the lobby doors.

*****

Scully looked up at me with a mischievous gleam in her eyes, "I 
can't leave you alone for a minute, can I 'Father Mike'?"

I grabbed her and gave her a big kiss, shocking a couple of the 
people standing nearby who had heard her exchange with the blonde.  
"You know you're the only one for me, 'Sister Kate'!" I quipped.

She blushed and moved away, but the smile that threatened the 
corners of her lips let me know that she wasn't upset with me.

"I'm hungry.  How about you?" she finally said.

"Yeah, where do you want to go?" I asked.

"Well," she hesitated.  "I know a very exclusive place not far from 
there that serves some of the best food in California."

"Sounds great?  What's the name of the place?"

"Margaret Scully's Kitchen," she said, watching me closely for my 
reaction.

"Your mom's house?" I asked, surprised.

"Yeah, I called her this morning and talked to her about every-
thing.  She's anxious to see you again, Mulder.  She invited us to 
lunch."  She hesitated then said, "She thinks we should talk before 
we make up our minds about what we're going to do and how we're 
going to do it.  I told her I didn't want to tell William that I 
was his mother yet, but she doesn't agree with me."

"What were her thoughts on the subject?" I asked tersely.

"She feels William is a very intelligent little boy and that he 
will be more upset if we lie by omission than if we tell him the 
whole truth at once."

"And you don't want to tell him we are his parents?"

"No.  I want to tell him we are his parents, but not until we have 
reached some sort of agreement with Bill and Tara about how to 
handle the entire situation."

I nodded my agreement and we left for Maggie's house.  On the way 
over I told her about my conversation with Richard.  She was 
surprised that I was such good friends with our President, but 
accepted our friendship quickly.  She agreed that his idea was the 
best way to handle the questions about my reported 'death'.  I also 
told her about talking to Skinner and gave her his invitation to 
rejoin the Bureau.  She nodded, but did not respond to the offer.

*****

For the second time in the last month, Dana Scully was concerned 
with the greeting she would get from her family.  She glanced at 
the man sitting beside her and tried to read his emotions.  During 
the time that she and Mulder had been partners and then spouses, he 
had never been able to hide his innermost feelings from her.  This 
Mulder was a different man.  He was sitting calmly next to her with 
a small smile on his lips.  He glanced over at her when he felt he 
look at him.

"This is a nice neighborhood for your mom," he said calmly.

"Yes, she likes it."  Scully glanced at him again and realization 
dawned.  Fox Mulder had changed.  He had learned how to hide his 
feelings and emotions from others.  He had learned how to curb his 
impetuousness to protect himself and his interests.  Scully wasn't 
sure that she was completely happy about this new side of her 
husband.  She knew that he was very unhappy with her decision not 
to tell William that she was his mother just yet.  She felt that 
finding his father would be more than enough drama for a boy of 
six.  She also knew that he was nervous about this first meeting 
with her family, especially William.

She pulled into her mother's drive and turned to look at him.  He 
gave her a goofy grin and said, "Showtime."

She smiled back.  He knew how to hide his emotions, but he still 
chose not to hide them completely from her.  He had forgiven her.

Maggie Scully saw the car pull in the drive and had the door open 
before they could knock.

"Fox!  Oh my dear!  I'm so glad to see you again."  Her voice was 
laced with tears and the hug she gave him touched him deeply.  He 
doubted that his own mother would have been this happy to see him 
again.  "I was devastated when I read your obituary," she said as 
she pulled back to look into his eyes.

"Yes you were, Mother," Melissa Scully interjected as she and her 
daughter walked down the stairs behind them.  "Hello, Mulder."

She took his hand to shake and placed her left hand on his 
shoulder.  She gazed into his eyes for a moment before blinking.  
"You've changed," she said.  "Your aura is magnificent, mostly 
white with swirls of red and brown."  Melissa let her fingers 
stroke from his shoulder to the white streak in his hair.  
"Magnificent."

"Melissa," Scully hissed.  "Read my aura."  She glared at her 
sister and raised her eyebrow.  

Melissa laughed lightly and turned to hug her.  She whispered in 
her ear, "Don't worry Danes.  I can admire, but I know that he is 
yours.  "Summer," she said as she turned back to her daughter and 
picked her up.  "This is your Uncle Fox Mulder."

Mulder groaned at the use of his first name, but didn't correct 
her.  He smiled at the little girl.  She shyly grinned back.  
"Uncle Fox?"

Maggie laughed and said, "You've done it now, Melissa."

All the adults laughed and Summer hid her face against her mother's 
neck.

"Sweetie, why don't you and I go get William?  It's time for 
lunch."  Maggie turned back to Melissa.  "Are you staying for 
lunch?" 

"No thanks, Mom.  Summer and I are going to check out a couple of 
day care facilities near our new apartment."  Melissa noticed the 
question in Dana's eyes and replied, "I took the job with the 
University.  You are now looking at the new Professor of Celtic 
Studies at San Diego State."

"Melissa, that's great!" Dana enthused.  She knew how much her 
mother wanted Melissa to settle down near the rest of the family.  
They discussed her plans to move to San Diego for a moment while 
waiting for Summer.

Summer, followed by Maggie, ran back into the room and jumped into
her mother's arms.  "Liam is going potty," she said guilelessly.

"Did you tell him it was time to eat?"  Melissa smiled at her only 
child.

"Yes, she told me," William said as he walked down the hall towards 
them.  "She tried to get into the bathroom with me when I was 
busy," he huffed.

"Summer!"  Melissa said.  "Don't you remember our discussion about 
privacy?"

"Yes," Summer nodded.  "But Liam is just a kid like me.  Why does 
he need privacy?"

Mulder smiled.  He was glad that Melissa had this one to answer.

Melissa hugged Summer and told her they would discuss the subject
of privacy later.  Then she and her daughter left.

Mulder had been staring at William since he had walked into sight.  
Their son.  William Michael Mulder.  His son.  He liked the name.  
It echoed though his head and sent chills down his spine.  Would 
the boy accept him?  Would he reject him and cling to Bill Scully?

William looked up at the man with his Aunt Dana for the first time.  
His eyes widened and a small smile lit up his face.

Dana and Maggie noticed the interaction between the two right away, 
but for different reasons.

"Liam," Maggie said.  "I want you to meet Fox Mulder."

William stared at him for a moment.  "Are you Aunt Dana's husband?  
I thought Poppa Billy said Aunt Dana's husband's name was Daniel?"
he questioned with childlike directness.

"It's a long story, William," Mulder said as he squatted to bring 
himself down to the boy's eye level.  "One that is confusing even 
to the adults in the family."

"Oh," William considered this for a while.  "Are you going to tell 
me the whole story or are you going to tell me that I'm too young 
to understand it?"

Mulder looked up at Scully and laughed.  "I think we'll tell you 
the whole story, but it's time for lunch right now.  Are you 
hungry, Buddy?"

Liam grinned at the two women, "Yeah!  Gramma made my favorite for 
lunch.  Pizza!"

They adjourned to the dining room and both Scully and Mulder were 
surprised that no one else was there.

"I thought that it would be best to have just the four of us for 
lunch today," Maggie explained.  "All the others have gone visiting 
or to an early movie.  William was kind enough to stay and keep me 
company."  She smiled at the boy as he scrambled into the chair 
next to her.

She sat at the head of the table with William on her right.  Dana 
Scully sat next to William and Mulder sat on Maggie's left.  She 
dipped up the salad and the adults began to eat. 

"Where's the pizza?" Liam asked.

"I didn't know when to start cooking, so I decided to order a pizza 
instead.  It should be here any minute.  Eat your salad first, 
William," Maggie said.

After the pizza was delivered, eaten and the table cleared, they 
moved into the living room.  

All during the meal William had been sneaking peeks at Mulder.  He 
watched everything the big man did, noting that he had removed the 
mushrooms from his pizza just like him.  He was curious about him.  
He looked like someone that he knew.  He wondered when they would 
tell him the long story that confused adults.  He was not used to 
taking a nap after lunch, but the heat of the day, the drone of the 
adult conversation and his full belly made him drowsy.  He curled 
up on the sofa next to his Grandmother and let the sound of Fox 
Mulder's voice soothe him.

"Fox, it's so good to see you again," Maggie said sincerely.  "What 
have you been up to, or may I ask?"

Mulder decided against telling the half-truth that Richard Matheson 
had offered to her.  He felt he owed Maggie and his son the truth, 
but he also wanted to let her know the story that was going to be 
public knowledge.

"It's a long story, Maggie.  Are you sure you want to listen to it 
all now?" he nodded toward William.

"I think that now is as good a time as any, Mulder," Scully 
interjected.

Mulder nodded and began his long story.  He hit all the high points 
he and Scully had discussed the day before with Maggie, his 
devastation after the memorial service, his despair, his faked 
death, his drinking, his redemption and finishing with a bare-bones 
briefing on his part in Operation Wild Fox."

"I thought Deke Williams looked familiar in the one photo that I 
saw published," Maggie said.  "But I didn't make the connection."

While Mulder had been talking William had drifted off.  He slept 
through the more violent parts of Mulder's story and that made all 
the adults happy.

"What are you and Dana going to do about William?"

"No!  Don't leave!" William moaned.

"William, honey, wake up," Dana said as she moved to kneel in front 
of her child.  "It's okay, baby.  Wake up."  She pulled the shaking 
child into her embrace and kissed his hair.  He began to stir and 
clung to her.

Mulder asked Maggie, "Does he have nightmares?"

"Oh, no, this isn't a nightmare," Maggie said.  "But he does have a 
reoccurring dream that has bothered him for some time."

"What's this dream about?"  Mulder scowled.  He wasn't sure he 
liked the sounds of this.  If Bill Scully was hurting his child in 
any way...

"Liam, you're safe," Dana crooned.  "See, it's just Gramma and me 
and ..."

William opened his eyes and smiled at her.  "And my Dad," he said 
softly as he looked at Mulder.  "You're my Dad, aren't you?"

Mulder nodded, unable to speak.

Maggie regained her facilities first.  "How did you know that Fox 
is your father, William?" she gently asked.

"He was in my dream.  He's always been in my dreams, the ones about 
the sandcastle on the beach.  I've never seen his face before, but 
this time when I looked up he was smiling down at me."

"What else did you see in your dream, Liam?" Mulder prodded.

William scrunched up his face in concentration for a moment before 
saying, "There's a lady under an umbrella, but she's got a hat on 
and the wind was blowing it so I couldn't see her face."

"That's really a great description William.  Can you remember 
anything else about the lady?"  Mulder did not want to lead the 
boy, but needed to hear about the rest of the dream.

"Yeah," William laughed.  "She was really fat, like Momma T."

Mulder shot a glance at Scully, but she was ignoring him.

William continued, "Oh, and Gramma was walking up the beach towards 
us this time."

"Am I usually in your dream, William?" Maggie asked.

He nodded and said, "But usually you're too far away to tell who 
you are.  This time I could see that it was you, Gramma."

Maggie was smiling but had tears in her eyes.  She knew with this 
new-found happiness for William would come pain for Bill and Tara.  
"Why don't you two go out in the back yard and have a nice talk?" 
Maggie suggested.

Mulder smiled his thanks to her and held out his hand to William.  
"Want to go out back, son?  We could play a game of catch," he said 
but stopped.  The disappointment that etched William's face let him 
know what he really wanted to do.  "Or we could just find a nice 
spot and have a long talk."

William beamed at his last suggestion.  The two men left Dana and 
Maggie in the living room while they went in search of the truth.



CHAPTER XLI

FEBRUARY 15, 2001
HOME OF MAGGIE SCULLY, SAN DIEGO, CA
5:37 P.M.

"What the hell is he still doing here?" Bill Scully bellowed.  He 
walked away from his mother, through the living room to the French 
doors and glared at the sight before him.

His son, William, was looking up at Fox Mulder with a disbelieving 
smile quivering on his lips.  They were totally engrossed in their 
conversation.  William's smile widened as Mulder began gesturing 
wildly as he spoke.  "Boom!" Mulder yelled as he grabbed William 
and the two rolled on the grass, wrestling.  William was shrieking 
with laughter, wiggling and tickling Mulder back.

Bill shut his eyes against the pain that the scene before him 
created in his heart.  William had always been such a reserved 
little boy.  He had taken his role of big brother very seriously 
from an early age.  He would wrestle and play with Bill 
occasionally, but never with the abandon that he was exhibiting 
with this virtual stranger.

"They look good together," Tara said quietly.  She had followed him 
into the room to try to avert the confrontation she knew was 
coming.

"William has always been good with adults," Bill said doggedly.

"Bill," Tara sighed.  "Billy, look at me."

Bill turned to look at his wife.  She was blooming with their 
second set of twins.  After all those years of trying, she was 
almost due to deliver yet again.  He couldn't help smiling at her.

"What are we going to do?  I don't want to lose William, but I 
don't want to make him unhappy either."  Tara laid her head on his 
arm, too pregnant to feel comfortable in a head-on hug.

"I don't know what we're going to do.  But right now I've got to 
get us loaded up and back to the base.  I have to report in 
tomorrow."  Bill stared at the scene in the back yard for a few 
more moments.

He hugged his wife and turned away to load up the car.  In a matter 
of moments he was back, task competed.  He walked into the living 
room that was growing dark in the coming dusk.  Tara had moved from 
the doorway to a chair that faced the yard.  She was softly crying 
as she massaged her stomach while watching her son interact with 
Mulder in the backyard.  Bill picked her up and carried her to the 
car.  She protested but he told her to just wait right there.

He ran back into the house and, with his mother's help, gathered up 
all the other children except William and took them out to the 
loaded van.  He turned back to the house for William.

"Billy, don't make a scene," Tara begged.

"William is legally our son, and until that changes, if it changes, 
he goes where his family goes," Bill said firmly.  He stalked back 
into the house as if prepared for battle.

Bill emerged with a sobbing William.  He put his tearful son in the 
back seat and pulled out of the drive without a word to his wife.

*****

I sat quietly in the dark, trying to calm down.  I knew I needed to 
go in the house and say goodbye to everyone and try to make my 
departure as easy for William as I could.  I didn't know how I was 
going to say goodbye to my son after just meeting him.

Scully came across the deck and stood behind me.

"Are you all right?" she said quietly.

"He's great, isn't he?" I answered.  I wasn't all right.  I had to 
walk away from my son again.  How many times was I going to have to 
do that before he was with Scully and me where he belonged?

"Yes," she sighed.  "He is everything a parent could want in a 
son."

I stood up and turned around.  The concern on her face bothered me.  
"Scully?  Are you okay with this?  I didn't tell him that you are 
his mother, if that's what you're concerned about."

"No, I know you didn't Mulder.  I'm worried about you."

"Thanks," I said.  "It's going to be hard to say goodbye to him 
tonight."

"Goodbye?" she gasped.

"Yeah."  A feeling of disquiet settled in my stomach.  "Bill said 
that Tara needed William a few minutes ago.  I was just sitting 
here trying to calm down before coming in to tell him goodbye for 
the evening."

"Mulder, Bill took William home.  He loaded up Tara and the kids 
and then came back in, got William, and left."

I stared at her in disbelief.  "Gone?"

She nodded her head.  "William was crying.  I thought it was 
because he had to tell you goodbye."

"That son-of-a-bitch took my son without letting me tell him 
goodbye?" I roared.

"Mulder, calm down!" Scully urged.

"Calm down?  Are you out of your mind?  How do you think William 
feels being dragged off after just meeting his father for the first 
time?  How the hell do you think I feel?"  I stormed back into the 
house towards the front door.

"Fox?  What's wrong?"  Maggie came from the kitchen wiping her 
hands.

"Maggie, did you know that Bill took William without letting me 
tell him goodbye?" I accused.

"No!" she gasped and turned pale.  "I thought that you two had 
handled it without a confrontation when I didn't hear any shouting.  
I helped Tara and the others out to the car, but I never thought 
for a minute that you didn't know he was leaving.  I've been in the 
kitchen with Charlie and his brood."

Scully grabbed my arm as I reached for the front door.  "Mulder, 
wait.  What are you going to do?"

"I'm going to go to Bill's house for a little chat about 
etiquette," I snarled.  I didn't slam the door as I left, but I 
wanted to, God I wanted to!



CHAPTER XLII

FEBRUARY 15, 2001
SAN DIEGO HILTON, ROOM OF DANA SCULLY
10:27 P.M.

Scully paced as she waited for Mulder to return to his room.  The 
connecting door was shut and locked on his side, but that didn't 
worry her.  The housekeeping staff had probably closed it earlier 
that day.  It had happened to them more than a few times when they
were on the road as partners.

She startled when the phone rang.

"Mulder?" she said.

"Dana, it's Mom ..."  Maggie hesitated.

"Mom, what's wrong?"  Dana was concerned about her mother.  It had 
taken her over two hours to calm her down after Mulder left her 
house earlier.  Maggie was terrified that there was going to be a 
major confrontation between Bill and Tara and Mulder.  Her 
loyalties were divided on this issue and it was making it difficult 
for her to remain calm.

"Billy called.  He wanted to let me know that everything was all 
right.  Tara was very upset over the confrontation he and Mulder 
had so she is spending the night at the base hospital.  She had 
some cramping and her blood pressure was up.  The doctor wanted her 
to be in a controlled environment.  I'm on my way over to stay with 
them for a few days while she gets on her feet again."

"Mom, I'm so sorry to hear about Tara's condition.  Are they afraid 
she'll deliver early?"

"No, they think with bed rest she will be all right, but she needs 
my help, Dana."

"I understand Mom," Dana said.  "Umm ... Mom?  What happened with 
Mulder?  Did Billy tell you anything?"

"There ..."  Maggie sighed.  "There was a huge argument.  The 
neighbors heard the commotion and called the MP's.  Mulder was 
thrown off the base and barred from reentry."

Scully silently listened to her mother's words.  She knew there was 
more.

"Bill said ...  Bill said that Mulder threatened his life and he is 
bringing charges up against him for assault."

"Bill is such an asshole.  If Mulder intended to hurt him, he could 
have killed him with his bare hands.  He brought this on himself by 
leaving without letting Mulder say goodbye to his son."

"William is Bill's son too, Dana.  Need I remind you that he's been 
the only father that William's known since he was a baby."

"I understand that Bill's been there for William, but Liam's known 
that Bill wasn't his real father for years."

"A father is the man that's there for you, Dana," Maggie said 
firmly.

"Mom!  Are you denying Mulder's right to be in William's life?"

"I'm being supportive of my son, my grandson, and my family, Dana.  
What are you doing?"

"Mom, don't ask me to take sides on this issue."

"I'm not, Dana."

Scully could hear an unspoken meaning in her mother's voice.  "What 
are you saying?" she asked.

"Bill said that unless you agreed with their right to keep William, 
that he ..."  Maggie hesitated.  

"Go on," Dana ordered.

"They don't want you around William, either." 

"Do you agree with this, Mom?" Dana softly asked.

"I want what's best for the family, Dana.  Right now William is a 
very confused little boy.  Perhaps it would be best if you stayed 
away for a while, at least until this worry over Tara and the twins 
is over."

Scully was silently crying as her mother spoke.  All the things the 
Consortium had done to her had not hurt nearly as much as her 
mother's soft words.

"Dana?"

"Good bye, Mom."

"Good night, Dana," Maggie said, but her daughter had already hung 
up.

*****

Dana Scully lay on her bed, sobbing.  Her mother's words echoed 
through her head.  The phone rang and she ignored it, sure that it 
was her mother again, trying to play peacemaker.  Only her concern 
for Mulder made her answer it on the sixth ring.

"Scully, it's me."  Mulder's voice sounded strange and there was a 
lot of background noise.

"Mulder, where are you?"

"I'm at the airport," he mumbled.

"Mulder, I can hardly understand you.  Are you alright?"

"Yeah," he said.  "Is this better?"

"Yes, what's going on?  I can barely understand you."

"Scully, I have a split lip after my conversation with your 
brother, so this is the best I can do."

"Oh Mulder!" she moaned.

"Look, I'm at the airport.  My plane leaves in an hour and a half.  
I'm going back to D.C. to get all the paperwork started for my
resurrection and my reinstatement.  Come with me, Scully."

"What's the rush, Mulder?  Why didn't you come back to the hotel to 
talk to me first?"

"I did come back, but you weren't there.  I was going to leave 
without calling you, but I couldn't.  Scully, come with me.  We can 
take care of all the legalities and then come back to get our son."

"Mulder, I can't just leave.  I would have to let my family know 
where I'm going and take care of my hotel bill," she stalled.

"Scully, I will take care of the hotel.  You can call you family 
from the airport.  Please, Scully.  I need you."

"Mulder, did you assault Bill in his own home?"

"What?"

"Did you attack Bill?  Is that why he hit you?"

Mulder's voice took on an icy chill.  "I did not assault your 
brother in his own home.  He sucker punched me, again.  I would 
never start anything in front of Tara and William."

"Well, Tara is in the hospital due to complications brought on by 
your little confrontation with Bill," Scully said.

"Damn it, Scully.  I didn't do anything except yell, and Bill 
started that.  I wanted to say goodnight to William.  Bill refused 
to call him down to talk to me.  He started yelling and I yelled 
back.  Tara tried to calm him down and he yelled at her.  William 
heard us and came down stairs.  I hugged him and told him 
goodnight.  When I stood up, Bill took a swing at me and broke open 
my lip.  The MP's arrived, I guess the neighbors called them, and I 
was escorted off base.  End of story."

"Oh, Mulder!" she sighed.

"Scully, come to Washington with me.  You can handle all the 
legalities there as easily as in California.  Skinner said that you 
could be re-certified as an agent and that the Bureau would help 
you get your medical license back."

"Mulder, I can't," she said.

"Why?  We'll be back in California soon."

"I can't, there's nothing for me there," she said cryptically.

"I'll be there, Scully."

"Mulder, I need to stay in California," she began.

"I get it," he interrupted.

"Get what?" 

"That you've chosen to stay here an be Aunt Dana rather than claim 
your son and husband."

"No, that's not it, Mulder," she interrupted.

"Yes, it is, Dana.  I knew it when you asked me not to tell our son 
that you were his mother.  He's a smart boy, Scully.  Don't you 
think he's going to figure it all out?"

"Mulder," she cried.  "You don't understand!"

"Sure I do, Scully.  I understand everything.  But do me a favor 
Scully?  Tell your brother that the next time he lays a hand on me 
in anger, I'll put him in the hospital.  MPs or no MPs.  This is 
the last time I will ever allow him to get away with hitting me.  I 
had enough of that from my father.  I don't need to take it from my 
brother-in-law, ex-brother-in-law."  He hung up the phone.

Dana Scully curled up on her bed in the dark and sobbed.  Her 
inability to commit to Mulder had cost her the love of her life.  
She had drawn a line with her Mother over William's parentage and 
with Mulder over an ongoing commitment.

She had chosen to close herself off from both sides.  She cried 
herself to sleep.  She couldn't tell Mulder how terrified she was 
about going back to Washington.  She had been cut off from her 
education and her profession.  She had no memory of any past 
achievements for so long and didn't know if she would ever be able 
to step back into her life.  Why didn't she just tell him that?  
What level of pride kept her from admitting her fear?

She knew, deep in her heart that she was afraid that Mulder would 
reject her if she was less than she had been before.  He remembered 
his kick-ass, medical doctor partner and wife, but she wasn't sure
that she would ever be that person again.  She was Dana Scully now,
but until recently, she had been Liz Waterston, housewife.  She had
a housekeeper and a maid.  She had played hostess for Daniel, 
worked out and decorated.

What if she could never regain her old self again?

Her mother's words about staying away from William hurt her more 
than she could ever believe.  She was angry and hurt.  Mulder was 
right, she should have told William right away that she was his 
mother.  He was too smart a child not to put two and two together.
He would wonder why his mother had denied him by her silence.

She was so confused, she cried herself to sleep.

*****

When Dana Scully woke up, she was no less confused about what she 
should do than she had been the night before.  She tried to call 
Melissa, but Charlie answered the phone and his terse questioning 
made her hang up before she got to speak to Melissa.

She stared out the window of her hotel room for a long time, trying 
to think about what she should do.  Every few minutes she would 
begin crying again and realized that she wasn't getting anywhere.  
It was proving to be difficult to think through a problem that had 
so many levels of emotional conflict involved.  In the past when 
she needed help she had always turned to Mulder.  Even when she 
didn't know who she really was she had ... Regan!

Scully quickly called her friend and poured out her story to her.  
Regan was immediately supportive.

"Why don't you come back to San Francisco and stay with us for a 
while, Dana?"

"Oh, Regan, I couldn't impose on you and Michael."

"Dana Scully!  What are friends for?  Besides, I happen to know a 
good lawyer that will help you work through all the legal paperwork 
you face.  Getting declared un-dead is a lot harder than being 
ruled legally dead, you know?"

"Sounds like you and Michael have been talking about this," Dana 
mused.

"Well, you know Michael.  Never knows how to leave a problem alone.  
He's been looking, unofficially of course, into the implications of 
your resurrection and your two marriages."

"Oh, no," Scully groaned.  "I forgot about being married to 
Daniel."

"Pack up and get to the airport.  Let me know when you land and 
we'll work on this together."

"Thanks, Regan."  Dana Scully hung up and jumped into action.  She 
had a plan now.  Everything would work out eventually.

CHAPTER XLIII

MAY 14, 2001
SAN FRANCISCO DISTRICT COURT
9:22 A.M.

"Dana, are you still in there?"  The heavy wooden door of the 
bathroom muffled Regan's voice.  Dana Scully pulled herself off the 
floor and stumbled to the door, unlocking it before rushing back 
across the room to throw up again.

"Oh, honey!" Regan commiserated as she pulled some paper towels 
from the dispenser and wet them.  She placed one of the towels on 
the back of Dana's neck and used the other to wipe her face.  "You 
didn't tell me you had the flu."

"I don't," Dana said.  "I think I'm just upset by Daniel's behavior 
in court.  Did you hear what he said?  The lies he told?"  Dana 
began crying softly.  "How could he say those things?"

"Dana, you have to understand.  Daniel is afraid that you will 
destroy his reputation if the truth gets out.  Daniel's entire 
self-esteem revolves around his good reputation when, in fact, he 
is a liar and a cheat.  He feels threatened by the truth and can't 
let his peers in the medical community find that out what a slime 
ball he is."

"I'm not asking for a public apology, I don't want to hurt him!
I just can't stand to be in the same room with him!  I want an
annulment.  He can tell everyone else anything he wants, I just 
want this nightmare to be over," Dana sobbed.

"Honey, calm down or you'll get the dry heaves again," Regan 
soothed.

Moments later, Dana and Regan exited the bathroom to find a smiling 
Michael Jeffries waiting for them.

"He caved.  The annulment was granted and he was ordered to give 
you a lump sum settlement of $250,000." Michael was pleased with 
his efforts in bringing down Daniel Waterston.  He had stood by and 
watched the man cheat on his wife for years.  It felt good to hit 
him where it hurt, his reputation and his pocket book.  Lord knew 
he didn't have a heart.

"I don't want the money," Dana said vehemently.  "I don't want 
anything to do with him."

"Well unfortunately, the court has awarded you the money, payable 
by a cashier's check in ten days."  Michael's eyes sparkled as he 
stated the terms of the settlement.

"Michael, you've done a wonderful job with my cases.  Please, take 
your retainer from the check and donate the balance of the money to 
the relief fund for the survivors of the Consortium," Dana said 
decisively.

"All right, Dana.  If that's what you want," Michael agreed.

"Wait, there is one other thing.  I want to make a large donation, 
$50,000 to the hospital where Daniel works, in the name of Dana 
Scully Mulder," she smiled.

Michael and Regan exchanged grins.  "I'll do that!"

"And Michael, sweetie, make sure that it's a very prominent and 
very obvious just who Dana Scully Mulder really is," Regan 
insisted.

The three smiled at one another for a moment and talked about their 
plans for the rest of the day.

Suddenly Dana's face paled as Daniel Waterston and his lawyers 
walked down the hall.  Dana turned to go back into the restroom, 
feeling nauseous again.

"Dana!  Wait!  I need to talk to you," Daniel demanded.

Dana Scully looked over her shoulder at him.  "I have nothing to 
say to you Daniel."  She pushed on through the door and Regan and 
Michael Jeffries moved to block the door.

"Get out of my way, I need to talk to my wife," Daniel insisted.

"Dr. Waterston, as of a few minutes ago, your marriage to Dana 
Scully Mulder was annulled.  Within days the paperwork will be 
finalized.  She's told you she doesn't have anything to say to you. 
Listen to her.  She has already indicated that she will put a 
restraining order against you if you approach her again," Michael 
growled.

Daniel Waterston's face turned a brilliant red and he was about to 
argue with Michael when his lawyer pulled him aside and spoke 
quietly into his ear.  Waterston seemed to deflate in front of 
their eyes.  He turned back to Regan.  "Tell her ..." he hesitated.
"Tell her I'm sorry."

As he left with this lawyer, Regan could hear Dana throwing up 
again in the bathroom.  She turned to enter the bathroom to help 
her friend when her husband stopped her.  

"Is she all right?"

"I don't know, Michael.  Between the crying, the flashbacks and now 
nausea and vomiting, I don't see how she can be all right.  I need 
to convince her to go to the doctor.  Dana has a strenuous week 
ahead of her and she needs to be well to get through it," Regan 
replied.

"Why do you suppose Fox Mulder subpoenaed her to testify at the
hearing?  She didn't say anything to me about not testifying for
him," Michael mused.  "And a subpoena is not usually done for a 
hearing."

"From what I can gather, I think he believes that she will be a 
hostile witness.  He thinks she's on Bill Scully's side.  But I 
don't want to discuss this now.  I need to get her to a doctor.  
Will you be able to pick up the kids tonight?"  Regan leaned 
against her husband for a moment, gathering strength.

"Sure, no problem, Hon.  This was my last case for the afternoon."
Michael kissed her and gave her a hug.  "See you two at home."



CHAPTER XLIV

MAY 21, 2001
SAN DIEGO DISTRICT COURT
11:13 A.M.

Dana Scully Mulder was late.  The case was to begin at 11:00 sharp 
but her flight had been delayed.  She was not unhappy about being 
late, it allowed her to slip into the courtroom and take a seat in 
the back on Mulder's side of the room without having to confront 
her family.

Almost as if he could feel her presence in the room, Fox Mulder 
turned to look directly at her.  His gaze was guarded.  When she 
nodded at him, he gave her a small smile back and returned to face 
the front.  Moments later she could feel her brother's glare.  She 
started to feel nauseous again and closed her eyes, trying to calm 
her thoughts and her upset stomach.  She was suddenly glad that she 
had not eaten breakfast this morning.

The lawyers began duking it out.  Records and documents were 
submitted and finally, after lunch, witnesses were called.  Dana 
Scully was one of the first witnesses to be called for Fox Mulder.

She gave her testimony succinctly and calmly to Mulder's lawyer.  
She met every challenge from Bill's lawyer with information that 
had been documented by the previously submitted records.  She was
asked to stand down, but to remain available for re-examination.  
She took her seat at the back of the court and watched the rest of
the proceedings.

Mulder's lawyers were top-notch.  They had prepared their case 
carefully, using witnesses that not only could prove his genetic 
claim to William, but his emotional ties as well.

The last witness before court was adjourned for the day was a shock 
to everyone but Mulder and his lawyers.

Richard Matheson, President of the United States, took the stand as 
a character witness for Fox William Mulder.  News of the 
President's testimony spread.  After he was cross-examined, he was 
whisked away by the Secret Service, but not before stopping and 
giving Mulder a handshake and a hug.  Bill's face showed that he 
knew he had lost.

Court was adjourned for the day and Scully left quickly.  She saw 
Lt. Carma Anderson approach Mulder before she left.  She couldn't 
bear to watch her husband and the beautiful woman together.  She 
went back to her hotel and cried herself to sleep.

*****

The next day, Lt. Anderson was called as a character witness for 
Mulder.  She was excused but asked to remain in the courtroom 
until she was to be dismissed.  

Dana sat at the back of the room again, oblivious to most of the 
happenings around her.  William was sitting with Bill and Tara 
today, and she was totally engrossed in watching her son as he 
listened to all the testimony.

When the argument erupted between Mulder and Bill, it caught her by 
surprise.  The judge cleared the courtroom and kept only the 
lawyers, Mulder, Bill and Tara in the room.  She longed to go with 
William and her mother, but knew she wouldn't be welcomed.  When 
Dana walked into the witness waiting area, the only seat available 
was next to Lt. Anderson.

Dread filled her heart.  She did not want to talk to this woman.  
She had caught her glaring at her several times during the trial 
already.  She was feeling sick again and could barely keep her 
breakfast down.  She looked around and decided that it was her only 
option at this time.  

Moments passed without a word being spoken between the two women.  
Finally the court clerk asked all the parties to rejoin the 
session.

Dana started to stand up, after waiting for her mother and William 
to enter the courtroom.  She was surprised when Carma Anderson's 
hand held her in place.

"Please, could we talk for a moment?"  Her gaze was level but 
slightly antagonistic.

"I'm sorry.  I don't believe we have anything to discuss," Dana 
said as she pulled her arm away.

"Deke ... Fox Mulder," she said.

Dana closed her eyes and sighed.  She gathered her strength and 
turned towards the beautiful younger woman.  "What about Mulder?"

"Did you know he wore his wedding ring until he came back from 
California?" 

Scully looked at her and waiting for her to continue.

"He still loves you.  Even though you've broken his heart twice 
now, he only wants you.  Why are you doing this to him?"

"Why do you care?" Dana asked quietly.

"I've watched him for year.  I admit, I'm more than a little in 
love with him.  But for years he turned away all the women who 
threw themselves at him.  He held himself faithful to you and your 
memory while you were married to another man, and still he wants 
you.  I have to warn you.  As much as he has wanted you back, he 
wants his son more.  Don't make him live without his son, please.  
Even if you don't want him, don't let your brother take away his 
son."

"He's my son, too," Dana said as she rose and walked back into the 
courtroom.

The hearing carried on for two more days.  Endless testimony for 
either side was given.  Dana Scully was called back to the stand a 
final time by Bill and Tara's lawyer.

"Would you give your complete name for the court records?" Bill's 
lawyer, Martin Fender, asked.

Dana looked at her brother, meeting his glare with one of her own.

"Dana Scully Mulder," she said clearly.

The lawyer was shocked.  When she had first testified, she had used 
the name Dana Scully.  "Ms. Scully, can you tell us why you have 
changed your name since the last time you testified?"

"Yes.  My lawyer just informed me that the annulment of my second 
marriage was final yesterday.  I consider myself to be Dana Scully 
Mulder and was advised by my lawyer that that is again my legal 
name."

"I see.  Ms. Scully, are you currently married to Fox Mulder?"

"That's Ms. Mulder," she said, correcting him before answering his 
question.  "I believe so."

"You believe so?  Is there some question about the standing of your 
relationship with Mr. Mulder?" the lawyer pounced.

"Yes."  Dana did not offer any explanation.

"And could you tell us why there would be a question about your 
marital status with Mr. Mulder?"

"Well, until I speak to my lawyer and his legal council, I have to 
give that answer."

"Why, Ms. Mulder?"  Martin Fender was becoming exasperated with 
this woman.

"Because until recently, Fox William Mulder was legally dead.  He 
was working under the name of D. K. Williams on a special 
assignment for the President.  I don't know where he stands in his 
efforts to be declared ... un-dead."  A twitter rolled through the 
courtroom.

"Is there any other reason you would not know if your marriage is 
of good standing, Ms. ... Mulder?" 

"I don't know what you mean," Dana said as she glared at him.

"Isn't it true that you are not with Fox Mulder because he is a 
dangerous, unstable man?"

"I object, your Honor!"  Mulder's lawyer, Phillip Wyle, was on his 
feet.

"In fact, Mr. Mulder has twice tried to assault your brother, Bill 
Scully?"

"Your Honor!"  Mr. Wyle yelled.

"Please Mr. Wyle, this is a hearing, not a court trial.  Please 
take your seat.  I will stop Mr. Fender when he gets out of line in 
his questioning," the Judge ruled.

"Answer the question, Ms. Mulder," Mr. Fender demanded.

When Dana hesitated the Judge requested, "Please restate your 
question, Mr. Fender."

"Is the reason you are not living in Washington D.C. with Fox 
Mulder because he is a dangerous, unstable man; one who attacked 
your brother twice?  One who you believe should not have custody of 
your son?"

Every one in the courtroom gasped.  Until this moment, no one had 
stated that she was William's mother.

"No, that is not the reason I am not living with Mulder."

"Your Honor, please instruct this witness to answer my questions 
completely.  If she does not cooperate I would like to ask that she 
be considered a hostile witness."

"Hostile to whom, Mr. Fender?" the Judge asked, then held up her 
hand to halt a continued verbal assault by Bill's lawyer.  "Ms. 
Mulder, please answer the question fully.  We are trying to 
establish who should have custody of William Scully.  Your 
testimony will help us make that decision."

Dana Scully Mulder looked the Judge directly in the eye and 
replied, "Your Honor, I would like to ask your permission to speak 
freely."  

The Judge waved Mr. Fender back to his chair.  "By all means, Ms. 
Mulder, you have the floor."

"I have no doubt that Fox Mulder is a dangerous man.  He was 
trained by the FBI in many means of self-defense. We all were.  He 
has told me personally that he was trained even more extensively in 
hand-to-hand combat and weaponry while he was being groomed for his 
assignment for the President.  Even with all this skill and 
knowledge of weaponry, you will never find a kinder, gentler man on 
this earth.

"When we worked as partners in the FBI, his ability to empathize 
with the victims and loved ones of victims honed his skills and 
made him even more determined to find the perpetrator responsible 
for their loss.  His solve rate was exceptional during his entire 
tenure with the FBI."  Scully looked at Mulder and gave him a small 
smile.

"Mulder has not only not attacked my brother physically, but he has 
held back his response to the two physical attacks my brother made 
on him."

Dana cleared her throat before continuing.  "Bill and Tara have 
raised William from infancy.  They have done a wonderful job.  For 
that, I thank them very much, but William belongs with his father.  
Bill and Tara have six other children, and while you cannot replace 
a child like you can a car or a pet, their pain will not be 
permanent.  I am sure Mulder will make every effort to allow 
William access to the first family he knew.

"Fox Mulder has completed a task set before him by the President of 
the United States: to bring down the Consortium of human criminals 
that had conspired to destroy life, as we know it, on earth.  These 
very criminals are the ones that kidnapped me and stole my memories 
of my life after incarcerating me until my child was born.  They 
gave William to Bill and Tara for their own twisted reasons.  
Thankfully they were good, loving parents to our son.  I did not 
regain my memories until I saw the face of the criminal that held 
me captive on television.  He was arrested due to the diligent 
effort of Fox Mulder.  Mulder deserves to be with his son, and I 
know that William wants to be with Mulder."

The entire courtroom was silent as she spoke.  As her voice faded 
sniffles could be heard throughout the room.

The Judge cleared her throat and said, "Thank you, Ms. Mulder." 
She asked Martin Fender, "Do you have any further questions?"

"No, your Honor," Fender answered quietly.

"Do you have any questions, Mr. Wyle?"

"Yes, your honor, I do," Phillip Wyle said as he walked over to 
Dana Scully Mulder.

"Mrs. Mulder, why are you not planning on going back East with my 
client, Fox Mulder and your son, if he does indeed get custody of 
William?"

Scully stared at him for a moment before letting her eyes meet 
Mulder's across the room.  "I was trained for years to use science 
to evaluate problems.  I majored in physics in college and switched 
to medical school.  There I completed my residency in pathology but 
decided to join the FBI instead of practicing in the public sector.  
Every choice I have made in life has been governed by my training.  
But ..."  Dana's voice faltered and she put her fingertips to her
trembling lips, trying to maintain her control.

Mulder was on his feet, glass of water in hand, before she could 
continue.  He handed it to her and let his fingers briefly touch 
hers.  She looked into his eyes and nodded her thanks before he 
returned to his seat.  She took a drink, holding onto the glass as
she continued.

"All of that was taken away from me on October 13, 1994.  I have 
lived without my science, my training, and I find now that I 
remember my past, I don't know ... who ... I am.  I need some time 
to decide what I'm going to do now that I have my life back.  I 
don't feel that there is anything left for me in Washington, with 
the Bureau.  I need to become a whole person again before I can be 
a mother or a wife or even a friend.  I love my son, but William 
does not need to be dragged through the pain of discovery that I 
find to be my life.  He needs stability.  He needs his family.  His 
whole family.  He needs Bill and Tara and their kids.  He needs my 
mother and his Aunts, Uncles and cousins.  But most of all, he 
needs his father."  Her voice lowered and she softly said, "And his 
father needs him."

"Thank you Mrs. Mulder," Phillip Wyle said.

"You may be excused, Ms. Mulder," the Judge said, clearing her 
throat.  

Dana Scully handed the glass of water to the bailiff, then stood and
walked back to her seat.

"Are there any other witnesses you would like to call, Mr. Fender, 
Mr. Wyle?"  Both attorneys answered negatively.  

"Your honor?"  Fox Mulder stood up.

"Yes, Mr. Mulder?" the Judge responded.

"Dana had her chance to ask for the court's indulgence.  I would 
like to ask a favor of the court of my own."

"Please state your request, Mr. Mulder and I'll rule on it."  The 
Judge wanted to stop the objections of Martin Fender before they 
started.

"Your Honor, I would like to ask you to talk to William in private 
and ask him what he wants.  I want custody of my son desperately, 
but I am willing to abide by his choice if you ask him right now."

"Why now, Mr. Mulder?"  

"I don't want anyone to talk to him but you.  I don't want any of 
the adults in his life to put undo pressure on him, not even me."

"Very well, Mr. Mulder.  I agree.  If there are no further 
witnesses, I adjourn this session and ask that William Michael 
Scully join me in my chambers, with no further conversation, 
unless in my presence.  We will reconvene at 9:00 AM tomorrow.  
Mr. & Mrs. Scully you may wait right here for William."

The Judge, the clerk, the court stenographer and William walked 
through the door to the Judges chambers.

Dana rose to leave, but a wave of nausea swept over her.  She 
grasped the back of the bench in front of her and willed her 
stomach to settle down.  She looked up to see Mulder heading in her 
direction.  Or was he going to meet Carma Anderson seated two rows
in front of her?

No, he walked right by Ms. Anderson and stopped at her side.  
"Scully," he said, but his eyes spoke volumes.  

"Mulder," she answered.

"Thank you for what you said up there.  I appreciate your vote of 
confidence."  He smiled at her but became pensive almost 
immediately.  "I didn't know that you were having difficulties 
adjusting to regaining your memories."

"It's been more difficult than I expected," she said honestly.  She 
wanted to fall into his arms and let him hold her, taking away her 
fear like he used to do, but she couldn't.  

They stood there, gazing into each other's eyes, not speaking for
several minutes.  They were so close together that she could feel
his breathe on her face.

"Mr. Mulder," Phillip Wyle beckoned his client.  He was standing at
the back of the courtroom with his assistant and Carma Anderson.

"I have to go, Scully.  I have a meeting with my lawyer.  Will you 
be here tomorrow?"

"I don't think so.  My ticket is for an early flight tomorrow and I 
have been dismissed by the Judge."

Mulder frowned at her but did not say what he was obviously 
thinking.  "I have done everything I can do, Mulder.  I told the 
truth as I saw it.  You are the right person to have custody of 
William.  If you win, you will be going back East, and there will 
be nothing left here in San Diego for me.  If you loose, you will 
go back to Washington, and I will still not be welcomed here."

"Scully!  Your family ...?" Mulder asked.

"My family has decided that I chose you over them and they will not 
be willing to welcome me back into the fold for some time.  Don't 
worry, Mulder.  I don't think it's permanent," she sighed.  "At 
least not with my mother."

"What are you going to do?" Mulder asked as he let his fingertips 
gently swipe a strand of her hair back behind her ear.  "Come with 
us?"

The gesture was so familiar, so poignant that she almost agreed.  
Only her fear over her declining health kept her from agreeing to 
join them.  She had not told anyone except Regan about her fear 
that her cancer was back and had spread to her stomach.  She would 
know soon.  She had an appointment with an oncologist tomorrow 
afternoon.

"Mr. Mulder, do you want to cancel the meeting?"  Mr. Wyle had
joined them.

"No, I was just leaving," Scully said.  "Good luck, Mulder.  Good 
bye."  She stared into his eyes for a long moment again, trying to 
memorize them, clinging to the strength she felt when she was near 
him.  She finally turned and walked through the doors, passing 
Carma Anderson on her way out.



CHAPTER XLV

JUNE 21, 2001
SAN FRANCISCO, HOME OF DANA MULDER
5:00 P.M.

"Dana are you sure you feel up to coming to the reception tonight?"
Regan Jeffries persisted.  Her concern over Dana's health during 
her pregnancy was a bone of contention between the two friends.

"Yes, I told you I am feeling better now.  I went to the doctor 
yesterday and she said I am fine.  I can resume my normal 
activities if I drop one of my classes to lighten my work load."

"How do you feel about that?" Regan replied automatically.

"I 'feel' just fine about it, Dr. Jeffries," Dana laughed.  "Really 
I do.  It won't delay my medical boards since there was a three- 
month lapse between my last classes and the regularly scheduled 
exam.  I can cram in one more class."

"Sorry, Dana.  It's hard to turn it off sometimes," Regan 
apologized.  "I tend to practice on all my closest friends and 
relatives."

"Don't worry about it.  I'll probably be using your children to 
practice on before school is over.  Even though I'm going to be a 
pathologist, I have to find a few live ones to treat before I can 
pass my practicum."

"Well, if you're sure you want to go, Michael and I can pick you up 
around seven.  That way we'll get there early enough to beat the 
real mooches who show up early and eat all the shrimp.  Honestly, 
if Michael wasn't on the Board of Directors of the Landis 
Foundation, I would forget this whole evening."

"You know you can't and you wouldn't, don't you?" Dana laughed.

"Yes, yes, yes.  I know," Regan giggled.  She paused and said, 
"Dana, you know that Daniel will probably be there, don't you?"

"Yes, I understand that he'll probably be there with the babe de 
jour, and I don't care," Dana said firmly.  "I've told you this 
before, Daniel Waterston can no longer hurt me."

"Good!" said Regan.  "We'll see you in a couple hours.  Who knows, 
maybe you'll meet a tall, dark, handsome man and get swept off your 
feet."

"At this point, Regan, I'd settle for a foot rub."  Dana Scully 
laughed with her friend and hung up the phone.  She had to get 
ready for the annual fundraiser at the Landis Foundation, and 
things seemed to take a lot longer lately.

Scully dropped her robe and examined her figure in the mirror.  Her 
breasts were slightly larger, nipples a darker rose than they had 
been only months ago.  She still had a small waist, only the little
pooch on her lower abdomen gave way her secret.  She was pregnant.
One wonderful night with Mulder and he had knocked her up again!
The man must be shooting pure sperm to be that lethal.  Of course, 
she hadn't used birth control for years.  Daniel had a vasectomy 
years before they were together so she didn't have the need for any 
birth control.

She rubbed her hand over her abdomen and hummed.  She wanted this 
baby, wanted it so badly that she was willing to do anything to 
keep it.  Even if what she had to do involved shelving her 
schooling and waiting to reinstate her medical license until after 
the baby was born, she was committed to carrying this child to 
term.  She knew she should contact Mulder, but couldn't just yet.  
He was still settling in with William, her other baby.  When things 
calmed down for them and she was sure she was not going to lose the 
baby, she would call him.

She finally drew herself out of her daydream and glanced at the 
clock.  She only had an hour left to get ready!  That's where the 
time went, contemplating her navel, or soon to be lack of one.  She 
smiled as she threw herself into high gear, shower, hair, make-up 
and off to get dressed.

Dana had chosen her dress carefully.  She knew she didn't look 
pregnant, but still felt self-conscious about her expanding 
abdomen.  She took advantage of her increased bust line and had 
purchased a simple black silk blend dress that clung to her breasts 
and fell in a straight line to just above her knees.  She liked the 
way the dress seemed to cling then flow away from her lower body as 
she walked.  It was held up by two small straps of the same fabric.  
She felt decadent when she slid the dress on over her bare skin.  
None of her bras fit anymore and certainly none of them would have 
been appropriate for use under this little cloud of a dress.  She 
finished her outfit with a pair of black thigh high stockings and 
black thong panties.

She checked her reflection in the mirror.  She had decided not to 
pin up her long hair tonight.  She decided to let it go curly.  
Pretty damn good, if she did say so herself.  She had spent hours 
shopping for the perfect shoes to wear with this dress.  She had 
chosen well, she thought.  The ankle strap, curved but stable high 
heel and the small leather rose complimented the simplicity of her 
dress.  The open toed sandal was much more comfortable and 
affordable than a lot of the other shoes she had tried on.  She 
glanced down and wiggled her toes.  The sparkly toe ring she was 
sporting was totally not like her.  The entire outfit was unlike 
any of her previous choices.  She stared at herself for a long 
time, considering her motivation for this outfit and contemplated 
changing into her black suit.  She turned once again, taking in the 
entire look and decided that she liked what she saw.

She was trying to decide what she should wear for jewelry when she 
heard a knock on her door.  "Come on in, it's unlocked," she called 
out to Regan.  She stared at her jewelry and tried to make up her 
mind.  "Come on back, I need your help with something."

She heard the floor creak as her friend walked into the bedroom.  
"Regan, I can't decide what earrings I should wear.  Which ones do 
you think would go best?"

When her friend didn't answer, she turned to show her the two she 
had narrowed it down to.  She let out a small gasp as she saw 
Michael standing in the doorway looking embarrassed.

"Michael, I'm sorry.  I thought you were Regan.  You should have 
said something."

Michael blushed and cleared his throat.  "I would have but you 
surprised me!  Dana, you ... you clean up real nice."

Dana smiled and blushed under his brotherly admiration.  "Thanks 
Michael, you sweet talker," Dana grinned.  "Now which of these do 
you think I should wear?"

"I think you should call Regan and ask her," he said as he handed 
her his cell phone.  "Number one on the speed dial."

Dana's smile dimmed as she remembered being number one on Mulder's 
speed dial for years, but she took the phone and after a short 
conversation with Regan decided on the black and silver earrings 
that complemented her toe ring.  She wore no other jewelry.

"Shall we go?" she asked Michael as she reentered the living room.  
She picked up her small bag by the long silver chain.

When they got to the street, she could feel Regan's gaze.

"Now who do you suppose this outfit is in honor of?" she teased.

"Do you like it?" Dana laughed.

"Like it?  What's not to like?  I would kill to wear something like 
that!"  Regan mournfully glanced down at her dress.

"Regan, you look beautiful, and you know it," Dana assured her 
friend.

"You will be the most beautiful woman there," Michael quietly 
interjected.

"See!" Dana crowed.  "The only opinion that matters has just been 
stated."

The friends settled into a companionable silence as they drove 
towards the reception.

Regan kept darting glances back at Dana until she said, "What?  Go 
ahead and say it, Regan.  You've got something on your mind?"

"Daniel will eat his heart out when he sees you," she started.  
"You aren't going to hide in the corner like you usually do at 
these functions, are you?  That dress needs to be seen!"

"I admit, I wanted to look my best tonight.  I don't want Dan ... 
anyone to think that I'm the downtrodden little woman."

"You go, girl!" Regan interjected.  "Maybe you will meet Mr. Right 
tonight."

"Sorry, kiddo, Mr. Right is a continent away," Dana sighed.

"Well," Michael said, "Maybe you'll meet Mr. Right-Now." 

"Michael, that's such a guy comment!"  Regan rolled her eyes. 

The three friends laughed and continued to chat as they drove.



CHAPTER XLVI

JUNE 21, 2001
SAN FRANCISCO, CA, LANDIS FOUNDATION RECEPTION
8:15 P.M.

Dana was totally relaxed and happy when they walked into the 
reception.  She greeted many of her friends and acquaintances from 
her days as Daniel's wife.  Everyone complimented her on how 
stunning she looked.  Some even had the nerve to express their 
surprise that she was up to being in public after her messy 
divorce.  Some were quick to point out Daniel and his date.  But 
most were just glad to see her again.

After the receiving line and dinner, she had danced a few times but 
was feeling tired and lonely, so she went out on the terrace to 
watch the moon rise over the mountains.  She was still sitting on a 
secluded bench when she heard someone approach.  

"You look beautiful, Dana," Daniel said from the shadows.

She turned her gaze toward him.  Unsmiling she replied, "Thank you, 
Daniel."

"May I join you for a moment?"

"Aren't you afraid your date will be looking for you?"

"Ah, jealous?" he teased hopefully.

"No."

Her simple reply cut him to the quick.  "Dana, I've missed you.  
I'm sorry.  Can you ever forgive me?"

She stared at him for a moment and realized that he probably did
miss her, after all their divorce was not his idea.  Even now it 
was all about him.  "No, Daniel, I can't.  You knew who I was and
how to locate my family the entire time we were married.  You knew
about my nightmares and loneliness, and you never once tried to 
help me regain my past.  I can't forgive you for that level of 
deceit."  Her voice had remained cool and dispassionate during her
entire reply.  

Daniel knew once and for all that he had lost the only woman he had
ever truly loved.  He knew now how his first wife claimed to feel 
when he left her.  It was over and for a brief moment Daniel 
Waterston considered the concept of karma.

"I think it would be best if you went back to the reception."  Dana
was not willing to waste another breath on the likes of Daniel 
Waterston.  "Goodbye, Daniel."

"Goodbye, Dana."

She sat there for several more minutes, allowing her mind to clear 
and just enjoy the scenery.  The music was soft and the night was 
warm and balmy.  A shadow fell on her and a voice asked, "Is this 
seat taken?"

Her heart pounded.  She would know that voice anywhere.  "No, but I 
have to warn you, I've been told to look for Mr. Right tonight and 
I'm feeling dangerous."

He chuckled and sat down next to her.  "You certainly are dressed 
for it, Scully.  You look beautiful."

"You are the second man that said that to me since I sat down here, 
Mulder."  

"Was he Mr. Right?" 

"No, he wasn't even Mr. Right-Now," she said as she smiled at the 
man she considered to be her soulmate.

*****

I wasn't going to come tonight.  Even though Scully's friend Regan 
had called and told me that she was going to be here, I had 
hesitated.  I didn't want to fly all the way across country to be 
rejected, again.  But the information that Regan Jeffries had 
shared with me compelled me to make this trip.

She had not contacted me herself, but I had kept tabs on her 
through the Gunmen.  She had registered at the University of 
California at Berkley for refresher courses that would allow her to 
re-certify her medical degree by taking the board exam again.  She 
had been in the hospital recently for two days and this alone was 
reason enough to help me decide to fly out.  I was intrigued by the 
invitation and the instructions to wear a tuxedo.  Now that I was 
here, I understood.  This was a very up-scale shindig.

Scully looked exquisite.  I had watched her for a half an hour 
before I saw her come out here to rest.  I had started to go to her 
when I saw Daniel Waterston approach her.  I froze.  What if she 
actually wanted him back?

I started to leave but hesitated.  I didn't realize that I had been 
holding my breath until I saw her turn away from him.  I was glad 
that she had rejected that bastard, even after I saw his face as he 
walked away.  He looked as if he were ageing before my very eyes.  
I could understand it.  Losing Dana Scully could almost kill any 
man.

I approached her quietly, still fearful that she would reject any 
contact with me and asked, "Is this seat taken?"

She didn't look at me right away, but she replied, "No, but I have 
to warn you, I've been told to look for Mr. Right tonight and I'm 
feeling dangerous."

I laughed and sat down next to her.  "You certainly are dressed for 
it, Scully.  You look beautiful."  'Did she have any idea how 
breathtaking she looked tonight?' I wondered.

She smiled and said, "You are the second man that said that to me 
since I sat down here, Mulder."  

"Was he Mr. Right?"  I couldn't keep the edge of anger out of my 
voice.

"No," she smiled at me again, this time a full 1000-watt Scully-
smile.  "He wasn't even Mr. Right-Now.  How are you Mulder?"

"I'm doing well," I replied.  I knew that she was hungry for news 
of our son.  "William and I have moved back to the Vineyard.  We're 
living in one of my Dad's properties.  Well, I guess it's mine now.  
It's right on the beach and William is having a ball."  I had to 
smile as I talked about our son.  "Did you know that he's grown up 
in San Diego his whole life but had never been in the ocean?"

"The Pacific Ocean is much colder and more dangerous than the 
Atlantic," she replied automatically.

"He loves the water.  He's asked about you."  I watched her 
carefully, trying to read her emotions.

"What have you told him?" she whispered.

I picked up her hand and played with her fingers.  "I told him that 
his mother loves him very much, but has been through so much in the 
last few years that she needs some time to sort out all her 
memories.  I told him that she knows he loves her, too."  I 
hesitated and added, "I told him that I love my Scully very much 
and hope that some day we can live together as a family."

"Mulder," she sniffed.  "I want that too, but I'm not your Scully 
anymore."  

I gathered her into my embrace and held her until she calmed her 
breathing.  "Scully?" I whispered.  "What do you mean?"

"When we were first partners, then friends, then married, I was 
Special Agent Dana Scully, M.D.  I was strong and driven.  We 
complimented each other on every level.  I'm not Scully any longer, 
Mulder.  Too much has happened.  I've lost so much of 'me'.  I need 
to regain my self-respect, my drive.  I need to be the person you 
remember again before I can come back to you."

I couldn't believe what I was hearing.  Scully felt we couldn't be 
together  because she wasn't the same person she was when we were 
first married.  "Dana Scully!"  I stood up and began pacing in 
front of her.  Clues as to her mental state suddenly became clear.  
She was afraid that she wasn't the same, wasn't what I needed in a 
partner, friend, wife.  She was so wrong.  I pulled her to her feet 
and placed my hands on her shoulders.  I shook her gently, and 
growled, "Is that what this is all about?  You've changed and 
you're afraid that I won't love who you are now?  You think I could 
only love you as you were before?"  I began to smile in relief.

She nodded curtly and when my smile turned into a belly laugh, she 
got a mulish look on her face that was so familiar to me, I didn't 
know whether I wanted to kiss her or tease her.

"Just what's so funny, Mulder?"  She was magnificent when she got 
angry.  I was much happier with her temper than with her tears.

"Do you think I'm the same person I was when we met for the first 
time in my basement office?"  I waited for her answer.

"No, of course not.  You've found out what happened to Samantha, 
you've accomplished so much in that time.  You're ..."  A light 
dawned in her eyes.  "You're still Mulder, just ..."

"Older?  Wiser?" I laughingly interjected.

"Yes, but you're still ..." she fell quiet again, thinking about 
what we'd said.

"I'm still the man who fell in love with Dana Scully, all those 
years ago.  Still the man who mourned her loss.  Still the man who 
loves her now and will until his dying day.  I'm still me, Scully.  
You are still you.  No one stays the same.  We all grow and change.  
Unfortunately, our growth didn't happen together, but nothing has 
happened in my life or yours that has changed us enough to diminish 
the love we feel for each other, or for William."  I let her digest 
this for a moment.

She had been starting at my chest during my entire speech.  She 
raised her eyes to meet mine and said, "I do love you and William."

"I know that Scully," I assured her.

"I've enrolled in school at Berkley so that I can take the Medical 
Boards again."

I nodded.

"I don't think I want to be a pathologist any more."

I nodded again.

"I don't want to go back to the Bureau."

I smiled and nodded in encouragement.

"I suppose that there are classes at Boston University that I could 
take next semester."

I grinned in agreement. 

"I'm pregnant," she whispered.

I was shocked.  Even though her friend, Regan, had told me she was 
pregnant, I didn't expect this level of openness from Scully so 
soon.  She really had changed.  'I'm going to like getting to know
the new Scully,' I thought.

"It's mine," I stated.

This time she nodded.

I wrapped my arms around her and held her close to my heart.  "God, 
Scully!  That's the best news I've heard in years!"  I kissed her 
soundly.  

"You're not upset?" she asked as she pulled back to look into my 
eyes.

"Upset?  Hell no!  Thrilled, excited, floored, maybe, but not 
upset!"  I led her back to the bench and sat her down, kneeling in 
front of her.

"I got this from Jason Whiting, shortly after William and I got 
back to D.C.  I wanted to send them to you then, but I waited until 
I thought you might be willing to accept them."  I reached into the 
inside breast pocket of my tux and pulled out the two rings that I 
had placed there earlier.

"My wedding rings!  Where did they find them?" Scully exclaimed.

"They were found at the site where you had been held.  Jason was 
reading a list of evidence recovered from the site and recognized 
the initials inside."

She held out her left hand.  It was shaking slightly, but then so 
was mine.  I placed the engagement ring on her finger and kissed 
it.  "I love you Dana Scully, will you marry me again?" I asked.

"Mulder!  I've been married to you for years," she laughed through 
her tears.

"Mulder and Scully have been married for years.  This is Fox 
William Mulder, civilian, retired Special Agent, father of William, 
asking Dana Katherine Scully, retired Special Agent, student, 
mother of William and Little X.  Will you marry me?"  I kissed her 
hand again and said, "I don't know what I'm going to do in the 
future, but at least now there will be a future.  I want to spend 
my life with you, solving all the mysteries of parenthood, loving, 
just growing old together.  Say yes, Dana.  Say yes," I urged.

"Yes, Mulder!  Yes, yes, yes!" she said as she laughed.

*****

Dana looked down at her husband, kneeling before her, asking for 
her hand in marriage, again.  This was his way of letting her know 
that he wanted her now, just as she was.  How did he know that she 
had dreamed of almost this exact scene since their separation in 
San Diego?

"Yes, Mulder!  Yes, yes, yes!" she agreed, laughing.

Mulder stood up and pulled her up on her feet.  "Oh, God, Scully!  
When?  Tonight?  We can go to Reno, it's only three hours away!"

"Mulder, I want William to be there when we get married this time.  
I want him to be included in our vows."

Mulder smiled as he studied her blushing face.  "You've thought 
about this have you?" he teased.

"Yes," she said shortly.  "Is that all right?"

"Yes.  I think that's a good idea."  He placed the wedding band 
back in his pocket.  His eyes turned darker and he pulled her 
closer to him, "I also think we need to seal our engagement with a
kiss."

"Mulder," she hedged.

"What?  Just a celebratory kiss to honor your acceptance of my 
proposal," he growled.

"Well, if that's all it is ..." she whispered and looked up into 
his eyes.

He lowered his lips towards hers slowly.  At first their kiss was 
soft and sweet.  He pulled back slightly and nibbled at her lips, 
first top lip then bottom.  He moved back again and she licked her 
lips, tasting his kiss.  Mulder groaned and pulled her to him, 
melding his lips to hers.  His tongue snaked out and probed at the 
crease of her lips.  When she gasped in pleasure, he quickly 
claimed her mouth in a bruising kiss.

Their lips and tongues dueled, their breaths mingled, their bodies 
clung to one another.  Mulder reached down, sliding his hands down 
her back to stroke her hips.  He skimmed down to the hem line of 
her dress and up her thighs to grasp the bare globes of her 
derriere.  He groaned when his brain realized that she was wearing 
thigh-high stockings and a thong.

He wrenched away to gasp, "Jesus Scully!  Are you naked under that 
dress?"

She smiled up at him with a mischievous sparkle in her eyes, "Not 
quite.  I told you I was looking for Mr. Right."

"What would you have done if I hadn't been here?" he said, anger 
darkening his expression.

"I would have gone home and fantasized that something just like 
this had happened," she confessed.

"With Mr. Right-Now?" he teased.  His anger had dissipated as 
quickly as it flared.

"No, with you, Mulder.  Only with you."

"Scully!"  He slid his hands back down to her thighs and lifted her 
up to his eye level.  He walked forward to the broad stone wall that
surrounded the terrace and deposited her on the ledge, carefully 
making sure not to damage her beautiful dress.

"Damn, Mulder!  This stone is cold," she hissed.

"You won't be cold for long, Scully," he teased as he leaned in to 
kiss her again.

They were evenly matched in their passion.  His lips claimed hers, 
his tongue thrusting and probing as if he were giving her a preview 
of what his cock was going to do.

She sucked and nibbled on his lips and tongue.  He tasted so good, 
just like love, just like Mulder.

His hands slid through her curls to massage her scalp.  She groaned 
in protest when he let his hand slide down her body.  With one hand 
he slid her closer to the edge of the wall and stepped into the vee 
of her legs.  The other brushed against her knee and then back up 
her thigh to cup her mons.

"Mulder, someone will see us."  She tried to pull back but he held 
her firmly in place with his hand on her lower back.

"I don't care.  Do you?  Really?"  He pushed her thong to the side 
and began to finger her clit.

"No, just, Jesus, just don't stop touching me," she moaned into his 
mouth.

Mulder played her body like a fine instrument.  He kissed her 
deeply, while the hand on her back slid lower so that he could 
gather the material of her dress up enough to slide under and grasp 
her ass again.

"Oh, God, that feels so good," she whimpered.

"Damn, Scully, you're so wet," he said as he slid first one then 
two fingers into her.  He turned his hand so that it was palm up 
and crooked his fingers, seeking the spot on the front wall that 
would drive her over the edge.  When he found it, he was careful to 
cover her mouth with his before her began to massage it as he used 
his thumb on her clit.  She screamed his name into his mouth as she 
came almost instantly, quaking and shivering against him.

Her walls were still pulsing against his fingers when her hands 
began to pluck at the zipper of his tuxedo.

"Scully, you don't have to do this," he stepped back a step to stop 
her, remembering her difficulty with her memories of her clothed 
attacker.

"In me, now, Mulder!" she ordered.

He quickly moved forward and her clever, skillful hands moved to 
the button of his pants.

"Don't bother unbuttoning it, just pull me out, he said around 
their kiss.

"No, you'll never get your deposit back on the tuxedo if we get cum 
all over it," Scully said with her last practical thought of the 
night.

"I own the tux, Scully, don't worry about soiling it, just leave it 
in one piece so I can walk out of here," he teased.

"Mmmm, Mulder!"  

She held him in her hand for a moment, stroking the silky skin of 
his cock.  She let her thumb swirl across the head as she slid her 
hand up and down a few strokes.

"God, you feel good."

"Move closer, Scully," he insisted as he tried to scoot her ever 
closer to the edge of the ledge.

Mulder groaned as she took her hands off him.  She slid her feet 
out of her shoes and leaned back a little, sliding her feet up his 
legs.  She slipped her legs around his waist, under his jacket, 
locking them behind his back.

He groaned even louder when she reached up and slid the straps of 
her dress off her shoulders and shrugged the bodice down, baring 
her breasts to him.  She leaned back and rested her hands behind 
her on the ledge.

"I believe I gave you an order a minute ago," she teased.  "Do I 
need to repeat it?"

Mulder leaned forward to cup her breasts in his hands.  He knew 
that he was too tall to kiss them while he stroked into her, and he 
wasn't going to give up this chance to make love to them.  He 
softly kissed the swell at the top of each breast, kissed and 
licked his was down her cleavage to her right nipple.  He tongued 
the areola and placed little nibbles on the puckered flesh.  He 
moved to her left breast and did the same.

"Beautiful.  They were fantastic before, but if possible, they're 
even more beautiful now," he lifted his head to kiss her again.  
"Thank you."

"Mulder," she groaned.

He lowered his mouth to her breasts again and set to sucking and 
kissing each one passionately.  After a few minutes, he stopped.  
As much as he wanted to spend hours, days, worshipping her breasts, 
he needed to make love to her.

He stood up and kissed her again.  It was a long, lazy, wet kiss 
that conveyed first his love then his passion.  She returned them
both to him, moaning and sighing against him.

He leaned back and, after lifting her skirt up so that he could see 
better.  He pushed her thong to one side and rubbed his cock 
against her folds, letting her juices lubricate it.  Scully was 
ready, had already come for that matter, but she was a small woman 
and her hot, tight little cunt always needed the extra lubrication 
on his cock to minimize her initial discomfort.

"Are you ready, Baby?" he growled.  "Will it be all right now?"

"Mmmuuullllder," she teased.  "I told you that you weren't Mr. 
Right-Now.  You're my Mr. Right."

He snorted a laugh at her play on words as he slid the head of his 
cock into her.  She squeezed with the walls of her vagina, pushing 
him out.  He automatically surged back into her and didn't stop 
until he was all the way in.  She gasped and held her breath.  The 
heat of her surrounded him, pulled at him as he tried to hold 
still.

"Damn!  I'm sorry, Scully.  Are you all right?"  He tried to pull 
out but she tightened her grasp with her legs and refused to let 
him move.

She took a shaky breath and smiled.  "Yes, I am fi ... It's okay.  
It's just been a while since, well, you were there last time."  She 
was smiling again and his guilt slid away.

He held her hips as he stroked into her.  Each time he slid home, 
her breasts would bob and jiggle in the most delectable way.  He 
couldn't resist lifting one hand to fondle her breasts as his 
stokes quickened.  His gaze devoured her.  It moved from her 
flushed cheeks down her neck where the blush of her orgasm still 
showed, down farther to her luscious breasts, and ultimately to 
where their bodies were joined.

Mulder moved up on the balls of his feet to change the angle of his
thrusts.  Scully closed her eyes and groaned.  She lifted her legs
higher on his torso, tightening her gluts and letting her head fall
back as it thrashed from side to side.

"Mulder, so good, gonna ..."  She orgasmed again, freefalling into
a different dimension of space and time.  Stars flashed behind her 
closed lids and she would have screamed his name out loud if Mulder 
had not chosen to pick her up and kiss her as she came.  Mulder 
came as her vaginal walls contracted and milked his cock.  Gravity 
had caused her to slide as far down on his cock as possible, so far 
it felt as if he was touching her heart.

Mulder twisted around and leaned against the ledge, trying to get 
the strength back in his legs.  He ended the kiss and pulled back 
enough to look in her eyes.

She was glowing.  Her eyes were a soft liquid blue, her hair was 
curling madly around her face, her cheeks were rosy and a beautiful 
flush washed down her neck and across her chest.  Her nipples were 
erect, the areola pebbled.  Her arms were wrapped around his neck, 
fingers stroking through the short hairs at his nape.

"You cut your hair," she said.  "You don't look as wild and 
dangerous as you did before."

"Yeah," he replied.  "I didn't think the 'Wild Fox' look was 
appropriate for a husband and father."

"Does this mean that I've tamed the Wild Fox?"  She teased, "I've
trapped you now."

"You've always had me Scully, even when we were apart."  Mulder 
held her for a moment, and started to kiss her again when the 
shadows of another couple walking past the French doors to the 
terrace caught his eye.  He stood up, holding on to her, and turned 
his back to the door again.  "We better get cleaned up, Baby, or 
we'll be spending the next 30 days apart after taking a trip 
downtown with the local police for lewd public behavior."

She grinned up at him as he slid back her onto the ledge again.  She
lowered her legs from around his waist, wrapping her feet around 
his calves so that he couldn't get too far away from her.  She 
slipped her straps up on her shoulders and adjusted her dress over 
her breasts.  Mulder stood there transfixed by her ministrations as 
she carefully tucked him back into his boxers and zipped him up.  
She brushed her hand across the front of his pants, making sure 
that no tell-tale fluid was hiding in the dark.

She rubbed her foot up and down his calf for a few seconds before 
pushing back on him gently so that she could get back on her feet.  
He shook his head and knelt in front of her, pushing her legs apart 
a little further as he used his handkerchief to wipe up as much of
his cum from her as he could before adjusting her thong back in 
place.  He kissed her thighs and then leaned back and looked up at
her, the tender look of love in his eyes blazing.  He put her shoes
on her feet after gently massaging and then kissing each foot.  
Tears sprang to her eyes again, but they were tears of joy.

This was her Mulder and he wanted her just as she was.

He lifted her off the ledge and let her slide down his body till 
her feet touched the ground.  He gave her a quick kiss and stepped 
back, any more and they would be as oblivious as before.

"Did you rent a car, Mulder?" she gasped.

"No, I hired a limo," he answered.

"Good!  I hope you hired it for the night," she teased.  "I've 
never made love in the back of a limo before."  She seemed to 
consider her words for a moment before adding, "Of course, I've 
never made love on the terrace of a major Corporation during the 
middle of a fundraiser before either."

"Scully, you make me so ..." he began.

"Horny?" she prompted.

"Happy, Scully.  Very, very happy."  He laughed at the pretend pout 
she gave him.

"Well, happy will do for now.  I need to tell Regan and Michael our 
good news and then we can leave."

"Do you have to talk to them?" I groaned.  "The limo is just down 
stairs."

"Yes, I have to tell them I'm going to go home with Mr. Right."  
Her eyes sparkled with mischief, then widened in concern.  "Mulder,
is William in the limo waiting?"

"No, I left William back east.  I have a flight back scheduled in a 
couple hours.  I didn't see any reason for him to have come for 
just a trip overnight."

"But how can you be certain that he's safe?  I mean, who did you 
leave him with?  Certainly not the Gunmen!"  She was working 
herself up into a frenzy.

"Scully," I said, trying to calm her down.  "Scully, he's safe.  
He's not with the Gunmen."

"Thank goodness," she said.  Then added, "Not that they're not 
reliable, it's just that he's only six and hasn't known them for 
that long.  Where is he then?"

"He's at Camp David with Richard and Judy and their girls," I 
assured her.

She looked at me for a long time before saying, "Someday you are 
going to have to tell me just how close you are to the President of 
the United States and his family."

She took my arm and we walked back to the door of the terrace.  I 
stopped her in the light to give her a once over, trying to make 
sure that we had hidden proof of our lovemaking well enough to get 
us out of here. 

I watched her as she straightened her hair a little more and shook 
my head.

"What?" she looked down at her dress.  "Is my make up messy?"

"Scully, I don't know how to tell you this, but anyone that knows 
you is going to know you just got fucked," I whispered to her.

"One look at you and they'll know who the fuck-er was," she teased 
back and moved through the door.

I bellowed a laugh that brought the attention of all the people 
close to the doorway directly to us.  So much for slipping in 
without bring attention to the afterglow.

"Mulder, could you keep your exuberance down just a little?" she 
hissed.

"Why, Scully?  I just asked the woman I love to marry me, again, 
and she said yes."  I kissed her fingers right below her ring.  
"You do want to marry me again, don't you?" I teased.  "After all, 
you have to think about little X."  I caressed her almost flat 
stomach.  "Do you want another boy or a girl?"

I had successfully taken her mind of being embarrassed as her 
expression melted into a soft loving one.  "I don't care, Mulder.  
I just want us to be together for the delivery of this baby."

I kissed her hand again and said, "Me too, Scully.  Me too."  She 
wrapped her arms around me and I automatically held her to my 
heart.  Nothing mattered as much as that.

*****

Moments later, Regan and Michael Jeffries came over to meet me.  I 
was very grateful to her friend for contacting me.  I was concerned 
that Scully would be upset with her, but was once again surprised 
when she thanked her too.  There were many things about the old 
Scully I would miss, but I certainly could get used to this new 
openness and acceptance.

Scully asked Regan to swing by her house and take her plants home.  
She had been living in a furnished apartment and only had her 
plants and her personal possessions there.  I stared at Scully, 
trying to make sure I understood her meaning.

"You do want me to return home with you, don't you Mulder?" she 
suddenly asked.

I thoroughly convinced her that I wanted nothing else by examining 
her tonsils with my tongue in front of all those people who where 
watching us.

*****

Daniel Waterston wanted to go home and lick his wounds.  He stood
beside his date for the evening, only partially listening to her 
conversation with the others in their small group.  He was waiting
for an appropriate point in the conversation to interrupt and 
suggest that they leave without looking and sounding pathetic.  
He turned to reach for a fresh glass of champagne from the waiter 
walking by.  When he turned back to rejoin the group, he realized
that their attention was now fixed on a point behind him.  The
conversation had come to an abrupt halt.
 
He knew who they were watching when one of the men smirked at him.
His date, tall, blonde, and clueless, pulled on his arm to get his 
attention.  He regretted asking this lovely, vapid woman to 
accompany him to this function.  He realized after the third or 
fourth time she had asked him for introductions to various other 
members of the Landis Foundation that she was using him as a 
springboard into a higher social circle.  He really held no malice 
towards her.  After all, didn't he have plans to use her body for 
his own purposes later that night?  "Yes, Tawnie?" he sighed.

"Do you know that man, Daniel?"

Waterston took a quick look over his shoulder then turned to stare
with the rest of the group.  It was Dana with Mulder and the kiss 
that they were sharing was so erotic, he felt himself getting hard.
He knew what it felt like to kiss Dana Scully.  He knew that he 
would never hold heaven in his arms again.  She was gone and would
never forgive him.

"Do you know his name, Daniel?  Could you introduce me?" she said
in her soft, breathy little voice.  Her eyed were roaming the over 
Fox Mulder's body and her intent was obvious.

Dr. Trudy King looked at Tawnie with amusement in her eyes.  "Don't
worry, darling, that man won't do you any good.  He's found the 
woman he wants."

"If I'm not mistaken, isn't that your wife he's kissing, 
Waterston?"  Neal King sneered.

"My ex-wife," Daniel spat.  He felt his arousal deflate completely.

"That means he's that man they call the Wild Fox!  He's the one 
that saved the world!" Tawnie practically squealed.  "Oh, Daniel, 
you have to introduce me now!"

Daniel Waterston turned and left the room.  As he moved through the
crowd he heard Trudy's abrasive voice telling Tawnie, "Why don't we
get you a cup of coffee, dear, before we get you a cab home?"

*****

Mulder and Scully were totally oblivious to this little vignette as
it played out not fifteen feet from their location.

Regan hugged Scully and assured her that she would ship out her 
stuff next week.  Mulder felt like a heel, but they just had enough
time to get to her place and pack a bag or two before they had to 
be back at the airport for their flight.

Scully invited Regan and Michael to their wedding, promised to give 
Regan all the details later, and in a flurry of hugs and kisses 
between the two friends, they were off to start their new life with 
their son.  They still had a lot of things to figure out and work 
through, but they would do it together.

Neither one noticed the figure of Daniel Waterston standing in the 
shadows watching them walk out of his life forever.



CHAPTER XLVII

EPILOGUE
NOVEMBER 21, 2001
MARTHA'S VINE YARD, MA, THE MULDER'S BEACH FRONTAGE
11:23 A.M.

"Dad!  Daddy!  Get this one!"  

William Mulder threw the Nerf football with unusual accuracy 
for a boy six and a half years old.

"Mommy!  Watch me!" he crowed as his father tossed the football 
back to him and he caught it easily.

"Liam!  That's great," a voice from the huge pile of blankets on 
the beach called back.

"Catch, Daddy!" William called, throwing the ball back a bit wild 
and hitting his father in the side of the head.

Fox Mulder had been looking at his wife, wrapped up in a huge 
cocoon of blankets, trying to keep warm as they played on the 
beach.  The football didn't hurt a bit, but the opportunity to 
elicit some TLC from his wife was never to be passed up.

"Owwww!" he said dramatically.  He staggered over to the pile of 
quilts and blankets that held his wife captive and fell at her 
feet.  He made sure he caught William's eye and winked at him 
before hitting the ground.  He kicked his feet in a comedic parody 
of death and yelled, "Ahhhhh, ya got me!"

When his blanket-ensconced wife did not immediately come to his 
aid, he sneaked a peek at her to see if she was going to play.  Her 
face was pale and sad, her eyes riveted down the beach past 
William.  Mulder quickly turned over and saw the lone figure 
walking up the beach towards them.  He placed his arm around her.  
"At least your mother came, Dana.  That's a start," he soothed.

She nodded and gave him a watery smile.  "Yes, a start."

William looked behind him and saw his Grandma Maggie approaching.  
He ran back to his parents, chattering excitedly.

"Look, Gramma!  Gramma's here!  Just like my dream!"  He hugged 
each of them before turning to run towards his grandmother.

Mulder and Scully exchanged glances and smiled.  It was just like 
William's dream, only it was nearly winter instead of summer.  
Maggie was walking up the beach toward them and here she was hugely 
pregnant with their second child.  Maggie smiled and waved.  Scully 
braved moving her hand outside of her blanket cocoon and waved 
back.

"Thank you for thinking of sending them the plane tickets, even if 
they didn't use them," she sighed.

Suddenly, from behind them a troop of children of all ages, mostly 
redheads, ran past Mulder and Scully.  With a whoop of glee, they
pounced on William.  The smile on Maggie's face grew bigger.

Mulder and Scully looked behind them and were amazed.  Bill, Tara 
and their newest twins, Charlie and Rebecca and Melissa, with a man 
in tow, walked at a more sedate pace down the beach towards them.

"Scully, I think we're going to be needing a bigger turkey," Mulder 
teased when he felt her tense next to him.  He hugged her and 
continued, "We have a lot to be thankful for this year."

"We certainly do, Mulder," she said.  She had decided against 
telling him that she was in labor this morning when she woke up.  
It could be hours, or not.  "Mulder, you're not upset because the 
family all came are you?" she asked him seriously.

When he assured her that he was glad all her family had come for 
Thanksgiving, she was relieved.  "Good, because our little X is 
anxious to meet the rest of the family and now we have someone to 
watch William while we go to the hospital."  

As he stared at her in disbelief, she calmly said, "My water just 
broke."  

The End.