From: Michael Preston Date: Thu, 25 Jul 2002 15:57:04 -0500 Subject: Wolf 0 Introduction Source: atxc Wolf Universe. Author's Notes' Address: Mike0666@Hotmail.com Rating: NC-17. There are parts that are pretty raw, and other parts that are PG-13. Summary: MSR, Bigtime. This is about half way through my lengthy series of Vignettes in the Wolf Universe. It's somewhat episodic, but I do have a point, and I'm reaching it. I plan on posting Part 6 (An adventure) this coming weekend, and following parts will by try-weekly. Anyone who tells me the paradigm I'm working from gets to choose the subject of Section 7, from a limited menu. Section Titles: One - A girl's Best Friend - Posted Two - A Pal gives a hand - Posted Three - Picnic - Posted Four - Surprises - Posted Five - Sweater - Posted Six - Tea and Softball - This weekend, probably Seven Through Nine - Untitled, unwritten but outlined. Epilogue Perceptive readers may notice several politically incorrect attitudes or statements. I'm aware of them, in fact I probably know more of them than you. I will be happy to discuss them with you, in fact I'd be ecstatic to get in a correspondence about the utility of political correctness in narrative fiction, (The short, fat middle aged man in the corner says marginal.) but I don't respond well to flames, although I usually respond. Some of these posts may push the byte limit of newsreaders. If you have a problem, drop me a line at the address above, and I will send anything you missed as .txt attachments. Wolf Universe 1 Title: A Girl's Best Friend Author. Mike Feedback: Please. Mike0666@Hotmail.com AU. Post Episode Alpha. Rating: NC-17 I really mean it, this part is perverse. Category: SR AU Scully/Other, MSR, Schmoop Spoilers: None Disclaimer: The Usual Drill. No Money being made, merely an appreciation of the characters owned and developed by Chris Carter and Fox. Summary: Scully finds why Berquist liked dogs. Angst. Bad Jokes. Chapter 1 In Front of Scully's Apartment Sunday Evening Mid April, 1999 "Come along, Wolf." said Scully as she snapped a leash on the dog, "Let's go home." The German Shepherd/Wolf Cross trotted easily at her heels as she strode into the lobby of her apartment. She threw a cold glance over her shoulder and snapped out, "Mulder, please bring those supplies up." "Yes, Ma'am." "Wolf, this is your new home," said Scully as she took off the leash. The dog ran from room to room, sniffing all the corners and learning the layout. He heard the knock on the door, and ran to Scully as she opened the door. Mulder stood there with the dog bed under one arm, the fifty pound bag of dog food over his shoulder, and a bag of various impedimenta hanging from his teeth. "Thank you, Mulder. I'm sorry I snapped. It's just that three days of hassling with Animal Control, Airline Baggage procedures, restaurants that will let you change a baby on the table but won't let a dog in, and to top it all off an extra twenty bucks to a cabbie so we could ride in his smoke filled cab because we had a dog." Her irritation practically steamed off her. The dog felt Scully's antipathy, bristled a little, but didn't threaten Mulder directly. "Jeez, Scully can you tell the mutt to cool it? You know I'm not going to hurt you, but tell him." "Mulder, Berquist trained him to be a guard dog for a woman. I'm going to try to let Wolf become adjusted to his new home tonight. Give us a couple of days, but I'm going to make sure that he knows you're an honored visitor." "OK, Scully. Holler if you need any help," grumped Mulder as he made his exit. ---- "Wolf, it's time for your bath. Bath, boy, bath." The dog followed Scully as she went into the bathroom to start drawing the bath, then sat and watched carefully as she changed from her suit to a T-shirt and pair of sleep boxers. She pulled out the anti-flea shampoo and a brush from the bag of supplies purchased on her way home. "OK, boy. Into the bathtub." The dog sat and looked at her. "You're way too big for me to lift, you'll have to jump in," said Scully as she grabbed the dog by the collar and led him to jump into the half filled tub. The water splashed everywhere. Scully said, "Showers for you from now on, the Landlord gets real gripey about that much water being splashed around, it can leak to the apartment below." She wet the dog, than began soaping him with the shampoo. Lathering him, she felt the hard muscle under the loose skin. "My, you are in shape. What can we do to keep you that way? Maybe you and Mulder can run together? No, I'm angry at him now because he made fun of me about you, it will have to be just us." She took the spray attachment and began rinsing the dog. He shook and splashed and got water all over, including on her. She looked down at the T-shirt with shampoo and water all over it. It began to feel uncomfortable, so she stripped it off and pulled Wolf out of the tub. As she was drying him, he began to lick at her face and upper chest. thought Scully. Scully continued to dry the dog, then began brushing out his coat while using the blow-dryer. Wolf continued to lick at all the available parts of her, including her nipples. They began to peak in a fashion that drove spikes of electricity to her groin. "Wolf, I love you too, but please stop that," Scully said as she pushed the dog away. She moved around so she faced the dog's back as she finished drying and brushing the coarse outer hair of the dog. As she leaned over, her nipples rubbed against the hair. "Wolf, we've got to find a better way to do this, or I'm going to be spending as much on batteries as dog food. I'll be broke in six months." Scully changed for bed, then sat on her couch with Wolf sitting at her feet. She turned on the TV to catch the evening news and began leafing through the new Newsweek. Wolf rested his head on her lap, and she put down the magazine and began rubbing behind his ears. She finished the news and took Wolf for a short walk before bed. Wolf relieved himself, made a point of marking the corners of the block as they walked around it, and followed Scully back to the apartment. Scully put the dog in his bed in the laundry room, and prepared herself for bed. She heard the dog whimpering and scratching at the laundry room door. She opened the door, and the dog ran and jumped onto the bed. "Berquist spoiled the shit out of you, didn't she," grumped Scully, ordering the dog off of the bed until she could spread an old stadium blanket for the dog to lie on. Scully woke to the alarm and a dog licking her face. It had been a very restful sleep, with her arm and one leg over Wolf. She'd not had it in a long time, but she liked a warm body in her bed. She shook off the longing and showered, made up, and dressed for the day. She had a new morning duty, walking the dog. As she did, she noticed the other people walking theirs in the early morning. She noticed that the dogs resembled their mistresses or masters, puffy people, not enough exercise. Desk-bound government workers. She was mildly disdainful about the few pallid attempts of the guys trying to hit on her. She laughed at herself, thinking that the only man she knew wasn't interested in her that way. Basement 9:00 AM Monday "Scully, how's the dog fitting in?" "We're reaching an accommodation, Mulder." "Mulder?" "Yeah?" "Tell me why men are such jerks?" "Any particular incident, or just in general?" "When I was walking Wolf this morning, every guy out there was trying to hit on me." "Scully, you get hit on everywhere," He snorted. "Yeah, but what makes some short, fat, bald nebbish with a neutered Cocker Spaniel think a woman with a whole wolf would be interested in him?" "Scully, Wolf's a obstacle, not an attractant. Guys that hit on you with him around are not sissies. Just consider that he filters out all but the manly men." The smirk on his face horrible. "Shut up, Mulder." "It looks like we will be stuck here least a week, unless Skinner comes up with something. We will have a chance to get some laundry done. Have you got dog-sitting squared away yet?" "Pretty much, Mulder. My mom for a few days, and a boarding kennel for overnight." "Good. I'd hate for something like what happened to Quequeg happening to Wolf." "I'm sure, Mulder, that a guard trained ninety pound wolf is in a little less danger than nine pounds of Pomeranian." --- "Mulder, it's 5:00. I'm out of here." "OK, Scully, I'll see you tomorrow. What've you got planned for the evening?" "Just laundry and housecleaning." "Be still my heart." "Mulder." "OK, OK. I'll see you tomorrow." --- Scully hurried home, looking at the drones who clogged the Metro at rush hour. She rarely rode at this time, and was surprised at the number of bureaucrats who couldn't spend half an hour a day keeping in shape. She returned Wolf's ecstatic greeting, then went into her bedroom to change into her running clothes. She had thought through what she might do to keep the dog in shape, and decided that the best thing to do was running. With her short legs, her usual time of four miles in thirty-six minutes wouldn't provide Wolf with a full workout, but it certainly wouldn't hurt. She snapped a ten foot leash on Wolf, and took him the two blocks to the entrance to Rock Creek Park. The run went well, Wolf trotting alongside her as if they'd done this for years. She was sweating like a pig, her clothes were wet and sticking to her and her hair hung in strings around her face. She pushed the hair back and pulled the clothes away from her body. She looked down at the dog, who seemed cool and collected. "Wolf, you're hateful. I bust my butt and you sit here, barely even panting. If I didn't know better, I'd think you had been taking Mulder lessons." Scully turned on the shower to warm up the water, than began stripping, tossing her running clothes in the direction of the over-filled hamper. When she entered the shower, Wolf entered with her. Scully kneeled down, hugged the dog, and said, "I'm sorry I compared you to Mulder, you're much nicer than he is." She soaped and rinsed. As she shampooed, Wolf began sniffing at her crotch. "Wolf, stop that!" She pushed the dog away, and continued shampooing. She turned off the shower and reached for the towel. There were none. "Wolf, I used all the towels I had out to clean up the mess you made yesterday. You stay here while I go get some more." Scully strode, naked and dripping water, over to the linen closet and looked for another towel. All that was there were an old beach towel and a couple of hand towels. She wrapped the beach towel around her and took the hand towels to the bathroom to try to dry Wolf. "Wolf, when you shook yourself dry you got water all over the nightshirt and panties I laid out. That was my last clean set of nightclothes. I should make you do the laundry." Wolf padded after her as she went into her bedroom to get another sleep-shirt. When she bent over the dresser, Wolf licked from the inside of her knee to the top of her thigh. An electric shock shot through her body, and her nipples hardened. She let out a gasp and said, "Wolf! Stop that! Sit, boy, sit." Wolf went over to the corner and sat, watching her intently. The only thing she found acceptable for the hot spring evening was a basketball jersey of Mulder's. It was of solid lightweight Nylon and reached halfway down her thighs. Just the perfect thing for a hot, humid spring evening in DC, especially since she would be doing laundry all evening. Wolf padded along behind her as she gathered all the laundry, and carried it into the laundry room. She sorted it, and put on a load of towels first. She took her underwear and the bottle of Woolite to the sink and began doing the "hand washable only". Wolf lay at her feet, and when she became engrossed in her work, began licking her calf. Scully felt like he was trying to apologize for his forwardness earlier, and allowed him to do so. She gathered up the clean laundry and took it into the laundry room, pulling out the portable clothesline and began hanging the underwear on the line. As she did, Wolf sat at her feet and began licking her thighs. She pushed him away whenever he got to close to her private parts, but otherwise let him continue. It took her three times as long as she expected because of the distraction. "Wolf, you've got to stop that," said a flushed and panting Scully. "It's not fair to a single girl to remind her what she's not getting, especially one that has to get our supper ready and finish the laundry." Scully fixed a salad and handful of whole wheat crackers, hesitated, then poured a glass of wine. She set everything on the table, then heard the washer go off. When she was leaning over to load the dryer, she felt a warm, raspy tongue move slowly up the inside of her thigh. It so thrilled her that she had to hold onto the dryer to keep from falling down. That allowed Wolf to repeat the lick. And again, on the other side. Waves of desire traveled through her, tightening her nipples and sending a flash of heat through her groin. The sudden intrusion of a cold wet nose between her buttocks shocked her to her senses. "Wolf, stop that! We don't have time to fool around like that." Scully drew a shaky breath and said, "Sit Wolf, sit." The dog obediently went into the kitchen to sit and watch intently as she finished loading the dryer and put another load in the washing machine. She bent over to pick up the dog's water and food bowls, and heard a whine from behind her. Blushing, she realized she had just completely exposed herself to Wolf. "Sit," she snapped, carrying the bowls to the sink to wash them. She put the filled water bowl on the floor, then walked to the pantry and filled the food bowl with his ration. She reached over to Wolf and scratched behind his ear, sternly telling him, "You'll be a good boy this evening, won't you?" The dog whined and butted against her hand. Scully took that as agreement and scratched his ears, saying, "OK eat, boy, eat." The dog padded over to his bowl, and Scully sat down to her dinner. The salad didn't really appeal, so she just nibbled on the crackers and sipped on the wine until Wolf finished with his supper. Pouring another glass of wine, she went to the living room, turned on the radio to some bluesy jazz and picked up the romance novel she'd been reading. Wolf sat at her feet and laid his head in her lap. She idly petted him while she read, occasionally taking a sip of the wine as she relaxed and waited for the clothes to finish. Wolf seemed asleep, and she was dozing, day-dreaming of the hero of her novel with his head in her lap, and her threading her fingers through his hair. She was about to bend down and kiss him when the phone rang. She popped awake and realized she was about to kiss Wolf. Picking up the phone she barked, "Scully." [Hi, it's me.] "Hello, Mulder." [What are you wearing?] "Mulder! Well, if you really want to know, just a basketball jersey and ninety pounds of dog." [Sounds kinky.] [Scully?] "I'm sorry, I was dozing and I'm not quite awake yet. Did you call for some reason besides harassing me and distracting me from my laundry?" [Have you done the hand washables yet?] "Mulder." [I just called to tell you that we've been assigned to a terrorism joint task force, monitoring the Mall.] "What are we going to be doing?" [Just walking around the Mall, scoping out the tourists. We're to be `undercover', wearing casual clothes and acting like tourists ourselves. Wear comfortable shoes.] "When and where? And how will you be dressed?" [8:00 AM, the parking garage of the Hoover. I thought I'd wear khakis and a polo shirt, with a pair of Rockport walking shoes. Carry a windbreaker, but it calls for clear tomorrow so no raincoat.] "OK, Mulder, I'll see you there." [Scully?] "Yes." [Just a basketball jersey?] She could feel the leer across the phone. "You'll never know, will you?" --- "Alright Wolf, let's get up and finish the laundry and go for our walk." She put a load of towels on to dry, checking the underwear on the line. It was still damp. She then decided what to wear while walking the dog. It was too hot to wear her trench coat, and she wanted to carry a pistol this late at night. She went to her bureau and began rummaging through it. Underneath her shorts she found a pair of jeans. When she pulled on the jeans, she found them much snugger than they had been when she was twenty. So snug she had to lay on the bed to get them fastened. Wolf sat and watched. Scully saw that and grimaced, "Wolf, don't you dare laugh. You'll get old and fat one day. This just means that our afternoon runs will get longer and more frequent." She finished dressing, looked in the mirror and decided the jersey was OK for after dark, especially since it hid how obscenely tight the jeans were. "Do you think Mulder would like this outfit?" As they walked to the elevator, Scully felt the seam of the pants pull tight into her crotch, lightly rubbing her clitoris and anus. "We aren't going far, Wolf, or I'll be making a public display of myself. Just once around the block and back home." They started around the block and Scully began to feel more comfortable. Wolf pulled her past the entrance when they finished the block, and Scully didn't protest. He went North and began marking the sides of buildings. As Scully waited, a police cruiser pulled up beside her. "How are you this evening, Ma'am?" "Fine, Officer. Can I help you?" Wolf came up beside her, alert but not threatening. "Just wanted to tell you there have been muggings recently on this block. Would you like a ride back home?" "I don't think that will be necessary. Wolf is guard trained and I'm armed. I'm going to reach into my left rear pocket and get my badge." After the patrolman eyed her credentials he said, "Agent Scully, it would probably be a good idea to get back home anyway. This isn't really a safe neighborhood." "OK, Officer. I think we're about done anyway." As Scully walked away, she felt the patrolman's eyes on her. She threw in an extra wiggle as a thank-you for being such a nice guy. The friction from the extra wiggle increased her arousal, marking the crotch of her pants with a wet spot. Wolf noticed the smell, and walked closer and closer to her. She continued to walk to rub the seam of the jeans against herself, increasing her arousal. By the time they got back to the building, she was very aroused and Wolf was whining. As they rode up the elevator, Wolf began pushing his nose into her crotch. Scully didn't push him away, but leaned back against the wall and spread her legs. The feelings were so good, taking her away from the outside world so far that she was barely able to collect her self when the elevator dinged for her floor. When they got in the apartment Wolf tried to continue, Scully pushed him away. "I'm sorry, boy, but I've got to do some things." She poured a glass of wine and sat down at the kitchen table, grabbed a pen and pad and started to make a list. When she looked up she saw that Wolf was licking his erection. She took a big gulp of wine and went into the laundry room to put on another load of clothes. Putting all the dried laundry in a basket, she took it to the kitchen table and began folding it. She kept glancing at Wolf licking himself and took another big gulp of wine. She finally sat down and stared at the dog as his five inch long tongue slowly ran from the head of cock to his balls. She was enthralled, and appalled at herself for being so, by the sumptuous, slow travel of the thick tongue along the eight inches of pink penis. She tried to take another drink of her wine, and found her glass empty. She got up to refill her glass, not taking her eyes off of the dog. When she stood up, she felt the moisture gathering in her jeans again, and her labia spreading wide open. When she returned, she at in the chair closest to the dog. From a distance three feet, she could see the bumps and ridges on the dog's tongue, as well as the drool on the kitchen floor. When she tried to take a sip of wine, she discovered the glass was empty again. She stood to get more, then set the glass down to fall to her seat. She ran her fingers over the inside of her thighs, scraping her fingernails against the denim. She switched to hard strokes to her clitoris. It wasn't enough through the denim, so she stood and removed the jeans and sat back down. She scooped up some of the lubrication running down between her legs and rubbed her finger over her clitoris. She dug two fingers in and began forcefully jamming her thumb against her clit. With her other hand, she began massaging her breasts. Her release was slow in coming, because she couldn't reach her G-Spot, but by forcing a third finger in and mauling her clit she managed to eke out a small one. She opened her eyes to see Wolf sitting between her spread legs, tongue lolling. "Wolf, it's just not the same without someone, is it." She reached to pet Wolf, but he began lapping at the fingers she had used on herself. Scully gasped, and began lubricating again at the sheer nastiness as well as the feel. Wolf pushed past her hand and began licking at her thighs. Scully groaned and spread her thighs further. Wolf's tongue reached between her labia, licking up the flood of juices that sprang out of her, driving her higher and higher. She slumped further in her chair, opening herself more to the dog and felt the long sweep of his tongue from her anus to her clitoris. She reached in the armholes of the jersey and began squeezing her breasts in rhythm to the sweep of the tongue. As she felt herself tighten again, she pinched her nipples, clamped her thighs together and swallowed her scream into a gurgling moan. She suddenly realized what she had done and jumped up in panic, ran into her bedroom and shut the door. She stripped off the jersey and tossed it at the hamper and threw herself on the bed in near hysteria. After laying on the bed, contemplating what had happened and reliving the feelings and images of the evenings, she began to become aroused again. As she began masturbating, she heard Wolf whining and scratching at the door. She opened the door, then got down and hugged Wolf. "Oh you poor thing, do you feel rejected because I ran off? I know you want to sleep on the bed. Just give me a moment to put your blanket down." After putting the throw down for the dog, Scully knelt down beside him for a hug and whispered in his ear, "That was really good, despite how perverse it was. I blame it all on Mulder, for not giving me what I need. It's not your fault." Suddenly Scully realized something. "Oh, God. Berquist was lying so badly to Mulder. She trained you to do that, didn't she. If only Mulder knew!" She smiled a secret little smile as she nodded off. Chapter 2 Scully's Apartment 6:45 AM Tuesday Scully woke from a dream of Mulder kissing her and declaring his undying love, then realized Wolf was licking her neck and face. She let the warm feeling wash over her, closed her eyes and relaxed, then giggled and said, "Good morning to you too, Wolf." She looked over at the clock and gasped. "We have to be at work in an hour and it's a twenty minute drive. Omigod, I haven't walked you yet." She jumped out of the bed, ran into the laundry room and grabbed a pair of running shorts and a T-shirt, called Wolf to the door and put the leash on him. Bill from down the hall was waiting by the elevator with his overweight Miniature Poodle bitch, and seemed very interested in her attire until Wolf bristled a little and the Poodle cowered behind Bill. Scully nodded pleasantly when the elevator got to the first floor, then stepped out. As they went out the door, Scully noticed that Bill went in the opposite direction. She smiled, and said, "Wolf, you've got to stop scaring the neighbors' dogs." Wolf looked at her quizzically, and she gave a snort and said, "As bad as Mulder. No idea of the effect you have on others. Both of you give off more bad boy vibes than a biker gang. Do your business, we have to get back upstairs and get ready." Wolf lifted his leg again at each corner of the block, overlaying the scent of other, lesser dogs. Scully was mildly amused when Bill's poodle cowered behind him as they met halfway around the block. Bill immediately headed to the park. Wolf sat quietly at her feet as the elevator rose to their floor, then padded at Scully's heels as she headed to the apartment. Scully opened the door, then spoke soothingly to Wolf. "I'm going to bring you along. There are few things less frightening than a couple out walking their puppy on a nice spring day. I'll feed you up good, and you can be our beard. She then filled his bowl with a full day's ration and went to the bedroom to dress. "Mulder said khakis and a polo shirt. I suppose I should match him. I'll do khaki walking shorts, Doc Martens, and a tank top. Shit it's supposed to be sunny, I'll need an overshirt, or I'll turn into a giant freckle, and something to shade my face. A Ravens' cap will work." As she drove into the garage at 7:58, she saw a group of agents gathered around Skinner, who was dressed in BDU pants and field boots with an OD T-shirt. He saw her approaching with Wolf, and said, "Excellent, Scully. That will be a nice disguise, a couple out with the dog. Will he be able to restrain himself?" "Sir, Wolf is guard trained. Not police trained, but his reactions are perfectly adequate for the assignment." "Mulder, have you interacted with this dog?" "Yes, sir, I'm confident Scully can keep him under control." "Listen up, everybody. We've received a threat that there is going to be a bomber today, somewhere on the Mall. Subject is an Icelandic female, early thirties, blonde over blue, will probably be either heavily dressed or carrying a good sized backpack. Six foot, 150 lbs. Everyone carry their cellphone. Don't try to apprehend the perp yourself, the HRT will be on call, and they promise us two minute response to anywhere on the Mall. Be careful, we've got the Capitol Police, the DCPD, the Secret Service and BATF wandering around like y'all. I'll be right across the street from the Smithsonian Castle, selling MIA souvenirs. I want each of you to do a physical check-in there every two hours. Cell Phone every 30 minutes. Holly will be handling Comm. Everybody has their Cell? Program 555-1234 into one of your speed dial buttons. That's Holly's switchboard. Any questions?" A mumbled `Nossir' echoed through the parking garage. "Alright, the game plan is to just wander around the Mall. The DCPD will handle ordinary law enforcement, if you see anything that needs to be handled just dial 911. Call Holly if you see any suspicious packages or trash cans. The ATF will be in disguise checking garbage cans." "Mulder and Scully, because you've got a dog, you need to stay outside. The rest of you, wander wherever the crowds seem largest." As the agents drifted out, Mulder said, "Scully, will you be OK with this? I know how sensitive you are to the sun." "Mulder, I've brought sun-block. As long as I keep slathering it on, I'll be fine. I'm more worried about Wolf. We need to make sure he gets enough water. That goes for us too." "Good enough, Scully. Any more tips?" "I'm sure I'll think of other things, but keep in the front of your mind we all need a lot of water, and I need to be protected from the sun. " "Gotcha. Just as a matter of curiosity, where do you have your gun." "Glock 36 in a pocket holster. Where's yours?" "A S&W Chief's Special in an ankle holster. Can I assume you'll be carrying those water bottles I saw?" "No, we're going to drink them now, and Wolf is going to drink as much as he can hold. You're going to buy a lot of water today, on the mall, at five dollars an icy pint. We need to be out there in 30 minutes. You go hit the ATM for water money while I get some breakfast. Do you want anything?" "Just a cuppa. You alright Scully? You look a little under the weather." "Short night, long bottle. Back here in ten?" "Sure, Scully." Ten minutes later Scully was sprawled on a bench, inhaling the life-giving aroma of the coffee. At her feet was a canvas tote bag with a picture of the Capitol, a bright red Frisbee sticking out of it. She saw Mulder looking around for her, then waved him over. "A Frisbee, Scully?" She handed Mulder his coffee, then said, "Watch carefully, Mulder." She turned the Frisbee over and poured it full of water. Wolf bent down and lapped up the water. When he was done he looked up at Mulder, giving him a sly grin that was the mirror of Scully's. "You're both laughing at me, aren't you?" "Never, Mulder. Besides, if we have to stay in one place, who would think a couple and a puppy playing Frisbee were cops, let alone Feds." "Scully, I really don't mind you being smarter than me, but the dog too?" Mulder grinned as he pulled Scully up. He got serious and asked, "Are you sure you'll be alright? Hangovers in the sun can be brutal." "I'm fine Mulder. It's not really that bad, and sweating it out is the best thing to do. Now come on, give me your arm and smile. Think Rob and Laura Petrie on vacation in the Nation's Capitol." "Oh, my! Mary Tyler Moore in shorts! Showgirl legs and long brunette hair. A sweet innocent. Pander to my fantasies some more," he cheerfully smirked. She kept the smile on her face and retorted, "See, I knew I could make you smile." "Scully, you could put a smile on my face that would last `til I was three days dead." "Only three days, Mulder? I must really not be your type." "Scully, you wound me." "Let's go." She took a crime scene camera out of the tote bag, hung it around Mulder's neck, handed him the tote bag, took Wolf's leash with her left and Mulder's arm with her right. "Scully, you know the drill. You check right, I'll check left. Look especially for abandoned luggage. Let's do a zig-zag across the Mall, that will put us in front of the Castle in about two hours. Fifty minutes of walking and ten of rest work for you?" "Sounds good." Late that afternoon, Mulder and Wolf were practically dragging an exhausted Scully to a bench in the shade when Mulder heard his cellphone ring. "Mulder." [Agent Mulder, this is Holly. They've caught the bomber over by the Washington Monument. AD Skinner wants everyone to go to the barn and sign out.] "Can we be of any assistance?" [No, the HRT has it under control. When can we expect you?] "In about forty minutes." [Agent Scully is with you?] "Yes, I'll tell her." [OK, Agents Scully and Mulder due in at 6:00. Goodbye.] "Bye, Holly." "Mulder, we're only 6 blocks from the Hoover, why'd you say forty minutes." "You're going to sit right there with Wolf, while I go get you some Gatorade and water and you get a little rest. I'll be back in a flash." Scully watched as Mulder loped over to a concession stand and came back with an armload of bottles, a Dove Bar and three hot dogs. He handed her the Dove Bar, put the hot dogs down for Wolf and cracked open a bottle of Gatorade for himself. He then poured Wolf his Frisbee full of water. Sipping slowly, he looked at her as she attacked the ice cream. She saw him staring intently at her, then a huge grin grew on his face. "What, Mulder?" "A metaphor passed through my mind. I just realized we spent a day together without any friction. In pretty trying circumstances." "Well, yeah. I guess Wolf makes a decent mediator. But if you don't hand me that Gatorade, I'll show you friction." Scully swung her feet onto the bench and let out a groan. Mulder handed her the Gatorade and unlaced her boots. When he took them off, he saw welt marks where her feet had swollen into the laces of her boots. He carefully checked her for blisters, and saw none. "Hey Scully, no blisters." "I wouldn't know, I've been dead from the knees down for three hours. Rub my feet, please, Mulder." Mulder began a careful massage, loosening the muscles in her toes, then the arches and carefully worked his way up her calves. She visibly relaxed as his fingers dug into her calves. Wolf put his head on her stomach, and she began petting him. As she was drifting off, she asked, "Mulder, what time is it?" "Time to go." Scully swung her feet, rummaged in the tote bag and pulled out a clean pair of socks. After putting them on and lacing up her boots, gathering all the trash and picking up Wolf's leash, she smiled shyly at Mulder and nearly whispered, "Thank you so much. That was wonderful." Mulder nearly staggered from the impact of the smile, flushed, and said, "Anytime, Scully." She took his arm, and started up the street towards the Hoover. The walked in silence, just enjoying the presence of the other. As the made the turn down into the parking garage, Mulder braced himself for Scully letting go of his arm. She didn't. They walked up to Skinner to report in, amid a crowd of agents pouring down the beer the FBI had provided. "Mulder, Scully, you're off duty as soon as you sign out on Holly's log. Grab a beer, you need to rehydrate. There are some salty munchies around, I'd suggest some of them also. Get to work by ten." "Mulder, give me the tote bag. I'll put it up. You go get a beer if you want one, I'll find you." "Sure, Scully." Scully went to her car, put the tote bag in the trunk and the camera back in the crime scene kit, and started to walk back to the snacks table. On the way, she spotted a small group of female agents, sitting around a cooler. She decided she'd make nice, and walked over. She smiled when she saw that all of them had their feet in the cooler, soaking in the ice water. "Hi, Dana. Pull up a chair. You must need this worse than any us. Every time I saw you, Mulder and that gorgeous dog were pulling you along." "Mary, you've got it all wrong. Both of them are so lazy, I had to get behind them and push." Delighted laughter rang out, and Scully said, "Wolf this is Mary, Kathy and Shelly. Everybody, this is Wolf." Kathy, a large, comfortable brunette from anti-terror, spoke up. "Where'd you get him Dana? You've never mentioned him." "Met him on case in San Diego last week. He was headed for the pound, so I took a chance. He'd been guard trained for a woman, and he's really worked out well. How did everyone do today? I'll admit I was dragging in the afternoon." Shelly, a stringy little blonde in her late forties from computer crimes said, "Sam was real careful to not overtax a little old lady, but we did get some odd looks." The rest smiled at that. Shelly ran a half dozen marathons a year and subbed as an unarmed combat instructor at the academy. Sam was Computer Science major from Grambling, where he'd been an All-American linebacker, 6' 6" of black cliff. This was his first assignment, and everyone knew that Sam and his hugely pregnant wife thought of Shelly as a second mother. "Mary, how about you?" Kathy asked cautiously. Rumor had it that Mary was the cause of her partner's divorce. "Mike's in a delicate state right now. As always, he was overly solicitous, but I walked the son of a bitch into the ground. Dana, do you have that trouble with Mulder?" "Mary, the only concession he makes in the field is to reach for the high stuff. An eleven inch height difference and a eighty pound weight difference does make for different capabilities, and he recognizes those. Usually to my disadvantage. I'm the one that always winds up crawling through heating ducts and sewers in a new Liz Claiborne suit, but he's the one that pushes the stuck car out of the mud." Another peal of laughter, and Scully felt a looming, comfortable presence behind her. An icy bottle of beer was dangled in front of her, with a plastic cup of pretzels. "Thanks, Mulder," she said as she tossed a smile over her shoulder. "Now beat it. This is a hen party." "Should I take Wolf? He's another guy." "No, he won't spill our plot to take over the bureau." Kathy watched Mulder walk away in his sweat soaked khakis with the knit shirt pulled tight across his shoulders and remarked, "Dana, I'm an old and very married woman, and Joe's wife is my very best friend, but I don't think I could stand that around all day, every day. How do you keep your hands off?" Scully gave a wry grin and lowered her voice to say, "Really good partner, best friend. Stood by me in some really tough times. Like the nuns said, why jeopardize that for an hour or two's pleasure. Plus, we're the most exciting Division in the Bureau and I'm an adrenaline junkie." In chorus "An hour or two?" "According to some of his ex-girlfriends. They assume things that aren't so and want to compare notes. One English bitch wondered why I didn't walk spraddle legged." Kathy, as the self appointed jokester, sniggered, "Oh Dana, you've got it bad, don't you." "Just a brotherly love for a very good partner. Now I've got to go rescue him from whatever fight he's about to start. Excuse me, ladies." Scully rose, snapped her fingers and Wolf went immediately to heel position. The women exchanged quick glances and smug grins. As Scully approached Mulder, she saw him confronting a very drunk Colton. She overheard the tail end of Colton's snide remark. ".so Spooky, did you manage to melt the Ice Queen in the heat?" She saw Mulder bristle, felt angry herself, then heard a snarl from Wolf. She grabbed Mulder's forearm, and looked down. Wolf was growling like a Diesel on idle, and looking directly at Colton's throat. "Tom, I suspect you'll be a lot happier in the morning if you get a cab home. Now." She tightened her grip on the leash and Mulder's forearm. "I tend to agree, Colton." Scully heard the rumble of AD Skinner behind her. Colton turned and shambled towards the entrance. Scully and Skinner gave a sigh of relief. Mulder and Wolf both whined at the lost opportunity of tearing the bastard's throat out. Skinner and Scully looked at each other, Scully appalled and Skinner slightly amused. "Mulder, come on, I'll buy supper. Wolf and I both need something to eat." She snapped the fingers on her right hand, and Wolf immediately took a heel position on her right. Mulder took his usual position on her left, guiding her with his right hand on her back. As she walked towards her car, she felt the crowd melt away before her. When they got to their cars, she hissed, "Mulder, you take Wolf with you. I don't want any part of either of you for a few minutes. Follow me." "Scully, what did I do wrong?" "Just follow me." Chapter 3 The Rathskeller 7:30 PM Georgetown, DC "Wolf, buddy, she's pissed at something, but do you think we could work out something between us? I'll protect her at work, you at home, and we'll backstop each other. OK, buddy?" "Woof" "Gotcha. Whoops, she's pulling in now. I'll let you out, then find a place to park." "Woof" As Scully and Wolf waited at the front door for Mulder, the Maitre d' came out and greeted Scully. "Ah, Fraulien Doktor Scully, will you be dining with us this evening?" "Yes, Wilhelm, with two guests, if you can find room. I'd like a dark corner on the patio. As you can see, we're not dressed for dinner. Here comes the other guest." "Mulder, this is Wilhelm Deitrich, our host this evening. Wilhelm, this is Special Agent Fox Mulder, my partner." Mulder looked at Wilhelm and saw an immensely dignified man in his late middle years. He extended his hand and said, "Pleased to meet you." "And you, sir. Would care to wait in the bar while we prepare your table?" --- "Jefferson, Peterson, please set up a screen in the southeast corner of the patio. Doktor Scully will be dining, and doesn't care for the stares of the curious. I'll be serving her myself." "Hey Pete, who's Scully." "A favorite customer of Willie's, works for the Government. She comes in about once a week." They saw the bartender come rushing through. Pete called out a question. "Hey Davie, where are you going with the bowl of water? "One of Scully's guests is the meanest fucking dog I've ever seen. The water's for him. Her other guest looks he could spot the dog two bites. He wants a beer. Gotta run." --- "Doktor Scully, will this table be suitable?" "Just perfect, Wilhelm. We're quite hungry, we must have walked thirty miles in the sun today." "Might I suggest the grilled pork chops on noodles, slivered green beans and applesauce? Quite filling, but not heavy. For Wolf, an assortment of organ meats and a beef shank the cook has for soup tomorrow." "That sounds lovely." "Mr. Mulder?" "I'll have the pork chops also." Wilhelm addressed the center of the table. "Would you like to look at the wine list?" Mulder caught Scully's eye and glanced at the beer stein. "No, thank you. We will be having beer with our meal." --- Mulder licked the last few crumbs of Black Forest Cake from his fork, picked up his coffee cup and leaned back. "Oh, that was good. Thank you, Scully. Now spill." "Spill what?" "How you got to be a German Baroness." "You've got it all wrong, Mulder. Wilhelm firmly believes that in a previous life he was First Sergeant of a company of Jaegers I commanded. He has me bring all my dates by here for him to check out." "Previous life, Scully?" "You've opened me up to a lot of possibilities," Scully said with the straightest of faces. "How did I check out?" "At least marginally acceptable. I think he likes you, he brought you two chops instead of one. Don't worry, you won't have to go shopping for a ring until he addresses you as `Herr Oberst'." "Don't you worry, I've already got that covered." "What?!?!?!?!" "Last Halloween I passed out toys rather than candy, and I saved out a spider ring and a glow-in-the-dark alien ring. Which one would you prefer?" he smirked. "You got me that time." "One more question. What's with the Special Forces convention?" "Never Special Forces, Wilhelm doesn't believe in novelty troopers. These are all light infantry, Marine Force Recon, Navy Surface, or as Wilhelm says, `These are gut boys, real soldiers.'. They're all students at Georgetown or GWU, eking out their education benefits." "It's about time to go. Wolf." Scully grabbed the bill and laid down four twenties, then looked at Mulder. "Lunches this week are on you." "Certainly. Any favorite brand of yogurt?" "For that, you have to get the bee pollen too." Laughing, with Wolf at their heels, Scully took his arm as they left the restaurant. Automatically, Mulder was scanning the right, Wolf took the left and Scully straight ahead, planning the route and angles of fire. --- As they arrived at Scully's car, Mulder covered her hand with his own and swung around to face her. "Scully, thank you. I had a really nice time. We should do this more often. I'll even pay next time." "I had a really good time too. It's nice to let our hair down, and not be worrying about work." Mulder leaned down and gave her a chaste and brotherly kiss on the forehead, and a brief hug. "Do you have clean gym clothes in your car?" "Huh? Yeah, but I think we got enough exercise today." "It's only 9:00. Why don't we go to my place, shower and change, and do brandy and coffee. If you're real nice, I'll let you give me another foot massage. We don't have to be in until ten." Wilhelm loomed behind the busboys taking a smoke break. "You two get back to work, or would you care to explain to the Oberst why you were spying on him and the Doktor," he whispered. Unfortunately, his whisper was pitched to carry a hundred meters across a battlefield. Scully snorted, then leaned against Mulder and said, "The glow-in-the-dark one. Please come." "I'd like that." Thus Endeth Part the First Wolf Universe 2 Title: A Pal gives a hand Author. Mike Feedback: Please. Mike0666@Hotmail.com AU. Post Episode Alpha. Rating: NC-17 Category: SR AU MSR, Schmoop Spoilers: None Disclaimer: The Usual Drill. No Money being made, merely an appreciation of the characters owned and developed by Chris Carter and Fox. Summary: Scully finds why Berquist liked dogs, and why she likes Mulder. Angst. Poetry. Recipes. Bad Jokes. Kitchen Sinks. Chapter 4 As Mulder locked the door behind him, he heard the hum of a blow-dryer coming from the bathroom and the smell of coffee brewing. "Scully, it's me." "Mulder, I'll be out in a minute. The brandy and snifters are above the refrigerator. Would you get them down, please." She walked into the kitchen barefoot, dressed in a pair of loose terrycloth shorts and a tank top, to see Mulder rinsing out the snifters and the bottle of Hennessy's sitting on the counter. "Mulder, you go ahead and get your shower. I'll finish getting things ready." He took his gym bag into the bathroom, and turned on the shower as Scully busied herself. As Mulder got out of the shower he contemplated the gym bag. Mulder came out of the bathroom in a pair of sweatpants and a clean white T-shirt. Scully called out, "Over here on the couch, Mulder." Mulder carefully arranged his lanky body in the opposite corner of the couch from a curled up Scully. There was a tray with coffee mugs and snifters, an insulated carafe and the brandy bottle, all artfully arranged. "Scully, I still think that Baroness is right, unless it's Countess. I'm suddenly hugely intimidated. Would you like me to pour?" "First, I want to check your feet. You checked mine this afternoon, but you were exposed to the same stresses I was." "I'm fine, Scully." "Indulge me, please, Mulder." Mulder swung his long, narrow feet up on the couch. Scully scooted over, lifted the feet and set them in her lap. She closely examined them, running her fingers over all the obvious wear points. "Mulder, there don't appear to be any blisters because of all the horny tissue you've built up on your feet." "Uh, Scully, it might be a good idea to let me set my feet down. My feet aren't the only thing that are horny." Blushing, Scully set his feet down and began pouring. Curling up in the corner with a cup of coffee, she contemplated Mulder. "Mulder, you're obviously attracted to me. Why have you never acted on that attraction? You must know that I would be receptive." "Scully, there are two big things in my life. You and the work. We're best friends. You fill a hole in my life I didn't even know was there, and I couldn't do the work without you. With my track record in relationships, if I acted on my impulses I'd lose your friendship and your partnership when I screwed up our relationship. If I lost you, I'd be dead. Oh, I might keep on walking around, but there would be nothing but an empty shell." Scully could hear the anguish in his voice, and felt the wetness in the corners of her eyes. She began shaking. "Mulder, what the hell gave you the right to decide something about US. This isn't about you, Mulder. This is about US, and you decided without any input from me." She curled up further in her corner and glared at him through tear shiny eyes. Mulder scooted over and gathered her up in his arms, trying to calm and soothe her as she clutched at him. She began sobbing quietly. Wolf heard the crying, and came bounding into the room to investigate. He lifted his head and grasped the hand that Mulder was using to rub Scully's back in his teeth. "Uh, Scully?" "Yes." "Could you call off your dog? He seems to dislike my holding you." Scully pulled away, and admonished Wolf. "Mulder, hold me again. I want to tell you some things, and I need to draw on your strength to do it. Please?" "Draw on my strength? You're the strong partner, if something's scaring you, I'm already frightened." Mulder wrapped his arms around her, then felt his heart race as she leaned against his chest. "Just shut up and listen, Mulder. Listen hard, as I'm going to be crying, and I doubt if I'll have the strength to repeat." "In that case, come up here where I can hear you." He took her in his arms and lifted her to his lap and wrapped his arms around her. "There. Your mouth is right next to my ear. Speak on, Scully." "Mulder, tell me the three kinds of temporal love I learned in Catechism class." His thoughts tumbled in his head. "Scully, you are going to have to stop whipping my mind around like this. OK, I'll try. Eros, erotic love. Agape, the love for a comrade or the love for a friend. Philia, the love for family, most especially the love for a brother. Is that what you wanted?" "Yes, Mulder. That's exactly what I wanted. Now keep those concepts in front of your mind while I talk. Eros first?" "It's what comes to mind when a gorgeous redhead is squirming on my lap." Scully snorted, gave half a giggle, then squirmed again. "OK, we'll tackle that one first. I love you. I'm in love with you. I'm sexually attracted to you. Not just because you're a handsome man, which you are, God knows, but because of your soul, your intellect and your moral strength. One of the reasons I was so angry a moment ago was that you were being Galahad. Don't you know the traditional reward for saving the Princess? I want to give you that reward, but you were being the perfect knight. I figure six years of saving me is enough." "Scully, that is very flattering, but." "Hush. Let me finish. Agape, the love for a comrade or friend. I love you like that. You're my closest friend. You're my comrade. Except for your occasional flashes of macho, you treat me like an equal in a hugely exciting life work. You never consider me your Sancho Panza, your Watson. We're Butch and Sundance. Different but equals. Watching each other's backs. And you cannot imagine how flattering that is to one hundred and three pounds of cute in a man's world." "Who's Butch" "Rumor has it that I am. Now shut up and let me finish. Filia. Family or brotherly love. You're not my brother, although you can be even more irritating than Bill, but we've spilled enough blood on and for each other that we do have blood ties. I love you like that." "You've already said that you are so afraid of losing me that you won't make advances. Why the hell do you think I haven't ripped off your clothes and attacked you any of the 2,115 days we've been together? I'm afraid of the same things." "Oh, Scully. We are so fucked up, aren't we? You are stronger than me. I couldn't get up the nerve to say those things, so you said it for us." "Yeah. About tonight. I didn't want it to get this intense. I just wanted to swap a little spit and maybe a little slap and tickle." "Agent Scully, I believe I can accommodate you." He gently captured her lips with his, gently outlining her lips with his tongue. She gasped at the heat racing through her veins, realizing that he wasn't just kissing her, but was sharing a moment of love. Of course there was passion in it, more passion than she'd ever known, but he wasn't trying to possess her or overwhelm her, he was worshiping her and sharing and loving, and the only demand was that she allow him to do so. She threw her arms around his neck, and sucked his tongue into her mouth, urging and demanding. She felt his large warm hands low on her back, pulling her closer. She moved her hands on his back, reveling in the lean muscle under his T-shirt. She nearly lost herself in the sensation, but her conscience required her to do the one thing in all the world she didn't want to do. She pushed off, with a horribly sad look on her face. She got off Mulder's lap and went back to her corner of the couch, petting Wolf's head as he rested it in her lap. "What did I do, Scully." "Mulder, it's nothing you did. It's what I've done. I just had to have that one kiss before you walk out of my life forever." "Scully, I won't walk. Didn't I make that plain? I can die. You can send me away. I can't walk." "Listen to me. This is so awful, but I've got to tell you. Remember when Berquist told you that dogs aren't naturally attracted to human females?" "Yeah." "They can be apparently be trained to be attracted. Wolf is so trained. Very aggressively." Scully looked him straight in the eye. Chin quivering, tears dripping down her cheeks, but her direct, fearful gaze holding him pinned like a butterfly to a board. "Wolf and I have done some very perverse things, and I liked it. You can't love someone like me, and it was wrong of me to declare my love. You're free to leave now. My resignation will be on Skinner's desk by nine AM." "Scully, why the hell do you think I'd condemn you for using a masturbatory aid. Pots and kettles, remember. My only questions relate to what you said about aggression. Has he hurt you? Has he forced you?" "No." She quavered, hope dawning in her eyes. "Scully, please climb back up on my lap. I love you. I always will. I'll not leave of my own will." "Just hold me Mulder. Just hold me." She started crying again, slow even sobs that were of joyful relief, not fear. She snuggled closer, feeling the slow, strong beat of his heart and the waves of emotional exhaustion course through her. As her breathing evened and she slumped against his chest, Mulder leaned down and pressed his lips against her cheek, then held her as she slept and he wept in joy. After a couple of hours Mulder woke her with a soft kiss on her temple. She stirred, looked up at Mulder and said, "I'm sorry to have drifted off. What time is it?" "Don't apologize, you've had a rough day. It's a little after midnight." "Come to bed, Mulder." It sounded like an order, but the plea in her eyes was more the nature of begging. "Uh, Scully, I'm pretty tired too." She immediately recognized his panic face. "Just come and hold me, Mulder, your virtue is safe with me." She took both his hands in hers, tugging him to his feet. His glance shifted to Wolf, sitting at her feet. "He sleeps on the floor, and you sleep in the bed, and neither of you are getting any tonight." "Yes ma'am." As Mulder was in the bathroom preparing for bed, Scully pulled out the old stadium blanket and spread it on the floor. Wolf gave her a reproachful look, and laid down on it. Mulder came out of the bathroom in his T-shirt and a pair of Nylon running shorts. Scully looked at him, shivered, and said, "Mulder, I'm just going to wash my face and change. I'll be back in a minute." When she looked in the mirror in the bathroom, she nearly cried out. She determinedly scrubbed all the makeup from her face, looked again, and saw she was covered in freckles. She pulled off her shorts, shirt and bra, then pulled on a big T-shirt over her white cotton granny panties. When she went into the bedroom, she saw Mulder laying on his back, waiting for her. She crawled into bed, snuggled on his left arm, lifted her face for a kiss and said, "Good night, Mulder." "Good night, Butch. "OK, Sundance, good night." She snuggled close, throwing an arm over him. Chapter 5 Scully woke up to daylight filtering through the shades, a wet tongue in her face and a warm presence against her back, pulling her into it with a large hand against her breast. A quick glance at the clock showed that it was 6:45. She pushed Wolf away, turned to kiss Mulder and found him with one eye half open. "Mulder, Wolf needs to go out. I'll be back in about ten minutes." She gave a quick peck on the cheek, and blushed shyly. "No, Scully, he and I need to talk. I'll give him a little run, and bring him back in about forty-five minutes. You and I can talk when I get back." "Will I be privy to your conversation?" "Probably not. It'll just be guy stuff." "Mulder?" The eyebrow twitched. "Scully, I can't violate the confidence of another guy. It would violate the guy code." "Mulder?" The eyebrow twitched higher. "Scully, I really need to take a run before I talk to you. Running helps me think." "Alright. This time." "Thanks, Scully. I really appreciate this." He pulled her down for a kiss, jumped out of bed, went to bathroom and dug out his running shoes. --- When they got to the park, Mulder unsnapped the leash and started loping along. Wolf loped beside him, easily keeping pace. Mulder turned to Wolf and said, "I love her, you know. I think you do too. " "Woof." "I won't say that I'm delighted by this turn of events, but I think I can live with it. I will promise you that if you hurt her or degrade her, I'll kill you in a New York minute." "Woof." "I'm not changing our agreement about protecting her. I'm just adding you to the list of dangers. You should probably add me to yours." "Woof, Woof." "Let's pick up the pace. I need to do some thinking." As he and Wolf ran down the path, Mulder thought hard about what had happened and been said last night. He glanced at his watch, saw it was past time to turn around, and really poured on the coal. When they got back to the park gate, they were both panting heavily. Mulder snapped the leash on Wolf, and took a cool down walk towards Scully's apartment. When they got to the apartment, he realized he didn't have a key on him. He knocked, and Scully opened the door. She handed Mulder a cup of coffee. Mulder unsnapped the leash, and Wolf made for his water dish. "So, did you have a nice run? Did you two decide my fate?" "Scully, we both know better than that." "Come on. We can talk over breakfast." They walked into the dining area, and a light breakfast of bagels and orange juice was laid out. Mulder pulled out a chair for Scully, than sat himself. He spread cream cheese on his bagel, then set it down and took a sip of coffee. "Scully, I'm still scared." "I know, Mulder, I am too." "We really only know each other as friends and colleagues. What I'd like to do is establish a romantic relationship before a physical one." "Meaning?" "Dates, necking, hanging out. Me reciting poetry, having silly nicknames for each other, dancing to our song, you know, court you." Mulder looked up from his coffee cup, and saw a stunned look on her face. "Scully?" "Mulder, that is the sweetest thing I've ever heard of. I'll play, under two conditions." "What conditions?" "You call me `snookums' and I'll break you around the edges. The second is you keep way in the front of your obsessive little mind that you've got a sure thing going. Now kiss me good-bye and go get ready for work." "Butch, how will we handle this at the office?" "Mulder and Scully. We've only put into words things that we've felt forever. Mulder, you didn't mention anything about Wolf." "That's a problem I haven't thought through yet. I'll stand by what I said last night. I love you, but I don't have the right to say anything about that." He got up to leave. Chapter 6 Basement Thursday 3:00 PM Mulder sat contemplating sins, both his past ones and those he'd like to commit. All the reports were written, the expense reports were submitted, and nothing had been bounced yet. He'd read all the cases referred to the division, and summarized them for his partner to review and agree or disagree with his recommendations. His partner had been called in to fill in for a sick pathologist at Quantico, or he'd be playing hooky. It was no fun playing hooky alone. The phone rang, bringing him out of his Zen state. "Mulder." [Did I wake you, Mulder?] "No, Scully. Just sitting and thinking." [Mulder, I just have a moment and need a favor.] "Sure, Scully." [It looks like I'm stuck here until about six. With the drive, it'll be way after seven before I get home. Could you go walk and feed Wolf, please?] "Since you asked nicely." [I'll get dinner when I get home. Bye.] "Bye, Scully." Scully's Apartment 7:30 PM When Scully let herself in, she saw Mulder sprawled on the couch in his running gear, bare feet on the coffee table, and sipping on a bottle of ice tea. Wolf was sitting at attention at his feet, apparently listening intently to what Mulder was saying. ".you're going to be the death of me. I swear I saw the evilest glint. Oh, hi, Scully. Everything OK?" "Just fine, Sundance. What kind of stories were you telling my dog?" "OK, Butch," He said with a grin that showed all 32 teeth. "I was just berating him for being an awful flirt. We ran south, near the GU campus, and he had to check out every batch of women students sunbathing. They all made much of him. I think he got more petting than all of their boyfriends last Saturday night." "And that didn't have a thing to do with him obviously being with an absolutely gorgeous, nearly naked man covered in sweat and muscles, did it?" "Jealous, Butch?" Another briar eating grin accompanied the remark. "Humph. Let me go change, then I'll do something about supper." She walked into the bedroom, shut the door firmly behind her and stripped out of her suit and blouse. She noticed, in the corner by the bathroom, Mulder's gym bag with his dress shirt from the day stuffed into it. She picked it up, had a sudden brainstorm and stripped off her underwear and put on the shirt. She rolled up the cuffs to the middle of her forearm and left the top two buttons and bottom button undone. She stalked back into the front room, plopped herself in Mulder's lap, threw her arms around his neck and put her heart, soul and not inconsiderable will into a kiss. Her intent was to make him pass out, but only managed make him groggy. "What did I do to deserve that? Please tell me, Butch, so I can do it again." "Just a reminder, what you've got waiting at home is worth more than any college girl. I don't care if Wolf decides to move onto Sorority Row, but I don't want you straying. I've got a solution for the next time you decide to run south. Take me. Wolf can run free, but you, sir, will be on a leash. A short leash." "Oooh, Kinky!Scully." "The answer to that, and many other of your questions is yes." She then proceeded to kiss him again. And again. And again. She reveled in the kisses, they were like no other she'd ever had. Mulder's entire attention was on the kiss. No other thing was on his mind, just communicating his love, in all forms. In all her other kisses, she could tell that the man had other things on his mind, from little things like how the noses fit to an undercurrent of if he was going to get lucky tonight. This was so different, all Mulder was interested in was communicating how much he loved her. The moment seemed eternal. When she dragged herself away, he grabbed her and pulled her close to cuddle. He whispered in her ear, "Butch, you said the answer was yes. A rather emphatic yes. What do you think the question was?" "I don't know, Sundance, and I don't particularly care. Whatever you want. Now hug me." He did. Scully luxuriated in the closeness, felt Mulder tighten his arms around her and whisper in her ear, "Supper. Unless you want me to pass out." She stiffened, then pulled away. "I'll get on the phone right now. Pizza or Chinese?" "Neither. How about some home cooking?" "I can't cook, besides I don't have anything in the house but salad stuff and sandwich makings." "Butch, let me look in the kitchen for a few moments. I think I may be able to solve our problem." Scully, fascinated, followed him into the kitchen. He looked in the refrigerator, then at her breadbox and shook his head, then turned to ask. "Have you any wine?" "Two bottles of domestic Fumee Blanc in the pantry." "OK, Scully, here's the deal. I can put a three course meal on the table in less than thirty minutes. Dessert will be an extra five minutes if you want it. All you'll have to do is one task and tell me where pots, pans and utensils are." "Mulder, that's impossible." "Bet?" "What's my penalty if you win?" "You have to sit quietly on my lap for thirty minutes while I whisper romantic poesy in your ear." "And if you can't do it?" "Your choice." "I think I'll choose sitting in your lap for thirty minutes while you whisper poetry in my ear, but I can squirm as I damn well please. You're on. Starting now." Mulder turned to refrigerator, pulled out the egg carton, put three eggs and water in a saucepan and turned the element on high. He next pulled out the bacon, sniffed it, and cut up three slices very small. He put the bacon in a frying pan, turning the heat to medium. Next, he chopped up half a small onion and threw it in with the bacon. He grabbed a bottle of wine, and buried it in the icemaker bin. Scully watched in fascination as he next measured two cups of water into another saucepan and put in two bouillon cubes and the rest of the onion, chopped coarsely. He turned that pan to high, and rooted in the refrigerator and pulled out the bag of spinach and two potatoes left over from God knows when, examined them critically and set them on the counter. He washed the spinach, then handed it and a kitchen towel to her saying, "Please tear this into bite sized chunks. Keep the stems out. Put what you've finished on the towel so it can drain." He turned back to the stove, turned the eggs down to medium and the bouillon and onions to simmer. He went over to the breadbox, turned up his nose at the thin sliced diet bread, pulled out two pieces, and cut off the corners so that he had eight sided pieces of bread and stuck them in the toaster. He didn't push the handle on the toaster down, but let it set. He looked over at her, seeing her diligently tearing up the spinach, and turned back to his cooking. He scrubbed the potatoes, wrapped them in saran wrap and stuck them in the microwave for six minutes on high, took the bacon and onions out of the frying pan and laid them on a paper towel and chopped the heat under the bacon grease back to a simmer. He then took the boiling eggs over to the sink and stuck them under running water. He pulled the bin under the icemaker out, standing the wine beside the sink and turned to Scully, "Wine glasses?" "In the cabinet next to the refrigerator," She said. He poured her a glass, and filled the egg pan with ice. He put the spinach in a serving bowl, then measured two tablespoons of grease into a mug, three tablespoons of vinegar and one tablespoon of sugar. He put the cooked bacon and onions in the dressing, then tossed the salad vigorously with the dressing, and set it to one side. He reached into the pan of ice water that had the eggs, and nodded his head. The microwave dinged. He pushed down the toaster, and grabbed a piece of cheddar from the refrigerator, and grated a handful of cheese. He pulled two tomatoes out, washed and quartered them. He took the two hardboiled eggs that hadn't cracked their shell and peeled and quartered them. He took two salad plates, put a big serving of the wilted spinach salad on them, laid the tomatoes and eggs in a spiral pattern on the salads and garnished it with the cheese. The toast popped up, so he took two soup bowls, poured the broth and onion mixture in them, laid the toast on top and put a slice of Provolone on top of the toast. He set the soup bowls in the microwave, decorated the salad with a half ring of crackers around the edge and split the potatoes lengthways and filled them with cottage cheese and salsa. He laid the silverware on the table, refilled Scully's wine glass and poured one for himself. He brought the food to the table, sat down and asked, "How am I doing for time?" "Nineteen minutes. What's for dessert?" "Baked Apples. It only takes a few minutes. You do have brown sugar, don't you?" "French onion soup, wilted spinach salad and a loaded baked potato and a promise of baked apples in less than twenty minutes? Sundance, for my safety, please don't tell anyone you can cook like this." "Why would you be at jeopardy?" "Well, aside from the heart attack risk from being wider than I am tall, any number of the female employees at the Hoover would be happy to shoot me and carry you home and chain you to the stove, releasing you only to chain you to the bed." "Butch, that's very flattering, but. " "When they find out your idea of the forfeit for losing a bet is sitting in your lap and listening to love poems, they'll set up a consortium to assassinate me. Believe me, Sundance. Now let me eat." The groans of ecstasy from across the table were driving him out of his mind. "Holy Mary, mother of God, that was good." "Blasphemy, Butch?" "No, just thanking her for providing me with one of her son's father's gifts. It was fervent, sincere, and exactly what I meant. She wouldn't consider it blasphemy at all. Now what about my dessert? And tell me what you're doing, I might want to duplicate it. "OK, but you'll laugh at how simple it is. Here goes, Butch. Take a large, tart apple. Wash it, split it, core it, take out the stem and bottom. Mix in a small bowl four tablespoons of brown sugar, a handful of raisins, a quarter teaspoon of cinnamon and a dash of salt, and put it in the apples. Zap for 6 minutes on high," he said as he cleared the dishes from the table. When the microwave dinged, he continued, "Place the apples in a small bowl with cream. Since you don't have cream, I'll use the Redi-Whip you had in the Refrigerator. Serve. Redi-Whip, Butch? Is there something you would like to tell me?" He leered as he sat across from her. "Mulder, you're perverted. Pour me a cup of coffee." "Sundance, go watch the news and leave me alone while I clean up this mess. Review in your mind the poetry you're going to recite. Take a snifter of Brandy, I'll be out with the coffee in a few minutes." As she came out of the kitchen, bringing the coffee service on a tray, Mulder gaped when he realized she'd unbuttoned two more buttons. The only things making a feeble protection of her modesty were the button below her breasts and one at her naval. "Sundance, I promise that I'll try not to squirm, but the thought of you whispering romantic poetry in my ear makes it unlikely that I'll be able to sit still." She sat herself on his lap, and twined her arms around his neck. "Butch, I'll go easy on you. How about some limericks to start. `There was an old man from Nantucket." "Fool, get down to the serious stuff." "Billy Shakespeare did this one: Let me confess that we two must be twain, Although our undivided loves are one:" "Sundance, that is past. Speak to the now." "OK, another one of Billy's: "Take all my loves, my love, yea take them all; What hast thou then more than thou hadst before? No love, my love, that thou mayst true love call; All mine was thine, before thou hadst this more." "Those are my lines, Sundance, remember our discussion the other night." "Yeah. Perhaps this might suit your fancy better. Another one of Billy's: "Shall I compare thee to a summer's day? Thou art more lovely and more temperate: Rough winds do shake the darling buds of May, And summer's lease hath all too short a date: Sometime too hot the eye of heaven shines, And often is his gold complexion dimm'd, And every fair from fair sometime declines, By chance, or nature's changing course untrimm'd: But thy eternal summer shall not fade, Nor lose possession of that fair thou ow'st, Nor shall death brag thou wander'st in his shade, When in eternal lines to time thou grow'st, So long as men can breathe, or eyes can see, So long lives this, and this gives life to thee." She pulled him closer, doing a death grip around his neck, whispering "More." "Skipping ahead about 50 years, you might like this one by Lovelace. It really speaks to me: "Tell me not, (sweet,) I am unkinde, That from the nunnerie Of thy chaste breast and quiet minde To warre and armes I flie. True: a new Mistresse now I chase, The first foe in the field; And with a stronger faith imbrace A sword, a horse, a shield. Yet this inconstancy is such, As you too shall adore; I could not love thee, dear, so much, Lov'd I not Honour more." "What that means, Butch, is that all I can offer you is myself. If I don't think myself worthy I couldn't lay my heart at your feet with a clear conscience. If I'm not something of value, if I'm not true to myself and my oaths, offering you my heart would be an insult." "Sundance, I don't want a perfect hero, I want a warm place to put my feet when it's cold outside. It's as mundane as that. And that sounds like an excuse for ditching me." She pulled him tighter, then relaxed and guided his hand into her shirt, letting his warm hand grasp her breast. "Butch, let me try a couple of more. Skipping ahead another 200 years, see how this one feels, it seems Elizabeth Browning wrote it especially for us: "When our two souls stand up erect and strong, Face to face, silent, drawing nigh and nigher, Until the lengthening wings break into fire At either curved point,--what bitter wrong Can the earth do to us, that we should not long Be here contented? Think! In mounting higher, The angels would press on us and aspire To drop some golden orb of perfect song Into our deep, dear silence. Let us stay Rather on earth, Beloved,--where the unfit Contrarious moods of men recoil away And isolate pure spirits, and permit A place to stand and love in for a day, With darkness and the death-hour rounding it." "Oh, Sundance, that's beautiful." "How about something lighter? This is by Nash: This is my dream, It is my own dream, I dreamt it. I dreamt that my hair was kempt. Then I dreamt that my true love unkempt it." She smiled softly, and ran her fingers through his hair. "That dream I can make true for you." She kissed him softly, humming into his mouth. "And here's a dirge for when you don't laugh at my jokes. It's by Chesterton: "Puck and the woodland elves shall weep with me For that lost joke I made in Ledborough Lane, The joke that Dana Scully declined to see Although I made it very loud and plain. I made the joke again and yet again, I analysed it, parsed it and explained: I did my very best to entertain, But Dana Scully would not be entertained." "Mulder, I get your jokes, sometimes they're just not funny." "Humph. Last one, Butch. This is by Millay: "Love is not all: it is not meat nor drink Nor slumber nor a roof against the rain; Nor yet a floating spar to men that sink And rise and sink and rise and sink again; Love cannot fill the thickened lung with breath, Nor clean the blood, nor set the fractured bone; Yet many a man is making friends with death Even as I speak, for lack of love alone. It well may be that in a difficult hour, Pinned down by pain and moaning for release, Or nagged by want past resolution's power I might be driven to sell your love for peace Or trade the memory of this night for food. It well may be. I do not think I would" "Mulder, I may be a cold bitch, but you'll never lack for love when I'm around. If what I give isn't enough, ask." "I am a little shocked, though, that you're doing this to me. Why not some tall and elegant brunette, with creamy smooth skin, rather than a very short doctor with freckles like a turkey's egg." "Ah, Butch, here's the reason. This one's by Hopkins: Glory be to God for dappled things-- For skies of couple-colour as a brindled cow; For rose-moles all in stipple upon trout that swim; Fresh-firecoal chestnut-falls; finches' wings; Landscape plotted and pieced--fold, fallow, and plough; And ll tr des, their gear and tackle and trim. All things counter, original, spare, strange; Whatever is fickle, freckled (who knows how?) With swift, slow; sweet, sour; adazzle, dim; He fathers-forth whose beauty is past change: Praise him." She smiled again. "Only you, Sundance, would know a love poem about freckles." "When I ran across it a few years ago, I committed it to memory because it exactly represented my feelings." "You like freckles? They're the bane of my existence." "Butch, one of my favorite fantasies is to play connect the dots with your freckles." He then proceeded to show her, lightly drawing his finger in an irregular pattern over her neck and chest. The slow, feather-soft movements on her, combined with the regular soughing of his breath in her ear caused her nipples to contract and her labia open wide to let a flood of lubrication out. A deluge of barely organized thoughts went through her mind. She moaned and pressed herself against him. "Butch, you OK?" "Kiss me." Mulder's kiss was full of tenderness and love, with a burnt under-taste of passion. When Scully finally pulled away and rested her head on his shoulder, Mulder whispered in her ear, "Why the sudden need for a kiss?" "Because you were about to kill me with your tickling. Again, why me, why not some beautiful long stemmed beauty with big tits." "Haven't you been listening? Let me put it another way. Haven't you heard the old saying, `any more than a mouthful is a waste'." He proceeded to unbutton the rest of his shirt, use his warm and callused hand to lift a breast to his mouth and began making oral love to it. When she began panting and moaning, pulling his head tighter to her, he gave a sly grin and shifted his mouth to the other, keeping up the stimulation to the abandoned breast with his hand. "Oh, God. Oh, God. Don't stop," she moaned as he pulled away for a moment. "Butch, I've got to show you that sometimes short legs have an advantage." He then proceeded to gently kiss her, pulling her trunk tightly to him and began teasingly trailing his fingers from one ankle to her calf, rubbing behind her knee and smoothing the goose bumps from the inside of her thigh with his warm palm. As soon as he reached her juncture, he moved his hand to her other ankle. She moaned, and forced her chest against his, squirming for more sensation. When she felt him reach her thigh, again smoothing her goose-bumps, she spread her legs. When he reached her juncture, they snapped shut like a mousetrap, forcing his hand against her. She moaned in his ear, "You're getting to third base tonight, or I'm going to beat you about the head and shoulders." She grabbed the hand she had trapped to move it directly to her core and threw the best kiss she could at him. Blood pounding in his ears, he instinctively rubbed his fore and index fingers up and down her entrance. At her moans, and the spreading of her legs, he slipped the two fingers into her and began rubbing her clit with his thumb. His ring and little fingers were pressed against her anus. When he crooked his fingers against her G-spot while rubbing her clit, she began spasming and grunting, forcing herself against his hand in a frenzy. She gasped, keened in his ear and slumped. When she came to, she found herself wrapped in warm, strong arms and a shower of soft kisses were misting her face. She began returning the kisses, and felt the evidence of his regard against her bottom. She hopped off his lap and stood before him, hair wild, panting slightly and the shirt flapping open. Mulder was fascinated by the rise and fall of her chest above her flat little tummy with the muscles all pointing down to her dark auburn bush, now matted with sweat and her juices. He was brought back to earth by her husky voice saying, "Now it's your turn, Sundance." "There is no `turn' about it, Butch. You don't owe me anything." "I want to do this," she said as she grabbed the waist of his running shorts and jerked them off. Her eyes went wide at the sight of him, at least seven inches and so erect the head was slapping his belly. "Oh, my." "Butch, you don't have to do this." "Oh, I want to. I really want to." She grabbed him with both hands, gently pulling him forward so she could reach him with her mouth. She began by showering him with soft kisses, alternating with an easy licking. His moans encouraged her, and she took the head in her mouth, applying a soft suction as she swirled her tongue around the bottom of the head. He sat up to put his hands on her shoulders. She felt a hesitant push, but she grabbed one hand and moved it to a breast. With her hand, she urged him to squeeze her breast. He moved his free hand to the other breast and began massaging with it, just tickling her nipple. The contrast of sensations drove her wild. With one of her hands around the base, a full four inches of thickness filled her mouth and throat. She began a swallowing motion and moved her free hand down to stimulate her clitoris. When she got on her knees to allow Mulder easier access to her breasts, she felt a long raspy tongue push her hand out of the way and fan the flames of her excitement. Scully raised her head and said breathlessly, "Watch. You like to watch, watch me and Wolf." Mulder opened his eyes and stared in fascination as Scully put both hands on his hips and drew his entire length into her mouth. Wolf was busy lapping at her, with his nose planted firmly in her anus so her squirming didn't make him miss his target. When Mulder felt his orgasm coming, he clutched at her breasts. She felt him grow harder and larger in her throat, reached behind him and began massaging his prostate. The sensations were too much for her. When she felt him begin to throb in her throat, Wolf stimulating her with his warm raspy tongue and the fire under his hands, she arched her back and screamed. His semen splattered all over her chest and belly and Wolf backed off just in time to avoid being sat upon. Mulder knelt on the floor beside her, gathering her in his arms, "Jesus, Butch. That was fantastic. I've never come so hard in my life." "Now you know the whole story. You still want any part of me?" "That didn't affect my love. It cranked up my lust several notches into the red zone, but didn't change my love." "Are you sure? Are you really sure?" "Yes, Scully. Yes, Butch. I'm really sure. There is one thing though." "What?" She said suspiciously. "No more snide comments about my videos." "Not even poking a little fun?" "Nope." "Mulder, you're awful." She giggled and punched him in the chest. "Butch, would you like to go on a picnic Saturday? You, me and the mutt in a sylvan glade, eating cold fried chicken and potato salad, quaffing lemonade and throwing a Frisbee." "That sounds nice, except for the cold fried chicken. When?" "Hey, I just had a thought." "What? "You can ride a bicycle, can't you?" "Sure, that's how I got around in College and med school." "You still have yours?" "Yeah, it's in basement storage. I actually had it out last week as a change from running. It's in good shape." "Great, that's a way to give Wolf a good workout without killing ourselves. I'll pick you up at ten Saturday morning. Anything special you'd like for the picnic?" "Whatever you want." Thus Endeth Part the Second Wolf Universe 3 Title: Picnic Author. Mike Feedback: Please. Mike0666@Hotmail.com AU. Post Episode Alpha. Rating: NC-17 Category: SR AU Scully/Other Affection, MSR, Schmoop. More Classic Poetry. Spoilers: None Disclaimer: The Usual Drill. No Money being made, merely an appreciation of the characters owned and developed by Chris Carter and Fox. Summary: Indian Guide to the rescue and a shocking revelation. Chapter 7 9:30 Saturday Scully's Apartment Scully stood in front of her bed in her new wide legged cargo pants and a pair of Keds debating what top to wear. "Wolf, what do you think? The long sleeved T-shirt and flannel cover up?" "Whine." "You're right, the T with a cover shirt. I'll pack shorts, a tank and a bikini for sunning. "Let's load the daypack. Frisbee, sunscreen, sunglasses, suntan oil, cell phone, ball cap, towel, shorts, tank, bikini, poncho, leash, first aid and snake bite kits, water, comb and lipstick, Kleenex. Pockets get pistol and ID, Swiss Army knife, wallet with cash, credit card and driver's license. OK, we're ready except for getting the bike down. C'mon." As Scully wheeled her bike out to the front of the building, Mulder drove up. He had a two-bike carrier bolted to the back of his car, and lifted hers to the rack. "Where are we going, Sundance?" "The old Chesapeake to Ohio canal path has been paved for about 40 miles. I figured we could ride along the water and find a place to picnic." "We're not going to do the whole 40 miles, are we?" "No. Just ride along until we get half tired or find a nice place, whichever comes first, eat and relax, then come back." "Half tired?" "We have to ride back, don't we?" he grinned mockingly. "That's my Sundance, weird but kinda practical," she grinned. She scooted over next to him, and laid her head on his shoulder. "This is really nice. I'm glad you thought of it." --- It was muggy and still under the trees alongside the canal. Scully felt the shirt sticking to her, glanced at a panting Wolf and turned to Mulder, "Are there any water hydrants along here? Wolf and I need a break." "There should be a rest station over that bridge. The map also shows a path to the top of the bluff. That might be a good place for a picnic, this ridge is blocking all the breeze." After Wolf was well watered, they began walking up the overgrown trail, Mulder in the lead. "Sundance, how much further." "The map only showed about a quarter mile, but that didn't take into account these switchbacks. We should almost be there, in fact here we are." "Oh, this is lovely, Sundance. Can we wander around and explore?" "Whatever you want, Butch, whatever you want." Scully shrugged out of her pack and laid it next to her bike. She put on her sunglasses and skipped over to Mulder. "You are in a good mood, aren't you, Butch?" "Why wouldn't I be? A lovely spring day, a field of wildflowers and the company of the man I love. Who could ask for a nicer Saturday? Let's go." Mulder grinned hugely as she tugged him along, the wind whipping the ends of her hair around, listening to her gasps of delight as the small miracles of the wild flowers and the vistas the 400 foot knob provided. "Butch, slow down. As a matter of fact sit down." "Why?" "Because we're in middle of a patch of daisies, and I want to make you a daisy crown." He pulled her down beside him, and began plucking flowers, weaving them into a circlet. When he placed it on her head, she looked up at him with shining eyes and whispered, "Kiss me, you beautiful fool." He softly placed his lips on the corner of her mouth. She reveled in being worshiped as a goddess, but that wasn't enough for her, she had to have more of him. She squirmed around, so that she could kiss him solidly and feel the hard muscles that made up so much of her tactile image of Mulder. Some interminable time later, she felt a cold, wet nose at her neck bringing her out of her daze. "Wolf, stop that. Can't you see I'm busy! Go chase rabbits or something." "Butch, would you like to finish that exploring now?" "I suppose." He hauled her to her feet, and wrapped an arm around her shoulders as she grabbed his waist. The strolled over the rest of the hill top, then Scully spied a path between some boulders. "What do you think is down there, Sundance?" "I don't know. Why don't we go look." As Scully scampered down the path, he shouted, "Be careful, there could be snakes." "Come on, live a little." "Wolf, shall we go try to protect her from herself?" All Mulder saw was a grey streak as Wolf ran after her. He followed, feeling grossly inadequate and mundane in the wake of a fairy princess and her were-servant. "Sundance, come here." He followed the sound down through the boulders and emerged on a level space about ten yards by thirty yards, covered with wild flowers. It was backed against a covered niche twelve feet deep, open to the north-west. On one side there was a small area of blown down trees. "This is the spot for our picnic. Look at the view." She pointed down the hill at a small valley that nestled a farm. It was about 300 acres, and had sheep and row crops. "On our way out, can we drive past that? It looks like a Currier and Ives print from here." "Sure. And this does look like a good spot for a picnic. Shall I go get the food?" "Let me go with you. I can carry my own pack." They held hands as they climbed out, then continued to hold hands as they strolled over to where they'd left the bikes and packs. When they got back to the ledge, Scully looked sternly at Wolf and said, "I thought I told you to go chase rabbits." Wolf slunk back up through the rocks and began casting around for the scent of small game. She turned to Mulder and asked, "What's for lunch?" He pulled out a baguette and a bottle of Chablis, saying: "Here with a little Bread beneath the Bough, A Flask of Wine, a Book of Verse - and, Thou Beside me singing in the Wilderness. Oh, Wilderness were Paradise enow!" "Sundance, stop with the poetry. I'm hungry, and if you continue, I'll attack you, causing me to miss lunch and call in the Life Flight, and supper will be in a hospital cafeteria. You know how I hate hospital food. And it will be All Your Fault." "Yes ma'am. I've got a baked chicken and raw veggies, with pasta salad and three bean salad. For dessert, strawberries and Redi-Whip." "Might I be so bold as to suggest you have designs upon my body?" "Umm, no. Your heart." "You've already got that. Now feed me." He spread out the blanket, and laid out the picnic. He tore a hunk off of the bread and handed it to her with a glass of wine. "Isn't this the way Prods do communion?" "Well, some." He lifted her hand with the bread to his mouth, took a bite, then lifted the hand with the glass and took a sip. "Breaking the bread and sharing the wine is a symbol of the love between believers, as well as the love that God has for us." She slowly and deliberately lifted the bread to her mouth, then took a sip of the wine. Looking him straight in the eye, she said "How were you raised? You know too many buttons to push not have been raised Christian." "Mom was Dutch Reformed, and Dad was lapsed Congregationalist. They compromised on Methodist, they'll let anyone in. I've always been a believer, it's just that I have a hard time with most organized churches. Over the course of years, I've focused on belief in things I can feel, not what is told me. That's one of the reasons I've been so hesitant around you, you loving me is so wonderful that I can't believe it." "Believe it, but I'd like the rest of my lunch before I attack you." "Sure, Butch." He whipped out his pocket knife and asked, "Light meat or dark?" "Light." He sliced several pieces off of the breast, then loaded the plate with the salads and raw vegetables. He fixed his own plate, then asked, "Wine or lemonade?" "Wine, of course." --- As Scully dredged the last strawberry through the whipped cream and fed it to Mulder, a sudden thought hit her. "Have you seen Wolf?" "Nope." "Come on." She was suddenly all business, sprinting up the path through the rocks. Almost as quickly, she came sliding down into Mulder's arms. "What's up?" "He's lying at the top of the path with half a rabbit." "You told him to go hunt rabbit. Now those steaks I brought for him will go to waste." "You brought steaks for my dog?" "Butch, I'm doing a full scale assault on you, from all directions." "Humph. Just for that, you'll have to rub sun tan oil on me as I sunbathe and nap. Now go bother Wolf so I can change into my suit." When Mulder came down, he saw Scully in an extreme Brazilian thong without the top. She was applying zinc oxide to her nipples, and looked up with a gamine grin. "Sunburn there could be very painful. Here." Mouth dry, he took the proffered bottle of suntan oil and put some in his hand. Scully laid back on the blanket and closed her eyes, murmuring, "It's just like cooking, turn and baste every fifteen minutes." Mulder managed to croak out, "Freckles?" A coquettish smile crossed Scully's face. "I'm seeing this guy who likes to play connect the dots. This will give him a few more dots. Now oil me." She rolled over, and said, "You can oil my back now." As he rubbed the oil in, paying special attention to the shining globes of her ass, she moaned. "Now you take your shirt off, and lay back." She crawled on top of him, wrapping her arms around his neck and whispered in his ear, "Fox William Mulder, my good buddy Sundance, my life. Listen up. I want you. I want you to make love to me. I want you in me." She reached down and efficiently undid his belt and zipper while he was fumbling with the ties on her bikini bottom. He kissed her, grasping one of her breasts and squeezing. The other hand trailed down her stomach and threaded through her red-brown curls. "No, I'm ready now." She rolled on her back and pulled him to her entrance. As he slid in, her muscles began a slow clasping, urging him deeper and deeper. He felt the clasping urging him, loving him. He shifted slightly, and hit her G-spot. She screamed out, "I love you, I love you!", and began her orgasm. He had been controlling himself so long that he didn't. When Scully came back to herself, she still had the full feeling, moving slowly inside of her. She wrapped her legs around him, crooning, "Come, Mulder, come. I want to feel you inside of me." With that verbal encouragement, Mulder stiffened and began throbbing and spurting inside of her. That gave her another orgasm, this one milder and gentler, but more loving. "Rest now, love, and let me hold you." Chapter 8 Mulder woke to a chill and a spatter of water on his ass. He looked up, expecting to find the dog drooling on him, and saw a thunderstorm was moving in from the south east. He kissed Scully, waking her. "Scully, thunderstorm. We need to get under cover." As the words left his mouth there was a bolt of lightning and crack of thunder from very close. Wolf came pounding down the path and huddled in the back of the niche, Scully jumped up, grabbed the blanket and ran to join him. Mulder gathered the packs and clothes, making it to the cave before the deluge struck. Scully was soothing a trembling Wolf, "There boy, you're safe now, Momma will take care of you." "Butch, would it do any good to tell you that I'm scared too?" Ignoring his remark, she said, "He was out there on the top of the highest hill around. That crack was close, and probably closer to him." "Yeah, none of us should be out there until the storm passes over. There seems to be a chill, I'm going to put on my pants." "Yeah, me to." Mulder rummaged around in the bottom of his pack and pulled out a towel and a fanny pack. He handed them to Scully and said, "Here's something to sit on, and you might find something useful in the fanny pack." She handed the towel back, "I've got one in my pack. I've read 'Hitchhiker' too." Looking in the fanny pack, she saw a one quart pot and two camp cups, a flattened half roll of toilet paper, a bar of motel soap, bug dope, two toothbrushes and toothpaste, a handful of aluminum envelopes of instant coffee and tea bags, salt, pepper, sugar and a miniature of Tobasco, a Bic lighter and a disposable razor. There was also something sealed in a solid plastic brick. "What's in the plastic?" "4000 calories of irradiated pemmican." "Paranoid much, Sundance?" "I swore I'd never take you off of pavement again without a few comfort items. I've also got two Space Blankets, a rain cape and 100 feet of nylon line in here. The whole thing is less than five pounds, and can be put in a big fanny pack or a small daypack. He finished pulling on his clothes, and pulled on the rain poncho. "Where are you going?" "To get some wood. The storm front is past, but it feels like it might rain for a while. I figure a fire would take some of the chill off of this place." --- "Scully, it looks like we're going to be here tonight. There is another storm coming, and it's already 6:30. I don't want to be on that trail or switchbacks after dark." "We've done a lot more dangerous things than that." "On the job, yeah. No need to put us in danger in our own time." "Are you going to start being protective?" "On our time I'm trying to show a little good sense." "Don't let it carry over to work, or I'll ream you a new one." "I know that. And I don't want to be on that switchback after dark when there is no need." He then threw down the half dozen ten foot long branches he'd carried into the cave. Picking up one, he put one end on a rock and stamped down. It broke off in a foot long piece. He repeated until he had a pile of short pieces. "Indian Guides again?" "Yeah, this is all dead or fallen branches, squaw wood. The surface is wet, but the inside is all dry and solid." He then took a few of the thinner pieces, split them with his knife and whittled two of them until they were shavings. Carefully laying the fire, he touched the lighter to it and watched. Flame sprang up, and he sat back with a pleased expression on his face. "Build it up high, Sundance, I need to wash this tanning oil off, and I don't want to sit around cold and wet afterward." She stripped, grabbed the soap and walked to the entrance. Mulder spread both towels to catch the heat from the fire, put the blanket down as a pad to sit on and waited for Scully. He didn't have to wait long. Teeth chattering, she ran back in and shivered, "That was a bad idea. I'm clean, but I may never be warm again." He led her to the seat, wrapped a warmed towel around her, wrapped part of the blanket around that and started drying her hair with the second towel. "Um, this is nice. Heated towels and a lady's maid don't quite fit the image of cave dwellers though." "Butch, it will feel a lot more cave-like after sleeping on rocks all night." "Actually, I was planning on sleeping on you, and letting you deal with the rocks." "That will work." He said with a big grin. He took off his wet sneakers and socks and stuck his feet towards the fire. "I'm dry now." She got up and laid the towels out to dry. She pulled on her pants and the tank-top and pulled the cellphone from her pack and padded over to the entrance. --- "Mom, this is Dana." "I won't be able to come to Mass with you tomorrow. Mulder and I are stuck on a mountain tonight." "No Mom, it isn't a case. We were on a picnic when a thunderstorm came up." "No, don't call out rescue, we've got shelter, fire and enough picnic left over for supper." "Bye, Mom. I'll call you when we get home." --- "Do you need to call anyone?" "No. Do you want to start thinking about supper?" "What did you have in mind?" "In keeping with the cavewoman theme, why don't I broil one of those steaks and we can put it in the half loaf of bread left. There's nothing but lemonade left to drink, and we will have to drink it from tin cups, not buffalo skulls." "Broil one? Why not two. And I'm not quite Raquel Welch." "I assume that Wolf can eat his raw. They are a pound apiece, so I figured we would be OK splitting one. And I know you're not Raquel Welch, you're much more beautiful." He spread the fire a little, leaving a bed of coals on one end and leaping flames on another. He took a couple of green branches and set one of the steaks up to broil. The fat in the steak hissed and spat, the coals giving flames whenever it landed. Mulder took the camp pot and stuck it out in the rain it to fill. Scully was organizing their bedding. A rain poncho for a ground cloth, then the blanket and a space blanket, reflective side up, then another space blanket, reflective side down, then the other poncho. She carried the Frisbee to the entrance to the cave, put a rock in it to anchor it, and returned to the fire. She grabbed the toilet paper and walked out and around the corner of the cave. "Supper done yet, Sundance?" "A few more minutes. I want this to be pretty well done, it's been out of refrigeration since 9:00 AM." "You're going to feed my dog tainted meat?" "No, you know human bugs won't affect dogs. Besides, forgive me, I'm a little more careful about you than the mutt." "Love me, love my dog." "Sorry, Butch, the most I can muster up is like for the mutt. I hope that's good enough." "Well, I suppose it will do." Mulder split the loaf of bread lengthwise, laid the steak on it and cut it so the whole loaf was filled with meat, sprinkled salt and pepper on it and held the Tobasco with an inquiring glance. "Yes, please, Sundance, but just a little." He cut the sandwich in half, then handed both halves to her, and went to get the camp pot. He brought it back, set it near the fire and poured two cups of lemonade. He then took the empty thermos out and set it to gather rainwater. Taking his half of the sandwich back, he began to chomp noisily. When he was finished, he sat the cup down and pulled the camp pot back from the fire. He opened three tea-bags and put them in the pot to brew. "Hudson's Bay Black, Sundance? You must want me to be up all night." "Just long enough to whisper a little poetry in your ear. You have been drooping a little this evening. And it's the only tea I like." "Why would I be drooping? A lovely ten mile bike ride, climbing a beautiful mountain, having the nicest picnic I've ever had and the man I love screwing me rubber-brains and then feeding me to the point of bursting. I think I have the right to be a little droopy." "Do you want the tea?" "Yes, but only if you sit beside me and share. I want you to murmur the poetry." "Um, I actually had the poetry in mind for a little later." "How much later?" "While you were resting in my arms, half awake and warm." "OK, it's bedtime." She pulled off her top, dropped her pants and crawled naked into the bed. "Come on, Sundance, this is cold without the body heat to share." He took the tea and poured it into the lemonade thermos, then stripped and got into the bed. She crawled on top of him, and said, "Poetry. Love Poetry" "Let's go with the classics. Wordsworth." "She was a Phantom of delight When first she gleamed upon my sight; A lovely Apparition, sent To be a moment's ornament; Her eyes as skies of Noonday fair; Like Sunset, too, her rosy hair; But all things else about her drawn From May-time and the cheerful dawn; A dancing Shape, an Image gay, To haunt, to startle, and way-lay. I saw her upon nearer view, A Spirit, yet a Woman too! Her household motions light and free, And steps of virgin-liberty; A countenance in which did meet Sweet records, promises as sweet; A Creature not too bright or good For human nature's daily food; For transient sorrows, simple wiles, Praise, blame, love, kisses, tears, and smiles. And now I see with eye serene The very pulse of the machine; A Being breathing thoughtful breath, A Traveller between life and death; The reason firm, the temperate will, Endurance, foresight, strength, and skill; A perfect Woman, nobly planned, To warn, to comfort, and command; And yet a Spirit still, and bright With something of angelic light. " "Here's some Chapman:" If in the morning when you wake, If the sun does not appear, I will be here. If in the dark we lose sight of love, Hold my hand and have no fear, I will be here. I will be here, When you feel like being quiet, When you need to speak your mind I will listen. Through the winning, losing, and trying we'll be together, And I will be here. If in the morning when you wake, If the future is unclear, I will be here. As sure as seasons were made for change, Our lifetimes were made for years, I will be here. I will be here, And you can cry on my shoulder, When the mirror tells us we're older. I will hold you, to watch you grow in beauty, And tell you all the things you are to me. We'll be together and I will be here. I will be true to the promises I've made, To you and to the one who gave you to me. I will be here." "Sundance," she said with a hitch in her breath, "I thought I could stand a little poetry, but this is ridiculous. You've got me crying at the second selection. And that sounds suspiciously like you want a long term arrangement." "Just one more tonight. This is just part of what I really feel, it's from Proverbs:" "Who can find a valorous wife? For her worth is far above rubies. The heart of her husband safely trusts her; So he will have no lack of gain. She does him good and not evil all the days of her life. She girds herself with strength, and strengthens her arms. Her husband is known in the gates, when he sits among the elders of the land. Strength and honor are her clothing; She shall rejoice in time to come. She opens her mouth with wisdom, and on her tongue is the law of kindness. Her husband rises up and calls her blessed, and he praises her: "Many daughters have done well, But you excel them all."" A silence swept through the cave. When Scully finally managed to breathe again she whispered, "Did I just hear you propose?" "Um, yeah. " "Propose marriage?" "Yeah." "To me?" "It sure as hell wasn't to Wolf. You might as well have the name as well as the game. Do the phrases "Who can find a valorous wife?", "Strength and honor are her clothing", "Wisdom and kindness from her tongue" ring a bell? You do all those things for me." "Yes. When." "I don't think we can get off this hill and find a JP in Maryland before noon." "Can I call you Fox now?" "Hell, no." "What about the rules? What about the Bureau?" "Fuck'm if they can't take a joke. I don't want to ever go a morning without waking up with you in my arms again. That is far more important than anything else. I've already told you that I can't do the job without you. I don't even want to try." "Your language, sir, is atrocious. The sentiment, however, is quite arousing." "Do I detect a small hint of Romance Novels in that response?" "Yes. And in this. It will be done properly. The banns will be posted, the families and friends will be notified and invited, and, since this is nearly the 21st century, I'm going to wake up in your arms every morning between now and then." "Uh, that doesn't sound like a great hardship." "Starting tonight." She kissed him with the starkest need and the greatest tenderness. The combination was almost more than he could handle. He pulled her close. "Butch, I love you. What kind of ring do you want." "Glow in the dark alien head is fine. The ring is up to you. Nothing gaudy, or that will bankrupt us." She pushed herself up and straddled his waist, putting her hands on his shoulders. "It's my turn to do for you. Just lie back. You apparently have bad memories about your name. I'd like to erase those memories." "In my mind Fox is that skinny geek who lost his little sister, whose Dad beat him and ran off to a bottle, whose Mom had a serious Valium deficiency. I don't think those memories can be erased." "Just lie back and remember that Dana is loving Fox." She leaned forward and gently kissed the side of his mouth, murmuring "Dana loves Fox, strong, beautiful Fox." She gently traced her fingers over his jaw and under his ears, then down over his shoulders and arms to his wrists. She took a hand and kissed the palm, "Dana loves Fox, with his gentle, strong hands." She moved the hand to her breast, where it gently closed. "Dana loves Fox, with his loving, beautiful hands." She scooted up his frame and kissed his eyelids. "Dana loves Fox, with his beautiful, kind, intelligent eyes." She kissed his forehead. "Dana loves Fox, with his passionate, believing soul." She kissed his mouth again, not so gently. "Dana loves Fox, with the beautiful mouth. Dana loves Fox for all the wonderful, sweet, funny things that come out of that mouth." She kissed again, harder. "Dana loves Fox, for the way he kisses, communicating adoration and love and passion all at once." She pulled back to look at his face. By the flickering firelight she saw tears leaking out of the corners of his eyes. "Dana loves Fox, brave, wonderful Fox, who fears but faces his fears. Who doesn't run." She placed one hand on his heart and used the other to gently wiped the tears from the corners of his eyes. "Dana loves Fox with the loving courageous heart." She pulled his arms around her and snuggled close. "Dana loves Fox, who's strength and bravery provide a base from which she can go forth and do impossible things. You are the anchor that I belay from. Brave, beautiful, generous Fox." "And Fox loves Dana, who only wishes he was half the man she sees." He pulled her close to him. They rested a moment, and she continued. "Dana loves Fox. Beautiful, wonderful Fox, whose slightest touch drives her insane with passion." She moved down to straddle his thighs, and began running her hand lightly up and down him. She pulled his erection against her and began moving herself up and down against the underside. "Feel how hot and wet I am for Fox. Feel how much Fox turns me on. Feel how I want the Fox that makes me feel like a whole woman." He lifted her up by the hips and pulled her forward, while she rose on her knees and guided him into her. She began moving up and down slowly, murmuring all the while, "Fox. Fox. Oh, Fox. Fox, Fox, Fox. Oh FoxFoxFox. Ohhhh." As she snuggled on top of him, their legs twined, he murmured in her ear, "OK, you can call me Fox, but not in public." She reared up and glared at him. "Why not?" "Because I'll always consider tonight my real Christening, and every time I hear that name I'll be driven to throw you down on the nearest flat surface and make mad, passionate love to you." He pulled her down against him, embraced her tightly, and whispered in her ear, "Thank you, love. Thank you, Dana." Chapter 9 6:45 Sunday Morning Up the Mountain The usual slurp of a rough tongue woke Scully. Her bed was lumpy, then she realized she was sleeping on Mulder. She thought about the wonderful dream, then realized it wasn't a dream. Mulder had asked her to marry him, and she'd accepted. She stretched, then reached from her warm mattress and kissed Mulder. His arms tightened around her, and said, "Please tell me I'm not dreaming, that you did say yes last night." "Yes, we're engaged, Fox." A huge grin lit up his face, and he pulled her down for a kiss. "Mulder, let me up, or I'm going to pee on you." She jumped up, and ran around the corner of the cave. Mulder pulled on his pants and kicked up the fire and put coffee water on. He started packing up the bedding, then began brushing his teeth. When Scully came back, she pulled on her tank top and pants and walked up and hugged Mulder around the waist from behind. He put his toothbrush up and turned to hug her. When he bent down to kiss her, she buried her head in his chest and said, "Morning Breath." He grinned, gave her a squeeze and handed her the white toothbrush, then went to see how the coffee was doing. When she came back to the fire, everything was packed up but her comb, lipstick, shoes and socks. Mulder patted the rock beside him, handed her a coffee cup and said, "Hot." They sat there in companionable silence, sipping at the coffee until it was gone. Mulder fixed a second cup, then said, "Dana, now that we're engaged, there are a couple of things I need to tell you." She sipped her coffee, then looked at him warily. "What?" "I've got a little money." "How much? I know what you make, and I can't see how you spend that. Have you got a nice retirement set up?" "I wasn't even counting that. You're beneficiary on my retirement account and insurance, of course, but this is family money." "Well, my insurance and retirement account go to Mathew, Bill and Tara's son. If something happens, his college is covered. I know you kept your Dad's houses, is there something else?" "Yes." "What, Mulder?" "At the end of March it was $38.2 Million." "It's not really that much, most of it is tied up in Capital Gains type investments, net after tax if I liquidated would be around $25 Million." "How?" "There are two sources. I got a trust fund when I turned twenty-five and I inherited some from Dad. I never spent as much as my salary, so I just let it ride in the market. I've been lucky and the Gunmen have given me some good advice." "Why haven't I heard about this before?" "I had a real good year in '88 and bragged. I turned myself into a target for every fortune hunter and female shark in DC. I shut up, bought some cheap suits and started wearing a wedding ring to keep them off. It took four years for the furor to calm down, but now the only people that know are the Counter-Intel folks who review the annual financial form." Scully drew a deep breath and said, "Since we're talking about finances, I should tell you about mine. I make $103,500 a year. After five years in government service, all my medical school loans were forgiven. All I owe is $600 a month on my car. I put $500 a paycheck in the FERS, and have only the free insurance, as I don't have anyone dependent on my income. My retirement account balance is a little over $700,000." "$103,500! I only make $59,300. What gives?" "I'm on the professional and scientific schedule, they pay a premium for doctors, plus I think my supervisor gives me better performance evaluations than yours." She grinned, knowing that Mulder filled out her PE's and said the only reason she didn't walk on water was to keep her shoes from getting wet. Her best bet was that Kersh and Skinner were less kind. An awful thought hit her. "Mulder, you never puffed my PE because you liked me?" Her expression was a mixture of apprehension and sadness. "Scully, I'd be afraid to be anything less than honest on those. You're smart enough to know how good you are, besides, they have to be reviewed by my boss and the SAC for pathology. Can you imagine Skinner being less than honest on one of those? You are really good. Besides, what would be the second thing you'd do after I puffed a PE? I know the first would be to kick my ass. " "You realize you can't fill them out any more?" "Of course. I'll just have to tell you every day how good an agent you are." "What will we do with that money?" "I have fantasies of dressing you in silks and jewels and Chanel suits, building a castle for you, private beaches on Aruba, all kinds of things you deserve." "Fox, that's not me and you know it. Nice weekend picnics, a wonderful job, the love of a good man, a warm place to put my feet on a chilly night, that's all I want. The one item of luxury I could live with would be clean sheets every night." He doused the fire with the remainder of the water, and they clambered out through the rocks. Hand and hand, silent, they strode through the dewy fields of flowers towards the bikes. When they got to the bikes, Scully turned and asked, "Can we come back here?" "Anytime you want, although I'm going to bring air mattresses next time. My back is sore." As they pedaled back towards the car, Mulder chattered inanely, debating the qualities of the remake of 'Planet of the Apes', arguing both sides. "Alright, Mulder, spill. You obviously have something in mind." "Would you consider a townhouse in Georgetown? Dad left me one, but it's been rented out since '89. It's empty now, the K street lawyer that's been renting it retired the first of the year, and I've not got it rented out yet." "We can certainly look at it." "It's a little pretentious, but a nice location. Only two blocks from Foggy Bottom Metro stop and a block from Rock Creek Park." Thus Endeth Part the Third