Title: Happy Girl
Author: MainerIA	
Rating: NC-17
Spoilers: DeadAlive
Disclaimer: The X-Files characters are not mine and 
are merely borrowed from Fox and 1013 Productions.

Summary: Dipper Fiction

~*~*~

AUGUST 5
9 PM
SOUTHERN MISSISSIPPI

The night was cloudy and warm. The wind whistled 
softly in the trees, as Amanda walked along the wooded 
path on her parents' property. She knew that her 
mother had forbidden her to go out alone at night, 
but she didn't really care. Her mother was an old 
bat, who only wanted to control Amanda's life. 

Besides, at 15, she felt she was almost a grown woman 
and fully capable of doing what she wanted. Amanda 
followed the path, as it wound around and ended, just 
at the water's edge. She sat down on the wooden 
bench that was there and watched the moonlight 
sparkle on the ripples that played across the 
surface. She leaned her head back and closed her 
eyes, allowing the soft music of the pond to soothe 
her, allowing her to forget about the earlier fight 
with her mother. She never heard it come out of the 
woods and up behind her.

~*~*~

AUGUST 6
7 AM
FALLS CHURCH, VIRGINIA

Agent John Doggett rolled over and looked at his 
alarm clock. 7:01 am. He supposed he should get up 
and get ready to go to work, but he really wasn't 
looking forward to it. Today was supposed to be his 
first day of being partnered with Agent Mulder. 

After his initial meeting with the man, he wasn't 
sure that this "partnership" was going to work at 
all. And Scully wouldn't be at work today, because 
it was the first day of her maternity leave. John 
Doggett decided that today would probably not be a 
very good day at all, as he headed for the shower.

~*~*~

7:30 AM
FBI HEADQUARTERS, WASHINGTON DC.

Agent Fox Mulder usually didn't get to work much 
before 8 (or later, depending upon his mood), but 
today he decided to arrive early. It was going to be 
his first day of being partnered with this, Agent John 
Doggett, a man he decidedly did not like, and he 
hoped that by arriving at work before Doggett, he 
would demonstrate, that he was still in charge of the 
X-Files.

Mulder looked around the office. Everything looked 
in order, but something felt strange. He shook his 
head. Perhaps it was just because he knew Scully 
wasn't going to be coming in to work today. Whatever 
the feeling was, he had a new X-File on his desk to 
start reading. Mulder sat down and propped his feet 
up on his desk, picking up the file. He tilted his 
chair back and began to read.

A few moments later, Agent Doggett stepped out of the 
elevator and walked towards the office that he had 
begun to think of as partly "his" in the short time 
that he had shared it with Agent Scully. He noticed 
that the door was open, even though it was before 8. 
::Perhaps Scully had decided to drop by after all?:: 
He quickened his step and entered the office.

"Good morning, Agent Doggett!" Doggett was slightly 
irritated at the fact it was a cheerful Mulder 
that had greeted him; but he was also irritated at 
himself for hoping that it might have been Scully. 
"Morning, Mulder."

Mulder immediately took the initiative. "I've been 
looking over our new case here, Agent Doggett, and I 
was just getting ready to make our flight 
arrangements. It looks as if we're going to be 
heading to a small town in Southern Mississippi 
today." 

"And why's that, Mulder?"

"Here's the file, Agent Doggett. I suggest we get 
started on our way. You can read over the file on 
the plane."

~*~*~

NOON
SOMEWHERE IN US AIRSPACE

Doggett glanced over at Mulder before opening the 
file. Mulder was humming softly and smiling as he 
looked out the plane window. ::Mulder seems to be 
enjoying himself. I wonder why?:: Agent Doggett was 
slightly grouchy, not having gotten much sleep last 
night, and grumbled to himself, as he opened the file 
on the case they were going to investigate. There 
weren't many facts. A young girl had been murdered 
on her parents' property the night before. She was 
found in the lake, nude. There were no bruises or 
cuts on the body...save for two small puncture wounds 
on the back of her shoulder. The only other 
distinguishing feature about this murder, is that the 
body had been exsanguinated. ::Hmmm...seems like a 
natural murder, by someone with a penchant for human 
blood.:: He looked at the info in the file again. 

It didn't say exactly how she died though. Doggett 
figured she had probably been drugged and then died, 
as her blood was removed, seeing as how there weren't 
any other bruises or cuts on the body. If anything, 
he thought this murder probably had something to do 
with some sort of a ritual. Doggett looked over at 
Mulder, wondering if he should tell him that he 
didn't really think this was an X-File. Mulder 
appeared to be asleep. Doggett shrugged and looked 
at his watch...an hour left in the flight, he should 
try and get some sleep as well.

~*~*~

3 PM
JACKSON, MISSISSIPPI

As they got off the plane and headed towards their 
rental car, Doggett decided to broach the subject 
with Mulder.

"So, Mulder, what do you really expect to find here?"

"Isn't it obvious to you, Doggett? Two puncture 
wounds and no blood?"

They got in the car and started driving towards the 
small town where the murder had occurred. 

"So what is it, Mulder, you trying to tell me this 
was a vampire?"

"You got any proof that it wasn't?"

"Well, no, Mulder, I don't...but I think it'll be 
easier to prove that it was a human who committed 
this murder and not a vampire." ::At least he didn't 
suggest little green men.::

Mulder just rolled his eyes. ::Skeptic.:: 

The rest of the ride continued in silence.

~*~*~

MEANWHILE, BACK IN DC...

Dana Scully walked out of her doctor's office into 
the bright sunshine to hail a cab. This was one of 
her last appointments before she delivered. ::Only 
10 more days.:: She was hoping for another miracle, 
for her baby to be healthy. As Scully reentered her 
apartment, she thought about her maternity leave. 

She was missing work, even though it was her first 
day away. Work had been somewhat of a mixed blessing 
ever since Mulder had been found. It was hard 
working with Doggett, a man she trusted and respected 
now that her partner was back. She almost felt like 
she was betraying Mulder by working with another 
partner, one that she liked working with. Plus, every 
day, she debated whether or not she should tell Mulder 
the truth about her pregnancy. Working at least, had 
given her something to distract her mind. Now that 
she was on leave, she couldn't think of anything 
else. It would only be fair to tell him...after all 
they had been partners for over 7 years and best 
friends for most of that. It seemed strange to her 
not to confide in Mulder. ::It's only 10 more days. 
Why not wait until you give birth to tell him? If 
something should go wrong, wouldn't it be more kind 
for him NOT to know?:: ::But shouldn't he know 
anyway?:: Scully was getting a headache from all of 
the arguing she was doing with herself and decided to 
take a nap.

~*~*~

By the time that Doggett and Mulder arrived at the 
small town where their investigation was centered, it 
was almost dusk. Doggett thought that they should go 
to the motel and begin in the morning, but he knew 
that Mulder would not take kindly to his suggestion, 
so he just kept his mouth shut. As they drove down 
the main street(one of the few that there were), 
they noticed a large crowd gathered outside what 
appeared to be the jail. Mulder pulled over to the 
side of the road and both men got out. Looking 
around the crowd, Mulder decided the short man in the 
front with the little gold star pinned to his chest 
must be the one in charge. He walked up to him and 
flashed his badge.

"Agent Mulder, FBI. What's going on here?"

"Nice to meet you, Agent Mulder, I'm Sheriff Muldoon. 
Appears that you boys came all the way down here for 
nothing."

"What do you mean?" Doggett asked quietly, as he also 
produced his badge.

"Well, boys, we seem to have caught the murderer."

"What? Who?" asked Mulder, almost in disbelief. 

::They solved the case before we got here?::

"A local teenager named James Shannon. He's got a 
history of peeping in windows and the such. When we 
brought him in for questioning today he confessed to 
the murder."

"That so? Did he tell you how he had done it?" 

Mulder continued to fire questions at the man. ::I 
don't believe that this kid really committed this 
murder. And if he did, I'd like to know how he did 
it.::

"Well, no, Agent Mulder, we didn't ask him for any 
details. Seeing as how he said he done it, we 
figured he must be telling the truth. Why would an 
innocent man admit to doing something as horrible as 
this?"

Agent Doggett stood back a little, listening quietly 
to the whole exchange. It was kind of interesting to 
see how Mulder worked.

"Well, Sheriff, seeing as how you already caught the 
killer, I don't suppose you'd mind if I went ahead 
and had an FBI Agent do an autopsy, would you? I'd 
like to have the report to put in our files when I 
make my report. And of course, anything they find 
could only help your case."

Doggett glanced at Mulder, raised an eyebrow. ::What 
was he trying to prove now? ::

"Well, son, I guess you're right. Can't hurt none."

"Thank you for your time, Sheriff. I'll go make the 
arrangements," said Mulder as he walked away. 
Doggett hurried to catch up to Mulder.

"What's the autopsy for, Mulder?" ::Probably still 
trying to prove it's an X-File. ::

"Just covering all of my bases. Why don't we get some 
food and try and get some sleep?"

It was about 9 pm when Doggett got back to the motel. 
Mulder had decided to go for a walk. Doggett kicked 
off his shoes and stretched out on the bed, thinking 
about his earlier dinner with Mulder. It had been a 
pleasant enough meal. They'd talked about nothing of 
great import: sports, cars, and the weather. He'd tried 
to get Mulder to talk about the case, but all Mulder 
would say, was that it was too early to form a theory. 

Doggett was sure that was bull. Mulder's mind had 
probably been working 100 mph since he'd first opened 
this file. Fox Mulder always gave his all to his 
work.

Doggett sighed. ::All in all, today wasn't too bad.::
He rolled over and set his alarm for 7 am. ::I 
wonder what Scully is doing right now.::

~*~*~

Dana Scully hung up the phone and sighed. She knew 
she shouldn't have let Mulder talk her into going to 
Mississippi, but when had she ever been able to tell 
him no? Besides, all he needed her to do was an 
autopsy, so why was she having second thoughts about 
going? ::Because of Agent Doggett. Because even 
though I love Mulder, I have feelings for Doggett 
too. Feelings I don't want to deal with, at this 
stage in my pregnancy, if ever.:: Scully sighed 
again and reached for the phone. ::The sooner I get 
this over with, the better.:: 

The man in DC listened to the taped phone 
conversation again. So, Dana was heading to 
Mississippi. He knew she would go, would do whatever 
Mulder asked of her. No matter. His plan would 
succeed whether in Washington DC or rural 
Mississippi. He reached for his phone.

Scully parked her rental car in front of the Sleep E-
Z motel and got out to stretch. She looked at her 
watch: 5:05 am. Mulder probably wouldn't be happy to 
get woken up so early, but she was here now and 
wanted to get the job over with.

She entered the lobby of the motel and looked around. 
A chair, a desk, a TV, and a lamp. Scully smirked. 
::How quaint.:: There was no one at the desk for her 
to speak to, nor a bell to ring for assistance. The 
register, however, was lying on the desk. She turned 
it around and immediately spotted his familiar 
handwriting. Fox Mulder, room 234. She picked up 
her bag and headed for the stairs.

~*~*~

Mulder was dreaming. He and Scully were on a beach 
with their child building sandcastles. The day was 
warm and sunny. Then he heard a noise, a loud 
knocking. He looked around, but couldn't find the 
source. Slowly he came awake and realized the 
knocking was someone pounding on his door. He opened 
one eye and looked at his watch: 5:10.

"Go away," he growled.

"Mulder, it's me. Get up and let me in."

Mulder got up to open the door. ::Scully?::
"Scully?"

"Yes, Mulder. Were you expecting someone else?"

"No, Scully...it's just that it's 5am. What are you 
doing here?"

"I believe I was called here to do an autopsy."

"At 5am?" ::I'm puzzled.::

"Mulder look...I've been traveling all night and I'm 
not in the mood to play twenty questions. Give me 
the file and I'll read it while you go and get a 
shower."

"Sure, Scully. Whatever you say."


Mulder returned 20 minutes later looking much more 
awake.

"So, Scully, whaddya think?"

"Well, Mulder, looks like an unsolved murder, not 
necessarily an X-File."

"C'mon, Scully, a dead body with no blood left and 
two puncture marks?"

"Well, Mulder, until I complete my autopsy, I'd 
rather not come up with a theory."

"OK, let's go!" Mulder got up and walked to the 
door.

"Wait, Mulder" Scully bit her lip and frowned. 
"Shouldn't we invite Agent Doggett?"

::Doggett?:: Mulder frowned. ::Oh yeah. I forgot 
about him when Scully got here. It was just like old 
times. Why is she worried about him anyway?::

"Nah, Scully, we should probably let him get some 
sleep. He looked pretty worn out yesterday. Why 
don't we wake him when we get back with the results? 
Then we can talk about the case." ::There. That 
should satisfy her.::

"Fine, Mulder. Let's get moving then."

~*~*~

After dropping Scully off to do her autopsy, Mulder 
went across the street to the jail. ::How convenient 
that everything is located so close together.:: Mulder 
thought sarcastically. Mulder walked up to the front 
desk.

"Fox Mulder, FBI. I'd like to see James Shannon 
please."

The deputy at the desk looked up and shrugged. 
"Sure, sign here, down the hall to the left. Only 
occupant we have."

Mulder scribbled his name and walked away. He 
stopped at the last cell on the block and looked 
inside. He saw a young boy who looked to be no more 
than 15 or 16, sitting on the bunk staring at the 
floor. He looked up and asked belligerently "Who're 
you?"

"Fox Mulder. I'm an agent with the FBI. Mind if I 
ask you a few questions?"

"Whatever." He looked at the floor again.

"They tell me that you confessed to murdering that 
young girl. Why did you do it?"

James didn't say anything, didn't even look up.
"How did you kill her?"

Still no answer.

Mulder sighed. "Look kid. Talking to me may be your 
only chance to help yourself."

James finally looked up. "I don't need your help. I 
did it. I should be punished. Now please, go away." 

He looked back down at the floor.

Mulder continued looking at James for a minute, then 
shrugged and walked away.

Scully stood up straight and stretched, massaging her 
back. She really should have told Mulder that she 
didn't want to take this case. She didn't need this 
stress. It was looking like this might be an X-File 
after all. Scully heard the door open behind her.

"Mulder," she began as she turned around. "I hate to 
admit it-"

She stopped and stared in shock.

"Krycek!" she hissed, as her brilliant blue eyes 
snapped with fire. "What are you doing here?"

Krycek leaned back against the door and smiled, 
grimly. "Scully, I know you won't believe me, but 
I'm here to help. To give you a warning. They're 
coming after your baby. You need to leave-now."

"Who is coming, Krycek? Who wants my baby? Why?" 
::What is he babbling about?::

"I can't tell you. I shouldn't even be here warning 
you. Please, Scully, whatever you do, watch your 
back...and protect your baby." And with that, Alex 
Krycek was gone.

Scully just stared at the door after him.

~*~*~

Doggett awoke with a start, breathing hard and 
sweating. He looked at the clock: 6:35 am. He'd 
been having the dream about finding Luke in the woods 
again. Only this time it was different. It wasn't 
Luke who was lying on the ground dead. It was Dana 
Scully.

~*~*~

Scully jumped, as her cell phone started ringing.
"Scully" she answered nervously.

"Good morning Agent Scully."

"Agent Doggett." Scully smiled, only part of that 
smile from relief. "What can I do for you?"

"Actually Agent Scully, I was just calling to see how 
you are doing. Is everything all right?"

Scully frowned. ::How did he know to ask that 
question? Does he know something? Or am I just 
being paranoid?::

"I'm fine, Agent Doggett. How are you?"

"Me? I'm fine. I just thought I'd see how you were 
enjoying your maternity leave." 

Scully snorted, rather inelegantly. "Maternity 
leave? Some 'leave.'"

"What do you mean, Scully?"

"Didn't Mulder tell you?" she asked.

"Tell me what, Scully?"

Scully sighed. "Tell you that I'm here in 
Mississippi, doing the autopsy for your murder case."

"You're what?" ::Now I know why he wanted to do an 
autopsy. ::

Scully sighed again. "Yes, I'm here helping on the 
case, Doggett. I've been here since 5 am so I could 
do this autopsy. Listen...I just finished up. Why 
don't I find Mulder and we'll meet you at the hotel 
to talk about the case."

"All right, Scully. I'll meet you guys in the 
lobby."

~*~*~

Mulder walked across the street from the jail just in 
time to meet Scully coming out of the morgue. There 
was something in Scully's face, in the way she 
walked. She seemed upset. ::I wonder what's up with 
her?:: 

"Hey Scully. How'd the autopsy go?"

"It was ok, Mulder. I think I'll wait to discuss my 
results when we meet with Doggett."

::Now that's unusual. What is she keeping from me?::

"Any particular reason, Scully?"

"Other than making sure Agent Doggett, as your 
partner on this case, stays informed? Nope. I spoke 
to Doggett, Mulder. Why didn't you tell him I was 
coming here?"

"Well...I guess it just slipped my mind."

"Ok, Mulder." ::Why do I even bother to ask? He 
always had a quick answer.::

"So, Scully, what's the plan?" ::Man oh man, do I 
hope she's not upset with me.::

"We're going to meet Doggett at the motel, so we can 
all discuss the case."

~*~*~

Doggett sat in the motel lobby waiting for Scully and 
Mulder to show up. He'd be happy to see Scully, but 
he knew it was going to be torture to see her 
together with Mulder. He knew that she loved Mulder, 
but he also knew that in the three months that Mulder 
was "dead" he'd come to fall in love with Dana 
Scully. Now he'd probably never have the chance to 
tell her how he feels. ::Why, oh why, didn't I just 
get out of the X-Files when I had the chance?::

Mulder and Scully entered the lobby, to see Doggett 
staring off into space. ::He looks so sad sitting 
there.:: thought Scully. ::I wonder if something is 
wrong?:: Doggett stood up, as Mulder and Scully 
approached. There was an awkward moment, as they all 
looked at each other without saying anything. 

Scully broke the silence. "Mulder, why don't we all 
go up to your room to discuss the case?" Both men 
nodded and followed her up the stairs.

Scully sat in the only chair in the room, leaving the 
bed for the other two to sit on. ::Let's get this 
over with. I'm ready to go back on my maternity 
leave after today.::

"OK. I'll go ahead and start with the results of my 
autopsy. You just might be right about this being an 
X-File, Mulder. Apparently, the girl died of heart 
failure. She had a massive heart attack, although 
she had never had heart problems before. As for the 
two puncture marks and the blood being removed, that 
is a bit more puzzling. I can't figure out how the 
blood was taken from the body. The two puncture 
marks barely broke the skin. They didn't even get 
close to an artery or a vein. And there were no 
other wounds on the body."

"So you're saying this girl's blood just disappeared? 
It was there and then it was gone?" This from 
Doggett, the Eternal skeptic.

"Yes, Agent Doggett, that's what I'm saying. I'm 
sorry, but I just can't explain this one."

Doggett grinned. "No apologies necessary, Scully. 
If I can't explain some of what I've seen with my own 
eyes, I certainly don't expect other people to be 
able to."

Mulder watched as the two of them bantered back and 
forth for a few minutes. ::Just what kind of 
relationship did they have while I was gone? And 
more importantly, what kind of relationship do they 
have now?::

"So, Mulder, what do you think?"

Scully's question interrupted his thoughts, which was 
ok, because his thoughts were disturbing anyway. 

"Honestly, Scully," he replied. "I don't have a 
theory on this one. I've never heard of blood just 
disappearing from a human body before." Mulder 
appeared just as confused as the other two felt. 

::Mulder without a theory?:: Scully wondered. 

::What's this all about?:: "Did you find out anything 
when you interviewed James Shannon?"

Mulder shook his head. "Nothing helpful. All he 
would tell me, is that he's guilty and he should be 
punished for it."

"So what do you think we should do now, Mulder?" 
asked Doggett, who had been listening silently for 
awhile, watching Scully and Mulder interact. "It 
definitely sounds like an X-File, but the locals have 
someone who confessed in custody. They seem happy. 
Should we pursue it?"

::Doggett is asking me what to do? Cool.:: "What do 
you think about giving it another 24 hours Doggett? 
If nothing happens by then, we'll head back to DC."

"Sounds like a good idea to me. What do you say we 
call this meeting quits and go and get some food?"

Mulder grinned. "Now that sounds like an even better 
idea."

Scully reached down for the bag she had brought 
upstairs earlier. "Listen you guys go on ahead. I'm 
going to head back to DC."

Mulder's face fell. "So soon?"

"Yeah, Mulder. After all, I am on maternity leave." 

Scully smiled. Both men couldn't help but return her 
beautiful smile.

"Have a safe trip, Scully. Make sure you call us 
when you get there," Doggett said as he gave her a 
quick hug. 

Mulder held Scully in a long embrace. "Be careful." 
he whispered in her ear.

"I will. See you guys in DC."

Doggett and Mulder watched Scully leave the room. 
They weren't the only ones watching Dana Scully's 
movements.

~*~*~

As Scully got in her rental car, to head for the 
airport, she thought about what had happened while 
she was in Mississippi. She was glad to see Mulder 
and Doggett attempting to work together...or maybe that 
was just for her benefit. She really wasn't worried 
about that right now. She was more concerned about 
the visit from Krycek. She wondered if she'd made a 
mistake, by not telling Mulder or Doggett about his 
visit. ::It just doesn't make sense. Who could be 
after my child? And why? He told me to protect my 
child, but what does he want me to do?:: She was so 
lost in her thoughts, that she failed to notice the 
black van that was steadily gaining on her.

~*~*~

Although Mulder and Doggett had gone ahead and had 
lunch together after Scully left, things were quiet 
and a little bit tense. Neither man was sure how to 
act towards each other, now that Scully wasn't there 
to defuse any potential bombs. Both men were lost in 
thought, as they left the restaurant.

::I'm not quite sure what to think about Mulder now. 
I was fully prepared, not only to dislike him, but to 
disagree with his methods before we even started this 
case. But so far he's played by the book and he's 
been willing to listen to my suggestions. He's even 
willing to head back to DC tomorrow, even though this 
is an unsolved X-File. Now that, is even more 
puzzling.::

Mulder, too, was thinking about the man he was 
partnered with.

::You know, not once has Doggett told me that I was 
crazy or weird or "spooky" for thinking that this was 
an X-File. Granted, he hasn't necessarily believed 
what I've said, but he hasn't put me down either. I 
wonder if we will get along after all. And, if we do 
get along, what will happen once Scully comes back 
from her maternity leave? Will one of us be getting 
the shaft?::

They were both so lost in thought, that neither of 
them realized that they had wandered to the edge of 
town, which wasn't a hard feat considering how small 
the town was. They continued walking down the road, 
until they reached a car parked haphazardly on the 
side of the road. The car looked like it had been 
beat up pretty good. The bumper was all banged in 
and the trunk lid looked like it wasn't going to 
close ever again. As they got closer, the car began 
to look familiar.

"Hey. Mulder?" The comment from Doggett was so out of 
the blue, that Mulder practically jumped.

"Yeah?"

"Look at this car here. Doesn't that look like the 
car Scully was driving?"

Mulder stopped at the side of the car and looked at 
it. Heck, he didn't really remember. He hadn't been 
too interested in her car. But it would be a good 
idea to check it out, just in case Doggett was right. 
Mulder reached for the door handle to see if it was 
unlocked. The door came open easily. Inside on the 
front seat was Scully's travel bag, her purse, and 
her cell phone...and stains that appeared to be blood.

"Oh shit."

"It's hers, isn't it Mulder?"

"Oh shit," Mulder muttered again, as he sank to the 
ground by the side of the car, with his head in his 
hands.

Doggett reached for his cell phone. He knew they 
were going to need some help.

Assistant Director Walter Skinner's intercom buzzed 
just as he was leaving for the night. ::Damn. What now?::

"Yes?"

"Sir, Agent Doggett is on the line. He says it's 
urgent."

"Thank you." Skinner picked up the phone. "What is 
it, Agent Doggett?"

"Sir, I'm not really sure the best way to tell you 
this, but Agent Scully is missing."

"What? How? Where? What happened?"

"Well, Sir, Agent Mulder had called Scully out here, 
to help us with this case, by doing an autopsy. She 
arrived early this morning and did her autopsy. 

After our meeting this afternoon, she got into her 
rental car, with all intentions of driving back to the 
airport and flying back to DC. Agent Mulder and I 
were taking a walk this evening, when we found her 
rental car on the side of the road. It's pretty beat 
up and there's blood inside. And no sign of Agent 
Scully."

"What was she doing in Mississippi? She was on 
maternity leave!!"

"Well, Sir, apparently Mulder can be quite 
persuasive."

"Damn. How long has she been missing?"

"We're not sure, Sir. We found the car 45 minutes 
ago. We've called in the local police, the State 
Patrol, and the local bureau. So far, no leads."

"How is Mulder taking it?"

"I'd say he's in shock, Sir. He hasn't said anything 
since we found Scully's car."

"Ok, Doggett, thanks for calling. I'm on my way down 
there."

Scully tried to sit up and look around. She tried to 
move her arms, only to find that they were tied 
behind her. She tried to open her eyes, but she 
couldn't see anything. She figured she'd been 
blindfolded. She tried to say something...no luck 
there either. It felt like she had something taped 
over her mouth. ::What is going on here? I remember 
driving down the road towards the airport. Then I 
looked in the rearview mirror, in time to see this van 
hit me. It hit me again and I think I hit my head. 
And then after that?:: Scully was frustrated. She 
could feel the tears seeping out from under the 
blindfold. ::What happened? Where am I? And why?:: 

Scully held her breath as she heard footsteps 
approaching and the door opening. She felt hands on 
her arms. "It's time Dana. Let's go." ::Time for 
what? Please God, help me and my child.::

Doggett sat straight up in bed again, in a cold 
sweat. He was breathing heavy. He stretched and 
rubbed his eyes. Again, the dream. If he didn't 
stop having that nightmare, he was going to go crazy 
from lack of sleep. The dream was the same as last 
time. He's walking through the woods with some other 
officers, knows that he's going to find his son dead 
on the ground when he gets there. But then, he walks 
into the clearing and it's not Luke that's lying on 
the ground. It's Scully. She's dead. Her eyes are 
open, but they're rolled back into her head. Her 
lips are blue and there are marks on her neck. It's 
at this point that he wakes up, shaking and 
terrified. ::What am I supposed to be getting from 
this dream? Does it even have meaning or is it just 
a dream?:: He shook his head to clear it and went to 
get a shower.

Skinner got out of his rental car at the motel and 
stretched. He'd been traveling all night. He'd 
been on the phone to the local police, the state 
police, and the local bureau. Nobody had anything to 
report. Now, he wanted to talk to his two agents that 
he had down here, and see if they had anything to tell 
him. He walked into the lobby and spoke to the man 
at the desk. "Which rooms are Agents Mulder and 
Doggett in?"

"Rooms 234 and 236."

"Thank you."

Skinner headed for the stairs. ::Oh God. I can't 
believe I just got back one of my top agents and now 
I've lost another one. What is going on here? I 
hope Scully and her baby are all right.::

Skinner stopped in front of Room 234 and 
knocked...loudly. There was no answer. He knocked 
again, this time even louder. The door to Room 236 
opened. "Sir?"

"Agent Doggett. I take it, this, is Agent Mulder's 
room? Have you spoken to him lately?"

"No sir, not since last night. He seemed ok when I 
showed him to his room last night, just quiet. I've 
got another key to his room. Let me get it and we 
can go in."

Doggett came back with the key. 

"Thank you Agent Doggett."

Skinner inserted the key into the lock and swung the 
door open. He walked over to the bed, where Mulder 
was completely covered up. Doggett leaned against 
the doorway.

"Agent Mulder?" Skinner shook Mulder's shoulder. 
Again, louder. "MULDER?"

Startled, Mulder sat straight up in bed. "Sir?" He 
rubbed his eyes and looked confused. "What are you 
doing here?" 

Skinner sat down on the bed next to him. "I'm here 
to find Scully, Mulder. How are you doing? Doggett 
says you haven't said much, since Scully's car was 
found."

"I'm ok, Sir. No...I'm not ok. I feel guilty. I 
asked Scully down here. I knew she was on leave and 
I knew she was in a sensitive situation with her 
pregnancy. But I needed her help, I needed her 
opinion, I wanted her here. All I could think about 
was me. I didn't think about her safety or 
protecting her, and now, because of me, she's missing 
and something could happen to her or her child. And 
it will all be, my fault."

"Agent Mulder, you cannot think like that. You know 
that it will not be your fault. Just like it wasn't 
Scully's fault, that you were abducted months ago. 
Mulder, I need you to help me find Scully. You 
aren't going to be any help to me if you're going to 
sit in your room and feel guilty. Snap out of this 
Mulder."

Mulder just shook his head. "I don't know if I can."

Agent Doggett stepped into the conversation. "Mulder 
you're going to have a lot more to feel sorry for, if 
we don't get Scully back in one piece. The faster 
you snap out of it and help us, the better chance we 
have." ::Dear Lord, I know how he feels. I don't 
know if I'll be able to take it, if Agent Scully isn't 
found in one piece.::

"You're right, Doggett. Me sitting around here isn't 
getting Scully back to us any sooner. Let me get 
dressed and we'll go find her."

Skinner smiled in relief. ::If only he speaks the 
truth. I hope that we can find her...unharmed.::

~*~*~

Meanwhile, Scully was in a room, lying flat on her 
back. She felt as if she was on a table of some 
sort. They had brought her in here earlier and given 
her a shot in her arm. It hadn't had any effects at 
first, but now...she could feel contractions starting. 

She thought that it was something to induce her 
labor. ::Oh God, Krycek was right. Someone wants my 
baby. But who? And why?:: The contractions began 
to intensify and come faster. She was in such pain. 

She wanted to scream. ::Someone help me, please. 
Mulder. Doggett. Someone. Oh God, don't let them 
take my baby.:: She heard that voice again. Calm, 
soothing. "It's ok Dana. Everything will be fine. 
Calm down. No one is going to harm you...or your baby. 
We're just going to take your baby. You'll both be 
fine." ::No, oh God no, I won't be fine. It's my 
baby. You can't have it! Someone help me! It's my 
baby, I won't let you have it!!:: Scully began to 
struggle. She heard a sigh. "Dana, settle down or 
I'll have to give you something to knock you 
unconscious." She struggled even harder. She was 
NOT going to give into whoever these people were. 
She was going to do everything in her power to 
protect her baby. She felt another needle slide into 
her arm. She began getting warm. Her eyes felt 
heavy. She felt like she couldn't move. She knew 
that she was going to become unconscious, but she was 
trying to fight it all the way. "Shhh...Dana. It's 
ok. You'll be just fine. Everything will be fine 
when you wake up." Slowly, Dana slipped away from 
reality. The man smiled. Everything was going as 
planned. He looked at the doctor. "You may begin 
now Doctor. Please remove the child."

~*~*~

Not sure what else they should be doing to find 
Scully, Mulder, Skinner, and Doggett all joined the 
manhunt. They were fanning out through the woods by 
where Scully's car had been located. So far, no one 
had found anything or heard anything. Doggett and 
Mulder had completely forgotten about the case that 
they had been working on. Their one goal now, was to 
find Scully. They had been out in the heat searching 
all day long. They'd only taken a break once, to eat 
some sandwiches someone had brought out, and then gone 
right back to searching. It was nearing nightfall 
when they heard a shout. "Assistant Director! Over 
here!" The three men took off running through the 
woods and towards a clearing. Doggett faltered, 
realizing that what he was seeing was eerily similar 
to his dream. Skinner turned slightly, looked over 
his shoulder. "Doggett! Aren't you coming?" 

"In a minute, Sir," Agent Doggett replied, as he said 
a quick prayer that his dream was not about to become 
a reality.

Mulder was the first one to reach Scully's side. 

"Scully! Scully, can you hear me? Are you ok?" 

Mulder was frantically searching for some sign of 
life. Doggett, in complete fear and unable to look, 
had stopped at the edge of the clearing. Someone 
called for the paramedics. It was complete chaos. 

Skinner knelt next to Scully, felt for a pulse. He 
found one, although it was weak. 

"It's ok, Mulder, she's still alive." Both Mulder 
and Doggett breathed a huge sigh of relief. 

The paramedics came running with a stretcher. "It's 
ok Mulder." Skinner repeated. "Let them do their 
jobs and get her to the hospital."

~*~*~

Scully had been taken to the emergency room and 
checked out. She seemed physically unharmed. It 
appeared that she had been drugged and that was the 
reason she was unconscious. Mulder couldn't help but 
interrupt the doctor, as he gave them his report. 

"What about her baby?"

The doctor appeared startled. "I'm sorry?"

"Her baby?" Mulder repeated. "How is her baby?"

"Excuse me, sir, I'll be right back." The doctor 
hurried back to Scully's room.

Mulder looked at the other two and shook his head. 

"He MISSED the fact that she's 9 months pregnant?"
The doctor appeared, as quickly as he disappeared. 

"I'm sorry, gentleman, that I didn't catch the fact 
earlier. It would appear that sometime recently Ms. 
Scully has given birth. She is no longer pregnant."

Mulder glared at the doctor. "What did you say?"

"I'm sorry, sir, but the patient is no longer with 
child. It would appear that she gave birth sometime 
in the not so distant past."

::Oh crap!:: Skinner thought. ::Now what do we do?::

"Is she awake, doctor? May we see her?" Doggett 
asked quietly.

"She is awake, but she's still exhausted. Please, 
don't push her."

The three men nodded and walked towards Scully's 
room.

The other two men hung back by the door, to let Mulder 
be the first one to talk to her.

Mulder sat next to Scully's bed and reached for her 
hand. She was so pale, she looked almost dead, 
especially with her eyes closed. Mulder felt his 
heart racing out of fear. ::Oh God, what have I 
done? Look at what I've caused. I could have lost 
her and she would never have known how much I love 
her.::

"Scully?" he whispered.

She slowly opened her eyes. When she saw it was 
Mulder, she began to cry. "Mulder, they took my baby 
away from me."

Mulder's hazel eyes mirrored the sadness in Scully's 
blue ones perfectly.

"I know, Scully, I know. It will be ok. I promise, 
I will find your baby if it's the last thing I do."

"Really, Mulder?" Scully looked up at the man she 
loved so much, hope flickering in her eyes that were 
bright with tears.

"Hey...you never gave up hope when I was missing. Don't 
give up now. I'll find your baby or I'll give my 
life trying." Mulder stood, bent, and kissed Scully 
on the forehead. ::I've got to find her child. I've 
just got to. I can't let her down this time. It 
would kill her.:: He turned to leave. Scully 
grabbed his hand. Mulder turned back around to look 
at her.

"Thank you, Mulder," whispered Scully.

Mulder's eyes filled with tears. He nodded and 
walked out of the room. Doggett followed, leaving 
Skinner alone to talk to Scully.

"Dana," Skinner said as he sat down next to her.

"Walter. What are you doing here?"

"Doggett called when they found your car. Nothing 
was going to stop me from coming to find you."

Scully smiled weakly and reached for his hand. 
"Thank you."

Skinner nodded, not saying anything as he looked at 
the woman who was not only one of his best agents, 
but a very close friend as well. ::How can I find 
her child for her? I don't even know where to begin 
to look!::

"Do you think Mulder will find the men who took my 
child?" Scully interrupted his thoughts.

Skinner shrugged. "I can't say for sure, but I do 
know that if anyone can find them, it is Mulder."

Scully nodded. "I hope that you're right, Sir."

There was a knock on the door and Agent Doggett 
reentered the room. "Mulder is waiting in the hall 
to speak to you, Sir."

Skinner nodded and looked at Scully. "I'll be back 
to check on you before I head to DC." He got up and 
went to work out a plan of action with Mulder.

Doggett took the seat Skinner had vacated. He had no 
idea what to say to Scully. ::She probably doesn't 
want to hear anything. I know that when Luke went 
missing, I didn't even want to be in the same room 
with people...not even with my wife. I sure as hell 
didn't want to talk to anyone.:: He reached out and 
took Scully's hand, wishing with all his heart that 
he could take away her pain.

"Agent Doggett?" She up looked at him with eyes that 
were so blue, so beautiful, even when they were 
swollen and red from crying. ::Mulder is so lucky to 
have this woman.::

He squeezed her hand. "Yes, Scully?"

"Why aren't you out on the search with Mulder?" 
::Way to go, Dana, sound like you'd rather him not be 
here.:: "I'm sorry, that came out wrong. I mean..."

Doggett interrupted. "I understand what you mean. 
It's ok. I talked to Mulder. He'd rather work this 
case alone and I understand that. Besides, someone 
should be here to work the case from your end, in case 
you're contacted by the kidnappers." ::Never mind 
the fact that you're probably still in danger and 
someone needed to volunteer to be your bodyguard.::

Scully nodded. "Makes sense. Mulder probably 
wouldn't be good company right now anyway. But I 
warn you, I won't be pleasant for you to be around 
either."

"That's ok, Scully. Believe me, I know what you're 
going through. Why don't you try and get some rest."

"You won't leave me?" Scully was suddenly terrified 
at the idea of being in the room alone. ::What if 
those men come back for something else?::

"I promise, Scully. I'll be right here the entire 
time."

~*~*~

Mulder sat in his car in the parking lot of the 
hospital. He had a lot to think about. ::I have no 
idea where to start working this case. Skinner 
suggested Scully's car, and if this were a normal 
crime, that'd be a great place to start. However, this 
is not a normal crime and I'm sure that these are not 
normal criminals. How do I even find those that I 
suspect are involved? Most are presumed dead, the 
others are missing. Oh God, Scully, I'm so sorry that 
I brought you into this.:: 

Suddenly, the passenger door of Mulder's car swung open, 
and a dark, good-looking man, slipped into the seat. 
Mulder took one look at the man and reached for his gun. 

The other man slowly raised his hands in the air. "Don't 
shoot. I've come to help."

"What kind of help could you possibly offer me?" 
Mulder growled, still pointing his gun at the other 
man.

"Information, brother, about the whereabouts of your 
partner's child...your child."

Mulder's eyes snapped fire. ::Mine?:: "Keep 
talking. It just might save your life."

~*~*~

Scully awoke with a gasp. She'd been having a 
nightmare about the kidnapping of her baby. She felt 
someone holding her hand and looked to see Agent 
Doggett asleep in the chair, one hand in hers, the 
other on his gun. Scully couldn't help but smile at 
the image. ::He stayed, just like he promised. I 
should have known that he would. John Doggett always 
keeps his word. Part of me wishes that Mulder had 
stayed with me though. I know why he wanted to go, 
but couldn't he have let Doggett go? Of course, why 
should he stay by my side? It's not like I ever told 
him how I felt. I never even told him that the child 
was his. Dear God, please let Mulder find our baby 
and return soon.:: Scully prayed, as she drifted back 
off to sleep.

~*~*~

Slowly, Mulder put his gun away. "You're sure it's 
the Smoking Man?"

"I saw him with my own eyes," replied the other man.

"Damn." Mulder grimaced. "That man will never die, 
will he?"

The other man smiled, grimly. "Doesn't appear that 
way, does it?"

Mulder looked at the man in the other seat. "So, 
Krycek, why come to me now? Why didn't you come 
forward and try to stop this? Why didn't you tell me 
sooner?" Mulder was getting angrier by the second.
Krycek could sense that and sighed. "I tried to, 
Mulder. I followed Scully to Mississippi and I 
warned her to get away and to protect her baby."

"Don't you see, Krycek? They had already followed 
her here! Her, trying to leave, gave them the 
opportunity to attack her! If you were so concerned, 
why didn't you stay and protect her?"

"And get myself killed for working both sides? Are 
you NUTS? Besides, I was sure that Scully would 
confide in either you or that other agent."

"Well she didn't, Krycek!" Mulder took a deep 
breath. ::Getting angry with this man now will get 
us nowhere.::

"So Krycek, where do we go from here?"

"Start driving. I'll tell you everything I know."

~*~*~

When Scully woke up again, her hospital room was 
bright with sunshine. She looked at her watch: 9:00 
am. She looked at the chair next to her bed, 
expecting to see Doggett. The chair was empty. The 
panic began to rise before she could stop it. Then 
she noticed her door was open and Doggett was in the 
hall talking to Skinner. She sighed with relief. 

::Am I always going to panic and look over my shoulder 
from now on? I hope this situation is resolved soon.::

Scully reached for the phone on the nightstand. 
::I should call Mulder and see how the investigation is 
going.::

~*~*~

Krycek looked at the ringing phone. Mulder was 
asleep in the passenger seat. ::Should I answer his 
phone? No, better not. It could be Skinner.:: 

Krycek picked up the phone and poked Mulder in the 
shoulder. "Mulder! Wake up, your phone is ringing."

Mulder took the phone from Krycek with a muffled, 
"Thanks."

"Mulder," he mumbled sleepily.

"Mulder, it's me."

Instantly Mulder was wide-awake. "Scully. Hi. How 
are you feeling today?" ::Duh Mulder, how do you 
think she feels?::

"Physically, I'm fine Mulder. How's the case going?"

"I have some leads I'm working on. Nothing concrete 
yet. I'm sorry, Scully."

Scully sighed. "I figured as much, Mulder. I just 
wanted to check in."

"Scully, I promise you that I will call you as soon 
as I have something. I promise. Please, just take 
care of yourself. Keep your cell phone with you and 
I will call. OK?"

"OK, Mulder. Thanks for trying to make me feel 
better." Scully hung up.

Mulder looked at Krycek. "Any way you can make this 
car go any faster?"

~*~*~

Scully set the phone back on the nightstand and 
sighed. ::Now what do I do? I'll go crazy if I stay 
in the hospital. Should I stay in Mississippi or go 
back to DC? For all I know, my child could be 
halfway around the world by now. If it's even still 
alive!:: Scully began to cry. ::I don't even know 
if I had a boy or a girl!:: Scully put her head down 
on her knees and began crying in earnest.

She felt someone put an arm around her shoulders. 
She looked up to see John Doggett sitting next to 
her. He offered her a tissue. Scully wiped her eyes 
and blew her nose. "Thanks." 

Doggett removed his arm from her shoulders, 
suddenly wondering if he'd overstepped his bounds. 
"No problem," he replied.

"What were you and Skinner talking about, Doggett?" 
Scully asked with interest. 

Doggett shrugged. "He just stopped by to see how you 
were doing. Kersh called and Skinner had to head 
back to DC. He hadn't heard anything new from 
anyone. He's unsure of where to go from here."

Scully started laughing uncontrollably. "He's 
unsure? I don't know what to do. I don't know if I 
should go or stay, sleep or stay awake, eat or not 
eat...." Scully broke down crying again. Doggett 
opened his arms. Scully leaned into them. ::It 
feels so good to be held. There's no harm in leaning 
on him for just a minute, right?:: Doggett stroked 
her hair, gently rocking her back and forth.

"Shh, Scully, it'll be ok. What do you say we get 
out of this place, get our stuff, and head back to 
DC? Then you can figure out what to do from there."

Scully pulled away and nodded. "OK." She got up and 
began to get her clothes together, so she could get 
ready to go. She turned back around.

"John?" Doggett looked up, startled. 

Scully seemed shy all of a sudden. "Is it OK if I 
call you John?"

He nodded. "Of course you can."

"I just wanted to say thanks."

"You're welcome...Dana." ::First name basis now huh? 
Wait, don't get your hopes up. There's still Mulder.::

Scully smiled at him weakly and turned around to 
finish getting ready to go.

Scully unlocked the door to her apartment and turned 
to face the man standing next to her holding her 
bags.

"Thanks, John, for bringing me up to my apartment. 
It wasn't really necessary." ::But it's very sweet.::

Doggett smiled down at her. "It's my pleasure. Is 
it ok with you, if I check the rest of your apartment, 
before I go? I'll feel more at ease if I do." ::Not 
that I want to leave, but if I have to, I want to 
make sure she's as safe as possible.::

Scully shrugged. "Sure, why not?" ::It'd actually 
be nice if he stayed longer. I'm not sure if I am 
ready to be alone in my apartment. What if those men 
decide they want me and come back?:: She followed 
Doggett into her apartment. And that's when it hit 
her. She'd moved into this apartment so there would 
be room for the baby. She sunk down on the couch. 

::Have I lost my chance at ever having a child? :: She 
could feel the tears beginning to build and she 
desperately fought them back. ::I will not let John 
see me cry again. I will not. I don't want him to 
think that I'm weak.:: She wiped away the few tears 
that had managed to escape, as Doggett walked back 
into the room.

"Well, Dana, everything appears to be secure. It's 
getting late, so I guess I should get home."

"Are you sure you'll be okay to drive home, John?" 
::I could offer him the couch.::

Doggett nodded. "Yeah, I'll be okay. But you call 
Me, day or night, if you need anything at all, ok?" 

::Damn, man. Why didn't you say no, so you could stay?::
"You too, Dana. Good night."

Scully made sure to lock the door behind him. She 
still didn't feel quite safe, so she drug a kitchen 
chair over and placed it under the door knob. Then 
she sat down on the couch, too much on her mind to 
sleep. ::It's been 48 hours since my baby was taken. 
I don't think that Mulder is going to have any luck. 

So where does that leave me? My miracle is gone. 
Should I go back to work or find something else to 
do? I feel so lost, so drifting, so...alone. I wish 
Mulder were here for me to talk to. Although, we're 
just friends and partners. I was hoping that this 
baby would change things. But now? Who knows? I 
guess I'll have to wait and see how Mulder acts when 
he returns.::

~*~*~

Mulder looked around, but, as it was pitch black and 
raining, that didn't give him any clue to his 
surroundings. "Where are we?"

Krycek glanced over at Mulder. "Finally awake, hmmm? 
We're in Maine."

Mulder frowned, confused. "Why the heck are we in 
Maine?"

Krycek shrugged. "Probably on a wild goose chase. 
But the best information I can get, has him holed up 
near the Maine/Canada border."

"How far away are we?"

"Couple of hours."

Mulder nodded. "Let's get this over with." ::I want 
to get back to Scully. Now.::

~*~*~

Doggett rolled over and looked at his alarm clock: 
5:56 am. ::Well, at least I got most of a good 
night's sleep, before I had that nightmare again. 

Maybe I keep dreaming about Dana being dead, because 
she's come to mean so much to me? Because I'm afraid 
to lose the only person I've cared about, really 
cared about, since Luke?:: Doggett shook his head 
furiously. ::Stop trying to analyze your dreams! 
You're not a shrink and they probably don't mean 
anything anyway.:: Doggett sighed and headed for the 
shower. ::Time to start another day.::

~*~*~

Krycek pulled the car up in front of a cabin in the 
middle of the woods and stopped. Both he and Mulder 
got out, drawing their guns as they approached the 
cabin. It appeared deserted. Krycek motioned to 
Mulder. "I'll take the back," he said quietly. 

Mulder nodded to him and stopped at the front door. 
He knocked loudly.

"FBI!! COME OUT WITH YOUR HANDS UP!!" No answer.
Krycek came back around to the front. "There are no 
doors or windows on the back."

"What do you think?" Mulder asked. "Want to break 
the door down?"

Krycek smiled at this suggestion. "Why not?"

Mulder took a couple of steps back and kicked the 
door open. Krycek entered, gun leading. Mulder was 
close behind. There was no one in the cabin, and it
appeared no one had been there, for several hours.
"Damn," Mulder cursed under his breath. "How did he 
know we were coming?"

Krycek shook his head. "I don't know, but he left 
you a note." One piece of paper was on the kitchen 
table. It merely read: "Give up, Mulder. You won't 
find us."

Mulder turned the table over in his anger. "That 
bastard! I will find him!"

Krycek could only imagine what Mulder was feeling. 
::Dana Scully is an extremely special individual. And 
if I had a child with her, I'd walk to the ends of 
the earth for it.::

"So, Mulder, what now?" Krycek asked as casually as 
he could.

Mulder's eyes were ice cold as he turned to look at 
him. "We find them." 

Krycek shivered at the tone in Mulder's voice. 
And it took a lot to unnerve Alex Krycek.

~*~*~

Scully awoke to find the sun shining in her eyes. 
She sat up and looked around to discover she was in 
the living room. ::Why did I sleep in here?:: Then 
she remembered. ::I was too lonely to sleep in my 
room.:: She sat there thinking for another minute, 
unsure of what to do next. Suddenly she nodded. 
::Yes, that's what I'll do.:: She got up and headed 
for the shower.

~*~*~

At the same time, Agent Doggett was waiting to be 
seen by AD Skinner.

"Agent Doggett? He will see you now."

Doggett thanked the secretary and entered Skinner's 
office.

"Please be seated, Agent Doggett."

Doggett promptly sat down in front of Skinner's desk.
Skinner looked up from his work. "Have you spoken to 
Agent Scully this morning?"

"No, Sir. Have you?"

Skinner shook his head. "No, Agent Doggett, I 
haven't. But I heard from Agent Mulder. It appears 
that a man named Spender, also known as the Smoking 
Man, has taken Scully's child. I'm still not 
entirely sure how he came by that information. He 
said something about an unlikely source of help. I 
do know, that he's not having any luck finding him. 
This is our file on the Smoking Man, Doggett." 

Doggett picked up the file Skinner handed him. 
Skinner continued. "I'd like you to look over the 
information and see if you can come up with anything 
he or I may have missed."

"Yes, Sir." Doggett turned to leave, but stopped 
halfway and turned back around.

"Sir?"

"Yes, Agent Doggett?"

"Will you tell Scully about the call from Mulder?"

Skinner sighed. "No. Not yet."

Doggett nodded and closed the door behind him.

~*~*~

Dana Scully walked purposefully down the bright, 
deserted hallway. She was confident that she had 
made the right decision. ::It was a good idea last 
time. I'm sure it will be fine this time.::

Scully entered an office and seeing no one sitting at 
the secretary's desk, walked straight to the interior 
door and knocked.

"Come in," answered the man on the other side.
Scully walked in and sat in front of the man's desk. 

"Good morning, Sir."

Skinner looked up from the papers he'd been reading, 
startled. "Agent Scully! What are you doing here?"

"Nice to see you too, Sir," Scully said with a faint 
smile. "I'm here because I'd like to return to 
work."

"Already?" Skinner was visibly shocked.

"Yes, sir. I've been thinking about it and I think 
that if I stay home, I'll dwell on it and become 
depressed. Work was the best thing for me while 
Mulder was missing and I think it will be the best 
thing for me now." Scully set her mouth in a 
determined line and gave Skinner a look.

Skinner was visibly unnerved by the look Scully was 
giving him. He tried to maintain his composure. He 
cleared his throat. "Well, Agent Scully, if you 
think it's the right thing to do, then feel free to 
go back to work. But please, if it doesn't work and 
you need time off, come ask." ::Now, Walter. Now is 
the time to tell her about Mulder's call.::

"Thank you, Sir." Scully stood and turned to leave.

"Agent Scully..." ::No! I can't tell her. Not now. 
The timing isn't right.::

"Yes Sir?"

::Quick, think of something!:: "Be careful, Agent 
Scully."

"I will." Scully closed the door quietly behind her. 
Skinner put his head in his hands and said a quick 
prayer.

Scully leaned back again the door to Skinner's office 
and sighed. She had been very confident in front of 
Skinner, but now she was having second thoughts. 
::No. I can do this.:: She walked away from Skinner's 
office and headed towards the basement.

~*~*~

Doggett looked up, startled, as someone walked into the 
basement office he thought was, probably, the best 
place for him to be working...since he didn't have an 
office of his own anymore. Seeing it was Scully, he 
quickly shoved the file he was reading in a pile of 
papers. ::If Skinner didn't tell her about the 
Smoking Man, I'm not going to!:: He quickly stood. 

"Good morning, Scu---Dana."

Scully smiled as Doggett stumbled over what to call 
her. "Good morning John."

Doggett cleared his throat, slightly unnerved at 
Scully's sudden appearance. "So, Dana, what are you 
doing down here? Is everything ok?"

"Everything is as 'ok' as it can be John. I haven't 
heard anything from Mulder yet, so I know he doesn't 
have any information for me. I needed something to 
distract me, so I decided to come back to work."

Doggett looked concerned. "Does Skinner know?"

"Yes, and he's ok with me being back at work." 
They were both silent for a moment.

"So, John, what are we working on?" Scully looked at 
him expectantly.

"Working on?" ::Think fast John!:: "Uh, actually, I 
was just going through all of the papers on Mulder's 
desk seeing if I could put them into any sort of 
order."

Scully looked at Doggett skeptically, one eyebrow 
raised. ::Right. If he's organizing files, why did 
he just shove whatever he was reading into the middle 
of a pile?:: "So, what are you hiding from me John?"

Doggett's eyes opened wide. "What makes you think 
I'm hiding something?" ::How does she know I'm 
hiding something from her?::

"Is it really necessary, that I explain how I know 
you're hiding something from me?"

Doggett shook his head. "No, not really. Listen, 
Dana...have you talked to Skinner about your case 
today?" Doggett asked, desperately stalling for 
time.

Scully frowned. "No. Why? John, if you know 
something, you'd better tell me."

"Dana, I really think that you should talk to Skinner 
about this."

"Oh, I will." Scully gave him one of those looks 
that could bring men to their knees. "But you're 
going to tell me what you know...now." 

Doggett sighed and avoided Scully's glare. He knew 
that he was beat. "Scully, do you know a man named 
C.G.B. Spender?"

Scully gasped, her blue eyes widening. "The Smoking 
Man? What does he have to do with my case?"

"You have to realize that what I'm telling you is 
third-hand information, ok? Mulder apparently has an 
informant who told him this Smoking Man has your 
baby. Mulder called Skinner and told him and Skinner 
confided in me this morning. That's all I know. I 
swear. I was just reading Spender's file when you 
came in, trying to get an understanding of him."

Scully stood and began pacing the office in her 
frustration. "And why were you all keeping it from 
me? We are talking about MY child here! Of all 
people, John Doggett, I never ever expected you to 
keep things from me." ::Unbelievable. I just can't 
believe this.:: Scully marched towards the door.

Doggett stood. "Dana? Where are you going?"

"I'm going to see Skinner, Agent Doggett." Scully 
slammed the door on her way out.

Doggett sank back down in the chair. ::Shit. Of all 
the stupid, nitwit things to do! Why didn't you just 
tell her the truth from the beginning? You know how 
important trust is to her and you may have shattered 
that trust forever. You idiot.:: 

Doggett shook his head and pulled the Smoking Man 
file back towards him, hoping to lose himself in his 
work. ::I hope she's right about work being a 
distraction.::

~*~*~

Scully marched right past Skinner's assistant, who was 
shouting after her. "Agent Scully, you can't go in 
there! Agent Scully---"

Scully slammed Skinner's door shut behind her. 
Skinner was on the phone. "I'll have to call you 
back," he said calmly as he hung up.

"Dana. What can I do for you?"

Scully took a deep breath before opening her mouth. 
::Ok, I could yell at John and get away with it, but 
I probably shouldn't yell at my boss.:: "Well, 
Walter, I'll tell you why I'm here. I'm here because 
I found out you're withholding information about my 
case from me."

Skinner sighed. ::I should have known that she'd 
find out. Why didn't I just tell her when she was up 
here earlier?::

"Have a seat, Dana. You're right...I was keeping it 
from you, because I wasn't sure how or when to tell 
you. I didn't have much information...I still don't. 
All I know, is that Mulder called and said that he had 
an unlikely source of information that told him, that 
Spender had your baby. That's all he would say and 
then he hung up. I'm sorry. I should have told you 
earlier."

Scully sat listening to Skinner, quietly. ::He's 
right of course. I'm just so worried, not only about 
my child, but also about Mulder.:: "I'm sorry, Sir. 
You're right. Just please, next time don't keep 
anything from me. I can take it. Not knowing, is 
going to be worse, than knowing."

Skinner nodded. "I promise, Dana, next time I hear 
something I'll tell you. For now, why don't you go 
ahead and go back to work."

"Ok. Thank you, Sir, for not yelling at me for 
busting in here like that."

Scully turned and left, Skinner staring after her, 
hoping that everything would work out.

~*~*~

Mulder dropped his bag on the floor of the room he 
was going to be sharing with Krycek for the night and 
plopped on his bed. He had no idea where they were. 
He knew that they were in the Midwest somewhere, but 
he'd let Krycek drive for awhile, so he wasn't sure 
where they'd stopped. He didn't really care though. 
All he wanted to do was find the Smoking Man, beat 
him senseless, and take Scully's baby home to her. 
That wasn't too much to ask, was it?

Mulder looked over at Krycek who was lying on the 
other bed, reading through some information he got 
from somewhere. ::What am I doing trusting this 
guy? After all he's done to my family and Scully's 
family, here I am letting him call the shots? Why?::

"So, why did you believe me, Mulder?" Krycek asked, 
still reading his papers.

Mulder was startled. ::Can he read my mind?::

"Well, you know me, Krycek, I always believe the 
unbelievable."

Krycek laughed. "That's true. It's good to know 
that you haven't changed."

Mulder nodded. "You're right...in that regard, I 
haven't. What about you, Krycek? Tell me what 
you've been doing since you left the Bureau."

Krycek sighed. ::How much do I reveal?:: "Basically 
Mulder, I worked for Spender. For awhile. I screwed 
up by betraying you and Scully in the first place. 
Since I had already lost your trust, I decided to 
keep working for Spender and gathering information. 
I thought that, if I knew what was going on, I could 
protect the two of you. Unfortunately, that didn't 
work too well in this instance. Anyway, I stopped 
working for Spender about a year ago. I got tired of 
all the bullshit. I kept some of my contacts, so I could 
get information now and then, but I basically went 
into hiding. I didn't want to be involved in 
anything. I bought a cabin in the woods out west and 
I spend a lot of time there, trying to decide what I 
should do with my life." ::Not that I'm really ever 
at the cabin, I'm usually hanging at her apartment. 
It's just so relaxing being there, being supported by 
someone who cares so much.::

Mulder's eyes widened. ::Wow. Impressive story. I 
don't know if I should believe him or not. It does 
sound sincere. Well...I guess we'll just see how 
things go.::

Both men were quiet then, staring off into space, 
thinking their own thoughts.

~*~*~

Miles away, another man, was doing some thinking of his 
own. He looked down into the crib he was standing 
over. Inside was a beautiful baby girl with red hair 
and hazel eyes. The man couldn't help but smile, as 
he watched the girl sleep. He reached down and 
stroked the child's hair. ::Sleep well, sweet 
Samantha.:: He turned and went outside to have a 
cigarette.

~*~*~

Scully hadn't gone back to work like she was supposed 
to, after leaving Skinner's office. Instead, she got 
out of the building, as fast as she could, and just 
started walking. She was so angry that she needed 
someway to work it off. ::I know that they're only 
trying to protect me by keeping things from me, but 
it makes me so mad! I can deal with things better if 
I can meet them head-on.:: She kept walking, headed 
towards her apartment now. ::I think I'm maddest 
about John not telling me. Or maybe I'm just mad at 
myself for having come to trust him and to depend on 
him. Well, I can be independent. I don't need to 
depend on anyone.:: She thought, defiantly, as she 
unlocked her apartment door. She flung her coat 
across the back of the couch and was walking towards 
her bathroom to shower, when she noticed the light on 
her answering machine was blinking. A jumble of 
thoughts raced through her mind. ::Skinner? 
Doggett? Mulder? Oh God, let it be Mulder. Let him 
have good news.:: She quickly pushed the PLAY 
button.

"Dana. It's your mother. I'm afraid I have some bad 
news...." ::She sounds like she's been crying. I 
wonder what's wrong?:: "...Your brother Bill was 
coming out here to see us today. He was killed in a 
car accident. Dana, please call me when you get this 
message...." Margaret Scully was openly crying into 
the phone now. "...I love you."

Scully stood frozen to the spot, staring at the 
machine in complete shock.

~*~*~

Two days later, on a warm sunny afternoon, Scully 
stood next to her mother in a Virginia cemetery, 
listening to the priest talk about how Bill was in a 
better place now. Scully stared down at the casket, 
tears running silently down her face, her blue eyes 
sad and distant.

::First my child and now Bill. They say bad things 
come in threes. Who's next?:: Her thoughts flew to 
Mulder, then just as quickly, shifted to Doggett. She 
looked around the cemetery. Many of her friends from 
the Bureau were there, but not Doggett. Scully had 
hoped that he would be there. ::He must be afraid 
that I'm still mad at him, since I haven't spoken to 
him since our argument.:: Scully looked back down at 
the casket, wishing with all her heart that she had 
someone to comfort her.

John Doggett stood back 50 yards or so from the group 
gathered around Bill Scully's grave. He still wasn't 
sure if he should approach Scully or not. ::What if 
she's still mad and refuses to speak to me?:: He 
thought. But then there was an answer from that 
nagging inner voice. ::She's had too much tragedy, to 
be angry over a stupid argument now. She needs 
someone to lean on, someone to comfort her. Be there 
for her John.:: Doggett stood there for another 
moment, still unsure, before he began moving forward.

The mourners were beginning to leave. Scully knew it 
was time to go. ::No. Not yet. I don't want to say 
goodbye yet.:: Scully felt her mother's hand on her 
arm, urging her to leave. Scully shrugged her 
mother's hand off. "Give me a minute, Mom," she 
pleaded quietly, her blue eyes still shining with 
tears. Her mother nodded and headed towards the car. 
Scully closed her eyes, praying for her brother, 
remembering all the time she'd spent with him, saying 
goodbye in her own way.

Doggett stopped a few feet behind Scully. He didn't 
want to interrupt what appeared to be a private 
moment. He watched her crumble a handful of dirt 
over her brother's grave.

Scully stood and turned around, then saw him standing 
there. "John?" ::He came after all?::

Doggett thought that, maybe, he saw something in her 
eyes when she spoke his name. ::Or, maybe, it's just 
wishful thinking?:: "Dana. I'm so sorry."

Scully nodded and tried to hold back her tears. She 
was unsuccessful.

Doggett was unsure what to say, so he just held out 
his arms, remembering how he'd comforted her in the 
hospital.

Scully gratefully stepped into his embrace, needing 
to be comforted by him.

~*~*~

Scully woke early the next morning to the sound of a 
phone ringing. She picked up her cordless, only to 
realize it was her cell phone ringing. She walked 
over to her dresser to pick up her cell phone, 
looking at the clock on the way: 6 am. 

::Dear God, please don't let it be more bad news.:: 
She prayed, as she answered the phone. "Scully."

"Scully, it's me. I just heard about Bill. I am so 
sorry."

She could have cried with relief at hearing Mulder's 
voice.

"How are you holding up?" He asked. "Do you need me 
to come back and be with you?"

Scully's tears began to fall upon hearing the 
compassion and caring in Mulder's voice. "I'm ok 
Mulder. You don't have to come back. I appreciate 
the offer, I really do, but I need to have you 
working my case."

Mulder nodded, even though she couldn't see him. He 
understood. He just missed her so much. He wanted 
to be with her.

Something suddenly occurred to Scully. "Speaking of 
my case, Mulder, I want to know. Who is your 
informant?"

Mulder cleared his throat. He'd really been hoping 
that she wouldn't ask that question. "Um, actually 
Scully, it's Krycek."

His announcement was met with shocked silence on the 
other end of the phone. "Scully?" He was worried at 
the silence. ::I knew I shouldn't have told her!::

"Krycek, Mulder? Alex Krycek? Why? How do you know 
he's not involved? Maybe he's feeding you false 
information to keep you from the truth!" Mulder 
could hear the anger in Scully's voice.

"I know, Scully, I know. Believe me, I don't like 
this anymore than you do. But at this point, he's 
the only lead I've got. Don't worry. I will find 
your baby."

Scully sighed. She knew there was no arguing with 
Mulder. "Be careful, Mulder, ok?"

"You bet, Scully. Look, I gotta go. We're heading 
out. Call me if you need me, ok?"

"I will. Bye Mulder." Scully looked at the phone 
sadly, as she hung it up.

Scully went over to her bed and crawled back under 
the covers, hoping against hope, that she'd be able to 
fall asleep. But her mind wouldn't let her. ::What 
have I done to deserve this? I've tried to always 
live by the book, play by the rules, be fair to 
everyone and look at what it's got me...Nothing! I 
have a job that I could lose if I tick the wrong 
person off, no one to come home to at night, no 
child...nothing. It's not fair!!:: Scully turned over 
and buried her face in the pillows, allowing the tears 
that she'd been fighting for so long, to flow freely, 
crying until she exhausted herself to sleep.

~*~*~

Scully was dreaming. She had pulled her car up in 
front of a beautiful old home with a large porch. 
There were flowers all over the front yard and a 
white picket fence. There was a child's playground 
set up next to the basketball hoop. She knew that 
this was her house. She got out of the car and 
walked towards the front door. A man opened it as 
she came up onto the porch and held his arms out to 
her. 

"Welcome home, Dana." He whispered, as she 
returned his embrace. "Mommy! Mommy!" yelled the 
little girl, who came racing down the hall towards 
her. "Hi, Sweetie! How are you?" She asked, as she 
scooped the little girl up.

Then her alarm clock went off.

Scully rolled over and turned it off, looking at the 
time as she did: 8:00 am. Scully lay in bed for 
another minute thinking of her dream, then got up to 
make coffee. She sat at the kitchen table with her 
cup, staring off into space. She was thinking about 
how precious life was, how she wished she had a 
normal life and someone to share it with.

~*~*~

Someone else was also thinking, about how nice it 
would be, to have a normal life. John Doggett was 
sitting on the front porch of his home, drinking his 
coffee, and reflecting on his past. Being so close 
to Scully, seeing her pregnant, had brought back so 
many memories for him. Memories of a time when he 
was in love and felt like he was on top of the world. 

Memories of being a father, having someone who loved 
him unconditionally. And memories of the day it had 
ended. The day he found Luke and knew he could never 
have his son back. His wife had left shortly after 
that. His whole world had collapsed on his head. 
He'd thrown himself into his work, anything to 
escape. And now? ::Look at the years I've wasted by 
drowning myself in my work. The chances I've passed 
up, the opportunities I've lost.:: Doggett sighed. 

For days, he'd been struggling, over whether or not he 
should tell Scully how he felt. He wanted to tell 
her now, but he was afraid it was too soon and she 
would reject him. He knew how she felt right now and 
knew how easy it was to make irrational decisions in 
this situation. But he also knew how precious each 
day was and was scared that if he waited his chance 
would be gone forever. "What should I do?" Doggett 
asked himself out loud. He shook his head and stood 
to answer the ringing phone.

"John Doggett."

"John. Hi. It's Dana," a voice said softly.

Doggett's smile could have lit an entire stadium. 
"Good morning, Dana. Everything ok?" ::Duh. Of 
course everything isn't ok. But what else should I 
say to her?::

"No. Everything isn't ok. I was just sitting here 
thinking about everything and I needed someone to 
talk to, and I didn't know whom else to call. I 
just-"

John interrupted her, speaking softly and soothingly. 
"It's ok, Dana. I know how you're feeling. I'm glad 
that you called me to talk about it, instead of 
keeping things bottled up inside you. When I lost 
Luke, I was unable to talk...to anyone, not even my 
wife. I was so angry...with the world, with God, with 
the man who took my son. But even more than that, I 
was angry with myself. I should have been there for 
him. I should have been able to protect him. He was 
my son."

Dana was truly touched, not only by the emotional 
undercurrent raging in John's voice, but also by the 
very fact that he had confided in her. She knew that 
this was a part of his life that he hardly ever 
discussed with anyone. 

They were both quiet for a moment. Dana was unsure 
what to say, what words to use, to tell him how much 
it meant to her, for him to confide in her. She 
wanted to tell him how grateful she was to have him 
to talk to, but the words seemed stuck in her throat.
On the other end of the phone, John was thinking back 
to the time when he lost Luke. He thought back to 
the week he had spent locked in his house, with the 
phone unplugged. He didn't remember much of it. 

He'd spent too much of that time drunk. He'd been so 
angry and hadn't known how to deal. He remembered 
how Monica had come and broken in his front door and 
told him that enough was enough. She had dragged him 
out of the house, forced him to get over his misery. 
And it had worked. She had made him realize that he 
wasn't in it alone, that people were there for 
him...that life was worth living. And he wanted to be 
there like that for Dana, more than anything in the 
world. 

John broke the silence. "If you aren't doing 
anything today, Dana, maybe you'd like to get out of 
the house and spend some time together."

"John, you don't have to give up your weekend to 
spend time with me. I'll be ok. I'll read or watch 
some TV or something." As much as she wanted to 
spend time with him, she didn't want him to feel like 
he had to.

Doggett shook his head on the other end of the phone. 
::God, she is so independent sometimes. How am I 
going to get through to her?:: He looked out the 
window. It was a beautiful day outside, bright and 
sunny. The kind of day to show Scully that life is 
still worth living. "Actually, Dana, I was thinking 
of going to a park today. And it would be a lot more 
fun if I had someone to go with me. When I start 
talking to myself in public places, people kind of 
look at me funny."

Scully smiled. ::Trust John to make me feel better.::
"Well, we wouldn't want people thinking the FBI 
hires lunatics, now would we? Should I meet you 
there?"

"I'll come and pick you up. How does an hour sound?"
"I think I can be ready in an hour." 

They both hung up, bright smiles on their faces.

Scully hurried to get ready, her mood already 
brightened by the prospect of spending a day outside 
of her apartment...a day with John Doggett.

~*~*~

True to his word, John pulled up in front of Dana's 
apartment building exactly 59 minutes later. Dana 
laughed, as she came out the front door. "You're a 
minute early." 

John couldn't help but smile at her good mood. 
"Yes, well, guess that gives us more time to spend 
together. Come here." 

Dana walked over to John wondering what this was 
about.

"Where we are going today, Dana, is a surprise. So 
you either have to promise to keep your eyes shut the 
entire time or I'm going to have to blindfold you. 
OK?"

Dana giggled, looking younger and probably the most 
alive that John had ever seen her.. "Ok, I'll keep 
my eyes closed. No need to blindfold me."

"All right then, let's go." John took her hand and 
helped her up into his truck before going around and 
getting in on his side. He looked at her, as he 
started the truck. She was watching him intently, 
her blue eyes alight with happiness. He tried to 
look sternly at her. "Close your eyes, Dana." She 
laughed at him trying to be stern, knowing that it 
was all a show, but leaned back and closed her eyes, 
hoping that the ride wouldn't be very long. ::Where 
in the world is he really taking me?::

~*~*~

They had been driving for so long that Dana had 
actually fallen asleep. About 3 hours after they had 
left her apartment, John pulled the truck to a stop. 
He looked at where they were and prayed that she 
would like the surprise. He glanced over at her 
sleeping, her head resting against the window. ::She 
is so beautiful.:: John reached over and gently 
touched her arm. Immediately she was awake and, of 
course, forgot to keep her eyes shut. 

"John, where are we?"

"Jersey." He couldn't help but smile. She hadn't 
seen the sign for the "park" yet.

"Jersey. Why are we in Jersey?"

"Well...I said I'd take you to a park." With that, he 
pointed at the sign.

Dana read the sign out loud. "Six Flags Great 
Adventure? John?"

He had to laugh. "Well...I didn't say I was taking you 
to a normal park."

She started smiling. ::An amusement park? Oh my 
God! I haven't been to one of these in forever. I 
can't believe that he drove all the way to Jersey 
just to take me to an amusement park!::

Dana turned and looked at him, excitement flashing in 
her bright blue eyes. "Well, let's go! I haven't 
been to one of these since I was a kid."

They got out of the truck and she grabbed his hand, 
eagerly pulling him along behind her through the 
gates that marked the entrance to the park.

~*~*~

It was mid-afternoon and they'd stopped to get some 
ice cream. They were sitting on the bench, each too 
busy trying to eat their ice cream before it melted 
to say anything. Doggett couldn't stop grinning. He 
could not remember the last time he had had this much 
fun. Scully's enthusiasm had been contagious. They 
had ridden almost every ride possible. Scully wanted 
to go on the water rides after they ate their ice 
cream. John really didn't care for water rides, but 
he knew he couldn't tell her no, so he had resigned 
himself to the idea.

After they finished their ice cream, they sat on the 
park bench for another minute. John reached over and 
took Dana's hand in his. She looked at him, surprise 
evident in her eyes. He wondered if he was making a 
mistake, but she scooted closer to him on the bench 
before pulling her hand back so she could reach for 
the park map to check out the water rides. 

"So, John," she began as she leaned her head back 
into the crook of his arm, "It looks like there are 6 
water rides in the park. I think we should start 
with the Tidal Wave. What do you think?" Dana 
looked up at him and smiled at the look of 
resignation on his face. He had told her earlier 
that he didn't want to go on the water rides, but she 
was hoping to talk him out of it. "Unless, of 
course, you'd rather not ride them? I'm sure that I 
could find someone in line who wouldn't mind sitting 
next to me on the rides." 

John tightened his arm protectively around her. 
::Over my dead body!:: He sighed. "No, I don't think 
that's necessary. I'll ride the water rides with 
you."

Dana jumped up, her face showing pure happiness. 
"Let's go! It's right over here."

John grinned as he stood up and followed her over to 
the ride. ::Maybe this will be fun after all.::

It was. The ride was a blast. It was like riding a 
roller coaster in the water. By the time they got 
off the ride, they were both completely soaked. Dana 
stood next to the ride wringing the water out of her 
hair, John trying to shake the water out of his eyes, 
when they noticed people were staring at them and 
pointing. Trying to figure out what was going on, 
John looked down at Dana. He almost couldn't stop 
himself from laughing. She had a white T-shirt on. 
Dana followed John's glance and her face immediately 
went bright red as she turned and tried to hide 
herself from view. 

"Oh my God. I can't believe I didn't think of this 
before getting on that ride!" John tried not to 
grin, as she was so obviously embarrassed. He had a 
long sleeve shirt tied around his waist, so he took 
it off and handed it to her. 

"Here. Put this on. It should help."

Dana looked up at him gratefully. "Thanks, John." She 
Said, as she quickly wrapped his shirt around her. 

She couldn't help but notice, as she put it on, that it 
smelled of him. ::Maybe I'll have to forget to give 
his shirt back to him.:: She could still feel people 
looking at her and thought that perhaps it was time to 
go. The park was going to be closing soon anyway. 
Scully looped her arm through John's and looked up at 
him. "I think I've ridden enough rides for today. 
How about you?"

John smiled down at her. "Sounds good to me. Why 
don't we go get something to eat before we head 
home?"

Dana nodded and they walked out of the park arm in 
arm.

~*~*~

It was evening and they'd gone to a fast food 
restaurant to get some burgers and were sitting 
outside on a bench eating them. 

"John?" He turned to look at her.

"Hmm?" He asked inquisitively.

On impulse she reached over and hugged him tightly. 
"Thank you for today. It was exactly what I needed."

He wrapped his arms around her and held on tight, for 
as long as she would let him. It felt so right. 

"You're welcome Dana." They finished the rest of 
their meal in companionable silence then got back on 
the road. It was late when they got back to her 
place.

Dana looked at him, unsure of herself all of a 
sudden. ::Was this a date? Do I invite him up? Or 
do I tell him I had a nice time and I'll see him 
later?:: She sat there for so long that John got out 
of the truck and went around to her door, opening it 
for her. "C'mon. I'll walk you upstairs."

She took his hand, still unsure of what to say, and 
let him lead her up the stairs. At her door they 
both paused. He was as afraid as she was, of making 
the wrong move. Preferring to err on the side of 
caution, he bent down and kissed her lightly on the 
cheek. "Good night, Dana."

She smiled at him, glad that she hadn't had to make a 
decision. "Good night, John."

He gave her hand a squeeze and turned and walked 
away.

~*~*~

John knew that Christmas would be a lonely time for 
Dana. It was a holiday that had failed to be 
enjoyable for him since Luke had died. He knew that 
she was supposed to go to her mother's house, but 
that she didn't want to have to endure questions 
about Mulder, whom she hadn't heard from since 
August, or her still missing child. And so, John came 
up with a plan. He'd invite her to spend Christmas 
at his house. It would be just the two of them, 
drinking cocoa and watching old movies. They'd 
become close friends since their trip to Jersey, but 
things hadn't progressed any farther than that. John 
was hoping things would change soon.

It was about a week before Christmas and John and 
Dana were in the office finishing up their report for 
the last case they'd worked. It had been about 
children being murdered and it had been very tough on 
both of them. They'd finished the first part of the 
report and were sitting, taking a break, lost in 
thought, before writing down their conclusions.

John broke the silence. "Dana?"

She looked up. "Yes?"

"I was wondering...I know this is short notice, but 
would you like to spend Christmas with me? It won't 
be anything fancy. Just you and me, watching TV and 
drinking cocoa. What do you say?" He looked at her 
hopefully.

Dana just sat there, with her mouth open slightly. 
They had been spending more time together outside of 
work since their trip to Six Flags. In the fall, 
she'd helped him plant flowers for the following 
spring, so his yard wouldn't look so much like a 
"Marine's yard," as he'd called it. Then he'd gone 
with her to help her buy a car. And just last week 
he'd helped her pack up the nursery and turn it into 
a guest bedroom. 

::Well...I'd rather spend Christmas 
with John than with my family this year. At least 
with him, there won't be any pressure or 
uncomfortable questions. I'm sure my mom will 
understand.:: She looked back up at John, who was 
still watching her expectantly. "I'll bring 
dessert." 

John let out the breath he hadn't known 
that he'd been holding.

 "Great. How does noon sound?" 

She smiled. "That's fine with me." 

Grinning widely, they both returned to finishing up 
their report.

Christmas morning, Dana woke up bright and early. She 
almost felt like a kid again, she was so excited 
about going over to John's house. She was hoping 
that maybe today, she'd get up the courage to tell 
John about her feelings for him. It had taken her a 
long time to admit her feelings. Before she'd been 
able to admit them, she'd had to let go of Mulder. 

It had been a very hard battle, but finally she was 
at peace with the fact that he and her child were 
probably gone from her life forever. She had given 
up hope sometime after Thanksgiving. She hadn't 
heard from Mulder for 3 whole months by then. She and 
John had spent an entire week in October doing 
nothing but trying to track Mulder, Krycek or Spender 
and had come up completely empty-handed. Even 
Skinner seemed to have given up hope.

~*~*~

Shortly after 11, Dana got into her car and headed 
over to John's house. She had had no idea what to 
get him for Christmas and so had fallen back on the 
standard "what to get any guy for Christmas": 
clothes. She had knitted him a dark blue sweater 
that she thought would complement his eyes. It had 
been ages since she'd knitted, but she thought that 
it had turned out all right, if she did say so 
herself.

John met her at the door with a cup of cocoa. He 
kissed her lightly on the cheek. "Merry Christmas, 
Dana."

She grinned as she took the cocoa, one of her 
favorite things ever. "Merry Christmas to you too, 
John." He was wearing a Santa Hat and an apron that 
said, "Kiss the Cook." ::He always knows what to do 
to lift my mood.::

She pulled out her gift for him, from behind her 
back. "Where should I put this?" 

"In here," he replied as he led her into the living 
room. There was a fire crackling in the fireplace 
and he had set up an enormous tree by the front 
window.

"John it's gorgeous!" she exclaimed pointing at the 
tree. 

He blushed, slightly embarrassed at the attention. 
"Why don't you sit in here and relax, while I finish 
up our meal?"

She nodded and sat down on the couch so that she 
could watch the fire as she sipped her cocoa. A few 
minutes later she heard John call out from the dining 
room. "Dinner!"

Dana gasped when she got to the doorway. The table 
had a white lace tablecloth and lit candles on it. 
John had also strung white Christmas lights around 
the room giving it an ethereal glow. "Wow," she 
whispered.

He walked to the table and pulled out a chair. "Your 
dinner awaits, Madam." She smiled, as she walked over 
to the offered seat. The meal looked wonderful. He 
had made baked ham, sweet potatoes, and green bean 
casserole. She had brought banana pudding for 
dessert.

After the meal, they decided to go back into the 
living room to open gifts. They both sat on the 
couch, sitting close together, but not quite 
touching. After some friendly arguing over who would 
go first, Dana finally convinced John to open his 
present. He unwrapped his gift slowly, knowing that 
she was anxious to see his reaction. When he pulled 
the lid off, his mouth dropped open. "My God, Dana, 
it's wonderful," he said as he pulled the sweater 
out. "Did you make this?"

Now it was Dana's turn to blush. "Yeah, I did," she 
whispered softly.

He looked at her, love shining clearly in his eyes. 
"This is the best present I've ever received." Then 
he pulled a small rectangular box from behind his 
back. "Now, you open mine." He wasn't sure how she 
was going to react to what he had bought.

Now it was her turn to prolong the suspense, by slowly 
taking the bow and paper off the box. She was 
surprised to see that she had unwrapped a velvet 
jewelry box. She opened the lid and gasped. Inside 
was a sapphire and silver bracelet. In the middle of 
it were silver letters spelling "I LOVE YOU." She 
lifted it out of the box and put it on her wrist and 
then just stared at it sitting there, glimmering on 
her arm. Nobody had ever given her anything like 
this before, in her entire life. It made her feel 
special...and beautiful.

John was watching her expectantly. ::Oh God, why 
doesn't she say anything? She hates it. I know she 
does.::

When she looked up at John again, there were tears 
shimmering in her eyes. Finally she broke the 
silence.

"I love you too," she whispered as she leaned over 
and wrapped her arms around him.

~*~*~

January 2, 2002

Agent John Doggett walked down the dim corridor to 
his basement hallway, whistling softly as he went. 
He was remembering the week after Christmas, in 
particular the conversation that he and Scully had 
had regarding Mulder. Doggett had been afraid to 
believe that Scully really loved him, until this 
conversation. 

They'd been sitting on the couch at Doggett's house, 
listening to the fire crackle in the fireplace. It 
was snowing softly outside and it was very cozy to be 
sitting in front of a warm fire. Scully had asked 
John about his past and he'd been telling her about 
the time when Luke had died and then his wife had 
left him. Doggett decided that it was now or never 
and so he asked her, "What about Mulder?"

Scully had looked up at him, surprise and slight 
confusion evident in her eyes. She had thought that 
Doggett had believed that she loved him, but then she 
did understand. After all, it had been obvious that 
she'd been in love with Mulder. It was natural for 
him to want to be reassured that she was over Mulder.
"What do you want to know, John?"

"What about your feelings for Mulder?" Hope and fear 
were waging a battle in Doggett's blue eyes, as he 
looked down at her.

Scully reached over and took Doggett's hand. "I will 
always have feelings for Mulder, John. He was the 
center of my life for many, many, years. He was also 
the father of my child." A look of sadness crossed 
Scully's face as she mentioned the child that she had 
never seen. "But I've come to terms with that. I 
realize that Mulder will probably never return...and if 
he did, he's not ready to settle down. I love him 
dearly, but I need more than he could have ever 
offered me. I need you, John Doggett. I need your 
strength and your stability. I will always love 
Mulder, but you're the one I want to be with." She 
reached up and pushed a lock of hair away from his 
forehead. "I love you," she whispered.

He leaned back and looked into her eyes. He could 
see the love shining from her eyes and knew she was 
telling the truth. It wasn't that he doubted that 
she loved him, he just needed to hear it from her. 
He needed to know that Mulder was no longer a threat 
to him. Looking down at her, it dawned on him that 
he wanted to spend the rest of his life with this 
woman. He slowly leaned forward until his lips 
brushed hers. She wrapped her arms around his neck 
and pulled him closer, deepening the kiss.

With a shake of his head, Doggett realized that he was 
getting bothered by his memory and should stop there, 
since he had to go to work and be professional now. 
He reached for the keys in his pocket, so that he 
could unlock the door to his office, when he noticed 
that there was a piece of paper taped to the door. 
Frowning, he reached up and tore it down when he saw 
that it had his name on it. He opened his office 
door and carried the piece of paper over to his desk. 
He sat down and took the lid off his coffee cup to 
let it cool a bit before opening the note. There 
were only three lines to the letter:

My office.
9 am.
AD Skinner.

Doggett stared at the letter, as if he could get more 
meaning from those three lines. Hearing someone walk 
down the hallway towards his office, he quickly 
stuffed the note in the pocket of his jacket and 
pulled a file towards him.

~*~*~

Agent Dana Scully was in a great mood, as she made her 
way to the office for her first day of work since 
Christmas. ::Ah Christmas.:: She thought with a smile 
on her face. Christmas this year had been wonderful. 
It seemed as if maybe things were finally going to 
work out. Her relationship with John seemed to be 
getting off to a great start. They had spent most of 
the week together, alternating between spending time 
at his house or her apartment. And they had talked 
the entire time...about anything and everything. ::It 
was great. I could be myself and I didn't have to 
worry about defending my point of view, or Mulder 
interrupting me with his new great theory. And I 
didn't have to talk about aliens or doppelgangers or 
headless magicians. We talked about normal, ordinary 
stuff, like the price of gas and politics in Asia and 
the economy.:: Scully smiled, as she stepped off the 
elevator into the basement hallway. She felt 
something brush against her wrist and glanced down at 
the bracelet John had given her. ::I think this past 
Christmas was the best one ever.::

She opened the office door and saw Doggett sitting at 
his desk, feet propped up, reading a file. She had a 
fleeting memory of seeing Mulder sit like that, so 
many times, and shrugged off the twinge of guilt that 
she felt, as she sat down at her desk, the one that 
had been their Christmas present from Skinner. 

"Morning, John." She greeted as she pulled her coffee 
towards her, to warm her chilled fingers.

He looked up and smiled at her. "Morning, Dana."

"So what're we doing today?"

"Well...I've got about 6 files for us to go through...Man 
found at bottom of lake, woman who sees death, you 
know, the usual." 

Scully raised an eyebrow at his tone of voice.
"Anyway, why don't you take half and I'll take half 
and see if any are worth our time."

Scully nodded. "Sure, why not. Give me the 
interesting ones, ok?"

It was Doggett's turn to raise his eyebrows. "But I 
thought all the cases sent to this office were 
interesting ones?"

Scully laughed and took the files he held out to her. 
"Whatever," she replied as she settled back and began 
reading.

~*~*~

A short time later, Doggett set down the file that he 
was reading and sighed. ::Almost time for that 
meeting with Skinner. I wonder what the heck this is 
all about.::

Scully looked up at him from the file she was 
reading. "Everything ok, John?"

Doggett nodded, wondering briefly if he should tell 
her where he was going. Remembering what had 
happened last time he had kept something from her, he 
decided he'd better tell her. He just thought he'd 
put it off for a little bit longer. "Find anything 
interesting to read there, Dana?"

She smirked at him. "Well I was reading about the 
man who was found at the bottom of the lake. It was 
kind of interesting, that even though he'd been there 
for about two weeks, he never floated to the top, 
even though he wasn't being held down by anything. 
But well, I hate autopsying bodies that have been in 
the water for that long. So we'll put that in the 
'To be investigated when there is nothing else to do 
file'" She said, as she shoved it in the bottom desk 
drawer which was already overstuffed with files. She 
picked up another file and held it up in the air. 

"This one, on the other hand, is much more 
interesting. It's about a little 9 year old girl who 
claims that she sees dead people."

Doggett snorted. "Sounds like a good movie plot to 
me."

Scully grinned at that. It did, after all. "Yeah, 
I'll agree with you there. However, I wouldn't have 
to do any autopsies for this case. And well...the kid 
lives in Maui, so I think we should go."

Doggett stood up to go to his meeting, immediately 
knowing he would be preoccupied by thoughts of Dana, 
in a bikini, on the beach. He cleared his throat. 

"Well, unless you find something more interesting in 
those other files, I'm all for going to Maui. But 
right now I have a meeting with Skinner to attend."

Scully frowned, confusion evident in her blue eyes. 
"A meeting with Skinner? About what?"

Doggett shrugged, plainly as confused as Scully. "I 
have no idea. I found this note on the door 
when I opened the office this morning." He explained, 
as he took the note from his jacket pocket and handed 
it over for her to examine.

Her brow furrowed, as she looked at it, but she didn't 
get any hidden meaning from reading it. "Do you want 
me to go with you? What if it's about my case?" she 
asked.

"If it's about your case, I'll call down to the 
office and have you come up, ok? So while you're 
waiting, how about making those travel plans to 
Maui?" He suggested, with a devilish grin on his face.
She blushed slightly at the look in his eyes, but 
returned his grin nonetheless. "You're on."

Doggett walked out the door, sauntering slightly and 
humming under his breath.

~*~*~

He was freezing his butt off sitting out here. It 
was COLD in Montana in January. Really cold. And he 
hated stakeouts. He wanted to just go inside and 
bust the door down and get it over with, but Krycek 
was right. Going in like the Marines was not going 
to solve anything. Besides, they didn't know for 
sure if the Smoking Man really was the one holed up 
in this cabin in these woods. So they were doing a 
stakeout. ::Damn, it's cold. I hate this. Only for 
Scully, would I put myself through this.:: He sighed, 
as he thought about Scully. He hadn't called her 
since August. Part of that, was because he'd lost his 
cellular phone, somewhere along the way. But part of 
it, was because it was easier for him to keep going, if 
he didn't hear her voice, didn't hear the longing she 
felt. He knew it was selfish to not call her, but he 
didn't have anything to tell her. And he felt that 
feeding her false hopes was cruel. He just hoped 
that she would understand when he came home. He 
needed her to still be there for him, to understand. 

He sighed again, rubbing his eyes, as he leaned back 
against the tree. He looked over at Krycek, who was 
standing about 50 yards away, involved in a deep 
conversation on his phone. He thought that Krycek 
must have a lady friend that he'd left behind, from 
the bits and pieces of conversation that drifted 
towards him on the wind. And just yesterday, when 
they'd gone into town for supplies, Krycek had bought 
a postcard to send to someone in Denver. He had been 
really confused about why Krycek had thought it 
necessary to buy a postcard with a buffalo on it, but 
whatever. What Krycek did was his own business. He 
didn't pry into Mulder's business and Mulder 
certainly wasn't going to ask him to explain a 
postcard. Mulder was still amazed that Krycek had 
stuck with the search as long as he had. He knew 
that Krycek was dying to go home; he'd hinted it 
several times. But, he also knew, that Krycek was 
going to do whatever it took to get Scully's baby 
home to her. And for that, Mulder was eternally 
grateful. He'd come to consider Alex Krycek a friend 
in these past few months and would miss that 
friendship when they parted ways. Mulder sighed 
again and looked at the light glowing in the cabin 
window. It was going to be a long day.

Doggett didn't see Skinner's assistant anywhere, so 
he walked over to the inner door of the office and 
knocked softly. 

"Come in," a voice answered from inside.

He opened the door slowly and walked inside.

"You wanted to see me, Sir?" He asked as he took a 
seat in front of AD Skinner's desk.

Skinner put down the papers he was reading and looked 
up. "Yes, Agent Doggett, I did want to talk to you. 
I have a case that I need for you to work on."

"A case?" Doggett asked puzzled. "An X-File, Sir?"

Skinner shook his head. "Not really. It may have 
something do with Agent Scully's case."

"Then why isn't Agent Scully up here? No offense, 
Sir, but you know that I'm not going to keep anything 
from her anymore."

Skinner nodded. "I realize that, Agent, but I'm not 
sure that it has anything to do with Agent Scully's 
case. As you know, I've had flyers of Mulder, 
Krycek, and Spender posted all across the country and 
yesterday I had a call from someone in Montana 
claiming to have seen the Smoking Man. I'd like for 
you to go out there and investigate it."

Doggett shook his head. "No."

Skinner was stunned. "What did you say?"

Doggett was very firm in his response. "I said no. 
If I go, Agent Scully will be going with me. She is 
my partner and I refuse to work a case without her. 
If you don't want her to know about it, you'll have 
to send someone else."

Skinner sat in silence, staring at the Agent in front 
of him. He knew that Doggett and Scully had become 
close friends, probably more than friends, but he 
never expected this. If anything, he would have 
thought that Doggett would have jumped at the chance 
to help Scully. ::Now what?::

Doggett sat there, returning AD Skinner's stare. 
::How do I make him understand? I can't walk away from 
Dana. Not now, not ever. Not even for this. 
Besides, all he wants me to do, is follow up on a 
sighting of a man, that I've never seen and am not 
completely sure exists. Any Agent in this facility 
is qualified to do that!:: Doggett was trying to 
convince himself that he was doing the right thing by 
not going, that it would be better if he stayed with 
Dana, that he probably wouldn't find anything in 
Montana anyway. ::Montana of all places. I never 
want to go back out there.::

Skinner sighed and broke the silence. "Well, 
Doggett, if that's the way you feel, I'm not going to 
force you to go. I understand, if your answer to this 
request is also no, but would you please keep this 
conversation from Agent Scully? I would hate to feed 
her false hopes. You're right, it's probably 
nothing."

Doggett stood. "I'll make no promises about keeping 
this conversation from my partner, Sir. I'll think 
about it and, if I think it's best, I'll not tell 
her."

Skinner nodded. "I understand."

Without another word, Doggett left the room and 
closed the door behind him.

~*~*~

"Unbelievable!" Scully exclaimed as she slammed down 
the phone. She turned to see Doggett enter the 
office. "Well, there goes our trip to Maui! 
Apparently the FBI has decided to do an internal 
audit to see if we are spending our travel funds 
'wisely.' So we can't go anywhere out of DC until 
they're done." Scully frowned as she dropped back 
into her chair and threw the file in a desk drawer. 

Looking up at Doggett's face, she noticed he seemed 
preoccupied. ::Way to go, Dana. All worried about 
your plans, instead of asking about his meeting.:: 
"What was your meeting with Skinner about, John?"

He had sat down at his desk with his face in his 
hands. He looked up at her question. "Nothing."

Scully rolled her eyes. "You know that I can tell 
when you're lying to me right, John?"

He just looked at her, unsmilingly. "Yeah. Sorry. 
I just don't want to talk about it right now, ok?" 

He pulled a stack of files towards him, signaling the 
end of the conversation.

::I wonder what's wrong with him?:: Scully sighed 
heavily and pulled open the desk drawer with the "To 
be investigated when there is nothing else to do" 
files. ::He'll tell me about it when he's ready. 
But whatever Skinner said, must have really ticked him 
off. He was in a good mood when he left the office 
earlier.:: Scully flopped open a file and began 
reading about a man who ate metal. ::Yuck.::

Doggett glanced over at Scully, who seemed to be 
absorbed in the file that she was reading. ::What 
should I tell her? I know that if I tell her what 
Skinner told me she'll want to go rushing off to 
Montana, travel fund or no travel fund. We could go 
out there, but if we don't find anything, she'll be 
devastated. Or worse, what if we do find something?::

Doggett sighed, completely frustrated by the fact 
that Skinner had confided this information in him. 
He knew that Scully deserved to know, but he didn't 
want to be the one to tell her. He didn't want to 
shatter what they had together. Doggett slammed down 
the file he was reading and abruptly stood.

Scully looked up at him, raising an eyebrow but not 
saying a word.

Doggett spoke, his voice soft but gruff. "Let's go 
get some lunch and talk."

Scully nodded, closing her file, as she stood and 
reached for her jacket.

He reached over and took her hand, as they walked out 
of the office together, closing the door behind them.

~*~*~

Doggett knew of a little coffee shop and diner that 
was off the beaten path and thought that it would be 
a good place for them to go for lunch. It was a 
great place to eat, but generally deserted, as not 
many people knew about it. He didn't want to tell 
Scully about his meeting with Skinner when there were 
lots of people around, just in case. He thought that 
he was beginning to know her, but he had no idea how 
she was going to react to this information.

The waitress took their order almost as soon as they 
were seated. Scully ordered a salad and diet coke, 
Doggett a hamburger and fries.

As soon as the waitress left, Doggett reached over 
and took Scully's hand. He took a deep breath before 
beginning. "When I told you my meeting with Skinner 
this morning was about nothing, I lied. Apparently 
there has been a sighting of the Smoking Man in 
Montana. Skinner wanted me to go out there and 
follow up on this sighting. He didn't want you to 
go, he doesn't want you to know about it, because, 
like me, he thinks it's a wild goose chase."

Scully stared at him, unmoving, no emotion visible on 
her face. "What did you tell him?"

Doggett had to look away from her. He couldn't stand 
seeing her like this. "No. I told him there was no 
way in hell was I going to work a case without my 
partner."

Scully's grip tightened on his hand. 

Doggett looked back over her, amazed at not seeing 
anger in her face. He was seeing...gratefulness? 
Thankfulness? He couldn't begin to describe what he 
was seeing.

"It's ok, John. I never expected you to take on my 
case, running all over the country searching for 
answers. That's something more suited for Mulder." 

A brief flash of sadness crossed her face at the 
mention of Mulder. She shook her head to stop the 
memories before they could begin.

Doggett was stunned. "You're not mad at me? Don't 
you want to go out there?"

Scully shook her head. "No. I...I want the answers, 
John, but it's been too long. For me to go out there 
Now, would be for me to reopen wounds, that I've tried 
so hard to let heal. It's been almost 5 months. 
Surely, if good news was coming, I would have 
received it by now."

Right then, the waitress arrived with their lunch. 
Not knowing what to say to each other, they ate the 
rest of their meal in silence, both wondering if they 
would ever find the answers.

Hundreds of miles away, another man was also wondering 
if he would ever find the answers. He shifted 
against the tree that he was leaning on. Both of his 
legs had fallen asleep, but he wasn't about to get up 
and move. ::Sure as I get up and leave, something 
will happen, and I will have missed it.:: 

He glanced over at the man sitting next to him, as the 
cabin door opened. They'd been working together for 
so long, it was almost as if they could read each 
other's thoughts. 

 The first man wanted to go for it, to see what was 
in there. The second man shook his head almost 
imperceptibly, looking up at the sun. ::Not yet. 
Wait until dark.::

The first man nodded, and leaned back against the 
tree. He then did something he thought that he had 
given up long ago: he prayed. 

~*~*~

After work that night, Scully had gone back to 
Doggett's place with him. He'd promised her that 
he'd cook dinner for her tonight and she was 
interested to see what he could come up with. She 
already told him that it had to be something 
different than he had made at Christmas. She barely 
managed to get some coffee made before he shooed her 
out of the kitchen, telling her he needed complete 
silence to concentrate on his "culinary expertise."

She shrugged and took her cup of coffee into the 
living room. Doggett had this huge black leather 
recliner in his living room that she had absolutely 
fallen in love with. Not only was it comfortable, it 
was big enough for her to curl up in, and it smelled 
faintly of him. ::What more could I want in a piece 
of furniture?:: She smiled, as she set her coffee on 
the end table next to the chair and leaned over to 
pick up some of Doggett's magazines off of the floor. 
::Field and Stream?:: She quickly tossed that one 
on the floor. ::Maxim? I don't think so!:: That 
one might have shocked her, if she hadn't been used to 
Mulder's collection of magazines. ::Time? Nah, who 
wants to read about world events?:: The last 
magazine that she came to was People, an issue 
claiming to have all the info on the hottest 
bachelors in America. ::Hmm.:: She thought, as she 
glanced towards the kitchen. ::Not that I need any 
of THAT information.:: She smiled to herself, as she 
opened the magazine and started flipping through it.

Doggett stood silently in the living room doorway, 
watching Scully thoughtfully. He loved the way the 
light from the fireplace shimmered in her hair. It 
almost made her hair look as if it was on fire. She 
was curled up in his recliner, flipping through a 
magazine. He still couldn't believe that she was 
here with him, that she had accepted him into her 
life. He wanted more, though. He wanted to be her 
everything, just as she meant the world to him. He 
softly cleared his throat. "Dana?" he said, his 
voice almost a whisper. "Let's eat."

She looked up at him from her place in the chair, 
almost sorry that she had to get up. She'd gotten so 
comfortable sitting there, that she could almost fall 
asleep. She hadn't been sleeping well lately. Her 
nightmares had returned to haunt her. Shaking her 
head to clear it, she got up and set down her 
magazine. "Well, John, let's see what you've managed 
to make with your 'culinary expertise'." Doggett 
smiled at her mocking his words, and held out his arm 
to lead her to the table. He pulled out her chair 
for her to be seated before going to his spot at the 
other end of the table. He'd taken the leaves out of 
the table before going to work that morning so that 
they would be closer together. Scully looked down at 
the meal. Fettuccine Alfredo. One of her favorites. 
She smiled as she took her first bite.

"This is really good, John."

He grinned. "Are you surprised?"

"A little, yeah. I haven't known many men who can 
cook."

"Oh there are lots of things you don't know about me, 
Dana." His smile turned slightly devilish.

Scully blushed and looked down at her plate. She 
knew the attraction was there, could feel it pulling 
at her. She just wasn't sure that she could do this. 
She knew she wanted to, but she almost felt as if 
she'd be betraying Mulder. ::Mulder! I haven't 
heard from Mulder in months! Why should I feel like 
I'm betraying him. He's gone and I'm still here. I 
should get on with my life!:: She tried, so hard, to 
convince herself. She'd almost succeeded, until that 
little voice broke in. ::What if Mulder isn't dead? 
What if he is still out there, searching? What if he 
brings home your child and wants to be a family? 
What will you tell him then?:: ::SHUT UP! I WILL DO 
WHATEVER I WANT AND SLEEP WITH WHOMEVER 
I WANT!::

Doggett glanced at Scully, confused. He could see 
the emotions racing across her face, but he had no 
idea what she was thinking. "Everything ok, Dana?"

She looked up, embarrassed that he had been watching 
her. "Yeah, fine. Sorry, I was just preoccupied for 
a moment."

They both sat there in silence for a moment, trying 
to find a topic to talk about. They both worked 
together, so it's not like either one could ask about 
the other's day. They already knew what happened. 
Thinking back to the magazines she'd tossed on the 
floor, Scully asked "Do you fish, John?"

He appeared startled. ::Why in the world did she ask 
that?::

Almost as if she could read his thoughts, "I saw your 
Field and Stream magazine in the living room. I was 
just wondering if you fished, or just liked to read 
about it."

"I used to fish, years ago. I even took Luke fishing 
with me once. That was the last time I went fishing. 
I've just been too lazy to cancel my subscription."
"Oh." She hadn't meant to touch upon something as 
sensitive as that. She didn't know what to say now.
John spoke next. "Why? You want to go fishing 
sometime?"

Dana wrinkled her nose at the suggestion. "You mean 
put warm, live, squiggly worms on a hook so I can 
catch something cold and slimy that flops at my feet? 
I think I'll pass on that one, thanks for the offer."

John had to laugh at her description. He'd never 
thought of it that way before. He shrugged. "Just 
as well. I don't own any fishing equipment anymore 
and would have to go and buy some if you wanted to go 
fishing."

"Lucky you."

They continued the rest of the meal in companionable 
silence, each thinking about the other and where 
their relationship should or would go.

Scully sighed as she pushed her plate away and 
reached for her coffee. "That was a wonderful meal, 
John."

"Thanks. I'm glad that you enjoyed it. I don't cook 
much anymore, so I was afraid that it wouldn't taste 
very good. Why don't we go into the living room with 
our coffee and let our meal settle."

Scully stood up and headed for the living room. 

"Just for a few minutes though. I'm getting pretty 
sleepy. You're going to have to take me home soon or 
I'll probably fall asleep on your couch."

::Not that it would be a bad thing if you did.:: John 
thought, as he followed her into the living room.
He sat down in the corner of the couch, waiting to 
see where she would sit. He was hoping that she'd 
sit next to him, but he figured she'd go for the 
recliner. Safer, that way. Neither one of them 
would have to deal with the increasing tension then. 
But then she surprised him. She sat on the couch with 
him. And not at the other end of the couch either. 

She sat right next to him. There was only about 6 
inches separating the two of them. Doggett inhaled 
sharply. ::Does she have any idea what she's doing 
to me right now?::

Scully heard Doggett's reaction. ::Am I sure about 
what I'm doing? Hell yes, you're sure. You're 
attracted to him. Why not? Just see where it goes.:: 
She moved closer to Doggett, putting her head in the 
crook of his arm. He put his arm around her 
shoulder, tightening it. He never wanted to let go 
of her. Never. But should he tell her that? 

They sat there like that for several minutes. Dana's 
breathing began to slow and John could tell that she 
was almost asleep. He slowly moved his arm from 
around her, trying not to wake her. It didn't work. 
She sat up, looked at him. She blushed slightly. "I 
fell asleep, didn't I?"

He smiled down as he bent over her, passion simmering 
in his eyes. "Yeah, you did, but it's ok. You can 
stay tonight, if you want." He held his breath 
waiting for her response. 

She was silent for a moment, unsure of what to say, 
knowing that if she said 'yes', everything would be 
different from this moment on.

She looked up into his eyes, seeing love shining 
clearly from them. It would be ok. She smiled and 
whispered "yes", as she wrapped her arms around his 
neck. 

He put his arms around her and lifted her from the 
couch. She was so tiny, so light. It felt like he 
wasn't carrying anything at all. Slowly, he made his 
way towards the stairs.

He pushed open the door to his bedroom and slowly 
made his way across, careful not to run into anything 
with her. He laid her down in the middle of the bed 
and just looked at her for a minute. There was a 
soft glow from the moon coming in the window. He 
could see her eyes sparkle in the light. Her hair 
was all around her on the pillows. She looked 
exquisite. He leaned over her and looked deeply into 
her eyes. "Are you sure?" he asked quietly.

She nodded slightly. "I'm very sure." She reached 
up and pulled him down for a kiss. He returned her 
kiss, feverishly. He made every move slowly, knowing 
that, at any time, she could tell him no, hoping that 
she wouldn't change her mind. He took turns being 
gentle and demanding, bringing her as high as he 
could again and again without pushing her over the 
edge. He wanted tonight to be a night that she would 
never forget.

Afterwards, she lay spent in his arms. She had never 
ever had a night like this. Never had a man made her 
feel so special, so loved, so...desired. She snuggled 
closer to him, stifled a yawn. "I love you, John 
Doggett" she whispered in his ear.

He tightened his arms around her. "I will always 
love you, Dana Scully."

They both drifted off to sleep, arms wrapped around 
each other, smiles on both of their faces.

~*~*~

John awoke first in the morning, the sun streaming in 
through the blinds hitting him squarely in the eye. 
He looked down at Dana, who was sleeping peacefully, 
her head on his chest. He watched her breathing in 
and out, a lock of her hair being blown around by her 
breath. He reached up a hand and smoothed her hair 
away from her face. He was a very lucky man and he 
knew it. He just hoped it would last. He was 
somewhat afraid that she would regret what she had 
done, when she woke up, and he hoped that she 
wouldn't. He looked back down at her, as she started 
to stir. 

She rubbed her eyes and looked around the room before 
bringing her eyes up to meet John's. "Morning," she 
muttered sleepily.

He bent down and kissed her on the top of the head. 
"Morning, Sweetheart. How are you this morning?"

Her eyes had closed again. She opened one eye and 
looked at him. "Tired."

John grinned widely at that remark. ::Well, I guess 
that's a good sign.:: "Well, that's too bad. I had 
planned on us having a picnic in a real park today 
and perhaps flying some kites. But, of course, if 
you're that tired, we could just spend the rest of 
the day in bed."

Scully eyes widened at his wicked suggestion, 
although they were filled with amusement. "You know, 
I think I am really exhausted. I should probably 
sleep all weekend long, so I'm not too tired when I 
get to work on Monday morning."

Dana couldn't help but giggle, as John quickly reached 
down and pulled the covers over both of their heads.

~*~*~

Monday morning Dana Scully woke bright and early in 
her own bed. It felt strange not to wake up next to 
John, but she needed a little bit of time to herself. 
She wanted to be sure that she wasn't making a 
mistake, getting involved with John. ::Well, it sure 
doesn't feel like a mistake to me.:: Dana hummed, as 
she got ready to go to work. She glanced at herself 
in the mirror and was surprised by what she saw. Her 
eyes were bright and she was almost glowing. ::I 
guess this is what happiness looks like, huh? It's 
been a long time since I've seen that.:: Dana 
grinned at her reflection, extremely pleased by what 
she saw. She picked up her suit jacket and swung it 
over her shoulder, sauntering slightly as she locked 
the door behind her. She had a meeting with Skinner 
this morning, to ask him about the Smoking Man and 
didn't want to be late. She had a good feeling about 
today.

~*~*~

Skinner sat down at his desk with a steaming mug of 
coffee, feeling slightly disgruntled. He really 
wished that Doggett hadn't told Scully about the 
sighting of the Smoking Man. He didn't think that 
anything good was going to come from this meeting. 

He sighed, as he added creamer to his coffee and took 
a sip. ::She's going to be really pissed that I kept 
this from her. I promised to be open with her.:: He 
pulled the latest report from his agents in Montana 
towards him and began reading.

He sat up as his intercom buzzed.

"Yes?" he replied as he straightened his suit coat.

He heard his assistant's perky voice. "Agent Scully 
is here to see you, Sir."

He sighed. "Please send her in."

Agent Scully entered the room, closing the door 
softly behind her. She took a seat in front of 
Skinner's desk, thinking about how many times she had 
sat here, like this, with Mulder sitting next to her. 
She shook her head, stopping the memories before they 
could start. They were too hard to take, but it was 
getting better. She thought of him less often now 
than she did at the beginning.

"Good morning, Sir."

Skinner nodded and attempted to smile, knowing that 
he was going to get a major ass-chewing. "Good 
morning, Agent Scully. How are you?" He looked at 
her carefully, as he said that. There was something 
different about her, but he couldn't quite put a 
finger on it.

"As a matter of fact, Sir, I'm doing really well this 
morning. However I did have something that I need to 
talk to you about. I hear that there has been a 
sighting of the Smoking Man in Montana."

::Here it comes!:: Thought Skinner. "Yes, Dana, there 
was a sighting of him at a small grocery store in a 
village, about a week ago. Shortly after Agent 
Doggett turned down my request to go out there 
himself, I sent another pair of agents to 
investigate." He paused there.

Scully looked at him expectantly. "And?"

"And there is nothing more to tell, Dana. As a 
matter of fact, when the agents got out there, they 
couldn't even find the man who had spotted the 
Smoking Man in the first place. They canvassed the 
entire county and spoke to everyone that they could 
find. They came up with nothing. I'm sorry, Dana, 
that I don't have better news to tell you."

Scully nodded and sighed. She had expected as much. 
It had been almost 7 months since her child was 
taken. She didn't think that she would be getting 
good news anytime soon.

She stood abruptly. "Thank you for your time, Sir. 
I think I'll be getting back to the office now." She 
walked swiftly out the door, closing it firmly behind 
her.

~*~*~

John Doggett was whistling, as he opened the office 
door promptly at 8 am Monday morning. Even though 
Dana had decided to go back to her apartment on 
Sunday morning, it had been a good weekend. They had 
several long talks, about life, work, 
relationships...almost anything, They had decided that 
it would be a good idea to take things slow at first. 
Even though it had been months since she had heard 
from Mulder, John knew that she thought about him 
often. He also knew, that Mulder occupied a very 
special place in Dana's heart and he never wanted to 
intrude upon that. He also knew, that he wanted to 
spend the rest of his life with her and he didn't 
want to make any stupid mistakes to ruin that. 

He sat down his coffee on his desk and hung up his 
coat before sitting down at his desk. He looked at 
the pile of files in his inbox and groaned slightly. 
He was sure that all the interesting ones were 
probably all the way across the country. And since 
their travel budget still had a hold put on it, they 
couldn't go anywhere. He looked at the folders again 
and grimaced. ::Maybe I'll read the morning paper 
before getting to them.:: He opened the paper and 
began reading about the President's latest half-baked 
idea and other such political nonsense.

~*~*~

That was how Dana found him when she walked in the 
office 10 minutes later. She began smiling, as soon 
as she saw him there. It was an uncontrollable 
reaction. He looked up and returned her smile. 

"Morning, Dana."

"Morning, John. Anything good in the paper?" She 
asked, as she sat down at her desk and pulled all of 
the crap out of her inbox.

John frowned. "Is there ever? I was just reading 
about that intern who disappeared and how that 
Congressman is supposedly involved in it. I'm sure 
it's just one more thing our government will cover 
up."

Scully looked shocked. "You sounded just like Mulder 
when you said that."

Doggett looked up at her, surprised at the 
comparison. "Yeah, I guess I did. But after working 
in this office, I can see why he distrusts the 
government so much. Anyway, looks like we have 
plenty of files to go through. I already checked on 
our travel funds and they're still frozen. I guess 
we'll have to find some local cases to work on."

Scully sighed and opened the file on top of her desk. 
"Figures." She muttered, as she began to read.

~*~*~

A few hours later, Doggett stood and stretched. 
They'd been reading case files nonstop for a long 
time now and he figured it was time for a break. The 
clock said that it was noon, so it was lunchtime 
anyway. He looked over at Scully, who was rubbing 
her eyes.

"Hey Dana," he said softly, so as not to startle her.
She looked up at him, still rubbing her eyes. 

"Yeah?"

"Let's take a break and get some lunch. I know this 
great Chinese place about 10 minutes from here." He 
was reaching for their coats as he spoke, knowing 
that she was probably as ready to get out of the 
office as he was.

She nodded enthusiastically and stood up. 

Just as Doggett was helping her get her coat on, 
there was a knock at the door. Scully looked at him, 
puzzled. He shrugged and opened the door. On the 
other side was a UPS delivery boy.

"Special Agent Dana Scully?" The young man queried, 
although it was obvious to him that this giant in 
front of him, was definitely not, a 'Dana.'

Doggett shook his head 'no', as Scully stepped in 
front of him.

"I'm Agent Scully." She said, somewhat 
authoritatively.

"Yes ma'am." The young man blushed and averted his 
eyes. "I have a package that I need your signature 
for."

She held her hand out, tapping her foot somewhat 
impatiently. ::Why do these interruptions always 
occur when I'm ready to go on break?::

He held out his board for her signature. She quickly 
scribbled something and handed it back.

"Here's your package, ma'am," the boy said as he 
handed her a small manila envelope. "Have a nice 
day."

Scully nodded and absently waved him away, unable to 
take her eyes off of the envelope.

Doggett looked at her, at the look on her face, 
wondering if he should speak.

"Dana?"

She looked up, startled out of her thoughts. She 
shoved the envelope in her coat pocket and looped her 
arm through John's. "Come on, let's eat. I'll open 
it later."

~*~*~

The restaurant didn't look like much from the 
outside. The interior, however, was very impressive. 
There were huge, plush area rugs scattered across the 
polished hardwood floor. There were brightly colored 
paintings hung on the walls. The lighting was dim, 
sort of soothing. Each table had a lace tablecloth 
and candles for intimate lighting.

The maitre 'd approached them, walking swiftly, yet 
with a sort of elegance to him. "Right this way, Mr. 
Doggett." He said with a soft, cultured voice.

Dana's eyebrows shot up, as she looked at John. "Come 
here often?" she asked, with a hint of surprise in 
her voice.

John laughed and put his arm around her shoulder. 
"Yeah. I love Chinese cooking and as much as I've 
tried to imitate it at home, I've never succeeded. 
Just wait until you taste their crab ran goons."

Scully smiled, somewhat distractedly. Her thoughts 
had centered again on the envelope that she could 
feel in her jacket pocket. She was almost sure that 
whatever was in it, could not be good news.

John could sense the change in her mood, as he pulled 
out her chair for her. He sat down across from her 
and began reading his menu, even though he already 
knew what he was going to order. He figured she'd 
talk about it when she was ready to.

The waiter came and took their orders. They both sat 
there in silence for a moment. Then Dana let out a 
huge sigh and pulled the envelope out of her jacket 
pocket. She carefully examined the outside before 
opening it. She dumped the contents out onto the 
table and gasped, all the color fading from her face, 
her eyes wide with shock.

Spilled out across the table were about a dozen 
glossy photos. Some were wallet sized, some where a 
little larger. But there were all of the same 
subject: a beautiful little baby with bright red 
curls on her head and the biggest hazel eyes. Scully 
felt tears pricking at her eyes. She just knew that 
this had to be her little girl. She had Mulder's 
eyes and Mulder's mouth. Scully was unaware that the 
tears were now running down her face. She turned 
over each picture, looking to see if anything was 
written on it. On the last one was a name: 
Samantha. That was all that was written on there. 
She looked up when she felt John take her hand.

"Are you ok, Dana?" He couldn't stand to see that 
pain in her eyes again, the pain he'd worked so hard 
to remove over the past six months.

She shook her head, unable to speak. She just pushed 
the pictures towards him, her hands shaking slightly.
John cursed under his breath. "Who would be cruel 
enough to send these to you?"

Dana shrugged, her face downcast. "Maybe the man who 
took my child wants to torture me some more? I don't 
know. They sure don't give me much to go on though, 
do they?"

Just then the waiter brought their food. John picked 
the photos up and handed them back to Dana, watching, 
as she just picked at her food. She looked crushed. 

He wasn't sure how to help her in this situation. 
"Hey Dana. Why don't we take those pictures over to 
the Gunmen and see if they can get anything from 
them?"

She nodded, not looking up. Her mood from earlier in 
the day was completely gone. She knew that she 
needed to get ahold of herself, but after seeing 
those pictures. Who could be so cruel to her? They 
had her child, the child whose sex she just now found 
out, did they really need to taunt her with it? She 
wanted to go home and curl up in a ball and sleep for 
hours. She looked up at John, at the compassion, 
love, pain, in his eyes and she knew that she couldn't 
give up. Things may be really crappy right now, but 
she'd always have him. She reached across the table 
and put her hand in his. "Yeah, why don't we see 
what the boys can come up with?"

John threw some money on the table and they both got 
up and left, their earlier happiness completely 
shattered.

~*~*~

Scully knocked long and hard on the boys' door. 
Doggett was standing back from her a couple of steps. 
::I'm still not sure how to act around these guys.:: 

Scully stepped back a bit, as she heard several locks 
being released. Frohike pulled open the door.

"Hey Scully," he said as he gave her a once-over. 
"What's wrong? You look upset."

"Well aren't you observant, Frohike, or should we 
conduct our business out here?"

Frohike frowned and stepped back to let them in, 
making sure that he walked behind Scully.

Langly rolled his eyes at Frohike, as Byers stepped 
out of the back room.

"Hey, guys, what's up?" asked Langly, while Byers was 
shaking hands with John.

Scully and Doggett looked at each other, unsure of 
who should speak first. Scully nodded and pulled the 
envelope out of her pocket. "I got these delivered 
to me today. I wondered if you guys could examine 
them and tell me anything at all that you can get 
from them." She handed the envelope to Byers, who 
promptly poured the contents on the table.

There was a sudden intake of breath from all three 
men.

Byers spoke first. "Scully? Is this? I mean, are 
these...photos of your child?"

Scully shrugged, determined to hold back the tears. 
"You tell me. I want it to be. She looks like 
Mulder to me. But it's torture to look at these 
pictures and not know where she is or who has her or 
why."

Doggett put his arm around Scully's shoulder and 
hugged her close, as the three boys exchanged looks.

Frohike looked up at Scully, after examining a couple 
of the pictures. "Well, all I can tell you so far is 
that they look to be real photos. I'll see if I can 
find any distinguishing remarks on them, find out 
where they were developed, stuff like that."

Scully managed a weak smile for Frohike. "Thanks, 
you guys. Let me know whatever you find ok? Even if 
it's not good news."

They all nodded and Frohike walked them to the door. 
He gave Scully a quick hug before she left. She was 
slightly surprised, but returned the hug nonetheless. 

"Thanks Frohike."

He nodded, blushing slightly, as he locked the door 
behind them.

~*~*~

Dana and John stepped outside of the Gunmen's Lair 
and realized that the wind had picked up. Dana 
shivered and pulled her coat closer around her as she 
looked up at the sky. ::Great. Looks like it's 
going to start snowing soon.:: She felt John take 
her arm and followed him to the truck. They sat 
inside waiting for the engine to warm up. 

John reached over and took her hand. He wanted so 
badly to take her home and comfort her, but he knew 
how Dana cherished her independence. Besides, they'd 
already decided that they weren't going to spend 
every night together. Dana was afraid that Kersh 
would find out what was going on and fire them both 
for it. 

John shifted his truck into drive and began pulling 
away from the curb, as the snow started to fall. They 
were big flakes and they were coming down so fast 
that John had to turn his wipers on. It took them 
twice as long as usual, to make it back to Dana's 
apartment. 

When they got upstairs to her apartment, Dana noticed 
that a piece of paper was taped to her door. She 
quickly tore it off and flipped it open. It was a 
note. 

"Dana," it began. "I hope that by now you have 
received the pictures that I sent you. I meant no 
harm in sending them, but I thought that you might 
like to see your child. Her name is Samantha. She's 
5 1/2 months old now. She's a beautiful child who never 
fusses about anything. I know that you'll never 
understand why I had to take her, but it was for your 
best interest. Yours and your child's. I'm sorry, 
Dana, but it had to be done. I just hope that this 
might bring you some closure.
Yours,
C.G.B. Spender."

Dana crumpled the paper into a tight ball as she 
could feel the tears welling in her eyes. John could 
see the tension enter her body, but he didn't know 
the reason for it, as he hadn't seen the note. 

"Dana? Are you ok? What is it?"

She handed him the crumpled up ball of paper, as she 
began to unlock the door to her apartment. She 
didn't quite trust herself to speak. She was having 
a hard enough time holding back her tears. She heard 
John shut the door behind him, as she walked over to 
the window. She watched the snow falling, looked at 
the people struggling through the blanket of snow 
that already covered the ground. She didn't realize 
that the tears had begun to stream down her cheek. 
::Why now? Why at all? He should have let me think 
that she was dead. Unless he's going to give her 
back to me?:: Dana crushed that flicker of hope 
before it could become a flame. ::No. He's not 
going to give her back. He's just trying to get 
under my skin, to torture me. What other reason 
could he have for sending me those pictures? 
Closure? Doesn't he realize that he's reopening the 
wounds?::

Dana felt John wrap his arms around her. She sighed 
and leaned back onto him. He kissed her lightly on 
top of the head, not saying anything, just holding 
her close. She turned in his arms and wrapped her 
arms around his waist, laying her head on his chest. 
She could hear the steady beat of his heart and it 
was comforting to her. She looked up into his eyes. 

Her tears had dried, but the pain was still in her 
eyes. He wanted to take it away, but didn't know 
how. ::Maybe I should have gone to Montana after 
all. Maybe if I'd found him I could have stopped 
this from happening.::

"You couldn't have stopped this John." It was almost 
as if she had read his thoughts.

He shook his head. "Maybe, maybe not. But maybe I 
should have tried."

It was her turn to shake her head. "Don't beat 
yourself up over this John. You may have ended up 
getting hurt or killed if you had gone out there. 
It's ok." She hugged him tighter.

John shook his head, frustrated with himself. ::Here 
I should be the one comforting her, but it's the 
other way around.::

Dana released him and turned to look back out the 
window. It appeared as if there was already six 
inches on the ground and it didn't look like it was 
going to be letting up anytime soon. "John?" she 
asked softly.

He had headed towards the kitchen to make some 
coffee, but turned back around when she spoke. 
"Yeah?"

"Will you stay with me tonight?" her voice hardly 
above a whisper.

John nodded, before realizing that she wasn't looking 
at him; she was still staring out the window. "Yeah, 
Dana, I'll stay." ::I'd stay every night if I 
thought I could.::

She nodded and kept staring out the window, lost in 
her own thoughts.

John came back in a few minutes with two cups of 
steaming coffee, one black, one with creamer. He 
handed one to her. She turned away from the window 
and took it from him, grateful not only for the 
coffee, but for the distraction from her thoughts. 

She went over and sat on the couch with her coffee. 
John closed the blinds on the window before joining 
her.

"Well," he began, "from the looks of things out 
there, we might be stuck here for a few days."

Dana shrugged, and began to smile as a thought 
entered her mind. ::I could think of many ways to 
spend a few days trapped with him.:: She tried to 
quash the thought. She should be thinking of her 
daughter, and how to save her, not of making love to 
John. She could feel her cheeks began to turn red, 
and quickly turned away from him, flipping on the TV. 

She settled back against his chest, as the news began. 
He reached up and pulled the afghan from the back of 
the couch over them, thinking that being snowed in 
might actually be a blessing in disguise.

John could hear Dana's breathing become steady, 
almost rhythmic, as the news came to an end. He 
picked up the remote control, turned the volume down, 
and began flipping channels. He didn't want to wake 
her up, not yet. He knew she was probably exhausted 
from the emotional roller coaster that she'd ridden 
today. He pulled the blanket up a little bit more 
and shifted slightly so that the arm of the couch 
wasn't digging into his back so sharply. He reached 
up and flipped off the light next to the couch, before 
settling in to watch "Top Gun."

~*~*~

Dana woke several hours later to the dim flickering 
light of the TV and the sound of soft snoring. At 
first she was disconcerted. Then she noticed John's 
arms around her and realized that they were on the 
couch. She began trailing her fingertips up and down 
his arm, mesmerized by how strong he was, when he was 
so gentle with her. She slid her fingers down to 
link them with his. As she drifted off to sleep in 
the safety of his arms, she thought about how lucky 
she was.

John awoke with a start, not realizing where he was 
or why he had woken. Glancing at the TV that was 
still on, he figured that was what had woken him. He 
checked the time on his watch. 6 AM. ::I can't 
believe we slept the whole night on the couch...not 
that I'm complaining or anything.:: He looked down 
at Dana, who was still sleeping peacefully in his 
arms, her fingers intertwined with his. He laid his 
cheek on top of her head, breathing in the fragrance 
of her shampoo. At that moment, he felt like the 
luckiest man in the world.

Dana stirred in his arms, here eyes fluttering open. 
He picked his head up, so she could tilt hers to see 
him. 

"Morning," she spoke softly, her voice still raspy 
from sleeping.

"Good morning," he replied, grinning widely. He 
couldn't help but be happy when he was around her. 

"Want some breakfast?" he offered.

She nodded, as she sat up and stretched. "Coffee 
first though, please."

John stood and worked the kinks out of his neck. 
"Coffee it is, Madam."

Dana giggled and headed in the direction of the 
bathroom.

John had the radio on in the kitchen and was 
listening to some news program, when Dana walked in 15 
minutes later, still drying her hair with a towel. 

"Mmm...something smells good in here," she offered, as 
she poured herself a cup of coffee.

John grinned at her over his shoulder, from where he 
was standing at the stove. He was making omelets for 
breakfast and they were at the crucial stage where if 
he didn't watch them closely they could be ruined. 

Dana sat her coffee on the table. "Anything I can do 
to help?" she asked. John tilted his head to the 
side as he thought about it. "I suppose you could 
set the table if you want. Everything else is under 
control." 

"Ok" she replied as she got plates and silverware out 
of the cabinets and put them on the table.

John carefully slid her omelet onto her plate, as she 
sat down. He then served himself and sat down across 
from her. Smelling the food made them both realize 
just how hungry they were. They'd skipped supper 
last night and neither one had eaten much lunch. 

They began to devour their food, too busy eating to 
talk.

Dana sat back in her chair with a little sigh of 
contentment after she finished. "That was fantastic, 
John."

He grinned at the praise. "Thanks. It's been a long 
time since I've cooked breakfast."

She frowned slightly, her brows drawing closer 
together. "Why is that?"

John shrugged. "It just seemed like too much of a 
hassle to cook for just me. After awhile my 
breakfast became cereal and coffee, then toast and 
coffee. Now it's usually just coffee. What about 
you? Do you cook much?"

She shook her head. "Not really. I guess like you, I 
don't really see the point in it either. I usually 
have coffee and maybe some yogurt for breakfast. I'm 
generally too tired or too busy to cook when I get 
home from work and either have a sandwich or order 
something in."

Just then a loud beeping coming from the radio 
interrupted their conversation.

"Attention all listeners. All of the metropolitan 
area has been placed under a severe winter weather 
advisory for the next 24 to 48 hours. Snow 
accumulations of between 18 and 24 inches are 
expected..."

John and Dana gaped at each other, ignoring the rest 
of the weather bulleting.

"Well, John said with a smile, "Guess we won't be 
going into work for awhile."

"Guess not." Dana grinned, pleased at the thought.

"Guess I'll be stuck here for awhile as well," John 
remarked, his grin widening.

Suddenly, Dana faked a yawn. "You know," she began 
with a mischievous light in her eyes, "I think I need 
to take a nap after eating that big omelet." She 
stood and stretched, faking another yawn.

"Yeah," John agreed. "I think I need a nap too."

John came around to her side of the table and, 
without warning, swept her up in his arms. She 
giggled and kissed him, as he headed down the hall 
towards the bedroom. She pushed the door shut behind 
them.

~*~*~

Several hours later, Dana's eyes flickered open. She 
rolled over in the bed and propped herself up on her 
elbows, so she could look down at John, who was still 
sleeping soundly. ::He looks so peaceful when he's 
sleeping.:: As if he could feel her looking at him, 
his eyes opened. "What time is it?" he asked, 
rubbing the sleep from his eyes.

Dana slid her eyes over to the clock on the 
nightstand and then back to his. "2:30. I can't 
believe we spent the whole day in bed."

"Well," John looked at her, eyebrows raised. "The 
day isn't over yet."

Dana swatted him playfully on the chest, before 
getting out of bed and wrapping her robe around her, 
tying it at the waist.

As she headed to the bathroom, she tossed back over 
her shoulder, "And if we spend the whole day in bed, 
what will we do tonight?"

"I hoped more of the same." John muttered under his 
breath, as he pulled on some clothes and headed for 
the kitchen to find some food.

~*~*~

He was opening and closing cabinet doors when Dana 
walked in. She leaned against the doorway as she 
asked, "Find anything good in there?"

John jumped a little, startled, and turned to look at 
her. Leaning against the door, her robe tied 
haphazardly, and her hair all mussed, John thought 
she was more beautiful than he'd ever seen her.

"Well," he said, pulling out a couple of cans. "How 
about some soup?"

She nodded in agreement. "Sure. I'll make some 
grilled cheese sandwiches to go with it, if you'd 
like."

"Grilled cheese?! I love grilled cheese!!"

Dana grinned at the enthusiasm in his voice and for 
the next several minutes they worked side by side, as 
if they had been doing this for years.

They sat down and, over lunch, discussed how they 
would spend the next couple of days. As it was still 
snowing outside, they both figured that they wouldn't 
be working tomorrow either. 

"Well, as I'm not here much, there probably isn't a 
whole lot to do."

John raised an eyebrow at that comment.
Dana blushed at the look and averted her eyes. 

"Well, besides that anyway."

John acted confused. "And what's wrong with spending 
the next 24 hours in bed?"

Dana laughed. "I guess nothing, really. I've just 
never done that before."

John shrugged. "Me either. But they say there is a 
first time for everything."

~*~*~

The next 24 hours passed very quickly. Following 
John's suggestion, they'd surfaced from the bedroom 
only to eat or to use the bathroom. They'd finally 
decided to get up and venture outside to see if any 
damage had been done by the storm. They linked 
fingers as they walked down the streets, peering in 
the windows of the few shops that were open. The 
snowplows had gotten most of the streets cleared and 
traffic was starting to move more like normal. They 
came to a coffee shop that was open and decided to go 
inside and warm up. They sat side by side in a 
corner booth, sipping their coffee when Dana's cell 
phone rang. She pulled it out of her pocket.

"Scully."


"Hey, Scully."

"Frohike. What's up?"

She heard a deep sigh come from the other end of the 
phone. ::What's that about?:: She wondered.

"I wish I had good news, Scully, but I don't. I 
wasn't able to get any information from the photos."

Dana sighed and leaned her head on John's shoulder. 

"It's ok, Frohike. I knew it was a long shot 
anyway."

"Yeah, well, I'm still sorry. I really wanted to 
find something. Anyway, we're done with the pictures 
if you want to come and pick them up."

"Thanks. We'll probably be by later."

She turned the phone off and put it back in her 
pocket and turned to face John, who was watching her 
intently. "Don't worry," she said. "I'm not going 
to flip out or fall apart."

John smiled, the tension leaving his body. "I guess 
they didn't have any good news, huh?"

She shook her head. "I wasn't expecting them to 
anyway. Mulder couldn't find anything." She really 
wanted to call Mulder. But the last time she'd 
tried, she got a message saying his cell phone had 
been disconnected. ::If he had news, he'd find a way 
to get in touch with me.::

John saw the emotions crossing her face and decided 
to break into her thoughts.

"So," he said, laying some money on the table to 
cover their coffee, "should we go get those pictures 
now?"

She nodded. "Yeah. But let's take a cab. I'm tired 
of walking."

John agreed and they headed outside to hail a cab.

~*~*~

A few minutes later they got out of the cab outside 
of the Gunmen's Lair. "Thanks." Scully muttered as 
she handed the driver some money. Riding in cabs 
always made her uneasy for some reason.

Scully knocked on the boys' door and stepped back so 
the camera was focused on her face. Frohike looked 
at the TV screen on the inside. "Hey guys-It's 
Scully and Doggett."

Langly snorted. "The Dog Man huh?"

Frohike interrupted. "Shaddup, Langly."

Scully could hear the many locks releasing. She 
turned to John and rolled her eyes.

The door slowly swung inward.

"Come in and hurry up, you're letting the cold in," 
grumbled Frohike.

Scully smiled, as she and Doggett followed him inside. 
"It's nice to see you, too, Frohike. Hello Byers, 
Langly."

Doggett nodded to all three of them. He knew they 
were the good guys, but he still thought they were 
almost as paranoid as Mulder. He thought it probably 
best to say as little as possible.

Byers came forward with a manila envelope for Scully. 
His eyes were sad. "I'm really sorry that we 
couldn't find anything for you Scully."

She nodded and took the envelope. "It's ok. I 
didn't really think that you guys would."

Langly spoke up. "Still no word from Mulder?"

She shook her head. "No. I tried to call him a 
couple of weeks ago and found out that his cell phone 
had been disconnected. I take it you guys haven't 
heard anything from him either?"

Langly shook his head sadly. "No. I hope he's ok."
Scully nodded. "Me, too, but it's been almost 6 
months." She quickly wiped away a tear. "Thanks 
guys. I think we'll leave now."

Frohike nodded and walked them to the door. "See you 
guys later."

Doggett took her arm and led her outside to find a 
cab home.

~*~*~

By the time they got home, neither one had the energy 
left to cook so they ended up ordering a pizza and 
sitting on the couch watching TV. Neither one said 
anything, but then, words weren't needed. John 
understood Dana's pain, to an extent. He also felt 
that she would talk about it when she was ready to. 

And so, they sat on the couch in silence, wrapped in 
each other's arms until it was time to go to bed.

~*~*~

The next several weeks passed peacefully. They spent 
their days working on local cases, since their travel 
budget was still locked up tight. They spent their 
nights at John's house. His house felt more like a 
home to Dana than any other she'd ever lived in. At 
first, she went to her apartment to get something 
every day. But the last time she'd been back to her 
apartment had been over a week ago. After the 
blizzard had finished wreaking havoc and John and 
Dana had spent their first night alone, Dana had 
decided that Kersh could take his rules and stick 
them. She deserved to be happy and being with John 
made her very happy. So she moved in with him.

As far as John was concerned, he almost couldn't be 
any happier. Almost. The only thing that could 
possibly make him happier would be if Dana would 
agree to marry him. Humming under his breath, he 
wandered into a local jewelry store on his lunch 
break. It was almost Valentine's Day and John was 
going to ensure that this was a very memorable day 
for both him and Dana.

~*~*~

Valentine's Day dawned bright and sunny. The snow 
had melted off a couple of days before and it was 
warm enough outside to feel like winter was finally 
over. As today was a Thursday, Dana felt like she 
should have been at work. But there hadn't been any 
new X-File cases for almost 2 weeks now, so Skinner 
had agreed to let them take a long weekend. Dana 
didn't think she would have been able to concentrate 
at work anyway. Yesterday she'd received a dozen red 
roses from John. The card had been somewhat cryptic. 

It read "I'll be there at 7pm. Wear something 
elegant. Love, John."

Thinking back to the note, Dana wrinkled her nose. 
::Elegant? Like a dress? Guess I'm going shopping 
today!::

John hung up his phone and smiled. He'd just 
confirmed the limousine reservations for tonight. He 
fingered the small velvet box in his pocket. 

::Tonight is going to be a great night...a new beginning.::
He picked up the phone again and began to dial. 
He wanted to double-check the restaurant 
reservations, just to be on the safe side. He was 
humming softly, as he waited for the call to go 
through.

Dana walked into a fancy clothing store in downtown 
DC and gasped. Never in her life had she seen so many 
beautiful dresses all in one place. How in the world 
was she going to be able to find something to wear? 
A young perky salesperson came over, her blonde hair 
bouncing on her shoulders, as she moved. "Hi! My 
name is Allison, can I help you?"

Dana groaned inwardly. ::This should be fun.:: "I 
hope so," she replied. "I have a date tonight, ::God I 
must sound stupid!::, and my boyfriend told me to wear 
something elegant."

Dana swallowed and stood waiting, as Allison walked 
around her, scrutinizing her from top to bottom. 

When Allison again stood in front of Dana, she 
clapped her hands excitedly. "I have just the dress 
for you. Come right this way!"

~*~*~

Hundreds of miles away, Mulder waited in the trees, 
his body tense with excitement and fear. After weeks 
of scoping the place out, learning their routines, 
Mulder and Krycek had finally come up with a plan 
that they liked. And today they were putting that 
plan into action. Mulder looked up at the sky, as he 
felt a raindrop land on his head and run down his 
nose. ::A dark and gloomy day. A perfect day to fit 
my mood.:: He was anxious to get this over with. 

He'd wanted to go in weeks ago. He wanted it over 
with. But he knew he was thinking with his heart and 
not his mind. That was why he had let Krycek make the 
majority of the decisions. He looked over at his 
friend, who was also waiting in the trees in the 
rain. Just then the cabin door opened, as it had 
every day, for as long as they had been doing their 
surveillance. They knew the man walking out of the 
door was Mac, the man Spender sent on errands. Krycek 
waited until Mac had gotten in his truck and driven 
away before turning to return Mulder's gaze.

Mulder raised an eyebrow. ::Now?::

Krycek nodded. ::Now.::

~*~*~

Dana let Allison lead her through the massive store. 
It seemed like they had walked a mile, before they 
finally stopped in front of a mannequin. Dana felt 
her mouth drop open. The dress on display was 
absolutely breathtaking. It was aquamarine blue and 
floor length. The top was fitted, but the skirt 
flared slightly at the waist. It was held up by two 
thin spaghetti straps on each shoulder. The straps 
were lined with rhinestones and crossed over the 
shoulder blades before meeting the dress at the back.

"Well?" Allison asked excitedly.

Dana nodded her head, not once removing her stare 
from the dress. "It's absolutely beautiful." 

Allison grinned. "Wait until you try it on!"

She took a dress off the rack and then grabbed Dana's 
hand, pulling her towards a fitting room.

~*~*~

John was grinning widely, as he walked out of a tuxedo 
shop downtown. The sun was still shining and the day 
had warmed up a bit. It was still pretty chilly 
outside, but it felt glorious after the snow. John 
put the tux in his truck, then shoved his hands in 
his jacket pockets, as he walked down the street. 
::Only one more errand to run.:: He thought happily.

Dana slipped the silk dress over her head and "oohed" 
at the mirror when the dress finally slid into place. 
She reached behind her and pulled up the zipper in 
the back before twirling in front of the mirror. She 
felt like a princess in this dress. It was perfect. 

Allison knocked softly on the door. "Dana? I have a 
few accessories that I thought you might like to try 
on with the dress."

Dana opened the door and stepped out.

Allison was holding a shawl, shoes, and an evening 
bag, all of them silver and shimmery.

Dana held out her hand for them.

"Wow." Allison whispered. "You look stunning."

Dana blushed slightly, as she bent down to put on the 
strappy sandals. "Thanks."

She straightened up and wrapped the shawl around her 
shoulders. The shawl was so thin it was almost 
invisible. But it sparkled in the light and that was 
the desired effect. Dana picked up the evening bag 
and turned to Allison.

"What do you think?" she asked, excitement shining 
softly in her eyes, eyes that shone even brighter 
when complemented by the dress.

Allison was smiling again. "I think you will 
outshine everyone else, in that dress!"

Dana grinned and went back into the fitting room to 
change. ::I can't wait.::

~*~*~

John walked out of the florist's office carrying two 
small white boxes. One contained a boutonniere for 
him, the other a small corsage for Dana's wrist. 

They were both made out of white roses. He carefully 
placed them on the passenger seat of his truck, before 
heading home. He glanced at the clock on his dash: 
12:00. ::Only 7 more hours to go.:: He had a 
feeling that those 7 hours were going to feel like 7 
days.

Dana looked at her watch, as she walked out of the 
clothing store loaded down with bags. She gasped. 
::Noon! I've got to get home!:: She hurried to her 
car, tossing her bags in the back seat before getting 
in and starting it. As she waited for the car to 
warm up she debated whether she should grab something 
to eat on the way home or wait until she got there 
and make something to eat. The thought of a 
cheeseburger won out and so she headed for 
McDonald's.

~*~*~

Mulder slowly pushed open the cabin door, Krycek 
covering him with his gun. 

"What'd you forget this time, Mac?" Called an 
irritated voice from the back of the cabin.

Mulder pushed the door open the rest of the way, as 
CSM walked into the living room. 

"Mac didn't forget anything!" Mulder growled, his gun 
trained on CSM, as he entered the cabin, Krycek close 
behind him with his own gun out.

"Agent Mulder?" The older man looked surprised. 
"What are you doing here?"

Mulder's eyes roamed the room, taking in the crib near 
the fireplace, the box of diapers on the floor next 
to it. His gun, however, remained trained on 
Spender. Krycek had gone through the rest of the 
cabin, making sure they were alone. Mulder brought 
his eyes back to Spender's face. "Do you really need 
to ask why I am here?" Sarcasm was dripping from 
every word he spoke.

Just then, there was a flash of lightening and a loud 
clap of thunder. The baby in the crib began crying. 
Mulder's baby, the baby whose sex he still didn't 
know. Mulder nodded towards the baby and Krycek went 
to pick it up. As much as Mulder wanted to go see 
his child, comfort it, he wasn't about to take his 
eyes off of Spender. Krycek picked the baby up and 
rocked it gently, murmuring soothing words.

"It's a little girl, Mulder," Krycek spoke softly. 

"Yes, Mulder," Spender spoke up, looking more 
confident. "Her name is Samantha. How fitting that 
you should come to save her since you couldn't save 
your sister." Mulder lunged, his gun flying, his 
hands wrapping themselves around the elder man's 
neck. "Why? You sick bastard! Tell. Me. Why. You. 
Took. My. Child!" His words came out staccato fast, 
each one punctuated, by Mulder shaking the other man. 

Krycek was standing back watching, still holding the 
now cooing child. As much as he wanted to be the one 
strangling Spender, he knew that this was Mulder's 
moment. He looked down at the baby that was drifting 
off to sleep in his arms. She had beautiful red 
curls on her head and cute chubby cheeks. Krycek 
felt a tug at his heart, but shook it away, as he 
turned back to the confrontation on the other side of 
the room.

"You have to understand Mulder." Spender croaked 
out. "I did it to protect the child, to protect you 
and Scully."

Mulder loosened his hands slightly, so the man could 
speak. "Protect us from what?" he growled out.

"From the aliens, Mulder. Your daughter is very 
special. The aliens left something of themselves in 
both you and Scully during your abductions. That has 
been passed on to your daughter, making her very 
unique. The aliens want her to study her, how her 
mind works, how her DNA is different than yours." 

Mulder snorted. "And how is it, that you can protect 
her better than I can?"

"I...I just can, Mulder." The other man began to 
stutter, the fear returning to his eyes. "I-"

Mulder cut him off. "Wanna know what I think?" 
Mulder asked, taunting. "I think you're full of 
shit. My daughter is special, yes, but the aliens 
aren't after her. We've been watching your cabin 
for weeks now and we know no one is after her, 
especially aliens." He looked at Krycek. "Anything 
else we should ask him?"

Krycek shook his head. "Nope."

Mulder turned to look back at Spender, hate flowing 
from his hazel eyes. "You're done interfering in my 
life. Adios." And with that, Mulder snapped the 
other man's neck. 

As the body fell to the floor, Mulder bent over and 
retrieved his gun. He turned to Krycek and held out 
his arms, eager to meet his daughter. He gently 
rocked her in his arms, whispering in her ear, as 
Krycek went over to rifle through the dead man's 
pockets. 

"No ID, nothing Mulder." Krycek shrugged. "What do 
you want to do?"

Mulder had been packing stuff for the baby, getting 
ready to go. "Burn it. Burn it all."

***
***

Dana picked up her favorite bottle of perfume, 
"Clinique Happy," and dabbed some behind her ears. 
She looked at her reflection in the mirror. She had 
curled her hair and piled it on top of her head so 
that a few loose tendrils framed her face. The tiny 
diamond earrings that she had put on sparkled under 
the bathroom light. She smiled and liked what she 
saw. She walked into the living room, her heels 
making a faint clicking sound on the floor through 
the carpet. She pulled her shawl around her shoulder 
and picked up her evening bag just as there was a 
knock on her door.

She pulled open the door and felt her mouth drop 
open. John was standing outside the door holding a 
small white box. He was wearing a black tuxedo with 
a blue vest underneath it. He looked incredibly 
handsome.

John had been stunned when Dana had pulled open the 
door. He knew that she was beautiful, but this...He 
thought he'd died and gone to heaven. The blue of 
the dress brought out her beautiful eyes. Her hair 
was piled on top of her head, but loosely, so that 
she looked both sexy and sophisticated at the same 
time. ::Wow!::

He cleared his throat, trying to find his voice. "I 
thought the card said 'elegant' not 'knock you on 
your ass stunning.'" He grinned and Dana blushed at 
the compliment. He handed her the small white box 
that he was carrying. "This is for you."

She opened the box slowly, her eyes lighting up when 
she saw what was inside. "John, this is beautiful."

He took the small white box from her, setting it on 
the table by the door, reaching inside to pull out 
the corsage that was inside. It was made of three 
small white roses, with baby's breath tucked around 
them. He carefully slipped it on her wrist. "Ready 
to go?" he asked, hoping that he didn't seem too 
anxious. She nodded and took the arm he offered. 
When they got to the front of the building, Dana was 
stunned again. In front of her was a white stretch 
limousine with a man waiting to open the door for 
them. 

"John?" she asked, looking up at him, the question in 
her eyes clear.

He smiled down at her. "Happy Valentine's Day, 
Dana."

She smiled back at him as they got settled in the 
limo.

~*~*~

Mulder and Krycek stood by the car they'd "borrowed" 
from Spender watching the cabin go up in flames. 
They'd placed Samantha in the car seat in the back 
and she'd fallen back asleep almost immediately. 

Mulder watched the sunset through the trees, glad 
that it was finally over. ::Now I can take my 
daughter and go home. My daughter.:: Those two 
words still sent a shiver down his spine. It seemed 
unreal. Then it hit him. He needed to call Scully. 

Now. He looked over at Krycek, who was also watching 
the cabin burn. "Hey, Alex, mind if I borrow your 
phone?"

Krycek shook his head. "Not at all." He replied, as 
he handed his phone to Mulder. Mulder quickly 
punched in Scully's home number, tapping his foot 
impatiently as it continued to ring. He heard the 
machine answer and cursed under his breath, as he hung 
up and then punched in her cell phone number. Again, 
he only got her voice mail. ::Dammit!:: He looked 
at his watch. It was 7:30 in DC. ::Where is she?:: 
He handed the phone back to Krycek.

"No answer, huh?"

"Nope." Mulder replied, looking dejected. He'd 
wanted, no needed, to share this news with Scully.

"Don't worry, Mulder. You'll get in touch with her."
Krycek quickly calculated the drive time from there 
to Denver in his head. He needed to call Tammy and 
let her know he was coming home. They were about 5 
hours away so that would work. He picked up his 
phone and dialed, smiling when she answered. "Happy 
Valentine's Day, Babe." He said huskily. He listened 
for a minute and then said, "I'm coming home, 
tonight." He held the phone away from his ear, so he 
wouldn't lose his hearing, to her screams of joy. 

"Listen, we have to get on the road. Meet us in the 
parking lot of Barnes and Noble at 10:30, ok? We will 
be in the dark green Taurus with Montana plates." He 
was silent again for another minute. "I know, Babe. 
I love you too." He hung up, sliding the phone back 
in his pocket and turned to Mulder. "Let's get out 
of here."

Mulder turned away from the smoldering remains of the 
cabin and the Cigarette Smoking Man. He nodded. 
"I'll drive the first part," he offered. Krycek 
agreed and went around to get in on the passenger 
side. Mulder started the car and backed carefully 
out of the woods. He was smiling by the time he got 
to the interstate. ::We're finally going home 
Samantha.::

~*~*~

Dana looked around in awe, as she and John entered the 
restaurant where they had reservations. The interior 
was done almost entirely in blue. The floor was 
covered in a royal blue carpet, so thick that Dana 
could feel her feet sinking into it. The walls were 
done in a blue gray color that almost looked like 
mist. 

The maitre 'd led them to their seats. It was 
a small, two-person, table set back in a somewhat 
secluded corner. There was a pale blue tablecloth 
that matched the chairs. On the table, there were two, 
small, white, rose-shaped candles for mood lighting.

Their waitress, an attractive woman in her late 30s 
came their way. She had short dark hair and was 
wearing a well cut dark blue suit. ::What is it with 
this place and the color blue?:: Dana thought, rather 
amusedly. The waitress flipped open her order book 
and addressed them. "Hello, my name is Jayne and I 
shall be your server this evening. May I interest 
either of you in a bottle of wine?" She asked, 
displaying their wine list.

Dana looked at John and shrugged. She wasn't too 
picky. John chose a wine and the waitress said she'd 
return in a moment to take their orders. This 
restaurant was known for it's fine seafood and, after 
perusing the entire menu, John and Dana both decided 
on swordfish. The waitress returned, poured their 
wine, took their orders, and left as swiftly and as 
gracefully, as she had arrived. As Dana sipped the 
Chardonnay that John had ordered, she wistfully eyed 
the dance floor. She hoped that John would ask her 
to dance.

John had been watching Dana all night long and saw 
the look in her eyes, as she watched the couples 
twirling on the dance floor. Slowly, John pushed his 
chair back from the table and walked around to where 
Dana was sitting. He offered his hand, very much the 
gentleman he was. "May I have this dance?"

Dana smiled and suppressed a giggle. She put her 
fingers in his, enjoying the feel of the warmth 
emanating from them. She shivered slightly, as she 
stood, her shawl falling into her chair. "I would 
love to dance." She replied, as the band began playing 
a slow romantic song. John wrapped his arms around 
Dana, pulling her close to him on the dance floor. 

She rested her head on his chest, listening to his 
heartbeat. He put his head on top hers and they both 
swayed in time to the music, listening to the words 
of the male vocalists.

"Every time our eyes meet 
This feeling inside me
Is almost more than I can take.

Baby when you touch me
I can feel how much you love me
And it just blows me away.

I've never been this close to anyone or anything
I can hear you thoughts
I can feel your dreams..."

Dana looked up at John, love for him shining in her 
eyes. He bent down slightly and kissed her cheek. 
She smiled and put her head back, on his shoulder.

"I don't know how you do what you do
I'm so in love with you
It just keeps getting better

I wanna spend the rest of my life
With you by my side
Forever and ever
Every little thing that you do
Baby I'm amazed by you...

John pulled her closer, whispering in her ear. "I'm 
amazed by you." Dana looked up, slightly surprised. 

"I love you too." She whispered.

"The smell of your skin
The taste of your kiss
The way you whisper in the dark

Your hair all around me
Baby you surround me
Touch every place in my heart

Oh it feels like the first time
Every time
I wanna spend the whole night in your eyes

"I don't know how you do what you do
I'm so in love with you
It just keeps getting better

I wanna spend the rest of my life
With you by my side
Forever and ever
Every little thing that you do
Baby I'm amazed by you..."

John had planned to wait, but he knew that now was 
the right moment. He pulled away from Dana, her eyes 
slightly hurt. As the music kept playing, he pulled 
out a small black velvet box and got down on his knee 
in front of her.

"Every little thing that you do...
Oh every little thing that you 
Baby I'm amazed by you."

As the song came to a close, John reached up and took 
Dana's hand. "You are my everything." He said 
softly. "Without you, Dana, I am but part of a man. 
You complete me. Will you be my wife?"

Dana stared at him, tears in her eyes. She looked at 
the ring he was holding, waiting to put it on her hand. 
It was gorgeous. In the middle of the gold band was 
a marquise cut diamond. On either side of it were 
smaller, princess cut, diamonds. She began to nod, 
unsure of whether or not she could talk. Finally, 
she found her voice. "Yes, John, I will be your 
wife."

John slid the ring on her finger and stood, 
wrapping his arms around her in a bone-crushing hug. 
Soon they were kissing each other, neither one 
realizing for a few moments that people in the 
restaurant were clapping. As they came to their 
senses, Dana realized that everyone was watching 
them, and blushing slightly, she took John's hand and 
led them back to their table. As they were seated, 
Jayne appeared with a bottle of champagne and their 
food. "Compliments of the management," she explained 
as she uncorked the champagne. John and Dana lifted 
their glasses to each other. "To our future." She 
offered. "To our future." He seconded, as they both 
took a sip, already giddy with happiness.

~*~*~

Krycek pulled the car into the crowded parking lot of 
a Denver Barnes and Noble and turned it off. He 
glanced over at Mulder, who was asleep in the 
passenger seat. ::I'll have to wake him soon.:: 
Krycek glanced around his familiar surroundings 
looking for her. ::It's good to be home again. I've 
been away too long.:: He noticed a pair of 
headlights turning into the parking lot. ::Teal 
Saturn. Time to go.:: He reached over and shook 
Mulder awake. 

"Wha-?" Mulder sat up rubbing the sleep from his 
eyes. "Where are we? What's going on?"

"It's ok, Mulder." Krycek said reassuringly. "We're 
in Denver. She's here." Krycek pointed to the woman 
walking towards them. As she passed under a light, 
they could see what she looked like. Mulder was 
stunned. She was about 5'8" with shoulder length 
chestnut hair. She was wearing all black, except for 
the green leather jacket. ::No wonder Alex was in a 
hurry to get home!::

They got out of the car and stood next to it, waiting 
to meet her. Mulder left his door open slightly in 
case Samantha woke up and cried out. Alex opened his 
arms, as she came closer. He wrapped his arms around 
her and hugged her close. "Oh God, Tammy, I have 
missed you so much." He kissed her quick and hard 
before releasing her. "Tammy, this is Special Agent 
Fox Mulder. Mulder, Tammy."

Mulder stuck out his hand. "Nice to meet you." As 
she came closer to shake his hand, he noticed her 
eyes. They were emerald green and burned with an 
intensity like none he'd ever seen before. He felt 
himself becoming lost in the depths of her eyes and 
quickly released her hand, looking away.

"So," she asked, her voice soft and alluring, "do I 
get to see why my Alex has been gone for so long?" 

Mulder jumped when she spoke, startled out of his 
reverie. "Yeah, sure, she's asleep in the back seat. 
Her name is Samantha." He slowly pulled open the 
Door, so that she could see his daughter. She leaned 
in and gasped softly when she saw the baby in the 
backseat. She was so perfect. She looked over at 
Alex, then Samantha, and then back at Alex. ::Nah, 
ours would be cuter.:: She turned back to Mulder and 
impulsively gave him a hug. "Good luck."

Mulder looked at her strangely, but didn't say 
anything.

Krycek cleared his throat. "You sure you're ok to 
drive back to DC alone, Mulder?" He asked, with 
concern showing on his face.

Mulder nodded and smiled that heart-breaking, make- 
you-weak-in-the-knees grin of his. "Sam and I will 
be fine. I'll call you in a couple days, ok Alex?"

Krycek nodded and walked over to Mulder, enveloping 
him in a bear hug. "Take care, Fox. Good luck."

Mulder returned the hug, feeling a closeness to 
Krycek, a kinship, he'd only ever felt with one other 
person. "Thanks Alex, I owe you one. Take care."

Tammy and Alex stood holding hands, watching as 
Mulder pulled out of the parking lot, before turning 
and heading back to her car.

~*~*~

Alex pushed the door shut and leaned back against it, 
sighing. It felt so good to be home. He watched as 
Tammy walked across the room, kicking off her boots 
and tossing her coat across the couch. He could feel 
himself becoming aroused just by watching her. It 
had been too long. 

"Tammy?" He whispered, his voice soft and husky.

She turned around, flipping her brilliant red hair 
out of her eyes. "Yes?" Her voice, sultry.

"C'mere."

She walked towards him, feeling the excitement build 
in the room. She had missed him, so much. He opened 
his arms, as she came closer. He loved the way the 
moonlight from the window played in her hair, the way 
it shimmered in her green eyes. He felt his jeans 
tighten.

She walked into his arms, loving the feel of him, his 
unique smell. God, how she had missed him. He 
reached a hand up, brushing her hair back from her 
face, following his hand with tiny butterfly kisses. 

She could feel her nipples beginning to harden just 
from his light touch.

Suddenly, he spun her around, so that her back was 
against the door. He reached over and closed the 
blinds on the window. He tipped his head down, 
kissing her forehead, her eyes, her nose, before 
settling on her mouth. 

She gasped, slightly, at the invasion of his tongue, 
her surprise allowing him even deeper entrance. His 
tongue battled with hers, both of them becoming more 
heated by the second. He pulled back and drug in a 
deep breath. Her eyes had gone dark green with 
passion, almost as dark as his.

His fingers pulled her shirt, tugging it from her 
pants, seeking entrance. He ran his fingers up her 
sides, making her shiver. She tipped her head back 
against the door and closed her eyes, enjoying the 
feel of his talented hands on her. He unsnapped her 
bra, quickly moving it out of the way. He cupped her 
breasts, gently kneading them. She gasped, feeling a 
pulsing begin between her legs. She wanted him to 
take her now, but knew that the exquisite torture 
would be worth it. Suddenly, he lifted her in his 
arms and walked away from the door. 

"I want to enjoy this." He whispered in her ear, 
kissing it, as he placed her in the middle of the bed.
He kicked his shoes off, shrugged out of his coat, 
before climbing on the bed on top of her. Her hair 
was spread out across the pillows and he knew he had 
never seen her look more beautiful. 

He quickly pulled her shirt off, her bra following 
behind it, then sat back, gazing at her beauty. Her 
nipples were hard and stood out, begging for his 
touch. He was happy to oblige. He bent down and 
began suckling on one nipple, his hand playing with 
the other one. He began running his tongue around 
her nipple, then applied his teeth, gently, but 
enough to get a reaction from her.

Her hips bucked, as she groaned out his name. "Oh 
God, Alex."

He smiled against her chest, feeling his own 
excitement building. He wanted this to last though, 
wanted it to be special. He felt the need to make up 
for having been gone so long.

Her hands roamed down his back, looking for the ends 
of his shirt. She found it and pulled it up and over 
his head, tossing it across the room. She ran her 
hands down the front of his chest, loving the feel. 
She teased his nipples with her fingertips, smiling, 
as she elicited a groan from him. 

With one move, her pants and underwear were gone. He 
couldn't let her get control, not if he hoped to last 
very long. He slid his hands back up her legs, his 
mouth never leaving her breasts. Her breaths began 
coming in short gasps. She was close, this Alex 
knew, but he was determined to push her, as far as he 
could, before he let her come. He stopped when his 
fingers were almost at the juncture between her legs. 

He could feel the heat coming off of her, felt her 
buck beneath his hands. He stopped and looked up at 
her, smiling evilly.

"Oh God, Alex." She moaned. "Don't stop now. 
Please. I want you. Inside me. Now." She spoke 
softly, quickly, knowing what he wanted to hear.

He nodded and was happy to oblige. He slid a finger 
inside of her, his thumb rubbing at her clit. She 
was so wet, so ready for him. He almost came when he 
felt her contract around his finger. He took a deep 
breath and slid another finger inside her, grinning 
widely, as she lifted her hips off the bed to meet 
him. He began to move back and forth, slow at first, 
then getting faster and faster. She began mumbling 
incoherently, her hips bucking wildly. With his free 
hand, he reached down and removed the rest of his 
clothes, letting them fall off of the side of the 
bed. He removed his fingers, knowing that she was 
almost there. She frowned and groaned slightly. 

He sat down and picked her up, impaling her on him in 
one swift move. She screamed, as she took him in, 
feeling herself climax around him. Alex began moving 
her up and down, almost removing her from him 
completely each time he picked her up. Her head fell 
back, her excitement building again. He leaned 
forward and nipped at her breasts, first one and then 
the other. She moaned. "Oh God, Alex, now. Now."

He pumped into her harder, faster, feeling himself 
about to climax. He reached down with his hand, 
rubbing her clit with his thumb in time to his 
movements. She moaned and screamed his name and she 
climaxed violently, clutching him tightly within her. 

One more thrust and he came too, calling her name, 
Mumbling, as he felt his hot seed pour into her. He 
laid back on the bed, letting her fall onto his 
chest, not bothering to remove himself from her. 

They were both breathing hard. She ran her hands up 
his chest and into his hair. She leaned closer and 
kissed him softly on the lips. "I love you Alex."

"I love you too, Tammy."

~*~*~

John and Dana giggled, as they stood outside waiting 
for the limo to be brought around. They had stayed 
at the restaurant until close and in that remaining 
time they had finished off both the bottle of 
champagne and the bottle of wine. Plus John had 
purchased another bottle of the champagne from the 
restaurant to take home with them. Dana wrapped her 
arms around John's waist and nibbled on his ear.
"So," she asked, her voice low and seductive, "are we 
going to your place or mine?"

"Yours," he whispered, his voice hoarse, as the limo 
pulled up. "It's closer." He grabbed her hand and 
practically dragged her to the open limo door, a huge 
grin on his face.

~*~*~

Dana awoke the next morning to the sunlight streaming 
in through her bedroom window. She was lying on her 
right side curled up next to John, her left hand on 
his chest. Her fingers were laying in the sunlight 
and she wiggled them, watching her ring send rainbows 
all over the room. She pinched herself. ::Nope, 
it's not a dream.:: And she giggled at herself, for 
being so silly. John opened his eyes at the sound, 
gazing at her beautiful face. She reached up and ran 
her fingers over his face, through his hair. He 
rolled over, so that she was underneath him and began 
kissing her, running his fingers through her red 
hair, urging her on. Soon, he was in her and they 
were moving to their own rhythm. He felt like his 
very soul was going to explode from what he felt for 
this woman.

Afterward they both lay contentedly in each other 
arms. "Well." Dana said, the first words either one 
had spoken all morning. "Good morning to you, too." 
He laughed softly, Dana feeling the rumbling in his 
chest where her head was laying. He kissed her on 
top of her head. "I love you."

She smiled into his chest. "I love you too, John."

"So," he asked, pulling her closer, "what are we 
going to do with our day off today?"

She knew what his suggestion would be. "Well," she 
said, raising herself up on her elbow so she could 
look into his face, "I thought that maybe we should 
begin by spreading the good news. I guess we should 
probably set a date first."

"Tomorrow." John replied without a moment's 
hesitation, drawing a laugh from Dana.

He smiled at her reaction, before continuing. "It 
depends. Do you want a big wedding or a small 
wedding, Dana?"

She frowned slightly, wondering what kind of wedding 
his first had been. "Well...knowing my mom, she'll 
want to help, and we'll end up having a huge wedding. 
Is that ok with you?"

He shrugged. "That's all right with me. But the 
sooner the better."

Dana laughed again. "In that case, we'd better get 
up and get moving, hadn't we? I'll go make some 
coffee while you get cleaned up."

John nodded and sighed. "Well, there goes my plans 
for the day."

She picked up a pillow and hit him with it, playfully, 
on her way out of bed. "I thought that's what the 
honeymoon was for." She ran, laughing, through the 
bedroom door towards the kitchen, so that when he 
threw the pillow at her, he missed.

~*~*~

By the time they got home that night, it was late, 
and they were both exhausted. They'd decided to 
spend the night at her place again so that they could 
spend the weekend packing her apartment up. She'd 
told him earlier that after they were married she 
wanted to move into his house with him. Permanently. He had been 
more than happy with that news. Dana hummed softly, 
as she walked around the living room, picking stuff 
up. John had dropped her off and then gone to his 
house to get some clothes. Waiting for him to come 
back, she decided she needed some music to play on 
the radio. She went over to the stereo and turned it 
on, flipping through the stations until she found one 
that seemed to be playing upbeat music. She turned 
the stereo up as the female singer's voice filled the 
room.

"I used to live in a darkened room / Had a face of 
stone / and a heart of gloom
Lost my hope, I was so far gone / Cryin' all my tears 
/ With the curtains drawn
I didn't know until my soul broke free / I've got 
these angels watching over me"

Dana began to listen to the words more intently, 
transfixed by how so much of it reflected her life.

"Oh watch me go / I'm a happy girl / Everybody knows 
/ That the sweetest thing you'll ever see / In the 
whole wide world / Is a happy girl"

Dana smiled. ::That's me. I'm a happy girl now.:: 
She began to dance, as the music kept playing.

"I used to hide in a party crowd / Bottled up inside 
/ Feeling so left out
Standing in a corner wearing concrete shoes / with my 
frozen smile / and my lighted fuse
Now every time I start to feel like that / I roll my 
heart out like a welcome mat"

"Oh watch me go / I'm a happy girl / Everybody knows 
/ That the sweetest thing you'll ever see / In the 
whole wide world / Is a happy girl"

"Laugh when I feel like it / Cry when I feel like it 
/ That's just how my life is / That's how it goes"

"Oh watch me go / I'm a happy girl / and I've come to 
know / that the world won't change / just cause I 
complain / Let the axis twirl / I'm a happy girl"

Dana was so caught up in the music that not only 
didn't she realize that John had come in, but she 
didn't even hear the phone ringing. He answered it, 
then tapped her on the shoulder. She jumped and 
turned the radio off. She turned to him, smiling. 

"I'm sorry, I didn't hear you." He was holding the 
phone out to her, unsmiling. She frowned. "What is 
it John?"

"Skinner's on the phone for you. He said it's 
important."

She took the phone from him, a look of impatience 
crossing her face. "Scully."

"Dana, it's Walter. I'm sorry to be calling you at 
home so late, but I have some news for you."

"What kind of news?"

"Can you meet me at GW Hospital? I'll tell you when 
you get here. It's urgent, so come now."
With that, he hung up.

Dana turned and looked at John, startled. 

"What was that all about?" he asked, looking very 
confused.

She shook her head. "I'm not sure. He told me he 
had news and to meet him at GW Hospital as soon as 
possible."

He grabbed the coat that he had just taken off. 
"Well, let's go then."

~*~*~

John pulled into the parking lot of GW Hospital, 
turned off his truck, and sighed. He could see the 
bright lights from the emergency room off to his 
left. He reached over and took Dana's hand. "Come 
on," he said softly, "let's go see what's going on." 

They walked across the parking lot hand in hand. 
Skinner watched them walk across the lot towards him 
with their fingers intertwined. He raised his 
eyebrows in surprise. He had figured that they had a 
relationship going outside of work, but since they 
kept it private, he hadn't found it necessary to 
remind them of the Bureau's policy. ::Well, now 
isn't the time to say anything.:: He sighed heavily, 
as they came closer.

'John? Dana?" He began. "I'm sorry to bring you out 
so late at night, but I felt this couldn't wait."

"What is it, Walter?" Dana asked, holding John's hand 
tighter.

Skinner swallowed, visibly nervous. "It's Mulder."

Dana's face paled and John put his arms around her 
shoulders, afraid that she was going to collapse. 
"Mulder?" she whispered softly.

"He was in an accident. He ... A drunken driver ran a 
red light and broad sided Mulder."

Dana gasped. "Oh my God! How is he?"

"He's critical. He's in surgery right now with 
internal injuries. He has a broken leg. They're 
going to check him for head injuries when he wakes. 
I guess he had a pretty nasty cut on the side of his 
head from where it cracked the windshield. But Dana, 
that's not all."

John spoke for the first time, quiet but firm. 

"There's more?" His voice was tinged with a bit of 
disbelief.

Skinner nodded. "He had a baby in the car with him. 
A little girl."

Dana felt her knees buckle. ::Samantha. My baby. 
My little girl.::

Skinner reached out to catch her, but John already 
had his hands under her arms, holding her up.

"How is she?" She whispered. "How's Samantha?"

Skinner shook his head slightly. "I can't explain 
it, Dana, but she's fine. She doesn't have a scratch 
or a bruise on her."

Dana slowly stood on her own feet again. "Can I see 
her?"

Skinner nodded. "Follow me."

~*~*~

They walked swiftly down the bright white halls of 
the hospital towards the elevators.

"She's in the nursery." Skinner explained, as he 
punched a button. He glanced over at them out of the 
corner of his eye. Dana was leaning back against 
John's chest, some of her color finally returning. 

He had his arms around her and she had her hands on 
top of his. ::Oh crap!:: Skinner groaned inwardly, 
noticing the ring for the first time. ::Now I really 
do, have to have that talk with them.:: The elevator 
stopped and the doors slid open, allowing them to see 
into the windows of the nursery. Skinner led them to 
the nurse station. He went up to the nurse in charge 
and flashed his badge. "We're here to see Samantha 
Mulder."

::Samantha Mulder?!:: John and Dana both thought in 
unison.

The nurse, whose nametag said Lorna, smiled and 
nodded. "Right this way please." 

They began following her down the hallway, Skinner's 
eyes appreciatively taking in her long brown hair and 
hourglass figure. He mentally slapped himself. 

::Knock it off Walter! You're supposed to be here for 
Mulder and Scully, not to check out the nurses!:: 

The four of them stopped in front of a door marked 
"PRIVATE." 

"Here you go," said Lorna. "Let me know if I can do 
anything else for you." With that she headed back to 
the nurses' station. Skinner looked at them. "I'm 
gonna go check on Mulder, ok? I'll be back."

John nodded, reassuring Dana. "Go ahead, Honey. It's 
ok."

She looked at him, her nervousness showing. "Come 
with me?" she asked softly, pleading.

He nodded and she pushed open the door. There was a 
crib inside, along with a rocking chair, a bed and 
some monitors. Dana picked up the chart off the back 
of the door, needing a moment to compose herself. 
Satisfied, both with the chart and with her 
composure, she walked over to the crib. She gasped 
when she looked inside. Not only was the baby even 
prettier than in the pictures, but she looked like 
Mulder. This was her baby. Samantha was smiling up 
at her, her hazel eyes wide and bright. Dana could 
feel the tears begin running down her cheeks, as she 
reached down and picked up her daughter for the first 
time.

Dana made her way over to the bed and sat down, 
patting a spot next to her on the bed for John to sit 
down. He sat down and put his arm around her. She 
began talking to Samantha just like she had all of 
those months when she was carrying her. "Hi 
Samantha. I'm your mommy."

Samantha looked up at her, nodding her head slightly, 
as if agreeing. Dana smiled and wiped away her 
tears. "Samantha, I want you to meet someone. This 
is John." She looked up at him. "Do you want to 
hold her?"

He nodded, his eyes bright with unshed tears. He 
carefully took Samantha from her mother's arms. "Hi 
Samantha." He whispered, rocking her back and forth, 
feeling both happy and sad at the same time. 

Dana smiled, as she watched the two of them together. 
She prayed that everything would be all right.

Skinner opened the door about 10 minutes later. Dana 
was holding Samantha again and John was holding both 
of them. Skinner felt like he was intruding and was 
about to leave when Dana looked up. "What is it 
Walter?"

"Mulder is out of surgery. He's still asleep," he 
cautioned, "but you can see him if you'd like."

"How is he?" she asked anxiously.

"His doctor is waiting upstairs to speak with you."

She nodded and turned to John. "Are you going with 
me?" 

He shook his head, remembering the last time Mulder 
had been in the hospital. The look on Dana's face 
when she had sat with Mulder. He couldn't go through 
that again, especially now. "I think I'll stay here 
with Sam." He said quietly, unknowingly giving the 
child a nickname that she would use for years to 
come.

Dana nodded, bewildered, but in too much of a hurry 
to ask questions. She handed Sam to John, giving 
them both a quick kiss. "I'll be back soon," she 
said, as she followed Skinner out the door.

"Well," John said, looking down into Sam's big eyes, 
"guess it's just you and me kid." He slowly walked 
over to the rocking chair and sat down, cradling her 
in his arms. He began rocking back and forth, still 
talking softly to Sam. "You know, your Mom didn't 
tell you, but I'm in love with her. I have been ever 
since I met her." He sighed heavily. "I just hope 
she chooses me over your daddy." He whispered, his 
voice breaking. He hugged her closer, as the tears 
ran down his face, thinking of all he'd already lost. 
He prayed he wouldn't lose Dana too.

~*~*~

Dana and Skinner were met in the upstairs hallway by 
a tall, blond haired, distinguished looking man. 

"Hello, you must be Dr. Scully. I'm Dr. Ray. It's 
good to meet you. I'll tell you, Agent Mulder is a 
very lucky man. He does have a fracture in his left 
lower leg, but it's not bad and should heal within 6 
weeks. His internal injuries were not as bad as we 
thought they were. We did have to remove his spleen 
and his liver is slightly bruised, but other than 
that, no damage was done. He does have a 6 inch gash 
on the left side of his head where it broke the 
windshield. We were able to stitch it up nicely, but, 
as he is still unconscious, I don't know if he will 
have any head trauma. Would you like to see him?"

Scully nodded, absorbing all of the info she had just 
been given. "Yes, please."

"Right this way."

He stopped in front of a room marked Recovery Room 4. 
"If you have any questions, you can have a nurse page 
me." 

She nodded again. "Thank you Dr. Ray."

She turned and looked at Skinner. "Shall we?"

"Are you sure you want me to go in with you Dana?"

"Yeah. I'm sure."

They both entered the room. Mulder looked very 
strange lying there with tubes running out of his 
body and his head bandaged. His leg was up in a 
sling. Dana grimaced slightly, remembering a time, 
not so long ago, when she was sitting with Mulder in a 
hospital. She sat down next to the bed, holding his 
hand. Skinner stood slightly behind her. 

Suddenly, Mulder moved and his eyes began to open. 
"Mulder?" Dana whispered softly. "Can you hear me?"

He opened his eyes and blinked them a few times, 
trying to clear them. He looked around the room 
before his eyes settled on the beautiful face looking 
down at him.

"Mulder? Can you hear me?"

He nodded, a look of confusion on his face. "Who are 
you?"

Dana's eyes opened wide, almost as wide as her mouth 
did, yet she was unable to say anything. ::Is he 
joking with me?::

Mulder looked at Skinner next. "Agent Skinner? What 
are you doing here? What's going on?"

Skinner was as shocked as Dana was. ::What the heck? 
Agent Skinner?:: Neither one of them was able to 
speak. Mulder continued to look around the room, 
unaware that he was still holding onto Dana's hand. 

He finally turned back to Skinner, 
"Agent Skinner, what is going on here? Why am I in a 
hospital? Where is Diana?"

At that last question, Dana gasped and dropped 
Mulder's hand. ::Diana? Diana Fowley? Oh my God.:: 

A thought hit Dana like a lightening bolt and she 
turned to Skinner.

"I'm going to find Dr. Ray." She mumbled, as she 
quickly left the room, praying she'd make it outside 
before she broke down.

Skinner took the seat that she had vacated. He had 
no idea what to say to Mulder. ::What is wrong with 
him? Well, here goes nothing...:: 

"Agent Mulder, you were in a car accident earlier 
this evening. You sustained severe internal injuries 
and were brought to the hospital. You were released 
from surgery about an hour ago."

Mulder nodded taking in the information. "I see. 
Who was that woman who was just in here?" Skinner 
could tell that Mulder wasn't joking by the look on 
his face.

"That was Special Agent Dana Scully. She's your 
partner."

Mulder's jaw hit the floor. "What? She's not my 
partner. Diana Fowley is my partner. Where is 
Diana?"

Skinner shook his head, wondering how to explain this 
one, when Dana returned with Dr. Ray.

"Hello there, Mr. Mulder." Said Dr. Ray, looking as 
calm and cool as he had earlier. "I'm Dr. Ray. I'm 
the surgeon who operated on you. How are you 
feeling?"

Mulder looked at him, and shook his outstretched 
hand. "I'm rather sore, but I feel fine."

"I see. Can you tell me, Mr. Mulder, what today's 
date is?"

Mulder frowned. ::What kind of quack is this guy?:: 
He looked at the calendar on the wall. "It's 
February 15."

Dr. Ray nodded. "What year is it?"

::Is this guy on crack or something?:: Mulder 
wondered. "It's 1993, of course."

~*~*~

Dana sat in a chair out in the hallway, her head in 
her hands. After Mulder had said that it was 1993 
she hadn't been able to stay in the room any longer. 

She knew what had happened. She had read about this 
kind of amnesia before, where years disappear from 
people's memories. The only problem was, no one knew 
for sure how to solve it. She could feel the tears 
seeping out from under her eyelids again and wished 
she had better control over her emotions. 

She quickly wiped them away. ::Now what do I do? If 
Mulder doesn't remember me...Or the X-Files...How will I 
explain to him about our child? Oh God...how will John 
react? I'm so torn. I want to be with John, but 
Mulder is my best friend. I want to help him 
remember. Oh God.:: She could feel the tears 
beginning again, this time in earnest, the tears she 
hated to let fall, but knew that she couldn't stop. 
She felt a hand on her shoulder. She quickly wiped 
her eyes dry before looking up.

"Are you ok, Dana?" A soft, gentle, caring voice 
asked.

"I'm fine Walter," she said, without conviction.

::Fine. Yeah right.:: He sat down in the chair next 
to her and gave her a quick hug. "I'm so sorry Dana. 
I wish I could fix this."

She tried to smile at him. "It's ok Walter. It's 
not your fault. You couldn't have known that Mulder 
wouldn't remember me. Besides, you've given me Sam." 

She stood up. "Speaking of Sam, I think I'll go 
downstairs and see how she is. Excuse me."

Walter stood and watched, as she walked down the hall 
towards the elevator, shoulders slumped, the fire 
gone. He felt horrible.

Dana peeked in through the window of Sam's room, 
before going inside. John was sitting in the rocking 
chair, holding Sam. They were slowly rocking back 
and forth. It looked as if John were talking to her. 

Dana felt her heart tug, watching them. She knew 
that this was meant to be, this was where she was 
meant to be. She slowly pushed the door open and 
could hear that John was singing to Sam. Dana 
smiled. He was singing "their" song, "Amazed" to 
her. She walked over to them.

John looked up. "Hey." He noticed the look on her 
face. "What's wrong?"

Dana held out her arms for Sam, needing to hold her. 
She took Sam in her arms and hugged her, before 
answering John. "He doesn't remember me."

John was shocked. How could someone forget this 
beautiful woman? "He doesn't remember you?"

She shook her head. "He thinks it 1993...before he met 
me, before he started the X-Files, before 
everything." She blinked quickly, hoping to stop the 
tears. She'd cried enough about it, she refused to 
cry anymore.

John stepped closer and wrapped his arms around her 
and Sam. He kissed the top of her head. "I'm so 
sorry, Honey."

She smiled, a small one, but the first real smile 
since she'd been to Mulder's room. "I know. It's 
ok. I'll learn how to handle it. It'll just be hard 
at first. His not remembering me, is like removing 9 
years from my life."

"We'll help him Dana. It'll be ok."

She tilted her head up and kissed him, Sam cradled 
between them. ::I hope so.::

~*~*~

Mulder looked around his cold, smelly hospital room. 
He hated being in the hospital, he always had. He 
rubbed his eyes with his hand. He was so confused. 

The doctor had left awhile ago, after explaining to 
him that it was 2002, not 1993. Skinner had told him 
that he would be back in a little while and would 
answer any questions that Mulder had. So that left 
him alone. Alone in his misery to wonder what had 
happened. ::Who was that woman in here? Scully. 
Right. Skinner said she was my partner, had been for 
8 years. She looked crushed when I didn't remember 
her.:: He felt bad, not remembering her. He 
couldn't believe he could forget a face like that. 

Yet, he didn't remember. He shook his head. ::Maybe 
they can start me on some kind of therapy or 
something to help me remember.:: He closed his eyes 
and prayed that things would be different when he 
woke up.

~*~*~

John awoke early the next morning and looked around, 
disoriented at first. Then he remembered. 

::Samantha and Mulder.:: He and Dana had stayed up 
late last night talking. He had been very afraid 
that Dana might want to take Sam and be a family with 
Mulder now, and he had told her so. He grinned, as he 
remembered what she had told him. "John Doggett!" 

She had said, her voice firm. "Of all the things I 
want at this point in my life, being part of a family 
with Mulder, is not one of them." They had decided 
that they would go ahead with their plans for their 
life together. Besides, they'd already told Dana's 
landlord that she was moving out. They were going to 
take things one day at a time and see how it went.

John sat up on the bed and stretched. Dana was in 
the rocking chair next to the crib, fast asleep. 

He'd tried to persuade her to sleep in the bed with 
him, but she'd wanted to be close to Sam. "Just in 
case." She'd said. He couldn't fault her. If he had 
been Dana, he probably would have wanted to hold Sam 
all night long. He looked at his watch as he stood 
up and nodded in satisfaction. 6:30 am. ::Plenty of 
time.:: He quickly scribbled a note for Dana and 
headed out the door.

Mulder awoke that same morning with a pounding 
headache. He opened his eyes and closed them just as 
quickly, when he realized the sun was shining in them. 

He was very irritable and thought about going back to 
sleep when a bright, entirely too cheerful voice, 
broke the silence. "Good morning, Mr. Mulder." The 
voice chirped from over by the window. The sunlight 
disappeared and he opened his eyes again, much slower 
this time. Standing in front of him was a very 
pretty, but very young, nurse.

"My name is Lorna, Mr. Mulder and I am the nurse in 
charge of this floor. I thought I'd stop by and see 
if you needed anything." 

Mulder winced at the cheerfulness in her voice. 

"Yes. Yes I do. First it's just plain Mulder. No 
Mr. And second, do you have any painkillers? I have 
a bitch of a headache this morning." He groaned and 
closed his eyes.

Lorna smiled, as he closed his eyes. Oh, he may seem 
difficult, but those were her favorite kind of 
patients. "I'll be right back with some painkillers, 
Mulder." She replied in a much softer tone of voice, 
as she left the room. ::Oh yes.:: She thought. 
::This should be fun.::

~*~*~

A couple of hours later, Alex opened his eyes and 
sighed. Tammy was lying on her side facing him, her 
head pillowed on her arms, her hair splayed across 
her arms, a lock falling onto her forehead. Alex 
reached out with a hand and gently brushed the lock 
of hair behind her ears. She opened her eyes 
slightly and smiled. "Hi." She whispered.

"Hi yourself." He gave her that beautiful smile of 
his, the one that always made her heart melt. He 
leaned over and positioned his lips directly above 
hers, stopping for a moment before making contact, 
teasing her with the feel of his breath on her mouth. 

He closed the gap and brushed his lips across hers 
lightly, so very light that she almost didn't feel 
them. She reached up and ran her fingers through his 
hair, locking them behind his head, and pulling him 
down, kissing him, soft and slow at first, then 
deepening the kiss, kicking her legs to get the sheet 
out of the way. She wanted to feel him on her...feel 
all of him on her. Not only on her, but in her. 

Last night he'd had his chance to be in charge, but 
Now, she was going to take charge. She rolled him 
over so that she was on top of him. She ran her 
fingers down his chest, following them with her lips. 
She stopped with her mouth, teasing his nipples, 
first one and then the other, her fingers making 
circles on his abdomen. He gasped, allowing a soft 
groan to escape from him. She began moving farther 
down with her mouth, bypassing the part of him that 
was aching for her touch. She slowly ran her mouth 
down one leg and up the other, pressing soft kisses 
everywhere before coming back to his penis. His 
proud erection, standing tall, the tip gleaming. She 
ran her fingers up and to the top, rubbing the small 
opening with her thumb. She felt the moan before she 
actually heard it. She smiled and knew she had him. 
She leaned down and kissed the tip of his penis, 
running her tongue around the head and pressing 
kisses along its entire length. She then ran her 
tongue from base to tip before opening her mouth and 
taking him in, slow, smooth, teasing him with her 
teeth. She ran her mouth up and down, slowly sucking 
on him, feeling him pulse within her mouth. She 
moved faster, feeling the excitement building when 
suddenly, he sat up and reached down and pulled her up 
off of him. "No." He whispered. "Together." He 
laid her down on the bed and climbed on top of her, 
loving the way that her eyes went so dark that they 
were almost black when she was excited. He smiled 
down at her heaving chest, her nipples erect. He 
bent over and took one of her nipples in his mouth, 
nibbling on it, at the same time he entered her. He 
moved slowly, surely, wanting to bring her to the 
same level of excitement that she had brought him to. 

He moved a hand lower, massaging her clit. He 
brought his mouth up to her lips and kissed her 
deeply, the movements of his tongue, matching his 
movements within her. She began to thrash back and 
forth, her breath coming in small gasps. She pushed 
as hard as she could against him, striving to get him 
deeper inside her. "Oh God, Alex," she moaned. The 
sound of her voice excited him, causing him to move 
faster, harder, deeper. Suddenly he felt her clinch 
around him, hear her moaning his name, and felt his 
own climax begin to wash over him. His seed ran 
inside her as he collapsed on top of her, kissing her 
hair. "Wow," she muttered.

"Wow, is right." He answered, smiling against her 
head. He propped himself up on one elbow so he could 
see into her eyes. 

She smiled up at him. "I love you."

"I love you too, Babe. Will you marry me?"

Tammy stared up at Alex, love and surprise battling 
in her emerald eyes. She gazed deep into his face, 
hoping, praying that he meant what he said. She knew 
he loved her, but she'd never thought that he would 
be ready to take the plunge. She almost cried at 
what she saw in his eyes. Love, trust, everything 
she had ever wanted. She leaned up and kissed him 
softly. "Yes, Alex, I will marry you."

He smiled and moved over to where his pants where 
lying on the floor. He pulled a small box out of his 
pocket and sat up in the bed next to Tammy. He 
really hoped that she liked the ring. He had decided 
not to go for just diamonds. When the hell had he 
ever been traditional? He kind of kneeled on the bed 
in front of Tammy and slowly opened the box. She 
gasped when she looked inside. He slowly slid the 
ring on her finger. In the middle was a 3/4 carat, 
emerald cut ruby, and on each side was a 1/4 carat, 
round cut diamond. He kissed her hand after he 
slipped the ring onto it. "I will always love you, 
no matter what." He whispered.

He tugged on her hand, pulling her out of bed. 
"Let's go get some breakfast."

She smiled at him. "Maybe we should get dressed 
First, if we're going out?" 

He looked down at himself, then back at her. "Yeah, 
maybe."

~*~*~

A couple hours later they returned from The Westwood 
Inn, Tammy's favorite place to eat breakfast. They 
were lying around the house, watching TV, when Alex 
had a thought. 

"Hey," he said, looking at Tammy who was lying on the 
floor almost asleep.

"Yeah?"

"Think I should call Mulder? I know he said he'd 
call me in a couple days, but I have this funny 
feeling."

Tammy shrugged. "Sure, why not? I don't figure 
he'll be pissed at you for checking up on him. Tell 
him you wanted to know how Sam was, if you feel you 
need an excuse."

He grinned that one-of-a-kind-make-you-weak-in-the-
knees smile. "Me? Need an excuse?"

He ducked, as she tossed a pillow at him, and went 
into the kitchen to pick up the phone.

He returned about 5 minutes later and stood in the 
doorway watching Tammy. His soon-to-be-wife. He 
smiled. After everything he'd been through in his 
life, everything he'd done wrong, he never thought 
that he'd find acceptance. But with Tammy, he'd 
found more than acceptance. He'd found trust, 
friendship, and even love. He slowly made his way 
over to where she was resting on the floor. She was 
lying on her right side, facing the TV. Some of her 
hair had fallen over her face and it moved gently 
when she breathed. He could tell that she'd fallen 
back to sleep. He looked at the clock and wasn't 
surprised. It was only 7 am. He bent down and 
brushed her hair away from her face. She murmured 
slightly but didn't wake. He gently lifted her from 
the floor and carried her to the bed. He set her on 
it and laid down behind her, wrapping his arms around 
her stomach. After having been gone for so long, he 
never wanted to leave her again. She snuggled closer 
to him in her sleep. He smiled and closed his eyes, 
praying that things would be quiet for awhile.

~*~*~

Dana sat up and stretched, moving her head from side 
to side. She had a headache from sleeping in the 
rocker all night long, but it was worth it to be 
close to her daughter. ::My daughter.:: She smiled, 
as she stood up, bringing her hands above her head to 
stretch the rest of her body. She looked around the 
room, expecting to see John still asleep in the bed. 
She frowned when she didn't see him on the bed behind 
her. ::Where is he?:: Then she noticed a piece of 
paper propped up on the table next to Sam's crib. 

She hurried across the room to pick it up, peeking in
the crib at a sleeping Sam, as she passed. She 
flipped open the note and held it up to the light to 
see it better.

"Dear Dana," it began. "Good morning, Dear. I had to 
run a few errands this morning before we took Sam 
home. I hope you don't mind that I left you alone 
for a bit. I should be back by 10. I love you, 
John."

Dana looked at her watch. It was 8:00. ::A couple 
of hours until John comes back.:: She smiled, 
knowing that when John came back, they would be able 
to take Sam home. ::A real home. Mine and John's 
and Sam's. I can't wait.::

She was humming when there was a soft knock upon the 
door. ::Must be the nurse coming in to check on Sam.::
She pulled open the door.

"Walter?" She said, somewhat surprised to see him 
there, so early in the morning. She knew he had been 
up with Mulder until late the night before and had 
figured that he would sleep in.

"Morning, Dana," he said, looking tired, the bags 
under his eyes making him look older than he really 
was. He held out the bags he was carrying. "I 
brought breakfast." He said, as she took them from 
him. He looked around the room. "Where's John?"

"He went to run some errands." She replied, as she set 
out the muffins and the coffee on a table near the 
bed. She picked up an apple cinnamon muffin and a 
cup of coffee and sat on the bed. "Here." She said, 
motioning to a spot on the bed next to her. "Have a 
seat."

Walter picked up his own coffee and sat next to her, 
somewhat glad that John wasn't there. It would make 
it easier to have this conversation with Dana.

"So, Walter?" Dana began, not one to beat around the 
bush. "What can I do for you this morning?"

Skinner sighed. He had been hoping that perhaps they 
could make some small talk first. "Well, Dana," he 
said, afraid he would stumble over it and alienate 
her. "I noticed your ring last night."

She smiled as she moved her fingers, so that her ring 
sparkled in the light. "Yes, John asked me to marry 
him."

He smiled at her obvious happiness. 

"Congratulations. However, I know that this isn't a 
good time and this isn't a topic that I want to 
broach, but I feel-"

Dana interrupted, finishing his sentence. "That you 
must remind me of the Bureau's policy regarding 
interoffice relationships."

Skinner nodded, relieved that she seemed to be ok 
with discussing this. "Yes."

She smiled at him, now understanding what his earlier 
nervousness had been about. "I understand your 
position here, Walter. And I will be talking to John 
about that shortly. Right now I would like to ask 
you if I may take my maternity leave now?"

He nodded again, glad to have that conversation over 
with. "Of course you may, effective immediately. 
Just let me know when you'd like to come back to 
work."

"Thank you, Sir, I will."

With that they finished their breakfast in 
companionable silence.

~*~*~

15 minutes later, Skinner stepped off the elevator in 
an upstairs hallway. He walked down the hall towards 
Mulder's room, wondering in the back of his head if 
Lorna was working today. He slowly pushed open the 
door to Mulder's room. He was almost more nervous 
about seeing Mulder, than he had been about seeing 
Dana. He had no idea where to begin explaining 
things to Mulder. ::How do I begin to make him 
believe all the things that have happened in the past 
9 years?:: 

Skinner shrugged to himself and entered 
the room. He just prayed that he'd know the answers, 
when Mulder started with his questions. He looked at 
Mulder lying there in the bed. His eyes were closed 
and so Skinner crept quietly across the room, hoping 
he didn't wake him, as he sat in the chair. 

He sat there for about 10 minutes or so, just 
watching Mulder, lost in his thoughts, when Mulder 
began to stir. He rolled his head to the side and 
looked at the man sitting next to him. "Skinner."

"Good morning, Mulder. How do you feel?"

"Like shit. How are you this morning?"

Skinner smiled, thinking that this sounded like the 
Mulder he knew. "I'm ok. Tired, but ok."

"Really? Cause you look like shit."

Skinner laughed out loud. "Thanks Mulder, but you 
don't look much better."

Mulder sighed and looked at the ceiling again. 
Skinner sat there quietly, knowing that Mulder would 
talk when he was ready to.

"Agent Skinner?" came the voice softly from the bed.

"Actually, it's Assistant Director now, Mulder."

Mulder looked at Skinner again, the shock obvious in 
his hazel eyes. "AD huh? Congratulations."

Skinner blushed slightly. "Thanks Mulder. What was 
your question?"

"I just wanted to know if this was a dream, or if I 
really did forget 9 years of my life. But you just 
answered that question."

Skinner sighed, unsure of how to help his friend. 
"I'm sorry."

Mulder nodded, sure that he was, but knowing that 
hearing it didn't make him feel any better. "Where 
are my parents?"

Skinner lowered his eyes. "They're dead, Mulder."

Mulder's eyes widened and filled with tears. "Dead?"
Skinner nodded.

"And Diana?"

"She's dead, too, Mulder."

It was then, that Mulder couldn't hold back the tears 
anymore. He rolled his head back so he was staring 
at the ceiling, not wanting Skinner to see his 
torment.

Skinner stood up, understanding Mulder's unspoken 
request. "I'll be back later," he promised softly, as 
he closed the door behind him.

Mulder began crying in earnest when he heard the door 
click shut behind Skinner. ::Dead. They're all 
dead. I wish I had died too, instead of forgetting 
everything. What do I have left to live for?::

~*~*~

Skinner went back downstairs to the nursery, turning 
towards Sam's room when he got off of the elevator. 
He had an idea, but he wanted to run it by Dana first. 
He slowly opened the door, smiling at Dana sitting in 
the rocking chair, singing softly to Sam. She looked 
up at him, her eyes bright, some of the happiness 
having returned. She sat up straighter, the smile 
dropping from her face, when she saw the look in 
Skinner's eyes.

"Sir? What is it?" unknowingly reverting to the term 
of respect that she always used when things got bad.
He shook his head, as he sat down on the bed. "I just 
went to see Mulder."

She nodded. "How is he this morning?"

"He still doesn't remember anything. This morning he 
asked about Diana, about his parents."

Dana's eyes flashed understanding of where Skinner 
was going with this, and compassion for what Mulder 
was feeling. "How did he take it?"

"Not well. That's why I'm here. I...I have this 
feeling that Mulder doesn't think he has anything 
left worth living for, and well..." he gestured around 
the room.

"You'd like for him to meet Sam?" she asked.

"Only if you're comfortable with it." He was quick 
to reassure her. "I just thought that, well, she is 
his child and even if it doesn't help trigger his 
memory, it might make him realize that life goes on." 
He shrugged. "It was just an idea."

She nodded. "Yeah, it's an idea. Not a bad one. 
Let me think about it, would you please?"

He nodded and stood to leave. "I couldn't ask for 
anything more from you."

~*~*~

Dana was still sitting, contemplating Skinner's idea, 
when John returned. She looked up and smiled at him. 

"Good morning."

"Good morning yourself, Beautiful," he replied as he 
bent down to give her a kiss. "What had you looking 
so preoccupied when I came in?"

"Skinner stopped by to see me this morning."

"Yeah?" John replied as he held out his arms for Sam. 
Dana gently handed her over. 

"Well, he had two things that he wanted to talk to me 
about. The first was he wanted to remind us of the 
Bureau's policy on relationships within the Bureau."

John sighed.

"Don't worry," Dana was quick to reassure him. "We 
have the entirety of my leave to think about that."

"Good," John grinned.

"Also he wanted to talk about his visit this morning 
with Mulder."

John's grin dimmed slightly. "How is Mulder doing?"

Dana shook her head. "I haven't been up to see him 
yet today, but Skinner says he's not doing too well. 
I guess Mulder asked about his parents and Diana this 
morning." At John's confused look, she explained. 

"Diana was his girlfriend in 1993. She was murdered. 
Both of his parents are dead as well."

"Oh God," John said as he sand down onto the bed, 
still holding onto Sam, a bit tighter now. "I can 
imagine how he feels."

Dana continued, "Skinner had a suggestion to make and 
I wanted to discuss it with you."

John nodded.

"Skinner thinks that Mulder feels he has nothing left 
to live for. He thought that, perhaps, it might give 
Mulder some meaning, if he were to meet Samantha." 

Dana bit her lip and looked at John. He was frowning 
slightly, the lines on his forehead indicating that 
he was deep in thought.

They sat in silence for a minute when John suddenly 
spoke up. "You should do it."

Dana looked at him, surprise evident in her blue 
eyes. "You think so?"

John grinned and nodded. "Yeah, I do. If anything 
is going to give him the will to live, it'll be this 
heartbreaker."

Dana smiled at him and held her arms out for Sam. 
"If it's all right with you, I think I'll introduce 
them before we go home. Want to come with me?"

John shook his head. "I think it would be easier if 
I didn't go this time. If I did you would not only 
have to inform Mulder that he's the biological father 
of Sam, but that the man standing next to you is 
going to be the one marrying you."

Dana nodded. "That's true. I don't want to spring 
too much on him at once."

"I'll tidy up here while you go see Mulder. I'll be 
here when you get back."

Dana started to leave, but stopped and turned around 
at the door.

"John?"

"Yes, Dana?" He looked up for where he was making the 
bed.

"Where did you go this morning?"

John got a gleam in his eye. "It's a surprise. 

You'll see."

Dana stuck out her tongue at him and quickly hurried 
out the door.

John whistled softly, as he wandered around 
straightening up the room.

~*~*~

Mulder was sitting up in bed, flipping through the 
channels, bored out of his mind. He wanted to go 
home, but Dr. Ray said he wanted to make sure that he 
didn't have any severe head injuries. Mulder had had 
to hold back a laugh when Dr. Ray had said that. 

::What? Losing 9 years of memories isn't severe 
enough?:: He looked up, as he heard a soft knock on 
his door. ::I wonder who could be visiting me. It's 
not like I have any family left.:: He thought 
bitterly. ::Must be that nurse, Lorna.:: That 
brought a small smile to his face. "Come in," he 
called.

The door opened slowly and in walked the redhead from 
the night before, carrying a small child. Mulder 
racked his brain but couldn't think of her first name, 
so he just said, "Hey."

"Hey," she replied somewhat shyly, sitting on the 
chair by his bed. She could tell he still didn't 
really remember her, so she shifted Sam to one side 
and stuck out her hand. "I'm Dana." ::Dana? Not 
Scully? Well no, I'm not Scully anymore. I just 
want to be Dana, wife and mother.::

He smiled, glad that she understood. "I'm Fox," he 
said as he shook her hand.

::Wow!:: Dana thought. ::'Fox' huh? He must've been 
hit harder on the head than we thought.:: She 
thought maybe she'd try and make small talk first. 
"How are you feeling today?"

Mulder made a face. "My head hurts like a bitch." 

Looking at Sam, he blushed slightly. "Uh...I mean, I 
have a headache. How are you today?"

"I'm doing great."

Still looking at Sam, he remarked, "She sure is 
pretty."

Dana nodded. "It's surprising, since she looks so 
much like her Dad."

Mulder laughed. "Poor guy."

Dana giggled, at ease with Mulder once again. 
"Actually, that 'poor guy' is you, Fox." ::God it 
seems weird to say 'Fox'.::

His jaw fell in surprise, as Dana rushed to explain. 
"We worked together for 8 years. In that time, you 
became my best friend. You knew that more than 
anything in the world, I wanted to be a mother. At 
the time I was unattached." She glanced down at her 
engagement ring, Mulder's eyes following. "So, you 
agreed to be a donor."

Mulder's eyes widened. "A sperm donor?"

Dana nodded, praying he didn't ask when she'd had the 
Invitro.

Mulder was quiet for a minute, a look of intense 
concentration on his face. He shook his head, 
indicating that he didn't remember. "So...what's my 
daughter's name?" He grinned at Dana and held out his 
arms.

"Sam...Samantha Katherine Mulder." She'd found the 
middle name on a birth certificate that had been in 
Mulder's personal effects.

Mulder looked up at her, his hazel eyes glistening 
with unshed tears. "Samantha? After my sister?"

Dana nodded and watched, as he interacted with their 
child. "Hi Sam," he said making silly faces at her. 

"I'm your Daddy."

Watching him play with Sam, Dana prayed he would be 
ok with John being a dad to Sam too.

As if reading her thoughts, Mulder turned to her. 
"So, Dana, when do I get to meet the man who's going 
to be Sam's step-dad?" He tried to put on a serious 
face. "After all, I should approve him first, right?"

As Dana looked shocked and opened her mouth to argue, 
Mulder began laughing.

Realizing that he was only kidding, Dana laughed too. 
"You can meet John whenever you want to."

He nodded. "Good. I should be out of here in a day 
or so. Maybe we can all get together then."

She nodded, but didn't say anything as Mulder had 
already turned his attention back to Sam.

~*~*~

About half an hour later, Dana returned to Sam's room 
to meet John. The meeting with Mulder, ::No, Fox.::, 
had gone much better than she'd expected. She was 
surprised at how easily he had seemed to take to Sam, 
but then again this wasn't the same Fox Mulder who 
had gone to find their daughter so many months ago. 
She shrugged, as she opened the door to Sam's room. 
Who was she to argue with it?

Dana gasped as she walked into the room. On the 
table in the middle of the room were a dozen white 
roses. Thinking they were for her, Dana walked over 
and pulled the card out. She giggled when she 
realized that they were addressed to Samantha Mulder. 

Opening the card she found a little note. "Welcome 
home, Sam. Love, John." Dana had to wipe a small 
tear of happiness from her eye, as she read the note. 
"Look Sam," she said, pointing to the flowers. 

"These are for you." She heard a noise behind her 
and turned around. John was leaning against the 
door, holding a small white teddy bear. She'd never 
seen him look more adorable.

"So," he said, emotion clouding his voice. "Ready to 
go home?"

Dana nodded happily, as she held out Sam for John to 
take, so she could put her coat on. "I'm more than 
ready to go home. John, the flowers are beautiful. 
You didn't have to."

He smiled. "I know. But I wanted to. What's a 
hospital room without flowers in it?"

Dana walked over to him and gave him a kiss on the 
cheek. "Thank you."

He hugged her tight, still holding onto Sam with his 
other arm. "Let's go."

Arm in arm they walked out of the hospital, the three 
of them lost in their own special world.

John pulled his truck up in front of his house and 
went around to help Dana and Sam out. He couldn't 
wait for them to get inside. He hoped that Dana 
liked his surprise. He couldn't help but grin with 
his excitement. Dana noticed. 

"What're you grinning about, John?" she teased.

"Oh, just that I'm bringing home not one, but two 
beautiful girls."

"Yeah, right." She grinned at him, pleased with how 
everything seemed to be working out.

As they walked through the front door, Sam yawned 
rather loudly.

"Uh oh, I think somebody's ready for a nap," Dana 
said.

"C'mon, let's go put her down for a nap," John said, 
beckoning her to the stairs.

"Well...we don't have a crib for her here. It's still 
in storage. I guess we can put her on your bed and 
surround her with pillows."

"I guess," John answered noncommittally. 

At the top of the stairs, John stopped at the door 
right before the master bedroom, the bedroom that 
would soon be his and Dana's. "John?" Dana asked.

He nodded towards the door and she slowly pushed it 
open and gasped. Inside was all of the baby stuff 
that she had bought to make her second bedroom into 
the nursery. It had all been set up exactly as it 
had been in her apartment. She turned and looked at 
him, love shining in her eyes.

"Do you like it?" he asked anxiously.

"Like it? I love it! John this is perfect!!"

He smiled and handed Sam over to Dana so that she 
could put her down for her nap. ::Well, part one of 
the surprise is done.::

He watched, as Dana cooed at Sam softly, as she tucked 
her blanket in around, laying the small white teddy 
bear from John next to her.

John walked over and stood next to her, looking down 
into the cradle, as she rocked it slowly back and 
forth. It took all of about 60 seconds for Sam to 
fall asleep. John wrapped his arms around Dana's 
waist and they stood like that for another minute, 
just watching Sam sleep. John kissed Dana on the 
side of the neck and she smiled. 

"Come here, I want to show you something."

Dana turned and looked up at John? "Another 
surprise?"

He grinned and took her hand, leading her out of the 
room, stopping to turn on the baby monitor on the way 
out of the door. They walked down the hall and into 
the master bedroom. Dana frowned, looking around the 
room. ::Nothing's different.:: He pulled her over 
to the closet. 

"Ok," he said, the nervousness obvious in his voice. 
"Open the closet."

Dana pulled open the closet door, expecting to see it 
filled with John's stuff as it usually was. ::I 
really should get over to my apartment and finish 
packing my stuff.:: She gasped when she got the door 
completely open and turned to look at John. "You 
didn't!" she said, shocked.

He grinned that beautiful smile of his, his blue eyes 
lighting up. "I did."

Suspicious now, Dana walked over to the master 
bathroom. There, lined up on the sink, were all of 
her cosmetics, stuff she'd left at her apartment 
until she could manage to get it all packed up and 
moved to his house. Just like all of her clothes 
were side by side with his in the closet. She could 
feel him standing behind her and turned and wrapped 
her arms around him, too happy for words.

He bent to whisper in her ear. "I hope you don't 
mind that I took the liberty of having all your stuff 
packed and brought over here. I thought that you 
might be kind of busy with Sam around."

She smiled up at him and kissed him softly on the 
lips. "Mind? John, it's almost as if you read my 
mind. I feel as if I should do something in return 
for you."

John leaned forward and planted kisses on her 
forehead, her nose, and finally her mouth. "I can 
think of something you can do for me."

Dana laughed. "Is that all you men think about?"
"Where you're concerned, I'm sure."

Dana blushed slightly at his comment and put her arms 
around his neck, pulling him down for another kiss.

John slowly began backing them towards the bed when 
they heard a sound on the monitor. Sam crying. John 
and Dana moaned simultaneously. He looked at Dana 
and winked. "Why don't you stay here while I go get 
her? Don't worry. I'll be back."

Dana smiled and nodded, as he turned to leave the 
room.

~*~*~

Dana smiled to herself and went to the bathroom to 
splash water on her face, as she waited for John to 
return. Hearing a noise from the bedroom, she walked 
back out to see what was going on. There wasn't 
anyone in the room. She frowned, as she looked around 
and realized the sounds were coming from the baby 
monitor that John had set up next to the bed. ::He's 
so thoughtful.:: She sat down own the bed, taking 
the monitor in her hand so she could listen to what 
was going on in the other room. John was making baby 
talk to Sam. It sounded like he was sitting in the 
rocking chair with her. ::He's so sweet. How did I 
ever get so lucky?:: She curled up on the bed, 
tucking her legs between her, leaning back against 
the headboard. She smiled, as John began softly 
singing lullabies to Sam.

About 15 minutes later, John walked back into the 
room. Dana was still curled up, holding the monitor, 
staring off into space. ::God she is gorgeous.:: 

He walked softly across the room and took the monitor 
from her hands, setting it on the bedside. She 
looked at him startled. He took her face in his 
hands. "Now where were we?" he murmured as he 
lowered his lips to meet hers. He brushed his lips 
across hers softly, so soft that she barely felt 
them. He softly tugged on her lower lip with his 
teeth, bringing it into his mouth, running his tongue 
along her teeth. She moaned softly and sank back 
onto the bed bringing him along with her. He took 
advantage of her moan to deepen the kiss, running his 
tongue just barely inside, teasing hers with the tip 
of his. She returned the favor, dipping her tongue 
inside his mouth, running her fingers up and down his 
back as she did, creating little whispers of 
sensation all throughout his body. He could feel 
himself straining against his jeans. God, he loved 
this woman so much. He slowly reached down with his 
hands, grasping the bottom of her shirt and pulling 
it up and over her head, tossing it on the floor. 

She gasped, as the cool air hit her chest, right before 
John covered her with his body again. She could feel 
the warmth of him through his shirt, but wanted him 
closer. As he bent down to kiss her neck and then 
her chest, she untucked his shirt from his jeans, 
landing it on the floor nicely next to hers. He 
smiled and made short work of her bra, sending it 
sailing. Dana laughed, as it got caught on the 
bedpost and he watched how her laugh made her breasts 
move, almost as if teasing him, tempting him. He 
leaned down and flicked his tongue over one erect 
nipple, smiling at her indrawn breath. He slowly 
took her nipple into his mouth, teasing it first with 
his tongue and then with his teeth, as his fingers did 
the same for the other nipple. She groaned and 
leaned into his mouth, wanting more. He knew what 
she wanted, but he wanted to go slow. He slowly slid 
his fingers of his other hand down to her jeans, 
undoing the button and slowly unzipping them. He 
kissed his way down to her stomach, sliding her jeans 
and underwear off of her in one swift move. He moved 
his mouth lower, feeling the warmth of her. He 
flicked his tongue against her swollen clitoris and 
she jumped at the sensation. Then his tongue was 
inside her, slowly sliding in and out, back and 
forth. She was bucking against him. He reached down 
and removed the rest of his clothes, never stopping 
his movements with his mouth. He stopped right 
before she climaxed and positioned himself above her. 

She looked up at him, her blue eyes so dark with 
passion that they were almost black. She saw the 
unspoken question in his eyes, loved how he always 
asked her permission, even though she'd never turn 
him down. She reached up and locked her fingers 
behind his head, pulling him down for a kiss. 

"Please, John," she whispered in his ear. "Make love 
to me."

Needing no further encouragement, he slowly slid 
inside of her until she felt that she would explode 
from his size. He moved in and out, pulling himself 
almost completely out each time, so as to increase the 
friction. She began moving against him, tossing her 
head from side to side. He pumped faster, harder, 
wanting to climax, as badly as she did. He reached 
down with his thumb and rubbed her clitoris in time 
to his movements. That did her in. She arched 
against him, moaning his name. Feeling her squeeze 
around him, he climaxed as well, his hot seed 
spilling into her. He slowly lowered his weight on 
top of her, not removing himself from her. She 
pushed a lock of hair back from his head as she 
slowly returned to earth. She kissed his temple. "I 
love you," she whispered.

He wrapped his arms around her, hugging her close. 
"I love you too."

~*~*~

After dinner that night, they sat in front of the TV 
watching the news. Not that Dana really enjoyed 
watching the news. There was too much violence and 
heartache in the news these days. But John liked 
keeping up on world events. And he wanted to make 
sure that the new President wasn't going to start 
another war. So, they sat and watched the news. As 
the program came to an end, Dana stood. "Would you 
like some coffee, John?"

He looked up at her, noticing that she seemed to be 
nervous. "Sure."

She nodded and quickly walked out of the room. She 
didn't know why she was nervous. She really didn't 
think John was going to be mad at her or anything. 

::I guess it's just because I'm not used to living with 
anyone and sharing my ideas and plans with them. Too 
used to being independent, I suppose.:: She smiled, 
as she waited for the coffee to brew. ::I wonder if 
John has any of that hazelnut creamer in here.:: She 
was rummaging around in the refrigerator when John 
poked his head in the door.

"Hey, I'm gonna go up and check on Sam while you're 
doing that, k?"

She looked up, a smile on her face. "Yeah, sure. 
But don't take too long."

He blew her a kiss and headed up the stairs.

About 10 minutes later, John came back into the 
kitchen, just as Dana was pouring two cups of coffee. 

"Mmm, smells good," he murmured, as he planted a kiss 
on top of her head.

She turned around and handed him a cup and they both 
sat at the table. 

"So," John began, "What's up?"

She looked down into her cup for a minute. "Nothing, 
really. I mean, it's not bad or anything, I just 
wanted to talk to you about a couple of things."

He nodded and took a sip of his coffee. He stared at 
his cup. ::Did she put CREAMER in my coffee?::
Dana laughed at the look on his face. "Guess you 
don't like it huh?"

He smiled through his distaste. "It's great, Honey. 
What did you want to talk about?"

She took a deep breath. "Mulder gets out of the 
hospital tomorrow. I was thinking that since you 
have to work and I'd be home alone with Sam, maybe I 
should go and give him a ride home from the 
hospital."

John nodded. "Nothing wrong with that. He might not 
even remember where his apartment is."

Dana let out a little breath, glad to have that over 
with. She had thought for some reason that John 
might resent Mulder coming back, might be angry that 
she wanted to help Mulder out.

"The other thing I wanted to talk about is me going 
back to the FBI."

John frowned slightly and motioned for her to 
continue.

"John, I don't want to go back."

He almost choked on his coffee. "What?"

"I don't want to go back to the FBI. I want to find 
some simple 9 to 5 job where I can come home and cook 
dinner for you and Sam every night."

John grinned, pleased by the news. "Are you sure 
about this? Because if you quit, they won't hire you 
back."

She nodded, exuding confidence. "I'm sure. I think 
I might go back into medicine. I have some friends 
here in town who would offer me positions at their 
clinics."

John reached across the table and took her hand. 

"Ok, Honey. If it'll make you happy, I'm behind you 
100%. Besides, I will love having you home every 
night and not having to worry about you working some 
crazy case that might get you killed. Now I just 
have to find a new partner."

Dana swatted at him playfully. "It'd better be a 
man."

He shrugged. "Girls are all right too, you know."

She rolled her eyes. "Whatever."

"Maybe I'll see if Mulder will come back to the FBI," 
he suggested.

She nodded thoughtfully. "It's worth a shot. Might 
do him some good. You'd have to run it by Deputy 
Director Kersh though."

John frowned at the mention of that man. "I'll talk 
to Skinner tomorrow and see what he says."

Suddenly Dana yawned and clapped her hand over her 
mouth, trying to hide it. John grinned at her. 

"What do you say we head to bed now?"

She stood and put their coffee cups in the sink and 
took his hand, kissing him on the cheek. "Sounds 
good to me."

Dana groaned, as the alarm clock started beeping in 
the morning. She opened one eye and looked at the 
clock as she smacked it, trying to make it stop. 5 
am. Lovely. She'd been up half the night with Sam, 
who apparently was having a hard time adjusting to a 
new home. She rubbed her eyes and smiled as she 
listened to John snoring next to her. She rolled 
over and jabbed him softly in the ribs with her 
elbow. He grunted in return.

"What?"

"Get up John. It's 5 am."

He groaned. "Do I have to? Can't I call in sick 
today?"

She grinned and pushed him towards the side of the 
bed. "No, you can't. You have things to discuss 
with Skinner and I don't want you underfoot all day. 
Now move it, Mister." As she went to push him again, 
he suddenly rolled over and pinned her to the bed, 
planting kisses all across her face. 

"Are you sure I can't play hooky today?" he asked, 
lowering his face for another kiss.

She laughed and kissed him back. "No, Sweetheart, 
you can't. But don't worry, I'll be here when you 
get home."

John sighed and got out of bed and headed for the 
bathroom. Dana rolled over and pulled the covers 
over her head, hoping that she could fall back asleep 
for just a little bit longer.

John came out of the bathroom about half an hour 
later dressed for work. He looked over at Dana who 
was still curled up in the bed. He thought she 
looked like an angel in her white satin pajamas. Her 
hair was strewn all over the pillows and her arms 
were tucked under her head. ::Watch it John, or 
you'll be climbing back into that bed with her!:: He 
walked over to the bed and planted a kiss softly on 
top of her head. 

"John?" she murmured.

"It's me, Honey," he answered as he brushed her hair 
back from her face. "I'm gonna check on Sam and then 
head to work. You stay here and get some rest, ok?"

She nodded, never opening her eyes. "Love ya," she 
muttered.

"I love you, too."

~*~*~

At 8 am the alarm began ringing again. Dana sighed 
and sat up, almost knocking the thing to the floor in 
her haste to shut it off. She really wished that 
John would get a new alarm. The sound this one makes 
was about to drive her crazy. She stood and 
stretched. Mulder was supposed to be getting out of 
the hospital around 9:30, so that gave her an hour to 
get dressed, get Sam ready, and head over to the 
hospital. She peeked in on Sam, who was still 
sleeping, then padded downstairs to make some coffee. 

She smiled as she saw the coffee pot already filled 
with coffee, and the warmer left on. Her coffee cup 
was set out on the counter and there was a note under 
it. "Love you, have a good day. John." She grinned, 
as she poured a cup of coffee and added a liberal 
amount of creamer. She had no idea how she had 
gotten so lucky to have this man in her life, but she 
definitely was not going to question it! She hummed 
softly, as she wandered upstairs to take a shower. 

She left the bathroom door open slightly, so that she 
could hear Sam if she happened to cry out.

Half an hour later, dressed and ready to go, she made 
her way down the hallway to wake up Sam. She decided 
she'd better feed Sam before putting her clothes on, 
as she was still at the spitting-out-her-food stage. 

She gave her some banana-pear concoction then took 
her upstairs to get her dressed. Her mom had dropped 
off some baby clothes this weekend and she dressed 
her in a light blue turtleneck and jeans. She put 
her coat on her and carried her out to the car.

About 10 minutes later, she parked in front of the 
hospital, the space reserved for loading and 
unloading patients. ::Well, at least I don't have 
far to walk.:: She thought, as she put Sam on her waist 
and entered the door. She took the elevator up to 
the surgical recovery floor and when it stopped, she 
headed for the nurses' station. A nurse glanced up 
at her, as she approached. Dana smiled, recognizing 
her as the charge nurse, Lorna. Lorna's gray eyes 
sparkled, almost looking silver. Dana walked up to 
her. "You work here and down in the nursery?"
Lorna shook her head. "No, I'm usually up here. 
They were short down there that night, so I filled 
in."

Dana smiled and nodded. "I see. Anyway, I'm here 
for Fox Mulder. Is he ready to go?"
Lorna's grin widened a bit at the mention of Mulder's 
name. "Yeah, Mulder should be almost ready to go. 
Right this way."

Dana frowned. ::Ok, I call him Fox, she calls him 
Mulder? What the?:: She shook her head as she 
followed Lorna down the hall.

Lorna knocked softly on door 667. ::Oooh.:: Dana 
thought. ::Almost 666.:: She grinned at herself, 
remembering how the old Mulder would have been 
paranoid and noticed something like that.

"Yes?" called a slightly grumpy voice from the 
inside.

"Mulder, Miss Scully is here to take you home."

The door was yanked open. Mulder was standing in 
front of them barefoot and shirtless, still buttoning 
up his jeans. "Yeah, come on in," he grumbled. "I'm 
almost ready to go."

Dana watched as Lorna's eyes roamed up and down 
Mulder's body appreciatively. She shrugged and 
thought that this could be a good thing. 

Mulder pulled his t-shirt over his head and slipped 
on his shoes. He grabbed his coat and looked at 
Dana. "Morning," he said sheepishly, somewhat 
embarrassed for his earlier bad mood. 

"Morning," she replied, grinning at him. "Ready to 
go home?"

He nodded. "Yeah, just one question," as he held out 
his arms to hold Sam. "Where's my home?"

Dana put her arm through his and led him out into the 
Hall, so he could sign his release. "Don't worry, 
I'll show you."

~*~*~

A while later, Tammy's eyes flickered open and she 
looked around a bit, confused. ::How did I get in my 
room?:: She tried to move, only to realize that a 
strong muscular arm pinned her down. She smiled and 
locked her fingers with Alex's. She bent her head 
down and started planting kisses along his arm, 
starting at his fingers and going as high as she 
could go.

Suddenly, she found herself on her back staring up 
into those deep green eyes and that beautiful smile. 
She felt butterflies in her stomach just looking at 
him. He bent down, as if to kiss her, but turned his 
head at the last second, brushing his whiskers across 
her face. She opened her eyes wide in surprise. 

"Gotcha," he whispered, before lowering his mouth to 
her own. He sucked softly on her lower lip, dragging 
his teeth along it. She shivered with anticipation. 
There would be no mad rush this time. It would be 
soft, slow, and sensual this time.

He moved his mouth over to her ear, licking around 
the outside of it, dipping the tip of his tongue 
inside, before pulling her ear lobe into his mouth. 
She groaned slightly, running her fingers through his 
hair, wrapping her legs around his waist. He moaned 
and ground against her. She brought his lips back to 
hers, slowly slipping her tongue inside his mouth. 
He slipped his tongue in hers, caressing the roof of 
her mouth before pulling his face away. He wanted 
her naked against him...NOW. A few quick movements 
and all of their clothes were lying in a heap on the 
floor. He slowly pressed his body back against hers, 
running fingers through her hair. He began smoothly 
kissing down her neck to her breasts. He ran his 
tongue around a nipple, blowing on it softly. As she 
shivered with the sensation, he took her nipple in 
his mouth, sucking gently while he teased her other 
breast with his hand. She moaned and moved against 
him.

He took his mouth from her breast and slowly began 
kissing his way down her abdomen to her warm, wet 
center. He stopped and she could feel his breath 
against her inner thighs. She writhed, but he held 
her to the bed, with his hands on her hips. He 
flicked the tip of his tongue against her clit and 
she screamed his name, almost climaxing then and 
there. He slid his tongue down into her, tasting her 
warm wetness. He moved his tongue in and out, slow 
but sure. She bucked against him, moaning his name. 
He increased the movements of his tongue, feeling her 
climax around him. 

But he wasn't done yet...

He moved his mouth back up to her breasts, teasing 
first one and then the other. He slowly rubbed his 
thumb against her clit, feeling the excitement 
building in her again. 

"Oh God, Alex, what are you doing to me?" 
He brought his head back up, crushing her with a 
kiss.

"Now, Alex," she begged. "Now."

He was happy to oblige, slipping himself deep inside 
her. He moved slowly within her. She wrapped her 
legs around him and moved against him, begging him to 
increase the tempo. He pounded into her, faster, 
harder, both of them breathing in shorter breaths 
now. She grabbed his face and brought it down for a 
kiss, slipping her tongue into his mouth just as 
starts exploded in her mind. She clenched him tight, 
causing him to lose control. He spilled his seed 
within her, as he returned her kiss. Sighing deeply, 
he collapsed on top of her, sated. She smiled and 
wrapped her arms around him, closing her eyes.

~*~*~

As Dana pulled up in front of Mulder's building, 
Mulder let out a gasp. He turned and looked at Dana 
in disbelief. "Dana...are you telling me, that I STILL 
live in this building? In the same apartment that 
I've lived in for years?"

Dana grinned at him, as she put the car in park. 
"Yeah, Mu...Fox. Yeah, you do."

He shook his head. "Surely I could have afforded 
something better by now?"

Dana shrugged. "I suppose so. I guess you figured 
it wasn't worth it since you were hardly ever home."
He looked at her in confusion. 

::Oh man, I thought Skinner would have explained more 
of this!:: She got out of the car and went around to 
get Sam out from the backseat. "C'mon Fox, let's go 
inside and I'll start explaining the past 8 years to 
you." He nodded and got out of the car, leading the 
way upstairs. They stopped in front of door 42 and 
Mulder fitted his key in, turning the doorknob, 
opening the door slowly. He stood in the middle of 
the room and stared. ::Nothing has changed. Ok, so 
there are more files piled on the floor, and it looks 
like I've lost a couple fish, but other than that....:: 

He collapsed onto the couch while Dana went into the 
kitchen to make them some coffee to drink. She came 
back carrying, not only two cups of coffee, but Sam as 
well. Mulder looked up at her. ::How in the world 
did she manage that?:: She handed him his cup and 
then sat down next to him, gently bouncing Sam on her 
knee.

"Well, Fox...where do you want me to start?"

He sighed. "What have I been doing for the past 8 
years?"

"In 1993 you and I were paired together on something 
called the X-Files. You'd actually already been 
investigating them on your own."

Mulder interrupted. "You mean my investigations into 
the paranormal and to find my sister."

She nodded, glad he remembered that much. "Yeah. I 
was made your partner in 1993 to sort of...debunk your 
conclusions. I was there to spy and see if I could 
get the X-Files closed down. Needless to say, it 
didn't work. You won me over." She smiled wryly at 
Mulder. ::No need to get into that now.:: "Anyway, 
we ended up traveling all over the US and even to 
Antarctica in your search for the truth. So you 
weren't home too much."

He nodded. "Did I find Sam?"

She looked at him. "In a way." ::God, I do not want 
to have to explain that. I didn't even see what he 
saw, so how would I?::

He seemed to accept her answer though. ::I bet I can 
find a file I wrote and read that. I used to be 
meticulous about keeping records,:: he thought, as he 
looked at the mess of files and papers on his desk 
and on the floor. 

"Do I still work at the FBI?"

"Yeah. With John Doggett."

Mulder frowned thoughtfully. "John? Is that the 
same John that you're engaged too?"

Dana was shocked for a minute. She'd forgotten that 
she'd mentioned John's name to him. She nodded. 
"The one and only."

Mulder put on his cocky grin. "Guess that's why 
you're not working on the X-Files anymore then huh?"

She smiled back at him. "Yes and no. The bureau was 
going to crack down on us for violating their policy, 
but that's not the only reason. Since you brought 
Sam home, I now have another reason for not wanting 
to travel all the time."

She got up to put her coffee cup in the sink and 
noticed that his answering machine light was 
blinking. "Hey, Fox. You got a message on your 
machine." She looked over her shoulder and noticed 
that he was engrossed in talking to Sam.

"Yeah yeah," he answered distractedly. 

On the way back from the kitchen, Dana walked over 
and pushed play on the machine. There was only one 
message.

"Hey, Mulder. It's Krycek. I know you said that 
you'd call me in a couple days, but...I had a funny 
feeling and I thought I'd call and see if you were 
ok. Call me back, will ya? I'm at Tammy's. 303-
555-0724. Later."

Mulder looked up at Dana, the confusion evident on 
his face. "Who was that?"

She sat back down next to Mulder, taking his hand in 
hers. "Ok. In the past 8 years, we've become 
involved with some pretty nasty people, who have done 
a lot of mean things to us. The last thing these 
people did was take Sam away from me...Before she was 
even born." She paused, and wiped away a tear. "You 
and Krycek...Alex Krycek...you went to track this man 
down and bring my baby home to me."

Mulder nodded. "How do I know Krycek? Is he another 
Agent?"

"Once upon a time he was. But then, he went to work 
for this other man, the man who stole our child. I 
can only assume that he got tired of working for that 
man when he stole our child and decided to help you 
find Sam. I don't know. You were the one who 
decided to work with him. You didn't tell the rest 
of us the reason why."

Mulder shook his head slowly. "I think that's a lot 
of information for me to sort out in my head."

Dana nodded. "Yeah, I'll take Sam and we'll go home. 
Here, " she scribbled something down on a piece of 
paper. "If you need anything, call me, ok?"

Mulder stood, handing Sam back to her and giving her 
a hug. "Thanks, Dana."

"Hey," she said, looking at him with tears in her 
eyes, tears of happiness. "That's what friends are 
for, right?"

He grinned as he closed the door behind her. ::Yeah. 
That's what friends are for.::

~*~*~

Dana hummed, as she bustled around the kitchen making 
lunch. John had called shortly after she had 
returned home from Mulder's apartment and had said 
that he would stop by for lunch today. She'd decided 
to make a meatloaf, since it was chilly out today and 
looked like it might start snowing again. John had 
said that he talked to Skinner this morning and would 
tell her about it when he got home. She had lunch 
set out on the table when John walked in the door and 
was patiently trying to get Sam to eat some green 
bean mush. 

He walked over and kissed first her, then Sam, on top 
of the head. "How are my two favorite girls today?" 
He asked, with a huge grin on his face.

Dana smiled up at him and kissed him on the cheek. 
"I'm good. But Sam is kind of grumpy." 

John dropped his briefcase on the floor and sat down 
at the table. "Let me take her so you can eat."

"John, you need to eat too. You have to be back at 
the office by 1."

He looked up from his lunch. "Actually, I don't. I 
have the rest of the day off."

She was shocked. "You do? How'd you manage that 
one?"

He grinned, knowing that she was going to enjoy the 
news he had for her. He bounced Sam up and down and 
motioned for her to start eating. "Have you seen the 
news today, Dana?"

She shook her head. "No, you know watching that 
stuff depresses me. Why?"

"Well, a plane went down in the middle of Iowa late 
last night. A plane that was headed from Washington 
DC to Seattle. There were no survivors."

"Oh, that's so sad. But what does this have to do 
with us?"

"Deputy Director Kersh was on the plane."

Dana dropped her fork. "What???"

John bent down and picked her fork up off the floor 
for her. "Apparently he was going to some conference 
in Seattle. Took a late flight last night, instead of 
one this morning."

Dana couldn't speak for a minute, so John continued. 
"They have already assigned someone to his position."

Dana raised an eyebrow. "Really? Who?"

John grinned even bigger. "Walter Skinner."

Dana's jaw hit the floor. "Oh my."

John held up his hand. "But wait...there's more."

"More? John, what else could there be?"

"Skinner asked me to offer you his position as AD."

Dana just stared at him. She had no idea what to 
say. So many thoughts were racing through her head. 
Yes, she'd love to be AD, she'd always wanted to 
advance in the bureau, but now she had Sam and John 
and she wanted to be a family. She didn't know if 
she could do both. She sighed.

John watched the emotions roll across her face. He 
could tell what every one of them was by now. He had 
known that this wouldn't be an easy decision for her 
to make, but he had promised Skinner that he would 
offer it to her anyway. He reached over and took his 
hand in hers. "Hey," he said softly. "You don't 
have to decide now. You're still on maternity leave, 
remember?"

She looked at him and smiled. "Yeah. I know." Her 
look returned to one of brooding and John knew that 
she was going to argue the subject in her head until 
she made up her mind. He leaned over and kissed her 
softly on the cheek. "I'm gonna take Sam upstairs 
and put her to bed, ok?"

She nodded, still lost in thought.

~*~*~

Mulder paced around his apartment. He was too 
restless to sit down. He was frustrated and angry. 
He wanted to scream and yell and throw things. He 
couldn't believe that the past 8 years of his life 
were gone from his memory. He kicked a trashcan 
across the living room and plopped on the sofa. He 
knew he needed to find something to get his mind off 
of this, but he had no idea what. He knew he should 
probably call that Krycek guy back too, but what do 
you say to someone who remembers you quite clearly, 
but you can't even recall his first name? Mulder 
sighed and stood up. ::Maybe if I go for a run, it 
will clear my head.:: Just then, there was a knock on 
his door. ::Now who could that be?::

He stared, as he opened the door.

"Hi, Mulder," came the beautiful, soft, sexy voice 
from the other side. "I, um, I hope you don't mind 
me dropping by. I thought you might like some 
company."

He finally found his voice. "Lorna. Hi. No, I 
don't mind at all. Come on in, but be warned the 
place is a mess."

She smiled, as she stepped inside. She knew he was a 
bachelor and had a pretty good idea of what to 
expect. She felt kind of guilty about being there. 

She had copied his address from his hospital file, 
which was definitely against regulations. She just 
felt so...like he needed a friend.

Mulder motioned towards the couch. "Have a seat. 
Did you want some coffee to drink?"

She nodded and slipped her coat off. "Sure, why 
not?"

Mulder turned and went to the kitchen to get them 
both some coffee to drink. He had a huge smile on 
his face by the time he entered the kitchen.

~*~*~

Half an hour later, when John returned from rocking 
Sam to sleep, Dana was still sitting at the table 
frowning. She looked up, her face clearing as John 
entered the room. He sat down across from her and 
took her hand.

She smiled at him and squeezed his hand before she 
began speaking. "You know, John, when I first came 
to the Bureau, I was young and I wanted to prove 
myself. To my friends and to my family. And I 
wanted to prove to myself that I could do it, I could 
make it big in the Bureau. I dreamed of being 
offered a position like the one that Skinner has just 
offered me. But, over the past 8 years, I've changed. 

And so have my goals in life. I want more than just 
a good job, prestige, authority. I want a family. I 
want someone to love me, to care about me, to be 
there for me. I want to be home every night. I 
don't want to go on wild goose chases all over the 
country anymore." She took a deep breath. "So while 
I am honored that Skinner would choose me, as his 
successor, please tell him that I don't want the 
job."

John nodded. He had known that she wouldn't want the 
job anyway, but he wanted her to make her own 
decision. He smiled at her. "If you makes you 
happy, Babe, then I am behind you all the way. You 
know I'd support you, even if you wanted to stay 
around the house and watch soap operas all day long." 

He made a face, as he said that and Dana laughed at 
him.

"Yeah. I can just see me sitting around watching 
Days of our Lives all day long." She snickered. 

"Anyway, we have much more important things to 
discuss."

John looked at her, a bit of fear flickering through 
his eyes. "Such as?"

"Our wedding date."

After they'd talked about important things like the 
wedding date and where they were going to have it, 
John had decided that he should probably stop back by 
work to let Skinner know of Dana's decision. Dana 
had been pleased with the idea, knowing that she 
needed to call her mother this afternoon and let her 
know about the wedding plans. She also wanted to 
call Alex Krycek. She wasn't sure why. She knew 
that he had called asking for Mulder, not for her. 

But she also wanted some answers. She wanted to know 
what had happened out there. And she wanted to know 
why Mulder had suddenly trusted this man. And, if he 
really was trustworthy and had been there for Mulder, 
then he deserved to know Mulder's condition.

She put the dishes in the dishwasher after kissing 
John good-bye. She made sure Sam was still sleeping 
peacefully in her crib before reaching for the phone 
in John's room. She felt the butterflies in her 
stomach as she dialed the number. She could only 
hope that he would talk to her and be willing to 
answer her questions.

"Hello?"

The voice on the other end of the phone jolted her 
out of her thoughts. The voice was female. ::This 
must be the "Tammy" he referred to in his message.::

"Yes, I'd like to speak to Alex Krycek please."

There was a pause on the other end of the line. "May 
I ask who is calling please?"

"This is Special Agent Dana Scully with the FBI."

Pause. "Just a moment."

Dana waited, her fingernails tapping anxiously on the 
top of the bed.

"Agent Scully?" came the voice from the other end of 
the line. The voice that brought forth the face, that 
for so long, she had acquainted with nightmares.

"Krycek," she responded, unsure of exactly how to 
broach the subject.

"What can I do for you, Agent Scully?" he asked, 
sounding polite, nice, almost like a gentleman.

She took a deep breath. "You called for Mulder. I'm 
returning your phone call."

Silence. "I see. And why isn't Mulder returning my 
phone call."

"He...." She paused, searching for the words. "Mulder 
was in a car accident when he returned to DC. He has 
amnesia. He doesn't remember the past 8 years of his 
life. He doesn't remember you."

The silence was almost deafening this time, it 
stretched out for so long.

When he spoke again, his voice reflected caring and 
concern. "How are you handling it?"

This was not the question that she had expected. 
"Ok, I guess. I...it's strange. It's like I've lost 
my best friend, but I haven't." She shut her mouth. 
Why oh why was she confiding in this man?

"Can I do anything to help?"

She shook her head, not realizing at first that he 
couldn't see it. "No. Not for Mulder."

"What can I do for you, Dana?"

She realized that he used her first name. It seemed 
strange, yet not wrong. "What changed, Alex? Why 
did Mulder trust you? And what happened out there?" 

She swallowed, hoping that her voice wouldn't break. 
She didn't know why she was getting so emotional 
about this. ::Treat it like another case,:: she told 
herself. The only problem with that was, she 
couldn't. She had too many emotions invested in 
this. She needed answers.

"I changed, Dana. I...I got tired of being on both 
sides, although you and Mulder didn't know it. I...I 
fucked up, big time. And I lost your trust, both 
yours and Mulder's. I went to work for that man, 
hoping that by being privy to his information I could 
protect the two of you. It worked...kind of. Up until 
your daughter. I think he'd begun to suspect. I had 
no clue that it was going to happen. And I felt so 
guilty afterwards. I wanted to help, to make up for 
all the wrongs that I had done. I went to Mulder, 
explained it all to him. I'll never know why he took 
my word for it, but he did. He gave me a second 
chance to prove myself."

She wiped away a tear, on the other end of the phone. 
She could hear the raw emotion in Alex Krycek's voice 
and it tore at her heart.

He continued. "We found Cancer Man. Holed up in a 
cabin in Montana. Just him and Samantha and a man 
for protection. We staked him out, watched his 
routine. And when he was alone one day, just him and 
Samantha, we went in. And killed him."

She could hear something change in his voice. There 
was something he wasn't telling her. "Who killed 
him? How?" Her voice was barely above a whisper.

There was a pause. She knew he was contemplating 
telling her something. "Mulder did it, didn't he?"

His voice was as soft as hers was. "Yeah, Dana, 
Mulder killed him. Broke his neck. We burned the 
place to the ground. I'm sorry, you shouldn't have 
to hear that."

"It's ok. I needed to know. Thank you."

"Are you going to be ok?" he asked, the concern 
returning.

"Yeah, I'll be fine. Thanks, Alex," she said as she 
returned the phone to the cradle.

She wrapped her arms around her knees, pulling them 
close to her chest. And she sat like that for a long 
time, rocking back and forth, one thought running 
through her mind. ::It's finally over.::

~*~*~

When John came home half an hour later, he found her 
just like that on the bed, lost in her thoughts. He 
knocked softly and she turned her face towards him. 
For once he couldn't read the look in her eyes. 

"Dana?" he questioned quietly. In response, she held 
out her arms. He sat on the bed next to her, 
stroking her hair. "What is it Honey? Is everything 
all right?"

She nodded and looked up at him. "Oh yes, John. 
Everything is all right. It's more than all right. 
It's finally over."

He looked at her, the confusion evident in his blue 
eyes. "What do you mean?"

She took his hand and laced his fingers through hers. 
"I mean that I can stop worrying whether or not the 
Smoking Man will come and abduct Sam again. He's 
dead. The Smoking Man is finally gone and I can get 
on with my life. My new life with you and Sam."

He was overjoyed at the news, but.... "How did you 
find this out, Dana?"

"I called Alex Krycek today."

"Krycek?" He tried to remember what he had learned 
about this man when he read through all of Mulder's 
files. "That murdering ex-Agent? Why?"

She sighed. "Because he was Mulder's unlikely source 
for help in finding Sam. Because I needed answers. 
I had to know what happened out there. And now I 
know. I can put it all behind me."

He kissed the top of her head. "Good."

She grinned up at him. "There's just one more 
problem to tackle now."

John looked at her, trying to imitate her questioning 
look by raising one eyebrow. "And what's that?"

"Calling my mother. I know she's going to complain 
that we're not giving her enough time to plan a big 
wedding."

John groaned. "Are you sure we can't elope?"

Dana swatted him playfully with a pillow. "I am very 
sure. I only plan on doing this once and I want it 
to be perfect."

"Well that's good news." He leaned over and kissed 
her gently, then stood up. "I think I'll go check on 
Sam, while you tackle your mother."

She rolled her eyes. "Gee thanks, John."

She could hear John talking to Sam on the baby 
monitor in their room and leaned over to turn it 
down. She sighed, as she picked up the phone to call 
her mother. This was going to be a long 
conversation.

"Hello?"

"Hi Mom, it's Dana."

"Dana, Honey! I haven't heard from you in ages. How 
is everything? What's going on?"

She took a deep breath. "Actually, Mom, I have lots 
of news for you. Mulder's back. He found our 
daughter and brought her home. Her name is Samantha 
Katherine."

"Oh Dana. When can I see her?"

"Soon, Mom, I promise. There's more though. Mulder 
has amnesia. He doesn't remember the past 8 years of 
his life."

"Oh my goodness. How are you handling this? I know 
how close the two of you are."

"I'll be fine, Mom, really. I, actually, have even 
more news that I was calling to tell you."

On the other end of the phone, Maggie Scully sat down 
in a chair, feeling as if she would need it. "More, 
Dana?"

"Mom, you remember my new partner John Doggett, 
right?"

"Oh yes, that nice man who was at Bill's funeral."

"Yeah Mom, that's him. Well...he and I are getting 
married in 3 months."

There was complete silence on the other end of the 
phone.

"Mom?" ::Oh God, I hope I haven't caused her to have 
a heart attack!::

"I'm fine Dana. That's just...well that's a lot of 
stuff for me to take in at once. 3 months you say? 
You've set a date then?"

John walked back into the room, holding Sam, just in 
time to see Dana roll her eyes. "Yes Mom. May 11."

"Where are you having it at? Who will be in your 
wedding party? Dana, do you realize how much stuff 
has to be done before your wedding?"

"Yes, Mom, I realize that. And that's why I'm 
calling you. I thought you might like to help me 
plan my wedding."

John snickered from the other end of the room and 
Dana glared at him.

"Of course I would, Honey!!"

"Good, Mom. Why don't you come down on Saturday and 
we'll discuss it then."

"Ok. Oh, Dana...what about your job?"

"At the FBI? I quit, Mom. I want to find a job 
where I can be home for my family in the evenings."

Maggie Scully was thankful that she had found that 
chair to sit down in. "I see. Ok, well, I will call 
you on Friday and we can set up a time for Saturday, 
ok?"

"Ok Mom. I love you."

"I love you too, Dana."

Dana couldn't hang up the phone fast enough. "Well, 
that's done with."

John came over to sit down next to her, handing her 
Sam. "That's good."

She made faces at Sam and then looked at John. "How 
was the meeting with Skinner?"

He smiled. "It was good. Really good."

"How'd he take me turning down his offer?" She was 
talking to John, but she was looking at Sam again.

"Actually, he had expected it. He had figured that 
when you left on maternity leave, you wouldn't be 
returning to the Bureau at all."

Dana nodded. "So who's gonna get his job then?"

"Me."

Dana turned and stared at John. "You're gonna be 
AD?"

He nodded. 

"Wow." She wrapped her arms around him in a big hug. 
"Congratulations!"

He blushed slightly. "Thanks."

"I guess we should go out and celebrate tonight 
then." She was quiet for a minute. "Who does that 
leave on the X-Files then?"

He knew that she would ask that question sooner or 
later. "Actually, I'm going to talk to Mulder 
tomorrow about returning to work. And then I'm going 
to call Monica Reyes and see if she'd be willing to 
transfer up here."

"Oh, that's a good choice. I always liked her, 
John."

"As long as she wasn't going to be my partner, 
right?"

She grinned. "I was just teasing. I know I can 
trust you. Now, where are we going to celebrate?"

~*~*~

John and Dana had decided to go to a nice family 
restaurant to celebrate. That way they could take 
Sam with them. Dinner was fun. They didn't have to 
talk about anything important and for that Dana was 
grateful. They were fighting over the last bite of 
the apple dessert they had ordered, when Dana's cell 
phone rang. As she reached for her phone, John stole 
the last piece. She glared at him, as she answered 
the phone.

"Scully." ::You know, Dana, you don't have to answer 
your phone like that anymore.::

"Dana?" came the questioning voice.

"Hi Fox. What can I do for you?"

"Well...um...." He sounded nervous. "I...well, I was 
wondering if I could possibly see Sam for awhile this 
evening. It's just that-"

Dana interrupted him. "Of course you can see Sam 
this evening, Fox. You don't have to explain why you 
want to."

John got up to pay the check while Dana was talking 
to Mulder.

"When would you like for me to bring her over?"

"Anytime is fine."

Dana nodded. "John and I will drop her off in about 
half an hour then. Is that ok?"

"That's great." Mulder's voice had brightened 
considerably. "Thanks Dana."

"No problem Fox. See you in a bit. Bye."

"Bye."

John had returned for the end of the conversation and 
had already helped Sam into her coat. He was waiting 
to help Dana into hers. "Do we need to stop by the 
house and get anything before we head to Mulder's?" 
he asked as he picked up Sam.

"Nope," she answered, as she shouldered the large 
diaper bag. "I think there's enough stuff in here 
for someone to keep Sam for a week."

He laughed and they headed for the door.

~*~*~

True to her word, half an hour later, Dana was 
knocking on Mulder's door. He opened the door with a 
big grin on his face.

"Hey guys, come on in." He held out his arms for 
Sam. John handed her over while Dana went to put 
some of Sam's stuff in the fridge.

Mulder put Sam on his hip and thrust his free hand 
towards John. "Fox Mulder."

"John Doggett." He shook Mulder's hand.

Mulder motioned towards the couch and they both sat. 
"So," Mulder began. "You and I work together at the 
Bureau."

John cleared his throat. "Well, not as partners 
anymore."

Mulder looked at him questioningly.

John continued. "Skinner got promoted to Deputy 
Director and I got Skinner's job as AD."

Mulder nodded. If he wondered why he didn't get the 
promotion, he didn't show it. "Congratulations."

"Thanks."

There was an awkward silence before John spoke again. 

"So...do you want to come back to work on the X-Files? 
You don't have to come back until you're ready. I 
just wondered if I needed to find one or two Agents."

Mulder nodded. "I'll be back to work Monday."

"Ok. Let me know if you need more time though."

Just then, Dana came back into the living room. She 
hadn't really needed that much time in the kitchen, 
but she wanted John and Mulder to be able to talk.
"Ok. Sam's food and formula are in the fridge. 

Remember to warm the formula before you give it to 
her."

Mulder rolled his eyes. "Anything else, Mom?"

She stuck her tongue out at him. "Yeah. What time 
are we picking her up?"

He shrugged. "Couple hours."

She nodded as John stood. "Sounds good. See you 
guys then."

"Have fun," John added.

John pulled Dana close to him after Mulder shut the 
door behind them. "Now we can really celebrate," he 
whispered in her ear.

~*~*~

John held Scully's hand, as he lead her back down to 
his truck, which was parked in front of Mulder's 
building. He helped her get in and then went around 
and got behind the driver's seat. They sat there for 
a few minutes, waiting for the truck to warm up. "So, 
now where are we going?" Dana asked.

John smiled, as he pulled away from the curb. "You'll 
see."

She stuck her tongue out at him and slumped back into 
the seat.

"You know, Dana, you keep doing that and we won't 
ever make it to our destination."

She grinned and thought about sticking her tongue out 
at him again, but she really wanted to know where 
they were going. She turned and looked at the 
scenery passing outside the window. It looked as if 
they were going back to the house. She wondered what 
kind of "surprise" he had planned for there. She 
started to ask him about it, when she noticed that he 
had turned off their usual path home. He was driving 
down a fancy residential neighborhood. Dana loved 
the houses there, but they were so expensive. John 
stopped the truck in front of a large white house. 

It was two stories tall and had a wraparound porch on 
the front. Dana turned to question John, but he had 
already gotten out of the truck and was headed to her 
side. She pushed open the door. "John? What are we 
doing here?" she asked, as she closed the truck door 
behind her. 

"You'll see," he answered, as he led her up to the 
porch. He fitted a key into the lock and the door 
swung open easily. Before she could get inside, John 
swept her up into his arms and carried her inside, 
kicking the door shut behind him. "Welcome to our 
new home, Dana," he said, as he sat her down. 

She looked at him in shock. "Are you serious?" 
He nodded and she went from room to room exploring 
while he lit a fire in the fireplace in the living 
room. She came back from her exploring. "John this 
is wonderful!! But what's wrong with the house we 
live in now?"

He pulled her into his arms, kissing her on top of 
the head. "Nothing. But I want a new house for us 
to start over...as a family. You and me and Sam. I 
don't need those old memories of when I lived there 
alone."

She smiled and kissed him softly. "Thank you."

John grinned mischievously. "You'll be thanking me 
more in a little while."

Dana laughed and he slowly laid her down on the rug 
in front of the fireplace, watching the light from 
the flames dance in her hair. She was so beautiful. 

He ran his fingers through her hair and began kissing 
her softly. First her forehead, then her cheeks, her 
nose, and finally he took her mouth in his own, 
probing it softly with his tongue. She could feel 
the passion already burning inside of her and wanted 
him...but she wanted to excite him first. She pushed 
him over onto his back and began kissing him...hard and 
deep. He groaned, excited by her aggressiveness. 

She pulled his shirt over his head and began running 
her fingers up and down his chest, sucking on his lip 
all the while. He gripped his fingers in her hair 
loving every minute of this. She slowly pulled his 
fingers from her hair, so that she could move her head 
down farther. She kissed down his chest, stopping to 
examine each of his nipples with her tongue. Her 
fingers were working at the buttons of his jeans, 
trying to open them. As she kissed her way down to 
his stomach, her hands succeeded. She dipped her 
tongue in his navel, as she pushed his jeans off of 
him, boxers going with them. Now he was naked before 
her. 

She looked at him in the firelight and couldn't 
believe how lucky she was. She slowly moved her 
mouth down to his penis, licking it with soft, sure 
strokes, her hands cupping his balls and massaging 
them. He moaned as she ran her tongue over the tip 
of his penis. "Oh God, Dana, don't stop." She had no 
intention of stopping. She slowly took him into her 
mouth, running her tongue in circles around him. She 
moved him in and out of her mouth, taking him in more 
and more each side, until he was completely in her 
mouth. He couldn't help it. He locked his fingers 
in her hair, trying to get her to move faster, take 
him deeper. She was willing to comply and with a 
loud moan, he came in her mouth. Smiling, she moved 
back up him, pressing little kisses all the way up. 

He lay watching, as she moved off of him and began 
removing her clothes in the firelight. He watched as 
her shirt, her bra, then her pants and panties all 
piled up behind her. Watching her move seductively, 
he could feel his passion returning. When she was 
naked, he reached up and pulled her back down to the 
rug, positioning her under him. He kissed her deeply 
then, wanting her to be as ready as he already was. 

He ran his fingers down to her warm center, inserting 
one, moving it back and forth. He could feel her 
beginning to get excited. He rubbed his thumb on her 
clit, inserting another finger. He moved his tongue 
in her mouth to the rhythm of his fingers. Suddenly 
he pulled his fingers out. She could feel him 
pressing at her entrance and she was ready for him. 

She wrapped her legs around his waist and he thrust 
into her. She moaned, but his mouth caught the 
sound. He brought his hands up to tease her nipples, 
as he slowly began moving inside of her. She gripped 
him tighter with her legs, wanting him to go faster. 
She tangled her fingers in his hair, loving what he 
was doing to her. He moved swiftly now, wanting her 
to climax before he did. She clenched him tightly 
then, gasping his name out. He pumped once, twice 
more, before coming deep inside of her. She could 
feel his warmth running into her, as he collapsed on 
top of her. He smiled at her. "Welcome me home like 
that every night?" he asked.

She kissed him softly. "Only if you're good," she 
whispered.

~*~*~

The entire way back to Mulder's to pick up Sam, Dana 
couldn't stop thinking about the house that John had 
bought for her...for them. It was as if he'd read her 
dreams. She was already imagining where she would 
put the furniture and what she would buy to put on 
the wraparound porch. Although she thought that 
getting a house with four bedrooms was probably 
wishful thinking. She sure as hell hoped that he 
didn't get that many bedrooms, so that her Mom could 
come visit all the time. She grinned at that 
thought. As they pulled up in front of Mulder's 
building, they noticed a car with Colorado plates 
parked out front. ::Who in the world is that?:: 
thought Dana, as they went up to Mulder's apartment. 

She knocked lightly on the door, as John stood behind 
her, his arms wrapped around her. Her jaw hit the 
floor when the door swung open. She was greeted by 
one of the most stunning women she'd ever seen. She 
was about 5'8" and had shoulder length reddish hair. 
Her green eyes seemed to pierce through Dana. 

"Can I help you?" she asked, a bit of a Southern 
drawl in her voice.

"Is Fox here?" Dana asked, annoyed at the bit of 
jealousy that crept into her voice. 

"Yeah, come on in." The redhead turned and yelled 
into the bedroom. "Mulder! Company!"

Mulder came out of the bedroom carrying Sam, at the 
same time that Krycek stepped out of the kitchen with 
two cups of coffee. Dana just stared. She felt as 
if she were in an alternate universe. Although, it 
gave her a bit of comfort, to see the stunned look on 
her face reflected in Krycek's. Dana decided to 
ignore the other two and she and John walked over to 
Mulder. Dana reached out for Sam. "How was she?" 
she asked Fox. 

He grinned at Dana. "She was a gem. 
She must take after me." 

Dana swatted him on the arm. "As if. She takes after me, 
you just haven't learned it yet." 

He grinned and pointed to the other 
two in the room. "Alex Krycek, Tammy Aiken." He 
pointed to the two standing next to him. "Dana 
Scully, John Doggett." John eyed Krycek, as Tammy 
eyed Dana, all of them sizing each other up. Tammy 
was the first to break the silence. She stuck her 
hand towards Dana. "Nice to meet you." Dana shook 
it reluctantly, somewhat uncomfortable about the 
whole situation. Yes, she'd talked to Krycek on the 
phone, but being in the same room with him still made 
her uncomfortable. It was obvious to John that Dana 
was ready to go. He quickly shook hands with Krycek 
then made their excuses. They said good night and 
headed out the door. Dana rocked Sam gently, as they 
went to the truck. "Thanks, John."

He nodded and leaned over to kiss her after starting 
the truck. "Anytime, Hon."

~*~*~

The months passed and winter turned into spring. 
Dana was very happy. She'd not yet found a job; but 
then again, she was waiting until after the honeymoon 
to find full time work. For the most part, she stayed 
at home with Sam. She did attend some therapy with 
Mulder once a week to try and help him regain his 
memory. So far, they hadn't had any luck. But 
Mulder wasn't giving up and that was a good sign. 

Krycek and Tammy had moved into John's old house when 
he and Dana and Sam had moved into the new one and 
they were trying to help Mulder as well, when he 
wasn't out working an X-File or hanging out with 
Lorna, who was now officially his girlfriend. Dana 
also spent some time hanging out with Monica Reyes. 

Shortly after Monica had transferred up to DC, they 
had gotten together, each of them feeling the need 
for a gal pal. Dana had liked Monica from the first 
time she'd met her, and now Dana considered her the 
closest girl friend she'd ever had. So close, in fact 
that Dana had asked her to be the maid of honor at 
her wedding. Dana smiled, as she thought about her 
wedding. It was in exactly 7 days and she was so 
excited, that she could barely contain it. She was 
also excited for another reason and she couldn't wait 
for John to come home to share it with him. Dana was 
unpacking some of the boxes in the guest bedroom when 
she heard the doorbell. She hurried downstairs to 
see who it was.

"Mom. Hi." Dana said, slightly surprised.

"Hi, Honey!" her mom exclaimed as she wrapped her arms 
around Dana.

"I didn't think you were coming until tomorrow Mom," 
Dana was trying to pry her mother's arms away from 
her.

"I know, but I just got so excited thinking about 
your wedding, and I thought that I would come and 
spend some time with you and Sam before the big day."

Dana sighed, but tried to hide it form her mom. She 
was sure that her mom only meant well.

"Well Mom, I was just getting your guest bedroom 
ready. Why don't you follow me upstairs and I'll 
show you where it is and then we'll go check on Sam. 
She should be waking up from her nap right about 
now."

Maggie nodded and picked up one of her bags, while 
Dana picked up the other, following her daughter 
upstairs. Maggie looked around her, as Dana showed 
her into the room. "Oh Dana, this is beautiful!" she 
exclaimed. All the floors in the house were 
hardwood, and Dana had put colorful area rugs in all 
of the rooms. This room was decorated in forest 
green and mauve. There was a queen size bed, a 
rocking chair, a nightstand and a dresser in the 
room, all of them made out of oak. Maggie sank down 
on the bed, enjoying the way she sank into the 
mattress. "This is fabulous. You know, Dana, I'm a 
bit tired. Would you mind if I took a nap?"

Dana shook her head. "Not at all Mom. I need to 
feed Sam and then I still have some boxes to unpack 
downstairs."

Maggie nodded at her, her eyes already sliding shut. 
"Make sure you wake me in time for dinner."

Dana smiled and closed the door silently behind her, 
leaning against it, as she did. She hoped that this 
week would pass quickly. She and John had planned to 
go to Hawaii for their honeymoon, while Maggie kept 
Sam. She couldn't wait.

Dana was in the kitchen fixing dinner that night when 
her mom came downstairs. 

"My goodness Dana, you sure are making a lot of 
food."

Dana slipped the second pan of lasagna into the oven 
and turned to her mom. "John and I are having a 
dinner party tonight, remember?"

Maggie shook her head. "No, I don't remember, 
Sweetie. Should I remember?"

"Yes, Mom. I had originally asked you to come today 
and you told me that you couldn't because you had 
something to do."

"I see," said Maggie taking a seat at the table. 
"Who all will be here?"

"You, me, John, and Sam. Fox and Lorna. Alex and 
Tammy. Monica and her latest fling. Oh yeah, and 
Walter, too."

Maggie nodded again. "Why are they all coming to 
dinner?"

::Do I have to explain everything?:: Dana thought, as 
she answered her mother. "Well, for one, because 
we're all friends and we hang out. And two, so that 
we can discuss last minute details for the wedding."

"Ok."

Dana turned back to the counter and opened a glass of 
wine. "Would you like a drink Mom?"

"Yes. Yes, I think I would." And so they sat in 
silence for awhile, sipping their wine, Dana getting 
up occasionally to check on dinner.

Maggie was in the kitchen feeding Sam, while Dana was 
making breadsticks and salad when John came home. 
Dana sensed his presence before he said anything and 
she turned and smiled brightly at him, wiping her 
hands off before going to give him a hug. "Hey 
Honey. How was work today?"

He grinned at the welcome and kissed her on the 
cheek. "Oh, you know. Same old stuff. Listening to 
Mulder's outrageous theories, then listening to 
Monica's. Skinner, wanting to know why my agents 
spend so much money traveling. Really, he should 
know that already. He doesn't need to harass me 
about it." John seemed to notice Maggie for the 
first time. "Hi Maggie. How are you?"

She grinned at her soon to be son-in-law. "I'm good. 
A bit tired from traveling, but doing good."

Just then, the doorbell rang and John rolled his eyes. 
"Tonight is the night that the whole crew is coming 
over, isn't it?" 

Dana smiled at his expression. He had been the one 
to choose the date originally. "Yes, dear, it is."

"Well, while you guys finish up in here, I think I'll 
go and answer the door." He swatted Dana on the 
behind, as he left the kitchen.

Tammy sauntered into the kitchen a few minutes later. 
"Hey Dana...Can I help?"

Dana turned and smiled at Tammy. She had grown to 
like her. And she definitely appreciated Tammy's 
wacky sense of humor. "Hey you. Yeah, you can help. 
Want to put the salad on the table while I get the 
breadsticks and the lasagna out of the oven?"

She nodded. "Sure thing. Anything else?"

"Oh you know, the usual. Salad dressing, extra 
napkins for the men." She smiled and Tammy laughed 
at her.

Monica made her way into the kitchen then, followed 
closely by Lorna. "So," said Monica, "I see this is 
the room where the intelligence hangs out."

Dana started laughing so hard, she about dropped the 
breadsticks. Lorna ran to help her. "Whatever you 
do, Monica," Dana managed to squeeze out, "Do not say 
that in front of John."

"Or Mulder either," inserted Lorna, as they all 
exchanged conspiratorial glances, knowing how 
Mulder's ego was.

10 minutes later they were all seated around the 
table, eagerly devouring the food, talking about 
nothing in particular. As Monica brought out the 
cherry pie that she had brought for dessert and Dana 
began serving coffee, the talk turned to the upcoming 
wedding. "So," Dana asked. "Everyone remembers the 
rehearsal dinner is on the 10th at 6pm, correct?" 

Most of the guys rolled their eyes at this. Dana had 
been reminding them about this every day since May 
1st. "Yes Dana," everyone chorused and she laughed. 
Just recently, she had begun to realize how much her 
friends meant to her and, as she looked around the 
table, she realized that she was thankful for each and 
every one of them to be there. "Well, I guess you 
all will remember that then, huh?" she remarked. 

"Does anyone have any other questions then?"
Mulder raised his hand and they all laughed. 

"Yes, Fox?" asked Dana, sounding very much like a 
schoolteacher. "Is there something you'd like to 
share with the class?"

He grinned his goofy grin at her. "Yeah. I'm 
supposed to be holding your ring, right? Does 
someone have that? When are you giving it to me? 
Please don't give it to me too early, I might lose 
it." They all laughed then.

Dana held John's hand close, as he answered the 
question. "Actually, Mulder, I'm skipping out on 
work tomorrow so that we can go and pick out the 
rings."

Mulder nodded.

John continued. "I'll give it to you about 5 minutes 
before the ceremony. Think you can hold onto it that 
long?"

Mulder did his best to look serious. "I'll try."

John looked around at his group of friends and 
smiled. They almost felt like family and it was a 
good feeling. He wished that his parents could be 
here for his wedding, the one that would last 
forever, but it wasn't meant to be. They had died in 
a car crash about 6 years ago. Dana caught the look 
of sadness in his eyes and squeezed his hand. She 
knew what he was thinking. He turned and smiled at 
her.

"So," she asked, anxious for everyone to go home. 
"Is that it?"

Alex Krycek, of all the people in the room, seemed to 
be the only one to pick up on her intentions. He 
faked a huge yawn. "I hope so Dana, because I'm 
about to fall asleep here. Thank you for the 
wonderful dinner though."

She smiled her thanks at him, as everyone got up to 
leave. She took turns hugging everyone, as they went 
out the door. When everyone was gone, she and John 
headed towards the kitchen to clean up, but Maggie 
quickly shooed them back out. "I didn't help make 
the dinner, the least I can do is clean it up."

John shrugged and Dana smiled. Who were they to 
argue with that?

Dana locked her fingers with John's and led him 
upstairs. They stopped by Sam's door, seeing that 
she was sleeping peacefully. She was 9 months old 
now and slept straight through the night, which Dana 
was immensely grateful for.

When they got to their room, Dana pushed the door 
shut behind them. John began getting ready for bed, 
when he noticed that Dana was still standing by the 
door. He turned at her, his eyes showing confusion 
and a bit of alarm. "Dana? Is everything ok?"

She smiled at him then, a smile so big it could light 
up the room. "Actually, John, everything is more 
than ok."

He came over and took her in his arms. "How's that?"

"Well, John, I guess it's a good thing you bought a 
big house after all. I'm pregnant."

He looked at her, surprise and happiness warring in 
his eyes. "Really? How?'

"John Doggett, did your mother never have the birds 
and the bees talk with you?"

He laughed. "You know what I meant."

She kissed him on the lips and laid her cheek against 
his check. "I know. But I don't have an answer."

He held her closer. "That's ok, I don't need one. 
How far along are you?"

"6 weeks."

He tipped her head up until her eyes met his. He 
kissed her softly, deeply, showing her exactly how he 
felt about it. When the kiss ended, she whispered 
softly in his ear. "I know. I love you too."

~*~*~

May 11, 2002 dawned bright and sunny. Dana got up at 
6am that morning, too nervous to sleep any longer. 
The wedding wasn't until 2, but she knew that she had 
a million things to finish before then, although when 
her mom asked her what still needed to be done, she 
simply shrugged because she suddenly couldn't 
remember any of them. John left shortly after 
breakfast that morning. He would be going over to 
Fox's apartment to get ready, so that Dana could have 
the house to get herself ready. He knew that all the 
women would be congregating there shortly and he did 
NOT want to be around for that.

When the doorbell rang at 8am, Dana ran to answer it. 
On the other side were Tammy and Monica, Dana's two 
bridesmaids. She hugged them both and they laughed 
at her obvious exuberance over getting married.

"Gee, Dana," teased Tammy, "I hope that I'm this 
excited when I get married!"

They all grinned, knowing that when Tammy's turn came 
to walk down the aisle, she'd probably be more hyper 
than Dana was at this very moment.

"Have you guys set a date yet?" asked Monica, as they 
all trooped upstairs to Dana's bedroom to get her 
ready.

"Actually, Alex and I talked about it last night. 
Dana, you guys aren't leaving for your honeymoon 
until the 14th, right?"

Dana nodded. "Yeah, we had to wait until then to get 
some cheaper airfare or some such nonsense. But Mom 
is leaving and taking Sam home with her after the 
wedding, so we all know the honeymoon is really gonna 
start tonight."

Tammy laughed and Monica just stared, still unable to 
Believe, that the professional Dana Scully she first 
Met, could say stuff like this. 

"Anyway," continued Tammy, "Alex and I decided that 
we don't want to have a big wedding. So tomorrow, at 
noon, we're going to go to the courthouse and get 
married by a justice of the peace. And I want both 
of you to be there."

They had just stepped into Dana's room when Tammy 
made that announcement and Dana turned and hugged 
Tammy. "Well, noon will be kind of early," Dana 
winked. "But we'll try and make it there."

The three girls collapsed into giggles, as Maggie 
Scully walked into the room. She tried to look 
sternly at them, but it didn't work. She clapped her 
hands. "Come on girls, let's get this show on the 
road."

~*~*~

Over at Fox's apartment, John was just as nervous as 
Dana was. He kept double-checking his pocket to make 
sure that he had the ring. Alex finally reached over 
and took the box out of John's hand. "I'll hold onto 
this until it's time to give it to Fox, ok?" 

Fox grinned and John nodded, still looking nervous. 
But then again, it could be because he had a huge 
hangover from last night's bachelor party.

"So Alex," Fox broke the silence. "When are you 
getting hitched?"

Alex mock glared at Mulder before answering. 

"Tomorrow, actually. Tammy and I decided to get 
married by a Justice of the Peace at noon tomorrow. 
I hope you guys can be there."

John smiled at Alex. Alex was still a mystery to 
him, but over the past few weeks he'd grown to like 
the guy. "Yeah, well, hopefully I'll be able to get 
Dana out of bed by then."

Alex laughed, but Fox seemed to be lost in thought. 
"Fox?" John asked. "You ok?"

Fox shook his head and grinned. "Yeah, sorry. Just 
a bit of a headache. I'd better go take something 
for that." He walked down the hall towards the 
bathroom, a frown on his face. He's just had the 
oddest vision. When John mentioned getting Dana out 
of bed, he had "seen" himself in bed with her. He 
shook his head, as he downed some aspirin. He'd been 
having visions like that for the past two days, but 
today, he wasn't going to worry about it. Today was 
John and Dana's day. Tomorrow he'd ask his doctor 
about it.

Alex was helping John get his tuxedo out of the 
protective bag, when Fox walked back into the room. 
He clapped John on the back. "Well, my friend, kiss 
goodbye to being able to make your own decisions."

They all laughed and started getting John ready for 
the wedding.

~*~*~

The men arrived at the church at 1:30. They knew 
that the ladies were arriving at 1:45 and that gave 
them 15 minutes to get everyone in place. John was 
so nervous that he couldn't seem to stand still. 

Alex and Fox were both standing up front at the altar 
trying not to snicker, as John walked back and forth. 
Fox looked out into the crowd. Most of the faces he 
didn't know, but a few were familiar. He smiled when 
Lorna waved at him. He saw Skinner sitting out there 
with a very pretty redhead. He turned and looked 
back at John, as John finally took his place at the 
front of the altar. He frowned, as he was assaulted 
by another flash of memory, this one of him and John 
arguing in Skinner's office. ::What is that all 
about?:: he wondered, as he shook his head. He felt 
someone nudge him and he turned to his right. Alex 
was holding out a small gold band. He grinned at 
Fox. "Think you can manage to hold onto this until 
it's time?" he whispered. Fox glared, as he wrapped 
his hand around the ring. "I think so."

They turned to face the back of the church, as the 
music began. Monica walked down the aisle towards 
them, followed by Tammy. They were both wearing long 
pale blue dresses. Alex smiled, as he watched Tammy 
walk towards him. He couldn't wait until tomorrow 
when she would be walking up the aisle to greet him.

The music changed and everyone stood up a bit 
straighter, watching for Dana and her mother. 
Although it was tradition for the father to give away 
the bride, Dana had felt that the honor belonged to 
her mother. The men could only start, when Dana began 
to walk towards them. She had chosen a simple, yet 
elegant white dress. It was floor-length with a 
short train flowing behind it. The waist was fitted, 
the skirt falling freely from there. The dress was 
held up by three thin straps over each shoulder. The 
bodice was slightly v-cut and covered with tiny white 
beads. She was carrying a small bouquet of yellow 
roses. She looked stunning.

Fox watched, as Dana began her slow walk towards the 
front of the altar. Images began flashing through 
his mind, some fast, some slow, but all of them had 
Dana in them. He saw her the first day she walked 
into his office, when they were trapped in the woods 
running from insects, solving the mystery of the 
frozen man, pretending to be married, trying to 
convince her that he really wasn't Morris Fletcher. 
He blinked, as she got closer. This was his Scully. 

He looked around. ::Doggett? She's marrying 
Doggett? What the hell?:: He was stunned. He tried 
to pay attention to what was going on around him, but 
he was lost in his thoughts. He came back to the 
present in time to hear the preacher ask if anyone 
had any objections.

"Wait!" Mulder shouted.

Everyone in the church stopped and stared at Mulder. 
Dana just looked at him, surprise flaring in her 
eyes. "Fox? What is it?"

Mulder frowned, thinking fast. Not only had he 
remembered everything from the past 9 years, but he 
also remembered these past few months, where he had 
been watching John and Dana spend time together. And 
he knew, in his heart, that they were meant for each 
other. And if he loved her, he would let her go now. 
He took a deep breath and let it out, then grinned 
his famous goofy smile. "Sorry...I dropped the ring." 

He quickly bent down and picked up the ring, as the 
wedding party laughed softly. The preacher smiled at 
him when he was standing up again. "I take it we can 
continue now?"

Mulder stood silently watching the wedding unfold in 
front of him. He remembered to hand over the ring 
when he was supposed to. He was torn, seeing them 
with each other. 

He was so happy that Scully had 
found someone who could give her the stability that 
she has wanted for so long, but he was also sad 
because for a long time, he had hoped to be the one 
for her. He put a smile on his face and turned 
towards the crowd with the rest of the wedding party 
as the preacher announced: "Ladies and Gentleman-
John and Dana Doggett!" There were claps and cheers, 
as the bride and groom hurried down the aisle 
followed by the rest of the wedding party.

~*~*~

An hour later they were all seated at the tables in 
the reception hall. They had eaten and were sitting 
around enjoying their champagne. Mulder shifted 
nervously in his chair, knowing that it was his turn 
to give a toast. 

Mulder coughed nervously and tapped 
his knife against his glass before standing. "May I 
have everyone's attention please?" The room quieted 
and they all turned to look at Mulder. "I um...well, I 
hear that I'm supposed to give a toast." People 
laughed quietly and he grinned. "I'll try and make 
it short and pleasant. Today I have had the 
opportunity to witness one of the greatest things on 
the face of this earth. True and absolute love. And 
what made it even better, is that it is a love 
between two of my best friends. A love that I've had 
a chance to see grow and blossom. A love that I know 
will last throughout all time. I would give you both 
wishes for the very best, but having spent time with 
you, I know that things will only get better from 
here. John, thank you for being there when I needed 
a friend, and being understanding when I needed your 
help. And, Scully...I owe you more thanks than I can 
ever give. Not only for being my friend, but for 
everything else that you have given me over the 
years." He smiled and sat back down, as people began 
to clap. Dana was sitting next to him and she leaned 
over and looked at him closely. He gazed back at 
her.

"Mulder?" she asked softly, wondering if it was true.

"Hey Scully, it's me."

And with those familiar words, she knew. She could 
not have asked for a better wedding present, than to 
have her best friend back. She wrapped her arms 
around him and hugged him tightly. "I missed you."

He smiled and held back his tears. "I missed you, 
too."

She reached over and squeezed his hand before turning 
back to her guests and to her new husband. John and 
Dana went over and began to cut the wedding cake. She 
picked up a piece to feed to John and smiled slyly at 
him. He frowned, knowing what was coming. "Open 
wide," she said, as she crammed as much of the cake as 
she could into his mouth. The crowd laughed, as pieces 
of the cake dropped onto his tux and the floor. He 
wiped his face with the towel that someone had 
thoughtfully provided and picked up his own piece of 
cake, which to Dana's eyes looked huge. She knew 
that he would get her back. She opened her mouth and 
closed her eyes, knowing what was coming. When 
nothing happened she frowned and opened her eyes. 
Right then he shoved the cake into her mouth. She 
thought she would gag from the surprise. John 
laughed and handed her the towel, which she promptly 
swatted him with. The crowd roared with laughter. 

She wiped off her face and continued cutting the cake 
for the rest of the crowd, her face only slightly red 
from embarrassment. She was too happy to be 
embarrassed. Today had been a great day so far. She 
had gotten married to a wonderful man, the love of 
her life, and her best friend had been there to share 
it with her.

~*~*~

By the time they returned home that night, Dana and 
John were both exhausted. Maggie had left a bit 
early from the reception, so that she could get Sam 
and head home, knowing that Dana and John would want 
some time alone after the reception. After the limo 
had dropped them off and pulled away, John took 
Dana's hand, leading her up to the front door. He 
smiled, and kissed her on the cheek right before he 
bent down to put his key in the lock in the front 
door. 

"Welcome home, Mrs. Doggett." He swung the 
door open. He put his keys in his pocket and, before 
Dana could react, he swept her up into his arms and 
carried her into the house, kicking the door shut 
behind them. She giggled and wrapped her arms around 
his neck, kissing him deeply. He continued walking 
with her in his arms, carrying her upstairs to the 
bedroom before he set her down. He smiled, as he set 
her down. "So, Mrs. Doggett, what would you like to 
do now?"

She grinned devilishly. "What don't I show you?" 

She walked towards him, until she was only about 8 
inches away from him. He could feel her breath on 
his face. He stood completely still and waited. She 
reached up and slid her fingers under the collar of 
his jacket, massaging his shoulders gently, as she 
pushed his coat down and onto the floor. She brought 
her hands back up and unclasped his bow tie, tossing 
it down. She ran her fingers down to the button on 
his blue vest, unfastening them and getting rid of it 
as well. She kissed him softly, as her fingers came 
up to undo the buttons on his shirt. She followed 
her fingers with her mouth, kissing each section of 
his chest as she uncovered it. She stood when 
finished and pushed his shirt off of his shoulders, 
admiring his body. He shivered slightly with 
anticipation and she smiled. He reached for her, but 
she pushed his hands away, shaking her head. She 
wasn't finished yet.

She knelt in front of John, bringing her fingers up 
to his waist. She undid his belt buckle, brushing 
her knuckles over his bulge. She felt him twitch 
beneath her touch. She undid the button on his pants 
and lowered the zipper, inch by agonizing inch. She 
let his pants fall to the floor and he kicked them 
and his shoes away and stood before her in nothing 
but his silk boxers, his erection evident. She 
rubbed him through his boxers and he thought he would 
come right then and there. He had to fight for 
control. She slipped her fingers under the waistband 
of his boxers and slid them down, freeing him to her. 

She leaned forward, after he kicked his boxers away, 
running her fingertips up and down his shaft. He 
groaned softly. She ran her hand back and began 
rubbing his balls. She took her mouth and began 
licking her way up his penis from the base to the 
shaft. She ran the tip of her tongue around the head 
of his erection, tasting his pre-ejaculate. She 
opened her mouth and slowly began taking him in, her 
hand never leaving his balls. He groaned again as 
she took him entirely into her mouth. He reached 
down and pushed his fingers into her hair, scattering 
hair pins to the floor. She began moving slowly and 
he urged her to go faster with his hand. She 
obliged, increasing her tempo until he knew he could 
stand it no longer. He moaned her name, as he 
spilled his warm juice into her mouth. She reached 
up and released his fingers from her hair, so that 
she could stand up. Unable to support his weight, he 
leaned back against the bed, waiting to see what she 
had planned next.

She stepped back away from him, making sure she was 
close enough that he could see everything she did, 
but far enough away that he couldn't touch. She 
kicked her heels across the room, shaking her head to 
get the rest of the pins out. Her hair fell around 
her shoulders in a red cloud and John was mesmerized. 

She slid her hands behind her back and unzipped her 
dress. She reached up and slid the straps off of 
first one shoulder and then the other. The dress 
fell to the floor, leaving her standing in her bra, 
panties, and stockings. She turned her back to him 
and bent over to remove her stockings, allowing John 
a great view of her ass. He could feel himself 
beginning to harden again just watching her. She 
stood and turned back around to face him. She 
reached between her breasts and unfastened her 
strapless bra, letting it hit the floor. She felt 
her nipples harden, as the air in the room brushed 
across them. She hooked her thumbs under the waist 
of her panties and slid them down, kicking them away.

John could take it no longer and picked her up and 
carried her to the bed. He set her down in the 
middle of it, running his hands over every inch of 
her glorious body. He took her mouth aggressively, 
swiftly beginning to entice her tongue with his own. 
She moaned and opened her mouth, giving him deeper 
access. He took her nipples in his hands, rubbing 
them between his thumb and forefinger, pulling on 
them gently. She arched her back, wanting him then, 
but she knew that he was going to make her wait. He 
took his mouth from hers and slid it down to her 
breasts, taking a nipple in his mouth, teasing it 
with his teeth. He slid his hand down to her abdomen 
and to the warmth between her legs. He rubbed his 
fingers up and down, feeling her wetness before he 
slipped a finger inside. She moaned and moved 
against him. He increased his speed, slipping 
another finger inside. She was gasping his name now, 
desperate for him. He took his thumb and rubbed it 
over her clit. He felt her clench around his 
fingers, but he didn't stop. He wanted to excite her 
again, so that they could find their release together. 

She moaned and was amazed when she felt herself begin 
to respond to him again. He brought his head up from 
her chest and kissed her deeply, as he removed his 
fingers. She could feel him at her entrance and she 
whimpered, moving against him. He slid all the way 
inside and she arched her back to give him better 
access. He began moving slowly, but she wrapped her 
legs around his waist and moved her hips, trying to 
increase the tempo. He could feel the excitement 
building and pounded into her. As he poured his seed 
into her, she tightened around him, gasping out his 
name. He collapsed on the bed beside her, hugging 
her close to him. She smiled, as he put his head on 
her shoulder and sighed. She ran her fingers through 
his hair as he pulled her closer. 

"Are you sure we have to get up in the morning and go 
to that wedding? We can't stay in bed and do this 
all day?"

She grinned at the whine in his voice, and smacked 
him lightly on the arm. "Wait until the honeymoon. 
We'll spend the entire first day in bed."

He looked up at her, at the tone in her voice. "Is 
that a threat?"

She stuck her tongue out at him. "No, that's a 
promise."

John laughed and reached over to turn out the light.

~*~*~

When the alarm went off at 8 the next morning, John 
groaned. Dana hopped out of bed and turned the alarm 
off, practically bouncing around the room in her good 
mood. John opened one eye and looked at her.

"C'mon John, get up," she said, as she flipped the 
covers off of him.

He growled at her and pulled the covers back up over 
his head. How could she be in such a good mood when 
they hadn't gone to sleep until 4? "Thanks, Dear, 
but I think I'll sleep awhile longer."

Dana stood at the end of the bed with her hands on 
her hips, trying to think of a way to get him up. 
Then she smiled. "Hey, John. If you get up now, we 
can shower together."

John threw back the covers and bounded out of bed. 
"What are you waiting for then? Let's go."

~*~*~

A couple blocks over, Tammy was sharing in Dana's 
good mood. Today was the day that her dreams were 
finally going to come true and she couldn't wait. 

She leaned up in bed on her elbow and looked down at 
her husband-to-be. She smiled. How in the world did 
she get so lucky? Just then his eyes opened. Those 
beautiful green eyes.

"Mornin," she said.

"Hey," he answered, rubbing the sleep from his eyes. 
"What time is it?"

She looked at the clock. "A little after eight."

He groaned. He was not a morning person and Tammy 
knew it.

She reached over and tickled his ribs. "Come on. 
Let's go eat breakfast and then get ready. I can't 
wait."

He pulled her down and kissed her quickly, tickling 
her back, at the same time. "I can't wait either."

~*~*~

Noon that day, found an anxious Alex standing with 
John and Mulder, waiting for Tammy to finish getting 
ready. He knew he was doing the right thing, but he 
had no idea that he'd feel so nervous. Dana and 
Monica walked in and stood at the front. Everyone 
turned and looked at the back of the room as Tammy 
made her entrance. She'd decided to dress simple for 
the day, since she didn't want a big affair. She'd 
picked out a short-sleeved peach colored dress. It 
flared around her hips and the skirt ended a little 
below her knees. The dress was scoop-necked and had 
small pearls sewed just around the neckline. She had 
a ring of white roses in her hair and carried a 
bouquet of them as well. Her red hair was piled on 
top of her head with little strands falling down 
around her little crown of flowers. Alex sucked in 
his breath when he saw her. 

The ceremony was short and sweet. Afterwards they 
went to a nice restaurant down the block for the 
reception. After they had placed their orders, John 
stood with his champagne glass. "Well, since Mulder 
had to make the toast yesterday, I guess it's my turn 
today." Everyone smiled. "I want to wish you both 
nothing but happiness and good luck. May God bless 
you, as he has blessed Dana and I." He sat back down, 
but Dana elbowed him and he stood again. "Oh yeah. 
Your wedding present." He handed Alex a white 
business envelope.

Alex took out a knife and slit the envelope open. 

His jaw dropped. "I...I don't know what to say." 

Tammy reached for the paper. She, too, was shocked. 
"The deed to your old house? John..."

John held up his hand. "Stop. Don't worry. I had 
an inheritance left to me and I can afford it. Don't 
argue, I want to do this." He paused. "We want to 
do this." He took Dana's hand.

Alex looked up at John and reached across the table 
and shook his hand. "Thank you."

John nodded. "Only one requirement."

Alex frowned. "What's that?"

"You have to fill it with kids."

Tammy laughed at that one. "Actually, we've already 
started on that one."

Alex turned and looked at her, the surprise evident 
on his face. "What?"

"Well...I was going to wait. I kind of thought Dana 
would announce hers first. But yeah...we're pregnant."

Mulder and Monica looked from Tammy and Alex to John 
and Dana. "Scully?"

She looked at Mulder. "Yeah, Mulder. Two miracles. 
What can I say? I'm blessed."

Lunch was a pleasant affair, everyone in high 
spirits. As they waited for the cake to be served, 
Mulder stood up. "No, no," he was quick to reassure 
everyone. "I'm not making a toast. I just had 
something to say. Monica and I...well...we wanted to get 
you guys something for your wedding. So here." He 
handed Tammy an envelope. She raised her eyes at 
Mulder before tearing it open. 

"Oh my God," she whispered.

Alex took the contents of the envelope from her. 

"Mulder?"

Mulder was sitting across the table, grinning his 
trademark smile. "Enjoy your honeymoon, my friend."

Tammy spoke up. "Oh, we will."

Everyone laughed at that.

"So where are you guys going?" Dana asked, having 
noticed that Alex was still holding two plane 
tickets.

"Vancouver," he responded, still looking shocked. He 
stood. "I just wanted to say, that in all my life, I 
never dreamed that I would have friends and family 
like I have with you. Thank you."

Tammy reached over and hugged him, as he sat back 
down. 

Today was the beginning of the rest of forever.

~*~*~

ONE YEAR LATER~

Dana sat at the picnic table in the backyard, 
watching her husband over at the grill. She had a 
huge smile on her face. She looked around at her 
friends. Tammy was rocking her daughter, Denise 
Michelle, in the shade of the tree where they had set 
up an area for the babies. Dana got up and walked 
over and peeked in the crib. Her son, John William, 
was sleeping peacefully. She smiled, as she looked at 
him. Both hers and Tammy's daughter had been born on 
the day before Valentine's Day. Tammy was sure that 
meant that their kids were meant to be together, but 
Dana didn't put much stock in stuff like that. 

She watched, as Alex came out of the house, carrying some 
beer for him and John. She turned and looked at 
Tammy. "So, Tam, where do you think Monica and 
Mulder are?"

Tammy laid Denise down in the crib and turned to look 
at Dana. "Well, I figure that every time they leave 
the house, one of them remembers something and they 
have to keep turning around."

Dana laughed. "I still can't believe those two ended 
up together."

Tammy shrugged. "Stranger things have happened."

"Mulder's life has been just one strange story after 
another." 

They grinned and went over to get some punch off of 
the table and see how big of a mess Sam was making 
playing in her sandbox.

Just when they reached the grill, they heard a loud 
honking coming down the street.

Alex sighed, as he turned some of the meat on the 
grill. "Sounds like Mulder is here."

Dana looked at her watch. "Wow. He's only half an 
hour late. They're early!"

Everyone laughed at that.

Monica and Mulder came racing into the back yard. 
Monica's smile was huge. She ran up to Dana and 
promptly stuck her hand in Dana's face. "Look!"

Dana held Monica's hand up to the light. She had on 
a square cut diamond on a silver band. It sparkled 
beautifully in the spring sunshine. Dana hugged 
Monica and then Mulder. "Congratulations, you guys."

John slapped Mulder on the back. "Well, in the words 
of a good friend of mine... kiss goodbye to being able 
to make your own decisions."

Mulder blushed slightly and laughed, as he remembered 
telling John that exact thing a year earlier. But 
then, he'd never imagined that he could be this 
happy. Things were definitely looking up.

THE END.