Title: Endings and Beginnings
Author: Cinnamon Scully
Category: SRH, DSR, Angst, Humor
Rated: NC-17 for language and situations
Summary: Mulder abandons Scully in fear of his mental state. Doggett
helps Scully cope with Mulder's departure and his little brother takes
them on an adventure.
Disclaimer: I do not own the X-files characters, nor do I own anything
that has anything to do with Richard Patrick or Filter, All
information found on Richard Patrick has been documented and is
disclaimed to be the possession of such sites. I also do not own any
rights to Nine Inch Nails or Trent Reznor. All lyrics have been
documented to the album they come from and are as such. All situations
therin are fictional unless documented. Fiction and Reality is
interweaved throughout the story, but the situations therin are
created by the author for entertainment purposes only. Refer to the
website that corrolates with this story to find out the truths and
discern from the fiction. No money has been made off of this story.

Email: richfactwebmistress@yahoo.com

Scully woke the next morning in her bed, reaching out towards the
figure that should be there next to her. She instead connected with a
piece of paper. At first her sleepy mind figured that Mulder had
simply gone to get breakfast and hadn't wanted to wake her, but when
she began to read the note, she learned it was something else.

Dear Scully,

 I have to leave you behind. I don't want you to be hurt by me
anymore, and since I've come back I still find myself not fitting in.
I know I was an ass to you and it's because the world went on without
me and now that I find that you do not need me anymore, I have decided
that I must take my leave and exit your life. I also fear seeing you
hurt by my possible second abduction and I fear that it would destroy
you to do what you have done these past 9 months. I know you must be
angry right now as you read this, but I have to figure out where I
belong and I don't know if that is where I am right now. Please, don't
take this as a ditch effort. I just want to find myself again and
where I belong. I do not do this to hurt you. I know that you trust
Agent Doggett more than I do and I respect that. Trust him. The F.B.I.
has taken my quest away from me.  I ask you to seek the truth and help
Doggett to see. The world depends on it and I only wish I could
continue the quest with you. I have passed the torch onto you. I will
never stop loving you and though I will be unreachable, I will always
be in your heart. Oh Scully, II don't want tohear your heart break as
mine does right now, but I must, I must say goodbye.

Love, 
Fox Mulder 

 Scully clutched the paper to her chest, sobbing. Mulder had his
reasons. She only hoped that things would change and he'd come home to
her.

 As she sat in the bedroom, a soft knock came to the door. She got up
quickly to see who was there. Perhaps Mulder had realized what mistake
he had made.

 She opened the door, and said, "Agent Doggett."

 Doggett noticed that Scully hadn't dressed yet, and averted his eyes
quickly from her nightgown clad body.  He said, "I'm sorry, Agent
Scully. I just came to see how you were doin'.  I also came to update
you a little on the X-files. Thought you might want to know."

 Scully said, "Come on in, Agent Doggett. Tell me what is going on."
She wrapped a robe around herself, tying it as she sat down.

 Doggett sat at the other end of the couch, trying to keep his eyes
averted as much as possible. He said, "Agent Scully, I'm sure you know
already about the investigation of DD Kersh. I'm going to see what
he's been up to. If I can help you any further than that, I will.  I
find that DD Kersh has made a mistake by firin' Agent Mulduh. I just
think that maybe we should see what can be done."

 Scully sighed. She looked down, and looked back up into his eyes, now
firmly on hers. "Mulder's gone. He left this morning and said that he
wants me to help you on the X-files. He's sort of passed on the torch
to me, so to speak.  He just doesn't feel like he fits in here and
needs to learn where he belongs."

 "I'm sorry to hear that, Agent Scully."  Doggett said.

 "Well, I understand why he did it.  They took everything from him. I
don't think he expects to get his work back.  That was his life and
they destroyed him with it. Not to mention his terrible ordeal, which
I'm sure he's not over.  I expect him to keep in touch with the Gunmen
and they'll keep me informed.  There is nothing I can do. It is his
decision after all." Scully looked very resigned by these events. "I
can't chase him down. I've got William now and I'm very thankful for
that."

 Doggett was fighting himself. He felt more comfortable with her now,
and hoped that she did with him. He finally took a hand and placed it
on one of hers. "I'm sure we'll get justice for what they've done to
Mulduh. I just want you to know that I'll make sure that we get that
and find that truth he was seekin'."

 Scully looked up into his face. She said, "Thank you, Agent Doggett."

 After Doggett left, Scully tided up the apartment. She got dressed,
thinking about what Doggett had told her. He had said that they were
investigating Kersh. She shook her head. That was unexpected.

 She checked on William, changing him. He was very quiet but kept
moving his arms and legs, making Scully smile slightly. She said,
"William, you're such a goofy baby."

 She went into the living room, holding William close to herself. She
sat down, quietly lost in thought until William pulled her hair. She
said, "Ow, Will, don't do that."

 William simply gurgled, and Scully realized without Mulder she would
have no adult to talk to besides the Gunmen and an occasional visit
from Doggett.  He'd be in the field a lot and she feared that she
wouldn't see him very often.

 Though she and Doggett thought very differently, over the past nine
months or so, she had become rather fond of the man. He was a
gentleman, and so reserved. So unlike Mulder. She sighed, getting up
and placing William in a play pen to play for a bit.

 The phone rang, and she went to answer it. She said, "Scully."

 Frohike's voice came on the other end, "Scully, how you holding up?"

 "I've had better days." Scully sighed.

 "I know. He stopped by and told us.  He said that any contact we have
will go through him. I'm sorry, Dana."

 Scully sighed. "What are you going to do about it? Force the man to
stay here with you? I think that he's going to do what he wants and
that's the way it is."

 "Yeah. Listen, Doggett came by earlier.  He said something about
having us look into Kersh's background. Said you trusted us as a
source so he thought he should to. Should we look into it?"

 "Yes. Please do. It may help us a lot in the case against him."
Scully said, placing a hand on her forehead.

 "You hang in there. I'm sure what ever Mulder is going through, he'll
be okay and figure it out. Oh, and Dana, you ever need a shoulder to
lean on, I'm right here." Frohike said, quietly.

 Scully noticed his tone was different.  She whispered. "Thanks."


 Doggett sat in the X-files office, trying to figure out what he
should do next. He sighed, setting a file down.  He was lost in
thought. <Why did Mulder leave like that? He's got have a reason other
than he's got figure out where he belongs. Agent Scully wasn't telling
me something about this. I guess I'll just have to wait for her to
tell me.>

 He jumped when he heard a voice say, "John, didn't think I'd see you
here just sitting there." He looked up to see Monica Reyes standing in
the doorway.

 Doggett gave her a smile. "Well, I was just thinking about a
conversation Agent Scully and I had earlier today.  I stopped by to
check up on her. She told me that Mulduh took off."

 Reyes shook her head a little. She said, "Oh? Did she say why he
left?"

 Doggett said softly, "Said something about him wanting to figure out
where he belongs. He's feeling a little misplaced."

 "But you don't think she told you everything, right John?" Reyes
said, smiling at him.

 "No, no I don't, Monica. She just seemed like she was defeated and
I've never seen her like that except when we found him dead. I just
don't think he left just for those reasons she told me. She knows
something and I'll let her tell me when she's ready."  Doggett said,
adjusting his suit jacket.

 Reyes said, "You never change. You always have to be the gentleman."

 Doggett said, "What's that supposed to mean?"

 Reyes said, "It doesn't mean anything. It just means that you'll
leave her alone because you respect her. I got to admit, that takes a
lot of patience. She's got a lot of secrets."

 "Yeah well, I know that if I push her she'll just get mad at me and
then I'll be back at square one with her. A glass of water in my face.  
You got to take things slowly with Agent Scully."

 Reyes laughed. "You still call her Agent Scully, John. See what I'm
talking about?"

 Doggett knew that she was making fun of him. He said, "Damnit Monica,
will you knock it off? We have some information from those weird
friends of Mulduh's comin' in on Kersh and I want to get that done."

 "Alright. I'll play nice if you'll just loosen up a bit." Reyes said,
sitting down in a chair waiting for what Doggett had to tell her.


 Scully arrived at the Gunmen's, deciding she had to talk to someone
besides William. She walked up to the door, knocking on it softly with
William in her arms. She waited for Frohike to open the door.

 Frohike said once he had gotten the door open, "Come on in, Scully."

 Scully smiled slightly at him, then walked with dignity into the
Gunmen's lair. She said, "Anything on Kersh yet?"

 "Well, we learned that he's got a second income if that's what you
mean." Langly said. "He's got an unidentified source of money coming
in other than his F.B.I. check. We can't find out who is paying him
yet."

 Scully tilted her head. "So he's working for two different things at
once. I wonder who else he is working for, but I think I've got an
idea already."

 Byers said, "Yes. We thought you might know who it is too. We thought
that it might be him too."

 Scully asked, "Is there a place I can put William?"

 Frohike said, "Why don't you give him to me and I'll put him in the
crib we bought for him. We thought that you wanted to have a place to
put him."

 Scully smiled at him, as she handed the small child to him. "I wonder
when Agent Doggett will be stopping by again."

 Langly said, "Well, he called just a bit ago. He said that Agent
Reyes was with him. We told him what we just told you. He said he'd be
out here with Reyes later on."

 Scully nodded. "I see he's got Reyes to work with him. It's always
better than having someone work alone on the X-files. I hope he's got
enough of an open mind with this."

 "He said he wants to do all he can to help out the X-files with this
investigation. He knows he's risking a lot but he wants to do the
right thing. He really doesn't care what the Bureau thinks of this
right now. At least that's what he said." Byers said.

 "No. No, he wouldn't. He's after justice and I figure he knows that
Kersh is not. I think he understands that even if he doesn't believe a
lot on the X-files. He's got an understanding that Kersh is hiding
something and that is what makes him want to do this." Scully said.  
"With Mulder gone who else will keep the search for the truth open?"

 Frohike sighed. "I know. I know we weren't very nice to him, but he
did happen to realize we do have a way of getting information.  He's
trying to do the best he can."

 Scully said, "As long as Mulder thinks he has to be away I'm going to
help Agent Doggett and Agent Reyes as much as I can. We have to
continue the search."

 Suddenly a knock came to the door. Frohike said, "Stay calm.  I'll
get it."

 The little man made his way to the door, checking the camera. He
sighed in relief. "Doggett."

 He opened the door slowly. Doggett said, "I want that information you
got on Kersh." He stopped when he saw Scully. He said, "Agent Scully,
I didn't know you were here. I didn't see your car."

 Scully said, "I parked in the back.  I just needed to talk to an
adult.  William isn't much of a talker yet."  She smiled a little when
she saw Doggett smile a little at her joke.

 Doggett came all the way into the Gunmen's, and sat down in an open
chair. He said, "I want the documents you've got on Kersh's
unidentified source of income.  I want to know where it's coming from.
You think ya can get a hold of that for me?"

 Langly crossed his arms. "We'll try. We can't guarantee anything but
we will do all we can for it.  I can assure you that one." He kept the
Dogbird comment back.

 Doggett sighed. "We're hopin' to get this guy. What he did to Agent
Mulduh was just uncalled for, though I do think Agent Mulduh was rash,
he did the right thing. I don't think he deserved to be fired for
bein' right."

 Scully had to smile at the comment.  She asked, "Agent Doggett, why
do you think he did the right thing?"

 "Well, Agent Scully, I do because he was afraid that the F.B.I.
wasn't going to send a qualified person to investigate it, even if it
does mean me. I also know that I was goin' in without backup, or very
little. He knew there was somethin' there and he wanted to make sure
it got investigated right."

 Scully nodded. "What makes you think you're not qualified, Agent
Doggett."

 "Agent Scully, come on, I'm not good at this X-file stuff. You know
that. I just think he was doin' what he thought was right and Kersh
flamed him for it." Doggett said.

 Scully nodded. "So you and Agent Reyes are investigating this.  Does
she think the same thing?"

 "Well, Kersh flamed me for puttin' her on the X-files with me. Said I
didn't have the authority to do so.  I thought he was wrong. Back up
is a must and he decided to ignore that.  She thinks that Kersh is up
to somethin', yes."

 Scully said, "Good. Get as many allies, official or not official as
you can. We're going to need them."


 Doggett walked back into his office, looking at what the Gunmen had
told him. He had his back turned when a pair of hands covered his
eyes. He said, "Not funny, Monica. I know those hands."

 "Pooh. You're just no fun. Always so serious." Reyes said, laughing
at him.

 "Well, what do ya want me to be?"  Doggett asked, smiling slightly at
her.

 Reyes said, "Not so dark and gloomy."

 Doggett shook his head. "I'll never figure you out. You know you and
Agent Scully are so different."

 "Duh."

 "You pickin' on me again?"  Doggett said. "Two can play at this
game."

 "Oh, I'd like to see you try.  So, what did you find out?" Reyes
asked him, tilting her head towards the file in his hand.

 Doggett sat down behind the desk, tossing the file onto the desk.
"Read for yourself."

 Reyes picked it up, reading what the Gunmen had put into the file.  
She said, "Unidentified income source? Does the IRS agent in the
Bureau know about this?"

 "Nope. The Gunmen had to dig deep for this one and I guess it's a tax
exempt one. DD Kersh is being sneaky about this one. Either that the
one who's payin' him is."  Doggett said.

 "I'm guessing that Agent Scully has an idea who this mysterious
person is." Reyes said, closing the file again and placing neatly back
onto the desk.

 "You bet she does, so does those Gunmen guys she's talkin' to.  They
all think it's that man with the cigarettes, but they also don't know
if he's alive.  I think that maybe it was that man initially, but
after awhile the man's group took it over."

 "Why do you say that?"

 "That man that Skinner shot, that Alex Krycek, he supposedly offed
the old man. If he's alive he's been hidin' pretty well." Doggett
said. "I heard about it from Mulduh shortly after it happened. He only
told me because he wanted me to know so I'd leave the case alone. I
have done that."

 "Wow. That's tough. AD Skinner shoot him?" Reyes asked, arms crossing
over her light blue blouse.

 "Yeah. But with all this alien bull crap I don't know what's goin'
on. I won't be surprised if Alex Krycek shows his face again.  
Nothin' seems to die in the X-files.  Look at Mulduh himself. That's
enough of a shocker to one's system."


 Scully left the Gunmen's to go home. She felt good about having spent
her day there. She hadn't laughed so much in so long and she was
thankful for that.

 When she got home she put William to bed for a nap. She decided she'd
start cooking supper and get William's baby formula ready for when he
woke.

 She went into the kitchen, starting to prepare a spaghetti meal. When
she got the sauce into the pan and cooking she put in a quarter of the
box of noodles on the side to cook. She sighed.

 Just as she was going to set her table to eat a knock came to the
door. She sighed. It had better not be that little dwarf Frohike.  
She stepped up to the door, checking the peephole, and smiled.

 She opened the door, letting Doggett in. He said, "Just thought I'd
make sure you're okay, Agent Scully. I didn't want you to be alone all
night, so Monica and I decided we'd like to take you out on the town."

 "Oh, but I've got William to feed after his nap and I'm cooking
supper."

 "I won't be takin' no for an answer. We think ya need a night among
just us adults and we'll let you get a hold of your mother to watch
the baby. Come on, ya need it." Doggett said, looking at her with his
ice blue eyes.

 Scully sighed. "Well, if you're going to be that way about it, fine.
I'll go to dinner with you guys. Don't think you can set me up with
some dashing young man though."

 "Wouldn't dream of it, Agent Scully."

 "Wait a minute. You call Agent Reyes Monica. Why don't you call me
Dana while we're out of the office.  If we're going out to eat I don't
want to be called Agent this and Agent that." Scully said, walking
towards her phone to call her mother.

 "Only if you'll call me John instead of Agent Doggett." Doggett said
to her.

 "Alright, John, let me get my mother and we'll go. I should change
first too. I look dismal."  Scully said, looking down at her sweats
and pull over.

 "Yeah. I'll be waiting for ya.  Don't want you sneakin' your way out
of this." Doggett said, smiling at her.

 "I won't. Just wait and I'll be out." Scully said.

 Doggett stood in the front door area, his hands in his dress pants
pockets. He was rocking on his heels waiting for Scully to come back
out.

 He turned to look at Scully, and stopped. Scully came out with a low
cut green dress. Doggett looked up and down her body, blushing.  He
then looked away.

 Scully caught him, asking, "Well, John, do you like it?" She spun
around for him.

 Doggett sputtered for a moment.  He finally managed to choke out,
"Yeah."

 Scully said, "What's the matter, John? Cat got your tongue?"

 Doggett smiled shyly. "No, no.  I have never seen you in somethin'
like that before."

 "Oh. Well, shall we go? We'll be dropping William off at Mom's on the
way." Scully said.

 Doggett offered his arm to her but she said, "Let me get the baby
first."

 "Oh right." Doggett was so nervous.  He was a little shaken by what
Scully had chosen to wear to dinner.

 Scully came back out with William in a car seat. She said, "Well,
shall we go?"

 Doggett nodded. He opened the door for her allowing Scully to make
her way out. Doggett averted his eyes from Scully, not wanting to look
in places he thought were a little intrusive.

 When they finally came down, Reyes said, "No freakin' way. You got
her to come along and dressed up?"

 Doggett smiled. "Yeah. I did. I wouldn't take no for an answer.  
Let's drop the baby off and go."

 When they arrived at the restaurant, Doggett got out, helping first
Scully then Reyes out of the car by opening their doors. He was a
little confused which woman he ought to offer his arm to, but Reyes
solved the problem. She whispered to him, "You offer your arm to her.
I'll be fine."

 Doggett nodded. He gave her a smile, and offered his arm to Scully.
He said, "Dana, would you like me to escort you into the restaurant?"

 Scully laughed at him for a moment. She said, "John, you're much
different out of the work place. You are a Southern boy aren't you?"

 Doggett smiled. He said, "Well, yeah."

 "Figured as much. Let's get in there and no more of this nonsense
about offering arms and such. It's silly." Scully said. She put her
hand on the elbow extended towards her.

 They made their way in and were seated. Doggett sat in the middle of
the two ladies. He helped both get seated before seating himself.  He
said, "Sorry, old habits die hard."

 Scully and Reyes exchanged a smile and shook their heads. They knew
he was a gentleman and couldn't help it.  He was trying to make the
dinner as comfortable as possible.

 Scully said, "John, why don't you pick a nice wine out for dinner?"

 Doggett said, "That's right, you can have wine again, can't you?"

 Scully nodded. "Only a little. I wouldn't want to put too much in my
blood due to the fact it could go to my baby in nursing. But, let's
not discuss such things over dinner. I'll only be having a half
glass."

 Reyes and Scully caught eyes over the table, laughing at Doggett.  
He had turned a mild pink at Scully's detached manner to nursing.  He
coughed his embarrassment away, "Well, shall we order soon?"

 Reyes shook her head. "I told you in the office earlier today to
loosen up. Sheesh, what does it take to get you out of your tense
mood?"

 All of the sudden a man sat down at the table with them. Scully and
Reyes looked from the man to Doggett, both having surprised
expressions on their faces.

 Doggett had to laugh a little, before he said, "I'm sorry, I forgot
that my brother would be joining us. His name is Joseph Doggett."

 Joseph extended his hand to first Reyes, then to Scully. He said
without an accent, "You must be Agent Scully." He said it to Scully
and she nodded.

 Joseph Doggett had the same features as his brother, but his blue
eyes were more grey and his hair less curly. He said, "So, John, shall
you tell a little bit more about me or shall I?"

 Doggett said, "Joe's a lawyer that deals with death penalty cases.
He's usually the defense but he always believes that even if the
person is guilty of the crime they should go to life without parole."

 Scully nodded. She said, "Well, I guess that makes sense. "She was
looking at him, trying to figure out more about him.

 Joseph said, "Well, John, I must admit you are a lucky guy. You get
to work with two beautiful women, who appear to have more than just
the pretty face."

 Doggett smiled. "That they do.  I'm an awfully lucky guy I suppose."

 Scully and Reyes caught eyes and nodded for a moment before Reyes
asked, "So what brings you to D.C.?"

 "I was here on a case, knew John lived close to D.C. and thought I'd
find him." Joseph said.

 Doggett said, "Yeah, I called him and told him where we'd be eating.
I didn't expect him to show up so soon."

 Joseph asked, "Have we ordered yet?"

 "No." Doggett said. "We haven't done that yet."

 "Good. I want a chance to look at the menu before I see you getting
your meals." Joseph said, smiling.

 Scully noticed that they looked very similar to each other, except
that Joseph Doggett had an older appearance. This must mean that
Joseph is the elder brother.

 Scully asked, "So, John, you've never told us much about your family.
Who else are you hiding?"

 "Well, we do have a younger brother named Sam. He's sort of a black
sheep in the family.  In fact Dad doesn't talk to him.  Sammie just
didn't want to do what Dad wanted him to do. He's a musician in some
rough band.  Dad said told him to stay away from him if he pursued
this venture. Sammie didn't care."  Doggett said.

 Reyes, "Wow, a free thinker.  What did he want him to be?"

 "Dad wanted him to pursue a career in some type of company.  I defied
Dad myself, he wanted me to go politician. I decided law enforcement.
Dad was okay with that. He thinks of it as a real job, unlike
Sammie's."  Doggett said.

 Scully was fascinated. "He nice?"

 "Only if you like in your face people who don't care what others
think of them."

 "Mulder. He's just like Mulder then. Not that bad." Scully said.

 "Well, I suppose so. He's just a little bit louder about it. He's
very outspoken." Doggett said.

 Joseph said, "You're forgetting our sisters."

 Doggett said, "You tell them about them."

 Joseph said, "Well, we have Angela and Jean. They are very, well,
much like what Dad wanted. He bullied them quite a bit. He demanded
that they become what he wanted. Angela became a nurse and Jean a
scientist."

 Scully said, "Wow. That makes me the black sheep in my family. My dad
said that the F.B.I. was the wrong move for me. He wanted me to be a
doctor. A practicing one."

 Reyes said, "I'm the black sheep then, too. I may have a job I was
supposed to be in, but I'm such a new age thinker."

 They ordered their meals, and Scully asked, "So, I'm thinking your
brother wouldn't be very appreciative of rules that the Bureau has."

 "Hell no. Sammie, well, he'd just be a little outspoken about how
they are chaining us down by these rules. I learned my discipline in
the Marines, but he didn't like them either. He's against those types
of things.  Dad is a Republican, the rest of us are not, especially
Sam. He's a liberal but doesn't support any party."

 "Wow. Does he have any albums?"

 "Yeah, but I don't have any of them. Not my type of music. Like the
good song says, Good time rock and roll, please." Doggett smiled.

 Joseph said, "Now that the cat is out of the bag, Miss Scully, please
tell me about your family."

 Scully wiped her mouth with a napkin. "You really don't want to know.
My father is dead, has been for awhile, my mother is still living in
D.C. My sister was gunned down in a mistake for me, the killer I have
never found, and my older brother hates my work."

 Joseph said, "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to bring up such memories."

 Scully said, "No, it's just not discussed. Ahab wouldn't like his
Starbuck looking backwards and living in the past."

 Reyes noticed a change in Scully.  She was clamming up, probably
something she had learned at an early age from her father. She said,
"I must be the lucky one.  I'm the eldest and the one who gets to do
what she wants."

 Doggett laughed. "I suppose you have it easy. Being the eldest and a
black sheep. I think Dad would have killed Joseph for that one. Don't
you think, Joe?"

 Joseph nodded. "Yeah. Dad had an idea and he wasn't going to take no
for an answer. I just wish Sam would talk to us. He's just so distant
now and I do know he does need to have someone look out for him from
time to time."

 Doggett said, "Watch it, he'll call me and then I'll be stuck with
him. I was always the one bailing him out."

 After dinner, Reyes said, "I'm going to take a cab. I'm assuming that
you'll be taking your brother home with you and Dana too."

 Joseph said, "I'll take you. I just was visiting and I have my own
car so I'll be meeting him later."

 Reyes said, "Thank you. I'd much appreciate it."

 They all got up, Scully said, "John, are you going to take me to your
place for a while before you take me home? I have a funny feeling I'd
be so bored, and besides I want to see if you're right about your
brother."

 "Just call me psychic with my brother. He's probably got some problem
that I'm going to have to fix." Doggett said. He gave her his arm
again, and Scully accepted with out asking.


 When they got to the house, Doggett saw that there was a fancy sports
car in the drive way. "Well, what do you say?  I'm psychic about Sam."

 Sam came off of the front porch, a cigarette in his mouth, his hair
spiky and a beard on his chin.  He wore a pair of rugged jeans and a
rock t-shirt promoting his band. He said, "I wondered when you'd get
here. Who's the lady?"  He gestured with his cigarette at Scully.

 Scully waited for Doggett. Doggett said, "Her name is Dana Scully and
she is my new partner."

 "Since when do you partners come home with you all dolled up?  Isn't
that like breaking their fucking rules or something? No dating or
something like that?  I just call it a load of BS."

 Doggett looked over at Scully, who wasn't very flustered.  She said,
"Actually it's more complicated than that."

 Sam threw his cigarette down to the ground. "How so?"

 "Long story. If you're into stories that involve aliens well that's
what it's about."

 Sam started to laugh. "Johnny Boy involved with ideas like that?  
Dude, Dad's not gonna like this one. You working with Aliens?"

 Doggett said, "Dad will be fine.  It's my assignment."

 "What do they call your division, tthe BS section?" Sam said,smiling
a little.

 Scully said, keeping her temper, "The X-Files. Those cases that are
unsolved and are handed to us. It can range from a million things
including aliens, liver eating mutants, and well anything bizarre."

 Sam said, "Whoa, and I thought I had problems. Dude you sure you want
to be involved with this stuff?"

 Doggett said, "So what did you do this time?"

 "Nothing. I just wanted to tell you that I'm going on tour and my
albums have done well. Didn't you see that nice piece of work that I
drive?" He said, lighting another cigarette.

 Doggett lead his brother and Scully inside the house. Sam said,
between drags on his cigarette, "Man, you got some nice shit here. I
wish I had half the things you got. I live in a crappy hell hole of an
apartment."

 Doggett shook his head. He said, "Sam, would you mind bein' a little
more polite in front of Agent Scully?"

 Scully smiled, knowing this was difficult for Doggett to take.  His
brother looked over at her, and she smiled a little at him.  She said,
"John, it's not a big deal. I've heard worse in hostage situations."

 Doggett sighed. He said, "Would you like something to drink?"

 "Yeah, can you get me a beer, bro?" Sam asked.

 Doggett said, "Yeah, and Dana, what would you like?"

 "Hmm, I'm going to have to deal with William when I get home. I'll
take a cup of coffee." Scully said, sitting down.

 Sam sat down in a chair, putting his feet up on the table in front of
him, his hands behind his head.  He said, "So, what do you mean you
got William at home to deal with? You married or something?"

 "No. Not at all. William is my baby." Scully said.

 Sam immediately pointed towards the kitchen, "Is that baby his?  No,
it can't be. Johnny would marry the girl who had his child.  So, who's
the kid belong to?"

 "My ex partner, Fox Mulder.  He's off doing something to find himself
again." Scully said, looking down.

 "Whoa, and I thought I dealt with some strange shit. What do you mean
he's looking for himself?" Sam said, puffing his cigarette and
flicking the ashes into an ashtray he had brought along.

 Scully said, "Long story short, Mulder was abducted last spring and
was buried, but he wasn't dead. We exhumed him and he's in top
physical condition, but he lost six months or more of his life. He
went to look for where he belongs."

 "Whoa, whoa, you're saying he was dead, and then he wasn't.  That's
too bizarre for me." Sam said.

 "A year ago I would have agreed with you, but I saw it happen with my
own eyes."

 Doggett came back out, handing Scully her coffee and Sam his beer. He
sat down, asking, "So, tell us more about your album."

 "You listen to him, John. I'm going to call the Gunmen and see if
they've heard anything from Mulder."  Scully called over to the
Gunmen's. She said, "Frohike, have you heard from Mulder yet?"

 "No. He hasn't told us anything.  If we hear from him we'll let you
know immediately." Frohike told her. "Oh, and Scully, don't worry,
he'll come around."

 "I hope so. Listen, I'm at John's and I should be getting back.  His
brother is here and I don't want to be rude."

 Frohike said, "You have fun.  Don't worry too much. Your mother
called us. She got the number from your speed dial at your place.  
She said to tell you that you can stay out as late as you want to."

 Scully smiled, then said, "Thanks."

 She hung up, and turned to look at Doggett and his little brother.  
Sam was avidly telling Doggett about his band and the message he
wanted to spread by it. She shook her head when she saw Doggett's ears
redden with some of the things his brother said.  She sighed. He was
the opposite of Doggett in all senses of the word.

 She sat down on the couch, listening in until Sam said, "I'm sorry. I
must be blabbing on and on like a stupid moron."

 She said, "No, it's interesting.  I know so little about John and
it's interesting to hear about his family and what they do.  Mulder's
sister was abducted so long ago and then he found out she was dead
that it was like he was the only one in the family to know. His father
was shot and killed, his mother committed suicide. He's all that is
left. . .except William."

 Both men froze as she spoke, as if it was to herself. She shook her
head. "I'm sorry guys.  I didn't mean that."

 Sam's hazel eyes connected with his brother's. He looked a little
sorry for Scully, but didn't really know what to say or do. He said,
"Well, dude, you got an open bedroom? I could stay here or I could
stay at a hotel, it's up to you."

 Doggett thought that was a nice change of the subject. He said,
"Alright. Up stairs there should be a room open."

 "Ok, I'll find it on my own later." He took a sip of his beer and a
drag on his cigarette.  "Well, now, what else is there to know?"

 Doggett said, "Well, I think that most of what we do is Bureau stuff,
but I'll say this, it's interesting."

 Scully sighed. "That it is. I just told the Gunmen where I was. Mom
said she told them that she'll have William as long as I want to stay
out."

 Doggett nodded. "Any word?"

 "No. They told me that they would tell me right away."

  Sam took a drag before asking, "So, who are these Gunmen? Someone
you hire to watch something for you so they can shoot it or some shit
like that?"

 Scully laughed. "You just made Frohike's day. No, they're computer
hackers and they scope out Government secrets. I met them through
Mulder."

 Sam said, "Wow. They geeks or something then?"

 "Shh, I wouldn't know if Frohike bugged John's place. He's known to.  
Byers and Langly wouldn't really care as much." Scully said, laughing.  
"Yes, I guess, if that's what you want to call them."

 Doggett shook his head when he saw Sam nod. He said, "So, Sam, what
do you think Dad will do?"

 Sam said, "He hears of any of this shit and he's going to ban you
from the family too. Hey, I'm okay with it. It allows me to make music
and if that's not okay with him, too bad.  But you, you'll be so upset
by it.  You'll spend the rest of your life trying to make it up to
him."

 Doggett sighed. "I hate when you're right."

 Sam said, "See? I know you. You care." He took a drag on his
cigarette. "So, I figure, and that's why I won't be like you, unless
he accepts me for me I don't have to do what he wants. It's not his
fucking life now is it?"

Scully felt that this guy had a point. He might have said it in a way
that was not as nice as she would have liked, but she agreed with him
on a level. It was how she envisioned Mulder when he was younger and
more angry.

 Doggett said, "Yeah, but I love Dad too much to do that to him."

 "That's where we differ. Dad never gave a rip if I was happy. I was
just supposed to do what he wanted.  I bet he doesn't even know that
I'm on a big label."

 Scully felt a little out of place.  It was just so interesting to see
them talk about this type of thing that she didn't mind.  She was
listening intently and enjoying what his little brother had to say. He
was a lot more open than she had ever thought anyone in his family
could be.

 Doggett sighed. "I know. I know I bent easy under Dad's pressure, but
at least I wasn't as bad as our sisters."

 "Yeah, don't let me get started on them. Boy, what a couple of
pushovers. You think they'd get a back bone and tell him to fuck off."
Sam said, tipping his beer back.

 Doggett said, "Well, we both know you did that. He almost threatened
to cut me out for talkin' to you after that."

 Sam said, "Figures. I'm the black sheep of the family, aren't I? I
make music instead of run a company. Big deal. He doesn't like it and
that's too bad. I want him to, but he doesn't.  Too bad. Oh, dude, I
brought a CD for ya." He pulled a CD out and placed it into the CD
player, pushing play.

 Scully smiled when she heard the loud guitar and screaming vocals
that was Doggett's little brother. Doggett looked appalled and that
was why Scully smiled.

  Sam turned around after he had turned up the stereo a bit. He sung
along a little bit, then said, "What do you think, bro?"

 Doggett said, "I think my neighbors are goin' to call the cops."

 "Nah. It's not that loud. Not all my songs are that loud." He scanned
through the CD, finding a quieter song, but it had the same powerful
message that the rest did.

 Doggett said, "I like this one.  It's better than those other ones."

 Sam said, "Aww, come on, those aren't that bad. You're just too old."

 Scully said, "I don't listen to much music other than the old stuff,
but I do like yours."

 "See? Even your partner likes it.  That has to say something for it."
Sam said, winking at Scully.

 Doggett sighed. He said, "Sam, I'm sure it's a good album. I'm just
too old."

 "You can't be too old."

 "I'm a whole nine years older than you. I think I'm too old."

 "You're just a wuss. Just listen to it and don't judge it." Sam said.

 Doggett sighed. He said, "Start the CD over."

 Sam did as told and sat down, taking another cigarette out, this time
to play with more than smoke.  He kept twirling it and moving in his
chair. Scully sighed. Doggett was just too embarrassed.

 After the CD had ended, Doggett said, "I didn't expect that from you,
Sam. That's good stuff, even if it's louder than it should be."

 "But you don't get it. That's me right there on that whole CD. That's
all me and if you listen, you'll get to know me." Sam said, "It's the
way it is and I didn't take no for an answer from any manager."

 Doggett said, "Typical."

 Scully yawned. "I think it's time I get home so Mom can go home and
get some sleep."

 Both of the Doggetts looked at each other. Sam said, "I'll take her
home if you want. That way you can get the guest room ready."

 Doggett sighed. "Alright but be nice to her on the way."

 "Dude, chill. You worry way too much."

  Scully walked out to Sam's car, watching him the whole way. She was
a little perplexed about him. She asked, "Sam, I hope you don't mind
me asking, but how did you and John come from the same family."

 "Funny you ask that. My dad tells me I was not the son he had
expected.  I don't know. John wasn't always that man you see in there.
He was a little rebellious and then he went to become a Marine. God do
I hate the Marines. They fucked with his mind and made him into this
man who has to follow every rule book. I say it's your personal life.
Who cares what some fat, lazy man who sits behind a desk in an office
thinks of you and your personal life? It's just like Dad and that's
why John does so well."

 Scully said, "I like how you're open. I wish I could get John to be
that open." She felt a little silly about saying it, not knowing this
young man very well right now.

 Sam looked at her, for a moment trying to figure out what Scully was
after. "Why?"

 "I, I don't know. I just hate being pushed away and I know that there
is something more to him than the exterior of working and his ethics.
I didn't even know he had brothers and sisters until now."

 "Yeah. I'm not surprised. He's very private. Always has been.  He and
I used to be really really close and I think we can still talk when we
need to." Sam said, starting the car up.

 Scully got in, enjoying the sound of the car's engine. She said, "You
do have a nice car to drive."

 "Yeah. It's real smooth. Just the way I like my cars. I can do all
sorts of things with it. Maybe that's why I live in an apartment and
not a good house like John."

 Scully said, "I'll tell you how to get to my place. It's not too
far."

 "You know, I like you better than that other partner he had.  I met
his old partner from VCS about a year ago. He was, well let's say
worse about being by the book than John is. Told me that I shouldn't
be talking to my brother."

 "Why would this agent do that?"

 "I don't know. He felt he was being self righteous. Something about
being a civilian and in the way. John stood up for me, even though I
didn't need it.  That's what I can always count on from John. He
doesn't let anyone treat me with scorn like that." Sam said, putting
his radio on low.

 Scully asked, "So, what is your music about any ways?"

 "It's about me. My next album is about American culture being the
same. I don't like this being the same shit we got going on."  Sam
said.

 Scully said, "Oh." They found her apartment and Scully stepped out of
his car. "Thanks for the ride. I hope to talk with you again, and tell
your brother that I had an excellent evening."

 Sam said, "Good luck with the baby."

 
  When Sam got home, he said, "That was interesting."

 "What? Dana? She sure does make work interesting." Doggett said,
smiling. He was working with the stereo, trying to make it have lower
volume.

 Sam shook his head. "John, I can tell something about you and this
Dana."

 Doggett looked up, "What do you mean?"

 "You like her more than just a colleague. I'm not blind." Sam said,
lighting a cigarette.

 "Yeah. She's a tough woman."  Doggett said.

 "It's more than that. Why don't you tell me about it. You know you
can tell me about what ever is bothering you." Sam said, leaning
against the door.

 Doggett stood up, brushing his pants off. "Well, you got me. I just
know that I can't go thinkin' about Dana like that. She's my co worker
and she still has too much to deal with. She's still trying to figure
out the situation with Mulduh."

 "Yes, that maybe so. Who leaves the woman who is the mother of their
child for some soul searching? That's a little out there. That's if
this child is his."

 Doggett said, "I don't know about that. He could be, and then again,
I don't know about these things. She's so private about it and I don't
want to pry it out of her. She hates when I do those things."

 "But you want to know." He took his cigarette and flicked some ashes
into his ash tray.  "I can tell it's bothering you."

 "Well, over the past year it's been like impossible to figure out
what is up with her and the baby. It's a normal baby as far as I know.  
She was concerned that it might not be. I, I don't know about any of
that either. I just happen to watch her back."

 "I can't think of anybody better to do the job. This is too fucking
deep for me. I don't understand half of what you are telling me."  
Sam said, taking a drag.

 Doggett sighed. "I don't either.  I just know that Mulduh and Dana
were on the X-files for seven years together. He started the division
up after it was dormant and now she's trying to continue what he did."

 "I can't help you with that one. I just know you got a thing for her.
I could tell that when you brought her here."


  When Scully finally got up to her apartment, she found a letter
taped to her door. It was Mulder's hand writing.  She opened the door,
looked around and immediately opened it.

 Her mother asked, "What is that, Dana?"

 She didn't answer. She started to read it, her eyes misting up a bit.

 Dear Scully,

I'm writing you and I noticed you were out tonight so I dropped it off
at your door.  I just thought I'd tell you that I'm feeling better and
that I like where I am right now. That's for now, Scully.  I hope to
come home soon, but I don't know if I can deal with all those
different things. I don't fit in and I know it. I'll tell you more
later.

Love, 
Mulder

 Scully sighed. She folded up the sheet and put it back in the
envelope that was on the door.  She said, "Mom, it's nothing.  It's
okay."

 "No, Dana, it's not. I can tell your upset."

 Scully sighed. "Mom, it's just something from Mulder telling me that
he'll be back sometime, maybe. It's nothing I can control. I must tell
you about John's brother."

 Her mother allowed her to change the subject. What's he like?"

 "He's rather different from John. He's a musician in a hard rock band
and he's very very frank. I thought that John was going to die when he
put his CD on for him."  Scully said, smiling.

 Her mother smiled. "I'm glad you had a good time. I think it's time
to get some sleep."

 
  The next morning at the Doggett house, Doggett got up early to make
coffee and get ready for work. He was sitting at the kitchen table
when his brother stumbled into the room, muttering to himself and
taking a chair. Sam put his head on the table, trying to go back to
sleep. He said, It's way too fucking early for me. Dude, how do you do
this all the time?"

 Doggett laughed. "I didn't mean to wake you."

 "Yeah, the dog next door did that. Damn dog should be shot."  He sat
up, rubbing his eyes.  "Coffee smells good."

 "I'll get you some as soon as it's ready." Doggett said

 Sam yawned. "Whoa, what time is it anyway?"

 "6:00 AM. I have to get ready for work and be out the door soon."
Doggett said.

 "That sucks ass man. What time does work start?" Sam said.

 Doggett said, "Well, at 9, but I think I should get in there early so
that Dana doesn't have to do too much right away. She only comes in
for some paper work right now, if at all. Maternity leave and all.
Plus Monica will be there.  She'll worry if I'm not there on my usual
time."

 "Monica? Now who is this?" Sam asked, his eyebrows raising.

 "She helped me on my son's case years ago. I asked her to help me
with the Mulduh case. She helped out. Now she's the third agent on the
X-Files, or, well I don't know for how long.  I actually went against
my deputy director and assigned her myself."

 "Way to go, dude. Nice move.  I like that." He smiled at him, then
said in a more serious tone, "How does Dana take Monica being there."

 "She likes her. I guess she's okay with it. I think she's tryin' to
figure a lot out right now as it is." Doggett said, pouring coffee.

 Sam sighed. "You really got a thing for Dana. Dude, talk to her about
it soon. I'm serious. At least let her know how you feel. I think if
you don't you'll be making a big mistake.  Besides, and don't get me
wrong, I don't know everything about what is going on, but I think
this Mulder guy needs to understand that she does need someone to be
with if she's got this baby.  Man, and Dad thinks I'm bad.  If I had a
kid I'd be with the mother."

 Doggett said, "I know. Dad just doesn't understand you.  He never
has. He said it was a big mistake letting you get a guitar at nine.
Bad move on his part is always what he says."

 "Well, we already know where I stand on all of these things.  If Dad
doesn't want to live with it."

 "Don't say it, Sam. I know, I know."

 "Sorry. Promise me you'll tell her, even if only a little, like
you'll be there for her or something. I think she'll be more accepting
than you think. Besides, this Mulder guy might have told her something
you don't know about."

 Suddenly a knock came to the front door. Doggett said, "Stay there.
You're not dressed."

 "Who cares? I've got the essentials covered." Sam said, standing up.

 Scully walked in with William.  She was upset and said, "I didn't
know where else to go. My mother is out of town and I can't get him to
stop feeling a fever. I feel so foolish, I am a doctor after all."

 Doggett said, "It's going to be alright. Just give him to me.  I'll
see what I can do about it."

 Scully handed William to Doggett. Then she sat down on the couch,
trying to figure out how she should tell him about the letter that
Mulder had given her. She sighed, closing her eyes.

 Sam said, "Is everything okay?"

 "No." She looked up to notice he had concern in his eyes.  She shook
her head, trying to contain her hurt that had been bottled up in front
of her mother. She sighed. "No. It's not."

 Doggett said, "Well, now, he's going to be fine. Just a little cranky
and that's the way babies are. So, what is all goin' on?"

 "When I got home last night, there was a letter on the door from
Mulder. I don't think he's going to come back any time soon. I, I have
no one to help me with the baby and I don't know if I can do this
alone.  Oh I feel so stupid doing this."  Scully said, looking away.
"I just, I just had to talk to someone other than the Gunmen about
this. They wouldn't know what to do, and besides they still talk to
Mulder more than I do."

 Sam swore loudly behind her.  He said, "What is wrong with this guy?"

 Scully sighed. "I don't know.  I just know I'm stuck with a baby and
no one to help me. I can't do this alone."

 Doggett sat down with William in his arms. He said, "Dana, we'll do
all we can to help out. I know that it's difficult for you, but we'll
try to do all we can to help you through this. It's goin' to be
alright."

 Sam said, "Let me see the little guy."

 Doggett handed the baby to Sam, then he placed a hand on Scully's.  
He said, "I want you to know that you can come here anytime and I will
let you stay or do what ever you need to do. It's not easy with a
baby. Especially if you're alone. Don't worry, we'll make sure things
work out alright."

 Scully looked into his eyes.  "Thank you. I appreciate it."

 Sam said, "He's a cute little dude. What's his name?"

 "William."

 "Hello William. I'm Sam, and well, I'm a loud rock and roll dude.
You're just a cute little baby aren't you? I bet I could teach you
some day how to play guitar. Yeah, I know you're going this guy's
creepy."

 Scully laughed. She said, "You're good with little babies."

 "Well, I try to be, I guess.  He's just a little guy. I promise, I
won't scream like I do when I play my music, okay little guy? You
wouldn't like that much. Not now any ways."

 Doggett said, "Sam, you are just turning into a marshmellow with this
kid."

 Sam smiled, "I know. I just don't understand the man who would leave
such a cute little dude. Look at him, he's just so cute."

 Doggett laughed harder. "Dad would just be amazed by this."

 "Yeah, so." Sam handed the baby to Scully. "You keep him safe. I
might recruit him someday to the band."

  "I should be going." Scully said, standing up.

 Doggett said, "Why? Cause I have to go to work? Nah, I think you'll
be fine if you stay here. Besides, you'll keep Sam from gettin' into
too much trouble."

 "Hey! I'm not that bad." Sam said.

 "I know. I just thought I'd pick on you. Dana, why don't you just
stay here for the afternoon. I'll be swingin' in about lunch time and
then we can talk some more."

 "You'd be okay with that?"  Scully said.

 "Of course. I said any time, didn't I?" Doggett said. "Don't worry
about things too much. I know you've got a lot to think to think about
right now." Doggett said, smiling.

 Sam mouthed from behind Scully, "Tell her, damn it!"

 Doggett nodded. "We'll talk when I get back for lunch."

 Scully said, "Thank you, John."

 "I'll be back. You just take it easy." Doggett said.

 Sam said, "Don't worry about it.  The little dude and I can have some
fun if you want to rest or something. I was going to go back to sleep,
but hey, nothing wrong with this."

 Scully smiled. "Thanks. I appreciate it."

 "Hey, if there is one thing my brother and I share personality wise
is helping out those who need it." He got up. "I'll be right back.
Gonna put my smokes in the car. The little dude doesn't need that near
him."

 Scully smiled. She thought it was very considerate of him to do this
for her son. She said, "Thanks. I'm glad that you care that much about
him."

 "Well, I know it's a bad habit, but I don't let anyone tell me that I
have to quit or nothing like that. You and Will just sit there and
I'll be back."  Sam said.

 Scully sat in Doggett's living room, looking around at it.  She saw
how neat it was, how orderly it was and shook her head. She thought
that Doggett must have something he really wants to talk about with
her.

 Sam came back. "When John gets back, I think I'll let you two talk. I
got to check in with my band mates and they won't be awake until then
any ways."

 Scully laughed, "It looks like you'd be asleep too if you could."

 "You better believe it. This early shit is just not me. I'm up real
late and then I sleep in real late." He yawned. "Thank God for
coffee."

 Scully said, "No kidding."  She was curious what Sam was eluding to
when he said that Doggett and she had to talk about something.


 When lunch rolled around, Doggett came in to find Scully asleep up
stairs, and Sam with the baby. He was singing quietly to the baby, and
the baby didn't seem to mind at all. Doggett said, "I see you got him
hooked as a fan."

 "Yeah. She's upstairs sleeping, but she'll be down in a bit."

 "Okay." Doggett said.

 Sam looked up from the baby.  "You will tell her, right?"

 "Yes. What are you goin' to be doin' while I do this?" Doggett asked.

 "Talking to my band mates. They are awake by now, I hope. If they're
not, well, I'll leave a message at least." Sam said.

 Doggett nodded. "Alright."

 Scully came down the stairs then. She looked over at Doggett and
smiled. "Well, I see you're back from work. Was it any fun?"

 "Oh tons. I live for paper work.  I thought you knew that already."  
Doggett said. "By the way, Monica says hi."

 "Oh? Did she have fun last night?" Scully said.

 "Yeah. I guess Joe and her went out after we left."

 "Dude! You didn't tell me Joe's in town." Sam said. The baby started
crying, and Sam instantly starting rocking the baby trying to get him
to stop.  He sighed. "Sorry little guy."

 Scully laughed. "It's alright.  He does that from time to time."

 "I noticed." Sam said. "I'm gonna take him and call my band mates.
They should know what is up."

 After Sam went to make his phone call, Scully said, "So, what is it
you have to tell me?"

 "Well, I just thought I'd let you know that I'm goin' to stand by you
through this. I wasn't really excited when I got the assignment to the
X-files, but I've learned that it's not the work that is so much of a
problem as the fact that I get to work with a very smart woman."

 "What's the problem with that?"  Scully was suspicious about this.

 "Well, it's like this. I've grown to like you, Dana. It's not a lie
that when I first met you, well, we weren't on good terms, but I
rather have grown fond of you."  Doggett said, feeling a little shy.
He knew she was still much trying to sort out what had happened with
Mulder.

 "I have grown fond of you too, John. For some reason I believe that
there is something more to this than that though." Scully said,
crossing her arms.

 "Yeah. I don't know if I'd even be talkin' about this with you if it
wasn't for Sam. I have some feelings for you, not just those feelings
of watchin' your back either."

 Scully said, "I see. I don't know if I'm ready for that just yet. Oh
hell, what am I talking about. Mulder just up and left me so quickly
and I don't know what I'm going to do." She suddenly burst into tears,
unable to contain that pain that had been at her heart for the past
day and a half.

 He hoped that she was going to be okay. He hugged her, trying to get
her to calm down. She whispered, "John, I don't know what I would have
done if you hadn't told me I could come here any time. That means a
lot to me.  I just feel so silly about these things."

  Doggett said, while holding her close to himself, "Well, it's goin'
to be tough at first, but I think that you'll do just fine.  It's not
going to be a cake walk, Dana, but I'll make sure that it's not
impossible for you either."

 Scully said, not looking up, as well as trying to reel in her
emotions, "I thank you John. I don't know why you'd do something like
that. I'm not you're favorite person."

 "What makes you think that?"  Doggett said, smiling.

 "Oh, because I threw water in your face, I've ditched you a lot, and
I did drive you nuts with wild theories I wasn't even sure I believed
in." Scully said, now catching onto how silly this sounded.

 Doggett said, "I never like the easy women. They just do whatever it
to takes for me to be nice. I like to work for affection. You forced
me to be nice at least to like me even the tinniest bit. Now look at
us, we're huggin'."

 Scully laughed, "So we are.  That's too funny. I never thought of it
that way."

 "I figured as much. I could tell you hadn't." Doggett said, making
her look up into his eyes. "So, what do you think?  Could this work?
Could we at least be friends more than just working partners? I know
you've got that baby, and I love babies."

 "Well, I must say, your family is sure fun."

 "You haven't met Dad yet. He's the worst one of us all. Such a rigid
person when it comes to judgments. It took me a whole year to get him
to like my ex wife."

 Scully laughed, putting her head down on his chest. She said, "My dad
was the same way, now I've got Bill and he never liked Mulder at all."

 "I can tell Sam doesn't much either."

 "Who the hell don't I like?"  Sam came in, holding William close.

 "Mulduh." Doggett said.

 "Duh, you're a fast one." Sam said, looking grumpy.

 "What's the matter?" Doggett asked.

 "Oh, one of my band mates said that he lost some money so they have
nothing to eat and I've got to ship some money.  I bet they blew the
money I left for them on a gaming system."  Sam said, sighing.

 Doggett sighed. "That's your problem."

 "Yeah, it is. Dad says I'm bad but he doesn't know the boys I play
with sometimes. Make great music but they don't understand the concept
of saving enough money for food."

 Doggett laughed. "I see the problem there. You should have hired a
babysitter."

 "No kidding. They do this shit to me all the time."  Sam said. He
noticed that Scully and Doggett were hugging, but that didn't bother
him. He gave him a smile and shook his head.

 Doggett said, "Well, I'm starved.  I brought some burgers home with
me and I got them in the car.  I'll be right back."

 Scully smiled. "Alright. May I see William?"

 Sam said, "Certainly. The band couldn't believe that I had a baby in
my arms as I called them. They were a little surprised. That's okay,
not my problem."

 Scully took William into her arms. She said, "You like that guy,
don't you?"

 "You bet he does. Me and the little guy, we got an understanding with
each other. He's a good little dude who just happens to be too little
to be in my band."

 Scully sighed. "With you two I might never leave this place."

 "That's sort of the idea, isn't it?" Sam said, smiling at her.

 "Actually, no, it wasn't. At least I didn't think so." She sighed. "I
just don't know what to do anymore. The one man. I've been working
with for years and trusted with everything including my heart took off
and left me with a baby. I just never saw it coming. Now I see you
two, and you are so willing to take care of me and William. I don't
know what to think."

 "I'd say take it while you can.  I know you're facing something very
difficult. I've got my own problems too, but I can see that yours will
need some fixing. I know John would never do that to anyone. Even if
he didn't love or even like them.  He just knows that there are some
unfortunates out there and he's a softie. I guess all of us Doggetts
are. Even Dad." Sam said, sighing.

 Scully said, "I never thought of it that way. You know, I would have
never guessed someone who was titled the black sheep would be so
insightful."

 "Yeah, most think that. I just know that I don't like what this
Mulder guy did to you. I can tell that you don't know where to turn.
John's giving you a chance and I'd say it's once in a life time.  
He'll do what ever you want and not do what ever you don't want him to
do. He's just that way. Why do you think the band can make me buy
stuff like I do even though I'm adamant about who plays what and how."

 "Because you are just so soft inside deep down."

 "Yep. That's us Doggett brothers." Sam said.

 "Got lunch for you guys."  Doggett said, coming back in.

 Scully smiled up at him.  "You have a very smart little brother,
Doggett."

 "I know. I just don't know what else he's up to."

 "Me, I'm not up to anything, man. I'm just having fun with the little
guy here and I'm having fun resting up for the tour that's coming up.
I start in Cleveland in about two weeks."
 
 Doggett said, "Wow. Hope you guys have fun.


 "Yeah. It'll be a few months, but so much fun."

  They sat down to eat their burgers. William was put in an old high
chair that Doggett found and Sam was sitting next to the baby with his
fries.  He kept eating his fries in front of the baby, telling the
baby how much he'd like them when he got older. Scully shook her head.
She asked, "John, are you sure you can't control this boy?"

 Doggett said, "No. I can't.  He's just that way."

 Sam said, "What? I'm having fun."

 "You won't if he starts to cry." Scully said.

 Sam shrugged. He ate his burger then and almost choked when the baby
started to gurgle and wave his arms at him. He then said, "Dude, he
wants to see what I'm eating."

 Doggett laughed. "I think you're right. Better show it to him."

 Scully shook her head. "You do have a problem, don't you, Sam. He
likes you too much."

 Sam sighed. "Oh well."

 Doggett asked, "Dana, do you plan on staying here for the night? I
have an extra guest room upstairs if you want."

 Scully looked down for a moment. She was trying to decide if she
wanted to stay here or not. It would be so much better than at home.
She also knew she'd be back to where she was only a day or so ago.
Alone and afraid of what would happen.  She looked up, "Sure, I'll
stay here."

 Doggett knew that was a difficult choice for her.  He said, "Alright.
I'll take you to your place after work to gather anything you'd want
to take with you."

 Sam and Doggett connected eyes for a moment. They both knew that
Scully had put a lot of thought into that whole decision. Even if it
was only a few minutes they knew she wasn't so willing to do that,
except that she was afraid of what would happen with the baby and
herself being alone.

 Doggett got up after he finished his lunch. He gave Scully a hug then
Sam one and said, "I'll be back.  You two behave. If you want, Dana,
you have Sam bring you over to your place and pick your stuff up."

 "Alright. We'll do it that way. It should work. I hope that I'm not
getting in the way of anything, John. I know thatthis is such sudden
notice."

 "It's fine, Dana."

  After Doggett left, Sam said, "Shall we go and get your stuff?"

 Scully said, "Yeah. I have a car seat in my car all ready to go. Mind
if I drive this time?"

 "No problem. I don't think the little guy should get into my sports
car any ways. Not yet." Sam said, throwing his wrapper away.

 Scully took William out of the high chair and carried him to the car.
She placed him into the seat and waited for him to get comfy in the
seat. She then got into the drivers seat while Sam climbed into the
passenger.

 She drove home, mostly with silence. When they got there, Scully
found another note on the door. She sighed. Why did Mulder keep doing
this to her. She took it off of the door, while Sam held William.

 They walked into the apartment and Scully checked her messages.  
Nothing important. She then gathered some stuff from her bedroom and
said, "I'll read this later. I don't want to read it just yet."

 Sam nodded. They went back to the car, Scully locking her door. She
sighed, leave it to Mulder to pursue something so quickly with
contact.

 She drove to Doggett's, and when they arrived, Sam said, "I'll take
your stuff in.  It'll be easier that way."

 Scully nodded. She carried William in with the note in her pocket.
Then she put him to the crib that was open for him. She sat down in
the living room reading the note that Mulder had left her.

It read:

 Scully,

I don't know if I can come back for a very long while.  I know you
must be getting upset and worried. I'm just sure that there is no
place for me right now and I want to wait before I come back.  I
noticed you weren't at home and I wonder where you went. I know you
didn't go to work so I was just curious about it, I guess. That's just
my curiosity at work, Scully. I guess I'll tell you more through the
Gunmen.  You must have went off with your mother this morning.

Love, 
Mulder 

Scully sighed, then hid her eyes from Sam. She didn't want him to see
her breakdown over this letter from Mulder.  Sam sat down next to her,
whispering, "It's alright.  What did he have to say."

 She let him read the letter and heard him curse. "You think that this
guy would learn.  You break something off for awhile, you don't
contact them all the time out of curiosity."

 
  Doggett came home to find Sam and Scully playing with the baby. She
was smiling and he could only remember so few smiles that he had seen
since meeting her. He said, "So, what's for supper?"

 "I don't know. Didn't know that we were supposed to cook something."
Sam said, looking up from William while he was on the floor.

 Doggett said, "Any ideas would be nice."

 Sam rolled his eyes. "Sure, you are so literal sometimes. I don't
know. What does Dana want?"

 Scully said, "Me? Why me?"

 Doggett started to laugh. " Cause you are the guest."

 "But so is he." Scully said, pointing at Sam. Sam looked up at his
brother and then back at Scully. She said, "Well, why don't you think
of something?"

 Sam started to laugh. "Hmm, how about we all think of one thing we'd
like to have and put it to a vote. That'll solve the whole mess."

 Doggett said, "I vote for eatin' out. I'll get stuck with cookin'."

 Sam said, "I vote for that too."

 "What about the baby?" Scully said, her eye brows raised.  "William
is only a baby."

 "He'll be fine, Dana." Sam said. "I'll keep an eye on him. Besides,
if he doesn't see what I'm eating he might get upset."

 Scully sighed. "I'm out voted already. Let's go."

 Doggett helped Scully up while Sam carried William.  They all went to
the car, letting Doggett drive Scully's car as they went to a
restaurant.

 Doggett said, "When we get there, I'll request a high chair. That'll
solve the whole problem."

 Scully said, "Thanks. I appreciate it."

 Sam said, "I don't even know where we're going, dude."

 "You'll have to wait and see." Doggett said, smiling.

 "Don't tell me you got something up your sleeve, like Joe is there or
something.  He doesn't like my music any more than Dad does."

 Doggett shook his head.  "You'll just have to wait and see."

   When they got to the restaurant they were going to, Sam said,
"Dude, are you sure I can go in there like this?"

 "Don't worry. You're with me and I'll make sure they let you."

 Sam said, "I don't know man.  I'm in a rock t-shirt and a pair of old
jeans. This looks like one of those places that take suits and ties
only."

 Scully laughed. She said, "I'd like to see you in a suit just once.
It'd be a little funny."

 Sam glared at her. Doggett just laughed and said, "Let's get inside
so we can eat that much sooner."

 Scully smiled. Doggett offered his arm to Scully without even
thinking and she took it without thinking. They all made their way to
the restaurant doors.

 When they got there, the stuffy host said, "I'm sorry, sir. We only
accept those with the dress code." He looked down at Sam with his eyes
over his nose.

 Doggett said, "He's with me and I wouldn't tell a famous musician
that he can't come in."

 The host puffed up. "I don't care who he is. He's got to follow dress
code."

 Sam said, "I told you man. I told you I'd need to be put in a monkey
suit to go in there."

 Scully started to laugh. She said, "John, is there a reason we have
to get in here?"

 Doggett nodded. "Yes."

 The host said, "He must change then."

 Doggett whispered in the host's ear for a moment, and the host said,
"Right this way."

 Sam and Scully exchanged glances very quickly and followed him. They
sat down at a table, and Sam groaned when he saw who was there.  He
said, "I thought you said that Joe wasn't going to be here."

 Joe said, "Good to see you too, Sam."

 Sam sat down, looking sour.  Scully asked, "What did you tell him?"

 "I said to that guy that he was undercover and we need something to
eat so we better get in since he's going to lure the criminal and that
if he got in the way of our investigation he'd be in hot water with
the director of the F.B.I."

 Sam started to laugh. "No way dude. That's so not fair to that guy."

 "Of course it isn't. But who cares. It's fun."

 Joe rolled his eyes. Sam finally noticed that another person was
sitting there.  He said, "Who's the lady?"

 "Agent Monica Reyes."

 "Oh. Another F.B.I. What's with that?"

 "It's called I work there."

   Sam sighed, "Figures as much. I figured you'd know all sorts of
F.B.I. guys. So, what is on the menu?"

 Joseph Doggett shook his head. He said, "Well, why don't you look."

 Sam took it from him. William sat in the high chair next to him, and
he asked, "Well, little dude, what do you think?  Should we go for a
steak?"

 The baby gurgled at him and Scully shook her head. "I'm sure that
would be fine with him."

 Joseph started laughing. "I see the baby makes you a softie."

 "Yeah, so. He's cute." Sam said.

 Joseph sighed. He said, "So what's with the music scene?"

 "Well, I'm going on tour soon. World tour. We're doing the Americas
first and then we'll go to Europe, though I hate the security over
there.  We went gold with our first two albums and we're hoping our
third will do as well. I can't think of anything else of importance."
Sam said, looking down for a minute.

 Joseph said, "Wow. You're probably making more money than I am right
now."

 "I don't know about that.  I built a whole new studio for a while in
Chicago. It's a good studio and my cats seem to like it there." Sam
said.

 Joseph laughed. "Your cats?"

 "Yeah. 2 cats. Big deal.  They just know to stay out of the areas
where we're working on music. They don't like that loud stuff to
much."

 Scully laughed. "I bet not.  Poor kitties."

 "Alright, they like being there. It's just me and the cats that live
there. Not a big deal. My girl's there too. Other than thatit's not a
big deal."

 Their meals came and Sam paid attention to William for a bit. He
said, "This is something you'll really enjoy when you're much bigger."

 William gurgled at him. Scully sighed. "You keep taunting him."

 "I know, but it's so much fun."


  That night, after they left Joseph and Reyes, they headed back to
Doggett's. Sam had told Scully that she should show the note that
Mulder had sent to her while she had been gone. She did as he
suggested.  Doggett hugged her. He said, "I'm sure that he's got his
reasons for doin' this. I wish I could tell you more."

 Scully said, "Thanks, John.  I know I'm making things a little
difficult for you."

 Doggett said, "Now why would you say that? I don't mind at all. Have
you looked around this place by any chance?"

 Scully said, "It is big. You have your brother though."

 "Yeah, but I take off next week." Sam said.

 Doggett said, "See? Then I'd be all alone in this big place."

 Scully sighed. "I just wish that Mulder would either come home or
move on. I can't deal with this back and forth much more. Besides, if
he doesn't want any contact why does he keep sending me notes?"

 Doggett said, "He's having a hard time letting go."

 Sam said, "Mind if I put some music on? I'll put it on low. Wouldn't
want the little guy getting upset."

 Doggett said, "Good idea."

 Sam put his CD on, and sat back down. He said, "Well, so, what's up
with Joe and that lady?"

 "I think they are datin', Sam." Doggett said.

 "Yeah I figured that, but I'm a little surprised." Sam said. "Joe
hasn't dated anyone since his divorce."

 "Neither have I, Sam."

 "I know that. I just thought it was odd, that's all." Sam said.

 Scully was sitting next to Doggett on the sofa. She hadn't even
noticed that he had sat down next to her.  Sam was playing with
William on the floor.

 She leaned back, right into the arm that was on the couch and jumped.
She said, "I'm sorry."

 "It's alright. I don't mind at all."

 Scully sighed. "I don't know."

 "It's not a big deal, but if you're not comfortable, I'll move it."
He swung his arm back into his lap and sighed.

 Scully felt a little torn between leaning back or not.  She was a
little unsure of what she was seeking. She knew that she and Mulder
had things to discuss, but she didn't know if she was ready for that
type of thing. She sighed, sitting back any ways.

 Sam shook his head. He knew she was fighting herself, and he knew
that Scully would have to make her own decision.

 Doggett looked over at Sam with a troubled expression.  Scully had
fallen asleep on his shoulder and he was a little unsure of what he
should do next. Sam shook his head. He whispered, "Let her sleep for
awhile.  She looks like she needs it."

 Doggett nodded. He said, "I hope she'll be alright. This whole thing
with Mulduh is upsettin' her. I don't like when she's upset."

 Sam said, "I noticed. So what exactly do you think this Mulder is up
to with this?"

 "I don't know. I think he is havin' a hard time lettin' go though. He
has, always as long as I've known him, thought that Dana was more of
his partner and that I was there to get in the way.  He always seemed
to take offense to me bein' there.  I don't know what he's up to with
all these little notes to her like that."

 Sam sighed. "So he's one of those guys. Thinks that he can keep being
involved when he feels like it's in his convenience to do so."

 "I suppose. He's probably grappling with a lot and I don't want to
get into it.  I just want to make Dana comfortable." Doggett said,
softly.

 Sam said, "I'm going to put William to bed. He looks like his mother.
Tired."

 After Sam had gotten up, Doggett looked at Scully for awhile. He
sighed. He wondered what she must be thinking while she was staying
here. Was it a good thing she was thinking? He couldn't figure out
what she was feeling.

 Suddenly she woke up, yawning.  She said, "What time is it?"

 "It's almost midnight. Would you like to get to bed?" Doggett said.

 She didn't move this time. She said, "I'm comfy here. I don't want to
get up and realize I have a stiff neck."

 Doggett laughed a little.  "Yeah, I wouldn't want to get up if that
was the case either.  Sam put William to bed a while ago."

 "Oh. I was wondering where they went." Scully said, sleepily. She
moved in closer, and said, "You're warm."

 Doggett said, "I suppose I am."

 Sam came back down. He said, "I see you're awake."

 Scully looked up. "Yeah. I don't want to move either."

 "I don't blame you." Sam sat down on the sofa. He was listening to a
song on his CD, pretending to play guitar along with it.  "I should
have brought my guitar with."

 Doggett laughed. "You'll be on tour soon enough."  He yawned. "It's
time for bed, I think."

 Scully sighed. "I think you are right. I'm at the right side of the
hallway, right?"

 "Yes, that's where you'll be. William is already in there sleeping."
Sam said.  "I put him there."

 Scully smiled, "Thanks. I must have been asleep."

 Scully got up and stretched.  She said, "It's been a very long day."

 She made her way up the stairs, Doggett watching her from the sofa.
He was trying to figure out what she was thinking and he wasn't sure
if she felt comfortable here.

 Scully was feeling tension run from her body. It was a feeling she
hadn't had in a very long time. She knew that if she was alone in her
apartment she'd be thinking of how Mulder had left. Here, she wasn't
thinking about that at all. Instead she was thinking about how she
liked being with Doggett and his brother.

 She opened the door to find the room as neat as the rest of the
house. She smiled and pulled back the covers of the guest bed she'd be
having.  She pulled out her nightgown from the bag she had brought
along and changed before climbing into the bed.  This was a lot better
than staying at home. At least here she had someone to look over her
and William.

 She looked over at William and smiled. He was still asleep and looked
peaceful.  She rolled towards the wall that was near her. She sighed,
knowing that she had found a place she was comfortable in.

 Doggett stood in the door way, sighing. He was still unsure of her
thoughts on staying with him. He knew that she was struggling with the
absence of Mulder, but he hoped that she would move on from that.

 After he walked on to his own bedroom, he sighed, making Sam ask,
"What's the matter?" Sam stood in the doorway to his own guest room.

 "I don't know what Dana thinks of staying here."

 "I think she's calming down.  Don't worry so much, man.  She's coming
around. She almost broke down when she read that note today, and I
think she's learning that this Mulder guy doesn't want to be with her,
but he doesn't want to let go. I think she knows it's in her hands and
not his."

 "I hope you're right."

 
  The next morning, Scully woke up fairly early. She went down stairs
and found Doggett reading the paper and drinking coffee. He asked,
"Did you sleep well?"

 Scully was trying to remember if Mulder had asked her that at any
time. She smiled at him and said, "Yes, I did actually."

 Doggett smiled at her. "I'm glad to hear that. I know that it's been
difficult for you in the past few weeks. I want to make sure you get a
break for a while. We miss you at the office."

 "You do?"

 "Yeah. It's not the same there without you. You have more expertise
than we do." Doggett said, looking down.

 "I really don't." Scully said, sitting down across from him.  "I want
to thank you for letting me stay here. I haven't had a good night's
sleep in a while and I actually did here.  I don't know what it is
about your house, but I feel more comfortable here than I have at home
or with my mother."

 Doggett said, "I'm glad that I could do somethin' for you.  It's
difficult for you, I know."

 "No, it's not just that. I like the way you and your brother are
watching out for me. I rather like your brother. I didn't know
anything about you, at least not really, until Mulder left. If you
wouldn't have dragged me out of that house who knows what would have
happened." Scully said.

 Doggett poured her a cup of coffee. He said, "I'm glad I could take
you out like that.  I knew I couldn't just leave you to stay in your
apartment like that."

 Scully smiled, "Well, it was a very nice thing. Did Monica happen to
force you to do it?"

 "She convinced me actually.  I was tryin' to talk myself out of it,
didn't think you'd want to go." Doggett said a little shyly.

 "Well I'm glad she did. I wouldn't be here right now if it wasn't for
that, and if it wasn't for your brother II might notbe here right now
either. He's made it so much more smooth of a transition for me. I
don't think Mulder is coming back, even if he writes a lot and tells
me of his adventures. I think it's time that he and I don't speak
unless he's going to come home and settle things."

 Doggett said, "I hope that you'll adjust well. I don't know what got
into Mulduh, but I do know that what ever is goin' on is between you
and him, but you are welcome to any time talk to me about it if you
wish."

  Sam stumbled into the room then, yawning. He said, "Man you guys get
up way too early."  He sat down at the table much like he had the
morning before. He put his head down on the table and said, "Wake me
when it's noon."

 Scully shook her head. "I'm glad to see that you're awake."

 Sam looked up at her, then he said, "No way, man. I'm not really
awake."

 Doggett laughed. "You are too."

 Sam said, "Got any coffee?  I think I'm gonna need it. Of course
later we'll have to check on the little guy. At least he didn't fuss
too much last night."

 Scully said, "He's not to that stage quite yet, but he'll get there
eventually."

 Sam nodded. "I'll be on tour when he starts that up."

 Scully smiled. "I suppose so.  I'm not going to check anything from
Mulder. The Gunmen will have to tell me anything, because I've decided
that if Mulder wants to fix things he's going to have to come back
here.  I'm tired of getting upset by these notes he leaves behind for
me."

 Sam gave her the thumbs up. "Go for it. I don't see why you should
put up with him any ways."

 Doggett said, "I must be shovin' off to the office. Have fun you
two."

 "Dude, I'm going back to bed this time. I'm not dealing with this
early shit this time."  Sam said. He got up and stumbled out of the
kitchen doorway. Scully shook her head. She had Sam to thank for being
here now.

 She said, "I'm going to check up on William. You get some sleep and
William and I will sit down stairs and watch some television if you
like."

 Sam said, "Sounds like a good plan to me. I think I like that one."

 She sighed, "I'm sure he'll like it."

 Sam scratched his back and yawned as he made his way up the stairs.  
I think this 6 in the morning shit sucks. I'm up till 4 usually so
this sucks big time."

 Scully laughed, "Oh, and Sam, thank you for letting me think about
staying here. It is a good decision."

 "No problem."

 Sam turned around for a moment.  He said, "I see that you're an
independent person. This Mulder wasn't allowing you to be that.  I can
tell. I knew that you'd have to do some of that on your own again."

 Scully smiled, "You seem to know me more than you should."

 "What can I say, the way you acted, I just knew. Wake me later." Sam
said, going upstairs.

 Scully followed him upstairs to get William. She took him downstairs,
turned the television on and zoned out for a while.  She thought of
what Sam had told her. She thought <He's right.  Mulder was drowning
me with his theories and being him. I love him in a strange way, but I
need to be independent and myself. John is letting me do that. He lets
me make decisions. Mulder always made them for me.>

 She looked down at William.  William gurgled at her and waved his
arms. She picked him up, rocking him gently. She said, "Mommy has made
a decision.  She likes it here and she knows you do too. She doesn't
like how a certain someone is treating her.  Mommy doesn't handle that
well.  If he wants to talk to me, he'll have to come here."

 The baby waved his arms at her.  She sighed. "You are just trying to
be cute, aren't you?"

 William laughed at her, and looked around, wide eyed. She cooed at
him. "You are such a funny baby."

 "Of course he is." Sam said, from behind her.

 "I thought you went to bed."

 "That was about 3 hours ago."  Sam said, sitting down next to her.

 Scully said, "I must have been lost in my thoughts. I'm sorry."

 "For what? Thinking about something that will change your life
drastically? That's for you and you alone. I'm sure that you had to do
this for you."

 "Yeah. I just realized that I haven't had a decision of my own free
will in a while.  It was always what Mulder wanted. He decided the
cases, where we'd go, where we'd stay, what I would do on the cases.  
This is my chance to be myself again. Your brother lets me do that."

 Sam said, "I see you put a lot of thought into this."

 "I did. I must admit that I did. I'm going to stay here as long as
John will let me, not because I'm dependent, but because I am
independent."

 "That's the way to think about it." Sam said, "May I see William?"

 "Sure." She handed the baby over to Sam.

 Sam cooed at him. "Your mommy made a big decision just now."  
William waved his arms, and pulled Sam's nose. Sam laughed at him and
said, "That's my nose, silly."

 
 That night Doggett cooked a meal for Sam and Scully.  He said, "I'm
not much of a cook, but I'll give it a shot."

 Scully said, "I'm sure it won't be that bad. We'll at least pretend
to like what ever you make."

 Doggett snorted and said, "Thanks for the effort."

 Sam laughed. "She wasn't lying at least."

 Doggett said, "And you, you get to help."

 "Me? Why me? I don't want to cook." Sam said.

 "Cause that way at least I can cut the blame in half if it doesn't
turn out right."

 Sam got up, "Alright, but I'm not guaranteeing anything good here."

 Scully followed them to the kitchen while they made supper and sat at
the table with William. She watched them make supper with interest for
awhile.

 Sam was goofing off while he helped his brother, mainly in a way to
get back at his brother for forcing him to cook.  Doggett was trying
to get him to knock it off but nothing he tried got his brother to
stop. He finally said, "Sam, go sit with Dana if you're going to be
that way."

 "Okay, bro, just thought I'd have some fun."

 Scully shook her head as she saw him saunter over to the kitchen
table. He said, "I didn't want to cook any ways. My stuff never turns
out as well as it should and besides a member of my band is good at
cooking."

 Scully laughed. "I can see why you would want to get out of cooking
then. It can't be that bad."

 "Trust me, it's not as good as it should be, but it is edible."

 Doggett served his meal of baked chicken. He set plates out for all
three of them and said, "So, how was your day?"

 Sam said, "I slept pretty well until about 9 or so.  The rest of the
day I did pretty much nothing but watch TV."

 "Sounds like when we were kids. Dana, what was your day like?"

 "Good. I had fun. I finally made a decision, if that is alright with
you. I decided that I want to stay here for as long as you will have
me here and let Mulder decide that if he talks to me he's going to
have to come here and the Gunmen will have to pass things along to me.
I'm not going to seek what he has to say to me."

 Doggett cut up his chicken and said, "Sounds like a good plan. I'll
let you stay as long as you want. It'll make the house seem more like
a home. At least that way you won't be tearing wounds open before they
have had a chance to heal with this plan."

 Scully said, "Yeah. I've decided that it's more of an independent
plan for myself. I just thought about it and as long as I've been on
the X-files I've been Mulder's little errand girl in a way. I did what
he wanted when he wanted it and I'm finished with that."

 Doggett looked at Sam. He nodded when he saw Sam smile.  Scully had
done this all on her own.

  "Shall we watch a movie?"  Scully asked after they had finished with
the dishes.  "I noticed that you have a large movie collection."

 "I guess so. Sounds good to me. Sam, you want to watch a movie?"

 "Sure, I wouldn't mind that at all. Besides, we got to do something."
Sam said, shrugging his shoulders.

 They all made their way out to the living room and sat down. Doggett
got up from the couch, picking a movie out. He said, "How about Far
and Away?"

 Scully said, "I like that movie."

 "Aww, is it one of those sappy lovey movies?" Sam said.

 "No, it's a love story yes, but it's got a lot of Irish in it. You'll
like it, especially when Tom Cruise fights."

 "Okay, I can take that then. Didn't want no sappy sob lovey story
like that.  Can't take too much of that shit." Sam said.

 Doggett stuck it in the VCR and sat back down next to Scully. He
noticed that she stayed put and did not move, and she didn't seem to
mind when he sat back, putting his arm around the sofa behind her.

 Sam sat down in a chair, waiting for the movie to start. The baby had
been put to bed for a nap. Sam crossed his arms as he sat watching, he
hoped that it wasn't some sappy film.

 Scully sat back, her head leaning on Doggett's arm, and didn't move
away from it, even though she knew that it was there. She didn't mind
it and she actually felt a little bit better with things like this.
She had always felt sort of school girlish with Mulder.

 Doggett didn't even think and moved his arm down around her as the
movie moved on. She didn't move, mainly because she was finding
herself liking this and that moving would make things uncomfortable
and awkward.

 Sam noticed how they were sitting and smiled to himself.  He knew
that both of them were fighting themselves, and he understood why, but
it was funny that they were doing these things without the other one
noticing. He went back to watching the movie and found he actually
liked it.

 Scully sat closer to Doggett but looked over at Sam noticing that he
had fallen asleep in the chair. She moved up and said, "John, I think
it's your brother's bed time."

 Doggett laughed softly.  "Sam usually doesn't have a problem stayin'
up. Wonder what got into him."

 "He got bored or he was tired.  Who knows." She leaned into him,
letting his arms circle her. She didn't mind this at all, and felt
herself feeling better.  She hadn't felt like this since before Mulder
was abducted and she could only smile a little.

 Doggett said, "I should have warned him that it was a long movie."

 "That's okay. I'm sure he won't mind the extra sleep."  She let her
ear lay on his chest, listening to his heart beat as she let him hold
her. She couldn't explain it, but she felt good about this. Maybe it
was just the spell that Sam and John together had placed over her that
made her feel this way.  She couldn't tell which was which.

 Doggett was trying to figure out why she was letting him do this. He
couldn't understand why she was letting him hold her like this, but
she was and he wasn't going to argue with her on the issue. He looked
down at her, noticing that she had her eyes closed, but she wasn't
asleep. He said, his voice reverberating in her ear at his chest, "Do
you really like stayin' here?"

 She lifted her head up off of his chest, looking into his blue eyes.
"I do like it here. It's more of a home and I don't want to be at home
if it seems empty. It's not any fun there then and I don't like to be
alone. I'm independent but I don't want to be a hermit, John.  
Besides, I'll probably interrupt about 40 notes Mulder wants to give
me while I'm not at home."

 Doggett laughed softly. "I'm glad you see it that way. I know that it
must be difficult in your apartment with no one to help you look after
the baby."

 "After what happened with my first baby sitter, and I hadn't even had
the baby at that point, I don't want to trust too many with William.
It was so odd, that last night with Mulder. . ."

 He knew that she wanted to talk about it and he said, "What about
it?"

 "I just remember feeling like it was a family unit for once and that
maybe that life I and Mulder had talked about was finally happening.
That we had finally actually stopped being on the road and actually
stopped to live like everyone else does. Then I woke up and the magic
was gone. He left and now I've heard nothing but that he likes where
he is."

 Doggett put a hand onto her cheek. He said, "I know it must be
difficult. I could never leave a son behind.  It's just not in my
nature to do so. I happen to be a man who has to stand by commitments
for as long as they last."

 "I noticed when you didn't leave the X-Files when you had the chance.
John, I feel like the end is finally here. I don't feel like I have to
run from here or watch my back, or panic about little green men. I can
be a normal woman who happens to have found herself a single mother. I
finally have one thing I thought I would never have. A child.  Now I
don't know where I'm going to go next, but for now, I like it here."

 Doggett said, "You're welcome to stay as long as you like.  I better
get Sam up to bed before he gets a stiff neck and complains loudly
tomorrow."  He gave her a kiss on the cheek before getting up.

 She watched him wake his brother and sighed. Maybe this was the end
of the road for her. She didn't feel like there was any other place
she would want to go. She also knew that John would be there for her
as long as she wanted him to.

  Scully stood up, facing the TV with blank eyes as she thought. She
was thinking about what she had just told Doggett. Maybe she was
right, this was her
 end of the road.

 She felt a hand go in to hers, and leaned back into the body behind
her. She felt the man behind her go stiff but she said, "I don't know
what to think anymore."

 "I think it's bed time."  He had only meant to get her attention.She
had completely confused him by her action.

 She took his hand into her own and wrapped his arm around her. "No, I
think that this is it. I finally found something I've been looking
for. I was searching for a truth and that truth was not my own truth.  
It was Mulder's truth."

 "What are you saying, Dana?"  Doggett said, allowing her to do this.

 "It might take some time to make it work, and I don't want to rush
things too much, but I think I could make this work.  You and I, we're
much alike, aren't we?" She said, leaning her head back onto his
shoulder.

 "I guess so. I just don't think this can work as well as it could if
we rush. What about work? I, I know that I've had some feelings for
you since I met you, but I also knew that you hadfeelings for Mulduh
and that was what counted. Dana, I don't want you to think that you
have to be with me to make up for Mulduh."

 "It's not making up for Mulder, except for what he lacks. He never
wanted me to be as comfortable as I am now. I was along for the ride.
I was there to do what he wanted and I was ordered to do what he
wanted.  I wasn't allowed to drive us anywhere, I wasn't allowed to
make as many decisions as I'd like. You let me take a whole case over
and took the job of being my eyes and ears. Mulder would have made me
go down there, knowing or not knowing about my pregnancy at the time."

 Doggett sighed, "I just don't want to be his replacement.  I don't
want to be the guy you'd settle for since Mulduh wasn't accessible.
That's what I'm afraid of."

 "You are two very different men." She turned around to face him. "I
will always have a special place in my heart for Mulder, for Emily,
for all those people who have meant anything to me in my life. Yes,
Mulder is special but he decided that he wouldn't be here and I had no
control over that. I also know that I've been letting myself drown in
his intensity. He was so full of life and so demanding.  You, you let
me be Dana Scully.  Even when I was trying to be him you let me do it.
You didn't push me to believe one thing, you didn't push me to
disbelieve something, you just tried to let me see that I wasn't being
true in my own way."

 Doggett looked into her eyes.  "Do you mean that?"

 "Yes. Your brother has told me things about myself that I didn't even
remember because I've been so lost from myself that I finally realize
that I should be independent.  I don't see staying here as a dependent
action. Mulder would have been against it. He would have been throwing
a fit at me and I realize that I would have broke and done what he
wanted but no more. I don't want to deal with it and I want to be me."

  Doggett gave her a smile then.  He said, "I'm glad to hear you say
that. I don't know what will happen with this, but I do think that if
we do this it should be done how we both would want it to be done. I
don't want to be what you were to Mulduh and I don't want you to be
thinkin' I'm goin' to chain you down either. I'm goin' to have to
thank Sam later."

 Scully smiled at him. "I'm sure you will. Oh, and John, I don't think
we'll have too many problems."

 Doggett said, "Shall we get to bed? I know that I have an early
mornin' tomorrow, otherwise I wouldn't have a problem stayin' up with
you."

 Scully smiled right at him.  "Don't worry about it, and John, thanks
for everything."

 He said, "I try to do my best."

 She was grappling with herself on whether or not she should give him
a kiss good night. She said, "I suppose I should get upstairs and to
bed."

 Doggett was grappling with the same issue, and decided he'd let her
decide what she wanted to do.  He didn't want her to think that he was
dominating her or forcing her into something she didn't want to do.

 She finally let her other side win and stood up on her tippy toes to
kiss his cheek good night. She at least thought that was a start and
that later she'd make it up to him somehow.

 Doggett watched her go upstairs and sighed. He hoped he was making
the right decision. He sat down on the sofa for a moment, trying to
figure out what he should do next.  He knew that if Mulder came back
any time soon she'd run back to him and that made his heart ache a
little. He was afraid that something like that would happen and he was
unsure of what would happen if she did do that to him.

 He got up, shutting all the lights off and made his way up the
stairs. He found his brother snoring in his room and he smiled a
little. He shook his head and got ready for bed, setting his alarm
when he got into his room.  He sighed, hopefully tomorrow things would
make much more sense than they did right now.

 The next morning, Scully walked out of her room to find herself
refreshed and relaxed.  She made her way down the stairs to find Sam
already awake and listening to music with headphones.  He was mouthing
the words along and she knew that he was having fun trying to find
something to do.

 She tapped him on the shoulder and he jumped. "Fuck! What are you
trying to do?"

 She said, "Sorry, just wanted to know if John was awake."

 Sam said, "He's in the kitchen.  Go on in."

 She said, "Didn't mean to startle you."

 He said, "Not a big deal. Now just go on in."

 She smiled at him. "Thanks."  She walked into to the kitchen finding
Doggett the way she had the morning before. With coffee cup in hand
and newspaper in front of him. He looked up when she entered. "Did you
sleep well?"

 "Yeah. It was very relaxing."  Scully said.

 He stood up, asking her, "Would you like something for breakfast?"

 "What do you have?"

 "I have some things to eat. Let me look. William still asleep?"

 "Yes he is. I didn't disturb him, but I did make sure he was doing
okay."

 Doggett nodded. "He'll only be like this for so long before he's
screamin' at night and makin' life hard but it is worth it." He had a
guilty expression on his face.

 She said, "I know, I just don't know what will happen when he starts
that up. I'll take some orange juice and a piece of toast I guess."

 Doggett said, "Alright. I can deal with that. Sounds like an idea to
me."

 She sat down at the table, waiting for him to serve her the
breakfast, "So, what is been going on since I've be gone?"

 "Well, not much. We've been doin' paper work mainly, tryin' to catch
up with all of those things and I haven't had a case I've wanted to
investigate yet.  None of them seem F.B.I. issues and Monica agrees."

 Scully nodded, buttering her toast for a moment. She said, "Well, I'd
help, but I got William and I don't think I can just get back to work
so soon. I'm sure when we get to that hurdle we'll find out what we're
supposed to do.  It's only a matter of time."

 Doggett nodded. "So, you gonna call the Gunmen or leave that whole
issue alone? I know that Sam is staying around for a bit more but not
much after this weekend. He's got get on the road and tour."

 "I know. I think today I want to go shopping and make us a meal
tonight."

 "You sayin' my cookin' was bad?"

 "No. Not at all. I'm saying that I want to cook this time for you
guys. Why not, it'll give me something to do instead of wanting to go
home and find another note from Mulder."

 "Yes, that is a good idea then.  Don't want you to get more upset
than you have been with those notes."

 Scully said, "Now I just have to figure out what I want to make."

  Doggett gave her a quick kiss on the cheek. He said, "Gotta go to
work and I'll be lookin' forward to the meal you cook tonight."

 She said, "I hope it's good. I haven't cooked in awhile."

 "I'm sure it'll be decent. Don't worry. Just don't let Sam get
involved."

 "I think we learned that last night." Scully said, smiling.  "You
have fun today."

 Doggett smiled at her and left.  She sat down in the living room
listening to Sam sing to his own CD. She thought it was very good but
wasn't into that type of music. She sat down, turned on the television
and sighed.

 Sam jumped again. He said, "He go off to work again?"

 "Yep."

 He turned off the stereo. Sam sat down next to her and said, "So what
do you think you'll be doing today?"

 "I'm going to go shopping for groceries and make a supper tonight. I
think that I want to do something to distract myself from anything
about Mulder. I want to spend today doing what I want to do."

 Sam said, "Sounds like fun.  Mind if I and the little guy come along,
or would you rather we stay here?"

 "I suppose I could use some company so I don't go rushing to my
apartment to see what Mulder has to say about where he is. I'm happy
where I am and I don't want to read what he has to say right now."

 "Okay. We don't have to go right now."

 "I know that, I'm making a list right now as we speak. I've noticed
that your brother is running low on some stuff. Milk, eggs, that type
of thing."

 Sam laughed. "I suppose that is a problem. What you thinking of
making for supper?"

 "Lasagna. It's a good dish and one of my best."

 "Oo, that sounds really good.  I'm sure it'll be good. I should call
the band and tell them that I'm coming home after Sunday cause we
start the tour on Wednesday."

 Scully nodded. "Alright.  You're up early."

 "I got up with John and I haven't been able to get back to sleep. I
think I slept a lot during that movie."

 Scully laughed. "It's not for everyone I suppose."

 "No, it's not. I'm sure you heard me singing. I needed something to
do."

 "It was fine, don't worry about it. I'm probably too old."

 "You can never be too old. Don't worry, I won't be blaring it
loudly."

 Scully said, "Well, I'm going to call over to the Gunmen at least.  
I'm not mad at them any ways, and Frohike probably is wondering what
happened to me and if I died or something."

 Sam said, "Okay. I'll use the phone later any ways."

 Scully took out her cell from her purse. "I'm covered already."  She
dialed the Gunmen and waited for the customary answer. She said,
"Langly, turn the tape recorder off.  Thanks. Any news from Mulder?"

 Sam thought it was odd that they recorded phone conversations, but
that wasn't his concern. He watched her to see how she would react.

 She said, "So he hasn't talked to you guys for awhile. Hmm, I wonder
what that means.  Probably just means I've got about 60 notes from
him."

 Sam waited for her to finish up the conversation. She said after she
hung up, "Figures.  Always trust Mulder to say he's going to do one
thing and do another. He's always doing things like this."

 He said, "I say he's a dumb mother fucker who doesn't deserve the
woman I see in front of me. He up and left and if he can't move on,
that's his problem. Tell you what, why don't we watch some TV and then
we'll go shopping."

 Scully said, "Sounds like a plan. I'm getting them to pick them up
for me so my neighbors don't report something. What do you want to
watch?"

 "I don't know, just not sappy and not boring."

 "It's morning television. That's all it is."

 "MTV, please?"

 "No rap, not on my ears."

 "My videos play there."

 "But we'd be wading through about 100 dumb videos. No."

 Sam put on a puppy dog face.  "Let's watch a movie, and this time not
a lovey duvy one.  I don't think I want that when you're not with
John. No offense, but I already got a girl."

 Scully burst out laughing.  "Sam, I like you, but not like that.
Don't be silly. I'm just starting out with your brother and you know
what, the slower we go the better it'll be. At least we admitted we
had feelings now instead of years and years later when one of us would
run off into the wild alien sunset."

 Sam laughed. "I can see that as a problem. How about we watch Men In
Black? I like that movie."

 Scully snorted. "It's not true to life at all. I suppose I shouldn't
care but I've seen aliens. But if you want to watch we'll watch. I
like that movie too."

 After the movie, Scully said, "I've got the list made. Let's get
William out of bed and go to the store."

 Sam said, "I'll go and get him.  Let's go."

 Scully said, "Alright."

 She got ready to go out and go shopping. She watched Sam and William
come down the stairs. He said, "The little guy is ready to go. Might
want to change the little dude though."

 Scully laughed. "That is a p riority. We'll get this out of the way
and then we'll go."
 
 "Good plan." Sam said.

 Scully quickly changed William and they left in her car.  Sam said,
"Alright, we are on a mission to get food."

 Scully laughed. "It's not really a mission, but okay."

 Sam said, "To me it is."

 "I'm sure it is. Let's get in there, get the stuff and come home."
Scully said, driving to the store. She shook her head as Sam turned on
the radio and started moving to the music.

 She finally got to where they were going and said, "Alright, if we
are on a mission, let's get in there and get some food."

 Sam said, "Alright. Should we make sure they know you're F.B.I.?"

 Scully laughed. "Not unless some idiot thinks he can hold up a
grocery store."

 Sam said, "Right. Can't be this big G-Woman at anytime, I guess. That
sort of sucks."

 Scully said, "I'm fine with it sometimes. At least then I can be
normal when I'm not being big F.B.I. woman."

 Sam laughed. Scully carried William in his carrier and set him down
into the cart space for him. She said, "Alright, mission boy, go and
get me some lasagna noodles and some tomato paste."

 Sam said, "Got it." He pretended to salute her and walked off.
 
 Scully said, "You know, he's a funny guy but Mommy likes him."

 William gurgled back at her and she said, "You always say that."

  Sam came sauntering up an aisle behind Scully. He tossed the noodles
and paste into the cart and said, "Mission accomplished."

 Scully smiled at him. "I'm glad that you're having fun."

 "What, you're not having fun?"  Sam asked her, a pleading look in his
eyes.

 She rolled her eyes and started laughing. "Sam, you make most things
fun."

 "Thank you. I try."

 Scully said, "Go get some milk and some cottage cheese. I'm going to
make my own ricotta cheese when we get home."

 "Gotcha." He made his way to the milk section when Scully heard a big
fuss. She heard lots of voices all saying that it was really him.  
She sighed. Maybe she should have left him at home.

 He came back, running. He put the stuff in the cart and said, "Big
F.B.I. woman, protect me."

 "No. I'm not getting involved."

 "Anything." He said, "Those fans are going to make things difficult."

 She laughed. "That is your problem, not mine. Okay, alright, I'll
tell them to back off."

 When one fan got close Scully said, "We're only here to get food. Sam
is asking that you leave him be."

 The fan looked sad for a moment and then said, "Alright. Hope to see
you in concert."

 Sam said, "Fine with me."

 They finished their shopping
 and made their way home. When they got into the car, Sam said, "I
always forget stuff like that."

 Scully laughed, "Sam, I'm sure they'll keep it in their heart, though
I'm sure you were tempted to give him an autograph."

 Sam said, "Oh yeah, I was. But then I'd have to sign a whole lot of
others and I knew we had to get home. I'm going to feel guilty about
not signing an autograph."

 Scully said, "It's not a big deal, I'm sure he understands why you
couldn't just sign an autograph."

 "I sure hope so."