From: MainerIA@aol.com Date: Mon, 27 Aug 2001 06:22:30 EDT Subject: Happy Girl Source: direct Dana picked up her favorite bottle of perfume, "Clinique Happy," and dabbed some behind her ears. She looked at her reflection in the mirror. She had curled her hair and piled it on top of her head so that a few loose tendrils framed her face. The tiny diamond earrings that she had put on sparkled under the bathroom light. She smiled and liked what she saw. She walked into the living room, her heels making a faint clicking sound on the floor through the carpet. She pulled her shawl around her shoulder and picked up her evening bag just as there was a knock on her door. She pulled open the door and felt her mouth drop open. John was standing outside the door holding a small white box. He was wearing a black tuxedo with a blue vest underneath it. He looked incredibly handsome. John had been stunned when Dana had pulled open the door. He knew that she was beautiful, but this...He thought he'd died and gone to heaven. The blue of the dress brought out her beautiful eyes. Her hair was piled on top of her head, but loosely, so that she looked both sexy and sophisticated at the same time. He cleared his throat, trying to find his voice. "I thought the card said 'elegant' not 'knock you on your ass stunning.'" He grinned and Dana blushed at the compliment. He handed her the small white box that he was carrying. "This is for you." She opened the box slowly, her eyes lighting up when she saw what was inside. "John, this is beautiful." He took the small white box from her, setting it on the table by the door, reaching inside to pull out the corsage that was inside. It was made of three small white roses, with baby's breath tucked around them. He carefully slipped it on her wrist. "Ready to go?" he asked, hoping that he didn't seem too anxious. She nodded and took the arm he offered. When they got to the front of the building, Dana was stunned again. In front of her was a white stretch limousine with a man waiting to open the door for them. "John?" she asked, looking up at him, the question in her eyes clear. He smiled down at her. "Happy Valentine's Day, Dana." She smiled back at him as they got settled in the limo. Mulder and Krycek stood by the car they'd "borrowed" from Spender watching the cabin go up in flames. They'd placed Samantha in the car seat in the back and she'd fallen back asleep almost immediately. Mulder watched the sunset through the trees, glad that it was finally over. Those two words still sent a shiver down his spine. It seemed unreal. Then it hit him. He needed to call Scully. Now. He looked over at Krycek, who was also watching the cabin burn. "Hey, Alex, mind if I borrow your phone?" Krycek shook his head. "Not at all." He replied, as he handed his phone to Mulder. Mulder quickly punched in Scully's home number, tapping his foot impatiently as it continued to ring. He heard the machine answer and cursed under his breath, as he hung up and then punched in her cell phone number. Again, he only got her voice mail. He looked at his watch. It was 7:30 in DC. He handed the phone back to Krycek. "No answer, huh?" "Nope." Mulder replied, looking dejected. He'd wanted, no needed, to share this news with Scully. "Don't worry, Mulder. You'll get in touch with her." Krycek quickly calculated the drive time from there to Denver in his head. He needed to call Tammy and let her know he was coming home. They were about 5 hours away so that would work. He picked up his phone and dialed, smiling when she answered. "Happy Valentine's Day, Babe." He said huskily. He listened for a minute and then said, "I'm coming home, tonight." He held the phone away from his ear, so he wouldn't lose his hearing, to her screams of joy. "Listen, we have to get on the road. Meet us in the parking lot of Barnes and Noble at 10:30, ok? We will be in the dark green Taurus with Montana plates." He was silent again for another minute. "I know, Babe. I love you too." He hung up, sliding the phone back in his pocket and turned to Mulder. "Let's get out of here." Mulder turned away from the smoldering remains of the cabin and the Cigarette Smoking Man. He nodded. "I'll drive the first part," he offered. Krycek agreed and went around to get in on the passenger side. Mulder started the car and backed carefully out of the woods. He was smiling by the time he got to the interstate. Dana looked around in awe, as she and John entered the restaurant where they had reservations. The interior was done almost entirely in blue. The floor was covered in a royal blue carpet, so thick that Dana could feel her feet sinking into it. The walls were done in a blue gray color that almost looked like mist. The maitre 'd led them to their seats. It was a small, two-person, table set back in a somewhat secluded corner. There was a pale blue tablecloth that matched the chairs. On the table, there were two, small, white, rose-shaped candles for mood lighting. Their waitress, an attractive woman in her late 30s came their way. She had short dark hair and was wearing a well cut dark blue suit. Dana thought, rather amusedly. The waitress flipped open her order book and addressed them. "Hello, my name is Jayne and I shall be your server this evening. May I interest either of you in a bottle of wine?" She asked, displaying their wine list. Dana looked at John and shrugged. She wasn't too picky. John chose a wine and the waitress said she'd return in a moment to take their orders. This restaurant was known for it's fine seafood and, after perusing the entire menu, John and Dana both decided on swordfish. The waitress returned, poured their wine, took their orders, and left as swiftly and as gracefully, as she had arrived. As Dana sipped the Chardonnay that John had ordered, she wistfully eyed the dance floor. She hoped that John would ask her to dance. John had been watching Dana all night long and saw the look in her eyes, as she watched the couples twirling on the dance floor. Slowly, John pushed his chair back from the table and walked around to where Dana was sitting. He offered his hand, very much the gentleman he was. "May I have this dance?" Dana smiled and suppressed a giggle. She put her fingers in his, enjoying the feel of the warmth emanating from them. She shivered slightly, as she stood, her shawl falling into her chair. "I would love to dance." She replied, as the band began playing a slow romantic song. John wrapped his arms around Dana, pulling her close to him on the dance floor. She rested her head on his chest, listening to his heartbeat. He put his head on top hers and they both swayed in time to the music, listening to the words of the male vocalists. "Every time our eyes meet This feeling inside me Is almost more than I can take. Baby when you touch me I can feel how much you love me And it just blows me away. I've never been this close to anyone or anything I can hear you thoughts I can feel your dreams..." Dana looked up at John, love for him shining in her eyes. He bent down slightly and kissed her cheek. She smiled and put her head back, on his shoulder. "I don't know how you do what you do I'm so in love with you It just keeps getting better I wanna spend the rest of my life With you by my side Forever and ever Every little thing that you do Baby I'm amazed by you... John pulled her closer, whispering in her ear. "I'm amazed by you." Dana looked up, slightly surprised. "I love you too." She whispered. "The smell of your skin The taste of your kiss The way you whisper in the dark Your hair all around me Baby you surround me Touch every place in my heart Oh it feels like the first time Every time I wanna spend the whole night in your eyes "I don't know how you do what you do I'm so in love with you It just keeps getting better I wanna spend the rest of my life With you by my side Forever and ever Every little thing that you do Baby I'm amazed by you..." John had planned to wait, but he knew that now was the right moment. He pulled away from Dana, her eyes slightly hurt. As the music kept playing, he pulled out a small black velvet box and got down on his knee in front of her. "Every little thing that you do... Oh every little thing that you Baby I'm amazed by you." As the song came to a close, John reached up and took Dana's hand. "You are my everything." He said softly. "Without you, Dana, I am but part of a man. You complete me. Will you be my wife?" Dana stared at him, tears in her eyes. She looked at the ring he was holding, waiting to put it on her hand. It was gorgeous. In the middle of the gold band was a marquise cut diamond. On either side of it were smaller, princess cut, diamonds. She began to nod, unsure of whether or not she could talk. Finally, she found her voice. "Yes, John, I will be your wife." John slid the ring on her finger and stood, wrapping his arms around her in a bone-crushing hug. Soon they were kissing each other, neither one realizing for a few moments that people in the restaurant were clapping. As they came to their senses, Dana realized that everyone was watching them, and blushing slightly, she took John's hand and led them back to their table. As they were seated, Jayne appeared with a bottle of champagne and their food. "Compliments of the management," she explained as she uncorked the champagne. John and Dana lifted their glasses to each other. "To our future." She offered. "To our future." He seconded, as they both took a sip, already giddy with happiness. Krycek pulled the car into the crowded parking lot of a Denver Barnes and Noble and turned it off. He glanced over at Mulder, who was asleep in the passenger seat. Krycek glanced around his familiar surroundings looking for her. He noticed a pair of headlights turning into the parking lot. He reached over and shook Mulder awake. "Wha-?" Mulder sat up rubbing the sleep from his eyes. "Where are we? What's going on?" "It's ok, Mulder." Krycek said reassuringly. "We're in Denver. She's here." Krycek pointed to the woman walking towards them. As she passed under a light, they could see what she looked like. Mulder was stunned. She was about 5'8" with shoulder length chestnut hair. She was wearing all black, except for the green leather jacket. They got out of the car and stood next to it, waiting to meet her. Mulder left his door open slightly in case Samantha woke up and cried out. Alex opened his arms, as she came closer. He wrapped his arms around her and hugged her close. "Oh God, Tammy, I have missed you so much." He kissed her quick and hard before releasing her. "Tammy, this is Special Agent Fox Mulder. Mulder, Tammy." Mulder stuck out his hand. "Nice to meet you." As she came closer to shake his hand, he noticed her eyes. They were emerald green and burned with an intensity like none he'd ever seen before. He felt himself becoming lost in the depths of her eyes and quickly released her hand, looking away. "So," she asked, her voice soft and alluring, "do I get to see why my Alex has been gone for so long?" Mulder jumped when she spoke, startled out of his reverie. "Yeah, sure, she's asleep in the back seat. Her name is Samantha." He slowly pulled open the Door, so that she could see his daughter. She leaned in and gasped softly when she saw the baby in the backseat. She was so perfect. She looked over at Alex, then Samantha, and then back at Alex. She turned back to Mulder and impulsively gave him a hug. "Good luck." Mulder looked at her strangely, but didn't say anything. Krycek cleared his throat. "You sure you're ok to drive back to DC alone, Mulder?" He asked, with concern showing on his face. Mulder nodded and smiled that heart-breaking, make- you-weak-in-the-knees grin of his. "Sam and I will be fine. I'll call you in a couple days, ok Alex?" Krycek nodded and walked over to Mulder, enveloping him in a bear hug. "Take care, Fox. Good luck." Mulder returned the hug, feeling a closeness to Krycek, a kinship, he'd only ever felt with one other person. "Thanks Alex, I owe you one. Take care." Tammy and Alex stood holding hands, watching as Mulder pulled out of the parking lot, before turning and heading back to her car. Alex pushed the door shut and leaned back against it, sighing. It felt so good to be home. He watched as Tammy walked across the room, kicking off her boots and tossing her coat across the couch. He could feel himself becoming aroused just by watching her. It had been too long. "Tammy?" He whispered, his voice soft and husky. She turned around, flipping her brilliant red hair out of her eyes. "Yes?" Her voice, sultry. "C'mere." She walked towards him, feeling the excitement build in the room. She had missed him, so much. He opened his arms, as she came closer. He loved the way the moonlight from the window played in her hair, the way it shimmered in her green eyes. He felt his jeans tighten. She walked into his arms, loving the feel of him, his unique smell. God, how she had missed him. He reached a hand up, brushing her hair back from her face, following his hand with tiny butterfly kisses. She could feel her nipples beginning to harden just from his light touch. Suddenly, he spun her around, so that her back was against the door. He reached over and closed the blinds on the window. He tipped his head down, kissing her forehead, her eyes, her nose, before settling on her mouth. She gasped, slightly, at the invasion of his tongue, her surprise allowing him even deeper entrance. His tongue battled with hers, both of them becoming more heated by the second. He pulled back and drug in a deep breath. Her eyes had gone dark green with passion, almost as dark as his. His fingers pulled her shirt, tugging it from her pants, seeking entrance. He ran his fingers up her sides, making her shiver. She tipped her head back against the door and closed her eyes, enjoying the feel of his talented hands on her. He unsnapped her bra, quickly moving it out of the way. He cupped her breasts, gently kneading them. She gasped, feeling a pulsing begin between her legs. She wanted him to take her now, but knew that the exquisite torture would be worth it. Suddenly, he lifted her in his arms and walked away from the door. "I want to enjoy this." He whispered in her ear, kissing it, as he placed her in the middle of the bed. He kicked his shoes off, shrugged out of his coat, before climbing on the bed on top of her. Her hair was spread out across the pillows and he knew he had never seen her look more beautiful. He quickly pulled her shirt off, her bra following behind it, then sat back, gazing at her beauty. Her nipples were hard and stood out, begging for his touch. He was happy to oblige. He bent down and began suckling on one nipple, his hand playing with the other one. He began running his tongue around her nipple, then applied his teeth, gently, but enough to get a reaction from her. Her hips bucked, as she groaned out his name. "Oh God, Alex." He smiled against her chest, feeling his own excitement building. He wanted this to last though, wanted it to be special. He felt the need to make up for having been gone so long. Her hands roamed down his back, looking for the ends of his shirt. She found it and pulled it up and over his head, tossing it across the room. She ran her hands down the front of his chest, loving the feel. She teased his nipples with her fingertips, smiling, as she elicited a groan from him. With one move, her pants and underwear were gone. He couldn't let her get control, not if he hoped to last very long. He slid his hands back up her legs, his mouth never leaving her breasts. Her breaths began coming in short gasps. She was close, this Alex knew, but he was determined to push her, as far as he could, before he let her come. He stopped when his fingers were almost at the juncture between her legs. He could feel the heat coming off of her, felt her buck beneath his hands. He stopped and looked up at her, smiling evilly. "Oh God, Alex." She moaned. "Don't stop now. Please. I want you. Inside me. Now." She spoke softly, quickly, knowing what he wanted to hear. He nodded and was happy to oblige. He slid a finger inside of her, his thumb rubbing at her clit. She was so wet, so ready for him. He almost came when he felt her contract around his finger. He took a deep breath and slid another finger inside her, grinning widely, as she lifted her hips off the bed to meet him. He began to move back and forth, slow at first, then getting faster and faster. She began mumbling incoherently, her hips bucking wildly. With his free hand, he reached down and removed the rest of his clothes, letting them fall off of the side of the bed. He removed his fingers, knowing that she was almost there. She frowned and groaned slightly. He sat down and picked her up, impaling her on him in one swift move. She screamed, as she took him in, feeling herself climax around him. Alex began moving her up and down, almost removing her from him completely each time he picked her up. Her head fell back, her excitement building again. He leaned forward and nipped at her breasts, first one and then the other. She moaned. "Oh God, Alex, now. Now." He pumped into her harder, faster, feeling himself about to climax. He reached down with his hand, rubbing her clit with his thumb in time to his movements. She moaned and screamed his name and she climaxed violently, clutching him tightly within her. One more thrust and he came too, calling her name, Mumbling, as he felt his hot seed pour into her. He laid back on the bed, letting her fall onto his chest, not bothering to remove himself from her. They were both breathing hard. She ran her hands up his chest and into his hair. She leaned closer and kissed him softly on the lips. "I love you Alex." "I love you too, Tammy." John and Dana giggled, as they stood outside waiting for the limo to be brought around. They had stayed at the restaurant until close and in that remaining time they had finished off both the bottle of champagne and the bottle of wine. Plus John had purchased another bottle of the champagne from the restaurant to take home with them. Dana wrapped her arms around John's waist and nibbled on his ear. "So," she asked, her voice low and seductive, "are we going to your place or mine?" "Yours." He whispered, his voice hoarse, as the limo pulled up. "It's closer." He grabbed her hand and practically dragged her to the open limo door, a huge grin on his face. Dana awoke the next morning to the sunlight streaming in through her bedroom window. She was lying on her right side curled up next to John, her left hand on his chest. Her fingers were laying in the sunlight and she wiggled them, watching her ring send rainbows all over the room. She pinched herself. And she giggled at herself, for being so silly. John opened his eyes at the sound, gazing at her beautiful face. She reached up and ran her fingers over his face, through his hair. He rolled over, so that she was underneath him and began kissing her, running his fingers through her red hair, urging her on. Soon, he was in her and they were moving to their own rhythm. He felt like his very soul was going to explode from what he felt for this woman. Afterward they both lay contentedly in each other arms. "Well." Dana said, the first words either one had spoken all morning. "Good morning to you, too." He laughed softly, Dana feeling the rumbling in his chest where her head was laying. He kissed her on top of her head. "I love you." She smiled into his chest. "I love you too, John." "So," he asked, pulling her closer, "what are we going to do with our day off today?" She knew what his suggestion would be. "Well," she said, raising herself up on her elbow so she could look into his face, "I thought that maybe we should begin by spreading the good news. I guess we should probably set a date first." "Tomorrow." John replied without a moment's hesitation, drawing a laugh from Dana. He smiled at her reaction, before continuing. "It depends. Do you want a big wedding or a small wedding, Dana?" She frowned slightly, wondering what kind of wedding his first had been. "Well...knowing my mom, she'll want to help, and we'll end up having a huge wedding. Is that ok with you?" He shrugged. "That's all right with me. But the sooner the better." Dana laughed again. "In that case, we'd better get up and get moving, hadn't we? I'll go make some coffee while you get cleaned up." John nodded and sighed. "Well, there goes my plans for the day." She picked up a pillow and hit him with it, playfully, on her way out of bed. "I thought that's what the honeymoon was for." She ran, laughing, through the bedroom door towards the kitchen, so that when he threw the pillow at her, he missed. By the time they got home that night, it was late, and they were both exhausted. They'd decided to spend the night at her place again so that they could spend the weekend packing her apartment up. She'd told him earlier that after they were married she wanted to move into his house with him. Permanently. He had been more than happy with that news. Dana hummed softly, as she walked around the living room, picking stuff up. John had dropped her off and then gone to his house to get some clothes. Waiting for him to come back, she decided she needed some music to play on the radio. She went over to the stereo and turned it on, flipping through the stations until she found one that seemed to be playing upbeat music. She turned the stereo up as the female singer's voice filled the room. "I used to live in a darkened room / Had a face of stone / and a heart of gloom Lost my hope, I was so far gone / Cryin' all my tears / With the curtains drawn I didn't know until my soul broke free / I've got these angels watching over me" Dana began to listen to the words more intently, transfixed by how so much of it reflected her life. "Oh watch me go / I'm a happy girl / Everybody knows / That the sweetest thing you'll ever see / In the whole wide world / Is a happy girl" Dana smiled. She began to dance, as the music kept playing. "I used to hide in a party crowd / Bottled up inside / Feeling so left out Standing in a corner wearing concrete shoes / with my frozen smile / and my lighted fuse Now every time I start to feel like that / I roll my heart out like a welcome mat" "Oh watch me go / I'm a happy girl / Everybody knows / That the sweetest thing you'll ever see / In the whole wide world / Is a happy girl" "Laugh when I feel like it / Cry when I feel like it / That's just how my life is / That's how it goes" "Oh watch me go / I'm a happy girl / and I've come to know / that the world won't change / just cause I complain / Let the axis twirl / I'm a happy girl" Dana was so caught up in the music that not only didn't she realize that John had come in, but she didn't even hear the phone ringing. He answered it, then tapped her on the shoulder. She jumped and turned the radio off. She turned to him, smiling. "I'm sorry, I didn't hear you." He was holding the phone out to her, unsmiling. She frowned. "What is it John?" "Skinner's on the phone for you. He said it's important." She took the phone from him, a look of impatience crossing her face. "Scully." "Dana, it's Walter. I'm sorry to be calling you at home so late, but I have some news for you." "What kind of news?" "Can you meet me at GW Hospital? I'll tell you when you get here. It's urgent, so come now." With that, he hung up. Dana turned and looked at John, startled. "What was that all about?" he asked, looking very confused. She shook her head. "I'm not sure. He told me he had news and to meet him at GW Hospital as soon as possible." He grabbed the coat that he had just taken off. "Well, let's go then." John pulled into the parking lot of GW Hospital, turned off his truck, and sighed. He could see the bright lights from the emergency room off to his left. He reached over and took Dana's hand. "Come on," he said softly, "let's go see what's going on." They walked across the parking lot hand in hand. Skinner watched them walk across the lot towards him with their fingers intertwined. He raised his eyebrows in surprise. He had figured that they had a relationship going outside of work, but since they kept it private, he hadn't found it necessary to remind them of the Bureau's policy. He sighed heavily, as they came closer. 'John? Dana?" He began. "I'm sorry to bring you out so late at night, but I felt this couldn't wait." "What is it, Walter?" Dana asked, holding John's hand tighter. Skinner swallowed, visibly nervous. "It's Mulder." Dana's face paled and John put his arms around her shoulders, afraid that she was going to collapse. "Mulder?" she whispered softly. "He was in an accident. He ... A drunken driver ran a red light and broad sided Mulder." Dana gasped. "Oh my God! How is he?" "He's critical. He's in surgery right now with internal injuries. He has a broken leg. They're going to check him for head injuries when he wakes. I guess he had a pretty nasty cut on the side of his head from where it cracked the windshield. But Dana, that's not all." John spoke for the first time, quiet but firm. "There's more?" His voice was tinged with a bit of disbelief. Skinner nodded. "He had a baby in the car with him. A little girl." Dana felt her knees buckle. Skinner reached out to catch her, but John already had his hands under her arms, holding her up. "How is she?" She whispered. "How's Samantha?" Skinner shook his head slightly. "I can't explain it, Dana, but she's fine. She doesn't have a scratch or a bruise on her." Dana slowly stood on her own feet again. "Can I see her?" Skinner nodded. "Follow me." They walked swiftly down the bright white halls of the hospital towards the elevators. "She's in the nursery." Skinner explained, as he punched a button. He glanced over at them out of the corner of his eye. Dana was leaning back against John's chest, some of her color finally returning. He had his arms around her and she had her hands on top of his. Skinner groaned inwardly, noticing the ring for the first time. The elevator stopped and the doors slid open, allowing them to see into the windows of the nursery. Skinner led them to the nurse station. He went up to the nurse in charge and flashed his badge. "We're here to see Samantha Mulder." John and Dana both thought in unison. The nurse, whose nametag said Lorna, smiled and nodded. "Right this way please." They began following her down the hallway, Skinner's eyes appreciatively taking in her long brown hair and hourglass figure. He mentally slapped himself. The four of them stopped in front of a door marked "PRIVATE." "Here you go," said Lorna. "Let me know if I can do anything else for you." With that she headed back to the nurses' station. Skinner looked at them. "I'm gonna go check on Mulder, ok? I'll be back." John nodded, reassuring Dana. "Go ahead, Honey. It's ok." She looked at him, her nervousness showing. "Come with me?" she asked softly, pleading. He nodded and she pushed open the door. There was a crib inside, along with a rocking chair, a bed and some monitors. Dana picked up the chart off the back of the door, needing a moment to compose herself. Satisfied, both with the chart and with her composure, she walked over to the crib. She gasped when she looked inside. Not only was the baby even prettier than in the pictures, but she looked like Mulder. This was her baby. Samantha was smiling up at her, her hazel eyes wide and bright. Dana could feel the tears begin running down her cheeks, as she reached down and picked up her daughter for the first time. Dana made her way over to the bed and sat down, patting a spot next to her on the bed for John to sit down. He sat down and put his arm around her. She began talking to Samantha just like she had all of those months when she was carrying her. "Hi Samantha. I'm your mommy." Samantha looked up at her, nodding her head slightly, as if agreeing. Dana smiled and wiped away her tears. "Samantha, I want you to meet someone. This is John." She looked up at him. "Do you want to hold her?" He nodded, his eyes bright with unshed tears. He carefully took Samantha from her mother's arms. "Hi Samantha." He whispered, rocking her back and forth, feeling both happy and sad at the same time. Dana smiled, as she watched the two of them together. She prayed that everything would be all right. Skinner opened the door about 10 minutes later. Dana was holding Samantha again and John was holding both of them. Skinner felt like he was intruding and was about to leave when Dana looked up. "What is it Walter?" "Mulder is out of surgery. He's still asleep," he cautioned, "but you can see him if you'd like." "How is he?" she asked anxiously. "His doctor is waiting upstairs to speak with you." She nodded and turned to John. "Are you going with me?" He shook his head, remembering the last time Mulder had been in the hospital. The look on Dana's face when she had sat with Mulder. He couldn't go through that again, especially now. "I think I'll stay here with Sam." He said quietly, unknowingly giving the child a nickname that she would use for years to come. Dana nodded, bewildered, but in too much of a hurry to ask questions. She handed Sam to John, giving them both a quick kiss. "I'll be back soon," she said, as she followed Skinner out the door. "Well," John said, looking down into Sam's big eyes, "guess it's just you and me kid." He slowly walked over to the rocking chair and sat down, cradling her in his arms. He began rocking back and forth, still talking softly to Sam. "You know, your Mom didn't tell you, but I'm in love with her. I have been ever since I met her." He sighed heavily. "I just hope she chooses me over your daddy." He whispered, his voice breaking. He hugged her closer, as the tears ran down his face, thinking of all he'd already lost. He prayed he wouldn't lose Dana too. Dana and Skinner were met in the upstairs hallway by a tall, blond haired, distinguished looking man. "Hello, you must be Dr. Scully. I'm Dr. Ray. It's good to meet you. I'll tell you, Agent Mulder is a very lucky man. He does have a fracture in his left lower leg, but it's not bad and should heal within 6 weeks. His internal injuries were not as bad as we thought they were. We did have to remove his spleen and his liver is slightly bruised, but other than that, no damage was done. He does have a 6 inch gash on the left side of his head where it broke the windshield. We were able to stitch it up nicely, but, as he is still unconscious, I don't know if he will have any head trauma. Would you like to see him?" Scully nodded, absorbing all of the info she had just been given. "Yes, please." "Right this way." He stopped in front of a room marked Recovery Room 4. "If you have any questions, you can have a nurse page me." She nodded again. "Thank you Dr. Ray." She turned and looked at Skinner. "Shall we?" "Are you sure you want me to go in with you Dana?" "Yeah. I'm sure." They both entered the room. Mulder looked very strange lying there with tubes running out of his body and his head bandaged. His leg was up in a sling. Dana grimaced slightly, remembering a time, not so long ago, when she was sitting with Mulder in a hospital. She sat down next to the bed, holding his hand. Skinner stood slightly behind her. Suddenly, Mulder moved and his eyes began to open. "Mulder?" Dana whispered softly. "Can you hear me?" He opened his eyes and blinked them a few times, trying to clear them. He looked around the room before his eyes settled on the beautiful face looking down at him. "Mulder? Can you hear me?" He nodded, a look of confusion on his face. "Who are you?" Dana's eyes opened wide, almost as wide as her mouth did, yet she was unable to say anything. Mulder looked at Skinner next. "Agent Skinner? What are you doing here? What's going on?" Skinner was as shocked as Dana was. Neither one of them was able to speak. Mulder continued to look around the room, unaware that he was still holding onto Dana's hand. He finally turned back to Skinner, "Agent Skinner, what is going on here? Why am I in a hospital? Where is Diana?" At that last question, Dana gasped and dropped Mulder's hand. A thought hit Dana like a lightening bolt and she turned to Skinner. "I'm going to find Dr. Ray." She mumbled, as she quickly left the room, praying she'd make it outside before she broke down. Skinner took the seat that she had vacated. He had no idea what to say to Mulder. "Agent Mulder, you were in a car accident earlier this evening. You sustained severe internal injuries and were brought to the hospital. You were released from surgery about an hour ago." Mulder nodded taking in the information. "I see. Who was that woman who was just in here?" Skinner could tell that Mulder wasn't joking by the look on his face. "That was Special Agent Dana Scully. She's your partner." Mulder's jaw hit the floor. "What? She's not my partner. Diana Fowley is my partner. Where is Diana?" Skinner shook his head, wondering how to explain this one, when Dana returned with Dr. Ray. "Hello there, Mr. Mulder." Said Dr. Ray, looking as calm and cool as he had earlier. "I'm Dr. Ray. I'm the surgeon who operated on you. How are you feeling?" Mulder looked at him, and shook his outstretched hand. "I'm rather sore, but I feel fine." "I see. Can you tell me, Mr. Mulder, what today's date is?" Mulder frowned. He looked at the calendar on the wall. "It's February 15." Dr. Ray nodded. "What year is it?" Mulder wondered. "It's 1993, of course." Dana sat in a chair out in the hallway, her head in her hands. After Mulder had said that it was 1993 she hadn't been able to stay in the room any longer. She knew what had happened. She had read about this kind of amnesia before, where years disappear from people's memories. The only problem was, no one knew for sure how to solve it. She could feel the tears seeping out from under her eyelids again and wished she had better control over her emotions. She quickly wiped them away. She could feel the tears beginning again, this time in earnest, the tears she hated to let fall, but knew that she couldn't stop. She felt a hand on her shoulder. She quickly wiped her eyes dry before looking up. "Are you ok, Dana?" A soft, gentle, caring voice asked. "I'm fine Walter," she said, without conviction. He sat down in the chair next to her and gave her a quick hug. "I'm so sorry Dana. I wish I could fix this." She tried to smile at him. "It's ok Walter. It's not your fault. You couldn't have known that Mulder wouldn't remember me. Besides, you've given me Sam." She stood up. "Speaking of Sam, I think I'll go downstairs and see how she is. Excuse me." Walter stood and watched, as she walked down the hall towards the elevator, shoulders slumped, the fire gone. He felt horrible. Dana peeked in through the window of Sam's room, before going inside. John was sitting in the rocking chair, holding Sam. They were slowly rocking back and forth. It looked as if John were talking to her. Dana felt her heart tug, watching them. She knew that this was meant to be, this was where she was meant to be. She slowly pushed the door open and could hear that John was singing to Sam. Dana smiled. He was singing "their" song, "Amazed" to her. She walked over to them. John looked up. "Hey." He noticed the look on her face. "What's wrong?" Dana held out her arms for Sam, needing to hold her. She took Sam in her arms and hugged her, before answering John. "He doesn't remember me." John was shocked. How could someone forget this beautiful woman? "He doesn't remember you?" She shook her head. "He thinks it 1993...before he met me, before he started the X-Files, before everything." She blinked quickly, hoping to stop the tears. She'd cried enough about it, she refused to cry anymore. John stepped closer and wrapped his arms around her and Sam. He kissed the top of her head. "I'm so sorry, Honey." She smiled, a small one, but the first real smile since she'd been to Mulder's room. "I know. It's ok. I'll learn how to handle it. It'll just be hard at first. His not remembering me, is like removing 9 years from my life." "We'll help him Dana. It'll be ok." She tilted her head up and kissed him, Sam cradled between them. Mulder looked around his cold, smelly hospital room. He hated being in the hospital, he always had. He rubbed his eyes with his hand. He was so confused. The doctor had left awhile ago, after explaining to him that it was 2002, not 1993. Skinner had told him that he would be back in a little while and would answer any questions that Mulder had. So that left him alone. Alone in his misery to wonder what had happened. He felt bad, not remembering her. He couldn't believe he could forget a face like that. Yet, he didn't remember. He shook his head. He closed his eyes and prayed that things would be different when he woke up. John awoke early the next morning and looked around, disoriented at first. Then he remembered. He and Dana had stayed up late last night talking. He had been very afraid that Dana might want to take Sam and be a family with Mulder now, and he had told her so. He grinned, as he remembered what she had told him. "John Doggett!" She had said, her voice firm. "Of all the things I want at this point in my life, being part of a family with Mulder, is not one of them." They had decided that they would go ahead with their plans for their life together. Besides, they'd already told Dana's landlord that she was moving out. They were going to take things one day at a time and see how it went. John sat up on the bed and stretched. Dana was in the rocking chair next to the crib, fast asleep. He'd tried to persuade her to sleep in the bed with him, but she'd wanted to be close to Sam. "Just in case." She'd said. He couldn't fault her. If he had been Dana, he probably would have wanted to hold Sam all night long. He looked at his watch as he stood up and nodded in satisfaction. 6:30 am. He quickly scribbled a note for Dana and headed out the door. Mulder awoke that same morning with a pounding headache. He opened his eyes and closed them just as quickly, when he realized the sun was shining in them. He was very irritable and thought about going back to sleep when a bright, entirely too cheerful voice, broke the silence. "Good morning, Mr. Mulder." The voice chirped from over by the window. The sunlight disappeared and he opened his eyes again, much slower this time. Standing in front of him was a very pretty, but very young, nurse. "My name is Lorna, Mr. Mulder and I am the nurse in charge of this floor. I thought I'd stop by and see if you needed anything." Mulder winced at the cheerfulness in her voice. "Yes. Yes I do. First it's just plain Mulder. No Mr. And second, do you have any painkillers? I have a bitch of a headache this morning." He groaned and closed his eyes. Lorna smiled, as he closed his eyes. Oh, he may seem difficult, but those were her favorite kind of patients. "I'll be right back with some painkillers, Mulder." She replied in a much softer tone of voice, as she left the room. She thought. A couple of hours later, Alex opened his eyes and sighed. Tammy was lying on her side facing him, her head pillowed on her arms, her hair splayed across her arms, a lock falling onto her forehead. Alex reached out with a hand and gently brushed the lock of hair behind her ears. She opened her eyes slightly and smiled. "Hi." She whispered. "Hi yourself." He gave her that beautiful smile of his, the one that always made her heart melt. He leaned over and positioned his lips directly above hers, stopping for a moment before making contact, teasing her with the feel of his breath on her mouth. He closed the gap and brushed his lips across hers lightly, so very light that she almost didn't feel them. She reached up and ran her fingers through his hair, locking them behind his head, and pulling him down, kissing him, soft and slow at first, then deepening the kiss, kicking her legs to get the sheet out of the way. She wanted to feel him on her...feel all of him on her. Not only on her, but in her. Last night he'd had his chance to be in charge, but Now, she was going to take charge. She rolled him over so that she was on top of him. She ran her fingers down his chest, following them with her lips. She stopped with her mouth, teasing his nipples, first one and then the other, her fingers making circles on his abdomen. He gasped, allowing a soft groan to escape from him. She began moving farther down with her mouth, bypassing the part of him that was aching for her touch. She slowly ran her mouth down one leg and up the other, pressing soft kisses everywhere before coming back to his penis. His proud erection, standing tall, the tip gleaming. She ran her fingers up and to the top, rubbing the small opening with her thumb. She felt the moan before she actually heard it. She smiled and knew she had him. She leaned down and kissed the tip of his penis, running her tongue around the head and pressing kisses along its entire length. She then ran her tongue from base to tip before opening her mouth and taking him in, slow, smooth, teasing him with her teeth. She ran her mouth up and down, slowly sucking on him, feeling him pulse within her mouth. She moved faster, feeling the excitement building when suddenly, he sat up and reached down and pulled her up off of him. "No." He whispered. "Together." He laid her down on the bed and climbed on top of her, loving the way that her eyes went so dark that they were almost black when she was excited. He smiled down at her heaving chest, her nipples erect. He bent over and took one of her nipples in his mouth, nibbling on it, at the same time he entered her. He moved slowly, surely, wanting to bring her to the same level of excitement that she had brought him to. He moved a hand lower, massaging her clit. He brought his mouth up to her lips and kissed her deeply, the movements of his tongue, matching his movements within her. She began to thrash back and forth, her breath coming in small gasps. She pushed as hard as she could against him, striving to get him deeper inside her. "Oh God, Alex," she moaned. The sound of her voice excited him, causing him to move faster, harder, deeper. Suddenly he felt her clinch around him, hear her moaning his name, and felt his own climax begin to wash over him. His seed ran inside her as he collapsed on top of her, kissing her hair. "Wow," she muttered. "Wow, is right." He answered, smiling against her head. He propped himself up on one elbow so he could see into her eyes. She smiled up at him. "I love you." "I love you too, Babe. Will you marry me?" Tammy stared up at Alex, love and surprise battling in her emerald eyes. She gazed deep into his face, hoping, praying that he meant what he said. She knew he loved her, but she'd never thought that he would be ready to take the plunge. She almost cried at what she saw in his eyes. Love, trust, everything she had ever wanted. She leaned up and kissed him softly. "Yes, Alex, I will marry you." He smiled and moved over to where his pants where lying on the floor. He pulled a small box out of his pocket and sat up in the bed next to Tammy. He really hoped that she liked the ring. He had decided not to go for just diamonds. When the hell had he ever been traditional? He kind of kneeled on the bed in front of Tammy and slowly opened the box. She gasped when she looked inside. He slowly slid the ring on her finger. In the middle was a 3/4 carat, emerald cut ruby, and on each side was a 1/4 carat, round cut diamond. He kissed her hand after he slipped the ring onto it. "I will always love you, no matter what." He whispered. He tugged on her hand, pulling her out of bed. "Let's go get some breakfast." She smiled at him. "Maybe we should get dressed First, if we're going out?" He looked down at himself, then back at her. "Yeah, maybe." A couple hours later they returned from The Westwood Inn, Tammy's favorite place to eat breakfast. They were lying around the house, watching TV, when Alex had a thought. "Hey," he said, looking at Tammy who was lying on the floor almost asleep. "Yeah?" "Think I should call Mulder? I know he said he'd call me in a couple days, but I have this funny feeling." Tammy shrugged. "Sure, why not? I don't figure he'll be pissed at you for checking up on him. Tell him you wanted to know how Sam was, if you feel you need an excuse." He grinned that one-of-a-kind-make-you-weak-in-the- knees smile. "Me? Need an excuse?" He ducked, as she tossed a pillow at him, and went into the kitchen to pick up the phone. He returned about 5 minutes later and stood in the doorway watching Tammy. His soon-to-be-wife. He smiled. After everything he'd been through in his life, everything he'd done wrong, he never thought that he'd find acceptance. But with Tammy, he'd found more than acceptance. He'd found trust, friendship, and even love. He slowly made his way over to where she was resting on the floor. She was lying on her right side, facing the TV. Some of her hair had fallen over her face and it moved gently when she breathed. He could tell that she'd fallen back to sleep. He looked at the clock and wasn't surprised. It was only 7 am. He bent down and brushed her hair away from her face. She murmured slightly but didn't wake. He gently lifted her from the floor and carried her to the bed. He set her on it and laid down behind her, wrapping his arms around her stomach. After having been gone for so long, he never wanted to leave her again. She snuggled closer to him in her sleep. He smiled and closed his eyes, praying that things would be quiet for awhile. Dana sat up and stretched, moving her head from side to side. She had a headache from sleeping in the rocker all night long, but it was worth it to be close to her daughter. She smiled, as she stood up, bringing her hands above her head to stretch the rest of her body. She looked around the room, expecting to see John still asleep in the bed. She frowned when she didn't see him on the bed behind her. Then she noticed a piece of paper propped up on the table next to Sam's crib. She hurried across the room to pick it up, peeking in the crib at a sleeping Sam, as she passed. She flipped open the note and held it up to the light to see it better. "Dear Dana," it began. "Good morning, Dear. I had to run a few errands this morning before we took Sam home. I hope you don't mind that I left you alone for a bit. I should be back by 10. I love you, John." Dana looked at her watch. It was 8:00. She smiled, knowing that when John came back, they would be able to take Sam home. She was humming when there was a soft knock upon the door. She pulled open the door. "Walter?" She said, somewhat surprised to see him there, so early in the morning. She knew he had been up with Mulder until late the night before and had figured that he would sleep in. "Morning, Dana," he said, looking tired, the bags under his eyes making him look older than he really was. He held out the bags he was carrying. "I brought breakfast." He said, as she took them from him. He looked around the room. "Where's John?" "He went to run some errands." She replied, as she set out the muffins and the coffee on a table near the bed. She picked up an apple cinnamon muffin and a cup of coffee and sat on the bed. "Here." She said, motioning to a spot on the bed next to her. "Have a seat." Walter picked up his own coffee and sat next to her, somewhat glad that John wasn't there. It would make it easier to have this conversation with Dana. "So, Walter?" Dana began, not one to beat around the bush. "What can I do for you this morning?" Skinner sighed. He had been hoping that perhaps they could make some small talk first. "Well, Dana," he said, afraid he would stumble over it and alienate her. "I noticed your ring last night." She smiled as she moved her fingers, so that her ring sparkled in the light. "Yes, John asked me to marry him." He smiled at her obvious happiness. "Congratulations. However, I know that this isn't a good time and this isn't a topic that I want to broach, but I feel-" Dana interrupted, finishing his sentence. "That you must remind me of the Bureau's policy regarding interoffice relationships." Skinner nodded, relieved that she seemed to be ok with discussing this. "Yes." She smiled at him, now understanding what his earlier nervousness had been about. "I understand your position here, Walter. And I will be talking to John about that shortly. Right now I would like to ask you if I may take my maternity leave now?" He nodded again, glad to have that conversation over with. "Of course you may, effective immediately. Just let me know when you'd like to come back to work." "Thank you, Sir, I will." With that they finished their breakfast in companionable silence. 15 minutes later, Skinner stepped off the elevator in an upstairs hallway. He walked down the hall towards Mulder's room, wondering in the back of his head if Lorna was working today. He slowly pushed open the door to Mulder's room. He was almost more nervous about seeing Mulder, than he had been about seeing Dana. He had no idea where to begin explaining things to Mulder. Skinner shrugged to himself and entered the room. He just prayed that he'd know the answers, when Mulder started with his questions. He looked at Mulder lying there in the bed. His eyes were closed and so Skinner crept quietly across the room, hoping he didn't wake him, as he sat in the chair. He sat there for about 10 minutes or so, just watching Mulder, lost in his thoughts, when Mulder began to stir. He rolled his head to the side and looked at the man sitting next to him. "Skinner." "Good morning, Mulder. How do you feel?" "Like shit. How are you this morning?" Skinner smiled, thinking that this sounded like the Mulder he knew. "I'm ok. Tired, but ok." "Really? Cause you look like shit." Skinner laughed out loud. "Thanks Mulder, but you don't look much better." Mulder sighed and looked at the ceiling again. Skinner sat there quietly, knowing that Mulder would talk when he was ready to. "Agent Skinner?" came the voice softly from the bed. "Actually, it's Assistant Director now, Mulder." Mulder looked at Skinner again, the shock obvious in his hazel eyes. "AD huh? Congratulations." Skinner blushed slightly. "Thanks Mulder. What was your question?" "I just wanted to know if this was a dream, or if I really did forget 9 years of my life. But you just answered that question." Skinner sighed, unsure of how to help his friend. "I'm sorry." Mulder nodded, sure that he was, but knowing that hearing it didn't make him feel any better. "Where are my parents?" Skinner lowered his eyes. "They're dead, Mulder." Mulder's eyes widened and filled with tears. "Dead?" Skinner nodded. "And Diana?" "She's dead, too, Mulder." It was then, that Mulder couldn't hold back the tears anymore. He rolled his head back so he was staring at the ceiling, not wanting Skinner to see his torment. Skinner stood up, understanding Mulder's unspoken request. "I'll be back later," he promised softly, as he closed the door behind him. Mulder began crying in earnest when he heard the door click shut behind Skinner. Skinner went back downstairs to the nursery, turning towards Sam's room when he got off of the elevator. He had an idea, but he wanted to run it by Dana first. He slowly opened the door, smiling at Dana sitting in the rocking chair, singing softly to Sam. She looked up at him, her eyes bright, some of the happiness having returned. She sat up straighter, the smile dropping from her face, when she saw the look in Skinner's eyes. "Sir? What is it?" unknowingly reverting to the term of respect that she always used when things got bad. He shook his head, as he sat down on the bed. "I just went to see Mulder." She nodded. "How is he this morning?" "He still doesn't remember anything. This morning he asked about Diana, about his parents." Dana's eyes flashed understanding of where Skinner was going with this, and compassion for what Mulder was feeling. "How did he take it?" "Not well. That's why I'm here. I...I have this feeling that Mulder doesn't think he has anything left worth living for, and well..." he gestured around the room. "You'd like for him to meet Sam?" she asked. "Only if you're comfortable with it." He was quick to reassure her. "I just thought that, well, she is his child and even if it doesn't help trigger his memory, it might make him realize that life goes on." He shrugged. "It was just an idea." She nodded. "Yeah, it's an idea. Not a bad one. Let me think about it, would you please?" He nodded and stood to leave. "I couldn't ask for anything more from you." Dana was still sitting, contemplating Skinner's idea, when John returned. She looked up and smiled at him. "Good morning." "Good morning yourself, Beautiful," he replied as he bent down to give her a kiss. "What had you looking so preoccupied when I came in?" "Skinner stopped by to see me this morning." "Yeah?" John replied as he held out his arms for Sam. Dana gently handed her over. "Well, he had two things that he wanted to talk to me about. The first was he wanted to remind us of the Bureau's policy on relationships within the Bureau." John sighed. "Don't worry," Dana was quick to reassure him. "We have the entirety of my maternity leave to think about that." "Good," John grinned. "Also he wanted to talk about his visit this morning with Mulder." John's grin dimmed slightly. "How is Mulder doing?" Dana shook her head. "I haven't been up to see him yet today, but Skinner says he's not doing too well. I guess Mulder asked about his parents and Diana this morning." At John's confused look, she explained. "Diana was his girlfriend in 1993. She was murdered. Both of his parents are dead as well." "Oh God," John said as he sand down onto the bed, still holding onto Sam, a bit tighter now. "I can imagine how he feels." Dana continued, "Skinner had a suggestion to make and I wanted to discuss it with you." John nodded. "Skinner thinks that Mulder feels he has nothing left to live for. He thought that, perhaps, it might give Mulder some meaning, if he were to meet Samantha." Dana bit her lip and looked at John. He was frowning slightly, the lines on his forehead indicating that he was deep in thought. They sat in silence for a minute when John suddenly spoke up. "You should do it." Dana looked at him, surprise evident in her blue eyes. "You think so?" John grinned and nodded. "Yeah, I do. If anything is going to give him the will to live, it'll be this heartbreaker." Dana smiled at him and held her arms out for Sam. "If it's all right with you, I think I'll introduce them before we go home. Want to come with me?" John shook his head. "I think it would be easier if I didn't go this time. If I did you would not only have to inform Mulder that he's the biological father of Sam, but that the man standing next to you is going to be the one marrying you." Dana nodded. "That's true. I don't want to spring too much on him at once." "I'll tidy up here while you go see Mulder. I'll be here when you get back." Dana started to leave, but stopped and turned around at the door. "John?" "Yes, Dana?" He looked up for where he was making the bed. "Where did you go this morning?" John got a gleam in his eye. "It's a surprise. You'll see." Dana stuck out her tongue at him and quickly hurried out the door. John whistled softly, as he wandered around straightening up the room. Mulder was sitting up in bed, flipping through the channels, bored out of his mind. He wanted to go home, but Dr. Ray said he wanted to make sure that he didn't have any severe head injuries. Mulder had had to hold back a laugh when Dr. Ray had said that. He looked up, as he heard a soft knock on his door. He thought bitterly. That brought a small smile to his face. "Come in," he called. The door opened slowly and in walked the redhead from the night before, carrying a small child. Mulder racked his brain but couldn't think of her first name, so he just said, "Hey." "Hey," she replied somewhat shyly, sitting on the chair by his bed. She could tell he still didn't really remember her, so she shifted Sam to one side and stuck out her hand. "I'm Dana." He smiled, glad that she understood. "I'm Fox," he said as he shook her hand. Dana thought. <'Fox' huh? He must've been hit harder on the head than we thought.> She thought maybe she'd try and make small talk first. "How are you feeling today?" Mulder made a face. "My head hurts like a bitch." Looking at Sam, he blushed slightly. "Uh...I mean, I have a headache. How are you today?" "I'm doing great." Still looking at Sam, he remarked, "She sure is pretty." Dana nodded. "It's surprising, since she looks so much like her Dad." Mulder laughed. "Poor guy." Dana giggled, at ease with Mulder once again. "Actually, that 'poor guy' is you, Fox." His jaw fell in surprise, as Dana rushed to explain. "We worked together for 8 years. In that time, you became my best friend. You knew that more than anything in the world, I wanted to be a mother. At the time I was unattached." She glanced down at her engagement ring, Mulder's eyes following. "So, you agreed to be a donor." Mulder's eyes widened. "A sperm donor?" Dana nodded, praying he didn't ask when she'd had the Invitro. Mulder was quiet for a minute, a look of intense concentration on his face. He shook his head, indicating that he didn't remember. "So...what's my daughter's name?" He grinned at Dana and held out his arms. "Sam...Samantha Katherine Mulder." She'd found the middle name on a birth certificate that had been in Mulder's personal effects. Mulder looked up at her, his hazel eyes glistening with unshed tears. "Samantha? After my sister?" Dana nodded and watched, as he interacted with their child. "Hi Sam," he said making silly faces at her. "I'm your Daddy." Watching him play with Sam, Dana prayed he would be ok with John being a dad to Sam too. As if reading her thoughts, Mulder turned to her. "So, Dana, when do I get to meet the man who's going to be Sam's step-dad?" He tried to put on a serious face. "After all, I should approve him first, right?" As Dana looked shocked and opened her mouth to argue, Mulder began laughing. Realizing that he was only kidding, Dana laughed too. "You can meet John whenever you want to." He nodded. "Good. I should be out of here in a day or so. Maybe we can all get together then." She nodded, but didn't say anything as Mulder had already turned his attention back to Sam. About half an hour later, Dana returned to Sam's room to meet John. The meeting with Mulder, , had gone much better than she'd expected. She was surprised at how easily he had seemed to take to Sam, but then again this wasn't the same Fox Mulder who had gone to find their daughter so many months ago. She shrugged, as she opened the door to Sam's room. Who was she to argue with it? Dana gasped as she walked into the room. On the table in the middle of the room were a dozen white roses. Thinking they were for her, Dana walked over and pulled the card out. She giggled when she realized that they were addressed to Samantha Mulder. Opening the card she found a little note. "Welcome home, Sam. Love, John." Dana had to wipe a small tear of happiness from her eye, as she read the note. "Look Sam," she said, pointing to the flowers. "These are for you." She heard a noise behind her and turned around. John was leaning against the door, holding a small white teddy bear. She'd never seen him look more adorable. "So," he said, emotion clouding his voice. "Ready to go home?" Dana nodded happily, as she held out Sam for John to take, so she could put her coat on. "I'm more than ready to go home. John, the flowers are beautiful. You didn't have to." He smiled. "I know. But I wanted to. What's a hospital room without flowers in it?" Dana walked over to him and gave him a kiss on the cheek. "Thank you." He hugged her tight, still holding onto Sam with his other arm. "Let's go." Arm in arm they walked out of the hospital, the three of them lost in their own special world. John pulled his truck up in front of his house and went around to help Dana and Sam out. He couldn't wait for them to get inside. He hoped that Dana liked his surprise. He couldn't help but grin with his excitement. Dana noticed. "What're you grinning about, John?" she teased. "Oh, just that I'm bringing home not one, but two beautiful girls." "Yeah, right." She grinned at him, pleased with how everything seemed to be working out. As they walked through the front door, Sam yawned rather loudly. "Uh oh, I think somebody's ready for a nap," Dana said. "C'mon, let's go put her down for a nap," John said, beckoning her to the stairs. "Well...we don't have a crib for her here. It's still in storage. I guess we can put her on your bed and surround her with pillows." "I guess," John answered noncommittally. At the top of the stairs, John stopped at the door right before the master bedroom, the bedroom that would soon be his and Dana's. "John?" Dana asked. He nodded towards the door and she slowly pushed it open and gasped. Inside was all of the baby stuff that she had bought to make her second bedroom into the nursery. It had all been set up exactly as it had been in her apartment. She turned and looked at him, love shining in her eyes. "Do you like it?" he asked anxiously. "Like it? I love it! John this is perfect!!" He smiled and handed Sam over to Dana so that she could put her down for her nap. He watched, as Dana cooed at Sam softly, as she tucked her blanket in around, laying the small white teddy bear from John next to her. John walked over and stood next to her, looking down into the cradle, as she rocked it slowly back and forth. It took all of about 60 seconds for Sam to fall asleep. John wrapped his arms around Dana's waist and they stood like that for another minute, just watching Sam sleep. John kissed Dana on the side of the neck and she smiled. "Come here, I want to show you something." Dana turned and looked up at John? "Another surprise?" He grinned and took her hand, leading her out of the room, stopping to turn on the baby monitor on the way out of the door. They walked down the hall and into the master bedroom. Dana frowned, looking around the room. He pulled her over to the closet. "Ok," he said, the nervousness obvious in his voice. "Open the closet." Dana pulled open the closet door, expecting to see it filled with John's stuff as it usually was. She gasped when she got the door completely open and turned to look at John. "You didn't!" she said, shocked. He grinned that beautiful smile of his, his blue eyes lighting up. "I did." Suspicious now, Dana walked over to the master bathroom. There, lined up on the sink, were all of her cosmetics, stuff she'd left at her apartment until she could manage to get it all packed up and moved to his house. Just like all of her clothes were side by side with his in the closet. She could feel him standing behind her and turned and wrapped her arms around him, too happy for words. He bent to whisper in her ear. "I hope you don't mind that I took the liberty of having all your stuff packed and brought over here. I thought that you might be kind of busy with Sam around." She smiled up at him and kissed him softly on the lips. "Mind? John, it's almost as if you read my mind. I feel as if I should do something in return for you." John leaned forward and planted kisses on her forehead, her nose, and finally her mouth. "I can think of something you can do for me." Dana laughed. "Is that all you men think about?" "Where you're concerned, I'm sure." Dana blushed slightly at his comment and put her arms around his neck, pulling him down for another kiss. John slowly began backing them towards the bed when they heard a sound on the monitor. Sam crying. John and Dana moaned simultaneously. He looked at Dana and winked. "Why don't you stay here while I go get her? Don't worry. I'll be back." Dana smiled and nodded, as he turned to leave the room. Dana smiled to herself and went to the bathroom to splash water on her face, as she waited for John to return. Hearing a noise from the bedroom, she walked back out to see what was going on. There wasn't anyone in the room. She frowned, as she looked around and realized the sounds were coming from the baby monitor that John had set up next to the bed. She sat down own the bed, taking the monitor in her hand so she could listen to what was going on in the other room. John was making baby talk to Sam. It sounded like he was sitting in the rocking chair with her. She curled up on the bed, tucking her legs between her, leaning back against the headboard. She smiled, as John began softly singing lullabies to Sam. About 15 minutes later, John walked back into the room. Dana was still curled up, holding the monitor, staring off into space. He walked softly across the room and took the monitor from her hands, setting it on the bedside. She looked at him startled. He took her face in his hands. "Now where were we?" he murmured as he lowered his lips to meet hers. He brushed his lips across hers softly, so soft that she barely felt them. He softly tugged on her lower lip with his teeth, bringing it into his mouth, running his tongue along her teeth. She moaned softly and sank back onto the bed bringing him along with her. He took advantage of her moan to deepen the kiss, running his tongue just barely inside, teasing hers with the tip of his. She returned the favor, dipping her tongue inside his mouth, running her fingers up and down his back as she did, creating little whispers of sensation all throughout his body. He could feel himself straining against his jeans. God, he loved this woman so much. He slowly reached down with his hands, grasping the bottom of her shirt and pulling it up and over her head, tossing it on the floor. She gasped, as the cool air hit her chest, right before John covered her with his body again. She could feel the warmth of him through his shirt, but wanted him closer. As he bent down to kiss her neck and then her chest, she untucked his shirt from his jeans, landing it on the floor nicely next to hers. He smiled and made short work of her bra, sending it sailing. Dana laughed, as it got caught on the bedpost and he watched how her laugh made her breasts move, almost as if teasing him, tempting him. He leaned down and flicked his tongue over one erect nipple, smiling at her indrawn breath. He slowly took her nipple into his mouth, teasing it first with his tongue and then with his teeth, as his fingers did the same for the other nipple. She groaned and leaned into his mouth, wanting more. He knew what she wanted, but he wanted to go slow. He slowly slid his fingers of his other hand down to her jeans, undoing the button and slowly unzipping them. He kissed his way down to her stomach, sliding her jeans and underwear off of her in one swift move. He moved his mouth lower, feeling the warmth of her. He flicked his tongue against her swollen clitoris and she jumped at the sensation. Then his tongue was inside her, slowly sliding in and out, back and forth. She was bucking against him. He reached down and removed the rest of his clothes, never stopping his movements with his mouth. He stopped right before she climaxed and positioned himself above her. She looked up at him, her blue eyes so dark with passion that they were almost black. She saw the unspoken question in his eyes, loved how he always asked her permission, even though she'd never turn him down. She reached up and locked her fingers behind his head, pulling him down for a kiss. "Please, John," she whispered in his ear. "Make love to me." Needing no further encouragement, he slowly slid inside of her until she felt that she would explode from his size. He moved in and out, pulling himself almost completely out each time, so as to increase the friction. She began moving against him, tossing her head from side to side. He pumped faster, harder, wanting to climax, as badly as she did. He reached down with his thumb and rubbed her clitoris in time to his movements. That did her in. She arched against him, moaning his name. Feeling her squeeze around him, he climaxed as well, his hot seed spilling into her. He slowly lowered his weight on top of her, not removing himself from her. She pushed a lock of hair back from his head as she slowly returned to earth. She kissed his temple. "I love you," she whispered. He wrapped his arms around her, hugging her close. "I love you too." After dinner that night, they sat in front of the TV watching the news. Not that Dana really enjoyed watching the news. There was too much violence and heartache in the news these days. But John liked keeping up on world events. And he wanted to make sure that the new President wasn't going to start another war. So, they sat and watched the news. As the program came to an end, Dana stood. "Would you like some coffee, John?" He looked up at her, noticing that she seemed to be nervous. "Sure." She nodded and quickly walked out of the room. She didn't know why she was nervous. She really didn't think John was going to be mad at her or anything. She smiled, as she waited for the coffee to brew. She was rummaging around in the refrigerator when John poked his head in the door. "Hey, I'm gonna go up and check on Sam while you're doing that, k?" She looked up, a smile on her face. "Yeah, sure. But don't take too long." He blew her a kiss and headed up the stairs. About 10 minutes later, John came back into the kitchen, just as Dana was pouring two cups of coffee. "Mmm, smells good," he murmured, as he planted a kiss on top of her head. She turned around and handed him a cup and they both sat at the table. "So," John began, "What's up?" She looked down into her cup for a minute. "Nothing, really. I mean, it's not bad or anything, I just wanted to talk to you about a couple of things." He nodded and took a sip of his coffee. He stared at his cup. Dana laughed at the look on his face. "Guess you don't like it huh?" He smiled through his distaste. "It's great, Honey. What did you want to talk about?" She took a deep breath. "Mulder gets out of the hospital tomorrow. I was thinking that since you have to work and I'd be home alone with Sam, maybe I should go and give him a ride home from the hospital." John nodded. "Nothing wrong with that. He might not even remember where his apartment is." Dana let out a little breath, glad to have that over with. She had thought for some reason that John might resent Mulder coming back, might be angry that she wanted to help Mulder out. "The other thing I wanted to talk about is me going back to the FBI." John frowned slightly and motioned for her to continue. "John, I don't want to go back." He almost choked on his coffee. "What?" "I don't want to go back to the FBI. I want to find some simple 9 to 5 job where I can come home and cook dinner for you and Sam every night." John grinned, pleased by the news. "Are you sure about this? Because if you quit, they won't hire you back." She nodded, exuding confidence. "I'm sure. I think I might go back into medicine. I have some friends here in town who would offer me positions at their clinics." John reached across the table and took her hand. "Ok, Honey. If it'll make you happy, I'm behind you 100%. Besides, I will love having you home every night and not having to worry about you working some crazy case that might get you killed. Now I just have to find a new partner." Dana swatted at him playfully. "It'd better be a man." He shrugged. "Girls are all right too, you know." She rolled her eyes. "Whatever." "Maybe I'll see if Mulder will come back to the FBI," he suggested. She nodded thoughtfully. "It's worth a shot. Might do him some good. You'd have to run it by Deputy Director Kersh though." John frowned at the mention of that man. "I'll talk to Skinner tomorrow and see what he says." Suddenly Dana yawned and clapped her hand over her mouth, trying to hide it. John grinned at her. "What do you say we head to bed now?" She stood and put their coffee cups in the sink and took his hand, kissing him on the cheek. "Sounds good to me." Dana groaned, as the alarm clock started beeping in the morning. She opened one eye and looked at the clock as she smacked it, trying to make it stop. 5 am. Lovely. She'd been up half the night with Sam, who apparently was having a hard time adjusting to a new home. She rubbed her eyes and smiled as she listened to John snoring next to her. She rolled over and jabbed him softly in the ribs with her elbow. He grunted in return. "What?" "Get up John. It's 5 am." He groaned. "Do I have to? Can't I call in sick today?" She grinned and pushed him towards the side of the bed. "No, you can't. You have things to discuss with Skinner and I don't want you underfoot all day. Now move it, Mister." As she went to push him again, he suddenly rolled over and pinned her to the bed, planting kisses all across her face. "Are you sure I can't play hooky today?" he asked, lowering his face for another kiss. She laughed and kissed him back. "No, Sweetheart, you can't. But don't worry, I'll be here when you get home." John sighed and got out of bed and headed for the bathroom. Dana rolled over and pulled the covers over her head, hoping that she could fall back asleep for just a little bit longer. John came out of the bathroom about half an hour later dressed for work. He looked over at Dana who was still curled up in the bed. He thought she looked like an angel in her white satin pajamas. Her hair was strewn all over the pillows and her arms were tucked under her head. He walked over to the bed and planted a kiss softly on top of her head. "John?" she murmured. "It's me, Honey," he answered as he brushed her hair back from her face. "I'm gonna check on Sam and then head to work. You stay here and get some rest, ok?" She nodded, never opening her eyes. "Love ya," she muttered. "I love you, too." At 8 am the alarm began ringing again. Dana sighed and sat up, almost knocking the thing to the floor in her haste to shut it off. She really wished that John would get a new alarm. The sound this one makes was about to drive her crazy. She stood and stretched. Mulder was supposed to be getting out of the hospital around 9:30, so that gave her an hour to get dressed, get Sam ready, and head over to the hospital. She peeked in on Sam, who was still sleeping, then padded downstairs to make some coffee. She smiled as she saw the coffee pot already filled with coffee, and the warmer left on. Her coffee cup was set out on the counter and there was a note under it. "Love you, have a good day. John." She grinned, as she poured a cup of coffee and added a liberal amount of creamer. She had no idea how she had gotten so lucky to have this man in her life, but she definitely was not going to question it! She hummed softly, as she wandered upstairs to take a shower. She left the bathroom door open slightly, so that she could hear Sam if she happened to cry out. Half an hour later, dressed and ready to go, she made her way down the hallway to wake up Sam. She decided she'd better feed Sam before putting her clothes on, as she was still at the spitting-out-her-food stage. She gave her some banana-pear concoction then took her upstairs to get her dressed. Her mom had dropped off some baby clothes this weekend and she dressed her in a light blue turtleneck and jeans. She put her coat on her and carried her out to the car. About 10 minutes later, she parked in front of the hospital, the space reserved for loading and unloading patients. She thought, as she put Sam on her waist and entered the door. She took the elevator up to the surgical recovery floor and when it stopped, she headed for the nurses' station. A nurse glanced up at her, as she approached. Dana smiled, recognizing her as the charge nurse, Lorna. Lorna's gray eyes sparkled, almost looking silver. Dana walked up to her. "You work here and down in the nursery?" Lorna shook her head. "No, I'm usually up here. They were short down there that night, so I filled in." Dana smiled and nodded. "I see. Anyway, I'm here for Fox Mulder. Is he ready to go?" Lorna's grin widened a bit at the mention of Mulder's name. "Yeah, Mulder should be almost ready to go. Right this way." Dana frowned. She shook her head as she followed Lorna down the hall. Lorna knocked softly on door 667. Dana thought. She grinned at herself, remembering how the old Mulder would have been paranoid and noticed something like that. "Yes?" called a slightly grumpy voice from the inside. "Mulder, Miss Scully is here to take you home." The door was yanked open. Mulder was standing in front of them barefoot and shirtless, still buttoning up his jeans. "Yeah, come on in," he grumbled. "I'm almost ready to go." Dana watched as Lorna's eyes roamed up and down Mulder's body appreciatively. She shrugged and thought that this could be a good thing. Mulder pulled his t-shirt over his head and slipped on his shoes. He grabbed his coat and looked at Dana. "Morning," he said sheepishly, somewhat embarrassed for his earlier bad mood. "Morning," she replied, grinning at him. "Ready to go home?" He nodded. "Yeah, just one question," as he held out his arms to hold Sam. "Where's my home?" Dana put her arm through his and led him out into the Hall, so he could sign his release. "Don't worry, I'll show you." A while later, Tammy's eyes flickered open and she looked around a bit, confused. She tried to move, only to realize that a strong muscular arm pinned her down. She smiled and locked her fingers with Alex's. She bent her head down and started planting kisses along his arm, starting at his fingers and going as high as she could go. Suddenly, she found herself on her back staring up into those deep green eyes and that beautiful smile. She felt butterflies in her stomach just looking at him. He bent down, as if to kiss her, but turned his head at the last second, brushing his whiskers across her face. She opened her eyes wide in surprise. "Gotcha," he whispered, before lowering his mouth to her own. He sucked softly on her lower lip, dragging his teeth along it. She shivered with anticipation. There would be no mad rush this time. It would be soft, slow, and sensual this time. He moved his mouth over to her ear, licking around the outside of it, dipping the tip of his tongue inside, before pulling her ear lobe into his mouth. She groaned slightly, running her fingers through his hair, wrapping her legs around his waist. He moaned and ground against her. She brought his lips back to hers, slowly slipping her tongue inside his mouth. He slipped his tongue in hers, caressing the roof of her mouth before pulling his face away. He wanted her naked against him...NOW. A few quick movements and all of their clothes were lying in a heap on the floor. He slowly pressed his body back against hers, running fingers through her hair. He began smoothly kissing down her neck to her breasts. He ran his tongue around a nipple, blowing on it softly. As she shivered with the sensation, he took her nipple in his mouth, sucking gently while he teased her other breast with his hand. She moaned and moved against him. He took his mouth from her breast and slowly began kissing his way down her abdomen to her warm, wet center. He stopped and she could feel his breath against her inner thighs. She writhed, but he held her to the bed, with his hands on her hips. He flicked the tip of his tongue against her clit and she screamed his name, almost climaxing then and there. He slid his tongue down into her, tasting her warm wetness. He moved his tongue in and out, slow but sure. She bucked against him, moaning his name. He increased the movements of his tongue, feeling her climax around him. But he wasn't done yet... He moved his mouth back up to her breasts, teasing first one and then the other. He slowly rubbed his thumb against her clit, feeling the excitement building in her again. "Oh God, Alex, what are you doing to me?" He brought his head back up, crushing her with a kiss. "Now, Alex," she begged. "Now." He was happy to oblige, slipping himself deep inside her. He moved slowly within her. She wrapped her legs around him and moved against him, begging him to increase the tempo. He pounded into her, faster, harder, both of them breathing in shorter breaths now. She grabbed his face and brought it down for a kiss, slipping her tongue into his mouth just as starts exploded in her mind. She clenched him tight, causing him to lose control. He spilled his seed within her, as he returned her kiss. Sighing deeply, he collapsed on top of her, sated. She smiled and wrapped her arms around him, closing her eyes. As Dana pulled up in front of Mulder's building, Mulder let out a gasp. He turned and looked at Dana in disbelief. "Dana...are you telling me, that I STILL live in this building? In the same apartment that I've lived in for years?" Dana grinned at him, as she put the car in park. "Yeah, Mu...Fox. Yeah, you do." He shook his head. "Surely I could have afforded something better by now?" Dana shrugged. "I suppose so. I guess you figured it wasn't worth it since you were hardly ever home." He looked at her in confusion. She got out of the car and went around to get Sam out from the backseat. "C'mon Fox, let's go inside and I'll start explaining the past 8 years to you." He nodded and got out of the car, leading the way upstairs. They stopped in front of door 42 and Mulder fitted his key in, turning the doorknob, opening the door slowly. He stood in the middle of the room and stared. He collapsed onto the couch while Dana went into the kitchen to make them some coffee to drink. She came back carrying, not only two cups of coffee, but Sam as well. Mulder looked up at her. She handed him his cup and then sat down next to him, gently bouncing Sam on her knee. "Well, Fox...where do you want me to start?" He sighed. "What have I been doing for the past 8 years?" "In 1993 you and I were paired together on something called the X-Files. You'd actually already been investigating them on your own." Mulder interrupted. "You mean my investigations into the paranormal and to find my sister." She nodded, glad he remembered that much. "Yeah. I was made your partner in 1993 to sort of...debunk your conclusions. I was there to spy and see if I could get the X-Files closed down. Needless to say, it didn't work. You won me over." She smiled wryly at Mulder. "Anyway, we ended up traveling all over the US and even to Antarctica in your search for the truth. So you weren't home too much." He nodded. "Did I find Sam?" She looked at him. "In a way." He seemed to accept her answer though. he thought, as he looked at the mess of files and papers on his desk and on the floor. "Do I still work at the FBI?" "Yeah. With John Doggett." Mulder frowned thoughtfully. "John? Is that the same John that you're engaged too?" Dana was shocked for a minute. She'd forgotten that she'd mentioned John's name to him. She nodded. "The one and only." Mulder put on his cocky grin. "Guess that's why you're not working on the X-Files anymore then huh?" She smiled back at him. "Yes and no. The bureau was going to crack down on us for violating their policy, but that's not the only reason. Since you brought Sam home, I now have another reason for not wanting to travel all the time." She got up to put her coffee cup in the sink and noticed that his answering machine light was blinking. "Hey, Fox. You got a message on your machine." She looked over her shoulder and noticed that he was engrossed in talking to Sam. "Yeah yeah," he answered distractedly. On the way back from the kitchen, Dana walked over and pushed play on the machine. There was only one message. "Hey, Mulder. It's Krycek. I know you said that you'd call me in a couple days, but...I had a funny feeling and I thought I'd call and see if you were ok. Call me back, will ya? I'm at Tammy's. 303- 555-0724. Later." Mulder looked up at Dana, the confusion evident on his face. "Who was that?" She sat back down next to Mulder, taking his hand in hers. "Ok. In the past 8 years, we've become involved with some pretty nasty people, who have done a lot of mean things to us. The last thing these people did was take Sam away from me...Before she was even born." She paused, and wiped away a tear. "You and Krycek...Alex Krycek...you went to track this man down and bring my baby home to me." Mulder nodded. "How do I know Krycek? Is he another Agent?" "Once upon a time he was. But then, he went to work for this other man, the man who stole our child. I can only assume that he got tired of working for that man when he stole our child and decided to help you find Sam. I don't know. You were the one who decided to work with him. You didn't tell the rest of us the reason why." Mulder shook his head slowly. "I think that's a lot of information for me to sort out in my head." Dana nodded. "Yeah, I'll take Sam and we'll go home. Here, " she scribbled something down on a piece of paper. "If you need anything, call me, ok?" Mulder stood, handing Sam back to her and giving her a hug. "Thanks, Dana." "Hey," she said, looking at him with tears in her eyes, tears of happiness. "That's what friends are for, right?" He grinned as he closed the door behind her. Dana hummed, as she bustled around the kitchen making lunch. John had called shortly after she had returned home from Mulder's apartment and had said that he would stop by for lunch today. She'd decided to make a meatloaf, since it was chilly out today and looked like it might start snowing again. John had said that he talked to Skinner this morning and would tell her about it when he got home. She had lunch set out on the table when John walked in the door and was patiently trying to get Sam to eat some green bean mush. He walked over and kissed first her, then Sam, on top of the head. "How are my two favorite girls today?" He asked, with a huge grin on his face. Dana smiled up at him and kissed him on the cheek. "I'm good. But Sam is kind of grumpy." John dropped his briefcase on the floor and sat down at the table. "Let me take her so you can eat." "John, you need to eat too. You have to be back at the office by 1." He looked up from his lunch. "Actually, I don't. I have the rest of the day off." She was shocked. "You do? How'd you manage that one?" He grinned, knowing that she was going to enjoy the news he had for her. He bounced Sam up and down and motioned for her to start eating. "Have you seen the news today, Dana?" She shook her head. "No, you know watching that stuff depresses me. Why?" "Well, a plane went down in the middle of Iowa late last night. A plane that was headed from Washington DC to Seattle. There were no survivors." "Oh, that's so sad. But what does this have to do with us?" "Deputy Director Kersh was on the plane." Dana dropped her fork. "What???" John bent down and picked her fork up off the floor for her. "Apparently he was going to some conference in Seattle. Took a late flight last night, instead of one this morning." Dana couldn't speak for a minute, so John continued. "They have already assigned someone to his position." Dana raised an eyebrow. "Really? Who?" John grinned even bigger. "Walter Skinner." Dana's jaw hit the floor. "Oh my." John held up his hand. "But wait...there's more." "More? John, what else could there be?" "Skinner asked me to offer you his position as AD." Dana just stared at him. She had no idea what to say. So many thoughts were racing through her head. Yes, she'd love to be AD, she'd always wanted to advance in the bureau, but now she had Sam and John and she wanted to be a family. She didn't know if she could do both. She sighed. John watched the emotions roll across her face. He could tell what every one of them was by now. He had known that this wouldn't be an easy decision for her to make, but he had promised Skinner that he would offer it to her anyway. He reached over and took his hand in hers. "Hey," he said softly. "You don't have to decide now. You're still on maternity leave, remember?" She looked at him and smiled. "Yeah. I know." Her look returned to one of brooding and John knew that she was going to argue the subject in her head until she made up her mind. He leaned over and kissed her softly on the cheek. "I'm gonna take Sam upstairs and put her to bed, ok?" She nodded, still lost in thought. Mulder paced around his apartment. He was too restless to sit down. He was frustrated and angry. He wanted to scream and yell and throw things. He couldn't believe that the past 8 years of his life were gone from his memory. He kicked a trashcan across the living room and plopped on the sofa. He knew he needed to find something to get his mind off of this, but he had no idea what. He knew he should probably call that Krycek guy back too, but what do you say to someone who remembers you quite clearly, but you can't even recall his first name? Mulder sighed and stood up. Just then, there was a knock on his door. He stared, as he opened the door. "Hi, Mulder," came the beautiful, soft, sexy voice from the other side. "I, um, I hope you don't mind me dropping by. I thought you might like some company." He finally found his voice. "Lorna. Hi. No, I don't mind at all. Come on in, but be warned the place is a mess." She smiled, as she stepped inside. She knew he was a bachelor and had a pretty good idea of what to expect. She felt kind of guilty about being there. She had copied his address from his hospital file, which was definitely against regulations. She just felt so...like he needed a friend. Mulder motioned towards the couch. "Have a seat. Did you want some coffee to drink?" She nodded and slipped her coat off. "Sure, why not?" Mulder turned and went to the kitchen to get them both some coffee to drink. He had a huge smile on his face by the time he entered the kitchen. Half an hour later, when John returned from rocking Sam to sleep, Dana was still sitting at the table frowning. She looked up, her face clearing as John entered the room. He sat down across from her and took her hand. She smiled at him and squeezed his hand before she began speaking. "You know, John, when I first came to the Bureau, I was young and I wanted to prove myself. To my friends and to my family. And I wanted to prove to myself that I could do it, I could make it big in the Bureau. I dreamed of being offered a position like the one that Skinner has just offered me. But, over the past 8 years, I've changed. And so have my goals in life. I want more than just a good job, prestige, authority. I want a family. I want someone to love me, to care about me, to be there for me. I want to be home every night. I don't want to go on wild goose chases all over the country anymore." She took a deep breath. "So while I am honored that Skinner would choose me, as his successor, please tell him that I don't want the job." John nodded. He had known that she wouldn't want the job anyway, but he wanted her to make her own decision. He smiled at her. "If you makes you happy, Babe, then I am behind you all the way. You know I'd support you, even if you wanted to stay around the house and watch soap operas all day long." He made a face, as he said that and Dana laughed at him. "Yeah. I can just see me sitting around watching Days of our Lives all day long." She snickered. "Anyway, we have much more important things to discuss." John looked at her, a bit of fear flickering through his eyes. "Such as?" "Our wedding date." After they'd talked about important things like the wedding date and where they were going to have it, John had decided that he should probably stop back by work to let Skinner know of Dana's decision. Dana had been pleased with the idea, knowing that she needed to call her mother this afternoon and let her know about the wedding plans. She also wanted to call Alex Krycek. She wasn't sure why. She knew that he had called asking for Mulder, not for her. But she also wanted some answers. She wanted to know what had happened out there. And she wanted to know why Mulder had suddenly trusted this man. And, if he really was trustworthy and had been there for Mulder, then he deserved to know Mulder's condition. She put the dishes in the dishwasher after kissing John good-bye. She made sure Sam was still sleeping peacefully in her crib before reaching for the phone in John's room. She felt the butterflies in her stomach as she dialed the number. She could only hope that he would talk to her and be willing to answer her questions. "Hello?" The voice on the other end of the phone jolted her out of her thoughts. The voice was female. "Yes, I'd like to speak to Alex Krycek please." There was a pause on the other end of the line. "May I ask who is calling please?" "This is Special Agent Dana Scully with the FBI." Pause. "Just a moment." Dana waited, her fingernails tapping anxiously on the top of the bed. "Agent Scully?" came the voice from the other end of the line. The voice that brought forth the face, that for so long, she had acquainted with nightmares. "Krycek," she responded, unsure of exactly how to broach the subject. "What can I do for you, Agent Scully?" he asked, sounding polite, nice, almost like a gentleman. She took a deep breath. "You called for Mulder. I'm returning your phone call." Silence. "I see. And why isn't Mulder returning my phone call." "He...." She paused, searching for the words. "Mulder was in a car accident when he returned to DC. He has amnesia. He doesn't remember the past 8 years of his life. He doesn't remember you." The silence was almost deafening this time, it stretched out for so long. When he spoke again, his voice reflected caring and concern. "How are you handling it?" This was not the question that she had expected. "Ok, I guess. I...it's strange. It's like I've lost my best friend, but I haven't." She shut her mouth. Why oh why was she confiding in this man? "Can I do anything to help?" She shook her head, not realizing at first that he couldn't see it. "No. Not for Mulder." "What can I do for you, Dana?" She realized that he used her first name. It seemed strange, yet not wrong. "What changed, Alex? Why did Mulder trust you? And what happened out there?" She swallowed, hoping that her voice wouldn't break. She didn't know why she was getting so emotional about this. she told herself. The only problem with that was, she couldn't. She had too many emotions invested in this. She needed answers. "I changed, Dana. I...I got tired of being on both sides, although you and Mulder didn't know it. I...I fucked up, big time. And I lost your trust, both yours and Mulder's. I went to work for that man, hoping that by being privy to his information I could protect the two of you. It worked...kind of. Up until your daughter. I think he'd begun to suspect. I had no clue that it was going to happen. And I felt so guilty afterwards. I wanted to help, to make up for all the wrongs that I had done. I went to Mulder, explained it all to him. I'll never know why he took my word for it, but he did. He gave me a second chance to prove myself." She wiped away a tear, on the other end of the phone. She could hear the raw emotion in Alex Krycek's voice and it tore at her heart. He continued. "We found Cancer Man. Holed up in a cabin in Montana. Just him and Samantha and a man for protection. We staked him out, watched his routine. And when he was alone one day, just him and Samantha, we went in. And killed him." She could hear something change in his voice. There was something he wasn't telling her. "Who killed him? How?" Her voice was barely above a whisper. There was a pause. She knew he was contemplating telling her something. "Mulder did it, didn't he?" His voice was as soft as hers was. "Yeah, Dana, Mulder killed him. Broke his neck. We burned the place to the ground. I'm sorry, you shouldn't have to hear that." "It's ok. I needed to know. Thank you." "Are you going to be ok?" he asked, the concern returning. "Yeah, I'll be fine. Thanks, Alex," she said as she returned the phone to the cradle. She wrapped her arms around her knees, pulling them close to her chest. And she sat like that for a long time, rocking back and forth, one thought running through her mind. When John came home half an hour later, he found her just like that on the bed, lost in her thoughts. He knocked softly and she turned her face towards him. For once he couldn't read the look in her eyes. "Dana?" he questioned quietly. In response, she held out her arms. He sat on the bed next to her, stroking her hair. "What is it Honey? Is everything all right?" She nodded and looked up at him. "Oh yes, John. Everything is all right. It's more than all right. It's finally over." He looked at her, the confusion evident in his blue eyes. "What do you mean?" She took his hand and laced his fingers through hers. "I mean that I can stop worrying whether or not the Smoking Man will come and abduct Sam again. He's dead. The Smoking Man is finally gone and I can get on with my life. My new life with you and Sam." He was overjoyed at the news, but.... "How did you find this out, Dana?" "I called Alex Krycek today." "Krycek?" He tried to remember what he had learned about this man when he read through all of Mulder's files. "That murdering ex-Agent? Why?" She sighed. "Because he was Mulder's unlikely source for help in finding Sam. Because I needed answers. I had to know what happened out there. And now I know. I can put it all behind me." He kissed the top of her head. "Good." She grinned up at him. "There's just one more problem to tackle now." John looked at her, trying to imitate her questioning look by raising one eyebrow. "And what's that?" "Calling my mother. I know she's going to complain that we're not giving her enough time to plan a big wedding." John groaned. "Are you sure we can't elope?" Dana swatted him playfully with a pillow. "I am very sure. I only plan on doing this once and I want it to be perfect." "Well that's good news." He leaned over and kissed her gently, then stood up. "I think I'll go check on Sam, while you tackle your mother." She rolled her eyes. "Gee thanks, John." She could hear John talking to Sam on the baby monitor in their room and leaned over to turn it down. She sighed, as she picked up the phone to call her mother. This was going to be a long conversation. "Hello?" "Hi Mom, it's Dana." "Dana, Honey! I haven't heard from you in ages. How is everything? What's going on?" She took a deep breath. "Actually, Mom, I have lots of news for you. Mulder's back. He found our daughter and brought her home. Her name is Samantha Katherine." "Oh Dana. When can I see her?" "Soon, Mom, I promise. There's more though. Mulder has amnesia. He doesn't remember the past 8 years of his life." "Oh my goodness. How are you handling this? I know how close the two of you are." "I'll be fine, Mom, really. I, actually, have even more news that I was calling to tell you." On the other end of the phone, Maggie Scully sat down in a chair, feeling as if she would need it. "More, Dana?" "Mom, you remember my new partner John Doggett, right?" "Oh yes, that nice man who was at Bill's funeral." "Yeah Mom, that's him. Well...he and I are getting married in 3 months." There was complete silence on the other end of the phone. "Mom?" "I'm fine Dana. That's just...well that's a lot of stuff for me to take in at once. 3 months you say? You've set a date then?" John walked back into the room, holding Sam, just in time to see Dana roll her eyes. "Yes Mom. May 11." "Where are you having it at? Who will be in your wedding party? Dana, do you realize how much stuff has to be done before your wedding?" "Yes, Mom, I realize that. And that's why I'm calling you. I thought you might like to help me plan my wedding." John snickered from the other end of the room and Dana glared at him. "Of course I would, Honey!!" "Good, Mom. Why don't you come down on Saturday and we'll discuss it then." "Ok. Oh, Dana...what about your job?" "At the FBI? I quit, Mom. I want to find a job where I can be home for my family in the evenings." Maggie Scully was thankful that she had found that chair to sit down in. "I see. Ok, well, I will call you on Friday and we can set up a time for Saturday, ok?" "Ok Mom. I love you." "I love you too, Dana." Dana couldn't hang up the phone fast enough. "Well, that's done with." John came over to sit down next to her, handing her Sam. "That's good." She made faces at Sam and then looked at John. "How was the meeting with Skinner?" He smiled. "It was good. Really good." "How'd he take me turning down his offer?" She was talking to John, but she was looking at Sam again. "Actually, he had expected it. He had figured that when you left on maternity leave, you wouldn't be returning to the Bureau at all." Dana nodded. "So who's gonna get his job then?" "Me." Dana turned and stared at John. "You're gonna be AD?" He nodded. "Wow." She wrapped her arms around him in a big hug. "Congratulations!" He blushed slightly. "Thanks." "I guess we should go out and celebrate tonight then." She was quiet for a minute. "Who does that leave on the X-Files then?" He knew that she would ask that question sooner or later. "Actually, I'm going to talk to Mulder tomorrow about returning to work. And then I'm going to call Monica Reyes and see if she'd be willing to transfer up here." "Oh, that's a good choice. I always liked her, John." "As long as she wasn't going to be my partner, right?" She grinned. "I was just teasing. I know I can trust you. Now, where are we going to celebrate?" John and Dana had decided to go to a nice family restaurant to celebrate. That way they could take Sam with them. Dinner was fun. They didn't have to talk about anything important and for that Dana was grateful. They were fighting over the last bite of the apple dessert they had ordered, when Dana's cell phone rang. As she reached for her phone, John stole the last piece. She glared at him, as she answered the phone. "Scully." "Dana?" came the questioning voice. "Hi Fox. What can I do for you?" "Well...um...." He sounded nervous. "I...well, I was wondering if I could possibly see Sam for awhile this evening. It's just that-" Dana interrupted him. "Of course you can see Sam this evening, Fox. You don't have to explain why you want to." John got up to pay the check while Dana was talking to Mulder. "When would you like for me to bring her over?" "Anytime is fine." Dana nodded. "John and I will drop her off in about half an hour then. Is that ok?" "That's great." Mulder's voice had brightened considerably. "Thanks Dana." "No problem Fox. See you in a bit. Bye." "Bye." John had returned for the end of the conversation and had already helped Sam into her coat. He was waiting to help Dana into hers. "Do we need to stop by the house and get anything before we head to Mulder's?" he asked as he picked up Sam. "Nope," she answered, as she shouldered the large diaper bag. "I think there's enough stuff in here for someone to keep Sam for a week." He laughed and they headed for the door. True to her word, half an hour later, Dana was knocking on Mulder's door. He opened the door with a big grin on his face. "Hey guys, come on in." He held out his arms for Sam. John handed her over while Dana went to put some of Sam's stuff in the fridge. Mulder put Sam on his hip and thrust his free hand towards John. "Fox Mulder." "John Doggett." He shook Mulder's hand. Mulder motioned towards the couch and they both sat. "So," Mulder began. "You and I work together at the Bureau." John cleared his throat. "Well, not as partners anymore." Mulder looked at him questioningly. John continued. "Skinner got promoted to Deputy Director and I got Skinner's job as AD." Mulder nodded. If he wondered why he didn't get the promotion, he didn't show it. "Congratulations." "Thanks." There was an awkward silence before John spoke again. "So...do you want to come back to work on the X-Files? You don't have to come back until you're ready. I just wondered if I needed to find one or two Agents." Mulder nodded. "I'll be back to work Monday." "Ok. Let me know if you need more time though." Just then, Dana came back into the living room. She hadn't really needed that much time in the kitchen, but she wanted John and Mulder to be able to talk. "Ok. Sam's food and formula are in the fridge. Remember to warm the formula before you give it to her." Mulder rolled his eyes. "Anything else, Mom?" She stuck her tongue out at him. "Yeah. What time are we picking her up?" He shrugged. "Couple hours." She nodded as John stood. "Sounds good. See you guys then." "Have fun," John added. John pulled Dana close to him after Mulder shut the door behind them. "Now we can really celebrate," he whispered in her ear. John held Scully's hand, as he lead her back down to his truck, which was parked in front of Mulder's building. He helped her get in and then went around and got behind the driver's seat. They sat there for a few minutes, waiting for the truck to warm up. "So, now where are we going?" Dana asked. John smiled, as he pulled away from the curb. "You'll see." She stuck her tongue out at him and slumped back into the seat. "You know, Dana, you keep doing that and we won't ever make it to our destination." She grinned and thought about sticking her tongue out at him again, but she really wanted to know where they were going. She turned and looked at the scenery passing outside the window. It looked as if they were going back to the house. She wondered what kind of "surprise" he had planned for there. She started to ask him about it, when she noticed that he had turned off their usual path home. He was driving down a fancy residential neighborhood. Dana loved the houses there, but they were so expensive. John stopped the truck in front of a large white house. It was two stories tall and had a wraparound porch on the front. Dana turned to question John, but he had already gotten out of the truck and was headed to her side. She pushed open the door. "John? What are we doing here?" she asked, as she closed the truck door behind her. "You'll see," he answered, as he led her up to the porch. He fitted a key into the lock and the door swung open easily. Before she could get inside, John swept her up into his arms and carried her inside, kicking the door shut behind him. "Welcome to our new home, Dana," he said, as he sat her down. She looked at him in shock. "Are you serious?" He nodded and she went from room to room exploring while he lit a fire in the fireplace in the living room. She came back from her exploring. "John this is wonderful!! But what's wrong with the house we live in now?" He pulled her into his arms, kissing her on top of the head. "Nothing. But I want a new house for us to start over...as a family. You and me and Sam. I don't need those old memories of when I lived there alone." She smiled and kissed him softly. "Thank you." John grinned mischievously. "You'll be thanking me more in a little while." Dana laughed and he slowly laid her down on the rug in front of the fireplace, watching the light from the flames dance in her hair. She was so beautiful. He ran his fingers through her hair and began kissing her softly. First her forehead, then her cheeks, her nose, and finally he took her mouth in his own, probing it softly with his tongue. She could feel the passion already burning inside of her and wanted him...but she wanted to excite him first. She pushed him over onto his back and began kissing him...hard and deep. He groaned, excited by her aggressiveness. She pulled his shirt over his head and began running her fingers up and down his chest, sucking on his lip all the while. He gripped his fingers in her hair loving every minute of this. She slowly pulled his fingers from her hair, so that she could move her head down farther. She kissed down his chest, stopping to examine each of his nipples with her tongue. Her fingers were working at the buttons of his jeans, trying to open them. As she kissed her way down to his stomach, her hands succeeded. She dipped her tongue in his navel, as she pushed his jeans off of him, boxers going with them. Now he was naked before her. She looked at him in the firelight and couldn't believe how lucky she was. She slowly moved her mouth down to his penis, licking it with soft, sure strokes, her hands cupping his balls and massaging them. He moaned as she ran her tongue over the tip of his penis. "Oh God, Dana, don't stop." She had no intention of stopping. She slowly took him into her mouth, running her tongue in circles around him. She moved him in and out of her mouth, taking him in more and more each side, until he was completely in her mouth. He couldn't help it. He locked his fingers in her hair, trying to get her to move faster, take him deeper. She was willing to comply and with a loud moan, he came in her mouth. Smiling, she moved back up him, pressing little kisses all the way up. He lay watching, as she moved off of him and began removing her clothes in the firelight. He watched as her shirt, her bra, then her pants and panties all piled up behind her. Watching her move seductively, he could feel his passion returning. When she was naked, he reached up and pulled her back down to the rug, positioning her under him. He kissed her deeply then, wanting her to be as ready as he already was. He ran his fingers down to her warm center, inserting one, moving it back and forth. He could feel her beginning to get excited. He rubbed his thumb on her clit, inserting another finger. He moved his tongue in her mouth to the rhythm of his fingers. Suddenly he pulled his fingers out. She could feel him pressing at her entrance and she was ready for him. She wrapped her legs around his waist and he thrust into her. She moaned, but his mouth caught the sound. He brought his hands up to tease her nipples, as he slowly began moving inside of her. She gripped him tighter with her legs, wanting him to go faster. She tangled her fingers in his hair, loving what he was doing to her. He moved swiftly now, wanting her to climax before he did. She clenched him tightly then, gasping his name out. He pumped once, twice more, before coming deep inside of her. She could feel his warmth running into her, as he collapsed on top of her. He smiled at her. "Welcome me home like that every night?" he asked. She kissed him softly. "Only if you're good," she whispered. The entire way back to Mulder's to pick up Sam, Dana couldn't stop thinking about the house that John had bought for her...for them. It was as if he'd read her dreams. She was already imagining where she would put the furniture and what she would buy to put on the wraparound porch. Although she thought that getting a house with four bedrooms was probably wishful thinking. She sure as hell hoped that he didn't get that many bedrooms, so that her Mom could come visit all the time. She grinned at that thought. As they pulled up in front of Mulder's building, they noticed a car with Colorado plates parked out front. thought Dana, as they went up to Mulder's apartment. She knocked lightly on the door, as John stood behind her, his arms wrapped around her. Her jaw hit the floor when the door swung open. She was greeted by one of the most stunning women she'd ever seen. She was about 5'8" and had shoulder length reddish hair. Her green eyes seemed to pierce through Dana. "Can I help you?" she asked, a bit of a Southern drawl in her voice. "Is Fox here?" Dana asked, annoyed at the bit of jealousy that crept into her voice. "Yeah, come on in." The redhead turned and yelled into the bedroom. "Mulder! Company!" Mulder came out of the bedroom carrying Sam, at the same time that Krycek stepped out of the kitchen with two cups of coffee. Dana just stared. She felt as if she were in an alternate universe. Although, it gave her a bit of comfort, to see the stunned look on her face reflected in Krycek's. Dana decided to ignore the other two and she and John walked over to Mulder. Dana reached out for Sam. "How was she?" she asked Fox. He grinned at Dana. "She was a gem. She must take after me." Dana swatted him on the arm. "As if. She takes after me, you just haven't learned it yet." He grinned and pointed to the other two in the room. "Alex Krycek, Tammy Aiken." He pointed to the two standing next to him. "Dana Scully, John Doggett." John eyed Krycek, as Tammy eyed Dana, all of them sizing each other up. Tammy was the first to break the silence. She stuck her hand towards Dana. "Nice to meet you." Dana shook it reluctantly, somewhat uncomfortable about the whole situation. Yes, she'd talked to Krycek on the phone, but being in the same room with him still made her uncomfortable. It was obvious to John that Dana was ready to go. He quickly shook hands with Krycek then made their excuses. They said good night and headed out the door. Dana rocked Sam gently, as they went to the truck. "Thanks, John." He nodded and leaned over to kiss her after starting the truck. "Anytime, Hon." The months passed and winter turned into spring. Dana was very happy. She'd not yet found a job; but then again, she was waiting until after the honeymoon to find full time work. For the most part, she stayed at home with Sam. She did attend some therapy with Mulder once a week to try and help him regain his memory. So far, they hadn't had any luck. But Mulder wasn't giving up and that was a good sign. Krycek and Tammy had moved into John's old house when he and Dana and Sam had moved into the new one and they were trying to help Mulder as well, when he wasn't out working an X-File or hanging out with Lorna, who was now officially his girlfriend. Dana also spent some time hanging out with Monica Reyes. Shortly after Monica had transferred up to DC, they had gotten together, each of them feeling the need for a gal pal. Dana had liked Monica from the first time she'd met her, and now Dana considered her the closest girl friend she'd ever had. So close, in fact that Dana had asked her to be the maid of honor at her wedding. Dana smiled, as she thought about her wedding. It was in exactly 7 days and she was so excited, that she could barely contain it. She was also excited for another reason and she couldn't wait for John to come home to share it with him. Dana was unpacking some of the boxes in the guest bedroom when she heard the doorbell. She hurried downstairs to see who it was. "Mom. Hi." Dana said, slightly surprised. "Hi, Honey!" her mom exclaimed as she wrapped her arms around Dana. "I didn't think you were coming until tomorrow Mom," Dana was trying to pry her mother's arms away from her. "I know, but I just got so excited thinking about your wedding, and I thought that I would come and spend some time with you and Sam before the big day." Dana sighed, but tried to hide it form her mom. She was sure that her mom only meant well. "Well Mom, I was just getting your guest bedroom ready. Why don't you follow me upstairs and I'll show you where it is and then we'll go check on Sam. She should be waking up from her nap right about now." Maggie nodded and picked up one of her bags, while Dana picked up the other, following her daughter upstairs. Maggie looked around her, as Dana showed her into the room. "Oh Dana, this is beautiful!" she exclaimed. All the floors in the house were hardwood, and Dana had put colorful area rugs in all of the rooms. This room was decorated in forest green and mauve. There was a queen size bed, a rocking chair, a nightstand and a dresser in the room, all of them made out of oak. Maggie sank down on the bed, enjoying the way she sank into the mattress. "This is fabulous. You know, Dana, I'm a bit tired. Would you mind if I took a nap?" Dana shook her head. "Not at all Mom. I need to feed Sam and then I still have some boxes to unpack downstairs." Maggie nodded at her, her eyes already sliding shut. "Make sure you wake me in time for dinner." Dana smiled and closed the door silently behind her, leaning against it, as she did. She hoped that this week would pass quickly. She and John had planned to go to Hawaii for their honeymoon, while Maggie kept Sam. She couldn't wait. Dana was in the kitchen fixing dinner that night when her mom came downstairs. "My goodness Dana, you sure are making a lot of food." Dana slipped the second pan of lasagna into the oven and turned to her mom. "John and I are having a dinner party tonight, remember?" Maggie shook her head. "No, I don't remember, Sweetie. Should I remember?" "Yes, Mom. I had originally asked you to come today and you told me that you couldn't because you had something to do." "I see," said Maggie taking a seat at the table. "Who all will be here?" "You, me, John, and Sam. Fox and Lorna. Alex and Tammy. Monica and her latest fling. Oh yeah, and Walter, too." Maggie nodded again. "Why are they all coming to dinner?" Dana thought, as she answered her mother. "Well, for one, because we're all friends and we hang out. And two, so that we can discuss last minute details for the wedding." "Ok." Dana turned back to the counter and opened a glass of wine. "Would you like a drink Mom?" "Yes. Yes, I think I would." And so they sat in silence for awhile, sipping their wine, Dana getting up occasionally to check on dinner. Maggie was in the kitchen feeding Sam, while Dana was making breadsticks and salad when John came home. Dana sensed his presence before he said anything and she turned and smiled brightly at him, wiping her hands off before going to give him a hug. "Hey Honey. How was work today?" He grinned at the welcome and kissed her on the cheek. "Oh, you know. Same old stuff. Listening to Mulder's outrageous theories, then listening to Monica's. Skinner, wanting to know why my agents spend so much money traveling. Really, he should know that already. He doesn't need to harass me about it." John seemed to notice Maggie for the first time. "Hi Maggie. How are you?" She grinned at her soon to be son-in-law. "I'm good. A bit tired from traveling, but doing good." Just then, the doorbell rang and John rolled his eyes. "Tonight is the night that the whole crew is coming over, isn't it?" Dana smiled at his expression. He had been the one to choose the date originally. "Yes, dear, it is." "Well, while you guys finish up in here, I think I'll go and answer the door." He swatted Dana on the behind, as he left the kitchen. Tammy sauntered into the kitchen a few minutes later. "Hey Dana...Can I help?" Dana turned and smiled at Tammy. She had grown to like her. And she definitely appreciated Tammy's wacky sense of humor. "Hey you. Yeah, you can help. Want to put the salad on the table while I get the breadsticks and the lasagna out of the oven?" She nodded. "Sure thing. Anything else?" "Oh you know, the usual. Salad dressing, extra napkins for the men." She smiled and Tammy laughed at her. Monica made her way into the kitchen then, followed closely by Lorna. "So," said Monica, "I see this is the room where the intelligence hangs out." Dana started laughing so hard, she about dropped the breadsticks. Lorna ran to help her. "Whatever you do, Monica," Dana managed to squeeze out, "Do not say that in front of John." "Or Mulder either," inserted Lorna, as they all exchanged conspiratorial glances, knowing how Mulder's ego was. 10 minutes later they were all seated around the table, eagerly devouring the food, talking about nothing in particular. As Monica brought out the cherry pie that she had brought for dessert and Dana began serving coffee, the talk turned to the upcoming wedding. "So," Dana asked. "Everyone remembers the rehearsal dinner is on the 10th at 6pm, correct?" Most of the guys rolled their eyes at this. Dana had been reminding them about this every day since May 1st. "Yes Dana," everyone chorused and she laughed. Just recently, she had begun to realize how much her friends meant to her and, as she looked around the table, she realized that she was thankful for each and every one of them to be there. "Well, I guess you all will remember that then, huh?" she remarked. "Does anyone have any other questions then?" Mulder raised his hand and they all laughed. "Yes, Fox?" asked Dana, sounding very much like a schoolteacher. "Is there something you'd like to share with the class?" He grinned his goofy grin at her. "Yeah. I'm supposed to be holding your ring, right? Does someone have that? When are you giving it to me? Please don't give it to me too early, I might lose it." They all laughed then. Dana held John's hand close, as he answered the question. "Actually, Mulder, I'm skipping out on work tomorrow so that we can go and pick out the rings." Mulder nodded. John continued. "I'll give it to you about 5 minutes before the ceremony. Think you can hold onto it that long?" Mulder did his best to look serious. "I'll try." John looked around at his group of friends and smiled. They almost felt like family and it was a good feeling. He wished that his parents could be here for his wedding, the one that would last forever, but it wasn't meant to be. They had died in a car crash about 6 years ago. Dana caught the look of sadness in his eyes and squeezed his hand. She knew what he was thinking. He turned and smiled at her. "So," she asked, anxious for everyone to go home. "Is that it?" Alex Krycek, of all the people in the room, seemed to be the only one to pick up on her intentions. He faked a huge yawn. "I hope so Dana, because I'm about to fall asleep here. Thank you for the wonderful dinner though." She smiled her thanks at him, as everyone got up to leave. She took turns hugging everyone, as they went out the door. When everyone was gone, she and John headed towards the kitchen to clean up, but Maggie quickly shooed them back out. "I didn't help make the dinner, the least I can do is clean it up." John shrugged and Dana smiled. Who were they to argue with that? Dana locked her fingers with John's and led him upstairs. They stopped by Sam's door, seeing that she was sleeping peacefully. She was 9 months old now and slept straight through the night, which Dana was immensely grateful for. When they got to their room, Dana pushed the door shut behind them. John began getting ready for bed, when he noticed that Dana was still standing by the door. He turned at her, his eyes showing confusion and a bit of alarm. "Dana? Is everything ok?" She smiled at him then, a smile so big it could light up the room. "Actually, John, everything is more than ok." He came over and took her in his arms. "How's that?" "Well, John, I guess it's a good thing you bought a big house after all. I'm pregnant." He looked at her, surprise and happiness warring in his eyes. "Really? How?' "John Doggett, did your mother never have the birds and the bees talk with you?" He laughed. "You know what I meant." She kissed him on the lips and laid her cheek against his check. "I know. But I don't have an answer." He held her closer. "That's ok, I don't need one. How far along are you?" "6 weeks." He tipped her head up until her eyes met his. He kissed her softly, deeply, showing her exactly how he felt about it. When the kiss ended, she whispered softly in his ear. "I know. I love you too." May 11, 2002 dawned bright and sunny. Dana got up at 6am that morning, too nervous to sleep any longer. The wedding wasn't until 2, but she knew that she had a million things to finish before then, although when her mom asked her what still needed to be done, she simply shrugged because she suddenly couldn't remember any of them. John left shortly after breakfast that morning. He would be going over to Fox's apartment to get ready, so that Dana could have the house to get herself ready. He knew that all the women would be congregating there shortly and he did NOT want to be around for that. When the doorbell rang at 8am, Dana ran to answer it. On the other side were Tammy and Monica, Dana's two bridesmaids. She hugged them both and they laughed at her obvious exuberance over getting married. "Gee, Dana," teased Tammy, "I hope that I'm this excited when I get married!" They all grinned, knowing that when Tammy's turn came to walk down the aisle, she'd probably be more hyper than Dana was at this very moment. "Have you guys set a date yet?" asked Monica, as they all trooped upstairs to Dana's bedroom to get her ready. "Actually, Alex and I talked about it last night. Dana, you guys aren't leaving for your honeymoon until the 14th, right?" Dana nodded. "Yeah, we had to wait until then to get some cheaper airfare or some such nonsense. But Mom is leaving and taking Sam home with her after the wedding, so we all know the honeymoon is really gonna start tonight." Tammy laughed and Monica just stared, still unable to Believe, that the professional Dana Scully she first Met, could say stuff like this. "Anyway," continued Tammy, "Alex and I decided that we don't want to have a big wedding. So tomorrow, at noon, we're going to go to the courthouse and get married by a justice of the peace. And I want both of you to be there." They had just stepped into Dana's room when Tammy made that announcement and Dana turned and hugged Tammy. "Well, noon will be kind of early," Dana winked. "But we'll try and make it there." The three girls collapsed into giggles, as Maggie Scully walked into the room. She tried to look sternly at them, but it didn't work. She clapped her hands. "Come on girls, let's get this show on the road." Over at Fox's apartment, John was just as nervous as Dana was. He kept double-checking his pocket to make sure that he had the ring. Alex finally reached over and took the box out of John's hand. "I'll hold onto this until it's time to give it to Fox, ok?" Fox grinned and John nodded, still looking nervous. But then again, it could be because he had a huge hangover from last night's bachelor party. "So Alex," Fox broke the silence. "When are you getting hitched?" Alex mock glared at Mulder before answering. "Tomorrow, actually. Tammy and I decided to get married by a Justice of the Peace at noon tomorrow. I hope you guys can be there." John smiled at Alex. Alex was still a mystery to him, but over the past few weeks he'd grown to like the guy. "Yeah, well, hopefully I'll be able to get Dana out of bed by then." Alex laughed, but Fox seemed to be lost in thought. "Fox?" John asked. "You ok?" Fox shook his head and grinned. "Yeah, sorry. Just a bit of a headache. I'd better go take something for that." He walked down the hall towards the bathroom, a frown on his face. He's just had the oddest vision. When John mentioned getting Dana out of bed, he had "seen" himself in bed with her. He shook his head, as he downed some aspirin. He'd been having visions like that for the past two days, but today, he wasn't going to worry about it. Today was John and Dana's day. Tomorrow he'd ask his doctor about it. Alex was helping John get his tuxedo out of the protective bag, when Fox walked back into the room. He clapped John on the back. "Well, my friend, kiss goodbye to being able to make your own decisions." They all laughed and started getting John ready for the wedding. The men arrived at the church at 1:30. They knew that the ladies were arriving at 1:45 and that gave them 15 minutes to get everyone in place. John was so nervous that he couldn't seem to stand still. Alex and Fox were both standing up front at the altar trying not to snicker, as John walked back and forth. Fox looked out into the crowd. Most of the faces he didn't know, but a few were familiar. He smiled when Lorna waved at him. He saw Skinner sitting out there with a very pretty redhead. He turned and looked back at John, as John finally took his place at the front of the altar. He frowned, as he was assaulted by another flash of memory, this one of him and John arguing in Skinner's office. he wondered, as he shook his head. He felt someone nudge him and he turned to his right. Alex was holding out a small gold band. He grinned at Fox. "Think you can manage to hold onto this until it's time?" he whispered. Fox glared, as he wrapped his hand around the ring. "I think so." They turned to face the back of the church, as the music began. Monica walked down the aisle towards them, followed by Tammy. They were both wearing long pale blue dresses. Alex smiled, as he watched Tammy walk towards him. He couldn't wait until tomorrow when she would be walking up the aisle to greet him. The music changed and everyone stood up a bit straighter, watching for Dana and her mother. Although it was tradition for the father to give away the bride, Dana had felt that the honor belonged to her mother. The men could only start, when Dana began to walk towards them. She had chosen a simple, yet elegant white dress. It was floor-length with a short train flowing behind it. The waist was fitted, the skirt falling freely from there. The dress was held up by three thin straps over each shoulder. The bodice was slightly v-cut and covered with tiny white beads. She was carrying a small bouquet of yellow roses. She looked stunning. Fox watched, as Dana began her slow walk towards the front of the altar. Images began flashing through his mind, some fast, some slow, but all of them had Dana in them. He saw her the first day she walked into his office, when they were trapped in the woods running from insects, solving the mystery of the frozen man, pretending to be married, trying to convince her that he really wasn't Morris Fletcher. He blinked, as she got closer. This was his Scully. He looked around. He was stunned. He tried to pay attention to what was going on around him, but he was lost in his thoughts. He came back to the present in time to hear the preacher ask if anyone had any objections. "Wait!" Mulder shouted. Everyone in the church stopped and stared at Mulder. Dana just looked at him, surprise flaring in her eyes. "Fox? What is it?" Mulder frowned, thinking fast. Not only had he remembered everything from the past 9 years, but he also remembered these past few months, where he had been watching John and Dana spend time together. And he knew, in his heart, that they were meant for each other. And if he loved her, he would let her go now. He took a deep breath and let it out, then grinned his famous goofy smile. "Sorry...I dropped the ring." He quickly bent down and picked up the ring, as the wedding party laughed softly. The preacher smiled at him when he was standing up again. "I take it we can continue now?" Mulder stood silently watching the wedding unfold in front of him. He remembered to hand over the ring when he was supposed to. He was torn, seeing them with each other. He was so happy that Scully had found someone who could give her the stability that she has wanted for so long, but he was also sad because for a long time, he had hoped to be the one for her. He put a smile on his face and turned towards the crowd with the rest of the wedding party as the preacher announced: "Ladies and Gentleman- John and Dana Doggett!" There were claps and cheers, as the bride and groom hurried down the aisle followed by the rest of the wedding party. An hour later they were all seated at the tables in the reception hall. They had eaten and were sitting around enjoying their champagne. Mulder shifted nervously in his chair, knowing that it was his turn to give a toast. Mulder coughed nervously and tapped his knife against his glass before standing. "May I have everyone's attention please?" The room quieted and they all turned to look at Mulder. "I um...well, I hear that I'm supposed to give a toast." People laughed quietly and he grinned. "I'll try and make it short and pleasant. Today I have had the opportunity to witness one of the greatest things on the face of this earth. True and absolute love. And what made it even better, is that it is a love between two of my best friends. A love that I've had a chance to see grow and blossom. A love that I know will last throughout all time. I would give you both wishes for the very best, but having spent time with you, I know that things will only get better from here. John, thank you for being there when I needed a friend, and being understanding when I needed your help. And, Scully...I owe you more thanks than I can ever give. Not only for being my friend, but for everything else that you have given me over the years." He smiled and sat back down, as people began to clap. Dana was sitting next to him and she leaned over and looked at him closely. He gazed back at her. "Mulder?" she asked softly, wondering if it was true. "Hey Scully, it's me." And with those familiar words, she knew. She could not have asked for a better wedding present, than to have her best friend back. She wrapped her arms around him and hugged him tightly. "I missed you." He smiled and held back his tears. "I missed you, too." She reached over and squeezed his hand before turning back to her guests and to her new husband. John and Dana went over and began to cut the wedding cake. She picked up a piece to feed to John and smiled slyly at him. He frowned, knowing what was coming. "Open wide," she said, as she crammed as much of the cake as she could into his mouth. The crowd laughed, as pieces of the cake dropped onto his tux and the floor. He wiped his face with the towel that someone had thoughtfully provided and picked up his own piece of cake, which to Dana's eyes looked huge. She knew that he would get her back. She opened her mouth and closed her eyes, knowing what was coming. When nothing happened she frowned and opened her eyes. Right then he shoved the cake into her mouth. She thought she would gag from the surprise. John laughed and handed her the towel, which she promptly swatted him with. The crowd roared with laughter. She wiped off her face and continued cutting the cake for the rest of the crowd, her face only slightly red from embarrassment. She was too happy to be embarrassed. Today had been a great day so far. She had gotten married to a wonderful man, the love of her life, and her best friend had been there to share it with her. By the time they returned home that night, Dana and John were both exhausted. Maggie had left a bit early from the reception, so that she could get Sam and head home, knowing that Dana and John would want some time alone after the reception. After the limo had dropped them off and pulled away, John took Dana's hand, leading her up to the front door. He smiled, and kissed her on the cheek right before he bent down to put his key in the lock in the front door. "Welcome home, Mrs. Doggett." He swung the door open. He put his keys in his pocket and, before Dana could react, he swept her up into his arms and carried her into the house, kicking the door shut behind them. She giggled and wrapped her arms around his neck, kissing him deeply. He continued walking with her in his arms, carrying her upstairs to the bedroom before he set her down. He smiled, as he set her down. "So, Mrs. Doggett, what would you like to do now?" She grinned devilishly. "What don't I show you?" She walked towards him, until she was only about 8 inches away from him. He could feel her breath on his face. He stood completely still and waited. She reached up and slid her fingers under the collar of his jacket, massaging his shoulders gently, as she pushed his coat down and onto the floor. She brought her hands back up and unclasped his bow tie, tossing it down. She ran her fingers down to the button on his blue vest, unfastening them and getting rid of it as well. She kissed him softly, as her fingers came up to undo the buttons on his shirt. She followed her fingers with her mouth, kissing each section of his chest as she uncovered it. She stood when finished and pushed his shirt off of his shoulders, admiring his body. He shivered slightly with anticipation and she smiled. He reached for her, but she pushed his hands away, shaking her head. She wasn't finished yet. She knelt in front of John, bringing her fingers up to his waist. She undid his belt buckle, brushing her knuckles over his bulge. She felt him twitch beneath her touch. She undid the button on his pants and lowered the zipper, inch by agonizing inch. She let his pants fall to the floor and he kicked them and his shoes away and stood before her in nothing but his silk boxers, his erection evident. She rubbed him through his boxers and he thought he would come right then and there. He had to fight for control. She slipped her fingers under the waistband of his boxers and slid them down, freeing him to her. She leaned forward, after he kicked his boxers away, running her fingertips up and down his shaft. He groaned softly. She ran her hand back and began rubbing his balls. She took her mouth and began licking her way up his penis from the base to the shaft. She ran the tip of her tongue around the head of his erection, tasting his pre-ejaculate. She opened her mouth and slowly began taking him in, her hand never leaving his balls. He groaned again as she took him entirely into her mouth. He reached down and pushed his fingers into her hair, scattering hair pins to the floor. She began moving slowly and he urged her to go faster with his hand. She obliged, increasing her tempo until he knew he could stand it no longer. He moaned her name, as he spilled his warm juice into her mouth. She reached up and released his fingers from her hair, so that she could stand up. Unable to support his weight, he leaned back against the bed, waiting to see what she had planned next. She stepped back away from him, making sure she was close enough that he could see everything she did, but far enough away that he couldn't touch. She kicked her heels across the room, shaking her head to get the rest of the pins out. Her hair fell around her shoulders in a red cloud and John was mesmerized. She slid her hands behind her back and unzipped her dress. She reached up and slid the straps off of first one shoulder and then the other. The dress fell to the floor, leaving her standing in her bra, panties, and stockings. She turned her back to him and bent over to remove her stockings, allowing John a great view of her ass. He could feel himself beginning to harden again just watching her. She stood and turned back around to face him. She reached between her breasts and unfastened her strapless bra, letting it hit the floor. She felt her nipples harden, as the air in the room brushed across them. She hooked her thumbs under the waist of her panties and slid them down, kicking them away. John could take it no longer and picked her up and carried her to the bed. He set her down in the middle of it, running his hands over every inch of her glorious body. He took her mouth aggressively, swiftly beginning to entice her tongue with his own. She moaned and opened her mouth, giving him deeper access. He took her nipples in his hands, rubbing them between his thumb and forefinger, pulling on them gently. She arched her back, wanting him then, but she knew that he was going to make her wait. He took his mouth from hers and slid it down to her breasts, taking a nipple in his mouth, teasing it with his teeth. He slid his hand down to her abdomen and to the warmth between her legs. He rubbed his fingers up and down, feeling her wetness before he slipped a finger inside. She moaned and moved against him. He increased his speed, slipping another finger inside. She was gasping his name now, desperate for him. He took his thumb and rubbed it over her clit. He felt her clench around his fingers, but he didn't stop. He wanted to excite her again, so that they could find their release together. She moaned and was amazed when she felt herself begin to respond to him again. He brought his head up from her chest and kissed her deeply, as he removed his fingers. She could feel him at her entrance and she whimpered, moving against him. He slid all the way inside and she arched her back to give him better access. He began moving slowly, but she wrapped her legs around his waist and moved her hips, trying to increase the tempo. He could feel the excitement building and pounded into her. As he poured his seed into her, she tightened around him, gasping out his name. He collapsed on the bed beside her, hugging her close to him. She smiled, as he put his head on her shoulder and sighed. She ran her fingers through his hair as he pulled her closer. "Are you sure we have to get up in the morning and go to that wedding? We can't stay in bed and do this all day?" She grinned at the whine in his voice, and smacked him lightly on the arm. "Wait until the honeymoon. We'll spend the entire first day in bed." He looked up at her, at the tone in her voice. "Is that a threat?" She stuck her tongue out at him. "No, that's a promise." John laughed and reached over to turn out the light. When the alarm went off at 8 the next morning, John groaned. Dana hopped out of bed and turned the alarm off, practically bouncing around the room in her good mood. John opened one eye and looked at her. "C'mon John, get up," she said, as she flipped the covers off of him. He growled at her and pulled the covers back up over his head. How could she be in such a good mood when they hadn't gone to sleep until 4? "Thanks, Dear, but I think I'll sleep awhile longer." Dana stood at the end of the bed with her hands on her hips, trying to think of a way to get him up. Then she smiled. "Hey, John. If you get up now, we can shower together." John threw back the covers and bounded out of bed. "What are you waiting for then? Let's go." A couple blocks over, Tammy was sharing in Dana's good mood. Today was the day that her dreams were finally going to come true and she couldn't wait. She leaned up in bed on her elbow and looked down at her husband-to-be. She smiled. How in the world did she get so lucky? Just then his eyes opened. Those beautiful green eyes. "Mornin," she said. "Hey," he answered, rubbing the sleep from his eyes. "What time is it?" She looked at the clock. "A little after eight." He groaned. He was not a morning person and Tammy knew it. She reached over and tickled his ribs. "Come on. Let's go eat breakfast and then get ready. I can't wait." He pulled her down and kissed her quickly, tickling her back, at the same time. "I can't wait either." Noon that day, found an anxious Alex standing with John and Mulder, waiting for Tammy to finish getting ready. He knew he was doing the right thing, but he had no idea that he'd feel so nervous. Dana and Monica walked in and stood at the front. Everyone turned and looked at the back of the room as Tammy made her entrance. She'd decided to dress simple for the day, since she didn't want a big affair. She'd picked out a short-sleeved peach colored dress. It flared around her hips and the skirt ended a little below her knees. The dress was scoop-necked and had small pearls sewed just around the neckline. She had a ring of white roses in her hair and carried a bouquet of them as well. Her red hair was piled on top of her head with little strands falling down around her little crown of flowers. Alex sucked in his breath when he saw her. The ceremony was short and sweet. Afterwards they went to a nice restaurant down the block for the reception. After they had placed their orders, John stood with his champagne glass. "Well, since Mulder had to make the toast yesterday, I guess it's my turn today." Everyone smiled. "I want to wish you both nothing but happiness and good luck. May God bless you, as he has blessed Dana and I." He sat back down, but Dana elbowed him and he stood again. "Oh yeah. Your wedding present." He handed Alex a white business envelope. Alex took out a knife and slit the envelope open. His jaw dropped. "I...I don't know what to say." Tammy reached for the paper. She, too, was shocked. "The deed to your old house? John..." John held up his hand. "Stop. Don't worry. I had an inheritance left to me and I can afford it. Don't argue, I want to do this." He paused. "We want to do this." He took Dana's hand. Alex looked up at John and reached across the table and shook his hand. "Thank you." John nodded. "Only one requirement." Alex frowned. "What's that?" "You have to fill it with kids." Tammy laughed at that one. "Actually, we've already started on that one." Alex turned and looked at her, the surprise evident on his face. "What?" "Well...I was going to wait. I kind of thought Dana would announce hers first. But yeah...we're pregnant." Mulder and Monica looked from Tammy and Alex to John and Dana. "Scully?" She looked at Mulder. "Yeah, Mulder. Two miracles. What can I say? I'm blessed." Lunch was a pleasant affair, everyone in high spirits. As they waited for the cake to be served, Mulder stood up. "No, no," he was quick to reassure everyone. "I'm not making a toast. I just had something to say. Monica and I...well...we wanted to get you guys something for your wedding. So here." He handed Tammy an envelope. She raised her eyes at Mulder before tearing it open. "Oh my God," she whispered. Alex took the contents of the envelope from her. "Mulder?" Mulder was sitting across the table, grinning his trademark smile. "Enjoy your honeymoon, my friend." Tammy spoke up. "Oh, we will." Everyone laughed at that. "So where are you guys going?" Dana asked, having noticed that Alex was still holding two plane tickets. "Vancouver," he responded, still looking shocked. He stood. "I just wanted to say, that in all my life, I never dreamed that I would have friends and family like I have with you. Thank you." Tammy reached over and hugged him, as he sat back down. Today was the beginning of the rest of forever. ONE YEAR LATER~ Dana sat at the picnic table in the backyard, watching her husband over at the grill. She had a huge smile on her face. She looked around at her friends. Tammy was rocking her daughter, Denise Michelle, in the shade of the tree where they had set up an area for the babies. Dana got up and walked over and peeked in the crib. Her son, John William, was sleeping peacefully. She smiled, as she looked at him. Both hers and Tammy's daughter had been born on the day before Valentine's Day. Tammy was sure that meant that their kids were meant to be together, but Dana didn't put much stock in stuff like that. She Watched, as Alex came out of the house, carrying some beer for him and John. She turned and looked at Tammy. "So, Tam, where do you think Monica and Mulder are?" Tammy laid Denise down in the crib and turned to look at Dana. "Well, I figure that every time they leave the house, one of them remembers something and they have to keep turning around." Dana laughed. "I still can't believe those two ended up together." Tammy shrugged. "Stranger things have happened." "Mulder's life has been just one strange story after another." They grinned and went over to get some punch off of the table and see how big of a mess Sam was making playing in her sandbox. Just when they reached the grill, they heard a loud honking coming down the street. Alex sighed, as he turned some of the meat on the grill. "Sounds like Mulder is here." Dana looked at her watch. "Wow. He's only half an hour late. They're early!" Everyone laughed at that. Monica and Mulder came racing into the back yard. Monica's smile was huge. She ran up to Dana and promptly stuck her hand in Dana's face. "Look!" Dana held Monica's hand up to the light. She had on a square cut diamond on a silver band. It sparkled beautifully in the spring sunshine. Dana hugged Monica and then Mulder. "Congratulations, you guys." John slapped Mulder on the back. "Well, in the words of a good friend of mine... kiss goodbye to being able to make your own decisions." Mulder blushed slightly and laughed, as he remembered telling John that exact thing a year earlier. But then, he'd never imagined that he could be this happy. Things were definitely looking up. THE END. 1 1