From Sheryl_Martin@tvo.org Sun Dec 01 09:34:05 1996 I'm posting this for the author, so please direct all comments to the lucky man... grin... it's amazing how harassment at two in the morning can get someone to write, yes? ;-) All Characters copyright of TenThirteen Productions and Chris Carter. No infringement intended on any part. Comments & complaints to: mnantus@ryker.itech.cup.edu Dial Tone by Martin A. Nantus Fox Mulder stared at the phone receiver in his hand, the droning dial tone providing background for one overriding thought: He knew Dana Scully would be furious with him if he didn't call and let her know where he was going and what he was doing. She was his partner, and she needed to know what he was going to do. He trusted her with his life and she should know where he was about to run off to. Run off to without her. Again. And she would be furious about that. In her eyes, being his partner meant she shared the same risks he did. Took the same chances, played the same odds as him. "I went through the same training as you did at the Academy." He heard her voice in his head, repeating what she said so often when he would suggest he handle something himself. "I can handle myself just as well as any other agent in the field." Even more so, he thought. But there was no need to expose her to the danger caused by his choices. He was the one who decided to pursue this particular lead, and he had to keep his partner out of harms way. You have to protect your partner. It's what they drilled into you at the Academy. Cover their back, don't let your mistake cost them their life. Mulder put the black receiver back on the base of the phone and started throwing clothes into an overnight bag. "I can't tell her," he thought. "If I tell her she'll want to come, and it's just too dangerous." Though there was no guarantee that not telling her and leaving her behind was any safer. Others could assume that she knew, and come to her for answers she didn't have. They wouldn't believe that Dana didn't have the information they would want, and that could be very, very bad for her indeed. And he wouldn't be there to protect her. He wouldn't be there because he'd run off chasing answers and didn't take her with him. Didn't give her the option to say yes or no to his idea. Mulder stopped packing and looked at the phone on the bedside table. Reaching for it once again, his hand stopped just short of picking it up. "If she calls before I leave, I'll tell her" he muttered aloud. He stared at the phone for several minutes, trying to will it to ring. He wanted it to ring. He wanted to hear her voice on the phone saying "Mulder...it's me" so he could tell her what he was going to do. Mulder chuckled softly. She said the same thing to him every time she called him. As if he couldn't tell it was her voice. He'd noticed every nuance of that sentence since the first time she called him. The brief pause after his name, the short intake of breath that she made then that he found somewhat cute... Though he couldn't place exactly when he began to think of it as "cute". He did consider it a small part of normalcy in what they did. Something you could count on, that regardless of the situation, Scully would start her conversation like that. Mulder shrugged and zipped his overnight bag closed as he headed for the door. Slinging the bag over his shoulder by it's strap he reached for the knob. "It's best I don't call," he convinced himself. "If I call and tell her she'll just want to follow me." Follow him like the time he went to Arecibo and the recovery team was fast approaching. If she hadn't come to get him out he'd have been caught... Follow him like the time he went to Alaska and almost died. If she hadn't followed him there the doctors trying to help him would have finished him... The thought of her looking at him when he woke up in the hospital after that came to him. Dana smiling, relieved that he was all right. And she was there when he woke up after he'd been shot by Luther Henry. And when he woke up from the injuries after his car was run off the road and Krychek was taken by persons unknown. And after that time she took him to New Mexico... "Well," he thought smiling. "Maybe I shouldn't count that one. She did shoot me herself that time." But every time the first thing he saw was her face. And somehow to him that made waking up again worthwhile. Mulder froze, his hand on the knob as a sudden knowledge came to him. He couldn't risk her safety for one reason: He needed her there to come back to. If she wasn't there, he'd have no reason to want to return if things went badly for him. No reason to fight on when it seemed hopeless. No reason at all except being able to come back and see her. And the acknowledgement of it left him with a sudden determination. Mulder turned away from the door and walked back to the phone. He started to dial Scully's number and waited for it to ring. He realized he had to tell her. But now he didn't know exactly what. Should he tell her where he was going, or what he'd just come to understand? One ring... Two rings... Mulder realized he was holding his breath... The third ring was cut off by Dana's groggy voice saying; "Scully..." Fox smiled at the sound. "Scully, I need to tell you something..." --End. From Sheryl_Martin@tvo.org Mon Dec 30 22:34:43 1996 once again I'm helping out the Wookie... sigh... be nice, please... after all, he is my research partner... grin... All Characters copyright of TenThirteen Productions and Chris Carter. No infringement intended on any part. Note: This story takes place immediately after the "Dial Tone" story. Comments & complaints to: mnantus@ryker.itech.cup.edu or Marty1701@AOL.com Connections by Martin A. Nantus "Mulder, what is it?" Dana Scully struggled to disentangle herself from her sheets as she pulled herself to a sitting position in bed. She had been sleeping soundly, as soundly as she ever did considering some of the cases she and her partner worked on, but the insistent ringing of the phone had interrupted her slumber. "Scully," Fox Mulder said from his side of the connection, "I'm sorry I woke you." Dana looked over at her bedside table to check the clock. 4:25 AM. "It's no problem Mulder." Scully brushed her hair back behind her ear with her free hand. "What's going on? Is there something wrong?" "No, there's nothing wrong. "He paused for a moment, and Dana could hear the hesitation in his voice when he began again. "Like I said, I have something to tell you." "I take it that it's important enough it couldn't wait until I got to the office in just a few more hours?" She put just enough of a hurt tone to her voice to make him chuckle at her mock discomfort. "Well, seeing as I won't be at work tomorrow, I thought it'd be better to call." "What do you mean?" She asked, suddenly completely awake. "Is there something wrong?" "No, I just have to follow a lead and..." "So when do we leave then?" She asked interrupting him. "We don't" he said, "I do." "Now just a damn minute here Mulder!" Scully screamed at him through the phone, quickly getting out of bed and standing up as if she was physically confronting her partner. "You can't be taking off without me again! We've discussed this before, and if we have to discuss this one more time I'll..." "No" Mulder answered. "We don't have to discuss it again because you aren't coming with me now." "But.." She started, flustered that he'd even dismiss discussion of the subject at all. It wasn't like Mulder to just outright disregard her arguments. "Why Mulder?" She started after she'd collected her thoughts. "Why won't you let me go?" "It's too dangerous and.." Mulder started, but she'd not let him exclude her on that basis only. "Then that's all the more reason I should be with you!" Scully screamed into the phone. "Did you get this lead from that new so-called contact of yours? Mulder, if you think it's a set-up then you shouldn't be going yourself." "It's not that I think it's a set-up exactly Scully" Mulder answered from his side of the connection. "I just don't want you with me on this in case anything goes wrong because..." "Because why Mulder?" She asked him, highly agitated. "Give me one reason why I shouldn't be there? I've had the same field training as you had at the Academy..." Scully could hear Mulder chuckling on the other end of the phone. "What, may I ask, is so funny?" "I knew you were going to say that." He said warmly, and just a bit of her anger at him faded away. "But you still can't go, I need you to be here." "What d need me to do here?" "Just to be here" Mulder said softly. "Just be here when I get back. I need to come back to you." "What?" Scully replied, equally as soft and somewhat stunned by what he'd said. "What do you mean by that?" "Please Scully," she could hear him bustling ut on his side of the line. "It's the best reason I can give you right now, I have to go right now or I'll miss my flight. Just please tell me you understand." Scully stood facing her window, looking at her reflection as she turned his words over in her head: 'I need to come back to you.' Memories came unbidden to the forefront of her minds eye: Her partner lying on an emergency room table while a trauma team cut into his leg to remove a bullet. Mulder lying in a hospital bed in Alaska while she sat waiting for him to recover from exposure to the retro-virus and the extreme cold. Seeing him in a strange dream telling her he'd be back, even from the other side of death. And then she realized as well. Realized that she needed him to come back to her. And that need seemed to be as strong as, and somehow explained to her, his own. "Go Mulder," she heard herself say softly, as if from far away. "I'll be here when you get back. I always will be." "I know Scully," Mulder said somewhat relieved. "When I get back..." "We'll talk." She said, noting that he said 'When' he got back, not 'If'. "Yeah, I think we should," he said. "About this." "And some other things Mulder" Scully added. "Definitely," Mulder said quickly. "I'll see you tomorrow evening." "I'll be waiting." Scully put the phone receiver back down and sat back down on the bed. Worrying and waiting, but very hopeful. After all, he was coming back to her. --End. "Heart of a warrior; mind of a fool... soul of a romantic." - Jackie St. George "I am a brother to dragons and a companion to owls..." - The Book of Job "I have GOT to get a real life..." - The Dragon, cyberwordsmith ****************************************************** "I don't trust them. I want to trust you." - Mulder to Scully From Sheryl_Martin@tvo.org Tue May 13 00:59:44 1997 Newsgroups: alt.tv.x-files.creative Subject: Making Contact (1/1) NC-17 From: Sheryl_Martin@tvo.org (Sheryl Martin) -------- Posting this for the Wookie... All Characters copyright of TenThirteen Productions and Chris Carter. No infringement intended on any part. Comments & complaints to: mnantus@ryker.itech.cup.edu or Marty1701@AOL.COM. This story continues the tale started in "Dial Tone" and "Connections". Making Contact (1/1) NC-17 by Martin A. Nantus Dana Scully parted the curtains to her living room window to check the street for the fourth time in the past ten minutes. She looked up and down the dark rain slicked road twice, then closed the drapes in frustration and walked back to her couch. "Where is he?" She said aloud as she sat down. Her partner had called about an hour ago and said he'd be there shortly, but as yet she had seen no sign of Fox Mulder. she thought. Fox Mulder sat in his rental car around the block from Dana Scully's apartment, nervously tapping his fingers against the steering wheel while munching on what was left of his bag of sunflower seeds. his voice echoed through his head. Mulder spit the shell of the seed out the car window and gathered his resolve. He'd promised her they'd talk when he got back from his little excursion and he already agreed that now would be the time to do it. He just didn't know what to tell her. Mulder knew she'd want to talk about why he kept going after leads without her. his inner voice chided him. It wasn't like they didn't have this particular conversation before, but after what he'd said on the phone to Scully before he left the feeling he had was that this time it would be different. Fox approached the door to Dana's apartment and took a deep breath. Dana leapt up from the couch at the sound of the insistent rapping on her door. She almost opened the door immediately upon reaching for the knob, but if working on the X-Files had taught her anything it was to be cautious. Peering through the peep-hole in the door she saw her partner running his hand through his hair while he glanced around. Seeing that her partner was here, safe, Scully threw open the door. Mulder looked back towards the door when he heard the lock start to open, watching as time seemed to slow down while the door opened. Finally, the door no longer obstructed his view and he looked at his partner for the first time in three days. The only illumination was the diffuse light from the room behind Scully, and only one thought permeated the mind of Fox Mulder: It wasn't the first time that the thought had entered the mind of Agent Mulder, he knew no one could work next to a woman like Dana Scully and not have that thought enter their mind. But never had it come to the forefront of his mind like this. There she stood in front of him, dressed in jeans and a white blouse, and he was a struck by the presence of her. Scully looked at her partner, relieved that he was safe after his three day excursion. He stood in front of her on the stairs, looking a bit bedraggled after his trip and suddenly she thought: It's not like the thought hadn't occurred to her before. She'd said as much to her sister-in-law after she started working with Fox Mulder after her assignment to the X-Files. But for some reason, perhaps the way he was giving her his "lost-little-boy" look, she found him quite attractive. Mulder stepped forward as Scully grabbed his arm to pull him inside the building. By a silent mutual agreement they pulled each other into an embrace as the door closed behind them. Mulder smiled to himself as he felt Dana's warmth against him, while unseen by him Scully smiled at having him hold her. "You made it back," she said softly while briefly holding him tighter. "You had some doubt?" He asked, gently rubbing her back "I told you I would." "Yeah," she said breaking their embrace with some reluctance. "You also told me why. Mulder, we have to talk." Mulder took his overcoat off and hung it on the hooks by the door. "That's why I'm a bit late, I was trying to figure out what to say." Scully took him by the hand and led him over to the couch. Mulder sat down, expecting her to sit in the opposite chair. But instead she sat down beside him, giving his hand a gentle squeeze before she let go of it. "So, first things first," she said. "How did the lead pan out?" "The same as usual." Mulder chuckled. "Should I go get the first-aid kit then?" She laughed. "No," Mulder laughed as well, not being able to help himself. "Not this time anyway, the lead just kind of fizzled out." "So even though it turned out to be nothing," Scully said seriously. "You couldn't take me with you." "No," Mulder looked down at the floor, at his feet, at anything but Scully's eyes at the moment. "The way the information came to me, I couldn't take the chance that something might..." He let the sentence hang, thoughts of Duane Barry yelling gleefully up at the sky coming to mind. Shaking his head he forced the images away. "Mulder, I'm your partner!" Scully practically yelled at him. "Do you think I wouldn't be out trying to follow this lead of yours if you didn't come back?" "If it'll make you feel better," he said, "you can look into the next X-File first. OK?" Mulder smirked and looked up to see Scully smiling at him. "You know Scully, I'd investigate a million 'Files for one of those smiles." As he looked at his partner he saw something that he'd never seen before. Dana Scully was blushing. And he knew it wasn't red-faced mad because he'd seen her like that before and this was different. Most importantly she didn't look like she was going to deck him, so she had to be blushing. Scully felt the heat rise in her face along with the slight tingling. From the way Mulder was looking at her, she knew for sure she'd blushed at that comment of his. No doubt by now she was a bright red. she chided herself. She started to turn away from Mulder when the tingling changed intensity and location. Mulder had gently put his hand under her chin and was moving her head to look at her directly in the eyes. As he began to tilt her head to look at her, a part of her didn't want to look at him. Didn't want to risk what she might see there, or reveal herself. But after just a moment, the part that did want to take that chance made her look up. As he started to look into Scully's eyes Mulder was afraid he'd lose himself in them. For a few moments neither of them said anything as the gazing continued, until he was able to order his thoughts again and speak. "You look even more beautiful when you smile," he said, giving her one of his lopsided grins. "I wish you did it more often." He became slightly wistful, thinking of the smile she'd given him in Alaska. How it had warmed all the chill from his bones and made him feel whole again. "Scully," he paused, unsure if he should continue. If he said what he wanted to say, needed to say, and she didn't react favorably then their partnership could be over. It was doubtful she'd stay with him if she didn't feel the same way, could he take that risk? Could he live with himself if he didn't? He'd been using the excuse 'she'd leave if she doesn't feel the same way' since he realized how he felt. He decided it was time to see if it was true or not. "You understand what I meant by what I told you on the phone, don't you?" He asked, relieved when she slowly nodded. "When you disappeared my entire world turned upside down and if it ever happened again I don't think I'd be able to handle it. That's why I can't risk taking you with me on some of the leads I get, I need you here so that there's a reason for me to come back. And you're the best reason because," he paused taking a deep breath. "I love you Dana." Scully looked at her partner somewhat dumbfounded. Did she really hear what she thought she did? Did he really say what she thought he said? "W-What?" She stammered, "did you just say that you..." "Loved you," he finished for her. "Yes, I did, and I do. Very much so." "But why did you.." Scully started, but Mulder interrupted again. "Wait until now to tell you?" He sighed slightly. "Fear mostly. You know, we've seen some pretty frightening things while we've been working on the X-Files together. Mutants like Tooms and that Flukeman thing...well, OK he was more disgusting than terrifying. But none of them scared me like the fear of what might happen if I told you this and you left because knowing made you uncomfortable." She studied Mulder's face. In the past when they'd began to discuss things that were more personal than usual, Mulder had always avoided looking at her. Not this time. He was firmly holding her gaze, softly looking into her eyes waiting for her to say something. Fox Mulder waited. He'd taken the biggest risk ever by telling her how he felt. But now she sat there looking at him, and while she didn't try to leave, she wasn't saying anything either. "Dana," he began softly. "Even if you're going to tell me to leave you have to know that whenever I go to sleep you are the last thought that runs through my mind, and your absence is the first thing I notice when I wake up again." Mulder gently stroked the side of her face, moving a lock of her hair away from her forehead. He smiled, just at the softness of her hair against his hand. "So," he asked. "How much trouble am I in right now?" Dana sat thinking. She didn't try to look away from him, or even move to stop him from brushing away her hair. She was still surprised by the fact that what Mulder said actually made sense to her for once. That would explain why he tried to keep her out of dangerous situations. He kept running off without her to protect her because he loved her. It made perfect sense now that she looked at it that way. He wasn't trying to do it because she was a woman, or because he thought she wasn't a good agent. It wasn't even because he was just trying to infuriate her. And the more she thought, the more she realized other things as well. Like why she kept running after him even though he'd left her behind. Why she risked her life and career to follow him to Puerto Rico. Why she rushed after him to the arctic and stayed by his bed until she was sure he was OK. Why she kept following him into situations and on cases against bureau policy and common sense. Sure, they drilled it into you that you had to stay with your partner, but that only went so far despite what they say in the manuals. And it explained her reaction to his call as well. She realized how much he'd risked by telling her how he felt, and if he could bring himself to tell the truth, so could she. "Mulder, you're not in any trouble, for once anyway." She smiled at him and he couldn't help but chuckle. "I understood what you meant because I love you too." Mulder couldn't stop the smile from spreading across his face. He looked at her, just as astonished by what he'd heard as she'd been earlier. He hadn't expected her to feel the same way. He'd hoped and prayed that she did, but he had figured that in one of those turns that his life seemed to take that she would not. But now that he'd heard Scully felt the same way he felt happier than he had felt for a long time. "You do?" He asked, still not believing his ears or the turn his luck had taken. "Of course," Scully said matter-of-factly. "That's why I could understand what you meant, because I knew I needed you here with me, no matter what." "Besides," she smiled. "You don't think I got annoyed at Phoebe Green or completely berserk over Detective White, or followed you after killer cockroaches just because you're my partner do you?" Dana touched his cheek, and he felt for sure he was flushing as deeply as she had earlier. "Though, Phoebe and Detective White have both kissed you," she said as if pointing out a fact in one of their investigations. "So I guess I had some reason to be more jealous there..." "Ah," he said. "I can fix that." Dana leaned towards Mulder as well, while trying not to appear too eager. She put her arms around him to pull him close. She felt his arms go around her back, one hand gently holding the nape of her neck, as her head tilted slightly to the side. Then it happened. She felt his lips touch hers gently at first, almost tentatively. She thought. Then the kiss became more intense as her lips parted for him, and Dana actually began to feel dizzy. As corny as it sounded, kissing Fox Mulder was taking her breath away. Fox couldn't believe how kissing Dana Scully made him feel. His entire body, from his head down literally tingled. It was like his entire body was being charged, and he wondered how he'd managed to live this long without it. He lost track of how long they'd been kissing when they stopped. Time seemed to stand still for him as he listened to his heart pound, and felt her breath against his face. "That was nice," he whispered to her. Scully smiled, "I know something that would be nicer." Dana stood up and took Mulder by the hand, pulling him to his feet off the couch. "And just what would that be?" He asked. "Let's go to the bedroom first," she said. "Then I think you'll figure it out yourself." Gently giving him just the slightest tug on his arm, Dana lead him into her bedroom. "At least this time the circumstances are better than the last time I was in here." Mulder said, wrapping his arm around her waist to pull her close again. Dana thought about the last time Mulder had been in her bedroom, burning up with fever from the drugs in his drinking water. "You were delirious then." "I'm delirious now," he kissed her forehead. "But this time for different reasons." Scully started running her hands over his chest, pushing his suit jacket off his shoulders to land on the floor behind him. Wasting no time she began to unbutton his shirt, and soon it joined his jacket in the crumpled heap. Mulder wasted no time in pulling her blouse up over her head and tossing it with the other clothes on the floor. Running his hands over her shoulders and arms, he raised small goosebumps on her skin. "Mmmm, I like that" she said, gently making circles with her fingertips on his bare chest. Mulder kept gently running his hands up and down her arms, and on one of the upwards motions he hooked his fingers around the shoulder straps of her bra. Continuing his caressing motions, he brought the straps to the garment down Dana's arms. Shrugging slightly, Dana moved her arms out of the straps, and Fox wrapped his arms around her, picking her up to carry her towards the bed as he undid the clasp. Mulder gently lowered Dana down onto the bed, removing and discarding the garment as he did so. Running his fingertips up her stomach just grazing her skin, moving to caress her breasts. Cupping them in his hands, he circled her nipples with his fingers, making them stand out as he gently kissed her neck. Dana put her hands on his head, running her fingers through his hair as she gently urged him lower with a slight push. Obligingly, he began to leave a trail of kisses down her chest and moved to take her left nipple into his mouth. Swirling his tongue around the nubbin, eliciting a throaty sigh from Dana, Mulder smiled knowing he was able to make her feel that way. Kissing across to repeat his actions on her right side, he slid his hands down her stomach towards the waistband of her jeans. Using one hand to undo the button, Mulder raised himself up with the other. "Lets get rid of these, shall we?" He said beginning to pull them down. Dana obliged him by rising up, and reached forward to Mulder's belt as he slid her jeans past her ankles and onto the floor. "Turnabout is fair play Mulder," she said undoing the belt to remove his trousers. Unzipping them so they could drop to the floor, Scully snickered as she saw his underwear. "Boxers still Mulder?" She asked. "Rumor had it you went in for the briefs." Mulder smiled back at her, enjoying the joke. "Now, you know better. You've seen me in these before. Besides, not everyone can wear sexy underwear like, for instance, these." Fox ran his finger along the waistband of Dana's panties, then began to slowly rub the material immediately over her most sensitive area. "Nice and silky," he smiled as Dana lay back down on the bed, arching her hips to grind herself onto his hand. Pulling the panties down, Mulder kissed Dana on the thigh, and then kissed her lightly just above her pubic hair before lowering his head between her legs. Dana moaned and arched as Mulder began to lick and nibble around her most sensitive area. She lost track of the time as she bunched the sheets in her hands as he completed a circular motion with just the tip of his tongue over her clitoris. Grasping his hair with her hand and held him in on her, making him lick faster and harder, eagerly trying to please her as he'd wanted to, as she wanted him to. But then their partnership was nothing if not completely shared. Mustering her self-control, she said the one thing she knew he didn't want to hear. "Mulder, stop." "W-what?" He asked lifting his now sticky face up from the task he was enjoying quite immensely. It wasn't often that Fox Mulder found something he enjoyed doing, and he wondered what he was doing wrong. Though from his partners previous reactions, he couldn't see that he was doing anything wrong. Dana sat up, and pushed him up onto his knees at the edge of her bed. She fixed his eyes with hers as she pulled the boxers down to his knees. "Share and share alike Mulder" Scully smirked and lowered her mouth onto his erect member, running her tongue down to the base. Fox groaned and bucked against her, not believing the sensations that ran through him. He couldn't do more than make guttural, almost animal noises as Dana's tongue swirled over the tip of his penis. He was losing the strength to remain standing even on his knees as he was currently and fell backwards onto the bed. Scully smiled down at him as he was able to form coherent thought again. And he had one overriding thought. He reached up and put his hands on her shoulders, gently urging her to roll over onto her back. Completing the motion, he rolled on top of her, positioning himself for what he wanted to do. Mulder slowly pushed himself into her, smiling as he saw her own back at him. Gently and slowly, Fox began rhythmically moving atop his partner, feeling her fingertips caress his back as he moved. His motions became more enthusiastic as Dana's tightness gripped him, and he felt himself losing what little control still remained. Dana's fingernails dug into his back as her legs wrapped around him, holding them together as they both collapsed together. Dana snuggled into Mulder's chest as he rolled off of her and onto the bed beside her, he wrapped his arms around her and held her close. She could hear his heartbeat, as rapid as her own, as they both recovered from their coupling. "That was fantastic" he said, stroking her hair with his hand. "It still doesn't settle the matter of you leaving me behind" Dana reminded him with a smile. "Ah," Mulder smiled. "I guess we'll have to discuss that further." Dana kissed him deeply and then patted him on the buttocks. "Most definitely," she laughed. "You know how much I love to argue." -- End. "Heart of a warrior; mind of a fool... soul of a romantic." - Jackie St. George "I am a brother to dragons and a companion to owls..." - The Book of Job All Dragon stories archieved by the Wonderful Stef Davies (grovel, grovel..) at: http://web.ukonline.co.uk/stephanie.davies/dragon.htm ****************************************************** - sent via an evaluation copy of BulkRate (unregistered). From Sheryl_Martin@tvo.org Tue May 13 00:56:16 1997 Newsgroups: alt.tv.x-files.creative Subject: Night Thoughts (1/1) From: Sheryl_Martin@tvo.org (Sheryl Martin) -------- I'm posting this for the Wookie, who doesn't have newsgroup access... and yes, it is The Wookie... so please be gentle... ;-) All Characters copyright of TenThirteen Productions and Chris Carter. No infringement intended on any part. Comments & complaints to: mnantus@ryker.itech.cup.edu or Marty1701@AOL.COM. This story concludes the "Dial Tone" stories. Night Thoughts by Martin A. Nantus Fox Mulder looked at the sleeping woman cradled in his arms. Her red hair was spilled out around her head like a halo, quite different from the way she normally wore it; styled to present the image of the efficient FBI agent. "You look like a little angel." He whispered. And wouldn't that thought cause an uproar! Considering some of the scraps he and his partner Dana Scully got into. He'd seen her knock men over twice her size down so hard they thought twice about getting back up. But he was sure she'd appreciate the comparison. Dana still slept soundly, snuggling close to his chest. Slowly, so as not to wake her, he reached out with his hand and gently traced the details of her face. He'd never admit it, but this was one of the most favorite things he liked to do. Something that until tonight he thought he'd never be able to do with his partner. Oh, he'd watched her when she slept before. Dana usually did take the first shift of sleeping when they were on long stakeouts. But he couldn't do anything like this those times, because he was afraid of her reaction to the added intimacy that it implied. He chuckled to himself. He didn't want to risk waking her so much in the car that he let her drool on him once. But those times were nothing like this. Now he could lie there and hold her while she slept in his arms. He loved just being close to her. Not the atypical male stand-point, but his nonetheless. When he was growing up all the "macho" guys in school would brag about their sexual prowess and conquests, simple things like this were never talked about. Not that he and Dana hadn't done many things in that area! Oh, she'd almost made him faint earlier that night! But the pleasure he got from this simple thing was in some ways far more satisfying. Lightly he ran his thumb along her lips. So soft. And the kisses she gave him with them were positively electric. And her tongue! That thought made him blush... It was still somewhat funny. The first time he'd met her he was sure he'd been partnered with a spy who'd hamper his efforts at every turn and report on what he thought about cases and did in the field. Not long afterwards he realized he'd been given a very competent partner. Then he found she was someone that he could trust, and during the course of their investigations he'd found she was a great friend. And not long after that he'd realized he'd found the woman he loved. Someone that completed him. She was strong when he needed her to be, and he in turn was strong for her at those times she needed him. "You make me whole." He whispered. "I love you for that, and so much more." He was watching her in the sliver of moonlight coming through the window. The silvery light was shining on her skin when he remembered why they were together here tonight. The reason why she was now nestled against his chest. His constant running off to follow leads on his own without telling or taking her. She'd told him before they went to sleep that the matter wasn't fully discussed yet, and Mulder knew it wasn't. But he also came to a new understanding about it. Mulder reached out to encircle her in his arms, pulling her even closer to him. "I can't promise I won't try to stand between you and danger." He whispered to her. "But I promise I'll always stand beside you." He gently kissed her before he tried to go back to sleep. Sure that for an instant he saw her smile... --End. "Heart of a warrior; mind of a fool... soul of a romantic." - Jackie St. George "I am a brother to dragons and a companion to owls..." - The Book of Job All Dragon stories archieved by the Wonderful Stef Davies (grovel, grovel..) at: http://web.ukonline.co.uk/stephanie.davies/dragon.htm ****************************************************** - sent via an evaluation copy of BulkRate (unregistered).