TITLE:     THE LIFE THEY NOW LEAD (PART 1 OF 4) 
AUTHOR:    ABIGAIL 
E-MAIL:    littlemiss_spookymulder@hotmail.com 
RATING:    PG-13 
CATEGORY:  MSR MSW + Other - F 
KEYWORDS:  Angst, Secondary Character Deaths, Story, Oh, 
and kjippiness for Kate (KJR). 
DISCLAIMER:  All characters from the X-Files belong the Chris 
Carter, Ten Thirteen Productions and Fox Broadcasting.

Summary: Mulder and Scully's life, four years later. With two kids 
who can read minds and another on the way, and a happy life, what 
could go wrong? Only everything...

Sequel to: Perfect Happiness

Acknowledgments: Thanks to all my readers on the boards, but 
mostly to my devoted readers...

To Kate for encouragement and being the "most devoted reader." 
Six weeks in a row! Because of you I now feel the Spender love. 
Thanks, and yayage to the Super Spender Saver. (It's not easy to be 
me...) ? And thanks for making up CGB's name. You rock!!!

And to Erin, for our convos about TUI. Little Erin, throwing beer 
bottles at Casimir Gershom Baldwin while hanging from a moving 
vehicle. I'm telling your mommy!

And to Anna, for the water fight, posting parties, and for your 
wonderful encouragement that I keep it coming. And for helping 
me "shoot" all the people we don't like. Wayhey!

And to Corissa (Cor...it's a Mulder thing), for joining me in my 
quest to get off the darn seventh level!!! And for loving the fic and 
getting all caught up faster than I ever thought possible. YOU 
ROCK THE VERY MOSTEST AND YOU ARE THE 
FANTABULOUSTEST! hehe


And thanks to that picture of a dad and his daughter, dancing. 
Great inspirations. <:P

More Author's Notes: Some things you should know before you 
read...

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Mulder family summer home, Quanacatog, Virginia Early 
September 2008...

"Daddddeeeeeeeeeeeee!" A little girl's voice cried out to anyone 
that would listen.

Fox Mulder walked into the room. He knelt next to the little girl 
and looked into her light blue eyes. "What's wrong, Meredith?"

Four-year-old Meredith pointed to her left knee, which was a little 
red. "I banged my knee, Daddy. Can you kiss it?" she asked, her 
red curls bouncing a little.

Mulder leaned down a little and kissed her knee. Suddenly, a 
feigned look of fright crossed his face. "Uh oh."

Meredith's eyes opened wide. "What, Daddy?"

"It looks like something's wrong. I think we need to cut it off," he 
said, showing her the exact place by putting the side of his hand on 
the top of her knee.

"No, Daddy, please don't!" she cried. Then she saw the gleam in 
his hazel eyes. She crossed her little arms and said admonishingly, 
"Daddy, you're joking again."

Mulder smiled. "Okay, you caught me." He sat down on the floor 
and pulled her into his lap. Motioning outside, he said, "Why aren't 
you playing with your brother?"

Meredith sighed. "Willy keeps trying to push me into the lake. So I 
came inside. But then I fell down."

As if on cue, seven-year-old William entered the room. When he 
saw his sister telling on him, however, he turned and tried to sneak 
out unnoticed. But Meredith loudly announced his arrival.

Mulder spoke. "William, come here."

Will sighed loudly and came back to his father. Before Mulder 
could ask him a question, he started explaining himself.

"Dad, I was only joking about pushing her in the lake. I wasn't 
really going to, Dad. I was joking." At his father's glare, he 
mumbled, "Sorry, Merry."

Meredith nodded triumphantly as she changed the subject. "Daddy, 
look what I found!" She reached into the pocket of her dress and 
pulled out a tiny caterpillar.

Mulder cringed inwardly, but he smiled and admired the 
caterpillar. "Wow, that's a beauty."

William spoke up. "I found a toad. But I let him go."

"Good job, Willy," Meredith said. "Now you can't show Daddy." A 
smile lit up her face. She jumped out of Mulder's arms and began 
to run for a closed bedroom door. "I'm gonna show Mummy! 
Come on Willy!"

"Ok Merry!" Will answered as he bolted for the door along with 
his sister. But Mulder was up as fast as lighting and just as the two 
children reached the door; he scooped them up into his arms and 
held them tightly.

"No, you guys," he said softly. "You know Mummy has to rest for 
awhile. You can wait until she wakes up and is ready for visitors, 
okay?"

Meredith and William nodded reluctantly. "Okay, Daddy," they 
said in unison. Then, as quickly as they had become sad, they were 
off and playing outside again, trying to find more creepy crawlies 
to show their Mummy.

Mulder smiled. Little did he know that Scully was not sleeping...

XXXXXXX

Scully lay on the bed, listening to her husband talking with their 
two children. She smiled to herself as she thought about how much 
she loved Mulder. She still felt as she did on their honeymoon: 
totally and completely in love.

She thought about the last seven years: the pain of having Mulder 
gone, the happiness when he came back, the proposal, the 
wedding, the honeymoon...

She almost giggled, but knew she shouldn't. She looked at her 
swollen stomach under the sheets. Just a week ago, her doctor had 
told her that if she wanted a third child, she would have to be on 
bed rest for the remainder of her pregnancy. She could only be up 
and about for 4 hours a day, near torture to her soul. Scully missed 
playing outside with William and Meredith, and Mulder, of course, 
who was the funniest to play with of them all. She sat up slowly, 
making almost no noise.

She didn't want Mulder to know that she was up.

Scully looked at the pictures on the bedstand. They were of 
William and Meredith. William looked very much like his father, 
with hazel eyes, brown hair and a pouty mouth. He sported an 
innocent smile that betrayed his real self.

Meredith looked like a combination of both her parents, with light 
blue eyes, red curls, and her father's ears and mouth. She was a 
little angel most of the time.

Scully reached out and picked up her favorite picture. It was of her 
and Mulder on their wedding day. They were wearing their 
wedding attire, but what she most liked from that picture was the 
looks on their faces. It belied their nervousness, and their fears. 
They were both beaming and looking at each other.

She remembered that day so well. She had been frightened almost 
to tears, and at the same time she was happier than ever.

Scully's thoughts were interrupted by a noise coming from outside.

"Uncle Doggett!" The children shouted in unison. "Auntie Reyes!"

Scully stood and walked to the big bay window. She peeked out 
and saw William and Meredith being engulfed in a hug by their 
favourite "uncle", John Doggett. A very pregnant Reyes stood by, 
laughing at the children as they tried to wrestle Doggett to the 
ground.

She started when she heard a voice behind her.

"You know you should be in bed, Scully."

Scully spun around quickly to see Mulder standing in the doorway. 
"But I'm tired of staying in bed," she spoke in a childlike voice.

Mulder smiled. He walked up behind Scully and put his arms 
around her stomach. "I asked Doggett and Reyes to come over for 
a little while so we could have some time alone," he said sweetly. 
Doggett and Reyes had married about two years back, and they 
now had a summer home across the lake from the Mulder's.

"Well, the children seem pretty happy that they're here." The pair 
watched as William, Doggett and Meredith played on the ground. 
Scully gasped when Will landed on top of Meredith. She instantly 
began to cry, but Reyes, being ever prepared, picked up the little 
girl and cuddled and tickled her until she was laughing again. 
Scully let out a small sigh of relief as they continued playing.

Through the screened window Mulder could hear Merry and Will 
yelling and giggling.

"Uncle Doggett, can I show you my 'pillar?" Meredith's voice rang 
out loudly.

"Uncle Doggett, I want to show you my things too!"

"Me first, William Mulder!"

"No, me first, Meredith Emilie!"

Mulder laughed as Doggett settled the argument by tackling both 
kids and holding them nose to nose until they stopped fighting.

In unison, Mulder and Scully turned towards their bed. Mulder 
went ahead of her and pulled back the sheets so Scully could lay 
down. Even though the weather was an average temperature for 
summer, Scully felt a slight chill. She said as much to her husband.

Mulder just smiled adorably and, once she was lying on her back, 
he crawled in next to her and put his arms around her.

Scully spoke softly. "I'm so glad we have these wonderful 
children."

Mulder laughed softly for his position on his side, his face buried 
in her neck. "Me too."

"Mulder, do you remember...when we thought I would never have 
children, and then we got pregnant with Will? I was so happy that 
my dream had finally come true, but at the same time I was sad 
that you, the father, weren't there to share in the happiness. In a 
way, that time was the best and the worst time of my life. And 
now, we have so much to be thankful for. Oh, Mulder, we've come 
so far."

Mulder smiled inwardly. She got this way every time she was 
pregnant. Well, at least she was like this with Merry. He hadn't 
been around much for Will. He remembered back to the last eight 
years that they had spent together. Things had changed so much 
since he had made his return. Scully had gotten pregnant with 
Meredith a year or two after he came back, a medical miracle to 
the doctors.

And now, they were going to have another one, twins maybe. 
Scully was going to the doctor in a week for another ultrasound. 
The last one had shown a possibility of twins. Then they would 
find out the sex of their child, or children.

Scully interrupted his thoughts. "Mulder, I think I'm ready for 
some of my four hours up time."

Mulder laughed. "Not quite yet. I want to hold you some more."

Scully snuggled into his arms and sighed. "Okay, that sounds 
good."

A few minutes later, however, they were interrupted when Doggett 
and Reyes brought the children inside.

"Auntie Reyes, I want to show Mummy my caterpillar," Meredith 
wailed.

The couple could hear her loud footsteps as she made her way to 
the bedroom. But they were nearly shocked when Will replied, 
"No, Merry. Wait till they come out. They might be playing 
baseball."

XXXXXXX

In order to dispel any stories from either of their children about 
"baseball," Mulder and Scully jumped (okay, Scully waddled) out 
of bed and came into the living room.

They found Doggett sitting on the floor with Will, engaging him in 
a conversation about aliens. The young boy seemed to have quite 
an opinion on him, just like his father.

"I believe that aliens exist. I've spoken to them before, in my head. 
They always hear me, and they always talk back," Will was saying.

Meredith joined in with her bit. "Me too, Uncle Doggett. They tell 
me things, too. It's fun!" She giggled.

Scully smiled. Both of their children were special. They both had 
abilities like the ones they were speaking about. They were closer 
than identical twins. Even if they were apart, it didn't matter how 
far, they could speak to each other in their minds. They would stare 
into space, and once in awhile they would giggle or tell their 
parents that they shared a private joke. Scully remembered one 
particular time, when Merry was three and Will was six.

Mulder had taken Will to the batting cages (for some reason, he 
loved baseball). Scully had taken Merry on a shopping trip with 
her when suddenly, Merry became totally unresponsive. At first, 
Scully thought her daughter was having a seizure, but a moment 
later, she giggled. "Mummy, Willy says that he hit a home run and 
Daddy can't find the ball!" she had started laughing hysterically.

Scully had been confused. As soon as they had returned, she had 
asked her husband if it was true. He had said that Will had hit a 
home run and he couldn't find the ball. When he gave up and came 
back, he had seen Will staring into space.

From then on, these occurrences weren't rare. In fact, they 
happened quite often.

Scully's thoughts were broken when Meredith jumped up from the 
floor and ran to her, shoving a fuzzy yellow caterpillar in her face.

"Mummy, look what I found!"

As she examined the creature, Scully thought, 'They're special, but 
they're also as normal as any child can be.'

Reyes rubbed the small of her back and sat down in the easy chair. 
"Sometimes I feel like I've been pregnant for too long!"

Scully laughed. "Yes, I usually feel that way, too." She took a seat 
on the couch.

Meredith spoke up. "Auntie, what are you going to name the 
baby?"

Doggett and Reyes looked at each other, smiling. Reyes replied, 
"Well, we know it's a little boy. I've always loved the name 
Samuel, and Doggett likes Luke. So we've decided to name him 
Samuel Luke Doggett."

William said, "I like that name a very lot."

Meredith nodded. "Me too. If I had a boy, I would name him that 
too!"

William frowned down on his little sister, taking on a superior tone 
of voice. "Merry, you couldn't name a kid that. They already took 
that name, stupid."

Meredith frowned back. "I can do whatever I want, butthead!"

"Dumba-"

Mulder stepped in. "Will, Merry, go to your rooms until you can 
get along."

Meredith stood up and, as she walked away, stuck her tongue out 
at Will.

William just stared at her. As they stalked away to their rooms, 
Merry cried out, "Daddy, Willy called me a bad name! It was-"

Mulder walked up and covered her little mouth as she began to say 
the "bad word." "Merry, not now."

She stuck out her bottom lip and ran away. Will followed.

When Mulder returned, he took a spot next to Scully on the couch. 
Doggett took another chair across from them.

"So," Doggett said. "You haven't mentioned your child or their 
name."

Scully answered, "We went to the doctor's last week. He said that 
we might be having twins!"

Mulder grimaced slightly. "Yeah, twins."

Scully continued, "We've decided that if they're both girls, their 
names will be Samantha Abigail," she smiled at Mulder and took 
his hand, "And Audrey Marie."

"Boys?" Reyes asked curiously.

"We don't know yet," Mulder said. "But the doctor is supposed to 
call soon and tell us if we need to come back in or not."

Doggett smiled. "That's gr-"

Suddenly, the phone rang.

XXXXXXX

Mulder jumped up and almost ran to the phone. "Hello?" he said. 
"Yes? This is he. Uh huh," he covered the phone with his hand 
and, turning to the group made a 'he won't stop talking' gesture 
with his hand. After a moment, his hazel eyes widened. "Um...ya! 
Of course! Tomorrow is okay. Alright, bye." He hung up slowly.

He came back and sat next to his wife.

"Mulder, who was that?" she said.

"It was the doctor. He said he thinks it could be twins, but he wants 
us to come in tomorrow and get another ultrasound, okay?"

"Alright."

A moment later, Meredith appeared in the doorway. "Daddy, I'm 
sorry. Can I come back out?"

Mulder sighed longsufferingly. "Sure, Merry. Come sit with me."

The little girl bounced out and landed in her father's lap.

"Daddy," she said loudly. "Is Mummy gonna have twins?"

Mulder smiled. "Maybe. Would you like to come to the doctor's 
and see?"

"Oh, yes Daddy!"

Suddenly, Will ran out from his room. "Me too Dad!"

Scully sighed, rubbing her stomach. It was going to be one long 
doctor's appointment.

XXXXXXX

The next day- at the doctor's office...

Mulder shifted his weight uneasily from one foot to the other as 
Scully lay down on the little ultrasound table.

Meredith looked around at the big doctor's office and Will stared at 
the ultrasound screen.

Scully lay on the table, hoping that this would all go okay.

The doctor, Ashlie Berke, MD, started the ultrasound. After a 
minute or two a picture appeared on the screen.

Mulder and Scully took in a sharp breath at the same time. Two 
heads, two pairs of hands, four feet. Two little children looked at 
the couple through the black screen.

"Oh, Scully," Mulder breathed quietly.

The doctor discreetly left the room.

Meredith and Will stared at each other for a moment, talking.

'Willy, I think Mummy and Daddy want to be alone.'

'Come on Merry, let's go.'

William took his little sister's hand and led her out of the office.

Mulder immediately went to Scully and took her hands in his. 
"Scully, it's true," he said. "We're having twins."

"And from the look of it, two girls," Scully laughed softly. "Oh, 
Mulder, I am so happy." Mulder replied, "I don't think it can get 
any better."

XXXXXXX

A silent figure stood and watched as two young children, a boy and 
a girl, bounded out of a hospital room. Being young and innocent, 
they entered the boy's bathroom together, giggling.

Even though the young one's mouths were unmoving, the man 
could hear them speaking, their small voices ringing in his head. 
They were talking about twins. He came to a quick realization that 
these were the children he needed. They were the special ones, 
ones of many that he already had under his control.

He knew who their parents were and where they were now. He 
knew that they would never suspect a thing. He listened carefully 
as they laughed and chattered softly.

Suddenly, he heard another voice, not in his head, but in this 
world.

"Sir," the voice said. "Could you please put out your cigarette?"

The man just looked at the nurse, standing there apprehensively. 
He took a long drag on his Morley butt, and threw it in the 
trashcan. The elderly nurse smiled. "Thank you sir," she said, 
walking away.

The man sighed audibly. He looked around the room. An old 
woman sat reading the newest issue of Better Homes and Gardens. 
She looked quite interested, as though nothing could tear her away 
from it. Good. No one else was in the room, save for the nurse who 
was much to engrossed in her work to notice much of anything.

He quietly slipped into the boy's bathroom, where he saw the two 
children washing their hands, splattering occasional trickles of 
water on each other. The girl's auburn curls were beginning to 
show signs of dampness and the boy's hazel eyes glowed with 
mirth. They twittered whenever it happened. The man reached into 
his pocket and pulled out two suckers. He held them out to the 
children.

In a gravely voice, old with age, he said, "Would you like these?"

The little girl held out her hand and smiled shyly. The boy did the 
same.

When the suckers were successfully in their tiny mouths, the man 
spoke again. "Would you like more? I have more in my car in the 
parking lot," he said in a syrupy sweet voice that would make even 
a dog barf. He held his breath for a moment. They couldn't 
possibly know what was going on, could they? He almost began to 
worry.

But he didn't need to. The little ones fell for it. They couldn't resist 
the possibility of candies in the future.

"Okay," they chirped in adorable unison. He smiled and took their 
hands. As they walked out of the bathroom, the man thought, 'This 
is too easy. And I thought their father might give me some trouble. 
He did in the past.'

He lead them away from the bathroom, the waiting room, their 
parents, and their lives now. And no one saw a thing. Yes, it was 
too easy. Well, almost too easy.

The one thing the man did not see was the blinking security camera 
in the corner of the bathroom, its all-knowing, never closing eye 
seeing the entire thing...

XXXXXXX
End of Part 1
XXXXXXX

(PART 2 OF 4) 
Xxxxxxx

Mulder looked up from the ultrasound screen when he wasn't 
hearing the voices of his children. "Where did the kids go?" he 
asked.

Scully looked around. "I think they went to play in the waiting 
room. Why don't you go get them?"

Mulder nodded and walked out and into the waiting room. But the 
only two people he saw were an old lady and a nurse. He walked 
up to the nurse.

"Did you see two little kids?" he asked panicingly.

The nurse nodded. "Yes, I saw two kids walking out of the waiting 
room with a man. Why?"

"They were supposed to be in here," he said back. "Who left with 
them?"

"I didn't know him, but he was smoking a cigarette. "

Mulder gasped. The nurse looked at him. "They weren't supposed 
to be leaving?"

"NO!" he yelled, startling the old lady. "Where did they go to?" he 
pointed to the door.

The nurse just shrugged. "You can look at the security camera 
footage if you want."

"Yes. I want."

XXXXXXX

A little while later...still at the hospital

Mulder stood with the security guard in front of the wall of 
cameras showing all of the actions that were happening. Scully 
stood next to him and stared into the cameras.

"So, how exactly does this thing work?" Mulder asked, looking at 
the cameras.

"Well," the guard replied, taking on a storytelling tone, "First, the 
camera takes still images, they're shown in this monitor. Then, it 
takes moving footage and has auto zoom on people. Then..."

The two men continued talking about the cameras and how they 
work when they were interrupted.

"Hello?" Scully shrieked, making the men jump. "My children are 
missing here!"

"Sorry."

"Sorry, honey."

XXXXXXX

12:30 am

"No!!! I am *not* going home and leaving my children!" Scully 
said adamantly, her hands on her hips as she stood in front of her 
husband.

"But, Scully, love, you need your rest if we want *these* kids to be 
okay," Mulder said, putting his hands on her large stomach for 
emphasis. "Go home. I'll be looking for them. You know I'll do 
everything in my power."

"Promise?" she whispered, sounding very much like an unsure 
child.

"Promise," he said as he leaned down to give her a quick peck.

An investigator walked up to them, his face crestfallen. "No luck. 
We can't figure it out. Who took them, I mean."

He looked at Mulder warily for a moment, then shook his head a 
little. "You guys look like you need some serious sleep."

True, they both thought. Scully looked up at her husband, his eyes 
slightly swollen from no sleep, drooping a little. Looking like he 
was about to fall asleep on her.

Mulder looked down at Scully, her eyes tired and worn out. She 
looked like she was going to fall asleep on him.

He continued. "Look, if you two don't get some rest, you're not 
going to be any help in this search. Go home, come back 
tomorrow, when you're awake."

Mulder and Scully exchanged a look. He was right, they would 
never get anything done if they couldn't stay awake.

Mulder nodded. "I'm coming back a 6 am sharp." He put an arm 
around Scully's shoulders and led her away from the investigator, 
who had already turned back to the small screen, trying to see the 
man that had taken the kids.

On the drive home, Mulder heard Scully whisper, "6 am sharp," as 
she drifted to sleep.

XXXXXXX

Later that night...at the summer home

Mulder crawled into bed next to his wife and listened to her 
breathing. He figured she was asleep again. He started thinking 
about the kids: were they safe, or were they sitting in a cold alley 
somewhere with only each other???

They hadn't found anything that day, just an image of a man...but 
he couldn't see who it was...

Scully turned suddenly. She hadn't been asleep.

"Mulder, I'm scared...I miss the kids...what if they're..."

Mulder put a finger to Scully's lips. "Shhh, it's okay...they're gonna 
be fine..."

He pulled her up against him, and she just put her face against his 
chest and started crying.

Mulder held her as sobs racked her small frame. As she cried, he 
began to feel his own tears coming, and a moment later, his tears 
were falling into her auburn hair. He tightened his grip around her 
waist, and she put her arms around his neck.

A little while later they were both spent and they fell asleep, 
having nothing to do but listen to each other's heartbeats...

XXXXXXX

At that same time...

Meredith woke up in the car, vaguely aware of her older brother 
sitting next to her. She tried to remember what happened. She 
didn't know what happened exactly, but she knew the suckers, and 
then nothing else...she just wanted to leave...

William sat in the car, looking out the window. 'The suckers,' he 
thought, 'they must've had something in them.' His little mind 
worked furiously to find out what had happened, but he couldn't 
remember. He looked over at his sister. She took his hand, and 
tears formed in her eyes. He spoke to her in his mind.

'Merry, let's get out of here. When he slows down next, open the 
door and jump out.'

'But Willy, it's so dark!'

'Trust me, Merry.'

'Okay, Willy.'

He squeezed her hand. The man in the front seat looked back at 
them. He knew what they were saying.

"Don't plan on leaving, little Mulder children," he whispered, his 
cigarette in his mouth. "Because if you do, I might have to hurt you 
and I don't want to do that. Just stay here and everything will be all 
right..."

XXXXXXX

The Next Morning...Mulder and Scully's house5:30 am sharp

Mulder crawled out of bed quietly, hoping not to disturb his 
sleeping wife. He showered quickly and before he left, stopped in 
the bedroom.

She was still sleeping soundly, and for that he was grateful. He 
bent down and kissed her cheek gently before grabbing his leather 
jacket and leaving to take the security camera tape to Chuck's.

XXXXXXX

6:45 am

Scully rolled over and stretched slowly. Suddenly, she remembered 
what she had to do. She was supposed to make a phone call to 
Skinner, to ask for some help in finding their children.

She rolled over in bed and picked up the phone, dialing the number 
for the FBI office as quickly as her able fingers could fly over the 
keypad. A few seconds later, a voice answered.

"Washington, DC field office. How may I direct your call?"

"Walter Skinner, please?"

The next sound Scully heard was the hold music, its happy ring 
sending a chill down her spine. No one should be allowed to be 
happy. This was debatably one of the worst times of her life.

"AD Skinner here."

"Um, yeah," Scully answered lamely. "Skinner? I have a favor to 
ask you."

"Dana? Is this you?"

"Yeah. Listen, Walter. Yesterday Mulder and I went to the hospital 
for a doctor's appointment. We took the kids, and they went out 
into the lobby. And, Walter," she choked. "Someone took 
them...we need you help."

Skinner's voice turned very serious. "Of course we'll help."

"No, Skinner, I'm not talking 'okay, we'll help' kinda thing. These 
are my children we are talking about. Mulder's children. I'm 
talking you guys are going to send out every available agent to find 
my kids and make sure they're safe!"

"Scully, don't worry. We'll find your kids...is Mulder there?"

"No, he went to get a security tape."

"Ok, have him call me when he gets home."

"Okay," Scully answered as tears filled her eyes. "And Walter?"

"Yes Dana?"

"Please make sure they're okay..."

XXXXXXX

Chuck's office

Mulder popped the video into Chuck's VCR as they sat down to 
watch. A picture of a bathroom came on to show a man and the 
two children.

"We need to figure out who this is," Mulder said, not taking his 
eyes off the screen.

Chuck looked hard at the screen. When the movie was over, he got 
up and rewound it. After a minute, he paused the tape.

"From what I can see, at this point, the man turns just enough for 
me to figure out who it is! I am very happy to say that we can 
know who took your kids. But, unless you know where this person 
would take them...we can't know where they are right now."

Mulder stood. "Thanks for the help. Now let's figure out who this 
guy is so I can get my kids home..."

XXXXXXX

Meanwhile...somewhere in Tennessee...

The man finally stopped the car and let the children out for a drink. 
He followed very closely behind them, so they couldn't get away.

The two children, although very much frightened, almost seemed 
to forget what was happening to them when they saw the lone tire 
swing, swaying seductively in the gentle summer breeze, begging 
them to sit on it.

The man sat down on a nearby bench and watched as the children 
ran for the swing and began playing.

When WIll and Merry reached the swing and started playing, they 
also started talking.

"Willy, do you think Mummy and Daddy will find us and save 
us?" Meredith asked from her place on the swing.

"I don't know, Merry. I hope so..." William pushed her gently.

"I miss them" the little girl's eyes filled with tears.

He knew what she was thinking: What if we never see them again, 
never see our new brothers or sisters?

He reached out and patted her auburn curls, wrapping them around 
his fingers and wiping the tears away with his other hand. 
"Everything's gonna be okay, Merry. It's all gonna be okay...." he 
felt his own tears surfacing, for although he spoke optimistically, 
he feared the same.

"It's gonna get better..." Meredith trailed off.

Across the grassy field, the man sat, not hearing the children's 
conversation. But he could bet he knew what they talked about. He 
watched as the boy laid a hand on his sister's fiery hair.

'What a good big brother,' he thought to himself. 'but not for 
long...'

XXXXXXX

Later that day...in an undisclosed area...

The man looked into the back seat, staring at the children. They 
looked so peaceful, sleeping quietly, not making a sound.

Too bad he'd have to wake them up...

He stopped the car and got out. Then he went to the back seat and 
opened the door. He poked at the children till they woke up.

Before they could say a word, he picked them up and carried them 
inside a large building.

He remembered coming here once before with their father. A few 
years ago with Diana. But she had chickened and saved him. She 
had told Scully somehow...And now they were going to go through 
it all over again...

XXXXXXX

Back at the hospital, 3:38 P.M

Mulder walked up to the nurse that had been on duty when the kids 
had been taken. She was talking to Skinner. He also saw about 10 
agents looking around.

'No wonder all the yellow tape outside,' he thought.

"Hey, Skinman, what are you doing here?" he asked.

"Don't call me that. Your wife called the Bureau and she wanted us 
to help find the kids. She was very persistent, in truth."

"Yeah. She's very worried. Have you found anything yet?"

"No, but Mrs. Anderson has agreed to work with a sketch artist to 
try and get at least a few details of the man's face. I've just finished 
talking to her, so if you want, you can have a turn."

"Okay." As Skinner walked away, Mulder started talking to the 
nurse. She seemed a little shaken.

"Mrs. Anderson, is there anything you can remember about the 
man. Anything he was doing? Facial characteristics?"

Mrs. Anderson looked up at him, her green eyes glowing with 
fright. "I won't get in trouble for being on watch when this 
happened, will I?"

"No, I can guarantee you that won't happen. Now can you tell me 
anything?"

"Well, I remember he didn't seem like someone that could do 
something like this. He had an old man innocent look about him, 
well at least for most of the time..."

"Mrs. Anderson, it's okay. You can tell me."

"He...he gave me the most frightening look when I asked him 
would he please put out his cigarette."

XXXXXXX

At the secret undisclosed place...

The children were now strapped to a table, side by side, unable to 
move, unable to get away. They were knocked out with anesthetic. 
A woman with dark brown hair stood over them, just watching 
their slight involuntary movements.

'Those should be my children,' she thought bitterly to herself. 'They 
should be mine, mine and Mulder's. But he had to go and marry 
that stupid redhead, Scully, or whatever her name is...I'm lucky 
that my death was faked, that I'm here now to witness this, to be a 
part of it yet again'

XXXXXXX

Although the children were knocked out, they were very much 
awake in their minds. They were talking to each other.

"Willy, I'm scared. That lady scares me. Who is she?"

"I don't know Merry. But she's a bad lady, Merry. Can you hear her 
thinking?"

"Ya, but I don't wanta listen. Willy, when are Mummy and Daddy 
gonna come get us?"

"I hope soon, Merry. Soon."

XXXXXXX

At the Mulder home...

Scully sat up in bed and picked up her bible. She flipped to the end 
and started reading in Revelations.

"And two young ones shall arise up amongst them, and together 
they shall conquer the horsemen."

She was reading because it helped her think about things. Things 
like their missing children.

She started thinking about what had happened to Mulder those 
years ago. She remembered that he was taken away, and then she 
received that keycard to the place where he was taken. How it was 
slipped under the door hastily, how it gave him back to her.

Suddenly, something was hastily slid under the door...

XXXXXXX

In the secret location... *hours before Scully reads her bible*

A man stood, watching over the children. He watched the woman 
musing, of what she thought he didn't know.

He almost felt bad for the peacefully knocked-out children. He'd 
seen their mother and how much she loved them, and he knew how 
much she must miss them.

And he wanted to help.

He was going to go against everything his father and the woman 
had told him, go against the plot that they were about to complete.

As he turned and walked away, a bible verse from Revelations 
came to his mind...

"And two young ones shall arise up amongst them and together 
they shall conquer the horsemen."

XXXXXXX

Back at the summer home

Scully heard a soft noise, and she got up to see what it was. When 
she reached the front door, she saw the envelope sitting on the 
floor just inside the door. Putting her hand on the small of her 
back, she bent over and picked it up.

There was no address on it, in fact there was nothing written on it 
at all.

She opened the envelope slowly and pulled out a single sheet of 
paper. It had something written on it.

She went and sat down on the couch, reading the letter to herself as 
she settled down.

-Mrs. Mulder,

Your children are in danger. CGB Spender took them, and he is 
nearing the process of doing what he once did to your husband 
some years ago.

I am telling you this because they are only children, and as much 
as I have a problem with your husband, they do not deserve this.-

That was it. No location, no help. She picked up the phone and 
dialed Mulder's cell phone.

"Mulder."

"Mulder, I know who took the children."

"Me too. Smoking Man."

Scully looked at the letter again. "Mulder, just a little bit ago, 
someone slid a letter under the door. I think you'd better read it..."

XXXXXXX

Later

Mulder arrived home to find Scully sitting on the couch, a puzzled 
expression covering her face. In her hand she held a piece of paper, 
and her eyes were glued to it.

"Scully, what is that?" Mulder asked as he came up behind the 
couch and looked at the paper. He read what was on it, and soon 
the puzzled expression filled his face.

After minutes of complete silence, Scully started, nearly knocking 
Mulder in the face with the top of her head. "Oh my god, Mulder. I 
think I know what happened to them!"

"What?"

"The letter says something about the children having the same 
thing happen to them that happened to you a long time ago. I 
remember when I rescued you from that lab, when they did tests on 
your head."

Mulder just looked at her for a moment, and then the realization 
registered. "Yeah, but I don't remember where that was!"

"Mulder, I know, of course. I'll never forget what you looked like, 
laying there."

"Okay, Scully. Let's go."

XXXXXXX

In the undisclosed location...

Jeffrey Spender arrived back at the testing area just in time for the 
children to wake up. He shot a questioning look at Diana, but she 
just shrugged and said that they couldn't have everything ready in 
time, and the kids woke up.

The two watched as the children slowly sat up and looked at each 
other, frightened looks covering their adorable faces.

Diana watched the children just looking at each other. They 
weren't speaking, but she knew that they were in their minds. Their 
brilliant minds. Mulder's mind.

Oh, how she wished that the two little Mulder children sitting in 
front of her were HER Mulder children, all hers. They would have 
been beautiful, even more beautiful because they would have come 
from hers and Mulder's union.

Jeffrey watched her across the room, and he instinctively knew 
what she was thinking about. She had an obsession with Mulder, 
had had one ever since Mulder and Scully had gotten married. 
Even before that. He was all she ever talked about. And he knew 
she was standing there wishing that those children were hers. And 
she wanted Mulder to leave his wife and take her.

It was her ultimate wish.

But he knew something she couldn't see.

Fat chance.

XXXXXXX

"Merry? I think Mummy and Dad are coming to save us, Merry."

Meredith's little ears perked up a bit, and in her mind she spoke 
back to her brother. "Good. I'm getting scared. That lady is 
thinking weird things about us, and Mummy and Daddy."

"I know. I can hear her. But don't listen, Merry. Just think about 
Mummy and Dad, okay?" WIll was trying to protect the younger 
child from the woman's thoughts.

"Okay, Willy. Just think about it too, then you'll be all right."

XXXXXXX

Mulder was driving. Scully was sitting in the front seat next to 
him, and Doggett and Reyes occupied the back seat, for extra help.

Not that two pregnant women can really be of too much help. But 
they could use all the help they could find.

"Turn left at the stop sign, Mulder." Scully was saying, looking at 
a map of the area.

"You just said right a minute ago," Mulder mumbled from the 
driver's seat.

"Left, Mulder. Left."

Doggett, from his place in the back seat, saw how agitated Scully 
was. She was really worried. He hoped that they could find the 
kids and get them home safe before his wife and Mulder's gave 
birthright here in the car. Reyes was really close. He hoped they 
wouldn't have to worry about Scully.

XXXXXXX

"So, children, feeling better?" Diana spoke in her most soothing, 
dog-puke voice, looking at Mulder's children.

Meredith nodded slightly, picking up her cup of water and taking a 
little sip. But her brother shook his head vehemently, staring the 
woman straight in the eyes.

"I don't want water. I want to go home." He folded his little arms 
over his chest and glared at Diana.

"But, little Mulder child, you can't go back. Not when I have such 
plans for you." She reached out and tried to coax him into being 
happy and taking in her lies.

William didn't fall for it. "We're not stupid. We know what you're 
thinking. You just want to keep us here till our Dad comes so you 
can take us away from him and our Mummy."

All Diana did was hand him a cup of water. He took it and without 
warning defiantly threw it to the floor, spilling a small pool of 
water onto the dirty tiles.

"Look what you did, WIlly?" Meredith cried, looking down at the 
water.

"Merry," Will said in his mind, reaching out and touching her arms 
with his fingertips. "Don't listen to her. She's just trying to get you 
to like her. She wants to take us away from Mummy and Dad."

She also spoke in her mind. "But Will, if we pretend to be good, 
then she won't hurt us. You know what she's thinking of doing if 
we're no good. Please be good, Willy. I don't want to die here."

"Me neither, Merry. Me neither."

In a room above them stood Smoking Man, trademarked smoke 
wafting from the cigarette in his mouth. He looked down through a 
glass globe in the ceiling of the testing room that allowed him to 
see everything going on.

He took a slow drag of his cigarette. It was nearly time to begin. 
As soon as they got rid of the parents

XXXXXXX

"Mulder, go right here."

Mulder nodded and turned the car, looking into the back seat at 
Doggett and Reyes. "She doing all right?"

Doggett nodded, holding his wife's hand in his.

Reyes had had a pain a few minutes earlier. They didn't know if it 
was baby related or not.

XXXXXXX

Diana and the others had left the room, leaving the children alone 
and the door slightly ajar. Will was laying on the table, looking up 
at the dirty ceiling tiles. He was beginning to wonder if they would 
ever make it home.

Meredith sat next to him, playing with her hair and wondering the 
exact same thing.

Suddenly, Merry was on him, shaking his arms frantically, 
whispering excitedly, "Daddy's here, Willy! Daddy's here!"

William smiled. They were finally going to be saved. But he felt 
that something was wrong. This wasn't how they had meant it to 
be. The bad people that their parents were coming.

And they were ready.

XXXXXXX

At the undisclosed location...

Mulder stopped the car and jumped out. He ran around to the other 
side and opened the door for his wife at the same time Doggett 
open the back door for his.

Scully was the quickest one to the door. She pulled on the handle 
and surprisingly, the door opened. As they all ran inside, Mulder 
hoped that they had arrived in time.

XXXXXXX

Mulder followed a passage down a hall that lead to many rooms. 
Most were locked, he figured out as he tried each one.

But he soon came to one that was slightly open.

He peeked into the room and saw Will and Merry sitting on a table. 
They looked cold and scared, but okay. Mulder whispered their 
names loudly until the turned and looked. He expected them to 
come running, but Merry just looked even more frightened.

"Daddy, you can't stay here. You have to go Daddy. They're 
waiting for you!"

"Merry," Mulder replied. "Just come here. You'll be okay."

Merry looked at Will, waiting for his approval. When he nodded 
slightly, she slid off the table and walked slowly toward her father, 
Will right behind her.

When they reached the door, Mulder pulled them into his arms. 
"You guys okay?" He checked them over.

Will nodded. "Yeah, Dad, we're okay. But we have to get out of 
here now. They knew you were coming, and they're ready, Dad."

Yeah," Merry chimed in. "We have to get out!"

Mulder scooped the children into his arms and began to carry them 
back the way they came when Scully met him. She looked 
distressed.

"Oh my god!" She ran to them and hugged the children. "I'm so 
glad we found you!" She turned to Mulder. "Mulder, we have to 
get out. Doggett and Reyes need to get to the hospital. She's gone 
into labor."

Mulder just nodded, and as they turned to leave, Diana Fowley met 
them in the hallway.

"Where do you think you're going?" Diana spoke with fake 
curiosity. "I need these children, Mulder. You can't leave."

Mulder looked Diana square in the eyes and shook his head. 
"Diana, this is my family and I don't care what you think you need 
them for. Let us past you, or I'll have to make you move."

"Oh, is that so?" she said, moving towards them until her face was 
nearly touching Mulder's. "This could have been OUR life, 
Mulder. *Our* life and *our* children." She leaned in and kissed 
him on the lips, sending Mulder into a revolting look.

Scully took one look at Diana, and before Mulder could do 
anything, she whispered, "I really wish you hadn't done that..." She 
leaned in to Diana and shoved her out of the way. Mulder moved 
past them, pushing Diana against the wall. He saw Doggett 
standing in the doorway, his gun ready. He handed the children off 
to him and went to help his wife.

"Mulder," she said softly. "Get her please"

Mulder jumped on Diana and straddled her as Doggett hid the 
children from the view.

He looked straight into her cold eyes, the eyes he had once fallen 
for. But not anymore. "Diana, the feelings I once had for you are 
no longer there." When her eyes widened a little, he shook her 
hard. "Look what you've done! Is this some sort of twisted joke, or 
a wish you've had? Because it's never going to happen, you little..."

She gathered all the strength she had left and shoved Mulder off of 
her. They began rolling around on the floor as Diana proceeded to 
kick the crap out of Mulder.

After a moment, Diana was on top of Mulder, straddling his thighs 
in her own sick victory. She was about to strike him when the 
gunshot sounded. Her body fell from him and onto the ground.

Mulder looked over and saw Doggett standing there with his gun 
practically smoking from the shot. His breathing was heavy, and he 
looked afraid. Meredith and William peeked out from behind his 
legs, their eyes wide.

Mulder stood slowly and went to check Diana. As much as he 
hated her, he had to know. She was still alive, but the blood 
coming from the hole in her head told him that she wouldn't be for 
much longer.

"Scully," he said, still breathing hard from the fight. "Call an 
ambulance."

She sat up slowly. "What, you want her to live?"

"No," he answered. "I just want to make sure she's awake when she 
dies."

XXXXXXX

About 6 hours later...

"Oh, Auntie Reyes, he's so cute!" Meredith looked in awe at the 
newborn baby before her in his little crib thing that they put new 
babies in.

"What's his name?" William chimed in.

Reyes looked up at her husband, standing next to her bed. "His 
name is Samuel Luke."

XXXXXXX

Meanwhile, Mulder and Scully stood out in the hallway, watching 
Diana's bed as her chest moved slowly up and down.

"Mulder," Scully started, taking his hand in hers. "Is it okay if I go 
in there and kill her?"

Mulder laughed a little. "Not if I do it first."

"Seriously, Mulder."

"Scully, I have a few things to say to her. The doctors say she's 
dying, and I want to tell her the truth. I'm just glad that you're 
okay, and the babies are okay." He walked away to get the kids.

She just stood in silence until a man walked up to her. It was 
Spender. "Mrs. Mulder?" he said as he reached her.

"Yes?" she asked.

Jeffrey shifted his weight from one foot to the other. "Um...are 
your children all right?"

Scully eyed him suspiciously. "Yes..."

He breathed a sigh of relief. "I know who took them and why he 
did it. My father took your children, Mrs. Mulder, because of what 
they are. What they have is what he wants. I tried to stop him. It 
looks like I was successful. I slid that note under your door. I knew 
you would understand what I was telling you. I just want to let you 
know that you can trust me."

Scully just stared at him for a moment before nodding. "Thanks." 
she whispered as Jeffrey turned and walked away.

Mulder came back, holding the kid's hands. "Who was that?"

Scully just looked on down the hall. "Our hero, Mulder. Our hero."

XXXXXXX

In Diana's hospital room...

"She's awake now...but she won't be for much longer..." the doctor 
said as she left the room, leading Will and Merry to the children's 
area to play.

Scully walked up to the bed where Diana lay. "Why?" she asked. 
"Why did you do it?"

Diana refused to answer. She just turned her head away from the 
couple.

Mulder gripped her arm in one of his large hands. "Answer her."

Diana's eyes widened a little. She was obviously afraid. "I did it 
because someone told me to."

Scully looked at her incredulously. "Yeah, we know. CGB. But 
you must have had something to do with it."

Diana looked up at Mulder. "Yeah. I wanted to see them, touch 
them, know that they were real. I didn't believe that you actually 
had kids with her, but now I know the truth." She glanced at 
Scully's stomach.

Mulder watched as Scully began to lose her composure. At first he 
was going to say something to stop a huge fight.

But he decided to let her talk. Or scream which would probably be 
the case.

Scully went off then.  "I can't believe you, Diana, after all this 
time, you've been alive. And here I thought my life was actually 
better. I hate you, you are such a bitch! You don't even deserve to 
live! You helped steal my kids, you try to steal my husband, can 
you get any worse?"

Diana just lay there, looking at Scully. When she was done, Diana 
looked over at Mulder. "Tell me one thing, Mulder. Do you love 
her, really love her?"

Mulder didn't even hesitate. "Yeah, I love her. And guess what? I 
don't, never did love you. You are one seriously messed up bitch."

And with that Diana was gone in another unconscious state. Scully 
couldn't tell if it was because of her gunshot wound or Mulder's 
words.

They left the room. When they got out, Mulder applauded lightly.

"What's that for Mulder?"

"Good job telling Diana off. Couldn't have done it better myself."

XXXXXXX

One Week Later...At Maggie Scully's House

"And Gramma, it was so scary...when we went in her room to find 
mummy and dad, she told us our lives could have been better. With 
*her*!" William exclaimed to Maggie from his spot on the floor in 
front of her chair.

Meredith joined in. "Yeah she's so scary. When she had us at that 
place, she was thinking about weird stuff like that. But Willy 
helped me," she hugged her brother for emphasis. "He helped me 
forget about her and think of good things."

Maggie faked a shocked expression. "Oh my goodness! What 
happened after that?"

William jumped in. "Daddy came and got us and then Uncle 
Doggett shooted the mean lady cuz she fought with Mummy and 
Daddy. I saw it. There was blood n' guts EVERYWHERE! It 
was"

Scully silenced him with a finger to her lips.

Meredith frowned. "It was scary. But, gramma in the hospital, 
Daddy called the lady a bad word. He called her a bit..."

Scully reached out and covered her daughter's mouth so no one 
could hear the muffled noise. "Mum, Diana died in the hospital 
that night that we talked to her. She was so strange, Mum. She 
never gave up her hope that her and Mulder would be together 
someday."

Mulder leaned in and spoke. "And the only way for me to let her 
off was to tell the truth. I told her I never loved her and she freaked 
out. She woke up almost right after we left and started screaming 
at us and calling Scully and the kids names. I went in and talked to 
her again. Even though I hate her, I told her I forgave her for what 
she did. Right after that she had a heart attack and died in her 
room."

Maggie nodded slightly. "Well I'm just glad you're all safe and 
sound." Her ears perked up a little as she got an idea.

"Mulder, Scully, how about Merry and Will spend the night and 
tomorrow I'll take them out and you guys can have some quiet 
time, okay?" She asked excitedly.

Mulder and Scully looked over at each other. Mulder raised his 
eyebrows slightly, and she raised one back.

He'd never get that down like she did.

She turned to her mother and nodded. "Okay."

XXXXXXX

At Maggie Scully's summer house...That afternoon...

William gratefully took the sucker from his grandma and stuck it 
in his mouth. Meredith followed suit.

"So, children," Maggie said in a soothing voice. "What would you 
like to do today?"

Meredith spoke up around the sucker that filled her mouth. 
"Gramma, I wanna go swimming in the lake!"

William agreed vigorously, bobbing his head up and down. "Yeah, 
Gramma, please? If we go home and get our swim stuff?"

Maggie couldn't resist the two adorable children. She smiled and 
nodded. "Okay, you guys, we'll swim in the lake."

The two kids cheered loudly before Maggie quieted them with a 
threat of no swimming.

"I wonder what Mummy and Daddy are doing..."

XXXXXXX

THERES SOMETHING IN 
HERE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!~~~~~~~~ post around 
400!!!!!!

XXXXXXX

Mulder just kept going, while Scully hurriedly tried to stop him. 
"Mulder, there's someone at the door, geez..."

"Oh, Scully, they'll go away..." Mulder laughed as he nuzzled her 
neck.

Scully rolled her eyes and smiled.

They just ignored the doorbell as it rang a couple of times. But 
what they didn't hear was the door opening...

XXXXXXX

"Where are Mummy and Daddy, Gramma?" Meredith asked as she 
shifted her weight uneasily. "I wanna go swimming!"

"Here Gramma," Will said, handing her a key. "Dad gave me this 
so in case we ever got locked out..."

Maggie gave a sigh of relief. They had been standing at the front 
door of the Mulder summer home for nearly five minutes ringing 
the doorbell.

Now it was time to get in. She wasn't planning on disturbing them, 
that is if they were even home.

They opened the front door, and it gave a little squeak. The house 
appeared empty, in nearly perfect order. The only thing that looked 
a little out of place was that the bedroom door was shut. Scully 
always left the doors wide and a window slightly open when they 
were gone so air could get around the house.

Maybe...

Maggie soon came to the realization that maybe they WERE home.

She herded the kids to their rooms and they quickly grabbed their 
swim stuff. As she closed the door behind them, she hoped that 
they hadn't heard a thing.

But according to Scully, he never did...

XXXXXXX

He watched them from the house, playing on the beachy sand near 
the lake. The little girl's auburn hair swayed in the breeze and she 
and her brother began constructing a sand castle. They laughed and 
laughed, the sounds just barely reaching his old, weathered ears.

A woman, he presumed their grandmother, sat on a towel a short 
distance away from them, laughing when they tossed sand into her 
lap.

Their attempt had failed. Someone had told the parents where the 
children were. The betrayal had cost them the life of the most 
valuable resource.

Diana Fowley.

The man dropped his Morley butt on the ground, stomping it into 
oblivion.

That was exactly what he was going to do to the betrayer...

XXXXXXX
End of part 2
XXXXXXX
(PART 3 OF 4) 
Xxxxxxx

Two Days Later...

Reyes passed their newborn son to Scully, who held him and cooed 
to him as he looked up at her with big green eyes.

"Oh, Reyes, he's so beautiful," She said softly.

John and Reyes smiled at each other. "We're very happy to have 
him."

Meredith suddenly appeared next to her mother, and she touched 
Samuel's soft wisps of black hair. "Auntie, may I hold him?"

But Scully answered first. "Merry, how about Daddy hold him 
first? He hasn't got to yet."

A pout entered her face for a moment until she saw a cat streak by 
the front bay window in the living room. With that, she bolted out 
of the room, William following her. The adults shared in laughter, 
but then a knock sounded at the door.

Mulder got up and opened the door. In walked none other than 
Jeffrey Spender. Tiny beads of sweat formed on his forehead. A 
slim red cut ran down the length of his face. "I...I need...help..." he 
said breathlessly.

It was then that Scully noticed a woman behind him. She was tall 
with an athletic build. She had long, dark hair pulled back into a 
sleek ponytail, and piercing, if a little jaded, blue eyes. She too 
looked exhausted and scared, but less than Jeffrey.

She walked up to them. "I'm Kate Bailey," she said, extending a 
hand. "I've been hired by Mr. Spender to protect him from his 
father, CGB Spender. He's also warned me that your family may 
need a measure of protection as well considering the recent events. 
Jeffrey told me..."

His hand went over her mouth, stopping her. "No, Kate..." Jeffrey 
said. "I'll explain it. "My father knows. He knows that I gave you 
that note and helped you. He thinks I'm responsible for Diana's 
death. He's after me...us."

Scully just looked at him. "How can we trust you?"

Jeffrey gave her a look. "Mrs. Mulder, after everything I've done 
for you, everything, you still can't trust me?"

Scully looked him up and down for a moment. She looked to 
Mulder, who nodded a little.

Then she sighed. "Okay, Jeffrey. But please, explain it from the 
top..."

Jeffrey took a deep breath and started. "When your children were 
taken, I saw their faces. I saw their fear and I heard their thoughts. 
I knew then that I had to help. So I wrote you the note. I couldn't 
stand it. I didn't tell my father, but somehow, he knows. He knows 
I helped you, and because of that he blames me for Diana's death. 
He was in love with her. And now he wants me dead. He called it 
"Justice being rightfully fulfilled.""

Kate cut in. "He also said that your family would suffer for this 
indiscretion. I guess he was going over the edge, but Diana's death 
pushed him off the cliff of sanity. You see, I was supposed to help 
with the kidnapping of your children, all for his "master plan." But 
I didn't, and now that I'm with Jeffrey, he wants me dead too."

Jeffrey nodded. "Just think of it like this. You scratch our back, we 
scratch yours."

Mulder and Scully exchanged a look, as did John and Reyes. 
Finally, Mulder nodded. "Okay. We'll help you. But what are we 
supposed to do?"

"We're assuming that they know we're here. So if worst comes to 
worst we'll have to leave." Kate answered, her eyes shimmering 
with something a mixture of fear and exhilaration.

Just then Meredith and William burst through the front door. 
Meredith stopped short and gasped. "Who are you guys..."

Kate bent down and looked into Meredith's eyes. "I'm Kate, and 
I'm going to help you. The man who took you and your brother 
wants to hurt you again. He wants to hurt your Mummy and Daddy 
and me and Jeffrey."

Meredith looked confused. "I thought Jeffrey was a bad guy. He 
was there with the scary lady."

Jeffrey stooped down next to the child and took her arms in his 
large hands. "Meredith, it's okay. I was supposed to help the scary 
lady, but I wanted to help you more."

Meredith stared into his eyes for a moment, and he knew she was 
reading his thoughts. Then she backed away and nodded. "It's 
okay, Willy. I think he's telling the truth." Satisfied, Kate and 
Jeffrey stood up.

"We should probably stay here for the night, for you, Scully," Kate 
nodded to Scully. "But if anything happens, Jeffrey and I have 
chosen a place where we will be safe."

XXXXXXX

Later...that night

Scully and Mulder slept in their room, the children at the floor in 
front of the bed. Reyes, John and little Samuel were sleeping in 
Meredith's room, and Jeffrey and Kate slept on the floor of Will's 
room.

In the master bedroom...

Scully must have woken up a million times. She jerked to life with 
every bump, noise, or whimper from the kids. She couldn't help 
but feel scared about everything that was starting to go on in their 
lives. Why, less than a month ago, everything was perfect. Now it 
was nearly a living hell, perfect strangers in their home and 
impending danger breathing down their necks and threatening a 
dire fate.

She woke yet again, and her blue eyes searched the room. Just 
Meredith rolling over. She tried to calm her beating heart to no 
avail. So she rolled closer to Mulder and wrapped herself up in 
him. Then she heard his voice.

"Can't sleep either, huh."

She looked up at her husband in the dark. "No, I'm too scared."

He put his arms around her. "Just close your eyes and it'll all be 
okay."

As she closed her eyes in sleep, she tried to forget the fright, the 
danger and its hot breath on her neck...

In Will's room...

Kate and Jeffrey were not asleep. They sat side by side on the 
floor, each leaning on the small twin bed for support. They had to 
watch to listen. At least one of them had to be awake.

"Jeffrey," Kate whispered, her eyes shining in the dark. "I'm 
scared."

Jeffrey smiled over at her. She obviously wasn't used to running 
away from his father. "I know. I can feel it. I can feel him getting 
closer."

In reply Kate scooted closer to him, using him for warmth. 
"Jeffrey, we're going to have to leave, aren't we?"

Jeffrey just took her hand in his, calming the fear in her blue eyes. 
"I don't know."

XXXXXXX

Later that night...

Reyes started awake as the bright light crept up to her eyes. She 
blinked hard as she tried to focus. Headlights, maybe?

Maybe.

Wait a minute...

She looked over at the clock. 3:42 am. Who could be coming at 
this hour? The realization crept in slowly, and suddenly a panic 
filled her chest.

She shook John awake. "John...John...I think something's wrong..."

He muttered, "Wha..."

"John, come on! Wake every one up, please, John..."

XXXXXXX

Mulder felt a hand on his shoulder. He opened his eyes slowly to 
see John poking him. Next to him Reyes was waking Scully. The 
kids stood at the foot of the bed, in front of Kate and Jeffrey.

"Muldah, we have to get out of here..."

Scully sat up as the bright light passed by the window. "What was 
that?"

Kate spoke up, her eyes dark and cold. "Someone's out there, I 
think it's him...he's waiting for us..."

Meredith's face was scared, her eyes dilated and wide. "Mummy, 
it's the man who took us..."

William nodded, a bead of sweat running down his forehead. 
"Mom, we have to leave, Dad, come on..."

Mulder jolted up. "Come on, I know where we can go for tonight 
at least..."

Mulder got up and together the group quietly made their way to the 
living room. Only a Navaho rug covered the wooden floor, its 
bright colors coming into view each time that the light swept over 
it.

Scully muttered, "Mulder..."

He just ignored her and with one sweep of his arm, the rug was 
moved back to reveal an almost unnoticeable door in the floor. he 
lifted it slowly.

There was a short staircase leading to a small room, probably just 
big enough for all of them to fit with a little extra room.

"Everyone get inside," John said. "I'll go get a flashlight."

He soon came back with the retrieved item, along with a couple of 
blankets.

Suddenly, the light stopped moving, and all sounds ceased.

"Hurry," William whispered. "They're coming..."

Everyone made their way down the staircase. Kate got in last, 
pulling the door down as she swept the rug back into place.

XXXXXXX

He entered the home with one swift kick to the door, tossing his 
Morley butt onto the manicured lawn on his way in.

He looked around for a minute, and then he noticed the rug. It was 
slightly out of place. He grinned in the dark to himself.

This was much too easy. No fun in this, he thought.

They thought they were safe. They thought he didn't know. They 
thought he was actually stupid enough not to know.

But he knew. It was all part of the game. The game that they didn't 
know they were playing.

He lit another cigarette as he turned and walked out. He would 
wait, wait until they weren't suspecting him. This was only meant 
to scare and weaken them. Like a game of chess. Start slow. Then 
come full force with the checkmate.

It was almost time for his checkmate.

XXXXXXX

They were sitting in complete darkness now. The footsteps on the 
floor ceased and the flashlight batteries ran out.

Meredith and William clung to each other in the dark. Merry 
started singing a song.

"Somewhere, out there. Beneath the pale..."

"Merry, shut up!" Will whispered, annoyed.

"Daddy, Willy said shut up..."

"Well maybe if you would stop singing I wouldn't say it!"

Mulder silenced them both. "Be quiet you guys. Don't want the 
man to come get you!"

That shut them up quick.

Mulder put his arms around Scully and she leaned against him for 
support. They just sat there together.

Samuel started to cry and Reyes hushed him quickly.

Kate suddenly squealed. "Who just grabbed my leg????"

Even in the dark, she could practically see Jeffrey's face turn a dark 
shade of red.

Merry giggled softly. "Jeffrey..."

XXXXXXX

The Next Morning...

Kate woke up to the sounds of soft footsteps on the floor above 
her. They got quieter, then louder, then quieter again.

She moved from her position of leaning against Jeffrey, and in the 
dark, she strained to make sure everyone was still there.

Mulder and Scully were leaned up against each other, his hands on 
her stomach.

John and Reyes were in almost the same position, both of their 
hands cradling their son.

She looked for the children, to the spot on the floor that they had 
spent the night on. But they weren't there...

She almost panicked. But just as she was about to wake the others, 
a soft giggle accompanied by a door slamming quickly brought her 
into reality.

They had gotten up.

She stood up as much as possible in the small space and opened 
the hatch in the floor. Bright sunlight streamed into the hole and lit 
it up.

She stood, on the stairs, half her body sticking out of the hole in 
the floor. She could still hear the giggling, so she climbed out and 
went to see where they were.

She found them playing in the sand on the shore of the lake.

And then something caught her eye. Or rather, someone...

A man stood a while away from the children, smoke wafting from 
something in his hand.

Kate moved in a little closer to see who the man was. He looked 
middle aged, maybe, wearing a dark blue suit. Smoke wafted from 
a cigarette in his hand.

CSM?

She couldn't tell. His back was to her as he watched the kids play 
in the surf.

She withdrew a gun from her belt and held it up as she made her 
way towards the man. It was weird, the kids looked at the man and 
waved to him before continuing to play.

The man started walking towards Merry and Will.

Kate broke into a run as she yelled for the man to stop in his tracks.

He turned slowly.

It wasn't him.

He held up his hands, the cigarette falling to the ground. "Hey, I 
just saw them come out and thought I'd keep an eye on 'em. 
Mulder's kids always gettin' out early," he drawled. "I watch 'em 
sometimes when they're by the lake. I swear."

She sighed loudly and put the gun back. "Sorry, sir."

"What's going on out here?" Mulder walked out of the house and 
stretched lazily.

Scully was right behind him. "Oh, thank god. The kids."

Will and Merry came up to them, eyes shining. Merry giggled and 
said, "We came out because the man went away."

Scully pulled Merry into her arms and sighed. "Meredith Emilie, 
William Mulder, never go out by yourselves early. And thanks 
Jack, for watching them."

He smiled and walked away shaking his head.

Suddenly, Will's eyes went dark. "He knows. He's coming back. 
We're not safe here."

Kate frowned. "Who?"

Will stared at her. "The cigarette man. He knew we were here last 
night. And he's going to come back..."

XXXXXXX

A little while later...

"Where can we go?" John asked.

Jeffrey looked at a road map. "Well, there's an Indian reservation 
over here...maybe we could get in there..."

Kate shook her head. "No, we won't, Jeffrey. Smoking man has 
people everywhere."

They looked into each other's eyes. Finally, Jeffrey nodded.

Will and Merry were playing on the floor together, not really 
listening to the conversation. Scully and Mulder sat near them. 
Scully looked more tired than usual. Reyes sat with John, looking 
at the map with the others.

Suddenly, Scully spoke up. "How about we go to a hospital?"

Mulder started, "Why"

"Because," she whispered. "I think I just felt a contraction..."

XXXXXXX

About 5 hours later...

"Daddy, why are they so little?" Meredith asked as she peeked into 
the NICU, neonatal intensive care unit.

Mulder looked in on his new daughters, Samantha Abigail and 
Audrey Marie. "Because, Merry, they were born early. They're not 
all the way developed."

"Oh." She looked on at the tiny babies, kept breathing by a 
ventilator.

Mulder left her with Kate, Jeffrey, John and Reyes. He went to go 
see Scully.

XXXXXXX

"How are you feeling?" he asked as he sat down on the edge of her 
bed.

She smiled a little. "I'm okay, I guess." She sat up and put her arms 
around him. "Mulder, I'm just scared. They're very early."

He buried his face in her hair. "They'll be okay."

She leaned back and took his hands, and they prayed together for 
the safety of their newest additions.

XXXXXXX

Kate stood by Jeffrey and they watched as Merry and Will looked 
into the glass window at their new sisters.

"They're so sweet, aren't they?" She asked.

"Yeah," he answered, looking into the depths of her blue eyes.

She sighed. "I wish I had kids like them. They're so strong."

He smiled at her.

"Jeff, I hope the babies are okay. I mean, we still need to protect 
them. I have to find CGB. I have to."

"I just don't want anything to happen to you, Kate."

She laughed. "I can take care of myself, Jeffrey."

He just smiled again and took her hand. "Just be careful, okay?"

Suddenly, Merry was at Kate's side, pulling on her shirt.

"What is it Merry?"

Her eyes grew wide. "He's here, he's here, he's here!" She took off 
running down the hall toward Scully's hospital room.

"Who's here, Will?"

He started to follow his sister. "Him.."

She followed his pointing finger down the hall...

XXXXXXX
End of part 3
XXXXXXX
(PART 4 OF 4) 
XXXXXXX

"Mommy, mommy!" Merry cried as she ran into the room. Will 
was right behind her, both their faces flushed.

She let go of Mulder's hand and took Merry's. "What's wrong 
honey?"

"Mommy, that man is back, mommy!!!"

XXXXXXX

Kate stood up to face CGB. She smiled down at Jeffrey and 
muttered, "I guess he found me first."

She walked a little closer, and although she appeared strong, 
Jeffrey saw her hands shake a little.

CGB must have noticed too. A faint smile lit his face as he lit up. 
"You know, Kate, I know what you have planned for me. Just 
remember, now is not the time."

She spoke through gritted teeth. "Only because we're in a hospital 
and they can probably save you."

He took a long drag from his cigarette and turned away. As he 
made his way down the hall, he turned back. "Soon, Kate. Soon." 
And he walked away.

She sat back down. "Damnit, Jeffrey."

She continued. "I can't believe I just let him walk out of here like 
that. But like he said, soon. He knows it..."

XXXXXXX

About 3 days later...at the Mulder home...

"What is that, Daddy?" Meredith looked incredulously at her 
lunch.

"Mac and cheese, Hon," Mulder answered. "Eat up."

She took a little bite. "Daddy, it tastes different when Mommy 
makes it." She pushed it away.

William ate silently. "Dad, when is Mom coming home?"

Mulder sighed. "I don't know, William. I'm going to visit her 
today, and Doggett and Monica are coming over to watch you."

He turned away to clean up the lunch dishes. Playing mom wasn't 
as easy as he thought. He felt that he now had a new appreciation 
for the mother of his children.

Both complained excessively, wouldn't go to bed on time, and, 
they didn't especially like his cooking.

They all wanted Scully to come home.

She spent her time in the maternity ward watching their daughters, 
hoping that they would be all right. He hope that they would be 
home soon, but it wasn't looking like that would happen for a 
while.

Doggett and Monica returned home, Kate had deemed them safe. 
For now at least. She and Jeffrey had gone in search of CSM, 
hopefully he would leave them alone.

XXXXXXX

They were sitting in an abandoned warehouse, old and rickety. 
Watching him from across the street, conducting his business.

Kate watched through her piercing blue eyes, remembering back to 
a time when life was filled with simplicity, only to suddenly be 
taken away and returned with utter horror...

~~~"Your father is dead, Kate! He can't come back!" Cassandra 
Spender whispered frantically as she hugged a hysterical nine-year 
Kate and shook her arms gently, attempting to calm her down.

Casimir Gershom Baldwin Spender stood nearby as the police and 
investigators filed through the house, smoking a cigarette. He had a 
blank expression on his face.

Samantha Mulder walked up to her. Her face was streaked with 
tears. She pulled Kate into a gentle hug, the new scratches on her 
arms overlapping the old ones. "It's gonna be okay, Kate. 
Everything is going to be okay..."

And later...

"You have to, Casthere's no way that I'll let you put her out in 
the cold after what you did!" Cassandra's voice came through the 
vent to Kate and Sam's waiting ears, as they sat in Samantha's 
room together.

Sometime later

"Samantha!!! No, I won't let them take you!" Kate screamed to 
Samantha as she packed a few things into a bag, preparing to run 
away.

"I have to Kate! Don't you get it? They're going to take me again! I 
can't stand any more tests!" Samantha frantically yelled back, tears 
streaming down her face as she zipped up her bag as started for the 
door. She turned suddenly and ran back. "I'm gonna miss you. 
You're my best friend in the whole world."

Kate sniffed loudly as her tears joined Samantha's. "I'll miss you 
too. Write me."

Samantha nodded as a bright light entered the room.

"I have to go Kate! Let go of me!" The older girl cried as she 
wrenched herself from Kate's grasp.

As she reached the door, she called out, "My diary. My diary, 
Kate. Keep it. Read it. It's meant for my brother, my real brother, if 
he ever remembers me."

Kate whispered, "I'll find him, Sammy. I'll find him."

And then she was gone. Twelve year-old Kate was alone.~~~

She shuddered a little. He had made her do things, things she never 
wanted to do. Smoking, and playing that stupid game he called 
"Slavery." And the remembering game, about Sammy.

Jeffrey was all she had after Sammy left, he always made her 
forget the horrible things she'd had to do. When she came to him in 
the depths of despair, he would hug her, hold her hand and tell her 
everything was okay.

Her eyes slid shut, she remembered everything. Jeffrey suddenly 
grabbed her arm.

"There he is..."

"I'll go get him," Jeffrey whispered. But Kate put her hand on his 
shoulder and shook her head.

"I have to do this," she whispered.

She got up and walked outside, followed him through the dark 
alley. When she was close enough, she said his name softly. "CGB 
Spender."

He turned, obviously surprised. But he hid it well. "Why, Kate. It's 
been so long. I'm sorry we could not have a *proper* reunion in 
the hospital."

"Me too." She gave him a small smile, totally betraying her inner 
thoughts.

He walked up to her and grinned. "How have you been?"

She laughed wickedly, inward of course. He was so stupid. He 
wouldn't see this coming. "Good. But I miss my father."

The light in his eyes became shaded. "Oh."

She grinned wickedly. "What do you say we play a little gave of 
"Slavery?" For old times sake... you can be the slave..."

He nodded, looking like a child at Christmas. He'd always had a 
perverted fascination with little Kate. Now he thought he'd get to 
take some of that out.

Yeah, right. She almost would've pissed her pants laughing if he 
hadn't of led her to his car.

They climbed in together. She smiled at him, took out a pair of 
handcuffs. Lord knows where she got them. She handcuffed his 
hands to the steering wheel. "Drive."

The smile on his face disappeared. "Where?"

"Away. This is only the first part of the game."

As he drove, he began to realize. This was no game. She had 
something planned. They drove for awhile, until the sun began to 
come up. He pulled over and started talking, trying to get her off 
track.

"How..." A gun was shoved in his face. A muttered word, and yet 
enough to stop his own words.

"Drive..."

So he kept driving.

XXXXXXX

A little later...

"Get out of the car. Now."

They were in a dark alley, filled with garbage and smelling of cats 
and poverty.

"You won't kill me, you know," he said as she pulled the cigarette 
from his mouth and stomped it on the ground.

"And why do you think that?"

"Because," he said matter-of-factly, "I can crush your spirit."

She laughed at him. "I'm the one with the gun, I'm the one who is 
in control here."

He smiled. "O contrare, little one. Do you really want to know how 
your father died?"

She swallowed hard. "He committed suicide."

This time it was his turn to laugh. "That's what I told you, Katie." 
He used her pet name. "Katie, do you remember Sammy?"

Oh well. She might as well put on the act. She closed her eyes and 
reopened them looking like a small child. Vulnerable. "Yes."

"Your father tried to help Samantha. Save her from the tests. He 
got in the way, much too much in the way. So I had him removed."

The small smile was gone in that instant, replaced by an 
unspeakable anger. "You...KILLED MY FATHER?!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!" 
She screamed at him.

He just nodded. "You can't kill me, Katie. Because I can break 
you."

She just laughed at him, evil and cunningly. "O contrare, capitan, 
that is where you have gone very wrong," she mocked his earlier 
words.

She pointed the gun and fired...

XXXXXXX

At the hospital...

"You guys are so beautiful," Mulder whispered as he stood with 
his hands in the plastic hand things in the neonatal unit. He was 
wearing all the gear necessary to visit his daughters. He stood with 
one hand in each "crib", touching their soft skin.

They were beautiful. Like little flowers dying in the rain. No, not 
dying...thriving. They were going to be all right. They were. They 
were doing a little better, not as weak but still on ventilators.

As he looked at each of his daughters, a single tear slid down his 
cheek. They just had to be okay...

Outside the window, Scully saw the tear, which brought on her 
own. She put her hand up to her face and started sobbing, unable to 
control it.

As William and Meredith tried to comfort her, putting their little 
arms around her legs, she only had one thought.

They just have to be okay...

XXXXXXX

The bullet grazed his knee, ricocheted off and into the alley. He 
winced a little, but didn't even lose his cigarette as he put a hand to 
his knee. "What was that for, Katie?"

She brought the gun down to her side and said, "That was for what 
you've done to me."

She brought the gun up again and fired, sending a silver bullet into 
his arm. "That was for slavery."

Suddenly, a car drove by, and a girl's voice screeched, "Slow 
down!!!"

The back window rolled down and suddenly a girl was hanging her 
upper body out of it. She was wearing a red shirt with the name 
"ERIN" across the front in bold block letters. She was holding two 
beer bottles, one in each hand and one empty. She laughed hard 
and loud as she screamed, "Want some?" She chucked the empty 
bottle right at CGB. It hit him in the head, shattering into a million 
pieces.

She drove off, laughing.

There were no cuts from the glass, but he looked like maybe it hurt 
a little.

Kate looked at him, his scared face and smoking cigarette. She 
almost, almost felt sorry for him. Sorry for what she had done.

But not sorry enough to stop it.

She brought the gun up again, and this time made a straight shot 
right between his eyes. He fell to the ground, the cigarette falling 
from his fingers.

"And that," she panted, breathing hard, "Was for killing my 
father."

XXXXXXX

"We are gathered here today to..."

Kate and Jeffrey were the lone attendees to Casimir Gershom 
Baldwin Spender's funeral. They felt it was only right, even 
through all the things he did to them.

He was still Jeffrey's father.

He took her hand and held it to him tightly. She looked at him and 
smiled, leaning her head on his chest. Things were finally working 
out.

XXXXXXX

A month later...

Mulder stood by Scully's bed, cradling Audrey Marie in one arm. It 
was the very first time they got to hold the babies. Scully held 
Samantha Abigail in her arms and looked into her deep, liquidy 
brown eyes.

"They're so beautiful, Mulder."

"Yeah, they are." And they were doing much better.

Meredith and William walked in slowly, both careful to keep quiet 
as they sat on the edge of the bed together and looked at their 
sisters.

Meredith spoke first. "Can I hold them?"

Scully nodded and patted the pillow next to her. Meredith sat down 
and Scully passed Samantha into her arms, still holding on, but just 
enough so that Meredith thought she was doing it all by herself.

Meredith touched Samantha's little nose, and her mouth opened 
instinctively. "Aw, Sammy, you're pretty," she whispered.

William was next. "Me too, Dad."

Mulder sat down next to Will and let him hold Audrey. He cradled 
her gently. "Dad, I can hear her."

"Me too, me too!" Meredith said.

"Dad, they're just like us. They said so," William whispered.

"Yeah, Daddy, they can talk to us!" Meredith said excitedly, 
looking down into Samantha's brown eyes.

"We love you too."

XXXXXXX

Later that night...

"So what exactly happened that night, Kate? You have to talk 
about it sometime."

She looked up at Jeffrey from her place on the couch. He leaned 
over her, his voice filled with concern.

"He called me Katie...told me he wanted things to be the way they 
were...I pretended to fall for it but I knew what I had to do."

He smoothed her hair from her face. "You had to do that. He 
needed to get what he deserved Kate."

Before he could stop himself, he leaned in and kissed her gently. 
"I've loved you for so long, Kate. And he ruined it. But now 
everything is okay."

She smiled up at him. "Yeah. Everything is going to be okay."

XXXXXXX

About a month later...

"Kate, will you marry me?"

She couldn't convey the emotions running through her. In fact, she 
was shocked silent by his proposal. Here she was, about to say yes, 
if she could say anything, to the best question ever asked of her.

He was sitting next to her on the couch in his new apartment, the 
one that they shared together. She wanted to speak, but she was 
afraid to open her mouth, lest a million yesses and screams come 
forth from it.

"Kate?"

She looked into his eyes and managed a small smile. Then she 
nodded, it was all she could do without freaking out.

He took her hand and looked into her blue eyes. Things were 
definitely starting looking up.

She patted her slightly growing stomach and smiled. "We both say 
yes, huh, Cassandra?"

He just kissed her and smiled again. Yes, things were definitely 
looking up.

XXXXXXX

A week later...

Scully cradled Samantha in her arms, Monica held Audrey.

"They're so sweet!" Monica exclaimed as she fed Audrey a bottle.

Merry sat near Monica, sitting next to little Samuel, who was 
fascinated by one of Meredith's old toys.

"Mommy?" she asked. "Can you play with me?"

"Not now, honey," Scully replied. "Mommy's got the babies."

She burst into tears. "It's always the babies, mommy! I'm sick of 
them!" With that she left Samuel in his little baby seat and ran 
from the room.

Will ran in, Doggett and Mulder closely behind him. "Mom, we 
played the best game! You shoulda seen it!"

She smiled as Will began to give  her an entire play-by-play 
version of their game of pickup baseball.

Mulder said, "Merry just ran by, what's wrong?"

"Oh the usual, she said. "She wants attention."

He walked away. "I'll have a talk with her."

Will went to the door and picked up the mail. "Mom, look! Uncle 
Jeffrey's getting married!"

Scully looked at the invitation. "You are cordially invited..."

She grinned.

XXXXXXX

"Meredith, what's wrong?" Mulder asked as he sat next to his 
daughter on her bed.

"Daddy, I'm sick of the babies. It's all mummy thinks about."

He smoothed back her auburn hair. "She's just very busy with two 
babies." Then he got an idea. "How would you like to go out to 
dinner with me, Merry? You can get dressed up and I'll take you 
out on a date. Tomorrow night."

"A date?" she got happy suddenly. "Thank you Daddy!" she kissed 
him on the cheek and ran off to tell William all about her "date."

Mulder smiled. It was going to be an interesting night.

XXXXXXX

NOTE: Change anything that I need to.

The next night...

Scully started awake in bed when she saw the lights in the den 
flicker on, sending soft shadows of her husband and daughter. She 
peeked at the clock. 11:23.

Geez. They were home late, she thought as soft classical music 
turned on, its quiet sounds like a lullaby.

She climbed out of bed and slipped her white robe on as she made 
her way to the den. What she saw was probably the sweetest 
picture she had ever seen. She leaned against the doorjamb and 
watched them.

Meredith, decked out in her best dress, lacy gloves, and black dress 
shoes, stood on top of her father's own shoes. He held her hands 
and they danced together, her auburn curls bouncing as she 
concentrated, and with Mulder's tux, they looked like a picture 
straight out of a wedding photo album.

She just stood and watched them for a few minutes, until she heard 
Meredith's soft voice through the music.

"Daddy, will you tell me a story?"

He turned the music down and sat on the couch, pulling her onto 
his lap.

"Once upon a time, there was a little girl named..."

"Daddy can her name be Merry?"

He smiled at her. Scully smiled to herself.

"There was a little girl named Merry. Before she was born her 
mummy and daddy hoped for a little girl, they wanted one so 
badly. When she finally came, they were so happy, they named her 
Meredith, after her daddy's niece. But they decided to call her 
Merry for short."

"Daddy!" came an exclamation. "That's the story of me!"

He nodded and smiled. But before he could continue, her eyes half 
closed and she whispered, "I'm tired, Daddy."

He nodded again and picked her up easily, carried her to her 
bedroom off the den and about five minutes later emerged. He took 
off his suit coat and rolled up the sleeves of his shirt a little. He 
kicked off his dress shoes and socks and undid his belt. Then he 
relaxed on the couch, leaned back and sighed.

Scully entered and sat down next to him, cuddling up against his 
side. She pulled her knees up and leaned her kneecaps against his 
side, putting her auburn hair on his shoulder, sliding an arm around 
his waist. "How was your night?" She ran her fingertips up and 
down his chest, slowly undoing the top buttons.

He smiled over at her and put his arm around her so that the side of 
her head rested in the crook of his arm. "Good. Dinner was great, 
she was so excited to be in a real French restaurant and she wasn't 
afraid to try anything. Not even Escargot." He laughed. "We went 
on a walk under the stars and we talked about the babies, mostly. I 
think she just needed some attention."

She smiled. "Yeah, I'm glad you took her out. She really needed 
it."

He gave her a sleepy grin and yawned. "Scully, I know our lives 
haven't been perfect, we haven't gotten that perfect happiness you 
always dreamed about. But you know what?"

"What?" she whispered, moving closer to him, nuzzling his stubble 
with her face.

"I wouldn't change a thing. Well, except for anything I've ever 
done to hurt you, and what's happened to the kids recently."

She laughed softly and yawned into his shoulder. "I wouldn't 
change it either, Mulder. I wouldn't change it at all."

He kissed the top of her head gently, gripping her hand as he did 
so. "I guess this is the life we lead, huh? It's not perfect, but it's the 
next best thing."

She sighed, lacing her fingers within his, and they cuddled deeper 
into each other's warmth. Mulder reached back and pulled the late 
Samantha Mulder's favourite afghan off of the shelf next to the 
couch, draping it over them.

He leaned his head on top of hers and pulled the handle for the 
recliner, tilting back until their legs were up. Scully stretched her 
legs out and rubbed her foot against his, and he smiled as he closed 
his eyes.

As slumber began to claim them, she whispered softly, "You're 
right Mulder. It's not perfect, but it's the next best thing."

XXXXXXX

THE END

Story Continued In:

Book 3: A New Beginning