======== Hi all! :)  This is a story I've discussed with some friends before starting to write. I feel it would put Scully in an interesting position right now.  Anyway, this is kind of a test balloon to see how people will react.  If the reaction is positive, I'll write more.  If not, I'll consider stopping it there.  This is sort of planned out to be the first 'story' of a series of time vignettes, which may eventually turn into MSR.  There's no NC-17 in this part, but there will be soon - trust me. :)  So, if you like it, please take the time to say so, because any continuation rests entirely in your hands.  Nancy  And now for the story...  Disclaimer:  Not being able to get Showtime, I never see Red Shoes Diaries unless a friend of mine allows me to borrow their tape (and this has only happened once).  So, if any of the details are wrong, blame it on ignorance. ;)

The X-Files belong to 1013 productions and Twentieth Century Fox. Red Shoe Diaries belongs to Zalman King and uh... whoever else finances him.  No infringement meant.  It's just that those characters are so damn good, I can't help wanting to give them extra life. ;) Oh... and I haven't got a penny to my name, so suing me would be a waste of your time and money.  I, on the other hand, would get a lawyer for free. ;)

On a 'cute anecdote' sidenote, the thing Scully talks about regarding the medical card and waiting for patients to visit was actually something I did. :)  Rating: NC-17  Yup... smut, smut, and nothing but smut. ;)  Oh, and a little romance too. <vbg>  Spoilers:  None.  This is a before-they-joined-the-X-Files story.  Classification: CR  Key words: X-Files/Red Shoe Diaries crossover.  Scully/other romance.  Summary:  Dana Scully, a young pre-med student, meets a guy while crossing through the campus, and can't help but accept his invitation to dinner.   Jumeaux  by The Dragon Lady (nlemie@po-box.mcgill.ca) ------Dana Scully clutched at her books as she ran to the building at the end of the path.  She *really* despised this scheduling which only gave her ten minutes to cross campus and get to her next class.  Why was it always like this?  She always got exams on the last day of class before Christmas holidays, she always got classes that started at 8 in the morning, and she always got -- oomph!!!!!!

She hit the ground hard, her papers flying everywhere around her.

"Whoops!  I'm sorry.  Did I hurt you?"

Dazed, she looked up at the source of the voice and stopped , holding her breath.

"Hello?  Can you hear me?"

"I... I..."

She had a hard time talking.  The wind had been knocked out of her -- and it wasn't only because of the fall.  Staring down at her, with concerned eyes, was the most fascinating man she'd ever seen.  Tall, lanky, smoky green eyes, and short brown hair that looked so soft, she just wanted to reach out and feel if it really was.  Luckily, she stopped her arm before she embarrassed herself.

She smiled.

"I'm fine.  You just startled me."

"Yeah, that, and I mowed you down."

"Oh yeah.  That too."

"Again, I'm sorry... "

"Dana."

"I'm sorry, Dana.  It's just that I've been late for my first two classes of the day, and I was rushing to try and make it on time for this one."

She smiled again.

"I know the feeling... uh..."

"Jake," he supplied.

"Jake," she repeated, trying to imprint his name in her mind, "I was also running to class, which is probably why I didn't see you at the intersection of the paths."

"Looks like we had the same purpose.  Now, tell me, are we going to the same class?"

"I don't know.  Do you have any interest in chemistry?"

"Not particularly."

"Well, then," Dana continued, "I doubt we're in the same class."

"I wouldn't be so sure, Dana."

She gave him a questioning look.

"Aspiring architects have to learn about chemistry too - chemistry of materials...  I guess you're not studying architecture, since I haven't seen you in any of my classes.  So, what are you in?"

"I'm pre-med."

"Oooooh.  Impressive, Dana."

"Not really."  She fought hard to stop the blush.  "It's just the only thing I could see myself doing."

"I know what you mean."

He finally smiled back at her.

"Ever since I was a little boy, I've wanted to be able to build things.  I used to drive my parents crazy with the stuff I built with my Legos.  I would give them hell when they stepped on one of my 'projects', or decided they'd had enough of the clutter and dismantled everything."

She laughed.

"Yeah.  When I was five, my parents bought me this medical kit -- a little black bag with plastic medical equipment.  One day, I took the 'the doctor is in' card and wrote my name on it.  I put the card in the front window and waited.  I was really annoyed when no one came to visit my office.  Of course, my parents laughed a long time when they found out."

She felt herself grow warm at the sound of his laughter.

"Well, Dana, it looks like we're both driven by what we do.  Oh, and we're late, too."

Her eyes grew wide with the realization.

"My course!  I have to go!"

He could only stare as she took off, leaving him standing alone on the path.  Looking down, he saw some of the papers she had failed to pick up.  He yelled after her, trying to get her attention, but she either ignored him or could not hear him, because she never slowed down.  Bending down, he picked up the stray leaves of paper, tucking them into his binder. He turned toward the direction she had headed and walked to his class, making a mental note to try and wait at the path again in order to catch her as she came by and give her back the sheets.

Jake walked into the back of the auditorium and looked for a free spot that would be easy to reach without disturbing everyone.  Finding none, he walked down a couple of steps and sat down in the aisle.  The lecturer was talking about the effects of polymer chain length, and was now well on his way to filling the second chalkboard.

Jake stuck his hand in his schoolbag and groped around furiously until he found a pen, then opened his binder, taking notes at top speed for fear of the board being erased before he was done.

"As you can see, the polymer length and flexibility can affect the strength of the material, as well as the phase, in the same way that different lengths of fatty acids can be solid or liquid, depending on chain length and the number of double bonds found in the unsaturated chains..."

Dana frowned as she tried to ignore the writer's cramp she was getting.  Didn't the man ever take a breath?  Why had she taken this course anyway?  She could have taken a bio-organic chemistry course, but *no*, she had to try and play with her schedule to fit in some gym time in the afternoon.  As a result, she was stuck in this Chemistry of Polymers class writing notes as if there were no tomorrow, and this was the *first* class of the semester!

"Excuse me, professor?"  A male voice Dana thought she recognized interrupted the professor mid-sentence.

"Yes?"

The professor turned towards the audience, looking for the student who had asked the question.  He didn't hide the annoyance in his voice.

"I'm sorry to interrupt, sir, but I was curious as to whether or not this also holds true for hydrocarbons?"

"Well, I was going to get to that in a few minutes, but since you asked it, yes.  The smaller hydrocarbons, such as methane, ethane, and propane are all gases, while the heavier chains become liquids, and then solids such as wax."

"But what about the heavy materials, such as the heavier oils and the coke?"

The professor was obviously pleased at the young man's train of thought.

"This goes back to what I said earlier about chemical composition. Those polymers are rather long, but their chemical composition, as well as the fact that they are not quite pure and mixed with some smaller chain hydrocarbons which act as 'solvents', make these materials seem more liquid than they should be.  Does this answer satisfy you?"

"Yes.  Thank you."

The time the professor had taken to answer had allowed Dana to scan the room and find him.  Jake had been sitting at the back, on the other side of the room.  She smiled.  Obviously, this was one smart, well-read man.  She toyed with the idea of walking up to him after the class, just to talk to him again.

"Now, if there are no further questions, I'll go on with the lecture."

There was silence in the room.  After a few seconds, the professor faced the board again and continued to write.

Jake did not start taking notes again right away.  Instead, he scanned the room, hoping that Dana might be there.  He smiled as he saw a flash of long red hair on the other side of the room, near the second aisle.  Now he wouldn't have to stand in the path hoping to catch her on the way to class.  He could just walk up to her here.

The rest of the lecture seemed to drag on forever, but it finally finished and Jake rapidly grabbed his stuff and ran to the exit on the other side of the room, hoping to catch Dana on her way out.

Ironically, he almost bumped into her again as he worked his way around a student in his rush to get to her.  She stopped in her tracks and smiled at him.

"We meet again."

"Yes."  He smiled down at her, suddenly speechless.

"Is there any particular reason why you almost mowed me down again, Jake?"

"Uh... Oh yes."  He finally regained his bearings.  "You dropped this on the path."

He fished out her sheets of paper and handed them back to her.

"Oh.  Thank you!"

"You're welcome."

She looked at the sheets of paper and gasped.  It was the list of instructions a professor had given her for the course she was assisting with.  If she'd lost them, she'd have been in real trouble.

"These were really important.  Thank you for bringing them back to me."

"You're welcome."

"You said that already."  She grinned at him.

"Well, you're welcome anyway."

He winked at her.  Inside, he was mortified that he'd just done that.  Not the most adult reaction!

"How about I thank you properly?"

He looked down at her, puzzled.  His tall frame made her seem quite petite.  She couldn't be more than three inches above five feet.

"I'm sorry?"

"Well, since you returned some papers which were very important to me, I was thinking I could repay the favour by buying you a cup of coffee. What do you think?"

His face broke out in a huge smile.

"I'd love to, Dana.  Lead on..."

He stretched out one arm in a gentlemanly 'after you' gesture and let her move ahead of him, enjoying the view and resisting the urge to whistle as they walked out the door.  Part II

"...so when the neighbour saw me stealing some of his rhubarb, I started running like crazy, and jumped over the fence, breaking my ankle as I landed.  Let me tell you, that was the last time I ever stole something from a neighbour's garden."

Jake couldn't stop laughing.  He would never have imagined that Dana had been such a tomboy as a child, but the twinkle in her eye as she recounted this story promised that her childhood was rich with such adventures.

"What?  You weren't a perfect angel as a child, Dana?"

She almost snorted as she took a sip of her coffee.

"Hardly.  Remember, I was the younger daughter trying to keep up with her two older brothers.  They were always in some scrape or other, and more often than not, I was right in there with them."

She couldn't believe how much she was telling him.  She *never* opened up this much to anyone.  However, he was such a good listener that her childhood adventures just tumbled out.

"Alright, now that I've bored you with my childhood stories, it's my turn to hear yours."

His face grew somber.

"I'm afraid I don't have much to tell, Dana.  I'm an only child, and my childhood was spent studying, and playing in team sports at school.  I didn't have any sly siblings, I didn't get into trouble, and I don't have anything interesting to recount."

"Aw, come on," she goaded, "You have to have *some* tidbit in there somewhere that would be interesting to hear.  That story you told about the 'projects' you built as a child was quite interesting."

"Well..."

She couldn't help noticing his shyness.  How he seemed more comfortable with other people's stories than his own.  Was it because he was hiding something, or simply because he was shy about his past?  She looked at him directly, hoping this would somehow show her interest in hearing his anecdotes.  The fact that this also allowed her to get a better look at him didn't escape her, either.

"You're going to laugh..."

"No I'm not," she assured him.

His grin grew wider as the need to tell her the story outweighed the embarrassment.

"Okay.  Well, when I was six, there was this print shop next to my parents' house.  We lived in a small city square, and it was always busy because of that business.  I remember how my parents used to always complain about one employee who drove a Jeep and parked right in front of our house.  He'd go riding in the woods on the weekend, but he wouldn't wash off the mud on his car.  After he'd park in front, he'd start cleaning the packs of dried mud off the Jeep and leave it in front of our house. That drove my parents nuts.  So one day, I decided that I was going to take the law into my own hands.  I found a nice pile of dirt and wet it..."

He stopped and looked to see if she was still paying attention, or if he had bored her.  He lost himself in her aqua blue gaze.

"You didn't!"

He nodded, chuckling.

"Oh yes, I did.  I took the mud I'd made and covered his Jeep with it.  Windows and all.  I did it so quickly that no one noticed.  So when the guy came out at the end of the day, he saw the mud and started cursing."

Dana started to laugh out loud, easily imagining the employee's face as he walked towards the Jeep.

"But that's not the worst of it..."

Dana's laughter eased up as she wondered what on earth could have possibly happened.  She looked up at Jake, who was smiling and apparently trying to fight off a fit of giggles.

"Since it was summer, the windows were open.  My parents heard him swearing and came out to the front porch to find out what it was about. When they saw the Jeep covered with mud, they misjudged how it had gotten that way, and started yelling at him -- telling him they didn't ever want to see a filthy Jeep in front of their house again."

Dana let out a laugh that was so loud and high-pitched that it not only surprised her, but it stopped the conversation in the cafe.  She turned beet red as all eyes looked at her, wondering about the outburst. Squirming and turning even redder, Dana tried to make herself as small as possible and refused to look up -- waiting for the conversations to start up again.  It didn't take long, and she finally hazarded a glance at Jake. He was smiling at her, obviously enjoying her discomfort.

"Red suits you."

She blushed deeper at his words.  The curse of the redhead... Sometimes, all that was needed was for someone to look at her as they said her name, and she'd blush.  She was working on fighting this, and had gained some semblance of control over the last couple of years, but Jake seemed to have broken down those defences, making her feel like a younger teenager again.

"You're only saying that because you know I'll blush more."

"I know."  He smiled, unapologetic.

His smug grin made her want to get him back, and even as she fought to get her colouring under control, she was working on hatching a plan that would do just that.  Oh, he was going to pay for making her lose her composure!  She sipped her coffee, trying to buy some time to hatch her plan for revenge.  She took one more sip and realized she'd finished her cup.

"Done?"

She looked up to see him watching her.  Obviously, he was paying more attention to her than she'd thought.  She smiled her sweetest smile, hoping to hide her ulterior motive.

"I guess so."

"Good, so am I.  First, I wanted to thank you again for the coffee, Dana."

Her mind raced as she realized the conversation was coming to an end.  She hadn't been ready for that.

"Oh, you- you're welcome," she stammered.

"Guess we'd better be going."

"Guess so."  Her expression darkened slightly as her mind refused to supply a decent excuse to lengthen their stay.

In a gentlemanly fashion he picked up her bag and handed it to her, then stretched an arm out in a sign for her to go first.  She wove her way through the tables, never turning back, but assuming that he was following. She made her way to the front door and walked out, breathing in the fresh air.  Turning around, she saw him closing the door to the cafe.  A nervous flutter went through her stomach as she realized that she wasn't sure what to say next.

"So... " Jake began, apparently no more inspired than she was.

"So..." She echoed.

"Which way are you going?"

"That way."  Dana pointed.

Jake's smile lit up the whole street.

"Great!  So am I!"

He crooked his arm out, inviting her to slip an arm through. Another gentlemanly gesture.  He seemed to be a mass of contradictions. Playful and teasing, yet polite and well-bred.  He was definitely a man to be studied, and *not* for educational purposes.

They walked along the street, his pace slowed down to adjust for her shorter legs and heels.  She snuck a few looks at his face, but he seemed to concentrate his gaze on the sidewalk -- a sudden shyness seeming to overcome him.

As they approached the end of a block, she unhooked an arm, making him stop and turn to look at her.

"I turn right here.  I don't suppose it's on your way..."

"It's not."

She simply smiled, then opened her mouth to thank him again for the papers he'd brought back when he broke in.

"But if you live nearby I'll walk you home if you want."

He looked at her expectantly.

Dana waited for a second, feeling that her answer would somehow play a pivotal role in what would happen next.  What *was* happening, anyway?

"Uhm... I live a half block down this street.  It's not that far."

He smiled as she gave him her permission, hooking his arm out again so she could resume her position next to him.  She slipped her hand through the hole, and gave his arm a playful squeeze, curious to see how he'd react.  He turned his head to look at her, a wide grin appearing as his eyes began to twinkle.

They turned back to face the front and moved onto Dana's street, walking at a slow, easy pace.  As they reached her apartment building, Dana let go of Jake's arm and dug into her pocket, fishing for her keys.

"Thanks again for the coffee, Dana."

She smiled.

"It was nothing, Jake.  You saved me a lot of trouble when you returned those papers to me.  I wouldn't have liked to have faced that professor's wrath if I'd told him I'd lost his instructions."

She stopped and looked at him, watching the smile that appeared.

"Well.."

"Well..." He echoed.

"You know, we're going to have to stop repeating each other's words," she teased.

"Why?  I kinda like it."

She giggled despite herself, and watched as his face lit up, then softened somewhat with a shy smile.

"So..."

This time she resisted the urge to repeat what he'd said, anxious to see what else he had to say.

"I guess this is good-bye for now.  I'll see you in class?"

He gave her the most expressive look she'd ever seen.  It was almost as if he were begging her to show up to class again.

"Of course."  She smiled.  "I wouldn't have it any other way.  I want to hear if you'll come up with a question to stump the professor."

He chuckled, obviously not expecting that response, and blushing lightly from the compliment.  Score one for Dana.

"No... that's okay.  I think I'll leave that up to you.  You've got a better chance of winning."

How had he done that?  Turned the tables on her.  Made her blush again.

"Well, I guess I'd better go, Dana.  See ya."

"Bye," she answered, turning to unlock her door.

"Dana?"

She stopped her hands mid-way to the lock at the sound of his voice, facing back to see what he wanted.  She froze as she came right up in front of him.  He'd moved up to her and was looking down with his expressful eyes -- suddenly making her wonder if they were really green, or more of a hazel colour.

"I just wanted to say thanks for the coffee again."

In a flash he'd lowered his head and pressed his lips against hers, just giving her the time to register a quick impression of soft, warm velvet before he pulled back and turned away, never looking back.

She stayed there, frozen, watching him walk away.  What had just happened?  It took a whole five minutes before her mind actually managed to form a coherent enough message for her body to turn back and unlock her apartment door.

A quick look back showed that Jake was no longer on her street, and she finally walked inside. Part III Jumeaux by The Dragon Lady (nlemie@po-box.mcgill.ca)  Disclaimed in part 1

 Their fourth date.  Dana still couldn't believe it.  Not only had he asked her out, but he'd done it two more times.  Now, as she sat in front of him, it was all she could do to concentrate on what he was saying.

"... and that's when the waiter slipped on the bread stick I'd thrown on the floor, and the plate of spaghetti went flying through the air straight to the next table, where it hit Mrs. Gelvin, a woman who lived down the street from us.  It landed right on her head and some fell off, while some of it was just hanging there.  She looked just like one of those women with snakes in their hair from Greek mythology.  What are they called again?"

Silence.

"Uhm.... Oh yeah!  Gorgons.  Well, she was this Gorgon who turned around and stared right at the waiter.  I swear to you, if I hadn't known better, I'd have said he'd turned to stone."

Jake waited for a reaction from Dana.  Nothing.  Her eyes were on him, but it was almost as if her focus was a little behind him.  She probably hadn't heard a word he'd said.

"Dana?"

Silence.

"Earth to Dana.  This is Mission Control.  Do you hear me?"

Still nothing.  Jake grinned.  He could have fun with this.

"Dana, will you join my harem and be the mother of my sixty-eight children?"

She smiled slightly, obviously lost in some sort of daydream.

"Dana, if you don't stop me right now, I'm going to crawl across the table over to you, tear all your clothes off, and then smother you with marinara sauce while all the patrons of this restaurant watch enraptured. Then I'm going to take out my permanent felt marker, and grafitti my name on every part of you while you sing the national anthem.  After that we'll swing off the chandeliers, reciting all the dialogue and lyrics of Pirates of Penzance while the people at the table next to us try to swipe at us with sticks as if we're mere pi=F1atas.  Finally, I'm going to make you yell out all the letters of the alphabet while standing on your head and clapping your hands."  He said, trying very hard not to smile.

Amazingly, she hadn't blinked.  Her smile just grew dreamier as whatever she was thinking about got more interesting.  Out of ideas, Jake decided to use the shock approach.  He got up, circled the table until he was standing right behind her, and then leaned into her ear, whispering her name in a purposefully deep voice.

"Danaaaaa..."

She shivered slightly and started to come out of her reverie.  To help her along, Jake reached in further and gave her earlobe a quick bite before moving away to return to his seat.  He purposefully didn't look at her until he was back in the chair, and when he did she was sporting a deep red colouring.

"Why did you do that, Jake?"

"You haven't heard anything I've said in the last five minutes, have you?"

Caught.  She lowered her head and shook her head softly.  At least she was being honest about it.

"I... I'm sorry, Jake.  I didn't mean to go off like that.  It's just that I sometimes have this tendency to daydream.  I used to do it all the time as a kid, and I do it much less frequently now, but sometimes I guess I just can't help myself.  I'm sorry."

"Well, Miss Scully.  Would you like to share what you were daydreaming about with the rest of the class?"

Her eyes grew wide and her face turned an even deeper shade of red as she desperately tried to find a way out of her predicament.

"Uh... it's... uh... uhm.. well..."

"I'm kidding, Dana."  Jake chuckled softly.  "I didn't mean to put you on the spot like that.  It's just that I wonder what on earth could have been so interesting that you went off in your own little world, leaving me to tell my story to the leftover pasta."

She lowered her eyes, and he couldn't tell if it was because she felt guilty for not paying attention, or if it was because of what she had been thinking.

"And I *would* like to know what you were thinking about, if you'll tell me."

"Maybe later, Jake.  But right now, I'd rather concentrate on this great meal.  Have I thanked you for taking me here?"

"Three times already, and if you don't stop thanking me, I'm going make you wash the dishes in the back."

She smiled, obviously a little uncomfortable.

"It's just that it's so expensive here, and you really shouldn't have.  We could have gone to that diner like last time."

His hand reached out towards her face and he cupped her cheek lightly, his thumb running up and down along the side of her nose.

"But I *want* to take you somewhere special, Dana.  That diner was fun, but I also wanted to bring you here.  So we could have a really nice night out.  We're so busy with midterms that we haven't had much of a chance to see each other in the last week.  I just wanted the time we *do* have together to be special."

"But it's still so expensive..."

"Expensive, ex-schmen-sive.  Look at it this way...  When I become a world-famous architect, I won't have to worry about money, so what does it matter if I spend a little more now?  Let me give this to you, Dana. It's not much, but it's my way of saying 'Thank you' for having accepted my offer to go out again."

"Thank you for asking me."

Her smile lit up the room and Jake felt his heart begin to race.

"Well, I guess that makes us even.  So, would you like some dessert?= "

Dana shook her head and pushed her plate away, signalling that she was full.

"No, thanks.  The food was wonderful, but I couldn't eat another bite if my life depended on it."

"Well, let's hope it doesn't, because I've something else planned."

She looked at him, puzzled.

"Let's get out of here, okay?"

Jake signalled for the waiter and arranged to pay the check.  He then got up and went around to Dana's side, helping her into her light jacket before escorting her out of the restaurant.  Once outside they turned right and began walking back towards campus.  Almost automatically, he crooked his arm and she slipped a hand under it, holding him as they walked.  A few streets before they got to Dana's place, Jake veered off the the left, Dana struggling to follow him as she hadn't anticipated his move.

"Where are we going?"

"I just thought we could go back to my place.  I've been to yours on our last date and you gave me the tour.  I thought I'd do the same."

Dana smiled, but in the back of her mind she was a little apprehensive.  She'd been in similar situations with other guys who had then proceeded to try and take advantage of her.  She didn't want a repeat performance.  It took another second before Dana broke this train of thought.  Jake had been nothing but a true gentlemen every time they'd gone out.  She saw no reason why she should worry about his actions tonight.  He probably just wanted to show her his apartment.  And besides, if things *did* go wrong, she'd taken enough martial arts to be able to defend herself.  With a conscious effort, she pushed the last worry from her mind and focused on the evening breeze that was caressing her hair.

##########

The apartment was rather cozy.  It was sparsely furnished, showing all the telltale signs of a student's abode.  Old, mismatched furniture sparsely covered the area in the living room and bedroom.  Boxes of files and class notes were strewn here and there, while an old bookcase was stuffed to the point of overflowing with books of all kinds.  In fact, only one piece of furniture stood out in Jake's apartment: his drawing table. An absolute must for all architecture students.  The newness of the table clashed with the cloth-covered couch and scratched coffee table, but the angle at which it was placed in the room, as well as the way it was obviously well taken care of, spoke volumes on its owner.

"Coffee?"  Jake's voice broke her musings, and she nodded in his direction.

"Okay, I'll be right back.  Have a seat."

Dana sat down on one corner of the couch, taking some time to absorb the atmosphere of the room.  Jake obviously had an eclectic taste in wall coverings.  In one corner stood a white poster depicting Picasso's Don Quixote.  On another were two Dali prints; one she recognized as Persistence of Memory while the other was a picture of swans swimming on a lake which reflected as elephants.  On the third wall which made up the living room and the hallway was a series of three Escher prints:  one picturing a perpetual motion machine, one whose name she couldn't place that had stairs and people coming out at all angles, and a third, the reflection of a man looking at himself in a shiny ball.

His choice of posters and prints fascinated her.  Obviously Jake was interested in artwork that challenged the mind; fascinated everyone by their intricacies, their defiance of logic, and the depth of detail which needed to be studied consistently to bring out all the accents.  Dana felt this obviously gave her a greater insight into Jake's mind.  He was a complicated man, and he demanded no less of his artwork.  Of that she was now sure.  She could only imagine what types of buildings he could possibly draw.  They would not be mainstream designs, on that she would be willing to bet a great deal.

The sound of silverware clinking in the kitchen brought her out of her contemplation and she turned her attention to the kitchen, watching through the counter opening as Jake finished the coffee preparations.

"Now, how do you take your coffee again, Dana?"

"Cream, no sugar, please."

Jake smiled.  Even the way she drank her coffee was no-nonsense. He could tell that Dana worked very hard at building a professional, cool exterior.  He believed this was probably due to her future medical studies, but wasn't sure.  He remembered some of the stories Dana had told her about her father, and the military bases she'd grown up on.  Jake didn't have any experience with such areas, but he imagined that one could quickly build a tough exterior there.

He carried the two steaming mugs of coffee to the living room and set them down on the coffee table, turning Dana's mug so the handle was facing her.

"Here.  Hope you like it.  It's not the greatest quality coffee, but it's great for when you need to pull an all-nighter."

Dana gingerly took a sip of the brew and took the time to savour its flavour.  The essence was rich and strong, overwhelming the nose and mouth with a pleasant taste and smell.

"It's good."

"I don't know... If I made it any stronger, it might make you grow some chest hair."

She tried not to laugh, and barely succeeded.

"Actually, I like coffee strong.  I get that from my father.  Plus, in the last couple of years, I've had to make myself a few strong cups to help me out when I had to work late to finish up some assignments, or study for exams."

"Ah yes... Coffee and the student.  Those two words go together like bread and butter.  Although, I wonder why we even bother brewing it. We could just eat the beans whole or grind them up and spread them on toast.  It'd save us the cost of the filters."

He looked in her direction, eyes sparkling from his joke -- studying her reaction.

"Nah... we *do* need to brew it, Jake.  Otherwise, we wouldn't have the back-up plan."

"What plan?"

"You know... after drinking a whole pot of coffee, you have to go to the bathroom so often that you're guaranteed to be up for the rest of the night."

It was his turn to smile.  Every time he came up with some snappy comeback, she matched it.  This woman was easily his mental equal, and it both overjoyed and excited him.  In fact, the excitement was building right now.  He listened to the sound of her voice as she continued to recount some methods for staying awake all night.  He wasn't paying attention to the words themselves, but rather to the tones she used and the way she fluidly spoke sentence after sentence.  It was comforting.  Already familiar.  Something that he could easily get used to, and get attached to. His body seemed to hum to the frequency of her voice, alert yet relaxed.

His hands were at his side, and he tensed as she brushed up against him.  Jake make an effort to focus his eyes again, and realized that she'd reached out for one of his magazines on the coffee table.

The spot where she'd touched him tingled with some sort of residual electricity.  It was almost as if his hairs stood on end.  Absently, he rubbed the area of contact with his other hand as he tried to concentrate on what she was saying now.

"Mad Magazine?  I would never had pegged you as the type, Jake."

He grinned at her.

"And just what type *am* I, Dana?"

"I don't know... the more academic type.  I expected to see trade magazines, some popular science or mechanics editions, maybe some kind of sports issue, but not Mad."

"I'm a closet comedy lover, Dana.  You've found me out. Unfortunately, now I'm going to have to kill you."

She gave him a stare that left him feeling three inches high and put the magazine back on the table.  As she bent down to do so, he couldn't help taking a quick glimpse at the front of her blouse, noticing the enticing curves that were barely visible, offering only a glimpse of what was actually there.

Suddenly Jake felt his throat constrict and his mouth dry out as an overwhelming need to touch Dana snuck its way into his mind.  He needed to feel her hair, run his hands through it, separate the strands with his fingers.  He wanted to trace the contour of her neck, follow the jawline down to her chin, further down to the sternum, following the collarbone to the shoulder, where he could then slowly descend along the curve of her breast.  He wished to drown in a pool of aquamarine -- to never tear his gaze away from the depths of her eyes.  He desired her mouth.  To taste her, feel her, explore the depths of her.  To kiss her.

Of its own volition, his hand reached out and cupped the side of her head, lightly twining its fingers in some of her hair.  She had stopped talking, turning to look at him as he reached out to touch her.  Her expression was fathomless.  Her eyes were searching his, obviously curious as to what he was thinking, perhaps a little confused at his sudden reaction to her intoxicating presence.  Her lips were parted slightly, her breath passing softly between her lips.

Unable to resist, Jake finally moved forward and pressed his lips on hers, waiting for the full impact of the contact to hit home.  Part IVWARNING:  This part is the first section of NC-17 material I talked about in the introduction.  It contains explicit descriptions of consensual sex. If you are underage or don't like this type of material, turn back now or forever hold your peace.  Jumeaux (part 4/?)  by The Dragon Lady (nlemie@po-box.mcgill.ca)

It wasn't that he'd never kissed her.  He'd done so right at the end of their first coffee date, and he'd given her a chaste good-bye kiss every time since, but somehow this time was different.  It was as if she'd finally decided this was the time for more to happen.  Her body language had changed, and she'd moved from a passive acceptance of his kiss to a hungry demand for it.  It was apparent even now in the way she leaned into him more, thus allowing her to put her arms around his waist.

He pulled back, more surprised by her reaction than by his initiation of the moment.  He stared at her, seeing her flushed cheeks, her widened pupils, her opened mouth that took in rapid breaths.  His brain was having a hard time catching up to his body.  He hadn't planned to lean in like that and kiss her, and more surprisingly, he hadn't expected she'd react that way.  The calm, somewhat reserved, Dana Scully hadn't hesitated a second before leaning in herself to deepen the exploration.  It was such a contrast, a new way of viewing her, and it was turning him on.

"Dana?"

He couldn't quite manage to say anything else.  His mind had just reached the point of elation where it had realized that she'd willingly kissed him back, and anything more than a word seemed beyond him.  He simply hoped that his tone conveyed what he was trying to ask her. Apparently she was also a mind reader, because she answered exactly what he was trying to ask.

"I don't know, Jake.  I don't know what's happening."

She pulled back, leaning into the couch.  Her posture tensed slightly and she clasped her hands together as she continued.

"I'm not sure what to say, or how to say it.  I know we've known each other for only a short time, but somehow this feels right."

Jake found himself relaxing a little from her words, not having been aware that he'd even tensed up.  She seemed to understand.  This attraction was so sudden, so fast paced, that it left him without anything to compare it to.  All he knew was that he felt closer to her than to women he'd dated for many weeks.  She broke his train of thought as she continued.

"Jake, I... I'm not exactly comfortable saying this, but all this," she spread her arms out, trying to convey their relationship in a single movement, "it's new to me.  I've dated before.  I've kissed, I've done.... more.  But it's never been this fast, and it's never felt so... right."

She looked at him, trying to gauge his reaction, unsure as to whether she should continue or stop before she made a fool of herself.  His quiet, pondering reaction gave her the confidence to continue.

"And... and I know that we should stop here, and I should go home. This is moving very fast, and we may not realize what we're getting into. But... I can't help myself.  I want to know where this will go.  I want... to feel closer to you."

She stopped again, this time letting her head drop as she waited for his answer, unable to muster eye contact.  The suspense was killing her.  Had she said too much?  Had she come off as a naive girl?  Would this openness scare him away?  Why wasn't he saying anything?

Jake let out the breath he was holding and leaned towards her slightly, catching her chin with his left hand so she was forced to look him in the eyes.

"I know exactly what you mean, Dana.  This wasn't exactly something that I'd planned.  I didn't bring you over here to seduce you.  I know this may be hard to believe, but I just wanted to talk, to get to know you better.  I thought we could have a quiet evening, drink some coffee, and just talk.  Now... well.. I don't want you to take this the wrong way, but...  If you don't want me to do anything else, you're going to have to leave now."

Dana felt herself blushing as Jake's words echoed in her thoughts. Though she'd worried about his making a pass at her while walking over, she suddenly realized that there was no way she would settle for just talking. She wanted more, and she wanted it now.

"So, Dana, if you want out, say so now, because after that --"

He never got a chance to finish his sentence because she suddenly pulled his head to her and crushed his lips, literally taking his breath away as her tongue pried his mouth open.

He let her take charge, let her explore him.  Felt her tongue slowly move its way along the inside of his cheek as her hand snaked its way behind his head, tilting it at a better angle.  She wouldn't let go, but rather changed direction, pulling back to only delve deeper, tracing the ridges of his palate before sliding under his tongue.  Teasing it, making him stretch it so that he followed her retreat and entered her domain.

He played along the edges of her teeth -- knowing that at any second she could close them on him; trusting that she wouldn't.  He pushed deeper, trying to find the tip of her tongue.  She evaded him, purposefully pushing out of the way the second he thought he'd finally make contact. Forcing him to work for the touch.  Teasing.  Absolutely tantalizing.  And just when he was sure he'd finally cornered her, the dizziness struck, forcing him to pull back and expell air quickly before taking a deep breath.

"Okay..." He panted.  "You win."

She grinned at him, a teasing look in her eyes.  She had obviously enjoyed this as much as he had, and the victory only made it that much sweeter.

"But I want a rematch."

He dove in once more, capturing her lips again.  Pinning her to the couch only by the contact of their mouths.  Re-initiating the touch; knowing that with a fresh supply of oxygen he would this time come out as the victor.  He parried, evaded, thrust, and after one final lunge, he cornered her tongue, stroking it gently.

"I won..."  He breathed, hardly recognizing his voice.

She shook her head.

"Nuh-uh.  We're tied.  What say we make it two out of three?"

He grinned at her teasing tone, wanting nothing more than to do so, but he pulled back as she advanced on him.

"I don't think so, Dana.  I say we call it a draw."

"What's the matter, Jake?  Afraid you'll lose?"

"No, it's just that I've got something else on my mind."

"Oh?  What?"

"This."

He leaned into the side of her head and took a quick bite of her lobe before soothing it with his tongue.  Emboldened by the shiver that coursed through her, he began to trace the ridges and whorls, leaving no part unexplored.  Hearing the small gasping noises she let out as he dipped his tongue into the entrance of the ear canal.  Retreating slightly, he blew on the moistened ear, causing her to shiver.  He wondered whether it was the cold or the sound of the blowing that was making her react this way.

"Dana?"

"mmmmmm?"

He glanced at her face, mesmerized by the flush that was building, fascinated by the relaxed look on her face, and the way she couldn't keep her eyes open.  He went back to her ear, taking a breath to talk as he purposefully lowered his voice to a seductive tone.

"I want to make love to you.  I want to slowly peel off all your clothes.  I need to touch your skin, feel its silky texture, and watch you shiver as I move my fingers along your body.  I need to touch you, smell you, taste you.  I want your eyes to close and your face to tense as you come.  I want to hear your voice cry out my name as I bury myself in you. I want to lose myself in you and never let you go.  I need to do this, and if you don't stop me right this second, nothing is going to stop me from ravishing you.  All night."

Dana felt herself gasping for breath, unable to think clearly after his last words.  She was losing all ability to sit up straight and her strength was slowly being sapped from her as he suckled on her ear lobe.

"Jake..."

"Yes, Dana?"

"Kiss me."

That was all it took.  No long speeches, just two little words that made his world swell with desire.  He rushed at her, causing her to fall on her back to the couch as he let himself cover her.  He resumed the exploration of her mouth as he finally allowed his hands to begin moving over her.  He grasped the sides of her head with both hands, tilting it for greater access, then let his fingers slide down her neck and stop at her shoulders, kneading the muscles there.  He felt her move as she wrapped her arms around his neck, pulling his weight fully on her so that his arms no longer needed to support her.  As a result, he let his hands slide down her arms, alternately caressing and tickling until he reached her hands and entwined his fingers with hers.  Needing more contact, he guided her hands upwards, not stopping until they were above her head.  This new position forced her to arch her back, pushing her breasts further into his chest. The heat emanating from him made her shiver as she felt her nipples begin to harden.

"Dana?"

"Yes, Jake?"

"This is your last chance.  I mean it.  If you want to back out, say so now."

"Jake?"

He stopped the exploration of her neck and raised his head to look in her eyes, struggling to give her his full attention.

"I want to do this.  And if you stop one more time to ask me, I will have to hurt you."

He smiled at that, right before he dropped his head and nipped at the skin near her collarbone.

"Like this?"

"Oh no," she managed to say, between sighs, "much worse."

He freed one of his hands and quickly opened her blouse, pulling at her bra so it lifted and freed her breasts.  He took one fingernail and scratched it along the top of her hardening nipple.

"Like this?"

She was unable to speak this time, but simply shook her head quickly, her eyelids screwed shut.

"Okay... how about this?"

He lowered his head to her breast and softly closed his teeth over her nipple, pulling a little before letting go.  He then let go and dragged his tongue along the bud before closing his mouth more tightly around it and sucking hard.

She let out a strangled "Oh" as she arched up towards him, her neck and face tensing from the pleasure.  Eyes squeezed shut.  Her breath came in gasps as he refused to let go of her nipple, simply continuing to apply a delicious vacuum.  He wondered at her response, the way she moved so willingly towards him.  He let her go, allowing her a second to recuperate before he zeroed in on the other nipple, giving it the exact same treatment as its twin.  After wrenching an "Oh God" from her, he finally let her go.

"Well?  Is that how you're going to hurt me?"

He waited as she took a few more gasping breaths, apparently still beyond words.

"No," she finally managed to say, "I meant something more like this."

Faster than he could have imagined, her hand made its way between them and reached down the front of his pants, cupping the growing bulge there and giving it a gentle squeeze.  He groaned in reply, trying to pull back, but finding himself unable to escape the pressure.

"Do you understand what I meant now, Jake?"

It was his turn to be speechless as he simply nodded his acquiescence, his eyes pleading for her to let go.

"Good.  I'm glad we understand each other."

She released him.

"Now, where were we?"

"I was just realizing that I wouldn't ask you again if you wanted to back out of this."

"Good boy."  Her eyes gleamed with a devilish light.  "Now, let's get back to what we were doing."

Her hand touched him again, but this time she didn't squeeze, opting instead to trace his burgeoning length.

Jake couldn't believe it.  Dana Scully, a woman who had been so reserved and polite, despite the glimpses he'd seen of her mischievous side during some verbal teasing, was turning into a passionate woman.  Someone who seemed to enjoy playing, and who knew how to tease a man mercilessly. He felt himself growing harder just at the thought of what she might do next.  -------Part VDisclaimed in part 1.  This section contains in-depth descriptions of consensual sexual acts, so if you're underaged or this isn't your cup of tea, run away screaming now.  Part 5 disclaimer:  In my little corner of the fantasy universe, there are no diseases, and Dana's not going to be pregnant because she's well past her ovulation stage.  So while all these are dangers of real life, we'll just willfully suspend our disbelief, okay? :)    Jumeaux (part 5/?)  by The Dragon Lady (nlemie@po-box.mcgill.ca)

She was slowly, purposefully, driving him insane.  The tool of his demise?  Her tongue.  While her hand continued to stroke his length, her mouth had begun to draw some geometric shapes along his exposed torso.

First a triangle from his Adam's apple to one nipple, then to the other nipple, and back up.  Then a long line as she kissed and licked her way across both collarbones.  Following this by slow, lazy circles around his nipples, always avoiding the swelling buds; Jake felt himself begin to disintegrate into the mattress, somehow losing touch with any part of himself that wasn't intimately linked with her.

In a vain attempt to regain control of himself, he pushed her mouth off him, leaning down to capture her lips again.  Big mistake.  The combination of her tongue invading him as she relentlessly stroked him threatened to build a pressure he wasn't sure he could control for very long.  In a last ditch attempt at composure, Jake rolled sideways, freeing his hands fully.  Finally able to grab her straying hand, he pulled it away from himself, saying a silent prayer for his success.

"Uh... Dana?"

"Yes?"

"Shouldn't we be taking this over to the bedroom?"

She smiled, and her eyes gave off that devilish gleam again as she pretended she was pondering his suggestion.

"You know, Jake.  I say, if it ain't broke, don't fix it."

"You mean?"

"Uh huh... haven't you ever wanted to do it on a couch?"

"Well..."

"I've always wanted to do that.  I bet it's fun."

"Hey, wait a second," he replied, "What makes you so sure I haven't already done it on a couch?"

"Let's call it women's intuition.  Now, would you mind?  I was kind of in the middle of something."

With that, she pulled him closer to her and kissed him again, hard. He was left breathless and without the slightest idea of what he'd been thinking about just forty-five seconds earlier.

Deciding that they still had too many layers separating them, Dana moved her hand down and unfastened the front of his pants, pushing them off his hips.  They pooled at his knees, unable to go further without his help. Next came the boxers, swiftly joining the pants.

Jake felt the cool air pass over him and knew that two could play at this game.  Reaching down, he placed his hands between Dana's knees where her loose skirt ended.  Then slowly, methodically, he began caressing the inside of her thighs as he ascended until he reached the juncture of her legs.  There, he let his fingers caress the cotton panel of her underwear, feeling her shiver in response.  Then, he moved further and gently tugged on the elastic band, bringing down the piece of clothing. Down, all the way to her feet, where he quickly pushed off her shoes and let them, along with the panties, drop to the floor.  He then moved her skirt up until it was bunched around her waist, exposing her to him.

Stifling the urge to ask her once again whether she was sure about this, for fear of a swift and painful reprisal, he opted instead to slip his hands below the red curls, touching her warm, moist core for the first time.  His fingers moved up and down the folds, feeling her respond to him by pressing herself closer to him.  Her hips were moving involuntarily, gliding up and down as his hand continued to explore her depths, moving closer to the entrance, feeling the pooling moisture there.  He slid one finger inside her, then another, testing the tightness.  Worried he might hurt her if this was her first time, or if she hadn't done this in a while. She was ready, as was he.

He lifted his hand off her and slid back up a little, reaching out to kiss her yet again, relishing the feel of her inquisitive tongue. Taking her face in both his hands, he looked into her eyes once more.

"Ready?"

"Oh, yes."

Suddenly, Jake was hesitant as he wondered which way to turn them. Should he roll her on top of him, or place himself over her?  Unsure how to ask such a question, he simply managed a:

"How do we...?"

He was rather surprised to feel her laughter shake her body.

"Jake, if you don't know how, we should have stopped this a while ago."

He flushed, unsure how to reply, and she simply laughed louder as she noticed the effect her teasing had on him.

"Here..."

She tugged on his shoulder, bringing her closer to her, showing him with gestures that she wanted him on top.  He complied, letting himself be manoeuvred over her.  He gently grasped her right leg, pulling it up slightly so that her calf would be resting lightly against the top of the sofa, then pushed her left leg out so it dangled partly over the edge of the couch.  Satisfied that this opened her to him sufficiently, he then pulled himself right up to her entrance and stopped.  At her confused gaze, he reached up for one of her hands and brought it down to him.  Letting her grasp him, he tenderly held on to her hand.

"You're in control, Dana.  I'll go in at the speed you want."

With that, she tightened her grip lightly and began pulling him in. Inch by agonizing inch, until her hand was in the way and she let him go, reaching behind to squeeze his buttocks and pull him in some more.

To his credit, he didn't move any faster than she let him, though the rush of expelled air as he finally rested in her showed just how much restraint that had demanded.

Having adjusted to his presence, Dana then placed her hands on his stomach, pushing him out slowly, extremely excited by the way he was letting her control the movements.  It was not him invading her, but her inviting him in.  She pushed him almost completely out, then let go of him and reached around again, pulling him in once more.

"You're a big boy, Jake.  Don't you think you can take over from here?"

"Gladly."  He breathed in her ear.

Bracing himself with both arms, he pulled out again and let himself back down gently, taking his own sweet time.

"Now let's put some gusto into it."

He responded to her suggestion by pulling out and thrusting back in with more force, pushing her deeper into the sofa cusions and filling her even more.  That took her completely by surprise and she could barely mutter a "Much better."

Still leaning on his elbows, Jake wrapped his arms behind her back, pulling her up slightly so she was angled for greater penetration.  She responded by pulling his head down further, bringing him tantalizingly close to one of her breasts.  He took the invitation willingly -- suckling, licking and biting until her head thrashed from side to side.  Not content with just that, he travelled upwards, moving up until he found a particularly sensitive spot, causing her to gasp.  Exploring this opportunity, he alternately kissed and licked and blew on it, watching her face begin to tense with pleasure and feeling her fingers hold onto his hair more tightly.  Then he moved up the fragile sinews of her neck, up to her chin, stopping to rub his nose along the contour of her jaw before reaching one cheek and following the bone there, right up to her ear.

Finally at his goal, he began whispering enticements in her ear, hoping to bring her over the edge just with his voice.  He was thrusting more rapidly now, his movements no more controllable than the need for breath.  Instinctively, his body was doing what was required to bring him pleasure, and he was going to make sure that he did the same for Dana.

"Are you close?"  He inquired breathily.

"Yesssss..."  Seemed to be all she could muster.

He picked up his pace again, frantic for completion.

"Dana, I want you to come.  Will you do that for me?  Please?"

"Oh... Jake... I -- Ahhh"

And on her last syllable her eyes clenched shut and her body went rigid as the waves of pleasure began to roll through her.  She seemed to be holding her breath, and her open mouth was wide as she lost herself in the pain and the pleasure and the pull and the tightness and the fire and the pulsing.

Jake watched her face as she came, pulsing around him, driving him over the edge in one last thrust as he, too, began releasing.  He continued to pump into her as he pushed his face onto her chest, oblivious of his surroundings as she milked him and he thrust and pushed and emptied.  Oh, the pressure.  The sweet, aching hot pressure of a burning release.

Finally out of strength, he dropped on top of her, feeling her chest rise in counterpoint to his as they both tried to recover.

Having partially regained his breath, Jake lifted himself off her enough to pull out, and then collapsed back on her, his head on her belly. Her hand dropped down to his head and she lazily played with a few strands of his hair, soothing him.

Several moments passed before either of them moved again.  Finally, Dana lifted his head and tugged at it lightly, signalling that she wanted him to move back up.  When they were eye to eye, she pulled his head down and gave him a soft, warm kiss.  Not passionate, as before, but more content.

"Was it good for you?"  Jake asked, winking at her as he used the time-honoured cliche.

"Well, let's put it this way, I'd be smoking a cigarette right now, but I haven't touched the stuff since I was fourteen."

"I'll take that as a yes."

Jake shifted so that his back was to the couch, and he turned Dana, pulling her back up against him.  Cradling her this way, he leaned in to whisper in her ear.

"I don't know about you, but I'm tired right now.  Want to take a nap?"

"Mm-hmm."  She replied softly, apparently too sleepy to use complete words.

"Okay," he answered, leaning in to kiss her ear once more before he let himself relax and drift off.  <end part 5>   Hello! :)  Believe it or not... I've *finally* gotten back in town long enough to finish writing this up and send it in. :)  Apologies to anyone who's been waiting forever for this.  Nancy  ***************** <part 6>  Disclaimed in part 1.  Thanks to all those of you who waited patiently until I got back long enough to type this up.  Jumeaux (part 6/6)  by The Dragon Lady (nlemie@po-box.mcgill.ca)

 Dana awoke first, stretching to remove the tightness in her muscles.  As she pulled her arms down to her sides, she froze -- having hit something.  Something soft and warm, yet resilient.  Then that something moved, stroking her sides gently, and all came flooding back to her: the restaurant, Jake's apartment, and the fact that they had made love, right here, on his couch.

The caresses were soon followed by a few mumbles and a yawn, as Jake was slowly waking up.

"Mornin'," he whispered into her ear.

"It's four am, Jake."

"It's still morning.  Early morning, I'll concede, but morning nevertheless."

The hand that had been stroking her side snaked its way around her waist and the attached arm tightened, pulling her back further until their bodies were in full contact; a warm hug from behind.

"Alright.  Good morning."

"That's better."  Jake burrowed his face in her hair and nuzzled her ear.

"Mmmmm..."  Once again, Dana found herself speechless as the sensory input overwhelmed her brain.

"Dana?"

"Yes?"

"Next time you want to make love somewhere exotic, like the couch, just make sure that we fall asleep somewhere safer, like a bed, so my legs don't cramp up like now."

"Oh, I'm sorry."

Dana stood up to give him room to sit.  She fought a wave of dizziness and wasn't sure if it was from the sudden change in position, or his last words.  Next time!  He'd said 'next time'!

Her heart pounded even more, forcing her to breathe rapidly.  She feared she was going to fall over.

"Dana.  Dana?"  Jake's voice sounded worried.

"I'm alright."  She willed her heart to stop its erratic rhythm.

"You sure?"

"Yeah, yeah.  I'm fine.  Now, do you need some help to get up off that couch, or has enough circulation come back in your legs?"

"Yeah, I think I can manage."

With that, he pushed himself off the couch and headed for the kitchen.

"Coffee?"

"Jake, it's four am!"

"So?"

"Well, there are three more sleeping hours before you need to get up.  Why on earth do you want to make coffee now?"

"I'm awake, Dana, and I doubt I'll be able to get any more sleep. Feel free to move to my bedroom if you want to catch a couple more hours of sleep.  I'll just do some work and read the paper when it comes in.  I'll wake you in time to get up for class."

"No, that's okay."  Dana yawned in counterpoint to her argument. "I'll get up too.  Hey, for once I can actually get my readings done *before* class."

"Oh, come on!  Dana Scully, student extraordinaire?  I bet you do your readings *weeks* ahead of schedule."

Dana blushed, caught.

"Okay, so maybe I do read ahead of time.  I honestly don't know what I could possibly do with all this free time this early in the morning. I never get up before 6:30!"

Jake's smile lit up the room.

"Oh, you don't know what to do?"

"Nope."  She looked at him quizzically

"Well, maybe I have an idea or two..."

Her eyes lit up, catching on to what he was saying.

"Oh... I think I see... You've found some way to... pass the time amicably."

"Yes... we'll be... occupying ourselves in an... *amicable* way for the next few hours."

"Oh, Jake, I think I can definitely go for this."

"Well, then, milady.  Right this way."

He stretched his arm out, pointing her towards his bedroom.  He followed right behind her, checking out the view.

At the entrance to the room Dana stopped and turned to face him, causing him to bump lightly into her.  Instead of backing up, he wrapped his arms around her and pulled her in.

"Jake --"  He interrupted her before she could get more than a word in.

"You know, Dana, I have to say I really like you."

She smiled, warmed as much by the look he gave her as from his words.

"And I think," he continued, "that we have something special going. Something I want us to keep pursuing.  Hopefully for a long time."

He stopped, worried he'd gone too far.  Dana, seeing the fear appear in his eyes leaned in to kiss him lightly.

"You know what, Jake?"

"What?"

"I think you're right."  She stopped as he smiled at her, but then regained her composure.  "And I think we've said enough for now, don't you think?"

With that she leaned in again and kissed him more passionately before taking his hand and gently pulling him into the bedrom.  The End (for now... unless you guys want a sequel or something...)  --------------Jumeaux II by The Dragon Lady (1/1) NC-17Disclaimer:  While I get quite a bit of pleasure playing with Jake and Dana, they're not mine.  They belong respectively to Zalman King and Chris Carter (Ten Thirteen Productions, Twentieth Century Fox Television, etc.). However, since they never thought of joining these two characters in quite this fashion, I couldn't resist.  No copyright infringement intended.  I am not earning any money from this, though I do occasionally get a letter from adoring readers. <g> (more, please!) Classification: CR Rating: Most definitely NC-17.  Explicit descriptions of loving, consentual sex.  If that doesn't float your boat, or if you've not reached the age of consent yet, turn back now.  I won't be responsible for the demise of young, innocent minds.... heh heh. Key words: X-Files/Red Shoe Diaries Crossover, Jake/Scully romance.Summary:  Dana gets quite a surprise when Jake summons her to his apartment after class.Author's notes: Nothing but mind candy... I'm moving the story forward a little bit before I reach the greater purpose... What is it, you ask?  I can't tell you.  If I did, I'd have to kill you. "If people were to know of the things I know, it would all fall apart." *** Do NOT (I repeat, NOT) archive anywhere else than Gossamer without my explicit permission.  This story is copyrighted to The Dragon Lady,1997*** This is dedicated to Chantal.  She'll know why. Jumeaux II  by The Dragon Lady (nlemie@po-box.mcgill.ca)

"Jake?"

Dana let herself into his apartment, using the key he'd given her a couple of months before.

"Hello?  Jake?"

She wondered what was going on.  This morning, Jake had called her, asking her to drop by his place after her last class.  She'd come right over, expecting a warm welcome.  Well, so much for great expectations.

Sighing, she put the key back in her purse and cleared a space on the couch to sit down, ready to await his return.  She leaned forward, leafing through the newest magazines on the coffee table.  An article on the latest Sting album had caught her attention when she heard a noise. Freezing in place, she strained her ears to try and listen -- checking for the faintest noise.  After a moment she heard it again.  The rustling of paper.  It was coming from Jake's bedroom.  Could it be an intruder?  Had someone been leafing through his stuff and heard her come in?

Leaping from the couch, Dana searched for something she could use to defend herself.  Spotting Jake's softball bat in the corner of the room she carefully walked over to it, trying her best to make no noise.  Step by step, she came closer to the door of Jake's bedroom, holding the bat up to use at a moment's notice.  Slowly, carefully, she inched her way forward until she could just stretch her neck around the doorjamb.  Then, with a sudden burst of energy and a loud scream, she burst into the room, bat flailing, hoping for the element of surprise...

...only to be surprised herself when a man, sitting at a desk, jumped up and away from her.

"Jake?"

He didn't answer right away, obviously winded from the surprise. It took him several instants to recover before he breathlessly responded. "Dana?"

"I... uh... I... you... uh..."

She froze, unable to articulate the simplest sentence.  Still too much in shock to process all the information.  Only to find her mind was even more overloaded when Jake started to laugh.  Short, powerful chuckles that slowly morphed into a full-blown, hearty laugh.

That was when her brain decided to switch itself back on and she finally caught a glimpse of what she looked like from the dresser mirror... all five foot two inches of terror, hair lightly mussed, eyes wild, holding the bat precariously over her head...  At that last observation she let the bat slowly drop and finally joined Jake in the laughter, catching on to the ridiculousness of the situation.

He walked up to her and took the bat from her hands, still smiling but finally able to breathe after the laugh attack.  Standing the bat in a corner of the room, he came back to her, giving her a quick squeeze in welcome.

"So, Dana... is this your usual way of defending your boyfriend's house?  Wouldn't it just be simpler to buy an alarm or a big, mean dog?"

She pulled back from him, red-faced and unable to stop smiling.

"I thought you were a burglar.  I guess I just acted on instinct."

"Oh, and your instinct is to come charging in here like an amazon -- minus the height?"  He easily ducked the slap he knew would come from his last comment.

"I... I don't know why I did that.  I guess..."

"You felt the need to protect me... Tell me, Dana, what are you studying again?  Pre-med or SWAT?"

She gave him a sharp stare, obviously offended by his joke.

"And who's to say I couldn't do both?  There's no reason why I couldn't be in law enforcement!"

Jake hadn't meant to hurt her with his comment.  Attempting to lighten the mood, he narrowed his eyes, gave her a lascivious once-over and leaned in towards her ear.

"Alright.  I believe you.  So, tell me, Officer Scully, what would you do if I had attacked you?"

"You did already, remember?  You mowed me down the first time we met."

Jake groaned in mock frustration.

"That was six months ago, Dana, and it was an accident.  Haven't you forgiven me yet?"

She stopped, making believe she was pondering this.

"Maybe... we'll see.  I guess it depends on what you'd be willing to do to make it up to me."

Jake's grin appeared once again.

"Make it up to you?  Ha!  You just scared the living daylights out of me, running in here with your 'lethal weapon'.  I say if it's anyone's turn to make up, it'd be yours.

"Besides, Dana," Jake's grin grew into a mischievous smile, "I believe we were talking about how you'd react if I were a real burglar. Don't change the subject."

He felt her breathing quicken slightly, finally understanding where he was going with this.

"Oh, and just what did you have in mind with that, Jake?"

"Well... a real burglar wouldn't just sit there and take your threatening stance.  He'd want to fight back."

"Oh?  How?"

"Well, for instance, he might do this..."

Jake nimbly broached the distance between himself and Dana, pressing her to his chest while grabbing her hands and pinning them behind her.

"And just what would you do to get out of this?"

Dana didn't say anything.  She was too busy with the sensory overload.  She could feel him forcibly holding her against him.  Her face pressed against him, her nose right up to his shirt, and every breath she took smelled of him.  Why on earth would she want to get out of this?

"Come on, Dana... What would you do?"

Never one to avoid a challenge, Dana quickly raised one leg, slipping it between both of Jake's, stopping her knee within inches of where it would hurt.  His immediate, involuntary response was to let her hands go and pull his midsection back, automatically freeing her.

"You were saying?"  Dana grinned, the obvious winner of the round.

"Very insightful, Miss Scully,"  Jake replied, unwilling to concede defeat that easily.  "Okay... you passed level one.  Let's see what else you could handle."

Swiftly, he grabbed her again, pinning her head in his arms as he pulled her to his side, her knees safely away from him.  He barely resisted the urge to give her a 'noogie'.

Dana chuckled to herself.  Having two older brothers and some martial arts training, this was not an unusual position for her to be in. She knew dozens of ways to get out of it, though most imparted serious injury to the other party.  Instead, she chose the easy way out and simply reached a hand between his legs, pinching the skin of his inner thigh, right near the knee.

Jake yelped and tried to hop away on his other leg, immediately letting go of her again.

"Ouch!  No fair, Dana!  That hurts!"

She tried to put a contrite look on her face, but she had a feeling it wasn't quite working.

"I'm sorry, Jake, but that was the most harmless way I could get out of that.  At least this way doesn't inflict... *permanent* damage."

Jake eyed her warily as he rubbed his inner thigh.  Obviously, having chosen to wear shorts that day hadn't been a good thing, even if it was boiling hot in his apartment, despite the raging winter outside. Central heating was no fun when you lived on the top floor.

"So... are there any other dangerous moves you know that I should know about, before I end up with a serious injury?"

"Oh... I know *plenty* of ways to hurt you, Jake.  I just keep them in check."

Jake couldn't resist the playful look she gave him with her last words.  She was enjoying this, and quite frankly, he was getting quite turned on by it.

"So you're prepared for any situation?"

"Just about," she smiled again.

"Okay... as long as you promise not to hurt me... wanna try again?"

"Sure."

Jake assessed his position in the room.  She was still standing near the door while he was further into the bedroom.  Finally, inspiration struck and he closed in on her.

"Alright... what would you do if I did this?"

With slow, measured movements, Jake reached out to grab her wrists, then, bringing them up towards her shoulders, he pushed his body against hers until he was pressing her firmly against the wall.

"Okay... what's your solution for that, Dana?"

He felt her knee slowly rising and twisted his hips out of the way, worried she might miss and actually hit him.

"Uh-uh, Dana.  You've done that before.  How about something a little more original?"

Dana seemed to frown in concentration for a second, then her face got a look of inspiration, her eyes shining with the light of some newly formed idea.

"How about this?"

With that, she pushed her body out, grinding it into his hips, feeling the beginnings of a budding interest.  Jake practically stopped breathing as his senses were overwhelmed by the contact.  Breathing in sharply, he managed to keep holding on to her, helped by his need to lean against her for support.  Unable to speak, he simply groaned his agreement.

"Or how about this?"

Still smiling at his reaction, Dana lifted one leg out, hooking it behind him and pulling his midsection right towards her.  Again, they made contact, and this time both groaned their pleasure.

"Are you trying to kill me?"  Jake whispered shakily, managing to lift his head from where it had been resting on hers.

"I don't know, Jake.  Are you up to the challenge?"

With that, he dove in and captured her mouth with his, kissing her with more fervour than she'd ever felt from him before.  Pulling away to take a breath, he let go of her hands, choosing to slide his hands under her shirt instead, kneading her lower back.  She responded by wrapping her arms around his neck, pulling him to her again.  Hungry for more contact.

The heat was overwhelming.  Never had they so desperately felt the need to press against one another, lose themselves in the other, fuse into one being, one soul.  He wasn't just kissing her, he was pouring himself into her.  And she was opening herself fully to it.

Once again needing air, Jake pulled back just enough to take in a shuddering breath, unable to focus enough to look at Dana's face.  He felt her chest rising and falling as she desperately tried to calm over-taxed lungs.  Hating this primal need for oxygen when he never wanted to break the contact of their mouths.

"Jake?"

Her voice was soft and weak, overcome with desire.  Apparently she had ingested enough air and was ready for another round.  *God help me,* Jake thought, *I may die trying.*

Gathering reserves of strength he didn't know he possessed, Jake wrapped his hands around her waist and lifted her up against the wall before pushing against her again, pinning her in mid-air.  She responded by wrapping her legs around his waist, an urgent need to keep contact with as much of her body as possible.  Thus anchored, she allowed her hands to begin roaming, reaching inside his waistband to pull out his t-shirt. Touching, teasing, sensing every inch of skin along the way, she lifted the shirt up off his chest, trying to solve the puzzle of how to pull it off him without breaking the kiss.  Jake, sensing her frustration, pulled back long enough for her to yank the offending material off his head before he dove in once more, choosing to explore again the base of her neck.

Feeling the need to do something new with his hands, Jake began to unbutton Dana's blouse, barely suppressing a smile as the thought of buttoned shirts being easier to remove quickly flitted across his mind.  It was soon replaced, however, by the need to concentrate on being able to bite his way along a tendon in her neck while managing to unbutton her blouse.  Oh, and let's not forget the fact that her hands were busily teasing his nipples into rock-hard points as her fingers scissored over them, before returning to rub and pull.

Suddenly unable to support their combined weight, Jake began untangling himself from Dana, pulling her legs back so she could slide down to stand on her own.  At her confused look he managed to gasp a response.

"Too... many... clothes... need... to... stand... for... removal..."

She nodded in understanding, reaching out to his waist and popping the button off the top of his shorts.  She then grabbed a hold of the short zipper and began pulling down, reaching her other hand inside to press against the material of his underwear.  She froze when she realized he wasn't wearing any.  There was no barrier past his zipper.  She giggled in shock.

"Be careful, would you?"

She, again, nodded her understanding, putting one hand between the zipper and his skin as she slowly pulled the garment off, careful not to scratch him with the metal teeth.  He stepped out of the shorts and kicked them aside, turning back to face her.  Her gaze was traveling over his body, now completely unclothed.  He wished he could know what she was thinking when she saw him like this, but he figured it might be similar to the way he thought when he saw her... naked and aroused.  Ready for him. Wanting, no, *needing* contact.

Overcome by a sudden burst of desire, he pressed into her again, allowing his fingers to finish undressing her.  First he managed to undo the rest of the buttons before letting the blouse drop to the floor.  Then he unzipped her skirt in the back and pushed it over her hips, following the movement of the material as it slid down her legs.  He stopped as the material hit her ankles.  He was now kneeling in front of her, the pale, soft skin of her stomach looming enticingly close.  Quickly, he pulled her nylons down along the same path.  Reaching forward, he puckered up his lips and blew just below her navel, delighting in the involuntary twitch she had as her stomach muscles tightened.

"That tickles!"

"I know."

With that, Jake blew again, briefly, before opening his mouth wide and letting his tongue trace the area his breath had caressed seconds earlier.  Finally, he leaned in a bit further and placed and kiss just above the waistband of her underwear.

"Do you need me, Dana?"

"Yes."

"Do you trust me, Dana?"

"Yes."

"Do you love me, Dana?"

When she didn't answer right away, he pulled back slightly, looking at her face.  Her eyes were shimmering with tears that were slowly making their way to the edge of her eyes.

"Oh, Jake.  Yes."

With that, he wrapped his arms around her waist, pulling her to him as he rested his face against her soft belly -- overcome with emotion. Many moments later he regretfully pulled away from the direct contact, choosing to focus his attention on the rest of their clothing.

His hands lifted one of her legs, then the other, as he slipped the nylons off her feet and pulled the skirt out from under her, draping them on his nearby desk chair.  Turning back to her, he let his hands travel up her body... starting at the calves and ending at her chest, where he reached back and undid the hook of her bra.  Returning to the front, he pulled the straps off her shoulders and freed her of another garment, sensing more than feeling her shudder as the air hit her sensitized breasts.

Barely able to control himself, Jake managed to caress her sides as he edged his way towards her panties, pulling them off with tantalizingly slow strokes of finger against skin.

Finally bare, Dana began to move again, reaching down to pull Jake back up to her, desperately wanting the earlier contact.  When he didn't respond, she instead let herself slide down the wall, dropping into his lap as he kneeled on the floor.  Satisfied to have some contact, she wrapped her arms around him, pressing his chest to hers and kissing his face.  She touched her lips to his forehead, then the temples, his eyebrows, his eyes, the bridge of his nose, down to the little groove above his lips, the line of his cheekbone, the mole on his right cheek, the jawbone near his ear, the squareness of his jaw, just at the edge of his face, the bottom of his chin, the dent just above it, and finally his lower lip, extended invitingly towards her.  He had remained still during her ministrations, but he suddenly came to life, groaning with desire as he pushed her back into the wall and dove once more into her mouth, desperately needing to taste her, to touch her inner depths.

He pressed his hips forcefully into hers, pinning her there while he let his hands roam over her chest, massaging both breasts simultaneously, teasing her nipples with fingers circling in opposite directions.  The feeling was almost overloading her senses.  Her body had turned to liquid, held in place only by the strength of his hold on her. His erection almost by itself pinning her to the wall as she accepted his touch, craved for it.

"Jake, please."

She hadn't even realized she'd said that until it echoed in her ears, almost as if someone else had said it.  In response, Jake took her by the waist again and lifted her slightly as he raised himself on his knees, body once again pressed tightly against hers.  He hesitated only a second, remembering that she was using oral contraception before he thrust his hips towards her, blindly trying to find her opening.  Her hand reached down and she guided him to her, tugging slightly as she wordlessly explained her immediate need to feel him inside her.  Her legs were open wide, her feet resting on the ground though all her weight was being held up by Jake.  She welcomed him, urged him, pulled him into her, and he followed willingly, slowly pushing into her.  Inch by delicious inch.

Unable to stop, he didn't rest when he was fully into her, but retreated almost immediately, unable to stop the need to feel the friction as he moved in her.  She was ready.  Oh yes, she was ready.  Her opening was tight, but had adapted to him right when he entered, showing him how their lovemaking had made her ever ready for him.

He stopped just as he was almost out of her, finally needing to rest a second before the second wave of sensation overpowered him.  He froze when he felt it.  Nah... couldn't have been.  He gasped when she did it again.  Feeling nothing but his tip inside her, she had voluntarily contracted her muscles, somehow knowing it would drive him into a frenzy. Letting out a growl as the last of his self-control snapped, he plunged into her, hips pumping, chest heaving as the effort began to make itself felt.

She responded in kind, thrusting her hips as best she could while she pushed off the wall with her back, her mouth gaping wide as she blindly searched for his, unable to stop the need to make contact.  It was his mouth which found hers, sealing their bodies at yet one more place as he continued to thrust into her, pushing into her with more force each time, trying to make his way deeper and deeper into her.

Her teeth captured his tongue, perhaps trying to symbolize how she never wanted him to pull back out of her.  He complied, managing to stop his thrusts as he pushed one more time into her and stayed there, feeling her wrapped around him.  Without letting his tongue go, she released it from her teeth and instead chose to wrap her lips around it, a perfect imitation that was happening at the other junction of their bodies.  Firmly holding her lips together, she began sucking on his tongue, pulling it in further and further, allowing him to feel a delicious pressure before she slowly pulled back, letting it slowly leave her mouth.  Just as their mouths finally lost contact, she tightened her vaginal muscles, causing him to feel a similar pressure as she managed to put some weight on her feet, pulling away from him.

Jake groaned, unable to do anything else as the last of his blood rushed to his midsection.  His mind had shut off minutes earlier and all that was left was the instinctive need to bury himself in her again. Blindly, he pushed back into her, causing her muscles to relax as she let him in again.  This time, he didn't let her try anything else.  Instead, he simply began thrusting into her again with more force, desperate to reach the ultimate goal.  He wanted her to come in his arms, turning into jelly as the orgasm ripped through her.  He wouldn't stop, wouldn't let anything get in the way of that goal.

Knowing better than to try and kiss her again, he let his head move towards one of her ears.  He licked the lobe then nibbled on it gently, releasing it only to blow a soft, cooling breeze on it, feeling the goosebumps rise on her as she reacted.  He felt her tighten, knowing she was fast approaching the point of no return.  Smiling to himself, he tried to find the key that would push her over the edge.  Finally inspiration struck and he leaned in towards her ear again.

"Dana?"  He whispered in that tone he knew affected her.

"Mmmm?"  Apparently she was now beyond the ability to form coherent words.

Jake increased his thrusts once more, hoping that he'd be able to pull this off before he sank into her.

"I.................. love................... you!"

He punctuated the last syllable with one more forceful thrust, and she let out a gasp as her eyes closed and her face collapsed.

Dana was lost.   Jake's last words echoed through her mind with a rhythm similar to the way her insides were contracting, creating a maelstrom of colour and pain and pleasure threatening to envelop her.  A sudden, blind terror of losing herself overtook her and she tried to resist the fire coursing through her veins, emanating from her core when she felt Jake give one last shuddering groan as he began to empty in her.  Reassured by his presence, Dana let go and floated up on the wave of her orgasm, abandoning all control as she felt herself shake and convulse next to him.

Jake forgot to breathe as he felt himself go over the edge, unable to concentrate on more than the feel of himself coursing into her and her responding waves of contractions as she teased every last drop out of him. Finally, unable to hold himself up any longer, Jake sat back on his knees, pulling Dana down with him as she gently landed on his lap -- their bodies still joined.

Dana's face was relaxed and her eyes were still closed.  Her head was leaning back against the wall and she was struggling for breath.  He could still feel her twitching occasionally, but her body was finally slowing down and he knew she would open her eyes shortly.  Taking advantage of this interlude, Jake lowered his head onto her shoulder, pressing his nose at the base of her neck as he inhaled her scent and his.  The mingling of their sweat creating an smell he could never get enough of.

He felt her arms move up to his shoulders, gently hugging him, and knew she was now back on earth and in his arms.  Not raising his head, he chose this moment to reveal the reason why he'd called her here in the first place.

"Happy anniversary."

"What?"

She put her hands on his cheek and lifted his head so they were once again looking at each other.

"I said..." Jake stopped and smiled. "Happy anniversary.  Today is the six month anniversary of our first date and our first kiss."

"Wow.  You remembered."  Dana smiled back, unable to say more.

"Of course1  How could I forget such a spirited, red-headed whirlwind bumping her way into my life?"

"Hey, you bumped *me*, remember?"

"Details...  What's important is that we're here and we're together and I love you."

Jake leaned in and kissed her gently, liking her lazy, languorous response.

"Hmmm.. I must say, Jake, that was one *interesting* way to celebrate."

"Well, it wasn't quite what I had planned, but I'd say this turned out rather well, don't you think?"

"Mm-hmmm."  Dana's eyes closed involuntarily.

"Poor dear... did I tire you out?"

"Yes."  She responded, her voice barely audible.

"Well, what do you say we take a quick nap before we get dressed for the big occasion?"

"What big occasion?"

"Ah... that, my dear, is a secret."

She gave him an 'I want to know' look, but he managed to brush it off and lifted her, gently placing her on his bed before he reached down to unfold the covers at the foot of the bed.  Taking a quick look at the opera tickets that were still lying on his table, he smiled to himself before climbing in after her and wrapping her in his arms.  His last conscious effort was to set the alarm for an hour later.  This day was turning out to be absolutely spectacular, and he didn't want to miss out any more of it than he had to.

Placing a kiss on Dana's forehead, he wrapped his arms around her and pulled her in, whispering to her one last time.

"I love you, Dana."   The End  Yes, I know I'm a terribly mushy romantic, but sometimes I just can't help myself.  ------- Jumeaux III by The Dragon Lady   Disclaimer:  It's the end of the world as we know it, and before it happens, I thought I'd leave you with one last fanfic.  Oops!  Wrong show. That's a Millenium disclaimer (not that I'd actually watch it, what with Morgan and Wong at the helm).  Okay, here's the X-Files one: Dana Scully is a character that belongs to Chris Carter, Ten Thirteen (is there *anyone* who doesn't know yet what that stands for?) Productions, and Fox (the ouroboros was for Fox coming back and biting their fans' ass by shutting down web pages) Television.  Jake (did we ever find out his last name?) is a character owned by Zalman King, Showtime, and whatever production company Z.K. works for (I'm too lazy to go and check it now).

Yes, I'm passing political and philosophical commentary.  I guess I can't help it, I kinda started a great discussion on free thought in philosophy class last Friday.  It could be I'm just trying to break that eternal polite Canadian stereotype. <g> (I *am* polite!  Really!  Just not always...)

Where was I?  Oh yeah... no infringement intended, and the author is not receiving any monetary compensation for the creation or distribution of this work.  It was written with tender loving care, and perhaps to fulfill some kind of need to write something a little sappy right now. It'd be a nice change from my life at the present.  So if you try to sue me, it'd be just like putting that gun to my head and pulling the trigger, so don't do it, okay?  Classification: CR Rating: Believe it or not, it's not NC-17.  PG for some suggestive language (well, you didn't expect me to go cold turkey, did you?). Key words:  Jake and Scully romance, X-Files/Red Shoe Diaries crossover Summary: Time is passing by for our two college lovebirds, and some serious life decisions are in the near future.  Some of them are discussed here.  Author's notes: It's been, oh, a zillion years since I've written my last Jumeaux fanfic (well, three months, but it felt like more than that).  I didn't intend for it to take so long to get to part 3, but I'm afraid that real life stuck its foot in the way, and I tripped... badly.  However, to retain my sanity, I'm going on a minor fanfic writing binge, and hope to write both Jumeaux III and IV before this weekend is over.  Yes, it *is* a serial, and I'm not sure exactly how many parts there will be, but it's going to be more than four.  Mulder's going to be in the picture soon. :) (shuts up before any more spoilers come out)  Do not archive anywhere other than Gossamer (and the attached unfinished archive).  I mean it.  I'm about to switch to a pen name, and I don't want to find my story elsewhere, with my name on it.  Okay to send to atxc.  Jumeaux III by The Dragon Lady (nlemie@po-box.mcgill.ca)

"Thanks for coming," Dana said, smiling as she pulled back from her door to let Jake into her apartment.

"You know I always enjoy coming over to your place, Dana," Jake paused as he leaned down to kiss her lightly on the lips.  "Besides, it means that I'll have a great home-cooked meal for a change.  My fridge is always empty."

"Considering how much time you spend here, I can't imagine how you could say you don't eat that much home-cooked food."

"I didn't say how often I eat it, I just said that I liked your cooking."

"Why do I have the feeling I should be insulted?  Am I turning into one of those nice placid housewives?"

Jake snickered, and brought his face right next to hers.

"Somehow, when I picture you, Dana, the last thing I'd ever think about is you as a housewife."

"Yeah?  Just how *do* you picture me?"

"I'll tell you later, if you're nice."

Dana tried to make a pouty face, hoping to break Jake's resolve, but he seemed immune to her attempts tonight, so she simply shut the hall door behind her and walked towards the tiny kitchen to check on the meal.

"Why don't you put some music on, Jake.  I'll check on the meal one last time.  Oh, and I couldn't decide... do you want red or white wine tonight?"

"You are aware that if they pass that law, you'd be a month short of the legal drinking age?"

"I won't tell anyone if you won't."

"But that would make me an accessory."

"Depends on what I decide to do with you later..."

Jake suddenly felt the urge to loosen his collar. The room temperature had shot up in the last few minutes.

"We'll just have to see.  Now when's that food going to be ready? I'm starved."

It's not that he didn't want to go there, but he just didn't want to get there yet. This was a special time for them, and he wanted to savour evening.

"You're always hungry, Jake."

"I'm a growing boy."

"Yes, you are."

He stared at her as she waltzed out of the kitchen carrying a pot full of steaming broth, meat, and vegetables.  As he was about to ask her what she'd meant, his nose picked up on the aromas coming from the pot. Momentarily distracted by the sudden watering of his mouth and the rumbling in his stomach, he forgot what he was going to ask her, and settled down at the table instead.

"Mmmmm... smells good.  What is it?"

"Irish Stew."

"Now, why does that *not* surprise me?"

She gave him her most dazzling smile before she turned back to the kitchen.  A minute later she came back with the wine and a basket full of fresh, hot bread slices.

"Let's eat!"

And that's exactly what they did, enjoying the food as they discussed the last week's events.  Back to school.  Their final year as undergraduates.  It had been nice to see old friends after the summer vacation.  Dana had spent part of her summer at her parents' house, and the other half of the summer working on an individual research project for a prominent researcher in the physics department.  She'd learned quite a bit, and had been debating applying to graduate school.  Perhaps an MD-Ph.D was just what she should do.

"I went to career day today, and got to meet some representatives from a few companies.  I think there's a chance they might want to hire me."

"Oh Jake!  That's great!"  Dana leapt from her chair and moved to his side, leaning down to hug him tightly.

"So when are you going to know?"

"Hard to say.  I think that it might take a few months before I hear back from them.  It's not like I was the only person there looking for a job."

"Ah come on.  I'm sure that you'll get your pick of offers."

"Thanks."

Jake lifted his head to see her smiling down at him.  Lifting his hands from her waist, where he'd been hugging her just a few moments before, he reached up to cup her face with his hands.  Gently, he pulled her down until he was kissing her tenderly, wanting to cherish the moment. When he felt her hands begin to wander and reach for his shirt, he took her wrists and held them away.

"Uh... not yet."

"What?"

She tried to make her best pouting face again, reaching down to capture his ear lobe.  In between bites she whispered into his ear.

"Don't ... you... want... to... celebrate?"

"Yes, I do, Dana.  But tonight I want to take it slow."

"Slow, fast, hard, naughty... I like it any way."

"Dana!"

"Yes, Jake?" She drawled, lowering her eyelids slowly to glance deep in his eyes, knowing exactly what effect she was having on him.

"Please don't do that right now..."

"I like it when you beg."

Jake groaned, trying very hard to think of something to keep all his blood from moving south.  Think cold snowdrifts.  Think big, scary bears.  Think horny toads.  Uh... scratch that last remark.

"Look, Dana, I just want us to have a bit of a chance to celebrate."

He reached for her hands and got up, leading her towards the couch. As they sat down, Jake searched through his pockets, pulling out a box.

"Here, I've got something for you."

Dana stared at him, unsure of what to do next.  When he pushed the box forward again, she reached for it, taking it in her hands.  Looking back up at him, she saw an expression of expectance.  Shrugging lightly, Dana concentrated on the small white box with a simple red ribbon. Elegant, yet just the least bit scruffy-looking.

Suddenly overcome with curiosity, Dana pulled away at the ribbon's bow, allowing it to slip away before she lifted the top off of the box.

"Oh Jake!"

Inside were a set of gold earrings, and a pendant and chain, both with in-set aquamarine stones.  All the pieces of jewelry were delicately crafted with thin gold wires intertwined to look similar to a bird's nest, with the round blue-green stones set in the hollow middle.

"It's beautiful!  I don't know what to say."

"Your smile is enough."

"Do you have any idea how romantic that is?"

"Hmm... I might have a clue or two..."  Jake smiled as he winked.

"I love the gift, but I think I love even more the fact that you remembered."

"Remember what?"  Jake teased.

"Our anniversary.  One year ago today, you mowed me down."

"I didn't mow you down!  You were in the way."

"Yeah, right, that's why I ended up on the ground."

"That's just 'cause you're smaller."

"Ah, but size can be deceiving."

"Very true, Dana."

Jake reached in to kiss her lips, pulling back after barely making contact.

"So?"

"What?" Dana asked, clueless as to what has happening in Jake's mind.

"Aren't you going to put them on?"

"Oh..."

Dana looked down at the box she was still holding.  She took off her pearl earring and put on the earrings, then reached in with one hand, delicately pulling out the chain and pendant.  She put the box down, freeing her other hand to work the clasp.

"Here, let me."

Jake turned her slightly until her back was to him, and then reached for the chain.  He undid the clasp then reached over her to put the chain around her neck.  As the spring closed the clasp, he leaned in and placed a light kiss on the nape of her neck, feeling overwhelmed with the tenderness of the moment even while a small part of his brain screamed that this was just too cliche for comfort.

"Turn around," he asked gently, keeping his eyes at her head level.

"The jewelry is beautiful on you.  It brings out your eyes.  Now it's just missing one thing."

Her look of curiosity almost made him burst out laughing.  She knew he was hiding something, and she was dying to find out what it was.

"I think it would look much prettier with this."

She waited somewhat impatiently as he burrowed a hand into his pants pockets, wrestling to take a package out while in his seated position.  Finally he was able to pull out a box similar to the one she'd seen before, but smaller.  Instead of giving it to her, Jake pulled the ribbon off himself and opened the box, revealing what seemed to be a miniature replica of a jewelry box, with a snap along the front holding it closed.  He opened the snap and lifted the lid, taking a look at the contents before turning it over so she could see inside.

Dana gasped audibly, her eyes widening as she saw what was inside that little box.

"I don't imagine I have to explain the significance of what you're seeing, so I'll try and get to the point."  Jake shuffled nervously, seemingly at a loss for words.  He reached for one of her hands and clasped it in his, craving contact.

"I know that we haven't talked about this before, but I've been doing a lot of thinking, and I think that with you I've found someone I could easily see myself spending the rest of my life with.  I love you, Dana, and I'm hoping that you love me in the same way, and would consent to be my wife."

Dana's mouth had grown progressively wider through Jake's speech as what he was saying hit home.  When he finished, her jaw was hanging wide open and she stared at him, apparently waiting for her mind to finally catch up.

"I... I..."

"You..."

"I can't believe you just asked me what I think you just asked me."

"Why, Dana?  Haven't you thought about us?"

"Yes, Jake.  I have.  I do.  All the time."

She once again lapsed into silence, at a loss for words for a few moments.

"It's just that.... I mean, it's not like this happens to me every day.  I wasn't expecting this, Jake.  You took me by surprise."

"Why do I get a feeling I know where this is leading?" Jake asked, his expression visibly dropping as her words sank in and he realized what her answer was going to be.

"Oh!  Don't take this the wrong way, Jake.  I was just thinking out loud.  This is the first time anyone's ever asked me this.  I guess I just hadn't anticipated it.  I... I...  I mean, what I'm trying to say is that... Yes."

"Yes?"

"Yes."

Jake threw himself into her arms, holding her as tightly as possible.  He felt his heart rate double as she did the same, pressing herself tightly against him.

"Thank you, Dana."

"For what?  It was going to happen eventually, Jake, and you're the one who got the courage up to ask."

"You said yes."

She nodded and pulled back a bit before leaning in towards his face, capturing his lips as he simply smiled at her.

"Yes, I did."

"Say it again."

"Yes."

This time, it was his lips capturing hers, with a passion inflamed by the emotions swelling within him.  He loved this woman, and he wanted nothing more than to take her in his arms and never let her go.  And as he stood up, pulling her along with him towards the bedroom, he made a silent wish that this would be the case.  ------- Jumeaux IV by The Dragon Lady (1/2)   Disclaimer:  They're not mine.  They never were, and never will be, despite the amount of fantasizing I do about... Uh oh.  I'm giving too much away again, aren't I? <sighs>  Dana Scully belongs to Chris (Redux I and II really rocked, and he's ba-ack!) Carter, Ten Thirteen Productions, and Fox Television.  Jake belongs to Zalman King and Showtime (don't I wish we had that channel up here in Canada).  No legal infringement intended.  The characters are merely being borrowed for a nice little serial so that they might finally get a little more exercise in their acting skills.  <g>  Classification: CRA Key words: X-Files/Red Shoe Diaries crossover Rating: PG for suggestive language and a few bad words Summary: Remember those life decisions in the last installment?  Well, they're back with a vengeance.  We're coming to a crossroads.  Author's notes:  I should be studying right now, and I have another fanfic commitment that is more urgent than this one, but I feel like if I don't do this now and get it out of my head, my brain will explode.  I'd never thought that fanfic would be one of the things keeping me sane, but the withdrawal symptoms from not writing for almost three months have finally gotten to me.  So now I'm caving in and writing.  Hope you like.  As always, I want to give my thanks to my circle of editors, to whom I owe a debt of eternal gratitude (i.e. you prevent me from looking like a complete fool by fixing my stories before I send them out into the arena).   Jumeaux IV  by The Dragon Lady (nlemie@po-box.mcgill.ca)

Dana refused to open her eyes.  Instead, she simply stretched lazily, smiling to herself as she felt a pair of arms tighten around her. Finally giving in to the temptation, she opened her eyes to see Jake, her fiance, trying to burrow his head into her shoulder.  The short hairs at the side of his head tickled her skin as he moved, and she couldn't suppress a giggle as the sensation overwhelmed her.

Her laughter only resulted in his tightening his hold on her even more.  Quite a possessive fellow, he was.  Not that she minded.  She couldn't think of anything better than staying near him all the time.  If it were her choice, she'd never get out of this bed - well, except to shower and get some food from the kitchen.  But this place, his bedroom, was at the moment the safest place in the world.  A place to ignore the intrusions of real life, such as the fact that they had courses in the afternoon and couldn't stay in bed all day.

A hand snaking its way down her front brought her out of her reverie and back to the reality of her surroundings.

"Mornin' beautiful," Jake spoke, the roughness due to his having just awakened, and perhaps also to the level of vocalization he'd reached the night before while in the throes of passion.

Dana ruffled his hair and then slicked it back down, taking the moment to completely wake up as she formulated a reply.

"I'd say mornin' handsome, but I get a feeling you'd just laugh at that."

His chuckle proved her point, and she chose instead to lean in and kiss the part of him that was easiest to reach, which turned out to be the top of his head.

His hand, which had stopped its movements when she'd replied continued on its way, moving past her navel and approaching softer, more intimate territory.  Jake turned his head up to look at her and smiled, enjoying the view and the way her eyes were darkening with each second that passed by.  That look.  He didn't think he'd ever get enough of that look where she turned from Dana Scully, college student extraordinaire to Dana Scully, woman with passion and an unlimited reserve of sexual energy.

As he mulled this over, Dana leaned down towards him again, opting to kiss his mouth as it was now finally in range.  However, their lips had barely touched when she pulled away quickly.

"Ewww.  Morning breath.  I told you to stay away from that Mexican food last night."

Jake faked a hurt look, then laughed as he feigned trying to move in to kiss her again and she pulled back quickly.

"Hmmm... I guess that means I don't get any until I clean up.  He pulled the sheets off himself, then disentangled his legs from Dana's as he turned to get up.

"The toothbrush and shower beckon."  He stopped, giving her a slight wink.  "Care to join me?"

"Maybe later.  I'll start by making us coffee and checking on the mail.  It *is* past eleven a.m., you know!"

He shrugged, winked, and then turned to walk out of the room.  Dana smiled as her eyes settled to a little below his waist level, watching his progress.  Mh-hhhmmmm.  Yup.  She'd do her best to join him in the shower.

Hearing him shuffle in the bathroom, then start the shower, she stretched again, took a deep breath in, and expelled it as a sigh.  Why did time go by so quickly when they were together, and so slowly when she was in class?

Enough, Dana.  You can't lounge around here all day.  There are things to be done, courses to be attended, errands to be run, and people to return to tonight, hopefully for an encore of what happened a few hours ago.

Motivated by her mental chastising, Dana pushed the covers off herself and sat up.  Leaning towards the chest at the foot of the bed, she picked up her robe and pulled it on, stood up, and tied the belt so that she felt completely wrapped in the soft terry cloth.  She hugged herself for a moment, feeling the muscles of her back stretch, then decided to get moving, exiting the bedroom.

It only took two minutes to get the coffee brewing, and then she headed towards the front door, opening it to walk to the wall of mailboxes at the end of the hall.  Applying pressure at the right spot (a trick Jake had taught her a few months ago), she lifted the small metal door lightly and it opened as if by magic, giving her access to the mail inside.  Dana took out the various envelopes and flyers, discarding the junk mail in the conveniently placed recycling bin before closing the mailbox door and heading back to the apartment.  The winter air was chilling the entrance floor, and Dana was grateful for the carpeted walk as she padded barefoot back to the apartment.  She closed the apartment door behind her and made her way to the kitchen, sifting through the envelopes.  A bill, a junk mail she'd missed, some company out in the west coast with an interesting logo, and then...

Dana froze as she recognized a major architectural firm from Maryland.  Its logo was similar to that on the other envelope, from California.  It couldn't be... Excited, she dropped the other envelopes and headed towards the bathroom.  Just as she was placing her hand on the doorknob, an idea struck her.  She could really surprise him if she played it right.

She turned back to the kitchen, picking up the discarded envelopes along the way.  Placing the pile of letters on the table, with the two company envelopes at the bottom, she then moved over to the counter to pour herself a cup of coffee.  She'd just finished stirring in the creamer when she heard the bathroom door open.  Sitting down at the table, Dana schooled her face into a look of nonchalance and sipped her coffee, waiting for Jake to enter.  She heard him walk towards the bedroom, then turn back and move towards the kitchen, smiling at her as he walked in.

"You didn't join me."  He tried to pout as he took in her appreciatory gaze, which was centered at the single, low-slung towel he was wearing.  "I missed you.

"I'm sorry, Jake.  I got held up at the mailbox."

"Oh, so *that's* where you were.  I thought you'd run off and joined the circus."

She smiled, amused by his attempt at humour.

"Nope, just some letters."

"Hmmm... let's see."  Jake picked up the envelopes.  "National Geographic wants me to join their society... Another association is asking for money.  Don't they know better than to send this to poor college students?  And... what's this?"

Jake dropped the two previous envelopes as he brought the letter from the Californian company close to his face.

"Oh my god..."

"Jake?  What is it?"

"It's... one of the companies I applied to when school started this year.  It's been a few months.  I wasn't expecting to hear from them."

"And?"

"I can't believe it..."

Dana felt her patience give way, and she couldn't help her outburst.

"Well, aren't you going to open it?"

"I... uh... Yeah, I guess."

She watched as he slid one long, tapered finger under the sealed fold, tearing the paper with a few deft moves.  His hands were trembling slightly, and she watched his expression change from fear to apprehension to curiosity as he slid out and unfolded the letter inside.  His eyes were riveted to the paper, and seemed to have an extra light in them as he skimmed the writing.  And then the transformation happened.  His eyes widened and he took in a sharp breath, his mouth opening in an expression of incredulity.

"What?  What is it, Jake?"

"I'm in.  I can't believe it!  They want to hire me!  I'd start as a junior partner and move my way up."

Dana jumped up and ran around the table to meet him, wrapping her arms around him as she hugged him tight.

"Congratulations!  I knew you'd make it.  Everyone wants you to work for them.  You're brilliant, Jake.  I knew you'd make it."

She continued to hold on to him tightly, feeling his body shake as he breathed in and out quickly, overcome with the news.  She pressed her ear against his chest, hearing his rapid heartbeat.

"Come on, Jake.  Easy now.  You did great and I'm proud of you. Now do like me and take a deep breath."

Dana felt his chest expand as he inhaled deeply, then felt herself fall towards him as he expelled the breath forcefully, pulling her in with his arms.

"Oh, Dana.  I still can't believe it.  This is so amazing.  I never thought I had a chance with them.  It's such an honour that they asked me to join them."

"I'm happy for you, Jake, and I'm proud.  You deserve this.  But wait... there's more."

She felt his eyes on her as she pulled away and reached for the table, picking up the envelope for the Maryland architectural firm.

"Here.  This came for you too."

Jake looked down at the envelope, then quickly took it and tore it open, anxious to read what was said.  His eyes flew over the page, scanning the words, and then slowed down.  Dana saw his face change almost imperceptibly as all of him seemed to concentrate on the piece of paper.

"Jake?  What is it?"

This time his hands really started shaking as he continued to focus his gaze on the paper.  He was staring at it fixedly, as if trying to burn a hole through it.  The rest of the world was lost to him.

Dana put a hand on his shoulder, trying to get his attention.  When he didn't respond, she shook him lightly, relieved at seeing him finally acknowledging her.

"What is it, Jake?"

"They said no."

"What?"

"Here."

Jake handed her the piece of paper and she took it in her hands, glancing at the first few lines: "I regret to inform you that after having reviewed your application for employment, we have nothing to offer you at this time...."

The words began to blur as Dana's eyes filled with tears.  She let the paper drop to the table and turned to face Jake, unsure as to how to handle this.

"Oh Jake..."

"Don't, Dana.  Don't bother.  I know you're sorry.  I can't believe this."

Jake's face tensed and she could see that he was fighting to stop the tears from falling.  He'd had his heart set on that firm.  It was in their plans.  He'd take that job nearby until she got her medical degree, and then they'd choose to go wherever they wanted.

It hadn't even crossed their minds that he might be refused. Practically every company he'd applied to had offered him a job.  It had gotten to the point where they knew the answer ahead of time.  But none of those jobs had held much interest.  The only interesting one, other than the Maryland firm, was the one in California, where the offices and the opportunities were infinite.    He hadn't expected to be accepted there, and the joy at getting a job offer had been overwhelming.  But now, with this news, his world had shattered.  There would now be some very hard decisions to make.

"What do we do now, Jake?"

"I... I don't know, Dana."

"You can call up the firm, ask them for a chance to talk, to prove your talents.  You know you can get a job here.  You have to, Jake."

"And do what?  Get on my knees and beg them for a job?  Get real, Dana!  They don't want me.  It's as simple as that.  I'm not going to grovel.  It's not who I am.  You know that.  I have to face it.  We have to face it.  I won't be working near here."

Dana pulled back slightly, frightened by his harsh tone of voice. She knew that he was angry and disappointed.  So was she.  They would just have to find a way to work this out.  It wasn't so serious.  There were other firms in the area.  They'd just have to apply there.

"You can find a job at another one of the firms, Jake.  This wasn't the only one. We'll just send them your resume.  They'll see how brilliant you are, and they'll hire you on the spot."

"It's not that simple, Dana.  There's a deadline to apply.  I didn't apply before, and it means I wasn't interested in them.  By now they've found candidates they want to hire.  Going now and asking for a job would just show that I hadn't been interested in them before.  Why on earth would they want to hire me?  I'm sorry, but all I have to work with is the offers that I've received."

"Well then, you can just go to one that's closer to here, like the one in Florida."

"It's not the one I want."

"Yes, but it's much closer to here."

"It's still far away."

"But at least it's on the east coast!"

Dana felt her voice begin to rise as panic set in, and she hated herself for her lack of composure.  This wasn't a moment to fall to pieces. It was a time to solve a problem.

"It's still away from you."

Jake sat down hard on a chair, apparently finally overcome by the situation.  He lowered his head into his hands and groaned, unable to utter another word.  Dana, feeling his anguish, kneeled down next to him and placed her hand on his back, trying to coax his attention back to her.

"Jake.  Come on, talk to me.  I'm here for you.  Just trust me on this, okay?  We'll figure something out."

"I want to go, Dana."  Jumeaux IV  by The Dragon Lady (nlemie@po-box.mcgill.ca)  <Disclaimed in part 1>  ********************

"What?"

"To California.  I want to go to that job.  It's the best one. Every other one was just a formality.  The only one that's even remotely interesting is theirs.  I can make a difference there.  They want me to participate in a great reconstruction of a downtown square.  Nothing comes even close to this offer, even the one in Maryland."

"What are you saying?  That you didn't want to work here in Maryland?  You were just staying for me?"

He looked up at her with an unwavering gaze.

"Yes, Dana.  Because I love you."

"Yeah?  Well spare me.  I wouldn't want you to have to sacrifice yourself just for me."

"It's not what I meant."

"Isn't it?  Tell me, Jake.  If I hadn't been here, where would you have gone?"

He simply stared at her, unable or unwilling to answer.  His gaze was piercing, yet she was unable to decipher it.

"It doesn't matter."

"Doesn't it?  I think it *does* matter.  Because I won't be responsible for preventing you from doing what you want to.  Ten years from now, I don't want you to hate me because I prevented you from fulfilling your dream."

"But Dana..."

"You don't have to answer me, Jake.  I've already figured it out. You want to go to the firm in California, and you're not going to be happy anywhere else.  Well fine.  Go.  Don't let me stop you."

With this, Dana stood up and walked out of the kitchen, heading towards the bedroom to pick up her clothes.  She heard him get up and follow her, but she stubbornly refused to turn back towards him, preferring to continue on her way.

"Dana."

Jake grabbed her shoulder and spun her around to face him.

"Don't pull away like this.  Talk to me."

"There's nothing to say, Jake.  You've made your choice.  You want to go there, and I'm not going to stop you."

"Come with me."

"What?"

"There are some wonderful medical schools in California.  Come with me.  You can study there, and we'll be together."

Dana stared at him, disbelieving.

"I'm already signed up for med school here next year.  It's too late to transfer.  The application deadlines have passed, and it means that I'd lose a year if I waited to see if I might be accepted next year. There's always a chance I might not be."

She saw his face fall as she told him.

"I'm sure they'd accept you, Dana.  You can get some experience and work while you're waiting to get accepted to one of the schools.  You'll get in for sure.  You're very good, and you know that."

"Yeah, I'll get accepted like you got the job here, Jake?  It's not that simple.  If I turn down the school here, I won't be able to come back. And if I don't get accepted there, then my career is ruined.  I can't afford that.  I have to stay."

"Then it'll only be for a year.  Apply to the schools on the West coast, and then we'll be together again."

"It's not that simple, Jake."

"Why not?"

"There's my family."

Dana turned from him, entering the bedroom and picking up her clothes while trying to gather her thoughts.  How could she explain to him that she just couldn't leave her family behind.  When she was a child, her father had hardly ever been home, always on some ship or another, leaving Dana, her siblings, and her mother alone.  Just a few months earlier her father had finally retired and come home, offering Dana a stability she hadn't had in a long time.  After nearly twenty years, she finally had an opportunity to get close to him.

Then there was Melissa.  She'd had a series of arguments with their parents and had left home in a rage, swearing to never come back.  Dana had been trying very hard to get her to contact home, and had finally made some leeway.  Leaving now would destroy all the work and put a great rift in her family.

Plus there was the fact that she'd gotten used to the campus, and had already met many professors, a few of which had been interested in her idea of combining her MD with a Ph.D. in experimental medicine.  She'd practically already picked out her thesis subject.  If she left, she'd have to start from scratch, and she wasn't sure if she was willing to do that.

"I can't go, Jake.  There's too much here I still have to do."

"You can't go now, or you can't go at all?"

"I don't know."

"Because, Dana, you could still apply for the med schools out West. That way, we'd only be separated for a year.  It's not so bad.  We'd call, and write.  I'd fly down once in a while.  After all, with my new salary I'll be able to afford this."

"I think we need some time to think."

Jake stood silent, watching as Dana gathered her clothes and began dressing.

"Don't go."

"I think I should.  We need to think, Jake, and I can't think clearly if I stay here."

"I understand.  You're going to call, right?"

Dana almost lost it completely, and just barely managed to blink back her tears as she heard his soft, pleading tone.

"Yes, I'll call you.  I promise.  I just need some time alone... to think."

By then she'd turned back to look at him, and he simply nodded before turning around and walking away from the bedroom door.  As he left, Dana sat down on the edge of the bed and wiped away the tears which were finally escaping.  She sat there for a few seconds, valiantly trying to compose herself.  When it didn't work she finished dressing and rubbed her eyes some more, drying them somewhat.

Finally, she walked out of the room and headed towards the front door, picking up her bag.  As she put her hand on the doorknob, she turned back to see Jake standing in the kitchen, staring at her, tears in his eyes.  She tried to smile in an attempt to reassure him, then walked out the door and closed it slowly behind her.

In only five minutes her world had shattered.  Shoulders hunched, she made her way out of the building and walked home.  ******************************

Jake surveyed the campus paths, expecting to see a flash of bright red, but he couldn't see it.  Dana wasn't walking out of the building, which meant that she hadn't attended her afternoon classes.  He turned and headed off campus, intent on seeing her.  As he approached her apartment building, he slowed down, unsure of what to say.  He just knew that he couldn't let her go.

Finally at her door he rang the bell and waited, feeling his heart race with fear and anticipation.  It took a minute before she answered. She was still dressed in the same clothes, and her face was a mess.  Dry black streaks created lines down her face where red-puffy eyes had shed tears.  Faint wrinkle lines on one cheek made it look like she'd pressed her face against a pillow recently.  Jake felt his heart wrench at the sight, and suffered a blow to the chest when she turned away and tried to shut the door on him.

He pushed his way in, determined to talk to her.

"Dana, please.  Can I come in?  I want to talk."

"There's nothing to say, Jake.  I said I'd call you when I was ready."

"You didn't go to class today."

Her eyes darkened from his accusation.

"So you've been spying on me?  That's absolutely perfect!  Is there anything else that you neglected to tell me?  Or were you hoping I wasn't home so you could look through my things?"

"Come on, Dana.  That's not fair.  I was just worried about you.  I wanted to talk to you.  I don't want anything to happen to you, and missing class is just going to make things worse."

"I fell asleep."

"Oh...  Sorry."

"Don't be.  It calmed me down quite a bit.  It helped me think."

"And?"

"I was going to call you."

He didn't push any further, waiting for her to tell him her decision.  She closed her apartment door and turned to face him.  He saw her stand a little straighter and take in a few calming breaths, obviously preparing herself to tell him the news.

"I've decided that I don't want to leave here, Jake.  There's too much at stake, and I want to go through with my plans."

"But what about our plans, Dana?"

"I'm sorry, Jake.  For a very long time I wanted to become a doctor, and now that I'm doing it, I'm not going to take any chances.  I've been accepted here, this is a good school, and I'm not going to leave."

Jake nodded, unable to speak.  He could feel the wall of silence building between them, and was unsure of how to breach it.

"I want you to go to work in the firm in California.  Follow your dream, Jake.  It isn't fair for me to try and stop you.  It will open doors for you, and allow you to make a name for yourself.  I have the same chance here.  I think it's the only way we'll both be happy."

"But what about us?"

"I want us to stay friends."

Her words cut him as if they'd been a sharpened blade.  He felt himself flinch from the pain and couldn't manage to look her in the eyes.

"I love you, Dana."

"I know, Jake.  I love you too.  But it's not enough."

"I won't leave it at that.  The minute I get out there, I'll try to get a position back here."

She silenced him by shaking her head.

"No, Jake.  We both know it wouldn't work out.  You'd be miserable, you'd hate yourself for having missed the opportunity, and eventually you'd hate me too.  I can't do that to you, and I won't let you do that to yourself."

"So what do we do now?"

She swallowed audibly, hating herself for having to do this.

"First, I think I should give this back to you."

Dana worked the engagement ring off her finger and reached out with her arm to give it back to him.  Jake shook his head, refusing to take it back.

"No, keep it.  I gave it to you because I love you.  I'm not going to take it back because I still love you.  I'll never stop loving you. Keep the ring as a reminder of that."

"Thank you, Jake."

"We'll be together."

"It'll be another five years before I finish my degree.  I don't think it's fair to ask you to wait that long."

"Dana..."

"I mean it, Jake.  I know about long distance relationships.  They rarely ever work out, even if couples are separated for short periods of time.  We're looking at five years, here.  It wouldn't work."

Jake nodded, understanding her point of view even though every cell in his body rejected the idea.  He knew he loved Dana and he didn't want to let her go.

"All right, Dana.  You still haven't told me what we do now."

"I've told you already.  We can be friends."

"I don't think I can do that."

"I think you can.  We have a strong bond, Jake.  I don't want to never see you again.  It'd be too hard.  At least as friends we can still talk, meet each other once in a while.  And when you're gone we can call each other or write.  Keep in contact."

"Is this really what you want, Dana?"

"I think it's the best solution."

"All right, then."

Jake moved forward and wrapped his arms around her waist, pulling her to him and holding her tight.  He buried his face in her hair and started to cry as he felt his heart break.  She clung to him just as tightly, sobbing.

They held each other for a long time, each one refusing to let go of the other.  Finally, Dana started to pull away.  Reluctantly, Jake let her go and pulled back as well, searching for her eyes.

"So..." He started.

"So I guess I'll see you tomorrow."

"Yeah.  How about we go get a cup of coffee.  It'll be nice to get warmed up after your physics lab.  I know how cold that room is."

Dana gave him a small little smile and nodded.

"Sounds good."

"All right then," Jake moved back some more, nearing the door to the hallway, "I guess I'll see you then."

His gaze narrowed as he tried to absorb her image, suddenly aware that she wouldn't let him close to her again.

"Lock the door behind me and take care."

"Yeah.  Bye, Jake."

Dana waited until he'd left before moving to the door.  She locked it, then turned to press her back against it, needing support.  What had she done?

After a long moment she pushed herself away from the door and headed towards the shower.  There was homework to be done and classmates to be called.  She'd missed two lectures and needed to copy the notes.

Almost against her will, she walked towards the window and caught a glimpse of Jake as he made his way down the street.  She'd see him tomorrow, but she knew that things would never be the same again.  *************************  Later that year, early summer.

The PA system rang out as the boarding to a flight was announced. Dana walked next to Jake as they made their way to gate seventeen.  His flight would be leaving in ten minutes, and the second to last warning had just been given a few minutes ago.  Time was running out for them.

"I wonder what the place is going to look like.  I didn't have a chance to visit it.  I'm not so sure it's a good idea to trust a distant relative to find a place for me."

"Oh come on.  From everything I've heard, it sounds amazing.  You know, one of my dreams has been to live in a loft.  I keep dreaming, but you'll be living it."

"It sounds kind of isolated though.  Besides, how will I afford it?"

"With the salary they're offering you?  Ha!  It'll barely make a dent in your paycheck.  Think of it as an adventure.  You can go out and pick all the furniture you need."

Jake groaned.  He hated shopping, and didn't particularly relish the idea of having to do so now.

"And when you get there, I want you to send me a picture of the place.  That way, if you can't decide how to decorate, I can give you some ideas.  How's that?

"Sound like a good idea."  Jake tried to smile and failed miserably.  "Dana, are you sure you won't reconsider?"

"Jake, we've talked about this over and over again.  It's the best thing to do.  There's no way we can make this work.  The only thing left to do is to remain friends."

"I know."  Jake groaned, lowering his head.  "But it still isn't easy."

"I know."  Dana echoed.

Jake opened his mouth to speak but he was interrupted by another announcement.  It was the final boarding call for his flight.

"I... I have to go."

"I'm going to miss you, Jake."

"And I don't know how I'm going to live without you by my side, Dana Scully."

He saw her eyes begin to well with tears and reached for her, holding on as tight as he dared.  She did the same, pressing herself against him for one last time.  She then pulled back slightly and looked up at him.

"Good-bye, Jake."

He didn't answer but swooped down to capture her mouth with his, allowing himself to express all the love and passion he held for this woman.  Reluctantly, he pulled away.

"I don't want to go."

"You have to.  Go on.  I'll write.  I promise.  Call me tonight when you get there.  Okay?"

"Okay."  Jake conceded, suddenly feeling a heavy weight press on his shoulders.

"Now go before the plane leaves without you."

Jake reached out to cup her face gently with his hands one last time, memorizing every last detail before he started to walk towards the gate.  As he handed his boarding pass to the clerk, he turned back to see a pair of blue eyes watching him leave.  He gave her an answering look and tried to smile.  Unable to resist, he silently mouthed the words 'I love you' before he turning back toward the plane, walking away without looking back.

Dana was shaken to the core by his last words, and stood watching the tunnel as his form disappeared in the distance.  Silent tears slipped from her eyes as she watched Jake walk out of her life.  ------- Well, this hiatus has been so long that I'm betting some of you thoughtyou'd never hear from me again.  It's not like I intended for it to be thatway, but real life and then serious writer's block got in the way... youknow the story.  But never fear, I'm back! <g>  Maybe not in full force yet,but I've got the writing bug and I figure it's time I get back into the swingof things. Disclaimer:  The characters in this story do not, never have, and never willbelong to me.  Fox Mulder and Dana Scully belong to Ten ThireenProductions and Twentieth Centry Fox Television Inc.   Oh, and to a manwhom they tell me is called Chris Carter, not that I've ever heard of him.<g>  Jake (last name unknown to me) belongs to Zalman King and ZalmanKing Productions (I believe).  All characters used without permission.  Noharm intended, no infringement intended, no money earned through thewriting and posting of this.  The author wishes to say to the creaters ofthese characters that she wishes she'd thought of them herself, but shehasn't and she's using them as a form of catharsis, and flattery (you know-- imitation).	Large portions of the text in this story are dialogue and actualdescriptions of events that took place during the X-Files pilot.  Any phrasesor descriptions that cannot be recognized as being from the pilotcopyrighted to this author, 1998.  Do *NOT* distribute to archives outsideof Gossamer, and do not, under any circumstances, repost, copy, distribute,or reuse any of this text for any purposes without prior written consentfrom the author. Rating: PG-13 for some nasty words Classification: CX, UST Key words: Mulder/Scully UST (no romance yet), Red Shoe Diaries crossover Spoilers: Pilot Summary:  Dana Scully is assigned to work with Fox Mulder in the X-Filesdivision.  Imagine her surprise when she opens the door and sees his face. Author's Notes:  It's been so long that I almost didn't remember whatcategories to write at the beginning of the story.  This is part 5 of anongoing series involving Dana Scully's life -- before, and now within, the X-Files.  While this could be a stand alone with the following information:Dana Scully fell in love with and almost married Jake, an aspiring architect,while she was in college -- it would be best if you went back and reread(or simply read) Jumeaux parts I to IV.  They're available at Gossamersites under 'J' for Jumeaux, or 'D' for Dragon Lady, The.	I'm posting part 1 now, part 2 will probably be out tomorrow, to giveme time to write part 3 and have my editors look it over.  Everythingshould hopefully be out before or during the weekend.  If you're happyI'm writing again, why don't you flood me with feedback.  It might justgoad me into writing the next installment faster. <g> Jumeaux V by The Dragon Lady (nlemie@po-box.mcgill.ca) 	Dana tossed her keys onto the entrance table and hung her coat up on the rack, settling into her familiar evening routine.  Turning on a light, she then moved towards the kitchen while leafing through her mail.  A smile appeared on her lips as she recognised a familiar script on a handwritten address.  Jake.   Inserting a finger below the flap of the envelope, she pulled at it, tearing the paper open easily and slipping a few leaves of paper out. 

It hadn't changed.  Seven years ago she and Jake had broken up.While it had been extremely hard at first to communicate, they had kepttheir vows to stay in touch and stay friends.  As a result, they called eachother every few months, and almost every month, like clockwork, Jakewould send her a letter, to which she'd reply within a couple of weeks.That way, they kept up on each other's lives.  That was very important toboth of them.  As long as they remained friends, there was always a hopethat things would be right in the world. 

She let her eyes flow over the words, drinking in Jake's latestadventures, reading about how he'd managed to find a great door for thebathroom in his loft... a sort of sliding door/venetian blind combinationthat allowed for maximum privacy.  And he'd found a stray dog.  A puppyno more than a few months old who'd wandered into the building whenthe door had been left open one scorching evening.  The eyes, he told Dana,had done him in and he'd immediately adopted her.  Her name was Stellaand he was beginning to really appreciate her company -- even if shehadn't quite figured out the meaning of paper training yet. 

Dana sighed, letting herself be enveloped by the normalcy of Jake'stone.  Things seemed to be going great for him and she was happy.  On theother hand, her life was about to change and she wasn't quite sure how toprepare for it.  Her thoughts were echoed in Jake's letter. 

"So, dearest Dana, how goes it with the work?  Have those rumorsthat you might be transferred materializing or are you still slicing anddicing?  I'm curious to know.  Any chance you might end up in California?Kidding!  Ouch!  Don't hurt me!  Anyway, I was just curious, so wheneveryou get some definite news either way give me a call.  I don't think I canstand waiting 3 weeks to hear the answer. 

Love always, 
Jake" 

His last paragraph once again set aflutter the butterflies in herstomach.  She'd been told to show up to Section Chief Blevins the next day,10 am sharp.  Guess the rumours were true.  She was going to bereassigned.  Although this scared her a bit -- after all she'd always stayedwithin the safe confines of Quantico after qualifying as an agent -- she waslooking forward to a challenge.  A new start, a chance to meet an agentwho would work with her in the field.  The opportunity to solves crimesrather than just doing the grunt work for other investigators.  Not that shedidn't love her job, but she'd decided it was time to graduate to the bigleagues.  Play with the boys, as her brother Charlie would say. 

Turning her thoughts back to the present and her grumblingstomach, Dana slipped the envelope into the box on her desk where shekept all of Jake's correspondence and returned to the kitchen to re-heatsome leftovers.  The hum of the microwave followed her all the way to thebedroom as she changed out of her work clothes and into something morecasual -- a pair of shorts and a t-shirt.  Tying her hair into a ponytail, shethen walked to the bathroom to wash her face clear of the scant make-upshe wore.  As she patted her face dry she heard the ding of the microwavealarm telling her that the Irish stew her mother had made for her wasonce again heated and ready to eat. 

One bowlful and two bread slices later, she felt the familiar warmthof a full stomach and rose to clear the table.  One long hot bubble bathlater, she was ready to retire for the evening.  Choosing a paperback shewas halfway through, Dana reclined on her bed, preferring to immerseherself in the story than to lie there worrying about tomorrow's meeting.She'd planned for it as much as she could, to the point where she'd alreadylaid out the suit she was going to wear.  Now all she could do was wait, andthat was one thing Dana Scully did not do well.  So the novel was theperfect chance to pass the time until she fell asleep. ******************** 

Her posture and facial expression schooled into that of perfectprofessionalism, Dana made her way into the Bureau's headquarters tenminutes early.  Giving her name to the security guard, she accepted thevisitor's pass and threaded her way towards Blevins' office.  She made itwith three minute to spare.  Taking one last breath before knocking, sheentered when told to do so and approached Blevins' desk with a curt smileon her face. 

He asked her some questions on her background -- not that unusual,she guessed, since she was being given a final evaluation beforereassignment, so she answered them as well as she could, feeling a little twinge of pride and guilt as she explained the circumstances around herjoining the bureau.  Her father had been angry, to put it mildly, and hermother had seemed to also disagree with the decision, though she hadn'tbeen as vocal about it.  Dana paused for a second, thinking about herparents' disappointment.  Margaret Scully had always harboured the hopethat when Dana finished medical school she would once again reunite withJake.  It had been a blow to the whole family when she'd decided to playin the big leagues and join the boys' club of the Bureau.  But she'd madeher own choices and she hadn't regretted it.  Now if only her father couldaccept that... 

She wasn't able to spend any more time thinking about this as theman sitting next to Blevins spoke up and startled her with his question. 

"Are you familiar with an agent named Fox Mulder?" 

Her mind racing with the implications, Dana answered. 

"Yes I am." 

"How so?" 

"By reputation.  Uhm... He's an Oxford educated psychologist whowrote a monograph on serial killers and the occult that helped catch MontyPropps in 1988.  Generally thought of as the best analyst in the ViolentCrimes section.  He had a nickname at the academy...."  She paused, feelinguncomfortable with having to resort to Bureau gossip and turning her gazetowards the silent man in the corner who was smoking.  Wasn't it againstoffice policy for anyone to smoke within the building?  This was starting toseriously annoy her, though she didn't let it show.  Instead she continued. 

"... Spooky Mulder." 

"What I'll also tell you is that Agent Mulder developed a consumingdevotion to an unassigned project outside of Bureau mainstream.  Are youfamiliar with the so-called X-Files?" 

"I believe they have to do with unexplained phenomenon." 

"More or less.   The reason you're here, Agent Scully, is we want youto assist Agent Mulder on these X-Files." 

Dana felt her jaw clenching tighter and tighter at each word out ofBlevins' mouth.  No!  Oh no!  She wasn't going to be paired with Spooky.What had she done to deserve this?  She'd heard about the frequency withwhich he'd switched partners in the last two years.  It wasn't going to doher career any good to be stuck in a god forsaken basement only to bedumped by him.  Not that she'd let him do that.  Nuh-uh!  No man had evertreated Dana Scully with anything else than respect, and that wasn't goingto change. 

Her thoughts slowed down as the rest of Blevins' speech sank in. 

"You will write field reports on your activities along with yourobservations on the validity of the work." 

Dana's mind rebelled again.  They wanted a stool pigeon!  A spy!!!!Someone to report to them on Spooky's work.  How *dare* they ask this ofher!  Barely maintaining her calm, Dana forced out a question, hoping thatBlevins would refute it. 

"Am I to understand that you want me to *debunk* the X-Filesproject, sir?" 

"Agent Scully, we trust you'll make the proper scientific analysis.You'll want to contact Agent Mulder shortly.  We'll be looking forward toseeing your reports." 

Yeah right!  By this time, Dana was fuming and felt the need to getout of that office -- fast.  Biting on her tongue to hold back an angryretort,she nodded her agreement with Blevins' instructions and turned to leave,not looking back.  Back in the hallway, she breathed a sigh of relief.  Theair in there had been stifling, and it was nice to get some smoke-freelungfuls.  As a pathologist she knew the effects of second-hand smoke andwasn't particularly happy at having to endure it. 

Heading towards the break area, she poured herself a cup of coffeeand drank down a third of it before she even bothered moving again.Feeling the warmth course through her even as the rich aroma and flavoursoothed her nerves, Dana set about her plan to meet Spooky Mulder. 

*Maybe I should cry out that I just saw a little green man.  Thatshould get him up and running over here.*  Imediately regretting thatstatement, Dana took another few sips of coffee and tried to figure who totalk to in order to find Spooky's lair.  Deciding that the guard at the frontdesk was her best bet, she dropped the almost empty cup of coffee into thegarbage can and threaded her way back towards the front of the building. ******************* 

The basement was dark and almost ominous as the elevator doorsopened.  The claustrophobic hallways filled with boxes and boxes of filesand god knew what else were stacked in space saver cabinets.  There wasvery little traffic.  Not surprising.  Who would want to go to the basementunless they *absolutely* had to. 

*Better get used to it, Dana,* she told herself.  *You might be here awhile.*  But a part of her mind hoped it wouldn't be too long. 

Dana walked down the hall until she'd reached the right door, thenknocked and waited for the invitation to come in.  She shouldn't have beensurprised by the unusual answer. 

"Sorry.  Nobody down here but the FBI's most unwanted." 

Ignoring the dig, she pushed her way forward and walked towardsthe semi well-lit office.  Pausing first on the figure of the man sitting withhis back to her, she felt a flicker of recognition in her... almost likesomething familiar, but she let it pass.  She chose instead to peruse thecontents of the office, noticing the ordered chaos of books, files, photos,andall sorts of other knickknacks cluttering every available space.  Her eyesrested on the poster that loudly proclaimed 'I want to believe'.  *Figures*,she thought as her eyes moved on. 

She finally returned her gaze to the man who was still facing awayfrom her, examining him more closely.  It was almost as though he felt hereyes on him because he chose that to moment to turn around abruptly andface her. 

Sweet mother of God!  Dana's face lit up with a smile as the firstthought that crossed her mind was that this was an elaborate joke.  *Playalong,* was her mind's first reaction and she obliged. 

"Agent Mulder?  I'm Dana Scully.  I've been assigned to work withyou."  She reached out her hand, ready to yank Jake up into a warmembrace and look for the hidden camera she'd obviously missed upon herfirst glance at the office. 

But there was something wrong.  The first contact didn't feel right.There was a tingle, but not the familiar one.  This was new, unexpected.She looked into his eyes and the colour seemed wrong -- off somehow.*Must be the lighting, or else maybe contacts?*  She thought.  And thevoice... It was somewhat the same but older, a little more deep, and with aricher undertone.  *He's doing a good job of modifying it.*  She wanted achance to hear it again, and was able to do so when he spoke up. 

"Isn't it nice to be suddenly so highly regarded.  So who did you tickoff to get stuck with this detail, Scully?" 

She didn't flinch, only smiled lightly as she waited for people tojumpout and yell "Boo!"  or "Surprise!".   Nothing.  *Fine, keep playing along.* 

"Actually, I'm looking forward to working with you.  I've heard a lotabout you."  *Not surprising, considering I was your lover for almost twoyears.* 

"Oh really?  I was under the impression that you were sent to spy onme." 

Okay, that clinched it.  Spooky Mulder, no matter how good he was,wouldn't have known this much.  This was definitely a set-up.  Now all shehad to do was wait to see how this was going to end. 

"If you have any doubt about my qualification or credentials I --" 

"You're a medical doctor.  You teach at the Academy.  Did yourundergraduate degree in physics.  'Einstein's Twin Paradox:  A newinterpretation'. Dana Scully' senior thesis.  Now *that's* a credential --rewriting Einstein." 

Dana saw red.  Okay, the joke had gone on far enough.  She wasn'tabout to be humiliated in public -- assuming others in on the joke werelistening in, or even watching through a hidden camera?  She felt herpressure rise as she bit back a harsh retort, preferring instead to take adefensive stance. 

"Did you bother to read it?" 

"I did.  I liked it.  It's just that in most of my work the laws ofphysics rarely seem to apply." 

Dana gave him her best look of annoyance.  The joke had gone onlong enough.  It was time to end this.  If this was just a trick then she'dhad enough and wanted to get back to work at the Academy.  However,she didn't really have a chance to mount a full-scale attack before helaunched into an explanation of whatever it was he'd been working on. 

She listened to the description accompanying the slides, evenoffering her opinion on what she thought the marks were, and whatorganic substance had been found in them.  But she was reaching herbreaking point.  This wasn't funny anymore.  Any minute now she wasgoing to get really angry, and then friend or not, heads would roll.  *Wait aminute...  Unless?  Nah, the similarities were too strong.  This _had_ to beJake.*  Further thoughts were interrupted as the slides lit up the screen onthe far wall and he showed her pictures of the bodies found in differentparts of the country. 

"Do you have a theory?" 

"I have plenty of theories,"  he countered. 

Then he stood in front of her, gave her an intense gaze and she knewthe game was up.  She was just getting ready for a greeting kiss from Jakewhen he whispered a sentence that made her stare at him in shock. 

"Do you believe in the existence of extraterrestrials?" 

*Aw come on, you know this already.  We've talked about thisbefore.  Don't you think you've taken this far enough?*  Stopping just shortof a sigh, Dana kept her arms firmly crossed in front of her as she startedher usual schpiel whenever someone broached the subject with her.  Heeasily retorted. 

"Now when convention and science offer us no answers, might we notfinally turn to the fantastic as a plausibility?" 

*Oh bravo!  You learned your role well.*  Dana thought, too irritatedto do anything but refute the argument. 

"What I find fantastic is any notion that there are answers beyondthe realm of science.  You just have to know where to look." 

She thought she'd won when he moved towards her.  Anticipatingthe contact she was once again disappointed as he stopped at a respectabledistance and simply stated: 

"That's why they put the I in FBI."  He turned away from her, but notbefore adding his final thought.  "I'll see you tomorrow, Scully.  Bright andearly.  We leave for the *plausible* state of Oregon at 8 am." 

With his back to hers again, she just stared at him, then smiled.Apparently the man she knew had more acting capabilities than she'dthought.  Fine.  If he wanted to play it 'straight' then so would she. 

Dana walked out of the office without as much as a good-bye,heading for her office.  There, she picked up her briefcase and headedhome.  She expected a message on her answering machine.  Jake's teasingtone saying "I got you!"  But it didn't happen.  The only message was fromher mother who'd just called to say hi. 

She headed to the kitchen to make herself a hot chocolate and asandwich, thinking over the day's events.  Probably Jake was just waiting alittle more to make the suspense drag out before he called her or cameknocking on her door.  Well, she'd be ready for him.  Picking up thecordless phone and the paperback she still hadn't finished reading, alongwith the food she'd prepared, she headed for her very comfy stuffed chairand settled in for the evening. ************************ 

The shrill cry of an alarm woke Dana up at 5 am, and she grumbledas she tried to remember where she was and why her neck was so sore.Finding herself in her stuffed chair she realised that she's spent the nightin the living room and that the alarm in her room had gone off.  Shewalked to the bedroom and turned off the annoying thing.  Stretching andyawning, she felt her mind clear as it quickly jumped to the last thoughtthat had crossed her mind as she'd fallen asleep.  The phone hadn't runglast night, and she realised this had really gone too far. 

After showering and eating breakfast, she hopped onto the Net andaccessed the FBI personnel files using her security clearance.  Just a fewmoments of searching and the screen cleared, followed by the appearanceof text and a photo.  Dana gasped and brought her hand to her mouth asshe stared at the screen, dumbfounded. 

Fox William Mulder, special agent for the FBI, was indeed the manshe had met yesterday afternoon in that basement office.  This wasn't ajoke -- at least not in the traditional sense.  A cosmic joke, maybe, thoughshe didn't believe in that.  But there was no doubt that she was now goingto be working with Jake's spitting image. 

*Oh great, what do I do now?* 

*Pack!* was the immediate answer as she realised that if she didn'tmove quickly she'd be late. ************************ 

They made their flight without any real problems.  When Danashowed up at the FBI headquarters, Mulder was already there -- hadapparently been there for hours -- and both were ready to go.  In theplane he managed to sweet-talk the flight attendant into letting him hogtwo business class seats so he could lie down and relax while she opted tokeep her own booked seat and review the case file once more.  Mulderobviously had a jump on her as far as this case was concerned, and therewas no way that she was going to blindly follow him around. 

The sudden veering off of the plane scared her witless.  She alwayshated flying even when it was a smooth ride.  Gripping her armrests ashard as possible, she concentrated on her breathing.  Hey, it was betterthan thinking of what would happen if the aircraft suddenly plungedforward into the abyss.  A few moments later the plane righted itself andeverything returned to normal -- give or take the few children screamingand crying in the coach section of the plane.  Just as Dana was starting tofeel her breathing slow down a little bit Mulder turned to look at her. 

"This must be the place." 

She glared at him, then looked away as she felt the adrenaline surgeonce again, which was something she definitely didn't want at thismoment.  Once again in control of herself, she loosened her death grip onthe armrests and leaned down to pick up the file that had fallen on thefloor during the commotion.  She chanced a look at Mulder who, still cool asa cucumber, was once again lying down and listening to music on hiswalkman.  *Bastard* ******************** 

Like it or not, Mulder's ascerbic wit was starting to grow on her.  Hehad a twisted sense of humour but he always seemed to know when tocrack a smile or throw out a one-liner.  It kind of reminded her of-- 

*Don't go there, Dana* 

She followed his conversation on how the case had previously beenshut down and saw her chance to show him just how competent she was atinvestigating. 

"... the case was re-classified and buried in the X-Files until Idug itup a week ago." 

"And you found something they didn't." 

"Oooo........!" 

"The autopsy report said the first three victims 'show no unidentifiedmarks or tissue samples'.  But those reports were signed by a differentmedical examiner than the latest victim's." 

"That's pretty good, Scully." 

"Better than you'd expected or better than you hoped?" 

"Well, I'll let you know when we get past the easy part." 

She smiled while fuming inside and hoping that somehow he chokedon that sunflower seed he was munching on.  She'd picked up on the exactsame clue that he had.  What more could he possibly want? 

She asked him if the medical examiner was a suspect, then smiled ashe asked her if she was squeamish around exhumed bodies. 

"I don't know.  I've never had the pleasure." 

*Yeah, Mulder.  I cut up dead bodies all day, and at Quantico we don'talways get the freshest merchandise.  Let's just say I'm not too worried.But I *am* curious to see how you'll hold up, _Fox_.* 

And then he went and did that _thing_ with the orange X in themiddle of the road, leaving her dazed and dragging behind as she tried tocomprehend what he was doing. 

*Face it, Dana, he's going to be a handful.* ***************************** 

Dana sat cross-legged on her motel bed, mindlessly typing theautopsy notes as she focused on remembering Mulder's enthusiasm in thatroom.  He'd seemed like a kid in a candy store while she couldn't believehe was seriously asking him to believe this was Ray Soames.  What did hetake her for?  She hadn't just fallen off the turnip truck.  This was somesick, elaborate joke and she'd been about three seconds away from pullingher gloves off and walking out of that room when he'd looked her straightin the eyes and lowered his voice to say he wasn't crazy and he had thesame doubts.  That had done her in.  That look had always managed tosoften her up, and she'd fallen for it again. 

*I'd better be more careful.  This is someone else.  He just _looks_like someone I know.* 

Stopping her tape recorder, she picked up the metallic implant andstared at it, trying to figure out what it was.  The knock on her doorstartled her and she laughed at his joke before opening the door.  His offerto run was tempting but she felt herself still under the influence of her lastthought and opted to stay at the motel.  It was safer that way.  Okay, soshe'd lied about not losing any sleep over the implant.  It wasn't like hewas telling her everything. 

Try as she might, she couldn't help thinking that there was more toFox Mulder than met the eye, and she mentally resolved to find out exactlywhat it was.  Sighing, Dana re-powered her sleeping computer, rewoundthe tape a bit, and resumed typing. ******************** 

Fuming, Dana slammed the door as she walked out of the psychiatrichospital. 

*How DARE he?* 

She heard the door open behind her and footsteps follow as he triedto catch up with her. 

"What his name... uh Billy!  Said he was sorry he didn't get to saygood-bye." 

She didn't even bother looking at him as she continued to walk away.But at least she was polite enough to answer. 

"How did you know the girl was gonna have the marks?" 

"I don't know.  Lucky guess." 

She felt the last few tenuous strands of control break.  Her angerbegan to surge. 

"Dammit, Mulder!  Cut the crap!  What is going on here?  What doyou know about those marks?  What are they?" 

"Why?  So you can put them down in your little report?  I don't thinkyou're ready for what I think." 

That did it.  Okay, so maybe he thought she was just a spy, but hewas going to treat her like an equal or find out the hard and painful wayexactly how she dealt with people who pushed her aside. 

"I'm here to solve this case, Mulder.  I want the truth." 

Whatever she expected, it wasn't what came out of his mouth. 

"The truth?  I think those kids have been abducted." 

"By whom?" 

"By what." 

*Nice time for his sense of humour to surface.* 

"You don't really believe that." 

The argument that followed stuck in her mind.  She kept replaying itover and over again during the day.  Did Mulder *really* believe inextraterrestrials?  Could he really assume that something beyond scientificexplanation was at work?  How much harder would she have to work toprove to him he was wrong? 

Even after they had entered the woods to explore the crime scene --and exactly when does a detective overrule a Federal investigation? -- thesame thoughts were still coursing through her mind.  *I told him he'scrazy, but I think he's nuts.* 

It was only after the bright flash of light that she started to feeldoubt creep into the back of her mind.  *Time stopped?* 

She couldn't believe him -- wouldn't believe him.  And yet the radiohad gone haywire, the car had stopped, and it was indeed 9:13.  She justcouldn't believe him because it just didn't make sense.  But looking at hiseyes, the way they shone as he explained the abductee scenario, shealmost wanted to believe, just to see his smile grow bigger.  Instead, sheargued for her side -- knowing all those years of physics had finally paidoff -- and simply followed him back to the car. ******************** 

She swore as the lights went out and her laptop screen blinked off. 

"Great!" 

Just what she needed.  Why hadn't she thought to bring the goodbattery?  Now she didn't have enough power to try and salvage the reportshe'd written after the last save, since she'd just put the drained battery torecharge.  With nothing left to do, she called the front desk where the clerkpromptly told her that power outages weren't that uncommon duringstorms in this area. 

The candle and matches were exactly where the clerk had said theywould be, and Dana opted for a bath.  *Not much else to do when the lightsare out.*  She chuckled as a quick thought reminded her that there wereother ways to pass the time in the dark, but she quickly dismissed them.No sense in thinking about that when she was stuck in the middle of thePacific Northwest, with no boyfriend.  *There's always Mulder,* one part ofher mind quickly supplied, but she was just as quick to push that idea outof her mind.  Nope.  Their relationship was already complicated enoughwithout adding to it. 

Heading towards the bathroom, she started the water flow, hopingthat there was enough hot water left to fill the bathtub.  She took off herrobe and was slipping her hands down to remove her panties when shefroze.  Twisting around, she saw what she'd just felt a few moments ago.Two bumps on her lower back, right where they had been on the victimsand on Peggy O'Dell. 

She felt her pulse begin to race as the events of the evening cameback to mind.  What if something had happened while they were in thecar?  What if there _was_ such a thing as missing time?  What were thesemarks, and what were they doing on her back? 

Taking only a moment to grab her robe and key, Dana ran out andheaded for Mulder's room. 

He took a while to open the door, answering with a startled 'Hi'.  Shebarely noticed his half-closed eyes and sleepy features.  She was toonervous to care at that point. 

"I want you to look at something." 

He invited her in, closing the door behind her as she walked to themiddle of the room and began taking off her robe.  If he reacted to this shedidn't have a chance to see as she turned her back and dropped thegarment, arching her back and pointing with her eyes so that he wouldknow where to look.  Seconds passed like hours as she felt the heat of theflame approach her lower back.  Finally, she couldn't handle it anymoreand asked. 

"What are they?"  When he didn't reply right away she feltimpatience come through again and repeated the question morevehemently.  "Mulder, what _are_ they????" 

He sure took his sweet time to answer. 

"Mosquito bites. " 

"Are you sure?" 

"Yeah.  I got eaten alive myself out there." 

Dana felt relief flood through her, and she quickly pulled the robeback on, barely managing to close it before whirling around and holdingonto Mulder in sheer joy.  She couldn't remember the last time she'd beenthis afraid, and she clung to him as she felt the first of the tremors begin. 

"You okay?"  She heard him say tentatively as he carefully pattedher shoulder. 

Dana took a moment to answer.  Pressed up against him, she wasremembering a time past when she'd pressed up against another man wholooked just like him.  The memories were beginning to overwhelm her andcause her body to tingle as well as shake.  Taking a deep breath, sheinhaled the unfamiliar smell and that managed to return her to thepresent.  He'd asked a question and she needed to answer. 

"Yes." 

"You're shaking." 

*I _know_ that.*  She replied mentally, but opted to say she neededto sit down for a bit.  It didn't help that he told her to take her time, thensat down next to her.  She could feel his gaze upon her, even with her eyesclosed, and it wasn't helping her countenance.  She needed to be alone togather her thoughts and return to a semblance or normalcy.Unfortunately, she could see that he wasn't about to leave her alone, soDana opted instead to close her eyes and take a few deep breaths --praying for control. 

When she realised that he was still looking at her, she decided that adistraction was the best way out. 

"Tell me why it is you're so interested in extraterrestrials." 

"It's a long story." 

She turned to face him, a smile on her face. 

"We've got plenty of time.  The storm's still raging and I doubtthey'llbe able to fix the power anytime soon.  Besides..."  She hesitated, unsure asto how much she should admit.  "I don't think I'm going to fall asleep anytime soon." 

She saw him look away, obviously going through some sort ofinternal struggle.  It took a few moments but he finally turned back to her,gave her a weak smile and said "Okay." 

"It's a long story," he continued, "and it's a bit of a bedtimestory soyou'd better get comfortable just in case you nod off." 

He got up and patted the bed, extending his hand as an invitation.Dana suddenly felt her blood turn cold at what was implied.  She didn'tmove, unsure how to proceed.  It wasn't that her partner wasn't attractive.Heck, her mind had already indulged in this scene once or twice before shecurbed it, but this was serious.  She was in no shape to do anything, andshe wasn't sure if she wanted to.  Better just try and find a way to exitgracefully. 

He saw her hesitation and his expression changed as he grasped whatshe was thinking. 

"Oh, no!  No, don't worry.  I'm not going to do anything.  I just wantyou to get comfortable."  He grabbed the extra blanket on a nearby chair."Here, you can use this to keep yourself warm.  I'll be sitting on the floor.It's just that you seem to be shaking still and it's better if you're wrappedup in a warm blanket." 

Reassured, Dana got up and moved towards the bed.  Mulderobligingly moved away to give her a chance to sit down and then lay backagainst the pillows.  He opened the blanket and gently laid it on her beforeturning away and sitting down against the bed -- head reclined on themattress. 

"It has to do with my sister disappearing when I was young." ******************** 

Lying on Mulder's hotel room bed, listening to the story about hissister having disappeared, Dana began to feel like she was on a rollercoaster ride.  Whatever she'd expected from Spooky, it hadn't been this.He was a man with a mission -- a passion for his sister and for the truthwhich he believed he would find by unrooting the conspiracy surroundingaliens.  He even included how the government was in on the whole deal.  Ithad gone as far as him accusing her of knowing more than she was lettingon. 

It had been hard for Dana to hear this.  She understood that he'dbeen burned before and that he'd thought she was a spy, but Dana hadtruly believed that he'd finally seen her for what she really was: aninvestigator trying to uncover the details of what was going on.Apparently, she still had more work to do to gain his trust.  Although... hehad told her the story about his sister so he had to trust her a little bit.Just not enough. 

The ride only got wilder as things began to develop.  Peggy O'Dell'sbody had been run over, after she'd *run* into the middle of the street.Dana didn't want to think about the fact that Peggy's watch had stoppedtwo or three minutes after nine -- the same time that their car hadstopped. 

Suddenly she was wondering if maybe Mulder had _really_ seen atime difference on his watch.  But she never got a chance to mull it over.The body had disappeared from the lab, and then to top it all off theirmotel had caught on fire. 

She could feel Mulder seething, see his face compress itself into anexpression that only partly belied the anger below.  She herself was tryingto mentally calculate how much the Bureau would have to fork out tocover her personal effects when a girl she recognized -- the one from whenthey'd exhumed the body -- asked for their protection. 

In the diner they talked with Theresa Nemmens, learning moreevery minute as the pieces of the puzzle began falling into place.  Theywere just a minute away from getting a whole confession when the bloodbegan pouring out of Theresa's nose.  And then out of nowhere her fatherand Billy Miles' father appeared. 

The village was hiding a secret.  There was no longer any doubtabout it, and Dana shared her thoughts on the matter.  It was then thatMulder wondered about the two other graves. 

Surprise!  They'd showed up at the cemetery to find they were toolate.  The graves had been dug up and the bodies and coffins werenowhere in sight.  *Curiouser and curiouser,* Dana thought, wonderingwhat would happen next. 

She should have expected that Mulder would have an answer to this.He always seemed to have one and it always involved some out-theretheory.  She was beginning to get used to his spouting off ideas like this.*Well, Dana, looks like this is what's going to happen every time.  Betterget used to it.* 

But even with that forewarning, she couldn't believe what came outof Mulder's mouth. 

"I think I know who did it.  I think I know who killed KarenSwensen." 

"Who?  The detective?" 

"The detective's son.  Billy Miles." 

"The boy in the hospital?  The vegetable?  Billy Miles, a boy who'sbeen in a coma for four years got out here and dug up these grave?" 

She couldn't even believe she was arguing this with him.  Now what?Was he going to say that little green men had helped?  That a flying saucerhad given Billy Miles a lift over to the cemetery? 

She continued to listen to him, arguing his point, until his facefell.He paused, looked her in the eye, and stated -- not asked: 

"You think I'm crazy." 

She'd have been lying if she said no, so she simply nodded her head.Yet, her mind was still processing what he'd just said.  As impossible, asunlikely and crazy as what he'd said sounded, everything he'd mentioned_did_ fit with what had happened.  Besides, there had to be an explanationas to why Peggy O'Dell had run out on the road. 

*Okay, Dana.  It's freezing, you're soaked to the bone, yet youpersistin arguing with this man when you could be somewhere drying up andresting comfortably in another warm hotel room.  Why don't you just doit?  Throw him a bone.  It won't hurt.  Tell him what you saw when youexamined Peggy.* 

"What?" 

He seemed to instantly pick up on her hesitation, in tune with thefact that she was about to speak.  So she told him about the watch.  How ithad read a little past nine. 

Well, he was off again, talking about how the forest summoned thekids into the woods.  *Yup, call the nice men in white coats, we have awinner.*  She couldn't believe what she was hearing.  She had to makesure she hadn't imagined it all. 

"And the forest summoned _Peggy O'Dell's_ body into the woodstonight." 

"YES!!!!" 

The light was back in his eyes.  His tone was excited, like a childwhose older sibling had finally agreed with what he'd just said.  Shelaughed.  Couldn't help herself.  This was just too insane to be possible.Yethere they were, still soaking wet.  But somehow it seemed worthwhile.Suddenly there was a closeness between the two of them, a camaraderiethat had appeared.  They were more comfortable with each other, andDana felt like he trusted her a little more than he had before. ******************** 

She didn't know what inspired her to pull up the covers at the end ofBilly Miles' bed, but whatever reason she'd had fled when Dana saw whatwas caked onto the soles of his feet.  Dried mud.  Not just any dried mud,either.  The colour and texture -- it was like what she'd picked up in theforest.  Somehow, the feet of Billy Miles had touched that forest floor.  Andmaybe, just maybe, Mulder's theory that he'd been the one to kill PeggyO'Dell was right.  She was _this_ close to agreeing with his theory when hisown words brought her back to earth. 

"He was in the woods." 

"You're sure?" 

"This is the same stuff that I took a handful of in the forest." 

"Okay, well then maybe we should take it and run a lab test on it -" 

"We lost the original sample in the fire.  What else could it be?" 

He stopped. 

"Alright, but I just want you to understand what it is you're saying." 

"You said it yourself." 

"Yeah but you have to write it down on your report." 

Talk about your cold showers.  It's one thing to get caught up in themoment.  It's another thing to tell your superiors that a boy considered byall to be a vegetable had walked into a forest and was perhaps the keyplayer in a young woman's demise. 

"You're right.  We'll take another sample and run a comparisonbefore we do anything." 

*Ah... the scientist is back.  Nice to see you again.  Did youenjoy yourbrief vacation?*  Her mind mocked her.  What had been that temporaryinsanity she'd spouted?  There had to be a better explanation.  They justhadn't found it yet. ******************** 

As Dana lay in bed, she remembered the events that happened rightafter they returned to the forest.  Having been so nicely knocked out byDetective Miles, she'd missed the light show.  Arriving only a minute toolate, Dana had caught up with Mulder as he'd come looking for her. 

"Mulder, what happened?  There was a light..." 

"It was incredible, Scully." 

He'd been too moved to even utter another word.  All she'd had to dowas look into his face to see the elation, the wonder, on his face.Something had happened. 

It had taken him a minute to calm down enough to tell her what he'dseen.  She hadn't believed him at first.  Not until he'd walked her over tothe clearing where Billy Miles stood -- awake, walking, and mark-free. 

What had happened?  Even now, as she mulled over the scenario, shecouldn't quite believe it. 

Billy's testimony had given a story that fit well with abductionscenarios, Mulder had explained to her on the plane ride home.  She'dlistened to it in the next room, watching as a boy who'd been inactive wasnow able to tell his story.  The other men had left and she'd been about tofollow when she'd felt it.  Mulder's gaze -- pinning her to the spot.  He'dlooked through a smoked mirror glass, supposedly unable to see her, andyet it was as though he'd looked right into her. 

What was it about him?  What gave him that sixth sense that puthim leap years ahead of every other investigator in the VCS?  The sensethat somehow allowed him to come up with those wild theories thatsomehow managed to still fit the scenarios they investigated? 

Then right afterwards, at Blevins' office she'd done the dutiful agentthing... she'd reported her findings, explained how she couldn't corroboratethe story.  But she'd done her job to the best of her abilities, and she'dbeen straightforward with her findings.  It wasn't an answer, but she'd feltproud when she'd handed the metallic implant over to Blevins.  Herreports were accurate, and yet she hadn't ridiculed Mulder in any way. 

Somehow, thinking about this now as she tossed and turned, unableto sleep, Dana knew that she'd done the right thing.  Mulder was toobrilliant a man to be ridiculed.  Yes, his theories weren't standard and theevidence was inconclusive, but she'd caught a glimpse of how his mindworked and she was intrigued.  In the privacy of her own home, Danacould admit that she loved the stimulating conversation between herselfand Mulder.  His mind was sharp, and she was glad to have someone withwhich she could match wits and trade theories.  This was much morerefreshing than the standard by-the-book technicians and medicalexaminers who were two steps behind her own conclusions. 

*I could grow to like this.*  Dana took in a deep breath and let itoutin a sigh.  *Yeah.  I'm not going to be quitting any time soon and it lookslike Mulder may have finally broken his ... er... lucky streak.* 

Turning around to stare at the clock she was beginning to let hergaze unfocus when the ring of her bedside phone startled her. 

"Hello?" 

"Scully?  It's me.  I haven't been able to sleep.  I talked to theDA'soffice in Raymond County, Oregon.  There's no case file on Billy Miles." 

*What?* 

"The paperwork that we filed is gone.  We need to talk, Scully." 

*I.... I...* 

"Y-yes.  Tomorrow." 

Dana hung up the phone without saying good-bye. 

*Gone?  All gone?  What does this mean?* 

The thoughts were racing through her mind.  How could their casejust disappear?  Then again, was it any less plausible than a boy in avegetative state that suddenly walked into the woods? 

The phone rang again and Dana sighed.  What now? 

"Hello?" 

"Dana, hi!" 

"What is it, Mulder?"  Dana asked, wondering why his tone wassuddenly so light. 

"Mulder?  Who's Mulder?" 

Now Dana was lost.  "Who's this?" 

"It's me, Dana.  It's Jake." 

"Jake?  Oh, I'm sorry!  I wasn't expecting your call." 

"Yeah, I know.  I'm sorry.  Did I wake you up?  I sometimes forgetthere's a three hour time difference between us." 

"No!  No, you didn't.  Hi!" 

"Okay.  Now that we've got the salutations out of the way, who'sMulder?" 

Dana hesitated, wondering how she could possibly begin to describeit to him. 

"He's my new partner." 

"Oh, Dana!  That's great!  You got that transfer?  Congratulations!So...what's he like?" 

She pondered her answer.  How to summarize Mulder in a fewsentences? 

"Uhm... well he's very intelligent, he's a trained psychologist who'sdone some work.  He's a bit of a loner too -- he's scared quite a fewpartners away -- but I think we're going to work out.  He throws out weirdtheories, I use my science to prove him wrong." 

"That's my Dana," Jake laughed, "just make sure you kick butt asusual." 

Dana felt herself smile. 

"Don't worry.  I will." 

"Now don't avoid the subject, Dana." 

"What subject?" 

"What does he look like?  He can't possibly be as handsome as I am." 

Dana burst out laughing.  *Oh Jake, if only you knew.* 

"No, of course not, Jake."  She felt the comfortable silence settle onthe line, then realized that he was paying long distance fees for thissilence.  "So... why did you call?" 

"I told you, Dana.  Don't you remember that I wrote how I wantednews about your transfer?  You didn't call, so I did.  I wanted to know." 

"Yeah, Jake, but you could have waited until my letter showed up.You've got self-control.  My letter would have gotten to you soon enough.  Ican tell you're up to something.  You never could lie to me, Jake.  Alright,spill!" 

She settled back on her pillow, warmed by Jake's soft chuckle at theend of the line. 

"Okay, I admit it.  You know me well.  I didn't call just to ask aboutyour transfer." 

"Well?" 

"I - I found someone." 

Dana felt a pang inside her as several emotions battled within her --joy, apprehension, curiosity, and jealousy.  It was the happiness that won. 

"Oh, Jake!  That's wonderful!  How did you meet her?  What's hername?  What does she look like?  How long have you been going out?Come on, I want to know _everything_!" 

He laughed again. 

"Hey!  One question at a time.  First, I met her a few weeks ago atthis hotel in town when I went to a reception.  There were two differentparties in the hotel and as I wandered down the hall I bumped into her bymistake.  I invited her for a drink, we got to chatting, and we just hit itoff." 

"What's her name?" 

"Alex.  You'd like her, Dana.  She's got a great laugh and she's aninterior decorator.  She's got great tastes, like you, and she's really thelifeat parties..." 

Dana listened as Jake continued to gush over this Alex.  Somehow, asthe conversation advanced, she began to feel like a chapter in her life wasclosing.  Perhaps now that Jake had found happiness she might be able todo the same. -------- TITLE: Jumeaux VIAUTHOR: The Dragon LadyEMAIL ADDRESS: the_dragon_lady71@yahoo.comDISTRIBUTION STATEMENT: Gossamer only. No private, individual archives.  I need to know where this is going.  You can always ask, but I don't guarantee a 'yes'.SPOILER WARNING: Beyond the Sea, although I no longer consider this to be a serious spoilers...RATING: GCONTENT WARNING: No bad language, no violence, no sex.  Lots of angst, though.CLASSIFICATION: V, C, AKEY WORDS: XF/Red Shoe Diaries crossoverSUMMARY: Jake and Dana help each other through a time of loss.DISCLAIMER: The characters used in this series are either part of the Red Shoe Diaries universe (which belong to Zalman King and Showtime Productions) and to the X-Files universe (which belong to Fox Television, 1013 productions and Chris Carter).  The use of these characters is only for entertainment purposes and to explore alternate possibilities.  No infringement intended.  No money exchanged hands, and no monetary gain was made by the author of this story and of the rest of the Jumeaux series. 

I do this for love -- Mulder and Scully's love. AUTHOR'S NOTE:  Long ago in a galaxy far, far away...  Oops!  Wrong series. 

Well, it seems like ages ago to me -- and to some of you who still vaguely remember me as well, I imagine -- I wrote a series inspired by Red Shoe Diaries.  After a few stories in the series, real life interevened -- I finished my university studies, found myself an overwhelmingly time-consuming job (teaching) and went through a dry spell to rival that of Death Valley.  Finally, inspiration hit last summer and I wrote an outline for Jumeaux VI and VII.  However, RL reared its ugly head once more and the stories were shelved.  I didn't want to, but my muse and spare time were never in accord. 
Apparently, a 3 day weekend, a cancelled ski trip, a March Break, a showing of Jake's Story on Showcase (bless their Canadian hearts), and a summer vacation have conspired to give me the motivation I needed to get my butt into gear.  The writing bug has bitten once again, and hence I present to you Jumeaux VI.  It's not the last in the series.  I have many ideas of what will happen. There's at least a part VII already planned out, and I'm sure it won't stop there.  I just can't promise exactly when it's going to come out.
I want to apologise for taking so long and leaving so many of you in the lurch.  A thousand thanks to those of you who have constantly poked and prodded me along, asking if I'd *ever* write more of this series (you know who you are).  I always knew I would -- I just didn't know when.  I hope I haven't alienated you all (pun intended) in the process.  You're certainly free to hop over to Gossamer and read Jumeaux I through V to refresh your memory on the story (if only for the smut ;).  Sorry, due to the overwhelming size of the other Jumeaux stories, I can't send them off by email.  You'll have to get to gossamer somehow. I hope this one's to your liking. Jumeaux VI by The Dragon Lady (the_dragon_lady71@yahoo.com) 
It was 11 PM when the phone rang at Dana's apartment.  She'd just gotten back from the case in Raleigh, North Carolina -- Luther Lee Boggs. 

It had barely been a week since her father's funeral.  Mulder had checked out of the hospital and she'd just driven him home.  It was late, she was wired, and she couldn't turn the thoughts off in her mind.  As a result, she couldn't sleep. 

By the third ring, Dana had picked up the phone.  The silence that greeted her seemed to suit the mood, but worried her.  Had something happened to Mulder? 

"Hello?" She repeated, a touch of panic rising in her throat. 

Her only answer was sobbing, a man's voice barely heard as great gasps of shaking breaths were taken. 

"Mulder?  Is that you?  What's wrong?" 

When there was still no answer, Dana reached for her keys and coat, ready to race out the door to see him. 

"Dana?" 

The sound of her name stopped her in her tracks.  This wasn't Mulder -- it was Jake. 

"Jake?  What is it?  What's wrong?" 

He burst into tears again, seemingly needing a moment to gather his strength before continuing. 

"Dana, I'm sorry.  I called because I needed to hear your voice."  She heard him sniffle at the other end, his composure returning somewhat.  He took another shaky breath and asked, "Did I wake you?" 

"No, you didn't.  I just got back into town.  I'd just started unpacking, so I was awake.  Don't worry about it.  What's the matter?" 

Another silence followed as she waited for his reply. Finally, he was able to whisper a reply. 

"It's Alex." 

"What is it, Jake?  What happened to her?" 

"She's gone." 

Dana was stunned.  Unsure how to proceed, she tried to question him gently. 

"She left you?" 

"No, Dana.  She's gone.  Really gone.  Forever."  His voice cracked at the last syllable and he broke down again, the agonized sobs reaching her over the phone line. 

It was then that she understood.  Alex hadn't dumped him. She was dead. 

"Oh, Jake, I'm sorry."  Tears once again appeared in her eyes as the pain in her friend's voice combined with her own recent loss. 

"What happened?  Was she in an accident?  Was she sick?" 

"No..." 

His voice trailed off, and Dana realised that he was struggling with a way to tell her the news. 

"She... She..."  He stopped, cleared his throat, and tried again.  "She was in the bath.  I found her.  Two days ago.  There was blood everywhere..." 

The wail which followed tore at her heart.  Suicide. 

"Oh, Jake, I'm so sorry... " 

His sniffling was her answer.  Unsure how to proceed, Dana waited for him to calm down and continue the conversation.  She knew that even her silent support would help him right now. 

"I don't understand why, Dana.  Everything was going fine. I'd just proposed to her a week and half ago.  I was finally ready to commit.  We'd been living together for a while, and I loved her very much.  I thought we were doing great, but apparently I didn't understand her at all.  She... she resented me." 

Dana couldn't believe that, knowing Jake the way she did. He'd always been supportive and understanding with her, never doing anything to make her angry. 

"I find that hard to believe, Jake...  You're not the kind to act that way.  You're sweet and --" 

"No, you don't understand!"  He interrupted forcefully, startling Dana into paying careful attention.  "I... I found her diary.  It was hidden at the bottom of a bag.  I read it..." 

He trailed off, apparently running out of energy. 

"What is it, Jake?  What did you read?" 

She wasn't sure if it was a good idea to make him recount those moments, but it was obvious he needed to talk, and she was more than willing to listen. 

"She had an affair." 

Tears once again trailed their way down her face as she heard the raw emotion behind those four words.  Again, she waited for him to speak. 

"I thought I knew her.  Apparently, I knew her too well.  She said she felt that she didn't have any secrets hidden from me, and that she wanted a secret again.  Something I didn't know about." 

He paused, taking a breath. 

"And then she found a man, and she had an affair." 

Again, the line went silent, and this time Dana seemed to hear even more despair.  The silence was stifling. 

"Jake, I'm coming over.  I'm going to call the airline and book myself a ticket." 

"No." 

Dana stopped, surprised by his answer. 

"Why not? 

"You're busy... you've got work to do.  I need to be alone. For a little while.  I need time to think things through." 

"Jake, you need a friend.  I have lots of frequent flyer miles.  I could be there in a few hours." 

"No, Dana.  Really.  Please.  I need to be alone." 

She worried about his refusal, but she could also hear a strong determination in his voice.  He seemed like he was going to make it.  He *had* to make it.  She couldn't lose him too. 

That was when her thought suddenly returned to her father. The funeral had been a week ago.  Those emotions were still very raw, and she worked hard at pushing the thoughts out of her head.  This was not the time.  Jake needed her strength. 

"How... How are you, Dana?" 

"Oh, Jake.  It's not important." 

"No, Dana.  I just want to talk.  Tell me about your work. What have you been doing lately?  How's your family?" 

That was when she broke down.  She sobbed on her end of the phone -- biting her lip and trying to stop, but unable to do so.  The silence was finally broken when Jake spoke up once again. 

"Dana?  What's wrong?" 

"It's my father.  He passed away at Christmas.  The funeral was last week." 

"Oh Dana..." 

The silence that followed was different, filled with a sudden sense of closeness, as if Jake was reaching across the line to enfold her in his arms. 

"I'm sorry." 

"It's okay, Jake.  You've had a loss, too." 

"How did it happen?" 

"Heart attack."  She almost told him about the apparition in her living room, then held back at the last moment.  She didn't think she was ready to speak about that.  Didn't know if she'd ever be ready. 

"I'm sure he's in a better place, Dana." 

She barely stifled another sob, remembering the dilemma she'd felt all week, the one she'd finally confessed to Mulder. 

"It was so sudden, Jake.  I wanted to speak to him.  I needed to know..." 

"I know, honey.  I know." 

She'd long ago spoken to Jake about the tension which had built between herself and her father when she'd decided to join the Bureau.  And though she hoped that he'd loved her regardless, she still felt like the situation was unresolved.  Now it was too late. She'd never hear from him again.  He'd never know. 

"I miss him..." 

"I miss her..." 

The sudden sharing of these emotions, knowing that someone else could understand what she was feeling put a thin layer of balm on her heart.  This was the first step towards healing -- even if only a little one. 

"I miss you..."  She said, knowing he wouldn't misinterpret her comments.  It was comfort they both needed. 

"I do too, Dana.  We'll visit, soon, I promise." 

Finally the conversation turned towards small things, events which didn't involve their recent losses, but which still allowed them to take comfort in the other's voice.  They talked late into the night, falling asleep seconds after hanging up, and enjoyed the first dreamless sleep in days... (end chapter 6 -- to be continued in Jumeaux VII) July 14, 2020 - it happens to be 20 years to the day since part 6 was posted.  Unfortunately there are no more parts to this series to be found.