Project Grimm-Ch 1 Dana Scully sprinted lightly down the corridors of the J. Edgar Hoover building, running a hand through her damp red hair. She was late, and that didn't happen very often. Of course, she'd never beat her exuberant partner to the office, but she was usually there by 8 AM. When she pulled open the door to their basement office, Fox Mulder was already on the phone. It seemed that he was pulling up travel plans on the internet, setting up a slide show, and talking to A.D. Skinner. "Look, Skinner. Here she is now. I'll brief her on the undercover and we'll be off, ok?" Mulder hung up the phone and turned to a perplexed Scully. "What is it, Mulder? I heard undercover." Scully crossed the room and tried to pull the case file from his hands. "Three kids, all dead from unknown causes, in the same two week period. These deaths occurred in Mercer, Texas, a small town outside of Dallas." Scully arched an eyebrow and clicked her tongue disapprovingly. "Remember the LAST time we went to Texas?" Scully shuddered at the remembrance of a case in Chaney, Texas that resulted in nasty repercussions for both agents. Mulder knew her fears and assuaged them quickly. "No, it's nothing like that. It's a medical mystery. We're going undercover as a doctor and her husband, so you can investigate without feeling any hostility from the locals." Scully let out a sigh. Finally, a case that WASN'T an x-file. "So, I get to pick the names?" She tilted her head and gave him a sunny smile. "Yeah, pick away." Mulder leaned back in his chair and began to toss well-sharpened pencils into the already riddled ceiling. "How about Dr. Alexia Dover and her loving husband, Jonathan?" Scully's eyes bored into Mulder's, prompting him to agree with her. Mulder made a face of disgust and decided to suggest his own names. "How about Dr. Anastasia Edwards and her husband, Nicholas? I could call you 'Ana' or 'Stacey'..." Mulder trailed off and waited for her response. Scully was mesmerized by the way he pronounced "Anastasia". She'd always heard it as "ANN-A-STAZ-IA", but he pronounced it as "AHN-AH-STAH-ZIA". The way his tongue caressed the word made it a beautiful name. "Sure. What's the significance of 'Anastasia' and 'Nicholas'?" Scully leaned on the desk, clearly interested. "Easy. Nicholas the II was the last czar of Russia and Anastasia was the only child to escape the Bolsheviks' firing squad, or so it was rumored." Scully giggled to herself. It was always a conspiracy with him. "Why undercover, Mulder? I mean, how hostile can the locals be?" Scully was still a little uneasy about the vague case. She moved from her comfortable position on the desk and stood in the center of the room, arms crossed. "Ok," he conceded, "I have reason to believe that this is some sort of government-funded genetics project. There's some drug research going on at the Drayton Research Facility, but the whole project just leaves a bad taste in my mouth." Mulder's hazel eyes took on a golden glint, revealing his passion for the subject. "And you want me to infiltrate this project? I'm no geneticist, Mulder." Scully's eyebrow raised in a skeptical look. A clear voice cut across the room and fell over Scully's ears. "No, but I am." Scully whirled around to find the owner of the voice and found it belonged to a curvy brunette who was obviously dressed in Armani. She and Mulder had like tastes. Her chestnut hair was layered in a razor-edged bob and wispy bangs fell over her high forehead. Her blue-green eyes flitted from Mulder to Scully, taking in her new partners and work environment. Mulder hadn't seen anything in the past few minutes but the woman's arresting face. It was round, but with high cheekbones and a strong jaw and chin. Her eyes were rimmed in sapphire blue and filled with emerald green and a lighter blue, and her skin was pale and rosy, much like Scully's. He immediately glanced to her left hand and noticed the wedding rings residing on her fourth finger. "Damn. It figures." "Hi. I'm Dr. Phyllis S. McKinney, but you can call me Lissie." The woman's soft drawl belied a southern childhood. "Hi, Lissie. I'm Fox Mulder and this is my partner, Dana Scully. Pleased to meet you." Mulder stuck out his hand and clasped hers gently. He gave it a firm shake and moved on so Scully could do the same. Being male, he appraised the two women, not surprised when Scully came out on top. She always did. "What's the plan, yall? Want me to show Doc Scully the ropes?" Suddenly, Scully remembered. She'd taught this girl at the Academy. She'd been a brilliant pathologist, why had she changed her specialty? "Starr. Starr.... Lance, was it?" Lissie turned in surprise. She hadn't been called by her middle name since the Academy. Even her husband shortened "Phyllis" into "Lissie." "You remember me, Doc Scully? Funny that I didn't go into pathology, but I had a double doctrine all along. The Feds hired me through the CDC for my genetics work, but I don't trust 'em. I remembered you and your kooky partner, and that's when I knew I could get help." Lissie's eyes took on a hardened glint. If anyone could help her, they could. --------------- Project Grimm-Ch 2 “I just can’t stand what they’re doing to those poor kids.” Lissie plopped down in Mulder’s desk chair and leaned back, placing her three-inch heels on the desktop. “What exactly ARE they doing?” Mulder’s hazel eyes brightened and his face was open and interested. What cocaine was to some people, x-files were to Mulder. They sped up his brain and heart and generally made him elated. Lissie opened her slim, leather briefcase and pulled out several top-secret documents printed on the omnipresent red paper. “Project Grimm was a government-funded project doing research on mapping the human genome. A few new people came in and the project’s funding was cut off. Somehow, the project continued, but with a different aim: making the perfect assassin.” Mulder was intrigued, and his face spoke volumes about his curiosity. Scully was beginning to think he was even more curious than the proverbial cat. She just hoped he reined it in before he hurt himself. “Project Grimm is trying to create the perfect assassin using the most innocent form: a child. These children are created in labs, and trained in all the latest technology. The parent DNA is recombined and branched in order to destroy any sort of weaknesses the parents have.” Lissie still held an air of reserve about her, as if she wanted to change the situation, but she wasn’t emotionally attached. All of a sudden, her face contorted in pain. “I didn’t know what I was doing until I noticed the parent DNA. I’m sure you two are familiar with alien abduction?” Both agents nodded, ready for her to continue. “Well, the military stages many of these abductions in order to retrieve DNA for various top- secret projects, Grimm included. My DNA was one of the samples used to create a child. I sought her out.” Lissie once again broke into tears and Scully wrapped an arm around her shoulder. “I’m ok. Anyway, I sought her out. These children have no names, only code names…each code name being from a fairy tale, hence the name of the project. The child they created from my DNA was code-named Rapunzel. I tried to rescue her, even pet- named her Raye. But, the project has some flaws. Due to the branched DNA, she died. We have to stop this before more children die, or, heaven forbid, they succeed in creating the assassins.” Lissie had once again regained her dour demeanor and folded her hands on Mulder’s desktop. “Why us?” Mulder asked, perplexed that she would want to come to “Spooky” Mulder for help. “Because Doc Scully’s DNA was used to create a child. Her code-name was Cinderella, but she was adopted out when she didn’t pass the tests. Her adoptive name was Emily Sim. Cinderella had a sister, however. Her code-name is Ariel.” Lissie gazed at Scully imploringly, trying to gauge the enigmatic woman’s reaction. “We have to save her. We have to.” Scully turned to leave the office, leaving Mulder and Lissie to speculate once again about her thoughts. Project Grimm-Ch 3 --Scully’s Apartment— Scully sank down on her couch and mulled over the eventful day. She’d gotten a new case, reconnected with an old student, and discovered that she had another child. Another child. The possibilities alone warmed her to the very core of her heart. She had a chance to love this child, raise her, and be with her like she couldn’t with Emily. Emily’s death had ripped a gash into an already-broken heart. It wasn’t enough for her to be barren, no, the bastards had to take away the only flesh-and-blood child she could ever have. It didn’t matter that Mulder wasn’t the father of Emily or Ariel, he would love her just the same. And that was what Scully was counting on: Mulder being the father of her child and, hopefully, her lover. Being in love with Mulder had changed Scully immensely. She no longer felt the need to be completely independent in order to prove her competence. Mulder allowed her to feel like a true woman without making her his subordinate. He allowed her to “let her hair down” so to speak. Mulder made her feel beautiful and desired every time he looked at her. Now, she wasn’t a child. She knew the only thing he felt for her was sexual attraction because he was male and she was the only female he had intimate contact with on a daily basis, but that fact didn’t stop her from dreaming of him as more than a good lay. She pulled herself up from the couch and began to pack for the trip to Texas. Luckily, she’d taken a hint from Mulder and left her toiletries packed. Of course, that wasn’t hard when he had given her a gift package full of products in her favorite scent: wild roses. He’d even thrown in a Silk Effects razor and some Skintimate shaving gel in with the shampoo, body wash, soap, lotion, and massage oil. She’d always wondered about that massage oil, but figured that it had just come with the package. Little did she know that he’d had the package specially made, and HE picked out the massage oil on a whim. She placed these things in her suitcase along with her toothbrush and hair care items and moved on to her underwear. Now, around the house and to work, she wore perfectly functional Playtex bras and Hanes Her Way white panties. No point in dressing up to go to the Hoover building. But, when traveling, she wore her sexiest lingerie, in the event that Mulder MIGHT see her underwear and she didn’t want to seem like a goody-two- shoes. Her personal favorite was the garter belt and silk stockings that Frohike had given her for her birthday. At least HE remembered it. A few months earlier, she’d snuck into Mulder’s apartment and grabbed a few of his infamous porn tapes, just to pick up ideas on how to seduce him, if the occasion allowed. She was astonished to find that he had a penchant not for tall, busty brunettes, but petite redheads in stilettos and garters but not much else. She packed all of her nicest casual clothes, fingering a blouse Mulder had given her for Christmas. It was a soft cashmere in cobalt blue, and made her eyes dazzle. She threw in numerous pairs of black slacks and a few demure skirts, wanting the professional look. On a whim, she threw in a red evening gown that Melissa had given her shortly before she’d been killed. The card, which Scully still had, said, “Live a little and wear this for Fox…er, Mulder. I’m sure he’ll like it.” Scully smiled and went to read “Breakfast at Tiffany’s”, Melissa’s favorite book. Project Grimm-Ch 4 --Mulder’s Apartment— Mulder threw open his closet, searching for casual clothes that would still convey that he was a successful attorney. The work attire was no problem, he was an Armani man. He pulled a few Polo pullovers from his closet that his mother had given him for his birthday a few years back. He’d never worn them, preferring his ever-present gray T-shirt. Of course, that was the last gift his mother had given him. Teena Mulder had never been demonstrative, but as of late, she withdrew into her world of romance novels, soap operas, and bridge parties, leaving her only son without a mother to lean on. He envied Scully for having Maggie Scully as her mother. Mrs. Scully gave him a birthday and Christmas present every year, begging him to join their family for the holidays. Scully had lucked out. He moved to his oak dresser and pulled out some seldom-worn khakis to add to his growing pile of blue jeans. He made sure to grab the old, faded, tight jeans that Scully seemed to like a lot. He smiled at the thought of Scully staring at his ass. He knew she did it, but he had never called her on it, making her believe he was oblivious. As he pawed through his underwear drawer, pulling out his boxers for the trip, he indulged in a secret pleasure. His underwear drawer also contained his Scully collection---various pictures, a few pairs of panties he’d pilfered from her luggage, a bottle of her favorite perfume…all inconsequential parts of Scully. Sometimes he’d rub the soft satin panties across his face and dream of holding her in his arms as a lover, not a friend. He kissed the photo of Scully in her blue silk pajamas that Maggie Scully had given him as part of his Christmas present and re-arranged his momento drawer. He’d begun his collection when he was afraid Scully was going to die from cancer, afraid he’d forget the every day qualities of her: her scent, her voice. He kept adding to it out of a compulsive need to cradle her, protect her, and make love to her. Project Grimm-Ch 5 Lissie’s eyes closed more than one time on the trip back to Bethesda where she lived with her husband, Matt, and her twin girls, Taryn and Tara. When she finally pulled into the driveway of her house, she pondered why their relatively small family needed a veritable mansion to live in. Oh well, one of life’s little mysteries. Matt greeted her at the door, juggling a teddy bear, a cell phone and about ten affidavits. He was tall and muscled, with auburn hair and sherry-colored eyes. Two dark-haired girls who appeared to be about four followed him, clutching at his pants legs. He handed the teddy bear to the green- eyed twin, Taryn, and she ran off, clutching her blue-eyed sister’s hand. “Jeffrey, I’ll have the Davis case done in the morning, promise. Can I greet my wife now? She’s been runnin’ all over DC today and I miss her. Yeah, I know I’m whipped, but you know Lissie. Such a hottie. Hehehe…I’ll tell her you said that, you pig. Give my love to Courtney.” Matt ended the call and wrapped Lissie in his arms, just savoring the fact that she was his. He’d met her at an FBI function. He’d been dating a girl who had just graduated from the Academy and this was her first formal FBI ball. Lissie had been chatting with his date a bit and he overheard. From the moment she opened her mouth, he was smitten. Southern accents were SUCH a turn-on. She was sexy and smart, knowing almost as much about the law as he did. When he had originally met her, she went by Starr, her middle name. When the CDC hired her, she decided to go by her first name, forcing him to nickname her Lissie. She was still his Starr in bed however. “What did you do all day, Hon? I know you’re pissed at me because you needed to work on that Davis case and I ran off to DC, leaving you with the girls.” Since leaving Texas, they hadn’t found a day care center to send the girls to, making both of them adjust to staying at home every once in a while. “It was fun. Taryn and Tara are angels, sweetheart. Of course, they’re your kids, so I expected as much. What was it like meeting Dr. Scully again?” Matt had since ushered Lissie inside and onto the couch, throwing his affidavits aside to massage her sore feet. He didn’t understand why she felt she had to be tall…he loved his short, curvy wife. “Interesting. She hasn’t changed a bit, but I can tell she’s absolutely smitten with that partner of hers. Fox Mulder is his name. Have you heard of him?” Matt had a handful of friends in the Bureau and she assumed he’d heard of the well-known agent. “Fox Mulder? The man’s a genius. Profiles criminals like nobody’s business. When I see him as a witness, I deny the case. There’s no way to defend a criminal against that man’s testimony.” Matt resumed his massage and Lissie could tell he was openly impressed with the man. Suddenly, she heard a crash from the formal parlor. She ran to the door, only to discover that Taryn and Tara had broken her antique Rosewood vase. The thing was priceless, and was kept in the usually locked parlor. Megan must have left the door open after dusting it. She’d have to give the cleaning lady a talking to. “TARYN SKYE AND TARA SCARLETT! What have I told you about playing in Mommy’s parlor?” Tara lowered her sky blue eyes and deferred to her sister for the explaining. “You told us to stay out cuz this is the comp’ny room.” Taryn stared her down with indignant eyes. “But Meggie left the door open…not me!” Lissie smiled. Her little girls were her soft spot…she couldn’t resist them. She’d always been amazed at how different the identical twins truly were. She had blue-green eyes, as did her daughters, but Taryn’s eyes were always more green and Tara’s were always more blue. The only feature they shared with Matt was their long legs, they would be tall someday. Lissie kissed them, took them upstairs and put them in bed. She creeped back down and found that Matt had made her some Irish Cream coffee. “Thanks, Hon. I need it.” She placed a kiss on his cheek and he immediately caught her mouth, obviously wanting payment for his babysitting services. Lissie reciprocated, and then pushed him away lightly. “Not tonight, baby. I have to fly to Texas in the morning.” As she drank her coffee, she wondered if she’d ever see her husband or little girls again. Project Grimm-Ch 6 Drayton Research Facility-Mercer, TX Dr. Everett Ellis was famous for multi-tasking. He was often seen branching DNA, running a DNA plate, culturing bacteria samples, and jamming to his favorite band, the Rolling Stones. At this moment, he was running the DNA splicing again, and had a little downtime. He cranked up the Stones and sang along badly to “Can’t Get No Satisfaction.” He adjusted his wire-frame glasses and ran a hand through his silver hair. He wasn’t in bad shape for a forty-five year old geneticist. He didn’t notice when the dark-haired man broke into his lab. He didn’t even notice when that man pulled out a Walter PPK with a silencer and trained it on his head. The last thing Dr. Ellis noticed was the red covering his eyes before he slipped into the darkness. Dr. Ellis had been the last of the original doctors on the project…the last one with morals. With him out of the way, the Syndicate could turn the project to serve their own means…assassins to take out strategic world leaders so the Syndicate would not only control the US government, but the world. The dark-haired man took a peek at the sample Dr. Ellis had been working on. The name was “Scully, DK.” Project Grimm-Ch 7 Washington-Dulles International 7 A.M. July 31 Mulder had decided to pick Scully up this morning, trying to save time in making it to the airport. It didn’t matter—they were still going to be late. Scully had been in her bathrobe trying to tame her wild hair when he arrived. “Mulder, give me a minute, ok? Curly hair just doesn’t behave on its own.” Scully once again turned to the task of straightening her stubborn hair. Scully focused on the mundane tasks of her everyday life in order to keep her mind from Emily and Ariel. It was how she kept sane. “Hey, Scully. Go natural. Who knows, it could grow on me.” Mulder chuckled at her frosty gaze and backed out of the bathroom. About twenty minutes later she emerged, her red hair still wavy and bouncy. “So, you gave up, Scully?” Mulder’s joke was silenced by another cold look and she shoved her suitcase into his arms. “Take this to the car and let me get my suit on.” Scully stalked back to her bedroom, untying her robe and fluffing her hair. Mulder just smiled and loaded her luggage into the car. He took a peek at his watch and saw that it was 7:35. They’d never make it to the airport by 8. Scully finally ran out of her apartment, still pulling on one shoe and buttoning the top buttons of her white blouse. She was exasperated, irritated, and downright beautiful in her frustration. They pulled into Dulles with about ten minutes to spare, made a mad dash to the terminal for flight 819, and exchanged their boarding passes for two first class tickets. That was the good thing about this case—it wasn’t Bureau mandated and Lissie was paying for the trip. They had leg room for once. Scully and Lissie had aisle seats, leaving Mulder with the window seat. It wasn’t as bad as usual, since it was first class, but he still had to clamber over Scully every time he wanted to use the lavatory or take a walk. He’d gotten up for about the fourth time on this flight when Scully threw up her hands in complete frustration. “Will you just sit STILL? Jesus, Mulder!” Lissie laughed from across the aisle, reminded of when she and Matt were first dating. “Those two are clueless,” she thought, “Utterly clueless.” Lissie sat complacently, content to work on her latest genetics project using the newest 3- D generation technology on her laptop. She soon became bored however and decided to fiddle with her pet project: child generation. She’d plug in the features of two people and work out all the recombinations, thus allowing her to determine the possible appearances of that couple’s children. She played with the two agents’ features, coming up with all sorts of hazel and blue eyed kids with different hair colors from strawberry blonde to deep brown. They’d have some gorgeous kids. Then she played with Dana’s genes alone, seeing the way they might recombine with an unknown father. The gorgeous little redhead that popped up would be close to the appearance of Ariel, she hoped. For all she knew about Emily’s little sister, she didn’t know what she looked like. She’d discovered that Emily was blonde and green eyed, taking after Dana’s sister Melissa rather than Dana herself. Lissie prayed that they found Ariel before any harm came to her. Being the snoop she was, Lissie had discovered quite a few things about her former professor. She was barren, due to her abduction by the military back in 1994. She loved kids, and her heart was broken when Emily died. Lissie tried to imagine if one of her girls had been taken so quickly and cruelly from her. She wouldn’t be able to make it alone and she was glad that she had Matt to lean on for all her troubles. She admired Dana Scully for her independence, but pitied her for her loneliness. Project Grimm-Ch 8 Gulf Breeze Inn—Mercer, TX 2:45 P.M. July 31 Scully threw her unpacked suitcase onto the soft bed in the decidedly-plush hotel room. Must be nice to be rich, she mused. This hotel made up for every crappy place she’d ever stayed at with Mulder. Lissie certainly knew how to make a girl feel welcome…she sprung for the most expensive place in town. She peeked into the bathroom she shared with Mulder and discovered a marble bathtub trimmed in brass. The place was beautiful. She turned her attentions to her clothes and began to place them in the elegant chest-of-drawers. The ruse was that they were new in town and living in the fancy inn until they could find a house. She'd be working with Lissie, who'd explain that Scully was the replacement she'd found in Washington, whom she'd train before returning to her own work in the nations capitol. “Knock Knock.” Scully turned at the sound of Mulder’s rumbling baritone and went to open the heavy oak door. Mulder was on the other side, still in his suit, but he had lost his tie and the first three buttons of his shirt were undone, revealing his golden-toned skin. “Hey, Mulder. Come on in. Isn’t this place great?” Scully gestured vaguely around the hotel room. “Yeah, Lissie really went all out here. She didn’t have to, but it really keeps up our little undercover game.” Mulder brought in his suitcase and plopped it on the bed next to Scully’s. He sighed heavily and began to unpack and place his things in the drawers along with Scully’s. She gave him a skeptical look. “What are you DOING? The rooms adjoin, Mulder.” Scully stared him down, waiting for an explanation to his irrational behavior. “Didn’t Lissie tell you? We’re sharing to keep up our marriage guise. She has the adjoining room.” Mulder dropped a kiss on her forehead and resumed unpacking, leaving her stunned and speechless. He threw a well-practiced innuendo over his shoulder. “Sides, I know you’ve always wanted a tall, dark and handsome guy to keep you warm at night—I know your type, Scully.” Scully rolled her eyes and grumbled. She’d be warm all right…she wouldn’t sleep a wink with his sexy body curled next to hers. She could just imagine how attentive he’d be to his lover, generous and sweet, gentle yet fulfilling. Of course, she’d never be able to fill that position in his life. He’d want her for a one-night stand and nothing else. After the women he’d had, Scully was certain he’d sworn off love forever. Lissie grinned to herself. Sharing a bed ought to make the two agents realize their feelings for one another. Project Grimm-Ch 9 Drayton Research Facility Company Mixer 9:30 P.M. Main Ballroom Lissie had convinced the agents that they would have to attend the company mixer in order to lower suspicion about their presence in the mostly-researcher town. Both Mulder and Scully groaned, but resigned to their fate and attended. Scully thanked God she had thrown in that red dress. It wasn’t really a cocktail dress but a floor-length evening gown, perfect for this formal party. She had wondered where Mulder would find a tux in such a short time, but was relieved when he showed up at their room in black-tie attire. She’d forgotten just how debonair and sexy he looked in a tuxedo. A regular James Bond. Well, he could seduce her with a vodka martini any day. Mulder had never seen Scully in red. She tended to stick to cool blues and greens when dressing in color so her clothes wouldn’t clash with her hair. Red brought out the fire in her eyes and put an aura around her that he couldn’t describe in a million words. The gown was floor-length, but dipped so low in the back that he could almost see the infamous ouroboro tattoo on her lower back. They met Lissie, who was in an ice blue gown that had rhinestone-studded straps with a low neckline, and drove to the facility. Which brought them to the present, standing in this ballroom making small talk with a pair of geneticists. “Hi! You must be the new doctors. I’m Dr. Elisabeth Martin and this is my husband, Dr. David Martin. I know Lissie here, but you two are a complete mystery.” The bubbly blonde’s personality didn’t fit her profession at all, whereas her dour, dark-haired husband was the picture of a lone scientist. Elisabeth gestured her champagne glass towards Mulder and Scully, waiting for their end of the introductions. “Hi. I’m Nicholas Edwards and this is my wife, Anastasia.” Mulder tightened his grip around Scully’s waist as if to say, “She’s mine, BACK OFF.” He rubbed circles over her bared back with his large palm, sending shivers of heat through her whole body. Mulder’s touch gave her a rush, and was better than any drug. She only hoped she didn’t get addicted to it. She could see it now: “Hi. I’m Dana Scully and I’m addicted to Fox Mulder. What twelve step program do I need?” “Pleased to meet you. So, who’s the doctor? The lovely lady?” David kissed Scully’s hand and she shot him a brilliant smile. Mulder was amazed, she was truly engaging in a social situation unlike him. He got tongue-tied despite his cultural training in Martha’s Vineyard. “Yes, I am. Lissie is going to show me the ropes out here and go back to Washington to resume her independent work there.” Scully was about to explode. Small talk wasn’t her forte and she was going crazy trying to keep up this dignified air. Mulder must have noticed her tense up because he immediately turned her in his arms and dropped a kiss on her nose. “Care to dance, darling?” Scully reveled in being pet-named by Mulder. She didn’t like to admit it, but she was truly a romantic at heart. “Sure, Nick.” Mulder’s feet glided as if he were on air. She’d never had a partner so graceful, despite the fact that he was a good nine inches taller than she was. She stole a glance at Lissie and the other couple, happy to find them chatting amicably. Lissie was then asked to dance by a tall blonde man who appeared to be anywhere from 35 to 40. She smiled coolly and politely declined. Boy, she was so faithful she wouldn’t even share a dance with someone other than her husband. Scully was proven wrong a few minutes later when she tapped her on the shoulder and begged for a turn with Mulder. “May I?” Lissie turned on the drawl and pleaded with Scully. She hadn’t wanted to dance with Dr. Phillips because he tended to get a little too touchy-feely and it made her uncomfortable, especially with Matt still at home. Mulder, she knew, was absolutely smitten with Scully and a gentleman to boot, so dancing with him would be sheer pleasure with no pressure applied. Scully took a seat at their table and chatted with the Martins as she watched Mulder and Lissie. Lissie must have taken lessons to learn to waltz like that…she and Mulder glided across the floor akin to Fred Astaire and Ginger Rodgers. “You have feelings for her, don’t you?” Lissie glanced up at the hazel-eyed man and bored into his eyes with her own. “Yeah. But she doesn’t feel that way about me so it doesn’t matter.” Mulder’s eyes dropped and he concentrated on the dancing. Once upon a time, he’d have been itching to make love to this woman, but Scully had changed his preferences completely. “You’d be surprised.” Lissie smiled knowingly and continued their dance. Project Grimm-Ch 10 Gulf Breeze Inn-Mercer, TX 1:33 A.M. August 1 Mulder had to carry Scully back inside after their night of dancing and champagne drinking. He hadn’t meant to leave Scully behind, but Lissie was a wonderful dancer and a great conversationalist. She was light in his arms, but even her slight weight was comforting. She snuggled into his chest as if she was trying to get as close as she could without melding with his soul. “Too late for that,” Mulder thought, “she’s already one with my soul. She has my heart on a silver platter.” He laid her on the bed and slipped into the bathroom to run a bath for Scully. He was always interrupting her bubble baths, so he felt he owed her this one. He made sure the water was warm, the candles were lit, and that the bubbles would cover her completely in fluffy rapture. He moved back to the bedroom and slipped Scully’s dress off. He was lost for a moment in just how beautiful she truly was, all creamy skin and fiery hair. He imagined she was the inspiration for many struggling college writers; catching a glimpse of this earth angel inspired volumes of work in Mulder’s own brain. Of course, she inspired other parts of him too. She stirred a bit and sat up as he was undoing her garters. Scully in the haze of sleep was one of his favorite fantasies. She’d be dead to the world only to wake up with him laving kisses all over her body. She wouldn’t know if she were dreaming or not, and he would steal off like some phantom lover. Mulder sighed. It was a nice fantasy, but if Scully woke up to his mouth all over her, he wouldn’t live to tell the tale. “Whatcha’ doin’ Mulder?” Scully rubbed her sleep-laden eyes and tried to focus on Mulder’s fuzzy form. He was undressing her. Boy, she had fodder for fantasies well into next month with this little stunt. “I’m about to put you in the bathtub. You always wanted a bubble bath…” Mulder shied away, afraid that she was angry. “Not tonight…just take my clothes off and crawl in here. I’m sleepy and it’s breezy in here. Snuggle me.” She didn’t have to ask twice. So, as the world dreamed of tiny babies or landing that big account, the two agents dreamed only of one another, deeply entwined in the center of the soft bed. Project Grimm-Ch 11 Gulf Breeze Inn-Lissie McKinney’s room 2:35 AM August 1 Lissie sat cross-legged on her bed, running the genetic recombinations again for Ariel Scully. She should be red-haired and blue eyed based upon her mother’s looks. Tomorrow, Mulder would break into the facility and try to find where the children were held. If he were caught, he would play innocent, saying he was trying to find “Anastasia.” Lissie heard a loud knock on her hotel room door and got up to investigate. She belted her satin robe and pushed a hand through her haphazard hair, hoping to look presentable if it were Mulder or Scully. A tall, dark-haired man stood outside her door. He wasn’t Mulder, and his eyes were hooded and dark. In fact, he looked almost evil. His voice was low, nearly a growl. “Let me in, Dr. McKinney, or certain people are going to pay.” He held up a photo of Matt, Tara, and Taryn and drew his black-gloved hand across his throat. Lissie shuddered and opened the door, wishing she had picked the FBI career instead of the CDC. “Who…who are you?” Lissie sat in the chair beside her bed and drew her legs to her chest. She was more frightened than before and praying that she didn’t die tonight. “Alex Krycek. You know a few too many things, Starr.” Lissie was taken aback by the use of her middle name. Only people who knew her intimately used that name. “How do you know my middle name? Who are you? What do you want?” Lissie grew bolder, standing up and interrogating Krycek as he sat on her bed. Krycek laughed, a maniacal, evil sound that rattled Lissie to the core. In other circumstances, she’d find him attractive, but not when he was threatening the lives of those she loved. She was afraid to call for Mulder and Scully, thinking he would kill them all. “I work for the government behind the government, Starr. Although when you dated me back in Quantico, you had no idea I was anything more than a lowly field agent. You were snooty, Starr…” He trailed off and sneered at her. “But now I have the power, the smarts. You’re under my control now.” Lissie shivered. She remembered him now. He had been a desperate young agent, and she’d looked down on him for being nothing more than a field agent that would be assigned to do the legwork for her cases. She’d granted him her company a few times before meeting Matt, and abruptly broke his heart for the successful young lawyer. She was beginning to regret her decision. “What do you want, Alex? Please, I’ll do anything. Just don’t hurt Matt or the girls.” Lissie closed her eyes, anticipating the blow that would render her unconscious so he could assault her without a struggle. “You give yourself too much credit, Starr. I don’t want your body.” Krycek appraised her quickly, discovering that she was just as sexy and fiery as when he first met her. Oh well, there were more pressing issues to attend to. “What is it then?” Lissie glared at him defiantly now, knowing that the threat of rape wasn’t imminent at this point. He wanted to talk. “The information you have regarding Project Grimm. My superiors aren’t happy that you’ve gone and given it to Mulder and Scully. And this undercover thing…are you a fool, Starr? We know them anywhere…fake names won’t keep us from finding them.” Lissie didn’t know what to do so she lied, and lied quickly to persuade him she didn’t know anything. “Dana and Fox are my friends, Alex. We’re visiting my old friends here in Mercer and they wanted a romantic getaway.” This didn’t fool Krycek for a second, but he didn’t doubt that Mulder and Scully had been screwing each other. Hell, they’d been screwing each other for years according to Bureau gossip. “Very well, Starr. If you’re going to lie, I can’t stop you. But, I’ll be back later expecting the truth out of you.” He pressed his mouth to hers harshly, bruising her soft lips with his tongue and teeth. Lissie resisted and tried to pull away, but he held fast. This was about power. He ran his hands over her robe in an insulting caress, stripping her of her dignity and respect. He didn’t rape her, but he had the same effect. She was scared shitless. Krycek threw her across the room and slapped her hard across the jaw. This brought Mulder and Scully from the next room, barrels blazing. When Mulder saw it was Krycek, he let the gun relax for a moment, wanting to rationalize while Scully kept him in her sights. Project Grimm-Ch 12 Gulf Breeze Inn—Lissie McKinney’s Room 3:11 AM August 1 “Krycek! What the hell are you doing here?” Mulder moved towards the dark man slowly, wanting information before he killed him. He would kill him this time, and Scully’s gun couldn’t stop him. “Ah, Agent Mulder. Oh, I’m just visiting my friend Starr, nothing big. She had a little accident though, silly me.” Krycek spoke in a mocking sing-song, knowing he had the advantage in the situation. Lissie had kicked his gun away, but he now held her tightly, his stiletto at her throat. “What do you want, Ratboy?” Mulder was getting annoyed with the situation, and fast. “Just the information my darling has so lovingly given you. Give it to me and she gets off easy.” Lissie tried to keep an impassive, stoic look but it broke when hot tears flowed freely from her aquamarine eyes. “Please…. Just give it to him, Mulder. I don’t wanna die…my husband, my children NEED me…please, please.” Lissie pleaded for Mulder to give up all he had learned in the past few days. He needed these files to find Scully’s daughter. He darted back to his and Scully’s room and grabbed the original files. He wasn’t worried, however, because they had the files on Scully’s laptop, his personal computer, and the Gunmen’s computer. If they needed to, the Gunmen could just forward the files back to Scully’s email address. “Your computer?” Krycek eyed him suspiciously and Mulder grabbed the laptop. He plopped it into his lap unceremoniously and stood at the edge of the bed. “It’s ‘blacksilkboxers,’ no capitals, no spaces.” Mulder shot Scully a raised eyebrow and she blushed instantly, letting him know WHOSE black silk boxers she was referring to. Jeez, she hadn’t seen them since that case with Phoebe Greene…why did she remember them? Krycek opened up her file directory and scanned the files, naming each one aloud. “Christmas Presents, Internal Auditing, Mantle…hey, Scully? What’s this “Mantle” file about?” Krycek sneered at her and Scully’s face went pinker than cotton candy. “It’s some photos of Mantle.” She didn’t specify WHICH Mantle and she hoped Krycek assumed it was Mickey. “Oh, I love baseball. Let me take a peek.” With his arm around Lissie still, he opened the directory. Pictures of Mulder in various stages of nudity popped up on the screen. Scully wanted to crumple up and die like an azalea at the end of summer. No such luck. “Well, we can see that Agent Scully doesn’t do much work. Oh well, I suppose you’ve gotten away with this little Project Grimm stunt. Just don’t let that eidetic memory get you in trouble, Mantle.” Krycek released Lissie after fondling her a bit and left with the files tucked under his arm. Project Grimm-Ch 13 Gulf Breeze Inn-Lissie McKinney’s Room 4:15 AM August 1 Scully ran to Lissie’s side as soon as Krycek left to make sure she wasn’t hurt. Lissie had some bruises and a small cut on her neck from the stiletto, but other than that, she was fine. Mainly, she was just scared. “Do you want to leave, Lissie? We have plenty of information already…you don’t HAVE to stay.” Mulder bent down and kissed her forehead in reassurance. This was his intimate form of comfort, and Scully felt jealous for a moment. She shook the thought out of her head, however, knowing that Lissie was happily married and Mulder was really just showing that he cared about and trusted the young woman. “I’d like to call Matt, but I want to stay.” Lissie rose unsteadily and dialed out on the elegant hotel phone. “Matt? Oh thank god!” Lissie tried to keep the emotion out of her voice, but her tears came once more. “Sweetheart? Are you ok? What happened?” Matt began to pace around the room and chewed on his thumbnail nervously. Lissie had tried to break him of the habit, but he always fell back to it in times of need. “Oh, I just got attacked by uh…a dog. It was a Doberman and he kinda beat me up. Not to worry though, I’m ok. Just shaken up.” Lissie lied to protect her family from Krycek and his superiors. “Are you sure? If you need me to come down there I can get Jeff and Courtney to take the kids…” Matt sensed that his wife was keeping the truth from him and knew she was an awful liar. He’d get it out of her eventually. “I’m leaving the girls with Megan and coming down there, ok? No arguments, Lissie. I don’t want you lying to me.” Matt hung up the phone and went to go pack for his unexpected trip to Texas. Project Grimm-Ch 14 Hartsfield International Airport August 2 7:16 AM Matt downed the last of his cappuccino and ran a hand through his haphazard hair. He balked at the taste of the stale coffee and mused that Starr always made a better cup. “Lissie,” he chided himself. LISSIE would kill him for calling her by the forbidden middle name. He chuckled at that, figuring that Lissie wouldn’t be able to take him physically. He heard the final boarding call for flight 819 and picked up his soft leather bag. He wished he was already in Texas, but he’d had to scrounge around for a sitter and finally settled on Megan, the housekeeper. Back when he was a kid, he’d called the maid a maid, but now Lissie said it was “politically incorrect” to call Megan a maid. “Megan is a housekeeper because she keeps the girls and the house in prime working order.” Matt could almost see her face and laughed, making that cute little snort that Lissie loved and he loathed. He settled into his window seat and stared out into the wild blue yonder, hoping that his wife was safe and that she found the truth she was working so desperately to find. Project Grimm-ch 15 August 2 10:13 AM Unknown Location Krycek ran his good hand through his dark hair and waited anxiously for the courier to come and take the information he’d gathered. He worked for no man, but let the Syndicate believe that he was their personal slave. Little did they know that he played both sides, slipping vital information to Mulder and Scully when it would help them in their search for the truth. He knew that Mulder had backup copies of the Grimm files on the Lone Gunmen’s computers, but didn’t pry. He knew that Mulder would need the files in order to uncover the dirty little secrets of the federal government, and so he “conveniently” forgot to hack their computers. Krycek hated the shadowy men who thought they ruled the world with an iron fist, but he wasn’t entirely ready to throw in the towel and be a superhero G-man either. He was split down the middle, and he played for the side that offered him the most. Right now, he was on the Syndicate payroll, and therefore did their cover-up work with no questions asked. They never said he couldn’t slip information to his “favorite” agents. A young guy with sandy blonde hair and big, puppy-like brown eyes came and gave Krycek the signal to turn over the files. “Must be new,” Krycek mused, summing up how green the young man was. Oh well, a long time ago, Mulder had met the “green” Krycek. “You new?” Krycek handed the blonde guy the files and sat on the bench casually, prompting the other man to do the same. He sat and blinked nervously, unsure of where to start. “Name’s Nic Crumley. I used to be an intern for Senator Matheson before I got this job.” Nic adjusted the small, wire-frame glasses on his prominent nose and waited for the older man to reply. “Oh. I knew I hadn’t seen you around. Stay clean, kid.” With that, Krycek got off the bench and headed into the crowd of people, hoping to blend in with the mass of bodies. Project Grimm—Ch 16 Drayton Research Facility 11:21 AM August 2 Scully had just begun to adjust to the solitude of genetic research. She’d been used to silence, being a pathologist, but at least then she spoke into her tape recorder and was working with her hands. As a geneticist, she merely ran genetic recombinations on a computer simulator all day. It was boring and hard on her back and wrists. She glanced at her gold watch and saw it was nearly noon. Lunch break. She made her way to the small café on the grounds and ran into the Martins, the young couple she’d met at the company mixer. Elisabeth headed towards her with a sunny smile on her face, dragging her still-dour husband behind her. “Anastasia! I didn’t know you were going to start work so soon! When Lissie introduced us, I figured it be weeks before you got established and all. This is WONDERFUL!” Elisabeth pulled the jade hair sticks from her hair and shook her mass of blonde curls free. Her bright grey eyes winked and blinked behind a pair of wire- frame glasses. She was still bubbly, but looked more like a grounded researcher. David adjusted his own glasses and escorted the two women to a table. After ordering coffees and sandwiches, they settled into the cheery atmosphere and relaxed for a moment before returning to their hectic jobs. Lissie entered a moment later, on the arm of a tall, friendly-looking man. She had a worried look in her blue-green eyes and she scanned the room frantically, searching for someone or something. “Lissie, honey. Calm down, ok? She’s here, and I’m sure she’s ok. She not only had FBI training, she’s a FIELD agent. She knows how to protect herself, ok?” Matt squeezed her arm reassuringly, hoping to sooth her frazzled nerves. Suddenly, she caught sight of Scully with Elisabeth and David Martin. The Martins were new doctors, brought in when the project was transferred to private hands. Nobody knew who the anonymous benefactor of the project was, but Lissie had an idea forming in her head. Krycek had mentioned, “the government behind the government.” Maybe the men who had helped cover up MJ-12 were involved in this. Project Grimm-Ch 17 Dayton Research Facility 11:45 AM August 2 Mulder slipped around the cool corridors of the research facility with the grace and ease of a large jungle cat. Dressed in all black, he mused that he probably looked like a bad impersonation of Tom Cruise in “Mission Impossible.” Of course, Tom was blessed with a sexy sidekick that granted him affection after nearly losing his life, whereas all Mulder had to look forward to was a concerned and prickly Scully. Once again, concerned and prickly Scully was not one of his favorite things, but it did quite well in lieu of sex-crazed and wanton Scully. Mulder picked the lock to a large laboratory and strode over to the filing cabinets in the far right of the room. Scully had once said that to most FBI agents, filing cabinets held the allure of erotic bookstores, but to Mulder, they were a pornographic obsession. Why was it that he remembered every damn thing Scully said? Because he, Fox William Mulder, was in love with Dana Katherine Scully. He wanted to hold her and shelter her from the harsh world they lived in and strove to protect. He wanted to give her a house, kids, a minivan, a dog…the American Dream as he knew it. Most men would kill to be able to live the kind of life he did…able to go wherever he wanted whenever he wanted. But, freedom got old when there was nobody to share it with. He wanted a woman he could talk to as well as the requisite sex partner. He’d tried to date, but nobody measured up to the impossibly high standard he set for himself. Only one woman could reach that pinnacle: Scully. Scully, he mused, could do a lot better than his sorry, masochistic ass. Hell, she would probably be some rich lawyer’s wife if it wasn’t for his large interference into her social life. Scully had often mentioned that she was perfectly happy being with him, but Mulder knew the truth. Scully wanted some constancy in her life besides the daily phone call he placed to her residence at 3:20 am. She wanted someone like Matt McKinney, who supported and loved his wife while allowing her some room to be an individual. She wanted…hell, he didn’t know WHAT she wanted, all he knew was that he didn’t fit anywhere in that equation. Mulder noticed that Scully seemed more aware of him around the office in the past few weeks. If there had ever been a time to proposition her, it was now. She’d appreciated his Armani a little more than usual, and even brushed against him nonchalantly, arousing him to no end. Hell, if he didn’t know better, he’d think she was coming on to him. He certainly hoped so. Mulder pulled a few of the files, tucked them underneath his black, formfitting turtleneck, and pulled his soft leather jacket a little tighter. He could moon over Scully back in their hotel room, safe and warm. Project Grimm Ch 18 Gulf Breeze Inn 6:47 PM Mulder and Scully’s Room “…and to conclude, I feel that the Martins have some sort of inside information as to the true operators of the ongoing project at the Drayton Research Facility. End journal entry for August 4th.” Scully sighed, removed her tortoise-shell frames, and let out a deep sigh. She rubbed her head and wished Mulder were there to massage that ginseng oil into the pressure points on her temples. He’d said they were pressure points used in acupuncture, so the soothing oil would ease her pain. Oddly enough, he was right. She really DID feel better after his little massages. As if on cue, Mulder came into their hotel room bearing a large supreme pizza and a two- liter Coca-Cola. He set them down in the small kitchenette and bounced on the bed with Scully, sending some sort of research paper flying across the room and crashing into the closet door with a thud. Good thing it was stapled. He grabbed Scully’s size 6 feet and began to tickle them unmercifully, causing her to laugh and scream in discomfort. Finally, when she regained her composure…that mask of rationality that was as much a part of her as her red hair, she begged Mulder for a favor. “Please? It would REALLY help my headache. In fact, I even bought some of that stuff and brought it with me in case I had a headache…Mulll-derrrr…” Mulder cocked his head to one side and appraised the pleading Scully. Finally, he conceded and settled her into the space between his long legs. He gently massaged the oil into the baby soft skin at her temples, prompting Scully to throw her head back in ecstasy and true bliss. Was this a fluke? This feeling of love and romance she felt when wrapped up in his body sent her to the moon and back. Was she ready to take the next step? “I want you.” Mulder felt his voice come out uncharacteristically harsh and tried to take it back. He’d never wanted to eat his words as much as he did right now. He massaged Scully’s shoulders with a well-practiced set of hands, slipping into her shirt to reach her back. Scully made encouraging noises, setting him on fire faster than the California chaparral in summer. He shifted to hide his desire and placed a soft kiss over the scar where Scully’s tracking chip had resided. He had done this to her, and he was going to make up for it somehow. He only hoped that Scully reciprocated the intense feelings of love and lust that he kept hidden in his guarded heart. Project Grimm Ch 19 Gulf Breeze Inn 7:15 PM Mulder and Scully’s Room “You want me?” Scully’s mouth rounded into an “o” and her eyes sparkled with false naivete. She was as appealing as a 16 year old Catholic schoolgirl whom everyone KNEW slept around. Mulder was beginning to like her faux innocence. “Yeah. You can’t tell, Scully? I only melt into a useless puddle of primordial lust when you’re around.” Mulder whispered huskily in her ear as he shifted and pressed into her back, causing Scully to sigh contentedly. As if she didn’t know how sexy she was! “You do a halfway decent job of covering it, Armani man. Why don’t you ‘uncover’ it for me?” Scully flipped over and tried to achieve a feral look. As soon as she did it, she regretted it. Mulder’s eyes were haunted by what she assumed were the ghosts of Phoebe and Diana. Maybe he thought she was this delicate package and he wanted to take his time opening her up. She wasn’t. She’d wanted him since day three and loved him since week forty-two of their complicated relationship. Mulder pondered his incredible luck. Here she was, in his lap, wrapped up in his arms. How was it that a lanky, nerdy guy like himself ended up with such a woman? Mulder decided not to question it and reveled in the feel of her soft curves against the hard lines of his own body. He was going to have Scully tonight if she wanted it. Hell, he’d have taken her anytime if she’d sent out a hint. Project Grimm-ch 20 Gulf Breeze Inn Mulder and Scully’s Room Mulder drew Scully back into his embrace and kissed her softly on the forehead. This had to be slow…this had to be perfect. He’d waited too long for her to ruin it like a 17- year-old kid. He only hoped that his brain could keep his body in check. He sort of felt like that Christina Aguilera song about a genie..”My body’s sayin let’s go, but my heart’s sayin no…” He shook his head. He’d been around Frohike and his pop star porn for too long. Scully accepted Mulder’s feeble forehead kiss and nearly died. She wasn’t lying on top of his lap for that kind of shit. She twisted around and fastened on his mouth so quickly she hadn’t realized she’d done it until she felt him kiss her back. He was so taken aback that his arms lay limply on her back, attempting a weak stroke every moment or two. Finally, he slid his hands under her silk shirt and fiddled with her bra. “Damnit, Scully! What kind of bra IS this? I was TRYING to be subtle!” Mulder threw his hands up in exasperation and Scully couldn’t help but laugh. He was so damn cute when his libido took over for rational thinking and he couldn’t carry out a simple thought process. One glance into his aroused eyes would be her undoing, so she carefully avoided the velvety green orbs and addressed his question. “Front close, Mulder. Victoria’s Secret, to be exact. Wanna try that again?” Scully grazed his jaw with a kiss and Mulder went back to work on the bra, removing it easily. “Mmmm…Scully. Tell me again why I’ve never done this? Cause I can’t think of a reason I’d deny myself this one.” Mulder kneaded the silky skin and Scully threw her head back in ecstasy. He expected too much frikin conversation in bed. Did his mouth EVER shut? Scully thought about that mouth and what it could do to her. She shivered involuntarily, and immediately felt Mulder’s reaction to that subtle movement. Jesus, they were in deep now. No turning back. Project Grimm-Ch 21 Ok, it was official. Mulder was home, he’d finally arrived. Dana Scully’s body was his home, his haven. Never again would he stare at her in awe and wonder what it’d be like to make love to her, he knew now. And the experience had spoiled him for life. Not only was she anatomically perfect, he loved her. Love made all the difference when making love. Before, all he’d had was a good lay. Once, a good lay would have satisfied him in lieu of affection and compassion. Not anymore. Making love to Dana Scully shook him to the core of his existence, right down to the very atoms that composed his cells. It had first hit him when he kissed her. Feeling her warm, wet mouth reciprocate his every move with deliberate passion kicked his libido up to 5-alarm status. When she’d flipped him over and pinned him to the mattress with her strong, white thighs, it had taken all of his self-control and images of Frohike and Skinner “doing the wild thing” to keep him from suffering that humiliation above all humiliations: premature ejaculation. He held on as Scully rode him, watching her face as she came over and over again. Finally, in a guttural, breathless tone she yelled his name. “MULDER! OHGODOHGODOHMIGODOHMIGOD…” He came. Grimm-Ch 22 Scully flipped off of Mulder and curled against his back like a kitten. She ran her hands along his sexy abdominal muscles a few times before dropping into a satisfying sleep. Mulder listened to her soft breaths for a while before drifting off to sleep himself, comforted by Scully’s warmth. He awoke to light streaming through the Venetian blinds and creeping across the comforter to touch Scully’s soft curves. He wanted to lie in bed and stare at her all day but he had the distinct feeling he was being watched. As usual, he was right. He lifted his eyes from Scully to meet with Krycek’s amused gaze. “HOW LONG HAVE YOU BEEN IN HERE!” Mulder nearly flew from the bed in anger, but Krycek crossed the room in two strides and placed a finger to his lips, gesturing towards the prostrate Scully. “Not long, Mulder. Get some clothes on and come with me.” Mulder nearly made a joke on his double entendre but thought better of it when he caught Krycek’s eyes again. He was dead serious. He pulled on a pair of sweatpants he lounged around in when on the road with Scully and pulled his Knicks sweatshirt on over his undershirt. Scully awoke alone and bolted up with a start. Mulder. She ran to the window in time to see Krycek’s nondescript black sedan pull away with the love of her life sitting complacently in the passenger’s seat Project Grimm-Ch 23 Krycek’s Car “So, you got a reason for dragging me out of bed, or do you just get your kicks by dropping in on unsuspecting couples?” Mulder’s voice had a sarcastic tone, indicating his annoyance with Krycek at this moment. Normally, he was intrigued by the dark man’s appearances and welcomed his “insider” information but this time he was just plain mad. He’d been looking forward to sharing a lazy morning with Scully. Krycek’s lips curved into a smile and he chuckled. “Nahh, I’ve got my reasons. Trust me, I didn’t want to get out of bed either. Saria is…well, I won’t go there.” He took on a serious tone and continued, “I came to you this morning to show you where they’re keeping the kids.” As he spoke, they came upon a large, nondescript building, similar to a prison or lab. Krycek slid a keycard through the electronic keypad at the gate and drove through to a parking lot. He then motioned for Mulder to follow him. Mulder’s eyes widened at the rows and rows of bunk beds inside of the facility. There had to be over 200 of them lining the battleship grey walls. Each bunk was no different than the others, no personal touches or influences. It was almost as if they were emotionless beings. The two men moved on to a large laboratory, where row after row of children slaved over various tests. One child in particular caught Mulder’s eye, a tiny redhead at the back. She looked like all the photos of Scully at that age, right down to the freckles and milky- white skin. He approached her slowly, not wanting to alarm her. He knelt down beside her workstation and spoke to her. “Hi. My name’s Fox. What’s yours?” He looked her in the eyes, noticing that they were a velvety green rather than Scullyblue. “Ariel. Why’s your name Fox? That’s weird.” The tiny version of Scully looked him straight in the eye with her own version of Scully’s “I’m a scientific bitch, move outta my way” look. “Ask my parents. They gave it to me. Anyway, whatcha doin? Looks important…” Mulder skimmed over the reports she had at her lab table, noticing that she was doing something with DNA. Those bastards, not only were they illegally creating these kids, they were using them to do their own dirty work. The kid couldn’t have been any more than 5 and she was there doing graduate-level work. “Branching DNA for the shadow men.” Ariel said all this nonchalantly, merely stating the constants in her unusual life. She didn’t know about Barbies or playing or anything that normal little girls did. All she knew was the “shadow men” and the conspiracy of silence they fought so hard to protect Project Grimm, ch 24 Nondescript Research Facility Early Morning “Who are the ‘shadow men’?” Mulder desperately wanted her to come with him, come to Scully. Scully deserved to have a daughter to love and spoil. Maggie deserved to have a grandchild by her “baby girl.” And, most of all, he wanted a little girl. He’d never understood the feeling he’d gotten in the past few years to have a daughter. He was almost to the point of using the Mulder family name and influence to adopt a child to raise because the agencies would never give him one on his own merit. He supposed that it all stemmed from the Samantha situation. But, he mused, even if he could bring Ariel back to Scully that didn’t guarantee him a role in her life other than “Mommy’s friend”. He wanted the whole deal: love, marriage, kids, a house in the suburbs. He wanted a real family. “The shadow men are the ones who make us work. If we don’t, they send us to the Room. Once you go in the Room, you don’t come back. I think there’s poison gas in there. One of the shadow men always smokes cigarettes and he stinks. He calls me “granddaughter.” I don’t like it. If I were really his granddaughter, he’d rescue me.” Ariel’s face spoke volumes about her intelligence and kind heart. She was doing anything to help him. “Is the man I came with one of the ‘shadow men’?” Mulder tilted his head towards Krycek and she nodded. Then, Ariel took on a pout reminiscent of those that Samantha pulled on his parents. “Can I go with you?” Mulder gathered her in his arms and whispered, “Yes.” Project Grimm-Ch 25 Gulf Breeze Inn Mulder and Scully’s room Scully looked up from her laptop when she heard the knock at her door. She peeked through the peephole and unbolted the door for Mulder and a small redhead. “Long time, no see, Lover.” Scully stood on her toes and softly kissed him on the lips before addressing his small guest. She realized that the small girl must be the elusive Ariel and knelt to meet her face-to-face. “And you must be Ariel. My name is Dana Scully. You can call me Dana if you want.” The tiny girl’s eyes filled with tears and she flung herself into Scully’s arms. She began to mumble a few words that were hard for Scully to make out. “Aghrre fyou my muvver?” Ariel’s voice was muffled against Scully’s shirt. This woman was her mother, someone who loved and cherished her. She wondered what her relationship with “Fox” was, if any. She hoped that he was her father Ch 26 Gulf Breeze Inn Scully didn’t know what to say. This tiny girl was her double, except her velvety green eyes. If she didn’t know any better, she’d be Mulder’s. Mulder seemed to be happier than she’d ever seen him before, his eyes sparkling and full of life. He took Ariel next door to Lissie and came back into their room. “Scully, we have to keep her. This child can’t go back to that awful place.” Mulder spoke with such conviction that Scully couldn’t deny him. From the pleading look in his eyes to the soft lines in his face, she knew he was dead serious. “But wait,” she thought. “He said ‘we’. Does that mean…” “I know what you’re thinking, Scully. We can work it out, promise. It can be a name-only marriage if you want. It’s just, I want her to have the life I didn’t, you know?” Mulder’s eyes bored into Scully’s, waiting for her reply. “How could I ever tell you no? Besides, I’ve waited on you to come back here and fuck me all morning long, why in the hell would you think I didn’t want to marry you?” She moved closer to him, resting her head on his chest. Mulder hugged her close, never wanting to let her go Ch 27 Ariel was fast asleep in Lissie’s room, while Lissie discussed travel plans with her husband and the two agents. The working plan was for Lissie to dye her warm brown hair red to match Ariel and the tiny girl could pose as her daughter. Matt and Lissie would fly to the McKinneys’ home in Bethesda. Mulder and Scully would try to steal files regarding the clandestine project and return to Washington as soon as possible. Ariel would stay with the McKinneys’ until wedding and housing arrangements could be made and all would be well. There was just one problem: Alex Krycek. Of course, that problem was quickly solved when he showed up at Lissie’s room again, with files on the project. “Here you go. Don’t say I can’t be helpful at times. I just need one thing from you people…money, and lots of it.” Krycek strode across the room and pointed his gun at the girl sleeping in Matt and Lissie’s bed. “I’ll shoot her. Now, a check for a hundred grand will do nicely. Just enough so I can get out of town with my woman.” Matt wrote him a check on a seldom-used account of his and made a mental note to stop payment on it when he got back home. Krycek sneered and left the room, leaving the couple to delve through the files. Epilogue Scully sat on a bench in the garden and watched as Mulder played with their daughter. In a way, since she couldn’t have children of her own, the tiny girl was a blessing. She was vivacious and intelligent, and a joy to be around. Mulder and Scully worked out the adoption under the names Ben and Mara Lars, and Ariel was renamed Leia. Scully swore that she’d never let Mulder pick names again after the Arcadia incident, but the terrible “Star Wars” inside joke was too funny to pass up. Besides, only a true geek would get it, right? All in all, their lives were perfect: perfectly normal. Mulder worked in a psychiatrist’s office as a therapist, his diploma having been tweaked by the Gunmen. Scully volunteered at the hospital running free clinics, and was called in on consultations from time to time. Mostly, however, she stayed at home with Ariel, fulfilling the role of mother with passion. The McKinneys’ had taken the brunt of the Grimm incident, and were subsequently found murdered in their home, execution style. It was brutal, and senseless. Of course, the shadowy men who committed such crimes with impunity never came to justice. Rather, they continued their experiments, silencing those who spoke out against their injustice to humanity. The End! .