Title: Moving on Alex smiled, rubbing Lieutenant’s belly as the dog rolled onto its back, legs in the ear, panting hard. ‘Nah, I really don’t wanna come. You can go. I’ll stay here.’   Alex stayed where he was, sitting on the floor of their neighbor’s house, Frank Harris’ dog’s head in his lap.   Walter gave in. ‘Okay. Remember he needs to be let out…’   Alex huffed. ‘I know what to do Walter.’   Frank leaned down, stroking the dog. ‘Bye Loot. We won’t be long.’   The dog licked his master’s hand and rolled onto his tummy, looking up at the three men standing in the doorway.   *********************** ‘Alex, we’re ba…’   Walter pushed the sitting room door open and stopped in mid-stride. Alex was crouched on the floor, the dog’s head held in his arms. Walter crossed the floor quickly, aware that Fox and Frank would be inside, arms full of tins of paint from the shopping trip they had just accompanied him on.   ‘Alex?’ Getting no response, Walter became aware that Alex was making a soft keening sound, rocking slightly on his heels. He crouched beside Alex, laid a hand on his shoulder and reached down to touch the dog, already cold and stiff.   Getting up quickly, he walked out to the hallway, stopping Fox who was a few steps ahead of their older neighbor. ‘Fox, the dog’s dead. Alex is in there. Stall Frank.’   Fox assimilated the hissed information and nodded, turning quickly, blocking the doorway so Frank headed straight into the garage, unlocking the door and laying the tins inside. ‘Drop ‘em here Fox. I’ll get to it tomorrow.’   Fox laid his tins beside those Frank had already piled on the concrete floor and straightened up. ‘Frank, something happened while we were out.’   Frank turned from locking the garage door. ‘Is Alex okay?’   Fox nodded. ‘Yeah. He’s fine. Um…’   ‘Loot…’ Frank worked out, his voice soft.   Fox nodded. ‘Come inside.’   Taking a deep breath, Frank led the way up the path and into the house. Walking into the living room, Frank walked across to where Alex knelt, reaching down to scratch the dog’s ears. ‘Loot.’ He lifted the dog from Alex’s lap and carried him from the room.   Fox began to share Walter’s concern over Alex’s reaction. He hadn’t moved and Fox knelt beside Walter, gently resting a hand on Alex’s shoulder. ‘Alex, he was an old dog. It could have happened any time.’ When Alex seemed not to hear, Walter sighed, putting a hand under Alex’s elbow. ‘Alex, it wasn’t your fault. Let’s go home.’   Fox stood up. ‘I’ll see if Frank needs a hand.’   Walter smiled, nodding at Fox. ‘Okay. I’ll take Alex home.’ He moved around so he was directly in front of Alex. ‘Alex, stand up now. Come on!’ He made sure his tone was firm, expecting some reaction from Alex, frowning when there was nothing. ‘Alex, concentrate!’ When it became obvious Alex either wasn’t listening or wasn’t hearing, Walter pulled him to his feet, holding tightly when Alex’s knees buckled, and lifted him into his arms.   Apart from a moment when Walter stood Alex on the doorstep while he unlocked the front door, holding Alex tightly as he swayed, Walter carried Alex from Frank’s living room to their own, laying him on the couch, pulling the throw from the back of the couch over Alex.   He reached across to the coffee table and lifted the phone, dialing with one eye on Alex’s blank expression. ‘John…yeah, um…is Dana there…yeah, please…’   **********************   Walter sat in the armchair opposite the couch, the paper open on the table in front of him until Dana walked in.   ‘The front door was…’ She looked across at the couch. ‘What happened?!’   ‘Frank’s dog died while Alex was looking after it.’   ‘Lieutenant? He was old Walter. Alex didn’t..?’   Walter heard the doubt in Dana’s question. ‘No, he just died, Dana.’   Dana leaned down, a cool hand resting on Alex’s warm cheek. Seeing there was no reaction, Dana straightened up. ‘Were you there?’   Walter shook his head. ‘No. Fox and I were out shopping with Frank. Alex volunteered to stay with the dog.’   Dana shrugged. ‘He’s had a shock. I doubt he ever had a pet as a kid.’   Walter nodded. ‘Yeah. I guess I should have stayed.’   ‘Walter, you can’t protect Alex from things.’ Dana chided gently, her smile taking any sting from her words.   Walter sighed. ‘Any advice?’   ‘Don’t let him brood about this for too long.’   Walter smiled. ‘Thanks.’   Dana stretched up, kissing Walter’s cheek gently, just as Fox walked in.   ‘Scully!’   Dana smiled at the enthusiastic greeting. ‘Mulder.’ She allowed him to hug and kiss her gently before pushing away. ‘Your hands are *filthy* Mulder!’   Mulder bit his lip. ‘Sorry, I was helping Frank…you know.’ He looked across at Alex, lying motionless on the couch.   ‘Bury the dog.’ Dana finished firmly. ‘You can’t pretend it didn’t happen Fox.’   Fox nodded. ‘Um…okay.’   Walter had been watching Alex during the exchange, and Alex flinched visibly as Dana finished Fox’s explanation for his absence.   ***********************   Alex lay, silent and unmoving, as Fox went next door to invite their neighbor over for dinner. Walter wondered if talking about the dog would be the best thing for Alex, and decided to give it a try. ‘Alex, come and sit at the table.’ Walter smiled as he reached down to help Alex up.   ‘I’m not hungry.’   Walter sighed at Alex’s soft refusal. ‘You skipped lunch Alex. You must be. Up you come.’   Without any visible reaction, Alex got up and walked into the kitchen, sitting at the table. He made almost no contribution to the conversation during dinner, and Frank found himself feeling uncomfortable. As upset as he was over his beloved dog’s death, Alex seemed equally, if not more, affected, and he regretted leaving Alex when they went shopping.   *******************   ‘Hi Blake.’   The older man smiled, taking in Alex’s strained look. ‘Alex.’   ‘Um…do you have any kittens?’   Blake laughed. ‘I have four Alex. Is Walter letting you have more cats?’   Alex shook his head. ‘Nah. Our neighbor’s dog died and…um, well I thought a cat might be company for him.’   To Alex’s surprise, Blake shook his head. ‘No Alex. You can’t surprise someone with an animal. Particularly as your neighbor is probably still grieving over his loss.’   Alex frowned. ‘It’s just a kitten Blake!’   Ignoring Alex’s tone, Blake put a hand on Alex’s arm. ‘If you like, we’ll speak to your neighbor and ask him if he would like a kitten. But I won’t just give you a kitten for him, okay?’   Alex turned and walked away, leaving Blake shaking his head.   *********************   Alex slammed the door and Walter looked up from his newspaper, frowning at Alex’s stormy expression. ‘Alex?’   ‘Blake won’t give me a kitten for Frank.’   ‘Does Frank want a kitten Alex?’ Walter asked, sure he knew the answer.   ‘It was meant to be a surprise.’ Alex flopped into the armchair, his pout making Walter struggle to keep his face neutral.   ‘An animal isn’t something you can give someone as a surprise present Alex.’   ‘Why not?’ Alex seemed genuinely lost.   ‘Imagine if something happened to Nicolai or Natasha Alex. How would you feel?’   Alex frowned and began to fidget. ‘Something bad?’   Walter nodded, wondering if he should have asked the question. ‘Yes.’   ‘What kind of thing?’   ‘It doesn’t matter Alex. If they were hurt.’   ‘I don’t know.’ Alex shrugged.   Walter tried another tack. ‘Why don’t you ask Frank if he would consider having another pet? Then you could suggest a kitten. Perhaps Blake could come over and bring one with him. Frank’s home. I just spoke to him.’   Alex got up. ‘I was stroking him. He rolled on his back and…’   Walter walked across and held Alex in a tight hug. ‘He liked you Alex.’   Alex whispered: ‘I didn’t kill him.’   Walter pushed Alex back, holding his shoulders. ‘No Alex, you didn’t. He was very old and he died.’   Alex looked everywhere except at Walter. ‘Don’t die Walter.’   Walter sighed inwardly. ‘Alex, people die just like animals.’   Alex pulled roughly and suddenly from Walter’s gentle grip and almost ran from the room.   Sighing, Walter sat back down, picked up the paper, but found himself unable to concentrate on the words. Folding it closed, he rifled in his wallet until he found Blake’s card. Picking up the phone, he dialed the number on the card.   **********************   Walter walked in, looking from Blake to Alex, who sat in the center of a wire pen containing four kittens and their mother. The two men exchanged a friendly smile before Blake left the room.   ‘Alex.’ Walter approached slowly, trying to judge Alex’s mood.   Alex didn’t look up. ‘What?’   Walter leaned down and one of the kittens walked across the pen to his large hand which dangled down, sniffing and batting at the long fingers with a tiny furry paw.   ‘I spoke to Frank about a cat. He said he would think about it. Are these available?’   Sulkily, Alex nodded. ‘This one is nice.’ He stroked between the ears of a ginger kitten which purred loudly, the sound startling it. It looked up at Alex as if blaming him and Alex shook his head. ‘It wasn’t me.’ He pointed at Walter. ‘It was him.’ The kitten didn’t get the attempt at a joke and rolled onto its back, pulling at Alex’s hand with all four paws.   Unsure of the reaction he could expect, Walter said casually: ‘We need to get back Alex. I promised Frank we would help him with the garden this afternoon.’   Alex stood, checking around him carefully as he got up. ‘Okay.’   Blake walked in and looked from Walter to Alex. ‘If you want me to keep one for your neighbor Alex, I can for a few days.’   Alex nodded, looking to Walter who nodded and smiled. ‘We’ll let you know by the end of the week what Frank decides.’   Blake smiled. ‘You can come back any time Alex. I need help with feeding and cleaning.’   Alex turned without answering and walked out to the car.   Sighing, Walter smiled at Blake. ‘Sorry.’   Blake shrugged. ‘He never had a pet as a kid, did he?’   Walter shook his head. ‘No.’   Blake lifted a cat from the floor. ‘You don’t like cats much.’   Walter stroked the purring long-haired cat. Honestly, no. But Alex…’   Blake laughed teasingly. ‘Careful or he’ll fill your house with cats.’   ‘No, he won’t.’ Walter said firmly.   Blake closed the door and looked back into the kitchen. ‘Two down, two to go.’   ***************************   Frank made no comment as Walter pulled Fox into the dining room, leaving Alex alone with him. They had agreed he would talk to Alex and he waited only a moment before putting the roll of wallpaper down.   ‘Alex, Walter says you have a friend who re-homes stray cats.’   Alex nodded, putting his metal scraper on the wooden table behind him. ‘Blake, yeah. He has some new kittens in.’   Frank walked across to the couch, covered with a white sheet to protect it. ‘It’s a long-term commitment Alex, and I’m no spring chicken. Twelve years, maybe longer.’   ‘I didn’t leave him. When he…I stayed, until you got back.’   Frank felt his eyes begin to prick with tears. ‘I’m glad he wasn’t alone Alex. He liked you a lot.’   Alex banged his fist on the wooden table, his face darkly angry. ‘He didn’t! He hated me or he wouldn’t have died when we were alone!!’   Next door, Fox put a hand on Walter’s arm as he felt Walter begin to move towards the door. Breathing hard, Walter remained still.   ‘He couldn’t help it Alex. It’s just nature.’ Frank reasoned gently.   ‘NO!!’ Alex yelled, chest heaving, eyes closed.   He wasn’t aware that Frank had moved until he felt the older man’s arms around him, holding him tightly as he sobbed, shaking. ‘It’s okay to be mad Alex. I was mad too. I wasn’t here when he died.’   Intended to reassure Alex, Frank’s words had the exact opposite effect and Alex pulled away violently, staring into Frank’s damp eyes. ‘You should have been! You should have been here. Not me. Not me!!’   ‘I’m sorry Alex. I’m sorry. Shhh…it’s okay. You can be mad at me.’ Frank pulled Alex towards him and the two men held each other, each letting go of their emotions at the same time.   After a few minutes, Alex’s sobs were less audible, and Walter and Fox walked slowly back into the living room. Frank looked up and pushed Alex gently away. ‘Alex, I’m sorry you were alone here when Lieut died, but I’m glad he wasn’t alone. Now, give me a couple of days to make things safe, and we’ll see about those kittens, okay?’   Sniffing, letting Walter put an arm around his waist and pull him in close, Alex nodded. ‘Okay. Um…kittens? You want more than one?’   ‘Yeah. Always have two. That way they have company when you’re out.’   Fox smiled. ‘Why do you think Walter has both of us Alex?’   Alex smiled for a moment, then nodded. ‘I’ll tell Blake to hold two of them for you.’   Frank nodded. ‘Yeah Alex, do that.’ End