It was late afternoon when the two men, both clad in jeans and heavy pullovers clambered up the side of the hill. The slightly taller man turned to the other, who had fallen slightly behind now.

"Well, we are here Krycek, so where is it?"

Alex Krycek trudged over to where Fox Mulder was standing, his chest heaving, he was out of breath after the long climb. Beside him Mulder breathed more easily, running and swimming had kept him fit for this kind of exercise.

"It's not much further." Krycek replied after a moment, then he pointed towards a dark clump of trees a few yards away. "Over near there."

"You had better not be shitting me." Mulder warned the younger man. Krycek glanced at him, green eyes fringed by long dark lashes.

"I told you that truth Mulder." He replied. "And I sent you those reports about the disappearances."

"Five people." Mulder replied thoughtfully. "What makes you think that they were abducted in the first place?"

"I have to show you." Krycek replied wearily. "I found some fragments...oh shit!" he stumbled slightly, reaching out with his good hand to try and steady himself. "Fuck, what did I slip on?"

Mulder squatted down, taking a closer look, tiny mushroom, brownish gray in colour peeked up through the damp grass. He poked at one, then looked up at Krycek.

"Mushroom, they must be indigenous to the area."

Krycek grunted, then begun to scrape the sole of his shoe on the grass, cleaning it off. A faint sickly sweet smell permeated the air.

Mulder sighed. "Come on Krycek we haven't got all day." He looked up just in time to see a small gray figure scurry into the thicket of tree.

"What the..." Without another word, Mulder took off towards the clump of evergreens, leaving a surprised Krycek behind.

"Mulder, hey Mulder....wait up!"

He took off after the FBI agent, cursing in both Russian and English as he pursued the other man into the woods.

Mulder dashed throught the covering of tree, swerving around the exposed roots and debris that littered the forest floor. A glimpse of gray caught the corner of his eye and without thought he headed straight towards it. **An alien.** The possibility pounded in his mind. **An honest to god alien**. The thought spurred him on and he continued to pursue the small gray figure deeper into the forest. He was completely unaware of the other man chasing after him.

"Jesus fucking goddamned Christ." Krycek muttered under his breath. He came to a complete stop, finding himself standing in the middle of a thickly wooded forest. Heart pounding, he stared around himself trying to get his bearings.

A city boy born and bred, he knew nothing about outdoor survival and he was hardly dressed to go traipsing a forest in the middle of autumn.

"Shit Mulder, where the fuck did you go?"

"Hey Krycek....Krycek, over here!" Mulder was standing near an outcropping of rocks, waving his arm frantically. "I found something."

Cursing succinctly under his breath, Krycek walked over to where Mulder was standing.

"You were right Alex, there is something here." Mulder said, his face shining with excitement. "Come on."

He turned and headed into the mouth of a small cave. Krycek frowned. "Mulder, what could possibly be in there?" He called after the other man. There was no answer. Heaving a very put upon sigh, Krycek reluctantly followed the FBI agent into the cave.

"Where did it go?" Mulder muttered looking around. The alien had seemed to have just vanished into thin air. "Damn it, where are you?"

Skirting around a huge oak, he continued walking until he found an outcropping of rocks. There near the mouth of what looked to be an entrance to a small cave, stood the alien.

Mulder's face broke into a huge grin. "Hi there little fella." He crooned as he slowly approached the tiny creature. "I'm not going to hurt you. Just stay there..." This was better than anything he could have possibly hoped for. All the proof was standing right there in front of him. He could take it back to Scully and Skinner, show them once and for all that he had been right along.

Suddenly the alien sprang into the cave, Mulder haring off after it in full pursuit. There was no way that he could lose his proof, not now.

Slowly he picked his way through the thick roots and branches that hung down, blocking the entrance. Suddenly a familiar figure stepped out in front of him.

"It's over there Fox." Krycek pointed towards a mud covered wall. "See?"

Mulder squinted into the darkness. "I can't see anything Krycek?"

"It's just there, crouching near the rocks...see?" Krycek was standing close to him now. Mulder could breathe the faint odour of sweat and aftershave. A heady mixture of smells in the close confines of the cave.

"Krycek, what...."

"Come here Fox."

Mulder turned, finding himself standing the middle of a bedroom floor. "Krycek?" He asked, confusion shadowing his features.

"Krycek, why are you calling me by my last name. Oh don't tell me, you're mad." Alex Krycek unfolded himself from the bed that he had been laying on and walked over to where Mulder was standing. "I already told you that I was sorry." Krycek continued. " I didn't mean to be late but I got held up. It was unavoidable."

Mulder frowned. "I...I don't understand, we, we were in a cave..." He trailed off as he felt the younger man's hands suddenly stroking down his chest.

"Cave?" Krycek asked, his voice a sensual purr now. "What cave?"

"We were in a forest and there was this alien and a cave..." Suddenly the thought tapered away as Krycek's hands went lower and lower, rubbing slow circles on Mulder's skin.

"Krycek..." Mulder whispered. "A...Al...Alex, I don't..."

"Shhh." Suddenly Krycek's face dipped forwards and he captured Mulder's mouth with his own.

Mulder's eyes opened in shock. Wasn't this Alex Krycek? The man that he hated more than anything? The man who murdered his father?

"What's wrong Fox, you're so tense?" Krycek took Mulder by the hand, leading him towards the huge double bed. "I tell you what you need baby, a nice relaxing massage..."

"....I won't talk you bastard, I don't care what you fucking do to me, I won't tell you a thing."

Krycek glared at Mulder, green eyes flashing defiance. Mulder stood in front of him, gun in hand, glaring down at the younger man handcuffed to a chair.

"Oh think you'll start telling me what I want to know." Mulder replied, a cool smile lifting the corners of his mouth. Suddenly he leaned in towards Krycek, bringing his face up close.

"Now what should we start with, hmmmm?".....

"....How about some massage oil?" Krycek whispered, his lips tickling Mulder's ear. "It's sandalwood, or I have musk. That's really sexy."

Mulder was lying face down on the bed, totally naked now. Krycek straddling his legs, reaching over to pick up a bottle of massage oil.

"I thought we were..." Mulder mumbled. "Nearly what?" Krycek asked. He tipped some of the oil onto the palm of his hand and began to rub it into Mulder's back and shoulders.

"Nothing, doesn't matter." Mulder sighed, reveling in the feel of the younger man's hands working the scented oil into his tired aching muscles.

Suddenly the press of Krycek's hands disappeared to be replaced by tiny little kisses that traveled down his spine, ending at the top of his ass.

Mulder smiled sleepily, completely relaxed as he felt his beautiful young lover's tongue begin it's descent, finding it's way into the crack of Mulder's ass....

"So what should we do first?" Mulder asked, an evil grin distorting his face. "Come on Alex, you tell me, after all, you are the murdering son of a bitch that betrayed me. You know all about inflicting pain on others don't you?"

Krycek's lips lifted in a sneer, but it could not hide the fear in his eyes. Mulder saw that fear and grew strong on it. Seeing Alex Krycek scared made him feel very good indeed.

Suddenly Mulder walked around the back of Krycek's chair. Bending down, he unlocked the cuffs.

"Stand up." He ordered gruffly. Without a word, Krycek got to his feet, watching Mulder warily.

"Strip."

Mulder could see a flicker of confusion as well as fear in the depths of those green eyes now. "Come on, I'm not waiting all day." Mulder snapped, impatient now. Face reddening, Krycek slowly reached both his hands up and began to unbutton his shirt.

Mulder watched him avidly as the younger man removed his clothes, dropping them to the dusty floor.

"Now come over here." Mulder waved the gun in the direction of some old wooden crates stacked nearby. "Over there, now." He snapped at Krycek's hesitation.

Slowly a now naked Krycek moved over to the crates, a sick feeling developing in the pit of his stomach.

"What are you going to do now?" He asked as he stood next to the crates. Mulder's grin widened.

"You'll see....

....Mulder's back arched as Krycek's tongue explored lower and lower, until finally finding the pink bud of asshole.

His tongue flicked over the tender ring of muscle, teasing it unmercifully. Mulder's moans increased, his hands gripping at the bedcovers convulsively.

Sensations increased as Krycek drew back to apply lube to Mulder's opening. The gel was cool and Mulder jumped slightly, eliciting a chuckle from behind him.

"Sorry sweetie, I should have warmed it first."

"It's okay." Mulder replied, he craned his head over his shoulder to give his lover a smile, then stopped, a frown creasing his forehead instead.

"What is it love?" Krycek asked puzzled. He looked down to where Mulder was staring at the tube of lube in his left hand.

"Your hand Alex." Mulder said, clearly puzzled. "How did you get your hand back?"

"Hand?" Alex looked down. "What are you talking about Fox?" Suddenly the tube and the hand dissolved in a flood of thick pus like yellow goo.

"Alex!" Mulder sprang off the bed, his face a picture of horrified shock.....

.....And found himself caught in a tangle of roots. He squinted into the darkness barely making out the other figure hanging nearby. It was Krycek.

"Krycek." Mulder croaked. "Wake up, please come on, you have to wake..."

"....Please don't do this Mulder." Krycek pleaded, his face pale in the dim light.

"I told you to bend over the crates." Mulder replied, his face grim and implacable. "Do it now, or else." With that, he brandished the gun.

With stony face, Krycek obeyed, positioning himself over the rough wooden surface.

Painfully aware of how open and vulnerable his ass was, he lay, both hands gripping the sides of the crates. He could feel the rough splintered wood under the palms of his hands.

**Hands?**

The question flickered at the back of his mind. **Both hands?**

Before he could ponder it further, he felt hands grip his ass cheeks, pulling them roughly apart.

Suddenly he felt something hard and blunt press against his asshole. Mulder's cock.

He opened his mouth to protest, then gasped as he felt Mulder's cock stroke up and down the crack of his ass. He was teasing Krycek now, allowing the younger man to feel the length and girth of his size.

Krycek's ass clenched at the thought of the impending invasion into the most private of his opening. He groaned and slick fingers probed their away into his puckered asshole, exploring the warm depths within.

"Please." He whimpered, but to no avail. The cock found it's way into his virgin ass, easily breaching the hot ring of muscle.

Krycek groaned as Mulder thrust deep inside him, finally finding the sweet spot deep within.

For his part, Krycek arched, lifting his butt up to allow deeper entry, his cries mingling with that of the man behind him.

"Krycek...Alex, wake up...up...up...

...His eyes flickered open reluctantly, a great lassitude washing over him. Groggily he looked around. Massive roots had wrapped themselves around him, enveloping him in a cocoon.

"Mul...Muldrrr." He slurred, desperately trying to shake himself out of this dopiness.

"Caught." Mulder rasped. "Have to get out somehow..." Suddenly he gasped, arching backwards, trying to avoid another heavy gob of yellowish goo, it hit the side of his face and slid down, leaving a faint red mark in it's wake.

"Can't...move." Krycek muttered, his eyes closing once more...

...And opening them again to stare into the face of the man that he hated, and that he desired more than anything else in the universe.

"I didn't say you could get up." Mulder snapped, gun pointed straight at Krycek's chest. "Get back over those crates ratboy, I haven't finished reaming your ass yet."

"What are you doing Mulder?"

"What?" It was clear that the question had caught the other man by surprise. "You heard me Krycek..."

"This isn't you." Krycek said calmly, trying to ignore the gun still pointed straight at him.

"Look don't give me any of your bullshit." Mulder snarled, but Krycek could see that under the cold expression the uncertainty there.

"Something's gone wrong Mulder." Krycek said, keeping his voice steady despite the growing fear inside him. "I know you Mulder, you are a lot of things, but you are no rapist."

"Rapist?" Mulder echoed, confusion clouding his face. Suddenly he lifted his hand to wipe a drop of sweat away from his forehead, he stared down at his fingertips, they were coated with a yellow goo.

""Krycek...what...

"....Do you want to do now love?" Krycek asked as he replaced the tube into the drawer in the nightstand.

Mulder rolled over, giving Krycek a lazy smile. "Well, we could fuck again." He replied. Krycek laughed and reached out to land a light swat on Mulder's arm.

"You are incorrigible." He laughed, then stopped, a sudden feeling of lightheadedness washing over him. Concerned, Mulder sat up. "Alex? Are you okay?"

Krycek opened his mouth to reply then found himself staring into the face of...

....Assistant Director Skinner.

Mulder's boss was standing near the hospital bed that Krycek found himself lying in. A drip had been placed into his good arm and a heart monitor gently beeped nearby.

"Mulder." Krycek struggled to sit up. "Where is he?"

"Calm down Krycek, Mulder's right here beside you. He over in the next bed, see?"

Krycek glanced over at the next bed, sure enough there was Mulder, attached to a drip and a heart monitor as well. His face was pale but otherwise he looked all right.

Krycek turned back to Skinner once more. "How did you find us?" He asked.

"Mulder left me a message saying that he was meeting with you, that you had some information regarding the disappearance of some people. People that he said you claimed were abducted by aliens. When he did not show up for work last week we went looking for him. It was lucky that he kept a record of where he was meeting you. Of course as soon as I saw that you were involved I knew Mulder was in danger so we set up a search party." Skinner looked down at the younger man, his face grim.

"We found you both there in that cave. We managed to get the both of you out, and none too soon either."

Krycek nodded tiredly. "Is he going to be all right?" He asked, looking towards Mulder's bed.

"Yes, thank god." Skinner replied. "You are both very lucky." He added.

"Yeah." Krycek replied. "We both are."

Mulder looked up from the computer that he was working on, there was another sharp rap on the door to his apartment.

"Wait on." He got up out of his chair and walked over to the door. He yanked it open then nearly slammed it shut again. Alex Krycek stood in the doorway, a bottle of wine in hand.

"What are you doing here?" Mulder asked coldly. With a grin, Krycek handed the wine to Mulder, who took it grudgingly. Then he stepped back to allow Krycek entrance into the small untidy apartment.

Krycek walked over to where the computer was sitting on the table. Leaning forward, he read what was on the screen.

"You are writing about the cave, what happened to us in there." He said, his voice soft. He looked up at Mulder, who shrugged, he looked slightly embarrassed.

"What were your...dreams Mulder?" Krycek asked suddenly. He was surprised to see Mulder's face flush. "I can't remember." He mumbled, looking away.

"I can." Krycek replied levelly. "In my dream, you raped me."

Mulder jerked his eyes towards the other man, clearly shocked. "I raped you. But I would never..."

"I know Mulder." Krycek said. "That's what clued me into the fact that we had entered some fantasy world. I know that you would never bring yourself to do something like that."

"In my dream, we were lovers." Mulder admitted. "You gave me a massage and then we made love. We were very happy."

Krycek allowed himself a smile at that.

"So there was no alien." Mulder said quietly.

"And the disappearances, that was the plant." Krycek added. "As it turned out, those mushroom emitted spores that drugged us, made us hallucinate. That's how we were lured into the cave. Once in there..."

"We became plant food." Mulder finished. "And we were kept in a dream state to allow the plant to be able to break us down slowly, to digest us."

Krycek nodded. "That's right. All our deepest fantasies came true. With you, it was finding love, with me it was finding punishment for all the shitty things I ever did to you."

Mulder sighed, then he smiled. "So where does that leave us now Krycek?"

Krycek shrugged. "Why don't we open the bottle of wine and talk about it?"

Mulder's face relaxed into a grin. "Sure, why not."