Wambli-Part 6/18 Summary and disclaimers in Part 1 ***** "...find yourself a man with a spotless genetic make-up and a really high tolerance for being second-guessed, and start pumping out the little Uber-Scullies." Episode 4x03-Home ***** Moira joined O'Neil and Justin in Sara's kitchen, where Sara was busy filling glasses with water. As she set them on the table in front of the agents, she told them, "It's well water, so it might not have a taste that will appeal to you. If not, I have some bottled water in the fridge." "I'm sure it will be fine," Justin said, taking a sip of the cool, clear liquid. She watched as his eyes scanned the room, noticing the old fashioned cupboards and the new oven. Then he looked her up and down. "You look great." "Thanks," Sara said. "I feel great." She laughed to herself. "That's what the prairie does, it either drives you crazy, or makes you sane." "Which did it do to Mulder?" O'Neil asked. "Well, seeing as he was already kind of crazy, what do you think?" "He's happy here?" O'Neil had the grace to look embarrassed when she realized how astonished she had sounded. "Yes. He was." "Was?" Justin picked up the word instantly. Sara sighed. "This eagle thing has him energized. He thinks he can help her." "Why? What is so special about it?" "She's smart. I mean, human smart." Sara looked at Moira. "She and Moira can communicate telepathically. The people that made her the way she is are looking for her. They want her back. Ian...I mean Mulder...thinks he can help her." "How?" O'Neil asked. Sara shook her head. "I can't tell you that. I want Mulder to come home to me, and though I trust you both, I don't want you involved." "What if he needs help?" O'Neil continued. "He's got help." "The Gunmen?" Justin asked. "We could always go to them for information." "Do you actually think they'll tell you anything?" "Are you kidding?" Justin smiled. "Langly and Byers would do anything for Cat." Sara looked at O'Neil, who was blushing. "Really? Even though they've kept our secret for more than five years?" She looked back at Justin. "Okay, okay. Maybe you're right." He sighed. "But you can trust us." "It's not that I don't trust you, Justin. Although, I really have no reason to, seeing as I haven't spoken to you for five years. I just don't want anyone involved that doesn't need to be. It's bad enough you know we're both still alive!" Justin bit his lower lip and shook his head. "You said your mother knows?" Sara nodded. "She's even seen pictures of her grandchildren, though she keeps them in a safe deposit box. As you pointed out, Fox looks just like his dad." "But Bill doesn't know?" Bill and Justin had been friends years ago, though that friendship had weakened after Bill discovered Justin's homosexuality. When he had been transferred from San Diego to Spokane to work under Scully, Bill had made him promise to look out for his sister. Both had mourned greatly at her 'funeral'. "No, Bill doesn't need to know." Scully leaned back in her chair. "He would be none to happy to know who I married while I was pretending to be dead!" "You really are married, then?" O'Neil asked. "Yes." "And the children?" Another sigh. "Years ago, Mulder found and recovered some of my ova. They had been taken from me during my abduction several years earlier. He left them in safe-keeping with the Gunmen. I managed to get Frohike to tell me about them, even though Mulder thought he was keeping a great secret from me. When he decided to tell me, he found out I already knew. By that time, we were lovers, so it was a safe bet that if I ever wanted to use them, Mulder would be the father." Her shoulders moved slightly. "After we were married and came back to the U.S., we contacted Frohike. The others found out. They helped us find a doctor in Arizona, and Fox was, incredibly, conceived on our first attempt." She looked up and smiled. "Marisa took about three tries. That was only a little more than a year ago, after Mulder was voted in as sheriff." "Wow," O'Neil breathed. "Any plans for more?" "Maybe." Sara sniffed in amusement. "God knows I'm not getting any younger." Her expression turned sad. "But, all will depend on how things go for Mulder. For all I know, he may not want to come home." Moira spoke for the first time. "Fat chance, Sara! He'll be back. And this time, it will be for good!" They all sat silent for a while. Then Justin stood. "Well, Cat. Looks like this case is turning out to be nothing but a wild goose chase. Or should I say a wild eagle chase? I say we go home. There is nothing here for us to do." O'Neil stood as well. "Mrs. Zweifel. We are sorry to bother you. We'll be leaving." He and O'Neil moved toward the door. "But if you, or your husband, need anything, you know were to find us." "Justin," Sara said sharply as she stood. She moved over to where he had stopped in the kitchen door. Standing on her tiptoes, she kissed him on the cheek. "Thank you." She stepped back and looked at O'Neil. "Thank you." The F.B.I. agents left the Zweifel home and headed back to Rapid, wondering what they should tell Remington and Chase. ************************************************************ "Pick out something black and sexy and prepare to do some funky poaching." Episode 4x15-Momento Mori ***** The Lone Gunmen's Apartment It took only a little more than three hours for Langly to break through to the computer database for Ft. Marlene. There were no files under 'Eagle' or 'Raptor', nor any that could be considered 'bird oriented'. But the file called 'Nihm' grabbed Mulder's attention almost immediately. He remembered back to Moira's mentioning the movie 'The Secret of Nihm', and wondered if it was a connection or just coincidence. Opening the file provided no answers; almost everything had been deleted or was protected by a password the Gunmen couldn't get past. It was nearly midnight when a frustrated Mulder called home on Byers' cell phone. "Hello?" He smiled when he heard her voice. "Hey. It's me." A relieved sigh could be heard from the other end. "Hi." Her response sounded breathless and happy. "Where are you?" "At the three stooges'. Actually, the two stooges now. The third stooge has a place of his own." "I remember you mentioning that. Is he there?" Mulder turned to look at Frohike, who was also on a cell phone. "Yeah. He's talking to his better half at the moment, too." "Wish I could meet her," Sara said. He heard the smile in her voice. "I'll bet she's something." "I'm not sure," Mulder responded. "I haven't met her yet." They were silent for a moment, but it was a comfortable silence. They were both simply content to be connected. Even over the phone, it seemed they could read each others thoughts. "Have you found anything, yet?" Sara's voice was soft, as if she was trying to not break the peace that had settled over them. "No. We found a file I think might be the one I'm looking for, but the guys can't access it." He glanced at Langly and Byers, who were both leaning over the computer. Charlie sat on the couch, his head back and eyes closed. But he wasn't sleeping. "It's got a very tight password-protect, and they think it may take a couple days to hack into it." He heard her sympathetic "Mmmmm." She was silent for a while, only the silence now seemed tense. "Is Moira still there?" "Yes. She's heading back tomorrow morning, late. She's going to visit Wambli one more time before she goes." Mulder was positive he heard nervousness in her voice now. "Mulder..." "What is it? What's wrong?" His voice held enough concern that Charlie's eyes opened and looked over at him. "I had a couple visitors earlier today." "Who?" Mulder demanded. "Remington and Chase?" "No. A couple of agents that were sent to interview you by Remington and Chase." She paused. "From the X Files." Mulder stood silent in shock. Byers and Langly were looking at him now, as well. "Cat and Monroe?" he asked quietly. "They were there?" "Yes." "They know what happened to us." It wasn't a question. "Yes," Sara answered anyway. "We can trust them to keep quiet, I'm sure. But they're curious about this eagle thing. I have a feeling they're going to head over to the Gunmen's as soon as they get back to D.C." "You're probably right." He eyed his friends, all who were watching him with wide eyes. "They'll keep quiet if they know what's good for them." His voice was teasing, but it held a note of fear, too. "The last thing we need is government involvement on this end." "Which I guess means you haven't talked to Skinner?" Sara asked. "No. And I won't unless I have to." Frohike had finally hung up on Katie, and was watching Mulder with a furrowed brow, having had missed most of Mulder's words to his wife. "Have to what?" Langly and Byers shrugged. "Hey, I gotta go. It's midnight here, and I didn't get much sleep last night, or the night before for that matter." He turned his back on his companions and talked softly now. They also turned away, knowing the conversation was getting personal, but he would bet they all had their ears cocked his way. "I remember," Sara sighed. "I wish you hadn't left without waking me up first." "I couldn't," Mulder explained. "You know I'm horrible at good-byes." He had felt like a chicken leaving like he did, but he had wanted to leave his home with good memories, not tears. "I love you," he whispered. There was silence for a moment. "Promise me you'll keep me up to date? I'll sleep much better knowing you're still all in one piece." He laughed softly. "Hey! You know I'd call you even if I wasn't." She sniffed in response. "Goodnight. I love you." "Kiss the kids for me?" "Yep." It was her typically response when she was trying to hold back tears. After a few seconds more of silence, she hung up. With a sigh, he thumbed his phone off. When he turned around, it was to find four pairs of eyes on him, intent and questioning. "Well, boys. Our good friends from the X Files may be knocking on your door soon. We need to know what to do about it." When no one responded, he walked over to the computer. "Would it be easier to get into this file from inside the facility?" "Well, yeah. I guess," Langly said. "You'd still need to know the password, but it would be easier to get past that on the main system." "But how do we get in?" Byers asked. "I have a feeling their security is top-notch." Fohike cleared his throat behind them. "I think I know a way." ************************************************************ "Who knows, Scully. This could turn out to be more interesting than fox-fires." Episode 2x24-Our Town ***** Lincoln Medical Clinic Sara sat at her desk and breathed a sigh of relief as she slipped out of her low heels. It had been a long day already, and it was only 1 P.M. in the afternoon. She had been awakened at 3 this morning when Barb Lightfoot had called her, terrified that her 3 month old little boy's fever was getting too high. Sara had called her neighbor, Kim, to come over an watch the kids, then had the young mother meet her at the clinic. The baby had indeed been burning up. A cooling bath and fluids had helped the baby, and Sara's soft, calming words had helped the mother. When Barb had finally taken the sleeping baby home, it had been 6, time to start the day. She had been seeing patients since then, and was exhausted. She hadn't gone on so little sleep since... well, since she had been Dana Scully. Thank God tomorrow was Friday. Then again, she really had nothing to look forward to this weekend. Moira had left for home today. And taking the children into Rapid by herself was a chore. She supposed she could try and catch up on some reading. She sighed and laughed softly to herself. When was the last time she had spent a weekend without Mulder? It had been a while. She missed him, and he had only been gone three days. Michelle Rosenberg stuck her head in the door. "Hey. Are you busy?" "No," Sara breathed. "Thank goodness." Michelle laughed and entered the office. "I know what you mean. Everyone seems to think, now that it's nearing Friday, it's time to get looked at before the weekend hits and they have to drive all the way to Rapid. Even if they've been sick since Monday!" She sat down in one of the two chairs in front of Sara's desk. Sara smiled and nodded. The clinic was closed on weekends, except for emergencies, and though there were a few other doctors in the vicinity, the next reputable medical facility was all the way in Rapid City, where several clinics and hospitals were open. "How is Barb's baby?" "He's fine," Sara said. "I called and checked up on them about an hour ago. He still has a slight temperature, but she's checking him every hour." "That's good," Michelle said. Then she folded her hands in her lap and looked down at them silently. "How's Ian? Has he called you?" Sara hesitated. The people of McCloud county trusted their sheriff, but most were a bit startled he and Charlie had gone off so secretly. "He called last night. Wanted to let me know he might be gone longer than expected." "Oh? That's too bad. I bet you miss him." Michelle and Al had been married for over 30 years now, and they were still in each others back pockets. Sara envied them. They worked together, they lived together. Yet, they were complete individuals, always giving and never taking from each other. She had thought only a short while ago she had that kind of marriage, too. "Yes," she nodded. "I do." Michelle was silent again. She looked as if she was trying to find the courage to ask something. Sara shivered in anticipation. "Michelle? What is it?" Michelle sighed. "Lucas came by today, wanted to know if we had any long term patients staying here. I told him no. We haven't had any for a while now. He told me that when he had driven by this morning, a man had been walking down the sidewalk across the street, looking at the clinic. He saw the same man, in a different place, twice more today. Watching the clinic. He thought it might be the relative of an out-of-town patient since he wasn't familiar." Sara felt the chill that had started running down her back grow into a full blown iceberg. "Is he still watching the place?" "I don't know. But after I told Lucas we had no patients staying here, he wondered if it might have something to do with those F.B.I. agents that were here yesterday." Sara felt all the blood drain out of her face. "Sara? Are you all right?" "I'm fine," she whispered. But she knew she was far from it. ************************************************************ "Oh, man, did you come to the wrong place!" Episode 5x19-Folie a Deux ***** Sam Colter knew he had been made the third time he saw the sheriff's deputy drive by, but he wasn't worried. His CIA credentials could get him out of the worst trouble if need be. And his find was far too important to leave just now. He still couldn't believe his luck. Dana Scully. THE Dana Scully. And he hadn't even been looking for her. He had thought, as everyone in his acquaintance had, that she was dead. But she wasn't. She was here. And if she was alive, then it was a good bet Fox Mulder was, too. Colter had only wanted to make sure O'Neil and Monroe found out nothing about the eagle from Ft. Marlene; that was why he had come to this one-horse-town in the middle of nowhere. But he hadn't expected to find gold. Gold in the form of a presumed-to-be-dead-but-obviously-not F.B.I. agent. He had already called in his find to his superiors, but now he wanted to know if this 'Sara Zweifel' knew the whereabouts of her former partner. Colter hadn't seen him yet, but that didn't necessarily mean anything. He had seen the Indian deputy stop by the clinic around lunch, and he was quite sure that the Scully woman knew he was here. Colter thought this was a good thing; Paranoia breeds fear, and fear breeds carelessness. He was positive she knew where Mulder was, and he would keep his eye on her until she lead him to the ex-F.B.I. agent. Then, they would have them both. ***** End 6/18