Wambli-Part 17/18
Summary and disclaimers in Part 1

*****

"I'd ask, sir, before you tell me that it's not my business,
that you do everything you can to get them back on the
X-Files. Far worse can happen. And it will."

Episode 6x12-One Son

*****

The flight to Rapid City took forever, or so it seemed to
Scully. Especially after the delay in Minneapolis. She had
nearly gone insane waiting in the loud, busy airport, and
was about to suggest renting a car and driving the rest of
the way (it was only about ten hours by car) when their
flight was called. Less than an hour later, they were at the
tiny Rapid City airport, which was quite busy this time of
the year. Labor Day was just around the corner, the last big
weekend of the summer, and the variety of people Mulder and
Scully had to wade through to get out of the building was
proof Mt. Rushmore was still a big lure.

Alicia Chase and Nick Remington met them at the gate. Mulder
had called them, asking them if the children, who had been
left under their unofficial protection, were okay. Remington
had told them they were perfectly fine, that they missed
their parents, but were safe and secure. How would they know
that if they were both here? Scully thought angrily.

"What are you doing here?" she demanded. "Why aren't one of
you with the kids?"

Nick raised his hands, palms out, in an effort to stop her
tirade before it caused attention. "It's okay!" he said.
"Charlie is with them. He sent me to come pick you guys up."
The four of them quickly made their way down to the first
floor and out the door. The day was sunny and clear, the
wind blowing strong from the south. The Black Hills were
clearly visible through to the west, as were several large,
white thunderheads that were quickly building above them.
Scully, who usually loved to stare at the ancient mountains,
didn't even give them a second glance. She needed to get
home. She needed to see her children.

They headed southeast on Highway 44, speeding as much as it
was safe to do so on the curvy road. There had been rain in
the last few days, though it came too late in the year to
make the prairie green again. The hay fields were looking
good though, and the ranchers were bound to get a good late
summer crop. Calves that had been smaller than Mulder's dog
Grizz only a few short months ago were now almost as big as
their mothers. Breeding and Bangs vaccinating would be
starting soon, and the spring calves would be sold at
auction in a couple of months. As Scully stared out at the
land surrounding her, she thought of these things. Of how
life continued on, not caring what was going on elsewhere in
the world. And she wondered if all the Nihm 'survivors' had
made it to their new homes. If Charlie was with the
children, then that meant both the wolves and Wambli had
been returned to the wild.

She felt Mulder squeeze her hand and she looked at him
sitting next to her in the back of the Bu-car. "Almost
there," he whispered.

"So," Agent Chase said from the drivers seat. "I understand
you guys are among the living again."

"Yeah," Mulder said. He didn't offer any more information.

Alicia sighed. "I wonder what the people of Lincoln will
think of that."

Scully heard the words, but they didn't make sense for a
moment. When their meaning hit her, she faced Mulder again.
His jaw was clenched and he was staring out his window. But
he never let go of her hand.

When they pulled into the little town, heading straight for
Susan's house, they were not surprised to see everyone they
passed eye the car with curiosity. Some of the people even
stopped what they were doing and began to follow the car
when they recognized the people in the back seat, knowing
where they were going. Scully didn't care if the entire U.S.
Army followed them, as long as they reached their
destination.

Finally, they pulled up in front of Susan's house. Scully
let go of Mulder's hand and slipped out. Just as she closed
the car door behind her, three laughing little boys ran
around the corner of the house, chasing each other. One of
them was her son.

"Fox!" 

The little boy stopped and stared. Then, with a grin as big
as the sky, he rushed toward her, his little legs pumping
madly. "Mama! Dadeeeeee!" She scooped him up and spun him
around, right into Mulder's arms, and the three of them
laughed and cried together for a long time.
 
The few townspeople that had followed the car to Susan's
smiled at the sight, as did Nick and Alicia, but neither
Mulder nor Scully noticed their audience. "Where's your
sister?" Scully finally asked.

"She's with Tony and Susan," Fox said with a smile, his tiny
white teeth flashing.

"Who's Tony?" Mulder asked, his eyes growing dark.

"Susan's new boyfred."

Boyfred? "You mean, boyfriend?" Scully asked.

"Yeah!" Fox said brightly. "He told me he liked Kim first,
but Lucas didn't like him, so he made friends with Susan
instead."

Mulder met Scully's worried gaze from over their son's head.
"Fox," Mulder said softly. "Where's Charlie?"

"He's back there, too," the little boy said, pointing a
stubby finger toward the backyard. "He doesn't like Tony too
much." For the first time since they had arrived, the little
boy frowned. 

Mulder and Scully began to walk toward the back of the
house, where Susan kept several sets of playground equipment
for the children. There were about seven kids, including the
two boys who had been playing with Fox, running about the
yard. Mary was walking an infant child, Barb's from the look
of it, up and down the porch attached to the back of the
house. And Susan was sitting at the picnic table with
Charlie. Both were watching a man standing at the head of
the table carrying a baby. 

Marisa.

Charlie spotted them first, and he stood, a smile on his
face. "It's about damn time!"

"Charlie!" Susan reprimanded.

"Sorry," Charlie said to her before looking at the couple
again. But their attention had drifted away from him to the
man holding their daughter. 

"Hey, hey, hey!" Alex Krycek said with a smile. "Look who's
here," he said to the little girl in his arms. Marisa turned
her blue eyes toward her parents, and recognition flooded
them. She reached her arms out toward them, tears filling
her eyes. Mulder rushed forward and grabbed her, pulling her
tightly into his arms. He backed up to stand next to Scully
and Fox, glaring at the man in front of him. Krycek just
laughed. "Relax, Mulder. She's fine."

Mulder kissed his daughter on her cheek as Scully leaned
against him, bringing her forehead against her little girl's
arm. She was fighting hard to control the tears brimming in
her eyes.

"Why are you here, Krycek?" Mulder growled.

"Krycek?" Susan asked, confusion filling her voice.

"You know him?" Charlie asked.

"Unfortunately," Mulder mumbled. He directed his words at
Krycek. "Well?" 

"The old man sent me," Krycek said, his eyes serious. "He
wanted me to protect them."

Mulder stared at him for a long moment, and when Scully
looked up she saw what she knew Mulder was seeing. Truth.
Alex Krycek was actually telling the truth.

"The old man can no longer tell you what to do, Krycek. I
assume you know that?"

The former double agent nodded. "I do."

"Then get the hell out of here. I never want to see your
face near my family again."

Krycek stood there for a moment. Then he turned to the woman
behind him. "Susan. It's been fun, but I gotta go. Sheriff's
orders."

Susan, her brow furrowed, looked back and forth between
Krycek and Mulder, but didn't say a word. With a smile,
Krycek left, giving a little wave to the other kids as he
rounded the corner of the house. Scully leaned against
Mulder again, relief flooding through her. She set Fox down,
his weight tiring her, but then had to take Marisa from
Mulder when the baby reached for her.

"Would someone like to explain to me what is going on?"
Susan demanded.

"It's a long story," Scully said, then turned as Nick came
up behind them.

"Well, now that that problem is solved, I've got another one
for you."

"What?" Mulder asked, rubbing his hand across his face. He
reached for Fox, who was tugging on the leg of his jeans,
demanding to be picked up.

"Cat and Monroe called me this morning, just after you guys
left DC. It appears that the FBI wants both of you back."

"What?!" Both Scully and Mulder spoke in unison.

"They want you both back on the X-Files."

************************************************************

"Unlike you, Mulder, I would like to have a life."

Episode 1x04-The Jersey Devil

*****

Mulder glanced at his watch, squinting his eyes in order to
read the numbers in the dim light coming from the glass
doors behind him. It was almost midnight. The Witching Hour.
He smiled. There were no witches around here. Or gouls. Or
goblins. Or monsters. Except for the human kind, of course.
They were, unfortunately, everywhere. 

He wondered if Krycek had left the state, yet. Though he
truly believed the man had done nothing but watch over his
children as ordered during his absence, he wasn't going to
kid himself into believing Krycek was one of the good guys.
While he felt relieved to know Diana was most likely free of
the seduction of evil, and more than relieved to know Cancer
Man was dead, Krycek still proved that there was the
possibility of evil invading this heaven on earth he called
home. He would never forget that possibility.

His thoughts drifted to the afternoon and evening that had
just passed. The people of Lincoln had been more than a
little shocked by the news that their Sheriff was not who he
said he was. Or their town pediatrician. But, they had
seemed to accept the odd situation with typical South Dakota
aplomb. When Mulder, Scully and the children stopped by the
Sheriff's office, Lucas had been ready to hand over the
reins to his boss once again. When Mulder refused, the
deputy had been shocked and saddened. "Ian Zweifel doesn't
exist anymore," Mulder had said. "Therefore, how can he be
Sheriff?" The reunited family had then driven home.

The old house had been cleaned since Mulder had been there
last, most likely by neighbors and friends from town. And as
Scully started to get the kids settled and replace all the
pictures and momentos she had left at Susan's, Mulder drove
to Kate's house to pick up the pets. The cats had
immediately run upstairs to hide until things calmed down,
but the four dogs rushed from person to person, barking and
dancing about the house in their excitement. Even the horses
had begun nickering from their pasture in the back,
understandably agitated by the commotion coming from the
house, which had been much too quiet for the last several
days.

Finally, around sunset, things quieted down. The phone
stopped ringing, and the kids fell asleep. Mulder spend more
than an hour on the phone with Skinner and Cat, and Scully
called her mother to tell her the news. Both Skinner and
Maggie Scully were making plans to come out to Lincoln to
visit; they were both very anxious to finally meet the
children. Mulder warned them the Gunmen would probably want
to visit soon, as well.

Scully hadn't said a word about returning to DC, but he knew
she had no desire to do so. Less than one week ago, she had
thought her quiet, happy, NORMAL life was over. Now that she
was home, she was anxious to start over, as Dana Mulder. She
had already talked to Al Rosenberg, and her boss wanted her
back, no matter what her name was. She had left the X-Files,
of her own accord, over six years ago. She had no interest
in going back.

Mulder, however, hadn't left because he wanted to go, even
if he had been considering it for several months before his
'death' five years ago. He had missed it.

Scully had gone upstairs to bed almost two hours ago, not
saying a word, but looking at him with sad understanding in
her eyes. She knew he missed it. She knew he was seriously
considering going back.

He sighed, leaned his head back and closed his eyes. Would
he really be happy working in the Bureau again? Facing the
questions and the derision from the other people? Missing
his children and his wife? Ah, there was the rub. After
Scully had left the X-Files for a new job in Spokane, he
hadn't been as passionate about his work. Though he had
enjoyed working with Cat, the cases he had investigated had
all been more or less mundane. Mysterious, yes. But nothing
had seemed to be as exciting without Scully by his side. It
was like eating a baked potato without salt. Fulfilling, but
tasteless. He smiled, wondering what Scully would think
being likened to salt.

But was his life here any more exciting? Arresting drunks
and breaking up bar fights. Pulling over speeders. Making
himself visible at every public event. Not exactly the high
life.

Feeling welcomed by every family in the area. Having all the
children in town look up to him, including his own. Not
having to look over his shoulder every second of every day.

Waking up every morning to Scully's perfect form beside him.
Leaving for work every morning with sloppy, loving kisses
from his children. Driving away from his house, knowing that
no matter how the day went, he would get to come home to
that house in the evening.

He stood suddenly. Grizz and Ricky raised their heads and
watched him as he stepped off the porch and walked out into
the yard. When he kept walking, they both jumped up to
follow him. The grass had lost some of its lushness in the
days he had been gone; the rain they had received hadn't
been enough for it and he hadn't been able to water it. But
the gardens had been watered a couple of times, most likely
by Barb, and the flowers were thriving. He moved past the
little shed where Scully kept her gardening equipment and
continued on to the post and rail fence that separated the
horse pasture from the yard.

The three equines lifted their heads from their grazing and
began to move toward him. Feisty, being nearly white, was
easily visible in the dark, but Poker and Peanut were dark
shapes that only took form as they neared the fenceline. The
two horses stretched their heads over the top rail of the
fence and nuzzled him, searching for carrots or some other
snack to steal. Peanut stuck her head through the rails,
also trying to nuzzle him. Mulder pushed her little head
away softly; at her height, a nuzzle from her resembled a
grope at his crotch.

He gave a quick stroke on the muzzles of all three, then
backed away from the fence, leaning his head back to look at
the stars.

They were still out there. The aliens. Still waiting for
their chance to grab the Earth away from her current
inhabitants. They had been quiet for years now, but he knew
they were still there. Finding himself in a position with
the Government would give him the ability to be of help if
the dreaded invasion occurred. It would give him some power.
Maybe even more than before since it was obvious more than
one person wanted him back. And the fascination he still
felt about the paranormal was there. It had just been lying
dormant for years.

Pros. Cons. Should he? Could he? He wasn't about to give up
his family, that he was certain of. But could he have a good
relationship with them living so far away? Could he handle
it? Could Scully?

With a groan, he rubbed his aching head and turned back
toward the house. Leaving the big dogs outside, he closed
up, checking locks and turning off lights, a routine that
had him wondering of he could give it up. With Samson and
Delilah watching him with wide brown eyes, he climbed the
stairs, looked in on his sleeping children, and entered his
bedroom.

All the lights were off in the room, but the light in the
adjoining bathroom was on, the door opened just slightly,
allowing a small bit of light to escape into the room. With
that light, Mulder was able to see his wife. She was curled
in a chair by the window, staring out it. He realized that
she had most likely seen him when he had crossed the yard to
visit the horses. He walked toward her. "Scully..."

Without turning to face him, she said, "I'll understand if
you go back, Mulder." Her voice was solid, steady. But he
knew it so well that he heard the slight roughness in its
texture. She had been crying recently. He felt his own
throat tighten. "We'll work it out," she continued. "I'll
work only half the year, or for a few months at a time. The
rest of the time, we could live with you in DC." She still
hadn't faced him, yet.

"No." His voice sounded sharp to his ears, and it must have
to hers, as well, because she swiveled her head around to
look at him, her eyes wide with surprise. He cleared his
throat. "I don't want them to grow up there. I want them to
grow up here."

"Without their father?" She raised her eyebrow in typical
Scully fashion.

"I'd come home often enough," he stated, noticing almost
immediately how her eyes darkened at his words, even in the
dim light of the room. She might say she was all for him
returning to the X-Files, but she was really having a very
hard time with it. "Why are you letting me even consider
this?!" he demanded.

Her eyes widened. "What do you mean? Isn't it what you
want?"

"How do you know that for sure, Scully?" he argued. "Have I
seemed unhappy in the last five years? Do you think I've
been so miserable in this normal life that I would jump at
the chance to go back?"

"You did with Wambli, didn't you?" she argued back. "You
didn't have to think long and hard about that."

"You're wrong," he snapped. "I did think long and hard. But 
I knew it would be temporary. I knew I would be coming back
home." He ran his fingers through his hair, frustration
evident in his whole being. "This is different. This may be
the rest of our lives, here."

"So what do you want me to do this time?" Scully asked.
"Tell you not to go? Tell you not to leave us?" She shook
her head. "Isn't that a little like telling an eagle not to
fly?"

"No." Mulder stepped even closer to her. "Charlie told me
the only reason eagles fly is to find food, shelter and a
mate. If they have all that right where they are, they are
more than content." He grasped her hand and pulled her up to
stand facing him. "I have all I need right here. I don't
need to fly."

He watched as tears formed in her eyes. "You may not *need*
to. But you *want* to. I can see it in your eyes." She shook
her head. "If I asked you to stay, you would eventually
regret it. And then you'd blame me..." She raised her voice
as Mulder tried to interrupt her, denying her words.
"...even if it was unconsciously."

"Remember the cabin in Hayden Lake? Remember what you told
me about the time you left DC? You said that if I had asked
you to stay, you would have. You were upset that I hadn't
asked you to stay." His words were rushed. "All you have to
do is ask."

She looked at him, her blue eyes large and luminous. "Why
didn't you?"

Mulder felt his brows furrow. "Because I wanted you to be
happy. Because I didn't want to be the one deciding your
life for you."

"Exactly."

Mulder closed his eyes and tightened his grip on her hands.
"Scully," he whispered.

"It's your choice, Mulder. Whatever you decide, I'll always
love you. And I'll always be here for you."

He pulled away from her, the pros and cons running through
his head again. Would he regret it if he stayed? Or would he
regret it if he left?

He dropped his head suddenly, his chin nearly hitting his
chest, his eyes closed. Silently, he pulled into himself,
searching. Searching not his mind. Or even his heart.
Searching his soul. What he found there gave him his answer,
as he knew it would. With a sigh, he lifted his head and
turned to Scully.

"You're right. It has to be my choice. And I've made it."

*****

End 17/18

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