From: taffyxf@yahoo.com
Title: Forgive Us Our Trespasses
Author: Taffy Northwood
E-Mail: taffyxf@yahoo.com
Rating: NC17 (now and then)
Category: AU, MSR
Archives: Just ask.
Feedback: Never in bad taste
Disclaimer: Mulder, Scully, Skinner and any
other XF characters are on loan only.
Summary: In 1909 New York City, there were two
distinct and separate worlds: that of the very wealthy
and that of the very poor. Could love bridge the
great divide between those worlds for two star-crossed
lovers?
Author Notes: Like a huge part of the fandom, I've
become absolutely dotty over AU fic. This is my
modest attempt to put Mulder and Scully into another
time and place. Please be aware, this is a
work-in-progress.
Forgive Us Our Trespasses - Katherine Mulder's story. Part 16
"Katherine, my dear, Teena tells me you are a nurse,"
Harriet Cortlandt said. "And that you met Fox when
he was injured in an accident on the street."
"Yes," Katie replied, fighting a smile as she
recalled Mulder's 'street accident' with Tom Colton's
fists. "I suppose that's true."
"How very fortunate for you," Mrs. Cortlandt said,
smugly. "Fox is quite a catch."
Her use of the present tense was not lost on Katie.
Mrs. Cortlandt had an unmarried daughter. The fact
that Mulder thought Lillian Cortlandt was as interesting
as a bowl of porridge didn't enter in to her mother's
calculations. Katie had stolen the prize, snatched
it from Miss Cortlandt's dainty hands, and that was
all that mattered.
In the weeks after William Mulder's death, many of the
Mulders' friends came to offer their condolences. And
Teena had introduced her new daughter-in-law to the
visitors.
The visits were uncomfortable for Katie. The Mulders'
friends were always polite, but every word, every
gesture, every breath they took, told Katie that she
didn't fit in and would never be accepted.
Some of the guests would tell Katie how fond they were
of their Irish maids. Others would expound that with
her nursing education, Katie was a credit to her kind.
She had shared some stories with Mulder. With a shrug
he told her that people were idiots, and that she
shouldn't feel obliged to mix with snobs on his
behalf. Indeed, he took the lead in refusing
invitations, telling Katie he didn't want to waste
his time or hers being bored.
But Katie didn't want anyone to think that she was
hiding from them. Whatever Mulder said, she suspected
his professional endeavors would move more smoothly if
they at least made a show of following the rules.
As the weeks went by, her pregnancy progressed and
became more apparent to the casual eye. That was when
the real whispering and sly glances began. Katie had
no doubt that trapping a wealthy man due to pregnancy
was somehow even more objectionable than merely marrying
above one's station.
She'd chosen to accompany Teena today because the
luncheon was in support of the Rose McMillan Free
Lending Library. Though she and Teena were still
in mourning, New York society always made allowances
for good works.
The women in attendance seemed indifferent about the
benefits of a library to a community. Everyone in the
room, it seemed, was far more interested in Katie. Many
of them probably believed, as Mrs. Cortlandt did, that
she had arrived in their midst through trickery.
"My husband will be flattered, I'm sure, to hear
himself described as a catch," Katie said, with a
forced smile.
"Oh, I have no doubt he fancies himself the hunter.
Most men have no inkling that they've been snared in a
trap." Mrs. Cortlandt's smile was just as bright.
Katie might have pointed out that Lillian Cortlandt
was perhaps unappealing as bait, but she felt it wiser
to comment that the man who found himself captured by
young Miss Cortlandt would be fortunate indeed.
If Katie's sorties into high society were awkward, her
attempts to entertain old friends and family at home
were actually painful. It took the threat of tears
before Maggie would agree to join them for dinner.
Dunham, the chauffeur, was dispatched to pick her up on
the evening in question.
Later Katie learned that first her mother had been
afraid to get into the Rolls Royce, but once inside,
she had insisted that Dunham give rides to several
neighbors before she allowed him to take her uptown.
At the table, Maggie's nervousness had made her
quarrelsome, and Katie, to her own shame, found her
coarse and opinionated.
Long before the last course was served, Maggie
suddenly announced that it was time to leave.
When she couldn't be dissuaded, Mulder himself
drove her home, as she declared that Dunham
drove like a madman and she'd prefer to walk.
Mulder took it all in stride. Mothers, he
explained, had a sacred duty to embarrass their
children. In no time at all, Katie would be
dreaming up ways to make their own Baby Boo wish
he was an orphan.
Her sister's visits were easier. She found Missy's
gawking and frank exclamations of astonishment easier
to bear than their mother's defensive rudeness. Often
Danny excluded himself from the gathering, but when he
came along he was solemn and well-behaved. Michael
was happiest rough-housing with Mulder, but if he or
his brother became overly difficult, it was a simple
matter to entrust them to one of the maids.
After one such visit, Katie overheard Edgar
reprimanding a footman for mimicking Missy's
low-class accent and manners.
Sometimes Charlie would tag along with Missy and the
boys, but more often he would come on his own, and use
the servants' entrance. Katie would find him in the
kitchen, delighting Cook with his appetite and
appreciation. He had long since abandoned his
crutches, but there was a funny hitch to his gait that
troubled Katie. Vincent had said they needed to give
it time, but Katie still worried.
Bill visited only once, wearing the Sunday suit that
used to seem fancy but was now quaint and worn. He
spoke carefully and formally, even following Teena's
example and addressing her as Katherine.
Shayna was Shayna wherever she went. Mulder
introduced her to Teena as Katie's old friend and his
personal guardian angel. Teena was surprisingly
unperturbed by Shayna's frank and picturesque speech,
but Mulder theorized that most of it went over her
head.
Mrs. Tibby graced the table several times,
without causing a stir. She and Teena Mulder had
a passing acquaintance from the good works both
women devoted time to.
Teena was accommodating to the visitors from the east
side, even gracious, after her fashion. Katie still
longed for the little house she and Mulder once
dreamed of, with a nursery and a darkroom, but it had
been months since either of them mentioned it, and
months since Mulder had picked up a camera.
Mulder was not unaware of her discomfort. When he
urged his mother to escape the cold weather on an
ocean cruise or at a spa, Katie knew he was thinking
of her. Teena crushed both their hopes by answering
that she couldn't even think of enjoying herself so
[continued in next message]
--- SoupGate-Win32 v1.05
* Origin: you cannot sedate... all the things you hate (1:229/2)
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