From: msnsc21@yahoo.com   
      
   OK to send to newsgroup; I'll send to Gossamer and Ephemeral.   
      
   Land of the Living I   
   by ML   
   ~Headers, etc. in Prologue.  This is all story.~   
      
   ~x~   
      
   Chapter Four   
      
   He must have dozed off at some point because he didn't notice   
   when their positions shifted.  She is now lying with her back   
   to him.  His arms are still around her, holding her close.  He   
   buries his nose in her hair, nudging the strands aside to bare   
   the nape of her neck.  He can barely make out the scar now,   
   though if he touches it he can feel the chip just under her   
   skin.  He presses his lips against the spot.  No response from   
   Scully.  He kisses her again and then again, up to her hairline   
   and back, down to the neckline of her sweater.  She stirs a   
   little but he's on a roll now, and won't stop until she says   
   something.  She turns her head and he lands an awkward kiss on   
   her cheek.   
      
   "Mulder, are you trying to take advantage of me while I'm   
   sleeping?"  she asks drowsily.   
      
   "No," he tells her between kisses, "I'm trying to wake you up   
   so I can take advantage of you."   
      
   She sits up in a hurry.   
      
   Mulder leans back and raises his hands in surrender.  "Just   
   kidding, Scully.  I just wanted to wake you up, and it seemed   
   like a good way to do it.  Sleeping Beauty."  He smiles his   
   most winning smile.   
      
   Feeling a little foolish, she lies down to face him, propping   
   her head on her hand.  "Well, I'm awake now."  She is not going   
   to be the first one to flinch.   
      
   Mulder notes that she isn't smiling, but looking a little   
   watchful.  He can't describe it better than to say that it's   
   a *good* watchful look.  Not like she's about to bolt or knee   
   him in the groin, just waiting to see how far he'll go and   
   whether she'll let him.   
      
   "So I see."  He leans in and kisses her lips, then pulls away   
   quickly again.  For a second, it looks like she's leaning   
   toward him, following his mouth.  "I don't want us to be late   
   for dinner."   
      
   "Where are we going?  You said something about crab."  Scully   
   is a little disoriented, and more than a little aroused by   
   Mulder's wake up technique.   
      
   "We're going to a crab feed, sponsored by the local Catholic   
   church," he tells her.   
      
   She rolls her eyes, just a little.  "Don't tell me, you bought   
   the tickets yesterday."   
      
   He grins again.  "Actually, two days ago when I stopped in   
   the aforementioned grocery store.  Have you ever had Dungeness   
   crab?"   
      
   "Yes, I have.  I'm no stranger to church crab feeds."   
      
   "Thought as much,"  he says a little smugly.  "Well, they're   
   very popular in this neck of the woods.  And it goes to a good   
   cause."   
      
   Scully gives him a long appraising look and asks, "Is there   
   something you're not telling me?  Are you planning to relocate   
   and run for office?  Is there an X-File hiding in there   
   somewhere?"   
      
   He flashes his pouty you-don't-believe-me look.  "Nothing like   
   that.  I'm just on vacation, enjoying the local atmosphere."   
      
   "Seriously, Mulder, what is this all about?"  He really is   
   reverting to form, she thinks.  He always has reasons for what   
   he does.  The trick is getting him to reveal the reasons.   
      
   He tries to look a little put out at her questions, but makes   
   a show of giving in.  "It's a *date*, Scully.  Remember those?   
   I'm *courting* you."  Telling her outright is not part of his   
   original game plan, but he's nothing if not resourceful.  It's   
   time to up the stakes.  Now it's her move.   
      
   "*Courting* me?"  She is dumbfounded by his answer.  She really   
   has half-expected him to pull an X-File out.  "Were you going   
   to let me in on this sometime, or was I just supposed to guess?"   
      
   Now he looks embarrassed.  "Well, I know we're going about   
   this a little backward, Scully, now that we've slept together"   
   --his face is carefully deadpan, but she can see the spark in   
   his eyes-- "but I'm trying to approximate what a normal couple   
   might do when they're getting to know one another.  So, up here,   
   the closest I can come to dinner and a movie is the local crab   
   feed, and videos."   
      
   "Mulder--" she can't believe they're sitting on his bed,   
   talking about this.  No matter what she expected when she   
   came to California, it wasn't this.   
      
   "So how'm I doin'?"  he asks.  "Are you bowled over by my   
   charm yet?"  He's doing his best to keep it light, but he is   
   anxious.  So much is riding on her reaction.   
      
   "Well, Mulder," she makes a show of considering his question.   
   "I guess it'll depend on the video you got.  If it's `Porky's   
   III', all bets are off."   
      
   "Aw nuts," he says.  "I *knew* I shouldn't have listened to   
   the clerk.  He said it was a chick movie."   
      
   "Well, I'm sure there are chicks *in* it, Mulder," she smiles.   
      
   x-x-x   
      
   When Scully comes out to the living room a while later, ready   
   to go, Mulder is pleased to note that she is not wearing all   
   black.  She's changed to jeans and a deep blue, soft knit   
   sweater that does something wonderful to her eyes.  He wants   
   to reach out and stroke the sweater.  What do they call that   
   stuff?  Chenille?  "Nice sweater," he manages.   
      
   Scully takes note of the slightly glazed look in his eyes   
   and smiles.  "Glad you like it."   
      
   The crab feed is in a community hall a little farther up the   
   highway.  The parking lot is a grassy field, brown and shorn   
   this time of year, and thankfully not muddy.  Several cars   
   are already there, and he can hear the thump and whine of   
   amplified music as they approach the long, low building.   
      
   As they get to the door, Mulder is greeted familiarly by an   
   overly made-up bottle blonde woman and a man in a John Deere   
   cap.  Mulder hands their tickets over and introduces Scully.   
   "This is Myra, who works at the Byetheway, and Ted, who runs   
   the grocery store."   
      
   "Glad you brought the missus, Mulder," Ted says cordially.   
      
   Myra smiles thinly and offers an unenthusiastic hand to Scully,   
   her eyes marking the lack of a ring on her finger.  Scully   
   doesn't bother to correct Ted, however, and neither does   
   Mulder.   
      
   It's even noisier inside with music and conversation.  Long   
   tables have been set up, covered with white butcher paper and   
   set at intervals with baskets of bread and large bowls of salad.   
   No one is sitting down yet.  A makeshift bar has been set up at   
   the end of the room, and Mulder steers Scully there, getting   
   her a glass of wine and himself a beer.   
      
   He watches Scully looking around and wonders if it brings back   
   good memories.  If it brings back bad ones, he's really screwed,   
   but he's pretty sure most of her childhood was fairly happy.   
      
   It does remind Scully of the dinners at churches she's attended   
   throughout her life.  Jovial Knights of Columbus members roam   
   through the crowd, selling raffle tickets and cracking jokes   
   with the people they know.  A few young kids are running around,   
   and the older ones have been pressed into service, setting the   
   tables with plates and utensils.  The only difference is the   
   lack of smoke in the air.  Everyone seemed to smoke when she   
   was growing up; now no one does, at least in public places.   
   She welcomes this not only for the obvious reasons.  It also   
   marks this as a different time and place than her childhood.   
   She already has a feeling of unreality about this place.   
      
      
   [continued in next message]   
      
   --- SoupGate-Win32 v1.05   
    * Origin: you cannot sedate... all the things you hate (1:229/2)