Title: Relationship Redux
Author: Emily Sim
Category: MSR
Rating: R for language
Disclaimer: not mine, never will be, so don't 
sue
Written for the Haven "flashback challenge"
Special Thanks to my Betas; Tali & Annak and 
special thanks to Tali for a great fix on the 
ending!
Archive: if you want it, just keep everything 
attached

6 Months previously
 
Dana Scully was pissed. She was hot, sweaty and itchy. The itchiness
was the worst part. She could have closed her eyes and imagined silk
or satin except for the insufferable scratching the underskirt was
causing. Never mind the fact that it was yellow. She felt like a
flower. Not nice stately, sophisticated flowers, like a rose or an
orchid something frumpy and overly fragrant, like a daisy or a lily.
She hated daisies. She hated lilies too. They reminded her of large
overweight woman with too much perfume and too many rings stuffed on
their fat fingers, flesh billowing out around them.

Whoever decided on a southern theme to this occasion should be shot.
Even if it was her new sister-in-law, even if it was her favorite
brother's new wife, even if it was the best color on 'look at me I'm
so cute' Christine 'I'm the bride's best friend and can you believe
this after all the time we've known each other', followed by a ghastly
squeal. Even if 'oh Dana, no one will notice, they'll all be focused
on the bride.' Huh! What did her mother know about it anyway? She was
dressed in a fashionable blue, two-piece silk suit. Her panty hose
weren't being shredded by a stupid tulle underskirt. She didn't look
like a ten year old stuffed into something scrounged from Aunt
Matilda's attic.  And it wasn't her partner glued to the belle of the
ball herself, Miss 'just Christie will do, Fox" with the dark brown
curls and perfect white teeth who actually looked good in the
monstrosity that cost her half a weeks pay. What did mothers know
anyway?

She took another sip of her wine and looked around the room. Ah fuck!
Here comes Bill.  Dodging couples on the floor, swaying to the beat of
yet another slow song, his intent was clear.  She did not want to
dance with her brother. She did not want Bill feeling sorry for her.
She did not want to be on that dance floor anywhere near Mulder and
Christine, so she did the only thing she could think of at the moment
and dumped her wine glass onto the perfect white linen tablecloth.

By the time Bill made it to the table she was standing up attempting
to stop the spill from landing in her lap. Even though the dress was
the ugliest thing she had ever worn, it would be even worse to have it
wet, stained as well as ugly.  She jumped back, knocking the chair
over in the process and proceeded to mop up the mess with the napkins
she left on the table.

"Hey Dana, how about a dance with your older brother?"

"Uh, I just had a little spill here, Bill. I need to clean up a bit.
I'll pass if you don't mind."  She did not need Bill feeling sorry for
her.

"No need to get snippy. I just thought someone should pay some
attention to you. Seems that jerk of a partner you brought is a little
occupied."

"He's not a jerk, Bill. And he didn't come with me. Mom and Charlie
invited him. He can dance with whomever he wants."  She bent down to
dab at a spot of wine that had managed, despite her efforts to the
contrary, to land in the center of the skirt. "If you'll excuse me
Bill, I need to find the ladies room." With a toss of her head, she
made her way down the platform to the restroom collapsing into the
lone chair shoved into a corner. "Fucking dress."  She pulled the
monstrosity up to check the condition of her hose underneath. "$17.00
dollars for Dona Karan silks and they're ruined."  With some
difficulty, after removing her shoes, she tore the hose from her legs
and deposited them in the garbage can.

----------------------------------------- 

Mulder watched as she left the room, dodging the couples dancing on
her way out. He knew she hated the dresses Lisa had chosen for the
wedding party and, truthfully, they were awful. He had watched the
scene with Bill with no small amount of amusement. He guessed that
Bill's attempt to get Scully to dance was accompanied by some
smart-ass comment at his expense but right now he just didn't care.
Even though the woman in his arms wasn't his lovely partner just the
fact that she found him remotely attractive was a boon for his sagging
ego. He knew the wedding invite, delivered by telephone from Mrs.
Scully a scant three days before the event wasn't last minute.  He
knew that the elder Scully had been pestering Dana for days about the
status of his attendance.  He had caught snatches of conversation and
had seen the cream and gold invitation on her counter top when he had
gone for a glass of water. Mrs.  Scully's note to her daughter, to
please invite 'Fox' along was clearly written and just as clearly
ignored. Now Mulder found himself feeling like an intruder despite the
fact that Maggie had insisted he ride to the church with her, Bill and
Tara, 'just like family'. That was a ride he'd sooner forget.

Between Bill's thinly disguised animosity, Tara's constant elbows to
Bill's side trying to shut him up and Mrs. Scully behaving as if it
were all normal, any attempt at normal conversation fell flat. It
would have been almost comedic save for the fact that Bill really did
look like he was ready to kill him and the only thing preventing it
seemed to be the nice tuxedo he had rented for the occasion. He
probably didn't want to deal with bloodstains. Perhaps Tara's harshly
whispered threats of withholding sex that night contributed to him
keeping himself in line, but he was feigning deafness where that
comment was concerned. It took a moment for him to realize that in all
his ruminating, the music had stopped and so had he. Christie was
looking up at him with a bemused expression on her face and it was
obvious she had been trying to get his attention for some time.

"There you are!"

"Sorry, Christie. Uh, thanks for the dance."

 
"Oh, you don't get away that easily ya know! I reserve the right to
come grab ya later, Fox!"

Her attempt to feign a slight southern drawl to match the outfit was a
little too much and Mulder found himself wishing for the hundredth
time tonight that he was anywhere else but here. On the other hand, he
could sure do with getting laid tonight and Miss Christine 'call me
Christie you ole' Foxy you' seemed more than willing. He forced
himself to return an easy smile that he hoped wouldn't close down her
advances. At the very least, pissing off Scully would be entertaining.  

-----------------------------------------

Nothing was going as planned. This was not what Margaret Scully had
envisioned when she set this up. She was positive she had read all the
signals right and all that was needed was someone to get things moving
in the right direction. She shook her head in silent admonishment for
her actions.  The arrangements for going in the same vehicle had been
her and Tara's idea. Both women had thought including Mulder as family
might go a long way towards easing the tension between him and Bill.
It looked to be failing miserably. She hadn't counted on Dana not
inviting her partner and having to call him herself. She hated to do
it knowing Fox had said yes because he couldn't or wouldn't say no to
her. She took another sip of her water and thought briefly of calling
her son over and making him get her something stronger, but the night
was still young and Dana's stubbornness was no match for her own.

She watched miserably as Christine flirted shamelessly with Fox and
Dana pretended she wasn't watching but she knew better. Damn that
Christine anyway. As long as she had known her she had been a tease.
She had first broken Bill and then Charlie's heart, although, to be
fair, she was only 13 at the time and they were all just kids. It
would have been one thing though, if the trait had remained a childish
ploy and the girl had grown out of it, but it looked for all intents
and purposes that she had only nurtured it along the way.

Christine's family always seemed to follow the Scully's as transfer
after transfer moved them around. The girls never did quite get along
with her, Dana least of all, but proximity often breeds the oddest of
connections and Christie and the newest Scully, Lisa, were best
friends, something Christie continued to gush about.  Heavens, no
wonder Dana disliked her so. She was the exact opposite of her
youngest daughter. It was no wonder that of the two girls, Melissa had
tolerated her more. She didn't recall them being best buddies, but did
remember a few incidents, best forgotten, with some of the boys on the
base.

Maggie put her water down, wiping a tear away.  Melissa would have
appreciated her matchmaking attempts. She watched the scene unfold at
the head table with Dana and Bill. She knew a 'Scully ploy' when she
saw one and couldn't help a smile as she watched Dana brush off Bill
and move as gracefully as she could, in southern attire complete with
stiff, tulle underskirt, to the ladies room.  

----------------------------------------------

What the fuck! Bill watched as Dana made a less than graceful exit
brushing at a wet spot he certainly couldn't see on the gaudiest
yellow dress he had ever seen. He loved his new sister- in-law but
questioned her sense of fashion. Never mind that it was a fucking 30
degrees in the shade. Poor Dana must be dying. She looked like an
overstuffed yellow tomato. Damn that Christie, anyways. She was still
as much a tease now as she had been as a kid. He loved his wife but
could certainly appreciate a good-looking young lady, and Christie was
most certainly easy on the eyes.  He had been watching her put the
moves on Mulder all day, any chance she got, and had even, briefly,
thought it would be a good thing. It seemed a wonderful opportunity to
get rid of the guy but he had failed to consider the effect on his
baby sister.

Never mind, that a short time ago he was cursing the god's who had
allowed his sister to meet the man, no one had the right to break his
little sister's heart. Even that FBI asshole who wouldn't let anyone
call him by his first name.  What was with that anyway? And who the
hell names their kid Fox. He turned slowly to watch the scene on the
dance floor and his sister's exit from the room. He knew the
invitation was his mom's attempt to move their relationship forward
and he had blocked it at every turn. He had argued long distance with
his mom and later with Tara when he had got wind of what they were up
to. It was torture sitting in the car with the guy. Between the elbows
he took from his wife and Mulder's fidgeting in the back seat it was a
wonder he kept the car on the road. He really didn't wish ill of the
guy, he just didn't want his baby sister getting hurt anymore. He knew
that Mulder wasn't personally responsible for Melissa's death or
Dana's cancer, and he knew from his mom how much the guy cared about
Dana, it was just his association with so many bad times in the lives
of the Scully family made it hard to separate him out from it all. If
he was really honest with himself, he knew the guy cared for his
sister. Hell, Mulder even put up with him and he knew he could be a
real shit sometimes.

He watched Mulder pull away from Christie and observed the way she
tracked Mulder back to his table. Her eyes were defiantly focused in
on the man's ass and if he remembered anything about Christie, she
liked a nice ass. This just wouldn't do to have the evening end like
this. If he played it just right it could go a long way to fixing the
rift between he and Tara that always seemed to pop up when Mulder made
an appearance.  He headed back over to the table where Mulder now sat
with his mom. 

--------------------------------------------

Christine Lee Schering knew she looked good. She spent every other day
stretching and toning. On the days she wasn't at the gym she was
jogging her mandatory ten kilometers and she never missed her
Wednesday appointment with her manicurist.  She also knew that despite
how garish the yellow dress looked on Dana; she looked like she was
born to be a southern belle. Her thick brown hair swirled in curls
around her heart shaped face and full, long lashes emphasized her
brown eyes, courtesy of Maybeline. She didn't lack for lustful stares
from men, single or married, nor male company when she wanted it. She
didn't need to have a man around all the time, but it sure came in
handy when she needed something done or when she had an 'itch' to
scratch. She often wondered if her sex drive was normal. She sure
seemed to be a lot more active than many of her friends. Oh, she was
smart about it. She knew all the risks and took all the appropriate
precautions. She didn't do one-night stands, saving herself a lot of
time and trouble worrying about diseases. She usually made sure her
relationships lasted a little longer.

Lisa was her best friend and she was glad Charlie and her were happy
but Christy herself was not ready to settle down. At the moment she
was between boyfriends and Fox Mulder looked like the catch of the
party. Never mind that Tara had warned her off. Dana Scully was still
frumpy Dana. Well, maybe that wasn't totally true. It was hard to see
her under the yellow dress. Dana always made her feel stupid. Melissa
had been a little easier to deal with, less rigid in her beliefs, more
willing to just go with the flow.  They had fun teasing, taunting and
flirting with most of the guys on base. Mr. and Mrs. Scully weren't
too pleased when they got wind of what the girls were up to. Her own
parents were a little less concerned. It was funny to think of both
Charlie and Bill married. She recalled Charlie as shy and reserved and
Bill more volatile and unpredictable, at times. For the second time
that night she thanked her lucky stars that she had decided to come to
the affair solo. She knew that the groomsman she was paired with was
married but had taken a chance that there might be other singles
attending as well.

Fox was a smooth dancer and she took perverse pleasure in the icy
glare Dana sent their way.  She saw no ring on Fox or Dana's finger,
which meant open season as far as she was concerned.  She had brushed
off both Lisa and Tara's insistence that the two were a couple but
just wouldn't admit it. What kind of a set up was that? A couple but
just didn't know it. Deciding to give Fox some time with Mrs. Scully
before joining them at the table, Christie headed to the washroom to
make sure her Maybeline was still doing the trick.

------------------------------------


"Mrs. Scully, I appreciate you wanting to include me and all but I
think I'm making Dana uncomfortable by being here and I don't want to
ruin this time with her family." Mulder was doing his best to make
Maggie see it from his angle but she didn't seem to want to listen. He
next thought was interrupted by a deep voice.

"Mulder, you thinking of running out and ditching my sister again?"

He groaned - Bill. "It's not a ditch Bill if the other person doesn't
want you here."

"What do you mean she doesn't want you here?"

"Well, she's not exactly speaking to me right now."

"Shit Mulder - sorry mom. You're practically glued to Christine out
there, what do you expect her to do?"

"I was not glued to Christie and Scully won't dance with me. I asked
and she refused. And for the record, Christie asked me."

"You could have said no. You should have said no."

"She said she needed me to do her a favor and dance with her. That
some guy was hitting on her and she needed to be occupied."

Bill snorted. "That is so old. You believed her?  I love my brother,
and my new sister-in-law is a sweetie, but that girl is trouble with a
capital T. We grew up with her, you know. She was known as the base
flirt. She even dragged Missy through some of it with her. She's a
nice enough girl, when she doesn't have her sights set on you. You
just got set up big time, buddy."

'Buddy'? What the hell was with the buddy thing?  Did Bill forget he
was talking to 'the man who ruined my family'?

"I'm sorry to interrupt you two, but I haven't seen Dana come out yet.
She's been in there an awfully long time and when Christie left you,
Fox, she was headed towards the restroom I saw Dana go in to. You
don't think she'd try and goad her, do you Bill?"

"Mom, you remember Christine as well as I do. If she thought for a
minute Dana was some kind of threat she'd have her claws out. But this
is Christine, mom; she's always thought herself model material, next
to Dana. Missy was the one she was always so worried about."

"What? She thinks she's what, next to Scul - Dana?

"Oh, Fox. It really was a long time ago and really, they were all just
kids. Christie was always a bit of a flirt, and she and Dana always
seemed to be at odds with each other. Dana was always so serious,
studious and Christie used to tease her quite a bit about it. She
broke both my boys hearts - now don't you go looking like that William
Scully. You were the worst off of the two of you. All of fifteen and
acting like the world had ended all because she wouldn't dance with
you at the grade nine dance. I remember it well, son."

Mulder chuckled. "The truth comes out, Bill. You bleed red blood.
Whadda ya know!"

"Is that supposed to be funny, Fox? Is this one of your little green
men jokes?"

"Gray, Bill, they're gray."

"Would you two just stop it! Now I know you both love Dana - don't
look at me like that Fox Mulder - you both love her, a mother knows
these things.  And right now she is still in that washroom in that
hideous yellow dress not having any fun, possibly having to listen to
Christine - goodness - if I remember anything about Christine, if that
girl thinks she has half a chance with you Fox - she would run to make
sure Dana knew about it.  And if I know my daughter at all - "

"Got it, Mrs. Scully."

----------------------------------------

"Well here ya' are Dana. I wondered where you ran off to!"


"Had a little spill on the dress." Christie hid a smile behind her
hand. Dana looked miserable. She had the dress pulled up and tucked
under the tulle, using the outside fabric as a kind of barricade
against the onslaught of the scratchy nylon, her legs were bare and
her shoes were off, tossed carelessly under the chair she sat in.  
"Are you hot, honey? Or is the dress uncomfortable? Scratchy, huh? You
should have let Moira or I lend you one of the underskirts we had.
That would've kept the tulle away from your legs."

"I don't recall anyone saying anything about an underskirt." And I was
in the room the entire time. Scully took a deep breath. Christine was
still Christine, and the space seemed too small and tight all of
sudden. Who the hell designed women's bathrooms any way? They always
put far too few stalls in and there was never enough space - she
needed to get out of here before she took her bad temper out on
Christie. "You know, I am warm and the air is rather stagnant in here.
I think I'll go get some air. Did you need something, Christine?"

"Oh, well, I was wondering something actually."

Scully looked at her expectantly, waiting for her to continue.
Christine seemed to be lost in thought but she knew better. She
remembered Christine and her little ploys as if it was yesterday. She
knew this one and the Cheshire grin that accompanied it. This was her
go in for the kill but I am such an innocent, harmless, baby look.
Scully had an idea who the prey was almost before Christine spoke.

"Well, I did want to ask you something." She curled her hair around
her fingers, lowering her voice just a notch. "It's about that partner
of yours - Fox."

Scully held her breath. Christine knew Mulder's preference for his
name and her use of his first name now was deliberate. It was an
attempt to stake some sort of claim, to hint at some intimacy that she
herself was not privy to.  Scully's bearing was almost regal despite
the mass of yellow fabric billowed about her, tucked in such an
unlady-like fashion around her bare legs. "What did you want to know,
Christine?"

"Just checking his status is all. I certainly didn't notice a ring or
anything, but you know how it is these days. Is he attached to anyone
that you know of?"

Christine's saccharine sweet smile almost caused her to lose her
tenuous hold on her temper.  Instead she matched her smile and threw
in an eyebrow. "Depends on how you look at it. He has quite a few
attachments."

Christine took in the eyebrow and the rigidity of Dana's back. Hmmm,
she'd hit a nerve there. All's fair in love and war as they said.
"Silly, you know the kind of connection I mean. I take it he's not
seeing anyone then? I wouldn't want to intrude on an established
relationship or anything, ya know."

She knew what Christine was doing. Getting her to admit to Mulder's
single status would give Christine the green light. She had a quirky
sense of honor in these things. She remembered a stupid rhyme she and
Melissa had made up. It had something to do with married men were for
gawking only and liking someone didn't mean they were off limits to
the other one. It was a silly stupid game the two of them used to
play. She never did understood Melissa's part in all of it. Missy was
not into deliberately hurting people and Christine seemed to take some
perverse pleasure in playing with boy's hearts. It was apparent that
Mulder was on her hit list and as pissed as she was about the way he
ended up at the wedding, he did not deserve to be tweaked around by
Christine.

"Actually, Christine I am glad you brought this up; Mulder and I have
been seeing each other for quite some time.  And although I have no
problems with him dancing with anyone else I would appreciate if you
would keep your hands, and eyes, off his ass."

Christine was, momentarily, taken aback, but only for as long as it
took to remember the feel of Fox's arms around her, swaying to the
music.  "Really, Dana.  Well, that's not the way it felt to me, when
he was holding me on the dance floor."

"Oh, don't flatter yourself-"

"In fact," Christine continued, "I don't think you're telling me the
whole truth.  I think you are in love with Mulder, but you know
someone like you could never have him.  So, you're making up this
so-called-relationship with him just to stop me form having a little
fun." From the look of defeat on Dana's face she knew she had caught
her out. She did a silent victory dance, carefully maintaining a
neutral face. No need to rub it in; it wasn't Dana's fault she just
didn't have it. "Well, I'm glad we had this conversation, Dana. He
sure is a cutie. How do you keep yourself focused on your work? Boy,
if I worked with that all day, I don't think I'd get much done."

Scully recognized her defeat. It was there, between the lines. In one
fall swoop Christine had identified the extent of their relationship;  
had highlighted that in fact, there really wasn't anything connecting
the two of them other than the work they shared. The nuances, the
undercurrents were less definable, harder to quantify, but there was
still nothing keeping them from exploring other relationships, nothing
spoken of at any rate.

She knew she wasn't interested in pursuing other men, but had no way
of knowing where her partner stood. It was simply one of those things
that sat in the pile of 'things we don't talk about', along with her
abduction, her Cancer and Emily.

"Look, Christie. Mulder and I - well, we - it's complicated. You were
right.  I do love him and I was hop-

"You are a silly one," Christine interrupted, "A man like Mulder could
never love someone like you-"

"Well, that's where you are wrong," came a man's voice from the
doorway.  Both women looked around in surprise. Mulder leaned against
the doorway that led into the sitting area they occupied - although
technically it was far too small to be a true sitting area - watching
the two women with a bemused look on his face.

His hair was slightly mussed and his bow tie was crooked. Despite a
slightly disheveled appearance he still looked great. He was focused
intently on his partner, attempting to read the message she was
sending through the set of her mouth, the look in her eyes when
another yellow figure squeezed in between them.

"Oh Fox! Did you get lonely without me? I was just telling Dana that I
had left you alone long enough and it was time to get back."

It took him a minute to register what had happened. To realize that
the yellow image before him was Christie and that she had effectively
cut him off from Scully. He tried to move past her but she interpreted
his move as an attempt to get closer and grabbed him around the waist.

"Naughty boy, Fox! You'll just have to wait!" So caught up in her own
little fantasy, Christie failed to see the scowl on his face. She
could not, however, ignore the words, or the tone they were spoken in.

"I don't think you heard me. My mother always taught me to be polite
to women but in this case, I am sure she will forgive me. I am in a
relationship, Christie. I am not up for grabs. I am off the market. I
belong to Dana." He said, carefully extracting himself from Christie's
grip. "Am I making myself clear?"

Christie took a step back. She wasn't used to losing, certainly not to
the likes of Dana Scully. She tried a pout. "Dana is a big girl, Fox,
you don't have to protect her feelings. I am quite sure she's used to
the rejection."

"That's enough. This isn't about you. I am not interested in you. In
fact, I haven't been interested in anyone else for a long time," the
last part spoken as he met Scully's eyes.

"Would that be filed under 'not in the widely understood definition of
the term'?" She answered him with a small smile.

He moved himself around Christie and then turned back to her. "Why
don't you run along and find some single guy and make his night?"

She answered him, with a glare in Scully's direction, and marched out,
leaving them alone.

"Itchy?"

"You have no idea."

"You look kind of cute, you know."

"I wasn't hoping for cute."

"Billowy. You look billowy."

"And that's meant to make me feel better?"

"I mean it, you know."

"Which part; the billowy part or the cute part?"

"The part about loving you."

"Mulder-"

"No, Scully, I am not going to let you talk me out of this. Not this
time." He said, as he slowly walked towards her.

"What- what are you doing?"

"Something I should have done a long time ago."  He said, as he bent
his heads towards her and brushed his lips against hers.  The kiss,
although gentle and unsure at first, soon turned in to a more
passionate kiss, that left Scully in no doubt of Mulder's motives.  
And if the hardness she could feel pressed up against her stomach was
anything to go by, Fox Mulder wanted her.  Badly.

Finally, they had to separate for some air and both pulled anyway,
slightly breathless.

"Do you want me to take you home?"

"I never got to dance."

"We could dance, first."

"In this thing?"

"You could always take it off."

"You wish."

"Oh, Scully, you have no idea."

"Come on, Calamity Jane, time to blow this pop stand. I promise I'll
take you dancing where you don't have to look like a daffodil."

"I like daffodil's. Daisies; now I hate daisies."

"Okay, where you don't have to look like a daisy."

"Promise?"

"Promise. And Scully?"

"Yeah?"

"Just so we're clear here - I wasn't interested.  I am taken."

"Just so I am clear here - I did want you to come. I just wasn't sure
you would want to come with me. Not with me but with me. I don't want
to assume things based on one little kiss."

"It was a little kiss?"

"Lets get out of here, Mulder."

"Lead on, Miss Magnolia."

"Enough with the flower names." She replied, as she followed out of
the washroom back.


Present Day


"Hey, Scully." Mulder's voice pulled Scully back from her daydream.  
Still looking down at the picture that prompted her little flashback
she smiled for the first time at the dress that changed her
relationship with Mulder.

"Whatcha doing?" he ask as he coming up behind her.

"Just remembering Charlie and Lisa's wedding."  she said, still
smiling down at the photo in her hand.

"Scully, that dress was really ugly. Promise me you won't make our
bridesmaids wear anything yellow."

"Give me back the picture, Mulder. And who said anything about
bridesmaids? Presuming a lot, aren't we, Mulder?"

"Or that netting stuff ~ what's it called?"

"Tulle, it's called tulle Mulder."

"Okay, promise me - no tulle."

"No tulle either."

"So is that a yes, Scully?" His hands made gentle circles, caressing
her rounded abdomen.

"We're not naming her anything flower-like."

"Okay, no flower names. Is that a yes?"

"Yes, it's a yes Mulder."