The Curious Case of Blender Bunny by Christine Leigh Summary: Easter 2010. Thirteenth in a series of vignettes centering around Mulder and Will that may also be read as a stand-alone. The series starts approximately two years after the end of the show. Rating: G Category: Vignette, AU Keywords: Post-series. Spoilers: None. Disclaimer: The characters of Mulder, Scully, and William are the products of Chris Carter. They also belong to Ten-Thirteen Productions and the Fox Network. No copyright infringement intended. Archiving: If you would like to archive anywhere, I'd appreciate a quick note first. Email: Feedback is always welcome, leighchristine@hotmail.com Easter morning 6:30 a.m. "I hope this has a happy ending." "I don't know." "Well, then there's a chance?" "There's always a chance." Will is all business, but knows that Dad knows he's goofing; it's their game. Mornings before Mom and Kaylene join them are some of their best times, and Easter morning has always been special for them. Mom's Easter basket has been secured, the trail of notes leading to it strategically placed, and father and son have now moved to the kitchen. That's when the real fun started. "If it doesn't end well, then I don't know who's going to eat all this. Tragedy isn't conducive to healthy appetites." Mulder waves a hand toward the explosion of ingredients before them as he says this. The island in the middle of the kitchen contains two dozen eggs, a box of pancake mix, maple syrup, half a gallon of milk, a pound of bacon, apple sausage, two loaves of bread, a bowl of oranges and a carton of Tropicana, a basket of strawberries, a bunch of bananas, a bottle of champagne, boxes of Cheerios and corn flakes, a small carton of soy milk, a can of cocoa, and a blender containing a bunny. "I'll be hungry." "Will, this is an awful lot of food for one person." "You'll have some -- I know you will." Dad likes breakfast. Especially on bacon mornings. They don't come often. "It would be a shame not to be able to eat what I'm sure will be the most delicious breakfast ever, but seeing as *one* of my children could be saddened by the outcome of this case, I'll reserve commitment to feasting." "Mom will eat with me." "I wouldn't bet on it." "I'll give her one of my peanut butter eggs." "That wouldn't be playing fair. And, we're all about fairness here. Right?" Mulder glances at the prisoner. How Will got it away from his sister remains a mystery. The toy bunny came three days ago in a package from Tara. Well, from Bill and Matthew, too, but Mulder assumes that Tara chose the bunny for her niece. Brown, with pink ears, it is as cute as its still sleeping mistress who hasn't let it out of her sight, until now. "And fun." "Always. But we have to use good judgement. And, Will, I don't think Kaylene will be happy if her bunny turns up blended." "But it might be fun." Will grins at Dad. "Happy endings, Will." Mulder returns the grin, and then considers the unopened champagne. The coffee maker has just stopped hissing, and he thinks that it might be time to break open all the beverages. "He was bored just sitting by Kaylie's bed. I rescued him." "So, that's it. It was a mission." "A mission?" "A project taken on with a specific goal in mind." "Okay. He wanted to have fun." "And he just hopped out the bedroom door all by himself?" "He took the train." "The one that runs through Kaylene's room and doesn't make any noise, apparently?" Will nods. "It's a magical train." Mulder considers this for a moment. "All right. Sounds plausible to me." "I guess he should go home." "Might be the thing to do. Did he buy a round-trip ticket?" "Yes." Mulder watches as Will pulls the step stool over to use so that he can reach the surface of the counter, and then as he removes the blender's lid. The prisoner is freed. "Good job. I think blender bunny's already looking a little better." "He's fine." "Case closed, then. Will, what's your choice? Pancakes, cereal, we have it all. "French toast." "French toast it is. That's what I want, too." "I'll be back." Mulder smiles at the serious tone. Will's growing up. "Tread quietly." "Shssh." "Shsssh." "Shssssh." "Shsh." - end -