What We Know of Time: The Rise and Fall of Tad O'Malley (1/?)
by Tessa Moore

Disclaimer: Not mine - not by a longshot!

Summary: A series of vignettes, counting backwards from 
2016. (Warning -- Revival spoilers in Chapter 1 only.)

E-mail me if you so please! tess.moore.xf@gmail.com

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"I can't believe he thought he could get you drunk." Mulder 
eases his hand in soothing circles around her shoulder blades, 
alternating between the two so as not to leave one feeling 
needy. She leans back into his touch, her back aching after a 
day of work, followed by an evening of snooping and conniving. 
Scully sighs and wishes her jacket to melt from her body; the 
back rub would be so much better if only she could feel his 
short nails scratching against her. For that matter, she 
wishes to be magically and immediately swathed in the 
soothing waters of the over sized bathtub in her swanky new 
Georgetown apartment. Sadly, the little backwoods, 
unremarkable house is only owner to a very mediocre tub and a 
poor water heater.

"First of all," Scully sighs contentedly, "I don't really know 
that he was trying to get me drunk. Secondly, IF he was trying 
get me drunk, what exactly about Tad O'Malley's personality 
makes that unbelievable?"

Mulder chuckles. "Bastard. You're right; You know, I didn't 
think that those people were real."

Scully pulls away from him and finally throws her jacket to 
the floor by the bed, uncaring. "Jesus, it's hot in here, 
Mulder. Would it kill you to open a window?"

Mulder throws a sideways glance at her, but doesn't bother 
expressing what they both know he's thinking. Humoring her,
he makes his way to the window on her side of the bed.

"Those people..." She continues, fanning the newly exposed 
outside air towards her face. "You mean political 
commentators? What, are they aliens now?"

Mulder chuffs, throwing himself back down beside her. 
Amusement flickers on her face while the bed bounces 
erratically. "They may as well be. Really; I thought 
those guys said whatever it took to reel in the gullible 
and downright idiotic, just to make a buck. I always 
figured they went home like normal people -- maybe morally 
ambiguous people, but relatively normal. But that guy's got 
a "jackass" sign hanging from his neck, clear as day."

"Well, that "jackass" sign is working to our advantage 
right now. He's too much of a moron to see that he's 
being manipulated by both sides."

"Admit it, Scully." Mulder pulls her closer, watching her 
eyes deepen. He loves the way her face relaxes and her 
eyes sharpen when she responds to him. It never gets old. 
"You enjoy this double agent stuff."

"If it means getting what we want and moving on with our 
lives, I'll love it as long as it takes." Her smile 
fades. "I just wish the information could have helped 
Sveta."

Mulder nods. "I wish we could help everyone. It's a 
silent war, Scully, but a war nonetheless. There are 
bound to be casualties."

"I just hope it's all worth it, Mulder. I really do." 
She sinks down into the pillows and he follows her, 
urging her head into the crook of his shoulder. The 
moment is long and silent, and Mulder can feel her 
thinking deeply. His hand roams the nape of her neck, 
this time tickling with his fingertips and playing with 
her hair. He loves the fullness of it. It's so womanly, 
and he loves the fact that she's allowed herself her 
femininity, after years of denying and hardening herself. 
A couple decades down the line, she looks more like the 
woman he first met than the woman who came to grow from 
the ensuing circumstances. She looks like Dana.

She speaks first, her voice little more than a whisper. 
"I've missed you. The apartment is ready when you are."

Mulder leans down to plant a peck on her lips. She 
invites him in hungrily, desperate for something deeper. 
He acquiesces, filling her mouth and cradling her head. 
When they disengage, he turns to look at her more fully, 
crooking his hips towards her. "It won't be long. The 
Gunmen almost have clearance into the warehouse. I'm 
certain that's where they're housing the virus. We just 
need to keep up appearances and keep O'Malley distracted 
long enough mobilize the team and swipe it."

"And when he hears I've, coincidentally, gone back to the 
FBI with the man he knows as my ex-husband?" Scully smiles 
crookedly.

"He'll be suspicious." Mulder smiles darkly. "But it'll 
be long gone by then, buried in the middle of the desert, 
in a compound built by three men who've been dead for 
fourteen years."

Scully raises her eyebrows. "There'll be a price on 
our heads again."

"You said it yourself, Scully -- there's not really much 
of a choice. This is what we're meant to do -- I'm as 
certain as I ever was. We'll have the protection and 
resources of the FBI again. It's time to finish it."
Scully nods and leans in for another short kiss, inviting 
him to roll her over. He's tender when he runs his hand 
down her midsection, but his eyes are ravenous.

She smiles sweetly, and he settles his weight between her 
shifting legs. "It's time, Mulder."



End Chapter 1