Classification: Story, Romance (MSR)
E-Mail: rneal@tcia.net
Rating: PG
Small Farm
Carroll County, VA
October 29th, 1999 11:00 AM
Tom was a poor farmer who married young and had a family to support. He needed to begin his chores now. However, the young girl he found earlier in the day continued to plague his mind. His wife would notify the right people, but the child was so young and vulnerable...
Washington, DC
October 29th, 1999 12:00 PM
Fox Mulder grabbed for his coat. His partner, Dana Scully would return from lunch with her mother in half an hour, but he didn't like being in the office alone. Hmm. a quick burger and greasy fries sounded like a tasty meal. The ringing of his cell phone stopped this train of thought. Sighing, he answered the phone "Mulder."
"Agent Mulder, are both you and Agent Scully available at the moment?" Assistant Director Skinner asked.
"No sir, Agent Scully is having lunch with her mother. Can I help you?"
"I'd rather not tell you yet. I don't want you to do anything rash. Come to my office when Scully returns," Skinner said as he hung up the phone. Luckily, Scully returned from lunch at an earlier time than expected. "Skinner wants to see us ASAP.... he must have a case for us..not a good sign..."
"Well, let's get this over with as quickly as possible," Scully replied as in resignation. As the two agents entered the outer office, Skinner's secretary told them to take a seat. They sat in relative silence as they considered all the reasons AD Skinner would want to speak to them besides the chance of a new case. Neither enjoyed the cases that required communication with other agents...too much arguing and too much red tape...."Agents Mulder and Scully, please come in," AD Skinner called, drawing the two out of their thoughts. In Skinner's office, both took their usual seats that faced Skinner's desk, shifting uncomfortably under Skinner's gaze. "I received some disturbing information involving a young girl. We believe she may be your joint child. I booked you a flight to Southwest Virginia for 5:00 PM. There is a small airport in a town called Hillsville, Virginia. One of the local law enforcement officers will drive you to the only car rentals in the area. I have all arrangements worked out. Find this girl and return. Good luck," Skinner said, silently dismissing the agents.
"Well, looks like we have another nice trip to the sticks," Mulder complained under his breath.
"I see you're as excited about this as I am. Wanna take your car to the airport?" Scully asked as they exited the FBI Building.
"Always," Mulder smirked as he unlocked the door to his sky blue Taurus.
Flight En Route to Twin County Airport
1:30 PM
Scully continuously flipped through the file of Genevieve Mulder. A pretty dark haired girl with her eyes and her nose stared at her from the glossy photograph. *My daughter, * Scully mused softly. *Not at all like Emily, except for the fact she was created by them* "Penny for your thoughts?" Mulder questioned, drawing Scully away from the dark memories of her lost daughter, still fresh in her mind. "Do you think they'll take her away like they did Emily?"
"Not according to her medical charts. I guess you haven't gotten that far. We'll fight to gain custody, Scully. She will be OUR daughter. We'll worry about living arrangements after we find if she is indeed ours or not," Mulder replied, smiling sadly at the mental image of Scully's old daughter.
The rest of the flight passed in relative silence. When they arrived at the airport, they moved as a silent unit, both afraid to speak and break the spell. As they claimed their luggage from the small terminal, they spotted their ride to the car rental. He was a short, balding man of about 50 with white hair and duck feet. He looked like one of the sheriffs from the Andy Griffith Show. (Author Note: Andy Griffith's Show is set in a town only 45 minutes from my home where he grew up) *We'll be going to The Speedy Lunch any moment now, * Mulder mused silently, running a hand through his hair.
"Are you one of the two Federal Agents I'm supposed to meet? I didn't expect you to bring your little lady. Where's the other Federal Agent?" the officer asked, oblivious to the glare he was receiving from Scully.
"Sir, I am Special Agent Dana Scully. I do not appreciate your sexist comment. The new millennium is less than a year away," Scully commented as politely as possible to the officer.
"Sorry ma'am. These yonder parts is kindly slow whens it comes to keepin up with the times. Most womens round here stays home or is secretaries. A few of 'ems real liberated an is teachers. It would be unthinkable for one of are lil ladies to have a man's job," the officer replied in what appeared to be a mix of local dialect and poor grammar.
Holiday Inn Express
3:00 PM
Scully sat in her room and stared out the window. Leaves blew and gracefully danced to the ground. Beautiful hues of red, mahogany, yellow, and violets fluttered carelessly. Scully had trouble remembering when she had seen a more beautiful area. Rolling hills covered the horizon with the sun shining brightly in the distance, offering little warmth. Despite the old views of the area, Southwest Virginia had a few benefits. The changing of the seasons seemed very similar to the changes in her life; beautiful and quick. When she was young, many of the places she lived lacked the element this area held. It seemed the people here were friendly and knew each other. It was the kind of area where you could comfortably leave the doors of your car unlocked and allow your children to take walks as the sun set. The street noises were quite a contrast to Washington DC. A knock on her door brought her back to the true world, away from her thoughts of total bliss. "Who is it?"
"One hot, but Spooky guy," a familiar voice called.
"Sorry, I don't know any guys who fit the hot description. Oh well," Scully responded as she unlocked the door, allowing Mulder passage.
"I'm deeply wounded," Mulder teased, taking a seat on Scully's bed. "You have that look on your face. Have you been doing some Soul Searching?"
"You ready to find this kid?" Scully asked, ignoring Mulder's last statement.
"Only if you are," Mulder commented.
"All right then. Allons-y!" Scully replied, grabbing Mulder's hand as she went.
"Allons-y? You speak French?" Mulder asked amazed.
"Un peu.... why?" Scully asked perplexed.
"Oh, just a little surprised. Let's go."
Carroll County City Offices
3;15 PM
Mulder and Scully entered the brand new City Offices. Apparently Carroll County had some high tax revenue somewhere. A complex like this probably would cost around 12 million dollars. After checking the map that hung at the entrance, they took the necessary passages to get to the Child Welfare Services Division. "Hello, I'm Special Agent Fox Mulder and this is my partner, Dana Scully with the FBI. We're looking for Genevieve Mulder," Mulder stated, as they both pocketed their credentials.
"Yes, that lil girl who don't know no English. We knewed you was a-comin' so we a'int bothered to find a translator yet," the woman leading them replied, also using local dialect and bad grammar.
"No English? What language is she speaking?" Scully asked, quite curious.
"French. That was quite a shocker whens most of the children who don't speaks no English is a-speakin Spanish," the woman, Karyn, replied, opening a door at the end of the passage.
A little girl sat in the centre of the room. Her gaze was unfocused and she seemed oblivious to the intruders who entered her habitat. Barbies lay in the floor in front of her, but they were also ignored by this odd girl. "Bonjour, j'mappelle Dana, et toi?" Scully said softly, kneeling beside the girl.
"J'mappelle Genevieve. Comment allez vous?"
"Pas mal, et toi?"
"Ca va, merci."
"Non Englais?"
"Yes, I know English, but I haven't been in the mood to communicate with these people," Genevieve stated factually. "You seem nice. Who are you and why am I here?"
"Well, we're your parents," Scully responded signalling between the two of them. The test results for maternity and partenity were phoned to the hotel the moment they had arrived. Dana Scully and Fox Mulder were the biological parents of this small child.
"How old are you, Genevieve?"
"I'm four and a half. I'll be five in April. Do I get to go home with you?" Genevieve questioned excitedly.
At the social worker's nod, Scully responded, "Yes, you get to live with us in Washington, DC. Do you know where that is?"
"Uh-huh. I used to live in Luxembourg, but I got to come to the states once in a while. I usually only got to go to New York, but I went to Washington one time. It was pretty cool, but I didn't get to see much. You're really my mommy and daddy?"
"Yes," Scully responded quickly. "Are you ready to leave? We don't get to go home until tomorrow, but when we do, you can meet your grandmother and all kinds of neat people."
"Yes, I'm ready to leave. Will you please call me Genny instead of Genevieve? All these people here can't say my name and call me all kinds of weird variations."
Holiday Inn Express
5:00 PM
When the trio returned to the motel, Mulder went through the door adjoining the two rooms and told them he would meet them for supper in two hours. As soon as he left the room, Scully turned on PBS, and called her mother.
"Mom?"
"Hi Dana. Is something wrong?"
"No, mom, quite the opposite. Do you remember Emily? A girl has turned up who is both mine and Mulder's daughter. Unlike Emily, no tests have been performed and she is completely healthy. Her name is Genevieve. You can meet her tomorrow when we get back. You should see her! She's beautiful!"
"I'm happy for both you and Fox. What are you going to do about living arrangements? It really wouldn't be fair to deny her the chance to know Fox, and you aren't married. Yet, that is."
"Mom, we are partners," Scully said as she felt the colour rising in her face. "We haven't discussed arrangements yet, but we will later tonight. Gotta go, mom! Mulder just knocked on the door. Love you much!"
"You too, Dana. Send my love to Fox and I'll see you tomorrow," Margaret Scully replied, hearing the urgency in Dana's voice.
When Mulder entered the room, he came quietly behind Genevieve and tickled her sides. Genny started to laugh when she turned around and saw her father. He then hugged her and turned to Scully with their daughter still in his arms. "Who's up for pizza?" Mulder questioned before kissing Genny's head.
"ME!" Genny shouted enthusiastically.
"Sounds good to me. Do they have pizza in this area?" Scully questioned sarcastically.
"Scully, look out the window and across the four lane. Does that answer your question?" As Scully looked, she saw a small building added to a service station with TCBY Treats and Pizza Inn.
"Point made, Mulder. Do they have a Little Caesars? I really don't think that Pizza Inn could have much."
"Yep, in this really small town called Galax, they have a Little Caesars. It's about a ten minute drive from here," he commented as he reached for the phone book.
After thumbing through the phone book, he dialled the seven-digit number and a teenage boy answered. After speaking with the boy for quite a while, Mulder finally began to decipher "hickbonics." (Another Author's Note: "Hickbonics" may not be the technical term, but it is the word I use to describe the local dialect. I am constantly taunted by people my age because I don't understand them myself!) The order for one pepperoni pizza was placed under the name Mulder and they ventured into the town of Galax, Virginia. From the car, Scully and Mulder both noticed the obvious traits of a town that time forgot. Small, locally owned businesses lined the street. An old, regular Wal-Mart stood, though a Super Wal-Mart was under construction. As the trio entered the parking lot, they noted the shabby appearance of the small shopping centre. An Ingles which appeared to be renovated took up a large portion of the right side of the complex. Even with the renovation, the store showed its neglect over the years and reeked of low-income families who thought that Swiss cheese was a delicacy. Small shops of various descriptions inhabited the shopping centre until you reached Wal-Mart. Mulder never enjoyed shopping at the DC Wal-Mart, but this one was MUCH worse. Prices were outrageous and stock seemed limited. In the drink department, they lacked Dr. Pepper, the most popular beverage at this time. Poor families milled through the store looking for essential items. A few people of higher class also were in the store, but they travelled in much smaller groups than the poorer people. Apparently, a trip to Wal-Mart became a family event when you lived in a BBQ Town.
After collecting the pizza from Little Caesars, Mulder, Scully, and Genny returned to Holiday Inn. After much debate, they settled in Scully's room and watched a Nickelodeon show called The Rugrats. Scully watched as Genny laughed at the antics of Tommy, Chuckie, Phil, Lil, and the new baby Dil. Besides just watching her daughter, Scully also watched Mulder. Occasionally, he would catch her looking in his direction and smile warmly back. They lay on Scully's bed barely touching shoulders while Genny lay with her head in the pillow their shoulders formed with her small body between their hips and the space between their legs. Scully felt her body begin to tire as the time passed, but didn't want to move for fear of breaking the magical spell which seemed to be cast on this day. She felt Mulder's socked foot begin to run up and down the length of her calf in a flirty, sweet way believing she was asleep.
Holiday Inn Express
Hillsville, Virginia
October 30th, 1999 10:00 AM
Scully woke up feeling quite happy and comfortable. She felt relieved no nightmares disturbed her the night before, although this seemed strange. Also, an odd weight seemed to pin her lightly to the bed. It was a nice, warm weight that fell lightly on her shoulder and she didn't have the willpower to open her eyes and see where she was and what exactly that warm weight might be. Scully then heard the low rhythmic breathing of her partner as he began to rouse and the memories of yesterday returned. "Hi," Mulder whispered softly to Scully.
"Good morning. Did you sleep well?" Scully inquired softly, trying not to wake Genny.
"Yep, best I've slept in years, and you?"
"Same here. Maybe we should do this more often," Scully joked, noticing their efforts to speak softly failed when they found Genny's eyes flutter open.
"What time is it, anyway? We have a noon flight and I really don't want to explain we missed it because we were sleeping together."
"It's 10:00 AM. I guess we better get up soon, huh?" Mulder asked as he kissed Genny's temple then repeated the gesture on Scully's forehead, shocking her and also himself. He then rose from the bed and entered the bedroom adjacent to hers. With Mulder out of the room, Scully took her daughter into the bathroom for a quick bath. Luckily, Wal-Mart had the essentials to keep Genny clothed for the day, but new clothes were necessary when they re-entered civilisation. Using Johnson and Johnson Baby Shampoo, Scully washed Genny's hair and then emptied two capfuls of Mr. Bubbles Bubble Bath into the tub. Genny splashed and played for ten minutes and then tired of the water. Scully then dressed her and sent her over to Mulder who was waiting, fully clothed and clean to relieve Scully.
The morning passed rather uneventfully. Very little damage could occur when Genny kept Mulder and Scully from thinking of the events which occurred over the last few days. Both Mulder and Scully enjoyed watching her play with her dolls Mulder insisted every child needed. Oddly, when Genny played, she never spoke. She was a quiet child who seemed to be observant and wise for her age. One time Scully asked, "Why are you so quiet with your dolls? Most girls speak with themselves when they play."
"Only people who are mentally unstable talk to themselves. That's what my papa told me," Genny replied softly.
"Well, he's wrong. I don't know why an adult would tell a child such a senseless thing! I talked aloud when I played with dolls," Scully replied as she ran a hand over Genny's thick, straight hair.
"Are we ready to jet back to DC?" Mulder asked as he entered the room, carrying his suitcase.
"Yeah, let's get out of this humble, little town while I still have my sanity," Scully responded, grabbing for her own tote and Genny's hand.
Flight En Route to Washington DC
12:05
Apparently, Genny enjoyed sleeping for she fell into a deep slumber as the plane entered air. This was the moment Mulder and Scully dreaded for now they were forced to speak of living arrangements and other important decisions concerning a daughter.
"Scully, do you have any suggestions concerning living arrangements. It wouldn't be fair to deny Genny the chance of living with both her parents, would it?" Mulder questioned, glancing at Genny as he spoke.
"No, I don't think that would be fair, either. We could rent a large apartment. I know of an opening in my complex."
"I don't need a bedroom, so we wouldn't have to go any larger than two bedrooms. Do you know of any openings for that?"
"Well, my apartment has two bedrooms, remember? In fact, one is even decorated for the younger audiences for when my nieces and nephews are in town. Where would you sleep?"
"I sleep on the couch at my place. Until my waterbed broke, I slept in it, but I'm used to the couch again. However, if we have sleepovers like we did last night, I can handle a bed," Mulder teased.
"Har har har," Scully responded smiling softly as she stared out the window before turning on her laptop.
"What are you doing, Scully?" Mulder asked as he gestured towards the laptop.
"Typing a report and conclusion on the situation," Scully replied as she clicked on Microsoft Office.
"Skinner isn't expecting a report today, I can promise you that. He's pretty rational and he'll probably give us some time off if we ask really nicely."
"Well, tomorrow begins the weekend. We can work out all the details without having to miss work. I think we should check in with Skinner before we do anything else. What do you think? We can then go to my mother's house if that's all right?" Scully replied as she shut down her laptop, taking Mulder's advice.
"Yeah, I definitely think we should check in with Skinner. I think he would like to meet Genny, and then we should go to your mom's. Is she really happy she has a granddaughter?"
"I think she is pretty happy. I didn't have time to talk to her much and I thought I would probably see her today anyway. Yeah, Skinner would probably like to see a product of the project. Do you want to come shopping with us?" Scully asked stealing a glance in her daughter's direction.
"I wouldn't miss it for the world. Please don't insist on being sensible when we go shopping. I've missed four years of spoiling my child and I do not intend on losing anymore. Also, my father had quite a bit of money and left it to me since he divorced mom. I think she will like Genny, too. Who couldn't?" he asked, also admiring their daughter.
"We will be descending in ten minutes please follow the.." the flight attendant droned, concluding their conversation for them.
FBI Building
1:30 PM
After eating a quick lunch, the trio entered the outer office of Assistant Director Skinner. His secretary smiled at them before informing Skinner they were here to see him. Shortly after, Skinner ushered all three into his office and smiled as the small child climbed into her father's lap and fell asleep almost immediately. He was glad this duo discovered happiness as well as their child in Carroll County, Virginia. After a brief meeting, he told them he didn't want to see either of them until next Friday. "Would you like me to e-mail the report on this case to you?" Scully asked, preparing to leave the office.
"No, that will not be necessary yet. I can wait a week before reading the report and the truth won't disappear in just a week. Good-bye agents. Have a nice week and spoil your new daughter," Skinner replied.
"Yes sir," Mulder said, smiling as he guided Scully out of the office.
Margaret Scully's Residence
2:00 PM
Scully raised her hand as she knocked on her mother's door. Almost instantly, the elder Scully opened the door and smiled when she found her daughter, her granddaughter, and Fox Mulder at the door. After hugging each person, she ushered them into her large Victorian style home and began fixing a snack for the weary travellers. "This is a nice surprise. Would you like to play with some dolls or a Sony PlayStation while we discuss boring adult stuff, Genny?" Mrs. Scully asked as she led Genny out of the room to take her to the renovated gameroom.
When Mrs. Scully returned, she smiled as she watched the young couple on the couch.
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