Get Ready
(aka, "I hate coming up with story titles")
-coolbyrne

Classification:  S, SDF(riendship)?

Archives: You want it?  Take it.  But PLEASE, take it and use it in its
entirety; that means all this pre-fic ramblings, too!

Rating: PG  (Two uses of one slightly objectional word, a couple of uses
of "Damn")

Spoilers:  Hmmm... well, "Invocation" kinda screwed this one up, but
see Author's Note at end.  Also, spoilers for upcoming episodes hint
that my choice of Doggett-vehicle is all for naught.  Ah, well.

Summary:  In a nutshell?  Scully meets Doggett's family.

Disclaimer:  The characters of Scully and Doggett as well as any
inference/reference to events that have already occurred on the show
naturally belong to CC and 1013.. and he can have 'em.  As much as I
love the show and all it entails, I wouldn't want the baggage that
comes with it, let me tell ya!  All other characters are mine, ALL
MINE!!  Er... carry on...

Beta Reader-free.

Feedback is cautiously, yet optimistically welcome at
fugitive@ihateclowns.com   (YES, that is a real email server.)





Sat. December 17th

She walked in the office only to find someone already there.

"Can I help you?" Scully asked, a bit miffed that someone would be
invading her space.

The man turned around, and she was surprised to find the man to be none
other than her new partner, Agent John Doggett.

"Oh," she faltered, "I didn't realize it was you."

"Must be the suit," he drawled in that odd way he had.

"Yeah," Scully noted, "you're not wearing one."  In fact, he
was wearing a black cable knit sweater and jeans, and obviously hadn't
gotten around to shaving yet.

"I'm off to a family dinner, and Mom doesn't like the suits too
much."

"I see."  She had to admit, now that she had the chance to see him
"dressed down" that she didn't like the suits too much either.  Of
course, she'd never say it.  "So tell me," she continued, "what
are you doing here on a Saturday?"

He raised the file he had in his left hand.  "Just thought I'd pick
this up and look it over before we started it on Monday."

"Do you ever NOT work, Agent Doggett?"

There was a moment of silence as he tried to scour his mind for an
answer.  Scully saw this pause and offered helpfully, "I guess when
you sleep."

"No," he shook his head, "actually I've had a lot of
breakthroughs come to me in my sleep, so that's not true."  He
finally gave up and shrugged.  "There are moments; I just can't seem
to think of one at this time."  He took in the brief appearance of her
smile then asked, "So what are YOU doin' here, Agent Scully?"

She gave the office a broad sweep of her eyes and answered, "Oh, just
some work I've been meaning to catch up on."  Truth be told, there
was no particular reason for being there; she just didn't want to be
home.  Alone.

Doggett caught a glimpse of the loneliness in her eyes.  He was glad he
swung by before going to the dinner.  "You spendin' time with your
family over the holidays?"

"Next weekend."

"So you're free this weekend."

Scully nodded.

He echoed her nod and offered, "You're more than welcome to come
with me."  Before she had a chance to put into words the look of
surprise on her face, he quickly added, "I always invite my new
partners to meet my family.  They tell me I don't talk about work
enough.  And it'll be a great meal."

Scully didn't quite know what to say.  This invitation seemed out of
the blue, and if she would've had a chance to think about it, she
probably would've been suspicious at the timing of it all.  Instead,
she replied, "Uh, no.  But thank you.  I've got a few things I have
to get done around here."

Agent Doggett looked around the office as she had done earlier.  Not
wanting to push things any further, he pressed his lips together and
gave a small nod of his head.  "Ok."  He slowly made his way to the
door and turned around.  Giving her a final look, he paused in the
doorway.  Realizing that nothing was forthcoming from her direction, he
tapped the file on the doorframe and said, "You have a good weekend. 
I'll see ya Monday."

Scully stood there and watched him leave.  And the moment he was out of
sight, she thought, "Shit."

He wasn't 3 paces away from the office when he heard her call out his
name.  "Agent Doggett!"

Poking his head back in the doorway, he answered, "Yeah?"

Looking at him standing there, she knew she hadn't made any of this
easy on him.  But did he know how hard the last few months had been for
her, too?  She just wasn't ready for this, this new partner, this new
direction.  His mere presence only served to remind her of Mulder's
absence.  He wouldn't be here if Mulder wasn't.. out there. 
Somewhere.  

But Doggett had appreciated her situation more than she could have hoped
for.  And probably more than she deserved, considering her treatment
towards him.  She KNEW it wasn't his fault any of this happened.  And
she KNEW he was trying.  But it was just so damn hard!  What she was
about to do next wouldn't be any easier.

"Uh, listen," she waved a dismissive hand vaguely towards the desk. 
"There's nothing here that can't wait until Monday.  If your offer
still stands."

He gave a sideways smile and said, "Absolutely."

Scully looked down at herself then back to Doggett.  "Do you think
your mom will mind me showing up in this?"

"Nah," he replied, "she'll say you look real good."

					*-----*


As he held the door for her to the parkade, they debated on the best way
to go about the driving arrangements.  

"Do you want to follow me, or do you want to catch a ride with me and
I'll bring ya back later, or what would be best for you?"  Doggett
asked.

Scully let her head fall back for a moment and shrugged the tension out
of her shoulders.  "I don't feel like driving.  You know where
we're going, so why don't I just go with you.  You can drop me off
at my place after and I'll pick up my car tomorrow."

"Sounds good to me, Agent Scully."

And yet another fork in the road for her to decide upon.   She stopped
in the middle of the near-empty parkade.  Turning towards him, she
raised her eyes to see him looking at her attentively.  She brought a
hand up to brush the lock of hair from her face before saying, "Look,
I'm not going to call you 'Agent Doggett' around your family, so I
certainly can't expect you to be calling me 'Agent Scully'.  This
is a bit on the outer limits of work, so I think 'Dana' would be
fine in this case."

He averted his eyes in the way that he did when he was giving something
a serious thought.  In a brief moment, his gaze returned to hers and he
said simply, "Ok."

They resumed walking until they came upon 3 vehicles.  

"Wait," Scully said, "let me guess.  The Jeep's yours."

Doggett smiled and said, "How'd you know?  You don't think I'm a
Beemer kinda guy?"

She shook her head and replied, "No, I don't.  And the Lexus seemed
to be a bit out of the John Doggett profile as well."

Another thing for him to think about until he stated, "Hmm.  That's
somethin' I'm gonna have to work on I guess."

He walked over to the passenger side of the midnight blue Jeep, disarmed
the alarm and opened the door for her.  As she climbed in, she gave him
a look that puzzled him.  He was still pondering this as he climbed in
the driver's side.  Scully noticed his puzzlement and decided to let
him in on her thought.

"You're very polite," she said by way of explanation.

He put the key in the ignition and clicked the seat belt home before
asking, "What do you mean?"

Scully fastened her own belt and clarified, "You.  Polite.  You hold
the door of the parking garage open for me.  You open the car door for
me.  When we sat down to lunch in the cafeteria the other day, you went
to stand up when I did, but you stopped."

Doggett answered, "I forgot we were at work.  I didn't think you'd
appreciate somethin' like that in the workplace.  I'm sure it's
hard enough to get some of the boys' club members to look past your
gender without having me standin' up and practically announcin'
it."  And with that, he shifted the Jeep into drive and pulled out of
the garage.

In a sincere tone, she said simply, "Thank you."  Then, only
half-jokingly Scully added, "I can't wait to meet the man who taught
you so well."

He turned to her and smiled.  "I've got a lot to learn, believe me. 
You only have to ask any of my exes!"  Her laughter filled the Jeep
and he took the time to store that sound away in his memory before
continuing, "Besides, if you're talkin' about my ol' man, he
won't be there.  He passed away a long time ago."

Scully winced inwardly.  "I'm sorry.  I should've thought
first."

Doggett shook his head, "Nah, don't worry about it.  I was only 14
when he died, so it's been a long time."

"So it's just you and your mom?"

"Me, my mom, and my 4 younger sisters."

"Wow," Scully remarked, "that's a fair size family."

"Yeah, especially when you count in the nephews and nieces and
husbands and boyfriends."

"They all going to be there?"  Scully asked.

Doggett shrugged.  "From what I gather, yeah.  Only one of my sisters
lives here.  It's her house we're going to.  She's the oldest
girl, Ellen.  Everyone else is scattered all over the damn place, so
it's a question of who can get the right flights, who wants to drive,
and all that sort of thing.  Most of 'em have been here since
Wednesday, with the exception of my youngest niece, Aimee.  I think
she's drivin' in from New York though."
	
A beeping sound interrupted the conversation.  Scully patted her jacket
then said, "I don't think that's me."

Doggett shook his head and responded, "No, I think that's me.  My
phone's in the glove box."  The tilt of his head encouraged Scully
to open the compartment and get the phone.

"Thanks," he said, before answering the call.  "Hello?"

As he joined the flow of a conversation, Scully took the time to glance
through his glove compartment.  Registration, 3 sticks of gum, a pack of
cigarettes, and some CDs.  Figuring she wouldn't be overstepping any
boundaries, she reached in for the CDs.

Doggett watched her out of the corner of his eye and wondered what kind
of conclusions she was drawing about him, as her eyes scanned over his
things.  She was subtle, he'd give her that much.

"Yeah, I got the wine.  Is that it?"  Pause.  "Ok.  Listen, I'm
bringin' someone over, so tell Mom to set another place."  He
listened for the response.  "No, it's my new partner.  Yeah, you
guys get to meet 
another one."  Laughter.  "Ok, we'll be there soon."

He hung up and gave the phone back to Scully.  After she put it away,
she picked up one of the CDs and showed it to him.  Accompanied by an
appropriate smirk, she queried, "'Filter'?"

He gave a bit of a shrug and a laugh and said, "I know someone who's
the brother of the lead singer, so it's sort of an obligatory thing to
have in the car."

"Have you listened to it?"

"Sure.  Once."  He took note of her small laugh again.  "There are
one or two songs on it I like, but it's too industrial for me."

Scully's eyebrows went up and she commented, "I'm surprised you
would even know the term 'industrial'."

A look of realization came over his face and with a wry tone in his
voice he said, "Oh, now I get it.  You were expectin' more of a
Merle Haggard/Johnny Cash thing goin' on."

She laughed again and admitted, "Yeah, well.  I guess I should've
known differently when I didn't see a pick-up in the parking lot."

He returned her laughter and added, "I don't know about you, but I
find drivin' to be my only refuge from work sometimes.  Every once in
a while, I like to take the roof off, turn the volume up high and just
go.   And for my own personal safety, the last thing I wanna hear is
some good ol' boy cryin' about his wife leavin' him, his dog
dyin', his boss firin' him, and," he glanced at Scully, "his
pick-up breakin' down."

She rested her elbow on the edge of the window and gave him a look. 
"Gee, I'm seeing you in a whole new light, Agent Doggett."

He gave a smile at her teasing tone before continuing.  "Anyway, for
the record- no pun intended- with the exception of the Motown discs and
that SINGLE Johnny Cash one," he paused to give her a stern look,
"Aimee probably gave me the rest.  It's her pet project to make sure
her uncle keeps up his 'hip quotient', as she puts it."

A comfortable silence descended upon them until Scully said simply,
"You're a hard man to read."

He looked at her and saw her appreciative glance.  Covering up his rare
moment of self-consciousness, he retorted, "That's because my
profile's all wrong!"

					*-----*


They pulled up to the curb alongside a modest looking 2-story house.  It
was as close as they could get; there were cars everywhere.  Suddenly
Scully wondered if this was such a good idea after all.  Doggett reached
into the back to grab the wine and noticed the look on her face.

"You'll do just fine.  You'll have a great time, I promise, ok?"


She nodded her head and gave him an encouraging, "Ok."

"Good.  Now don't move."  He got out of the Jeep and walked around
to her side, opened the door and helped her out.

"Not used to that yet," she remarked under her breath.

Letting go of her arm, he gestured her up the walkway.  Arriving at the
door, he pressed the doorbell.  After a moment, the curtain moved aside
and a blonde-haired girl took a peek outside.  Upon seeing who it was,
the door flew open and the girl squealed and threw her arms around him. 
"Uncle John!!!!"

Putting his arms around her, he returned her delight and said, "Aimee!
 You made it."  Now unlocking her grasp from his shoulders, he turned
to Scully.  "Aimee, this is my new partner, Agent Scu..." he
corrected himself, "Dana.  Dana, this is my baby niece, Aimee."

Aimee groaned and rolled her eyes.  "I'm almost 20."  She extended
her hand to Scully.  "Anyway, don't listen to anything he says. 
It's nice to meet you."

Scully returned the gesture and replied, "It's nice to meet you too,
Aimee.  Almost 20," she added.  "Wow."

Doggett laughed and said, "Yeah, she's almost ancient."

Aimee gave him a jab on the shoulder and said, "Are you going to come
in or not?  Everybody made it except Aunt Kelly.  She couldn't get
time off work."  She turned to Scully.  "That's the middle kid. 
She lives in California.  I don't suppose Uncle John has told you
anything about us."

She suppressed a smirk and answered, "No, 'Uncle John' hasn't
told me anything really."  Doggett was obviously biting his tongue,
and Scully rather enjoyed the moment.

"Typical," Aimee retorted, scornfully looking at her uncle. 
"Would it surprise you to know that he failed to mention that his new
partner was a woman?"

Doggett jumped in, "Listen, are we goin' inside anytime tonight?"

Aimee grabbed the bottle of wine from his hand and sighed, "Fine, we
were having a bit of fun, but come on in then."

They entered the house and were greeted by the welcoming smell of a
home-cooked meal.

"Kaitlin!!!!!!!!"  Aimee hollered.

"Subtle as always, I see," he remarked to Aimee.

Doggett was helping Scully with her jacket when a bundle of energy came
streaking down the hallway.

"Daddy!!!!!!!!"

He leaned down and scooped up a child of about 5 in his arms.  "Oh,
you're getting' so big!"  Giving her a big bear hug, he whispered
lovingly, "How's my baby doll?"

"Good.  I've been helping Grandma all day making cookies and I got
to help her stuff the turkey and it was really gross, Daddy."

Doggett laughed and gave her another hug.  "Good for you!"   Turning
to Scully, he spoke to Kaitlin.  "Do you remember when Daddy told you
about his new job?"  She nodded.  "Well, this is Daddy's new
partner.  This is Dana."  Looking at Scully (and noticing the look of
utter astonishment on her face), he said, "Dana, this is my daughter,
Kaitlin."

To her credit, Scully came to long enough to smile at the girl and say,
"Hi, Kaitlin."

Kaitlin smiled back and said, "Hi."  Then she covered her mouth with
her tiny hand and whispered into her daddy's ear.  Doggett listened
intently before nodding.  "You're right.  She IS a girl!"

"Kaitlin, come help Mommy," a voice called before the body appeared.
 "Oh, I'm sorry.  I didn't realize you were here, John."  A
willowy brunette took in the scene of Doggett and Scully.

Doggett saw the look and chose to ignore it.  "Liz, this is my new
partner, Dana.  Dana, this is Liz."

Liz extended her hand and added, "Nice to meet you."  She then
turned back to Doggett and held out her arms for Kaitlin.  "Come on,
the cookies are almost done."

"Ok, Mommy."  Giving a last kiss on the cheek of her father, she let
go and squirmed into the arms of her mother.  "Bye, Daddy." 

As mother and daughter disappeared down the hall, Aimee piped up in a
hushed tone, "The ex," then made a gagging motion.

Doggett gave her a stern, "Aimee!"

She shrugged but apologized.  "Sorry, Uncle John."

He put his arm around her and kissed the side of her cheek.  "It's
ok.  Listen, if I go get some drinks, can you take Dana into the
livin' room?"  He turned to Scully to see if she agreed.  She nodded
and replied, "I think that would be good."

"Great," Aimee exclaimed, "I can show you all the pictures of
Uncle John when he was a kid!"

Before he had time to object or threaten, she had already pulled Scully
away.

					*-----*


She felt hands come over her eyes and a soft voice whisper in her ear,
"Guess who?"

She turned around and exclaimed, "John, you're here!"

Putting his arms around her and kissing her cheek, he replied,
"Everythin' smells good, Mom."

"It should," she retorted, "we've been slaving over the stove
all day!"

Doggett rolled his eyes and said, "Well, I told you I'd pick
somethin' up from Kentucky Fried Chicken, but you said 'no'."

She slapped his arm and said, "Get out of the kitchen right now!"

He feigned a hurt look and remarked, "What?  You know I can cook.  You
taught me."

His mother nodded in agreement, "That's true.  But I'm not sure
who taught you your perfect timing of showing up AFTER everything's
finished.  Very convenient."

Laughing, he said, "Ok, Mom.  I just came in to get somethin' to
drink anyway."

Her eyes opened wide and she noted, "Oh that's right.  You brought
your new partner with you.  Where is he?"

Doggett, in his straightforward way answered, "SHE's in the livin'
room.  Aimee's probably subjecting her to embarrassin' stories I'm
gonna have to live down for the next year or so.  You want to come with
me and meet her?"

His mother grabbed a cloth and declared, "'Her'?  You'd better
believe I do!"

					*-----*


He walked into the living room with his mother to find Scully surrounded
at the bookcase by his niece Aimee, and two of his sisters, Ellen, the
oldest, and Sarah, the youngest.  Ellen's husband, Ray, looked like he
was in his glory.  Doggett approached the group and said, "Tough life
you live, Ray.  Surrounded by all these beautiful women."

"I was just keeping them entertained until you showed up," Ray joked
and gave his brother-in-law a welcoming hug and clap on the back. 
"How are you, John?"

 Doggett returned the gesture warmly and answered, "Pretty good, Ray,
pretty good."

The two sisters turned and alternately gave him a kiss and a greeting. 
Aimee interjected, "Hey, we were just getting to the part where you
broke your arm when you were eight."

Doggett groaned and remarked, "You've already made it up to age
eight?  This is gonna take a lot of livin' down to do."

Scully let him off the hook by saying, "Don't worry, I promise to
forget everything I've heard once I walk out that door."

He smiled and said, "I appreciate that."  He looked at the group
before continuing, "Where's Tracy?"

Ellen guessed, "I think she's running around the house chasing after
little Sam.  He's at that great age of 2."

Doggett rolled his eyes in understanding, then returned his gaze to
Scully.  "Well, it looks like you've met a lot of people while
I've been away, but there's someone else I'd like you to meet." 
He gestured to the woman at his side.  "Dana, this is my mother,
Gloria.  Mom, this is my partner, Dana."

Scully was surprised to find herself in the embrace of this woman. 
"It's so nice to meet you, Dana."  Scully was more surprised to
find herself returning the embrace with affection.

"It's very nice to meet you too, Mrs. Doggett."

Gloria pulled back and corrected, "'Gloria', please.  And I'd
like to say that John's told me all about you, but up until a moment
in the kitchen, I thought you were a man!"

"Uncle John hardly ever talks about work," Aimee noted.

"Work's an off-topic subject for John, so we try to respect that,
Aimee," Sarah cut in.

"Yeah, I know, but when I tell my friends that my uncle works for the
FBI and they ask me what kind of things he does, I don't have anything
to freak them out with."

Scully had to laugh at this and offered, "Well, he's got the right
partner to amend that problem."

Doggett gave her a smile and said to the group, "I think you've had
your opportunities to share John stories with her, so we're gonna go
sit down now, if you don't mind."

With that statement, the group slowly dispersed and Doggett led Scully
over to a couch.  He handed her a glass and said, "It's only eggnog.
 I didn't think you wanted alcohol."

Scully looked into his eyes and wondered why she had the feeling he was
in on something she hadn't shared with him.  She reached over for the
glass and answered, "Thank you."

Before she could take the glass, he pulled it back.  "Now listen.  I
remember what happened the last time I handed you a drink.  We're not
gonna have another moment like that, are we?  It wouldn't look too
good for me to be wearin' a drink in the company of my own family."

Scully reddened a bit and claimed defensively, "If you had told me who
you were..."

Doggett interrupted, "Hey, I'm only kiddin'.  I deserved that, I
know. It's just that eggnog would be a bitch to get out of this
sweater."

She relaxed a bit and took the drink from his hand.  Sipping it, she
murmured, "Mmmm, this is good."  There was a moment of silence as
she looked around the large room.

"Have you had a chance to meet everyone?" he asked.

"No, not quite.  Your mother's very sweet, by the way."  He nodded
in appreciation and she went on, "I'm just trying to figure out how
I'm going to remember all these people's names."

Doggett shook his head and leaning into her, he whispered, "Don't
worry about it.  After I did a background check on all the husbands and
boyfriends, I forgot all their names, too."  Scully gave him a
sideways look before he said, "That was a joke, by the way.  About the
background checks, I mean."

She nodded and said, "Ok.  Just checking."  Scully caught sight of
Liz entering the room and now it was her turn to lean into Doggett. 
"Oh, and when Monday rolls around, you might want to seriously look
into editing that profile of yours."

Before he had a chance to rebut Kaitlin bounded into the room, followed
closely behind by someone Scully could only deduce to be "little
Sam".

Doggett put his drink on the side table just in time to receive the two
whirlwinds on his lap.

"Hey kids, stayin' out of trouble?"

"Hi, Daddy."

"John," Sam said by way of greeting.  He stood up on the couch and
rested his head on the back.  Looking at Scully, he said, "Hi."

She couldn't help but return such a smile.  "Hi.  You must be
Sam."  He nodded.  "I'm Dana."

"Dana."

"Nice to meet you, Sam."

He took a mashed cookie out of the pocket of his overalls and handed it
to Scully.  "Here."

She held out her hand and replied, "Thank you, Sam."  Over his head,
she could see Doggett shaking his head and mouthing, "I wouldn't eat
that if I were you."  Her eyes returned to the eager face of Sam, and,
taking the piece of cookie between her fingers, she popped it in her
mouth.  "Mmmmm, this is yummy!"  Scully glanced up at Doggett, a
little defiant look in her eyes.  

Now firmly establishing this new person as his friend (hey, she ate his
cookie!), he slid off the couch and scooted away.

"He probably dipped that in the cat water before he gave it to you."


Scully shrugged and said, "A little cat water never hurt anyone."

To this, Kaitlin started to giggle.  Doggett twisted her around in his
arms and furrowed his brow at her.  "And what are YOU laughin' at,
little monster?"  Of course, this only made her laugh more. 
"Don't tell me I'm gonna have to punish you!"

"No tickles, Daddy!!!"  Kaitlin squealed.

"Tickles it is!!" and with that, he burrowed his mouth into her neck
and blew hard.  She squirmed and squealed some more, but he held on,
continuing his assault.  She finally clamoured away and sought shelter
behind Scully.  She peeked over her shoulder to see what action her
father would take.  He looked at her and accused, "Oh sure, hide
behind Daddy's partner.  She can kick my butt, ya know."

Kaitlin looked wide-eyed at Scully and whispered, "Can you really kick
my daddy's butt?"

Scully tried not to laugh.  "Well, as a lady, I wouldn't say that. 
But as your daddy's partner, then, yes, I would say I could kick his
butt."  She saw the incredulous look on the young child's face and
added, "The good news is, he hasn't given me a reason yet.  BUT,"
and with this she gave Doggett a stern look, "if he continues to
tickle you in my presence, I might have to do something about it."

Kaitlin made a little fist and exclaimed, "Yessss!"  She then saw
the look on her father's face, and knew to get going while the getting
was good.  "Bye!!"  And with that, she darted off, careful to stay
out of reach of her father's outstretched prone-to-tickle hands.

"Well, I do believe you've got two friends for life there,"
Doggett remarked.

"They're cute kids.  She's a doll."

"Yeah," he nodded, "she's a good kid.  Considering the
circumstances..."

"Does she live here?" Scully queried, not knowing how much she
should ask.

"No," he replied, "she and her mother live in New York.  I try to
get up there every second weekend or so, but I know it's hard for her
sometimes.  It's hard for me sometimes."

Scully took in the forlorn look on his face and sympathized.  She
reached out ever so briefly and touched his arm, before returning her
hand to her drink.  "Well, since your profile seems to be so
incomplete, do you want to fill me in?"  She was hoping her joking
manner would put him at ease.

He appreciated the gesture and let her know he "got it" with a
smile.  He leaned back and mused, "I don't know what happened." 
Then he stopped and corrected himself.  "No, that's not right, I do
know.  Despite what you may have heard so far tonight, there was a time
when I couldn't leave work at work, you know?"  He caught her nod
and continued.  "I had the highest closed-case percentage in the state
for a reason.  Some cops strive for that their entire careers, but for
me, that wasn't a good thing.  When I told you I had some of my best
breakthroughs when I was sleepin', I wasn't lyin'.  Some of these
cases would get into my head and live with me until they became part of
my life.  And then they became my life.  It took me 6 months before I
realized Liz and Kaitlin were gone.  I  learned  the lesson between
ambitions and obsessions, let me tell you.  Too bad I had to lose
something in the process, though."  He turned to her to see her
listening attentively.  "Whoa.  So much for that great time I promised
you, hey?"

"No, not at all, don't worry about it.  I was just thinking about
what you said.  Ambitions and obsessions."  She paused.  "And I was
thinking of how I'm going to have to take that file with me when you
drive me home."  He gave her a puzzled look.  "The file you came to
the office to get today."  He looked away guiltily.  She saw it and
said, "Ok, fess up.  What's the deal?"

Doggett gave her a small hand-caught-in-the-cookie-jar smile.  "Well
actually, that was my clumsy ruse to see if you were in the office
today."  She tilted her head and furrowed her brow.  "I called your
house and you weren't home, so I took the chance that maybe you'd be
at work, and I needed a half-assed reason to be there, too," he
continued.  "So, I grabbed the nearest file when I heard you come in. 
As a rule, I try not to do too much work on the weekends if I can help
it.  Keeps me kinda sane."

Scully wasn't sure whether to be miffed or flattered.  He mistook her
uncertainty and held out his hand.  "Listen, don't do anything
foolish with that eggnog, ok?  I apologize if I've offended you in any
way.  I just thought I'd get lucky, that's all."  Beat.  "I mean
that in a figurative way, of course," he grinned now.

"Of course," she echoed.  She looked down into her glass and added a
quiet admission, "Besides, overlooking your 'ruse' as you put it,
I'm glad you asked me."  She looked back up into his gaze and
paused.  She wanted to say so much more, to try and explain to him what
it had been like for her, what it continued to be like.  How some days
she didn't seem to have the energy to get out of bed, and on others,
how she couldn't get to sleep.  How sometimes it felt like she was
alone in a place that seemed to have no walls, and yet sometimes seemed
so confining that she couldn't breathe.  How this simple gesture from
him, asking her to a family dinner, was such a monumental moment of
normalacy for her, something she seemed to be lacking lately.  It was if
she could finally take a deep breath, and it felt good.

She caught herself still looking at him, and she smiled.  He raised his
eyebrows in question, and she just shook her head.  "I can almost see
you filing all this away in your mind.  You have that level of
attentiveness no matter what someone says to you, weighing everything
with the same scale of seriousness.  I'm not sure I've seen you
raise your eyebrows in ridicule or shock once."  Trying to get the
topic back into his court, she added, "Makes me wonder the kinds of
things you've seen."

He didn't bite.  "That flyin' man-bat thing," he corrected.
"Definitely raised my eyebrows on that one."  He took in her
laughter as he raised his glass to his lips.  Looking over the rim, he
snuck another look at her.  He could tell she was struggling with
something inside herself and he wondered what it must be like to carry
whatever weight she had on her shoulders.  He wanted so desperately to
help her, but he was beginning to understand the kind of woman she was;
fiercely independent, strong-willed, and yeah, at times, so goddamn
stubborn.  But with each passing day, she offered longer glimpses of
herself, and he tried to convey his thanks by giving her space, by
giving her room.  He didn't mind waiting.

The silence between them was a warm one.  Scully leaned back and rested
her head on the couch.  Closing her eyes, she let her other senses enjoy
the moment.  She could hear the low buzz of other conversations, the
kids playing, cutlery clanging, and Christmas music somewhere in the
background.  The heat from the fireplace was inviting, and the aroma
wafting from the kitchen was intoxicating.  A small smile spread across
her face.

Doggett remarked, "I'll have to make sure you don't eat too much
turkey.  It'll put ya right out."

The smile remained on her face as she opened her eyes.  "I'm not
tired.  Not that tired, anyway.  I was just enjoying the moment."

"I think I just raised my eyebrows in shock, Agent Scully."

She saw the wry smile tugging at the corners of his mouth, and raised
her own eyebrows in reply.  "Oh, you don't think I can have a good
time... John?"

His eyes opened wider upon hearing the use of his first name, and she
got a great deal of satisfaction out of it.  She laughed openly now.

As her laughter subsided, she said, "Ok, now that I've gotten YOUR
name out of the way, maybe you should tell me who the rest of these
people are before we get to the dinner table."

He smiled and leaned into her once again.  "Ok.  You've met Ray. The
boy on his shoulders is one of their sons, John.  Everyone calls him
'Jack'."

"So as not to confuse him with his namesake uncle?" Scully queried.

"Yep.  Though deflectin' the spotlight a bit, it WAS my father's
name, too."

Scully filed away yet another little piece of the John Doggett puzzle.

"And," he continued, "they have another little boy around here
somewhere, younger."  He looked around the large room.  "There he
is, playin' with Sam.  That's Ryan."  Eyes searching again, he
pointed out Aimee's boyfriend, Mike, as well as Sarah's boyfriend,
Joe.  "And that tired lookin'
'I've-just-spent-the-entire-day-chasin'-a-2-year-old-around'
woman over there?" he gestured with his head.  Scully nodded. 
"That's Sam's mom, Tracy, and her husband, Paul."  Doggett gave
her a moment to soak it all in before he whispered, "Got all that?"

Scully looked around and shook her head, "Nope."

He laughed and said, "Yeah, I know, lots of people.  Too bad Kelly
wasn't here; she's got 2 young boys of her own."

"I think this is plenty!" Scully replied.  "Funny, isn't it?" 
Doggett tilted his head in inquiry.  "Well, out of the
first-generation kids, you're the only male.  Yet there are more boys
in the second-generation kids.  I guess things try to even themselves
out in the end."

Doggett thought about this for a second, looking off to the side as he
always did when he was giving something thought.  "Yeah, I guess I
never really looked at it that way."

Scully shifted her position so that she was looking directly at him. 
"Was it hard for you, growing up the only boy?"

He shrugged slightly, "Ah, I don't think so.  Never really gave that
much thought, either.  It was just part of my growin' up.  It was a
little weird when the ol' man died.  Up to that point, I never paid
too much attention to the life of girls, except for the ones that were
in my English class."  Scully smiled, and he continued, "When our
dad died, it was kinda left up to me, or at least, I took it upon myself
to fill in the gap as best I could."

"The girls must've been awfully young when your father died."

Doggett concurred, "Yeah, particularly Sarah.  She was only a year
old.  Tracy was only six."

"I can see now why you're such a good father," Scully offered with
some warmth.

"Thanks," he replied, trying to cover his blush.  "We were lucky
kids though.  We have a really strong mother.  I don't know how she did
it."  His eyes softened, and Scully smiled in understanding.

"Does it bother you to talk about your father?"

He shook his head, "Nah, like I told you, it was a long time ago.  He
was a cop, did you know that?"

She raised an eyebrow.  "No, I didn't."

"Yep.  Twenty-one years on the force, right out of college.  He was
only 43 when he was killed in the line of duty.  He and his partner were
on a stake-out.  Partner went down the street to get some coffee.  My
ol' man saw somethin' that caught his eye in the building they were
watchin'. Instead of waitin' for his partner to come back, Pops gets
it in his head to go check it out himself."  Doggett gave a small,
pissed off snort.  "What the hell was he thinkin'?  A wife and 5
kids back home."

He turned to look at Scully, trying to gauge whatever information was
forming in her mind.  She looked right back and thought,

"Well, that explains a lot, huh?  Now you know why I get so pissed
when you dump me," he voiced for her.

She looked away guiltily, but returned her gaze to his and fessed up,
"Yeah, I WAS thinking that myself."

He put her at ease with a laugh and a nudge of his arm.  "Don't
worry about it.  Lessons learned.  You move on.  You just never
forget."  He waited to see if there were any more questions
forthcoming.  When none seemed to be, he asked her, "What about you? 
Only child?  A baseball team?  Baby of the family?"

"Youngest girl of a two-and-two family," she informed him.  Noticing
the questioning look, she clarified, "Two boys, two girls."

"Ah, I see."

"My brother Bill is the oldest.  He's in the Navy."

"At least he's not a fly-boy," Doggett interjected.

She smirked at this, knowing something of his attitude towards their
boss, Deputy Director Kersh.

"Your family close?"

"I don't know," Scully confessed.  "At one time, we were.  But
time and... events seem to have strained things between us.  Our dad
died 6 years ago this month, and Bill has taken it upon himself to carry
on my dad's disapproval of my career. My little brother, Charles,
well, nobody seems to know where he's been these last 10 years.  And
my sister, Melissa....," she trailed off.

"I read the files," Doggett said, hoping this would help her out.

Scully remarked, "That's right, you read all the files.  So you
know."

He nodded.

She shrugged.  "So there you have it.  The Scully history in a
nutshell."

"I'd be interested in hearing the long-form version someday."

"Well, when you have a couple of days with nothing better to do, let
me know.  My dance card seems to be rather empty lately.  Just remember:
Give a little, get a little."

She was rewarded with another precious Doggett smile, corner to corner,
right to the piercing, (and at this moment) warm blue eyes.

"SUPPERRRRTIMMMMMME!!!"  Aimee bellowed from the doorway of the
dining room.

"It's only the family," her father, Ray, admonished, "we're
not inviting the whole damn neighbourhood!"

Doggett stood up and offered his hand to Scully.  She looked up and
tried to read his face.  She'd trade the meal to come just for a
glimpse behind those eyes.  Ultimately, she put her hand in his, and he
helped her up.  Once she was standing, he removed his hand without
awkwardness or self-consciousness, and with a tilt of his head, he
guided her to the dining room.


					*-----*


"Wow," Scully whispered when she saw the room.  "Look at all that
food!"

"Yeah," Doggett agreed, "and guess who gets to take home the
leftovers??"

She turned to him and saw his gleeful smirk.  She laughed and turned
back to the table.  Counting, she pointed out,  "Well, I'm glad to
see I've evened out the chair count around the table.  It's good to
keep up the feng shui of the room."

He rolled his eyes, "Christ, don't tell me you go for that Japanese
stuff?"  Scully simply shrugged.  "I'm stuck with a damn fern
because someone was adamant that my house would be 'a center of
emotional chaos' without it."

Scully laughed and remarked, "I was wondering what a fern was doing in
your house.  So, you're superstitious?"

He pulled out her chair and waited for her to sit before leaning down
and whispering, "Nope.  But you can never be too careful."  And with
that, he took his place to her right.

It took a few minutes for everyone to find there place, but eventually
the set-up began with Gloria at the head, followed in a clockwork motion
by Doggett, Scully, Joe, Sarah, Ellen, Ray at the other end, Liz, Paul,
Tracy, Mike, and Aimee.  The three young boys and Kaitlin had a small
table near the grown-ups.

"Ok, is everyone ready?" Gloria asked.  When all the talking
subsided, she continued, "Well, who should say 'Grace'?"

From the kids' table came a voice, "I will, Grandma," piped up
little John.

"All right then, Jack, go ahead."

All bowed and waited for the young man to begin.  "Ham, turkey,
stuffing, buns; look out tummy, here it comes!  Amen."

Laughter abounded from the grown-ups.  "Jack!" his mother
admonished.  She then turned her stern gaze over to Doggett.

"What?" he defended.  "When would I have a chance to teach him
that?"  He looked over to Jack and winked.

Scully's chin was pressed into her chest as she did all she could to
stifle her laughter.

He leaned toward her and whispered loudly, "You're not helpin' me
here.  Partner."

And with that, ordered insanity ensued as bowls and plates and dishes
were passed around.

					*-----*


More than Scully would admit to anyone, she was enjoying herself.  The
large family atmosphere invited her in warmly and she felt right at
home.  Home.  Seemed like so long since that word meant anything to her.
 Yet as she looked around, she was reminded of how it felt.  Even Liz,
"the ex" as Aimee so eloquently put it, was accepted in the embrace
of the family.  She wondered what Doggett.. what John saw in Liz.  She
seemed aloof and distant, not the type of woman Scully would envision a
man like John being attracted to.  'John'.  She still couldn't
quite get her mind or her mouth around that one.

Of course, she was having a hell of a time trying to get her mind around
the man himself.  ["mouth around the man"?  No smut here! --ed.] 
On one hand, he was as easily defined as any person she'd met.  He was
everything the phrase "stand-up guy" entailed- thoughtful,
courteous, determined, fair.  And yet... and yet.  A look into those
eyes made you want to crawl in and seek out his mysteries and his
answers.  She seemed to know so little of him, yet he was very much a
"what you see is what you get" kind of man.  Maybe it was this
paradox she was finding so magnetic.  THAT was the word she'd been
struggling to pin on him since she met him!  Not outright attractive,
not male-model gorgeous, but MAGNETIC.  Whether it be across the room at
the office, or beside him right here, there was no denying it.

He was sneaking in sideways glances to the woman on his left, wondering
what she was thinking.  God only knows there could be a million things,
he thought.  He had only worked with her for 3 months, but he had spent
enough time with her to know she had a lot going on in her life, in her
head, in her heart.  Which made her acceptance to his invitation all the
more precious.  Here she was, all that shit going on, sitting beside
him, joining in, smiling, laughing, and, he'd even go so far to say,
enjoying herself.  At one point, during yet another childhood story at
his expense, she had rested her hand on his arm and laughed into his
shoulder, so unselfconsciously it took him by surprise.  She was
normally so reserved, so on guard.  Yet when she laughed, it was
infectious.  A paradox if he'd ever saw one.

"You know, I never noticed you were left-handed before today," she
noted.

He smiled as their hands bumped for the umpteenth time. "Hazards of
sittin' beside a lefty," he said, lifting the spoonful of dessert
into his mouth.

"He wasn't always left-handed," Ellen joined in.

"Oh really?" Scully questioned.

"Yeah, that's right," Aimee added, "but he broke his arm so
badly when he was a kid that he had to start doing everything
left-handed."

"Is this the story about how he broke his arm when he was eight?"
Scully asked.

"Yep," Aimee answered.

"Aimee, the voice of authority who wasn't even alive at the time,"
Doggett pointed out, trying to deflect the topic.

Scully would have none of it.  "Ok, someone tell me, I'm dying to
hear it."

"Well," Ellen began gleefully, and Doggett lowered his head.  "I
had this cat, Daisy."

"Stupid cat," he interjected.

"Anyway," she continued, "the cat somehow found its way into the
tree behind our house.  The poor thing was meowing horribly, and there I
was, six years old, tears streaming down my face, under this tree,
trying to call the cat down."

"I can't figure out how they can get up the damn tree but not
down," Doggett muttered.

"So John hears me crying.  He tries everything he can to get this cat
down.  Calling it, bribing it with food, everything."

"The cat's lucky you were there.  I had a slingshot in my room I
coulda used."

Ellen looked down the table and said, "You wouldn't have dared.  You
knew how much I loved that cat."  Doggett shrugged and she went on,
"After about an hour of this, John decides the only thing that's
going to get the cat down and stop his sister from crying is to climb
the tree.  So, against MY better judgment," he let out a whoop at
this, "against my better judgment," she repeated, "he climbed the
tree.  It might not have been so bad if the cat had been on the first
limb...."

Doggett nodded his head in firm agreement, "Yeah, could the cat be on
the first limb?  No.  Three branches up, 20 feet from the ground."

"Oh, no," Scully said, as she pieced it all together.

Gloria nodded, "Yes, you've got it.  I was in the house with Tracy. 
He's lucky I had no idea what he got into his head or it would've
been worse for him!"

Chuckling, Doggett revealed to Scully, "That's how I got these
ears," and with that, he mimicked the tugging on his ears as his
mother was wont to do when he was a kid.

Laughter ensued until Ellen had a chance to continue her story.  "So,
he climbs up this tree.  Little wiry boy of eight, shimmying his way
towards this cat.  He's cooing softly to it, trying not to startle it.
 The cat's looking at him like he's nuts."

"Which I was."

She agreed, "You were.  But you knew how much that cat meant to me.  I
hope that was something of a reward for all those weeks you had to spend
in that cast."  She looked at Scully, "He grabbed the cat, who
promptly thanked him by scratching him across the nose."  

Doggett leaned to Scully and pointed at the offending souvenir.

"In a tangle, the two of them fell out of the tree."

"Actually," he corrected, "we fell off the branch.  Then hit the
second branch on the way down.  Then hit the first branch.  THEN we hit
the ground.  I think I let go of the damn cat just before I hit the
ground.  But because I was holdin' onto it so long, I didn't have
the time to try to break my fall.  Pardon the pun."

"I came outside and nearly had a heart attack right there,
honestly," Gloria said.  "There was Ellen, crying, John on the
ground, his arm at a horrible angle, and the cat, meowing like I've
never heard a cat meow before."

Ellen coloured in the picture, "The cat broke its leg."

Scully covered her mouth, "Oh, the poor thing."

"Poor thing??" Doggett repeated, "I was the one who broke his arm
in three places over that cat.  There went my dreams of pitchin' in
the majors."

"Yes, but it WAS cute seeing the two of you with your casts.  The cat
had this little one on his front leg, it was so cute," Gloria
admitted.

Doggett could do nothing but roll his eyes.  "How's my profile now,
Dana?"

"It's getting better and better every minute, John."

"I bet."

For the first time at the table that evening, Liz spoke.  "Maybe I
should've taken a look at that profile when we were married."

And another first for the evening- silence descended upon the table. 
Eyes found other places away from the group to rest.  Aimee glared down
the table at "the ex".  Doggett could only look at Liz with
something akin to sadness in his eyes.  Scully gave her a detached,
professional look.  Seven years with Mulder gave her some experience in
defending good men, and it took her everything in her not to tear a
strip off this woman.  Instead she coolly said, "It's been my
experience that profiles are woefully inadequate when it comes to
telling anything in-depth about the subject, unless it's done by a
true profiler, which these FBI backgrounds are not.  I've found the
best way to learn about someone is to spend time with them."

Liz pounced on that one, "Well, work never seemed to give us much time
to spend together, I guess."

Countering, Scully one-upped, "Well, I've only spent 3 months as his
partner, and I feel like I've learned a lot.  And I feel very
fortunate to have had the opportunity to get to know him."  Realizing
this may be revealing more than she wanted spoken, she added, "Of
course, this might have something to do with the fact that he's saved
my ass on more than one occasion."

Joe could be heard whispering to Sarah, "I've got dibs on the
g-woman, KO in the first round.  Liz doesn't stand a chance."

Before Joe's prediction could come to fruition, a jingling of bells
could be heard coming from the living room.

Ray, glad for the interruption, clapped his hands together and looked
over at the kids.  "I wonder what that was?"

The jingles repeated, and the kids squealed in realization. 
"SANTA!!" they cried in unison.  And they were off.  Glasses were
put down and chairs were pushed back as the adults followed suit.

Doggett pulled out Scully's chair and lingered back, waiting for the
room to clear.

"Listen, first I want to apologize.  You don't need to hear personal
stories like that being dredged up.  Secondly, I appreciate you
jumpin' in like that."

Scully shook her head, "I didn't mind hearing that story about you
breaking your arm."  She broke into a smile, and all he could do was
laugh and shake his head in return.  She put her hand on his arm and
said more seriously, "Look, I know we've had our differences, and
we'll probably continue to have our differences.  But when I see
someone jumping on my partner like that, it's my duty to cover you,
right?"

He put his hand on her shoulder and gave it a squeeze.  "Right," he
said.

					*-----*


The living room was already a disaster area, as the kids had been given
free reign to plow into the gifts.  Wrapping paper and boxes were
everywhere.  Scully looked on in amazement.

As he led her towards the couch, Doggett quietly explained, "We get
Mr. Davenport from next door to sneak in while we're eatin' and drop
all the presents off."  Scully nodded in understanding, and he said
louder, to the room, "Gee, it's awfully nice for Santa to fit us
into his schedule early, huh?"

The kids squealed and held up some of their loot.  "Hey Uncle John,"
Aimee came over, "this is from Mom and Dad."  She held out a rather
large and heavy box.

Doggett took it and rested it on his lap.  "I wonder what it is." 
He started pulling away the wrapping until one of the ends was exposed. 
Hearing his hearty laugh, Scully urged, "Well, what is it?"He ripped
the rest of the paper off to reveal the box.  "Playstation 2," he
smiled.  "Where in the world did you guys find this?"

Ray shrugged his shoulders and said, "You know, since you work for the
FBI and all, it's probably not in my best interest to reveal where or
how I came across that baby."

Doggett grinned and agreed, "Probably not."  He turned to Scully,
"My embarrassin' vice.  Video games.  What can I say?  Keeps my
reflexes sharp."

She chuckled at this rationalization.  "Riiiight."

A squeal of delight came from Aimee, across the room.  She bounded
towards Doggett and wrapped her arms around his neck.  "Tickets to
Dido.  Oh my God, Uncle John!  Thank you!!"

He put his arms around her and said, "Nothin's too good for my baby
niece, you know that."

Aimee pulled back and replied, "I've got something for you," and
with that she made her way back to the tree.  

Kaitlin found her way onto her daddy's lap.  "What did Santa bring
you, baby doll?"

She held up the box victoriously.  "Barbie Beetle car!"

"Wow," Scully said in amazement.

"Wanna see it?" Kaitlin asked her.

"For sure," she replied.

Kaitlin leaned over and handed her the box.  A flash came from across
the room as Aimee took a picture.  Doggett glared at her and growled,
"I thought you were bringin' me a present!"

She put the camera down and brought his gift over.  Whispering in his
ear, she said, "Sorry Uncle John, I couldn't resist.  You three look
so good together."

"Aimee...."

She pulled back and said innocently, "So you gonna open it or what?"

"Kaitlin, you want to help daddy open his gift?"

"Ok," she said.  "Dana, can you hold this?"

Startled to hear this young child say her name so casually, Scully
blinked and answered, "Sure, Kaitlin."

She watched the daughter help her father open his gift, a collective
effort that took all of 20 seconds with the two of them tearing away. 
She was still in a minor state of shock over the discovery of Doggett
having a daughter, but seeing him with her, it seemed so natural.  Why
wouldn't this man have a family?  Why wouldn't he be married?  (Ok,
divorced, she corrected herself.)  Just because she had put her life on
hold all these years...  she subconsciously rubbed her tummy.

The box opened and his face spread into a smile.  "Aimee, how did
you...?"  He held it up for Scully to see.  It was a Mets hat,
autographed by Mike Piazza.

"Hey, just 'cause YOU work for the FBI doesn't mean I don't have
some connections of my own, ya know?" Aimee stated with her hands on
her hips.

"Come 'ere," he commanded, and gave her another hug.

Ellen called from under the tree.  "Aimee, can you come and get
this?"

"Sure, Mom."  She darted across the room, collected the gift, looked
at the tag, then looked back to the couch.  Stepping over children and
boxes and paper, she stood in front of Scully who looked up at Aimee,
eyes questioning.  "This is for you, Dana."

She looked at Aimee, then to Doggett, then back to Aimee again.  "Are
you sure?"

Aimee read the tag.  "'To Agent Dana Scully'.  Yep, I'm sure."

Rather confused, she reached out for the gift.  Looking at the tag, it
did indeed say, 'To Agent Dana Scully'.  Underneath it read the
scrawl, 'From your new partner.'  She looked over at Doggett and
said, "You didn't have to.. I didn't get...."

He dismissed this with a wave of his hand.  "I didn't even know for
sure if you'd come with me tonight, so don't worry about it. 
Besides," he added with a smirk, "it's for my benefit as much as
yours."

"Open it up, Dana," Kaitlin encouraged.

With that, Scully carefully pulled at the tape.

"No, no, not like that," the child chastised, "like this," and
she made motions in the air of hands ripping and tearing.

Scully couldn't help but copy her, which made Kaitlin giggle.  Soon
the box was free of paper, and Scully pulled out the velvet box. 
Cracking open the lid, she looked up at Doggett and rewarded him with a
heartfelt smile.

Looking down at the box, Aimee caught a glimpse.  "You bought her
flashlight?  You bought the person who's gonna watch your back a
flashlight??  I hope you're buying dinner for the rest of the year,
that's all I gotta say.  I don't get it.  It's an inside joke or
something, right?"

Scully looked up at Aimee and confessed, "You're right, it IS an
inside joke."  Looking at Doggett now, she added, "But it's also
one of the best gifts I've ever received.  Thank you."

Doggett coloured and responded, "Now you can see those things that go
bump in the night.  Oh, did you see the inscription?"

She raised her eyebrows in surprise, "No."  She tilted the small
mag-lite until she could see the engraving.  " 'The profoundest of
all sensualities is the sense of truth and the next deepest sensual 
experience is the sense of justice.' --D.H.Lawrence"

He saw her squinting and apologized, "Sorry the writin's so small. 
The guy had to fit all that onto that little handle."

She looked at him and said nothing.  He wondered if he had overstepped
his boundaries.  He was never too good at gauging when he had gone too
far, mainly because he never really cared what people thought.  But he
cared what this woman thought of him, and now he was worried.  He
searched her face for a sign of what was to come, but as always, as he
was beginning to find out, this woman was hard to read.

She could feel her eyes begin to tear up and willed them back.  Such a
simple gesture from this man she had grown so fond of so soon, yet did
he know how much this meant to her?  The space he had given her all
these months, the invitation today, the window of something normal, and
now this.  She would laugh if she wasn't so moved by it.  A
flashlight!  But to know that he would remember a small moment in an
attic.  And the inscription.  Mulder's search for truth, Doggett's
search for justice.  She was sure it wasn't by accident that he would
pick this particular poem.  

He was still frantically poring over her face for a sign, a clue, when
she looked down at the handle and said, "D.H.Lawrence.  I would have
never pictured you as a poetry man, John."

He covered his embarrassment by shrugging, "Oh, I've got a couple
memorized.  The ladies seem to like that sort of thing."

She looked at him and knew he was lying.  She had seen enough of the
stacks upon stacks of books in his house to know, but she didn't call
him up on it.  She simply shook her head in an indication of her thanks.
 She solidified it by reaching over and taking his hand in hers. 
Holding it briefly and giving it a squeeze, she mouthed, "Thank
you."  Scully let go of his hand, but he pulled it back and held it a
moment longer.  She looked into his face again, and he silently returned
her thanks with a sideways smile and a wink.

"Kaitlin, there's another present for you!" her grandmother
called.

					*-----*

Something resembling peace descended upon the house.  The dinner was
eaten, the gifts were opened, and people started making their way off
the chairs/sofas/floor.  Tracy and Paul, who had early flights in the
morning, had already said their goodbyes, and Sarah and Joe were inching
their way towards the door, too.

Doggett tried to twist his head in the direction of the door and finally
gave up.  Raising his hand he called out, "Sorry sis, but I'm not
getting' off this couch."  She came up behind him and he craned his 
head backwards to give her an upside-down kiss.  "Give me a call when
you two get home, ok?"

She messed up his hair, much to his chagrin, and gave him another kiss.
"Ok, bro.  Tell Dana it was great meeting her.  Your best partner yet,
I think," Sarah gave a thumbs-up.

"I'll be sure to tell her."

Kaitlin clamoured from her father's lap and gave her aunt a hug. 
"Bye Auntie Sarah."

Sarah turned the embrace into a big bear hug.  "Bye sweetie.  Me and
Joe will come visit you in New York sometime, ok?"

Kaitlin opened her eyes wide and exclaimed, "Cool!"

After some tears at the door from Gloria and Ellen, Sarah and Joe were
gone.

Coming down the stairs, Scully caught a glimpse of Doggett, his lanky
frame stretched out before him as his legs claimed a large expanse of
floor territory.  The rest of him was occupied with the bundle of energy
cuddling on his lap.  She watched as he stroked his daughter's hair
and listened intently to whatever elaborate story Kaitlin was telling
him.  Funny, Scully thought, I'm startled more by the fact that he's
not wearing a suit than I am by the fact that a 5-year old commands his
utter attention.  A 5-year old DAUGHTER.

Ellen saw Scully on the stairs and called up, "There you are!  Did you
find the bathroom all right?"

Scully came down the last remaining steps and nodded her appreciation,
"Yes, thank you.  You have a lovely home."

Ellen hooked her arm with Scully's and gave her a little squeeze,
"Thank you.  And thank you for coming.  It's been a real pleasure to
meet you.  I know John was a bit uncertain about how he'd work with a
new partner, but I can see the respect there.  From you both."

Scully was both surprised and a bit flattered by this, considering how
she had treated him during their first month or so together.  And she
had to give Ellen credit for her insight into Scully's attitude
towards Doggett; she HAD grown to respect him above all else.  She
replayed Ellen's comment in her head, then repeated with a smile,
"John a bit uncertain?  Do you have a pen?  I should probably write
this down."

Ellen returned her laugh and said, "Hard to believe, I know.  But
being so near in age, he and I have always been close, so that stoic
tough-guy bit doesn't fly too far with me.  He's got his own
struggles and his own demons, Dana, he just sometimes forgets.  I'm
sure you can imagine the sense of protectiveness he developed growing up
the man of the house for all those years- with all those girls!"
  
Scully could definitely see the meaning behind Ellen's words.  She
herself had been witness to the times when he would put his own his
concern for the safety of others far and above his own well-being.  She
could still picture him, standing on that porch landing, barely upright
from his blood loss, asking her if SHE was ok.

Ellen caught this look and remarked, "Ah, I see you've already been
witness to the man-who-would-be-Superman."  Scully indicated that she
had.  Ellen continued, "Well, that may be a large part of who he is,
but that's not ALL he is."  She looked right at Scully now. 
"I'm glad you're his partner.  You look more than capable of
putting our John in his place, if only for his own good."

Scully smiled and said, "Well, I can promise you that I will certainly
to my best.  For his own good."

The two women entered the room laughing together.

Doggett looked up at this sound and searched Scully's eyes for a sign
of what was going on.  "And just what are you two ladies laughin'
about?"

Wiping the smile off her face, Scully answered in her most serious tone,
"We were just trying to picture you in spandex."

For the second time that night, his eyebrows rose in shock.

No longer able to keep up the pretense, the two woman burst out into
another round of laughter.  Wiping a tear away from her eye, Ellen
turned to Scully.  "Do you want another eggnog?  A coffee?"  

Scully shook her head but Doggett piped up, "I'll have a coffee,
sis.  I need to counter the effects of that turkey drug."

" 'L-tryptophan'," Scully clarified.

"Huh?" was Doggett's clever comeback.

She rolled her eyes.  " 'Turkey drug', L-tryptophan.  It's a
natural sedative found in the skin of turkey.  You shouldn't have
eaten the drumstick."

Doggett turned to look at Kaitlin, whose wide eyes were gazing at
Scully.  "Did you hear that, Kaitlin?"

The 5-year old was trying to get her mouth around the word.  She finally
gave up and looked at her father.  Whispering, she said, "She's
smart!"

The three adults laughed until Ellen said, "Come on, Kaitlin, you can
help me get a coffee for your dad."  She reached her hand down to the
girl, who put her tiny hand into her aunt's and clamoured off
Doggett's lap.  

"Ok."  And off they went.

Shifting to look at his partner, Doggett deduced, "I'm not sure I
even want to know what that spandex bit was all about."

Scully just shook her head, "No, you probably don't."  She rested
her head on the back of the couch.

Doggett, as per his nature, asked, "You ok?  You wanna go?"

"I'm ok," she replied, "just the effects of that turkey drug
kicking in, I think."  She turned her head to look at him, and saw him
smiling.

"I'll drink the coffee and then we'll go, ok?"

"No rush."

Ellen and Kaitlin reappeared with a steaming mug.  "Here, Daddy,"
the younger girl presented.

He took it from Ellen and held it out as his daughter climbed back onto
his lap.  "Careful."  Finding her comfort spot again, she gazed up
adoringly at her father.  Scully couldn't help but be touched at being
witness to this tender moment.

"After Daddy's finished his coffee, he's gonna give Dana a ride
home, ok?"

She looked from Doggett to Scully and back to Doggett again.  "Can't
she stay, Daddy?"

Write this one down, too, Dana, Scully thought to herself.  He's
speechless.

"Well, um, honey..."

Scully decided she'd try and let him off the hook.  Taking the
girl's hand in hers, she leaned forward and answered, "You know
something, Kaitlin?  That is one of the nicest things anyone has ever
offered to me.  And I would love to stay, but I have to see if Santa
left ME anything at my house. AND," she looked down at her clothes,
"I forgot to bring my pajamas!"

Kaitlin giggled and looked back up to Doggett.  "Maybe next time,
Daddy?"

"Maybe next time, baby doll."  He kissed her on top of her head and
glanced over at Scully.  His eyes conveyed all his appreciation and she
acknowledged it with a small nod of her head.

"Kaitlin!" a voice called.

She swung her head around and hollered, "What, Mommy?"

Liz appeared in the doorway between the living room and the family room.
 "Your Uncle Ray has finally figured out how to put that dollhouse
together.  Why don't you come and take a look?"

"Ok!"  She jumped off her father's lap and made it halfway across
the living room before she ran back and planted a kiss on his lips.  

"I'll be back to tuck you in," he promised.

"Ok," and off she went again.  Making it slightly farther than
halfway this time, she turned once again and ran back.  She jumped up
onto the couch and gave Scully a quick hug.  "Bye!" and she was
gone.

Doggett noted Scully's startled expression and marveled, "Wow, she
really must like you.  She wouldn't come within 20 feet of my last
partner.  Of course," he drawled, "Frank was 6 foot 3 and about 280
pounds.  Scared the livin' daylights out of her for the longest
time."  Accomplishing what the comment was intended to do, Scully's
face changed from one of shock to one of amusement.  He smiled at his
success.

"You're very good at assessing what is right for the situation,"
she noted.

"And you're very good at sayin' exactly what's on your mind."

She shrugged, "Saves a lot of confusion later on."

He pressed his lips together and tipped his head in agreement.  "Well,
my particular talent comes from bein' a cop so long.  And livin' in
house with four girls kept me on my toes."

"No doubt."

"Well, you wanna go?"

Scully gazed around the room for a moment, coming back full circle to
Doggett.  "Yeah, I think I'm ready to head home."

"Ok," he stood up, and helped her up.

She reached down to grab the velvet box containing her brand new
flashlight then groaned, "God, I feel like I've gained about five
pounds since dinner."

Doggett smirked and commented, "I'd put it more around seven or
eight."

She glared up at him, "Don't make me hurt you."

He raised his hands in mock-surrender.  Not relinquishing his eye
contact with Scully, he bellowed towards the family room, "MOM!!" 

"Momma's boy," Scully scolded.

Ray's head popped out of the doorway. "What IS it with you people
shouting?  It's not a mansion, for crying out loud."  Turning back
to the family room, Ray yelled, "Gloria, Aimee, whoever else is still
here, I think John and his partner are leaving now!!"  He looked back
at the two of them standing there and winked at the pair.

The thunder of feet met them at the door, as they were putting on their
shoes and coats.  Aimee threw her arms around Doggett and gave him a big
kiss.  "Bye, Uncle John.  Thanks for the tickets."

He returned her kiss, but informed her, "I'm coming back.  I'm
just dropping Dana off.  I told Kaitlin I'd tuck her in."

Aimee looked confused then realized, "Oh, Liz and Kaitlin are staying
here tonight?"  At Doggett's nod, she repeated, "Oh."

He caught her tone and said sternly, "Be nice."

"You know I will, Uncle John.  I adore Kaitlin," she promised,
emphasizing the last word.  He opened his mouth to say something more
when Aimee turned to Scully and gave her a hug.  "It was so cool to
meet you!  Make sure he drags you to more of these family gatherings. 
We only made it up to age eight."

Scully laughed and returned the sentiment, "I'm glad to have met
you, too."  She looked at the small group assembled and amended, "It
was so good meeting you all.  It was nice of you to have me."

There were several "It was no bother"s and "We were glad to have
you"s among the group.  Gloria came forward and gave her the same
welcoming embrace she offered when they first met.  "Anytime, Dana."

Scully shook Ray's hand, repeated her thanks to Ellen, and said her
goodbyes to the rest of the group.  Sam came forward and reached into
the front pocket of his overalls.  "Here," he offered, and held out
a cookie to his newfound friend.  She knelt down and let him drop it
into her mouth.

"Thank you, Sam."

"Bye," he said, then ran off.

When she stood up, Doggett looked at her and asked, "Ready to go?"

"Yep."

"Ok."  He reached back and opened the door for her.  Turning back to
the group he said, "I won't be long."

                                *-----*


Stepping out into the night, Scully took a deep breath and closed her
eyes momentarily.  She held the air inside her, letting it linger,
before letting it out through her lips.

"Gorgeous night," Doggett remarked.

"Yes, yes it is," she affirmed.

When they reached the Jeep, she waited as he opened the door for her. 
Ha! I'm catching on to that one, she congratulated herself.  He made
his way around to his side and climbed in beside her.  The Jeep answered
the turn of his key with a pleasant rumble, and he shifted into
'drive' and pulled away from the curb.

Blocks of silence went by, but neither seemed to mind.  

The peace was eventually disturbed by the ring of a cell phone.

"That's mine again," Doggett said, and gestured towards the glove
compartment.  Scully took that as her cue to get it, so she opened the
compartment and handed him the phone.  "Thanks."  Holding it up to 
his ear, he answered, "Hello?"  He listened for a moment.  "Ice
cream?  What kinda ice cream?" Pause.  "I'll see what I can do. 
Bye."

He turned and saw Scully's curious gaze.  "Aimee wants her favourite
uncle to bring her back some Haagen Daz Triple Brownie Overload."  He
rolled his eyes.  "Did she not have seconds of everythin' at dinner
tonight?"

Scully had to confirm it, "Yep."

Doggett could do nothing but shake his head in amazement.  He handed her
the phone and she put it back in the glove compartment.  "You can put
in some music if you want," he suggested.  He saw her hand go over one
of the discs.  "Not the Filter one," he amended.

She smiled and bartered, "First tell me about the cigarettes."

He furrowed his eyebrows, genuinely puzzled for the moment, until she
pulled them out of the glove box and waved them in the air.  He tilted
his head back in realization, "Ah, those cigarettes."  She tilted
her own head, waiting patiently.  "I used to smoke; that was my last
pack.  I figure if I can keep myself from smokin' those last few,
I've got it beat."

That explanation seemed to pass the Scully muster, since she returned
them to their home without further question, except to ask, "You ever
get the craving for one?"

"Oh hell yeah," he admitted.  "Tonight after supper.  God, I
wanted to take a long hard drag, pull that smoke into my lungs..." he
looked towards the compartment with a longing.  "Shit, it's too bad
those things are so old they'd go up in flames as soon as I lit
one."  Scully smiled at this chink in his manly armour.  He sighed and
continued, "BUT, it's a point of pride with me now.  Over a year
without one.  If I give in now, I've lost."  He saw her raised
eyebrow.  "Listen, I don't mind losin' fair and square, but I'll
be damned if I'm gonna fold against a stick of tobacco!" 

She chuckled at his rationalization, and returned her hand to the glove
compartment.  Bypassing the offending opponent in the "John Doggett
vs. Nicotine" battle, she pulled out a CD at random.  Popping it in,
she sat back and braced herself for whatever surprise might be
forthcoming from the CD player.  She was amazed to hear The Jackson 5
waft out of the speakers.

Doggett nodded in recognition.  " 'Motown's Greatest Hits',"
he informed her.  "You know The Jackson 5 recorded over 400 songs
between '69 and '74?  And didn't write a damn one of 'em
themselves."

"Motown," Scully marveled, "I can't get over it."  When she
saw his questioning look, she added, "I would've put you a little
farther south in your musical tastes."

He laughed and gestured towards the glove box, "I'm sure there's a
Skynyrd disc in there somewhere, if you prefer."

She gave it some serious consideration before saying, "No, no, I'm
quite enjoying this."

They let the music fill in the silence for a while.  Scully's chin
found itself resting on her hand as she leaned against the doorframe,
filing this image of him away in her mind.  "You are just DYING to
sing, aren't you?"

Doggett's fingers stopped tapping the steering wheel in mid-tap, and
he gave her a sideways glimpse.  "I wasn't singin' out loud, was
I?"

Scully opened her mouth to say something, but decided on the truth. 
"No, but your lips were moving."  She reached for the empty case. 
"What song is this?"

"Track three," he offered helpfully.

She glared at him, though he probably couldn't see it in the darkness
of the Jeep.  She pointed this out to him.  "If you can't see my
glare, imagine how hard it is for me to read the back of this case."

Sheepishly, he tried again, " 'Get Ready', by Rare Earth, though
it was written by Smokey Robinson."

"You know your stuff."

"So how 'bout you?"

"What about me," she asked.

"You sing?"

She gave a small choke and a little sputter, "Uh, no.  I don't sing.
 At all."

He looked at her again, "Not at all?"

"Not at ALL," she repeated.

He was filing this away when her apartment building came into view.

"Wow," she stated, "that was quick."

"You were so intent on seeing me sing, you lost all track of time."

She slyly wondered aloud, "Do you think it would do me any good to get
you to drive around the block a couple of times?"

Now it was his turn to glare at her, "Ha ha."  He put his hand on
her arm.

"Don't go anywhere," they said in unison.

He gave her a double-take to see if she was mocking him, but finding no
expression of the sort, he exited the Jeep and came 'round to her
side.  Opening the door, he offered his arm and helped her out.  When
her feet were safely on the ground, she turned to him and said, "I
want to thank you for a really nice evening, Agent Doggett."

Hoo-boy, that was quick, he thought wryly.  But he knew he was in her
territory now, so he harboured no resentment.  He simply nodded in
agreement and echoed, "I want to thank YOU for a really nice
evenin', Agent Scully.  But, ah, I gotta walk you to your door, you
understand."

She certainly was beginning to.  "I'd expect nothing less."

"Good."

They made their way up her sidewalk, and underneath the entranceway to
the building, he stopped.  "The Doggett Express stops here," he
joked.

She turned and looked at him.  She appreciated him not walking her all
the way inside, sparing the both of them any moment of awkwardness. 
"Ok, I think I can make it from here."  She reached into her pocket
to show him her keys, and brushed her hand across the box in her pocket.
 "Thanks again for the gift.  It won't be forgotten."

Scully could almost see him blushing in the semi-darkness.  His soothing
voice came through the air like a warm blanket, "I'll remember you
said that the next time we're in a dark attic together."  He waited
for the small laugh he knew to be coming, and then said, "Goodnight,
Agent Scully."

He turned to walk away when she spoke his name.  "John."  He twisted
around in surprise and asked, "Yeah?"

She stood up as tall as she could and hesitated before embracing him. 
Instinctively, he put his arms around her, but in truth, he barely had
time to register the moment before she pulled back, and said,
"Goodnight, Agent Doggett."

He watched her turn her back to him and put the key in the lock. Still a
bit mystified at what just happened, he started to make his way back to
his Jeep when he heard her call him one last time. 

"Agent Doggett?"  He faced her again, as way of responding.  "No
cigarettes when you buy that ice cream, ok?"

He grinned and gave her a wave.

                               *-----*


She could hear her phone ringing as she put the key in the lock of her
apartment.  Of course, the faster she tried to get in, the longer it
took her, so by the time she pushed the door open, the machine was
taking the message.  Kicking off her shoes and hanging up her jacket,
she waited to hear the beep and the identity of the caller.  She was
just dropping herself into her favourite chair when that unmistakable
voice came through the phone.

"Agent Scully, just one more thing.  That inscription on your
flashlight.  Uh, you think you could keep that bit of information
between you and me?  The guys at work find out I'm quotin' poetry to
my partner, and I'll never live it down.  Apparently I've got this
profile thing to live up to."  She could hear the smile in his voice,
and not for the first time that evening, she found herself smiling back.

-fin-


Author's notes:

	No mention of some kid named "Luke", didja notice?  Not that I
can't understand where 1013's coming from in terms of trying to
generate a rich history for the Doggett character, but does it always
have to generate from the death/abduction/murder/whatever of a family
member?  While a great storyline could be developed from a
"survivor" standpoint (survivor's guilt over being the last man
standing, so to speak), cannot good angst be derived from everyday
situations?  I'd like to discover that our Manly Man, our EVERYDAY
Man, could simply be flawed, just as sure as the rest of us are.  I
think the very idea of failure for Doggett is his weakness, whether it
be something so complex as failing to protect a son or partner, or
something so "simple" as maintaining a marriage (I'm not married
myself, so perhaps it's not so simple <g>).  And I have no doubt,
after watching the season thus far, that Robert Patrick has the acting
chops to convey that flaw regardless of the scope of it.
	Gave him a large family too, eh?  Well, I figured there had to be SOME
back story which would explain his innate 'gentlemanliness" 
(besides RP being from the South, of course).  We've yet to see
Doggett really interact with other female characters, but just taking
into account his attitude towards Scully, either:  
	a)there's a making-up-for-something-that-happened-to-the-last-partner
story,  
	b)he's been in the company of women a LOT (Note:  the ingredients to
be a ladies man?- Oh yeah!  The belief that he IS a ladies'
man?-Nope.) or  
	c)he's only kind and gentle around Scully 'cause he spends the day
dreamin' about getting' nekkid with her and doing the nasty in that
bed she had a good look at in "Via Negativa".  (Now, this could be
VERY possible <g>, but that's another fanfic story entirely!)
	The poem on the flashlight-  I spent quite a bit of time trying to
figure out what he could give her without it coming across as too strong
(thus unbelievable at this stage in their partnership), so I gave
Doggett a bit of a secret "sensitive guy" streak.  With all those
books we see in his house, I figured it wouldn't be TOO much of a
stretch, and he does seem to be the kind of guy who would remember all
the little things, like his partner not having a flashlight (all those
years as a cop would be hard to shake).  That poem, by the way, is
listed on her flashlight in its entirety.  It's called "The Deepest
Sensuality".
	Anything else?  Oh yes, the music.  What can I say?  I got The Motown
Singles Collection for Christmas, and I just so happened to have it
playing as I wrote the second half of this story.  "Get Ready" IS
the third song on disc four of the box set.