The Great North Woods 2

The Great North Woods 2

Jo B. purplefox@usfamily.net

Rating: NC-17

Slight spoilers: Sein Und Zeit and Closer

Keywords: M/O M/Sk SLASH

Disclaimer: The X-Files characters are the property Chris Carter,
1013 productions and Fox Broadcasting. No money is being made
from their use.

Summary: Mulder finds comfort in the arms of another man.

Authors Notes: I'm a Minnesotan. However, all of the Minnesota
locations in this story are purely fictional. I started this
story a few days after watching the episode Closure. It doesn't
reflect anything that comes after that episode.

Feedback is always welcome. Any constructive suggestions are
appreciated.

WARNING! This story contains explicit Sex/Romance between two
men. Turn back now, if the subject matter offends you.

Okay to Archive: MTA, The Basement, all others please ask first.

Web site: http://www.parkers-
place.net/roundXFslash/lfta/LFTAHome.htm

***

Mulder's cabin Wednesday, April 13, 2000 11:30 p.m.

Mulder was getting desperate; Olsen had been teasing and
titillating his senses for the past hour. His cock had never been
this painfully hard and in need of release. "Ooh, Eric,
please...I-I can't take anymore...fuck...please...just fuck me!"

Olsen chuckled as he nipped and sucked Mulder's nipple until it
was a hard, red nub and his lover's body was trembling and taut
with need. He had explored every delicious inch of Mulder's body
from his toes to the tips of his ears. "Roll over, Fox." He
grabbed the pillows and placed them underneath Mulder's stomach
elevating his hips.

Mulder felt Olsen's hot breath against his ass, then the wet
roughness of the man's tongue along his crease. He blushed, he'd
never had a man rim him before and he found the experience both
highly erotic and embarrassing.

Olsen was making slobbering noises as he hungrily licked down his
lover's crease to his anus. Mulder tasted of soap and sweat.
Olsen's tongue probed the tightly clenched opening finding it
difficult to push inside. His saliva eventually helped him gain
entry and he slowly fucked Mulder with his tongue, enjoying his
earthy flavor.

"Oooh, my God!" Mulder gasped. That someone would do this to him
was mind blowing, and he felt his cock leaking an endless stream
of precum. "Eric, I'm going to come...AAAUUGHH," he cried out as
he came pumping his release onto the pillow.

Olsen felt the sphincter muscles contract around his tongue as
Mulder came. When his lover slumped exhaustedly onto the mattress
he removed his tongue and opened the tube of KY. He slowly
prepared Mulder a finger at a time, stretching the relaxed
muscles further. Olsen set the lube aside and tore open a condom.
He didn't even bother to ask Mulder if he still wanted this, he
couldn't hold back from taking him any longer. He rolled the
condom over his hard, throbbing organ then smeared more lubricant
onto it. "Fox, get on your knees...that's it, my love." He tossed
the damp pillows onto the floor then placed one hand on the small
of Mulder's back while the other held and positioned his cock at
Mulder's small opening. Olsen strained against the opening. Even
after stretching and preparing him, his lover was still
incredibly tight.

Mulder moaned as he felt the hard organ spreading his cheeks wide
and pushing painfully at his anus. He didn't think that he could
go through with this...he felt a painful burning as the cockhead
popped inside of him. His muscles contracted and tried to push
the invader out. Mulder buried his face in the mattress to keep
from crying out. He had to force himself to relax.

"That's it, Fox, relax...take deep breaths. I won't go any
further until you are ready," Olsen said soothingly as he felt
every muscle in his lover's body trembling under the strain of
his entry. Olsen's hands caressed Mulder's back and ass as he
waited, when he felt that his lover had relaxed, he slowly pushed
in further.

Mulder sighed audibly as the pain ebbed. He had forgotten how
good it felt to be filled by another man's cock as his lover sank
all the way into him.

"You're doing really well, Fox." Olsen leaned down and kissed the
spot between Mulder's shoulder blades. "You feel incredible. I've
never been inside of anyone as tight as you. Fox, I care about
you so much." Olsen stopped short of telling Mulder he had fallen
in love with him. He didn't want to lay that pressure on his
lover this early in their relationship.

"Eric, shut up and fuck me." Mulder didn't want reassurances, he
wanted to be fucked. Since he made up his mind yesterday to give
himself totally to his lover this way, he was determined to move
quickly forward in their relationship before fate could step in
and ruin his happiness.

"Your lips to my dick, sweetheart," Olsen chuckled and started to
slowly move in and out of his lover's body until he picked up a
good rhythm. His hand reached under Mulder and grasped his penis
that had become erect again.

"God, Eric, harder!" Mulder's body arched off the bed each time
Olsen hit his prostate.

Olsen groaned. The pressure of his lover's muscles bearing down
on his cock was exquisite, he started pounding harder and faster
into Mulder. It had been so long since he last had anal sex that
he couldn't hold off any longer and came thunderously, pouring
his passion into Mulder.

Mulder came again as he felt the pressure of Eric's release. He
sank down into the mattress as Olsen's body collapsed on him.
Mulder hadn't come more than once in an evening in years. His
mind turned to Skinner as Eric pulled out of him. He couldn't
help but briefly fantasize about what type of lover Skinner would
be.

Olsen disposed of the condom then wrapped his arms around Mulder
and kissed the back of his neck. "That was beautiful, Fox."

Mulder turned around until he was facing Olsen. He moved closer
and off the wet spot he was lying in. "Thanks, Eric, that was
just what I needed. I forgot how much I used to like being
fucked."

"There is a lot more where that came from, Fox."

Mulder smiled tiredly and kissed Olsen briefly before snuggling
closer and falling asleep in his arms.

Olsen kissed the top of Mulder's head. How would he ever be able
to let him go when his vacation is over?

***

Mulder's cabin Thursday, April 14, 2000 2:30 p.m.

Mulder stood out on his deck looking across at the lake. It had
been ten days since he and Olsen had heard that strange cry
outside his cabin, but they hadn't been disturbed since. He now
had drapes installed in the bathroom, so hopefully that had
deterred their peeping Tom. His relationship with Eric was
progressing nicely, and he was relieved that he didn't railroad
it by asking strange questions about werewolves, Bigfoot, or any
other monster that might be roaming the lands around Long Lake.
He had to admit that he had jumped too quickly to the
supernatural cause, instead of accepting that it could have been
a human culprit.

Even finding out from the Gunmen that Eric had indeed been a
member of the Black Ops hadn't affected how Mulder felt about
him. The man he had come to know would never use their
relationship to hurt him or spy on him. He was positive of that.

He stood still as a doe came strolling out of the woods. It
looked up at him then scampered back to where it had come from.
The lake was nearly free of ice now as the temperatures had
quickly risen into the low sixties over the past three days.
Mulder was dressed in a sweatshirt and jeans. He thought about
going into town, but decided to hang out around the cabin. He had
invited Eric over for dinner tonight.

Mulder chuckled as he thought about how totally domestic that
was. He used to cook occasionally for Phoebe and later Diana, but
he hadn't cooked for anyone since. He was going to grill some
steaks and bake some potatoes. He chuckled as two male mallards
started getting it on just below where he stood. "Hey, aren't you
two suppose to be looking for a female to build a nest with?"
Mulder asked and both ducks quacked at him and flew off to a
safer distance.

Suddenly the hairs on the back of Mulder's neck stood on end as
he smelled the same foul odor he'd smelled nine nights ago
outside his cabin. He looked around nervously as he cautiously
backed toward the French doors. He did not intend to meet
whatever was producing such a foul stench without his gun.

Mulder closed and locked the door behind him as he rushed over to
the closet to retrieve his gun. As he was pulling the gun down
from the top shelf he heard a thud on the deck, just outside the
French doors. He quickly pulled the gun from its holster and
cocked it as he hurried back to the door. Mulder stopped in his
tracks. On the deck directly in front of the door was a freshly
killed deer carcass. "Shit."

Mulder sidestepped over to the wall beside the doors and
cautiously peered out, keeping his body out of sight behind the
wall. He thought he saw movement in the woods, but whatever it
was disappeared quickly. Mulder looked down at the deer's body.
He didn't see any bullet holes. From where he stood it was hard
for him to tell how it had died without going outside. Something
deep inside told him that would not be a wise decision. Instead,
he hurried out to the kitchen and called the Sheriff's Office.

"Ashburg's Sheriff's Office. How may I help you?" Deputy Hoffman
answered.

"Deputy Hoffman, it's Fox Mulder. Is Sheriff Olsen around?"
Mulder faced the window as he talked keeping a firm grip on his
gun.

"He's out patrolling. I can radio him that you called," she
offered.

"Can you tell him that . . . *someone* just dumped a dead deer
carcass on my deck," Mulder said, he was going to say *something*
but stopped himself.

"Did you get a look at the person?"

"No."

"Okay, Mr. Mulder, I'll radio the sheriff immediately."

"Thank you, Deputy Hoffman. Please tell the sheriff to be
careful, I'm not sure if the person is still in the area." Mulder
hung up and paced the cabin. He wandered upstairs and into one of
the spare bedrooms and looked out the window. He could see the
deer's carcass below and had a clear view of the woods, but
couldn't see anything moving. He walked through the connecting
bathroom and into the other bedroom and looked out its windows,
too. Still nothing.

"FOX!" Olsen had used his skeleton key to get inside the cabin.

Mulder turned and rushed downstairs when he heard Eric's voice.
"Eric! God, I'm glad you're here."

Olsen rushed over to him and gave him a quick hug then looked him
over closely. "Are you okay? Ann said someone dumped a dead deer
on your deck."

"I'm fine. A little scared, but otherwise fine."

"Fox, what happened?"

"I was standing out on the deck when I smelled that same foul
odor from nine nights ago. I rushed inside to get my gun and as I
was in the closet I heard a thump on the deck then saw the
carcass in front of the French doors I had come in through. I
didn't feel safe going back outside at the time. So I haven't had
a chance to examine it to see how it was killed," Mulder rambled
uneasily as he led Eric into his bedroom and over to the French
doors.

"Did you see who dumped it here?" Olsen asked.

Mulder chewed his bottom lip. He was hesitant to tell Olsen that
he didn't think a human dumped it. "No. By the time I got over to
the door...the culprit was gone."

"It isn't that far from the closet, surely you must have seen
something?" Olsen looked at him as he started to open the door.

Mulder shrugged his shoulders. "No."

Olsen looked at him in disbelief, shaking his head he cautiously
stepped out onto the deck with his gun drawn. Mulder followed.
They stepped around the deer's carcass and scanned the backyard
and the woods.

Mulder sniffed, relaxing when he didn't smell that foul stench.

Olsen looked at the carcass and the distance from the steps
leading up to deck. It was approximate twelve feet. The perp
should have been easily spotted from the French doors. "You
didn't see anything? How much time passed when you heard the
thump and when you discovered the dead deer?"

"Seconds...I can't figure out how it got the deer onto the deck
without me seeing it," Mulder said, at the same time both their
eyes turned toward the railing at the edge of the deck just a few
feet from the deer.

"Unless it was tossed over the railing." Olsen shook his head.
"But the person would have had to be extremely tall and strong to
accomplish that feat," he said, walking over to the railing and
looking down at the ground. There was a layer of landscaping
stones underneath and around the deck, which didn't allow for any
footprints.

Mulder's eyes lit up as he saw a few strands of coarse hair
caught on the wood railing. "I need a baggy," he said excitedly
and rushed back inside to his kitchen and came back with a
plastic bag. He turned the bag inside out then grabbed the hairs
off the railing with it and inverted it.

"Fox, what is it?"

Mulder held up the bag. "I think it belongs to whatever threw
that carcass on my deck. Here, smell this." He held the bag open
as Olsen took a sniff.

Olsen made a face. The baggy consolidated the odors. "Phew, that
smells awful...like what we smelled outside here that night." He
held the bag up and examined the hairs. They were long and
coarse. He couldn't identify what type of animal they came from.
"What do you think?"

"I want to send them to the FBI Lab for analysis," Mulder said.

Olsen wasn't sure what was going on, but getting the FBI involved
over a dead deer sounded a little extreme. "Fox, we don't know
that someone isn't playing a practical joke on us," Olsen said.

"Don't worry, Eric, I'm just going to send it to my partner.
She'll be very quiet about it."

Olsen was worried. He had checked with his sources in the
military and found that Fox had many enemies within the
government and military. The only reason he was still alive was
because he had even more admirers within the government and
military. It would result in an outright war between the
different factions if he were killed. However, that didn't make
him above being set up to be discredited and turned into a
laughing stock. Olsen had seen it happen to other citizens who
raised certain issues that the government didn't want raised.

"Fox, just be careful. I can tell that you want to believe this
might be one of your X-Files, but the whole thing could be just
one big elaborate hoax to make you look the fool."

Mulder looked off toward the woods. "I'm not a fool, Eric. I may
look at things from all angles, no matter how out there, but that
doesn't mean I ignore the possibility that there could be a human
element behind it." He looked down at the dead deer. "We need to
have this examined. Is there a coroner nearby?"

"No, but we do have a pretty good veterinarian. I have a tarp in
my patrol car. I'll get it so we can wrap it up and take it to
Doctor Mora." Olsen headed back inside leaving Mulder standing on
the deck.

Mulder had a feeling that he was being watched and he wondered
how far scents carried on a windless day. He was thankful when
Eric came back outside with the tarp. They quickly wrapped the
smelly carcass in it and carried it to Eric's car, placing it
into the trunk. Mulder got into the passenger seat and buckled
himself in. His mind was going a mile a minute as he pieced the
evidence together. The only piece he could not figure out was why
the deer carcass was left outside his door. Was it some sort of
warning?

Olsen kept glancing over at Mulder as he drove. He vowed to get
to the bottom of this. Mulder was the best thing that happen to
him in years, and Olsen didn't want to see him hurt. Whoever was
playing this sick game was going to pay dearly.

***

Veterinarian office Thursday, April 14, 2000 5:00 p.m.

"Its neck was snapped," Doctor Mora said, shaking his head. "You
say the carcass was left on your deck?"

"Yes. Do you have any idea why someone would leave a dead deer
carcass outside my door?" Mulder asked, something about the way
the doctor refused to meet his eyes troubled him. He had been
that way ever since Mulder had shown him the hair sample he had
found on the railing.

"No. Are you going to be staying here long, Agent Mulder?" the
doctor asked.

"Six more weeks." Mulder frowned, the doctor had been too quick
to say no.

The doctor looked worried. "Maybe you should stay in town until
we figure out what killed this deer. It might not be safe if
there is some lunatic on the loose."

"I'm a trained FBI Agent, Doctor Mora." Mulder wondered at the
doctor's reaction.

"Well, if you don't mind, I'll have these hair samples analyzed
to see what type of animal they come from," Mora said, reaching
for the bag.

"That won't be necessary, Doctor. I'm going to have the FBI's Lab
analyze them," Mulder said, slipping the baggy back into his
pocket. He noted the fear that flashed across the doctor's
features and wondered about it, too. The doctor knew something.

Olsen had noticed it, too. He had known Doctor Clive Mora for
seven years -- since he moved to Ashburg. The doctor was in his
late fifties and had been the town's only vet for the past thirty
years. Mora was an upstanding citizen and Olsen was puzzled by
his behavior. "Clive, thank you for your help." Olsen grabbed
Mulder's elbow and steered him out of the office.

When they got back in the car, Mulder turned angrily to Olsen.
"Eric, that man is hiding something! Did you see his face when he
examined those hairs?"

The radio chirped to life. "Eric, come in! Over."

Olsen answered it. "Go ahead, Ann. Over"

"Get out to Congressman Asner's cabin at once! Over."

"What is it? Over."

"I received a call from Mrs. Asner that something was trying to
break in. I heard a loud crash and screaming then the line went
dead. Over," Deputy Hoffman's voice was frantic. She had never
heard a more terrified scream than what had come over the
telephone line.

"Ten-four. I'm heading there now. Over and Out." Olsen flipped on
his lights and siren and accelerated down the road.

Mulder had to grab the dashboard as the sheriff took a sharp turn
onto the road that led to their cabins. As they sped down the
road, the tall pines whipped by as Mulder's eyes tried to see
into the forest for signs of movement. Anything could easily hide
within its dense growth. They sped past the driveway to Eric's
home then quickly past Mulder's cabin. Congressman Asner had the
last cabin in the development several miles down the road. Two
more cabins were under construction just past Asner's place.
Olsen came close to sliding into the ditch that was on the side
of the long driveway leading to Asner's cabin. Mulder gripped the
door handle tighter as Olsen screeched to a stop in front of the
cabin. Both men exited the vehicle drawing their weapons.

The front door looked intact as they cautiously walked up to it
and tried the knob, it was locked. Olsen motioned with his head
and they made their way around to the back of the cabin. Mulder
noted that it had several similar features to his cabin. Several
planks on the deck were broken and the railing was torn off in
one section. Mulder's stomach lurched as he noted that the French
doors leading, he assumed, to the master bedroom were smashed in.
Olsen motioned Mulder to stay put as he rushed into the room,
sweeping his gun around the room searching for a target. Mulder
followed him in equally ready to defend himself against whatever
had broken in through the doors, he nearly gagged as the smell
hit him. They crept out into the great room and stopped in their
tracks. It looked like a slaughter house.

"Don't touch anything. Be careful where you place your feet,"
Mulder cautioned. The same foul odor that had been outside his
cabin permeated this room, it wasn't as overwhelming as the first
two times Mulder smelled it, suggesting that whatever had been
here was gone.

"Don't worry, Fox, I know how to be careful. I'm going to call
Duluth and have them send out their crime lab," Olsen said as he
followed Mulder through the lower level, careful not to step in
any of the blood that was splattered around the room.

"No. I'm calling the FBI in on this one." Mulder noted that the
two victims in the great room were neither Congressman Asner nor
his daughter Sarah. His ears perked up as he heard a faint sound
coming from upstairs.

"Fox, this case is under my jurisdiction," Olsen growled.

"Eric, Asner is a U.S. Congressman, it would be in your best
interest to get the FBI involved right away. We have the
resources that you need."

Olsen hated to admit that he wasn't up to doing the job, but he
realized that Mulder was right. He didn't have the resources at
his disposal to investigate a case of this nature. He needed a
crime lab out here, if not the FBI it would have to be from the
Twin Cities or Duluth. "Okay, Fox, call the FBI."

"Thanks, Eric." Mulder climbed the stairs careful not to touch
the railing or the walls. He kept an eye on Olsen and noted his
lover was about to grab the railing as he followed him up the
stairs. "Dammit, Eric, don't touch the railing! Put your hands in
your pockets so you don't make that mistake again!"

Olsen turned bright red. "Sorry, Fox." He still held his gun in
one hand, but quickly brought his other hand closer to his body
and silently kicked himself for being that sloppy.

Mulder stopped next to a partially opened bedroom door and
listened. He couldn't hear the noise any longer. He used his
elbow to push open the door and stepped in to the room. The room
appeared empty, but Mulder wasn't convinced -- he knelt on the
floor and looked under the bed. Curled up in a ball against the
wall was Sarah Asner. "Sarah, it's Fox. Remember we met this
weekend. Come out I'm not going to hurt you."

When Sarah didn't move Mulder crawled under the bed and touched
her shoulder. Getting no response he pulled her to him and
slithered backwards out from beneath the bed. All the while
whispering soothingly to her. "Don't worry, Sarah, nothing is
going to hurt you. I'm here and so is Sheriff Olsen. We’re going
to protect you."

Olsen stood back and watched as Mulder scooped the little girl up
in his arms and set her on the bed. "Eric, she's in shock. We
need to get her to a hospital."

"I'll call for a helicopter and have her airlifted to the
Minneapolis Children's Hospital. She'll get the best care there,"
Olsen said, stepping out into the hallway he got on his radio and
made arrangements while Mulder tended to Sarah.

Mulder stayed with the girl while Olsen went out and checked the
grounds for the missing congressman. He came back to report that
there was no trace of him. Mulder placed a call into the FBI in
Washington. Because of the nature of the case his call was
forward directly to Director Cross. He filled the Director in on
the details while Olsen searched the downstairs for a second
time.

Olsen kept his hands in his pockets, so he wouldn't touch
anything. He had learned his lesson from earlier. He stopped in
the master bathroom, and scanned the rooms contents. Olsen
glanced out the bay window at the lake and the setting sun. His
ears perked up as he heard the helicopter approaching. He had
directed them to land on the road in front of the cabin.

Mulder heard the helicopter, too. He came downstairs carrying
Sarah. He had her wrapped in a blanket, and was careful that she
didn't see any of the blood or her mother's body as he carried
her through the great room and out the front door. Olsen
followed. Several state patrol vehicles pulled up on the road
above the cabin and next to the helicopter.

Olsen filled the officers in while Mulder talked to the
paramedics on the evac helicopter.

Olsen came over to Mulder as the helicopter was lifting off. "I'm
stationing a state patrolman in front of the driveway leading
down to the cabin. No one is allowed on the property until the
team of FBI Agents gets here. I've also notified the State Patrol
to set up road blocks in case the perpetrators are still in the
area. I want to head into town and make arrangements for an air
and ground search of the area at first light."

"That sounds good, Eric," Mulder said sadly as he started back
down the driveway to the sheriff's patrol car and slid into the
passenger side.

"What's wrong, Fox?" Olsen asked, getting behind the wheel.

"Eric, I think a Bigfoot was responsible for killing Mrs. Asner
and the Congressman's aide."

"Fox, I think we should concentrate on a human perp, before we
start searching for the boogey man."

Mulder sighed. He leaned back against the seat and stared out the
window as the car headed into town. "You can look for a human
suspect, Eric, but you’ll be searching in the wrong direction. It
was a Bigfoot that killed those people and took the Congressman."

Olsen shook his head. He thought of himself as being open minded,
but he'd lived up here seven years and if there was such a thing
as a Bigfoot in this area, he was positive he would have seen
some evidence before now.

***

Walter Skinner's apartment Thursday, April 14, 2000 8:30 p.m.

Skinner had just poured himself his second bourbon when the phone
rang. Reaching for the phone, he sighed, irritated at being
interrupted in the middle of his plan to get drunk. "Skinner."

"Walt, I just received a report that Congressman Asner is missing
and his wife and aide have been murdered. I need you on this one
personally," Director Cross said.

"I'll get right on it, sir," Skinner said, setting his bourbon
aside.

"I've had my assistant arrange for a military transport for you
and your team. Have them assemble out at Andrews Airforce Base.
The plane is standing by."

Skinner was surprised, he assumed that the homicide and
kidnapping had taken place in D.C. "Sir, where exactly was
Congressman Asner abducted from?"

"He was renting a cabin in northern Minnesota with his family,
outside the town of Ashburg. Walt, luckily for us, it seems that
Agent Mulder was one of the first officers on the scene. So I
have no doubt that he has taken the proper procedures in securing
the crime scene."

Skinner's stomach was tied up in knots at finding out that Mulder
was involved. "I'll have a team to the airport within the hour,
sir." He hung up and started dialing his agents. As he made the
calls, he wondered what Mulder had gotten in the middle of this
time.

***

Mulder's Cabin Friday, April 15, 2000 2:30 a.m.

Mulder took a sip of coffee as they sat at his kitchen counter.
They had sealed off the crime scene earlier and left a state
patrolman guarding the scene. A full-scale search had been
organized that would start at first light for Congressman Asner.
Mulder swore under his breath in frustration. He hated just
sitting around waiting.

"Fox, she's in good hands. There was nothing more we could have
done," Olsen said.

"Eric, she's in shock! I only hope she didn't witness her
mother's murder. I can imagine how terrifying it must have been
for her hiding underneath that bed..." Mulder stopped talking and
shook his head sadly. He hated seeing little girls injured.

Olsen stood and walked behind Mulder; hugging him he rested his
chin on Mulder's shoulder. "Why don't you go to bed, Fox?"

"I'm too wired to sleep. Besides I want to be up when the agents
from Washington arrive."

As if on cue Olsen's radio chirped. "Ten-sixty-five, Olsen. Come
in."

He unclipped it from his belt and spoke into it. "Sheriff Olsen.
Over."

"The FBI are here, Sheriff. Over."

"Ten-four. We're on our way. Over."

"Ten-four. Over and out."

Mulder was already up and pulling on his leather jacket.

Olsen put his hand on Mulder's arm to stop him from going out the
door. He pulled Mulder into his arms and kissed him passionately
then rested his forehead against Mulder's. "We might not get a
chance to be together over the next couple of days. I just needed
something to tide me over," Olsen said. They'd only known each
other eleven days, but already he was head over heals in love
with Mulder. He'd never met anyone like him before, and Olsen
couldn't bear the thought that one day his lover would go back to
D.C.

"Yeah, you're probably right." Mulder was disappointed, with the
other FBI Agents in town, he wasn't sure how much time he'd have
for Eric. Or for that matter, how attentive of a lover he could
be. When he was working on a case everything else took second
place. He followed Eric out to his cruiser, all the while,
sniffing the air and glancing at the dark woods around them.

Olsen looked over at Mulder. "Fox, I really don't think it was a
Bigfoot that killed those people."

Mulder shrugged his shoulders as he buckled his seatbelt. "The
evidence all points to a Bigfoot."

Olsen grunted. He was finding it impossible to convince Mulder of
how improbable it was for a mythical creature to have committed a
clearly human crime.

The ride to the Congressman's cabin was brief. The state patrol
vehicle was parked outside the entrance to the long driveway
leading to the cabin. Already several news crews had set up
cameras and were filming the entrance and their arrival. Their
camera lights illuminated the night.

"Damn, I really hate the press," Olsen muttered as the state
patrolman waved them through. He nodded to the officer and
steered his vehicle down the narrow driveway.

Mulder grinned. "My boss doesn't care for them much either, it
irritates the hell out of him whenever I speak to them."

"Doesn't the Bureau have a policy against agents speaking
directly to the press?" Olsen asked.

"Yes."

"Fox, do you have a reckless streak that I should know about?"
Olsen parked next to two other vehicles.

"My partner and boss seem to think that I do, but I only like to
push the envelope occasionally." Mulder climbed out of the car
and noticed an agent bent over the shrubbery puking his guts out.

"Colton," he greeted as he walked past the man.

Olsen ignored the man as he followed Mulder up the steps and into
the cabin.

Olsen observed the room. The crime scene was just as gruesome as
it had been when they first arrived early, except that some of
the blood had dried. A photographer was taking photographs of the
scene from all angles, while a petite redhead was examining what
was left of the two victims. Three other men stood back waiting
for the photographer to finish recording the scene. One man had a
notebook out and was writing down details of the crime scene,
including making a quick diagram of the room. Olsen figured out
immediately that the bald man was in charge, it was easy to tell
by the way he carried himself.

"Sir, I didn't expect you to be here," Mulder said, walking over
to the group.

Olsen noted the look that flashed across the bald man's face
before he could conceal it. The sheriff frowned as it occurred to
him who this man must be. He thought jealously that this was the
man Fox fantasized about having sex with, and it appeared that
the feeling might be mutual. Why hadn't Fox noticed it?

"Agent Mulder. The Director wanted me to oversee this
investigation personally," Skinner said, while secretly admiring
how fine Mulder looked in the leather jacket and tight black
jeans. Then as an after thought he asked, "How is your vacation
going other than stumbling onto a homicide?" Skinner's eyes fell
on the blond sheriff standing behind Mulder.

"Fine, sir." Mulder noticed his boss staring, no glaring, at
Sheriff Olsen. "Sir, this is Sheriff Eric Olsen. Eric, this is my
boss Assistant Director Walter Skinner."

"AD Skinner." Olsen held out his hand and grimaced when it was
taken in a steel grip, he squeezed back matching the force of
Skinner's handshake.

Scully hadn't noticed them; she was too involved in studying the
bodies. "Garrett, can you get a close up of this?" she asked,
looking up and noticing Mulder for the first time. Her face lit
up in a welcoming smile. "Mulder."

"Hey, Partner. Have you found anything?" Mulder asked, stepping
over to her.

"I only just started, but there does appear to be some
interesting bruising on this severed arm and the ligaments, nerve
endings, and blood vessels at the sever point do not show signs
of a blade being used to remove it. It appears that the limb was
twisted off the body. Also, there are some hairs and other
material under the victim's fingernails. Both bodies had several
deep bite marks." Scully looked puzzled. "Garrett, get a close up
of the bruising."

Scully had placed a plastic bag around the hand to protect the
evidence.

Agent Garrett Jones stepped over to Scully and looked over at the
other agents standing next to Skinner. "Guys, you can go ahead
and start taking measurements and drawing outlines around the
bodies, I'm through with the main set of photographs," he said as
he bent to snap a close up of the severed arm.

The two men standing next to Skinner started to move. They worked
as a team measuring the distance between each piece of evidence
and adding it to a sketch one had made of the room. They went out
to the master bedroom and recorded the measurements and
descriptions of the point of entry. Agent Tom Colton had come
back into the room to assist, and started jotting down his
observations of the crime scene.

The photographer followed the two crime scene technicians around
taking additional photos as they dusted for fingerprints and
pointed out pieces of evidence that they wanted close ups of
before they bagged and labeled them.

Skinner stayed out of the way with his hands firmly in his
pockets so he didn't inadvertently touch anything. He couldn't
help drinking in Mulder's beautiful visage as the younger man
assisted Agent Scully. The A.D. stood next to Olsen and both
watched his agents interact. It had been two weeks since he had
last seen Mulder, but it felt like a hell of a lot longer. Mulder
looked damned gorgeous. Skinner thought he should have been
horrified that he was standing here in the middle of a brutal
crime scene and all he could think of was how good Mulder looked.

"He's very good at his job, isn't he?" Olsen observed.

"Agent Mulder is one of the Bureau's top agents," Skinner replied
proudly.

"I figured that out when we first arrived on the scene. He was
very proficient in going through the crime scene without
disturbing any evidence. Fox also handled the child we discovered
hiding in the upstairs bedroom with care and compassion," Olsen
said.

Fox? Skinner stared hard at the handsome sheriff as the man stood
openly admiring his agent. He found himself having to swallow the
jealousy he was feeling at the lust-filled looks Olsen kept
giving Mulder. He could see why Mulder would have fallen for the
sheriff, the man was handsome and around Mulder's age.

Skinner needed to get his mind back on the case. "We didn't get
much information on Sarah Asner except that she was unresponsive
when she was found."

"Yes. She was in severe shock and catatonic. We had her flown
down to the Minneapolis Children's Hospital. The child's paternal
grandparents have been notified and are flying into the Twin
Cities to be with her. Hopefully she'll recover enough to shed
some light on what happened here," Olsen said.

"Sheriff Olsen, do you have a theory for what happened here?"

"No. But I think it might be connected to an incident that
happened earlier in the day at Fox's cabin," Olsen said.

"What incident is that?" Skinner asked apprehensively as he
looked around that the blood splattered room.

"Someone dumped a dead deer carcass on the deck directly in front
of the outside door leading into his bedroom. We recovered a hair
sample from that incident similar to the samples that we have
discovered at this crime scene," Olsen replied.

"Are you saying that the unsub first targeted Agent Mulder before
coming here and killing these two people and abducting the
Congressman?" Skinner's voice rose and all eyes turned to him.

Scully looked at Mulder who was cringing under Skinner's intense
glare. "Mulder, what's going on?" she asked.

"Yes, Agent Mulder, what the hell is going on? Were you planning
on telling us about this incident at your cabin?" Skinner
growled.

"Yes, sir. I was planning on mentioning it when we had this
wrapped up. I thought dealing with this crime scene first was
more important," Mulder replied.

"Mulder, someone threatened your life! I deem that as being
important!" Skinner snapped, annoyed.

Olsen was surprised at the level of anger in Skinner's voice. To
Olsen, Skinner seemed a little too protective and concerned for
Mulder's well-being than a normal superior should be. It was
becoming more and more apparent to him that Skinner had feelings
for Mulder that went deeper than boss and employee. He didn't
like that and hoped Mulder would remain ignorant of the fact.
"Fox and I are looking into the matter. We have not ignored the
possible threat to his life," Olsen said forcefully.

Skinner glared at the sheriff. "I will look out for my own
people, Sheriff."

Mulder saw his lover's face darken with anger toward his boss, so
he quickly stepped between them. "Sir, can we deal with the
current crime scene first? I'm not in any immediate danger."

"Very well, Agent Mulder, but I expect a detailed report from you
as soon as we are through here," Skinner growled, he turned and
stormed out the front door for a breath of fresh air and to get
his temper under control.

The other agents had stopped what they were doing during the
confrontation. They went back to work only after Skinner had left
the cabin.

Olsen gave Mulder a mischievous grin and said quietly, "Fox, I
don't think your boss likes me."

Mulder was a bit puzzled by Skinner's behavior; it wasn't like
him to storm out of the room. "Eric, Skinner isn't the type of
man to dislike you after one minor disagreement. He is probably
the fairest man I know. I just think he's a little stressed at
the moment. Besides, he isn't happy unless he can chew my ass out
at least once during a case." Mulder went back over to assist
Scully, leaving his lover with nothing to do but watch.

***

The county coroner arrived at six o'clock in the morning and
bagged the bodies after Scully gave her okay for them to be
removed. They transported the bodies to the nearest morgue two
towns away in Coquette. Scully caught a ride with the coroner;
she was planning on doing the autopsies immediately.

It was mid-morning by the time all the evidence was bagged,
documented, and labeled. An FBI courier arrived from the
Minneapolis field office to pick up the evidence and hand carry
it back to Washington D.C. Agent Jones headed back to D.C. with
him to oversee the processing of the evidence and the crime scene
photos.

By ten o'clock in the morning the search for the missing
Congressman was well underway with Sheriff Olsen heading up the
search effort with volunteers from town and the Minnesota
National Guard. Skinner planned to have his agents join the
search after they had a few hours of sleep. They'd been up over
twenty-four hours.

Mulder was standing on the porch looking out toward the forest.
He knew by the evidence at the scene that this was tied to the
*creature* that left the dead deer on his deck. He just didn't
know how to explain his theory to Skinner or convince Olsen, for
that matter, that they were dealing with a genuine Bigfoot. His
lover already thought his theory was off the wall. Skinner's
voice close to his ear startled him; he hadn't heard the large
man walk up.

"Agent Mulder, do you have any idea what happened here? You've
heard Agent Colton's theory. Do you agree with it?"

"No. This was no bear or wolf attack, sir. And I doubt that
Congressman Asner fled the scene leaving his wife and aide to be
killed and his daughter upstairs unprotected."

"Mulder, I always value your opinion no matter how out there it
is. So, if you have something that might shed some light on this
investigation, I would like you to tell me."

Mulder looked into Skinner's bloodshot eyes. They had all been so
busy over the past nine hours that he hadn't noticed how haggard
Skinner appeared. It looked like he hadn't slept in days. "Sir,
I'll tell you my theory over a cup of coffee back at my place.
I'm not ready to propose it to the team yet. Besides you look
like you could use some sleep, and I heard Colton complaining
earlier that they were only able to get one room at the motel in
town because of all the press pouring into town. I have two extra
bedrooms at my cabin so if you're amendable, I would like to
offer you the use of one of them." He had already offered Scully
the use of the other bedroom once she got back from performing
the autopsies.

Skinner mouth curled up in a tired smile. "Sure, Mulder, I'd be
amendable to that. I'll tell Colton and the other two agents to
head back to town. They've all been up since yesterday morning,
I'm sure they can use some sleep, too."

Skinner went back inside and dismissed his agents, who were more
than happy to share the one motel room. He left a guard posted
outside the crime scene, then he gave Mulder a lift back to his
cabin. Skinner was impressed with the cabin, which was similar in
design to the Congressman's, only slightly smaller. Mulder went
straight to the kitchen to put on a pot of coffee, while Skinner
headed upstairs. Mulder told him to have his pick of bedrooms, so
he chose the one closest to the staircase. The two upstairs
bedrooms had one connecting bathroom and he wondered if that
would be a problem with Agent Scully. He set his suitcase and
garment bag on the bed and walked over to look out the window.
The sun was shining off the pristine lake and the birds were
singing noisily. It was beautiful country up here. He went into
the bathroom to take a shower and freshen up. He wanted to get
the smell of death off his body before going back downstairs.

Mulder was staring out the kitchen window and turned when
Skinner's voice sounded behind him. "It looks like you found
yourself the perfect vacation spot, Mulder," he said, taking a
seat at the counter, he felt so much better after his shower.

"Yeah, perfect if not for the homicides." Mulder set a mug in
front of him and filled it with hot coffee.

"Do you want to tell me your theory?" Skinner asked, picking up
the mug and taking a sip.

"I think it was a Sasquatch."

"Bigfoot, Mulder?"

Mulder shrugged his shoulders as he sipped his own mug of coffee,
before he started to explain. "The second night that I was here,
Eric and I heard a strange cry outside. We went out to
investigate and smelled a foul odor, but didn't find anything. I
smelled that odor again yesterday as I was standing out on my
deck. Whatever it was dumped a dead deer over the deck's railing
after I had gone back inside for my gun. Eric and I smelled the
same odor when we first arrived on the crime scene. It was
fainter than the other two times."

Skinner couldn't quite get himself to believe Mulder's theory, so
he decided to approach the subject from another angle. "What do
you know about this Sheriff Olsen?" he asked, thinking that maybe
the Black Ops were trying to discredit his agent.

"Quite a bit. Sir, I don't think he's involve with this if that
is what you're getting at," Mulder said.

"Did you know that he was once in the Black Ops?" Skinner watched
Mulder's face for a reaction but was disappointed when he didn't
show any surprise.

"Yes. I had the Gunmen check into his past for me. How did you
find out?" Mulder looked at him rather puzzled, there wasn't
enough time for Skinner to have performed a background check. It
had taken his friends three days to come up with that information
on Olsen.

Oops, Skinner thought. He realized that he had put his foot in
his mouth and didn't see any way around telling him the truth.
"Agent Scully was concerned about your safety, so she checked
into Olsen's past."

Mulder slammed his mug down. "Dammit! She had no right to pry
into my personal life! Or to get you involved!" He paced back and
forth running his fingers through his hair in frustration. "I
suppose she told you that I happen to be sleeping with Eric!"

"No. She didn't tell me...I guessed." Skinner set his mug down
and stood, he walked around the counter and into the kitchen and
over to Mulder. "Mulder, Scully was worried about you. She's your
friend, that's the only reason she pried."

"Yeah, some friend." Mulder was tired and sad, he had come to
depend on Skinner's support and friendship. Now he was suddenly
afraid he would lose it. "Is the fact that I'm bisexual and
involved in a gay relationship going to be a problem for you?"

Skinner couldn't say what came over him. Maybe it was the
desolate expression on Mulder's face, or maybe it was the
knowledge that Olsen had claimed something that should have been
his. Or maybe it was simply the lack of sleep. Whatever it was,
he couldn't stop himself from pulling Mulder into his arms and
kissing him.

At first surprise had Mulder trying to push him off, but soon he
was melting against Skinner's body and into the kiss. This was
what he had fantasized about for years, he couldn't believe it
was happening. The roughness of Skinner's unshaved cheek against
his made a scraping sound as they deepened the kiss.

Skinner's arms tightened around Mulder's lean frame as the
younger man started to respond passionately. He'd never kissed
anyone with softer lips, or who tasted better, or fit more
perfectly in his arms. Skinner could feel the taut muscles of
Mulder's back tremble under his hands as he caressed up and down
his spine and shoulder blades. He wanted to devour every inch of
him. Why had he waited so long?

Mulder knees felt weak as Skinner backed him up against the
counter and ground his cock into his hip. His arms were looped
around Skinner's neck to keep from falling as the large man raped
his mouth his tongue, hungrily exploring every crevice. Mulder
thought that Skinner smelled really good, it made him aware that
he still needed to wash the smell of the crime scene from his
hair and body. Then his mind flash on Eric's face and he pulled
his mouth away from Skinner's and roughly pushed the larger man
away from him.

"No. Stop. This isn't right..." he gasped breathlessly.

Skinner had felt the desire radiating from Mulder's body moments
before. The hard press of the younger man's cock against his hip
told him that Mulder wanted him, too. "Mulder, this is more than
right...it's something we should have done years ago. You want me
as much as I want you, don't deny it."

Mulder crossed his arms and hugged his chest. "I never knew you
were interested in men. Why...why didn't you tell me how you
felt? Why did you have to wait until now?" Mulder was torn
between something he'd wanted for years and what he already had
with Eric.

Skinner sighed at the conflict he saw on Mulder's face and he
touched his arm. "Mulder, I'm bisexual, and I'll admit that I was
a fool to wait this long. In the beginning, I was afraid that
you'd laugh in my face or charge me with sexual harassment.
Later, I was afraid of ruining the trust and friendship we had
built." Skinner took a deep breath, talking about his feelings
was difficult for him. "Mulder, when you left on your two month
vacation, I-I was afraid...I wasn't sure if you'd be coming back.
I realized that I couldn't handle losing you...not when I loved
you."

Mulder stared at him opened mouth. "Sir, would you repeat that
last part?"

Skinner stepped into Mulder's personal space and placed his large
hands on the younger man's shoulders caressing them lightly. Then
he looked him squarely in the eyes. "I'm in love with you,
Mulder." It felt good to finally admit it aloud, there was no
turning back, or denying how he felt to himself or Mulder.

Mulder lowered his head to Skinner's shoulder and wrapped his
arms around the larger man's body. "Dammit, Walter. I've wanted
you forever, but why couldn't you have told me this before I got
involved with Eric? I can't just dump him...I care about him too
much to break his heart."

"Mulder, you can't date both of us. You have to think of
something tell him," Skinner said, hugging him tightly against
his chest. "God, I really do love you."

Mulder was having a hard time thinking clearly, he was so
ecstatic that Skinner wanted him. "Give me some time...to turn
him down gently." He sighed and whispered into Skinner's ear,
"and, Walter, my lovers call me Fox."

Skinner smiled he felt like a weight had been lifted from his
chest. "I thought you hated your first name?"

"Mulder's the paranoid FBI Agent...Fox is who I used to be. I
think it would be better to leave the FBI out of our private life
don't you agree, Walter?"

"Yes, I completely agree." He kissed the side of Mulder's head
where it rested against his shoulder. He made a face as he caught
a whiff of Mulder's hair, which had absorbed the odors from the
crime scene. "Fox, you smell, go take a shower and wash your
hair."

Mulder pulled away and chuckled. "Hmm, I can tell you're going to
be the romantic in this relationship."

"Brat." Skinner gave him an affectionate kiss. "I'll fix us
something for lunch. Then I want to hear more about this Bigfoot
theory of yours."

Mulder caressed the side of Walter's tired, happy face lightly
scraping over his stubble. "Okay. Then after lunch why don't you
try to grab a few hours of sleep?"

"Would you join me?" Skinner asked, kissing the palm of Mulder's
hand.

"No. Walter, I want to resolve things with Eric, before I jump
into bed with you."

"Okay, Fox, we should concentrate on this case anyway," Skinner
sighed.

Mulder walked into his bedroom and froze, out on the deck in the
same spot the dead deer had been left yesterday was another one.
"Sir, could you come in here?"

"What is it, Mulder?" Skinner asked as he entered the bedroom.

Mulder nodded toward the French doors. "It left me another
present."

Skinner walked to the door and looked out at the carcass. "I'm
going to station some agents around the cabin grounds. If this is
connected to the murders and the Congressman's disappearance we
might be able to catch the person or persons." He looked over at
Mulder. "Are you going to be okay? Would you like to stay in town
or go back to D.C.?"

"I'll be fine, Walter. I intend to get some solid evidence that
Sasquatch really do exist." Mulder turned and walked into his
bathroom.

Skinner followed him and stood in the doorway watching him strip.
"Fox, it doesn't make sense! Aren't these creatures supposed to
be herbivores? Why would it kill a deer or, for that matter, kill
Mary Asner and Kyle Wesdale?"

Mulder shrugged out of his clothes. "There have been reported
cases of Sasquatch killing deer for their livers to eat. However
there have never been any documented cases of anyone being
seriously hurt from a run in with them. I have no idea why it
would have killed Mrs. Asner or Wesdale. These creatures are
known for staying clear of humans. It doesn't make sense that one
would resort to murder and kidnapping."

Skinner couldn't tear his eyes away from Mulder's lean runner's
body. It was better than he imagined. Long legs with taut
muscles, a firm ass with round buttocks, and a perfect shaped
penis. He had to force himself to concentrate on their
conversation. "Spring is typically the mating season for most
species, do you think that those dead deer were left in way of a
courting gift?" He couldn't believe he was taking this Bigfoot
theory even somewhat seriously.

Mulder turned on the shower; he didn't miss how Skinner was
looking at him. "Walter, I'm not sure I like the implication
behind what you are suggesting. Why would the creature be fixated
on me sexually? I hardly look or smell like a Bigfoot."

"Good taste," Skinner quipped, then he turned sober. "Fox, I
don't know. Let's not rule out that this might not even be a
Bigfoot, it could be an enemy of Congressman's Asner's or the
consortium trying to discredit you," Skinner said.

Mulder stepped into the shower. "Why would someone go to the
trouble of setting up such an elaborate hoax?"

"Just try to keep an open mind okay? I'm going to start lunch,"
Skinner said quickly, heading back into bedroom before he gave
into the desire to jump Mulder in the shower. He looked briefly
at the dead deer on the deck then headed into the kitchen. He was
surprised when he opened the refrigerator to find it well stocked
with food.

Mulder shampooed his hair. His stomach was churning nervously. It
wasn't over the prospect of encountering a Bigfoot, but over
having to tell Eric it was over. He liked Eric a lot, more than
he had liked anyone in a long time, maybe even ever. Was he
making a mistake? What if it didn't work out with Skinner?
Skinner was his boss after all! Would they be able to separate
their work life from their private life? Why had Skinner waited
until now to tell him how he felt? If Eric wasn't in the picture
would Skinner still be sitting on the fence? Skinner had said
that he loved him? Mulder sighed, he had wanted Skinner for so
long, he was sure he was leaping in too quickly without looking
at all the pros and cons first. Maybe he should ask Scully's
advice?

He stepped out of the shower and dried his hair with a towel then
walked into his bedroom nude. He pulled on a pair of boxers and
sweats and went back into the bathroom to pick up his clothes,
which he carried into the small laundry room off the kitchen. He
glanced over at Skinner who was standing at the stove. "Walter,
I'm going to do a load of laundry do you have anything you need
washed?"

"No," Skinner said, he had noted the dark clothes in Mulder's
hands. He would have liked to wash his white shirt and underwear.
Skinner kept glancing over at Mulder who was standing barefoot
stuffing clothes from a hamper sitting next to the washing
machine into it. "Lunch is almost ready."

"Mm, what are you making?" Mulder asked, as he poured the
detergent in and closed the lid.

"BLTs."

"Do you need any help?" Mulder asked, stepping into the kitchen.

"No, it's done, just sit down at the counter. Would you like a
beer?"

"Sure." Mulder watched Skinner intently as the larger man set a
sandwich and a beer in front of him.

Skinner spent a second cleaning the pan and placing it into the
dishwasher before joining Mulder at the counter. They ate quietly
for several minutes.

The silence was becoming uncomfortable and Skinner turned to
Mulder. "Fox, is there something bothering you?"

Mulder was reluctant to speak at first. "Yes. How do I know that
we're going to work?"

Skinner set his sandwich down and turned to Mulder. "Fox, I meant
it when I said I loved you and I'll do anything to make it work.
I was a fool to wait so long before telling you how I felt. I
promise you that I'll never let it happen again."

"Walter, that's just it. How can you be in love with me? We never
socialized outside of work. The few times I was over at your
apartment were all business related." Mulder felt agitated, was
his desire for Skinner interfering with his common sense?

Skinner realized that Mulder was trying to talk himself out of
having a relationship with him. "Fox, I've worked with you for
six years. I've told you things that I've never told anyone else
in my life, not even Sharon. Is it really that hard to believe
that I could have fallen in love with you during that time?"

"I don't know." Mulder worried the corner of the label on the
beer bottled. "Maybe I'm wondering if Eric wasn't in my life
right now, if you ever would have told me how you felt. I'm so
tired of being alone. This last week and a half with Eric was one
of the best times in my life."

Skinner felt jealous, he wanted to be the one to make Mulder
happy. "Fox, I can give you everything and more than Olsen --
just give me a chance." He was close to begging, a position that
he never thought he'd be in, but he'd do anything to get Mulder
now that he finally confessed his feelings.

Mulder peeled the label off the bottle and looked at it sadly.
"I've always leapt first and thought about the consequences
later, but not this time. Walter, I am not committing to us until
I have thought it through first. Until we can resolve any
potential problems between work and a private life together. I
hope you can understand how I feel," Mulder said, looking over at
Skinner for the first time.

Skinner chuckled bitterly. "Of all the times for you to become
rational...why now? Does this mean you're still going to be
seeing Sheriff Olsen?"

"Yes, for the time being."

"Are you going to let me help you to resolve any potential
problems you might see in a relationship between us?" Skinner was
frustrated; he wanted to strike out at something.

"I plan on making a pros and cons list. I'll let you go over it
with me when I'm finished. Walter, I'm not doing this to hurt
you...if we are going to have a relationship that works, then we
need to settle a few things up front. You are still my boss after
all, that in itself can cause a big problem." Mulder carried his
plate to the sink, rinsed it and placed it in the dishwasher.
"Why don't you take a nap now, I know I can use one," Mulder
said, leaning against the counter staring sadly at Skinner.

"Okay, Fox, we'll do it your way." Skinner stood and carried his
dish to the sink. He was tired, but didn't think he'd be able to
sleep.

Mulder went into the laundry room and tossed his clothes from the
washer into the dryer then turned back to face Skinner. "I'll see
you in a few hours," he said. Then he headed into his bedroom and
closed the door. He looked out at the dead deer on the deck. How
was he going to get any sleep with that thing outside? Mulder
placed his gun on the nightstand and climbed into bed pulling the
covers over his head to block out the afternoon sun.

Skinner stared longingly at the closed bedroom door. He had some
phone calls to make before trying to get some sleep himself. He
wanted to get agents stationed around the cabin to protect
Mulder. Even if his agent's theory about a Bigfoot proved wrong,
someone was still leaving deer carcasses outside on his deck.
Mulder needed to be protected.

***

Mulder's cabin Friday, April 15, 2000 3:00 p.m.

Scully exhaustedly let herself in through the front door. She
smiled as she looked around the warm interior. Here she had been
worried about Mulder staying by himself in a primitive cabin in
Northern Minnesota. What a joke, this place was a hundred times
better than her apartment.

Mulder offered the use of one of the upstairs bedrooms, so she
decided to take a nap and explore later. She stopped at the first
door at the top of the stairs and opened it. Scully was startled
to find Skinner sound asleep on the bed. She quickly closed the
door and headed to the next room. "Mulder, I better not find Tom
Colton in this room," she muttered as she opened the door.

Scully walked into the room and dumped her suitcase on a chair
and headed for the bathroom. She quickly shut and locked the
connecting door to Skinner's room. Then she turned on the shower.

The sound of the shower running woke Skinner. He was surprised he
had fallen asleep. Scully must be back, he thought, lying there
listening to the running water. He'd wait until she was finished
before getting out of bed. His mind turned to Mulder as he stared
up at the ceiling. He pictured Mulder's body as he stripped for
his shower earlier. That image alone could create several
fantasies in his mind. Skinner sighed he didn't want fantasies he
wanted the real thing. How could he convince Mulder that he was
sincere? That he wanted a relationship with him more than he had
wanted anything else in his life? Skinner had thought he had
convinced him earlier. If it weren't for Sheriff Olsen, Mulder
would be in his bed right now. He had no doubt of that.

***

North Woods Friday, April 15, 2000 5:00 p.m.

Olsen was apprehensive as he glanced at the tracks of the
creature he had been tracking for the past hour. He glanced up at
sun through the trees. They didn't have much daylight time left,
it would be dark in a few hours and they would be forced to
suspend the search until the morning. He placed his foot inside
the huge footprint and shook his head. Bigfoot. Olsen had been
skeptical about such a creature existing. Did it abduct
Congressman Asner? Was Asner still alive, fleeing for his life
from the creature? He wanted answers and the only way he was
going to get them was to find the creature to whom these
footprints belonged. Olsen glanced over at the guardsman who was
walking several yards behind him and over to his right. Other
National Guard troops were spread out across the forest.

God, Olsen was tired. He glanced at his wristwatch, noting that
he'd been up for thirty-six hours. Olsen wanted nothing more than
to be sleeping with his arms wrapped around Fox's warm body. His
mind started daydreaming about his lover as he followed the
footprints. He came instantly alert as he noticed the forest had
gone deathly quiet around him. Then he smelled it.

Olsen spun as the guardsman cried out in horror. A seven-foot
hairy creature stood towering over the man. The sheriff was
temporarily frozen in shock as the creature snapped the man's
neck. He quickly recovered and raised his rifle as the Bigfoot
charged him. He pumped several shots into it, dropping it mere
inches from his feet.

Shouts sounded around him from other members of the search party.
Four National Guard soldiers came rushing over to him.

"What the fuck," the first guardsman to arrived blurted out and
gagged over the foul smell. "My God, it's a Bigfoot!"

"Is it dead?" a guardswoman asked, looking fearfully down at the
creature then over to the body of her friend.

"I think so," Sheriff Olsen replied, catching his breath. He
turned and looked back down at the footprints he was following.
Olsen pulled out his radio and called in to report the
guardsman's death and the killing of a Bigfoot creature. When he
ended his transmission he turned back to the National Guard
troops. "You, stay here, a team is on their way. You three come
with me." Olsen headed off following the tracks with the soldiers
following him. He got on the radio and called his lover and
informed Mulder of the latest break in the case.

"Eric, we're on are way. Are you sure it was a Bigfoot?" Mulder
asked for the umpteenth time.

"Fox, it was big hairy and smelly and walked upright on two feet.
You can check it out yourself when you get you butt up here. Over
and Out."

Several hours later, the sun had set and the woods were almost
pitch black. Olsen was just about to call off the search when
they stumbled upon the cave. He aimed his flashlight at the
concealed entrance. This close he could smell the odor coming out
of it. Olsen had been keeping up a conversation with Mulder over
the radio for the past two and a half hours.

"Fox, we found a cave. I'm going in to investigate. Over."

"Eric, be careful, Bigfoots have been rumored to travel in packs.
Over," Mulder's voice held concern for his lover's safety. Mulder
had seen the dead Bigfoot, if it weren't for the dead guardsman
he would have gotten a great deal of satisfaction from the
surprised looks on Scully's and Skinner's faces.

Olsen eased past the entrance and into the cave. The entrance had
been covered with twigs and branches. He arched the flashlight
around the narrow tunnel. The smell was overwhelming and he knew
immediately that they had found the dead creature's den. One of
the guardsmen was at his back. The other soldiers were guarding
the entrance.

"What do you see, Eric?" Mulder's voice came out in a whisper
over the radio. He was currently heading through the woods in
Olsen's direction with Skinner and Scully, several soldiers, and
paramedics.

Olsen had his rifle in one hand and his flashlight in another, so
he was unable to answer Mulder as they progressed down the
tunnel. The tunnel walls were covered in a foul smelling slime
that the sheriff couldn't identify, he did his best not to brush
up against it. His stomach heaved as the tunnel narrowed and he
got some of the foul liquid on his uniform. Olsen walked almost a
hundred feet before the tunnel opened into a large cavern. He
scanned the space with his flashlight and tried not to throw up
over the incredible stench. "Oh shit," Olsen gasped. His light
beam had landed on the battered and bloody form of a naked human
male laid out on a bed of straw and grass.

The cavern appeared to be empty otherwise. There were other
tunnels coming into the chamber. "Peterson, cover those tunnels,
I'm going to see if he's still alive." Olsen knelt next to the
man who he recognized instantly to be Congressman Asner. He
checked for a pulse and was surprised to find a strong one. Olsen
pulled out his radio. "Fox, come in?"

"Eric, did you find anything? Over." Mulder questioned.

"We found Asner, and he's alive. Fox, we need paramedics out to
our location pronto. Over."

"Eric, we're already on our way. We should be to your location in
twenty minutes. Over."

Olsen shrugged out of his coat and laid it over Asner's body. The
slime from the tunnel had soaked through the fabric and stained
his shirt and undershirt. He hoped that Mulder still had the
bubble bath he'd bought him. Because after a couple of showers,
he planned to soak the rest of the evening in his lover's
bathtub.

An eerie cry echoed down one of the tunnels. Sheriff Olsen met
the guardsman's frightened eyes as they tried to determine which
tunnel the cry was coming from. "Fox, something is in the tunnels
near us. We can't wait, I'm going to carry Asner out. Over,"
Olsen said. "Peterson, keep your gun trained on those tunnels,
shoot anything that moves." The sheriff strapped his rifle to his
back then swung the Congressman's limp body over his shoulders in
a fireman's hold. He steadied the smaller man's body with one
hand as he picked up and aimed the flashlight with the other. It
was times like these that he was glad for all of the weight
training he had. The two men backed out of the cave the way they
had entered. Olsen couldn't avoid getting more of the foul
smelling slime all over his pants and shirt.

The two soldiers stationed at the entrance had been listening to
the sheriff's and Mulder's conversation over the radio, and had
their rifles trained on the entrance as Olsen and Peterson backed
out. There were distant shouts and dogs barking as the rest of
the rescue team made a beeline for their location. A helicopter
hovered overhead and shined its beam down toward the ground
turning the nighttime into day as it illuminated Olsen and the
soldiers. There were too many trees for the helicopter to land.

***

Mulder wanted to break out in a run when he heard the fear in
Olsen's voice, but the ground was too rugged and the beam from
his flashlight only carried so far. Skinner and Scully were on
either side of him, trying to keep up with his pace. Years of
running for exercise had given Mulder superior endurance for
traveling the many miles they had traveled tonight on foot. He
focused on making it to the spot where the helicopter hovered.

Skinner was breathing heavy and his lungs burned. He was finding
it difficult to keep up with Mulder and Scully. He vowed to get
out from behind his desk more often and maybe take up jogging.
Glancing quickly around them, Skinner realized that they were
outpacing the rest of the rescuers many of whom were young men in
their twenties, which made him feel less out of shape. Skinner
grunted with relief as they came into visual range of Sheriff
Olsen only a hundred feet away.

Mulder increased his stride nearly breaking out in a run. He
finally arrived next to Olsen. The sheriff smiled tiredly up at
him from where he knelt over Asner's body. "So, are you always
right, Fox?" he asked, referring to Mulder's insistence that they
were dealing with a Bigfoot, and not a human perpetrator.

Scully spoke before Mulder could respond. "Oh, only about ninety-
five percent of the time," she admitted, bending down to examine
the Congressman. The hair on the back of her neck stood on end as
an ungodly screech echoed around them.

Although, everyone had their guns and rifles ready they were
still taken by surprise as a mammoth creature seemed to appear
out of thin air. It grabbed Mulder before anyone could react.
Mulder gagged as the Bigfoot held him pressed against its chest.
He was sure that he only had seconds to live, but instead of
killing him, the creature started sniffing him and petting him
while making cooing sounds.

"Hold your fire!" Skinner shouted afraid that they'd shoot Mulder
by mistake. He couldn't get a clear shot himself as he watched in
horror as the Bigfoot seemed to toy with his agent.

Several tracking dogs broke out of the trees and leapt at the
creature. The Bigfoot had to let Mulder go to defend itself.
Mulder scrambled away, his mind working a mile a minute over what
had just happened. "Don't kill it!" he shouted as the other
members of the rescue team broke through the trees.

Mulder request fell on deaf ears as several of the guardsmen
panicked and started shooting at the enormous creature. It let
out an ear shattering wail then toppled over dead.

Skinner walked over to Mulder and put a comforting hand on his
shoulder. "Agent Mulder, that creature was dangerous and we
didn't have the means available to capture it alive," he said.

"Sir, we're not sure which Bigfoot was responsible for killing
Asner's wife and aide. This one might have been innocent."

"Mulder, they both might have been involved." Skinner looked
around the dark woods then at the dozens of men who milled around
studying the dead Bigfoot. "Do you think there might be more of
them out there?"

"I don't know. If there were I doubt they'd stay in the area
after we invaded their lair." Mulder sighed, watching the
paramedics transfer Asner to a stretcher for the long hike out of
there.

***

Mulder's cabin Saturday, April 16, 2000 1:00 a.m.

Four people tiredly entered the cabin, the adrenaline rush had
long since passed. The two dead Bigfoots had been loaded onto a
refrigeration truck for the journey to Duluth where a chartered
plane was standing by to fly them to Washington D.C. Congressman
Asner was flown by helicopter to a hospital in Duluth.

Mulder shrugged out of his leather jacket and hung it on the coat
rack by the door, he needed to get it fumigated.

Sheriff Olsen noticed the looks that had been passing back and
forth between Mulder and his boss. He didn't like it and wanted
to let Skinner know that Fox was his lover. "Fox, come on, let's
share a shower. If I don't wash this stench off me soon I'll go
crazy," Olsen said, grabbing Mulder's hand, he dragged him toward
the agent's bedroom.

Skinner scowled at him but remained quiet. Mulder had requested
that he not interfere. It was in Mulder's hands whether he wanted
to end his relationship with Olsen and start one with him.
Skinner only hoped that Mulder would make up his mind quickly
because he wouldn't be able to rein in his jealousy for long. Not
with Olsen openly throwing his relationship with Mulder up in his
face.

After the door to the bedroom closed Mulder turned angrily to
Olsen. "Eric, what was that about? How do you know that Skinner
knows about us? Do you know how that could have affected my job?"

"Cut the crap, Fox. Your boss has been drooling over you since he
arrived here. What's going on? Is he suddenly interested in you
because you're involved with me?" Olsen snapped back as he walked
into the bathroom.

"Eric, I didn't even know that he was bisexual or interested
until yesterday," Mulder said, following him into the bathroom.
Both men started to remove their smelly clothes.

"So, what are you going to do?" Olsen dumped his clothes on the
pile with Mulder's.

"I don't know yet. I've wanted Skinner for so long that I'm
afraid I might be thinking with my dick," Mulder confessed.

"What about us, Fox? I thought we had something special going,"
Olsen said, watching as Mulder turned on the shower.

"Eric, if you weren't in the picture I'd already be in his bed.
My feelings for you are the only thing making me stop and think
about what I want out of life. I've gone without anyone in my
life for so long that I don't want to make a mistake at this
point." Mulder smiled sadly at him as he stepped into the shower.

Eric stepped in next to him and picked up one of the nylon puffs.
"You love Skinner don't you, Fox?"

"I have strong feelings for him, but I'm not sure if you could
call it love. I'm sorry for laying this on you, Eric. I never
expected to be in such a situation." Mulder sighed and started to
wash Olsen's chest.

"Fox, I can't say that I'm not upset about this, but you deserve
to be happy. If you decide that you want to be with Skinner I
won't stand in your way. Just remember that I'll be here for you,
if you need me." Olsen leaned forward and kissed Mulder.

Olsen was perhaps the least selfish person Mulder had ever known,
which made it even more difficult for him to choose between the
two men. "Thanks, Eric. I don't know how you can be so nice about
this...I feel like such a jerk."

"It isn't easy, Fox. Half of me wants to punch your boss in the
nose and the other half wants to tie you down to the bed and make
mad, passionate love to you until you agree to stay with me
forever. Turn around," Olsen said, squirting some shampoo into
his hand he started washing Mulder's hair.

Mulder closed his eyes and leaned back against Eric as the larger
man's fingers massaged his scalp. "Hmm, I liked the bit about
making mad, passionate love."

Olsen used the sprayer to rinse the soap out of Mulder's hair.
Then he handed Mulder the shampoo. "Here you wash my hair now."

***

Skinner waited in his room for Scully to finish taking her
shower. He paced back and forth imagining that bastard downstairs
with his arms around a wet, naked Fox Mulder -- his Fox Mulder.
Dammit! Why had he waited so long? He needed to make Mulder see
that he would have told him how he felt even if Sheriff Olsen
wasn't in the picture. He had been ready! Now Mulder was doubting
his sincerity, thinking that it was only because he was involved
with another man that finally made Skinner act on his feelings.

"Sir, the bathroom's all yours," Scully said, standing in her
robe in the doorway. She had knocked but her boss didn't seem to
hear it.

"Oh, thank you, Scully."

"Sir, is everything all right?" Scully had watched the tension
between Skinner, Mulder, and Olsen on the short drive here.

Skinner closed his eyes briefly. His inability to communicate his
feelings had cost him so much. First, Sharon and now possibly
Mulder. What did he have to lose by talking to Scully? She's
Mulder's best friend, maybe she'd be able to help. "No everything
is not all right. Can I talk to you as a friend and not as your
boss, Dana?"

"Sir?" Scully eyebrow rose questioningly as she walked a little
further into the room.

"Walter. I don't want to bring the FBI or the office into this
conversation. I need your advice and possibly your help," Skinner
said, leaning up against the dresser.

"Aah, okay, Walter." She had no idea where he was going with
this.

Skinner smiled...his name sounded so strange on her lips. He met
her eyes and took a deep breath and plowed ahead. "Dana, I'm in
love with Mulder."

"What?"

"I'm in love with your partner."

"I don't understand...you were married? How can you be in love
with Mulder?" Scully wanted to kick herself the moment those word
left her lips. She wasn't stupid. She knew all about bisexuals;
her partner was one. Skinner just didn't seem like a man who'd be
into other men...he was too...she stopped that line of thought
before it could take root. Scully wasn't one to stereotype and
label people or at least she didn't want to be one.

"I'm bisexual, Dana."

"Si...Walter, why Mulder?"

Skinner shook his head. "I was physically attracted to him since
the moment I met him. Later, as I came to know him, I found
myself admiring and respecting him. He's the most brilliant and
altruistic man I've ever known, what's not to love?" He smiled
softly, this wasn't nearly as hard as he thought it would be.

"Walter, don't forget he's also reckless, idealistic, and
obsessive. Besides, I was under the impression that Mulder was
the bane of your existence," Scully said.

"Mulder is someone I love and respect." Skinner sighed, okay
maybe this was hard.

"Does Mulder know how you feel about him?"

"Yes, I told him yesterday. He seemed to be happy at first...then
he started thinking and rationalizing about it. Mulder's not sure
if a relationship between us would work. Not to mention, he
wasn't too happy with my timing for expressing my feelings for
him." Skinner stood and started pacing again. "I don't know what
to do, Dana. I'm losing him before I ever had him...he's
downstairs with Olsen...how can I compete with someone who looks
like that?"

Scully sighed. "Walter, you are a very attractive man, and I know
my partner, he's not one to judge someone's worth on appearances
alone. You're trustworthy, sensible, and honorable. Olsen would
have a long way to go to be half the man that you are."

Skinner gave her a weak smile. "Thanks, Dana. What I really need
is a way to convince Mulder to a least give me a chance. I would
like your help in trying to convince him." He looked sheepishly
over to her. "This isn't going to be a problem for you, is it?"

"I'd be lying if I told you no. I can't see how a relationship
between you and Mulder could work and not interfere with our
jobs. I don't think it is right ethically." She crossed her arms
over her midsection. "But I will help you because I think you'd
be good for Mulder. He needs someone in his life to look out for
him and to love him. Especially now that all of his family are
dead."

Skinner heaved a sigh of relief. With Scully on his side he might
stand a chance of winning Mulder from Olsen. "Thanks, Dana."

"I'm going to bed. The bathroom is all yours," she said, walking
back through the bathroom to her room.

Skinner grabbed his toiletry kit and walked into the bathroom.

***

"Can I stay the night, Fox?" Olsen asked as they stepped out of
the shower.

"No, Eric. I'm sorry, but I don't think that would be a good idea
not with my partner and boss sharing the cabin with me."

"Maybe you can come back to mine with me."

Mulder shook his head. "Eric, I'm sorry, but I really need some
time to make up my mind."

Mulder pulled on a pair of boxers and his robe and loaned Eric a
pair of his sweats and socks to wear. Then he stuffed Eric's ruin
uniform into a laundry bag. "I'm not sure if your dry cleaner
will be able to save this, Eric."

"I probably should burn it. I doubt the smell is going to come
out," he said, taking the bag from Mulder and heading for the
bedroom door.

Skinner was in the kitchen fixing himself a glass of warm milk,
when the two men came out of the Mulder's bedroom. He was rather
surprised when Olsen went to pull on his boots. Skinner assumed
that Olsen was going to be spending the night in Mulder's bed.
"You're leaving?"

"For now," Olsen said, glaring at him.

"Eric, I'll see you tomorrow," Mulder said, holding the door open
for his lover. Who stole a kiss before going out the door.

"It's already tomorrow. I'll see you for lunch...okay?"

"Okay."

Mulder walked over to where Skinner stood in the kitchen and
looked in the saucepan. "Warm milk, Walter?" he smiled, finding
that sweet.

Skinner blushed. "I needed something to help me sleep."

"Can you make me some, too?" Mulder asked, sitting at the
counter.

Skinner grinned as he poured some more milk into the saucepan and
added a little more honey.

"Will you be able to stay through the weekend?" Mulder asked.

"Even with killing those two Bigfoots the case will still take a
couple more days to wrap up. I want to make sure you aren't in
any danger. We don't know if those were the only creatures
around." Skinner poured the warm milk into to mugs, setting one
in front of Mulder.

"It's pretty unlikely that any more Bigfoots will remain in the
area. Not after two of them were killed."

"I'd rather be safe than sorry, Fox."

"That's okay, Walter. I want to talk to Doctor Mora. He might
know something about the Bigfoots, and also I want to talk to
some of the town's senior citizens. I was going to do that after
my second night here, but then I decided we were dealing with a
human perpetrator." Mulder sipped the milk.

Skinner drained his mug and yawned. "I think I'll turn in now.
I'll see you in the morning." He stopped next to Mulder's chair
and leaned down and kissed him.

Their lips parted with a soft smacking sound. "Night, Walter."

"Night, Fox."

***

End of Chapter 2