The Russian jumped a good foot and a half out of his chair.
He made a hasty move to clear the computer screen, but at
Mulder's look, aborted it, letting his hand fall to his lap
instead. The brown hair was still shower damp, and when he
ducked his head, a few stray tendrils curled at the nape of
his neck.
Mulder came closer, although he could see clearly enough
over his lover's shoulder to have a pretty good idea what
was going on. He made a motion, and Alex swallowed hard,
but dutifully got up, letting Mulder take his place in
front of the computer. A couple of mouse clicks and a scan
of the history feature told Mulder almost everything he
needed to know.
Alex was chewing on the right corner of his bottom lip, the
strong white teeth, so beautiful in a smile, now pinching
lightly as he waited nervously. The green eyes were full of
misgiving, and genuine fear, the lashes fluttering a bit as
they darted to Mulder's face and back again.
Mulder closed everything out, using the time to calm
himself as he straightened up. He reminded himself that
with Alex, things were seldom what they seemed, and he put
on hold his instinctive feelings of hurt and anger. He'd
get the whole story, hear his lover out before making any
judgements. It was something he'd sworn himself to do when
they first became lovers, after watching the man go through
the hearings, with seemingly no one on Earth willing to
even listen to his side of anything.
Alex Krycek had been the focal point for every crime
against humanity in the modern era, and often whole hours
of testimony would be allowed before he was permitted to
question, much less rebut. Mulder had watched him sitting
there, absolutely alone in the universe, face impassive,
eyes unafraid and had wondered at the man's nerve, if not
his balls. But then one day, from his vantage point across
and to the side, Mulder had seen something odd, a tiny
movement under Alex's table, a quick flash. When it
repeated, he looked closer, and that was when he saw that
the man he'd assumed was both uncaring and unconcerned, was
digging his fingernails into his own palm, hard enough that
tiny drops of blood were falling to the floor.
It had shaken him, forced him to begin re-thinking who and
what this man was. His conclusions had changed everything
that had ever happened between them, and he quietly went to
work behind the scenes, helping Krycek any way he could.
Somehow, Krycek found out that Mulder was behind his
renewed defense, and when they'd cleared him of almost
everything and then pardoned the rest, Krycek had turned to
Mulder, silent tears on his face. In front of the world,
he'd gone over to Mulder's chair, knelt down in front of
him, and raised the hem of one pant cuff to his lips. He
held the pose long enough for there to be no doubt in
anyone's mind, then stood, trembling so violently a stunned
Mulder could see it, and left without a word or glance.
The Catholic church had gone ballistic.
The press had shown the footage non-stop, while experts in
every field of human science interpreted.
Mulder had gotten so drunk the term "obliterated" wasn't
strong enough.
Krycek had disappeared.
The Gunmen had found him, completely by accident, a few
weeks later. He was holed up on a tiny island off the coast
of Maine, living in a tiny cabin. It was modern and
comfortable, but small, and he was the sole human
inhabitant of the island. Mulder had gone to see him, and
that meeting had led to everything.
And now, Alex Krycek was his lover and his partner and his
soulmate. He was also very near tears. Mulder jerked
himself out of his remembrances, aware that he'd been
unintentionally torturing the man. He did the only thing he
could to quickly reassure. He smiled, letting all the love
and affection he felt for this unique person show in his
eyes, and held out his hands.
"Come here, love."
Alex hesitated only a moment, then gratefully allowed
Mulder to pull him into an embrace.
"It's okay, baby, it's okay."
"It's not what you think, I swear it, Fox!" It was a
desperate whisper, and Mulder shushed him gently. He hooked
the leg of the chair Alex had vacated, pulling it up. He
scooped Alex up like a child, not easily, but he was only
sitting down with him anyway, so he could get away with it.
With his lover seated in his lap, Fox could cuddle and
comfort much better, and soon Alex's shivers had stopped,
and while the eyes were still reluctant and a little
frightened, they weren't terrified. A last tender kiss, and
Fox eased back enough to see Alex's face.
"Okay, talk to me, Lexi." It was pet name Alex had barely
remembered from his mother, and Mulder only used it when
the Russian needed extra reassurance of his love.
A nod, a quick flash of pink tongue as it licked dry lips,
and a soft clearing of his throat.
"It wasn't what it looked like, Fox."
"Well, that's good, because it looked like you were hacked
into the FBI personnel files, not to mention the DOD and
the pentagon." Mulder said it with a touch of humor and
stroked a hand across the back of Alex's head, taking any
sting out of the words.
"I know. And, and that's true, I was. But I wasn't doing
anything bad, Fox, I swear. I was trying to fix something."
Alex took a deep breath, and a soft flush began to creep up
his face.
"The nanocytes. I always thought I'd destroyed everything
connected with them, everything, right down to the doctor's
reports. But it occurred to me that there was one place I'd
never checked, and that was Skinner's personnel files with
days off. There were two days there, and attached was a
copy of the doctor's statement and the hospital discharge,
with almost full details, it's required to approve the
time-off. So then I had to go to the other places, and see
what was written up. I found it all and trashed it. I was
just finishing up the detail work on Skinner's file when
you caught me."
Mulder sighed. He knew how guilty Krycek felt about the
nanocytes. He'd only used the technology twice, and both
times it was under the greatest of duress. He'd been as
gentle and careful as he could with them, and had suffered
mightily for it.
"Please believe me." The voice was small, and almost
impossibly child-like.
"I do, Lexi. I believe you with all my heart." Mulder
pressed a kiss to the wide forehead, hugging tightly again
for a moment. He then used a crooked finger under Krycek's
chin to raise the face.
"But it was still wrong. Alex, beloved, if you got caught,
they would take away your immunity. They'd take you away,
sweetheart. Your motives were good, your intentions the
best, but you should not have done it. You knew better.
There were options, Alex, and you should have weighed them
carefully, then chosen one. I know this is all second
nature to you, you don't even think about it, and you're
good enough and careful enough you'll probably never get
caught. But that's not a chance I'm willing to take. I
won't lose you, Alex. I won't."
Tears welled in darkest emerald, the long lashes turning to
sable spikes as the quiet scolding cut to Krycek's heart.
The first time Mulder had scolded Alex, the reaction had
shocked him. He knew first hand how tough Krycek was, but
the soft words of disappointment had made Alex cry like a
child. He knew then that Alex could handle anything but
love and all her tender qualities. He'd been very careful
since to only scold, really scold, when it was absolutely
necessary.
"I'm sorry." The lips moved, but there was almost no sound
to the words. They were no less sincere for their lack of
volume, were more so, in fact.
"I know, lover, I know. But I think this calls for
punishment, Alex. Do you agree?"
Alex sniffled, both hating and loving what was to come
next. But like it or not, he needed it. What's more, he
deserved it. If Mulder had to scold him, it was usually a
safe bet that he deserved at least a token punishment. This
time, he deserved much more.
He nodded his agreement, knowing that despite the fact that
this arrangement was of his own making, Mulder would never
proceed without unmistakable consent. He felt long arms
hold him close again, and then Mulder's voice was firm,
regretful and little more than a whisper.
"Go get me the hairbrush." Alex felt his stomach flop, but
he stood and made his way to the guest bathroom. Opening
the drawer there, he found the antique hairbrush Mulder had
purchased on-line, for no other purpose than when a hand
spanking wasn't enough. It was a large brush, the handle a
light but solid weight. The back was an oval of pure teak,
still light, but with a ferocious sting. It was virtually
unbreakable.
Alex trudged back to Mulder, who'd taken the opportunity to
shake out the pins and needles in his legs from holding
Alex so long. He was by the couch now, and Alex stood
before him, head bowed.
"Fox, not the brush, please?" He hadn't meant to plead,
hadn't wanted to make things harder for Mulder, but he
couldn't help it.
"This is way too serious for just a hand, Alex. Now, in
light of the fact that you haven't done anything like this
in forever, plus the fact you were trying to do something
good, I think thirty is fair."
"No! Please, I really didn't mean to be bad, Fox. Ten."
"You knew better. Twenty."
"I fixed a couple of leaks while I was there. Fifteen."
Mulder's mouth quirked the tiniest, and he gave in.
"Alright. Fifteen. But Alex, if this ever happens again,
ever, it'll be six of the best with the most brutal cane I
can find, is that understood? No slack, no excuses, no way
out of it. Is that perfectly clear between us?"
Horrified at the thought, Alex could only nod.
"Good. Now, let's get this over with, and we'll spend the
rest of the night making it up to each other, okay?"
"Okay." They shared a kiss for courage, then Alex sat down
on the couch, while Mulder took his pants and briefs down
to mid-thigh. He stretched his long frame over Alex's lap,
swallowed hard, and nodded to show he was ready.
Alex closed his eyes briefly, then brought the brush down
hard on the tender undercurve of Mulder's rear. A sharp
inhalation and a tensing, then a count.
By fifteen, Fox was yelping with each painful swat, his
count was a shaking mumble, and his bottom was the color of
ripe cherries. He hurt, he was on fire, and he knew he
wouldn't be sitting down comfortably for at least a day.
But he could also feel the tears falling on his sensitive
rear, could hear Alex's distraught crying. Krycek sobbed as
he took Mulder's pants down the rest of the way, then eased
the briefs back up carefully as he could. He helped Mulder
to kneel up on the couch, got out of the way, and let him
lie back down on his side. For his part, Alex knelt on the
floor beside the couch, apologizing repeatedly and crying
his eyes out. Mulder reached out for him, holding and
soothing and giving all the comfort he could.
"It's okay, Lexi. It's over now, finished. You're forgiven,
love."
After a bit, Krycek quieted, but his voice was still thick
when he spoke.
"I'm sorry, Mulder. It won't ever happen again, I swear
it."
"I know, sweetheart." And he did know it. He'd never had to
punish Alex for the same sin twice, never. But he wouldn't
hesitate to do so if it kept his lover safe and by his
side.
"I wish to God you'd let me take the spanking." Mulder
hugged tighter, kissing the closed eyelids.
"Peasants cut off your arm in a field with rusty knives and
no anesthetic. Physical pain you can take. You need
punishment, you told me so yourself. I could beat you half
to death and you wouldn't learn your lesson nearly as
quickly. It wouldn't punish you nearly as well, wouldn't
make sure you knew you were being taught, not just abused.
When you spank me, you get it all and you get it fast."
"But it hurts so bad, Fox."
"That's what makes it punishment, Alex, and a very
effective one." He knew Mulder was right, but he didn't
care. He hated spankings. But he did love the way it made
him know how much he meant to Mulder. A glance at Mulder's
reddened bottom showed quite clearly that Mulder loved him
enough to take care of him, to put his own comfort aside if
it meant helping Alex. It drove home the rest of the lesson
the way nothing else could.
"I love you, Alex, I always will." The rest of the lesson.
"I love you, too, Fox. Always have, always will."
And then Mulder was smiling at him, and he knew everything
would be alright.
THE END.
Never Alone at Last
by Raven
"Alex, what the hell do you think you're doing?"
