All Characters copyright of TenThirteen Productions and Chris Carter. No infringement intended on any part...I like being poor, really...
Jackie St. George belongs to me, of course... well, as much as she ever
did... sigh...

Here's the first collaborative effort between us... so please be gentle, folks... ;-)
Comments, complaints and just plain talk to sheryl_martin@tvo.org and mnantus@ryker.itech.cup.edu


Double Trouble Squared
by Sheryl Martin
and Martin A. Nantus

Jackie St. George looked over Marty's shoulder at the couple
sitting in the booth just to their left. She sighed, watching Fox
Mulder smile, probably at something Dana Scully had just said.

"What's up, love?" Her dance partner whispered into her ear. She grinned.

"Just watching to see if anything else develops tonight..."

Marty pulled her face forward, looking at her. "Hey, this is
supposed to be a celebration - we've been engaged a whole three
months and nothing bad has happened yet... not another of your
attempts to get Fox and Dana together."

"I know." She smiled sweetly. "But it's kinda like eating potato
chips... you never get enough..."

"Tell me about it..." He groaned, feigning a back ache. She
slapped him playfully.

"Cut it out... look, he's actually going to ask her to dance..."

************

"They look nice, don't they?" Fox gestured towards the pair on
the floor. Dana nodded, taking a sip of her white wine.

"My mother's going to be giving me hell pretty soon... when she
heard that Jackie was engaged I had a couple of frantic phone
calls asking me when I was going to take the plunge.."

"Don't you need a boyfriend first?" His eyes laughed. She
grinned.

"That's the rumor I've heard..." She looked into his eyes. "At
least, from what I remember... it's been a while..."

"Some things you don't forget, Scully..." Mulder got to his feet.
"Like dancing..." He extended his hand, pulling her gently from
the booth.

***************

"Ah ha!" Jackie whispered into Marty's ear. "I knew he was going
to ask her to dance."

"I don't suppose that will satisfy your tendencies towards
meddling tonight will it?" He asked hopefully.

"We'll see." Jackie looked over at the two dancing FBI agents.
"We'll see..."

The two couples listened to the soft music, moving around the
dance floor slowly.

<When a woman loves a man; when a woman loves a man... she does
what she can do, he does the best he can...>

Dana took a deep breath, inhaling the soft musky smell of Fox
Mulder; the safety that it somehow gave to her... the strength
when she faltered.

"See, I told you it would come back to you." Mulder smiled at
Scully, gently swaying with her to the music.

"Just like riding a bike." She grinned.

<No moon tonight; there's nothing to guide me but still I will
find her, standing beside me...>

Fox closed his eyes, remembering the exact words Cancer Man had said...

"That's why I had her returned to you."

Not "returned". Not "brought back to the Bureau". It was "to
you". To him. To belong to him... and that knowledge that they
knew him better than he knew himself was frightening...

He looked down and smiled at her. "You know, I haven't been
dancing since..."

"That week we were suspended." She finished for him. "Me either."

Mulder looked at her, relishing the slight smile crossing her
lips. "That was fun."

"It was, even if we did lose pay." Her soft breath caressed his
face.

Mulder chuckled as Scully smiled, then rested her head on his
chest. They both swayed to the music, enjoying the closeness of
the other.

<She's a woman of strength; he's a man of conviction... sometimes the truth
is stronger than fiction...>

*****************

"There, they're dancing closer now. Are you satisfied?" Marty
whispered to her.

"No." Jackie said. "They're doing what they always do."

Marty snuggled closer to Jackie, nuzzling her neck. "And that
is?"

"Saying very little and then leaving each other with feelings
that can be interpreted in several ways, confusing them both even more."

Marty put his hand on Jackie's chin, raising her head so he could
look into her eyes. "And you got your psychology degree when?"

Jackie playfully thumped him on the chest. "I don't need one to
see that. Besides, I prefer biology studies." She smiled slyly.

"Sounds like something that needs lots of lab work and
experimentation." He brushed her lips with his.

"It sure does." She smiled. "But we'll investigate that later."

He frowned. "You picked this music on purpose, didn't you?" Her
answering grin made him chuckle. "You are a very devious,
conniving 'lil Dragon..."

"Your point?"

*****************

After the song had finished both couples stayed on the floor for
a second, almost regretting that they had to return to the table.
Sitting back down again, Jackie laughed as Fox extended his hand.

"At least let me get one dance in before you start something, St. George..."

"You know her that well, Mulder..." Marty snickered. "I'll watch
your back..."

Jackie chuckled as she stepped onto the floor with her friend.
She mentally stepped back for a second, eyeing her dance partner.
Tall, lanky... very dark in appearance and mood... When they had
first met years ago at a MUFON conference in New York City, she
had almost laughed out loud at the number of women approaching
him; only to be rebuffed in the simplest of ways when he just
didn't pay attention. His focus had been aimed at the talks; the
panels on alien abduction and on the government coverup
theories...

She had only really met him once, after a slide show. He easily
identified himself as FBI; herself hiding her own identity more
for convenience sake than from embarrassment. It was one thing to
be an agent in your own country; another in a foreign one - even
with Free Trade new on everyone's mind... And he had been polite
to a fault; nodding to her and moving on to the next discussion
with his mind far from the crowd. His eyes held then the same
thing they still held - the darkness of the hunter who knows that
the prey is out there... and the prices paid to get closer to the
truth. And she had her own secrets as well...

Jackie asked herself mentally why she wasn't attracted to Fox
Mulder... Dana Scully had asked the same question, once... and
the answer came back - she just didn't consider him in that area.
A good friend; a wonderful doctor who had helped her gain some
degree of control over her power... but nothing more. Nothing
offered, nothing wanted. And the first time she had seen him in
the airport, years later, the darkness in his eyes had been
changed somewhat - he wasn't alone - and that strength had
carried him through again and again...

"Okay... let's hear your argument." He sighed. "I know most of it already..."

She beamed up at Mulder. "Right... where to start.."

**********************

Marty and Dana sat at the table watching them dance. They both
looked at Mulder shaking his head and laughing at Jackie.

"She must have already started then." Dana sighed.

"She does this sort of thing often, doesn't she?" He asked.

"As long as I've known her." She said. "Jackie thinks that Mulder
and I would make a nice couple."

"Well, I can't argue that."

"Is this where you start working on me?" Dana asked, raising an
eyebrow.

"Oh no!" Marty protested. "The whole matchmaking thing is
strictly her idea. It's not my place to suggest you and Mulder
would make a nice couple."

"That's a relief." Dana took another sip of her white wine,
watching her friends dance.

Marty sat watching her, thinking about what she said: "Jackie
thinks Mulder and I would make a good couple." Oddly, the
impression he got the first time he saw them was that they WERE a
couple. Although he had his attention clearly focused on Jackie
at the time, from the way they walked and acted he'd assumed Dana
and Fox were together.

More than as the partnered FBI agents they were. Something about
the way both carried themselves suggested something more... or at
least the potential of it. The way they seemed to walk just
slightly inside what would be considered the other's personal
space suggested more than a professional relationship.

Not that Mulder could ever hope to do much better than Dana
Scully if he should decide to make things more professional.
Dana was one of those women who didn't need to flaunt their
beauty because she knew she was beautiful. She didn't need the
attentions or flattery of others to bolster her self image. And
not even she could argue that her outlook on their cases and
Mulder's didn't complement each other.

Marty waited until Dana had taken a large sip from her drink
before he spoke again. "Even if you would."

"Marty!" Dana sputtered and glared at him. "I thought you said it
wasn't your place."

"To suggest." He replied, raising his hands in a gesture of
truce. "I'm stating my opinion. In my opinion, you two would
make a nice couple."

"You skirt the technicalities as much as Mulder." She smirked at
him while he chuckled.

Marty stood and extended his hand to Dana. "Well, I'm not going
to be outdone in the courtesies by Mulder. May I have this
dance?"

Dana finished dabbing at the wine she'd somewhat spilled onto the
table when she'd flustered. "Always the gallant one hmm?" She
smiled. "Of course you can."

They danced for a bit, watching to make sure that neither Jackie
nor Mulder lost their temper during their discussion.

"So, are you going to try and get me to start a relationship with
Mulder?" Dana asked.

Marty looked surprised. "No. First off, you already have a
relationship with Mulder. It's just not what Jackie would like
the two of you to have. Secondly, I've learned over the past
several months that you just can't get a redhead to do something
that she doesn't want to."

Dana chuckled. "I see Jackie's taught you well."

***********************

Mulder and St. George looked over at the laughing couple. She
sighed.

"I don't want to know what they're talking about... Dana's
already got enough blackmail material as it is..."

"Oh, really?" His eyes twinkled. "And do you have any on her?"

"Lots, Mulder..." Jackie grinned. "And you'll never know..."

The music ended and they made their way back to the table,
through the now-crowded bar. Jackie looked at the bottom of her
beer glass with a sigh.

"No more... want more..." She looked at Marty. "Get more?"

"Hey..." He said softly. "I don't want to have to carry you home..."

"Again..." Fox interjected. "I remember the last time..."

"And as I recall, you were here as well." Dana jumped in with a
laugh. "Don't incriminate yourself here, Mulder... I remember
taking you home so drunk that you couldn't stand..."

"Well, if you had taken the cuffs off before I got back to your place..."

"If you hadn't been such a nuisance that I had to use them to get
you out of here..."

Jackie grinned, whispering to Marty. "Man, those cuffs are really
a great topic of conversation... I never figured Dana to be so
open to 'extreme possibilities'..." She chuckled. He nodded,
looking to the two agents now arguing over how incapacitated
Mulder actually was the last time they had been called to
Brandy's to take them home.

***********************

The four were so intent upon their conversation that they didn't
notice the approach of the two men until they were standing
beside their table.

"C'mon...let's dance." The blonde man said, grabbing Dana's
wrist.

"Yeah, you two can do better than these geeks." The other said,
taking ahold of Jackie's arm.

"I don't think so." Dana pulled her arm away from the mans grasp.
Her hazel eyes were hard and steely.

"I said let's dance." The man again grabbed Dana's arm.

"Hey, the ladies are with us." Fox said, grabbing ahold of the
blonde man's arm. "Look, why don't you just take it easy..." He
ducked as the drunk swung a wide limp punch at him. The fist
thudded into the red leather beside his head, and he slid out to
grab the attacker's lapels. Dana quickly stepped out beside him,
hoping that she wouldn't have to get her pistol from her purse...

Jackie had pulled away from her overzealous admirer and had
started to raise her arm back to hit him. Marty moved between
the two, hoping to defuse the situation before Jackie was
"accidentally" cut, and then "accidentally" ripped his head off.
The tall broad man snorted.

"Look, I just wanna dance with the lady..." He grinned, showing
his teeth. "But if you wanna make this hard on yourself..."

The first punch landed on Marty's ribs; sending him to the side
with a hollow grunt. Jackie grinned in response; snapping her
elbow up to land in the center of his face with a satisfying
crack. Marty came up behind her and quickly pushed her behind him
with a scowl on his face.

"Don't you get..." He ducked again as the man let loose with a
wide-arced swing that missed him by a mile. Marty chuckled as he
jabbed his attacker quickly in the torso twice, moving him back a
few feet. With a smile St. George kicked the man soundly in the
stomach, sending him careening across the room to land on another
table... who was not impressed with the sudden delivery...

Fox moved swiftly to the left, letting the drunk jab effortlessly
at thin air. Bringing his fist up quickly, he punched him hard;
watching him drop back with a gasp and a groan. Suddenly another
man appeared beside him, holding him by the shoulders.

"What's up, Al?" The four of them looked at each other as a
fourth man appeared; then a fifth standing in front of them. The
drunk staggered up from the broken remains of the far table;
holding his nose.

"They don't wanna dance." He mumbled through the blood. Dana let
her breath out slowly.

"Ah... we just want to go now..." She tried to sound calming and
peaceful; the way she had learnt in E.R. to deal with violent
patients. The brawl broke out in full force...

***********************

Assistant Director Walter Skinner waited patiently for the guard
to open the corridor door, then followed him down the hallway. He
looked sternly at the foursome inside the small jail cell.

Dana was busy dabbing at Fox's bloody nose with his own
handkerchief, swatting his hand away as he protested weakly that
he was fine. Jackie leaned against the wall, one eye purple and
swollen, a grin on her face. Marty got up from the bunk, a
sheepish look on his face.

"Agent Mulder! Agent Scully!" His sharp tone cut through their
drunken haze like a knife. Dana gave the handkerchief back to Fox
quickly, approaching Skinner as she adjusted her blood-stained
blouse. The only sign on her face that anything had happened was
a single bruise on her left cheekbone.

"I would like you to know that I do not appreciate being called
to be told that two of my people are in jail for disturbing the
peace..." He turned his gaze to the chortling woman. "And your
bosses are not amused either..." Skinner returned to Dana, the
nearest target. "So let's hear it."

"Ah, 'twas a glorious battle..." Jackie chortled in a thick
Scottish accent, her eyes shining. Marty shushed her quickly as
Dana licked her lips before starting.

"Well..." She took a deep breath. "We were celebrating Jackie's
and Marty's three-month anniversary, and some guys decided to...
ah... hit on us..." A choked laugh came from the Canadian behind
her. "Marty intervened to make sure that she didn't kill the guy
by accident..."

"And Agent Mulder decided to be chivalrous, I assume..." He dryly
said. She nodded. So did Mulder, tucking the handkerchief back
into his pocket now that the bleeding had stopped.

"Agent Mulder... are you married to Agent Scully?" The question
answered itself, of course. He shook his head. "Has she gone
through Quantico? Did she requalify for her pistol, at a higher
level, I might remind you, than yourself?" Fox's head kept
bobbing up and down. "So what possessed you to play knight errant
for a woman who's perfectly capable of taking care of herself?"

He lifted his face, a sly grin on his face. A small trace of
dried blood remained under his nose. "She's my partner, sir."

<That's why I had her returned to you...>

Skinner threw up his hands. "I swear, I don't know what to do...
Are any of you even halfway sober?"

"Ah... I am..." Marty stuck up his hand. "Actually, I don't
drink. At all."

The AD stared at him in disbelief. "You. Were in the Air Force.
In the Gulf. You don't drink." Skinner shook his head. "Of
course... why am I surprised at this... Another X File..." He
sighed. "Right... I'm temporarily declaring you FBI Field
Supervisor - your first job is to get the two of them out of here
before the cops change their mind and press charges... and get
her..." He jerked a thumb at Jackie. "Someplace safe...
please..."

"Yes, sir..." Marty grinned.

"Oh, and Agent Mulder..."

"Yes, sir?" Fox mumbled into his tie.

"Since you enjoy protecting Scully so much, you can pay her share
of the damages you four caused to the bar... and Ed's thinking
seriously about banning all agents, Federal and otherwise from
Brandy's... maybe opening a nice country inn someplace quieter...
like Kuwait." He turned to leave.

"Hey, Walter..." Skinner froze. Slowly turning, he met Jackie's
grinning face.

"If this is the three month party, just wait for the one-year..."

***************

Another hour passed before the paperwork for the release of
everyone involved finally came through. In the interim, all
three of Marty's new charges were getting increasingly groggy.
Despite his attempts, Mulder remained sitting on the bed,
slouched against the wall. Dana had settled into the folding
chair in the corner, her head against the corner of the wall.
The only one he could get half a response from was Jackie, and if
he didn't act soon, she'd fall asleep on him too..

"C'mon love." Marty said, lightly shaking Jackie. "You've gotta
help me with these two."

"Hmm?" Jackie stretched, rubbing her eyes. "Ouch...Bloody
swelling... Why don't you wake them up?"

"I already tried." Marty picked Mulder up, throwing Fox's arm
over his shoulder so he could support him. "But after the
adrenalin rush of the fight and getting chewed out by Skinner
wore off they pretty much collapsed."

"Ok... Let's go Dana." Jackie similarly supported Scully as they
left the holding cell.

Jackie and Marty slowly dragged the two FBI agents to the front
desk of the station to claim their personal effects. At least
Mulder was beginning to become aware of what was happening, but
no so much so he was being helpful in his movement.

"Mulder's heavier than he looks."

"You could carry Dana."

"I didn't say he was that heavy."

They made their way to the booking area, along with the others
who'd been arrested in the brawl. The desk sergeant looked over
their paperwork and handed over four large manilla envelopes.

Marty started checking the watches and wallets that the officer
handed him. He spotted Jackie reaching for one particular
envelope. Realizing what she was about to reach for, Marty
grabbed Jackie's hand.

"Just what are you doing?" He asked her.

"Um..Taking charge of the guns?" Jackie shrugged noncommittally.

"Not until morning you're not." Marty said, taking the packet
containing the agents guns.

"Don't you trust me?" She smiled sweetly.

"Oh yes, I do." He smiled back. "But I also see that they're
letting the guy who hit on you go now. I'm just trying to avoid
hearing 'But officer, I was just putting the gun away when it
went off and hit him in the leg.'"

"Ok... Spoilsport..."

***************

They had less trouble getting Fox and Dana into the car than out
of it when they arrived at Jackie's place. In their current
state, neither Agent was being very helpful.

"I think," Marty started, "that they have both beaten any
previous standing on who needed more help."

"Hey..." Mulder protested; swinging his arm around the man for
support. "You wanna borrow some of my movies for the honeymoon?"

"They are completely out of it." Jackie pulled the reluctant
Dana out of the car, draping a arm around her shoulder, leading
her towards the building.

"I'm fine..." Scully protested weakly. "I just need to rest for a
bit... this looks okay."

"Dana... that's the lawn." St. George turned to her partner.
"Should we have taken them to their own places?" She asked.

"No." He answered. "Not in this condition. I'm just glad you
don't have a walk-up."

After one hectic elevator ride of trying to keep the two of them
from falling flat on their faces, they finally got Fox and Dana
into Jackie's apartment.

"Okay, sit them on the couch." Jackie said. "Now, where are we
going to put them?"

Marty took the cushions off of the chairs and laid them on the
floor in front of the couch. He looked up at the two FBI agents
on the couch, Scully had put her head on Mulder's shoulder, and
Mulder's face rested against Dana's red hair.

"Did you do that?" He asked.

"Nope, it kind of just happened." She answered. "Don't they look cute?"

"You're incorrigible." Marty smiled. "I'll put Mulder here on
these cushions. Dana can take the couch."

Marty and Jackie disentangled the two from each other, lying Fox
on his back on the floor, and stretching Dana out on the couch.

"Do you think they'll be okay like that?" Jackie asked, leaning
on Marty's shoulder.

"Sure." He said. "They're both fast asleep, and if Dana rolls
off the couch, she'll just fall on Mulder...he'll cushion her fall."

"Actually, I think he'd like that." She smiled at him warmly.

"Probably. Now let's get you into bed." Marty started to lead
Jackie into the bedroom.

"I was wondering when you'd get to that..."

Marty closed the door silently behind them, neither seeing Dana's
arm slip off the couch, her fingertips brushing the back of
Mulder's hand. Nor did anyone see Fox take her hand in his,
holding it tight.

**********************

"When a Woman Loves a Man" by Joe Cocker - Bull Durham soundtrack

"If you will practice being fictional for a while, you will understand that fictional characters are sometimes more real than people with bodies and heartbeats."
Richard Bach -- "Illusions"


Beth,
http://ricksbbs.synchro.net:8080
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