A/N: To the guest reviewer who choose to comment on my stories, yes I do have a bad habit of losing interest in my projects, I already know it's a problem. I tried to plan this whole story out to avoid getting stuck, but it happened anyway, and since I stopped watching The X-Files and there didn't seem to be much interest from others in this story, I simply had a hard time continuing. It's one of my flaws as a person, but I'm only an amateur writer, you can always follow someone else who's better if it's too much of a problem. Now, I have this chapter and half a chapter on my computer as well, I'll see if I can find the time to finish it and possibly write more, though I have a lot on my plate, having just moved to a different country a few weeks ago. All mistakes are mine.
Suddenly it became a completely new thing being out in public, holding hands, kissing, teasing and caressing each other. It was as if their own little secret was being shown to the whole world, without anybody knowing. They could do whatever they pleased to each other, one half of the world only seeing a loving engaged couple, while the other half only seeing two agents undercover, doing a very convincing job, nobody having the slightest clue about what was really going on between the two women. It was absolutely perfect, undemanding, limitless, just like they needed and completely without the pressure to hide anything. The only difference was that their names had changed. That they were still on a job, and that this whole thing was only temporary. A thing neither of them really wanted to think about at this time.
It was with work on their minds that they left the coziness of their shared home, to stroll down the street with intertwined fingers and a pie in a basket.
"I really like this place." Emily whispered close to Dana's ear, smiling as they walked. "Look at all these colors," she said, "It's like living in a constant rainbow. Even the crosswalk is just one giant gay rainbow!" Dana smiled at the excitement in the other woman's voice. "I wish more towns were like this, it would be so much more fun and bright to just walk around in the city. Instead of those boring grey colors all over."
"It would be more difficult to be colorblind though." Scully smiled, her nose brushing against Emily's cheek as they walked and talked, waving at the friendly neighbors.
"I'm sure they could guess their way around it!" Emily replied, both of them laughing. "Just admit it Chris, you love this as much as I do." Scully blushed to feel Emily nibble her earlobe slightly. It sent a pleasant shiver down her spine.
"Do you really believe that, Lauren?" Scully teased with a smile. She put her free hand up to Emily's chin, turning her head in order to capture her lips in a searing kiss.
"Maybe. We'll see." Emily replied in a breathless whisper, before reclaiming Dana's lips once more. Her smile was completely flawless and brilliant as they pulled apart.
Their smiles remained intact as they arrived at their target. Scully rang the doorbell twice, her hand moving away from the intimacy and warmth of Emily's, to rest on the small of her back instead. Suddenly the closeness between them seemed posed and fake, almost insignificant. It was an unpleasant reminder for Emily that they were not actually a couple but only two agents on a job, trying to fool others. Scully was quick to sense the change in demeanor, glancing to Prentiss, but choosing to remain silent. Scully rang once more, before they heard a lock being turned and the door opened ever so slightly, an eye of a woman peeking out from the other side.
"Hello!" Emily said, smiling. "I'm Lauren and this is my fiancée Chris. We just moved in not a block away, and thought we would come over to get to know people around here." The woman looked at Emily like she was crazy for a moment, before opening the door a little more, her whole face showing now. She was tall, her hair a dirty blonde color, done in a quick bun with strays of hair falling out. She had a tired and worn down face, a thin body dressed in a loose dress and looked at them with a sharp suspicious gaze.
"Why come all the way over here of all the places to visit?" she asked in a hoarse voice, probably from many years of cigarette smoking.
"We've already said hello to our next door neighbors and when they told us they had 10 women living out here, we thought it might be more fun to visit your house and introduce ourselves." Scully improvised. "We even brought a pie as a welcome gift."
The woman still was not sure if she should buy it, but ended up opening the door for them anyway. Emily was quick to step inside and offer the woman to shake hands, followed suit by Dana.
The house itself was huge and old fashion, decorated with grand furniture in dark wood, a giant chandelier hanging from the high ceiling, giving the place a gothic sense. Old portraits decorated the walls and a mirror, framed in gold, hung above a small dresser, decorated with a fruit bowl and candles. At the end of the entry hall was a spiral staircase, leading to the floor above, and both sides of the room they occupied led to what must be a library and a living room.
"This place is amazing." Emily said smiling friendly. She had grasped Scully's hand once more and where stroking it absentmindedly, while looking for any clues of anything suspicious about the house and the woman before them.
"Thanks." The stranger replied, not too happy to have company. She tried to keep a small smile on her face, to be neighborly, but it was clear that she wasn't feeling it.
"I don't think we got your name?" Scully asked in a friendly tone with curious eyes to try to keep them on the topic.
"No, you didn't." the woman simply replied, squinting her eyes for a second. "Why don't I show you to the kitchen so you can get that thing out of your hands?" she asked instead, looking down at covered basket with the pie in it.
"That sounds lovely." Scully said with a smile.
"I was wondering if I could borrow you toilet, if it's not too much to ask." Prentiss interjected, stopping the woman in her tracks. She looked to Emily, not saying anything for a second, before she unwillingly opened her mouth again.
"Sure. It's just upstairs, first door to the left."
"Thank you. I'll be right back honey." Emily said looking to Dana. Before stepping away, she lifted a hand to the other agent's cheek and turned her head around, placing a lovely and shortly lingering kiss on her lips, and then she was on her way up the stairs. The move took Scully slightly by surprise, but wasn't unwelcome. It send a shiver down her spine and she felt all her blood rising to her face. It felt so out of place and all too intimate in front this stranger at work, but it left a the first true smile on her face since they walked inside.
"Let's go then." Scully smiled, glowing.
As Emily walked up the stairs, her demeanor switched from the easy going Lauren completely smitten with her fiancée Chris back to Special Agent Emily Prentiss on the hunt for traces of a murder. When she reached the top, she was standing in the middle of a big hallway, leading both ways. Doors spread out against the walls along with more portraits. Most of them seemed to be African women in proud poses with folded hands and backgrounds like jungles and huts. Maybe some sort of ancestors. The woman they had met earlier did not seem to have any traces of darkness in her skin, but maybe she had gotten into the family another way, or maybe it was one of the other women's ancestors.
Prentiss could see the bathroom door as described, but chose to go in the other direction instead. Peeking through the lock in the door, she saw what must be some sort of shared bedroom. There were two single beds placed to the sides, a single desk and two nightstands. The room was decorated in things as candles and flowers. Suddenly she remembered someone at the dinner party talking about a victim buying flowers. Even if it did not really prove anything, she kept it in the back of her mind. Deciding that there was not that much more to look at, she moved on to the next door.
This time it looked like she hit jackpot in her founds. It was a dark room with the curtains pulled, so it impossible to make much out, but it looked like there was some sort of giant pentagram on the floor, a double bed placed on top of it. Candles where lit in the outer circle along with strange ornaments. A book was open, standing on a wooden pedestal of sorts. Prentiss contemplated whether to go inside or get back to Scully and tell her what she found. However, when she thought she heard some sort of strangled moan come from inside the room sounding like a man, she carefully gripped the handle, not wanting to waste time if there were a victim alive inside.
She was just about to step inside when she felt a hand grip her shoulder firmly. Before she could turn around to see who it was, she felt something hit her head hard and everything went black.
