Hey guys,

Thank you SO MUCH for all the reviews! I'm absolutely blown away by all the comments, and the recs I've been getting on other sites! Heaps and heaps of thanks to you all!

And look, the next chapter is out already! Told you the muse likes reviews ;)

12.

Despite the power having returned earlier that day, the fire had been tended and was still burning brightly in the hearth by the time Scully had the two children down for their afternoon naps. Mulder was sitting on the sofa, staring at the flames, when he heard her enter the room.

"Sleeping?" Mulder questioned softly, not taking his gaze from the open fire.

"Both out like lights," Scully said just as quietly, leaning against the doorjamb. "Alice hasn't called yet?"

She knew as we as Mulder did that the phone hadn't run, but Mulder knew she just needed the reassurance. "No," he replied, and then patted the sofa next to him. "Sit down."

It felt strangely normal for Scully to sit on the sofa next to him, and completely acceptable for him to put his arm around her shoulders and tuck her small body up tightly against his own. He rested his cheek on the top of her head, breathing in the warm, clean scent he knew so well, and relaxed into her company.

"I don't want to lose them, Mulder," she whispered against his shirt, her hand crawling up his chest and her fingers curling tightly into the cotton fabric.

"We won't," Mulder promised her even though he shouldn't make promises like that. "We'll do everything we can to keep them. I promise, Scully, we'll do everything."

---

Sitting at Margaret Scully's little writing desk, Mulder rested his elbows on it's carved wooden surface and dropped his face into his hands.

"Mulder?" Scully asked from behind him. "You okay?"

He lifted his face from his hands and half-turned on the chair to face her. "Trying to sort out the house," he admitted, running his fingers through his hair.

A flicker of doubt cross her face as she considered him. "Is that really a good idea, Mulder?" she asked slowly.

He stared hard at her. "You can't give up just because Amber has decided she wants the children," Mulder said firmly. "If we don't go ahead with the house and prove that we're serious about adopting then chances are they won't award us custody, Scully."

"It's just… it's such a big investment and chance to take for something that might not happen now," Scully whispered.

"It might not have happened anyway," Mulder pointed out. "It's not like you to be so pessimistic, Scully," he chided gently.

"It's a beautiful, big house," Scully said quietly, closing her eyes. "I just don't want you to lose everything in this."

A surge of irritation rippled through Mulder at her words, and he felt something inside himself slowly turn to ice. Why would Scully continually worry about him giving to the children and her? Probably, he realized logically, because she didn't want to be indebted to him. Scully hated being in debt, and she would see this entire situation as him accommodating her as a best friend, not as a lover.

"I've told you, Scully, I want to do this. Stop doubting," he said curtly. "Just once it would be nice if you could accept what I'm doing and let me make my own decisions about which risks I'm willing to take."

She licked her lips nervously, shifting her weight. "It's going to be a joint investment then," she said finally, her voice achingly empty. "I'll cover half."

They'd been friends for a long time, and Mulder was well aware of Scully's financial status. If she met him dollar for dollar on the price of the house, her savings account would be effectively emptied.

"I sold my mother's house, and I sold the summer house," Mulder said quietly. "I was going to buy property anyway, Scully. Even if we weren't married and thinking about adoption, I would still be investing this money. That house is an amazing find; the price they've got it at is well below what it could be."

"Mulder-"

"Scully, we've discussed this already," Mulder said firmly, standing up. "You agreed to open a joint account. I was going to put all the inheritance money in there, so now instead of it sitting in an account it's paying for a house. I don't want to argue about this anymore."

Mulder didn't have to know Scully for six years to read the irritation in her blue eyes. And uncertainty. Scully was not one to accept charity or allow people to give to her without her feeling as though she'd earned what they were giving her. For her to accept the house went against her character, but Mulder didn't know how to explain to her that in reality, everything he owned was hers.

"I've already put the deposit through; the agents said we can move in any time we want."

"That fast?" she said, surprised.

He shrugged. "The money was sitting in the account. I had it transferred across."

Her eyes were wide at the thought of having paid for a house in full, and the fact that it was done in such a short space of time.

"I was going to suggest we start packing tomorrow; the sooner we're living there as a family the better."

The surprised confusion in her eyes tore at Mulder; he didn't like knocking her off balance and just leaving her, but he wasn't prepared for the argument she was bound to have about him paying it all without telling her, and not giving her the opportunity to contribute. Right now, the last thing he wanted to do was argue, but it seemed all Scully wanted to do was argue. Sighing, Mulder rose to his feet and walked past her, leaving her standing in the doorway.

---

He'd only been away for a day, but it felt like much longer when he stood in his apartment and looked around. This small area had been his home for the last fifteen years, and he knew it intimately. He knew where there were small cracks in the walls and where the floor dipped disconcertingly beneath his feet. He knew where the boards creaked, and that to open one of the windows you had to jiggle it just right.

Home.

Hopefully tomorrow home would be a beautiful old house in Arlington with a window box and backyard, complete with a wife and two children.

Smiling to himself, Mulder fed his fish before he once again surveyed his apartment critically, starting a mental list of what to pack first and what to pack last and what to simply leave behind or throw away.

Two hours later his phone rang.

"Mulder, it's Skinner."

"What can I do for you, sir?" he asked, jamming the phone between his shoulder and ear while attempting to unplug his computer cables.

"The investigation is stalling, Mulder. I can't put off interviewing Jacob any longer. We need to talk to him as soon as possible about what he saw."

Mulder stopped trying to wriggle the cords and gripped the phone tightly with his fingers. "Sir, I don't know if-"

"Mulder, you know procedure as well as I do. The fact that we've already wasted almost three days not interviewing him is a break in protocol."

"Have you spoken to Scully?"

"No, I didn't want to bring up the subject if she was around the children," Skinner admitted, surprising Mulder with his thoughtfulness. "I know she won't take it well, even though she knows and understands that we have to do this."

"Will we be allowed to be present?"

Skinner hesitated. "You're not on the case, it could be seen as stepping on toes of the agents who are investigating."

"We were the first agents assigned to the case," Mulder pointed out. "And we currently have the children in our care."

"I don't want you running off to solve this one, Mulder," Skinner said carefully. "Given the situation, I know you and Scully take it personally even though you didn't know the Logans, and I'm not prepared to have either of you act in a manner that could reflect badly on yourselves."

Mulder smiled at that. "I don't exactly have a spotless record, sir."

"Too many more spots, Mulder, and they might just decide your page is too dirty," Skinner returned pointedly. "You're already walking a fine line returning to the X Files. Now that you've effectively thrown it back in the Bureau's face, along with this usual relationship change and adoption applications… they could use anything to get you out, and despite everything, I don't want to lose you Mulder. You or Scully. You're good agents."

It wasn't often Skinner told Mulder how he felt, and Mulder took a few seconds to process the comment. "Sir, all I'm interested in is my family," Mulder said honestly. "I'm not willing to risk throwing them away by risking everything on a case right now."

"I never thought I'd hear you sound so sane, Mulder," Skinner said.

Mulder grinned broadly. "I'll talk to Scully tonight," Mulder promised. "I'm at my apartment at the moment packing; we bought a house and we're going to start moving tomorrow."

"That soon?" Skinner asked, sounding amazed.

"The sooner the better," Mulder said airily.

"When you make your mind up, you certainly make your mind up," Skinner sighed. "Call me tonight after you've talked to Scully."

"I'll talk to Maggie Scully and see if she'd mind letting you interview Jacob at her house," Mulder decided. "It'll be easier if he's comfortable in his surroundings."

"I'm glad you suggested that," Skinner said. "Would 10am work for you?"

"I'll just make sure Scully and her mother agree, but that should be fine," Mulder decided, reaching for the computer cables again. "Sir, while I have you on the line, what are you doing tomorrow after the interviews? We might need a hand with the moving…"

"I'll see what I can do, Mulder," Skinner said dryly, before hanging up.

Despite the thought of subjecting Jacob to an interview, Mulder smiled as he pulled the cable from the computer. They were moving tomorrow, and he was looking forward to having a home with Scully.

---

A little shorter than normal, but I needed to set a few things up!

Again, thank you SO MUCH for the reviews. I'm happy you're all enjoying the fic; it's going to wrap up soon, I think, so hopefully I won't make you guys hang out for much longer!

Cheers,

Silf