He walked through the magnificent building. He took in the sights. The grand staircase, the paintings, the marble floor, the extravagant statues, the chandeliers, and the fact that almost everything was gold.

"Édouard!" he heard someone call his name. "Glad you could join us."

"Monsieur Vichy," he greeted his superior with a small bow.

"None of that, Édouard. You are here as an equal. Come, join us in our box."

He followed Vichy and his 3 other guests to a cozy box to the right side facing the stage.

"Le Palais Garnier is magnificent, is in not?" Vichy engaged him in conversation.

"It is quite splendid!" he agreed.

"Its ballet and opera are just as splendid," Vichy informed him. "I'm so happy that you could be my guest tonight, Édouard. You have done a fine job this year and are a most promising young detective."

"Thank you, monsieur. I do try my best," he said humbly.

The men were silenced as the show began. He watched the performers in amazed awe. They were all so beautiful, the voices of the singers and the movements of the dancers. He was entranced. He was lucky to have a seat so close to the stage where he could really see all of the details of the performance.

The act ended, and a new one began with a graceful ballet. He felt his heart skip a beat. She was beautiful. She seemed to dance on air. Her auburn curls cascading around her as she twirled. Right then he made it his goal to find her name...

Mulder woke with a start. He glanced at the clock. It read 4:13am.

"That was the weirdest dream..." he told himself out loud.

Scully was right about it being hot for this time of year. He had kicked the covers off of himself. He got a pair of pajama pants out of his bag and pulled them on over his boxers. He then headed into the kitchen to get some water. Apparently, he wasn't the only one having a problem sleeping.

Scully was on her tippy toes, reaching for a coffee mug.

Mulder leaned against the wall and crossed his arms, amused. "Do you need help?" he asked.

His voice startled her, and she dropped the mug that she had finally gotten as she spun around in surprise. The mug broke as it hit the floor, sending shards of porcelain in all directions.

"Don't move," he told her, flipping on the light.

Mulder jogged into his room and put on his shoes. He returned quickly, and stepped into the tiny kitchen area. He picked her up as a groom does his bride, and placed her on the safety of the carpet. He returned to the kitchen, found a dustpan and a small hand held broom, and began to clean up the mess.

"I sorry, Mulder. You scared me," she explained to him from the safety of the doorway.

"Don't worry about it," he responded, dumping the shards safely into the trashcan. "Now, did you want a coffee mug?" he asked, smiling.

She nodded and returned his smile.

"Insomniacs, the pair of us," he told her, getting two mugs out of the cupboard.

"I guess," she said, leaning against the wall to watch him.

Mulder put the provided motel coffee in the maker and waited for it to brew. He leaned against the sink and looked over to study Scully. He could see the nervousness in her eyes. No wonder she couldn't sleep. It seemed that the heat had gotten to her as well. Instead of her usual matching cotton pajamas, she was down to a tank top and boy-short underwear. Mulder blushed a bit and turned away from her when he realized that she was only in her underwear.

"Happy 37th, by the way," she spoke up.

"Thanks," he replied, staring at the slowly dripping coffee.

"Do I get to spank you?" she asked, jokingly.

He laughed. "Only if you want to, but you would have to complete all 37, which might hurt your hand because I have buns of steal," he told her, not being able to help turning back to face her.

She shook her head and laughed. "Well, in that case I decline. I'll need all of my strength to potentially fight off a killer today."

Mulder's smile faded. He turned back to the coffee and poured it into the waiting mugs. "One sugar?" he asked, though he knew the answer.

"Yep. No cream," she replied, knowing that he knew.

He handed her the mug. Scully turned and headed back to her room. Mulder grabbed his mug and followed her. He sat in the pink chair next to her little pink desk. Scully settled on her bed.

"I'm going to take you out for lunch," Scully stated, before blowing into the hot mug of coffee.

Mulder took a sip of his scalding hot coffee, and smiled at her. "What about dinner? It is my birthday."

"Dinner too, if you'd like."

"Breakfast?"

"Don't get too pushy," she lightheartedly warned him. "You're only 37, not 40. Maybe if you were turning 40 I'd feed you all day long!"

He took another sip, amused. "Well, I guess I'll just have to settle for lunch and dinner, then."

"You will," she confirmed.

Mulder glance at her clock. It read 4:36am.

"Are you going to try to go back to sleep? You could get another two and half hours."

"Probably not. I am drinking coffee, Mulder," she pointed out.

"No, you're drinking coffee-flavored water. This is the weakest coffee that I think I have ever had!"

"True," she agreed. "Well, I'm not sure that I can sleep," she told him honestly. "Are you going to go back to sleep?"

"No," he told her. "Want to watch tv?"

"Not really."

"Wanna cuddle?" he tried.

"Mulder!"

"I thought I'd try... It is my birthday... Birthday cuddle?" he tried to coax her into it.

"Why in the world do you want to cuddle with me?" she asked, putting her mug on the side table and trying not to laugh.

"It would just be a friendly cuddle. I like to cuddle. You look small and cuddly. So I figured..." he trailed off when he realized that she was looking at him like he was crazy.

"Okay," she gave in. "But a PG cuddle! Don't get frisky with me. Any signs of sexual harassment and you'll be sorry!" she warned him and scooted over so he could join her in the bed.

They both laid on their sides and Mulder spooned up behind her, draping his arm over her.

"See, isn't this nice? Just a friendly cuddle," he told her.

"You really must be worried about today. I mean, you're rape-cuddling me."

"Hey! You consented," he reminded her.

"Yeah, yeah. However, you are right. This is nice," she commented.

Pretty soon the two of them couldn't help it, and they drifted back off to sleep.