Title: The Great Pumpkin Author: Lovesfox E-mail: lovesfox@rogers.com Website: www.geocities.com/fanficcorner Category: Story, MSR Rating: R Summary: William's first Halloween. Disclaimer: Mulder, Scully, William and all within do not belong to me. I just borrowed them. They belong to CC and 1013 Productions. Note: This short story belongs in the Eyes of a Child universe, which you do not have to read to enjoy this one. Just know that Mulder and Scully are a couple, William is their son, and Mulder no longer works for the FBI. The Great Pumpkin by Lovesfox Scully/Mulder Residence October 31, 2001 7:40 am Scully smiled as she brought the spoonful of squash up to William's mouth. His cheeks were liberally smeared and stained with the orange- colored mashed vegetable, as were his hands from grabbing the utensil every time it came near him. True to form he successfully wrapped his pudgy fingers around this one and attempted to cram it into his mouth, sideways, splattering squash on himself and the high chair tray. "If you keep that up, William," she said, "We won't need that enormous pumpkin your father bought. We can sit you on Grandma's porch instead." William chortled, and smacked his lips, his big blue eyes tracking the spoon with a ferocious eagerness that made her smile widen. He had definitely inherited Mulder's appetite. "What's that about my pumpkin?" a husky, sleep-filled voice said then, startling her. She hadn't heard Mulder enter the kitchen. Turning her head to one side, she watched his shuffling approach towards her and William. Her appreciative eyes raked him over from head to toe, pausing briefly in the middle. He was wearing only a pair of plaid pajama pants, falling low on his lean hips. They were top on her list of favorite attire for him, after absolutely nothing at all. His hair was adorably, sexily spiked in every direction, and his morning stubble darkened his cheeks. It was difficult to tear her eyes away and resume feeding their son, who was grunting his dissatisfaction that the food train had stalled. "I was just telling William he could substitute for a pumpkin with his orange face here," she said, bringing the last of the squash up for William. Mulder's warm belly pressed against the back of her head in his usual morning greeting for when she was busy feeding William his breakfast. He then wiggled slightly from side to side for a minute, rubbing something else against her as well. "He's sure got the cheeks for it," he rumbled after he backed away, his hands descending to rest on her blouse-clad shoulders, squeezing gently. "You want me to take over?" "We're just...about...done," she said slowly, as she wiped their son's face with a cloth, chasing the dear little face that was trying to avoid being cleaned up. "He ate all his cereal and his mashed bananas already." His hands were next, and then she swiped at the tray, though it would need to be washed. "You could take these, though," she said, and turning a bit when his hands left her shoulders, handed him the dirty cloth and the sectioned baby dish and spoon. A few minutes later she was holding the now bib-less, and relatively clean William in her arms, a large towel folded over her shoulder to protect her blouse, just in case. Although he was long past the spitting up stage, the odd time a burp caught her by surprise, and her clothes were the victims. Her time in the morning with him was precious now that she was back to work, and she didn't want to waste any of it having to go get changed. She got up half an hour earlier now on workdays, to shower and dry her hair before he even awoke. She strolled over to the front window, body automatically settling into that near-unconscious, swaying baby walk, listening to William's babbles while behind her the water ran as Mulder washed the tray and highchair seat. A few moments later he joined them, coming up behind her to wrap his arms around her waist, snuggling her against his body. His lips brushed over her ear before pressing a kiss on the top of William's head. "Ba ba ba!" William exuberantly thanked his father with his favorite, and only, sound thus far, and a smacking pat to the nose. Mulder laughed. "Easy there, big guy. This nose is already big enough." He then partially released her, bringing one hand up to rub along her upper arm. "Time to go?" he asked, his voice softer. Scully sighed. "Unfortunately, yes," she replied and turned as Mulder's other arm slid from her waist. She then held William out for his waiting hands. Once he was safely ensconced in his father's hold, she pressed her own lips to William's head, pausing briefly to inhale his sweet scent, then headed back to the bedroom to retrieve her jacket and her weapon from the night table drawer. As she adjusted the holster she thought to herself that once William was more active, they would have to make other plans for the storage of their guns. Mulder trailed behind her with William, carrying on a running commentary of everything they saw. At the bedroom, he leaned his free shoulder against the doorjamb and watched her slip into her jacket, adjusting her blouse and smoothing the wrinkles from her skirt. "Look at your mommy, William, " Mulder said. "Isn't she...tasty?" "Mulder!" Scully scolded, sending him a look as she moved to stand before the dresser mirror. "Hey, both the kid and I have first hand knowledge of that fact," he replied unrepentantly. Scully watched her reflection blush scarlet to her hairline, feeling the heat on her cheeks. Clearing her throat deliberately, and carefully not looking at Mulder, she queried in an effort to change the topic, "So what plans do my two boys have for today?" "Uh..." she heard Mulder mumble, followed by low murmuring to William. She flicked a glance over one shoulder at them, to see that Mulder appeared to be studiously avoiding her eyes. He was up to something, but she had not yet been able to determine exactly what it could be. Hushed telephone calls that ended abruptly if she walked in the room... Mulder interrupted her musings. "Well, we'll probably have a shower, then breakfast -" "No cereal for him, Mulder!" she said quickly. "One cheerio, Scully. One time." He grinned at her, lifting one of William's hands up to pump in the air. "Besides, before he started choking, I think he really liked it." After nuzzling and raspberrying William's cheek he added, "Just guy stuff, Scully." Guy stuff. Mm-hmmm. Catching sight of her alarm clock as she turned to face Mulder, she realized she had better get going. She'd find out what Mulder had planned soon enough, she knew. William and Mulder walked her to the front door, Mulder again holding up one of their son's hands, this time moving it in a pseudo-wave. ~~~ "Your mother's one smart lady, William," Mulder told their son after closing and locking the door behind Scully. They set off towards the kitchen, their plans changed. He had fully intended to shower with William, as he had told Scully, but he had then remembered how messy he and William usually got during unsupervised meals. "She knows we've got plans, buddy," he continued. "She's suspicious, but I don't think she has us figured out yet." If Scully had pressed him, he would have told her, but thankfully she had not. He really wanted to surprise her. William ba-ba-ba'ed happily in agreement, bouncing excitedly in Mulder's arm as they walked over and opened the fridge. Mulder immediately zeroed in on the half-empty jar of baby bananas on the top shelf. It was his absolute favorite. All the fruits were good, but the banana puree was...well, he had no other words for it. He had also taken a liking to William's cereals - with brown sugar or other sweet things, of course - but Scully tended to notice when the cereals disappeared quickly. So he limited to only eating the rice cereal once in a while, it was William's least favorite anyway. Breakfast was fun, as usual, though Mulder refrained from giving William any Cheerios. He told his son they would try them again soon, getting an agreeable babble in return. William sat in his Exersaucer - a fantastic invention that had been a gift from the Gunmen - banging some blocks, while Mulder cleaned the table, the floor and the highchair. Dishes done too, Mulder scooped William up and jiggled him down the hallway to the bathroom, for their shower. Sometimes the two of them had a bath - Mulder readily admitted he looked forward to tub-time with William, and probably enjoyed it as much as, if not more, than William did. He eyed the bathtub fondly. Baths with William weren't the only things he enjoyed. Scully and he had spent many a memorable time in the deep porcelain tub. But they didn't have time for a tub today. Plunking William down on the thick, padded bathmat, he crouched beside his son and stripped the baby to his diaper. That particular item was always last, for William had caught him on several occasions - from both ends. Once the water in the shower was at a comfortable, William-safe temperature, Mulder hooked his thumbs in the waistband of his pajama pants and yanked them off. William watched with an admiring eye, Mulder would swear to it, as he executed a beautiful hook shot with balled-up pants landing directly into the hamper several feet away. Cupping his hand around the back of William's head, he guided his son backwards until the baby was lying down. Little legs kicked, and Mulder captured a flying foot in one hand. He slowly leaned in while saying, "Yum, yum" - a guaranteed William pleaser. After a raspberry to the sole of his foot, and one to his chubby belly, Mulder said, "Okay, buddy. Let's check the diaper." A quick peek via a leg hole of the latest in Huggie's wear revealed he had the all-clear, so he pulled the tabs at the sides and started to lower the front. The moment cool air touched his privates, William let loose. Mulder had stopped being a victim of impromptu showers by the third month, and was prepared, clapping the diaper closed again to contain the leak. In the shower stall, he settled William in his tub ring, another handy invention that attached to the floor of the shower with suction. William had been sitting up for a couple weeks without support, so Scully had deemed the tub seat safe for them to use. It was a hell of a lot easier than trying to shampoo his own hair while holding William. The best way to shower or bathe William was of course when Scully joined them, but that only happened on the weekends. Mulder made a quick job of his hair and body, and then crouched once more to lift William out of the seat to hold him under the gentle stream of water. He loved the surprised look that always flowed across William's face when the drops hit his head or body. He had been trying to teach him to stick his tongue out to catch the water, but so far William was not interested. They only washed William's hair a couple times a week with baby shampoo, to avoid dry scalp. Not to mention the fact that right now the little guy was still kind of sparse in that department. Fortunately Scully had at some point restocked the supply of big, soft, plush towels in the little cupboard, because he had forgotten to do that after using the last two the day before. Taking the one on top, he wrapped it around his son, covering him completely, one edge hanging rakishly over William's eye. Setting William down on the floor again for a moment, he quickly toweled his hair dry, and then swiped the terry cloth over his body. Swooping him up with the requisite accompanying airplane sound, the two of them flew out of the bathroom to William's room. Unconcerned with his nakedness, although if Scully were there, she'd be squawking at him, he laid William down on the floor yet again. It was so much easier than standing hunched over to use the change table. After drying him carefully, he expertly diapered his son, then manhandled the wiggling toes into socks. A diaper shirt was next, the kind where the cloth went under the diaper and snapped at both sides of the waist. Scully had thoughtfully laid out clothes, so he grabbed the white OshKosh b'Gosh turtleneck and train engineer overalls and managed to get them on with only minor difficulty. Apparently babies got squirmier as they got older. Little white leather Nikes with blue swooshes were next, a gift from Uncle Walter, or the Skinman he told William when Skinner was not around. One down, one to go. Ten minutes later he was dressed in khaki pants and a pullover sweater, and they were ready to go visit Grandma Scully for their top-secret project. Code-named Operation Alien. Whistling a jaunty tune, Mulder toted a jean jacket-clad and Yankees baseball-capped William, a bulging diaper bag, also thoughtfully prepared and laid out by Scully, and an overnight bag, out to their black Jeep Grand Cherokee Laredo. No mini-vans for him, uh-uh. Buckling William into his car seat in the middle seat of the second row, he adjusted the straps carefully over his son's chest, and then handed him what he called William's favorite toy, a rubber Alien. Scully was equally convinced William was partial to his rubber Winnie the Pooh, a gift from her mother. Mulder had stuffed it in his jacket pocket on the way out, just in case. His own seatbelt buckled, soft tunes on the radio, and they were on their way. ~~~ J. Edgar Hoover Building October 31, 2001 3:30 pm Scully listened to the steady clack of her own heels as she walked calmly down the hallway to Skinner's office. Inside she was nervous, wondering why she and she alone had been called up to speak to the Assistant Director. Kimberley had been of little help when queried as to the reason for the visit, her voice sounding odd. As if the woman had been suppressing laughter. Remembering that, Scully decided it couldn't be that bad. Entering through the secretary's office door, she spied a familiar looking diaper bag on the couch to the left of Kimberley's desk. Ah ha. This must have been what Mulder had been planning. Though why he had been so secretive was beyond her. He and William had visited her at work twice before already - once as a planned date, and once just to surprise her. Then again, they hadn't actually entered the building, just met her in the front lobby. Kimberley was not at her desk, but Scully could hear the secretary cooing at someone in Skinner's office. Hopefully William, though she had seen the woman eyeing the AD a time or two. She moved over and hovered in the doorway, peering inside. Her eyes found Mulder immediately, leaning against the far corner of Skinner's desk. His arms were crossed casually over his chest, and he was smiling indulgently at... A large gray blob sitting on Skinner's lap. "Ba, ba, ba," the blob said, and then a chubby little hand waved in the air before grabbing Skinner's expensive-looking silk tie and yanking with surprising strength, causing the AD to grunt loudly. She would recognize that 'ba' anywhere. But what was he wearing...what had Mulder done to their son? As she stepped fully into the office, Mulder turned his head towards her. "Hey, Scully," he said in his 'what can I do?' voice. "Surprise!" His expression became slightly rueful as he shrugged his shoulders and mouthed the word 'later'. Kimberley, who had been crouched beside Skinner, reached out and apparently chucked William on the cheek with a girlish giggle, which made him chortle back. She then rose to her feet slowly, a big smile on her face. "Hello Agent Scully," she said excitedly. "This is such a cute costume. William looks adorable!" Scully felt a funny little twinge - she had yet to see the full costume, and had not even been aware there was a costume. Until about one minute ago. But she smiled gamely and nodded. "Hello, Kimberley, and thank-you." Skinner had turned his head awkwardly to look at her, his face an interesting shade of red, most likely because William was now semi-standing in his lap, and patting his balding pate quite exuberantly with both hands. "Hello, Sir," she added. "I'm going to assume this is why I was called up here?" "Uh...yes, Agent Scully," Skinner replied. "I'm sorry for the subterfuge. Kimberley thought it would be...cute...to surprise you." He looked and sounded uncomfortable as he said that, as if he might have been against the idea. "Strong grip he's got," he said then, trying unsuccessfully to free his tie, which William had resumed yanking on. The AD gave up, and instead got to his feet, one arm wrapped securely around William, and walked around the desk. Scully was finally presented with a full view of her son's costume. William was an alien. A gray alien. One of Mulder's gray aliens. She remembered Mulder's dead-pan delivery of that line to Tom Colton years ago, when the younger agent had mocked Mulder's search for little green men. She was a little surprised at the choice of the costume, given Mulder's not-so-distant abduction experience, but let none of her thoughts reflect on her face. Instead she concentrated on the costume itself. It appeared to be made of Lycra, with the 'alien's' head being somewhat like a hat over William's own head, so that his face peeked out of a circular cutout in what would approximately be the alien's neck or upper chest. Large, almond-shaped black eyes had been sewn onto the alien face, along with tiny dark holes for the nose, and a line for the lips. Mulder came to stand next to her, their bodies a hair's-breadth apart. "Your mom made it. Isn't it great?" Actually it was quite good. "She made costumes for us when we were kids, " she said quietly, nostalgically. He leaned into her so that his shoulder nudged her arm, jostling her slightly. "I know. She showed me pictures." His voice was gleeful, amused. "Oh, God," she whispered. "That cheerleader one in grade eight was really cute, Scully," he teased. William had started to fuss, angling his body away from Skinner, towards either her or Mulder, it was hard to tell. Which meant she was saved from replying, though her hot cheeks were probably answer enough. Grade eight had been a...gawky year for her. The AD brought him over and Scully held her arms out to take him, laughing as she took in the alien's feet, long skinny-toed feet that fit over William's sneakers. Once the exchange had been safely made, with William ba ba-ing happily, the AD held his hand out to Mulder. "Good seeing you again, Mulder," he said. "Don't be such a stranger." He looked from Mulder to Scully, who was turned slightly away, bouncing William up and down, although she kept an eye and ear tuned. "Perhaps we could meet, discuss the possibility of you doing a little consultation work on some cases." Scully smiled at the eagerness she heard in Mulder's voice as he replied in the affirmative to his old boss, then turned back when Skinner said her name. "Yes, Sir?" "Scully, why don't you sneak out of here early?" he said then, and surprised her by winking. "I've cleared it with your boss." "Thank-you, Sir," she replied, smiling. "You'll let John and Monica know?" She was a little surprised that her two partners had not come upstairs - Monica had not yet met Mulder or William. "I'll have Kimberley inform them, don't worry," the AD said. William bounced and leaned towards Skinner then, once again saying, "Ba ba ba!" The AD chucked William under the chin, saying, "Bye-bye, William." He was more at ease with them, with William, when there was no one else around, Scully and Mulder had noted some time ago. It was somewhat discerning, while also charming, to see one's boss, and former boss, playing on the floor with one's child. "Skinner," Mulder said, when the man had straightened again, and shook hands once more. On the way through Kimberley's office, they had to wait while she cooed at William again, and bussed his cheek. She watched smilingly as Scully arranged him in his stroller, sitting up so he could watch the world as it went by, and waved as they exited the office. It was still early enough in the afternoon that there were many personnel and agents wandering the halls, and Scully was extremely aware that the three of them were the focus of attention. She found herself straightening up, entering into her unflappable Special Agent Scully mode. Her hand had been on the stroller's handle as they had walked, with Mulder pushing, and she was about to release it when Mulder's hand lifted from its own perch on the handle to lay on top of hers, keeping it in place. It brought him closer to her as well, their hips bumping companionably as they walked, as she was in her heels. A quick glance at him revealed that he was smiling pleasantly, nodding at the occasional passer-by. She realized he was absolutely loving every moment of their walk down the hallway. That it was his way at thumbing his nose at his former colleagues, and at 'them'. And she relaxed. The glances at both their bare, ring-less hands rolled over her like water on a duck's back, as did the surprised faces and shocked whispers. She smiled, she nodded, she said hello. She walked with pride. As did Mulder. ~~~ Margaret Scully's Residence October 31, 2001 9:00 pm Mulder smiled as he looked over at William, sound asleep on the floor with Mrs. Scully drowsing beside him. Scully was putting away the Halloween shell-out bowls in the kitchen, probably sneaking the last few Caramilk bars into William's diaper bag. His woman was a closet chocoholic. Quiet footfalls announced her return, and then he felt her hands slide around his waist as she curled herself around him from behind. "Hey," she said softly, rising on tiptoe to reach his ear. "Hey back," he said, voice equally low. Although it wasn't really necessary to speak that way - William could sleep through a freight train in his room. "You ready to go?" she asked then, her hands rubbing tiny circles over his belly. "Well, actually," he began, bringing his own hands up to cover hers. "William's costume was only part of my surprise." Taking hold of her fingers, he lifted her arms and spun around, so that she was now in his arms, facing him chest-to-belly. He then began walking them backwards, away from Mrs. Scully and William. "Oh, really?" she murmured, smiling up at him. "Mm-hmmm," he mumbled, leaning down to nuzzle his nose against her cheek, sliding towards her ear. "You and I have somewhere to go still." "Oh, really?" she repeated in that slightly snooty tone that always made him hot. She was giggling and attempting to evade his mouth on her ear. She gasped as she nearly stumbled in the process. "I've got you," he whispered, and backed her against the wall. After insinuating one of his legs between hers, he nipped her ear and then sucked on the abused lobe for a second, before he leaned back and gave her nose an Eskimo kiss. "Yes, really," he told her. "And where might this place be?" she asked, still snootily. His woman was fully aware of the effect her voice had on him and certain parts of his anatomy. One part of which was getting verrrrrry interested. "Wellllll," he drawled. "Since you asked so nicely," he punctuated the word 'nicely' with a little rolling thrust of his hips, "I'll tell you." She murmured breathily, "Oh, please do." "I have to tell you a little story first, Scully, give you a little background for our destination," he said. Her eyes rolled, but she was smiling. Clearing his throat, he began. "Each year on Halloween night, The Great Pumpkin rises out of the pumpkin patch that he thinks is the most sincere, and flies through the air with his pack of toys for all the good little children of the world." Scully's smile had widened as soon as she heard The Great Pumpkin, and she was laughing by the end. "So, Linus, what are you trying to tell me here?" "I thought we could go out for a late-night stroll, *Sally*," he replied. "And maybe I could play in your pumpkin patch," he added with a waggle of his eyebrows and another thrust of his hips. "Linus!" she exclaimed, the reddening of her cheeks obvious even in the dim lighting of the hallway. As was the interested glint in her eyes. "I'll even show you my Great Pumpkin," he promised. THE END Feedback gratefully accepted at lovesfox@rogers.com