By Vickie Moseley
vickiemoseley1978@yahoo.com
 

Summary:  In business and in government, when a
man and a woman are caught in a compromising
position, it's always worse for the woman.
Category:  V
Rating:  E for Everybody
Disclaimer:  No compromise here.  I'm not
infringing because I don't make any money from
this.
Authors notes at the end.

Compromising Position
by Vickie Moseley

He heard her heels on the cement floor as she
negotiated the hallway.  Just by her footfalls, he
knew it was bad news.  Putting on his game face, he
tried to appear to be working.

"I'm back," she said quietly, sitting down stiffly.

"I can see that," he replied.  When she didn't speak
again, he chewed on his bottom lip.  "Is this my
punishment for not going with you -- you're not
going to tell me what was said?"

"You know I would never do that," she snapped,
then drew in a breath and tilted her head.  "It was . .
. "

"It was what?" he asked anxiously.

"It's bad," she responded.

"Please, enough of the 'giving it to me gently' bull
shit!  What did they say?"

"First of all, they told me their accusation asked me
if it were true."

He dropped his head to his chin then brought his
eyes up to meet hers.  "What did you say?'

"What could I say?  If I said no, I knew they had
evidence or they wouldn't have confronted me to
begin with."

"Well, hell, let's back up a minute.  Who was there,
in the room?  Who sat on the panel?"  He tilted back
in his chair, assuming an air of composure.

"Skinner, Cassidy, Blevins, McGrath, Anderson -- "

"I thought Karen Anderson was in New York," he
interrupted.

"I think they wanted to get as many females on the
panel as possible," she explained.  "And Patterson."

"You're kidding," he reacted, dropping his chair
legs to the floor.  "Why in the hell -- "

"To speak to your past history," she said bluntly.

He closed his eyes and nodded.  "So what did they
say?"

"As I was trying to tell you, they asked if it were
true.  And I knew I was cornered.  What could I
say?"

"What did you say?  You're driving me crazy here!"

"I said we'd slept together.  I said we'd only been
involved for a short time, no more than a month."

"That's true," he said.  "But . . . they didn't believe
you."

"I think it didn't really matter.  Apparently the Chief
of Police in Detroit reported that when he called
your hotel room to tell you of the other murder -- "

"Wait a minute!  You were there because you'd
come to get me to go to breakfast.  You showed up
early and I was in the shower."

"I shouldn't have answered the phone!  Don't you
see what this is?  They already had their suspicions
and then when he made that report -- how was it to
look?"

"But that was completely innocent!  You weren't
there the whole night!  Hell, I left you at your door
at 10:30!"

"I know that and you know that -- "

"You should have told them that!" he shouted.

She glared at him and he immediately calmed
down.  "I tried.  They wouldn't accept that as an
explanation," she said tersely.

"They wouldn't accept the truth?" he repeated.

"It doesn't matter, it's done."

"What, what's done?"

"My reassignment.  Effective immediately."

His face lost all color.  "No, we can fight this."

"Don't you see?  If I'm to get back even a shred of
my career, I have to accept this assignment."

"Where?  Where are they sending you?  We can still
work together -- wherever it is, we can figure
something out.  I'll take vacation time, I'll go to
wherever -- "

"Europe," she said, loud enough so he could hear
her over his own assurances.  He quieted
immediately.  "Europe," she repeated.

"I don't understand."

"Counterterrorism.  I'll be working with Interpol
and NATO Intel forces."

"Europe," he mimicked.  "They can't -- "

"They can and they have.  Fox, I'm sorry.  I hate this
as much as you do, but there is no alternative.  If we
fight them, they will use that against us.  You can't
afford to lose access and I -- "

"All you want is a chance to do your job," he
sighed.  He stood up and walked over to her, pulling
her up so he could wrap his arms around her.
"Diana, I'm so sorry.  I never meant to hurt you."

She kissed him tenderly on the cheek.  "I know,
Fox.  I don't blame you for any of this.  But if I'm in
Europe, at least you will get to keep the X Files."

Author's Notes:  Before you get out the scalding hot
oil and storm my castle, hear me out.  First, I
realized I missed having Diana to kick around.
Second, my muse was in a really weird mood and
wrote this without my intervention whatsoever.  (At
least that's my story and I'm sticking to it!)  Third,
to rationalize this work, I figure for Mulder to react
the way he did in The End, Diana had to have left
on decent terms.  Maybe he felt little guilty because
of how she left.  This is as close as I could get
without having them married.