by Parrot
jmccaw@clear.net.nz
 
 

Leviathan Motor Inn
10.30pm

With the doors to the balcony open the sound of the sea filled the
lounge  room of the second floor unit.  The noise of the sea moving
rocks was  either as loud as a churning concrete truck doing the same
thing or  completely inconsequential, depending on whether or not you
were  listening for it.  Mulder leaned back on the sofa eyes closed.
He had just showered and was dressed in shorts and tee shirt.  The
breeze was pleasant on his warm skin.

 Scully had his naked arm in her hands.  She'd decided that if he was
allowed to unmask it to swim, he could do the same to shower.  He had
to admit that it had felt good as long as he was super cautious not to
bump it on anything.  Now Scully held it palm up and she was gently
rubbing some magical anti-scaring cream into the suture lines.  His
eyes  were shut because he couldn't bear to watch.

His arm still looked disgusting.  It was still swollen in uneven
lumps,  was horribly discoloured by bruising, the wounds still oozed
in places  and the sutures still looked like little ants.

It felt awful.  Some places had no sensation at all other than
knowledge of being touched, she could have been poking pins in him
and he wouldn't know any different.  Other areas were dully sore and
still others felt like razor blades were slicing into him when her
fingers  moved across the skin.  The worst thing and the real reason
he wasn't  watching was because he couldn't tell by looking what the
area was going to feel like.  And the part that was making him
nauseous was that  where he saw her hand wasn't always where he felt
the pain.

He kept his eyes shut and tried desperately hard not to flinch.  He
forced  himself to concentrate on the Maori concert party that had
performed after dinner, to remember the whole show.  The music had
been hypnotic, exotic and yet not too far removed from Hawaiian style
music.   The women had swayed in their grass skirts in a sensuous
rhythm, but he had to admit it was the men with their Haka, the war
dance, that had really stirred his blood.  There had been something
primal about the grotesque posturing, the painted full facial tattoos
seeming frighteningly real in the theatre lighting.  He'd hate to
meet the real thing.

Knives slashed his flesh and he gasped jerking out of Scully's hands.

Scully had been engrossed in the fine detail of the suture lines.
This was the first chance she'd had to examine the wounds and she was
impressed by the surgeon's work.  She was enjoying being close to
Mulder, touching his skin.  She was doing her best to make him
better.  She hadn't realised he wasn't enjoying this.

She looked at his white face.  She realised now.  His arm was clutched
to his chest, his head back, squeezing back tears.  'Oh Mulder.'  She
stroked his cheek until he opened his eyes.  His eyes were like muddy
pools, brown and sludgy green.  'Why didn't you tell me I was hurting
you?'

'Sometimes you weren't.'

 His voice was that pathetic mumble that always spelled trouble.  She
didn't know whether to be exasperated or sorry.  She claimed the arm
back and supported it on her hand on his knee.  She didn't touch the
wounds.  Mulder kept his eyes on her face.  She put her other hand on
his palm and drew her fingers across it from the wrist to the end of
the  fingers.  This time she was aware and felt him flinch.  'That
hurts too?'    There were no wounds on his hand.

'It feels odd.'

'How's your movement coming along?  Can you squeeze my hand?'

 He tried to tighten his hand around her warm fingers.  His fingers
twitched.  He bit back a cry.  All the muscles in his inner arm
screamed at their abuse and he felt the blood roaring in his ears.
This is stupid he tried to tell himself.  It did no good.  His vision
greyed.  The sounds of  the sea filled his head and the salty breeze
chilled the sweat on his body.   It was eons later before he realised
he was lying down on the way too short sofa, his legs hanging over
the end.

'Hey,' Scully said softly when she saw his eyes focus.  She was
fastening off the end of the bandage.  'Just stay there for a few
minutes  and then I'll help you to bed.'

'What?'   His insides felt shaky.  All the roast beef he'd eaten at
dinner was horribly active.

 'You fainted.  Well sort of.  You were only barely unconscious.  More
like not quite here.'  She scooted closer and put an arm around his
shoulders.  'I'm sorry.  I had no idea your arm upset you so much.'

'Feel silly.'

'No. You're still fairly weak, it was too much.'

Mulder felt too tired to say anything.  He drank in the comfort she
was offering and closed his eyes.

Scully was concerned by this un-Mulder like lassitude.  'Maybe we
shouldn't go Whale Watching tomorrow.'

'No!'   He struggled to sit up.  'I want to see the whales.  That's
what we  came here for.  They're out there,' he waved towards the
door.  'They're just out there in the water.  Listen you can hear
them.'

Scully hid her grin in his hair.  That was more like it.  'Mulder
whales use sound to communicate with one another, not you.'  She gave
him the  look.  'Underwater.  You can't hear them sitting in a motel
room on land.'

'You can too Scully.  I can.'  He struggled upright.  'Whales have a
really complex communication system.  It's not just sound.  They're
possibly telepathic.  I can hear them.  They're calling me.  They're
out there and they know I'm here.  They're waiting.  We have to go
out  tomorrow.'

'You're going to bed now!'  Which was not what he was expecting her
to say after that little tirade.

'Aw Mom,' his mouth quirked.  He had sounded a little ridiculous.
Shaky and cold he allowed her to lead him to bed.

The unit had two bedrooms.  The boys were asleep in one.  The other
had two beds, a single and a queen.  Mulder's stuff was somehow spread
on both.  Scully's case was on the rack by the closet.

Scully lead him to the large bed pulled back the covers and sat him
down.  He buried his face in her tummy as she stood in front of him.
He  didn't want to let her go.

'Get into bed Mulder.'

'Scully?'

'Pills.'  She handed them over along with the glass of water she'd
already left by the bed.  'Get into bed.'  She pulled the covers over
him and tucked them in.  Bending down she gave him a chaste kiss.

 'Scully?'

 'Shh.' She smiled and opened her case, finding her toilet kit and her
nightdress (not the one her mother had made her buy the day before
they  left.)  'I'll be right back.'

In spite of nervous anticipation because Scully hadn't said where she
was going to sleep, and in spite of the lights being on, Mulder was
asleep before she came back.  So maybe her facial routine did take a
bit  of time.  He was curled on his side, protecting his arm, or maybe
just  self-comforting.  With a little sigh Scully flicked his dirty
socks on to the floor and shifted the teddy off the pillow.  She
climbed into the other side of the bed.  Mulder mumbled something and
turned into her embrace.  She kissed his forehead and turned out the
light.
 
 

Leviathan Motor Inn
Wed 15th
8.30 am

Mulder shut the door behind Scully and the boys.  They were wandering
up the road to the shop to pick up some more milk and have a look
around the town. There was still an hour before the courtesy van for
the Whale Watch tour came to pick them up.  What was really happening
was that Scully was subtly leaving him to have an uninterrupted sit in
the bathroom.  He hated the fact that she knew so much about the state
of his bowels.  He was going to have that sit but he had something
else to do first.

 He wandered into their room, feeling warm and hugged just looking at
the bed they'd shared.  On the dresser he spotted what he was looking
for, a large black toilet bag that contained things Paula had felt
necessary for the maintenance and care of her children.  Mulder
sloped over and picked it up.  What he was looking for had slid under
a packet of hearing aid batteries.  He pulled out the slide of Davy's
travel sickness pills.   Scully had already given Davy one, she said
they worked better if they were taken at least an hour before they
were needed.  Mulder knew he was going to be needing something too
but there was no way he wanted  Scully to know how badly he got
seasick.  The pills were in their foil wrapper with "SeaLegs" printed
on it.  He knew he had the right tablets  but there was no cardboard
packet to tell him the dosage.  He thought  about it.  Scully had
given Davy one tablet.  Mulder was at least twice  his size.  He took
two.  Carefully he placed the pills back where he  found them and
placed the bag back exactly where he had found it.   Then he headed
for the bathroom.
 
 

Sometime later Mulder sat on the balcony contemplating the
similarities  between his life and Rod's.  The boy's story last night
at dinner had been something of a revelation.  So much was the same
and yet so much was  different.  He watched the sea sparkling where
the morning sun caught  the waves and was surprised at the yearning he
felt to be out there,  surrounded by nothing but ocean.  For some
reason this ocean was calling him.

 He pictured a little boy standing on a beach, watching; waiting.
Waiting for the return of not one girl but two.  Waiting for the
return of his beloved cousins.  Two girls who had climbed into a boat
and gone away, two trusted playmates that had never come home.  Two
members of his family missing when it should have been him.  For he
was the one who had talked with the boatman and happily agreed to go
sailing.   Hehad gone up to the beach house and told Sally and Jessica
and then run to tell his sister Kathleen that there was a man waiting
on the beach  to take them sailing.  Kathleen had been a good girl and
had gone to ask Mum if it was okay.  Mum had said no.  By the time
Rod got back to the beach the boat was gone.  And so were the girls.
They were never ever seen again.

 Rod had been twelve.  His description of the man and the boat had
been of very little use to the police.  There had been no one else on
the small  private beach.  According to Brad and Davy, their Aunt
Kathleen said  their Dad was still looking.

Mulder watched the docile looking sea.  Poor Rod.  The boys didn't
seem to have any idea of the way their father must have been affected.
  They had told the story with relish, like a ghost story that has the
power to scare you but you know isn't really real.  No wonder Rod had
felt the need to remove his children from danger, he must be acutely
aware of their safety.

 Several fishing boats moved across the bay and Mulder watched
without paying attention lulled by the warm sun.  His body still ached
from his traumas and the sun felt good.  The family must have been
devastated.  It must have been very hard not to blame Rod.  They
probably had.  Mulder knew what that was like.  He shivered.  But he
had a feeling Rod had still been loved and forgiven.  Rod had been
twelve, the same age as him.  He watched the boats bobbing in the
swell  as they moved out of the bay.  He'd be out there too soon.
Gulls cried  and it was so peaceful.  Two little girls just floated
out to sea...

Oh fuck!

Realisation flared.

He dived inside for the phone.
 
 

On Board Whale Watch Boat "Wai-iti"
10.00 am

The thrum of the powerful engines resonated through Mulder's body, a
white sensation that only added to his heightened sense of awareness
as the small boat headed out to sea.  He tuned it out, concentrated
instead on the pattern the water below the rail made as it slid past
the hull. The speakers were burbling, the guide, a guy with an
unpronounceable name, was busy telling the story of a whale being
someone's guardian angel.   The Maori names and words that the story
was peppered with rendered it incomprehensible to Mulder.  He could
only process the most basic of  input from other directions as his
focus was totally taken with the water  which looked like shot taffeta
unravelling behind them.

 To his relief, he didn't feel at all uncomfortable as the semi
inflatable rode across the waves.  If anything he felt exhilarated,
really alive with the spume-laden air in his face.  The water was so
clear pure blue he was sure he could see all the way to the bottom
hundreds of feet below.   Their boat and a larger one containing the
bus load of Japanese tourists  from last night were heading
approximately eight miles off shore to the  edge of the Kaikoura
trench.  A small pod of sperm whales, the largest  animals on the
planet, were spending time in the location and the boats
were going out to find them.  We are going to see the whales, Mulder's
mind sang.  Going to see the whales.

A small grey shape slid alongside the boat.  And another, and then
another.  Sleek and silvery they darted like shadows, crossing and
weaving, occasionally jumping, appearing and disappearing.  He
watched transfixed as the dolphins led the way.  The pandemonium
among the school party on the boat as they dived for cameras and
fought  for space at the rail escaped him completely.  There was just
Mulder and the dolphins and the water as they headed out to sea.

 A hand on his shoulder made him jump.

 'Mulder.  Are you okay?'

He dragged his eyes away from the water and up to her eyes.

 'Mulder!'  Her voice was alarmed.  Her hand went to his face, opening
his eyes and turning his face to the light.  'Have you hit your head?'
   Her hands searched his scalp.  'Mulder.  What's the matter?  What's
happened to you?'

'I'm fine.' He swatted her hands away.  'Scully I'm fine.'

'No you're not.  What have you done?' She gave him an all
encompassing stare.  He turned his gaze back to the water and ignored
her.  The sun had come out and hundreds of kaleidoscopic sparkles
whirled in the water with the dolphins.  The diamond flashes were
streaking through his brain, he could hear them.

Scully shook him.  The flashes jumped to her eyes.  Her voice was
caramel smooth and coffee dangerous.  'How many did you take?'

He blinked at her.

'What,' she said exasperated; 'did you,' shake, 'take?'

The boat crested a larger wave and crashed into the hollow knocking
her  off balance.  With a 'whoof' of expelled air she ended up in his
lap.  He  grimaced as his arm jarred but let go of the rail to steady
her with his  other hand.  The sudden pain stimulated enough neurones
to let him  know he was in trouble.  The trouble twisted until they
were nose to  nose and stared at him.  Her eyes changed to
compassionate.  'You get  sea-sick don't you?  I forgot.'

 Mulder gave the barest nod.

'Did you take something?  Did you take Davy's pills?'

 He hung his head.

She put her hand under his chin and lifted it until he was looking at
her  again.  'How many?'

'Two.'

'Mulder!'   Mocca cream.  'One is the normal adult dose.  With
everything else you're taking you only need half.  Jesus.  I suppose
we're lucky you didn't take three.'

Scully swearing was upsetting but he deserved it.  He knew he'd been
stupid.  He tightened his grip on her and her arms came around him for
a  hug.  She pressed her forehead to his.  'You're spaced out but
you'll be  okay.'   She sighed.  'You'll probably just go to sleep.
It won't be very comfortable,' she indicated the hard bench they were
sitting on, 'but it won't hurt you.  You'll just miss most of the
trip.'

Mulder moaned and she kissed him lightly.  'You are an idiot.  Why
didn't you come to me?'   She slid onto the seat beside him and pulled
him back against her.  The boat rode up the side of another wave.  He
leaned into her and turned back to watch the dolphins.
 
 

The whales when they came were enormous.  Davy had never imagined
anything like them in his life.  There were two and they were so big,
bigger than elephants, bigger than the boats, bigger than anything.
They gambled as freely as the dolphins that had played around the
boat earlier but these creatures were rougher, their skins coated
with barnacles that they were close enough to see.  They surfaced
beside the boat like a small city rising to the surface, water
streaming off their flanks and then equally as quickly they
disappeared to reappear giving a show for the other boat. They seemed
to be enjoying themselves. Occasionally they whacked the water with
their great tails sending a rippled of suppressed fear through the
puny people.

 Brad pulled at his sleeve to get his attention.  Davy had turned off
his hearing aids as the motors had over ridden all sound and made the
aids useless for hearing speech.  Brad knew that and now he was
signing to his brother, giving an abbreviated version of the
commentary.

"They're Sperm Whales", his hands signed.  "But only kids.  The
whalers used to kill them in the thousands."   His hands were flying
and  he struggled to keep up.  "These two are about fifteen years old.
 They  often spend summer around here.  There's lots to eat.  They
don't know  if they're girls or boys yet."   The school girls were all
shrieking and acting scared.  He had to admit, if they wanted to the
whales could easily flip the boat.  One of them dived, throwing its
tail high in the air.   Cameras whirred and clicked.

Dana was snapping away at the rail with the school teachers.  She
turned and motioned for the boys to line up against the rail to be in
a photo too.   Over her shoulder the boys could see Mulder who had
been slumped, boneless as a jelly fish on one of the back seats.
Dana had told them  about the overdose of seasick pills.  Brad thought
that was hilariously funny.  Adults weren't supposed to do things
that geeky.  Languidly Mulder turned and leaned over the rail gazing
at the sea.  Then to their horrified surprise he kept on leaning and
flopped over and out of sight.

'No!'   Brad screamed.  'Shit!  Mulder. God. Shit!'   He and Davy
raced  for the back of the boat.  God, he couldn't swim in the state
he was in could he?  Even if he could he'd go under the boat.  'Man
overboard!'   Brad screamed.  He was dimly aware of Dana pushing past
him, the crew suddenly rushing for life preservers, the school girls
screaming.  Then he skidded to the rail and peered over.

The boat load of people piled up behind him and he heard the cameras
start again as he finally managed to take a shaky breath and his heart
gave a tremendous thunk in his throat.  'Arrgh,' he groaned.

'Cool!' he heard Davy roar.

 Right next to the boat, enormous and solid was another whale.  Lying
on the diving platform at the back of the boat was Fox Mulder.  He was
infinitely smaller than the whale.  He was eye to eye with the
leviathan.   Feet in the water and precariously tossed by the waves,
his body was  stretched as far out as he could get it. It would only
take one wrong  move on the part of the creature or Mulder himself for
him to be in mortal danger.

For a moment time stood still.  The creature's head, nearly the size
of  the boat stayed perfectly in formation, just watching the man only
inches from it.  On the platform usually used by divers to get back
on the boat, just above the deep blue sea the man braced himself and
reached out to  he rough skin.  The assembled people were hushed,
awed at what they saw.  There was no question that there was some
communion between the man and the beast.  Then suddenly the crew
members, more used to whales and slightly less awed than the others
remembered their responsibilities.  Or maybe they thought of American
tourists and lawsuits.

 Before anyone else could move a burly crew member was on the
platform grabbing hold of Mulder by the belt of his jeans.  Another
leaned over, took hold of his jacket and before anyone could blink he
was over the rail and sprawled on the deck.

The captain stood over him.  'Jeeze man.  What the fuck...?'  The
captain remembered his other passengers.  Beating the impulse to kick
the stupid yank bastard he turned and stalked back to restart the boat
and take them all back, safely, to land.

 Brad watched.  The whale just disappeared.
 
 

++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Motel Room
Kaikoura
Wed 15
8pm

'Okay Mum.  Davy says he loves you too.  I will yeah.  Okay.  Night
Mum.'  Brad heaved a sigh and changed the telephone to the other ear.
'Okay.  I will.  I said I would okay.'  His voice softened.  'Yeah,
night  Mum.'  He held the phone out towards Scully.  'She wants to
talk to you.'

'Thanks.'  Scully shifted into the chair Brad had just vacated and
took the  receiver.  'Paula.  How are you doing?  Are you missing
them?'

Brad joined Mulder and Davy on the terrace.  'I didn't tell them about
you,'  he told Mulder.

Mulder grunted.

'You really are a different sort of person aren't you?' Brad said.

'Yeah.  I am.'  Mulder didn't like this conversation and kept his eyes
front and centre, out to sea.  He was feeling acutely embarrassed
about his behaviour that morning but he didn't know how to explain
that to a child.   The worst part had been having to be helped from
the boat and his arm still hurt from the mishandling it had received
during the whole incident.   Amazing how it hadn't hurt when he'd been
lying on the deck beside the whale.

When they'd got back he had been soaking wet and off his face.  Brad
had had to help Scully get him upstairs to their room and put him to
bed. Christ, that wasn't the way adults should act.  He could barely
face the kid.

'What was it like?' Brad asked.

'What?'

'The whale?'

He looked up into Brad's gaze of awe.

'You touched it.  What was it like.'  Brad nodded encouragingly.

Mulder smiled.  He would never forget.  'Like...' What was it like?
He had no frame of reference.  'It was alive.  Yet it was so big.  I
know the figures, sperm whales are up to eighty foot long, they can
weigh seventy tonnes.  It was like touching the side of a building
but it was looking at me with as much intelligence as you are.  It
was looking at me, assessing me.   It knew I wasn't a threat, that the
boat wasn't a threat and it let me know that I was safe too.  Whales
have the biggest brains of any living creature, who knows what they
know.  They have methods of communication we know barely anything
about.  We're just guessing.  I just felt...' he  searched around for
the right adjectives.   'Right.  Privileged.  Alive.  It was
like finding a real live EBE.'  He suddenly realised it wasn't Scully
he was talking to.  'It was awesome,' he finished lamely.

'Cool.'  Brad's face was split by a wide smile.  'I took a photo.
I'll send you a copy.'

'Thanks.'

They sat in companionable silence until Scully came out.

'Mulder.  Can you sort out the laptop and work the modem?  Paula's
sent  Davy an email.  She thinks Rod's sent you something too.'

When Davy had read his message and sent his mother one in reply he
turned the laptop over to Mulder.  'There's a message here from Dad.
I  haven't read it.'

Oh yeah, Mulder thought looking at the boy's twinkling eyes.  'What's
so funny?' he asked as he seated himself on the couch near the phone
jack.

Davy grinned at him.  'You're going to like tomorrow,' he said
enigmatically.  He skipped out on to the terrace to join the others.

Intrigued Mulder read his messages.  There were two.  Rod started with
a  report of the day's investigation, including the wealth of new
leads thrown up by Mulder's surmise that the unsub was targeting Rod
in some way.   Did Mulder think the unsub had known Rod or his cousins
as children, had he been involved in that case somehow, or was he
someone with a grudge  against him who had done some thorough
research?  What exactly was he trying to tell them?  Rod had teams
looking into all those scenarios.  He would appreciate any help
Mulder could give in narrowing things down.   He was sure however that
Mulder was right and that for some reason he was the target.  "Thank
God," Rod finished fervently, "the boys are away from it all."  And
Mulder read the unwritten message.  "Keep your eyes  open and keep
them safe."

The second message had been sent later in the day from Rod's home
computer.  Mulder stared at it bemused.  'Hey Scully, what do you
think of  this?'

'What?'  She settled beside him and read over his shoulder.
 

"Just a note of warning: Wasn't going to say anything but don't want
you put off.  Mrs Mac isn't like most people you know.  She is very
Maori.   You'll never have met anyone like her.  Just go with it.  :-)
 Have a nice  time.   Rod"
 

'He means Mrs McIlhenney at Bush Bay doesn't he?' Mulder asked.

'Yep.'

'Well what does he mean?'

Scully grinned.  'We're not in Kansas any more Mulder.  I think we're
in for a cultural experience.'

'As long as we don't have to eat grubs...' He brightened.  'How old is
she.  Maybe she'll be wearing one of those grass skirts.'

'You go groping up skirts and you might find Mr McIlhenney standing
around with one of those lethal looking clubs those pretend warriors
were brandishing last night.'

'You'd look good in one of those outfits the women were wearing
Scully.'  His hands sketched the bustier part of the costume in the
air.

'Mmm Mulder.'  It took all of her self control not to raise her
eyebrow at  him.  'I can't see you tattooed and in a loin cloth.'  She
dropped her gaze to  his groin.  'I just can't see it staying up.'

Mulder gapped for only a second before shoving the computer at the
side table and lunging for her.  'Bitch,' he hissed as he started to
tickle.  He jabbed randomly at her stomach as she shrieked, holding
her still by lying across her legs.  'Take that back.'

'Nope,' she gasped, writhing under him as he made a dart for her neck
and  them poked her in the side.  'Ahh,' as he poked her shoulder,
retaining  enough sense not to defend herself too vigorously.  She
made a grab for his hand and them found herself suddenly quite still
as Mulder unconsciously bent and blew a raspberry on her stomach
bared where her tee shirt had  ridden up.

He stilled too as he felt her hands in his hair and realised what he'd
done, where he was.  'Umm...' He sat up carefully, relieved to see
that she was  looking at him kindly.  'I've never played a tickling
game with a grown up  before,' he said apologetically.  To his relief
Scully giggled.

'Well then.  I'm honoured to be your first,' she said with a smile as
she  allowed him to pull her into a sitting position.  They
straightened their clothes, sat primly side by side and looked at the
boys who were standing  either side of the doorway watching them.

Brad spoke first.  'You could always tell us to go to bed if you
wanted.'

'Hey, no way,' Davy broke in.  'Fox is going to teach me some poker
tricks.  Aren't you Fox?'

Mulder grinned.  'Of course.'  He ignored Scully's very obvious
eyebrow.   'Just um,' he wriggled in his jeans that were suddenly
startlingly tight,  'give me a minute will you.'  And as nonchalantly
as he could he walked to the bathroom.
 

11pm
The boys had finally gone to bed and Mulder gave serious consideration
to sleeping alone in the second bed in their room.  In the end he
couldn't bring himself to do it.  The last few nights had given him
the most comfortable,  comforting sleeps he could ever remember. He
loved being so close to  Scully.

Being that close to Scully was so much more than sexual but the memory
of her warm stomach against his lips was driving him wild.  The
trouble  was that he wasn't willing to follow through with more of the
same until he knew she was okay with what he had to tell her.  Since
he was too terrified  of her reaction to try telling her yet, he had
to deal with at least some of the problem in the shower.  Which meant
that when he came to her for clean  dressings he was feeling
embarrassed and ashamed.  He'd also stayed  hiding out in the shower
when he'd finished for so long he'd gone wrinkly.

Recognising some of the signals Mulder was giving off Scully kept
quiet,  \bending over his arm, shielding it from his view in order to
avoid a repeat  of last night's fainting episode.  He wanted her touch
desperately, she knew that but what the hell was wrong with him?  And
what the hell was he waiting for?  Did she have to make the next
move?  She'd already initiated  their first kiss, surely he could take
over from here.  Every time she thought he might be working up to
getting closer he suddenly shied away.  She was fully aware what he'd
done in the shower and it hurt a little, but mainly it
made her sad.  She gentled the cream into the skin of his arm, pleased
to  see everything healing so well.

She looked up to see him peering at her from under his wet fringe.  He
hadn't combed it back yet.  Thank god his hair had grown back.  He'd
looked such a thug for a while.  'All right?' she asked.

His hand twitched in hers.  'Getting better.'

'Good.'  She lay gauze over the suture lines and started bandaging.
'It is  going to get better Mulder.  You know that don't you?'

'Do I?' he said so softly she barely heard him.

Scully taped off the end of the bandage and stood up pulling him to
his  feet.  'Let's go to bed G man.'  Surprised when he didn't respond
at all she  snorted, trying to lighten the mood.  'I think it's past
your bed time.'

But Mulder wasn't prepared to lighten up.  'Yeah,' he mumbled.  'I
think it is.'

By the time Scully had changed and brushed her teeth he was already
pretending to be asleep.  She watched him breathing, exasperated and
recognising the deception.  Sighing she slid in beside him and cuddled
up to his back.  She felt him stiffen and then relax as he realised
that that was all she was going to do.  'It will be all right Mulder.
 I'm here when you're ready.'  She planted a soft kiss between his
shoulder blades and moved  back to her own side of the bed, turning
out the light.  She lay there rigid.   It took all of her self control
not to hit him.
 

Leviathan Motel
Thurs 16
9.00 am

Mulder leaned in the bathroom doorway and watched the activity in the
unit.  Scully had just finished packing the food box and was now
supervising the boys.  She was giving them pointers on packing which
they urgently needed as their gear seemed to have exploded around the
room and by some unexplained process to have expanded to twice the
volume available in their bags.  He watched for a few moments
enjoying the  moment, some good things were happening right now.

However is was time to get focused.  'Scully,' he called quietly.
'Can I  speak to you for a minute.'  He motioned her into their
bedroom with a jerk  of his head.

'What is it?' she asked puzzled as he shut the door.  'Are you...'

He held up his hand to forestall her.  'I'm fine Scully.'

'Then what's up?'

'What are we doing here Scully?'

She was still puzzled.  'I don't know,' she said.  'Taking the boys on
holiday maybe?'

'Can't you see the problem with that?'

Eyebrow raised she shook her head.

'We're not taking this seriously.'

'Of course I'm taking it seriously,' she was starting to get cross.
'What are  you getting at?'

'The boys,' Mulder said gently.  'It has just occurred to me that if
the unsub is deliberately focusing on Rod, then these children may be
at real risk.   Just because we're not in Christchurch any more isn't
going to make them safe.'

Scully's mouth fell open.

'Think about it.  Who's car are we driving?  Who booked this room?
How  hard would it be to find the boys right now?'  He held out his
hand and  Scully took it.  He gave her a squeeze.  'We have to keep
them safe.'

Scully nodded and pulled him into a hug.  'You're right,' she told his
chest.  She looked up into eyes as green as the sea.  'What are we
going to do?'

Mulder pulled her down onto the bed beside him leaving his arm around
her waist.  'Well let's not panic here.  We don't know that they are
in danger, but I think we ought to take precautions.  Who knows about
Bush Bay?'

'Only Rod and Paula and this Mrs McIlhenney.  We should still be all
right to go there. Obviously we need to start passing ourselves off
as a family.   Although that won't work when we do get there.'

'Right.'  Mulder nodded, pleased that she'd cottoned on.  'We should
be okay using our own names.  The unsub's not going to know us.
Anyway it will only be for today.  Mr and Mrs Mulder, or Mr and Mrs
Scully?'

Scully kept her head down so he couldn't see her face.  'Oh I'll be
Mrs Mulder I think, after all, I need the practise.'  Mulder gaped at
her and she  glanced up to give him a very self-satisfied grin.
'Now,' she dropped her  hand to his knee.  'Let's get practical.  What
are we going to do about the car?'

Swallowing hard Mulder was unable to get out an answer.  He brought
his hand around and placed it on hers, sighing deeply.  With her own
sigh, Scully leant into his chest and they sat quiet for a moment.
'The car,'  Mulder finally squeaked.  'I um, I think I should phone
Rod and see if he agrees.  Then, if he does, we can leave it here at
the police station and rent something.'  Standing he felt cold down
his right side where Scully had been.  'I think we should get on and
get moving.  We've been here two days.  That's long enough.'

'Hey Mulder,' Scully said as he opened the door.  'Welcome back.'

'Huh?'

'You're back aren't you?  You're thinking again?'

He smiled as he realised that he was.  For days and days now his brain
had been barely ticking over, processing minimum information on one
channel  only. Now things were back to normal, dozens of pieces of
information  colliding, sorting and processing on all levels.  He
hadn't even realised  things weren't right until they were better.
'Yeah.'  His smile showed all  his teeth.  'It feels good.'  He gave
her a leer.  'You'd better watch out.'

'I'm watching Mulder.  I'm watching.'  Then she blew him a kiss.
Grinning he went to find the phone.
 
 

10.35 am

Mulder idly squeezed his tennis ball as he listened to the boys argue.
 It  wasn't the nice fuzzy green ball the doctor had given him.  That
one had been lost overboard yesterday.  This was a mangy grey one
that Davy had  found on the beach and given him as a replacement.  It
was just as difficult to squeeze as the other one had been.  He
sighed and stretched.  Surely Scully would be back soon.  They were
parked in the little space behind the very small building that housed
Kaikoura's police station.  From here they had a glorious view of a
railway shunting yard and a car wreckers.  It had long since stopped
providing them with anything of interest to look at.

Squeezing the ball seemed even harder today because this morning his
arm was itchy.  It was itchy in a nasty crawly sort of way, and
although he should be pleased because it meant things were healing,
in truth it was driving him mad.  Lightly rubbing his hand up the
outside of the bandage  was about as much sensation as he could take
however so he squirmed instead, twisting and turning inside the
bandages.  And it made him so juddery that he kept dropping the
ball.

The boys were playing with some balls of their own.  Brad had bought
some juggling balls yesterday but had given up trying to throw them
and  they were now playing a version of soccer around the car park
using the  back door of the station as a goal.  They were bored and
starting to fight.

It was a shame Sergeant Wilson hadn't felt able to leave the building
unlocked, at least then they could have gone inside and made a drink.
He had been helpful though.  Probably because Rod had phoned him
before they arrived and told him to be.  With a grimace Mulder
realised the ball had slipped from his hand again and he bent to pick
it up.  Sometimes he couldn't tell if he was holding it or not.  He
was going to have to face the fact that he wasn't going to be
returning to field agent status any time soon.   Surprisingly, that
thought didn't make him feel as bad as he thought it  might.
'Something is trying to tell me something,' he muttered.  'Hey
guys,' he jumped up as Davy took to Brad with his fists.  'What's
going  on?'

'He called me names,' Davy shrilled.

'Did not!'

'Did too.'

'Did not.'

'Now come on...' Mulder interjected.

'Fucking pansy pusher,' Davy muttered.'

'You little turd.  You don't even know what you're saying.'  Brad was
about to use his own fists.  Mulder was desperately trying not to
laugh.

'Hey guys.'  He must teach Davy some proper swear words.  'Give me the
ball.'  When Davy handed it to him, he threw it in the air and sent a
glorious header right into the back door.  'Goal!' he crowed.  The
boys  gaped at him.  Rather pleased with himself for the goal and his
handling of  the fight he grinned at them.  'Now,' he said, 'Let's sit
here in the sun.   Scully should be back soon.  You can tell me about
this Mrs Mac.  What  was your father not telling me?'

The boys looked at each other and shrugged.  'Well,' said Davy, 'she's
really old.'

'Yeah,' said Brad.  'Really really old.  And she's big.'

'Huge,' Davy agreed.

They all turned as they heard an engine.  'Speaking of big,' Mulder
muttered as a large motorhome negotiated the driveway, Scully grinning
at the wheel.  'It's the great white hope.'  Standing slowly he
whistled  through his teeth as Scully dismounted, dropping nearly her
own height from the driver's seat.

'Well?' she asked clearly pleased with herself.  'What do you think?
We'll look the part in this.'

Omygod, Mulder thought.  She's serious. Though he had to concede she
did have a point.  Cautiously he walked forward.  Parked beside the
car it  seemed as large as the QEII.

'Well,' Scully demanded.  'I thought it was good idea.  It only cost a
little  bit more than getting a car and I've booked it for the whole
three weeks.   That way I thought that when we leave Bush Bay we can
keep it and go anywhere we want.  We won't have to worry about
accommodation.'  She finally noticed his lack of enthusiasm.  'Come
on and have a look.'  She  came around the side and unlocked the
door.

'I never pegged you for the camping type Scully.'

'Oh don't worry.  I'm not.  This thing is more luxurious than most of
the motels we stay in.  Come on.'  She took a little wooden box out
of the  doorway, carefully set it on the ground, stood on it and
stepped inside.   'Come on.'  She held out her hand.  'Mulder, come
on.'

Mulder and the boys followed her in.  'Look.  That's a double bed up
there  over the cab, but just in case you might fall out of that and
injure yourself,'  she said laughing, 'that table at the back folds
down to make a double bed  too.'

'Very funny,' Mulder muttered, stooping to avoid contact with the
cupboard units that used up too much ceiling space.

'So we can have a bed each,' Scully said without breaking breath.
'It's got  a full kitchen, microwave, fridge, cooker, everything.  And
even,' she  opened a closet door with a flourish, 'it's own little
bathroom with a  shower.'  All we have to do is top up the water
tanks.'

'And empty the potty.'  Mulder's wrinkling nose indicated disgust.

'Only if you use it excessively.   The lady said the tank usually
lasts about a  month between empties and they do that when we take it
back.  Oh, we can return it to Christchurch if we want to too.  We
just have to let them know.

'Well.'  She stood in the centre of a little house just the right size
for her.   'What do you think?'

Mulder looked at the bathroom.  He'd have to fold myself like a
pretzel to fit in there.  He looked at his pretty smiling partner.
'It's great,' he smiled  back.  'It wasn't what I was planning for
this holiday, but it will be fun.'   He'd have at least a week to try
and talk his way out of it.

'Mulder,' Scully said fondly.  'Nothing on this holiday is how you
planned  it.'  She threw her arms around his neck and kissed him.  'So
just learn to go with the flow.'

He kissed her back.  I'm flowing, he thought as her tongue found the
back  of his throat and turned his knees to water.  If I flow any
further I'll drown.  He pulled away with reluctance. 'Okay, guys,' he
barked. 'Let's get loaded  up.'

'Scully,' he said quietly as they followed them out, 'Are you going to
able to back this thing out of here?'

She gave him the same look he'd received years ago for his crack about
little feet reaching the pedals.  He didn't say another word.
- - - - -

They drove out of Kaikoura with "Bat Out of Hell" blaring from the
camper's cassette player.  Mulder had rescued the tapes from the car
and they had thrown their bags in the back.  The car they left locked
in the police station yard.

The boys settled themselves on the back seats and were playing with
their Gameboys.  'You don't think this is a good idea do you?' Scully
asked.

'We were barely seventeen and we were barely dressed.'  Mulder
screeched  along with Meatloaf.  'Huh.'  He looked up at her as her
words registered.   'No.  No I like it.  I'm just hoping that you
weren't followed.'

'How likely do you think that is?'

'Not very.  I don't know what this perp is going to do next but
loosing Charlotte may make him willing to take risks.'  He sucked on
his lip.   'Then again it might not.  He may have made his point
anyway.  I just can't get a handle on this one.'

Scully patted his knee.  'Don't worry about it.  It's not really your
case.'

'I know.'  He smiled at her and she was surprised with just how
relaxed he  looked.  'We're doing out job.  Right?'  He nodded behind
him.  'Oh,' he  said, turning up the tape.  I like this bit.  Listen
Scully.  Hear the baseball  commentary.  Is he going to get to third
base do you think?'

Scully gazed at him fondly.

'Stop right there!' Mulder and Meatloaf screeched.  'Will you love me
forever, will you need me?  Will you never leave me?

'Have you ever listened to these words Scully?  This song used to
crack me up.  Meatloaf is one of the greatest popstars of the 80s.'

'Oh.  How do you figure that?'

'Well just think about it Scully.  What were the eighties?  They were
about beauty; Charlies Angels, Princess Di, the cult of the
beautiful.  Then think about Meatloaf.  He was fat and he sweated
like a pig.  He made no effort to be anything other than what he was
and he sold brilliant records by the millions and played to ecstatic
audiences who mobbed him wherever he went.  Why?'  He shrugged.
'Because he was good.  That's why.  He spoke for us all.'  Mulder
patted his chest.  'Right here.  Listen...

'Will you love me to the end of time.  Yes I'll love you till the end
of time.'  The melody changed becoming sweeter yet more manic.  'And
now I'm praying for the end of time, there aint no doubt about it...'
Mulder petered  out.

"Cause if I have to spend another minute with you I don't think that I
can really survive" Meatloaf sang alone as Scully laughed.  "So I'm
praying for the end of time so I can end my time with you"

Scully laughed and laughed.

'What?' Mulder asked sulkily.

'You,' she gasped.

'Keep your eyes on the road.'

'Brilliant lyrics Mulder, but you forgot how it ended.  Didn't you
remember that bit?'

'Not well enough obviously.'

'The baseball score was the only bit that sunk in huh.'

'Mmmph.'

'Actually Mulder I have listened to that song before.'

She reached over and patted his hand but Davy interrupted anything
else  she may have said.  He'd come up the front and was leaning
through the gap in the seats.  'The seal colony's just up here.  Can
we stop?'
 

They watched sleek fat seals flop around on the rocks and in the waves
and  then Mulder settled himself across the back seat with a pillow
and Davy  moved into the front seat.  Brad settled himself on his bag
on the floor behind his brother's seat.

Once they left the coast, the journey through to Blenheim was through
undulating farm land.  The motor home might have started life as a
small truck but it drove like a geriatric delivery van.  It was heavy
on the steering and completely lacking in acceleration.  It was heavy
going, barely accelerating to highway speed coming down the small
hills before it slowed going up the next one.  Scully supposed it
kept tourists from speeding and wrecking the things but driving like
this was intensely irritating and  exhausting.

An hour later she had finally managed to pass a sheep truck that had
been accelerating and slowing even worse than they had.  With a sigh
of relief she saw the ground level out and stay that way and brought
the van up to 100kms/hr.  Mulder's head popped out between the
seats.

'Stop.  Scully stop.'

'What?'  Alarmed she hit the brakes, pulling off to the side, looking
in all directions to assess the threat.

'There.'  Mulder pointed to a roadside sign.  'Look.  Strawberries.'

'Strawberries?'  The truck roared past, the driver giving an
internationally recognised hand signal.  Scully sighed.

'Yeah see.  It's summer here.  Strawberries.  PYO.'

'Pick you own,' Brad supplied.

'Please,' they entreated.

Scully sagged then grinned.  It would be good to stop.  'Fine.
Whatever.'   She backed up carefully and turned in the driveway.  'You
know Mulder.   Strawberries are just what you need.  They're full of
vitamin C and really  high in fibre.'

'Scully,' he warned.

'Brad, have a look in the cupboards and see what you can find we can
put berries in.'
 
 

An hour later, gorged on strawberries and pink from the sun they moved
on.  Scully had been amused but not surprised to learn that Pick Your
Own berries cost more that the ready packaged ones.  Their little
mock family had certainly eaten their money's worth.

Therefore she was not surprised either when no one called out "Stop"
when McDonald's golden arches appeared on the outskirts of Blenheim.
They had planned to have lunch and then do their grocery shopping in
what was  the largest town they would be passing through.  Not having
been able to go straight to Bush Bay had meant that Paula had been
unable to stock them up with food and they would have to buy their
own supplies.

A large supermarket appeared and Scully swung the van into the parking
lot.  'Listen up,' she called.  'We'll get some stuff for a picnic and
eat somewhere further up the road.  Okay?'

'Yep.'  'Fine.'  'Cool.'

'Right.  Have we got a shopping list?'

Mulder gave her a get real look and turned to the boys.  'Shall we
show her how guys shop?'  They eagerly nodded.  'You up for it
Scully?'

She shrugged and decided to humour them.  'Okay.'  She had a fair idea
what they needed and she'd keep an eye on things.

'Great,' Mulder shrugged back into his sling.  'Let's go shopping.'

Following slowly in their wake Scully watched as the males whooped
across the parking lot and in through the doors.  When she caught up
with them they were in the vegetable section discussing the merits of
hydroponic versus naturally grown lettuce.  Scully was impressed when
Mulder collected one of each and biffed them in the trolley.  The
lettuces fell on a bunch of carrots and a cucumber already sitting
there.  She wondered whether he was buying them for her or if he
really intended to eat them.

Brad added a bunch of bananas and Davy some grapes and they moved on.
Scully took her own trolley and collected potatoes, beans, garlic and
ginger and some wonderful looking oranges.

The aisle opened out into the meat section and she was fairly sure
that Mulder would pick up lots.  Even so she added some chicken
breasts to her load.  After watching for a while she decided that guy
shopping meant trolling through all the aisles taking anything that
caught their eyes.  She tried to think of what they would and
wouldn't notice and went seeking washing powder only to find the boys
coming from the opposite direction with the same thought in mind.
She looked up to see Mulder and a bulging  trolley trotting along
behind.  'Tell you what,' he said, 'You show me  yours and I'll show
you mine.'

With a shrug she gave up.  She walked along with them as they used her
trolley for the overflow.  In an aisle of dry goods she loaded up with
quick  cook risottos and pasta dishes and giggled when all three males
reached for  custard powder at the same time.  The fridge/freezer unit
in the van meant  they could avail themselves of the icecream choices.
 They took four different two litre containers because none of them
could agree on what they wanted.  Scully had Maple Walnut, Mulder
something called Hokey Pokey.  Davy went for Chocolate Mud and Brad
for Boysenberry Ripple.

They loaded up with bread and milk, the men had already done the
cookie  aisle, and last of all they meandered through confectionary.
With two laden trolleys they rolled up to the checkout.  Mulder
looked at the heap happily.  'See Scully.  That's guy shopping.'

'Yes Mulder.  I admit that is impressive.'  Obviously the check out
lady thought so too.  She had a hair do that looked as if she was
battling into a  strong wind and her eyebrows raised in astonishment
when she realised the two trolleys came together.

'You do realise this is going to have to last a whole week?' Scully
said.   She winked at the operator.  'You can't eat it all tonight.
'There are no shops where we're going,' she told the woman.

'I wouldn't be worried love,' the woman said as she scanned the
icecream.   'Don't think anybody's going to be going hungry with this
lot.  You could feed an army on manoeuvres.  Heading up the Sounds
are you?'

'Ah yes,' Mulder said thinking frantically, trying to remember names
he'd seen on the map.  'French Pass?  Was that the name of the place
honey?'   He hoped that was somewhere miles from Bush Bay.  He glared
at the boys daring them to contradict.

'Oh lovely,' the woman replied unconcerned.  'It's beautiful.  You'll
love it.  How are you going to keep this icecream cold?  Where are
you folks from?'  She chattered on.

Mulder had to over ride Brad's attempt to pay with his mother's cash
card.
 

The small motorhome freezer wasn't big enough for four tubs of
icecream.   It would only take three.
 
 

As they passed out of town there were many fruit orchards and
vineyards.   Scully pulled over at a road side stall and bought a kilo
of cherries.  They  were as big as plums and as rich and sweet as any
she'd ever eaten.

A little while later they came to a river and pulled into a small
picnic area.   Using one of the sleeping bags that came with the
camper as a picnic rug  Scully laid out fresh rolls, cold chicken and
salad.  Davy looked at the  salad.  'Didn't we buy any peanut
butter?'

Scully laughed.  'If we didn't, it's the only thing we haven't got.'

When it was time for desert they drew straws and Brad lost.  With
strawberries and cherries on the side (and on the top and underneath)
they  ate the Boysenberry Ripple icecream; all of it, they had no way
to keep it.

Full and replete Mulder lay back and watched the patterns the leaves
made  against the sky.  His arm itched and he squirmed idly running
his fingers  over the bandage.  He could hear the boys, passing
vehicles, crickets and  the sound of the river, moving sluggishly in
the sun.

His arm itched, unthinkingly he scratched.  And woke with a start at
the pain caused by the touch.  'Ow!'  Christ!  He'd been asleep.
'Scully,' he  called panicked, 'Wake up.  We've been asleep.'

'Mulder,' said a voice just behind his ear, 'for your information, I
am not asleep.  I have not been asleep and the boys are just over
there trying to dam that stream.  Did something sting you?'

Struggling up he saw her sitting against the tree, the map book and
"Let's  Go" guide open in her hand.  She was close enough to touch.
He screwed  his arm around irritably trying to ease the crawly feeling
against the dressings.  He daren't try touching it again.  Seeing
wasps crawling around the empty icecream container he realised her
question wasn't entirely idle.   Then he noticed something else.  Was
he seeing double or were there now  two motorhomes in front of him.
He blinked.  There were two.  Same make and model, same company logos
and racing stripes painted on the sides.  He had no idea which one
was theirs.

'What time is it?'

'It's nearly three.'  She touched a hand to his face.  'You've been
asleep a  while.  I was going to wake you soon, we ought to get
going.'  She  indicated the map.  'Paula says it's about three hours
from here although  it's not actually very far on the map.  Apparently
it's an awful road.'

Mulder leaned closer to see.  The page resembled an x ray of a badly
broken hand with land making the bones with water in between.  It was
a  mess of bays, islands, peninsulas and fiords.  She traced the route
with a  finger. Bush Bay was out near the jagged seaward edge but
facing back  inland onto a stretch of water that was actually a long
way from the sea.   'The road winds all the way around these bays see.
 And apparently once  we get past here,' she stabbed a finger, 'it's
unsealed.'

'Great.'  His fingers twitched as he tried not to scratch.

Scully noticed.  'I'll have a look at that tonight.  It's about time
to take the  stitches out.'

'No.'

'Yes.'  She grinned and picked up the "Let's Go" changing the subject.
  'Do you know Bush Bay gets a mention in here.  There's a Pa site on
the hill, I think that's a fortified village, and it's supposed to be
haunted.'

'Rod said something about a ghost.  What does it say?'

'Not much.  Just that the ghost of Rang..itu... someone or other still
walks  the hills seeking revenge for the death of his sister.'

Mulder grinned.  'Sounds like my kind of ghost.  If we don't get a
move on  we'll never get to meet him.'

Scully had a sudden vision of Mulder haunting the halls of the Hoover
building.  'Meeting with a ghost was never my intention.'  She thought
of  something.  'Mulder.  What happened to UFOs over Kaikoura?
Weren't  you going to contact some people?'

Mulder scuffed at the ground.  Scully waited.  'Mulder what?'

'I ah...  I made that up.'

'What?!'

'There have been UFO sightings in Kaikoura but there are theories that
they can be explained away by experiments the New Zealand airforce was
doing at the time.  From what I understand there are rational
explanations for the lights sighted.'  He looked up but his face was
shut down.  'Whales come to Kaikoura because of the abundance of food
provided by the antarctic currents off the continental shelf.  There
is no connection, not that I know of anyway.  I made it up.'

Scully just stared at the naughty little boy hanging his head in front
of her.

'Not that I'm completely discounting the idea that whales could
communicate with EBEs.  After meeting that whale yesterday I'm sure
whales can do much more than we give them credit for.'

Scully wasn't going to be side tracked.  'Why?'

'I wanted you to come here.'  His mumble was so low she could barely
hear it.

'And you didn't think I'd come with out some cock and bull story?'

'No.'

'Excuse me.'

'No.' His voice was stronger.

'Mulder.'  She lifted his chin.  'Do you trust me?'

That got him.  'Oh god Scully.  Of course I do.  You know I do.'

'Good.  Don't lie to me again.  If you want something ask me.  Okay.'

'Okay.'

'Good.  Now let's get going.'

'Right.  Umm...'

Scully raised a quizzical eyebrow.  'Ask me Mulder.'

'Can I kiss you?'

'Of course.'  She leant in to him and for a moment the blood roared in
his  ears before she pulled back.  'Later,' she whispered shakily.
'We need to get going.'

They found the boys down by the water.  They had dammed a small side
stream of the main river with rocks and sticks but it wasn't stopping
much  water.  With the help of the two little German girls from the
other camper they were plugging the holes with mud and tufts of
grass.  A common language didn't seem to be needed for getting wet
and dirty.  The girl's parents sat on the rocks watching.  They
didn't seem to be worried about the state their children were in.

The couple looked up and smiled when they saw Mulder and Scully.  'He
is awake,' the man said indicating Mulder.

'Yes,' Scully smiled.  'I didn't even have to give him a kiss.'

Mulder could see the man's mind working, translating and then getting
the joke before he chortled delightedly.  'Be careful,' he said
cautiously in  heavily accented English.  'Maybe he is a frog.'

Mulder laughed.  The joke was close enough.  'Maybe I am.'  He poked
his  tongue out as far as it would go and wiggled it.  'You never
know.'  Scully  snorted.

They went down to the water to admire the children's handiwork.  'Come
on guys.  Time to go,' Scully said.

'You are leaving now?' the German asked.  'We must too I think.'  He
watched as his wife stripped their daughters and made them sit naked
in the pool they had created to rinse off.  The girls splashed and
shrieked with delight.  Their skin glowed pink and white where their
mother managed to rub it clean.

Scully made the boys stand at the edge and rinse their feet, hands and
faces.   They were far too old to strip off and dunk.  Luckily they
weren't too dirty.

'We go,' the German continued, 'Wo ist?'  He conferred with his wife.
'It is called French Pass.  It is a long drive I think.'  He
shrugged.  'Maybe we  get there today.  Maybe we don't.  It will not
matter.  It is the journey that matters is it not?  You too have
camper van, yes?'

Scully smiled.  'That's right.  We too have a long drive.  Come on
boys.   Time to go.'  Like Mother Goose she shepherded them up the
hill.

'That was a bit of luck,' Mulder said, as they drove back onto the
road, the  other van on their tail.  'If anyone over heard us in the
supermarket or  questions the checkout lady, there really is a
motorhome going out to French Pass today.'  He dived into the bag of
cherries.  'These are good.  You should have bought more.  And both
of these vehicles being the same will confuse things.'

Scully just smiled.  Mulder's paranoia was such a part of his
existence he wouldn't be able to function without it.
 
 

Twenty minutes later in a small town called Havelock the two vans
parted company.  Scully took a sharp turn to the right and tooted and
waved as the other van continued straight ahead along the main road.
She couldn't see any of the three cars that were behind them show any
signs of indecision at the intersection.  They all followed the main
road straight through.

Havelock, a pretty little town, sat on a mud-flatty harbour surrounded
on all sides by hills.  It was at the very inland reaches of the
Marlborough Sounds.  From here they had to wind their way around the
inlets until they were only a stone's throw from the sea.  Climbing
out of the town Scully pulled over at the top of the hill where a
wide shoulder was well used as a look out.  They climbed out.
Between the map and the boy's recollections they worked out that they
were looking nearly directly down the sound that they were heading to
the end of.  They were looking at a body of water pointing like a
phallic sign to the north.  To the left the water curled around
the hill back to Havelock.  To the right, the testicles for the
phallus, there was a wide enclosed bay. Dark green forested hills ran
down to the waters  in layer upon less distinct layer.  It was
awesome.  It was also obvious that  they had a very long way to go.

Mulder was map reading.

'See Scully, Bush Bay here is on Kenepuru Sound, this one we can see
here.  But only just over this skinny hill,' his finger pointed to the
map,  'here is Queen Charlotte Sound and the lodge that those kids
disappeared  from in that case of Rod's a few years ago.'

'I know Mulder.  That's how come he discovered Bush Bay.  Back when
they were trying to find what had happened to those teenagers.  I
think they  must have searched over the hill even though they were
fairly sure the kids  had been killed and dumped at sea.'

'Did they find the bodies?  I can't remember.'

'No.  But they got the perp.  He never confessed to anything but they
got him on the forensics.'

'Wonderful stuff this forensic science.'

'Mulder.'

'Just trying to make conversation.'

The road was narrow and over hung with foliage.  At this stage it ran
about sixty to one hundred feet above the water with only tantalising
glimpses available through the trees.  The sun was bright and the
water was sparkling with tiny waves.  Mulder couldn't keep his eyes
off it.  On this protected inland water the sea was calm more often
than not.  The  egetation was subtropical, bright and lush.  A
creeping vine with large pink and yellow passion flowers created a
dominant contrast to all the  greens.

It was stunningly beautiful.  It was torturous driving.

The van seemed very large on the winding road and Scully was starting
to ask herself if she regretted hiring it.  She was very cautious in
her handling of it.  It would never do to drive off the bank.  Or
even to scrape the paint off on the branches.  Work wasn't paying for
this rental.  Vehicles passed  them in either direction, cars
overtaking them apparently suicidally on blind corners.  But there
were very few other types of corners.  Of course  Scully mused, they
know the road.  Or she hoped they did.  They must  know where to look
ahead to spot if anything was coming.  Within half an  hour she was
feeling the strain of this driving.  Her shoulders were tense,
she was leaning forward.  Mulder, she was grateful, wasn't saying a
word.

The road wound down to sea level and she pulled over by a beachfront
reserve.  She opened the window and took a long draft of sea tinted
warm  air and leaned back into the seat cushion with a sigh.

Mulder's hand reached over and rubbed her shoulder.  She turned her
head  to allow him access to her neck.  'We're here,' he pointed at a
spot on the  map.  They'd come a little further than she'd expected.

'I feel sick,' Davy's voice said in her ear.
 
 

The next two hours were the stuff of nightmare.  Inspite of getting
out for a  walk around and in spite of taking a travel sickness pill
in the morning  twenty minutes further up the road Davy proceeded to
be very sick.  "Sea  Legs" were no match for ultra windy roads when
combined with the swaying of a top heavy vehicle AND nearly a full
pint of icecream for lunch.

The first time he yelled stop Scully managed to pull over and he got
out in  ime.  The second time he didn't and was sick in the little
sink.

When she could pull over Scully climbed through the back to clean
things up.  Davy was grey and embarrassed and desperately trying to
be brave.  It  nearly broke her heart.

They had stopped in an open area by a marina with an eclectic
collection of boats.  Looking around Scully realised that they were
actually in the turning area for a resort hotel.  She heaved a sigh
as she looked at the hotel.   The setting was beautiful and all the
units were arranged to look out over  the water.  She wished that this
was as far as they needed to go.  It wasn't.   She sent Brad up to the
hotel shop to get some sodas and led Davy down to the water to
recover a little.  The boy was completely miserable.

Barely a mile further on the seal ran out.  The cloud of dust thrown
up by  their wheels effectively covered any possible followers.  Until
she couldn't  see anything in the mirror Scully hadn't even realised
she had been looking  out for vehicles that could be following them.
Oh well she thought.  If  anyone wants to sit behind us now it won't
be pleasant.  She hadn't noticed anything anyway.

The gravel road had another unpleasant side effect.  Almost instantly
Davy  was sick again.  'Do you think you'd be any better in the
front?' Scully  asked doubtfully as she helped him back into the van.

'God Scully no,' Mulder interjected.

Scully looked at him startled.  For the first time since Davy had
started  feeling sick she turned her attention to her partner and her
heart sank.  He  was as green and sick looking as the child, only he'd
been paler in the first place.  He didn't need to add car sick to his
list of ailments.

She fossicked through the cupboards and set Davy up with the empty
icecream container then after a bit of thought tipped the remaining
strawberries into a pot and gave Mulder the bucket.  'Let's just keep
going shall we.'  No one replied.  'Are you okay Brad?'

'Hunky dory,' he said with a grimace.

They drove on.
 
 

When Mulder got sick, and he knew it would only be a matter of time,
he got very sick.  He called out but Scully hadn't stopped moving
before he threw himself out the door.  He grabbed desperately at the
trees as his momentum nearly carried him over the bank, stomach
heaving before he came to a stop.  A blood like mess of strawberries,
cherries and icecream shot from his mouth and nose to spatter over
the loose gravel at the side of  the road.  Flashing with images of
his bloody fever dreams he heaved more, mind and body reeling.  His
body turned inside out as the hard diamond  sparkles from the water
below detonated in his brain.  It took a long time  before he could
let go of the tree.

Scully was waiting with toilet paper to blow his nose and wipe his
face.   She had water to sip.  He accepted her ministrations, drew a
shaky breath  and staggered back to his seat.  He didn't want to get
back in there but there  was no choice.  Short of a three hour walk
none of them had any choice.

He and Davy alternated then.  One or the other would heave into his
container and the other would follow suit.  They were dry retching
now, their stomachs empty and a rather manic Scully no longer
stopped.  She  could do nothing else for them.  She just wanted the
journey to end.

The road straightened out for a section as it crossed a wide farmed
valley.  They seemed to be nearly at the end of the sound.  Fat
cattle grazed in the lush green pastures that ran from the water to
the dark green bush back on the hills.  Then the road began to climb,
twisting and turning through  switchbacks that the motor home could
barely swing around.  In the best of  circumstances Scully would have
been apprehensive about driving this  road, but with the large vehicle
it was scary, she was definitely regretting it now.  She didn't know
what she'd do if she came to a corner she couldn't get around.
Mulder curled groaning at her elbow wasn't doing much for
her peace of mind either.  She was starting to feel slightly
hysterical.

But they did get around and they didn't meet anything coming the other
way.  Quite suddenly a break appeared in the bush and there was a turn
off with a sign saying "Bush Bay Marae and Home Stay.  Holiday
Cottages available.  Apply at farm house."  She nearly sobbed with
relief.
 
 

+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
rated Mature audiences - ie a wee bit of sex this episode.
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
 

Bush Bay
Marlborough Sounds
Thurs 16th
5.45pm

The road dropped down a spur, hurtling towards the sea like it had a
death wish.  Then it took a sudden lunging turn to the left and there
before them was Bush Bay.  Spread out below them was a setting from a
romance novel, a curve of golden beach with an azure sea.  Behind the
sand was a green lush garden with a large colonial homestead facing
the bay at one end of it.  The homestead was typical early New
Zealand  architecture, single story with wide verandahs, bay windows
and a  multitude of chimneys poking from its tin roof.  Also typical
of early New Zealand homesteads was a conglomeration of sheds and
lean to  buildings propping up the main structure.

Somewhat incongruously there were two other houses plonked in the old
garden and a track to service them, parts of the grounds apparently
sold  off at a later date.  One house was a two story "A" Frame
structure, the  other a smaller looking single story box.  'There,'
Brad pointed at the  box. 'That one's ours.'

Between the homestead and the sea where there should have been lawn
was instead a flourishing vegetable garden.  Scully also spotted a
tennis  court nestled in against the hill.  A jetty jutted into the
bay from a  position close to the centre of the beach.  It served to
separate the areas.   The big house, and the others.

Less than a minute later they drove out of the trees and pulled up at
the back of the elderly looking homestead.  From close quarters the
scene  was a little frayed at the edges.  The house badly needed a
coat of paint, the hedges and trees were very over grown and there
was a collection of old car bodies slowly being covered by regrowth
against the bush.

But the sun was shining and the sea was blue and they didn't have to
go  any further.   Breathing a huge sigh of relief Scully killed the
engine and  climbed out.  A small breeze blew through her sweaty hair
and two little  fantailed birds chirped around her in welcome.  The
air smelt sweet and  grassy after the acrid stench in the van.

Moving around the front of the vehicle she saw Brad tear across the
gravel parking area and straight in through the open back door of the
house.  He didn't bother stopping to knock.  As Mulder painfully
climbed down Davy crawled across to the grass and threw himself flat.
Scully smiled at Mulder's pale face and took his hand.  'We made it.'

'Yeah.'

Scully was straightening herself out, preparing to go and knock when
the welcoming committee made its majestic appearance. Coming through
the door leaning on Brad's arm was the largest old woman Scully had
ever seen.  This must be Mrs McIlhenney.  She was enormous.  She
wasn't just big, she was tall.  Moving as though on castors she was
easily six foot tall and round as a barrel.  She was also ancient, her
face weathered and brown like well polished wood, the lines of
laughter and life cutting deep.  Grey hair was pulled back into a
tight neat bun and her bearing was regal.  Her dress sense was
appalling.  Surprisingly she was dressed in men's slippers, brown
nylon trousers topped by a shift dress with a woollen cardigan and a
floral cotton apron.  In her hair was a feather and she carried a
frond from a tree fern.  The lines on her face were set in welcome.

'Mrs Mac,' Scully whispered to Mulder.

To her right and in her shadow came an equally tall Maori man.  He was
barely dressed; a pair of shorts his only attire.

'The bodyguard,' Mulder whispered back.

The stood at the front of the motorhome, somehow realising that they
shouldn't yet move.  Davy stood and joined them.  He took Scully's
other hand.  'She's going to welcome you,' he told them.  'Brad and me
have been welcomed before so we could just go in but we'll stay with
you.'  The old lady gave Brad a brief touch on his head and sent him
over to stand with the group.

A silence fell.  The hair on the back of Mulder's neck rose as even
the crickets fell still.  Somewhere rising in the silence a calling
began to fill  the air.  'Haere mai, haere mai, haere...'  Rising in
pitch and volume a chant swelled from Mrs Mac.  Exotic and strange,
discordant yet not unpleasant the tonal melody wrapped around them.
The fern frond was waved and beaten against the woman's shoulders,
raised and tapped at  invisible beings in the air as her hands
fluttered and her body swayed.   Swish and tap.  Swish and tap, swish
and tap.  Mulder felt the sound enter through his body, swell in his
heart.  Swish and tap.  It reverberated in his head and exited,
taking part of him with it, through the top of his skull.  Swish and
tap.  He felt something against his palm and realised he had Scully's
hand in a death grip yet he couldn't let go.  He was carried into the
chant, his body melting in the ululations.  With a whoosh of
displaced air a heavy bird shot out of the bush and past them
catching Mulder's soul and taking it towards the sea.  The sea flashed
bright at Mulder before sun and sea melded in a flare.  Swirling fern
fronds and sparkling light swallowed him whole.  With a small grunt he
folded to the ground.
 
 
 

Mulder woke slowly to the realisation that his face was pressing into
a  squashy faded pink plush cushion. He had been drooling and the side
of his face was wet. He was in the recovery position and it was
terribly uncomfortable.

Fighting to free his right arm and get comfortable his surroundings
started to clarify.  He was lying on the cushions of a window seat and
in  front of him was the most cluttered looking room he had ever seen
in his life.  At least he thought it was.  He could only see a bit of
it because a large woman in a floral apron obscured most of his view.
 She was sitting on a chair directly in front of his head.  He began
to make sense of his surroundings.

'Scully?'  Even though he knew it wasn't.  He must have moaned.  He
had the headache from hell and he wasn't quite sure if all of him was
here.

'Shh, tamariki.'  A large solid hand lighted soothingly on his head.
'Ah.   Ka pai,' and he knew Scully was there.   His head was lifted
and Scully  placed an ordinary bedroom pillow under it.  A blanket was
tucked  around him.  He was glad of it.  He was freezing.  'How do you
feel?'  It  wasn't Scully who asked.  The voice was rough as rocks and
yet filled  with kindness.  He decided he felt safe with this strange
woman.

He blinked and spotted Scully at Mrs Mac's shoulder.  'What
happened?' he asked stupidly.

'You fainted,' Scully said

Vaguely he remembered the strange chant and tried to shake his head.
'No,' he said.  'The chant.  The bird.'  He looked up at the old Maori
woman.  'What did you do?'

'Do?  Me?' she snorted.  'Nothing.'

'You did.  That chant, your fern leaf.  Something happened.'

She gave a hrmmph noise like a hippo.  'I know my karanga is powerful
but it won't make a man faint.' But she gave him a puzzled look that
said "maybe" and even seemed a little pleased about it.

'What was it?'

'It is simple.  It is my ancestors greeting your ancestors.  We are
all  saying you are all welcome here is this place.'  And she wasn't
just meaning those physically present.  'And you fainted.  You have
been ill, you are dehydrated, your blood sugar was low and so too
most probably your blood pressure.  And,' she finished on a high note
reminding him of  his grandmother.  'You were standing in the hot sun
with no hat on.'   She raised herself ponderously from the chair.  'No
mystery.  Now we must make you better.'  And she left the room.

Mulder looked at Scully who seemed equally bemused.  She nudged him
over and sat on the window seat beside him.  She felt his forehead and
reached for his pulse.  'Are you okay?' she asked quietly.

'I think so,' he said reaching for her hand.  'I'm sore from being
sick.'   He tried to describe how he felt.  'I'm hung over.  My head
feels horrible.'

'Hmm.  Well I can't fault Mrs Mac on her diagnosis but I've no idea
what she's got planned as a cure.  She already fed Davy some herbal
tea.'

Mulder grimaced.

'I think you had better take what she gives you.  I wouldn't want to
get on her bad side.'

'No you wouldn't,' a male voice joined in.  'Hi.  Tom McIlhenney,' the
big man held out his hand.  Awkwardly Mulder shook it.  He was
suddenly sure that this man had carried him indoors with no help from
anyone.  'My mother tends to get a bit cross with patients that don't
take their medicine.  It doesn't matter what it tastes like.'

'Ka pai,' Mrs Mac agreed coming back into the room.  'Tom, go and put
a shirt on and clean up for dinner.'  She shooed her sixty year old
son as she had when he was a child.  She turned to Scully.  'You'll
be eating with us.'  It was a statement.  She held a mug out to
Mulder.  'You will drink this.'  That too was an instruction.  She
sat beside him and helped him up.  Mulder was surprised at how shaky
he felt and leaned gratefully  into her lavender scented bulk.  He
sniffed suspiciously at the steam  rising from the cup.  The
predominant scent was peppermint but there were other things in
there.

She swatted him lightly on the head.  'Just drink it.'

He looked anxiously at Scully but she didn't seem concerned by what
the ingredients might be.  He took a cautious sip.  It wasn't as hot
as he  had thought it was.  It was slightly sweet.  And it was salty.
He gagged slightly in surprise.

'Aue,' his nurse said in exasperation.  'I will tell you for you do
not trust  me.  That is right I suppose, you being American.  America
is a country where people no longer trust one another.  In that cup
is a tea made of  peppermint and chamomile and some other native herbs
you will not have heard of.  They are all chosen to settle your
stomach and make you feel better.  I have sweetened it with honey for
a quick glucose uptake and a quarter of a teaspoon of salt to help
replace electrolytes you lost from vomiting.  I am hoping that having
swallowed this you will drink another.  In half an hour or so you
will feel like joining us for a meal and your recovery from this
episode will be complete.'  She held the cup to  his mouth again and
he swallowed.  'Oh and by the way Mr American who trusts no one, just
for your edification,' and her old lady's voice had  fun with the
word, 'I am also, like your lady friend here, a healer.  I am a
doctor of medicine and have been since before you wore nappies.'  She
didn't say "So there" but it hung in the air.

Slightly unnerved Mulder drained the cup.

Mrs Mac produced a second cup of the medicine and he drank that too.
He was surprised just how easily it went down.  It left his mouth
feeling clean and fresh again and after a few minutes he realised
that the weak shaky feeling was leaving him too.  Damn, this old
woman knew a thing or two.

Mrs Mac got up to go and get dinner ready.  'Um, Mrs Mac,' Mulder
said shyly.  'We really can't impose on you any further.   We've got
plenty of food with us.'

She skewered him with a look that would have knocked him flat if he
hadn't already been lying down.  'It is not me you need to worry about
imposing upon.  Have you no thought for your lovely lady here?'  She
indicated a surprised Scully.  'She has just had a dreadful time
driving that monstrous vehicle over roads I'm sure she hated.  She
has had to worry about you being ill and I suspect that takes more
from her than she admits.  Davy has also been sick and so she had to
worry for a child she has promised to take care of.  She is
exhausted.'  Scully's eyebrows had crawled under her hairline in
surprise.  'Now, when she needs to be resting you are asking her to
go down there, unpack everything and feed you all.  Aren't you?  Or,'
she asked with disdain, 'were you planning on preparing a meal
yourself?'

Mulder swallowed.  He had never thought of any of that.

'Hmm?' she asked.

'Um no...well I...  I didn't think.'

'No.  Well you are a man.  You wouldn't.  Leave that sort of thinking
to the women.  That is what we do best.'  She bestowed a beaming
smile on Scully.  'Come with me dear and I'll fix you a drink.
Something a little stronger than tea I think.'  Scully nodded in
agreement.  'We'll eat on the verandah.  I will let you set the
table.'

Stifling giggles that threatened to overwhelm her Scully followed her
champion into the kitchen.  Mulder watched them leave in total awe.
Between them those two women ruled him and quite probably the whole
world.  But it sure was funny watching them side by side.  Mrs Mac was
exactly twice the size of Scully.
 
 

Bush Bay
Fri 17th
Mid morning

Mulder stroked slowly through the water, his sights set on the mooring
buoy in the centre of the bay.  The water was cool and buoyant.  A
warm sun shone on his back and his body was working perfectly, his
arm not paining him at all as he used a gentle dog paddle to pull
himself through the water.  It was a far cry from his usual form but
he experienced a  surge of emotion that it took him a moment to
identify, he was happy.   He felt good.

Turning on his back he inhaled deeply, delighting in the feel of the
air  energising his body.  He gazed up at the wide blue sky.  Taking a
deep breath he twisted and dove down, eyes open in the clear water
aiming  for the sandy bottom just below his feet.  But the water was
deeper than he thought and in spite of kicking and kicking he
couldn't reach the  bottom.  Disorientated he kicked again trying to
rise but unsure of his direction.  Lungs straining he fought off
panic and sighted on the sky far above.  Fighting the urge to breathe
and the sudden presence of floating corpses he forced himself to
focus.  With an adrenaline boosted burst of energy he surged upwards.
 Making the surface he floundered spluttering  and gasping and nearly
crying with relief.

Taking great lung fulls of air he tread water and looked around.  He
was very close to the buoy now and to his relief this definitely
wasn't a  dream.  The water was clear and clean and nothing else
shared the water with him.  No corpses were in sight.  Oh God, what
the hell was he thinking swimming so far out?  Turning on his back to
rest a little he  kicked slowly to the buoy.  Unfortunately he was to
get no relief there.  He found to his distress that there was nothing
to hang on to.  The buoy was a large plastic bubble with an anchor
chain attached to its bottom.  It  was round and smooth and had no
handholds at all.

Bitterly disappointed he stared at it hoping to see a rope or anything
he  could hold on to for a rest.  Where the chain attached was at
least two  foot under the water and just too low to be of any good to
him.  He felt for it anyway and the buoy sank under his weight.

He floated and took stock.  The water that had seemed pleasantly cool
was now feeling cold.  He guessed he'd been swimming a good half an
hour and he was tiring.  The bay was still millpond smooth, that was a
major bonus but the beach seemed ridiculously far away.  He could
actually see around the point and into the next bay from out here.
Brad was fishing off the jetty although not catching anything because
Davy was doing kamikaze dives off the end of it.  There would be no
fish for miles.  Neither boy noticed his wave.

Still floating on his back he turned his head towards land and started
kicking and sculling with his good hand.  He had no choice.  No one
was coming to his rescue.  He had to get back himself.  Because of
the sun shining down he shut his eyes and found that the gentle
movements he made were nearly lulling him to sleep. His sore arm was
starting to ache and he was getting awfully thirsty but this wasn't
so bad.

Gentle waves slapped against him but one suddenly flooded his face
making him choke.  He sank.  Fighting upwards again he realised he was
now seriously tired.  God how stupid.  He'd been so ill, why the hell
did  he think he could swim so far?  What was he trying to prove?
Berating himself he took stock of his surroundings and his heart
sank.  He was only meters from the buoy.  He'd been paddling for
ages.  With your stupid eyes shut, the voice in his head told him.
He must have been going in a circle.  He looked around in disbelief.
Swimming with only one hand will make you go in circles, the voice
said.  For the first time he started to feel frightened.

Taking a deep breath he made himself as high in the water as he could.
  Then he shouted.  'Brad.  Brad.'  He was sure Brad turned to look.
'Brad.'  He waved.  'Brad.  Help!'

The boy stood for a moment looking his way.  Come on Brad, see me.
'Brad!  Here.  BRAD!'

Brad saw him.  'Are you o -kay?' floated over the water.

'No!  Help.  Help.  I need help.'

'Do you need some help?'

'Yes.  Yes.'  His frantic waving sent him under and he swallowed
water.   He coughed and choked.  The seawater abraded his throat and
made his nose run.  Coughing made it seemed to take a lot more effort
to stay afloat.  When he looked back up he couldn't see Brad any
more.

Brad and Davy came to the rescue in an aluminium dinghy.  Brad rowed
with great gusto but little technique.  It took them a long time to
cover the distance.  They seemed excited by the adventure and Mulder
tried not to cry with delight when he could finally grab hold of the
boat.  He was exhausted.  Then he realised something.  'I can't climb
in.' The  sides were too high for him to even attempt to pull himself
over them.

The boys tried to pull him on board but no one was strong enough. They
all came precariously close to ending in the water.  Then Mulder's bad
arm got bashed and he yelled.  Pain shot through him and only Davy's
hold on his other arm saved him from going under.

'Just hang on to the boat.' Brad said desperately.  'We'll tow you
back.'  A convenient handle on the back at last gave Mulder a chance
to rest.   Pain, cold and fatigue combined to set him trembling. Brad
was aware enough to realise that Mulder was in trouble and directed
Davy to hang on to his hand and make sure he didn't let go. Employing
a jerky paddle and slap motion and impeded by Mulder hanging off the
stern he brought them back in.  In this ignominious fashion the
children rescued their friend.

None of them saw the dark face watching from the bush at the side of
the bay.

When Scully came back from sharing cups of tea, local history and good
sound advice with Mrs Mac she found Mulder sound asleep on a sun
lounger in the shade of a big tree.  She eyed him contemplatively.  He
was completely wrapped in two large towels.  She wasn't surprised to
see him asleep.  She was surprised to see him sensibly in the shade.
She  didn't realise that he'd been there so long that the sunshine
he'd started in, being desperate for warmth, had actually moved,
leaving him as she saw him now.

She bent and laid a gentle kiss on his cheek.  He didn't stir.  His
unbandaged arm lay at his side the dark sutures prominent against his
pale skin.  A small smile tugged at her mouth.  Might as well make use
of his somnolent state.  Hurrying inside she collected the bag of
medical  supplies sent with them by Mr Sharples the plastic surgeon.
Carefully  she carried out and placed a folding card table by Mulder's
lounger.  She  set out the suture removal kit and the sterile gloves.
Then she went and washed her hands.

Quietly she decided on one more test.  She kissed him full on the
lips,  breathing in his breath.  He moaned softly but not a muscle
twitched.   Grinning she knelt beside him and started work.

She wasn't at all surprised that he was sound asleep now.  After all
he hadn't slept at all well.  Neither had she if it came to that.
She swabbed  his arm and picked up the scalpel blade.  Sharing a bed
with someone who didn't sleep well might be something she would have
to get use to.   She had a feeling that they would be sharing a bed
for the rest of their lives.  She also had a feeling that last night
had been unusual even for Mulder.

She picked up the first suture, pulled it away from his skin and cut
it close to where it disappeared.  She'd woken once to find him in
the  thrall of a nightmare.  She pulled the thread back through the
skin,  opened the plastic tweezers and let it drop.  She moved on to
the next one.  One down, only about ninety nine to go.  The nightmare
hadn't been unusual or even hard to deal with.  She knew what to do
with his nightmares.  It was the second time she woke up that had her
worried.   She'd come awake to the realisation that she was hot, far
too hot.  She was hot and uncomfortable.  Slowly she realised she was
hot and  uncomfortable because she was entirely wrapped in Mulder.  He
was curled tightly, as close to foetal as he could get.  The reason
he couldn't roll into a ball was because she was in the middle of his
huddle.

At first as she'd woken Scully had found the contact quite nice.  But
then slowly she'd realised he wasn't asleep.  Not only was he awake
but he was quietly weeping.  The back of her neck was quite wet.  The
moment she'd realised that, he'd noticed she was awake.  He'd let her
go and hurriedly turned away.  He'd moved as far to the other side of
the bed as it was possible to get and stayed there, his back an
impenetrable wall.

Some of the sutures were getting harder to pull out.  Mulder healed
quickly and they could really have come out a few days ago.  God damn
Mulder.  She cursed the sutures and the rest of him.  What the hell is
wrong with you?  What is it that you're not telling me?  Jesus Mulder,
I  know all of your secrets.  If Frohike knows them, I know them.
Don't  you know that?  As she had been doing for days she racked her
brain for  which particular secret he was so scared about her knowing
about.

After staring at his back in the moonlight she'd finally dozed off
again to  awaken in daylight with Mulder so close she could feel his
body heat  and yet he wasn't touching her at all.  He lay looking at
her with barely the thickness of a credit card between them.  He had
his head on her pillow and was so close she couldn't actually see him
properly.  She'd  blinked and just stayed there, too tired to play
games.  But when he didn't move she'd finally reached out and he'd
jumped away again as if scalded.  Fuck Mulder.  That hurt.  Even now
she still smarted from that rejection.

She wasn't concentrating and she wasn't being very gentle.  Tugging at
threads embedded in flesh generally hurts and the sharp tugs were
working through Mulder's exhaustion.  He came awake with a roar and
Scully jerked back to avoid his flailing arms.

'Easy,' she soothed.  'It's alright Mulder it's me.'  But she didn't
want to  touch him and contaminate her gloves.  She watched him as
recognition  sank in and his panic subsided.  Moaning slightly he
cradled his arm to  his chest.

He looked at her with accusing eyes.  'Jesus Scully.  What are you
doing to me?'

'I'm removing your sutures.  I've got them half out and you never felt
a thing.'

'Oh.'  Cautiously he looked at his arm.  Half of the sutures were
definitely gone.  But there were still an awful lot left.  The whole
area  tingled and itched.

'Don't touch!  Put your arm back down at your side and let me get on
with it.'

Reluctantly he complied, wincing when she re swabbed it and picked up
her tweezers again.  'That was a low trick Scully.  Ow!  You were
taking advantage of my body.'

'Oh I don't know.  It seemed to work quite well.  I might try it in
other applications.  Keep still.'

'Ow.  That feels awful.'

'Look.  These are coming out today or they'll grow into you and never
come out.  So keep bloody still or I'll sedate you.'

'Shit!'  He squirmed.  'Ow.  Scully!'

'Mulder!'  It was the lioness' warning growl.  'Stay still.  Look.
Watch  that bird up there.  See the big one.  Tell me if it's going to
shit on my  head.'  She was delighted with his snort of laughter.
'I've never operated under a tree before.'

'It's hardly an operation is it Scully?'

'No Mulder it isn't.  A trained monkey could do this.'

'So I should stop making a fuss.  Right?'

It was Scully's turn to laugh.  'Right.'

'You're mad at me huh?'

'Yep!  How did you guess.'

'I do try Scully?'

'What?'  Her focus was back on the sutures.  'What do you try
Mulder?'

'I try not to fuss.  Ow!  Christ Scully take it easy.  You're drawing
blood.'

'Look some of these are scaring over.  I have to pull at them.'  She
gave a wicked grin.  'You were saying?'

'Alright.'  Mulder desperately fixed his eyes on the fat wood pigeon
above her head.  Greeny grey in colour it was a handsome bird.  It was
larger than a common pigeon and handsomely marked with a waistcoat
of blue over it's chest.  It was also enormously fat.  It was chugging
down currant sized berries at the rate of one a second.  If it kept
that up it would have to shit, there'd be no room left in its
insides.  'I'm trying not to be a baby.  But every time I start to
feel better, to feel all right,  something seems to happen and I end
up sick again.  God Scully,' his voice was despairing.  'It's
happening again.  You're making my arm hurt and it feels so strange
anyway it just makes me feel ill.  I can't help  it.  I just sort of
go all woozy and nauseous.  I'm so tired of it.'

'Don't look,' she said a little more gently.  'I'll be finished soon
and then it will be all over.'

'I felt good this morning Scully.  Really good.  Normal even.'  Scully
bit back a retort.  'Then my swim.'  He sighed.  'It just wiped me
out.' The large green leaves of the tree swam above his head.  'And
yesterday.   Getting carsick.  That wasn't ordinary carsick.  Even as
a kid I never got  that sick before.  I never fainted.  You're tired
of me too.  Aren't you?'

Whoa!  Scully looked up sharply.  'Is that what's worrying you?' she
asked cautiously.

'Well aren't you sick of looking after me?  We've hardly been in an
equal partnership for months now.  I know you're a doctor and you like
doctoring stuff, but...'

'Mulder.  It's give and take.  The looking after people bit.  That's
what a partnership is.  If you need care I'll care for you and you'd
do the same for me.  We both know that.  Circumstances seem to be
weighted against you lately.  God forbid they swing the other way,
I'd like a bit of good health on both our parts for a while.  But
you'd look after me.  You have looked after me.  I'm much more
annoyed that you won't tell me what's bothering you.  You don't seem
to trust me to be able to help.'

Mulder's face was full of pain as he turned to look at her.  'You
can't help.'

'Mulder.'

He sucked in his lip and lowered his eyes.  'I will tell you.  As soon
as I  can.  Ow.'  The cry of pain turned in to a muffled sob.  'I need
to be strong.  I can't...' His voice faltered.  He hid his face with
his other  hand.  His voice faded.  'I will.  But I'm scared.'

Scully was watching him with horror, a hollow anxiety building in her
stomach.  What was this?  Unconsciously she'd stopped work and
started stroking his skin.  'What are you scared of?'

Mulder looked up at her again and gave her a watery smile.  'When I'm
feeling better I'll explain.  But not right now okay?  I just can't do
it  now.  I feel sick and I'm so tired.'

'Okay,' Scully agreed, frightened.  He looked completely beaten.
There was nothing else she could say.

Sutures finally removed Scully stretched and took a moment lying back
on the grass and staring into the tree.  'Isn't that bird up there
like the  one we saw yesterday before you um...'

'Collapsed you mean?'

Scully grimaced.  'Yeah.'  As if knowing they were talking about it
the  over stuffed native pigeon took off with a heavy "whoof whoof"
noise.   It was so fat it could barely get airborne and plummeted
several feet before finally settling into the air.

'That was it all right,' Mulder said.  'I'll swear it was in league
with Mrs Mac and that greeting thing she was doing.  It just felt
like, my, I don't  know, maybe my soul...' He paused waiting for her
to disagree but she  stayed quiet.  'My soul had come out of me
somehow and then the bird  came and took it.  And then there was
nothing left in me.'

There was silence.

'When I woke up I was whole again.  But Mrs Mac knew.  I know she
knew.  It wasn't just sickness that made that happen.'  The air was
filled  with the sound of cicadas, birds, the breeze through the
trees.  The small  waves in the bay created a background layer to the
other sounds.  The  sounds built into what was an overwhelming silence
for city people.   'Scully.  Aren't you going to say anything?'

'What do you want me to say Mulder.  You know what I think.'

'I think Mrs Mac is some kind of witch.  She knows things.'

'Of course she knows things.  She's eighty eight years old and she
trained as a doctor when she was forty and her children had grown up.
She was one of only a handful of women in this country to do medicine
at that time.  She was the only Maori woman in her class.  Before that
she was trained in traditional healing by her grandmother.'  Scully
smiled.  'She says it was a much more rigorous training than the
European training. Yeah I think she knows things.'  Scully sat up and
collected her equipment together.  'She has eighty eight years of
experience.  She knows lots about herbs and plants and she knows about
healing in ways that western medicine doesn't understand.  Some of
them probably seem like magic to you.  I'd like to think that when I'm
nearly ninety I'll be as knowledgable as her.'

Mulder stared at her.  'Wow.  Where's my sceptical partner?'  He
grinned at her.  'You really like her don't you?'

'Yes.  Now do you want me to rebandage your arm or shall we leave it
exposed for a while?  Hurry up because I'd better do something about
lunch.'

As it turned out, Scully needed to do very little about lunch.  She'd
just  finished rebandaging Mulder's arm when the boys set up a
tremendous  commotion on the jetty.  By the time they got out there
Brad was just  landing a good sized fish.  He was doing a very
uncharacteristic victory  dance as the dinner plate sized fish flapped
on the boards.  'It's a  schnapper,' he crowed.  'I caught a
schnapper.'  The fish nearly made it  back to the water but Davy
grabbed it just in time, hanging on to the line  but frightened to
touch the wildly flailing fish with the spines on its fins.

Attracted by the ruckus Tom came out and it was he who calmly
removed the hook.  He was effusive with his praise.  'Well done Brad.
That's a good six or eight pounds I reckon.  What a beauty.  Do you
want to eat him or put him back?'  He held the still flapping fish up
to  display.

'I want to eat him.'  Brad suddenly sobered.  'Is that all right?'

'Of course.'  Tom's face bore an enormous smile.  'He's well over
size.   He's your fish.  You can eat him if you want.'

'Yes please.'

'Good.'  Pulling a rock out of pocket that he must have brought out
for  the purpose he coshed the fish and it lay still.  'Pick up your
things and bring them in.  Then I'll show you how to gut him.  Then,'
he grinned,  'I'll show you the Maori way to cook him.  I don't think
I need to show you how to eat him do I?'

Following Tom and the boys down the jetty Scully whispered to Mulder.
'Tom's actually an Economics lecturer at Wellington University.'  She
nodded at the brown back and broad bare feet.  'You'd never guess
would you?  He's only here on holiday.  His grand daughter usually
lives with Mrs Mac as a sort of an apprentice.  Mrs Mac is teaching
her about the old ways.'

'Mulder grinned.  'Is there anything you don't know about the
family?'

'Mrs Mac's other son in a high court judge.'

'Really.  Not quite the noble savages they appear then.'

Scully hit him.

They were lying side by side on the sand breathing hard from a
wrestling match when Tom and the boys came back with a gutted but
otherwise whole fish.  They sat up and watched as Tom instructed them
on setting a fire in the brick barbecue.  Then the boys photographed
the fish before wrapping it in several layers of newspaper and
soaking the package in the sea.  The parcel was laid on the metal
plate over the fire and Tom checked his watch.  'There you are.
About twenty minutes I reckon.  In the old days you'd have built your
fire on the beach and put the fish in  the embers.  You'd have used
woven mats to wrap it in.  You know  don't you that in the old days
the people always offered the first of their  catch back to the sea.
They did it to appease Tangaroa the sea god.'

Brad suddenly looked stricken.  'Do you think I should have put it
back?'

'No lad.  If you'd done that you'd never have caught another one in
time for lunch.'  Tom smiled at him.  'Some of the old ways aren't so
important.  You have to learn the ones that are.  The really important
thing is never to take more than you need to eat.  Taking too much,
just for sport, that's what really upsets things.'  He got up.  'Keep
feeding wood in the fire so it stays just like that.  When the
paper's dried out your fish will be cooked.'

'Tom,' Scully stopped him leaving.  'I know your mother was going to
have a lie down.  Why don't you join us for lunch?  Then you can show
us the correct way to eat the fish too.'

Tom's mouth split into a wide white smile.  'Thank you,' he said.
'That  will be nice.'  He looked up.  'The sun's over the yard arm,
close enough.  Drink anyone?'

They ate at the picnic table on the terrace in front of the cottage.
The fish when unwrapped from its now charred packaging was steamed to
perfection.  The skin adhered to the newspaper and allowed easy access
to the succulent insides.  They forked out pieces of flesh and ate
them on slices of bread and butter they held in their hands.  It was
the best fish they had ever tasted.  The men washed it down with
beer.  The boys had soda and Scully had a cider that Tom had
provided.  It was the perfect  meal.

Replete and dozy Mulder leaned back in his deck chair.  'Tom. Isn't
there supposed to be a ghost here?  Will you tell us about it?'

Tom saw Scully roll her eyes.  'You got a thing about ghosts have
you?'

'He does,' Scully said.  'But tell him anyway.  He's dying to know.'

'Yeah tell us Tom,' Brad said.  'Please.  It's a good story.'

Tom grinned and folded his hands behind his head.  'Okay.  Just don't
blame me if you start seeing movement in the shadows.  I've never seen
him but my mother swears he's about at the moment.  She says he's
waiting for something to happen.  She's seen him of course.'  He
settled  in to his story.  'He's my ancestor you know.  His name is
Rangitu  Tangaroa.'

'Tangaroa?  Like the sea god,' Brad asked.

Tom beamed.  'Very good.  He was named for the bay he was born in.
It's several miles that way.'  He waved idly down the sound.  He
wasn't born of the people here.  How he came to be a chief of the
Ngati Whakaru, that's our people, that is part of Rangitu's story.

A long long time ago, back in the days when my grandfather's
grandfather was still to be thought of, my people lived in a village
on  that headland over there.  It was a prosperous village.  The
people lived well nourished by Tangaroa,' he paused.

'The sea god,' Davy shouted.

Tom nodded and smiled at him.  'Nourished by Tangaroa and
Papatuinuku?'  He waited expectantly.

Brad and Davy exchanged looks  'The earth mother,' Brad muttered.
'The earth!'

'That's right.  The people fished and gathered shellfish from the sea.
  They grew kumura and other crops in the fertile earth of this bay.
It was  a good life and the people were happy.  All except for Kupe
the chief of  the Ngati Whakaru, for he was having trouble with his
wives.'  Tom winked at Mulder.  He was a natural story teller.  'None
of his many  wives was able to give him a son.  And a son was needed
to carry on his lineage and lead his people.  He had many beautiful
daughters but no  son.

'But he was a young man and not yet too concerned.  There were many
other things to concern a chief and one of them was the need to avenge
the death of his father at the hands of a raiding southern tribe.  An
expedition was planned.  The warriors were chosen and their deadly
skills were honed to the same perfection as their weapons.  The women
who must travel with them to see to their needs were also prepared.
Only the old and the mothers with the very young would remain.  This
would be an expedition the people were to talk about for many years.
The Ngati Whakaru would be avenged and their enemies not just
crushed but their very name would be humiliated.  The Ngati Whakaru
would steal their power and mana.  The Nga Rua were the keepers of
"Pounamu", the greatest mere, the greatest greenstone war club ever
crafted.'  Tom's hand demonstrated the deadly effect of the club.
'The mere Pounamu had killed so many high chiefs it held mana, power
of its own.  Whoever owned Pounamu would be the greatest chief in the
land.  Pounamu had killed his father in the hands of the chief of the
Nga Rua.   Kupe was determined that by the end of the summer the mere
would be his.

'The plans were set.'  Tom looked around to check his audience were
following the story.

'How do you know this,' Davy suddenly asked.

The spell was broken.  Tom sighed. Scully smothered a grin.

'I thought you said this was before your grandfather's grandfather was
thought of.  The Maoris didn't know how to write so how do you
know?'  Davy was enjoying this.  Usually he missed lots of details
when people were speaking, but here where there was no background
noise and he could watch the speaker closely he could follow
everything.

Tom smiled patiently.  'That's a good question lad.  I know in the
same way that you now know these things.  Somebody told me the story.
  Now sit still and listen.  When I've finished you too will know.
Then you can pass this story on, for that is the way of stories.
Now, where  was I?'

Skilfully Tom drew them back into his story of the past.  He took them
with his ancestors as they planned a great subterfuge and waged a
mighty battle against their enemies.  A battle in which Kupe was
successful in killing the killer of his father and taking the powerful
war club Ponamu as his own.

'The surviving warriors of the Nga Rua were rounded up and imprisoned
along with the women and young children.  They were the spoils of war
and they would be taken back as slaves.  Once that was done and the
wounded were tended to, then Kupe ordered the chief's body to be
prepared and roasted.  A great feast was held and Kupe ate his enemy's
heart as it held great mana.  The rest of the body was shared among
his warriors and a young succulent child fed the women.'

If Tom thought he could gross his audience out he was mistaken.  Davy
and Brad were modern children brought up on Harry Potter and
Goosebumps.  They took it in the vein of all horror stories.  And
Mulder and Scully had seen much worse horrors than Tom or his
ancestors  could ever have imagined.

Giving up on that he continued.  'Picture the journey home.  The tribe
were extremely happy.  Ponamu was now Kupe's, the tribe was
invincible.  They had many fit strong slaves to use and to trade.  But
the trip home was not a good one for all of the party.  Two young
women were near the end of their pregnancies and for them the trip
was especially difficult.  One was a young wife of Kupe's, the other
a  woman of the Nga Rua, the first wife of the now dead chief.

The last night before arriving home, both of these women laboured to
give birth.  The Nga Rua woman was delivered first, of two children, a
boy and a girl.  Unfortunately Kupe's wife was to loose her child, a
still born son.  Rather than let her and her powerful husband know of
the misfortune and the bad omen, her serving woman took the male baby
from the slave woman and swapped it for the dead child.

'There was huge rejoicing.  Kupe had his son.  The serving woman and
the slave were the only ones who knew the truth.  The Ngati Whakaru
arrived home in triumph. The slave woman, weak and ill from
imprisonment, grief, and the difficult birth was left on the side of
the  trail to die.  After all what use was a weak woman and a sickly
girl  child.'  Tom shrugged helplessly as if to say, "I'm only telling
the story as it was told to me."

'Kupe named his son Rangitu Tangaroa after the place of his birth and
if he suspected that the child was not his own he never said.

'Years passed.  Kupe died young of a wasting sickness and so it came
about that Rangitu gained both the leadership and the war club Ponamu
at a young age.  Still not mated, the elders of the tribe arranged for
many women to be paraded past their chief in an attempt to gain his
interest  but none of them appealed to him.'

Tom stopped suddenly to pop open another beer.  'How explicit shall we
get here?' he asked.

Scully looked at the rapt looks on the boy's faces.  'Keep it light,'
she murmured.  'Family show.'

'Right.  Okay.  He didn't fancy any of the right sort of girls.  The
elders were starting to worry.

'One day visitors came to the bay.  They were a party of Te Aroha,
traders from the west coast.  They had greenstone, the jade from the
west coast rivers.  Some of it was raw, some already crafted into
weapons and tools.  They wanted to trade for kumara tubers, baskets
and the canoes that the Ngati Whakaru made so well.  One of the women
in the group caughtRangitu's eye and he fell deeply in love.  Her
name was Ina.  He  told his mother that he had found the other half of
his soul.  She was beautiful.  He loved Ina and he must have her.

Tom ignored the looks Mulder was giving Scully. 'This was a problem.'
Now Scully was making them back.  'Rangitu could not marry Ina
because she was a slave woman and she was already married to one of
the traders.'

Mulder and Scully's hands found each other unerringly.  Their eyes
were locked on each other. Gamely Tom continued his story.  'But Ina
felt as strongly as the young chief.  She had felt something about him
that was unique.  They would risk everything to be together.' Good
grief, these two were about to self combust.  'The night before the Te
Aroha left they got a chance to be alone and made their plans.

'The traders left and Ina went too, but on the third night she slipped
away and met up with Rangitu who had followed them in his canoe.
Rangitu had brought with him the body of a woman who had recently
died.  They placed it near the Te Aroha camp and set a fire, that way
her husband would think she was dead and not come looking for her.

'And it worked.  They returned to Rangitu's home and were married.
They lived very happily.'  Tom leered at Mulder who was stroking
Scully's hand.  'For a time.

'Ina sent for her mother who was a slave in the Te Aroha and it was
when she arrived that the blow fell.  For the old woman took one look
at her daughter's new husband and recognised him instantly.'

Tom left a delicious pause.  'She had never known this man, but she
had known his father intimately and he was the living image of that
man.  He  was her son.  She was the woman who had given birth to twins
on the trip to capture Ponamu.  She was his mother and Ina was his
twin.

Tom's eyes swept his audience.  They all stared back rapt.  'Rangitu's
great love,' he whispered.  'It could not be.  The completeness he
felt.  It  was that of twins torn apart.  He had broken one of his
people's most  sacred rules and disaster must come upon them all.

'Even as he thought these things the village was attacked without
warning.  Ina's real husband, having discovered she was alive had
followed her mother.  He wanted her back for he loved her too.  Mostly
he wanted utu.  He wanted revenge on the one who had taken her.

'Caught without warning there was pandemonium.  Confused and heart
broken Rangitu did not have the heart to lead his people.  He was
their chief and yet there were not actually his people.  He had
broken the sacred laws and slept with his sister.  And he had loved a
woman he could not have.  Leaderless our people were overrun and
murdered in the fields.  The stockades were fired and those who had
made it safely into the pa were burnt as the huts caught fire.

'Ina's husband caught Rangitu but not before he had led her to a
hiding place in the cliffs up there.'  Tom pointed to the great
volcanic cliffs behind them.  'She hid there for four days and nights
and when she dared come down she found all of the village destroyed.
The traders were gone and there were row upon row of bodies rotting
in the sun.   One of them was Rangitu and one was her mother and in
death they held  each other in an embrace that showed her that they
had loved each other as mother and son should.

'When she and the remaining villagers moved the bodies for burial she
found, under the body of Rangitu, the mere Ponamu with a mighty crack
running through it.  It was still whole but its mana had left it.
Even so  she passed it to her son and he to his.  And with the mere
passes the  story.'  Tom looked up.  His voice changed from story
teller to ordinary  man.  'My mother has it now.  It is kept in a
special treasure box in the  living room.  You can see it if you
ask.'

'But the ghost?' asked Davy.  'What about the ghost.'

'Ahh, of course, the ghost.  The ghost is Rangitu.  He stays here
guarding his people.  It is said that never again will he let his
people be  crept up on unawares.  He is keeping us safe.'  Tom nodded
sagely, 'But  they also say that he is looking for utu and he will
take his revenge on  those who forced him to leave his sister and
killed his people.  If people with Te Aroha blood try to live here,
something bad always happens and  they leave.'  He grinned.  'Even
these days.  A few years ago a guy tried to start a backpackers
hostel in the next bay and all sorts of things went wrong.  His boat
kept breaking down, the roof blew off in a storm.  His
water tank leaked and ran dry.  All sorts of things.  In the end he
left.  It  turned out that his grandmother was Te Aroha.

'That's silly,' Brad said.

'Maybe it is,' Tom said.  'Maybe it isn't.  I don't know.  May be it's
just  a story.'  He drained his beer.  'I'd better go and check on
Mum.  She's usually fairly grumpy after her nap.'

'Tom?' Davy piped up.  'I thought you said he was your ancestor.  How
could he be if he died?'

'I'm too old for this,' Tom muttered.  He looked pointedly at Mulder
and  Scully.  'I'll leave that one for you.  Thanks for sharing your
fish Brad.   It was great.  Let me know if you want the boat again.'
He trotted away.

Mulder looked out over the quiet bay.  A far cry now from the scene
Tom had painted of death and mayhem.  People running screaming in
panic, the palisades of the village on the headland alight.  Children
crying frightened, trying to hide, the wounded trying to drag
themselves  away, the terrible wounds gaping.  The beach a savage
melee of  warriors, the water running thick with blood.

'Mulder.'  Louder.  'Mulder.'

'Huh?' He shook his head and his vision returned to the present.  Brad
and Davy were whooping around on the beach.

'Let go of my hand.  I need to clear away the dishes.'

'Oh sorry.'  Carefully he uncurled his fingers that held Scully's in a
tight  grip.  She was watching him closely.

'I'm going to clear up.  Why don't you go and lie down for a bit?  You
look like you need to get out of the sun.'

'No