TITLE:  If Only...(Chapter 2)

AUTHOR:  Sundancer

RATING:  NC-17 for sex and violence. K/Sc

SUMMARY:  Alex remembers more of the choices in 
his life. Chapter 2 of If Only. For this one to 
make sense, you probably should read that one 
first.

SPOILERS:  Figure on Ascension, One Father/Two 
Sons.

DISCLAIMERS:  Not mine (but everyone should have 
a goal in life); all things X-files belong to CC, 
Ten-Thirteen and Fox; anybody you don't recognize 
is mine. God knows I'm not making a profit off 
this.

NOTES:  Here is the sequel to If Only... which 
attempts to answer the questions of why Scully 
turned cold as ice when Alex Krycek walked into 
her autopsy bay and, more importantly, why Krycek 
thought he had a right to know what had been done 
to Scully.

Thanks to Ladonna...for being pushy<beg>.

FBI Academy 
Summer 1991

Dana opened the door to her room cautiously. She 
hadn't heard the noise of the stereo while she 
was coming down the hall, but that didn't mean 
that her roommate, Stacy, wasn't lying in wait 
for her to get home. The fact that the last Stacy 
had seen of her was on the back of Alex Krycek's 
motorcycle...last night...would probably mean 
that Stacy was going to be full of questions.

Dana smiled to herself as she thought back over 
the past 18 hours. Waking up this morning in 
Alex's arms was, to say the least, wonderful. 
They had cuddled for awhile, then shared a 
shower. Alex had been tender and gentle. Alex 
suggested two things: 1) That they play hooky for 
the day and take a break from studying; and 2) 
That Dana 'borrow' a some of his sister's clothes 
and a pair of her sneakers for the day. After she 
agreed, he took her to breakfast and then for a 
ride on his bike.

They had stopped at a small grocery store and 
bought cheese, fruit and a bottle of wine. Alex 
seemed to have a particular destination in mind. 
He pulled into a small, out of the way state park 
and stopped. When he led her down one of the 
wooded trails to a small clearing beside a 
stream, she was surprised.

"This park is actually the sight of a Civil War 
battle," he told her as he unpacked their lunch. 
"Not a big, history-book type battle, just a 
skirmish between a small group of Union soldiers 
and a scouting party of Rebels. It's such a 
pretty place, it's hard to believe that people 
tried to kill each other here." He looked at her, 
tilting his head to the side, "What?"

Dana blinked up at him. "I'm just surprised. I 
never thought of you knowing about Civil War 
battlefields before, I guess. You...surprise me 
is all, Alex. I suppose I think of you in terms 
of 'Raffles', fast times and...," she trailed 
off.

Alex grinned at her. "Sweetheart, did I forget to 
mention that college degree I got was in History 
and Political Science?" He pulled her down to sit 
on the grass by the stream, leaning back against 
a convenient tree trunk. " Just because I like my 
bike and having fun doesn't mean that's all there 
is to my life."

Dana snuggled against him. "You're just not quite 
what I thought you were", she said quietly. Alex 
felt a pang go through him. //Sweetheart, if you 
only knew. //

He hugged her and brushed his lips across hers. 
He felt her response and slowly pulled back. She 
looked questioningly at him. "Honey, you're not 
going to believe me, but I'm starved."

She sat up and grinned. "I swear you are a 
bottomless pit. That or you have the best-fed 
tapeworm in existence." They began to eat.

Dana discovered that Alex had two sisters and a 
brother (all older; he was fond of all of them 
but that his older sister Tatiana was his 
favorite), was afraid of small closed spaces and 
his father had been in the military. Alex was a 
little vague on what his father had done, but 
understood about the life of a military brat. 
Alex learned that Dana had studied ballet as a 
child, loved her brother Billy but thought he was 
an overbearing jerk, loved dancing and was 
terrified of snakes.

Dana had been afraid the subject she had been 
avoiding since last night would come up. Finally, 
Alex had lain back and pulled her close to his 
side, one arm around her and his free hand idly 
tracing patterns on her upper arm. She mimicked 
his movements by running her fingers over the 
soft fabric of the T-shirt stretched across his 
chest.

"Dana," he began softly, "about last night..."

Dana felt herself blushing. "Alex, I don't expect 
anything from you. Really. I *know* I should have 
said something about..." She broke off, her eyes 
unfocussed, refusing to look up into his face. 
"But there didn't seem to be a right time. I 
should have stopped you, given you a chance to 
stop. *Told* you to stop. I'm sorry," she 
finished abruptly.

Alex's lips brushed the top of her head. He 
wanted to let her know how he felt. When he had 
realized that he was her first, he had been 
amazed. Stunned. Then he had felt an almost 
primitive response: 'Mine.' He took a deep breath 
and started again. "Sweetheart, listen to me for 
a minute here. I'm not upset. God! How could I be 
upset? It was...*you* were wonderful. It's just 
that, if I had known," he hugged her closer as he 
felt her body tense, "I would have gone slower, 
been gentler, made it better for you..."

Dana giggled, finally looking up into his eyes. 
"You have *got* to be kidding! The only way it 
could have been *better* ...Alex: were you paying 
attention to my response to you at all last 
night? *How* do you think it could have been 
better?"

Alex smiled down at her, flicking the tip of her 
nose with his finger. "I don't know...Fireworks? 
A laser show on the bedroom ceiling?" he asked. 
Then he sobered. "I do know. I would have taken 
more time, made sure you were ready. I could have 
really hurt you. I rushed you."

"Alex Krycek, you moron. You *did* take the time 
and God knows, I *was* ready. You didn't hurt me. 
I admit, I'm a...little sore in places today, but 
I'm fine. Now, are you going to kiss me or not?"

In the late afternoon, they rode back to the 
Crystal City condo, picked up Dana's clothes 
(Alex insisted that she keep Tati's clothes to 
wear back to the dorm. 'She'll never miss them 
and you can't just wear that dress back...we'll 
get arrested') and went back to the Academy 
compound. Alex garaged the bike at a friend's 
place about a mile from the Quantico base and his 
friend gave them a ride to the campus. He had 
walked her to her dorm and told her to rest well. 
All in all, Dana thought to herself, I have had a 
wonderful day.

She took a deep breath and opened the door.

Stacy looked up from her desk and blinked. "Ah, 
the prodigal returns. I wish Alex had called me 
this morning, instead of this afternoon. *Before* 
I ripped into Bri. But I was beginning to worry. 
Have a nice time?" she asked as she picked up her 
can of Diet Coke.

Dana looked at her. "Alex called you? When?"

"I told you. This afternoon. He said you were 
getting your stuff and he made you take a day off 
studying. Not to pry or anything," she grinned 
wickedly, "but just what the *hell* happened last 
night? Give! I want to hear all the details." 
Stacy started giggling at the blush that appeared 
on Dana's face. "Skip the bike ride and start 
from there."

Dana could feel her face flaming. 
"I...um...he...we...wait a minute. Why am I 
telling you this stuff?"

Stacy looked up at her innocently. "Because," she 
explained patiently, "I am your roommate, your 
partner (such as it is) and your best buddy here. 
Besides, I have led a deprived life, with *no* 
excitement for the past few weeks. Except for 
getting Brian home and safely in bed last 
night....and for *that*, girlfriend, you owe me 
one," she finished, laughter breaking out.

Dana suddenly remembered that Stacy had 
volunteered to drive a drunken Brian Pendrell 
home from 'Raffles' bar the previous evening. 
Since Brian's car wouldn't hold the four of them, 
she had ended up on Alex's bike. "Oh. Yeah. Did 
you guys get home alright? It...kind of slipped 
my mind," she finished weakly, walking over to 
get a can of soda out of the small fridge they 
kept in the room.

Stacy grinned at her. "Oh, we got home alright. 
Brian is just cuddly as hell when he gets tight. 
He also is not safe to be out alone in that 
condition. Luckily, I convinced him that we 
really did want to go up to his room and go to 
bed. I just didn't join him. I checked on him 
this afternoon. After I kind of gave him a wake-
up call about you and his no-good roommate around 
noon. He's alive...and wishing he wasn't. He 
swears he's not going to drink again. Ever. 
Anyway," she continued, "love your new outfit."

Dana looked distracted again. "Alex insisted that 
his sister wouldn't mind if I borrowed them. I 
couldn't go riding around in the dress from last 
night."

"Heaven forbid. Speaking of which, what happened 
to it?"

"To what?" Dana seemed to have lost the thread of 
the conversation.

"The dress, Dana. Sexy, little black thing. Last 
seen *on* you, when you left with Alex. Details, 
girl, I want details," Stacy teased, watching 
Dana start to blush again.

"We..um..went to his apartment, had some wine, 
danced a little bit and then after breakfast this 
morning, we went for a ride in the country and 
had a picnic. It was nice." Dana stopped talking 
and started to gather her nightshirt to get ready 
for bed.

"Dana, do you realize it is only eight p.m. and 
you never go to bed before ten?" Stacy walked 
over and hugged the shorter girl. She was well 
aware of Alex Krycek's effect on women, 
particularly someone as sheltered as Dana had 
been. "I'm sorry. I shouldn't tease you." She 
pulled away to look Dana in the eye. "Just, be 
careful around Alex, honey. I know. You can take 
care of yourself. But I've met a lot of guys like 
him. He looks wonderful but he is trouble on 
legs. Just, be careful. Okay?"

Dana looked at her friend and smiled. "I will be. 
Now, where in the world did I leave my Federal 
regs manual? You want to run through the regs 
with me? You *know* that's going to be a major 
part of the final exams." The two got down to 
serious studying, leaving the weekend behind.

By Wednesday, Dana was a little apprehensive 
about the next study session with Alex. Alex had 
canceled two evening sessions, telling her that 
he was 'helping Brian with something'. He refused 
to be more specific and Dana began to get the 
feeling that he was regretting their night 
together. //I should have never gone to bed with 
him. I was right the first time: he *was* 
disappointed and upset.// She determined to focus 
harder on her studies; even if Alex didn't want 
to continue the relationship outside of studying 
together.

Alex, on the other hand, couldn't wait to have 
time alone with Dana again. He had spent his 
nights dreaming of their time together and his 
days...Well, his days were more a less a blur: 
trying to focus on classes as opposed to 
daydreaming about Dana and all the things he 
wanted to do with her. He had canceled his Monday 
and Wednesday night sessions with her in order to 
get himself under control. And to do some serious 
thinking.

Brian had noticed his preoccupation and had 
tactfully refrained from commenting. He had known 
Alex since college and, while he knew Alex could 
be wild and reckless, he also knew his friend 
well enough to know that Alex was distracted by 
Dana Scully. Finally, after three days of Alex 
staring into space, Brian spoke up.

"Hey...Earth to Alex. You have been looking at 
that same page for the last twenty-five minutes. 
If you're trying to memorize the whole book, 
you're wasting your time, Alex."

Alex blinked and turned his head to look at 
Brian. "Hmm? What, Bri? I guess I kind 
of...drifted off for a minute or two."

"Drifted off, my ass. You were all the way out to 
sea. Dreaming about Dana?" Brian asked with a 
grin.

"Um...yeah...sort of." Alex turned in his chair 
to face Brian, who was stretched out on the bed, 
reading. "Bri, do you believe in love at first 
sight?" he asked, looking at a point just over 
Brian's shoulder, as if he were afraid (or 
embarrassed) to ask the question.

Brian realized that this was more serious than he 
thought. He knew Alex had discovered that Dana 
was not only cute, but smart, sexy and could keep 
up with him mentally and physically. But, in all 
the years he had known him, Alex had never 
mentioned the word 'love' in connection with any 
of his women. Brian thought for a minute before 
answering. "Well, maybe not at first sight," he 
began, realizing that a serious question required 
a serious answer. "But, maybe what 
first...attracts you to a person gets stronger as 
you get to know them and eventually you recognize 
it as love. I guess part of me would like to 
believe that some day someone will fall in love 
with me at first sight, but, I don't think that 
happens in the real world. Take Stacy, Dana's 
roommate, for instance." Brian got up, walked 
over to the fridge and got out two cans of Coke, 
taking one over to Alex, who nodded his thanks. 
"She's the kind of woman I could fall in love 
with at first, second or third sight. But, 
evidently, I'm not her type. She seems to think 
I'm a nice guy and all...but there's no spark for 
her. No chemistry, I guess," he finished, sitting 
back down on the bed and sighing.

Alex looked at his friend and sipped at his Coke. 
"Bri...have you asked her out? Done anything to 
give her a hint about how you feel?" he asked, 
sensing that he should have been paying more 
attention to his friend's life over the last few 
weeks.

"No," Brian confessed with a grin. "Maybe we 
could double date?" he teased, watching as Alex's 
face lit up.

"Hey, maybe that's not such a bad idea. You think 
the girls would like to go to a baseball game 
with us? It's neutral territory, so to speak."

"A ball game?" Brian questioned. "I would think 
after spending last weekend with Dana that you'd 
want to do something more...oh, romantic."

"Well, I do," Alex began. "But, I don't want to 
rush her. This isn't just about getting physical, 
Bri. Yeah, I dream about her. Hell, I *fantasize* 
about her. If I could, I'd spend every waking 
hour with her and fall asleep with her." Alex 
looked at Brian. "Seriously. The best morning of 
my depraved life was waking up with Dana Scully 
in my arms. Shit, Brian...I think...no, I *know* 
I'm in love with her. And it's scaring the hell 
out of me. Everytime I'm near her, I just want 
to...well," he laughed, "studying isn't what I 
have in mind. But," he continued, "I don't *just* 
want that. I want to get to know her. What books 
she likes, does she like cats or dogs or neither, 
I know she loves dancing...just, God, I want to 
know everything about her...", he trailed off 
looking over at his roommate.

Brian grinned at him. "You have got it baaaaad," 
he laughed. Suddenly sobering, he told Alex, "You 
are so lucky, you bastard. You spend so much of 
your time acting like the 'James Dean of the 
seventies' that nobody realizes you have brains. 
Then, just when I think maybe you're going to 
flit through life like a damn butterfly sampling 
every flower, you find a woman like Dana. Okay, 
hotshot, why aren't you spending every minute 
with her?" Brain was amazed to see Alex's ears 
turn pink. He realized Alex was starting to 
blush.

"You're not gonna believe me...," Alex began. 
"Oh, shit," he muttered, then continued," 
I'm...um...damn...I'm scared, all right," he 
finished, raising his voice and getting up from 
his chair to pace around the room. "I *know* how 
I feel about last weekend, but what if *she* 
doesn't feel the same way? What if she thinks it 
was a mistake?"

Brian thought back to the preceding Sunday. Alex 
had shared none of the intimate details of his 
weekend with his roommate, but Brian knew that 
Dana hadn't come home Saturday night. Stacy had 
called him Sunday just after noon, yelling. His 
hangover had been in high gear by that time and 
Brian was having difficulty focusing on Stacy's 
ranting.

"Dammit, Brian. Your roommate didn't bring Dana 
home last night. Where the hell are they? Have 
you heard from him?" She paused to draw breath. 
"The way he took off on that bike, they could 
have been killed. Dammit. He is nothing but 
trouble and if anything has happened to her, it's 
gonna be all your fault."

Brian groaned and mumbled into the phone, "Stacy, 
I'm dying over here...You think you could keep it 
down to a dull roar? Please? If only out of 
respect for the dead?"

Stacy calmed down, but only slightly. "Brian," 
she began sweetly, "if your no-good roommate Alex 
has let *anything* happen to Dana, you are going 
to WISH YOU WERE DEAD!" she finished, at the top 
of her lungs, slamming down the phone.

Brian had stared at the ceiling, waiting for it 
to fall on him, praying for it, actually. He put 
the phone back on it's hook, then, figuring that 
things couldn't get any worse, he turned the 
ringer off, flopped back down on the pillow and 
wondered how he could get even with Alex for 
leaving him in the position of defending Alex 
against Stacy. He decided that Alex could look 
after himself and that Dana would take care of 
Stacy.

When Alex had returned Sunday evening, Brian had 
been alive and, if not well, at least able to 
move. Alex strolled into the dorm room like a man 
without a care in the world.

"Hey, roomie. You survived. How's the head?" Alex 
shrugged out of his leather jacket and went to 
hang it up in the closet. It never ceased to 
amaze Brian that a man who could be so, for want 
of another word, *disorganized* in his approach 
to his personal life could be so neat about his 
personal living space.

"You. Tell me you got Dana back to the Wicked 
Witch in one piece. Otherwise, Stace is gonna 
have me in multiple pieces. There aren't any 
phones where you were?" Brian asked nicely, all 
things considered.

"Dana's fine. We went out to a little park in 
Virginia for a picnic. Just spent the day goofing 
off and relaxing. Oh, I called Stace from my 
place just before we came back to let her know 
Dana was okay and we were on our way back. I just 
left her at the women's dorm. What's the matter, 
Dad? Were you and Mom worried?" Alex joked.

"Stacy called about noon. Ripped a strip off me 
through the phone and threatened to finish the 
job if Dana wasn't returned in one piece by my, I 
believe she used the term 'no-good', roommate." 
He looked at Alex, serious-faced, but eyes 
twinkling. " Get this straight, sucker: I have no 
desire to play cannon-fodder for you with Stacy 
Marks. Anything happens, you're on your own."

Alex laughed. "Nothing's gonna happen. We had a 
great time. How's the head?" he repeated, noting 
Brian's pale color and lack of enthusiasm.

Brian looked back at him gloomily. "I'll live. 
What the hell possessed me to drink that much, 
anyway? I must have a death wish."

"Be careful. Don't let the Bureau shrinks hear 
you say that," Alex laughed at him. "They'll 
assign you to Violent Crimes or BSU for sure."

Brian looked at him with a serious expression on 
his face. "God I hope not. I can't think of 
anything more boring. Besides, those guys are the 
hotshots. The *real* detective work is in 
forensics and the labs. Without that, all you've 
got is theories and what ifs."

Alex grinned back at him. "Hey, the 'hotshots', 
as you call them, get all the glory and all the 
women. Not to mention all the promotions. You 
gonna be content to be a lab geek all your 
career?", he teased.

Brian looked smugly back at him. "I'll be one 
long enough to get the experience to get on with 
one of the high-paying military contractors, or 
get some of that big-time research money. 
Secondly, it beats hell out of getting beat up, 
shot at and being transferred all over the 
country. And, last but not least, where did you 
get the idea that there aren't any promotions in 
forensic work?"

Alex laughed, settling down at his desk and 
pulling out his Federal regs manual. "Never mind, 
Bri. I stand corrected. With my luck, I'll get 
assigned for forever in BumFuck, North Dakota and 
you'll end up as head of the Labs. *With* the 
glory...*and* the women."

Brian chuckled and turned back to his own 
studying.

//As though that smoking bastard would let me 
chose my own assignment//, Alex thought glumly to 
himself. //He probably has some scheme all worked 
out for what happens after I make it through the 
Academy. Be a real shame to screw up all of his 
plans.// He sighed and went back to studying his 
manual, preparing for class the next day.

Brian re-focused on the conversation with Alex. 
"Have you asked her how she feels about last 
weekend?"

"Well, no. I thought I'd give her time to think 
about it and talk to her when we get together 
Saturday to study. Maybe doubling with you and 
Stace Saturday afternoon would be a good idea 
after all. Give Dana and me some time away from 
here and get you fixed up with Stacy. You in?", 
he asked, looking over at Brian.

Brian thought about it for a minute, as though 
considering other options. Then he grinned at his 
roommate. "Sure, if you think they'll go. Where 
are you gonna get four tickets to a Saturday game 
at this late date?" he asked, truly curious.

Alex looked back at him. "Don't worry about 
tickets. You just get up your nerve and ask Stacy 
out. I'll get ahold of Dana."

Knowing Dana's schedule by heart, the next 
morning Alex got up early and headed to the 
obstacle course. He knew that she ran early in 
the mornings, taking the hardest route possible 
and trying to improve her time. Alex planned to 
surprise her on the brushy part of the course. He 
got into position just as she rounded the curve 
of the trail. As she jogged toward him, Alex 
caught his breath. The early morning sunshine 
through the trees made shadow patterns where she 
ran along the trail. Her hair was pulled back in 
a loose French braid, letting Alex see the fine 
bone structure of her face. 'How can a woman look 
so good in running shorts and a sweatshirt at 
five a.m.?' he thought to himself. He realized 
that, to him, she would look great at any time 
and any place.

Alex waited until she was almost up to him to 
make his move. He lunged forward from his hiding 
place and tackled her. Or tried to. Just as he 
grabbed her, she bent forward and then threw her 
upper body backwards, connecting with Alex's 
breastbone. At the same time, she shoved both 
elbows behind her into his stomach. He grunted, 
gasping for air and fell backwards, still holding 
a wriggling Dana Scully. They rolled over the 
bank and downhill several times on the soft earth 
before coming to a stop with Alex on top, trying 
to control the woman in his arms.

"Dammit, Dana, stop wiggling," he gasped, still 
trying to catch his breath. He looked down at her 
and saw that her eyes were sparkling with 
laughter. "What the hell are you trying to do to 
me, woman? Kill me?"

Dana giggled, then sobered. "Me?" she began 
indignantly. "What about *you*? First you blow me 
off for two nights about studying, then you try 
to assault me on the obstacle course. What's up 
with you, Alex?" She shoved both hands against 
his chest, trying to get him to move and let her 
up. "Did I mention you're heavy? Get off and let 
me get up. I can't breathe."

Alex brushed the back of his fingers over her 
cheekbones and shifted partially off her but 
didn't release her entirely. "Better?" he asked 
softly. "I wasn't blowing you off. Brian was 
having problems and needed some help. Believe me, 
sweetheart, I would rather have been with you. 
Although," he grinned down at her, "I don't know 
how much studying we would have gotten done. 
Somehow, my mind has been on...other things 
lately."

She looked up at him, considering. "I 
thought...maybe...," she trailed off.

"What, honey? Dana," Alex tilted his head, 
watching her closely. "Did you think I didn't 
*want* to see you? Did you?"

"Well, the thought had crossed my mind." Dana 
sighed and closed her eyes. "Last weekend 
was...intense; then Sunday, you were nice but all 
you did was hug me a few times. Then you kept 
saying you were busy. I guess I thought that, 
well, Alex," she stammered her way through to the 
end, "were you, um, well, disappointed? Really? 
You don't have to be nice about it. I'll 
understand if you decided it was a mistake. I 
really don't know..." She stopped talking 
abruptly as Alex lowered his head and began to 
kiss her.

The kissing started out gentle, little pecks and 
nibbles. Sensing he had her attention, he used 
his hands to frame her face and hold it where he 
wanted it, deepening his kisses. His tongue 
softly brushed against her lips, asking a 
wordless question. Dana parted her lips and let 
him in. Alex shifted against her, rolling her 
easily as he moved one hand down to the small of 
her back to pull her tighter against him and slid 
the other to grip the braid at the back of her 
head. Alex's tongue traced the inside of her 
mouth, over sharp little teeth and tickling the 
roof of her mouth. His hips rocked against her 
and she could feel his rock-hard erection through 
his running shorts.

As they pulled apart to breathe, he looked down 
at her. "Does that feel like I think it was a 
mistake? Sweetheart, the *last* thing I was last 
weekend was disappointed." He laughed shortly. 
"Hell, I thought I'd died and gone to heaven. If 
I had had my way, we wouldn't have gotten out of 
bed until Monday morning."

Dana looked at him, her brows furrowing. "Then 
why...?"

He leaned down to kiss the tip of her nose. "Why 
Sunday?" She nodded. "First, I knew, even if you 
didn't, that you would be...um...a little sore," 
Alex stammered and the tips of his ears reddened. 
"Second, I was afraid of scaring you off. I 
didn't want you to think that all I wanted from 
you was your cute little body." He moved against 
her again and groaned. "Although, God knows, I 
want that too. But, more importantly, " as he 
shifted a little away from her, but continued to 
stroke his hand up and down her back, "I wanted 
you to get to know me. And I wanted to spend some 
time with you. Just us. I know it sounds stupid, 
but...".

Dana reached up and pulled his face down to hers. 
"No, it doesn't sound stupid. I just was worried 
that you didn't feel the way I did about 
Saturday. What happened Saturday night never 
happened before...". She broke off and smacked 
his shoulder when Alex choked out, "Obviously, 
sweetheart." and started laughing.

Dana laughed with him as she cuddled against him, 
running her hands up the back of his shirt. 
"That's not what I meant and you know it. 
Saturday night was, well, special for me and...," 
she broke off again as Alex began to nuzzle her 
throat.

"I know, Dana," he murmured. "Honesty time. You 
are the first woman I have taken home with me." 
He raised his head to look at her, suddenly 
serious. "Dana, I'm no saint and certainly no 
virgin. But last Saturday with you *was* special 
for me. So was Sunday. I want you to know that." 
He rolled over and sat up, pulling her up with 
him. "To be honest, honey, being with you scares 
the hell out of me. This can't be just some hit-
and-run type deal for me, Dana." He tilted her 
face up, looking into her eyes. "I don't just 
want to sleep with you, sweetheart, I want to 
*be* with you. That's why I want to take it slow. 
Make it last. Forever-type last. Serious stuff."

Dana looked back at him, seeing the uncertainty 
in his eyes. "Alex, I ...look," she stopped, 
trying to organize her scattered thoughts. "Alex. 
I guess I was just insecure, unsure, I don't 
know. But I *do* know that I want to see you, be 
with you. Like you said, 'serious stuff'." She 
grinned at him. "Are you aware that we rolled far 
enough down the slope from the trail that we 
can't be seen?"

Alex pulled her into his arms, molding her to 
him. "Dana, what am I going to do with you?"

She looked up at him. "Actually, I had a few 
ideas on that subject." With that comment, she 
reached up and pulled his head down to hers, 
kissing him hard, darting her tongue out to taste 
his lips. Alex began to kiss her back, running 
his hands up and down her spine, his nails barely 
scratching her skin. Dana moved, rolling him 
over, straddled his hips and began to kiss and 
nibble his neck, laving her tongue over the bite 
marks she left in her wake. Alex groaned deep in 
his throat and tilted his head to give her better 
access.

" Oh God! Woman, what are you doing?" he growled, 
bucking his hips up against her.

"You getting religion, Alex?" she giggled as she 
ran her hand under the hem of his t-shirt, 
pushing it up and over his head. She smirked at 
him. "Don't worry. Lack of expertise in one area 
doesn't mean I'm *totally* inexperienced." She 
licked at the juncture of his neck and shoulder, 
interspersing nips with the strokes of her 
tongue. "Relax. Really. You might be surprised."9

She attacked his chest with her mouth and nails, 
scratching up and down the firm pectoral muscles, 
lightly furred golden brown. She fastened her 
mouth on a copper-colored nipple and sucked 
gently. Alex moaned and clutched at her, 
practically ripping her sweatshirt over her head. 
She quickly moved to the other nipple but, 
instead of sucking, she bit down, pulling upwards 
and flicking her tongue against the nipple as she 
applied pressure with her teeth.

Alex decided he had died and gone to heaven. He 
could feel his erection, which had been rock-hard 
to begin with, achieve a diamond-cutting edge. He 
bucked up against Dana, bringing his hands around 
to the front fastening of her running bra. 
Realizing that the blood flow necessary to think 
coherently was rapidly heading south to his 
groin, he fumbled with the hooks, finally getting 
them open and giving his hands access to her 
breasts. Dana felt his hands squeezing her 
breasts and his fingers circling her nipples, 
imitating her movements. She raised her head from 
tormenting Alex and leaned backwards enough to 
look into his eyes.

'God, he's beautiful'. She looked at Alex, his 
head tilted back, eyes narrowed and pupils 
dilated to pools of black with deep jade circles 
around them, seen through thick, smoky-black 
lashes. His face was flushed and he was making 
moaning noises. He opened his eyes and looked at 
her, panting and shifting his hips against her. 
"Don't stop, sweetheart. Please."

She smiled up at him. "I wasn't going to stop. I 
just wanted you to lay back. I think after the 
other night, the least I could do," she slowly 
ran her hand down his stomach, tracing the 
waistband of his shorts, "is return the favor, so 
to speak."

Alex's eyes, which had been drifting closed 
again, popped open. He watched Dana tease her 
hand under the waistband of his shorts and 
shifted again. "Please, baby, please. Just don't 
stop. Okay?"

"Shhhh, sweetheart. Just leave everything to me, 
Alex." She began nipping at his throat again, 
moving her mouth lower onto his chest as she 
murmured, "Now, where was I?"

As she eased his shorts and briefs down, she 
contemplated her next move. Alex lifted his hips 
to help, twisting from side to side as she blew 
softly on his shaft. She glanced up the bank out 
of the side of her eyes, calculating that, even 
if someone else was up early running the long 
course, the trees and the slight overhang would 
conceal them from view. She looked back down at 
her lover, his head again thrown back, his hips 
gently thrusting upwards, seeking her attention. 
She could see the muscles in his thighs moving 
under the skin, tightening and relaxing.

She began to nip and suck on his thighs, 
alternating from side to side. Her mouth was 
everywhere but where Alex most wanted it. His 
hands reached for her head to draw her lips 
upward. She grasped his wrists and held his arms 
to his side. "Alex," she said firmly, "leave them 
there. You make a grab for my head again, and I 
get up and finish my run."

Alex's head again popped up and his eyes opened 
wide. He moaned low in his throat. "Oh God...I've 
created a monster." Then his head dropped back 
down as Dana lowered her head and began to trace 
patterns with her tongue on his stomach, slowly 
moving lower. He desperately grasped for a 
coherent thought and managed to groan, "I'll be 
good...promise...oh...yeah...uhhhh." He trailed 
off as a hand began to tease his balls, gently 
squeezing and rolling them together, then tracing 
patterns in counterpoint to the swirls her tongue 
was making ever closer to where he wanted her.

Dana watched as the man beneath her clenched his 
arm muscles, his hands scrabbling over the moss 
and grass beneath them. His head turned from side 
to side and he began to pant. A drop of clear 
fluid bubbled out of the tip of his shaft. As she 
delicately lapped at it with the tip of her 
tongue, Alex gasped. "Oh...oh yeah." //Dana 
smiled to herself. 'He seems to have lost the 
ability to speak.'// She began to gently circle 
the head of his cock with her tongue, swirling 
around and around/ Alex was thrusting his hips up 
and down, trying to get her to take more into her 
mouth. Dana resisted his movements, running her 
hands up and down the inside of his thighs and 
over his hips to calm him.

"Easy sweetheart," she whispered, blowing gently 
on the end of his still damp shaft. "We'll get 
there. Promise." With that, she began to lick and 
nibble around his penis. It had occurred to her 
that, while Alex was not 'oversized', so to 
speak, she probably could not get all of him in 
at once, not without working up to it. She traced 
a line from the base of his cock to the tip, then 
slipped her lips over him while using her hand to 
work him at the root. Alex moaned and corkscrewed 
his hips and shoulders. "Dana, please. 
Baby...don't tease me. Do it, dammit."

Dana took a deep breath, opened as wide as she 
could and plunged her mouth down on his cock as 
far as she could. Careful to keep from scraping 
him with her teeth, she pulled back on him, 
sucking as hard as she could, her hand working in 
rhythm with her mouth.

Alex threw his hips upward. His mind was 
undergoing serious meltdown. It had never 
occurred to him that Dana could drive him insane 
this fast. He heard a voice whimpering and 
realized it was his. His eyes closed and he saw 
bright, flashing lights. His mind shut down and 
his body took control. He could feel his body 
tensing as his orgasm built.

Dana felt him grow larger in her mouth and 
realized that he was close. Always before, she 
had pulled away at the last minute, reluctant to 
complete the act. This time, there was no 
reluctance. She tried to relax her jaw and throat 
to take Alex as deeply as possible. She felt him 
go deeper into her. On the backstroke, she 
delicately scraped her teeth against the 
sensitive skin, soothing with her tongue as she 
went down on him again. She swirled the head with 
her tongue one last time and plunged down, 
humming softly. That was Alex's undoing; she felt 
his cock grow again. Then Alex grabbed for her 
shoulders, trying to pull her away, realizing he 
was starting to come.

"Dana...God...baby...ohfuck...yes...yesyesyes...,
" his voice growing louder and louder as orgasm 
overtook him.

Dana ignored him, feeling the warm, salty fluid 
pulsing out of him. She quickly swallowed as much 
as she could, then pulled her mouth back, using 
her tongue to gently lap at his stomach and hips, 
cleaning him off.

Alex lay back limply breathing quietly as she 
pulled up his shorts and briefs. His eyes drifted 
open as Dana snuggled against him and his arm 
wrapped around her.

"Baby," he croaked. His tongue slipped out and 
moistened his lips. He swallowed and tried again. 
"Dana. Wow." His eyes closed then opened again. 
"You didn't...". He began to roll over towards 
her.

Dana, sensing his intention, said quietly, "Alex, 
this was about giving you back some of the 
pleasure you gave me. Speaking of which," she 
grinned at him, "you may not be a screamer, but 
you aren't quiet. That's for sure."

Alex dropped back, pulling her close. "Lady...you 
never cease to amaze me. Do I want to know where 
you learned that?"

Dana tweaked a nipple and sat up, beginning to 
get her own clothing together. "You ever hear of 
'don't ask, don't tell'? Let's just say I had a 
liberal education at all those Catholic schools I 
went to, okay?"

Alex laughed a little weakly. "I never knock 
parochial schools again. Where were you Dana 
Katherine when *I* was an alter boy?" He watched 
her get to her feet and brush herself off while 
he struggled to pull himself together and get the 
strength to get up.

Dana gave him an arch look, raising one brow. 
"Studying, of course. Where did you think?" She 
began to climb up the bank, using the trees to 
steady her on the slight incline. She glanced at 
her watch, then looked back at the man watching 
her intently. "We better hurry. Classes start in 
forty minutes."

Krycek began to come up the bank after her. When 
he had joined her back on the jogging path, he 
grinned down at her. "Bet me I can beat you back 
to the dorms?", he threw over his shoulder as 
they began running.

On the way back to the dorms, Alex outlined his 
master plan to get Stacy and Brian together: he 
had tickets to the game for the four of them 
(Alex didn't want to share the information that 
the tickets were provided by his 'patron'), but 
planned that he and Dana would pull out at the 
last minute, leaving the other couple alone 
together. Dana agreed with his plan, after 
comparing notes on Brian and Stacy's 
conversations with their respective roommates. 
Alex suggested that he and Dana fix a quiet 
dinner at the apartment and maybe go to a movie. 
Dana agreed, privately thinking that they would 
be lucky if they got through dinner, let alone 
going out to a movie.

Saturday afternoon rolled around and Alex's plan 
worked like clockwork. Alex had called his mother 
in Florida that morning, in reality to check on 
her and his sisters and catch up on visiting. 
When he got off the phone, he went into his 
performance for Brian.

"Damn." Said with just *enough* force as he 
walked back into the dorm room.

Brian, of course, looked up from browsing through 
the latest Sports Illustrated. "What's up, Alex?"

"Oh, my mother just decided to spring it on me 
that my sister is flying in this afternoon and 
'would you mind picking her up, Alex, dear?'" 
Alex mimicked his mother's gentle voice.

"No problem, man. We'll call the girls and 
cancel. No big deal," Brian offered.

'Gotcha', Alex thought to himself. "No way. No 
sense those tickets should go to waste. Tell you 
what: you and Stacy go to the game. I'll see if 
Dana minds going to the airport with me. If the 
flight gets in on time, we'll join you two later. 
Sound like a plan?" he asked as he reached into 
the closet for his leather jacket.

Brian looked flustered. "Yeah...sure...I mean, if 
you're sure you don't mind...," he finished, 
putting down the magazine and getting ready to go 
with Alex to meet the girls.

Alex grinned. "Really. You and Stacy should have 
a great time."

The two men walked over to the women's dorm and 
met Dana and Stacy. Dana was prepared for Alex's 
cover story about the airport and managed to hide 
her amusement. She knew Stacy was interested in 
Brian and thought that a relaxed date at the 
baseball game would be better for them than an 
intense 'evening out'. Besides, she looked 
forward to spending time alone with Alex.

The two couples split up, Alex and Dana borrowing 
Stacy's larger car (//we'll be able to fit my 
sister and her luggage in yours easier than in 
Brian's. Thanks, Stacy.//). Alex held back his 
laughter until they had pulled away.

"See? They bought it hook, line and sinker!" he 
crowed. "I am *so* good."

Dana glanced sideways at him. "Why do I get the 
feeling that you are very good at manipulating 
people, Alex? And that you enjoy it?" she asked, 
smiling to take the sting out of her words.

Alex smiled back at her. "It's not a matter of 
enjoying it, although I do. I just find it very 
interesting watching what a person can.... 
'motivate', for lack of a better word, someone 
else to do. If you know what buttons to push."

Dana looked out the window and commented, "Well, 
you're going to have a great future in Behavioral 
Sciences. God help the criminals."

The rest of the drive to Alex's condo passed in 
easy, teasing conversation. When they pulled up 
in front of the building, Alex took the door keys 
out of his pocket and handed them to Dana.

"Sweetheart, I'm going to run by the store and 
pick up some stuff...coffee, juice...dinner," he 
grinned at her. "You go ahead and go up. I'll be 
right back," he kissed her on the cheek as she 
prepared to get out of the car.

"Why don't you pick up a movie while you're at 
it?" Dana asked. "That way, we can just relax 
here rather than go out later."

"Woman, I love the way you think," Alex joked. 
"Since you are obviously smart...and sexy...in 
your honor, I will get a 'chick-flick' instead of 
an action kill-'em-all."

Dana laughed as she got out of the car. "I don't 
care, Alex. Action movies are fine. Whatever you 
want."

Alex watched her walk into the building and 
sighed. He put the car back in gear and thought 
about his conversation with his mother. She had 
asked if he had been in contact with the Smoker 
recently. Alex had debated lying to her and then 
decided to tell her the truth.

//"Yes, Mama, I have been talking to him. What 
else can I do? He pays for the apartment, and for 
you and the girls to live comfortably."

"Sacha, even though your father thought his 
friend was a Great Man (Alex could hear the 
capital letters of the words in her voice), with 
all he did for us and as long as your father and 
I worked with him, I have never completely 
trusted him. Please be careful."

"Yes, Mama, I will be," Alex had promised, 
knowing that there would come a time when he 
would not be (*could* not be) so honest and open 
with his mother. It was up to him to protect her 
and his sisters. Alex remembered again his father 
telling him about the Smoker (the Great Man) who 
had brought them out of Russia and to work on The 
Project.

Alex's father had been a colonel in the Soviet 
Air Force, trained in electrical engineering and 
experimental aerodynamics. A strong, disciplined 
man, he had expected nothing less than the best 
from his youngest child and only son. 'I suppose 
Papa was used to disappointments by the time I 
was five', Alex thought to himself. 'Discipline 
and obedience were never my strong suits.' Alex 
could remember the scenes with his father: calm 
reasoning followed by loud arguing, followed (at 
least during his earlier years) by a discipline 
session with his father's belt. 'To be fair, 
though,' Alex reminded himself, 'the old man 
never really beat me and that belt never broke 
the skin. It was always his last resort when I 
pushed his temper over the edge and refused to 
listen to him.'

Alex's mother, on the other hand, had been gentle 
but firm with her youngest child. She was a 
trained psychologist and had realized that Alex's 
need to rebel was made worse by the tight 
restrictions placed on him by his father. When 
Alex's father had died, she had requested leave 
from the Project, citing her declining health and 
the need to spend more time with her children. 
The Smoker had been concerned and considerate, 
helping her and the two girls relocate to a home 
in Florida, promising to 'look after Sacha' and 
seeing to his education and admission to the FBI 
Academy.//

Alex came back to the present, finding himself 
parked in front of the supermarket complex. 
'Well, the less she knows, the better,' he said 
to himself. 'I can't outright lie to her, but I 
don't want her upset either.' He shook his head 
and resolved to enjoy his time with Dana, putting 
all thoughts of what the Smoker might or might 
not have planned for him.

Dana let herself into the apartment and placed 
the keys on the table in the foyer. She walked 
through the living room and opened the drapes at 
the balcony sliding doors, once again admiring 
the view. As she stood there, her ears picked up 
a soft scuffling noise coming from the bedroom 
areas. She held her breath, thinking she had 
imagined it; then heard it again. Dana cautiously 
crept towards the hallway leading to the 
bedrooms, noticing as she peeked around the 
corner that the door to the second bedroom was 
partially ajar.

'Oh shit! Alex, get back here,' she thought, 
quickly reviewing her options. She wondered if 
she could quietly retreat to the kitchen and call 
the police or if it would be better to simply 
leave the condo, return to the lobby and notify 
security. Dana could definitely hear someone 
moving around in the bedroom. As she inched down 
the hallway, the door suddenly opened wide and a 
young woman stepped out of the room. She saw Dana 
and stopped dead.

"Who are you and what are you doing here?" the 
woman demanded in a loud voice. She was tall, 
with dark hair and eyes, high cheekbones and a 
delicate bone structure. She wore jeans and a 
silk shirt with black loafers. She carried a 
make-up bag in her hand and had obviously been 
unpacking and settling in.

Dana had a sudden flash of insight. "Oh, dear. 
You *must* be Tatiana. Alex's sister. You really 
*did* come for a visit." Dana broke off, overcome 
by a fit of giggling.

Tatiana Krycek looked at the woman in front of 
her. Copper-colored hair and vivid blue eyes that 
showed no trace of fear. Short, but well-built. 
Obviously, she knew Alex and knew about his 
sister. Although Tati considered Sacha as much 
her baby as he was her mother's, they hadn't 
spoken at length in some time.

"Yes, I am; and yes, I had a few days off and 
decided to come back to DC to handle some family 
business and surprise Sacha with a visit. And you 
are...?" she questioned.

Dana realized she hadn't introduced herself and 
got a grip on her composure. "Sorry," she choked 
out, stifling her giggles. "I'm Dana Scully. A 
friend of Alex's. He dropped me off and went to 
the store for supplies for dinner. He should be 
back any minute," she finished, holding out her 
hand to Tatiana.

Tatiana politely shook Dana's hand and commented, 
"How do you do. Where did you and Sacha...sorry, 
Alex, meet? If I may ask?"

Dana smiled. "Of course. We met at the FBI 
Academy. I'm tutoring him in forensics and he's 
tutoring me in Russian. It's a win-win deal for 
both of us." She smiled at the other woman. "Even 
though you look younger than Alex, you sound just 
like my older brother Billy. Can I ask you 
something?" she asked the other woman.

"Certainly."

"Why do you call Alex 'Sacha'?"

Tatiana grinned. "It's a diminutive of Alexei. 
His full name is Alexei Nicolaivich Krycek. Since 
Alex was the baby, everybody always called him 
Sacha." Tatiana smiled and sighed. "I suppose I 
am very protective of Sacha. Alex sometimes 
is...impulsive. So," she shrugged, "I worry."

Dana looked at her. "In other words, when he's 
not getting into trouble he picks up strange 
women in bars. I'd noticed. They seem to throw 
themselves at him. Not that he objects."

"Does that...bother you Dana?" Tatiana had moved 
down the hall to the bathroom and deposited her 
make-up bag and other toiletries while they 
talked. Now she preceded Dana back into the 
living room and settled comfortably on one of the 
chairs, waving Dana to a seat on the couch.

Dana sat, slipped off her sandals and curled her 
legs under her before replying. "No. Of course, 
he hasn't done it recently," she felt herself 
blushing. "It *does* make studying with him a 
little distracting, however."

Tatiana laughed. "I can imagine. Alex has an 
affinity for creating havoc of one kind or 
another. But his heart is in the right place. Our 
father was...very strict and Alex has never 
responded well to being ruled and regulated."

Dana laughed with the other woman. "No kidding."

Both women looked up at the door opened and 
Alex's voice was heard calling, "Sweetheart, I'm 
back. I don't suppose I can smother you in 
chocolate and whipped cream for dessert, can I? 
Oh shit!," his voice trailed off and he came to a 
sudden stop as he rounded the corner and saw the 
two women looking at him. Dana's face was bright 
pink and Tatiana was trying unsuccessfully to 
smother her laughter.

She rose from her chair and skipped over to him 
as he put the groceries down on the dining table. 
Throwing her arms around him, she kissed him on 
both cheeks and laughingly told him, "Hi, baby 
brother. You surprised to see me?"

Alex hugged her and held her where he could look 
at her. "Tati, you have no *idea* how surprised I 
am."

Tati laughed again. "Bet me, baby brother. So 
much for chocolate and whipped cream! Dana and I 
were just getting acquainted. Were you planning 
on mentioning her to Mama or me?"

Dana watched Alex as his face stilled. There was 
an undercurrent of tension in the air she didn't 
understand but planned to ask Alex about later. 
Alex's face hardened as he looked at his sister. 
"Don't start, Tatiana." He released his grip on 
his sister and walked over to Dana, who had 
gotten up from the couch and was slipping into 
her shoes. He hugged her and smiled. "Miss me?" 
as he kissed her quickly. "I figure God's getting 
even with me for lying to Bri and Stace." Tatiana 
looked questioningly at him. "We fixed up our 
roommates to double date and then skipped on them 
with a story about picking my sister up at the 
airport," he explained to Tati.

She grinned at him and picked up the grocery 
sacks, heading into the kitchen. "You know what 
Mama always said, Sacha: God loves a sinner but 
hates a coward. What are *we* having for dinner?" 
she joked as she began rummaging through the 
bags. She glanced back at the stunned look on her 
brother's face. "Oh," she continued, planning to 
tease and torment him a little longer, "were you 
planning on dinner for *two*, Sacha?"

"Tati, don't...of course you're staying for 
dinner. I thought we'd just have some pasta and a 
salad. There's plenty...," he felt rather than 
heard Dana start giggling as she stood in the 
circle of his arm. He looked down to see her 
grinning up at him. "What?"

Tati and Dana burst out laughing at the look on 
Alex's face. Tati got control of herself first. 
"Alex, you jerk. You don't want me sharing dinner 
with you and your date. And, anyway," she 
continued airily, putting down the salad she had 
just taken from the grocery bag, "I *have* a date 
for dinner." She strolled past Alex and Dana, 
calling back over her shoulder, "Oh, and Sacha... 
don't wait up."

Alex and Dana looked at each other.

"She likes you." Alex began. Dana immediately cut 
him off. 

"How could you embarrass me like that?! Whipped 
cream? And *chocolate*?!" 

"I thought you *liked* whipped cream and 
chocolate! What's the problem?" 

"The *problem* is that even if I like them, I 
*don't* like the idea of your sister thinking I'm 
another one of your...bimbos," Dana finished, 
scowling at him and stalking towards the kitchen. 

Alex stared after her. "Bimbos? Where the hell 
did that come from? *What* bimbos? What did Tati 
say to you, anyway?" Alex stood in the kitchen 
doorway, watching as Dana began to set the pasta 
and sauce on the counter, getting ready to start 
dinner. 

"Nothing. It was...," Dana sighed. "Never mind, 
*Sacha*," she said, looking over her shoulder at 
him, seeing his eyes widen at her use of his 
family nickname, "I was just remembering that 
woman you were with that night at Raffles and..." 

Alex stepped up behind her and pulled her back 
into an embrace. "Sweetheart, there is nobody 
else in my mind...or my heart...but you. Word of 
honor." He nuzzled at her hair, pulling her 
tighter against him. "By the way, only the people 
I love most in the world call me Sacha." He felt 
her stiffen against him. "I'm very glad you're 
one of them," he finished, feeling her begin to 
relax. 

Dana's eyes opened slowly. She snuggled further 
under the covers and closer to Alex who was 
spooned behind her. He wrapped his arm over her 
mid-section, moving his right thigh over her legs 
and making a soft, contented hum low in his 
throat as he did so. Trying to check how awake he 
was, Dana wiggled against him, feeling his early 
morning erection twitch and take notice of her. 
His arm tightened around her and he whispered in 
her ear, "Good morning, krassavitsa. If you're 
*that* awake, I can think of a great way to start 
the morning." He bucked his hips against her rear 
as his hand began to wander over her body. 

Dana relaxed back against him, thinking that 
maybe he had a good idea. Then she heard soft 
noises coming from the direction of the kitchen 
and remembered. Regardless of how good it would 
feel, she had no intention of making love to Alex 
with his sister in the apartment. It was bad 
enough that Tati would know that she and Alex had 
spent the night together. Somehow, Tati's opinion 
of her was very important to Dana. She remembered 
the tension between the siblings the night before 
and determined to ask Alex about it. 

Meanwhile, Alex had also heard his sister moving 
about and had felt Dana stiffen against him as 
she remembered they weren't alone. He knew he 
could convince Dana to continue with their 
lovemaking, even knowing they had an audience in 
the kitchen. He also recognized that Dana was an 
intensely private person who would feel 
uncomfortable continuing their present activity 
knowing that his sister was in the apartment. He 
weighed his options quickly and then gave the 
woman next to him a swift hug. He placed a gentle 
kiss just below her earlobe and rolled away from 
her, stretching. 

"Well, since Tati is evidently up and making 
coffee, I suppose we should turf ourselves out 
and join her. She and my mother get up 
disgustingly early...even on Sunday mornings. 
Used to drive my father nuts." 

Dana rolled onto her back and looked at him. "You 
don't mind if...", she started. 

Alex leaned over, kissed the tip of her nose, and 
smiled down at her. "Sweetheart, I'm no fonder of 
a cheering section than you are. Besides, we'll 
have plenty of times alone for just us. Let's see 
if Tati wants to fix us breakfast in return for 
spoiling our plans for this weekend." He grinned 
at her. "She cooks blintzes like you wouldn't 
*believe*. Learned it from Mama. Real sour cream 
and strawberries and...", he rolled his eyes and 
looked at Dana as she stared at him. "Really. 
It's almost...*almost* as good as sex. Trust me." 
He started laughing as Dana reached over her 
head, pulled down the pillow and went to hit him 
with it. He rolled away from her and out of bed 
in one fluid movement. "Come on, sleepyhead. Up 
with you. It's already," he glanced down at his 
watch, "almost eleven. You shower first. I'll go 
brave the kitchen and get you some coffee." He 
bent over to give her another light kiss, 
whispering, " I love you," then stood back up, 
slipped on his jeans and headed for the door. 

Dana watched him go then got up and padded 
barefooted into the attached bathroom. As she 
started the shower running she thought about 
Alex. She knew that it wouldn't have bothered him 
particularly to continue their lovemaking with 
Tatiana in the apartment. She also knew that he 
had felt her freeze when she heard his sister 
moving around. It was apparent to her that Alex 
had stopped out of consideration for her 
feelings, not his. Then had tried to lighten the 
mood and had gone to the kitchen to run 
interference with his sister, in addition to his 
stated intentions about bringing her coffee. She 
stepped under the shower and smiled to herself. 
So much for first impressions: Dana was learning 
that Alex could be considerate, gentle and 
caring. Not the self-centered chaser his friends 
thought he was. 

Meanwhile, Alex was having a long-overdue 
conversation with his older sister. He hadn't 
been looking forward to it, but he knew it was 
coming and decided not to put it off. As he had 
strolled into the kitchen, she had looked up from 
her cup of coffee. 

"Good morning, Sacha. At least, I think it's 
still morning. Sorry we didn't get a chance to 
chat last night, but you two were 
already...asleep by the time I got home. Dana 
must be good for you. You didn't used to get this 
much...rest," she stopped as his face hardened. 

"That's enough. I don't mind your teasing, but I 
don't want you to upset Dana. She's really very 
shy and conservative and I don't want her to get 
embarrassed about anything." He glanced up from 
pouring his coffee. "Please, Tati. It's... 
important." 

His older sister looked at him closely. "Alex, 
you're really *serious* about this girl, aren't 
you? This isn't just another one of your flings, 
is it?" 

He took a long sip of the hot coffee and 
collected his thoughts before answering. Then he 
looked steadily at her. "Yes. I am. Serious 
enough that I want you to help me go shopping for 
something for her. And I don't want any shit from 
you about this. Dana is a beautiful, smart, 
talented woman and I care very much for her. More 
than that," he paused, took another sip of coffee 
and studied the floor intently before finishing, 
"I think...no, I *know* I'm in love with her." 

Tati clapped her hands softly and jumped up, 
coming over to her younger brother. She grinned 
and asked, "This 'shopping' you want help with 
wouldn't be for a ring, would it?" As he nodded, 
she hugged him and kissed his cheek. "Alex. You 
should know after all this time that when it 
comes to the really important stuff, I'm one 
hundred per cent on your side. I think Dana is 
lovely, not to mention smart, and having said 
that," she drew back and grinned at him, "you 
mind telling me why such a bright, beautiful and 
classy lady is hanging out with a scoundrel like 
you?" 

Alex hugged her back, nearly spilling his coffee 
in the process. "Beats hell out of me, sis. *She* 
seems to think I'm not too bad." 

"Wait till Mama, Katya and Ana meet her. She'll 
get the full story on you for sure. Speaking of 
which, I would suggest you tell Mama fairly soon. 
She mentioned that she might be coming up for a 
visit. It seems she misses you." She sobered and 
walked back over to the small kitchen table, 
picking up her own coffee mug and staring at it. 
"I think she's worried about *his* plans for your 
future, Sacha." She didn't have to specify who 
she meant. 

Alex poured himself another cup of the strong 
coffee and pulled a mug out of the cupboard to 
fix one for Dana. After a minute, he replied, "I 
don't much *care* what his plans for me are. He 
may have gotten me into the Academy, but, once I 
graduate, there's very little he can do to 
influence my field assignments. Things will be 
alright." He said the last as much to reassure 
himself as his sister. "Look, I'm gonna take Dana 
some coffee, jump in the shower right quick, then 
get dressed and take the two pretty women in my 
life out to breakfast...lunch...whatever." He 
turned back and asked casually, "By the way, how 
long are you staying for, anyway?" 

"Just long enough to ruin your plans last night, 
help you shop and take care of some business. I 
should be heading back south by mid-week. Why? 
You in a hurry to get rid of me, baby brother?" 

Alex barked out a short laugh. "No, not at all. I 
just wanted to know how long a grace period I had 
to call Mama and tell her about this myself 
before you got home. Tell you what, we'll have 
brunch, get Dana back to the dorm and you can 
help me shop today. Besides, I have classes every 
day, all day and studying this stuff is actually 
harder than it looks. Not to mention, the grounds 
are closed on weekdays." 

Tatiana looked fondly at her younger brother. 
"Don't worry, Sacha. I wouldn't dream of telling 
Mama your news. Go. Take your lovely lady her 
coffee and get yourself ready to buy the two 
classiest women you know the best Sunday brunch 
in DC." 

After dropping Dana off at the dorm, having 
explained that Alex and Tatiana had some family 
business to handle, the two siblings headed 
shopping. Alex had definite ideas of the style of 
ring he wanted and Tati found that his taste 
shopping for Dana's ring was excellent. The sales 
clerk attempted to show his numerous rings, 
initially focusing on Tati as the object of 
Alex's affections. Once that misunderstanding was 
cleared up, Alex told the clerk what he wanted. 

"Look. I want a simple white gold wedding band, 
with a matching one for me. For the engagement 
ring, I want a two-carat heart-shaped 
multifaceted diamond set in white gold to match 
the wedding band. If you don't have that, or 
can't get it, we can always go somewhere else." 

The clerk looked at Alex and his sister. He was 
used to sizing up his customers and prided 
himself on being able to judge the 'real' buyers 
with money from the 'lookie-loos'. Based on first 
impressions, dressed in jeans and his leather 
jacket, Alex didn't look the part of a big 
spender. His sister, while dressed in expensive 
casual clothes, did not appear to take much 
interest in the proceedings once Alex had 
established that he was firmly decided on what he 
wanted. The clerk looked closer at the man in 
front of him and realized that his first 
impression was probably incorrect. Alex was aware 
of the carat weight, cut and class of diamond he 
wanted and also appeared to be aware of the price 
range he was capable of affording. 

The clerk keyed open a cabinet and pulled out a 
tray of expensive, custom-made wedding ring sets. 
Alex examined four sets all together and he and 
Tati compared them. They decided on which one 
they wanted and Alex pulled out his credit card. 
The clerk took the card warily, venturing , "Sir, 
I am sure you are aware that the cost of this set 
is $8,000. Are you sure you...?" 

Alex raised his eyes to the other man's and froze 
him in place with his stare. "Just put it on the 
card...David," he stated, pausing to read the 
name tag on the man's jacket. "Believe me, that 
will more than cover it. Don't worry," he smiled 
thinly, "your commission is safe. Oh, and David," 
he concluded as the sales clerk turned to run the 
credit card, "I'll take them with me. Don't 
bother to wrap them, or anything." 

Ten minutes later, the siblings were walking out 
of the store, discussing family gossip. The sales 
clerk, while putting away the tray of custom 
rings, wondered how he could have been so off in 
his assessment of the two of them. He had been 
astonished to discover when he ran the card that 
the billing address was the US government...with 
a limit which *far* exceeded the cost of the 
rings. As he watched the couple get on a 
motorcycle parked in front of the store he 
wondered to himself, who they were and what the 
young man did to get access to that kind of card. 

Noon, Friday 
Crystal City 

Alex parked his bike in his usual space in the 
condo garage. He had spent all week planning for 
this weekend. Getting out of his regular Friday 
classes and having told Dana that he was going to 
clean up the apartment after Tati's departure 
earlier in the day, he had then invited her to 
dinner that night. She was due to arrive at 
seven. Alex calculated that he had time to 
straighten up, set up for the romantic evening he 
had planned and pick up the catered dinner he had 
ordered from their favorite Italian restaurant. 
The waiter had been surprised when Alex told him 
that he would take care of providing dessert. 
Alex grinned as he patted the pocket of his 
leather jacket where the ring box was. He 
couldn't wait to see the look on Dana's face when 
he proposed. 

The phone call to his mother had gone better than 
he had expected. She had been surprised and 
pleased about his news, stating she was indeed 
coming up for a visit and inquiring about his 
plans for introducing Dana. Alex assured her that 
he would make plenty of time for the two of them 
to get acquainted. 

Alex found himself whistling as he opened the 
door to the condo. Immediately as he entered, 
arms grabbed him and he was slammed against the 
door. He began to struggle against the intruders, 
feeling a forearm press up against his throat, 
cutting off his air. He gasped as one of the men 
restraining him gave him a viscious punch to the 
kidneys. Alex's vision swam as he began to 
crumple to the floor. Arms held him up and shoved 
him back against the door. Suddenly, he was spun 
around and he felt one of the attackers twist his 
arms behind his back. The other man pummeled his 
body with half a dozen hard punches before Alex 
heard a voice telling them to stop. 

A hand reached up from behind him and yanked his 
head up. Alex heard the sound of a cigarette 
lighter and smelled the butane from the old 
fashioned lighter the Smoker always used. He 
forced his eyes open and stared straight into the 
man's narrow face. 

"Hello, my boy. I'm surprised at you. Cutting 
classes at the Academy is frowned on. Even if the 
weather is nice and you have...plans for the 
evening," the man smiled thinly. "Sorry to 
just...drop in on you like this. But it's time 
for us to have a chat about your future." 

Alex's lip curled back as he snarled, "Yob tvoyu 
mat'! Let me go!" He broke off his tirade 
abruptly as the thug in front of him punched him 
hard in the stomach. One small moan escaped 
before Alex clamped his jaw shut and stared with 
hatred at the hired muscle. 

"Watch your language, boy," the Smoker snapped, 
taking a quick drag on his cigarette and blowing 
the smoke in his captive's face, causing him to 
cough momentarily. "No need to be offensive," he 
continued in a calmer voice. "Bring him in here 
where we can have a civil conversation," he 
ordered the men holding Alex. 

Alex resisted momentarily until his arms were 
forced to the point of dislocation and his hair 
nearly yanked from his skull. He was more or less 
dragged towards the living room, the hired help 
(whom Alex was mentally referring to as thug one 
and thug two) using his struggles as an excuse to 
continue their abuse. He watched from pain-
narrowed eyes as the old man seated himself 
comfortably, using one of Alex's mother's limoge 
pieces as an ashtray. 

"Now," the man began again. "As I said," another 
pause and drag on the ever-present cigarette, 
"you will soon be graduating from the Academy and 
we need to discuss...our plans for your future." 

"I don't *care* what your plans for..." Alex 
began, breaking off as he was backhanded by thug 
number two. 

The Smoker smiled. "Oh, but you should care, my 
boy. After all, there is more than just *you* at 
stake here you know." 

Alex's eyes filled with hate as he considered the 
implications of that statement. He realized that, 
unless he calmed down, they could and would 
continue to beat on him. His survival skills 
began to reassert themselves as he took a semi-
deep breath, feeling pain from what was probably 
a cracked rib. He asked, "What do you mean by 
that?" 

"Surely your parents impressed upon you that what 
you do has an impact on others, Alex?" the old 
man asked. "What you say and do affects everyone 
around you. Haven't you studied chaos theory: a 
slight change here, a small movement there 
and...poof. Everything, and everyone, around you 
is different. Sometimes for good...sometimes not. 
All because of your decisions." The Smoker leaned 
back, settling himself comfortably and took out 
his lighter and another cigarette. Suddenly, he 
pause, remarking, "Oh, I was forgetting. Your 
mother preferred that no one smoke in here, 
didn't she?" He eyed Alex narrowly. 

Alex felt his heart stop. "Leave my family out of 
this. This is between us. I agreed to work for 
you. What gives you the right...?" He again broke 
off as the Smoker nodded at the men holding him 
who began to punch his body again. 

Through the pain, Alex could feel a knee pressed 
into his back as his arms were twisted tighter 
behind him. The man in front of him alternated 
fists - left/right/left - and placement, avoiding 
only his face, but landing solid body blows. His 
head was allowed to drop forward and Alex felt 
himself slipping into unconsciousness. As his 
knees began to buckle, the beating paused. His 
head was again visciously yanked back and the 
hitter in front slapped him to get his eyes open 
again. He saw the old man watching him with cold, 
dead eyes. 

"Listen to me you little shit," the man snapped 
coldly. "I have the right to anything with your 
family I damn well please." His voice getting 
louder, he continued, "I *own* you...and your 
mother...*and* your sisters. Let's get one thing 
very clear: you do as you are told or else." His 
voice softened and became gentler. "Alex, my boy, 
you do understand, don't you, that I would be 
terribly distraught if an...accident should 
happen to any of your family? On the other hand," 
he continued, "perhaps, should 
circumstances...ah, change, one of your sisters 
would be amenable to a change of scenery, shall 
we say? Or even pretty Doctor Scully might be 
persuaded to join the Project. We can always 
*use* new talent." He paused and looked at Alex 
for a response. 

Alex froze again, realizing that the old man 
would wipe out his family without a second 
thought merely to demonstrate his control over 
him. Or would kidnap and torture them merely for 
sport. He closed his eyes in humiliation and 
whispered, "What do you want?" 

Noting the change in behavior and knowing that it 
signaled complete capitulation of the younger 
man, the Smoker waved a hand at his hired muscle, 
who released there grip on Alex, allowing him to 
fall to the floor. The young man began to curl 
himself up in a pain-wracked ball at the feet of 
the old man, who reached down and patted his 
shoulder gently. 

"Trust me Alex. What I do is always in your best 
interests. As your father always said, sometimes 
it was difficult to get your attention, but, in 
the end, didn't you find that he always knew what 
was best for you? Hmmm?" Having won, the old man 
could afford to be gentle. "Kurt," he ordered, 
"go and get a wet cloth for his face and a glass 
of water. Eric: help him up on the couch. 
Gently," he grinned tightly at his own humor, 
"he's had a hard workout and is probably sore." 
As the one goon went to get a washcloth and 
water, the other hauled Alex's body onto the 
couch, stretching him on his side and placing a 
pillow at this head. Although in extreme pain, 
Alex managed to retain consciousness and 
struggled to listen to his employer. 

When Kurt came back, the two men helped Alex to 
sit up and drink. Alex flopped weakly back 
against the couch and again asked, "What do you 
want?" Hearing a small click, his eyes opened and 
focused on the Smoker looking inside the ring box 
which Alex realized must have fallen from his 
pocket during the beating. 

The old man looked at the ring speculatively and 
then said, "Alex, this will never do. Whatever 
were you thinking? Surely you must have know you 
would never be allowed to marry her? Obviously 
this is more than a little recreational activity. 
It is far more serious than I had imagined." He 
eyed the younger man in front of him. "Well," 
snapping the jewelry box shut, "this will have to 
be tended to as well, I suppose." 

Alex eyed him cautiously. "What do you mean?" 

The old man responded, "You will have 
to...terminate the relationship with Doctor 
Scully," he began. 

Alex began to push himself up from the couch. 
"No. You can't make me," he said angrily as Kurt 
roughly shoved him back to a seated position. 

The old man glared at him. "Either *you* 
terminate it or we will. Your choice. But," he 
continued, his voice cold, "there must be no 
suspicion in her mind that this is not by your 
choice. End it tonight. Or I guarantee you there 
will be...consequences." 

Alex felt the tears stinging his eyes. He heard 
himself beginning to beg, "Please...I love 
her...You don't understand...". 

The Smoker sighed. "My boy, you're the one that 
doesn't understand. You have no choice in this 
matter. End it tonight, do as you're told and I 
will guarantee you that no harm will come to your 
family." 

Alex interrupted as strongly as he dared, "But 
what about Dana? I don't do just what you want 
and you hurt her, right?" 

The old man continued to watch him, unblinking. 
He seemed to reach a decision. "No. I will also 
promise that the same thing will hold true for 
her. Your good behavior and working for us will 
insure her continued good health and prosperity. 
Is it a deal, my boy?" 

Knowing he had no options, Alex admitted defeat. 
He closed his eyes and muttered, "Fine. You win. 
I have no other options, do I?" 

Turning to leave, the Smoker smiled tightly and 
dropped the jewelry case on the coffee table. 
"No. You don't." 

Alex had assessed his physical condition well. 
The old mans goons had beaten him just enough to 
make it hurt, but not enough to require medical 
attention. Nothing that would show and nothing 
was bleeding. 'The old man gets good help', Alex 
muttered as he slowly pulled himself up from the 
couch. He forced himself to walk over to the 
kitchen and pulled a bottle of Stoli out of the 
freezer. After pouring a water tumbler full, he 
took the glass into the bathroom and turned the 
shower on as hot as he could stand it. 

He opened the medicine cabinet and took down the 
aspirin, opening the bottle and pouring eight 
into his hand. Placing them in his mouth, he 
downed half the glass Stoli, swallowing the pain 
killers at one gulp. He then stiffly removed his 
clothes and stepped under the steaming water. He 
could feel the salty prickles of tears behind his 
eyes and at the back of his throat. Letting the 
water run over his face, he scrubbed at his eyes 
and finally gave in to the impulse to cry. He 
threw his head back and sobbed to himself, 
letting the hot water pour over the bruises 
forming on his torso. 'Fuck. He can't make me 
give her up. He can't,' he kept telling himself, 
realized that 'yes, he could'. 

Alex knew that his mother distrusted and feared 
the violence of the old man. It had been made 
clear to him that he had no choice in the matter. 
The threats had been very clear. He stretched 
gently, feeling his ribs, shoulders and back 
complain at the movement. He stayed in the shower 
until the water began to run cool. Shutting off 
the faucet, he grabbed a towel off the rack and 
slowly dried himself off, pausing to take large 
sips of the vodka remaining in the glass. 
Finishing the drying off and the Stoli at the 
same time, he walked naked into his bedroom. He 
began to slowly dress, in jeans and a casual 
shirt; eyeing and discarding the wool slacks and 
silk shirt he had planned to wear this evening. 
Pulling on socks and boots, he prowled back into 
the living room, detouring through the kitchen 
for another glass of vodka. 

A glance at his watch showed that he had about 
twenty minutes before Dana arrived. He slowly 
reached down and picked up the ring box off the 
table where the old man had dropped it. He put 
the vodka glass down and opened the box, 
remembering his plans for the evening: a romantic 
candle-lit dinner, slow dancing, champagne, and 
then his proposal. 'So much for that idea', he 
mused to himself, taking a long drink of the 
Stoli. 'Not much time to plan how to destroy the 
love of my life.' 

He heard the soft knock at the door and drained 
the glass, setting it down on the coffee table. 
With a final glance at the ring, he snapped the 
box shut and pushed it under the cushions of the 
couch. He steeled himself for what he had to do 
and walked slowly to the door, remembering not to 
let the pain show on his face. He pasted a smile 
on his face and opened the door, hating himself. 

Dana had just raised her hand to knock again, 
thinking that maybe she had misunderstood Alex 
about the time. When the door opened, she jumped, 
then lowered her hand and smiled up at the man 
opening it. Alex closed his eyes and drew in a 
breath at her beauty. As she reached out to him, 
he gave her a quick hug, careful not to let her 
grab him too tightly, then moved aside, ushering 
her into the apartment. 

"Hi, sweetheart, you're right on time," he smiled 
down at her. "Ready for a night on the town? A 
little dancing, a little partying, a 
little...other stuff," he mock-growled at her, 
affecting his sexiest voice. 

Dana looked confused. "I thought you said you 
wanted a quiet evening here, Alex." 

He looked down at her. "Hey...quiet evenings are 
overrated. Besides, you know me: the wilder and 
louder the place, the better I like it. Look, 
baby," he continued, "we've been doing the 
romantic, stay-at-home thing *you* like. I just 
wanted to do what *I* like tonight." 

"You told me you liked being just us...," Dana 
began hesitantly. 

"Well, yeah, but, *you* know...too much of that 
and it's gets too serious. God knows, I've 
finally realized I'm not ready for serious. But, 
I knew you were. And you're kinda cute, even if 
short red-heads aren't usually my type. Besides, 
a beautiful woman like you should know by now a 
man will say anything to get what he wants." Alex 
grinned and reached out to trace her ears softly. 
"God knows, it was worth it, baby. I'd say 
whatever it took to keep you in my bed. That 
first night with you is gonna be one of my 
fondest memories. You could have knocked me down 
with a feather when I realized you were serious 
about being a virgin. And so talented. No man in 
his right mind would let you go..." 

Dana glared at him. She felt her stomach churning 
as he continued. "Alex, what the hell are you 
saying? Are you saying that you only told me all 
those things to get me into *bed*?" She heard 
herself yelling at him. 

Alex backed away from her, willing himself to act 
the part he was playing. "Well, not *just* to get 
you into bed. I needed to keep you tutoring me so 
I could make it through to graduation. But, baby, 
as a fringe benefit...," he broke off as Dana 
took two steps towards him and slapped his face. 
Hard. 

"You sonofabitch!" she screamed. "I believed you. 
You said you had changed...you loved me. It was 
'serious stuff', you said. No *wonder* you didn't 
care about fucking me with your sister here. I'm 
not surprised she acted like I was just another 
one of your...whores! You were *using* me all the 
time! Stacy was right." She turned away as she 
started crying. 

Alex felt his heart breaking. He remebered the 
consequences of failure and hardened his resolve. 
"Look, baby, no need to get upset. We've had some 
fun, graduation is next week, you did fine on 
your Russian and I passed forensics. No reason we 
can't keep seeing each other, but let's keep it 
light. Okay?" He reached out, as if to pull her 
close as she moved quickly towards the door. 

"Go to hell, Alex! I never want to see you 
again!" The door slammed behind her and he heard 
her running towards the elevators. 

Alex felt himself moving towards the door, 
calling, "Dana. No. Wait." As he opened the 
apartment door, he stopped, hearing the elevator 
doors close and feeling like the sound would 
crush his heart. He slowly closed the condo door 
and leaned his head against it, letting the tears 
flow again. He slammed his fist against the door 
over and over but didn't feel the pain. 


Sunday, two weeks later 

The speedometer on Alex's NightHawk hadn't gone 
below ninety on the trip to the North Carolina 
coast. He had graduated from the FBI Academy and 
received his first assignment: New York City. He 
had another talk with his 'patron' soon 
thereafter, discovering that he would have 
additional duties the FBI was not cognizant of 
during his stay in New York. He had two days 
before he was due to report in to his new ASAC. 
He drove along the coast until he came to an 
overlook above the ocean. He pulled off, parked 
the bike, got off and removed his helmet. He 
walked slowly out to the view point. 

Once there, he reached into the inside pocket of 
his leather jacket, took out a small black velvet 
jewelry box and opened it. He stared for a long 
time at the ring inside, letting his mind go 
blank. He snapped the box shut with a sigh and 
threw it as hard as he could off the view point 
into the ocean below. He rested his hands on the 
railing and hung his head, feeling the tears 
start again. After a few minutes, he shook his 
head, stood back up and dried his eyes with the 
back of his hand. He whispered softly, "I love 
you, Dana." He turned and walked resolutely back 
to his bike, putting his helmet on and jump-
starting it with a fury. Alex Krycek put the 
NightHawk into gear and roared back out onto the 
highway without a backward glance. 

To be continued...