TITLE: The Reba Saga AUTHOR: jeri E-MAIL: sandka01@gettysburg.edu WEBSITE: http://www.themajestic3.com/jeri.htm RATING: PG CATEGORY: SRA KEYWORDS: MSR/UST, AU, CharlieFic SPOILERS: Colony/End Game, Redux II, Detour, Christmas Carol, Requiem, TINH, DeadAlive SUMMARY: Family secrets are revealed at Mulder's funeral. **DISCLAIMER: Not mine. Deal. ~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~* Part 1: Correspondence ==== February 20, 1995 Daney! Happy Birthday! Wow, the big 3-1, eh? How's it feel to be an Ole Fart? Don't give me that look...I know I've got mine coming next year... Ok, enough of that. Time for the real reason I'm writing. Reba was sitting up yesterday, Daney. Sitting up! It amazes me how fast she's growing. I thought the boys were quick learners...well, they got nothin' on this little one. You'd be so proud of your goddaughter...so proud, Daney. I sure wish you could come out and visit. Sue and the boys miss you, too. But I know you got work to do. You make sure that partner of yours remembers it's your birthday. Get him to take you out somewhere nice. You sure as hell deserve it. I love you, Daney. Chuckie P.S. Oh, Sue just handed me some pictures of Reba and the boys to send you. Enjoy. -C ==== February 28, 1995 Chuckie! Thanks for the age reminder, little twerp. I spent the whole week feeling positively ancient. Mulder wasn't exactly in the best shape for birthday delights, I'm afraid. A near-death experience kind of takes precedence over such trivialities as a nice quiet dinner. But that's okay. That's not what we're about, anyway. Thanks *so much* for the pictures of the kids. My God, Reba did grow a lot, didn't she? She was so...tiny...it's amazing... I'm dying to frame that one picture of Reba to put in the office, but...yes, I know. Don't *you* give *me* that look, Charles! I'm not stupid, don't worry. Well, I have to get going. Mulder's got his first full day back tomorrow, so I need lots and lots of sleep. Lots of love, Daney ==== ==== September 30, 1997 Daney, Thanks for the card. Reba seemed to enjoy it. I'm sure you're as shocked as we are that she's three now. She reminds me a lot of you. Mom tells me that she looks and acts just like you did at her age. If you treated Bill and Missy anything like Reba treats Drew and Davey, then I can't blame them for picking on you! Speaking of Bill, he told me that you and Mom are going out there for Christmas this year, to see the baby. Boy, I wish we could go, too. I really need to see you, sis. It was torture not to be able to come out last month when you were in the hospital. I still don't know why I couldn't have come out alone. I wouldn't have said anything stupid. Anyway. We'll send our presents to California, I guess. Will Mulder be trekking out there, too? Here are the pictures from Reba's party. Enjoy. Love, Chuckie ==== October 3, 1997 Ugh. I'm never going camping again. Ever. Oh, hi Chuckles! Back to my rant...there is entirely too much room for innuendo in the woods! How the hell am I supposed to keep a "professional" distance when he's curled up in my lap to prevent shock? Don't ask. No, Mulder will not be joining us for Christmas. After his run-in with Bill last month, I don't think he (Mulder) is too eager to be in Bill's company again. Honestly, you'd think Bill could treat Mulder like a member of the family after everything that's happened. And speaking of my hospital visit...I wish you could have come, too. I know *you* wouldn't have said anything dumb...but Mom and Bill may have forgotten themselves. I couldn't risk it. I do love you, Charlie boy, and the phone calls were a great help. I'll talk to you soon. Dana ==== ==== Date: 12 Jan 2001 To: charles_scully@webtv.net From: DScully@fbi.gov Subject: I need you Oh holy shit Charlie. He's dead. He's gone. Do you get it? HE'S DEAD! We found him last night. There was absolutely nothing we could do for him. Charlie...the baby won't know its father. Mulder won't know his child. That thought hurts me *so much*! I need you for the funeral. Bring everyone. Please. I need you. ==== ~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~* Part 2: ScullyWatching on an Ugly Day It had snowed the day before. The path to the door was slick with ice, and Skinner was glad that no one was out to witness his failed attempt at a double axle. It wasn't pretty. Of course, this day wasn't pretty. No, this day couldn't possibly have been pretty, even if it was mid-May and seventy-two degrees with a cool breeze to take away the slight hint of heat from the air. The wake of the bravest man he'd ever known could never be pretty. With astounding grace, Skinner entered the non-religious funeral home, surprised by the amount of people that had already arrived. As he put his coat in the cloakroom, he took silent inventory. There was John Doggett, standing at the back of the room, looking as out of place as he probably felt. Skinner knew for a fact that Scully hadn't told him where or when the wake would be held. That meant that Doggett had gone to trouble to attend. Skinner's respect for the man grew even greater. In the front corner were the Gunmen, their faces reflecting Skinner's idea of how they'd look if given proof positive that Lee Harvey did indeed shoot JFK. Their eyes seemed glued to Scully, watching her like a mother wolf watches her cubs when they first step out into the world. Speaking of mothers, there was Maggie Scully. She was talking to a tall man, a man Skinner vaguely remembered as Bill Scully, the eldest Scully child. They too were tracking Dana's movements as she traveled through the room. So, to join the crowd, Skinner began following her with his eyes. He watched as she nervously jumped from window to window, staring out at the parking lot, as though she still expected Mulder to drive up and reveal that everyone had been duped. Skinner often found himself staring at the door of his office, half-expecting the same thing. To his surprise, Skinner watched as Scully's glum face brightened just a bit as he heard a car door slam outside. Intrigued, Skinner peered out the closest window to see what had made her just a little bit happy on this ugly day. The man who was helping several children from his car was quite obviously a relative; Skinner was willing to bet his life savings that this was her younger brother. Scully had briefly mentioned that he was flying in from wherever he lived, but her emotions had been well hidden. He had wondered if there was a bit of a rift between the siblings, but now, seeing the little bit of joy on her face, Skinner knew he'd guessed wrong. She hurried over to the door, opening it and leaning against the frame. For a moment, he wished he could read her as well as Mulder could, because he thought he saw a bit of anticipation and anxiety in her stance. A woman from the station wagon approached Scully, wrapping her in a hug that Scully returned fiercely. Two towheaded boys shyly approached next, offering more solemn embraces. Then the three walked into the building, meeting up with Maggie and Bill right away. Scully waited for her brother and the third child...a little girl who couldn't have been more than seven years old. She was shyer than her brothers, clinging to her father's legs as he shuffled carefully on the ice rink of the parking lot. Skinner watched as Scully took the little girl into her arms so very gently. He wondered how close the two were. He could see that they were talking, but Skinner was too far away to make out the words. Finally, Scully stood up to hug her brother, and the three headed back into the building. A few minutes later, the entire crew, led by Scully wandered over to Skinner's little corner. "Skinner, this is my brother Charles and his family...his wife Sue, his sons Drew and Davey, and his, um, daughter Reba. Skinner's my boss at work." Skinner smiled and held out his hand. "Please, call me Walter. It's nice to meet you, though it's too bad it had to be under these circumstances." Immediately Skinner was ashamed, and he glanced at Scully to make sure he hadn't said something completely stupid. "It's alright, sir," Scully said softly. "I couldn't agree more." There was an awkward pause, until Charles finally suggested that they all go pay respects to the closed coffin. Scully's eyes followed the family, especially the little girl. "Been a while since you'd seen them, huh?" Skinner asked. She nodded. "Uh, yes. I actually haven't seen them in the flesh since...since little Reba was born. That was over six years ago." Skinner could hear the tears in her voice, a phenomenon not uncommon in the last few days. "God, it's amazing how fast kids grow when you don't get to see them." Skinner nodded. "I remember thinking the same thing about my sister's kids. Even when I saw them every few weeks, they still grew too fast for my liking. Of course, my sister thought the same thing, and she saw them every single day. I guess they always grow too fast." Scully's hand immediately leapt to her abdomen, caressing the small swell there. "I'll bet." The wake continued on in its sober manner, and Skinner couldn't help but play ScullyWatcher for the afternoon. He watched as Maggie talked with her daughter-in-law, tossing furtive glances toward the coffin every so often. He watched as Bill tied to figure out what emotion he was feeling. He watched as Charles and Dana talked in a corner, obviously trying to keep their conversation private. But most of all, he watched Charlie's children. Reba, specifically. He watched how she watched her aunt out of the corner of her eye. He watched how she examined the blown-up and framed picture of Mulder that stood at the end of the coffin. He watched as she glanced around and then, thinking no one was watching, reached out and touched the picture at his mole on his right cheek. And he watched as she drew back her hand and touched an identical mole on her own right cheek. ~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~* Part 3: Story Time January 18, 2001 She was so focused on not crying at the sight of the little girl examining Mulder's picture that Scully didn't hear the footsteps approach her. She jumped when Skinner touched her shoulder. "Sir! Jesus, you startled me..." She looked up at him, and found that his face showed an odd mixture of surprise, anger, and enlightenment. "Is there something wrong?" "Um...just a little thing that's confusing me, Scully. You mind if we go talk somewhere in private?" Frowning, Scully nodded and began walking toward the back of the funeral home and into a small conference room. "What is it, sir?" she asked, her voice tinged with worry. Suddenly Skinner felt like an oaf...imagine asking her something like this at the wake of her partner, her friend, her *lover* for Pete's sake! But it was too late. He'd made her worried and piqued her interest; now he had to follow through with his question. "As I said, I'm a bit confused. You said that Reba is Charles and Sue's daughter, right?" He fixed her with a look that strongly suggested that she be up front with him. Scully felt a bubble of anxiety form in the pit of her stomach, but she tamped it down before she replied. "What are you suggesting, sir? Why would my brother lie to me about my niece and goddaughter?" Skinner shook his head. "I'm not suggesting that at all, Agent Scully. I'm suggesting that you've lied to me about Reba's parentage." For a brief moment, Scully thought about refuting his accusation; then she sighed and realized it didn't matter anymore...that she needed to tell *someone*. "All right, sir. Let me tell you a story..." {{{x}}} As you might suspect by her age, it happened very early on. It most certainly wasn't planned. And even after it happened, I never thought about the consequences until it was too late. I guess if I had to point the finger at someone to blame for the whole sticky mess, I'd have to point it to England. Well, not the whole country...just Scotland Yard. Well, not even all of them, either; just Inspector Phoebe Green. Yeah...Miss "Come Hither, Fox" is who's really at fault. I was so ashamed after it happened. I'd had bad experiences in relationships with superiors in the past, and I had vowed not to let it happen again. Inspector Green had just walked out of the office, and I was so glad to see her go. I think he was, too, though I'm not exactly sure why. It could have been because she brought up bad memories for him; it could have been because she was a distraction. A small part of me thought -- ok, still thinks -- that he was glad because now he could focus his attention on me again. Does it really matter why? After she left, I made a little joke about how he would walk through fire for a woman. I was referring to her, but he responded by saying that he would do it for me again. *Me*! It was bad enough that I'd had to undress him just a few days earlier, but now he had to go say something sweet like that! And so, right there in the office, I jumped him. I'll spare you the details. Just suffice it to say that it was quick and pretty disappointing. We never talked about it afterwards. In fact, I probably could have put it out of my mind completely, as I'm sure he did. But one little thing got in my way. Two days before Christmas, I realized that I was pregnant. The timing couldn't have been worse. Less than two weeks later, I was at my father's funeral, wondering just how...if...I was going to tell my family. I eventually did, and while they were surprised and even disappointed, they were very supportive. I got called away to go help with the Boggs case, and I went even though I know I should have stayed away from work for a few days. My emotions were totally out of control, what with my hormones going wacky and my father freshly laid to rest. As I talked with him in the hospital afterwards, I desperately tried to think of a way to tell him what happened. We talked about my father, and I saw the segue I needed... ...but I stayed silent. I didn't tell him. I couldn't. Something inside of me locked those words deep inside, preventing them from getting out. I decided then that he could never know about our child. {{{x}}} "You didn't tell him?" Skinner's eyes were wide with surprise. "I'm absolutely shocked. How did you..." Suddenly his eyes betray a Light Bulb Moment. "Of course...Quantico..." Scully nodded. "Yeah..." {{{x}}} After talking more with my family, it was decided that Charles would become the baby's guardian. I asked him to raise her as his own. He agreed with a promise to tell her that I was her Godmother. The hardest decision was that after the baby was born, I would go home, and then Charles and his family would move, without telling me where. I didn't want to know where they were because I didn't want to be tempted to ignore the plan and take him out there and get back our daughter. As soon as I began to notice that my clothes weren't fitting quite right, I asked for the transfer. I let him think it was a decree from a higher level. More lies. I let him work with me on a few cases. Whenever I had to meet with him in person I made sure to cover myself as best as I could. Maybe he suspected, maybe he didn't. If he did, he never called me on it. In August, about two months before the baby was due, I told him I was going to live with Charles because of a family problem. Which was true, I suppose. The baby was born in late September, about two weeks overdue; they eventually had to perform a C-section. Because of the surgery, I stayed with my brother's family for a few weeks longer than expected. And when I got home, it was business as usual. {{{x}}} Skinner was quiet for a few moments once she finished talking. She wondered what he was thinking...if anything sort of judgment was being passed. "Scully...can I ask you something?" She nodded; she had nothing to hide anymore. "If...if he...would you...?" She took a deep breath, allowing tears to fill her eyes. "Of course I would have. This isn't like before. This time it wasn't a mistake. He would have been absolutely thrilled. I just know he would have been...he was heartbroken when the IVF didn't work..." "The *what*?" Scully blushed. "Oh, you didn't know about that? Of course not." Skinner let a small smile tease his lips. "I do believe it's time for another story, Agent Scully..." ^*^*^ Part 4: Pinstriped Memories Something isn't right here. Okay, *lots* of things aren't right. I'm lying in a hospital bed with no clue what's happened to me. Scully looks like I've come back from the dead or something. My skin is tingly. But that's not unusual. There's something *else* wrong here. Something *feels* wrong. Scully feels wrong. She's only half-leaning on me, but something is definitely out of sorts. I want to ask her about it, because I've got a weird thought in my head, but I don't know how to go about doing it, because I'm probably wrong and I don't want to hurt her. I hear the door open, and Scully lifts her head slightly as she looks to see who's come to visit. I briefly wonder if it's Skinner or the Gunmen, but when the door closes again, I realize it's someone who doesn't belong in this room right now. I'll deal with that later. I spend another twenty minutes drifting between sleep and wake, and thinking of how to best word my question. "Mulder..." Scully lifts her head, and I open my eyes to meet hers. They've got that 'I have to tell you something' gleam of anxiety, and I suddenly know that my weird inkling was right. "You're pregnant," I force out, my dry throat stumbling over the foreign words. Her eyes widen, and her lips twitch into a surprised smile. "How...how did you know?" "Um..." How to put this delicately? "Your boobs felt bigger." So much for delicacy. Luckily, she's so relieved to have me back from wherever I've been, she just laughs and does that hair-ruffle thing again. "Can I see?" I ask softly. Her eyebrow rises and I realize that she's misinterpreted what I'm asking. "Scully..." She chuckles. "I know Mulder. Hang on a sec." She gives my legs a little nudge and hoists herself up to the side of the bed. And I feel a warm wave of tenderness flow over me as I take in the little surprise she'd been hiding under the bed. Or not so little. "Scully...how long? I mean..." Shoot, just how long have I been out of it? "I was one month along when you...disappeared." She takes a deep breath. "I'm in my seventh month now." Shit. Six months? What the hell..."Scully, what happened?" She shakes her head and takes my hand. "Not now, Mulder. I don't want to get into it yet." She smiles and puts my hand on her belly. "I think you've got enough to deal with right now." ^*^*^ I can't sleep. I guess being dead for three months does that to a guy. So I just lie here in bed and try to get used to the feeling of sleeping with two people, not just one. It's a very nice feeling, don't get me wrong, but I can't wait for the baby to be born so I can pull Scully closer to snuggle again. I've pretty much memorized this room by now. We weren't here much before I...before, but Scully wants me to stay with her for a while until she's sure I can stay at home alone. I don't know why she thinks I want to be at my apartment alone, though. It makes sense for her to live here with the baby, since this apartment has two bedrooms, and I think it's understood that I'll go where she goes. The moonlight streams in through the window, and I see it reflect off something on a chair in the corner. I carefully get out of bed and shuffle over to it, my curiosity piqued for some reason. I pick up what appears to be photo album and take it back to bed. The moonlight is bright enough to read by, so I don't have to turn on the light and risk waking Scully. The cover has a simple pinstripe pattern and an oval with the word "memories" elegantly scripted inside. I wonder what kind of memories this book holds. Are they old childhood ones, recently switched into a new book to help keep them longer? Or maybe more recent pictures; I wonder if I make a showing in some random picture. I open it to a cover page with a single photo on it, a baby picture. Underneath the picture was the caption "Rebecca F Scully, September 25, 1994" in what I recognized as Scully's handwriting. Confused, I turn the page to find several more pictures of the baby being held by Scully and four other people, who I assume are Charles Scully and his family. I remember Scully once referring to his two boys, but she never mentioned his daughter. I continue to flip through the album, and I'm only mildly surprised to see that it's totally devoted to Rebecca. It wouldn't surprise me if I found out that Scully has one of these for each of her nephews, too. Suddenly, two photos catch my eye. They're the only two on the page, and one is a black and white. And the black and white photo is of a little boy who looked about four years old, roughly the same age as Rebecca does in the other picture. The little boy is me. And call me a God damned Orioles fan if the faces in the two pictures don't look exactly alike. ^*^*^ I don't know how I fall asleep, but I do, and I don't wake until the next morning when Scully rouses me for my morning antibiotics. The previous night's revelations come rushing back, and I literally bite my tongue to stop myself from saying anything yet. I want us both to be wide-awake before that conversation starts. I manage to hold back my questions until after Rosie ends. That liquid-metal guy from Terminator 2 was on promoting some hokey new kids movie, and Scully seemed to enjoy the interview. I let her have her fun, because she's about to get pulled back into Real Life in a Real Big Way. "Scully...why haven't you ever mentioned your niece?" Her head snaps up, and I can see the shock registered in her face. Just as quickly, her face becomes passive, nearly indifferent. "I suppose for the same reason you never told me about your wife: it didn't come up in conversation." Ouch. Okay, I deserve that. But I'm not about to let her get away with this, not if what I believe is true. "You never told me about your niece because you don't have a niece. Right?" She's silent, so I push onward. "Who is Rebecca? Scully? Is...is she...?" Her reply is so soft I'm not so sure that she says anything at all. But then she meets my eyes and nods, and I know my question has been answered. ~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~* Part 5: Odd One Out Date: 27 March 2014 To: Kathy "kathers327@hotmail.com" From: Rebecca Scully "rfscully@uc.edu" Subject: Happy Birthday! Look who's 13! I'm so happy for you Kathers :) I got a present for ya, it's on the way. So what are you and your parents doing for your birthday? Same ol' same ol'? Or are you gonna try something new and different this year? *g* Are you having a party? Any cute boys invited? ::ducks:: Well, I've got some major work to do...UGH! I'll give you guys a call this weekend, ok? I love you Kathers! <3Reebs === Date: 27 March 2014 To: Reba "rfscully@uc.edu" From: Kathy Mulder "kathers327@hotmail.com" Subject: Re: Happy Birthday! Thank you Reebs! I'll keep my eyes open for your present *g* We're going out for dinner as usual. Rainforest Cafe, surprise surprise, hehe. Mom thinks we musta saved nearly an acre of rainforest for all the money we've spent eating there LOL. << Are you having a party? Any cute boys invited? >> Yes, I'm having a party. *NOOOOO* there aren't any boys coming ::pout pout:: Daddy won't let me...says I have to wait one more year. ::sigh:: He's such a meanie sometimes. Hopefully he'll get me that DVD collection I've been wanting, and then he won't be a meanie anymore :) Well, I gotta go get dressed for the rainforest! Have fun working :P I can't wait to talk to you this weekend! Luv, Kath === Date: 01 July 2014 To: Reba "reebadeeba@excite.com" From: Kathy Mulder "kathers327@hotmail.com" Subject: Re: Hershey << Sounds like a chocoholic's dream come true! >> LOL you bet it is! You can even get hugged by a Reese's! :) So, you're coming on Thursday night, right? We pick you up from BWI@5? We need to know your gate and flight numbers, Mom says. Oh, and she says hi ::Mom waves:: I'm sooooooooooooooooooooooo excited to see you again! It seems like forever since your last visit. Yeah, I know it was just a few months ago over Easter, but that was still FOREVER ago! Oh, Dad's calling me...wants to shag some balls. Man, I wonder if he's gonna invite Mom to play again...sheesh, no quicker way to end a nice little baseball game than to get those two at bat...at the same time...trust me, I'm sure you'll get a show at least once while you're here ;) I'll see you THURSDAY!!!! Luv, Kath === Date: 02 July 2014 To: Kathy "kathers327@hotmail.com" From: Reba Scully "reebadeeba@excite.com" Subject: Re: Hershey Flight 3953 Gate A5 Arrival: 5:38pm Sorry for the short note, but Davey's coming over tonight and I gotta make dinner. He's bringing his girlfriend (and I think he's thinking of proposing soon!) so everyone's gotta be ready to meet her. But I can't wait to see you kiddo! <3Rebs === You know, I fly an awful lot for someone who hates to fly. I don't know why this is...I've just always had this innate fear of flying, but somehow I can deal with it pretty easily. The airplane hits a patch of turbulence and I grab on for dear life. I swear, this thing's out to get me. Thankfully, we land quickly and since I had a third row seat, I'm off the flying Tylenol in a jiffy. I scan the greeting crowd for my uncle and cousin...I know Aunt Dana had a few things to attend to and couldn't make it this time. I spot Mulder first, his head rising above most everyone else's. My uncle Mulder is a very strange man, but I love him to death. I have this weird memory of going to his funeral, but I've never mentioned that to anyone. They'd just tell me it was a dream and that I was crazy. After all, no one can come back from the dead! Right next to him is a bright red head of hair that can only belong to Kathy. I've never seen hair that was naturally that red, but hers is, and has been since the day she was born. "Reeeeeeeeeeeeebs!" she screeches as she catches my eye. She leaves her father's side and comes running at me. I open my arms wide to catch her in a hug. Wow, she's grown since the last time I saw her; she's up to my chin now. "My goodness! Aren't we just a little bit excited?" I tease, squeezing her tight. "Oh I've missed you Reba," Kathy says, pulling back and grinning. I just shake my head and return the sentiment. If there was ever a girl who *really* needed a sibling, Kathy Mulder's the one. I've kinda become a pseudo-sister to her, which is nice for me, because I always wanted a sister of my own. I mean, I love my brothers, but I'm not really that close to them. Mulder wanders over. "Hi Reba," he says in his warm voice that always seems slightly choked up whenever he greets me. Aunt Dana gets the same way. Really very weird. "Hi Mulder," I reply, then step closer to offer him a hug as well. He accepts happily. Eventually we start making our way out to the baggage claim, Mulder walking in the middle with his around both Kathy and me. One more reason he's an oddball...none of my other uncles act so casual with me. Uncle Bill always has given me funny looks...like there's something wrong with me. At Easter this year I almost asked what his problem was, but Matty and Aunt Tara were in the room, and I didn't want to make a scene. But I noticed he gives Mulder the same look. It's really weird. And Mom's brothers, Rob and Steve, they treat me as an outsider, too. Nana Applegate has always been nice to me, but...I don't know. My friend Maeve is adopted, and she says she feels the same way about her extended family. But I'm not adopted, I know that. First of all, I look too much like Dad and Aunt Dana to not be a Scully. And Mom and Dad would have told me if that was true, I know it. So we've decided that there's some sort of big family secret about me. And Mulder's involved, somehow, I think. Or maybe the funny looks he gets are because of that funeral I *swear* I remember. Well, whatever it is, I'm determined to find out this weekend. This is the first time I'm with them by myself, no parents or brothers to get in the way, and I'm *going* to find out the big secret. === It's taken me five days, almost my entire visit, but I think I've discovered what the secret is. I've found some pretty good circumstantial evidence to corroborate my theory, but my gut's telling me that I'm right. I just know it. But I don't want the fact that I know the secret to be a secret itself, so tonight, after Kathy goes to bed, I'm going to confront the adults. I'm even gonna call home on the videophone so everyone knows that the cat's out of the bag. Time inches by, but Kathy shows no sign of sleepiness. Of course I pick the one day we just laze around the house, so she's not exhausted from all the activity. If she doesn't show signs of heading up in a few minutes, I'm gonna have to intervene with a bribe of some sort. Luckily, she yawns on cue, and begins the upward trek after a quick silent debate with the parental units. "Guys, can I talk with you for a bit?" They look at me kinda like I've grown an extra head, but agree. I pull out my phone card then and call up home, ignoring the increasingly befuddled looks I'm getting. "Reba? What's up? Everything okay?" I sit back. "Yeah, everything's okay, Mom. I just...I just have to talk to you four about something really important. I've been doing a lot of thinking about things, and I've come to a realization. "Now, I'm going to give you all the chance to 'fess up first. I'm not angry or anything. I just want to know the truth." I stop talking and look all four adults in the eye. For a few moments, everyone is silent, and I can tell they're all trying to decide if I *really* know what's going on or if I just know there's *something* weird afoot and BS'ing them for the truth. Finally, "Aunt Dana" sighs and looks at me. "How did you find out?" she asks. I shrug. "Lots of little things, really. Like the way the rest of the family always treated me. The way you and Mulder treated me as though I was more than a niece. The way...the way I look nothing like my mother, but I have a mole just like Mulder...I just finally put those things together." I sense that they don't really believe that, though. "All right...I did some snooping, and I found that album with the pictures of and the one of Mulder when he was a little kid." Aun--erm, Aunt Dana throws her head back. "The album strikes again!" she moans, and Mulder unsuccessfully tries to hold back a chuckle. I look at Mom on the videophone. She and Dad look kinda sad, but a little relieved, too. Eighteen years is a long time to keep a secret, I guess. "What do you plan to do with this knowledge, Reba?" Dad asks. "What do you mean?" "I mean...are you going to...I don't know..." he drops his face into his hands, and suddenly I feel bad for bringing this up at all. "Dad...Mom...you'll always be my mom and dad. Really. You guys raised me, that's what matters in the great scheme of things." I turn to Aunt Dana and Mulder. "I'm glad that I know the truth, though. It lets a whole lot of things make sense to me. And I understand why you all kept the secret," I add. "It would have been really confusing to me, I'm sure. "But the one thing I always felt bad about was that I could only be a cousin to Kathy. She and I have always clicked well, and I know she's lonely being an only child." I glance up at Aunt Dana and Mulder, hoping I didn't just insult them. They look sad, but not insulted. "Now that I know that I really *am* her sister...I don't know, but it just makes me feel better." Mom shakes her head. "Amazing, Reba. You're absolutely amazing." We all talk for a bit longer, but eventually my phone card peters out. We say our goodbyes, and I say goodnight. Before I go into my room for the night, though, I stop in Kathy's. She's sound asleep, as she should be, but I can't resist tucking her in just a little bit more and giving her a quick kiss on the cheek. And as I walk out of the room I whisper, "Sleep tight, sis." THE END OF THE ENTIRE STORY SO THERE :oP ^*^*^ Done done done! There's no more you can pull out of me on this one, so don't even try. It's been real, kids :o) Thanks for the memories *g*