Title:  Clarification	
Author: Dana Doggett
E-mail: danadoggett@yahoo.com
Date: January 24, 2003
Rating: PG
Category: DSR
Spoilers: Never Again
Archive: Anywhere, just let me know .
Disclaimer: John Doggett, Dana Scully, Monica Reyes 
and Fox Mulder are not my characters, if they were, 
"The X-Files" would have ended in a completely 
different way. I do not profit from writing 
fanfiction; I do this for pure enjoyment.
Feedback: I love it! Send to: admin@danadoggett.com
Beta: Not used. Typos and especially grammar errors
are my own :) I promise, if I had written this in French
about 5-6 years ago that grammar would be perfect.
Unfortunate my first language isn't that good.

Summary: Scully takes Doggett to the Hard Eight 
Lounge in Philadelphia.

Author's Note: I'm not very confident with this 
story, it's a departure from what I normally write. 
All feedback is greatly appreciated. I've used no 
beta so any and all mistakes are mine and I like 
them, so ha!

Dedication: to Kristi for inspiring me to write a 
story outside of "Fox & Rat" Virtual Series, and to 
not write humor, and for reading this story before I 
typed it up, despite the fact that you do not 100% 
support DSR. But I know you like it.





CLARIFICATION
By Cassie


It had been a long day of surveillance for John 
Doggett and Dana Scully. Mulder had insisted that 
they go check out a UFO organization based in 
Philadelphia. He had received an anonymous tip that 
the organization had captured an alien and were going 
to use its telepathic powers to control the mind of 
the President and other world leaders. Because Mulder 
and Monica were already working on another case, 
Mulder demanded that Scully and Doggett "check things 
out". They did so, but only after Scully debated with 
Mulder for a couple hours.

After the first few hours passed in their 
surveillance, Doggett and Scully's suspicions were 
proven correct. This UFO organization was nothing 
more than a group of twenty-somethings getting 
together to watch alien movies.

Scully had called Mulder on his cell phone and 
informed him that his informant was only pulling his 
leg, there was no alien. Mulder was disappointed but 
thanked her for checking it out anyway and then hung 
up. 

Since they were stuck in Philadelphia for the 
remainder of the evening, Doggett and Scully decided 
to go back to the hotel, wash up and go out for 
dinner and a drink.

It was Scully's idea to go to the Hard Eight Lounge. 
The place was just as she remembered it. Dark, loud, 
still the number one place for people to go when they 
wished to feel better about their own lives because 
everyone else who was there seemed to have worse 
problems than they do.

Scully and Doggett found a table in a dark corner of 
the bar and ordered drinks. 

Though he didn't say it, Doggett seemed puzzled as to 
why Scully had chosen to take him to this place. He 
figured she was a conservative person. Maybe he was 
wrong. To keep himself comfortable, he rambled on 
about the ridiculous case Mulder had asked them to do 
that day.

As he rambled, Scully drifted away in her own 
thoughts. Why had she wanted to come back to this 
place? It's not like she had the greatest time here 
several years ago. Was it because once again Mulder 
played her superior and demanded that she do work for 
him? Did she unknowingly feel the need to get wasted 
again? God help her, there was no way in Hell that 
she was going to come home with another tattooed 
souvenir or a one-night stand.

She pauses her thoughts and glances at Doggett, he 
seemed rather comfortable in his surroundings. Had he 
spent nights at bars such as this, drowning his own 
sorrows? She didn't know. In fact, there was a lot 
unsaid between the two of them. They had become close 
friends over the past few years. Yet there were still 
topics that they want to discuss - need to discuss - 
but they haven't found the right opportunity to do 
so. One being her suspicion that John believed she 
and Mulder were romantically together...interested in 
each other. The opportunity to clarify that never 
seemed to present itself.

"Dana?"

Upon hearing John's voice, Scully snapped out of her 
own mind.

"Yeah?"

"I asked you a question," he seemed a bit irritated.

"I'm sorry, I uh... was thinking about something else. 
What was the question?"

"I asked whether or not you were going to enlighten 
me as to why we came to a place like this." He smiled 
at her, reassuring her that he isn't irritated with 
her lack of attention. He continued when she didn't 
answer him right away. "Or should I let my 
imagination come up with a wild theory? You know 
agent Mulder isn't the only one capable of such a 
thing."

There he goes again, mentioning Mulder, ok time to 
get off that topic. She laughs before speaking.

"Wild theory? Now you've got me interested in the 
ideas of your imagination." She gives him a smile. 
"Actually I was here several years ago, some guy told 
me it was a great place to go to make yourself feel 
better, ya know everyone here looks like they have 
worse problems than you."

"You got a problem?"

Scully takes a sip from her drink.

"Everyone's got problems, John."

"You said you've been here before, with agent Mulder 
I presume?"

"No. Mulder wasn't with me. Like today, he asked me 
to do surveillance, I wound  up in the tattoo parlor 
across the street, met a guy and he had mentioned 
this place, I asked him to take me here." 

"You wound up in a tattoo parlor? I didn't notice 
that you had a tattoo." He sounds amused.

"Let's just say it's well-hidden." She watches 
Doggett react to her vague detail on the location of 
her tattoo. The look on his face made her wonder 
where his mind was placing the tattoo on her body. 
She smiles at that thought.

Doggett began to ask a question, "What kind of -"

"An ouroborous. Snake eating it's own tail. It 
represents conflict in life, that one must die in 
order to be reborn, a symbol of a new beginning."

"Must have been at a changing point in your life. 
Well, either that or you were really hammered."

"No, not hammered, it was more rebellious. I have the 
tendency to do that when I feel misunderstood or 
degraded by authority figures."

"Any chance you'll be getting another tattoo 
tonight?" He asked playfully.

"No."

For a few seconds, they are quiet. Doggett seems to 
be humored by something, Scully doesn't even want to 
imagine what, but she just has to ask.

"What is it, John?"

"You."

"Me?"

"Yeah, you talkin' all mysterious about your tattoo's 
location - "

"I was not."

"Well, you told me what it was but not where you had 
it done. I'd say you're purposely not tellin' me, for 
your own humor." He smirked at her, "Besides, I think 
you're forgetting that I've read all those x-file 
cases, I know where it is." He winks at her and takes 
a long drink from his glass.

Slightly embarrassed, Scully lowers her head, "So, 
you know everything that happened between Ed and I? 
The one-night stand - "

"- Geez Dana!" He lets out an uncomfortable cough, 
"One-night stand?! Was the guy worth it?!"

Scully gives him a disapproving look, she doesn't 
answer.

Again, silence. A minute passes and Doggett rubs the 
back of his neck, better change the subject.

"So, somethin' goin' on in your life now that made 
you wanna come back here tonight?" He speaks 
seriously, then changes his tone to flirtation for 
the rest of his question, "Or are you expectin' to 
get a one-night stand outta me?"

The straight-forwardness to his question makes Scully 
uncomfortable.

"No... and um... even if that were my plan, I'd know 
better because you aren't that kind of guy."

He teases her, "You sure of that?"

Scully's mouth drops open in shock. What is he doing 
to her mind? How does she respond to that?

Doggett senses her uneasiness.

"I'm just kiddin', Dana." He's sincere. He reaches 
over and places his hands on hers. She looks up at 
him, wide-eyed. "You're right, I'm not that kind of 
guy."

Doggett lets go of her hands. What comes out of her 
mouth next is unexpected, even to her.

"What kind of guy are you, John?" He looks at her 
quizzically, she elaborates, "I've known you for a 
few years now and not once have you been out with a 
woman."

"I'm here with you, aren't I?"

"Besides me."

"Besides you? I don't like to waste my time with 
women I'm not interested in."

"What are you saying, that you're interested in me?" 
She laughs, not taking him seriously, or is she 
laughing because she knows that is the truth, and 
finally it's coming out? She stops when she notices 
Doggett was being serious. For some idiotic reason, 
she feels the need to apologize to him. "Sorry, I 
didn't mean to imply that you're interested in me... 
like that."

"No. You're exactly what I'm interested in, Dana." 
He's blunt. 

Since when has John Doggett been so straight-to-the-
point with her? She leans back in her chair, to 
better look at him, trying to see if he is pulling 
her leg.

"Why me?" she asks suspiciously.

"Why not?"

Suddenly, it seems as if everyone has stopped what 
they were doing, and has decided to watch them and 
listen in on their conversation. Uncomfortable, 
Scully turns her head to look behind her, no one is 
watching, they could care less.

When Scully hadn't answered him after a few seconds, 
Doggett decides that he has said something wrong, 
that he shouldn't have told her that he's interested 
in her.

"Look, I respect you. If you don't share the feelings 
that I have for you, that's all right, I understand."

Angrily, he stands up and heads to the bar to pay for 
their drinks. Scully remains at their table, 
speechless. She didn't mean to upset him, she just 
wasn't sure how to express her feelings to him. She 
had her suspicions that he cared for her more than 
just a working relationship. She assumed he didn't 
act upon his feelings because of either her inability 
to show interest in him or her unclear relationship 
with Mulder. Well, the last part is unclear to 
Doggett, not her.

She stands up, grabbing her coat and heads to the 
exit, where Doggett is waiting. However before she 
can get to him, he steps outside. Obviously, still 
bitter about her reaction to him saying he is 
interested in her.

Wonderful, they have the rest of the night, morning 
breakfast and an airplane ride back to D.C. to get 
through and he's acting like this. She should tell 
him how she feels about him and clarify to him her 
relationship with Mulder. She exits, unsure how to go 
about doing this.

Doggett is only a few feet ahead of her, heading back 
to their rental car, which is parked a couple blocks 
away. Scully quickens her pace in order to catch up 
to him.

"John!"

He stops and turns to face her. Once she is face to 
face with him, she decides to blurt out what is on 
her mind.

"There's nothing between Mulder and I."

There, she said it, he knows. 

Doggett doesn't respond to her statement. Not only is 
there a look of relief written on his face, but also 
one that indicates he is still ticked about earlier, 
yet a passion for her in his eyes. Before she knows 
what is happening, Doggett has her back pressed up 
against the brick wall of a building, his lips 
against hers.

This is raw passion, caused by years of pent up 
tension between the two of them. Scully runs her 
hands roughly up the back of his neck and through his 
hair. She holds his head, wanting him to continue, 
not wanting this moment to end. He pulls back, 
leaving her breathless.

He steps back, keeping his eye on her. He knows that 
he has left her wanting more, but he refuses to act 
upon it tonight. Yeah, she may not be involved with 
Mulder, but he can't know for sure if she feels the 
same way that he does about her, or if she's just 
looking for another one-night stand. Especially 
considering she took him to a place where she last 
hooked up with a one-nighter.

Scully lets out a small cough and steps away from the 
wall. She straightens her hair and clothing, after 
realizing that his hands had devoured her within 
seconds of contact. She looks to him, he looks away. 
They head back to the car.

They drive back to their hotel in complete silence.


That night, Scully lies awake, unable to shake the 
feelings that John Doggett aroused in her. The feel 
of his body pressed against her own, the taste of his 
mouth, the roughness of his touch... all too much for 
her to take at once. It had been years since a man 
made her feel this way. She hated herself for only 
telling him the Mulder part of what she wanted to 
say, that she didn't tell him that she cared for him 
the way he cares for her. Now it was probably too 
late. He had been silent for a reason. Like he had 
asked, he probably thought she was trying to get a 
one-night stand out of him. That wasn't true.

Restless, she turns to glance at the clock, 3:17 a.m. 
Great, with her mind and body as worked up as it is, 
she'll never get any sleep.

There is a gentle knock on the door that joins her 
room with Doggett's. The door creeks open and Doggett 
pokes his head in.

"Dana...?" He's quiet. "You awake?"

Scully moans a response. She rolls over to face him 
and sits up.

Doggett enters the room and sits on the foot of her 
bed.

"I couldn't sleep," he began, "I'm sorry for what 
happened earlier. I disrespected you, I never meant 
to do that. It won't happen again."

Scully nods her head, it's nice to have a man state 
that he respects her.

"Apology accepted."

Doggett nods his head, relieved that he did not upset 
her. He stands up and heads to the door. 

Dammit, she wants to tell him. She has to keep him 
here longer. Her mind races to find a way to discuss 
her feelings for him.

"John?" she hesitates, "Why did you-?"

"It felt like the right thing to do."

He disappears into his room. Frustrated, Scully gets 
out of bed and follows him.

"John? Why did you say that you won't let that happen 
again?" 

"Why? Do you want it to happen again?"

Scully bites her lower lip. Of course she wants it to 
happen again. 

"Well... it wouldn't be a bad thing... I just uh... need 
to... well, I want to tell you that - "

"Dana, you're beating around the bush about 
something. What is it?"

Ok, he wants her to come right out and say it. She 
can do that.

"I want you, John."

There, she said it... though it could have been worded 
better.

"I'm standin' here." He crosses his arms across his 
chest.

Scully steps towards him, "I told you that there is 
nothing between Mulder and I because I thought that 
maybe that was the reason why you hadn't acted upon 
the feelings you have for me. I wanted to clarify 
that so you could... then you did... and now you seem 
just a little... off."

He sighs and uncrosses his arms. "Ok, let's pretend 
you just told me about you and Mulder. There's 
nothin' between you two. I'm lookin' at you, you're 
lookin' at me... now what?"

They look into each other's eyes for some time, both 
unsure about what to do next. Scully decides that she 
has to make the first move, to show him that she 
cares for him. She goes up to him, places her hand on 
his shoulder and kisses him on the cheek, lingering 
for a few seconds. He looks down at her, a new 
softness in his eyes, he understands.

"Dana..." he speaks softly to her.

"Shhh..." she places her fingertip on his mouth, 
quieting him.

She wraps her arms around his waist, engraving this 
moment into her memory... the beat of his heart, the 
sound of his breath, the feel of his arms pulling her 
closer to him. She shuts her eyes, enjoying the 
comfort that being this close to him brings her. She 
lets out a sigh, then relaxes into him. Melts into 
him.

Doggett's arms loosen and he tilts her face up 
towards his and kisses her softly on the lips. The 
sensations his touch gives, cause her to tremble 
lightly. She didn't know that any man could make her 
feel this way, loved.

He kisses her once more on the forehead before 
caressing her face and saying goodnight. 

Scully returned to her own bed without him. She knew 
this would be one of her last nights sleeping alone.

END

----------------------------------------

If you enjoyed this story I would love to hear from you. Please send your feedback to the 
following e-mail address:

danadoggett@yahoo.com

(constructive criticism is also welcome)