-------------------
Date: December 10, 1996
Rating: PG-13
Category: S 
Spoilers: none
Summary: An agent has mischief in mind for Scully's 
social life.
Disclaimers: (see last page)
-------------------
This is a short, sort-of humorous piece. It may be a 
little out of character, but then this is The X-
Files and you never know. 
Reminder: anytime you see <> it indicates personal 
thoughts etc. not said out loud.
-------------------
Write me? Lonely... need good mail...
:->
-------------------


Blueprint For Mischief (1/1)
by Alicia Dononvan
<lilgreyfox@aol.com> or <greyfox@netcom.ca>



He couldn't believe it. He just couldn't. After all 
this time thinking he didn't have a chance. 

<I am so mad!> 

Brian Pendrell wondered what she saw in him. *He* 
wasn't her type. At least he didn't think so. *He* 
wasn't even that good looking. 

<And there I was everyday comparing myself to her 
partner. Thinking I wasn't tall enough, I didn't 
have distinguishing enough features, I couldn't make 
all those witty comments.>

Then yesterday he had seen her holding hands with 
*that* man. A look of adoration in her eyes. 
Giggling at his cute little jokes.

<I'm not stupid enough to think that he's just her 
friend. Mulder is just her friend. This man is not 
*just* her friend.> 

Pendrell tried to think clearly about the man. He 
did want to have an unbiased opinion. But, 
nevertheless he knew it probably would be otherwise.

<I can match his height and his frame. I'm sure I'm 
at least as smart as he is and perhaps even more so. 
I should have made my move earlier! Now what am I 
going to do?>

He walked to the elevator and pushed the down 
button. Everyone in the building must have been 
leaving at once. Brian thought of kicking the darn 
thing, but knew it wouldn't do any good. Finally it 
arrived.

Getting the elevator to come and open was one thing, 
now it wouldn't close. He punched the lobby button 
till his finger ached.

"Hold the elevator," someone called as the doors 
just began to close.

He pressed the open button.

"Geez, Agent Pendrell. Couldn't you just wait?" 

It was Agent Mulder. 

<Does he have to frown at me like that? God, I'm 
having a bad day.> Pendrell thought.

"I'm sorry, I didn't hear you at first. Are you 
going home now?" he asked him trying to be polite.

Mulder was not a bad guy. He was just misunderstood. 
It was unfair how people talked about him and Dana 
behind their backs. Mulder was an intelligent fellow 
and some people were just jealous at his uncanny 
ability to solve  impossible cases.

"Yeah, I just came from the A.D.'s office. You going 
home too?" he asked. Pendrell nodded.

<Should I ask him about her? Why not?>

"Has Agent Scully gone home?" he asked trying to 
sound nonchalant.

Mulder seemed surprised at the question and shook 
his head. Brian hoped he would explain his reaction.

"Oh. Haven't you heard through the grapevine, 
Pendrell?" he asked.

"What?"

"Agent Scully has a date. An actual date with Agent 
Karlsen. They've been going out for almost 2 weeks 
straight. It just so happens we haven't had to go 
out of town lately." His tone was sympathetic.

"Really. She's going out to dinner with him 
tonight?"

"Yep. She left early to get her hair done. They're 
going to that restaurant, Lascaux. She loves French 
food, but he doesn't. I don't know why they decided 
to go there," he said watching the lights blink at 
each floor as they descended.

"Why doesn't he like French cuisine?"

"He hates shallots and parsley, or is it chives?" he 
said wrinkling his nose, trying to remember. "Oh, 
but I definitely remember her saying that he's 
allergic to alcohol. He breaks out at just a taste. 
Strange to go to a French restaurant. They use wine 
in most of their sauces and dishes." Mulder 
shrugged.

"She really likes him doesn't she?" He asked holding 
my breath hoping he'd tell me otherwise.

"Yes, I think so. She said she'd take a little more 
time to get to know him, but she likes him a lot," 
he said smiling.

<I think Mulder is enjoying this. I shouldn't seem 
so obvious!>

"What about you? What do you think of Trevor going 
out with Dana? Aren't you just the least bit 
jealous?"

"Me? No! I think it's great she's seeing someone. 
Why would I be jealous? We're just friends," Mulder 
explained. "You know, it's no secret. You've had a 
crush on her for quite a while,"

"What? Oh, you noticed? Am I that obvious?"

"Afraid so. You know it's a shame. Your *admiration* 
for Dana is far greater than Trevor's,"

"It's out of my hands now," Pendrell added in 
defeat.

"Cheer up, Pendrell. You still have a chance. All's 
fair in love and war, and in your case, I bet it's 
going to be a Revolution!" he said.

Mulder smacked his back in a friendly way before 
stepping out of the elevator ahead of him. Brian 
wondered why Mulder was in such a rush. Perhaps he 
had a date as well. 

<Everyone has a date except me! Mulder's correct. 
This is war and I have the perfect strategy> 
Pendrell grinned as he walked out to his car.

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

<It's always this way when I have something 
important to do. Where did all this traffic come 
from? It's past 6:30> He rolled down his window.

"C'mon! Come on!" he yelled out loud. 

Of course Brian knew shouting at drivers would not 
induce them to plow a clear path just for him. He 
gripped the steering wheel so tightly his knuckles 
turned white.

He thought of Claude. He would help, plus the fact 
that they were cousins worked in his favor. Brian 
had helped to sponsor him to come to America only a 
few years ago and Claude was grateful.

Pendrell pulled into the nearest parking space as he 
neared the back entrance to the restaurant. It was a 
tight fit. 

<Wow. After watching 'Ace Ventura: Pet Detective' I 
can park anywhere>

He walked to the building and opened the back door 
slowly, hoping it wouldn't creak. Stepping into the 
bustling kitchen, he looked for Claude whom he 
spotted overseeing the cooks by the grill.

"Claude." I called. 

He turned to Pendrell and smiled.

"Brian! How did you get in here?" he sauntered over 
and gave him a pat on the shoulder.

"Good to see you," he greeted him. "It's not 
important how I got in here. What is, is that I need 
a huge favor. Remember you said you owe me one!"

"Alright. What is it?" he asked curiously.

He walked over to the small, circular glass window 
looking out to the many tables in the dining area. 
The couple he wanted to see was being seated by the 
maitre'd at that very moment. He waved to beckon 
Claude.

"What's wrong?" Claude asked.

"You see that couple?" he asked him pointing through 
the circle. "That, is the woman of my dreams." 
Pendrell saw Claude smile mischievously. 

"I see, I see! You want me to personally take care 
of their orders, n'est-ce pas?"

"You read my mind!"

"Done. No problem for my buddy!" he said.

Claude waited for their waiter to return and told 
him he would take care of the order personally.

"Brian, they made some requests for the man's 
dishes. He can't take parsley and shallots. They 
make him feel sick. And no Burgundy in the sauce," 
Claude read aloud.

"Do what you can, but not too much that will make 
him ill." 

Pendrell couldn't believe he was actually telling 
him to sabotage Dana's date. He promised himself he 
would go to confession this week. Pushing aside his 
guilt, he went to observe Claude making Trevor 
Karlsen's salad and main course. 

<Oh, well... All's  fair.> 

Claude put the finishing garnishes on the plates. To 
the untrained eye, no evidence of
one shallot or a sprig of parsley could be detected. 
The sauce was made to perfection. Brian hoped Trevor 
would not eat too much without first tasting his 
order.

The waiter came for their entrees and put them on a 
mahogany cart to be wheeled out. Claude wished his 
cousin luck as he hid behind the waiter and followed 
him through the door. 

<I can take cover in those plants near their table. 
I should have become a spy. I'm doing the right 
thing. I have to fight for her!>

Pulling a large leaf off of one of the plants to use 
as camouflage, he moved closer through the foliage. 
Dana looked towards the plants. Horrified Pendrell 
stayed motionless. He was even afraid to breathe. 
Then, she looked away. He sighed in relief and 
strained his ears to listen to what they were 
saying.

"I'm so glad we came here tonight. It's lovely," 
Dana exclaimed.

It was lovely. Beautiful chandeliers hung from the 
ceiling, but their light was slightly dimmed giving 
the restaurant a warm, romantic atmosphere. 
Accomplished musicians played fine classical music 
in one corner of the restaurant.
Every detail was taken to make their dining 
experience memorable down to the delicate floral 
bouquets and crystal candle holders on each table.

"Anything for you, my dear. Dana, you look 
absolutely wonderful tonight," said Agent Karlsen.

"Thank you. Compliments are hard to come by these 
days," she blushed. "Did you hear something, 
Trevor?" she looked towards the greenery.

<Oh no. She's looking this way. Be still! Be one 
with the plant. I am the plant, the plant is me> 

"It's nothing. You know, Agent Mulder doesn't 
appreciate you enough," 

Agent Karlsen reached out to take Dana's hand in 
his, making Pendrell's stomach turn. He almost 
cheered when the waiter arrived and interrupted.

"Viola. Monsieur et mademoiselle, bon appetit." 

Karlsen must have been hungry. He began eating 
immediately, chewing his food briefly and then 
swallowing it. His face quickly began to turn a 
shade of pink. He coughed a few times, drank half 
his glass of water, and wiped his mouth. Then, 
without much of a pause to say more than one 
sentence, he continued to eat. Pendrell could almost 
feel devlish red horns and a tail growing out from 
his head and behind. 

<Is he going to stop? He looks like a fire hydrant! 
I'm doing the right thing, right? Sure you are. 
She'll thank me later.>

Suddenly Karlsen began to sneeze. Seven times 
consecutively. When he stopped sneezing, he put 
another piece of food in his mouth. Unexpectedly 
Karlsen spit it out with disgust, most of it landing 
on Dana's new dress.

"Are you alright?" Pendrell heard Dana ask.

"Waiter, waiter! I specifically said no shallots!" 
he stood and bellowed as the maitre'd came running.

"Monsieur, I am so sorry! Please, the chef must have 
made a terrible mistake," the man apologized.

"It was just a mistake," Dana added.

"A mistake? I made a point to tell you no shallots 
or parsley. WHAT IS THAT?" he pointed to the plate. 
"And I'm sure this sauce has wine in it! I am 
allergic to wine!"

The restaurant became deathly quiet. Agent Karlsen's 
complaints caused the other people to sit and stare 
with horrified looks.

"Trevor, calm down. I'm sure they didn't mean to 
make such a mistake. It's still early. I'm sure they 
can make your chicken again properly," Dana tried.

"Oui, of course. Please let me get monsieur another 
plate," the waiter almost groveled.

"I don't want another plate! I'm breaking out into 
hives! And I'm going to be sick! I'm leaving!" With 
that Agent Karlsen stormed out of the restaurant 
leaving Dana behind to deal with the waiter.

Pendrell carefully sneaked back into the kitchen and 
found Claude watching from the glass window.

<Oh, Brian. How could you. That was awful. Okay, 
confession it is> he thought to himself.

"That did not take too long. Your friend caused 
quite a scene. I was surprised to see him, how do 
you say... inhale the chicken so quickly without 
tasting it a little," Claude told his cousin.

"You won't get in trouble for this, will you Claude? 
I did go over the top," Pendrell said feeling 
remorseful.

"Non, don't be silly. I will just tell Jacques it 
was a mistake. After all, I am the head chef and 
that Trevor was very rude," 

"Well, thanks a lot. I better be leaving," Brian 
thanked him and walked out the back.

<I did do the right thing. Of course you did. You 
saw the kind of scene he made. He doesn't deserve 
her. I did the right thing. I deserve her> Pendrell 
tried to convince himself. 

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

Brian Pendrell paced back and forth in his office 
like he had every single day for two weeks following 
the incident. His coworkers sharing the office space 
had already left for lunch.

It had gone round the department that something must 
have gone wrong on Agent Scully and Agent Karlsen's 
date. Dana had refused his calls and ignored him in 
the cafeteria. When Karlsen had continued to cause 
embarrassing scenes, Dana had just stopped coming to 
the cafeteria for lunch. Karlsen had been on the 
warpath ever since.

Today was the day, Pendrell thought. He would ask 
her out to lunch. Just as friends. Then he would 
perhaps ask her to a movie and see where their 
relationship could head.

<Yes. Today is the day>

He picked up the phone and dialed. After dialing six 
of the seven numbers, he put the phone back in it's 
receiver.

<It would be better if I asked her in person> he 
decided and grabbed his coat.

--------

<I can't believe she isn't going to see him 
anymore!> he thought to himself.

Pendrell raced to the elevator. If he didn't ask her 
out now, he was going to lose his nerve again.

Instead of going down to the basement directly, he 
decided to go to the first floor lobby and take the 
stairs down. He would need the time to think of what 
to say to Dana.

<I'm really going to do this. This is it. I *AM* 
going to ask her> The words kept repeating over and 
over as if he needed to hypnotize himself. 

The elevator doors opened and he allowed the other 
passengers to exit before him. He took a deep breath 
and stepped out of the metal box. He balled up his 
fists and blew out the air in his lungs while 
mouthing the word 'Yes!'. 

Pendrell turned to the right to walk towards the 
stairwell. Before he went a step further, the 
elevator beside him opened. Only two people emerged, 
but they were quickly swallowed by the mass of 
people.

A flash of red caught his attention. Through the 
crowd he noticed that Dana was walking towards the 
back entrance that FBI and other personnel used to 
exit and enter the building.

"Damn, too many people!" Pendrell muttered. "Da... 
Agent Scully," he called.

Over the murmur of the crowd, his voice was small 
and unheard. He noticed that Agent Mulder was 
walking beside her. He laughed quietly at how much 
taller the man was than his partner. Dana would get 
sick of someone towering over her like a Sequoia 
every single day. Comparing himself to Mulder, 
Pendrell smiled at the thought of Dana being able to 
just gaze up and there he would stand. She'd never 
have to use a stepstool to... to.... He blushed at the 
thought.

He made his way through the crowd and ran to catch 
up. He noticed that Agent Mulder was carrying his 
partner's coat. 

<If nothing else, at least Mulder is a gentleman> He 
thought. <Maybe if I call Mulder, he'll hear me>

"Agent Mul---" his voice dropped off.

Pendrell stopped suddenly making the woman behind 
him slam into him. He didn't even notice her annoyed 
comments for his sudden halt. Pendrell looked ahead 
of him and frowned.

The two agents ahead of him had stopped walking and 
were waiting their turn to walk through the metal 
detectors. The long line moved slowly.

<What's he doing?>

Agent Mulder took his partner's coat from his arm 
and had held it out for her to put on. As she 
slipped her arms through the sleeves, Mulder bent 
near to Dana's ear and whispered something that made 
her smile. As if as an after thought, she covered 
her face with her hands and shook her head with 
embarrassment.  

Even from where Pendrell was standing, he could see 
her blush. Just when he thought that was the end of 
that, Mulder gently pulled his partner's hands down 
from her face and pushed her hair away from her 
eyes. He bent down closely and looked at her with a 
mischievous smirk on his face.

Pendrell's arms lay limp by his side. His legs felt 
like they had taken root in the linoleum. He 
couldn't run up and demand to know what was going 
on. 

Then, he saw Dana reach up and tweak her partner's 
nose playfully. Pendrell's jaw dropped. He had never 
seen them this playful with each other. He had to be 
dreaming. No, it was a nightmare. Mulder caught his 
partner's hand in his and shook his index finger 
while he mouthed 'no-no-no' and laughed out loud. 
Hand-in-hand, the pair walked through the arch and 
then out of the building.

Brian Pendrell's gaze followed the tall man, 
invisible daggers shooting out of his eyes. He stood 
confused and fuming.

"Mr. Fox Mulder, I believe you set me up!... Well, let 
me tell you this. Don't you turn your back on me. 
Just when you think your safe. I'll be there. I'll 
be watching you! I hope you sleep with one eye 
open!"

The guards kept an eye on the strange man with smoke 
coming out of his ears, standing by the elevators 
and staring at the empty lobby.


<end>


---------------------
I'm thinking of continuing this one depending on 
what you, the readers think. I already have a few 
ideas, how about you? Comments welcomed! Have a nice 
day!
---------------------
Disclaimer: Characters and theme were 
borrowed from The X-Files belonging to 
Ten Thirteen Productions and Twentieth 
Century Fox. The key word here is 
"borrowed"
No infringement of copyright is intended. For the 
love of the show...
-----------------

All done... bye-bye!