Story 96: "Bone of Contention" by Kel and Michelle Kiefer

[wendelah1]

I would like to express my gratitude to the members of this community who carried on and discussed "Iolokus" so brilliantly in my absence. You guys are the best. What? You didn't even notice I was gone? Even better.

Because I am in need of comfort fic, I am by-passing the queue for the moment, in order to post a story I reread any time I am feeling low. I think everyone who loves to read has stories or books or fan fiction that they turn to in times of crisis, for escape or to just to make them smile. This one does all of that, and more. Any story that can make me laugh and cry and creates genuine suspense about the case file and the romance is a classic, in my view. I remember how disappointed I was when emily_shore recced this fic at crack_van. "No," I wailed. "That's my favorite story! I want to get to rec it." So now I have.

Summary: When an investigation in the middle of nowhere opens old wounds, 2000 miles away becomes too close to home. Can Mulder and Scully unravel the puzzle before they fall apart?

Here is a link at Fugues Fiction Archive, divided into two sections: Bone of Contention

Or, if you want it all in one big gulp, here it is on Michelle Kiefer's old site, way-backed. Bone of Contention.

As always, let the authors know what you think, us know what you think and give us your suggestions for next time.

Comments

[(Anonymous)]

(cont.. from above)

And Scully reacts exactly the way Scully would react. She's hurt beyond measure... but she has the capacity to forgive him, because of the solidness of their bond.

I love this:

Her face was deadly white, a mask of pain that he had caused.
An enemy attack would have been gentle by comparision, he
thought. It takes a real friend to wound a person this deeply.
His satisfaction evaporated, leaving only horror in its wake.

"Oh, God, Scully, I'm sorry. I know you didn't let them,"
he said.

"After everything, after all this time, you don't know who
I am?" she whispered.

"I was drugged," he said stupidly.

"Because I can't have children, you don't know who I am?"
she asked.

"That's not what I meant."

"Isn't that what you said?"

"No. But eggs...hormones...sex...and you don't date."

She gripped the wheel. "No point in dating if you can't
make babies. Is that what you're suggesting?" she asked
angrily.

"Hormones," he said lamely. "And feelings, and biology.
Scully, I don't know what they did to you. Do you? I
just didn't know if everything worked the way it should.
Or if I should just forget it."

Mulder knew that with every word he made everything worse,
but he was afraid if he stopped now, they would never speak
again.

"'Cause if you don't, that would be okay. I do love you,
Scully, even though you make me feel like an ass whenever
I say it."


And her reaction:

It explained a lot.

Scully kicked off her shoes and sat against her bed's
headboard, wishing she had a cigarette and a stiff
drink. Oh yes, Mulder's revelation explained a whole
raft of previously baffling events.

No wonder he'd gently put her off after her cancer
had gone into remission. He obviously cared about
her; she had no doubt of that. But when she had
tried to advance them into a new direction during
their little detour from the partnership seminar
in Florida, he'd neatly sidestepped the issue,
leaving her holding the wine and cheese.

At the time, she'd assumed he was still reeling
from almost losing her. Or maybe she just wasn't
his type--not tall enough, leggy enough, sexy
enough. It was finally clear, though, that he'd
been repulsed. Oh, he'd been too kind to actually
say it. Unless he was drugged, Mulder would never
come out and admit he saw her as a neuter, a
freak show exhibit.

Her face burned with humiliation."


And then:

"I can't stand it," Mulder said at last. "After
everything we've been through, everything *you've*
been through, what's breaking us apart is something
I said. I can't take it back, Scully. I would
if I could."

"That's a bit melodramatic, wouldn't you say?"
she asked, hoping her voice didn't betray her.

"Is it, Scully? Are you going to be able to get
past this?"

"You have to give me some time, Mulder."

"Time for you to pretend it never happened?" he
asked darkly.

"What the hell do you want, Mulder? You called me
a neuter. I can't just 'shake it off' in a matter
of hours."

"Is that what you heard, Scully? Because that
isn't what I meant, not ever."


Such, honest, in-character reactions. And the way it's all wrapped up just leaves you with a warm fuzzy feeling, even if it borders on sentimentality.. but really, it's the only way to finish this kind of story and do it any kind of justice.

And Roger and the Sheep. Bizarre, twisted, and tender. Perfect.

I guess that's how I would describe the entire story... bizarre, twisted, and tender. Perfect, despite its imperfections, or maybe even because of them.

-Kate

[amyhit.livejournal.com]

I was offline while the Iolokus discussion was going on, and when i came back i snagged a bunch of everyone's comments into a word file and started, sort of, "disputing" with those comments - for my own edification, of course. now i want to post my thoughts, in my own journal, but i'm not very comfortable with doing that unless i can contact the people i'm quoting and disagreeing with and let them know i'm doing it. it seems unfair otherwise.

So, Kate, if you would drop me a line, or just let me know you've seen this and are aware that someone (me) is going to be quoting you on her journal, I would really appreciate it. thanks. or if you had some major qualm about my doing so you could voice that as well. and sorry, all, for cluttering your Bone of Contention thread. As if Iolokus doesn't get enough attention, right? *smirk*

I quite liked Bone of Contention. I don't have the glowing feelings for it that many people do, but i thought it was well plotted, and that the original characters were particularly good. i never really bought that mulder would have thought scully was hormonally altered as a result of her abduction and subsequent infertility - at least not to the extent he thought she might have been in BoC, but it was an interesting idea, anyway.

ETA: i just want to clarify - i think it would've been realistic for mulder to have wondered about scully's biochemical functions, post abduction. i just don't think he actually did, much. i don't think, canonically, it was an issue. and i don't see it as being 'in character' for that reason.

[(Anonymous)]

Hi,
Sorry, I didn't see you were looking for me until Wendelah pointed it out to me! Yes, feel free to repost or quote my comments if you'd like to.. I'd be interested to hear your thoughts on Iolokus. As you can probably tell, it just didn't float my boat, but you'll find I don't have much of an ego and get a kick out of seeing my arguments parsed or given a healthy beating :) Thanks for asking though, I appreciate it.

- Kate