Impulse Author: Suzanne Schramm E-mail: sister-sue@rocketmail.com Rating: R Spoilers: US5, FTF (this is a Season 6 scenario) Classification: MSR Summary: Mulder and Scully investigate some strange doings in a little town where people seem to have no control over their actions. Disclaimer: These characters aren't mine. I use them without permission but with great reverence. Impulse 7/7 ****** Silver Horseshoe Bar Cooper, WY It was just after 1:00 when Mulder and Scully walked into the bar. Paul was wiping off tables. All but a few of the customers had left. Bob was at the bar, staring absently at the glass in front of him. Mulder touched Scully's elbow lightly to guide her inside. Was it his imagination or did she shiver at the slight contact? Mulder knew he felt hypersensitive to her presence. They had walked over in a comfortable silence, occasionally brushing against one another. Mulder had quickly learned to crave the electric sensations dancing across his nerve endings. Paul looked up. He may have been indifferent on meeting Mulder but he was giving Scully an appreciative once-over. Mulder felt proud and wanted to punch him at the same time. "Can I help you two?" Paul asked Scully. "Scully, this is Paul . . ." "Tucker. Paul Tucker." He nearly smiled at Scully. "Mr. Tucker, this is my partner, Agent Scully." "Ma'am." Paul nodded. Scully was wasting no time. "Mr. Tucker, we have reason to believe that the incident involving Agents Pehrson and Whitman may be related to this bar." "Humpf." Paul was impassive once more. "We also believe that much of the inexplicable behavior these past few months can be traced back to this bar." Mulder added. "That right?" Paul still wasn't impressed. He went back to wiping the table. Bob siddled up to them. He, too, gave Scully a warm look but his was much more paternal in nature. "Agent Mulder, what brings you back so soon?" Bob asked, a twinkle in his eye. Mulder was sure for a heartstopping moment that he knew. "I was discussing your theory with my partner about how people spending time here were acting on impulse." Mulder said smoothly. "This late at night? Thought you took yourself off duty." Bob regarded him keenly. Mulder felt the flush creeping up his neck. "Not everyone who's been to this bar has been howling at the moon." Paul was becoming indignant. "Nope." Bob said. "Not everyone. Just the ones drinking the cheap stuff." In the dim light of the bar it was hard to tell but it looked like Paul colored. "The cheap stuff?" Scully had that face, the incredulous one that always left Mulder scrambling mentally when it was directed at him. Bob didn't seem fazed. "Yeah. Paul here started making his own beer about five years ago." "It's a micro brewery." Paul was definitely becoming offended. "I said it was cheap, not that it was bad. Haven't I been drinking it all these years?" Bob hurried to assure Paul. "Was that what I drank tonight?" Mulder wanted to know. Bob's eyes sparkled mischieviously. "It sure was." "You're running a microbrewery here?" Scully looked around the bar, taking in its small size and grizzled patrons. "Isn't that more of a high end kind of venture?" "Sure. It was my wife's idea. She was always into making-it-yourself. She made her own soap, clothes, that kind of stuff." "Could we speak with her?" Scully asked. "If you find her let me know. She up and left me a couple months back." "After the earthquake?" Mulder wanted to know. Paul mutely nodded. "There you go with your earthquake again." Bob chuckled and shook his head. "Have you changed anything regarding how you make the beer since the earthquake?" Mulder asked. "Nope. Recipe's the same." Mulder slowly looked around the bar, at a loss. "We had to change vats, though, after the earthquake. We got a bigger one a few years back when the beer really caught on. The quake cracked the new so we had to change back to the old one." "Could you show it to us?" Mulder felt hopeful. Paul gestured towards the back of the bar. "Come on then." The back room was roughly half the size of the bar. The far end was dominated by two large vats. The wall were lined with shelves. Glass containers were stacked on the shelves, most of them full of dried plants and powders which were meticulously labeled. "This is all my wife's stuff. She was into that homeopathic medicine, remedies with herbs and such." Paul thumped on one of the vats. "This is the old one. We usually brew a new batch every few months. We'd just finished a batch when the quake hit. I'm down to the bottom of this one now." "Could we get a sample?" Scully inquired. Paul poked around on a shelf before coming up with a Mason jar. He filled the jar with beer and handed it wordlessly to Scully before turning to search the shelves for a lid. Procuring one at last he gave it to Scully who sealed the jar. "We'll take this down to Salt Lake City tomorrow morning. In the meantime it would probably be best if you stopped serving this beer." Scully told him. "Not a problem, ma'am. I'm closing up for the night here anyway." **** Aspen Diner Cooper, WY Mulder was once more slumped in the corner of a booth. He absently stirred the iced tea in front of him, his thoughts far away. Scully had left early that morning to take the beer sample to Salt Lake City. He had stayed behind and gone over Whitman's case notes with Bob. To the best of Bob's recollection, nearly every single person involved in the rash of impulsive acts was known to frequent the bar. Bob had tried, not so subtly, to pry into how Mulder had figured out the bar was the common factor. Mulder had mumbled that it was only a hunch. Finally Bob had given up and wandered over to the counter to flirt with Sheila. So now Mulder sat thinking back on last night. Coming back from the bar he had felt like a teenager on a date, wondering if she would let him kiss her good-night or if she had come to her senses and would coolly inform him to go back to his own room. Scully had dropped her key before she could even get it to the door and then stood frozen. Mulder had realized that she was even more nervous than he. "I'll get that." He had said and bent down to retrieve the key. He had unlocked the door and placed his hand on the small of her back to show her in. Scully had turned to face him as he shut the door, her face as composed as ever, her eyes seemed distant and unsure. "Well, good night." He had mumbled, feeling awkward. "Mulder." Her hand on his arm stopped him. She had kissed him then, tentatively at first and then with growing certainty. They had made love slowly, laughing and whispering to each other. Taking their time and learning one another's secrets. They had fallen asleep spooned together, his hand on her breast, hers clasping his arm against her tightly. His throat tightened and hot tears sprang unexpectedly to his eyes as he remembered her last sleepy words, murmured so softly he'd barely heard them. "Love you." He blinked his eyes to clear them. At the ringing of his cell phone his heart skipped a beat. It had to be her. "Scully?" "Yes. Good news. I think you're right, Mulder. It's the beer." "How? I looked at Paul's recipe and there's nothing out of the ordinary." "I don't think Paul knows it's there. He told me this morning when I called him to ask on the ingredients that his wife had used the old vat to concoct herbal medicines. We found a large concentrate of an alkaloid substance in the beer." "It did taste bitter." "Further testing showed it to be a member of the Ephedra family. Ephedra trifuca is a plant that grows in the southwest United States. The dried stems are used to make a tea which is purported to work as a decongestant for asthma and hay fever sufferers." Mulder sniffed experimentally. "What if you don't have allergies?" "Well, ephidrine and pseudoephidrine, which are derived from Ephedra, are used to treat the central nervous system. They elevate blood pressure and increase the heart rate. They've also been shown to decrease a person's appetite and stimulate their energy. Until recently it was being used as a diet drug but it's been regulated the past few years after having been linked to a possible heart attack." "No one's ever reported symptoms regarding impulse control?" "No, but it's never been studied in conjunction with alcohol. Apparently the Ephedra was brewed right into the beer which changed its chemical nature. I'd speculate that the effect on the central nervous system was like a neural inhibitor." "Or uninhibitor." Mulder amended. He heard a puff of breath in the phone indicating Scully was at least mildly amused with his remark. "Ok. I'll get over to the Silver Horseshoe and have Paul dispose of the rest of that batch. Are you coming back up tonight?" "Yes. I'll get all the lab data compiled and then I'll drive back." Mulder's heart rate doubled. "So . . . I'll see you later then." "Yes." Her reply was soft and then the connection was broken. Mulder sighed and pushed "end". From the side of him Bob spoke, "She's lovely." "Pardon?" "Your partner. She's really quite lovely." Mulder stared at him, uncertain how to respond. "You two be careful, you hear." Bob's eyes were twinkling as he patted Mulder's arm. "Is it that obvious?" Mulder asked as Bob turned to leave. "Only last night. You two practically glowed walking into that bar. I was a detective for over 30 years in New York. I retired here about 15 years ago. Never had much of a gift for remembering names but I can still read people pretty good." "Oh." Mulder was speechless. "Keep in touch, Agent Mulder." Bob tipped his hat and was gone. ***** Valley View Motel Cooper, WY Mulder paced back and forth, stopping to check the window every time lights flashed by outside. He had tried her cell phone but it was turned off. Mulder flopped back onto the bed and flipped through the channels again. No cable, nothing on. He gnawed on his lower lip and considered whether he should call the highway patrol. The door opened and Scully stepped inside. He moved to get up from the bed but she held her hand up, stopping him. He remained seated and watched as Scully set an empty Mason jar on the table by the door. She looked at him and smiled. "I have a confession to make, Mulder." "Yeah?" She nodded and removed her suit coat, tossing it onto the floor. "I've been sitting out in the parking lot for about 20 minutes now, down by the office. I saw you checking out the window." Mulder remained silent, fascinated since Scully had continued to undress as she spoke. Her pants and blouse had joined the coat leaving her in simple white cotton underwear. His blood surged southward as Scully turned to lock the door. "We didn't use much of the sample for testing, there was still at least half a quart left." She said to the door before turning to face him again. Mulder swallowed hard. "My confession is that I've been drinking." Her eyes looked sidewise to the jar. Mulder's pants were quickly becoming uncomfortable. Scully began to walk slowly towards him, her hips undulating. She stopped at the edge of the bed and grasped his already loosened tie. "Mulder, help me. I'm very much afraid I'm about to do something reckless." ****** End 7/7