I’ve been toying with a slice of life Walter x Dana x Fox au that’s probably only gonna live in my head but Walter, Fox, and Dana growing up together and being hella close 🫠 (Read tags for triggers first 💖)
Walter is the oldest by a few years and has always felt like a protector, watching over them. Also felt like the third wheel. He and Fox both have always had crushes on Dana. Fox was the only one to admit it, when the two of them were alone on their sleepovers. Walter would never say a word, just let Fox talk about how much he loved her, silently agreeing, and his heart aching because he knew he couldn’t have her. Couldn’t have either of them.
Then, when the two became a couple at 15, Walter was happy for them but started to distance himself. As soon as he graduated high school he was gone. Out of their lives. Joined the Marines as means for escape, somewhere they wouldn’t follow.
By the time he came home he got a big welcome from his family—as well as the Mulder and Scully family. The families were close, after all. It’s the first time he’s seen Fox and Dana since his graduation. They’re wound up in each other’s arms, smiling at him. Adults. He catches sight of the engagement ring on Scully’s finger and he can’t breathe. He’s lost them both all over again. There’s a big dinner to celebrate Walter’s return and he forces a smile the entire time. Seated between Fox and Dana at the dinner table, he wants to run away. Dana reaches out and grabs his hand, smiling at him. Fox taps his wrist and motions with his jaw for Walter to follow him. Walter can never say no to them even when he wants to. The three end up in Fox’s old bedroom. It’s different from when Walter last saw it, but he missed out on a few years of Fox and Dana growing up. It still feels like Fox’s room. Walter blurts “congratulations” before they can say anything. Dana smiles while Fox is beaming, he was proud of the ring he picked for her. Proud of himself for having the courage to finally ask. But all Fox says is, “It’s good to have you back, Walt.” And his heart flutters because Fox rarely used a nickname for him. Dana reaches out to touch his uniform, smoothing her hands over the material and telling him he looks handsome. He can’t take it anymore. Being around two people he couldn’t have. Mutters that he needs to go. The two frown and Walter hates that he’s the reason they stop smiling. They both reach out to him, ask him why, and he pulls away. Can’t meet their eyes as he says they’re older now. Things have changed. They’ve grown up. Their friendship wasn’t what it used to be. Fox starts to scowl and snaps, “That’s not our fault. You joined the Marines without telling us. We stopped sending letters because you never responded.” Walter still won’t meet his gaze, flexing his jaw. Dana reaches out for him again and he takes a step back, muttering a low apology before stating, “It’s just better this way.” Walter returns to the party. Fox and Dana don’t.
A few years go by and Walter gets a fancy envelope in the mail. A wedding invitation from Fox and Dana. He can’t believe they waited this long to go through with it. Looks up when Sharon asks if they’re going. He smiles, the look strained, and says, “I guess so.”
He shows up to the wedding looking stunning in a suit. Sharon on his arm, gorgeous as ever, definitely helped his appearance. He’s coaxed to sit with the family, everyone thrilled to see him and meet his woman. The wedding starts and Fox looks so handsome at the alter, his heart skips a beat. Then Scully walks down the aisle. Walter has to look away, his hand clenching at his side. She was a goddess, and he felt like slime for thinking it with Sharon next to him. He tears up when they read their vows. And then it’s done. They belonged to each other. Walter was, officially, no longer a part of them. At the reception they come rushing to him, hugging him tight. Smiles and beauty. Dana notices Sharon first and her smile turns a little strained, asking who she was. Sharon smiles and holds up her hand, showing off her ring with a kind smile, “I’m Sharon. Walter’s wife. I’m surprised you didn’t know. We’ve been married for well over a year.”
Walter sees the betrayal in their eyes and looks away. He hadn’t told anyone but his family that he was getting married and he asked them to keep a tight, heavy lid on that information. Dana forces a bright smile. Fox does not. The two leave in a hurry and Walter feels his stomach twisting in knots. Grabs Sharon’s hand and mumbles that they should go home.
More years go past. He loves Sharon. He truly does. She’s an amazing woman. Beautiful. Intelligent. Kind. And she has so much patience for him. Knew what he needed before he did. Knew how to make everything better. That’s why he was pissed he couldn’t give her everything she wanted. They could never have children and it was his fucking fault. She never blamed him. In fact when the doctor gave them the news she just held his face, brushed the angry tears from his lashes, and looked him steadily in the eyes as she whispered firmly, “You’re everything to me, Walter. You’re enough.”
That’s what made him feel like garbage, for still yearning for his friends.
That’s what made it so devastating when she became sick.
She died in a hospital, holding his hand, and her last words had been a grateful thanks to him for loving her, spending the rest of her life with her. Walter felt like he had wasted her time.
Sharon’s funeral is when he sees Fox and Dana again. He doesn’t remember inviting them. His family must have. They took care of everything because Sharon didn’t have a family of her own. There they were, huddled under the same umbrella, Fox stooped down to fit underneath because Dana was holding it, beautiful in black. Walter had kept the tears at bay. Had nodded politely to everyone’s condolences. Dana and Fox kept their distance. Until they got him alone. They were showing pictures on a screen of Sharon, her life, and he couldn’t take it. Ran away like he always does to a secluded room, sitting in the center of a leather couch, biting back every emotion that could be felt. That’s where they find him. They don’t say a word. Fox sits to his left and Dana to his right, their bodies pressed close. They both take hold of his hands and that’s when he breaks. He just starts crying and he can’t stop. They take turns holding him. One pulling him against their chest as the other rubs his back. All he can manage to say is, “I’m so sorry. I’m so sorry.” He doesn’t know if it was for them or Sharon, or both.
He doesn’t see them again for months.
During that time he takes care of himself less. Drinks more. He becomes an alcoholic. Even picks up smoking because he doesn’t give a shit about himself. Not anymore. He thinks about Sharon constantly. Thinks about Dana and Fox, too. Maybe he thought too hard because one night, on his worst night when he contemplates how much weight a beam in his apartment can hold, Fox and Dana appear. They tell him his parents contacted them. They didn’t know what else to do to help him. Walter tries to send them away. Tries to burn them with spiteful words. He’s met with a hard fist busting his nose and Fox snarling at him to shut the fuck up and let them be his friends, at least one last time. They dote on him. Clean his apartment. Fox helps Walter take a shower, shave his face. Dana removes every last bottle of alcohol. They have Walter lay down in his bed and he sleeps soundly for the first time in years.
When he wakes up they’re laying on either side of him. His heart aches as he watches them. Dana shifts closer, hanging onto his arm, and his breath catches. Her stomach was firm against him. She was pregnant. He wants a drink. Tries to get up when Fox pushes him back down and mumbles, “Stay. I’m not done being your friend.” And it makes Walter ache. He gives into it. Into them. Pulls them closer to his body and hugs them tight, kissing their heads before falling back asleep.
Wakes up again and they’re gone. It hurts, but he understands. Pads out of his bedroom and is surprised to find Dana cooking and Fox pestering her, the two smiling and sharing a kiss. He wants to join them but he doesn’t know how. Doesn’t know if he can. Clears his throat and stands awkwardly at the entrance of the kitchen. They look at him and smile. They reach out toward him and he approaches slowly. Genuinely shocked when they each pull him into a hug. He feels Dana’s hard tummy press against him. It’s not quite visible yet. Not to anyone who doesn’t know her. Finds himself asking how far along she is. Dana blushes and claims that she’s 13 weeks in. No one knows yet. Walter smiles lightly and apologizes if he ruined the surprise. Congratulations to them both.
They sit Walter down for breakfast, talking mostly about the pregnancy. It’s a good distraction. Then they talk about the house they bought recently. How it has room for a third. Walter stares. He looks away and tells them that’s not a good idea. He’s not in a good place and they were. They were going to have a baby. Fox arguing that Walter would be a big help around the house since Dana should take it easy. They could rekindle their friendship. Dana takes his hand and tells him they don’t want him to be alone anymore. Walter crumbles against his better judgement. He agrees. Asks for help when going through Sharon’s things.
Over the next couple weeks they help Walter pack. Help him go through Sharon’s stuff. He keeps most of it. Hates the idea that everything she loved just ends up going nowhere because she didn’t have family to leave her things to. He’s not allowed to drink. They already told him they won’t keep booze in the house. They let him keep smoking, for now, but he knows not to do it anywhere near Dana. He leaves his apartment behind and moves in. The house is beautiful and a nice size—purchased with the help of Fox’s father, no doubt. Two story with a wraparound porch and a lovely yard. The baby’s room is right beside Fox and Dana’s. Walter wasn’t expecting his room to be on the other side of them. His room is filled with Sharon’s boxes. He has very little of his own things. He tries not to think about it. Hopes they don’t notice.
They make him dinner. It’s wonderful. They’re wonderful. Walter finds himself smiling, if a little. And he hates himself for it. Excuses himself to go outside and smoke. Leans on the porch railing with a sigh and lights it, pulling in a deep breath and releasing it with a tired sigh. Rubs his temples as he thinks. Jumps out of his skin when Fox comes out to check on him. Fox leans back against the railing with his hips, arms crossed over his chest as he asks how he’s doing. Walter’s shoulders shrug, “I’m alive.” He knows it’s not a good answer. But he also knows Fox will understand. Feels a warm hand on his shoulder and he leans into it. They stand in silence, Walter bent at the waist and Fox facing the house. When Walter lights a second cigarette Fox holds his hand out. Surprised, Walter gives it to him. Amazed when he watches Fox take a drag with ease and release it with a faint smile. Takes a second puff and hands it back, “That’s a good brand, Walt.”
Walter blinks, “You smoke?”
Fox nodded. “I did for a bit. Started after you left for the Marines.”
Ah. Walter’s chest tightened. It was his fault. Again. Turns his head away and says nothing. Minutes pass. His second cigarette is burning low but he doesn’t know what else to do but light up a third. He can’t drink. Can’t kill himself. Can’t talk.
Doesn’t expect Fox to reach out and touch his head, combing his hair. What was left of it. He had started balding during his service. Took after his dad.
“You look like your dad. But, y’know, taller,” Fox murmured.
Walter smiled. “I’m taller than everyone in my family.”
“I know. You're the handsome one, too.”
Walter paused. He looked up at Fox. He wasn’t smiling. His eyes were honest. Walter’s heart skipped a beat. “What?”
The corners of Fox’s lips lifted. “You know why it took so long for Dana and I to get married?”
Fox knew he didn’t. They hadn’t exactly been talking.
“Dana and I took a break. We told everyone we were waiting until after college but in reality…we had some problems,” Fox admitted.
Walter struggled to find words, “I’m sorry.”
Fox smiled. “It wasn’t a bad thing. In fact, we’re both glad we did it. We had our fun. Made some mistakes. Remember Alex Krycek?”
Walter stiffened. “Yeah?”
“He and I fooled around for a while. He’s an absolute bastard just like he was back in high school, but a good lay,” Fox snorted.
Walter stayed silent. Fox liked men. He never knew that. Apparently Fox hadn’t known that for long, either.
“Krycek said the same about you,” Fox added.
Walter’s shoulders bunched. That rat bastard. “He lied.”
“You aren’t a good lay?” Fox teased, a smile on his lips.
Walter scowled. “I never touched him. I’m not into men.” He lit a third cigarette.
Fox hummed. “He said you hooked up in high school. And recently I ran into him. He told me you also fucked shortly after you married.”
Walter gnashed his teeth. Another mistake laid bare. A moment of weakness. Sharon forgave him for it. He never forgave himself and he never planned to. “I said I’m not into men.”
“And I think you’re lying. In fact, I hope you are.” Fox grabs Walter’s chin and forces the man to look up at him. Fox plucks the cigarette from Walter’s mouth and leans down. Kisses him softly. Walter is frozen. He can’t move even though he really wants to. Wants to kiss him back. But Dana. Fox’s wife. His body is filled with rage for her. Pulls out of the kiss and shoves Fox away. “Are you insane?” Walter hissed. He jabbed his finger at the front door. “Your wife is in there.”
Fox snorted and crossed his arms again. “I’m aware. I am an adult. I mastered object permanence a long time ago.”
Walter scowled and stabbed a thick finger on Fox’s chest, “Don’t do that ever again, do you hear me? You will not do that to Dana. She deserves loyalty. You have a fucking child on the way. Whatever sick fantasy you have, whatever stupid thrill you’re wanting, it isn’t going to come from me. And if I find out you cheated on her I’m gonna wring your neck.”
Fox scoffs and heads toward the door, “That’s a lot coming from you, Walter.”
Then Walter’s left alone again. He sags against the railing with a groan. He knew this was a bad idea. Sees his lit cigarette on the ground and picks it up. Smokes it before going back inside.
Weeks go by. Fox hasn’t made another move. Walter never told Dana what happened. They were…happy. Living with them was easier than he thought. But not always. They tortured him although he wasn’t sure they were aware of it. The house was beautiful but the walls were thin. Or they were simply too loud. Walter always heard them fool around in their room. The moans. The muffled screams. If he listened closely enough he might even hear their dirty talk. It was shameful to listen. Even more shameful to touch himself while they fucked. Wishing he could see. Wishing he could be with them. Sometimes his fantasies got a little out of control and he swears he heard them moan his name. In the end he always came and he felt even worse than before.
He didn’t make it easy for them to live with him, though. The desire to drink was always there, under his skin. He smoked constantly to make up for it. Then there was his quick temper and irritability, conflicting with Fox’s mirroring emotions that always caused them to fight. Then there were the nightmares. Induced by his PTSD. He has a really bad one that makes him wake up screaming, sweating through his clothes. Dana is already there. Dabbing at his face with a wet cloth. She encourages him to sit up, removes his shirt and sweats and provides him with a new dry set. He lets her wipe him down and change him, feeling weak and small. She asks if he wants to talk about it. For once, he does. Holds her hand while explaining what happened to him in the service. She touches his face and murmurs that he’s okay now. She’s close. He could kiss her and he wants to.
She must have read his thoughts somehow. She smiled coyly. “If I kiss you, are you going to shove me away like Fox?”
She knew. She knew about the kiss. Oh god no.
“I didn’t mean to…I mean, it was all my fault. I kissed Fox. He didn’t kiss me. I…I can leave. Please, don’t blame Fox. Blame me,” Walter babbled, starting to pull away.
Dana laughed and held his face with both hands. “Shhh, relax. Fox told me everything. I appreciate you trying to cover for him but it’s not necessary. I knew he planned to make a move. I advised him to wait until later but we both know how he is about listening.”
Walter felt stupid. He had to be to think she was insinuating that Fox wanted him and she was okay with it.
“What?” Walter asked.
Dana smiled and moved to sit on his bed. “I guess all he did was kiss you, huh? He didn’t tell you that the two of us have loved you for years. Since we were kids.”
Walter felt faint. “What?” he croaked.
“We love you, Walter. We want you…we want you in our lives as our partner. If you’ll have us.”
Walter still can’t find his words. Makes up for it by kissing her, long and deep. When Fox come into the room looking for Dana, Walter kisses him, too. Long and hard. Falls back asleep with them in his arms and a smile on his face.
Other things that happen:
Walter is obsessed with Dana’s growing belly and definitely has a Thing™️ for it.
Fox and Walter have a lot of arguments but it always ends with the two making up with a kiss. (Sometimes angry sex.)
All of the neighbors think Walter is a nice man, but they don’t understand why he’s living with Dana and Fox.
The first time all three of them have sex together Walter is overwhelmed. Stops them in the middle of it and asks for a break. They wait until he relaxes and continue at a slower pace, letting him watch them touch each other until he wants to join in. The night is perfect and Walter thinks about it for weeks.
The three of them start sharing a single bed. They still have the spare bedroom set up as Walter’s in case he—or any of them really—need a night to themselves. The couch also folds out into a bed in case they all want a moment to breathe.
Both Walter and Fox are in the delivery room when Dana has her baby. They each hold one of her hands. Walter refrains from touching her too much since the staff knows Fox is the husband/father. After giving birth to her boy, Dana kisses Fox and then Walter, in front of the staff. She asks Walter to cut the umbilical cord and he does. When Fox asks if he’s crying he lies and says he isn’t. Dana holds her son first. Fox is second. When Walter holds him he almost starts crying all over again. Dana’s red hair and Fox’s hazel eyes. He holds the baby boy as long as he can until the nursing staff takes him back to check on him.
The three of them parent together. One mom and two dads. Walter is the first to be spoken to and it was “dada”. He definitely cries.
Walter still has nightmares. He relapsed a few times on his drinking, too. Dana threatens to kick him out unless he quits for good. He does. He eventually stops smoking, too.
Walter ends up being a stay at home dad. To get out of the house he picks up some hobbies, mostly fixing the house and modifying it however Dana and Fox please—and eventually goes to therapy, too.
When the kid gets older, they refer to each parent differently. Dana is “mommy” and Fox is “daddy”. Walter is “papa”. Eventually mommy and daddy turn into mom and dad but papa always stays the same.
The three of them rarely use protection during sex because they don’t find it necessary, especially since Walter can’t get anyone pregnant. However, when Dana wants another child she asks Walter to impregnate her. He’s awkward when he reminds her he shoots blanks. He couldn’t even if he wanted to. She says she knows. She just wants them to share that moment, the intention. Fox will still technically be the biological father. Walter agrees. It’s one of the best nights of his life.
Walter still cries over Sharon. Fox and Dana leave him alone until they know he’s taking his grieving too far. Annually, on Walter and Sharon’s wedding anniversary, they visit her grave. Fox and Dana always bring flowers of their own to give her.
Their families know about the relationship and they don’t care. They just want their kids to be happy and they’ve noticed that means the three of them together. They don’t quite get it but they know to keep their mouths shut.
Their second baby is a girl, biologically Fox’s but conceived on a night with Walter, and Walter gets to name her. Walter thinks about it for a few days before asking if he could name her Sharon. Dana and Fox smile and tell him, “Of course.” Walter has never been prouder to be a father. He just wishes he could have had it with Sharon, too.
Dana’s brother has hated Fox ever since he found the two fooling around in Fox’s car back in high school. Walter had heard a commotion and peered outside his bedroom window and found Bill dragging Fox out of the car and into the street, starts beating on him. Dana trying to stop him but gets pushed away. Walter tears through the house out the door. He’s never hit anyone so hard in his life. One punch and Bill drops, nose broken and bleeding as Walter towers over him like an angry bull. Snarls, ordering Bill to never touch Fox again—or else. Warns him not to let Walter catch him pushing his sister around again, either. The night ends in Walter’s room with Dana patching up Fox’s face and Walter’s knuckles. Walter berates them both for fooling around in public. Fox leans against him, placing his head on Walter’s shoulder as he smiles and sighs, thanking him for saving his ass. To this day Bill knows to keep his mouth shut and eyes down whenever Walter is near. Especially about Fox and Dana.
Walter being a very protective dad. He lets the kids scrape their knees and go on adventures, but like hell will he let any brat bully his kids. Even when they’re teenagers. He’s told them time and time again that he doesn’t care what trouble they’re in, they just call him. Fox and Dana aren’t as good at keeping themselves under control when the kids mess up. The kids always call papa. Walter pulling up to save them time and time again. He’s not above beating the shit out of someone hurting them—he’ll lay down his life for them the same way he would for Dana and Fox. Comes home with the kids intact and safe while he’s a little bloody and bruised. He never sets the punishment for the kids either, that’s Dana and Fox’s territory. He’s just there to protect them and keep them safe.
Dana’s sister Melissa and Fox’s sister Samantha adore the three of them together. They treat Walter like a brother and often drop by to help with the kids.
Dana and Fox end up getting a ring for Walter. They can’t legally marry him but fuck it was still real to them. He wears it alongside his wedding band from Sharon.
