Spoiler: XF: IWTB, this story begins during the rowboat scene during the credits. If you haven't seen it you may not get what is going on here. Small one for "Eve".

Synopsis: What might have happened after they waved.

Rating: R for adult language and situations

Author's Notes: With a 42" HD TV I was able to get a really good look at the rowboat scene. I probably didn't have to watch it--or the final kiss scene to get the dialog right--as many times as I did but hey, sue me. (And by the way, that rowboat sequence is really amazing CGI, I never would have guessed that it was done digitally if I hadn't seen it on the DVD extras.)

Music Notes: I listened to the last three songs on the IWTB soundtrack as usual for the love scenes—the crescendo during the final kiss is possibly one of the loveliest things I've ever heard anywhere.

Also, I recently discovered the symphonic goth metal bands Flyleaf and Sirenia, and added them to my stable of writing/mood music. One of the main reasons I like this type of music is because it works well for many emotions, from happiness to anger to sorrow to desire. And trust me, when you're writing about these two no matter what the story's about, you run the gamut!

Into the Light
by Suzanne Feld
Rated R for adult language and situations

"Isn't that a bit far to row, Mulder? Shouldn't we get an outboard instead?"

"Pshaw, Scully. It's only a half-mile or so."

I couldn't take my eyes off of her as she sat back and crossed her shapely legs, and was glad that I had to sit facing backwards to row as I shoved off from the dock with one oar. God, after that harsh winter it felt good to be wearing nothing but swim trunks, warm sunlight falling over us as I began to row out into the wide river. If nothing else I hoped that watching me work would give her ideas—it had been nearly two weeks since we'd last made love and I was beyond antsy about it. The last time had been the day of her final patient's last stem cell treatment. That night, in bed, I had held her while she cried, then later she had climbed on top of me and slowly, deliciously rode me until I was so crazed with lust and need that finally I had flipped her over and almost battered our bed through the wall. Not bad for a guy coming up on fifty far too fast.

God knows I hadn't been without this long since we'd gone on the run six years ago, and on top of that both of us seemed to have fairly high libidos—probably had something to do with all those years' longing for each other.

Over the years it had become normal for us to have at it four or five times a week, sometimes twice a day if she wasn't in too much of a hurry to get to the hospital and felt like taking advantage of my usual morning arousal. Neither of us had any inhibitions about just grabbing the other when the mood took us; our bed saw the majority of the action but by no means all of it. Another favorite spot was, of all places, on the back porch where we liked to sit after dinner and read or talk. It wasn't large, just enough for two chairs with a small table between, but no one could see us except for the denizens of the forest that surrounded our remote house on three sides. The wide railing was just the right height for me to bend Scully over or have her sit on while I moved up between her legs and--

Sweat was breaking on my forehead and it had nothing to do with exertion or the South Carolina heat. I knew that if my thoughts keep going the way they were I'd have a lot more trouble rowing, and there was no way I'd be able to hide an erection from her in these swim trunks. And we really had to talk before anything sexual happened; we hadn't discussed it, but we both knew it.

We were silent on the row across the river from Jefferson Pines, the town/resort where we were staying for the week, to the aptly-nicknamed Picnic Island which, the concierge had told me, really didn't have a proper name. But it was a comfortable silence, with both of us gazing more at each other than anywhere else despite the wild and untamed scenery.

I was still somewhat amazed and, at times, awed by the fact that this stunningly beautiful and intelligent woman had chosen me and our life outside the mainstream over all that she could have had. Looking at her now, sitting so poised and elegant on a towel in an old wooden rowboat, I could imagine her in any situation possible. The older she got the more I liked the way she looked, still with that incredible figure but softer, rounder even as her face sharpened and she let her hair grow out. Of course we had always kept ourselves in good shape, even during those years on the run, making time to work out even if it was just an early morning jog before leaving another nameless motel or swimming when we could find--

"We're there, Mulder," she said, but before it sank in all the way I rowed another stroke and the boat ground on the sand sloping up beneath the water. It jolted her forward, but her grasp on the sides kept her in her seat.

"Sorry," I smiled at her, getting out of the boat. Neither one of us had worn shoes, having been assured that the sand was as soft as carpet, and I found that to be true as my feet sank through the crystal-blue water and then into the firm footing. Scully stood and before she could get out, I reached over and picked her up, carrying her onto the beach. She wrapped her arms around my neck, smiled, and rewarded me with a brief kiss as I did so, and I reveled in the feel of her bare skin against mine.

"Careful, Mulder, the boat's getting away," she said as I set her down. The look in my eye must have told her that I was planning to reciprocate the kiss and hopefully take it a little further. "I really don't feel like swimming back."

I turned and saw that she was right, our little rowboat was drifting off with the current. I splashed back in and retrieved it, pulling it over to a small grove of trees that came right down to the water and tying it to the dipping branches of one. Then I grabbed the small cooler that was beneath her seat and both towels, turning to find that she'd followed along on the beach. I saw her staring at my crotch and wondered if I was hanging out anywhere, because I wasn't hard—which damn sure wasn't easy being around her in a bikini. "What?"

"What's that lump in your pocket, Mulder?" she said suspiciously, hands on hips. "We agreed no cell phones today!"

"It's not that," I assured her, biting back the smartass comment I really wanted to make. "It's something for later—don't worry about it now. You hungry?" I asked as I carried everything up to her.

"Yeah, but let's move to the shade—I'm wearing SPF thirty-something suntan lotion, but I didn't bring it with me and don't want to get sunburned," she said, waiting until I joined her then heading into the shade generated by the stand of trees. "This is nice," she said, looking around as she took off her long white shirt and hung it on a nearby tree branch. I felt my groin tingle in response to seeing her in nothing more than that black bikini, and did my best to ignore it. "I'm surprised that there aren't more people out here."

"The guy at the hotel said that not many people outside of locals know about it, and there are plenty of other, larger islands with actual picnic areas and tables to go to," I said, putting the cooler down and tossing her one towel. We spread them out side by side, then sat down next to each other cross-legged with our knees lightly touching. "We should have plenty of privacy."

She raised one brow at me as she slid the top of the Playmate cooler back. "We had plenty of privacy in our room, but you couldn't wait to get out of there," she pointed out, doling out our sandwiches, single-serving bags of chips, and cans of Diet Pepsi.

I shrugged as I unwrapped my sandwich. "We don't get outdoors much, and it was a long winter." The resort cafe had pre-made picnic baskets for just this instance, but I'd had them make sandwiches to our specifications. Mine was roast beef, pepper jack and provolone cheese on an onion roll with pickles, tomato, lettuce, hot mustard, and Miracle Whip. Scully's was a boring turkey breast and swiss on light rye with tomatoes and honey mustard. Someday I was going to get her to live a little, but for now I was starving and simply dug in. She appeared to be as hungry as I and we ate in silence, stealing chips from each other's bags.

It wasn't until she was about to pack the litter into the cooler that I stopped her and lifted the layers of paper towel on the bottom to show two small bottles of champagne that I'd snuck in when she wasn't looking sitting atop the blue ice packs. Lifting them out, I unscrewed both caps then handed one to her, tapping the top of mine against hers. Before she could speak I said, "Congratulations, Scully, on not giving up. You're the best, doc."

She smiled that brilliant Scully-smile at me, taking a sip. "Well thank you, Mulder. It was a struggle but it looks like the stem cell therapy worked. If nothing else it should give Christian a good more years than he would have had otherwise."

I smiled back, enjoying seeing her so relaxed after the last few hectic weeks. Speaking of... "What did Father Ybarra say when you handed in your resignation? You never did tell me."

She snorted in an unladylike manner, setting down her bottle and digging it into the sand just enough that it wouldn't tip over. "He didn't. He just nodded and gave me that hangdog look that means he's disappointed in you. Jerk."

I had to laugh at the utter disdain in her voice. "Scully! He's a priest!" I helped her pack away the remnants of the meal, eyeing her slender arms and the way the muscles in her waist moved. My determination to talk before we did anything else was wearing thin as the small head began to get more of the blood supply.

"Doesn't mean he's not a jerk. You of all people should know after having dealt with Father Joe," she said, moving the cooler aside and scooting down before stretching out on the long beach towel. Her hair, worn loose and natural the way I liked it best, fanned out around her face. "Pedophile or not, he wasn't the world's nicest person."

"That's an understatement," I agreed, following her lead and laying back. No sooner had I laid down than her hand found mine, our fingers twining. I rolled onto my side and looked over to find her eyes on mine, clear blue and serious. "What?"

"What are we doing to do, Mulder?" she said simply and bluntly. "We have nothing holding us anywhere; you're cleared and free to fully rejoin society. We can do what we want now, no more hiding or evading or running, God forbid."

"The world's our oyster," I cracked, giving her hand a squeeze.

She gave me that old familiar 'would you be serious' look. "We can even travel overseas like we've discussed—England, France, Germany. You can show me around Oxford. All places I've always wanted to visit. We can go or live anywhere now... but what do you want to do?"

"I'm not sure, Scully," I said, turning to lay back and look up the bright blue sky, still holding her hand. Fluffy white clouds sailed majestically overhead, disappearing behind the line of tall dark trees behind us. I had given this a lot of thought since the Father Joe incident, and decided that although I had missed the thrill of the hunt and was eager to get back into it, it wasn't worth endangering our relationship for. We'd fought too long and too hard to be together to ruin it when I so clearly knew her feelings on it. There were other things I could do, and I thought that I had perhaps found one of them. "I won't lie to you and tell you I haven't thought about going back into law enforcement, either as a cop or a private investigator, but there's also a lot of appeal in going back to school like you did and getting a degree in child psychology. I wouldn't want to treat adults, I'm not sure I'd be much good at that, but I'd love to help children. Like you do."

Her hand left mine and I turned to see her up on one elbow facing me, smiling brilliantly. "Mulder, I had no idea you were thinking of that. I think it's wonderful idea!"

"Really? You think I'd be good at it?"

"God, yes! I've seen the rapport you have with children; even those vicious little Eves that tried to kill us. But does that mean I'm going to lose my house-husband and have to make all my own meals from now on?"

She was grinning, obviously kidding around. This wasn't the exact time I'd been waiting for or planned on, but I couldn't pass up this opening. I sat up, reaching into my pocket as I tugged on her hand with the other until she sat up as well, resting back on her knees. Pulling out a white velvet ringbox, I handed it to her. "I think we have to bestow that title on me for real before we can decide that," I said, feeling nervousness squirm into my belly as she slowly took it from me, not opening it. She looked up from the box with an almost fearful look as I said, "Dana Scully, will you marry me?"

Her mouth fell open momentarily and her wide eyes were clearly astonished; she honestly had not seen this coming. Hadn't she realized that marrying her was the first thing I would want to do once my name was cleared and I could? Maybe sitting on a beach on a tiny unnamed South Carolina island wasn't the place to do this; perhaps I should have proposed in our airy, elegant suite or perhaps at dinner in the fancy restaurant at the resort or maybe, God forbid, she didn't--

Then she threw herself at me, nearly knocking me over with the force of her body meeting mine, choking out, "Of course I will," into my ear.

I hugged her to me, kissing the side of her face which was almost buried in my neck, feeling dampness on my skin, running one hand over the soft, thick hair that flowed loosely over her shoulders. "Have you even looked at the ring yet?" I asked, unable to stop smiling.

"I don't need to, I know it'll be perfect," she mumbled against my skin, arms tight around my neck. She smelled like shampoo, soap and sunshine with an overlay of that unique Scully-smell I could never get enough of. "My God, Mulder, I had no idea you were thinking about this."

"Didn't you? Think about it?"

"Yes, of course, but I didn't... we've had so much else to do, so many other decisions to make in the last few weeks," she said as she slowly sat back, wiping at her wet eyes and glancing up at me from beneath her long dark lashes. "You're sure about this, Mulder?"

"Yes," I said simply, watching as the opened the lid of the ringbox. Her gasp went straight to my heart and I smiled as I reached over and took the ring out of the box. It was a one carat heart-cut diamond rising from white gold with three small opals set in filigree on each side, not as large a stone as I'd have liked to get her but I'd known it was just the thing for her when I'd spotted it at a Richmond jeweler weeks ago. It had a cool, elegant look that really fit her; it reminded me somehow of the pendant on the necklace that Arwen gives Aragorn in the movie The Fellowship of the Ring. I slid the ring onto her finger, noting that it was a little big; we could get it resized when we got home. In the meantime I moved it to her middle finger, where it fit better and we wouldn't have to worry about it slipping off and getting lost. "Do you like it?"

She put her hand out and turned it a few times, the gemstones sparkling brilliantly in the muted sunlight as we both admired it. "It's perfect," she said, smiling up at me. "I told you, I knew it would be."

I leaned down to kiss her and she met me halfway, arms going around my neck as I moved mine to her bare waist. Slowly we scooted down until we were laying on our sides again face to face, each resting our heads on an arm, not breaking the kiss. When we came up for hair I murmured against her lips, "I'm about to make an honest woman out of you almost ten years after we first did the dirty deed. Think it's about time?"

She chuckled, leaning in for another kiss. We often did this, kissed and talked at the same time, probably because we never seemed to run out of things to say to each other. "Pretty long engagement," she said agreeably, running her free hand down my chest and over my stomach to rest it on my side near my hip. Everywhere she touched left a trail of fire on my skin. Another kiss, this one even deeper, but I held myself in check; I knew we weren't done yet. "But you're worth waiting for, Mulder, well worth waiting for."

I moved one hand up to her head, sinking my fingers into her thick soft hair, and kissed her long and thoroughly with lips and tongue in answer to that: So are you, Scully, so are you. When we had to come up for air I brushed my nose against hers in an Eskimo kiss and asked, "What are you going to do now, Scully? Have you decided?" While I really was interested in her answer, I couldn't ignore the urging of my body. We'd scooted closer until we were touching from chest to toes, legs entwined, and I knew she felt how aroused I was. Hell, they could probably see this on Reticula.

She hummed against my lips, then said, "I'm still trying to decide. The city of Richmond is looking for an assistant medical examiner, but I'm not sure I want to go back to pathology full-time despite the appeal of non-complaining patients. I love working with children, even the rough cases like Christian's. Unfortunately most of the other hospitals within a reasonable driving distance don't have openings in pediatrics or are looking for administrators, not working doctors."

"So we'll move," I told her, laying back and pulling her partially on top of me, bending one arm under my head and putting the other around her lower back. The contrast of her warm skin against mine, the cool breeze that sprung up now and again, and the bright sunlight outside the shade we lay in worked to arouse me even more, but I forced myself to ignore it—for the time being.

"I really don't want to, Mulder. For many reasons. Most of all because that house has become home to me like no other," she said, bracing her forearms on my chest and looking down at me, her long, silky hair framing our faces in a cloud of golden-backlit flame. "It's where we truly began, no matter where else we were... together. I'd really rather not give it up unless you really want to."

"I'm fine with that," I assured her, and I was. My home was with Scully no matter where we lived geographically. On top of that I really didn't want to try and move my office which I'd finally gotten just the way I liked it over the last four years or so we'd lived in that house. "Listen, I was thinking... Skinner mentioned the last time I talked to him..."

She stilled, lifting her head slightly, and her eyes were dark and serious on mine as my voice trailed off. "And...?"

I made the split-second decision to drop it, though free-lancing for the FBI and other government or law enforcement agencies was something I really wanted to keep as a possible option. Perhaps sometime in the future when the emotional upheaval from the past few weeks had faded a bit. "He asked me if I'd consider doing a few profiles for the VCU, but I'm not going to. I'm rusty, anyway."

Slowly she nodded, but her sharp eyes didn't leave mine. "I'll be honest with you, Mulder, I'm not sure I could take something like that Father Joe thing again," she said slowly. "Watching you get consumed... immersed... refusing you when you asked for my help was one of the hardest things I've ever had to do in my life, right up there with giving up William. I couldn't do it again."

"It won't happen like that again," I promised her, reaching up to give her a brief kiss. "I won't let it. Scully, you'd think by now I'd know how important you are to me, my life, but it did take watching you walk out the door to really sink it into my brain. I was afraid you wouldn't come back if I hadn't followed you outside and made it clear that I wanted you to."

"I would have," she assured me. "You're not that easily rid of me, and I came to the same realization about you that you did regarding me." Then she cocked her head to the side. "But what about the alien invasion, Mulder? We both know it's coming in less than five years. Can we ignore it?"

I heaved a sigh. "Yeah, because there's nothing we can do anymore, Scully. Doggett and Reyes are the X-Files now, and in fact we can get ahold of them now and find out how it's going. But our part is done. Our involvement died in the desert with our old cigarette-smoking nemesis."

"Jesus, I never thought I'd hear you say that," she said quietly, and I could tell that she was relieved. "That was our life, our quest, for so many years... but I'm glad you've found something else to focus on and someone else can go chase the darkness away. I'm sure you'll be just as good and focused on whatever you do as you were on the X-Files." But her eyes were shadowed and sad, although I didn't know if it was from memories of our years together in that basement office or that she finally realized that they were irreconcilably over now that I'd spoken the words. I decided that we'd had enough talking; pretty much everything we'd needed to discuss had been settled and what we hadn't could wait.

I rolled her over and laid partly over her, holding most of my weight up on both arms as I gazed down at her and deftly changed the subject. "In case you don't know, Scully, I missed you a hell of a lot this past week or so."

Her eyes cleared and softened, as I'd hoped they would. "Did you, now? Or is this just one of those 'we have to have sex since we just got engaged' moments?"

I smiled down at the teasing sparkle in her eyes. "I'll use any excuse I have to, but the bottom line is that I want you so badly that I'm barely hanging onto my sanity here," I murmured as I leaned down and stopped with our lips just barely touching, holding her gaze. "Do you want me that much, Scully?"

The look in her smoky blue eyes was enough to make me tremble as she arched her back, her breasts touching my chest, then rubbed her thigh against me and said huskily, "Do I really need to answer that, Mulder?"

"No, you don't," I whispered against her lips, then claimed them and let go of my restraint. We rolled over and over groping at each other, off the towels, and ended up with us laying face to face in the firm sand not far from the treeline. "I need you," I whispered as I broke the kiss, running one hand down her abdomen. She was hot and soaking wet right through the cloth of her swimsuit. "Jesus!"

"It's been as long for me as for you, Mulder, you know that," she murmured back, reaching down to rub me. I groaned and ducked my head into the nook where her neck and shoulder met, licking and kissing the soft, salty skin there and struggling for control as she moaned softly.

I wanted nothing more than to rip off the material, spread her legs wide, and dive in there with mouth and hands until I made her scream. But we were rather exposed on this sunny beach even in the shade and if we were going to do this, we would have to be a little more circumspect. Anyone going by in a boat or coming through the forest from the other side of the island could see us, and I knew from prior experience that she wasn't into exhibitionism... though she could be coerced into something like this if done the right way. Besides, I could take my time later.

"God, I wish we had a blanket," I said against the taut tendons of her neck. "I want to fuck you into next week."

I felt her quiver at my words, then heave a trembling sigh. "You know what saying that does to me."

"Exactly," I growled, kissing down her chest as she moved both hands to my head, running them through my hair as she moaned again softly. I didn't often say things like that, not quite that raw, but I didn't hold back when I was feeling it, either. This wasn't going to be one of our long, slow, tender lovemaking sessions; as I'd said, we were going to fuck each other senseless. Both had their place; tonight or tomorrow morning in our room would be a good time for the lovemaking part, but that was a long ways away. Besides, I'd be better at the slow part if we took the edge off now.

Somewhere in the back of my mind I was wondering if we could use a towel to shield us, then it hit me and I lifted my head to gaze down at her. "I've got it—let's sit up and we can look over each other's shoulders," I said huskily, getting to my feet.

"Wait, what?" she said, her eyes hazy and not quite focused. God, the sight of her laying there on her side with her breasts almost falling out of the black material with nipples hard was nearly enough to drive me over the edge in itself, and I had to look away for a moment. I took the opportunity to glance around but saw no other living beings on ground or water. There was nothing more than the soft breeze gusting now and then through the nearby trees and bushes, ruffling the water into tiny whitecaps that spent out their brief lives on the beach.

"Just follow me." I took her hands and pulled her up, going back over to where our towels were half-buried in the sand from our earlier gyrations. Both of our mini champagne bottles were still upright, but I moved them away before we straightened out the towels; they'd be perfect to finish up afterward. I sat down facing the water, untying and sliding off my swim trunks but leaving them on one foot as she stood at the bottom of the towels, watching avidly. "Now you do the same, and climb on," I told her as I stretched my legs out in front of me. "We can watch over each other's shoulders for anyone approaching."

She put her hands on her hips, smiling down at me, then looked around searchingly before moving them to the waistband of her bottoms. "You are nothing if not ingenious, Mulder," she said as she pushed them down then stepped over to stand above me. She dropped to kneel over my thighs and settled down on me with no further ado.

She wrapped her legs around my hips and I crossed mine behind her, supporting her, and we were face-to-face. I couldn't resist kissing her, one hand on her warm lower back and the other cupping her face as we held still for the moment. No matter how many times we did this, in how many different positions or for how long or briefly, I never, ever took it or her for granted. Knowing how close I'd come to losing her a few weeks ago made me savor it even more.

"We're... not watching," she said breathlessly, then kissed me deeply again even as she took ahold of my shoulders. How I loved it when she took the lead like this, showing me as much with her body as words could how she felt about me.

We made love there on the beach for God only knows how long, and it was the most incredible time ever for me and, hopefully, she as well.

She moved her head to my shoulder, turning her face to graze her lips against my sweaty neck as our hearts pounded against each other. I rested my chin on her shoulder, wrapping my arms around her slender ribs and holding her firmly. "God," I rasped, then cleared my throat. "Every time we make love it's even better even than I thought it would be during those long years before we finally came to our senses."

She squeezed my shoulders with her hands then draped her arms over them, tilting the side of her face to rest against mine. "I know," she said softly. "You are everything I always hoped for, didn't know I could have for so long, and never thought I would get."

I turned my head and kissed her temple, then rested my head against hers again. We sat quietly for a while after that. Finally I sighed. "I don't want to move--"

"--but my legs are cramping," she finished for me, amusement in her voice. "And it's a miracle no one has come along and caught us. You had a good idea, we just didn't execute it very well." I chuckled as we disentangled, then laid back on the towel and stretched. "Mulder, get dressed. Anyone could wander by and see you in all your naked glory. You are such an exhibitionist," Scully scolded, but she was smiling as she sat on the other towel trying to straighten out her bikini bottom which had somehow gotten wrapped around her foot.

"So? I've got nothing to hide," I said, not moving from my sprawled position. The sun had pushed the shadows away so that the lower half of my body was now in sunlight, and it felt incredibly good.

"I can't argue that. Someday I'm sure I'm going to see a picture of you with nothing but a teacup over your genitals or something like that surface from your days at Oxford from what you've told me," she said as we both got up and pulled our swimsuits back on, and I caught her wrinkled nose as she got her bikini bottoms all the way up.

"Something wrong?"

"Icky," she said briefly, wiggling her hips a little and picking at the front of the black material. "The crotch is cold and wet, and you're adding to the problem."

I had to bite the inside of my lip to stop from laughing out loud as I knew exactly what she was referring to. "Why don't we go for a swim?" I suggested. "That was one of the reasons we came out here."

"That's a good idea, and I think it would be just the thing," she agreed, turning to smile up at me. "Race you to the water."

As she loped away across the firm white sand I paused to watch her, mulling over everything that we'd done here on this small beach. From reaffirming our commitment to each other, to getting engaged, to the best sex of our lives, it had been as eventful a day as we'd ever had if not quite as exciting or dangerous as some. After the cold dark winter and terrifying near-miss of losing each other in various ways over the last month or so, I couldn't enjoy the security and warmth enough. In more ways than one.

"Come on, Mulder! It's as warm as bathwater," Scully called, and I shook myself out of my reverie to see that she stood waist-deep in the river. She had already dunked under and her hair was dark and slicked down against her head, her upper body sparkling with millions of tiny droplets in the brilliant sunlight. "What are you waiting for?"

The answer to that was nothing. As I ran down to join her in the crystal water I left my old darkness behind and embraced the light with her.

finis