Christmas was rapidly approaching, which made most FBI agents busier due to the spike in crime. However, the season was considerably less noticeable when working cases in the X-Files; regardless of the time of year, spooky occurrences consistently seemed to surface, so the increase in regular crimes didn't make a difference. It certainly helped that Fox Mulder, founder of the X-Files, was so eager to investigate such events that he constantly had a case on the go. If not, he'd undoubtedly be searching for one, much to the irritation of his FBI partner, Dana Scully. Although she enjoyed being busy with work, sometimes she felt that Mulder was making a mountain out of a molehill on particular cases, especially when he applied such unbelievable theories to them. Besides, it was nice to have a rest; being on their feet all day truly was exhausting.

Despite this, the two agents found themselves momentarily stuck with nothing to work on after finishing their most recent case. Naturally, Mulder was desperately sifting through files and scanning the news in an attempt to find a case (most likely half a case) that intrigued him enough to pursue. Meanwhile, Scully had taken the opportunity to grab a coffee from the drinks machine in the corridor upstairs. She rarely had the chance to get one when they were on a case, and she figured the caffeine boost would be to her advantage when they eventually ended up chasing a criminal at some point during the day. For now, Scully knew she should be grateful for the break, though she was beginning to get bored.

When she arrived back in Mulder's basement office, Scully couldn't find her partner in sight. A giant pile of papers and folders was stacked precariously on the desk, and a faint shuffling sound could be heard, though she couldn't tell where it originated from.

"Mulder? You in here?" Scully called out, raising her eyebrows as she glanced around the room.

"One minute, Scully." The shuffling sound grew briefly louder. A moment later, a familiar flop of brown hair appeared over the top of the paper pile. "Hey, did you get me a coffee?"

Scully sighed, ignoring his question. "Have you found anything yet?"

Mulder strode around to the front of his desk, stretching his arms as he did so. "Unfortunately not, but I hope a case will show up before long. Being cooped up down here is driving me nuts. Wait a second – what's the date?"

"It's the eighteenth of December," Scully replied without pausing to think.

"Nearly Christmas. Do you think paranormal-related crimes take a break during the festivities?" Mulder asked, smiling.

Aware of his teasing, Scully remained stony-faced. "I sure hope not, it's putting us out of a job."

"Hey, do you think Santa Claus is an alien?" Mulder continued, ignoring his partner. He was only half-joking.

Scully simply rolled her eyes.

The more Mulder thought about it, the more his newest theory seemed legitimate. "But Scully, it makes perfect sense! No one's ever seen him in person, he comes from the sky and subtly interferes with people's lives on an annual basis, he drives an unidentified flying object… Santa Claus is a textbook X-File."

"Sure. In that case, I'm the Easter Bunny," Scully retorted.

"Okay, so maybe that is a bit far-fetched…" Mulder admitted, looking Scully in the eye. A grin spread across his face as he realised how ridiculous he sounded. "Damn, I need to work."

Scully gave a tired smile in return. "Don't we all. I'm sure you'll find something soon, you always do."