Title: The First Christmas I
Author: Gill, Jr.
E-mail Address: MmentMori@aol.com
Rating: PG-13
Category: VRA
Spoilers: The Ghosts That Stole Christmas, Memento Mori, Fight the Future
Keywords: Mulder/Scully Romance, UST, some angst
Summary: Mulder and Scully don't want to spend Christmas alone...
Author's Notes: Well, last year, after being puzzled as to what the word 'vignette' meant, I looked it up in the dictionary. It read:
vignette: (vin-yet') n. short, neat description in words.
Now, my story definitely does NOT meet this description! ;) It's actually pretty long for a vignette. I never planned for it to be this long, but everything worked out so well. So sorry if it doesn't exactly match the definition. I'm not exactly a by-the-book kinda gal, anyways. :oP
Feedback: Yes! ;)
Dedication: This one is for Mark, who, as Mulder is to Scully, a friend, and so much more. You mean the world to me.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~The First Christmas~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
A fanfic by Gill, Jr.
Scully tossed and turned in her moon-drenched bed. She had been trying for so long, but she just couldn't sleep. Her mind kept drifting to her and Mulder's encounter with Maurice and Lyda that happened a few hours ago. She stared up at the white ceiling of her room. She never realized how...dull...it was. Scully sighed.
said a voice from within.
Then, another thought entered her mind.
She turned on her table lamp and threw off her pajamas. She picked her clothes up from the floor, where she had hastily thrown them when she had gotten home. Dana was usually a very tidy person who kept an immaculate home; she always threw her clothes in the hamper and never forgot they were there.
In less than five minutes she was dressed and all ready to go. She hoped Mulder was home. Hell, he could have killed her last night! When they had been crawling around on the floor, covered in blood, they had pulled their guns on each other, something no two partners in the FBI should ever do. But they had done it more than just once. She closed her eyes, reliving the moment that took place only hours before. She wondered if their encounter had bothered Mulder as much as it'd bothered her. Last night's incidents at Maurice and Lyda's had been very troubling. She prayed that Mulder was all right. He had to be.
Grabbing her keys, she walked out the door.
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Mulder turned away from the TV screen as he heard someone knocking on his door. He got up, curiously, and opened the door to find his partner behind it.
"I, uh, I couldn't sleep. It was, um..." she paused, unable to grasp the right words, "can I come in?"
Without hesitation, he guided her into his apartment.
"Aren't you supposed to be opening Christmas gifts with your family?"
Scully couldn't resist asking. The question had been plaguing her mind all night.
"None of that really happened out there, tonight. That was all in our heads, right?"
Mulder was surprised. He hadn't really thought about it all that much.
"Must have been." He stepped closer to Scully, who was obviously thinking.
"Not that my only joy in life is proving you wrong," Scully said, out of the blue.
"When *have* you proven me wrong?" Mulder joked.
"Well, why else would you want me out there with you?"
"You don't want to be there?" he asked. Scully said nothing. "Oh, that's, um, self-righteous and narcissistic of me to say, isn't it?" he asked, repeating Maurice's words.
"No, I mean...maybe I *did* want to be out there with you," she said, looking him in the eyes, but not for too long. It was hard enough for her to admit thoughts that would lead to her true feelings for him, let alone look him in the eye. She was afraid if she did, she'd melt. There was a rather uncomfortable silence between them, until Mulder stepped behind Scully.
"I know we said that we weren't going to exchange gifts, but, uh, I got you...a little something," he said, holding out a wrapped object that was shaped like a rolling pin. She smiled up at him. Not an everyday, "Good morning" smile, but a genuine ScullySmile, a smile that he rarely saw, and was reserved for him. Only him.
"Mulder," she said affectionately.
"Merry Christmas," he answered. Digging in her coat, she came up with Mulder's gift. It was a small, rectangular object, about an inch thick.
"Well, I got you a little something, too." They both laughed. They then looked in each other's eyes and, grinning like fools, ran to the couch to open their gifts.
Scully tore madly at her present, much like a child opens their first gift every Christmas morning. Inside was a big roll of paper. She opened the roll to real an "I Want To Believe" poster, identical to the one Mulder used to have in their office.
A big grin crossed her face as she studied the poster. She turned to Mulder, who had paused in his gift-tearing frenzy to see her reaction. Mulder smiled back at her.
"I remembered when you'd asked me about my poster. You said you'd wanted to send it to that Detective Jack what'shisname, but I had a feeling you wanted it for yourself and were too embarrassed to admit it." She arched her eyebrows at him, but she couldn't keep her lips from tugging upward. Then, there was another moment of silence.
"Well, Mulder. Aren't you going to open yours?"
Mulder paused. "Oh," he fumbled with the gift, "oh, yeah!" He tore away the last of the paper to reveal the back of a picture frame. He turned it over. Enclosed in the glass and oak was a photo of the agents at a visit to Scully's mother's house. It was a very cute photograph, actually; it was Mulder and Scully, sitting on the floor, near the fireplace, with their backs to the couch. They were sitting close together, with a blanket draped over themselves, looking at an old family photo album.
Mulder immediately smiled, remembering that night fondly. He hadn't even known Mrs. Scully had snapped the picture. Maggie Scully had liked Fox the moment she had met him and eventually grew to love him as much as her two sons, sometimes, even more.
He looked up at Scully, his eyes brimming with tears of joy. "Thank you, Scully." He suddenly reached out and embraced her, burying his face in her auburn hair. Scully was rigid for a moment, not expecting this, but she immediately relaxed and put her arms around him. He clung to her for a little longer than he usually did and she rubbed his back. He didn't know why they didn't hug more often. He supposed it was because they were partners. But there was something there; an attraction. They were partners, friends, and so much more. He remembered hugging her like they were now only twice before. There was the one time, in the hospital where Scully had been diagnosed with cancer. Both of them were emotionally naked, tears in their eyes, fears out in the open. That was a time of vulnerability. He had kissed her forehead, stroked her hair, and then she walked away. But not before looking deep into his eyes and sharing a deep gaze with him.
The second time was less than a year ago, when she had come to his apartment to tell him she was quitting. He had followed her out his door and into the hallway, trying to stop her from leaving. He had told her she'd made him a whole person. He told her that he owed her everything, and she owed him nothing. He had poured his heart out to her in those few sentences, the admission causing tears to form in her eyes. Then, she'd come forward and let him hold her. She'd reached up and kissed his forehead ever so gently, and then, they'd pressed their foreheads together, closing their eyes. They'd separated, staring deep into each other's eyes as if they were in a trance. A single tear slipped down Dana's cheek as they leaned in for their first kiss. And then, that damn bee had stung her. To this day, Mulder still hated the stupid thing; it had stopped him from admitting to her how much he loved her, and worse, it had put her in anaphylactic shock, nearly killing her. But he didn't want to think about that right now. Not at a good time, such as this. Mulder closed his eyes, not a single thought entering his mind. Until...
He released his hold on Scully and moved away from her slightly, his cheeks slightly red. He hadn't noticed he'd been hugging her for so long!
For a moment, there was an awkward silence between them.
"If you want to stick around, I think 'The Ghosts Who Stole Christmas' is on."
Scully nodded. "Sounds good."
"I'm gonna lay back on the couch here...if you want to sit on the floor or something -"
"The floor?!" Scully interrupted. "I'm not sitting on the *floor!*"
"I'm kidding, Scully, jeez!" He stretched his lanky form out on the couch and stayed as far back as he could. He patted a spot next to him.
"Either this or the chair," Mulder offered.
"But you can't even see the TV from the chair!" Scully whined.
"My point exactly," he grinned devilishly at her. Scully sighed and threw her hands up in resignation.
"Fine! You win. But if you squirm too much, I'll make *you* sit on the floor!"
"You can't do that, Scully! My apartment," he grinned again, taking pleasure in seeing her angry.
"Oh, you think I can't? You'll see!" She lied down on the couch, anyway. She had to lay right up against Mulder; there wasn't much room on the futon. But she didn't mind. It was rare moments like this that she liked in their partnership. She smiled and placed the back of her head against Mulder's chest. Then, she diverted her attention to the movie.
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After somewhere around three hours, Mulder was ready for sleep. He would have just shut off the television, but it was right in the middle of the movie. Scully probably wanted to watch the rest of it. But he knew that Scully cared much more about him than the movie. He decided he'd ask.
"Hey, Scully?"
No answer.
He nudged her a little. "Scully?"
A muffled sound came from her lips. He looked at her. She was asleep. He quietly found the remote and turned off the TV.
He decided to take advantage of the moment by laying his arm across her body. After all, when else would he get the chance to cuddle with her? She made yet another noise in her sleep, and then shrugged his arm off.
Mulder thought. But then, to his surprise, she rolled over and snuggled into him. Mulder smiled and then wrapped an arm around her. She made a soft, purring sound and put her face against his chest.
"Goodnight, Dana," he whispered to his sleeping angel.
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Dana awoke to bright sunlight streaming through Mulder's window blinds. It covered them like a blanket.
Suddenly, last night's events came back to her, and she remembered where she was, and why she had come here.
Slowly and carefully, she extracted herself from Mulder, so as not to disturb him. But Mulder immediately missed her warmness and was awakened by it. He opened his eyes and stared up at her.
"Uh...sorry," Scully apologized.
"It's okay. I'm normally up by now, anyway."
She realized then that to arrive at her mother's house on time, she'd have to leave Mulder's apartment and get ready right away. But she just couldn't leave him there. She would spend the day with her family. Mulder would have no one. He spent all of his Christmases alone.
"I have to leave now. I have to clean myself up a bit and get ready to go over Mom's. You know, Mulder, you're welcome to come," she said, putting on her shoes.
Mulder shook his head. "Nah. I wouldn't want to intrude."
"Oh, please, Mulder. You wouldn't be intruding! You're always welcome at Mom's. You know how highly she thinks of you!"
"Well..." Mulder thought, considering the offer.
Scully kneeled down next to him so she was at eye level. She waited expectantly for him to answer.
"Come on, Mulder. Please say you'll come!"
"Okay. For you." He grinned at her, and she grinned back, wanting to hug him once again.
"Well, I'm going to go now. I'll come pick you up in about an hour. Okay?"
"Okie-doke," Mulder said, getting up from the couch. He lazily stretched and then lead Scully to the door with his hand to the small of her back.
"See 'ya," Mulder said, waving.
"Bye!" she said as she stepped out the door. He closed it behind her. Mulder leaned against the back of the door and put his hand to his forehead.
Sighing, he walked to the bathroom to take a shower.
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True to her word, Scully arrived at Mulder's house an hour after she'd left. Mulder was ready to go by then, and they arrived on time at Mrs. Scully's house.
"Hello, Dana!" Mrs. Scully said, hugging her daughter tightly. Then, she spotted Fox just getting out of the car.
"Oh! Fox! How nice to see you!" The elder Scully woman hugged Fox as well, and he returned it.
"Nice to see you, too, Mrs. Scully."
"Come in, come in!" Maggie Scully led her daughter and Mulder to the living room, where two redheaded kids, a boy and a girl, ran around the living room. There was a redheaded man sitting on the couch next to a woman.
Mulder thought.
"Chuck!" Scully exclaimed, running up to her little brother. The tall man gave her a bear hug and picked her up midair.
"How are you, Dana? I haven't seen you in years!"
"I'm fine. Charles, this is my partner at the FBI, Fox Mulder," she said, gesturing towards Mulder. He stepped forward and shook the man's hand firmly.
"Hello, Charles," he said politely. Scully moved towards the couch and gestured to the woman.
"This is my sister-in-law, Tracy."
"Hi!" said the petite woman.
"And these," Scully said, laughing, "are my niece and nephew, Michelle and Jimmy."
The little girl, Michelle, the eldest of the children, walked up to Mulder and smiled at him. "How do you do, sir?" she asked.
Mulder laughed. "Very intelligent young girl you have here, Charles!" Charles laughed.
"Very good. And how do *you* do, fair lady?" Mulder asked the little girl.
"I'm good!" Michelle said. Blushing, she shyly turned away from him.
Scully noted.
The little boy, Jimmy, was hiding behind his older sister's dress.
"He's shy around strangers," Charles explained. Suddenly, Maggie came out of the kitchen.
"Dana? Can you help me in here?"
"Sure, Mom." Tracy got up from the couch. "Do you want me to help, too?" she asked.
"Nah. I think Dana's help is sufficient enough." She smiled at her daughter-in-law. "Thanks, anyway!"
Dana followed her mother into the kitchen. "What do you want me to do?" she asked.
"Could you set the table for me?" Dana nodded, walking over to the silverware drawer.
"It sure was nice that you brought Fox with you," Mrs. Scully said, sprinkling some seasonings on the turkey she was making.
"Yeah. I didn't want him to spend Christmas alone. He...well...you know how he doesn't get along well with his mom."
"Yes," she replied. "He's lucky to have you." Dana stiffened for a moment, but then continued with her work.
"Um...yeah. So, uh...where's Bill?" she asked, changing the subject.
"Matthew has a really bad cold, so your brother's staying home to take care of him."
"Oh." Just then, Dana finished setting the table. "Need anything else, Mom?" She wanted to get out of there as fast as she could. She knew her mother would start asking her about her relationship with Fox again, soon.
"Well, why don't you stay here. Dinner's ready, now, anyway."
"Dinner's ready!" Maggie called from the kitchen. Michelle and Jimmy ran in before their parents. Mulder followed, grinning at the little kids. He could remember when he was a kid, how he used to play with Samantha. He cherished the good times in his life...those first 12 years. But his life has been screwed over ever since the night Samantha disappeared. But Scully was great. She was his ultimate Novocain. She had made his last 6 years more bearable, and eased his pain. And she had saved him. Not from a mutant, a psycho, or a little gray man...but from himself. Something that he hadn't told anyone, not even Scully, herself, was that he was dangerously close to committing suicide around the time she joined him on the X-Files. All the years of not talking to his parents, getting yelled at and slapped when he did, and being without Samantha for 15 God-awful years...it was too much. But then, Scully had gotten assigned to be his partner. He didn't like working with other people. Scratch that; he *hated* working with other people. That was why he was so mean to her in the beginning. But after a while, he realized that it was unfair to treat her that way. And then, she made him come out of his shell. He began to like her. The thought of suicide disappeared.
"Fox? Will you sit here?" Mrs. Scully asked, breaking him out of his reverie. She was pointing to the seat that was next to where Dana was already sitting. He smiled. "Sure, Mrs. Scully." He walked around Dana's chair and sat in his own, politely putting his napkin in his lap. He glanced around the table. Charles was at the head, Mrs. Scully was probably going to sit down at the other head, Tracey was sitting across from Scully, feeding Jimmy in his high chair, and Michelle was sitting on the other side of her mom. After lighting two tall, white candles on the table, Mrs. Scully sat down. As if on cue, everyone's heads bowed, and they said Grace. Mulder wasn't usually one to pray, but he did it for Scully, anyway.
"Dig in!" Mrs. Scully said, a smile on her face.
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Mulder sat slightly slouched next to Scully on the couch after dinner. Jimmy, who was only 2 years old, was asleep in his high chair in the kitchen. Mrs. Scully was finishing up the dishes in the kitchen, Tracy and the ever-helpful Michelle were helping. Charles was also in the living room, but the conversation between Mulder, Scully, and Charles was meerly smalltalk. They were all tired from eating all that turkey. Just then, a rather hyper Michelle asked, "Grandma? When are we going to open presents??"
"As soon as we finish the dishes, dear. The faster we work, the faster we open presents. So let's work, work, work!" she said, ruffling her granddaughter's hair. Michelle laughed and began to dry the dishes faster.
In the living room, Charles decided to strike up a conversation with Fox. "So, Mr. Mulder, Dana has told me a lot about what you two do. Your job sounds very interesting."
Mulder laughed. "That's an understatement!" Scully smiled. Just then, Michelle ran into the living room, her red hair bouncing with her. "Time to open presents! Time to open presents!!" she shouted with joy.
"Hold your horses, dear," Charles said. "You go sit next to Aunt Dana over there, okay?"
"Okay!" the girl said excitedly.
"Charles, will you pass out the gifts this year?" Mrs. Scully asked her son.
"Sure, Mom." He reached under the beautifully lit tree, and the gift-giving began.
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A few hours after the gift exchange, both Michelle and little Jimmy were sound asleep. Michelle was curled up at the far end of the couch, and Jimmy was cuddling next to his mother. It was nearly 11 o'clock.
"We'd better leave, Mom. Michelle has ballet lessons early in the morning."
"Oh, okay. Don't forget your stuff!" she said, pointing to the toys strewn all across the floor.
"Couldn't miss them," Charles smiled. Tracy got up slowly, and put a coat on a sleeping Jimmy as carefully as she could without waking him up, just as Charles gently woke up Michelle and let her put on her own coat. Then, they put on their own coats, gathered up their toys, and said their good-bye's.
"Nice meeting you again, Fox. Hope to see you soon!" Charles said, shaking Fox's hand.
"Bye, Charles," he said, politely. And then, a few minutes later, they were gone. Maggie, Dana, and Fox stood at the door to watch them go. Once their car was no longer in view, Fox stepped back. He was awkward being in Mrs. Scully's house. Mrs. Scully shut the door and Scully resumed her position standing next to Mulder.
"Well, now it's certainly more quiet!" commented Maggie.
"Perhaps we should get going, Scully. It's getting late." Before she had a chance to reply, Maggie broke in.
"Nonsense! You know you're always welcome here, son. Actually, I was wondering if you two would like to stay the night and keep me company. You know I hardly ever get visitors here."
"You sure, Mom?"
"Of course!"
"Are you willing to stay, Mulder?" Scully asked him.
"Yes. I think I'd like that," he smiled.
"Great!" said Mrs. Scully. "Can I make us some hot chocolate?" she asked.
"Sure. I'll have one."
"Me too, Mom," Scully chimed in. Mrs. Scully walked off into the kitchen, leaving Mulder and Scully alone in the living room. For a moment, no one spoke.
"Those are some cute kids, Scully. Got any more red-headed neices and nephews?" He asked, lightly nudging her in the ribs. She grinned at him.
"Yeah. One baby boy named Matthew. He's Bill's child. But he hasn't got much hair yet, so it's hard to tell what color it's going to be." He laughed.
"Cute. I guess the red hair is a big trait in your family! Everyone in my family has dark hair. My mom had it, and so did my dad. And, well, Samantha had it, too. I've got it, but I don't like it much. It's just...too dark for my tastes."
"I like it," Scully said.
"Even when I'm having a bad hair day?" Mulder teased. She laughed.
"Yes, even when you're having a bad hair day."
"Ha! I caught you in a lie, Scully! Everyone knows that I have *never* had a bad hair day."
"Sure, you have!"
"When?!" Mulder asked.
"Well..." she paused, thinking.
"See!" Mulder said, pointing an accusing finger at her, "You can't even think of a time when I've had a bad hair day!"
"Sure I can! Whenever it does that Elvis Curly-Q kind of thing! That looked soooo bad!"
"Thank you very much," Mulder said, doing his best Elvis imitation. Scully laughed, propping her feet up on the table. "When did I have the Elvis look going?" he asked curiously.
"Hmmmm...I don't know. It was probably around a year ago, when I had just gotten out of the hospital."
"Mmmm. I remember that."
A couple minutes of silence passed between them.
"So you said it did a curly-Q?"
Scully laughed. "Yes!" she said, still laughing.
"I'll have to watch it and make sure it doesn't do that again."
"Well, it's not that big of a deal, Mulder, really."
"But you said I was having a bad hair day back then!"
"Oh, I don't know...it looked kinda cute, the way it fell across your forehead," she said, looking at him closely.
"Mental note: wear hair in a curly-Q every day to work." Scully found herself laughing once again. Just then, Mrs. Scully walked into the room, a hot mug of hot chocolate in her hand.
"Here, Fox. Be careful, it's hot. Don't worry, Dana; I've got yours coming right up, dear!" While Mrs. Scully was back in the kitchen again, Mulder's tongue darted out to taste the steaming liquid. He quickly drew it back.
"OW!!!!" Dana quickly moved forward.
"Are you okay??"
"Yeah. I just...burned my tongue."
"Smooth move, Mulder!" she said, teasing him.
"Smooth move, Mulder!" he mocked her in a ridiculously high-pitched voice. She lightly punched him in the side, as her mother returned with another mug. She disappeared into the kitchen, then emerged seconds later with her own steaming mug. She set the cup down on a coaster and went over to the fire. She pulled out a long match, struck it, and soon had the fire going. She then moved over to the lamp and shut it off; the fire provided just enough light in the small room.
"So how's work, Fox?" Mrs. Scully asked.
"Boring. You don't know how glad I would be to get the X-files back!"
"Yes. I know how important they are to you and Dana."
"You wouldn't believe how many background checks we have to do each day. They've given us the worst work!"
"Well, hopefully you'll get them back soon."
"I hope so. I know this doesn't usually happen, Mulder, but I agree with you; we should have them back!"
Soon, the three were chatting away about the X-files, childhood stories, and anything else they could think of. Then, the clock struck midnight. It was then, that Mrs. Scully yawned.
"Well, I'm going to head to bed, now. You two can stay down here until you're ready for bed, too. Dana, you sleep in your own room, and Fox, you can sleep in Bill Jr.'s room. It's right across from Dana's; she can show you the way. There's some old clothes in the dressers, so you can slip into something comfortable to sleep in."
"Thanks, Mrs. Scully."
"Have a nice sleep, Mom," Scully added.
"Goodnight, kids." Mrs. Scully smiled behind their backs. Leaving them alone would lead to lots of good conversation, she was sure. Perhaps more. She stifled a giggle and closed the door of her bedroom.
Mulder moved intimately close to her. "We're alone now..." he whispered seductively in her ear. It tickled. Scully kicked him in the shin, but didn't move away.
"Ow! Do you know how much trouble you could get into for assaulting an FBI agent?"
"And do you know how much trouble you'd get into for sexually harassing your partner? It's bad enough everyone in the bureau thinks we're sleeping together." Mulder mockingly put both his hands up in surrender, an innocent look on his face. But he then moved closer in to her again. Scully yawned. She was getting tired quickly.
"Wanna go to bed yet?" Mulder asked.
"No, not just yet." She layed her head on Mulder's shoulder and watched the fire burn. A couple minutes passed without anything being said. It was almost as if the two of them were in a trance from the heat of the fire - and each other. Then, Mulder yawned.
"Well, I'd like to stay out here, Scully, but I'm beat. I'm heading up to bed."
"Yeah, me too." Scully got up with him and followed him slowly up the stairs. When they were at the top, he paused.
"Which room is mine again, Scully?"
"This one," she said, pointing to a closed door. He opened the door to find a boy's room with baseball wallpaper, posters, and comic books.
"Jeez, Scully! How long has it been since someone's slept in here?!" Mulder asked.
"Almost 17 years. Bill sleeps in here whenever he comes to visit, but that's only around the holidays. He didn't come this year because his son was sick." Mulder nodded his head.
"Goodnight, Scully. Sweet dreams!"
"Goodnight, Mulder," she said, walking into the room right across from Mulder's and shutting the door behind her as Mulder shut his, as well. He turned around slowly and stepped forward, observing the room. It looked somewhat like what his room was like when he was a kid. Then, he spotted the drawer and remembered what Mrs. Scully had said about finding something of Bill Jr.'s to wear to bed. He knew her brother would be pissed if he know he'd worn his clothes. Dana's brother had always hated Mulder for some reason. This made Mulder smirk even more as he found a white T-shirt. He stripped down until he was in his boxers and put the T-shirt on. Then, he shut the light off and climbed in bed.
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"Breakfast is ready!" Mrs. Scully called from the bottom of the steps. Dana lazily opened her eyes and yawned. She got out of bed and stretched. Then, she opened her door, to discover that Mulder's was still shut.
she thought as she opened the door as quietly as she could. She then saw his form almost completely covered by the blankets. The only thing sticking out was his slightly-smiling face. She tip-toed over to the bed and sat down on it lightly. She studied him for a minute. Then, she gently caressed his jaw bone. But he still didn't wake up; he only leaned into her hand. So then, she ruffled his hair. That got him.
"Whuh??" he asked, after being abruptly woken up. Then, he saw Scully. "Oh," he smiled at her, "It's only you."
"Come on, Mulder. It's time for breakfast." He blinked his eyes open really wide, then got up to follow Scully down the stairs.
"So there's the two sleepy heads!" Mrs. Scu
Author: Gill, Jr.
E-mail Address: MmentMori@aol.com
Rating: PG-13
Category: VRA
Spoilers: The Ghosts That Stole Christmas, Memento Mori, Fight the Future
Keywords: Mulder/Scully Romance, UST, some angst
Summary: Mulder and Scully don't want to spend Christmas alone...
Author's Notes: Well, last year, after being puzzled as to what the word 'vignette' meant, I looked it up in the dictionary. It read:
vignette: (vin-yet') n. short, neat description in words.
Now, my story definitely does NOT meet this description! ;) It's actually pretty long for a vignette. I never planned for it to be this long, but everything worked out so well. So sorry if it doesn't exactly match the definition. I'm not exactly a by-the-book kinda gal, anyways. :oP
Feedback: Yes! ;)
Dedication: This one is for Mark, who, as Mulder is to Scully, a friend, and so much more. You mean the world to me.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~The First Christmas~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
A fanfic by Gill, Jr.
Scully tossed and turned in her moon-drenched bed. She had been trying for so long, but she just couldn't sleep. Her mind kept drifting to her and Mulder's encounter with Maurice and Lyda that happened a few hours ago. She stared up at the white ceiling of her room. She never realized how...dull...it was. Scully sighed.
She turned on her table lamp and threw off her pajamas. She picked her clothes up from the floor, where she had hastily thrown them when she had gotten home. Dana was usually a very tidy person who kept an immaculate home; she always threw her clothes in the hamper and never forgot they were there.
In less than five minutes she was dressed and all ready to go. She hoped Mulder was home. Hell, he could have killed her last night! When they had been crawling around on the floor, covered in blood, they had pulled their guns on each other, something no two partners in the FBI should ever do. But they had done it more than just once. She closed her eyes, reliving the moment that took place only hours before. She wondered if their encounter had bothered Mulder as much as it'd bothered her. Last night's incidents at Maurice and Lyda's had been very troubling. She prayed that Mulder was all right. He had to be.
Grabbing her keys, she walked out the door.
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Mulder turned away from the TV screen as he heard someone knocking on his door. He got up, curiously, and opened the door to find his partner behind it.
"I, uh, I couldn't sleep. It was, um..." she paused, unable to grasp the right words, "can I come in?"
Without hesitation, he guided her into his apartment.
"Aren't you supposed to be opening Christmas gifts with your family?"
Scully couldn't resist asking. The question had been plaguing her mind all night.
"None of that really happened out there, tonight. That was all in our heads, right?"
Mulder was surprised. He hadn't really thought about it all that much.
"Must have been." He stepped closer to Scully, who was obviously thinking.
"Not that my only joy in life is proving you wrong," Scully said, out of the blue.
"When *have* you proven me wrong?" Mulder joked.
"Well, why else would you want me out there with you?"
"You don't want to be there?" he asked. Scully said nothing. "Oh, that's, um, self-righteous and narcissistic of me to say, isn't it?" he asked, repeating Maurice's words.
"No, I mean...maybe I *did* want to be out there with you," she said, looking him in the eyes, but not for too long. It was hard enough for her to admit thoughts that would lead to her true feelings for him, let alone look him in the eye. She was afraid if she did, she'd melt. There was a rather uncomfortable silence between them, until Mulder stepped behind Scully.
"I know we said that we weren't going to exchange gifts, but, uh, I got you...a little something," he said, holding out a wrapped object that was shaped like a rolling pin. She smiled up at him. Not an everyday, "Good morning" smile, but a genuine ScullySmile, a smile that he rarely saw, and was reserved for him. Only him.
"Mulder," she said affectionately.
"Merry Christmas," he answered. Digging in her coat, she came up with Mulder's gift. It was a small, rectangular object, about an inch thick.
"Well, I got you a little something, too." They both laughed. They then looked in each other's eyes and, grinning like fools, ran to the couch to open their gifts.
Scully tore madly at her present, much like a child opens their first gift every Christmas morning. Inside was a big roll of paper. She opened the roll to real an "I Want To Believe" poster, identical to the one Mulder used to have in their office.
A big grin crossed her face as she studied the poster. She turned to Mulder, who had paused in his gift-tearing frenzy to see her reaction. Mulder smiled back at her.
"I remembered when you'd asked me about my poster. You said you'd wanted to send it to that Detective Jack what'shisname, but I had a feeling you wanted it for yourself and were too embarrassed to admit it." She arched her eyebrows at him, but she couldn't keep her lips from tugging upward. Then, there was another moment of silence.
"Well, Mulder. Aren't you going to open yours?"
Mulder paused. "Oh," he fumbled with the gift, "oh, yeah!" He tore away the last of the paper to reveal the back of a picture frame. He turned it over. Enclosed in the glass and oak was a photo of the agents at a visit to Scully's mother's house. It was a very cute photograph, actually; it was Mulder and Scully, sitting on the floor, near the fireplace, with their backs to the couch. They were sitting close together, with a blanket draped over themselves, looking at an old family photo album.
Mulder immediately smiled, remembering that night fondly. He hadn't even known Mrs. Scully had snapped the picture. Maggie Scully had liked Fox the moment she had met him and eventually grew to love him as much as her two sons, sometimes, even more.
He looked up at Scully, his eyes brimming with tears of joy. "Thank you, Scully." He suddenly reached out and embraced her, burying his face in her auburn hair. Scully was rigid for a moment, not expecting this, but she immediately relaxed and put her arms around him. He clung to her for a little longer than he usually did and she rubbed his back. He didn't know why they didn't hug more often. He supposed it was because they were partners. But there was something there; an attraction. They were partners, friends, and so much more. He remembered hugging her like they were now only twice before. There was the one time, in the hospital where Scully had been diagnosed with cancer. Both of them were emotionally naked, tears in their eyes, fears out in the open. That was a time of vulnerability. He had kissed her forehead, stroked her hair, and then she walked away. But not before looking deep into his eyes and sharing a deep gaze with him.
The second time was less than a year ago, when she had come to his apartment to tell him she was quitting. He had followed her out his door and into the hallway, trying to stop her from leaving. He had told her she'd made him a whole person. He told her that he owed her everything, and she owed him nothing. He had poured his heart out to her in those few sentences, the admission causing tears to form in her eyes. Then, she'd come forward and let him hold her. She'd reached up and kissed his forehead ever so gently, and then, they'd pressed their foreheads together, closing their eyes. They'd separated, staring deep into each other's eyes as if they were in a trance. A single tear slipped down Dana's cheek as they leaned in for their first kiss. And then, that damn bee had stung her. To this day, Mulder still hated the stupid thing; it had stopped him from admitting to her how much he loved her, and worse, it had put her in anaphylactic shock, nearly killing her. But he didn't want to think about that right now. Not at a good time, such as this. Mulder closed his eyes, not a single thought entering his mind. Until...
For a moment, there was an awkward silence between them.
"If you want to stick around, I think 'The Ghosts Who Stole Christmas' is on."
Scully nodded. "Sounds good."
"I'm gonna lay back on the couch here...if you want to sit on the floor or something -"
"The floor?!" Scully interrupted. "I'm not sitting on the *floor!*"
"I'm kidding, Scully, jeez!" He stretched his lanky form out on the couch and stayed as far back as he could. He patted a spot next to him.
"Either this or the chair," Mulder offered.
"But you can't even see the TV from the chair!" Scully whined.
"My point exactly," he grinned devilishly at her. Scully sighed and threw her hands up in resignation.
"Fine! You win. But if you squirm too much, I'll make *you* sit on the floor!"
"You can't do that, Scully! My apartment," he grinned again, taking pleasure in seeing her angry.
"Oh, you think I can't? You'll see!" She lied down on the couch, anyway. She had to lay right up against Mulder; there wasn't much room on the futon. But she didn't mind. It was rare moments like this that she liked in their partnership. She smiled and placed the back of her head against Mulder's chest. Then, she diverted her attention to the movie.
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After somewhere around three hours, Mulder was ready for sleep. He would have just shut off the television, but it was right in the middle of the movie. Scully probably wanted to watch the rest of it. But he knew that Scully cared much more about him than the movie. He decided he'd ask.
"Hey, Scully?"
No answer.
He nudged her a little. "Scully?"
A muffled sound came from her lips. He looked at her. She was asleep. He quietly found the remote and turned off the TV.
He decided to take advantage of the moment by laying his arm across her body. After all, when else would he get the chance to cuddle with her? She made yet another noise in her sleep, and then shrugged his arm off.
"Goodnight, Dana," he whispered to his sleeping angel.
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Dana awoke to bright sunlight streaming through Mulder's window blinds. It covered them like a blanket.
Suddenly, last night's events came back to her, and she remembered where she was, and why she had come here.
Slowly and carefully, she extracted herself from Mulder, so as not to disturb him. But Mulder immediately missed her warmness and was awakened by it. He opened his eyes and stared up at her.
"Uh...sorry," Scully apologized.
"It's okay. I'm normally up by now, anyway."
She realized then that to arrive at her mother's house on time, she'd have to leave Mulder's apartment and get ready right away. But she just couldn't leave him there. She would spend the day with her family. Mulder would have no one. He spent all of his Christmases alone.
"I have to leave now. I have to clean myself up a bit and get ready to go over Mom's. You know, Mulder, you're welcome to come," she said, putting on her shoes.
Mulder shook his head. "Nah. I wouldn't want to intrude."
"Oh, please, Mulder. You wouldn't be intruding! You're always welcome at Mom's. You know how highly she thinks of you!"
"Well..." Mulder thought, considering the offer.
Scully kneeled down next to him so she was at eye level. She waited expectantly for him to answer.
"Come on, Mulder. Please say you'll come!"
"Okay. For you." He grinned at her, and she grinned back, wanting to hug him once again.
"Well, I'm going to go now. I'll come pick you up in about an hour. Okay?"
"Okie-doke," Mulder said, getting up from the couch. He lazily stretched and then lead Scully to the door with his hand to the small of her back.
"See 'ya," Mulder said, waving.
"Bye!" she said as she stepped out the door. He closed it behind her. Mulder leaned against the back of the door and put his hand to his forehead.
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True to her word, Scully arrived at Mulder's house an hour after she'd left. Mulder was ready to go by then, and they arrived on time at Mrs. Scully's house.
"Hello, Dana!" Mrs. Scully said, hugging her daughter tightly. Then, she spotted Fox just getting out of the car.
"Oh! Fox! How nice to see you!" The elder Scully woman hugged Fox as well, and he returned it.
"Nice to see you, too, Mrs. Scully."
"Come in, come in!" Maggie Scully led her daughter and Mulder to the living room, where two redheaded kids, a boy and a girl, ran around the living room. There was a redheaded man sitting on the couch next to a woman.
"Chuck!" Scully exclaimed, running up to her little brother. The tall man gave her a bear hug and picked her up midair.
"How are you, Dana? I haven't seen you in years!"
"I'm fine. Charles, this is my partner at the FBI, Fox Mulder," she said, gesturing towards Mulder. He stepped forward and shook the man's hand firmly.
"Hello, Charles," he said politely. Scully moved towards the couch and gestured to the woman.
"This is my sister-in-law, Tracy."
"Hi!" said the petite woman.
"And these," Scully said, laughing, "are my niece and nephew, Michelle and Jimmy."
The little girl, Michelle, the eldest of the children, walked up to Mulder and smiled at him. "How do you do, sir?" she asked.
Mulder laughed. "Very intelligent young girl you have here, Charles!" Charles laughed.
"Very good. And how do *you* do, fair lady?" Mulder asked the little girl.
"I'm good!" Michelle said. Blushing, she shyly turned away from him.
The little boy, Jimmy, was hiding behind his older sister's dress.
"He's shy around strangers," Charles explained. Suddenly, Maggie came out of the kitchen.
"Dana? Can you help me in here?"
"Sure, Mom." Tracy got up from the couch. "Do you want me to help, too?" she asked.
"Nah. I think Dana's help is sufficient enough." She smiled at her daughter-in-law. "Thanks, anyway!"
Dana followed her mother into the kitchen. "What do you want me to do?" she asked.
"Could you set the table for me?" Dana nodded, walking over to the silverware drawer.
"It sure was nice that you brought Fox with you," Mrs. Scully said, sprinkling some seasonings on the turkey she was making.
"Yeah. I didn't want him to spend Christmas alone. He...well...you know how he doesn't get along well with his mom."
"Yes," she replied. "He's lucky to have you." Dana stiffened for a moment, but then continued with her work.
"Um...yeah. So, uh...where's Bill?" she asked, changing the subject.
"Matthew has a really bad cold, so your brother's staying home to take care of him."
"Oh." Just then, Dana finished setting the table. "Need anything else, Mom?" She wanted to get out of there as fast as she could. She knew her mother would start asking her about her relationship with Fox again, soon.
"Well, why don't you stay here. Dinner's ready, now, anyway."
"Dinner's ready!" Maggie called from the kitchen. Michelle and Jimmy ran in before their parents. Mulder followed, grinning at the little kids. He could remember when he was a kid, how he used to play with Samantha. He cherished the good times in his life...those first 12 years. But his life has been screwed over ever since the night Samantha disappeared. But Scully was great. She was his ultimate Novocain. She had made his last 6 years more bearable, and eased his pain. And she had saved him. Not from a mutant, a psycho, or a little gray man...but from himself. Something that he hadn't told anyone, not even Scully, herself, was that he was dangerously close to committing suicide around the time she joined him on the X-Files. All the years of not talking to his parents, getting yelled at and slapped when he did, and being without Samantha for 15 God-awful years...it was too much. But then, Scully had gotten assigned to be his partner. He didn't like working with other people. Scratch that; he *hated* working with other people. That was why he was so mean to her in the beginning. But after a while, he realized that it was unfair to treat her that way. And then, she made him come out of his shell. He began to like her. The thought of suicide disappeared.
"Fox? Will you sit here?" Mrs. Scully asked, breaking him out of his reverie. She was pointing to the seat that was next to where Dana was already sitting. He smiled. "Sure, Mrs. Scully." He walked around Dana's chair and sat in his own, politely putting his napkin in his lap. He glanced around the table. Charles was at the head, Mrs. Scully was probably going to sit down at the other head, Tracey was sitting across from Scully, feeding Jimmy in his high chair, and Michelle was sitting on the other side of her mom. After lighting two tall, white candles on the table, Mrs. Scully sat down. As if on cue, everyone's heads bowed, and they said Grace. Mulder wasn't usually one to pray, but he did it for Scully, anyway.
"Dig in!" Mrs. Scully said, a smile on her face.
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Mulder sat slightly slouched next to Scully on the couch after dinner. Jimmy, who was only 2 years old, was asleep in his high chair in the kitchen. Mrs. Scully was finishing up the dishes in the kitchen, Tracy and the ever-helpful Michelle were helping. Charles was also in the living room, but the conversation between Mulder, Scully, and Charles was meerly smalltalk. They were all tired from eating all that turkey. Just then, a rather hyper Michelle asked, "Grandma? When are we going to open presents??"
"As soon as we finish the dishes, dear. The faster we work, the faster we open presents. So let's work, work, work!" she said, ruffling her granddaughter's hair. Michelle laughed and began to dry the dishes faster.
In the living room, Charles decided to strike up a conversation with Fox. "So, Mr. Mulder, Dana has told me a lot about what you two do. Your job sounds very interesting."
Mulder laughed. "That's an understatement!" Scully smiled. Just then, Michelle ran into the living room, her red hair bouncing with her. "Time to open presents! Time to open presents!!" she shouted with joy.
"Hold your horses, dear," Charles said. "You go sit next to Aunt Dana over there, okay?"
"Okay!" the girl said excitedly.
"Charles, will you pass out the gifts this year?" Mrs. Scully asked her son.
"Sure, Mom." He reached under the beautifully lit tree, and the gift-giving began.
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A few hours after the gift exchange, both Michelle and little Jimmy were sound asleep. Michelle was curled up at the far end of the couch, and Jimmy was cuddling next to his mother. It was nearly 11 o'clock.
"We'd better leave, Mom. Michelle has ballet lessons early in the morning."
"Oh, okay. Don't forget your stuff!" she said, pointing to the toys strewn all across the floor.
"Couldn't miss them," Charles smiled. Tracy got up slowly, and put a coat on a sleeping Jimmy as carefully as she could without waking him up, just as Charles gently woke up Michelle and let her put on her own coat. Then, they put on their own coats, gathered up their toys, and said their good-bye's.
"Nice meeting you again, Fox. Hope to see you soon!" Charles said, shaking Fox's hand.
"Bye, Charles," he said, politely. And then, a few minutes later, they were gone. Maggie, Dana, and Fox stood at the door to watch them go. Once their car was no longer in view, Fox stepped back. He was awkward being in Mrs. Scully's house. Mrs. Scully shut the door and Scully resumed her position standing next to Mulder.
"Well, now it's certainly more quiet!" commented Maggie.
"Perhaps we should get going, Scully. It's getting late." Before she had a chance to reply, Maggie broke in.
"Nonsense! You know you're always welcome here, son. Actually, I was wondering if you two would like to stay the night and keep me company. You know I hardly ever get visitors here."
"You sure, Mom?"
"Of course!"
"Are you willing to stay, Mulder?" Scully asked him.
"Yes. I think I'd like that," he smiled.
"Great!" said Mrs. Scully. "Can I make us some hot chocolate?" she asked.
"Sure. I'll have one."
"Me too, Mom," Scully chimed in. Mrs. Scully walked off into the kitchen, leaving Mulder and Scully alone in the living room. For a moment, no one spoke.
"Those are some cute kids, Scully. Got any more red-headed neices and nephews?" He asked, lightly nudging her in the ribs. She grinned at him.
"Yeah. One baby boy named Matthew. He's Bill's child. But he hasn't got much hair yet, so it's hard to tell what color it's going to be." He laughed.
"Cute. I guess the red hair is a big trait in your family! Everyone in my family has dark hair. My mom had it, and so did my dad. And, well, Samantha had it, too. I've got it, but I don't like it much. It's just...too dark for my tastes."
"I like it," Scully said.
"Even when I'm having a bad hair day?" Mulder teased. She laughed.
"Yes, even when you're having a bad hair day."
"Ha! I caught you in a lie, Scully! Everyone knows that I have *never* had a bad hair day."
"Sure, you have!"
"When?!" Mulder asked.
"Well..." she paused, thinking.
"See!" Mulder said, pointing an accusing finger at her, "You can't even think of a time when I've had a bad hair day!"
"Sure I can! Whenever it does that Elvis Curly-Q kind of thing! That looked soooo bad!"
"Thank you very much," Mulder said, doing his best Elvis imitation. Scully laughed, propping her feet up on the table. "When did I have the Elvis look going?" he asked curiously.
"Hmmmm...I don't know. It was probably around a year ago, when I had just gotten out of the hospital."
"Mmmm. I remember that."
A couple minutes of silence passed between them.
"So you said it did a curly-Q?"
Scully laughed. "Yes!" she said, still laughing.
"I'll have to watch it and make sure it doesn't do that again."
"Well, it's not that big of a deal, Mulder, really."
"But you said I was having a bad hair day back then!"
"Oh, I don't know...it looked kinda cute, the way it fell across your forehead," she said, looking at him closely.
"Mental note: wear hair in a curly-Q every day to work." Scully found herself laughing once again. Just then, Mrs. Scully walked into the room, a hot mug of hot chocolate in her hand.
"Here, Fox. Be careful, it's hot. Don't worry, Dana; I've got yours coming right up, dear!" While Mrs. Scully was back in the kitchen again, Mulder's tongue darted out to taste the steaming liquid. He quickly drew it back.
"OW!!!!" Dana quickly moved forward.
"Are you okay??"
"Yeah. I just...burned my tongue."
"Smooth move, Mulder!" she said, teasing him.
"Smooth move, Mulder!" he mocked her in a ridiculously high-pitched voice. She lightly punched him in the side, as her mother returned with another mug. She disappeared into the kitchen, then emerged seconds later with her own steaming mug. She set the cup down on a coaster and went over to the fire. She pulled out a long match, struck it, and soon had the fire going. She then moved over to the lamp and shut it off; the fire provided just enough light in the small room.
"So how's work, Fox?" Mrs. Scully asked.
"Boring. You don't know how glad I would be to get the X-files back!"
"Yes. I know how important they are to you and Dana."
"You wouldn't believe how many background checks we have to do each day. They've given us the worst work!"
"Well, hopefully you'll get them back soon."
"I hope so. I know this doesn't usually happen, Mulder, but I agree with you; we should have them back!"
Soon, the three were chatting away about the X-files, childhood stories, and anything else they could think of. Then, the clock struck midnight. It was then, that Mrs. Scully yawned.
"Well, I'm going to head to bed, now. You two can stay down here until you're ready for bed, too. Dana, you sleep in your own room, and Fox, you can sleep in Bill Jr.'s room. It's right across from Dana's; she can show you the way. There's some old clothes in the dressers, so you can slip into something comfortable to sleep in."
"Thanks, Mrs. Scully."
"Have a nice sleep, Mom," Scully added.
"Goodnight, kids." Mrs. Scully smiled behind their backs. Leaving them alone would lead to lots of good conversation, she was sure. Perhaps more. She stifled a giggle and closed the door of her bedroom.
Mulder moved intimately close to her. "We're alone now..." he whispered seductively in her ear. It tickled. Scully kicked him in the shin, but didn't move away.
"Ow! Do you know how much trouble you could get into for assaulting an FBI agent?"
"And do you know how much trouble you'd get into for sexually harassing your partner? It's bad enough everyone in the bureau thinks we're sleeping together." Mulder mockingly put both his hands up in surrender, an innocent look on his face. But he then moved closer in to her again. Scully yawned. She was getting tired quickly.
"Wanna go to bed yet?" Mulder asked.
"No, not just yet." She layed her head on Mulder's shoulder and watched the fire burn. A couple minutes passed without anything being said. It was almost as if the two of them were in a trance from the heat of the fire - and each other. Then, Mulder yawned.
"Well, I'd like to stay out here, Scully, but I'm beat. I'm heading up to bed."
"Yeah, me too." Scully got up with him and followed him slowly up the stairs. When they were at the top, he paused.
"Which room is mine again, Scully?"
"This one," she said, pointing to a closed door. He opened the door to find a boy's room with baseball wallpaper, posters, and comic books.
"Jeez, Scully! How long has it been since someone's slept in here?!" Mulder asked.
"Almost 17 years. Bill sleeps in here whenever he comes to visit, but that's only around the holidays. He didn't come this year because his son was sick." Mulder nodded his head.
"Goodnight, Scully. Sweet dreams!"
"Goodnight, Mulder," she said, walking into the room right across from Mulder's and shutting the door behind her as Mulder shut his, as well. He turned around slowly and stepped forward, observing the room. It looked somewhat like what his room was like when he was a kid. Then, he spotted the drawer and remembered what Mrs. Scully had said about finding something of Bill Jr.'s to wear to bed. He knew her brother would be pissed if he know he'd worn his clothes. Dana's brother had always hated Mulder for some reason. This made Mulder smirk even more as he found a white T-shirt. He stripped down until he was in his boxers and put the T-shirt on. Then, he shut the light off and climbed in bed.
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"Breakfast is ready!" Mrs. Scully called from the bottom of the steps. Dana lazily opened her eyes and yawned. She got out of bed and stretched. Then, she opened her door, to discover that Mulder's was still shut.
"Whuh??" he asked, after being abruptly woken up. Then, he saw Scully. "Oh," he smiled at her, "It's only you."
"Come on, Mulder. It's time for breakfast." He blinked his eyes open really wide, then got up to follow Scully down the stairs.
"So there's the two sleepy heads!" Mrs. Scu