As Scully strolled down to the basement one morning, she noticed the door to Mulder's office was ajar. This in itself wasn't entirely out of the ordinary, as the FBI agent was often forgetful and apathetic enough to not bother closing it. However, this time Scully could see, wedged in the top half of the door, what looked like tree branches. As she edged closer, the branches started to shake as if someone was tugging on them from the other side of the door, dropping dark green, plastic pine needles on the floor outside. Frowning, Scully gingerly knocked on the door; the tree stopped shaking as she did so.
"What's going on in there?" She called out.
"Oh – Scully, is that you? – I'm trying to get this tree in my office," Mulder replied matter-of-factly from inside. His voice was slightly muffled by the barrier of the door. "You couldn't help me by any chance, could you?"
After a brief moment of bewilderment, Scully shook her head, deciding to simply go with the flow. That always seemed to be the best way of effectively working with her partner, even if it did irritate her. "It would probably help if you opened the door properly," she suggested flatly.
"Yeah, I'm afraid I can't. There's a bunch of filing cabinets in the way."
Scully glanced heavenwards. "What did I-" tell you about sorting out the filing cabinets?, she was going to say, before thinking better of it. Of course Mulder hadn't listened to her, why should essentially saying "I told you so" make any difference? "Never mind. Can't you move them at all?"
"Maybe. Hang on a sec, I'll try." Footsteps, a vague shuffling sound, footsteps again. "Okay, try the door? I'll get the tree."
Placing one hand firmly on the door, Scully pushed it, dislodging a few more pine needles in the process. The door opened by a couple of inches, allowing room for the tree to be pulled inside by Mulder. He emitted a small sound of victory as his partner squeezed through the gap left in the doorway. Unfortunately, there still wasn't enough room for her to fully stand in the room, as the tree was filling up half the space in there. Mulder himself was squashed between the tree and the filing cabinet.
"I thought you didn't celebrate Christmas anyway?" Scully asked curiously as she awkwardly peered around the door.
"Not in a religious way, but I enjoy the festivities. My family always liked the tradition. And besides, it's only a tree, no big deal," he explained.
Scully gave him a fleeting smile in agreement. "Now that task has been accomplished, don't you think it's time to do some work?" She raised her eyebrows.
Mulder gave her a look. "Oh, that was only the start of it. Now I gotta put it someplace in here where it's not in the way – and decorate it," he gestured towards a box full of tinsel and baubles on his desk.
"Well, I'll leave you to it." Scully ducked her head as she turned to leave his office.
"Wait – Scully! I could use your help here, you know."
"I've got a meeting with Skinner." Which wasn't due for another half hour yet, but Mulder didn't need to know that.
"But Scully-"
"Bye, Mulder."
Two hours later, Mulder was still wrestling with the tree. The floor of his office was concealed by a carpet of pine needles, and baubles were spilling over his desk as he struggled to find room for them. Tinsel was wrapped around the agent's neck like a feather boa, and he was fairly sure there was a bit of branch stuck in his tousled hair. "Damn it!" He yelled in frustration as he just caught the tree from falling on top of him for what felt like the hundredth time.
"Agent Mulder!" A man barked from the doorway, startling Mulder so much he nearly slipped on a bauble. When he managed to turn himself around, he saw it was Assistant Director Skinner.
"Sir." He nodded, not knowing how else to greet him.
"Agent Scully has solved five cases in the time you've been trying to install this Christmas tree in your office. Or she could have if she hadn't been waiting around for you." Skinner was stony-faced as he reprimanded the agent. "I understand you might be in the festive spirit, but that is no excuse to shirk your responsibilities as an FBI agent. Agent Scully will be returning shortly, and if you haven't found a case by the time she arrives, you'll have me to answer to. Now get back to work this instant!"
"Sorry, Sir." Mulder replied sheepishly, propping the tree up against the nearest wall. "Merry Christmas," he added as sincerely as possible as Skinner turned to leave.
Skinner looked even more annoyed for a second, but his face softened slightly. "Yeah, you too. And hurry up." He shook his head in disbelief as he walked away.
