A/N: Back to the not so dark... Last real chapter. However, there may be an epilogue. Not sure :)

Scully woke up in her hospital bed with Lucie in it with her, holding her hand.

"How ya feeling?" Lucie asked, once her cousin seemed awake enough. She turned off the tv to let Scully answer.

"Ouch," Scully replied.

"That's a good answer," Lucie commented. "You doing okay? I mean emotionally? Mentally?"

Scully thought for a bit. It all really just seemed like a bad dream. She was kind of numb to it. "Right now? Yeah, I think I'm okay. Later on down the road, we'll have to see," she told her, honestly.

She had a feeling that there were going to be nightmares and situations that would make her feel uncomfortable, but she knew that she would deal with it when it came along. After all, she had Mulder, and she knew that his strength would help. They had been through plenty of hard times before.

"What happened? Why were you there?" she asked, curiously.

"Well, you know how you told me to not throw-up on any little girls?" Scully nodded. "Well, I felt like I was going to do just that with all the dancing. So, I canceled the class and went to the apartment to get some stuff before heading over to Jack's. I heard you crying in pain and a man's voice that wasn't Mulder from your bedroom. So, I took your gun and investigated," she explained.

"So, basically, I'm lucky that you were too hungover to work?"

"Yep. Or you would probably be dead by now!"

"Thanks," Scully said, shaking her head at Lucie's famous bluntness.

"And you're lucky that uncle Travis used to take me hunting with my brothers. I just pretended that psycho was a big deer and aimed for his head."

"Very relieved that you are an expert hunter," Scully smiled up at Lucie. "One shot to the head. No warning. Well done."

"Uh, he didn't deserve a warning! He had a knife and was on you. That's the beauty of being a civilian. I don't have to give warning!" Lucie grinned. "Just aim and shoot!"

"You scare me."

Lucie just snuggled in with her cousin. "Wanna watch the Travel Channel? I think that there's a special on Hawaii."

"That would be nice," Scully mumbled, her eyelids drooping. "Hey," she began sleepily. "Where's Mulder? Is he okay?"

Lucie smiled. "Of course he's okay! Luckily, the ambulance was in the area. It took no time for them to get you and bring you here. I called Mulder once we got here. He should be here soon."

"Mmm," Scully sighed, falling asleep. Lucie wanted whatever she was on. It would help take the edge off of one of the worst hangover days ever!

*

Scully woke up about 20 minutes later. Lucie was still snuggled in the bed on her left side, watching the Hawaii special. Skinner was in a chair, also watching the Hawaii special. And Mulder, he was sitting in a chair on her right, holding her had, looking disheveled and miserable, staring at her.

"Hey," she whispered.

"Hey," he whispered back. There was something in his eyes that panicked her. It was deep sadness, for all she could tell. Was something wrong with her?

"What's wrong?" she asked him.

He started to speak but shook his head instead, not being able to put the words that he wanted to say together.

"Hey, sleepy head!" Lucie said, noticing her cousin awake. "Hey, Mulder, take my spot. I gotta pee. The nurses may give you a dirty look, but they've given up on trying to remove anyone from Dana's side," she informed him. "I can be a real bitch sometimes!" she said, before slipping out the door.

Mulder did as he was told. He didn't care what Skinner thought. He squeezed into where Lucie's tiny body had been, letting Scully rest her head on his chest. She sighed happily, feeling his warmth. Mulder kissed the top of her head, soothingly.

Skinner never said a word. He just gave Scully a weak smile and turned back to the tv, seemingly trying to give them some privacy.

Lucie returned with Scully's doctor following her into the room. The doctor was a female who seemed to be in her mid/late-40s.

"Nice to see you awake, Ms. Scully," she said, smiling. She then introduced herself to Mulder and Skinner. "I'm Dr. Brown. And I have good news. No major injuries. Just a few stitches for the neck and ribcage."

Scully felt Mulder wince at that comment.

"And your pregnancy has not been affected," she finished, as everyone in the room was shocked beyond words.

"Wh-what pregnancy?" Scully spoke up. "I can't get pregnant."

"Well, apparently, you can!" the doctor said in a cheerful voice.

"No, you must be wrong," Scully told her, sitting up. She winced at the pain in her ribs. "I'm barren. As in no eggs. I really can't be pregnant. I haven't had even a menstrual cycle in years!" she continued pleading her case.

The doctor looked at her somewhat uncomfortable now. "Look, Ms. Scully, I know that this is all a lot to take in, especially after all you've been through today, but tests don't lie. And you are the only person that we have given a pregnancy test to today. We had to give you one before I could treat you. As with all female victims of a violent act of crime."

"Thanks for reminding me," Scully muttered.

"I'm not trying to make you relive anything, and I'm not trying to be harsh, but I want you to realize that you are pregnant. You could take a test for yourself if you would like, but I, myself, checked you out."

Everyone in the room was staring at Scully. She leaned back against Mulder. She swallowed, her mouth dry. "How far a long am I?" she finally asked.

That was the question the the doctor apparently was waiting for. A smile returned to her face, "About 6 weeks. So, still early. I wouldn't go around telling too many people yet."

6 weeks. 6 weeks. That was around the time that Mulder and her had first began sleeping together. It was actually a little over 6 weeks when she went home drunk with him. And here sat Skinner to hear the proof of their indiscretion.

"I'll go get some forms for you to sign. We have to keep you for a few more hours, but we can release you to your fellow FBI agents later on today," she smiled, taking her leave of them.

"Oh. My. Gosh!" Lucie squealed. "It's like Jesus!" she joked.

"However, I bet God isn't the father this time..." Skinner muttered, staring Mulder down. "Who is the father, Scully?" Skinner asked, not being able to resist putting them on the spot.

"Uh, that would be me," Mulder spoke up.

"Uh-huh. 6 weeks?" Skinner looked back and forth between them.

For once, Lucie sat quietly in the awkwardness of the room.

"Actually, a little longer than that," Mulder admitted, honestly.

Skinner stood up and walked over to the right side of the bed so that he could look his agents in the eyes better. A smile cracked on his face seeing the worried looks on their faces. He sighed, "I won't separate you. And no one else has to know, well, until you start showing. Then it's desk duty," he told Scully, relief washing over her face. "For the both of you," he added.

"Thank you, sir." Mulder stood up and shook his hand.

"Congratulations," he told them, sincerely. "I'm going back to the office to file some paperwork, not mentioning the pregnancy of Agent Dana Scully, and I expect to see you on Monday, Mulder. And, Scully, follow my orders this time, you're off for a week."

They both nodded, and he turned and left.

"This baby is going to be SO cute!" Lucie finally got to gush. "I'm hoping for his hair and your eyes."

"Lucie, could you go get Dana some water? I'm sure she's thirsty." Mulder requested politely.

"Of course!" Lucie took the hint. They needed alone time.

Once Lucie left, Mulder scooted down further in the bed and turned on his side to look Scully in the face. "I am so sorry that I failed you," he said, lightly tracing the cut on her cheek with his finger.

"Don't say that!" she told him, sternly.

"I did. I was unable to protect you."

"You protected me fine. I'm always safe with you! I was the stupid one who left the safety of your apartment. I set myself up for that!"

"No. Not for what he did to you." He gently kissed her lips. "I didn't even make it to your apartment before you were taken away in an ambulance! I shouldn't have left you. I put you, AND our child-to-be, in jeopardy. I just feel really bad, Dana."

"You must, if you're calling me Dana!" Scully smiled at him. "I don't want a mopey Mulder. You did everything you were supposed to do. I messed up because I was worried about Lucie. I should have waited for someone to go with me."

"If you would he waited, most likely it would be Lucie laying here, not you." He thought for a moment. "Does it make me a bad person to wish that is was the other way around?"

"Yeah, it kind of does, but that's sweet in a morbid way. Think about it this way, we would have never found out that I was pregnant until I was huge if this hadn't have happened."

He loved her so much. Here she was trying to cheer him up and she was the one who was tortured and raped.

"I'm sure we would have found out before you got huge. One of us always seems to end up in the hospital because of a case. It's just that this should have never happened to you. I just-"

Her lips on his shut him up. "Please forgive me," he whispered.

"If it makes you feel better and stop moping, then I forgive you. Though, there really is nothing to forgive because you did nothing wrong. How about we save the forgiveness for when you really piss me off? Which I'm sure will happen a lot as this pregnancy progresses." She poked herself in the belly.

Mulder put his hand lovingly on her flat abdomen. He had never really thought about having a child. Actually, he knew that he was too selfish to have a child. He, of course, knew of Scully's condition and had thought that it would be just the two of them. Forever. And he was okay with that. Now the thought of him starting a family with her was, well, amazing! But it scared him, hoping that he could overcome his selfishness.

"I hope that I can be a good father," he said, looking into her clear blue eyes. "And husband," he added, holding her gaze.

"Husband? Was that supposed to be a proposal?"

He shrugged.

"Sorry, but I will not marry you until after the baby is born. I don't want the 'she married him because she was pregnant' thing going around the office about me!"

"Oh, because the 'he got her knocked up but won't marry her' thing will be SO much better!"

"Bill is going to hate you even more. You got his baby sister knocked up and won't marry her!" she teased him.

"Whatever, you totally did that whole seduction thing where now I'm stuck with you and a kid!" He opened his mouth in a mock shocked expression.

She playfully slapped him in the stomach. "Ow!" he laughed.

"Today really sucked," she stated the obvious, when they had stopped laughing at each other.

"Yep," he agreed, trying to fluff the pillow under his head. "But I can promise you one thing."

"What's that?" she looked into his hazel-turning-gray eyes.

He laced her fingers in hers. "I will never leave you. And when we do have to be apart, I will phone stalk you!" He smiled and kissed her passionately on the lips. He pulled away to add, "I'm going to be the clingiest baby-daddy ever!"

She chuckled. "Oh, Mulder, you silly man! I love you!"

"I love you." He kissed her on the lips again. "And you!" He kissed her belly.

They agreed that today had sucked, but they knew that their future together would hold better days for them both!