Thank you to M for reviewing.
A/N: this is a little bit of a filler chapter to move us along, and covers 12 days.
Chapter rating: T
Disclaimer: All publicly recognizable characters, settings, etc. are the property of their respective owners. The original characters and plot are the property of the author. The author is in no way associated with the owners, creators, or producers of any media franchise. No copyright infringement is intended.
All mistakes are my own. I hope you enjoy.
14th January 1945 – somewhere in eastern Luxembourg
"The tanks frozen again?" Scully asked when she found Mulder and a couple other guys chiselling out a tank, which had frozen to the ground overnight. Unfortunately it seemed to be becoming a common occurrence.
"Yep, they're planning for us to move positions later today further east, so we have to get this sucker out" Mulder replied as he tried to free the frozen tank.
The last few days had mainly consisted of digging in at one location for a couple of days, until they received orders to move positions. They'd had only managed to move 12 miles in the last six days, with the front line engaging with enemy fire as they moved through the area, but the worst opposition they received was from the weather. It had been brutal with blizzards, snow fall averaging at 8 inches a day and temperatures hovering around freezing. The only good the weather had brought was that Mulder thought there might be a chance they could see a yeti, he wouldn't stop talking Scully's ear off about them.
"I saw you received a letter from your Mother yesterday, you seemed a bit distant after you read it" Scully said later that day as they took a short break from their trek. They'd spent the last four hours slowly moving through calf high snow and she didn't know if her feet had ever felt so cold, these boots were definitely not designed for the snow, "want to talk about what was in it?"
"This was the first letter I'd received in a while, probably in three months. She mainly just told me about everything going on at home and how different people are doing. At the end though she wrote that my father sends his love, but I know he probably remained silent when she asked him if he'd like her to pass on any messages for him. He wasn't exactly happy when I told him I'd enlisted, didn't even say goodbye to me when I came over for dinner before I headed over to England" Mulder replied sighing and rubbing his hand over his face, "he enlisted in the army in early 1918 and fought in Europe during WW1. I was only a couple of months old when he came home, but Mom says he was different when he came back. He never talks about the war, but having now experienced it myself, I can understand why".
"I guess it just left me feeling a little deflated. You know things haven't been the same since Sam passed, but it was even tenser after my announcement" Mulder continued taking a sip from his canteen, as Scully grasped his hand in hers, silently giving him the comfort he sought.
16th January 1945 – somewhere in eastern Luxembourg
"Wake up sweetheart" Mulder said brushing a strand of hair behind Scully's ear, after he heard the Reveille call played out throughout the camp to wake everybody up. It turned out Mulder spent more nights then not in Scully's tent, and they'd fashioned a bed for themselves, using the army issued sleeping bags and woollen blankets provided to each person.
"No" Scully mumbled burying her face in his chest.
"We've got to get up sweetheart" Mulder said stroking her cheek lightly.
"Uh-uh" Scully replied turning away from him and pulling the blanket over her head, causing Mulder to chuckle.
Getting up, he grabbed his jacket lying nearby, and quickly pulled the garment on, before shucking on his pants, and stepping into his boots, trying to keep the cold at bay. He walked out the tent flaps into the dark, returning a few moments later with two cups of hot coffee, placing one in front of Scully and wrapping his hands around the other.
Mulder laughed when he saw Scully's face peak out from beneath the covers and eye the cup of coffee, before she let out a loud huff and grabbed the steaming mug, silently thanking Mulder as he held out her sweater and jacket, quickly slipping on the garments to fend off the freezing cold.
18th January 1945 – somewhere in eastern Luxembourg
It was in the cover of darkness they made their next move, before mounting their attack to seize a nearby town with high ground at dawn, just before the rise of the sun. While Company's I, L and G were tasked with clearing the town and setting up occupation in the area, Company A was in-charge of conducting patrol and blocking enemy action north of the area, with the medical group standing by them to tend to any injured soldiers in the area. They nearly made it to the outskirts of the area with no issues, until they were 200 yards from their destination, suddenly encountering stiff enemy resistance.
"Stay back and get behind the tank" Mulder yelled when the first shots were fired, immediately crouching into a defensive position and scanning the nearby woods for evidence of the enemy, his gun drawn.
Scully's heart was beating loudly in her chest, as she followed Mulder's orders, bullets whizzing past her. Being defenceless and this close to the action, was definitely something she didn't want to repeat.
The medical group stayed behind the tank breathing heavily in fear, before Scully noticed blood was seeping out onto the clothes of one of the doctors, silently getting the attention of the others, she gestured to the doctor, as his eyes went wide. All the adrenaline of the last few moments, had meant he hadn't even realised he'd been hit. Knowing the doctor needed medical attention, and they couldn't stay behind the tank indefinitely, along with the fact the tank would be a target of the enemy, the group weighed up their options, trying to think over the sounds of fighting and men yelling, before signalling to one of the soldiers and taking the risk to fall back 300 yards, to a safe location behind a hill.
"Are you all okay?" Mulder asked concerned, finally able to check on the medical group to find Scully was covered in blood.
"I'm fine it's not mine. Doctor Crane was hit by a bullet on his torso, but it wasn't too bad. We patched him up easily here. Lieutenant Mallory was hit directly in the thigh, we stabilised him and the field medic along with nurse Rogers have taken him and Doctor Crane back. The rest of your team just need minor patching up, they should be good" Scully replied as she tendered to some minor wounds of Mulder's company.
"Okay, thank god" Mulder said relieved.
26th January 1945 – somewhere in eastern Luxembourg
It was late that day when they learned the German offensive had drawn to a close and the German troops had withdrawn to their original defensive positions before they had embarked on their campaign. Meaning they could finally stop their offensive and move to new locations, while reinforcements came in to hold the front line positions. This change for Mulder and Scully would be back west to Fischbach, the field hospital returning to its original intended formation as a whole group operation.
The pair were ecstatic to get a break, exhausted and weary from the last few weeks of fighting in the bitter cold. After their encounter with the enemy, but successful mission, the companies within the battalion had changed formation, leaving the medical group to remain with company I in the newly captured town, while company A, L and G all moved out into defensive positions around the area, fortifying their position. Until word came to move to the next location and take control of the town there. Luckily this time the town was clear, and the move was relatively painless, except for the tracks of one of the tanks dislodging, and causing a halt to the advance while it was repaired.
It was only two days later when the battalion was ordered to move further east and seize the strategic high ground around 9 miles away. This pattern continued with the companies taking new ground, before setting up defensive positions in that area, and waiting for their next orders. They encountered heavy resistance in some areas, particularly while in the process of securing a bridge over the Sure River, but were always able to hold strong against the enemy and capture the territory. Their efforts finally paying off, and resulting in a much needed break.
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