The door closed softly behind him and as he walked tentatively over the icy path favoring his sore ankle, he could feel the melting snow collecting against his skin on the back of his neck. It was dark and nearing 10pm on Christmas Eve so Mulder prayed for an agnostic cabbie that would still be around at this late hour. He'd left his bag in Scully's car and the coat on his back offered little warmth but with his hands dug deep in his pockets, one of them clasped around her gift, he smiled and trudged on. It was close to 15 minutes before Mulder saw any signs of life on the streets and what there was didn't seem too welcoming. He tugged the magic eight ball loose from the confines of his pocket and shook it.

"Is this night going to end anytime soon?" he asked aloud hoping the movement of his lips would stop them from freezing, but before he could turn the ball over to check his fortune he was hit over the back of the head with something blunt and heavy.

He fell fast and hard, hitting the ground with his chest and head before he had the chance to break the fall with his hands. A swift kick to the groin made him double up in pain, bringing a fresh bout of tears to his eyes as he yelled in agony. Frantic hands worked over his body pulling out his wallet and money whilst the other one of them removed his watch before another kicking him again to the small of his back. It was more painful than he thought possible. At the sight of his FBI badge one of the assailants shouted in alarm to the other and before he knew it, the footsteps retreated swiftly into the night.

For a moment he didn't move, preferring to remain still and let his body recover a bit. Closing his eyes, he let the fatigue seep around his skin and he drifted off into oblivion.

He opened his eyes, jerking his head, unaware of how long he'd been laying there, Mulder tried to move but with weary limbs he couldn't. Eventually he managed to sit up and touched a tender finger to his lips, tasting the blood and remembering Scully's kiss he'd shared earlier with a sigh. His fingers touched the magic eight ball as he reached for the curb to steady himself. Remembering his question he reached out to see fate.

"Outlook not so good," Mulder read aloud, flinching at the sharp pain from his cracked lip and all the other sore body parts. "No shit"

Scully arrived at apartment number 42 only to find it empty. The blue light from the fish tank cast shadows unnaturally around the room told her the power had returned, while projecting the outline of the Christmas sock eerily onto his wall. She switched on the light and walked through his apartment but he was nowhere to be seen. Dialling his cell phone she waited for him to pick up but groaned at hearing it's shrill ring from the bedroom where she'd just placed his bag.

"Dammit Mulder where are you?"

She cursed his absence and sat heavily onto the couch. It offered little comfort so she kicked off her shoes in an effort to get more comfortable on it. The apartment was cold and she suppressed a shiver, pulling the blanket from the back of his couch, tucking it around herself as she mulled over the past hour. Mulder had left in a hurry and she couldn't blame him, but his presence and support would have been nice. Immediately after the door closed behind him, she turned on her brother with a fury he'd never seen before. The commotion had brought Margaret Scully scampering from her bed, covering herself in a thick robe and calling to her grown children to hush the noise lest they wake Matthew. But it was more than she could do to dampen her daughter's fury.

Dana Scully released a lot of the tension she'd been harboring with a verbal assault on her brother, and it wasn't until she had stormed off and driven half way to Mulder's house that the tears began to fall. Huddled now alone, on his couch on Christmas Eve with her energy spent she allowed her eyes to droop over, plunging her into the relative safety of darkness where the stinging tears could be held at bay.

She wasn't sure how much later it was when the heavy footsteps in the hallway and a key in the lock woke her. The door swung open with force, slamming against the wall behind it and she jumped up at the sound of his pained moan.

"Mulder?" she met him in the hallway where his crumpled body used the wall as a leverage point to stagger past her, before landing on the couch with another moan tinged with a sigh of relief. She closed the door and switched more lights on to see him better, but he covered his face to the burning brightness.

"What happened to you?" she asked kneeling before him and gently prying his hands off his head to reveal his cut lips bruised cheek and scratched forehead. "Mulder, can you hear me?" Gently she tapped the side of his cheeks with the back of her fingers and he moaned in protest at the intrusion to his rest.

"Stop...whatever it is you are doing, that hurts...please stop!"

His voice was hoarse and throaty and she knew he must have swallowed some of his own blood. Rushing out to the kitchen she fetched him a glass of water, putting on the coffee table. She pulled him into a sitting position and dragged his soaked coat off his shoulders, lowering it down his arms, before finally tugging it free of its damp confines. His sweater came off easily over his head and she cupped his face in her hands to make him face her fully.

"Hey Scully!" he exclaimed as if he'd just noticed she was there.

"Mulder look at me...follow my finger..." She waved her hand in front of his eyes with her index finger extended "What happened?"

"Two guys jumped me...they got my wallet and watch."

"Looks like they got in a few punches too."

"There were two of them. Did I mention that they were really big?" he jibed, his lucidity returning as he used her face as a focal point that helped to stop the room from swimming.

"Does it hurt anywhere?"

"Try everywhere." His eyes screwed up tightly at the sharp memory of the first kick he received. "Not my lucky day Scully."

"Go wash up Mulder and I'll take a look at your wounds."

He slowly stood and went to the bathroom leaving a trail of sodden clothes in his wake and she went back to the kitchen to boil the kettle to make him a hot drink. As the shower started in the bathroom, she collected his things from the floor and dumped them into the wash basket, but before she walked away she spotted the magic eight ball in the pocket of his coat. A whimsical smile on her lips as she reached for it and took it back into the living room. The bathroom opened with a billow of steam and he emerged wearing a pair of navy cotton pyjama bottoms and a gray tee shirt.

"How are you feeling?" she asked as he shuffled dejectedly and sat down next to her.

"My head feels like its about to explode, my back feels as though the Lakers girls danced a routine on top of me, and the rest of me just plain aches!"

"They took your wallet and badge?"

"And a fair helping of my dignity too," he added at the thought of his abused body lying on the snow covered curb. "Let me see?"

She ran her fingers through his hair searching for any serious lumps that might mean a trip to the ER. Her medically trained fingers probed gently but he still winced at her touch.

"Careful there Scully."

"Sorry Mulder. It doesn't look like you got a concussion at all. Did you loose consciousness at any time?"

"I may have, I'm not sure."

"You should really go to the hospital and get checked out."

"No Scully...its Christmas Eve. We're not spending it in the ER."

"What's this 'we' crap Mulder!" she teased.

"Everything okay at home?" Her eyes were red rimmed and watery and he cursed himself for not noticing before. Obviously she had come in search of him after the inevitable argument was over, but he'd been otherwise engaged.

"Yes Mulder it's fine. I didn't want you to spend Christmas Eve at home alone."

"That makes two of us."

Her smile was weak and she looked up at him under hooded eyes, seeing an open warm expression on his face.

"I eh...I couldn't help but notice...eh, that we kissed."

"I noticed that too."

"I also umm, couldn't help but eh, notice that we'd probably still be kissing if it wasn't for your damned brother."

"You think?"

"Oh Scully...I know."

He gave her a slow predatory smile and a dark gleam crossed over his eyes as he made no qualms about his actions this time, leaning towards her, a finger beneath her chin holding her face in place. Her heart was beating quickly and she knew that if he kissed her the way he'd done before she would explode. He kissed her eyes, trailing his lips down to hers, covering them with exquisite teasing gentleness until she thought she might faint.

"Mulder," she began unsteadily. "I..."

"Shhhh don't talk," he muttered silencing her with his lips and another kiss as his hands found their way to her waist. But as he turned to reach her more comfortably, his foot caught the leg of the small coffee table jerking it and knocking the mug of coffee over, spilling the hot liquid over his bare feet. "Jesus Christ!" he yelped jumping away from her and pulling his foot off the sodden ground and onto the couch.

"Are you okay Mulder?" she said hiding her smile behind her hand as she dashed into the kitchen to grab a towel. and wet it under the cold tap before returning to his side. "Here...show me." Slowly his foot emerged from his tight grip and she wrapped the cold wet towel around it.

"Oh Scully that's cold!"

"It's supposed to be."

"What is it with me today. Nothing is going quite right for me," "Nothing?" Her eyebrow arched questioningly and their eyes connected, allowing thoughts and sensations pass freely between them.

"Well almost nothing..." He licked his lips with a quick, almost shy movement before kissing her softly at the base of the neck.

"Mulder...what's going to happen?"

"What do you mean?" he asked, his sore foot and coffee stain forgotten as his kisses traversed her neckline and progressed to her ear.

"I mean...what's going on? What are we doing?"

"Scully I know you went to catholic school but I thought even you'd know by now..." He pulled away from her not wanting to make her feel uncomfortable. "Scully, I don't know," he admitted.

"Well maybe we should ask that..." His eyes followed to where she was gesturing to and he spotted the magic eight ball resting on the coffee table. Smiling he reached for it and held it out to her.

"What do you want to know?"

"Are we doing the right thing?" she whispered her eyes a mix of fear and desire that shone brighter as he shook the ball. He turned it over and looked up at her for a moment before reading the message, wondering how much weight she'd apply to their fortune.

"Ask again later." The message was clear and Mulder froze afraid to look up and see rejection in her eyes, but her hand took the ball from his and she put it down on the couch behind her.

"I guess it is just a toy." Her voice was so low that he strained to hear it and for a moment he thought his hopes had made him hear her gentle words, but as her hand came up to touch his face, bringing him up to look at her, the warmth of her eyes showed him the truth. "Or maybe it's telling us that we have to make our own decisions, our own mistakes...our own fate."

This time it was she who closed the distance between them to initiate the kiss, but it was soft and gentle without intrusion or fear. His hands remained planted on his lap and after a moment she pulled away to gauge his reaction. A hint of a smile played across his lips as the flashing clock on his VCR caught his attention.

"Hey Scully, it's after midnight. It's Christmas day," he chuckled as if nothing had happened between them. "I can give you your wonderful gift now."

"You already have Mulder." Her lips easily found their way back to his and she felt him smiling as his hands regained the power of movement and slid up her side to pull her closer and tighter, oblivious to the heavy snowfall that began outside.

Christmas at last, Mulder thought with a smile, as he tightened his grip, laying back, pulling her with him.

"I might need to check your bruises more closely, Mulder." Scully purred as she tugged at his tee shirt.

The Magic 8 Ball rolled a little with ambient draft from the window, reflecting two lovers celebrating their newfound Christmas joy.

The End.

© Skinfull 2003

There ya go Gillian Leigh, persistance does work so I posted this chapter today especially for you!