The Park.

18th July 2001 11am

Mulder took his gym bag out of the boot of his car and walked around to the front where Scully stood holding a first aid bag. Looking out at the communal rugby pitch before them, he spotted Gerry standing on the edge with four other men tossing a ball between them.

"Are you ready?" she asked looking out at the other players.

"No. But lets go anyway."

He carried his bag over his shoulder and walked towards the small group. Gerry noticed him as he got closer and walked to meet him.

"Hey Mulder, you made it."

"Didn't think I was gonna back out did ya Gerry?"

"Well we need fifteen to play and so far we got six...Fancy a game Agent Scully?" he said looking down at the petite woman beside him.

"No thanks."

"We've got another hour before the game starts so we're still hopeful. Get changed and join us for a warm up. I got jerseys over here too."

Gerry ran back to the group and resumed throwing the ball while Mulder and Scully walked over to the small bench by the sidelines.

"Are you sure about this Mulder?"

He pulled off his sweater and dropped it on top of his bag. Kicking off his trainers, he peeled down his sweats to reveal a pair of shorts that were made of a stiff almost like denim material that just about covered his modesty and clung to his muscled thighs. From his bag he pulled out a pair of knee high thick socks and sat onto the bench to slip them onto his bare feet. "I'm looking forward to it actually." His socks were pulled on tight and Scully noticed that they seemed to have padded soles. He took his studs out of the bag and jabbed his feet in firmly tying the laces tight, wrapping them under the folded tongue to keep them from loosening. "I really enjoyed the game at Uni and I think I'm going to enjoy it today."

"And I'm going to enjoy visiting you in hospital and feeding you liquidised food for the next three months because your body is in traction and your jaw is wired shut."

"Don't worry Scully, you can give me those bed baths we spoke about last night!"

Standing up he took his tee shirt off over his head and she was rather pleased to see he was wearing some protection under his shorts as the seam of his jock strap stuck out above the shorts cuff. She couldn't help but notice the expanse of his bare chest as he stood directly in front of her but she held back the comment that sprang to her lips about shirts and skins.

Flexing his shoulders by stretching his arms over his head he ambled over to Gerry who gave him an upper chest support and a jersey. Mulder pulled on the support first, running his finger beneath the rim to make it as comfortable as he could. He rotated his shoulders again, swinging his arms around to loosen the material before donning his jersey. It had a white ruffled collar and a green background, but had a blue stripe that was about 10cm wide running around the middle of his chest. On the back Scully noticed the number 11 and she wondered briefly what position it corresponded to.

Joining the circle of players, Mulder passed the ball too and soon there were four balls being thrown in the small group with running exercises and stretching going on too. They seemed to be getting worked up and shouting at each other but Scully knew it was all part of the hype to getting psyched up for the game.

After half an hour other men had joined them; some she recognised from the bureau and others she had never seen before, but at last the full compliment of fifteen players were there all warming up in their own way. She was startled the most by Skinner walking towards them from the car park, his gym bag held loosely in one hand.

"Agent Scully."

"AD Skinner...I thought Boxing was your thing?" she jibed as he tore off his sweater and stepped out of his sweat pants.

"As long as there's a game...I'm game."

Mulder stepped away from the crowd and ambled over to them, Scully was surprised by the sheen of sweat that glistened on his face. He poured himself cup of juice from the table next to her and sat down.

"Tired yet?" she asked.

"Wrecked!" he admitted letting his tongue fall out of his mouth to make sure she knew exactly how tired he was. "I didn't realise you were playing today sir?"

"Neither did I until last night. I played last year but Gerry called me last night...making up the numbers I think."

"I see you're number eleven Mulder...what position does that make you?"

"Winger."

"So you wont be in the scrum?"

"No but I'll be in more than a few mauls!"

"Who are we playing?" Skinner asked as he dropped his chest support onto the bench and just pulled on his jersey instead. Scully noticed he had the number 3 on his top but she didn't know what position that would mean he had. She watched as he put his glasses in a case, stuffing it onto his gym bag before sitting on the bench to put in a pair of contacts. She marvelled at the thought of losing one of them in a tackle, but turned back to Mulder who was waving a hand in front of her face to get her attention.

"A team from a construction company in town. They call themselves the DC Dragons."

"The Dragons? So what's your team called?" she asked trying to hide her smile.

"I'm not sure...I heard some one mention Bureau Bulldogs but I dunno if they were joking or not." He fished in his bag for his gum shield when he saw the referee call time for the game to start, so Skinner went over to Gerry and spoke for a few moments.

"Be careful Mulder."

He winked at her as he put in his gum shield, offering her a gruesome smile when he had it fitted and finished his drink before running onto the pitch with the rest of the team. Quite a crowd had gathered so Scully stepped off the bench and walked over to the sideline. She spotted Mulder across the pitch stretching his thighs as the player from the opposite side kicked the ball up the pitch towards their try line. Mulder yelled that he was going to catch it but two other players ran under it with him, covering him in case he dropped it or needed to pass it but as it happened, he didn't have enough time.

The ball seemed to only be in his fingers for a second before the forwards from the Dragons knocked him to the ground forcing him to release the ball and all the air in his lungs.

Scully gasped as the referee blew his whistle and all the players climbed off him. He lay still for a moment but then rolled over onto his back and sat up. With help from a teammate he stood up and brushed himself off, tossing the ball to the other team who were rewarded a free kick. He searched the sidelines for Scully and gave her a reassuring nod. Shaking her head she glanced at her watch. Only twelve seconds had passed but already her heart was bouncing. Another seventy-nine minutes to go, she thought with a sigh and briefly wondered if she could stay for the whole game.

Mulder chased the play along with his team mates, running on the edge of the pitch making dummy runs into mauls and passing the ball to free team mates but they still couldn't seem to score. The Dragons captain called for a scrum when their play was stopped and Mulder hung back waiting for his chance to run. He caught Gerry's eye and nodded in the direction to his left. As the ball came out of the back of the scrum after they turned the ball over and regained control, Gerry tossed it with all of his might towards Mulder who caught it in the centre of his chest in mid stride and kept running.

His speed carried him through the first tackle, and with one hand out in front of him he palmed off another player dodging a last ditch attempt to grab his feet. But as the try line loomed near from nowhere a large hooker from the Dragons team caught him off guard, tackling him to the ground and following through with a swift punch to the gut.

The Bulldogs yelled for fair play but their protests went unheard so one of them took a swing at the Dragons hooker, hammering his fist off the players face but seemingly having no effect. The hooker looked down at his attacker and smiled before slamming a hard punch onto his chin and knocking the smaller man down. Soon the whole squad was mixed up and Scully couldn't tell who was fighting and who was trying to break it up. Beneath it all she could see Mulder lying on the ground unmoving with Skinner crouched over him beckoning for her to come over.

She grabbed her medikit and raced over to him, pushing her way past all the players who didn't even seem to register her presence as they continued to swing punches over her head.

"Mulder, you ok?" she said as she knelt down beside him. His eyes were open but they were wide with pain and watery with unshed tears of stress.

"Cant breathe..." he mumbled.

She ran her medically trained hands over his chest feeling his ribs and coming in contact with the core of his discomfort when she pushed on two of his lowest ribs. He gasped in agony and rolled away from her touch but it only caused him more pain.

"I think you've broken a rib...the wind's been knocked out of you. Can you sit up?" With some effort he managed to sit up and she pulled his jersey up to his shoulders. "We should get you to a hospital."

"No...just strap it up Scully," he rasped still struggling to get his breath back. From her bag she grabbed the can of anaesthetic spray and covered his side with it. With a little prodding she saw that it was slightly numbed and less painful so she took the strapping out and wrapped it tightly around him. Taping it in place she pulled his support down over the bandage and replaced his jersey.

"This is crazy Mulder."

"Thanks Doc."

He struggled to his feet and she stood by him until the referee told her to either put on a jersey or get off the pitch. She stepped off and over to the bench across from where she was standing before but closer to the action. One member from each team had been sin binned for ten minutes and the Bulldogs had taken a penalty kick gaining a three-point lead to get them onto the scoreboard.

She noticed Mulder was running slower and straying away from the ball and she realised he was giving himself a bit of space to recuperate. But all too soon the action found him and he held the ball against his chest. He ran forward watching Gerry who ran behind and to the left of him. Mulder tossed the ball with a rolling sideways throw to Gerry who caught it only to be tackled by a larger player from the opposite team.

The ball was loose so Mulder scrambled for it; clutching it tightly against him he went down under the pressure of two other players. Curling up into the foetal position with the ball in his lap, he managed to roll his back to the attackers as they stamped down hard and fast trying to get him to release the ball in their direction, but he passed the ball out to one of his team-mates getting a few stamps on his arms for his troubles.

Scully held her breath as the players followed the ball and climbed off of Mulder, letting him get up and stagger to his feet. He rubbed a spot on the side of his head and looked down at his hands. She saw him rub his palm on his shorts and was sure he was bleeding but there was nothing she could do to stop him playing.

He found the play and ran up the sideline watching as the ball progressed in his direction. The hard slapping from the tackles as players went down did nothing to stop his run and soon he was running behind Gerry who had the ball in his arms. Gerry reached the try line, slid to the ground to touch the ball down, but the Dragon team had all but boarded it up leaving Gerry mere inches away from scoring. Skinner ran over and bent over Gerry with his legs spread out and his head tucked into Gerry's lap. Mulder crouched behind Skinner and waited to grab the ball as it was released. He glanced to his left and saw Rob, the small scrum half racing over who pushed Mulder aside and grabbed the ball. Rob tossed the ball to another Bulldog that jumped for the try line only to be stopped again.

This time three then four then five, six, seven men piled behind the fallen player who was still holding the ball. They pushed him forward and slowly they inched over the line, the pile up of bodies making it hard for the referee to see but as they moved away he blew his whistle and held his arm out awarding the score.

Scully cheered with the other spectators as the Bulldogs regrouped at the other end of the field and the number 10 player lined up his shot for the conversion. The kick was easy and they gained another two points bringing the score to nine nil at the end of the second half.

She crossed the field to the team where they stood eating orange segments and slurping juice. Scully looked for Mulder but he was sitting behind the bench stretching his legs getting ready for the next half.

"How are you feeling?" She crouched down beside him and patted his thigh.

"Feeling...nothing...I feel no pain." His bad Arnold Swartzeneggar accent only showed her how much pain he was really in.

"That bad?"

"Agent Scully?" She looked up to see Gerry standing over her, a deep wound on his forehead pouring blood over his face and onto his eye.

"Oh, that looks like it hurts."

"More than you'd like to know. I couldn't help but notice that you had a medikit."

"Sit down let me take a look."

Mulder lay down on his back and poured a bottle of water over his face as Scully rummaged in her kit for the necessary equipment. Gerry was sitting still holding his head up to her at an awkward angle to give her the best access to his forehead. The cut was deep and stretched from his eyebrow to his hairline. She dabbed it with a towel only prompting more blood to flow, so she pressed it against the wound and told him to hold it tight. From her bag she retrieved some gauze and soaked it in antiseptic alcohol. Removing the towel, she pressed the clean gauze against it making him wince.

"This will need some stitches."

"I don't suppose you have a sewing kit in that magic bag of yours?" Gerry asked not wanting to leave the game.

"No. But I do have some temporary butterfly patches. They won't last long out on that pitch though."

From his position on the grass Mulder watched as she applied the strips across the wound and covered it with heavy white gauze. Wrapping it around his head she taped it off at the base of his skull. Another player offered Gerry his scrumcap to help him keep the bandage in place, so he slipped it on and tied it under his chin.

Scully turned to Mulder with an incredulous look on her face but as he was seeing her upside-down it had little effect on him. He pushed himself up and struggled to his feet wavering for a moment before standing still.

"You okay?"

"Just a little shaken." Now that he was standing again she could see the bruising and scrapes on his face from the game.

"Looks like a little more than that to me."

She reached up to his face and gently trailed her fingers over the swelling that was already coming through on his cheek.

"Ahh Scully...did I not mention it hurts like a bitch?"

"No."

"Well consider it mentioned." AD Skinner sauntered over, his jersey dirty and a trail of mud on his cheek but otherwise unharmed.

"Are you up to field agent fitness Agent Mulder?" he said at the sight of the ragged breaths from the younger man.

"Yeah field Agent...but not rugby player." The referee blew the whistle sharply again and he sighed. "Here we go again."

"You seem to have escaped the brunt of the injured list," Scully said looking Skinner up and down. "And I have no idea how those contacts are staying in."

"It's a matter of decision Agent Scully. Deciding when to throw the ball and when to dodge the right tackle. Getting hit hurts, so I try to avoid it."

He tied his scrumcap back on and jogged back to the pitch. He was tall and well built, and she imagined that a lot of the players underestimated his speed and agility, but after his first half performance she thought he would be a better target now.

Whatever the Dragons had been eating over the half time break Scully decided it must have been laced with steroids. They poured onto the pitch screaming and yelling, slapping their chests and dropping shoulders into any player from the Bulldogs who came near. She let her eyes wander over the bulldogs team and she smiled with a shake of her head. FBI Field agents John Wilson and Mark Kingston from VCU, Mulder panting and holding his ribs across the pitch with Gerry and Skinner standing near the centre line. Not the fittest looking lineup.

The ball was kicked high and far and the bulldogs charged after it, tackling the player who caught it and pushing him out of bounds. They gathered quickly seemingly not wanting to waste any time and stood in two parallel lines of six men while the hooker stood at the side line. He held the ball over his head and shouted something she couldn't hear before throwing the ball over both lines.

Scully gasped at the sight of Skinner bending low and hoisting up Gerry, holding him at the bottom of his pelvic bone and his upper thigh. Gerry caught the ball and shoved the Dragons player who had also been lifted, away. Before he landed on the grass, he threw the ball to Rob who made a short dash before letting it fly towards Mulder.

Her breath caught in her chest as he caught the ball and ran with three other Bulldogs up the pitch. The three of them gained at least 30 yards, throwing the ball back and forth and making dummy runs before the Dragons winger grabbed one of them by the waist. Mulder ran over and pressed his shoulder into the stomach of his teammate, keeping him standing and pushing him forward. Soon the Forwards had gathered and Mulder found himself holding the ball, facing backwards and being pushed towards the try line.

Scully could see the strain in his face and she thought of the fractured rib he had and winced. She tried not to think of what might happen if it broke fully and watched the game more closely.

Mulder was pushed further until finally the Dragons took him down, but he released the ball before they could grab it. Skinner picked it up and tossed it to Rob who was waiting by. The ball was thrown almost across the pitch doubling back over players who were running on after being knocked to the ground.

Mulder was running alongside Skinner; one hand on his ribs but both eyes on the ball and wasn't surprised when Skinner turned to him pressing the oval ball into the younger man's stomach as a Dragon player pulled the AD down. Mulder dashed the last five yards over the line with someone hanging off his waist. He landed between the posts with a yell only to have three Dragons land on top of him. Skinner rushed over to congratulate him and slapped his shoulder on one of the few places he could see, but Mulder didn't move. Eventually the other men got off him and Skinner visibly winced at the angle of his Agent's left leg.

"Scully!" he yelled without looking up. He tore off his scrumcap and knelt beside Mulders head but he still hadn't moved lying face down in the mud, his hand still clutching the ball beneath him. Before Skinner could move him, Scully had appeared by his side and was quickly checking Mulder's vitals.

"Call an ambulance," she yelled as she counted his pulse and listened to his chest. "I think he's punctured his left lung...don't move him, wait for the ambulance."

How could I leave you like this...without confirmation of an update??? GASP! Ah just joshing of course I'll update...soon... muhaa haaa haaa!!!