11.00pm, Christmas Day
It had been over two hours since Mulder had left to go jogging and Maggie was beginning to grow quite worried. She said goodbye to her guests at the door and thanked them for coming, all the while watching for him to come running down the street. As the last of her guests pulled out in their car, she looked through to the lounge and saw her daughter standing in the now-empty, darkened room. Scully was peering through the window, scanning the dark snow-covered street outside, also waiting for him to get back. Maggie walked through to her and laid her hand gently on her shoulder. Jumping slightly at the unexpected contact, Scully turned away from the window for an instant and then relaxed under her mother's hold.
"He promised he wouldn't run off, mom. He promised he would talk to me."
"He hasn't run off Dana. He left his keys and wallet upstairs... remember. He probably just went out to clear his head...think about things."
"Why couldn't he have thought about things with me? Why didn't he tell me what was wrong?"
"Maybe he wanted to sort it out for himself. Maybe he thought it would upset you if he told you what happened...Or maybe he thought you would tell him it was true."
"What was true? You do know what happened, don't you? Mom, tell me. Please, I need to know...was it me, did I do something or say something wrong? Please mom."
"I..."
Maggie didn't know how to finish her sentence, now that her daughter was looking at her as if she had betrayed her, so she stopped speaking. Scully opened her mouth to ask her mother once again what had happened to make Mulder go out when she caught sight of him turning into the street. Shrugging her mother's hand on her shoulder aside, she rushed to open the door for him, frantic to know that he was alright. She walked out of the door and part of the way down the path as he approached her. When he reached the bottom of the driveway she could remain silent no more and called out to him.
"Mulder."
"Oh, hey S...Dana."
"Dana...since when do you call me Dana, Mulder?"
"It's your name isn't it?"
"Yes but..."
Scully stopped abruptly and looked on in shock as Mulder brushed past her and walked into the house. He had started to head up the stairs before she could close the door and had nearly reached the top by the time she caught up with him. He didn't acknowledge her presence and kept walking until he was in her room, rummaging through his bag. She watched as he removed shower gel and his pyjama bottoms from his bag and picked up a towel from the pile on her dresser.
"I'm gonna take a shower and go to bed if that's okay. I'm beat."
"Sure Mulder, that's fine. I'm ready to hit the sack as well."
"Okay then. Goodnight, I'll see you in the morning."
"Wh..."
She had been going to ask why he was acting like he was and why he wasn't going to sleep with her as he had done for the past two nights. The door to the bathroom in the hall closed between them however, cutting off her question before it had begun. Bewildered at his obvious brush-off, she raised her fist to knock on the door but dropped it back down to her side as she heard the shower start up. Still puzzled, she made her way back to her room to get ready for bed, intending on finishing her conversation with him when he brought his stuff back after his shower. After changing into her pyjamas, she lay down in her bed to wait for him, wishing that he was lying there with her and holding her as he had done the two nights previously. After a long while, she realised that he was not going to come back in and got up off her bed, putting her robe on to go downstairs to find him.
She searched the whole of the downstairs but Mulder wasn't in any of the rooms. Just as she was about to go back upstairs, she heard a quiet murmur that came from the direction of the back door. Walking back through to the kitchen, she looked out of the foggy window and saw Mulder sitting on the porch swing with her mother. They both had blankets wrapped around them and had obviously taken cushions from the lounge out to sit on, rather than sit on the snow-free but frosty seat. Deep in conversation, they had not heard her moving about in the kitchen and were unaware of her presence. She moved closer to the door, anxious to hear what they were saying, yet aware that she really should not be eavesdropping.
"Fox, you can't take what Bill said to heart. He has never liked any guy Dana has ever even spoken to - I'm not excusing his behaviour, just trying to explain it a bit. You can't let him come in the way of you and Dana. Just think of how happy you both were and now look at the two of you. You need to talk to her Fox, she thinks she's done something wrong. We didn't tell her what happened earlier so she doesn't know that you're upset because of something Bill said. Dana wouldn't want you to think it was true - it's not."
"But you see Maggie, it is true. Dana told me the very same thing once."
"What? I'm sure she didn't or, if she did, she can't have meant it."
"She might not have meant it exactly the way Bill meant it but the words were all there."
"When was this, Fox?"
"It was about a year ago - we were on a missing-persons case. She told me that I was just like Ahab in 'Moby Dick', continuing my quest until everyone around me was dead."
"That's not exactly how I said it Mulder and it's definitely not what I meant."
"Dana, I didn't hear you come down. ...I'll leave you two alone - you need to talk."
"Indeed we do...thanks mom."
"No problem sweetie. Night, Fox."
"Goodnight Maggie."
Scully pushed the door fully open and walked out onto the porch, holding the door for her mother before closing it once more. She shivered as she made her way over to the swing and pulled her robe more tightly around her. Sitting down beside Mulder, she took the blanket that her mother had left and wrapped it snugly about her body, tucking her legs up beneath her on the cushions. Mulder did not look up at her until she gently eased his chin round to face her with her hand. He leant into her gently cupping hand and reached out for her with both of his arms. She gladly moved into his embrace and held him tightly for a long moment, then pulled away slightly so that she could sit comfortably in his arms whilst not falling off the swing. Twisting round on the seat, Mulder shifted both of them so that their legs were straight out along the length of the swing and she sat on his lap, her back against his chest. He opened his blanket and wrapped it around her as well, holding it tightly in place with his arms.
"Scully..."
"So we're back to 'Scully' now are we?"
"I apologise for before - I was confused."
"I was confused too Mulder, in fact I kind of still am. Was this - your distant attitude, going running and then almost ignoring me - all because of something Bill said? I thought we agreed you would talk to me if he said anything else."
"I thought you would agree with him and I wasn't sure whether I could handle you telling me that again."
"What exactly did he say? ... No one seems to want to tell me."
"He said basically what you said in the middle of that lake - that I get everyone around me hurt and I don't give a toss."
"That's not true, I know it's not - and it's not exactly what I said. I already told you that that's not what I meant when I said what I did on that rock."
"Well, what did you mean then Scully?"
"If you think back, you'll remember that the first thing that I said was that you would get yourself killed - that was the important part to me. That's the part that I didn't want to happen. The rest of what I said was just about Ahab in the book, I didn't want you to know how strongly I felt about your seemingly self-destructive mission."
"What? Sorry...I don't really understand."
"I loved you way back then - was in love with you, even though I didn't really know it. I was scared that, if I stopped speaking after I had said about you getting yourself killed, you would be able to see my feelings too well so I covered by going back to the book - back to what I knew. I didn't think you felt the same way about me so it was better, easier I suppose, to just keep going. I didn't even stop to think about what I was saying - what effect it might have on you. You didn't say anything about it, so I didn't think about it anymore until I heard you telling my mom what you remembered me saying."
"I didn't realise...so you don't think it's my fault - my quest that has been the cause of everything? I mean Bill's right, a lot of people have been hurt."
"Yes, people have gotten hurt along the way - you and me both included - but it's hardly your fault. The people to blame are the men...aliens...whatever...behind the conspiracy - they're the ones who've hurt you, me and countless others along the way. They're the ones that Bill should be mad at, not you - never you."
"I love you Scully. You know that, right?"
"I know. I love you too."
Scully turned in Mulder's arms and sought out his lips with her own, her hands still encased in the blanket surrounding her. He released his hold slightly so that she could move her arms free and then pulled her back to him as they kissed hungrily. She sat up properly so that she was straddling Mulder's waist and her legs dangled over the arm of the swing. Their heated embrace caused the swing to rock slightly and, when it tilted just a little too far, they broke the kiss. Both panting for breath they giggled as they realised that they had nearly fallen right off the swing onto the cold porch floor. Standing up, Scully picked the blankets and cushions up and put them in the kitchen, returning to the porch and Mulder who was still sitting somewhat dazed on the swing. Moving to stand in front of him, she held out her hand for him to take as she spoke.
"Bill and Tara are leaving on the 27th so we only have to deal with him for one more whole day. We can do it ... right?"
"Sure we can Scully. Not that it matters too much, but why are they leaving?"
"The three of them are going to visit Tara's parents for a couple of days. They're coming back on New Year's Eve though."
"Oh...right."
"Anyway...I think it's about time we went to bed, don't you? I'm totally exhausted and we're gonna have another long day tomorrow. The kids will probably get us up early again and then we have our date at night."
"That's right - our very first date. So...sofa-bed?"
"No. Why don't we go up and sleep in my bed, it's warmer and more comfortable."
"Scully..."
"I just want to cuddle - nothing else. Also, this way we won't get any early visitors tomorrow morning hopefully. Is that okay?"
"Of course. Let's go snuggle, Angel."
"You haven't called me that since this morning. ...I missed it."
"Well I'll just have to make up for it then, won't I Angel?"
"You bet you are and you'll have plenty of time to do it."
The two of them made their way inside and walked upstairs hand in hand, both happy again now that things were right between them once more. Once they got to Scully's room, they let go of each other's hands so that they could get in opposite sides of the bed. Once they were under the covers though, they both moved straight to the middle of the bed and cuddled as close together as they could. Scully lifted her head to give Mulder a kiss and then lay her head back down on his chest as he pulled her body even tighter to his. They moved their legs so that they were completely entangled and, feeling comforted and secure, they both closed their eyes and drifted quickly off to sleep.
It had been over two hours since Mulder had left to go jogging and Maggie was beginning to grow quite worried. She said goodbye to her guests at the door and thanked them for coming, all the while watching for him to come running down the street. As the last of her guests pulled out in their car, she looked through to the lounge and saw her daughter standing in the now-empty, darkened room. Scully was peering through the window, scanning the dark snow-covered street outside, also waiting for him to get back. Maggie walked through to her and laid her hand gently on her shoulder. Jumping slightly at the unexpected contact, Scully turned away from the window for an instant and then relaxed under her mother's hold.
"He promised he wouldn't run off, mom. He promised he would talk to me."
"He hasn't run off Dana. He left his keys and wallet upstairs... remember. He probably just went out to clear his head...think about things."
"Why couldn't he have thought about things with me? Why didn't he tell me what was wrong?"
"Maybe he wanted to sort it out for himself. Maybe he thought it would upset you if he told you what happened...Or maybe he thought you would tell him it was true."
"What was true? You do know what happened, don't you? Mom, tell me. Please, I need to know...was it me, did I do something or say something wrong? Please mom."
"I..."
Maggie didn't know how to finish her sentence, now that her daughter was looking at her as if she had betrayed her, so she stopped speaking. Scully opened her mouth to ask her mother once again what had happened to make Mulder go out when she caught sight of him turning into the street. Shrugging her mother's hand on her shoulder aside, she rushed to open the door for him, frantic to know that he was alright. She walked out of the door and part of the way down the path as he approached her. When he reached the bottom of the driveway she could remain silent no more and called out to him.
"Mulder."
"Oh, hey S...Dana."
"Dana...since when do you call me Dana, Mulder?"
"It's your name isn't it?"
"Yes but..."
Scully stopped abruptly and looked on in shock as Mulder brushed past her and walked into the house. He had started to head up the stairs before she could close the door and had nearly reached the top by the time she caught up with him. He didn't acknowledge her presence and kept walking until he was in her room, rummaging through his bag. She watched as he removed shower gel and his pyjama bottoms from his bag and picked up a towel from the pile on her dresser.
"I'm gonna take a shower and go to bed if that's okay. I'm beat."
"Sure Mulder, that's fine. I'm ready to hit the sack as well."
"Okay then. Goodnight, I'll see you in the morning."
"Wh..."
She had been going to ask why he was acting like he was and why he wasn't going to sleep with her as he had done for the past two nights. The door to the bathroom in the hall closed between them however, cutting off her question before it had begun. Bewildered at his obvious brush-off, she raised her fist to knock on the door but dropped it back down to her side as she heard the shower start up. Still puzzled, she made her way back to her room to get ready for bed, intending on finishing her conversation with him when he brought his stuff back after his shower. After changing into her pyjamas, she lay down in her bed to wait for him, wishing that he was lying there with her and holding her as he had done the two nights previously. After a long while, she realised that he was not going to come back in and got up off her bed, putting her robe on to go downstairs to find him.
She searched the whole of the downstairs but Mulder wasn't in any of the rooms. Just as she was about to go back upstairs, she heard a quiet murmur that came from the direction of the back door. Walking back through to the kitchen, she looked out of the foggy window and saw Mulder sitting on the porch swing with her mother. They both had blankets wrapped around them and had obviously taken cushions from the lounge out to sit on, rather than sit on the snow-free but frosty seat. Deep in conversation, they had not heard her moving about in the kitchen and were unaware of her presence. She moved closer to the door, anxious to hear what they were saying, yet aware that she really should not be eavesdropping.
"Fox, you can't take what Bill said to heart. He has never liked any guy Dana has ever even spoken to - I'm not excusing his behaviour, just trying to explain it a bit. You can't let him come in the way of you and Dana. Just think of how happy you both were and now look at the two of you. You need to talk to her Fox, she thinks she's done something wrong. We didn't tell her what happened earlier so she doesn't know that you're upset because of something Bill said. Dana wouldn't want you to think it was true - it's not."
"But you see Maggie, it is true. Dana told me the very same thing once."
"What? I'm sure she didn't or, if she did, she can't have meant it."
"She might not have meant it exactly the way Bill meant it but the words were all there."
"When was this, Fox?"
"It was about a year ago - we were on a missing-persons case. She told me that I was just like Ahab in 'Moby Dick', continuing my quest until everyone around me was dead."
"That's not exactly how I said it Mulder and it's definitely not what I meant."
"Dana, I didn't hear you come down. ...I'll leave you two alone - you need to talk."
"Indeed we do...thanks mom."
"No problem sweetie. Night, Fox."
"Goodnight Maggie."
Scully pushed the door fully open and walked out onto the porch, holding the door for her mother before closing it once more. She shivered as she made her way over to the swing and pulled her robe more tightly around her. Sitting down beside Mulder, she took the blanket that her mother had left and wrapped it snugly about her body, tucking her legs up beneath her on the cushions. Mulder did not look up at her until she gently eased his chin round to face her with her hand. He leant into her gently cupping hand and reached out for her with both of his arms. She gladly moved into his embrace and held him tightly for a long moment, then pulled away slightly so that she could sit comfortably in his arms whilst not falling off the swing. Twisting round on the seat, Mulder shifted both of them so that their legs were straight out along the length of the swing and she sat on his lap, her back against his chest. He opened his blanket and wrapped it around her as well, holding it tightly in place with his arms.
"Scully..."
"So we're back to 'Scully' now are we?"
"I apologise for before - I was confused."
"I was confused too Mulder, in fact I kind of still am. Was this - your distant attitude, going running and then almost ignoring me - all because of something Bill said? I thought we agreed you would talk to me if he said anything else."
"I thought you would agree with him and I wasn't sure whether I could handle you telling me that again."
"What exactly did he say? ... No one seems to want to tell me."
"He said basically what you said in the middle of that lake - that I get everyone around me hurt and I don't give a toss."
"That's not true, I know it's not - and it's not exactly what I said. I already told you that that's not what I meant when I said what I did on that rock."
"Well, what did you mean then Scully?"
"If you think back, you'll remember that the first thing that I said was that you would get yourself killed - that was the important part to me. That's the part that I didn't want to happen. The rest of what I said was just about Ahab in the book, I didn't want you to know how strongly I felt about your seemingly self-destructive mission."
"What? Sorry...I don't really understand."
"I loved you way back then - was in love with you, even though I didn't really know it. I was scared that, if I stopped speaking after I had said about you getting yourself killed, you would be able to see my feelings too well so I covered by going back to the book - back to what I knew. I didn't think you felt the same way about me so it was better, easier I suppose, to just keep going. I didn't even stop to think about what I was saying - what effect it might have on you. You didn't say anything about it, so I didn't think about it anymore until I heard you telling my mom what you remembered me saying."
"I didn't realise...so you don't think it's my fault - my quest that has been the cause of everything? I mean Bill's right, a lot of people have been hurt."
"Yes, people have gotten hurt along the way - you and me both included - but it's hardly your fault. The people to blame are the men...aliens...whatever...behind the conspiracy - they're the ones who've hurt you, me and countless others along the way. They're the ones that Bill should be mad at, not you - never you."
"I love you Scully. You know that, right?"
"I know. I love you too."
Scully turned in Mulder's arms and sought out his lips with her own, her hands still encased in the blanket surrounding her. He released his hold slightly so that she could move her arms free and then pulled her back to him as they kissed hungrily. She sat up properly so that she was straddling Mulder's waist and her legs dangled over the arm of the swing. Their heated embrace caused the swing to rock slightly and, when it tilted just a little too far, they broke the kiss. Both panting for breath they giggled as they realised that they had nearly fallen right off the swing onto the cold porch floor. Standing up, Scully picked the blankets and cushions up and put them in the kitchen, returning to the porch and Mulder who was still sitting somewhat dazed on the swing. Moving to stand in front of him, she held out her hand for him to take as she spoke.
"Bill and Tara are leaving on the 27th so we only have to deal with him for one more whole day. We can do it ... right?"
"Sure we can Scully. Not that it matters too much, but why are they leaving?"
"The three of them are going to visit Tara's parents for a couple of days. They're coming back on New Year's Eve though."
"Oh...right."
"Anyway...I think it's about time we went to bed, don't you? I'm totally exhausted and we're gonna have another long day tomorrow. The kids will probably get us up early again and then we have our date at night."
"That's right - our very first date. So...sofa-bed?"
"No. Why don't we go up and sleep in my bed, it's warmer and more comfortable."
"Scully..."
"I just want to cuddle - nothing else. Also, this way we won't get any early visitors tomorrow morning hopefully. Is that okay?"
"Of course. Let's go snuggle, Angel."
"You haven't called me that since this morning. ...I missed it."
"Well I'll just have to make up for it then, won't I Angel?"
"You bet you are and you'll have plenty of time to do it."
The two of them made their way inside and walked upstairs hand in hand, both happy again now that things were right between them once more. Once they got to Scully's room, they let go of each other's hands so that they could get in opposite sides of the bed. Once they were under the covers though, they both moved straight to the middle of the bed and cuddled as close together as they could. Scully lifted her head to give Mulder a kiss and then lay her head back down on his chest as he pulled her body even tighter to his. They moved their legs so that they were completely entangled and, feeling comforted and secure, they both closed their eyes and drifted quickly off to sleep.
