Ok I'm starting this while procrastinating on homework a little and eating leftover Chinese food. I just felt like writing I guess. The science camp thing that I mentioned and will keep mentioning is a real thing that I did in the fifth grade for one week and in the seventh grade for only three days. I went back two years ago and will be going again this year to be a cabin leader and watch over the little ones. Just thought you should know I'm basing these things on real experiences.
Chapter 4: Christmas
The time between Thanksgiving and Christmas passed at a surprising rate. The four friends had gotten permission and money from their parents to go to camp. Dana knew Bill, Jr. wasn't happy about it and Mulder told her that his parents just wanted to get rid of him for a little while, but they were glad to be going nonetheless.
Before they knew it, it was winter break and they were saying their goodbyes. Mulder rode home with Dana, as he had done almost everyday since his first day back at school. There was a comfortable silence about the car in anticipation of the holiday and joy from the carols on the radio. Maggie was the first to speak.
"Fox, dear, would you like to come over tonight for supper and help trim the tree? We bought you a stocking, too." His face brightened at the kindness and sincerity of her voice. Not even his own family accepted him as the Scullys had, except Samantha that is.
"Thank you Mrs. Scully. You really didn't have to, but I would love to come over and help. If that would be alright with the rest of the family, too." They all knew he was referring to the eldest Scully child, who, quite clearly, hated him.
"Don't you fuss about Bill. I'll keep him in line. It's nothing against you, you know. Bill has always hated Dana's friends. He managed to find something about them that wasn't perfect. He tried it with Melissa too but she wouldn't have it. One yelling match with Missy and he was cowering in a corner. Dana spites him though. She doesn't scare him, but she puts him in his place."
"Mom!"
"Well you do."
"Remind me never to make you angry." Mulder joked, effectively lightening the mood and causing the three of them to laugh wholeheartedly. Once they pulled up at home Mulder jumped out of the car with his backpack and walked to his door. "What time should I be over?"
"You can set your things down and come over now if you'd like." He grinned and nodded as he rushed inside. Only a few moments later he was knocking on the front door of the Scully home. It was Dana who answered the door. She had only just finished removing her coat and boots before ushering him into the house out of the freezing winds and snow. He removed his coat and boots and joined his best friend at the breakfast nook where she was stringing popcorn for the tree.
"Can I help?" he asked, hoping he wasn't encroaching. Her smile told him that he wasn't.
"Of course. Here you just thread it through….like this." She demonstrated. He copied and in no time flat he was threading popcorn with his best friend for the Christmas he never thought he would have. The door opened and then shut lightly. There was a moment while the person entering took off their coat and walked in. It was Melissa.
"Hey everyone! Oh, hello Mulder. Nice to see you've joined us for the fun filled tree trimming." she piped in a cheerful voice that somehow reminded Mulder of Christmas. It was joyful and overflowing with hope and good natured love. The door opened widely and the wind whistled into the mud room. Then it slammed closed. Mulder was sure it was Bill. He heard boots thud to the floor as they were removed. Then he figured Bill's coat came off and was hung up. Then a loud yell came from the room he was occupying. He had seen Mulder's coat.
"What is he doing here?! This is our Christmas! It's family time!" Bill roared as he entered the room.
"He is here because we invited him Bill. He is as much a part of our family this Christmas as anyone else. He would not have a Christmas otherwise. No one deserves to be without a Christmas to celebrate with friends or family. Since he cannot celebrate with his blood family he will celebrate with us. You will keep your temper and be civil. He is a guest. One we are very happy to have. Understood?"
"Yes, Mom." Bill stormed up the stairs to his room. Mulder looked back at them, his eyes truly sorry for the turmoil he was causing the family.
"Don't worry about it Fox. He'll get over it eventually. Bill has always been a bit hotheaded. Sometimes he just doesn't think and jumps to the most terrible conclusions. You're always welcome here." He nodded and went back to work. Out of the blue there was a small hand on his arm. He looked down at the red fingernails and knew it was Dana. He looked up at her. She smiled at him and patted his arm reassuringly. He smiled back and they continued their work. In a short while dinner was almost ready. The smell wafted from the kitchen making the whole house hungry.
"Dinner is served!" Maggie called from the dining room. She was seated at one end, Bill, Sr. took the other end, Melissa took the seat next to her mother, Dana next to her, Mulder sat between her and her father, Bill, Jr. sat across from them and Charlie took the other seat next to Maggie. Mr. Scully gestured for everyone to join hands and then bowed his head.
"Heavenly Father we are gathered at this table to receive your blessing. Our prayers are with those who could not be here today, but we gladly welcome Fox Mulder into our home and our hearts --Bill silently scoffed at this-- and hope to make his life and holiday brighter despite the hardship of his family as your word commands. Bless our family that is often far away but never gone from our hearts. Thank you Lord. Amen." There was a chorus of 'Amens' before the family began to pile food onto their plates. Even Mulder, who had lost faith in any God when his sister disappeared, was moved by the warm words and kind prayer of the Scully family.
The whole table was clacking with the sound of plates and bowls and spoons swishing food onto plates. The conversation was lively and the food was fantastic. It was like a mini Christmas dinner. Mulder was sufficiently impressed.
"Enjoying yourself Mulder?" Dana asked, looking up at him with amusement.
"Very much. Better than any Christmas I've ever had, and it's not even Christmas yet." He smiled down at his friend who seemed very pleased with his answer.
"So Mulder, Dana says the two of you and some of your other friends are going to camp together. You like it up there? You ever been?"
"Yeah. Our class went for a few days in elementary school. It's a fun place. It'll be more fun this time though. This time we get to go on a night hike and climb up the mountain to play survivor. It's amazing. My friend, Skinner, was telling me about it the other day. I'm really excited to get to go with my best friend." The last bit made Mr. Scully extremely happy that his youngest daughter had finally found her niche in life and was able to make a lasting impact on someone, the way he always knew she would.
"Sounds good. So you play any sports Mulder?" The conversation went on like this for the entirety of the meal. Dana was happy her father liked her best friend, though she had to keep shooting death glares at her brother to keep him from butting in and ruining the night.
When they were finished eating it was time to decorate the tree. They took out ornament after ornament, Dana sometimes stopping to explain one to Mulder. He had never had such a good time, even Bill, Jr. was civil, though it's hard not to be when Christmas carols are playing. Mulder watched as the very last thing, the star, was placed on the tree. Mr. Scully lifted Dana off the ground and held her high enough so she could put the star on. They plugged in the tree and the whole room came to life in a brilliant display of lights and shiny baubles. Mulder decided it was late and about time he got home.
"Um, I think I should get going. It's getting kind of late. Thank you all for having me over." He got up from his seat on the floor next to Dana, where they had been watching the tree light up. He shook Mr. Scully's hand, nodded at Bill, ruffled Charlie's hair, and hugged Melissa and Mrs. Scully. Dana walked him to the door where he went to put on his coat and boots. He was barely into the mudroom and out of sight of the living room when Dana hugged him around the middle. He was slightly surprised but he hugged her back tightly.
"Thank you for coming. I'll talk to you later. Be careful of your dad." He nodded and pulled on his boots. He hugged her again quickly before putting on his coat and opening the door. He turned back to look at her.
"Thanks for inviting me. And I meant what I said about this being the best Christmas I've ever had." She smiled and waved goodbye before walking back into the living room to her waiting mug of hot chocolate. She looked out the window for a brief moment and saw Mulder walk up to his door and open it, only to be scolded by an accusatory finger and dragged inside painfully by the ear, or the hair, she really couldn't tell. She tried to suppress a gasp, but the slight intake of breath was noticed by her eldest sibling. Bill looked at her like she was crazy, so she looked at him like she was angry and he left her alone.
They sat listening to Christmas carols for a while as some members of the family began to slowly drift away to their rooms. In what felt like no time at all, Dana and Bill were the only ones left in the room. She was ignoring the fact that he was staring at her with a burning intensity. She didn't want to wake the whole house with a shouting match but that was obviously what he wanted.
"Why do you do these things Dana?! He comes into our house, eats our food, decorates our tree, and then leaves because 'it's late'. What is that all about?! Huh?!" She couldn't take it anymore. She had had enough of Bill's rantings about her friend. She shouted back.
"Mom invited him tonight, it was Mom's idea to invite him! Of course I wanted to but that doesn't mean I don't understand that it's family time! Mom considers him nearly family and so do I! If you can't accept it fine! But don't be rude! And don't insist on waking the dead with a screaming match of epic proportions every time he comes over! Now if you don't mind I would like to watch the snow and the tree and drink my hot chocolate in relative peace!" She settled back into her chair to make it clear he would be the one leaving.
Slowly he got up and crossed to the stairs, utterly beaten at his own game by his twelve year old kid sister. He left her there watching the snow fall lazily outside the window. She sipped her chocolate as if she could somehow grasp the situation presenting itself if she could only grasp her physical state tighter. She was afraid for her best friend and she was anxious and excited for Christmas. She was happy and wanted to play in the snow in the morning. There were so many conflicting emotions she didn't know what to do with them all. So she took a break from being pensive and stared out the living room window at the snow while sipping her hot chocolate.
For a moment it was quiet and everything seemed like the perfect night until Mr. Mulder's car pulled up in the driveway of the house next door. Dana watched, frozen, as he wrenched the car door open, slammed it loudly, staggered to the porch, clumsily forced his key into the lock, shoved the front door open and then slammed it shut as well. He was obviously drunk. Then she remembered 'He was kind of wailing on me last night. It's alright though. He had had a couple of drinks.' That's what Mulder had told her on Thanksgiving. She stood and crossed to the window in one fluid motion. She leaned toward the glass, feeling the chill from the pane, and clutched her nearly empty mug as she watched Mulder's window from her hiding place.
The light flicked on. Mulder sat up and quickly stood, he had obviously not been asleep. He walked away from the tiny slice of window she could see from her angle, but his shadow was still visible. A loud booming echoed from the house. It sounded like a deep voice yelling. Then a crash as Mulder's shadow got bigger and bigger until he hit the wall and slumped down. The door slammed. The light stayed on and for a moment all Dana could do was stand there, rooted to the spot, unable to help. It was nearly midnight, two days before Christmas, and she was supposed to have been asleep by ten. She had no idea what to do. She had promised to keep his secret and she would; he trusted her. He sat up, face red and a little blood dripping from his nose, but he was alright enough. He rubbed his stomach gingerly as he stood but he grabbed a pair of jeans and a shirt and disappeared beyond the window again. Seconds later he reappeared, and was pacing and looking out the window, at something.
'My room!' she thought, screaming in her own head. He looked confused and then turned toward her, he saw her face and she saw his. She waved him toward her with the hand not clutching her mug. He disappeared and the light went out. Next thing she knew he was dashing from the front door with unlaced boots and a half zipped coat, as if he had gotten dressed in a hurry. He was nearly there when the door opened and his dad was yelling loudly after him. It was then that Maggie Scully took notice and walked down the stairs.
"Dana? Sweetie? Is something going on? I kept hearing loud noises from outside." She looked concerned but not terribly worried. Though her mood quickly changed when her daughter looked up from the window into Maggie's face and she saw the fear etched into the young girl's features.
"Yeah Mom. Something's going on. Mulder's gonna stay here tonight. He shouldn't be at home right now." Maggie knew there was something going on that Dana wasn't saying but she wouldn't pry. They would tell her in time. Just then there was a frantic knocking on the door and Dana set her mug on the coffee table as she ran to open the door. "Mulder are you alright?" she asked after pulling him into the house. He pulled off his hastily put on coat and boots and walked with her into the living room.
"Yeah. I'll be alright. Oh, um, good evening Mrs. Scully." he stuttered as he noticed Maggie standing there.
"You could almost say good morning Fox. Are you alright? Are your parents fighting?" He decided to take the easy way out and give his best friend's mother the comfort of a little white lie.
"Yeah." It wasn't a complete lie. They really were fighting; that just wasn't the reason he couldn't stay at home. He was scared to death that his father would just lose it again and he wouldn't be able to take it.
"Well I trust Dana will make sure you're comfortable. Good night, get some sleep. That goes for both of you." They nodded and Maggie went off to bed. She could sense the uneasiness and she wanted Mulder to feel welcome and safe in their home. Once she was gone he flopped onto the couch.
"Mulder lift up your shirt and let me look at your stomach."
"What? How much of that did you see from the window?"
"The light turning on, you getting up, you walking out of view, you falling against the wall, you getting up again and rubbing your stomach so let me see." He nodded and pulled his shirt high enough for her to see the bruise forming on his side and abdomen. It wasn't big but it looked like it hurt. She pulled his shirt down and went to look at his face. There was no bruise but it was still red and slightly hand shaped. There was a bit of dried blood on his upper lip where his nose had bled. It definitely wasn't broken, but it had gotten hit. "He slapped you didn't he?" Mulder nodded.
"Are you going to be a doctor by any chance?"
"Yeah, I want to. Why?"
"You keep being doctor to my injuries. It's nice. Usually no one cares." He smiled weakly at her and she smiled back and patted him on the shoulder before going to get ice. She set it on top of his stomach so the cold would go through his shirt. Then she went to retrieve a pillow and blanket from the closet.
"Comfy?"
"Yeah. Thanks, you know, for taking me in. You didn't have to."
"No, but I wanted to. You're my best friend and you looked scared. I couldn't just leave you there. Get some sleep. It's late. I'll see you in the morning." He nodded and she walked toward the hall to her room but stopped when he called her.
"You know, Dana, you're gonna be a really great doctor one day. You already are. Good night."
"Good night Mulder." She walked to her room and fell into a deep sleep. He did the same on the living room couch.
It seemed like moments later the pair were waking up in their separate rooms early the next morning. It was barely 7:30 but they were wide awake. Dana opened her door tentatively and walked to the living room to find Mulder as awake as she was and sitting up on the couch. Dana sat down with him and stared out the window.
"Penny for your thoughts?" she asked, never turning from the early morning sun coming in the window. He smiled.
"Just wondering how Bill's gonna react. I could be gone before he wakes up you know."
"No. He can deal. He probably already knows anyway. He probably heard it all last night and Mom told him to shut up. You can stay for a while. The whole day if you want. We're going out back to have a snowball fight later. Charlie practically begged after you left last night." Mulder was grinning now, he used to have snowball fights with Samantha, but he wanted to have memories that reminded him of his best friend at Christmas too.
"Sounds good, but I have nothing to wear except what I threw on before I came here."
"It's ok, Fox, dear. I'll just have Bill find you something to wear." Maggie said as she walked down the stairs, through the living room and into the kitchen.
"Um, thank you Mrs. Scully." Mulder replied as he and Dana walked into the kitchen and sat at the breakfast nook watching their French toast being made. It was then that Bill decided to make his appearance.
"Morning." he said with as little enthusiasm as possible. He didn't comment on Mulder's arrival, Dana had been right. He just stared at him for a moment.
"Bill, would you get some clothes for Fox to wear later?"
"What?! Having him here all the time is one thing! Now I have to give him my clothes too?!"
"It's alright, Mrs. Scully. I can just run home before my parents wake up and grab something."
"Are you sure Fox? I mean your father was pretty loud last night. You may not want to go over there."
"No I should be fine. Thank you Mrs. Scully."
"Well why don't you take Dana with you and then you can both come back over here. And you're welcome to stay over here tonight. It is Christmas Eve, and your parents could probably use some time to sort things out."
"Um sure, thank you. But I can go myself, Dana doesn't have to come with me. I wouldn't want my father yelling at her if he wakes up."
"No, Mulder. He won't yell much if I'm there. We should go early though, just in case. That way he won't be awake for sure."
"What is this?! Conspiracy to get Dana hurt?! The Mulders weren't fighting last night Mom! Mr. Mulder was just beating on his son is all! It's Mulder's fault for not protecting himself!"
"William Scully, Jr.! I will not have you talking like that about a guest! We talked about this last night! Now sit down and wait for your breakfast!" He silently obeyed his mother. Melissa, Charlie and Bill, Sr. slowly made their way downstairs to the table where breakfast was being served.
After the meal Dana went to get dressed while Mulder straightened out the couch and put on his socks and boots. He was waiting by the door when Dana was done. She pulled on her boots while he put on his coat. He handed her coat to her, she put it on and zipped it up and they were off. It was still early morning and it was very cold. The bright morning sun bounced off the white snow and made the whole street sparkle with hope. It. Just. Looked. Like. Christmas.
Mulder opened the front door tentatively. He didn't see or hear anyone so he went in and Dana followed. They removed their coats and as Dana went to untie her boots, he stopped her. "No. It's okay. Leave them on in case my dad wakes up. Just wipe your feet really well or my mom will get on my case." She nodded in understanding and wiped her boots on the mat. He did the same and they entered the main part of the house.
Down the hall and to the left with Mulder's room. He pulled out a small duffel bag and handed it to Dana; she held it open while he packed a couple days' worth of clothes. Once he was finished he zipped the bag, took it from Dana and reached into his closet for a big bag with gifts in it.
"Hey! No fair! You have two bags and I don't have any."
"Well you can't look in this one." he said, raising the gifts. "I'm not even sure you could carry it." He grinned and she slapped his arm playfully. "And this one is my clothes, which you shouldn't feel obligated to carry. So I'll carry them. You can get the door."
"Alright." She laughed and they made their way back to the mud room where they slipped on their coats. Mulder picked up the bags and Dana opened and shut the door. They were in and out without any problems. "Won't your parents worry about you just taking off and not leaving a note?"
"No, not really. They'll guess I'm with John or you, since I told them you invited me for Christmas. When I come back they won't ask and I won't tell. I'm not saying I like it, but it does have its perks. And it works for us." Dana just nodded absently as they walked into her house.
Sans outer wear, the two friends entered the living room where the rest of the Scully clan sat discussing plans for the day. Most of the presents were already under the tree so Dana assisted Mulder in arranging his gifts under the tree as well. He dug around for a moment or two before letting her look inside the bag. He had pulled out her present and hid it behind some larger boxes before she could clearly discern shape or size. They continued arranging gifts around the tree while occasionally joining in the discussion about activities for the day.
Eventually it was decided that a snowball fight was in order. Mulder, Dana, and Charlie set up a fort with a supply of snowballs at one end of the yard and Melissa and Bill set up in the other. They fought for hours. They had a blast. It ended in a tie when Mrs. Scully called them all in with the promise of hot chocolate. They were all different in the way they drank it. Bill dropped an ice cube into it and swirled it around until it was cooler, Melissa and Charlie were very picky about their mini marshmallows, and Dana and Mulder were set on whipped cream.
It was late Christmas Eve and they were all tired from their romp in the snow. Charlie had helped with milk and cookies and they were all waiting on the traditional tale of "The Night Before Christmas". Bill, Sr. sat in the center of the couch with the large book on his lap. Charlie sat directly on his right and Melissa on the left. Dana squeezed into the space between Charlie and the arm of the couch. She waved Mulder over so he could sit on the arm, forcing Bill to mimic the action on Missy's side. They just sat and listened for a while. It was a beautiful rendition, leaving them all with a happy feeling of Christmas. Mulder had to give Charlie props; the youngest stayed awake and alert through the entire story. As soon as it was over he told them all good night and warned them not to eat Santa's cookies before going off to bed.
Mulder was told that he would sleep in a sleeping bag in Charlie's room for the night, which he eagerly agreed to. He knew the other option was Bill's room, and that would just end badly. They said goodnight and the rest of the children went to bed. Mr. and Mrs. Scully pulled the Santa gifts from the closet shelf and placed them joyfully around the tree. Then they too retired for the night. About two hours later it was nearly midnight and Dana awoke to a noise in the kitchen. She slowly got out of bed and turned the knob slowly so as to make as little noise as possible.
Mulder had gotten up a few minutes before and had silently made his way into the kitchen. He wanted some water, if only as an excuse to be sitting at the kitchen counter in the middle of the night. It had all been going fine until two glasses had knocked together, causing the kitchen to resonate with the sound of nonexistent cheers-ing. He slowly returned to the task of getting a glass and filling it with ice and water when Dana had emerged from her bedroom, clad in flannel pajamas and tired eyes.
"Mulder, what are you doing up?" He spun around to look at her. She looked tired, but almost as if she hadn't yet fallen asleep.
"I could ask you the same thing." She half-smiled. She knew that he knew she had been awake the whole time, same as him.
"Just thinking until I heard you in here. Thought it was Bill for a second, getting a steak knife to stab you with." He looked at her wide eyed. "I had you."
"No, you didn't."
"Oh yeah. I had you big time."
"You had nothing." He looked down at her, she stared right back, he caved.
"Would you like a glass of water, too?" She caught his drift and nodded. They sat for a while at the breakfast nook sipping water and talking about the various thoughts keeping them awake. "It was Sam. I just kept thinking about Sam and how much she loved Christmas, but then I thought about your family and how much I'm enjoying spending Christmas with you all. I don't know what to think."
"Keep the good memories and let the bad memories stay in the past. Don't forget them, because they help you become who you are, but its ok to let bygones be bygones."
"Wise words."
"You learn quick when you leave your best friend every year." He nodded.
"What was keeping you awake?"
"I was just thinking about the future. What its going to be like. Will we be friends when we're old? What will it be like in high school? How many Christmases will you get to spend with us? I just can't wait to get started on life and everything, the two of us, best friends for life." She grinned and he did, too. Their minds finally at ease they headed off to their rooms and straight to sleep, where visions of sugar plums danced in their heads.
It was fairly early when Dana woke up. It happened every year and she blamed it on Christmas magic, something she didn't fully believe in, it was more of a psychological state in her opinion. It affected her family though, no matter how much she denied its existence. Charlie was up super early, too, and was already shoving Mulder in the shoulder. He was a light sleeper and was awake quickly, tickling the eight-year-old. Charlie really liked Mulder and they were running from the room and into the living room, almost crashing into Dana in the hall. Melissa and Bill were almost down the stairs with Maggie and Bill, Sr. close on their heels.
Once everyone was assembled in the living room, kids on the floor and parents on the couch, Charlie enlisted Mulder's help to pass out presents. Once the presents were piled in front of their recipients the unwrapping began. Each method of unwrapping was as unique as the person. Bill was very neat as he slid his finger under each piece of tape. Bill, Sr. was nearly the same in his style, but Maggie just casually tore into the paper. Charlie was the typical kid and ripped open his packages, squealing loudly at the contents. Melissa ripped them open almost the same as her mother, but with a little more enthusiasm. Dana had a sort of controlled energy while Mulder tore through the paper, almost like Charlie.
They were all happy with their various gifts and thanked each other multiple times, but Dana and Mulder had been holding out on one another. Once Maggie and Melissa had retreated to the kitchen to cook dinner and both Bills had taken Charlie outside to improve his snow fort, the best friends were left with the task of cleaning up the living room. They took a moment, before beginning their work, to give each other their Christmas presents. Mulder opened his first. It was neatly wrapped in gold and white snowflake paper with a gold ribbon. It was obvious she had taken the time to wrap it herself.
This time Mulder was careful in opening it but was confused by the three disposable cameras in the first package. He set them aside and opened the second part of his gift. The beautiful leather bound photo album greeted him and he couldn't help but run his hands over it and smile. He opened it and flicked the pages from back to front when the first picture caught his eye. It was on the Scully family and was captioned 'The start of a beautiful friendship.' He looked up at her smiling face and pulled his best friend into the best bear hug he could manage with the bruise across his abdomen. When he let her go he handed her the rectangular gift next to him, knowing it was perfect.
The gift was wrapped in blue paper with snowmen and it was neater than Dana expected. "I got the lady at the gift wrapping station to teach me." Mulder said matter-of-factly when he noticed her staring down at the package. She took as much care as he had in opening the present and was equally at awe when she saw the soft leather cover of a journal with a rose embossed on the front. She opened the creamy, thick pages and read the three quotes he had written on the inside cover:
Never let the fear of striking out keep you from playing the game.
"and I, I took the one less traveled by, and that has made all the difference" Robert Frost
A good friend will come bail you out of jail. A best friend will be sitting next to you in the cell saying, "Damn! That was fun!" And somehow I think you would figure out how to do both.
The last part made her laugh and she looked up at him, eyes shining. She hugged him around the neck and after a moment he pulled away and looked her straight in the face.
"Now Dana, this journal is important." She nodded for him to continue. "Only write in it when we're far apart or if the you want to tell me something but you can't. Other than that you can tell me anything and everything. I'm always here." She nodded with a smile as they sat cross legged across for each other on the living room floor.
"Mulder. Your present is special too. You have to take pictures of really happy times so that when things fall apart or I'm not around you can remember the good times." He smiled before wadding up a piece of wrapping paper and throwing it at her. She ducked and it landed on the floor behind her and before he knew it she had wadded up her own ammunition and had hit him square on the forehead. With their new game, they played wrapping paper basketball into the trash bag until the living room was spic and span.
The two raced with their clothes trying to beat the other to the bathroom. Somehow Dana won and she wondered if it was because Mulder had let her. Once she was dressed in her snow clothes Mulder went in and came back looking ready as ever to grab his coat and boots and play in the snow. Melissa, who had left the kitchen, and Bill, Jr. were building their new fort and Bill, Sr. was helping Charlie make more snowballs for their already built and reinforced fort. Mulder and Dana rushed to their fort and began the task of widening and heightening it. Once that was finished Dana they packed the exterior walls even tighter and began to make snowball piles on the interior of their fortress.
"Sam and I used to have snowball fights." Mulder remarked as he set down his last snowball. "I always let her win." Dana set down her snowball and looked up at him
"So this time we'll win. Beating them will be tough, but I'm up for the challenge. How about you?" He grinned.
"I'm in!" He stuck out his hand and she shook it firmly. At this action Bill jumped up, screaming his battle cry. His first snowball hit Dana in the back and he recalculated but missed when he only clipped Mulder in the shoulder as he moved Dana to the other side and they split the tasks. Mulder and Bill predominantly aiming at each other, Melissa and Charlie were also paired off while Ahab took aim at his Starbuck.
They went on for a while occasionally ducking down to make more snowballs; a feat most easily accomplished by Dana and Charlie, seeing as they were the smallest. After coming back up from a snowball run, Dana noticed that Melissa was making an awfully large target of herself. One well placed snowball sent her older sister ducking for cover. For the next few minutes Mulder and Dana formed a silent and temporary alliance with Charlie and Bill, Sr. to take out Melissa and Bill, Jr., which was accomplished fairly quickly after that.
With Melissa and Bill watching from the sidelines with hot chocolate, the two remaining teams were at all out war with each other. Melissa cheered for everyone while Bill scowled over his mug in Mulder's general direction. They kept on for quite some time when Charlie and his father could no longer keep up with Dana and Mulder's snowball production. They surrendered and the winners cheered and high-fived each other.
"See Mulder! I told you we could win!" Mulder just grinned as she began to walk back to the house. He picked up one of the more loosely packed snowballs and threw it, nailing her in the back. It wasn't hard, not even close, but she still spun back to glare at him, the amusement in her eyes unsuccessfully masked. The corners of her mouth tugged into a mischievous smile and before he could register her actions she had hit him with a snowball of her own. For the next five minutes or so the pair chased each other around the yard throwing loose clumps of snow, much to the amusement of everyone but Bill who was less than annoyed but not happy.
"Come on in out of the cold and have some hot chocolate!" Maggie called from the back door, ending the antics. Dana and Mulder were laughing as they made their way to the backdoor, pausing briefly to remove their snow-covered coats and boots upon entering. The family sat at the breakfast nook drinking their hot chocolate and warming up.
Soon after, they all sat around the fireplace and the Christmas tree, sipping the remains of their hot chocolate, enjoying their presents, and talking. Dana and Mulder sat next to each other on the floor, backs against the couch. She looked over at him and then back out the window and realized how nice it felt to have someone there. She truly realized for the first time how much she cared for Mulder, maybe even liked him. Little did she know that he was doing the same thing next to her. The whole family just sat there for a while longer, enjoying the feel of Christmas.
It was around 9-o-clock and Mulder knew he had to be going home. He got up and shook Bill, Sr.'s hand, hugged Maggie, Melissa, and Charlie, and nodded politely to Bill, Jr. He gathered up the gifts he had received and walked with Dana toward the front door. She would never really hug him in front of her brother, for fear that he would slug Mulder in the face. Standing in the mud room she wrapped her arms around his middle and he wrapped his around her shoulders.
"Merry Christmas Dana." They let go and pulled back, allowing Mulder to pull on his boots and slip on his coat. He bent down and picked up his bag. When he straightened he looked her in the eye. "Thank you for having me here. It's been…perfect." She smiled, happy that she could do something nice for her best friend.
"You're welcome. And Merry Christmas to you too, Mulder." He smiled and nodded and went to the door. He opened it, letting the cold air swirl into the tiny entry room. She took a few steps forward and laid her hand on his arm, causing him to turn to look at her. "Please be careful." He nodded. "And if something happens, I'm here. Just promise me you'll be careful. Remember it's not your fault, it's his." He nodded and used his free arm to hug her, before smiling lightly and walking out the door toward his house. Dana walked back into her living room. She looked out the window and watched her best friend tentatively enter his home. His bedroom light turned on and the house was quiet. She silently sighed in relief. It was a good Christmas.
Wow. Um, yeah. This is really long. I was originally going to have separate chapters for Christmas Eve and Christmas Day but it didn't work out that way. I just didn't like any of the places to end it. So I just kept going. So this is really long but it covers everything. The next one will cover camp and some other stuff and will include Doggett and Reyes. I don't know as much about them so if it's a little OOC I'm sorry. There won't be as much of them in there and soon we will meet the LGM. Yay! Thanks for reading and review or suggest stuff if you'd like.