Hey guys sorry it's once again taken so long to post, but I (Lily) have just moved house so things have been pretty crazy on this end. And I know this chappy looks a lil on the short side, but never fear, you get bumper postage to make up for the fact that we've been neglecting you (although if you've been reading this story for a while, you'll already be aware of our collective tendancy to do that!)
Enjoy!
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After the events of the storm, Scully was physically exhausted. She'd managed to sneak away from Jack and Gibbs while they were surveying the damage that the strong winds and huge waves had inflicted on their small ship, and had sequestered herself inside the cabin to try and clean herself up. She walked over to the mirror on the wall, wiping some of the dust and grime from it with her cuff so she could see her injuries better. She winced at the sight of the large gash on her right cheek, red and angry looking; although it had long since stopped bleeding there was still dried blood around it and running down her cheek to her neck. Realising she had nothing with which to tend to her wounds, Scully turned round to go and find a cloth, jumping when she saw Jack standing by the closed door.
"I didn't hear you come in."
He swaggered towards her, a slight smile on his face. Once he was close enough to her, he held up his right hand which was holding a damp cloth.
"Thought you might need some help darling."
She shot him a stern look, grabbing the cloth from his hand before he could object.
"Thank you for your concern, but I'm a trained medical doctor. I think I can handle this myself."
At the words 'medical doctor' Jack's eyes widened as he inclined his head slightly.
"You're a what? Sorry?" Scully rolled her eyes and turned back to the mirror, bringing the cloth up to her face as she did.
"I'm a doctor." She started when his image appeared in the mirror next to her own, then glared as she noticed his grin. "What's so funny about that?"
"Nothing sweetheart." She tensed slightly at his term of endearment. "You just don't seem the type." At this remark Scully whirled angrily round to face him, taking a step back as she realized he was closer than she'd anticipated.
"Not the type?! What the hell is that supposed to mean?"
"Well, I'm no expert, I've only ever met two witch doctors in my life…"
"Witch doctor?" she replied indignantly. "I didn't say witch doctor, I said medical doctor."
"Wait, do you mean physician?"
"Well, yes, if you want to call it that."
Jack laughed. "That's funny love, but if you didn't want me to touch your face, all you had to do was say."
"It's not an excuse! I am a doctor!"
Jack regarded her uncertainly as her expression remained serious. He may not have had finely-tuned woman's intuition, but he could tell she wasn't joking.
"A physician? You…are a physician?"
Her gaze was unfaltering. He pondered momentarily, then shrugged with a slight raise of the eyebrows and a "Hm" that said 'stranger things've happened, I s'pose'. Unsure what else to say, he turned to leave. The corner of Scully's mouth twitched into a smile as she watched him go, but he stopped in the doorway.
"By the way…" He swung round and she groaned quietly, dreading anything else he could possibly say. "Halcón has changed course and so have we."
"Why would he do that?"
"Well his ship was probably badly damaged by the storm, so he's pulling into a port to have it repaired." He bit his lip as though considering saying something else, but thought better of it. Scully, however, was more astute than he gave her credit for. She caught his sleeve.
"And?"
He rolled his eyes. "And…we could do with some work as well."
She smirked, a little surprised that he admitted it. "So this ship has been damaged?"
"I didn't say that, I said we could do with a little tender loving care, thank you." He pulled his arm free, straightened his coat and his posture, and strutted - ever so slightly put out - away.
Scully shook her head, grinning, and turned back to the task of tending her cheek.
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Lily and Sirocco
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