Conclusion – Midnight Blue

The fateful day came and everyone was naturally nervous. According to future Mulder, the agents would be walking out of the Hoover building at noon and the car would come by. There was no phone call or anything that would indicate why they were leaving at that time and through the front rather than the parking garage but, their best guess is that they were being carefully watched.

The duo left as expected and the white sedan did pull up. It fired one round that struck Scully in the chest, but when it tried to speed away, it's escape route was blocked by Skinner and his men. The driver tried to go in reverse, but that was cut off too. The man leapt out of the car and started to run while Mulder and a host of FBI agents chased him.

The ski mask obscured the assassin's face and for a while he was pulling ahead of his pursuers when he skidded to a halt. There in front of him was another FBI agent, a little grey around the temple and with a haunted look in his eye. He fired one shot as the throng caught up with them, but the assassin got a round off too. Both men went down.

Meanwhile, Scully was lifted off the ground by other agents and removed her flak jacket. One agent spoke into a radio and then listened. When he told Scully, she took off running.

XXXXXXXX

Mulder reached the two men and immediately went to himself. #2 was in the worst way. He was hit, where Scully was supposed to be and leaking blood like a sieve. Mulder screamed to someone to get on the radio and then tried to stop the bleeding.

"I want to see her." Mulder#2 could barely talk.

"She's on her way," Mulder#1 said. "Hold on."

Skinner entered the fray and saw the other man on the ground. He had been killed instantly. The A.D. knelt and removed the hood to reveal someone that Mulder recognized.

"That is David. Scully's ex-boyfriend. I can't believe he would do this."

Future Mulder was fading fast when Scully arrived and flew to him. The original Mulder stepped back. It looked like he was going to be an only child again.

"Mulder!" Scully touched his face.

"Scully," the dying man whispered. "I'm glad you are here at the end. I'm glad you are safe."

"I love you, Mulder. Thank you."

"I'd do anything for you—you know that. I love you." Scully kissed him as he closed his eyes and died.

Luckily, only 4 people saw what happened next because the image of Future Mulder started to fade. Scully was holding his head, but it just vanished. The blood—everything disappeared. It was if he had never been.

Scully stood and looked at her bewildered partner. Skinner saw what happened too and covered his discomfiture by barking orders to get a forensic crew out here to remove the body of Scully's ex. Mulder waited until most of the agents had left, then pulled her into his arms.

"I'm sorry, Scully."

"Me too. He knew—didn't he? He knew when the timeline was altered that he would no longer exist."

"I think so. I think that's why he went to see the Gunmen. He wanted a confirmation on his theory that it was impossible to get back. He had planned to sacrifice himself the whole time. I should have let him…me…be with you. I was so selfish…"

"It's over, Mulder. Just like Antarctica, you saved me again. You were the only one that could."

Mulder sighed. "I get to keep you. He was right, that is all that matters."

XXXXXXXX

Mulder felt sorry for Skinner who had to explain this mess. There was no evidence of Mulder#2 except what existed in the memories of those that saw him. The image on the tape, the device, everything except the gun he purchased that morning had vanished. There was no hard proof he even existed. Skinner explained it as a Mulder lookalike as there were too many people that saw him to pretend. Mulder was cleared of the murder of David Crane because he had 10 agents see him *not* shoot the man as he was with them the whole time. For show, a warrant was put out for the "other" Mulder, but Skinner withdrew it a few months later.

The scientific community was disappointed that their latest prize had disappeared from FBI headquarters, but that kind of stuff seemed normal nowadays. The Gunmen thought the ending was extra special cool and agreed to write about it as a fiction piece, but they had to tell the story. Mulder and Scully cuddled on her sofa that night and enjoyed each other's company. Life was returning to normal.

A month later, a strange package came to Mulder's apartment. It didn't have a return address and Mulder considered if it was a bomb, but decided to live dangerously. Besides, the handwriting was his. Inside there was a gift box, done up in a bow and a letter on top of it. Mulder pulled it off and read.

*Mulder:

If you are reading this, then we managed to save Scully. I suspected David and followed him around for a while, but got threatened with harassment and had to stop. Anyway, I'm gone and you have her all to yourself. I tried not be resentful that you wouldn't let me love the woman I spend a hard 2 years working to get back, but since I am you, I understand.

In the box, you will find some items that I think will be useful. Take it from a 2-year veteran of a life without Dana Scully and take a hint. Good Luck.

M.*

Mulder opened the container. Inside there were two envelopes and another small box. In one envelope was a gift certificate to the most premier English-style Bed and Breakfast in the area. It included 3 days, 2 nights complete with dinner, champagne, horse carriage ride, and a room with a view. The other envelope was two tickets to Bermuda scheduled for August next year and hotel reservations for a week. Mulder already knew what was in the smaller box. When he opened it, even he was surprised with his taste. A fantastic teardrop 1 carat diamond ring flanked by two strikingly blue sapphires the same color as Scully's eyes. My My. He liked that he had style.

XXXXXXXX

Skinner sat in his apartment sipping a whiskey. Sharon had been gone a few years now and he was alone. That didn't mean that he couldn't get company when he needed it, but after reflecting on the news that Mulder and Scully were getting married, it seemed to be not enough anymore.

He didn't blame them. Life was too short. Scully could have died and both men would have been left devastated. The last year, he resisted looking up his past once he learned that he was related to that Nazi, Claude Graber. When he had enough courage to press his family, he found that his father had kept mementos from his youth and there was a letter inside. It was from Mary Skinner to her son (Skinner's father) Frank—written while she was being held in a German prison accused of working with the Nazis.

The letter explained how much she was sorry he was taken away. How much she loved him and how much she loved his father. It was a hard letter to read, but there was one section that helped him understand it all.

*My son,

You will hear terrible things about your father. They will say that he was evil and that he murdered people. Perhaps there is some truth in that-for both of us, but it was war and we were on the side of right. We did what we had to do and while I risked my life by even being with him, your father was even braver getting into the highest ranks of the German regime and stealing secrets to help the Allies. He was a member of the Nazi party, but he loved Germany enough to fight for its greatest ideals. Go, my son and do what you think is right in the world. Be brave like your father.*

When Skinner thought about his grandfather killing himself when he should be celebrating victory and about Mulder giving his life to come back for the woman he loved; he understood Claude and Mary and the sacrifices they made. He knew from his days in the Vietnam War that in tough situations, sometimes you have to make hard and imperfect choices. It helped him understand why he chose to stay within the system at the FBI. He raised his glass, toasted his grandparents, then went to pull out his tuxedo to be best man.

THE END

Note: Hope you enjoyed. Thanks to MulderNScully4ever for her beta work! :)

FYI, I'm aware there are some date fudges. Germany and Russia invaded Poland in October 1939, not August and Skinner was too old to have a father born about 1940 if he served in the Vietnam War (if they were both 18—maybe). I love writing fan fiction because you don't have to be accurate. J

I hope this romp through several sexual fetishes wasn't disturbing to most of you. In this '50 Shades of Grey' world, I didn't think it would be a surprise. What's interesting is that book is late to the game—big time. People have been doing this stuff for millennia and the fabric of society has managed to stay stitched together for the most part. The key is CONSENT. Some couples even draw up contracts. In any case, I don't condone non-consensual violence of any kind. Fantasies are fantasies and fiction is fiction. If they *hurt* unwilling REAL people, it should stay in our heads and never see the light of day. Mulder and Scully are characters and I think they had fun. However, in case you haven't guessed…there is a little 'kink' in my step too.

Stay tuned: Mulder and the Indigo Girl