Title: It's the Most Wonderful Time of the Year Author: Texas Rose Category: MSR, WIP, Angst Rating: PG Spoilers: Christmas Carol, Emily, Requiem Disclaimer: Christmas isn't here yet and I doubt that I'll be getting Mulder and Scully, or any of the other wonderful characters that I used in here. Unfortunately, Chris Carter owns them. Why do I say unfortunately? Evil is the man's middle name >=) Summary: Scully receives more than one special present on Christmas morning. Author's Notes: Feedback is a girl's best friend =) It's the Most Wonderful Time of the Year by Texas Rose To fully understand the concept of life we must analyze each stage. Life begins at birth, when we're brought into the world and the first thing we usually see is a white room, with bright, white lights. As our brain develops and our bodies change, we go through different periods of learning. We learn valuable lessons from our mistakes, lessons that will mold our future, our destiny. There are several ups and downs to life. The ironic thing about most of us is that we remember the bad memories more clearly than the good. And we can never let them go... Dana Scully abruptly awoke, sweat causing her hair to cling to the sides of her face. She had another dream, and this one was worse than the others. She had dreamt of Emily, her innocent face staring lifelessly up at her and her small, accusing finger pointing in her direction. "Why couldn't you save me, Mommy?" "I tried to, Emily. I tried." She defended, tears streaming down her face. "You didn't try. You gave up on me. You stopped the tests." "But you hated the tests." She reminded her, confused. "But I didn't want to die. You killed me." She reached for her. "No, Emily. I tried to save you..." "You're lying!" Her small voice amplified by her anger and hatred, it echoed in Scully's ears and sent thunder throughout the world. "You didn't want to help me. You were afraid." "I was afraid, but Emily I tried... you are my daughter." "You didn't try. He tried. He tried to save me. He loved me as much as you say you do, but you would never let yourself see why." Scully was frightened by this little girl's anger, her hatred. "What do you mean?" "Mulder. That's what you called him. He tried to save me. But you wouldn't let him. He wanted to save me for you, and for himself." "What are you talking about?" "You know, you just want me to say it. I won't give you that. I hate you." Each word stung like a thousand needles injecting hatred and betrayal into her heart. "I_hate_you." Her words echoed throughout the darkness as the fog and mist closed in around her mother. "Emily? Emily! Emily, where are you? Emily!" "Emily!" She screamed as she sat up in bed again the next night, tears mixing with the sweat dripping from her brow. This is the worst time for these dreams, she thought. The worst time of all... Christmas. ----------------------------------------------------------- Margaret Scully's Residence December 21, 2000 The Christmas music gently hummed through the stereo speakers, and Margaret Scully smiled as the doorbell rang, indicating her son's arrival. She walked over to the door, laughing as she heard him outside complaining about the cold. "What a chilly winter, boy do I miss Florida." He smiled, shaking snow off of his coat, stepping inside. He heard a girlish squeal from the other room and was surprised to see his sister running towards him, a huge smile on her face. She wrapped her arms around him, nearly knocking him to the floor. "Look at you, Dana. Well if this is the welcome I get in not seeing you in four years I think I'll make it a ritual." "Oh don't you dare." Mrs. Scully playfully teased, gently slapping her son on the shoulder. "Okay, Dana, you can let go now. Let me take a look at you." She looked up at her younger brother, letting him see her face. "You just get prettier each time I see you." He smiled, wishing that their meetings weren't so spaced apart. His expression showed his concern. "Why do you have these dark circles under your eyes?" "Oh, I haven't been getting much sleep." "Well you're doing none of that here, missy." He said, his arm around her shoulder as they walked into the living room. "I'll personally see to it that you go to bed every night, and you stay there, too. You've got that baby to take care of, you know." Scully looked down, her thoughts drifting to Mulder. Charles caught her reaction. "So where's the proud father-to-be?" Scully turned to the kitchen doorway to see her mother looking up at her as she rolled dough in her hands. She hadn't told him the bad news. That was just like her. "He uh, he couldn't make it." "I'm sorry to hear that. When will I get to meet him? I unfortunately didn't attend the wedding, as you know." She turned back to her mother who was not looking at her this time. So, she filled in the gaps of the bad news by inventing some good news of her own. "I don't know what mom told you, Charlie, but um... we're not married." His smile soon faded. "Did that bastard run out on you?" "No, no..." "I promised myself long ago that if anybody ever did that you or Missy I'd kill him... I'd kill him." "It's not like that... he didn't know that I was pregnant. He was..." She tried to find the appropriate word, and could only think of one. "... abducted." He stared into her eyes, understanding the sadness that she was feeling. He put his hand on her shoulder. "You'll be okay, Dana. He'll have to come back soon." "I sure hope so, Charlie." "I hope my mom made her famous dressing this year." He said, walking into the kitchen. "Yes I did, I made it especially for you, Charles." Scully sat down on the sofa, and tried to control the chills running up her spine. She didn't know what to do; she was due any day now. Tears fought there way to her eyes but she simply blinked them away. "Anybody home?" Thankfully Mrs. Scully had left the door unlocked for her daughter-in-law, Tara. Scully smiled. "Tara." She said happily, walking over to hug her. Tara laughed. "My, how the tables have turned. When are you due?" "Any day now. Where's Matthew?" "He's helping his dad carry suitcases up to the door." She said, rolling her eyes as her grin grew. "God only knows how that'll turn out." She stepped to the side as Bill and Matthew walked through the door, suitcases in hand. "Dana." He smiled, bringing an arm around her, his suitcase bouncing against her back. "How are you feeling?" "Tired, actually." Bill forced a smile and turned to his son, who was dragging a Sesame Street suitcase behind him. "Matt? You remember Aunt Dana, right?" The little boy just smiled, talking nonsense. Sure he learned to talk, but he didn't quite know what he was talking about, yet. "She fat." That was his first full sentence yet. Tara lifted her son of the ground and headed into the living room. "No, she's going to have a baby." "Bill, do you need any help with those?" Scully asked, turning to her brother. "Not from you." She looked up at him, almost shocked by his response. "Look at you, if we switched our situations I'd be the one asking you that question." Scully smiled broadly, thinking about what he just said. "If we switched our situations you'd be the one pregnant." Bill laughed. "Thank God for that!" He looked down at the foot of the staircase and moaned. "Charlie! Get over here!" Charles Scully ran into the room. "Hey Bill, it's good to..." "Yeah, yeah, we can talk about it later, just get your suitcase out of the way." Charles laughed, picking it up. "Thank you." Bill muttered, as if it had taken him ages to lift it off of the ground. "So, how're the troops holding up in Florida?" Bill asked as they walked up the stairs together. "Pretty good, one of my good friends was just named General." "Hey, is that Luke?" "Yup." Scully watched her brothers disappear up the stairs. She remembered when she was a little girl, how she always wanted to go off to sea with them and do secret Navy operations. She smiled at the thought. "Never close enough to home." Her father would always complain, after coming home from work. ----------------------------------------------------------- ------------------ He awoke that night, after having another terrible dream. He was with Scully, but something was wrong. She wasn't telling him something she should. He could see it in her eyes, and then she walked away with another man, a man he'd never seen before but he could swear that he had. He looked around and he realized that he wasn't in the same white room as the one before. He was home. ----------------------------------------------------------- "It's Christmas!" Charles shouted, running through the house with Matthew, throwing his arms up in the air like a two-year-old. He knocked on every door that he ran by, startling the sleeping tenants. He stopped at his sister's door and ran inside, hopping onto the bed beside her. "Hey, sleeping beauty." She smiled and opened her eyes, remembering one Christmas when he did the exact same routine. Of course that time he drank too much eggnog the night before and come Christmas morning he was running around without a stitch on him. "It's Christmas..." He said, almost like he was introducing Johnny Carson. He pulled the comforter off of her. "Here, let me help you up." "Thank you." She mumbled groggily, taking his hands. "I knew there'd be one way of getting you to stay away from those presents." He chuckled, walking her down the stairs. "Good morning, everyone!" Charles said happily. He was happy to learn that he wasn't the only morning person. "Okay, who's going to open the first present?" Mrs. Scully asked. "Me! Me!" That's a phrase Matthew knew all to well. "Alright, here Bill, help me play Santa." Charles smiled, handing his brother one of Matthew's presents. Charles crawled around the tree, looking for a certain present. When he saw it the corners of his lips turned upward instantly, as he snatched it from beneath the tree. "Dana, this one's for you." She looked up at him, almost surprised. It was a large rectangular package, wrapped neatly in faded gold paper. "Thank you, Charlie." "Go on, open it." He eagerly insisted. She smiled up at him as she began to untie the bow. That's when the phone rang. It all happened so fast. Her hands flew to her stomach as the first pain of labor hit her. Tara had already run to answer the phone. "Dana?" Charlie asked, gripping her shoulders. "Call the hospital." Mrs. Scully demanded. "We just got a call from the hospital, they want to talk to Dana." Tara called from the kitchen. "She's going into labor." Tara's eyes widened. "They said for me to tell her that Agent Mulder has been transferred to Georgetown Memorial..." Scully heard Tara say "Mulder." "Mulder?" She asked hopefully, as Charlie and Bill helped her out of her chair. "We need to get her to the hospital now." Bill insisted. "Where is he?" She asked, walking with them to the door. "Shh... Dana let's get you to the hospital." "I want to know where Mulder is." "He's in Georgetown, now let's get you in the car." "I want to see Mulder." "Dana, you can see him later." She was about to insist upon seeing him when she felt another contraction. He was right. Now was not the time. ----------------------------------------------------------- ------------------ Michael Zachary was born December 25, 2000, at a healthy eight pounds and four ounces, to her loving mother Dana Scully. Unfortunately, her father was miles away in Georgetown, not even knowing of her existence. "When can we see him?" She asked her mother, as she held her baby in her arms. "Soon, sweetheart. You need to rest, now." "He's been missing for nine months, he doesn't even know he has a beautiful son waiting for him, I miss him so much..." Tears fought their way to her eyes and she blinked them back again. "I have to see him." "Tomorrow." It was a long day, and she might not have been able to live through it if she didn't have her beautiful baby resting in her arms, or her loving family to support her. ----------------------------------------------------------- She hated the wheelchair. It was one more restraint that she didn't need... as if her family wasn't enough. Finally, She was seated in the back seat of her mother's Toyota, and they were on their way to Georgetown. Scully looked down at her beautiful child as they car sped along the bumpy freeway. The hospital traditionally wrapped the Christmas babies in enormous stockings, and her baby was no exception. He was so perfect, a beautiful combination of his father and mother. He had a long, slender face, much like hers, but that unmistakable lower lip could be recognized anywhere. She pressed her head against the leather head rest. Her heart was beating with anticipation; she couldn't wait to see him. It has been far too long, far too long. She soon fell asleep to the gentle humming of the car's engine and the breezy sound of cars passing on the freeway. ----------------------------------------------------------- Georgetown Memorial Hospital 1:39 PM "Dana? Dana?" Scully awoke to the sound of her mother's voice beckoning her into the world of the awakened. She finally relented; opening her eyes to find herself still strapped into her mother's minivan. "Mmm... how long have we been here?" "A little over half an hour, I've been trying to wake you, but you've been out like a light." "Must be the drugs." She thought to herself. "Mom, help me up. I need to see Mulder." Her mom didn’t hesitate to do as she asked. Scully soon realized something was missing. "Mom, where's Michael?" "Tara took him inside with the others. I haven't seen them since we arrived, they all went inside and I stayed here with you." Scully thanked her mother with a smile, and was soon inside. ----------------------------------------------------------- Scully's smile of anticipation morphed into a horrified "o" as she heard familiar screaming coming from down the hallway. Two familiar screams. Her family all sat outside, the looks on their faces unmistakable. "What's going on?" They all looked at her with sympathy, and Tara tried her best to keep Michael quiet. The screaming from the next room was just igniting his own. She turned to her mother who could only looked as shocked as herself. She looked to Bill and Charlie. Bill was standing there, his hands in his pockets, looking as sympathetic as God would allow him. Charles was behind him, pacing, his hand rubbing his neck. He looked very nervous; the screaming didn't help any of them. Scully slowly walked over to the doors, away from her mother and the rest of her family. The doors were obviously blocking most of the sound, for when she opened the door his screams tore even more fiercely at her heart. The doctor turned upon hearing the door open, and she was surprised that he could over the loud screams of her partner. "Whoa, miss, you can't be in here." "Please, I need to see him..." "Unless you're a doctor you can’t be in this area, I'm sorry." "But I am a doctor, I'm this man's doctor, and I'm also... family." It was true. She's the mother of his child. The reality suddenly hitting her so hard it just made the situation even stranger. The doctor looked a little embarrassed; then went over the monitors. "He's been screaming for the last twenty one hours, he's been driving us all insane." She slowly walked over to the monitors, watching him throw himself against the walls, screaming wild threats at the doctors. "We let one of our doctors go in to check on him and we had to admit him into the ER." Scully looked up at the doctor. "I want to see him." "No, absolutely not..." "Look, he's been through this before. I don't know how he was cured the first time, but... I'm not going to be denied access to him again. He's not a danger to me." "Listen, lady..." The doctor laughed without amusement, and then he saw her icy stare. "O-o-okay, I'll let you in. But I'm not taking responsibility for what happens." She nodded. "Agreed." Dr. Richardson cautiously unlocked the door, but did not open it. He turned and looked to her. "What?" She asked, hoping nothing was wrong. "Umm," he gulped, "Go ahead." Scully sighed in frustration and reached for the doorknob. Dr. Richardson grabbed her hand. "Wait a second." She turned to look at him with an angry glare that loudly screamed "Now what?" "I need to give you this." She took the rectangular device that resembled a remote control that he offered from his hand. "What is this for?" "It's a panic button... you know, just in case." Scully sighed again in frustration and opened the door. As she entered she suddenly realized that Mulder's screaming before her first attempt to enter, as if he knew she was... She nearly jumped out of her skin as he lunged towards her. She thought he was going to kill her, but instead he fiercely embraced her, pulling her high off the ground into his arms. "Scuh... Scuh... Scuh..." he panted, trying to say her name. They must have hit him pretty hard with the drugs, plus the fact that he's been screaming for nearly twenty one hours... twenty one hours... that was around the time Michael was born. How could he...? She wrapped her arms tightly around his neck, tears forcing their way down her cheeks. "Shh, it's okay, Mulder. You don't have to say anything." "I..." he put her back on her feet but he didn't let go. "I... hear... you." He slurred. Scully's eyes only flooded with more tears that dripped from her eyes. "I know." She tried not to think of the baby, she didn't want him to find out this way, but trying to block her thoughts meant she had to think of the thought she was blocking. Mulder slowly leaned back and looked her in the eye. "Here?" Scully knew what he meant. He knew about Michael, he wanted to know if he was here. She nodded, and she took his hand in hers. "How am I supposed to help you?" She asked, kissing his fingers. "How am I supposed to help you?" She was surprised when he lifted her into his arms then gently set her down on the floor and rested her against the padded wall. "Mulder?" "You-just... had a-baby." She smiled at his efforts to take care of her. In fact she almost laughed at him. He sensed her thoughts and smiled. "Krycek." Her eyes widened. "What?" "He c-c-can help m-me." It was taking him a great amount of effort to speak. "He knows w-why I'm s-s-still able to ruh... to ruh..." "To read minds?" She didn't want him to have to try too hard. He nodded. She looked down at her hands. "I don't know how to find him." Mulder smiled a smile that could only be interpreted as "I do." "O-Oregon." She didn't want to go back. If Mulder could truly read her mind he'd know. He looked deeply into her eyes. She almost felt like she could read his mind. He was thinking about Michael. He looked down at her stomach and placed his hand on her, as if she had the most fascinating stomach in the world. In a way she did. "Baby." She nodded. "Baby." He leaned over and they kissed briefly, and she wrapped her arms around his neck. "I want... to s-s-see him." He wasn't making a request; he was fueling her need to find Krycek so that he could get out of there. She let out a small laugh. They thought he'd be a danger to her. Mulder laughed back. "Never... h-h-hurt you, Schullee." She smiled sadly. "I know." ----------------------------------------------------------- Bill and Charlie had almost demanded that they go along with her. She was soon tired of arguing with them, and she booked four tickets to Oregon: one for Bill, one for Charlie, one for herself, and one for Skinner. She knew he'd kill her if he didn't let him go with her. Scully and Skinner were seated in 14A and 14B, Bill and Charlie sat across from them in the next row, each staring over at her from time to time. One minute she'd turn to her right and Charlie would be looking at her, then she'd look back and Bill would be staring in her direction, quickly whipping his head back down to his lap, where a magazine lay. "Scully?" She finally turned to Skinner, who she had barely spoken to aside from their brief discussion on the phone when she summed up their situation. "What was it?" Her brow furrowed in confusion. "Sir?" He leaned closer, his voice barely above a whisper, he seemed embarrassed to ask. "Is it a boy, or a girl?" Scully smiled. "A boy." She answered loudly. "Have you... have you named him?" She nodded. "Michael Zachary Mulder. Michael Mulder. I know it doesn't sound right, but it fits him in more ways than one." "What do you mean?" "Michael is Hebrew for "One who is like God." Zachary is Hebrew for "Remembered by God." He's so perfect... he has a very special place in God's eyes." Skinner smiled. He was happy for her, almost envious. Now he knew what it was like when she looked at another woman who had children. Something so precious yet so out of reach. He could still have children. He just needed someone to have children with. ----------------------------------------------------------- They had been in Bellefleur all day. They had searched high and low, and still no sign or trace of Krycek. Scully was forced to stay in her room by her brothers who still insisted that she hadn't quite recovered yet. Men know everything. Scully was reading a book that Bill had given her for Christmas, called "The Secret Adversary" by Agatha Christie. She was waiting for a call from Skinner in case he had found anything. She looked up from her book, sensing a presence in the room. Looking at the foot of the bed she gasped, as the little figure moved onto the bed beside her. "Emily?" If this was a dream, it wasn't like the others. Emily cuddled against her mother, lying her head on her breast. Speechless, she took the child in her arms; moving slowly so that she wouldn't stir her. "I miss you, Mommy." Tears welled in Scully's eyes as she held the precious three year old in her arms. "I miss you too." The little girl sat up and looked at her. "Did you have another baby?" She nodded. "Yes." "What's his name?" Since this was all a wonderful dream, she didn’t bother to ask how she knew the gender of the child. "Michael." "Michael." Emily repeated, just to know how it felt to say her brother's name. "Tell Michael 'hi.'" Scully covered her mouth, trying to hold back the tears. This was the best dream she's ever had... but it was also the worst. "Don't cry, Mommy." Silence lingered between the pair for the longest amount of time, until Emily spoke. "Bye." "Emily!" Scully's head snapped in the direction of the nightstand as the phone rang. She turned back to the foot of the bed. Emily was gone. ----------------------------------------------------------- It couldn't have been a dream. She hasn't woken up yet, and yet the phone still rings. She fumbled for the receiver. "Hello?" "Agent Scully, listen carefully." She immediately recognized the voice. It was Alex Krycek. "I want you to meet me in the forest. Don't bring anyone with you. If anyone follows you, he dies." "Who..." Before she could ask he hung up. Who dies? ----------------------------------------------------------- Bellefleur, Oregon 11:36 PM Scully arrived at the only spot in the forest she could imagine Krycek would be at. Damn idiot couldn't be specific. She turned when she heard his voice. "How's the baby?" There he was, standing four feet in front of her. If he wasn't there to help Mulder she would kill him. "How did you..." "I have my way of knowing things, Agent Scully. Did Mulder tell you how to find me?" "Yes. He said you were the only one who could understand why this was happening to him." "And he was right. I've been checking on the other abductees. They're all experiencing the same abnormal brain functions, although the aliens made one mistake." Krycek paused to let his words sink in. Scully winced at the word 'aliens.' She may be more open to the paranormal, but she wasn't going to go out on a limb and proclaim that she believed in aliens. "And what is that?" "They've tampered with them. They've made what's causing this in Mulder and all the others easier to cure. But the only problem is that the cure might kill them." "What do you mean? Mulder was cured before..." "No. The cigarette smoking man had it removed and placed inside of himself..." Scully made a face similar to that of a person who just witness someone regurgitate their lunch. "That's what was killing him." "What a minute... so if the genetic material was taken from Mulder... how is this happening again?" "That's the point, Agent Scully. The genetic material was removed from all the abductees prior to their latest abduction. Don't you see? They weren't cleaning up after themselves... they were trying to recreate what had been destroyed... but they failed. Without the original genetic material, they couldn't perfect it." "But you said that the smoking mad had it implanted into him..." "Yes, but he was dead before they could get to him." Scully's expression morphed from confusion to shock. "He's dead?" Krycek grinned and nodded. "You've been out of the loop for too long, Agent Scully." Scully was tiring of all this talk, and she was freezing. All she wanted was to help Mulder. "Look, you said you could help Mulder... prove it." Krycek pulled a vial out of his coat pocket, and extended it. "This is the only way you can save him." She reached to take it from his gloved hand, but he pulled back. "As I said, it may cure him, and it may kill him." Scully snatched it from his hand, glared at him, then turned to leave. "Are you sure that's all you came for?" She turned back to him. "What the hell are you talking about?" "Aren't you wondering about your son?" Her eyes widened. *If anyone follows you, he dies.* "What do you mean?" "Don't you know how special he is?" "What is that supposed to mean?" "Mulder is immune to the upcoming viral apocalypse... and so are you, because of that chip in your neck. Don't you see? Your child isn't just a miracle... he's the prophesy." Scully swallowed. "What prophesy?" "One man saving the world from colonization..." "Theresa Hoese and her husband were both abductees... how is it that my child is any different from theirs?" Krycek laughed. "You don't get it, do you? Why is it so surprising that you got pregnant, and not surprising that she did, Scully? Why is it that you had cancer, and she didn't? They do things differently, Scully. Do you see what I mean?" She glared at him and then in a deathly low voice, "Yeah." She turned and walked away, not looking back. ----------------------------------------------------------- 12:53 PM Scully slowly entered her hotel room. Her heart was beating like she had been running for miles. She sat down on the edge of her bed. *... immune to the upcoming viral apocalypse... Did you have another baby?... it could kill him... if anyone follows you, he dies... Dana? Dana?* Scully realized that the voice wasn't in her thoughts, but behind her hotel room door. She stood and made her way to the door, opening it to see Bill. "Hi." He walked past her, standing in the middle of the room, his back to her. "Bill? Is everything okay?" He turned around. "Where were you?" Scully looked down at the floor. *Is this carpet plush?* "You scared us to death... Mom called your room and then called me when you didn't answer. Charlie and I knocked on your door for ten minutes, and we had to have the janitor unlock your door to find out you weren't in there." "I took the car, Bill. I thought maybe you would have noticed that." "Don't change the subject, Dana. Where were you?" She hesitated. "I was taking a drive... is that okay with you?" "And you think you can just drive off without telling us?" "Yes. I do. I'm not a little girl anymore, Bill. Far from it. I can do anything I want without having to tell everyone about it." "You always make the worst decisions, Dana." "What is that supposed to mean?" She was tired of having to ask that question. "I wanted you to have children, I really did. I know what it feels like. But with that Mulder guy..." "Get out." "Dana, he's no good for you!" "I said, *get out.*" "I'm not leaving this room, Dana, not until we talk about this problem you have..." "Bill!" They both turned to see Charlie standing in the doorway. "Leave her alone." "Charlie, stay out of this." 'No. You are just making things worse. I want you to leave Dana alone. She has enough problems without having to listen to you lecture on something she's already decided about." "You know what, you're both crazy. Fine Dana. Live in hell. Ruin your life, your career..." "Bill..." Charlie warned. "You know that Mulder guy will never marry you, all he's done is cause you pain. Your disappearance, your cancer, Emily, when you were shot... it's all his fault, Dana, and you're blindly following him into more loss and more pain!" Scully slapped him fiercely across the face. "Bill... You may be my brother, and I may love you, but right now I couldn't have you further away." He did nothing to hide the hurt in his eyes. He had gone a little far, but all he was trying to do was protect her, to show her that Mulder was the cause of all her problems... "Please leave..." She pleaded, trying not to cry. He'd just ramble on about she hasn't been the same since Mulder had come into her life. Now it seemed tempting. She could tell him she was glad. Bill turned, but stopped in the doorway. "We're leaving tomorrow, Dana." He walked down the sidewalk to his own room. Scully sat down on the bed and her other brother followed her. "Are you okay, Dana? Where did you go?" She covered her face in her hands. "I went driving." She said, a little annoyed. "You sure you're okay?" "Yeah, I just want to go home." "Uhh... Skinner called. He said that they still haven't found anything.' Scully smiled. "Tell him to pack up and go home." "You're smiling right now, Dana. It's scaring me." "I'm not happy, Charlie. And I should be. Michael is a miracle that I could only have dreamed of..." "But Mulder's in the hospital... and?" "There's not much more to say than that. He should have been here, Charlie." She began to cry. "He should have been there when his child was born. He should have been there when I found out I was pregnant. He should have been with me... but they took him from me." He took her in his arms. "C'mon Dana, everything's going to be alright. You said that this happened to him before, right? Well he got better then, he'll get better now." Scully let out a small laugh. "God, Charlie. You're just like Mom." "Don't say that..." He said with disgust. Scully allowed herself to really laugh for the first time in days. "Thank you, Charlie.' "For what?" "For being my brother." ----------------------------------------------------------- Georgetown Memorial Hospital 16 hours later They still wouldn't let him out of that room. Scully had advised them not to give him anymore sedatives; she didn't want anything interacting with what she was about to give him. She breezed past the Dr. Richardson, who was still as afraid of her as the last time. She waited for him to unlock the door, and she didn't argue about taking the panic button. If what Krycek said was true she didn't want to be unprepared for the other outcome he had mentioned. Scully slowly walked through the door, jumping as it loudly clicked behind her. Mulder was out over in the far right corner, he didn't even notice her entrance. She quietly walked over to where he was lying, not wanting to wake him. She knelt beside him on the floor, gazing at his features. But she needed him to wake up now. She gently cupped the side of his face, lifting his head up into her direction. He slowly opened his eyes, squinting at the light. He didn't say anything. She gathered that he couldn't. He sat up and immediately took her in his arms. She closed her eyes and exhaled slowly. She couldn't wait until they could be in each other's arms without having to worry about abductions. She had to stop now, though. She needed to give him the vaccine, or whatever you call it. Mulder leaned back, and nodded. She also couldn't wait to have her mind to herself. He smiled at that. She pulled the vial out and poked the needle through, using the directions Krycek had scribbled on the paper attached to the vial. He couldn't print neatly, either. She hesitated, looking into his eyes before she brushed the hair away from his temple, closing her eyes after jabbing the needle into the precise spot. She leaned back, and saw that Mulder was in pain. "Mulder? Are you okay?" He didn't look at her; he was still wincing in pain. He grabbed her shoulders and squeezed hard, causing her to wince in pain. "Mulder... you're hurting me." Mulder didn't hear her. He fell on top of her on the floor, and he started convulsing. Her eyes went wide and she hit the panic button. Worst case scenario come true. "Mulder, Mulder..." She cooed, sitting up, resting him in her lap. Her head snapped up as she heard the door open and three doctors charged inside. "Mulder... hang on." ----------------------------------------------------------- Scully held Michael in her arms as she waited for the doctors to tell her how Mulder was doing. She had regretted having to leave him behind, she was almost afraid to. But now she was here with him, and she allowed herself a rare smile as he made sleepy baby sounds in her arms. Her smile was replaced by a look of hope and fear as Dr. Parker, Mulder's doctor, and Dr. Richardson came out of the room. "Ms. Scully, he's coming in and out of consciousness, but..." The doctors exchanged glances and Scully caught this. "What?" Dr. Richardson finally spoke. "His brain abnormalities, they're not showing up on the chart. Now, we don't know if he was suddenly cured, which is impossible, or if our equipment needs to be checked but... as impossible as it would be, Ms. Scully, it appears to be that he's cured." Scully sighed in relief. "Then what's wrong with him?" "His body is having a reaction to a high dose of Phenytoin, but he should soon recover." Scully closed her eyes. *Dammit, Krycek.* "When can I see him?" "Now, if you want to." ----------------------------------------------------------- She carried Michael with her into the waiting room, where her family nervously waited. She told them that he was doing fine, and it wasn't too far from the truth. She felt really bad letting her mother take Michael, but she needed to see Mulder right now. She sat down beside him and gazed at his beautiful face. She reached over and brushed his cheek with the back of her hand. Tears formed in her eyes, and she turned when she heard footsteps at the door. "Dana?" Bill called, feeling a great amount of concern. She turned back to Mulder, ignoring him. Bill exhaled in frustration. "Dana, I know how much you care for him... I just feel that ever since this..." "You feel that everything that happens to me is Mulder's fault?" Bill slowly nodded. "Yeah I do, Dana." She kept her eyes on Mulder, unwavering. "What about everything that happens to him? Is it all my fault?" "No, no. That's not what I'm saying. There's no way you can control what's happening to him. "Then how can he control what's happening to me?" She turned to him and looked him in the eye. He tried to comment on that, but stopped. He was getting no where with this. And she was right, it wasn't all his fault. "If it isn't his fault... then whose is it?" HE asked, truly wanting to know. "Why does someone always have to be at fault?" She responded, turning back to Mulder. "Why can't things just happen?" The tears flowed, falling gently onto her shirt. Bill walked over and stood beside her, laying a hand on her shoulder. She turned up to him. "I'm sorry, Dana. I truly am." He took her in his arms, letting her cry onto his shoulder. He looked up at Mulder, whose eyes were still closed. ----------------------------------------------------------- December 31, 2000 11:53 PM Dr. Richardson left the waiting room. Scully sat there smiling uncontrollably. She turned to her mother, who smiled back. Bill smiled at her, and Charlie winked in her direction. "Would you like me to hold Michael for you?" Tara offered, knowing that she would want to go see Mulder. "No, no thank you. I think it's finally time he met his son." Scully slowly walked into Mulder's room. He was sleeping peacefully, and she tried not to wake him as she sat down beside his bed. She was about to speak, but decided against it. Instead, she gently placed Michael beside him on the pillow. Michael began to fuss, his little arms twitching in the air. Mulder's eyes slowly began to open. His faced showed some confusion, not knowing what this was that was in his bed with him, until he turned... he was no longer confused. He looked up at Scully, who smiled. "Mulder." She said simply, needing only to say his name. He weakly reached over and touched his child's small hand, groggily gazing in wonder at this tiny miracle beside him. "Happy New Year." She said, leaning over and kissing him. "Happy New Year." He repeated hoarsely, realizing her double meaning. Not only was it a new year, but it was a new start, for both of them. ----------------------------------------------------------- YES! I finished it! I know it's short, but I was having a difficult time trying to find out what was going to happen. Then I thought, "Duh!" This happens during the holidays! That helped me finish this baby up, if you'll excuse the pun. Well, before I do anything, I'd like to thank Prairie Lily, who always makes it easier to write these things =) And I'd like to thank all of you who sent the wonderful feedback that let me know that I wasn't writing this for nothing! =) Tell me what you think!