CHANGES OF THE HEART (1/3)

by Missy

(missy@lexicon.net)

AUTHOR NOTES: This story is in answer to Char's Challenge #4 for completing an X-file using only quotations from the episodes. Not an easy task I tell you. Kudos to those who have already undertaken the challenge and succeeded.

This story was first posted on the Mysterious and Suspicious list in answer to the challenge mentioned above issued by our illustrious leader, Char Hall.

After being alone in my office when an earthquake struck, I had the idea of how to accomplish this and this is the result. While it is not an X-file (sorry Char, couldn't quite manage that one!) it is a friendship piece attempting to mend the rift we have seen between Mulder & Scully during the third season and bring them full circle around to a close partnership. I hope I have managed to accomplish this.

At the end of each part, you will find a synopsis of quotes used. They do actually *all* exist. Many thanks to Carrie Lane who took the plunge and allowed me to borrow her video of Beyond the Sea so that I could use some of the quotes.

Well, everybody enjoy this little journey and please e-mail any comments to me at my new address as above.

DISCLAIMER: The X-files characters of Mulder & Scully and all the quotations contained herein all belong to the infamous Chris Carter and 10-13 Productions. They are used totally without permission but with loving care and respect. Any reproductions must have my name and e-mail addresss attached and are not to be used for profit. Okay, I nearly forgot the furry animal. I understand that Fox Broadcasting Corp. has some sort of ownership in the above as well.

U.S. Highway 29

VIRGINIA

11.21 p.m.

Scully looked out the rain speckled window of the silver Toyota Camry at the blackening sky ahead. With Mulder at the helm, the car sped its way back to Washington D.C., staccato paced fingers of rain evenly beating out its insistent rhythm on the glass.

Stony edged silence gripped the car. The air was electric and it would only take a tiny spark to once again flare the emotions. It had been one hell of a day with Mulder sending the two of them scampering off to Schuyler on the information supplied by another of his unnamed sources, only his hunches to help them along. Granted, those hunches usually panned out but his theory for this case was his most extraordinary jump in logic yet. To top it all off, the lack of funds had meant that their

investigation began with a three hour drive before they even had a chance to look any further into the case.

Admittedly, Mulder had been sensitive to Scully's displeasure of the early morning drive providing a thermos of coffee and some homemade raisin bread for breakfast along the way. Knowing he had gone out of his way to make her comfortable for the long ride ahead acquiesced her to the situation and more amenable to the investigation ahead.

The information provided did not congeal with the findings at the site where they had been directed.

Mulder thought the place had been sanitised but Scully could find no evidence of anything having been there.

A war of words between the two had left them in the silence they had both unanimously adopted. This had been the situation for several months now that they could not have a lively discussion without a flare of tempers arising with it. Working for nearly four years together would put a strain on any partnership however it was only in recent times -- actually, ever since the murder of a member of each of their families -- that they could not have that telepathic knowledge which ran between them. They were each blocking their instincts to care for their own emotional state separate from each other.

Now as they drove, Mulder concentrated intensely on his driving whilst Scully watched the landscape fly by although in the enshrouding darkness, it was harder to depict. They were both trying to ignore the other yet all the time, the words spoken between them made a rift in their hearts both wishing that they had phrased their beliefs differently. Every now and again, they would steal glances at each other trying to gauge whether they should say something, anything..........

Mulder gave up his introspection with one look at the ebony darkness ahead coupled with the sudden surge in the rain, rapidly changing to small hailstones crackling their tune on the windscreen. Taking in the increasing difficulty to maintain his track on the road as well as the time, Mulder turned off the main highway following the large yellow sign marking the township of Avenel.

Within minutes they came across the main street. In fact, it was the only street for the town lined with bluestone buildings reflecting another era. Scully, still absorbed in her own thinking, suddenly became aware of Mulder pulling the car up outside the Hotel cum Motel cum Pub. Before she had a chance to open her mouth, Mulder had jumped out of the car, a gust of wind and pellets of hail finding their way around his body into the car before racing off towards the Hotel.

Set off at a ninety degree angle from the Hotel were a small string of four modern timber motel rooms. Sure enough, Mulder returned slamming his door against the torrential rain dangling a key in her face.

"Thanks Mulder" she said quietly a quick smile of appreciation flittering across her face as she watched her hands in her lap. After the day they had experienced, she could do without the extra two hours travel they still had ahead of them.

Driving the car around in front of their rooms, he flicked the lever to open the trunk, both of them diving out into the cold wet evening grabbing their bags without any thought or discussion. Running to their rooms, both now wet, they opened the doors quickly and slipped in closing it firming against the raging storm.

******

Mulder dropped his bags on the floor beside the double bed going to the bathroom for a towel. Vigorously rubbing his head, he opened his bag to search for some dry clothes. His eyes then focused on the small bag which he had also dropped. It was not his, it was Scully's. It was then that he once again dwelled on their afternoon's efforts. He could not leave this friendship in the tatters it was currently in. They may have different opinions on the existence of extraterrestrial life but that did not need to affect their friendship. Friends can have different opinions because they have the upmost respect and care for one another. Picking up her bag, he hesitated a moment at the connecting door before reaching for the door handle, pre-playing in his mind the various ways he would begin the conversation.

Suddenly, he was no longer thinking at all, rather he was seeing stars as the door came open with a quick force catching him full in his face. A quick shake to clear his head and a smart smile greeted the apologetic look on Scully's face.

"Come on in and lock the door" he managed to muffle from beneath his hand massaging the now tender jaw.

"I think you knocked out a filling."

"It wasn't an exercise in subtlety Mulder" Scully replied with a small grin. Noting the sorrowful expression coming over his face and the hurt look in his eyes, she quickly changed tack. "I'm sorry Mulder."

A wicked grin came across his face. "Don't worry, it was only a matter of time. I'm surprised I lasted this long."

There were many times when he tested his partner's patience and it had been stretched to its limits that afternoon. Probably the door in his face was what was needed to calm the waters just that bit so they could have a decent discussion without blood flying to the walls. If she had been any less the controlled agent she was, he would have landed on his back a long time ago. This is what he admired about her, her willingness to examine his theories. It was only when there was nothing to base their investigations on, only his information supplied by his unnamed sources, that things became steamy.

Mulder flopped down on the bed in the hope of stopping the room from moving quite as much as it was but to his dismay, the bed sloshed back and forth. "Do you have any dramamine on you 'cause these things make me seasick."

He slowly sat up and Scully sat down beside him, her finger gently probing the area where the door had caught him, her eyes intently focused on the work at hand.

"Why are you here Scully?" Mulder was hoping that she had been coming into his room for the same reason as he had been heading to hers.

She finished her examination of his head, taking her time to unobtrusively assimilate her thoughts so that a cohesive discussion could take place between them without World War 3 breaking out. She dropped her hands from his head, letting them fall gracefully in her lap, a slight rubbing back and forth of her forefinger against her thumbnail being the only sign of her nervousness. "Mulder, I think we're wasting our time here."

"I don't think he'd call if there wasn't something there, something I'm supposed to see. Something he wants me to see." Mulder's eyes connected with hers, imploring her to understand.

Scully stood up breaking the connection between them, paced the floor slowly searching for the right words to convey her feelings . She needed to think scientifically, theoretically not with emotions. Emotions only led to confusion of the issues at stake but yet emotions also would yield a renewal of that close partnership and friendship they had once had. Putting her words together carefully, she came back to sit beside Mulder.

"We're here on half a hunch, after a cryptic phone call, chasing down a clue that's based on speculation."

A sideways glance at his partner confirmed that she was not berating him, just asking him to stand back and look on the investigation with new eyes, a new perspective. Not with the impulsiveness which sometimes drove him blindly.

"Because I know what I saw Scully. There weren't railway tracks anywhere near that site. So how can it be a derailed container." Mulder replied with a gentle firmness.

"What exactly are you hoping to find?"

"I think this area is being subjected to a controlled experiment."

Scully cocked an eyebrow. "I'm sorry Mulder. I'm seeing the pieces but not the connections."

"If coincidences are just coincidences then why do they seem so contrived?"

Thinking about the truth of his words in some circumstances while also knowing his indelible taste for the fantastic, she knew she had to question his beliefs. "Mulder, maybe you're just seeing what you want to see."

A quick smile flittered across his face before replying, "Look Scully, I know it's not your inclination but did you ever look up into the night sky and not only think that something was up there but that it was looking down on you at the exact same moment just as curious about you as you are about it?"

Scully almost broke out with a laugh at that one but resisted with only a broad smile. Studious Dana Scully contemplating extraterrestrial life watching her. Not likely, even as a youngster. "Let's just forget for a moment that there's not scientific theory to support it."

"Scully, after all you've seen, after all you've told me you've seen, all the medical files, the beings moving past you, the implant in your neck. Why do you still refuse to believe?"

The discussion to now had been kept separate from their own experiences just the investigation. This was an area Dana Scully avoided, mainly wanting to being able to retain her sanity. Knowing that someone had performed tests on you over a three month period and not having any memory of it was frightening. Admittedly, she did have spasmodic flashbacks but that was all they were. After having the regression hypnotherapy, who knows how twisted those memories may be now. Scully responded with the one thing she could be certain of -- science.

"Mulder, the only thing I think is more fortuitous than the emergence of life on this planet is that through purely random laws of biological evolution, an intelligence as complex as ours ever emanated. The very idea of intelligent alien life is not only astronomically improbable but at its basic level anti-Darwinian."

Mulder had to admit that his psychology skills did not work so brilliantly on Dana Scully. Probably for the same reason that a psychologist would never treat a member of their own family. Emotional attachments always meant that you could not detach yourself plus the added fact that he was dealing with a remarkably intelligent woman.

"Everything you've said is correct. You put such faith in your science Scully but the things I have seen, science provides no place to start. I'm determined to follow a lead that may result in the proof of the existence of extraterrestrial biological entities."

"Listen to yourself. Mulder, it's science fiction."

"Well what would you have said twenty years ago about gene splicing, DNA fingerprinting, cloning, artificial intelligence......"

Granted, she had to give him that one. Science was an ever changing world, there would always be new discoveries, changing technology but that did not mean that extraterrestrial life exists. Anyway, most of their discoveries had a two-fold answer, or lack of answer, for that matter.

Scully stood up in front of Mulder, pressing her hand over his clasped over his knees.

"Don't you see Mulder? You're doing their work for them. You're chasing aliens that aren't there. Helping them create a story to cover the shameful truth. And what they can't cover, they apologise for. Apology has become policy."

He looked up into her soft face, a few strands of wet red hair trailing aimlessly across her forehead.

"That what can I say? How can I disprove lies stamped with an official seal. You deny all the things I've seen, all the things I've discovered but not for much longer because too many others know what's happening out there. And no one, no Government agency has jurisdiction over the truth." Although quietly spoken, his words were determined for success.

As soon as the words left Mulder's mouth, he knew he had said the wrong thing. How could he have accused his partner of denying the things he discovered. In all their time together, she had always been faithful to his cause even if she didn't believe the things he did. Scully had taken a couple of steps back from him as he uttered the fateful words and the saddened look on his partner's face said it all. Her response only confirmed it.

"I'm not going to ask you if you said what I think you just said because I know what you just said."

Rising to his fully lanky length, he tipped Scully's face upwards so that she would look at him eye to eye. "I remembered your birthday this year, didn't I Scully?"

There was no way Scully could remain immune to that small smile expanding across his face asking for forgiveness. A fractured glimmer of a smile acknowledged the apology.

"Okay Scully. So we disagree. It isn't the first time and it won't be the last."

"The truth is out there Mulder but so are lies." she added quietly, the soft words having more impact than if they had been shouted.

Whatever Mulder was going to respond with was abruptly cut off as a deep rumbling filled the rooms, shaking the furniture violently. Scully and Mulder looked at each other in confusion, it wasn't an explosion of any sort causing this continuous rumble. As comprehension slowly dawned on them both, large pieces of ceiling succumbed to the forces it was being subjected to.

The instincts of the two FBI agents kicked in, looking for any where they could find protection from the damage being caused by the catastrophic movement in the ground beneath their feet. As they scrambled their way towards the small table lodged against a wall on the far side of the room, roof beams and walls came tumbling towards them.

"Mulder/Scully" Their voices rang out for each other as they were caught in the hail storm of falling debris.

End part 1.

SYNOPSIS OF QUOTES:

Anasazi, Fallen Angel, Anasazi, Erlenmeyer Flask/Fallen Angel, Squeeze, Anasazi, Erlenmeyer Flask, Erlenmeyer Flask, Erlenmeyer Flask, Fallen Angel, Erlenmeyer Flask, Blood, Erlenmeyer Flask, Clyde Bruckman, Grotesque, War of the Copraphages, Soft Light, Nisei, War of the Copraphages, E.B.E., Young at Heart, Young at Heart, Nisei, E.B.E., War of the Copraphages, The List, Conduit, Erlenmeyer Flask, Paperclip

CHANGES OF THE HEART (2/3)

by Missy

(missy@lexicon.net)

For disclaimer see Part 1

A disturbing quietness hung over the room now a chaotic mess of wooden beams, glass, plasterwork and former bedroom furniture. Mulder's eyes fluttered before gradually opening, hazily taking in the war of drums being beaten out within his head.

"Guess I'm not dead" he muttered to himself as he gingerly fingered the wide sticky gash along his forehead. Blood had congealed in a stream down the side of his face and his probing procured a small trickle to follow the course previously established. As the haziness of his eyes improved although he really couldn't tell much in this darkness, so did the clarity of his mind.

"Scully" he called out hoarsely, his throat thickened by residual dust penetrating the air. "Scully, where are you?" His voice gained in strength and he struggled to clear the particles of ceiling and wall plaster covering his body only to find himself firmly pinned at his ankle by a roofing beam. Madly scraping at the wooden beam, he skinned fingers and knuckles alike.

"Mulder, stop." The strained voice of his partner rang out to him stilling his actions at once.

He twisted his body as far as he could around to face where her voice was coming from, ignoring the stabbing pain radiating through his ankle. Eyes still unable to penetrate the darkness, he dug through his pockets for his car keys. It was not so much the car keys he was after as the small maglite attached to it.

Shining the beam towards her, he found her prone form.

She lay on her back, her face totally unscathed from injury although covered in a light dusting of chalky white plaster, eyes glistened brightly from her pale white face. Mulder heaved a sigh of relief to hear her voice until his eyes continued down to find her predicament.

A deep gash down her right arm had been eagerly pouring out dark red blood only just now showing signs of coagulating. Mulder thought to himself. Scully had at least taught him the difference in the way the blood would exit a wound, which held a definite danger if it was the second variety. It was the beam crushing the wardrobe firmly across her mid region that held his greatest fear.

"How are you feeling?" Mulder asked gently.

"I'm okay" Scully replied.

"Scully...." Mulder said with a parental reprimand sounding through his quiet tone.

"Am I being accused of lying?" Scully asked innocently but didn't manage to carry it off as she took in a sharp breath.

"Spleen or pancreas?" Mulder asked picking out names of internal parts of the body that came to his mind on the spur of the moment which belonged to the mid region of the body. Even though he worked with a pathologist, he avoided getting to close when it came to internal examinations.

"Stomach actually" Scully replied automatically, grimacing as she realised that Mulder had caught her out.

Mulder thought in satisfaction to gaining an honest response.

"What are you doing?" Scully asked, her forehead crinkling.

There was no response to her query but just a lot of noise and grunting. Scully watched, not even bothering to waste the small reserves of energy she had, as her partner put all his strength into lifting the heavy beam from his leg. She was sure it was through sheer will and persistence that he managed to manoeuvre the beam all of one inch -- just enough to release his ankle from the wooden casing.

Ignoring the fire of pain shooting up his leg, Mulder crawled his way through the rubble over to his partner and friend. He curled his long body beside Scully, pushing aside the lock of bright auburn hair which constantly fell across her face. She gave him a quick smile, her hand coming up to meet his. He captured it and gave a small squeeze of support.

"I need something to put my back up against." Scully commented finding comfort and security in having Mulder so close.

Pulling himself closer to her, he supported her head in his lap as he sat hunched in the restricted area he had to move in. Brushing aside more strands of hair from her face, he took in the room, or what was left of it, and the solid mass settled on Scully.

"I think with a crowbar and a small nuclear device, I might be able to get through one of these things."

"Oh, that narrows down the field" she replied.

"Maybe everything is not as black and white as it appears to be."

Caught off guard by his comment, she racked her brains for what he could be thinking. "After all we've just been through, after all we've just seen, I hope you're not thinking this is anything to do with Government conspiracies or UFOs."

He gave no reply, only a comical grin plastered across his face.

"Oh, tell me you're not serious."

"That's why I'm in the basement Scully." carrying on his teasing, enjoying the way he used to tantalise her scientific knowledge with teasing taunts.

"It's probably to do with your reputation."

"I have a reputation?"

The innocent look on his face had Scully choking for breath. Concern quickly marred his face and he ran his hand gently up and down her back until she managed to breath evenly again.

"Your in the basement because they're afraid of you. Of your relentlessness and because they know they could drop you in the middle of the desert and tell you the truth is out there and you would ask for a shovel. Well, maybe not a shovel, maybe a backhoe."

He shook his head once. Scully's assessment of him was quite accurate. Sometimes he just forgot how intuitive she was.

"This doesn't look like the work of aliens." He passed the flashlight once again over the room. "Looks like housekeeping hasn't been here yet."

"We can't take you anywhere."

All of a sudden, his attention was caught by a small shape.

"Scully, look at this."

Twisting her head as far as she could from her pinned down position, she squinted in the direction of the thin shaft of light. Her eyes flickered back and forth straining to see what had gained her partner's attention. Finally, she fastened on the small black form, sitting silently, its yellow eyes focused firmly on the two of them.

"What is that Mulder?"

"It's only a cat."

Gently placing Scully's head down, he removed his jacket and slipped the folded woollen fabric under the nape of her neck.

"Mulder, where are you going?"

Without answering, he crawled on hands and knees slowly towards the hollowed area where the cat sat. As he came within a couple of feet, the cat raised itself in defense before taking off into the darkness behind it.

Mulder put his hand in the hollowed area and found it went further than what he thought. "He's obviously got his own key to the place. There's air coming through here."

"Are you sure?"

"Either that or a poltergeist." he commented, the flashlight catching his face in eerie repose.

Scully gave him a withering look which lost its effectiveness in the pitch blackness of the devastated

room. "Seriously"

"Pretty damn sure. I'll take my chances." Mulder dropped himself flat on his stomach, the cold wet surface quickly penetrating through his thin shirt.

Using his hands and elbows, he dragged himself towards the small aperture just large enough for his to slip his way through to the unknown passageway ahead.

Light jiggling up and down in even motion with Mulder's slow progress, it revealed the same destruction to what he thought was the rest of his room if his memory served him correctly.

There was no light shining in the tunnel from outside at this stage although he noted that he had not gone far at all. The height was reducing all the time and within moments he finally had to stop when it collapsed to nothing.

Resigning himself to the fact that they would have to wait for someone to pull them out, he began crawling back to Scully. The torch light eerily caught various shapes, enlarging and distorting their true being, when one particular shape caught his eye. His overnight bag sitting unharmed and what looked like unhindered. He grabbed hold of the handle and gently gave a small tug making sure of its viability for movement. It slid easily to him, nothing hampering its progress.

Scully heard unusual sounds coming from the tunnel her partner had disappeared through. In the blackness encompassing her like a sheath, they seemed all the louder and problematic.

"Mulder, what is it? What do you see? Mulder can you tell me what s going on in there?" As she continuedquestioning, her voice took on a gradually higher pitch, agitation threading its way through the words dreading the possibility that something had happened to Mulder which was not unlikely given history.

"I'm here" Scully heard Mulder's muffled response being treated to a beam of light blinding her temporarily as he crawled back into their quarters. Hearing a morse code of long scrapes an staccato scabbling had her fascinated. Finally, being able to see once again, she was able to discern the cause of the sound. Mulder had located his overnight bag and was now furiously digging away in it.

"What are you doing?" she asked curiously.

"Nothing can prepare you for it. It's almost unimaginable."

With a flourish of his wrist, he produced a first aid kit from his bag, an indecipherable grin plastered across his face.

"Oh God. Oh, tell me you're not serious."

Indicating at her arm, he said solemnly "We've got some work to do here."

"I need a minute." Scully took some deep breaths. It truly was unimaginable. Here she was being confronted with allowing her partner, the constantly banged up one -- actually, her only one -- to perform first aid.

"Scully. It's alright." Gently he touched her forehead. She smiled back at him and gave a slight nod.

"C'mon Mulder, let's get this over with."

"Let me see that."

Moving down beside her wrist, he looked through the contents of the first aid kit then back at her wrist again his forehead furrowed in thought.

"You don t have a clue do you?" Shaking her head, she began telling him what to get out of the first aid kit to clean her wrist before bandaging it up. Watching work, she admired the careful attention he gave his task but had to laugh when it came to the butterfly clips.

"Having fun?" Mulder had worked out how to use and placed them side by side holding the wound

together. The jagged cut now being held together by ten butterfly clips. Ignoring her jibe, he continued wrapping a bandage to protect it from infection.

Packing up his first aid kit, he returned it to the bag and then located a couple of other items he thought would be of some use. Handing her a paper bag with a container in it, he shone the beam of light so that she could see what it was.

"If this is monkey pee, you're on your own." Trusting him, she took a sip and then a good drink before handing it back to him, murmuring "Root Beer."

Looking down at her, he asked. "How are you, Dana?"

"I don't know Mulder. I can't stop shaking."

Mulder held a hand to her head, feeling the cold clamminess of her skin. *This* was not a good sign. Rummaging further through the first aid kit, he found some dramamine and convinced her to take some.

"What exactly are you hoping to find?" Scully asked as she caught him continuing to search his bag.

"Hold on to your hat Scully because you're going to love this."

He held up his thermal undershirt and a couple of bulky sweaters for her to see. Mulder didn t know how he was going to convince her to lose her wet shirt and jacket.

End part 2

SYNOPSIS OF QUOTES:

Piper Maru, Anasazi/*, E.B.E., One Breath, Herrenvolk, Paperclip, Anasazi, Sleepless, Sleepless, Pusher, Paperclip, Paperclip, Revelations, Genderbender, E.B.E., Wetwired, Piper Maru, Squeeze, Squeeze, Piper Maru, Irresistible, Fallen Angel, Clyde Bruckman, Soft Light, Quagmire, Grotesque, Deep Throat, Grotesque, Anasazi, Shadows, Ghost in the Machine, Anasazi/731, Grotesque, One

Breath, Pusher, Irresistible, The Host/Quagmire, Irresistible, Irresistible, Irresistible, Fallen Angel,

Irresistible, Soft Light, Soft Light, Erlenmeyer Flask/Tooms, Beyond the Sea, E.B.E., Erlenmeyer Flask, Genderbender.

**********************************************************************

CHANGES OF THE HEART (3/3)

by Missy

(missy@lexicon.net)

For disclaimer see Part 1

"I think this time you're right Mulder."

He never imagined that she would agree so easily. "Thank you for your co-operation."

Scully attempted to help Mulder undo the buttons on her jacket but within a few minutes exhaustion took over. Mulder carefully undid the remaining ones on her shirt. Grabbing one of the sweaters, he laid open both the jacket and shirt which he intended to remove at the one time, covering her to keep her warm.

"You never saw this. It didn't happen, you tell anyone you re a dead man." Scully murmured the words with a sly grin flickering over her face as she put her hand up to his face. "I'm constantly amazed by you."

Embarrassed by her faith in him, he positioned himself behind Scully supporting her as they made a joint effort to raise her torse from the wet carpet. Not wanting to increase the pressure on her stomach, he eased her to the minimum amount needed to remove her jacket. As he was slowly manouvering her higher, he watched her face for any indication of pain. Alarm registered when

pain etched her face, her teeth gnawing on her lower lip preventing any sound escaping.

"Are you okay, Scully?"

Before she could answer with her usual response, he noticed for the first time the bottom of her shirt.

"What is that? Blood?"

Grimacing at his discovery, she had known all along that she was losing blood, although the extent was unknown. Relying on her assessment of her own condition, she had diagnosed that it was not good but she needn't tell Mulder that. "C'mon Mulder, let's get this over with."

"Then you're going to have to trust me."

She nodded "You're the only one I trust."

Together they worked to free her arms from the cold wet material. They had almost released her right arm when her shoulder spasmed, muscles knotting together tightly. Mulder hesitated, not wanting to put her through any more pain even though knowing it was essential to get her body temperature up.

"It's alright." she whispered.

Once he had her permission, he continued. It was not ong before he had her in his thermal undershirt and the sweaters dwarfing her tiny form.

"Better?"

Scully gave a small nod of ascent, eyes heavy.

"Maybe we should get some sleep."

"Sleep. I'm so tired, I can't sleep."

Mulder didn't believe her but didn't deny the words. Instead he began gently massaging the taunt muscles in her shoulder, stimulating the heat and blood circulation which would also help warm her. It was not long before her eyes fluttered closed. He watched her, fascinated s always by his diminutive yet almost omnipotent partner.

Again, he dwelt on their relationship. One that many would call that of lovers but yet it was even more special than that. Having a telepathic knowledge of each other's thoughts and motivations, enjoying the company of the other. Being almost two halves of a whole. They were unique in themselves, both possessing an intellect which was formidable to others. Yet together, they were a team working in tandem, each complimenting the other with those unique skills, making them invaluable to one another.

He recognised their lack of cohesion over the last few months. Knowing that he did not want to lose Dana Scully, he made a pact that he would ensure that their relationship would keep on the improve.

Much too his own surprise, it was not long before he too drifted to sleep only to be jolted out of his slumber by Scully.

"Stop it, stop it. Shut up. Nooooooo..."

The quiet fearful words scared him, reminding him of his own tortuous nightmares. He could not let her continue to replay the fear those dreams held.

"Dana...... Dana....." He gently stroked her face as he softly spoke to words by her ear wanting to end her nightmare gently.

"Mulder" Relief flooded her voice as the flickering images faded from her mind.

"Your Mum tells me you've been having nightmares."

Scully's eyes opened wide is shock that he knew of her nightmares, surprise that her mother's discovery only two months ago had been passed on without comment from either of them.

"Darkness covers a multitude of sins. Mulder, I don't remember anything." she paused, correcting herself. "It's like I don t remember but......."

"I have the same doubts you do." Mulder caught hold her hand, his fingers interlocking and playing gently against hers. "Is it a vision or a sensation?"

"I can't even begin to explain something like this."

"Have you ever tried deep regression hypnosis?"

"Yes I did. You didn't give me any choice. I never actually considered it myself before I started this job."

Thinking about her response, he was not surprised that she had not told him the way their friendship had been in more recent times. "I've seen too many things not to believe."

"I know that it has its therapeutic value but it has never been proved to enhance memory. In fact it actually worsens it since people in that state are prone to confabulation." she stated matter-of-factly, with her scientific mind in gear, it kept her emotional attachment to the nightmares and her abduction at bay.

"I know what you are doing Scully." Mulder admonished quietly.

Looking him eye to eye, she gave in to the truth. "Alright, I admit that it's not much of an explanation."

"Take your time." he said, watching her gather her thoughts together. He had seen her do this many times but in this instance it was all the harder it was not science but her own feelings she was being compelled to explain.

"You think you find a way to deal with these things. At med school you develop a clinical detachment to death. In your FBI training you are confronted with cases, the most violent and terrifying cases. You think you can look into the face of pure evil and they you find yourself paralysed by it."

Knowing that these fears stemmed mainly from her abduction, he wanted her to not feel compelled to chase the demons he chose but give her an avenue of escape.

"Now if being on the job makes you feel guilty or uncomfortable or uneasy, I think you should back away because if it's clouding your judgement, you're putting yourself in danger."

"I love this job."

"Do you know what you're saying Scully?" he asked gently.

She nodded, her lips taunt as she grimly answered his question. "I've heard the truth Mulder now what I want are the answers. I've seen things too. But there are answers to be found now. We have hope that there's a place to start. That's what I believe."

"Even if science can't explain them?"

"That tells me that not everything appears as it's meant to be."

Surprised at no response, he looked down to find her eyes closed. Leaning over her, he checked her pulse. He jumped when she murmured. "Could you repeat that last part again, I kind of faded out."

"Scully, are you okay?"

"Mulder, when they found me, after the doctors and even my family had given up, I experienced something that I never told you about. Even now it s hard to find the words but there is one thing I'm certain of, as certain as I am of this life, we have nothing to fear when it is over."

Mulder did not want Scully to give up on the hope that they would be rescued, it hadn't been that long. "I feel Scully, that you believe you are not ready to go and you have always had the strength of your beliefs."

Again, he watched as she slipped into unconsciousness. This time he would not allow himself to fall asleep but gently stoked her forehead and kept a vigil on her pulse.

Sounds of scraping and tearing penetrated their way through the building materials piled haphazardously on top of them.

"I think we are witness to a rescue mission." he told his partner. Receiving no response, he tapped the side of her face to bring her back to consciousness. "Scully?"

"Hmmm."

"You hear that."

This time he got no response and could not rouse her again. Calling out in response to the voices above, he demanded that they speed up the pace of their work, advising that they had a seriously injured woman down here. Finally an exit was formed, the dawn light blinding Mulder after the continual darkness experienced for the past hours.

"You guys do delicate work." he commented.

Paramedics ignored his wisecrack and immediately began their assessment of Scully. Within minutes several IV lines shunting fluids and blood snaked their way from her arms. This was one of the few times the paramedics could not get rid of him from holding his partners hand as there was no room to push him out of the way. But it took nearly an hour to remove them from the hell hole they had been encased in, rescue teams securing lose beams to ensure their safety.

Once outside, Mulder overlooked the catastrophic mess which was all that remained of the motel and was amazed that no one had been killed. They had been the only people unaccounted for following the earthquake. It was an act of God that had caused only the motel to collapse like a house of cards while the older section of town stood firmly exhibiting no evidence of the fate which had struck its neighbour.

Not reminiscing for long, he was helped into the helicopter to race his partner to the nearest medical

facility to treat her injuries.

*********

Mulder slouched in the chair beside Scully's bed, listening to the even beeping of the monitors surrounding her head, one leg stretched out to relieve the heavy weight which now encased his ankle. A doctor bustled his way in, picking up her chart from the base of the bed and went about checking her vital signs.

"How's she doing?" he asked anxiously snapping out of his half-slumber.

"She's still not out of the woods so to speak. She lost a lot of fluids. Two of three more hours of exposure and she might not have made it." he answered with the typical non-committal response most doctors give. He then completed his notations and left.

Dozing intermittently at her bedside, Mulder wanted to be there for when she regained consciousness. Normally the nursing staff would have tossed him out but his quick smile and sharp wit had earned himself a special place with them rather than their wrath.

Slight movement of Scully's hand within his own jarred Mulder from his sleep. Looking up from his hunched position, he found himself gazing into the clear blue eyes of Dana Scully.

"How are you feeling?"

She licked her dry and cracked lips before attempting to respond. Even so, her response was groggy and congested. "I'm okay Mulder."

Mulder went to get up from his chair to advise the nursing staff that Scully had finally regained consciousness at last. However, a hand on his arm stopped him.

"Mulder, I had the strength of your beliefs. I knew there was a reason to live."

THE END

SYNOPSIS OF QUOTES:

E.B.E., Genderbender, Jose Chung/Piper Maru, Herrenvolk, Blood, Fallen Angel, E.B.E., E.B.E., Oubliette, Tooms, Ice, Ice, Ice/Beyond the Sea, Lazarus, Herrenvolk, Conduit, Soft Light/Genderbender/One Breath, Little Green Men/Clyde Bruckman, Sleepless, Born Again,Anasazi/Jose Chung, Herrenvolk, Jose Chung, Soft Light, Conduit, Pilot, Irresistible, Beyond the Sea, Beyond the Sea, Red Museum, Paperclip, Revelations/Herrenvolk, E.B.E., Quagmire, Herrenvolk, Dod Kalm, One Breath, Conduit, Darkness Falls, Darkness Falls, One Breath, Herrenvolk, One Breath.