"Departed" - Distance V AUTHOR: Kathy EMAIL ADDRESS: SADanaMldr@aol.com ARCHIVE: Anywhere, please keep my name and address attached and let me know where. SPOILER WARNING: Other fics in the series RATING: PG-13 language CLASSIFICATION: MSR/Angst SUMMARY: None DISCLAIMER: Fox Mulder, Dana Scully, Margret Scully and Diana Fowley belong to CHRIS CARTER, TEN THIRTEEN PRODUCTIONS, and FOX TELEVISION... His large hand gently clutched her smaller, softer and much frailer one. They'd told him that she had awakened but was very groggy and tired. So, by the time he made it to her room she'd fallen asleep. As long as she was getting better, he didn't care. He was content just to sit with her and watch her until she was ready to face the world again. Mulder's eyes slowly began to drift closed. The intensity of the day had drained most of his energy. All his body wanted to do was to retreat into the sheltered cocoon of a deep sleep. He unconsciously dropped his head to the mattress, and snuggled his cheek into Scully's hand. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ GEORGETOWN MEMORIAL parking lot Margaret Scully had gone home as soon as she heard her daughter was out of the woods, but wouldn't be allowed visitors for a long while. Unable to stand waiting around her house, she had eaten a hasty meal, then quickly returned. Now she walked briskly back through the well lit parking lot, clutching her small brown leather hand bag. A tall brunette brushed her shoulder roughly on the way out of the main door. "Excuse me, Ma'am." Maggie eyed the woman suspiciously as she made her way into the parking lot. She didn't know why but she had a very strange feeling about her. Ignoring this seemingly irrational impulse she continued on to find her daughter. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ "Mulder promise me you won't do anything stupid." "Who me?" "Mulder..." He studied her solemnly, the days events passing through his mind. A rekindled flare of anger passed through him as he thought of what might have happened... and just who was responsible for it. Leaning forward he softly pressed his lips to her forehead and whispered... "I'm sorry Scully, but I can't make that promise." Her protest was interrupted by the door squeaking open. "Dana?" "Hi Mom." ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 3 Days Later "Okay, let's get you all settled in." "Mulder, I told you already I feel just fine. I really don't feel like going right to bed." "Please, just humor me." "Mulder..." "Fine then, the couch?" "Okay, I promise to sit on the couch while you wait on me hand and foot," she smirked. Chuckling, he looked at her, eyes dancing with happiness, "Thank you." ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Outside Fowley is plotting her next move. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 10 minutes later "Mulder?" Scully snuggled closer to the cushion under her cheek, while Mulder diligently waits for her tea to brew. "Yeah?" he called from the kitchen. "You really think that this was Diana, right?" Entering the room with a fresh cup of lemon tea, he sat down next to her. "Yeah, yeah I do." "Do you think she'll try something again?" "Probably." "Don't worry, I'll be here." "Who ever said I was worried?" "Oh I forgot, Superwoman doesn't need a body guard. Well, in that case I think I'll catch the next plane..." he joked, raising to his feet. "Sit your butt back right down here Mister." "I thought you said you could take care of yourself." "I can, but who ever said I wasn't in need of some good old fashioned TLC." She teased, bringing her lips to his. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ The Next Morning Scully woke up with a slight ache in her back, but nothing too serious. She was feeling so much better than she had the morning before leaving the hospital. Maybe it had to with the fact that she got to spend the night not only with Mulder in the room, but with his warm, strong body snuggled around her own. Peeling her eyes open to the dawn, she attempted to focus her sight. To her alarm, she found the spot next to hers empty. "Mulder?" She was met with silence, then strange rumbling coming from the next room. "Mulder?" At that moment she felt a terrible stirring in the pit of her stomach. She threw the covers off of her body and went out in to the hall calling once more, "Mulder!" "Scully! Don't come out here!" "Wha... why?!" "Just don't come out!!" Scully slowly stepped back into her room, then quickly grabbing her fire arm. Stopping to try the phone next to her bed before stepping into what she was sure to be a very dangerous situation.. "Damn!" she muttered... dead. And then she heard it... "Fox please!! You know I love you please let me.. Please just let me!" *FOWLEY!* She had no clue what she would be facing once she emerged from her bedroom hallway, but she had a feeling it wasn't going to be pretty. ~~~~~~~~ Margaret Scully emerged from the large white Volvo sedan, bearing comfort food for her recently hospital ridden daughter. The air smelled unusually sweet and the leaves from tall spruce danced in the slightly cooled breeze. Yet amongst all of this seemingly calm beauty, Margaret knew that something was not right. She shifted her gaze toward what she knew to be her daughter's living room window and then she heard it.... BANG!!...silence... Her heart shook.... BANG!!........ BANG BANG!!! Margaret felt the fresh sting of tears erupt in her eyes as her heart clutched painfully in her chest, the casserole dish she had been clutching crashing aimlessly to the pavement. Thrust into a fog of fear, imagining the worst, she croaked out her only daughter's name.. "Dana..." Frozen in the place, macaroni dabbling her shoes, she suddenly heard the faint approach of sirens, that expectantly became louder as the neared their final destination. Paramedics, then police, all rushing into the quaint little building. "Ma'am? Ma'am?" Someone had noticed her, she was yet to return the gesture. "Ma'am? Were you here when the shots went off?" Still no answer. "Ma'am?!" The officer snapped a little louder, finally jarring Mrs. Scully from her trancelike state. "What?" "Did you hear the shots?" She was silent for another moment. The young officer was beginning to get agitated at the lack of response he was getting. "Yes," she revealed in a low whisper. "Okay, Ma'am. Can you tell me what exactly you heard?" At that moment she saw a tall head of dark hair emerging from the building, following behind a large group of people surrounding what looked like a stretcher. "Fox?" she called in question, more to herself than for him to hear. *Oh, my God! Is that Dana?!* "FOX!!" Maggie yelled above the commotion, leaving the ignored officer behind, and began pushing her way through the crowd, yelling at anyone who tried to stop her. "Fox! Dana?!" She turned her attention to the now loaded paramedics unit. "Mrs. Scully?!" Mulder approached her and grasped her shoulder's tightly. "No... no... not again, please..." she repeated over and over. "Mrs. Scully, Mrs. Scully, please calm down. That wasn't..." And then she heard a small concerned voice hovering behind her..."Mom?" She turned her head swiftly at the sound of her daughter's voice, the feeling of her presence engulfing her with relief. "Oh, Dana... I thought...!" She pulled her into a tight hug. "I know, Mom. I know. I'm so sorry you had to go through that again. I'm so sorry." Margaret pulled back with renewed strength and got down to business. "So, what happened?" she asked sternly. Expecting as much information as they were free to give her. "Well, what we can tell you is that the woman who tried to kill Scully is no longer a threat. Thanx to my brave woman." "*YOUR* brave woman?" "Last time I checked I was my own woman, Mulder. Don't go getting all possessive on me now." "I can't help it... you drive me too it..." he teased stepping closer to her, staring intimately into her eyes. Scully returned his gaze lovingly and tipped up onto her toes planting a soft kiss on his mouth. Mulder all of sudden felt a renewed surge of love exploding in his chest, and returned the kiss passionately, forgetting where the two were standing and who they were standing in front of. Margaret laughed at the couple, advising, "Oh, get a room. Why don't you?" The pair separated immediately blushing at their lack of self control. Margaret just shook her head, knowing her daughter was in safe hands, gave her a kiss on the cheek. "Call me tomorrow, Dana, bright and early." "Yes, Mom." "Good." Maggie turned to her hopeful future son-in-law, and gestured for him to come closer, giving him a similar kiss to the one she'd given her daughter. "Take care of her for me," she whispered. "I will. Bye, Mrs. Scully." "Mom! I told you." "All right, Mom." And she was gone. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Georgetown Hilton "You know we could've just gone over my mother's house." "You don't want to be alone with me?" "I don't know if I can trust you," she teased. "You can't." "That's what I thought." "Come here." The two agents snuggled closer in to sweet kiss and a warm embrace. Breaking the kiss they each closed their eyes, happy to be together and alive. "So, when are we getting married?" Scully couldn't believe what she'd just heard. *Was that a joke or a proposal... I swear this man is.. ugh..* "Excuse me?" "I asked you when we were getting married." "Um...I... uh... When do *you* want to get married?" she asked looking up at him, now laying flat on her back. He lifted himself up onto one elbow, brushing a strand of fallen hair from her face, grinning madly. *In his own strange way Fox Mulder had just proposed to the love of his life, without even asking. And she had just told him yes, without even saying the words.* "How 'bout tomorrow?" "Tomorrow, Mulder?" "Okay, then the day after that?" "Well, what about your job, what about Texas?" "Screw it. I'm never leaving you again Scully. It hurts me far too much to be apart. And now..." his tone had gone from light, to serious, to painfully somber, in just the last few moments. "Oh, Mulder..." she reached up and caressed his cheek wiping a way the lone tear that fell from his eye with the pad of her thumb. "It's okay... we won't be apart. I couldn't stand it either." He smiled down at her once more, leaving her with the most passionate kiss she could imagine, before continuing in short breaths, "Now what?" "Now we figure out where we go from here. I think it best for us to talk to Skinner. There has to be some way we can get you back home and stay in the bureau. Maybe we can get you into the Virginia field office... or I can be transferred... Whatever... we'll work it out. They can't separate us once we are married." "I know," he sighed, turning over and to his back laying beside her. They sat in contemplation for a moment, before Mulder spoke, "Poor Diana." "What?!" Scully bolted upright. "How can you say that?" "No, I mean, she was so crazy, so sad, so pitiful, Scully. She actually thought that if you died then I would come to her. She actually thought that I could even look at another woman after having found you, and loving you." "I was so scared, Mulder. And you know I don't admit that on a regular basis. But, when I saw her... her hair died red, and cut short like mine. Wearing an identical robe to the one I had on that night... how did she know... she ... she must have been watching us all of that time... When I saw her with the gun trained on you I had to take that chance. It was the only one I had. I just knew she was either going kill you or you were going to have to kill her, but I couldn't take that chance that you might not be the one to make it. I don't know how she didn't hear or see me as I crawled onto the floor from the hallway. I mean, I just knew that she would hear me. That she might've killed either one of us. But I knew it was our best chance. Then I got her in the leg.." Scully began reciting the details once more... attempting to clear it from her mind. "And she shot at me... she missed, Mulder. I thought... well anyway. Then I got her.. I got the bitch.. I I had to do it... I shot her twice more just to make sure... Oh Mulder I'm so sorry..." "What? You have nothing to be sorry for." "I do. I enjoyed it, Mulder. I hated her so much. For one split second I actually enjoyed killing someone. Doesn't that make me some kind of monster?" "No, baby, no. It was perfectly natural to feel those things. Believe me I wanted to blow her brains out knowing that she could've killed you... that she wanted to kill you." "I know, Mulder, but in the end you didn't kill her. It was me." "Scully, you had no choice. You know you didn't. It never would have stopped. Someone had to fall and that someone needed to be Diana." "You're right, I know," she let out a weary breath. "Let's get some rest, okay?" "Okay." Fitting her back into the curve of his stomach and legs, he leaned over and kissed her cheek softly. "Goodnight, Mrs. Mulder." Her initially drooping eyes, sprang open momentarily at the sound of his words. After a short moment, she replied softly, "I think I like the sound of that." "Sweet dreams." "You too." And long happy life, not without hardship, but forever graced with love and fulfillment was theirs... distance departed. The End of series!