Aftermath II: The Blue Light
By D. Street <71022.1045@CompuServe.COM>


Okay to forward to a.t.x.c. and okay to archive.

Spoiler warning: Some references to the third season.

Rating:   NC-17

Classifications: S (Story), R (Romance) Skinner/Scully

Summary:  The following is a romance story between Skinner
          and Scully, wherein Skinner is injured and Mulder
          finds out about their relationship.

     I would appreciate any comments or criticism. Thank you.
Please e-mail to: 71022.1045@compuserve.com

     The characters and situations of the television program "The
X-Files" are the creations and property of Chris Carter, Fox
Broadcasting and Ten-Thirteen Productions, and have been used without
permission. No copyright infringement is intended and no profit will
be made.

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

The Blue Light
D. Street

     Assistant Director Walter Skinner sat behind his desk at FBI
headquarters, resisting the nearly uncontrollable urge to reach for
the bottle of aspirin in his desk drawer.
     Fox Mulder, one of his best, if most unpredictable agents, was
explaining why the report of their last case had included torture,
disfigurement and a winged serpent. He sighed. This whole report was
going to have to be redone before he sent it upstairs and he really
didn't want to work late tonight. And to make matters worse, Dana
Scully, Mulder's partner, sat placidly on the sofa, watching the
proceedings with more amusement than Skinner thought appropriate.
     "So what you're saying, Agent Mulder, is that a giant winged
snake has been terrorizing this city and taking sacrifices to uphold
some ancient voodoo custom." The Director cocked is head. "Is that
right?"
     Mulder considered. "Yes, sir. That's about it."
     Both agents jumped as Skinner's fists connected with his desktop.
     "God Dammit, Mulder! How the Hell am I supposed to tell my
superiors that? They'll have us all for lunch on Monday."
     Mulder looked slightly uncomfortable. Although he felt that over
the past months his situation with his superior had improved, he still
got antsy about these yelling sessions.  Skinner really needed to get
laid or something. Man, he was way too tense.
     The older man took a breath and tried to smile at his
agent. Scully kept her eyes in her lap, afraid of laughing at the
distraught AD.
     "Agent Mulder," he said quietly, "I want you to take this home
over the weekend and at least try to come up with a more plausible way
to present the facts of your last assignment."
     Mulder sighed and took the folder. "Yes, sir."
     "That will be all." Skinner sat down behind his desk again as the
two agents rose. He looked up. "Agent Scully, I'd like to speak with
you for a moment."
     "Yes, sir." She gave Mulder a smile and a nod. Her partner
reluctantly abandoned her to the lion and fled.
     When the door had closed behind him, Skinner touched the
intercom.
     "Yes, sir?"
     "Why don't you call it a week?" He told his assistant.
     "Thank you, sir. Have a good weekend."
     "Good night."
     Skinner rose from his chair and circled the desk, stopping in
front of Scully.
     "Agent Scully." A smile quirked at the corner of his mouth and he
pulled her to him. "Dana, I'm sorry. Why the hell did he hand in a
report like that?"
     "Because he wanted to get your goat, I think." Dana
laughed. "Mulder worries that you don't have enough excitement in your
life."
     The AD humphed. "Great."
     Skinner smoothed a palm along her back, gently kneading the taunt
muscles he found in her shoulders.
     "Why so tense?" he asked.
     Dana shook her head. "It's always stressful, wrapping up a case
and writing the report." She grinned up at him.  "Particularly when
you have a hard-ass for a boss."
     "Thank you." Skinner succumbed to the urge for painkillers and
went back to his desk, digging out the bottle of Excedrin(tm).
     "You take too much of that," Scully pointed out seriously.
     Skinner gave her a look but didn't comment as he washed three
tablets down with water. He took off his glasses and rubbed tired
eyes. God, he was glad it was Friday.
     He felt Scully's presence behind him as he replaced his glasses,
and smiled as strong fingers began to massage his sore shoulders and
neck.
     "You think I'm tense?" She asked in astonishment.  "Walter,
haven't you been working out? You're tied up in knots."
     "Of course I've been working out." The AD told her. "It's just
stress." He shrugged. "Nothing to worry about."
     "I'd like you to live long enough to retire."
     He sat back with a sigh, giving himself up to her backrub.
     "Yeah, well, tell that to your partner, will you?"  Since the two
had admitted an overwhelming physical attraction to one another two
months before and become lovers, they'd been stealing as many evenings
and weekends as possible to be together. Over the course of those
weeks, both had discovered that sex, while wonderful, was only part of
what they felt for one another. Skinner knew he was dangerously close
to falling in love with the beautiful agent and Scully had already
admitted her feelings to herself.
     "Have you checked this office for bugs lately?" She asked
suddenly.
     Skinner frowned. "This morning. Why?"
     "I just didn't want to get you called up in front of the OPC or
anything."
     "Why--?" he began, but the rest was cut off as Scully swiveled
the chair around and dropped lightly into his lap, her lips on his.
     Slowly his arms went around her and Walter let his mind drift on
the wave of desire that washed through him. God, had it really only
been since Tuesday that they'd last been together? It seemed like
months.
     Scully sat back, fingers unbuttoning the buttons of his white
shirt.
     "Scully," Walter's voice was low and laden with emotion.  "Is
Mulder waiting for you downstairs?"
     "Um," She hesitated, torn between telling him the truth and
continuing her present course. Walter really needed to loosen up or he
was going to have a heart attack, and Scully knew a great little
relaxer.
     "He is." Skinner took her silence for what it was and pushed her
off his lap. "Come on Agent Scully, back to the salt mines."
     "It's after six." She pouted.
     Skinner bent to lightly brush her lips with his own.  "I'll pick
you up at eight. We've got 8:30 reservations."  "Where?"
     "Andres'."
     Scully nodded. "Sounds good." She stood on tiptoes and kissed
him. "See you at eight."
     Skinner watched her leave his office, feeling better than he had
all week.
     "Walter," he told himself. "This is not good. You're not supposed
to be fraternizing with your subordinates." Then he thought of
Scully's lips on his and grinned. "Oh, to Hell with it."  

DANA SCULLY'S APARTMENT - 
THAT EVENING

     At 7:50 Dana looked up from the book she was reading at the
doorchime.
     "Coming!"
     She opened the door to find her lover in the hall, a single rose
in hand.
     "Walter, thank you." She held it to her nose as he followed her
into the apartment, nuzzling her neck.
     "You're certainly in a better mood." Dana commented with a smile.
     She put the rose in water and came back to find Skinner leaning
against the wall, watching her.
     "What?"
     "You're very beautiful," the AD told her. "That dress is lovely."
     Dana blushed. She wasn't used to compliments. She'd gone out the
night before and bought the simple, black silk dress, especially for
tonight.
     "Thanks."
     He watched for a long moment, gazes locked, and then pushed off
from the wall, closing the distance between them.
     Dana lifted her head as Skinner's arms enveloped her, one hand
tilting her chin for a kiss.
     Walter trailed his lips across her throat and Scully moaned as
the fire began to bathe her like sun-warmed water.
     When his mouth became more insistent against the sensitive area,
she tossed her head, hands on his chest to push him away. Smiling,
Skinner held her more tightly, mouth bathing her throat with its
chilling warmth.
     "Walter..." Scully swallowed, breath already coming fast.
"Please..."
     "Please what?" he whispered, fingers sliding the silken dress up
around her waist.
     She bent her head, cutting off his explorations, struggling to
reassemble her thoughts.
     "Not fair," Walter told her, pushing the black material over her
shoulders, dropping it to the floor.
     "Since when?" Tapered fingers gripped his shoulders.
     With a grin, Skinner circled her body with his arms, palms
against her warm back. Scully drew in a breath at the coolness of his
hands, then laid her head against his chest.
     Skinner felt her tremble slightly as he moved a hand up to cup
her breast. He felt good when they made love... it was always as
exciting and new as the first time. He knew it was enhanced, too, by
the dangerous nature of their liaisons, but he would have given
anything to openly date the beautiful agent.
     Gently he kneaded a breast, its soft warmth spreading through him
as his fingers found the rosy tip and gently squeezed. Scully gasped,
her lips opening to kiss the side of his neck as he bent over her,
teeth softly nipping as he teased the nipple erect, frustration
building until her fingers dug into his muscled arms. Up and down she
bathed his throat with her tongue, fingers massaging his sides. Her
fingers fumbled with the pearl buttons of his shirt. Still Skinner
toyed with the tender breast, plying, caressing, flicking the stiff
node with his finger until Scully thought she would scream with the
agony of it.
     "Walter!"
     "Hum?" he murmured, bending his head to capture her mouth, tongue
pushing past her lips to explore the velvety interior. But Dana pulled
away.
     "You either have to stop now or take off a lot of clothing." She
declared, shaking with the desire that coursed through her.
     "We don't have time," the AD said, not without regret. "I
shouldn't have started--"
     Dana reached up to pull his head down to her.
     "How much do you want to keep that reservation?"
     "Aren't you hungry?" he murmured, lips caressing the side of her
face, eyes closing as the feel of her played on his senses.
     "Depends."
     "On what?" His voice was ragged and both of them knew they
weren't going out tonight.
     Scully turned slightly, both hands on his chest, undoing the
buttons on his white shirt. She pushed it off his shoulders, her hands
smoothing across the broad chest, palming a nipple, fingers
luxuriating in the thick, curling hair. The heat from his body
pulsated, warming her, yet making her shiver with excitement.
     "Cold?" Skinner asked, wrapping his arms more tightly around her.
     "No," Scully whispered, forehead against his chest. "You drive me
mad."
     "That's the idea, isn't it?" he chuckled.
     She looked up into clear, dark eyes.
     "Let's go to bed."
     Without conscious thought, they went to the bedroom, undressing
each other, until Skinner gently lowered her onto the double bed.
     He gazed at her, lying naked before him, and felt a wave of
lightheadedness wash over him. Of all the women he'd known, none had
had the effect on him that Dana Scully did. He ran broad fingers
through her thick copper hair, letting it cascade over his hand.
     He covered her with his body, her flesh warm against his,
trailing light kisses along her jaw to her throat. His tongue played
in the hollow there, laving the sensitive skin until Scully
whimpered. Holding her on her back, Skinner edged his way down her
body, tongue trailing between her breasts, lips caressing her flat
stomach, teasing her toward the edge.
     Grasping her hips in his large hands, Skinner bathed her skin,
moving lower still until he heard Scully's sharp intake of
breath. Purposely he lowered his head, the scent of her sweet and
heady, and gently parted her thighs with one hand.  With the other, he
covered a breast, fingers caressing, stroking, while his tongue
entered her, searching for the most sensitive areas.
     Scully edged up, away from him in an effort to relieve the
maddening sensations that swirled like a kaleidoscope, upsetting her
perception. When he held her fast, she twisted away from him, rolling
onto her stomach, trying to catch her breath as the passion pounded in
her mind.
     In the next motion, Skinner pushed her down, into the bed, his
body covering hers, and renewed his assault. It seemed to Scully as if
his hands were everywhere, burning her skin with each touch, stroking
her passion to greater heights.
     Finally he turned her onto her back once more and rose above her,
plunging deeply, again and again, until both lay panting and sated.
     Skinner pulled her to him, brushing a lock of damp hair from her
face.
     "Okay?"
     Dana nodded, doubting she had the breath to speak.
     "We're going to miss dinner," the AD told her.
     Scully laughed, rolling over to look at him.
     "We could be bad and go right to desert." She grinned wickedly.
     "Oh?" Skinner propped himself up on one hand. "And what did you
have in mind?"
     With a lunge, Scully showed him.

D. C. THEATRE -
THE NEXT EVENING

     "It wasn't that bad."
     Walter Skinner shot her an incredulous glance.
     "Dana, the acting was bad, the plot was almost non- existent; it
was just plain bad."
     Dana Scully grinned teasingly. "Yeah, but the leading man was
cute."
     Her escort snorted, handing over his parking receipt to the
valet.
     "That's the thanks I get for sitting through this rotten play?
You're comparing me to that no-talent actor?"
     The car pulled up and Skinner helped his date into the passenger
seat. When he was seated behind the wheel, Dana touched his hand.
     "I didn't compare him to you. Cute isn't exactly the way I would
describe you."
     Skinner growled, pulling out into traffic.
     "Come on," Dana urged, drawing a finger along his jaw. "I was
just kidding."
     With a sigh the AD relaxed. "I know. It's been a tough week, I
apologize."
     "That's okay." She changed the subject, aware that her partner
had contributed much of the week's stress. "Where are we going to
eat?"
     "Well, I found a cafe that looks good. Out of the way--"
     "Of course." Scully agreed.
     "I'm sorry, Dana." Skinner pulled off the highway, onto a paved
road. "I wish we didn't have to sneak around in order to see each
other. Someday, I swear--"
     "Walter." She put a hand on his arm, squeezing lightly.  "It's
okay. I know what would happen to both of us if the higher ups got
wind of this. It's okay."
     "It's not okay," he grumbled. He glanced at her. "Have you told
Mulder?"
     Scully shook her red head. "No. Every time I think I'm going to,
he says something that makes me reconsider."
     "I don't think I want to know," Skinner told her, turning into a
small parking lot. He turned off the car and faced her.  "Dana, we're
going to have to make a decision about our relationship."
     Scully was fascinated with the play of emotions in the dark
eyes. From firm resolve to desire to fear flashed across his face in
the space of a few seconds.
     "I don't know how much longer I can go on not admitting that
I'm--" He stopped, paling slightly. Suddenly he opened the car
door. "Come on, we'll be late for our reservation."
     Dana thought, with rye amusement, that for someone who wanted to
discuss their relationship, he certainly seemed to shy away from
stating his feelings. Of course, she was no better. She hadn't even
gotten up the nerve to tell her best friend. Mostly, she admitted,
because she was afraid Mulder would either kill himself or her. She
figured Skinner was safe; he out-weighted the younger man by a good 50
pounds of muscle.
     Her door opened and she took Walter's proffered hand, walking
with up into the tiny cafe.
     She saw immediately why he'd brought her here; it was like being
in an English B&B. The furnishing were comfortable and the lighting
low and romantic. Candles provided the only light at the secluded
booths and wonderful smells caressed Scully's nose.
     He gave the hostess his name and they were shown to a corner
booth, near the door. The waiter appeared and took their drink orders,
then disappeared.
     Scully sighed, contentedly. "This is lovely." She smiled across
at her companion. "I'm having a wonderful evening."
     "And it's only Saturday night." Skinner grinned at her.  "Just
wait until I get you home."
     "That sounds vaguely like a threat." The agent studied him, light
dancing in her eyes.
     "More of a promise." Skinner told her.
     The drinks arrived and they ordered dinner. Suddenly the romantic
mood was shattered by a barrage of shots fired at the ceiling.
     There was screaming, and then silence. Instinctively, both
Skinner and Dana went for their guns, then froze. Better to wait. They
were obviously out-gunned for the moment.
     "Everybody stay where they are and nobody gets hurt!" A
ski-masked man shouted.
     He stood just across from their booth, a machine gun making an
arc of the small room.
     "Give me the money," he demanded.
     The shrill sound of police cars could be heard in the
distance. They came closer and the gunman turned to the cashier.
     "You turned in a silent alarm, you bitch!"
     The woman ducked behind her counter as bullets pelted its
surface. Scully couldn't tell whether she was injured or just keeping
out of sight.
     "I got to get out of here!" the gunman muttered, more to himself
than anyone in the room.
     His eyes lit on Dana and he nodded.
     "A hostage. You!" He took a step forward and held out his
hand. "You will come with me, Red."
     Scully felt Skinner tense beside him and she took a step
forward. He'd get himself killed, whereas, she told herself, she might
be able to convince the man that it was useless to run with the police
on their way.
     "Get over here!" the man demanded.
     As she took another step, Dana felt Skinner grab her arm in an
iron grip as he thrust her behind him, placing himself in the path of
the machine-gun.
     "Walter!"
     She tried to stop him but the FBI man stood unwavering.
     "She's not going with you. If you want a hostage, you'll have to
take me."
     "No way, man," the thief sneered. "I'll take your lady friend."
His laugh made Dana's skin crawl. "She's prettier."
     In what seemed like endless time, but in reality probably
happened in seconds, Dana watched Skinner draw his gun and fire at the
same instant that the gunman fired his weapon.
     Bullets dug up the floor as the man went down, spraying
the table top, shattering the glassware that rested on it.
     Scully watched in horror as Skinner grabbed his side and dropped
to one knee, face convulsed with pain, blood running freely between
clenched fingers. A swatch of crimson marked the side of his face
where another bullet had creased his scalp.
     "Walter!" Scully gripped his shoulder, pushing him gently to the
floor. "Call an ambulance!" she shouted, then ripped open his dinner
jacket to expose the wound.
     "How... bad?" Skinner's jaw was clenched as the pain threatened
to overcome him. He always forgot how much it hurt.  The room was
spinning and somewhere in the distance he could hear Scully telling
him to lay down... to let her see...  something.
     "Dana..."
     Frantically Scully tore at his clothing until she found the
wounds. She bit her lip, forcing her objective side to the front. She
was a doctor. She'd done this a million times with Mulder... with
others... she had to function--
     As she looked up, several officers and a pair of paramedics
entered the restaurant. She felt relief that someone else was here to
take charge.
     "Here!" She almost screamed it, shaking uncontrollably, as she
tried to staunch the flow of blood.
     "He's been shot." She told the medic, "I'm a doctor."
     "We'll take care of him. You want to ride along?"
     Scully nodded, numbly following their actions as they worked to
stop the blood flow and finally lifted Skinner onto a gurney and
carried him out to the ambulance.
     Scully followed, climbing in the back and sitting next to the
young medic.
     "How, how bad is it?" Her voice trembled and she hated herself
for it. Why couldn't she function like a doctor?  Dammit! This was not
worse than when Mulder got himself shot.  But it was worse... much,
much worse. Skinner didn't have the charmed life her partner seemed
to... and she was so frightened of losing him.
     "He's lost a lot of blood," the young man said, eyeing her warily
as a prospective patient. "But I think he'll be okay." He paused. "Are
you all right?"
     Scully nodded and gripped Skinner's limp hand in hers, bringing
it to her lips, eyes fastened on the pale features of her lover.

WASHINGTON GENERAL HOSPITAL -
MUCH LATER THAT NIGHT

     Dana Scully sat by the hospital bed, gazing at the man who lay so
still and pale. After ten hours of surgery to remove the bullet he'd
taken in the cafe, Walter Skinner hovered between worlds in a
drug-induced sleep.
     Scully clasped one of his large hands, sometimes talking to him,
in case he could hear her, sometimes just watching the steady rise and
fall of his chest, as if that assured his recovery.. He was so
still. The brave, vibrant man that had made love to her just the night
before lay like a dead man.  They'd only just discovered each other,
dear God! don't take him from me now. You can't be that cruel!
     "Scully?"
     She jumped, guiltily pulling her hand back as she stared at her
partner.
     "Mulder."
     The young man stepped into the room, nodding to their boss. "How
is he?"
     "He... he hasn't regained consciousness since he came out of
surgery."
     "They get the bullet?" Mulder watched his friend, noticing the
frayed edges, the quiver in her voice. The unshed tears in her eyes.
     "Yeah."
     "The shooter dead?"
     Dana nodded, then looked up, meeting his gaze. "I don't know if
he's going to make it, Mulder," she whispered.
     "He'll make it," Mulder assured her quietly. "He's strong."
     When she didn't reply, Mulder knelt beside her chair, taking her
hands in both of his.
     "Scully. I know.... I know."
     Startled blue eyes met his. Mulder grinned.
     "It's hard to hide stuff like that from a sensitive guy like me."
     She gave a short laugh and let out the tears she'd been fighting
since Skinner had been shot.
     "Oh, Mulder." She leaned forward and Mulder gathered her in his
arms, holding her, murmuring in her ear.
     When she stopped shaking, Mulder pulled back and smoothed the
damp hair from her face.
     "You want to talk about it? About him?" he asked gently.  "We'll
discuss why you didn't feel the need to *tell* me about it later."
     "Mulder, I didn't know how you'd react." She defended herself. "I
thought you might think I was compromising the X-Files... compromising
you."
     Mulder's eyes twinkled. "I'd say if one of us was compromised
Scully, I wasn't me."
     His teasing worked and she blushed, eyes on her hands.
     "I, it...."
     "You don't have to tell me if you don't want to.' Mulder took her
hand again. "I just thought it might help if you talked about him." A
smile tugged at the corner of his mouth.  "God knows I never would of
matched the two of you up, so if you'd like to indulge my natural
curiosity..."
     Dana smiled too. She looked at Skinner for a long moment, then
took his hand again. Mulder knew, and he was all right with it... she
didn't care who else did.
     She cleared her throat, trying to get her thoughts in order.
     "It happened after you disappeared... when we thought you were
dead." Scully began slowly, letting the memories wash over her. "When
Mr. X came to your apartment that night... he wouldn't tell me where
you'd gone."
     Fox nodded. He knew this part.
     "I thought we'd lost... I thought you were dead and I couldn't do
anything to save you." She licked her lips, eyes fixed on some point
in the past. "And then the next thing I knew, Skinner as at your door,
bleeding on your carpet and giving me the coordinates of where you'd
gone."
     Mulder nodded again.
     She looked up at him.
     "I think that's when I realized that I cared about him.  All the
times we weren't sure... that we didn't know whether we could trust
him." She swallowed, eyes drifting back to Skinner. "All that time, I
think I was attracted... more than attracted..." She frowned, trying
to put the elusive feelings into words.
     "You were falling in love with a man that you thought might be
the enemy, so you buried it."
     She shrugged. "I guess."
     "And then, when he proved to you that he was a good guy," Mulder
grinned slightly. "You let it happen."
     "All I could think about was finding you. Getting you back
safely."
     Their eyes met again. Mulder waited.
     "And then, after you were back but on leave, he called me into
his office and asked me how you were doing. Mulder, he really cared
about you... about whether you'd been hurt badly... how you were
handling it."
     "He's a good guy, Scully. You don't have to convince me."
     "He, he asked me to dinner. He said he wanted to talk to me."
     "That old line," her partner laughed.
     "No, Mulder, I don't think he meant it as a pass... I think he
really wanted to access whether I was okay to do my job." She
shrugged. "I don't know."
     "Then what happened?" Mulder urged.
     Giving up any pretense at professional detachment, Dana stood up
and leaned over Skinner, smoothing his face with her palm. She sat
back down, taking his hand again.
     "We had dinner and drinks and we talked. About you mostly." She
smiled at the memory. "He really respects you, Mulder. It hurt him to
think that you didn't trust him. That neither of us did."
     "You obviously do now, Scully. Or do you love him in spite of
that?"
     She shook her head.
     "No," she whispered. "I trust him." She met Mulder's gaze. "It
scares me how quickly I've become so involved emotionally. Mulder,
I've only been... been..."
     "Dating?" he offered helpfully.
     Dana shot him a glance. "I don't think dating is exactly the term
I'd use."
     "Sneaking around?" Mulder revised with a grin.
     Dana nodded. "That's better. Mulder, I just don't know if I can
keep doing this. If anybody found out they'd crucify him."
     "And you. And me, because I'd have to find another partner."
     Scully frowned. "Are you saying I shouldn't be seeing Walter?"
     Mulder opened his mouth, but the words wouldn't come.  Hearing
Scully use Skinner's first name took a minute to compute.
     "Look," he said finally, "What I'm saying is, you just need to be
careful. Go on, tell me some more."
     Mulder slid back in his chair, fingers laced behind his head.
     "There's not much to tell. He took me home and we were both a
little drunk and, well, I guess our defenses slipped a little."
     Mulder cocked his head. "A little?"
     "Okay, a lot, Mulder, is that what you want to hear?"  Scully bit
her lip. "Sorry. I'm just so scared."
     "I know you're scared, but it'll be okay. It'll take more than a
bullet to stop him." Mulder gestured to the still form.
     "I don't know exactly when it turned into love, but I do love
him."
     The man nodded. He could see that. He felt a small pang of envy
for Skinner.
     "He's always so strong and silent... I was so surprised at the
loneliness inside him... and his ability to be tender and..." She
stopped again, drawing in a shaky breath. "Last night, we went to the
theatre," Dana told him, glancing at her lover, rubbing his hand with
her thumb. "Afterwards we went to this little cafe to have dinner
and--"
     Mulder paled. He'd come to the hospital because of Scully's terse
message on his answering machine. He'd spent the night with the Lone
Gunmen, running down leads on a possible UFO sighting in Utah and he
hadn't heard about the cafe holdup until he was in the car on the way
over. He'd come in on the end, hearing only that there had been one
person shot. A Federal employee.
     "They tried to take me as a hostage and he got in their way." The
tears were falling again and Mulder took her free hand. "He pushed me
behind him and drew his gun and they shot him."
     Dana desperately tried to keep from shaking at the memory, her
fingers tightening on the hands of the two men she loved. "It wasn't
even an FBI incident, Mulder, it was a God dammed holdup!"
     "I know."
     Mulder drew her to him, and she relinquished her hold on
Skinner's hand to wrap her arms around her partner's neck.  "You can't
keep him safe any more than he can keep you that way, Scully. It's the
nature of our lives."
     They sat that way for a long time before a rough baritone broke
the silence.
     "Should I be jealous?"
     Scully almost fell off her chair as she whirled to face
Skinner. Grinning, Mulder rose to stand beside her.
     "How are you feeling, sir?" The agent asked, trying to put as
much understanding and trust in his eyes as he could.
     "I've been better." The AD told him, grimacing as he reached for
Scully's hand. His voice was deep and harsh. "I think it hit a nerve."
     Scully's laugh was both amusement and relief. "A nerve?  That's
the understatement." She glanced at Mulder. "Walter..."
     "I heard enough of that last speech to realize you told him." The
AD held his agent's gaze.
     Mulder was amazed at how much power the man had, even flat on his
back in a hospital bed.
     "It can't go beyond this room, Mulder."
     "Yes sir," The agent nodded, a hand on his boss' arm.  "I've
known for quite a while, sir. I'm not going to tell anybody."
     "You've--" Skinner sighed, closing his eyes for a moment.  When
he met the younger man's gaze again, the brown eyes were twinkling at
him. "I don't think I want to know how you figured it out."
     Scully squeezed his hand. "It doesn't matter. You just
rest. You're going to be okay."
     Skinner studied her hand in his, eyes thoughtful, then he raised
them to meet hers.
     "I can't leave now... just when I've found something wonderful in
my life. It's been too long; for both of us."
     Mulder tried to be as invisible as he could. He couldn't believe
the AD was being as open about his feelings in from of his maverick
agent. *"Boy, we have progressed."* he thought.  *"I'll bet Scully's
good for him. I bet they're good for each other."*
     "I'm going to find your doctor," Scully said, suddenly needing to
do something.
     "I thought you were my doctor." Skinner smiled at her sleepily..
     "You better believe it." Dana bent to kiss him, lightly brushing
his lips. When she stood up, his eyes were closed.
     "He's asleep." She looked at Mulder. "I guess he told me."
     "I don't think it has anything to do with your allure, partner."
Mulder grinned, putting a hand around her shoulders.  "Come on, let's
find the doctor and then I'm taking you to breakfast."
     "But--"
     "He's gonna sleep 'til noon at least and I want to tell you about
this sighting in Utah."
     "Sighting, Mulder? What kind of sighting?"
     "Well, six independent witnesses in the area reported seeing a
bright, blue light..."
     Scully let out a breath as she followed Mulder down the
corridor. It was going to be okay. Everything was going to be okay.
     "A blue light? How cliche, Mulder."
     "No, wait! I'm serious."

The end