A Day in the Life, The Shooting, Part 30-A
Title: A Day in the Life, Pt 30, The Shooting (A)
Author: Girlie_girl7
Email: Girlie_girl74@yahoo.com
Date: 07-07-04
Rating: PG
Category: Family fic, MT, SA
Spoilers: Existence then AU 
Archive: Anywhere
Disclaimer: Fox owns 'em.
Summary: Mulder and Katherine spend the day together
but in the process someone gets hurt and someone gets
lost.




                    ~ The Shooting ~


It's a warm, July, Saturday in Washington, DC, and the
perfect day to go to the National Zoo and watch the
animals.  

"Scully, stop your worrying, we'll do just fine.  Go
and enjoy the day with William," Fox Mulder assures
his partner as he follows her into the family room.

"You're sure you have the afternoon free, you won't be
taking off on some tangent that I don't know about?" 
Scully says as she puts Katherine in her playpen.

"And what kind of tangent would I go on with a fifteen
month old baby?"  Mulder replies as he scoops up his
daughter.

"One that would involve the Gunmen," Scully says
looking up at him with both hands planted firmly on
her hips.

"Scully, I haven't talked to the guys in days.  No,
Katherine and I will hangout together while you and
William tour the zoo."

Scully drops her head and shakes it.  "I don't know
how I let my mom talk me into chaperoning the day care
outing to the zoo."
She reaches out and ties the lace on Katherine's tiny
sneaker.

"You agreed because ever since Will and Petie escaped
you haven't let him out of your sight."  Mulder grins.

Scully doesn't deny it she only smiles.  Will comes
racing into the family room wearing a pair of heavy
jeans, a long sleeved, button down, flannel shirt over
a striped shirt and a pair of hiking boots on his
feet.  "Mom, Ah dres' ma sewf, kin we go now?" 
William proudly proclaims.


Scully takes one look at her blue-eyed boy and laughs.
 "Honey, you'll burn up in these clothes."

Will looks down at himself then back up at his mother,
puts a finger in his mouth and shyly grins.

"Will, mom has on shorts, sandals, and a much too
revealing tank top, wouldn't you rather be dressed
like she is?"  Mulder smirks while Scully just rolls
her eyes.

Will hesitates.

Scully puts her hands on her knees to be at eye-level
with her son.  "I'll bet Petie has on shorts and
sandals."

"Okay!" Will now agrees and takes off up the staircase
with Scully right behind him.

Mulder carries his daughter into his office all the
while rubbing her dark, curly, head against his cheek.
 He pulls out the desk chair and switches on the
computer then sits down with Katherine balanced on one
knee.  Scully has the baby dressed in a light blue,
terry tank top and matching shorts, she kicks her
white baby shoe against the desk as Mulder
absentmindedly reaches down to still her foot.  He
brings up his email and begins to open and delete
messages.  He's just opened one from a UFO hotline
when Katherine begins pounding the keyboard and
jabbering.  Suddenly the screen goes black and the
computer shuts off.

"Katherine, you shut me down," Mulder says with a
frown.

His dark-eyed daughter looks up at him and hiccups. 
He laughs and so does she.  He can hear Scully now
rummaging around in the kitchen so he and Katherine go
to investigate.

William is seated at the counter with his head in his
hands watching his mother.  "Now William, you want a
jelly sandwich right?"   She asks her son as she
stuffs carrot sticks, apples, and crackers into her
insulated lunch bag.

"Yup, wiff pee-ut budder."  Scully pulls out a loaf of
bread and deftly assembles Will's sandwich remembering
to trim off the dreaded crust.

Mulder looks his son over.  "Will, I like those khaki
shorts.  I've got a pair just like those."

Will smiles and pulls at his tank top.  "Ah yike ma
shiwt too, is boo."

"It sure is," Mulder smiles. 

"Okay," Scully says letting out a huge sigh.  "I think
we're ready to go.  No wait I forgot the sunscreen! 
We have got to have..." her voice trails off while she
races from the room and up the stairs.

Mulder puts Katherine down and the baby toddles around
the kitchen.  He grabs a carrot from the open package
and crunches down on it.  "So what do you want to see
at the zoo, Will?"  

Will jumps up and down.  "Ah wanna see da yions, and
da beaws, and da pain-wins."

"You liked the way the penguins swam the last time we
were at the zoo."

"Yup, Ah did," William agrees with a laugh.

"Okay, we're all set," Scully huffs as she stuffs the
sunscreen into her bag and steps up on her tiptoes to
kiss Mulder.  "Where's Katherine?" She asks looking
around.  "Don't tell me you have lost her already?"

"I do not lose our children," Mulder replies as he
looks around for the child.  Katherine comes toddling
out of the laundry room carrying one of Scully's
black, satin bras, a fact that Will finds all too
funny and laughs uncontrollably.  Scully takes her bra
from the baby and tosses it back into the laundry room
and pulls the door shut.

"You and I share the same taste," Mulder tells his
daughter as he picks her up.

Scully opens the door leading to the garage.  "Call my
cell if you need me."

"Yes mom," Mulder teases.

--

Mulder and Katherine watch Scully and William leave
from the front door then they return to the house.

"So it's just you and me kid," Mulder says to his
daughter who is squirming to be put down.  Since
Katherine has fully recovered from her broken foot she
wants to explore the world around her.

Mulder sets his daughter down on her feet in the foyer
and steadies her before letting go.  She toddles
toward the family room while Mulder sorts through the
mail piled on the foyer table.  He drifts toward the
office and sits down at his desk to open a letter.  He
props his long jean clad legs up on the desk as he
scans down his correspondence.  Minutes pass when he
realizes he hasn't heard a sound in quite some time. 
He plops his sneaker covered feet on the carpeted
floor and listens, then calls out, "Katherine?"  But
he gets no response until he looks up to see his
daughter standing in the doorway, her face and hands
covered in black dirt along with the front of her
terry tank top, behind her Mulder can see a trail of
deep, rich soil.  He jumps up and scurries over to the
baby who puts her hands up.  Mulder picks the tot up. 
"Katherine, what did you do?"  The baby begins to put
her dirty hands into her mouth but Mulder intercedes. 
"No," he says pulling her hands back, "don't eat that
stuff."  Then he looks down the hallway and clamps his
eyes shut and moans, "Oh no."  He follows the trail of
dirt back to the family room to find Scully's favorite
plant pulled from its pot and laying in the middle of
the floor where Katherine has dissected it.

"Katherine, look at the mess you made."

The baby twists around in her father's arms to gaze at
the destruction she has wrought on the family room.

Mulder sits the baby on the couch and puts out both
hands, palm side up.  "Now you stay put while I get
the sweeper."  He races from the family room to the
laundry room to retrieve the vacuum cleaner.  He turns
around to carry it back to the family room and nearly
runs over his daughter.  "Whoa!  How did you get here
so fast?"  The baby walks past him and grabs one of
Scully's clean, white towels.  "No, no," Mulder scolds
as he sets the sweeper down and takes the filthy towel
and tosses it into the hamper.

"No, no, no," Katherine mumbles with a frown on her
face.

"To bad you don't understand the meaning of the word,"
Mulder says as he scoops up his daughter and carries
her on his hip while dragging the sweeper behind him.

Mulder puts Katherine down and she immediately takes
off for his office.  "Hey, hey, you come back here!" 
He pleads as the baby rounds the corner of the door. 
He catches her just before she makes it to the fern
standing in the corner of the room.  He scoops her up
and carries her to the hallway.  "What is it about you
and plants.  I'll bet you're going to grow up and be a
botanist."  Katherine squirms in his arms wanting
down.  "Oh no you don't, I'm on to you," Mulder says
as he plops her down in the mesh-sided playpen.

Katherine begins to bawl for all she is worth.  Mulder
starts to run the sweeper while talking to his
daughter.  "Honey, don't cry, I'll be done soon."

Katherine stands in the middle of the playpen with her
dirty fingers in her mouth and wails.  Her tears leave
muddy tracks down her face.

"Come on baby, don't cry.  I'm almost done."  Mulder
is vacuuming for all he is worth.  He finishes and
pulls the plug out of the wall and looks at the rug
shaking his head in disgust.  "Shit! Scully is gonna
kill me."

He carries the sweeper back to the laundry room and
returns to his daughter.  He picks her up and pats her
little concave back.  Holding her close he whispers
words of comfort to her.  He carries her upstairs. 
"You need a bath and a change of clothes."  He opens
her bathroom door and sets the baby down on her feet
as he begins to fill the tub, then he takes her by the
hand and leads her back into the bedroom to find her
some clean clothes. Katherine picks up her stuffed dog
as Mulder pulls out a pink terry outfit that is
similar to the one she has on.  He returns to the
bathroom to find Katherine's dog at the bottom of the
tub.  Mulder winces and looks down at his dark-eyed
daughter, "Why did you put your puppy in the water?"

Katherine looks over the edge of the tub while Mulder
fishes the sopping wet, cloth dog out of the tub.  He
begins to wring the toy out causing his daughter to
laugh.  Mulder grins, "Oh so you think that's funny do
you!"  He put the dog in the sink and grabs a bottle
of baby bath to pour under the running water.  The tub
is immediately filled with foam much to Katherine's
delight.  

Mulder strips off the baby's shoes and clothing then
removes her diaper and lowers her into the tub.  The
bubbles come up to her chest and she pats them causing
soap snow to float everywhere including in her
father's hair.

"Okay, okay, that's enough of that," Mulder laughs. 
The baby grins, a six-tooth grin, at her father and
rubs her button nose with her fist.  Mulder laughs at
her eyes that are beginning to cross as she tries to
look at the bubble that clings to the end of her nose.
 He takes a small washcloth and begins to gently wash
her face and hands.  "You must behave better for your
mother than you do me, otherwise she'd be going to
work and leaving me at home."

Katherine jabbers away not saying anything
intelligible but that doesn't stop her.  Mulder soon
has his daughter bathed and dressed.  He cleans up the
bathroom and carries her downstairs.  He looks at the
child and frowns. "Katherine, you and I should hit the
road if mom wants to come home and find her house in
any semblance of order."  He trudges back upstairs and
puts sandals on the baby's feet and grabs her hat and
sunglasses then at the last minute remembers to tuck
the diaper bag under his arm.

Out the front door father and daughter go.  He straps
Katherine into her car seat then puts her sunglasses
on her.  He closes the rear door to the SUV and climbs
in behind the wheel.  He starts the engine and turns
to look out the back window when something flies past
his face; it's Katherine's sunglasses.  He puts the
vehicle in park and retrieves the glasses from under
his feet.  He folds them up and sticks them in the
pocket of his T-shirt.  "Mom's not going to like you
taking these off.  She's afraid you'll damage your
retinas."

Katherine kicks her car seat and babbles something
that contains the word, 'da'.

Mulder starts the SUV.  "Although I can't say as I
have ever seen a blind kid, I mean blinded by the sun
but I trust your mother."

At the mention of her mother Katherine begins to
chirp, "Ma, ma, ma."

Mulder pulls out of the driveway and into the flow of
traffic then heads into the city.  "You hungry kiddo? 
What am I saying, you and your brother are always
hungry."

The baby entertains herself as they cruise down the
highway.  Mulder turns on the radio and hums along
with a song when suddenly his peace is broken by
another object flying over the front seat.  "What the
hell?"  He looks in the rearview mirror just as
Katherine flings something else past his head.  He
looks down to find two tiny sandals lying on the
passenger side floorboard.  "Katherine!  Shoes are for
wearing not to be used as missiles."  The baby plays
with her now bare toes.

"Don't get too comfy, I have to put those back on your
feet before we eat.  You've seen the sign, no shirt,
no shoes, no service."  The baby plays with the toys
Scully has tied to the car seat.  Mulder checks her
out in the rearview mirror and laughs, "Your mother is
pretty smart, you can't throw those."

Mulder is soon pulling into the parking lot of a local
eatery, local to Scully's old apartment.  He opens the
rear door and begins to put Katherine's shoes on her. 
"I'm not letting you out of there before I get your
feet dressed, do I look like a dummy?"  Mulder grins
at his daughter.

With her shoes once more on her feet he finally lets
her out of her restraints.  He sets her down on her
feet and holds her tiny hands as she walks between his
legs.  They make it to the door where he scoops her up
then holds the door open for a gaggle of older woman
walking in.  They all thank him before entering.  He
and Katherine stand behind the group and wait to be
seated.

"Party of two?" The pretty attendant asks.

"Yes, but I need a highchair," Mulder replies as he
shifts Katherine around in his arms.

"You look a little big for a highchair," the girl
teases.

"It's for her," Mulder laughs.

"Smoking or non-smoking?"

"Non-smoking, she's trying to give it up," Mulder says
as the baby looks around the room while chewing on her
fingers.

The attendant laughs and leads them to a table near
the kitchen and beside a window.  She grabs the
highchair and holds it while Mulder slips the baby
into it.  "Your waitress will be right with you."

Another young girl with her hair pulled back into a
ponytail arrives at their table.  She pulls a packet
of crackers out of her apron and lays them on the
highchair tray.  Katherine instantly grabs the packet
and tries to stuff it into her mouth.

Mulder pulls the crackers out of her mouth and
carefully unwraps them.  He hands a cracker to her and
gets a toothy grin in return.  He brushes the curly,
soft, dark hair away from his daughter's face then he
tilts his head and stares at the baby.  "Katherine, I
should have pulled your hair back with one of those
tie thingies that your mother uses."  Katherine just
wants more crackers.

The waitress reappears.  "So would you like to order
your drinks or is she trying to give that up too?" 
She smiles at Mulder, "Cary told me what you said."

"She was hooked on chocolate milk but she finally gave
it up with help from the patch," Mulder teases.  The
waitress laughs and shakes her head. 
"I'll have an ice tea, no lemon and she'll have an
orange soda."

"I'll be right back," the waitress assures Mulder as
she walks away.

Mulder turns back to his daughter, "You like orange
pop don't cha?"

Katherine lifts herself up by standing on the footrest
on the highchair and prattles on.  Mulder laughs and
the baby offers him a bite of her cracker.  He gently
bites down and snaps off a small bit of cracker. 
Katherine wrinkles up her nose and snuffles out a
laugh.

The waitress returns with a large, cool, glass of ice
tea and a small-lidded paper cup filled with orange
soda.  Katherine immediately makes a grab for the cup
but Mulder gets to it first having learned from his
experiences with Will.  Katherine frowns and jabbers
on at her father.

"Hold on to your diaper, I'm putting the straw in for
you."  He puts the straw in the tiny hole and offers
it to the baby to drink.  She latches on to it and
drinks until Mulder pulls the cup away.  Her little
lips are orange and she purrs with delight at the
taste of the syrupy, sweet drink.  "Don't tell mom I
gave you pop, she would kill me and pump out your
stomach."

"Are you ready to order?" The waitress asks trying to
glance at her pad instead of the good-looking man
seated before her.

Mulder looks over the menu and closes it.  "I'll have
a deluxe, double cheeseburger and fries."  He points
to Katherine.  "She'll have chicken fingers."

The waitress picks up the menus and smiles, "Comin'
right up."

Mulder leans foreword resting his elbows on the table.
 "I'll split my fries with you if keep mum about all
the grease we're eating."  Katherine smiles at her
father and pats the tray on her highchair then begins
to sing, or as close to it as she can come.  What she
lacks in talent she makes up for in volume.  Mulder
puts his hand over her mouth but she simply bats it
away and sings even louder.  "Shh," Mulder pleads
placing his finger to his mouth.  "You definitely
inherited your mothers singing ability."

The waitress reappears with a handful of crackers. "I
thought you might want these."  Mulder gratefully
accepts them and opens a pack.  Katherine stuffs the
little Club cracker into her mouth and once again
silence reigns supreme.

Their food soon arrives and Mulder breaks up the
chicken fingers into more manageable and chewable
pieces for the baby setting them aside to cool,
something Katherine finds annoying.  She starts to
fuss so Mulder breaks off a tiny bit of the lettuce
covering his sandwich.  Katherine takes the offered
bit and stuffs it into her mouth then promptly spits
it out, frowning at her father in the process.  He
checks on her chicken and it has finally cooled enough
for her to eat.  He shoves the plate over to Katherine
and she immediately snags a piece of the chicken and
shoves it into her mouth and smiles.  "Now that's more
like it!"  Mulder laughs as Katherine grins.  He
breaks up a few fries and sets them aside to cool;
Katherine watches him and puts her hand out wanting
some more.  "You're pretty smart, you have learned
that the broken up pieces are meant for you."


Mulder takes the opportunity to grab a bite of his own
burger, which Katherine also wants.  He places a few
fries on her tray and she quickly gobbles them up.  "I
swear Katherine, you and Will can eat your mother and
me under the table, but then again your mother hardly
eats."   The baby motions for another drink from her
cup.  Mulder holds out the straw and she once again
savors the sweet treat then he takes a drink of his
own beverage.   "You know what kid, you and I should
make this a weekly adventure.  You're a cheap date, a
few chicken fingers and you're happy and you get to
drink pop, it works out well for both of us." 
Katherine puts out her tiny hand wanting more fries
and just as Mulder is handing her a few more he hears
a heated argument going on in the kitchen of the
restaurant.  He pauses for a few moments and hears the
voice of the girl that waited on him along with some
unknown male voice.  The level grows louder, as does
Mulder's concern along with many of the restaurant's
patrons.

"Stop it! You're hurting me!" Rings out from behind
the door.

Mulder leans over and taps an elderly woman, who is
eating with her husband, on the shoulder.  "Excuse me
ma'am but if you'll watch my daughter for a few
minutes I'll go see what's going on in the back."

The shaken woman looks up at the federal agent.  "Yes,
by all means do."  Her husband gets up to go and sit
with Katherine.

Mulder pats his daughter's curly head and kisses her
cheek then heads toward the kitchen.  He slowly pushes
the door open to find that the elderly cook is huddled
in fear near the stove.  Beside the back door he spots
a wiry, dark haired man in a tank top, his arms
covered in tattoos.  He can't be much more than five
feet tall but Mulder can tell he's built for street
fighting.  The man has the girl who waited on Mulder
around the neck with his arm bent under her chin and
her arm bent behind her back.  Mulder can see the fear
in the girl's eyes.

"Who is this Teresa, the dick you been sleepin' with?"
 The man screams at her when he spots Mulder.

"No Barry!  I swear I haven't been sleepin' around on
you.  I been workin'."  Teresa looks over at the old
cook.  "Tell him pop, I been workin'."

The cook nods his head and manages to mumble, "That's...
that's right."
  
Mulder squares his shoulders.  "I'm just a customer,
Barry.  I've never met this woman before."  He stays
calm.  "It's just that you're so loud that I came back
to investigate."

"Investigate?"  Barry laughs.  "What are you some kind
of cop?"

"Actually I'm an FBI Agent," Mulder coolly says.  "Now
let Teresa go, you're hurting her."

"You think?"  Barry smirks as he tightens his grip on
the girl causing her to scream out in pain.

Mulder lunges for Teresa as she screams, "He's got a
gun."

Mulder feels the white-hot bullet enter his body.  He
crumples to the floor unsure if the man will shoot him
again but there is no further volley.  All he can hear
is the back door slamming and Teresa's screams.

The dining room is filled with pandemonium as patrons
struggle to get out of the restaurant doors. 

Mulder is fighting to remain conscious but he's losing
the battle.  He can hear sirens in the background but
even those are beginning to fade.

--

The EMS races toward DC General carrying one severely
injured FBI Agent.  "Base this is unit ten, we have
one male patient, victim of a gunshot wound to the
upper right leg, no exit wound was noted.  Due to the
amount of blood lost we have compression pants on him
and have started two IV's pushing saline.  BP is 90
over 40 pulse is 110 and thready.  He's beginning to
show signs of shock. ETA is five minutes.  The EMT
clicks off his microphone.  "Hal, check this guys
pockets for ID, all I could get out of the girl was
he's an FBI Agent."

"Wanna bet he just said that to scare the guy," Hal
says as he checks Mulder's pockets.  "Got it!  Well
I'll be damn, he is FBI, Special Agent Fox Mulder."

The EMS is backing up to the trauma center doors.  Two
men in scrubs pull the backdoor open as soon as the
unit comes to a halt.  Mulder is unloaded and begins
to call out, "Katherine, Katherine."

"Must be his wife," one of the attendants says.

Hal begins to read from Mulder's drivers license. 
"Fox Mulder, age 42."

"He's been in here before," a nurse yells, "someone
check for his records."

"Any next of kin listed?"  A male voice asks.

"Yup got it here," Hal says.  "Dana Scully, oops
that's no Katherine."  Hal raises his eyebrows as the
assembled group takes a moment to look at one another
then begins to work on Mulder once more.  "Better call
this Dana Scully, let them straighten it out once she
gets here."

--

Scully and William along with twenty-two other
children and parents have just climbed off the African
Safari train when her cell phone rings.  She stops to
place her sunglasses up on her head then answers her
phone.  "Scully."

"Yes, this is Dana Scully," Scully frowns.  "Who is
this?"

"DC Gen..."

"Yes, of course I know him, he's my husband, what's
happened?"

Maggie over hears her daughter and picks up William
carrying him to where Scully is standing.  Scully
listens intently as she absentmindedly runs her free
hand up and down her arm that's holding the phone. 
Her eyes begin to brim with tears and she brings her
hand to her lips.  She glances up at her son, who
after all the sun block she slathered on him, still
managed to sun burn his nose and cheeks.  "I'll be
right there, yes you have my permission.  Thank you." 
She closes her phone and tilts her head and covers her
mouth with her hand.

"Dana, what's happened?"  Maggie anxiously asks.

"Mulder's been shot."

"How!  I thought he was home with Katherine."

"Katherine!"  Scully gasps.  "I forgot to ask about
her.  Mom can you watch William for me?"

"Of course, Dana."

Scully kisses her mom and her son then runs toward the
entrance to the zoo.

--

"Get him to X-rays, he's been stabilized."

"Katherine, Katherine," Mulder tries to say through
the oxygen mask that covers his face.

"Mr. Mulder, who is Katherine," a nurse yells to get
his attention.

Mulder's eyes fly open, "She's my daughter."

"Was she with you?"  The nurse continues to question.

"Yes, she was in the dining room with me, she's only a
year old."

The nurse looks up at the doctor searching for an
answer to Mulder's question but the doctor just shakes
his head slightly.
"I'll do some checking," the nurse reassures Mulder
before she leaves his side.

"Okay Mr. Mulder, we're taking you up to x-ray.  We've
contacted your wife."

Mulder drifts off.  One of the techs laughs, "I was
wondering what he was doing with a pair of Barbie
sunglasses in his shirt pocket."

Scully races through the heavy traffic toward the
hospital with her heart in her throat.  "Mulder, what
were you doing?"  She mumbles under her breath, "And
where is Katherine?"

--

A man dressed in green scrubs looks at a CT scan. 
"The bullet seems to have lodged itself in the Vastus
Lateralis muscle and appears to have nicked the
femoral artery."  The surgeon turns around and yells,
"Let's get him prepped, and make sure we have plenty
of blood on hand, he's going to need it."


--

Scully wheels into the parking lot of DC General,
she's been here so often that she knows where to find
the best parking spaces.  She slams the SUV into park
and races for the doors leading to the trauma center. 
She runs toward the first person in scrubs she sees. 
"My part... I mean my husband was brought in with a
gunshot wound, Fox Mulder.  Please can you tell me how
he is?"

The female nurse takes Scully by the arm.  "Hang on
Mrs. Mulder, I'll get the ER doctor who treated him." 


The nurse turns to find the doctor but Scully stops
her.  "Can you tell me how my daughter Katherine is?"

The nurse walks over to the trauma center desk and
looks at the admissions list.  "I'm sorry Mrs. Mulder
but no child has been brought in?"  The nurse looks
down the list once more and frowns.  "Maybe she was
listed as an adult, is she married?"

Scully's eyes grow wide.  "Hardly, she's only fifteen
months old!  She was with her father," Scully sighs
and rubs her forehead, "or at least I thought she
was."

A tall, dark haired man walks toward Scully with his
hand out.  "I'm Doctor Lightfoot, I examined your
husband in the ER."

"I'm Doctor Dana Scully."

The doctor looks puzzled.  "Sorry I thought you were
the wife."

"Yes I am but I kept my maiden name for work."  Scully
is growing frustrated.  "Please, just tell me how
Mulder is!"

"Agent Mulder was shot with a nine millimeter
semi-automatic at close range.  He was stabilized and
taken to surgery where they are removing the bullet
from his upper right thigh and repairing a nick in the
femoral artery.  He's on the fourth floor, surgical
wing." 

"Doctor, can you tell me how he was injured?"

Dr. Lightfoot looks down at the small, worried woman
in front of him.  "It's my understanding that Agent
Mulder was eating in a restaurant when a fight broke
out between a girl and her boyfriend in the kitchen. 
He tried to intervene and was shot by the boyfriend."

Scully is frantic now.  "Can you tell me the name of
the restaurant?  Our fifteen month old daughter was
with him and now she's missing."

"Oh dear," the doctor frowns.  "Come with me and we'll
check at the desk."  Scully and the doctor walk to the
ER admissions desk.  The tall man leans over the
counter.  "Sara, can you tell me where paramedics
picked Agent Mulder up at?"

The nurse flips through what is already a considerable
amount of paperwork on Mulder.  "Here it is, McKibbins
on 74th Street."

Scully turns and pulls out her cell phone and begins
to punch numbers as she nears the elevator.  Just as
the doors open she says, "Frohike..."

--

"Byers, Langley, get in here now!"  An agitated Melvin
Frohike barks out.

"Now what?"  Langley questions as he shoves his
glasses up onto his nose.

"Katherine is missing," Frohike informs his roommates
as he begins to cram equipment into a duffel bag.

"Katherine," Byers frowns then his face lights up. 
"Oh you mean Katherine Mulder, Mulder and Scully's
kid!"

"Missing?" Langley asks.  "Maybe she took off from
that day care like Will did."

Frohike takes a step toward Langley.  "You idiot, she
is only a year old."  He walks to the large junk table
in the middle of the room and grabs his vest.  "Scully
called and said Mulder was watching the kid, the two
of them apparently were in the restaurant where Mulder
broke up some sort of altercation and in the process
got himself shot in the leg."

"Oh my!" Byers groans.  "Is he gonna be okay?"

"Yeah, Scully said he was in surgery and should be out
soon but in all the chaos Katherine came up missing,"
Frohike says as he continues to stuff cameras and
binoculars into his bag.   

"What are we standing around here for?" Langley yells.
"Let's go!"

The three friends head for the door but not before
grabbing more equipment.


(continued)

A Day in the Life, The Shooting, Part 30-B
(Disclaimers and Headers in Part A)


Scully finds the surgical wing waiting room and has
just called Skinner to report Katherine missing when
she looks up to see Mulder's face on the TV that is
suspended from the ceiling.  She runs to the screen
and turns up the sound.  She watches as Mulder is
loaded into the ambulance.  The reporter confirms that
an off-duty FBI Agent was shot while attempting to
break up a domestic fight.  Scully scans the scene for
any sign of her daughter but finds none.  She lowers
her head as fat tears roll down her cheeks.  She turns
around to find the room is filled with people watching
her.  She wipes at her eyes with her hands and walks
out of the room preferring to pace the hallway as she
waits on news concerning Mulder and worries about
where Katherine might be.

Anxious minutes pass as Scully watches relieved family
members pass by on their way to visit their own loved
ones in recovery.  Her cell phone rings and she
fumbles to get it out of her pocket.  "Scully," she
answers her voice filled with tension.

"Scully, it's Skinner.  I've just come from the first
news station that was on scene at the shooting.  I was
hoping that there might be some sign of the baby on
the video tape."  Skinner pauses.  "I'm sorry but
there is no evidence of Katherine anywhere."

Scully stands in stunned silence.

"Scully, Scully are you there," a concerned Skinner
inquires.

"I'm here," Scully flatly answers.

"Look, I know it's not much but we've got authorities
combing the area looking for her."

"Thanks," Scully softly says trying to gulp back the
tears. 

"I did get word a few minutes ago that they have
arrested the shooter.  He had a rap sheet a mile
long."

"Figures," is all Scully can say.

"Look I'd better go, the news crew wants to interview
me concerning Katherine."

"Thanks," Scully says as she shut her phone.

"Mrs. Mulder?"  A small Oriental woman dressed in
animal print scrubs calls out.

"Yes," Scully replies.

"Mrs. Mulder, I am Doctor Lea Young and I assisted on
your husbands surgery."

"How is he?" Scully tentatively asks.

"He's being taken to recovery.  He came through the
surgery just fine.  You can go up in a few minutes."

"Thank you," Scully softly says as her eyes brim with
tears.

The doctor takes her by the arm and reassures her,
"Don't worry he did great."

Scully nods her head knowing full well that Mulder
isn't her only concern right now.  She steps onto the
elevator that will take her up the two floors to the
recovery room.  She looks down and realizes she is
still wearing the khaki shorts, white tank top and
sandals she put on this morning, out of her heels she
feels small and vulnerable.  She steps off the
elevator and heads to the bank of pay phones outside
of the recovery area.  "Hello mom, it's Dana," Scully
says trying her best to remain composed.  "I, ah, I
need you to bring me some clothes, something more
business like than my shorts and Tee."

Scully listens to her mother's response but her
thoughts are elsewhere.

"Yes, he's out of surgery.  I'm going to see him now."
Maggie says something further to Scully.  "He took
Katherine out to eat and..." Scully begins to break up,
"and he got involved in a domestic and was shot but
mom... we, we can't find Katherine!"  Now she is
sobbing.  "Skinner has everyone out looking for her,
I, I don't know what to do."

Scully listens as tears roll down her cheeks and her
nose begins to run.  She wipes her face on the back of
her hand and hitches her breath.  "I know mom, I know,
please don't cry, I don't want William to be upset."

"Mrs. Mulder," a nurse inquires.

"Yes," Scully responds as she holds the phone to her
chest and once more wipes her eyes.

"You can go in now, but only for a few minutes."

"Thank you," Scully nods then returns to her mother. 
"Look mom, I have to go, I'll call you later."

Scully puts her head down and softly replies, "I love
you too and give my love to William."

Scully hangs up the phone and walks past the nurses'
station; she glances over to see Skinner's face on the
little TV behind the counter.  "Can you turn that up?"
She asks one of the nurses watching the set.

"She's fifteen months old with dark hair and eyes..."

A nurse looks over.  "She's your baby isn't she?"

"Yes, she is," Scully softly says holding her fingers
to her trembling lips as she wraps her other hand
around her waist.

A tall brunette comes around the counter and puts her
hand on Scully's back.  "Come on, I'll take you to see
your husband."

--

Scully spent a few moments in recovery with Mulder. 
He acknowledged her presence then fell back to sleep
before he could question Katherine's where about,
something Scully knew he was not up to hearing yet.

--

Scully is just leaving Mulder in recovery when her
cell phone rings.  She quickly leaves the room and
moves down to the end of the hall to a large window. 
"Scully."

"Scully, it's Melvin."

"Frohike, have you found out anything?" Scully
hopefully asks.

"Sorry Scully, it's like she disappeared off the face
of the earth...oh sorry, I didn't mean to imply."

"I know Frohike, it's okay.  I just hope some earthly
predator doesn't have her."

"We were able to sneak Byers into the crime scene with
fake credentials but other than over turned chairs and
spilt food, he saw no sign of Katherine.  There was a
highchair at one of the tables but that's about it,"
Frohike says in a hushed tone.

Scully sighs and rubs her forehead with the heel of
her hand wishing that this nightmare really were just
a nightmare.  "Thanks for trying anyway."

"We'll keep looking, you know us we get our man or in
this case our baby."  Frohike grows quiet.  "Scully,
we do consider Will and Katherine our kids too."

Scully begins to sob quietly.

"Well, um, I'd better go so we can hit the streets."

Scully nods but can't speak she simply closes her
phone.  A nurse approaches offering her a box of
tissues, Scully takes several and sits down on the arm
of a nearby couch as she tries to regain her
composure.  Not only is her daughter missing but also
her support in times like these is lying in a bed with
a gunshot wound.  

The nurse who had earlier taken her to see Mulder
walks over.  "Mrs. Mulder."

"Please, call me Dana," Scully says as she blows her
nose.

"Dana, we're taking Fox to his own room now.  You can
find him on the fifth floor in a few minutes."  The
nurse pauses then adds, "I hope they find your little
girl soon."

"Me too," Scully nervously laughs as she tucks her
hair behind her ear.  She spots a restroom and goes in
to try to freshen up before seeing Mulder again.

--

"Gumma, why aw we takin' ma mom some cose?"  William
asks from his car seat.

"Your daddy got hurt, William and mom had to go to the
hospital to be with him and she needs something nice
to wear."

Will looks out his side window as they rush past
houses and shops headed for the hospital.  "Ah was in
da hopsiple when ah boke ma ahm."

"Yes, you were," Maggie replies as she glances back at
her grandson.

"An' Kat-run was wiff me!" Will exclaims.  "An' now
she's wiff da-dee," he laughs, unaware that his sister
is missing.

"Let's hope so," Maggie says under her breath as she
wheels into the hospital parking lot.

--

"You can see him now," the nurse tells Scully as she
paces the corridor. 

Scully starts down the hall when a voice calls out
from the nurse's station, "Dana, Dana Scully."

"Yes, that's me."  Scully rushes to the desk.

"Phone," the nurse says as she holds it out.

Scully has hopes of it being good news.  "Scully."

"Agent Scully, I'm Detective Hanford with DCPD, when
do you think I might be able to speak with Agent
Mulder?"

Scully shakes her head, rolls her eyes and is about to
rip into the guy when she realizes he's just doing his
job.  "I'm not sure detective, you might want to check
with his doctor."

"I'll do that and thanks," the detective says before
hanging up.

Scully turns and walks down the hallway toward
Mulder's room when she hears the elevator doors open. 
"I'm sure this is the right floor," an elderly man
says.

"I still don't think you're right," the old woman with
him replies.

For some unknown reason Scully turns around to see
that the old man is holding the baby.  "Katherine!"
She screams and races toward her daughter.

The old man puts his arm up to shield the baby.  "Who
are you?" He frowns.

Katherine begins to yell, "Ma, ma, ma," and puts out
her arms.

"I guess that answers my question," the man laughs as
he turns the baby over to her mother.

Scully hugs her tight as Katherine looks around the
room.  "Where did you find her?"

"We've had her all along," the woman answers.  "Oh
me," she says. "Where are my manners.  I'm Opal Dale
and this is my husband Everett."

Scully kisses the baby's head as the floor nurse's
realize what's going on and all gather around.  "I
don't understand?  You've had her all this time?"
Scully asks.

"See Mrs. Mulder, we were eating next to your husband
and daughter when there was a commotion in the
kitchen.  Your husband asked us to keep an eye on the
baby while he went to check things out," Mrs. Dale
tells Scully.

At this point Everett takes over.  "I moved over to
sit next to her so she wouldn't be afraid."

Scully glances down at her daughter who is laying her
head on her shoulder while playing with the tiny cross
around her neck.

"The next thing we heard was screaming and a gun shot,
so we got out of there as fast as we could.  We got in
our car and waited with the baby but when we saw her
father being brought out on a stretcher well we just
kept her."

Opal jumps in, "Everett doesn't mean we kept her like
we were not going to return her."

"My land no," Everett corrects.  "We just didn't trust
no one with her so we took her home and fed and
changed her."

"I keep diapers at the house," Opal laughs, "I've got
twenty-one grandkids and great grandkids.  I'm always
prepared."

"Then we saw Agent Mulder on TV and figured we'd find
the baby's family here."

Scully puts out her hand.  "I want to thank you for
taking such good care of Katherine."

"Katherine, huh," Everett says.  "We wondered what her
name was."

At the mention of her name Katherine turns her head
and gives the old man a toothy grin before putting her
head back down on her mother's shoulder.

"How is Agent Mulder?" Opal asks.

"He came through the surgery just fine in fact I'm on
my way to see him."

"Well don't let us keep you," Everett says.

Suddenly there is a noise coming from the direction of
the elevators.  Maggie Scully steps off with William
beside her carrying Scully's tote bag.  Maggie spots
her granddaughter and rushes toward the baby.

William grunts and groans.  "Mom, hew aw yew cose and
days heaby!"

Everyone in the room laughs as William blushes.

Maggie takes Katherine from Scully and kisses her
cheek.  "Where did they find her?"

Scully motions toward the elderly couple standing
beside her. "Mulder had Opal and Everett here watch
her while he went to the kitchen to investigate."

Maggie offers the Dale's her hand.  "I want to thank
you for taking care of my granddaughter.  We were so
worried about her."

Scully bends down to take her bag from William and
sets it on the floor then picks up her son.  "And this
is Katherine's older brother William."

Will shyly chews on his fingers and tilts his head. 
"Ah wanna see ma dad."

Scully brushes back his hair.  "Soon, you can see him
soon."

The Dale's turn around to leave and Scully stops them.
 "Mr. Dale did you make a statement to the police
yet?"

"No," he says looking at his wife, "we didn't see
anything."

"They will still want a statement," Scully informs the
couple.

Mr. Dale takes his wife by the elbow.  "I'll stop off
at a police station on our way home."

"That will do just fine, and Everett and Opal thanks
once again for taking care of Katherine."

"It was our pleasure," Opal assures Scully.  "And I
hope Agent Mulder gets better."

"I'm sure he will," Scully says as she hugs her son to
her.

The Dales disappear into the elevator.

"Have you seen Fox yet?" Maggie asks her daughter.

"Just in recovery, I was about to go in when the
Dale's arrived with Katherine."

Scully walks to the nurse's desk.  "May I use the
phone?  I need to let my boss know that my daughter
has been returned."

Scully places her call to Skinner knowing full well
that the Gunmen will get the news through the police
frequencies that they monitor.

--

The door to Fox Mulder's room is slowly opened. 
Mulder looks over to see the bright faces of his two
children.  He sits up slightly as the two tots
tentatively approach his bed.  "Hey guys, what are you
two doing here?" He rasps out.

"We wanna come see you," William softly says causing
Mulder's face to break out in a huge grin.

"Where's mom?"  He croaks out as Katherine grabs the
metal railing on the bed and peeks in at her father.

"I'm right here," Scully beams as she enters the room
followed by her mom.

Mulder puts his hand through the railing and runs his
fingers through Katherine's soft, brown curls.

Scully instinctively offers him a drink that he
readily accepts.

"Ah wanna a dwink too!" William pipes up as Katherine
puts out her hand also wanting a drink.  Mulder
chuckles and lays his head back down on the pillow.

Maggie steps up.  "How about Will, Katherine and I go
to the cafeteria for some juice?"

"Yeah!" Will quickly agrees while Katherine watches
her brother in confused silence.

Maggie picks up the baby.  "We'll be back soon, I'm
sure you two have a lot to talk about."

Mulder frowns, "What'd she mean by that?"

Scully lowers the rail and takes Mulder's hand.  "She
means you need to just get better."  She brushes back
Mulder's hair, something he finds settling and
soothing.  He begins to flag and soon falls asleep. 

Scully sits down in a chair next to his bed; a nurse
comes in and lifts the blanket from the foot of the
bed.  "I'm just checking his circulation," she smiles.

"I know, I'm a medical doctor," Scully says then gets
up from the chair.  "Do you think I could see his
charts?"
 
"I don't see why not, but it would be better if you
cleared it with the head nurse."

"Thank you, I'll do that."

Scully is reading Mulder's chart at the nurses'
station when Skinner and the Gunman step off the
elevator.

"Did you all ride together?" Scully asks with a smile.

The Gunman all look at Skinner and he looks back at
them then everyone answers, "Of course not!"  Scully
laughs and lays the chart down.

"Where did they find Katherine?"  Byers asks first.

Scully pushes her hair back behind her ear and walks
over to the bag of clothing Will had struggled with
earlier.  She grabs it and turns to face the guys. 
"It seems when Mulder heard what was going on in the
kitchen he asked an elderly couple at a nearby table
to keep an eye on Katherine for him, but when the
shooting started the couple fled the restaurant and
took Katherine with them.  When they saw Mulder's
picture on the news they brought her here hoping to
find her family."

"Aw that was nice," Byers says.

"Bet you were scared shitless," Langley adds.

"Watch it Langley, we are in a hospital," Frohike
reprimands.

"How's Mulder?"  Skinner asks.

Scully looks back over her shoulder at her partner's
room.  "He came through the surgery fine.  He's
sleeping now."  She looks at the quartette assembled
before her.  "Would one of you mind sitting with him
while I go change clothes."

"I'd rather go with you," Frohike leers while
everyone, including Skinner, groans.

--

Scully has changed her clothes and ran a comb through
her hair; she had to laugh when she found her pajama
top in the bottom of the bag; it had to be the work of
her son.

She slowly opens the door to Mulder's room and is
surprised to find not only Skinner but also the
Gunman, her mom and William and Katherine.  The adults
are all quietly watching Mulder sleep.  If it hadn't
been such a serious occasion Scully would have laughed
out loud.

A nurse comes in to check on Mulder and is stunned by
the number of visitors the agent has in his room. 
"What's going on here?"  She softly barks out.  "About
ninety percent of you need to leave.  This man has
just had surgery and needs time to recuperate."

Skinner and the Gunman look contrite while Katherine
and William are having fun under the bed.  "I'll check
back in the morning Scully," Skinner softly says as he
starts to leave the room.

"We really should be going too," Byers says.

"Yeah, we have a big case we're working on," Langley
adds.

"What big case is that?" Byers questions.

"Will you two just come on," Frohike says but not
before giving Scully the once over and adding, "Nice
threads."

Maggie walks over and kisses her daughter.  "Dana, I
should be going too.  Do you want me to keep the kids
tonight?"

"No," Scully answers.  "We won't stay long and tonight
I want them with me."

"I understand," Maggie smiles and leaves the room.

"Sorry 'bout that," the nurse apologizes.

"Don't worry about it, it's in Mulder's best
interest."

The nurse runs through all the routine tests and
checkups, recording each finding as she does, while
Scully makes William and Katherine come out from under
the bed.  "Come on you two, we need to tell your dad
goodbye and go home."

The nurse leaves the room and Scully finally has the
kids out from under the bed.  She is brushing the dust
bunnies off William's shorts when Mulder speaks. 
"Scully, don't go yet," he softly says.

Scully's head jerks up. "Mulder, you're awake?"

"I've been awake but didn't feel like facing that
crowd, although I do want you to remind me to kick
Frohike's ass when I'm up and around."

Scully laughs as she lifts Katherine up then says, "Oh
no, I hope I can find a diaper around here somewhere."
 She starts to leave the room when Mulder calls her
back.  "Scully, can you set Will up here next to me?"

She pauses for a moment to consider Mulder's request. 
"Okay, but William you mustn't move around, your dad
is sore and you might hurt him.

"He'll be fine," Mulder assures her as she lifts
William up to sit next to his father.  "I'll be right
back," Scully tells the two men in her life as she
carries the baby out of the room.

William looks over at his dad and softly says, "Hi."

Mulder grins at him.  "Hi, how was the zoo?"

"Fine."  William isn't quite sure what to say.

"Did you see the lions?"

"Yup, an' da tigors too.  Did you bake yor ahm?"

"No Will, I didn't break my arm like you did."

Will runs his finger over the IV tube that runs from
the drip bag.  "Does dat hewt?"

"No, not really."

"Oh," Will replies.  "Did you bake yor foot?"

"No Will, not like your sister did."

"Oh," Will says.

"A man shot me in the leg," Mulder confesses.

"Wuz he a mean man?"

"Yes he was a very, mean man."

"Oh," Will replies as Mulder smiles at him.  "Kno'
wha'?"  William asks as he twists his fingers up in
the hem of his shirt.

"What?"  Mulder asks.

"Pee-ie gots to pet a s'ake at da zoo!"

"He did!"

"Yup," Will says wide-eyed then frowns.  "Ah did wan'
a pet it!"

"Why not?"  Mulder questions

"It migh' bite me!"  Will exclaims.

"I don't think they would let Petie pet a snake that
would bite him."

"Da s'ake had a fu-ee lil' tongue!"  Will and Mulder
both laugh and yawn. 

--

Scully returns to find both Mulder and William fast
asleep,  "Great, now how am I going to get him out of
here with Katherine to carry?"  She mumbles.

--

The hospital doors open and out steps Scully carrying
William while a nurse trails behind her pushing
Katherine in a wheelchair, something the baby seems to
enjoy.

The ride home is a quiet one, both kids are asleep and
all Scully wants to do is crawl into her own bed
although she does regret Mulder won't be sharing it
with her tonight.

She wheels the SUV into the driveway and on into the
garage then turns off the vehicle and shuts the door. 
She tiredly crawls out and opens the side door,
quickly unbuckling Katherine and taking her into the
family room where she lays the baby down in the
playpen then William is the next one brought in.  She
lays him on the couch then locks the door to the
garage, checks the alarm system, and turns on the
stairway light.  She carries William upstairs and lays
him on her bed then returns for Katherine. 

She strips both kids down to their underwear and puts
a pull up on Will as she usually does at night. 
Neither kids wakes up so she pulls back the blanket
and sheet and lays each child down then covers them
up.  William curls up into the little ball that he
always sleeps in while Katherine mimics her father and
sprawls all over the bed.  She stares down at two of
the loves in her life and thinks of another one lying
in a hospital bed across town.  She walks over and
adjusts the thermostat before quickly shedding her
clothing before heading to the bathroom to grab a
shower.

She finishes towel drying her hair as she shuts off
the bathroom lights and stops in her tracks unsure why
she put her children in her bed.  She slowly shakes
her head as a smile crosses her face.  She picks up
the phone and rings the night nurse to check on Mulder
before sliding into bed with her kids.

--

Scully is lying in bed still unconscious with sleep
when she feels something on her face and one of her
eyes being pried open.  She brushes it away, but once
again her eye is being pried open.  She finally comes
to and finds a set of big, blue eyes just inches from
her face.  William is sitting beside her with
Katherine sitting next to him.  A grin covers his face
when he realizes his mother is awake.  "Ah hun-gee
mom," he announces.

Scully moans and sits up on her elbows.  "What time is
it?"  She croaks out then looks over at the clock. 
Her eyes widen. "9:30!  It can't be, I can see why you
two are hungry."  She gets out of bed and directs Will
to use the potty while she changes Katherine.  

The kids are quickly dressed then the front doorbell
rings.  "Ah get it!"  William screams and takes off
out of the room before Scully can grab him.

"William, don't you open that door until I see who's
there!"  Scully yells as she scoops up Katherine and
trails after her son.

William looks out the panel window next to the door
and turns back.  "Is gumma!"  He yells over his
shoulder.

Scully is finally in the foyer and lets her mom in. 
"Hi mom, you're just who I need."

"I called earlier but there was no answer so I came
over to work on the carpet."
"The carpet?"  Scully frowns.

"The one in the family room," Maggie replies then
smiles. "You haven't seen it yet?"

"No," Scully says as she turns on her heels to go
check out the carpet.

"I figured you would be too busy with Fox today and I
was going to try to get the.."

Scully stops at the entrance to the family room and
sets Katherine down on her feet.  She slowly looks
over the huge black spot on her cream colored carpet. 
"My carpet!" She exclaims then groans, "And where is
my plant."  Finally all the puzzle pieces fall into
place and she looks at her daughter.  "Katherine, you
have been in my plants again, haven't you?"

The baby merely walks to the empty planter and looks
in.  Maggie covers her mouth with her hand and tries
not to laugh then looks over at her daughter.  "Dana,
why aren't you dressed yet?"

"Crap!" Scully replies as she looks down at herself.

"Mom, Ah hun-gee!"  William once again announces as he
tugs on his mother's nightshirt.

Maggie side steps the worst of the dirty patches and
picks up Katherine.  "Honey, you go get dressed, I'll
feed these two then we can all go see Fox."

"Okay but injured or not he's got some explaining to
do," Scully huffs as she leaves the room.

"I'm sure he does," Maggie mumbles as she leads Will
into the kitchen.

--

One hour later Scully can be seen carrying Katherine
off the elevator on Mulder's floor followed by Maggie
and William who has decided he would rather hop than
walk.  "William, if you don't hurry up you're going to
be left behind," Scully warns.

"Ah comin'," Will grouches.

Scully stops at the nurse's station, "I'm here for Fox
Mulder, can you tell me how his night was?"

The day nurse looks up from her paper work, "And you
are?"

Scully is ready to snap her head off after years of
practicing on other unsuspecting health care workers
then it dawns on her the woman hasn't met her yet. 
"I'm his wife, Dana," she calmly answers.

The nurse smiles back at her.  "He did just fine."

Scully frowns.  "This is Fox Mulder we're talking
about right?"

"Yes," the nurse replies.  "Why?"

"Because he rarely has fine nights in the hospital,
usually by this time the staff has his bags packed and
sitting outside his door."

The nurse laughs.  "I assure you he did just fine.  He
finished his breakfast and I'm sure he would like to
see you."

"Thank you," Scully says as she sets Katherine down
and takes her by the hand.

Mulder is sitting up in bed, free from all the IV's
and monitors, he looks up and smiles.  "My four
favorite people," he says making Maggie day.

"Hi da-dee!" William yells as he runs around the bed. 
"Ah wanna sit wiff you."

"Tell mom to lift you up here."  Scully lifts Will up
and sets him down beside Mulder then Katherine toddles
over and puts up her hands.

"Talk about spoiled," Scully gripes as she puts the
baby in bed with her father.

"They are not!" Mulder defends.

"I was talking about you," Scully jokes.

Maggie watches the interplay going on between her
daughter and her son-in-law with great joy.

Mulder places his arm over his kid's heads, "Scully,
the doc thinks they'll spring me today."

"I don't know Mulder, you can't climb the stairs to go
to bed."

"I can sleep on my couch, I did for years, and there
is a bathroom just off the office and the kitchen is
down the hall.  I've got everything every man needs,"
he grins.

"Well, we'll see."

Mulder looks over at Maggie.  "Was she always this
hard-headed?"

"Oh no, you're not dragging me into this," Maggie
laughs.

Mulder looks down at his two namesakes.  William is
playing with the TV remote while Katherine is
entertaining herself looking at the plastic hospital
bracelet on her father's wrist.

"How's the leg?"  Scully asks.

"Better, the pain meds help."

"So you feel up to talking?"

"I guess so, there isn't much to tell really."

"Oh I think you've got lots to tell me."

Mulder is confused by Scully's statement.  He looks at
Maggie who has the beginnings of a smile crossing her
face.

"Well," Mulder stammers, "what do you want to know?"

Scully pauses for a moment as if she's deep in thought
then says, "How did Katherine get dirt all over the
family room floor?"

"Ohh," Mulder groans as he plops his head back down on
the pillow shutting his eyes.  "Scully suddenly I
don't feel so good.  I think I need to spend a few
more days or weeks in hospital."

Scully huffs out a laugh and shakes her head.  "No you
don't, I want you home with me, and William, and our
little plant killer."


                          ~ The End ~ 
                     
                     (But to be continued)