From: "C. Charlotte" Date: 04 Aug 2000 20:18:09 GMT Subject: NEW: Deadly Deception (X-Men/X-Files crossover) Part 1 Deadly Deception By C. Charlotte and Jennifer G. Mulder6758@aol.com and Scully0918@aol.com Disclaimer: Mulder, Scully and all other regularly appearing characters belong to Chris Carter, 1013 Productions and Fox. All regular X-Men characters belong to Fox as well. We claim them not. Distribution: Anywhere, everywhere and Gossamer. Just keep our names and email addresses attached and drop us a link so we know where it's at. Feedback: Yes Please! It will be happily accepted at either Scully0918@aol.com or Mulder6758@aol.com with fanfare and fireworks. Rating: PG13 Keywords: X-Files/X-Men crossover, MSR Spoilers: Well, the show in general. However Reqiuem just doesn't factor in here. Summary: Appearance is deceiving, and can lead to a heck of a lot of problems that just don't have the easiest solutions. <><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><> I'm on my way to the office, figuratively speaking. Of course, if I were literally speaking, the car would be moving. But I've been stuck in this traffic jam for the past half hour, and the freeway is a parking lot. I'm getting frustrated. My jaw is involuntarily clenching and unclenching, as are my fists. So I figure that I should focus my attention elsewhere. I mean, it's not like my eyes will have much of a job watching the road. I look over at the red Lexus parked next to me and watch the driver. He's not looking at me right now, so I guess he feels it's safe to be digging for gold in the two caverns formed by genetics in his face. Yes, he's picking his nose. But that's not the worst of it, oh no. He's rolling the product up and flicking it, too. Oh, that's attractive. It's the most attractive thing I've seen all day, and that's not saying much. I woke up this morning and looked in the mirror, and to tell you the truth, I nearly shrieked. I almost didn't recognize the creature staring back at me. I guess you'll have to forgive me. I'm not usually this sarcastic. But I'm stuck in a traffic jam, nothing is moving, at least not traffic-wise, and I'm only heading to the office to hear my partner tell me some outrageous story about a homicidal king midas-wannabe midget from Nowhere, Mississippi. I look away from the Lexus and realize that I must have been in my reverie far longer than I thought I was, because my ears tune in to the distant sound of beeping horns and glares of fellow drivers. I press on the gas and am at work within the next five minutes. Mulder, of course, is happy to see me. He always is, and I'm not sure why. Not like I'm not happy to see him, but still... He looks up from his desk and smiles at me. "Good morning." I mutter, his grin only becomes wider. "What?" I ask, instantly suspicious. "We have an appointment tonight." He says simply. "With who? Skinner?" "No...I'm not sure who we're supposed to meet." "So...when is this so-called appointment?" "Midnight tonight. Meet me at the corner of Lexington and Concord at midnight." "Be there or be square." I mutter with a grin forming. I don't know how he does it, but he always seems to cheer me up. <><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><> Midnight in the garden of good and evil. Or rather, midnight on the corner of Lexington and Concord. Either way, good and evil is certainly around, and the face of my watch is registering in at about two minutes from midnight. Another prostitute walks by and glances over in my general direction, her eyes speaking volumes that her bloodred lips don't. God, that's a scary thought. Someone else is wearing the bloodred color lipstick that only Scully should be able to wear. It looks hideous on anyone else. And finally the good in this garden of evil pulls up. Parking her car as far as she can from the strip club, she gets out and wraps her trenchcoat tightly around her body as the wind threatens to dislodge it from her. "Really, Mulder." Scully shivers, her teeth chattering. "Did your `informant' have to pick such a cold night to meet on?" "I'm warm." I offer in my usual dry innuendo tone. "And willing to share my heat..." Her eyes roll at me and she glances down the street, obviously hoping that our mysterious guest will arrive soon. Promptly at midnight, a car as black as the sky pulls up to the curb and turns its lights off. A few seconds later and a tall, older man steps from the car and onto the sidewalk directly across from us. "Agents Mulder and Scully?" he asks in a very low, very secretive tone. Scully nods and we both start walking down the road. "I'm Magneto. I'm also the man who asked you to meet with me. I'm the head of an organization that has set out to integrate a series of people, mutants we'll call them for the time being, into the general populous." "Mutants?" Scully asks in her usual unbelieving tone. "Yes." the man replies, his slate grey eyes looking directly into her own cornflower blue orbs. Almost as if he is analyzing the DNA that makes up her stature frame. "An evolutionary advance. Through spontaneous mutations these people have found they have `powers', in a sense of the word, that others fail to possess. Telepathy, telekinesis and in some cases, ultra quick healing." "Why did you summon us?" I ask, already aware of the answer. "Because of your connection with something I believe is called the X-Files. You've seen this type of thing before, although probably never to this extent." "That doesn't explain your coming to us." the female half of my partnership interrupts. "We're federal agents, not practicing scientists." This man, Magneto, gives off a deep, potentially evil sounding laugh and gathers a breath. "Yes, Yes, I know. I have scientists, it is agents like yourself that I need. Another man, with powers similar to my own, wants to destroy the non-mutated human race, rather than try to integrate the races together. He wants to wipe out people like yourselves and create a Homo superior, so to speak. His name is Charles Xavier and I need your help to stop him." <><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><> Charles Xavier. Unbelievable. First mutants, then a man with a last name that begins with x. I shake my head and sigh, beginning to walk away. I feel a hand on my shoulder and I turn my head, staring directly into the cold eyes of Magneto. I don't know what it is about this man, but he unnerves me. I'm so uncomfortable with him that it borders on unreasonable. I gaze into his eyes and try to square my jaw as a sign of defiance. He squeezes my shoulder and I gasp. He lets go, but maintains his gaze. "Please, Agent Scully. We need you. *I* need you. Please help us integrate." He nearly growls. Mulder looks confused, as though he's not sure if he should assist me or not. Instead, he just saunters over and invades my personal space as usual. I guess that's his way of helping me. "Sir...I'm all for integration. Trust me, I grew up in a very tumultuous period of history, where people didn't understand that it was okay for others to be different. I would *like* to help you. But," I sigh, "I'm sorry. This is just too unbelievable. A mutated race? Granted, Sir, it's possible. Eugenics was practiced during the second world war to create a master race. But why would anyone in their right mind want to purposely create a supreme race with special powers? There is no logical reason, and so I find it difficult to assist you." "That's a very touching speech, Agent Scully. But you're missing the point completely." "And what is the point?" I ask, my eyes burning fire at the man. I'm not sure why, call it woman's intuition or whatever you want to, but I sincerely do not like this man. Mulder doesn't seem to notice. "You'll find out once you and your partner join us." "I'm sorry, Mr. Magneto. I can't help you. I can't speak for my partner, but I cannot be involved." I start walking away, only to have my shoulder grabbed again. "And if you grab my shoulder one more time, Mr..." He spins me around to face him and stares deep into my eyes. I immediately shut my mouth and everything becomes still. Finally, he lets me go, and I glare at him again, then walk to my car and slam the door. Mulder stands there for a few additional minutes, then walks calmly to his car and climbs in the driver's seat. I can't help thinking I may never know what exchange of words took place. All that I know is that I saw the smoke coming from Mulder's back tires as he sped away. Being the curious partner, I decided I'd follow him. <><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><> Deadly Deception (XMen/XFiles) Part 2 Anyone who has the audacity to lay a hand on my partner is not worth helping. And considering that it wasn't even a friendly hand, this Magneto person is lucky I didn't feel the need to ram my fist down his throat. From the very first minutes, it was obvious that this man wasn't worth even getting involved with, let alone helping. From his eyes to the way he simply talked, he seems more evil than he does good. Which leads me to wonder who Charles Xavier really is. Shifting my eyes back to the road, I notice a car tailing me. My first thoughts would obviously be, am I being followed by Magneto or one of his mutants? But upon closer examination, I realize it's Scully. I stick my head out the window and flag her over to the side of the road. I climb out of my car quickly and jog back to her own. "Something wrong?" I ask. "No." she whispers, seemingly embarrassed that I caught her following me. "Actually yes. This Magneto person...we're not going to help him, are we?" "I don't think so. The person he mentioned, Charles Xavier-" "Seems like we should be helping this other person." she finishes for me. I nod and lean against the frame of her car, studying her. I do that a lot but for some reason I'm not just looking at her for the sake of looking at her tonight. I'm studying her and wondering if she could have any of those powers that Magneto mentioned. She's a powerful enough woman in her own right without needing to have anything else to supplement that. I guess I just wonder sometimes. And the way we have of silently talking, it seemed only natural that perhaps it could be some form of mild telepathy. But I do have a point to these ramblings! And that would be: what if Magneto really came to us because he's the evil factor in this equation, and he needs our help to try to triumph over Charles Xavier? Nah, too weird. <><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><> This whole situation is weird. We receive a call to meet an informant, meet him, and then decide we don't like him much, so we help his enemy? I'm sorry...but this doesn't follow any path of logic that I've ever taken. And Mulder has taken some pretty ridiculous leaps of faith in the past, but I must say that... Well, I guess I understand where he's going with this. But I wish I knew where *I* was going with this. It seems that since we met up with Magneto, I haven't been able to think straight. That man terrified me. Flustered me. And I can only imagine the effect he had on Mulder. But Mulder never has been really exceptional at showing his feelings, so that's exactly what I bet I'll be doing: imagining. I look over my shoulder at Mulder and smile. He's been staring at me for about thirty seconds now, and I'm not sure why. So, my natural reaction is to smile at him. "Is everything okay?" I say softly. I've been feeling weird vibes off of him since this morning. And I would hesitate to even call them "vibes", but that's the only way that I really know how to describe them. A look crosses his face that lets me know that I've snapped him out of his daydream, and I'm sure he's blushing, though I can't see it in the darkness. "Fine. Everything's fine." Mulder clears his throat and stands upright again. "See you tomorrow?" "You bet. 7:30, Mulder, unless the freeway is backed up again." I mutter back. Mulder walks slowly back to his car and drives off, this time only giving me notice of his departure by the red glow of his tail lights. I sigh, turn on the ignition and step on the gas, making my way to my own apartment. Geez...could this get any weirder? It's not every day an evil man calls you to meet him. And we're only assuming he's evil. You know what they say about assuming, right? <><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><> My mind is muddled. I know that much to be true at the given time. It's 4:30 in the morning and someone is knocking very loudly on my door. With a groan, I pull myself off of the couch and grope the wall for the light switch. Upon not finding it, I venture my way to the door, hitting numerous items on the way. But eventually I get there and fumble with the handle, finally unlocking it and swinging the door open. It's only then I realize that I must look pretty funny. From the backdraft, I think my boxers are pretty far down....and my hair is probably standing straight up. It always does that. I squint in the light and make up the form of Scully, bundled up in what appears to be her thickest trenchcoat. "It's 4:30, Scully." I grumble. "Work doesn't start until 7:30..." "I know. I'm apologizing in advance." It isn't until I hear her voice, that I also notice the tear tracks on her cheeks. "What's wrong?" I ask as I pull her into my apartment and shut the door behind me, flicking the lock and leaning against the wood. "It's irrational, but that guy really scared me." "Magneto?" She nods. "It's like he played with my mind. There are whole parts of our conversation with him that I don't remember ever having." I crack a grin. "We're getting old, Scully. There's nothing unusual about forgetting parts of conversations." "Mulder, please." she begs. "He played with me. He purposely worked me up." "I think you're throwing this a little bit out of proportion." I murmur. Magneto *was* creepy but I don't distinctly remember him really playing with our memories. But there's something about Scully's tone of voice that's leading me to take her seriously. She doesn't get scared easily and right now, she's certainly feeling those feelings. "Didn't you see his eyes?" she beseeches. "It was like they were dead inside." She shudders and I have to fight back the urge to wrap my arms around her and hide her away from the world. "Why don't you spend the rest of the night here?" Yeah, all three hours. "No, I'm sorry Mulder. I didn't mean to freak you out and I certainly didn't want to wake you up. I figured you wouldn't be sleeping. Maybe I am getting carried away." "No, there was something odd about him Scully. I just haven't figured out what it is yet. You can have the bed." I say, pushing her in the general direction of my bedroom as I lay back down on the couch. "Sweet dreams, Scully." "Night, Mulder." she answers as she shuts the door to the bedroom and from under the door I can see the light flicker off. The telltale creaks of the floorboards signify she's climbed into bed and I shut my eyes, chasing the visions of Scully in bed away. <><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><> I lie in Mulder's bed, shuddering for a while. When I finally do get a firm hold on my emotions, I take a deep breath, inhaling the lavender scent of his sheets. Who does his laundry? I must have fallen asleep, because I can't remember the next few hours. But at 7:30 on the dot, I feel hot breath on the back of my neck and awaken, startled. "Mulder?" I croak. I feel the breath come in short bursts. He's laughing. "Come on, sleepyhead. Time to investigate the crazy side of life." Mulder murmurs in his usual morning tone. He's already brushed his teeth, I make a note to myself as I catch a whiff of his breath. "Mulder, the crazy side of life is clean bed sheets in a bachelor pad." I hear him laugh under his breath and he moves away. "What were we getting up for, anyway?" "We're going to visit Charles Xavier." "But, Mulder...we don't even know his address." "That doesn't matter, Scully, maybe the Lone Gunmen do. What does matter is what Magneto told me." "And what was that?" He looks away, like he doesn't want to tell me something. "What?" "Nothing, Scully, I'll tell you later. Why don't you call the Lone Gunmen and ask for the address?" Mulder mumbles while turning around and leaving. I sit up. "Why can't you?" "Because I'm busy feeding my fish." "What a lame excuse." I say as I reach for the phone beside the bed and dial the number to the Lone Gunmen. A groggy Langley answers the phone. "This had either be important or obscene." "Langley, it's Agent Scully. Turn off the recorder, I need an address." <><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><> They're so dead. Tying a federal agent up and then shoving him in a burlap bag while they kidnap your partner is against the law!! If I strain I can hear people moving around. And it sounds like Scully is talking....talking to me!? What the hell? That other voice is definitely like mine. I give off a shriek hoping that maybe she'll hear. But it doesn't seem like she did and all I get in return is a shoe connecting with my ribs. God damn it, I don't even have a shirt on. That really smarts. Whoever's on the other side of this bag must be wearing steel-toed boots or something. Why, I ponder, is my partner talking to somehow who sounds, and I assume looks, like me? Must be Magneto I think to myself. Maybe he has some mutant under his power who can change form or something. Please, please, please, I will Scully with that aforementioned telepathy, don't go with him, or rather me. Say you don't feel well, get in an argument, something-but don't go!! A door shuts and the people outside of my current location give off a little laugh. I can no longer hear Scully's voice and my impostor seems to have left with her. Very bad sign. Deciding I'm not going to give up easily, I start to shake the bag and kick out at everything around me, shrieking on the top of my lungs and hurling insults at anyone who's listening. One of the guys swears and tightens the top of the bag, drawing out any of the oxygen that was getting in. But when I get angry I don't usually use oxygen anyway (I tend to lose touch with reality) so I keep screaming and hollering. I'm not getting anywhere though. All I've succeeded in doing is tiring out my vocal cords and receiving a few more swift kicks to the ribs and back. And suddenly, something hard cracks against the back of my skull. I can feel the coldness of whatever it is even through the material of the burlap bag. The world swims in front of me and tiny stars appear in front of my eyes, dancing and twinkling. Then the edges start to dim out and everything goes black. <><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><> Deadly Deception Part 3 Mulder's acting strangely. It's like he doesn't want to talk or something. And he's going the opposite direction from where we are supposed to be going. "Mulder, what's wrong?" I ask slowly, trying to gauge his response. "Absolutely nothing, Scully, why do you ask?" The expression on his face is strange, and it makes anxiety well up in my throat. Funny, Mulder has never made me feel this nervous before. I've always been completely comfortable around him, no matter what. Unless... I wait for the next stop light to turn red, but no such luck. I pray for the second one to turn red, but that doesn't happen. The third, however, is a different story, and I find myself struggling with my seatbelt as the car pulls to a halt. Mulder notices. "Scully, what are you doing?" He grabs my arm and I start panicking. Sure, I have my gun on me, but I can't reach it. "Let go of me!" I shriek, struggling to get away. His hand leaves my arm and I throw open my door, my seatbelt finally releasing it's hold on me. I run as fast as I can, but while I reach for my gun, it falls out of my holster after I unsnap it and clatters to the pavement. I reach down to get it, but I trip and fall to my knees. I crawl toward my gun, hoping I can reach it. Just before my hand touches the handle, it is picked up off the ground by a masculine hand. I follow the gun on it's journey up with my eyes. I'm shocked to see Mulder standing there, morphing into a woman. I try to scramble up, but with limited success. I get myself into a kneeling position and watch as this leather-clad woman raises my gun above her head. I gasp, my mouth agape, as I realize what is about to happen. The gun comes down and I hear a sickening crack as the gun makes contact with my skull. The pain is unbearable for a second, and then all turns black. <><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><> Ugh. The one thing worse than a hangover is regaining consciousness after being hit on the head. Concussions really aren't much fun. My eyes feel like they're glued together and I really have to fight to pry the lashes apart. When I have I almost wish I didn't. Where I am is not where I was. Well, at least not where I was before being conked on the back of the head. And everything comes rushing back in a flood. Scully being, in some sense, kidnapped by someone who sounded exactly like me. I jump up and an alarm starts shrieking. My eyes wide I look around the room, noticing for the first time that I'm hooked up to a bunch of machines that look mysteriously like hospital equipment. The next thought that runs through my head is I'm not wearing anything besides boxers. Oh yes, I remember, that's all I was kidnapped in. The door swings open and two people enter the room, one of them a dignified older man in a wheelchair with a shiny head that looks curiously like Skinner's. The other person with the man is a female, about Scully's age, and from the lab coat she's wearing I'm guessing she's the doctor in this here lab. I just really hope I'm not the lab rat for any mutant morphing experiments... "Ah! You're awake!" the woman exclaims, smiling and revealing a line of pearly white teeth. Perfectly, straight white teeth. She walks over and starts removing various lines from my body and flipping off the machines that were causing the alarm. God bless the woman for destroying the hideous sound. Hey, if she's nice enough to kill the racket, these must be the good guys, right? "Agent Mulder." the older man says, drawing my attention back to him as I dress in the clothes I am provided. "My female friend standing beside you is Dr. Jean Grey. She runs this part of my school." "Who are you?" I ask tentatively. "Professor Charles Xavier." <><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><> First come the sensations. The terrible pain pulsating through my head every time my terrified heart beats, which, nowadays, is about a million times a minute. Alright, time to assess the damage, I tell myself. I try to feel around my head, but my hands are tied in front of me to a pole. I maneuver my body so that I can just barely touch the area in the back of my head that hurts the most. I nearly scream in pain, being careful to keep my eyes shut. I feel an itch by my earlobe and I touch it gingerly. I look at my fingertip after touching it and recognize a brown powdered substance. Dried blood. Crap. This is worse than I thought. I'm tied up, and I need immediate medical assistance. Where am I? I open my eyes just a crack, ignoring the searing pain shooting through my optic nerve. A haunting face is staring back down at me, and I look up into the metallic eyes of Magneto. "Where--" I stop suddenly, words too much for my head to take. I squeeze my eyes shut, grimacing in pain and biting my lip, nearly drawing blood. "Ah, you're awake, Agent Scully." The embodiment of evil coos. Even his gravelly cooing is too much, and I start to whimper in pain, but decide it might be wiser to keep quiet, seeing as how that hurts less. "I suppose you want to know where you are?" I'm afraid to move my head, so I just open my eyes slightly and look at him. He takes that as an affirmative response. "I can't tell you that, Agent Scully--" "Then...just...shut up." I rasp, nearly crawling out of my skin with the pain that it causes. An unnerving smile crosses his lips and I shudder involuntarily. The bastard probably can't even tell me where Mulder is. Magneto suddenly becomes very angry and rises from his seat in front of me. He rushes over to me and grabs my bottom jaw in the crook of his hand, squeezing hard, causing so much pain that I nearly pass out. I taste the sour bile rising in the back of my throat and I struggle to keep everything down. Tossing my cookies is not something that will prove beneficial to my head. "Listen to me, MISS Scully...*I* have supreme power here, and you will do as I say, or you will die. You will help me, and it really is of no concern whether you want to or not. I have a team of scientists that need you. They're testing out new gene...therapies." He spits in my face, his words harsh and each one causing stars to appear in front of my eyes. I feel hot tears sliding down my cheeks, and then it happens. My stomach spills its contents all over his arm. He savagely backhands me across the face. My head whips and my vision becomes incredibly blurred. The pain is excruciating, and I allow unconsciousness to envelop me again, my last conscious thoughts being a mental cry for Mulder or someone to help me. <><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><> I ease myself off the examination table and onto the couch. Those definitely must have been steel-toed boots. Scully would have been proud of me though, I've managed not to complain once while..... what was her name?.....while the doctor looks me over. Finally she straightens and smiles at me. "You'll be fine. None of your ribs are broken, which you can be thankful for. One is cracked, but not badly, and the pain should subside by tomorrow." I nod my understanding. "What's your name again?" "Jean Grey." "Miss Grey, can you please get someone who can tell me what the hell is going on here?" "I can do that." the man in the wheelchair replies, wheeling his way over to me and straightening his tie once he has stopped. I'd forgotten about him. I turn to him and lean back against the couch, pressing my shoulders into the material in an attempt to maybe ward off some of the pain. I don't know why. It's not like it works or anything. "As I said before, my name is Professor Charles Xavier. I run a school. On the surface it would seem like a place for gifted children but in reality it is a place to teach people with extraordinary powers how to control them." "I take it you have some of these powers?" I mutter. "Yes. We all do. Dr. Grey can manipulate items and has limited telepathy." "What do you have?" "Full telepathy. The ability to control the actions and thoughts of other people." Nifty. Finally, someone who can tell me what the hell goes on in my brain. At the moment though, it's not my brain I need to be concerned with, but my partner's. "How did you find me?" <><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><> Deadly Deception Part 4 I'm in a haze. A black haze. I wish to God that someone would help me. "Miss Scully?" I hear a nasal voice commanding my eyes to open. I very slowly open my eyes a crack, and the pain in my head returns with a vengeance. "you're going to feel a pinch..." "Please..." I rasp, barely able to form a coherent thought, "Please don't...I'm...I'm in shock..." "We need to..." "Please!" I scream, then bury my aching head between my arms, squeezing my eyes shut and gritting my teeth in an attempt to make the pain dissipate. It doesn't work. I feel a sharp jab in my arm and I scream out, my eyes flinging open just as the plunger is pushed. Green liquid descends into my arm, and with the sudden onslaught of pain, I struggle to remain conscious. The doctor turns to leave the room, and I manage to gasp out, "Please...please...do something about the pain..." The doctor just looks at me, distaste in his eyes. "Or...or something warm? Please?? I'm in shock! I'm going to die if you don't..." The doctor opens the door and walks out of the room, his response the slamming of the door against the frame. I suddenly break down and start sobbing, repeating my weak mantra over and over again: "I don't want to die...someone please help me...Mulder, please hurry..." All of a sudden, I hear a voice resounding through my head that causes me to scream outwardly. It's telling me to calm down. "I'm Charles Xavier. Can you hear me?" The voice asks. "I can feel what you're going through, Agent Scully. I'm telling Mulder that I can contact you right now. He wants to know where you are. You don't know where you are..." "Please help me, I don't know what they're injecting me with..." I whimper, tears streaming down my face as I start shivering uncontrollably. "We're trying, Agent Scully...you're becoming weaker, I need you to hold on..." The voice says, and then suddenly, a very sharp pain rips through my head and all goes black...again. <><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><> I press my shoulders harder back against the couch as my eyes concentrate on Xavier. Finally, his eyelids part and he looks at me. "I lost her." he sighs, admitting without really saying it that she's not strong enough to deal with him in her head to begin with. I sigh and close my eyes, replaying our recent conversation. "We found you by tracking Magneto. We always do that and he usually doesn't move around a lot. When we found him in a new location we followed him down but arrived a little late. One of my colleagues found you passed out in the bathroom." he had explained to me. I'm still having trouble absorbing everything into my head. And after explaining to me how he tracked this people, he had explained the possibility that he may be able to get into my partner's head and locate her. Only everything is falling apart and she's too weak to even get the signals to begin with. And probably frightened out of her mind. I lean forward and put my head in my hands, rubbing my temples harder than I really intend to. "Is there anyway you can set it up so I can talk to her?" I ask. "Maybe I can console her. She knows my voice. She may not be as frightened if she can hear someone she already knows other than plying her with new people." "I've never attempted to set up a connection to two people between myself." he answers, obviously wondering if it's possible. "Can you do it?" I ask. "I think so. I'll have to tap into both of your minds and then when you're connected, allow my own head to be kind of like a conduit, so you can talk to each other." he says, nodding as he begins to see just how the situation will work out. "But you *can* do it?" I ask again, wanting to make sure he's certain. "And it won't hurt either of us?" "No." "Okay." I sigh. "Do it." I close my eyes the moment I realize he's already in my head. Please...I pray to whatever God really exists... make this work. <><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><> I whimper in pain after being out cold for I don't know how long...but there is a new voice invading my head. Mulder? "Mulder?" I call out loud, but I'm not sure if I'm just hallucinating. My head is pounding, and it sounds like only half of the world is alive. Wait a second. I instantly start panicking. "Scully? Can you hear me?" I hear Mulder call out. "Mulder! Oh, God, help me! I need medical assistance ASAP! Blood clot of left parietal lobe! Send help!" "Scully, calm down. What happened? You've been out of commission for a while." "Mulder, I don't know where...Oh, God, it hurts!" I scream outwardly, then can feel the tears cascading down my cheeks. "Lost...hearing in right...ear...pain...oh, God, the pain! Weak...Losing...shock...in shock..." I start fading fast. "Scully? Stay with me..." "C...can't..." Everything turns black and I slump against the pole I'm tied to. <><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><> "Can we help her?" I yell frantically as soon as I feel Xavier leave my head. My eyes must be wide in terror because they feel like they're bugging out of my head. My eyes sweep over the people in the room. Jean Grey immediately turns away as does another woman with hair as white as snow. I turn back to Xavier and he looks at me for a few moments before answering. "No." It takes me a moment to realize that his lips never move and he was speaking to me in my head. The tears well up in my eyes and I bury my head in my hands again. "You guys can move objects and read people's minds but you can't arrange a little medical care for my partner?" "We're sorry." the woman with the white hair answers. That's all I can call her at the moment. I don't know her name and I don't care to find out. All of these people are pathetic. "Wait a minute..." I suddenly say, feeling an idea of my own on the rise. "If you can control thoughts and objects, can't you and Grey arrange something to get one of the doctors to help her?" I say, speaking to Xavier. "We've never tried anything like that." Grey interrupts. "Listen...." I snarl, jumping up and advancing over toward her. "I don't give a damn what you've tried and what you haven't. You people got us involved in this and I'm not going to lose her in this. Not now. And certainly not like this." The world flashes red in front of my eyes and I blink them a few times, trying to clear the color. And then suddenly I realize that Charles Xavier is back in my head. I whirl around. "Get the fuck out of my head unless you're using it to save my partner!!!" <><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><> Oh man... I wake up just as Magneto enters the room again, and, as seems to be my reaction toward him, I perform my rendition of a technicolor yawn. He frowns disapprovingly. I glare up at him, and the pain returns to my head. "Please," I swallow, "My skull is fractured, can't you see? I need help or I will die. Then your experiments will mean nothing. I am in shock, dammit!" "You've been communicating with the other side." Magneto spits, his eyes burning me. "And how would I be doing that, Jackass?" "I had one of my doctors inject you with a chemical that induces telepathy, and then allows my team to track it." "Look, instead of injecting me with drugs to induce mutations, why don't you inject me with painkillers?" I wince, closing my eyes again, the pain becoming more excruciating by the second. "That's not the point!! The point is, you have been communicating with the other side, and for that, you must pay!" He advances toward me slowly, then grabs my clammy face. I decide to give this telepathy thing a try. "Mulder, help!" I scream through my mind, and then I feel the pain as I'm punched repeatedly in the face. The blood streams down my face and drips off of my chin and pools on my chest. In a few agonizing seconds, my eyes roll into the back of my head and I've lost it all. My battle. My will. My life. <><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><> I am only getting more and more fed up. It seems that all they do is talk in circles, and talking isn't going to get Scully back. Only action is going to accomplish anything. And as if to punish me for those thoughts, I hear Scully's voice suddenly screaming in my head, loud and clear. I am so surprised by the sudden noise that I drop to my eyes and clutch my head in my hands. Fearing that perhaps I'm ill or something, Jean runs over and kneels down beside me, pressing her hand up against my forehead. Oh god, it's exactly like Scully used to do. Like Scully still *does*. No, like Scully did. And this time, it's my voice screaming in my head. Screaming in my head about why I suddenly can't feel her anymore. And deep down I know why. She's not there. She either gave up or couldn't hold out any longer. Either way she's gone and any minute now I'm going to be a quivering mass grieving over the loss of his partner. Only Xavier seems to have tuned in as well, he must have recognized that I was getting something telepathically from my partner. He touches my shoulder and I look up, tears of grief already building in my eyes. "We can save her." he whispers. "How?" I choke out. "She's gone and you're not there." "I can control one of the doctors. I'm doing that as we speak." I wipe the tears away and accept Jean's hand, rising to my feet unsteadily. Now is not the time to lose it, I berate myself silently. Xavier raises his head and stares at me, his eyes piercing my own. "I'll save her. Trust me on this." I nod and turn away, hiding my face as the tears well up once again and as I make no move to stop them. <><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><> Floating...I'm floating...and then I'm crying. I don't want to leave Mulder behind. "Shhh...it's okay, it's Charles Xavier." I hear a voice coo and I open my eyes. This man does not sound like Charles Xavier, and I let him know so. "I'm controlling the doctor so that you can get help." I notice that I'm lying down and am being kept completely still by various body braces. "Where's Mulder?" I whisper, and then I feel that I am connected to him. My telepathic voice is incredibly weak, and barely above a whisper. I don't think I can do this for long. "Mulder?" "Sc...scully?" He responds slowly, reluctantly. "Mulder, I'm okay. I'm okay. Relax, I'm okay." "You sound weak, Scully. You sound terrible. I thought--" "I know, Mulder. It'll take time, but I'll recover." I move my eyes over to the door just in time to see Magneto coming back in. "Oh, God, he's back! He's coming back to finish the job!" <><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><> Definitely terror this time. I may not be as telepathic as Xavier or even Jean Grey but I know my partner, and I know whatever is making her terrified must be a horrible, horrible thing. So help me God, if I ever get my hands on Magneto he's going to be dying. I don't care that he has special powers and could probably strike me down, anger alone will ensure I at least get my hands around his throat before my own death. "What do we do now?" I ask shakily. Xavier shakes his head and appears to think for a moment. "She's too weak for anymore telepathic activities. We're going to have to go in and physically remove her now." "Good." I snap. "Finally some physical activity. Don't get me wrong, I appreciate being able to talk to her but it's obvious she's sick, in pain, and as her partner it's my responsibility to get her out of there." "You're not going to succeed on doing that without us." a new voice says. I turn around and find myself staring at a very beautiful young girl. Her black hair is long and with one white streak running down the front of it. What is it about this place? All the women are beautiful. First you get Jean Grey who resembles Scully in almost all her mannerisms, and then we get the white haired beauty, and finally this girl who can't be a day over seventeen. For some reason that one streak is very appealing. I reach out and Grey's hand flies up, grabbing my wrist before I can get anywhere near the girl. "Don't. Her power is lethal to anyone who isn't mutated." "What is her power, exactly?" I mumble, removing my wrist from Grey's grip. "I borrow powers from mutants and sap the energy from people who don't have powers, like yourself." the girl answers. She smiles a thin smile and reaches out a gloved hand. "My name is Rogue. Pleased to meet you." I slowly reach a hand out and grasp the glove, shaking vigorously when I realize that I'm not being sapped of all my energy. "I don't hurt anyone unless they come into contact with my bare skin." she explains with a smile. I nod and open my mouth to speak again. "While we're on the subject of names...." I point to the woman with the white hair. "What's your name?" "Storm." she answers simply. Storm, what sort of name is Storm? "I manipulate the weather." Ohhh. <><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><> He's very angry. Very angry indeed. The doctor is going to die. Suddenly, the doctor becomes a blubbering idiot, and I realize that this Charles Xavier creature must have released his control of the man. Magneto raises a powerful fist to the doctor and I find the strength to shout out a protest. "DON'T!!" I yell, wincing when the pain hits the area in the back of my head where I was hit. Magneto halts and stares at me, such hatred filling his eyes that I find it hard to believe that his gaze alone hasn't killed me yet. He's on my right side, so I can't hear him moving around very well...it sounds muffled because the sound has to travel that extra distance to my left ear for me to hear it. I'm concerned about this hearing loss. It indicates a blood clot, and, chances are, the blood clot is growing and will apply pressure to my brain, killing me. I can only hope that I'm found before that. If I'm ever found. Magneto tosses the poor doctor and saunters over to me. I watch him carefully with my eyes, not being able to move my head. I try to call out telepathically, but I cannot connect. I'm too weak, and it's taking too much energy to even attempt to stay awake. Magneto reaches over and grabs an anesthesia mask. Doesn't he know he could kill me like that? It is very potentially lethal to knock someone out who has a very serious head injury. Of course he knows that. That's why he's doing it. He places the mask over my face, and I try not to breathe. "No! NOOO!" I yell, but it comes out as a whisper. The last scream that pealed from my lungs spent most of my strength. I inhale after ten seconds because the pain in my head is becoming more than excruciating due to holding my breath. My peripheral vision almost instantly becomes foggy, and the last thing I make out before I close my eyes is Magneto grinning at me, holding up a scalpel. With my last ounce of strength, I send out my most simple, yet most urgent, and, oddly, my most weak-sounding telepathic message: "Help..." <><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><> Deadly Deception Part 5 The more I fidget, the man the guy next to me seems to get angry. Upon the news of our arrival, two more, and new to me, X-Men joined our team. One, as he explained to me, was named Cyclops because of his ability to laser through things with his eyes. Which also explains why he keeps a visor on at all times... The other is sitting next to me. All he had bothered to tell me was his name was Wolverine. He hadn't mentioned his power. I shift in my seat once more and a growl builds in the back of his throat. I glance at him and yelp in surprise to see that his fingers are now lethal looking metal claws. Storm whirls around and her eyes flash for a second when she realizes that Wolverine is going to try to skewer me on his claw thingies. She quickly snaps at him and his claws retract, leaving normal human fingers in their place. I sigh in relief and face forward in the seat, vowing to myself not to move for the rest of the ride to Magneto's haunt. The rest of the ride proves smooth and within ten minutes, we arrive at a dark, manor. Similar to the school that Xavier runs, but in some evil way. We all pile out and construct a loose plan. Cyclops, Wolverine and I will go after Scully. Jean Grey and Storm will provide the distractions to take out Magneto's guards. The one problem we are left with is the fact that the evil man himself will probably be guarding Scully. "Mulder...." Cyclops snaps, drawing me back to reality. "When we do inevitably confront Magneto, you get Scully. Wolverine and I will take care of him. You're not going to be strong enough to defeat him." I nod my understanding and look around the building, using the techniques I learned through the FBI to look for any structural weaknesses that could be used against our enemies. Not a damn one. Regardless, it's time to go kick some mutant ass. <><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><> I can't think clearly. That could, of course, be because I'm *unconscious*. I can't make any telepathic connections. My modem's out. I'm way too weak, tired, and out of it to attempt anything. I hope that Mulder or *someone* comes to help me soon. I feel like I'm slipping away. My breathing is retarded to an unnatural pace. I'm still strapped in to the bed, and I still have an entire body brace. All I know is, I must have had the crap kicked out of me to deserve braces this extensive. When I was awake, I couldn't move a muscle. My head was stabilized in a brace, and the doctor had taken care to explain to me that it was because I had a severe skull fracture. He took an MRI and CAT scan, and both had shown that I have a blood clot pressing against my left parietal lobe. I suspected as much, so now I'm thanking God that I had warned Mulder about that before. I feel no pain, no discomfort, only fear. My breathing continues to slow, but I have no concept of time, so I'm uncertain as to the rate at which I'm taking each breath. I can only imagine what Magneto is planning on doing to me with his scalpel. He's probably implanting some kind of mutation device. But I don't want to be a mutant. I want to be healthy, happy, and out of here. And I want to be with Mulder, enveloped in his arms. He always manages to keep me warm like that. I wonder how long it's going to take me to wake up? Certainly not minutes. Not second. Probably not even hours. I'll probably be asleep for days if I don't die. <><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><> The door flies open and Cyclops moves ahead of me, motioning Wolverine and I inside after attaining that the coast is clear. His claws out and on the ready, Wolverine slips in ahead of me and holds the door as I cock my gun and hold it out in front of me, sweeping the next corridor before nodding to the guys to follow. The last time we saw the girls, they had been standing guard, talking to each other in a quiet tone while waiting for the inevitable danger that should follow. So far we have run into no one. Which is frightening in itself. We have succeeded in locating the lab and I peek in each door as I pass, looking for the telltale signs of my partner. Red hair, short frame. Seven or eight doors pass before I finally peek in a window and give out a cry of pleasure. But the door doesn't budge and I'm forced to shoot the lock off to get to my partner. We all tumble in and come face to face with Magneto and a handful of doctors. Memory flashes through my head, and I briefly recall the fact that I'm not supposed to face him. But from the corner of my eye I can see Scully's condition and anger flashes through my brain. Screw being safe, the bastard deserves whatever I can give him. I lunge at him and manage to push him against a wall, shoving my gun into his gut as Wolverine and Cyclops remove the doctors and cuff them, grumbling about how I've disobeyed orders. Magneto grins at me evilly, and I can feel the gun move slightly. Before I can react I feel it clatter out of my hand. Resorting to physical strength, I punch him solidly across the face and in the gut, reaching down to pick up the gun... Only he knows what he's doing and he's faster than I am. Just as my right hand closes around the cold metal, I feel his foot crush down on my fingers. Yelling in pain, I pull the gun up and fire two rounds into his chest, watching him slump down against the wall before dropping the gun and grabbing my fingers in pain. White hot shots lance through my body and from the lovely blue three of my digits are turning, I'm guessing they're broken. I turn my head and forget about the pain as soon as Scully's view comes back into my vision. I quickly run across the room and cup her cheek, calling back to Wolverine and Cyclops to get some medical help. <><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><> I don't know what the bastard has done to me, I don't know my condition, and I don't know if I'm ever going to get out of this deep sleep that has been induced upon me. He gave me an overdose. Of that I'm certain. Sounds are far away if I can hear anything, and anything that I think I can hear can easily be confused with a dream. They say hearing is the last thing to go when a person dies. I swear that somewhere in the back of my mind I hear Mulder. I want to respond, but I'm practically comatose right now. My last memories being those of Magneto holding a scalpel over me, I'm not sure what to expect when I wake up. If I wake up. Mulder wants me to come back. I can't. I don't know how, and in the depths of my mind I can hear the gentle notes of "Return To Me" being played. This is the theme song of my life. I wonder if people hear the theme songs of their lives before they die, or if it is pre-selected when you are living. Because from what I can tell, I am living right now. I am definitely living, though just by a thread. My heartrate is dangerously slow, my blood pressure is dropping and, since I have no sense of time at the moment, I believe that my respirations have been about three a minute, as opposed to the normal 12. I know that I have counted three breaths in a very long period of time. Only three breaths. I feel slight warmth against my cheek, but that doesn't help to rouse me. I don't think I can be roused. But I know one thing I can do: I can fight. And that is exactly what I intend to do. <><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><> I press my hand against her cheek. "C'mon, Scully. I broke three fingers to get you out of here, and I'd do it all over again, but I need you to open your eyes..." No response. Anger and fear pushes up against the back of my throat but I shove them down, standing aside and shouting orders at the paramedics as they handle my partner. I look over at Cyclops and he shakes his head. `Don't even say it.' he seems to warn me. `Don't mention the underground lab or facility, not here and not now.' Magneto remains slumped against one of the side walls, gasping for his last breaths. Several hours later I am sitting in the same room this whole adventure started, machines beeping slowly in the background while I contemplate just how this whole situation went to Hell. When nothing comes, I drop my head down into my hands and lean it against the edge of Scully's bed. A door opens and I don't bother looking up, recognizing who the person is by the footfalls. Sure, steady. Knows his or her way around the lab. Without a doubt it is Jean Grey. She lays a soft hand on my shoulder and I look up at that, almost expecting it to be Scully and not the pretty medical mutant. I blink my eyes a few times to wash the image of Scully standing where Grey is away. She's like her in a lot of mannerisms, which I know I already mentioned. "She's doing better." she offers to me, I think hoping to make me feel better than I do. "Her respirations increased and she has a nice, strong pulse and heartbeat." "She's nearly dead." I rasp out, unconsciously wrapping my uninjured fingers around one of Scully's hands. Her muscles twitch slightly at that and I wonder if she can recognize that it's my hand that's holding her own. "You should try to get some sleep." "I don't sleep." "You should." she mumbles. "Look," I snap. "I don't need a lecture. I need a medical miracle to save my partner." "Give it time." She pats my arm in a maternal fashion. "Just give it time." <><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><> Beeps resound through my head as though they're from a great distance away. I can tell that my breaths are improving, that my pulse is stronger, and that my blood pressure is doing as well as it can, under the circumstances. I wish I knew what those circumstances were. Did Magneto butcher me, or did he just try and scare me, showing me a scalpel in my last waking moments before I was viciously flung into this dark pit of unconsciousness? If I let go now... I can't. I can't leave Mulder. I don't want to go. But I'm so tired. I feel like I'm hanging off of the edge of a cliff by my fingertips, and each individual one is being stepped on. I feel like I'm going to fall. Wait a second. I...I think...yes, I can feel something! Warmth around my hand, each finger that belongs to this other person wrapping around my own. This is such a comforting feeling...where have I felt this before? Mulder. That feeling...that touch belongs to Mulder. I would recognize his touch anywhere. But something's wrong. I'm no expert at reading hands or anything, but there is something... some way that he's holding my hand...he's in pain and he's scared. Oh God, I can't leave him now...I have to see what's wrong...I have to mother him! He's facing this alone, and that's not right, he needs me now. Oh, God, he needs me! The emotions well up, but I know my face isn't changing expression. Not even a muscle in my face is twitching, and it must be because the anesthesia is paralyzing me still. But I use all of my strength, and somehow one of my palm muscles twitches. I wonder how I did that. A woman is by Mulder. A small feeling of jealousy arises in the back of my throat, but there is nothing I can do about it. I can only lie here. I can't communicate with the outside world, I'm just left with my thoughts. I can't...I can't tell Mulder how much I love him, and...and he really needs to hear that right now. He's weak. He needs support and I can't even support him. In a world that has turned it's back on him, I'm the only one who hasn't most of the time. I feel something warm and wet rolling down my cheek, and I know that I have succeeded in crying. I know that my chin did not quiver, and neither did my lower lip, the tear just came out like it didn't need any effort at all to occur. But I'm spent just trying to squeeze that one tear out. Maybe that means I'm getting better? <><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><> "Mulder....c'mon." Jean Grey whispers and I can dimly hear her through my hands, which are cradling my head as it rests against Scully's bed. "You need to sleep. You can have the room right next door so you'll know right away if anything happens..." "No." "Mulder." My head snaps up. "I said no. You're supposed to have telekinesis. Let me send you a thought: back the hell off. Until she's better, I'm not moving." She frowns and licks her lips, choosing each word carefully. I quickly turn back to Scully, wiping away the single tear that appears on her cheek. I stare at my fingertip for a second, the wetness standing there in a perfect little ball. It shimmers as the light hits it just before it runs down my wrist and onto the palm of my hand. "Mulder, you're not doing yourself any good by spending every waking moment with your partner. When she finally does regain consciousness, she's going to need your strength. You're not going to have any if you haven't been sleeping." "I understand that." I practically growl. "And I'm fine." My eyes roam over Scully's still form for a second, cataloguing the bruise forming on the left side of her head, not to mention a broken cheekbone that has turned from light blue to a nasty streak of purple and black. "However Scully is not. And until she is, I'm not going anywhere." Jean nods and moves off, her place taken by Rogue, who sits down beside me and slips her hand around Scully's other. She gives a small smile and I smile back, a rather weak attempt. I allow my eyes to trail up to Scully's face, her eyes flickeriing rapidly. Each cheekbone is highly defined with the recent weightlost that comes from being held captive for days without food. I'm sure the weight loss was only increased by her fear. I cradle my head again, I should have been there. <><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><> I know that Mulder is probably feeling incredibly guilty right now, and I wish that I could tell him that it was not his fault. I know he needs me now. Probably more than I need him. He has just been through something incredibly traumatizing, and I can't do anything to help him. And he's probably scared to death. There...there is a new touch on my other hand...sapping me. What the...this is a strange hand and I'm growing scared. I'm becoming more exhausted by the second, and with every last ounce of terrified, adrenaline-induced strength, I squeeze Mulder's hand, then go completely limp. Mulder's hand tenses up, and I'm not sure what's going on, because I can't seem to pay attention anymore. Just the slow beeping of a heart monitor, getting slightly slower. What's going on? <><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><> "Oh, shit." I whisper. "Rogue...Rogue you haven't got gloves on. Get off of her, you're...you're going to kill her!" She recoils as if touched by fire, her large blue eyes staring into mine. "I'm, I'm sorry Mulder. I must have forgotten or something." "Never, ever forget." I snap. "Especially around Scully and I." She nods and leaves the room, her head down and for a moment I almost feel bad for yelling at her. But then I turn back to Scully and all the feelings of guilt disappear in an instant. I close my eyes to block out the images that keep trying to surface, the images of things Magneto must have done to put her in this condition. The tears that continue to build at the back of my throat, multiply themselves with a vengence, becoming harder and harder to shove down and forget. The world swims in front of my eyes for a second, the water drops fuzzying everything before I wipe them away with an angry hand. Now is not the time to be crying, I remind myself sternly. I focus my eyes on her heart monitor, nodding slowly as it returns to its normal rhythm. But then I turn back to her body and the tears well up again. Her eyes remain closed, pale white skin drawn over countless bruises and injuries. Her normally shiny hair is a dull matte. I take a shaky breath and squeeze my eyes shut tightly, fighting for control over the situation. And losing terribly. The first tears slip past closed eyes and the rest follow quickly, the flood dam broken. Hot tears sting my cheeks and nose as they wash down my face and I look for comfort in the one place I always have. Scully. With a sob, I lower my head onto her bed, my hands tightly around her own. <><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><> I feel something strange. It's Mulder, I know it is. He's holding my hand tightly, he needs comfort. I know that I have to comfort him. He needs me, and I know I've said that before, but there is no time more evident than now. With the very last ounce of strength I have, I rub his hand once with my thumb, and part my lips slightly. God, the hurt. But I figure that by parting my lips, every time that I exhale, it will sound like a comforting "shhhh". At least I hope that it does. I can't hear him very well, and I'm not sure that he's responding. I can't open my eyes and I'm too weak to speak, so I'm trying to comfort him as best I can. My poor Mulder. He's been through so much. He's in both emotional and physical pain right now, I can feel that through the desperation in his grasp. I can feel him still holding my hand, and I know he's still crying, the floodgates have opened. I know that the guilt he's feeling right now must be terrible, and there is nothing I can do to stop it. Except... With a small surge of strength, I raise one of my hands and gently stroke Mulder's hair, letting my hand drop to the bed and stay limp after a single stroke. I'm wiped out. <><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><> I'm perceptive enough through grief to know that Scully just stroked my hair. I look up, tears clinging to my lashes, and find her lips are now open. Her eyes remain closed and she isn't speaking but I distinctly remember her hand in my hair and I'm pretty sure she rubbed the back of my hand as well. "Scully?" I whisper, watching the heart monitor pulsate off rhythm in response to my voice. Her lips form a small smile and seconds later it becomes a wince. I cup her cheek and smile. Things are beginning to look up, it seems. "It's okay." I murmur. "Just try to rest." She gives a tiny, imperceptible nod and her eyes flicker slightly, as they do when she sleeps. She's sleeping. I sit back in my chair and say the first thankyou prayer I've said in years. I've got a feeling a lot more of those will be following in the direct future. "I've missed you." I whisper to her sleeping form. I know she can't hear me but for some reason I just have the urge to say these things to her. "Everyone did." I add. A small laugh parts from my lips and I wonder idly why I'm laughing. "The woman who's been taking care of you Scully, Jean Grey, she reminds me of you. It's been torture, having her around and not knowing where you were and what was happening to you. "It still is, I think. I can talk to her and get responses but I talk to you and know that, for the time being, you're too weak to respond. I need you Scully. I need you in this to the very end." I squeeze her hand lightly again, watching the pattern light makes against her fragile features. Even under bruises and injuries, she's beautiful. "I missed you." I say again. "And I'm glad you're back." <><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><> Deadly Deception Part 6 Magneto's back, I can feel him. Standing behind me, his hot breath burning the back of my neck. I gasp and turn around, and he's grinning at me, blood dripping from his mouth. "You've killed me," Magneto breathes, "And now it's my turn." "What are you..." I say, and then his hands are around my throat. I can't breathe, and I struggle against him, rather futilely, I might add. "Mulder!" I mouth, struggling against Magneto's powerful grasp. I know my heartrate is accellerating with the new influx of adrenaline, and the poor people in the outside world must be wondering what the hell is going on. This must be a dream. But if it is, then why am I in such pain? My entire head throbs like it's a time bomb, ready to explode. I still cannot hear out of my left ear, my cheek hurts like nothing else, and the only feeling that I fell that I can accurately describe is broken. Magneto must be getting the better of me if my mind is wandering this much, so I mouth "Mulder" again, trying to find some semblance of comfort. Then all goes bright. <><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><> She winces as Jean shines the light in her eyes and sudden stops struggling. Her heartrate decelerates a little, though still on the high end of the scale. My eyes wide, I sit back down and clasp her hand in mine, her eyes flicker and finally open. They roam around the room in an accord of their own and eventually settle on me. I smile weakly at her and give her hand a squeeze, trying to keep the winces to a minimum. The three broken fingers and cracked rib that I suffer from seem trivial in reference to her own injuries. Her eyes instantly fill with tears. "Mulder..." she croaks out again, her battered vocal cords trying to deal with the immeasurable pain she must be feeling. "It's okay, Scully." I murmur. "It was just a dream, you're okay. Magneto is six feet underground and you're safe now." Jean Grey hovers above both of us, checking my partner's vitals as I try to calm her. She cries out when Jean accidentally brushes against her head and her grip on my hand tightens considerably. I wince slightly, proud of myself for not outright shrieking in pain. She is grabbing onto three very broken fingers but she doesn't realize and I'm not about to deprive her of comfort. I shift slightly in my seat, brushing against the side with my cracked rib and freeze. No need for movement. I'm good. Living like a block of ice is sounding very appealing right about now. She whimpers and I brush hair out of her eyes as gently as I can. "Sssh Scully. You're safe." She nods. "I know." The words sound tight, caught in her throat with pain and tears. I smile gently and rub her hand with my thumb, making tiny circles on the soft pale skin. <><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><> I'm in such agony right now that I almost wish I was dead. I'm crying like an idiot, and that's not helping my head a whole bunch. But even through my selfish tears, I can recognize the pain that Mulder is in. Through years of partnership with him, I have learned to read him like a book. "Mulder." I croak and he looks at me. "Do something about that pain. You're in pain." I wince, but even that hurts. I look at Jean Grey and it feels like she's trying to read my mind or something. That could be effective when you're thinking things that you don't want your partner to know. Jean moves over to my partner and hands him some painkillers. He's not taking them, though. "Mulder, take them. You're in pain, and I," I gasp suddenly in pain, "I want you to take them. He reluctantly takes them, but is watching me like a hawk. I can tell he's incredibly concerned. All this talking has made me weak and tired, and I know I should sleep. Jean comes by and injects me with something that makes me feel kind of drunk. What the hell is this stuff? <><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><> "Don't worry Scully." I murmur in response to her reaction to the painkillers Jean injects into her veins. "It's a really effective painkiller. Knocks the socks off Demerol and Morphine combined." I grin. She nods and swallows heavily, pain etched into her face plainly. The muscles suddenly relax as the painkillers take hold. "They're....they're not so bad." she sighs in relief. I smile and continue to hold her hand, wondering if maybe I could get some more of that stuff for me. The oral painkillers, Tylenol and Advil actually, aren't very effective for my own injuries. I look over at Jean, sending her a mental order for some of the injectable painkiller, and she shoots me a smirk. "Not a chance." she shoots back at him mentally. "You're a little too healthy for the industrial strength stuff." I roll my eyes and turn back to Scully. Her eyes are closed in what seems to be bliss and her eyes are flickering again in sleep. I settle back against my seat and wonder how long we're going to be confined to this place. I understand that Scully is in no condition to be going anyplace, but I know her and I know she'd feel more comfortable in her own surroundings. Or maybe mine if I can convince her to come home with me. She's also in no condition to be taking care of herself. Her eyes open during my rumination and when I finally return back to reality, I find them locked on my hand. She winces. "How many fingers did you break?" "Three." "Jeez Mulder." she sighs. "It's not that bad." I shoot her a crooked grin. "It's an excuse not to have to do paperwork for six or seven weeks." "They're blue." "Yeah." I say studying my hand. "Yeah, I guess they are." "What else?" "What do you mean?" I ask her innocently. "What else did you do in the process of kicking some butt?" "Cracked a rib." I mumble, suddenly engrossed in the patterns on the floor. "Jeez." she sighs again. <><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><> "It sounds like you need a rest more than I do." I drawl, my speech slurring slightly. Man, these drugs are wonderful. I'm not hallucinating, I'm just drunk off my butt. And Mulder's still in pain. How selfish of me to take all the good stuff. A man enters the room. A man with funny looking brown hair. Who is he? His temper eminates off of him like waves of heat, and I'm suddenly intimidated. "They call him Wolverene." Mulder whispers to me, a slight tint of fear in his voice. Wolverene suddenly rushes at Mulder, these tremendously long metal claws coming out of his hands. I gasp and he looks at me, eyes flickering in anger. He then looks back at Mulder and puts those claws up to his neck. "The claws are adamantium. The name's Logan. The temper's deadly. If you're going to talk about me, it might as well be to my face. You are insignificant and I didn't have to help you. No one did. So you might as well be grateful for that before you start talking about us." He growls, and I gather up my nerve, something I'm good at when I'm drunk. "He wasn't saying anything about you, Wolverene. Put your claws back." I say slowly. Wolverene growls and leaps at me, putting his claws to my neck now. "Keep yer pretty little mouth shut, m'lady, before you get yourself hurt." "Too late, haven't you noticed?" I grin. <><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><> He can't hurt you. He can't hurt you. He can't hurt you.... like hell he can't! God, I really don't like Wolverine, or Logan, or whatever he wants to be called. He comes in here, flashing his claws of fancy metal and thinks that he owns the place. And Scully is getting a kick out of the whole situation. The woman is drunk beyond all extremies. Totally smashed, drunk, keeled over. She's flying high here, people. And how come she gets all the good pain medications? I get stuck with Tylenol and she gets the nifty stuff that really gets rid of the pain. Stop it Mulder, I admonish myself. This is your partner, who just went through hell, here. She deserves all the pain meds and you deserve to just sit where you are and deal with it. I shift in my seat and try to stifle a groan. Lord help me here, I'm pretty sure that the pain is getting worse. Maybe I should have told Jean the truth. That, yes, I did get beaten around by Magneto a lot and that, no, I think there is more wrong than just three broken fingers. But that's the problem with these other doctors. If they're not Scully they don't pick up the little nuances that signify that I'm not telling them about other things that are bothering me. And Scully's too out of it to realize that I'm struggling. But hey, it's my fault. I could have told Jean Grey. When I look up next, Wolverine is gone. Scully shifts slightly and winces, swallowing and trying to clear her voice. "Mulder... would you mind getting me some water?" she whispers hoarsely. "Sure." I reply and stand up, bracing a hand against the chair to steady myself. New pain coarses through my abdomen but I force myself to walk the short distance to where the water is. I finally succeed in getting there and bend down to get a cup. But suddenly the pain gets a hell of a lot worse and I find myself on my knees, doubled over with eyes shut tightly. <><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><> I see him collapse and I'm in shock. It doesn't matter how drunk I am, that's the man I secretly love there on the floor. "Mulder!" I yell, struggling to get out of bed. A bald man comes in. I believe he's Xavier, and he holds me back. "Lie still, he's fine." Xavier murmurs, but I seriously doubt his words. "Like hell he's fine! Mulder! Are you okay? Let me go! I need to get to him!" Xavier just stares down at me, like he's trying to control my body or something. I look away and at Mulder, who is grimacing in terrible pain, still on the floor. Jean Grey rushes over to him. "Couldn't you see there was something terribly wrong?!" I scream at Jean Grey. She tells me to calm down and bends down next to him. "Give him what you gave me NOW!" "You're drunk, Agent Scully. You're not even a doctor, so you're incompetent to make medical decisions regarding your partner." Jean says slowly, then turns to some of her assistants. "Get me a stretcher now." Okay, that hurt. "I am a MEDICAL DOCTOR, which is much more than I can say for the half-assed operation you have running here! I am also his next of kin and have full medical authority, so don't mess with me!" I yell in response, agitated beyond all belief. "You call yourself a doctor, yet you can't even tell if one of your patients is suffering!" "Get her out of here." Jean Grey says angrily, and her assistants drag my bed out as I grumble. I suppose that I'm not going to do any good in my current state. I'm not helping any, and I doubt Mulder wants my screaming and drunk form in there. <><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><> Wait...where are they taking Scully? From my position on the floor I can see her being wheeled out of the room, but as another shot of pain flashes through my body I forget the situation altogether. Vaguely I can make out Jean Grey's form above me and she leans down close to my face. "Agent Mulder? Can you hear me?" I groan in response. I guess it wasn't quite the response she was looking for as she calls two of her assistants over to help her get me on the stretcher. Oh god, where the hell is Scully? And why isn't she telling Grey to stop touching me? I scream in pain as soon as their hands are on me, coaxing my body onto the stretcher. One of the assistants is shocked by my sudden scream, and drops her part of my body, which connects hard with the floor below. That earns another scream. And then Scully is suddenly back in the room, shouting orders at anyone who will listen to her. Xavier looks pissed and for a second I feel like grinning, it's really not a good idea to get on the wrong side of Agent Scully. But then the feeling passes with another muscle spasm and I barely stop the whimper that threatens to tear from my lips. Tears form in the back of my eyes and throat and I find myself begging helplessly for unconsciousness to take me over sometime in the near future. It never comes when it should, just at the times when it shouldn't and is usually unexpected and unwelcomed. Finally, Jean backs off, instead monitoring my vitals. From the argument going on between her and Scully I'm guessing that she's not pleased that her red-haired patient is on her feet. She sounds jealous, in fact, that there is another doctor around to tell her where she's going wrong. Scully kneels down beside me as best she can and hovers over my face, fingers smoothing down hair and comforting in general. I squeeze my eyes shut again in response to another shot of pain. "Mulder....Mulder I need you to open your eyes for me." she murmurs gently. I comply and don't stop the whimper of pain this time. <><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><> I kiss him gently on the forehead, I know he's in more pain than I'm feeling right now. The poor guy's whimpering, and I know he needs me. "It's okay, Mulder. It's okay. I'm here. Tell me where it hurts." I murmur gently, hoping to comfort him as much as I can. He seems to be in alot of pain when he's lifted, so I'm going to try to get him on the stretcher without causing him any terrible discomfort. Or at least, avoiding causing him as much pain as I can. "Ribs." he cries as another shot of pain doubles him over. I stroke his hair but am reluctant to rub his back, as it might cause him pain. I kiss his forehead again and give a fierce look to Jean Grey. "Get him some of the meds that you got me." I command, the contempt dripping from my voice. "But..." Jean Grey protests, but I'm not having it. "Are you NOT the doctor who didn't recognize these signs BEFORE he collapsed?!" I counter angrily, Mulder rocking back and forth in pain. "Well, you can't diagnose..." "This is my partner, and I can. I did, but I couldn't tell you because you DRUGGED ME UP! Now GET him the meds unless you want me to report you to whatever board you answer to." I continue stroking Mulder's hair to comfort his shaking body. He's shaking in pain, and I know it, but there isn't much that I can do. "Better yet, since you're so INCOMPETENT, just give me the syringe and bottle and I'll do it myself." "I'm not incompetent." "And you call yourself a doctor." I shoot back, filling the syringe with the correct dosage after she hands it to me. I'm not sure why I'm being such a bitch, but I really don't feel that she should be treating my partner. I don't think she knows what he needs, since she hasn't known him for nearly as long as I have. And I doubt she loves him like I do. I inject the painkiller into Mulder's quivering arm and caress his cheek as we wait for the pain to subside. I hope it does, and that whatever this is does not produce an allergic reaction. <><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><> Deadly Deception Part 7 I squeeze my eyes shut again. I really do appreciate the painkiller Scully just gave, but it doesn't seem to be working and the spasms are only getting worse with time. Her hand remains tangled in my hair and I can feel myself shaking in pain. "Ssssh." she murmurs and I try my best to stop. But I can't. "Oh.......god......" I moan and her hand tightens. With another spasm, I've absolutely had it and I tell Jean so, watching her back away, slight anger, and I think regret, in her eyes. "Mulder?" Scully whispers, stroking my cheek. I force myself to look up at her. "Mulder....is the pain going away?" I shake my head no and squeeze my eyes shut against another shot. Tears squeeze from my eyes, and under normal circumstances I would have been quick to wipe them away and deny their existence, but at the moment I'm having too much trouble simply lying still. <><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><> My poor Mulder. I feel so bad for him. He's crying from the pain, and the painkillers aren't working, yet I feel the need to help him. The only merciful thing that I can think of to dull his pain would be to give him Xanax and sedate him. I know that Mulder would never go for the Xanax idea, nor would he go for the sedation part. But something has got to be done. He is in excruciating pain. "Mulder?" I whisper as streams of tears flow down his sweaty cheeks. He responds by gasping. "I know it hurts, Mulder..." I murmur, running a hand through his hair gently, hoping maybe even that simple, fluid motion might calm him. "Owwwww.....Scully, make it stop...PLEASE make it stop!" He cries in agony, shaking so much that a lay person may attribute his quivering to epilepsy. "I'm going to try, Mulder, okay? I'm going to give you some drugs that are going to help." Mulder nods almost imperceptibly and I look over at Jean. She looks angry for a second that I'm taking over her job, but she gets the Xanax pill, 1 milligram for the pain he's in. I feel bad that that's the best that medical science can do for him, but I don't want to give him an overdose. I send her a mental message for a general anesthetic, and she comes back with a syringe and a bottle. "Can I have a glass of water, please?" I ask Jane, and she gets it for me. I gingerly help Mulder sit up, but he still cries out in pain, moaning, groaning, and breathing very hard when he comes to rest against my chest. "Mulder, I'm going to give you something to relax your muscles." I say quickly, but he shakes his head, then succumbs to another wave of pain. I put the Xanax on his tongue and give him a sip of water. He swallows it down, then continues panting. "Okay, Mulder...if this doesn't work for you, I'm going to try something different." I VERY gently lead Mulder into a lying position, placing his head on my lap and stroking his hair, gesturing for a blanket, since the floor is cold. I don't want to try and put him on a stretcher yet, he's simply in too much pain. I drape the blanket over him and kiss his forehead gently. God, I hope this works. <><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><> Bless this woman. Whatever she just gave me is starting to ebb away at the pain, although it's still there. Still there rather strongly but manageable now. I take a deep breath and wince, glad that I can at least breathe now. It's an improvement over feeling like someone was sitting on your stomache and slowly stealing your air. Then suddenly feeling rushes back to me and I can feel Scully's hand in my hair, my head in her lap. I tilt my head back a little, and look up at her, brushing stray tears aside. She smiles weakly down and wipes the last of them away for me. "How do you feel?" "Pain's still there but at least it's manageable." I groan. "Good. I need to check you Mulder, find out what's wrong." From the look in her eyes, I can tell there's a catch to the whole situation. "It's going to hurt a lot....despite the meds you're on." "Okay." I sigh. At that moment Jean Grey suddenly returns to the picture. "Agent Scully, you have your own injuries. I'll check Agent Mulder, you need to return to resting." "Like hell you will." Scully snaps. "You're not touching my partner unless it's under an order I give you." Go Scully. Grey's eyes flash anger for a second but then she aquises, and nods in agreement. She backs off as Scully positions herself over me and begins the exam. Oh god....pain.....I think I just went pure white. <><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><> He's turning white, and I feel something in his chest that I don't agree with. I motion for the attendants to bring the stretcher down low so I can try to get Mulder on it. I then motion for an attendant to grab his legs as I gently cradle his head and we lift him on to the stretcher. He winces and groans and is nearly unconscious by the time we get him on there, but I have decided he MUST be examined. "Scully..." He groans, his speech slightly slurred. I look down at him and smile, then I kiss his forehead. "I'm here, Mulder, we're just going to see what's wrong with you." "What's wrong with me?" "I don't know yet, Mulder, we're going to find out." "Find what?" "Find out what's wrong with you." "What's wrong with me?" Mulder asks innocently and I sigh. The drug really is taking effect, though not completely ridding him of the pain. I wheel him into an x-ray room, and the examination begins. <><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><> Oooh, cool a dico. No, not a disco. Light flashes and I realize it's an x-ray room. Oh right, something about Scully wanting to get x-rays of my chest. Has anyone ever noticed the really cool patterns the x-ray lights make on the walls? They're very cool. Pretty soon the x-rays are over and Scully returns, smiling down at me, worried and yet trying to comfort me at the same time. "What's wrong?" I slur drunkenly. "We don't know yet, sweetie." "Oh....." I mumble. "Okay." "I'll tell you as soon as I find out, okay?" "Yeah." I nod, wincing as the pain meds start to wear off. "Yeah, okay Scully." I watch her leave again as two attendants roll me back out to the main medical room. From my position against the wall, I can see her face whiten as she tacks up the x-rays and gets a good look at them. Her face is white as she turns back around toward me. <><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><> I'm sure that my face is white as a sheet, and suddenly I realize why my partner has been in such pain. I sit down suddenly, sobbing into my hands. God, this hurts. Cyclops, oddly enough, comes to me and places a hand on my back. "Are you in pain?" He asks, and I lie, shaking my head. He's asking me why I'm crying, but not in those words. And I'm not crying because I'm in pain. I'm crying because of the agony my poor partner is in. "I don't know what to do." I sob openly, pointing to his x-rays. One of his ribs has broken completely in two and has severed one of his abdominal muscles with a sharp edge. It has cut completely through, and is a floater, so it's cutting everything up in his path. The slightest movement could mean a cut artery. The slightest movement could mean death. Cyclops respects my privacy and leaves the room, leaving me alone to sob. I can only imagine what Mulder is thinking, he saw me collapse. I sit there crying for a while, not sure what I can do about his condition short of surgery. Great, *Dr.* Scully can't figure out how to treat her patient. The Great Dr. Scully can only cause her patient more torture. <><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><> "What's wrong with Scully?" I ask Cyclops the minute he steps into the room. I can still see her crying through the glass partition. "She'll want to talk to you herself." he murmurs gently, throwing me a smile. I try to smile back and find myself failing greatly. Fear stabs through my head and the world in front of me blurs for a second. The next time everything clears, Scully is back in the room, wiping her eyes hurriedly as she walks toward me. The x-rays are in her right hand, both of which are trembling greatly. She perches herself on my bed and takes my hand, the fear I feel reflected in her own eyes. "What's wrong?" I ask softly. Her eyes trail down to the floor. "Scully?" "You have a floater." "A...a what?" "A floater." She seems to steel herself. "One of your ribs broke into two pieces and cut through an abdominal muscle." I wince involuntarily. "If it continues the way it is, it's going to cut up everything in it's path, Mulder." "What can you do?" I whisper. "This is serious. It could cut an artery, it's potential death." Tears gather in her eyes. "I think the only option is surgery." I nod numbly, trying to absorb everything she's been saying. "Is it really necessary?" "Yeah." she nods. "Okay." I nod my head in agreement and squeeze her hand. "I trust you Dana. I trust you with my life." Tears spill down her cheeks and I wipe them away gently. "You're my world. I love you fully and wholy. And I trust you with this. Do what you think should be done." <><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><> I'm not sure if it's the drugs, but Mulder has just spoken the most beautiful--and the most UTTERLY TERRIFYING words I have ever heard. The tears keep pouring from my eyes, and he wipes them away until suddenly he gasps. "Mulder?" I ask, panic clenching in my throat. He gasps again, wincing horribly. "Mulder?!" A billion things run through my head, and the most resounding of the billion is that it's time. I rush Mulder into the OR. "You're not planning on performing surgery on him yourself, are you?" Jean Grey asks incredulously, trying to stop my entrance in. "You had better let me in," I warn, "Or I'll charge you with his death. You're already responsible for his current state." <><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><> Someone is shining a light in my eyes. And peeling them apart slowly and agonizingly. I'm thinking about maybe yelling in pain when a familiar voice flutters down to my ears. "Mulder?" Sounds like it was delivered on angels' wings. "Mulder?" the voice comes again. "Scully..." I moan and open my eyes, immediately rewarded with seeing her face smile down on me. I look around the room, and from the color of the night sky, I'm guessing it's night time and several hours have passed since I was last conscious. "Surgery?" I ask cryptically, wincing in pain and swallowing. My throat has the familiar dryness and hoarse quality it always seems to get after surgery. "It went well. We repaired your rib and torn muscle." she smiles. "But no basketball or running for a few months." "Yes, ma'am." I reply wearily, closing my eyes and allowing them to rest for a few seconds. "I meant what I said earlier, Scully." I finally say. She turns her face back toward me and takes my hand. "About you being my world. You are. And I do love you. It wasn't the drugs talking." She nods and new tears fill her eyes. I reach up a hand to wipe them away but the slight movement causes my abdomen to streak with pain and everything from my waist up freezes, including my hand. <><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><> I take Mulder's hand and gently put it down by his side, hoping to alleviate the pain that I know he's in. I see through the glaze in his eyes that he's still riding the wave of agony, afraid to let me know it hurts. Sometimes I wish he would just tell me that he hurts up front. I flick a syringe filled with enough Demerol to at least take the edge off of his pain, but he shakes his head. "Mulder, you just got out of surgery, you're in pain. You need this." I protest, and he stops arguing for once. I inject the drug into him, but I'm not sure if it's working. I know that he is still experiencing some pain...oh, well...maybe I should wait until the drug has a chance to run through his system. I stand there a while, just stroking his hair and trying to comfort him as best I can. This is why some say that I should be a mother. But, after years of praying, I know that I'm infertile and will never have children, unless I adopt. And I'm too scared for any child's safety to do that, because my life gets...tumultuous. So, I'm stuck with mothering my partner, and I don't mind doing that one bit. He needs all the mothering he can get right now. His eyes close and I wonder if his mom used to do this for him. If she used to comfort him. If, when her poor son was in pain, did she take him in her arms and tell him that everything would be alright? Well, I can't take him in my arms right now. He has an incision from stem to stern, and I don't want to cause him any undue agony. So I'll have to be content with caressing his hair, taking his hand and kissing his forehead every now and then. And then something comes to mind that I wonder about his mother, as well: did she ever tell him she loved him, and did she ever genuinely mean it? Well, I haven't told him yet, but I know that he has confessed his feelings to me, and that they're true. It's not often that he remembers what he's said right before he goes under the knife. So I decide that I might as well confess my feelings to him, even if he has just fallen asleep, which I do not blame him for. "I love you, Mulder." I say, and I mean it. I really, absolutely and truly do mean it. And I hope that he heard that, wherever in dreamland he may be. <><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><> I wonder what she'd say if she knew I was awake, just resting my eyes and not really sleeping. A smirk surfaces on my face and I lick my lips. "I love you too, Scully." There is silence for a few moments and I open my eyes. She's still by my bedside, her hand still in my hair, though it has stopped moving for a second. And then suddenly she bursts into laughter and looks down at me. "You weren't really asleep." God, I love this woman's laughter. "No." I admit, wincing at the pain from my throat. Scully leans over me and grabs a glass of water, holding it to my lips as I take a cautious sip. "I wasn't really asleep." "No." she smiles, looking down at the floor. "You weren't really asleep." Okay, I think we've made that part pretty obvious by now. I reach out for her her, and she catches my hand, her smile widening as I kiss each of the digits. I have waited *years* to be able to kiss Scully's fingers. I'd prefer her lips but I can't quite reach to that level and I'm afraid of moving in my current condition. The door opens and Scully reluctantly pulls her hand away, standing against the bedrail as Jean Grey cautiously steps into the room. She looks whipped to say the least. I would *love* to find out what Scully said and did to the woman but I have a feeling I never will. While Scully can get very angry, once it happens, the incident remains untalked about once it has transgressed. Scully turns back around, offering the woman only a cursury glance and no words. Her eyes focus on me. "Has the pain gone away yet Mulder?" I nod. "Sort of. It's manageable Scully." I lick my lips again. "Why don't you try to sleep?" The tiredness is quite obvious in her cornflower blue eyes. She shakes her head. "I'm not leaving your side Mulder. Never again." "What if you have to go to the bathroom though?" I ask innocently. <><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><> Deadly Deception Part 8 I roll my eyes. Leave it to Mulder to break the tension with a bathroom joke. Jean snickers for a second, but when I notice, she stops. A lot of help she's been. She has no right to be in this room. "It has begun." She states simply, flipping back her ponytail. "What has begun?" I ask cautiously, trying not to flip my head over to her too quickly. My head feels like it's about to explode, but I'm not going to show it. I'm not going to do anything about it, not while Jean Grey is in the room. God forbid I relinquish control to her. "The mutant war." "Mutant war?" Mulder asks. Since he's kind of drugged up right now, I expect that he will have alot of trouble digesting what he is about to hear. "We have to fight." Jean snaps. I glance at her quickly, flashing her a warning and hiding a wince. "Mulder isn't going anywhere. Not in his condition." Mulder looks up at me questioningly when Jean acquiesces. Maybe I owe him this one. Maybe I should tell him why she's suddenly listening to me. Jean crosses over to my left side and mutters something. She's not playing fair. She knows that I cannot hear out of my left ear, but Mulder doesn't. "Jean, I would prefer it if you were on my right side." I say slowly and carefully, not looking at her. She mumbles again and I strain to hear, but I can't because she's talking too low on that side. The bitch is going to die. I turn on my heel towards her and I grab her shoulder, spinning her towards myself. "I said," I begin...and then it feels like a knife is stabbing through my brain. I clutch my head, cry out, and collapse to my knees before I know what's happening. I look up at Jean and her grinning face is the last thing I see before I lose consciousness. <><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><> Shit, shit, shit. I thought we were done with medical emergencies. But noooo, Scully collapses. I should have expected it... she's been working too hard and it's only a matter of time before her injuries get the better of her. I look up at Jean for help, as I can't really move, but she just looks at me and grins. She's getting personal satisfaction out of this all because Scully proved to be a better doctor than she. "Cyclops! Rogue!" I yell as loud as I possibly can, which must be rather loud because Jean steps back noticably and pretty soon Wolverine, Cyclops, Rogue and Storm are all running into the lab area. As gently as they can, with me shouting at them, they lift Scully up onto another gurney and pretty soon Xavier has reappeared in the room as well. He pulls Jean aside for a few moments and she leaves, obviously upset. Tears stream down her face as she steps around Xavier wheelchair and leaves the lab, slamming the door shut behind her. From my bed, I peer down at them, fear shoving at the back of my throat, as they work on Scully's still form. <><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><> Wait, come to think of it now, I did try to tell Mulder that I couldn't hear through telekenesis when I was being...tortured. But now it feels like I'm being tortured again. Did I ever escape? Yes. Because I can hear Mulder all of a sudden. He's asking frantically what is wrong. No one can seem to answer him until Xavier opens his mouth. I can hear the frown in his voice. "A blood clot on her right pareital lobe has grown. It is squeezing her brain. Dr. Grey has refused to help." My eyes flutter open and I look around myself, at first not seeing Mulder. I begin to panic, but I hear Mulder shouting my name. "Mulder?" I say weakly. "What happened?" "Xavier thinks it's a blood clot," he turns to Xavier, "what course of action do we take?" <><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><> This is a freaking nightmare. This case should have been over by now, but instead Scully is on the floor slowly dying while her best chance refuses to help. All over one petty fact that Scully knew what to do for me when she obviously didn't. Xavier walks over and helps some attendants move Scully over to a gurney. One she is within arm's reach, I extend my hand and grasp her own. Her eyes find their way to me and she looks frightening to say the least. I give her hand a reassuring squeeze as Xavier speaks to me. "We can't do anything for you anymore." "Take us to an ordinary hospital, then." I reply and he nods. "That's what we'll do. Both of you are wonderful people, and we appreciate your help, but you're mutants. The war that is constantly in swing between myself and Magneto doesn't concern you. It may never. It will be many years before ordinary humans are involved, perhaps your children will see the day." I hold back the comment about never having children as it is. Two hours later and I am sitting in a private hospital room, the bed beside me empty as Scully undergoes surgery to save her life. <><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><> A light shines in my eyes...and on the other end... Magneto. I scream, and then a reassuring hand grabs my arm. "It's okay, Scully..." Mulder murmurs, rubbing my arm. I calm down and glance around the room, grateful to have my hearing back. "How long have I been out?" I rasp, my voice hoarse from many different tubes that have since been removed. "A few days. You needed the sleep." "Where is everyone? Who is this doctor?" "The doctor is Doctor Johnson, he's been overseeing your care. We left everyone else." "But why?" "Because we couldn't fight their war." I sigh and look out the window wistfully, remembering the past. "Who were they, Mulder?" "The supposed X-Men." "I can object to that." "How?" "We, Mulder. We are the X-People." E N D ------ C. Charlotte http://www.geocities.com/dreamstrxf/DimensionX.html (A specialty archive for Mulder/Scully relationship fanfictions.) "There is comfort in ghosts who are no longer with you, hiding behind your death." -Nine Days