From: RhiaRamsay@aol.com
Date: Sat, 27 May 2000 13:19:52 EDT
Subject: xfc: New: Morgenstern and Bran (1/1)
Source: xfc

Title: Morgenstern and Bran
Author: Elizabeth L. Iacono
Rating: PG
Category: Vignette, Romance
Keywords: Mulder/Scully Romance
Spoilers: Requiem 
Summary: In the months while Mulder's away, Scully's 
         going to need some help...

This is my attempt to write a Requiem story that 
won't end up with me crying at the end as I have 
been doing lately. ;)

Disclaimer: Mulder, Scully, and anyone else XF 
            related are not mine.  I own any other 
            characters in there.

Archive: Anywhere, Gossamer, Spookys, and Xemplary 
         especially

Feedback: Pleeeeeeze?!?!?  RhiaRamsay@aol.com


Morgenstern and Bran
Elizabeth L. Iacono


June 22, 2000


     The park that was bustling with people during 
the daytime was empty at that time of night.  The 
full moon shone down, glancing off the metal of the 
playground equipment and shining on the low slopes 
of grass within it.  On one of these slopes sat a 
woman, hugging her knees tightly and surrounded by 
a hazy patch of moonlight.

     Dana Scully sat on the slope, her head tilted 
back to stare up at the stars.  Her life has been 
a true roller coaster ride lately, rocketing from 
bad to good.  One of the absolute worst things was 
that Mulder was gone, abducted by the very creatures 
he had spent much of his life searching for.

     Every night since that time a month ago she 
had wished fervently that she hadn't let him go 
out there, knowing that if he hadn't he would still 
be there with her.  Deep down though she knew that 
stopping him was impossible, just as impossible 
as him letting her go with him.  It was why she 
had given him her cross, so he could take a little 
part of her with him, to watch over and protect 
him.  When it came down to it though he was still 
missing, and she would do anything to find him.

     That was why Scully was out there in that 
park staring up at the stars.  In a strange way 
it made her feel closer to Mulder, knowing that 
he was somewhere amongst those stars.  As close 
as the stars made her feel to him she still wanted 
him back, had to find him because there was 
something she had to tell him.

     It was something so totally unexpected, so 
surprising, that she had trouble believing it 
herself.  Even after the test was run three times 
she was still shocked, never thinking that her 
vertigo spells could have signified this: she 
was pregnant.  Her, Dana Scully, a supposedly 
barren woman, was now carrying a child.  She had 
done her skeptical nature proud when the doctor 
first showed her the test results, making them 
run it two more times before it finally sunk in.  
Then her mind went into overdrive, recalling old 
X-Files and having as many tests run as possible, 
thinking that the baby she was carrying might 
have not been totally human.

     But the tests showed that she had a normal, 
healthy baby inside of her.  She and Skinner were 
both relieved, knowing that she could only relate 
her fears to him because he was the only one who 
knew about the baby so far.  The one person who 
she did want to tell was somewhere out in space.

     She wanted to tell Mulder that she was going 
to have a baby.  She wanted to tell him that the 
conversation that had while spooned up in his bed 
about what she didn't have eerily foreshadowed 
something she did have.  She wanted to reassure 
him that her dizzy spells were not from the cancer, 
as they had speculated but shoved into the back of 
their minds, but something much more wonderful.  
She wanted to tell him that he was going to be a 
daddy.

     Scully sniffled and felt a few tears slip out 
of the corners of her eyes.  She brushed at the 
roughly, trying to keep to the promise she had made 
to herself that she wouldn't cry.  Suddenly in her 
line of sight a handkerchief materialized.  Her eyes 
followed the handkerchief up the arm that was holding 
it, showing that it was connected to a woman who 
appeared to be a couple of years younger than she 
was in jeans and a T-shirt and was looking down at 
her sympathetically.

     The first thing that caught Scully's eye about 
the woman was that she was a bit odd looking.  
Pale skin, so fair that it almost seemed a 
bluish-white color in the moonlight, with long 
hair messily swept up on her head that was even 
whiter than her skin.  What really unnerved her 
was the woman's eyes, a bright golden color that 
gleamed like coins edged by fine white eyelashes.  
"Are you okay?" the woman asked, holding the 
handkerchief out farther.

     "Yeah," Scully said, and getting a sudden 
feeling that the woman who was even smaller than 
she was not going to hurt her, accepted the 
handkerchief and began to dab at her eyes with 
it.  "Thanks."

     "It's not a problem," the woman said, sitting 
down next to her but keeping a safe distance away.  
"I come out here a lot at night to think, it's 
always a head-clearer."  She glanced sideways at 
Scully.  "Same for you?" she asked hesitantly.

     "I guess so," Scully said, looking down at the 
crumpled handkerchief in her hands.  "It's been a 
rough time for me."

     "Want to unburden yourself?" the woman asked.  
"I can be an impartial ear."  She suddenly stopped 
herself, realizing something.  "Forgive my manners," 
she said.  "My name's Morgen."  She held out her 
hand in greeting.

     Scully accepted the hand, thinking that it 
would be nice to talk to someone who didn't know 
anything about the conspiracies and twists in her 
life.  "I'm Dana," she said.

     "Pleased to meet you," Morgen said, smiling 
brightly at her.  Her lips were coated with a dark 
color of lipstick that stood out starkly against the 
paleness of her skin.  "You still want to talk?"

     Scully nodded, realizing that telling someone 
about what was going on in her life (or at least an 
abbreviated version of it) just might be what she 
needed at the time.  Somewhere in a distant corner 
of her brain she wondered why she was trusting a 
total stranger with her feelings, but the desire 
to talk to someone was overwhelming.  She could 
just blame it on the pregnancy hormones.  "Okay.  
It's pretty simple I guess, when it comes down to 
it.  I'm pregnant, it's something that I've wanted 
for a very long time, but that I didn't think I 
would have.  And now that I am pregnant the 
baby's father isn't here, he would be here, but 
he...," she struggled to find the right words that 
could relate her situation, "...he's missing and 
I have no clue where he is.  I want to tell him 
about the baby so badly, I know he'll be thrilled 
about it.  I guess I just want him home.  Maybe I'm 
overreacting," she sighed.  "I'm not used to these 
extra hormones just yet."

     Morgen looked thoughtful.  "I don't think you're 
overreacting.  I'd say you're damn good and 
reasonable for someone dealing with a missing loved 
one.  I know I'd be a mental wreck, they'd have to 
toss me in Bellevue after a week."

     "I think I have to stay reasonable," Scully 
said.  "I want this baby to be healthy, and if I'm 
falling apart over his not being here neither me 
nor the baby will be the better off for it."

     "It sounds like you have something to live 
for," Morgen said, nodding.  "Keep you and your 
baby healthy, and then get to see the elation on 
his face when he sees you pregnant with that baby 
you've wanted for who only knows how long."

     Scully smiled at that, for the first time all 
night.  Thinking of the look on Mulder's face when 
he saw her, her waistline disappearing and being 
replaced by the weight of their baby, made her want 
to find him all the more.  It refueled her 
determination to find him and see him home soon.

     The ticking of her watch distracted her, and 
she was surprised to see that it was late.  "I'm 
sorry, I have to go now, I've got to be at work 
early tomorrow morning."  Even earlier than she 
had planned, she was going to kick the search for 
Mulder into high gear once more.

     "It's no problem," Morgen said.  "If you ever 
want to talk again I'm usually out here, so you'll 
be able to find me if you want to."

     "Okay," Scully smiled.  "It was good talking 
to you, it really helped me." 

     "Good," Morgen grinned as Scully stood up and 
began to walk down the slope towards her car.  
Morgen's eyes followed her to the car until it 
drove out of sight, and even then her eyes stared 
out into the night sky.  She wasn't surprised when 
a hand dropped onto her shoulder and a voice said 
from somewhere above her head, "You wrote the 
dictionary definition of the word 'meddle', didn't 
you?"

     She tilted her head back to look at her 
companion, a tall, lanky man with light skin, 
glossy black hair and blue eyes that could look 
into one's soul, and grinned at him.  "I'm just 
trying to get a feel for the situation, Bran," 
she said.

     "You were already told exactly what was going 
on," Bran said as Morgen grabbed onto his hand and 
hauled her to her feet.

     "But I wanted to hear it from her mouth," she 
said as they began walking along the top of the 
slope.  "I mean, she's going to need a lot of help 
in the upcoming months, with him gone and a baby on 
the way, and we're the ones who are going to help 
her.  I wanted to know how she felt about everything, 
because let's face it, she's affected by this more 
than anyone else."

     "You're crazy, Morgenstern, you know that?" 
Bran asked with a sideways grin at her.

     "I prefer Morningstar," Morgen said airily, 
flipping a piece of white hair away from her face.  
Then she grinned, thinking of something.  "At least 
I'm not going to be the one who's working for the 
FBI," she said.  "How do you feel about being 
Ms. Scully's partner on the X-Files?"

     Bran ran a hand over his face.  "I feel like 
I'm walking into something that's way over my 
head.  She doesn't want a new partner, she wants 
Mulder."

     "I know that," Morgen said, rolling her 
eyes.  "But she's going to need someone to watch 
her back and the baby's until he comes back.  And 
that's where you come in, time for you to be the 
guardian."  Bran groaned, feeling the weight of 
the assignment they were taking on, and Morgen 
rubbed his back.  "Come on, Raven-Boy," she said, 
pushing him forward slightly.  "I'll buy us a 
drink before we really start on this assignment.  
Tomorrow's going to be an interesting day."

     With that Morgen and Bran walked off down the 
slope, disappearing into the hazy moonlight until 
only some crushed grass was left as a sign anyone 
had ever been there.


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Well, what did you think?  Comments are always 
appreciated at RhiaRamsay@aol.com


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'True love, it's the greatest thing
in the world.'

Miracle Max, The Princess Bride

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'Men will fight bravely and be heroes,
but for a last ditch defense against
any odds, get a mother.'

Defender, High Wizardry

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'This is the Fish Patrol in 201.  Our
flying fish has flown away.  In fact,
things are so rotten around here that
even the pigs won't stay!  But we'll
fight to the bitter end!  Beware The
Fish!'

Bruno Walton, Beware The Fish

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