Title: NEW: Perseids (1/1) by Anna Otto Author: "Maraschino" Date: 20 Aug 97 20:07:50 GMT~ Please note: I DID NOT WRITE THIS FAN FIC Please send all feedback to regarding this piece to: ab2776@cerner.com ____________ Disclaimer: The characters of Fox Mulder and Dana Scully belong to 1013 productions, Chris Carter, and Fox. I am using them without permission, just for fun, and making no money off it. No copyright infringement is intended. Spoilers: Nothing special, just a mention of Memento Mori. This is pre-Gethsemane, of course. Can't live that one down yet. Category: VA (I think) Rating: PG (one bad word) Summary: Mulder and Scully watch meteors light up the night and make wishes. Feedback: I can't stress enough that I want feedback! This is my first fanfic, just a little piece, and I am not sure if others will follow. Constructive criticism, positive comments, and anything else would be invaluable. Perseids By Anna Otto ab2276@cerner.com When in unfurling wings of starry night I see the truth tjat brightens my perception, I welcome the alternative to light, If I can find your resurrection. Scully tied on her sneakers and checked her reflection in the mirror critically. Black jeans, dark warm sweatshirt. *All ready for a 'night out', X-Files style,* she thought ruefully. Mulder asked her today to be prepared at 11:30 PM, "and don't forget to dress warm, Scully", when he would come to pick her up. In response to her look of questioning resignation, he just grinned and announced that it was "a surprise". Scully was looking forward to getting into bed at an early hour, exhausting week having caught up with her, and she felt more than exasperated at the prospect of going anywhere in the middle of the night. Although she had to admit that a part of her was curious as to what Mulder came up with now - a new case? crop circles that had to be observed in the dark because they glowed? a middle-of-the-night break-in at yet another military base? something equally bizarre? She stopped guessing at the sound of her doorbell and went to greet her partner. "All ready, Scully?" he said, eyeing her approvingly. "Let's go! We will be just in time." "In time for what exactly, Mulder?" "All in its own time, partner, all in its own time," he declared, looking mysterious, immensely pleased with himself, and gestured her out of the apartment. The woman rolled her eyes to the ceiling, silently questioning herself as to why exactly she was doing this and followed her tall companion to the car. Mulder drove swiftly but carefully through the sleepy streets of Annapolis to the highway. Scully guessed that they were heading out of the city, in the northern direction. Lulled by the smooth motion of the vehicle, she closed her eyes and felt herself dozing off. On the edge of consciousness, she thought deliriously: "I hope it's not another 'nice trip to the forest' ". She woke up from the jerky movements of the car as Mulder guided it along the unpaved road with no streetlights. "Almost there, Scully, oh damn!" He swore under breath as the right wheel plummeted into a hole. He managed to right the car quickly, but Scully felt even more unsettled about the whole trip than before. *Where the hell are we???* went through her mind again. They stopped near the shore of the lake and Mulder briskly jumped out of the car, getting blankets and a flashlight from the luggage. He threw the latter to his partner, telling her to "find a good spot". Scully turned it on, lighting up the sandy ground beneath her feet. "This looks nice, Mulder," she called him soon. "Care to tell me now what it's all about?" "You will see soon enough, Scully", he answered, spreading the blankets in the spot she indicated. "Now, lie down here and look up. Oh, and turn off that flashlight, or your eyes will never get used to the dark." The female agent obeyed, still gazing around with a doubtful expression. Mulder plopped down on his back beside her, smiling at his friend reassuringly. He knew that she was tired, but didn't feel all that bad for dragging her out in the middle of nowhere at night. He decided awhile ago that this event had to be shared with his partner - she would appreciate it eventually. "So, what is it that I am looking for?" Scully whispered in his ear, finally giving in to this weird situation. "Just relax and look at the stars in the sky. You will see it soon enough," Mulder mouthed back to her just as softly. "Why are you whispering?" "It's so quiet and peaceful on this shore - I feel like I would be disturbing something," she explained, sheepish at his question. "I know." Calm filled the darkness once more, and several minutes passed in silent contemplation. The sky appeared immense away from the concealing high-rises of the city; stars scattered in all directions. There were no trees around the lake to obscure the view, and the field of vision stretched seemingly forever. "The stars are cold, Mulder," Scully announced suddenly. The man beside her started at the statement. "How do you know, Scully? Maybe, up close, they are warm. Or even hot, more even so than Sun itself?" "Or maybe, there are little gray men walking around on the planets beneath these stars, or even beings just like us?" the woman intoned after him sarcastically. "Why, Agent Scully, I never knew you held such beliefs," Mulder said slowly, in mocking seriousness. "Tell me we are not looking for a UFO, Mulder," she dared him, trying to squelch a smile. "No - no, who do you think I am?" He laughed softly. "No, this is much better - and safer, I promise. I am surprised we haven't seen it yet - our eyes must still need time..." "Wait a second, Mulder, is that a shooting star?" Scully rose up suddenly, pointing in the direction to the left of their spot. "Oh, yes, I see it - and there is another one!" He exclaimed, looking to the right. "There seems to be quite a few of them - what are they, Mulder?" She asked, still following the trail of the newest bright tail. "This is it, Scully, the Perseids - the meteor shower. They fly by our planet every year, and outside of the city, you can see them for about a week. Today is the peak day - it will be beautiful," her partner replied, entranced by the sight. "Where are they coming from?" "Swift-Tuttle comet, Scully - remember? It passed Earth in 1992; an incredible sight, by the way. The comet circles the sun every 130 years, and leaves behind a trail of ice and dust. Fragments of it is what we are seeing, as Earth passes through that trail." "This is amazing, Mulder," Scully sighed, settling down again, scanning the sky for more flashes. She felt herself sinking into the dark-blue night, falling forever into its depth. *I can't believe I was going to miss this,* she thought shamefully. *He always manages to surprise me.* The new meteor looked greenish and huge, disappearing just as another one spread the trail behind it. The agents gasped in unison at the spectacle. "Make a wish, Scully," Mulder said, nudging her arm a little. "Yes," she replied quietly, waiting for the appropriately large shooting star. She contemplated her wish carefully, not fully sure whether it was altruistic or egotistic. *Oh, what does it matter,* Scully decided suddenly, *this is as much for me as it is for him. I will be happier if he is happy, if he is complete and at rest after all this time.* As yet another meteor radiated from above Perseus, she silently wished for Samantha to be returned to her brother, alive and healthy. And as soon as possible, *oh, please, so that I am still here to see it,* Scully added with a feeling of sad urgency gripping her suddenly. That disease, that vile thing in her nose... it intruded on her every waking moment, coloring every thought in depressingly cold, dark overtones. Trying to return to the matter at hand, she glanced quickly, furtively at her companion: "I am done." Mulder forgot meteors for a moment, focusing on the female face he knew so well. The wave of emotions sweeping across her features presented a spectacle in itself: a frown of indecision, a bright smile of happiness, a peaceful resolution, and finally, a slight grimace of hurt. Turning to the sky, he suddenly remembered another dark, starry night when he stared above with desperation and hopelessness, offering a silent prayer that went unanswered for three months. Three long, dreary, horrible months without Scully that felt like three years. Or three centuries of loneliness and gloom; the hell specially designed and carved for him. Mulder watched Perseids every year since he was eight. Then, in a rare moment of communion with his children, Bill Mulder showed and explained meteors to little Samantha and Fox. The girl enthusiastically wished for chocolate and some dresses for her new doll, and her brother solemnly and maturely wished for a book about dinosaurs he wanted to get for so long. Since he was twelve and until now, his only passionate desire has been to get his sister back. To see her, to touch her, to hear her lilting, dear voice, to know that she was all right... Stars always disappointed him, but the boy, and then a man, kept coming back to watch them and make his silent wishes. To appreciate their beauty and keep alive the tradition, he supposed. Maybe this day, this year it will work - and instantly Mulder knew he had to change his invocation. *Let me find the cure for Scully's cancer,* he pleaded fervently in his mind, following the white trail of a bright shooting star, vaporizing in smoke. *Let her be healthy and happy and don't let me lose her again.* He closed his eyes, trying to still his fears and subdue the suddenly rapid beating of his heart. Willing his prayer to work this time. Turning to look upon the woman beside him, Mulder saw her still entranced by the vision of the Perseids. They watched together for a few more minutes when suddenly the entire sky was lit as bright as day, several large meteors shooting off simultaneously in different directions. Activity subsided then, and Mulder noticed Scully shiver slightly. "Cold?" he asked quickly, concerned. "A little," she replied slowly, reluctantly, feeling the chill, but unwilling to get up and abandon the miraculous sight above her. "Come on, we have seen enough," Mulder tugged at her sleeve. With a smile, Scully rose to her feet. "We have been here for a couple of hours. I completely forgot about time," she confessed, smiling. Mulder followed her suite, gathering the blankets, trying unsuccessfully to shake them free of sand. "Yes, I know what you mean. Care to share your wish?" He asked suddenly with a teasing inflection in his voice. "No - I can't, don't you know the rules? You are not supposed to speak of your wish aloud, or it won't come true!" the woman objected indignantly. "OK, OK, fine," Mulder tried to look serious. "I wouldn't want to come between you and the cosmic gods, Scully. " She laughed then, a full, happy laugh that warmed him from inside. "Come on, my friend, I want to make another wish with you. Aloud," Scully offered, still laughing. "Sure, but will it come true? I mean, we already made our wishes," asked Mulder uncertainly, his interest piqued nonetheless. He sure didn't want to upset the cosmic gods *now*... "But there are so many stars - I am sure they could grant us another one," she replied quickly, optimistically. Then her face grew somber and she spoke precisely, glancing at her partner cautiously. "Let us wish that we will watch the Perseids again, same time, same place, next year." Mulder looked at his friend for a seemingly interminable time. "Let us," he said simply, as they both followed a trail of a singularly beautiful meteor across the sky. Sitting in the car with Mulder again, Scully still felt the magic of the night around her. She sighed in contentment, thinking about the following year and believing against herself that she wasn't seeing Perseids for the last time. Scully could have faith as long as the man beside her shared his strength and convictions with her; as long as she could see his face each day and read affirmation in his eyes. When Mulder caught sight of her, he wondered yet again what she was thinking. "Not sorry you came, partner?" He settled for that question instead. "Not at all, partner," declared the woman beside him. That night, Scully dreamed of a faraway warm planet, where orange water was flowing languidly through deep pink woods. Purple, funny-looking creatures were sitting on the yellow shore, watching a lonely blue planet appear on the horizon. On the coach in her living room, Mulder dreamed of a future with his sister. And Scully. END Author's Note: I have used pertinent information about Perseids from "Hot Showers" by Janet Burkitt, Seattle Times, 8/8/97. I am no astronomer by any means, and apologize for any mistakes I might have made. The idea for this vignette came to me after I watched Perseids, a very pretty meteor shower - check them out next year!