Date: Wed, 5 Mar 1997 08:03:35 -0800 (PST) From: " Sharon Burkey" Subject: [XFF] Relative Reflections (1/1) (1/1) Relative Reflections by Sharon Burkey sianha@hotmail.com DISCLAIMER: The characters of the television series "The X-Files" are the creations and intellectual property of Chris Carter, Ten-Thirteen Productions, and FOX Broadcasting Company (but remember that it's us fans that have made you extremely wealthy, and I've got an ever increasing overdraft to prove it) and have been used without permission. No copyright infringement is intended. Please feel free to post this story on any archive or web page, as long as my name remains attached as author. SPOILER WARNING: Momento Mori RATING: PG, but angst-ridden CLASSIFICATION: V, A SUMMARY: Margaret Scully tries to come to terms with Scully's illness. Mucho angst. ********************************************************************** Relative Reflections by Sharon Burkey Just the word scared her. As Maggie paced the relatives' waiting room, she felt like screaming at the whole world. "Missy, oh God, I need you now. You'd know just what to say." But Missy's life had been brutally cut short, her life snuffed out in the blink of an eye. She had been in her prime, full of life, happy, looking forward to the future. Missy, with her oddball beliefs which seemed such a part of her, at odds with Maggie's strongly-held religious beliefs. Maggie closed her eyes and could see Missy and Dana exchanging presents that last Christmas together, laughing at each other's choices. How could two people be so much alike and yet so different? That Christmas seemed so long ago now, a lifetime since they had been so happy. Things would never be so simple again. At least Missy's death had been quick. Here one day and gone the next; the memories of her life had more than replaced the agony of her last hours. Dana's struggle against the cancer would likely be painful, prolonged and, ultimately, futile. Maggie allowed herself to imagine the unimaginable for Dana's future. The fight would totally consume her, her beauty ravaged by the "cures", her mind trapped by a body that had become her worst enemy. Margaret felt the tears burning behind her eyelids and she could feel her heart pounding. Her thoughts began to dwell on her words. Maggie had no doubt that Dana's chances of ever bearing a child had greatly diminished. If the treatment didn't render her sterile there was still the fact that nobody knew exactly what had been done to her during her abduction. Dana had even once voiced her fears to her that the branch DNA might affect any children that she may have, but now even the hope of having children at all had virtually been dashed. Margaret started to laugh bitterly and uncontrollably, the tears streaming down her face. People walked past the room, glancing fearfully at the woman laughing hysterically inside. A small, plump, middle-aged nurse, hearing the keening, walked towards the room. Suddenly, a tall man blocked her entrance. "Please, let me; I know her." The nurse looked up at the man. His eyes were a deep hazel, clouded by years of pain, but now they looked at the sobbing woman with keenly-felt anguish. The nurse nodded her approval and watched as he took a deep breath, straightened his back and pushed the door open. The nurse walked back to her station and smiled woefully at the other nurse. "I hate watching relatives when they first hear the diagnosis. Sometimes it seems they're more upset than the patients." Back in the room, Maggie heard the door close but she refused to turn to face the interloper. She knew that it was Fox Mulder, her daughter's partner, closest friend, and whoever knew what else. Maggie's back straightened with pride. "I will not fall to pieces in front of him," she muttered under her breath. "Maggie, I'm so sorry; I know how you must be feel. . ." "You have no idea; how could you? First Melissa and now Dana have fallen victim to your much-vaunted need for the *Truth*." Mulder flinched at her uncharacteristically harsh words and seemed to shrink into himself. He knew it was his fault, but hearing the words cut him to the quick. Maggie was rocking, hugging herself. Fox moved to her side and hesitantly pulled her into his arms. She stiffened for a second and then collapsed against him, sobbing as if her heart would break. Fox looked over her shoulder and out through the door. He could see the blonde nurse; she looked at him and smiled encouragingly. He could feel Maggie's heart beating rapidly. "Maggie, you've got to calm down. The last thing Dana needs right now is for you to make yourself ill. She needs us to be strong." He knew he was being cruel, but he had to think of Dana. Maggie tore herself out of his arms at his words, but she had stopped crying. "Fox, I'm sorry. I know you would never harm Dana. I was just lashing out; I was even furious at Dana for not telling me about her illness sooner." Mulder accepted her apology, but deep down he knew that Dana's abduction, and consequently her illness, was his fault. Everything he cared about, everything he touched seemed to eventually face destruction. His quest to find Samantha had led directly to his father's and Melissa's death and Dana's abduction, and he was still no closer to finding his sister. Mulder started when Maggie touched his shoulder. "Fox, are you listening?" "Sorry; I was just thinking." Maggie smiled, her face red and blotchy from her tears. "I was just saying, my grandmother used to say, 'Do not resent growing old; many are denied the privilege.' Here I am feeling sorry for myself, when we should be thinking about helping Dana." Never had Mulder more admired the Scully women. When life threw all it had at them, they dug in and fought back. If anyone could beat this cancer, he was sure Dana would. Maggie excused herself to tidy herself up, explaining that she didn't want to upset Dana, but Mulder was too busy thinking about all the women who claimed to have met Dana during her abduction [to take notice of Maggie's departure]. They were all dead, dead from the same type of cancer that Dana had. he thought. Mulder frowned. He had just realised that he had been referring to Scully as Dana. Maggie pushed the door open. "Fox, would you come with me to see Dana?" She was more composed now; her makeup covered most of the ravages of her outburst, but her eyes begged him to come with her. She needed his strength right at the moment. "Sure." Mulder laughed sadly to himself. They walked down the corridor and entered the quiet room. "Dana? Is it okay for Fox and I to come in?" asked Maggie softly. "Of course," Dana replied. She looked tired and pale, but she smiled at both of them as they walked up to the bed. Mulder resolved, None of them noticed when the nurse walked past and closed the door to the room. She smiled at the three people in the room, thinking, *knowing*, that it was always a good sign when the whole family helped each other through difficult times like this. It was a sign that there was hope, and sometimes hope was what was needed to survive. The End ********************************************************************** AUTHOR'S NOTES: This short piece is the result of going to yet another wedding, too much to drink and meeting up an old flame . I was really down and after reading all about Momento Mori I couldn't help myself but write this. I haven't seen MM yet, so I hope I haven't got it too wrong. Please e-mail me, and I'll try to write something more cheerful next time . Many thanks to Miskha for her editing and suggestions - and her encouragement to finally post this story. ********************************************************************** This is my first fanfic. Please send any comments, or just chat, to: sianha@hotmail.com. Bye for now! --------------------------------------------------------- Get Your *Web-Based* Free Email at http://www.hotmail.com ---------------------------------------------------------