From: "B R Cary" <cary1013@hotmail.com>
Date: Fri, 16 Mar 2001 14:55:18 -0500
Subject: submission
Source: direct

Title: Veritas - decepito visus

Author: Cary

Classification: SR (Mulder/Scully Romance)

Spoilers: 'Travelers', 'Arcadia', 'Sein Und Zeit' and 'Closure' are 
referenced.

Ratings: PG

Disclaimer: Mulder and Scully were created by Chris Carter and owned by 1013 
Productions.  I have no legal claims on them.  I'm just borrowing them to 
put some much-needed romance in their lives.

Summary: Scully finds a wedding ring in Mulder's desk and demands to know 
the truth.

Note: This is my take on the whole wedding ring incident in 'Unusual 
Suspects' and 'Travelers'.  I am from the school that believes that Mulder 
was not married before he met Scully and especially not to someone like 
Diana Fowley.  (I believe that 'The Sixth Extinction - Amor Fati' supports 
that theory.)  Therefore contained in this story is the one explanation I 
came up with that would be in Mulder's character and still explain the ring 
in a way I could live with.  "decepito visus" is Latin for "deception of 
vision".  This story is the second in the Veritas series.  It can be read 
completely on its own or as part of the whole series.

Feedback: I would love to know what you thought of my story, but if you 
hated it, please be kind when telling me.  As with most writers, I am quite 
sensitive when it comes to my stories.  Sharing them with other people is 
like running naked in front of a packed football stadium - exciting, but 
scary as hell.  Send feedback to cary1013@hotmail.com

Archive: Anywhere as long as all the necessary forward information stays 
intact.


Veritas - decepito visus

Special Agent Dana Scully sat at the desk in the office of her partner, 
Special Agent Fox Mulder, searching in vain for a file he had assured her he 
had left in one of the drawers.  She normally would have just asked him to 
locate the elusive file, but he was currently out of the office.  He had 
informed her that morning as they were leaving her apartment that he had an 
errand to run and would be a little late coming in.  She had come straight 
to work in her own car, as usual, but there had been a break in her normal 
routine when she arrived.  Mulder normally arrived to work ahead of her, 
despite the fact that for the past two months they had been leaving the same 
place at the same time, and had her second cup of coffee waiting for her the 
moment she walked into his office.  The coffee almost always came with a 
quick hug although they had to be careful to conceal the fact that they had 
become romantically involved in spite of the FBI's unofficial regulation 
against partners doing so.  Scully smiled as she thought back over the last 
several months.  Although the circumstances that had led to them revealing 
their feelings for each other had been tragic, the results were wonderful.  
Right after the funeral for Mulder's mother and sister, Scully had insisted 
he stay with her since she had not wanted him to be alone.  He had come to 
her room for comfort after having one of his nightmares and it had lead to 
them making love.  Later that evening, Mulder had admitted that he felt he 
taken advantage of their friendship by giving into his desire for her, a 
desire he thought was not returned.  Scully had assured him that it was and 
in the process it was revealed that they were in love with each other.  Ever 
since that night, she and Mulder had spent practically every night together, 
the only exception being when they were out of town on a case.  Scully had 
put her foot down on fooling around at work, and out of town cases were 
work.  So far only her mother, their friend, Malen Phillips, and The Lone 
Gunmen knew she and Mulder were involved.  What amazed her the most about 
the new dimension in her and Mulder's relationship was how quickly she had 
grown to like the idea of being able to share everything with him.  After 
the experience the year before when they had been forced to share the same 
living space while they were undercover posing as a married couple, she had 
thought that spending so much time with Mulder would begin to drive her 
insane.  The opposite, however, had proven to be true.  She had come to 
realize that he had begun to annoy her while they were undercover because 
she was trying to hide her true feelings for him.  Now that she was free to 
show them, she found herself greatly enjoying his presence.

Still smiling, Scully dug further into the desk drawer and her fingers hit a 
solid object at the back.   Pulling it out of the drawer, she saw it was a 
small jeweler's box.  A little breathless and a whole lot curious, she 
slowly opened it.  Inside was a man's gold wedding band.  It looked like the 
one Mulder had worn during their undercover assignment and she wondered why 
he still had it.  Taking the ring out of the box, she noticed an inscription 
on the inside.  Holding the ring up to the light, she read what it said.  As 
she did, a cold chill ran through her body and she nearly dropped the ring 
on the desk.  She reread the words to make sure she had seen them correctly. 
  The inscription read 'inter nos DF 1-1-90'.  Scully understood enough 
Latin to know 'inter nos' meant 'between us'.  She also knew without a doubt 
that 'DF' stood for Diana Fowley.  That name hit Scully like a punch in the 
stomach.  She had thought she had finally gotten over her jealousy of Diana, 
especially now that Diana was dead, but holding this wedding band with 
Diana's initials on it brought it all back.  Scully's mind started trying to 
process the thousands of questions that were running through her head.  
Despite what this seemed to symbolize, she refused to believe it was true.  
Mulder would surely have told her if he had been married.  Besides she had 
seen his service record.  It had clearly stated that he was unmarried, not 
divorced.  Then the inscription on the ring came back to her. 'Between us'.  
What if Mulder had secretly married Diana and not told the Bureau?  Suddenly 
she could not breathe.  That would explain everything - the way Mulder had 
always acted around Diana, the way he had always jumped at the chance to 
work with her, the way he never wanted to discuss her.  Scully closed her 
eyes and willed the tears away.  No, she would not give into her emotions 
until she knew for sure.  Putting the ring back in the box and shutting the 
desk drawer, she stood and walked out of Mulder's office in search of the 
truth.

************************

Mulder walked out of the store he had just been in with a huge smile on his 
face.  As he walked to his car, he had to repress the urge to start singing. 
  People already thought he was weird.  It would not be good to give more of 
a reason to think that.  However, he could not help it.  He was happier than 
he could ever remember being.  Not more than an hour ago he had left the 
apartment of the most important person in his life after spending the night 
in her presence.  What more could one person ask for?  Sometimes at night he 
looked over at the woman sleeping in his arms and wonder how he - Fox 
Mulder, scapegoat of the universe - had managed to get so lucky.  Without a 
doubt, the last six months had been some of the most trying in his life - he 
had suffered a mysterious illness that almost killed him, lost his mother, 
and found out his sister, Samantha, had died when she was fourteen - but, 
though everything, Scully had been there helping him deal with it.  He knew 
he would never have been able to cope without her.  With each passing day, 
he grew to love her more and the amazing thing to him was that she seemed to 
feel the same way.  Maybe there was a God after all because the fact that 
Dana Scully loved him was, to him, no less than a miracle.  And as the case 
with miracles, he knew that they should not be taken lightly, but treasured. 
  He intended to show Scully that she was indeed treasured by him.  In all 
the years he had known Scully, the number of presents he had given her could 
have been counted on one hand.  He felt bad about that fact now, but he had 
never known what to get her since, at that time, they had not yet crossed 
the line between being friends and being friends as well as lovers.  Now 
that they had, he hoped the 'errand' he was on would make up for the lack of 
gifts in the past.  He had gotten the idea from something he had seen 
hanging on Scully's wall.  He only hoped she liked her gift as much as he 
had liked picking it out.

************************

About two hours after finding the ring in Mulder's desk, Scully walked down 
the hall toward Mulder's office.  She had gone to the records room first to 
confirm Mulder's martial status on his service record.  It had indeed read 
'unmarried'.  She then made her way to the archive room.  She had not known 
what she was looking for until she found it.  Located amongst some of the 
photos of a case Mulder had once been assigned was a picture of him taken in 
August of 1990.  The photo clearly showed that on Mulder's left hand he wore 
a wedding band.  Now she had her proof and the knowledge left her feeling 
dead inside.  The man she had trusted above all others had lied to her.  
What she could not understand was why his service record did not reflect his 
marriage or why she could not find any record of a marriage license.  Mulder 
had clearly not been hiding the marriage, so why was there no evidence of it 
besides the photo and ring and why had he not told her about it?

As Scully entered Mulder's office, she saw he had arrived and was standing 
over by the filing cabinets.  She had fully intended to ask him about the 
marriage in a calm, rational manner, but now, seeing him actually in front 
of her, she lost all of her normal emotional control.  She kept picturing 
him standing at an altar with Diana Fowley and the thought struck her deeper 
than she thought possible.

Mulder turned around when he heard Scully enter, although he did not look up 
from the file he held in his hand.  "Hey, Scully.  Did you manage to find 
the file you needed?  I found some additional information that might be 
useful to include."

"No, I didn't find the file, but I did find something else," Scully 
answered, surprised at how normal her voice sounded.

Still not looking up, Mulder sat down at his desk.  "You'll have to tell me 
about it at lunch.  I have a meeting to attend in a few minutes, but there 
is something I wanted to talk to you about as well."

"I'll bet there is," Scully shot back, unable to keep the hurt out of her 
voice.

Mulder finally looked up from the file he was reading.  Noticing the look on 
Scully's face, he quickly said, "Dana, what's wrong?"

The genuine concern in Mulder's voice just made Scully more upset.  She 
could not believe she had allowed herself to open up to this man.  He had 
said he trusted her above all others, that he loved her more than he ever 
had anyone else, but how did she know he was telling her the truth.  What if 
he had the same things to Diana?  Suddenly she felt like she was going to be 
sick.  Mulder, who had been watching her, waiting for an answer, hurried to 
her side.  As he reached out to touch her, she drew away.  "Get the hell 
away from me, and don't call me Dana."

A hurt expression crossed Mulder's face, but he backed up a bit.  "All 
right, I have obviously done something to upset you.  Since you were fine 
when I left you this morning, do you mind filling me in?"

"So, you are completely unaware that you are a lying, son of a bitch?" 
Scully asked as she crossed her arms in front of her chest.

Mulder took a deep breath and answered in a level tone, although his own 
hurt and building anger were evident in his eyes.  "And just what have I 
supposedly lied about."

Taking the picture out of her pocket, Scully threw it at Mulder.  "This."

Mulder looked at the picture and a look of confusion crossed his face.  
"Exactly what is it about this picture that has given you the idea that I 
have lied to you about something?"

*How can someone so brilliant be so stupid?* Scully thought to herself.  
Reaching into her pocket again, she pulled out the jeweler's box.  She 
opened it and turned it so Mulder could see it.  "Maybe this will give you a 
clue."

The look of confusion on Mulder's face was replaced by one of surprise, then 
utter shock.  He reached out and took the box from Scully.  He was about to 
open his mouth, when the phone rang.  He stood there for a few seconds, and 
then quickly handed the ring and photo back to Scully.  He picked up the 
phone as he held one finger out to Scully.  "Hello."

Scully stood there for a few moments as Mulder listened to whoever was on 
the other line, then decided she needed to get out of the office.  As she 
started to walk out of the door, she heard Mulder's voice call her name.  
Turning around, she saw he had one hand over the mouthpiece.  "Scully, wait 
a moment."

"I can't listen to anything you have to say right now, Mulder.  Besides you 
have a meeting to attend."  Without a look back, she walked out the door.

************************

Mulder looked after Scully as she left.  He could not believe she had just 
left without giving him a chance to explain things.  The only other time she 
had done that was when she had tried to tell him that Diana Fowley had other 
motives behind coming back other than to help him.  Then it hit him and he 
had to sit down.  Diana Fowley.  She had an inscription put in the ring 
Scully had found.  So not only did Scully think that he had once been 
married and kept it a secret from her, but that Diana was the one he had 
been married to.  *Oh, God,* he thought.  *Why didn't I get rid of that damn 
ring?*  He had to go after her.  He was about to hang up the phone that was 
still in his hand when he heard the deep voice on the other end say, "Agent 
Mulder, did you just hear me?"  Knowing that there was no way to explain to 
his superior, Assistant Director Walter Skinner, his absence from a meeting 
he himself requested, Mulder replied, "Yes, sir.  I'll be right there."  
Hanging up the phone with a heavy heart, he gathered his files and headed 
out of the door, hoping that this meeting with Skinner would not last that 
long so he could get out of here and track down Scully.

************************

Scully walked into Shalen Space Research Labs and was instantly greeted by a 
smiling receptionist.  "Hello, Agent Scully.  What brings you here today?"  
Despite her current mood, Scully had to smile.  Ever since running into her 
old college classmate, Malen Phillips, Scully had come to rely on Malen's 
scientific knowledge to assist on several cases.  Malen was an open and 
honest type of person and made sure that those who worked for her at Shalen 
Research gave Scully and Mulder whatever they needed.  Malen seemed to 
inspire loyalty because so far everyone Scully had dealt with at the 
research labs had been extremely easy to work with and nothing she and 
Mulder had asked them to research, even the most bizarre theories, had 
thrown them.  Malen had become even more important to her as a friend.  She 
had not realized how much she missed having another woman close to her own 
age to talk to, especially about things like this.  "I'm here on a personal 
matter.  Is Malen in?"

"Yes, she is, Agent Scully.  I believe she is currently in the observatory 
getting ready for a high school class that is supposed to come by tonight.  
Feel free to go on up."

"Thank you, Sandra," Scully said, and then she headed down the hall toward 
the elevators that would take her up to the observatory.  Malen and her 
husband, Shane, had started Shalen Research on their own and turned it into 
a small, but thriving research laboratory.  Since Shane's death several 
years before, Malen had taken the small lab and had made it grow into a 
larger, highly renowned research facility.  Malen did not seem at all fazed 
by the constant pressure of trying to keep the lab up and running.  In fact, 
she seemed to thrive on it.

As Scully entered the observatory, she heard someone singing.  Shaking her 
head, she headed toward the voice.  Malen was standing in front of a large 
computer monitor built into the wall.  The screen was filled with various 
pictures of constellations.  Soft music filtered out of the speakers beside 
the screen.  Malen stopped singing and asked suddenly, "So, Dana, in your 
opinion which do you think is the best angle of this constellation to use?"

Scully raised her eyebrow as she stepped up beside Malen.  Looking at the 
screen, she chose the one in the upper left corner.  "That one."

Malen touched the screen over the picture and the image filled the entire 
screen.  "I agree.  Good eye."

"Thank you, but how did you know I was here?"

Malen smiled as she turned toward Scully.  "No magic, really.  I saw your 
reflection on the monitor.  So, what has Mulder done now?  And before you 
ask me how I know he has done something, I can tell by the look on your 
face."

Taking a deep breath, Scully reached into her pocket and took out the photo 
of Mulder she had taken from the FBI archives.  She handed it to Malen.  
"That's what he did."

"What, had his photo taken?" Malen asked, confusion written on her face.

Scully sighed.  Why did she have to keep pointing out the fact that Mulder 
was wearing a wedding band in the photo?  "Look at his hand."

Malen's eyes opened really wide.  "Whoa, wait a minute.  When was this 
taken?"

"The back of the photo says August 12, 1990."

"Are you trying to tell me that Mulder was married?  I don't believe it.  He 
might have been undercover when this photo was taken."

Scully shook her head.  "I don't think so.  I also found this in his desk 
when I was looking for a file," she replied as she handed Malen the 
jeweler's box.

Malen opened it and took out the wedding ring.  She looked at it, and then 
handed the ring and box back to Scully.  "I'm assuming that 'DF' is Diana 
Fowley?"

"Who else could it be?"

"What did Mulder have to say about this?"  Malen inquired, and then when she 
saw Scully hesitate, she continued, "You didn't let him explain, did you?"

"Come on, Malen.  It's fairly obvious that Mulder was indeed married."

"Dana, things are not always what they appear to be," Malen answered.

"Malen, I am not really in the mood for your philosophical insight."

Malen raised one eyebrow and replied, "Then why are you here?"

Scully closed her eyes for a moment, then opened them and said, "You're 
right.  I'm sorry."

Taking Scully's arm, Malen led her to one of the seats located around the 
large telescope in the center of the room.  As they sat down, Malen said, 
"Dana, you are here because you need a sounding board and the one you have 
come to rely on to be that is the one you need to talk about.  Right now you 
are feeling betrayed and are wondering if you really know Mulder as well as 
you thought you did.  You feel that if he has been keeping this a secret, 
what else might he be hiding.  And how I know you are feeling like that 
because, at one time, I did as well."

A look of surprise crossed Scully's face.  "Because of Shane?"  At Malen's 
nod, she said, "What happened, if you don't mind my asking?"

"Not at all.  Maybe it will help you a little.  About a year after Shane and 
I started this facility, we hired a woman named Heidi Adams.  She was 
originally supposed to be my research assistant, but her background was more 
suited to a project Shane was working on.  I was totally secure in my 
marriage so I had no problem with the two of them working together.  Well, I 
didn't until the late nights became later and the time they spent together 
increased to where Shane was spending more time with Heidi than he was with 
me.  Shane would apologize every chance he got and kept saying that he would 
make it up to me when the project was finished.  I was home alone one 
evening when Heidi showed up at my door with a videotape in hand.  She stood 
in the foyer of the home I shared with my husband and proceeded to tell me 
that the two of them had been having an affair for the past three months.  
She said that she could no longer keep the secret hidden from me.  I, of 
course, said that I did not believe her, so she handed me the videotape 
saying that it contained the proof I needed.  After she left, I reluctantly 
turned on the tape and suddenly felt as though my world had come to an end.  
There on the screen was my husband, the love of my life, kissing another 
woman.  Hurt and anger like I have never known before coursed through my 
body.  I remember ripping the tape out of the VCR and throwing it against 
the wall.  I drove here, ran into Shane's lab, and called him every horrible 
name I could think of.  I informed him that I was moving out and that I was 
going to file for a divorce because I could not be with someone who cheated 
on me.  Shane just stood there silently and took my verbal assault.  After I 
had finished, he looked at me sadly and said that he could not believe that 
I had so little faith in him that I could even began to think that he would 
go back on our wedding vows.  He admitted that Heidi had indeed kissed him, 
an act that prompted him to fire her on the spot when she could not 
guarantee that it would not happen again.  He said that there would never be 
anyone else for him but me and that he thought he had proved that long ago.  
For the second time in less than an hour, I felt my world stop.  This time 
it was because I had fallen for one of the oldest female revenge tactics in 
the book and had doubted the love of my husband.  I had never felt so bad in 
my life.  How was I going to make this up to him?  Apologizing just did not 
seem enough.  Eventually, we did manage to work everything out and get past 
my mistake."

"I'm glad that you did, but how does it fit my problem?"

"Dana, you are a federal agent.  Do you ever convict someone on 
circumstantial evidence or without questioning them first?  No, because you 
are not allowed to, however that is what you are doing to Mulder.  Don't be 
so willing to give up what you have with him without hearing what he has to 
say.  Like I said before, things are not always what they appear to be."

************************

Mulder walked dejectedly into his apartment.  His meeting with AD Skinner 
had run a lot longer that he had hoped and Scully had not returned to work 
by the time he got back down to his office.  He had spent the rest of the 
afternoon trying to track her down.  He had stopped by Shalen Research to 
talk to Malen to see if she had seen Scully, but he had been informed that 
Malen was not there.  In desperation he had even called Scully's mother, who 
had informed him that she had not spoken to Scully since the weekend.  
Scully was not at her apartment and her cell phone was turned off.  He had 
left countless messages on her answering machine.  He had to talk to her, 
but he did not know what else to do.

Taking off his trench coat Mulder hung it on the coat stand beside the door, 
then went into his bedroom to change out of his suit.  After putting on 
comfortable jeans and a t-shirt, he went back into the living room and sat 
down on the couch.  He had to think of a way to find Scully and get her to 
talk to him.  He refused to lose her over this.  If he lost her, he did not 
think - no, he knew - he could not go on, especially now that he knew Scully 
loved him.  He knew he should be angry at her lack of trust, but he realized 
that the evidence did seem to convict him.  He was honestly more upset that 
she had not given him a chance to explain himself.  How could she have just 
walked out like that?  He was still debating that when there was a knock on 
his door.  Standing, he went to answer it, knowing somehow that Scully was 
standing on the other side.

************************

Scully stood in front of Mulder's door deciding whether or not she should 
announce her presence.  Her talk with Malen had done much to clear her head 
and to put things back into a more rational perspective.  Malen had asked 
her if Mulder had indeed been married and still claimed to love her, would 
that change the way she felt about him.  Scully had to admit that she still 
loved Mulder and that would never change, she was just deeply hurt that it 
appeared that he had kept something so important from his past from her.  
Could she get past this?  Probably.  Malen had been right when she had said 
Scully should not give up on Mulder without hearing what he had to say 
first.  She owed him, and herself, that much.  With her decision made, she 
reached up and knocked on the door.

************************

Mulder opened the door and saw that it was indeed Scully standing in the 
hallway.  She was wearing the suit she had been earlier, so she had 
obviously not gone home.  Looking at her, he wondered if she was here to say 
good-bye or to finally let him explain.  They stood staring at each other 
for a few moments, and then he said, "Why don't you come in."

"Thank you," Scully said softly, suddenly very self-conscious, which was 
strange considering the level of intimacy she and Mulder had shared over the 
past several months.  "We need to talk."

"Yes, we do.  Go ahead and sit down.  Can I get you something to drink?" 
Mulder asked, trying to make things as normal as he could but really wanting 
to just start right into solving this matter.

"Mulder, stop trying to pretend this is just any other night for us.  We 
need to talk about this," Scully stated.

"That's what I wanted to do this morning, but you ran out on me," Mulder 
shot back.

"You're right, I did.  I could not talk to you right then, but I'm here 
now."

Mulder sighed, partly with relief.  Maybe now they could get this whole 
misunderstanding cleared up.  And it did give him hope that Scully came here 
of her own accord.  "You're still welcome to sit down."

Scully sat down on the couch and watched as Mulder perched on the corner of 
his desk.  They stared at each other again, and then she said, "Malen made a 
point to remind me that being in law enforcement I have been trained to look 
past the circumstantial evidence and find out what the real truth is.  That 
is why I am here.  I want to know that the truth is, Mulder.  I expect 
nothing less from you."

"Understood," Mulder said, and then paused for a second.  "Despite all the 
evidence that would indicate otherwise, the truth is I am not now nor have I 
ever been married."

Scully studied Mulder's face for a moment, trying to determine if he was 
telling the truth.  He never once broke her gaze or displayed any of the 
characteristics she had been trained to look for to tell if someone was 
lying, so she determined he was indeed telling her the truth.  However, that 
still did not explain the ring or the photo.  "So, then why do you have a 
wedding ring?"

A sheepish look crossed Mulder's face as he remembered the reason for the 
ring.  "It's actually kind of a stupid reason looking back on it.  When I 
started with the VCU, one of the supervisors thought that an agent portrayed 
a stable, more approachable image if they were married, or at least appeared 
to be, so being the good little agent I was at the time, I went along with 
the antiquated notion.  I wore the ring until I discovered the X-Files.  
Once out on my own, I was free to follow my own rules, which you know I do a 
little too freely sometimes."

*That explained the photo,* Scully thought because Mulder had been with the 
Violent Crimes Unit in 1990, but it did not explain why Diana had written an 
inscription in the ring.  "Okay, but what about the inscription in the 
ring?"

"Well, I'm assuming that you figured out it was from Diana.  She did it as a 
hint as to what she wanted to happen between us, hence the 'inter nos'.  The 
date was because it was the first day of a new decade and she wanted it to 
symbolize a new start in our relationship, one that I was not willing to 
take.  She either got tired of waiting for me to ask or realized I wasn't 
going to, because she left for Europe.  I didn't see or speak to her again 
until she showed up for the Gibson Praise case."

Scully sat there for a moment and suddenly realized she knew what Malen must 
have felt when Shane explained about Heidi.  Mulder had not kept anything of 
great importance from her.  She already knew he had been involved with 
Diana, so that information did not change anything.  She did need to know 
one more thing.  "If you didn't want to marry Diana, why did you keep the 
ring?"

"I guess I kept it at first because I did miss her, but that passed and I 
honestly forgot about the ring until you and I went on that undercover 
assignment last year.  After that case, I threw the ring in my desk drawer 
and once again forgot about it  . . . that is, until this morning," Mulder 
said evenly.  He had been watching Scully throughout his explanation and 
knew she accepted that he was indeed telling her the truth.  Now it would be 
a case of whether or not Scully could overcome her pride.  Her biggest fear 
was appearing weak or foolish in front of anyone, but even more so in front 
of him.  He knew she would judge herself harshly for allowing herself to 
make this mistake.  Now that she had let him explain, he was more than 
willing to just let this drop.  The question was could she?

Sitting there on Mulder's couch, Scully could feel him watching her, but she 
refused to meet his gaze.  How was she supposed to apologize for this?  She 
had called him a liar, then walked out when he had tried to explain.  She 
had doubted his love, his honor, his loyalty, and was basically willing to 
give up everything they had together.  She still felt Mulder's eyes on her 
and suddenly felt trapped beneath them.  She had to get away.  "I'm glad you 
explained.  Now that you have, I have to go," she said as she quickly stood 
and headed for the door.

Mulder was frozen in his spot for a moment with surprise, and then he 
straightened up and moved to intercept Scully.  Grabbing her arms, he said, 
"No.  I'm not going to let you walk out on me this time.  Don't start 
putting up the walls between us again.  So you made a mistake, who gives a 
damn.  It's not like I haven't made millions of them, and you're still here 
with me.  I love you and nothing is ever going to change that."

At hearing Mulder's admission, tears started falling down Scully's face.  
"I'm so sorry," she whispered.

Grabbing Scully into a hug, Mulder kissed the top of her head.  "Don't be.  
I should have gotten rid of that ring a long time ago.  I'm sorry that I 
caused any confusion for you."

Moving closer to Mulder, Scully stood there and enjoyed the feel of his arms 
around her.  She took a deep breath and said, "All I could do was hear you 
telling Diana the things you have said to me."

"Scully, I have never felt about anyone the way I feel for you.  You mean 
everything to me and what we have goes so deep that mere words can't begin 
to describe it.  You are my best friend, my partner, my lover, my heart, and 
my soul.  It's kind of ironic that you should find that ring today of all 
days because I wanted to add something to that list.  I had this all planned 
out, but I guess it is the thought that counts," Mulder said as she let go 
of Scully and walked over to his trench coat.  Taking something out of the 
pocket, he crossed back to her.  "Now that you know I'm a confirmed 
bachelor, I was hoping that you would agree to change that," he continued, 
his heart in his throat as he handed Scully a small jeweler's box similar to 
the one she had found in his desk.

Scully stopped breathing for a moment as she slowly opened the box with a 
shaking hand.  She gasped when she saw what was inside.  Nestled in the 
velvet was the most glorious ring she had ever seen.  It was a flawless 
diamond sent in a gold band that was carved with a delicate Celtic design.  
Taking the ring out of the box, she raised her tear-filled eyes to Mulder, 
who was looking at her with a small smile on his face.

"I wasn't ready or willing to take this step with anyone before, but I am 
with you.  I love you, Dana.  Marry me," Mulder said softly.

Not able to utter a sound, Scully quickly nodded.  Mulder pulled her to him 
and kissed her deeply.  Scully had never been happier that she was at that 
moment.  Looking at Mulder again, she knew he felt the same way.  Her gaze 
went back to the engagement ring still in her hands.  "Mulder, where did you 
find this ring?  It's breathtaking."

Mulder's smile grew wider.  "I'm glad you like it because I designed it 
myself."  At Scully's look of amazement, he said, "I noticed that you have a 
Celtic knot print hanging in your apartment in the spare room, so I got the 
design idea from that.  It is supposed to represent the joining of heaven 
and earth and symbolize eternity.  Since you are of Irish decent and because 
my love for you is eternal, I thought it was fitting."

Scully bit her lip to keep from crying again.  "But what about you?  Aren't 
you symbolized anywhere on the ring?"

"On the inside."

Tilting the ring slightly, Scully saw that there was an inscription inside.  
It read 'You are my truth, my constant, my love - Fox'.  The tears she had 
been trying to hold back started falling down her cheeks.  "You signed it 
'Fox'."

Mulder just shrugged as he reached up to dry Scully's face.  "It seemed more 
appropriate that using 'Mulder'."

Scully smiled deeply, then handed Mulder the ring.  "Will you do the 
honors?"

"Gladly," Mulder said as he slipped the ring on Scully's left hand.  He 
placed a kiss over the ring, then leaned down and kissed her lips.

As they moved apart, Scully laid her head contentedly on Mulder's chest.  
She could not believe that a morning that had been so horrible had turned 
into an afternoon that was the most wonderful so far in her life.  The man 
she loved more than life had just asked her to marry him.  Now she would not 
only get the pleasure of working with him, she would get to come home with 
him everyday and not have to hide their relationship.  Then a thought hit 
her that darkened her mood.  "Mulder, I just thought of something?"

Mulder pulled back a little at Scully's worried tone.  "What is it, 
sweetheart?"

"Mulder, if we get married, we won't be able to work together."

"Don't worry about it," Mulder said, his heart a little lighter now that he 
knew the cause of Scully's distress.  "I already took care of it."

Confusion crossed Scully's features.  *Already took care of it,* she 
thought.  *When had he done that?*  "When and how?"

"This morning.  That was the meeting I had to attend.  I went to Skinner and 
told him everything.  Of course at the time I was uncertain if I was going 
to get the chance to ask you to be my wife, but I wanted the matter cleared 
for when I did," Mulder explained.

"So, what did Skinner say?"

"He said that the FBI doesn't have an ironclad regulation against marriage 
and that if we maintain a professional appearance while on the job, he did 
not have a problem with us making out partnership more official.  Oh, and 
off the record he said it was about time I got my head out of my rear and 
asked you."

Relief overcame any anger that Scully might have felt about Mulder talking 
to Skinner without her knowledge.  She knew he had done it for a very good 
reason.  "I'm so glad that they won't be separating us.  And I couldn't 
agree with Skinner more.  It was about time you asked me."

************************

The next day, Scully drove back to Shalen Research Labs to talk to Malen 
once more.  She wanted to thank Malen for sharing the story about Heidi with 
her.  In a way, it had helped her to decide to talk to Mulder.  After all, 
it was like Malen had said - things are not always what they appear to be.  
As Scully entered the building, a smiling Sandra sitting at the 
receptionist's desk once again greeted her.  "Hello, Sandra.  Is Malen 
here?"

"No, I'm afraid she's not, Agent Scully.  She had a meeting with Professor 
Varavai at the Smithsonian.  Is there a message I can leave for her?" Sandra 
inquired.

"Yes, will you please tell her that her Heidi Adams story did the trick," 
Scully replied.

Sandra furrowed her brow.  "Dr. Phillips' Heidi Adams story?"

"Yes, Malen told me about her.  She was the research assistant that tried to 
come between Shane and Malen."

"And this Heidi worked here?"

"Yes," Scully responded cautiously, wondering if she had inadvertently 
revealed something that Malen had wanted to keep a secret.

"Agent Scully, I have worked here since the Phillips started this place," 
Sandra said, her smile widening.  "There has never been a Heidi Adams who 
worked here."

Scully was taken aback for a moment wondering why Malen would make up such a 
story.  Then her thoughts changed and she wondered how Malen had known the 
exact right thing to say.