From: "Diadem" Date: Sun, 5 Mar 2000 22:55:38 -0000 Subject: Watching (1/1) by Diadem Source: xff Title: Watching (1/1) Author: Diadem Category: V, A, UST? Maybe a little. Rating: G Feedback: Diadem@cwcom.net Archive: Gossamer, Spookys, OK, anywhere else please ask Spoilers: The End Disclaimer: Mulder and Scully do not belong to me. They belong to CC, 10:13, Fox, GA and DD. I don't know who the Hoover Building belongs to, but that's not mine either, as far as I know. Notes: This is set after The End, and before they get the X Files back. And I know this has been done before, but this is my version. Thanks to Nic for the supersonic beta. I swear she manages to edit these things before I even send them :o) Watching (1/1) by Diadem Scully pulled her coat tighter around herself as she ran the short distance from the cab to the entrance of the Hoover Building. It was cold, colder than it usually was at that time of year. The darkness didn't help, either, but being called out in the middle of the night was at least something she was used to. She punched the combination into the lock and pushed the door open, letting her coat fall open as the heat from inside the building surrounded her. Hurrying down the corridor she noticed the number above the elevator was 6. Not bothering to wait for it she headed down the single flight of stairs that led to the basement. She was not surprised to find the light in the office on, nor was she surprised to find that her partner was nowhere to be found. She was surprised, however, to find a note on the desk. "Come find me. M " Sighing, Scully made her way back to the stairs. It was not going to be an easy night. As she reached the top of the stairs something stuck to the elevator door caught her attention. It was a piece of FBI headed memo paper, bearing the word "Up." She sighed again, and punched the button next to the door. She was damned if she was going to be running up stairs all night. The bell pinged, alerting her to the elevator's arrival, and she stepped inside, selecting the second floor. The carriage shuddered as it began its journey, but she hardly noticed. What could be the matter this time? And what on earth was that cryptic message on the desk in the office? Mulder's tone of voice over the phone had been anything but playful. In fact, it had been nothing but dismal since they had lost the files all those weeks ago. She clutched the small package in her pocket a little tighter. The doors opened with a slight clunk, but before she could step out of the elevator Scully's eye was caught by a pink PostIt stuck to the wall. One word. "Up." Sighing once more she stepped back and pressed the next button. The third floor was a little more interesting. Instead of simply "Up," there was an arrow pointing down the corridor. For the first time since she entered the building Scully felt a smile tug at the corners of her mouth. She set off in the direction the arrow instructed, but was soon stopped as she came face to face with another elevator. A pink PostIt this time, bearing the words "Up, up, up." Up three times? That seemed to be the message he was trying to put across, she mused, and punched the button for the sixth floor. At least she wouldn't have that much searching to do. The sixth floor was the last one. Sure enough she was met with another arrow as the doors slid aside on the sixth floor, and she began to wonder once more about why she was here, tonight of all nights. They hadn't spoken in almost a week, and there had been no half- finished cases to deal with, so what could he want? The corridor rounded a corner and she nearly missed the yellow note stuck on the door at the end. The door looked like it belonged to a cleaning closet or something of the sort. "Up." But there was no more up, there was only... Scully pushed the door open gently, cringing as it creaked softly. Sure enough there was a metal staircase, similar to those used for fire escapes. She set off upwards, the tapping of her heels echoing around the small space. As she reached the top she was faced with another door, complete with the now expected PostIt. "Up." He sure was in an original mood tonight. Easing the door open she found herself confronted with a cat ladder, stretching up into the darkness. She fumbled for a lightswitch but found none. Cursing her skirt but grateful for the trainers she had chosen having disregarded her heels, she began to climb. The metalic clang of each rung echoed around her, and she was beginning to wonder if the ladder did actually have a top when her head suddenly came into contact with something hard. Still holding the ladder with one hand she reached above her head and found more metal, heavy, but movable if she pushed hard enough. She pushed. Hard. The noise was almost enough to knock her off the ladder, and she was grateful for the rings that surrounded her. If she craned her neck she could see that what she had pushed over was a heavy metal trapdoor that lead up on to the roof of the Hoover Building. Quickly she climbed up the remaining few feet of the ladder and scrambled on to the concrete. Until now she had had no doubt that Mulder was in a funny mood and was looking for company. Now, however, in the eerie moonlight she was suddenly not so certain. She reached round her back and pulled out her gun, more comfortable now she could feel the weight of it in her hand. There was no sign of her partner. Carefully she began to pick her way around the unfamiliar terriory of the roof, skirting round skylights and vents, almost tripping once or twice over piles of discarded cables. She came upon her partner suddenly as she rounded the corner of what she imagined was some kind of maintainance hut. He was sitting, staring at the sky, on top of a ventiltion shaft, his head resting on his hands. For a moment she didn't move, but when he started speaking she didn't feel she had a choice. "It's a beautiful night." "Yes, it is," she agreed. She didn't want to say any more until he had offered some explanation for why they were there. "Just look at all those stars, Scully. Do you think there are people on any of them looking back at us?" His face betrayed no emotion. "No," she answered simply. "Thought not." "It would be pretty hot, living on a star," she elaborated. "But there may be beings on the planet around those stars." Mulder didn't asnswer, simply gave her a sideways look and a wry grin. Scully decided she had better take the initiative. "Mulder, why are you here? Why am I here?" "One night, Scully. Just one night of every year." "I know, Mulder, so why am I spending it sitting on a roof?" "We're watching," he replied. "Watching for what?" She had a feeling she didn't want to know the answer. "Are you telling me you don't believe in Santa Claus, Scully? I wouldn't have thought it of you." Still he stared into the sky, not seeming to care whether she was there or not. She crossed the small distance between them and sat beside him on the vent. It was surprisingly warm. "I don't not believe," she told him, hoping to elicit some response. "What did you ask for this year?" He suddenly turned to look at her, the attention that had been centered on the stars now focused on her. "A Barbie," she told him, hoping that humor would break him out of the state she had found him in. But the look on his face told her that was not the answer. She knew what he would ask for, given the chance. "We'll get the files back, Mulder," she promised. "I know we will. No one else wants them nearly as badly as you do. As *we* do." "I wish I could be so sure." Mulder turned his attention back to the sky. "We don't even know how much survived the fire." She sighed, and took his hand. "A lot of it survived, Mulder. Only the paper burned." "And the computer," he reminded her. "So many files were on there..." He trailed off as he squeezed her hand and then let her go. She took the opportunity to reach into her pocket and retrieve the small parcel she had had the foresight to bring with her. "Merry Christmas, Mulder." She handed him the foil wrapped package. He took it, and held it for a moment, trying to read what it was in her face. She couldn't help the smile that tugged at the corners of her mouth. "Well, aren't you going to open it?" Very carefully Mulder began to pick at the tape that held the parcel together. When it was finally all removed he leaned back, picked it up, and let the four CDs fall into his lap. They were blank, with no covers or labels to betray their content, but Scully could see immediately that he knew what they were. "It's not all of them," she apologised, "but it's all the case files and reports I had on my laptop or on disk at home. I think I have almost all the ones I have worked on, and it's a start." "It's more than that," he whispered, and pulled her into an embrace. She let her arms slip around him, and they sat like that for several minutes before Mulder let go and stood up. "Come on." He grabbed both her hands and pulled her to her feet. "I thought we were watching for Santa," she told him. "We were," he replied as he set off towards the trapdoor. "But he's already made his delivery here." "So where are we going?" She broke into a jog to catch up with him. "Well, I don't know Santa that well," he confessed, "But I have a sneaking suspicion that if we hurry, we might find something under your Christmas tree." End (1/1) Feedback to Diadem@cwcom.net