TITLE: BEHIND EVERY GOOD WOMAN
AUTHOR: bellefleur
EMAIL ADDRESS: bellefleur1013@yahoo.com
DISTRIBUTION STATEMENT: sure
RATING: PG-13
CLASSIFICATION: V, MSR, A
SPOILER NOTICE: diverges from canon sometime after Closure
DISCLAIMER: Not mine; they belong to CC, FOX, etc.
SUMMARY: It's Scully's turn now.  


* * *

Grabbing the last stack of books from the shelf, Scully set it 
down on her bedroom floor and knelt back down in front of the 
open box.  As her hands mechanically continued the process of 
packing, her thoughts wandered to the events of the last few 
weeks.  So much had happened, and yet so little had been said.  
How had everything changed so quickly?

Less than three weeks ago, the partners had been sitting in 
Skinner's office giving the final report on their latest case.  
After the usual looks of disbelief and resignation had passed 
over their boss's face, they were expecting his grunt of 
dismissal, but instead he took a deep breath and pulled out a 
folder before looking up at them.

It was a promotion offer for Scully.  The field office in 
Seattle had an opening for the head of pathology, and apparently 
someone had recommended her for the job.  She had been 
surprised, to say the least, and quite flattered, but she was 
prepared to decline it on the spot.  It was Mulder reaching out 
for the folder and handing it to her that had stopped her.  
After muttering a "Thank you" and "I'll think about it" to 
Skinner, she followed Mulder back to their office without a word 
being exchanged.

In the end, she had only agreed to take the position because 
Mulder had urged so strenuously.  This was the Mulder who years 
before had begged her to stay, and now he had all but begged her 
to go.  He offered no argument other than that it was a great 
opportunity for her and she shouldn't pass it up.  The decision 
had been made, and in typical fashion between them, no more had 
been said.  She gave Skinner her acceptance and her two weeks 
notice.  Her last day at the Hoover building had been on Friday.  
Now here she was on Monday, at home packing to begin her move to 
Seattle.

Scully felt a tear start to trickle down her face, and she 
brushed it away, sniffing back any others that threatened to 
fall.  She couldn't think about this now.  She had been fighting 
off the tears for two weeks, and she wasn't about to give in 
yet.  She smiled to herself as an image of Scarlett O'Hara 
flashed through her mind: "I'll think about it tomorrow."  

It wasn't like Mulder had stormed out of her life and said 
dramatically, "Frankly, my dear, I don't give a damn."  Then why 
did she feel like he had?  Instead, he had said nothing.  He 
wasn't even in the office on Friday afternoon when she left with 
the box of miscellaneous desk drawer contents tucked under her 
arm.  The office was dark and empty when she looked at it for 
the last time and shut the door behind her, the door that still 
bore his name alone.  Well, now it truly was his alone.  
Apparently, that's how he wanted it.

Scully was pulling packing tape across the top of the box when 
she thought she heard a knock at the front door.  She paused for 
a moment to listen for the sound.  There it was again--
definitely a knock.  As she got up and walked through the living 
room, she idly wondered who this could be.  It was only noon, so 
Mulder should still be at work.  Otherwise, he would have been 
her first guess, since he was her most frequent visitor.  
Opening the door, she was surprised to see that it was him after 
all.

"Mulder, what are you doing here?  Shouldn't you be at work?"

"Not anymore."  Scully shut the door behind him as Mulder 
stepped into the apartment and turned to face her.  "I just 
handed Skinner my letter of resignation."

"You what?!?!"  The look on Scully's face registered her 
incredulity just as clearly as her voice.  "Mulder, you can't--"

"I did, Scully.  It's done.  I'm not changing my mind."  Mulder 
reached over and grabbed one of Scully's hands that had gone 
slack at her side.  He looked down at her hand for a moment and 
then looked back up at her sheepishly.  "I need you, Scully."

Scully sighed.  "Mulder, my decision's already been made.  I 
can't stay."

"I'm not asking you to."  Secretly, she was hoping he would.  
Scully looked up at his face and met the determined look that 
she knew so well.  She wasn't sure where he was going with this, 
but apparently they were finally going to talk.  "I realized 
something today.  I finally pulled my head out of my ass and 
realized something I should've figured out years ago."

He paused for a moment, but Scully didn't say anything.  At her 
questioning look, he continued.  "You told me once that not 
everything is about me, but it has been.  Everything we've done 
for the last seven years has been about me.  Everything you've 
sacrificed, everything you've lost, it's all been for me, for my 
quest.  You've fought by side, and I never could have done it 
without you, but you've asked for nothing in return."

As Scully opened her mouth to speak, he stilled her lips with a 
finger, and with a look he made sure she understood before he 
continued.  "My quest is over now, Scully.  I found Samantha--
*we* found Samantha, and I can finally move on.  That's why I 
urged you to take this job.  I thought I was doing you a favor 
by letting you move on with your own life.  But what I realized 
today, Scully, is how much I *owe* you.  I want to give you 
everything you've ever wanted, everything you've given up 
because of me.  I want to stand by your side and support you, 
just as you've always supported me.  I don't want to end our 
partnership.  I just want it to be about you now."

Mulder's hand that had lingered over Scully's lips now dropped 
to his side, indicating that she was free to respond.  But she 
wasn't quite sure what to say.  After looking down for a moment 
at their hands that were still joined, she finally found her 
voice.  "So, what, are you just going to follow me to Seattle?"

As he spoke the next sentence, Mulder reached into the pocket of 
his trenchcoat and pulled out a little black velvet box that he 
brought in front of Scully.  "Actually, I was kinda hoping you'd 
take me in."

Scully gasped and stared in shock at the box, now open and 
revealing a dazzling diamond ring, as Mulder knelt down in front 
of her.  When she was able to breathe again, she pulled her eyes 
up from his extended hand and looked deep into his hazel orbs.  
Overwhelming love and fear of rejection battled in his eyes as 
he let out a breathless, "Please say yes."

After what seemed like an eternity to both of them, Scully 
dipped into a reserve of Mulder-humor to break the tension 
building between them.  She leaned in and whispered, "You 
haven't asked me anything yet."  

Mulder gratefully met the humor in her eyes and smiled briefly 
himself before turning serious again.  "Scully--Dana, will you 
marry me?"

The emotions in Scully's throat were choking her speech, so all 
she could do was look dumbly at him and nod.  Mulder took the 
opportunity to mimic her action of a moment before, leaning in 
and whispering, "You haven't answered me yet."

She was just able to release her "Yes" on a contented sigh 
before Mulder's lips gently closed over hers.  Then her arms 
were around his neck, and his were around her back, and the ring 
was all but forgotten as that first sweet kiss evolved into 
something more.  

After a long moment, breathless, they pulled apart, but only far 
enough that their foreheads were now resting against each other.  
Scully started to laugh and shake her head slightly.  

"This is crazy, Mulder."

"That's me, crazy Mulder."

She knew she should have seen that one coming.  Pulling back a 
little, but not relinquishing her hold on him, Scully looked 
deep into his eyes and asked in a very serious tone, "Are you 
sure?"

"About us, Scully?  Of course I'm sure."

"No, Mulder, I mean about the job.  How can you just walk away 
from the X-Files after so long?  That job is your life."

"That job *was* my life, and then you came along.  Then *you* 
became my life, and the job was just a means to an end--to find 
my sister, and to be with you."  At Scully's dubious look, he 
continued before she could object.  "Why do you think I stayed 
when they shut us down?"  He paused for a moment, for dramatic 
effect, before answering his own rhetorical question.  "Because 
of you.  If you had really quit after they shut us down and took 
the X-Files away, I don't know that I could have stayed.  You 
were the only thing that kept me coming back every day.  Hell, I 
had even less of a life then than I did before.  I spent far too 
many late evenings at the office, at that stupid desk in the 
bullpen, because I knew that's the place where I'd see you 
again.  It was your determination that gave me the hope to keep 
fighting, to keep trudging through Kersh's shit detail day after 
day."  He sighed and pulled her closer, leaning his head against 
her chest.  "Without you, and without my search for Samantha, 
the X-Files don't mean anything to me anymore.  I can't do it 
without you."

They stayed liked that for a moment while Scully stroked his 
hair and took in the things he had just said.  These were things 
she had hoped for and had needed to hear for so long, even more 
than she had realized.  In the past, she would have objected; 
she would have supported him in his fight and urged him to go 
back and not throw in the towel.  But things had already begun 
to change, and as she pulled back and looked down into his face, 
she realized just how much.  In this position, with him still on 
his knees, she was the taller one, and she was seeing things 
from his perspective for the first time.  They had changed 
places.  He wanted things to be about her, and it was her turn 
to take the lead.  Somewhere an inner voice proclaimed, "Dana 
Scully, welcome to the driver's seat."

"And so we leave and the X-Files close, just like that?"

"I could plead with Skinner to keep them open and assign someone 
else, but after that last audit, I think it was just a matter of 
time before they closed us down again.  They were just looking 
for a good reason.  I guess we beat them to the punch."

"You don't have to quit, Mulder.  You could at least put in for 
a transfer."

"Scully, I'm no good for anything besides the X-Files.  I could 
never work normal cases, or even worse, sit behind a desk.  
Besides, no one would want me."

"You're a good agent.  The best I've ever seen.  You make a 
difference.  You solve cases that no one else would ever figure 
out."

Mulder smiled up at her in admiration for her support, but then 
his smile turned rueful.  "They'd assign me a new partner.  You 
know I can't work with anybody but you."

For that, she had no objection.  She knew he was right.  They 
were a team, and neither of them could ever be partnered with 
anyone else.

"So, what'll you do?"

"I don't know.  I'll just do something else for a while.  I've 
got options."

Scully's eyes smiled down at him as she said playfully,  "And 
who's going to save the planet from the aliens?"  

"I never said I was going to give up on that, Scully.  But the 
FBI isn't necessarily the best place to fight from anymore.  And 
who says I can't save the planet from Seattle?"  

The tone to his voice was light, but Scully knew he was serious.  
For a moment it troubled her, but then a peace settled and she 
smiled at him broadly, hugging his head back to her chest.  This 
was the Mulder she knew, the Mulder she had fallen in love with.  
And despite all his quirks, she never wanted him to change.


THE END


==================

Notes: After reading an angsty story about Scully putting 
Mulder's career ahead of hers once again, I just had to give 
Mulder a chance to say what I think Scully deserves to hear.



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