*SILENCE* 1/1 by Martine Groulx Disclaimer: Everybody you recognize belongs to CC, Fox entertainment and 1013. I own none of them, nor do I claim to. Rating: PG; MSR thoughts, lots of angts. Get your tissues: Character dies. Summary: Somebody dies and the other person finds out tragically. Ok, ok, don't shoot me! I know this has been done many times already, but never in the way I've done it (I hope!). The first 8 lines slept on my hard drive with all it's half-finished fanfic friends for months before I finally decided to do something with it. I admit being proud of the result, so don't flame me too hotly please. As for the mistakes I make, well, blame them on the Quebec school system who can't seem to be able to teach verb tenses to the French speaking students correctly 8) :) ;) Hope you enjoy this!!! ********* A dog barked. A window broke. A gunshot rang. Then two. Then three. Silence. And everybody's life went on. Except Fox Mulder's. ********* *Three days later...* They had both been on leave for a week, and Scully had gone to an old friend's cabin in Vermont to rest for a while, to forget about her work, her everyday life, and connect with nature. It felt so very good. She couldn't wait to tell Mulder about everything she had done, and about some things she'd had the time to think about. Sitting on the porch, she looked out to the peaceful lake, and felt a pang of regret once more for not having insisted hard enough for him to come with her. He would have needed it even more than she did. It wasn't often that Fox Mulder took the time to rest, and forget about all the hardship he had endured.. But he had insisted on staying in Washington, presumably to catch up on some _very_ vague things. Scully knew better of course. But she'd let him win. In the meantime, she was out of milk, and decided she should go to the nearest village and get some. It was an half an hour drive up to the store, and the woods surrounding the road were simply beautiful. Upon arriving, she bought a few glass bottles, and the clerk wrapped them in newspapers to prevent them from breaking. Dana and the old man chatted for a little while. When she inquired about the lake, he even provided her with a few legends concerning a ghost that supposedly lived on a small island and killed anyone who would venture into it's territory. How Mulder would have been delighted by such a story!!! She gave her goodbies to the clerk, and got back to her Explorer. Scully shoved the bottles on the passenger seat and drove off, her mind wandering. She thought about how completely wonderful this day had been. She'd never felt more relaxed in months. Three nights before however, she had woken up in cold sweat from an horrible nightmare she could not remember. All she had was this incredible need to call Mulder, to make sure he was allright. But then she laughed at herself 'you left your cellphone at home you idiot! And besides, why bother him? Neither of us would ever sleep if we were to call each other every time we have nightmares! Come on Dana, shake it off!' And so she did. She had some trouble going back to sleep, but then a slow peace had descended upon her. As if somebody she loved had come by her bedside to kiss her on the cheek and wish her a soft goodnight. She'd felt slightly lightheaded the next day, as if something important was missing, but she could not quite pinpoint the problem. Everything had gone back to normal the second day, and there she was now. When she arrived at the cabin, she freed the bottles and trew the remnants of the newspaper in the waste, not looking at the writing on the wrinkled pages. She made herself some coffee and walked outside to read in the sun. Later that day, Dana prepared herself a salad, and as she got up to trow the remnants out, she peeked into the wastebasket. Her heart froze. On the sheet of newspaper she had trown out just before, was a picture of Mulder. It was a very good one taken a few months before, at the last Bureau party. He was smiling that rare and so precious smile of his, looking at someone outside the frame. 'Me' her frantic mind remembered. Quickly, Dana picked the paper up, and looked at the title, her heart thumping erratically in her chest. Never in her life had she read more dreaded words. Just beside the pictures was written in large characters: "F.B.I. agent killed by robber with his own weapon." Dana read on, not beliving for one second that He could be dead. It had to be a mistake! But there it was. Her mind registered nothing past the first few words: "Bureau Special Agent Fox W. Mulder was found dead by the police..." Scully looked up, her eyes staring past the wooden ceiling, as all her world came tumbling down by her side. How could she not have known? But she had, that dream... GodohGodohnononoGodnoitcan'tbenononoGodno! She felt an ice- cold, hard ache creep up on her, her heart almost bursting out of her chest. It hurt so much... She let out a low, anguished moan, which started to get louder, and louder, and louder, until she screamed loud enough to be heard in echo across the lake. Then, she lost all bearings on herself, and crumpled to the floor, uncouncious. ********* *Same time, a few miles away...* It had taken Margaret Scully two full days to find out where her daughter had gone. When Dana had told she was going to take some time off, she had only said a friend was lenting her his cabin. The mother never asked more questions, trusting her daughter to be fine by herself, but mostly, because she thought Fox would be with her there. Fox. Oh God, how was she going to tell Dana? After it happened, their boss, M. Skinner, had tried to find her daughter, finally waking Margaret up at three in the morning to ask her if she knew where Dana was. The older woman had felt a great distress in the man's voice, and, worrying if her baby girl was allright, she asked what was the matter. The director's voice was tight with emotion when he told her the news: after hearing shots in the next door apartment, a woman had called the police, and they had found Mulder dead in his living room. Apparently, he had been killed in his sleep by robbers. He'd never seen it coming. To Margaret, it was like loosing her own child. She knew Dana loved this man with her heart and soul, and she knew Fox loved her the same. It had made the mother feel good that her daughter had found such as caring man. When she had been taken, he had been there for Maggie, comforting her, bringing her support, hope. She knew he had been devastated, she could see it in his eyes, but he never gave up. It was then that her heart had adopted Fox Mulder as a surrogate son. Or maybe like a beloved son-in-law. It was the same to her. And for him to die like this... It was soo unfair to both kids. Oh, she had to find Dana. And so she'd called every friend of Dana's she knew, until finally she had found Christine Lowett's number on the coffe table of her daughter's place. As soon as she knew where the younger Scully had gone, she booked a flight up for the closest airport, and then rented a car to drive up to the cabin. The sun was starting to come down over the mountains when Margaret finally reached Christine's place. She saw Dana's Jeep by the porch. To woman posed, and wiped away the tears that had fallen free during her introspection. She took a deep breath, and walked to the door. She knocked twice, but getting no response, she pushed the door open. She looked around, saw her daughter's sneaker's on the welcome rug, her favorite edition of Moby Dick on the coffee table. The cabin had two bedrooms, one bathroom and a large open area that contained the living room and kitchen. Margaret looked around at the half cleaned dining table, and then, she heard a soft sound coming from behind the high counter. She walked around it, and found her daughter huddled in one corner, eyes wide, staring at emptiness, silent tears running down her cheeks. Margaret took two steps forward and noticed the piece of paper on the floor and the picture it held. Immediatly, she fell on her knees and took her daughter in her arms. ********* The funeral was held a few days later. It was raining, and the people gathered around the grave were huddled togheter in an attemp to warm up. Mrs. Mulder was standing straight backed a few feet from Dana, but her grief was visible in the small hunch of her shoulder's, and in the depths of her eyes. But the older woman had too much pride to cry in public, even after having lost her last family. It would be another matter once she found herself alone. On the other side, the Gunmen were standing, heads bowed. Frohike was crying openly, and his two friends each had a hand on his shoulders. Skinner was behind, stern, but someone who knew him enough would have seen the downward curve of his lips. Margaret was standing by her daughter, sniffing, and wiping her eyes repeatedly, all the while keeping an eye on her daughter. Dana hadn't said more than a few words since she had found her in the cabin. And those were only yes and no's. As the minister finished his speach, she started shaking, with more violence at each passing second. Maggie put a hand on Dana's shoulders, but the younger Scully shrugged her off abrubtly. Tears flowed freely on her face now, and small sobs were escaping her lips. People stepped to the grave, and said their sympaties, but each gave Scully a wide birth. There were only a few gatherers left when all hell finally broke loose. Scully's sobs were getting louder, and she was shaking so much she fell on the damp earth. Her mom knelt beside her, and took her in her arms. She was not pushed away this time, and Dana started murmuring in between sobs: "Why mom, why... I should have been wtih him... I.. I should have insisted he come with me! Oh God why! I love him mom, I was going to tell him, I had been thinking about it for weeks, I had promessed it to my self at the cabin, I swear... It should have been perfect,not this, never this!!!" "Sweatheart, honey, don't blame yourself, shhhh let go of it, don't blame yourself, Fox wouldn't want that..." After a few moments, Maggie got her daughter into the car with the help of A.D. Skinner. She drove her home, and put her to bed. ********* *Two Years later* Mulder, Today marked the second anniversary of your death. Anniversary. Such a happy word for such an event. I still can't find words to describe how I felt, how I still feel. It left a gaping hole in my heart and soul, a rift that can't be filled. How could I replace you my precious friend? We were part of a whole. After you left, I couldn't do anything for about a month. Then, I felt this need for revenge grow in me, until it filled me with a purpose that kept me going. I know now how you felt all these years searching for Samantha.By the way, did you know she came back? We still don't know what happened to her, but she was raised from the age of twelve by a good family on the west coast, she didn't remember a thing about before, until she got in her car accident and stayed in a coma for a month. Upon waking up, she remembered every detail of her childood, and got in contact with your mother. I meet her now and then and we talk about you. She has only good memories of you, and regrets not having remembered sooner, then she says, you wouldn't have risked your life so many times for her. As I said, I needed to take revenge. After a year of intense investigation, all my efforts got useless, as a twenty years old kid confessed to your murder. In the beginning, I thought it was the Consortium setting me up, I believed they wanted me out of the way.But after studying all the evidence, I came to the conclusion that the Smoking-Man and his drones had nothing to do with it. After that, I decided to go on. A friend of ours, Byers, said last time I saw him,that you wouldn't want me spending the rest of my days crying over you. He is right. I will never forget you of course. How could I? The sound of your voice follows me everywhere I go, I see you in every crowd I pass trough... But instead of making me sad, those small things make me happy, because you come back to me little by little with each memory, good or bad. I never told you how much you meant to me, and it is now my only regret... But I teel you now, in this letter you will nerver read: I loved you, I *still* love you with all my heart. You will always be there, beside me. That dream I had at the cabin, I know now that I felt you die, and that kiss I felt before I fell back asleep, it was you wasn't it? I know, you're thinking: Why Scully? You're not the sceptic anymore? Well Mulder, when it comes to you an me, anything is possible... When my time comes, I will come to you. It may not be soon, but when it happens, I'll take you in my arms, and I wont let you go. Love, Dana. Scully bent down and rearranged the roses by the grave, she dug a small hole beside them, and buried the small metal box in wich the letter was neatly folded. She neatly put the grass back where it belonged, and looked up to the gravestone, and placed her hand on top of it. She kissed the fingers of her other hand, and brushed them on his name. She got back up then, and walked away from the grave, but not before saying those words she had wanted so long to say. "I love you Mulder, never forget that..." FIN ********* So, what did you think????