THE ENTITY 11/11 by: Annie Jennings(Auralissa@aol.com) ************************************************* ************************************************* TWO DAYS LATER Walter Skinner sat before Dana Scully, looking over her carefully. She was a little paler than usual, but that was probably from the trauma that she had recently gone through. And he noted the rosy tint in her cheeks. She fairly radiated a bright, sunny glow. Colton had been right. But Skinner really did not care. "This is one of the most bizarre cases that you and Agent Mulder have ever handed me," he said, shaking his head. "I don't know what to make of it, but it seems to be legitimate. The blood samples from Mulder and the bodies of the so-called 'vampires' do show some abnormalities." "I assure you that this is the whole and honest truth," she promised. Skinner put the thick file aside, and looked at the empty seat next to her. "Where is Agent Mulder?" he asked. Scully was cool. "He is taking the day off due to sickness," she said. The lie was cool, and Skinner decided that now was the ideal time to call her on it. "Agent Scully, we knew that you had brought Agent Mulder to Quantico," he revealed, and she masked her surprise. "Agent Tom Colton saw you and Agent Mulder there that day. He saw you engage in a suspicious activity, and reported it to me." "I see, sir," she said, her voice low and resigning. "And what have you decided to do?" Glad that she had opted not to attempt to lie, Skinner continued. "I have chosen to do nothing," he said, and this time Scully could not mask her surprise. "I will permit this relationship to proceed, as long as it does not affect the success rate of the X-Files." She shook her head, not expecting this kind of response. "Sir, don't treat me any differently because of my condition..." she began, but Skinner cut her off. "I'm not making this any easier on you, Scully. If anything, this could prove to be very difficult," he warned. "I am expecting nothing more than the best from the two of you, simply because I have never received anything less from the best. And I'm not doing this to make it easier on you during your last months. I'm doing it to make it easier on me." Scully's eyebrows arched, and Skinner took off his wire-rimmed reading glasses. His stern and distinguished face was open and honest. "I have a strict belief on making the lives of those that have made my life happy at peace. This will take some of the grief off of my shoulders, Scully. I will know that I somewhat contributed to your peace in the last time of your life." Scully did not know what to say. She had just been told by her own boss, one of the sternest and strictest leaders in the F.B.I., that a rule was being bent just for her and her partner. "Thank you, sir," she whispered, and gave him a short, brief, yet radiant smile, including a rare flash of pearly white teeth, before leaving his office with a new spring in her step. Skinner watched the demure, powerful, and incredibly strong woman walk out of the room. Probably going home to "nurse Mulder back to health". He pictured Mulder's face when Scully told him the events of the meeting, and pensively gazed at the portrait of the President. He wondered if devils remembered promises. ************************************************* ************************************************* White Sands Beach Miami, Florida One week later, sunset Suns set and they fade, and the moon waxes and wanes. Very few things remain stable and certain for a long period of time, and yet love can keep intact and reliable. It is one of the few constants in a world of insanity and turmoil, and such a pleasant constant it is. As the sun set on the clear blue ocean, Mulder took the slender white hand of Scully and slowed from the jog. After a long, cold time in the city, Mulder had gotten his trip to Miami. The phony case had been easily explained, but no one really needed to know that for quite a while. Scully remembered still the carnage and the corpses of the dead vampires, and did not regret their deaths. Except for one... Sarah. The Irish village girl had struggled through her thirst for blood with faith in God and Christ intact, and had only sought to do the world better. Scully had admired her. The dream case had truly passed in a euphoric daze for the partners. She had declined to wear the thong that Mulder had teased her about, claiming that she did not require dental floss in such areas, but the skimpy, elegant, ice blue bikini that she had donned instead had been very satisfying to Mulder's little fantasies. Scully had to admit that the sight of Mulder in that ridiculously small excuse for a swimsuit was extremely appetizing. She had already blessed the inventor of the Speedo many times during that stay. The days of stretching out on the warm Miami sands and tanning(while being especially careful not to burn Dana's more sensitive porcelain skin) had been rewarding for the trials and tribulations earlier in the month of March, but the nights were filled with only each other. Starting with the evening walks on the beaches. Scully looked up into those soulful green eyes, and reached up to finger a strand of rich brown hair that had fallen onto his brow. He caught her wrist, and kissed her pulse point. He then kissed her lips, mouth upon mouth, the red sunset casting light onto her titian hair. After breaking away, Mulder looked into her eyes, and smiled broadly, a grin that showed his shining white teeth and small, rarely seen crinkles around his heavy-lidded eyes. It was the proud smile that a man gave when he knew that the breathless look on another woman's face was because of him. "I love you, Fox Mulder," she murmured. "I love you always forever." "And I love you, Dana Scully," he whispered back. To the lovers, the heart-filled confirmations were as solemn and as sacred as marriage vows, though the groom was wearing a backwards Knicks cap and the bride was barefoot. The setting sun and the gently swelling tide were their chapel, and they said their vows in greatest trust and confidence. But as he bent down to kiss her again, a warm trickle of blood ran its way down to her lips from her nose. Immediately noticing, Scully covered the lower portion of her face with her hand, ashamed at shattering the moment with her own physical weakness. Looking up at him with uncertainty at herself, Scully wiped the blood from her face. The pain that she felt did not scar her skin, but her soul instead. In a tender and heart-felt gesture, Mulder cupped her elbow with his hand. "Always forever, my love," he murmured, and the lovers held each other in the twilight. Time had betrayed them as much as mankind had. There would be little time for happiness, and even less time for eternity. And what time does not fulfill, memories often do. With the precious and meager days that they would spend in each other's arms, many memories would have to be made with love, tenderness, and loyalty. But love lasts forever. Always forever. ************************************************* ************************************************* "Feels like I'm standing in a timeless dream Of light mists Of pale amber rose "Feels like I'm lost deep cloud of heavenly scent Touching Discovering you "Those days Of warm rains come rushing back to me Miles of windless Summer night air "Secret moments Shared in the heat of the afternoon Out of the stillness Soft spoken words "Say, say it again "I love you always forever Near and far, closer together Everywhere I will be with you Everything I will do for you "I love you always forever Near and far, closer together Everywhere I will be with you Everything I will do for you "You've got The most unbelievable blue eyes I've ever seen You've got Me almost melting away "As we lay there Under a blue sky with pure white stars Exotic sweetness A magical time "I love you always forever Near and far, closer together Everywhere I will be with you Everything I will do for you "I love you always forever Near and far, closer together Everywhere I will be with you Everything I will do for you "Say you love, love me forever Never stop, nothing whatever Near and far and always And everywhere and everything "Say you love, love me forever Never stop, nothing whatever Near and far and always And everywhere and everything "Say you love, love me forever Never stop, nothing whatever Near and far and always And everywhere and everything "Say you love, love me forever Never stop, nothing whatever Near and far and always And everywhere and everything "I love you always forever Near and far, closer together Everywhere I will be with you Everything I will do for you "I love you always forever Near and far, closer together Everywhere I will be with you Everything I will do for you "I love you always forever........" --Donna Lewis "I Love You Always Forever", Now In A Minute, 1996 ************************************************* ************************************************* THE END, ALWAYS FOREVER