Falling Snow

By Snark

Completed June 5, 1999

E-MAIL: snark_911@yahoo.com

CLASSIFICATION: SA (Story, Angst) plus some UST

RATING: PG-13 

SPOILERS: This story is set before the Two Fathers/
One Son episodes. Many, many allusions are made to previous
episodes—Sleepless, Red Museum, Bad Blood, Clyde Bruckman's
Final Repose, Detour, Alpha, Shapes and Tithonus among them. 
They are not truly spoilers, though, in my opinion. More 
like "you'll understand these one-liners more if you've seen
these episodes, but you won't miss anything important or 
have any episodes ruined for you if you haven't."

DISCLAIMER: The characters of The X-Files universe belong
to Chris Carter, the FOX network and 1013 Productions.
No infringement is intended and no money is being made by
the existence of this story. (Unfortunately.) However, 
the characters of Khi Shaolin and Mobaje are my own creation. 
These characters are not for use by any other fanfic author 
without my express, written consent.

FEEDBACK: Welcomed and always answered. Mail me at
snark_911@yahoo.com to discuss this story.

STORY HOMEPAGE: http://members.tripod.com/~koosn/falling.html

SUMMARY: Mulder, Scully and a mysterious woman from Mulder's
past crash in the snowy landscape of the Colorado winter. 





------------
Chapter 1
------------



The man was asleep and then he was awake. His eyes snapped 
open to the darkness, the rest of his body remaining still--he had 
learned long ago that jerking awake often had unpleasant 
consequences. His gun, which had been lying on the low table in 
front of him, was now in his hand, retrieved by an almost 
imperceptible shift of his right arm. 

The man listened to the night. What had awakened him? Living 
in the apartment building, he had become used to the usual 
sounds that filtered into his apartment from the outside world:  
doors closing, cars passing, babies crying, lovers quarrelling. The 
man's brain automatically filtered out such sounds, not bothering 
to alert his body of their presence. No, this had been something 
else, something that had danced along the edge of perception and 
awakened him. Something inside the apartment.

Without sound, the man rolled off his couch and stood into a 
gunman's position, all in one fluid motion. The light from street 
lamps backlit his tall, shirtless frame, his wide shoulders tapering 
down to narrow hips. The arms and chest that held the gun so 
steady were lean but powerful, muscles rippling just beneath the 
surface. His eyes, often filled with humor but now gone cold, 
surveyed the room quickly. Every corner, every shadow was 
catalogued and dismissed.

The man moved forward slowly, gliding into the other half of his 
quarters. He rounded the corner to his kitchen and found nothing, 
backtracking to check the lock on his apartment door. He looked 
around again, uncertain at what his eyes showed him--something 
had awakened him, but he couldn't find its cause. He saw nothing 
out of order, no item misplaced or in disarray. 

Well, nothing except for the perpetual stack of unwashed dishes 
and take-out containers on his kitchen counter. 

Exhaling a short chuckle, the man slid his gun into the front of 
his jeans and relaxed. He went to the kitchen again and opened 
the refrigerator, shoving aside the boxed-up remnants of last 
night's pizza supreme to search for that last Wicked Ale he knew 
was in there somewhere. Finding it hidden behind an empty juice 
carton, the man withdrew the bottle and smiled--no one makes 
ale like Pete, he thought to himself. 

After a short search for the bottle opener, the man resorted to the 
trick he learned in college, using the edge of his countertop and a 
quick downward swipe to pop the cap off. Noticing how beat up 
the counter edge looked, he realized that perhaps he had used this 
trick too often lately. He shrugged off the thought quickly, 
instead focusing on the pleasurable sensation of drinking the ale. 
Screw 'em, he thought--after spending his days doing lousy grunt 
work, he'd be damned if he wasn't going to enjoy a few cold ones 
at night.

Polishing off half the bottle in a single draught, the man turned 
and headed back towards his couch. As he moved into the room, 
his body snapped to a halt almost before he even saw it. The 
bedroom door, closed tightly when he had left the room minutes 
earlier, was now standing open a few inches. 

The ale was instantly replaced by the gun as the man moved 
across the intervening space in just two strides. He paused the 
merest of seconds before kicking the door open with his left leg, 
quickly bringing his foot down to hold the door open in its new 
position before it could swing back in his face. As his gun came 
to bear unflinchingly on the figure sprawled across his waterbed, 
a voice flowed out from the darkness. A voice that he 
immediately recognized, but could not believe he was hearing--a 
voice he had thought he would never hear again. 

"What the hell took you so long, Zippy?"

The man, who had rarely been called anything other than Mulder 
(at least to his face) in almost 10 years, just threw his head back 
and laughed. 

     *    *    *    *    *    *

"No, sir. You must understand--your wife is not being 
investigated. She applied for a job at a federally-operated office, 
which requires us to do a background check to verify her 
identity. Sir... sir, that's not necessary... yes, I understand... sir, I 
realize that you are trying to help, but faxing me photos from the 
Kalchette family reunion is not going to help. No, it's really not 
necessary, sir. Really, I think I've found out everything I need, 
thank you for your time. Yes... no, thank you... Yes, you too, sir."

The woman sighed, hanging up the phone for the... She realized 
that she couldn't even remember how many calls she had placed 
this day. They had all tumbled together and become indiscernible 
from each other, a mind-numbing conglomeration of the same 
phrases and questions she'd spoken a thousand times over. 

I swear to god, she said to herself, if one more person freaks out 
at me over a background check, I won't be responsible for the 
outcome. The woman reached to the small of her back and felt 
the weapon holstered there--she gave a slight smile as she 
imagined the possibilities.

The smile faded quickly, though, as the woman flipped to the 
next data page and saw the never-ending list of names and phone 
numbers lying before her. Sheet after sheet, it went on, printing 
out her future in perfect 10-pt type, tiny black letters standing 
stark against the whiteness. Their effect was almost hypnotic--as 
she kept staring at the page, feeling her eyes begin to go out of 
focus, she half-expected to see the words "Next Call, Please" 
coalesce before her. 

Thinking over what she had just thought, the woman realized she 
must be very tired indeed. Usually exceptionally well-organized 
and categorized, her thoughts only wandered when the body had 
foregone sleep more than it should. It's a good thing I'm taking a 
couple of vacation days, she thought.

Glancing around the bullpen, she saw that she was the only one 
remaining. She caught sight of the wall clock as it hung barely 
illuminated by the feeble light of her desk lamp--nearly midnight, 
she thought with a start. No wonder everyone was gone already.

Grumbling "Damn time zone differences" under her breath, the 
woman stood and stretched, slowly but thoroughly, an almost 
feline quality to her movements. Each muscle groaned, each joint 
stiff in its response. She hadn't moved from her desk in almost 4 
hours, and even then it was just a quick stop to the restroom. 

The woman shut her desktop down, logging out of the computer 
system and putting her phone on night hold. She started to file 
the phone list in her top drawer, but then just tossed it back down 
by the phone. Screw it, she thought--it's not like it won't be there 
Monday morning. Grabbing her coat off the back of the chair, 
she headed for the door, relishing the thought of just getting 
home to a nice, hot bath and perhaps a glass of wine.

Passing her partner's desk, though, she noticed a stack of folders 
and printouts with a large note stuck to the top--Take Home, Do 
Not Forget! Stopping to look more closely, she saw that it was 
the presentation slides and materials that her partner was 
supposed to have for his trip to Colorado tomorrow. If he flew 
out without them, thereby negating the most important section of 
the senior conference, she doubted that their superiors would be 
very sympathetic. More than likely, they'd give him work so 
brainless it made background checks seem like theoretical 
quantum biology.

Figuring it was easiest to just drop the materials off at his 
apartment, the woman scooped up the stack and headed out the 
door. The miles to her partner's residence passed by virtually 
unnoticed--she doubted she would have noticed had a herd of 
pink gazelles gone bounding across the road. Pulling into a 
parking spot outside the apartment building, she was glad to see 
her partner's window brightly lit. Good, she thought, I'll get these 
dropped off and be on my way home in about 60 seconds. 

The woman entered the building and used the elevator to reach 
the fourth floor. As she walked down the hall, she heard raucous 
laughter emanating from an apartment towards the other end. She 
quirked the tiniest of smiles--no wonder her partner was still 
awake, with all that noise going on. 

As she approached his apartment, though, the woman was 
surprised to realize that the laughter wasn't coming from a nearby 
apartment. It was spilling out from within his apartment, 
stretching out to every corner of the hallway. She could hear his 
baritone laugh intermixed with another voice--a voice whose 
low, resonating quality masked whether it was male or female. 
Unnoticed, her hand went to her gun, drawing it halfway out 
before she caught herself. C'mon, she thought, it's not like 
hearing your partner laugh is a sign of the apocalypse or 
anything.

In fact, her partner laughed often, but usually in more of a soft 
chuckle accompanied by small, almost teasing smile. She had 
rarely heard the full-throated belly laughs that she was hearing 
now. Some part of the woman's brain acknowledged how nice 
that laugh actually sounded, while the majority focused on 
gathering herself together and knocking on the door.

Reaching up, the woman knocked a few times, just to the left of 
the brass '42' nailed to the door. Getting no response, she 
pounded a bit harder, using the flat of her closed fist instead of 
her knuckles. She could hear the conversation inside, punctuated 
by laughter and loud exclamations, so she knew that there were 
indeed people inside. Determined to be heard this time, the 
woman drew back her whole arm to bang on the door.

Suddenly, the door popped open in front of her, startling her so 
much she nearly dropped the stack of papers. She could not 
believe what she saw--her partner stood in the open doorway, 
dressed only in a pair of faded blue jeans, holding a nearly empty 
pitcher of some sort of slushed drink, with an Hawaiian lei 
around his neck and a grin from ear to ear. When he spoke, she 
wondered if perhaps the apocalypse had indeed begun. 

"Come on in and get on down, Sister D!" 

The woman, who had rarely been called anything other than 
Scully (except by her family) in her entire life, just cocked an 
eyebrow and stared.

     *    *    *    *    *    *

Mulder reached out and took hold of Scully's elbow, pulling her 
inside the apartment and shutting the door behind her. When she 
started to explain about the papers, he 'shushed' her and guided 
her into the living room. As she stepped through the doorway, 
Scully saw a woman sitting on the couch, dressed in jeans and a 
cut-off sweatshirt, also wearing a lei and obviously having a 
good time. The woman appeared to be swaying slightly, 
seemingly having trouble keeping hold of her large drink glass, 
even though it was nearly empty.

 "Dana Scully, I'd like you to meet Khi Shaolin, my roommate 
from college and a friend I haven't seen in... well, in more years 
than I care to remember," Mulder said with another laugh. "Khi, 
this is Dana Scully, my partner at the F...B...I." He over-
enunciated the letters, ending with a dramatic flourish of his hand 
to indicate her.

Scully watched as Khi, whom 30 seconds ago she would have 
sworn was too drunk to stand, set her drink down and rose off the 
couch smoothly, stretching out a hand and bowing very slightly 
from the waist. "Ms. Scully, it is a pleasure, I am sure," she said, 
without hint of slurring or unsteadiness. As Scully reached to 
shake the proffered hand, she was again surprised by the low 
resonance of Khi's voice--it had a musical, almost mesmerizing 
quality.

Scully realized she had underestimated the Khi's height and 
weight. She was 5'11" easily, and must have gone 160 or even 
more. But Khi was not fat or out of shape--Scully could see a 
well-developed set of abdominal muscles where the sweatshirt 
cut off. Annoyingly well-developed, actually. The hand that 
enclosed Scully's was strong and firm, yet not crushing. Scully 
got the impression of great strength held in check. 

Who *is* this woman, she said to herself, and why is Mulder 
drinking like a fraternity pledge with her?

"Yes, a pleasure," Scully said, rather coldly. Turning back to 
where Mulder had been, she started to explain why she was 
there. "You left these at the office, Mulder. I thought it would be 
easier to just drop them off for..." She broke off in mid-sentence, 
realizing Mulder was no longer standing behind her. Wondering 
where he had gone, she heard the whirring of a blender out in the 
kitchen. 

With a glance back at Khi, who had sat down on the couch again, 
Scully walked into Mulder's kitchen to find him busily mixing 
another pitcher of whatever it was that he and Khi were drinking. 
She saw at least four distinct liqueurs go into the pitcher, along 
with liberal quantities of ice and whipped cream.

"Mulder," she tried again, "here's your presentation and slides for 
tomorrow's conference. I'll just set them dow-" Again, Mulder 
'shushed' her, pouring the pitcher's contents into a tall glass and 
handing it to her. 

"Scully, you gots to try this," he said. "It's what Khi calls a 'Black 
Angel Kamikaze'--it's excellent! We used to drink them all the 
time, but I never learned how to make them before she..." Mulder 
trailed off, leaving the thought hanging unspoken.

"So, you and Khi were roommates?" she asked, breaking the 
uncomfortable silence. She was trying to be polite, even though 
she knew she probably didn't want to know the details. "I thought 
Quantico didn't allow cross-sex roommates."

"Oh, they don't," Mulder replied, turning to face her as he poured 
himself a drink. "Khi wasn't an 'official' roommate. Hell, she 
didn't even attend Quantico. We just lived together for a year 
when I was a senior and living off-dorm. She was completely 
unlike anyone I had ever met before. She still is, in fact."

"I've never heard you mention her before," Scully said with just 
the merest hint of defiance in her tone. 

"Well, I haven't seen her since the day I graduated, nearly 10 
years ago," Mulder explained, oblivious to Scully's annoyance. 
Noticing Scully's completely full drink sitting on the table, he 
leaned over and handed it to her with that 'Trust me' look in his 
eyes. "You gotta at least try it, Scully. Anyway, when I got back 
to the house after graduation ceremonies, I found that she'd 
packed up and left. No explanation, no note, no nothing." His 
eyes seemed to focus on something not in the room with them, 
remembering. "But whatever--she's back now and that's what 
matters. C'mon, Scully, are you gonna taste that drink or what?!"

To get him off her back, and to distract herself from wondering 
why Khi's return would matter so much to Mulder, Scully took a 

little sip of the drink. Expecting something horrible, she was 
surprised to find that it was wonderfully delicious--iced and 
creamy without being overpowering. She didn't want to get 
trapped into staying with Tweedle Dee and Tweedle Khi, 
however, so she merely said that it was OK and set it back down. 
Mulder just kind of scoffed, teasing her that she wouldn't know a 
good drink if it jumped out and bit her.

Khi came into the kitchen at that point. Or, rather, Khi danced 
into the kitchen at that point. Her arms up above her head, 
singing "Wave your hands in the air, like you don't care. C'mon, 
Zippy, let's dance," she began to circle the room. And if that 
wasn't a shocking enough sight to Scully, she just about fell over 
when Mulder, apparently also known as Zippy, immediately 
plunked his drink down and joined in. Going over to Khi, the two 
of them formed the world's tiniest conga line, chanting "W... O... 
R... D... Up!" as they danced.

Even though it was painfully clear that neither of them would 
probably listen to her, Scully drew a deep breath and forged 
ahead anyway. "Mulder, as the only person in this room who is 
not completely tanked, I feel the need to point out that you have a 
flight out to Colorado at 8:30am tomorrow--no, today," she 
corrected herself after a quick glance at her watch. "You are the 
keynote speaker at a conference whose attendees are the very 
same people that, if you fail to show up or are in less than peak 
form for it, will take you off your currently less-than-thrilling 
assignment and stick you in only-god-knows-where, USA, where 
your duties will most likely consist of color-coding office reports 
and pushing the lunch cart."

Mulder drew himself to a stop and Scully felt a glimmer of hope 
that she had gotten through to him. She watched as he took a 
small sip from his glass, appearing to think about what she had 
said. That hope was shattered, though, when he snapped his 
fingers and said "Needs more whipped cream!"

Scully shook her head, rolling her eyes slightly as she turned on 
her heel and walked back into the living room. She set the stack 
of papers on Mulder's bookcase shelf, figuring that location was 
at least reasonably safe from whatever lei-wearing, drink-
downing, word-upping antics might take place as the night wore 
on. She refused to imagine what those antics might actually be.

As she headed for the front door, Mulder came out of the kitchen 
and stopped her with a gentle hand on her arm. "Hey Scully, 
thanks," he said. "Sorry about all this, I'm just happy to see Khi 
again. It's like she never left, we're right back in the groove. 
Thanks for bringing that stuff by--I would surely have forgotten 
it in all the excitement."

Scully, somewhat amazed that he had even picked up on the 
reason that she stopped by, just looked at him for a second. 
"Sometimes, Mulder, I think you'd forget your head if it wasn't 
attached to the rest of you," she said. Mulder gave the short, quiet 
chuckle she was used to hearing, mumbling "Right on, Sister D." 

He opened the apartment door for her and placed his hand on the 
small of her back, guiding her through as they stepped out into 
the hall together. "Remember, Mulder," Scully said, turning back 
to look at him. "8:30am, plane to Oregon, your future at the 
FBI."

"I'll be there, bright-eyed and bushy-tailed, yes ma'am," Mulder 
said, affecting a sort of mock military stance and attempting to 
salute her. 

Scully was tempted to crack a small smile, but that was forgotten 
as Khi came gliding up behind Mulder. She wrapped her arms 
around his waist, pinning his arms to his sides and lifting him 
clear off the floor, saying "Geez, Zippy, your desk job made you 
slow or what?" Scully watched in amazement as Mulder did a 
quick twist to try and break free, but was unable to loose Khi's 
hold on him. As Khi hauled him backwards into the apartment, 
Mulder called out "Hey Scully, get the door please, will ya? I'm 
about to be ta-"

Scully reached in and pulled the door closed just as Khi was 
executing a bodyslam maneuver to send Mulder sprawling onto 
the couch. Scully looked at the '42' for a few seconds before 
turning and walking away. 

"Your future at the FBI, Mulder," she said quietly as she walked 
down the hall. "I hope you're there for it."

Almost to the elevator, she was suddenly overcome by a wave of 
intense pain. As her hands came to her head, she doubled over, 
her throat constricting. As she squeezed her eyes closed, she was 
shocked at what she saw--an image of Mulder lying on snow-
covered ground, red blood seeping through the white show, she 
herself cradling his head in her hands. The image had the clarity 
of actual vision--for that briefest of seconds, she would have 
sworn she was in that time and that place, experiencing that 
sequence of events.

And then it was gone. The vision, the pain, the fear--all gone 
between one heartbeat and the next. Scully staggered slightly as 
she tried to regain her composure, leaning heavily against the 
wall, breathing hard. She remained there for a half-minute or so, 
finally gathering herself together and walking on again. She 
threw one last glance at Mulder's apartment as she rounded the 
corner , wondering. 

     *    *    *    *    *    *

"She *so* does not like me, Zippy, you catch that?" Khi said, 
nonchalantly holding Mulder down on the couch with a well-
placed knee on his back and his arm twisted behind him. Mulder 
was struggling hard (as hard as he could in his inebriated state, 
anyway), yet Khi held him easily, seemingly exerting no effort at 
all.

"Mmmph wrmm ffmpph hfmpv," Mulder said, or at least that's 
what it sounded like. Khi laughed and relinquished her hold. 
"Time was, Mulder, that you would have broken free on your 
own," she said teasingly, "at least for a few moments."

"Yeah, whatever, shut up," Mulder said with a smile, turning 
over and sitting up on the couch, rubbing his shoulder a bit. 
"Why is it that no matter how much *you* drink, you never seem 
to lose your grip on things? Whatever those things may be..." he 
finished with a laugh, indicating his sore arm.

Khi laughed for a few seconds, making an 'aw, poor baby' face at 
him. "Losing control is a dangerous thing, FBI Agent Mulder," 
Khi said. "You should realize that by now, especially in your line 
of work--when the body and mind are weakened, the soul is 
unleashed. If a person isn't careful, the soul can be lost forever." 

Shaking off the seriousness of her words with a short laugh, Khi 
stepped over to check his arm, feeling the bones and tendons that 
connected the arm to the shoulder. "You'll live, Zippy. Which is 
something I can't say for myself, if your partner ever catches me 
alone in a dark alley," she said, standing and making motions as 
if pointing a gun to her head.

"As I was trying to say before, you're nuts. Scully liked you just 
fine, she's just kind of... well... distant when she first meets 
people," Mulder said, rising off the couch and stretching a bit.

"You mean when she first meets people that just happen to be 
from *your* past," Khi said with a wink. "I know these things. 
And trust me, Zippy, if her eyes has been bullets, I'd be playing 
'Word Up' on a harp right now." With the expression of a perfect 
angel, she made harp-plucking motions as she headed off for the 
bathroom.

Mulder stepped out of the living room, heading into his bedroom 
to find a shirt to slip on. Since he wasn't busy dancing or mixing 
drinks anymore, he found he felt slightly chilled. He grabbed a 
black T-shirt out of a stack of identical T-shirts in his bottom 
drawer, pulling it down over his head to cover his bare chest. 
Feeling warmer immediately, he headed back out to the couch 
and sat down, propping his feet up on the table.

Whaddya know Zippy, he said to himself, Khi Shaolin has 
returned with a bang. As he waited for her, he wondered where 
she'd been for the last 10 years, what she'd been doing that 
steered her to his door. He realized that he hadn't ever really 
known what Khi did even back at Quantico--she had just been 
this person in his life. A person that, at the time, he couldn't have 
done without. With an almost unbelievable combination of wild-
eyed adventurism and utter self-control, Khi had been exactly 
what he needed to stay on track. More than once, she'd pulled 
him back from the edge of self-induced madness, using nothing 
but a voice filled with logic and reason. 

That, plus a well-executed half-nelson hold every once in a 
while, he laughed to himself.

Mulder heard the door to the bathroom open and saw Khi head 
past the living room into the kitchen. After a moment, she came 
back, carrying a brimming pitcher. "Ack, no! No more," Mulder 
exclaimed, making the sign of the cross in front of him. "I can't 
drink another drop if I want to make that flight in the morning."

"*This* is going to help you make that flight," she said, handing 
him the pitcher along with a fresh glass. As she sat down next to 
him, he saw only water in the pitcher. "Force yourself to drink all 
of that before you try to sleep, and you should be hang-over free 
when you wake up." Khi rested her head on the back of the 
couch, closing her eyes and becoming still.

"And why is that?" Mulder asked, reaching out and pouring a 
glass of water.

"Water serves as an equalizer for the alcohol in your 
bloodstream," Khi explained, not bothering to open her eyes or 
even turn her head. "The alcohol you consumed made your blood 
fall out of acidic balance. While your body would eventually 
return to the proper balance on its own, through metabolization 
and time, the water speeds the process by adding a large volume 
of pH-neutral liquid into your system."

Hearing no response, Khi opened one eye and turned to look at 
Mulder--she found him staring at her, a half smile formed on his 
lips. "What?" she asked warily.

"Nothing. You just reminded me of someone there, for a 
minute," he said, starting to drink the glass of water to cover the 
smile. 

"Who?" Khi asked innocently. She already knew the answer, but 
wanted to see if Mulder would actually tell her. He'd never been 
someone that confided in others easily, though there were times 
she'd gotten him to open up. But that had been a long time ago.

"Ah, no-one you know," he said after he draining the glass. 

"Sure, okay," she said, waiting while he poured himself a second 
glass. "Would 'someone' happen to be a redhead and carry a 
gun?" Khi asked, relishing the look on Mulder's face--double-
takes that good were few and far between. He didn't deny her 
statement, though.

"Is she going on this trip with you tomorrow?" Khi asked. "She 
seemed awfully concerned that you make it there on time."

"No, she's staying here," Mulder said deadpan. "Someone's gotta 
stay and make sure the world is safe from people who inhaled 
when they were 17."

Khi roared at that one, laughing until she was nearly crying. 
"Good god, Zippy--you can still make me laugh like no one else 
in the world," she said when she was finally able to speak again. 
"I've missed it."

"And I've missed you," Mulder said quietly, reaching out and 
taking her hand in his. She nodded in agreement and smiled, 
placing her other hand over his and leaning to rest her head 
briefly on his shoulder.

"Well, before this turns into a Taster's Choice moment," Khi 
said, letting go of his hand and standing up, "we should probably 
get you to bed. Finish that water first." She headed off into the 
bedroom, where he could hear her rustling around in her bag.

"Yes, sir!" Mulder called out. He drank down the last of the 
water and returned both the glass and the pitcher to the kitchen 
counter. After stopping at the bathroom to do his nightly routine, 
he padded into the bedroom and began stripping down to his 
boxers. Khi, already changed into a set of baggy flannel pajamas, 
watched approvingly.

"Oooh, black silk. My, my, my..." she teased him. "You've got 
good taste. Or should I be saying, 'someone' has good taste?"

"Keep talking like that, and you *will* end up playing that harp, 
Khi," Mulder said. "She'd pull your tongue right out of your head 
and beat you to death with it."

"For some reason, I truly believe she would," Khi laughed, 
pulling back the covers on the waterbed and crawling in. Mulder 
came over to the bed and grabbed a pillow, turning to head back 
to the living room and the couch.

"What, you don't want to sleep with me, Zippy?" Khi asked, 
affecting a hurt expression complete with a down-turned lower 
lip. She was amused by the sudden shyness apparent in Mulder's 
mannerisms--he was twisting the corner of the pillow with his 
hands as his eyes darted around at everything but her.

"Well, I didn't want to assume that you... I wasn't sure that's what 
you did anymore, or what you wanted to do... or what you... 
whatever," he finished lamely.

"Yeah, I still like to sleep, Mulder," she said, laughing. "I don't 
think they've quite figured out how to negate the need for sleep 
in humans yet."

She turned the covers back on one side of the bed, scooting over 
to the other side to make room for him. He hesitated for the 
slightest of moments, then slid into bed next to her. As he curled 
up to sleep on his side, his feet just barely grazing her legs, a 
small smile crossed his face briefly--just like old times, he 
thought.

As he felt himself drifting off to sleep, he said "Actually, they 
have figured that out, Khi--you just don't want to know what 
happens when they do."



------------
Chapter 2
------------

Scully slowly became aware of a ringing noise, a sound that had 
burrowed its way into her head and took up residence as if it had 
always belonged there. Groggily, she sat up and tried to shake 
the sleep from her body. She wasn't entirely successful--geez, she 
thought, if I feel like this, Mulder must be d-... She caught herself 
before she could finish the thought. She had had enough visions 
this past night of Mulder dying, and she wasn't going to start 
thinking about it again.

Concentrating again on the ringing noise, she at first couldn't 
figure out what was making it. Leaning over to her nightstand, 
she checked both the alarm clock and her cell phone--neither was 
the source of the offending noise. Finally, she remembered the 
new house phone she had picked up the a few days earlier. She 
realized she hadn't been home much since then, and had never 
heard it ring.

Pushing back the covers, Scully got out of bed and walked over 
to the phone. As she picked up the handset, she noticed that she 
hadn't powered the answering machine back on after connecting 
the new phone. It's probably the police, she thought wearily, 
responding to a missing person's report filed by my mother. After 
all the events of the past few years, her mother tended to get a 
little freaked out if her daughter was unavailable for more than a 
couple days.

"Scully," she said, hoping her tone would scare away any 
solicitors. As she glanced at the clock, she saw it was probably a 
little early for solicitors--the 06:57 of her stove clock shone 
steadily in the dim morning light.

"Agent Scully, I'm sorry to bother you so early and on your 
vacation, besides," the person calling said, the words clipped and 
brisk.

"Uh, no sir, that's fine, sir. What can I do for you?" she asked, 
unconsciously standing a little straighter and trying to smooth her 
hair to a more professional appearance. 

"We would like you to accompany Agent Mulder to Colorado for 
this conference, Agent Scully," AD Skinner said. "I can't give 
you many details, but AD Kersh thought it would be best to give 
Agent Mulder some... backup on this one," he finished. 

"You mean, keep him in line and make sure he doesn't tell the 
assembled agents what to go do with themselves," she said 
quietly, knowing full-well there was no logical reason for her to 
attend this conference. The pause on the other end of the line told 
her she was correct.

"We've rescheduled both of you to a different flight, leaving at 
9:25 this morning, since we couldn't get you a seat on Mulder's 
earlier flight," Skinner said. Yeah, right, Scully thought--
watchdogs have to be present from the start, or they don't do any 
good. She knew the drill.

"That's fine, sir. Does Agent Mulder already know of this 
change?" she asked, suddenly worried at the thought of Skinner 
talking to a hung-over Mulder at 7:00 in the morning. 

"I just got off the phone with him, it's all taken care of. He 
seemed eager to be on his way out there, so perhaps your... 
backup won't be as necessary as Kersh believed," Skinner said.

"I'm sure all will be fine," Scully said, not really listening 
anymore. Why was Mulder eager to get out of town for a few 
days, she wondered. Perhaps his 'reunion' with Khi did not go as 
well as it had seemed last night. A brief smile played on her lips 
at the thought.

She rounded out the conversation with the usual pleasantries and 
hung up the phone. Taking a deep breath, she began to pack her 
larger bag for the trip, knowing that they would be gone at least 4 
days. Mulder would be speaking tomorrow at the opening of the 
conference and then would be required to be present for the end 
session on Sunday morning. The day in between would probably 
just be free time for each of them, since she certainly couldn't see 
attending any more of the conference than was absolutely 
necessary.

Colorado in the winter, hmmm, she thought. Other than the 
obvious pastime of skiing, she didn't know what else there was to 
do there. Looking around her bedroom, she tossed in a couple of 
paperbacks she'd been meaning to read. She hoped they'd find 
something a little more interesting than that to do, but figured it 
was best to be prepared. Scully rummaged through her closet to 
find her heavy winter jacket, not knowing how cold it may or 
may not be in Colorado. 

Scully was headed for the shower as the phone rang again. 
"Scully," she answered. 

"It's me." Mulder's voice sounded perfectly clear, no hint of 
grogginess. How did he manage that, she wondered. "Skinner 
talk to you yet?" 

"Yeah, he called about 10 minutes ago. I guess I won't be getting 
my vacation weekend after all," she said, a hint of resignation 
coming through in her voice. 

"Well, you gotta keep the FBI's most unwanted on his leash, you 
know," he said with short laugh. "Anyway, the flight's at 9:25, 
we'll be by to pick you up at 8:30." He hung up as Scully did the 
same. It was as she stepped into the bathroom a minute later that 
she realized what he had said. 'We'...

"Oh god," she said to the empty air. 

     *    *    *    *    *    *

"Sorry not to give you any warning, Scully," Mulder had said as 
he loaded her bag into the trunk, indicating Khi in the front seat. 
"But when we woke up this morning, Khi said she'd leave for 
California in a couple of days anyway, so I asked if she wanted 
to join us in Colorado for the interim. She said sure, so I got her a 
seat."

Scully had taken a moment to answer, trying to wrap her brain 
around the concept of Mulder 'waking up' with Khi--waking up 
with someone meant you had to go to sleep with them, and 
Scully hadn't quite been able to accept that right away. Finally, as 
they'd  stepped back around to get in the car, she felt should 
could answer calmly. "It's fine, Mulder, don't worry about it," 
she'd said. "I'm sure it will be a fine couple of days."

Now, as she stood in the ticket line with them, watching them 
laugh and carouse with each other, she wondered if she could 
convincingly fake a sudden, deathly illness. Or inflict one...

It was tempting, surely, but she knew she couldn't bow out of her 
duties on this assignment, no matter how ridiculous they might 
be. Perhaps she'd be lucky and find out the Colorado airport was 
closed due to snow or something--dream on, honey, dream on, 
she said to herself. 

They were almost to the counter when it happened again--intense 
pain shot through Scully's temples, a fiery stab straight into her 
skull. Again, the image of Mulder down in the snow flashed 
behind her eyelids, clear as actual sight. Gasping for air, she 
nearly went to her knees from the sudden disorientation. Mulder 
was immediately at her side, holding her upright with a strong 
arm about her waist as he called out for Khi to get help. 

But as Khi began to take off for the emergency medical station, 
Scully felt herself snap out of it, just as quickly as she'd 
succumbed to it. "No, wait, Mulder," she stammered out. "I'm 
fine, really." She marshaled all her strength and held herself 
steady, disengaging herself from Mulder's grip. He was reluctant 
to let go, though, keeping one arm at the ready as the other 
reached out to touch her shoulder lightly.

Khi stepped through the small crowd of onlookers as Scully 
again said she was all right. Khi stepped up to Scully's side, 
looking her over completely as she reached out to lightly touch 
Scully's temple. Scully recoiled slightly at her touch--partly 
because she didn't like to be touched by people, but partly 
because of a slight sense of fear. It was as if Khi knew exactly 
where the pain had been centered. Her eyes seemed to look right 
through Scully, almost as if trying to confirm something. 

Khi must have seen something in her face, though, for she smiled 
slightly as she pulled back her hand. "Relax, Dana... Scully, I 
mean," she said in quick correction at a look from Mulder. "I've 
had medical training and I could see the veins on your temple 
pounding. I just meant to feel for pressure and for fever, but it 
seems to have subsided now. Are you feeling better?"

"Yes, I think so," she lied. "It was just a moment of 
disorientation. Perhaps I should have grabbed more to eat this 
morning before leaving." She tried to speak nonchalantly, 
dismissing the entire situation with a brief 'whatever' wave of her 
hand and a slight smile. Mulder was still hovering near her, 
though, a concerned look on his face. She brushed past him, 
stepping up to the counter as the ticket agent motioned them 
forward.

Tickets in hand, they headed for the gate to wait out the last few 
minutes before boarding began. Realizing Khi's seat was several 
rows behind theirs, Scully offered her ticket to Khi. "I see 
Mulder every day, why don't you take this to be able to catch up 
some more?" she said, trying to seem as if she were just being 
friendly. Mostly, she wanted to just sit quietly by herself for a 
few hours and try to forget the images she kept seeing--sitting 
right next to the man she kept envisioning dying would not help 
that endeavor. Plus, looking at the way Mulder appeared to jump 
at the idea, she figured she didn't want to spend the next several 
hours listening to Zippy stories from college...

Khi seemed to know exactly what Scully was thinking, what her 
real motives were. It was an uncanny sensation, she realized--
Scully had never really felt that anyone could read her when she 
didn't want them to. Well, no one besides Mulder, but even he 
could be frightfully oblivious at times. But as she exchanged a 
look with Khi, she could see Khi had easily discerned that Scully 
didn't trust her. 

Strangely, though, Khi seemed to accept that information without 
malice, simply turning to Mulder to ask if he thought that 
sounded like a good idea. He, in turn, gave a "You sure?" look to 
Scully to confirm. When she nodded and held the ticket out to 
Khi again, Khi took it and gave Scully hers in return. Mulder 
grinned at the exchange, reaching out to clap Scully on the 
shoulder--"Thanks!" he exclaimed, turning to chat with Khi 
again.

Yep, Mulder could be frightfully oblivious at times.

     *    *    *    *    *    *

The flight to Colorado Springs passed relatively uneventfully, 
much to the satisfaction of Scully. She had experienced no 
further pain or visions, and dared to believe perhaps they were 
gone for good. She'd been seated seven rows behind Mulder and 
Khi, far enough that she couldn't hear their conversation but 
close enough that she could hear their laughter. 

After twenty minutes of it, she retrieved her portable CD player. 
Enya served to soothe her jangled nerves and to block out 
everything else. 

Arriving in Colorado in the early evening after a connecting 
flight delay, Scully retrieved the rental car while Mulder and Khi 
got the luggage. Everything accounted for, they headed to the 
conference hotel on the other side of downtown, the Regal 
Springs Hilton. Scully and Mulder found they'd been booked 
rooms just down the hall from each other, while Khi was placed 
five floors up. Scully tried not to show how much that 
arrangement pleased her. She was happy to see Mulder didn't 
plan on continuing his college living arrangements while at a 
professional conference--perhaps he was taking this assignment 
more seriously than anyone had imagined. 

As she unpacked her clothing and arranged her personal effects 
in the bathroom, there was a knock at the door. Peering out the 
peephole, she saw Mulder standing there, thankfully sans-Khi. 
She opened the door to let him in and, as usual, he went right 
over to the bed and sprawled out on it as if it were his. Although 
she usually made some sarcastic comment to him whenever he 
did that, she let it ride this time--it was a return to normalcy she 
was glad to see.

"So, Scully, what's up?" he asked as he flipped through the TV 
channel guide he'd already located. "Go get some dinner? Do a 
little shopping? Watch a movie?" he said with a teasing eyebrow 
wag.

She graced him with the very slightest of smiles at that comment, 
turning back to the bathroom to finish unpacking her things. 
"What, you and Khi aren't off to crash a party, or hit the bars, or 
push each other around the halls on the luggage carts?" she 
asked.

She heard him laugh as he rolled up off her bed. He came to the 
bathroom doorway, leaning his tall frame against the jamb. "Nah, 
she wanted to visit a friend she has here in the city, so she's out 
for the night," Mulder said as he reached a hand out to rifle 
through her array of bottles and cases. Picking up a shampoo 
bottle, he struck a commercial pose. "Peach blossom and juju 
bean HerbalEssences always makes me feel like a new woman," 
he said brightly. Scully kept a straight face until he reached up to 
flip his non-existent long hair back from his shoulders.

The sight was just ludicrous enough to elicit a rare, real laugh 
from her, and she was amazed at how it made her feel so much 
better. She squeezed by him and returned to the bed, closing up 
the bag and placing it on the low luggage rack. She turned to see 
him looking at her, a look he didn't break off as she glanced up at 
him.

"What?" she asked slowly, quirking an eyebrow at him.

"Are you sure your feeling OK, Scully?" he asked. Before she 
could claim she was fine, he quipped "Cuz you *never* laugh at 
my jokes."

She barely, just barely, managed to keep from laughing again. 
Her lips made a very slight upward turn, though, and he laughed 
in response. "There, that's more like it," he said.

"To answer your question, Mulder, I'll have to pass on any 
activity for this evening," Scully said. "Maybe I didn't get enough 
sleep this week or something, but I really am feeling kind of 
tired. I think I just want to order some quick room service and 
pretty much head to bed."

"You're sure?" Mulder asked, looking a little depressed at the 
thought of spending the evening by himself. "We could just order 
in some pizza, maybe meet a nice vampire while we're at it."

"No, that's OK--I think we'll meet enough bloodsuckers 
tomorrow at the conference," she said dryly. It was Mulder's turn 
to laugh at her joke, nodding his head in agreement.

"Well, I'll leave you to your room service, then. G'night, Scully," 
he said as he headed for the door. She called out a goodnight to 
him, telling him to come and get her in the morning for the 
conference. "Will do," he said, stepping out into the hall, "Sweet 
dreams."

She managed to keep the fear from her face until he was out of 
the room.

     *    *    *    *    *    *

Mulder picked her up in the morning on time, carrying his stack 
of materials, and they headed to the hotel's conference facility. 
As they walked through the main lobby, Mulder spotted Khi 
sitting in the cozy low-walled Regal restaurant off to one side. 
She waved at them with a smile, gesturing for them to swing 
over that way. Mulder changed his course immediately, Scully 
following slightly less enthusiastically.

"Good morning, Zippy, Scully," Khi said. She was working her 
way through a sizeable breakfast--pancakes, eggs, bacon, 
sausage, toast, hash brows, juice, coffee and milk were all 
present on the table in front of her. Scully, who rarely ate 
anything more than a croissant or a muffin for breakfast, could 
not imagine how Khi could eat in such a fashion and still be in 
such phenomenal shape.

Khi must have caught the look on her face, because she gave a 
short laugh. "Believe me, Scully, I don't eat like this all the time. 
Any time I get away from my regular life for a while, I always 
make the best of it by eating huge," she said, indicating the 
rapidly-disappearing contents of her plates.

"What *is* your regular life, Khi?" Mulder asked as he took a 
bite of a piece of toast. "I don't think, in all the time I've known 
you, that you have ever mentioned what you do for a living."

"Well, I'd tell you, but then I'd have to kill you," Khi said, not 
quite sarcastically. She just raised an eyebrow at him as she 
drank down her coffee.

"C'mon, Mulder, we better get going," Scully said. "Conference 
starts in 30 minutes and we still have to check in and get you set 
up."

"Hey, you want to hook up for a late supper this evening, say 
around 8:00?" Khi asked, indicating both of them. She explained 
she would be out most of the day, but would be back to the hotel 
around 7:00 or so. Mulder glanced at Scully, who gave a simple 
'whatever' shrug of the shoulders.

"Sounds good. Shall we just meet down here around 7:30, then?" 
Mulder asked.

"Yeah, that's great. See you both then," Khi said, returning to her 
breakfast as Mulder and Scully headed off for the conference 
area. 

"She's planning something," Mulder said with a slight smile.

"What do you mean, planning something?" Scully asked in 
surprise. "Something good, she'll be paying for dinner? Or 
something bad, we'll both be jailed by morning?"

Mulder chuckled as they reached the sign-in table. Flashing their 
badges and signing the necessary forms, they both picked up a 
stack of conference materials and headed inside.

"Something outrageous, most likely," Mulder said, trying to 
juggle the new packets of literature with the huge stack of 
presentation materials he was already carrying. Scully deftly 
lifted the literature packs out of his grip, allowing him to 
concentrate on not spilling his presentation.

"Thanks. Anyway, what I mean is that Khi has a habit of 
springing a wild plan on people over dinner," Mulder said, 
thinking back. "I remember having dinner with her one night, 
then flying to Arizona the next day to whitewater raft the 
Colorado River, in the Grand Canyon."

"Don't you have to have a guide to raft most sections of that 
river?" Scully asked, vaguely remembering something she read 
once. They entered the main room, where several people were 
already present. They made their way to the front stage area, 
continuing to talk as Mulder set up.

"Yeah, you do, but Khi *is* a guide. Not that I knew that before 
we were renting the raft and survival gear!" he laughed. "I 
thought she was just going to have us take some back seat in a 
raft filled with several experienced people. Next thing I know, 
it's just the two of us careening down this river, me thinking 
we're going to overturn about every three seconds."

"Sounds like a blast," Scully said, the doubt clearly audible in her 
voice.

"The funny thing is, Scully, it was one of the best days of my 
life," Mulder said, arranging his materials. He signaled one of the 
conference assistants to begin passing out a set of papers to each 
person attending. "I was sure we'd be dead within the hour, but it 
was one of the most exhilarating experiences I've ever had. That's 
how it is with Khi--you can never quite be sure that what's 
happening is quite as it seems."

"That doesn't surprise me at all, Mulder," Scully said. At his 
questioning look, she tossed about for a description of what she 
meant, but finally just shrugged her shoulders. "I don't know 
what it is about her, Mulder, but I know that woman is hiding 
something about herself. I don't mean to insult you or your 
friend, but I get the distinct impression that the outward 
appearance of Khi Shaolin is nothing more than a well-crafted 
mask."

"She's secretive about her past and her life, yes," Mulder said, not 
quite mad but a little testy. "But I doubt she's hiding some deep, 
dark secret."

"I didn't mean to imply that she was going to murder us in our 
sleep or something, Mulder," Scully said. Mulder gave her a 
small smile in gratitude. "I just meant that, with Khi, I don't think 
what you see is necessarily what you get."

Mulder glanced at his watch, glancing out at the nearly-full 
room. "Whatever she's planning, we aren't going to find out what 
it is until we get this conference out of the way," he said. "Hey, I 
forgot to tell you I got roped into attending one of the afternoon 
sessions today. Or perhaps, 'leashed' would be a better word. 
Either way, I won't be out of here until after 4:00 or later."

"Actually, that's OK--I want to get a little gift shopping done 
while I've got some time here," Scully said. "I've got my 
nephew's birthday coming up soon, and other people I'm behind 
on. So I'll just see you in the lobby at 7:30, then, OK?"

"OK. Hope I can sit up pretty enough for everyone," Mulder said, 
barely pantomiming his neck being jerked by an invisible leash.

She just rolled her eyes at him and stepped down off the stage. 
She worked her way through the rows of chairs to an unoccupied 
seat near the back and settled in. She glanced out through the 
open door which led back to the main hallway and was surprised 
to see Khi speaking with a man dressed in what looked like a 
Marine captain's uniform. She watched them speak for a 
moment, her  surprise turning quickly to shock when the Marine 
saluted Khi before turning to leave. Scully knew that uniformed 
officers never salute unless it is warranted. 

So why the hell was a Marine captain saluting Khi Shaolin?

     *    *    *    *    *    *

After listening to Mulder's speech, which went surprisingly well, 
Scully escaped from the conference and headed back to her 
room. After a quick change into something more casual, she 
grabbed her coat and headed downstairs to browse the 
advertising literature in the lobby. Armed with several 
pamphlets, Scully was soon on her way to an afternoon of 
shopping.

She headed first to a couple of large clothing stores, finding a 
two sweaters and some jewelry for her mother's upcoming 
birthday. Looking around for something for her sister-in-law, she 
finally decided upon a delicate pair of diamond earrings after 
almost an hour of browsing. 

Checking her list, she saw the remainder of what she needed was 
pretty diverse, so she decided to just head to the South Spring 
Mall. Realizing she was rather hungry, she stopped for a quick 
bite at one of the mall food court shops. Hunger satisfied, she 
began to stroll through the mall at a leisurely pace, entering any 
shop that looked interesting, buying a few things here and there. 

Within a couple of hours, she had everything she needed for 
gifts, plus a few small items for herself, and felt thoroughly 
relaxed. Looking down at the armful of packages she was 
carrying, she made a quick stop to purchase another piece of soft-
side luggage. Nothing like bringing one bag on a trip and coming 
home with two, she laughed to herself.

As she worked her way back to the entrance, a store display 
window caught her eye. "Everything for the Sportsman in Your 
Life!" the in-store ads read as she perused the window items. She 
was about to move on when she spotted a mannequin wearing a 
sweatshirt that had an absolutely beautiful print of howling 
wolves on it. The quality was superb--it was as if she were 
looking at a photograph instead of a screen print. Thinking ahead 
to her brother's birthday in a couple of months, Scully decided to 
pick this up while she was in shopping mode. No telling when 
she'd get the chance for a leisurely day of shopping again.

Entering the store, she browsed until finding the right display 
rack, flicking through the hangers until finding the correct size. 
She took the shirt off the rack and headed for the checkout 
counter at the center of the store. Scully patiently waited in the 
small line until it was her turn, giving a smile to the obviously-
new-at-the-job male cashier as she laid the shirt on the counter.

She happened to be looking down at the wolf print when the boy 
whisked the shirt off the counter. As her eyes focused, she saw 
several knives displayed within the glass case, each folded out to 
show the various blades or tools it contained. One towards the 
back caught her attention--large and black-handled with an inlay 
of crimson, it contained only a single blade that shone brightly 
even in the murky fluorescent light of the store. 

The pain came unbidden as before, an intense wave that flowed 
over and engulfed her. Unlike before, it centered in her chest, 
constricting her lungs to the point of uselessness. Gasping for 
breath, she collapsed forward onto the display counter, unable to 
even cry out for help. Her brain began to slow everything down--
she saw the cashier come running around the counter as if he 
were moving through water, his frantic cry of "Hey, lady, are you 
OK?" muted and distorted. She slid down the front of the 
counter, hands outstretched as if trying to ward off an unseen 
attacker.

As consciousness slipped away, a new vision came--her hands 
covered with crimson blood, a black-handled knife lying next to 
Mulder's motionless form.

     *    *    *    *    *    *

"Ma'am, can you hear me? Wake up, c'mon now. Open your eyes 
and talk to me, honey."

Scully came to with a start, jerking halfway up from what 
seemed to be a bed before a gentle set of hands pushed her back 
down. "Wh... wh..." she tried ask where she was, but her throat 
was too dry to speak. A woman in nurse's garb released her hold 
on Scully's shoulders, turning to a nearby sink and drawing a 
glass of water. She handed it to Scully, who drank it down in a 
long, continuous swallow. 

"Thank you. Where am I?" Scully asked, looking around the 
small, sparsely-furnished room. She saw a few simple medical 
instruments neatly organized on counter, along with a jar of 
tongue depressors and several gauze wrap bandages.

"You're in the hospital, Ms. Scully. You collapsed at the Spring 
Mall about 30 minutes ago and were brought here immediately," 
the nurse explained. "Luckily, EMTs were already at that 
location on a false alarm. Do you remember what happened?"

"I was buying a shirt, standing at the counter, and suddenly I 
couldn't breathe. It felt as if my entire throat had closed off, as if 
my lungs were being crushed," she said. Feeling stronger by the 
minute, Scully swung her legs over the side of the low bed and 
sat up. 

"Well, we've been unable to determine what the cause might 
have been. Actually, we found no evidence of anything wrong 
with you at all," the nurse said. "You merely appeared to be 
asleep--no trauma to the head or throat, no evidence of 
obstructions in the airway, not even elevated blood pressure. Do 
you have any medical conditions which may have caused such a 
collapse?"

"None I'm aware of," Scully said, reluctant to mention the 
previous incidents since she had no way to explain those either. 
Remembering something, she reached for the small of her back--
"Where's my weapon?"

The nurse chuckled a bit, heading over to a small closet and 
withdrawing Scully's coat and weapon. "Here you are. The gun 
gave the EMTs a bit of a fright when they found it," she laughed. 
"It's not something you expect to find on a normal shopper. But 
when they found your ID and realized who you were, they 
simply brought the gun in with your other personal effects."

"And the bags I had with me at the sporting store, my other 
shopping?" Scully asked as she stood and holstered the weapon. 
She dreaded the thought of losing them--when will I ever find 
another day to go shopping, she thought, not to mention the 
several hundred dollars she had spent.

"I would imagine they're still at the store," the nurse said. 
Watching as Scully moved about the room easily, sliding into her 
coat and adjusting her clothing and hair in the small mirror, the 
nurse seemed perplexed. "Are you sure you feel all right now, 
Ms. Scully? When the EMTs arrived, they were quite certain 
they'd be bringing out a body bag for you soon. You had been 
out for at least three minutes, convulsing and not breathing. But 
just as they started to work on you, you just... came out of it. You 
were calm and breathing easily within seconds."

With a false smile and shrug of her shoulders, Scully replied "I'm 
not sure what to tell you. I feel fine now. If there's no reason for 
you to hold me here any longer, I think I'll be on my way."

"Just a couple of papers for you to sign at the front desk, out the 
door and down the hall to your left," the nurse pointed. "You 
should know that we attempted to call the name listed in your 
ID."

Scully jerked her head back, asking "Did you reach him at all?" 

"No, we only got an answering machine. By the time we had 
searched your ID for another number to call, you were beginning 
to wake up, so we didn't think it was necessary," the nurse 
explained. 

"All right, thank you," Scully said, turning and heading back 
down the hallway. Thank god, she thought with a sigh--the last 
thing I need is Mulder running around in AutoProtect mode for 
the rest of the weekend.

Finding the ER admission desk, Scully signed the necessary 
release forms and inquired about the location of the mall in 
relation to the hospital. She decided to just walk back to the mall, 
considering it was only about a mile away. It was still daylight 
outside and she figured she could find her way easily enough.

Stepping out into the cold, she began to walk briskly in the 
direction the admitting nurse had indicated. Wishing she had a 
hood on her coat, she settled for flipping up the large collar and 
trying to sink as far inside the jacket as she could. 

There was a light snow falling as she walked along.

Within 15 minutes, Scully had arrived at the mall, pausing in the 
doorway to shake off the dusting of snow that had accumulated 
on her jacket and hair. She quickly found the sporting store and 
stepped inside to inquire about her packages. Luckily, the same 
boy was still working--he recognized her immediately, reaching 
underneath the counter and withdrawing her several packages.

"Hello, ma'am, how're you feeling now?" he asked as she came 
up to the counter. "You sure freaked us out a bit there, for a 
moment. I just went ahead and set these under here to keep an 
eye on them."

"I feel fine now, thanks for asking," she said, tipping a smile up 
at him as she dug inside her jacket for her small wallet. "But I'm 
quite sure I didn't pay for that yet," indicating the last package he 
had set on the counter, emblazoned with the brightly-colored 
store logo.

"The manager said it was a gift for you, to help you feel better. 
He didn't want you to be saying that you got sick at Dave's 
Sporting Goods and-" he broke off suddenly, glancing around 
him nervously. "Whoops, I think I just said more than I was 
supposed to."

"That's okay, I won't tell anyone," Scully laughed. "But I really 
do want to pay for the shirt. It certainly wasn't the store's fault 
about what happened, and you were so quick to help me."

"Nope, I'm sorry, ma'am, but he told me to insist that you take 
the shirt, free of charge," the boy said firmly. Or as firmly as a 
16-year old boy could be when talking to a pretty woman in her 
30's who was smiling at him. "Really, take it."

"Well, then, thank you, and be sure to thank your manager as 
well," Scully said, beginning to gather her packages. Her eyes 
fell again on the knife as she cleared off the counter. 

"Perhaps you'll let me buy something else, then," she said.

     *    *    *    *    *    *

Back at the hotel, Scully carefully arranged all the packages in an 
out-of-the-way corner of her room, taking a moment to attach a 
quick note to the pile. No need for the cleaning staff to worry 
about moving them each day, she thought. 

Glancing at her watch, she saw that she still had two hours before 
dinner with Mulder and Khi. She considered taking a brief nap, 
but quickly dismissed that idea--she was much too tense to fall 
asleep at this time of day. She flipped through the television 
channels, smiling slightly as she clicked past Channel 14. Gee, I 
wonder which channel Mulder pre-set on his remote, she laughed 
to herself.

Finding nothing of interest, Scully got up and paced the room a 
bit. As she passed the low dresser, she saw the hotel's 
advertisement for its services and amenities. Seeing the entry for 
'full gym, complete with a variety of the latest equipment,' she 
thought perhaps that was what she needed. A good, hard run on a 
treadmill or a Stairmaster. Her brain cautioned she should 
probably just take it easy, but the thought was quickly swept 
away by her body's need to *do* something.

Scully rummaged through her bag until she found the pair of 
sweatpants and shirt she had brought. Grabbing them, along with 
a towel from the bathroom, she headed downstairs and found the 
gym with a little help from the concierge again. She changed in 
the small locker room, happy to see only a few lockers in use--
she hated fighting or waiting for gym equipment. 

The gym was small, but it really was well-equipped and 
thankfully nearly empty. After a moment's debate, she decided 
on a treadmill run. She did a few simple stretches, making sure 
she limbered up after the day's tension--no need to pull a muscle 
with two more days left of the trip, she thought.

Scully set the machine for about 6-7 miles per hour and hopped 
on, quickly falling into the necessary rhythm. The hotel had 
placed several TV screens around the gym, giving people 
something to look as they exercised. She normally took her CD 
player with her to work out, but had forgotten it upstairs. 

She found herself watching an infomercial for a food-packing 
unit that sealed stuff using a vacuum. She laughed to herself as 
she watched the spokesman peddle his wares--I couldn't act that 
deliriously happy even if I *was* getting paid for it, she thought.

The longer she jogged, the more in control she felt. The 
disturbing mental images, the physical tension, the general unrest 
she'd had for the last 24 hours slid into the past. Things to be 
remembered, but no longer worried about. The body took over 
and she was happy to let it do so.

After 50 minutes, she cranked the machine up a bit more and 
finished with a hard 5-minute run. Only then did she power it 
down to a gentle walk, allowing her body to cool down slowly. 
She knew a majority of muscle pulls and strains occurred as a 
result of improperly cooled muscles, not from the actual severity 
of the workout itself.

Noticing someone waiting for the machine, she shut it down and 
stepped off, finding a corner of the room to finish stretching out. 
Scully noticed the gym had filled up in the last hour and was glad 
that she had come down when she did.

She felt refreshed and energetic, more so than she'd felt in weeks. 
Maybe coming along will have some benefits after all, she 
mused. She headed back to the locker room and grabbed her 
clothes and towel, figuring on showering when she got back to 
her room. 

Keeping in the spirit of the workout, Scully decided to take the 
stairs up to her room. She laughed as she set out to jog up the 12 
flights--elevators were usually a necessity for her, brought on by 
the dress clothing she normally wore. She couldn't remember the 
last time she intentionally took a long jog up a flight of stairs. 

As she reached the 5th floor and rounded the corner to start up 
the next flight, she became aware of another set of footsteps 
coming up from below. She glanced down through the space in 
the staircase and saw Mulder racing up the steps. He was dressed 
in Spandex running pants with a light runner's jacket, a pair of 
gloves in his hands. She could see the bottoms of several layers 
of T-shirts and sweatshirts poking out from underneath the edge 
of the jacket.

"C'mon, Scully, I'll race you to our rooms--last one there has to 
spring for dinner tonight!" he yelled as he turned the corner 
below her.

"You're on, fly boy," she called out, feeling the adrenaline pour 
into her blood as she accelerated.

They yelled back and forth at each other as they ran: "Who you 
calling fly boy?"--"You, Spandex man"--"Oh, so I can't wear 
proper running attire now?"--"It's just a little... form-fitting, don't 
you think?"--"You making a move on me, woman?"--"Yeah, I'm 
moving out ahead of you." 

Scully was in the lead as they reached the 12th floor entrance. 
She reached out and flung open the door to the hallway. She 
quickly realized her mistake, though, as Mulder whizzed past her 
and into the hallway, laughing. "Thank ye kindly, ma'am!" he 
called to her as he zipped by.

Damn! "I had you, Mulder, and you know it!" she called out after 
him. "I had you!"

"Most restaurants take Visa, you know!" he laughed, flashing her 
a big smile. 

He managed to duck inside his room and shut the door before she 
had the chance to wipe that smile right off his face. 



------------
Chapter 3
------------


Mulder had picked Scully up at her room just before 7:30. She 
had been glad to see he'd dressed casually as well, his black jeans 
topped by an intense forest green sweater that set off his eyes 
nicely. She'd teased him that he was supposed to bring flowers 
when picking up a woman for dinner.

"Sorry, my lady," he had said, giving her a slight bow from the 
waist as he effected a 'mea culpa' motion with his hand to his 
chest. "My dating skills are a little rusty lately."

As they had walked down the hall, Mulder had offered her his 
arm, as if they were dressed to the nines and attending a formal 
affair instead of just a casual dinner out. As Scully had threaded 
her hand into the crook of his arm, she'd smiled to herself. Rusty 
perhaps, but still alive and well.

Now, as they sat relaxing at the table after dinner, Scully 
watched in amused silence as Mulder continued the date 
pretense, ordering a sort of ice cream and cherries dessert for the 
two of them to share. They had split a pizza between them for 
dinner already, so why not a dessert too, he had calmly 
explained. 

Khi had opted out of the pizza-sharing idea, going instead with a 
half-pound burger piled with every topping known to man, and a 
few that probably weren't. The restaurant was more of a bar and 
grill, really, but the food had been excellent and the staff both 
friendly and efficient.

They chatted amiably throughout dinner, drifting from topic to 
topic like a butterfly floating on a gentle breeze. Scully feared 
she would be a third wheel at the college reunion, but both 
Mulder and Khi had nicely kept the conversation out of the 'old 
times' category. 

"To friendships. Both old and new," Khi said, raising her bottle 
of St. Paulie Girl into the air. Mulder and Scully followed suit, 
murmuring the toast as their wine glasses clinked together with 
the bottle. While Scully still didn't quite trust Khi, she found her 
to be an intelligent, even witty, dinner companion. The evening 
had been quite relaxing so far, a fact that came as a pleasant 
surprise.

"So Khi, Mulder tells me that you might be... let's see, how did 
he put it?" Scully pretended to think for a moment, rolling her 
eyes up towards the overhead lights and tapping a forefinger 
against her lips. "Planning something, I believe was the exact 
phrase," she finished with an amused glance over at Mulder.

"Zippy! What have you been telling this woman about me?" Khi 
reacted with feigned shock. "Planning something, why I never..."

She ranted and raved, each phrase more indignant and outrageous 
than the last, until Mulder, and finally even Scully, were 
laughing outright. Khi eventually ran out of words to say, ending 
with a spluttering string of nonsense as she finally dissolved into 
laughter herself.

As they slowly gained control of themselves again, Mulder 
looked around for the waiter, wanting to order another round of 
drinks. Showing again the efficiency of the staff, the waiter was 
already on his way over with another carafe of wine for Mulder 
and Scully and a fresh beer for Khi.

"But now that you mention it..." Khi intoned with a devilish look 
in her eye. She slowly raised a single eyebrow as she said it, 
sending them all laughing again as the waiter cleared away the 
last of the empty dishes and glasses.

"So what's it going to be this time, Khi... rafting? Bungee-
jumping? Deep-sea diving?" Mulder asked, pausing to take a sip 
of the wine. "The Mall of America the day before Christmas?" he 
finished with a what-did-I-tell-you glance at Scully. She gave a 
slight shake of her head, beginning to smile as she reached for 
her glass.

Khi laughed. "Now, *there's* something that would truly be life-
threatening. I'd never inflict that on you, plus it's still a ways off. 
No, I was thinking more like... parachuting."

The glass never reached Scully's lips. She set it down sharply, 
thankful Mulder and Khi were too involved to notice the loud 
clanking noise it made as it hit the table.

"In the middle of the winter?! Thanks, but I'll just take the mall, 
thank you very much. Parachuting into the snow, Jes-" Mulder 
finished in a mumble, shaking his head as he laughed. 

Mulder didn't notice that Scully had turned as white as the snow 
falling outside the bar's windows.

     *    *    *    *    *    *

"Hey now, parachuting is *best* in the winter, believe me. All 
that nice, fluffy snow to break your fall--it's like dropping down 
onto a bed of feathers," Khi said, pantomiming gentle falling 
motions as she spoke. "I've got a friend who has a plane, we can 
have him fly us down tomorrow morning, do the jump and be 
back here in time for tea. We just need to-" Khi launched into 
full persuasion mode, outlining every detail in her most 
convincing tone. 

Scully heard none of it. It took all of her strength and 
concentration to keep her body from betraying her fear, to keep 
her hands and face steady as she tried to catch her breath. 

After a few moments, when she felt she could stand without 
promptly passing out, she managed a small "Excuse me, guys, 
restroom break," as she got up and headed away from the table. 
Khi and Mulder each gave a sort of half-wave of 
acknowledgement, each too engrossed in the conversation to 
really even look up as she left.

If they had, they might have been concerned when she didn't 
head for the restroom, making her way instead towards the heavy 
wooden doors of the front entrance. Scully murmured a comment 
to the bouncer as she headed outside, showing him her 
establishment-ID bracelet. Noticing her paleness even in the 
rather dim light of the bar's interior, the bouncer asked her if she 
was all right as he opened the door for her.

"Yes, fine, thank you," she said in a voice barely above a 
whisper. "I just need a quick breath of fresh air, that's all." Scully 
waved a nonchalant hand in the air as she ducked through the 
doorway.

She immediately noticed that the temperature had risen by 
several degrees--it was markedly warmer than when they'd first 
entered, although still brisk. The snow, which had been closer to 
small pellets when they arrived, had switched over to large, 
beautiful flakes. Each made their way down out of the sky, 
silently covering everything in a gentle blanket of whiteness. 

Scully walked a short distance down the block, the night air 
providing the clarity she was looking for. She breathed deeply 
several times in succession, doing a few quick arm rotations to 
get her blood pumping again. Her breath hung in the air before 
her, slowly swirling away as the seconds passed.

"What the hell is wrong with me," she mumbled to herself. 
"You're a doctor, a scientist, not the Stupendous Yappi." 

She knew there was no logical reason to be alarmed, that indeed 
there was little proof of clairvoyant ability. But no matter what 
she told herself, no matter how hard she tried to dismiss her fear, 
she couldn't shake the feeling she was truly perceiving the future. 
That events would unfold exactly as she kept envisioning. 

That Mulder would die in her arms, his life bleeding onto the 
snow beneath them. 

     *    *    *    *    *    *

After a long look up at the night sky, and knowing she couldn't 
be gone more than five minutes without Mulder getting worried, 
Scully turned and headed back into the bar. The bouncer flashed 
her a grin and told her it looked like the walk did her some good. 
She gave a small smile in return as she moved past him, 
threading her way through the small crowd waiting to get seated. 
It had to be approaching 10:00pm, but the dining area was still 
nearly full, forcing people to wait for available tables.

Mulder was just getting up from the table, laughing at something 
Khi had just said, when he caught sight of Scully. He stepped to 
her side as she came closer, reaching out to touch her shoulder 
very briefly. 

Well-schooled in Mulder101, Scully could see the look of 
concern veiled beneath the smile--a look quiet and hidden, but 
there nonetheless. Scully was always amazed at the depth of 
feeling Mulder could convey with a seemingly simple look or 
motion.

"You OK, Scully? We were about to send out the reconnaissance 
teams for you," Mulder asked, the offhand comment masking the 
once-over glance he gave her, searching for some outward sign 
of trouble. She couldn't tell if he'd seen her come in from outside.

"I'm fine, Mulder, I just stepped outside for a second," she said, 
feeling it was safer to bend the truth slightly than risk an outright 
lie. "I was feeling a little warm in here and just wanted to cool 
down a little bit." 

Playing every inch the gentleman this evening, Mulder pulled her 
chair out for her, graciously seating her before returning to his 
own chair. As she watched him settle back into his seat, she 
realized with something of a start that she wasn't being 
completely fair--Mulder was often gentlemanly, holding doors 
and pulling out chairs for her, guiding her through doorways with 
a gentle hand. It was just that those things normally happened in 
the course of their daily work, not during a casual evening 
together.

Scully refused to use the word 'date,' even in the safety of her 
own thoughts.

"Well, as crazy as it sounds, Khi's got me damn close to sold on 
this parachuting idea, Scully," Mulder said, pouring himself 
another glass of wine. He laughed as Khi did a little dance-of-joy 
at the table, complete with a Homer-ish 'Whoo Hoo.'

"Sounds pretty painless, really, and might actually be kind of 
fun," he continued. 

Khi chimed in with the reassurance that nothing could be 
simpler--"A troop of girl scouts laden with boxes of Thin Mints 
could do this jump, it's so easy," she said, figuring that a 
challenge-to-the-manhood couldn't hurt her cause. Scully was not 
surprised to see that it worked, watching as Mulder bristled 
slightly even as he tried to toss it off with a "Yeah, whatever, 
shut up" response. 

"Mulder, forget for a moment that a) you've never parajumped 
before, b) you're here on business and c) it's the dead of winter 
and no more than 30 degrees outside," Scully began, smiling in 
spite of herself as she saw Khi and Mulder exchange a told-you-
so look between them. "You're in the middle of a senior bureau 
conference.  If you were to miss the final session on Sunday, you 
could seriously compromise your career at the FBI. You could be 
reprimanded, you could be censured, you could be fired 
outright..."

Scully caught the gleam in Mulder's eye as he listened to her.

"...you could just go ahead and book that plane for three seats," 
she finished with a resigned sigh. 

"Two for the price of one!" Khi laughed. "I didn't really think I 
could even convince Zippy to do it, and here I got a second FBI 
agent thrown in as well. My skills of persuasion must be sharper 
than I thought." She started outlining the where and when details 
of the next day's jump.

Scully reached out and poured herself another wine, leaning back 
in her chair and thinking. Wondering who Khi Shaolin really was 
and if she were really just the adventurous friend she presented 
herself to be. Wondering if her own decision to go with them 
would seal Mulder's fate, condemning him to a death she had 
seen all too clearly. 

"So, does that seem reasonable to you?" Khi asked as she and 
Mulder turned towards Scully. Breaking out of her mental 
reverie, Scully took a sip of her wine before answering. The few 
seconds gave her time to replay their conversation in her head. 

Even though her attention had been completely focused on her 
own thoughts, some part of her mind had still tuned into their 
planning session and was now able to pick out the pertinent 
details at high speed. It was a skill she had developed over the 
years without even really trying--she knew it was the only thing 
that had gotten her through more than a few 7:00am bureau 
meetings.

"Um, yeah, that should work all right," she said. "Hotel lobby at 
9:00am, out to the airfield by 11:00, in the air and en route by 
noon, jump around 1:00, picked up and back here by late 
afternoon," she summarized quickly.

Khi was impressed with Scully's succinct recitation, teasing 
Mulder he'd better watch out, having a partner with a memory 
like that. "You won't be getting away with anything, Zippy," Khi 
said with a chuckle.

"I wouldn't even dream of trying," Mulder said, giving Scully a 
cryptic grin. The waiter arrived with their dessert, cutting off 
Scully's question before she could ask it.

As the waiter began setting their dessert on the table, Scully 
realized why it had taken fifteen minutes to bring it out. It was, 
quite simply, a work of art. Perfectly sculpted mounds of pure 
white ice cream lined the inside of an ornate crystal goblet. Dark, 
sumptuous cherries ringed the upper edge of the ice cream, 
complementing the small tower of them that had been placed in 
the center.

Another dish contained still more cherries, simmering and 
bubbling in a thickened sauce. Placing the dish near the edge of 
the table, the waiter took a small bottle and poured an amber 
liquid over the simmering mixture. And then, with a flourish 
worthy of the theater, the waiter set the entire dish on fire.

Smiling, Scully looked across the table at Mulder, noticing the 
perfect reflection created by his glasses. The visual effect was 
stunning--it was as if he were a creation of fire himself. As if his 
very soul had been set ablaze and unleashed for her to see. She 
was mesmerized for a moment, unable to break the hypnotic 
effect. 

Finally, it was the realization she was gazing at him like a 
schoolgirl that gave her the strength to drop her eyes down to the 
table. But it had not been quick enough, she knew. She knew 
Mulder had experienced the same thing in those few moments. 

That he, too, had looked deep inside her, right to the very center 
of her soul, and had seen the same fire. 

     *    *    *    *    *    *

The rest of the evening at the bar and grill passed quickly. Khi 
finally broke down as she watched Mulder and Scully enjoy their 
jubilee dessert, quickly ordering a large hot fudge sundae for 
herself. There wasn't much conversation at Table 14-A after
that--just murmuring variations of "I can't believe how good this 
is" from all of them.

Finishing off her sundae, savoring the last of the dark chocolate, 
Khi put her spoon down with a satisfied sigh. "You know, when 
you eat something like that, you can totally see how the phrase 
'Chocolate is better than sex' got started," she said with a laugh, a 
sentiment echoed by Mulder and Scully. Seeing they were nearly 
finished as well, Khi excused herself, wanting to hit the restroom 
quick before leaving.

The waiter made one last stop, asking if anyone needed anything 
else before he totaled their tab. Scully, laughing, told him no, 
they had consumed far more than they needed to already. The 
waiter stepped over to the bar for a moment, tapping things into 
the keypad at a computerized billing station. He returned a 
moment later with the bill, proffering it to Mulder first.

Mulder just laughed. "No, I believe that should be given to the 
lovely redhead over there, my friend," he said, giving Scully an 
evil grin. The waiter laughed as well, turning and handing it to 
her with a flourish. Throwing a mock glare at Mulder as she put 
the bill down next to her, Scully took the opportunity to thank the 
waiter for the excellent service, wanting him to extend their 
gratitude to the cooking staff as well for the delicious dinner and 
dessert. 

The waiter seemed genuinely pleased at the compliment, 
graciously giving her a slight bow and telling them if they ever 
came again, to make sure they asked for Josh. Scully told him to 
hang on just a second, pulling her small wallet out of her jacket 
and extracting the desired credit card. "You take Visa, right?" 
Mulder asked him, tossing Scully a teasing look. He expertly 
dodged the cloth napkin that came sailing his way, laughing as he 
retrieved it from the floor and set it on the edge of the table.

The waiter quickly settled the bill, giving Scully her receipt on a 
small tray filled with brightly wrapped mints. "Enjoy the rest of 
your dessert and your evening, sir, ma'am," he said as he left. 
 
Mulder tipped the crystal goblet towards him, intending to scoop 
up his next bite, and saw there was only a single cherry left. With 
the barest hint of a grin, he tipped it up onto his spoon, making 
sure he also got the last of the deliciously thick sauce, too. 

After a moment's pause, he held the spoon across the table for 
Scully, offering her the last taste. She reached out to take the 
spoon from him, but he moved it out of her grasp. When she put 
her hand back down, he held the spoon out again. She quirked an 
eyebrow at him, a look he returned with a quick flicking up and 
down of his own brow.

Scully gave him a small eye-roll and sigh, before finally giving 
in and leaning forward to mouth the cherry off the spoon. She 
didn't quite get all of it, though--a  bit of the dark sauce trickled 
its way down her chin. Reaching for her napkin, she quickly 
remembered that she'd fired it at Mulder for his earlier comment. 
She reached up to try and stop the flow with her hand as she 
stretched for another napkin from the center of the table.

Before she could reach one, though, Mulder leaned over and 
wiped the offending sauce off with a gentle finger. He smiled 
slightly as he wiped his hand on his own napkin--"At least it 
comes off easier than the barbecue sauce did," he quipped.

It took Scully a moment to reference the comment, but when she 
did, she gave him a quick grin in acknowledgement. Scully 
settled back in her chair, relishing the wonderful flavor as she 
licked the last little bit of the sauce off her fingers. It was 
amazing, she thought, that a bar and grill in the middle of 
Colorado would serve the best dessert she'd ever tasted. "Perhaps 
Khi was right with the chocolate comment," she said.

"Yeah, except we're not eating chocolate, are we," he said with 
an unbelievably sly look and grin. As her eyes widened at his 
flirtatiousness, he stood and headed off towards the restroom 
himself, giving Khi a quick wave as he met her on her way back 
to the table. 

As Scully watched him move away, she was glad Mulder had left 
the table immediately, not giving her the chance to say her usual 
sarcastic reply.

Because this time, she didn't want to say it.

     *    *    *    *    *    *

They caught another cab back to the hotel, Khi splitting off from 
Mulder and Scully as they entered the lobby. Khi said she was 
normally one to go for midnight runs, but would settle for a light 
workout in the hotel gym this night. 

"Wouldn't want to twist my ankle in the snow and not be able to 
throw you guys out of a plane tomo-" Khi broke off, 
backtracking slightly and masking her face into a look of pure 
innocence. "I mean, not be able to guide you expertly to safety 
on your first parajumping experience," she finished sweetly.

"Yeah, whatever, shut up," Mulder said, laughing as he heard 
Scully's voice saying the same words. Grins were exchanged as 
Mulder and Scully headed for the elevators, Khi starting down 
the hallway to the gym.

"What, you don't want to take the stairs this time, Scully?" 
Mulder asked as he held the elevator doors for her.

"Don't even start with me, Mulder. I *so* had you beat--you 
should've been paying for dinner," Scully said as she pressed the 
button for the 12th floor. She couldn't resist smiling a little, 
though, when Mulder heaved an exaggerated sigh, murmuring 
"Mmm, mmm, good" as he bent down to re-tie a boot lace. 

Scully folded her arms and leaned against the wall of the elevator 
as it began its slow climb. Whether from the wine or the pleasant 
evening, she was feeling very relaxed, almost detached from 
herself. She watched as the first floor lazily drifted down beneath 
her--the Regal's main elevator was glass-walled, allowing its 
passengers to look out over the lobby and recreation area as they 
ascended.

"So why are you coming on this jump, Scully?" Mulder asked. "I 
mean, I know you don't really like Khi all that much, and you 
don't exactly seem the type to have always harbored a secret 
passion for extreme sports."

"Actually, Mulder, I've always thought that parachuting might be 
rather interesting," Scully explained, keeping her voice light and 
conversational. "Free-falling to earth, the air rushing past you, 
your body able to twist and turn without restriction... Should be 
an interesting experience."

She sure as hell knew she wasn't going to tell him the real reason. 

"Well, the only thing I know for certain about doing anything 
with Khi--it is *always* interesting," Mulder laughed, moving 
over to stand near Scully and look out over the lobby with her. 
He was so close to her, she could have sworn that she felt the 
heat radiating from him.

The elevator slowed as they reached the 9th floor, the bell 
chiming out the stop signal. As the doors opened, an elderly 
couple began to step inside. As they saw Mulder and Scully, 
though, they paused.

"We're headed down to the lobby--is this going up or down?" the 
woman asked politely. "We couldn't tell from the indicators out 
here."

"Up, ma'am, to the 12th floor," Mulder replied. "We'll be there in 
a second, then you can head back down to the lobby from there." 
He stepped forward and held out a hand, offering her some 
assistance should she need it.

"No, no, that's all right, son," the man chimed in with a smile. 
"We'll let you two finish your ride up. Just push the 9th floor 
button when you get out to send it right back to us."

"Are you sure? It's no trouble at all," Scully said, motioning for 
Mulder to hold the doors open.

"You two go on, now," the man said, waving for them to be on 
their way. "Just send it back down for us."

Mulder smiled at the couple, stepping back inside and releasing 
the doors. As they were nearly closed, the woman caught Scully's 
eye, giving her a smile and sly wink.

"Have fun," the woman called as the doors squeezed shut. 

As Scully caught Mulder's eye as she turned away from the 
doors, she asked "Now, what do you suppose she meant by that?"

"I have absolutely no idea," Mulder replied, his tone innocent. 
The wink he gave her was decidedly *not* innocent. Scully 
turned to face the glass again before she was tempted to return 
the wink.

When the doors opened on the 12th floor, Mulder held out an 
elbow for her, just as he had when they originally left for the 
evening. Scully placed her hand on his arm, reaching back at the 
last second to hit the button for the 9th floor.

As they walked along in comfortable silence, Scully tried to 
remember an evening when she'd had so much fun, when she'd 
felt so completely relaxed and at ease. Considering she couldn't 
think of anything, she concluded it had been a very long time.

"Here you are, my lady," Mulder said, stopping in front of her 
door. He'd been covering her hand with his own--with a gentle 
squeeze, he took his hand away and stepped back slightly as she 
unhooked her arm from his. 

Scully pulled out her entry keycard, working the door lock with 
the studied ease of someone who checks into more hotels in a 
year than most people do in a lifetime. Mulder started down the 
hall towards his own room, but turned back almost immediately 
as Scully called out his name.

"Mulder?" she said, stepping towards him even as he turned to 
face her. She had originally reached up a hand to touch his 
shoulder as he walked away, but he had turned too suddenly--the 
hand now rested squarely against his chest instead. They were 
mere inches away from each other, Scully looking up at Mulder 
as he tipped his head to look down at her. 

She was shocked at the depths of those hazel eyes, feeling as if 
she were looking over the edge of a bottomless abyss. She 
wondered how she had never seen it before. Or perhaps more 
accurately, why she'd never allowed herself to see it before. She 
teetered on the edge of that abyss for a few long seconds, feeling 
as though she were being drawn forward by some unseen hand. 

Mulder finally broke the moment, reaching out to brush her 
cheek with back of his fingers. Light and gentle, surely, but she 
was rocked by the nearly electric charge it sent through her.

"I had a great time, too, Scully," he said quietly. Taking her hand 
off his chest, he pressed a gentle kiss into her palm as he turned 
away again. 

Scully shook herself slightly, her mind trying to comprehend 
what had just happened, why she had done and said the things 
she had. It must be the wine, she thought firmly to herself. Had to 
be the wine.

As she stepped inside her door, she heard Mulder call out a 
"Good night, Scully" as he opened his own door. She poked her 
head back around the doorframe, laughing as she saw that he was 
doing the same thing a few doors down. 

"G'night, Mulder," she said. He grinned back at her, finally 
moving inside his room and shutting the door behind him. Scully 
did the same, leaning against the door as she closed her eyes for a 
minute. Girl, she said to herself, you need a hot bath and a good 
night's sleep.

She didn't see them at first, turning immediately from the room 
door to enter the bathroom. She began drawing a bath, glad that 
she'd remembered to pack a couple of scented bath oils. She 
paused for a few moments to make sure the water temperature 
was going to stay constant, then went out into the main room.

This time, she saw them immediately.

A dozen long-stemmed roses were lying on her bed, a flowering 
vine intricately woven around and through the stems. The 
delicate purplish-white petals of the vine's flower provided a 
stark contrast to the dark, rich red of the roses. The arrangement 
was exquisitely beautiful.

As she picked them up, she noticed a small piece of paper tucked 
inside the vine. She withdrew it carefully, unfolding it to reveal 
the strong, bold strokes of a hand-written note.

      "I know I should have had these
            for you earlier, but I thought--
                   better late than never.

                                     --Fly Boy"

How does he *do* that, she wondered--she hadn't been away 
from Mulder for more than five minutes all night. Scully shook 
her head in silence, a grin slowly spreading across her face as she 
fingered the petals of the roses. 

As she placed the arrangement on the nightstand, making sure 
not to crush any of the flowers, a thought sprang unbidden into 
her mind. One that, even a few short months ago, she would have 
pushed aside without a second's thought. But not tonight.

Tonight, she knew that one day, she would look into Mulder's 
eyes and jump willingly over the edge of the abyss.




------------
Chapter 4
------------

"Yes, I'm here, what?" Scully mumbled into the phone as she 
hung over the side of the bed. It had taken her a couple of 
seconds to extricate herself from the sheets and blankets on her 
bed, her arm knocking the phone from the nightstand in the 
process. 

"This is Amy calling from the front desk. This is your 7:00 
wakeup call, Ms. Scully," the voice said brightly. 

"Um, yes, thank you," Scully answered, thinking it should be 
criminally illegal for the girl to be so chipper at 7:00 in the 
morning.

"You're welcome, Miss Scully, and have a great day!" Amy 
replied, ending the call before Scully could use the 'yeah, 
whatever, shut up' line on Ms. Perky. Probably for the best, she 
thought. 

Scully crawled back onto the bed, drawing the covers up over her 
head to shut out the light streaming in through the rather thin 
curtains. She knew she was risking falling asleep again, but she 
wasn't quite ready to just leap out of bed yet.

She'd been sleeping on her stomach, she realized, something she 
hadn't done since she was a little kid. Did the prospect of facing 
this day scare her so much that she had reverted to child-like 
patterns in her sleep? Would she be checking under the bed for 
the boogie man next?

Get ahold of yourself, Dana, she thought. You're going to get up, 
you're going to do this jump, and you will see that there was 
absolutely nothing to be concerned about. You'll be back here 
having dinner with Mulder this evening, complaining about 
having to go to the final session of the conference tomorrow, and 
all will be right with the world. 

With a sigh, Scully slid out of bed, pulling the covers back up as 
she stood. She did a few quick stretches, bending to touch the 
floor a couple of times, leaning side to side to work out the kinks 
in her back. She had intended to go down to the gym for a quick 
morning run, but decided against it. 

Scully instead took a long, hot shower, relieved that the water 
seemed to rinse away the last of the morning's grogginess as it 
coursed across her body. Stepping out of the shower, she dried 
off quickly and slipped into the thick folds of the hotel robe 
hanging on the back of the door. She pulled her hair dryer out of 
her bag, deciding to just do a quick dry and simply pull the hair 
back into a ponytail for the day--plunging to the earth from 
several thousand feet up wasn't exactly an activity that demanded 
stylishness, she laughed to herself.

Her morning routine complete, Scully picked up the phone to 
order some breakfast from room service. Normally, she would 
have just gone down to the lobby restaurant, but she didn't want 
to have to dress twice--once, lightly, to head downstairs and then 
again, more heavily, to prepare for the day.

She glanced over the room service menu. Mostly light fare for 
breakfast, but that was all right with her--she was still half full 
from the previous evening's dinner. Scully picked up the phone 
and dialed the number, ordering a bagel with cream cheese, a 
dish of fruit and some juice.

"And, would it be possible to have a local paper brought up as 
well?" she asked the woman. Scully enjoyed reading the local 
news when out on assignment. It reminded her that in some parts 
of the world, the local school carnival or the winners of the 
snowman-building contest were still considered front-page news.

"Sure, ma'am, that's no problem. Would you like anything else?" 
the woman asked. She was polite, but thankfully not as 
annoyingly animated as Ms. Perky had been earlier. 

With a glance back at the nightstand, Scully thought for a 
moment. Finally, she said "Yeah, and I know this will sound 
rather strange, but I need a large vase for some flowers that were 
delivered to me yesterday. Doesn't have to be anything fancy, 
just something tall to hold some water."

"I'll see what we can come up with, ma'am. The maid service 
might be better able to help you out, though--if our guy doesn't 
arrive with something for you, just leave a note to the cleaning 
staff," the woman said, letting Scully know that her food would 
arrive in about 30 minutes as she hung up.

Scully walked over to where the flowers were sitting, leaning 
over to inspect the petals more closely. Remarkably, both the 
roses and the vine flowers were as vibrant as the night before--
they had barely wilted at all. A little water would liven them 
right up again. Or maybe I could just get Ms. Perky to come up 
and talk to them for a bit, she thought with a laugh.

To pass the time until breakfast arrived, Scully went through her 
bags to lay out the clothing for the day. Khi had recommended 
layering both pants and shirts, and to wear boots with a couple 
layers of socks. She had said her friend would have jump 
coveralls and gloves for them, along with light helmets and face 
shields to protect from the cold. 

Scully had no trouble finding shirts to wear, drawing out a couple 
of mock turtlenecks to layer underneath a heavy fleece pullover. 
But she realized she only had a pair of jeans as casual legwear--
she had sent her sweatpants and some other clothing down to be 
laundered and hadn't brought anything else that would work.

She picked up the phone and dialed Mulder's room. It didn't even 
occur to her that some might have thought it strange for her to 
think of borrowing clothes from her male partner--they'd been 
together for more stakeouts and field assignments than she could 
remember, and had long since become comfortable sharing 
supplies as needed. 

After a few rings, she glanced over at the clock. It read 8:03. 
Surely, he must be up by now, she thought. She was about to 
hang up and head down the hall when Mulder picked up.

"Mulder," he said. Scully was glad to hear he sounded 
completely awake--she didn't think Khi would ever let them 
forget it if they were late.

"It's me," she said. "I'm trying to get clothes ready for today, but 
don't have anything other than a pair of jeans. Do you have an 
extra pair of sweatpants or something I could borrow?"

"Yeah, I was just doing the same thing," he replied. She could 
hear him rummaging around in his suitcase as he talked. 
"Ummm... let's see... sweatpants, no. But I do have an extra pair 
of Spandex running pants, flygirl," he finished with a laugh.

"That'll do, I guess," she said, hoping the smile on her face didn't 
come through in her voice as much as it threatened to.

"OK, I'll drop them off on my way down to the lobby in a few 
minutes," he said. "I'm about to head down to grab some 
breakfast, did you want to come along?"

"No, I ordered room service--didn't want to have to come back 
up to the room to change," Scully replied. 

"All right. I'll be down to your room in five," he said as he hung 
up the phone. The need to end every conversation with a 
'goodbye' was also something that had dropped away years ago.

A few minutes later, a knock at the door heralded Mulder's 
arrival. Scully drew back the chain lock and opened the door. He 
held out the aforementioned pair of Spandex running pants. She 
noticed, though, that he had neglected to mention that they were 
wildly colored, black base streaked with neon orange and green.

"Ooo, pretty stylin' there, Mulder," she teased him. "These look 
like they should be hanging on the back of a slow-moving 
vehicle."

"Actually, you wouldn't believe how difficult it is to find 
Spandex attire that *isn't* wild," he said, laughing a bit. 

"Oh, and I'm sure you searched high and low for plain ones, too," 
Scully said. "I know how... sedate your tastes are."

Mulder didn't bother defending himself, knowing that there really 
wasn't any defense to make, instead turning to head down the 
hall. "I'll see you downstairs in a bit, then," he said over his 
shoulder. She let him walk for a good 20 or 30 feet before calling 
out to him.

"Hey, Mulder?" she said. 

"Yeah?" he asked as he paused.

"Thanks for the flowers, they're beautiful," she said simply. She 
didn't trust herself to say anything more.

"Only the best for you, my lady," he said, affecting the half-bow 
he'd used the night before. With a grin, he turned and headed on 
down the hall.

Scully went back in her room, and it was only a few minutes 
until the room service arrived. The man had everything she'd 
ordered:  the breakfast, the paper, and even the vase. She tipped 
him more than she normally would have, thanking him and the 
staff for being so accommodating.

After arranging the flowers in the vase, making sure it was filled 
with water, Scully settled in at the small table. She made short 
work of the bagel and fruit, then lazily sipped at the juice as she 
browsed through the paper. She made a mental note of an ice-
sculpture contest taking place today, thinking the results might be 
worth checking out this evening when they got back.

Realizing it was getting close to 9:00, Scully refolded the 
newspaper and began getting dressed for the day. She slipped on 
a light t-shirt, followed by the mock turtlenecks and finally the 
heavy pullover. After pulling on three pairs of socks, she reached 
for the Spandex pants. 

Laughing as she stretched them on, she was actually surprised at 
how comfortable they were. They clung to her legs like a second 
skin, matching her movements without feeling bulky or binding. 

She started to pull her jeans on, but stopped. Scully sat still on 
the edge of the bed for a few moments, the jeans forgotten. She 
soon dropped them to the floor as she went over to the mound of 
packages in the corner. Rummaging through them, she finally 
withdrew and opened a long, thin box. 

Placing her right foot on the edge of the bed, Scully strapped the 
black-handled knife over the neon Spandex, securing it firmly to 
her lower leg.

     *    *    *    *    *    *

Mulder and Khi were waiting for her as she crossed the hotel 
lobby towards the front door. She was carrying her heavy parka, 
knowing she'd want it for the trip and the first part of the plane 
ride. She noticed that both of them were similarly equipped, Khi 
also carrying a backpack.

"OK, then, are we all set?" Khi asked after quickly making sure 
Mulder and Scully had followed her apparel instructions. 

"Let's do it," Mulder said, clasping his hands together and 
grinning. Khi and Scully just laughed at his eager-beaver antics. 

They headed outside to the Regal's parking ramp, Scully slipping 
into her parka as they walked. It was still snowing lightly, but no 
more than a couple of inches had accumulated. The sun was 
trying to peek through the clouds, but clouds were overtaking it 
quickly. It would most likely be completely overcast within the 
hour. 

Khi lead the way over to a sport utility vehicle parked nearby. As 
they approached, a man stepped out of the driver's seat. Or 
rather, an unbelievably huge man unfolded himself from the front 
seat and stood, towering over the top of the vehicle as if it were a 
Tonka toy. He had to be at least seven feet tall, Scully realized as 
she drew near.

"This is Mobaje," Khi introduced the man. "He'll take us up to 
the flight line and pick us up at the drop site as well. Mobaje, this 
is Fox Mulder and Dana Scully."

Mo-ba'-zhay, Scully repeated to herself, wanting to make sure 
she remembered the pronunciation. "Nice to meet you, Mobaje," 
she said, reaching out to shake his hand as he turned to her. His 
hand completely enclosed hers, but was gentle as he shook 
hands.

"So you are the two whom Khi has convinced to join with her on 
a fall from the sky, yes?" Mobaje asked. His speech pattern was 
unusual, his words a strange mix of formality and imagery. His 
voice flowed as smooth as silk, the tonal quality low and 
lustrous. Scully was beginning to think exceptional voice timbre 
was a prerequisite for Khi's friends.

"Yes, that would be us," Mulder replied, holding a hand out to 
assist Scully as she climbed into the backseat. "I'm not sure how 
she did it, but here we are."

"Khi has convinced Mobaje of many things as well, zhajeen. Her 
tongue, not her sword, is her greatest weapon," Mobaje said as he 
took Khi's pack and put in the back storage area of the vehicle. 
Khi, who had already lifted herself into the passenger seat, let 
them know 'zhajeen' was a term similar to 'sir' or 'ma'am', but 
used neutrally. Scully was tempted to ask about the sword 
reference, but decided against it. 

Mobaje refolded himself into the driver's seat, looking to Khi for 
confirmation that everyone was ready to go. "Everyone set?" she 
asked, glancing at Mulder and Scully with a smile. "Nobody has 
to go to the bathroom?"

"Are we there yet?" Mulder whined, falling into the game easily. 
"Scully's on my side! I'm bored! She's looking at me weird!"

They would have needed a photo-finish replay to determine who 
reached out to slap Mulder in the head first. Since they each went 
for opposite sides of his skull, Khi and Scully were content to 
declare it a tie. Mulder just laughed, causing Scully to roll her 
eyes heavenward, a slight smile on her lips as well. 

"Take us out, Mobaje," Khi said. "Before I have to crawl into the 
backseat and split these two up."

"Not even you could do that, zhajeen," Mobaje replied, guiding 
them out of the parking lot and into the city streets. Scully 
wondered what he meant, but didn't get the chance to ask as 
Mobaje and Khi started chatting. She didn't dare look over at 
Mulder, either. Of course, she didn't need to--her mind could see 
both the grin and the look, clear as crystal.

They left Colorado Springs and at first headed almost directly 
west, straight towards the eastern edge of the Rocky Mountains. 
They turned to head south after a while, weaving their way right 
along the edge of the mountain range. Khi explained that their 
pilot would take them on a quick sight-seeing jaunt back up 
towards Pike's Peak, then take them south again to a more open 
location for the actual jump. "No need to waste a ride in the 
Rockies," Khi said. "From the window of a plane is really the 
only way to appreciate their magnificence."

Not knowing what to expect from a car ride with Khi, Scully was 
happily surprised to find the trip quite intriguing, actually. Khi 
and Mobaje spent the first 20 minutes or so chatting about the 
jump retrieval and related items, as Mulder and Scully took turns 
pointing out various portions of the stunning landscape to each 
other. 

Scully listened in as Mobaje talked, finding herself fascinated by 
his words. Imagery was present in almost every sentence he 
uttered--her mind was filled with pictures created not only out of 
the words themselves, but from the tonal inflections of his voice. 

His ancestry was another source of interest for her. She wouldn't 
even hazard a guess as to what ethnic class might give rise to his 
seven-foot frame. He was darker-skinned, but not black, the 
coloring suggesting he was of Latin or Asian descent. His hair, as 
long and straight as a Native American's, was a shimmering 
silver, sweeping down his shoulders like a river of mercury. 

When Mobaje and Khi seemed to wind up their conversation, 
Scully took the opportunity to ask him where he was from.

"I am from the earth, zhajeen," Mobaje replied simply. 

"Mobaje's people believe they are each a direct descendent of the 
earth itself," Khi translated, seeing Scully's look of confusion at 
Mobaje's apparently flippant remark.

"Sorta gives the phrase 'Mother Earth' a whole new meaning, 
doesn't it?" Mulder quipped--he had to duck to avoid another 
double slap for his undeniably flippant remark.

"We are all children of the earth Kanji and of the sky M'alvahe," 
Mobaje intoned. "They birth us, feed us, protect us for the whole 
of our lives. When the line between life and death is crossed, 
Kanji and M'alvahe swallow us undivided and return us to the 
earth."

"Undivided?" Scully asked, entranced. Even Mulder appeared to 
be paying attention, head tipped, his hair falling over his eyes as 
he listened.

"The soul and the body kept together, to live again within Kanji," 
Mobaje said. "They reside as one until such time as M'alvahe 
opens his arms for the soul to be born again. On that day, the 
body is finally returned to the dust."

For the next hour, Mobaje played the role of teacher, telling story 
after story about his culture and his people. Scully couldn't 
remember the last time she'd been so thoroughly interested in 
listening to someone talk about themselves. Glancing over at 
Mulder occasionally, she saw he was as engrossed as she was--
they were like a couple of 6-year olds at storytime. Maybe I 
should ask for a carton of milk and a cookie, she laughed to 
herself.

"So, ok, what's the difference between a... um... a rhaven and an 
ut'aari?" Mulder asked, trying to get his mouth around the 
unfamiliar words correctly. 

"A rhaven transforms without thought, without will, into a single 
animal identity as M'alvahe directs. The man does not choose his 
time and he cannot change the animal he becomes," Mobaje 
explained as he finally turned off the main road onto what 
appeared to be a driveway. We must be almost there, Scully 
thought. As Mobaje continued, she began to pick out buildings in 
the distance and finally what could only be the flight line--a strip 
of land about a third mile long, blown free of the falling snow.

"An ut'aari can control his shape, mold it as his heart desires," 
Mobaje said as he brought the vehicle to a stop next to an open 
hangar. "He can become the elk, the wolf, or the hawk as he 
chooses. Not even M'alvahe can control an ut'aari. They are the 
righteous among men, the embodiment of Kanji herself."

Trust Mulder to find the X-File in a discussion of culture, Scully 
thought, turning her head to hide her smile. The smile was soon 
forgotten, though, as she caught sight of the plane inside the 
hangar. Oh dear god...

For one thing, it was the smallest plane she had ever seen--
Cracker Jack toys were more solidly built. It looked as thought a 
strong wind would tip it right over. But it was the paint job that 
took her breath away. She felt Mulder lean over next to her to 
look out the window, a huge laugh emanating from him as he 
collapsed against her in the backseat.

The plane, the object to which they would soon be entrusting 
their safety and their very lives--the plane looked just like the 
Spandex pants she was wearing.

     *    *    *    *    *    *

"C'mon in, c'mon in," a voice called out as they approached the 
open hangar bay. At first, there didn't seem to be a body attached 
to the voice--it seemed to come from nowhere. As they slipped 
inside the hangar door, though, Scully saw a pair of legs standing 
on the other side of the plane, legs which soon carried their 
owner around to meet them.

"Zippy, Scully, this is Vincent Alger, our pilot for today," Khi 
said, slapping the man on the shoulder. "Vince, these are Special 
Agents Fox Mulder and Dana Scully." Khi moved off to a set of 
storage lockers nearby as Vince stepped over to talk to Mulder 
and Scully.

"Ain't never flown the FBI before. Ought to be fun," Vince said 
with a smile, quickly holding up his grease-covered hand as they 
each reached out to greet him. "We can just skip past the 
handshake, I guess, unless y'all want some of this on ye."

Vince spoke with a decidedly heavy drawl, the words lazily 
flowing from one to the next. As he moved back towards the 
plane, Scully noticed that he walked with a slight limp, his left 
leg dragging slightly. Vince must have noticed her watching him.

"Yup, I got me a little left-foot drag," he said, grinning at her. 
"Don't worry, though, it don't affect my flying none. 'Course, I 
wouldn't have a left-foot anything if it weren't for the co-... for 
Khi, there," he finished suddenly, obviously editing his words. 
Scully wondered what his original statement would have been. 
Before she could ask, though, Khi gave a whistle and waved 
them over. 

Mulder leaned in close to her ear as they headed over to the 
lockers. "I done bet the plane's name is Ol' Spandy," Mulder 
whispered quietly, teasingly. Slap...

They reached the lockers just as Mobaje was handing Khi her 
pack. She checked its contents, nodding her head as she glanced 
through it. "Check the altitude conditions for us, Mobaje--the 
clouds are throwing me a little, here," Khi said to him. Mobaje 
nodded to her as he turned to head through the open doors. 
Scully assumed he was heading for the small building about 100 
yards away.

"All right, we have to get you guys suited up and versed in 
everything here, before Vince'll take us up," Khi said as Mobaje 
left. She looked around for a moment, searching for something. 
"Ah, there they are," she said as she stepped around Scully's side 
to pick up a stack of material. As Khi moved around her, Scully 
turned to watch her, then continued the motion to look out the 
open doors after Mobaje.

Except that Mobaje was nowhere to be seen.

Startled, Scully glanced quickly around the interior of the hangar, 
thinking maybe he stepped back inside. She saw no one. There 
was no way he had covered the distance to the other building in 
the ten seconds that had passed.

She was about to cross over to the open door and look outside, 
but Khi began handing out items, describing them as she went 
along. With one last glance out the door, Scully tuned in to Khi's 
explanations.

"This is your jump coverall. It is similar to a regular coverall suit, 
with two notable exceptions," Khi explained. "One, it has built-in 
carabiners to attach right to your parachute harness. And two, a 
small homing device is stitched into the lining of the collar."

"Built-in search and rescue?" Mulder said with a laugh as he 
stripped off his heavy jacket. He stepped into the coverall, 
pulling it up over his clothes and zipping it to mid-chest level. 
Scully did the same, stacking her jacket on his before pulling on 
the coverall.

"Why is this a less-than-comforting idea?" Mulder asked, tossing 
a wry glance over at Scully.

"It's not a full-blown radar detection system, that's for sure," Khi 
said, grinning at him. "But as long as we land within a couple of 
miles of each other, it will allow me to track each of you very 
quickly."

Next, she handed out a set of what looked like miniature tie-
down straps. She showed how to thread them through the bottom 
loops of the suit legs, wrapping around the ankle and then criss-
crossing them under the soles of their boots. "Just makes the ride 
down a little warmer, if you don't have the wind whistling up 
your shorts," she laughed. 

Handing them each a parachute, Khi showed them how to step 
into the harness correctly, attaching the various slip-links to the 
carabiner hooks on their jump suits. The chute packs were sleek 
and almost completely black--only the bright cord handles stood 
out.

"This, the red, is your main chute cord. When your feet leave the 
plane, count to five and then pull this straight down, hard," she 
said, simulating a swift jerk towards the ground. "If you don't 
immediately feel the chute open, this is your reserve, the yellow 
cord. Again, yank it straight down."

Feeling his pack for the location of each cord, Mulder grinned as 
he asked "And if that one doesn't open?"

"Then you'll be really glad that we're jumping in the winter--the 
snow would provide something of a break for your fall. Not the 
same as a nice, cushy safety net, but better than slamming into 
the bare ground," Khi said. "But don't worry, I've only seen two 
instances where the main chute didn't open, and in both cases, the 
reserve worked fine."

Khi stepped over to each of them, checking the strap fittings and 
carabiner latches individually. She had Mulder unfasten part of 
his harness, untwisting the straps so they laid flat against him and 
readjusting the strap length. 

Satisfied at last, she next handed out the helmets, complete with 
face guards. They resembled a full-face motorcycle racing 
helmet, V-shaped at the chin area, but were much lighter and 
more compact. The shield was integrated as part of the helmet 
itself, not a piece that the occupant could flip up or down as 
needed.

"These provide you with protection from both the cold and any 
objects you might hit when you land. Like, you know, the 
ground," Khi laughed. "Someone with experience can land 
without leaving his feet, but I don't expect that for either of you." 

"Hey now, I'm experienced, what are you-... oh, you mean 
experienced as a *parachuter*, gotcha," Mulder quipped, 
shooting a wink over to Scully. Khi just groaned at the remark as 
Scully rolled her eyes.

Khi spent ten minutes showing them proper landing techniques, 
telling them to disregard the chute itself on landing. "You're 
going to get wrapped up in it a bit, there's no way for you to 
avoid that. So don't concentrate on it," she instructed. "Reach for 
the ground with your feet as you approach, but keep the knees 
bent. Roll to whichever shoulder you consider your strongest, 
and keep your legs and arms tucked close to the body."

Looking around her, Khi told them that was really it for now. 
"Here's the gloves, but don't bother putting them on yet--just 
stick 'em inside your helmets for now so they don't get left 
behind," she said, gathering up her own chute, helmet, gloves 
and pack. Khi excused herself to go speak to Vincent, stashing 
her gear in the passenger compartment as she walked by. 

Starting to feel a little warm, Scully walked over the open hangar 
door and stepped outside. Looking around the area, she was 
amazed at the beauty of the location. The relatively open ground 
of the flight line swept up to the edge of the evergreen forest, 
slowly melting away into the snow mountain landscape. You see 
the beauty of nature in pictures all the time, she thought, but you 
never quite appreciate it. The fresh air, the rich colors, the 
sensation of peace--all were things to be admired in person. 

The snow fell silently, cloaking the world in a mantle of 
whiteness.

"Still think this is a good idea, Scully?" Mulder's muffled voice 
asked from behind her.

She turned to look at him, seeing that he had slipped on his 
helmet and was talking through it. She just shook her head at him 
as he took the helmet off, sending his hair spiking out in all 
directions.

"You're assuming I ever thought it *was* a good idea, Mulder," 
she said pointedly. She watched as he tried to straighten his hair 
out, but he had already put the gloves on. He could do little more 
than try to flatten his hair against his skull.

With a sighed "I can't take you anywhere," Scully reached out 
and combed her fingers through his hair. Mulder closed his eyes 
as she ran her hands across his head, over and over. She told him 
to lean closer to her, so that she could reach the back more easily. 

"Yes, ma'am," he murmured, a smile playing across his face as 
he tipped his head forward. 

His dark hair flowing over her fingers like silk, his forehead just 
barely grazing her own, Scully couldn't help but smile a little 
herself.

     *    *    *    *    *    *

Khi soon motioned them both over to the plane, calling out that 
they were about ready to get going. As they moved back inside 
the hangar, Scully gave one last appreciative glance around. 
Looking up to see a hawk circling lazily against the backdrop of 
the mountainside, she could hardly imagine a more beautiful 
location to live.

As Mulder and Scully drew near, they noticed Vince had washed 
up and changed clothes, his mechanic's suit replaced by a leather 
flight jacket and the standard mirrored sunglasses. He climbed 
into the pilot's seat, telling them to follow him out to the flight 
line on foot. A few seconds later, the engine roared to life. The 
plane slowly made its way out of the hanger and onto the cement 
strip that connected the building to the runway.

"Why didn't he just load us up now?" Scully wondered aloud, 
following Khi over to the open doors. When she saw that Khi 
was going to roll the doors shut, Scully stepped to the exterior 
side and began to push the right one closed. 

"Pilots get freaky about startup routines and such," Khi 
explained. "Vince usually flies alone, so he doesn't want to do 
anything different until he's lined up and ready to throttle it into 
the air." She called out to Mulder to get a move on and join them 
before the doors closed.

"M'alvahe is restless this day, zhajeen."

Scully jumped as Mobaje's voice rang out from right behind her. 
He nodded to her as he stepped forward to talk to Khi. Where in 
the hell did he come from, Scully wondered. She had seen no one 
when she stepped through the doors, and Mobaje wasn't exactly 
someone that was easily overlooked. It was almost as if he'd 
fallen out of the sky.

"What do you mean?" Mulder asked as he came near. He stepped 
through the doors just as Scully rolled the door closed behind 
him.

"The air is tense, the clouds unsure of their course," Mobaje 
explained. "M'alvahe beckons for Kanji to join with him in the 
day's game, but she refuses."

"Is it unsafe today, Mobaje?" Khi asked, listening to his words 
carefully. Scully figured they must have known each other long 
enough for Khi to translate Mobaje's imagery into useful 
information.

"I cannot say, zhajeen. M'alvahe remains uncertain--he has not 
yet chosen his path," he said, gesturing an arm up towards the 
sky.

Khi stepped away from them a bit, taking a long look up into the 
sky as she slowly turned a full circle. Scully looked up as well, 
but could see nothing except the unbroken expanse of cloud 
cover, as far as her eyes could see.

"I say we do it," Khi said suddenly. "We're talking about being 
back on the ground within an hour and a half, and I don't see any 
signs of storms or anything. What do you guys think?"

"Well, we're all suited up and ready to go, why waste the 
opportunity?" Mulder said. "I'm still up for it. You, Scully?"

Scully just nodded her head, knowing if Mulder was still going, 
she was still going. 

"OK, then," Khi said, clasping her hands together. "Let's get out 
there and boarded up before Vince takes off without us."

She stepped over to Mobaje, turning to face him as she touched 
her fingertips to her temple, rolling her hand out to face him 
open-palmed. "K'as taani mu lanos, my friend," she said.

"May M'alvahe guide your paths and guard your souls," Mobaje 
said, encompassing them all with his eyes as he bowed slightly. 
Mulder and Scully nodded to him as they fell into step behind 
Khi.

"Keep an eye out for us, Mobaje," Khi called back to him. 

Mobaje tipped his head towards her, raising his hand in the same 
salute she had used earlier. "As always, zhajeen," he said.

Vince popped the side door for them as they approached the 
plane. As Mulder helped her into the compartment, Scully saw 
the interior of the plane was surprisingly roomy. There were six 
passenger seats, two facing backwards and four facing forwards, 
plus the pilot and copilot seats.

Khi climbed into the compartment behind them, slamming the 
door shut and latching the bolts. She slipped on a headset and 
told Vince they were all set--Vince was separated from the 
passenger compartment by a clear wall. A small access door 
could be used to move between the compartments if necessary, 
but Khi said they would leave it closed for this trip.

The plane increased speed, Vince lifting them off the runway at 
the last possible second. As he banked and headed north, Scully 
was amazed at how swiftly they lifted above the earth. Looking 
back, she saw that Mobaje was already a small pinpoint of 
darkness next to the quickly receding hangar.

It must have been a trick of the light that made it seem as though 
Mobaje himself took to the air as the hangar dropped out of sight.

     *    *    *    *    *    *

Twenty minutes after take-off, they were lazily circling Pike's 
Peak. Vince took them around it a couple of times in both 
directions, making sure everyone got ample time to see it clearly 
through their own window. Even though low-hanging clouds 
shrouded the summit, it was still a magnificent sight.

The indicator light next to the headset flicked on. Khi slipped 
them on and listened for a moment. "Yeah, that's good. Reverse 
and move out," she said. 

Hanging the set back on the small hook, she told them Vince 
wanted to get headed towards the jump site. "He's getting some 
strange readings out ahead of us and doesn't want to get caught in 
something," she explained to them.

"Strange, how?" Mulder asked. "Strange, there's some storm 
activity brewing or strange, there's a 100-foot flying pickle on an 
intercept course?"

"Closer to the former, Zippy," Khi laughed. "Although with you 
in the plane, I wouldn't be surprised if we eventually ran into the 
latter."

"Well, it would have to be a pickle with either a past-life 
syndrome or the ability to communicate telepathically, really," 
Scully said. "Otherwise, it would just be another run-of-the-mill 
pickle encounter." 

"Ah, you guys are just so funny," Mulder sighed. He brought his 
hands to his chest, somehow managing to get that I'm-too-happy-
for-words look in his eyes, tears brimming. "You love me, you 
*really* love me!" he cried out, sending them both laughing.

They chatted back and forth for the next forty minutes or so as 
the plane headed south along the mountain range. Keeping one 
eye trained out the window, Scully noticed the clouds, which had 
drifted above them when they left, were now beginning to 
surround the plane itself. They seemed darker and more 
forbidding, almost as if a thunderstorm were building.
 
There also seemed to be an increasing amount of turbulence--
nothing horrendous, but the plane was definitely being buffeted 
around more heavily as they continued. Just as she was about to 
ask Khi if she still thought it was safe, Scully saw the headset 
light flick on again. 

As Khi spoke quickly to Vince, Scully became aware of 
something that had been nagging at her. When speaking casually, 
Khi spoke very animatedly, using gestures and a good deal of 
slang as she spoke. But when speaking 'business,' such as she 
was doing with Vince now or with Mobaje earlier, she used very 
short, clipped sentences, her words containing no extraneous 
words or thoughts. As she continued to listen, Scully finally 
realized what it reminded her of.

Khi spoke as Ahab often had, as Scully had heard many of her 
father's fellow officers speak. It was the style of someone 
accustomed to being in command, to giving orders to the people 
around them. Was Khi a member of the military, Scully 
wondered, remembering the Marine captain back at the hotel. Is 
that why she seemed so calm all the time, so in control of every 
thought and action?

Her thoughts were interrupted by Khi as she took off the headset. 
As she replaced them on the wall, Scully felt the plane begin to 
bank again, turning a wide arc as it headed back to the north.

"Vince is calling it a day. We're only 20 minutes from the jump 
site, but he's getting spooked about the cloud cover and radar 
readings," Khi explained, motioning out the window. "I told him 
we didn't want to chance anything, so we're heading back for the 
hangar."

"Well, at least I can take this chute off, then," Mulder said, 
starting to unbuckle the carabiners from his suit. "It hasn't exactly 
been comfortable sitting in these seats with this strapped to my 
back."

"Yeah, I can feel my spine kinking up as I speak," Scully agreed. 
She, too, slipped the carabiners from their suit hooks, sliding the 
harness down her legs until she could move out of it completely. 

Mulder, more constricted for space because of his height, was 
having trouble getting the harness completely unbuckled. He had 
somehow managed to get one arm free, but the other was trapped 
in the shoulder strap--each time he tried to thread his hand 
through to get free, he only succeeded in wrapping himself up 
more tightly. Laughing, Scully reached a hand over to help him 
out, repeating the 'I can't take you anywhere' line to him softly.

Her hand never reached him. Without warning, the plane lurched 
sharply to the right, slamming them up against the side of the 
plane. The aircraft shook violently, tossing its occupants from 
side to side like a bizarre amusement park ride. A rapid pinging 
sound swept over the plane, growing louder each second. Scully 
smashed into Mulder's side as they tumbled, a groan of pain 
escaping his lips as her head connected solidly with his ribs. As 
they fell, Mulder's head snapped against the metal with a 
sickening thud.

Somehow, Khi managed to right herself almost immediately, her 
arms and legs spread to brace herself in the center of 
compartment. She immediately dipped her head to look out the 
windows. Scully followed her gaze, feeling the blood drain from 
her face at what she saw. She would not have been comforted to 
know that Khi's did the same. 

Hail was crashing against the plane, huge chunks of ice pounding 
out their fury. As Scully tried to find something to push against 
to get off Mulder, a huge booming noise resounded in her ears. It 
was nearly deafening. She slapped her hands up to her ears 
before she was even aware of what she was doing, collapsing 
against Mulder again. An image of herself as a child flashed 
through her mind--curled up in the corner of her closet, her hands 
to her ears, silently screaming as she tried to shut out the sounds 
of the summer thunderstorms.

No, it couldn't be, Scully thought as her throat tightened with a 
genuine sense of fear. It's the middle of winter, it's been snowing 
for days, it couldn't possibly have been...

"Lightning just hit us," Khi screamed, struggling to be heard 
above the roaring hail.

     *    *    *    *    *    *

"Put your chute on. Check Mulder and fix his harness. Get 
helmets on," Khi commanded, barking out the directions as she 
moved toward the door in the clear wall. 

Scully finally got herself lifted off of Mulder, rolling away from 
him to hang onto one of the seats. She stretched out to check 
Mulder's pulse and feel his head for injury. She was relieved 
when she heard him moan slightly and try to move a little bit--
most likely, he was just dazed from the collision. 

She wasted no time trying to straighten out the tangled mess of 
the other shoulder, instead just shoving his free arm back through 
the harness and cinching it tight against his chest. One by one, 
she hooked the carabiners to whatever slip-link was closest, 
moving Mulder from side to side as she worked her way around 
his harness. Her motions seemed to rouse him, and by the time 
she clicked the last carabiner into place, he was fully awake. 

"What the hell happened?!" he shouted, trying to get his bearings 
in the darkened compartment.

"We flew into a hail storm. Lightning struck the plane," she 
yelled back, trying to locate Mulder's helmet. "Khi's checking on 
Vince."

Mulder rolled up into a kneeling position, wincing as he 
contracted his stomach muscles. Bruised or broken ribs, Scully 
though at first. But Mulder realized he'd been lying on 
something, and with a shocked expression of realization, he 
pulled Scully's chute out from underneath him.

"You gotta get your chute on, Scully. Hurry!" Mulder said, fear 
squeezing his voice into the upper register.

"Go! Find the helmets, go, go, go!" Scully yelled as she grabbed 
the chute and harness from his hands. He still hesitated, wanting 
to make sure she got hooked up OK. "The chute's not going give 
me much protection for slamming my head into the ground, 
Mulder. GO!"

As she started straightening out the straps of the harness, Mulder 
scrambled around the compartment, searching. He finally found 
all three helmets, rolled up against the back of the plane. Mulder 
scooped them all up, twisting the chin straps across his hands to 
hold them all as he fought his way to the front again.

Lying on the floor, Scully rolled onto her upper back, much as 
she would when trying to squeeze into a pair of tight jeans. When 
she had the harness pulled firmly against her lower body, she 
rolled forward into a kneeling position, trying to get her arms 
stuck through the shoulder straps. The wild motion of the plane 
made it difficult, though, as she kept getting tossed about.

"Scully!"

The word snapped through the plane like a whip. Scully turned to 
see Khi motioning to her from the cockpit. As she crawled 
forwards, she saw that Khi was trying to keep hold of the flight 
controls as she pulled Vince's unmoving form from his seat. 
Reaching the doorway, Scully grabbed Vince under the armpits 
and pulled him partway through the door, giving Khi the room 
she needed to sit at the controls. 

"He must have been in contact with something conductive when 
the lightning struck us," Khi yelled back to her. "His body was 
still conductive when I broke through up here, gave my hand one 
hell of a shock. He's dead, or damn close to it." 

Scully felt Vince's neck for a pulse, but found nothing. His eyes 
stared ahead, wide and lifeless. "What are we going to do?" she 
shouted. "Can you fly this plane?"

"Normally, I'd say yeah, but not now," Khi said, frantically 
flipping switches and controls. "The entire circuitry has been 
fried. None of the gages work, I can't tell where we are, and 
we're dumping fuel." She paused for a moment, eyes closing 
briefly.

"We're going to jump."

Son of a bitch, Scully thought. Son of a god-damned bitch. 
Glancing back at Mulder, she knew that he'd heard Khi's 
statement as well. He reached for her hand, holding it tightly for 
just a moment.

"Hand me a tie-strap out of my pack," Khi yelled. Mulder dug 
through the packing, finally finding a single strap at the very 
bottom. Khi lashed the throttle stick of the plane in place, 
working off the theory that if they hadn't crashed into anything 
yet, they must be flying fairly level. But she had no idea how 
long it might hold or what their true direction was.

Khi crawled over Vince's body back into the passenger 
compartment. Seeing Scully still struggling with her chute, Khi 
yelled at her to sit still--with the ease of long practice, she 
unhooked and rethreaded the straps around Scully's shoulders. 
"It's not perfect, but it will have to do," she yelled as she snapped 
the carabiners in place.

"Is she safe? Is it good enough to hold her?" Mulder yelled, his 
own pain forgotten in his concern for Scully.

"It's as good as we're going to get it, Mulder," Khi said. Some 
part of Scully's brain noticed that the nickname 'Zippy' dropped 
away as well when the situation was serious. She and Mulder 
slipped their helmets on, trying to hold themselves steady against 
the thrashing of the plane.

Khi retrieved her own chute from the wall peg where it had been 
hanging, cinching herself into it as she yelled to them.

"Here's what's going to happen. I pop that door, Scully goes 
through. Give her ten seconds, Mulder goes next. Deploy your 
chutes immediately," she yelled, again simulating the downward 
jerk of the handle. "You won't see the ground until you hit, so 
keep your legs bent. Once you're down, get out of the chute 
harness and find whatever shelter you can. Keep your helmets on 
and try to keep moving, even if it's just pumping your arms and 
legs--I don't know how long it will take me to track you, and you 
need to stay warm."

By the time she finished talking, she was into her chute harness 
and had grabbed up her pack from Mulder. She undid one of the 
carabiners, threading the strap from the pack to the inside. When 
the carabiner snapped back into place, the pack was attached 
safely to her waist.

"Any questions?" she yelled, looking each of them in the eye. 
When they said nothing, she held her hands out, motioning for 
each of them to touch hands with her. "You're strong, you can do 
this," she said simply.

"Yeah, whatever, shut up," Mulder bellowed, getting the barest 
of laughs from both Scully and Khi. Trust Mulder to make a joke 
on the eve of our deaths, Scully thought.

Khi stepped over to the door, grabbing the release handle and 
standing back inside the frame of the plane. She motioned for 
both of them to take positions on the other side, Scully closest to 
the door.

As he took his place behind her, Mulder suddenly wrapped his 
arms around Scully and held her close. She lifted her hands up to 
hold onto his arms as though they were a lifeline. No words were 
needed--they both knew what this moment was.

"Set?" Khi yelled as she glanced over at them. Scully reached up 
and found the handle of the main chute cord, nodding to Khi to 
go ahead.

With a swift jerk downwards and a twist to the right, Khi popped 
the door handle. The door flew open against the exterior of the 
plane as hail pounded in through the doorway.

Unwinding from Mulder's embrace, Scully stepped forward and 
leapt into the fury of the storm.



------------
Chapter 5
------------

Scully thought she'd experienced pain before, but nothing had 
ever felt quite like this. The hail slammed into her body like 
sledge hammers, each one more painful than the last. As she felt 
the plane's floor fall away from her feet, she counted to five and 
pulled the chute cord. 

A few seconds later, she was jerked upwards as the chute opened 
and slowed her descent. Thank God it opened, she thought--she 
hadn't held onto the reserve cord on the way out, and did not 
want to think of having to find it in the midst of the storm. 

Remembering Khi's instructions, Scully bent her knees, tucking 
her arms up in a fighter's pose. The wait was living agony--she 
had no way to tell where she was above the earth, no way to 
prepare for the shock of landing.

That shock came much sooner than she had anticipated. Had she 
been able to focus, she would have sworn her knees touched the 
back of her throat as her legs tried to absorb the impact. Before 
she could even register the pain, though, she found herself rolling 
to the left, but not under her own power. Caught on a steep 
hillside, she tumbled over and over, able to do little to stop the 
motion. 

Scully finally came to a rest face down in  a deep drift, half 
buried in the snow. She carefully but quickly tested each limb, 
not wanting to aggravate a dislocated or broken bone by 
thrashing around wildly. She was grateful when she was able to 
move everything with a minimal amount of pain.

Slowly, she clawed her way out of the drift, fighting through not 
only the snow but the tangled web of the chute itself. As she 
emerged from the snow, though, she realized it had actually been 
providing her a small protection from the hail.

With fingers numb beyond the ability to feel, she ripped at her 
harness, tearing at the carabiners one after the other. She was 
finally able to slither out of the harness, turning over to start 
digging into the drift as quickly as she could. She was glad for 
the helmet--a person would have been rendered unconscious in 
seconds without its protective guard.

Keeping one strap of the harness wrapped around her hand, she 
managed to burrow her way far enough into the snow bank that 
she escaped the worst of the hail. She laid on her back, her body 
tucked up in a tight ball to protect against the chunks that did 
reach her. She curved her arms around her head, creating a 
pocket of air in which to breathe.

Scully wasn't sure how long she remained like that. It felt like an 
eternity, but the rational part of her brain knew it had been no 
more than 20 minutes. Hunkered in as she was, every muscle 
flexed against the pain, it had taken her a few seconds to realize 
that she was no longer being pummeled by the hail. She dug her 
way to the surface again, finally clearing the snow away from her 
face shield enough to look around her.

She could not believe what she saw. It was snowing heavily, the 
wind swirling and twisting the flakes into a thousand tiny 
whirlwinds. Evergreen trees towered above and all around her, 
restricting her field of vision to perhaps a hundred yards in any 
direction. She had somehow landed in a thin strip of clear land, 
tumbling between the huge trunks on either side. Had she landed 
10 yards to either the left or the right... Scully shuddered as she 
saw how narrowly she had escaped serious injury, or even death.
 
Mulder...

Gingerly testing each muscle and bone as she rose, she climbed 
to her feet. She made her way over to a tree, leaning against it as 
she fumbled to get her helmet off. Without the continuous 
pounding of the hail, she figured she needed to use her ears more 
than she needed to protect her skull.

"Mulder!" she yelled. Her voice was absorbed almost 
immediately by the surrounding snow and trees--sound would 
not travel very far in the dense forest, she realized grimly.

Find shelter and stay put. Khi's instructions were ringing in her 
ears as she surveyed the forest encircling her. Dark and 
forbidding, it seemed to be alive, watching her with sinister 
intent.

At the moment, though, she wasn't concerned about her ears. She 
wanted to get rid of the pain in her heart--the fear of losing 
Mulder was knifing through her chest with enough force to take 
her breath away. It didn't take her long to make up her mind what 
to do. 

Wrapping her parachute into a ball and tucking it under her arm, 
Scully set off into the forest, calling out the name of the only 
man she'd ever trusted.

     *    *    *    *    *    *

It didn't take Scully very long to realize why Khi had told them 
to stay put wherever they landed--making headway against the 
sometimes 2- or 3-foot drifts was laborious, exhausting work. 
After only half an hour, Scully could feel her body rebelling 
against moving another inch. From her experience as a doctor, 
she knew exhaustion was usually one of the biggest factors 
leading to hypothermia.

So considering she'd only made a few hundred yards' progress, 
she decided to follow the advice she probably should have 
followed from the start. Finding a spot relatively free of snow 
beneath a broad-branched white pine, Scully spread the nylon 
chute out a bit and sat down to wait.

And wait...
                       And wait...
                                                And wait...

It was excruciating for her, alternately sitting and walking 
around, trying to keep as warm as possible. She had nothing to 
do but fill her mind with every horrible scenario imaginable. 
Mulder, down in the snow... Mulder, unconscious and bleeding... 
Mulder, dying...

Stop it, Dana, she lectured herself firmly. Your fear of what 
might be happening will prevent you from seeing what *is* 
happening. Right now, you don't have enough information to 
form any opinions. You're a scientist--act like one. Find the facts 
and then act on those facts.

Her speech didn't really make her feel any better, but it did serve 
to strengthen her resolve to stay focused. Scully began to 
formulate a strategy for both saving her strength and searching 
for Mulder. She knew she'd have to balance movement with rest 
periods, using the activity to stay warm without exhausting her 
body past its limits. Keep moving for 15 minutes, rest for 10, eat 
snow to keep herself hydrated--she knew it wasn't the best plan 
in the world, but she was consumed with the need to *do* 
something.

She had just rolled her parachute and emerged from underneath 
the tree when she heard something. She held herself perfectly 
still, straining to listen to the surrounding forest.

"Scul-eeee!" 

The voice was faint, but it was definitely there. Filling her lungs 
to the limits of their capacity, Scully bellowed an "Over here!" so 
loud that her throat hurt.

"Stay put!" the call came, the voice clear enough this time to  
answer her question of who had found her. It wasn't the answer 
she wanted, but at least it proved someone besides herself had 
survived the crash.

After a few minutes, she could make out movement up on the 
hillside. Khi was descending from slightly higher than Scully's 
position, using the hill itself to speed her descent. She would 
slide on her back as much as possible, not even trying to actually 
walk through the snow unless absolutely necessary.

Within five minutes, Khi was at Scully's side, breathing heavily 
from her exertions. She was bleeding from a cut on her forehead, 
but she waved off Scully's attempted inspection of her.

"It's nothing, and we don't have the time to spare," she said, 
glancing around her as she spoke. "We gotta find Mulder and we 
gotta find him right now."

"Why?" Scully asked. It wasn't that she didn't want to find 
Mulder as quickly as Khi did, but it looked to her as though the 
worst of the weather was over.

"Because this is just the calm before the storm, the eye of the 
hurricane," Khi said grimly. "Those clouds, low and black like 
that? They tell me that they're just beginning to dole out trouble. 
This snow is already falling much more heavily than it was 15 
minutes ago." She gestured up at the little bit of sky that showed 
through the treetops, the sky getting darker by the minute. 

"We've got a full-strength Colorado storm descending on us, 
Scully," she said, looking Scully straight in the eyes as her hand 
dropped back to her side. She paused for a minute, taking a deep 
breath before continuing--it was as if she needed to gather 
strength to even say her next words.

"And if we don't find Mulder now, they'll be digging his body 
out come springtime."

During the time Scully had been around Khi in the last few days, 
even during the frantic situation aboard the plane, Khi had 
always remained calm and sure. Her voice had always been 
steady and unwavering, a fixed point in the surrounding chaos. 
But not this time. This time, her voice shook slightly, a 
noticeable break in the timbre as she spoke those words.

Words that chilled Scully's heart like death itself.

     *    *    *    *    *    *

Scully clamped down on the terror rising inside her with iron 
control. Shoving all of her fear into a tiny chamber within 
herself, she bolted the door tightly shut. Mulder needed her 
strong and alert, now more than he ever had--she couldn't afford 
to give in to the pain threatening to overwhelm her.

"All right. What do we do?" she asked, cracking her shoulder 
blades a couple of times and taking several deep breaths. "Can 
you track him? How do we find him?"

Khi held up the small scanning device, gripping it in her right 
hand as she slowly turned around. "This tracks the beacon in 
your jump suits," Khi explained, working a couple of controls on 
the device with her left hand as she pivoted. "Unfortunately, it's 
range is severely limited--I found your location more by good 
fortune than by use of this equipment."

"So how do we find Mulder?" Scully said. "Is he showing up at 
all on that thing?" When Khi met her eyes as she returned to her 
starting position, Scully knew she didn't want to hear the answer.

"No," Khi said simply. Scully closed her eyes briefly, allowing 
herself just a moment of sheer panic before forcing control again. 

When she reopened them, she saw Khi searching the surrounding 
forest with meticulous care. Each section of the landscape was 
explored, each detail found and catalogued. To Scully, the forest 
looked equally bleak in every direction--she could only hope that 
Khi was seeing something more.

"I'm going to make the assumption that Mulder is ahead of us," 
Khi said finally, motioning in the general direction Scully had 
been moving. "I covered perhaps a mile and a half of terrain 
coming from the other way, and never picked up a signal for him. 
So time spent backtracking would be wasted--we need to 
maximize our search area, which means going northeast."

Khi took a minute to asses Scully's condition, wanting to know 
of any broken or bruised bones or strained muscles. Scully 
explained that she had actually missed the trees when she landed, 
avoiding any serious harm. She could breathe easily and had no 
symptoms of concussion.

Returning the question, Scully learned that Khi slammed into a 
tree trunk right after landing, dislocating her shoulder upon 
impact. But she had already reset the joint, a fact that surprised 
Scully slightly. Having a dislocated shoulder reset was a lesson 
in extreme pain--performing that reset without painkillers, by 
yourself, in the middle of a snowstorm... Despite herself, Scully 
felt her respect for Khi bump up a notch. 

With the exception of the gash on her forehead, she had sustained 
no other injuries. Reaching out to take Scully's chute, Khi 
unrolled it onto the snow, folding it into a large square perhaps 
eight feet by eight feet. She took both helmets and placed them 
towards one edge of the square. Then, performing a series of 
quick twists and folds, she fashioned a 'pack' out of the material, 
securing the helmets within the folds of material.

Scully was then able to step back into the harness and fasten it 
and the pack to her suit. The pack rested on her shoulders and left 
both arms with a free range of motion. Though not heavy, the 
pack was somewhat bulky--it took her a few minutes to find the 
right balance point for her movements.

Khi spoke as Scully tested the weight of the pack. "I'll lead. 
Follow at a distance of about 10 yards. Do *not* lose visual 
contact with me. If at any point you find yourself dropping back, 
or if you need to rest, yell out," Khi stressed. "My attention will 
be focused on the readout screen. If you were to fall behind, it 
might be several minutes before I would even notice."

"Understood," Scully said. 

"I packed the helmets for the same reason you probably took 
yours off to start with--we need to listen for Mulder much more 
than we need to keep our heads warm," Khi said. "However, it 
does leave us unprotected in the event of more hail. So be ready 
to either dive for shelter or to have me rip open that pack should 
we need them."

Scully nodded in silent agreement as Khi turned to lead off 
through the snow. Scully tried to watch and mirror Khi's 
movements, since she seemed to have a much easier time moving 
through the drifts. 

After only a few strides, though, Khi paused. Turning, she looked 
at Scully with a gaze so intense she felt as though she would go 
up in flames. Khi looked right past all of Scully's defenses, past 
the bolted-shut door in her soul, and somehow saw all the fear 
and pain she was harboring deep inside.

"We'll find him, Scully," Khi said simply. "We will." This time, 
her voice shook not with fear, but with the strength.

     *    *    *    *    *    *

Making headway was grueling work. The snow was neither light 
enough for them to pass through easily nor heavy enough for 
them to walk on top. It also hid the underbrush, making it hard 
find a clear path to move forward in many places. The wind, 
though somewhat lessened by the dense forest, still whipped with 
enough force to sting their faces and swirl their breath away.

But it was the utter silence that unnerved Scully the most. A 
storm was raging around her, but it made barely a sound--a 
muzzle had been dropped into place over the forest, cinched tight 
by a blanket of snow. 

On and on they pushed, Scully listening for any possible sign of 
Mulder as Khi kept watch over the scanner's readout. As they 
walked, Scully was amazed at Khi's physical prowess--she had 
not slowed one bit since setting out over an hour ago. Scully was 
still moving fairly well too, but she knew it was only because 
Khi was out there in front, blazing the trail in which Scully 
followed.

I should be used to it by now, she thought. How many times has 
it been Mulder out there in front, leading me down a dizzying 
path in pursuit of a goal I could only hope to understand? A goal 
that molds him, defines him, consumes him? One to which he's 
prepared to sacrifice his very life?

A sacrifice she hoped hadn't already taken place.

Khi drew to a stop up ahead, allowing Scully to catch up to her. 
Scully saw the cut on Khi's forehead had stopped bleeding, 
having left a trail of red down the side of her face. 

"We have to make a decision," Khi said. "We've got perhaps 20 
minutes of good daylight left. After that, it won't be long until it 
is completely dark. Forty-five minutes, tops." Khi paused, 
sweeping an arm up towards the sky as she continued.

"The temperature is dropping rapidly and the wind is picking up. 
An increasing wind at the end of the day is a bad sign," she said 
quietly. "We've got to get a shelter built before it's too dark to see 
what we're doing. Trapped in the open, we probably won't 
survive the night."

"Which means... Mulder won't survive the night if we don't find 
him," Scully said, struggling to get the words out of her throat. 
Khi just nodded in agreement. Through a small shrug of her good 
shoulder, she indicated it was Scully's decision now.

Scully looked around her, searching the forest for the solution, 
for the answer. But the dark evergreens gave no response, 
provided no guidance. They simply watched her. Waiting. 

Waiting for her to make the decision of who would live and who 
would die this night. 

Closing her eyes, Scully saw Mulder in her mind. A thousand 
different settings, a thousand different outcomes.

Reaching up to shake her hand that first day...

   Pouring his heart out by her bedside as she lay dying...

      Pointing a gun at her in a bright hospital room...

         Coming back from the dead to hug her in a crowded 
courtroom...

            Standing amidst the blackened ruins of his life...

               Telling her he loved her...

Scully realized there was no decision to make.

"If we've got 20 minutes of daylight, we search 20 more 
minutes," Scully said simply. Khi said nothing, giving only a 
swift nod before turning and leading the way again. 

Shrouded beneath the falling snow, the forest watched them, a 
silent witness to their journey towards what they both knew 
would be their own deaths.

At precisely 19 minutes after they resumed searching, Khi 
stopped suddenly. Scully, wrapped up in her own thoughts, didn't 
notice until she nearly knocked Khi down. She asked what was 
wrong, but got no response. Scully stepped around Khi's right 
side, following her gaze down towards her hands.

There, at the very edge of the readout screen, a small green light 
was blinking.

     *    *    *    *    *    *

Within 25 minutes, Scully and Khi were closing in on the 
beacon's location. The hope of finding Mulder alive, however 
slim that hope might be, had revitalized them. When she had first 
looked at the readout screen, Scully had physically felt the rush 
of adrenaline enter her bloodstream--she could still feel it 
pumping through her as they drew closer.

Time was their enemy, though. Darkness was falling as heavily 
as the snow now, continually reducing their field of vision. 
Although she didn't mention it to Scully, Khi knew that in this 
light they could pass within 70 feet of Mulder and not see him. 
They had begun to take turns yelling out for Mulder, hoping he 
would be able to hear them and indicate his position.

Khi finally drew to a stop. As Scully approached her, she held up 
the scanner to Scully could see the readout screen. The blinking 
light was squarely in the center of the display's gridlines.

"According to this, we should be standing right on top of him," 
she said, beginning to look around for any sign of Mulder. Khi 
thought for a moment, options and strategies turning in her mind. 
"Let's do a 1/2, 3/4 circle search for him."

At Scully's blank stare, Khi began drawing a picture in the snow 
as she talked. "Think of it as using circles to search a square grid. 
We start 15 yards from each other. You do a half-circle around 
my stationary position, so that you end up on the other side of 
me. I then do a 3/4-circle around you, so that I end up 'north' of 
you, again at 15 yards. You do another half-circle, I again wrap 
around you in a 3/4-circle. After three iterations, we 'skip out' a 
step, widening the grid like a spiral each time."

Scully saw the efficiency of the search pattern immediately--each 
person would never be more than 15 yards from the other, yet 
they would cover a large amount of ground quickly. She nodded 
her understanding to Khi.

"OK, then, let's start. Remember, you aren't just looking for a 
human form--the chute itself will be the biggest locator," Khi 
stressed. "You are looking for *anything* that is anomalous or 
out of place. Feel with your feet as well. Your feet might catch a 
buried chute or..." 

The word 'body' hung in the air unspoken. 

They began the search pattern, looping around each other over 
and over as they continued to yell out. Khi was still using the 
scanner, knowing its limited capabilities may have gotten 
confused by the storm--she had no way of verifying if it was 
even showing the correct location. 

But the scanner kept displaying the beacon in the same spot, the 
location from which they had originally started. As they finished 
the fourth complete spiral, Khi motioned for Scully to join her. 

"The beacon remains steady where we first started, but we saw 
nothing there," she explained, her voice tight. "We have to 
consider the possibility that Mulder is buried beneath the snow 
entirely, especially if... if his chute didn't open."

"No, he's here, he's alive" Scully said, somehow managing to 
sound rational. "I know he's here, we just have to find him." 

"Scully, we're at near total darkness. I can barely see you and 
you're standing right next to me," Khi said. "We need to take 
shelter or we're going to die out here."

"No, I won't leave him, Khi" Scully said, her voice barely above 
a whisper. "I can't." She turned and headed back to their original 
location, not even bothering to see if Khi was following her.

As she reached the starting point, Scully knew that the already 
slim chance of finding Mulder had been reduced to nothingness. 
She knew that she should follow Khi's advice and ensure her own 
survival--Mulder had most likely met his death and would not 
benefit from her actions.

But she also knew she would never forgive herself if she quit. 
Her own death would start at the moment she gave up, as part of 
her very soul fell away.

Scully closed her eyes, tipping her face up towards the sky in 
silent prayer. She remembered Mobaje's words earlier, that the 
sky and the earth together were the givers of life and the keepers 
of death. Though she had been raised on traditional Christian 
beliefs, she had felt a strong attraction to the worldview that 
Mobaje had described, finding both peaceful and full of power.

Show me the way M'alvahe, she prayed. Guide my path and give 
me the strength to follow you on the course you have chosen for 
Mulder. 

Whatever Scully had been seeking, whatever ray of light or hope 
she had hoped to find, remained hidden from her. She felt 
nothing but an ever-increasing sense of dread and fear as it 
settled around her heart. She opened her eyes, barely registering 
the snow that swept against them.

"Khi!" 

The word tore from Scully's throat like a living thing, escaping 
with force enough to cause physical pain. Khi was at her side 
within seconds, following her gaze upwards.

Forty feet above them, barely visible against the sky's blackness, 
Mulder's unmoving form was hanging from his chute harness.

     *    *    *    *    *    *

Khi was at Mulder's side in less than fifteen seconds. Hand over 
hand, feet searching for traction on the snow-covered branches, 
she scaled the tree as easily as a primate. She reached the branch 
even with Mulder's position, easing herself towards him. She 
pulled a glove off and felt for a pulse at the side of his neck.

"He's alive!" Khi yelled, hoping Scully could hear her above the 
wind. The wordless cry of joy that reached her ears seconds later 
told her the message had been received.

Khi began unbuckling the carabiners and untwisting the harness, 
trying to free Mulder enough so that she could ease him out. But 
the awkward angle at which he was hanging made it difficult--
she couldn't keep hold of him and reach everything 
simultaneously.

She reversed direction and descended from the tree, jumping the 
last 10 feet to land next to Scully.

"Where is he?!" Scully yelled above the wind.

"I can't get him free," Khi yelled back. "I can't hold him safely 
while unhooking everything. I need to find something to cut him 
out of there." Khi delved into the pack that still hung at her waist, 
searching for anything that might work to sever the harness 
straps. 

"Wai-wai-wai-wai-wait," Scully mumbled rapid-fire, slapping a 
hand down onto her lower leg. She immediately began stripping 
down, paying no attention to the cold or the snow. Or to Khi , 
who was staring at her as though Scully had gone mad.

As she peeled her right jean leg down, she unstrapped the knife 
from her leg and held it out to Khi. "Here, use this," she said as 
she handed it over.

Khi unsheathed the blade, the knife heavy in her hands. "You can 
have a spot in my lifeboat anytime, Scully," Khi said, tossing her 
a look of respect.

"Go get Mulder," Scully said, acknowledging Khi's comment 
with a brief nod.

"I'm going to try to cut him free and get him across my shoulders 
in a fireman's carry," Khi explained. "I can make a controlled 
descent that way. But it might be difficult, considering the angle 
he's at up there. Worst case scenario, I slash his harness and he 
comes out of the tree freefall. Be ready."

Scully nodded, watching as Khi scrambled up the tree again and 
was soon lost to the blackness. The seconds passed slowly, each 
more agonizing than the last. She was completely cut off from 
them, unable to see or hear anything. "C'mon, c'mon," she 
whispered aloud. "Where the hell are you?"

Finally, she could discern movement above her. At first, it 
appeared as if Mulder were floating downwards, feet first, of his 
own accord. But Scully soon saw that Khi was holding him by 
the remains of his harness at the back of his neck. Somehow, she 
was controlling her descent with her right arm while taking 
Mulder's full weight on the left. 

A left arm that had been dislocated, Scully remembered. She 
could not even imagine the extreme pain Khi must have been 
experiencing.

Slowly, branch by branch, they made the descent. As Khi put her 
weight on the next branch, though, she felt it start to give way 
from the main trunk. Strong enough to have held just her 
previously, the weight of her and Mulder together was too much 
for it. 

The branch fell away from beneath Khi's feet even as she tried 
desperately to maintain her hold on the branch above her. Scully 
hoped, for one brief second, that Khi would be able to hang on, 
to somehow hold them both and get down safely. 

But the hope was short-lived. Watching in horror from below, 
Scully saw Khi and Mulder plummet from the tree.

Mulder hit the ground first, Khi dropping directly on top of him--
she had been straight above him during the descent, and simply 
did not have enough time to try to change her position. She rolled 
off immediately, lifting her body up and falling away to the side.

Scully was at Mulder's side instantly, checking his pulse again 
and beginning to do a quick check for injury. As Khi stood, 
trying to catch her breath, she saw Scully jerk her hand back as 
she ran a hand down his right leg.

The twisted, splintered end of the broken branch had been driven 
clear through Mulder's upper thigh.

     *    *    *    *    *    *

Scully was not a squeamish woman. She had seen death in all its 
forms, had seen more genetic abnormalities and human mutants 
in five years than most people would in five lifetimes. She prided 
herself on her ability to look at her work clinically, to distance 
herself from the horrors she saw.

But not this time. As she looked down at Mulder's leg, she felt 
his pain course through her as if it were her very own. A dizzying 
wave of agony washed up over her, enveloping her, drowning 
her. She had to fight with every ounce of her strength to keep 
control, to resist being overcome.

Concentrate, Dana, she said to herself. You didn't come all this 
way to pass out now. Mulder needs you, he needs both your 
strength and your help to get through this. Concentrate.

Scully knew she had to get the branch out of Mulder's leg 
immediately--God only knew how much damage had been 
caused as the splintered wood tore through his musculature. She 
reached out to feel around the wound, to try and asses how to 
best remove the branch. But Khi's hand stopped her.

"Shelter first, Scully," Khi yelled, her hand encircling Scully's 
forearm and holding it away from Mulder's body.

"But he needs medical attention *now*," Scully insisted, trying 
to break free of Khi's grasp. She was annoyed when she realized 
she couldn't--Khi held her as easily as if she had been a child.

"No, he needs to get out of this wind and he needs heat. And 
we're only going to give him that if we find shelter and build a 
fire," Khi yelled. Scully still struggled, not listening as Khi tried 
to calm her down. She wanted only to reach Mulder, to help him, 
to save him. 

"Scully!"

The word rocked Scully like a physical blow. She felt the force 
of it cut through her as if Khi had struck her across the face. Her 
struggling ceased as Khi hauled her to her feet.

"Listen to me, Scully. Out there, in that world, in *your* world, 
you don't have to listen to me," Khi yelled. "You don't have to 
like me, you don't have to trust me, you don't have to do a damn 
thing I say. But here... in *this* world..."

Khi paused, releasing Scully's left arm to gesture around them at 
the forest, the wind, the snow. 

"This is *my* world. Our course so far has been determined by 
you only because I wanted to find Mulder as much as you. But 
now we hold his life in our hands," she said. "And if you want to 
save that life, you are going to have to listen to me... you are 
going to have to trust me."

Scully could make no response. She simply shook her head as 
she kept her eyes on Mulder. When it came to trust, there was 
only one person she would ever say those words to. 

"I know you trust only him," Khi said more gently, even though 
she was still yelling to be heard. More seriously than she would 
have ever admitted, Scully wondered if Khi were partially 
telepathic. "I know that. And I know that now, he trusts only you. 
But when we knew each other, Mulder trusted only me. What he 
and I used to be are what the two of you have now become. 
That's going to have to be enough, Scully. You're going to have 
to trust me through him."

Still holding Scully's arms, Khi waited. Despair, agony, distrust--
all were clearly visible on Scully's face. Khi could only hope that 
she would see what was right in front of her. That only Khi could 
see them through this now. All of them.

"Yes."

A single word, spoken a thousand times by people every day. But 
Khi knew how hard it had been for Scully to say it. Khi released 
Scully, swiftly nodding her head to acknowledge the effort and  
to assure her that she meant no harm.

Khi wasted no further time. "We passed a suitable place about 
ten minutes back," she yelled, indicating the way they had come. 
As Scully turned to look, she was shocked to see that their path 
had already been almost completely filled with blowing snow.

"Get out of your harness, unroll the chute and remove the 
helmets," Khi fell into command mode quickly. "Put one on, put 
the other on Mulder. Refold the chute to a 12 by 3 rectangle. 
Find at least three tie straps in here." She unclipped the pack at 
her waist and handed it to Scully.

Moving to Mulder's side, Khi assessed both the broken branch 
and the injury to his leg. She offered up silent thanks when she 
saw that the branch was only a little over an inch in diameter. 
The wood had torn completely through the flesh on his inner 
thigh, entering from the back side and protruding above the skin 
a couple of inches.

Rolling Mulder onto his side, she gripped the branch with both 
hands, as close against the back of Mulder's leg as she could. Khi 
began to apply pressure, wanting to break the branch off within a 
couple inches of the thigh. 

Expecting more resistance, she was thrown slightly off balance 
when the wood snapped quite easily. Khi felt the weight of the 
broken branch, realizing the wood was dry and brittle. It was no 
wonder it had cracked beneath their weight. 

Khi was busy breaking the remainder of the branch into foot-long 
pieces when Scully finished folding the chute. "What now?" 
Scully asked, easing a helmet onto Mulder after checking for 
obvious neck injury. 

"The wood in Mulder's leg is acting as a plug against bleeding, 
and we're going to leave it that way until we can remove it 
safely," Khi said, directing Scully to drag the chute over to 
Mulder's side. "The chute will serve as a travois--we put Mulder 
on it, strap him in and drag him over the snow."

Khi did what she was explaining, rolling Mulder up onto his side 
and motioning for Scully to position the chute next to him. When 
it was in place, the extra length all to one end, Khi gently slid 
Mulder onto it and let him roll onto his back. Knowing they 
would need the dry wood soon, she also packed the short pieces 
of the branch around his sides. They then slid the tie-straps 
underneath him and cinched him in tightly, making sure his arms 
were crossed over his chest.

Khi stood up, tying the ends of the chute together and slipping 
the resulting loop over her head. She threaded her arms through 
the loop as well, positioning the fabric as high on her upper chest 
as possible. She would be able to drag Mulder straight behind her 
with minimal effort, her hands and arms left free for balance.

"I'll take the lead, you follow as closely as possible behind 
Mulder," Khi yelled. "Do *not* get distracted. In this darkness, it 
would take only a couple of seconds to lose sight of the chute 
and get separated. Got it?"

"Got it," Scully yelled back, grabbing up Khi's pack and zipping 
it shut. As Khi stepped forward to lead off, Scully saw that the 
travois was pulled along like a child's toboggan, sliding easily 
across the snow. 

As Scully fell into position behind Mulder, she followed Khi's 
instructions. She focused on the red and white stripes of the 
chute, training her body on keeping pace. To keep her mind 
clear, she fell into a simple mental cadence as she moved, 
repeating the same phrase over and over, a mantra against the 
storm.

M'alvahe find us, M'alvahe find us, M'alvahe find us...

She would have been surprised to know someone else was 
already trying to do just that.

     *    *    *    *    *    *

When Khi drew to a stop some fifteen minutes later, Scully had 
to catch herself before walking right up Mulder's body. Having 
concentrated solely on the chute as it slid along in front of her, 
Scully found it something of a shock when the travois suddenly 
halted.

By the time Scully had moved past Mulder, Khi was already out 
of the travois. She untied the loop and tucked the extra length 
over Mulder, shielding him slightly from the snow and wind. 
Standing, she took the pack from Scully and removed the 
scanning device, slipping it inside her suit. She then took the 
knife out, zipping the pack as she handed it back to Scully.

"Stay with him. Do not move from this spot," Khi stressed. She 
then turned and headed off to their right, disappearing quickly in 
the swirling snow. It did not occur to Scully to ask what she was 
doing or where she was going--when Scully had decided to trust 
Khi, she had done so as wholeheartedly as she did everything 
else in her life. 


Scully took a couple of minutes to carve out a deep depression in 
the pathway, scooping the snow behind her and off to the side. 
Sitting down inside the hole and leaning forward, she hooked her 
hands under Mulder's shoulders and pulled him as far onto her 
lap as she could. She folded the chute around him again, 
knowing that both the chute and the 'walls' of the pathway were 
providing at least some protection from the wind. She crooked 
her arms around Mulder's body and held him close, telling 
herself it was to try and help him conserve body heat.

How did I get here, she wondered as she waited for Khi to return. 
Yesterday at this time, I was having a nice, relaxing evening. 
Now I'm huddled in the snow, holding my near-dead partner in 
my arms and doubting if we'll ever get out of this. What the hell 
happened?

Scully had never been one to wonder about the 'why' of the 
world. As a doctor, she had always looked at life through the lens 
of science. She had rested firm in the belief that events happened 
for quantifiable reasons, even if the human mind could not yet 
comprehend those reasons. Things simply were they way they 
were, she had always thought.

But what if I've been wrong, she asked herself. What if each 
decision, each action, each thought changes the outcome of the 
future? She knew of infinite-universe theories which stated that a 
universe existed for each possible outcome of every decision 
made. That, in this universe, when she decided to turn left at 
some intersection, another universe popped into existence in 
which she had decided to turn right.

If I hadn't decided to come on this trip, she wondered, would 
Mulder be in his hotel room safe and sound right now? Would he 
be flipping through the channels and eating the remains of a 
delivered pizza, just like always? Did my decision to try to 
*protect* him from harm become the very action that *caused* 
him harm? 

She decided she didn't want to know the answer.

     *    *    *    *    *    *

Even though she was keeping a close eye out for Khi's return, 
Scully was still a bit startled when Khi reappeared just in front of 
her. The driving snow had provided a cloak of whiteness over 
Scully's vision, causing Khi to seemingly coalesce out of 
nothingness.

"Get up and follow me," Khi yelled, wasting no time on 
pleasantries. She handed Scully the knife and the scanner, 
indicating to return both to the pack. As Scully did so, Khi 
recreated the travois loop and stepped into it. Checking to make 
sure Mulder was still securely tied in place, Khi turned and began 
retracing her path. Scully simply carried the pack this time as she 
fell into the rear position. 

After just a couple of minutes, Khi made a sharp turn to her left. 
Scully soon realized they were heading into thick undergrowth, 
young trees crowded together closely under the limbs of the older 
forest. 

Making progress became increasingly difficult as the brush 
became thicker, the snow deeper. Scully found that she was 
having to pay attention not only to the travois, but to branches 
snapping around her as Khi passed through. Scully took a small 
token of pleasure in the fact that even Khi was being slowed this 
time--Scully was not falling behind, even though she knew they 
were going more slowly than before.

Suddenly, the travois paused ahead of Scully. She couldn't really 
see Khi ahead of her, but the slight shaking of the travois told 
Scully that she was still there. After a few moments, the travois 
moved forward again, more slowly this time. 

Moving up alongside Mulder, Scully soon saw that Khi had 
turned backwards and dropped to the ground, pulling Mulder 
behind her as she scooted backwards. She was pulling Mulder 
through the opening of a small hut-like shelter, formed right out 
of the young trees themselves. Scully wasted no time on sight-
seeing, though, crawling in right behind them as soon as she 
could.

Once inside, a strange sensation fell over her, one that she 
couldn't place right away. She finally realized she was no longer 
being buffeted by the wind. After being out in the howling storm 
for so long, the interior of the shelter seemed eerily still. 

Glancing around, Scully could see that Khi had created the hut 
out of the living forest itself. After clearing the 10x10 area of any 
brush and saplings, Khi had then bowed the young trees along 
the edges, tying them overhead to form the ribs of a dome. Pine 
boughs were woven amongst the small trunks to form the curving 
walls of the shelter.

"Don't get comfortable," Khi warned, struggling a bit to get out 
of the travois in the short confines of the shelter. Although wide 
across its base, the shelter was no more than five feet high at its 
center. "I wanted to get Mulder out of the wind as soon as 
possible. But we now need to pack the exterior, cut more pine 
boughs for insulation beneath us, and try to find firewood."

Scully noticed they were able to converse in something less than 
a full yell inside the shelter, a welcome change from fighting the 
howling wind outside. Every time she had opened her mouth 
outside to speak, she had had the uncanny feeling that an icy arm 
of the storm itself was reaching down her throat to take steal her 
breath.

"Let me check him first," Scully said, though her words weren't 
really a request for permission. Pulling off a glove, she eased her 
fingers up underneath the helmet to feel for a pulse. As cold as 
she knew her hands were, she was frightened to realize that 
Mulder was even colder. The seconds ticked by as she frantically 
pressed his throat, as she searched for the beating of his heart.
 
As her own heart stood still.

Finally, she found it. Weak and thready, barely whispering 
against her fingertips, but there. She closed her eyes briefly, 
taking a couple deep breaths to calm her shaking body. 

Moving down his body, she quickly inspected the leg wound, 
relieved to find no signs of additional bleeding. A feel of his 
ribcage turned up no immediate signs of broken bones, but she 
could not be sure. She'd have to perform a more thorough 
examination as soon as possible to be certain of his condition. 

"Leave him, Scully," Khi called out, somehow managing to 
soften the utter command in her voice with a layer of gentleness. 
"We've got work to do. Bring the knife and follow me." After 
receiving an acknowledging word from Scully, Khi dropped to 
her knees and crawled outside.

Scully draped the chute over Mulder again, taking care not to 
jostle him. Without conscious thought, her hand lingered on his 
chest for just a moment, caressing him gently even though he 
could not feel it.

"You'll be OK, Mulder, you just have to hang on for a little while 
longer," she whispered as she stood. "You have to hang on."

You just have to.

     *    *    *    *    *    *

Crawling outside, Scully was met by the blast of the raging 
storm. After the relative calm of the shelter's interior, Scully was 
slightly disoriented. She stood slowly, trying to get her bearings 
in the surrounding darkness. 

"Give me the knife, I'll go cut boughs," Khi yelled, leaning in 
close to Scully. Her voice and light touch to Scully's arm was a 
welcomed point of reference. "Pack snow on every exterior 
surface of the shelter, as thickly as you can. Throw it up top, let it 
fall down the sides. You're done when there's no more green, got 
it?"

"Understood," Scully yelled, passing the knife to Khi as she 
headed into the blackness of the forest. 

Scully turned to the shelter and started pushing snow against the 
sides as quickly as she could. It was too cold for the snow to 
really pack,  she knew, but she found she could work the snow in 
amongst the branches. Then, with repeated shoveling motions, 
she could cover the boughs completely.

She moved around the shelter clockwise, working from the 
ground up as she looped around the shelter. Each successive ring 
of snow rested on the level beneath it. She was about halfway up 
the shelter when Khi returned the first time, unloading a pile of 
broad pine boughs next to the entryway before disappearing 
again. Scully had no idea how Khi was able to keep her bearings, 
but did not want to question the advantage it provided. Scully 
knew that left to her own sense of direction, she would have been 
lost within seconds.

The activity warmed her slightly--she could feel a tiny measure 
of heat working its way through her body. She was careful not to 
over-exert herself though, working at a slow enough pace that 
she could still breathe comfortably through her nose. 

Khi returned the second time just as Scully was beginning to 
scoop and throw snow onto the top of the shelter. Khi dropped 
the boughs next to the first pile, then stepped around the shelter 
to find Scully.

"I'm going for firewood now," she yelled. "If you get done before 
I get back, start bringing the boughs inside. Line the floor, 
leaving a bare area in the middle." 

Khi headed back into the night again as Scully continued 
throwing snow onto the shelter. It was rough going, in a way, 
since she had no bucket or shovel to assist her. The storm swirled 
away a large portion of her efforts before they ever reached the 
roof of the shelter. 

She kept at it, though, knowing the snow would provide the 
insulation they needed to survive. Eventually, Scully had covered 
all but the very center of the roof--she couldn't find a way to get 
the snow up that far before it blew away. 

Assuming Khi would be able to solve that problem, Scully turned 
her attention to bringing the pine boughs inside. Khi had 
originally positioned Mulder in the center of the shelter, so 
Scully was able to line the floor without moving him. Khi had 
cut enough for nearly three full layers of boughs around the 
interior. As she began overlapping them on the second layer, 
Scully was surprised to realize how soft the boughs were beneath 
her. She would not have imagined that pine needles could be 
anything other than prickly, but these were very long and very 
soft, almost plush.

Scully had just begun the third layer when Khi returned. She had 
cut another bough to use as a sled, and Scully was heartened to 
see a sizeable stack of dead twigs and branches piled on it. Khi 
pulled the whole stack right inside the shelter, unloading it 
swiftly and restacking the wood along the wall. She then used the 
sled bough itself to seal up the small entrance to the shelter, 
weaving it into the edges of the doorway. 

She wastes nothing, Scully realized as she watched Khi work. 
Words, motion, materials--all were used precisely and without 
excess, achieving their goal efficiently. Again, Scully was 
reminded of a military bearing, the attitude that if you didn't need 
it, you left it behind. 

"There, that's that," Khi said as she turned from the wall. At least, 
that's what Scully assumed she had done. Whatever meager light 
had been provided through the doorway was now gone--sealing it 
had plunged the interior of the shelter into a black hole.

"Now what?" Scully asked. 

"Where's the pack?" Khi asked in reply. 

"It's right... I think it's... uh...," Scully mumbled as she groped 
behind her in the darkness. She knew that she had set the pack 
along the wall, but was having trouble finding it. "Ah, here you 
go." 

She held the pack out towards Khi's general direction and felt it 
lifted from her hand as she heard Khi move forward. She heard 
first the zipper, then the sounds of Khi rustling through the 
contents of the pack.

"So how are you going to start a fi-" 

The telltale sound of a striking match cut off Scully's words. She 
just stared at the tiny flame for a moment, watching as it 
flickered slightly. 

"Khi, you can have a spot in my lifeboat anytime," Scully said 
slowly, tossing Khi's previous comment back at her.

The howling of the storm proved no match for the relieved 
laughter that erupted from inside the tiny snow-covered hut.


------------
Chapter 6
------------

As the tiny match burned out, Khi assured Scully she had an 
entire box. "But we need to move Mulder first, so I can build the 
fire near the center," she explained. Scully could hear her 
movements as Khi put the pack down and tried to stand up. 
 
"I couldn't get snow on the very top of the shelter, does that 
matter?" Scully asked.

"Actually, no, that's fine," Khi replied. "The smoke will need to 
escape out the top anyway. Move to Mulder's feet, we're going to 
lift him up onto the boughs where you are now."

Scully felt her way across the floor, swearing at herself under her 
breath as she accidentally bumped Mulder's injured leg. She half-
stood over him, reaching down to wrap her hands under his 
ankles.

"Set?" Khi asked. "On three. One... two... three."

They lifted together, picking Mulder up just enough to move him 
across and up onto the bed of boughs. Setting his shoulders down 
gently, Khi moved across to the dead wood she had brought 
inside. Scully heard the snapping as Khi broke the larger 
branches into kindling sticks. 

"Damn," Khi muttered, pausing for a moment. "I need to go back 
outside for a minute, before I start the fire."

"Why? What do you need?" Scully asked, trying to imagine what 
Khi was after.

"Bark." 

With that, Khi quickly removed the pine bough door and went 
through it. Once outside, Scully heard her prop the bough back 
up against the doorway, and then Khi was gone.

What the hell, Scully wondered. Bark? What did they possibly 
need bark for, with the twigs and branches Khi had already 
gathered?

Assuming there was little sense in trying to figure it out, Scully 
resigned herself to waiting for Khi's return. She checked Mulder 
again, a quick rush of joy coursing through her as she felt his 
pulse beneath her fingers. 

"We'll get you warm in no time, Mulder," she whispered, running 
her hand lightly down his body. She spoke to him simply, as she 
would to reassure a child--she didn't allow herself to 
acknowledge she was trying to reassure herself. "Khi's got 
matches, we've got some wood for the fire and this nice little 
shelter, soon it'll be toasty and warm."

She was still murmuring quietly, gently stroking his arms and 
chest, when she heard Khi return. Even if she'd been deaf, the 
quick swirl of wind that swept through the shelter as the doorway 
opened would have announced Khi's return just as conclusively.

"OK, we're set now," Khi said as she brushed herself off slightly.

Scully listened as Khi first dug out a depression in snow, then 
piled a small amount of twigs at the bottom. A pause of a few 
moments, then the rasp of a match against the box. The tiny 
flame was born again out of nothingness.

Khi slowly coaxed the fire to life, slowly adding branches only 
after the previous ones had completely caught. It seemed like an 
eternity, but in actuality, it was only a few minutes before a small 
fire was burning nicely. The flames danced brightly, throwing 
shadows onto the walls. Scully could see that Khi was now 
working with one of the birch bark strips she had harvested 
outside.

"What-... what are you doing?" Scully asked, unable to decipher 
Khi's motions. 

"Making a bowl to heat snow in," Khi said, following her 
comment with a short laugh as she caught sight of Scully's 
expression. "No, I'm not crazy. The bark won't burn, because the 
heat is transferred to the snow and water inside. It's a trick 
Mobaje taught me a long time ago."

Sure enough, Khi was soon melting snow in the large bowl, 
setting it right on top of the small fire. The flames lapped up 
around the edges of the bowl, but the bark did not burn. Khi kept 
adding snow as it melted, stopping only when the water 
threatened to spill over the sides.

"OK, that's going to take about five minutes or so to get heated to 
a good temperature," Khi said, adding a couple more small sticks 
to the fire. She stood as best she could, working her fingers 
through the roof and opening up a smoke hole between the 
boughs. "Strip Mulder down as needed, check him for wounds 
and get that branch out of his leg. We'll use the water to bathe the 
wound."

"We're going to need bandages for him--that wound will most 
likely bleed heavily when the branch is removed," Scully said as 
she knelt down beside Mulder, easing his head out of the helmet. 
She gently brushed a lock of hair off his forehead, smiling 
slightly as it immediately fell back to its original location.

Starting with his head, Scully slowly and methodically felt her 
way over every inch of Mulder's body. She was thankful his 
helmet had stayed on--without it, she had no doubt that his skull 
would have been cracked open from the pounding hail. His arms 
and chest were beginning to bruise, as she knew her own were, 
but the joints moved freely with no signs of broken bones. The 
ribcage seemed strong, without evidence of cracked ribs or 
internal bleeding.

Scully paused for a moment as she reached Mulder's lower body. 
Until now, she had been able to feel his ribcage and chest by 
reaching through the zip-front of the suit and working her hands 
up underneath his sweaters. But that wouldn't work for the lower 
part of him--the suit fit too tightly across the waist. 

She also knew the right legs of Mulder's suit and jeans would 
have to be cut away at least partially anyway to allow access to 
the wound. She didn't want to slice away any more than was 
necessary, however--he would need as much insulation from the 
cold as possible, even with the fire. 

Scully acquired the knife from Khi, receiving a cautionary word 
that the blade was extremely sharp. Lifting the suit fabric up 
from Mulder's body, she sliced it from his left hip across to just 
past the wound, peeling it to the sides to expose the clothing 
underneath. 

Her face went ashen at what she saw, at what she felt as she ran 
her hands across him. Mulder's right leg was drenched in blood, 
the fabric clinging to his body. Scully saw the jump suit was 
lined with a very thin plastic layer--it had prevented the blood 
from soaking through the fabric. Prevented her from learning just 
how heavily he had initially bled. She set the knife down next to 
Mulder as she gathered her thoughts a bit, glancing down as she 
did so.

Glancing at her hands soaked in crimson blood. At a black-
handled knife lying next to her. At Mulder's motionless form, his 
blood finally escaping the torn suit to seep into the snow beneath 
him. She gasped in realization...

Her vision had come true.

     *    *    *    *    *    *

At the sharp intake of air, Khi was at Scully's side immediately. 
"What is it?" Khi asked, reaching out to place a steadying hand 
on Scully's shoulder.

"It can't be, it was just a dream, it was just a dream," Scully 
whispered.

"What was just a dream," Khi said. "What did you see?"

"This. I saw this," Scully motioned at Mulder, at the knife, at her 
hands. "The same sequence, over and over. Every night for three 
nights, and several times during the day, I've seen exactly this--
each time the same."

"But never past this?" Khi's tone was intense, searching, but far 
from disbelieving. "You never saw anything beyond this point?"

"No, I either woke up or passed out from the pain each time," 
Scully said--Khi saw the remembrance of that pain was nearly as 
agonizing as the pain itself must have been. "But it was just a 
dream. It doesn't mean anything."

"But it does," Khi said, pulling Scully around so that they faced 
each other. "Visions are real, Scully. I believe they exist and I 
believe you had one. You gained knowledge of the future, you 
accessed this moment as reality. But that you never saw past it, 
that you didn't see the outcome of this moment... That means we 
can still form the future for ourselves."

Whether or not Khi's words convinced Scully to believe in 
visions, the resolve behind them served to lessen her rising panic. 
She focused on Khi's strength, finding that it provided a path to 
her own. She breathed deeply, closing her eyes as she searched 
for herself amidst the chaos within. 

Finally, Scully was able to stop her body from shaking. She 
opened her eyes and nodded to Khi that she was all right. 
Turning back to Mulder, she inspected the wound more closely, 
her clinical skills surfacing above everything else.

"OK, all right. If he bled that heavily when the branch went in, 
we can only assume he's going to bleed heavily again when it 
comes out," Scully said. "It must have hit the major femoral 
artery, or at least nicked it. Just bandaging him isn't going to be 
enough--he'll just bleed himself to death."

"So we either need to find something to sew him up with or we'll 
need to cauterize the would closed," Khi finished the thought. 
Scully remembered that Khi had mentioned medical training 
during the incident at the airport. "Burning it would be tougher, 
considering the size of the entry and exit wounds."

"Agreed. And it would leave one hell of a nasty set of scars," 
Scully pointed out. "But unless you've got a sewing kit in that 
pack of yours, it may be our only choice."

"Let me see what we've got," Khi said as she crawled back over 
to the other side. "Cut away his jeans and use some water to 
wash away some of that blood."

Scully split the jump suit further towards Mulder's knee, cutting 
it so it fell flat against the snow. As carefully as she could, she 
slipped the edge of the knife under his jeans at the branch exit 
point. Turning the blade outwards, she executed a quick 'letter 
opener' maneuver to slit the denim all the way to his hip. She 
then repeated the motion in the other direction. She was able to 
tear the Spandex running pants underneath with just her hands--it 
tore away cleanly, finally leaving Mulder's leg bare. 

Leaning over to look more closely, Scully was thankful to see a 
minimal amount of shredding around the branch. It had broken 
off the tree at a relatively straight angle, allowing the branch to 
push right through the tissue somewhat cleanly. She lifted his 
thigh up a bit, gently feeling the underside.

"I'm going to have to pull this from the other side," Scully said as 
Khi came back across the shelter. "The branch is thicker at the 
back, since it splintered at the tree. If I pull it through from the 
front, it'll do even more damage."

Scully saw that Khi had stripped off one of her thick shirts and 
was ripping it to form long bandages. Scully took one and folded 
it a few times. She then soaked it into the bark bowl on the fire, 
which was just beginning to steam. As Khi turned to add more 
snow to the bowl, Scully used the cloth to wash away most of the 
blood on Mulder's leg.

"I couldn't find anything even remotely similar to a needle, 
Scully," Khi said as she tore the remaining portion of the shirt in 
two. "Not even close. You'll have to burn him."

"Damn," Scully breathed. She'd been hoping that Khi would find 
something, anything, that would work as a suturing implement--
cauterizing such a large set of wounds would be difficult work, 
with no guarantee of success.

"All right, here's what we do," Scully said, thinking through the 
steps as she spoke. "We roll him up on his left side so you can 
hold him. That'll give me access to both sides of his leg 
simultaneously. I pull the branch through, wash the wounds, 
inspect for embedded wood in the tissue, you then clamp 
pressure. Hard. We heat the knife blade and cauterize the tissue, 
then bandage him."

Khi nodded her understanding at each step. "Go ahead and cut 
his jeans away completely around that part of his leg now--you 
won't want to bandage over any existing material," she said as 
Scully paused. Scully quickly sliced through the small piece of 
remaining material around Mulder's leg, easing it out from 
underneath him.

"The whole process is going to have to be as quick as possible," 
Scully warned. "But I can't heat the blade until I know I won't 
need it to remove any broken wood in his musculature. So you're 
going to holding his leg for at least a couple minutes."

"Understood," Khi said. 

They spent the next few moments preparing what they needed--
Khi used a few pieces of wood to create a platform on which to 
heat the knife while Scully folded the various 'pad' bandages 
which would be bound against the wounds. She had Khi move 
the bowl of water so that it rested near Mulder, placing an entire 
bandage strip in it to soak completely in the steaming liquid. 
Finally, supplies readied and waiting, they looked across Mulder 
at each other.

"Let's do it," Scully said. "Come around here to his left side, I'll 
go over to the right. We'll roll him towards you. You're going to 
need to hold him on his side while keeping yourself away from 
his legs. When I tell you to clamp down, you need to apply 
steady and strong pressure over each wound, as tightly as 
possible."

Khi nodded her readiness as she took position next to Mulder. 
She sat with her back to him, so that his body would lean against 
her and be prevented from rolling over completely--she 
demonstrated to Scully she would be able to twist and apply 
pressure easily when directed.

Scully went to the other side and, together, they leveraged 
Mulder up onto his left side. Scully carefully lifted the right leg 
as they rolled him, making sure it was supported entirely by the 
left.

"Set?" she asked, knowing once they started, there would be no 
stopping.

"Go," Khi said simply.

Grasping the back end of the branch with her right hand, 
steadying herself against Khi with her left, Scully pulled the 
branch from Mulder's leg in one swift motion. Blood began to 
flow, but not nearly as heavily as she had feared. Tossing the 
branch aside, she retrieved the soaked bandage from the bowl. 
She held it above the thigh as she twisted slightly, letting the 
water drain onto his leg. She folded it a few times and brushed it 
over the wounds. 

Finally cleared of blood and dirt, she felt the wounds for 
evidence of wood still embedded, but found nothing. If there was 
anything still in there, it was too small to worry about now. 

"Clamp him," Scully said. Khi twisted at the waist, placing one 
hand over each wound and then pressing them towards the other. 

Scully immediately grabbed up the knife and swiped a bandage 
across the blade, clearing it of any dirt. She then set the handle 
across the small platform, the blade inserted directly into the fire 
itself. 

As the minutes crawled by, Scully tried desperately to think of 
another solution. She had cauterized wounds before, but only 
with a laser--never with a heated piece of steel. She knew the 
possibility for infection would be much greater, and that the 
scarring would be horrible. At least he's unconscious for it, she 
told herself. He won't feel the pain until it's already over. 

At five minutes, Khi told her that the blade was probably as hot 
as it was going to get, cautioning Scully to wrap her hand in a 
bandage before picking up the knife. "The heat will have 
transferred throughout the handle as well by now, though not to 
the same level," Khi said. "But you're not going to be able to 
hold with a bare hand."

Scully took the longest strip of bandage available, wrapping her 
hand and then her fingers individually. She wanted to have the 
fullest range of mobility possible, so simply wrapping her fingers 
to each other would impede her motion. 

"All right, we'll do the entry wound first, since it's bigger and 
most likely to bleed," Scully said. At an acknowledging nod from 
Khi, Scully picked up the knife. She could feel the heat working 
its way through the bandage, but it didn't become overwhelming. 

"Release him," Scully directed. As Khi pulled her hand away 
from the back of Mulder's thigh, Scully immediately pressed the 
widest part of the blade against the wound. The skin sizzled, the 
smell of burning hair and flesh filling the air. Slightly nauseated, 
Scully rocked the blade slightly, making sure the entire surface 
area of the wound received the burning effects of the blade. 

After perhaps 15 seconds, she pulled the knife away, shifting to 
return it to the fire to reheat. She bent close to the wound, trying 
to see the effects of the cauterization in the flickering light of the 
fire. The skin was burned and blistered where the knife had 
pressed, but she was thrilled to see that the bleeding had been 
virtually stopped--the small amount seeping from the upper part 
of the wound would be stopped easily by a tight bandage.

Giving Khi a quick 'looks good' nod, Scully turned back to the 
fire and picked up the knife again. She came around to the other 
side of Mulder this time, not wanting to be leaning over him. Khi 
shifted slightly, still maintaining pressure on the exit wound as 
she moved.

Scully positioned herself as needed, kneeling close to Mulder's 
legs. As before, she told Khi to release her hold and immediately 
pressed the blade against the wound.

But this time, another sound soon overpowered the sickening 
sizzle of flesh against the blade. A wordless scream tore through 
the night, threatening to fracture the walls of the shelter in its 
sheer agony.

Mulder had woken up.

     *    *    *    *    *    *

"Shit!" 

Khi and Scully would not have been able to tell who said the 
word first, and neither of them cared. As Mulder bucked his body 
against the pain, he came smashing forward into Khi. Because of 
his position against her, his efforts to reach his leg succeeded 
only in wrapping himself around Khi's body. 

As his knees drew up in an instinctive attempt to reach the source 
of his pain, Scully lost her grip on the knife. As it slapped up 
against her chest, it was pure reflex to reach out with her other 
hand and knock it away from her body. She immediately realized 
her mistake, though, as the unprotected flesh came in contact 
with the heated blade. But she did succeed in pushing the knife 
off her body, where it tumbled harmlessly into the snow beneath 
her.

She immediately focused on her patient. "Mulder! Mulder! Calm 
down, hey! Calm down," Scully yelled as she wrapped her arms 
around his legs to restrain them. Even though she was fairly 
certain he had no broken bones in his lower body, she didn't want 
him contracting his abdominal muscles to try and bring his legs 
up. She knew his convulsions would seriously aggravate any 
cracked or bruised ribs--she had felt no obvious broken rib 
bones, but she was not so naďve as to assume that meant no 
hairline fractures. 

Scully had forgotten just how strong Mulder could be. Weak 
from blood loss, in severe pain from his injuries, probably near 
delirium from the cold--none of these made a single bit of 
difference to Mulder as he screamed and writhed.

Khi turned towards Mulder's torso, threading her left arm 
through his right and then applying pressure against his chest and 
neck with her forearm. The action virtually immobilized 
Mulder's upper body, since his left arm was trapped beneath him. 
Khi could still feel his hips bucking against her back, though, and 
knew the choke hold wasn't going to be enough. 

Scully felt Mulder's knee smash against her as she tried to loop 
her arms around his thighs. She hooked her leg up over his, 
positioning herself right on top of his calves--she hoped her 
weight would be enough to hold him still. 

But just as she tightened her knees against him, she saw Khi raise 
her right hand slightly and bring in down at Mulder's jaw in a 
sharp blow. Scully felt Mulder go slack beneath her as quickly as 
if someone had thrown a switch.

"What... what the hell... did you do to him?" Scully asked, 
slightly breathless. 

"He's still alive, Scully, don't worry," Khi said as she unhooked 
her other arm from Mulder's. "I just knocked him unconscious, 
figuring he was going to risk seriously hurting himself before we 
could get him calm any other way."

Once Scully moved off of Mulder's legs, she could not resist the 
need to move up and feel his throat. Stronger than before, but 
still weaker than it should be, his pulse beat beneath her fingers. 

But he was still exceptionally cold. She knew his core 
temperature would have dropped by at least a couple of degrees 
by now, and they needed to get him warmed up before it dropped 
any further.

"OK, heat's next," Khi said, her words echoing Scully's thoughts. 
"Check the second wound, make sure you got it burned enough 
before he woke up. If it's sufficient, bandage him." 

As Khi turned to attend to the fire, Scully inspected Mulder's leg. 
Had the exit would been as large as the entry, the few seconds of 
burn time would not have completely cauterized the tissue. As it 
was, she saw that the bleeding had been stopped, the flesh 
blistered and raw but successfully sealed. 

She immediately began bandaging the wounds. She placed two 
thick pad bandages against the burned skin, binding them tightly 
with several long strips of material. She was careful to use only 
enough to accomplish the task--no one knew how many times 
they would need to change the bandages before they were found.

If they were found...

     *    *    *    *    *    *

Scully stopped the train of thought before it even got started. She 
practically felt the barricade drop into place across her mind as 
she continued bandaging Mulder's leg. Focus on him, right here 
and right now, she told herself. Anything else is just a waste. 

Finishing the wound bandages, Scully wondered what to do 
about covering Mulder's exposed leg. Earlier, she had sliced 
completely through the layers of fabric surrounding the wound--
now she had to figure out how to bind them closed again to 
protect his skin from the cold. 

Well, if Khi can give up a shirt, so can I, she thought. Standing, 
she peeled down her jumpsuit, slipping her arms out of its 
sleeves. Looking down to jog her memory as to what she was 
wearing, she sighed when she realized the best one to give up 
was also the first one she'd slipped on over her T-shirt. Son of a 
bitch...

As quickly as she could, Scully stripped off the heavy fleece 
pullover and the first of the turtlenecks as one unit. She then 
pulled off the second, much longer turtleneck, leaving only the 
T-shirt still on her upper body. Seeing its new prey, the cold air 
pounced on her immediately--the fire had not been in existence 
long enough to really heat the interior of the shelter. She felt her 
skin crawl with goosebumps as she began to shiver.

Scully tossed the turtleneck onto Mulder's body, threading her 
arms back through the pullover and yanking it down over her 
head in one swift motion. She knew it was mostly an illusion, but 
the extra weight of the clothing made her feel warmer 
immediately. Zipping up the jump suit again, she quickly pulled 
the edges of Mulder's severed clothing together and wrapped his 
leg with the stripped-off turtleneck.

"Get over here by the fire, Scully, and get warm," Khi said. 
Scully turned to see that the fire was considerably larger than it 
had been before, though still small enough to be contained safely 
within the shelter. 

"We have to get Mulder warm first," Scully objected. Her own 
comfort could wait--Mulder was dangerously close to 
hypothermia, if he hadn't in fact suffered a bit of it already.

"That's what we're doing. You need to get warm to keep him 
warm," Khi said as she stood up and headed over towards 
Mulder.

"What?" Scully asked, confused. "What does my being warm 
have to do with heating Mulder?"

"One of the best ways to heat a human body is to wrap it up with 
something that's already warm, in this case another body," Khi 
said, beginning to spread the chute out to a much larger surface 
area. "You're going to get warm, we're going to strip both of you 
to the waist, and then I'll wrap you together in the chute."

"Wait, wait, wait," Scully said, holding out a hand as if directing 
traffic. "Wouldn't it quicker to just bring him close to the fire, 
heat him that way?"

"Transferring heat by air is not as effective, especially for 
someone who is unconscious," Khi said. "He or she cannot 
regulate their own 'closeness' to the heat source. Direct source 
contact, the transfer of heat by actual physical interaction, is far 
superior. Your body will provide the heat Mulder needs to get his 
core temperature back up."

"But how can-" Scully started to say.

"No, Scully. No objections, just do it. Trust that I know what I'm 
talking about, OK?" Khi cut her off, straightening to look Scully 
straight on. Khi gestured slightly at the fire and the shelter itself 
as she spoke. Scully glanced around, realizing that she would 
have been long dead by now had it not been for Khi. She simply 
nodded as she moved over next to the fire, standing as close as 
she could and holding her hands out over the flames. 

"In the pack, there's a small metal cylinder," Khi said after a 
minute. "Find it and use it to drink some of the heated water. It'll 
help keep you warm from the inside as well."

Rummaging through the pack, Scully found the cylinder. It 
contained a variety of wire strips. She dumped them out into a 
side pocket of the pack, then used a bit of the water to wash out 
the interior of the cylinder. Finally, she began dipping it into the 
bowl and drinking the hot water, surprised at how good it felt 
going down. Even if it tastes like I'm licking a flagpole, she 
thought, a slight smile appearing briefly. Her brothers had caught 
her just once on that particular winter dare, but she had always 
remembered that metallic, almost salty flavor.

Following Khi's earlier example, Scully kept feeding the bowl 
with fresh snow as she dipped out water. They would need to 
keep it full at all times, since they would each benefit from 
drinking the heated liquid as the night wore on. If Mulder didn't 
reawaken within an hour, she would try to drip some down his 
throat as well to try and rehydrate him. 

After perhaps ten minutes, Scully was actually beginning to feel 
warm--feeling had returned almost completely to her hands and 
feet and she was no longer shivering. She could really feel the 
slight burn on her hand where she had knocked aside the heated 
blade. A red line tracked its way across her palm, extremely 
painful to the touch now, but not a serious burn. She could still 
grip things as necessary, still use the hand as needed.

"How are you feeling? Warm now?" Khi asked. She had been 
working over the chute for a while, but now stood to add some 
small pieces of wood to the fire.

"Well, not fully heated, but acceptably warm, I guess," Scully 
said. "I can feel my feet for the first time in hours."

"All right, then. Let's get you wrapped in with Mulder. First, we 
need to lift him and get him onto the chute," Khi directed, 
indicating that Scully should take his legs. Khi explained that she 
wanted to put Mulder just off of center on the chute. As she lifted 
and moved with Khi, Scully noticed that Khi had torn several 
long strips off one edge of the chute. She had placed several of 
them underneath the chute, stretched to their full length. Several 
more were lying on top of the chute, somewhat shorter.

"To do this right, we have to do it in stages," Khi explained. 
"First, I will strap you and Mulder directly together. Then, I'll 
wrap the chute around you both and strap that around you again. 
You're not claustrophobic, are you?"

"Not that I've ever been aware of," Scully answered. Any past 
panic or fear she had ever felt was always caused by the situation 
itself, not by the physical closeness of the surroundings. 

"Good, because you're going to feel like a sardine in there. Once 
you're wrapped, I'll nudge you guys as close to the fire as 
possible, Mulder towards the flames," Khi said. 

"How long will we need to stay like that?" Scully asked. She 
didn't allow herself to distinguish whether she wanted the answer 
to be a short or a long period of time. 

"With any luck, about an hour," Khi answered. "I'm hoping 
Mulder will wake up in that timeframe--once he's conscious, 
things will go much easier. But even if he doesn't, an hour should 
be long enough to pull him back up to an acceptable range." Khi 
took a moment to check what Mulder was wearing on his upper 
body, then stood and checked Scully's attire as well. 

"We need to get you chest to chest, bare skin, but we also need to 
make sure that your body heat is not lost to any location except 
Mulder," Khi explained. "His top-layer sweater is huge, so we're 
going to slip it over both of you, once you've stripped. I'll cut the 
neckline a bit so that you both fit through it. I'll then wrap all the 
other clothing pieces around all sides, drawing the suits up 
against your backs, cinching the whole set tight against you. 
With the chute wrapped over everything as a whole, it should be 
sufficient." Khi turned, looking for the knife.

"It should be sleeping bags," Scully murmured, thinking back to 
a much warmer Florida night. A night that seemed light years 
away now.

"What was that?" Khi asked, putting a hand to her ear.

"Nothing... nothing," Scully said, shaking her head slightly. Khi 
seemed to understand completely, though, the barest of smiles on 
her face as she turned to go get the knife.
 
Scully looked down at Mulder, smiling a bit herself as she 
remembered all the times each of them had used a variation of 
the sleeping bag comment in the past months. A jab here, a tease 
there, they had tossed it back and forth between them as a father 
plays a game of catch with his sons.

As the fire crackled behind her, the flames moving across 
Mulder's face in a thousand flickering shadows, Scully cast a 
plea up to the heavens.

Please let us continue the game... 

     *    *    *    *    *    *

Khi crouched next to Mulder. "Do you have reason to believe 
Mulder has broken ribs, or any other upper torso injury?" she 
asked as she motioned for Scully to join her.

"No, I think he's sound through the chest and cage. Why?" Scully 
asked.

"We're going to prop him up into a sitting position, then, rather 
than trying to do this while he's lying down," Khi answered, 
performing the deed as she spoke it. She quickly had Mulder 
propped in front of her, his back to her chest as she knelt behind 
him.

"When I say go, I'll strip Mulder, you strip yourself. Everything 
off, including the bra. Lay each piece flat against the chute near 
me. Sit in between Mulder's legs, twisted so that your legs hang 
over his injured thigh. Be careful not to bump him too much, 
though," Khi said as she pantomimed each step. "Be as close to 
him as you possibly can, chest to chest, arms up. I'll slip the 
sweater onto both of you, with your arms through the sleeves. As 
soon as it's on, wrap your left arm around him tight, leave your 
other arm somewhat free--you're going to want to use your right 
arm as the pillow. I'll wrap everything around you, cinch it, lay 
you both down and strap the chute around you."

"Understood," Scully nodded, visualizing each instruction as Khi 
spoke.

"It has to be quick, start to finish, or you're going to just freeze 
yourself up again, OK?" Khi said. "Minute and a half, max."

"Got it, let's do it," Scully said. She knelt in front of Mulder, 
watching Khi set the knife down and get prepared. As they made 
eye contact, each nodded in silent agreement they were ready.

"Go."

Scully peeled down the jump suit, leaving it gathered around her 
waist. Pullover, turtleneck, T-shirt, bra--each was stripped off as 
Scully quickly fell into a mumbling cadence of 'son of a bitch' as 
the cold closed in around her. Khi stripped Mulder just as 
quickly, finally grabbing up the knife and slitting the neck of the 
sweater slightly.

At 15 seconds, Scully was seated between Mulder's legs, raising 
her arms towards the roof. As Khi pushed Mulder forward, 
Scully felt their skin come together. She had to fight the 
instinctive reaction to jerk backwards--his cold skin was like an 
electrical shock straight to her heart. A chill swept through her 
body instantly and she began to shiver. It was only a second, 
though, before Khi flashed the sweater down over her arms. 
Another couple of seconds passed as Khi threaded the sweater 
over both their heads and down to their waists.

Scully quickly grabbed Mulder around the back and held him 
close, freeing Khi to begin wrapping the stripped off clothing 
around them. Scully could not have explained how Khi managed 
it, but within another 30 seconds, she was completely enveloped 
by the clothing. Khi had tucked sleeves here and edges over 
there, tied the opposing sleeves of the jumpsuit together around 
them, and somehow managed to cinch everything tight without 
the whole set slipping down to the ground. 

"All right, I'm lifting you up and over Mulder's uninjured leg as I 
tip you guys down," Khi said. Scully felt herself lifted off the 
ground, then felt Mulder's leg being pushed underneath her. They 
tipped to her right, slowly, as Khi repositioned Mulder's injured 
leg as needed on top of his left. Scully straightened her own legs 
out as needed, moving as close to Mulder's body as she could.

"Get your arm out, hooked underneath your head and his," Khi 
cautioned as they neared the prone position. "You don't need to 
add a neck injury to everything else."

Scully used her free arm to position Mulder against her more 
comfortably—she turned him so his cheek rested against her 
collarbone as her chin moved across the top of his head. As they 
reached the ground, she crooked her upper bicep under her own 
head and cradled Mulder's head in her elbow, wrapping her hand 
around to grasp his other shoulder.

She felt the chute being wrapped up and around them, left side 
first, followed by the right. Each 'flap' was tucked underneath 
them, Khi rolling them slightly to the other side to shove the 
chute underneath them before rolling them back. At each 
movement, Khi pushed them against each other as closely as 
possible--their bodies were in continuous contact from Scully's 
feet to the top of Mulder's head. Sardines indeed, she thought as 
Khi tied them together, strap after strap.

The chute material hung over their heads by at least a foot. Only 
a meager amount of firelight managed to seep through the nylon 
fabric. Scully experienced a brief flash of memory, seeing herself 
as a child trying 'hide' from her brothers as she pulled the covers 
of her bed over her--she had figured if she couldn't see them, 
they couldn't see her. The theory hadn't worked, of course, as 
they would quickly find her and snap the covers back, tickling 
her until they were all laughing uncontrollably. She could only 
wish that they would come find her and come to her rescue 
now...

"All right, you're set," Khi broke into her memory, her voice 
slightly muffled from the nylon. Scully felt herself being moved 
towards the fire, Khi dragging the pine boughs themselves rather 
then trying to scoot Mulder and her across them. "I let the chute 
overhang your heads to trap just that much more heat inside with 
you. I'm going to prop on edge of the fabric on a stick to let air 
move freely. But if you feel claustrophobic at any time, or think 
you aren't getting enough air, just yell out and I'll peel the chute 
back for you."

"Got it," Scully said, surprised at how loud her voice now 
sounded to her own ears. She felt the chute lift slightly from her 
head as Khi positioned a stick under the excess material. The 
interior became slightly brighter, although there wasn't much for 
Scully to see except the other side of the chute. For some reason, 
though, it made her feel a little better.

Seconds passed, Scully becoming aware of a muffled noise 
coming from above her. She realized it was the sound of stifled 
chuckling.

"Whaaat?" she asked, drawling out the word. She knew Khi had 
something to say and figured she might as well hear it now.

"Well, considering you *are* both officers of the law, it just kind 
of dawned on me how appropriate the phrase 'pigs in a blanket' is 
in this case," Khi said, her end words trailing away as she began 
laughing outright.

At that comment, Scully realized that it had been too long, that 
there was only one response possible.

"Yeah, whatever, shut up."

Scully's own laughter soon joined Khi's, spiraling out into the 
night as one. 



------------
Chapter 7
------------

For the first 15 minutes or so, Scully couldn't stop shivering. 
Mulder was unbelievably cold--she felt as though she were 
holding an enormous ice cube against her body. The only signs 
of life, of warmth, were the whisper of his exhaled breath across 
her breast and the quiet beating of his heart against her own. 

But as the minutes wore on, she could feel the warmth returning 
to his body. Her body heat, combined with the heat from the fire, 
were slowly having the desired effect. He was still cold against 
her, but she slowly stopped shaking--she had no doubt that he 
would soon be warmed to normal temperature.

"How you doing in there, Scully?" Khi asked after a while. 
Scully had heard her rummaging about the shelter, though she 
had been unable to determine what she was doing.

"All right, I think. He seems to be warming up slightly," she 
answered. 

"Do you feel comfortable being here by yourself, if I leave?" Khi 
said.

"Why, what are you doing?" Scully said, feeling a little panic rise 
in her throat at the thought of being left immobilized.

"We're going to need more wood before it's daylight--what's here 
won't last more than another hour or so," Khi responded. "It 
might be easiest to just do it now, before Mulder wakes up."

"How long will you be gone? And what happens if you get lost?" 
Scully knew she could never get out of the chute wrap without 
assistance.

"Trust me, I won't get lost," Khi said with a cryptic chuckle. "I'd 
be gone maybe a half hour, probably less. I won't go if you don't 
want me to. We can just wait until you're unwrapped and free."

Scully thought about it for a bit, gave herself time to analyze the 
situation rather than just react out of her fear. If Khi said they 
needed wood, then they needed it--she could assume that without 
a doubt. But if Khi got lost or killed, Scully would never get out 
of the chute alone. Of course, without Khi, I'll have little chance 
of survival whether I'm wrapped with Mulder or dancing the 
hornpipe, she thought pragmatically.

"Yeah, go ahead. I guess I'd rather try to make sure you're here 
when Mulder wakes up, just in case he goes into a frenzy again," 
Scully said.

"OK. I'm taking the knife with me, not that you'll be in a position 
to miss it anyway. I'll probably do as I did before--stack wood 
outside in repeated trips, then bring it all in at once. So don't get 
panicky if you hear anything outside," Khi warned. 

"Got it," Scully said. She felt a brush of very cold air gust 
through the chute opening and knew that Khi had removed the 
door of the shelter. "Be careful, don't get killed or something--if 
I'm going to die, I don't want it to be while I'm wrapped up like a 
sardine with Mulder."

"No, I'm sure you don't," Khi said softly as she went through the 
door, quickly sealing it up behind her.

Now what the hell did that mean, Scully thought, anger rising 
quickly in her mind. Does she think I *want* to die out here in 
the middle of a storm? That I want my last breath to be filled 
with smoke and the smell of nylon? My final sight to be that of a 
red and white parachute? 

But just as she prepared to launch into a mental rant and rave 
session, Scully realized what Khi had meant. She realized that 
Khi had already perceived what Scully was just beginning to 
accept. 

That if Scully were going to die, she *did* want it to be with 
Mulder. If her eyes were going to close for the last time, she 
wanted her last vision to be of him. As the feeling left her hands, 
her arms, her body, she wanted to know that he would be there 
next to her.

Her anger slowly wound down as she concentrated on Mulder's 
breathing, on his heartbeat, on the feel of his head resting on her 
arm. With the deliberateness of an experiment, she stopped 
thinking and started feeling. She felt how his breath danced 
across her skin, light as a spring rain. How his hair tickled 
against her collarbone, feathery and soft. How it felt good to be 
so close to him, to touch him, to hold him.

But even as the physical sensations themselves were enjoyable, 
she knew it was more than that. She knew that this physical 
closeness they shared now was simply a reflection of the union 
that already existed between them. That their souls were already 
entwined together as one. They shared a bond stronger than any 
she'd ever known--a bond cast in steel, forged with pain, 
tempered by faith.
 
A bond she knew had already survived her own death.

The memory of her abduction, of the tests, of the hospital swept 
through her as a wave crashes against the cliffs. Each one roared 
inside her mind, presenting itself as strongly as the actual event it 
represented--her body reacted as though it were under attack, her 
breath coming in gasps, her muscles locking into spasms. Several 
moments passed before she felt better, before her body began to 
return to normal. Mulder, even in unconsciousness, provided the 
anchor she needed to gain control.

She had never told anyone, not her mother, not her doctors, not 
even Mulder. She had not wanted to upset them, especially when 
she herself had not yet believed what she had experienced. They 
had all been so happy to see her alive and well, she couldn't tell 
them the truth.

She couldn't tell them she had died in that Georgetown hospital 
bed. Not 'nearly,' not 'almost'--she had died. Utterly and 
completely, she had left her body behind and began the journey 
to what lay beyond. Although she had not believed it at first, her 
latest encounter with her own mortality had proved it to her. As 
she had felt Death come for her again, in a room filled with 
cameras and film, she had known for certain it had happened 
before. 

This most recent time, Death had been turned away before 
reaching her, before closing his hand around her to lead her 
away. Someone had stepped between them, offering himself to 
Death with an eagerness usually reserved for Life. She had 
watched as he had stepped through the gateway, his face bearing 
the most beatific smile she had ever seen. She had thanked him 
as he disappeared--for intervening, for dying in her place, for 
giving her back the life she was not ready to lose.

But the first time had been different. As Death had touched her, 
as his cloak had fallen around her as they began to walk, she had 
somehow known there would be no intervention. She had known 
she should be afraid, but she hadn't been. Perhaps it had been her 
natural curiosity for the unknown, perhaps it had been a desire to 
escape the pain and torture of the last months, but she had not 
been afraid. Calm and peaceful, she had followed Death like a 
dutiful daughter.

As she had prepared to step across the threshold, though, she had 
hesitated. For the first time since Death had appeared to her, she 
had paused to look back. A flame had burned behind her, steady 
and strong against the darkness. She had been very far from it, 
but she felt its heat and was drawn to it. Mesmerized as it danced 
before her, she had felt its passion, its desire, its willingness to 
guide her path. As she had reached out to it, she had seen it 
reaching for her as well. They had touched, the flame encircling 
her hand as a glove. Instead of the searing sensation of being 
burned, she had felt only a comforting warmth, a sense of 
coming home.

But Death had not given up so easily. He, too, had reached for 
her, the icy cold of his hand a shock against the heat of the flame. 
Death had pulled her towards the gateway even as the flame had 
pulled her back the way she had come. A struggle had ensued, a 
battle of wills unlike any other she had ever witnessed. She had 
found herself paralyzed by the strength of the opponents as they 
fought.

In the war between the Light and the Dark, in the war for her 
very soul, she had been but a spectator.


     *    *    *    *    *    *
On and on, the battle had raged around her, over her, through her. 
She had found herself being pulled towards the gateway by 
Death, only to be brought back by the flame. The gentle warmth 
and light of the flame had warded off the shocking cold of 
Death's cloak over and over, until she could no longer keep track 
of the times.

She hadn't known how long the rivals had fought. Perhaps it had 
been a few seconds, a few minutes, a mere day. Or perhaps the 
earth had lived out its existence, plunged into the burning sun 
and been reborn anew. She simply had not known. 

She only knew she had slowly become aware of a silence. A 
hushed void had surrounded her senses where the wrath of the 
battle had been before. She had looked around her, slowly, 
silently. The flame was beside her, flickering weakly in the 
darkness as though nearly spent. Death had remained at her other 
side, his head dipped towards the floor as he pulled his cloak 
more tightly around his body. He had been shivering slightly. 

"You must choose."

Two voices speaking as one, giving life to the single thought that 
flowed between them. She had heard the weariness in both the 
booming voice of Death and the resonating murmur of the flame. 
They had fought with every ounce of their strength, testing 
themselves to the extreme in the battle. But it had been an 
exercise in futility--neither had possessed the strength to defeat 
the other completely.

So the choice had become hers. She would control her future at 
this moment as few ever had. The weight of the choice had lain 
heavy on her shoulders--she hadn't known what to do, hadn't 
known how to decide. She had implored the combatants to help 
her.

Acquiescing with a sweep of his arm, Death had shown her what 
lay beyond. Like leaves before a gentle wind, images of health 
and happiness had swirled around her. She had seen her father 
and smiled--she knew he would be waiting for her with open 
arms. Death had showed her that she had nothing to fear on the 
other side.

It had not occurred to her to distrust Death, to question the truth 
of what he presented. She had realized earlier he was only the 
emissary, a guide between the worlds of the living and the 
destinations of the dead. He served neither God nor the Devil--he 
simply existed, in this time and in this place, without motive or 
desire.

She had found herself tempted by the image Death presented, 
tempted to step through the gateway into the arms of her father. 
His passing had torn out a part of her heart, leaving behind a 
feeling of emptiness she could not have fathomed possible. It 
was a place that was empty still, and even though he had told her 
it was not yet time, she longed to be with him again. 

Before she could step towards gateway, though, the flame had 
begun to grow beside her, slowly at first but then ever 
quickening. It had moved up her arm, flowing across her chest 
and around her body as a second skin, its touch gentle and 
calming. It had offered no clear picture of the future, no images 
of what lay ahead for her should she return with it--beyond the 
light of the flame, she had seen nothing.

But she had felt everything. Love, hope, strength--they had flown 
through her like a river, washing away the doubt and indecision. 
Where confusion had reigned earlier, she felt only peace. She had 
known the flame was offering itself to her completely, promising 
her a way home, a way back to life. 

Promising her they would be together as one until such day as 
Death took them both.

"I choose Life."

She had not remembered actually speaking the words, but they 
had resonated around her as though she had screamed them. The 
flame unwrapped itself from her, freeing her body and clearing 
her vision without completely letting go of her. Though she had 
no recollection of movement, she had found herself following the 
flame back the way she had come. 

"So it shall be this time," Death had said, accepting her choice 
without malice, his voice resounding across the ever-increasing 
gap between them. "You shall be returned to Life as few ever 
have." 

As he had spoken, she had felt herself flow back into her body as 
though she were being poured--she had become aware of the 
blood coursing through her veins, racing through her heart, 
tingling in her fingertips. She had felt the stiff hospital bed 
beneath her, the large pillow cradling her neck, the cool air 
tickling her bare feet. And she had felt Mulder's head as it lay 
across her abdomen, holding her hand in his as he sobbed.

She had turned at the last second, casting one last look over the 
threshold. She had seen Death as if from far below, a small speck 
against the blackness above her as she looked through the void.

"You live again. But do not yet become fearless, my child," 
Death had warned, his voice reaching across the emptiness. He 
had stretched a hand towards her as the darkness consumed him 
completely.

"For I shall ever be waiting." 

     *    *    *    *    *    *

Scully shivered, knowing it had nothing to do with holding 
Mulder's freezing body against her own. Death's words echoed in 
her head, his image imprinted before her as she held her eyes 
tightly shut. For years, that image had come to her every night in 
dreams--she would awaken each morning whispering his words 
on her lips. 

The dreams had come less frequently in the last several months, 
though, and Scully had begun to hope they would disappear 
altogether. Her latest brush with death, though, had brought them 
screaming back to her. But they had changed somehow, become 
something more than what they were. Instead of seeing and 
feeling what had happened four years ago, she was now aware of 
a closeness in the present--she could actually feel Death himself 
at times now. She could feel the weight of his stare as she went 
about her life.

She could feel him right now, hovering at the edge of reality. 
Waiting for her time to come.

Well, that time isn't now, she thought firmly. Not for me, and not 
for Mulder. You hear me? You'll just have to wait a bit longer.

Scully opened her eyes, forced herself to look around as much as 
she could, listening to the night. The red and white stripes of the 
chute, the soft crackling of the fire, the smell of woodsmoke 
surrounding her--all served to bring her back to the present, to 
ground her in reality once again. 

She pulled her arm back slightly, feeling up underneath Mulder's 
chin for his pulse. She found it more quickly this time, noticing it 
was much stronger than it had been earlier. His breathing had 
become more regular as well, his chest rising and falling softly 
against her own. And he was not quite so deathly cold anymore, 
she smiled to herself. Still chilled, yes, but no longer icy. She 
knew that he was above the danger point now, knew that he was 
safe again--that knowledge warmed her more than any fire ever 
could. 

Scully attempted to shift her weight a bit, trying to flex the 
muscles of her legs and arms without disturbing Mulder too 
much. Her limbs were falling asleep from the sustained pressure 
and lack of motion. Even her tiny movements were bringing 
alive the pins-and-needles sensation she hated so much. She 
knew that it would only get worse, though, if she didn't work 
through it now. The tightly-wrapped chute restricted all but the 
barest of movement--but after several minutes of tensing and 
flexing her major muscle groups, she was able to restore normal 
feeling.

As Mulder continued to warm up, Scully felt herself getting more 
and more tired as the minutes wore on. Without Khi to talk to, 
and without the freedom to get up and move around, the 
temptation to simply fall asleep was becoming unbearable. But 
she didn't want to doze off until Khi returned--some survivalist 
node of her brain reminded her that someone should always be 
awake and on guard.

She tried a few mental puzzles, a few brain teasers that she could 
work through in her mind. She tried to remember some poetry 
and verse she had once known by heart. But thinking wasn't 
enough--she needed to *do* something to stay awake. The words 
"Jeremiah was a bullfrog" came screaming through her head so 
quickly she was surprised she hadn't felt a breeze. 

She knew she could simply talk to Mulder until Khi returned, 
that she didn't need to subject him (not to mention herself) to her 
rather dubious singing abilities. But Scully knew if she started 
talking, she'd never stop--she'd pour out every ounce of her 
feelings, leaving nothing to the imagination. She realized that 
when she said those things to Mulder, she wanted to say them 
when he was wide awake, not lying in a pain-filled haze of 
confusion--she knew she wanted those hazel eyes looking right at 
her.

"Well, Mulder, you had me do this once before, so here we go 
again," she murmured, dipping her head down to press a quick 
kiss to his head. "You survived it before, so I hope you can stand 
it again."

Slowly, Scully hummed the tune a little before beginning to sing 
outright. She smiled a bit as she sang the first verse a few times. 
She couldn't stop picturing a tiny lineup of woodland creatures 
outside the door, pressing their little ears against the shelter as 
the wondered what in the world was going on. She knew that 
every creature within 10 miles had burrowed itself to safety, but 
she couldn't shake the image.

"Hey, Scully."

The words were soft, feathery, barely audible even within the 
confines of the chute. But she heard them as if they had been 
spoken over a loudspeaker in a thundering auditorium--they were 
the sweetest words she'd ever heard. Her breath caught in her 
throat as she closed her eyes. 

"Yeah, Mulder?" she asked. Simple words, but she knew that 
Mulder heard the emotion behind them loud and clear. A tear 
rolled down her cheek as she tightened her arms around him--she 
didn't care whether she was being transparent or not. She only 
cared that he had returned to her.

"Sing the second verse this time," he whispered.

The second verse? Scully had to think about it for a few 
moments--what the hell is the second verse to that song, she 
wondered? All she could think of was the first line, over and 
over. Jeremiah was a bullfrog... She hummed the tune again, 
hoping it would prompt her memory.

It came to her suddenly, the words forming in her mind as she 
ran through the first verse. A real, full-throated laugh came 
rolling up from within her, spilling out across the shelter as she 
squeezed him close. Composing herself a bit, she just nodded her 

head, cleared her throat, and then launched into the second verse.

"If I were king of the world... tell you what I'd do... I'd throw 
away the cars and the bars..."

The third time through the song, Mulder said the words along 
with her, a smile quirking his face against her chest--a smile she 
knew was echoed on her own face. Raspy and weak, his voice 
was reduced to a halting whisper, a far cry from the usual 
sardonic inflection she was used to.

But it didn't matter--to her, it was the voice of an angel. 

     *    *    *    *    *    *

Ten minutes later, Scully heard the doorway being opened, a cold 
shot of air whistling through the shelter's interior. She heard 
sounds of dragging, punctuated by the occasional sotto voce 
curse, and knew Khi had returned. Scully felt another pine bough 
slide past her, and she hoped it was as piled with wood as the 
first one had been.

"You all right in there, Scully?" Khi asked as she wove the 
doorway shut again, knowing they needed to retain the fire's heat 
as much as possible.

"Actually, yes," Scully answered, wondering if Khi could hear 
the smile planted firmly on her face. "Mulder's awake."

"Whoo hoo! That's fabulous," Khi yelled. "That true, Zippy? You 
alive in there?"

"Yeah, I'm alive," Mulder said, his voice rising a little to be 
heard. "No thanks to you, though. 'Let's go parachuting... It'll be 
fun... Girl Scouts could do it!'" Scully and Khi both laughed--
even with his weakened voice, his impersonation of her 
'recruiting' speech was perfect.

"Yeah, whatever, shut up," Khi said, eliciting a muffled laugh 
from Mulder this time. "Is it my fault that we got hit by a 
hailstorm in the middle of the winter?"

"Yes!" Mulder and Scully chorused together, sending all three 
chuckling again.

"Whine, whine, whine..." Khi mumbled as she stepped over to 
kneel down next to them. "Seriously, now. How are you feeling, 
Mulder? Warm, cold, dizzy, light-headed, nauseous, rib pain, 
trouble breathing, any and all of the above?"

"Weak, mostly," Mulder said. Scully could feel him trying to 
shift his weight a little bit, realizing he must be even more 
cramped than she was. "And thirsty."

"You feeling warm enough to get out of there? I mean, I know it 
must be uncomfortable for you to be wrapped up with Scully like 
that," Khi said, not quite hiding the humor from her voice. 

"Oh yeah, utter hell," Mulder said in perfect seriousness, 
exasperated sighs and all. "I mean, I'm all smashed in here with 
her, she's got her arms wrapped around me, she's breathing all 
over me... I just may have to sue you for extreme abuse, Khi." 
Scully felt his hand move against her, the gentle play of his 
fingers against her hip offsetting the mock harshness of his 
words. She smiled as she quickly ran her hand through his hair.

"Let's hope you get the chance, my friend," Khi said after a short 
chuckle, bringing her hand down to rest briefly on Mulder's back. 
They were all quiet for a moment, a prayer formed between 
them, unspoken but audible nonetheless. "OK, enough of that 
crap, let's get you guys out of there."

The process was easier said than done this time around. Mulder 
being conscious added a new twist to everything--each 
movement, no matter how slight, sent sharp pain shooting 
through him. After just a few moments, Mulder told Khi to just 
do it. "Rip the bandage off in one swipe," he said, breathless 
from the pain he'd endured so far. "At worst, I'll just pass out 
again."

"OK, then," Khi said. "Scully, we're going to do this exactly in 
reverse, then. You remember the sequence?" Khi had succeeded 
so far only in untying the straps and beginning to unwrap the 
chute from around their bodies--she couldn't yet see Scully or 
Mulder themselves yet.

"Chute off, tip up, clothes and suits unwrapped, sweater off, 
separate off of Mulder, clothes back on," Scully recited 
succinctly.

"You got it. Now let me get you guys situated a little better, since 
we're paused anyway," Khi said. Scully felt the chute being 
dragged away from the fire a little bit more, allowing Khi better 
access to them and more room in which to work.

"Set?" she asked, tapping Scully's shoulder. Scully queried 
Mulder if he was ready, his reply a simple nodding of his head. 
She actually felt his jaw tense as he clenched his teeth against the 
coming pain. 

"We're set," Scully replied, giving Mulder a quick squeeze in 
support. "Do it."

To his credit, Mulder screamed outright only once during the 
next sixty seconds, right after the chute fell away from them--as 
Khi tipped them up from the ground, Scully's foot smacked into 
his injured leg as she tried to resume the sitting position in which 
they had started. Scully cursed herself for being so clumsy, 
resolving to concentrate even harder as Khi continued to work. 
She felt the remainder of the tie straps fall away, watching as Khi 
quickly separated out Scully's clothing from Mulder's as she 
unwrapped each layer.

"Arms up now, Scully," Khi said. "I'm bracing Mulder from the 
other side here."

As she reached her arms towards the roof, Scully felt the green 
sweater being lifted from her body. She felt the goosebumps 
crawl over her again as her skin was exposed, but it was nowhere 
near the shock it had been the first time--the fire had been 
burning long enough to actually heat the interior somewhat. 

Her arms finally free of the sweater, Scully wasted no time 
pushing back from Mulder and scooting free of him. She didn't 
want to risk jostling him as she dressed herself. A quick glance 
confirmed the pain he must have been feeling--his eyes were 
pressed shut as his breath came in gasps, his fists clenched as Khi 
threaded his arms back through his clothing and suit.

"Done," Khi announced a few moments later, zipping the front of 
Mulder's suit as best she could. The lower portion of the suit 
torso had been mostly sliced away earlier, but she was able to 
rehook the zipper somehow and zip it up. 

"Well, that sucked," Mulder moaned after a few seconds, eyes 
still shut. Khi helped him lie back down, rolling an edge of the 
chute under his head as a mock pillow. She handed him his 
gloves, knowing he would need every source of warmth possible. 

"Scully, we'll need to do the same trick for him that we used for 
you," Khi said, motioning her over as she saw Scully zipping her 
own jump suit. "Find that cylinder and help Mulder drink some 
of the heated water. Even conscious, he's not going to be able to 
move as much as you or me, so he's going to need to generate 
heat from other sources."

Finally finding the cylinder against the far wall, Scully dipped it 
into the bowl, rinsing it out a bit before scooping up a full 
complement of water. She paused to add more snow to the bowl, 
wanting to keep a steady source of hot water available at all 
times. She knew they would have to change Mulder's bandages 
every few hours, needing to cleanse the wound each time.

Wanting to reach the bowl without getting up, Scully 
repositioned the chute a bit, dragging Mulder a few feet further 
'down' the shelter as gently as she could. She then prompted him 
to sit up a bit, slipping her leg underneath his shoulders and 
pulling him up onto her lap slightly. He reached for the cylinder, 
but she gently pushed his hands away, murmuring for him to just 
lie still. She brought the cylinder to his lips, slowly tipping it up 
as he drank, making sure she wasn't rushing him too much. 
Mulder indicated he wanted more, so she stretched to refill the 
cylinder again. This time, she somehow spilled a little of the 
water as she brought it up, trickling the water down his chin. She 
wiped it away with a gentle finger--if she stroked his face a few 
more times than was necessary, he didn't seem to mind. 

After the third refill, Mulder motioned that he was through for 
now. Scully set the cylinder down by the fire, not wanting to lose 
track of it this time. After a few minutes, she could tell he was 
getting sleepy, his breathing slowing and his bodying becoming 
still. She started to slip out from underneath him, figuring it was 
an uncomfortable position for him.

"Stay." Mulder crossed his hand over his body and laid it on hers. 
His eyes opened for the first time since they'd gotten out of the 
chute. "Stay with me for a little bit, Scully," he whispered, 
looking up at her. 

"Only for a little while?" she teased him, shifting her body just a 
little to reposition him more comfortably.

"For as long as you like, my lady," Mulder said quietly, his eyes 
fluttering closed as a small smile crossed his face. He was soon 
fast asleep, his hand still covering hers.

Scully watched him sleep for a long time. She brushed his hair 
off his forehead, smiling each time as it fell right back across his 
eyes. Leaning over him, she laid a gentle kiss on his forehead. I 
hope you meant that, Mulder, she said to herself. 

Because I'm going to stay forever.

     *    *    *    *    *    *

As the night wore on and became day, Scully and Khi took turns 
remaining awake, each catching an hour or so of sleep while the 
other tended the fire and kept watch. Khi cautioned Scully to 
make sure Mulder was awakened at least once every hour or so.

"He's still weak and dehydrated," Khi explained. "He needs that 
water not only to help stay warm but to get his system back in 
balance. Plus, I want to make sure that he *can* be woken up 
every few hours, that he doesn't fall into a coma or hypothermic 
trance state."

Scully checked his bandages several times, doing a complete 
change in the wee hours of the morning. The lack of really good 
light made a detailed inspection impossible, but she couldn't see 
any signs of infection--whatever initial bleeding there may have 
been had stopped. She had Khi make another birch bowl, using it 
to heat more water and wash out the bandages as best she could. 
She kept the other bowl for drinking purposes only, not wanting 
to risk any contamination.

When dawn arrived, Khi ventured outside again to search for 
more wood--their supply had dwindled to just a few branches. 
When she returned, Scully was somewhat nervous to see a much 
smaller pile of wood on her sled bough than previous trips. 

"It's getting harder to find wood," Khi said simply. "It's still 
snowing heavily out there, although the wind has died down 
considerably. That's a good sign, if nothing else--the worst of the 
actual storm is most likely over."

"But the wood... what do we do about that?" Scully asked, trying 
to keep the anxiousness from showing in her voice. Khi didn't 
answer for a minute, poking the fire up a bit, adding a few more 
pieces to it. 

"There's not much we can do. The snow is blanketing new inches 
every hour, covering up absolutely everything. We can either 
find the wood or we can't. If we can, we'll be fine for quite a 
while. If we can't..." she trailed off. She knew there was no need 
to state the obvious.

"What about food, is there any possibility of finding anything to 
eat?" Scully asked. She looked over at Mulder, who still 
appeared to be sleeping peacefully. "More than either of us, he 
should really have something to eat soon. His blood needs energy 
to combat the volume loss."

"He's not going to get any food for a while," Khi said. She's 
nothing if not direct, Scully thought with a sigh. "I can make 
snare traps, but they're not going to do any good--forest creatures 
aren't going to stir until the snow stops. There's no streams 
nearby to fish in and my pack doesn't have any food supplies in 
it, only survival equipment."

"So what do we do?" Scully asked after a moment. 

"We survive," Khi said simply. Glancing at Scully's side, she 
motioned for Scully to toss her the knife. "We can survive as 
long as we have heat. Water alone will sustain us for at least a 
week, probably two, and someone would find us by then."

Khi began cutting a few strips from the edge of the chute. She 
made sure to leave enough for Mulder to use as a blanket, but 
soon had a sizable pile of thick strips of the red and white 
material by her side. 

"The problem will be if the fire dies. Without the heat, we'll 
survive for a few hours, a half-day at most," Khi said, gathering 
together the strips and putting them in the pack. "There's a 
clearing not too far from here. I'm going to weave these into a 
couple branches and post them in that clearing--when the snow 
quits, it will provide a visual signal to anyone searching by air."

Khi caught sight of Scully's rather dubious expression, giving a 
short, mirthless laugh as she zipped up the pack. "I know it's not 
a great solution, but we don't have many options. The snow's too 
deep for even a healthy person to try to track through, much less 
someone with an injury. The travois wouldn't work nearly as well 
now either--the angle would be wrong because of the extra 
snow."

"Plus, we don't have any idea which way to go," Mulder said 
quietly. Scully and Khi both turned to look at him, surprised to 
find him awake. He waved off their attempts to help him sit up, 
propping himself up under his own power while mumbling 
something about not being a child. He did have to ask for the 
cylinder of water though, since he was unable to reach the fire 
himself. Khi, seeing that Scully was taking care of Mulder's 
request, headed for the doorway, strapping the pack to her back. 
She unsealed the pine bough to open up the exit and leaned down 
to begin crawling through the opening.

"Where's that... um, what was the word?" Mulder said to Scully 
as Khi worked her way outside. He had to pause for a second, 
replaying their conversation with Mobaje... had it only been 
yesterday? So much had happened since then, it seemed like 
years had passed. "Where's an ut'aari when you need one? We 
could use a hawk about now."

Khi closed up the entryway again, making sure the edges were 
woven securely into the shelter. She paused to look up at the sky, 
searching.

"He's coming," she said, closing her eyes against the falling 
snow. After a moment, she turned and headed for the clearing.



------------
Chapter 8
------------


The hours blended together, mindlessly, endlessly, each melding 
with the next to form a perpetual state of monotony. The second 
day become the second night became the third day until Scully 
no longer bothered to keep track. They had tried to keep a 
conversation going when more than one person was awake, but 
that had stopped somewhere during the second night. There just 
wasn't anything to say. Conversation become limited, brief 
status-report statements clipped short by the weariness that 
pervaded the shelter. 

Khi foraged for wood every few hours, managing to find a few 
branches every time, thereby keeping a lid on her companions' 
rising fears that she would return empty handed. But she couldn't 
keep a lid on her own--she knew, all too well, that each time she 
went out that door, it was one trip closer to that inevitable 
outcome. The snow continued to fall, making each successive 
trip harder to cover even the same distance, not to mention 
needing to get further out to find new sources of wood. She was 
pushing herself to the limit of her reserves of strength and 
endurance, forging ahead on sheer determination. 

That alone, though, wouldn't be enough--determination would 
not create a flame to keep them alive, no matter how hard she 
might try. As she wrestled a dead birch branch out of a drift, she 
reminded herself to deal with what *was,* not what *could be.* 
The future wasn't written until it became the past, and she was 
going to make sure there continued to *be* a future--for her, for 
Mulder, for Scully. The intensity of her resolve helped to keep 
her warm while she was away from the fire.

Somewhere near the end of the third day, Mulder began sleeping 
more deeply, becoming harder and harder to rouse--Scully knew 
he was weakening from lack of food and the extreme blood loss 
he'd suffered. When conscious, he tried to reassure her he was 
fine, but she could tell that even he knew the true state of his 
condition. It wouldn't be long until he would slip into a coma-
like state, with death most likely following closely behind. His 
injured body simply could not recuperate under the extreme 
conditions.

"I'll be fine, Scully, I'll be fine," Mulder whispered to her late 
that night, his hands wrapped around hers as he lay in her lap. 
She had rarely left his side for the last day or so, holding him 
close and gently massaging his arms and chest to keep the blood 
flowing. 

"I know, Mulder," Scully said, smiling down at him as his eyes 
opened briefly. "They'll find us any time now. They'll find us and 
get us to a hospital, you'll recover splendidly, and we'll be back 
filing background checks and giving speeches before you know 
it." 

"Oh, joy," Mulder said, rolling his eyes. "On second thought..."

"What, you mean you don't relish the thought of investigating the 
private, darkened life of Mr. Heinrich Q. Podenyacker, city clerk 
for the past 27 years for the fine town of Ironhead, South Dakota, 
population a staggering 312, who now wants to be employed as a 
federal officer?" Scully laughed. 

"Not so much," Mulder replied softly, a short laugh escaping him 
as she reeled off the all-too-real depiction of their days now. 

"Where's your sense of adventure?" she asked, reaching out to 
ruffle his hair as she teased him.

"I think it got hung up in that tree back there," he said, a smile 
making fun of the seriousness of his situation. "We'll have to go 
back and find it at some point."

"We'll just buy you a new one, Mulder," Scully said as though 
they were talking about a pair of jeans. "One that specifically 
states 'No Parachuting' in the usage instructions."

"You're on, flygirl," he whispered, his eyes slowly closing. She 
noticed that the vision was taking shape again, the two of them 
together in the snow as Mulder lay motionless. Some far corner 
of her brain noted there was no blood soaking the white snow 
this time. 

As she watched his breathing slow, as she watched his 
movements become less and less, Scully knew this might be the 
last time that Mulder was awake. That she might never have the 
chance to tell him everything she wanted to say. She willed her 
mouth to open, her throat to form the words she so desperately 
wanted, needed to say. 

But here, on the edge of forever, she found herself completely 
lost. She tried to speak, but her body would not cooperate. She 
could do nothing but stare down at him, at his face, his body, his 
hands wrapped around hers. 

"Hey, Scully," he whispered, struggling to stay awake for a few 
more seconds. 

"Yeah, Mulder," she said, struggling to fight off the wave of fear 
overtaking her.

"I know." 

This time, the snow became soaked with tears.

     *    *    *    *    *    *

The wood ran out shortly before dawn on the fourth day. Not that 
there was any sort of dawn they could see. The storm was still 
howling outside, the snow filling the air completely--they had 
marked time only through Khi's watch.

Khi had made an extended search the last trip out, pushing 
herself beyond exhaustion, beyond fear. But she had found 
nothing. So now Scully and Khi both watched as the last scrap 
burned down, the flames growing smaller and smaller as the 
seconds passed. 

With a silent whisper, the last flame flickered into nothingness. 
Complete darkness fell inside the shelter for the first time in 
days. Scully had gotten used to the flickering firelight, finding 
herself somewhat disoriented by the total blackness that 
surrounded her now. She wasn't normally claustrophobic, but the 
darkness felt alive somehow, silently closing around her with an 
ever-tightening pressure. She closed her eyes, then quickly re-
opened them when she realized that closing them only increased 
the sensation. She shifted nervously, breathing deeply as she 
tried to think rationally.

"You all right over there?"

Hearing Khi's voice was a shock, startling Scully so much she 
actually felt her heart jump. But she immediately felt a flush of 
relief as well, Khi's words providing a solid anchor against the 
crushing weight of the darkness.

"Um, yeah, pretty much," Scully managed to say, her voice 
choking a bit as she spoke. She coughed to clear her throat, one 
hand pounding lightly on her chest.

"Don't let it get to you," Khi said. "Instead of concentrating on 
your lack of sight, concentrate on building your other senses. 
Listen to the darkness, don't just watch it."

Scully followed the advice, trying to focus on what she could 
hear instead of what she couldn't see. As the minutes passed, she 
slowly became aware that the darkness was anything but silent--
she could hear both Khi and Mulder breathing, she could hear the 
wind, she could hear the shelter rustling. 

"Thanks, that's helping a bit," Scully said, giving herself a small 
shake to restore her control. 

"No problem. The darkness can be a weird thing, sending the 
mind down paths you couldn't imagine while in the light," Khi 
said. "Just didn't want to see you go freaking out on me, not that 
you would ever do such a thing."

"No, of course not, never," Scully said, smiling slightly. While 
she hadn't been too close to losing control, she knew it hadn't 
been as far off as she'd like to think.

"Anyway, the temperature is already dropping in here. We need 
to do what we can to retain as much heat as possible," Khi said. 
"Do you already have the chute wrapped around Mulder?"

"Yeah, I covered him quite a while ago, when you started using 
the wood more sparingly," Scully replied. Even as she spoke, she 
tucked the chute in around Mulder just a bit tighter, a bit closer. 

"Good. Take pine boughs from the edges and cover him with 
those as well," Khi instructed. "They'll trap at least a little heat. 
Do the same for yourself--you'll want to cover yourself as best 
you can as well."

The next several minutes were spent gathering and arranging the 
boughs, their efforts hampered by the dark. They each had to 
move a bit slower, feeling around them as they moved to avoid 
cracking into the shelter walls or each other. Scully found that 
she was more efficient with her eyes closed, picturing the interior 
of the shelter in her mind, keeping track of Mulder, Khi and the 
center fire pit mentally. 

Finally, Scully scooted down next to Mulder, curling up against 
his side and pulling the remaining boughs over herself. The 
needles draped down across her like a blanket--while she wasn't 
assured yet of their heat retention properties, they did make her 
feel a little more secure. 

The temperature dropped as the minutes wore on, becoming 
hours. As time wore on, Scully could feel her body shutting 
down, a little bit at a time. She managed to keep one hand warm 
by holding it inside her suit against her chest--she wanted to be 
able to feel for Mulder's pulse every so often. But the rest of her 
was slowly slipping away into oblivion. 

She fought it at first, trying to keep her limbs moving, her 
muscles flexing, her mind active. Soon, though, it became too 
difficult, too hard to remain focused. She knew she should stay 
awake, but the cold was becoming increasingly hard to dismiss--
she found herself drifting towards sleep, the mind wanting to 
follow the body.

"Hey, Scully, you still with me over there?" Khi asked, breaking 
into Scully's thoughts and waking her up a bit. 

"Yeah, still here," Scully said, her throat a little hoarse from the 
cold. As she tried to turn her mind away from the thoughts of 
slumber invading it, she realized Khi had done it again--she had 
somehow known exactly what was going on, taking the action 
necessary to fix the problem. Scully decided to figure out 
something once and for all.

"Khi, considering the situation we're in and the extreme 
possibility we're ever going to get out of it, can I ask you 
something you might normally take offense to?" Scully asked. 
Khi laughed a bit, as if relieved to hear Scully revived enough to 
be forming complex sentences.

"Sure, you can ask," she said. "I make no promises as to the 
possibility of an answer, but you can ask anything you want."

Scully paused for a second, trying to think of the best way to ask 
her question, finally opting for the completely simple and 
straightforward approach.

"Khi Shaolin, who the hell *are* you?"

     *    *    *    *    *    *

For the first time in days, the shelter shook with the sound of 
raucous laughter. Although she couldn't see her, Scully knew that 
Khi was rolling from side to side as she howled--Scully could 
hear the boughs rustling as Khi moved. At first, Scully tried to 
resist, but was soon laughing just as hard. 

"C'mon, Scully... don't be... shy or anything," Khi managed to 
choke out between laughs. "Ask me... what's really... on your 
mind." They both continued to laugh for a while, finally gaining 
control only after several failed efforts.

"Well, I mean it," Scully said as they calmed down. "Who in the 
hell are you? Let's me count this off... you show up out of 
nowhere, you get Mulder drunk on Kamikazes but not hungover, 
you convince him to go parachuting, you build a shelter out of 
nothing, you show medical training, you're stronger than most 
men, I'd swear you're telepathic... I mean, hell! You build a wood 
bowl that doesn't burn!"

They laughed a bit more at that one, Khi tossing off a comment 
about parting the waters if necessary. "Seriously," Scully said 
after gaining control again. "I'm genuinely curious. Tell me only 
what you want, if necessary, but knowing *anything* about you 
would be more than I know now."

Even though Khi made no sound, Scully could picture her 
turning over the various options in her mind, deciding what to 
tell and what to leave hidden. Scully didn't think for a moment 
that Khi would outright lie to her, but she had no doubt there 
were certain facts about Khi Shaolin the world would never 
know.

"Do you remember that day in the hotel, when you and Mulder 
stopped at my table while I was eating breakfast?" Khi asked at 
last. "Do you remember what he asked me and what I told him?"

"Um, he asked you what your regular life was," Scully said 
slowly, playing the conversation through her mind. "You told 
him that you could tell him, but then you'd have to kill him."

"Well, that comment was pretty much true," Khi said. Scully 
started to laugh, assuming Khi was joking again, but she realized 
that Khi was perfectly serious. "If I tell you, or anyone, about 
myself or my life, I risk serious consequences, including death. 
The knowledge of who I am puts the recipient at risk too. It's a 
risk I don't take. Ever."

"Who am I going to tell?" Scully asked, gesturing around her 
even though she knew Khi couldn't see her. "As much as I am 
avoiding thinking about it, this is probably going to be my last 
day upon this earth--whatever you tell me isn't going anywhere."

 "Yeah, I suppose you're right, in an extremely morbid and 
depressing way," Khi said. She remained quiet for a bit longer--
Scully became even more curious as the seconds passed. 

"You asked me who the hell I was, right?" she said finally. 
"Well, there's really only one true answer to that question--I'm 
nobody."

"What do you mean, you're nobody? You're sitting right in front 
of me. Well, at least, I think you are," Scully amended, glancing 
around the darkness.

"I'm alive, yes. I'm real, people can see and hear me, they can 
shake my hand. But as far as the world can prove, Khi Shaolin 
does not exist," Khi said. 

"I don't understand," Scully admitted. "Are you on the run, are 
you eluding the law somehow?"

"No, actually. I enforce the law in a lot of ways. The laws of 
survival guide me and shape both my path and those that follow 
me," Khi said.

"Which means... what, exactly?" Scully asked, still not 
understanding.

"I exist in no recorded fashion and am beyond rank in the US 
Marine Corps," she said, pausing to take a breath. "And I am the 
survivalist trainer for an elite ground-strike force called the Black 
Angels."

     *    *    *    *    *    *

Whatever Scully was expecting, it wasn't that. Not even close. 
She had suspected a connection to the military, but would not 
have guessed in a million years that Khi was beyond rank. Scully 
knew that an extremely limited number of individuals, probably 
no more than 5 at any given time, existed at that level of rank. 
They were, in essence, accountable to no one.

"OK... you're going to have to tell me more than that," Scully 
said.

"What, you mean that's not enough to satisfy you? Pushy, pushy, 
pushy..." Khi said, the smile perfectly audible. "Nearly all of 
what I could tell you is highly classified. I'll give you the rather 
shortened version, but I still need your assurance that what you're 
about hear goes no further than your ears, assuming we were to 
get out of this. Tell no one, Scully--not even Mulder."

"Start at the beginning," Scully said, knowing Khi would take her 
words as the affirmation they were. "Go."

Khi took a moment to gather her thoughts, deciding where to 
start and how much to say. Soon, she launched into her story 
with gusto, Scully listening as closely to her as she had to 
Mobaje previously. Khi's story was fascinating, and Scully didn't 
want to miss any of it.

"Well, to start at the beginning, I grew up as a normal kid, 4 
brothers, no sisters. We lived on a 15,000-acre cattle ranch in 
Wyoming, so there was always work to be done outdoors. I 
suppose that's where I first got hooked on nature, so to speak. I 
was always riding the land, driving stock out of the highlands 
and so on. Lots of stuff could happen to a person out there--your 
horse could take a fall or throw you if it got spooked, you could 
get caught in storms, you could get gored by an angry steer. 

"So I learned to take care of myself and survive, no matter what 
happened. When I decided to leave the ranch to join the Marine 
Corps, that knowledge served me very, very well. At the end of 
my first year, I was recruited to join the Black Angels. I was the 
youngest person to ever be accepted, and believe me, I took a lot 
of crap for it. Not a day went by when someone didn't test me, 
challenge me, try to beat me down. But I thrived on it--it served 
only to make me stronger, smarter, faster than everyone else.

"The training program for the Angels is beyond intense. For a 
solid year, you do nothing but survive in every extreme condition 
known to mankind. No contact with family or friends, sometimes 
not even other Angels. The jungle, the desert, the arctic, the 
mountains, the swamps--I can survive in them all, be it with 
every supply possible or nothing at all, not even clothing. Not 
everyone fares so well. The voluntary fall-out rate is something 
above 80%, with a death rate so large only a handful of people 
even know it.

"After the year of physical training, there was a year of intense 
mental conditioning and knowledge acquisition. This was the 
year that I hooked up with Mulder--the Angels used the Quantico 
facility, though no one knew their true purpose. We blended with 
the rest of the students at the facility, but maintained our own 
course and training regimen. Since I had already proved to be the 
most valuable Angel they'd seen in years, I was given more 
leeway in my personal life. I had slightly more free time and I 
was allowed to live where I wanted. 

"I met Mulder late one night, on an outdoor basketball court. We 
were each just shooting hoops, running a few light layups and so 
on, mostly just wasting time. After sticking to our own ends of 
the court for a half-hour or so, Mulder challenged me to a game 
of one-on-one."

Scully chuckled at that thought, picturing Mulder sidling up to 
his new 'friend' and casually offering to play a game. She knew 
Mulder prided himself on his basketball abilities, a ball never far 
from his hands whether he was at home or at the office.

"So what happened? Who won?" Scully asked.

"I whipped his ass, 21 to 4, in less than ten minutes," Khi said, 
breaking out into laughter as she remembered. "You should have 
seen his expression after the first three minutes--he had 
absolutely no idea what was happening to him. When I sunk that 
last shot, he just turned to me and said, 'I know I only just met 
you, and that I really know nothing about you, but I feel I must 
say two things to you--one, I hate you. And two, could you teach 
me how to do that?'

"I knew right then I'd found a new friend--anyone that could be 
so straightforward was all right by me. We spent the next three 
hours on that court, leaving only when a thunderstorm drove us 
out. We went for breakfast at some sleazy 24-hour diner a couple 
miles away, and by the end of the meal, Mulder was inviting me 
to move in with him.

"We did everything together for that next year, separated only by 
the demands of classes and studies. Mulder had absolutely no 
idea who I was, what I was becoming--he soon gave up asking 
me what I did at the base, since I never told him anything."

Scully broke in, wanting to know exactly what that was. "What 
*were* you becoming? What do the Black Angels actually do?" 
she asked, trying to picture what would exist at that level of 
secrecy.

"Official description would be something like 'Elite first-wave 
ground strike unit, specially trained to survive under extreme 
conditions to assist the completion of their objectives,'" Khi said. 
"A true definition would be 'Specially-trained soldiers who do 
whatever they're told, wherever they're told to do it, when no one 
else is capable of doing it.' 

"No two missions are exactly the same. One might be a rescue 
operation, the next an assassination, the next a kidnapping. The 
objective, the terrain and the conditions change each time, but 
one thing does remain constant--we succeed. In the ten years I've 
been associated with the Black Angels, they have had a failure 
rate of less than one percent."

Scully was impressed. She and Mulder had a resolution rate of 
nearly 80% on the X-Files, but that was considered 
extraordinary. She couldn't imagine tacking on another 20% to 
that figure, plus doing it under the extreme conditions Khi was 
describing.

"Anyway, whatever. I tagged up with Mulder for that year and 
I'll never forget it. I'm not a person that usually warms up to 
people very quickly, but within a month, we were well beyond 
friendship. I'm not sure what it was, but there was a connection 
between us that I've never felt before or since with anyone else.

"And when the time came for me to ship out for operations, I 
didn't know what to do. I knew that Mulder deserved a good-bye, 
that he deserved to at least know I was leaving, but I couldn't do 
it. I've faced death a thousand times--insane killers threatening to 
tear my heart from my chest with their teeth... bombs, gunfire 
and chemical warfare... I've faced them all. 

"But I couldn't face that look I knew Mulder would give me 
when I told him I was leaving. I didn't want to see that jaw 
clench, those eyes close--I didn't want to see him flex every 
muscle he had to restrain himself from throwing a fist through a 
wall."

Scully nodded in silent agreement, though she knew Khi couldn't 
see it. She had seen that happen once before as well, and knew 
she never wanted to see it again. Without thought, she wrapped 
her arm around Mulder a bit tighter.

"So... I just left," Khi continued with a sigh. "It was one of the 
hardest things I've ever had to do, but I packed up my bags and I 
left. I soon had little time to feel regret, but it did manage to 
creep in every now and again.

"I spent nearly all of the next five years as commander for the 
Angels while still climbing the chain of command in the Corps, 
leading every mission we undertook with a 100% success rate. 
But as those years passed, I came to realize that I could better 
serve my country not as an active Angel, but as the survivalist 
trainer. Throughout my active career, I had often taught the 
commanders or trainers tricks or techniques that they hadn't 
known--so why not *be* the trainer? 

"One thing led to another, and over the years I was promoted to 
the status of beyond rank and erased from the public record. As 
the world political situation has evolved over the past 5 years, so 
has the training necessary to contain that situation. I needed to 
have complete and utter control over everyone and everything in 
my command--I couldn't afford, and thereby the country couldn't 
afford, to have my actions restricted by a hierarchy of 
command."

"But, there must be someone or some entity that has control over 
you, even if it's never exercised," Scully said. "They wouldn't 
just let you run rampant if you turned psychotic or something... 
would they?"

"That's why I told you that I risk serious consequences by telling 
you any of this. While limitless by most people's standards, there 
are boundaries to my status," Khi explained. "If I ever willfully 
and maliciously endangered my command, if I ever get out of 
control, I could face outright execution.

"Everything has its price... and that's the one I pay."

     *    *    *    *    *    *

"So that's it. That's everything. That's my life story condensed 
into a single 30-minute monologue," Khi said, laughing a bit. 
"Was it everything you'd dreamt of?"

"I'm not sure *anyone* could have dreamt that one, not even 
Mulder," Scully said, chuckling a bit.

"Don't tell me you find it unusual that the government could 
harbor a secret special forces unit for decades without letting the 
public know about it," Khi chided jokingly.

"Oh, never," Scully said. "They'd never do something like that. 
They're completely honest and forthright in every regard." Khi 
just snorted, sending them both laughing again. They both settled 
into their own thoughts then, a silence descending across the 
shelter.

"So I know you want to ask me, so why don't you just get it over 
with?" Khi said after a while.

"What do you mean?" Scully said, trying to coax her voice into 
its best innocent tones.

"You know what I mean, Scully. You've been dying to find out 
since you first saw me sitting on Mulder's couch that night," Khi 
answered. Scully didn't need any light to see the quirked eyebrow 
and teasing smile she knew was present on Khi's face.

"So...?" Scully finally said. 

"Oh, you're not even going to ask it, you're just going to leave it 
up to me to answer it?" Khi said, chuckling. "Wimp. Fine, I'll just 
tell you.

"No, Mulder and I were never romantically involved. We slept 
together every night, but that was the literal truth--we *slept* 
together, like bear cubs in a den. Our relationship never was, is 
not, and never will be physical," Khi said succinctly.

"But you said that you were 'beyond friendship' with him nearly 
right away, that you shared a bond unlike any other," Scully said.

"Isn't that what you have with him, right here, right now?" Khi 
said quietly. "Aren't you bonded to him in ways you don't even 
comprehend, feeling a connection to him no matter how far apart 
you might be?"

Scully didn't respond, but she didn't have to--Khi had seen the 
two of them together and knew the truth. "I love Mulder with all 
my heart, Scully. I would give my life for him without hesitation. 
I felt that way 10 years ago and I still feel that way today. And I 
know that Mulder used to feel the same way about me.

"But a person only has room in their heart for one person like 
that. Someone to whom they are devoted as family, someone for 
whom they would sacrifice themselves without regret. For 
Mulder, that person used to be me, but not anymore. His soul is 
bound with yours now, entwined so completely that the two have 
become indistinguishable from each other. 

"You are one."

Lying next to Mulder in the shelter, no longer able to feel 
anything but the gentle pressure of Mulder's chest rising and 
falling against her cheek, Scully closed her eyes. Over the course 
of the last several days, she had finally understood how much she 
loved Mulder, how much he was a part of her life, a part of her. 
But the realization had come slowly, building gradually, piece by 
piece over the years.

But hearing the same the same words, the same thoughts from 
someone who had only known her for a few days--it shook her a 
bit. If it was that obvious to Khi, whom she'd never met until a 
week ago, Scully wondered how she had missed it all these 
years. Why did I never let myself see it, she asked herself. Why 
did I wait until we were about to die to tell him I love him? As 
she questioned why she'd never told him how she felt, she 
opened her eyes to stare out into the darkness...

...and realized she could see the shelter wall across from her.

     *    *    *    *    *    *

With a start, Scully jerked her head up from Mulder's chest. She 
propped herself up on one elbow, rubbing her eyes with her other 
hand to make sure she wasn't hallucinating. Just as she started to 
call out to Khi, she heard Khi calling out to her.

"Hey, Scully, am I seeing what I'm thinking I'm seeing?" Khi 
asked. She scrambled out from beneath her boughs, standing to 
stare across the fire pit at Scully doing the same.

"It doesn't even matter what you think you're seeing, as long as 
you're seeing something," Scully said, the jubilation clear in her 
voice. "What's happening, what's going on?"

"It's just after dawn, and if we can see it, then the storm must be 
over. The clouds are breaking and letting the sun through," Khi 
said as she scrambled to her knees and began opening the 
doorway. "Now I should tell you not to get too excited. This 
doesn't necessarily mean we're any better off than we were 10 
minutes ago."

"Yes, I know... but it sure feels better, doesn't it?" Scully asked 
with a laugh. Khi paused for a second, appearing to think about 
the question for a bit.

"Damn straight, sister," she called out as she removed the door 
completely and crawled outside. Scully dropped down and 
followed her into the open air for the first time in half a day.

The open sky greeted her as she stood up outside the shelter, 
stepping out of the way so Khi could prop the door back in place. 
A light breeze was blowing, a welcome change from the gale 
forces that had swept over the mountain for the last five days. 
The snow had stopped completely, replaced by a spectacular 
vista of colors as the sun crept into the sky--the tops of the trees 
were silhouetted against vivid oranges, yellows and reds. Scully 
had never seen a more beautiful sight in her entire life.

"I'm going to track over to the clearing, to check the signal strips 
and make sure they are still clear," Khi said, waving an arm 
towards the rising sun. "With the clear conditions now, they 
might actually be a realistic avenue of rescue. Wood is still our 
biggest concern--even though it is slightly warmer now, we won't 
survive for very long without a fire."

Khi ducked back inside the shelter to retrieve the knife, tucking it 
into a suit pocket as she came back out. "You should try to keep 
moving now, take this opportunity to use your adrenaline to 
restore some body heat."

"Should I try to search for wood?" Scully asked, glancing around 
at the nearby woods. It's funny, she thought--the trees don't look 
nearly as forbidding as they did before. 

"As long as you stay within sight of the shelter, you should be 
OK. Don't over-exert yourself, though, no matter how excited 
you feel right now," Khi warned as she set off. "We are both 
extremely fatigued, and there's little to be gained by driving 
ourselves to unconsciousness. I'll be back within the hour." 
Scully watched her go, tracking her progress through the tree 
trunks until she finally disappeared into the forest. 

Glancing around her, Scully deciding to go out to the furthest 
point where she could still easily see the shelter, then start a slow 
circle around it. Her progress was extremely slow, considering 
that several of the drifts were nearly as tall as she was. Even 
though she wasn't finding any dead wood, it felt good to be 
moving again, to be doing something. 

As she circled around to the back of the shelter, perhaps 75 yards 
from it, she came upon the edge of a drop-off. The hillside fell 
away from her, sloping down to another level perhaps a hundred 
feet below her, a small clearing surrounded by the thick forest. 
Just as she was about to turn away to continue her circle, 
something caught her attention.

A fresh set of tracks wound across the clearing beneath her.

      *    *    *    *     *    *     *    *

She knew she should wait for Khi's return and investigate the 
tracks together, but Scully just couldn't restrain herself--she had 
to know what had made those tracks. Half sliding, half rolling, 
she made her way down the hillside and then crossed over to 
where the tracks were. Drawing close, she saw the tracks had 
been made by an animal, something the size of a wolf or a 
cougar, not a human. Despite knowing that there was virtually no 
chance that a person had made it this far into the mountains on 
foot, she felt disappointed anyway.

Turning, she surveyed the hill she'd have to scale up to get back 
to her starting position--she swore the hill hadn't seemed that 
large five minutes ago as she had looked down. Now, though, as 
she looked up, it was its own tiny mountain. Son of a bitch...

She looked around her, searching for another way up the hillside. 
Glancing to her right and peering through the tree trunks, she saw 
that it did look like the slope was a little gentler a bit further 
down. Figuring a longer distance in exchange for a lesser slope 
was a good trade, Scully started walking, noticing that the tracks 
went the same way. After ten minutes or so, she reached another, 
slightly larger clearing. At the edge, the hill began sloping 
upwards at a decidedly more leisurely angle--she would be able 
to ascend back to the shelter far more easily. 

She didn't notice it until she was already past it and nearly to the 
hill's beginning. Something 'clicked' in her brain, though, and 
made her turn back. Her eyes roved across the small clearing, 
searching. She finally saw it, a small exhale of surprise escaping 
her.

The tracks ended in the center of the clearing. They didn't fade 
out of sight, they weren't covered by snow--they simply ended, 
as if whatever creature made them had blinked out of existence 
between one step and the next.

What the hell, Scully thought as she retraced her path and veered 
towards the end of the tracks. Leaning over to inspect them more 
closely, she confirmed that they simply stopped. There were no 
trees close enough for a cougar to have leapt to, if the tracks had 
even been made by a cougar. Whatever it was, the animal was 
much too large for an eagle to have carried off and there was no 
sign of it having buried itself into the snow. So where in the 
world did it go, she wondered as she glanced around the clearing.

Whatever answers the forest might have held, they didn't reveal 
themselves. Scully knew she should get back to the shelter, both 
to check Mulder and to make sure she was there when Khi 
returned. She turned and headed back for the hillside, slowly 
making her way back up to the top. Once there, she wasn't 
surprised to see that she could no longer make out the location of 
the shelter. 

But she knew she would eventually intercept her original tracks 
if she simply headed in that general direction, so she once again 
set off through the snow. When she finally did reach her original 
path, she acknowledged she was nearing exhaustion--the detour 
to inspect the tracks had taken its toll. She decided to simply cut 
straight to the shelter, which could see through the tree trunks 
now, and leave the wood gathering to Khi.

She reached the shelter just as her strength was giving out--she 
wasn't sure she could have made it even another 20 yards. She 
rested for a minute, leaning up against a tree to take a breather. 
The sun was now fully in the sky, streaming through the 
branches and turning the snow into a sparkling wonder. 

A hawk's cry split through the air, startling Scully with its 
intensity. She had always found the sound haunting, in a way, 
and the closeness of this one made it seem even more so. 
Glancing up at the sky, she thought she caught a brief glimpse of 
it as it arced over her, and then it was gone. She watched the 
forest a while longer, enjoying the brightness of the morning 
after so many days inside the shelter--the hawk, and the tracks, 
had been the first signs of life since the storm began, and she 
hoped to see a few others. Nothing showed itself, though, and she 
soon turned to go back inside the shelter.

Crossing over the fire pit, Scully knelt down beside Mulder to 
check on him. Having worked up a considerable amount of body 
heat while struggling through the snow, the icy cold of Mulder's 
face came as a shock against her fingertips. Her breath caught in 
her throat for an instant as she felt for a pulse, but she soon found 
it, extremely weak but there. Knowing Khi wouldn't mind, she 
gathered up the boughs Khi had been using and brought them to 
Mulder's side to insulate another layer over him.

As Scully rearranged the boughs over Mulder, she slowly 
became aware of a growing sound outside the shelter. She wasn't 
able to place it at first, but as it drew nearer, she recognized it as 
Khi's voice. She couldn't make out the words, but she realized 
Khi was yelling at the top of her lungs.

Scully raced outside the shelter, turning in a circle as she 
searched for Khi. She finally saw her approaching, a small figure 
coming in from the north--Khi must have started a search for 
wood after leaving the signal clearing, then decided to cut to the 
shelter. Although her words strung together almost as a single 
phrase, Scully was finally able to make out what Khi was saying.

"We're saved he found us we're going to be all right Scully did 
you hear me whoo hoo we're going to be OK we're saved..."

While Scully didn't understand specifically what Khi meant by 
'he found us,' she had no trouble whatsoever understanding the 
rest of it. Scully closed her eyes, tears of relief beginning to track 
their way across her face as she realized Mulder would be all 
right now. 

She soon added her own cries to Khi's, their voices tumbling 
together into a single stream of jubilation.



------------
Chapter 9
------------

Within an hour, a chopper was hovering above them as an 
orange-suited figure was lowered to the ground. As soon as she 
had heard the blade chop, Khi had dived inside the shelter and 
pulled Mulder to the entryway. Now, she watched the man hit the 
snow, unclipping from the line to run over to the shelter.

"Another larger chopper's right behind us. We can take one of 
you right now, but the other two will have to wait," the man said 
quickly. Scully wasted no time directing him to Mulder's side.

"Take him first, he needs immediate attention. He has a puncture 
wound through the upper right thigh leading to massive blood 
loss. No other known injuries. Core temperature falling for 
several hours. No food in almost five days, unconscious for last 
12 hours," she summarized quickly. The man nodded, activating 
his suit communication unit and yelling for a rescue sled--a 
second man was soon descending from the helicopter, a cradle-
like sled dangling beneath him.

The first man pulled a thermal blanket from his backpack, the 
distinctively metallic fabric glistening in the sun. Deftly, he had 
Mulder wrapped within it just as the second man came running 
with the sled. Together, they loaded Mulder into the sled and 
moved him beneath the chopper. The second man clipped 
himself to the cable and was drawn skywards. 

A few moments later, the cable descended again. The first man 
hooked the sled corners to the cable and gave the signal for it to 
be lifted. Scully and Khi both watched anxiously as Mulder was 
hauled up to the chopper. The rescue guy pulled the sled inside 
the passenger compartment of the chopper. Seconds later, the 
craft banked and sped off.

Before the sound of the chopper blades had even died, Scully 
heard another set approaching. As it came into view, Scully 
could see this craft was much larger, more similar to a personnel 
carrier than the other. When the rescue guy on the ground 
signaled that the remaining two individuals were mobile and 
unhurt, two standard harnesses were lowered from the chopper. 

 Stepping into the harness, Scully was soon clipped to the line 
and ascending to the chopper. Strong hands pulled her into the 
passenger area, moving her to the center of the floor. She was 
unclipped from the cable line, then clipped to a short piece of 
cable mounted into the ceiling--she saw that the three rescue 
personnel were similarly attached. She realized it was a 
precaution against tumbling through the open cargo doors as the 
rescue was in progress.

One of the rescue personnel began talking to her, asking her how 
she was doing as he wrapped a thermal blanket around her. 
Scully told him she was fine, sitting still as he checked her hands 
and then her feet for signs of frostbite. He ran her through a 
standard battery of coordination and recognition test, checking 
for signs of head concussion. Satisfied she was relatively 
uninjured, he at last allowed her to move forward to a bench seat 
at the front of the compartment. She barely glanced at the back of 
the pilot as she turned to sit down.

Khi was soon hauled inside the chopper as well. Obviously 
familiar with the drill, she unclipped herself from the main line 
and tossed it back outside, where it was quickly on its way down 
to the remaining rescue guy on the ground. She clipped herself to 
another cable, getting out of the way as the others began hauling 
up their partner. He was on board within another minute or so, 
the others quickly shutting the door and giving the pilot the go-
ahead to leave.

Khi took a seat next to Scully, leaning backwards to rest her head 
on the low wall that separated the main compartment from the 
pilot. She closed her eyes for a bit, catching her breath and 
relaxing a bit. "It's about damn time, my friend. It's about damn 
time," she suddenly called out, rapping her knuckles on the wall 
behind her. Looking at the rescue personnel, who were suddenly 
grinning as they worked, Scully wondered what was going on. 

"You fall from the sky, I find you--we have often challenged the 
gods in this game, zhajeen," another voice said, a voice low and 
lustrous, yet easily heard over the noise of the blades. "M'alvahe 
simply played harder this time." 

Scully glanced back, staring in wonder at the person sitting in the 
pilot's seat as the chopper banked and headed down the 
mountainside. She wondered how she had possibly missed it 
before--the massive body was somewhat hidden by the low wall, 
and the flowing silver locks were neatly pulled back by a thin 
strip of leather now, but it could only be Mobaje sitting there. 
She turned back to stare at Khi, a slow smile spreading across her 
face as Khi opened her eyes to look at her. 

"Told you he'd find us," Khi said with a grin of her own.

     *    *    *    *    *    *

The helicopter landed at a downtown Denver hospital a short 
while later. Following proper hospital procedure, Khi and Scully 
were both loaded onto stretchers and taken from the rooftop 
landing site down to the emergency room. As soon they were 
inside, Scully began asking where Mulder had been taken, 
questioning every nurse and doctor in sight. None seemed to 
have the answer, instead telling her she needed to remain calm so 
they could do their job.

"Look, until I found out where my partner is, I'm going to be 
everything but calm. So if you want me to be calm anytime soon, 
you damn well better tell me where he is!" she said, her voice 
rising steadily throughout until she was nearly shouting at the 
end. They wheeled her into an emergency area, physically 
restraining her from jumping up and taking off on her own 
search.

"Dr. Newinski, Dr. Newinski," a nurse called breathlessly, 
running up to the doctor beside Scully's stretcher. "Are these the 
other two rescued from the mountain?"

"Yes, why?" the doctor said, relieved to see that the distraction 
had taken Scully's attention for a moment. He lifted his hands 
from her shoulders to face the nurse.

"Which of you is Dana Scully?" the woman asked, looking 
across to both Scully and Khi.

"I'm Dana Scully, where's my partner?" Scully asked, 
immediately seizing the opportunity to find out where Mulder 
was. 

"He's in the OR right now, but he's doing pretty well, don't 
worry," she said, hearing the underlying question underneath 
Scully's query. "When we stripped him for surgery, we found his 
ID and realized who he was. Considering his unconscious state, I 
was sent to find you."

"Why, what's going on? How did you know to look for me?" 
Scully asked, confused.

"All area hospitals have been alerted to watch for the two of you. 
Apparently, when you went missing five days ago, your superior 
began an immediate search for you," the woman explained, 
holding up an FBI fax sheet. "But, finding nothing and fearing 
the worst because of the weather, he began alerting all hospitals 
and police stations to keep an eye out for you."

"Kersh?" Scully wondered aloud, incredulous. She couldn't 
imaging Kersh lifting a finger to do anything but tighten their 
leashes--the thought of him conducting a massive search for 
them didn't make any sense.

"No, that wasn't the name, I don't think," the woman said, rifling 
through to the last page of the fax. "Walter Skinner's his name, 
Assistant Director for the FBI."

Now *that* made sense.

     *    *    *    *    *    *

Scully watched as Khi was taken to surgery herself--apparently, 
her shoulder was a mass of torn muscles and ligaments from the 
dislocation. As the doctors walked past her, discussing it 
amongst themselves, Scully heard the phrases "How can she 
even *move*?" and "Never seen anything like it!" tossed back 
and forth. Scully just smiled.

Ten minutes later, Scully was released from the emergency 
room. Cornering a nervous-looking intern at the desk, she was 
soon armed with directions to the OR in which Mulder was being 
worked on. No one impeded her progress through the hospital--
whether it was her ID or the look of determination on her face, 
she didn't know.

Soon, she was outside the door to the surgical bay, standing by 
the large glass panels as she looked in. Normally, she would have 
swept into the room and demanded an update, but she could that 
the surgical team was working easily, calmly. They were not 
rushing about in a fervor, as they would be in a crisis situation, 
so she contented herself with remaining outside. All the monitor 
screens she could see showed normal readings, including the one 
she was most interested in--body temperature, currently 96.7 and 
rising.

Remembering the fax she had folded into her pocket, Scully 
stepped over to the nurses' station across the hall. She flashed her 
ID again, commandeering the phone and asking to be connected 
to an outside line. Soon, the phone was ringing on the other end. 

"Skinner," a voice answered.

"Sir..." Scully started to say, but got no further.

"Scully! My god, where the hell are you? Are you all right?" 
Skinner asked in a rush, the concern clearly evident across the 
phone line.

"Yes, sir, I'm fine. We're in Denver, at..." Scully realized she 
didn't even know where they were. She glanced at some charts 
lying on the counter top. "At Regions Memorial Hospital. Agent 
Mulder is seriously injured, but is in surgery and doing well."

"What the hell happened to him, to the two of you? You just 
disappeared off the face of the earth--no one had any idea what 
had happened to you," Skinner said. 

"We... well, we..." Scully realized she didn't even know where to 
begin. What am I going to say, she asked herself with a mental 
laugh. We jumped out a plane on a dare, basically, and almost 
died? While essentially accurate, she knew that Skinner wouldn't 
appreciate that explanation. "Suffice it to say, sir, that we 
afforded ourselves of some local adventure on our off day and 
ended up needing to be rescued from the mountains. I'll file a 
complete report when I've had time to assure myself of Agent 
Mulder's condition."

There was a brief moment of silence on the other end--Scully 
knew Skinner was trying to decide whether to accept her offer or 
insist on a complete report, right here, right now. She was 
relieved when he decided on the former.

"You do that, Agent. I will expect that report to be on my desk 
by noon tomorrow. Overnight it, fax it, send it by carrier pigeon, 
I don't care. You just make sure it's here," he said, his original 
demeanor of concern taking its place behind the demands of 
being an Assistant Director.

"Should I contact AD Kersh as well, sir?" Scully asked, dreading 
the thought of *that* conversation. Kersh already despised the 
both of them--she didn't want to imagine what had happened 
when he had heard they'd gone missing.

"No, Agent, I'll contact him myself," Skinner said. "You just get 
me that report."

"Yes, sir. Thank you, sir," Scully said, her sigh of relief clearly 
audible to Skinner.

"Go check on Mulder, Scully," Skinner said, his concern making 
a final curtain call. "I'll talk to you tomorrow." The dial tone 
returned as she heard Skinner hang up. Scully replaced the 
handset and returned the phone to its original position on the 
desk. 

"Where will that man be taken when his surgery is complete?" 
she asked, motioning across to Mulder's bay. The woman rifled 
through several charts, finally finding the correct one.

"He'll be taken to the critical care ward, wing B, room 1205. You 
can always ask at the ward station for final room placement," the 
woman said.

"Thank you," Scully said, committing the information to memory 
as she started back across the hall to the bay. She paused, though, 
laughing quietly as she turned back to the nurse. Gesturing down 
at her torn clothing and general state of disrepair, Scully asked 
for the one thing she'd been dreaming of for days.

"Is there somewhere where I might be able to take a shower?"

     *    *    *    *    *    *

Clean and refreshed at last, dressed in a set of nondescript 
jogging sweats she'd managed to finagle from the OR nurse, 
Scully finally began to feel relaxed. Making her way to the 
critical care ward, she found Mulder exactly where the woman 
had said she would. She quickly checked his condition, insisting 
this time on seeing him personally. Finally allowed access, she 
checked his chart and monitors, feeling his pulse and lack of 
fever for herself. His skin was warm against her fingers, its 
pinkish hue a welcome change from the icy whiteness of the last 
day. 

Scully stepped outside the room to talk to the ward nurse. "I'll 
need a chair in there right away, plus a small meal for myself," 
she said.

"Ma'am, you can't stay in a critical care room overnight, it's 
against hosp-" the woman started to say. Scully cut her off with a 
flash of her ID.

"That man is a federal agent. I have orders to keep him under 
strict guard--I'm not going anywhere until he is walking out of 
that room right beside me," Scully said, figuring the small lie 
probably wasn't far from the truth. Kersh would want her to 
make sure Mulder made it back to D.C. safe and sound so he 
could kill him personally.

"Yes, ma'am. Right away," the nurse said. She signaled for a 
nearby orderly, who soon scurried away down the hall.

A few minutes later, Scully was equipped with a small tray of 
hospital food and a comfortably plush chair. She positioned the 
chair next to Mulder's bed where she could easily see both him 
and the monitors. Glancing down at her meal tray, she realized 
that the ward nurse must have recognized Scully as part of the 
group rescued off the mountain. Knowing Scully hadn't had food 
for five days, the nurse had made sure the meal was very small 
and very bland. A small bowl of simple broth, a helping of plain 
white rice and a tiny dish of the ever-present hospital Jell-O 
adorned her plate along with a glass of water. As she relished 
every single bite, Scully was convinced she had never tasted 
anything so good.

Finishing off the last bite, Scully set the tray on the small counter 
at the far edge of the room. She washed her hands in the small 
bathroom and then settled back into her chair to wait. How many 
times have I sat like this, she wondered, reaching out to take 
Mulder's hand. Different chairs, different beds, different rooms, 
but still the same somehow. The same nervousness, the same 
anticipation, the same prayers. 

Her thoughts were interrupted by a sound of someone entering 
the room. Scully turned to see Khi behind her, watching Mulder 
with a small smile. Khi's arm was in a sling and there was a 
bandage on her forehead, but she otherwise looked well. Scully 
started to speak, but then broke off into a chuckle.

"I was going to say I was surprised to see you up and about, but I 
realized it's not really true," Scully said, laughing a bit as Khi 
looked at her quizzically. "Knowing you, I'd be surprised if they 
*did* manage to keep you lying down in a hospital bed."

Khi laughed, lifting her slinged arm a bit as she spoke. "Well, 
they did want to keep me overnight since I had some surgery on 
the arm here, but I told them I didn't need it. Plus, I don't ever 
stay in public hospitals, for reasons you don't know," she said, 
putting enough emphasis on 'don't to make Scully laugh.

"I don't know anything, anything at all," she said. "So, what are 
you doing now, are you leaving?" Mulder had originally said 
something about Khi leaving for California anyway, which was 
why she had agreed to come to Colorado with them.

"Actually, no. My engagement there was rescheduled due to my 
absence, so I'm actually free for the next week," Khi said, 
walking around to the other side of Mulder's bed. "I thought I'd 
hang around for a while, make sure Mulder heals up OK."

Khi stared down at Mulder, gently placing her hand on his 
chest--it seemed as though she wanted to feel his heart beating 
just to reassure herself he was alive. She stood there for several 
minutes, finally leaning down to give him a quick kiss before 
stepping back around the bed.

"Well, Mobaje and a couple of my... friends," she said with a 
wink, "are taking me out for some food, wanting to hear the 
whole tale, of course. I'm sure I'll be taking crap for this one for a 
long, long time. Oh hey, I almost forgot to tell you, I booked us 
rooms at the Westin here in Denver--when Mulder gets released, 
you'll have a place to stay for the rest of the week."

"Well, thanks, but we'll have to fly back to D.C. as soon as 
possible," Scully said with a sigh. 

"No, you won't," Khi said with an air of conspiracy. "As of an 
hour ago, you're both on medical leave for an undetermined 
amount of time."

Scully just stared, unable to believe what Khi was saying. "H-... 
how... how did you manage that?" she asked, realizing she really 
didn't care so long as it was true.

"Let's just say the absence of rank has its privileges," Khi 
laughed. Scully joined in, basking in the relief that she wouldn't 
have to deal with anything or anyone from the FBI except 
Mulder for the near future. 

As Khi passed her to leave the room, Scully reached out and 
stopped her. "Khi, something's been on my mind since we got 
here to the hospital," she said quietly. "When you first returned 
to the shelter up there, yelling that we'd been rescued, you were 
saying that 'he found us.' Who did you mean?"

"Mobaje, of course. He flew over me in that clearing, signaling 
that he'd seen me," Khi answered.

"But I never heard any helicopter before the rescue craft arrived--
how could he have flown over and seen us without being heard?" 
Scully asked. 

"He wasn't flying the helicopter when he first found," Khi 
explained, smiling slightly at Scully's look of confusion. "He'd 
been searching on foot, or perhaps 'feet' would be a better term, 
but then switched when the forest thinned a bit."

"Switched? Switched how, what? What are you saying?" Scully 
asked. She felt that the answer was right there in front of her, but 
it somehow kept eluding her.

"You haven't figured it out yet, have you? You've got all the 
pieces of the puzzle right there before you, you're a trained FBI 
agent but you can't see it--my regard for the investigative skills 
of our nation's top crime segment is rapidly deteriorating, I must 
say," Khi said teasingly, shaking her head as she headed for the 
door. "You won't find the answer in your head, you'll only find it 
in your heart. You have to take a leap of faith, Scully. You have 
to believe."

As Khi reached the doorway, she turned back to the room. She 
watched Scully for a moment, as if deciding whether or not to 
reveal the secret.

"Mobaje is an ut'aari," Khi finally said, grinning as she saw 
Scully's expression change from outright disbelief to dawning 
realization to awed wonder as the seconds passed. Khi pushed 
the door open then, spinning on her heel as she turned towards it.

"One leap, taken and accounted for," Khi said with an air of 
satisfaction, stepping through the doorway as the door swung 
shut behind her.

Hours passed as Scully sat beside Mulder, reflecting on her 
newly acquired knowledge. The scientist part of her brain reared 
its head several times, cautioning her that such a thing could not 
possibly exist, that a man could not transform himself into 
another creature by merely willing it. 

This time, though, Scully refused to listen. This time, she took 
the leap she had avoided for so many years. In one strong, sure 
motion, she stepped across the chasm that lay between science 
and faith, discovering at last what lay on the other side.

Peace.

     *    *    *    *    *    *

Sleep finally claimed Scully in the late afternoon. She had 
scrunched down in the chair a little, sliding her feet out in front 
of her so she could rest her head on the back of the chair. Her 
hand remained by Mulder's side, her fingers covering his gently.

Even in sleep, though, Scully remained aware of the comings and 
goings in the room. She knew that the nurses continued to check 
Mulder every so often, knew that one of them had eased a pillow 
underneath her head somewhere along the way. Had she sensed 
anything out of the ordinary, she would have woken up 
immediately--but everything remained under control, so she 
simply continued to sleep.

Only after several hours did something tickle at her unconscious 
mind. Slowly, as a diver resurfacing, she worked her way back to 
consciousness, trying to find what was invading her dreams. 
Opening her eyes, she glanced around the room. The monitors all 
showed normal readings, Mulder appeared to be resting 
peacefully and she couldn't see that anyone had entered the room. 

Not until she went to stand up did she realize what it was. Her 
hand, originally covering Mulder's on the bedside, was now 
covered by his. Slowly, she twisted her hand beneath his, turning 
it upwards so that she could grasp his hand. As she took hold of 
his hand, she felt a slight movement--his fingers just barely 
stroked her palm.

Glancing up at his face, she saw him slowly open his eyes, 
focusing right on hers immediately. She saw that his eyes were 
clouded and weary, the hazel muted to a nearly monochrome 
gray as we watched her. But it didn't matter. As they looked at 
each other for the first time in over a day, Scully felt a tear slide 
down her face even as she smiled. She didn't say anything, 
reaching up to lay her other hand on his chest as she watched 
him.

Mulder glanced around the room a bit, as if wondering how the 
pine bough shelter had transformed itself into a clean hospital 
room. After a few moments, he motioned to his throat and Scully 
realized he must be extremely thirsty. She got up and drew a 
small glass of water from the bathroom, sitting down next to his 
head as she helped him take a few swallows. 

"Surprised to find yourself here in the hospital?" she asked 
quietly. "Did you expect to wake up at the pearl-covered gates to 
the great beyond?"

"More like the great beneath--hot, fiery locations are more my 
style, I'm thinking," he whispered. He took a few more sips at the 
water, slowly working his way through the entire glass. Scully 
asked if wanted more, but he just shook his head. They sat for 
several minutes, the silence between them comfortable and 
relaxed.

"Didn't really matter where I thought I'd wake up, though, I 
suppose," Mulder said after a while.

"Oh, why not?" Scully asked, wondering what he meant.

"Because I knew you'd be there, wherever it was," he said 
quietly.

"How did you know that?" she said. It was true, of course--she 
had never once let Mulder wake up in a hospital by himself. But 
she had a feeling he meant something different this time.

"You told me you'd stay forever, so I knew wherever I was 
headed, you'd be there when I woke up," he said. She smiled 
down at him, squeezing his hand gently as she brushed a lock of 
hair from his eyes. It only dawned on her a bit later.

"Wait a minute. I never told you that, I never actually said it," 
she said, quirking an eyebrow at him as she spoke. He smiled as 
he tucked his head up against her leg, eyes closing as he gave in 
to sleep once again.

"Just because you didn't say it doesn't mean I didn't hear it."



-------------
Chapter 10
-------------


Two days later, Mulder was released from the hospital. His leg 
wounds were healing nicely, with no signs of infection from 
either the original wound or the burning Scully had performed. 
The surgery earlier had cleaned out the few small fragments of 
wood that remained and his blood loss had been restored. Since 
he showed no other signs of injury, they saw no reason to keep 
him in the hospital.

The doctors warned him against trying to do too much too soon, 
though. They knew he had been walking here and there around 
his room and such, and they cautioned him against overstressing 
the leg. As Scully signed the final release paperwork and such, 
she watched the doctors hand him a pair of crutches and advise 
that he use them for a week. Scully hid her smile as she heard 
Mulder politely thank them as he took the crutches--those 
crutches would soon be taking up permanent residence in the 
trunk of the car, if she knew Mulder.

Arriving at the Westin Hotel, Scully pulled into the valet parking 
drive. Mulder was already clambering out of the passenger side 
before she could get around to assist him. He waved her off, 
saying that his leg actually felt better when he was using it. She 
knew it was a lie, that he just wanted to do it by himself, but she 
let it slide with a small smile. 

While Mulder took a seat in the comfortable hotel lobby, Scully 
went to check in at the front desk. Finding nothing registered 
under either Scully or Mulder, she had the woman check under 
Shaolin. 

"Yes, here we have it. Your names are listed under the single 
booking, since the suites have already been paid for," the woman 
said as she indicated the places Scully should sign the 
registration card.

"Suites?" she asked.

"Yes, you've both been booked into our penthouse suites, floor 
42. Master bedroom, sitting room, living room, balcony hot tub, 
private bar, master bath with Jacuzzi, unlimited room service..." 
the woman reeled off the amenities one by one, finally catching 
the surprised look in Scully's eye. "Is that not acceptable, 
ma'am?"

"Um, ah... no, that sounds fine. Perfect, in fact," she finally 
stammered out. Geez, when Khi books a room, Scully thought, 
she really books a *room.*

"Here are your keycards, then. Suites 4202 and 4203, with the 
party registrar being in Suite 4201. Between the three of you, you 
have the entire floor to yourselves. Enjoy your stay at the Westin, 
ma'am," the woman said, handing Scully the keycards with a 
smile.

"Thanks," Scully said, returning the smile as she turned away 
from the desk.

Signaling to Mulder to join her, she pressed the call button for 
the elevator, pleasantly surprised when one arrived almost 
immediately--slow hotel elevators were one her pet peeves. As 
they ascended, Scully mentioned that they'd have to do a little 
shopping later. When Mulder asked why, she said she had called 
the Regal Springs Hotel back in Colorado Springs.

"I had hoped to be able to get our luggage brought over here, or 
at least go get it ourselves, but they already boxed everything up 
and shipped it to our homes," she explained. "So as of this 
moment, our possessions include the clothes on our backs, our 
IDs and the complimentary soap bars in the bathrooms."

Mulder laughed then, the sound echoing through the elevator car 
and washing over Scully. It was the first real laugh since she'd 
heard since Mulder had woken up in the hospital, and she was 
very, very glad to hear it. 

"Well, at least we'll be clean," he quipped, holding the elevator 
doors for her as they arrived at their destination. As they stepped 
out of the elevator, Scully was impressed—the *hallway* here is 
nicer than most of the *rooms* I've had, she thought with a 
laugh.

"Let's see now, you're in 4203, Mulder," Scully said, flipping to 
the correct keycard. "Let's get you in and settled first."

"Okay, mom," Mulder said, heaving an exaggerated sigh. He 
laughed again as he saw her restrain herself from slapping him 
upside the head. "Ah, the joys of being an injured man." Scully 
swung open the suite door and they stepped inside. Whatever 
sarcastic reply had been forming on her lips was soon forgotten 
as they drew to a stop after a couple steps. 

Magnificent, floor-to-ceiling windows covered the entire far wall 
of the suite, giving an unrestricted view across the city and to the 
mountains beyond. A sunken hot tub could be seen out on the 
large balcony--an image of a luxurious midnight soak sprang into 
Scully's mind. Wandering slowly through the suite, they saw that 
the rooms were luxurious, yet not overdone--it appeared that 
comfort, not merely stylishness, had been the deciding design 
factor. 

Scully was glancing through the private bar when Mulder called 
to her from the bedroom. "Scully, c'mere! You won't believe 
this," he said, breaking into a laugh as she stepped through the 
doorway and stood next to him. I *don't* believe it, she 
thought...

The closet doors were open, revealing hanger upon hanger of 
clothes. From blue jeans to a charcoal suit, from cotton T-shirts 
to silk dress shirts, Mulder's closet had been filled with 
everything he could have possibly needed. The dresser drawers 
were opened slightly, socks and other personal belongs peeking 
their way out as Scully and Mulder stared around the room. 

But it was the item hanging by the bedroom entrance to the 
balcony that was most amazing. An absolutely stunning black 
tuxedo, complete with tails, hung by the window. Drawing 
closer, Scully could see that the cummerbund and tie were a 
sparkling, deep green. White gloves sat beside a cane on the 
small table, a small card propped up against them.

While she fingered the shimmering, silken shirt, Mulder picked 
up and read the card...

"My friends,

        Dine with us tonight at Les deux Ames, 
             8:00 tonight. A limo will pick you
                  up downstairs at 7:30.

                          I promise, no parachuting..."


Scully smiled as Mulder read the note, prompting him to ask her 
what she was smiling at. "Oh nothing. The name reminded me of 
something Khi was saying," Scully said.

"Why, what does it mean?" Mulder asked. He looked back down 
at the note, but he could only decipher the 'deux' part of it. 

"You'll find out later," she said. "Meanwhile, I have to check out 
my room and see what she left for me. At least, I assume she 
didn't get you that tux and intend to leave me in these sweats."

"OK. I plan on partaking of that bar and perhaps going for a dip 
in the Jacuzzi--I think my leg will thank me," Mulder said, 
heading out of the room and zeroing in on the bar. 

Crossing through the main room, Scully opened the door and 
turned back to look at Mulder. "Swing over and get me just 
before 7:30, then," she said, glancing at him for confirmation.

"I'll do that," he said with a wink.

For the first time in all the years they'd worked together, Scully 
winked back. She laughed as she exited the suite, the sound of a 
wine glass falling to the floor clearly audible behind her.

Entering her own room, just down the hallway from Mulder's, 
Scully found she had the same breathtaking view from her main 
room as well. While the orientation of her suite was 'opposite' 
that of Mulder's, the rooms had the same floor-to-ceiling 
windows spanning the same wall. After taking a moment to 
enjoy the scenery once again, she turned and headed into the 
bedroom.

The same scene, tailored for Scully's needs, presented itself as 
she walked in. The closets and drawers were filled with clothing, 
several personal effects lined up on the counter in the master 
bath. 

Of course this time, instead of a tuxedo, a formal evening gown 
hung by the window. Scully had never seen such a dress in all 
her life--its lines were exquisite even as it hung on the simple 
hanger. The dress fell away from the right shoulder, flowing 
across the body as it dipped low in the back. The hemline would 
fall just below the knees, except where it was slit up the side 
several inches.

But it was the material itself that was the most striking. 
Decidedly metallic, but not sparkly or snakeskin-like, it 
shimmered in the late afternoon sun with a life all its own. And 
she knew without question the color was an exact match for the 
green of Mulder's tuxedo. A wrap of the same material was 
draped across the nightstand, again with a small card next to it. 

   "Hey Scully,

         Take another leap tonight.

               He'll be waiting on the other side..."

Scully smiled as she put the card back on the table. Of all the 
things she knew in her life, that was the only one of which she 
was absolutely certain.

Mulder would be there for her, no matter where they ended up. 

     *    *    *    *    *    *

After a couple hours of relaxing, lounging around the suite 
watching an old movie on the large screen TV, Scully figured 
she'd better start getting ready for the evening. A long, luxurious 
shower was first on the list. She found that Khi had supplied her 
with a seemingly endless array of bath oils and scented soaps--by 
now, Scully didn't even bat an eye at Khi knowing exactly what 
she was thinking. After wavering between a shower and a bath, 
Scully finally decided on a shower, deciding to try the soap 
labeled "Moonlight Orchid."

The shower was wonderful, the hot water coursing over her body 
and melting away the last of the tension from the previous days. 
Even at the hospital, the quick shower she'd taken had been filled 
with anxiety, as she had wanted to get back out into the hospital 
and check on Mulder. Now, though, she was free to just stand 
and let the water do its work. 

After stepping out of the shower, she dried off and wrapped 
herself in one of the soft hotel robes. As she started to sort 
through the hair care products on the counter, she realized she 
hadn't decided how to do her hair yet. She took another long look 
at the dress, taking it down from the window to view it equally 
from all sides. She decided on a simple upswept French braid, 
knowing it would set off the lines of the dress more so than a 
'down' style. 

Taking her time over the next hour, Scully slowly got herself 
ready for the evening. Hair, makeup, nails--nothing was left 
undone. She became more and more amazed as the minutes 
passed. Khi had literally thought of everything. 

By 7:00, there was just the gown itself left to be put on. Scully 
took a deep breath as she slid the fabric up her body, cringing 
against the very thought that it wouldn't fit. It'll be perfect, she 
told herself firmly--after all this, there's no way it can't be 
perfect.

As she slid her arm through the one loop of fabric and settled the 
dress across her body, she realized there was another problem to 
be solved first. There was no one to zip the dress for her. Even 
though the back was cut quite low, she had never been an expert 
at zipping herself into a gown--she had always been afraid of 
tearing the material as she twisted.

While Mulder was the obvious, quickest solution to the problem, 
Scully didn't want him to see her in anything less than her final 
form. She wanted to open that door, watching him in that tux as 
he watched her in this dress--she didn't want to say "Oh, here, zip 
me up quick, then come back and get me later."

She tapped her foot lightly as she ran through the options. 
Glancing around the room, she realized the answer was staring 
her right in the face. You're in a penthouse suite, my darling, she 
said to herself--what's a concierge for except to help with 
situations like this? Laughing as she glanced through the leather-
bound hotel services directory, Scully quickly dialed the number 
for the hotel concierge.

"Yes, Ms. Scully, how may I help you?" a deep, cultured voice 
said. Wow, Scully thought, they must have their phone line tied 
directly in the registry. At least for those of us in the 
penthouses...

"Yes, I have something of a dilemma and I'm hoping you can 
find a way to assist me," she said. "I'm dressing for a formal 
evening tonight, and have just now realized there are certain 
drawbacks to having a room to myself." 

She hoped the man would understand her request without her 
actually having to say "Zip me up, buttercup."

"Yes, of course, Ms. Scully. I understand completely, it is a 
rather common request. I will send..." he paused for a second, 
obviously searching through something. "I will send Kathryn up 
to assist you right away."

"Thank you so much," Scully said with a sigh of relief.

"My pleasure, Ms. Scully. Have a pleasant evening," the man 
said as he hung up the phone. 

Three minutes later, there was a gentle knock at her door. 
Checking quickly to ensure that it wasn't Mulder arriving early, 
Scully opened the door to allow the woman into the room. Girl, 
really, she corrected herself--Kathryn couldn't have been more 
than twenty years old, if even that. 

"How may I assist you, Ms. Scully?" the girl asked politely, even 
though it was obvious what the problem was. 

"Yes, could you zip me up, please? I can never seem to do it by 
myself," Scully said, turning so that Kathryn could help her.

"Of course, of course," Kathryn said, quickly finding the hidden 
zipper and closing up the dress easily. With a studied ease, she 
performed a few quick pulls on the fabric, smoothing it here and 
shifting it there. Coming around to the front, she straightened the 
shoulder where it had gotten twisted. Finally, she stepped away, 
directing Scully's attention across to the full-length mirror near 
the door. 

Any doubts Scully had about the dress not fitting were forgotten. 
It was, quite simply, the most beautiful creation Scully had ever 
had the pleasure of wearing. The gown conformed to her body as 
if it had been fitted specifically to her. There wasn't a wrinkle or 
gap to be found, not a single place where the gown didn't flow 
smoothly across her skin.

"Is there a wrap with this gown?" Kathryn asked, glancing 
around the room.

"Yes, it's in the bedroom, how did you know?" Scully replied as 
Kathryn went to get it. 

"My father is a clothing designer--this type of dress *always* has 
a wrap or a shawl," Kathryn called out from the bedroom. She 
soon returned to the main room, the wrap laid across one arm. A 
delicate matching purse and a tiny box were in her hand.

"These were concealed beneath the wrap, Ms. Scully," she said, 
handing the box to Scully as she began to smooth out the wrap. 
Scully's breath caught in her throat as she opened it. 

A diamond pendant on a platinum chain rested inside the box, a 
set of matched earrings completing the set. Even in the relatively 
dim lighting of the room, they sparkled as if being displayed in 
the sun. Scully slipped the earrings in quickly, asking Kathryn to 
fasten the chain about her neck. Smoothing the chain against her 
neck, Scully couldn't help but smile at the reflection looking back 
at her. She stepped into the shoes Khi had provided, the heels the 
perfect length for both comfort and style.

Kathryn draped the wrap around Scully's back and arms, 
showing her exactly where and how to hold the material in 
combination with the purse. Scully was glad for her help, since 
she had rarely worn a gown which included a wrap. Kathryn 
stepped back, inspecting the dress from a few feet away before 
finally smiling in approval.

"It's beautiful, isn't it?" Scully whispered, unable to take her eyes 
off the reflection. She could hardly believe she was seeing 
herself standing there.

"It is perfect, Ms. Scully. Truly, you look like a queen," Kathryn 
said. "If you need nothing else, I will leave you to your evening."

"You've been a great help, thank you," Scully said, starting to 
cross to the stand where she had laid her supply of cash. 

"No, please, it was my pleasure," Kathryn said, opening the door 
to exit into the hallway. "Enjoy your evening, Ms. Scully." 
Coming back to take a final look at herself, Scully smiled once 
more.

Yes, I believe I will...

     *    *    *    *    *    *

At five minutes to 7:30, there was a knock at her door. As Scully 
crossed in from the other room to answer it, she realized she 
hadn't been this excited since... well, she couldn't remember a 
time when she'd been this excited. Even her high school prom, 
while exciting, had really been just a fancy night out with a guy 
she'd already been dating for a while. But this... this had the 
heady feeling of something new, something wonderful. 

Scully drank it in like wine, savoring every giddy sensation, 
every skip her heart took as she approached the door. Pausing for 
just a second as her hand rested on the latch, she took a deep 
breath. Finally, she opened the door.

Mulder had been turned slightly, looking off through the hallway 
window as he waited for her to answer the door. As he heard the 
door swing open, he turned back, his mouth dropping open 
slightly as he caught sight of her. Which was fine by her, since 
she was doing the same thing as she looked at him.

She had always been aware that Mulder was a good-looking 
man. It was hard to work side-by-side with someone for years 
and not become familiar with every detail of their physical 
appearance. But as he stood before her now, she was quite 
certain she must have been blind before this night.

The jacket hung straight across his shoulders, tapering perfectly 
to his narrow waist as the tails continued down the length of his 
legs. The pants were the slightly wider, 'mobster' style, the pleats 
falling straight and crisp. The gloves and the cane, accessories 
she usually didn't go for, simply accentuated the flawless look.

But it was the green of the cummerbund and tie that clinched it. 
Swirling and shimmering, they were the perfect match for his 
eyes--it was as though someone had specifically created the color 
directly from his irises. 

"Scully, you look..."

"Mulder, wow, you..."

They broke into laughter then, each a little nervous as they stood 
on their respective sides of the doorway. They simply looked at 
each other a bit longer. Finally, Mulder tipped his cane up to his 
right arm, stepping to face the door squarely as he held his left 
hand out to her. 

"My lady," he said simply, bowing slightly from the waist as she 
stepped forward to take his hand. He reached behind her to draw 
the door shut, then took her hand and threaded it to his forearm, 
his hand gently covering hers as they began to walk to the 
elevator.

They rode in silence, each stealing glances at the other as they 
descended. The doors opened on the first floor and they made 
their way out into the lobby. As they worked their way across to 
the main entrance, people smiled and nodded to them, one 
woman even calling out "You two look beautiful!" as she saw 
them. Mulder and Scully could do little but smile themselves, 
embarrassed but enjoying it fully. 

Reaching the main entrance, Mulder inquired at the valet desk as 
to whether Khi's limo had arrived yet or not. The attendant told 
him the limo had just called in, the driver reporting that an 
accident had blocked traffic for a few minutes but he expected to 
be arriving within five minutes. 

"I apologize for the inconvenience," the attendant said sincerely, 
as if it were he himself who had caused the delay. "You may 
have a complimentary drink in the lounge while you wait, if you 
like, sir, ma'am."

Mulder glanced at Scully, checking to see what she wanted to do. 
She glanced at the lounge, but realized she didn't want to bother 
threading her way to a table only to leave a few minutes later.

"We'll just wait, but thank you," she said to the man. He again 
apologized, but she told him not to worry about it. 

As they stood waiting for the limo, Scully began to feel a little 
warm. Whether it was from the excitement of the evening or just 
the slightly too-warm interior of the hotel, she wasn't sure. But 
she was definitely feeling slightly uncomfortable. 

"Mulder, let's step outside and wait, at least for a minute. I'm 
getting a little warm in here," she said, stepping towards the door 
a bit as she spoke. 

"Are you all right?" he asked, instantly concerned. "You're not 
feeling sick or anything, are you?"

"No, no, nothing like that. Just a little overheated," she answered.

"Well, you are with me, you know. I have that effect on women 
all the time," he teased as he followed her through the revolving 
door into the outside air. Compared to the near-zero temperatures 
they'd endured for days, the balmy 31 degrees which blinked on 
the sign across the street felt practically tropical. 

"Yeah, whatever, shut up, Mulder," she said, laughing as she 
breathed deeply. Yes, this was definitely much better, she 
thought. Her eyes roamed across the city, enjoying the play of 
the lights against the buildings. 

"Hey, Scully," Mulder said after a minute.

"Hmm?" she said, turning to glance up at him. He just looked at 
her for a while, his eyes playing across every inch of her face as 
she watched him.

"You're beautiful, you know that?" he said, his voice a bit husky 
as he spoke. 

As he looked at her, his eyes seemed to reach out and touch her 
soul. They sparkled with a light all their own, a light she knew 
was mirrored in her own. She realized she was right where she'd 
been before, wavering on the brink of a bottomless abyss, 
looking down a path only the gods knew the end of. 

She threw herself over the edge with all her heart, and smiled as 
she saw Mulder falling right beside her. 

His hand reached up, a single finger tracing its way across her 
jaw and under her chin. He tipped her face up, bending his own 
down to meet her lips with his. A quick kiss, lasting barely a 
second, but Scully felt it rock through her body like a lightning 
strike. As he broke away from her, she saw it had affected him 
the same way. They both shivered, for reasons that had nothing 
to do with the brisk night air.

Mulder reached out and folded his arms around her, drawing her 
close to his chest as he rested his chin on her head. "I'll be here 
forever, too," he said, closing his eyes as he spoke, a single tear 
escaping from his eye. Scully tightened her arms around him as 
she smiled, knowing she hadn't made the leap alone. This time, 
they had taken the leap together, meeting in the middle as one.

She watched as a light snow began falling, sparkling in the city 
lights as it swirled around them.


      *** 30 *********  Story End  *********** 30 ***

      *** 30 *********  Story End  *********** 30 ***

 

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Please contact me at snark_911@yahoo.com to discuss
this story.

Thanks for reading!

~Snark



Complete story can always be found:

http://members.tripod.com/~koosn/falling.html