Title: Another Life (1/5)
Author: Erin M. Blair
E-Mail: eblair@sonic.net
Classification: SRA--Story, Romance, Angst
Content: Mulder/Scully Romance. Alternate Universe.
Spoiler: *supposed* One Son. Small spoilers for:
Lazarus, One Breath, The End, The Beginning, Memento Mori,
and the X-Files: Fight The Future Movie.
Rating: PG
Archive: OK to Gossamer and Xemplary. Others:
ask me first. Please forward to ATXC.
Disclaimers: Fox Mulder, Dana Scully, and Diana
Fowley (puke) doesn't belong to me. They belong
to Chris Carter, Ten Thirteen Productions, and
the FOX network. No infringement is intended.
Summary: Scully sees Fowley and Mulder kissing
and drives off mad. She ends up in an alternate
reality where she's married to Mulder.
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ANOTHER LIFE (1/5)
Written by: Erin M. Blair <eblair@sonic.net>
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Northeast Georgetown Hospital
Monday, 2:30 p.m.
Fox Mulder waited by Dana Scully's bedside, watching
her breathe. She was off the respirators
per her conditions stated in living will. Scully
was still in a coma, but he knew that there was still
hope for her recovery. He felt his hand being
squeezed by Scully, and the pressure told him that
she was trying to come back to him.
All he could do now was hope that she would forgive
him; he had caused the car accident that had left
her in this condition.
If only...
All he wanted to do was change the past to correct
what she had seen Diana Fowley do.
"It's my fault, Scully. I wish that I hadn't
let Diana kiss me... If she hadn't, you wouldn't
be in a coma. Again. It's all because of me..." His
hazel eyes were misty with unshed tears that were
threatening to fall. "It's all my fault..."
FBI Building
Monday, 9:30 a.m.
Two weeks earlier
"Scully?"
Scully looked up to face Mulder in their cubicles. "Yes,
Mulder?" It was a far cry from being in the basement
office, but at least, she got a desk from their
new reassignment. She was busy working on the
report of their latest case with the domestic
terrorism unit. "What's wrong?"
He touched Scully's cheek lightly. "Have you ever
thought if things were different?"
"No. Not for one second," Scully answered. She saw
the concern In Mulder's face and knew something was amiss.
"What's wrong, Mulder?"
"Diana Fowley has some information for me to see that
may give us the X-Files back," Mulder said, and he saw
Scully frown at the mention of Fowley's name. He didn't
want to see her hurt. "I know what you're thinking,
Scully, but trust me on this."
"I trust you, Mulder. I do."
Mulder knew what she was trying to tell him, but
he suspected it was more than a matter of trust. Was
she jealous of Fowley? "You trust me, but you don't
trust Fowley."
Scully nodded. "Yes."
"Why?"
"I don't know. There's something about her that I don't
trust. You know what she did in her report at the nuclear
reactor? She neglected to mention certain aspects of her
report like Gibson Praise."
"It's not that she forgot to mention Gibson Praise in her
case report, is it?" Mulder inquired, and he wanted her
to admit how she felt. "I know you, Scully. I know how I
felt towards Jack Willis..."
Scully frowned. She didn't want Mulder to know how she
really felt. "Mulder, you didn't act jealous when Jack
asked me to help him."
"I did, Scully. When you told me that you were going
to the bank with *him*, I was jealous. More than jealous,
I was worried that you wanted to be with him more than
me." He paused, and then added. "And that was before I
found out that Jack was your lover."
"Mulder, there's nothing to worry about. He's in the past.
I've forgotten him. Really."
"I know that now, but back then, I was jealous. I was
totally insecure about my feelings."
"I had no idea you felt that way, Mulder," Scully said,
softly. She was shocked, to the least, that he felt the
same as she did.
Mulder chuckled softly. With a small smile, he
remembered how he'd felt. "I do. You don't know
how much I wanted to kill Jack Willis." He
paused. "There's nothing going on between Diana
and myself. You've got to trust me..."
Scully sighed. "You know that I do, but it's Diana
that I don't. How come I've got this feeling that
she will betray us both?"
Mulder gazed into Scully's blue eyes, and he
knew that he had got to find a way for her to
believe that everything was going to be fine
between them. "She won't do anything."
"Somehow, I doubt that."
Northeast Georgetown Medical Center
Monday, 2:30 p.m.
"I was a fool, Scully," Mulder whispered, as he held
her hand tightly to return the pressure that she gave
him earlier. "I was a fool to trust Diana. I want you
to come back to me..." He paused. "I'd do anything for
you..."
Meanwhile, in Scully's mind, she was lost in a different
world...
Mulder Residence
Monday, 2:35 p.m.
Alternate Universe
Scully woke up from her nap, and focused on her
surroundings. It wasn't her Georgetown apartment,
but she was in a master bedroom. She got up to
inspect. All her clothes were hanging in the
closet, including the camel-colored trench coat
that she'd thought had been lost when she had
been abducted by Duane Barry. She felt the
material in a state of shock. "What the? This was
never recovered. I thought that I'd never see
this trench coat ever again."
"Dana?! Where are you?"
She could hear Mulder's voice calling for her. *Why
was he using my first name?* She frowned. "I'm in
here!"
Mulder walked in to see Scully dressed in a creamy
white suit. "I thought that you were with Dani," he
answered. He saw his wife's confused expression and
he became concerned. "Dana?"
"How come you don't call me 'Scully,' Mulder?"
Mulder looked confused. "I haven't called you 'Scully'
for a long time, Dana, and you haven't called me
'Mulder' in years."
"So what do I call you?"
"You call me 'Fox'" Mulder said, slowly. "Are you all
right, Dana? You look startled." He thought that she
had hit her head on the bed post. He lifted up her head
to inspect for any injuries. "Did you hit your
head?"
"Mulder, this is crazy." She was becoming overly
confused. He was usually caring towards her, but she
couldn't understand why he touching her intimately.
"What's wrong?"
"Who's Dani?"
"Our daughter. Dana Kristine Mulder. We'd been married
since December 5, 1992," Mulder said, in a slow, careful
manner as he was concerned with Scully's mental state. "Do
you know your name?"
Scully nodded. "Yes, I know my name. I know yours." She
paused, as she was trying to figure out through her
confusion. "We're married? We have a daughter?" She sat
down on the bed. It was too much. "I can't believe this..."
"It's true," Mulder said, softly.
"I didn't know that we're married and had a daughter. The
last thing I remember was being in a car accident...after
seeing Diana kissing you."
Mulder's frown deepened, as he understood what happened to
her. In his mind, he was beginning to put two and two
together. There wasn't any sign of trauma to warrant her
having amnesia. He felt through her auburn hair, and there
wasn't any bumps. "You don't have any bumps on your head,
and you don't have amnesia." He paused. "Want to know what
I think?"
"What?"
"It sounds to me like you're stuck here in some kind of
alternate universe..."
"If that's so, where's Dana? Your wife?"
"I don't know," Mulder said, as he frowned. "I guess
wherever you are..."
"Mulder... Can I call you that?" Scully asked, as he nodded.
She took the camel colored trench coat off its hanger. "I want
to show you something..."
"It's your trench coat. So?"
"I don't have this anymore. I wore this when I was abducted
by Duane Barry...and I lost it in the process..."
"That didn't happen, Dana."
"It didn't?"
"No. You were on maternity leave after giving birth to
Dani." He paused. "I made certain that he didn't know
anything about you, but he *did* abduct Alex Krycek's
sister, Allyson."
"How's Allyson?"
"She had cancer..."
"Cancer?" Scully inquired. "Was it a nasalpharyngeal
tumor?"
Mulder nodded. "Yes, it was." He whispered. "How did
you know?"
"I had it a couple years ago... Did they took her ova?"
"From what Alex said, yes. He met these clones at the
Lombard Research Facility, and they showed him his sister's
ova. Let's just say that he wasn't too happy with them." He
looked at her confused facial expression with alarm. "What's
wrong? Dana?"
"In my universe, I was the one who had been abducted by
Duane Barry," she whispered. "Everything that happened
to Allyson Krycek happened to me..."
"You had cancer..."
Scully nodded. "I was also left barren. I can't have
children..."
"I'm sorry," he said, gently. "There must be a way
for you to have children..."
"I doubt it..."
"Stranger things have happened for a reason, Dana."
"What do you mean?"
"You're here for a reason. To find out what your
life would have been like if you married me..."
Scully listened to his voice, thoughtfully, but
then, she sighed. "Doesn't that work both ways?"
She paused. "Mulder never asked me to marry him..."
Mulder frowned. "Why not? I know that I would."
"We haven't...We never... We don't have
that kind of relationship right now," Scully said,
with a sigh. "Of course, I'd never asked him."
"Both of you never declared your feelings
for each other..?"
"Not really," Scully frowned, and she thought
about how she had everything that she wanted
here. A husband who's devoted to her. A child.
A good career. It seemed that she had everything
that she wanted most in the world. After carefully
weighing the pros and the cons, she made a decision
which will change her life forever. "I want to stay..."
"Here?" Mulder inquired, shocked.
Scully nodded. "Yes, I do..."
"What about your life in your own reality?
What about my Dana? It'll confuse things..."
"What life is that? Not much of one. I'd been
dealing with useless, boring, background checks
at the FBI."
"Boring background checks?" Mulder echoed. He
paused, as he remembered reading the file about
Dana when he found out that he was going to be
partners with her. "What's so bad about that?"
"That's what happened when your career's
finished at the FBI."
"And you'd rather leave the life you have
in order to be with me?"
Scully nodded. "Yes, I do."
"What about your partner?" Mulder asked,
concerned. He paused, and then he thought
about his wife. "And what about Dana? If
you're here, where's Dana?"
"You said that I'm in an alternate universe,
right?" Scully asked, as he nodded. "What
do you think happened, Mulder?"
"I have a theory... Want to hear it?"
Scully nodded. "Yes, I do."
"When you jumped into my life, my wife
went into yours."
"She's feeling whatever I'm feeling,
whatever that is."
Mulder realized something that might
help them. "That doesn't fit though. I
don't think that your bodies switch, but
your minds did."
"What did you say? It sounds like science
fiction!"
"Listen to me. You have the same long,
auburn hair that she has."
"Long hair? I don't have long hair. I
always cut my hair to be above the
shoulders."
Mulder sighed. "Look in the mirror."
Scully walked towards the mirror to
see the reflection of what she looked
like before her abduction. Her auburn
hair flowed down past her shoulders,
and she had bangs. It wasn't her current
hairstyle at all. "This is me, but yet,
it's not me."
Northeast Georgetown Medical Center
Monday, 3:00 p.m.
After the doctor's came into Dana
Scully's room after she went code
blue, Mulder walked into the hallway.
He had no idea that her going into
code blue coincided with her decision
to stay where she was. He noticed her
brother, Bill Scully Jr., sitting down
at a chair. "Bill, don't start. I
don't need this right now..."
"It's your fault that she's here."
"She wouldn't have been in the car
accident if it weren't for me. It's
all my fault!"
Bill saw Mulder's face lined with tears
and the frustration of not reaching her. With
a sigh, he felt terrible for directing his
anger at Mulder. "I'm sorry. I shouldn't
have snapped like that. Look, I know that
we don't get along very well. Dana wouldn't
want us to get into a fight while she's
in a coma."
"That's true," Mulder replied. "You're right.
She wouldn't want us to fight over who caused
her accident. We have to be strong for her."
"I know... Have the doctors said anything?"
"No. When I was sitting there at her bedside,
I remember what Melissa told me when Scully
was in a coma last time. I'm sure that she's
choosing whether or not she lives..." He paused.
as he looked at Dana's brother. "Where were you when
she was in a coma a few years back?"
"At sea," Bill said simply. "I wanted to be
there for her, but neither Charlie or me
could get off. Mom had kept us informed
though." He paused. "At least, I was there
for her when she had cancer..."
"I'm glad that you were there for her..."
The doctor, dressed in green scrubs, walked
out to the two men. "Miss Scully---"
"Doctor Scully," Mulder interrupted.
"Let the doctor finish," Bill said, with
a sigh. "I want to know how my sister's
doing." He paused, as he switched his
attention to the doctor. "How's Dana?"
"*Doctor* Dana Scully is still in a coma. She's
still in critical condition. We had a
scare, but she's fine now. However, we
found something rather unusual. Usually,
when a patient's comatose, there would
be nothing on the EKG. Her brain waves
are steady... I don't know how to explain it."
Mulder listened, thoughtfully, and came to
a realization. *She's still here, but her
brain isn't. It's stuck somewhere. How
do I reach her? How do I pull her ashore?*
He didn't want to state his idea to
the doctor or Bill.
He especially didn't want to air his reaction
to Bill. He'll call him crazy or something. He
had to reach Scully.
"Do you think that she'll come out of it?"
Bill asked. His face was fraught with both
concern and confusion over what the doctor
had said. "Is there any hope?"
"There's always hope," said the doctor.
Both Mulder and Bill nodded at the doctor, and
they watched him walk down the hallway
towards the nurses' station. Mulder sighed,
and he looked at Scully's brother. He wanted
him to see her before he did. "Bill, do
you want to see her?"
"You can. I'm going to get some lunch
at the cafeteria."
"OK," Mulder said, as he watched Bill walk
towards the elevators to the cafeteria. Mulder
walked back into Scully's room and sat beside
her. "Scully, I know you're there. Where,
I don't know. As Melissa said a long
time ago, you're choosing whether to live
or die." He paused, as he gently held her
hand into his. "I can't imagine my life
without you. I won't lose you. I can't. You
mean the world to me."
"Agent Mulder?"
Mulder glanced up to see Dr. Garrison, the doctor
in charge of Scully's case. "What's wrong?"
"Since you're Dana's partner, I would like to discuss
her case with you. I've already contacted her family,"
Dr. Garrison said, with a sigh. "I called in a specialist
which deals with comatose patients. Her name is Dr.
Jessica Wilson. She looked at Dana, and she told me that
she hasn't seen any case like Dana's." He paused. "We're at
a lost of where to go from here."
Mulder listened thoughtfully, and he thought of the
something that would bring her back to him. "She has
to know what she's missing... I can bring her
back by giving her the two things that she wants
most." He paused. "Would it be unethical to do
invitrofertilization with her ovum and my sperm?"
"It's extremely unethical, Agent Mulder."
"I know," Mulder said, softly. "However, I think
that she would have wanted it..."
"Do you know that for sure?"
"I wouldn't have suggested it if I didn't think
that she wouldn't have wanted it..." Mulder paused,
as he sighed deeply. "She told me how much she wanted
children..."
"On a comatose woman?"
"Yes. I think that it'll bring her out of the
coma. I've got her ova in a cold storage facility
waiting to be used."
"Her ova's in cold storage?"
"Long story. I'd never told her any of this... She
thinks that she can't ever have children, and she
also believes that I'm lost to her. I want to prove
her wrong." He paused. "I want her to know how much
I love her... I want to bring her back to me. I know
that this is wrong, but I'd do anything to bring her
back to me. Can you do this for me?"
Dr. Garrison sighed deeply. He knew that it's very
unethical to do the procedure on a comatose woman,
but if she agreed to it... "I don't see any reason not to.
It's untraditional, that's for sure."
"I'd do anything to save Scully," Mulder whispered.
END of 1/2
Author's Notes: While I was reading the upcoming
episode spoilers about One Son, I was thinking
what would happen to Scully. This probably won't
happen, but stranger things happened.
Regarding Scully's IVF while she's comatose, it's
*very* unethical. I doubt that any doctors
would do such a thing to a comatose woman. It's a
very risky storyline idea, but I wanted to address
it.
I would like to thank Michaela for her beta reading
and offering me suggestions to improve on the plot.
Feedback: Always appreciated and welcomed. I'd love
to hear comments regarding this story to:
eblair@sonic.net
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- Erin Blair
- eblair@sonic.net
- "And if I quit now, they win."
- from the X-Files: Fight the Future Movie
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