Disclaimer: Fox Mulder, Dana Scully, and associated characters are property of Chris Carter, Ten-Thirteen Productions and Fox Broadcasting Corporation. They are used without permission, as I can't afford to get permission. I'm not planning to make any money from this story anyway. Any elements not recognized as being taken directly off the television show belong to me. Copyright Christina Shuy. OF course, this story is mainly based on the episode "Memento Mori", so not much of it is mine. Rating: PG. Pretty heavy emotional scene. MSR alert! Bigtime! Summary: A missing scene from "Memento Mori" just after Scully tells Mulder she's got cancer. Spoilers: Major ones for "Memento Mori". Comments and other things are much apprieciated and can be sent to cshuy@netcom.com. I like email, so please reply! I'll do what I can about responding to any replies. Faith, Hope, and Love By Christina Shuy cshuy@netcom.com "I refuse to believe that." Mulder said. his heart and mind spoke in unison. "For all the times that I have said that to you, I am as certain of this as you have ever been." There was a pause. "I have cancer. It is a mass on the wall between my sinus and cerebrum. If it pushes into my brain, statistically there is about zero chance of survival." Her tone was matter-of-fact, but Mulder could see that his partner and best friend was terrified of the prospects facing her. his mind yammered. "I don't accept that... th-th-there has to be some people who recieve treatment for this. We can..." His voice trailed off as she looked up into his eyes. "Yes, there are." she sighed, taking down the x-rays. he thought, feeling a surge. "Scully... can we talk about this?" "About what, Mulder, *I* have cancer." "About how this is my fault, so it is my responsibility to find you a cure." "This is not something we can go through together. This is *MY* fight. It has to be." "You don't think I feel responsible? Scully, your abduction was my fault. I got you involved in the Duane Barry case, which got you abducted. If you had never been abducted, you wouldn't have gotten this cancer!" "You are by no means responsible-" "Bull, Scully. You may not blame me for your abduction, but I AM responsible. If I hadn't gotten you involved after the X-Files were closed, you wouldn't have been abducted, had tests done to you, and god knows what *else*." Scully paused for a moment before replying, looking into Mulder's hazel eyes. What she saw there gave her pause. She could see his pain and all the times he had taken responsibility or had responsibly wrongly placed on him for things, including his sister's abduction, her own situation, and the death of Melissa. "Mulder, you didn't get me involved against my will on those cases after they split us up. I chose to help." "I love you, Scully. I don't want to lose you, especially not to this. I want to be able to grow old with you." As the words left Mulder's lips, he froze as he saw Scully's eyes widen at his statement. "Oh, god... Scully... I'm sorry..." he stumbled over words. "For what? Voicing what we both know? What we both feel? Mulder, I love you too. Not as a surrogate brother or just a friend and partner. I love you like I have loved no one else." She stepped closer to him and pulled him closer, moving his head slightly lower and kissing him soundly. Mulder's response was to wrap his arms around her and lift her up slightly so that his neck wouldn't get stiff, though he felt a certain other part of his anatomy stiffen. Scully wrapped her arms around him and held on for dear life, even while continuing the kiss. Eventually, Scully broke the kiss and looked into his eyes again. "I love you, Mulder, even if you do try my patience at times." she smiled at him. "Scully, I..." "Shhh... Mulder, I am going to get treatment, but we have to tell Skinner about this. That way we can look for a cure. I have faith in you. In us." "Okay. Let's follow any leads. And tell Skinner. But only about your condition. I don't want us to be separated again." "We won't be, Mulder. We won't be. Let's go. The sooner we tell him, the sooner we can begin the search for treatment and possible cure." "I'm sorry to hear about this, Agent Scully..." Skinner said, taking the x-rays and reports from her. -End- -- "The Truth is Out There. Trust No One."- from "The X-Files" Pursuing a BS degree(Electrical Engineering) - Electronics is my forte! "In the moment that you think you can't, you'll discover that you can." - Celine Dion - "Power of the Dream" "Let's get Dangerous!" - Darkwing Duck. Looking for work and a place to live... somewhere in the SanFran Bay Area.