TITLE: When God Dreams AUTHOR: Snark E-MAIL: snark_911@yahoo.com AUTHOR'S NOTES: For those that have been discussing my fiction with me over the past few weeks, this is NOT the piece which I have said is "in the works." This is just a mere snippet of a story that came to me the other day, and just sort of called out to be written. More author's notes at the end of this story. CLASSIFICATION: A core of MS friendship, a smattering of UST, and just a dash of MSR. RATING: PG SPOILERS: This story is set before the Two Fathers/ One Son episodes. In terms of my own fiction, this story is set *before* the events of Falling Snow. DISTRIBUTION: OK to forward to ATXC newsgroup and to Gossamer. Please ask permission before archiving anywhere else, please. Or at least let me know that you have archived it, so that I can keep track of where it's listed. DISCLAIMER: The characters of The X-Files universe belong to Chris Carter, the FOX network and 1013 Productions, however much I might wish otherwise. No infringement is intended and no money is being made by the existence of this story. (Damn.) FEEDBACK: Mail comments to snark_911@yahoo.com. SUMMARY: Scully and Mulder... ascend to the stars, in a rather interesting way. Fluff, with a bit of angsty-type conversation, thus ensues. * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * "Mulder, if you think I'm climbing on top of that thing, you're crazy." "Oh come on, Scully. Just once? It's smooth and warm up there." "Forget it." "What, are you telling me you've never dreamt of being up there?" "That would be *your* dream, Mulder. I'm not doing it." "You're going, Scully." "You're nuts, Mulder." "No, but I've got 'em. It'll be great, trust me." The argument had been going on for a solid five minutes now, ever since they'd arrived. In fact, it had been going on for nearly an hour, ever since they'd left the motel. Scully wasn't any closer to giving in than she had been earlier, but it wasn't stopping Mulder from trying. They'd spent the last three days here in Virginia, investigating a kidnapping case with apparent ties to the occult. Late this afternoon, though, an anonymous tip had led to both the recovery of the missing triplets and an arrest of two suspects. Unable to book a flight out until tomorrow, though, Scully had sighed at the prospect of another less-than-peaceful night's sleep at the Pair-a- dice Motor Hotel. At 10:15 in the evening, though, Mulder had shown up at her door, a backpack slung over one shoulder, urging her to join him for a couple hours. She had just changed to her nightclothes and had not been thrilled at the prospect of doing anything other than crawling into bed with a good book. "C'mon Scully, get dressed and come with me," he had said, the excitement showing in his eyes clearly audible in his voice as well. "Mulder, since you've obviously developed a sight disorder since dinner this evening, I will state plainly for you that I am dressed for bed and very nearly ready to turn in," she had said, motioning to the turned-down bedcovers and the book on the nightstand. "I am not going to reverse that state to go with you on some god- only-knows-what midnight adventure." "Wear all black and those hiking boots you've got," he had replied--he had obviously developed a hearing disorder as well, she had thought with a sigh. "Mulder, I'm not goin-" "You're going, Scully. Now meet me at the car in ten minutes," Mulder had said, turning to head across the parking lot. "Oh, and... you like strawberries, right?" She had not even bothered to try to connect Point A, Hiking Boots, to Point B, Strawberries, in the conversation--too much work. "Yes, Mulder. I like strawberries," she had simply replied. It was just easier that way. "Perfect," he had smiled at her. "Perfect. Ten minutes, don't be late." He had walked away then, his own black-clad frame quickly blending into the dark asphalt of the parking lot. Like so many times before, Scully had been curious as to the possible outcome of their conversation, although she would never have admitted it to anyone. Hell, she hadn't even wanted to admit it to herself. But there had been something so... so wonderfully child-like in Mulder's anticipation, in his eagerness to have her join him, that she couldn't resist giving in. As she had pulled out her black jeans, black turtleneck and heavy close-to- black oversized sweatshirt, she had smiled at her own willingness to once again be drawn down whatever path Mulder was taking her. When will I learn, she had chuckled to her reflection in the mirror. When will I learn... And so here they were, 45 minutes later, standing at the side of something called Crookshaw Hall, the main liberal arts building for a small community college outside of Alexandria. Coming across the campus so late at night, they had drawn a few questioning glances, but no one had stopped them so far. The backpack slung over Mulder's shoulder probably lent to their appearance as students. Slightly out of the traditional age-bracket students, Scully chuckled to herself, but students nonetheless. It was a very pleasant campus, actually, so covered in stately trees that she could barely see the night sky at all. "So, Mulder, let me see if I've got this straight. We have just driven nearly an hour from our motel in the middle of the night-- and may I say a rather *chilly* night at that--to trespass on the grounds of the North Alexandria Community College for no other purpose than to commit further trespassing by scaling the walls of this building?" Scully asked, her eyebrow quirking as they stood underneath the pathway lamp. "Sounds fun, right?" Mulder asked, wagging his own eyebrows at her with just the barest of winks. "It sounds insane, Mulder. What are we going to do if we get caught? Claim we got lost while trying to find the science building? Flash our badges and say we were staking out the pigeons that live on the roof?" she asked. "Something like that," he said, glancing around him to ascertain whether any people were nearby. Seeing no one, he reached out and put his arm around her shoulders, guiding her towards the west side of the building. "You're going to love it, Scully. Trust me." Scully wasn't sure what made her give in again, letting herself be propelled across the grass and guided through some waist-high shrubbery to get next to the brick of the building's west wall. Of course, there was the very obvious fact that Mulder held the keys to the car, leaving her with little desire to scour the campus or surrounding neighborhood looking for a way to obtain an alternative method of transportation. While she simply could have refused to partake in this escapade, firmly rejecting all attempts to get her to participate, she had to admit she was having just the tiniest bit of fun so far. The late night drive had been pleasant and Mulder's excitement and anticipation had been infectious. Not that she was going to tell him that any time soon... "OK, Scully, get over here," Mulder said. She turned to see his arm gesturing to her from around a corner of the building. Crookshaw Hall was a very old building, formed from native rock and built in a very angular fashion. Each side had several places where the building jutted out or was sunken in slightly, creating a rather unusual, though not unpleasant look to the structure. Scully stepped around the corner to find Mulder positioned beneath a fire escape grate. He bent over slightly, making a cupped foothold for her by lacing his fingers together. "There's no ladder to pull down, so I'll give you a boost up there first," Mulder said. "Once you're up, just stand back at the far edge--I should still be able to jump that high and pull myself up." Scully wondered at his use of the word 'still', but realized they shouldn't take any longer than necessary to complete the climb-- each moment they were lurking in the shadows was another moment during which they might be discovered. She quickly stepped towards him, placing her left hand on his should to steady herself as she put her right foot in his hands. She nodded that she was ready, feeling herself lifted cleanly from the ground and pushed upwards in one smooth motion. Stretching out with her right hand, she grabbed the edge of the grate above her and held on while Mulder transferred her foot to his shoulder. Straightening up, he was then able to give her an extra lift up through the access gap. Within seconds, she had hauled herself over the edge and stood, backing towards the far end of the grate to give Mulder some room. She watched as he slid both arms through the backpack straps to secure it to his body, obviously not wanting to relinquish his control over it for even a second. After a couple of subdued warm-up jumps, she was impressed as Mulder leapt straight up, his hands grasping the edge of the grate cleanly on the first try. From there, it was a simple matter of pulling his weight up and sliding through the gap as she had done earlier. Mulder led the way as they climbed the fire escape, keeping an eye out for any signs that anyone was observing them. Scully at times was worried about the escape's ability to hold their combined weight, listening to the metal creaking slightly and the whole structure swaying a time or two as they ascended. She was somewhat relieved when Mulder rounded the last corner onto the last level, reaching the roof at last. Except instead of finding herself at the building's peak, she found herself a good 10 or 15 feet below the level of the roof. They were at a juncture where two of the planes of the roof came together at an inverted angle, sloping upwards at probably close to a 45 degree angle to the actual roof above her. There was no more fire escape and she could see no hand or footholds on the shingled surfaces. "Mulder, how the hell do we get up there?" she whispered, motioning towards the roof. "There's nothing to hang on to." "Sure there is, just watch," Mulder said, his grin clearly audible even though she couldn't see it. He climbed the outer railing of the fire escape, turning to hoist himself up onto the angled roof. Keeping his body nearly prone to the roof, he pressed outwards with his hands and feet and proceeded to shimmy up the inverted angle. Within 60 seconds, he had lifted himself up onto what must have been a flat, level section of the roof, disappearing from sight momentarily as his feet slid over the edge and out of view. Soon, though, he reappeared, lying on his stomach and stretching his right arm over the edge towards her. "Now c'mon, Scully, do the same thing and get up here," he said quietly. "Are you insane, Mulder? Crawling up the side of a building where the slightest mis-step would send me plummeting the equivalent of seven stories?" she replied, trying to keep her voice down. "Forget it." "It's easy, Scully. You'll have an even easier time than I do, since your frame is so much smaller--your center of gravity will be much closer to the ground," he explained, trying to sound reasonable. When she still just shook her head, he tried a different approach. "Please?" That caught her attention. Mulder almost never actually requested that she do something--it was usually a matter of knowing what needed to be done, and then each doing their part of it. He very rarely actually verbalized a request, complete with a 'please' or a 'thank you' attached. She glanced up at him again. Even through the darkness of the night air, she could see his eyes as clearly as though it were a summer afternoon. They still shone with the frivolity of the last hour, but were now mixed with something else. She saw in him an honest, innocent desire for her to join him up there. Not for any ridiculous adventure, not for any death-defying antics or midnight thrill rides. Just for the simple reason that he wanted to be with her and hoped she felt the same. Well, damn, she thought to herself as she hiked a boot up onto the railing. If he's going to put it like that... Reaching the top of the railing, she twisted around and managed to get her body transferred over to the roof without incident. She was surprised that she wasn't immediately slipping downwards, despite the sharpness of the angle--the roughness of the shingles must have provided just enough grip for her boots to keep her in place. Although it wasn't easy, she managed to slowly work her way up the angle towards Mulder's outstretched hand. Only once did her boot slip out from under her, but she immediately steadied herself and regained control, losing only a foot or so of progress to the error. Finally, she was able to reach her left hand out and grasp Mulder's wrist even as his own fingers encircled her own. He pulled her up and over the raised edge of the roof easily, making sure she was safely away from the edge before relinquishing his hold on her. Scully stood and began brushing the accumulated dust and debris from her clothing. That action slowly drew to a stop, though, as she finally looked around her and saw her surroundings. Whatever she'd been expecting, it surely wasn't this. Perfectly flat except where it broke off to a slightly lower plane, the graveled roof spread out before her seemingly forever. She'd always pictured most buildings as having peaked roofs, or at the very most, a small level area just a few feet across. But this... this was huge. Easily 70x70 and rimmed with that raised edging, the roof was large enough to dispel any fears of toppling over the sides. She barely had time to notice all of that, though, before her gaze was drawn upwards to the night sky. At first she'd thought she'd imagined it, a shimmer of light crossing her vision almost as an afterimage. Surely, I must be imagining things, she thought to herself with a good mental shake. But there it was again, though, and again. "The aurora borealis," she whispered to herself in wonder. She hadn't seen them since she was a child, somehow always managing to be engrossed in something more 'important' than standing outside staring at the sky. But as the shimmers grew to swirling sheets of light, the colors combining in the heavens in an unbelievable vision of beauty, Scully couldn't think of anything more important than being right where she was. How in the world did Mulder time this so perfectly, she wondered, shaking her head as she continued to stare. Scully stood for several seconds, just drinking in the view and the night air. Something soon dawned on her, though. "Mulder, why is it *warm* up here?" she called out, glancing about her in confusion. The chilly October air had been hovering around 40 degrees during the days, dipping below freezing the last two nights. But for some reason, she felt herself warming up. "The building's heat exhaust vents up here on the roof, the vents themselves pointing inwards," Mulder's voice explained, somewhat muffled. She turned to find him kneeling down a short distance away, close to edge of the roof facing north. His pack was off his shoulders now as he rummaged through its contents as he spoke. "They didn't want to ruin the aesthetics of the building by having visible venting anywhere, so they ran the vents up to the roof and had them positioned inward behind the ledges here. So you've actually got warm air blasting towards you from about 10 different locations up here." Scully began to wander in Mulder's general direction, intent on learning what he was up to, but he heard her approach. "Nope, stay there, Scully. Let me get everything set here first," he warned, putting up a hand to ward her back across the roof. "Don't want to ruin the surprise, do you?" "Actually, Mulder, I was one of those children that peeks through their parents' closet the week before Christmas, shaking every package addressed to me and even some that weren't," Scully laughed. But she turned away nevertheless, standing still as she watched the universe's nighttime performance. She distinctly heard a cork being popped at one point, quirking an eyebrow as a slight smile tugged at her lips. What is he up to, she wondered... "So how did you ever find this place, Mulder?" she asked him after a moment. "We haven't often been to Virginia and I think I would remember a case that took us building hopping." "Nah, this predates you by quite a bit. We found this place back when I was at Quantico--the base isn't very far from here at all. We were often looking for a way to break the stress of the training and never had much free time except at night," Mulder said, still rustling about behind her. "And 'we' would be..." Scully said, her tone climbing upwards to make it a question. Mulder rarely talked about his Quantico days at all, usually only mentioning them in passing. "Just a friend of mine that I knew then," Mulder said. She heard him pause for a second before continuing with his... with whatever he was doing. She wondered at his tone of voice, a strange combination of fond remembrance and sadness, as if speaking of something once treasured but now lost. "Anyway, we found this place late one night when we were dropping off an acquaintance--the view provided a kind of peace that was a perfect offset to the rest of our lives." Scully was tempted to probe further, to find out more about this friend of Mulder's. He almost never referred to anyone as a friend, whether currently or from his past, and it intrigued her.. But she decided to let it drop, knowing Mulder would have told her more if he had really wanted to. She filed the reference away in her memory for future use, though. Instant Conversation Topic Number 15, she laughed to herself--just add a long drive and Mulder... "All right, Scully, come on over," she finally heard him say. Scully turned and traced her way across the roof to Mulder's side, looking down in surprise at what had obviously been the contents of his backpack. The very well-packed contents, she thought to herself, amazed at the quantity of items laid out before her. A small stadium-style blanket was spread out on the ground, its woven pattern visible even in the night's dim light. A small bottle of her favorite Merlot sat between two tall wine glasses, their rims a glinting gold. A dish of strawberries sat near two small plates, each covered in a layer of chocolate shavings. A small container of whipped cream completed the tiny feast. "You said you like strawberries, right?" Mulder asked, getting a little anxious when Scully just stood and stared without saying anything. "What... oh, yeah. I love strawberries, Mulder," Scully said, fighting down the urge to lick her lips just looking at the luscious whipped cream. "But... but how did you know that chocolate and whipped cream are my favorite way to eat them?" "I have my ways, Agent Scully," Mulder said with a laugh. "They don't call me Spooky for nothing, you know. Come on, let's eat." As they sat down at the blanket's edge, Mulder gathered up the wine glasses the Merlot. He filled his own glass only after handing Scully hers and asking whether she liked it. She took a small sip and nodded, the Merlot chilled to a wonderful temperature by the cool night air. She reached to pick up her small plate, feeling that it was just a heavy-quality paper plate-- Mulder obviously hadn't wanted to risk having too many breakable things in his pack during the climb. Noticing a pattern beneath the chocolate shavings, she brushed them aside with her fingers slightly. She began laughing as the unmistakable visage of Buzz Lightyear gazed out at her from the plate's surface. Mulder, glancing over to see what she was laughing at, began chuckling as well. "It was slim pickings at the local KwikMart across the street from the motel--it was either these or Barney plates," he said, shaking his shoulders in a mock shiver as he spoke the word 'Barney.' "Oh, you made the right choice there, Mulder," Scully laughed. She picked up a strawberry and dipped it in the cream. "At least Buzz Lightyear helps save the day for all his friends instead of singing songs about brushing your teeth." Scully rolled the strawberry in the chocolate shavings until it was thoroughly coated. Admiring the result for just the briefest of seconds, she popped it into her mouth with a contented sigh. Delicious... As they sat in silence, each enjoying the easy calm between them, they watched the lights swirling above them in constant, cascading sheets of yellows, reds and greens. Even though they weren't watching each other, they never once bumped a cream- coated berry into the other or jostled each other as they reached for the wine. Their movements were perfectly orchestrated, the result of so many hours spent side by side over so many years. It wasn't long before the last of the strawberries had been polished off, the cream and chocolate dabbed up with fingertips until the last traces had disappeared. Although she didn't really want to move, Scully realized that her left foot was beginning to fall asleep--instead of sitting cross-legged as she usually did, she had bent one leg underneath her. Making a comment to Mulder, she stood and began doing a few knee bends and such to restore the feeling. "Just take a walk around the perimeter, Scully, while I pack this stuff away," Mulder said, indicating the used plates and empty containers. "We'll have another glass of wine and then think about calling it a night, maybe." She nodded and began to walk along the roof's edge, getting close enough to the ledge to get a clear view of everything without feeling like she was risking an accident if she were to stumble. She wasn't drunk, by any stretch of the word, but the pleasing flavor of the wine had combined with the sweetness of the strawberries to create a very mellow mood--I don't need to ruin that mood by toppling over the edge of the building, she thought with a laugh. After a lazy circuit around the roof, she returned to her starting position, noting that Mulder had moved the blanket closer to the ledge, the Merlot and the glasses still resting on it. Everything else had been packed away in the backpack and put off to one side. Mulder motioned for her take a seat again, this time facing out over the low ledge towards the river. She watched as he poured them each another glass of the wine, noticing that they'd finished nearly all of the small bottle. "Mulder?" she asked quietly, nodding her thanks to him as he handed the glass to her. "Yeah, Scully," he said as he sat down near her, stretching his legs out in front on him and leaning back on one hand. "Why did you bring me up here?" she asked, then spoke quickly to dispel the rising fear she saw in his eyes as he turned to look at her. "No, I don't mean anything negative by that. I really am having a great time, and I'm glad that I'm here." She was relieved to see him settle back into his comfortable pose, the fear dissipating as quickly as it had gathered. "I just mean... well... I just mean why, I guess. This isn't exactly something that's a normal evening's entertainment, at least not for most people," she teased, laughing as Mulder opened his eyes wide in his most innocent 'whatever do you mean' expression. "Perhaps the answer is right there in front of me, but I can't quite see it. So I just have to ask it—why did we drive 50 miles, climb on top of Crookshaw Hall, and watch the northern lights while eating cream-covered strawberries and drinking wine?" Scully knew that, coming from anyone else or directed at anyone else, Mulder's actions would have appeared as a suggestive overture, an evening designed to lead to a more... amorous conclusion. The wine, the strawberries, the whipped cream--they would be, to most people, the predecessors to an evening of romance. But this was something different. This was just Mulder wanting to give her the things he knew she enjoyed, leaving her to wonder what the occasion was. "You really don't know?" he asked quietly, not quite looking at her, but not quite looking away from her either. "No, I don't," she answered honestly. "Tell me." She watched as he set his glass down on the roof's edge, shifting his weight until he was facing her, his legs bent up in front of him as his long arms clasped around them. He looked at her then, his eyes seeming to hold hers with a force all their own as they sat barely two feet from each other. "It's the one-year anniversary of your cancer going into remission," he said simply. Scully just stared, shocked. She had never been one to pinpoint exact dates for most things, remembering family birthdays only out of sheer habit. Even as a schoolgirl, she had not counted the traditional 'one-month' or 'three-month' anniversaries with her boyfriends, as other girls had. But this one... how could she not have realized what Mulder was doing on this one? How did I not know, she chastised herself-- how could I be so blind? Mulder had gone through Hell for her a year ago, fighting through one demon after another to save her. To cure her. To bring her back to life from the edge of a death so real she had seen it. And here I sit, questioning why he's doing this for me tonight, she thought. Not even realizing that it's been a year since he was sitting at that bedside, his hand over my heart as I awoke from the implant surgery. How could I be so stupid... She reached out to put her hands over his, working her fingers around his hands as she stared across at him. "I'm so sorry, Mulder. I didn't know... I didn't make the connection that this was... that it had been-" Mulder cut her off, lifting his hands up to hold hers tightly in the space between them. "No, Scully, it's okay," he said gently, offering her a smile to show that he meant his words. "I know this isn't something you would normally keep track of, and it's okay. But for me, I couldn't let this day go by unnoticed, I couldn't. It marks the passing of the happiest day of my whole life." He paused for minute, trying to figure out how to express verbally what he felt so strongly in his soul. "When you were lying in that hospital last year, slowly wasting away, I was lost, Scully. I didn't know what to do, where to go, who to believe. You had been the only person I'd trusted for years and you were being taken away from me. I couldn't... I couldn't find the answer, I couldn't make everything all right for you and it was killing me. "Even after we found the chip, even after you had agreed to give it a try, I couldn't rest. My stomach kept churning, my mind kept roiling with the fear that you were going to leave me. My body wouldn't stop shaking, hour after hour, as I sat there by your bed--I think they were about to admit *me* to the ICU," he quipped, relieved to see Scully give a small smile at the joke even as a tear tracked slowly across her cheek. He didn't want to upset her, not here, not today, but he wanted her to understand what he was feeling. "I swore something to myself that day. I swore that if whatever gods existed in the universe would allow me just one wish, I'd never take you for granted for another day, another second. I've rarely prayed for anything in my life, Scully, but I knelt by your bed and cast my heart up to heaven that day. "Later, when the doctor told me you were improving, that the cancer was going into remission, I began to feel a hope I've never felt before. And when you opened your eyes and looked up at me that night, when I saw the life shining behind them, I knew my prayers had been answered." Mulder reached out then, gently wiping away the tears that now flowed freely down Scully's cheeks. He reached out and pulled her close to him, turning her so that her back was to him as she sat between his long legs, his arms wrapped his arms around her. "I once told you that the truth would save you, that it would save both of us," Mulder said quietly. "But I was wrong. It wasn't the truth that saved me that day, Scully... "It was you," he whispered, his voice breaking at the very end. Scully felt his arms tighten around her as his head rested against hers, and she knew she had to match him, feeling for feeling. She sat up a bit, gently twisting in his arms until she was facing him, until she could look in his eyes. She was shocked at the pain they held even as he tried to smile to cover it up. She reached up and brushed the hair back from his eyes, leaving her hand along the side of his face as she spoke. "And you saved me that day too, Mulder," she said to him, her words quiet but clear. "Just as you have countless times before and will again, I have no doubt. Maybe it *is* the truth that saves us, Mulder--the one we make ourselves. Perhaps we are each other's truth." This time, it was Scully who gathered Mulder in her arms, holding him close as their tears fell together. They stayed that way for a time, holding each other close even after the tears subsided. It wasn't an embrace of passion, even though they were locked tightly together, heads buried in each other's shoulders--it was simply the outward expression of an inner loyalty so strong, a devotion so fierce that neither could have begun to describe it. All they knew was that they never wanted to lose it. After a while, they broke away from each other, Mulder making a joke as he stood, something about putting a wet spot on her shoulder. Scully just laughed, the sound rolling out across them like a refreshing rain, washing away the last feelings of tension. Stretching his arms up above his head, Mulder commented that he could use another glass of wine. "It's not exactly the Taster's Choice required by the previous moments, but it'll have to do," he laughed as he poured himself the last drop of the Merlot. He offered the glass to Scully in case she wanted some, but she just shook her head, saying she'd had her fill. As Mulder sat back down a little ways from her, Scully glanced up into the night sky once more. The northern lights were still dancing above them, even more brilliant than before, if such a thing were possible. "You know, Mulder," she said, indicating the beauty above them, "When you see something like this, it just makes all things seem possible. Like maybe a unicorn will gallop by, mane streaming in the wind, or a faun will ask us to join him in a dreamdance." She turned at a sound from Mulder, something not quite a laugh, but not quite a sigh. He glanced up at her, reading her questioning look as easily as if she'd actually spoken. "Ah, it's nothing. You just reminded me of something someone once said," Mulder said quietly, a smile playing about his lips as he gently traced the rim of his glass with his forefinger. Scully knew that smile, although she rarely saw it. It was a smile reserved for only one particular person in Mulder's memory, the smile of a brother for his younger sister. "Of something who once said about what?" Scully asked. "Something Samantha once said about the aurora borealis. She first saw them with me when she was about 6, I was maybe 10 or so," he said, leaning back to stare up at the sky as he spoke. "She hadn't shut up all day long, yammering on about this friend and that friend, this tea party and that birthday party, you know. Really annoying me and everyone else. But when I found out that the lightshow that was supposed to be that night, I knew I didn't want her to miss it. I'd seen them once before and I wanted her to see them with me, even though she was just, you know, my annoying little sister. "She had been whining all the way up the hillside that night, about being woken up in the middle of the night and that she was tired and wanted to go home. I kept telling her to just wait, that she'd see something amazing and feel a power not of this world. "The hillside was covered with dense trees, so we were unable to see the sky until we topped out onto the small clearing at the very peak of the hill. I covered her eyes while we walked to the center of the clearing--perhaps she was beginning to hope there was really something great about to happen, because she didn't fight me at all. We sat down side by side. I had brought a small blanket with me, and I wrapped it around us against the chill. When it was all set, I whispered to her to open her eyes and look up. "Up to that point, I thought I'd seen happiness in her before. You know, Samantha opening a new doll on her birthday, or getting a gift of money from grandma on Christmas morning. But I never saw her in such a state of pure awe as I did that night. It was just like this, just like it is tonight. Swirling, multicolored lights, the air clean and crisp. It was... it was like magic. My little, annoying brat of a sister couldn't take her eyes off the sky and neither could I. "After a while, she leaned over and asked me what this all was. I tried to explain about gas particles colliding, about plasma and magnetic fields. She just shook her head, not believing a word of it. I asked her what she thought it was. She stared up at the sky some more, her eyes shining in the light. "'This is God dreaming,' she whispered to me. She laid her hand over mine, then, smiling as if she'd just let me in on the biggest secret of the universe. We sat for the rest of the night that way, in perfect silence and contentment." Mulder trailed off, looking up at the lights above them, a smile still present on his face as he replayed that night from so long ago. Scully had always known that Mulder loved Samantha with all his heart. My god, he's devoted his entire life to finding her, she thought--if that's not love, then I doubt such a thing even exists. But until this night, she had never realized how much Mulder *liked* his little sister, even as he tried to hide it. They hadn't just been siblings, caring for each other simply because they shared the same parents and lived in the same house. They had truly been friends, or were at least growing up to be friends as the years went by. When Mulder had wanted to share the 'lightshow' with someone that night, he hadn't woken his father, or his mother, or gone to the house of a friend his own age. He had woken up his little sister, taking her with him as they climbed towards the stars to share a midnight wonder. After a few moments, Scully stood up. Thinking she meant to put an end to the evening, Mulder started to get to his feet as well. Scully just shook her head, motioning for Mulder to stay put and relax. She took a few steps to grab up the blanket from in front of them, shaking it out to knock loose the few pebbles clinging to it. She sat down next to Mulder, squeezing up close to him this time as she draped the blanket across them both and tucked it in around them. Reaching for his hand, she laced her fingers through his, squeezing his hand gently as she looked at him. He just smiled down at her, squeezing her hand too as he pressed a gentle kiss to her forehead. Tilting their heads towards the sky, they sat in perfect silence for a long, long time... Watching God dream, in perfect contentment. * * * -30- * * * Story End * * * -30- * * * AUTHOR'S NOTES, ROUND TWO: I have never been to Virginia in my life, I will state that right off the bat. To pick town names, I simply used a map to find names that appeared to fit the needs of my story. The college and building names are entirely made up, used simply for effect in this story. However, the general idea of the story is based on my own college days. I and several friends used to climb the buildings of our college all the time, often bringing... refreshments and such in backpacks. CD players, frisbees, slingshots... whoops, did I say that last one out loud? Related to that, though, this author and story is in no way recommending that you partake in any climbing of buildings for any reason. It is usually illegal and always highly dangerous, especially after the consumption of certain... liquid refreshments. Comments, feedback, questions? Please contact me at snark_911@yahoo.com to discuss this story. Thanks!