Shadows of the Mind


Title - Shadows of the Mind (1/4)
Author - Katrinka
Authors Email: Katrinka@flash.net
Rating - G first three parts, NC-17 last part
Classification - MSR
Spoilers - The Sixth Extinction II: Amor Fati
Keywords - A/U what if
Sequel to Doors and Walls 
Archiving Gossamer, Ephemeral, and LEGACY only. Any other archiving must
have authors express permission first. I will probably give it!
Summary - After breaking her ankle, Scully's relationship with Mulder changes.
 
Authors Note: First, the events that happen in the emergency room are based on events that happened to the Author when she broke her ankle. The staff at that hospital was even more 'helpful' to the Author then they were to Scully. I.e. they made her *walk* to an exam room. 
Second: The Author's former profession was a LPN, so she does have medical knowledge.
Third: As a Special Educator, the Author knows that Special Olympic Tournaments can be held any time of the year. 

It was a crisp January evening. When Mulder had asked her to go to a basketball game with him, she had envisioned a nice evening out with him. The Knicks were in town, she had assumed that Mulder would want to go see his favorite team play. Instead, Scully sat in a local high school gym watching a Special Olympics League tournament. Her seat was directly beside the Gray's bench. The high school aged girls on the bench kept glancing at Scully. It didn't take a psychic to tell that they where curious about the woman their coach had brought to the game. 

"Time to trade out Kernisha," Byers whispered to Mulder.

"Right," Mulder got to his feet and signaled the ref. He was wearing a "Grays" uniform jersey layered on top of his T-shirt. 

The referee blew the whistle and yelled "Time out!"

"Kernisha! Come here!" Byers yelled.

 Scully couldn't remember a time when she hadn't seen Byers in a suit. *First time for everything*

After Kernisha got to the sidelines, Mulder touched a girl on the shoulder. "Shaniqua your turn."

"Do your best." Byers told her.

"I will," the athlete promised.

"Go Grey's!" the kids on the bench began to cheer. Scully couldn't help it, she joined in. 

Mulder sat down beside her. "Thanks for coming."

"It's fun." Scully smiled.

Mulder cocked an eyebrow. "Really?"

Just then the replaced athlete came up to Scully. "Lady, can I have something to drink?"

Scully picked sports drink out of the cooler. She handed it to Kernisha. "You did good tonight."

Kernisha smiled. "Thanks." 

Scully watched Kernisha go back to her seat, then she looked up to Mulder. "Yes, really!"

*Grays, what else would a team co-coached by Mulder and Byers be named? * 

A few minutes passed, and the final buzzer rang. Mulder and Byers joined their team on the floor. Mulder took the time to congratulate each team member. Then it was time for the team to get their medal. The Grays seems as thrilled to win a medal at a small tournament, and they would be for an Olympic medal. 

Mulder walked up to Scully, his face beaming with happiness. "I'm taking the girls out for ice cream. You want to join us?" 

*No, I want to ride home in a taxi. * Scully was surprised when Mulder's face fell, as if he had heard what she had thought. Scully smiled. "Of course I want some ice cream!"

"Really?"

"Yes, I'll even buy your team an extra scoop!" Scully looked into his eyes, and Mulder smiled. 

*********************

Scully was walking down the sidewalk, talking to one of Mulder's team. 

"Why don't you marry Mulder?" the girl asked.

Scully glanced up at Mulder who was hiding a grin. "Sarah, Dr. Scully's much too old to get married."

"Your trying to tell me that I'm *old*?!?!?" Scully said enraged.

"Yes, your old. You came over to America on the Mayflower."  Mulder had this goofy grin that made Scully even that angrier.


"You would know, you where here to greet me!" Scully whacked Mulder on the shoulder. 

"I'm much younger then you!" Mulder whacked her back. Scully found herself falling. As she did, she could hear a loud cracking sound. 

Scully fell to the ground like a large sack of potatoes. *Get up, I've got to get up! * 

"Scully!" in an instant, Mulder was at Scully's side. "Don't try and move."

"I'm all right," she lied. She didn't feel all right. Her ankle was hurting. "Can you help me get up?"

"Are you sure you can?" Byers asked.

"Yes! Now help!" 

Mulder and Byers put their arms around her, and lifted her to her feet. 

"I'm sorry," Mulder whispered.

"It's okay, not your fault." Scully settled on her feet. She could walk, it really hurt, but she could. She put on her bravest face. "Let's go get some ice cream."

"Scully." Mulder's arm tightened around her. Byers and Mulder exchanged hesitant glances. 

"Scully, your hurt." Byers tried to reason. "You need medical help."

"Your team worked hard, you promised them ice cream." She winced. 

"You can barely walk!"

It's not that bad." she lied. 

Scully was able to limp into the Ice Cream Store. She bit her lip, trying hard not to show the pain. The kids deserved their reward. Her ankle could wait. It was a sprain; she could feel that it wasn't broken. 

Mulder had called ahead; the store had shoved several tables together. Scully sat down at the table. She told Byers what she wanted. Her partner looked at her with haunted eyes. 

A few moments later, happy basketball players surrounded her. They kept a chair beside her empty for Mulder. The students asked her many questions about her partner. It made her realize that most of the girls had some type of crush on him.

"One Coffee chocolate chunk Rice dream cone." Mulder said handing her the cone, he slid into the chair beside Scully. 

"Thanks."

"If you're going to eat that healthy junk, why do you eat chocolate?" Mulder tried to tease.

"Woman's got to have some indulgences."

Mulder kept looking at her with a strange look in his eyes. Concern, He was concerned about her. He only answered his team members if they talked to him directly.  

When the ice cream was finished. A bus came for the girls. Mulder looked into Byers eyes, it seemed like electricity passed between the men. 

"Why don't you take Scully home? I'll chaperone the girls." Byers suggested. 


 Scully didn't get up. She told the team goodbye from where she was sitting. 

"You ready to go?" Mulder asked. 

Scully nodded. She attempted to get to her feet. She found herself falling again. 

In an instant, Mulder was beside her. "Your hurt aren't you?"

"I'll be fine." she couldn't stop her lip from quivering.

Mulder's fingers ran over Scully's' ankle. The genteel touch was enough to make Scully burst into tears. "We need to get you to the hospital. Do you want me to call an ambulance?"

Scully couldn't believe her ears. "For a sprained ankle?"

"All right, I'll take you." Her partner took her into his arms, and then he picked her up and carried her to his car. She could feel the steady beating of his heart. 

Scully felt safe in this man's arms. Even though he was the reason that she had broken her ankle. *It's not his fault. * Was it Scully's imagination, or did Mulder's arms tighten around her? 

*I'll be okay Scully. * Scully could hear Mulder whisper in her mind.

**************************
Mulder paced in the emergency rooms waiting room. Three hours had passed, three hours in which his partner hadn't even been allowed to check in yet.  Mulder reminded himself over and over that Scully was simply a friend, nothing less, nothing more. He was only concerned for his partner. Why did his inner child call him a liar?

*Scully can only be my partner. * He reminded himself for the millionth time.

Mulder's partner was pale; her foot propped up on a chair. Even though Mulder kept the walls that he had learned to form up, he could feel her pain. 

After Mulder had been cured of the madness that the alien artifact had given him, he found that he was telepathic. A different sort then the telepathy then he had experienced while insane. This telepathy was controllable. He could close his mind and not have to experience the thoughts of others.  That was how he preferred it, not to have to read others thoughts. There was one person that could force her way through his walls. Scully could somehow penetrate the barriers in his mind. 

*Byers told me that I love Scully. * Mulder thought. *What I feel for her is far deeper then love. *

*I can't open myself to being hurt again. *

"You won't stop pacing. What's wrong?" Scully asked.

*I'm worried about you. Your ankle's so swollen. I did this to you. How can you ever forgive me? * Mulder thought. Instead of showing Scully he cared, he said. "I thought emergency rooms are supposed to treat people!" 

"I have to wait my turn." 

Mulder looked around the empty room. "There's no one here but us."

"They must be treating someone in a room."

"I don't think so." Mulder went to the check in desk. 

The nurse looked up to Mulder. "I told you, it's not her time yet."

"How long will it be?"

"Could be a couple of hours." 

Mulder took out his ID. "I would like to talk to whom ever is in charge."

"I'm the only one that you need to talk to."

"You have ten seconds to get whom ever is really in charge here, or I will have this place crawling with FBI agents!" Mulder threatened.

The woman picked up a phone and called someone. A few minutes passed and a doctor finally arrived. "I heard there is a problem."

"Yes, this man is aggregating me. He needs to wait his turn."

The doctor turned to Mulder. "You must understand in an emergency room, it could be several hours after check in for someone to be treated."

"This person won't even let us check in." Mulder countered. 

"It might take several minutes for her to see you."

"It's been much longer then just a few minutes."

"How long have you been waiting?"

"Three hours, we've been waiting three hours to check in."

The doctor looked over Scully. "Fine. Have her walk to an exam room, and you can check her in."

"She has a hurt ankle!" 

The doctor sighed heavily. "I'll send an orderly to wheel her to an exam room."

************************

An hour later, Mulder sat with Scully in an exam room. Her foot was really swollen. He could tell by looking at it that it must be broken. He had done this to her, his roughness had broken a bone in her body.  She had been taken to x-ray, then returned to the room. Her psychic cries during the x-ray had shook him to the core. 

A few moments passed, a doctor came in, carrying an ace bandage. "Dr. Scully, we have good news. Your ankle is only sprained."

"So are you going to wrap her leg now?" Mulder asked.

The doctor tossed the bandage to Scully, who caught it. "She's a doctor, she can wrap her own leg." 

"Don't you have any special instructions?" 

"Yeah, put it up when you work." with that the doctor left.

"That son of a bitch!" Mulder walked towards the door.

"Mulder, please." 

"They can't treat you that way!"

"It's just a sprain." she tried to reason.

"Just a sprain!" Mulder was angry, and he didn't want to hide it. He could feel that she was more hurt then just a sprained ankle. 

"Sprains hurt too," Scully said, answering his unsaid question. She unwrapped the bandage. She leaned down to wrap her foot and winced in pain. 
Mulder took the bandage from her, and knelt on the floor. "Let me help you with that."

"Do you know how to wrap a foot?"

"I used to do this all the time when I played basketball." Mulder half-smiled in what he hoped looked like confidence.  "It's going to hurt."

"Get on with it." Scully growled. 

With as much gentleness as he could, he wrapped his partner's ankle.  He would stop each time he felt more pain from her. Finally he was finished, and she handed him the fasteners.  "I know this isn't the most romantic time, but would you like to stay at my apartment tonight?"

Scully scrutinized him. "Why?"

"Because my place is only a few blocks from here." He pointed out. "Your place is quite a drive away. It might hurt your foot to try and drive home."

Mulder could feel Scully mull over the idea in her mind. Then she nodded her head. 

**************