Sat Oct 12 1996
Am posting this for the author; please send all feedback to Teall1@aol.com
**All XF characters belong to CC and Fox; no infringement
intended**
One More Breath........by Teall1@aol.com

The air was crisp in DC today. As Fox Mulder headed toward his car,
he breathed the sweet air deeply. It was late fall and winter was
already in the wind, but the weather was still nice enough to enjoy
outdoors. Fox drove to work in a relaxed manner, glad to have wrapped up
the case involving Jeremy Marshall so quickly. He wondered if Scully was
there yet.
As he entered the office, he saw her red hair falling over her face,
as she worked on her reports. She greeted him absently and he was about
to sit down, when AD Skinner walked in.
"Morning, Agents," Skinner said. He had that look on his face.
Scully and Mulder glanced at each other in that way they had of
communicating without speaking. Skinner then outlined a new case which
he wanted them to investigate. It involved the disappearance of several
elderly males in the New England area. These men would simply disappear
and their families had reported them missing, but none were ever found.

"Is this all the information you have, sir?" Scully asked. Skinner
nodded and then told them to fly out that afternoon, if they could. This
was a pressing case, as two of the men were quite influential in the city.
The two agents exchanged a few more words with Skinner and then Mulder
called to make flight arrangements.
"Here we go again," Scully remarked, starting to put her desk in
order. Mulder just mumbled, being preoccupied already. Probably
dreaming up more abduction scenarios, Scully surmised, shaking her head
at the already imagined verbal battles they would have over this. Once
everything was set, they left to pack.

At home, Mulder threw some things into a small travel bag and was
about to leave for Scully’s apartment, when the phone rang. It was a
deep and recognizable voice....X
"Agent Mulder, do not take this case," the voice at the other end
of the phone stated. "Your life is in danger." Then he hung up, before
the call could be traced. Mulder was left staring at a dead phone,
perplexed and irritated.
"My life is always in danger," he muttered and decided to leave for
Scully’s right then. On the flight, he related to Scully this strange
phone call.
"Mulder, why is this person always giving you these cryptic and
brief messages?" she demanded. "Why can’t he just tell you whatever it
is he knows?" He started to answer her and she interrupted.... "Never
mind. I know the answer." They smiled at each other, but it was a
sardonic smile on Scully’s part. Soon they landed at their destination
and found a close hotel. After settling in, they met for lunch and to
discuss their strategy. They decided to go to the local police station
to gather data first.
The station provided them with whatever they could, which wasn’t
much more than a name and description of each missing man, four in all.
Two were prominent men in the town, one a retired physician and the other
a wealthy businessman, who had just turned his real estate clientele over
to his son-in-law. After interviewing their families, who were tired of
giving this same information yet again, they headed back. They then
decided to investigate one of the areas where the first gentleman, the
doctor, was last seen. As they approached his office, which was in a
quiet and pretty part of town, they noticed little activity in the
immediate area, which was near shopping, etc. It was late afternoon, but
the streets were fairly quiet. They were so intent on checking out the
building and its immediate surrounding area, they didn’t notice a
stranger lurking close by. Before they could take note of his presence,
a shot rang out and Scully whirled around to see Mulder falling!
"Mulder!" she cried, running over to him. He was wounded in the
chest, but not near the heart or lungs, thank goodness. Scully whipped
out her cell phone and called an ambulance. Mulder was barely conscious
and she was alarmed at his pallor, despite her sense that the bullet
missed his vital organs.

Once at the hospital, Scully settled herself in Mulder’s room and
checked over his admitting statement. As she had surmised, the shot had
missed vitals and he was more in shock than anything. The surgeon who
removed the bullet had assured her he was going to be fine. Mulder
groaned and opened his eyes slowly.
""Hi," Scully said gently.
"Hi," he whispered weakly, "wha…." he began then closed his eyes in
pain.
"Mulder? Are you hurting?" she asked quickly. He just moaned
again and she went to get the nurse for a pain shot. After this was
given to him, he drifted off to sleep. Scully stayed as long as she
could and the returned to the nearby hotel to get some rest. The next
morning, she was awakened by the phone and it was the doctor from the
hospital.
"Agent Scully?" the doctor asked. At her confirmation, he went on..
.. "we seem to have a problem here."
"Agent Mulder has taken a turn for the worse. He is running a high
fever and we can’t seem to locate the cause. We are recommending he be
flown home right away to the hospital in DC." Scully was terrified now
and made quick arrangements to have this done. When she arrived at the
hospital to fly back with Mulder, he looked pale and deathly still.

Upon arriving at the DC hospital, Scully went right to the doctor
in charge of the case. She was told it would be some time before they
had any idea what was causing this, since it didn’t seem to be the result
of the gunshot, which was on the mend. Scully paced back and forth,
wondering if she should notify Mrs. Mulder about her son yet. Finally,
the doctor emerged, a concerned look on his face. Scully’s heart dropped
to her toes.
"Doctor?" she asked. He sat down beside her and began to talk.
"Agent Scully, your partner is very ill. He has a rare form of a
virus, which appears to have been caused by the shock of the bullet.
Although it didn’t hit any vitals, it was close enough to his lungs to
set in motion a condition he has probably carried since birth. The virus
is very strong and can be deadly." As he talked, Scully’s heart pounded
harder. Even as a medical doctor, she was having trouble comprehending
what he was saying.
"Doctor, what can be done for him?" she said in a weak voice, shaky
with emotion and fear. She couldn’t lose Fox! She couldn’t!
"The only thing we know of, which is a long shot, is a tissue
transfer from one of his parents, from whom this surely evolved. They
don’t have to be afflicted, but can be carriers. I have only seen this
twice before. Once patient lived and the other died, both having these
tissue transfers. We have caught Agent Mulder’s early enough where we
have a good chance. Do you know how to reach the parents for typing?"
Scully shoot her head clear. "His mother is still alive and
recovering from a stroke herself, but she is doing well. His father is
dead." She looked at the doctor levelly.
"Let’s hope it’s the mother then," he said grimly. He got up and
left, leaving Scully devastated but determined to save her partner and
friend.

Scully knocked softly on the door, waiting for it to open. Mrs.
Mulder let her in, a worried look on her already tired face. Scully
embraced her gently and then sat down. She had partially explained the
situation before arrived to see Mrs. Mulder. As she gave the details,
the woman appeared to crumble.
"He has been through so much," she said quietly. "Of course, I
will go there to be typed. I am sure it must be me, it has to be!" she
added desperately. Scully held her hand supportively and offered to
drive her there right then. Mrs. Mulder threw some things together,
since time was of the essence, and they left. They drove directly to the
hospital, where Mrs. Mulder had her tissue typed and then went in to see
her son.
Fox lay in the bed, still as death. His skin color was nearly
white and he was breathing with difficulty, but not with oxygen as yet.
She took his hand, feeling the cold despite the burning fever. She
pressed her lips to the palm, still soft in his youth. He stirred a bit,
and finally opened his eyes.
"Mom" he murmured. "Mom...." then he was out again. Mrs. Mulder
let the tears flow steadily, while Scully watched from the window. Her
own eyes filled. Oh God, what if she lost Mulder? She never knew how
much he meant to her until something like this happened. They had both
been at risk before, but this was so foreign and dangerous an illness.
After spending some more time with Fox, Mrs. Mulder left and they went to
see the doctor, who told them it would be later than afternoon for the
results. They decided to get something to eat and then return.

"Dana," Mrs. Mulder began, "you have been such a good friend to Fox,
through all of his family troubles." Scully smiled at her.
"Fox is very special," she replied. "I love him very much, as a
dear friend and confidant. We won’t let anything happen to him, I
promise!" She said this with more conviction than she felt, but needed to
reassure herself as well. They finished their meal quickly, since
neither was very hungry, and returned to the hospital. The doctor was
ready for them but from the look on his face, they knew it wasn’t good
news.
"Mrs. Mulder, Agent Scully, I’m afraid the tissue isn’t the right
type. I am so sorry." He looked directly at Mrs. Mulder. "Is there
anyone else in the family you can think of who might help out?" For a
moment, Mulder’s mother shook and Scully held on to her tightly. She
attributed this to the shock of this news.
"Doctor, Fox’s sister has been missing for years. There is no one
else." But, her gaze wavered when she said this. Scully remembered what
Fox had told her about his mother’s strange encounter with Cancerman, but
pushed the horrendous thought out of her mind.
The doctor paused a moment. "Some other hospitals have had some
luck with donors who aren’t related. I’m going to put in a call to
someone. I’ll let you as soon as I hear something. But remember, this
is a long shot." They agreed and then decided to see Mulder once more,
before Scully drove his mother back to her hotel, as she badly needed
rest now. As they entered Fox’s room, they found him thrashing around in
his bed, a nurse bent over him.
"What’s happening?" Scully asked alarmed. She was told he had
started having seizures from the fever and that they were getting worse.
Scully and Mrs. Mulder stood by helplessly, while Fox suffered through
this. He was drenched in sweat finally., and the nurse made him as
comfortable as she could. Scully approached the bed and held his hand,
gazing into his face which was more peaceful now.
"Mulder," she whispered, "I won’t let you die!" She squeezed his
hand and then took Mrs. Mulder home. The poor woman looked as bad as
her son, and Scully feared for her health. "Please stay at my place?"
she asked, but the woman insisted on staying at a hotel. Scully gave her
the number to her cell phone and her apartment, just in case, and told
the hotel personnel to respond immediately if Mrs. Mulder called for help.
Then, she headed home to try to rest herself, her worry about Mulder
pervading her every thought.

A soft tapping at her door later that night surprised Scully.
Confused and cautious, she peeked out the little peephole. Mrs. Mulder
stood there! Quickly opening the door, she drew the shaky woman inside.

"Mrs. Mulder, are you ill?" she questioned, extremely concerned.
The woman shook her head and sat down, seeming breathless. "Please, tell
me, what is it?" Mulder’s mother took a deep breath and appeared to be at
a loss for words. Finally, she began haltingly,
"Dana....I don’t know how to say this. But, if it were not for my
son’s life, I would never be mentioning it." Dana felt prickles travel
up her neck, but kept listening. "I....I think there may be some hope....
.for saving Fox," she whispered, tears forming in her eyes. "You see....
there was someone else, a long time ago. I....I am not sure Bill Mulder
is Fox’s biological father." There, the terrible words were out. Mrs.
Mulder then broke down completely, sobbing loudly. Scully held her hand,
almost afraid for her to go on.
"Please, tell me who this person is?" she implored. "I know how
difficult this must be, but it may be our only chance to save Fox." His
mother drew in several ragged breaths and then stared directly at Scully.
Her words fell like daggers in the room.
You know him as....the Cancerman." Then she let her head fall back
and closed her eyes, the silent tears falling. Scully made sure her
pulse rate was ok, lest she have another stroke, but she seemed all right.
Then she tried to assimilate what she had just been told. As she sat
in silent thought, Mrs. Mulder open her eyes and dried them. "I...I
just don’t want to lose my son," she whispered. They talked for a little
while longer and then Scully made a decision she hoped she would not
regret.
"How do you think we should contact him?" she asked the older
woman. "And how do you think he’ll react?" Mrs. Mulder shook her head,
as if to clear it.
"I know how to reach him," she said in a dead voice. "And I think
I can convince him to have the test to save Fox, if we keep it secret."
Scully nodded.
"It’ll take some doing to keep it secret, but we could go to
another hospital where no one knows anything and enter him under an
assumed name for typing and transfer, should it prove....." here she
hesitated, hating to speak the words.... "that he matches."
The two women looked at each other, one with misery yet trust, and the
other with as much honesty and reassurance as she could muster at this
time. But, the bond between them was their love for Fox Mulder and the
drive to keep him alive at all costs.
"I’ll make the call tonight...Ó Mrs. Mulder said resolutely.
"And I’ll get back to you to let you know if and when arrangements have
been made" As she rose to go, she turned to Scully and gazed at her
wordlessly. Scully hugged the frail woman who was now showing strength
she never imagined she would need. When Mulder’s mother left, Scully
got ready for bed but had a terribly difficult time falling asleep.

Back at the hotel, Mrs. Mulder picked up the phone. As she
dialed the number, her hands shook. When he answered the private line,
she thought she might faint but spoke up courageously.
"I need your help," she said bluntly. When the voice on the
other end asked the reason for her call, she began haltingly. "Fox....
has been shot. The....bullet has set in motion a rare virus which he
has inherited from...one of his parents. He needs a tissue transfer to
build antibodies. I’ve been typed....I don’t match." There was a long
pause at the other end.
"What do you want me to do about this?" was the response, in a
cold manner.
"I think you know already," she responded. "Bill is dead!
Samantha is gone. I won’t lose my son too! You are the only hope....."
her voice trailed off as a sob shook her. She began to shake. The
silence at the other end of the phone was nerve-wracking. Finally, he
answered.
"I’ll meet you tomorrow morning, early. We’ll discuss this."
Mrs. Mulder heard a click at the other end and sat down abruptly on the
bed. She leaned back and fell into an exhausted sleep.

.

From XYHJ52A@prodigy.com Sat Oct 12 11:30:29 1996
Am posting for the author; please send all feedback to
Teall@aol.com

**All XF characters belong to CC and Fox; no infringement intended.**

One More Breath....by Teall1@aol.com

Scully’s phone woke her early the next morning. It was the hospital,
calling to say Mulder had spent a restless night again and to let her
know he was not improving. She began to hurriedly get ready to head over
there, determined to do anything in her power to save him. Her phone
rang once more; picking it up she found it was Fox’s mother. The
arrangements had been made; Cancerman would check into a small hospital
out of the area under an assumed name, for tissue typing that afternoon.
A call would be placed to Mrs. Mulder, who would pose as his sister, to
let her know the outcome. At the same time, she told Scully she had
received a call from the doctor who had also found a possible match from
an unrelated donor. They would hear about both today .Scully’s heart
rose to a lump in her throat; did she hope for a match or not? She
wanted desperately to save her partner’s life, more than anything in the
world. But, the possibility of how, was too horrible to imagine.....

Scully arrived at the hospital and headed for Fox’s room. She
found him semi-awake but feverish and weak. He tried to smile when he
saw her, but it died half way.She sat down beside him and took his hand,
which was burning hot.
"Morning...." she said softly, "don’t try to speak. It’s ok....
I’m here with you now." He nodded weakly and closed his eyes, a groan
escaping him. "Mulder, are you in pain?" He shook his head slightly,
but from his grimace she knew he was lying. "It does no good to deny it,
" she replied, "because it won’t make it go away. Mulder, it’s important
we know how you are feeling." He opened his eyes again.

"Scully, just let me go...." he whispered, the misery evident in
his face. A tear formed in her eye, but she fought it back.
"Never!" she hissed back and squeezed his hand gently. He sighed
and drifted back off to sleep. Scully was so unnerved, she thought she
would pass out. Just then, she was paged for a phone call. She dried
her eyes and stepped out into the hall, to find AD Skinner approaching.
She motioned to him to wait and he nodded, but took her arm.
"How is he?" he asked, concern apparent in his face. She shook
her head, not trusting herself to speak. "I understand they’re searching
for a tissue match....." his voice was even and she detected no knowledge
of the real issue. "His mother didn’t match, so they’re searching for a
donor?" She nodded, hoping to carry off the lie, then took a deep breath
to answer him.
"There is a chance they may have located a distant relative to
donate the tissue, but he lives out of state. They’re typing him today."
He nodded and she hurried off to get her phone call. It was Mrs. Mulder.

"We have a match, Dana....." she said quietly. Scully’s head
began to swim, but she forced herself to remain calm.
"Is it.....?" she began, but Fox’s mother cut her off.
"It’s not been revealed to me which tissue matched. The doctor
refuses to say....and I’m not sure I want to know. They are going to
bring the tissue over to the hospital as soon as it arrives late this
afternoon." She sobbed a bit in the phone and Scully’s heart went out to
her. She began to tremble herself; they had to find a way to save Fox!
Whatever it took, it must be done.

Scully went immediately to the doctor’s office and found him just
leaving. She put her hand on his arm.
"We’re going to give this a try, Agent Scully," he said. "The
donor tissue is a match but may not work. As soon as it arrives, we’ll
do the procedure."
"May I ask who this tissue is from?" she queried. He looked
levelly at her.
"Donors are not revealed, not even to you." She met his gaze and
he finally looked away. "The records will be sealed, so it will do no
good to search. Even I won’t have access to them anymore after the
procedure is done. I’ve been ordered to forget whatever I have read."
He shook his head and continued down the hall to his next patient,
leaving Scully musing behind him. She returned to Mulder’s room to sit
with him until they heard something new. His mother would be here once
they began the actual procedure.

Mulder was tossing restlessly but remained semi-conscious only.
Occasionally, he would open his eyes and try to focus on her face, but
would slip off. He was muttering in his stupor, calling for his mother
and Samantha, and once asking for Scully. She held his hand and tried to
make him feel her presence, to connect with her, knowing it was important
for him to try to fight this. Finally, Mrs. Mulder arrived looking drawn
and pale. She hugged Scully and they waited for the doctor’s arrival.
After what seemed like forever, they came to prep Mulder for his
procedure. The two women went to the waiting room, one tense and
wondering, the other scared and shaken. The unspoken question was
between them....but Scully would didn’t ask again. It was enough if her
partner was saved.

The whole thing took two hours, but the recovery time was much
more. Scully and Mrs. Mulder sat with Fox most of the night, since it
was early evening when he was finally returned to his room. They were
told they might not see any improvement or change for a day or so, but
his vitals were good. Fox appeared to peaceful at least, sleeping
quietly. Scully gazed down at his face, pale but still incredibly
handsome. What if I lost you? she thought. She wasn’t sure exactly of
her feelings for Mulder; he was a jerk sometimes and weird most of the
time. But, he was also uncannily brilliant and a loyal friend and
partner. They shared a bond quite deep, different than romantic love,
but close. She knew he had feelings for her also, but she surmised they
were about the same as hers for him--deep and passionate but not
necessarily romantic. Their love and respect for each other transcended
the physical at this point. His mother was very tired and they fixed up
a cot for her in another room. Scully decided to leave them and went
home to sleep, leaving orders for her to be contacted at any change, no
matter what time. She then placed a called to Skinner to tell him the
procedure had been completed and that it was a success, but only the next
few days would tell if it would save Fox’s life. Her last wakeful
thought was a small prayer......

At about 10 am, her phone rang. Had she really slept this late?
She must have been completely exhausted. She picked it up to receive the
wonderful news that Mulder had taken a turn for the better and appeared
to be more awake this morning. She dressed quickly, called Skinner to
report this, and rushed to Mulder’s bedside.

He was awake and breathing easy. His temperature had dropped and
although he was still running a fever, it was much lower. All his signs
were excellent.
"Good morning," she said cheerfully. Mrs. Mulder had just left
to shower and get some breakfast, a smile on her face. Fox looked up at
Scully.
"Dana," he said softly. Scully’s breath caught; he hardly ever
called her that.
"How are you feeling?" she asked. He grinned his crooked grin at
her.
"Like I’ve been to a different planet for a while." She chuckled
at that and then took his hand.
"Did the doctor explain everything?" she asked him cautiously.
He nodded.
"He did and also said the donors were anonymous. Whoever they
are, I owe them my life and eternal gratitude." Scully had trouble
meeting his eyes. She was glad she didn’t know any certainties.
"The important thing is you’re going to get well, slowly but
steadily. No more alien hunting for you for a few weeks!" She tried to
joke with him, because she didn’t want to think about the possibilities
of how he got well. Just then, a pretty young nurse entered the room.
She approached the bed and smiled at her patient.
"Time for your sponge bath," she quipped. He looked mischievously
at Scully and said....
"Time for my sponge bath." Scully rolled her eyes and left them to
their pleasures. If Mulder was interested in he nurse, he was definitely
on his way back to health! She continued down the hall on her way to
work. Fox lay back his pillow and stared up at the pretty face above him.

"I’ll try to keep you as comfortable as I can," she said, "but we
do need to keep your wound site clean." He smiled at her and her breath
quickened. She had jumped at the chance to be Agent Mulder’s nurse and
bathe him, once she’d had a look at him. She peeled off his hospital garb
and tried to be as professional as possible. Mulder made this
increasingly difficult by turning his boyish charm and pouty face on her,
but he was so exhausted from his ordeal, he finally gave himself over to
her ministrations and then drifted back to sleep.

It was a week later and Mulder had been allowed to return to work
on a limited basis, with no field work allowed for another week or so.
He had taken to the tissue injection perfectly and the doctor found no
ill effects whatsoever, nor was there any reason to suspect there would
be. Scully found herself continually wondering who had provided the
tissue sample, but hesitated to ask Mrs. Mulder anything at all. She
had never discussed it further with Skinner, which also seemed odd to her.
This morning, she found Mulder with a worried look on his face.
"what’s up?" she asked, as she entered the office. He wordlessly
handed her a report. Scully’s heart stopped momentarily. The doctor who
had cared for Mulder and who had ordered the tissue sample was found
dead! He was apparently the victim of a random mugging on his way home
from the hospital one night, as was one of the nurses with whom he worked.
Both were beaten and died as a result of their injuries; the
perpetrators were never caught. She met Mulder’s eyes bravely.
"What do you know about this, Scully?" Mulder asked. She tried
to keep facing him, but finally had to look away. "What!" he demanded
loudly.
"Mulder," she began...."I don’t know anything much. Only that
this doctor appeared to know the source of the donor and told me he would
never tell me anything and that the records had been sealed. He was
ordered to forget whatever he knew." She told him as much as she dared,
without revealing anything. He pondered this a minute and she knew he
would never give up without a fight. They discussed it a bit more and
Scully fielded his questions as best she could. Later, she left claiming
she had a lunch date. She immediately called Mrs. Mulder and met her at
a small, out of the way cafe.
"Fox is asking questions about the doctor’s death," Scully told
her. The older woman was visibly shaken at this turn of events. She
faced her son’s partner.
"I am safe," she told Scully. "My son is safe. There is nothing
else we can tell Fox about this...IS there? We don’t know anything for
sure....only that a donor was found and that though it’s usually family,
this time a stranger worked out. We really don’t know anything different,
Dana." Her gaze was steady into Scully’s large eyes. "Do we?" Scully
wet her lips.
"I think you do," she said gently.
"Dana, please never ask me again," Mrs. Mulder replied softly.
"It’s enough that
Fox is alive and well. And now, I need to go and rest. I’m glad Fox can
trust you with his life." That last statement was very pointed. "He
never needs to know anything different; I won’t allow it! We know
nothing for sure and I intend to keep it that way." With that, she
kissed Scully’s cheek and left the cafe. Scully sat there, at a loss as
to her thoughts. The only thing she was definitely certain of was that
she would protect Fox Mulder at all costs, both from further harm and
from anything which could destroy his faith or life. They owed each
other that much. Her decision made, she finished her coffee and went to
her car, putting her doubts to rest. Mulder was waiting; it was time to
return to work.

End--All feedback welcome! Teall1@aol.com