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Date: 05 Aug 1998 05:25:03 GMT
Subject: A Marriage Of Convenience *PG13* D R Judd Sc/Sk
A Marriage Of Convenience *PG 13*
Deslea R. Judd
drjudd@tig.com.au drjudd@catholic.org
Copyright 1998
DISCLAIMER
This work is based on The X Files, a creation of Chris Carter
owned by him, Twentieth Century Fox, and Ten-Thirteen
Productions. Julia Capwell is my creation and may not be
used without my written consent (her name was, however,
misappropriated from the defunct soap Santa Barbara).
All other characters remain the intellectual property of those
parties and are used without their consent and without
commercial gain.
OK to archive.
Spoilers: Redux, Redux II, Christmas Carol, Emily.
Category: Story, Romance (Skinner/Scully).
Rating: PG 13.
Summary: Scully and Skinner marry to avoid him being called
to testify against her. But sometimes marriage can be a self-
fulfilling prophecy, and Scully just might find herself in the
process.
NB: Not related to Someone I Trusted, but I promise I'm
working on SIT X!
Fan mail is always appreciated!!! My e-mail is
drjudd@tig.com.au and drjudd@catholic.org.
This and my other stories may be found at
http://homepages.tig.com.au/~drjudd (shameless plug).
A Marriage Of Convenience *PG-13* 1/1
Deslea R. Judd
drjudd@tig.com.au drjudd@catholic.org
Copyright 1998
//I love you, not only for what you are, but for what I am when I am with
you. I love you not only for what you are, but for what your love makes
me. --Unknown//
PROLOGUE
The two figures were striking.
At All Souls Catholic Church in Annapolis, the couple stood proudly
before Father McCune, their FBI dress uniforms matching those of a large
number of those attending, not least of which was that of the man who had
given the beautiful redhead away with a fond smile.
Now, the redhead stared up at the taller man at her side, her hand
over his. Her beautiful voice rang out with commitment and resolve.
"Walter, I give you this ring as a sign of my love and fidelity, in the
name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit."
Scully stared up at Skinner, searching for a reaction, and met with
his affectionate smile. She returned it, and when he leaned forward, she
met his lips with a sweetly chaste kiss. They glanced sidelong at Mulder,
who beamed at them approvingly.
They re-took their seats, and Scully regarded her new husband
thoughtfully.
ONE
After Section Chief Blevins had apparently suicided, there had
still remained the question of how the Department of Defense operative,
Scott Ostelhoff, had come to die in Mulder's building. The DOD would
happily have let the matter drop, but unfortunately for the DOD, Ostelhoff
had a wife, and her uncle was a Congressman. There had been an inquest,
and that inquest had handed down a verdict of murder by person or persons
unknown, with a recommendation that Mulder be indicted.
Mulder had claimed self defense, and his claim had a certain amount
of credibility given he had discovered Ostelhoff watching him. Privately,
Mulder freely admitted to Scully that what had happened had been fifty
percent self defense and fifty percent cold blooded murder, induced by his
confused rage at the discovery of how he had been used earlier that
evening. "All I saw, Scully, was the man who did those things to you and
me and my father and your sister." Nonetheless, he genuinely believed both
then and now that Ostelhoff would have killed him, and felt no qualms of
conscience about his self defense claim.
The most damaging possible testimony would be, ironically, her own.
Mulder had admitted to killing Ostelhoff to Scully immediately after it
had happened, and due to her illness had not told her that there was any
question of self defense for several days, by which time the inquest
investigation had already begun. Any questioning of her would immediately
destroy his defense. Scully had initially refused to testify, and she had
been held in contempt of court and jailed for several weeks. Finally, she
had been released with a $35,000 fine and had not been called again. Still
wincing over the dent in her savings, Scully had been appalled when Skinner
had then been called to testify, not against Mulder, but against her.
Julia Capwell, who by now was their collective attorney, had
explained the situation. "Walter, you're the only person who knows
definitively that Dana knew Fox was alive." She ignored Mulder's wince at
her use of the name. "You confronted her, and she didn't deny it. All
three of us know it, and since you were the recipient of the pathology
report which proved Mulder wasn't dead, the other side have a pretty good
idea of it, too. Now, as long as there's no proof Dana knew Mulder was
alive, we're free and clear. Mulder kills Ostelhoff in self defense, and
because he doesn't know who is watching or who he can trust, he goes into
hiding, leaving the body posed as himself to buy him time, not risking
making contact with Dana here. Dana, believing the body is Mulder's,
identifies him as such. Mulder comes out of hiding when Dana is dying and
what with the Blevins stuff doesn't get another chance to tell his story
for days to come, when he makes his formal statement. But as soon as you
testify Mulder made contact with Dana before her collapse, everything
changes. The jury will assume he gave Dana his first and most immediate
version of events, which in their minds will be the most credible, and
presumably he never once mentioned self defense, or else she would have
testified. It also makes her an accessory after the fact. Dana has
refused to testify, and that looked bad, but not as bad as her testimony.
And we did manage to salvage that somewhat by getting Mulder to testify
about their difference of opinion about Emily's adoption, painting it as a
possible grudge thing. But Walter, I don't see that you can follow suit.
You'll be accused of covering up the truth, and your career will be
worthless. A partner showing what is perceived to be misguided loyalty, or
misguided hostility, is one thing, but the Assistant Director is quite
another."
Skinner had nodded slowly, and Scully had been alarmed at the idea
of his career going down the drain over this. Mulder, more realistic, had
understood that had been the case for a long time anyway. But the prospect
that Skinner might be sacked, leaving the post open for another supervisor
who might interfere with their work, was a worrying one.
They had quibbled about this for some time, Julia forgotten; but
finally, their lawyer had gotten their attention. Granted it at last, she
had made her fateful suggestion. With a quiet voice quite unlike the one
that had been used to yell, "Will you all shut the fuck up?", she'd said
cooly, "Well, Walter, you could always marry her."
Scully had stared at Julia, thunderstruck. She knew, of course,
that a husband could not be called to testify against his wife; but, dear
God, marriage? If it came to that she could always have married Mulder and
been done with it. //Would have saved me a second mortgage for that damn
fine, at any rate//, she thought ruefully. She looked at Skinner, and was
stunned to see a thoughtful expression on his face which told her clearly
he was considering it.
Julia had left them to it after that, instructing them to brief her
on their decision within twenty four hours. Two pizzas and three bottles
of wine later, the three of them had hammered out a plan which would allow
their work to continue unhampered. Bureau marriages were permitted;
marriages between superior and subordinate were not. In this plan, Mulder
remained head of the X Files project, now exclusively. Scully, meanwhile,
was transferred to head a new, Special Projects section of the the
Scientific Analysis Unit at Quantico and was responsible to Section Chief
Rudolph, who fortunately was more interested in science than internal
politics. Mulder then used his support budget to purchase the exclusive
services of the Special Projects Unit, making her his consulting partner,
but technically not accountable to Skinner. Technically she was first and
foremost accountable to her client, Mulder; and secondarily to Rudolph, who
could not possibly have cared less. From Rudolph's perspective, any
trouble she got into was her client's lookout, not his. A fortunate bonus
was that Scully got a new and heftier budget with which she was able to
purchase a small, much-needed support staff. Giddy with relief, Mulder had
left, leaving Scully and Skinner lazing drowsily on the floor at right
angles to one another, their heads close. From this vantage point, they
stared out the picture window at the sleet.
Scully's head was swimming. Within hours she had gone from staring
down the barrel of a sentence for being an accessory for murder to staring
down the barrel of a sentence of marriage to Skinner. There was confusion
and amazement, and also, if she were honest, a dawning hope. Could this be
the change she had been seeking in her life since she had so nearly died?
A shared life with someone? Marriage, something she had not thought of for
many a long year...could this be what she longed for?
At last, Skinner spoke. "Scully...Dana. What do you think about
all this?"
Scully was quiet for a long moment, but finally, she said in a low
voice, "It's different for Mulder. Marriage is something you can do in a
registry office and then undo. I'm not like that. I believe that marriage
is a commitment you make for life. I have no use for marriage of any other
kind."
"Nor do I," he said softly.
"And yet how do we let Mulder go to jail for this?" she asked
wretchedly. "We can't."
They stayed there for long moments, still staring at the sleet.
Finally, Skinner spoke; but the voice was that of a very different Skinner.
"Dana, there is a way."
She said nothing; only tilted her head slightly to catch sight of
his expression.
He continued. "We could get married for real - for life."
Still she was silent; but now, she rolled onto her side and leaned
over him. She waited.
A frown passed over his face. "I don't know how to explain what I
mean, Dana. But - we're friends. Confidantes. I'm comfortable with you.
You make me smile when we work on something together and you say something
that makes me do a double-take. It may not be the stuff of romance
stories, but we could be happy together, I think. Content. I think we
could make a home together, a life together."
"So do I," she said softly. "I know we could."
"Do you think you'd ever regret it?" he asked with a pang. "Wish
you'd waited for Mr Right, that sort of thing?"
She thought a moment, just to be sure; but then she shook her head
decisively. "No. No, I wouldn't. I've had the swelling music and the
heart-bursting passion. It doesn't last. I want something that will last,
Walter. I want to be with someone I can give myself to and know they'll
always be there, and that they're strong enough to give me what I need
without being swamped by me."
"Me, too," he said softly. "What Sharon and I had was too flighty.
It lasted seventeen years, and it probably would have lasted another
seventeen if she hadn't died; but we were people who skittered across one
another's nerves constantly. We were too different." He sighed, "But I
did love her. Very much."
Scully took his hand. "So what are you suggesting, Walter? That
we try to fall in love?" There was mischief in her voice.
He smiled at that, but shook his head. "Just that we live together
as life partners. As for love...it'll happen in it's own time. Or maybe
it won't."
She nodded slowly. "But it will be okay, even if it doesn't, I
think," she said slowly. "Because we're working to be partners as we are
now, not because that might happen sometime later - right?"
"Right."
They were silent for a long time after that, the only sound the
driving rain. Finally, Scully had said diffidently, "Walter?"
"Yes?"
"If this is for life, I want to marry in the Church," she said softly.
He nodded. "So do I."
It had been decided as simply as that; and finally, they had gone
to bed. Skinner had not slept on the lounge as they had first decided
after a certain level of inebriation; instead, he had slept in her bed,
both of them dressed, their bodies curled together in an intimately chaste
embrace. She had slept, comforted, and sweetly content; and that was the
beginning of her understanding that she did love him, after all.
TWO
"Congratulations, Dana. I'm so pleased."
Scully came to herself. "Thank you, Holly." She lowered her gaze.
"You know, I'm sorry I gave you the brush-off when we thought Mulder was
dead. I just didn't know how to deal with it. I did appreciate what you
tried to do for me."
The tiny brunette gave her a compassionate smile. "I understand,
Dana, really." Her tone brightened. "But Mulder's alive, and the case
looks like being dropped, and you've married a wonderful man. Everything's
come right for you, Dana."
Scully felt a shadow pass over her, the shadow of children who
would never be; but it passed. "Yes, Holly, I think it has." She gave a
sudden grin. "So when can we expect to hear wedding bells from you?"
Holly gave a sidelong glance at Kimberley, who was sharing an
affectionate exchange with Skinner. Her expression was a fond one. "Her
parents are still having trouble with this, Dana. We want to give them
time, if we can, before we take that step. We don't want to drive them
away by moving too fast for them."
Scully counselled softly, "Don't wait too long, Holly. It's your
life," she added, thinking of her mother's dismay at the news of her own
marriage to Skinner. "Part of being a parent has to be letting go."
Holly looked suddenly bereft. "I know, Dana. I know." Thinking
of Emily, she took the older woman's hand. "She's with you today, you
know."
Scully bit back the tears which suddenly threatened. "I know she
is, Holly." She pulled the other woman close. "Thank you."
They stayed that way for a long moment, but then Skinner cleared
his throat. "You going after my staff again, Holly?" he demanded with a
glint in his eye.
"You treat her right, Sir, or I just might," Holly rejoined.
Kimberley rolled her eyes. "Come on, you incorrigible flirt. I
want to dance."
They watched them depart, arm in arm, and Scully said as an amused
aside, "I don't know how my brother's coping with the lesbian contingent."
Her hand closed around his unselfconsciously, her tone reflective. "They
make a sweet couple, though."
Skinner gave a low snort of laughter. "Funnily enough, Kimberley
just said exactly the same thing to me about you and I."
Scully turned to him. "Really?" she asked, pleased.
He nodded. "She said we were very adult. She said that Holly and
she admired the fact that we were such good friends - she said she thought
it made a good foundation for a marriage." He gave a low sigh. "I don't
know if she was hinting at anything - God knows, if anyone knows the
reasons for this, she does - but she said she believed with time we'd make
each other very happy."
Scully scoffed, "Walter, they //all// know." She added slowly, "I
think she's right."
Skinner squeezed her fingers gently. "Me too."
They went to the dance floor, and they went into one another's arms.
PART 2 IMMEDIATELY FOLLOWS
A Marriage Of Convenience *PG13* 2/2
Deslea R. Judd
drjudd@tig.com.au drjudd@catholic.org
Copyright 1998
DISCLAIMERS ETC IN PART 1
Frohike, Langly, and Byers sat at what could only be regarded as
the outcasts table, a table for those who knew no-one else (or, in the case
of Mulder, who had left the bridal party's table to join them, people whom
no-one wanted to know). By a strange twist of fate - and the mischievous
hand of Scully - Bill and Tara Scully were seated in the table adjacent and
had no choice but to converse with them. Bill was positively monosyllabic,
blaming Mulder as he did for Scully's recent prison holiday, but Tara took
delight in the discussion.
Langly spoke. "So Mulder, do you think they'll be happy?" For
even those close to the couple who knew of the reasons for the union had
been told that the marriage was permanent and would not be ending in
divorce after the trial.
Byers pointed to them dancing. They stood in an embrace which was
so innocent, so uncomplicated that it was pure, their locked gazes
childlike with gentle fondness. "What do you think?" he asked with a pang
of envy.
Mulder looked on with a bittersweet smile. "I think she's married
her soul mate. I just don't think she knows it yet."
Frohike and Bill both harrumphed, and were both similarly ignored.
Bill snarled, "So how does it feel to be a free man, Mulder? Was it worth
offering my sister over to some guy like a common whore?"
Tara jabbed him with her elbow. "Bill!" she reprimanded, upset.
Mulder snapped, "The only reason I don't slug you like you deserve,
Scully, is that your sister would kill me."
"Don't bother," Frohike muttered in Mulder's ear. "I put itching
powder in his napkin."
Scully would have been proud of the self-control Mulder displayed
at at that; but he was saved from having to reply to either Frohike or Bill
by the sound of a microphone. Mulder returned to his table for the toasts.
Skinner rose. "Well, ladies and gentlemen, it's no secret among
any of us that circumstances have dictated the timing of this wedding; and
I thank you all for coming on just a week's notice. But don't be misled by
that fact." He turned to Scully. "I stand here before you profoundly
honoured to have taken Dana for my wife. She is without doubt the most
beautiful, brilliant person I have ever known." Scully turned a gratifying
shade of pink. "She challenges me, and she makes me be honest with myself
and others. She is breathtakingly strong and compassionate, and she is
very dear to me. I'm a very lucky man." Scully, her eyes bright,
acknowledged him with a little nod of her head, her lips trembling even
through her smile. She rose at his gesture, and allowed him to kiss her
hand. "To Dana, and all who are privileged to know her."
He moved to sit, but she restrained him with a gentle touch. As
the goodnatured toasts died down, she said slowly, "It is frightening to
think that if not for circumstance we might not have seen this day." She
met his gaze. "It is frightening to me that I have known this man for five
years, and that this incredible future we now share could have passed me by
in the blink of an eye." She turned to the congregation, most of whom were
her friends, but a handful of whom were foes, Bureau operatives who
shadowed their every move. "I have lost much in the last five years - my
father, my sister, and recently my daughter. Those losses, and most
especially that of my daughter, remain part of me always. But God has seen
fit to give me a new future with the blessing of those I loved in my old
life. For that, and for you, Walter, I will always be thankful." She
stopped, unable to continue, and simply raised her glass.
He leaned forward, and she kissed him tenderly. "Thank you,
Walter," she whispered.
"And you," he said huskily. "Oh, Dana," he breathed.
They were interrupted by Mulder clearing his throat. "I'm going to
make this short and sweet, because I can't hold a candle to that anyway.
The very first time Scully met Skinner, her first words to me describing
the encounter were, 'He just wanted to reel me in'. Well, Sir, you've
finally done it. Congratulations, and may you dream of Mulder-free
conferences."
"I'll drink to that!" Walter laughed, and Mulder and Scully laughed
with him.
THREE
It was that night that the question of making love arose.
When Scully stripped off her Bureau dress uniform, it revealed a
negligee of the richest ivory silk, hand embroidered with heavy gold
thread. Skinner raised a questioning eyebrow. "Is this a hint, Dana?"
His voice was kind.
She gave a sheepish grin. "Mom bought it. She said if I wasn't
going to look like a bride outside I was damn well going to look like one
inside."
He couldn't keep the admiration out of his voice. "Oh, you do,
Dana. Believe me, you do." He sobered. "Doesn't she know we haven't - uh
-"
She cut him off. "She hopes tonight will be the night."
"Do you?" he asked piercingly.
She hesitated. "I - I'd like to," she admitted slowly. "I don't
want us to spend our lives alone - you know, that way. But we've been so
happy these last few weeks as we are, as friends. I don't want to risk
what we have." Her voice became lower. "I don't want to lose you."
He drew her close. "You won't, Scully." He felt her mould herself
to his body, her soft cheek warm against his bare chest. She must be aware
of him through his trousers, hard against her stomach, but she neither
pushed him away nor pulled him closer, but simply accepted it for what it
was, that he wanted her. Her acceptance stunned and exhilirated him in
turn. "I know this is awkward. We're people who have never been lovers,
but we've made a life together. There was a time, and it wasn't so long
ago, when people married this way all the time, but that's not our culture.
It's strange to us." She raised her head to meet his gaze, and nodded her
agreement with his assessment. "But Dana, you're my wife now. We promised
to make a life together, to live as man and wife, and we're both people of
our word. It may not happen tonight, or tomorrow night, or even this year,
but we're going to find a way to make it work. I'm in this for the long
haul."
Against all her will, she felt her eyes sting with sudden tears at
what he was offering her. Permanence. Security. The things Scully had
craved all her life, sought in her religion and her science and in Mulder.
And here they were, handed to her by a man who wanted nothing more of her
than her own resolve, resolve she lived by anyway. This was not a man who
would take and take and take, like Mulder; this was not a man who would
ever let let her go to prison for him or put her in a situation where such
a thing was necessary. This was not a man who would rail at her with
furious betrayal on that day when she finally decided her life or her
family was more important than his cause. This was a man who would accept
her, support her, whatever she did. She felt her tightly contructed,
protective walls crumbling; and it was a relief. At last, she spoke. "So
am I."
He kissed her forehead. "Let's go to bed."
So she let him lead her to their bed, still unsure whether he would
make love to her, but trusting him and herself to make everything okay.
But he didn't.
EPILOGUE
When she woke, she felt peace.
He was still curled protectively around her body, his arms loosely
around her. Vaguely, she remembered him stroking her breast as they
dropped off to sleep, him kissing her neck; and yet they had been innocent
touches, leading no further than themselves, just as her kissing his
fingers and nuzzling deeper into his body had been. As before when they
had slept together, she felt content. It was as though, in a strange way,
this chaste intimacy gave her something lovemaking never could: reassurance
that she could be loved for who she was, rather than what she did or what
she could give. Idly, she wondered whether them making love might actually
spoil it.
And then he stirred, and kissed her sweetly on her shoulder, and
she thought, //No. As long as he kisses me that way, I will know.//
So she turned to face him, and she tenderly kissed his lips, her
tongue caressing him for the first time. "Walter," she whispered. "I love
you for what you've given me."
He looked at her, his reply unmistakeable, but his eyebrow was
raised in question.
"Me," she explained softly. "You've given me me."
END
Author's note: I wanted to go on from this, really; but I didn't think
there was anything more to say. Let me know if you beg to differ. Deslea