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jessicakurr · 7 years

Text

New fic

Title:

End of Time

Category: TV Shows » X-Files

Author: Jessica Kurr

Language: English, Rating: Rated: M

Genre: Sci-Fi/Romance

Published: 03-19-17, Updated: 04-05-17

Chapters: 4, Words: 19,300

Chapter 1: Prologue

A/N: I'm sorry, but I just HAD to do ONE MORE Krycek/Scully story, before completely turning back to my MSR. I mean, I DID write a MSR towards the end of "Gasoline", a month ago, but I need to get this Krycek phase out of my system. I'm just not finished with him yet, I guess! I still have ideas, and I need to get them out in the open, so that I can move on, and go back to my original characters. Therefore, here is ONE more Alex/Dana goodie. And I hope you all like it as much as my last one (which ended up being my longest and most popular story yet, surprisingly). PLUS, I have had several readers beg me to do one more, so I just had to!

P.S. This is my first post-colonization AND first person POV story. It also goes back and forth between past and present a few times (one year/three months in the past, and then present day), and then eventually remains in present, in case anyone gets confused. And I already have some ideas for a new MSR as well, so keep your eyes peeled for a new story to emerge right after this one. : D

…also…Nicholas Lea (Alex Krycek) is adorable...admit it! You know you want to. ; ) ; )

Disclaimer: Once again, I do not own anything pertaining to The X-Files, and am only borrowing the characters to satisfy my own personal fantasies and obsessions. It's my drug of choice. : )

Prologue

Mulder had been right, about everything. And of course, he wouldn't be here to even rub it in my face, after dedicating six years of our partnership, trying to get to this very moment. I don't even know where Mulder is, exactly. A little over a year ago, we were separated from everyone. And a little over two months ago, we were separated from each other. It had all happened quite slow, at first. With the first separation, that is. It took several months for the world to realize what exactly was happening. The strange lights in the sky began to multiply every few nights. And at the time, my scientific explanations made sense. But then one night, they didn't. The lights got closer, and the eerie sounds got louder. The public didn't panic at first, no. But Mulder did. Mulder always did. Because he knew. He was right, and I was wrong. And if he was here right now, I would gladly admit that to him.

But Mulder isn't here, and I am all alone, fending for myself. Everything isn't as bad as it was at first, but it's still bad. For some reason, it seems worse, being all alone. Worse than the actual alien-colonization. That part didn't actually last that long. Six months at most. And those sonsofbitches quickly discovered that they could not survive on our planet for longer than a few months. They couldn't breathe our air, or touch our water. And they quickly began to die off. Serves them right. Little fuckers.

But it was too late. They had managed to destroy a significant portion of the population, and earth. I don't even know if any of my family survived, or any of my friends. Friends. I didn't really have any friends, actually. Just Mulder. And Mulder is either dead, or alive somewhere, looking for me. Probably thousands of miles away. But I have to stay positive. I have to believe that Mulder is still alive, and that he will find me soon.

Oh, Mulder. Where are you? I need to see another human being soon, or I will go mad. If I'm not already.

XXX

"Scully! In here!" Mulder shouts, firmly grabbing me by the arm, and shoving me inside the dark building.

I skid across the dirty floor, landing on my hands and knees. I soon hear the door slam shut behind me, followed by Mulder's hands grabbing a hold of me again, and pulling me up on my feet.

"Are you alright?" Mulder asks, shining his flashlight in my face.

"Yes." I squint, holding my hand up over my eyes.

"Sorry." Mulder breathlessly replies, shining the flashlight up at the ceiling.

I wordlessly nod, looking around the dim drafty building. I doubt there has been any life in this place for many months. There are papers scattered across the floor, and thick cobwebs in every corner of the ceiling. I try hard to imagine what this place had looked like before the attack on earth. In my head, I can see people entering the building, briefcases and coffee in their hands, with the sound of phones ringing, and keyboards typing in the background. Just a normal work building, with cubicles, filing cabinets, and computers. It keeps my mind in a better place, imagining these now abandoned places the way they were before. Before earth changed, and people changed.

It boggles my mind that people still betray each other, instead of trying to help each other in this crisis. This was why Mulder and I are hiding in a dark empty building. Because we ran across a group of people that wanted our supplies, which we didn't even have with us. Skinner had sent us out looking for more supplies, like we did at the end of every week. And an hour later, we bumped into a bunch of men in black, with big guns. How ironic. Mulder had offered to split them up, but no, the bastards wanted them all, and demanded that we take them back to where we came from. Survival of the fittest, I suppose. Kill and steal, to survive. Eat, or be eaten. Disappointing, really. The aliens were gone, but we were all still fighting over food and water.

Mulder had created a distraction, and we both took off running on foot, with the sound of bullets blazing past us. Eventually, we got further and further away, and found shelter. And here we are now, just waiting for something, or nothing to happen.

"I don't hear them now." I softly speak.

Mulder presses his ear to the door, and we both silently listen for a moment. Sure enough, there are no voices, no footsteps, no vehicles…nothing.

"Should we— "

"No, not yet. Let's wait a minute." Mulder shakes his head, pacing the dirty floor.

So, we wait several more minutes. But no one enters the building. Just the sound of rain can be heard, lightly hitting the roof.

"I think they're gone now." Mulder finally speaks, slowly opening the door and peeking out. "You wait here, and I'll go check. I'll be right back." He assures me.

"No, Mulder, wait." I plead, grabbing his arm.

Mulder looks back at me, his eyes soft and sad. It took me a month later to figure out what his eyes had been telling me that day. That they had been telling me that he might not be back. That he knew that we might get separated. And if I would have known then what I know now, I wouldn't have let him go out there alone.

I watch him slowly open and close the door. And then I stand there in silence, with his flashlight, anxiously waiting for something, anything. But a good three minutes' pass, and I begin to worry. There wasn't much else out there, so I don't know why it is taking him so long to inspect the area. And just as I made up my mind to go out there and check myself, I hear Mulder's yelling from a distance.

"Scully! Stay where you are! Don't come out!" Mulder yells with intense desperation.

And then I hear gunshots, and I begin to panic.

Mulder, no, no, no, no, no. Don't leave me here.

And then I hear some shouting, and some vehicles driving off. It takes me a good five minutes to move from the very spot I have been crouching in, and look out the dirty window. And what I see is…nothing. No Mulder. No men in black with big guns. No vehicles. Nothing.

And it is right then, that I realize that I am now alone.

XXX

Dana Scully has never been a damsel in distress, and I will not start now. I can fend for myself, and I refuse to admit that I need anyone's help with anything. But I will admit, that it gets lonely being by myself. I have yet to find any sign of Mulder, or Skinner, or even any other human beings. Although, I stopped going from place to place as frequently. It was just too hard to travel every day, with my current stock of supplies. So, I resorted to once a week at the least. Leaving me with a total of 8 different places so far. I have no idea if I am even close to wherever Mulder and Skinner are being held, but I have to believe that they are both still alive. Mulder is too stubborn to die, and Skinner had excellent survival skills. He was the one that kept our little "community" running smoothly this whole time. Until almost three months ago. And as much as I want to walk on foot 24/7, I know that my body cannot handle it.

I wipe at my brow, shielding my eyes from the blazing sun. There is nothing but dirt road ahead of me, and I think to myself, how did I end up so far from the city? A lot of the road signs have been spray painted or torn down the past hundred miles or so, and I have absolutely no idea where I am headed. So, I keep walking, praying to God that the sunblock in my pack will last me another week.

After another hour or so of walking, I find myself feeling a little dizzy from the heat, and sit down under a shady tree. It's amazing how buildings were torn down, and a lot of people were wiped out, but the nature remains, lively as ever. Trees, flowers, animals…a lot of it all is still here. Why is that? Actually, I know exactly why. The earth is better off without humans and toxic waste. The buildings that do remain, will soon be overgrown with weeds and plants. And eventually, there will be nothing but nature left, with hollowed out cement. And when I look around at it all, it's kind of beautiful, in an eerie way. It's peaceful. But it's also lonely. So lonely. And I'm not even sure I would know how to effectively communicate with another human being anymore, if I came across one. That's how long I've been by myself, it seems.

I pull my pack off my back and dig for my water container in there. Taking a big gulp, I realize that I am going to have to find more water within the next 10 hours or so. After another moment of rest, I get back up and continue walking. It feels like that's all I ever do anymore. Walk.

XXX

Once I finally leave the dark building, I see nothing but storm clouds and hear nothing but the rain and wind slapping against me. I frantically run around the building, but do not see any sign of Mulder. No one is here. They must have taken him. And I can only hope that he is still alive. After another several minutes of desperate searching, I realize that those bastards probably made Mulder take them back to our site.

Dammit. God dammit.

I briefly run back into the building to retrieve the flashlight that I had carelessly tossed across the floor, and then head back to the site on foot. It takes me two hours to get there without the car we had been using, and before the area is even in my view, I know that everything is gone. That everyone is gone. And once I reach the entrance, I wonder how I hadn't smelled the smoke sooner. I fall to my knees, wheezing, as I look around at the thick dark smoke slowly emanating from the charred buildings. Nothing is left. Skinner is gone. Mulder is gone. The men in black are gone. And I can only hope that the men took them as prisoners. I have to believe that they are still alive. I have to. And I will find them.

XXX

Today is hot. So hot, that I find myself taking off my shirt and wrapping it around my waist. I still have my bra on, and I haven't run into anyone in what seems like ages, so I'm sure that it's not really considered public nudity. Not like those rules even apply to anyone anymore. There are no rules. Just survive. That's about it. And that terrifies me.

As I keep walking, I soon hear the faint sounds of a creek or some source of flowing water. I begin to sprint, until I reach a dip in the side of the road. I carefully make my way down the steep hill, until a small trail of water can be seen slowly trickling over a bed of rocks. I follow the trail, until the path of water thickens and expands into a larger area of water. I waste no time pulling my pack off my back and bend over the lukewarm water, bringing handfuls of cupped water to my cracked lips, splashing the remainder on my face.

After I've had a stomach full of water, I carefully survey the area, and begin to slowly peel off all of my clothing. First comes the shirt wrapped around my waist, then the bra, the shoes and socks, the jean shorts, and the underwear last. I throw all of the stained clothing onto the grass, giving myself a quick reminder to wash those clothes while I'm here, and slowly submerge myself into the water, immediately closing my eyes at the sensation. It has been three days since I last bathed, and the sun is setting soon, so I know that I need to hurry and find some shelter before nightfall.

I quickly wash myself up and start on my clothes, gently scrubbing them between my hands with the bar of soap in my pack. The sound behind me doesn't register at first, until I hear it a second time. And before I even have time to react, it's too late.

XXX

ONE YEAR EARLIER

Things have been "strange" the past two weeks, to say the least. Okay, let me rephrase that. 'Mulder' has been strange the past two weeks. And that's putting it mildly. It all started two Friday's ago. As usual, Mulder and I were leaving the office a half an hour later than we were supposed to, and I was inwardly hoping that we wouldn't bump into Skinner again on the way out. Because then he would chew us both out for working overtime so much lately, and we needed at least the weekend for him to cool down, so that come Monday morning, he hopefully wouldn't be as pissed off. It usually worked, as long as we didn't see him on the way out. And luckily, we didn't. Thank the lord god almighty. And it wasn't even my fault. Mulder just has a really hard time following directions, and I have a really hard time saying no to him. Which is why I "agreed" to him coming over later that night for pizza and a movie. But in reality, I just wanted to be alone with my book, bubble bath, and glass of wine. I can't even remember the last time I got a weekend all to myself. Not since Mulder started acting weird, telling me that he had this bad feeling that something big was about to happen, and that he didn't think it was a good idea to leave me alone.

So here I am, carpooling with Mulder the past two weeks, because of his "strange feeling", and stopping by his place so he can change his clothes, and then go back to my place. Since when did I become such a pushover? This is going to change, starting Monday. I am going to start putting my foot down, and say NO more often. As long as I don't look directly at that pathetic little puppy dog faced partner of mine, I should be perfectly capable of doing so.

So, we stop at his place, pick up the pizza and movie, and then finally make it to my place at freaking 7:00 pm. And now all I want to do is sleep. I would be completely fine with skipping the wine, bubble bath, and book…and head straight to bed. But here I sit on the couch, yawning profusely, as Mulder hands me a paper plate, and slips the video cassette into the VCR. I don't know why he is always so adamant on video cassettes, when DVD's now exist. But apparently, he says it takes him back to a better place and time, before his innocence was stripped away, and before technology began to transform continuously.

Ten minutes into the movie, I find myself dosing off with a half-eaten slice of greasy pizza in my lap. And to be perfectly honest, I'm not even sure what movie Mulder picked out…but I'm pretty sure it's NOT a chick-flick, or anything that would obtain my interest, even if I was fully awake right now.

A few minutes later, I find myself jolted awake by Mulder's loud gasping, and rough hand on my shoulder, as he shakes me firmly.

"Scully, it's happening again!" He huffs, leaping up from the couch, and reaching the window in two long strides.

I blink my eyes a few times, and slowly get up to follow him. I pull back the other side of the curtain and look out the window, furrowing my eyebrows.

"Mulder, what are you talking about? I don't see-"I suddenly stop talking, as my gaze locks onto the odd lights dancing around in the sky. "Wha-?"

Mulder stares up at the sky with me, both of us transfixed by the strange lights floating in the darkened sky. My first thought is airplanes, but I can't honestly say that I have ever seen a plane move that fast before. My second thought is shooting stars, but they are moving in every direction. And my third and final thought escapes me, as I try to process what else they possibly could be.

"I've been seeing them for several nights now." Mulder replies calmly, finally looking over at me.

I stare back, mouth slightly agape. "Why didn't you say anything?"

He shrugs. "I didn't want to scare you. I needed to make sure that they were what I think they are." He explains.

"Mulder, what are they? I—I've never seen anything like it before. I mean, I'm sure there's a plausible explanation-"

Mulder guffaws and shakes his head. "Come on, Scully. Can you honestly say that that is some new military experimental plane? Moving that fast? In all directions?"

He stands there and waits for me to answer, as I rack my brain for any reasonable scientific explanation for what we are looking at. But each time I look out the window, the lights seem to multiply. And a few moments later, there are dozens of them.

"I—then you tell me, what do 'you' think they are, Mulder? UFO's?" I smirk, crossing my arms.

Mulder only nods, and looks back out the window.

A few moments later, every single light disappears as fast as they appeared, and I wonder if this is all just a dream. But Mulder continues to stand there for another moment at the window, until he is sure that the lights aren't coming back, and then returns to the couch with me. He slowly plops down onto the couch, and leans forward, placing his face in his hands for a moment.

"Something's happening, Scully. I can feel it." He says, rubbing the sides of his face with his hands, before looking at me.

I tuck one leg underneath the other, and pluck at a string on my sweater. "How do you know, Mulder?" I ask, completely shocked that I am even somewhat considering his ridiculous theory.

Mulder heavily sighs and leans back into the couch, propping his feet up on the table. "Because those lights we just saw-they've been coming every single night." He pauses, looking me directly in the eyes. "And because two Friday's ago, there was only one. There are a lot more of them now, and they seem to be getting closer and closer each night, Scully." His voice lowers dramatically to almost a whisper.

That night, I did not sleep very well. And the few hours I did sleep, I did so on the living room floor with Mulder a few feet away. Because that night, I began to realize that I had a bad feeling now, too. And it only took another week for Mulder's theory to be proven correct.

XXX

I don't know why it takes me so long to eventually turn around and investigate the sound behind me, but when I finally do, it only takes me two seconds to put my wet shirt back on me and start on my shorts. But before I can even finish, I'm looking up at four men on the top of the hill, quickly making their way down towards me. And they look even more threatening than the men who ambushed Mulder and I three months ago. And I'm pretty sure that they have the same intentions in mind, if not more vile ones.

The smallest man, still a lot bigger than myself, makes his way down first, pointing his gun at me. The other three pick up my pack and begin to pull things out of it, as the panic begins to set in, and my whole body begins to shake. I know that there is absolutely no way for me to fight them off, and that I am going to lose all my supplies, and may even die today. But I still have to try. Mulder would never forgive me if I didn't at least try to survive. But when I said that I was lonely, 'this' is NOT what I had in mind when I said that I needed to see another human being soon. This was not good. This was bad. Oh, God.

"That's mine." I manage to croak out, as I watch the men dig into my pack and snigger.

"Not anymore." The smallest man cackles, and the other three follow suit, cackling away like hyenas.

I swallow hard and attempt to finish clothing myself, but the smallest man shakes his head.

"My, oh, my, aren't you a pretty little thing? Definitely the prettiest woman we've run into yet. Ain't that right, boys?" The smallest man smirks, looking back at his three stooges.

The three blind mice nod enthusiastically, and are soon standing right next to what I'm guessing is their "leader". And in that moment, I know that death would be much better than what I know is going to happen next. And I pray that they decide to only kill me, or better yet, just leave me alone. But I know that without my supplies, I will not last very long anyways.

God, please send me a guardian angel. It doesn't even have to be Mulder. Just send the next best thing, and I will be eternally grateful.

"Get out of the water…slowly." The leader hisses, and I do as I'm told, with only my underwear and shirt on, and my shorts still crumpled in my hands.

Once I'm out of the water, and a few feet away, I stop and wait. The four men look me up and down, and it makes my skin crawl. I knew I shouldn't have stopped. I should have just kept going, and stayed sticky and dirty another few days. It wouldn't have mattered anyways. Why did I have to stop and wash up? I should have just got some more water and kept moving. I guess I just didn't expect to even run into anyone. In fact, I don't even know where these guys came from. I didn't hear any vehicles pull up, and I know that no one had been following me.

The leader steps closer and slowly lifts up the bottom of my shirt with the butt of his gun, until my whole stomach is exposed. He slowly makes his way higher, as I hold my breath and close my eyes. I just can't even believe this is happening right now. Why do bad things keep happening? Can I just have a do-over with this whole fucking year?

"Please-"I beg in a small voice, and the men laugh at me again.

"What's that?" The leader strains to hear, and my eyes begin to burn.

"Please-don't. Just-just take all my supplies. Take them and go." I plead in a shaky voice.

But the leader shakes his head and begins to run the barrel of the gun down my stomach, quicker this time, until he reaches the top of my panties. I hold my breath again, as the man steps closer, until I can feel his hot breath on my face. It takes me a moment to realize that a fifth man has shown up over the top of the hill, and is shouting down at the other four.

"What the hell is taking so long down there?" The fifth man shouts, and I begin to wonder if this man is the leader, and not the smallest man.

For some reason, the fifth man's voice sounds really familiar. Where have I heard that voice before? With the first man standing in front of me, and the other three men surrounding me on both sides, I can only hear the fifth man, as his footsteps get closer and closer.

"We found some goodies down here." The smallest man cackles again, and slowly moves to the side, as the fifth man comes into view from several feet away.

And in that moment, I am not sure who looks more shocked, as our eyes lock, and recognition sets in.

Krycek.

XXX

TO BE CONTINUED…

A/N: I hope you have given this a chance so far, and that you will continue to read the rest. Things always get better after the first chapter. ; )

Chapter 2: Past and Present

A/N: Sorry for the almost week delay. My daughter and I both got the stomach flu, and I had some intense training this whole week for my new job as an online English teacher for Chinese children. Things should calm down now, hopefully. Now to the better stuff. : )

Mulder has been extremely calm the past few days. And as I had previously mentioned weeks ago, those odd lights in the sky kept coming each night, until two nights ago. A few nights ago, they just stopped coming. Or so we all thought. Well, I thought. But Mulder just kept telling me that something was happening. And I didn't listen to him. Skinner didn't listen to him either. But then one night, on a clear calm night, I was getting ready for bed, and I heard this odd humming sound coming from outside. At first, I thought that it was some type of military airplane, most likely surveying the area because of the recent night light sightings. So, I briefly looked out the window, and saw nothing but a sky full of stars, and brushed it off as Mulder's overreactive imagination rubbing off on me lately.

I brushed my teeth, cleaned my face, and slipped into my favorite silk pajamas. I was determined to actually get a full 8 or 9 hours of sleep that night, or Mulder was going to deal with a very irritable red head in the morning. I made my chamomile tea, and slid under my thick cool covers for the night. But for some odd reason, I kept fighting sleep every single time I dosed off. I cursed Mulder under my breath a few times, because it was 'obviously' his fault. My sleeping habits were just fine a few months ago, before he started spewing all this alien mumbo-jumbo at me. I don't even know why it was even slightly bothering me. It was all just science fiction. My eyes nor my hands had ever come into contact with any irrefutable evidence of this unexplained phenomenon that my partner has dedicated his whole life on finding the existence of. And just as I was finishing that very thought, a very unpleasant noise pierced my eardrums, causing me to squint in discomfort. The only way I could describe it was the combination of a Tornado siren and a train. It seemed to get louder and louder, and I eventually got out of bed and looked out the window again.

My cup of tea shattered to the floor, and the lukewarm liquid splashed the bottom of my pajama pants, as I looked up at the sky in horror. Oh. My. God. Mulder was right. I was wrong. I was so wrong. And as I looked up at a few dozen hovering lights in the sky, hovering closer than they ever had before, my phone rang.

XXX

Dana Fucking Scully. Standing right in front of me. What are the odds of that? I haven't seen or heard about her since several months before the attack on earth, and here she is, alive, but…alone? I can't help but laugh to myself at the irony of it all. My best guess from the looks of it, is that Mulder is not with her, and hasn't been for a while. It frickin figures that that sonofabitch would die when he finally gets the proof he had been searching for his whole life. But as I step a little closer, I begin to wonder if maybe he is still alive somewhere. The life is not completely gone from Scully's eyes, so I am now guessing that she has probably been actively looking for Mulder. Or maybe she just got tired of his shit, and left him. But for some reason, I highly doubt the last option.

I can tell by the way that she is looking at me, that she hasn't quite figured out how she feels about seeing me yet. My first thought, is that she thinks I'm here to "rescue her". Ha. Mrs. Spooky wasn't worth my time then, and she most certainly isn't now. I have absolutely no use for her. But as I continue to observe the tiny redhead, I see her facial expressions changing from relief, to disgust. Yep. She must have just now figured out that I'm with these four idiots who are still looking at her like a piece of meat. But what she doesn't know, is that I'm just using them for their supplies. Well, I guess now is a good distraction to finally get rid of these assholes…so I guess I have Scully to thank for that. They were really starting to get on my nerves the past few months, and I was starting to get the impression that they were having their suspicions about me lately, so I guess it was time. Which, their suspicions would be correct. Alex Krycek doesn't work for anyone, nor do I trust anyone. Never have, never will.

But then I think to myself, Scully being here could cause another problem. These guys are either going to rape her, kill her, or both. They've probably already done it before, but not with me around. And I may be an asshole, but I'm not that completely heartless. Scully and I may have never exactly liked each other, but one thing I have never really had a tolerance for is rape. Or even unjustified murder. Anyone I have ever killed had it coming, and I have never had any problems getting a woman in my bed by choice.

Dammit, Scully. What the fuck are you doing here? And Jesus Christ, where are your clothes?

For some reason, it took me longer than it should have to realize that she isn't wearing any pants, or bra. Just some tank top thingy, and her panties. Why had I never realized how stunning she was before this? Hmm…and I may or may not have let my eyes briefly skim her petite little body before finally speaking up. I have to clear my throat before opening my mouth, too. Must be the heat.

"Back off, guys. She's mine." I finally speak up, leering.

I can tell that she wants to slap me, but quickly thinks better of it. But what the hell else am I supposed to do? If I let these guys know that I know her, it could make things worse for the both of us.

"I am no one's goddamn property." She speaks lowly through gritted teeth.

Oh, I see. Now that I'm here, the woman has the courage to fight back. Does she not remember who I am? Maybe I should remind her. I take a step closer and bend forward, so that we are almost touching noses. I ignore the cackling hyenas in the background, and intensely glower back at her. And damn, if looks could kill. She almost pulls off the "death stare" better than I do, as those icy blue eyes glare back. Her confidence and bravery begins to slightly piss me off, until I get close enough to see her whole body visibly shaking. And it's not from anger. It's from fear. I'm not even sure that it's me she's afraid of, or the four musketeers behind me.

"No one's property, huh? What about Mr. Spooky?" I whisper into her ear, inaudible to the guys behind me.

I then pull back to make intense eye contact again, but Scully is now looking down. And I know that I have hit a nerve. But for some reason, it does not satisfy me like it used to. Maybe because the world is a very different place now. And maybe, because I am a different person now. Not that I will ever let her nor anyone else see it. All I need is me. That's all I've ever needed. And that's all I'll ever need. No familiar face from my old life is going to change that.

XXX

It takes me longer than necessary to reach the phone, as I avoid stepping on broken pieces of glass on the way. I shakily pick up the phone, already knowing who it is.

"Scully, pack some things. Only necessities. And wait for me to come get you. I will be there in fifteen minutes." Mulder hisses through the phone.

"M-Mulder? What's happening?" I ask with desperation, as the noises outside begin to get louder.

"This is it, Scully. It's what I've been afraid of all along. And we need to get to the underground shelter with Skinner within the next hour. Do you hear me? Don't waste any time." Mulder barks.

"Okay-okay." Is all I can say, as I begin to search my apartment for things that I might need.

Mulder shows up exactly 15 minutes later, and we both quickly jump into his car and drive well over the speed limit to the location that Skinner gave us over the phone.

My eyes are constantly torn to the sky the whole way there, as I watch the world around me fall apart, as the ships get closer, and the public begins to panic. Mulder has to swerve around cars, as people stop and get out to get a better look. Don't they understand what's happening? Why aren't they finding shelter? I want to stop and yell at them to find safety, but I know that we have to keep going. We can't stop. We can't. "We have to keep going. We can't stop." Mulder keeps repeating, until we eventually reach some type of weird looking dome hidden in the side of a hill.

Everything around me blurs and seems to move in slow motion, as I feel Mulder pulling me out of the car and yanking me towards the strange building. Mulder pounds on the big metallic doors, and they quickly swing open, as Skinner ushers us inside. And then we are running down a long tunnel, further and further into the darkness, with only our flashlights and the packs on our backs.

And all I can keep thinking is, Mulder was right. My god…Mulder was right.

XXX

At first, I thought that maybe Krycek was there to help me out. But then I quickly realized that it's Krycek, and he is an asshole. He never did one damn good thing for me in the past, so why would he start now? For all I know, he could be even worse now. It also didn't take me long to realize that he was 'with' these four other assholes, and that he most likely wasn't going to help me. Surprisingly, I hadn't expected him to even still be alive. But that's a rodent for you. Just when you think you've got rid of them, they pop back up. And the only difference between Krycek and a rat, is that he is better looking. And why hadn't I ever realized how green his eyes were before? But that's beside the point. The point is, the closer he gets, the more I want to slap him.

I still seem to hide my fear, for the most part, as Krycek eyes me like he just found a hidden treasure chest. But it's a different look from what the other idiots are giving me. For some reason, as threatened as I feel right now, I get this strange feeling that his intentions aren't matching up with his other buddy's plans. A girl can only hope. I mean, the Grinch grew a heart…so it's possible, right?

God, who am I kidding? He's going to kill me. I don't think he'll rape me, but he'll probably let the other guys do it. None of this was what I had meant by "guardian angel" and "needing to see a familiar face". Maybe I should be more specific with my prayers next time. If I even have a next time.

I can't bring myself to say anything else, and it's bugging me that Krycek isn't saying anything else either. The guys behind him are still cackling, and Krycek and I are basically having a stare down. That is, until he makes the "Mr. Spooky" comment, and then I can no longer look at him. Damn him.

"Alright, Alex, you can have her first. But I get her next, ay?" The "leader" speaks up.

Krycek doesn't turn around, but let's out a low chuckle. I can't tell if it was a sarcastic one or not. I finally look back up at him, and his eyes are completely different now. It makes me anxious, and I find myself fidgeting with my shorts, realizing that they are still in my hands and not on my body. I can feel my face turning hot and red, and I wish that we would both just stop standing here staring at each other, while those creeps laugh at me. Minutes pass, and I can still see the wheels turning in Krycek's head. He finally leans back in toward me, and winks. For some reason, it leaves me feeling even more confused, as I watch him slowly turn around and walk over towards the other men.

I silently stand there, straining to hear what Krycek is saying to them, but I can't quite make all of it out. All I manage to catch is "capture" and "later". My best guess is that he has talked them into taking me back to their site. And I'm not exactly sure that that's a good thing or not.

Damn you, Krycek. What are you planning?

XXX

A week passed before Skinner even got the courage to send some men out to check for survivors. The men never returned. Another week passed, and another, until we began to run out of food and supplies. Eventually, the world around us became eerily silent, and the smell of charred things dissipated. Skinner took that as a good sign, and he finally went out there himself. He returned, thank god.

But the moment we all stepped outside, we all instantly fell silent. Mulder dropped to his knees at the sight, and I openly cried into my hands. Almost everything in our area was gone. Some buildings were destroyed. Thousands of cars were left empty in the streets. And a lot of the people were dead. But so were the invaders…the sonsofbitches that tried to take over our planet. Yes, they were dead too. Our atmosphere was uninhabitable for their kind. And when I finally stopped crying, and Mulder rose back up onto his feet, we both looked at each other, and we knew. We knew that it was up to us to find other survivors, and keep the living alive. Keep the planet remaining habitable for the people still alive. The invader's plans had failed, but the destruction had already been done. And it was up to us to keep everything from getting worse.

That day, I had a new outlook on the world. A new perspective on my own life. And a new purpose. It was a devastating disaster, but we survived. My family probably hadn't. But I had to keep going. For Mulder. For Skinner. For everyone who didn't make it.

God help us all.

XXX

PRESENT DAY

Thank god, I was right. Krycek had convinced the men to take me back to their site. But as I sat in the back between two burly men, tied up by my hands…I was still unsure of Krycek's intentions. I wasn't even sure how much power he really had over these men, but they seemed to look up to him somewhat. Even the smallest man that I thought was the leader seemed to follow his suggestions. I just wish that I knew what Krycek was up to, because he hadn't looked back at me from the passenger's seat not once yet, and we had been driving for a good twenty minutes now. At least they let me put the rest of my clothes back on.

A few more minutes later, the two cars pulled onto a long dirt road, and another minute later we were stopping in front of a big white house. A very old house from the looks of it. Probably abandoned before the attack on earth.

I waited anxiously, as the two men on each side of me got out, and the two men in the front got out. Krycek sat there for a good thirty-seconds, before he got out also. He must have talked the guys into letting him handle me, because it was his hands that pulled me out of the car, as the other guys walked ahead into the house. I felt Krycek's grip tighten around my arm, as we slowed down a bit, and stood on the front porch for a moment. Finally, he leaned in and spoke up when we were alone for a brief moment.

"You do everything I say, understand?" He whispered, and I couldn't tell if it was a threatening demand, or a helping one. Just what the hell was he up to?

I nodded, but when I tried to respond, he firmly yanked me into the house. I still couldn't tell if it was for show or if he really was getting a thrill out of shoving me around. Either way, it was starting to get on my nerves, and my arm was starting to get sore.

One of the bigger men came back into the kitchen with a beer in his hand, leaning up against the doorway. "So, what're we gonna do with her?" He asked, snickering.

Krycek sniggered and shoved me forward down the hall. "I told you. I get her first. Tonight. Then you guys can have her tomorrow." He smirked, but avoided eye contact when I looked over at him. I wanted him to see how pissed off I was, but he refused to look directly at me. Why was that?

The man shrugged and left the room, and I couldn't believe how easily they all trusted this lying, manipulative, murderous, thief. But then again, Krycek was always really good at fooling everyone, and playing sides. Damn him.

Krycek shoved me forward again and then to the left into a bedroom. The other men didn't say a word, as Krycek slammed the door shut behind us, and shoved me onto the bed.

"Stop doing that!" I hissed under my breath.

Krycek finally looked at me and smiled. He fucking smiled. That smug bastard.

"Or what?" He smirked, crossing his arms.

"What are you doing? Are you really with THEM?" I quietly asked, as my nostrils flared.

Krycek leaned up against the door and clenched his jaw. I couldn't tell if he was in deep thought, or just purposely avoiding my question.

"Answer me, Krycek!"

I was then slightly caught off guard when Krycek lunged at me and covered my mouth with his hand.

"Shut the hell up!" He hissed under his breath. "God, Scully, do you know how much worse it could get for you if they find out I know you? Or for me?" He whispered into my ear with slight agitation.

I waited until Krycek slowly pulled his hand away before answering him. "Come on, Krycek. We both know you're only worried about yourself. You just don't want your cover blown. Same old Alex Krycek I see." I growled under my breath.

That seemed to hit a nerve, as Krycek straightened back up and silently tied one of my hands to the bedpost. I watched him angrily, but he avoided eye contact again. When he was finished, he walked over to the door, but then turned back around.

"You don't know ANYTHING about me." He angrily replied, pointing a finger at me. It wasn't until then that I realized and remembered that only one of his hands was real.

"Don't I?" I spat back.

"Things have changed, Scully." He paused for a moment, staring at an imaginary spot on the wall next to me. "The world has changed." He finished, and quickly left the room, slamming the door shut behind me.

I didn't know how long he would be gone, or when he would be back. I still wasn't even sure what was going to happen next. But I hoped that God would send that guardian angel now.

XXX

A/N: Thanks for your patience, and reviews after each chapter are always greatly appreciated! Xoxo

P.S. There will start being less descriptions and more dialogue from here on out. ; )

Chapter 3: Last Minute Decisions

A/N: This chapter has a little bit more Krycek POV than Scully. Just a bit.

Just who the hell does she think she is talking to anyway? Scully doesn't know me. No one knows the real Alex Krycek, and I have kept it like that for a reason. A reason, that I am not even sure is a good enough reason anymore. Not this past year, at least. Things have changed, and I think I always knew they would. I knew what was going to happen, and I got lucky. My betrayal to Mulder actually saved me in the long run. That black lunged bastard spared me, even after I betrayed him as well. I don't even know if that sonofabitch is still alive, but he very well could be. I eventually discovered how hard it really is to kill him off. Just like myself, I suppose. I'm a survivalist. And I guess, in a way, he was too. I learned at a very young age, that if I wanted to survive this cruel world, it would have to be me against everyone. No one could really be trusted, and everyone is capable of betrayal. Do I regret some of the things I have done? Yes. Even the darkest of villain's occasionally do. It's only human nature. Even I have my human moments…desires, wants, needs, what have you. But I rarely let these feelings fully creep in. I give in for a short while, and then I quickly squelch that fire. That's how it has to be. And I can't afford to get soft just because of someone I ran into, that I used to know, but not really.

I find myself pacing in my room, obviously avoiding going back into Scully's room. It's been over an hour, and I know that the other guys will soon notice my hesitation, and begin to either question my motives, or just take over themselves. And even though the thought of just letting them do what they want with Scully briefly crossed my mind…this stupid ass "conscience" that I have somehow developed today, is stopping me from letting that happen for some reason. Goddammit, why did we have to run into her? Things are so much more fucking complicated now, and now I have to do things a few weeks sooner than I had originally planned.

A few more minutes later, I make a quick run into the kitchen to get Scully a bottle of water and some food, and just barely dodge the guys on my way back into the room. When I quietly open the door, Scully is asleep, laying in an odd position. I suppose it's the only position she can really attempt with her hands tied to the railing. But I know that if I untie her, she will run, and that could be bad for the both of us. So, she's just going to have to deal with it a little while longer, until I figure out my next move. My earlier annoyance has somewhat dissipated for the night, but I know that if she wakes up, it will surely come back. She has always managed to bring out the asshole in me, every time I have ever been around her. I suppose it's not as bad as Mulder, because God, Mulder can be an annoying little prick. But I can't really say that I have ever really enjoyed her company. But then again, we don't really know each other that well. I've only ever known her as "Mulder's partner".

I make my way over to the bedside table and place the water and can of pears down onto it. I figured it's better than nothing, and the can has an easy open tab at the top. I know that I'm probably going to have to stay in this room tonight, and I really don't want to. I sit in the chair in the corner, and stare out the window at the moon. I know that if I don't start making some sort of noise soon, the guys are bound to come in and investigate. And I know that I have not really thought out this plan well enough, because as I sit there in the semi-darkness, I begin to realize that I have no frickin idea what I'm going to do in the morning.

Just as I start to make my mind up about just trying to leave tonight, Scully softly sighs and sits up in the bed. It doesn't take me long to realize that she hadn't really been sleeping this whole time, as she silently stares at me. We sit there in silence for a long moment, before she speaks up first.

"What are you going to do with me?" She asks, and I did not expect that to be her first question for some reason.

I suppose a part of her still thinks I'm going to go through with what I told the guys, and I guess I never really gave her any indication of my true intentions. It all may very well be for the best right now anyways. She can hate me for it later.

Of course, I avoid answering her question, just like the last. And that seems to flare that temper of hers again. Oh boy. She yanks on the restraints and heavily sighs, but I do not flinch.

"Krycek, just let me go. You don't have to do this." She slightly raises her voice, and I wish that she would stop doing that, before someone hears her.

I lean forward in the chair and shake my head. "It's not that easy."

"Why not?" She asks, exasperated.

I sarcastically chuckle and scrub my facial stubble with my good hand. "Scully, you don't know who you're dealing with out there." My voice comes out breathy and slightly high-pitched.

That seems to shut her up for a moment, as she closes her mouth and looks out the window. I can see the wheels turning in her head, and I don't even know why I'm wondering what she's thinking right now. In fact, I don't care. I don't. Nope. Not gonna fall into that trap. All women are the same in my book. Manipulative, and confusing…and whiny. She better not even try to change my mind, because I will shut that shit down real quick.

She finally looks over at me again, with her lips pursed, and I can tell she is angry. "Damn you. How the hell did you even get involved with these guys anyway? I thought that Krycek follows no one." She says through gritted teeth, and I can tell she is mocking me.

I can feel my temper rising again as well, and right now I wish that I was in my own damn room by my own damn self. I don't need this shit right now. I roll my eyes, but decide to strike back anyways.

"I don't. They follow me, unfortunately." I grin wickedly, and she grunts in frustration.

"God, you are so condescending. I can see why Mulder loved beating the crap out of you so much." She spats, and I find myself getting up and lunging over her, with our noses only inches apart.

"Watch it, Red. You're nothing that I can't easily get rid of. I'm doing you a favor right now, okay?" I bark, and she rolls her eyes at me. What fucking nerve. This bitch. I swear.

"Then why haven't you "gotten rid" of me already? What's stopping you, huh? Do it, Krycek. Do something…besides fucking avoiding all of my questions." She growls, and I can visibly see her face reddening in the dim room.

I tightly grab ahold of her arm, and she winces. "Fuck you! I don't owe you any explanation, and you will just have to sit here and wait for me to do whatever the hell I damn please. Do you understand me?" I hiss.

I can feel the veins popping out on the side of my neck, and I'm pretty close to raising my hand to a woman for the first time ever. Yeah, you heard me…I've never hit a woman before. That was just something I could never add to my list. Believe it or not, I was close with my mother, and I respected her. But goddammit, this redheaded fireball sitting in front of me is getting on my damn nerves. To hell with her.

"Let go of me!" She screeches, and spits in my face.

But before I can even react, we both are interrupted by a knock on the door, followed by some cackling on the other side.

"Damn spitfire, ain't she, Alex?" Chuck hoots and hollers in the hallway, and I immediately go over to the door and make sure it's locked, just in case.

"Yeah, now will you leave me to it, man?" I holler back, and I hear Chuck's laughter drift farther away, as he walks into his own room and shuts the door.

When I am sure that no one else is outside of the door listening, I wipe at my face and lunge at Scully again, firmly pinning her against the headboard with my good hand. It's not that hard, but it's enough to keep her from squirming. She tries to squirm anyways though, and I am surprised at her sudden strength, as she tries to kick at me.

"Now you listen here! If you ever do that fucking ever again, I will hand you off to Chuck. And trust me, you are better off in here with me than him." I growl, as I punch at the headboard.

Scully stops squirming for a moment, and we make intense eye contact. It slightly surprises me that I do not see any fear in her eyes, but it also slightly pisses me off. Because she should be afraid of me.

"Don't you dare lay your hands on me, Krycek. You will regret it. And if you think I'm going to sit here and be quiet why you do whatever you please with me, you can forget it. I will fight you till my death." She speaks lowly, as her eyes begin to water. But she's not crying. She's pissed. Good.

It takes me a moment to realize just what she is implying, and I have to admit, I'm slightly surprised, and slightly amused. "You-I-you really think I'm going to touch you!" I laugh, standing up. And I can't tell if she looks slightly offended, or just shocked.

"I don't know anything, because you won't answer any of my questions!" She spats.

I briefly pace the floor, until my laughter dies down, and I stare down at an extremely bewildered redhead. "See, Scully…you think you know me, but you really don't. I may be your former partner's enemy, but I am no rapist. I may have done a lot of things, but I don't do that shit." I wave her off with my good hand.

Scully looks up at me, as if she is unsure of my honesty. But after a long moment, her body relaxes a bit, and I'm thinking she believes me. I almost wish I would have just let her think what she wants, but that is one thing I don't want to be thought of as. Like I said before, I usually don't have any trouble getting the ladies into my bed. It's been a while, but if I came across one, I could easily prove my point.

For some reason, several moments of silence go by, as I sit back in my chair and stare out the window. We both seem to calm down a bit, and I'm thinking that every time we are in the same room with each other, that silence is probably the best option.

XXX

It has been ten minutes, and Krycek and I still have yet to say anything else to each other. I can't deny that I almost thought he was actually going to go through with his "buddies" plan. But now that I'm glancing at him out of the corner of my eye, I just can't see it. Krycek may be a manipulative, lying, thieving, contract killer…but I honestly can't see him being a rapist. Not anymore. But, it still pisses me off that he laughed at me, and made it sound like I was a disease that he wouldn't even touch with a ten-foot pole. I don't know why that slightly bothered me, but it was just the way he said it. And I guess I overreacted a bit when I spit in his face, but this situation isn't exactly what I call a good time. And if Krycek doesn't let me in on whatever he has planned soon, things might end badly. This is not my year. It really isn't. It's times like these, that I would usually have Mulder to help me with. But Mulder is not here. And Skinner is not here. It's just me and Krycek, in a room together. And this certainly will not end well after a few more hours of this.

I am slightly startled when Krycek finally speaks up. "Alright, here's what we're going to do…" He begins, and I nod, patiently waiting. I am somewhat relieved that he actually has a plan now, and I can only hope that it works, whatever it is. "Chuck and the others usually pass out around this time, and are all pretty sound sleepers. I figure, if we slip down the hall and out the kitchen door, that is our best chance."

"Why not the bedroom window?" I furrow my brows.

"No." He shakes his head. "Charlie's room is next to this one, and he always keeps his window open. His bed is right next to it. The kitchen door is our only option." He whispers, leaning forward.

I nod again. "Okay."

Suddenly, my heart is racing, and I just now realize that my hands are starting to fall asleep from lack of circulation. I wince, and shift my position on the bed, and Krycek looks over at me.

"Alright, I will untie you, if you promise to stay put, and do exactly as I say. Okay?"

"Okay." I nod once more, and Krycek leans over me to untie my restraints.

I don't know why I hold my breath when he reaches over me, but I suddenly feel lightheaded and slightly flustered. I guess I've just never been this up close and personal to Krycek before, and I have to admit that it's an odd feeling. It takes everything I have in me to push aside the memory of my sister Missy, and I have to try really hard to forget that he was a part of her death. I can hate him later for that. But right now, we need to work together.

"Okay, you stay here. I'm going to go get a few things, and make sure they are all sleeping, and I'll be right back."

"What?" I furrow my brows in confusion. And then it occurs to me that we will need some supplies. I guess I didn't realize that if we didn't steal some supplies, that we would be walking in the dark with absolutely nothing to survive with. Now I know why Krycek was so hesitant about this.

"We have a whole new box of supplies in the truck. But unfortunately, Chuck has the keys, so we will have to walk on foot, and just grab some things from the back." He explains.

I want to speak up and ask him why the hell they would leave their new supplies in the back of the truck, in the middle of night, but then I think better of it. This is not the time nor place to continue pissing each other off right now. Krycek hands me a gun, and pulls another one out of the back of his jeans. I should have known that he would carry more the one gun, especially around those guys.

"Don't use that thing unless you absolutely have to. And keep it pointed away from me, will you?" He swats at my hand, and I realize that I am pointing it at him. I nod and watch Krycek quietly creep out of the room, leaving the door slightly cracked open. I sit on the bed and wait.

Several minutes' pass, and I begin to worry a little. I keep thinking I'm hearing things, but my nerves are so rattled right now, that it just might be my imagination. There are a few times where I think that I hear Krycek coming back into the room, but then nothing happens.

Another minute later, I DO hear someone walking towards the room, and the door creaks open. But it is NOT Krycek. I'm guessing this guy is Charlie, since his room is the closest, and he is looking at me with this bewildered look on his face, scratching his head.

"How the fuck did you get untied? And where is Alex?" Charlie says with exasperation, and I immediately begin to panic.

I know that if I shoot him, that it will alert the other guys, but if I try to escape through the window, he's still going to alert the other guys anyways. A part of me considers Krycek, but then I think to myself, he can just tell them that he went to the bathroom and I somehow escaped. I know he'll be pissed, but that's my best option right now. He has a better chance at surviving these guys than I do. So, I head for the window, and attempt to open it and crawl out of it. But Charlie lunges at me and grabs onto my waist. I try my best to struggle quietly, but Charlie begins to holler for Chuck, and I begin to panic even more. Where the hell are you, Krycek?

Charlie drags me away from the window and slaps me across the face, as I fly back onto the bed. He straightens himself up, and then charges at me again. And then I fire the gun at him.

XXX

I am outside near the back of the truck when I hear a gunshot, and I instantly grab for my gun and bolt into the house.

"Shit!" I hiss, and before I even make it back into the bedroom, I already know exactly what has happened.

I point my gun into the kitchen, and fire, as I see Joe and Benny with their guns, charging towards the bedroom that Scully was in. My best guess, is that Charlie discovered Scully, and I know that things are about to get even worse when Chuck makes his way out as well. Chuck is worse than me, worse than my old boss even. He doesn't give anyone any mercy, even me. He will kill anyone in his path if he is in a bad mood. He's definitely not someone that I myself would dare mess with, and that's saying a lot. I can only get away with so much. But overall, I managed to quickly gain his trust and respect in the first month, and I know that that's all about to change. I was hoping to not have to kill any more people, but it seems that my old life will never completely leave me.

I manage to hit Benny in the arm with a bullet, but he's still shooting at me with his other hand gun, and Joe has already made it inside the bedroom.

"Scully! Shoot! NOW!" I growl, and I can only hope that she had already successfully shot Charlie.

I hear another gun shot, and see Joe fly back into the hall, blood splattering from his chest. Benny keeps his attention diverted on me, rather than Scully, and I'm seriously starting to worry about Chuck's absence. He's probably getting his bigger guns at the moment.

I dodge another flying bullet from Benny, and aim for his head. It takes me two shots to hit my target, and Benny goes down next to Joe. I leap over their bodies and charge into the room, seeing Charlie on the floor, and Scully sitting on the bed aiming her gun at me.

"Woah, hey, it's me. We need to go, Scully. RIGHT NOW!" I bark, and I grab her by the arm and yank her out of the room.

We make it into the kitchen, where Chuck angrily greets us with a gun in my face. His eyes are wild, and I can tell that he is not going to show either of us any mercy. I guess that at least four people are going to have to die today, and I can only hope that Scully and I are not one of them, making it five. I have come too far to let it end like this.

"What the fuck, Alex?" Chuck speaks calmly, clenching his jaw, and cocking his gun at my head.

He looks over at Scully, who is still clinging to my arm, and then back at me. And I can almost see the lightbulb click on in his head.

"You know her?" He hisses.

I don't say anything, and Chuck nods. "I should have known. Rats are always rats." He shakes his head.

We stare hard at each other for a long moment, and then I finally speak up. "This is not how I wanted this to go down." I swallow, as my forehead begins to perspire.

"Yeah?" Chuck laughs sarcastically. He stares at Scully and then me again, and shakes his head again. "All of this, for an old girlfriend? Is she really worth it?"

"First of all, it's not like that. She was the partner of an enemy of mine." I can feel Scully's nails digging into my arm, but I ignore it. "And second of all, it's not about her, Chuck."

Chuck nods and heavily sighs. "Is it not, Alex? Are you telling me that you weren't just trying to smuggle this bitch out of the house?" He hisses, and I blink.

I know that anything I say is worthless. I can't fool Chuck, and he can't fool me.

"Listen, let her go. This is between you and me. Joe, Benny, and Charlie were self-defense. I didn't want to kill them, but I had to." I calmly explain, and Chuck seems to calm down somewhat. But it's really unnerving at the same time, because I have never seen him like this before. So calm and collected. This can't be good.

Chuck thinks about my words for a moment, and finally nods. "Alright, fine. She won't survive out there for long anyways. I'll let her go, but not you. You're staying, and you're going to meet your fate."

I nod, and motion for Scully to make her way back towards the back of the house, where she can slip out the back door. She seems to catch on, and I keep my gun trained at Chuck, as we both watch her slowly turn around to leave. She turns back around for a moment and looks at me, and I can see the hesitation in her eyes. I already know that she had planned to leave without me and probably tried to sneak out the window. But I'll yell at her for it later, if I even ever see her again after this. Overall, I kind of deserved it. Right now, it's harder to keep myself focused on Chuck with her in the house.

I nod, and Scully turns back around and disappears from our view. I cock my gun at Chuck, and we have an intense stare down, with our guns in each-other's faces. This is the moment of truth, and I know that I need to calm Chuck down more, and find a distraction.

XXX

I'm not going to lie…a large part of me had planned to just leave that house and not look back. But as I made my way out of the back of the house, I realized that Krycek was in there right now risking his life for me. I can't even really comprehend why at the current moment, but I can't seem to leave past the back yard. I find myself grunting and turning back around, quietly walking around the side of the house. If I can somehow sneak up behind Chuck in the kitchen, I can create a distraction for Krycek. Then after this, we can both be even and go our separate ways.

I manage to crawl up onto the front porch from the side, and it suddenly hits me that Chuck actually let me go, with my gun still in my hand. For a villain, he and his buddies weren't all that smart. Unless he is just still somewhat intoxicated from his earlier beers. I guess maybe he was also just too pissed off to realize that I could easily sneak around the house. I do notice from the porch, that Chuck had slashed all of the tires on both vehicles, and I realize that that was the reason for his earlier absence. He was making sure that we couldn't take off with all of his supplies. Maybe he isn't as dumb as I had originally thought. But that creates another problem, because it's extremely challenging to find a working car with fuel, since last year. And Krycek can keep the house for himself after this, but I'm not staying. I have to continue to search for Mulder and Skinner. I can't give up.

I can hear Chuck's voice, but I still can't quite see him from this angle. I know that if I get too close, he will hear and see me. But he finally moves a bit, and I get a perfect shot from the side of the porch. I take a deep breath, aim my gun, and fire.

XXX

I guess it didn't occur to me in the moment that Scully would even attempt to go around the house and sneak up on Chuck from the back. I look at him slightly confused for a moment, as he grunts and slumps forward. I then realize that Scully has taken a shot at him from the side of the porch, and blood begins to pool near his stomach. He slowly falls to the floor, wincing and gasping. I stand over him, until his eyes slip shut, and then Scully walks up the steps and greets me in the doorway as I step over Chuck's lifeless body.

I stare back at Chuck for another moment, and then punch my hand through the wall, startling Scully. It doesn't take me long to realize how slightly stupid her actions were today, even though we managed to live another day. I am angry, and I'm not even exactly sure why. But I am. I know that it's not really her fault, but I'm livid. My nerves are just frayed at the moment.

"Why did you do that?" I spat, and Scully's face reddens.

"Well, you're welcome, for I don't know, saving your life!" She spats back with exasperation, flailing her arms all about.

"I saved YOUR life, thank you very much!" I find myself lunging at her for the third time that day, and corner her against the door.

"I had no other choice, with both circumstances." She glares up at me, nostrils flaring.

I stare down at her for a long moment, and then back away, rubbing the side of my jaw. I sigh, and look back at her. "I'm not mad about you trying to escape out the window. After all, I kind of deserved that. You are right, you had no choice with that. But you took a great risk with that last little stunt." I firmly explain.

Scully's icy stare pierces into me for a moment, and then her eyes soften. She knows I'm right. Although, the little redhead has an impressive aim, we both still know that she was basically taking a shot in the dark at a very angry moving target, who had a gun aimed at my head. He could have still had time to pull the trigger, and I am very lucky that he didn't.

Even though we have both calmed down somewhat, I can't figure out why I am still feeling weird, and then I finally notice the sharp pain in my side. I wince and grab at the apparent wound, as blood seeps through my shirt and onto my hand, and the room begins to spin and blur.

XXX

A/N: Well, this chapter ended up being a lot longer than I had originally planned, hehe. And I know that this chapter wasn't as great as the others, but things will change a bit after this scene. ; )

Chapter 4: Having An Off Day

A/N: Two people have contacted me via PM to tell me that it wouldn't let them favorite, follow, or review after Chapter 3 on fanfiction (.net) So, if anyone else has had this issue, I have already reported the glitch, and it should be fixed soon. Also, weird that AO3 was down for a whole day right after that. *shrug*

On my tenth birthday, my mother invited a bunch of kids over for my birthday party. Two of those kids included my brother Bill's friends, who I absolutely hated. They used to always chase me down the street with their bikes, and place toads in my bedsheets. That day, the oldest boy, Joshua, decided to stick gum in my hair, and I came running into the house, tears streaming down my face, as my mother sat me down and helped me cut it out of my hair. Even though it was only a small chunk of hair from the bottom, it still upset me. After my mother had finished fixing my hair, she wiped the moisture from my cheeks, and told me that at that age, it usually meant a boy liked a girl when he picked on her. It didn't make me feel any better that day, but I did end up dating that very boy four years later in High School. I guess she had been right. That very boy ended up being my first kiss and very first boyfriend. We dated for two years, and I considered him my very first love. And the day that he broke up with me, a week before prom, was the day that I realized that no matter how much you love a bad boy, and no matter how much he may love you, he will still disappoint you in the end. And I ended up proving this theory two more times before I even graduated college. It was after that, that I decided to stick to the nice shy guys. But look where that got me as well…in unfulfilling short-term "relationships". That was several years ago, and I can't really say that I have dated much since then. I don't even feel comfortable saying how long it has been since I've even been with a man, passionately. In fact, I'm pretty sure I've only experienced one mind-blowing passionate relationship, and that was my first boyfriend, Joshua. Now that I look back on it, I'm not even sure I knew what true love really was either. I was young, and naïve, and desperate for a taste of those first love jitters. But once I experienced it, I wasn't sure that it was everything that my mother said it should and would be. Something always seemed to be missing. Even with my platonic relationship with Mulder, that I will absolutely not delve into right now. Maybe I became too picky, or too bitter, maybe even just too busy. But I never felt that way ever again. I don't even know if there is any moral to the story, but I just found myself thinking about it for some reason, while I waited for Krycek to wake up.

After attending to Krycek's wounds, I quickly came to the conclusion that the adrenaline was the only thing that had kept him going for several minutes before he collapsed. He may come off as this tough guy, but he's definitely not going to feel like that when he wakes up with a second wound on his head from where he passed out, along with a gunshot wound to his right flank. I'm not even sure I have ever seen him look like this before, serene and innocent. I guess I always pictured him as being the type of guy that was so tightly wound up all the time, that he probably even slept in fits. But Krycek doesn't sleep like that, surprisingly. Ironically, he hasn't moved at all in 9 hours. I mean, I know that it's probably from the loss of blood, and medicine that I administered to him during a brief moment of consciousness, but it's still strange to see every muscle in his body so slack. It kind of made me forget about the things he had done to me and Mulder, until now. Now, I am thinking about it, and I want to slap him awake. Stupid, beautiful bastard. I mean, it really is a shame, that someone that smart and that attractive has to be such a prick. God, now I want to dig my fingers into his bleeding wound. But I won't, because it took me over an hour to remove the bullet and patch it up. And then another hour of cleaning up and moving the four dead bodies in the house. But, I did kind of enjoy being able to be a doctor again. Even just being somewhat useful again was better than anything else at the moment. And Krycek may not even be in my top 100 preferred people to share time and space with, but it's just going to have to do until he wakes up. And once he's awake, and able to take care of himself, then I'll be back on my way, continuing my search for Mulder and Skinner. By myself.

I end that thought with a stifled yawn, and find myself drifting back off into a fitful sleep in the chair next to the bed.

XXX

I wake up with a violent jerk, as I try to comprehend my surroundings. It takes me a moment to realize that I'm lying in a bed, and that my right side hurts, and the back of my head. I manage to pull myself up into an awkward sitting position, and then I also realize that I am not wearing a shirt, but that my prosthetic arm is still attached. It gives me a brief feeling of self-consciousness, but I quickly squelch it and focus on something else. I notice that I am still wearing my pants, and that my head and stomach are bandaged up. I even feel the slight head buzz of some sort of weak narcotic, but the pain is still quite uncomfortable. My best guess is that Scully found Chuck's secret opiate stash, and I find it somewhat alarming that she even took care of me.

And just as I begin to doubt that it really was Scully that took care of me, I turn my head and see her slouched in the chair in the corner of the room. I don't know how long I have been out, but I'm guessing that it's been longer than 8 hours. The sun is high in the sky, and Scully is softly snoring in an uncomfortable position. And I don't know why, but it suddenly hits me that when she is asleep, and not spitting in my face, that she really is a very beautiful woman. I mean, I always thought that from day one. But that thought was always quickly squashed with that icy blue glare of hers.

I shake the thought from my head, and focus my attention on trying to stand up and make it to the bathroom. But I am slightly aggravated to discover that I'm not going to be able to walk there myself. And that is one thing that I have never been very good at, is letting other people help me. I guess that I have just done things on my own for so long, that I don't really know how to let someone else in. The only person that was ever there for me, was my mother. And she died when I was 8. That was also the year that my life completely changed…that I completely changed. With my father leaving as a baby, and not having any siblings, I was a very lonely child. It was just me and my mother. The only woman I have ever loved. She was the wisest woman in the world, and so beautiful. She could light up a room with just her smile alone. And the only thing she was ever really wrong about, was that I was a good boy, and that I would make some woman very happy one day. And I know that if she was still alive right now, that she would probably not be able to even look at me right now. But she's gone, and it's been that way for a very long time now. And I've done just fine by myself. Except for this very fucking moment, when I have to piss like a race horse, and the only person available to help me, probably hates my guts, and is also probably plotting her revenge without me even realizing it. I mean, I wouldn't put it past Scully to bandage me up, and then dig her fingers into my open wound. I wouldn't even really blame her for doing so. I'd probably be extremely pissed off, but I would expect it nonetheless.

I finally make it up onto my feet, but just as I try to take a step towards the door, I feel a searing hot pain in my side, and fall back onto the bed.

"Goddammit!" I hiss, wincing and gasping.

Scully jerks awake and is up on her feet so quickly, that you almost can't tell she was even asleep five seconds ago. That must be a doctor thing.

"What are you doing?" She scolds, and I roll my eyes at her.

"I've got it. I—shit, fuck, damn!" I spat, clenching my good hand into a tight fist on the bed, as Scully tries to push me back down onto the pillow.

"Yeah, I can tell. You 'obviously' have it all under control." She rolls her eyes at me and takes a look at my wound.

Scully's intense eyes skim my body from my head to my stomach, which is making me slightly uncomfortable for some reason, and I try to push her away, but her hands are persistent.

"Stop moving, Krycek. Let me-let me look at your bandages." She swats at my hands, and I finally pull them away so that she can take a look.

"It's not that bad." I lie, grimacing, as she pulls back the bandage.

Scully shoots me a look, and tapes the bandage back up. I watch her walk over to the bedside table and grab a bottle of pills from it. She takes two out of the unmarked bottle, and shoves them in my face, along with a bottle of water. I shake my head reluctantly, because I would rather feel the pain right now, than feel like my brain is all groggy and fuzzy. My motto has always been, that you just never know when something is going to happen, so you should always be alert and ready. And I can't do that if my mind is clouded from opiates. But Scully is tenacious, and shoots me that death glare of hers, and I give in just this once and take the pills. At least one of us is alert, I persuade myself.

"What did you need?" She firmly asks me, crossing her arms.

I'm not sure I like the doctor side of Scully. Too bossy, but a little more reasonable than the short-tempered, redheaded version of her. I'm not even sure if the whole "redheaded temper" thing is really a thing, but it sure feels like it when I'm around Scully.

"I have to urinate…profusely." I grumble, and Scully's face pinkens for a brief moment, before she regains her professional composure.

I guess she really didn't think about that part, that she would have to help me to the bathroom. I mean, it irritates me too, but I can tell that it flusters her more. And this pleases me for some reason. I have recently discovered, that I find this weird pleasure in getting her flustered, and I also find myself grinning wickedly at the thought.

"Okay, umm-"She paces the floor for a moment, running her fingers through her hair, before facing me again. "Let's go." She grabs onto my prosthetic arm, and instantly realizes her mistake.

It doesn't bother me, but I can tell she feels slightly embarrassed at forgetting that I only have one real arm. She mumbles an apology, and grabs my other arm, helping me up onto my feet. I sway slightly, and she steadies me as best as she can without pressing on my wound. It feels slightly ridiculous, having a woman that is probably no more than 115 pounds and 5'2", try to hold me up. But I quickly realize that Scully has some impressive strength. Although, I can tell that she is trying really hard to not touch too much of me for too long, and then I feel like walking my own damn self to the bathroom. But I know that I can't. In fact, if Scully weren't here right now, I would be screwed. So, I inwardly make a quick mental note to thank her for her hospitality later, that she is no doubt having to continuously convince herself to go through with.

We finally make it to the bathroom, and things quickly become extremely awkward from there on out. Scully eyes me for a moment, and heavily sighs, as we both realize that I can do this part by myself.

"I've got it from here." I assure her with slight agitation, and she nods, planting herself on the other side of the bathroom door.

I take an extremely long, relieving pee, and pull myself along the sink to wash my hands. Yes, I got really lucky when I found a farm house with running water. It's always cold tap water, but at least we have it. For now, at least.

"Done." I holler at the door, clearing my throat, and leaning up against the sink.

Scully shuffles back into the bathroom, heavily sighs again, as if I'm the biggest nuisance ever, and helps me back into the bedroom. She helps me back onto the bed, but I have to grab at her hand for a moment as I'm making my way back down, and as soon I'm sitting up against the headboard, she yanks her hand away and takes a sip from the other water bottle next to mine.

"Need anything else?" She asks, with less agitation than before. I think we're beginning to grasp this civility thing, somewhat. For now, at least.

I think about it for a moment, and shrug. "I could eat, maybe. If you're willing to-"

"Alright. Be right back." She interrupts, and quickly leaves the room.

I'm not exactly sure why Scully is being so weird with me right now, but I'll try to pry it out of her later. Believe it or not, I'm actually curious to know what she is thinking right now. Could be the opiates talking…but hey, I just don't care right now. I know that the medicine just kicked in, and now that the pain has subsided somewhat, I could actually eat a horse, and then a pig, chicken, cow…maybe a third world country…not really, but it sure feels like it all of a sudden. Damn, what the hell did Scully give me, and where the fuck did Chuck get these pills from? All I know is, everything seems slightly better right now. And that earlier fear of not being fully alert and ready for something bad, has completely melted away. Fancy that.

XXX

I immediately found an excuse to leave that room as soon as I realized that I was being too nice to Krycek. Nicer than he deserves. And as much as I want to serve him cold mush on a paper plate, I can't bring myself to do so at the moment. So, I manage to whip up some canned beef stew, with canned pears. It's really the best I can do right now, and something tells me that Krycek isn't really going to care, once those meds kick in. I decided to double up his meds, to see if I could maybe get him to tell me some things later that I wanted to know…about my sister, and Mulder's father, and my abduction. But now that I'm standing in the kitchen, looking down at a blood stain from where Chuck bled out on the purple tiles…I'm not sure that I can bring myself to even ask Krycek about all the truths that I have so desperately wanted the answers to for so long.

I find some gross warm beer in the cupboards, but decide to grab the half full bottle of vodka instead, tucking it aside for myself, for maybe later. I can't even remember the last time I even had an alcoholic beverage, and since the recent occupants of this big farm house are now out of the picture, I might as well make good use of the supplies in here…before I continue my long journey in a few days.

I manage to balance both servings of food on a TV dinner tray, and make my way back into the room. I don't know why, but I find myself holding my breath as I walk into the room…as if I'm waiting for something big to happen. And sure enough, as I open the door, I see Krycek looking up at me with this goofy grin on his face. Maybe this whole 'heavily medicating him for truth serum' thing might just work. I set the tray down across his lap, and he digs right now. But I take my time eating mine, as I wait for him to say something, anything.

A few long moments pass, as Krycek finishes the last of his food, and pushes the tray aside. I take another bite of my stew, and clear my throat, as I feel his eyes on me, watching me.

"God, you're beautiful." He blurts, instantly regretting it, from the looks of it.

I can feel my face getting hot, and I'm pretty sure I'm about to vomit. 'Beautiful' is the last thing I ever wanted to hear my partner's former arch nemesis call me, and I'm beginning to regret that extra pain pill I gave him.

"I'm sorry. I—I shouldn't have said that." He closes his eyes and hangs his head for a moment. "It's the medicine." He assures me, and I nod, avoiding eye contact.

"I'm sorry" is also another thing that I have never expected to hear come out of Krycek's mouth either, and I know that I'm about to be sick. This is too much. Way too fucking much right now.

"I—uh—I need to step outside for a moment." I set my food down on my chair, and scurry out of the room, as if I'm being chased by a swarm of killer bees.

And as I make my way out the kitchen door, I regurgitate the beef stew I just ate over the railings of the front porch.

XXX

The side effects of that stupid ass medication have proven my point on why I hate taking that type of shit. It makes me say and do things that I don't actually mean, and now I'm regretting letting Scully give it to me. No matter how great I feel right now. I'm pretty sure I could hear her hurling up her food outside, and that makes me feel like shit. I don't even know why I'm upset about it, but I guess it's just because I don't want her thinking that I'm like Mulder. Mulder obviously had the hots for Scully, whether he chose to act on it or not…he still followed her around like a pathetic little puppy dog. And that's not even close to what I was doing earlier. I mean, yes, Scully is gorgeous, and everyone who has ever met her knows that. But that doesn't mean that she needs to hear it from me. I mean, I don't even know why I'm getting so bent out of shape over this. Now I feel like I need to insult her, just to even it out.

It's been over an hour, and Scully has yet to come back into the room. I know that the sun will be setting in a few hours, and I feel that I need to explain myself, before she gets the wrong idea about my true intentions. I figured, if she didn't come back into the room in another few minutes, I would just have to go out there. And when a few more minute's pass, I heavily sigh, and pull myself off the bed, with great difficulty. I make it a few steps towards the door, carrying the tray in my hand, when my head suddenly begins to pound, and my vision goes blurry. I wince and grab at my head, completely forgetting that I have the tray in my hand, and the empty dishes go crashing to the floor, as I fall back on the bed.

It takes all of 10 seconds before Scully is running into the room, and rushing to my side. "Are you alright?" She asks, sitting down onto the bed next to me.

I nod, shake my head, and then nod again, as I rub at the side of my temple. I am slightly caught off guard, when she begins running her fingers through my hair, as she checks the previous wound on my head. The way she is touching me and treating me right now, is the way that I have seen her treat Mulder in the past. And I have absolutely no idea why she is doing it, and when I look over at her, I can tell that she doesn't know why either. But as soon as she's done checking everything, she quickly rises to her feet, and hands me the bottle of water from the nightstand. This time, I don't argue, and chug half the bottle, before handing it back.

After another silent moment, I open my mouth to speak, but Scully raises her hand to dismiss me.

"No, don't. It's alright. Really." She assures me, and I nod.

I look out the window for a moment, and look back at her, sighing. "You can sleep in my room tonight, or in here, and I can go back to my old room." I offer, and she nods.

"You stay in here. I'll take your old room." She answers, and I nod again.

After another moment, Scully sighs and takes a seat in the chair. I can feel her watching me, but when I look up at her, she looks away. We go back and forth like this a few times, and I know that if I don't say something else soon, that we will be ending the night on awkward terms. And Alex Krycek doesn't do awkward. I have always known what to say and do. So, why don't I now?

I finally make eye contact, and feel like I should probably explain myself now, because I absolutely hate feeling like this. Since when did I get a conscience? No more pain medication for me.

Scully breaks the eye contact, and stares at her lap, and I can tell that she is deeply thinking about something. I have just now figured out that she gave me extra medication, to see if she can get me to answer some of her questions, and I feel that maybe I at least owe her that much, before we eventually part our separate ways. This world is a very different place now, and so are the people left on it. That's the only excuse I really have right now.

"Dana-" I breathe, and Scully's head snaps up immediately. Her eyes are cold, and her lips pursed.

"Don't call me that." She shakes her head, and I nod.

I watch her quickly get up and leave the room, and just when I think that maybe she has left for the evening, she comes back in with a liquor bottle. She offers me some, but I shake my head, knowing that that's the last thing I need to mix with this medication. She shrugs, and sits back down in the chair, taking a swig from the bottle. And I have to admit, I'm slightly taken aback that she even came back into the room, and drinking vodka at that. Maybe she's just trying to get the courage to ask me about her sister. I know that it's been on her mind. And I'm ready to answer that question. Like I said before, the circumstances are very different these days. Things will never be like they used to be, and I have begun to accept that.

But after several more swigs from that bottle, the question still hasn't been asked. So, I speak up first, trying to break the ice. Although, the question that I chose to ask, may have not been all that appropriate. But regardless of that, I am extremely shocked when she answers me.

"Do you love Mulder?" I guess it is something that everyone has always wondered about. Even me, honestly. But I am surprised with her answer.

Scully thinks it over for a moment, and heavily sighs. "I do. But not the way that everyone thinks." She pauses, thinking it over some more. "Mulder and I-we both have an extreme respect for one another. We trust each other, more than anyone else. We are best friends." She pauses again.

"But?" I find myself asking.

Scully sighs again. "But, it's strictly platonic." She smiles thinly, and I believe her. "Even now, after the world has changed…Mulder will still always make his search for the truth his number one priority. And I accept that. Our relationship cannot be fully explained, nor understood, even by us. We are just-we are two very different parts of the same plant, figuratively speaking." She pauses to take another swig. "We-I am the flower, and he is the leaves…or maybe even the roots. Does that make sense?" She asks, furrowing her brows.

I nod. And it's true. It makes perfect sense to me, surprisingly. They love each other, in the purest of forms. Spiritual love. Can't say I've ever had that, but I get it.

Another long moment of silence passes, and I can see the alcohol taking its effect, as Scully begins to loosen up a bit. She gives me my next dose of medication, but just one pill this time, and we sit there in comfortable silence, watching the sun set out the window. I can't say I've ever done this before with a woman, just sitting here and looking at the sunset. And I'm not even sure if I like it or not. It's only been two days since I bumped into Scully, and things have already begun to dramatically change. I almost feel like I'm losing control of the situation. And I need to get a grip, before I become too comfortable with this new lifestyle. And since when did I become 'comfortable' with anything? Jesus Christ. It has GOT to be this medication.

"I need you to tell me everything you know." Scully finally blurts out, and I know exactly what she is implying.

I nod and sharply inhale, and then slowly exhale. "Okay." I pause, and Scully leans forward in her chair, anxiously waiting for me to continue. "Why don't you ask me what you want to know first, and we can go from there." I offer, and she slowly nods.

"Missy." She simply says, and I sigh, hanging my head for a moment.

"I didn't kill her. Luis Cardinal did." I offer lamely, and make eye contact.

Scully's eyes instantly glaze over, and she nods, swallowing. "But you were there." She states, and I nod.

"Yes, I was. As you already knew, it was meant for you. But I honestly expected the job to be dismissed right before. I didn't think that bastard was serious about it. His orders were just to remove the problem. I figured we were just going to threaten you. And then Luis pulled the trigger before I could even react. I'm sorry, Scully." I explain, and I'm honestly telling the complete truth.

Scully intensely eyes me for a moment, as if she's scanning my very soul for the truth, and then she finally nods.

"Mulder's father?" She quietly asks.

"Yes, I did that one. But my only excuse for that, is that Mr. Mulder was not who either of you thought he was. I was new to the job, and I honestly thought I was removing a major threat. I was played, and I made a mistake." I hang my head, and Scully sets the vodka bottle down on the floor.

"My abduction?" She chokes out, and I can tell that she is on the verge of tears now.

"I provided your address, but the rest I had nothing to do with. I honestly did not know that you were going to be experimented on. Once again, I was new to the job, and I thought I was doing the right thing. I even tried to find out your whereabouts, when I found out what they had planned for you." I know that if I say any more than that, that I will just be rambling and repeating myself, so I end it with that.

I didn't even realize how pathetic my past mistakes really looked, until now. I was so naïve, and I was batting for the wrong team, so to speak. And seeing the disappointment in Scully's eyes, makes me feel like complete shit. Maybe this whole Q and A thing was a bad idea. Things are changing too fast, and too much. If I can't control it, I don't want any part of it.

Another long moment of silence passes, and I'm guessing that Scully is done with her questionnaire for now. She finally stands up and begins to pace the floor, as if she is extremely anxious about something. And I can't figure out what else could be bothering her.

"I think I'm going to go to bed now." She finally speaks up, and I nod. After all, I am getting pretty tired, and this has been the weirdest day of my life.

I sit there, waiting for her to get up and leave, but it doesn't happen. I'm beginning to wonder if she is expecting me to ask another question now. But I really don't want to. I really don't. But I do anyways.

"What happened to Mulder?" I guess I might be a little curious, just a little.

Scully instantly deflates, as she looks up at me for a moment, before looking back down at her hands.

"We-uh-we got separated. We had this little community, that Skinner was running, and he sent us out for more supplies one day." She pauses, and I patiently wait. "And uh-we ran into these guys, kind of like Chuck, and they chased us. They took Mulder, and when I made it back to our site, everything was gone…charred to a crisp." She pauses again, and sniffles, but there are no fresh tears, thank god. I just don't think I could handle that right now. I've already asked and answered too much. And just as I think we are done for the night, Scully continues. "So yeah, uh-I've been looking for Mulder and Skinner, for a while now." She finishes.

"How long?" I find myself asking, for some reason.

"Three months." She quietly replies, as her lip quivers, and I'm not really sure that I heard her correctly. She's been alone, looking for them, for THREE MONTHS? I can't believe what I'm hearing. Does she not realize what happened?

"Scully-"I begin, heavily sighing.

"What?" She looks up at me, and I find myself eyeing her sympathetically. I don't even know why, but I feel bad, that she is in a very pathetic state of denial right now.

"Scully-they might be-they probable are-"

"NO!" She suddenly flies up out of her chair, pointing her finger at me. "Don't you dare, Krycek. They aren't. They AREN'T!" She shakes her head, rubbing the sides of her arms.

I sigh again, and she covers her mouth, stifling a sob. And I suddenly don't know what else to do right now. I feel like I said too much, and I feel like I've heard too much for the day. I'm tired, and irritated again, because I'm not feeling like myself right now, and I'm vowing to never take those pills ever again.

I open and close my mouth, but nothing else comes out. And then Scully is rushing out of the room, and I hear doors slam, and then silence. I really want to go to bed, and hope that I wake up feeling like myself again. But there's this strong pull, tugging at my newfound conscience, and I find myself pulling myself out of bed, taking a few swigs of that cheap ass vodka, and limping out of the bedroom. Surprisingly, I'm not having as much difficulty walking as I was earlier, and after dragging myself down the hall with the help of some close furniture, I finally make it outside on the porch, and find Scully standing at the bottom steps, facing away from me.

I stand there awkwardly, knowing that there is no way I can make it down the stairs, and just wait.

"Scully, I'm sorry." I offer lamely, and Scully nods, still facing away from me.

And then she collapses to the ground, screaming, while yanking handfuls of grass out of the ground. And I honestly can't say that I have ever seen such a display in my life, but I have felt what she is feeling right now. When my mother died, I was where she is at right now. And that may have been a very long time ago, but I think that I still remember that feeling. At least a little bit.

And then she finally speaks up, still facing away from me. "I lost my family, my friends, everything valuable in my life, that day. Mulder tried to tell me that it was going to happen, and I didn't believe him. But he was right, and I was wrong. And I never told him that. Even after it happen, I didn't say it. He and Skinner were the only friends I had left in this whole world. And then in the blink of an eye, they were gone. And I was alone. For…Three. Fucking. Months. I was scared, and lost, and I didn't run into one single person, for three months, Krycek. I traveled many miles, with only my faith to cling on to. A faith, that I'm not even sure that I still have now. So many people died that day. But I survived. Why me? Why? Why you? Why us? What makes us so special? Huh?" She's screaming again.

And then she is crying. Well, sobbing, actually, while rocking back and forth on her knees. I stand there for a moment, not really knowing what else to do. But after a minute of this, I force myself to make it down the stairs, and I finally make it to where Scully is clutching at the grass, with her face in the dirt. And I ignore the pain, and slowly make it down onto my knees. She seems completely oblivious to my close proximity, and I reach out for her. I lift up her face and scoot closer, pulling her to my chest.

"Come here." I softly demand, and she doesn't fight me.

I've never done this before either. I've never comforted a woman, or anyone for that matter, besides my mother. But for some reason, I want to. But I'm not sure I know how.

I just go with it, and wrap my arms around her tiny frame, and she nuzzles her face into my shoulder. It doesn't even occur to me that I am still shirtless, until I feel the moisture from her face on my bare skin. Not that that matters right now, because it really doesn't. But this feeling that is suddenly overwhelming me, is a dangerous one. I know that much. It's something that needs to be squelched immediately. That's my motto. My number one rule. Don't let people in. But I figure, one time isn't going to damage my lifestyle too much, right?

And I find myself rocking back and forth with Scully, shushing and cooing into her hair, as her cries become softer.

"Stop crying. Shhh. Calm down." I say into her hair, and then my lips are on her forehead. And on her cheek. And as they lightly brush the corner of her mouth, I come to my senses, around the same exact same that she does. But it's too late.

What was I thinking? What the fuck am I doing? This isn't me. I don't do shit like this. This has to stop… RIGHT. NOW.

I pull back, just as she pushes at my chest. And next thing I know, she is whipping a gun out, and it's in my face, and I am fumbling over my words. Shit.

"Don't. You. Fucking. Do. That. Ever. Again. Do you understand me?" She growls, and I nod, mouth slightly agape. And I think I'm just as in shock as she is, except way less pissed off.

I watch her get back up onto her feet, and stomp back into the house. And it quickly occurs to me, that I am stuck on the ground, in the dark.

TO BE CONTINUED…

A/N: Yes, another long chapter. And a little more Krycek POV than Scully again, but that will change as I delve further into things. Send me love? ; )

You can follow updates for this story at these two sites below:

http://archiveofourown.org/works/10379832?view_full_work=true

https://www.fanfiction.net/s/12412160/1/End-of-Time

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