Title: What Could I have done?
Author: Starrlyte 
Category: MSR, babyfic,mythology
Rating: Oh definatly rated R, I personally don't think it deserves a
NC-17...but read at your own risk anyway.
Spoilers: Oh absolutly, slight spoilers through the rest of the
season but honestly, they are just thoughts of my own, about how the
story might take place, not necessarily spoilers for the ending of
the finale.

Summary: Tragedy strikes when Mulder and Scully's little girl is
barely a year old. Wishing she could have known her mother, that
everyone else in the world seems to know well, Scarlett goes through
her young life angry and alone. It seems the only thing keeping her
alive is her young son. With her mother's passionate strength,
Scarlett survives one tragedy after another and finally finds her
father who tells her she is her "Mother's daughter." Heartache and
loss prevail in this epic story of a young girl who wishes that there
was something she could have done to save her mom.

Author's Note: Stick with this story, it really is worth it. Although
fanfictions with major characters that are not the normal characters
on the show usually don't do very well, I ask you to give this one a
chance. It is special in its own way...and it describes such a
terrible terrible loss that could only be felt by a daughter who
never knew her mother. It is a VERY good Scully peice, there is some
pretty good and very sad Scully dialog, and Mulder figures
prominantly towards the middle of the story. Basically it surrounds
this young woman who has no idea who she is really, and who is
struggeling to make a living to support her child. And with luck like
her mother, tragedy strikes over and over again.

I really really like this story, it is different than any other I
have ever written. Never before have I branched out and done an
XFiles fanfiction, using someone other than Mulder, Scully or John
Doggett. Ok ok i'm begging now, just please stick with it....I
promise I'll have you crying and smiling, all at the same time :)

Disclaimer: All things X belong to Chris Carter and 1013
Productions. Scarlett, Sean, Lonni, and Dr. Elliot are all mine:)

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

 Chapter One:

 Her heels clicked in rhythm against the wet pavement as she shivered
against the February rain. Only 2 more blocks to go, she told herself
as she huddled against her leather jacket and quickened her pace.
Lonni could only stay with Sean until four. She looked down at her
watch, it was 3:50am.

"Dammit." She cursed as she hurried down the alley and cut across a
parking lot to get to her apartment building.

Once inside, she took both flights of stairs in several leaps until
she finally made it to her door. Before she had a chance to get her
keys, the door swung open.

"And where the fuck have you been?" Lonni's angry voice came from
inside the doorway.

The younger woman shrugged her shoulders. "Lonni, I'm sorry I tried
to get here as soon as I could, but they kept me late."

Lonni pushed her way into the hallway and turned on one heel. "You
damn well better be sorry Scarlett, I have been here for 6 hours with
your squaling brat and now I'm late to work." Her expression softened
as she watched the tears form in her friend's eyes.

"Scarlett..." Lonni came back into the doorway and embraced her
friend. "I'm sorry girl...I didn't mean that. I know it's
rough...just please...Scar....please be on time tomorrow night. If I
lose this job, Michael is gonna fucking kill me."

Scarlett nodded slowly and leaned in to kiss her best friend on the
cheek. "Hey Lonni, tell Michael to fuck off, you could do better."

Lonni grinned for a moment, her dark eyes flashing. "Oh girl...you
know If I found another tight assed guy that could set me off, you
know I'd be all over him, speaking of hot guys, is your daddy still
single?"

Scarlett stared at her a moment and then shook her head. "What
happened to Lonni the fuck all you white men? And honestly I don't
know if my dad is still single."

Lonni turned again. "It's a damn shame, a damn damn shame....might
have been fun to fuck a fed."

With that, she was gone, closing the door behind her. Scarlett stood
alone in the hallway a moment, before heading back towards her
bedroom.

Eight-month-old Sean was sleeping peacefully, curled up in his green
quilt. She sat on the edge of the bed and gently began to smooth his
shiny brown locks away from his forehead. He looked a little like his
father.

"Bastard," Scarlett mumbled.

Sean's ethnicity added to the cream brown of his baby skin, and of
course his eyes were dark, unlike his mother's startling blue. But he
had her features. Her pouty lips, her curious eyes, her shapely chin,
her long fingers. She looked hard to find any trace of her father in
him. After a few moments of studying her son, she shook her head,
tears forming in her eyes. She knew the truth in her heart, that Sean
looked like who she looked like. Sean was a Scully.

Scarlett wandered into the living room, tying her robe more tightly
against her. She settled down onto her couch and stared a minute at
the book in front of her.

It was a photo album, one she hadn't looked at in a very long time.
She opened it slowly, with trembling fingers. Her gaze fell open a
woman that seemed so familiar to her, the woman that she never knew.
There in the photograph, the woman was holding what looked like a
three month old baby. Scarlett watched as the woman gazed at that
baby adoringly. Wiping her left eye with the back of her hand,
Scarlett turned the page. More photographs of the woman and the baby
girl. There was the first bath, the first bottle, the first time the
baby rolled over, the first step, and then suddenly the page turned
and the pictures stopped.

Sobs wracked her weary body as she gave into the heartache. She had
never known this woman, this woman who had died for her. This woman
who had died for her father. She had heard the stories, of how she
was special, of how she was the reason the world was alive today. She
remembered hearing about her mother's pregnancy, about her birth.

Special. She laughed, disgusted. What was so fucking special about
her? How was she special? She was 19 years old, living in a shit ass
apartment with her 8 month old son whose father was a fucking bum,
living it up on lockdown out in Texas. And here she was, with barely
a high school education, stripping to feed her baby. She hadn't seen
her father since she was a toddler. And the best part, oh the BEST
part...was that her mother was dead. Her mother, the saint. Next in
line to the friggin Virgin Mary. It was her mother that was special,
not her. She shamed that woman just by resembling her. She was NOT
her mother's daughter. She was a 19 year old whore, and she had no
one to blame but herself.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Chapter 2:

"Oh baby, that's it...that's it...right there baby ...mmmmm touch
me..."

Scarlett rolled off of the man, his stench finally assaulting her
senses. "I'm sorry sir, but your time is up."

The man scowled, pulling himself closer to her. "Ah baby? But I
hadn't even gotten my hands in your panties yet."

"Well, hands in my panties or not, I said look with your eyes and not
with your hands remember?" She stretched her tank top down over her
breasts and rolled her hair up into a half pony tail.

"Yes but you would do just about ANYTHING if paid enough...right?" He
winked at her and patted the bed beside him.

Scarlett regarded him a moment before shaking her head. "I'm sorry
Billy, I don't think you could afford me."

"What if I told you I'd give you 5,000." Billy lay back against the
pillows to gaze at her.

She opened her mouth as if to say something but thought better. "Like
I said Billy, I don't think you can afford me."

She pulled her leather pants on and began to stand. Billy grabbed her
arm.

"Alright Scar...you sure do drive a hard bargain. I'll give you 5,000
dollars for the fuck...and how about I buy that baby boy of yours a
college education?"

Scarlett stared open mouthed at Billy Simone. "Are you out of your
fucking mind Bill? You don't have that kind of money!"

The other man sighed and gently kissed her hand. "Yeah I know
Scarlett, but if I did have it...you know I would save it for you.
It's a shame about you and that baby. If he was my boy, I'd take care
of him for ya."

She smiled and patted Bill on the shoulder. "I know you would baby, I
know that you would. You're a good man Bill, why don't you head on
home before it starts snowing?"

Bill shook his head and sat up in the bed. Scarlett turned on one
heel just as she reached the door. "Oh....and Billy?"

"Yeah sugar?"

"Lay off the booze huh?" She blew him a kiss and then headed out into
the club.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Scarlett hurried in the door when she heard Sean crying. "Lonni, what
happened?"

Lonni was pacing the room, bouncing the screeching baby. "Girl, I
don't know but he's been at it for nearly 3 hours. Scarlett, he's got
a pretty high fever..."

Scarlett ran to grab her baby. "Oh God Lonni, he's burning up! How
high?"

"I don't know, the, the damn thermometer is out of batteries."

Scarlett raced to the phone, dialing the numbers with trembling
fingers, fear building in her heart as she listened to the guttural
cries of her infant son.

"911 emergency," the stoic voice came over the line.

"Yes I need help, something's wrong with my baby, he's got a really
high fever..." She could barely contain the panicky in her voice.

"How high is the fever ma'am?"

Scarlett thought a moment. "I'm not really sure, he's really hot
though."

"Uh huh I see...why don't you try running him a cool bath and maybe
getting him to drink some water."

"No...no you don't understand.... something is wrong with him."

"Miss please calm down, I cannot help you if you cannot calm down."

"You calm the fuck down bitch something is wrong with my son!" 

After hearing the click of the line, Scarlett slammed down the phone
and wrapped the baby in a cotton blanket.

Lonni followed her to the door. "What are you gonna do?"

Scarlett kissed her baby's forehead before looking back up at Lonni.
"I've got to get him to a hospital."

"Dammit Scarlett, it's like 6 blocks away!"

"I'll make it." With that she was out the door.

Scarlett ran down the street as fast as her 5'4'' frame could take
her, little Sean cradled in her arms. Two blocks ago he had stopped
crying all together. By the time she made it to the last block he had
fallen unconscious. Scarlett screamed his name as she ran, the lights
of the hospital dancing off of passing car windows. A guard stopped
her at the ambulance bay.

"Please sir, please...my baby..."

The guard took in her appearance. Her hair was a tangled mess, her
cheeks bright red and her chest and shoulders slick with sweat. But
her body was shivering. He escorted her into the hospital and to the
admissions desk.

"May I help you?" The older woman said from behind largely framed
glasses.

"Yes....my son...he's unconscious..." She scrambled to get the words
out.

"Mmm hmmm...and do you have his insurance card?" The older woman
looked at her.

"His....his insurance card?" Scarlett asked incredulously. "No...no
he doesn't have any insurance."

The older woman regarded her a moment. "We cannot treat him without
some type of insurance or a payment of some kind."

She felt the rage build within her and she leaned over the desk,
grabbing the woman by her collar. "Listen up bitch, I don't have any
fucking insurance because I can't afford fucking insurance. I don't
get insurance at my job because I'm a goddamn stripper....now please
look at him, I will pay you whatever it takes.... but just look at
him!"

By the time she had finished her tirade three security guards had
emerged out of nowhere and were soon pulling out handcuffs. The woman
at the counter nodded and took the lifeless Sean out of his mother's
arms and headed down the hall and through the double doors.

It was then that Scarlett collapsed into the arms of the armed
guards, exhaustion overtaking her.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

"He has meningitis," came the doctor's simple response.

Scarlett sat up in her hospital bed, her eyes growing wide.
"How...how can that be?"

Her mind was racing as she thought about anything and everything she
could have done to prevent it. How could she have been such a
horrible mother? How could she have let this happen?

"Oh God....what....what are you doing for him?"

The young doctor looked at her solemnly. "We are giving him some
antivirals, and his body seems to be fighting it quite well, he is
still comatose but he seems to be responding to stimuli which is
always a good thing."

"Oh thank God.." She murmured. "Can... Can I see him?"

He smiled at her softly. "Of course you can. Do you feel up to
walking?"

"Absolutely!" She bounded out of the chair and followed him to her
son.
 
 "I...I don't understand...it's been three days Dr. Elliot. Shouldn't
he have come to by now?" Her crystal blue eyes were filled with
worry.

"Give him time Scarlett, he is making progress." Dr. Jason Elliot
gave her a reassuring pat on the shoulder.

She nodded slowly and then headed for the door.

"Where are you going?"

"I have to get back to work...but please, you'll call me if anything
changes?"

"I promise you Scarlett, I'll call you if anything changes."

Scarlett smiled at him a moment before casting a passing glance at
her tiny son, and then walking out the door.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

"Damn girl you did good tonight! Tips and all you brought in about
800 dollars. That's damn good for a Thursday evening!" Lonni grinned
as she rubbed her best friends bare shoulders.

"Lonni....do you think....do you think that people are punished for
the bad things they do?"

Lonni regarded her for a minute as Scarlett continued. 

" I guess what I mean is, do you think that a baby could be punished
for something terrible that his mother has done?" Scarlett gazed up
at her friend with sad eyes.

"Scar....you did nothing wrong. And no... I don't believe that God
would punish an eight month old baby boy for anything you have done."
Lonni picked up a hairbrush and began running it through Scarlett's
long auburn hair.

"I had a sister once."

Lonni was startled by the sudden admission but she continued to
softly run the brush through Scarlett's hair.

"She died when she was three years old. She was in a coma like Sean.
I was told that my mother had blamed herself. That she believed there
was something she must have done wrong to deserve such a punishment.
For the first time in my life Lonni...I think I know what she must
have felt."

Lonni put her arms around her best friend, hugging her tightly.
"Scarlett, I am so sorry for you. About your mom. She must have been
a wonderful woman. And I am sure she would have been a great mother
to you....just like you are to Sean."

Scarlett looked up at her in disbelief "Oh you are so full of shit
Lonni, I am nothing to Sean. I do nothing for him. I can barely feed
him, clothe him. For god sake Lonni I rarely ever see him unless he
is asleep. He won't know me. Just like I never knew my mother. I
never had the chance and neither will he."

Lonni stared at her now. "Don't say shit like that Scarlett. You will
be there for him. Don't you ever say shit like that to me."

Both women sighed heavily and sank into their own deep thoughts. 

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

She was finally leaving the club at three am. Well, Dr. Elliot hadn't
called yet so that was promising. Sean must have been doing ok.
Scarlett made her way through the parking lot. Lonni had let her
borrow the car since she was on the way to the hospital. Lonni had
told her that she was going home with someone from the club anyway,
so Scarlett had jumped at the opportunity.

 She fumbled with the keys. 

"Hey!"

Every hair on the back of her neck began to rise as she turned to the
sound of the voice. Three men, dressed in dark hooded jackets and
blue jeans were standing directly behind her. She stared at them
carefully, knowing she would have to identify them later. Just as she
turned to run a fourth man came out from in front of one of the other
cars. She stopped in her tracks and turned toward the other three men
and then turned again to the fourth. She was trapped at every angle.
Knowing what was about to transpire, she let out a blood curdling
scream and attempted to run past the fourth man. It was to no avail,
she was caught and pinned against the hood of a car as the other
three men approached.

"Oh you're gonna like this bitch...." The taller man said, undoing
his pants.

The other three men approached her with wide grins.

Before she had the chance to scream again, the fourth man who was
holding her shoved up her miniskirt and forced himself inside of her.
With his hand over her mouth she cried into it, and dug her
fingernails into the flesh of his arm. It was no use. He was easily
twice her size. Scarlett fought and struggled but soon the other
three men were pinning her down.

Then the strangest thing happened to her. She somehow was able to
zone out. To leave her body, almost like she was floating just above
the scene, watching all four men ravage her helpless body. The image
of her mother suddenly flashed before her eyes and she began to cry.
How she wished she could remember.

Her whole life, all she had ever wanted was to know this woman that
so many people had known and loved. She had the stories, she knew her
mother had been a government official. An FBI agent. She knew that
her mother had fought hard for justice, had searched endlessly for
the truth. From the stories that were told to her, Dana Scully had
been the strongest woman ever to grace the earth. She came at life
head-on, challenging even the most frightening of nightmares. And it
was there at the FBI, that her mother had met her father. It was
there that conspiracies were born, and children were conceived. It
was there that the idea of her, came into being. And perhaps after
the greatest conspiracy of all, the end of the world, she was all
that was left of such a noble dynasty.

Her blood ran pure, it was her blood that had saved a nation....it
had saved the world. But as powerful as she was as a tiny infant, as
special and miraculous as she had become, she still couldn't save her
mother.

What could she have done as a toddling baby when those men broke
into her home and threatened her mother's life? What could she have
done when they pulled that knife? And when her father returned from
work to find his partner and infant daughter held at knife
point....what could she do?

The knife came down quicker than her father could reach it....and had
it not been for the maternal instinct of Dana Scully, Scarlett would
be the one buried in a lonely cold grave.

Instead, Scully had ducked over her daughter, taking the blow of the
serrated knife full force into her back. And when her partner had
jumped for the man, and the man turned to murder him as well, Scully
had grasped hold of his arm....the knife again searing into her
tender flesh. She cried out in agony, digging her fingernails into
the Man's neck, daring him to come after her family.

Oh how Scarlett remembered that sound. The sound of her mother's
scream. And all too soon, it was over. The man lay with a fatal wound
to his heart, and her mother lay bleeding to death all over the
living room carpet.

Mulder had put down the gun as he reached for his daughter and knelt
beside his fallen partner.

And then, almost as if in a dream... Scarlett could hear her voice as
she watched the bloody scene play out through her mind.

"Mulder......" Scully sucked in a heavy breath, blood curling around
her lips.

"Oh Scully...." His eyes were filling with tears as he fought back
the fear.

"Marry me...Mulder..." Scully smiled up at him as she reached out for
his hand and then grimaced at the pain of moving her arm.

"I do." He said simply as he caressed her cold fingers with his own.

"S'not fair..." Scully shook her head, shivering from the shock.
"Wasn't supposed to end like this..."

"I know Scully...I know..." Tears were sliding down Mulder's cheeks
now and he held onto his daughter tightly.

"Was supposed to be with my baby.... all this time I wanted
this....all this time Mulder....and she won't even remember me..." It
was then that Scully began to panic and tears rolled down her cheeks
as well.

"No Scully...she'll remember you.... she's part of you...." Mulder
wasn't sure what else to do, he could hear the sirens in the
distance.

"It's ok Mulder....It's ok....I know she won't remember me....she's
just a baby....but you'll tell her....about me...Mul...you'll tell
her that I loved her.....h...ho..how much....that I... wanted
her...and she'll see." Scully nodded her head, completely and utterly
sure of herself as always.

"Scully....scully please don't go...." Mulder gripped her shoulders
and hugged her bloody body against him. "Scully!" Mulder looked down
at her eyes, frozen in their last gaze, at the image of their
daughter.

Scarlett blinked tears from her eyes and shuddered against the cold
pavement, pain attacking all of her senses. She could still see her
mother's face so clearly. That soft intelligent face, and her
mother's piercing blue eyes. What could she have done? She been but a
small child.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

 Chapter 3: 

"You're pregnant Scarlett, I suppose congratulations are in order?"
Dr. Elliot smiled down at her as she lay on his exam table, her jaw
hanging open.

"H...how far along?" She didn't know why she bothered to ask the
question, she knew exactly when this baby was conceived...she just
wasn't sure which of the four hooded men it had been that actually
had the winning sperm.

"Looks like you're about 12 weeks pregnant. Have you been having
regular periods?" Jason Elliot reached into the stroller that was
parked beside the exam bed and lifted a fussy birthday boy out of it.

"Hello there Sean...happy birthday lil guy!" He crooned at the
infant.

"12 weeks sounds about right," was Scarlett's short reply.

"Scarlett, is there something wrong.... something you want to talk to
me about?" Elliot began carefully.

"Elliot, what the hell am I gonna do?" Scarlett looked up at him, as
if hoping this man held all the answers.

"You will calm down...you will go home, get some rest...and I will be
over with the birthday cake around 4pm...alright? We will figure it
out...I will help you Scarlett."

Jason Elliot gave Sean a quick kiss before restraining him again in
his stroller and then bending to kiss his mother on the cheek.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

"So no way are you and this doc shacking it up?" Lonni shouted out to
practically everyone in the store.

Scarlett grinned. "We've been seeing each other ever since Sean was
sick Lonni and he asked me to move in with him last night....can you
believe that Lonni? ME getting the fuck outta here and living with
some doctor." She shuddered.

"Scar....baby if anybody deserves it....it's you." Lonni hugged her
friend and then sprawled her hands across Scarlett's belly.

"I know I know. baby sure is popping out there...huh. Sean didn't pop
out this much this early!" Scarlett shook her head in amazement.

"Well girl, speaking of Seany Sean...we better get you and your
pregnant self home to your man. I'm sure he's got dinner ready by
now." Lonni steered the cart towards the checkout line.

"So how far along are you now?"

Scarlett grinned. It was always her favorite baby question to answer
because she always kept such good track. "Well....actually I'm 26
weeks. Due in November."

"So how's the sex?"

"Of the baby?"

"No bitch, the sex with you and Dr. Elliot...does he rock your
world?"

Scarlett thought about that for a moment. "Rock my world Lonni,
doesn't begin to describe it."

She laughed as Lonni began telling one of her infamous sex stories
and if it weren't for the sharp pain that hit her abdomen so
suddenly, she would have been oblivious to the pressure . "Oh oh...
oh no...."

Lonni turned to her friend, watching the terror appear in Scarlett's
eyes.

"Oh God Lonni....call 911...somebody call 911!" Scarlett held both
hands to her abdomen, as if holding them there would keep the baby
with her.

By the time the ambulance reached the hospital, the baby's head was
already crowning.

"Push Scarlett, PUSH!!!"

She sat back against the pillows and bore down as hard as her body
would allow. She could feel her baby slipping from within her and it
terrified her. How could it be so easy to give birth to a baby? How
could this baby be so tiny? What had she done wrong?

"Where's Jason!!!" She cried out in agony. "Oh God...where's
Jason!!!"

"Scarlett you need to concentrate on this baby, push....there you
go...a little bit further...alright... we've got her....here she
is...."

"It's a girl...is it a girl?" Scarlett choked, half excited and half
terrified. "Wait... why isn't she breathing?"

Scarlett watched as a team of doctors whisked her baby to the other
side of the room. Suddenly several more nurses rushed in wheeling a
machine.

"Oh my God..." Scarlett cried, already knowing the bleak news. She
listened as the doctors shouted their "clear's" and finally heard the
older one pronounce her daughter.

She shook her head in disbelief as they approached her with a tiny
bundle.

"Did you want to name her?" One of the nurses asked, preparing both a
birth and death certificate.

Scarlett nodded as the tears blurred her vision. She gazed down at
her newborn daughter, so light in her arms. She looked like a tiny
baby, like a baby that was too tiny to have slipped out of her.

"It wasn't supposed to happen this way..." She cried as she rocked
her still born daughter.

"Ma'am....her name?"

Scarlett regarded her daughter for a moment before closing her eyes. 

"Her name is Dana."

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Chapter 4: 

"This is not happening..." Scarlett assured herself as she lay still
in her hospital bed. "Please...Lonni...you're my best friend.... tell
me it isn't true?"

Lonni stood there, folding her hands in the fabric of her t-shirt.
"I...I'm sorry Scarlett it was in all the paper's, his parents were
on the news this morning.

"This is not FUCKENING HAPPENING!" Scarlett jumped out of the bed and
tore the wires and monitors from her body.

"Please Scar,....take it easy...you are gonna bleed!"

"Bleed!??? Bleed? I need to bleed! I need to fucking bleed out all
over the place. My blood can save a race but I can't even fucking
save the ones I love! I couldn't save my mother, I couldn't save my
baby...and I couldn't save the only man I ever truly loved! What have
I done!" She stared up at the ceiling now, challenging the heavens to
hear her angry pleas.

"What have I done! What the fuck did Jason do? What did any of us do
to deserve this? Mom tell me! Tell me what I did wrong! Why the fuck
did you leave me!" Scarlett crumbled into sobs on the tile floor.

"Scarlett Kathryne Scully."

She slowly opened her eyes to the sound of his voice, tears sliding
past her long lashes.

Lonni patted her friend's hand before giving the man a quick nod and
exiting the room.

"You didn't do anything wrong Scarlett, Just as nothing your mother
ever did deserved the kind of life that she had." Fox Mulder stood
before his young daughter, his face worn with age and worry.

Scarlett stared at the man whom she hadn't seen in years, unbelieving
that it was him standing there. Anger rose in her heart at this man
who had abandoned her but as she looked into his eyes, those
passionate hazel green eyes, the rage was replaced with grief. How
must it have been for him? To lose the love of his life?

Mulder regarded his daughter with remorse. "You need to know
Scarlett, you need to know what happened to you. I wish I could make
you remember her, it was her greatest fear that you wouldn't."

Scarlett stared at him, It was true, she didn't remember her mother.
She knew nothing of her except for the fairy tale stories of other
children. This woman who she looked amazingly alike, was a complete
and total stranger to her and each time someone spoke of her, she
felt the jealousy burn the back of her throat.

How she wished she could have done something that fateful night. It
seemed every one in the world had known and loved her mother and yet
she, her mother's flesh and blood, had known nothing of her, was
never given the chance.

"Let me take you home Scarlett." Mulder gently took his daughter's
hand in his own and marveled out how much it felt like Scully's.

She shook her head sadly. "I don't have anywhere to go..." 

The sobs came then as her father pulled her into a tight embrace. She
wrapped her arms around him and let go with all the emotion in her.
She hungered for his love, she had been in need of it for so long.
The one man that knew the answers to all of her questions. He had
known her mother better than anyone, and she clung to him fiercely as
if the sheer touch of him would bring her closer to Dana Scully.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

"Where have you been?" Her soft voice spoke up from the passenger
seat, nearly an hour and a half into the ride out of Georgia.

Mulder gripped the steering wheel for a moment, watching his knuckles
turn white. He chose his next words very carefully.

"I have been avoiding, grieving...I've been in DC. Teaching for
awhile. Doing anything and everything I could to pretend that none of
this happened."

"Why did you leave me?" Her eyes closed as she leaned back against
the seat.

"Scarlett, after your mother died...I went into a rage. They found
me, in the house. I had the gun to my head Scarlett...I was ready to
leave this world...to go and be with your mother."

Scarlett's eyes flashed open. "What about me?"

"I....I had lost your mother...there was nothing after that." Mulder
wiped at his left eye with the back of his hand.

"They took you away...didn't they?" She asked innocently.

Mulder nodded. "By the time they released me and dubbed me mentally
stable, you were an adult. I was afraid to come back into your life,
I was afraid that you would be ashamed of me."

Scarlett reached across the seat and took her father's hand in her
own. "Tell me... about my mother?"

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Chapter 5:

 Scarlett settled down into the couch and smoothed her hands over the
soft envelope that smelled of lilacs. This small paper container held
the answer to every question that she had ever asked. With a
trembling lower lip, she slipped the letter out and began to read.

"Scarlett Kathryne Scully...a strong name don't you think? I
honestly cannot tell you where I came up with the Scarlett, but given
your birth it seemed to fit nicely with your personality. What can I
possibly tell you of your importance? Many bad things happened to
me...and I wouldn't be here today...writing to you, my infant
daughter, this letter if it hadn't been for your father. I guess my
fear is that one day I will not be here to tell you of what happened
to you. So I am writing it down now, before I forget...or before fate
has the chance to take another unexpected turn.........."

Scarlett read of the exploits of her mother and father, of aliens and
mutants, of shadowy government conspiracies and of the impending war
between worlds. She laughed at the high points and cried at the low.
And as she continued to read her mother's fantastic tale, she felt
her heart swell. For the first time in her life, she knew her
mother....felt what her mother felt. And as she came to the part of
her mother's story describing her birth, how her mother loved her
so...she began to cry so hard she could barely see the page. The epic
went on as she read of the tests and the medical procedures during
her early infancy, the mass production of the vaccine, the countless
lives saved. She held her breath as she came to the end of the
letter, the last words her mother's message could afford her.

 " ....and so I end this letter to you, my darling baby with the hope
that you will know me better, that you will understand your precious
heritage and the loving quest of your father. Please know that
wherever you go...you are a part of me Scarlett....and I will always
be a part of you.

With all my love,   
Dana Scully "

 Scarlett stared at the near twenty page letter that she held firmly
in her hands.

"Momma Momma!" Sean raced into the room and threw himself against his
mother's legs.

Scarlett bent down and lifted her young son into her arms giving him
a fierce hug. "Hey baby...you wanna go plant some flowers in the
garden?"

Mulder stood in the doorway and watched his daughter and young
grandson with tears glistening in his eyes. He stared for a moment at
his daughter's sunken eyes and pale expression and his stomach
knotted. Something deep inside told him that the tragedy was far from
over and as he stood there quietly watching Scarlett kiss her baby,
he felt the burn in his heart. It was the same burn he had felt those
last moments that Scully was alive.

"Damn you..." He whispered to the ceiling before turning and leaving
the room.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Spring soon gave way into summer as Sean celebrated his third
birthday. Scarlett shook her head and smiled.

"I've never seen a three year old with so much stuff, Dad."

"Oh nonsense, kids like cool stuff like this." Mulder grinned as Sean
unwrapped a colorful IBM computer.

"Good lord, Dad, he is barely out of babyhood and you bought him a
damn computer?"

"Hey, watch your mouth young lady...this damn computer cost me a
pretty penny." He poked his daughter and grinned.

Scarlett lay a hand on her father's shoulder and watched Sean's
excitement as he tore open box after box.

"Now THAT's the way to do it Sean... rip into it. You know your
grandmother would barely slip her fingernail underneath the tape and
carefully fold back the wrapping. She was the most boring gift
opener!" Mulder chuckled and bent to kiss his daughter's forehead.

"Scarlett...did you fall asleep?" Mulder poked her again and then
began to tickle her ribs.

"Scarlett...Scarlett?" He shook her and her head lolled to one side.

Mulder quickly rolled her onto her back and checked for a pulse. It
was thready and barely there.

"Momma...Momma get up!" Sean pulled at his mother's limp arm.

Mulder raced into the kitchen for the phone and dialed the numbers in
one fluid motion.

"Operator 911?"

"Yes I need medical attention right away at 223 Fairview Lane, I have
a 22 year old female who is unconscious....her breathing is irregular
and her pulse is thready....please hurry...it's my daughter." Mulder
clenched his hand tightly, willing himself to stay calm in front of
Sean.

"Mommy!" The young boy began to cry as he yanked at his mother's arm.

"Help is on the way Sir, I need you to stay on the line with me until
they get there."

Mulder nodded, barely hearing the woman on the other end of the line.
His mind flashed back to another time he had called an ambulance,
another time where he was scared shitless.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

"Scully just breathe...you're gonna be ok." He had told her,
gripping her chilled hand.

Scully shook her head, her eyes rolling back in forth trying to keep
a focus on him "Mulder....do something for me ok?"

He shook his head, tears flooding his vision. "Anything."

She smiled at him softly as she closed her eyes. "Take care of her
Mulder, take care of her for me."

"Scully...no..." The sobs tore through his body. "Scully!"

Her vibrant eyes flashed open as a smile curled across her blood
stained lips. "Had you big time...."

Mulder laughed through his tears as he bent to kiss her. "Love you
Scully, always have...." His voice trembled as he watched the grey
move over her eyes.

She held her gaze upon him for as long as she physically could. "Me
to."

And with that she was gone, her last gaze holding on her infant
daughter being cradled in Mulder's trembling arms.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

"Daddy...please be honest with yourself... I'm not gonna get well,
you know that and I know that." Scarlett regarded him with wistful
eyes.

Mulder shook his head, refusing to believe in what his daughter was
telling him. "I refuse to accept that...there has to be something we
can do."

Scarlett watched him for a moment. He was fidgeting with his hands
and kept shifting from one foot to the other. She knew this was hard
for him, but it was difficult for her as well.

"Daddy please be honest with yourself just this once..." She began
more angrily.

"Scarlett I refuse to accept that! I won't!" Mulder glared at her,
the anger rising in his blood.

"Dammit Dad! I am dying! Why can't you accept that! I have come to
accept it... there is nothing I can do about it!" She sat up in the
bed, and then flew into a coughing fit.

"I won't hear that from you Scarlett! You won't give up! Good god you
are special! You are your mother's daughter, your mother never gave
up on anything Scarlett and I'll be damned if I let you go!" He made
his way around the room in angry circles.

Scarlett folded her hands over her stomach and shot her father a
fiery glance. "I am my mother's daughter..." She nodded in agreement.

"But I am NOT my mother. And you are so full of shit! My mother gave
up on EVERYTHING! She gave up on me and she gave up on you. Wake the
fuck up Dad...mom isn't HERE is she? And why do you think that is?"

Mulder turned towards his daughter, shock spreading across his
features.

Scarlett stared him down as she spit vinegar with every word.
"Because your special daughter, who was so fucking special that she
could save an entire planet...could do nothing for her mother. I
could have done something! How is it possible that I was capable of
healing millions of people, saving thousands of lives.....but I
couldn't even help my own mother!!??? Tell me why the FUCK that is
possible dad!"

Mulder came to her bedside and took her tiny hands in his own. "It
wasn't your fault Scarlett...there was nothing you could have
done....there was nothing any of us could have done."

Scarlett cried softly into her father's shoulder. "S'not fair
Dad....It wasn't supposed to end like this."

Mulder shook his head, hearing Scully's words pouring from his
daughter's heart.

"Was supposed to be with my baby.." Scarlett continued her body
growing weary.

He held onto her tightly and laid her back against the pillows of her
bed. "Just relax baby, just lay back and rest for now. There will be
plenty of time for talk later." He smiled and lightly kissed her
forehead.

Scarlett closed her eyes and flashed him a small smile before
drifting off to sleep. Beautiful dreams weaved their way around her
tired mind. Even as she saw the bright sunlight ahead, she wept for
her father and for her little son.

"Love you daddy..." She murmured in her sleep.

Mulder turned and took a deep breath no longer able to keep the tears
at bay. He hiccupped as another sob overtook him and his heart broke
as he watched his daughter's lips move a final time as she spoke the
words that he'd waited her whole life to hear..

"...always have...." 

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

 Chapter 6:

"Scarlett Kathryne Scully, died today at 11:21am at Washington
Memorial hospital in Washington DC. For those of you who may not
remember, she was the daughter of the late Dana Scully who developed
a vaccine against the alien virus before colonization of our planet
could take place. She is survived by her father, Fox Mulder former
FBI agent and the now famous conspiracy novelist who was also
responsible for helping to develop the vaccine. It was Scarlett's DNA
that led scientists to develop the drug when she was just an infant,
the drug that saved millions of lives. Scarlett is also survived by
her three year old son, Sean William Scully. The funeral will be held
at Arlington National Cemetery at noon on Sunday. The family welcomes
the public. This is Lori Mathews, for Channel 7 news."


Fox Mulder stood silently beside his daughter's casket and gently
laid a single white rose on the lid. He remembered how much her
mother had loved white roses. He looked up to they sky and watched
the noisy jets fly over head and turned to see the other people
attending the funeral. Most of them were dressed in black, and were
crying miserably.

He bent down and lifted Sean onto his shoulders. "Ready to go lil
man?"

Sean nodded and took another lick of his ice cream cone. "Ready to go
Gampa."

Mulder grinned and gave him a high five, walking away from the mass
of sobbing mourners. For them, they had lost a friend, a sister, a
daughter. For Scarlett, she had found what she'd spent her whole life
searching for. She had found her mother.

Once Mulder got to the top of the hill, he put Sean down on the
ground to walk. The little boy gripped hold of his hand and Mulder
relished the sticky feeling. They both walked hand in hand, the
little boy stopping along the way to pick dandelions.

THE END 

And there you have it! Send me feedback at Starrlyte1013@aol.com and
tell me what you thought :)

I would also like to write an excerpt from a song that I was
listening to while dreaming up the plot for this story. It is from
the song, 'What would you Do' by City High.

"... And I took one girl outside with me, her name was Lonni she went
to Junior High with me, I said why you up in there dancin for cash,
been a whole lotta shame since I seen you last she said....What would
you do if your son was at home crying all alone on the bedroom floor
cause he's hungry and the only way to feed him is to sleep with a man
for a little bit of money....and the daddy's gone, somewhere smokin
pot now, in and outta lockdown, I ain't got a job now so to you this
is just a good time, but for me this is what I call life."