TITLE : Of Pots and Kettles AUTHOR : Mickey E-MAIL : gnrgirl@hotmail.com FEEDBACK : Please? I love feedback. I'm like a demon, feeding on the comments of others. It keeps me going . . . *hint* DISCLAIMER : I own them . . . *ducks pot flying through air* Er . . . Chris, 1013, and Fox own them. My mistake. Don't sue (And even if you do, all you're going to get is about twenty bucks, a computer, and one slightly dented, yet playable, flute.). No beta readers were exploited in the writing of this fic, although I hope I've managed to make this one more . . . . uh . . . . grammatical. ARCHIVE : Gossamer and Ephemeral -- OK. At my site -- http://www.geocities.com/alia1028 . Everyone else, bag it, tag it, and tell me where it is. SPOILERS : Rain King RATING : PG KEYWORDS : MSR, UST SUMMARY : Mulder and Scully talk on the plane back to DC after the events of Rain King Notes at the end. XXXXXXX "Mulder?" She turns in her seat, a question all too evident in her eyes. "What?" He replies, bracing himself for the usual. Waiting for her to start explaining away what happened, waiting for her to tell him why he was wrong, no matter how much it would seem otherwise. But she doesn't tell him this time. It seems that she has accepted what happened as reality. She has accepted that weather can be manipulated by emotions. And if everyone could manipulate the weather, there would be storm clouds raging right now. Fortunately, for all those aboard the tiny plane, Fox Mulder has never been one for such mundane strangeness. "What did he mean?" "What did who mean?" Even though he already knew what Scully was asking him. He'd worked by her side for far, far too long to not read her thoughts. "Holton. When he said `You should try it sometime'. What did he mean?" There is a pregnant pause in the air. The everyday noises the other passengers make intrude between their silence. Laughter from children a few seats back, mothers shushing, people chatting calmly; all in contrast to the heated gap of noise between the two agents. How to answer? The thought runs manic circles through his head. She knows the truth; she knows he loves her. But he can see all too clearly the parallels between their relationship and Holton's. He loves her desperately, but she never saw it like that. She loved him back, but more like a brother, a best friend, than as a lover. And all he ever wanted was her, since the day they met. More or less, anyway. "I think he just meant that I should date more." They both know he's lying through his teeth. Scully chuckles. "I still can't believe he asked you, of all people, for love advice. That's almost as bad as asking Frohike. Maybe even worse." He'd be hurt if he didn't see the smile in her eyes, the teasing glint he was well used to. "Didn't you get the same treatment from my `erstwhile lover'?" Mulder cocks one eyebrow, throwing it back at her. "I fail to see the point here, Mulder." "Come on, Scully! You've had just as many dates as I have in the past seven years, don't bother to deny it!" "Now wait a second there, buster! I've been on dates! There was Rob . . ." "Who turned out to be the most boring man on the planet." He interrupts. She shoots him a look. " . . . And there was Ed . . ." she continues, louder this time. "Who turned out to be psychotic." He grins as her irk rises. She is silent, and he takes his opportunity. "Oh, and how could we forget the vampire sheriff, or Agent Pendrell! And lest we forget dear old' Melvin, or . . ." "I get the point." She is not amused, her voice changing from playful to dark. "What I'm trying to say is, Scully," slight amounts of annoyance in his words. " Is that it's like the pot calling the kettle black." She turns away from him, grabbing for a magazine tucked in the seat pocket. Scientific American, or some such garbage. He's made her mad. He went too far with his teasing. "Scully . . ." He sighs, attempting to bring her back. "I, um, I didn't mean anything by that. I didn't mean to hurt you . . ." He is at a loss for words. "You didn't hurt me, Mulder." Now it is she who lies through her teeth. Once again there is a silence, only now it is not pregnant, but awkward, strained. She is focusing on the magazine, but doesn't read, going over the same sentence three, four times, before giving up and turning the page. He is looking down at her when he sees a drop of water slip from her face onto the glossy paper. "Aww, shit." He mutters, feeling very bad about himself. "Scully, come on. I didn't mean it. I was just trying to get you back." He puts an arm on her shoulder, reaching out for her. "Don't cry . . . please?" She turns up at him, red running shoots through her eyes. "I'm not crying." She denies that he can hurt her, denies that what he says can affect her. Inside, she is screaming at herself, trying to stop the tears from flowing, trying to make herself present a less emotional mask. It does not work, he has already seen though it. "Scully . . ." He stops, than starts again. "Scully, what Holton meant was that I should tell you how I feel. That I should tell you that I was in love with you. That it's why I haven't dated in seven years." He drops off, not wanting to continue. She begins to laugh, wiping tears from her face. "Of all the replies I'd imagined, this was not one of them." He wears a confused expression, as she continues to chuckle. "Mulder," she gasps. "Oh, Mulder!" Then, once more, dissolves into giggles. He now reaches for a magazine, not wanting to be a part of this conversation any longer. He's made an ass of himself, he's certain. Two minutes later, the laughter subsides, and Scully is silent. She leans back in her seat, tilting her head over to look at her partner. She can see the hurt she has inflicted on him with her actions, probably worse than what he said to her. She slips her hand over into his lap, taking his hand in hers. He looks over at her, strange expression in his eyes. Why? Her eyes give the reply. Because I love you too. Their hands remain clasped until they debark. XXXXXXX This story was inspired by the episode, Rain King (duh). I was watching it, I saw my computer and I decided I just had to write this. Hopefully, I've managed to make it a modicum more interesting than my last fic, and it held your interest enough that you finished. I know it turned a bit fluffy at the end, but I tried to keep the UST up! Really, I did! I swear! I'm sorry if I disappointed anyone with it. This is the first story I've written on my great new computer (courtesy of my Grandfather), so this one is for him (As if everything else I write isn't).