The Morning After
Written by LJP - CRHarmony@aol.com
Rated PG
Keywords: D/S something, not exactly romance
Spoilers: The Gift
Summary: Post-ep. for The Gift.  Doggett and Scully the 
next morning.
Author's Notes: At the end.
Archive: Already sent to Gossamer.  Anywhere else, just let 
me know!
Feedback:  Send all feedback, good and bad, to 
CRHarmony@aol.com.
Disclaimer: Dana Scully, John Doggett (oh, my first to 
disclaim Doggett), and Fox Mulder all belong to CC and co.  
I cannot take credit for any of them.  *sigh*

***

Dana Scully found her partner asleep in front of a blank 
case report.  

"Agent Doggett?"  She asked, gently shaking his shoulder.

He moaned and opened his eyes.  "Agent...agent Scully?"  He 
wondered, picking his head up off the desk.  "I must have 
fallen asleep."

"Late night?"  She asked, raising her eyebrow.

He nodded and sat up, yawning and stretching his arms 
behind him.  Scully didn't pry any further.  She walked to 
her desk and sat down.

Doggett stared at the blank computer screen and remembered 
AD Skinner's advice.  He closed the case report.

"Don't let me keep you from your report."  Scully said, 
leafing through the stack of files on her desk.

Doggett shook his head.  "Agent Scully, were you aware of 
Mulder's trips to a rural county in Pennsylvania right 
before his disappearance?"

Her head shot up, and she looked at him curiously.  "No."  
Her partner couldn't tell if she was lying or not.

"Agent Mulder was dying."  He continued.  "He went to 
Pennsylvania in hopes of finding a legendary `soul-eater.'  
This thing eats a sick person and consumes their disease, 
therefore becoming diseased itself.  Then, it regurgitates 
them, cleansed of their illness.  Agent Mulder found the 
thing, but he didn't get eaten."

"Why are you telling me this?"  Scully asked, cutting him 
off.

"This `soul-eater' was sick.  It was suffering.  Agent 
Mulder wanted to free it from it's pain.  I went into this 
case looking for some insight into how I can find him, but 
I came out no further along than I had gone in."  Doggett 
looked at her for her reaction.  "I've seen a lot of things 
Agent Scully.  I've heard a lot of myths.  To be honest, I 
didn't believe any of this `soul-eating' mumbo-jumbo."

"If there's a point, Agent Doggett, I'd suggest you come to 
it."

"I died Agent Scully."  He said.  "I was shot through the 
chest."  

She raised an eyebrow again and pursed her lips together, 
waiting for him to continue.  When he didn't, she spoke up.  
"I know.  AD Skinner told me."

He shook his head.  "I don't know how to explain it.  I was 
dead.  I saw it all.  The tunnel, the white lights, the 
pearly gates.  Everything.  And now, I'm standing here 
talking to you."  He shrugged.  "How do you explain that?."

She smiled softly.  "Welcome to the X-Files Agent Doggett."

The End

Author's Notes: Wow.  I've never written a post-ep. before.  
I know, I know.  It was short.  But when I came up with the 
ending first, I just had to go back and write a vignette.  
Hope you enjoyed it.

Send all comments to CRHarmony@aol.com and visit my 
webpage: http://www.geocities.com/ljpspooky