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[nowwhateinstein]

I decided to watch the X-Files again recently because I missed Mulder and Scully. God I love them so much. They are my all-time favourite couple and I have A LOT to say about the romantic aspect of the show.

The X-Files never set off to be a romance, and during the show, the producers seemed to try really hard not to make it one for a long time. And that's fair, the X-Files is a show about aliens, conspiracies, and mothmen.

And I can see it: the show doesn't really feature typical romance hallmarks or tropes (or not too many anyway). No obvious behaviours that indicate crushes, no mentions of having butterflies, no chats with third parties who try to push them into bed (or very few), no real attempts at flirting or asking each other out, no Valentine's Day episodes... Even when there is jealousy it toes the line between their professional and personal lives. Did Scully feel more threatened by Diana Fowley on a personal or professional level? I'd argue both. Likewise, a few declarations by Mulder and Scully are kind of related to their professional roles (i.e. Scully saying she wouldn't herself on the line for anyone but Mulder) so there is plausible deniability as to whether they mean it romantically or professionally.

Naturally, later in the series, there are more romantic scenes, but for a long time, there are fewer traditional "indicators" that it's a romance. The show isn't really signaling that it's a romance.

Which, ironically, in my opinion, is why Mulder and Scully are a great romantic story.

All it boils down to is:

- 2 sexy actors with explosive chemistry. That one scene I mentionned where Scully tells Mulder she wouldn't put herself on the line for anyone but Mulder? The way they look at each other conveys a LOT. And it's there throughout the show...Their eye contact, every small touches... there is something there that can't be explained. It's just... there!

- They are two interesting and complex characters while apart, and very compelling when together;

- The Respect. It's there from day 1. Despite Mulder's reputation, she came to work with him with an open-mind. When Scully comes to him with the bites mark on her lower back in her underwear, he is an absolute gentleman and reassures her. Also, they may disagree on fundamental things, but they never say that one thing that's over the line or that is just nasty. You know, the low blow, the one thing that the other is most sensitive about, that makes the other reconsider the very partnership. And they also never talk shit about each other to other people. And with Mulder's reputation, Scully fends off comments more than once. Over the years, they become the one person they trust above all. And there is something really powerful about that.

- They are 2 characters who, despite their differences, fundamentally understand each other and who are always there for each other. They have - literally - gone - to the ends of the Earth for each other.

- From my POV, they just... genuinely seem to like each other and spending time together. On a professional level, they could have gone their separate ways many times. The X-Files were shut down more than once, and yet, they went to great lenghts (sneaking around underground parking lots at night) to keep on seeing each other. On a more personal level, Scully turns down a date to spend some time with Mulder... on episode 5!

Maybe it's just me, but... that's what love is? I don't mean this as a diss towards other types of romances (there are many good ones out there), but I don't think I would have needed to see them getting butterflies, or chatting with a friend about maybe asking them out, or big traditional love gestures. The love shines through. It seems to me like the fundamentals for a profound, lasting relationship are all there.

[nowwhateinstein]

I owe you everything. Scully, and you owe me nothing. I don't know if I wanna do this alone. I don't even know if I can.

[nowwhateinstein]

the x files is like what if you were driven to the brink by forces you couldn’t begin to endure alone and then your coworker was like heyyyy at the brink all by yourself cutie? looks pretty cool… can i join you ;) and the people who pushed you to the brink were like ah fuck theyre unionising

[nowwhateinstein]

The complete Gossamer archive of X-Files fanfic is available to download in one file. Enjoy!

[nowwhateinstein]

THE X-FILES 3.17 "Pusher"

[nowwhateinstein]

how to say "I love you" in x-files [155/?] ⤷ 2.25 — “Anasazi”

[nowwhateinstein]

THE X-FILES | 3.22

[nowwhateinstein]

the thing that makes xfiles truly truly transcendent is the way it is always showing us mulder & scully quietly observing and reacting to each other. if those two were even a little bit less obsessed with each other then it wouldn’t be as good. i’m not even talking about the romantic aspect of their interest. they are just fascinated by each other. they will never close the gap of fully and completely understanding each other but they will strive for it for eternity and that’s what makes them so good

[nowwhateinstein]

The X Files 4.10 – "Paper Hearts"

[nowwhateinstein]

THE X-FILES | 4.18

Do you know where she is? In a mental institution.

[nowwhateinstein]

Land of Endless Sky UPDATE

Hi there, XF fam. I know I haven’t been active on this site in a while, but I did want to let y’all know that I’ve finally updated Land of Endless Sky. 

I walked away from this story nearly a year ago not sure if I'd ever come back. Lots of personal stuff made writing difficult, then came the raging dumpster fire that is 2020. But Mulder and Scully refused to let me give up, so here I am, with nearly 10,000 more words to share over the next couple of weeks. Trust me, there’s some good stuff coming up, stuff I’m excited to share with all of you.

Read it on AO3

I'm foregoing betas in favor of getting this out to you post-haste, so please forgive any typos (I'll try to go back and clean it up later).

To all of my readers: thank you for sticking with me on this long, long journey along the Oregon Trail. I'm sorry it's taken me so long. Your support, kudos, and comments mean the world to me.

As a bit of bonus content, I made an accompanying YouTube playlist for your listening pleasure. Most are instrumentals which I listen to while I write. The last few are some old-time tunes which I mention in the story. Hope you enjoy!

[nowwhateinstein]

👽 X-Files Fic Recs: Novels

Here’s a compilation of novel-length X-Files stories I’ve recced (so far!) since @o6666666 asked for some recs and I realized I hadn’t made this list already. Set aside lots of days and enjoy! (Hat tip to @txf-fic-chicks for reminding me about some of these.) The 13th Sign and Seven Days in May by prufrock’s love Mulder saw no reason for life, death, sex, Armageddon, or emotional dysfunction to stand in the way of true love. / It might be the end of the world. Fox Mulder had a psychic vampire on the loose, a six-year-old son in tow, a ton of emotional baggage, and an FBI budget, but at least he wasn’t dead. Mulder felt things were looking up - romantically and apocalyptically. By the Wind Grieved by Karen Rasch Months have passed and Mulder is back. But things are not as they once were. He doesn’t know who he is or what Scully and he are to each other. Together they must reclaim the past before their enemies take away their future. Cold Cuts by Joann Humby When Kersh adds Mulder and Scully to the hunt for a serial killer, everyone’s life gets a little more complicated. Friends, allies and enemies can make for a dangerous team. The Dreaming Sea by Revely A spectacular sighting in a seaside town brings Scully and Mulder face-to-face with a salt-water surprise. Erlona’s Heart by MD1016 Mulder takes Scully on her dream vacation. Five Years and One Night by Shalimar This starts post “Kitsunegari” and is full of spoilers including all of season 5. It deals with the events in “Emily”. Hurricane Season by Beduini and Rah “Old habits die hard.” Rags by Jill Selby Skepticism is put to the ultimate test when Mulder and Scully investigate some bizarre and seemingly unrelated events in a small town. Smoke on the Water by Miss Elise While on a case that takes them to Louisiana, Scully considers the men she has loved in her life. Solving the murder of Ophelia Washington will take all the strength Scully has. Tam Lin by Pequod When your local young men disappear, only to turn up dead a year later, sometimes it helps to have friends in high places. Myth and murder combine in a remote Scottish village, and Mulder and Scully investigate. The Fairy Queen is out to revenge the loss of her most prized knight, Tam Lin. Mulder believes but Scully’s not so sure, until Mulder takes a walk in the woods. Terra Firma Series by @malibusunset-xf-blog Through season 8. Starts when William is born. Reads as if Season 9 never happened. The Unfinished Universe by Revely Season 8 MSR AU A Winter’s Tale by Anjou It is late winter, dark and cold, the landscape obscured and transformed by snow and ice. One must step carefully, for the very ground can be treacherous. This is a lesson Mulder and Scully have already learned when the pristine snow in Antartica yielded a long-buried secret. But the winter can hold many secrets, and could tell many tales, if it so chose.This is but one. The Wonderland Series by Karen Rasch As Scully’s cancer worsens, Mulder and she grow closer together, both learning that the only chance they have to survive is to draw strength from each other.

[nowwhateinstein]

A shout out to all my fellow writers

I see a lot of writers who apologize for taking a while to fill a prompt. My dudes/ folks/ ladies/ non gender conforming humans: it’s ok. Writing takes time. You don’t ever need to apologize for that. Keep on being your gorgeous writerly selves! Take all the time you need for that next installment of your AU Novel, or your epic porn escapade. We will wait.

Ps. I know that I don’t get a whole lot of prompts because it takes me so long to fill them. But that’s me. My spirit animal is this goat on a turtle.

I’ll get there when I get there.

pps. Yes, I do take prompts. 

@i-gaze-at-scully, @defnotmeyo, @spookydarlablack, @darwin-xf, @marinafrenzy, @fbismostunwanted1158, @serahsanguine, @storybycorey

[nowwhateinstein]

[ vid ] Bumpin’ on Sunset

Author: @thegrotesckque​. 

Music: “Bumpin’ on Sunset” by Wes Montgomery.

Summary: A road trip with Mulder and Scully.

[nowwhateinstein]

soft touching II

[nowwhateinstein]

Every Smile: Mulder (Season 1)

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Land of Endless Sky: ch 8

A/N: Apologies for cluttering everyone’s dash while I posted these. Chapter 9 will hopefully be ready for prime-time soon!

Intro & Prologue Chapter 1 Chapter 2 Chapter 3 Chapter 4 Chapter 5 Chapter 6 Chapter 7

++++++ Chapter 8

Mulder lay hidden in the waterlogged grass, watching the Sioux party approach the camp. After the storm broke and he’d discovered the horses were gone, he’d roamed the nearby hills for nearly an hour before picking up their hoofprints in the wet earth. These he’d followed north for a while, when he encountered more hoofprints and trampled grass. He’d caught sight of the Sioux just as they descended a hill, the four captured horses in tow, headed in the direction of the cottonwood stand and Scully. They must have noticed the smoke from her cook fire and decided to investigate.

Now, as he watched them approach her, a cascade of fear swept over him. Word of Ash Hollow had certainly reached the nearby Sioux bands by now; this group could be out to avenge their dead. Or, he thought, taking in how lightly they traveled - even for Indians - they could simply be a scouting party in search of bison.

Regardless, their presence put both him and Scully in a perilous position. They were outnumbered, and if he tried to shoot, they’d take her immediately, and have an arrow in him within seconds. He cursed himself for leaving her alone.

He watched as she walked toward them, listened as she invited them to supper. Thatta girl, he thought with a slight smile, admiring her prowess and calm demeanor. He observed them dismount and accept the coffee and beans.

There was a tall one dressed in buckskin. One of them - presumably their leader from the way he directed the other two - wore a necklace of bear claws, his hair tied in long twin plaits. He noticed the third one favoring his left arm; he looked young, no older than sixteen. Mulder guessed he’d tried to ride Ghost when they’d captured him and had been thrown; Ghost was notorious for letting no one other than Mulder ride him.

Scully turned her attention on the youngster and his injured arm. He watched as she slowly, carefully put her hands on his shoulder, prodding the area for painful points. The other two watched her intently, scrutinizing her every movement. He had no doubt that they would kill her if they suspected she meant any harm to the boy.

Only one thing to do, he thought as he pushed himself up from the ground. Try to get our horses back without anyone getting killed.

“Hau.” He spoke the Sioux greeting loudly to announce his presence, then slowly entered the camp, holding his rifle with both hands above his head. They all stood quickly at his approach.

One of them - Bear Claws - walked toward him and raised his hand in a tense greeting. “Hau.”

He saw Scully exhale in relief as he drew closer. “Are you all right?” he asked her, keeping his voice low and calm. He kept his eyes trained on the Sioux.

“I’m fine,” she replied, her voice taut with nervous tension.

He glanced at the young Indian beside her. “Is he injured?”

“Yes, but I’m not sure how badly.” She paused. “I thought something had happened to you.” Her tone managed to convey a complex mix of relief, anger, and fear, and for the second time, he cursed himself for going off without her.

“The only thing injured is my pride,” he said wryly, in an effort to diffuse the precariousness of their situation. “I lost our horses, and now it looks like I’ll have to beg for them.”

Slowly, he set his rifle on the ground and faced Bear Claws. He pointed to the horses and fumblingly began signing. Horses belong me. Storm come. Horses run.

He’d picked up Indian sign talk from the Tonkawa scouts down in Texas while on campaign against the Comanche. With a few regional variances, it was a widespread form of communication among Indians and traders across the continent.

Bear Claws appeared unmoved by Mulder’s claim on the horses; the Indian shrugged, then responded with his own hands. Horses us find. Horses now belong us.

Bear Claws glanced over to Scully , who, sensing their attention, looked up from her ministrations. Her eyes met Mulder’s in puzzlement. Mulder shook his head slightly, indicating that she should continue attending to the young Indian.

Woman strong. Not afraid. Work hard. Bear Claws then made the signs for ‘female’ and ‘marry.” Good wife make.

He gestured to Mulder’s erstwhile horses, then crossed his hands in front of his chest, with both index fingers pointing upwards. Mulder’s stomach dropped at the gesture. Trade.

He chanced a quick look at Scully. She was now inspecting the young man’s shoulder as she rotated his arm, but she was clearly keeping an eye on the negotiations.

Mulder moved his right hand to signal, as emphatically as he could, his refusal. No trade. Woman with me stay.

Bear Claws replied,Woman is wife yours?

He hesitated. He was on dangerous ground now, and had to tread very carefully. To say that Scully wasn’t married would invite the possibility of them trying to take her by force. The stealing of women was a practice common to some tribes, he knew, but usually only undertaken against enemies. Their interactions up until this moment, while not expressly friendly, were certainly neutral, and he hoped to keep it that way.

He signed, Woman is wife mine.

The man nodded slightly, apparently satisfied by this explanation, and Mulder breathed an inward sigh of relief. But there was still the matter of getting the horses - or at least some of them - back. Their survival depended on it.

Mulder indicated his rifle, then pointed to Ghost. Trade.

The Indian shook his head and waved a hand dismissively. Woman want only.

A man’s voice suddenly cried out as if in pain and both of them whirled at the sound. It was the young injured Sioux. He lay on the ground near the fire; Scully kneeled beside him, her hands on his shoulder.

Bear Claws drew his knife and made to rush at her. Mulder lunged and tackled him. Both fell to the ground, wrestling. Bear Claws was strong, and Mulder, exhausted from tracking the horses, struggled to to keep the Indian’s knife from finding his throat.

Scully’s panicked voice rang out through the clearing. “Mulder!”

Then the third Indian, who until now had contented himself by sitting on a log and sipping coffee, spoke a single word, which caused Bear Claws to ease up on Mulder. They both looked at the other Indian, who then jerked his chin in the direction of Scully and the young one.

The young Indian was sitting upright. He gingerly rotated his left arm and shoulder, his face registering incredulity at the sudden disappearance of his pain. He smiled broadly at the other two, and spoke rapidly in their language. From Mulder’s limited knowledge of Sioux, he made out the words “Woman” and “heal.”

At this, the older Indian picked himself up from the ground, then bent down and extended an open hand to Mulder. He took it and let the man help him to his feet.

Bear Claws signed, Wife good medicine make. Heal son.

Bear Claws spoke a few words to the third Indian. The man went over to Ghost and Scully’s sorrel and led them over to Bear Claws. He handed the reins of both horses to Mulder, then signed, Good trade.

Mulder stared incredulously at Scully and the miracle she had just wrought, then looked back at the Indian and repeated his gesture. Good trade.

++++++

The sun was sinking in a flaming sky as they watched the Sioux and their two captured horses fade into the horizon. Mulder breathed a sigh of relief at their disappearance, but couldn’t shake the anxious, uneasy feeling that lingered from the tense encounter. It had been a close call. More vexing still was the Indians’ interest in Scully, and how he’d handled the matter. He’d done what he’d had to to protect her, but he still felt sullied, like he’d violated a sacred trust between them. The fact that she was unaware of his transgression only added to his shame.

“What did you do for the boy?” He asked.

“He had a dislocated shoulder. I was able to coax him to lie down and allow me to pop it back into place,” she replied. “His cry must have startled the other one, made him think I had hurt him.”

She glanced worriedly at him and put a hand on his arm. “Are you all right, Mulder?” the concern in her voice pained him.

He gave her a small smile, unable to bring himself to tell her just how close they had come to ruin - and how she’d become an object with which to barter. “I’m just glad it’s over, is all,” he said.

“You and that older Indian had a very lively ‘conversation,’” she observed. “I saw him making an interesting gesture when you first started negotiating.” His heart sank as he watched her make a motion as if combing her hair with her fingers, then brought her hands front of her, crossed them, and pointed upwards. “What does it mean?”

He swallowed uncomfortably and looked at the ground, unable to meet her gaze.

“Mulder…”

He reluctantly repeated the gestures back to her. “That means ‘wife.’ And this,” he made the final motion, “means ‘trade.’’”

She was too shocked to say anything. Her mouth opened wordlessly as the significance of the exchange sank in.

“I refused,” he said. He hesitated, then added quietly, “I told him you were mine.”

Her eyes flashed at this. “No man owns me.” Beneath the coldness of her words was an anguish that pained him even more.

He stepped towards her, but she shifted away. “I’d like to be alone,” she said before he could respond. Reluctantly, he moved away, leaving her alone in the falling dusk.

++++++

Scully rose restless before dawn and made her way to a small outcrop that looked eastward. The morning star was still visible in the pale gray sky, a lone bright beacon just above the horizon, but the lilting tremolo of a nearby meadowlark suggested that daybreak was not far off.

Her initial anger had cooled overnight, but the pain from yesterday lingered. She knew why Mulder had told the Indians that what he had, knew that speaking truthfully would have opened the possibility for another, more terrible fate for her, and for that, she knew she should feel grateful. Still, she loathed the knowledge that her only value lay in whether a man could claim her, and she hated Mulder for playing the game, regardless of the necessity. There’s another reason, if you’re honest with yourself, she thought. You’ve become attached to him. And soon he will leave, to seek his fortune somewhere out West and leave his ghosts - and you - behind. What will you do, then?

The crunch of footsteps interrupted her thoughts. Mulder came to stand beside her. He didn’t speak, and she didn’t move away. Together, they silently watched the sun spill its golden light upon the land.

“We should reach Laramie day after tomorrow,” he said after a while.

“I suppose that’s welcome news for you,” she replied, turning to look at him. “You’ll be free to do as and go where you please, without a woman to burden you.”

He turned to face her with a startled expression. “Is that how you imagine I see you? As a burden?” he asked incredulously. He took her hand and held it tightly. “If it wasn’t for you, we’d never have gotten the horses back. You saved us. From the Indians, from the soldiers, with your knowledge and skill and composure.” The passion in his words took her aback.

He took a shallow, ragged breath, then continued. “You saved me.” His voice trembled as he spoke. “I owe you everything. You owe me nothing.”

She stood in astonishment at his admission while struggling to reconcile her own maelstrom of emotions. Despite all she’d lost and the ever-present sadness that had accompanied her across the miles, something else - something strange, new, and vibrant - had taken hold of her out here in this land of endless sky. This man had changed her, she realized. He’d imbued her life with a certain quality, a feeling of fullness whose nature she had until this moment struggled - and failed - to discern. Now, as they stared silently, intently at each other, she finally understood.

He stepped closer so that they were now only inches apart, still holding her hand. He spoke quietly, his voice almost a whisper. “The truth is, I can’t see myself going on without you.”

Tears stung her eyes, blurring her vision. She leaned into him and felt his arms encircle her. Reaching up, she removed his battered cavalry hat, and kissed his forehead tenderly, as if in benediction.

She brought her lips close to his ear. “Then we’ll go together.”