A/N: So... I must apologize. I haven't updated in FOREVER! It got warm out and I lost all ability to sit still indoors. Now it's too hot out to remain outside for extended periods of time. So... I'm back!

This story will finally be completed!

Tip of the Day: Remember, when life seems to suck, always be grateful that you're not pregnant while your baby-daddy got abducted by aliens.

Mulder sat at his desk doing paperwork. Well, he had paperwork on his desk, but he was mostly watching Scully. Scully was the one who was actually doing paperwork. After that case there was a lot of paperwork to be done.

"Stop staring at me, Mulder," Scully said without looking up.

"I'm not staring..."

"Do your work, Mulder," she said, still keeping her eyes on her own work.

He sighed loudly. It was mainly to make her look up at him. It didn't work. So he got up from his desk and walked over to her area. This did work.

Scully looked up at him, let out an exasperated sigh, and said, "What?"

"Aren't you a bit curious to know what happened to Edouard?"

"A bit, but obviously you do know and are going to tell me anyway so even if I were uninterested you would ramble away-"

"Me? Ramble?" he interrupted. "You're the one rambling, Scully."

She sighed. "Okay. I'm very interested. Tell me so I can finish my work and go home."

Mulder stared at her for a second deciding whether or not to be offended. Scully noticed this and decided to add, "So we can go to your home."

A smile crept back to his lips. "Well," he began while grabbing some papers off of the shelf behind her, "Edouard came to the states shortly after burying his wife."

Mulder handed Scully the papers. They were copies of newspaper articles from the year 1897. She scanned them and looked back up at Mulder ready for him to continue.

"I think that he couldn't stand to be in France anymore. So, he came here to start his life anew. However, he continued his role as a police detective. As you can see from the papers, he was very successful."

"Did he ever marry again? Have children?" Scully asked, impatient for Mulder to get to that bit of his story.

"No. And no," he told her. "He actually didn't outlive Leonie for very long. Just six months later, he was accidentally killed in a shoot out. I'm guessing that he had those rings with him and that they were pawned after his death."

"It's such a sad story-"

"Yeah. It's our story, Scully! You still believe, right?" he interrupted her, afraid that she was going to go back on her word that she believed that Leonie and Edouard were their former lives- now that they were back to their normal (well, as normal as it could be for them) FBI lives.

Scully bent down and dug through her bag. Mulder thought that she was avoiding his question. And just before he repeated it for her, she sat back up and put Leonie's ring in the middle of her desk.

"Of course I believe it, Mulder," she said, looking up at him. "I have the proof sitting right here."

"And in here," he reminded her, tapping her on the forehead.

She swatted his hand away. "Yes, Mulder. I remember. It's not something that I'll forget anytime soon... if ever!"

"Just making sure..." he said, wandering back over to his desk. He leaned against it to watch her again. She kept her eyes on him as well. "Scully?" he began his questioning again.

"Yes?"

"Are you going to testify against Malloy?"

"Of course, Mulder! Why would you ask me that?"

"I guess that was my nice way of asking if you felt strong enough to testify against him..."

"That was your nice way?" she rolled her eyes at him. "Well, to be honest," she added, "if you would have hit him harder then I probably wouldn't have to be testifying against him..."

"Scully!" Mulder exclaimed, thoroughly shocked.

"I'm just being honest about how I feel."

"You wish that I had killed a man?" he questioned, crossing his arms and looking at her with a doubtful expression.

"Let me put it this way: I think that Vance Malloy is more evil than Donnie Pfaster. And, especially coming from me, that's saying something! So, if we were short one more evil man in the world, I wouldn't lose any sleep over it."

Mulder was still shocked at this insight into the darkness that now invaded Scully's pretty little head. Though, he knew that this case had been extremely hard on her. Since they had been back in DC, which had only been a little over a week, she hadn't slept alone. She was always over at his, or he was at hers. Not that he was complaining. He just would have preferred that it be because she loved him, not because she was afraid. Mulder knew that the simple fact that Malloy was out there alive (even if it was behind bars) scared her. He now secretly wished that he had spent more time at the batting cages prior to their trip.

"I am sorry," he spoke up, suddenly finding his hands very interesting; however, he looked up to meet her eyes to add, "that I let him hurt you."

"Me?" Scully was the one who was shocked this time. "I'm sorry that I let him hurt you! Mulder, if anything really bad had happened to you, I could never have forgiven myself. I ignored your better judgment and left without you. I'm smarter than to pull something like that!"

"You are," he quickly agreed. "But I know that I've put you through the same thing several times. Maybe I deserved it. I just want us to now never do anything like that to each other ever again."

She smiled at him, knowing that he was letting her off easy. "I promise," she told him honestly.

"Good," he said, moving to sit back down in his chair behind his desk. "Now, you have paperwork to do so we can go home!"

"I have paperwork to do...?" she said, raising an eyebrow at him.

"Okay. Okay. How about we make a deal?"

Scully leaned back in her chair and crossed her arms. "I'm listening..."

"How about we take all of this stuff to my place, order take-out, do stuff, and then finish the paperwork? Together," Mulder said, standing up to grab his coat like he knew that she would say 'yes' to his plan.

"'Do stuff?' What kind of stuff?" she asked, not moving from her position.

"You know. The kind of stuff that two consenting adults who are in love with each other would normally do on a Friday night..." Mulder explained while he put his coat on and then grabbed hers.

"Uh-huh. Nice try, but we both know that no paperwork will get done once we leave this office."

"Scu-lly," Mulder groaned. "It's 7pm on a Friday. We're both hungry. Skinner isn't even here! Can we please leave?"

"I bet Skinner is here and would be very happy if we turned in our reports tonight. They're already late as it is!" Scully reminded him, making a very valid point.

But Fox Mulder was a very smart man and was not going to let Scully use Skinner as an excuse. His eyes narrowed at her in a thoughtful glare. She just stared back with an expression that read 'beat that!' Mulder quickly picked up his phone and dialed a number. Scully's expression immediately changed to curiosity.

"Hey, Skinner, it's me again," Mulder said once the line picked up. There was a pause for Skinner to say something before he began his speech, "It's been a very tough week for Scully, and we just haven't been able to finish our reports. I think that it's been very painful for her to think about everything that happened-" there was another pause for Skinner to say something. "Yes, sir. Thank you, sir. See you Monday, sir."

Mulder hung up the phone and gave Scully a smug smile. He tossed her her coat. "C'mon. The Skinman said that we have until Tuesday to turn in our reports. He is very worried for your well-being, just as much as I am. He said for us to go home and don't come back until Monday!"

"Mulder! How can you lie-"

"A simple 'thank you' will do," he told her, pulling her up from her chair and helping her into her coat. "AND I didn't lie!" he added. "I think that you- we need at least a day or two off."

Scully sighed. "Thanks, Mulder," she said quietly.

Mulder grabbed her bag and rushed to hold their office door open for her. Once through the door, he shut it firmly behind them and quickly locked it, as if he were telling her to not even think about going back into that office until Monday morning. Scully just smiled, shaking her head slightly at how goofy he was sometimes. They made their way to the elevator, and she looped her arm through his as they waited.

"So, about that 'consenting adult stuff'..." she teased his thoughts.

The elevator doors opened, and they stepped inside. Mulder hit the 'L' button and gave Scully a heart-melting smile. He bent down and kissed her softly on the lips.

"Now we have all night and weekend for that 'stuff,'" he told her. "But I promise you one thing," he whispered in her ear.

"What's that?" she whispered back, her lips grazing his ear.

They both quickly pulled back as the elevator dinged it's arrival to the lobby, and they acted like good little FBI agents- nothing more than partners and friends- as they stepped into the lobby.

"I can guarantee that you won't have any thoughts of Malloy until Monday," he quietly told her as they walked to the doors and made it outside.

"How's that?" she asked.

Mulder slipped his hand around hers and pulled her quickly along. He pulled her around the corner and out of FBI territory. He pressed her hand to his lips and spun around to stand in front of her. He quickly pulled her into a deep, passionate kiss.

When they parted he answered her, "You'll be too busy thinking about what we're going to do next..."

Scully smiled up at him as she traced his lips with her thumb. "Do you know what I want to do now?" she asked, licking her lips.

Mulder was afraid that they wouldn't make it back to his car before he needed to sit down if Scully kept this up. "Well, I know what I want to do, and I hope that it's the same thing..."

Scully smiled and kissed him quickly. "Eat!" she exclaimed, grabbing his hand and pulling him along.

"Not what I was thinking but the second best choice," Mulder admitted.

Scully laughed. "I know what you want to do! I'll make you a deal." She spun to stand in front of him this time. "We'll do my activity now," she said, standing on her tip-toes and wrapping her arms around his neck. "And," she continued, "we'll do your activity next. As soon as we get back to your place."

"See, this is just one of the many reasons why I love you. Your ability to compromise!" he said and kissed her again.

Mulder took Scully's hand again, and they walked along together. They were finally together in the way that they were meant to be. Even though they had to go through the past and face evil (again) to get where they were supposed to be. Hopefully, they wouldn't screw it up this time!