THE 13TH ROSE

By Sara Lynn

 

Rating: PG-13. A few choice words and situations that could be on the show. . . or not. MSR - Please! It’s in response to Deb.’s Valentine’s challenge.

Summary: Scully has a secret admirer. . .

Requirements: Mulder. Scully. A single red rose (Didn’t say I couldn’t have dozens of others floating around). Valentine’s Day .

Spoiler: Set after Never Again, but probably before Leonard Betts and the discovery of the tumor.

Disclaimer: Fox Mulder, Dana Scully, Maggie Scully, *late* Melissa Scully, Frohike and Walter Skinner are creations of Chris*t* Carter (According to Creative Loafing) and owned by Twentieth Century Fox.

 

Dana Scully’s Apartment

Annapolis, MD

February 14th, 1997

6:00 am

 

Dana wasn’t ready to face today. Valentine’s Day. . .yuck. Who needs a day devoted to the reminder that she was about to be a year older in 9 days without a man. She tapped the off button hoping to silence the torture of that annoying buzz. As she brought her hand back she felt the brushing of soft fabric on the back of her hand. She opened her eyes to see a dozens roses siting next to her bed. She pulled the comforter with her as she sat up and touched the petals again. Silk. They felt like pure silk.

‘Who would do this?’ She asked herself. Who had access to her home and able to pull this off without waking her? Her mom? No, she wouldn’t sneak in during the night. Melissa? Yeah right, her sister would come back from the dead to leave her flowers? That would be an X-file. That left. . .

"Mulder." The name left her lips as the smile appeared. He came here in the middle of the night and left a dozen roses and a note. Her thin fingertips grabbed the card. She felt the embossed cover, a single rose, before she opened it.

Those who cherish the moment live

Those that want to savor the moment give

The smile brought forth by a rose

Is the way my waning strength grows.

Her heart called out to her. It was amazing. She never had known him to be a poet. The flowers were a lovely gesture. He didn’t have to go to all *that* trouble.

Her eyes caught the time and she got out of the bed. Placing the bouquet on the pillows, she started to remove her top. A quick shower and she’d be ready for work.

The blue silk top grazed over her hair. She shook out the strawberry-blonde locks of hair letting them fall down beside her face. Her breasts jiggled slightly and her hips swerved in a seducing high. Those flowers were actually a nice way to start a rather miserable day. As her top landed on the counter, she noticed the bottle sitting beside it.

A long cylindrical bottle resembling a rose vase. The label on the front was a single rose and beautiful Japanese script in the form of the letters SINGLE RED ROSE. She lifted the decanter out of it and smelled. It really did smell like roses. Beside it was another card.

The scent of flowers calls to me

The rich flavor of the petal’s drop

The wafting breeze sends it back

And all I smell is Dana Scully.

"Awww" He was good. This was so sweet of him to do this for her. She knew she should pay him back. She wiggled out of the pajama bottom and decided a hot shower would help her.

"Alright Dana." She said out loud hoping that would help her think. "You have gotten two presents from Mulder. At least, I think it’s Mulder." Dana’s mind finally started to wake up. Mulder could have just been the delivery boy. It could be anyone who knows the two of them. Damn it, This complicated matters. She had a secret admirer. Actually, this kind of excited her.

She emerged from the shower and toweled off. Well, whomever it was that gave her the perfume should appreciate her wearing it. She dabbed a bit on her neck and wrists before leaving to get dressed.

* ~ * ~ *

 

She could still smell the perfume as she prepared to leave. She really needed to find her secret admirer and ask where he got this heavenly scent. She gather her briefcase and laptop case and started out the door when the tiny box with another rose card caught her eye. Another card, another poem, another present. She opened the tiny red box and saw the brooch inside. Rubies encased in gold in the shape of a rose. She placed the pin on her lapel and left, clutching the card in her hand. As she waited for the elevator to arrive, she took the chance to read the note.

A thousand words could not describe you

You’re as pretty as a picture

Diamonds are a dozen

But a ruby is forever.

She couldn’t help but laugh. The sappy lines were too good. As the elevator dinged on the first floor, she knew her day would be interesting. Her car sitting in front to the apartments made the smile come back to her face. She placed the cases in the trunk and was ready to drive away. As Dana opened the driver side door, the box caught her eye. Once more a ‘single rose’ sat upon it. Now who was able to get in her car to place this one. She picked up the box and placed it in the passenger’s seat. This one had to wait to be opened

Traffic. Of course. The morning Scully needed to be in on time, she got caught in traffic. No wonder she liked leaving earlier. Well, this gave her time to open this new present. Card first.

No one understands you as much as I do

I know your every moving

You need me by you everyday

Early in the morning.

A little more insinuating that the earlier ones. Or maybe he did know her that well. She reached over for the box and opened the top. She shifted the tissue paper and saw the mug sitting inside. A million tiny roses were printed around the ceramic. When she pulled in out she noticed the tissue paper was scarce and the packing was actually Mint Jubilee tea bags. Her favorite. No one knew that! Maybe her mom, but even Mulder didn’t know that. Perhaps her suitor had gotten her mom in on this.

The traffic seemed to be letting up and she drove on to work. Perhaps she’d get another surprise at work.

* ~ * ~ *

 

Scully looked her new mug over as she walked toward Mulder’s office. Oops! Did it again. Dana had been trying to remember that now it was their office. The door may still only say Fox Mulder, but there were two desks inside, one belonging to Dana Scully.

She opened the door, glad she no longer needed to knock. She placed her baggage on the hardwood top and saw it again. A long white box. She removed the top and saw a rose inside. It didn’t exactly look real. The stem was paper. The petals were silky and suddenly began to unfold between her fingers. The flower came apart and the red fabric was between her finger. She looked at the article sideways. She held it up before she realized it was a pair of panties. Bikini briefs. Looked about her size. Silk in front, lace on the back. Semi sexy. Again there was a note.

Your business facade is more than skin deep

Not unlike your beauty

The truth lies underneath those conservatives

and conceals a red-haired cutie.

A blush crossed her cheeks. The notes would grow more and more colored as the day goes on she decided.

"Whatcha got there, Scully?"

Damn it, she was so involved with the card she didn’t notice Mulder come in.

"Scully, what’s this?" He picked the panties from her hand and took them back over to his desk. She followed him waiting to get them back. He examined them carefully, letting out a low whistle as he tried to visualize Scully in them. . . and nothing else. "Gee, Dana, I don’t what to say."

"Then don’t say anything, Mulder." She snatched them out of his hands and returns to her desk.

"Who gave you those?"

"A secret admirer." She said plainly, turning her attention to her work. If Mulder was trying to keep the identity of her suitor a secret, no need to rush the process.

 

* ~ * ~ *

 

Dana finished the last of her mug’s contents and was ready for another cup. Paperwork got tedious no matter where she was working. She let out a sigh before she noticed Mulder standing before her. "Yes Mulder?"

"Are you almost done with the requisition forms? We need to get up to Skinner’s office."

"Damn. Yea, there under those files." She opened her purse as Mulder searched for the file. Another card and box. She pulled it out before Mulder noticed.

Words mean so little coming from a liar

His thoughts are empty of feeling

Words that are true are filled with love

perched upon her red lips concealing

Scully opened the box and out slipped the lipstick tube. She turned it upside down to see the color. Really Rosie. She opened the tube to see the dark pink shade. Probably a good shade for a redhead. Mulder cleared his throat to get her attention

"Scully? You ready?"

* ~ * ~ *

 

Of course, It was not just a weekly check up. Skinner had to bring up a few inconsistent facts in their last few cases. Scully hated sitting through those. She tried to follow the book, but she was guilty by association. The word bounced off her ears as the only thing she could think about was the need to use the bathroom. Finally they were excused from the AD’s office and she told Mulder she’d meet him back downstairs.

Dana was walking back to the office when she wondered if another present would be waiting for her. Sure enough a box was sitting on her desk. Rather rectangular and accompanied by a huge red bow.

Mulder was standing by the coffeemaker. He looked back at the package on the desk. He looked curious as to the contents. Dana picked it up in her hands and held it. Heavy, but not too heavy.

"It was here when I came in. Your ‘secret admirer’ seems to be an X-file as well." He came close, watching and waiting for Scully to open it. She removed the paper and saw the contents.

"‘Bed of Roses’. I love this movie." She said with a gleeful cheer. She then looked at the second video. "‘Rose Buds’. Mulder, this looks like your type of video." She handed it to him and she read the card.

Mulder read the back of the video sleeve out loud. "Stacy faces the toughest decision of her life. She must decide between her fiancé whom she loves dearly, her childhood lesbian lover and her vibrator."

Scully had to laugh at the summary. She decided not to ask and place it back on her desk.

"So what does the card say?"

"Visual aids help us see

How different we can be

One can make you shed a tear

The other makes you scream in ecstasy"

Mulder seemed to contemplate the message on the card as he returned to his work.

Scully thought it was a good idea. Between the panties and the video, this Valentines was beginning to create a tension between them.

* ~ * ~ *

 

Scully was well into her lunchtime hot dog when the mailman decided to visit. An agent from Des Moines was supposedly to send her the results of a soil analysis and hopefully it would be in this mail drop. If not, she would have to wait until Monday. Mulder sat at her new desk as she went to get their mail. She flipped through the ones addressed to Mulder. A few tidbits to add to the files. She stopped rather abruptly at the black photo envelope with a tiny white one on it. Beautiful script writing called out her name as she wondered if it was another present.

Dana removed the smaller envelope deciding to read the card first.

The power of a kiss

can change a beast into a prince

Say yes to me and I promise you

all your dreams will be my deepest wish.

A little sappier that the last few. Mulder read the card as she opened the present. Pouring the contents on the desk, She gasped as two tickets appeared. Picking them up only confirmed her thought. "Oh my god. These are tickets to ‘Beauty and the Beast’ on Broadway. Orchestra, Fifth row! On my birthday!!" Scully dropped the tickets back down and covered her face. She wanted to scream and jump up and down and anything else un-Scully like.

Mulder looked the new present over. The black tickets were embossed with the white silhouette of Beast holding a dying rose. His attention was brought back to the envelope where another surprise hid. He pulled out the other surprise and looked it over. "Scully, this guy must really be in love. He send you a plane ticket as well." She took it out of his hands to look it over. "And hotel reservations. Honeymoon suite at the Windsor."

Scully had now entered shock. The presents before were not as serious as this. Her secret admirer was inviting her to spend her birthday with him in New York. . . whoever he was. She looked up and saw the disappointment on Mulder’s face. This was hurting him and she could tell.

"Wow. When I find this guy, I need to thank him for the offer. But I’m going to have to refuse."

This caught Mulder’s attention. "Wha? Why?"

Scully tucked this new present into her briefcase before answering. "I can’t run off for the weekend with some guy. I’m going to stay home and celebrate with Mom. You’re invited to come celebrate with us."

Mulder made a funny face. "Maybe."

"Look I have these results I have to run by Pendrell. I’ll talk to you later. I think I’m going to go home after that. I’m taking my mom to dinner tonight."

"I think I’ll call it a day too. Nothing happening around here."

Scully waved with the analysis in hand and left the room.

 

* ~ * ~ *

 

Dinner with mom was a good idea. She in a cheerful mood, especially at the mention of her presents she had received. The weekend in New York was a big shock. Her mom urged her to go saying she could wait to celebrate Dana’s birthday. Pulling up to the curb in front of her apartment she still had not decided what she was going to do.

Dana managed to get inside the building before her neighbor walking that annoying poodle decided to preach the evils of being almost thirty-three and single. She opened her mailbox and pulled out the various bills and a plain brown box. No address only "DANA SCULLY" printed on the front. She decided this called for immediate attention. She opened the box and found another card. Her secret admirer struck again.

When I look at you, parts of you calls to me

Your eyes burn with the fire of our hearts

Your lips entice me with the rosy redness

The gold around the neck leading to the best parts

He was smooth. Getting her to choose New York was not going to be easy, but he persevered. She looked in the box as saw a jewelry case like the one her pin came in. She opened it to discover the necklace. A rose twisted around a crucifix. Perfect down to the last detail.

She admired it. Her admirer didn’t seem concerned with the cost of all this. Everything looked expensive and Scully was well aware of the cost of the New York weekend. As she slipped the key into her lock, she generally wondered when her admirer would reveal himself.

Scully pushed the door opened and saw the flowers sitting on her table. The closer she got the less they looked like real flowers. In fact they were candy roses. Twelve of them. Dana decided to let the card explain.

Have I ever told you how your body seduces me?

The curve flow perfectly when your walk is true

Your body calls to me, Dana

And it’s only a matter of hours before I can taste you.

Whoa. That meant he was coming to visit her. A few hours and she’d have an answer to who was her secret admirer. She decided not to worry and go about her normal routine. It was late and she decided to just turn in. Instantly Dana’s eyes were attracted to her bed as she entered the room. Laid out in the center of the bed was a black nightie decorated by red lace roses.

This man was taking seducing above the call of duty. The note was definitely needed to help this time.

I can’t wait another minute

My heart yearns to sing in the light

My body aches to be near you

I count the minutes ‘til Midnight.

Midnight. That was in a few minutes. She didn’t know she stayed so long with her mom. The fabric of the lingerie was silky. Maybe she should try it on and model it for him. God, hope it wasn’t Frohike. She would never be able to face Mulder again. Pendrell. . . He was just not her type. Crossing her fingers, she thought about the one man she truly wanted. "Please. Please. Please."

Dana stripped off the constrictive layers of work and slipped into the nightie. Silk touching her skin at all possible places. It was perfect. The whole day had been perfect . . . just hoped it continued that way.

Suddenly the doorbell interrupted her thoughts. She wrapped herself in the white terrycloth robe and checked the peephole. No one. She prepared herself as she opened the door. Sitting on the carpet was a bouquet of roses.

Dana smelled the flowers. These were real. Another note around the stems. It was almost midnight.

Dana, you are my world

You brought me toward the light

I love you, Dana Scully

Sincerely . . .

Nothing else. That was odd. A dozen roses that were in need of a vase. She was about to close the door when a single red rose popped into the crack, dangling down was another card. She flipped open the card before looking at her suitor.

Fox Mulder

She pulled the door open and saw Mulder stand there in all black. He was the one. Her first instinct had been right.

He stepped into her apartment. Closing the door, she lunged at him. The kiss was amazingly passionate. She pulled back, the want and wait of four years definitely worth it.

"Dana. . ." She placed a finger on his lips. It was her turn.

"I love you, Fox Mulder." She hugged him around the waist.

"Are you still going to stay here for your birthday instead of joining me in New York?"

"I wouldn’t dream of it." She backed up as his hands undid the robe’s belt. The terry cloth pooled at her feet as he looked at the nightie on her.

"It was definitely worth it." His hands moved over the silk and down her arms. "Promise you’ll wear this in New York."

". . . And even less." She reached up and pulled the thin straps down. Mulder shook his head. Valentine’s Day was definitely a good day for love.

 

*The End*

 

Am I bad? I am such a romantic. . . and I thought Scully needed to be impulsive.

Not impulsive and get a ‘Millennium’ tattoo. . .