Count me among those who was thrilled to see Prufrock posting her stories to Ephemeral/Gossamer.
Whatever reasons Scully has for dating -- did her mother set her up? Did she do it simply so she could tell Mulder that she had a date? -- I think this is a clue:
He was simply The Date – as in 'No, Mulder, I won't be home tonight – I have A Date.' Like a Pottery Barn vase, he was intended for decorative use only.
and:
"You look nice," Mulder said lightly, following her. "Hot date?"
"Sweltering," she answered, meaning to draw blood. Years of experience told her she had.
Scully in this story seems conflicted about everything. She both wants Mulder and wants him to be safe, but will never ask him to stay for good.
Some nights he'd just be there, looking like a dark, brooding angel and smelling like 'want' the same way Skinner smelled like 'honor' and Doggett smelled like 'loss.'
"How long?" she'd ask each time she watched him walk into her apartment and each time she watched him walk out.
..."I don't know," he told her the last time, his leather jacket creaking as he shrugged it on, then leaned over to pick up his wallet, keys, and gun from the nightstand.
Maybe that last time was when she decided, half-heartedly it seems, to try to move on and go on a date.
"Soulmates filing separately" is a quote from another Prufrock story but it seems to fit here, too.
The sense I get from this story is that they tried to be together -- the hopeful ending of "Existence" fits that. What happened between that time and when this story is set comes out in dribs and drabs.
Neither are happy with the situation but neither will come out and say so -- instead they take shots at each other, until Mulder finally says what's on his mind:
I was the platonic friend with good genes. Look but don't touch. You made the rules and I played by them. And then that changed and I got to be a real father. Now, you're still making the rules and you're still changing them and this time you won't even tell me what the hell the rules are except that you don't want me anymore!
I don't see Mulder's outburst changing things between them, however. In the end, though Scully decides to let him stay that night, the larger issue is still there, and likely always will be.
If only...if DD had decided to continue on with the final season of XF even as an occasional presence, this would have made a very interesting episode and added a realistic underlying conflict for the season. Mulder was off somewhere unspecified for unspecified reasons, never to be referred to except in the most vague and infuriating ways. Well, spilt milk and all that.
In case it wasn't clear, I love this story. I'm a happy endings kind of gal in general, as unrealistic as that is in XF, but I like this kind of story that doesn't sugar coat the difficulties and the frailties and humanity of these characters.
no subject
Whatever reasons Scully has for dating -- did her mother set her up? Did she do it simply so she could tell Mulder that she had a date? -- I think this is a clue:
He was simply The Date – as in 'No, Mulder, I won't be
home tonight – I have A Date.' Like a Pottery Barn vase, he was
intended for decorative use only.
and:
"You look nice," Mulder said lightly, following her. "Hot date?"
"Sweltering," she answered, meaning to draw blood. Years of
experience told her she had.
Scully in this story seems conflicted about everything. She both wants Mulder and wants him to be safe, but will never ask him to stay for good.
Some nights he'd just be there, looking like a dark, brooding angel
and smelling like 'want' the same way Skinner smelled like
'honor' and Doggett smelled like 'loss.'
"How long?" she'd ask each time she watched him walk into her
apartment and each time she watched him walk out.
..."I don't know," he told her the last time, his leather jacket creaking
as he shrugged it on, then leaned over to pick up his wallet, keys,
and gun from the nightstand.
Maybe that last time was when she decided, half-heartedly it seems, to try to move on and go on a date.
"Soulmates filing separately" is a quote from another Prufrock story but it seems to fit here, too.
The sense I get from this story is that they tried to be together -- the hopeful ending of "Existence" fits that. What happened between that time and when this story is set comes out in dribs and drabs.
Neither are happy with the situation but neither will come out and say so -- instead they take shots at each other, until Mulder finally says what's on his mind:
I was the platonic friend with good genes. Look but don't
touch. You made the rules and I played by them. And then that
changed and I got to be a real father. Now, you're still making the
rules and you're still changing them and this time you won't even
tell me what the hell the rules are except that you don't want me
anymore!
I don't see Mulder's outburst changing things between them, however. In the end, though Scully decides to let him stay that night, the larger issue is still there, and likely always will be.
If only...if DD had decided to continue on with the final season of XF even as an occasional presence, this would have made a very interesting episode and added a realistic underlying conflict for the season. Mulder was off somewhere unspecified for unspecified reasons, never to be referred to except in the most vague and infuriating ways. Well, spilt milk and all that.
In case it wasn't clear, I love this story. I'm a happy endings kind of gal in general, as unrealistic as that is in XF, but I like this kind of story that doesn't sugar coat the difficulties and the frailties and humanity of these characters.