TITLE:  Sara Mulder Stories: Resolution
AUTHOR:  Lara Means
E-MAIL:  LaraMeansXF@aol.com 
WEBSITE:  http://larameansxf.tripod.com
CLASSIFICATION:  SAR; MSR
RATING:  PG
ARCHIVE:  NO to Gossamer, Spookys; I'll submit directly to both.  
YES to Ephemeral.  YES to mailing list auto-archives.  Anywhere 
else, please ASK.  I'll say yes; I just like to know where the 
kids are at the end of the day.
FEEDBACK:  Please?
DATE POSTED:  01/19/02

DISCLAIMER:  I don't own them.  Heck, I don't even own my name.  
It all belongs to 20th Century Fox.  No infringement intended.

SPOILERS:  Requiem.  Alternate Reality after that.

SUMMARY:  Miss Sara Anne Mulder is overjoyed to finally announce 
the marriage of her parents...

AUTHOR'S NOTE:  This story is the sixth in the "Sara Mulder 
Stories" series.  It would probably help if you read the first 
five -- they can be found at 
http://larameansxf.tripod.com/sara_mulder_stories.htm .  This one 
is probably schmoopier than the others.  (More notes at the end.)

This story takes place on December 30 and 31, 2013.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

RESOLUTION

written by Lara Means

To: wsskinner@omega.net
From: SAM-31501@aol.com
Subject: The Wedding!!!
Date: 12/27/2013

Dear Uncle Walter,

Mom & Dad said you weren't coming to the wedding?!?  I can't 
tell you how incredibly sad this makes me.  I was really looking 
forward to seeing you -- it's been *ages*!  So I thought I'd 
write and see if I could change your mind.

Can I?  Please?

Love,
Sara

- - - - -

To: wsskinner@omega.net
From: SAM-31501@aol.com
Subject: The Wedding (again)
Date: 12/28/2013

Dear Uncle Walter,

Haven't heard from you yet.  Really thought I would by now, if 
only to say no.

Mom & Dad would really love to see you, too.  Daddy says he 
hasn't seen you since you retired from the FBI right after he 
came home.

Please come.  It would mean a lot to them.  To me too.

Love,
Sara

- - - - -

To: wsskinner@omega.net
From: SAM-31501@aol.com
Subject: It's tomorrow... please come
Date: 12/30/2013

Dear Uncle Walter,

I guess the subject line says it all.  The wedding's tomorrow.  
We all want you to be here.  Please come.  If you need a place 
to stay, we can put Uncle Charlie's kids on the couch and you 
can have the guest room.

Please?

Love,
Sara

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

I click 'send' and turn off the computer -- that's all I can do, 
really.  If he's going to come, he'll be here.  If he isn't, no 
amount of pleading from me will change his mind.

Of course, Mom and Dad don't know I've been e-mailing him.  They 
just assume that his 'no' from when they talked to him was his 
answer.  But I couldn't just give up.  Uncle Walter was so 
important to us when I was little, even after Mom married Ethan.  
He was always there for us no matter what, and dammit, I want 
him here for their wedding.

Their 'why don't we get married on New Year's Eve' wedding.

Yikes.

It's been an interesting week, that's for sure -- starting with 
Christmas morning.  They were up before I was, which was a 
surprise, and Daddy had hung mistletoe all around the house so 
he and Mom were very... affectionate all morning.  Then, after 
all the presents were unwrapped, Daddy handed me a flat, square 
box and said it was from Santa.  Uh-huh.  So I opened it, and 
inside was a folded piece of paper covered with his unique 
handwriting...

"Miss Sara Anne Mulder is overjoyed to finally announce the 
marriage of her parents..."

After all the required screaming and hugging and kissing, we 
started talking details, with the when-and-where being the top 
priority.  It was Daddy's idea to get married on New Year's Eve 
-- it's the anniversary of their first kiss.  Incredibly 
romantic, but less than a week away!

The rest of the day was spent making plans and phone calls.  By 
the time dinner was over, everything was either set or in 
motion:  they'd get married at our church here; our minister 
would perform the ceremony; they'd spend two nights at the 
Vineyard Inn as an abbreviated honeymoon; Grandma and Uncle 
Charlie's family would spend those two nights here at the house 
with me; Mom and I would go shopping the next day for dresses 
while Dad took care of the florist, caterer and car service.  
The only really difficult things we did that day were the phone 
calls to Uncle Walter and Mom's brother Bill.

The call to Uncle Walter was especially hard for Daddy, because 
they haven't stayed in touch.  Daddy always says he meant to, 
that he ought to call him just to catch up, but he never does.  
I don't think they don't care about each other anymore -- I 
think they just don't know how to be around each other.  Uncle 
Walter was their boss, but he was a friend too, and he took care 
of Mom and me when Daddy was missing.  After Dad came back we 
saw less of him -- I think it's been a couple of years now.

But he's always answered my e-mails before.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Downstairs I hear Mom on the phone with Uncle Charlie, and I 
know they're talking about Uncle Bill.  I shouldn't really call 
him that -- I've never even *met* the guy.  The Gunmen are more 
like uncles to me than he is.

"...to coerce him, Charlie.  If he doesn't want to come..."  Mom 
spots me coming down the stairs and smiles, but it's a sad 
smile.  "All I'm saying is, it's his choice."  There's a long 
pause, and Mom closes her eyes, shakes her head.  "Charlie, do 
what you want.  We'll see you guys tomorrow."  She clicks off, 
and I get the feeling she could use a hug.  So I give her one.

Dad comes in through the back door with Spooky, who's enjoying 
her last day of freedom before she has to go to the kennel 
tomorrow since Uncle Charlie's wife Charlotte is allergic to 
dogs.  He spots Mom and me, and he frowns.  "Scully?"

Mom just shakes her head and sniffles, so I answer for her.  
"She's been talking to Uncle Charlie about Bill."

"*Uncle* Bill," she corrects me.

"I've got plenty of uncles.  None of them ever made you cry 
except him."

"Sara."

Dad's tone is enough to force a resigned sigh out of me.  I head 
for the kitchen to make Mom a cup of tea, and Dad goes to her.  
I try to hear their conversation, but they've perfected whisper-
talk -- I see them standing close together, his lips moving next 
to her ear, then he kisses her forehead and she goes into their 
bedroom, closing the door behind her.  I duck back into the 
kitchen just as Dad's gaze wanders toward me.

I busy myself with the teabag and kettle until I can't stand his 
eyes boring into the back of my head anymore.  I turn around and 
he's just leaning there in the doorway, watching me.

"I expected better than that from you, Sara."  I don't respond 
-- I don't really know how to.  "He may not be like your Uncle 
Charlie, but he's still your mom's brother and she loves him, no 
matter what's gone on between them in the past.  I want you to 
treat him with respect."  I nod, and he goes on.  "And I want 
you to apologize to your mother."

"I was thinking I should do that anyway," I tell him, hesitating 
a little.  He gives me a smile and a nod.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

I tap on the bedroom door and hear her muffled "come in," so I 
do.  Mom's just coming out of the bathroom -- her eyes are still 
a little puffy.  I hold out the cup of tea I brought, like a 
peace offering.

"It's peppermint," I tell her.

She smiles a little, takes it from me.  "Thanks."

"Mom, I'm sorry.  I shouldn't have said what I did about Uncle 
Bill."

She sits on the end of the bed, motions for me to join her.  "I 
know I've never really talked to you much about him..."

"I just don't understand how he could hate Daddy so much, or how 
he could hurt you by hating him."

"Bill met Mulder under the worst possible circumstances.  I was 
dying, and as far as Bill was concerned, it was all Mulder's 
fault.  Mom and I tried, but he wouldn't listen.  He's carried 
that grudge all these years, never letting himself feel anything 
but contempt for Mulder."

"That's a long time to hate someone."

"But it wasn't *just* Mulder.  See, sweetie, Bill grew up as the 
oldest son in a Navy family, and it was drilled into him from 
the time he was a little boy that when Dad was away, he was the 
man of the house.  So he felt it was his duty to supervise the 
rest of us.  When I decided to join the FBI, Bill was more 
disapproving than my father was."

"So he's always been like this?  I'm so glad I don't have 
siblings, it's just too complicated."

Mom gives me another sad smile and slips an arm around me.  I 
rest my head on her shoulder while she strokes my hair.  "The 
last time I talked to him before this week was right after you 
were born.  I told him I had a beautiful baby girl... and all he 
could do was ask where her father was.  He never accepted that 
Mulder had been abducted -- he assumed he'd run out on us."

"But you want him to come to the wedding anyway, don't you?"

She doesn't say anything for a moment.  "Yeah.  I do."

Even if I knew how to get in touch with him, I don't know if it 
would do any good.  I can't even get Uncle Walter to answer my 
emails.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

The rest of the day is spent checking and double-checking things 
for tomorrow -- food, flowers, reservations at the Inn...  Dad 
decided he wanted to be traditional about the whole 'can't see 
the bride before the wedding' thing, so he'll drop Spooky off at 
the kennel tonight on his way to their suite at the Inn.

I think that's the only really traditional thing they're doing 
in this wedding.

Well, they're exchanging rings, too.  But that's about it.

All too soon, the car is here for Daddy.  I get Spooky into her 
carrier while the driver takes the bags to the car.  By the time 
he comes back for the dog, Mom and Dad have kissed so many times 
I've lost count.  One last kiss and a whispered "I love you," 
then Daddy gives me a big hug.

"Take care of Mom tonight," he tells me.

"I will."  From the way they're looking at each other, even 
while Dad's hugging me, you'd think they'd be apart for another 
twelve years instead of just twenty-four hours.  "Hey," I say as 
I playfully poke him in the stomach, "we'll see you at the 
church tomorrow, right?"

That gets a laugh from him.  "Right, right..."  He kisses me 
again, and I get my own whispered "I love you."

"Love you too, Daddy."

Mom and I watch out the window as he gets in the car and it 
drives away.  We sit there for a long time, holding hands and 
watching the light snowfall.  We do have things to do tonight -- 
our hair, our nails, girly stuff like that -- but neither of us 
is in a big hurry to move from our spot at the window.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

"Sara, can I ask you something?" Mom says as she braids my 
hair.  It's a little damp still, so it'll be all wavy for 
tomorrow.  We're sitting on their bed, having decided we'll 
sleep together tonight so we only have to change one bed for our 
guests tomorrow.

"Isn't this usually the other way around?" I ask, and she 
laughs.

"When you first got in touch with your father back in July... is 
this what you hoped would happen?  That we'd get married 
someday?"

"I hoped... I wanted us all to be together.  The three of us.  
It didn't matter to me if you got married or not."

"Did that change later on?  As you got to know him?"

"Of course not," I tell her, then I reconsider.  I always tell 
my mother the truth.  "Well... when he told me he'd asked and 
you said no.  It changed then.  Like when you're told you can't 
have something, that's all you want."

Mom nods and finishes up with my hair.  "Scoot under the covers, 
and I'll check the alarm."

"Don't want to oversleep on your wedding day, huh?" I grin, 
crawling under the comforter.  Mom joins me, rubbing her cold 
feet against my legs, and I let out a yelp.  She did the same 
thing the last time we slept together -- the night of Ethan's 
funeral.  Then, it was to comfort each other.  Tonight, I think 
it's a mother-daughter bonding thing.  Or a bookend maybe, an 
ending and a beginning.

"Mom, can I ask you a question now?"

"Sure, sweetie."

"Is this what *you* hoped for?"

She doesn't answer right away, just tightens her arms around me.  
When she finally does answer, I hear the tears in her voice.

"I didn't dare hope... but I wished.  I wished very hard...  
That he was still out there.  That he still loved me.  That he 
would love you.  That he would want this."

"And he did."

Sniffling, Mom says, "Yes, he did."

"Don't cry, Mom, your eyes'll get all puffy."

"Can't have that," she laughs.  "Night, sweetie."

"Night, Mom.  Love you."

"Love you too."

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

We're both up before the alarm goes off -- no danger of 
oversleeping here.  Still, it seems like we're barely out of bed 
before stuff starts happening -- food deliveries, flower 
deliveries, people deliveries...

Grandma, Uncle Charlie, Aunt Charlotte, Kevin and Jessica arrive 
around noon -- and after all the hugs have been given out, Mom 
and I realize there are three more people with them.

"Tara?"  Uncle Bill's wife.  Mom goes to her, throws her arms 
around her, and soon they're both crying.  Mom's going to end up 
with puffy eyes after all, but I guess it's okay, since they 
haven't seen each other in something like fourteen or fifteen 
years.

I prefer to look at the tall blond guy standing next to her, 
even though he's probably a cousin.

Mom and Aunt Tara finally separate, and introductions are made 
-- sure enough, Tall Blond Guy is my cousin Matthew.  There's a 
smaller ten-year-old version of him too, James, who Mom's never 
met.  But no Uncle Bill.

"I hope it's okay that we came..."

"Of course it's okay -- Tara, God, it's been so long..."

"I'm so sorry I couldn't get Bill to come..."

Mom shakes her head.  "His choice, Tara."

"He can be so damn stubborn sometimes..."

"Just like his father."  This from Grandma.  And this is what I 
love about my Grandma -- she always speaks her mind.  I go over 
and give her a hug.

"Dana, I thought we could put Tara and Jessica in the guest 
room, and the boys can sleep on the sofas," Uncle Charlie says.  
I like Uncle Charlie -- he's hyper-organized, like me.  He and I 
had already decided that Grandma would sleep with me, and he and 
Aunt Charlotte would take Mom and Dad's room.

Mom nods her agreement with this change in plans, then hugs Aunt 
Tara again as I begin to show people to their assigned places.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

The day only gets more hectic the closer we get to six o'clock.  
By the time the car comes for us at five, Mom's so nervous she's 
trembling.  I thrive in this sort of chaos, so I take charge of 
getting her together and ready to go to the church.  As I'm on 
my way out the door, Grandma pulls me into a tight hug.

"You did it, baby girl.  I didn't think it was possible, but you 
did it."

I give her a shrug.  "Nah, I just helped things along."

Grandma kisses my cheek, which means I'll have to check it for 
lipstick when we get to the church.  I turn back to shout a last 
instruction to Uncle Charlie about what to do if the car isn't 
there for them in half an hour, then we're on our way.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

It's a good thing they do lots of weddings at our church -- 
there are special rooms set aside for the couple to get ready.  
I get dressed in the bride's room, then get Mom started, then go 
off in search of Dad.  When I don't find him in the groom's 
room, I start to worry a little.  It's irrational, I know, but 
still...

Finally I go out the back door of the church and there he is, 
not wearing a coat, hands shoved into his pants pockets, pacing 
the gazebo.  He looks up as I come outside and gives me a 
lopsided grin -- it must've been that grin that made Mom fall in 
love with him.

I step up under the gazebo roof and just watch as he continues 
to pace.  We're getting another little dusting of snow, and it's 
just plain cold out here, so I tell him, "You know, getting 
pneumonia on your wedding day isn't a really good idea."

"Hey, I've been to both the North and South Poles, and survived 
just fine."

"There's always a first time."

He smiles and opens his arms, enveloping me.  "You look 
beautiful, sweetheart."

"Thanks.  I'm freezing."

Doesn't work -- he just holds me tighter.  But that's okay... 
for a few more minutes, anyway.

"In case I forget later... thank you, Sara."

"For what?"

"For July eighth."  I draw back a little and look up at him, 
puzzled.  "The day I first got an e-mail from my little girl."

"Daddy..."  I'm starting to tear up a little, which I really 
don't want to do right now...

"And for July twentieth -- the day we finally met.  And for 
March fifteenth, 2001..."

"The day I was born," I whisper, and he nods.

I let the tears come now -- I couldn't stop them anyway -- and 
he brushes them away with his thumbs.  He presses his lips to my 
forehead for a long while, then murmurs, "I love you so much, 
Sara..."

"I love you too, Daddy."

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

With everybody tucked away -- Dad pacing the groom's room, Mom 
fidgeting at her dressing table -- I stand in the vestibule with 
Reverend Barbara and greet our guests.  My friends and their 
parents all say they're looking forward to getting to know Mom, 
and Dad's friend Dr. Newman tells me to remind her to call him 
in a few days about maybe coming to work for him at the hospital 
here.

Grandma and the rest of the family finally arrive -- the car was 
late, Aunt Charlotte tells me, and it hits me again that if she 
ever loosened up enough we could call her Aunt Charlie, but she 
doesn't have much of a sense of humor.  Several of my friends, 
especially Lindsey McCallister, stare open-mouthed at Matthew -- 
understandable, because he's a definite babe -- and I know 
they'll all be insufferable at the party later.

"Hey, kiddo," I hear and immediately spin around -- the Gunmen 
are here!  I throw my arms around Uncle Frohike, surprised to 
find I'm almost as tall as he is now.  "Wow, look at you," he 
says, holding me at arm's length.  "You're all grown up!"

"Yeah, but you're not," I tell him with a smile.  He's my 
favorite of the Gunmen -- Uncle John always seems afraid he'll 
do or say something wrong around me, and about all Langly and I 
have in common is a love of computers.  Uncle Fro sort of looked 
after us while Daddy was missing, a lot like Uncle Walter did, 
but he also wanted to be a friend to me, and always treated me 
like a person instead of a kid.

I say hi to Langly and Uncle John and they go on into the 
chapel.  Uncle Frohike looks at me and smiles.  "You really do 
look gorgeous, Sara."

"Thanks.  Mom picked it out.  Wait'll you see her, Uncle Fro, 
she's so beautiful."

"She's always been beautiful.  They nervous?"

"Well, she's fidgeting and he's pacing, so yeah, they're 
nervous."

"Won't be long now.  I better go keep Langly and Byers out of 
trouble."  He hugs me again, kisses my cheek, and whispers, 
"Congratulations, kiddo."

He heads into the chapel -- so does Reverend Barbara, closing 
the doors behind her.  It's almost time.

I knock on the groom's room door and Daddy comes out.  Then I 
knock on the bride's room door -- Mom comes out, and like I told 
Uncle Frohike, she's beautiful.  Radiant, really.  Her dress is 
perfect, a cobalt blue silk that makes her eyes sparkle.  Daddy 
can't take his eyes off her.  Neither can I.

Until the outer door opens.

His hair is whiter than I remember, and there are more wrinkles 
around his eyes, but it's him.  It's really him.

"Sorry I'm late," Uncle Walter says.

He looks a little apprehensive, like he thinks we might send him 
away because he didn't tell us he was coming.  Daddy moves 
first, reaching out his hand.  Uncle Walter takes it, then Daddy 
pulls him close and hugs him.

"You're right on time, Walter," he says, and they stand together 
like that for a long time.  Mom joins them after a minute, 
hugging him too and adding a kiss on the cheek.

"Dana, you... you look..."  Mom squeezes his hand as he trails 
off, then he looks at me.  "Hi."

"Hi," I whisper with a smile.  I'm trying not to cry because 
I've used up all my tissues, but I have to at least give him a 
hug.

Uncle Walter leans down and murmurs, "I'm so sorry..."

I shake my head.  "Later, okay?  Let's get you seated."

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

With Uncle Walter seated near the back, we finally open the 
doors and enter the chapel -- Mom on my left, Dad on my right, 
me holding their hands.  When Reverend Barbara asks who gives 
this couple to be married, I say "I do," give them both a kiss, 
and join their hands.

I sit next to Grandma for the rest of the ceremony, which is 
simple and elegant.  Their vows are heartfelt and emotional -- I 
don't think there's anybody in the chapel who isn't crying.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

The party is rowdy -- I never knew grown-ups could be so loud!  
But everybody's having a great time.

The Gunmen are actually being social, which is highly unlike 
them, but I figure they're doing it for Mom and Dad.  Uncle Fro 
and Reverend Barbara seem to be hitting it off really well.

My friends are falling all over Matthew, who just looks bored.  
I chat with Aunt Tara, who seems really nice and a little 
embarrassed over the whole Uncle Bill thing.  I find out that 
they live in Annapolis, that Uncle Bill teaches at the Naval 
Academy, and that she really likes Daddy.

Mom and Dad spend a long time with Uncle Walter, talking and 
hugging and talking some more.  When they finally head off to 
visit with some of our other guests, I follow him into the 
kitchen.

"Hi," I say.

He's pouring a cup of coffee and turns around when he's done.  
"Hi."

"I'm glad you came, Uncle Walter."

"I'm sorry I didn't answer your e-mails, Sara, I... I had some 
thinking to do."

"It's okay.  You're here, that's what matters."

"I wasn't sure I'd be welcome, despite what you all said.  I 
feel like I just remind them of the past, things they'd rather 
forget."

"Know what I remember most?"  He shakes his head.  "The zoo."

"Sara, you were three years old when I took you to the zoo."

"The monkeys scared me, and you picked me up and held me, made 
me feel safe.  Nobody but Mom had ever made me feel safe before 
-- but you did."  I put my arms around his waist and hold him 
tight, and after a second or two he hugs me back.  "You've 
always made me feel safe, Uncle Walter.  I miss that.  I miss 
you."

He kisses the top of my head and whispers, "I miss you too."

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

It's about eleven-thirty when I wander upstairs to the study in 
search of Mom and Dad.  I find them sitting together on the 
leather couch, Mom wrapped up in Dad's arms.  They move over so 
I can sit with them, and Mom puts her arms around me.

"We're going to be leaving soon," Mom tells me.

"Before midnight?"

"Before the New Year's Eve kiss," Dad says.

"We don't want a fuss when we leave, so we'll just slip out the 
back.  Say good night for us?" Mom asks.

I nod and stand up, holding out my hands for them.  "You'd 
better put in an appearance before you go, or else you won't be 
able to sneak out."

"We're not sneaking out," Dad protests, but he grins as he says 
it, which means we both know exactly what they're doing -- 
sneaking out so that their first married New Year's Eve kiss is 
a private one.  My dad can be such a romantic sometimes.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

As it gets closer to midnight, the servers we hired start to 
pass out the champagne and sparkling cider.  I spot Grandma 
sitting all by herself on the sofa, so I join her.  It's been a 
*very* long day, so I curl up on the sofa and lay my head in her 
lap.

"Tired, sweetheart?"  I give her a sort of half-nod/half-yawn, 
and she combs her fingers through my hair.  "Me too.  But a good 
kind of tired."

I hear someone, Uncle Fro probably, wonder loudly where Mom and 
Dad are.  Somebody else, I think it's Uncle Charlie, starts the 
midnight countdown.  From where I'm lying on the sofa I can just 
see out the window to the back porch.

They're standing in the shadows, very close.  He leans down, she 
stretches up...

Five... four... three... two...

One.

I smile.

Happy New Year.

END

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

AUTHOR'S NOTES:  Dedicated to Jean Helms -- thanks for your 
gentle stalking.  (I still owe you e-mail from the last one, and 
I hope you'll forgive me for that.)  Major props to jeri, Mel 
and Lori for outstanding beta services.  Thanks to IWTB and the 
Secret Squirrels for constant inspiration and support.

The feedback I've gotten on these stories has been amazing, and 
has sustained me through some difficult times.  Thank you all 
for that.  I have to say, though, that I'm honestly not sure 
where I want to take this series now.  I may do a honeymoon fic, 
I may jump ahead a few years into their lives together, or I 
might let this be the end.  I just don't know right now.  So I 
think I'll let it sit for now and concentrate on some other 
stories I want to write.  Thanks again to everyone for your 
support and encouragement.