Title: Picking Up the Pieces
Author: PixieDustBunny
Email: PixieDustBunny@hotmail.com
Disclaimer: Not mine.
Spoilers: None, except for maybe Dana's barrenness. Oops! I just told you. Now you have no excuse but to read this!
Timeline: Sometime after Sixth Extinction (I and II) but before the seventh season, though it takes place years later.
Category: Scully/Other Mulder/Scully MiSA
Genre: Angst, Romance, Drama
Summary: Mulder and Scully haven't seen each other in five years. And, in consistency with the X Files, their reunion is an uncommon one.
February 27, 2004
J Edgar Hoover Building
Second Floor, Violent Crimes
"Assistant Director," the secretary intercommed her superior, "Agent Jackson is here for his eleven thirty appointment."
"Thank you, Kate. Please send him in," the Assistant Director replied.
"Yes, sir," Kate replied. To the agent standing in front of her, Kate said, "The Assistant Director will see you now."
"Thanks, Kate," Agent Jackson replied.
"You're welcome, Dan," the secretary replied to her friend. "Good luck with your expense report."
"I need it," Daniel Jackson replied with a laugh.
"Good morning, Agent Jackson."
"Good morning, sir. I have my expense reports that you requested," Agent Jackson replied nervously as he handed him a manila envelope.
The man behind the desk took his time going over the papers. Agent Jackson sat quietly, staring at his hands folded in his lap. When he finally spoke, Daniel jumped, caught off guard.
"Everything seems to be in order."
Daniel sighed, relieved.
"Now, I called you in hear to discuss the matter of your partner. Because Agent Martin will be on maternity leave for the next six weeks, we have decided to temporarily assign you a new partner."
"But sir," Agent Jackson protested, "Due to the special circumstances surrounding the cases we investigate, it would take six weeks to just train a new agent. These are not run-of-the-mill violent crimes."
The man in front of him smiled sagely, "Agent Jackson, you know as well as I do that it only took me two weeks to train you for the X Files. You'll be fine. We only have six agents working on those cases, we can't afford to lose one for almost two months."
Agent Jackson smiled, knowing that his words rang true.
"Anyway, I doubt this agent will take much training. His specialty is satanic rituals and the occult, so he should be relatively familiar with the paranormal. You will meet him tomorrow at one. And don't forget, you still have three weeks before Agent Martin goes on her leave."
"Yes, sir."
As Agent Jackson closed the door behind him, AD Mulder began rubbing his temples methodically, trying to ward off the impending headache. The Violent Crimes Unit, of which Mulder was the head, was up for its annual audit. He had to makes sure all 60 of the agents below him had flawless account records. He had already been working on it for a week, with only a third of the names on his list checked off. He buzzed Kate.
"Kate, can you hold all my calls?"
"Yes, sir."
Mulder took an economy size bottle of ibuprofen out of this top left drawer and swallowed three of them without any liquids. He rested his head on his desk for ten minutes before checking his email. Interoffice memos….Reminders of impending deadlines…Two from the Lone Gunmen.
He opened the first one and read it with a smile on his face.
It read:
"Mulder,
This e-mail may not be secure. Need to talk tonight. Eight o'clock. Our office.
Frohike"
He laughed and moved on to the most recent email.
It read:
"Just a clue from a friend to a friend about a friend. Should check on Scully.
457 Franklin St.
Hampton, VA
Byers"
The second email disturbed him. He had not seen or heard from Scully in over four and a half years. He had no idea what this was about. He hit the first speed dial on his phone. It rang twice before someone picked up.
"Lone Gunmen Office."
"It's Mulder. Turn off the machine, Frohike."
"It's off," Frohike replied.
"Turn it off," Mulder said, not believing Frohike for an instant. Frohike sighed and Mulder heard the small man scurrying across the room and the telltale click of the recording machine.
"I need to talk to Byers."
"You coming tonight?"
"Yeah, but I need to talk to Byers now."
"John Byers, here."
"Hey Byers, what's up with the email you sent me?" Mulder asked, skipping small talk. Mulder never was one for small talk.
"Just what it says."
"The line is secure, Byers," Mulder replied, mistaking Byers' ambiguity for distrust.
"I'm not telling you any more than what is in the email. You'll find out when you get there."
"Even if I talk to you in person?"
"AD Mulder, that is all you need to know."
"Byers, drop the AD. It was bad enough when you called me Agent Mulder!"
"Sorry."
"Anyway, how'd you find out?"
"I'll tell you after you see her. You will go, right?" Byers replied.
"Byers, I haven't talked to her in almost five years. We don't even exchange Christmas cards. It would just be awkward."
"But you'll go?" Byers asked expectantly.
"Yeah, I'll go."
