The Letter

Even if it's not an artifact, one beautifully handwritten page can completely change so many lives. First chapter: Mrs. Frederick. Tag to Reset, major spoilers for the season ending. Multi-chapter teamfic/character study. Rated K.

Disclaimer: Nothing is mine, I'm just playing with them for a little while because the season's over and I'm already in withdrawal.

Hello again! Getting tired of me yet? I certainly hope not, 'cuz I've got a lot more fics in my head just begging to come out… if people want them. This is the beginning of what will hopefully become my very first published multi-chapter fic, though in truth it is little more than a series of related oneshots. I am already thinking about a sequel that shows 'what happened after', but that will depend on the reception this fic gets.

This idea was born while I watched in shock and sadness as Myka left in the last scene of the season finale. Each chapter will show a different character's reactions to Myka's resignation, beginning with Mrs. Frederick and eventually including the entire team. Barring lousy traffic/reviews (hint, hint), I can pretty much guarantee at least one post a week.

Thanks for reading, and don't forget to leave a review on your way out! Reviews will make me update quicker!

Akaylah

Important Note: For those who have not seen the Season 1 episode 'Breakdown', Mrs. Frederick's first name is Irene.

"I understand you wanted to see me."

She spoke gently and quietly in an effort to appear as non-threatening as possible. She knew very well that all her agents found her quite threatening (and, to own the truth, she had not discouraged that impression), but right then Myka did not need to be threatened.

Agent Bering's sudden, broad smile upon seeing her faded just as quickly as it came, and she began to fumble for words. After a moment, she gave up and simply handed her an envelope. "Could you give this to Artie, please?" she asked softly, fidgeting with her hands.

Irene stared at the unmarked envelope for a long moment. Though she was not expecting any such action from Myka, she knew what the envelope contained the instant she saw it. Concerned, she lifted her gaze to Myka's eyes.

The businesslike mask had dropped, and she saw an agonized mixture of pain and self-doubt swirling through her agent's meticulous mind. It was the look of a perfectionist who had, in her own mind, utterly and spectacularly failed. She had seen that look before on other faces: defeated faces. It at once alarmed and deeply saddened her. Here was a brilliant, uniquely talented woman who had allowed one mistake to completely destroy her fragile faith in herself.

"Myka," she began gently, "you can't blame yourself. It could have happened to any one of us."

"But it didn't. It happened to me," she answered immediately in a voice grown cold and bitter with self-reproach.

"You talked her down. You saved us all," she replied, frustrated by Agent Bering's complete focus on her mistake while minimizing her essential role in righting that mistake.

"It should never have come to that. I put the entire world in jeopardy. I can't take that chance again … and neither can you."

Irene looked one last time at Myka Bering and at last understood how H.G. Wells' betrayal had driven her to that point. It wasn't bitterness over her mistake; it was the utter lack of confidence that the same thing would not happen again.

As Myka turned away, Irene wanted to say so many things: how good she was as an agent, how this error in judgment had made her wiser, how much she was needed. But she knew that nothing she said would change the real problem.

She knew that an agent that had no confidence in her own judgment in the field would quickly become a liability, a danger to herself and to her team. If that happened, it would completely destroy Myka.

She had to let Myka go.

So there it is! Do you like? Hate? Somewhere in between? Tell me! Reviews feed the hungry muse!

I promise next chapter will have less recap in it, but doing this scene seemed essential to lay the groundwork for the other chapters. Next chapter will probably be Claudia's POV. I haven't finished writing them yet, but I can pretty much promise that each chapter will be longer than the last. So please forgive the baby chapter.

This chapter was extraordinarily difficult to write, because Mrs. Frederick hasn't had as much screen time as some of the other characters. I put in a lot of work nailing down her thought/speech patterns. Did I succeed? If you think Mrs. F was off in any way, please tell me. I'm trying to get the characters right before I attempt a more involved story. Thanks! Nice day to ya!

XD