Title - Transformation
Author - Jaimee Kidder
Email - specialagentdana@aol.com
Rating - G
Classification - SHA
Spoilers - Requiem
Keywords - none
Summary - Now who's being paranoid? A post-Requiem fic.
Disclaimer: yada yada yada...I don't own Mulder and Scully. I wish I was Scully and owned Mulder, but such is not the case. They all belong to Chris Carter, 1013, and Fox. But I bet you all knew that ;)
Author's note - This is just a little fic I had in my head to write ever since Requiem. I don't think it's my best work, admittedly, but here it is anyway (maybe someday I'll rework it). Reviews are pleaded for :)
* * *
Somehow, she was back at work. It had been hard convincing Skinner to let her back on the X-Files, knowing she was pregnant, but she had to keep working. Even if it was mostly desk work. It didn't matter. It was the only thing she could think to do.
It had been three weeks since it happened. It. She couldn't bring herself, even now, to try to understand what had happened to her partner. She had thought about it, detachedly, clinically, professionally. She had gone over Skinner's words, brokenly describing events she would have thought impossible seven years ago, countless times. She had even taken a two-day trip out to Bellefleur to search the woods. Nothing. Not even the feeling of being knocked back that she had had before. And there was no one there she could talk to; all the abductees were gone and stubborn silence ruled throughout the town. But to try to understand it... It would be an admission of helplessness, and that, she knew, would be too much for her to bear.
Three weeks. She couldn't believe it.
She was sitting at the desk, thinking, her thoughts spinning around in circles so fast that when the phone rang, she jumped visibly and had a hard time remembering what was going on. She suddenly saw what her eyes had been staring at while her brain had been worked -- Mulder's nameplate, sitting in the same place it always had been in for the last seven years on the desk. She looked at it, reality battering at her soul for the thousandth time in the last few weeks.
The phone rang again, and she quickly looked away from the nameplate and picked up the phone, forcing herself back to at least exterior calmness, and trying to ignore the hopeful thought that maybe it could be....
"Scully."
"Agent Scully." Skinner. Of course, she thought wryly. That really wasn't fair; he was their -- her -- biggest ally, now more than ever, but she had hoped. Hoped and lost.
"Yes sir," she said softly.
She could hear him take a deep breath, and tensed. Whatever he had to say, he was reluctant to say it.
"Scully, I need you to be in my office in an hour."
"Why?"
"Because," he said with a small sigh, "you've got a new partner."
* * *
Hoping she looked commanding enough, Scully walked briskly down the corridor towards Skinner's office. She was amazed by the sharp, clear sound her heels made on the floor when the hallway was empty. Maybe whoever was in Skinner's office would hear and be intimidated, at least a little. She was in no mood for Mrs. Spooky jokes or knowing smiles.
She walked into the waiting area of the office of the Assistant Director, and right on cue, the office door opened and Skinner poked his head out. "Agent Scully! Come in."
She walked gingerly to the door, but stood straight when she reached it and walked in, coolly summing up the man who sat in the chair in front of Skinner's desk. The chair Mulder usually sat in, her mind interjected, but she shoved the thought away and went back to appraising the person in front of her.
He stood and proffered a hand, and she took it suspiciously. "Agent Scully...I'm Matthew Cahill. I've been assigned to work with you."
She felt a chill as she shook this stranger's hand. So he thought he was going to work with her, did he? How could this be happening? She was perfectly capable of working on her own. She could certainly do a better job alone than she could dragging this greenie along with her wherever she went. And such an interesting choice of words, her subconscious prompted. She smiled inwardly all of a sudden, and folded her arms. She knew the lines. She could handle this.
"Well," she said, smiling slightly as she looked first at Skinner, then returned her gaze to the kid in front of her. "Isn't it nice to be suddenly so highly regarded." Skinner looked at her quizzically, but settled back in his chair. She glanced around the room. "So, who did you tick off to get stuck with this detail...Cahill?"
He smiled indulgently, and Scully couldn't hold back a wash of disgust. Smug, self-assured idiot. He has no idea... "Actually, I'm looking forward to working with you," he said, figuring, she guessed, that she would be complimented. And he was playing right into her hands. "I've heard a lot about you."
"Oh really?" she said, feigning curiosity. Somewhere in the back of her mind, she realized it would be best not to continue. Skinner probably wouldn't like the 'sent to spy on me' thing. Just as that thought crossed her mind, Skinner stood. "Agent Cahill, would you mind stepping outside for a moment? I need to talk to Agent Scully."
"Certainly," he said pleasantly. She ignored him as he left. "Sir," she said the instant the door had closed, "Why do I have to get him? What do I even need a partner at all? That kid...he doesn't care about the X-files. Sending him to spy on me?" she finished, deciding that it worked after all and ignoring the quiet voice that said she was acting paranoid.
"Scully..." Skinner began with a sigh. She fixed him with a glare that could've pinned a lesser man to the wall. He looked down, and she advanced, knowing she'd won that round, to the desk.
"Listen to me, Scully," he said after a moment. "For the time being, at least, Agent Mulder is gone." She looked down quickly, hoping to keep him from seeing the hurt that had suddenly filled her eyes. He continued, softly. "You're one of my best agents. Working alone would only waste your abilities. I'm not trying to replace Mulder, but... you have to realize -- the cases keep coming in, and while finding him will always be your -- and my -- top priority, we have to remember the rest of the cases."
"I know," she said, surprised by her calm. She couldn't say anything else, despite the thousand thoughts and feelings that filled her mind, and for a moment, mutual silence and frustrated, quietly angry sadness bridging the gap between them. After a minute, she stood to leave, and Skinner didn't stop her. She walked out into the hall and got into the elevator.
The doors opened after a minute onto the lowest floor of the building and she walked out to the X-files office, operating completely on autopilot until she could sit down at the desk again. She was dreading being alone with her thoughts again but knew it was necessary to do so. At least until she could get it somewhat sorted out in her mind.
"Agent Scully!"
She stared with a shock at Agent Cahill, who was sitting behind the desk -- Mulder's desk -- as though he belonged there. He noticed her surprise. "Is something wrong, Agent Scully?"
"No," she quickly amended, trying to go back to the autopilot as she dealt with this new threat. Of course, he'd have to share the office. They wouldn't build a new room just for this dumb grinning idiot. Besides, Skinner said it was only temporary. "What are you looking at?" she said, gesturing to the open file on the desk.
"Oh, this is the case Skinner assigned us." Us. The word had a strange echo in Scully's head. She'd have to work on cases with him, too; she'd have to work with him every day, she'd have to confer with him and share theories, she'd have to trust him --
No. She would never trust him. She could never trust another the way she trusted Mulder. Never again.
She walked to the desk and took the proffered file, then began flipping through the documents and pictures. The case was in Virginia, thank goodness; she wouldn't have to suffer though a four-hour car trip with this golden boy.
"Well," she said after an awkward silence, "I'm going home to pack so we can leave tomorrow. I suggest you do the same."
"Okay," he said, not getting up from the desk. She eyed him suspiciously for a second, then turned to leave, refusing to let herself think any more.
* * *
She had been thinking about the case all night, and finally she had hammered out a theory. Something Mulder would be proud of. She was gleefully waiting for the right moment to spring it on the kid.
They were driving down the interstate. Now seemed like a good time.
"So, Agent Cahill, do you have any theories about what we may be looking at with this case?" she asked crisply, yet mildly interested.
He glanced at her, but then returned his eyes to the road. "No, I haven't had much time to think about it." He cleared his throat. "I assume you have?"
"Actually, yes." She smiled inwardly. "The victim was found, apparently undisturbed, lying in the center of his yard instead of his bed, where he had been that night, correct?"
"That's right."
"Completely drained of blood."
He nodded slowly.
"But there was no evidence of a struggle; no blood anywhere to be found in the area; no signs of a break-in."
"Correct. To be honest, I can't understand how you could have come up with a theory in such a short amount of time," he said questioningly.
"Well, I have," she said confidently, "And I'll tell you how it goes."
She took a deep breath.
"As you may -- or may not -- know, the scenario described in the case file is remarkably similar to that of a typical cattle mutilation." She heard a quiet groan from Cahill, but dismissed it and continued. "I think the first thing we should do when we get there is check around for any reports of UFO sightings in the area." She glanced at him. He rolled his eyes; obviously he didn't see her looking at him.
She suddenly felt angry. Angry with him for the frustration he was causing her, angry that he had immediately written off her theory without even considering it. Angry with Skinner for assigning her a partner in the first place. And...angry at herself, for being the hardhearted skeptic all those years.
"I'd like you to check up on the victim," she added, a harsh edge clinging to her voice. "Find out if he was a previous abductee--"
"You can't be serious," he interjected. "An alien abductee?"
"That's right." Her tone was icy cold.
"You know, I didn't believe them. When they told me I'd be working with some agent who believed in aliens...I thought, no one so respected by the A.D. could be so..."
"Spooky?" she asked softly.
"Don't play games with me," he commanded. She was furious now. "What did you say?"
"Oh, come on, Dana--"
"Scully," she corrected dangerously. He was over the line now.
"I think you're crazy," he said, quietly condemning her with his words. She ignored him, and stony silence hung over the car as they pulled off the interstate and found a motel.
The parking lot was adjacent to a bus stop, and as soon as he parked, Scully got out, walked around to the back of the car, took her suitcase out, and walked away.
"Where are you going?" he demanded.
She turned around, her words slicing frostily through the air. "Since you obviously have so much more talent and experience at solving these cases, and I'm just crazy, I'll just let you have the case." His eyes widened a fraction. "I'm going back to D.C. now. Have fun."
The bus pulled up just as she reached the stop, and she boarded it without a second glance behind her. After another few seconds, it drove off.
Matthew Cahill stood, dumbfounded, in the parking lot, watching the bus drive away.
* * *
The door to the basement office opened. Scully glanced up quickly.
"Agent Scully," Skinner's said. She glanced down. "What was that little stunt you pulled?" Oddly enough, he sounded faintly amused.
"You mean with Cahill?"
"That's exactly what I mean."
She couldn't hold back a small chuckle. "Oh, I get it. Is he back?"
"Yes. And no, he didn't solve the case. In fact, he made absolutely no progress." There was a pause.
Scully drew a deep breath. "Sir--"
"Forget it, Scully. He's off the X-files."
"Thank you," she murmured sincerely.
Another pause. Skinner walked closer to the desk. "The section chief put in another request for a partner for you. I want you to know, Scully, that I turned it down the moment I saw it."
She nodded gratefully, and after a moment, asked, "Is there--"
"No," he shook his head. "I haven't heard anything."
She sighed deeply, and closed her eyes. When she opened them again, Skinner was looking at her, a concerned expression on his face.
"I'll be all right," she said softly.
Skinner was quiet. "I want you to know, Scully," he said after a pause, "We will find him. Somehow. I promise you."
Her voice was a whisper. "I know." She looked down at the desk, her eyes locking on Mulder's nameplate again. Skinner turned to leave.
The door closed behind him, leaving her with her sadness. Scully rested her head on the desk and cried. Alone.
* * *