Black and White By Lisa Disclaimer: I have no affiliation with the creators of these characters and I don't own them. This is written for non-profit purposes. Note: I also have no medical knowledge so I'm making it all up :) Summary: Monica's the subject of an unusual experiment. DRR

Doggett had to stand back as Scully and the optic specialist sat on either side of Monica's bed, preparing to take off the blindfold.

"Monica I want you to close your eyes," Scully started. "They closed?"

"Yes," Monica replied, sounding nervous. After all, she didn't even realise she was wearing a blindfold.

"I'm going to take it off, and you'll open your eyes very slowly okay?"

"Okay."

"Just relax," the optic specialist added as Scully removed the blindfold. The eyelids were bruised, but it was light bruising, ones that were healing.

"Open slowly," Scully started. Monica hesitated but Scully took her hand. John watched nervously in the background. She opened her eyes cautiously, her eyelids flickering. Once she had them open she was bombarded with questions and answered them as she heard them.

Scully watched as she looked over at John.

"Where are they?" she asked. Doggett walked up to her.

"Who?"

"Scully. The other doctor."

"You can't see them?" She shook her head.

"I can only hear them."

Scully and the doctor exchanged worried looks.

"You can see the rest of this room?" John asked. Monica nodded. John took her hand and reached it out to touch Scully's cheek. Monica could obviously feel something.

"Who's that?"

"Scully, Monica," Scully replied, taking her hand. Monica pushed back in her bed.

"What's happened?" she asked.

"It might just take some time," the specialist said. "I'm going to shine a light in your eyes to have a look okay?" Monica nodded, her eyes watering profusely as the light was shone directly in them. "They're bloodshot, but that should heal. We're going to put drops in your eyes and we're going to get you to just rest, see if it improves within another day."

"Okay," Monica replied, hesitant.

The specialist handed Scully the drops.

"I'll be back later," he said.

"Thankyou doctor," Scully said, handing the drops to Doggett. "You might be better off doing this - She can see you." Monica watched as a shadow passed from Scully's hand to John's, and became a small eyedropper.

*

"Is she really gone?" Monica asked that night after Scully had said goodbye to her. She had felt someone take her hand, but still could not see her friend.

"Yes," John replied. "You think this is a stage in your recovery?'

"What happened to me?"

"You were drugged, taken to a room where you were submitted to bright light impulses that would have ordinarily sent you blind and brought back to us."

"I wasn't hurt or anything any other way?"

"It doesn't look like they touched you. Watched the medics look you over myself."

"So why did they want to hurt my eyes?"

"I don't think they did."

"Why not?"

"That blindfold, you could see when you had it on. It seemed to be healing your eyes."

"Do you still have it?" he nodded. "You think if I put it on for a bit longer it'll help me see everyone else?"

"Scully's taken it to the lab." Monica sighed. "We may as well put these drops in eh?"

"I guess."

Doggett tilted her head back and held her lid open, preparing to drop in the liquid.

"Doggett stop!" Scully called from the door. John and Monica both jumped. The drops had fallen on Monica's cheeks and John wiped them off quickly, in case it caused some kind of reaction. Scully ran over to them, looking into Monica's eyes.

"What is it Scully?" John asked. Monica looked around, scared. She couldn't see Scully, and only knew that she was close.

"Monica don't move your head all right? Don't move it."

"Okay," Monica replied to a Scully that seemed much closer than usual. Suddenly she felt something touch her eye, and pulled back. John grabbed her.

"It's okay, Reyes, there's something in your eye," he said. Monica seemed to calm down.

"I didn't get it," Scully said. "But it's there."

"What's there?" Monica asked.

"A layer of something over your eye."

"What is it?"

"I'm not sure, but it's not a normal contact lens. I can't take it out. I want to operate. Straight away. Once we find out what it is we'll be able to look at who could have obtained it."

"Wait," John said. "What if it's part of her eye now? You can't take it off." Scully sighed. She hadn't thought of that.

"Okay, first thing's first-" she stopped as the door opened.

"Agents," Skinner stated, walking in. "Reyes, how are you?"

"Doing okay sir," Monica gasped. She couldn't see Skinner either.

"Can you see me?"

"No."

"What about the TV?" She glanced up at the television and nodded as they turned it on.

"Yeah, I can see it."

Skinner put in the tape.

"This was delivered to Follmer's house."

"Brad?"

"I think this is someone close to home-"

Skinner pressed play. Monica watched carefully, her mouth opened. The picture showed her sitting on her kitchen bench, John standing opposite her as they kissed.

"Jesus Christ!" Doggett exclaimed. He turned to Monica.

"That's not real," Monica stammered. "It never happened."

"It must have," Skinner replied. Monica shook her head.

"No, it never happened, it's-" She stopped, her face burning as the video continued to get more graphic.

"What is it Monica?" Scully asked. Monica couldn't seem to get the words out. "Agent Doggett?" she tried instead.

"No idea," he mumbled, embarrassed.

"It's a, a dream," Monica managed to whisper, staring at the scream.

"A dream?" Scully asked.

"Oh my God," Monica whispered still, hardly registering anyone else. On the tape, John said something to Monica. "What's he saying?" she asked.

"He says 'beautiful'," Scully replied, turning up the volume and rewinding it momentarily so they could all hear it. "We think it could be a possible reason that the inscription appeared on the inside of your ring momentarily...Monica, when did you dream this?"

"This is why I can't see you-"

"Why?" Scully asked.

"I want you to take those things off my eyes," she said, turning to where Scully's voice was coming from. "Take them off."

"Monica I can't-"

"Agent Reyes-" Skinner and John both started, watching the two women watching each other.

"Take them off," she demanded still.

*

"Look after her Agent Scully-" Doggett warned as he watched Scully suit up for surgery.

"Don't worry, I know what I'm doing."

*

"What is it?" John asked as Scully came back to where they were waiting.

"She's in recovery. She's fine. It was a sheath, came right off." She held out a sample in a small bottle. "It appears to be some kind of permanent contact lens."

"Harmful?"

"Not sure what it will do, whether she'll be able to see at all without them. We'll wait until she wakes up."

*

Monica held John's hand tightly as Scully removed the tape from her eyes. They were slightly swollen, but there was no stitching or bruising, which was a good sign. Scully cleaned the skin of residue where the tape had stuck the cotton wool patches over her eyes after the operation.

"Feel better?" she asked. Monica nodded. Scully took her hand and let Monica touch her cheek. "This is where I am. Now just open carefully. I'll tell you if you need to stop, or if you feel any pain close them immediately, same as last time."

"Okay," Monica whispered, opening her eyes. Her hand was a shadow upon another shadow. She blinked furiously, her eyes starting to water uncontrollably.

"Tissues, Agent Doggett," Scully ordered, and held them to Monica's cheeks as she opened her eyes, to pick up the tears that were working on cleaning the area. Scully looked carefully into Monica's eyes as she settled. She saw Monica start to smile, and knew that she could see her.

"I can see you," she said, breaking into a grin. Scully took out her spotlight.

"Eyes up...Down...Left and Right...How do they feel?"

"Normal, a bit thick."

"You've got some swelling. Now, hopefully if you look all the way to your left you'll see John." Monica did, and nodded.

"Yeah, as always." He didn't smile, still concerned.

"Well we solved that problem." The door burst open again and Skinner re- entered, this time with Follmer in tow.

"Can she see yet?" Follmer asked.

"Yes Brad, I'm fine," Monica replied. He smiled at her.

"Good." Skinner held up a tape.

"Now about this dream?"

"I don't know when I had it, all I remember was that I dreamed it. It feels like... You know when something happens and you're not sure whether it happened or if you dreamed it? Like that."

"And you are absolutely sure you've never done that before." Monica laughed.

"Yes, I think I'd remember." She looked over at John, who raised his eyebrows.

"So would I," he added.

*

Scully got rid of Skinner and Follmer so the three of them could talk properly. It was awkward enough for everyone as it was.

"John do you have any recollection of this?" she asked as she played the tape again, looking for any inconsistencies, but it all appeared to be fine. It was Monica's apartment. That was, without a doubt, Monica and John.

"No. I still don't know how you dreamed this?" he asked. "Are you sure?" Monica nodded.

"I think so." Scully looked from John to Monica. She'd have to talk to him before he upset her somehow.

"Here's my question," Scully cut in. "How did they tape it?"

"Maybe when she was asleep they tapped in somehow, using those flashing lights-"

"Agent Scully-" Skinner opened the door and she followed him outside.

"They've got the outline of that figure from the tape."

"And?"

"And it looks very much like Agent Doggett." Scully took a look at the outline of the figure they had seen between the flashing lights, but that hadn't existed. It did appear to be Doggett.

"Thanks," Scully replied, walking back into the room.

*

"You think they created that for me? That dream?"

"Do you think you created it?" John asked. Monica shrugged.

"I don't know." They looked at each other, silently, but were interrupted as Scully returned.

"By sending us these tapes they were boasting about what they could do. I think this isn't something against Monica. I think this is something that's going to be used against everyone."

"What's its purpose?"

"To get information."

"About?"

"Everyone. Imagine if you could control someone's subconscious? Pretty cool, huh?"

"I guess," Monica said.

"What if these guys inputted that dream into your head and they're just boasting about what they've done?" John appeared to accept that explanation better.

"So this is a warning?"

"Hell of a warning," Monica sighed.

"They'd have lots of access to optic technologies. I'm thinking we're looking at some kind of optic clinic."

"Sounds good."

"Monica, any optometrist visits with anything strange you remember?" Monica shrugged. "John can I talk to you outside?" He nodded, following her out.

"You know that a lot of the time people have no control over their dreams-"

"Yeah but-"

"No buts, I don't want you holding this against her."

"You think I'm holding this against her?"

"Yes and stop repeating me. Who are we going after here?"

"I don't know. I really don't. I still don't understand what happened to her." Scully handed him the folded sheet with the outline of him on it.

"That figure in the video that wasn't really there, it's you."

"What?"

"That, I think, is the start of what you're seeing on the second tape."

"A hallucination? She hallucinated it?"

"She projected it."

"Why?"

"Because she was scared."

"A fear test?"

"Yeah." She lowered her voice even though there was no one else around to here. "Look, I didn't want to tell Monica, but there's evidence that she actually had a seizure. Which isn't unusual due to the surroundings, but there's the possibility that she stopped breathing and someone had to revive her. She's got palm bruises on her chest where someone would have administered CPR. Screw all this dream stuff, that they planted that there, I think they read her thought patterns near death."

"That's the last thing she saw before she would have died?"

"Yeah, except she didn't die. She wasn't meant to."

"Jesus, close enough!"

"I'm going to sign her out, I want you to take her home and make sure she's all right."

"You think they'll try it again?"

"We still don't know who this is. If it's an experiment, why haven't more people been admitted to hospital with visual problems?"

To Be Continued...