Mulder took the stairs to the lower level his anger intensifying with every step he pounded into the ground. He had to admit at being angry with himself for blowing up at her but when he thought of her presumptions his fury flew back to her. Bursting out from the stairwell he made his way back to Billy's room where he found Niamh sitting on his bed.
"Oh sorry, I didn't mean to…" he mumbled and started to back away but Niamh had turned to him and he noticed she was crying. "Are you okay?"
"I'm fine," she said standing and rubbing her face with both hands.
"You're worse than Scully at that," he said with a small smile.
"I'm so mad at her right now. If she does anything to jeopardise that family-," Niamh began and he could hear the raw anger in her voice.
"She's just trying to do a thorough job, she needs to check everything. That's what makes her a great FBI Agent," he said unable to believe he was defending her when moments ago he was ready to throttle her.
"I know, I shouldn't have gone off at her just then. Where is she?"
"She's upstairs with Sally Ryan," he said glancing away in case she saw the flicker of anger that shattered his clear expression.
"You had a go at her too," Niamh said plainly.
"More like she had one at me," he argued but she caught the sorrowful look in his eyes and knew better. Moving into the room Mulder sat in the chair by the bed facing her and leaned forward resting his forearms on his knees.
"Typical Dana, churning the place up with emotions and then she's nowhere to be seen for the clean up."
Mulder looked at her for a moment, frowning.
"Not the Dana I know," he countered.
"How is she doing at the FBI?"
Mulder heard the question; an obvious probe into Scilly's private life that hadn't been shared with Niamh before. Of course she had told her stories of different cases but permission to delve deeper into Scully's mind and heart had clearly been denied. Mulder thought of how to answer, seconds passing as he went through his options but his hesitation told Niamh more than his words ever could.
"She's doing really well," he said finally.
"There are times when I talk to her and she seems so sad, so lonely," Niamh admitted her voice low and clear.
Mulder sat up at this insightful conversation and concentrated on what Niamh was saying. Willing her to share more, needing to know it all.
"And then there are times when she talks so animatedly about a current or recent case and she sounds so happy and relaxed."
"Do you two talk often?"
"Every two weeks maybe more. We e-mail each other quite regularly except when you two are out on a case."
"Things can get a bit hectic," he admitted.
"So I heard."
"What ever Scully has said I'm sure you could multiply it tenfold. She tends to under state the situation," Mulder said shaking his head with a little laugh.
"You wouldn't say that if you knew what she said about you!" Niamh said as she stood up and straightened her skirt. Mulder watched her in astonishment as she sauntered out of the room leaving him confused and curious.
***
Sally walked in with the nurses to untie Billy while Scully stared at the monitor with the neurologist. The screens showed low definition pictures of the scan they had just taken.
"Is that a tumour?" she asked pointing at a white mass that covered a third of Billy's brain scan.
"It appears to be. We'll need to do a spinal tap," he replied shaking his head at the picture before him.
"With coverage like that is it operable?"
"It depends on how deep it's going, we'll need to wait for the bilateral views to see. But looking at this…it doesn't look hopeful."
Scully looked up to see Sally lifting the child from the table and carrying him over to the hospital trolley. She saw as Billy reached out to her when they tucked him into the heavy blanket and Sally took his hand, holding it as the trolley moved through the room and down to the elevator. Excusing herself she followed the bed and walked behind Sally to the lift.
"Sally, can I have a word with you?"
"I told you all I know, please can we just get Billy settled?" Sally said not taking her eyes off the boy. "We'll talk to you then."
Scully let them step into the lift and watched as the doors closed. She turned to go back to speak to the neurologist when her phone rang. Glancing at the ID she saw Mulders name and took a deep breath before answering.
"Scully."
"Scully, it's me, where are you?"
"Right where you left me," she said unable to resist the jibe.
"Did you get to talk to Sally?" he asked ignoring her tone, not sure if he was still angry with her or not.
"A little. Billy has just left the scan and he's on his way back down to the room. I'm going to give them some time to settle before going in again."
"Okay, well do you want to grab some lunch? I need to go back to the motel and check some mails. I can do that while you speak to Billy."
"Okay," she said hoping that was an olive branch he was offering. "Where are you?"
"Behind you."
Scully whipped around to see him standing there an expressive smile on his lips that she couldn't place or help but return. They both put their phones away and she followed him in silence back to the lift.
"We might as well just eat in the canteen," he said as he pressed the button for the ground floor.
She didn't reply only nodded her head slowly wondering if the fight was gone out of both of them or if it was the calm before the storm. Chancing a glance up at him she caught him watching her unabashedly. His smile still evident and still curious.
"What is it Mulder?" she said almost tiredly, knocking some of the wind out of his already deflating sails.
"I was talking to Niamh, she's quite upset about the fight you two had."
Again he watched as her head bobbed up and down slowly as if she was saving her voice. He thought quickly of what else to say and was confused at his lack of words. Thankfully their silence was broken by the quiet ding of the elevator as it arrived at their floor. He stood back and let her exit first, following half a step behind as they collected trays and took some food from the selection. Queuing at the cash till Mulder took a quick look at her tray to see only a bottle of water and a chicken sandwich.
"Not hungry Scully?"
She looked down at her own tray and then over at his that was laden down with two sandwiches some fruit and a jelly pot.
"Not really, no."
As they arrived at the till Mulder stepped up and paid for both lunches then followed her to the table she had chosen, by the large bay windows a splattering of sunshine dispersing the dull ness of the magnolia canteen.
"Billy's scan showed a huge tumour on his brain, covering possibly a third of the frontal lobe on the right side."
"Fatal?" he asked his sandwich hovering just outside his lips reach.
"Most likely. The neurologist didn't like to say but it doesn't look good."
"Do you think this might have something to do with…" he hesitated unsure if he wanted to breech the subject again.
"Billy's pre-cognitive messages?" she said looking him straight in the eye as she took a bite of her own lunch. "I don't know."
He watched her eyes quiver under the power of her stubbornness and tried hard not to smile, knowing she'd take it up wrong. He tried to match her stare but the strength behind her cool blue eyes was so intense that he had to look away.
"The growth of brain tumours has been linked with the reported occurrence of psychic ability."
"You mean like Modell?" she said doubtfully.
"So you finally believe me about Modell?"
"Regardless of whether I believe you or not those reports have not been substantiated. In fact the research has proven the opposite."
"Come on Scully, give me a break, I'm trying to agree with you and make a link from what we know to what we theorize," he argued anger building up inside him again.
"You mean you have a theory about Billy's condition?"
"No, but you do, whether you want to admit it or not," he said finishing his sandwich and peeling a banana. "And I am only trying to substantiate it," he finished, throwing her own words back at her.
She finished her sandwich and watched him for a moment as he ate the last bit of his banana and began to peel the orange next. He broke off a segment and left the rest on his tray, confused at how his eyes couldn't stay with her. She picked up the orange and took a piece, slipping a segment past her lips and stared at him.
"Okay Mulder, let's say he is getting these messages of accidents about to happen," she began, "where are they coming from?"
"I don't know."
"How can we stop them?"
"I don't know," he said breaking off more segments and passing some to her.
"Knowing the future, will it give us the power to change it or just the opportunity to watch it?" she asked loving the sweet taste of the orange in her mouth as it mixed with her words and their repartee.
"I don't know."
"Well it seems to me like we've reverted to different, if opposite, sides again."
"Ahhh the old familiarity of self doubt."
She smiled a little as he pulled the top of his jelly pot and dug into the shaky red substance.
"That jelly could well be an X-File in itself," she said as the red goo disappearing into his mouth.
"So Scully, where do we go from here?"
"I'm going to speak to Sally and hopefully Billy. You are going to find if the data on Sally Ryan came through and then go and check out the TV company where she works."
"Okay, I'll collect you back here when I'm done?"
"Give me a call, I might be gone back to the motel."
He looked at her for a moment. His hopes that the tension between them was rapidly disappearing shattered when it seemed like it was still hovering over them ready to envelope them at a moments notice.
"Alright. Call me if you hear from Skinner," he said before standing and leaving the room. She watched after him, erratic thoughts circling her head and doubts touching her lips but she let him go and made her way back to Sally Ryan.
Mulder pulled outside the motel and waved at Rory as he walked past the reception. The sun had finally begun to break and a cold wind bit through the air giving off the tension it could just before a heavy rain. He hurriedly set up the laptop and waited for the connection, lying flat on the bed flicking through the TV channels.
As the mails appeared he found the one from the information section and opened it to see all the data they had on Sally Ryan. Leafing through it quickly he scanned for anything out of the ordinary but found nothing and left it for further scrutiny. With a deep sigh he fell back into the bed and staring up at the ceiling his thoughts straying to Scully and her defensiveness. Wondering how she was getting on with Sally he thought of joining her at the hospital but instead decided it was best if he went to the TV station and spoke to her colleagues. Maybe it was space she needed to step back and realise fully what she was proposing with this case.
"Space I can do," he said aloud as he pushed himself of the bed and fixed his tie. "Space I can do."
***
Sally watched as Agent Scully stepped quietly out of the room, closing the door with a soft click and walked past the large window. She glanced down at Billy who stared up at her and she smiled.
"Don't worry Billy, it'll all be over soon," she said stroking the boys hand as Scully disappeared out of view.
Scully got into the crowded elevator and saw that the ground floor button had already been pressed. She suppressed the sigh she could feel building up inside her chest and waited patiently for the doors to open again. Eventually she found herself walking though a light rain to the Taxi depot across the road. It took a moment for her to remember the name of the Motel, smiling when she remembered Mulder's incredulity at her choice. The rain became heavier as they journeyed through the city and she paid him his fee before dashing this time through a thunderous downpour to her room.
Ignoring the leering wave from the receptionist she quickly walked past and went straight to her room. A fleeting thought of checking to see if Mulder was in her room disappeared when her desire for a shower became stronger. But as she fiddled with the taps she decided on a bath and filled the plughole and turned the water on full.
As the bath filled she removed her clothes, folding them neatly onto her bed and carried her heavy rode into the bathroom, draping it over the toilet as she carefully stepped into the hot water. Wishing she'd thought to bring some bathing products she made do with the hotel brand bubbles and the soft music she played in her head. She sank low into the water with her eyes closed and let the water soothe her aching shoulders. Suddenly Mulder popped into her head and her eyes flew open.
"No Mulder, leave me alone…I need my space…" she said into the empty room.
Looking around she half expected to see him sitting on the toilet watching her with his chin resting in his hands and a lob-sided smile on his lips, but all she saw was a foggy mirror.
"Just give me this Mulder and I'll owe you," she said as she closed her eyes back over and rested her head against the bath.
Mulder shook the rain from his hair and threw his wet jacket onto the floor. Kicking off his shoes as he crossed the room he loosened his tie and dropped it to the ground. Pulling his shirt out of his trousers he dragged it over his head, completing the trail of clothes as he knocked gently on the connecting door. Rory had told him that Scully had just arrived and he decided to talk to her before he took his shower.
"Scully?" he called as he stepped through the door and found the room empty. The sounds of running water told him that she was taking a bath and the sight of the clothes she was wearing earlier folded at the bottom of her bed confirmed it. He was just about to turn and leave the room when he heard her talking and saying his name. Stepping closer to the bathroom door, pushing away guilty thoughts he might have for eavesdropping, he listened.
"Just give me this Mulder and I'll owe you," she said silkily.
He couldn't stop the shrewd smile from spreading across his lips as he silently left the room wondering how he would collect.
** I know that this chapter is a bit of a non-event…gratuitous "MSR Set Up" if you will, but the imagery and angst is one I've been playing with for a while. So I hope it fits. **
