Georgetown, Virgina
6:00pm
"How long did Skinner say we had till the flight?" Scully asked opening the door to her apartment.
Mulder glanced at his watch. "He couldn't book us tickets until the morning." He plopped down on her couch and wiggled his eyebrows "So Agent Scully how do you suggest we keep ourselves occupied?"
"Ha. Mulder I suggest showers perhaps, a long cold one in your case." Scully shifted William in her arms stopping to check her messages.
Mulder gave one of the first genuine smiles he'd given in a while. He missed her comebacks. "Good one. So, about that shower, do I get to join?"
"Persistent." Scully chuckled.
"Always." Mulder answered as William began to fuss in Scully's arms.
"Hey pal, somebody getting jealous?" Mulder asked taking William. "It's okay I can share" Scully stroked her son's head as Mulder whispered, "Looks like someone else can't." Scully looked up at him surprised at the accusation. "Scully, it's okay. Go take a shower. I won't break him I promise."
"I'm sorry Mulder I'm just worried for him" Scully apologized.
"Mama lion protecting her cub. It's fine. I understand. I just haven't really had the chance to spend time with him" Mulder said regretfully.
Scully gave a light smile. "You're going to be a wonderful father." She kissed Mulder's forehead then William's and retreated for the shower.
^^^^^^^^^^^^
Scully couldn't help but feel as though she intruded into something personal as she watched Mulder cradle their child in his arms. His face looked so calm and the low humming sound he made almost put her to sleep. It almost made her forget everything that had happened. Giving her son away, Mulder's trial, his escape all seemed to go away. She could have swore it was always like this - calm and peaceful. She envied William, lying there so serene. She wished for his innocence. She knew his finding his way back into her life didn't make sense but for once she didn't want to question it. As far as she was concerned William being there was enough of an answer. As Mulder placed William in the crib he turned seeing Scully in the doorway.
"Hi." he said walking towards her and out of the room "I just put him to sleep."
"I saw."
"Scully, how could this have happened?" Mulder questioned.
"I thought you were the one with the answers." Scully replied.
Mulder laughed, "Maybe that was true once upon a time"
"I want to go back to that fairy tale then." She stated sadly, "Can't we just be like everyone else and be happy that our son is here and safe?"
"No." Mulder answered, "We can't Scully because that isn't us. We don't just accept things for how they are. That's how we came this far."
Scully hugged him tightly. "I know Mulder, I'm just afraid of what we might find if we question this."
"I'm afraid of what we might not find if we don't question this." Mulder answered looking into her eyes.
Scully sighed. "You're right."
"I'm always right."
"Go take a shower." Scully insisted.
"C'mon now I don't smell that bad do I?" Mulder joked.
"Don't make me answer that question." Scully grinned, "I think there's some clothes of yours still in my closet."
"So, Dana Scully, are you implying I stay the night?" Mulder wiggled his eyebrows again.
"Fox Mulder, do I ever imply anything?"
"No." Mulder answered turning back before he reached the bathroom, "But you really should start."
Scully laughed returning to William's room to keep guarded watch of her cub.
^^^^^^^^^
Georgetown, Virginia 4:00am
Mulder groaned at the sound of the alarm clock flinging his arm trying to shut the damn thing off. Scully rolled over him clicking a button silencing the dreadful alarm.
"My savior." Mulder proclaimed.
"Well if we don't get moving we're both going to need a savior to save us from Skinner if we miss that flight."
"Ugggh. Five more minutes mom." Mulder groaned.
Scully abruptly sat up hitting Mulder in the head with a pillow.
"Hey now that's not fair."
"And why not?" Scully inquired.
"Because" Mulder reached for the pillow in Scully's hands "You're armed."
"And dangerous." She finished.
"Agent Scully you have no idea" Mulder winked getting out of bed. "I'll get William ready. You pack our things."
^^^^^^^
Roswell Indian Reservation Roswell, New Mexico 9:00am
"Well agents here we are now where's our answers?" Skinner asked looking around the busy reservation.
"Sir, you just need to know where to look." Mulder replied leading towards the pueblo where William was returned.
"Excuse me?" Mulder called entering the pueblo with Scully and Skinner trailing behind "Is anyone here?"
The same elderly Indian woman from the previous day entered the room "Ah, I knew you would be back." She gestured towards William snuggled in the carrier Scully was holding. "You seek an answer for how he came back to you."
"Well to be perfectly honest you never really did explain that to us." Scully answered.
"But I did. He was brought from danger by the stars." The Indian woman justified.
"Not to be rude ma'am but we have a double homicide and a kidnapping on our hands and for some reason I doubt any judge will believe that explanation." Skinner argued.
The Indian woman chuckled. "You believe. You pretend to know the answers. To know the possible from the impossible but somewhere in your mind you always believe."
"Where did you find him?" Mulder finally decided to cut through the bullshit and ask.
"Men from my tribe were drawn to him by a bright flash of light."
"Bright flash of light?" Scully questioned.
"Yes. The bright flash of light that brought him here. They tried to find the source but were stopped by a strong energy they found your son as the light ascended into the heavens." The woman motioned towards the sky.
"What kind of energy?" Skinner asked.
"Energy from the stars. It would not let the men pass." She answered.
"Thank you I think that's all we need." Mulder stated leading Skinner and Scully out of the pueblo.
"Agent Mulder?" The woman stopped him.
"Yes?"
"You seek another answer?" The woman inquired.
"Yes." Mulder simply stated walking out into the reservation.
"Mulder what was that about?" Scully asked when they were fully out the pueblo.
"Scully after nine years of working on the X-files and after my abduction what did what she describe sound like?" Mulder responded.
"Mulder you're not implying..." Scully started.
"A UFO Scully. He wasn't brought by the stars. He was brought by them." Mulder explained. "When I was abducted you were stopped by an energy field because they did not want you. A field that protected their spacecraft."
"But why would they return him?" Skinner asked watching William alertly look around from the carrier.
"I don't know. Maybe for the same reason he wasn't taken before. He isn't what they thought he was." Mulder said.
"How are you supposed to prove this?" Skinner asked, "I'm sure people will be asking questions. I'm sure they will be looking for suspects of the Van de Kamps murder and I'm sure you and Scully will be on the top of the list."
Mulder rubbed his face looking at Scully noticing how tired she looked. She looked so mentally drained. He just wished he could come up with an answer to end all of this for her.
"It doesn't make sense." Scully spoke up "Why did they go through all that trouble to take him? Why didn't they just abduct him like everyone else? And if Skinner didn't call us who did? Why didn't they just drop him off at our doorstep with a bow around his head?"
"I don't know Scully but were going to find out." Mulder answered.
"How long did Skinner say we had till the flight?" Scully asked opening the door to her apartment.
Mulder glanced at his watch. "He couldn't book us tickets until the morning." He plopped down on her couch and wiggled his eyebrows "So Agent Scully how do you suggest we keep ourselves occupied?"
"Ha. Mulder I suggest showers perhaps, a long cold one in your case." Scully shifted William in her arms stopping to check her messages.
Mulder gave one of the first genuine smiles he'd given in a while. He missed her comebacks. "Good one. So, about that shower, do I get to join?"
"Persistent." Scully chuckled.
"Always." Mulder answered as William began to fuss in Scully's arms.
"Hey pal, somebody getting jealous?" Mulder asked taking William. "It's okay I can share" Scully stroked her son's head as Mulder whispered, "Looks like someone else can't." Scully looked up at him surprised at the accusation. "Scully, it's okay. Go take a shower. I won't break him I promise."
"I'm sorry Mulder I'm just worried for him" Scully apologized.
"Mama lion protecting her cub. It's fine. I understand. I just haven't really had the chance to spend time with him" Mulder said regretfully.
Scully gave a light smile. "You're going to be a wonderful father." She kissed Mulder's forehead then William's and retreated for the shower.
^^^^^^^^^^^^
Scully couldn't help but feel as though she intruded into something personal as she watched Mulder cradle their child in his arms. His face looked so calm and the low humming sound he made almost put her to sleep. It almost made her forget everything that had happened. Giving her son away, Mulder's trial, his escape all seemed to go away. She could have swore it was always like this - calm and peaceful. She envied William, lying there so serene. She wished for his innocence. She knew his finding his way back into her life didn't make sense but for once she didn't want to question it. As far as she was concerned William being there was enough of an answer. As Mulder placed William in the crib he turned seeing Scully in the doorway.
"Hi." he said walking towards her and out of the room "I just put him to sleep."
"I saw."
"Scully, how could this have happened?" Mulder questioned.
"I thought you were the one with the answers." Scully replied.
Mulder laughed, "Maybe that was true once upon a time"
"I want to go back to that fairy tale then." She stated sadly, "Can't we just be like everyone else and be happy that our son is here and safe?"
"No." Mulder answered, "We can't Scully because that isn't us. We don't just accept things for how they are. That's how we came this far."
Scully hugged him tightly. "I know Mulder, I'm just afraid of what we might find if we question this."
"I'm afraid of what we might not find if we don't question this." Mulder answered looking into her eyes.
Scully sighed. "You're right."
"I'm always right."
"Go take a shower." Scully insisted.
"C'mon now I don't smell that bad do I?" Mulder joked.
"Don't make me answer that question." Scully grinned, "I think there's some clothes of yours still in my closet."
"So, Dana Scully, are you implying I stay the night?" Mulder wiggled his eyebrows again.
"Fox Mulder, do I ever imply anything?"
"No." Mulder answered turning back before he reached the bathroom, "But you really should start."
Scully laughed returning to William's room to keep guarded watch of her cub.
^^^^^^^^^
Georgetown, Virginia 4:00am
Mulder groaned at the sound of the alarm clock flinging his arm trying to shut the damn thing off. Scully rolled over him clicking a button silencing the dreadful alarm.
"My savior." Mulder proclaimed.
"Well if we don't get moving we're both going to need a savior to save us from Skinner if we miss that flight."
"Ugggh. Five more minutes mom." Mulder groaned.
Scully abruptly sat up hitting Mulder in the head with a pillow.
"Hey now that's not fair."
"And why not?" Scully inquired.
"Because" Mulder reached for the pillow in Scully's hands "You're armed."
"And dangerous." She finished.
"Agent Scully you have no idea" Mulder winked getting out of bed. "I'll get William ready. You pack our things."
^^^^^^^
Roswell Indian Reservation Roswell, New Mexico 9:00am
"Well agents here we are now where's our answers?" Skinner asked looking around the busy reservation.
"Sir, you just need to know where to look." Mulder replied leading towards the pueblo where William was returned.
"Excuse me?" Mulder called entering the pueblo with Scully and Skinner trailing behind "Is anyone here?"
The same elderly Indian woman from the previous day entered the room "Ah, I knew you would be back." She gestured towards William snuggled in the carrier Scully was holding. "You seek an answer for how he came back to you."
"Well to be perfectly honest you never really did explain that to us." Scully answered.
"But I did. He was brought from danger by the stars." The Indian woman justified.
"Not to be rude ma'am but we have a double homicide and a kidnapping on our hands and for some reason I doubt any judge will believe that explanation." Skinner argued.
The Indian woman chuckled. "You believe. You pretend to know the answers. To know the possible from the impossible but somewhere in your mind you always believe."
"Where did you find him?" Mulder finally decided to cut through the bullshit and ask.
"Men from my tribe were drawn to him by a bright flash of light."
"Bright flash of light?" Scully questioned.
"Yes. The bright flash of light that brought him here. They tried to find the source but were stopped by a strong energy they found your son as the light ascended into the heavens." The woman motioned towards the sky.
"What kind of energy?" Skinner asked.
"Energy from the stars. It would not let the men pass." She answered.
"Thank you I think that's all we need." Mulder stated leading Skinner and Scully out of the pueblo.
"Agent Mulder?" The woman stopped him.
"Yes?"
"You seek another answer?" The woman inquired.
"Yes." Mulder simply stated walking out into the reservation.
"Mulder what was that about?" Scully asked when they were fully out the pueblo.
"Scully after nine years of working on the X-files and after my abduction what did what she describe sound like?" Mulder responded.
"Mulder you're not implying..." Scully started.
"A UFO Scully. He wasn't brought by the stars. He was brought by them." Mulder explained. "When I was abducted you were stopped by an energy field because they did not want you. A field that protected their spacecraft."
"But why would they return him?" Skinner asked watching William alertly look around from the carrier.
"I don't know. Maybe for the same reason he wasn't taken before. He isn't what they thought he was." Mulder said.
"How are you supposed to prove this?" Skinner asked, "I'm sure people will be asking questions. I'm sure they will be looking for suspects of the Van de Kamps murder and I'm sure you and Scully will be on the top of the list."
Mulder rubbed his face looking at Scully noticing how tired she looked. She looked so mentally drained. He just wished he could come up with an answer to end all of this for her.
"It doesn't make sense." Scully spoke up "Why did they go through all that trouble to take him? Why didn't they just abduct him like everyone else? And if Skinner didn't call us who did? Why didn't they just drop him off at our doorstep with a bow around his head?"
"I don't know Scully but were going to find out." Mulder answered.