Chapter 3
Mulder's Apartment
12:00 p.m.
Scully drove from Avondale Park and headed toward Mulder's apartment. She looked over and could see that Mulder was still groggy. He just lay back in the seat looking straight ahead. It almost seemed as if he were not there in the car but rather in another place. Picking up her cell she dialed Assistant Director Skinner's office. She sighed as the voice mail kicked in. "Yes this is Agent Scully. I just wanted to tell you that Agent Mulder and I are heading back from Avondale Park. However, Agent Mulder appears to have taken ill and I will be returning to the office to take care of things myself. I will be sure and let you know what is happening later on." She turned off her cell and turned to Mulder. "Here we are Mulder. Now just stay there and I will come around and help you."
She turned off the car and took the keys out of the ignition. Pocketing them she walked over to the passenger side of the car. She opened up the door. "All right Mulder, put your arms around me." Mulder put his arms around Scully and she pulled him out of the car. Leaning on Scully they made their way to the apartment entrance. Unseen by them a figure stood across the street and watched as they walked through the entrance. Taking the elevator to the desired floor, they finally reached apartment number "42". Steadying Mulder against the door Scully took the key and unlocked the door. Grabbing onto Scully they made their way inside the apartment and to the futon in the living room. Scully set Mulder down softly on the cushion and stretched out his legs. She found a pillow and placed it under his head. "Just rest here and I will be right back."
Scully walked into Mulder's kitchen searching for some coffee cups. Finding one she placed it on the counter and then began the quest for a kettle. Finding the kettle she filled it with water and turning on the burner placed it on the stove. Walking back to the living room she opened her purse until she procured a packet. Taking the packet she walked back into the kitchen and opening it sprinkled its contents into the kettle.
Walking out of the kitchen she made her way to the bathroom and took a washcloth. Pouring water on it she wrung it out and headed back to Mulder. She dabbed it on his forehead and wrapped it around his head. "This will help keep any fever down that may arise. I already called Skinner and told him that I will be heading back to the office by myself."
"Scully you don't have to.."
"Mulder I already told you that I will take care of things. I just want to make sure that you are well. Frankly I am a little concerned for you." She knelt down and looked into his eyes. "On the way over here you acted as if you were not even here. When I came over to help you, you looked at me as if I were someone else and yet..."
"What is it Scully?"
"Well, remember when I uncovered the body and you said I zoned out for a minute?"
"Yes."
"Well something happened in that time. I saw the victim's face yet it was not he. I saw him yet he was not dressed in the clothes that he was in. He was in a long robe and...and had a crown on his head."
Mulder stared back at her and his face turned an ashen grey. "Did you say a crown on his head?"
"Yes I did, why?"
"Well I had something like that happen to me when this guy stared at me. I saw images in my mind and one was of a castle on a hill and there was a farm and then there was this..."
Mulder's speech was interrupted by the scream of the kettle in the kitchen. Scully rose up and headed to the kitchen. Taking the kettle off the stove she poured the hot liquid into a coffee cup. Picking it up she took it back to the living room and handed it to Mulder. "Here drink this. It will help you to calm down. I always carry this with me in my satchel just in case." She smiled and continued. "My mother used to give it to me when I was going through a lot of stress. It always worked for me."
Mulder returned the smile and took a sip of the liquid, which according to his face did not appear to taste very well. "Why is it all the medicine that is supposed to help you has to taste so bad?"
Scully laughed. "I know but it will help you. Sometimes mothers really do know best." She grabbed Mulder's hand.
"Yes Mommy," said Mulder sucking on his thumb and looking at her with puppy-dog eyes.
"So you were telling me that you saw something else in your mind besides the castle and the farm?" She moved closer to Mulder beside the futon. "What else did you see?"
Mulder looked off into space. "I saw this beautiful young girl with long red hair. She looked at me and smiled. She almost looked like an angel with all this bright light around her. As I focused on her the funny thing was she looked just like..." He turned and looked into Scully's eyes. "Like you Scully."
Scully turned her eyes away and dropped Mulder's hand. "What?"
"It's true Scully. That is what I saw."
She rose up from the futon and began to pace nervously. "Mulder, you are delirious! There is no way that this young lady that you saw could be me."
"Why not? When you saw Pendleton, you said you had seen him before..."
"Well, of course I have seen him before. Christopher Pendleton is known throughout the world. His face has been on every T.V. screen and magazine cover! So how could I not?"
"But how do you explain HOW you saw him? You didn't see him as Christopher Pendleton the business man but rather as some kind of royal figure."
"Mulder, just because I can't explain what I saw doesn't mean anything. The human mind is a powerful thing. It could have been anything. Stored information from a book I read or a movie that I watched.." Mulder just answered her with a sigh. "In your case, you said that when you came to you saw my face right? Well then naturally you associated my face with this young girl you saw." Scully said brushing aside some hair from her face.
"Scully, why can't you just accept that this could be something more? That somehow this young girl and your vision could be connected."
"Connected?" said Scully clearly annoyed. "Connected how?"
Mulder could see that Scully was clearly not comfortable with the subject but he felt that he needed to press it. "What do you know about past lives, Scully?"
She stopped pacing as if the statement had hit a nerve. "Scully are you ok?" asked Mulder. Scully just looked straight ahead. "Yes, of course, I'm fine." She turned back to Mulder. "You know what I think Mulder? I think I should leave you to get some rest. I need to get back to the office anyway." She pulled the covers up around Mulder and kissed him on the forehead. "I'll be back to check on you later." Picking up her satchel she headed towards the door.
"Hey Scully."
"Yes Mulder."
He started to think something but changed his mind. "Nothing. Thanks. See you later."
Scully turned and smiled. "Anytime, Mulder."
As Mulder watched her leave he was absorbed in his thoughts. Something about the question about past lives had bothered her. He had wanted to press the issue but had decided against it for the time being. "I wonder what it could be?" he thought. Shrugging his shoulders, he snuggled into the futon and feeling the tea doing its job fell asleep.
Mulder's Apartment
12:00 p.m.
Scully drove from Avondale Park and headed toward Mulder's apartment. She looked over and could see that Mulder was still groggy. He just lay back in the seat looking straight ahead. It almost seemed as if he were not there in the car but rather in another place. Picking up her cell she dialed Assistant Director Skinner's office. She sighed as the voice mail kicked in. "Yes this is Agent Scully. I just wanted to tell you that Agent Mulder and I are heading back from Avondale Park. However, Agent Mulder appears to have taken ill and I will be returning to the office to take care of things myself. I will be sure and let you know what is happening later on." She turned off her cell and turned to Mulder. "Here we are Mulder. Now just stay there and I will come around and help you."
She turned off the car and took the keys out of the ignition. Pocketing them she walked over to the passenger side of the car. She opened up the door. "All right Mulder, put your arms around me." Mulder put his arms around Scully and she pulled him out of the car. Leaning on Scully they made their way to the apartment entrance. Unseen by them a figure stood across the street and watched as they walked through the entrance. Taking the elevator to the desired floor, they finally reached apartment number "42". Steadying Mulder against the door Scully took the key and unlocked the door. Grabbing onto Scully they made their way inside the apartment and to the futon in the living room. Scully set Mulder down softly on the cushion and stretched out his legs. She found a pillow and placed it under his head. "Just rest here and I will be right back."
Scully walked into Mulder's kitchen searching for some coffee cups. Finding one she placed it on the counter and then began the quest for a kettle. Finding the kettle she filled it with water and turning on the burner placed it on the stove. Walking back to the living room she opened her purse until she procured a packet. Taking the packet she walked back into the kitchen and opening it sprinkled its contents into the kettle.
Walking out of the kitchen she made her way to the bathroom and took a washcloth. Pouring water on it she wrung it out and headed back to Mulder. She dabbed it on his forehead and wrapped it around his head. "This will help keep any fever down that may arise. I already called Skinner and told him that I will be heading back to the office by myself."
"Scully you don't have to.."
"Mulder I already told you that I will take care of things. I just want to make sure that you are well. Frankly I am a little concerned for you." She knelt down and looked into his eyes. "On the way over here you acted as if you were not even here. When I came over to help you, you looked at me as if I were someone else and yet..."
"What is it Scully?"
"Well, remember when I uncovered the body and you said I zoned out for a minute?"
"Yes."
"Well something happened in that time. I saw the victim's face yet it was not he. I saw him yet he was not dressed in the clothes that he was in. He was in a long robe and...and had a crown on his head."
Mulder stared back at her and his face turned an ashen grey. "Did you say a crown on his head?"
"Yes I did, why?"
"Well I had something like that happen to me when this guy stared at me. I saw images in my mind and one was of a castle on a hill and there was a farm and then there was this..."
Mulder's speech was interrupted by the scream of the kettle in the kitchen. Scully rose up and headed to the kitchen. Taking the kettle off the stove she poured the hot liquid into a coffee cup. Picking it up she took it back to the living room and handed it to Mulder. "Here drink this. It will help you to calm down. I always carry this with me in my satchel just in case." She smiled and continued. "My mother used to give it to me when I was going through a lot of stress. It always worked for me."
Mulder returned the smile and took a sip of the liquid, which according to his face did not appear to taste very well. "Why is it all the medicine that is supposed to help you has to taste so bad?"
Scully laughed. "I know but it will help you. Sometimes mothers really do know best." She grabbed Mulder's hand.
"Yes Mommy," said Mulder sucking on his thumb and looking at her with puppy-dog eyes.
"So you were telling me that you saw something else in your mind besides the castle and the farm?" She moved closer to Mulder beside the futon. "What else did you see?"
Mulder looked off into space. "I saw this beautiful young girl with long red hair. She looked at me and smiled. She almost looked like an angel with all this bright light around her. As I focused on her the funny thing was she looked just like..." He turned and looked into Scully's eyes. "Like you Scully."
Scully turned her eyes away and dropped Mulder's hand. "What?"
"It's true Scully. That is what I saw."
She rose up from the futon and began to pace nervously. "Mulder, you are delirious! There is no way that this young lady that you saw could be me."
"Why not? When you saw Pendleton, you said you had seen him before..."
"Well, of course I have seen him before. Christopher Pendleton is known throughout the world. His face has been on every T.V. screen and magazine cover! So how could I not?"
"But how do you explain HOW you saw him? You didn't see him as Christopher Pendleton the business man but rather as some kind of royal figure."
"Mulder, just because I can't explain what I saw doesn't mean anything. The human mind is a powerful thing. It could have been anything. Stored information from a book I read or a movie that I watched.." Mulder just answered her with a sigh. "In your case, you said that when you came to you saw my face right? Well then naturally you associated my face with this young girl you saw." Scully said brushing aside some hair from her face.
"Scully, why can't you just accept that this could be something more? That somehow this young girl and your vision could be connected."
"Connected?" said Scully clearly annoyed. "Connected how?"
Mulder could see that Scully was clearly not comfortable with the subject but he felt that he needed to press it. "What do you know about past lives, Scully?"
She stopped pacing as if the statement had hit a nerve. "Scully are you ok?" asked Mulder. Scully just looked straight ahead. "Yes, of course, I'm fine." She turned back to Mulder. "You know what I think Mulder? I think I should leave you to get some rest. I need to get back to the office anyway." She pulled the covers up around Mulder and kissed him on the forehead. "I'll be back to check on you later." Picking up her satchel she headed towards the door.
"Hey Scully."
"Yes Mulder."
He started to think something but changed his mind. "Nothing. Thanks. See you later."
Scully turned and smiled. "Anytime, Mulder."
As Mulder watched her leave he was absorbed in his thoughts. Something about the question about past lives had bothered her. He had wanted to press the issue but had decided against it for the time being. "I wonder what it could be?" he thought. Shrugging his shoulders, he snuggled into the futon and feeling the tea doing its job fell asleep.