A/N: I have to admit, I was really nervous about how this story would be received. Thanks to all who have allayed my fears!
Mulder sat quietly in the interrogation room, staring at the bruise on his arm where Scully had taken his blood. She hadn't been as gentle as she used to be, but he figured he deserved it. She'd almost apologized afterwards, but looked away instead and left the room.
He was aware that Doggett and Skinner were on the other side of the 2 way mirror, but he didn't care. They were going to scrutinize him for the rest of his life. He had known how protective they were of Scully and that is one of the reasons he had felt it was okay to leave. He knew she'd always have someone, whether it was the two of them or the Gunmen, there was always someone watching her back.
He wondered what she was doing now. When he left she had been a stay at home mom, a role he never pictured her in until she was actually doing it. She had loved being able to be home with the kids. She was probably forced to go back to work after he left. He had seen the Quantico parking sticker in her car; maybe she only had to work part time.
She'd moved. After Joshua was born, Mulder had tapped into his excessive inheritance money and bought them a nice house in the suburbs. Frohike had teased him about living in a planned community, but Mulder argued that it wasn't a planned community, they just offered lawn care. Their house had been four bedrooms, three bathrooms. It had a large backyard, a deck, a hot tub, a two car garage. Now she was in a three bedroom, one bathroom, with a smaller backyard, but a taller fence. Had she moved out of anger towards him? He hoped not. Maybe the commute was better this way.
He sighed. She shouldn't have had to work. She shouldn't have had to move. She shouldn't have had to do a lot of things.
The kids had grown up so much when he was gone. Joshua was a little man now. No more chubby cheeks and baby talk. He spoke like an adult and from the way he hovered over his sister, he acted like an adult too. Joshua had always been sensitive to his mother's moods, more so than most kids. Mulder could already see how much Scully relied on their young son, and how much Joshua enjoyed being the man of the house.
And then there was Hannah. One last go at the IVF procedure had produced their little blond haired, brown eyed, Minnie Mouse voiced daughter. She'd been almost out of diapers when he last saw her, and now she was about a foot taller and missing a tooth. He'd been out of her life longer than he had been in it, and that realization shook him to the core.
Doggett came into the room and tossed a manila folder at him.
"So now I know it's you for sure. And you probably know I've got a lot to say, but I'm just going to pass this along- I don't really respect a guy who leaves his family indefinitely, no matter what the reason is. And believe me, I know and understand and even support the reason, but cutting off communication with your family never did anyone any good. Watch your step. I don't want to see Dana hurt again, and I don't want to see those kids hurt either."
"I'm not leaving again."
"You'd better not. Now what I'm interested in is why you're back all of the sudden."
He sighed.
"After I left, I met up with a group of people, who through their own research and experiences, had come to the same conclusions that I had regarding invasion and colonization. We worked together to find the answers, but we had to remain hidden. The official government was after most of them, as was the shadow government. That's why I didn't keep in contact. The truth of the matter is that our own government orchestrated the whole thing. There are paranormal forces, but if there are aliens, they don't have a plan to colonize the earth. As least not as far as anyone knows. Most of the governments of the world are in on the hoax. They're very smart, these people we've worked for. They're the greatest of manipulators, but there is no danger in their manipulation, and it's only going to get the better of them in the end."
"So you gave up?"
"Doggett, there's not much I can do about it except refuse to believe the lie. I couldn't out them, they have too much power. They could take me out if they wanted to, and I hope to avoid that for the sake of my family."
"You're just now realizing that?"
"I've just now discovered that I should be protecting my family from normal ills, not from a lie."
"How do you know that you're not being led to believe this new story?"
"I can't believe it. I need to be home."
Doggett thought about it for a minute.
"I guess that's all I need for now. No one was ever in danger?"
"No."
They sat quietly before Doggett sighed.
"Dana's going to be mad..." he said, almost in a sing-song voice.
"She knows that I did what I had to do."
"You've got a lot to make up for. Let's get out of here."