"What the hell?!"

Dana Scully was completely at a loss for words, and that was definitely a first for her. She didn't know if she was reading into this new teaser chapter, or if she had a legitimate reason to overreact. She knew one thing for sure, sleep was a lost cause for the evening. She needed to get any information she could on the elusive M.F. Luder.

She pulled out her computer and began researching all she could on the famous author. After an hour she let out a frustrated sigh. Sure, there were plenty of sites about where to buy his books, summaries of his novels, and of course, the fan sites completely devoted to the conspiracies of who M.F. Luder really was. Scully found herself immersed in reading any kind of biographical information that had been collected over the years, and she felt like there was a dead end around every turn she took.

As early morning slowly crept up on her, she fell asleep on the couch with her computer sprawled on her and notes that she was taking scattered around. That's exactly how her sister-in-law found her the next morning, and was curious as to what was keeping Dana up all night. Tara quietly moved towards Dana just enough to see what was sprawled on the notes scattered on the table and the floor. She could only make out a few things, but as she read some of the scribbles, a slow smile began to emerge on her face. She made her exit to the kitchen and began making breakfast.

Scully began to rouse at the smell of fresh coffee, and a slight confusion began to run through her mind. Why was she on the couch? As she sluggishly began to put the pieces of her night together, the uneasy feeling came back to her. Tara's voice in the kitchen broke her from her thoughts and she got up to head towards the sound.

"Morning, Dana. Sleep well?" Tara asked, a little too chipper, with a slight amusement to her voice.

"Oh - Morning, Tara. Yeah, I must have fallen asleep on the couch doing resear - uh working on something for class." Dana mumbled as she sniffed the heavenly aroma that filled the cup she cradled between her hands.

"I didn't know that M.F. Luder was part of your required reading..." Tara mused, trying to hide her smile as she sipped her coffee.

"I - I was just curious about that new chapter." Scully said a bit flustered. "You - you didn't notice anything, uh, familiar about the main character?"

"No, I just found the plot absolutely fascinating. I can't wait to read this installment! I heard it was a 3 part series." Tara exclaimed.

Scully sighed, she knew Tara wasn't going to be the help she needed. She also began to wonder if putting herself into the new character of his novels was just her way of slowly losing her mind. Perhaps she just needed to find out who this Luder person was, to put her mind at ease. She was going to have to use the last resource her mind came up with last night, and she wasn't too thrilled about this particular course of action.

She cut her weekend with her brother's family slightly short for a "work emergency" and made her way back to the east coast. After many dead ends of research, Scully felt she had no choice but to use the one resource she felt was her last resort, work. What's the point of working with the FBI if you can't partake in their resources?

It's not that she didn't feel comfortable using channels at work to find answers, she just didn't really have anyone she was close enough to trust. Dana Scully had gained the reputation of being a very closed off professional. She didn't engage with many coworkers, and refused any guy who had gained the courage to ask her out. It wasn't that she had become the "Ice Queen" that people had named her, but she felt like she had to maintain her ground and earn a different kind of respect from her peers.

She called around to a few people that she went through the academy with, and asked them to look into anything that would match M.F. Luder. She now knew it was a pseudonym, so she was willing to take any kind of lead she could possibly grasp. Once Dana had put in her calls, she knew there wasn't much more she could do. She resumed classes the next morning, so she thought she should attempt to get somewhat of a decent night's sleep.

QUANTICO, VA
DANA SCULLY'S LECTURE

Mulder assumed his seat in the back of Dr. Scully's class, and began his daily musings of this petite redhead who held every waking thought he possessed. He watched and took mental notes of her movements, her demeanors, and the way she recited her teachings. Something seemed off about his latest muse, as she seemed slightly more distant and on edge. He was curious what caused this changed, but was fascinated to see her in control of the emotions running through her, so evidently in her eyes.

Just as he was lost in his own thoughts about her eyes, he noticed the bright blue, piercing eyes in question staring back at him. He panicked at first, until he came back to his surroundings and realized the student directly in front of him was speaking.

Mulder let out a breath, and slumped slightly lower in his seat, hoping to hide further in the shadows. He almost swore that as another speaker began towards the other end of the class, Dr. Scully's gaze lingered a little longer in his direction. He felt both unnerved and excited by the look in her eyes.

Towards the end of class, Agent Davis snuck in the back of the lecture hall and got Mulder's attention. He motioned to Mulder to follow him out into the hallway. As he exited the class, he noticed a rather amused look bestowed upon Davis' face.

"What's up?" Mulder asked cautiously.

"It looks like your little muse has put her investigative skills to work and has been looking into you at the bureau." Davis' grin grew wider.

Mulder's face paled. This was the closest anyone had ever come to revealing his identity. His pseudonym was how he was able to write the way he did. Sure, he had some intense fans who have been able to uncover little bits and generic pieces of his life, but nothing this profound. He now knew that Dr. Dana Scully would be his undoing in more ways than one.

He was brought from his thoughts by a small chuckle. Mulder's eyes narrowed, "This isn't funny, Davis. What information does she have?"

"The only thing she was able to get was an address off of one of your checks. I'm assuming it's just a publisher's address?" He smiled. "You may have met your match, Mulder."

"You have no idea." Mulder couldn't help but smile at what information was given to Dr. Scully. If she was as curious as he had her pegged for, she would want to at least check it out, and boy was she in for a surprise.

Dana's classes could not be over soon enough. She came back from her weekend revelations with an uneasy feeling. She didn't know if she was just overreacting, but she had a feeling of being watched. During her classes, she activated her best investigative eye and really examined her class. She watched for those who gave her their undivided attention. She noticed a few that stuck out to her, and one specifically who slumped in the shadows in the back of her lecture hall.

He was older than her regular students, though not by much, but there was a definite distinction to him. If Dana allowed herself, she may even say that he was attractive. She would be keeping her eye on him for more than one reason, although she would never admit it.

Between classes she had finally received a call about her inquiries into M.F. Luder.

An address.

She had some piece of information, perhaps the only piece, that could possibly lead her to answers and finally put her mind to rest. She was curious, so she would stake the place out on her way home.

She had been waiting all day to leave, and uncharacteristically ended her last class a little short. She made her way to the address that she had scribbled down, and was parked outside across the street.

Dana took in her surroundings, and the uneasy feeling slowly began to return. It was in a sketchy neighborhood, broken down to say it nicely, and the only thing she could see across the street was an old building. Curiosity won over the apprehensions she held, and she made her way across the street.

She knocked on the old building door, and heard what sounded like a camera moving to view her in the doorway. She looked down and realized she looked like she was dressed like a fed, having just come from work. She didn't know what she was getting herself into, but she needed answers more than anything, so she put some reassurance to whoever was watching her from behind the door.

"Hi, uh, I am Dr. Dana Scully, I'm a professor. I - I just have a few questions. I got this address from a - a friend." She managed to stutter out, feeling ridiculous for standing in an unfamiliar place, talking to a door. Just as she was beginning to lose hope from the lack of answer, she heard locks being disengaged.

Dana began to feel a flutter of excitement and fear in her stomach as the door slowly opened. She was going to hopefully get the answers that her mind had been asking all weekend, and she didn't know which answer she wanted. Just as she was being brought from her thoughts, she noticed a short, stout man with glasses standing before her. She was almost hoping for the attractive man who hid in the shadows of her class, and frowned slightly.

"The Lone Gunmen, I'm Frohike." He spoke cautiously. "And what might I help the delectable Dr. Scully with?" He grinned at her.