From: Sean Smith X-From: rkwong@engin.umich.edu (Roberta Chi-Woon Kwong) Newsgroups: alt.tv.quantum-leap.creative,alt.ql.creative Subject: "Quanta" part 12/17 Date: 19 Apr 1995 17:24:50 GMT This is being posted for Sean Smith , who is having some difficulty posting from his account. Please direct all comments to him. Apologies if any line noise remains in these posts. -------------------------------------------------- Fox turned slightly, pulling the soft blanket around his shoulders. The soft leather of his couch felt slick against his forehead as he nuzzled it. It bothered him that there was no low buzz of a television, but the soft blue light was good. He tossed one leg over the back of the couch, and sneezed slightly when the dust hit his nose. Dust? He bolted upright as that sank in, only to find his skull three sizes too small for his brain. He just leaned forward, moaning. But, he had the distinct impression that his front room looked worse than usual. RMulder? IUm glad you woke up. For a while there you really had us worried.S Donna spoke smoothly as she approached, warmth in her voice. RHow long have I been out?U Fox sat on the sofa, running his hands through his hair. ROnly two hours. I knew you didnUt want medication, so I just brought you to your apartment. On whatUs left of it.S She sat next to him. RHere, I grabbed some juice for you after I convinced the manager toy let us in. You could use it.S She held the cup for Fox as he drank greedily. Most of his headache receded, leaving the icepicks in his temples. When he finished, he turned to her. RAre the files here?S He was breathing heavily. RDonUt you want to know how youUre doing? YouUre much better than you were a couple of hours ago. So-S RI take it that means thereUs no files, and IUm still getting worse. Sorry, but I speak fluent Doctorese.S Mulder grinned at her weakly. RListen Mulder, this isnUt going anywhere, and-S RBefore you say anything, I have to say something. I lost my temper at the cemetery, and it was wrong. IUm sorry. And thank you for bringing me here, and not drugging me up. I really appreciate it.S RIt was nothing. Besides, I wasnUt sure youUd live if I drugged you, anyway.S They both grinned at the macabre humor. Then Fox looked about the room, coughing lightly. Tables were toppled, and all the remaining furniture was dirty, and laced with spider webs. The whole room smelled musty, and was chill in the late fall night. The only light came from a blue bulb set in a tarnished brass lamp on FoxUs old desk. Mulder thought it odd that there were no debris scattered across the floor. RListen, Donna, I donUt really know what to do, anymore. I can barely think with this splitting headache. Maybe we should-S He stopped as he heard a noise at the door. The lock was turning. Before either person could move, the door swung open on creaky hinges, revealing a red haired woman, wearing jeans and a jacket against the cold night air. In one hand she carried a familiar, worn briefcase. RDana?S Fox tried to get up and found he couldnUt. RMulder? IUve been looking for you.S The woman stepped forward, into the harsh light of the single bulb. RItUs Melissa, Fox. Do you remember me?S She set the case on a dusty table just inside the door. She paused, then closed the door behind her. When she spoke, it was with her head pressed against the wood of the door. RWhere were you, Mulder?S RI canUt explain. But we need to get out of here, now.S Mulder dropped heavily back into the creaking leather sofa. RWe?S Melissa turned and saw Donna. RYou have a new partner now? RForget it, letUs just go.S Fox sounded bone-tired. RWait. What happened to your voice?S In the half-light of the one remaining bulb, her eyes narrowed. She heard Samuel Beckett, not Fox Mulder. RShit. I canUt explain that, okay? Just believe, just believe itUs me. Please, Scully. IUm too tired to jump through hoops trying to get those damn files.S RThat doesnUt sound like Mulder. Who are you?S Melissa stuck her hands in her jacket pockets. RItUs me. IUm trapped in one of my own damn files, and I need to see which one so I can go back in time to save DanaUs life. The woman over there runs the local time machine, and her husbandUs taking my place in nineteen-ninety-five. Is that all you wanted to know? I just want to go to sleep.S His words came out slowly, deliberately. Mulder felt as though it took all his will to hold his head up. Donna turned the light on Fox, revealing the face and body of an ill Sam Beckett. Melissa gasped when she saw him, half wrapped in an old blanket, his expensive clothes marred with stains. He tried a lopsided grin on, and watched her slowly. RNice to know I can still get the Scully girls to gasp when I enter the room.S Melissa looked back and forth between the two other people in the room, amazement written large on her fair face. She shook a lock of auburn hair back from her shoulder. RItUs amazing...S RYouUre telling me?S R...that you would dare make fun of two people as fine as Dana and Fox!S Her thin face showed itUs resemblance to her sister as it lit up with fire. RPlease, donUt call me Fox. Just Mulder.S RStop it, right now. And tell me how you got my note. Or else.S Melissa drew herself up to her full height, the many necklaces about her throat tinkling. ROr else? Oh, hey, youUve gotten _real_ tough, Scully. I got your note when I went to pick up my files, and found youUd beaten me to them. I guess Da- youUre sister told you about them?S Melissa nodded, caught off guard. Donna kept silent, not wanting to interrupt what was playing out before her. RWho are you? Talk to me?S Melissa fell into a squat in the center of the floor, studying him. RDo me a favor; donUt pull out your crystals and read my mind, or whatever. Just tell me, what does it take for a guy to prove heUs swapped bodies around here?S He tried to smile as he pushed himself forward from the couch. He managed to lean his elbows on his knees, and let out his breath. RMulder...when Dana disappeared, I came to visit you here...S She stared expectantly at him. He looked first at Donna, then back to Melissa. RPlease...donUt go into it. Not now.S He rubbed the side of his head, his eyes closed. RI came in and talked to you. What did we talk about, Mulder?S She leaned forward, with the intensity of a predator. RNot in front of her, okay? In private. Please.S He sounded tired, and his voice soft. RNow. What did we-S she began. RWe didnUt talk!S Fox managed weakly, RYou barged in here, and...and you took my gun from me.S His mouth continued to move silently, and tears rolled down his face. RWhy.S She suddenly seemed preternaturally calm, even gentle. RYou felt...you felt Dana wouldnUt want me to...do that...not like that. You kept me there until she showed up, Mel. I...S he buried his head in his hands. Melissa ran up and held him softly. RItUs alright Fox. We can fix it. YouUre back.S she continued to whisper softly to him as she smoothed back his hair. Donna held a hand to her mouth, and wiped away her own tears. Quietly, she turned her back on the two mourners, and started getting the files ready. * * * Dana swallowed abruptly, blinking back her emotions. RNo. Oh, no, donUt you try and walk away from me like that.S She tightened her grip on the steering wheel, and tried to burn a hole through the rain with the intensity of her gaze. RYou absolutely will not get away from me like that. IUm your partner!S Sam breathed deeply. RAnd this is outside the official bounds of a Bureau investigation, so it doesn't count.S The rain pounded on the glass behind him, and rattled across the roof. RSince when has TofficialU mattered to us? IUm your friend, and youUre in danger-S She was cut off by the sound of squealing tires. The small car fishtailed in a particularly violent wind burst, and a flash of lightening suddenly illuminated the edge of the roadway as the slid towards it. Sam grabbed the door handle, and hung on for dear life. Scully steered into the skid, and pulled her feet from the carUs pedals. She felt a cold shock of adrenaline wash over her chest, and her breath caught in her throat. For an instant, she thought the car would hit the guardrail, but she forced herself to keep her eyes open. The passenger side door came to a stop two handspans from the railing. Sam let out his breath slowly, and let his head down. One instant of pure fear, and he was sweating all over. For a moment, he wondered why he wasnUt used to it yet. Then he let go of the door handle and the window frame, to take a look at his partner . She still sat hunched forward over the steering wheel, staring out over its plastic rim. The ponytail was in disarray over her near shoulder, and the wildly curling hairs escaping the rim of the hat partially hid her face. In a flash of lightening, h e could see her wide eyes trembling. For many reasons, he was disturbed by the tension in her entire body, so much that her huge leather jacket fairly shook. He turned on one of the overhead lights as he leaned forward to make sure she was unhurt. RDana, are you okay?S The moment the light was on, her head snapped around, the red hair wild about her face. He saw for one brief instant stark terror, before her hand caught him squarely in the nose. His head bounced backward, smacking the window behind him , while she tucked herself against the window opposite. RDana?S his voice was muffled by the hand at his face. The lightning flashed again, and a rolling rumble shook the car. For several seconds, no one stirred. Sam held himself perfectly still against the car door, and tried to understand what was going on. His left arm was propped against the car seat, and his right hand was cupped about a bleeding nose. He wanted to look for something to stop the bleeding, but he couldnUt until Dana was safe. Until he was safe. He knew full well what he was seeing. Al had told that Pfaster had run her car off the road when he kidnapped her. Sam guessd that there had probably been a storm, as well. And now Dana had been all too forcefully reminded of this recent trauma. SheUd been forced back into memories sheUd rather not have, and was caught. Beckett knew he had to snap her out of this nightmare landscape; heUd been trapped inside that frightened face himself, and heUd needed help badly. The hand Sam was using to stifle his bloody nose dropped back into his lap, suddenly weary. He watched with dark eyes as Dana shivered to herself, wrapped in the layers of her leather jacket. Her head was bent down, resting on the steering wheel, only the back of her head visible in the changing lights of passing traffic. The car rocked softly on the wind of the other cars, and their noise blended harshly with that of the storm to create a background hissing. It was almost enough to hide to sounds of crying. RDana. Dana?,S Sam pleaded. RPlease, Dana, are you okay?S He did not want to reach out to her, for fear of further upsetting her. RMulder?S Her voice was scratchy with her tears, but still high and soft, almost tentative. Her head was still buried in her arms. RIUm here.S Sam tried to sound as comforting as he could. Dana looked over at him, her face obscured in shadows. RIUm sorry. IUm so sorry. I donUt know what happened. IUm so sorry.S She sounded as though she were repeating a litany, again and again. Sam caught her shoulders as she started to slump again. RItUs okay Dana. IUm fine. Everything will be just fine.S He held her head to his chest and hoped he could make that true. * * * The small collection of typed notes and computer disks that Fox had kept his personal notes on were filed back into the briefcase. Melissa and Donna had already moved him down to the car, where he was sleeping soundly under his jacket in the back seat. The predawn blackness of midtown was lifting, and in the echoing silence of the street Fox Mulder once lived on, the two women were rushing to the car, their shoes clacking upon the worn concrete. RDonna, wait.S MelissaUs urgency stopped her half way to the driverUs seat. RWe donUt have much time.S She searched MelissaUs face for some sign of import. RI want to thank you...for Dana. Even if you couldn't...canUt...help her, IUm glad... ItUs good to know Fox is alright.S She reached out and pressed a heavy envelope into DonnaUs hand. RGive this to him. She would have...itUs for him. I have to go.S Melissa turned quickly away, ignoring Donna as she called out. She cast her head back, blinking quickly to clear the tears. The cold night air stung her cheeks and she shivered, thrusting her fists into her jacket pockets for warmth. For her, four years of hell were finally over. SheUd born the unsolved death of her sister, and the loss of her mother to grief. But the man her sister loved had disappeared that day, and the cause of all the suffering vanished like the remembered touch of one long gone . Every day, sheUd done her work, and every night she lay awake wondering what had happened. SheUd come to understand Fox, she thought. And now that part of her life was over. She smiled to think of those two mad people back in the car. If even half of what they or MulderUs documents said were true, then perhaps all her heartache would vanish. It would vanish as all the past was rewritten in some glorious flash of light. It was fitting, she thought, for a sister whose life had been like a light, a beacon in the twilight world she moved in. * * *