Visions

Author: PhileyX 
E-Mail: phileyxback@yahoo.com 
Web-site: https://www.angelfire.com/id/phileyx 
Rating: PG 
Category: MSR, Will/Joyce UST.
Spoilers: Requiem
Prequels: Man Without A Face, The Matchbox, The Dinner Guest, A Nobody is Hard to Find, Time Out, Redhead, A Father is Hard To Find
Disclaimer: All the characters here do not belong to me. 
Author's note: The prequels to this story can be found at:
https://www.angelfire.com/id/phileyx/Face.html
https://www.angelfire.com/id/phileyx/Matchbox.html
https://www.angelfire.com/id/phileyx/Dinner.html
https://www.angelfire.com/id/phileyx/Nobody.html
https://www.angelfire.com/id/phileyx/Timeout.html
https://www.angelfire.com/id/phileyx/Redhead.html
https://www.angelfire.com/id/phileyx/Father.html
Intro: This story takes place after the Requiem. Two years after his disappearance, a man appears claiming to be Mulder, with a catch; he just didn't have his face. Scully finds out he really is her ex-partner the unconventional way. Now the consortium is after their only son and she is forced to make the ultimate sacrifice; she gives them both up. Although intent on keeping herself away from her son, she is unable to stop herself from seeing Mulder. Will grows up without her and soon without his father too. Uncertain about his past, he struggles to understand the signs along his way, signs that would lead him to the truth and eventually his destiny.

XXXXXXXXXXXX
Visions 

    Excerpts from the song 'Acoustic #3' by The Goo Goo Dolls. 

              No infringement of copyright intended.

<Your voice is small and fading
And you hide in here unknown
And your mother loves your father
Cause she's got nowhere to go>


Careful so as not to wake her, he slipped in under the sheets. 'The stupid heater must be acting up again.' He thought as he shuddered, involuntarily moving closer to Joyce. 

She woke when his cold feet touched hers, yelling. "Jace!" 

"I know, it's freezing." He quickly agreed and snuggled nearer. Groaning, she balled her fist and punched him in frustration. He protested. "Ow!"

"Quit it! Create your own warmth!"

"Don't be mean!"

She tried pushing him away but he was too heavy. Then too tired, she gave up. He boldly threw one arm around her and moaned comfortably. "That's much better."

Her cooperation turned out to be a plus for her too as his body began to warm hers up to a toasty temperature. She resisted a sigh of approval, not wanting to give him satisfaction of agreeing with him. "What time is it?" 

"Two in the morning."

She frowned. "You can't keep this up, Jace. You'll kill yourself."

"I'm fine." He grunted. "In fact I'm right on track, I'll graduate when you do."

Joyce mentally shook her head and muttered. "Stubborn mule."

"Same to you." He graciously replied and snuggled deeper into her hair. "Hmm…. you smell good."

She ignored him, growling instead. "You forgot to take out the rubbish again this morning."

"Mmmph."

"And you didn't replenish the toilet roll. What is it with men and toilet rolls anyway? It's not that complicated a chore to handle."

He groaned. "I'll make you a deal. You handle the rolls; I'll handle the kitchen appliances. Honestly Joyce, would it kill you to leave the toaster alone? I told you I would fix it. My toast looked like charcoal today."

"You said you'd fix it **someday**. Translated, that meant never."

"Woman, you nag too much!"

She was about to retort back when she realized that he was right. "God, we sound like an old married couple!"

"Well at least old married couples get some." He muttered under her breath.

"Jace." She warned, shaking her head. Ever since he noticed that she was a woman six months ago, he became unbearably teasing. And she doubted he really was interested, he was probably more taken with the idea that she was attracted to him than anything else.

He smiled, knowing how to placate her. "I've got a surprise for you."

"My birthday present?"

"Yeah, I'll give it to you in the morning."

"It is morning." She pestered but he didn't budge. Finally, she offered. "I'll take the garbage out for a week."

"Deal." He grunted approvingly and flipped himself over, reaching out to remove two items from his jacket on the floor. Then he held an envelope over her head.

She took it from him eagerly, pushed herself to sit up and switched on the lamp beside the bed. He winced at the brightness and covered his eyes with his hand. Meanwhile, she opened the fold pulled a stack of papers out and a set of keys. As she read, her eyes widened in shock. "Jace, we can't afford this!"

"Yes we can."

She looked at him, his eyes still closed. Using the lease papers to smack his chest, she demanded for his undivided attention. "No, we can't. Do you know how much this apartment will cost us a month?"

He saw that she was losing patience. "Well, I can."

She raised an eyebrow. "Is there something you're not telling me? Have you started working for the mafia of something?"

He sighed. "No. The money is from my Trust Fund."

She was now completely baffled. "What Trust Fund?"

"Exactly." He looked into her eyes amusingly. "Remember the message left by a Mr. Art Malone last week. I managed to get him on the phone two days ago. According to Mr. Malone, my father's legal representative, I have a Trust Fund which was due on my birthday, last week."

"Your father has an attorney?"

"Go figure." He smirked and held out the other item in his hand that he was itching to give her. 

She took his bank statement and her eyes grew as large as saucers. "Oh my God!"

"Just banked it in today. Any idea why my father wouldn't tell me I have a Trust Fund as large as that?" She looked at him then at the figures and then at him again, shaking her head dumbly. He grinned. "Me neither but hey, who am I to argue?" 

She didn't seem to be as joyous as he, thinking about the pieces of the puzzle that his father had left behind. It didn't quite fit. "Has Malone met your father?"

He seemed to expect her question. "No. My Trust Fund happened to be one of the cases left behind from his firm partner who passed away earlier this year. He was just following up. According to the dates, it was drawn up when I was five. And get this, Sime and Malone is not even local, it's located in Washington. Malone took a flight down to settle the account with me."

"Actually, I'm not surprised. Your father was extremely careful not to leave any clues behind, he would have been careful with this too." She muttered and he agreed, nodding his head. Now at least things made a little more sense. "He's looking out for you." She finally told him softly.

He smirked. "Is he?"

Catching the sarcastic tone in his voice, she rebuffed him. "Why else would he have gone through all this trouble to make sure you get the cash?"

"He lied to me, Joyce." He snapped back, irritated that she was taking sides and not his. "Hell for all I know, he may not be my father at all!" His words shocked her. Obviously, she hadn't considered the possibility. He rambled on angrily. "Or maybe my mother is not dead. Maybe I was whisked away in the middle of a fucking custody battle. Maybe she's out there looking for me as we speak!"

She calmed him down. "Don't let's play the 'maybe' game, Jace. It doesn't help at all." Then shaking her head, she insisted. "Besides, I'm certain he is your father."

"How can you be so sure?" 

"Easy." Gently, she tapped his nose with her finger. He swiftly turned to glare at her. Although his intent was of reproach, she found herself wanting to laugh. 

Catching her struggle against laughter, he rolled his eyes. "Sure go ahead and laugh. I'll have you know there's a proportional relationship between noses and you-know-what."

She did laugh but incredulously argued. "That's feet and you-know-what, you idiot!"

"That's what you think." He shot back and waggled his eyebrows. "But I'm the med student."

XXXXXXXXXXXX

Linda leaned to whisper something into Jason's ear and proceeded to smile at Joyce across the table. "Do excuse me, I have to use the bathroom."

The latter smiled back and nodded, watching her gracefully leave the table. When she turned to face him, he gave her a curious look. "Well?"

"I think she's great!" Joyce approved heartily.

He grinned proudly. "I knew you'd love her."

"Does it matter?"

"Well if you like her, it means that I've improved from my former choices."

She grimaced thinking about his usual preference. "I'll say you've made a major jump up the scale with this one, Jace." Rolling her eyes, she added. "At least, she has a brain."

He took a sip of his drink and shot a quick glance towards the restrooms. "She's simply amazing. I don't think I've ever met a woman quite like her. Did I tell you about the time when we had to deliver a baby in a theater?"

She raised an eyebrow. He was gushing; it was something she rarely had the privilege to witness. "Yes. She removed her jacket, rolled up her sleeves and jumped in to help like it happened to her every day."

Looking slightly abashed, he asked. "How many times have I told you that story?"

"Oh about the same number of times as the one where she saved the kid from drowning at the city park." Jason Alexander blushing? 'Now that was even rarer!' She thought.

"I guess I've gone and done it this time." He grinned. "I've fallen in love."

"If you ask me, it's bloody well about time!" Joyce snorted. "It's just unfair that only I keep falling into that despairing hole."

He studied her forlorn face. "You mean he dumped you already?"

Giving him a nasty look, she explained. "Not yet and thanks for your vote of confidence by the way. Actually I'm thinking of breaking up with him."

"Why?"

She frowned. "Too many reasons. Getting me started is not really a good idea. But I do dread going back to do the deed. Essentially, he is a great guy."

"Essentially?"

Shaking her head, she waved the question away. "Don't ask."

He rolled his eyes and turned his head towards the restrooms again. "I wonder what's taking her so long?"

Joyce lips formed an amused smile. "God, you're really into her, aren't you?"

Giving her a glare, he chided her. "Have you been paying attention? I thought I told you I've fallen in love?"

"You also told me April with the slightly enlarged left breast would always be your one and only true love."

"Right." He corrected her.

She was clearly bewildered. "What? So what's Linda again?"

He gave her an impatient glance. "I meant it was the right breast."

"Oh." She rolled her eyes. 'Mention body parts and men immediately forget the whole purpose of the conversation.' She thought and went on. "Blonde and busty, she's perfect."

"Yeah, April had it all." He nodded and swayed to the music the live band began to play.

"Jace?" She demanded his attention. "I meant Linda."

He looked annoyed. "I hate talking to you, you keep changing the subject."

She opened her mouth to object when Linda walked up towards them and sat down. Wisely, she swallowed her words. Being always loyal, she decided Linda need not know about his ex, Miss April.

"Would you like another drink?" Jason asked his girlfriend even though her glass was still full. 

"No tha.."

His pager interrupted her, beeping loudly in the middle of the restaurant. Thankfully the band spared them the embarrassment. He checked it and groaned. 

"Got to head back?" Linda asked.

"Yeah." He turned to her with a look of regret. "I'm sorry."

"It's all right. I'll just …." She trailed off, looking at Joyce, a little unsure.

The latter smiled and said. "Go Jace. We'll be fine. I think I should let Linda in on certain things about you. So you see, your absence would most beneficial."

He gave a warning but playful glare. "All right. I'll see you later."

"Not if you come back after six in the morning. My flight out is at 6.30am."

"It shouldn't take that long." He replied and turned to kiss Linda. Then mussing up Joyce's hair, he quickly made his exit before she thumped him for it.

"Don't count on it." Linda suddenly told her.

"What?" Joyce asked, confused.

"Him coming back before seven. He practically lives in the ER."

Grinning, Joyce agreed. "Yeah, I know."

It took only a couple of minutes for Jason to get to the hospital. He had picked a nearby restaurant on purpose, being in between shifts and on call. Catching his breath in the cold night air, he walked quickly to towards the busy ER entrance. 

He felt bad. Joyce had come all the way to see him and all he could manage within her two-day visit was introducing his girlfriend to her. The rest of the time she had spent it in his apartment alone while he was at work. And even tonight, he had to leave early. He sighed, knowing that it couldn't be helped. The hospital was understaffed and interns were conveniently treated as if they had no personal lives.

It had been difficult for both of them to be apart, especially since they had been inseparable since the age of three. But graduation gave them an opportunity to a new beginning. And they embraced it almost eagerly, as if curious to see how they survived independently of each other. So she accepted a large law firm offer in Chicago and he accepted his scholarship posting to Washington. So far, they've been doing okay on their own, only the phone bills were astronomical.

Arriving at the reception, Jason was about to ask when a passing nurse saved him the trouble. She grabbed his arm and pulled him towards the nearest trauma unit. "A bleeder. Male. A motorcycle versus lorry, guess which one we got?"

He grimaced as a vision flashed in his mind. "Please tell me the lorry."

Sally, the nurse snorted. "We all wish. Get in there, doc. Last I heard, his heart stopped."

The second he opened the door, another nurse stepped forward to help him gown up. From across the room, a voice asked him. "Glad you could make it, Doctor. Six minutes, a new personal best?"

He didn't look at the commenter but answered. "Nope. Four minutes is my record so far. What do we have?"

"Male, early twenties. His motorcycle collided with a lorry. Wearing a helmet. He was thrown twenty yards, landing on his right side."

"BP was 110 over 70 a minute ago but we've just lost his pulse. Started compressions and waiting for further orders. Oh yeah, Doctor Santoz is still on his way so you're flying solo until he comes." 

Jason took a deep breath to ease the jitters and examined the male a little more closely. "CBC. Chem 7. Let's get a portable C spine, chest and pelvis." The nurses rushed about to bid his orders.

Sally appeared next to him and gently reminded the new intern. "Crash Cart?"

He looked at her and nodded. "Yes. Give him an amp of Epi and prep the paddles. What's his name?"

"Daniel." Someone answered.

"All right, Mr. Daniel. You're about to receive an extreme jump in your cables so get ready for a treat. Charge it up to fifteen, let's go."

The nurse was about to hand him the paddles when someone stormed into the room. "Wait!"

The whole room shot a quick glance towards the door and returned to their responsibilities. Jason rubbed the paddles together. "Lady whatever you're about to say, say it fast."

She did. "You can't use the paddles. This man was exposed to a highly ionic environment. He's condition is unstable. God knows what might happen if he receives an electrical surge."

"At this point, he'll die if he doesn't." Jason calmly contradicted her and called out. "Clear!" But to his utter astonishment, the nurse in front of the Crash Cart automatically switched off the machine. "What are you doing?" He almost yelled at her.

"She said he'd die if we shock him." 

"Candice, may I remind you I'm the doctor here."

Sally appeared next to her and explained. "But it's Agent Scully."

"Who?" Jason was clearly bewildered.

"CPR, now!" The lady yelled above the confusion and everyone obeyed.

Everyone, except Jason. "Wait a minute. Just who the hell do you think you are?"

"Uh Doc, I wouldn't get on her bad side if I were you." Someone beside him advised.

"What?" Frustrated, he almost threw the paddles in the direction of the crash cart and walked towards the mysterious Agent Scully, grabbing her arm to turn her around. "Excuse me, I'm in charge here and I'd appreciate it if you left the room."

The room suddenly turned silent, with exception of the CPR nurses keeping count. Jason was in the midst of wondering why when the redhead's blue eyes stared daggers into his. "You're new here, aren't you?"

He stopped breathing, certain her glare could actually freeze hell. It was evident that everyone else knew her prowess because he could hear a couple nurses murmuring their condolences on his behalf. He steeled himself but his shaking voice gave him away. "Lady, if you aren't a staff in this hospital, you don't belong here."

She took a moment to study his determined but extremely young face. Then, she asked. "Jesus, exactly how old are you?"

Sally chuckled behind her. "The baby of the hospital, Agent Scully. And will probably be for a long time. I'll just get him out of your way." Grabbing his arm firmly, she led the unwilling intern to the edge of the room.

"Sally!" He hissed.

She held up a finger at him like a mother would a child. "Now doc, I know how you feel but trust me, going against this woman is like going against God. She's also a brilliant doctor so she knows what she's talking about. Just leave her be."

"But…."

"Doctor, you're one of the few interns that I like. So trust me on this one, okay?"

He wasn't convinced but he pretended to agree anyway. The man was his patient and if he had to act dumb, he would. Anything so that he could provide whatever help he could. It was better than getting thrown out of the room, as everyone was willing to do rather than to go against the formidable Agent Scully. 

She was leading the CPR tag team now, occasionally looking at the nurse who was taking Daniel's pulse. "Four minutes, Agent Scully." She was informed. Sweat trickling down her forehead, she stopped the pumping, balled her fist and slammed it hard on the patient's chest.

"What the… What the hell are you doing?" Jason yelled at her.

She glared at him. "Are you still here?"

He ignored her. "If you used the paddles, he would have been breathing now."

"If you're not going to be constructive, I suggest you leave before I shoot you." She growled and smashed her fist on Daniel again.

"Oh all right. Since you think this will work, please allow me." He sarcastically quipped and slammed his fist instead.

To everyone's shock, Daniel jerked violently with the impact and they all involuntarily stepped back an inch. A quiet moment later, the nurse taking the pulse declared. "I'll be damned! We've got a faint pulse!"

Jason's eyes widened. Agent Scully however didn't seem surprised at all as she went ahead with further instruction to the waiting crew. When she was satisfied that everything was under control, she flashed him a smile. "Thank you doctor. Now that's what I call constructive criticism."

He gave her a weak smile and muttered. "Constructive criticism, my ass…"

She threw him a suspicious look, unsure if she heard right. "What did you say?"

"Er.. nothing." He hastily answered and turned to escape before he earned another hell freezing glare.

XXXXXXXXXXXX

Dana Scully rubbed her tired eyes as she walked out of Daniel's room. She nodded at her two quarrelling subordinates in the hallway and smiled to herself. As usual they were arguing about their different perspectives. She wondered if Skinner had this much problem with Mulder and her. Nah, they never fought in front of him.

The coffee machine dispensed her choice of coffee and she cautiously held the hot foam cup in her hand, walking towards the waiting area. To her surprise, she found that the long sofa was taken by the tall, young intern that dared to question her earlier in the trauma unit. 

She sat down on one of the shorter sofas, facing him. As she sipped the heavenly liquid, she studied the boy in front of her. 'He couldn't be more than twenty one, maybe twenty two.' She thought and peered harder. His features were familiar, probably didn't notice it before in the midst of the chaos. He looked like a younger version of Mulder, she finally concluded. Then again, many young men looked like a younger version of Mulder these days. It had been too long since she last saw her son and she had allowed herself the indulgence of this active imagination as a substitute. She figured she could at least pretend to see him.

He was working now, according to Dole. She had begged for some information, just a tiny hint but all he would reveal was that he was a professional. 'Yeah, that certainly narrowed it down!' She groaned silently in disgust. 

Sally walked hurriedly into the waiting area. 'Ah, there she is.' She thought as she caught sight of Agent Scully and was about to call out to her when she noticed another figure in the room. 'Doctor Alexander?' Her eyebrow rose. 'Now, that's weird.' She considered, seeing the federal agent's intent gaze upon the intern. 

"Agent Scully?"

She turned quickly towards Sally's voice, scalding her hand in the process. "Er.. yes?" A slight blush spread across her cheek, telling the nurse that she was definitely staring a little more than necessary. 

"Daniel's awake. You wanted us to inform you?"

"Yes, thank you. Are Agents Landell and Maston with him?"

"Yes, they are."

"Good. Thank you." Clearly dismissed, Sally turned to head back to her station but not before noticing that Doctor Alexander had woken to the sound of their voices.

He blinked wearily as she came into focus. "Agent Scully."

"Doctor Alexander." She greeted him back.

Getting up, he stretched himself. "You're still here?"

"Occupational hazard." She explained, a slight smirk showing but quickly disappearing. "I'm sorry if I undermined your authority back there, Doctor."

He gave her a suspicious look. "You are?"

"Okay, not really. But if you quit medicine now because you couldn't live with unintentionally punching a guy back to life, I'll never forgive myself."

He grinned. "I had a crash Catechism course before I took a nap, Agent Scully. The nurses were most eager to evangelize." She raised an eyebrow and he explained. "Two major commandments; Special Agent Dana Scully is thy Lord and God. Thou shalt obey Her wishes with all your heart, mind and soul." Giving her a mock contrite look, he softly lowered his voice. "So, it's me who should be begging your forgiveness, O revered one."

She couldn't help but smile. "Exaggeration."

He shook his head and teased. "Gospel truth! Didn't you see your quivering people run to do your bidding?"

"It's just VIP privileges, Doctor. My department has single handedly kept this hospital from boredom for more than two decades."

"Yes, I've heard about the complexities of the cases you bring in."

"Hardly complex, Doctor. Try bizarre."

"I was trying to be polite."

She laughed. "I heard you're a genius."

Echoing her, he shrugged. "Exaggeration."

"How old are you?"

"Now that's not polite." He warned. 

She gave up. Shaking her head, she stood up. "I've finally met my match, Doctor. Either that or it's time for me to go home and get some shut eye. Good night."

"Good morning, Agent Scully."

His insistence on always having the last word reminded her of Dole. She shot him a playful glare and muttered under her breath as she left. "Pagan, I'll convert you yet!"

But he heard her. Grinning mischievously, he called out after her. "Nothing personal, atheist you see. I wasn't aware there was a religious norm in this hospital. Nobody told me I had to become a pious Scullian!"

Mortified that he had caught her words, she wisely pretended not to hear. 

XXXXXXXXXXXX

"Jason Alexander." She told him.

Dole immediately choked on his coffee, spluttering half a mouthful in her direction.

"Jesus Dole! What the hell is the matter with you?"

"Nothing." He hastily recovered. "The coffee was hot."

"I noticed." She looked at him annoyingly and hastily wiped the scalding spots off her skirt.

He was too occupied to notice her scarsam. 'Oh shit oh shit oh shit…' His mind repeated continuously. If she found out, she would kill him, he thought. No, actually she would first disembowel him, cut his balls off and then end his worthless existence.

When Jason first told him he wanted to pursue medicine, Dole had talked himself into believing that it was a slim chance that the two of them would ever meet professionally. When he heard that he was posted to DC for his internship, Dole sold his life to the devil for the chance that the hospital was in a remote area of the capital. It looked like even the devil didn't want his soul.

"Dole?" She broke his reverie. 

"Mmm?" His head snapped up while he tried to think of something to say, anything to steer clear of the young intern she was talking about. 

She had other ideas. "As I was saying, he's smart, intuitive and open to extremities. He'd make a fine federal agent."

Clearing his throat, he began to wonder if there was a reason for her saying so. "You're not planning to steal him away from his current profession, are you? I mean after we've been through, you're hardly an advocate for the FBI."

She grinned. "Oh I plan to convert him all right, but not to quit medicine." A mysterious smile danced on her lips and she told him softly. "He reminds me of you, in many ways." 

He stopped breathing. The way conversation was going made him wonder if she was just toying with him. Maybe she knew all along but was wondering how far she could taunt him until he confessed that he had let their son dangerously back into her life again. Then she would proceed to perform monstrosities on him with her spare scalpel in her doctor kit she kept handy in her travel luggage.

To his relief, her next sentence proved her ignorance. "I know. It's all just my imagination. I can't help it, Dole. Once a mother, always a mother."

'Phew.' He resumed breathing.

"He's a believer, like you." She went on, oblivious of the nervous wreck in front of her. "Passionate in what he does but bored easily. Banality does not interest him. He keeps looking for the extraordinary, he thrives on it to keep himself interested in medicine."

Dole stopped worrying about his life enough to ponder her words. "That's where you come in." He stated softly.

"Yes." Dana looked at him sheepishly. "I found myself consulting him sometimes, for a second opinion. He enjoys the challenge and loves the paranormality of the cases."

Digesting her words, he felt torn. Should he encourage the relationship or shouldn't he? On one hand, this was the closest Scully would ever get to know her son. On the other, it was too close for comfort. If the consortium sniffed a rat and checked him out, it would be end of Jason Alexander. 

Dana misunderstood his silence. "I know it isn't healthy for me to ….." She hesitated for the right words. "…. just pick someone to substitute Will. But it's all I can do, Dole." Stopping again, she figured the edge of her sleeve thoughtlessly and smirked. "You would think after years of Doggett, Landell, Maston and you, for that matter; I would had done enough mothering to last me two lifetimes."

He returned her joke with a smile. "It's different."

She looked up and caught his deep gaze, grateful that he understood. "Yes, it is." Then catching a frown flicker across his face, she guessed. "But you don't like the idea of Jason?"

He cleared his throat uncomfortably. "I…" He trailed off, unsure what he should say. Then taking a deep breath, he decided. "I think you should be careful. Jason Alexander is young, impressionable and brilliant. So was I at that age and look what happened to me."

Evidently not expecting his words, she took some time before answering. "There is a difference, Dole." Her voice softened. "His childhood was comparatively normal compared to yours."

He offered an assured look as if telling her that he didn't mind her bringing up his sister. "Are you sure? How much do you know about his childhood?"

"Not much but at least no one calls him Spooky." She deadpanned.

He nearly grinned. "I'm just afraid he'll get more than what he bargained for. You know how dangerous the X-files can be once we get on the wrong side of it, Scully. Are you willing to allow this boy into this sick game?"

"I wasn't the one that began it, he did." She pouted, almost childishly. "He wanted to know more about the ionization of the teenager and things just started from there."

He gave her a disapproving look. "But you did call to consult him on other occasions, didn't you?"

She admitted it reluctantly. "Well, he was the only one who didn't haughtily dismiss the extreme possibilities. Do you know how difficult it is to talk to narrow-minded scientists?"

"Oh, I have a pretty good idea." He replied, a mischievous look in his eyes.

She glared at him. "I **always** gave you the benefit of the doubt."

"Not without a fight." He replied, amused at first, but soon returned seriously. "Scully, just don't drag him into anything unnecessarily. We've both been through enough hell to wish for a normal life, one where everything made sense. Don't take away that from him."

She sighed. He was right, of course. But somehow she knew she still wasn't about to just drop the acquaintance. It made her wonder why. 'Why was it so hard to let Jason Alexander go?'

XXXXXXXXXXXX

Jason stared at the report in front of him. 'Tox screen negative and blood alcohol level 0.05. That's weird!' He thought and flipped through the rest of the pages to look at the charts that came with it. But they said the same.

A cab finally pulled up in front of him. He closed the file, got in and told the driver. "The airport." Then, he pulled out his cell phone and rang Agent Scully.

'Damn ! It was busy!' He frowned and hung up. To his surprise, it immediately rang. "Agent Scully?"

"No, it's me." Joyce's voice answered. 

"Hey, I'm on the way to the airport."

"Good, I was hoping to catch you before you got there. Do you think you could change your flight?"

"What? Why?"

"Because I can't make it. It's Darrell's big opening night and I forgot that you were coming tonight."

He groaned. "Joyce, I planned this trip months ago."

And she whined. "Please Jace. After the opening, I would have to mingle around and that will take most of the night. Then, he said he had a surprise for me."

Rolling his eyes, he wondered if his surprise had anything to do with a bed. "Oh all right, I'll take the flight in the morning then." He leaned forward to tell the driver to go back to the hospital instead.

"Thanks." She gushed gratefully and teasingly added. "So are we finally bored of Linda?"

"What?"

"Agent Scully?"

He rolled his eyes. "Now don't you start, I've enough from the staff as it is."

"They're teasing you about Agent Scully?" She asked incredulously.

"Yeah, saying that she's besotted with me."

"Is she?"

"No!" He almost yelled. "I'm just a little more open to extreme possibilities than most people."

"A little?" She countered dryly.

He frowned. "I'm hanging up."

She laughed. "Bye."

"Bye." He hung up but his phone immediately rang to life again. Shaking his head in bewilderment, he pressed the accept button. "What?"

"Bad time?" It wasn't Joyce's voice.

Jason grimaced. "Agent Scully?"

"Yes." She admitted rather cautiously. "You tried calling me?"

"Yes I did. I'm sorry… I didn't expect you to call back. I mean… I thought you were someone else."

"It's all right. What's this about?"

"Leonard Farns wasn't intoxicated. I've got the report in my hands."

"You must have gotten the wrong report. I hear it was pretty damn obvious. Agent Landell saw him in the hospital. According to him, he looked like a drunk, he smelt like a drunk and he was definitely drunk."

"Looks can be deceiving. His alcohol level was low and nothing on the Tox screen either."

"Impossible! He failed the breathalyzer the police insisted him to take on the spot."

"But I have the blood work with his name on it."

She wasn't at all impressed. "Ten hours after the arrest, you only get the analysis now?"

Grimacing, he made excuses for his establishment. "Busy day. They had it completed but did not send it up. I suppose they figured it wasn't needed in a hurry since he failed the breath test."

"I want to see the report." He could almost her brow crease as she asked. "Where are you?"

"On the way back to the hospital but why don't I meet you at your office?" Noticing her hesitation, he explained. "I don't want to hang around the ER in case I get roped in in an emergency. I'm supposed to be on holiday and I have a flight in the morning that I don't want to miss."

"I see. But I'm not in the office at the moment." She was silent for a moment as if deliberating what next to say. "Why don't you come over to my house?" And she proceeded to give him the address. 

Jason was speechless, unsure what it meant that she wanted to meet at her house. "Will it be convenient?"

She seemed to notice his apprehension and quickly put him at ease. "Yes. It's my mother's death anniversary today, Doctor. I spent the day slaving away at the stove, preparing for a family dinner tonight. Unfortunately, it was quite an eventful day for my agents and my phone was stuck to my ear the whole day."

He laughed. "Okay, I'll see you in ten minutes."

"Twenty. It's nearly the rush hour." She reminded him.

"Right." He hung up and changed his directions with the driver again. The man wasn't at all pleased.

When he arrived at her doorstep and rang the doorbell, he caught whiffs of a delicious home cooked meal. 'She wasn't kidding.' He thought, recognizing the mouth-watering scents of his favourite dishes. 

A rather flustered Agent Scully opened the door. "Hi."

He smiled and teased. "Hark, do I smell heaven?"

Grinning, she let him in. "Yeah well, I figured I needed all the help I can get. It's a family reunion of sorts tonight." She shook her head slightly. "This thing between my brother and I…"

Dana couldn't believe that she actually told him that. 'What is wrong with me?' She wondered. 'Must be nerves.' It took her a long time to take this step and make an effort to seal the gap with Bill. The irony was it was fitting that Jason Alexander should be here. After all, he was the one that helped her reach the decision.

He just reminded her too much of Mulder. It was one thing to have John Dole appearing once in a while but to have a younger version of him leading a perfectly normal life within her screwed-up one? It was as if she had a window into an alternate world, a universe where this Dole led a normal life… well except for the inner workings of his mind. Jason Alexander was still paranoid compared to the average male. And to think there was yet another version of Dole out there, a more genetically linked one. She wondered if Will were anything like the both of them.

Jason watched her drift off into her own world and softly woke her from her thoughts. "The way through a man's heart…" 

She recovered and nodded. "Something like that." Then, she invited him in. 

It was a beautiful living room with a large fireplace that he suspected was never lit, the cool light curtains let in the soft evening sun through the large windows, an elegant cushy sofa and a lovely little coffee table.

"Why don't you have a seat?" She motioned courteously. "I'll just run and check on the fire before we get into this."

"Okay." He replied and walked over to the comfortable-looking sofa, easing himself into it. 'Nice.' He thought and glanced around curiously. There were photos on the mantelpiece, pictures of her family no doubt. He took a wild guess on which of her brothers that she had a problem with. 'Must be the taller one, the one with the irritating smug face.' Her mother was pretty, her sister was hot too. Must have been a lovely happy family, he concluded.

He then glanced at the doorway, wondering what was taking her so long. Bored, he reached out for a medical journal, one of the few scattered on her coffee table. As he was about to lift it up, his fingers grazed the wooden top and suddenly bright flashes of light blinded him. Then he saw and felt it:

<< 

"See, this card has ball on it…" A man's voice said.

Same living room. Three people on the couch. A man, a woman and a baby.

"…. those are reading cards!" The woman, apparently a younger Agent Scully protested.

The baby chortled. The man pulled him into his arms, gently giving him a hug.

Love.

Pride.

Hope.

>>

As unexpectedly as it began, it was over. And Jason found himself shaking violently in the aftermath. He stared ferociously at his hand. 'What the hell…?' It was as if he had an out-of-body experience. But his wildly beating heart assured him that he was still very much alive. 

Half a minute later, his brain began to function. 'Love, pride, hope.' He thought of the three words he saw… no, felt. The emotions were powerful and it was real. So was the vision. It was all too vivid!

Agent Scully's abrupt entrance made him jump out of his seat. "Sorry, I took so long…." She trailed off when she saw his shaken composure. "What's wrong?" 

He opened his mouth say something but couldn't think what. Realizing he was shaking, she stepped up and took his hand. "Doctor? You're pale and…" She took in his body language. "You seem to be in shock."

He gruffly muttered. "I'm fine."

"What happened?" She asked but he shook his head curtly, dismissing her query. She tried another approach. "I'll make you some tea. Why don't you sit down?"

He automatically stiffened at the suggestion. "No!" Then as if realizing that he had just overreacted, he softly told her. "I think I'll follow you into the kitchen. I just need some air."

She didn't argue with him, thinking that a walk may actually do him some good. Leading him into the cozy and currently aroma filled room, she watched him curiously while she filled the kettle. He seemed to have recovered a little but his eyes darted about suspiciously as if a monster was about to attack him from behind.

Worried, she asked him again. "Are you sure you're all right? Is there a medical condition I should know about?" He shook his head and she almost groaned. She decided to talk about something else; maybe it would loosen his tongue. "Why don't you sit down and tell me about the report?"

He seemed to ponder at her proposal. Then he nodded and reached out for the back of the chair nearby. To her astonishment, he jerked violently and fell to his knees. The kettle in her hand dropped and she hastily shut the water off, rushing to his side. 

"Doctor Alexander?" She called out and turned him to face her. His eyes were tightly shut and he shuddered aggressively. Thinking he was having some kind of fit, she called his name repeatedly, pushing his forehead down so that he couldn't move about so much. 

<<

Tears. Humiliation. Fear. 

A woman runs her bath. Sweet smell of flowers.

"You have to get past this, Elizabeth Maston!" She scolded…. herself?

Anger. Hatred. Sweet fucking woman.

Hears the bath. Smiles. "Soon." He mutters.

She walks out of the bathroom but a hand grabs her from behind.

"Oh my God!" She screams. 

Fear. Fear. Fear.

>>

It suddenly stopped and Jason painfully let out short gasps of breath. As the intense emotions began to recede, he realized that Agent Scully was in front of him, calling his name, asking him if he could hear her. "Yes." He managed to utter in between his confusion. 

She looked slightly relieved and moved to get up. "I'm calling for an ambulance. Don't move!"

His hand grabbed hers roughly. "No time, she's in danger!"

She looked at him as if he was crazy. "What?"

"Agent Maston." He told her, letting her hand go and getting to his feet. "Quickly or she'll die!"

Dana stared after him. One moment he was having a fit on her kitchen floor, the next he was commanding her to go save her subordinate? From what? She found him at the front door, glaring impatiently at her. "We don't have time!"

"Listen, I'm not going anywhere until you tell me what's going on!" She snapped back.

"Farns attacked Agent Maston and he'll do it again! He's there right now."

"He was drunk!" She argued. 

"No he wasn't, not on my report." She wasn't convinced. His eyes darted nervously out into the darkness, then to her again. This time, he reasoned with her. "Give me the benefit of the doubt and say he wasn't. If a victim gets away, wouldn't a psycho come back for her?"

She looked at him intently, not understanding how his attack had anything to do with Farns and Maston. But that aside and giving him the benefit of the doubt he requested, he was right. "I'll get my car keys and my gun. You, go to my kitchen and turn off the oven!" 

He looked incredulous. "What?" How could she think of dinner at a time like this?

"I was up since five preparing the damned stuffing. There's no way in hell I'm letting that turkey burn, Doctor!" She glared at him and stalked off.

XXXXXXXXXXXX

When they arrived at Agent Maston's house, she frowned seeing a familiar car in front of her curb. "Agent Landell's here." She told him and got out of the car, he followed suite.

They were halfway up her path when two gunshots made them jump. They looked at each other and ran towards the door. Dana had already removed her gun and cautiously led the way through the house. They saw no one until they reached the bathroom. Agent Landell was holding a weeping Agent Maston in his arms. Leonard Farns however was dead at the other end of the room.

Dana slowly lowered her gun. Agent Landell seemed to realize that there they weren't alone and looked up. Both Dana and Jason caught the plea in his eyes. Quietly they retreated.

In the living room, she whisked out her cell phone and called 911. Then putting it away, she looked at the younger man expectantly. The question was written all over her face. How did he know?

He ignored her, being confused himself. The implication of what he had seen was just beginning to sink in. The vision he saw in his head fifteen minutes ago had become reality. How can that be? What did that mean? 

'Fear.' He thought and recognized that it must have been the emotion she felt. "Anger, hatred.' The latter were Farn's. He saw it, he felt it. 'How? Why?' Then once again he asked himself. 'What did it mean?'

Agent Landell unexpectedly appeared, breaking the quiet tension in the room. He looked curiously at Jason, as if wondering what he was doing here and then back to his superior. 

"How is she?" She asked.

"She's fine. Washing up." His voice was low and gruff.

Dana studied his weary face. After three years under her, he was totally transparent. He was scared, he nearly lost her. "Is she hurt?"

"The SOB pushed her around a little. A couple of bruises that may show for a while." His grim jaw tightened a notch.

"Who shot him?"

She didn't miss the fleeting look of panic that crossed his face. "I did."

"Twice?"

"Yes." He agreed, too quickly.

She took the gun from his hand and he seemed disconcerted. Removing the clip, she satisfied her suspicions. But she kept her cool, asking. "With her gun?"

He blinked for a moment and then nodded. "Yes. I dropped mine and used hers."

Her eyes narrowed and he squirmed slightly under her scrutiny. Half a minute later, she decided to let it go and advised him instead. "The police will be here shortly. I suggest you think carefully on what should go in your statement. Fuck it up and you both could be in trouble."

Frowning, he knew that she knew. "I understand."

"Good." She dismissed him. "Go see if she's all right."

"Yes, Ma'am."

By that time, the police had arrived and the house was soon flooded with uniformed men. 

XXXXXXXXXXXX

Although he could see the question burning through her forehead every time she looked at him, she hadn't the chance to voice it out. Thankfully too because he didn't know the answer. He stood aloof at the corner of the hospital waiting room. His colleagues looked curiously at him but he was protected by the number of FBI agents around him. Then a policeman walked up to him, a clipboard in his hand. Jason panicked.

"Sir, could I ask you a few questions?" It may have been framed as a question but the tone implied that it wasn't. 

Dana looked over and caught the uniformed man questioning Jason. She frowned and abruptly held up her hand to interrupt the agent talking to her. Then she called out loudly to the policeman. "Sergeant?" 

The whole room dropped in silence. The policeman in front of Jason whirled around and pointed to himself. She nodded. "Yes you. I would appreciate it if you left him alone. He's with me."

"But he's a witness…" The Sergeant argued, trying to do his job.

She obviously didn't care. "I told you he's with me. He came with me and left with me."

The whole room collectively held their breath, anxiously waiting to see if he would challenge her authority. Not surprisingly, he didn't dare. Instead, he shrugged and nonchalantly walked away. Jason let out a sigh of relief. 'Thank God!' He didn't think he would survive telling his visions to a cop without having his credibility as a doctor shredded into pieces.

The agent beside her once again demanded Dana's attention and this time she was forced to follow him to Agent Maston's room for certain red tape procedures. Before she left the waiting hall, she managed to catch Jason's eye and left him a warning glare. 

'Great!' Jason groaned. 'She's not done with me yet.' He was tired, confused and hungry. And he wanted to go home, take a nice hot shower, ravage some cookies and sink into bed. 'Or….' An excellent idea struck him, making him grin. 'I could sneak out in this chaos and catch the late flight out to Chicago. Then I won't have to deal with Agent Scully. Well, at least not for a while. Maybe after three days, I would have gotten this figured out.'

XXXXXXXXXXXX

Joyce opened the door and her eyes widened. "Jace!" Then she hastily squeezed through the gap and closed the door behind her. "What are you doing here?"

He sighed wearily at her. "I'm tired, I'm hungry, I stink and I have visions. Can I come in now?"

"What?" She asked, obviously not understanding the visions part. 

"Long story." He told her and reached out for the knob. She stopped him with a grimace. He understood and rolled his eyes. "He's in there."

"Yes and he was about to tell me something very important when you knocked on the door." She softly whined. "You were supposed to come in the morning."

"I told you, long story."

"Jace, please." She gave him a soulful look. 

He finally groaned. "Oh all right. I'll be in the Holiday Inn." Then he muttered. "As if you care."

"Of course I do. Thank you." She squealed. "I'll make it up to you."

He turned and walked away. "Promises. Promises."

As it turned out, she did care. He found her in front of his hotel room two hours later. He wordlessly let her in.

She frowned and stated. "You're not surprised to see me." He shrugged and lay on the bed. Dropping her handbag on the floor, she looked at the chilled bottle of wine next to the bed. "Are you expecting someone?"

"You." He said simply. "There's ice cream in the fridge."

'He's acting weirder than usual.' She thought and walked to the mini fridge, removing her indulgence and grabbing a spoon.

"You knew I was coming." She mentioned the obvious again.

"Yes."

She studied his face. "Has this anything to do with the visions you were talking about? Your long story?"

He smiled. "Oh you're gonna love this!" And proceeded to tell her the events of the early evening. When he finished, she was almost gaping.

Moving to sit next to him on the bed, she looked into his eyes. "Swear this is not a sick joke you're playing on me."

He rolled his eyes. "It's not Halloween!"

"So you can tell the future?"

"I don't know that for sure. So far there had been three visions. Personally I liked the last one."

She grinned, thinking about how she had kicked Darrell where it hurt a guy the most, prior to coming over. "Yeah I was kinda proud of it myself."

"What did he say or do?"

She winced. "He was into the wholesome threesome sort of thing. Wanted me to meet the other one third to see if we could get something going on too."

Jason made a face. "Where **do** you find these rejects?"

"I'm a jerk magnet. Tested and proven with a lifetime guarantee."

His eyes softened. "Are you all right? Did he touch you?"

"Yes, I'm fine and no, he didn't touch me." Assuring him, she changed the subject. "It just doesn't make sense, Jace. No one becomes a psychic over night."

"You're telling me."

"You should talk to Agent Scully about this."

"To get her confirmation that I'm a nutcase? Do you know what this vision thing could do for me if it got out?"

She looked surprised. "I didn't think you cared."

He blinked. "You're right, I don't."

"So what's the problem?"

"My life is fucked up as it is, Joyce. Why this now?"

She sheepishly shook her head. "I don't know. But maybe there's a plausible explanation for all this. And the best person to talk to would be the expert herself, don't you think?"

"I know. I just…" He hesitated. "I just didn't want to voice it out and make it official. Telling her would be like admitting it in black and white."

She glared at him and demanded to know. "And what am I? Chopped liver?"

Smiling, he grabbed the tub from her hand and helped himself to a spoonful of chocolate ice cream. "Telling you is different. You're like my diary. Dear Diary, today I had a vision of a maniac stalking a FBI agent. See? No harm done."

She rolled her eyes seized the carton from him. "Knowing the future can be pretty cool. Imagine, you could tell if the relationship was doomed to failure before even going out on the date."

"I don't think it's only the future. I told you I saw the young Agent Scully too."

She looked thoughtful. "That's even better. You could know whatever you wanted to know! Past, present or future!"

Shaking his head, he curbed her excitement. "It doesn't work that way, Joyce. The visions come to me, I don't have any control over it."

"How do you know? Maybe you haven't learnt how to control it?"

He blinked at her. "What?"

"Maybe if you concentrated really hard and focused all your energy on one question, you would see what you want to see?"

He stared at her in disbelief. "All right, who are you and what have you done with Joyce Callahan?"

She smiled sheepishly. "It's either you've rubbed off on me over the years or my break-up with Darrell is even more devastating to me than I thought."

He frowned and then suddenly his face brightened. "You know what? You could be right."

'Uh oh' She thought and hastily began damage control. "No, you're right. I was way off track."

"No Joyce. What if I could control this power but don't know it?"

"It's not a power for Christ's sake! It was a…." She struggled to find the words to justify the paranormality what happened rationally. "…. fluke. Just one of those strange things that happen once in a while. A miracle if you will, to save Agent Maston's life."

He disagreed. "No, we got there too late. If it was a miracle and we were meant to save her then we would have reached there in time, before Agent Landell, not after."

He made sense, of course but she didn't want to encourage him. "Jace…"

"I'll give it a shot." He told her confidently.

"What?"

"I'll concentrate on something really hard and see where it takes me."

"Lord, I created a monster!" She moaned. 

"Oh come on. Think of something!"

She frowned and decided to humour him. Besides, it may come to some good after all. "Okay, where is your father now?" He looked at her in surprise and she asked. "Isn't that one of the few questions you spent years wondering?"

He nodded. "Yeah, I guess. But it's a tough one to begin with, isn't it?"

"No point wasting your talent, Jace. Might as well make use of it while you still can."

He wondered if she was right and that this newly found power was just temporary. "How do I do this again?

She frowned at him. "How the hell should I know?" Then throwing all common sense aside, she tried to think of the movie shows that had psychics in them. "I suppose you have to think of your dad. Really hard."

He closed his eyes. "Right."

"Are you thinking about him really hard?"

"Yes." His eyes were shut tightly, causing wrinkles to appear around the edges.

She grinned, beginning to think that she must be out of her mind leading him through this. Lowering her voice, she asked in a teasing whisper. "Really, really hard?"

"Joyce if this is all a big joke to you…." He growled.

"Okay okay, I'm sorry." She quickly appeased him. "I suppose you could think about the last time you saw him. It may trigger up something."

His brows creased and she wondered if it was indeed working. Seconds ticked by and she remained silent, not wanting to disturb his concentration. 

Jason had pictured him in his mind. He had thought about the last time he saw him. But it didn't seem to be working. Clearing his doubts, he tried again. Soon he began to admit defeat. "Joyce, it's not….." 

Whatever he was about to say died when his body jerked as if he was struck by lightning. Joyce dropped the tub of ice cream in surprise. But before she could react to his violent spasms, he was already on his feet, muttering obscenities.

When her shock wore off, she rose from the bed hesitantly. "Jace?"

"Shit fuck shit.." He seemed oblivious to her discomfort.

"Jace!" She finally yelled to get his attention. "What the hell happened back there?"

He stopped pacing the room long enough to glare at her. "This is all your fault!"

"What?"

"I should never have listened to you!" He accused her again.

"What the hell did I do? And what the hell was that?" She walked over and pushed him hard. "And if that was one of your practical jokes, I swear I'll kick you in that balls like I did to Darrell! You scared the living daylights out of me!"

"I saw him!" He told her. 

She gaped. "You did?"

"Yeah and a whole lot more than I wanted to." He moaned and cursed again.

"What do you mean?" She demanded to know, tugging his arm impatiently.

He grimaced and finally admitted. "He was having sex."

She blinked and then the corners of her lips began to lift. Swiftly turning away, her shoulders shook as she tried her best to contain her growing mirth.

"It's not funny!" Jason's voice boomed at her and she gave up the fight, laughing hysterically.

His glare grew fiercer. "Damn it Joyce! Have you ever seen your parents have sex before?" Her laughter deepened and she clutched her sides tightly while he grabbed his stomach in disgust. "It's horrifying, nauseating, probably a trauma that could never be forgotten!" 

She managed to stop in between her overzealous amusement to ask. "When exactly did…" A chortle escaped her. "… you catch your father, Jace? The foreplay, the middle or the finale?" Then she shook harder.

He closed his eyes and shuddered. "Orgasm." The word barely made it through his gritted teeth. 

She squealed and fell in a hopeless heap of laughter on the bed, rolling around helplessly.

Jason kicked the bedpost in irritation. "It is not bloody funny, Joyce!"

"Yes it is." She replied, at least that was what he made out from her uncontrollable fit.

He looked at her in repulsion. But after a while, he genuinely began to worry "Are you all right? Should I slap you?"

She tried to say that she was fine, that it would pass. But she couldn't, her sides hurt too much. Instead she held her hand out and took deep breaths until the hysteria ebbed away. Then drying her wet cheeks with her sleeve, she looked at him weakly. 

His eyes narrowed at her. "Are you done?" Her face contorted as she firmly controlled another bout of laughter. Then she nodded. Keeping his face grim so that he wouldn't set her off again, he told him. "It wasn't just visions. I told you, I feel it too."

Her face immediately registered shock, then horror. "You felt…" she trailed off.

"Yes, I felt the blood rush down to my…" He nodded down towards the lower section of his body.

She drew a quick short breath, not believing what she just heard. "You got turned on because you saw your fath…" Somehow she couldn't bring herself to finish the sentence.

He caught her meaning and glared at her in dismay. "God, no! My naked father didn't turn me on! That would be sick! I felt my father's desire for Agent Scully."

Although relieved, she was still utterly bewildered. "Wait a minute, what has this got to do with Agent Scully?"

He sighed. "That's what I've been trying to tell you." He shot her perplexed look. "I saw my father do the wild thing with Agent Scully."

XXXXXXXXXXXX
End of Visions 

Author: PhileyX 
E-Mail: phileyxback@yahoo.com 
Web-site: https://www.angelfire.com/id/phileyx 
Feedback would be inspirational. Truly!