The Dreamer by Rebecca McGill

        The cabin was quiet except for the soft buzz of a classical radio
station.  The place was not stylish, but was neat and well-cared for.  The
woods surrounding the building were peaceful save the occasional screech of an
owl.
        Bernard Nash was hunched over a wire-bound notebook, scribbling a few
thoughts.  He peered at the page, despite the bright light that hung over the
kitchen table at which he sat.
        He was an older man, pushing sixty.  He was of medium build, not very
tall or muscular.  His gray hair was thinning on top, and his blue eyes were
tired behind the wire-rimmed glasses he always wore.
        Nash glanced at the clock on the coffeemaker.  It read quarter 'til
two.  With a yawn, he put down his pen and closed the notebook.  He stood, and
stretched his arms.  He trudged to his bedroom, and fell on the bed with
exhaustion.  He closed his eyes and tried to fall asleep.
        Suddenly, he bolted upright and his eyes darted around the room. He
knew he had felt a tremor, but he didn't see any evidence of it.  After a
moment, he climbed out of bed and wandered into the living room, his eyes
wide.
        When he convinced himself that the tremor was his imagination, Nash
let out a sigh of relief. No sooner had the air left his body than the room
did begin to visibly shake. A framed portrait hanging on the wall crashed to
the ground, and Nash froze, terrified. "Oh, no," he whispered.  The front door burst open, and Nash stared blankly, waiting. A cold wind swept
ito the room, but brought nothing unusual with it.
        Nash could stand it no longer.  He let out an incomprehensible cry,
and sprinted out the door.  He ran into the woods, screaming.  He had gone
about half a mile before he reached the clearing and collapsed.
        There was a brilliant stream of light that fell on Nash.  He froze,
his face to the sky.  The light somehow grew brighter, than immediately
disappeared, taking Nash with it.
        Kristine Walker sat straight up in bed, her eyes wide and her heart
pounding.  The clock on her nightstand read one forty-five.  Under her breath,
she whispered, "Mr. Nash!"


Day 1: 2:30 AM
        The phone rang three times before it was answered.  Dana Scully
stretched her arm out from under the warm comforter and pulled the receiver
off the cradle.
        "Hello?" she mumbled, still three-fourths asleep.
        "Dana? Is that you?" The voice on the other end was small and a
near-whisper.
        "Yes.  Kristine, what's the matter?"  Scully peeked at her alarm
clock, which read 2:34 AM.
        "Did I wake you?  I'm sorry," Kristine added quickly.
        "Is everything okay?  Aunt Carol?"  Scully was awake now, and sat up
in bed.  It wasn't everyday that she got phone calls in the middle of the
night.

        "Mom's fine.  She's fine."  The girl on the other end fell silent.

        "It's not that I don't love talking to you, but it is awfully early. 

What is this about?"  Scully ran a hand through her auburn hair as she got out
of bed.  She started to pace around the room. 
 
        Soft sobs could be heard, followed by a few sniffles.  "Dana, I - "

        Scully's tone eased.  "Honey, what's the matter?"
        "Oh, Dana, I'm so scared."  The girl was crying harder now.  "I don't
know what to do.  Mom can't help."
        "Calm down, Kris.  Tell me about it."  Scully stood in front of her
dresser, gazing at an old photo of her mother's family.  She ran her finger
over the face of a young teenage girl wistfully. She hated being so far away.
        "I've been having these dreams, but they're not really dreams.  I have
them all the time, and I'm so scared."  Kristine took a deep breath to calm
herself.  "I think I'm going crazy."
        Scully perched on the end of her bed.  "Go on."
************************************************************************
Three days later, mid-morning.
        Fox Mulder was staring at the computer screen when Scully entered the
office.  He looked up and nodded.  "Good morning."
        Scully sat down on the edge of her desk across from his with a hasty,
"Hi."  She didn't take her coat off.
        "What's up?"  Mulder punched a key, then leaned back in his chair.  He
could tell already that something was wrong.
        "I'm going to Indiana for a few days," Scully announced, her eyes
wide.
        "Is it a case?"  A puzzled look crossed Mulder's face.
        Scully glanced around at the shadowy office, then back at her partner.
 "Can we talk?"
************************************************************************
Ten minutes later.
        Scully shoved her hands deep into her coat pockets.  She walked slowly
beside Mulder, occasionally gazing out at the reflecting pool as she talked.
         "Three days ago, a high school biology teacher was reported missing
in Green Briar, Indiana.  Bernard Nash.  He had left his job a few months ago,
and was living in a cabin about ten miles outside of town.  A post officer
noticed the front door of the cabin opened, and no one answered when he
called, so he reported it to the police.  The man disappeared without a
trace."  Scully sat down on a park bench.
        "I don't see what this has to do with the Bureau."  Mulder sat down
next to her.  
        Scully lowered her head.  "It has to do with me.  My cousin goes to
Green Briar High School.  Four nights ago, she called me in hysterics.  She
had had a nightmare that this teacher was abducted from his cabin."  She
looked up.  "Mulder, she said she saw aliens take him."
        Mulder was silent a moment.  "It might be just a coincidence, but..."
        Scully's voice was low, and he could barely hear her next statements. 
"She told me that she's had other dreams like that, but this was the first
that really scared her."
        "Would you mind my company?"  Mulder glanced sideways at her.  He
didn't want to interfere in Scully's family if she didn't want him to. 
        "I don't think it's anything, but she's my cousin and I'm concerned. 
It's nothing  the Bureau would need to be involved in."   
        "It might be something the X-files needs to be involved in," Mulder
stated with a smirk.  He stood up.  "Let's go find out when the next flight
leaves."
************************************************************************
Day 5, 8:30 AM.
        Scully took a deep breath before knocking on the door of the modest,
split-level house.  It was answered by a middle-aged woman in a business suit.
        "Dana?  What on earth are you doing here?"  Carol Walker smiled and
immediately embraced her niece.
        Scully returned the smile, but her teeth were clenched. "Hi, Aunt
Carol."  She felt her stomach churn.
        Carol took a step back.  "You should have called.  I would have
cleaned the house.  I would have taken off work."  The woman ushered Scully
inside. 
        "I was in the area working on a case.  I didn't know I'd have a chance
to visit until today."  Scully didn't like lying, but it was obvious Carol
didn't know why her niece was really there.
        "Kristine!  Kristine, come down here a minute, please!"  Carol shouted
up the stairs.  "She'll be thrilled to see you.  She's been sick from school
yesterday and today."
        Wrapped in a bathrobe and her feet bare, Scully's red-haired cousin
made her way down the steps.  She had fair, even features, and large, tired
brown eyes.  Her walk was slow and weak, but when she saw her cousin, Kristine
practically jumped the rest of the way down the stairs.  She hugged Scully. 
"Thank you,"  she whispered so her mother could not hear.
        "It's good to see you, Kris."  Scully hadn't realized how much she
missed her cousin.
        Carol watched the two a moment, then snapped back to reality.  "I hate
to say this, but I have to go now, or I'll be late for work."
        Kristine pecked her mother lightly on the cheek.  "'Bye, Mom."
        "I hope you feel better, sweetie."  Carol picked up her briefcase. 
"Dana, you'll stay for dinner, won't you?"
        Scully hesitated slightly.  Carol and Scully's mother had had many
problems, and it had had a negative effect on Dana's feelings for her aunt. 
Kristine was a different story altogether.    She glanced at the pleading look
on the eighteen year-old's face.  "Of course I'll stay."
************************************************************************       
Mulder followed the secretary into a small office, where a large man in a suit and
tie lounged behind his desk.  Mulder thanked the woman as she left.  "Sergeant
Davidson?"  he asked, stepping to the desk.
        The man stood up.  "Yes?"  He crossed his arms suspiciously.  
        "I'm Special Agent Mulder with the FBI.   I'm here to investigate the
disappearance of Bernard Nash.  I understand you're in charge of the case." 
Mulder had held up his badge, but now he put it back in his pocket.
        Davidson chuckled.  "There is no case.  Nash is a crazy old man."
        "I beg your pardon?"  Mulder scratched his chin.  
        "Have a seat, Agent Mulder.  Bernard Nash is an interesting
character."  Davidson sat back down, and Mulder slowly did the same.  
************************************************************************
Day 5, 11AM
        "Everyone thought Mr. Nash was crazy.  He was always talking about
aliens and unknown galaxies, stuff like that.  A lot of kids didn't like it." 
Kristine sipped from a steaming mug.  "Neither did a lot of parents.  So they
complained to the school board, and they told Mr. Nash he could only teach
what was in the text book.  He got mad and he quit."  She was seated on a big
couch in the living room.
        Scully was seated in an adjacent chair, also drinking hot tea.  "How
long ago was this?"
        Kristine thought a moment.  "About three months.  Nobody's seen him
since."  She sighed.  "Poor man.  I was one of the few people who took him
seriously.  I listened to what he had to say.  I believe there are other
worlds, other beings, that we don't know about.  Don't you, Dana?"  The girl's
eyes were wide and dreamy.
        "I do," came the soft, but sure reply.
        "And you're not crazy.  And I..." Kristine paused, and her voice grew
quieter.  "I didn't think I was crazy until a week ago."
        "Is that when your dreams started?"  Scully patted her cousin's hand.
        "But they weren't just dreams.  They were visions, or something.  It
was real, in a sense."  She stopped, frustrated.  There were too many ideas in
her head to be expressed at once.  "I could sense that things I saw in my
dreams exist, somewhere.  The lights I saw, I know those are real. I saw them
take Mr. Nash."  Kristine set her mug on the table.  "And now he's gone."
************************************************************************
Day 5, 12:15PM
        It was around noon when the two cars pulled up the gravel road that
led to Nash's cabin.  Sgt. Davidson stopped and got out, as did Mulder.  
        "Nash moved here after he quit.  He's kept to himself since he left
his job."  Davidson crossed around the side of his squad car to the front door
of the cabin.  "I still say it's a waste of time to come out here."  His hands
were on his hips.
        A yellow "Police Line:  Do Not Cross" ribbon was stretched across the
door.  A beat-up pick-up was parked next to the small shelter.  "Is that his
truck?"  Mulder asked, pointing to it.  He was already losing patience with
the officer.
        "Yeah, so what?"
        "You think he just decided to leave town, right?"  Mulder went on, not
waiting for a response.  "How far do you suppose he got on foot?  Nothing is
missing inside, the door was wide open and the radio was on.  Why would he
have left in such a hurry that he didn't have time to shut the door?  He
obviously had time to walk."  Mulder crossed his arms.  "Explain that,
Sergeant."
        Davidson shoved his hands in his pockets and looked off into the
woods.  "I had a case fall into my lap this morning where a twelve-year old
boy shot his friend when they got into a fight.  Yesterday, a family-owned
drugstore was burned to the ground, the fourth store in a month arsonists have
gotten to.  In other words, Agent Mulder, this may be a small town, but there
are more important things for the GBPD to be worrying about than Bernard Nash.
 He's a crazy troublemaker.  I don't wish bad things on him, but I don't have
time to bother with him, either."  The man gazed at Mulder.  "I'm sorry."
        Mulder pondered his remarks, then nodded.  He didn't like the
circumstances, but he understood.  "I'd like to look around if I could."  
        Davidson sighed and pulled a ring of keys out of his jacket pocket. 
"I hope you find what you're looking for."  He handed the keys to Mulder, then
got in his car and drove off.
************************************************************************
Day 5, two hours later.
        Scully was in the kitchen, the phone in her hand.  She bit her lip as
it rang.
        "Mulder," came the familiar answer.
        "It's me.  Have you found anything?"  Scully's voice was low, almost a
whisper.
        "Tons.  I'm in his cabin right now.  The man has shelves full of
personal journals.  It looks like he's been keeping track of all unusual
activity in the area since he's lived here.  He's got his own theories about
everything.  It's quite fascinating."  Mulder's voice was crackling.  
        Scully sighed softly.  "Anything about Kristine?  Is there anything
that suggests he might have been kidnapped?"
        Mulder was silent a moment before he answered.  "I would like to talk
to your cousin, if that's possible, Scully.  I think we definitely have an
X-file."
************************************************************************
 Day 5, mid-afternoon.
        Davidson sat behind his desk, sipping from a steaming mug and watching
a soap opera on the small television in the corner.  There was a knock at the
door.
        "Come,"  Davidson growled.  He had not looked away from the TV.  
        A young deputy entered the room timidly.  "Sergeant, there's a woman
here who would like to see you."
        Davidson muted the TV and glared at the deputy.  "Harris, I'm a busy
man.  Could you give me a little detail?"
        The deputy stuck out his chin.  "She has some information pertaining
to a case of yours.  She insisted on seeing you."  
        "Just take a statement.  I'll get back to it, whatever it is." 
Davidson put the sound back on.
        "Wait!  Please.  Let me speak."  A plain, fifty-ish woman pushed past
Harris to stand in front of Davidson's desk.  "My name is Hillary Nash. 
There's something you must know about my ex-husband's disappearance."
        Davidson clicked off the soap.  He glanced at Harris, then leaned back
in his chair.  "Man's been away from civilization for three months.  Why does
everyone want to find him now?"
************************************************************************
Day 5, late afternoon.
        All was quiet in the forest save the rush of the creek and the crackle
of a campfire.  The sun was just beginning to set, and the night sky was
inching into view.  A slender ribbon of gray smoke slipped into the air.
        He had found the cave a month ago, and he had even stayed there a
night to see if he could stand the environment.  Nash was comfortable, bundled
in a down jacket and wrapped in a wool blanket.  He sipped from a thermos of
hot coffee and peered out the small opening to his new shelter.  He smiled
tenatively.
        He had seen Davidson and another man at his cabin earlier in the day
through his binoculars.  He knew they were looking for him, but they would not
find him.  He was sure of that.  No one believed anything he told them, so he
was content to let them suffer when "they" came.  He would be the only one
safe.
        Nash laughed to himself and took another gulp from his thermos.  He
pulled out a small, worn leather notebook from his coat pocket.  He scribbled
something quickly, then put the notebook away.  
        "They can stay where they are,"  the old man muttered.  "They laughed
at me before, but I'll show them who's crazy!"
************************************************************************
Day 5, same time. 
        "What is your relationship with Bernard Nash?"  Mulder was seated in a
hardback chair facing Kristine, who sat comfortably on the couch. 
        "He is, was, one of my teachers.  Advanced placement biology."  The
teenager had changed into jeans and a sweater, but her feet were still bare.
        "Is that all?  Nothing outside the classroom?"  Mulder asked, leaning
forward, trying to pull her into his confidence.    
        "What are you suggesting, Mulder?"  Scully shot at him, annoyed.  She
sat next to her cousin, acting more like an overprotective mother than
Mulder's partner.
        "He was my teacher.  That's all."  Kristine was not offended by
Mulder's question, and her tone did not lose any of the calmness it had.
        Mulder caught Scully's eye a moment, trying to let her know that he
was hurt by her accusation of impropriety.  She ignored him.  Mulder turned
back to Kristine.  "Mr. Nash believed in the existence of extraterrestrials
and UFOs.  What do you think about that possibility?"
        Kristine smiled at his vocabulary.  "You mean do I believe in aliens?"
 She paused.  "Yes.  I already told Dana that."
        Mulder glanced at Scully again, who was staring out the window.  "Did
Mr. Nash know you believed?"  
        Kristine shrugged.  "I don't know."
        "Have you had any contact with Mr. Nash since he left school?"  Mulder
sounded tired.
        "No, not at all.  I didn't even know he was still in the area until he
was reported missing,"  came the honest answer.
        Mulder sighed with regret.  He obviously didn't like what he was about
to say.  "I was at his cabin this morning, and found his personal journals. 
He mainly discussed various paranormal activities in the area, but you were
mentioned in the last entry, dated five days ago."
        Scully's attention was caught.  She leaned in towards Mulder.  "What
did it say?"  she asked anxiously.
        "He wasn't very clear.  It just said he was concerned about you.  He
didn't say why, but he sounded scared for you.  Are you sure you haven't
talked to him?"  Mulder inquired one last time.
        "No!"  Kristine responded, exasperated.
        "Mulder!"  Scully protested at the same time.
        At that moment, the slam of the front screen door rang into the living
room.  Carol Walker rushed into the room, tossing her keys and purse onto the
mahogany rolltop desk against the wall.  She looked up at Dana and Kristine
with a smile, which faded when she saw Mulder in the corner chair.  "What's
going on here?"
        Scully jumped to her feet.  "Um, Aunt Carol, I can explain."  Mulder
stood up slowly, and began to reach out his hand.
        "Is this a friend of yours, Dana?"  Carol's smile returned, but it was
somewhat vacant.  She shook Mulder's hand.
        "This is my partner..."
        "Special Agent Fox Mulder."  Mulder grinned, then glanced at Scully,
unsure of what to do next.
        Kristine took care of that.  "He's here to find Mr. Nash."  She leaned
back against the couch, seeming unusually calm.  "I told Dana about my dreams,
and they flew out to help me."
        Carol dropped Mulder's hand as if it were on fire.  Rage flared up on
her face, and she turned on her niece.  "What is this, Dana?  You're
investigating Kristine?"
        "Aunt Carol..."  Scully was shaking like a self-concious teenager. 
Her aunt always made her feel like that.  
        "This is crazy!"  Carol exclaimed.  She put her hands on her hips, and
her eyes bored into Scully.  "The government is paying good money so you can
come out here and talk about a few nightmares?  I'll give you a little
information.  Everybody dreams!  Just because Kris has dreams about little
green men and that looney teacher, you jump on a plane and waste taxpayers'
money?"
        Mulder glanced at Scully, who stood silently.  "Mrs. Walker, we feel
that your daughter's dream and Mr. Nash's disappearance might be somehow
connected."  Mulder tried to sound reassuring.
        Carol glared at him, then back at Scully. "Dana, how could you drag
the FBI into this?  This is a family matter."
        "Mom, leave her alone.  I was the one who called her."  Kristine's
voice was no louder than it would be while having a friendly conversation.
        Carol ignored her.  "I don't believe this."  
        Scully took a deep breath and pursed her lips, summoning all the
determination and confidence that usually hid in her aunt's presence.  "A man
is missing, Aunt Carol.  Kristine dreamed of his abduction before it happened.
 It's an FBI matter now."  Her tone was cold and strong.
        Carol fell silent.  Her eyes went from Scully to Mulder and landed on
Kristine.  Her face weakened.  She pushed past her niece and sat down on the
couch.  "You're not making this all up, are you, Honey?"
        Kristine turned her liquid brown eyes on her mother.  "You know me
better than that, " she whispered.
        Carol sighed.  "Fine.  Fine.  Do what you have to do, Dana, Agent
Mulder.  Just do it quickly, and leave."  She didn't look away from her
daughter.
        Scully's shoulders stiffened and she wordlessly left the room without
looking back. Mulder started to follow her.
        "Agent Mulder..."  Kristine started in a soft, angelic voice.
        Mulder turned around and smiled gently at the girl, avoiding looking
at Carol.  "Call me, Fox, please."
        "Fox, are you going to get Mr. Nash back?  He didn't come back in my
dream."  Kristine's eyes didn't leave his face.
        "I don't know yet.  Don't worry."  Mulder suddenly felt nervous .  He
didn't know what else to say.
        "I will worry.  I told Dana already, but in my dream, he was
screaming.  He said that I was next."  The teenager's chin was stiff and her
voice was strong, but Mulder recognized the same fear in her eyes that he
often saw in Scully's.
        Mulder could not respond.  Carol took her daughter's hand and squeezed
tightly.

Day 5, late night.
        Scully sat at the small table in Mulder's hotel room, focused on the
screen of her laptop.  The door opened , and Mulder entered holding two white
paper bags.
        "Chinese food in Indiana.  This should be an experience."  He set the
bags down on the dresser.  "Too bad we missed out on your aunt's home-cooked
dinner."
        Scully let out an exasperated sigh, and paused her typing to shoot a
look at her partner.  "You can't tell a woman that her daughter might be
kidnapped by aliens, then expect her to cook dinner."  She cracked a smile in
spite of the situation.
        Mulder chuckled and pulled out an eggroll.  He sat down on the edge of
the bed, facing her.  "Aren't you hungry?"
        "No, not really."
        Mulder tried to divert her attention from the computer.  "Tell me
about your aunt.  You don't seem to like her very much."
        It worked.  Scully pushed her chair back from the table.  "Very
perceptive, Mulder."  She leaned back.  "Carol is my mom's younger sister, but
they are nothing alike.  Carol is very, very powerful and manipulative.  She
divorced her husband, Tom, when Kristine was seven.  They didn't have much
money, so they moved with my family for a short time.  My mother would never
turn away family, no matter how much they didn't get along.  Mom knew I hated
Carol.  She always, I don't know..."  She paused, frustrated trying to explain
how she felt.
        "She made you feel stupid, incompetent.  I saw that today.  You turned
to Jell-o before my eyes."  Mulder grinned.
        Scully made a mock scowl.  "Exactly.  I didn't like being around her,
but Kristine was a different story.  She was the smartest, sweetest
seven-year-old you'll ever meet.  Despite our age difference, we became best
friends.  They moved out after a few months, but we remained close.  We try,
anyway."  Scully frowned, thinking about the past.
        Mulder squeezed her shoulder.  He understood, but could not think of
anything to say.  They sat in silence for a moment.  The shrill beep of the
computer snapped Scully back to the present.  She sat up and poised her
fingers over the keyboard.
        "Does Nash have a record?"  Mulder asked, leaning over her shoulder,
chewing an eggroll.
        "He was busted in college for possession of marijuana, but nothing
since then."  She punched a key.  "He worked at three other high schools
before he came to Green Briar.  He last worked at Carmody High in Illinois. 
After three years, he took a four-month vacation in December of 1987, then
went back for another month before they asked him to resign."  Scully tucked
her hair behind her ear.
        "Is there a reason given for his resignation?"  Mulder asked.
        Scully just shook her head.  She stifled a yawn.  Her eyes didn't
leave the screen.
        Mulder watched her a moment.  "Are you okay with all this, Scully? 
You seem kind of out of it."    
        Scully looked up at him, then punched a few keys.  "I'm fine.  Just
tired."
        "Are you going back to your aunt's?"  Mulder followed her with his
eyes as she stood up and stretched.  
        She nodded.  "I get the couch."
        "You don't have to go back there tonight,"  Mulder said softly, his
eyes wide and gentle.  "Don't ask for more stress."  He rose from his seat.
        A faint smile crossed Scully's lips.  She shook her head.  "I can't
stay here.  Kristine asked me to stay with her."  She walked to the door,
gathering her coat and briefcase.  She didn't look back, knowing Mulder's
puppy eyes could talk her into anything.
        "I'm asking you to stay with me," teased Mulder, knowing it was
useless.  He leaned against the doorframe.
        Scully felt a blush creeping up in her cheeks, but she covered it
expertly with a sly grin.  "Tough!" she shot at him. She slipped into her coat
and her smile faded.  The tired, beaten look returned.
        "Don't worry about Kristine.  We'll take care of everything."  He
touched her shoulder lightly.
        "I hope so.  Goodnight, Mulder."  She opened the door and disappeared
into the night.
        "Call me in the morning,"  Mulder called after her.  He watched until
she started her car, then he closed the door.  With a sigh, he flopped onto
the bed.  He was tired, too, but with Scully on his mind, he knew he would not
be sleeping.
************************************************************************
Day 6, 2AM
        Kristine walked slowly through the darkness.  Tree branches she could
not see brushed her arms.  There was no moon to light her way, even though she
was not going in any particular direction.
        The breeze started to pick up, and Kristine began to walk faster.  She
broke into a run and made her way into a clearing. She fell to the ground,
exhausted.
        A bright light suddenly appeared in the sky, desceneding upon her with
a soft hum.  Kristine looked up and screamed as the light surrounded her.  
        "Mom!  Dana!"  Kristine's cries pierced the stillness of the house.
        Kristine sat straight up in bed, screaming, tears flowing down her
cheeks.  There was a rush of feet outside her bedroom door, and her mom and
cousin burst in.
        Carol ran to her daughter, embracing her.  "Shh.  It's okay, honey. 
It's okay."  She rocked the girl back and forth.
        Scully stood in the doorway, watching them silently.  She felt her
stomach churn and her heart pound.
        Kristine pulled away from her mother and looked at her cousin. 
"What's wrong with me, Dana?"
        Carol pulled patted Kristine on the back.  "You're fine, Kris.  Just
fine."
        Dana turned from the door and went back downstairs.
************************************************************************Day 6,
10AM
        Mulder rested comfortably in the hard chair in the hallway outside
Sgt. Davidson's office.  Scully leaned against the wall across from him.  The
station around them buzzed.
        "Scully?  Scully?"  Mulder didn't catch her attention at first.  She
looked at him absently.  "Did you sleep at all?"
        She lowered her eyes, which were red-rimmed and half-closed. 
"Kristine had another nightmare."  Her voice was raspy.
        "Agent Mulder, good morning.  Glad you could come in."  Sgt. Davidson
had a broad smile across his face as he shook Mulder's hand heartily.  He was
in a much more pleasant mood than he had been the last time they met.  He
turned to Scully with a curious look.
        "This is Agent Scully, my partner."  Mulder was now standing.  he
puased briefly as Scully and Davidson shook hands.  "You said you had new
information about Nash's disappearance?"
        Davidson nodded, still smiling.  He began to walk back in the
direction from which he had come.  "Follow me."  He led them to an
investigation room, and opened the door.
        The woman inside stood up when they entered.  "Are these the people
from the FBI, Sergeant?"
        Davidson nodded.  "Agent Mulder, Agent Scully, this is Hillary Nash,
Bernard's ex-wife."  He stepped back.
        "Mrs. Nash, do you know where your ex-husband is?"  Mulder did not
waste any time.
        "Not exactly,"  the woman said, sitting back  in her chair.  "You see,
he's done this before.  Disappeared, I mean."
        Scully sat down in the chair across from the woman.  "Go on, please."
        "Bernard, well, he's always been a little eccentric."  She chose her
words carefully.  Davidson snickered, then was silenced with look from Mulder.
 "For as long as I've known him, he's been interested in UFOs and martians and
things like that.  The last few years of our marriage, he became obsessed with
the idea of alien abduction.  He read everything he could find on the
subject."  She took a deep breath.  "Then one day, about four years ago, I
came home from work and he was gone.  Just gone, without a trace.  No clothes
were missing, his car was still in the garage.  Four days later, the police
picked him on a gravel road about five miles from our house.  He told them
he'd been kidnapped by aliens."
        "Tell them what else they found, Mrs. Nash,"  Davidson urged, crossing
his arms.
        "When they searched the fields he told them he'd been left in, they
found a small campsite and a few of his belongings.  He later admitted he'd
made the whole thing up.  He didn't think people took the idea seriously and
he wanted them to start."  
        Scully frowned in thought.  "What happened to his teaching job?"  
        "He took  a few months off for counseling, then went back after the
doctors okay'd it.  About a month later, the school board asked him to
resign."  She looked at Davidson, then back at Scully.  "They said they didn't
want him preaching 'aliens' to the students."
        "So then he came here."  Mulder shoved his hands in the pockets of his
coat.
        "I think he's doing the same thing.  I think he's just pretending." 
Hillary Nash ended her story, and leaned back in her chair.
        Scully caught Mulder's eye with a worried look.
***********************************************************************
Day 6, a few minutes later.
        Mulder and Scully were walking out of the police station to the
parking lot.  Scully was two steps ahead of Mulder, almost racing to the red
car she had borrowed from her aunt.
        "Scully."  Mulder was trying to keep up without running.  "Scully. 
Scully!"  He grabbed her arm and forced her to stop.  She didn't face him. 
"Talk to me."
        She swallowed.  "You heard her, Mulder, he's making the whole thing
up.  No alien abduction, just a crazy old man."  Scully frowned, and tears of
frustration glistened in her eyes.  "And a crazy teenage girl."
        "Scully - " Mulder started, touching her shoulder.
        "No,"  she responded harshly, backing away towards her car.  "There's
something wrong with her.  Normal people don't act like Kristine's acting."
        "Scully, there have been other cases..."
        "Don't give me other cases, Mulder!  This is my cousin!"  She stared
at him a moment, then turned to unlock her car.  "I'm going back to their
house," she stated flatly.
        "I think I'll go back and push Davidson into getting some people to
comb those woods."  Mulder watched as she got into the car.  "This isn't over,
Scully.  I promise you that."
        Scully shut the door and drove off down the road.
************************************************************************Day 6,
12:45PM
        Kristine sat at the crowded cafeteria table, munching her lunch.  Her
friends buzzed around her.  She stared off into space.  Suddenly, her fork
dropped from her hand and clattered on the table.       
        "Kris, are you feeling alright?"  asked a friend sitting next to her.
        Kristine stood up.  "No.  I've got to go."  She absently picked up her
school bag.  "I'll talk to you guys later."  She left her tray and made her
way to the hall. She found her locker, and removed her coat and keys.  Without
a glance back, she walked out the nearest exit.
 ***********************************************************************
Day 6, 4:30PM
        The bloodhounds had easily found his hiding spot.  They had picked up
his scent shortly after they had arrived at Nash's cabin, and had led the
police officers on a five-mile trek.   The dogs had howled like mad when they
reached the tiny cave that Nash had made his home for the past few days.  
        Davidson's gun was out of its holster, pointed in the air.  "Pull
those dogs away from there!"  he ordered the K-9 officer.
        Mulder stooped down to try and get a better look inside the cave. 
"Bernard!  This is Agent Mulder from the Federal Bureau of Investigation.  I'd
like to ask you a few questions."  Mulder took a step back, waiting for a
response.
        "Bernard, come out of there!"  Davidson shouted.  The hounds
whimpered.  The sergeant tilted his hat down to keep the sun out of his eyes. 
"Come on!"
        Mulder pulled a small flashlight from his pocket and shined it into
the opening in the rocks. He groaned softly.  "He's asleep.  He's snoring."
        Davidson lowered his gun.  "Let's get him out of there."  Two deputies
followed him to the entrance of the cave.
        Mulder watched silently until his thoughts were interrupted by the
ring of his cellular phone.  He pulled it out of his coat pocket.  "Mulder."
        "It's me,"  came the soft voice on the other end.
        "I was just about to call you."  Mulder glanced at Nash, who was not
fully awake, but had handcuffs slapped on his wrists.  "We found Nash.  He's
been hiding out in a cave about five miles from his cabin."
        There was no response on the other end.
        "Scully?  Are you still there?"
        "Mulder, Kristine's disappeared,"  she responded, her voice wavering. 
"A friend of hers called a few minutes ago to see how she was feeling.  She
said Kris walked out of school in the middle of the day and drove off. 
Nobody's seen or heard from her since."  Scully's voice faultered, but she
covered it.
        "Where are you right now?"  Mulder asked, concerned.
        "Aunt Carol's.  She's still at work.  I didn't call her."  
        "Don't.  I'll be right there."  Mulder clicked the phone shut.
        "Hey!"
        Mulder turned.  It was Nash, calling to him.  "Me?"
        Nash was about to be pushed into a squad car.  The deputy holding him
by the arm stopped and looked at Mulder expectantly.  Nash's eyes were wide
and on the agent.
        "Wait," Mulder ordered.  He stepped to Nash.  "What is it?"
        Nash was shaking, frightened of something.  "She's in danger.  They
both are.  Hurry," the old man whispered urgently.
        Mulder considered the statement a moment, then spun around to
Davidson.  "Take him to the station.  Keep him until I get there."  Mulder
raced to his car, jumped in, and sped away.
************************************************************************
Day 6, 5:15PM
        "She could have gone anywhere.  She's scared and she has a car." 
Scully stared out the window of the sedan Mulder had rented.  The car she had
borrowed from her aunt sat in the Walker driveway.
        "She's a smart girl, Scully.  She wouldn't have left her home or her
mother."  Mulder scanned the road.  Tall, shadowy trees hid the large houses
on the suburban street.  As they drove closer to the city, the trees were
replaced by stoplights and cement buildings.
        "What did you do about your aunt?"  Mulder glanced at Scully, then
back at the road.
        "I left a note saying Kris and I were going shopping."  Scully's eyes
darted around cars in parking lots, watching for Kristine's familiar red jeep.
 "Carol won't believe it.  Kris hates shopping." 
        Mulder was quiet a few moments as they reached the downtown part of
the small city.  They approached the high school, where a few cars were still
left in the lot.  "Maybe someone talked to her as she was leaving.  Maybe
someone knows where she is."  He slowed the car.
        "Wait," Scully said suddenly.  "I think I know where she is."  Her
eyes were wide and she turned to Mulder.  "Turn around."
        "Are you sure?"  Mulder bypassed a parking spot and began to circle
out of the lot.
        "Yes, go," came the insistent reply.
************************************************************************
Day 6, same time.
        Bernard Nash was slouched in a hard, wooden chair in the interrogation
room of Green Briar Police Department.  He was still dazed, and had not spoken
to anyone since the comments he made to Mulder.  He scratched his chin, which
was covered by a three-day beard.
        The door opened, and Nash jumped upright.  A uniformed officer,
followed by a familiar face, entered the room.
        Nash's eyes lit up.  "Hillary!" he cried out.
        The woman hurried to the chair next to him.  Her face was concerned
but  tired.  "Oh, Bernard, how could you?"
        The oficer had left the room, and now he stood outside with Davidson,
watching through the glass.  
        "I knew she could get him to talk," Davidson muttered, watching
intently.
        "Let me explain..." Nash started.
        "You made yourself look like a fool, Bernard.  And now you've been
arrested."  Hillary held his hands.
        "It's different this time.  There's something out there.  I don't know
what, but it's there, Hil, and I didn't do it."  Nash's eyes were wide and
scared.  He trembled slightly.
        "Stop it, please.  You're just making things worse."  Hillary dropped
his hand, and crossed her arms.  
        A tear rolled down Nash's cheek.  "If you ever had any faith in me,
you have to believe me.  I know that I'm not sane, Hillary, and that they'll
probably lock me up, but I know there is something there.  My mind may be
gone, but I know in my heart that something not of this world is out there." 
Nash's throat was dry, and he swallowed hard.  "Please, Hillary.  Tell me you
believe me."
        Wordlessly, she embraced him.  His breathing was quiet, and she rubbed
his back.
        Nash stared off into space.  "That poor girl," he whispered.
************************************************************


Day 6, 5:25PM
        The car had barely stopped in front of Nash's cabin when the passenger
door was flung open and Scully jumped out of the vehicle.
        "Kristine!" she shouted, practically flying to the door.  The yellow
police tape flapped in the wind, indicating that someone had gone in since
Mulder.  The teenager's red jeep was parked on the side of the small building.
        Mulder caught up before Scully went inside.  He pushed ahead of her,
not as excited as she, but wary of whoever or whatever was inside.
        The cabin was calm, barely touched since Nash had left.  It was dim
except for a soft light from the kitchen.  Slowly, Mulder withdrew his gun
from his jacket.  
        "Kris?"  Scully asked gently.  There was a tension in her voice.  She
crept around the corner, and when she saw her cousin sitting at the table, her
muscles relaxed.  "Oh, Kris."
        Kristine glanced up from the notebook in front of her.  She smiled
faintly.  "I knew it was you.  I heard you shouting."
        Scully sat down in the chair next to her.  Mulder remained in the
doorway.  "What are you doing here, sweetie?"
        Kristine swallowed.  "They're coming soon, Dana.  I'm scared, and I
want to keep them away.  These books," she gestured to the shelf near Mulder,
"can tell me how."
        "How did you find this place?"  Mulder asked, stepping towards the
table.
        "I just drove here.  I don't remember what roads I took.  I just drove
around until I got here."  Kristine seemed calm and sensible.
        Scully caught Mulder's eye a brief moment, then turned back to
Kristine.  "Why don't we go back home?  Your mom..."
        "No!"  Kristine shouted, jumping to her feet.  She wrapped her arms
around herself.  "I can't go outside."  Her voice was shaking.  "They're out
there.  Don't you understand?"  She paused and looked from Scully to Mulder. 
"I'm not crazy.  I'm scared, and I won't leave until they're gone."
        Mulder sighed.  "Then we'll stay with you."  His voice was oddly
wistful and gentle.
        Kristine smiled hopefully.  Scully just bit her lip.
************************************************************************
Day 6, 11:15PM.
        Scully was curled up on the overstuffed couch in Nash's living room,
holding a magazine she wasn't reading.  She was staring into space when Mulder
entered the room.  He was awkwardly carrying three mugs of steaming coffee. 
Scully looked up when he came in.
        "Where did Kristine go?"  Mulder asked, setting the mugs on the end
table next to Scully.
        "I convinced her to sleep for awhile."  Scully drew her feet closer to
her as Mulder sat down next to her with his coffee.  "What do you think?"  Her
voice was low.
        Mulder stared at her as he thought about the question.  She grew
uncomfortable and looked away.  "Nash was a fraud.  He made up his stories. 
He lied, but he is scared of something."  He sipped from his mug.  "Kristine
is scared of the dreams she's had."
        Scully took a deep breath.  "They're not just dreams, Mulder.  I know
my cousin.  There's more to all this, but I don't know what."
        "What if she's right?  What if they are coming to get her?"  Mulder's
eyes didn't move from Scully's face.
        A scowl pinched across her features, and she jumped to her feet. 
"That's ridiculous,"  she cried, her voice a harsh whisper.  "She's a senior
in high school, and she's stressed out.  It's making her paranoid."  She
stopped, knowing she was contradicting what she had just said.
        Mulder stood up.  "Scully..." he began, his voice soothing.
        "Don't patronize me, Mulder," she snapped, giving him an icy stare. 
"I do not need a stranger telling me about my family!"  Scully regretted the
statement the moment it flew out of her mouth, but made no effort to take it
back.
        Mulder's face looked as though he had been slapped.  Then it lit up
with anger.  "Fine," he hissed, "I understand.  I just wish there had been a
stranger around twenty-two years ago to tell me my sister was going to be
kidnapped."  He turned his back on her.  "But you're not me."  He started to
walk away.
        "Mulder," Scully's voice was almost pleading, but changed to almost
commanding,"you can't leave."
        He stopped and stood facing the kitchen.  "I'm an agent of the Federal
Bureau of Investigation.  I never abandon a case," came the reply.  "I'll be
in the kitchen."  He left the room.
        Scully sighed in frustration, than sat back down on the couch. 
Slowly, she stretched out and laid down, hoping a little cat nap would help
her forget.
************************************************************************
Day 7, 1:45AM
        A cold breeze tickled Scully on the nose, and she shifted her head
with a groan.  She was resting on the tiny couch comfortably, and she fought
waking up, but did anyway.
        The first thing she noticed was the front door.  It was wide open,
letting the night air flow into the tiny cabin.  Scully sat up and rubbed her
eyes slowly, but an alarming thought flared in her head.  She jumped to her
feet, and dashed into the bedroom where Kristine had been sleeping.  The bed
was disheveled, but empty.  Panic swept over Scully.
        She ran back to the living room.  "Mulder!  MULDER!"  She shoved her
shoes on.
        Mulder appeared in the doorway of the kitchen.  He had obviously been
sleeping and yawned.  "What's the matter?"
        Scully didn't look at him.  She pulled on her jacket.  "She's gone."
With that, she took off out the front door.
        "What?  Scully?"  Mulder's eyes widened as he realized what she meant.
 "Dammit!" he cried to the empty cabin.  Grabbing his holster and coat, he
followed her.
        Scully raced through the woods.  She knew where Kristine was, and she
had to get there in time.  Branches smacked her face as she stumbled through
the trees, her heart pounding and her lungs burning.  Her mind was travelling
a million times faster than her feet.
        Mulder was not far behind her.  Every now and then, he could see a
glimpse of red hair ahead of him.  He was not yet sure where she was leading
him, but Nash's warning kept echoing in his head.  "Scully!" he called over
and over.  There was no answer, just the cold wind and the crackle of dried
leaves under his feet.
        There was no moon, but Scully's mind rather than her eyes found the
place she was running to.  She could see the clearing through the fringe of
trees as she neared the edge of the woods.  When she reached the open area,
she stopped to catch her breath and look around.  She heard Mulder approaching
from behind, but did not acknowledge his shouts.
        Scully's eyes settled on a small silohette about fifty yards away from
her.  The figure stood motionless, head raised to the air.
        Suddenly, a blinding light filled the midnight sky.
        "Kristine!"  Scully screamed.
        Mulder stumbled out of the woods in time to see his partner running to
the descending lights and the figure below them.  "Scully," he whispered. 
"Samantha."  Old terror washed over him.  "NO!"
        Scully could not think; she could only feel.  She felt the cold wind. 
She felt the light on her skin, which was even icier than the winter wind. 
She felt her cousin's arm in her grip, and she felt the muscles in her
shoulder tighten as she yanked Kristine away.
        Mulder stood paralyzed as the lights from the sky intensified rapidly,
than disappeared completely.  He did not breathe as his eyes scanned the the
seemingly empty field.  He didn't realize he had run from the edge of the
woods to the center of the clearing until he found himself there, surrounded
by darkness.
        "Scully!"  Mulder could see nothing but blackness.  He stood perfectly
still, letting the breeze caress his face.
        After a brief moment, his ears picked up the sound of soft weeping. 
He turned in the direction from which it came.  
        Beneath a leafless tree, Mulder spotted a crouched figure, swaying as
though with the wind.  He felt his heart leap as he caught a flash of bright
red.  He approached slowly, almost afraid.
        Dana Scully sat cross-legged on the ground, her arms full of her
cousin, who was sobbing into Scully's shoulder.  Dana rocked back and forth, a
soft "Shh" coming from her lips.  She gazed blankly into the darkness.
        Mulder dropped to his knees next to them as relief overcame him.
************************************************************************
Day 7 6:45AM
        The sun had not yet broken the horizon, but the once-black sky was now
streaked with gray, lavender and pink.  The tiny cabin was awake inside, and
the glow from the windows spilled onto the ground.  Carol Walker's blue Saturn
was parked in front.
        Four people stood in the living room in an akward shape.  Carol's arm
was securely around her daughter's shoulders.  They stood near the door, ready
to leave.  Scully and Mulder faced them, but were strangely distanced from
each other.
        "This whole thing, it's unbelievable, but it's true."  Carol shook her
head slowly in disbelief.  "I don't understand anything anymore."
        Kristine hugged her mother.  "No one is supposed to understand,"  she
said calmly.  Her face brightened.  "Let's go home."
        "Sure, honey."  Carol broke away from her daughter to embrace Scully. 
"I don't think I'll ever be able to thank you enough, Dana."
        Scully closed her eyes and sighed.  "You don't have to, Aunt Carol."
        Carol shook Mulder's hand and thanked him.  Kristine gave him a brief
hug, then turned to her cousin.  There were tears in her eyes.  "I owe you
one, Dana."  They hugged silently a moment, then Kristine pecked Dana on the
cheek.  Scully bit her lip and stiffened her chin.
        Carol walked to the door.  "Come on, honey."
        "You'll come back to the house before you leave, won't you?"  Kristine
asked, even though she knew the answer.
        "I'll be over in a little while.  We have to clean things up here
before we go."  Scully did not look at Mulder.
        Kristine glanced between the two of them, a wide smile on her face. 
"Alright.  See you then."
        Carol and Kristine left, and the door closed behind them with a thud. 
Scully watched through the front window as the Saturn pulled out of the gravel
driveway.  Her back was to Mulder, and she said nothing.  She was waiting for
him to start, but he was silent.  She could feel his eyes on the back of her
neck.  Finally, she turned around.
        "We really should get everything cleaned up.  What time is our
flight?"  Scully avoided Mulder's gaze as she walked past him to the kitchen.
        "We don't have to leave right away."  Mulder followed her with his
eyes.  "Scully?"  His voice was low.
        "Yes?" she answered.  She stood in the doorframe.
        "I'm sorry if I said anything that hurt you last night.  I knew you
were having a rough time, and I just made things worse.  I'm sorry,"  he
repeated.
        Scully leaned her head against the frame.  "It's over now."  She
studied his face a moment.  "Are you okay?"
        Mulder didn't answer immediately.  Instead, he began to straighten up
the living room.  "I'm fine."
        Scully stepped closer to him.  "Mulder..."
        Mulder abruptly turned to face her.  "Why shouldn't I be okay?  What
about you?  You almost lost your cousin last night."
        Scully shrugged.  "I don't feel anything right now.  It's all like a
dream.  Nothing has set in yet."
        Mulder's eyes dropped to his feet.  "The same thing happened to me
with Samantha.  Only I couldn't get control like you did."  He wasn't able to
hide the waver in his voice.
        "What are you talking about?"  Scully's voice was gentle and soothing.
 
        Mulder looked up at the ceiling.  There were tears in his eyes.  "You
were able to do what I couldn't.  I stood and watched as Samantha was taken
from me, and as you were almost taken from me twice.  I couldn't do anything
to stop it.  But you...."  He paused to keep himself from sobbing.  "You were
able to run and save your cousin.  You faced the unknown and won.  Why
couldn't I?"  
        Scully felt tears well up in her own eyes.  She touched his shoulder
lightly, then pulled him into her arms.  "It wasn't your fault, Fox.  It
wasn't," she whispered.  "There is no reason why any of this happened." 
        Neither could find the ability to leave the sanctuary of the other's
arms, so they remained there, holding on for dear life.