From: ephemeral@ephemeralfic.org Date: 28 Jan 2006 20:46:00 -0000 Subject: Alphabet Soup: N is for Nuisance by YappiChick Source: direct Reply To: yappichick@yahoo.com Title: Alphabet Soup: N is for Nuisance Author: YappiChick email: yappichick@yahoo.com Summary: nui-sance n. One that is inconvenient, annoying or vexatious; a bother. Website: http://www.geocities.com/yappichick Feedback: Pretty please. With sugar on top! :) Rating: PG Archive: Surely! It would be great to let me know! Spoilers: FTF, The End Category: MSR, A Disclaimer: Nope, not mine. Author's note: This is a continuation of my ABC universe. Thanks again to MF Luder for another great beta! Thank you! Mulder's Apartment Sunday, 8:45 a.m. Mulder walked into his apartment and flopped on the couch with his eyes half open. He wouldn't have cared if the Smoking Man was in the middle of his living room, pointing a gun at his head; he'd probably start snoring in the middle of the old man's threat. Scully had just dropped him off, after leaving Gibson with the Lone Gunmen. He, like Scully, had concerns about whether or not the guys had it in them to take care of a child, but was pleasantly surprised when they opened their door. They had a new video game system all set up for Gibson and a refrigerator full of healthy food. They swore to check in with Scully twice a day and alert them if anything went wrong. Though, he had to admit, he was a little suspicious of the cleanliness of Frohike's thoughts when Gibson started giggling as they were walking out of the Gunmen's apartment. He would have to have a talk with him about corrupting young minds later. He couldn't remember if he or Scully spoke at all during the trip to his apartment. He tried to stay awake long enough to remember the giddiness he felt when Scully softly kissed his cheek as he was getting out of her car, but failed; he was already asleep. * * * * Mulder awoke several hours later to a booming voice coming from his answering machine: Skinner's. "Agent Mulder, this is Assistant Director Skinner. Please be advised that you have a meeting with me tomorrow morning at eight a.m.," he said. Mulder groaned into his couch cushion as he once again fell asleep. * * * * * FBI Headquarters 7:55 a.m. Mulder sat in the waiting area of Skinner's office patiently. Neither Kim or the A.D. was there yet. Mulder couldn't remember the last time he was actually early to a meeting with his boss. "Mulder," Skinner said, surprised. "I wasn't sure you had gotten my message." He walked up to the coffee maker. "Coffee?" "No thanks," Mulder said. He had already been up for six hours, his internal clock askew from the weekend events. Skinner started the machine and led Mulder into his office. "Please, have a seat." Mulder followed his instructions and waited for Skinner to speak. "I'll cut to the chase. You've been assigned a new partner." There was something in the way he said it that made Mulder very nervous. "Who?" Skinner hesitated. "I want you to know, off the record, I don't approve of this assignment at all. But, it appears that your disapproval of Agent Fowley has left some people in the chain of command more than a little annoyed at you." Mulder thought of the recent run ins he had with his fellow agents over the past several months. One weasel popped into his mind. "Jeffery Spender?" he asked, jaw clinched. "No, though his name was brought up several times. I don't know if this agent will be any more compatible with you," he admitted. He looked at Mulder, who was now fidgeting in his seat. "You have been assigned Tom Colton as your partner." Mulder nearly jumped out of his seat. "What?! That guy doesn't know the first thing about the X-Files." Shrugging, Skinner replied, "I know that. But you specifically asked for someone who, in essence, is a skeptic. So, there is no way now that you can object to the assignment." He lowered his voice, as if he was concerned someone was listening. "I wanted to tell you that rumor has it that Agent Colton's plan is to get the X-Files shut down permanently, to show you and Agent Scully as frauds. He believes that in doing that he'll be within spitting distance of the ASAC down in BSU." "Great. You would think after five years the guy would move on with his life," Mulder muttered. A small smile flutter over Skinner's mouth for a second. "What can I say? You have a way of pissing people off. I'm officially assigning him to the X-files this morning. He should be down in your office around nine or so. I would make sure you have all your ducks in a row before he shows up," Skinner advised. "To think, I couldn't believe partners could get any better after Krycek," he deadpanned. "Here is your next assignment," he said, handing Mulder over a folder with a look of satisfaction on his face. The agent quickly scanned the description of the file. And smiled. "Are you going to tell Agent Colton about this?" The AD shook his head. "As department head, it will be your responsibility to advise your new partner of his next case." "Thank you, sir," Mulder said, leaving the office. This, he thought, is going to be a lot of fun. * * * * As expected, Mulder heard the sound of the elevator doors opening at 9:12. Instead the familiar click of a woman's heals, the halls echoed with the thud of a man's dress shoes. Fifteen seconds later, a smirking Tom Colton walked into the X-Files office. Mulder noticed he hadn't changed much in the five years since he first met the agent. His hair was thinning a bit in the back and he wore glasses, but other than that, he looked the same. "Nice place, Spooky," Colton said sarcastically. He looked around the office walls, which except for a couple of random newspaper clippings, were bare. "No news on the location of Bigfoot?" "Actually, you just missed Sasquatch season," Mulder replied, trying to keep his annoyance in check. Much to Mulder's surprise, Colton laughed. Mulder tried to hide a wince as the painful sound came from Colton's throat. It sounded like a donkey having an asthma attack. "I'm just kidding with you, Agent Mulder. I'm really excited to be down here. It will certainly be more interesting than working up with those guys in BSU." Ah, Mulder thought, so Colton was going to play the role of the good cop. After his experiences with Krycek, who claimed to be an admirer of Mulder's work, being nice was the trigger to Mulder's immediate distrust. For now, he would let Colton believe he had succeeded in his deception. "I'm glad to hear that, Agent Colton." "Please," Colton said, "call me Tom. All my friends do." Mulder had seen his share of kissing up in his time at the Bureau, but he had to concede that Colton had become a master in the art of brown nosing. He couldn't figure out why people in power thrived with that kind of attention; all it wanted to do was make Mulder gag. "Ok, Tom. I've been reviewing your personal file. It says that you are married and have a son. Is you family ok with all this traveling that your time on the X-Files will require? Agent Scully and I spent, on average, a third of the year out on assignment." "Of course. My wife is always supportive of me and my decisions," Colton boasted. "And my Tommy, well, he's still too little to notice if Daddy is gone." "Great," Mulder replied, "because we have a flight to catch tomorrow morning." He looked taken aback for a second. "What? I thought there weren't any active cases in the department." Mulder almost smiled at the look of disappointment. He knew Colton was hoping to have some time to do some snooping before he and Mulder went out on a case. He was probably hoping to show the X-Files as a sham before he would ever have to write a report for one. "That's true. But, fortunately, AD Skinner assigned us this case this morning." He pasted on a concerned look. "This isn't a problem, is it?" A phony smile appeared on Colton's lips. "No, not at all. What is this case about?" Mulder leaned back in his chair and gave his best smart ass smile. "What are your feelings about people controlling the weather?"