----------- Full Circle ----------- Agent Kym Cooper’s House Alexandria, Virginia 7:11a.m. The alarm clock was ringing somewhere off in the distance. Special Agent Kymberli Cooper couldn’t quite figure out where the sound was coming from. Then it hit her. She had to get up and go to work. She looked at her clock. 7:11. Great, she thought to herself. I have less than an hour to get ready and be at work. How perfect is that? Cooper rolled out of bed and groggily walked to her closet. She picked out her forest green suit. It was her favorite. For quite some time now, her favorite colors were black and green. She forced her way to the bathroom, convinced a shower would wake her up. She turned on the water and shed her nightgown. When she stepped into the shower, she almost jumped right back out. She had neglected to glance at which way she turned the knob. What was supposed to be a cold, refreshing shower, was a hot, scalding shower. She turned the water down a couple notches so it wasn’t so hot and began her morning ritual. Five minutes later, when she stepped out of the shower and wrapped a towel around herself, she knew that she would make it to work on time. She grabbed a second towel and draped it over her head, vigorously rubbing her hair as she stepped out of the bathroom and back into her bedroom. Her eyes fell on to her bed, where her clothes were laid out. There, instead of the forest green suit she had laid out, was a red one. The towel in her hand fell to the floor as she moved her hand to cover her mouth. She barely managed to control a scream escaping her throat. She back stepped into the bathroom and slammed the door shut. Leaning her back up against the door, tears began to roll down her cheeks. She shrank to the floor, sobbing. X-x-X-x-X An hour later, Agent Cooper appeared outside of the Assistant Director’s office. Taking a deep breath, she opened the door to the outer office. His secretary, Diane, looked up as Cooper entered the room. "Can I help you, Agent Cooper?" she asked. "I would like to see Assistant Director Skinner please. It’s an emergency." "Go right in," Diane said. Cooper opened the door to Skinner’s inner office. To her right was a sofa. Directly in front of her was Skinner’s desk facing away from the windows on her left and on the wall directly in front of her was a picture of the president. Assistant Director Walter Skinner was sitting behind his desk. He was bald and wore wire rim black glasses. He was wearing a suit and tie and was busy with paper work. When he heard the door to his office open, he looked up to see who had come to see him. "Agent Cooper, what can I do for you?" he asked. "Well, sir," Cooper started as she walked towards his desk. "I have this case, that I'm not sure whom I should take it to. I was wondering if you could tell me." Cooper handed the folder containing all the information she had gathered, including newspaper articles, to the Assistant Director. Skinner quietly reviewed the case carefully reading every detail so he could refer Cooper to the correct person. After several minutes, he looked up at Cooper. He scrawled something down on a piece of paper and handed it and the folder back to the agent standing nervously before him. "That's the agent you want to talk to." Cooper glanced at the paper as she headed towards the door, "Thank you, sir." She quietly walked out the door, closing it softly behind her. FBI Headquarters Washington, DC 9:17a.m. Agent Fox Mulder sat facing the window looking out over Washington, DC. He felt lucky. At least he had a desk with a view. There were some agents "out on the floor" who never got to see what the world looked like. Being near the window allowed him time to ponder his life. He didn't know what to do with his life anymore. Just about everything he held dearly to him had been taken away. The only thing he had left was Scully. A petite red head walked up behind Mulder. He looked so peaceful, she almost didn't want to disturb him. "Agent Mulder?" she asked. "Yes?" Mulder replied turning around. "I have something for you. Skinner told me I should see you." "Really, what about?" Mulder looked surprised. Skinner wasn't his direct superior anymore. What would Skinner being doing referring other agents to him? "I have this case which I need your help on. I'm in charge of all stalking cases and this case just came into my hands today. I think it would interest you. You see the victim had been stalked two years ago and now she is being stalked again, only this time, the stalker is dead." She laid a file folder on his desk. Just then, Dana Scully walked up. "Mulder what's going on?" Cooper turned towards her and stared for a moment. "Dana?" Scully looked at Cooper curiously. She looked over the person before her. Suddenly her eyes lit up as she recognized the person in Mulder's office. "Kimbo?" The two friends hugged each other, both not believing they were actually together again. They pulled away from each other and regarded the other with the eye of an FBI agent. "I can't believe you are here," Scully said. "What? Did you think you were the only one who was recruited straight out of college?" Cooper retorted back. Mulder looked at the two women standing in his office. "I still don't know who you are." "Oh, I'm sorry," Cooper said. She extended her right hand towards Mulder, "Special Agent Kym Cooper, violent crime division, specifically stalking. Dana and I have been friends since college." Mulder took the offered hand and said in amazement, "Violent crime division? Scully, I am impressed. You do have good friends." He shook Cooper's hand and said, "I didn't know stalking fell under violent crimes?" "It does," Cooper said plainly. "Stalking is at times more violent then a murder. I'm involved in not only finding the stalkers themselves, but also in helping the victims." "What types of psychological problems does stalking produce?" Cooper looked deep into Mulder's eyes. "Mostly what I've seen is Post Traumatic Stress Syndrome, some Agoraphobia, Obsessive Compulsive Disorders and even some Claustrophobia. It's more traumatic to the victim because often times, stalking does not stop until the stalker is dead. That's why I brought you the case." Cooper released Mulder's hand, realizing they had been holding onto each other for quite some time. "I'm curious, why are you so interested?" Mulder gave Scully a look that said, You tell her. Scully sighed and said, "Agent Mulder has an AB in psychology; and generally, he is regarded as the best analyst in the violent crime section." Cooper laughed. "And when was that idea put into his head? It sure isn't true now. Anyway, I do have to leave, I'm meeting with Agent Jerhico shortly and then I'll be at home so if you need to get a hold of me, you can reach me there. Nice meeting you Agent Mulder." Cooper walked off towards Jerhico's office. "Gee, she was in a hurry," Mulder commented to Scully. "So what was Kym doing here?" "She dropped off a case for us to investigate. It's an X-File, Scully." "Mulder we don't work on the X-Files anymore. Let me see that case." Mulder handed her the manila folder that Cooper had put on his desk. Scully glanced quickly over the paperwork and newspaper articles inside. "Mulder, have you looked over this file yet?" "No, why?" "This case was initiated by Cooper. It's her case. She's the one who's being stalked." "I think we need to go talk to this friend of yours." Agent Mulder grabbed his jacket as he headed towards Jerhico's office. "Let's see if we can track down Agent Jerhico." While on their way to Jerhico's office, they just about ran into him literally. "Agent Jerhico?" Scully asked. "Where's Agent Cooper?" "You just missed her. She's gone home for the day. Nothing really for her to take care of here." Scully turned on her heel and thanked Jerhico as she headed towards the door. Mulder was already three steps ahead of her. By the time Scully reached Mulder's car, he already had it started and was practically ready to go. "Mulder, do you even know where she lives?" "You do know, don't you Scully?" Mulder looked almost heartbroken at the thought of Scully not knowing where Cooper lived. "Yes, Mulder, I know. You forget that Kym and I have been friends since college. We do keep tabs on each other." "All right, all right, tell me how to get there." Scully's directions were so precise, that it only took ten minutes to get to Cooper's house and Mulder didn't get lost. It was a cute little house in Alexandria, Virginia, one of those houses you expect to see on a video to attract tourists. It was all white with blue trim. It had a tiny front porch and was two stories. Mulder couldn't believe that one person lived in the house. It was large enough for your average family with a nice sized front yard and a white picket fence. Mulder parked his car on the side of the street and got out. Scully followed him up the walkway to the front door. She rang the doorbell and waited for Cooper to open the door. Inside, Cooper was just settling down with a book when the doorbell rang. Just great, she thought. Now I have to unlock my door. Cooper got up from her sofa in the living room and walked towards the front door. She peeked out the window beside the door and saw Mulder and Scully there. She carefully undid the chain lock, turned the deadbolt and the lock on the doorknob and lifted the dowel latch up from the floor. She slowly opened the door, cautiously looking for someone who might have followed the two agents. "Please, come in." When the agents were all in the entryway, Cooper closed the door and put the dowel lock back into the floorboards, twisted the doorknob and deadbolt locks till the clicked and slid the chain lock into place. Mulder watched her out of the corner of his eye. He couldn't quite believe that an FBI agent would take so much time with locks on the door. "Make yourself comfortable," Cooper said leading them to the couch. She curled up on the loveseat, tucking her legs beneath her. Mulder and Scully sat opposite her, on the couch facing the window that looked out into the front yard. Mulder was impressed that she had changed so fast. She was now wearing forest green sweats and tennis shoes. "So, why did you two suddenly decide to drop by?" Scully glanced at Mulder and then looked straight at Cooper. "Kym, why did you bring us that case?" Cooper looked away from Scully's gaze. She knew they needed to know, but she wasn't sure she would be able to tell them. It was always so hard. She took a deep breath and looked back at Scully. "I'm tired of the tormenting. I want it to end." "Kym, I hate to do this to you, but could you give us a little background on the case. When did the stalking start? When did he die?" Mulder asked. "I feel I owe you that much." Cooper took a deep breath. As she slowly let it out, she began to tell her story. "You meet someone in college, someone you've had a crush on for a while. After you've been together for a while you begin to notice problems in the relationship. Being a psychology major you start to see the signs of an abusive and controlling person. You dismiss them as study related and try to make the relationship work, but when you realize it can't work, you call it off. When you do call it off, he doesn't want it to end so he starts calling you all the time and leaving cards and letters and flowers. You get a protection order and get on with your life. Once you have forgotten all about him and gotten on with your life and career, he shows up again. He starts doing the same things again and even thought you are a member of the force who are supposed to be protecting people you still feel threatened. Not even the one you are supposed to be watching out for and is supposed to be watching out for you can protect you. Then when he kills the one person you trust, you lose it and kill him." Mulder looked at her. "Do you realize you've been speaking of yourself in the second person?" "I have? I guess it's a way to detach myself from what really happened." Scully glanced at Mulder as she said, "So you think he's back from the dead?" "I don't think. I know." Cooper looked directly at Mulder. "Little things, like this morning. I laid out my outfit. It was a black blazer and black skirt with a green top, what I was wearing this morning. Well, when I got out of the shower, instead of the black suit, a red suit was laying on my bed. I don't own a red suit." Suddenly, Cooper felt her eyes start to well up with tears. Recently, she had been spontaneously crying for no reason. She turned towards the window to hopefully keep the two agents from noticing. It didn't quite work. Mulder got up and walked over to Cooper. He sat down right beside her. "Is there anything we can do?" he said softly to her. "Yea," Cooper said. "You can get him to leave me alone!" She jumped up and ran up the stairs, angrily wiping away tears as she went. Scully and Mulder jumped to their feet and slowly followed Cooper up the stairs. They heard her slam her bedroom door. They found which room was hers and stood quietly outside. Scully knocked gently. "Kym, are you okay?" she asked through the door. "Just go away. I just wanna be alone," came Cooper's sobbing reply through the door. Mulder's hand went towards the doorknob ready to open the door, but Scully put her hand on his arm, shaking her head. They slowly walked down the stairs together. About halfway down, Mulder said, "She's terrified." "Of course she's terrified Mulder. Why wouldn't she be?" "Not of just of him, but of us too." By this time, they had reached the bottom of the stairs and were heading out the door. "What do you mean?" Scully said pausing in front of the door. "She's afraid that if she gets too close to us, we're going be killed." Scully started unlatching the locks on Cooper's door so they could leave. "She wasn't expecting you to be my partner," Mulder continued as he held open the door for Scully. "Now she's even more afraid because she doesn't want her to see her best friend hurt." "So do you think we should take the case?" Scully said as she climbed into the car. "If we don't take it, she'll continue living her life in fear. We need to help her." Mulder climbed in the car and they headed off back towards the office. X x X x X As soon as Mulder and Scully left, Cooper was down the stairs locking her door. She checked, double-checked, and triple checked that the locks worked and that no one would be able to get in. She was always very careful how she presented herself in front of others, especially her colleagues. If any of them knew she suffered from obsessive compulsive disorder...Well, she didn't like to think about that. She turned started to head towards the kitchen. It was only 10 in the morning, but she had the munchies. Something on the end table caught her eye. It was a business card, Mulder's business card. She picked it up, knowing he wouldn't have just left it for now reason. Slowly, she turned it over. Mulder had written, "Call me. 555-9355." She put the card in her pocket and continued towards the kitchen. Her tiny country kitchen had blue and yellow checkerboard drapes and tiled floor. The countertops were white and all the utensils were blue. Even her plates matched the kitchen. She loved that room of her house, even though she didn't like to cook. Cooper gathered her coffee from the kitchen and her book from the living room and headed upstairs to her room. She knew she wouldn't read any; it was a tearjerker and if she started crying again, she wouldn't stop. She crawled into her queen size bed and pulled the covers up close and sipped her coffee. She decided to watch some daytime TV instead of reading; Jerry Springer always made her laugh. Today's episode was a rerun. Agent Mulder was the guest expert and he was talking about hypertrechosis lanuginosis. Now that made her laugh. Agent Mulder talking about something scientific! After Jerry was over, the noon news was on. The two news anchors told about the murders and fires and other various problems that had gone on since the morning news cast. The calm soothing voices in combination with her exhaustion from earlier that morning, just talking about the past was emotionally draining, put her into a deep, dreamless sleep. When she awoke four hours later, her room was ransacked like someone had been searching through her stuff. Instinctively she reached for her gun and the phone. She checked the weapon's magazine, fully loaded. She pulled out the business card Mulder had left her. On one side he had written his home number and on the printed side, aside from his name, was his cell phone number and the extension to his desk. Cooper quickly dialed Mulder's extension. The phone rang ten times and no one answered. "Damn," Cooper said in disgust. She dialed his cell phone number. After two rings, he answered, "Mulder." "Mulder, it's Cooper." "Cooper, what can I do for you?" She could hear his voice brighten when he realized it was her. "For starters, you can get your ass over here!" Mulder, who was on his way to Assistant Director Kersh's office, noticed Scully waiting for him outside. As he drew closer to Scully, she heard him say, "What happened?" She gave him a quizzical look. Mulder mouthed the word "Cooper" and motioned for her to follow him. "We're on our way." As Mulder hung up the phone, Scully began protesting. "Mulder, we are supposed to meet with AD Kersh. Where are we going? What's wrong with Kym?" "Someone broke into her house," Mulder said matter-of-factly. "What? In broad daylight? Mulder, we were just there." "That's why we're going back. We've been told to use caution and I'm sure Kersh will forgive us if we miss one meeting." Scully rolled her eyes as she followed Mulder out to his car. "I don't know why we're doing this, Mulder. If Kersh found out about this..." "Yea, I know, he'd have our hides. Scully, she's your friend, if she's in danger, I would think that you would be the first to come to her aid." Mulder and Scully got into the red 1998 Ford Taurus and headed back to Cooper's house. When they reached her quaint little house with the white picket fence, they slowly got out of the car. Mulder pulled out his cell phone and dialed Cooper's number. She answered quickly, before the first ring had even finished. "Are you here?" she asked. "Yea. Everything appears to be fine from outside. No broken windows. The door isn't ajar." Cooper inched down the stairs, her back to the wall, holding her gun in her right hand pointed towards the ground and the phone in her left. She noticed the locks on her door hadn't been touched. While Mulder and Scully combed the perimeter outside, Cooper checked in every room and headed towards the back of the house. Nothing had been touched, except the stuff in her room. No windows had been broken and her back door was still locked. "Mulder, I'm going to unlock the back door." Cooper gingerly unlocked the back door and let Mulder and Scully in. Mulder and Scully holstered their guns. "No one's here," Scully said. "It was him." Cooper said flatly. "How do you know?" Mulder asked. Cooper walked out of her kitchen. "Come on, Mulder. There's no point of entry. No one was here before I came home, otherwise I would have noticed. It was him. He was looking for your card. Fortunately, he doesn't have the guts to look on me." Scully looked at Mulder. The look asked him, "You gave her one of you cards?!" Mulder didn't even have to look back at Scully, she knew what the answer would be. "Kym," she asked her best friend, "I don't know what happened to you out there in Oregon, but right now, you are sounding delusional." "You can always count on your friends for a medical diagnosis of your problem," Cooper shot at Scully in a sarcastic tone. "Look, Dana." Cooper stopped in her tracks and turned towards her friend. "I know you don't believe me. Your reputation for your work on the x-files precedes you. I knew what you and Mulder were doing on the East Coast. I knew that you were originally assigned to debunk his work. You're a scientist, Dana. You have to know the science behind the things Agent Mulder shows you before you will believe. And sometimes, even when the science confirms Mulder's beliefs, you still don't believe. Right now you have no science to go on, but trust me, I know what is going on." "Kym, you know I've never just been able to trust you. You've always been a little…weird. But look, we should probably get going. You should probably take a nice hot bath, drink a cup of hot tea and get some sleep. You've had a rough day. We'll find the guy who's doing this to you, I promise." Cooper led them to the front door. "Thanks Dana." As she closed the door behind the two agents, she knew they would never catch him. How do you catch and apparition? Who are you gonna call? The Ghostbusters? X x X x X Later that night, Cooper couldn't sleep; she was too afraid to sleep. It was 3:14 in the morning. No one would be up for her to talk to, except...Cooper went to her computer in her bedroom and switched it on. In her favorite chat room, she found her friend Darian. Darian worked for the FBI in Oregon. He was an informant. If you needed information, he could get it for you. Cooper knew she was going to need his help; FBI agents didn't usually list their addresses in the phonebook. Quickly she got Darian in a private room and was hounded by questions. "So how have you been?" he asked. "Fine." She said. "Dar, I need you to do me a favor." "What?" "Get me an address to this number: (202) 555-9355. It's Agent Fox Mulder's home number." "Oh, come on Kym, this is too easy." "Dar, I know, but it's kinda important." "All right, give me a sec." A few moments later, the words "2630 Hegal Place, Apartment 42," appeared on her computer terminal. Hey, she said to herself, that's only 20 blocks from here. "Thanks, Dar, gotta go." Cooper quickly logged off the Internet, shut down her computer and threw on a pair of black sweat pants with her white tee-shirt and gray flannel. She tied her tennis shoes, grabbed her keys and got in her blue 1998 Ford Escort. Heading north on Sheridan Street she soon found Oliver Lane which she knew would take her directly to Hegal Place. It was only five miles. She could have run, if she really wanted to, but that would have taken her half an hour. She found a parking spot on Hegal and headed up the steps of the apartment complex. She decided not to take the elevator, she was too wired. Four flights of stairs later, she was staring at the number 42, debating on whether she should risk waking Mulder up or not. What the hell, she said to herself. She knocked on the door. Mulder was wearing black jeans and a white tee shirt. He was trying to get some sleep on his couch, but was finding the notion futile. When he heard the knock on his door, he was relieved, but surprised. Who would be visiting him at three in the morning? He got up and walked towards the door. When he opened the door, he was shocked to find Kym Cooper standing there. "Kym, what are you doing here?" "I couldn't sleep," she said. "Can I come in?" "Sure," Mulder replied, placing a hand on Cooper's shoulder and guiding her into his apartment. "Sorry about the mess," he said, trying to organize his coffee table. "It's no problem, Mulder. You weren't expecting me." Cooper suddenly got a far away look in her eyes. "Are you okay?" Mulder asked. "Yea, I'm fine," she said. She clearly wasn't "fine" by the way her voice cracked. "Come on, sit down," Mulder said, leading her to the sofa. "What's bothering you?" Cooper sat down slowly, trying to figure out how to put her feelings into words. "I just don't understand Dana anymore. She used to be so helpful with her damned science. Now all she seems to be is a nit pick. Why can't she just believe me?" Mulder sighed. He had similar feelings about Scully. He sat down beside Cooper. "It's just her way now. She's worked with me for five and a half years. I think your theory reminds her of me and how she is always out to prove me wrong. Don't take it personally; her science can save your life." Cooper laid her head on Mulder's shoulder. Mulder stroked her auburn hair. Suddenly, she lifted her head. "Mulder, what are your feelings for Dana?" Mulder was taken aback by the abruptness of the question. "Kym, I can't answer that question." "Why not?" "Because...I am sitting here with a beautiful woman at three in the morning and it wouldn't be right." Mulder placed his fingers under Cooper's chin and tilted her head. He leaned in and kissed her pink lips gently. She didn't resist like he expected. In fact, she even kissed back. When Mulder leaned back and away from Cooper, she just stared at him. "Mulder I don't understand." "You don't have to." He placed his hands on her shoulders. "You're not supposed to." He leaned in to kiss her again, but she turned her head away from him. "What?" he asked. "Mulder, we can't. It's just not right." "I guess the best analyst in the Bureau can't be wrong, can she?" "No, she can't," Cooper said with a smile. Slowly she snuggled up next to Mulder. "Do you mind if I sleep here tonight?" "Not at all, my dear." Slowly and tenderly, he laid Cooper down on his couch and cuddled up next to her. "Do you mind?" he asked softly. "No," she whispered back. Soon the two agents had drifted off to sleep together. Mulder's Apartment Alexandria, VA 6:19a.m. Mulder slowly rolled over and hit the floor with a waking thud. For a moment he laid there staring at the ceiling wondering why he had fallen off his sofa; he had slept there a million times before, sometimes on accident and sometimes on purpose, and he had never fallen off before. That's when a pair of piercing blue eyes peeked over the edge of the couch. A gentle voice asked him, "Are you alright?" "Yeah," he said his voice barely above a whisper. He watched as a cream colored, smooth, thin arm reached up and pulled the blanket off the back of the sofa. He continued to watch her as she tucked the blanket around her body. He propped himself up on an elbow to get a better look. Mulder slowly got up and stumbled towards his kitchen, hoping he had coffee. On the way there, he tossed a flannel shirt towards the woman lying on his couch. "Is that a hint?" Kym Cooper asked with a sly smile on her face. Mulder just looked at her and winked. While Mulder scrounged through his cupboards for coffee, Cooper put on the flannel Mulder had so thoughtfully tossed at her. Just as Mulder came back with two cups of steaming hot coffee, Cooper pulled the blanket around her. They sat on the couch together, sipping their coffee. Just then there was a knock at the door. Mulder looked up from his coffee. Cooper placed a hand on his knee, trying to convince him not to get the door. Mulder leaned over and whispered, "I have to." He set down his mug and got up to answer his door. Without even asking who it was, he opened the door and saw Scully, like he expected. She was always showing up at the most inconvenient times. "Mulder, I have some interesting news about Kym." Mulder, who was standing in the doorway, moved out of the way to allow her entrance into his apartment. That's when Scully saw Kym, now standing between the couch and the coffee table. "Oh, I didn't know you had company," Scully said trying to backup towards the door. "It's all right," Cooper said, "I should probably be leaving." Cooper grabbed her keys and was just about out of the door before anymore could be said. Before she left, she stood on her toes and kissed Mulder on the cheek. "Thank you," she whispered. "I'll call you later," Mulder called as Cooper raced down the hallway. Mulder shut the door and turned towards Scully. "You were saying?" "Oh it was nothing." "'Nothing' that was enough for you to come over here at 6:30 in the morning?" "I spoke with Kym's psychiatrist. She hasn’t seen him in two weeks." "Psychiatrist? What was she doing seeing a psychiatrist?" Scully handed Mulder a file folder she had been carrying with her. "Special Agent Kym Cooper suffers from post traumatic stress syndrome and obsessive compulsive disorder. The post traumatic stress causes her to have waking dreams." Mulder opened the file folder. Inside were photocopies of her FBI evaluations. Mulder couldn't quite believe his eyes. Cooper shouldn't have even been in the Bureau after her partner was killed. "Mulder, she's leading you. By believing her, you're playing into her psychosis." "She's not delusional, Scully!" Mulder snapped at her. "She...She's just having a hard time with what happened to her." "Mulder, you of all people should realize the danger you are putting Kym in."