Title: Chip Off The Old Block III: Veracity Author: mimic117 Email: mimic1172@gmail.com Rating: PG-13 to low R - you'll see why Category: S, MSR Spoilers: Absolutely everything on the show, except what they did to Mulder at the end of Season 8 and beginning of Season 9. In other words, he's still working for the Bureau and still very much in Scully and Will's lives. This is also the third story in a series, and they follow one right after the other, so you should read the first two in order to get this one. Summary: Scully learns something she didn't know about her younger brother. But is she ready to believe? Keywords: Charlie fic, baby William fic, sorta AU Archive: Anywhere. Anywhere. I don't know. (Christopher Robin) I'll do Gossamer, but feel free to keep, share, and generally spread me around. Just let me know where so I can brag. And the Charlie Fic Archive gets this for sure. This whole series was Lara's fault in the first place. Disclaimer: I don't know why I keep having to do this, when we all know that CC doesn't deserve credit for these wonderful characters anymore. Still, I didn't create them, he did, and I guess I'll just have to be mature and admit it. But I don't have to like it. ~phbbt~ Thanks: To my Big Guy, who had the original idea for Charlie. And to my college kid, who's actually been willing to beta something of mine, as long as I don't stray into smutty territory. And to Jake, as always, for bitchin' beta above and beyond the call of duty. You are the wind beneath my wings. Author's notes at the end, if you're still interested by then. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Chip Off The Old Block III: Veracity by mimic117 8:15 PM "Mulder, what's wrong?" "Nothing's wrong, Scully. Why do you ask?" Setting the package of diapers beside the sofa, Charlie Scully looked at his sister and knew she wasn't buying Mulder's prevarication. He locked gazes with Mulder and realized that he also knew, but was going to try and stall anyway. They were both aware that it wouldn't work, but you had to give the man points for trying. "How many years have I known you?" Scully huffed. "Any time you're trying to hide something, your face gets this wide-eyed, innocent look that's a dead giveaway." "Gotta remember to work on my poker face. Scully, have you seen my new copy of The Lone Gunman? There was an article I wanted to show Charlie --" "Don't try to change the subject. Now I know there's something wrong. Just spit it out, already." Trading glances with Mulder, Charlie took on the task of deflecting his sister's annoyance. "We were almost mugged coming out of the gym, Sis. No big deal. We just didn't want to worry you." "Yeah." Mulder dove through the loophole he'd been handed. "It was just some hop-head trying to score a little cash. We got the bad guy, the cops took him away, and we're both fine. End of story." Glaring from one man to the other, Scully crossed her arms and lowered her brows. "Why do I get the feeling there's something else you're not telling me?" A wail coming from the nursery made all three heads turn. "Hey," Mulder exclaimed, "Will's up. You stay there and relax for a few more minutes, Scully. We'll go and get him." Charlie felt their hasty retreat was less than dignified. "Boy, Mulder, that move was about as smooth as gravel." "What was I supposed to do, Charlie? Just blurt it out? 'Oh, by the way, Scully, we were able to get away because your brother used telekinesis to pick up a trash can and whack the druggie upside the head.' That one would crash about as fast as the Hindenburg. I'll tell her eventually, don't worry. We just have to go about this the right way, or she'll dig in her heels and refuse to consider it." Picking up a squalling William from his crib, Mulder made motor noises with his lips. The baby's crying stopped, although his face remained scrunched in annoyance as they made their way over to the changing table. "I thought she was more open to extreme possibilities these days," Charlie pointed out. "That's what Mom said, anyway." Laying his son on the table, Mulder unsnapped and removed the sleeper, then tickled his tummy. Grasping the tapes on the disposable diaper, Mulder pulled it open with a flourish. Both men reared back in disgust. "I don't remember Mommy feeding you anything that looked like *that,*" Mulder gasped, fanning the air with one hand. "Scully *is* more open, Charlie. Hand me the powder, would you? But years of skepticism can't be overcome in a few months. It's still easiest to convince her if she sees things for herself. She'll try to rationalize what she sees, but eventually she'll talk herself into believing it if that's the only logical explanation left. Trust me on this one. She's still pretty jumpy, especially where Will is concerned." Charlie nodded. "I suppose that's understandable after everything that's happened. How are you planning to tell her?" Mulder taped the fresh diaper shut, and replaced the sleeper. Picking Will up, he planted a kiss on each smooth cheek. He propped the baby in the crook of one arm and turned toward the door. "I don't know," he said, "but I'll think of something. You just be ready to back me up. In the meantime, we need to discuss a change in this young man's diet if Scully doesn't want to be the sole diaper changer in this family." ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 8:25 Will's supper was almost over when it happened. They'd all been sitting around the kitchen table, laughing and talking while Scully fed Will cereal. Will was in his infant carrier on the table and seemed to be enjoying the attention as well as the cereal, if the enthusiasm of his waving arms and kicking legs was any indication. Maybe enjoying it a bit too much. Scully looked over at her brother to dispute a particularly lame observation and never saw Will's tiny foot shoot out and connect with his cereal bowl. It somersaulted end over end, flinging drops of gooey cereal as it headed for the floor. All eyes turned to watch in stunned anticipation. Scully's were even more stunned when the rotating bowl suddenly stopped and hung in the air six inches from shattering impact. Scully locked gazes with Mulder, eyes huge. Charlie waited for him to use the opportunity to start his explanation of where Will's powers originated. In spite of the fact that Dana was his sister, Charlie felt the information would go down better coming from her partner. When Mulder just sat there, mute, Charlie wondered if maybe he should be the one to start things off. But before he could open his mouth, Scully jumped out of her chair, snatched Will from the baby carrier, and rushed from the room. Mulder was up and after her in a second. "Scully! Wait!" Charlie was left sitting at the table, a bemused look on his face as the cereal bowl continued to lazily hang in the air. He gave them a good four minutes. He probably should have given them longer, but Charlie figured that more time wasn't going to make it any easier for his sister to believe. He could hear whispered hissing coming from the nursery, but not the actual words. As he rounded the doorframe, he realized Dana must have been talking the entire time. She was pacing back and forth, the squirming baby clutched to her chest, eyes unseeing, hushed words pouring out of her mouth. Mulder was still trying to get a word in edgewise. "But, Scully --" "He's never done that before, Mulder. Does this mean his powers are getting stronger?" "He didn't --" "How are we going to keep this under control? Who knows what he might do in a store, or at the park, or -- God, Mulder! What if he does this over at my *mother's* house? How could we explain it to her?" "We don't have to --" "He'll have to be isolated. He can't go to school until he learns not to use it against other children." "Scully --" "I'll have to quit the Bureau and home school him." "Scully, don't --" "We'll have to move some place where there aren't a lot of people who could find out." "Scully, if you'd just --" "My mother won't be able to see her grandson unless we're there to exert some control. But how will we control it?" The exasperation on Mulder's face wasn't quite enough to make Charlie interrupt. But the desperation on Dana's face was. "Dana... it wasn't Will. It was me." Her frantic pacing stopped. Both of the people in the room looked at Charlie: Scully in confusion, Mulder with definite relief in his eyes. "What did you say?" Scully's words were barely audible. "Will didn't stop the bowl from hitting the floor, Dana. I did." She was already shaking her head, but Charlie resumed talking before Scully could say anything. "This ability, power, whatever you want to call it, runs in the family, Sis. Mom's family, to be precise. It shows up every so often, in varying degrees of strength, but not usually right from birth. Still, chances are good Will won't develop his full potential until he's a lot older. Remember that time when Great- uncle Kevin was coming to the house almost every weekend? I was thirteen. I'd just started to display the ability and he was helping me learn how to control it. Mom and Dad were the only ones who knew. The rest of you were too busy with your own lives to notice. I didn't mind, though. Uncle Kevin helped me understand the right and wrong ways to use this power. Otherwise I would have been tempted to strike back every time I got mad at one of you." She was still shaking her head. "That's not possible." "And believing Will's powers come from alien experimentation is?" Mulder had apparently recovered his voice. Scully transferred her incredulous stare to him. "Scully, why is it so fantastic to think this is an inherited trait, like your blue eyes or your hair color?" "Because we know it's the result of scientific experiments conducted on *us.* We *know* that, Mulder." Now Mulder was shaking his head. "We only *thought* that, Scully. We didn't know about Charlie's abilities when Will was born." Something must have clicked into place in Scully's brain, because her stare lost its confusion and became laser intense as she zeroed in on Mulder. "You knew." The laser beam turned back to her brother. "This is what you weren't telling me earlier. Something happened tonight." Charlie sighed. "You remember the druggie that tried to rob us?" When Scully nodded, he continued, "I picked up an empty trash can with my mind and blindsided him. Then we cuffed him and called the cops. Mulder saw the whole thing, so I gave him the short history. He was going to tell you, but he hadn't quite found the words yet. Stopping that bowl in midair was just my way of starting the conversation." Mulder glowered at him. "Thanks. I think." Walking over to the crib, Scully placed Will on his back. She stood with her hands on the side rails for several quiet seconds, just staring at him. Until the mobile over the crib began to spin. Wide-eyed, she turned back to Mulder, locking gazes with him, before striding from the nursery. The two men heard the door of the master bedroom close with a click. They stood there, looking into the empty hallway, until Charlie spoke. "Look, man. I should leave you two alone for a while to sort this out. Why don't I take Will down to that mall I saw on the way in? I can put his car seat in my rental and we'll stay out of your way for a bit." Mulder appeared to consider his words for a few seconds, then dug into his pocket and pulled out a set of keys. "Take my car. Seat's already in the back. Don't forget the diaper bag." Charlie took the keys, then picked up Will and followed Mulder out of the nursery into the kitchen. Mulder opened the refrigerator door and handed him a baby bottle of milk. "Will doesn't mind it a bit chilly. Feed him when you get there and he'll probably go to sleep." Mulder sighed and rubbed his chin. "I'm sure I'll be able to convince Scully that this is a good thing, but it may take a while. I guess it's a bit easier for her to believe that Will's ability is a result of science, no matter where it comes from. The idea that she has the genes already inside her for something that can't be categorized or easily referenced must come as a real shock." Clapping a sympathetic hand on Mulder's shoulder, Charlie nodded. He walked out to the living room and picked up the diaper bag. He was almost out of the apartment when the sound of a bedroom door opening and shutting reached his ears. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 9:45 PM Charlie quietly opened the apartment door and peeked around the edge. The living room was empty. In fact the apartment seemed silent enough to be unoccupied altogether. He set the diaper bag by the couch and went back for the keys, balancing the baby in one arm while he shut the door. He and Will had had a very nice time at the mall. Contrary to Mulder's opinion, Will didn't sleep. After drinking the bottle of milk, he and Charlie prowled the mall, peeking into windows and ogling all the cooing women who couldn't seem to resist a cute baby. But Will finally started to grumble, so when a diaper change didn't improve his temper, Charlie figured it was time to head home. He was just about to call out when he heard noises coming from down the hall. He crept forward, a drowsy Will dozing on his shoulder, until he could make out the words clearer. What he heard brought a grin to his face. "God, Mulder... Yeah, just like that." "You sure you wouldn't rather I did this?" Charlie's grin grew wider at the harmony of their moans. "Ohhhh, that's nice, too. I don't care what you do, just do something." The rustle of sheets entwined through naked limbs drifted to his ears. "I wonder if position matters." "What? Mulder, what are you talking about?" "Maybe a certain position would create one that reads minds." "Stop goofing around or I'll have to hurt you. Besides, I don't think that runs in the family." "I wouldn't be so sure, Scully. I mean, your mother --" "Damn it, Mulder! Don't bring my mother into it at a time like this!" "Sorry. Is this better?" Just a soprano moan this time. "Ooooh.... It's getting there. Now pay attention to what you're doing." "Yes, dear." Charlie snuck back to the livingroom, shaking from the effort of containing his laughter. Picking up the diaper bag again, he detoured to the kitchen and snagged another baby bottle from the fridge. Opening the apartment door, he walked back out into the hallway, closing and locking the door behind him. Will was awake, looking around at the familiar blank walls. Charlie hitched up the diaper bag onto his shoulder and strode outside. The sun had already set in a blaze of oranges and purples, and now a few stars were twinkling in the inky sky. Moving to one side of the steps, Charlie sat down, settling his nephew on one knee, and holding the bottle to warm up in his hand. "Well, Willy," he said, "looks like Mom and Dad are still discussing the matter. What do you say we sit here and enjoy this pleasant evening for a bit longer? I don't suppose they'll miss us for a while yet. I'll make the flag on that building across the street blow the wrong way. Would you like that? Yeah, I thought you would. Want to hear about the time I made Jimmy McGinty run into a tree on his bike?" No one driving past seemed to notice as the flag spotlighted on the other side of the street bobbed up and down, twisted into a knot, then unfurled and went stiff as a piece of cardboard in the still evening air. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ THE END Veracity: habitual regard to or observance of truth; truthfulness; agreement with actual fact; truth. Author's Notes: Just to forestall the whining, there *will* be a fourth story in this universe. I'm not sure how soon it will be done, but I'm rather enjoying myself with this series. I'm not planning anything beyond the next one, but I never say never anymore. I can usually count on my muse to say "Oh really? We'll just see about that!" at that point. Thanks for sticking with me for the ride. Feedback is printed out and kept under my pillow to warm the cold Ohio nights. I could really use something to warm my feet, though. The dog's a little heavy, and she snores. mimic1172@gmail.com