THE X-FILES: "Predator"

a teleplay by Abbie Anderson (amanders@att.net)
Originally completed mid-July, 1994; last revised 2/28/96

Summary: Phoebe Green sweeps into Mulder's and Scully's lives again, bringing a case of a British pedophile who has taken to killing young male prostitutes, but without leaving any trace of his methods, and somehow always managing to avoid detection. Spoiler alert: refers briefly to "Pusher" from season 3 (but note the "originally completed" date: this story was first written between seasons 1 & 2).

Disclaimer: The universe of the X-Files and the characters therein are the intellectual property of Chris Carter, Fox Broadcasting, and Ten-Thirteen Productions, and have been used without permission. No copyright infringement is intended, I'm just having a good time. If you like what I've done, feel free to share it, but of course do give me credit for it and provide the sharees with my e-mail address. If it provokes a reaction, positive or negative, please let me know: I crave feedback! Constructive criticism especially welcome.

Formatting reduced for posting to Internet. E-mail author for hard copy in teleplay format.

Notes re: conventions of teleplay format:
"INT."="interior" (i.e., a scene set indoors)
"EXT."="exterior"
"V.O."="voice-over" (i.e., the line is not spoken by a character in the scene, but is heard superimposed on the action--as in a narrator's voice, a voice on the telephone, or when we "eavesdrop" on a character's thoughts)

I have not fully conformed with teleplay format standards (for instance, character's names in "stage directions" are not in all-caps; sound effects and special effects are not marked, for the most part), nor am I good with camera angles or other technical aspects that ought to be in a serious teleplay. I'm definitely an amateur, here, and it shows.

TEASER

FADE IN:
1. INT: U.S. CUSTOMS, JFK AIRPORT, NEW YORK
A well-dressed man with a tidy dark beard approaches a customs desk. He wears gloves, and has a dash of gray at his temples. The customs officer hardly looks up.

CUSTOMS OFFICER
Country of origin, please.

When the man speaks his voice is a rich baritone, with a cultured English accent.

MAN (USHER)
The United Kingdom of Great Britain.

The officer glances up, noticing the formal enunciation.

OFFICER
Last name, please.

USHER
Usher.

OFFICER
First name?

USHER
Thomas.

OFFICER
Your passport, please.

Usher doesn't move, a slight smile playing on his face. The officer looks Usher in the eye and raises a hand to receive the passport.

OFFICER
May I see your passport, sir?

Usher reaches out gracefully and touches the back of the officer's hand, his fingers rocking a little in the soft, supple touch of the glove. Usher's voice, though quiet and pleasant, becomes eerily compelling.

USHER
You've already seen my passport. We have no further business.

The officer looks confused, and withdraws his hand.

OFFICER
I guess we're finished here, then.

USHER
You're finished with that computer screen as well: you can cancel it.

The officer moves to do so, and with him we remain FOCUSED on the screen, not looking back up at Usher. We hear Usher's voice.

USHER
You never saw me.

The name "Thomas Usher" blinks off the screen; the officer remains transfixed a moment. A woman's voice makes an "ahem": a tall Caribbean woman is now waiting.

OFFICER
Excuse me. State your country of origin, please.

In the background Usher exits, smiling to himself.

FADE TO:
2. INT: SCULLY'S APARTMENT
Scully has just come home, carrying her mail. She drops the mail on the dining table, and as she goes into the kitchen to set a kettle to boil for tea we see a small manila envelope slide out from among the other items on the table. Scully comes back and starts to sort through the mail, and sees the envelope: it has no return address and no postage on it, just her name. Gingerly she opens it and slides the contents onto the table: an unlabelled audio cassette. She takes the tape to her stereo and puts it in to play. A British woman's voice speaks:

PHOEBE (V.O.: TAPE)
Hello, Agent Scully. Phoebe Green of Scotland Yard, here, remember me? We worked together on that little pyromaniac case in Boston three years ago. Just a friendly message: a head's up, as it were. An interesting challenge ought to be crossing your desk soon. One of our favourite British pedophiles, a Mr. Thomas Usher, served out his prison term and was released this year. Recently it appears he's up to his old tricks again, only now instead of sleeping with his rent boys he's been putting them to sleep: permanently. Trouble is, we don't know how he's doing it. We find the boys dead, naked, but with no physical evidence for cause of death: no blood spilled, not a drop of poison, no trace of a struggle, as if they just laid down of their own accord and willingly surrendered their spirits. And we can't seem to catch the bugger, either. He apparently brings the boys to hotels, signs in under his proper name, and leaves alone without anybody taking note of it. The punch line is that nobody can seem to agree on what this "Thomas Usher" looks like, or whether he was ever really there. He hasn't returned to his known residence in two weeks, and we now have reason to believe that he's crossed the pond: look out, he's heading your way. You'd better tell our friend Mulder to get his pipe out for this one.

The tape runs out; the teakettle starts to whistle, sounding the alarm.

FADE OUT.

ACT ONE

FADE IN:
3. INT: X-FILES OFFICE
Mulder works at his desk; Scully enters, carrying the manila envelope with Phoebe's tape in it.

SCULLY
You'll never guess what I found in my mailbox yesterday.

MULDER
The smiling face of Ed McMahon?

She tosses the envelope on his desk; he opens it and takes out the tape.

SCULLY
Nothing you can dance to, I'm afraid. It's from our dear friend Phoebe Green.

Startled pause.

MULDER
Why'd she send it to you?

SCULLY
Who knows? You told me she likes to play mind games. She's just extending us a professional courtesy regarding a British pedophile she says we'll be hearing about soon. His name is Thomas Usher. Apparently he's taken to killing young male prostitutes without leaving any traces of his methods. Now they think he's in the U.S. Look at the envelope: this was hand-delivered. It's a good bet she's already in town.

Scully studies his reaction; he's just staring at the tape. He looks up at Scully with a wry expression.

SCULLY
Oh, and Phoebe says to tell you to get out your pipe, Sherlock.

MULDER
I don't suppose we could run away to Bermuda for a week and hope she doesn't follow us.

SCULLY
I thought a man had to face his fears, Mulder.

MULDER
Fears, yes: horrors, no. This Frankenstein I can do without. I'm not proud of what I let her do to me, Scully. I never apologized for how I acted in Boston the night of the fire. You were the one doing all the work so we'd catch our human torch, and taking care of me with that smoke inhalation, and all I could say was, "Where's Phoebe?"

SCULLY
I'm glad you noticed. Apology accepted. (pause) Have you seen any cases like what she described?

MULDER
Not yet.

SCULLY
Maybe we should start doing some digging on this Thomas Usher.

MULDER
I don't want to do Phoebe any favors. She could just be putting you on, trying to get at me through you--getting her jollies off of messing with our heads. I say let's forget it 'til we know better, and pretend she never happened.

Reaction: yeah, right.

CUT TO:
4. INT: BAR
Mulder is sitting alone with a beer, thinking. A woman in a short skirt walks up behind him: Phoebe.

PHOEBE
You're harder to track down than you used to be, Mulder.

MULDER
Phoebe.

She pulls up a chair and sits down, uninvited.

MULDER
May I ask what you're doing here, Ms. Green?

PHOEBE
Didn't the hard-working Agent Scully deliver my message?

MULDER
We hoped you were just kidding.

PHOEBE
Mulder, you're losing faith.

MULDER
I suspect it would be ungentlemanly to remind you that you haven't given me much to believe in.

PHOEBE
I did come on business. What do you know about Thomas Usher?

MULDER
Nothing. I didn't listen to Scully's tape, and we haven't had any pedophile cases filter down to the X-Files lately.

PHOEBE
Aren't you the least bit curious? It's quite a fascinating case.

MULDER
I must regretfully decline your invitation to dance. My card is all filled in for the evening.

PHOEBE
Oh, I'm disappointed. I've gone to all this trouble to see you and you won't even give me the time of day.

Mulder looks at his watch.

MULDER
It's 9:30.

PHOEBE
At least you still have your sense of humor. There's hope for you yet, Agent Mulder.

She gets up.

PHOEBE
I'll be in touch. I want your special talents for this case.

She bends down and kisses him on the cheek.

PHOEBE
Good night, sweet prince.

MULDER
You're forgetting, Phoebe--that's what Hamlet's best friend says to him right before he dies.

Phoebe just smiles at him and walks away. Mulder studiously does not watch her go, but makes the mistake of turning around and looking just as she gets to the door. They make eye contact, and Phoebe flashes a grin; Mulder flinches and turns away.

MULDER
What Phoebe wants, Phoebe gets.

FADE TO:
5. INT: MULDER'S APARTMENT, NIGHT
Mulder is lying on his couch. He picks up the phone and punches in a number.

MULDER
Scully, it's me. Are you awake?

SCULLY (V.O.)
I am now. What's up?

MULDER
Phoebe found me tonight.

SCULLY (V.O.)
What do you mean, found you?

MULDER
I was out having a beer, and she just showed up.

SCULLY (V.O.)
Of all the gin joints in all the world, she had to walk into yours, is that it?

MULDER
Scully, I'm hurting here. Please be my friend and don't give me a hard time on this one.

CUT TO:
6. INT: SCULLY'S BEDROOM
Scully, in bed, is not sure she wants to hear this.

SCULLY
All right, Mulder, I'm your friend. So, Phoebe found you.

MULDER (V.O.)
She made it clear she wants me for this Usher case.

SCULLY
Oh, is that what she wants you for? (pause) I'm sorry, it just popped out. Did she say anything else?

MULDER (V.O.)
I told her I wouldn't dance; she said she'd be in touch, and then she left.

SCULLY
Ah. There must be more to this than meets the ear, Mulder, or you wouldn't be calling me at midnight.

MULDER (V.O.)
Scully, I feel like such a sucker. I know all she wants to do is play with me, and I can still feel the hooks going in.

Scully responds with the weary honesty of someone woken up after a couple hours' sleep.

SCULLY
Don't beat yourself up too much, Mulder: you've been taken by the best. One thing I noticed about Phoebe is that she's a real pro when it comes to making men twitch in her direction. She seems to enjoy that power a little more than is good for the general populace.

MULDER (V.O.)
Maybe that's why I called you: I wanted to hear the female voice of a real person. I definitely want you on my side while she's around.

SCULLY
Yay, team. (pause) Get some sleep, Mulder. I'll see you tomorrow.

She hangs up the phone and lies down, thoughtful.

FADE TO:
7. INT: X-FILES OFFICE
Scully sits at a desk, studying materials from several folders. Mulder enters.

SCULLY
Good morning, Mulder. Are you ready? It came. And it's our next assignment.

MULDER
Thomas Usher?

SCULLY
Yup. Phoebe must have pulled some strings to make sure it came to us.

MULDER
Both of us?

SCULLY
Maybe she wants to sing trios.

MULDER
All right. Give me the gory details.

He comes over to her desk to look at the folders.

SCULLY
The pattern Phoebe described on the tape has repeated itself three times in the past week and a half: in New York, in Philadelphia, and then in Baltimore the day before yesterday. Whoever is doing this is using Thomas Usher's name in hotel registers, but no British citizen by that name has come through customs in the past six months.

MULDER
So either the signatures are an alias, or Usher entered the country with false documents but still likes to sign his own name.

SCULLY
Maybe he gets a kick out of seeing it in the paper.

She shows Mulder some newspaper clippings.

SCULLY
The photo is from his prison records, taken last February. Scotland yard suspect extensive use of disguises, since eyewitness descriptions of the man signing in or checking out as Thomas Usher tend to either be wildly contradictory or just total blanks.

MULDER
So what's the m.o.?

SCULLY
There have been a total of eight victims, five in Britain and the three here so far. He picks up a boy off the street, buys him some nice clothes and takes him to a fancy hotel. They spend several hours in the room, but apparently no sexual activity occurs. "Usher" checks out alone, and later the housekeeper finds the boy's body naked on the bed, on his back, with a bouquet of violets on his chest.

MULDER
Violets?

SCULLY
That's one of the things Phoebe hadn't mentioned yet. Usher got involved with an organization called The Fellowship of Life while he was in prison. They believe in discipline of the mind and purity of the body. Their emblem is the violet, a symbol of faithfulness.

MULDER
Pretty funny symbol for tough guys in stir. How do the boys die?

SCULLY
That's the catch: nobody knows. The coroners generally put down "heart failure"; it looks as if these kids just lie down and shut themselves off. There's no sign of a struggle, no physical injury or marks on the bodies, and no evidence of drugs or poisons in the system beyond what you'd expect for a street kid. They even had the violets analyzed, but they were just flowers. Some of the boys were HIV-positive or already pretty far gone with AIDS, but that doesn't seem to be what killed them when they were with Usher.

Mulder has been looking through one of the files.

MULDER
These are expensive hotels, and he's doing a lot of travelling. Where is he getting the money for all of this?

SCULLY
The Thomas Usher who was released from prison this year is the younger son of an old-money family, and was a wealthy stock market analyst in his own right before his conviction. He is also known as something of a computer whiz; they were tracking him for electronic fraud, but he got busted in the investigation of a high-class pedophile ring first. He's not supposed to have access to family funds, but just before he disappeared in Britain their solicitor reported a major diversion of finances for a new project they were starting in the U.S. Whoever did it got away with quite a pile of cash, in American currency. If it was Usher, and if it's the same Thomas Usher killing these boys, he could go on like this for weeks without using a credit card or a bank.

MULDER
So the only way to trace him is the name.

SCULLY
Which he obligingly uses at the hotels. Phoebe said he was headed our way; if his travel pattern continues then Washington is a logical next stop. Obviously we can alert all the major hotels in the area, and put his face out on the media--all of which they tried in Britain--but we can't be certain when or where he'll show up. There's no guarantee he'll come here at all; he could even be back in England for all we know.

MULDER
I doubt it. Phoebe wouldn't have bothered with this if she thought it was going nowhere.

SCULLY
Mulder....

MULDER
What?

SCULLY
The last time Phoebe wanted you for a case she was torturing you with your fear of fire, too. Is there something I should know about here?

MULDER
Like what?

SCULLY (softly)
Like, are you a survivor of childhood sexual abuse?

Mulder laughs.

MULDER
Not that I know of. That was Phoebe's job, thirteen years ago.

CUT TO:
8. INT: FBI HEADQUARTERS, SKINNER'S OFFICE
Phoebe sits next to Skinner at his desk, a stack of files before her. Scully and Mulder sit facing them.

SKINNER
Inspector Green has specifically requested your participation in this case. I want you to understand that she is in charge of this investigation, and all your operations are to strictly adhere to procedural standards.

MULDER
Nothing but our best for Scotland Yard, sir.

Phoebe reaches out and taps her files.

PHOEBE
Before I give you a formal briefing I'd like you to look over these materials and get some ideas going about what we're up against. I'll meet back with you at your office at, say, 3:30? Splendid.

They all stand. Phoebe shakes Scully's hand and then Mulder's, her fingers lingering on his.

PHOEBE
I look forward to a productive partnership.

Scully scoops up the folders, stifling a reaction; Mulder follows her out.

FADE OUT.

ACT TWO

FADE IN:
9. INT: CURIO/ANTIQUE SHOP
FOCUS on a human skull, held by gloved hands: if we're paying attention, we recognize them as Thomas Usher's hands. Pull back to see Usher standing by the shop counter with the skull, looking rather nattier than his cramped, shabby surroundings. The female shopkeeper sits on a stool behind the counter, one eye mentally on Usher and the other on a small TV on a shelf on the wall. The news is on. As this next exchange takes place, the beginning of a story on Usher's boy murders starts to roll on the TV in the background.

SHOPKEEPER
Do you like it? Most people think I'm morbid to keep it on the counter like that, but I think it has character. Memento mori, you know: reminds me that life's too short to let things get to you.

USHER
I quite agree. A fine specimen. May I ask where you got it?

SHOPKEEPER
Well...

The news story has gotten to a PSA on Usher, showing the same picture of Usher that Scully and Mulder had in the file.

ANNOUNCER (T.V.)
Repeat: This man, Thomas Usher, is the prime suspect in the deaths of three boys here in the United States and five in England. If you have any information that could lead to his apprehension please call this hotline number: 555-1062.

The shopkeeper looks uneasily at Usher and back at the TV, which has now gone to a commercial or another news story. Usher looks at her quietly, smiling, and rests his free hand over hers on the counter, still holding the skull, his fingers resting on the back of her hand.

USHER
Don't worry. You're not doing business with a criminal, I assure you. Consider me a philanthropist with unusual interests.

He takes his hand away and returns it to the skull. The shopkeeper blinks and shakes herself, refocussing. Usher speaks casually in a normal voice.

USHER
Yes, I like it very much. How much do you want for it?

FADE TO:
10. INT: X-FILES OFFICE
Scully and Mulder work with Phoebe's files.

SCULLY
This Fellowship of Life group is looking interesting. On the surface they seem pretty harmless, stressing self-discipline and peace of mind. Their meetings or "training sessions" involve meditation, biofeedback, and relaxation techniques. They don't seem to believe in God, exactly, just the power of the human soul and the ability of a strong-minded individual to control himself--and to influence those around him. It isn't all gentle-hearted, either. Listen to this: "A man who learns to discipline his own body to peace can export that peace to others unawares, building harmony in his environment through the forcible exercise of his desire over the wills of the unenlightened."

MULDER
Last time we heard of something like that the victims didn't get such a peaceable end. I'd just as soon not play another game of Russian roulette, either.

The two partners share one of their looks before Mulder continues. Neither of them wants to talk about that particular shared experience.

MULDER
I've read about psychics who can project images into other people's minds, but I hadn't heard of that kind of behavior control before we met Modell. This sounds more like post-hypnotic suggestion.

SCULLY
Hypnosis training is part of the program, too, considered a component of Fellowship.

She stops, tapping her pen against a finger.

MULDER
What is it?

SCULLY
I was just remembering something. What you said about psychics made me think of it. When I was in college I participated in a psychology experiment one time, as a favor for a friend. I was taken into a room, and then a man came in and we had a conversation about the differences between people who like cats and people who like dogs. Then he left, and a psychologist came in and asked me what we had talked about, and asked me if the man had been wearing a hat; I told him about cat people versus dog people, and said no, there was no hat. And then they showed me the videotape.

Mulder sits forward, intrigued.

MULDER
And?

SCULLY
And it turned out that the man was wearing a hat after all: a big black cowboy hat with a peacock feather in the band--not the kind of thing you'd fail to notice. And we didn't talk about cats and dogs, we talked about our favorite movies. About five minutes into the tape, the man suddenly looks me in the eyes and reaches out and touches my cheek. He lowers his voice a few steps and asks me, "Isn't it interesting how some people like cats and some people like dogs?" And I say, "Sure it is." And he says, in that same voice, "That's what we've been talking about all along. And I am not wearing a hat: you never saw it." Then he takes his hand away from my face; after a second I shake myself, we talk for a minute or so more, and he leaves.

MULDER
And you don't remember any of this.

SCULLY
I saw it on the tape, so I know it happened. I thought the whole thing was pretty creepy. As a doctor I've seen how much power the mind has over the body, but the power the mind can have over its own perceptions.... It's enough to make you take eyewitness testimony with a few grains of salt.

Mulder ignores this slam to paranormal substantiation.

MULDER
That's the problem we have with Thomas Usher. He seems to be able to make people think they never saw him, or that they saw someone else.

SCULLY
That's an interesting theory. I can't say we haven't seen it before, but wouldn't it be a little much to turn up another guy with a brain tumor who develops superhuman powers?

MULDER
It would explain how he can sign hotel registers without being noticed, not to mention diverting family funds, or entering the U.S. undetected. He could have just talked the customs officer out of having seen him, and walked right on through without a trace. Judging from this Fellowship of Life material, Usher's already had some training in psychological control.

SCULLY
If he's a real hacker then he could have done most of that by computer, too. Are you suggesting that Thomas Usher is a psychopathic telepath?

MULDER
It beats calling him the Invisible Man, which is all we have so far. And what about this biofeedback stuff? That's how people learn to regulate their own heart rates and body temperature, like those yogis in India who can practically bring themselves in and out of coma, right? Combine that with manipulative hypnosis and you just might have an untraceable murder weapon: the victim's own mind. There wouldn't have to be any tumor.

SCULLY
Wait: you're saying Usher gets his victims alone, hypnotizes them, and persuades them to stop their own heartbeats? I thought you weren't supposed to be able to harm yourself while under hypnotic suggestion; you're not supposed to be able to do anything against your normal code of behavior.

MULDER
It sounds like this Fellowship of Life is in the business of overriding people's usual impulses. Do you have any better ideas?

SCULLY
You heard Skinner. This joint venture is important to him. He may support our other work, but if there's even a whiff of hocus-pocus in this investigation, he'll jerk us back before you can say ESP.

MULDER
Skinner also said that Phoebe's the one in charge. Let's wait and see what procedures she's after.

Reaction: gee, Mulder, I thought you didn't trust her.

CUT TO:
11. EXT: DOWNTOWN D.C. STREETS, DAY
Usher strolls down the street, carrying an attache. He passes a newsstand featuring his picture on the front page of the paper, but people's eyes seem to slide past him without noticing. There is a park across the street. A couple boys, looking pretty scruffy and no older than thirteen, lounge against the side of a building. Usher stops, eyeing them; then he shakes his head and crosses the street to sit at a park bench. He opens his attache and gets out a file. The first page is a faxed sheet marked "FBI Personnel File: Special Agent Fox Mulder", and is printed with various personal data. Usher turns it and the next few pages over, then stops at another cover sheet: a copy of Mulder's file on Scully's abduction, including the picture of Scully from the trunk of Duane Barry's car. After a moment he turns these pages over as well, and stops at a page featuring enlarged pictures of Mulder's and Scully's FBI badges. Usher places a gloved hand over the pictures, drumming his fingers a little.

CUT TO:
12. INT: X-FILES OFFICE
The room is darkened. Scully and Mulder are seated. Phoebe, standing, cycles through slides of the victims and then of Usher's signatures as she speaks.

PHOEBE
We now have a total of eight young victims, always the same. We have no explanation for the deaths, and no one ever clearly remembers having seen Usher at the hotels, despite the solid fact of his name in the registry books, always with the same elegant signature. Handwriting analysis has determined to 98% certainty that they were all made by the same man, wearing fine gloves--which would also explain the lack of any finger prints but the victims' and the housekeepers' at all the crime scenes.

She turns off the projector, and Mulder flips the lights back on.

PHOEBE
Thank you. Any theories?

Scully speaks first.

SCULLY
The organization Usher belonged to in prison, the Fellowship of Life, trains its members to influence the behavior of others, and not just through kind words: they seem to believe they can achieve this goal through a form of psychological domination. While we have yet to determine whether this is realistically attainable, it does generate some interesting possibilities for this case. Agent Mulder has his own theories about Usher's ability to kill so cleanly and to evade detection.

PHOEBE
Mulder?

MULDER
Extrapolating from the Fellowship of Life materials in these files and from the pattern of evidence, I suggest that Usher is capable through intense psychological influence of erasing or modifying the impressions he makes on other people: say, customs officers and hotel employees. It's not unprecedented. Secondly, based on the creeds and methods of the Fellowship of Life, I hypothesize that he uses that same psychic ability, combined with hypnosis and imposed biofeedback, to cause his victims to effect their own deaths through mental control of normally involuntary bodily functions, such as heartbeat and respiration.

PHOEBE
Hm. Intriguing. That would explain a few things, wouldn't it?

Mulder gives Scully a look.

PHOEBE
Not exactly standard procedure, but as you said, Agent Scully, it does provide us some interesting possiblities.

Phoebe leans over and touches Mulder's knee.

PHOEBE
I knew I wanted you for this.

Mulder visibly appreciates being taken seriously, and enjoys Phoebe's attention in spite of himself.

PHOEBE
Now for our next step. We received word today that a Thomas Usher with a British accent has phoned in a reservation for this evening at the Waldorf. It's not like Usher to do that, so it could be a prank or a copycat now that the case has started to hit the media; but I've got a feeling that Usher just decided to change the rules.

Phoebe pulls up a chair near to Mulder and sits down.

PHOEBE
I believe that in part because of something you won't have read in those files. Usher has a penchant for reaching out to his investigators. I've received several rather personal calls from him back in the UK, always in my office. He's never threatening: rather suave, actually. There's no bragadoccio or taunts about his exploits. He feeds me some lines from that Fellowship of Life, and bids me a gracious good day. He seems to think that he's on some kind of mission from the angels, liberating souls. I've asked him how he does it, but he just laughs indulgently and tells me I'm not prepared to know. I haven't heard from him since I came to the States, so he may be focussing on you now. If he's learned as much about the two of you as he knows about me, he might think that the X-Files investigators are prepared.

SCULLY
How could he know about us already? The case was only assigned here today, right?

Phoebe hesitates a split second.

PHOEBE
Usher takes a perverse interest in my men friends. One night to keep him on the line I told him about my brilliant friend Mulder in the FBI, and his resourceful partner Dana Scully. Usher found the idea of the X-Files intriguing.

Scully, recognizing the implications of this (Usher may have come to the States, and killed the boys here, in order to encounter the two of them), tries to make eye contact with Mulder--whose eyes are on Phoebe. Phoebe resumes command mode.

PHOEBE
Now this is what I want us to do. Mulder, you come with me to the hotel, with a backup team undercover as hotel staff. I want the two of us to be as conspicuous as possible: Usher already identifies with me and probably knows about you, as well. If I'm right he meant this reservation as a challenge, possibly intending a confrontation.

She leans forward toward Mulder, lowering her voice.

PHOEBE
I want to give him every opportunity; maybe he'll get excited and make a move sooner than he originally intended.

She sits back, toning herself down to address Scully.

PHOEBE
Scully, you stay here and wait by that phone with a tracer and communications team. Usher may well call here, and in the meantime you can continue the thorough research you're so well-known for. Use Mulder's cellular phone to reach us if anything breaks at your end. I'll be counting on you to direct the backup team if anything should happen to the two of us and we can't answer the phone.

Phoebe gives Mulder a meaningful look, while Scully tries not to watch.

PHOEBE
On this case anything could happen, and probably will.

She looks back up to include Scully.

PHOEBE
Any questions?

SCULLY (drily)
Not a one.

PHOEBE
Good. Mulder, we should probably arrive at the hotel together, in case Usher is already watching. I'll pick you up at your place at, say, 7:15?

Mulder nods.

PHOEBE
Fabulous. I'll see you then.

She swishes out. Scully's just thrilled about this; Mulder's looking a bit bemused. He stands up and starts gathering his things. Scully gets up, too.

MULDER
I guess I'd better get ready.

A brief, tight silence reigns while Scully makes up her mind to say something.

SCULLY
Mulder, be careful with yourself tonight.

MULDER
What do you mean?

SCULLY (quietly)
Come on, Mulder, I saw you with Phoebe at the hotel in Boston; you would have let her skin you to the bone right there on the floor if she'd wanted to.

MULDER
But she didn't want to, did she?

SCULLY
You know better than that. She'll take anything she can get from you.

She steps toward him and reaches up a hand to touch his cheek. His expression changes from sullen to surprised, as she withdraws her hand and steps back again.

SCULLY
I care about you, Mulder. I don't want to see you get hurt.

Mulder's motion as he comes close to Scully is almost violent, but his hand on her face is gentle.

MULDER
Then give me something else to think about.

Abruptly he's kissing her; her stifled cry of protest becomes something else as the kiss softens and lengthens. She brings her hand from a startled grip on his arm to caress the back of his neck. They release, and Mulder takes a small, tender kiss for good measure.

MULDER
I don't know how long I've wanted us to do this.

SCULLY
I have to admit I'd been a little curious, myself.

She draws back, instantly minimizing what happened.

SCULLY
And now you have to go dance with Phoebe.

MULDER
Dana, I--

SCULLY
Don't say anything you might regret later, Mulder. I can't compete with Phoebe Green.

MULDER
What are you talking about?! It better have been you in here with me for the last five minutes...!

Scully just smiles at him, exercising an old habit of disbelieving his extravagances.

MULDER
Phoebe is like tin-foil compared to you: flashy, maybe, but a little two-dimensional.

He turns, picks up his things and goes to the door.

MULDER
Phoebe can take a flying leap.

He goes out. When he's gone Scully brings a hand to her mouth and laughs, shaking her head.

FADE OUT.

ACT THREE

FADE IN:
13. INT: WALDORF HOTEL LOBBY
Mulder and Phoebe enter, carrying overnight bags. Mulder looks around at the posh surroundings.

MULDER
Nice place they've got here.

Phoebe puts a hand on his arm.

PHOEBE
We'd better go to our room first, and get ourselves established. Usher may already be here.

MULDER
Wait a second: our room?

Phoebe smiles at him.

PHOEBE
I was hoping we'd get to have a little fun this trip. We were interrupted last time. Besides, I told you Usher takes an interest in my male companions. If he thinks we're here on more than business he might make a false step.

Mulder is first incredulous, then furious.

MULDER
He won't be the only one! We'll talk about this upstairs.

He pushes past her to go check in.

CUT TO:
14. INT: PHOEBE AND MULDER'S HOTEL SUITE
Phoebe enters ahead of Mulder, and Mulder closes the door, throwing down his bag and stopping where he is.

MULDER
How many other things have you not told us, Phoebe? Is Scully in any danger waiting for that call?

Phoebe is amused at him.

PHOEBE
I told you, he never threatens me. He's just a conversationalist. You've read those files: you know as much as I do, now.

She draws him further into the room, ending up with her arms around his waist.

PHOEBE
Just relax. We've got an exciting case to work on, and time to tie up some loose ends between us.

MULDER
I'm telling you, Phoebe, I'm not interested.

He doesn't try to pull away from her yet, though.

PHOEBE
That's not the impression you gave me last time.

Now he does move away, stepping aside--and sees into the next room of the suite, where there is only one large bed. He turns back to her, angry.

MULDER
I'm not sleeping with you, Phoebe! I'm not a dumb Yank in Oxford any more.

She puts a hand on his arm, looking at him fondly.

PHOEBE
I never thought you were dumb. I thought you were something rather special.

MULDER
And what exactly was that?

PHOEBE
A young man with a charming way about him, brains enough for two, and an awful lot to learn about having a good time.

MULDER
I had enough of your lessons. I've learned a few things all by myself in the last thirteen years.

He shrugs her hand off his arm and goes to get his bag, picking it up and setting it on the sofa.

PHOEBE
Mulder, you're acting like a married man!

MULDER
I guess you'd know the type.

Phoebe's face hardens.

PHOEBE
That was uncalled for. It can't be that little Dana Scully, can it, making you sound like a man defending his honour?

Now he smiles at her.

MULDER
Scully's not "little". She's probably the sharpest agent I've ever worked with.

Phoebe misinterprets the smile and comes close again, running her hands up his chest.

PHOEBE
I thought you liked softer things.

Mulder smiles down on her and takes her hands.

MULDER
I'd like to find something harder than your heart, Phoebe.

He pushes her lightly away; now she's angry.

PHOEBE
You must really be desperate: you're being cruel, now.

MULDER
Come off it, Phoebe--I couldn't hurt you if I tried. You're too far above me. I'm willing to go through this charade with you because it's my job and we're trying to catch a killer, but that's all you're getting out of me this time.

He goes out, shutting the door firmly behind him.

CUT TO:
15. INT: X-FILES OFFICE
Scully sits at her desk, studying. One agent waits with her, ready to perform the trace. The office phone rings, and Scully answers.

SCULLY
Scully here.

USHER (V.O.)
Good evening, Miss Scully. I'm pleased to be making your acquaintance at last. My name is Thomas Usher.

Scully nods to her assistant, who goes to do the trace.

SCULLY
Excuse me, do I know you?

USHER (V.O.)
I think you know of me. Our mutual friend the redoubtable Miss Phoebe Green will have spoken of me to you, I'm sure. She does me an injustice, you know; she seems to think I'm some kind of public menace. She fails to understand in a theological sense the purgative nature of certain routes of passage through the Fellowship of Life. In spite of it all, though, I've grown rather fond of her. She's a fine predator in her own right, a fisher of men, as it were; it's highly diverting watching her go at it.

SCULLY
Then why are you talking to me? I can't possibly be as entertaining as Phoebe is.

USHER (V.O.)
Oh no, my dear, I sense such depths in you as poor Phoebe has hardly an inkling of. I very much look forward to building a relationship with you during my stay here.

Pause as Scully absorbs and strategizes.

SCULLY
You have a lovely voice, Mr. Usher. Have you ever been a singer?

Usher laughs melodiously.

USHER (V.O.)
A singer? Oh, dear heart, you flatter me, what a charming thought. No, I'm afraid my youth was quite misspent, I never devoted myself to music. Only great deeds will recompense the idle wastes of which I formerly was the master. Now that I have gained my freedom, I must work to liberate others. It is both a debt, and a penance.

SCULLY
Is that why you choose the boys, sir? To release those you formerly oppressed?

CUT TO:
16. INT: WALDORF LOBBY PHONE BOOTH
Usher speaks into the phone.

USHER
Oh, you do show promise, Miss Scully. I appreciate your grasp of the spiritual issues at stake. But at the moment you ought to be more concerned for your friend Mulder.

SCULLY (V.O.)
What do you mean? Is he in danger?

Usher gives a baritone chuckle.

USHER
He is so like a little boy, in face as well as in soul, and I have no companion for the evening. I think Mr. Fox Mulder needs to learn about the Fellowship of Life firsthand.

CUT TO:
17. INT: X-FILES OFFICE
Scully is still on the phone with Usher.

SCULLY
What do you think his lesson should be, Mr. Usher?

Usher's voice grows uncharacteristically abrasive.

USHER (V.O.)
You're his partner, Miss Scully, don't you care about the discipline of his mind and the purity of his body? What does he think he's doing tonight with that viperous female?

SCULLY
That's not a very charitable thing to say, Mr. Usher, especially about someone you called a friend.

Usher's voice softens to a pur again.

USHER (V.O.)
Quite right, I stand corrected. I'll rephrase the question, but you still must answer it. What does Agent Mulder hope to achieve with our most estimable Phoebe Green?

Scully tries not to react to his choice of words.

SCULLY
I believe he's working with her. It's really none of my concern.

CUT TO:
18. INT: WALDORF LOBBY PHONE BOOTH/WALDORF LOBBY
Usher speaks intently into the phone.

USHER
Oh, but I think it is, Miss Scully. Look to your heart, as well as his: I wouldn't want to see you hurt. If you'll excuse me, I have some business to attend to.

Usher hangs up the phone with a gloved hand, and steps out of the ornate phone booth. He looks about him, smoothing his suit, and goes into a nearby stairwell.

CUT TO:
19. INT: X-FILES OFFICE
Scully's assistant comes back in from the trace.

AGENT
We got him: he was at one of the phones in the hotel lobby.

Scully nods and punches Mulder's number into the phone. She looks at her watch, a little nervous that something might have "happened" with Phoebe already.

CUT TO:
20. INT: WALDORF HOTEL RESTAURANT
Mulder and Phoebe are sitting at a table. Mulder is cheerfully but silently eating his meal; Phoebe looks around the room, trying not to appear too insulted.

PHOEBE
Really, Mulder....

Mulder's phone rings, and he draws it out of a pocket.

MULDER
Mulder.

SCULLY (V.O.)
Usher just called me. We traced him to one of the phones in the Waldorf lobby. You've got company.

MULDER (to Phoebe)
He called: he's here.

PHOEBE
I'll go check at the front desk.

Phoebe leaves. Mulder continues with Scully.

MULDER
Phoebe's checking on it. Go ahead.

CUT TO:
21. INT: X-FILES OFFICE
Scully's face is more anxious than her voice.

SCULLY
Phoebe said he never threatened her over the phone. Well, he was threatening this time, Mulder, and I think he was threatening you.

MULDER (V.O.)
What did he say?

SCULLY
He compared you to a little boy, said he didn't have any company yet tonight, and said he thinks you need to learn about the Fellowship of Life. I quote: "What does he think he's doing tonight with that viperous female?"

MULDER (V.O.)
So he's after me because of Phoebe?

SCULLY
That's what it sounded like.

MULDER (V.O.)
I wish I could talk to him. I'm only here because I have to be. Phoebe's bored to tears.

SCULLY
Be careful, Mulder, you just might get what you wish for. I get the feeling Usher means business.

Scully's face is grim.

CUT TO:
22. INT: WALDORF RECEPTION DESK
Phoebe is talking with a female clerk, who looks flustered. Two men and a woman in hotel uniforms stand at the counter: the backup team. Mulder comes up.

CLERK
I'm sorry--I don't know how this could have happened.

Phoebe turns to Mulder.

PHOEBE
It appears that Usher checked in about a half an hour ago, and everybody here just clean forgot they were looking for him.

MULDER
He could be anywhere; the call came from the lobby phone, not from his room. He might even have left.

PHOEBE
I don't think so. He knows he'll be getting our attention now; he'll want to watch us run in circles. That's the kind of game he likes.

Phoebe turns to the backup team.

PHOEBE
Backup: I want one of you to go to Usher's room with a courtesy tray, see if that's where he is. We need to be sure it's really our Thomas Usher before we go storming the place. If there's no answer go in and leave the tray, but don't spend too much time in the room.

MULDER
Are you sure it's a good idea, sending someone after him alone? He could just do to the agent what he did to the clerk here, and we'd be no better off.

PHOEBE
I don't want him to feel us too close yet, he might bolt. We don't know anything certain about your theories yet, Mulder.

The only partially veiled disdain in her last sentence shuts Mulder up effectively.

CUT TO:
23. INT: WALDORF HALLWAY, OUTSIDE USHER'S ROOM
The agent carefully balances on one hand a tray holding a bowl of fruit, some fancy chocolates, and a rose in a crystal bud vase, and knocks. Usher opens the door.

AGENT
I've brought you your courtesy tray, sir. May I come in?

USHER
Of course.

Usher steps aside and the agent goes in.

CUT TO:
24. INT: USHER'S HOTEL ROOM
The agent sets down the tray on a side table.

AGENT
We hope you'll have a pleasant stay at the Waldorf, sir.

USHER
I'm sure I will.

Usher steps close to the agent and takes his hand in a friendly gesture. The agent's face goes blank.

USHER
Especially considering that you've never seen me. There was nobody here, so you just came in and left the tray on that table. You won't even get a tip out of it.

Usher turns the agent around and points him towards the door, smiling at his retreating back as he leaves.

FADE TO:
25. INT: WALDORF RECEPTION OFFICE
The agent is making his report to Phoebe and Mulder.

AGENT
There was nobody there, so I went in and left the tray on the table.

MULDER
Did you notice anything unusual in the room?

For an instant the agent is confused, trying to remember; Mulder notices.

AGENT
No, there wasn't anything there but hotel. He probably hasn't gone up to his room yet.

PHOEBE
Right. Usher may try to contact us, rather than waiting for us to find him. He told Scully he doesn't have a boy with him tonight, he may be getting restless. I'll go back to our room and see if he calls there.

MULDER
I'll stay down in the lobby a while, make myself visible, and then move into the bar in case he wants a private consultation. We'll offer him two sitting ducks.

PHOEBE
Backup, I want you to tour the building, see if you can scare him up in the hallways. I'll call down for room service in about fortyfive minutes, you can report to me then. You'll know where to find Mulder. Keep a periodic eye on both of us, but don't be too obvious.

Phoebe brushes past Mulder on her way out.

FADE TO:
26. INT: PHOEBE'S HOTEL SUITE
Phoebe is sitting up on the bed, reading a magazine. A room service tray is sitting next to her on the nightstand, and she reaches over to drink from a glass there, setting the magazine aside impatiently.

PHOEBE
Nothing, nothing, and yet more nothing. Come on, Usher, you're more tedious than Mulder tonight.

A knock comes at the door; she gets up to answer it. It's Usher (surprise).

PHOEBE
Why, Mr. Usher. I was just thinking about you.

USHER
And I about you, Miss Green.

He touches the back of her hand holding the door open.

USHER
May I come in?

PHOEBE
Of course.

CUT TO:
27. INT: PHOEBE'S HOTEL SUITE: THE BED
Phoebe is lying rumpled and unconscious on the bed, Usher standing over her.

USHER
Sweet dreams, Miss Green.

He drops a bouquet of violets on her chest and goes out, chuckling softly.

FADE OUT.

ACT FOUR

FADE IN:
28. INT: WALDORF BAR
The place is nearly empty. Mulder sits at a table where he has a line of sight on the door. He is momentarily lost in thought, and doesn't notice when Usher slips in. Usher approaches and sits down.

USHER
Good evening, Mr. Mulder. I believe you've been looking for me.

Mulder starts to reach for his gun, but Usher stops him with a gloved touch on the hand.

USHER
I'm afraid you don't have your gun.

Mulder looks down at his holster and sees it empty.

USHER
In fact, you're feeling rather generally defenseless.

MULDER (tightly)
What do you want with me?

USHER
Mr. Mulder, what do you think you're doing here tonight?

MULDER
If you can look into my mind then you know I'm not here for Phoebe.

USHER
Yes, actually, I believe you. I was just with Miss Green; she won't be bothering anyone for some time. She really is quite disappointed with you, you know. Don't worry, I haven't hurt her in any appreciable fashion. But what she had to tell me convinced me of your need.

MULDER
I don't care about Phoebe. Why are you here?

USHER
Because you are alone, and you wanted to see me. That is why you came here, isn't it, to meet Thomas Usher? Well, here I am.

MULDER (clenched)
I came here to catch Thomas Usher.

Usher responds with his musical laughter.

USHER
How little we know ourselves! You wanted to talk to me. You wanted to tell me about how much you hurt.

MULDER
I hurt?

USHER
Yes: all the wounded places in your soul. You want to show them to me.

Mulder is held in Usher's gaze; slowly his face dissolves, and he starts to cry like a heartbroken little boy. Usher looks on him with kindness and compassion.

USHER
There's someone you need to call. You do have your phone with you?

Still crying, Mulder nods and gets out the phone.

USHER
You know she's waiting for you.

Mulder punches in a number and speaks through sniffles, wiping at his face.

MULDER
Scully?

CUT TO:
29. INT: X-FILES OFFICE
Scully is on her cellular phone.

SCULLY
Mulder? Where are you?

MULDER (V.O.)
Usher is here. We're in the bar. Scully, I don't understand....

Mulder breaks down. Scully covers the phone and turns to her assistant.

SCULLY
Call the backup: Mulder's with Usher in the bar.

Quickly she's back on the phone.

SCULLY
Mulder, are you OK?

CUT TO:
30. INT: WALDORF BAR
Usher takes the phone from Mulder, who hides his head in his arms on the table, shoulders shaking with sobs. Usher lays a benedictory hand on Mulder's head.

USHER
Hello again, Miss Scully. I've just been having the most fascinating exchange of ideas with your partner, Agent Mulder.

SCULLY (V.O.)
Usher. What are you doing to him? Let me talk to him.

USHER
You really needn't be so abrupt. I'm afraid the poor man is unavailable for comment at the moment. True membership in the Fellowship of Life requires understanding the full extent of one's own pain. I have simply allowed Mr. Mulder to enter the domain of his hurting. I was hoping you might join us.

CUT TO:
31. INT: X-FILES OFFICE
Scully is headed out the door, talking into the phone.

SCULLY
Really, Mr. Usher, I'd like that. Tell me more about this pain.

FADE TO:
32. INT: WALDORF BAR
Usher has put the phone face-up on the table, and is speaking into it while tenderly stroking Mulder's head; Mulder is still collapsed on the table as before.

USHER
Yes, he's progressing quite nicely, this Fox Mulder of yours. True liberty is costly to attain.

Backup storms the room, and Usher looks up calmly.

USHER
Gentlemen.

BACKUP LEADER
Federal agents, we're armed. Move away from the table, keep your hands in the air.

Usher serenely complies, releasing Mulder's head and stepping slowly a few paces away. Two agents approach him, and he offers no resistance as they handcuff him and start moving him out. Scully arrives and the agents halt with Usher to await her orders. She motions them back and approaches the table. She puts a hand on Mulder's shoulder.

SCULLY
It's Scully. I'm here. It's over.

Mulder shudders and throws himself against her, and she puts her arms around him.

MULDER
Dana....

SCULLY
Shh, it's all right: we've got him.

She looks up angrily at Usher.

SCULLY
Let go of him! You've had enough!

Usher smiles at her.

USHER
Oh, my dear, the matter is entirely beyond me now. I leave him in your hands--do with him what you will.

Scully addresses the backup team.

SCULLY
Get him out of here. Don't leave anyone alone with him! And someone check on Inspector Green.

They start taking Usher away.

USHER
Agent Scully....

They stop.

USHER
Look to your heart.

They hustle him out. Scully remains with Mulder, whose sobs are beginning to subside.

FADE TO:
33. INT: MULDER'S LIVING ROOM, MORNING
Mulder and Scully are on the sofa, Mulder curled up with his head in Scully's lap; she has slept sitting up, her head resting on the back of the couch. Scully wakes up and grunts a little, remembering where she is and feeling her body's complaints at the position she's slept in. She watches Mulder sleep a moment, smiling, and brushes tenderly at the hair on his forehead. Mulder stirs and opens his eyes.

SCULLY
Good morning.

Mulder sits up a little stiffly and rubs at his face.

MULDER
I didn't make it very far, did I?

SCULLY
You were so exhausted you fell asleep right here, and I didn't have the heart to wake you up. (pause) How do you feel?

MULDER
Like somebody scrubbed my insides out with sandpaper.

SCULLY (softly)
What did he do to you, Mulder?

MULDER
He reached in my head and made me look at all the things that had ever hurt me, all the things I ever lost. Do you remember what it felt like when you were four years old and suddenly you couldn't find your Mom and Dad in a grocery store or someplace, and you thought they'd left you behind forever?

Scully nods.

MULDER
That's what he did to me.

He gingerly takes one of her hands in his.

MULDER
Thanks for staying with me.

SCULLY
It was the least I could do. I've never seen anybody hurt like that. I wanted to make it go away.

MULDER
Well, you did. (pause) Scully, did you really kiss me yesterday?

SCULLY
You started it, but yes. You wanted a distraction from Phoebe.

MULDER
It wasn't just that. Usher saw it--he knew I needed you. He was the one who had me call you.

SCULLY
I still don't understand that: the man just turned himself in, staying with you like that.

MULDER
I don't think he was thinking of it that way. He was focussed on me...and you.

SCULLY
If we're accepting Usher as an authority, then I've been warned about you.

MULDER
What do you mean?

SCULLY
Before they took him away he told me you were in my hands now. Then he said, "Look to your heart." He seems to think I need to be careful around you.

Distress overcomes Mulder's face.

SCULLY
Mulder, don't look like that. If there's anyone I trust, it's you.

MULDER
I would never hurt you.

SCULLY
I know.

She puts a hand to his cheek with an almost sad smile.

FADE TO:
34. INT: SKINNER'S OFFICE
Scully and Mulder are sitting opposite Skinner; Phoebe is standing, delivering her closure of the case.

PHOEBE
Thomas Usher was captured last night at 9:52 PM, and is being held in federal prison pending an extradition hearing. Thanks to the efforts of Special Agents Scully and Mulder, this joint mission can be pronounced a success.

SKINNER
Thank you, Inspector Green. The FBI is pleased to have been of assistance to Scotland Yard.

Skinner stands; Scully and Mulder do so as well, and they shake hands with Phoebe and Skinner in dismissal.

PHOEBE
Just a moment, Mr. Skinner; I'd like to have a word with my teammates outside.

CUT TO:
35. INT: HALLWAY
Phoebe faces Mulder and Scully.

PHOEBE
It looks like I missed all the fun last night. I remember Usher coming to my room, and that's where it stops--aside from some rather interesting dreams I had, and a splitting headache this morning. (pause) I hear you had quite a time with Mr. Usher, Mulder.

MULDER
Let's just say he touched me deeply.

PHOEBE
Well, I guess that's more than the rest of us can say.

Mulder looks at Scully, smiling a little, and puts out a hand to Phoebe.

MULDER
Goodbye, Phoebe. It's been nice working with you again.

She shakes his hand.

PHOEBE
Right. Goodbye, then. Agent Scully.

Phoebe and Scully shake hands, and Phoebe goes back into Skinner's office.

SCULLY
You sure showed her.

MULDER
You should have seen me at the hotel last night. You would have been proud of me.

They look at each other for a short moment.

SCULLY
Come on, let's get back to work.

They turn and go down the hall together.

FADE OUT.

THE END

I saw something on the Internet once about Patrick Stewart guesting on The X-Files. Not bloody likely, I'd say, but an intriguing thought; and heck, he's done The Simpsons, now, why not X-Files?? I originally had in mind the British actor who played Herod in I, Claudius (which Stewart was also in, as one of the slimier villains one could hope for), but it's the voice that's the critical thing. It is fun, however, to imagine Picard lifting a benedictory hand to Mulder's head.

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