Quantico: An X Files Origin

3

"Do you have your schedule?" Chanel asked Dana as they scurried down the hallway.

Dana reached into her back pocket and pulled out a crumpled up piece of paper. "Sorry that it's wrinkled, I'm not usually this messy." She said as she unfolded it, trying to restore it to its natural state. "It says I have Psychology and Criminal Behavior."

Chanel glimpsed at her schedule as well and noted that she too had the same class. The girls both strolled down the hallway until they arrived at room 145.

Dana took a seat in the middle of the classroom. I don't want to look too eager or too unmotivated she thought. As she began to settle in her seat, she saw "Agent Spooky" sit a row behind her and a few chairs down. She looked up and him and when he turned his head they made eye contact. They both stared at each other like they knew one another. Dana's heart began to beat oddly, and she didn't feel herself breathing anymore as the lonely agent stared into her eyes.

"Attention class!" A large voice billowed, breaking her and Spooky's stare.

Dana jerked forward in her seat, trying to catch her breath.

"Dana, you okay?" Chanel asked.

"I'm fine. Don't worry about it."

"Welcome to Psychology and Criminal Behavior. I am Dr. Rasmussen. In this class, we will learn the innermost workings of the human brain: motives, pleasures, desires, and why humans will do whatever they see necessary to obtain these 'treasures of the heart'."

Dr. Rasmussen was a man in his fifties, dark brown hair, brown eyes, rather tall too.

Before he could begin his next sentence, a hand shot up in the classroom. Dana turned around to see that Spooky was raising his hand.

Oh crap.

"Yes, agent Mulder?" Dr. Rasmussen asked.

As agent Mulder began to speak someone coughed "Spooky" under their breath which resulted in an uproar of snickers and chuckles. However, he ignored the comment and began his monolog.

"Dr. Rasmussen, isn't it safe to say that humans aren't the only beings in this world that create crime? All living things are just as capable of having desires and motives as you and I. I find it highly atypical that we haven't expanded our mindset of who and what accounts for criminality here at the bureau."

Oh crap. He really is as bat crap crazy as Chanel said.

The class began to explode into chatter.

"Agent Mulder, the bureau's specialty is human defense because all of our crimes deal with the human race. I don't ever recall a dog or a cat mass murdering a group of people."

"I'm not talking about dogs or cats, Doctor, I'm talking about extraterrestrial life forms, the supernatural-"

Crap. Crap. Crap.

By this time the class was almost in belly aching tears.

"Agent Mulder, now that is quite enough."

Before she knew it, Dana Scully was raising her hand.

"Yes, Agent Scully?" Dr. Rasmussen said in a surprised tone.

Dana's heart stopped. She cleared her throat and prayed that she wouldn't die under the extreme pressure she felt. The whole class went silent and all eyes were on her. Even Spooky's.

"Uhm... Before we denounce Agent Mulder's theorem, we should acknowledge that he does indeed have a point. Perhaps we can't boil everything down to human behavior. Other forces could account for abnormal conduct ."

"Dana, what are you doing?" Chanel whispered.

"Continue." Dr. Rasmussen said.

"Well, who's to say that a murderer acts upon his own impulses and not that of an animal or another living being. I'm not agreeing that extraterrestrials or the supernatural are real, but we cannot categorize everything into human instincts and actions. Psychology is comprised of both the internal and external influences in one's lives. Who is to say that there are not people out there that act upon animal instincts due to their environment? All I'm trying to say, sir, is that perhaps we should investigate deeper than just the surface of one's mind. "

The class stayed silent this time. Dana couldn't tell if that was a good or bad sign.

"Agent Scully, Agent Mulder," Dr. Rasmussen stated, "you two may want to reconsider your career choice."

There it was. The laughter. The whispering. Right on cue.

Dana's eyes widened and her body froze. She began to feel her cheeks burn and her eyes glaze over with tears. She smoothed her skirt over, stood up, and promptly exited the classroom.

As she exited the room, her eyes darted to the corner where the same old man she saw before, smoking a cigarette stood. Her mouth dropped and her stride soon turned into a sprint for the door.

~

"I'm such an idiot." She said through her tears. She sat on a bench in the large hallway and sobbed into the sleeve of her black blazer. "Chanel was right. I should've kept my big mouth shut."

Just then she heard the door to the classroom open and she felt a hand on her shoulder. She feared the worst but luckily, It was Agent Mulder. She turned around and looked up at the young man, tears still in her blue eyes.

"Agent Scully, I appreciate what you said back there, but don't try to save my ass." He looked her in the eyes once more and walked down the hall, clutching a large book under one arm.

She wiped her eyes and stood up, contemplating whether or not to join the classroom again. She chose to go back in, only this time, she sat in the very back.