Title: NEW: Interviewing Tips Are In the 650.14's ("Pilot" prologue)
Author: z004799b@bc.seflin.org (Paul Wartenberg)
Date: 21 Aug 1997 14:39:10 GMT
Interviewing Tips Are In the 650.14's
by. Paul Wartenberg
thanks to. Pat Gonzales for the FAQ background
COPYRIGHT: Simple fact: if I make money off this, I violate Title 17 of
the U.S. Code, and Chris Carter and Co. will sue me. So please, do not
send checks or money orders! (Food is preferable)...
RATING: Humor.
SUMMARY: "Pilot" pre-spoiler. They're young. They're crazy. They've
just gotten their assignments. First impressions are about to be made...
FBI Headquarters
Personnel Office
Mar.6, 1992 (or was it 1993?...)
Holly had been working as usual in her office, starting new files,
reshuffling old files to new assignment categories, drinking far too much
coffee for her own good, you know, the usual. Her day got rather unusual
when a field agent from Violent Crimes Section stormed through her door.
She had seen this tall, darkly handsome figure a few times before.
And there was more than enough office gossip about agent Fox `Spooky'
Mulder, either about those weird research files he'd just found or about
those brief sightings of him at the swimming pool.
"Can I help you, agent Mulder is it?" Holly sweetly smiled, trying
to picture him wearing those rumored red Speedos.
"Only if you've got any pull with the brass upstairs," he grimaced,
noticeably upset.
"What happened?"
"They assigned me a new partner."
"Can't see how that would be bad..."
He leaned over her desk to whisper. "You've probably heard the
office gossip about me. About the X-Files I found down in the basement."
"...Well, there have been stories..."
"All of them true, I assure you." He smiled, enjoying his
self-deprecating humor. "These files are veeery important to me, and I
think veeery dangerous to certain parties in the government."
"...Okay..."
"So it's obvious they're assigning an agent to keep track of me and
of what I find, someone to discredit my work, someone I can't possibly
trust..."
"Didn't you make any requests?"
"Sure." He sighed. "There are some guys I can trust. Reggie
Purdue, I've worked with him, and I did what I could to get him
considered. Hell, he would have had seniority over me anyway, and they
could have used that to keep me in line..."
"Instead you get..." Holly waited with a quizzical look.
He smirked. "Dana Katherine Scully. Practically a rookie out of
the Academy. No rep whatsoever."
She arched an eyebrow, recognizing the name from her days working
at Quantico. "So you need her file."
"Would that be any trouble?" Mulder's eager look reminded her of a
puppy waiting for a chew toy.
"It would, normally." Holly stood and turned for a doorway leading
to the stacks of paper files. "You'd have to fill request forms and go
through channels, since there are privacy issues involved...but I can give
you a quick look at her file as long as nobody catches you doing it..."
"You," Mulder smiled at her, "are a godsend..."
"Just answer me one thing..." Holly's voice echoed through the
doorway as she shuffled through the dusty paperwork.
"Shoot."
Holly stepped back to her office with Scully's file in hand. "Are
your Speedos really red?..."
MULDER
Having been screwed up yet again by the Powers That Be, who have
bestowed upon me an unwanted partner who's obviously doomed to destroy my
work, I have decided to do some counter-intelligence and find out exactly
who it is they're sending in to rip me to shreds...
Dana Katherine Scully, born Feb.23, 1964, listed as having
siblings but failed to provide a full head count (Black sheep of the
family, perhaps? Part of her life she wants to ignore...). Says here her
father is a Navy captain (could her family's connections in the military
be used against the X- Files? The Pentagon has a lot to hide...). She
checked off Catholic as her religion, but then mostly whited it out
(Lapsed?...At least she won't oppose the work on religious grounds...).
Marital status: single; and body weight and height suggests a
petite figure (if she's got a good face and legs that go all the way up,
then the PTB want her to distract me on a physical level...knowing myself,
that could work)...
Okay, here's a picture of her...no way. What's with her hair
color?...(She DOES have a good face (insert wolf whistle here), similar to
Italian Renaissance paintings...now about those legs...)
Here's paperwork on her educational background...pretty standard
stuff (Bachelor's in physics suggests good scientific background...but
only four years? Sped through college, she must not have wasted time at
those frat parties (her personality must be as flat as drywall...)).
Moved on to medical school (Ick. Pathology. Forensic medicine. Cutting
into bodies...gross gross gross...) And then straight to the FBI (Straight
to teaching? No field work? She IS a bloody rookie, isn't she?).
Evaluations are all exemplary, focusing on her determination and
professionalism (so who did you tick off to get this assignment,
Scully?...). Merits on some pathological work done on that poisoning case
out of Kansas...hold on, name is mentioned on a stake out assignment in
Maine (who's this Jack Willis? Oh, yeah, Robberies Division. Met him
once. Interesting fellow. Had a thing for redheads...)...so maybe she
did do some field work...but why isn't that focused on any of the
personnel recommendations?...
What's this? A term paper? "Einstein's Twin Paradox"? She must
be proud of this one to stick it in her personnel file. I'll need a copy,
peruse it later when I have the time...perhaps when you meet her later,
psych her out by mentioning this, show you've done some checking...
A-Ha! Her Psych profile. Let's see what makes agent Scully
tick...hmm, standard answers so far, profile suggests no-nonsense
personality (dull), keen intellectual interests (dull), highly motivated
(not dull, but stressful), well-developed sense of morality (Girl Scout)
and honesty (sure, this is someone they want to de-bunk my
work!)...Written note by examiner..."Highly rational person, but masking
an occasional rebellious streak...her honesty does lead her to question
the command structure supervising her, and while differing perspectives
can be encouraged for the overall good of the bureau it would hamper the
actual workings of the office...extremely disinterested in administrative
duties, more eager to apply her skills in research and teaching (if she's
not looking to brown-nose her way up the ladder, then why would she do
this for them?)..." What? That's it? No indication on her turn-ons,
turn-offs, ideas for romantic evenings (or have I been programmed to
expect such things from the monthly Playmate data sheet?...)...
Mulder tossed the file back onto Holly's desk. "Sheesh."
"Why? What's wrong?" Holly picked up the folder, glancing through
the sheets.
"This can't be right," he shrugged. "I can't believe the Powers
That Be would send someone with a clean record down into the basement.
This assignment can't be a career move..."
She crossed her arms. "Then why do you do it?"
"Personal reasons. This isn't really a hobby, it's an obsession,
and I freely admit to it. But she'll have no real motivation for it.
There has to be a reason they're sending her down, and this file isn't
showing it..."
"I can assure you, these records haven't been tampered with..."
"Then it's a willful omission, deliberately kept out..."
Holly glanced at the folder. "I get the feeling you WANT her
dismissed as a plant."
"Excuse me?"
"Can you consider the possibility she really does want to do her
job?"
Mulder arched both eyebrows, wondering if he could even consider
that possibility. "Well, can I get a copy of that thesis of hers, then?
I'd like to read it..."
Holly nodded. "I send it out to get photocopied and on your desk
in ten minutes."
He smiled and turned to leave, pausing at the doorway. "You know,
you might be right."
"What?"
"That maybe they're sending me an actual partner."
"Well, they usually do that..."
"I wouldn't count on it here." He frowned. "But what if?..."
"What would that mean? What if?..."
"It means she's going to think I'm nuts," Mulder sighed as he shook
his head, leaving the office and preparing to meet his new partner.
30 Seconds Later
Holly turned to see an old Quantico friend step into the Personnel
office. "Dana Scully, isn't it?"
The long-haired redhead smiled. "And you're...Holly. We did some
field training, right?"
"You did the field training. I did the paperwork," Holly smirked.
Scully shook her head. "Well, perhaps I can trade off with
you..."
"Ooh, sounds like you ticked someone off," her friend grimaced.
"Don't know who or how. All I know is someone went and gave me a
special assignment."
"Ah. Something that doesn't involve traveling to exotic locales,
shooting bad guys, and flirting with cute free radicals, I take it..."
"Have you heard of the X-Files?"
Holly grinned. "That would be agent Mulder's file you're looking
for, then."
Scully arched an eyebrow. "Since when were you psychic?"
"Dana, please, it has been some time since we've seen each other.
I doubt you came here looking for applause or sympathy. It's obvious you
want to check up on this guy." Holly turned for the door to the stacks.
"I'll get his file. But we'll have to make it quick, okay?..."
SCULLY
Having been assigned to the X-Files, I have decided to read up on
my new partner before meeting him in his office. I hope to avoid a lot of
the agitation and embarrassing first impressions one would make during a
preliminary encounter. Since I'm also meeting him on technically his home
turf, I am bound to be put off-guard and on the defensive, so I need to be
prepared for anything. His personnel file should help.
Fox William Mulder, born Oct.13, 1961. His family record is for
some reason incomplete, although he is single with no children. He
received a scholarship to study at Oxford where he studied in psychology,
with additional studies in criminology. He returned to the U.S. and
entered the Bureau, developing what his records reveal (as I had heard
earlier) as an incredible talent in behavioral sciences. He trained under
Bill Patterson, always regarded as a master of the behavioral unit of the
Violent Crimes division, and he made remarkable strides in establishing
standards for investigating patterns of serial killers.
His early record lists a number of commendations, promotions, and
high praise, even from congressmen working on oversight of the Department
of Justice. His later record covering the period of his work into the
X-Files, however, shows a nosedive in his career, with few commendations
and even one request for demotion if not outright dismissal, from a
Section Chief McGrath in Internal Affairs. The cause for the request is
not listed here, deemed classified.
His personnel file contains a copy of Mulder's monograph on serial
killers and the occult. A quick glance shows me a well-researched paper,
more subjective than objective in his understanding of the workings of the
human mind.
His psychological profile is here as well, in fact an entire
series of them. His preliminary profile indicates a normal, if
self-driven, personality, showcasing extreme wit, intelligence, and high
concern for the lives of others. There was apparently a psychiatric
observation to his reaction to the loss of a fellow agent during a case
pursuing a criminal named Barnett. A subsequent profile indicated a high
sense of guilt for his actions and seeming inactions. Most of these other
profiles were done under duress during his examinations of the X-Files,
indicating not only Mulder's growing obsessiveness to his project but also
the administration's growing concern that they were losing one of their
best agents in the Violent Crimes division.
The final profile, if accurate, is troubling. It indicates
feelings of paranoia against the higher levels of not only the Bureau but
of government itself. Yet he remains within the FBI, ostensibly to remain
with his project. How can a man like this work within an environment he
would consider so unfavorable toward him? He will almost certainly regard
my being assigned to the X-Files with at best skepticism and at worst open
hostility. The only comforting discovery from these profiles is Mulder's
admission that he was seeking outside psychiatric help involving issues
stemming from family concerns.
I end my evaluation with his file picture. While his smile does
indicate the wit suggested by his profiles, his eyes reflect a troubled,
mournful look, much like a lost puppy. That stare adds to the dark yet
chiseled features of his face. The photograph cannot hide the conflicted
personality of this man. On a lighter note, he needs to do something with
his hair...
Scully closed the file and tossed it back onto Holly's desk.
"Sheesh."
"Is that all you have to say about him?" Holly queried, acting
somewhat shocked.
Scully shrugged her shoulders. "I think there's something
seriously wrong with this guy. No wonder they call him `Spooky'."
"Dana," her friend answered, putting away Mulder's file. "Do me
one favor."
"...Okay..."
"Repeat after me: I am looking forward to working with you, agent
Mulder."
Scully scowled.
"Dana..."
"Very well. `I'm looking forward to working with you, agent
Mulder.'"
"Now say it like you mean it."
"Please, Holly..."
"Do you want to do this?" Holly crossed her arms. "The
assignment, I mean."
Scully thought about it. "It IS a field assignment..."
"But." Holly's voice registered disappointment rather than
disapproval.
She sighed. "This Mulder is obsessed, paranoid...He's probably
convinced I'm being assigned to this to spy on him..."
"Why should you care?" Holly opened the folder and casually
flipped through. "You probably just need to file one critical report and
the whole thing is shut down and you're shipped off to another
assignment..."
"That's not what I want." Scully crossed her arms now. "I want to
do my job. And I want to do it right."
"But."
"He's not going to trust me to do my job." She shook her head.
"And that's not going to be good for either of us."
Holly arched an eyebrow. "Dana, I think you're getting off on the
wrong foot before you've even met the guy. Meet him first. Then hate
him."
Scully scowled for a minute before giving her friend a lopsided
salute and turning for the door. "Aye aye, cap'n."
"Good luck, sailor," Holly grinned.
"He's going to hate me. I know it," Scully sighed, shaking her
head as she walked out the door and into her first meeting with her new
partner.
Holly kept staring at the door for a few minutes, nodding to
herself, understanding absolutely everything she had just witnessed about
these two. She gathered up Mulder's file with Scully's, smiling as she
considered placing them together in the same cabinet drawer.
"It'll be love at first sight," she sighed as she walked far into
the poorly lit stacks. "Lucky lucky you..."
The Beginning
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