AN: Some days I wake up and I think about how disappointed I am with how the show ended. That's not cause for motivation. Did someone say they miss the McCord's? Why, yes, I do now, and I did throughout S6. This has nothing to do with S6… Well, because it has all 5 McCord's. This goes back to S3 with Ray Merchant, and there will be more down the line. At this point, I don't know how to write fanfiction, but I try. With that being said, do not be alarmed by the glaring mistakes, they exist. I ended chapter one where I did because it felt like a natural ending. Hence, the two chapters.

No other Fall compared to those spent on the UVA Campus. The air was crisp and the sky-a beautiful Virginia blue—was the perfect complement to the golden, scarlet, and orange leaves among the wildwood flowers. The season served the campus well, as far as beauty was considered. Perhaps Winter was a close second, but Fall would always be Elizabeth's favorite… as long as she was at UVA.

This year marked the fourth year away from The Company, and between finishing her Doctorate, gaining a professorship at her alma mater, and raising a family… she was content.

Elizabeth set her lecture notes on her desk as she entered her office. The first week of "Introduction to International Relations" was complete. That was something to be proud of as was the feat of getting the kids out of bed and to school on time for the past four days. She sat back in her chair and rubbed her forehead… there was still something about 8am undergraduate courses that didn't suit her. But she simply smiled to herself: she had made it through Thursday without much fuss. Then again, it did help that Stevie had one more year in the Junior High building, and Alison and Jason were still in elementary school.

She jumped at the knock on the door.

"… Come in," she answered. The door turned and Elizabeth was greeted by a familiar face.

"Hi, Elizabeth," He smiled.

"Ray… Good morning, please… have a seat." She ushered him over to the small chair across from her desk. "How does it feel to have your Masters done with?" He straightened out his bag and offered a smile, "Very good, thanks for asking, Elizabeth… off to the major test, now."

"You'll fly through it, I'm sure you will," She smiled before taking a pause to look around, "… So… why did you stop by? He offered her another smile, "Well, I saw that you had Office Hours and I wanted to stop by and see if you were available to… to be my thesis advisor."

Elizabeth leaned forward with a cautioned look of slight disbelief. "… Well, Ray, that's not going to work… you're in the Comparative department. I'm not going to be much help."

He looked away and shook his head. "No, no, look Elizabeth," He laughed, "You provided great guidance on my Comparative Post-Soviet-bloc Third-world Development research last year. This whole thing…" he threw his hands around, "… about departments and disciplines… is counterproductive and detrimental to research long-term."

"Hmm," she pressed her fingers to his lips, leaned back, and studied him carefully. He looked confused, she wasn't answering. As he opened his mouth, Elizabeth interjected, "Ray, I know you know how this works… through your time at BC and your years here. Professor Zimmer is more than capable to navigate the ins-and-outs of the Comparative world—one of the best comparative political scientists on the Third-World, out there. He's the one you want," Elizabeth dropped her voice to a whisper, "not me."

Ray put his hands up, "Okay, Elizabeth, I understand. Just think it over, He smiled. Turning his head, he stole a quick glance at the pictures pinned on cabinets, a que that Elizabeth never missed. She watched as he stood and collected his bag before heading toward the door. "… Oh, yeah… how's Henry?" Elizabeth nodded. "He's good," She forced a smile, "Have a good day, Ray." He smiled as well. "I… Yes, I will."

As the door closed behind Ray, Elizabeth turned her chair around to gaze at the fresh autumn skyline. Ray was back. Ray was a little bit odd… but then, Will was odd… Still, she couldn't shake her feeling of concern. This was a new kind of concern. This was an odd feeling of concern she had to be mindful of.