Standard disclaimer: All characters belong to Alliance. I don't own Ray Kowalski, Ray Vecchio, Harding Welsh, Diefenbaker, or any other character to be found on Due South. No money changed hands. I just borrowed them to play with for awhile.

Story summary: Fraser's thoughts while reading Ray's file.

Spoiler alert: None...Refers to events in several episodes, but no revealing details given.

Timeline: Takes place between Burning Down the House and Eclipse.

Background: In Eclipse Fraser mentions he read Ray's file. I was curious about that...how he got the file in the first place, and what he was thinking when he read it. The friendship between RayK and Fraser develops very quickly, and I didn't think it was solely because of a desire to maintain either Ray's cover. Thinking about that is where this came from.

Feedback: Please. Let me know what you thought...liked, hated or just felt didn't work for you. Katherine_Lehman@blm.gov

Musings

Benton Fraser stared at the file in front of him. It had been ridiculously easy to get. A pleasant smile, a simple request, a thank you kindly, and he had gotten from the file clerk just what he needed. Fraser smiled slightly, thinking Ray Vecchio would have had something to say about Fraser's affect on women. His smile faded when he remembered the reason he'd gotten this particular file was because his best friend was gone, undercover with the mob, whereabouts unknown.

Fraser could have stopped at simply proving the man claiming to be Ray didn't have finger prints matching the official finger prints in Ray Vecchio's file. He could have stopped there. But he wanted to know who this energetic, slender, blond detective really was. So he'd run a search on his fingerprints. Just what kind of man was, a brief downward glace to confirm the name...Raymond Kowalski? Why it was important was something of a mystery. It shouldn't matter. It was his duty to work with this man. His duty to protect Ray Vecchio's cover. It shouldn't matter what kind of man this new Ray was, but Fraser desperately wanted to know.

All he had to do was open the file in front of him. Simple. And yet, not so simple. Fraser found himself strangely hesitant to read it. What if there was something in the file that meant he couldn't work with this new Ray? What if there was something in the file that contradicted what Fraser already thought of this man? For that matter, what did he think of this man? Tough question. Fraser decided it might be best to order what he knew of the man before trying to read what was printed in his file.

The hug when they first met was disconcerting. Fraser was not by nature a touchy person. He should have been offended or uncomfortable by that hug, but surprisingly he liked it. It had been warm, friendly, and even though he didn't know the man, being greeted as though they were friends was strangely satisfying. The smile, the wink, even the attitude were engaging. Fraser already knew he wanted more of those. They made him feel connected, somehow included in everything that was going on.

They had worked well with together. Very well considering it was their first case. Better than he'd worked with Vecchio the first time. Despite Fraser's efforts to collect solid evidence that he wasn't who he claimed to be, this new Ray hadn't faltered.

In hindsight, is was embarrassing to think that he'd gone to such lengths when a simple conversation could have cleared up everything. Ray had seemed to simply accept it as part being partnered with Fraser. That acceptance made Fraser wonder if it was just natural for this Ray to take people as they came, or if he'd been told that Fraser was different and was already expecting strange behavior. Fraser found himself hoping it was the former.

It was this new Ray who had followed a hunch that connected the phone call to Motherwell. Fraser wondered if there was any truth to Ray's cryptic comment;"You know me, Fraser. Hunches are pretty much all I ever have." It made him wonder if logic and instinct would be able to work well together. To be fair their different approaches to this case has been a blessing, not a hindrance.

Ray had managed to get Motherwell to talk when Fraser had failed. Even though Fraser had been fairly certain Ray wasn't actually going to strike Motherwell, his posture had been very convincing. Given that he'd been chosen to take over another man's life his ability to be convincing should not have come as a surprise.

Ray had stayed the course, even when the car was on fire. Even when he seemed certain that they were going to perish, Ray hadn't given in. He'd even said he enjoyed working with Fraser. Said it had been weird, but a pleasure just the same. Fraser couldn't think of a single time when anyone else had ever said anything even remotely similar. It was strangely up lifting and satisfying to hear.

When Ray had stepped in front of Fraser, taking a bullet for him, Fraser found it incredibly difficult to restrain the impulse to do serious damage to Greta Garbo. He felt such rage at the thought of how close he could have come to losing Ray, the compelling, bundle of energy, he'd barely had the opportunity to know. He managed to disguise his relief at seeing Ray's vest, but only barely.

With a sigh, Fraser opened the file. Working with Ray Vecchio had rubbed off on him slightly. It would be foolish to pass up the opportunity to learn more about this new Ray. After all, he had gotten the file, and it would be only prudent to learn as much as possible about the man he would be working with.

During the one and only meal they had shared to date, the new Ray had been more interested in going over the details of the cases Fraser and Vecchio had worked. He hadn't been very forthcoming about himself. Fraser wondered if being reticent about himself was a natural trait, or if it was something that Ray had adopted because he was undercover. Since he was supposed to be Vecchio the details of Kowalski's life might not be something he had felt inclined to share with his new partner.

Fraser stifled a vague feeling of guilt. It was wrong to seek out information that his partner didn't seem ready to share. But he had to know if he could work with this man. His duty required that he do so, but this was the first time in his life that Fraser felt he had a choice in the matter.

His partnership with Vecchio had always been unofficial. He liked working with Vecchio. It was a way for him to continue to be an officer of the law despite his exile from Canada. If he discovered that he couldn't work with this new Ray it would not damage his cover much to end the unofficial collaboration. If would, however, be a serious hardship for Fraser to no longer pursue criminals and see justice done.

Fraser shook his head. Better to get back to the matter at hand. The name in the file....S. Raymond Kowalski. Wonder what the S. stands for? Well, Ray certainly wouldn't be the first person to prefer his second name to his first. At least his name really was Ray. No wonder he'd been so pleased when Fraser had actually called him that. Odd that they could find someone this the same name, but not someone who looked a bit more like Ray Vecchio. It really shouldn't have been that difficult to find another Italian cop.

Hmm...according to the file Ray Kowalski had a rather eventful career. Lot of undercover work that by all indications he was very good at. That would explain why, even though he looked nothing like Ray Vecchio, he'd been selected for the job. Another mystery laid to rest.

Several citations for bravery. Three to be exact. Interesting. Fraser frowned reading about how Ray had been injured in the line of duty. He risked his life to save a child. A caring man then, in addition to being a brave man. A man of integrity.

The file indicated that Ray had been married, now divorced. At least he did have something in common with the "real" Ray Vecchio besides the same first name. Fraser couldn't help but wonder what had gone wrong in this Ray's marriage.

Given that Ray had hit on virtually every woman in the precinct the day they'd met, perhaps he was unfaithful or a womanizer. That didn't ring true though. A man willing to take a bullet for a virtual stranger didn't seem to be the type to cheat. And Ray didn't seem the type to treat women lightly, as mere play things. Not that Fraser could honestly say he had much experience with either type of man, he still couldn't see this Ray as being careless with someone else's feelings.

The comments his previous superior officer had inserted into his file were most intriguing. His recommendation of Ray for this assignment clearly indicated he was hoping it was temporary, and that Ray would be returned to his command when it was finished. He described Ray as unorthodox, often difficult, but reliable and an outstanding cop. He made reference to Ray's citations, and his better than average case closure rate.

Looking through the file, Fraser found that Ray's superior had not been bragging. He did indeed have a better than average closure rate. Very few of his cases went to court with anything less than solid evidence. It was true that none of his cases were as interesting as those Fraser had worked

with Vecchio on. To be fair, Vecchio's cases hadn't been all that interesting until he started working with Fraser. Homicide, drugs, and prostitution were far more common in Chicago than wild horses being slaughtered or performance arsonists.

Fraser was relieved. So far Detective Kowalski's file hadn't revealed anything that Fraser didn't already know about him. Details, oh yes, it gave details, something Fraser found himself still hungry for. But the core of the man was a known commodity. He could work with Raymond Kowalski. It would not be difficult to pretend to like him. He barely knew him and he already liked him.

He closed the file. He would have to return it to the records room when he visited the 27^th today. It was Ray's birthday. Not the new Ray's, the old Ray's. But since Vecchio had always had a party, Fraser assumed it would be wrong not to continue the tradition. The cover had to be maintained after all. Fortunately he had a gift prepared. He'd originally meant to give it to his friend....but then this Ray was well on his way to being his friend, and he thought Vecchio would understand.

Closing the file, Fraser stood, straightened his tunic, grabbed his hat, and headed for the door. He remembered just as he got to the door to pick up the party supplies. He smiled. Couldn't have a party without the proper supplies.

The end.