About time I make a solo White Collar fic! This is set during season 5 and is loosely based on Glee's recent Christmas episode.
"You know, no matter how long you've lived in New York, you can never get tired of all those Christmas decorations in Times Square."
Neal and Peter drove to the FBI building. Peter smiled and nodded. "I can't believe this year is almost over already. Christmas is in three weeks, and already El has done all her Christmas shopping."
"Dude, that's nothing. June finished on Black Friday." Neal replied.
Peter glanced at Neal. "What? She did not!"
"She did. Call her." Neal raised an eyebrow.
"I'll take your word for it. This time." Peter replied and pulled into the parking garage.
XX
The White Collar floor was bedecked with tinsel and some Christmas decorations. Some agents either wore Christmas jewelry, and even Santa hats! Diana walked up to them, holding a folder.
"Oh, good, you're here. We have something." Diana said. They headed to the conference room where Jones and some other agents sat drinking peppermint coffee. "FBI Philadelphia sent this over. Bad Santa strikes again."
"Great." Peter said with disdain. He addressed the table. "For those who don't know, a man in his early thirties has been going around major cities around the US during Christmastime robbing homes and some Santa thrones at various malls for the past five years. He started in LA in 2008, and just last year, he was last seen in Philly. We have him on our FBI watch list under the name Sexy Clause which is who he introduced himself as."
Neal raised an eyebrow. "Sexy Clause? Really?"
Peter ignored Neal and continued. "Several of his victims gave us different names he introduced: Cam Jenner, Rick Fellows, Mitch Clark; and most recently, DJ Wells. Most of his vics were either rich, or young, naïve college kids looking for a good time during the holidays."
"Does he rob more than one home per city?" Jones asked.
"It depends on how fast the police is on his tail." Peter explained. "Since he started on the west coast, he moved further east every year. New York is the next big city east of Philadelphia, so we have reason to believe New York is his next target."
"What does he do with his stolen items?" Neal asked.
"Sold some online, black marketed some, and kept some for himself." Peter replied. "The FBI tried tracing his IP address, but no luck. This guy's a genius and he's also dangerous. His crimes also include assault and attempted murder. A couple of his vics even claimed he sexually assaulted them."
"Definitely up our alley." Jones nodded.
Peter clicked a button, and Sexy Clause's picture complete with a Santa hat appeared on the screen. "This is our guy."
"Did you say he also robbed Santa lands?" Neal asked, raising his hand.
"Yes, why?"
"Cindy- June's granddaughter- is taking her cousin Sam to see Santa at Macy's later today. I could text her and ask if I could tag along to look for suspicious activity."
"Okay, but why not just go anyway?" Peter asked.
"Uh…grown man in his thirties lurking around Santa Land by himself? That's not creepy?" Neal commented.
"Good point. Let us know what you see."
XXX
Macy's was crowded with families shopping or on their way to see Santa. Sam held Cindy's hand and dragged her from counter to counter looking at makeup and jewelry.
"Hey, thanks for letting me tag along." Neal said to Cindy.
"Oh, sure. No problem. I am always up for a little FBI excursion." Cindy replied happily.
Neal chuckled. "Well, it's more of a recon, really."
Cindy shrugged. "Still."
Sam gasped and pointed to Santa Land. "Look, Cindy! It's Santa Land! Oh, can we go? Please?"
"Of course! Come on." The trio walked over to the brightly colored and decorated land. The elves were dressed in red and green, and three of them were standing around awkwardly as the crowd chanted "We want Santa!" The three elves talked for a minute, then the male elf started singing "Santa Clause Is Coming To Town". His two co-elves (both women) joined in. One of the women shook a tambourine. When they finished singing,
Neal clapped, then he realized no one else was clapping, and a few people stared at him weirdly. Neal cleared his throat. "Tough crowd."
"YOU SUCK!" One of the kids screamed and then he threw food at the elves. Half the kids there followed suit.
The elves scrambled to avoid the food thrown at them. One of the women said something to the other elves and disappeared behind the doors. After a few minutes, the crowd calmed down a little. The female elf pulled out a candy cane striped microphone.
"Sorry, everyone, but Santa had a little accident and is not feeling well. But don't despair! Mrs. Clause is here!" Everyone cheered as the second female elf walked out in a Santa dress and hat.
XXX
After Sam sat on "Mrs. Clause's" lap, Cindy and Sam and Neal went their separate ways. Neal wanted to get Elizabeth a Macy's gift card. After getting the card, Neal headed for the door and stopped. He saw a man around his age dressed in a Santa suit sans beard. His Santa coat was open.
'Sexy Clause.' Neal thought to himself. He texted Peter to let him know he's been sighted. Sexy Clause headed straight for the three elves from earlier. Neal stealthily snuck over and hid behind a pillar close to the four.
"I heard through the grapevine that you are in dire need for a Santa." Sexy Clause was saying. "Brody Tortoni at your service."
"Oh, thanks, we're good." The female elf with wavy brown hair replied.
"Oh, okay. Good luck, then. I mean, I wouldn't want you to be trampled by an angry mob when you tell them Santa has left for the North Pole." Brody started to walk off, but the male elf stopped him.
"Wait! No, we don't want to be trampled." The man extended his hand. "I'm Will Greavos, by the way, and newly single. These are my friends and roommates Abby Cohen and Cami Fernandez."
"Well, it's nice to meet you three." Brody grinned. "Look, you guys seem nice and responsible. Your boss told me how well you handled Santa bailing for the nearest bar. I am impressed and would like to deputize you as my elves."
"Ooh, sounds fun. What are our responsibilities?" Will asked, a little flirtatiously.
"Whoa, don't go jumping the gun yet." Brody held up his hands. "I like to get to know my elves first. What do you say to dinner, your place, eight o'clock?"
'Please say no, please say no, please say no.' Neal thought, getting slightly anxious.
"Sounds great!" Abby shrugged and smiled.
'Really, guys?!' Neal groaned inwardly and checked his watch. He walked about ten feet, then called Peter. "Peter, you better get down here. Sexy Clause, aka Brody Tortoni- just made his next target. A few of the elves invited him over for dinner at their place at eight tonight."
"Okay. Are you still at Macy's?"
"Yes."
"Great. I'm just down the street. I'll be there in ten." Peter replied. "Stall if you have to."
"Wait- stall Sexy Clause or the elves?" Neal asked.
"Sexy Clause! Accidentally bump into him, flirt with him, I don't care. Just stall him." Peter hung up.
"But I don't-" Neal sighed and put his phone away. "…swing that way." He walked back to where Brody and the elves were, but they disappeared. Neal looked around Santaland, but it looked like he disappeared. He found one of the elves and tapped him on the shoulder. "Excuse me, my wife and I were wondering when Santa will be back. Our son's getting anxious."
"He comes back tomorrow." The elf replied. "We found a replacement, but he's gone for the day."
"Oh, okay. Hey, what about the elves that sang earlier? I thought they were pretty good." Neal commented.
"Yeah…" The elf responded with distaste and left.
Neal looked around for the elves for a few minutes, then Peter caught up with him. "Hey."
"Hey. Where's Bad Santa?"
"He left already." Neal replied. "I'm hoping that one of the elves he talked to is here."
Peter sighed in exasperation. "Great."
"We don't have a lot of time, either. He's going to their place in less than six hours." Neal looked around. He spotted Will over by the ties. "Oh! There's one of them. He said his name is Will."
"Good." They walked over to Will. Peter flashed his badge. "Excuse me. FBI. I'm Agent Peter Burke, this is my consultant Neal Caffrey."
"Can I help you?" Will asked.
"Yes. There is a man going around town posing as Santa. He's on our FBI Watch List." Peter revealed. He showed Will a picture. "Have you seen this man?"
Will's eyes widened. "Y-yeah…uh…is this guy a criminal or something?"
"Yes. He goes around taking advantage of rich people or young college kids looking for a good time and robbing them blind." Peter answered. Will's face fell into a look of horror. Peter nodded and capped him on the shoulder. "Okay, mind coming down to the Bureau?" Will shook his head. "Good. Let's go."
XXX
Once at the Bureau, Peter got Will's statement and address. He told him to wait in the office while he, Jones, Diana, and Neal discuss a game plan.
"So, we just show up and grab him." Jones suggested.
"And take the chance that he might hold them hostage?" Diana asked.
"We could use them as bait." Neal suggested. Everyone turned to him in shock. "Okay, just hear me out. We can't just show up, or he'll run or hold those kids hostage. We can't send someone undercover-"
"Wait- why? That's the best solution." Peter interrupted.
"Because he might suspect something." Neal answered.
"Okay, then our best bet is to set up cameras in the apartment and go in once they're all in bed." Peter stated.
"Or we can give Will a code phrase." Neal said, his eyes shining with excitement.
Peter stared at Neal and sighed. "Okay…we are running out of time, so, we'll go with Neal's plan. Diana, get everything ready. Jones, tell NYPD to get ready to set up a perimeter. Neal and I will talk to Will."
"Got it."
Neal and Peter headed up to the office, where Will waited anxiously. "Okay, so we have a plan."
"Great! What do I need to do?" Will asked.
"String him along." Peter replied. "This guy is smart. He's gonna see us coming. Which is why we are going to set your apartment up with fiber optic cameras and equip you with an earpiece."
Will was stunned. "So you want to put me and my friends in danger just so you can catch a criminal?"
"You won't be in danger." Peter assured him. "Like I said, we'll hook you up with an earpiece and set up a camera."
"Will, this guy moves pretty fast." Neal added. "If we miss this chance to grab him, we may never catch him before he robs someone else."
Will exhaled and rubbed his forehead. On the one hand, he didn't want to invite a dangerous criminal into his house. On the other hand, he didn't want to be responsible for something worse happening because of him. "Okay. Just tell me what I have to do."
XXX
In just a couple of hours, the FBI set up Will's apartment with fiber optic cameras and provided Will with an earpiece. Peter advised Will to keep this from his roommates ("The less people who know, the better we'll be able to catch him." he had said).
"All right. We put the camera in the plant on the shelf by the door." Peter explained. "Now, the earpiece is barely noticeable, but be careful, anyway. If he gets suspicious, all you have to do is utter the phrase 'I hope I'm not getting a cold'. Got it?"
Will nodded. "'I think I'm getting a cold'. Yeah."
"Perfect. You nervous?" Peter asked.
"A little." Will admitted. "When I came to New York, I never thought I'd be helping the FBI catch a robber Santa."
Peter chuckled. "I got that feeling when I joined the FBI."
Neal waked up to them. "Okay, everything's all set up."
"Great. Let's head back to the van." Peter said.
Neal nodded, then turned to Will. "Good luck, kid. Oh, remember- don't avoid eye contact. That's a tell you're lying."
"Thanks, I'll remember that." Will smiled politely. Neal smiled back and left. Will heaved a sigh. 'All right. Showtime.'
What do you guys think?