Disclaimer: Unfortunately I don't own nor am I involved with the production of Chuck. On the plus side, I work cheap so if Zach is reading this - call me.
Synopsis: The Team succcessfully took down Ty Bennett, Casey's Sensei and Mentor, but General Beckman isn't happy about the team's performance - or more accurately she's not happy about the agents performance. A royal reaming for Casey and Sarah, along with much deserved praise for Chuck, sows discord among the ranks that could tear them apart. The grapes of wrath make a bitter wine indeed.
A/N: Adult language and situations apply.
Chuck versus Fallout Girl - Chapter One - The Grapes of Wrath
The day after another successful mission finds the team delivering their after action report to General Beckman. Casey, Chuck and Sarah sitting at the conference table in front of the big plasma screen where an apparently irritated General Beckman listens to them recount the take down and capture of Ty Bennett and his black market weapons ring.
"…and it was then that Major Casey maneuvered Bennett into engaging him in unarmed combat during which Major Casey was able to defeat him. The FBI Strike Team arrived on the scene not long afterwards having been alerted by yourself, General."
"And that's your entire report Agent Walker?"
"That's all the pertinent data ma'am, yes."
"Would someone care to explain how the Intersect got captured by Bennett's men when according to both you and Major Casey he was secured in your storefront by tempered steel handcuffs?"
"I can do that General. I MacGyvered them."
"I'm sorry Mr Bartowski, you did what?"
"The TV Show MacGyver? See I was able to detach the coolant line from the compressor that runs the reach-in freezer and spray the handcuff chain with tetraflouromethane. That lowered the tensile strength of the chain until it was brittle enough that I could break it with a sprinkle scoop. Seriously, Does no one in the spy world watch TV?"
"Unfortunately we're usually too busy trying to ensure national security to get in much TV time. Nonetheless yours was a very ingenious solution Mr Bartowski. It was also emblematic of everything that this team did wrong on this mission."
"With all due respect General, we got Bennett and broke up his black market weapons ring. I'd say some 'atta boys' are in order."
"Would you Major Casey? And would one of those 'atta boys' be for your disobeying a direct order? Or perhaps I should award one to Agent Walker for abandoning the Intersect to help you?"
"General, Chuck was handcuffed inside a secured building. I would hardly call that abandoning him. If he had stayed put as I'd told him he wouldn't have been in any trouble at all."
"Really Agent Walker, and exactly how often does Mr Bartowski do as he's told? It's well established that he has an impulsive nature. Since he's not a trained agent you need to adapt to his behavior."
"I'm sorry General, but Casey was only doing what he felt he had to do to stop Bennett. And Sarah, Agent Walker, told me to stay here. In fact if I hadn't gone down in the Castle in the first place to talk to Casey he wouldn't have gotten out so it's not their fault. If you want to be mad at anyone it should be me since you know, I don't do the whole order following thing well."
"Actually Mr Bartowski you are the only person I am not upset with at the moment. Nothing you did was out of the ordinary for you and your instincts served you well on this mission. Casey and Walker are professionals, I hold them to a higher standard of performance than an untrained asset. What I find particularly disturbing is the total breakdown in discipline and the fact that their survival, let alone the success of this mission, was at some point almost entirely dependent on you. I expect better of you both in the future."
The screen blanked out and the three sat their quietly. The uncomfortable silence lasted until Chuck felt broke the silence.
"Well that could have gone better."
"Walker, I suggest you get your boy toy out of here before I forget my job is to protect him from harm."
"Chuck, go back to work. I'll talk to you tonight."
"Look, I'm sorry Casey I didn't mean to..."
"Chuck! Just leave. Now!" Sarah barked at him.
Sarah glared as the lanky figure that recoiled from her like he'd been shot. She was shocked by her own outburst but steeled herself against showing any weakness in front of Casey. She saw the hurt expression on Chuck's face and turned away from him, her own face a mask of stone.
"Chuck, just go."
Chuck ascended the stairs leaving the Castle in silence. At the top of the landing he turned back momentarily to look at Casey and Sarah who were working in silence at the conference table.
"My lunch break's over so I'll be back at Buy More if anyone needs me."
"Not much of a chance at that is there Bartowski?"
Chuck stood there a moment longer but Sarah kept her back toward him and Casey just sneered. Finally he keyed in the exit code and went back to the Buy More. Casey and Sarah worked wordlessly for several minutes until the secured line chimed indicating an incoming call. Sarah reached for the phone automatically.
"Chuck? Listen I..." The look on her face changed suddenly from a hopeful expression to one that was purely professional. "Sorry General. Yes Ma'am. Understood Ma'am. Right away Ma'am."
"Beckman?"
"Yeah."
"Well? Did she have something to say or was it just chit-chat between you girls?"
"It concerned Chuck," Sarah's voice was flat and emotionless. "There's a CIA cleared Neurologist in town, she wants me to take him in for an examination."
"What, exposing the Intersect to another Zarnow? That's smart."
"The cover will be he's an analyst who's just there getting a routine checkup."
"Really? What's the point."
"It's a routine medical exam Casey, that's the point." Sarah got up and started walking toward the stairs "You know Casey, not everything is a about a mission. Sometimes it's about people."
"You mean sometimes it's about a person don't you Walker? Sometimes it's about Chuck."
"What are you getting at Casey?"
"What I'm getting at is that I just got my ass handed to me by Beckman because you're boyfriend couldn't keep it in his pants."
"Really Casey, that's what your going with - Me and Chuck? I'm disappointed, I'd have thought you'd have some new material by now or is the scotch doing more than just slowing down your reflexes?"
"Watch it Walker."
"Or what?" Sarah could see the conflict on Casey's face but she had so much pent up anger she didn't care. "Admit it Casey, this isn't about me and Chuck – this is about you and Chuck."
"I don't know what you mean."
"Sure you do. You couldn't have beaten Bennett if Chuck hadn't helped you. Bennett was wiping the floor with you until Chuck 'fixed' your center. He got you so angry you could actually beat your old Master. That's it isn't it? That's what this is really all about. The fact that you needed Chuck."
"Sounds like someone's projecting. Let me clear something up for you Walker. Bartowski may have helped by getting me good and riled, but I didn't need him to beat Bennett, and I don't need him now. I'm not the one running around this place wondering 'why can't that be me?' every time he sees a skirt and gets the jones for some female action."
"He's an asset Casey, I'm his handler. That's the limit of our relationship.
"Really? Well maybe you should start 'handling' him. The boy's walking round like a love struck puppy half the time, getting into trouble trying to 'save' you, hell that's why he broke out of here in the first place."
"And if he hadn't we'd be dead, or are you forgetting that he's the one that alerted Beckman to our location so she could call in the strike team? Listen, I'll deal with Chuck my own way. He's not someone that needs the blunt instrument approach you favor Casey."
"Yeah, well maybe you could use a remedial class Walker. Because it was easy as pie for me to manipulate him down here, all I had to do was 'share my feelings' and he was down here in a flash looking to be my friend. Maybe if you did a little sharing of your own he'd stay in the car once in a while."
Sarah said nothing more, but choked off her anger and marched up the stairs of the Castle and out into the Orange Orange. The door clunked behind her and Casey sat down silently at his console, a grin of satisfaction on his face.
*---*---*---*---*---*---*---*---*---*---*---*---*
That afternoon Chuck sat at the Nerd Herd desk hunched over a computer screen with a stack of papers next to him; he was diligently entering data into the system in an almost automatic fashion. His movements were mechanical, devoid of any sign of intelligent life. By the wall of televisions Lester and Jeff stood staring at the scene before them, taking it all in.
"Dude, this is messed up." Jeff's glassy stare cleared as he tried to focus on Chuck.
"That it is Jeffery, that it is. It is a sad, sad thing to watch a great man fall slowly into oblivion." Lester turned as he heard someone coming up behind them.
"Hey guys, what are we talking about?"
"Oh, hey Morgan." Lester went back to watching Chuck
"We're talking about Chuck. He's just sitting there like a lump doing our invoices from the last two months." Jeff popped another Mentos into his mouth and started to bite down on it. "mmm. Minty"
"Chuck? Why would he do that? Something must be wrong." Morgan started walking toward the nerd herd desk.
"Aw, Morgan. Wait!" Lester followed in his wake. "Jeff! Do you have any idea what you've done?"
"mmm. Minty" Jeff wandered toward the men's room.
Morgan made a b-line to the Nerd Herd desk. He looked at Chuck, hunched behind the screen on his laptop doggedly punching at the keys, barely even aware of his surroundings just plugging away mechanically. This was bad.
"So, Chuck. How's it going buddy?" Morgan tried his best upbeat voice.
"Oh, hey Morgan. It's going, I guess."
"Say Chuck, whatcha' doing there big guy?"
"Hmm? Oh nothing. Just entering invoices into the system."
"Chuck those aren't even your invoices, there Lester's. What's with you man? You've been in a funk for the last week, ever since Thanksgiving you've been walking around just going through the motions. What's wrong Chuck, talk to me, talk to the Morgan"
"There's nothing to talk about. I'm just helping Lester and Jeff get caught up now would you let it go?"
"No Chuck, I can't just let it go. This isn't like you man. You used to be happy, you used to be fun. You and Sarah were a couple of happy, go lucky kids. Now look at you guys. I haven't seen the two of you spend more than five minutes together in the last week. What's wrong man? Is it lady troubles?"
"Morgan, enough. There is nothing going on between me and Sarah."
"Oh my God, it's worse than I thought. She's dumped you?"
"No Morgan, now let it go ok? She hasn't dumped me, we're just both really busy right now."
"Ah, it's because of Jill isn't it? Jill who ruined your life once before has come back from the relationship grave to put the kibosh on you and Sarah, am I right?"
"No."
"Then work with me here Chuck," Morgan was plaintive now. "Because the last time you acted like this was when you were trying to figure out why Jill broke up with you. You told me you got that closure after you dumped her last week, but here you are again, all mopey. So what is it?"
Chuck said nothing but stared back at Morgan.
"That's it isn't it? The fallout from Jill is poisoning the groundwater of your love for Sarah, I'm right aren't I?"
"Morgan I'm not sure I even know what you're saying."
Chuck gave Morgan a faint smile and got up to leave. His little buddy was worried, and that was Morgan, always thinking about him, but for once he just wished he'd let things be. All he wanted to do was get some work done so he could feel useful at something.
*---*---*---*---*---*---*---*---*---*---*---*---*
While Chuck was at the Nerd Herd desk the remaining Nerd Herd had gathered and in the media room with one green shirted little man. Anna, Jeff, and Lester sat on the couch looking up curiously at Morgan who was pacing back and forth in front of the large screen TV.
"So what is it Morgan? What's so important that you needed us here?" Anna Wu had adopted a sultry and defiant pose for the meeting. She was wanted Morgan to suffer and lust after her, but not in front of this Jeff and Lester who were, well, far too creepy for her taste.
"Anna, this isn't about us, it's about Chuck." Morgan noticed appreciatively how the all, even Jeff, became focused on him. "Chuck has a problem and he needs our help."
"What is it Morgan?" Lester asked, "and does helping Chuck mean I have to do my own paperwork?"
"Shut up Lester, we're listening Morgan."
"Thank you Anna, folks. Chuck is dealing with a little problem I like to call Fallout Girl."
"Fallout Girl, what is that – some sort of new game demo?"
"Would that it were Lester, would that it were." Morgan struck a dramatic prose. "You see our Chuck is a man with a big heart and his greatest weakness is that he loves too much, to deeply. The last time he was in love, before Sarah that is, was his college sweetheart, Jill."
"The skinny bitch brunette? No problem, I'll kick her ass." Anna cracked her knuckles loudly.
"Ohh Anna" Jeff leered.
"Back off perv, I've told you it'll never happen."
"Relax Anna, you don't need to kick her ass. It's too late for that anyway, he's already dumped her."
"So Morgan, this fallout girl. What's the deal? If she's not in the picture how can she be the problem?"
"Lester it's like this: Jill is like a nuclear bomb and when the relationship goes boom, the fallout makes the area unlivable for decades." Morgan waited for his analogy to sink in. "After they broke up the first time I spent months getting him out of his dark place and making him a semi-functional person again. It took years for him to get over her enough to start dating. He finally meets the dream woman, Sarah, and what happens – Jill comes back into his life."
"But what can we do? You said he broke up with her." Jeff looked less confused than usual, a hopeful sign in Morgan's eyes.
"True, this time when the got back together he dumped her but she still managed to work her voodoo on him."
"But I saw them together at Thanksgiving dinner," Lester realized he was on to something. "I was there and so was Jeff, and so were you Morgan. They were happy, there was hand holding and meaningful looks, he even walked her out."
"And I saw them kissing. He kissed her" Jeff was emphatic in this, voyeurism was one of his few actual talents and that had to count for something.
"I know but the signs are all there. He's morose, and moping, and melancholy and other things starting with M." Morgan came to a conclusion, "We've got to stop Chuck from screwing this up with Sarah. You guys work on getting him to forget Jill, I'm going to talk to Sarah."
Morgan took off for the Orange Orange formulating his line of attack even as he walked across the parking lot. He'd be subtle, he'd be cagey, he'd come at the problem so sensitively Sarah wouldn't know he was even talking about it. At least that was his plan.
*---*---*---*---*---*---*---*---*---*---*---*---*
Sarah was waiting on a customer when she saw Chuck's hairy little friend Morgan come trotting across the parking lot. She groaned inwardly, he was harmless really and in his own, really creepy way, he was sort of sweet. But even if you cold get past his obsessively possessive behavior with Chuck, he was still a strange little man and today of all days she just didn't have the patience for him. He gave her a small wave as he entered the store and stood patiently in the background until the person she was waiting on walked out the door. Sarah screwed on her happy face and prepared to deal with him.
"Hey Morgan. What brings Chuck's bestest buddy to the Orange Orange? Hungry for some free frozen yogurt?"
"Sarah, we need to talk, it's Chuck. It's not good." Morgan watched as her gaze narrowed and her face became serious, this was a good sign.
"Why?! Has something happened to him?" Sarah tried to contain herself but Morgan's tone suggested the worst, reflexively she reached across the counter and grabbed Morgan by his shirt. "Speak Morgan!"
"Whoa! Whoa and ow!" Morgan grabbed Sarah's hand and tried to pull away only to feel her grip tighten. "Ow! Ow!"
"Speak Morgan, Now!" Sarah gave her wrist a twist yanking on the shirt and chest beneath it. Morgan responded immediately.
"Ow! Ow! Ow! Okay, Okay I'll talk, jeez."
"What's wrong with Chuck, tell me now."
"Well nothing if you'd show this kind of interest in him all the time."
"Morgan..."
"Okay, enough already. He's, he's just not Chuck. Not since he dumped Jill." Morgan gave her an accusatory look, "and not since you decided you needed a break from your relationship."
"What are you talking about?" Sarah was angry and confused, "I never told him I wanted to take a break from us."
"Yeah, well someone needs to tell him then. Honestly Sarah, he's like a broken shell of a man over there. He's doing Lester and Jeff's paper work for cryin' out loud."
"Morgan, go back to work." Sarah started pushing him toward the door. "I'll take care of everything. Just relax, ok?"
"Ok. Um, aren't you forgetting something?"
"I don't thing so."
"My frozen yogurt?"
"Good-bye Morgan."
"I'll be going now." Morgan stopped at the door. "You know Sarah, he really is crazy about you. Don't hurt him, okay?"
Sarah watched the small hairy form of Morgan retreat toward the Buy More and she shook her head. As much as she liked him Chuck could be such a pain sometimes, and right now she really didn't need this. Still, she had to admit that it was amazing the degree to which Chuck inspired loyalty in people. It's what he does, she thought, he gets inside you, he cares about you, and you can't help but want to protect that. Sarah sighed as got ready to deal with the 'problem'. She didn't know what had gone wrong now, but she had to make sure this didn't get out of control. She couldn't afford to have Morgan telling people that they were broken up. She started for the Buy More, she was going to have to fix this now and later she was going to have a serious talk with Chuck.
*---*---*---*---*---*---*---*---*---*---*---*---*
Sarah stepped in to the Buy More, the store's air handling system caused her hair to flutter around her shoulders. She shifted her weight expertly, causing her hips to swivel and giving her a dramatic presence while she scanned the store for any sign of Chuck. Spotting him near "the wall" with Jeff and Lester she marched purposefully toward the Nerd Herd desk. Sarah was an agent trained in the art of seduction and that included making dramatic entrances. She was well known for her own style and by the time she reached the Nerd Herd desk every Buy More employee and customers within sight was aware of her presence, especially Chuck.
She smiled sweetly at him when she saw his double take. She'd primped a little before walking over here and it was nice to know he'd noticed. A small wink and a blown kiss and she had to contain her laughter when he tripped over his own two feet rushing to get to her. She was still angry with him, but he was so cute sometimes. Morgan was already in tow behind him but she had planned for every eventuality.
"Sarah! What brings my beautiful girlfriend over so unexpectedly!"
"Why I just came to see my sweetie pie." Sarah smiled as Chuck grabbed her elbow and led her toward the CD stacks.
"Am I glad to see you, you have to help me!" Chuck whispered.
"Hey Sarah, glad you could make it."
"Morgan, free frozen yogurt, now go." Sarah handed him a small sack.
"Did you remember the sprinkles? 'Cause I'm all about the sprinkles."
"Go NOW."
"And I'll be going. Later guys."
"Thank God you're here Sarah, you have got to get me out of here."
"First things first." She grabbed his tie and pulled him in for a very long and showy kiss on the lips. "Now, walk with me."
"S-Sarah, what was that about? Don't get me wrong I mean I'm not complaining but, what the hell?"
"Our little buddy Morgan came into the Orange Orange in a tizzy because according to him you were suicidal over our breakup."
"I was what over our what?"
"Apparently you told Morgan I decided we needed a break form our relationship, and now he thinks you're despondent and that we need an intervention."
"Oh, well that explains a lot of things now. Like why Jeff and Lester wanted me to go out with them tonight, or why Anna kept rubbing up against me and telling me Morgan said it was 'ok'."
"Well that may explain things to you Chuck, but it doesn't do it for me."
"What, Why?"
Sarah lowered her voice to a harsh whisper "Because Chuck, we have a cover to maintain and I can't keep dropping everything to come running over here because you can't manage to convince people I'm your girlfriend!"
Chuck felt a blush rising into his cheeks as he heard the anger in Sarah's voice. He wasn't sure where this was coming from but after the way Casey and Sarah had talked to him earlier during their debriefing with General Beckman he'd decided he had about all of the attitude he was going to take for one day.
"Well I'm sorry this was such an imposition for you Agent Walker." Chuck had lowered his voice and mimicked Sarah's tone." I'll make sure everyone knows what a wonderful time I'm having in our fake relationship. Now if you'll excuse me I've got work to do." Chuck stopped suddenly and turned around to face a shocked Sarah, "Oh, and Ellie expects us for dinner at 7PM. Call if you can't make it."
Sarah stood in stunned silence watching Chuck walk away from her. She was supposed to be the angry one, after all she was the person who'd have to drop everything to come over here and repair the damage to their cover. Chuck knew that he had to maintain their cover, and normally he was pretty good, if not enthusiastic, about doing so. She was right, he was wrong. She was obviously angry with him, clearly upset at having to deal with this, and he knew it. She'd expected him to be sorry, apologetic even. Instead he was angry and so unlike himself. Why did she suddenly feel like she'd made a huge mistake?
A/N: This is my first fanfic and of course feedback is always welcome, the more specific the better. Thanks!