Title: Hidden Agenda
Author: Brokenflower
Disclaimer: If I owned Alias, McKennas Cole would not have given my city a bad rep by saying he was "just a kid from Redondo Beach." I blame JJ Abrams, Touchstone, and Bad Robot Productions.
Summary: When the CIA is taken over, Sydney and Vaughn run in to save the day but is it really what they think, or does someone have a hidden agenda?
Rating: PG
~
"Romeo, come in Romeo. This is Tailgater."
"I still can't believe you gave me the codename 'Romeo'."
"Oh, and Tailgater is the most ingenious name ever? At least 'Romeo' makes sense."
"Tailgater makes sense! Your job is to follow the target closely, basically keep 'tails' on her."
"Oh...that is good."
"Thank you. So, back to business, what's the update on the target?"
"Um...hold on. Okay target has just left the residence. I repeat the target has just left the residence and is moving on foot."
"Running?"
"Affirmative."
"Emotional state."
"Stable. She's smiling, probably because she's meeting the boyfriend for their usual morning work-out."
"ETA?"
"Ten minutes."
"Copy that."
"Romeo? Are you running?"
"Yeah, why?"
"Tie your shoes."
"What?"
"This is an important op and I don't want it to be screwed up because you tripped on your laces. I did not work this hard to fail on account of your being a klutz."
There was a pause. He could picture his partner looking down dumbly at his shoes, the image brought a grin to his face.
"How did you know my shoes were untied?"
"Your laces always come undone when you run."
Another pause.
"Just shut up and follow the target."
"Tailgater out."
~
Sydney jogged casually, a goofy grin on her face. If a year and a half ago someone were to tell her she and her father were going to take down SD-6 once and for all she would have told them to take a hike. Then if they were to add that she would change her mind and decide to stay with the CIA after it was over she would have made sure they wouldn't talk to her ever again.
By the end of SD-6 both Francie and Will knew what Sydney really did on all those "business trips," though that didn't make them worry any less. She tried to leave the world of espionage after the takedown but that battle only lasted for five months. She was bored with her failed college career, was unsuccessful at her attempts not to check for tails everywhere she went, and she hadn't seen Vaughn since the day after she walked out of Credit Dauphine for good (only after did she find out he was across country at Langley training for field duty). So, swallowing her pride she entered Agency headquarters, interrupted a meeting with Devlin and the new assistant director, her father, and asked for a job. Yes, even though the life of a spy had downsides it still carried the thrill and excitement she never knew she craved. Besides, it wasn't as horrible as before. Now, her friends knew and were allowed to know what she did for a living, she didn't have to fear for her life every second of the day (the CIA made sure she was wiped off the Alliance's radar), and she had the assurance that on every mission, she was working for the good guys. Plus the fact that her former handler was reassigned as her field partner helped a bit.
After he completed field training, Vaughn and Sydney both begged Devlin and Jack to let them work together, making sure to use the fact that they were the reason SD-6 was taken down as leverage. Sure it was against the interest of the Agency, sure there was a strong and potentially dangerous emotional attachment between them, sure Jack didn't like the idea of Agent Vaughn alone with his only daughter...but as they pointed out, they worked well together. Their partnership was different and for some reason that worked for them. Their attachment let them know what the other was thinking without even saying any words, it made them work together as a fluid pair as opposed to stiff colleagues, and they were what kept each other sane. They were each other's guardian angels and would die before they let anything happen to the other.
Sydney slowed her pace to a walk as she came upon the Jamba Juice she regularly met Vaughn at for their morning runs on their days off. As usual he was there first, sitting comfortably in black jogging pants, a T-shirt, and running shoes, waiting patiently for her arrival. The CIA frowned on inter-office relationships. Frowning on something doesn't make it a rule, besides even if it was...when had Sydney or Vaughn ever played by the rules?
"Good morning Michael," Sydney chirped, giving him a quick kiss on the lips before sitting down next to him.
About a month after Sydney went back to work, Vaughn returned to headquarters in LA to find a furious Sydney waiting in his office. After dodging several office plants and desk items she was throwing his way, he calmed her down and explained where he had been and that he wasn't allowed to have contact with anyone. Not seeing her, he'd said, especially after he was finally allowed to, had torn him apart. A week later they went to their first hockey game together and had been together ever since. It was then that Sydney decided to call him by his first name. It had taken months to get used to the name change and she still called him "Vaughn" by force of habit every time she slipped into mission mode but now it was a simple "Mike" or "Michael" that usually rolled off her tongue.
"Someone is cheerful today," he remarked lightly.
"Well I have reason to be," she answered cryptically, then looked at him expectantly. "So, what are you planning?"
He stared back at her blankly.
"Come on tell me!" she said excitedly.
"What are you talking about?"
"Don't play dumb Mike."
"Sydney, honestly, I have no idea what you're talking about."
"Michael, I know you want to keep it a surprise until it's time but I know so why hide it? I can't wait to see how you top last year's trip to Vegas."
"Okay, Syd. I'm really not follow-" he stopped short. "Oh, Syd! God! Oh, damn it! It's your birthday! Today! It's your birthday today!" he buried his face in his hands and groaned in frustration.
"You forgot?" Sydney asked meekly.
Vaughn looked up at her remorsefully and took her hands in his.
"I am so, so sorry Syd. I totally lost track of the days," he said guiltily.
"It's okay."
"No, no it's not. It's my fault. I've been down at op-techs this whole week with Marshall trying to break through the encryption codes on that disc we stole from SD-4 last week and we can't break through because- well actually Marshall designed it for them a few years ago but he did it so well that even HE can't decipher it and I've been so busy..."
"Wow, I never thought I'd see the day when something was 'Marshall proof' especially something he designed himself," Sydney said to herself.
"We had to re-vamp all the hard drives because the info somehow fried the memory, a security measure Marshall forgot about," he continued not hearing her, "and while I know more about computers than most people I'm not the computer genius Marshall is but they think I am and they think I can help but we're not any closer to finishing because this thing is so advanced we can barely scrape its surface! I didn't even stop to think..."
"Michael!" Sydney cut short his ramblings. "I understand."
"But your birthday means so much to you."
"Yeah, only because now I don't have to worry as much about seeing the next one," she replied.
"I'm sorry Sydney."
"I know and I forgive you but, you know what? Today is our day off so you have plenty of time to make it up to me," she teased trying to get a smile out of him.
"Thank you," he sighed in relief.
She searched his eyes. "You're not lying."
"Excuse me?"
"Well, it's just that you weren't blinking erratically or anything," she answered.
"You were scanning my eyes to see if I was lying? What do you think I've been doing all this week in op-techs?"
"Don't be mad, please, I just had this theory that you were down there planning something for me," she admitted sheepishly.
Vaughn smiled. "How can I be mad at you when I'm the one who forgot your birthday? You have reason to be suspicious, it's your job but sometimes, Sydney, things are exactly as they appear. Don't overanalyze everything, there isn't always a hidden agenda," he finished, standing up to run.
"Mike, in this business everyone has a hidden agenda," she countered, following him towards the beach.
~
"Is everything in place?"
"Yes, Romeo has taken over observation of the target."
"This is not the time to fool around with childish codenames."
"Relax Pops, lighten up."
"I told you to stop with the ridiculous names! Don't forget who I am and what I can do to you!"
A guilty silence.
"Yes sir, sorry sir."
"Is the manpower pool ready?"
"Affirmative. Before I left I placed operatives in the auditorium to set up."
"Are you on your way?"
"Yes sir. ETA ten minutes. I'm moving on foot."
"Why are you moving on foot?"
"I was forced to abandon my vehicle."
"Part of the master plan I suppose?"
"Yes sir. When I get there I'll pull my team out of the auditorium to sweep the office and move the agents there."
"This is not a game. Stop acting like it is."
"Sorry sir. So do you think Bristow will try to play the hero?"
"Yes, she doesn't know how not to."
~
"Okay," Vaughn said breathlessly, "let's stop here."
"The Santa Monica Pier," Sydney mused, "good choice."
Sydney stood by the familiar railing, letting the ocean breeze cool her as Vaughn bent down to tie his shoe. Just as she was admiring the nearby carnival he jumped slightly at the sound of his cell phone. Frowning he stood up and looked at the caller ID.
"What's wrong?" Sydney asked.
"It's Weiss. I told him not to call unless it was an emergency."
Sydney frowned.
"Here, I'll put it on speaker phone."
He answered the call and was greeted with static and a garbled voice.
"Eric?"
"Vaughn?" they could barely make out the name.
"What's wrong?"
"Office...attack...there are men...-torium...away...don't..."
"Eric, we can't hear you clearly," Sydney spoke into the phone.
"Armed men...suddenly...don't know..."
"It sounds like someone has taken over headquarters!" Vaughn gasped.
"But how?! How could someone take over the CIA?"
"Maybe the same way Cole took over SD-6," Vaughn suggested.
"We've got to get down there."
Vaughn nodded.
"Eric, don't worry, we're on our way."
"No!...away...stay away..."
There was more static followed by a struggle and more garbled voices, then, the sound of gunfire. The line went dead.
"Eric! Eric!" Vaughn shouted into the phone.
Sydney paled as Vaughn stared down at the phone in panic.
"Michael, we've got to get down there."
"We don't have a car. It'll take us too long to get there on foot."
"So, we'll borrow one," Sydney said determinedly.
They ran back up the pier and onto the street. Looking around Vaughn spotted the car he was looking for.
"Hey, this one over here," Vaughn pointed, sprinting towards the vehicle.
"A black convertible? This is not the time to play 007!"
Vaughn rolled his eyes. "Excuse me but do you have a crowbar handy right now? Did you bother to bring a lock pick? Because if you did fine, let's go ahead and boost that SUV over there if you think we can get into it."
"Fine, I get it Vaughn," she said impatiently, slipping into mission mode. "Just shut up and drive."
Vaughn and Sydney quickly got in the car, trying not to arouse too much suspicion. After a bit of rewiring on Vaughn's part they were off, weaving in and out of traffic. Finally they pulled into the underground garage and cautiously crept out of the car and up the stairs. Running straight up to the third floor where their offices were they took in their surroundings.
"The power's been cut," Vaughn whispered.
"There's no one here," Sydney said in awe.
"They swept the office," Vaughn observed, taking in the scattered appearance of some of the cubicles. "They've probably moved them all to one place."
"So let's go find them."
"Wait, we should grab some gear from the weapons locker first."
Minutes later, they were both equipped with flashlights, guns, and walkie- talkies, huddling over a map of the building.
"Okay, there are a few places they could have been moved," Vaughn studied the layout. "The cafeteria on second, there's an auditorium on the top floor, and in the basement there's a bomb shelter and interrogation room. They may have taken higher ranking officers there."
"I still don't see why we need the walkies," Sydney murmured.
"Because we're going to maintain communication in case one of us needs back- up."
"Wait. What? Vaughn, are you suggesting we split up?"
"I'm not suggesting, I'm telling you."
"No, I'm not..."
"I'll take the cafeteria and the auditorium..."
"I don't think it's wise to be separated..."
"You take the basement. We'll set the radios to channel five..."
"There's safety in numbers," she argued.
"That will take too much time! We'll cover more ground if we split up! For all we know they've already begun executing people! Now go, that's an order!"
"An order? Are you actually pulling rank on me?"
"As a higher ranking officer, yes I am. Now Agent Bristow, do as I say."
She opened her mouth to protest but she closed it under his intense stare. She clenched her jaw and nodded.
"Fine, Agent Vaughn," she said curtly.
"Turn on your radio to channel five."
"I know. I heard you the first time."
"Well, you didn't appear to be listening at the time."
Sydney remained silent as she switched channels on her radio. She couldn't believe he had actually ordered her to do something! She understood that it was the meanest of his three personalities, which was rarely ever revealed, talking but she still didn't have to like it. While on missions the pair separated themselves from being "Michael and Sydney" and instead reverted to their alter egos "Vaughn and Bristow" but there was still always a level of their "against protocol" companionship showing through. This time however he was "Senior Officer Agent Vaughn," not the smiling Michael or even the semi professional Vaughn she fell in love with. She frowned at the thought and turned to run down the stairs leading to the basement.
"Bristow!" he called her back.
She stopped and turned to him expectantly. His expression softened.
"Sydney, just...be careful."
She smiled slightly, there was the Vaughn she knew.
"You too."
He nodded and hurriedly left in the other direction. Remembering her job she did the same.
~
"Sir, Romeo has just reported in. The target is in the building."
"All right. You go after Vaughn and bring him back here."
"Yes sir."
The agent, codename Tailgater, left through the double doors of the auditorium while the older man turned to the unarmed CIA agents.
"It's time."
~
Sydney crept along the dark hallways, her flashlight only giving so much comfort. Around the corner was the interrogation room. She took a deep breath and flattened herself against the wall. Then, she edged herself close enough to spy around the corner. She saw no one but fully rounded the corner and went inside just to be sure. Sighing in a mix of relief and frustration she flipped on her radio
"Vaughn, I'm in the interrogation room, it's empty."
"Sydney."
His voice was hushed in fear.
"Vaughn, are you okay?"
"No, some guy just jumped me from behind. I was able to knock him unconscious but I have a feeling they'll be looking for him."
"Where are you?" she asked.
"The auditorium on the top floor. I'm trying to get a look inside through the air vents."
"What do you see?"
"I don't know. It's too dark. There are a few lanterns but nothing bright enough to really get a good look at these guys. I could sneak in and hide out in the shadows and they wouldn't even know I was there."
"Vaughn, don't risk it!" she hissed.
"I'm not going to..."
Vaughn's speech stopped abruptly. Sydney heard a loud thud and the sound of something rolling in the background.
"Shit!" he hissed angrily. "I dropped my flashlight, they're looking this way!"
"Hey! You there, drop your weapons and come out by the count of three!" an unknown voice shouted.
"Sydney! Get out of the building! Don't come for me!"
"One..."
"No, Vaughn just get out of there."
"Two..."
"They know I'm here." Sydney heard him call to the men. "I'm coming out!"
"Vaughn!"
"Sydney, don't follow. Leave now!"
"Three!"
Sydney listened in horror as Vaughn slid the vent cover out of place and dropped down below. She winced as she heard the all too familiar sound of the butt of a gun connecting with the back of a neck. Then all she was left with was static.
"Vaughn! Vaughn!" she screamed into the mouthpiece.
Taking a staggering breath she looked up determinedly.
"To hell with that," she said to herself.
Taking off her earpiece and throwing down the radio she hurriedly made her way back to the stairs and proceeded to take them two at a time. Finally, panting heavily, she reached the top floor. She didn't let the fatigue affect her however. All she could think about was getting into that auditorium and doing something, anything, to save the people she loved. She didn't have a plan and she knew that what she was about to do was absolute suicide but at the moment she didn't care.
There was no sign of the man that attacked Vaughn. Looking up she saw the vent that he must have climbed through to look into the room. Taking another deep breath she slid it open and pulled herself up into it, leaving her flashlight behind to better the element of surprise. Closing it carefully behind her she crawled up a few feet to the next vent, which overlooked the spacious room.
~Odd~ she thought. ~There are no lights, not even any flashlights~
Without making the slightest bit of noise she managed to open up that second vent. In the back of her mind she wondered why the vent was closed in the first place, since Vaughn had gone through earlier and surely he couldn't have closed it behind him but she pushed that thought away.
~Here goes nothing~ she said silently as she lowered herself down to the floor.
She made a loud thumping noise. She froze in terror, her heart pounding against her chest. She scrunched her eyes shut, waiting for a gun or knife or even a fist to do her in but it never came.
"Sydney?"
"Vaughn?" she whispered in disbelief. "Where are you?"
"Turn around."
Turning cautiously she reached, searching blindly in the dark, quickly finding his arms. She hugged him tightly.
"Oh, God, Michael I was so worried. What happened?"
He laughed and he pulled himself out of her arms.
"I told you not to follow me," he whispered.
Before Sydney had time to voice her confusion she was suddenly blinded by a wave of light. She brought her hand up to cover her eyes in attempts to help them adjust.
"SURPRISE!!!"
Sydney blinked several times in order to gain her vision back. She finally got a clear look at the room. Two long tables lined the wall to the left of her, piled high with food, drink, and gifts. In the middle of the great room was a spacious dance floor, surrounded by circular tables. Balloons and streamers littered the auditorium in a tasteful dosage. She turned around briefly and looked up at the open vent she came through and stumbled back to see directly below it a banner reading "Happy Birthday, Sydney!" She faced forward again and brought her hand to her mouth in a mixture of happiness and shock. She shook her head seeing the faces of her family, friends, and co-workers smiling and laughing.
She quickly felt self-conscious standing amongst her casually dressed friends while she stood in black jogging pants and a tight midriff, workout top. The fact that she was sweaty from her sprint up the many stairs of the agency didn't help.
"Oh my gosh!" she closed her eyes, shaking in laughter.
"Happy Birthday Syd," she opened her eyes and saw Vaughn standing in front of her with a sly grin on his face. "Surprised?"
"I can not believe it!" she screeched.
As if a five-minute rule had ended the party guests flooded around her, all crowding to wish her birthday greetings. Vaughn stepped back as Francie and Will pulled their friend into a group hug. A few minutes later Eric stepped out of the throngs and they stood together watching the interaction.
"Mission success, wouldn't you agree Romeo?" Eric said to him.
"That is an affirmative, Tailgater," he joked back.
"I told you two, this was not a game," Jack's dignified voice sounded as he walked over to the pair.
"Relax Pops, it's a birthday party, you don't have to be so serious," Eric laughed and then paled when he realized who he was talking to. "Oh, I'm sorry, sir-I forgot-uh-I..." he stuttered.
Jack only glared.
"Mr. Vaughn, your shoe is untied," he pointed out bluntly before walking away.
Vaughn sighed. "Why does that always happen when I run?"
"Jack hates me," Eric shook his head.
"You're the one who gave him the codename 'Pops'. You didn't have to use it in front of him," Vaughn reasoned, standing up from tying his shoe. "Hey, by the way, your car is parked on the second level."
"Thanks. Did you find it okay?"
"Yeah, as Sydney pointed out, it's kind of hard not to notice a black convertible."
"You owe me the cost of getting those wires fixed, you know that right?" Eric jested.
"I know, I know. Thanks for all your help, man."
"No worries, anything for Sydney. But, you on the other hand, I will be charging. You should also add the cost of new shoes in that figure too. Do you know how far it is from the Santa Monica Pier to here?"
Vaughn looked over Sydney. She was hugging Dixon, a huge grin on her face as she addressed Diane and the kids. She looked up at him as a cue to go over.
"You could have taken a bus," Vaughn said as he walked away.
"You could have taken a bus," Eric mimicked then he stopped. "Damn! I could have taken a bus!"
"I can not believe you went through all this trouble!" Sydney exclaimed.
"It was Mike's idea," Dixon replied.
"I was just the distraction," Vaughn admitted, refusing to take all the credit, "Eric was the one who decorated the place, and the one who left his car for us to hijack..."
"Oh my gosh! I had forgotten about that!" Sydney exclaimed.
"Your dad arranged the whole thing with Devlin," Dixon added.
"And Marshall is the genius behind the power outage and the sound effects," Vaughn referred to the techie, who'd just joined them.
Marshall held up a small device with a few small, white buttons on it. He pressed one, it was the sound of the flashlight rolling down the vents, he pressed the next one and it was the sound of the attacker calling Vaughn out, the next was the sound that Sydney heard when she feared Vaughn had been knocked out.
"Pretty cool huh? See, we had the thing all planned out and everything. There was even this echo option that made it seem like Mike was really in the vents at the time," he explained. "Oh and when you press this red button it sends out this low frequency signal, like so low that you can barely tell it's there, and-well, it disrupts the frequency on any cellular device to create the static that interrupted Weiss's call. It's the same signal that comes from bad antennas and office building security systems that interfere with the satellite connection that cause static with cell phones normally, this is just that same static in a box. Of course there are other factors that lead to cellular interference, like building structure, satellite positioning, and..." he trailed off seeing their faces, "but you don't need to know all that. Happy Birthday."
Sydney nodded encouragingly. "So I was right? This entire week when you were down at op-techs with Marshall you really were planning this surprise party for me."
"Marshall?" Vaughn bounced the question back to his friend.
"Well, actually, we did spend the first two days trying to get past the security measures I designed on that disc from SD-4, but the rest of the week...yeah, we were planning the party."
The group laughed as the band in the corner started playing "Everything" by Lifehouse.
"Michael, that's our song," Sydney said, recognizing the tune that had been 'theirs' since their first date.
"Would you care to dance?" Vaughn offered his hand to the birthday girl.
"Of course."
He led her to the floor and twined one hand in hers while the other held her waist.
"I still can't believe it," Sydney mused. "So you didn't forget my birthday after all?"
"Of course not," Vaughn frowned laughingly. "Oh ye of little faith."
"But what about earlier? I mean, this morning you weren't blinking like most people do when they lie and you were so convincing when we got the call. How?"
"I'm a spy," Vaughn answered cryptically. "I'm trained in the arts of lying."
"Yes, but when have you ever used this against me? It's like I'm looking at a whole new Mike to add to your three other personalities. It's sneaky Vaughn."
"No, it's the same Vaughn," he said knowingly, "I've always been devious. I've just never used my mastermind against you. Remember Syd, in this business everyone has a hidden agenda," he smirked, echoing her words from that morning.
Sydney laughed and smacked his arm lightly.
"Okay, I've got another question then."
"Ask away."
"So, if you knew that this whole party was waiting for me up here, why did you tell me not to come after you?"
"Ah, see, if I told you not to come after me, to save yourself because I was in mortal peril and didn't want the same for you, I knew you would run up those stairs twice as fast to get here and save the day. Simple reverse psychology."
"I would have gotten here if you had asked for back-up," Sydney stated defensively.
"Yes, but not as fast. It was really just me being impatient, I couldn't wait to see the look on your face when you realized the whole thing had been a set up."
She smirked and hit him again. He made a look of protest but kept on dancing.
"So, does this top last year's trip to Vegas?" he asked.
"Well, Michael I don't know, it was an incredible effort but I was expecting another trip."
"Another trip?" he played along.
"Yeah," Sydney continued, "I was expecting maybe Hawaii or the Bahamas."
Vaughn looked doubtful. "No, see, I was thinking of saving the Bahamas for our honeymoon."
Sydney snorted.
"Our honeymoon?" she asked in a joking manner.
Eric walked by and making sure Sydney saw, passed a small, black velvet box to Vaughn. Smiling the smile of one who has an incredible secret, Vaughn lifted the box to her line of sight and with a small nod slipped it into his pocket. Sydney's eyes widened and her jaw dropped.
"Yeah, our honeymoon," he carried on as if nothing had happened, "of course, that all depends on your answer to my next question."
Sydney's eyes sparkled in happiness as she found her voice and echoed his words from moments before.
"Ask away."
~
THE END!
AN: That was a nice, happy ending, don't you think? All of the Alias fan fiction on this board is so serious and angsty. I just wanted to write something that maybe lifted your spirits and made you smile. Did it work?
PS-Be on the look out for a companion piece to this one!
Author: Brokenflower
Disclaimer: If I owned Alias, McKennas Cole would not have given my city a bad rep by saying he was "just a kid from Redondo Beach." I blame JJ Abrams, Touchstone, and Bad Robot Productions.
Summary: When the CIA is taken over, Sydney and Vaughn run in to save the day but is it really what they think, or does someone have a hidden agenda?
Rating: PG
~
"Romeo, come in Romeo. This is Tailgater."
"I still can't believe you gave me the codename 'Romeo'."
"Oh, and Tailgater is the most ingenious name ever? At least 'Romeo' makes sense."
"Tailgater makes sense! Your job is to follow the target closely, basically keep 'tails' on her."
"Oh...that is good."
"Thank you. So, back to business, what's the update on the target?"
"Um...hold on. Okay target has just left the residence. I repeat the target has just left the residence and is moving on foot."
"Running?"
"Affirmative."
"Emotional state."
"Stable. She's smiling, probably because she's meeting the boyfriend for their usual morning work-out."
"ETA?"
"Ten minutes."
"Copy that."
"Romeo? Are you running?"
"Yeah, why?"
"Tie your shoes."
"What?"
"This is an important op and I don't want it to be screwed up because you tripped on your laces. I did not work this hard to fail on account of your being a klutz."
There was a pause. He could picture his partner looking down dumbly at his shoes, the image brought a grin to his face.
"How did you know my shoes were untied?"
"Your laces always come undone when you run."
Another pause.
"Just shut up and follow the target."
"Tailgater out."
~
Sydney jogged casually, a goofy grin on her face. If a year and a half ago someone were to tell her she and her father were going to take down SD-6 once and for all she would have told them to take a hike. Then if they were to add that she would change her mind and decide to stay with the CIA after it was over she would have made sure they wouldn't talk to her ever again.
By the end of SD-6 both Francie and Will knew what Sydney really did on all those "business trips," though that didn't make them worry any less. She tried to leave the world of espionage after the takedown but that battle only lasted for five months. She was bored with her failed college career, was unsuccessful at her attempts not to check for tails everywhere she went, and she hadn't seen Vaughn since the day after she walked out of Credit Dauphine for good (only after did she find out he was across country at Langley training for field duty). So, swallowing her pride she entered Agency headquarters, interrupted a meeting with Devlin and the new assistant director, her father, and asked for a job. Yes, even though the life of a spy had downsides it still carried the thrill and excitement she never knew she craved. Besides, it wasn't as horrible as before. Now, her friends knew and were allowed to know what she did for a living, she didn't have to fear for her life every second of the day (the CIA made sure she was wiped off the Alliance's radar), and she had the assurance that on every mission, she was working for the good guys. Plus the fact that her former handler was reassigned as her field partner helped a bit.
After he completed field training, Vaughn and Sydney both begged Devlin and Jack to let them work together, making sure to use the fact that they were the reason SD-6 was taken down as leverage. Sure it was against the interest of the Agency, sure there was a strong and potentially dangerous emotional attachment between them, sure Jack didn't like the idea of Agent Vaughn alone with his only daughter...but as they pointed out, they worked well together. Their partnership was different and for some reason that worked for them. Their attachment let them know what the other was thinking without even saying any words, it made them work together as a fluid pair as opposed to stiff colleagues, and they were what kept each other sane. They were each other's guardian angels and would die before they let anything happen to the other.
Sydney slowed her pace to a walk as she came upon the Jamba Juice she regularly met Vaughn at for their morning runs on their days off. As usual he was there first, sitting comfortably in black jogging pants, a T-shirt, and running shoes, waiting patiently for her arrival. The CIA frowned on inter-office relationships. Frowning on something doesn't make it a rule, besides even if it was...when had Sydney or Vaughn ever played by the rules?
"Good morning Michael," Sydney chirped, giving him a quick kiss on the lips before sitting down next to him.
About a month after Sydney went back to work, Vaughn returned to headquarters in LA to find a furious Sydney waiting in his office. After dodging several office plants and desk items she was throwing his way, he calmed her down and explained where he had been and that he wasn't allowed to have contact with anyone. Not seeing her, he'd said, especially after he was finally allowed to, had torn him apart. A week later they went to their first hockey game together and had been together ever since. It was then that Sydney decided to call him by his first name. It had taken months to get used to the name change and she still called him "Vaughn" by force of habit every time she slipped into mission mode but now it was a simple "Mike" or "Michael" that usually rolled off her tongue.
"Someone is cheerful today," he remarked lightly.
"Well I have reason to be," she answered cryptically, then looked at him expectantly. "So, what are you planning?"
He stared back at her blankly.
"Come on tell me!" she said excitedly.
"What are you talking about?"
"Don't play dumb Mike."
"Sydney, honestly, I have no idea what you're talking about."
"Michael, I know you want to keep it a surprise until it's time but I know so why hide it? I can't wait to see how you top last year's trip to Vegas."
"Okay, Syd. I'm really not follow-" he stopped short. "Oh, Syd! God! Oh, damn it! It's your birthday! Today! It's your birthday today!" he buried his face in his hands and groaned in frustration.
"You forgot?" Sydney asked meekly.
Vaughn looked up at her remorsefully and took her hands in his.
"I am so, so sorry Syd. I totally lost track of the days," he said guiltily.
"It's okay."
"No, no it's not. It's my fault. I've been down at op-techs this whole week with Marshall trying to break through the encryption codes on that disc we stole from SD-4 last week and we can't break through because- well actually Marshall designed it for them a few years ago but he did it so well that even HE can't decipher it and I've been so busy..."
"Wow, I never thought I'd see the day when something was 'Marshall proof' especially something he designed himself," Sydney said to herself.
"We had to re-vamp all the hard drives because the info somehow fried the memory, a security measure Marshall forgot about," he continued not hearing her, "and while I know more about computers than most people I'm not the computer genius Marshall is but they think I am and they think I can help but we're not any closer to finishing because this thing is so advanced we can barely scrape its surface! I didn't even stop to think..."
"Michael!" Sydney cut short his ramblings. "I understand."
"But your birthday means so much to you."
"Yeah, only because now I don't have to worry as much about seeing the next one," she replied.
"I'm sorry Sydney."
"I know and I forgive you but, you know what? Today is our day off so you have plenty of time to make it up to me," she teased trying to get a smile out of him.
"Thank you," he sighed in relief.
She searched his eyes. "You're not lying."
"Excuse me?"
"Well, it's just that you weren't blinking erratically or anything," she answered.
"You were scanning my eyes to see if I was lying? What do you think I've been doing all this week in op-techs?"
"Don't be mad, please, I just had this theory that you were down there planning something for me," she admitted sheepishly.
Vaughn smiled. "How can I be mad at you when I'm the one who forgot your birthday? You have reason to be suspicious, it's your job but sometimes, Sydney, things are exactly as they appear. Don't overanalyze everything, there isn't always a hidden agenda," he finished, standing up to run.
"Mike, in this business everyone has a hidden agenda," she countered, following him towards the beach.
~
"Is everything in place?"
"Yes, Romeo has taken over observation of the target."
"This is not the time to fool around with childish codenames."
"Relax Pops, lighten up."
"I told you to stop with the ridiculous names! Don't forget who I am and what I can do to you!"
A guilty silence.
"Yes sir, sorry sir."
"Is the manpower pool ready?"
"Affirmative. Before I left I placed operatives in the auditorium to set up."
"Are you on your way?"
"Yes sir. ETA ten minutes. I'm moving on foot."
"Why are you moving on foot?"
"I was forced to abandon my vehicle."
"Part of the master plan I suppose?"
"Yes sir. When I get there I'll pull my team out of the auditorium to sweep the office and move the agents there."
"This is not a game. Stop acting like it is."
"Sorry sir. So do you think Bristow will try to play the hero?"
"Yes, she doesn't know how not to."
~
"Okay," Vaughn said breathlessly, "let's stop here."
"The Santa Monica Pier," Sydney mused, "good choice."
Sydney stood by the familiar railing, letting the ocean breeze cool her as Vaughn bent down to tie his shoe. Just as she was admiring the nearby carnival he jumped slightly at the sound of his cell phone. Frowning he stood up and looked at the caller ID.
"What's wrong?" Sydney asked.
"It's Weiss. I told him not to call unless it was an emergency."
Sydney frowned.
"Here, I'll put it on speaker phone."
He answered the call and was greeted with static and a garbled voice.
"Eric?"
"Vaughn?" they could barely make out the name.
"What's wrong?"
"Office...attack...there are men...-torium...away...don't..."
"Eric, we can't hear you clearly," Sydney spoke into the phone.
"Armed men...suddenly...don't know..."
"It sounds like someone has taken over headquarters!" Vaughn gasped.
"But how?! How could someone take over the CIA?"
"Maybe the same way Cole took over SD-6," Vaughn suggested.
"We've got to get down there."
Vaughn nodded.
"Eric, don't worry, we're on our way."
"No!...away...stay away..."
There was more static followed by a struggle and more garbled voices, then, the sound of gunfire. The line went dead.
"Eric! Eric!" Vaughn shouted into the phone.
Sydney paled as Vaughn stared down at the phone in panic.
"Michael, we've got to get down there."
"We don't have a car. It'll take us too long to get there on foot."
"So, we'll borrow one," Sydney said determinedly.
They ran back up the pier and onto the street. Looking around Vaughn spotted the car he was looking for.
"Hey, this one over here," Vaughn pointed, sprinting towards the vehicle.
"A black convertible? This is not the time to play 007!"
Vaughn rolled his eyes. "Excuse me but do you have a crowbar handy right now? Did you bother to bring a lock pick? Because if you did fine, let's go ahead and boost that SUV over there if you think we can get into it."
"Fine, I get it Vaughn," she said impatiently, slipping into mission mode. "Just shut up and drive."
Vaughn and Sydney quickly got in the car, trying not to arouse too much suspicion. After a bit of rewiring on Vaughn's part they were off, weaving in and out of traffic. Finally they pulled into the underground garage and cautiously crept out of the car and up the stairs. Running straight up to the third floor where their offices were they took in their surroundings.
"The power's been cut," Vaughn whispered.
"There's no one here," Sydney said in awe.
"They swept the office," Vaughn observed, taking in the scattered appearance of some of the cubicles. "They've probably moved them all to one place."
"So let's go find them."
"Wait, we should grab some gear from the weapons locker first."
Minutes later, they were both equipped with flashlights, guns, and walkie- talkies, huddling over a map of the building.
"Okay, there are a few places they could have been moved," Vaughn studied the layout. "The cafeteria on second, there's an auditorium on the top floor, and in the basement there's a bomb shelter and interrogation room. They may have taken higher ranking officers there."
"I still don't see why we need the walkies," Sydney murmured.
"Because we're going to maintain communication in case one of us needs back- up."
"Wait. What? Vaughn, are you suggesting we split up?"
"I'm not suggesting, I'm telling you."
"No, I'm not..."
"I'll take the cafeteria and the auditorium..."
"I don't think it's wise to be separated..."
"You take the basement. We'll set the radios to channel five..."
"There's safety in numbers," she argued.
"That will take too much time! We'll cover more ground if we split up! For all we know they've already begun executing people! Now go, that's an order!"
"An order? Are you actually pulling rank on me?"
"As a higher ranking officer, yes I am. Now Agent Bristow, do as I say."
She opened her mouth to protest but she closed it under his intense stare. She clenched her jaw and nodded.
"Fine, Agent Vaughn," she said curtly.
"Turn on your radio to channel five."
"I know. I heard you the first time."
"Well, you didn't appear to be listening at the time."
Sydney remained silent as she switched channels on her radio. She couldn't believe he had actually ordered her to do something! She understood that it was the meanest of his three personalities, which was rarely ever revealed, talking but she still didn't have to like it. While on missions the pair separated themselves from being "Michael and Sydney" and instead reverted to their alter egos "Vaughn and Bristow" but there was still always a level of their "against protocol" companionship showing through. This time however he was "Senior Officer Agent Vaughn," not the smiling Michael or even the semi professional Vaughn she fell in love with. She frowned at the thought and turned to run down the stairs leading to the basement.
"Bristow!" he called her back.
She stopped and turned to him expectantly. His expression softened.
"Sydney, just...be careful."
She smiled slightly, there was the Vaughn she knew.
"You too."
He nodded and hurriedly left in the other direction. Remembering her job she did the same.
~
"Sir, Romeo has just reported in. The target is in the building."
"All right. You go after Vaughn and bring him back here."
"Yes sir."
The agent, codename Tailgater, left through the double doors of the auditorium while the older man turned to the unarmed CIA agents.
"It's time."
~
Sydney crept along the dark hallways, her flashlight only giving so much comfort. Around the corner was the interrogation room. She took a deep breath and flattened herself against the wall. Then, she edged herself close enough to spy around the corner. She saw no one but fully rounded the corner and went inside just to be sure. Sighing in a mix of relief and frustration she flipped on her radio
"Vaughn, I'm in the interrogation room, it's empty."
"Sydney."
His voice was hushed in fear.
"Vaughn, are you okay?"
"No, some guy just jumped me from behind. I was able to knock him unconscious but I have a feeling they'll be looking for him."
"Where are you?" she asked.
"The auditorium on the top floor. I'm trying to get a look inside through the air vents."
"What do you see?"
"I don't know. It's too dark. There are a few lanterns but nothing bright enough to really get a good look at these guys. I could sneak in and hide out in the shadows and they wouldn't even know I was there."
"Vaughn, don't risk it!" she hissed.
"I'm not going to..."
Vaughn's speech stopped abruptly. Sydney heard a loud thud and the sound of something rolling in the background.
"Shit!" he hissed angrily. "I dropped my flashlight, they're looking this way!"
"Hey! You there, drop your weapons and come out by the count of three!" an unknown voice shouted.
"Sydney! Get out of the building! Don't come for me!"
"One..."
"No, Vaughn just get out of there."
"Two..."
"They know I'm here." Sydney heard him call to the men. "I'm coming out!"
"Vaughn!"
"Sydney, don't follow. Leave now!"
"Three!"
Sydney listened in horror as Vaughn slid the vent cover out of place and dropped down below. She winced as she heard the all too familiar sound of the butt of a gun connecting with the back of a neck. Then all she was left with was static.
"Vaughn! Vaughn!" she screamed into the mouthpiece.
Taking a staggering breath she looked up determinedly.
"To hell with that," she said to herself.
Taking off her earpiece and throwing down the radio she hurriedly made her way back to the stairs and proceeded to take them two at a time. Finally, panting heavily, she reached the top floor. She didn't let the fatigue affect her however. All she could think about was getting into that auditorium and doing something, anything, to save the people she loved. She didn't have a plan and she knew that what she was about to do was absolute suicide but at the moment she didn't care.
There was no sign of the man that attacked Vaughn. Looking up she saw the vent that he must have climbed through to look into the room. Taking another deep breath she slid it open and pulled herself up into it, leaving her flashlight behind to better the element of surprise. Closing it carefully behind her she crawled up a few feet to the next vent, which overlooked the spacious room.
~Odd~ she thought. ~There are no lights, not even any flashlights~
Without making the slightest bit of noise she managed to open up that second vent. In the back of her mind she wondered why the vent was closed in the first place, since Vaughn had gone through earlier and surely he couldn't have closed it behind him but she pushed that thought away.
~Here goes nothing~ she said silently as she lowered herself down to the floor.
She made a loud thumping noise. She froze in terror, her heart pounding against her chest. She scrunched her eyes shut, waiting for a gun or knife or even a fist to do her in but it never came.
"Sydney?"
"Vaughn?" she whispered in disbelief. "Where are you?"
"Turn around."
Turning cautiously she reached, searching blindly in the dark, quickly finding his arms. She hugged him tightly.
"Oh, God, Michael I was so worried. What happened?"
He laughed and he pulled himself out of her arms.
"I told you not to follow me," he whispered.
Before Sydney had time to voice her confusion she was suddenly blinded by a wave of light. She brought her hand up to cover her eyes in attempts to help them adjust.
"SURPRISE!!!"
Sydney blinked several times in order to gain her vision back. She finally got a clear look at the room. Two long tables lined the wall to the left of her, piled high with food, drink, and gifts. In the middle of the great room was a spacious dance floor, surrounded by circular tables. Balloons and streamers littered the auditorium in a tasteful dosage. She turned around briefly and looked up at the open vent she came through and stumbled back to see directly below it a banner reading "Happy Birthday, Sydney!" She faced forward again and brought her hand to her mouth in a mixture of happiness and shock. She shook her head seeing the faces of her family, friends, and co-workers smiling and laughing.
She quickly felt self-conscious standing amongst her casually dressed friends while she stood in black jogging pants and a tight midriff, workout top. The fact that she was sweaty from her sprint up the many stairs of the agency didn't help.
"Oh my gosh!" she closed her eyes, shaking in laughter.
"Happy Birthday Syd," she opened her eyes and saw Vaughn standing in front of her with a sly grin on his face. "Surprised?"
"I can not believe it!" she screeched.
As if a five-minute rule had ended the party guests flooded around her, all crowding to wish her birthday greetings. Vaughn stepped back as Francie and Will pulled their friend into a group hug. A few minutes later Eric stepped out of the throngs and they stood together watching the interaction.
"Mission success, wouldn't you agree Romeo?" Eric said to him.
"That is an affirmative, Tailgater," he joked back.
"I told you two, this was not a game," Jack's dignified voice sounded as he walked over to the pair.
"Relax Pops, it's a birthday party, you don't have to be so serious," Eric laughed and then paled when he realized who he was talking to. "Oh, I'm sorry, sir-I forgot-uh-I..." he stuttered.
Jack only glared.
"Mr. Vaughn, your shoe is untied," he pointed out bluntly before walking away.
Vaughn sighed. "Why does that always happen when I run?"
"Jack hates me," Eric shook his head.
"You're the one who gave him the codename 'Pops'. You didn't have to use it in front of him," Vaughn reasoned, standing up from tying his shoe. "Hey, by the way, your car is parked on the second level."
"Thanks. Did you find it okay?"
"Yeah, as Sydney pointed out, it's kind of hard not to notice a black convertible."
"You owe me the cost of getting those wires fixed, you know that right?" Eric jested.
"I know, I know. Thanks for all your help, man."
"No worries, anything for Sydney. But, you on the other hand, I will be charging. You should also add the cost of new shoes in that figure too. Do you know how far it is from the Santa Monica Pier to here?"
Vaughn looked over Sydney. She was hugging Dixon, a huge grin on her face as she addressed Diane and the kids. She looked up at him as a cue to go over.
"You could have taken a bus," Vaughn said as he walked away.
"You could have taken a bus," Eric mimicked then he stopped. "Damn! I could have taken a bus!"
"I can not believe you went through all this trouble!" Sydney exclaimed.
"It was Mike's idea," Dixon replied.
"I was just the distraction," Vaughn admitted, refusing to take all the credit, "Eric was the one who decorated the place, and the one who left his car for us to hijack..."
"Oh my gosh! I had forgotten about that!" Sydney exclaimed.
"Your dad arranged the whole thing with Devlin," Dixon added.
"And Marshall is the genius behind the power outage and the sound effects," Vaughn referred to the techie, who'd just joined them.
Marshall held up a small device with a few small, white buttons on it. He pressed one, it was the sound of the flashlight rolling down the vents, he pressed the next one and it was the sound of the attacker calling Vaughn out, the next was the sound that Sydney heard when she feared Vaughn had been knocked out.
"Pretty cool huh? See, we had the thing all planned out and everything. There was even this echo option that made it seem like Mike was really in the vents at the time," he explained. "Oh and when you press this red button it sends out this low frequency signal, like so low that you can barely tell it's there, and-well, it disrupts the frequency on any cellular device to create the static that interrupted Weiss's call. It's the same signal that comes from bad antennas and office building security systems that interfere with the satellite connection that cause static with cell phones normally, this is just that same static in a box. Of course there are other factors that lead to cellular interference, like building structure, satellite positioning, and..." he trailed off seeing their faces, "but you don't need to know all that. Happy Birthday."
Sydney nodded encouragingly. "So I was right? This entire week when you were down at op-techs with Marshall you really were planning this surprise party for me."
"Marshall?" Vaughn bounced the question back to his friend.
"Well, actually, we did spend the first two days trying to get past the security measures I designed on that disc from SD-4, but the rest of the week...yeah, we were planning the party."
The group laughed as the band in the corner started playing "Everything" by Lifehouse.
"Michael, that's our song," Sydney said, recognizing the tune that had been 'theirs' since their first date.
"Would you care to dance?" Vaughn offered his hand to the birthday girl.
"Of course."
He led her to the floor and twined one hand in hers while the other held her waist.
"I still can't believe it," Sydney mused. "So you didn't forget my birthday after all?"
"Of course not," Vaughn frowned laughingly. "Oh ye of little faith."
"But what about earlier? I mean, this morning you weren't blinking like most people do when they lie and you were so convincing when we got the call. How?"
"I'm a spy," Vaughn answered cryptically. "I'm trained in the arts of lying."
"Yes, but when have you ever used this against me? It's like I'm looking at a whole new Mike to add to your three other personalities. It's sneaky Vaughn."
"No, it's the same Vaughn," he said knowingly, "I've always been devious. I've just never used my mastermind against you. Remember Syd, in this business everyone has a hidden agenda," he smirked, echoing her words from that morning.
Sydney laughed and smacked his arm lightly.
"Okay, I've got another question then."
"Ask away."
"So, if you knew that this whole party was waiting for me up here, why did you tell me not to come after you?"
"Ah, see, if I told you not to come after me, to save yourself because I was in mortal peril and didn't want the same for you, I knew you would run up those stairs twice as fast to get here and save the day. Simple reverse psychology."
"I would have gotten here if you had asked for back-up," Sydney stated defensively.
"Yes, but not as fast. It was really just me being impatient, I couldn't wait to see the look on your face when you realized the whole thing had been a set up."
She smirked and hit him again. He made a look of protest but kept on dancing.
"So, does this top last year's trip to Vegas?" he asked.
"Well, Michael I don't know, it was an incredible effort but I was expecting another trip."
"Another trip?" he played along.
"Yeah," Sydney continued, "I was expecting maybe Hawaii or the Bahamas."
Vaughn looked doubtful. "No, see, I was thinking of saving the Bahamas for our honeymoon."
Sydney snorted.
"Our honeymoon?" she asked in a joking manner.
Eric walked by and making sure Sydney saw, passed a small, black velvet box to Vaughn. Smiling the smile of one who has an incredible secret, Vaughn lifted the box to her line of sight and with a small nod slipped it into his pocket. Sydney's eyes widened and her jaw dropped.
"Yeah, our honeymoon," he carried on as if nothing had happened, "of course, that all depends on your answer to my next question."
Sydney's eyes sparkled in happiness as she found her voice and echoed his words from moments before.
"Ask away."
~
THE END!
AN: That was a nice, happy ending, don't you think? All of the Alias fan fiction on this board is so serious and angsty. I just wanted to write something that maybe lifted your spirits and made you smile. Did it work?
PS-Be on the look out for a companion piece to this one!