Hello again. This is just a series of one-shots that will vary in size and length involving many of the characters in White Collar. It will go through the alphabet. I know some others might have done this, but I assure you that this one is different and my own take on these wonderful characters. I hope you read and respond. All mistakes are my own because I don't have a beta reader. I can take the good and the bad, and feel free to drop me a prompt/idea or something if you want.
Disclaimer: I do not own WC otherwise I wouldn't be doing this. There are some quotes from Flip of the Coin, but that is about it so all rights go to the respective owners/writers/etc concerning that bit.
Allure (n)- the power to attract; enticement;appeal
Allure:
When Peter first looked at the file coded James Bonds he was impressed by the forger, but had no qualms about being able to bring this person to justice. The more he learned about the enigma of Neal Caffrey, he started to wonder what made such a brilliant, young man to want to turn to a life of crime. What was the allure of the criminal life to such a talented individual? When he first started to hunt Neal down he thought the main reason was the joy of stealing from others. People who had wealth and that Neal just did this for selfish and uncaring reasons. But, the more he researched and hunted down this man he started to wonder why he really was pulling these cons.
The mystery didn't stop when Neal became his partner. He saw the look in Neal's eye when no one else was paying attention when they worked on figuring out how someone pulled off a con of their own. Peter started to realize that there was more to the reasons behind why Mozzie and Neal did what they did. There was definitely more than meets the eye with both of them in general. They were different, an enigma, a puzzle. They didn't do it for spite, anger, revenge, or because they felt like they had claim over what they took. He always tried to wheedle out of Neal the reasons he turned to the criminal life, but the man always redirected either with a hat trick, a joke about how he was reformed, or a flash of his famous and dazzling Caffrey signature smile. But early into their partnership Peter was finally able to get a little bit of insight as to why he and the little man conned others.
It was during one night while they were working on the case of John Mitchel, a family friend of the Burkes, who appeared to have possibly been set up when Peter got that insight. He had dropped by unannounced and ended up meeting Neal's street contact he wanted to meet since the Dutchmen case. After one too many Fisler beers for Peter and some gin for the little guy, Peter finally got to ask them straight out while looking at the stunning view what it was all about to them.
"Man, look at that view. Is this why you guys do it? Is this what it's all about?" Peter asked them out loud. He turned his head away from the windows showing a lit up New York against the night sky to look at both men.
"It's not about the stuff." Mozzie answered without skipping a beat. Peter noticed Caffrey shift slightly in his seat.
"Moz." Neal quietly warned with a slight shake of his head. Mozzie looked at Neal momentarily, but continued on. Haversham felt it was important to tell the suit why they did this. If anything it showed a majority of the reason behind why this short, quirky, government fearing man chose to live the life of a conman, but perhaps a little bit into the young man sitting across from them too.
"It's about doing what we want to do. Who cares about nine-to-fives and 401-Ks? Playing by the rules only makes... borders. They just... take away everything that's good about living life." Mozzie stated. After hearing that and seeing Neal's light smile at his drunken friends' words that Peter started to see what's so alluring to the young man. There was more to it being just the inability to stay away from glittering things.
The allure of fine art, wine, sculptures, historical artifacts, and the art claimed to be lost to the ages had a strong hold on Neal. He loved and appreciated the arts to a point where Peter didn't really understand. Of course Peter never really was devoted to the arts, even if he did know a thing or two about them. The challenge of pulling off a particularly hard con brought the young man thrill and excitement. The con itself was a way of him getting to test his intelligence and skills. The ability to do what he did was hard to do for most, but for Neal it was his way of life. For him the reasons he pulled off a particularly hard con or any con for that matter had nothing to do with the people he stole from or tricked, it was simply the act and art of the con itself. The freedom and choice to do what he wanted and living life the way he wanted to as well. Neal liked to show off and was young; he still needed to grow up in Peter's mind. Peter still saw the alleged conman get a mischievous spark in his eye when he would lightheartedly take the agents' wallet when the man wasn't paying attention or when Peter caught him looking a bit too much at anything with value while working on a case. The allure of the con and what it brought to Neal was strong. The agent doubted that the young reformed conman would ever lose that spark or allure of wanting to pull a con. Peter knew Neal wasn't going to change anytime soon, but he hoped that one day he could see that he could do some good. It certainly would make Peter's life a little bit easier when Neal finally did.
AN: Hope you like it. Now press that button! You know you want to. What's the harm? :D…..