I still don't own Chuck. I'm not sure who does at this point.

I wrote a story called Negotiation that was set in about this same period where C/S were secretly married. Except in that story, Sarah found out she was pregnant and they ran. I don't think that works here. And actually, I'm not sure how far I can take this concept. The Jill arc just doesn't work. It felt awkward, even in the show, like it was out of place from where they were just before and just after. It felt like those three episodes were inserted in the middle of the story… and maybe they were. In any event, for this story certainly Chuck can't have sex with Jill. So at least that would have to change.

I would like to get to DeLorean and Santa Claus. I'm not sure I remember enough about 3D to write it. I think I was too busy yawning. Don't get me started on the huge opportunity wasted with a guarantied massive audience, sigh. I would like to get to the Cole arc. I do think I'd like to tell that story. Beckman finally orders Sarah into the seduction mission they knew was coming but had been dreading. Then there's old Agent Walker's admiration of a great spy vs Sarah's new husband whom she honestly adores to explore.

There is one thing that really bothers me about this episode. Chuck is in Sarah's hotel room trying to get her to give him details about her past under the guise of preparing for the upcoming assignment. She is clearly not buying it. Really, Chuck? Do you not see that this lethal killing machine is getting very, very, very pissed at you? Are you really that clueless? Do you have a death wish? Clueless Chuck is one of my least favorite things about the show.

I'm trying to change as little as possible of what we saw on the screen. But now that they're married (you did catch that in the last chapter, right?) I do think that scene has to change just a bit. We'll start there.

I would still appreciate your comments. The worst thing for an author is silence. You can't tell if you're connecting with your readers, if they're getting where you think the story is going or not. And those comments don't have to be praise. Of course, I'd be lying if I tried to say that I don't enjoy the praise. But I actually learn more from the critical comments. Just as long as you're respectful and allow me to respond, you can say anything.

Chuck vs The Cougars

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Chuck looked at the pencil sticking out of the picture where Sarah had just thrown it out of frustration. His first reaction was… wow. Who could throw a pencil into a glass picture frame so hard that it stuck there? But that was his Sarah in a nutshell. There was seemingly no limit to what she could do physically. Casey was twice her size and more. Yet if they were to fight, there was no question but that Sarah would easily win. She was as impressive as anyone he could even imagine.

Emotionally… not so much.

The girl had built protective walls equally as impressive as anyone he could imagine. It simply broke his heart to see her struggle. And wasn't his job as husband to help her through those issues? They had already made some good progress. And, okay. Sure, his efforts weren't entirely altruistic. He was dying to know some things about her past. After all, wasn't that what being married meant? That you would get closer and help each other through their issues?

But first he had to calm her down. "Sarah," he said with the smile that he knew melted her heart. Maybe it wasn't fair. But she said it herself just last week. Wives didn't always have to be fair. Hopefully that applied to husbands as well.

Apparently not… or if it did clearly not always.

"It's not going to work this time," Sarah interrupted hotly. "Yeah I know that you think you can flash that smile at me and get out of pretty much anything. Well, not this time. You wanted to see me pissed?" She took her right index finger and pointed it at her face. "Well, take a good look. This is me pissed. Chuck, I've never been this pissed at you. Be careful what you wish for."

Chuck was so stunned at her tirade that all he could do was stand there and stare sadly at her.

Again, no sale.

"Oh here it comes," Sarah said sarcastically. "The predictable puppy dog eyes… not going to work. In fact trying it pisses me off even more." She clenched and unclenched her fists repeatedly as she stood there with nostrils flaring. "You know damn well how hard it is for me to talk about my past," she continued her rant. "I've agreed to work hard at it… and I have. I've already gone a hundred miles out of my comfort zone for you. I still will. That was our deal. I'm your wife. But for you to go around my back and try and learn things about me… I can't tell you how unacceptable that is. For you to show so little faith in me. Chuck, I'm speechless. What do you have to say for yourself?"

Chuck knew that she was far more pissed than he had assumed. "Sarah," he began.

"You know what?" Sarah interrupted. "The hell with it. Save it. I'm really not interested in anything you currently have to say. In fact I don't even want to look at you right now. Since we've only been married for a week, here is some friendly advice that I'm only going to offer once. When you've pissed me off, the wisest course of action is to just walk away, let me cool down for a few hours, then try and talk to me. Otherwise, I'm likely to say some things that I don't mean and make this even worse than it already is. Got it?"

Chuck just nodded and headed for the door.

As soon as the door closed, Sarah leaned against it with a sigh. She had learned some things about herself today. First, for their first real fight as a married couple, this one really wasn't so bad. She already felt guilty about getting so mad. Even worse, she already missed him. How pathetic was that?

But the second thing she learned was even more important. Two more minutes and the puppy dog eyes would definitely have worked. That meant she almost assuredly would be in the process of willingly getting naked right about now. That would have sent entirely the wrong message to her new husband. She was going to have to quickly find a defense for that somehow or be forever helpless with him.

Sarah banged her head against the closed door in mock frustration, her frown involuntarily turning into a smile, and then a grin as she thought about their two day honeymoon just last week.

Maybe being forever helpless with Chuck wasn't such a bad thing.

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Casey was just getting comfortable after a very long day when his computer made that distinctive sound. Sure enough when he glanced over General Beckman was staring at him. It's after midnight there. Doesn't she ever sleep? "Ma'am?" he asked.

Beckman didn't say anything for a long moment. "Major, this conversation is off the record," she finally sighed.

If Casey was surprised, he didn't show it. "Yes, ma'am," he said.

"I need your honest appraisal," Beckman said. "Agent Walker… she seems to be getting very comfortable with the asset. Is she compromised?"

Casey thought for a second about how to answer. He could tell the truth and get Walker immediately reassigned. It was the right thing to do. A few weeks ago that's exactly what he would have done. Now, for some reason that even he didn't understand, that was unacceptable. But how to answer. If he said 'no' Beckman probably wouldn't buy it. So he hedged. "I don't think so, ma'am," he said. "There is no question but that she likes him… maybe she even likes him a lot. But when Graham told her about the termination order, she offered to do it. Yes, part of that was she wanted to make it humane. But she was still willing to terminate him. Walker's a professional. Nobody could get anywhere close to the production out of Bartowski that Walker can. He's clearly in love with her. He'd do almost anything she asked him. They've been amazing, more than I ever thought possible."

"You're right about that," Beckman sighed. "Your team has been incredible, more than I dared hope for. It would be hard to loose that. The war with Fulcrum is heating up. But, John, we can't have her compromised. All we need is for an uncontrollable, love crazed, loose canon, killing machine running around the streets with an Intersect in tow."

"Yes, ma'am."

"What is your assessment of Agent Miller?" Beckman asked softly. "Could she replace Agent Walker? She'd be willing to use tactics that Agent Walker refuses."

Casey couldn't keep in the laugh. "No, ma'am," he said quickly. "I'm fairly sure that would be a disaster. Chuck is afraid of Carina… with fairly good reason. She's a world class man eater. He would never trust her like he does Agent Walker. That trust is exactly why we've been so successful. In my opinion replacing Agent Walker with another agent who would attempt to control him by getting him in bed would be the worst possible approach… especially Carina Miller."

"But how to control Agent Walker," Beckman said, more to herself than Casey. "Do you have any ideas to make her want to get with the program a little? Areas where she might be sensitive that we can exploit? Could Agent Larkin talk her into it? What do you know about her father?"

Now Casey was seriously angry. She was asking him for information on what to use to force his partner to do things she considered across the line. But showing that anger to the General wouldn't do. "Well, ma'am," Casey said. "I don't think that Larkin would be of any use. Walker's a professional. Her dedication to this assignment should be enough."

Beckman was silent in thought for a long moment. "I hope that you're right," she finally said. "I'll cancel the 49b… for now. I'll need to find a way to test her. In the meantime keep a very close eye on her."

Fortunately, the screen went blank before Casey exploded. He addressed the dark screen sarcastically.

"Yes, ma'am."

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"Wow," Chuck said as soon as she opened the door. "That is really going to be a nasty bruise. Here."

Sarah looked at the patty of raw hamburger that he was holding out to her. "I thought that was supposed to be raw steak," she said with a smile.

"Hello," Chuck said as he pointed to himself. "Remember? Loser who works in a Buy More? I get that Bryce would have brought filet mignon. I could barely afford the hamburger. But I could barely scrape together enough cash to buy another cooked one. Medium rare with…"

"Extra pickles?" Sarah finished hopefully. "I'm starved."

Chuck flashed his warmest smile. "Who do you think you're dealing with?" he asked.

Sarah didn't laugh. "Certainly not a loser," she said. "I could go a long time before I ever hear that from you again… like forever. Okay? I didn't marry a loser."

Chuck looked at her. He knew that she really wasn't kidding. "Okay," he said.

"You're wrong about Bryce," Sarah said. "As long as your sometimes cute insecurity is forcing us to talk about him… again, you should know. He wouldn't have brought filet mignon. He wouldn't have brought anything. Here is something you should think about. If you held a gun to Bryce's head and asked him how I liked my cheeseburger he wouldn't be able to tell you. How many times do I have to tell you that you have it all over Bryce before it sinks into that thick skull? I'm going to keep saying it until it does."

This time Chuck knew that she wasn't kidding at all. "Is it safe to tell you that I'm sorry about earlier?" he asked, more to change the subject. "You were absolutely right. I didn't show enough faith in you. I'm embarrassed. For the record, I'm proud of you and how hard you're trying."

Even holding a raw hamburger to her cheek, Sarah was quickly in his arms. "You don't have to be sorry," she said. "I overreacted. I'm too much of a hothead. I get that you were teasing and not trying to make me mad. Maybe it's a good time for you to spend those two questions that I owe you from our wedding night."

Chuck pulled her close. "No thanks," he said. "I'd rather wait and find out those things when you're ready to tell me. It'll mean a lot more that way. I just want to let you know that you don't have to be afraid of telling me anything, no matter how awful you think it is. As much as you might not think so, I know who you are… and I love you for it. You're a girl who I'd like to share a cheeseburger with… fifty years from now."

"Wow," Sarah said. "You have a date."

Chuck pulled her even closer. "I'll always be here for you," he said.

Sarah didn't respond, not with words anyway. She just snuggled.

Chuck gently rubbed her back until he could feel the soft sobs she was trying desperately to hide finally subside. But after a while he knew that he needed to let her off the hook. "So how exactly did she bruise you so badly?" he teased. "I thought that you were the world's biggest badass. She must weight about a hundred pounds soaking wet."

"She had a pipe," Sarah said as she continued to snuggle comfortably.

"A pipe?" Chuck asked in faux confusion. "There's no smoking on school property. She really is a bad girl."

That did the trick and got Sarah laughing. "No, dumb ass," she said as she pulled back and held her hands far apart. "A lead pipe. A big freaking lead pipe. She was swinging it at my head. No matter how badass you are, nobody has an answer for a lead pipe connecting with your temple. It gave her somewhat of an advantage for a while."

That got them both laughing. "Ah," Chuck said. "That explains it." They broke their embrace and Chuck cut the burger in half.

Chuck maybe understated his food delivery a bit. He knew that she would be starved. So there was more than one cheeseburger along with fries and shakes. One of the great things about their relationship was that there was no need to always be talking to break the uncomfortable silence. There was no uncomfortable silence. They just sat there smiling at each other while they ate.

"Can I tell you something?' Sarah finally asked after she was finished. "Her voice was so low that Chuck had to strain to hear her.

Sarah didn't wait for his answer. "When I was growing up," she said. "My parents… they really didn't get along. I don't know when it started. Neither one would talk about it. I mean they must have loved each other once, right? But at the end all they did was scream at each other. When dad finally gave up and left, it was a relief."

Chuck looked over at her. He knew that Sarah talking about this was a huge breakthrough. "That must have been hard," he said.

"It's my biggest fear," Sarah said, now her voice no more than a whisper. "You and me…"

"Come on, Sarah," Chuck said softly. "That's not going to happen to us. We're perfect for each other. We're soul mates."

In spite of the tension in the room that actually got something of a sad smile. "I know," she said. "I do know that. In my head I absolutely know that it's true. But I still fear it. Crazy, huh? It's embarrassing."

"It's not crazy at all," Chuck said. "I totally get it. It's like my fear of you leaving me for Bryce. I know it's not going to happen. I do. Yet I fear it. I agree. It's embarrassing."

"What should we do about it?"

Chuck grinned. "We're doing it," he said. "When we have that fear, we talk about it until it goes away. The good news here is why we have the fear in the first place."

"Why?"

"I'm not a psychologist," Chuck said. "But I think that's pretty easy. We're so crazy about each other, the thought of losing what we've found and going back to the way things were before is so horrible, and we are both a little paranoid of it."

It only took a second for Sarah to cross the small room and be sitting on his lap. "Thank you for protecting me," she said.

That got a smile. "Me protecting you?" Chuck asked. "I'm afraid that you have it backwards."

"And that's where you're wrong," Sarah said with a loving kiss. "I may protect you physically. But you protect me every bit as much emotionally. You're right. I can't go back to the way things were before. It's like I'm just waking up from a nightmare. Thank you."

While it was true that Chuck was in charge in the bedroom, clearly Sarah had something to say about it… as the intensity of the kissing made the question 'when' would Chuck take this to the bed… and not 'if.' And there was nothing wrong with that. After all, they had only been married for a week. Chuck scooped her up in mid kiss to make it official.

"Jenny Burton is not my real name," Sarah said as soon as he sat her on the edge of the bed. "That's a cover my dad made up. My real name is…"

"I know what your name is," Chuck interrupted. "Your real name is Sarah… Sarah Walker-Bartowski. That's all I ever want to remember. I have to pinch myself to believe that it's actually true. So you can tell me anything. Whenever you feel like you want to tell me something about your past, I'll be here for you. No matter how awful you think it is, I promise that I'll understand. If it makes it easier, we can snuggle in the dark and I'll rub your back. We'll talk as long as it takes. But maybe we can keep your real name secret. It'll be an inside joke, just between us… a symbol of my pledge that I'll never try and manipulate you again. Whenever anyone asks you your name, we'll look at each other and snicker. You'll just be Sarah… my Sarah. Agreed?"

That got a grin. She had never felt closer to him than at this exact moment. How did he always know exactly what to say? "Does this agreement include your Sarah getting naked anytime soon?" she teased. "In negotiations it's what is called a deal breaker. She's a newlywed with a short fuse."

"Absolutely," Chuck said. "In fact I'd say it's imminent."

"Good," Sarah said as she touched her lips gently to his.

"You have a deal."

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A/N: Take that Ali Adler, lol.

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