A/N: This is for the poor readers I've tormented, certainly not for mxpw who hasn't shed a single tear for chuck and sarah. i will never understand how you can like little chuck so much when you're so anti-charah.

Chapter 10:

"Hello?"

Chuck could hear a disappointed grunt on the other line.

"Is Walker there?"

Emboldened by the good thousand some miles that separated them, Chuck couldn't resist. "No. I don't know who that is. Sorry." He was nearly about to hang up on the line when he heard Casey's angry voice snarl a series of death threats.

"I hope you're not using that language in front of our daughter," Chuck warned. Beside him on the hotel-room bed, Sarah frowned.

"Don't worry, Bartowski. I can't vouch for you but I'm certainly not an idiot. Now can I speak with Sarah, please?"

Chuck smiled and looked over his shoulder at his wife. "Sarah? Sarah's indisposed at the moment."

Sarah glared at him but it was true. He was still cutting templates for her and she was busy trying to stitch sheets of fluff together.

Their hotel room was a mess and there still wasn't a costume to show for it.

"Damn it," Casey cursed. "When are you guys coming back?"

"Not until tomorrow..."

Sarah put down the mess of fluff in her hands and reached for the phone.

"What's the matter?" she asked. Chuck swatted her bandaged fingers away.

"Do you think you guys could come back tonight?" Casey asked.

"Tonight?" Chuck dropped the scissors and sat up straight. "But our flight isn't until tomorrow."

He could almost see Casey roll his eyes. "Yeah, genius, I know. Can you just high-tail it back here?"

Cupping the receiver with his hand, Chuck turned to Sarah. "Casey wants us back as soon as possible."

Sarah pushed Chuck to the side, scrambling for the phone. "Casey?" she demanded, her voice raised with urgency. "What's happened?"

"Nothing. Um, Charlotte will be over at Ellie's so you can pick her up in the morning or this evening if you can make it."

"Why?" Sarah felt her heart beat pick up. Beside her, Chuck tried to idle himself with the task he'd been assigned but it was obvious he was worried and anxious too. "What the hell did you do, John Casey?"

Chuck winced and on the other end, Casey hesitated.

"Out with it!" Sarah demanded, nearly jumping off the bed to flag down the first cab to the airport.

"I had a run in with the law."

Sarah gasped for air and felt her ribs threaten to cave in and crush her. Chuck dropped the sheets in his hand and rushed to hold her steady.

"Sarah, what's the matter? Sarah?"

"What do you mean?" she asked, choking back tears. "Were you robbed? A car accident? Were you..." She was too afraid to say it. "Was she hurt?"

Chuck looks at his wife in horror.

"No, not like that," Casey assured though Sarah still found it difficult to catch her breath. "I was trying to catch Will on the playground—"

"Casey, that equipment is for children. You can't go on it—"

"Yeah, I know that...now. So when you get back, do you think you could vouch for me and bail me outta here? Ellie isn't in a very forgiving mood right now."

"What..." Sarah wrinkled her brows. "What do you mean?"

Before Casey can answer her, his voice fades and there's static. Sarah presses the phone closer to her ear and waits for the line to clear.

"Ma'am?" It's a new voice on the phone now. "Ma'am, this is Officer Slatt here. We found your brother terrorizing children at the LA zoo today."

Sarah puts a hand over her own mouth to keep from saying something profane. Of all the things Casey could have done...

"He was seen carrying off a little girl who he claims was his niece and trying to catch other children on the equipment. Security has also found footage of him throwing a man into the railings at the aquarium."

Sarah bit down on her hand. Don't laugh. Don't laugh. Whatever you do—Do. Not. Laugh.

This was serious.

"I see..." Sarah said slowly.

"Your brother is a deeply disturbed individual. We're going to keep him under supervision until he can be escorted back to his place of residence. I suggest you keep your children away from him in the future. I've seen people with his level of aggression and they will strike out again. Perhaps next time we will not be so lucky."

"I understand," Sarah said, in the gravest tone she could muster. "Thank you."

Hanging up the phone, she hands it back to Chuck.

"So what was all that about?"

Sarah looks at him plain-faced but she can't seem to hold it together and soon begins to tremble.

"Sarah? Honey?" Chuck reaches over and wraps her in his arms. "Honey, what's wrong?"

Sarah shakes and tears begin to stream down her cheeks but it's only when she finally catches her breath that he realizes she's trying not to laugh and failing miserably.

"You've lost it," Chuck declared. He doesn't know if it was the costume, the phone call or just the fact there was fluff everywhere, but his wife had finally gone insane.

Sarah burst into another attack of the giggles. "No, Chuck!" she said as she wheezed for air. "This...is...the..." She couldn't keep a straight face and fell over laughing.

"Sarah...are you alright?" Chuck asked with a puzzled look.

"Chuck..." Sarah said, taking a deep breath. She staggered back to her feet and clasped her husband's hand, holding onto him for balance. "Thank you. Thank you."

Chuck squeezed her hand gently. "Sarah. You're not making any sense right now."

"I know, that's okay," Sarah said, struggling to hold herself together. "Honestly, I think this is one of the best vacations we've taken."

Chuck nodded slowly as if he completely agreed. "Right. Okay. I'm going to go back to the templates."

Sarah picked up a few handfuls of fluff, snickering as she did. "Seriously. We need to do this more often."