Chuck vs. The Shake Up

Well, here's another chapater folks. Thanks for the reviews and I know that there is a general consensus that reading a story about Shaw is not their cup of tea but I'm thoroughly enjoy it and I hope a number of you are too. Trust me when I say, Shaw will eventually turn bad and will most definitely die. I had some comments telling me how the last chapter that the characters were OOC which is understandable but as a writer you can tweek it because its after all fiction. Anyways, this chapter will focus on the aftermath of what happened after Chuck revealed that Shaw killed Serena. Hope you enjoy the read and leave me some feedback bad or good.

Again, if you enjoyed reading my stories and left a comment please leave a comment for this this one as well. Tell me what you think and I hope you enjoy the read.

I don't own Chuck but I do own the 3rd season on DVD.

Check List, Magic 8-Ball, and Lady Feelings

XXX

Casa Bartowski
Santa Monica, CA
Monday 2:15 p.m.

After leaving Castle the happily married couple headed back to their place of residence in order to make preparations for the mission at hand. Beforehand Sarah contacted Alex knowing she'll inform the rest of the ladies who probably know by now after being contacted by Casey and Travis.

Chuck, on the other hand, contacted Morgan and his secretary Beverly Kim of their impending mission informing the two of them to relay to the rest of the employees that he's giving everybody the rest of the week off. When it came to his sister Ellie, he would inform her and his brother-in-law Devon that he and Sarah would be going out of town for a couple of days and Awesome would have to check on Peaches till they get back.

He added that he wanted to take her for a romantic getaway since he did in fact land an investor for his company, which she was totally ecstatic about. True, they would most definitely be going out of town, but it wouldn't be for a romantic getaway as it was more for mission to retrieve a code key from one rather large and unsavory dude.

For Sarah, the care ride itself was considerably quiet because of what Chuck revealed concerning Shaw taking out Serena. It was certainly came as a complete shock to her and the rest of the team. She wondered why Casey of all people would even consider backing his play leading him to give the old adage it's the devil you know versus the devil you don't know.

Without a doubt, the minute Shaw lied to them the issue of trust immediately come to the forefront to where it would have an adverse effect on the team. However, when he explained why he told Shaw that they would back his play was that he knows Shaw needs them for more than they need him. To him, it's a mean to an end for their new team leader who according to her burly partner knew that in order to beat The Ring he possibly played politics with Beckman's superiors knowing full well that Team Chuck is considered the best when it comes to getting the job done by any means necessary.

In his mind, taking control of the team meant he could do anything he wanted without answering to anyone. It made perfect sense to not only her but to the rest of the team as well and as much as she wanted to rip Shaw a new one for blatantly lying to them to each of their faces she would have to be on board. However, she would put all her trust in her team instead of Shaw because since day one she hasn't gotten along with him.

After a moment of two, the couple arrive back at there home and once they walk inside they immediately greeted by their dog Peaches. All 3 head towards their bedroom. Once they do, Chuck opens their closet door in order to retrieve their duffle bags that are already packed with the essentials needed for a mission, his wife Sarah is changing into a more suitable attire that best goes with a mission…all black attire.

Once Chuck sets the two black duffle bags next the bedroom door, he immediately changes into more proper attire as well. While stripping off his work attire, Sarah is already done putting on her black cargo pants and blank tank top with the last item being black steel toe military type boots. While sitting on the edge of there bed, tying her boots she breaks the silence in order to talk to her husband.

"You did the right thing Chuck." she said glancing behind her.

"I know." he responded. "I couldn't just there and not say anything knowing he shot someone in cold blood. Sure, Serena's part of The Ring but she's after all still a human being." added Chuck slipping on black cargo pants.

It doesn't take long for Sarah to tie both her boots when stands up and heads to her mirrored dresser and grabs a scrunchie in order to pull her hair back in a ponytail. While doing so, she turns around to face and respond to her husband who is putting on a black shirt.

"I know about the conversation you had with Shaw yesterday about him wanting you to take part in her interrogation." she said. "I'm glad you respectfully declined his offer." adds Sarah expressing a tight lipped smile.

"How did you…you used one of the monitors up in Orange Orange I take it. " responded Chuck.

"Hey, I'm always going to be protective of you sweetie." she said walking towards him with her hair already in a ponytail. "Nothing is going to change that."

"And I love you for that." he replied pulling her in by her waist and into a warm embrace. "He wanted me to lie to you in case you wanted to know why I was going to Castle and I told him I not the type of guy who lies to my wife."

"That's why I love you. You'll always be in my eyes my nerd in shining armor." she replied lifting herself on her toes in order to press her lips against his.

As both their tongues dance within each other's mouths, Chuck holds his wife a bit tighter lifting his wife in the air. The kiss between the two of them is soft and tender but at the same time very passionate. In Chuck's mind, it certainly made up for Shaw cock blocking him from experiencing an awesome night with his wife. After a few moments, he sets her down and the two separate looking deep into each other's eyes.

"And you will always be my badass babe." he softly stated softly touching his forehead against hers.

The two of them lean in for one more kiss before Chuck releases her from his embrace. He then sits down on the edge of his side of the bed and quickly puts his black military steel toe military type boots on as well. While he's sitting there, the two of them do there pre mission ritual of verbally running off a checklist.

"Duffle bags."

"Check." replied Sarah pointing to the two near the bedroom door.

"Throwing knives."

"Check." said the blonde beauty strapping them to her ankle.

"Tranq guns."

"Check." he replied pulling open his nightstand driver and retrieving 2 of them as well as several tranq cartridges.

"Wedding ring, gold locket, and charm bracelet safely secured."

"Check." she said.

"M1911 standard issued gun with extra ammo clips.

"Check." said the veteran C.I.A agent.

"Mosquito repellant."

"Check." he said.

"Books and Ipod for lengthy plane trip to read and listen to."

"Check."

"Sleep neck pillow and mask."

"Check." the brown haired man responded.

"The pre-ritual after checklist kiss." said Chuck standing up walking over to his wife giving her a kiss.

"Check." they both replied in unison after the two kiss.

Once they got everything they needed, the two head out to the hanger but not before showing some love to their dog who is both excited yet sad they are going to leave. Afterwards the two head out to meet up with the rest of the team at the hanger and then heading towards their intended destination…Vilena.

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32,000 Ft. In The Air
Somewhere Over The West Coast
Monday 4:45 p.m.

"Smooth skies ahead to Velina, just the way I like it." gruffly stated Casey over the intercom.

While Casey is at home behind the cockpit of the Bird of Prey, the other 3 teammates are seated together while Shaw is seated somewhere else in a different area of the cabin. He thought it best to not be around them knowing how much he is pretty much disliked at the moment, which they didn't mind at all. The atmosphere inside the main cabin of the plane exudes a bit of tension because of what happened back in Castle. Yet, it still remains all business as usual when they left the hanger and that will never change.

After a few moments of being seated, its Travis who gets up from his seat in order to get some coffee in the small kitchen area. A few seconds later, Chuck gets up heading towards the same location and once he joins Travis he finds him leaning against the sink with his arms crossed and a red coffee straw in between his teeth. They both exchange silent head nods as the 4th member of Team Chuck intently chews on it as they wait patiently for the coffee maker to fill up the pot with some fresh brew.

As the two of them are waiting, it's Chuck who breaks the silence between the two of them.

"You were right?" said Chuck crossing his arms.

"Come again." responded Travis. "I didn't hear you." he added cupping his right ear in an "I told you so" way.

Chuck expresses a small hint of chuckle and then nods several times at his teammate standing in front of him. "I deserve that especially after I called you paranoid." he replied.

"Told ya my gut is always right."

"So I should trust your gut always from now on?"

"I think so." he responded looking down and patting his stomach with both hands. "It's like my very own magic 8-ball." he amusingly responded.

"Has there ever been a time where your gut told you to ask again later?" asked Chuck.

"Maybe one or twice." Travis replied.

The two share a good laugh and once it subsides. Chuck continues on about Shaw. "When I witnessed Shaw kill Serena he didn't even think about it. He just aimed and within a blink of an eye she's gone…" he said snapping his finger. "…just like that." added the happily married man.

It was absolutely unbelievable to Travis what he heard as he sat there in his usual spot at the conference table. In his mind, he knew that the man with a personality of a piece of plywood was sketchy but he didn't know how truly sketchy he was when Chuck told them. What made it even more unbelievable was that he freely admitted to where he recalled saying out loud holy shit.

As he stands there shaking his head for a brief moment, he can't help but think if they are able to work as a team with him as their "leader" knowing that he has a personal agenda of some kind aimed against them. In that instance, his thoughts turn to the conversation the 3 of them had with Casey before they left to prepare for the mission concerning his assumptions on Shaw.

"Do you think Casey is right?"

"About What? About him playing the politics card and using his influence to somehow weasel his way into become our team leader because we are considered Beckman's best team."

"Yeah." the dark haired teammate said.

"Yup." replied Chuck.

"Do you think we can trust him." inquired Travis.

"He lied to us I know that for sure." he responded shaking his head. "We just got to watch each other's back like we've always been doing."

"Damn straight dude." he firmly stated reaching out for a fist tap which Chuck immediately reciprocates.

Upon doing so, Sarah appears wondering what her husband and friend/teammate are up to. "What's up boys…" she says with a quirking up her right brow. "…whatcha talking about?" added the blonde beauty.

"The usual…" responded Chuck. "…sports, the weather, how Shaw has turned into The Punisher." he added.

"Yeah." nodded Travis turning his attention from Chuck to Sarah. "All he needs now is a trench coat and have a skull in front of his black shirt and he's pretty much set."

"Listen, we know who we can trust here right?" Sarah sees the two man standing in front of her nod. "That's never going to change. Unless he can prove to us that he can be trusted then he's not considered part of the team even if he is the team leader."

"Yeah babe."

"Couldn't have said it better myself." responded Travis.

"We do what we've always done in the past." she said.

"Kick butt and takes name." he firmly stated.

As he says that, the coffee maker dings leading all 3 to get a cup of coffee. In doing so, Shaw is standing on the other end of the kitchen open concealed from view. He narrows his eyes with his arms crossed after hearing what the 3 of them said. Afterwards, taking a moment to look straight ahead he turns right heading back to where he has been sitting for quote some time.

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32,000 Ft. In The Air - Cockpit of the Bird of Prey
Somewhere Over The West Coast
Monday 5:00 p.m.

Casey sits behind the stick of the plane setting a direction course heading to Vilena. As he is enjoying the peace and quiet within the cockpit he gazes outside seeing the white clouds that they are currently above. In his mind, no matter how times he's in the cockpit of the Bird of Prey and they're flying over at least 32,000 feet in the air he can't help but feel a sense of calm. It's just him and the sky.

The calm, peacefulness he feels is suddenly interrupted when the cockpit door opens and Sarah steps inside.

"Got you some coffee partner." she said handing him a cup.

The burly NSA agent takes his cup from the best damn partner he has ever had and blows into it in attempt to cool it down a bit. After taking a smile sip he responds to her.

"Thanks." he grunted. "Just the way I like it…black and bitter." Case gruffly added.

Sarah sits shotgun next to her burly partner and gazes out the window of the plane. To her, this is the first time she has ever really stepped foot in the cock pit mainly because it's Casey's home away from home. To disturb him would mean either being thrown out or suffer bodily harm but in her mind he wouldn't do that to her but on the other hand he would do it to her husband and Travis.

As she sits there stirring her coffee with her swizzle stick and then stick it between her teeth to chew on it, she can understand why he enjoys being in cock pit as the veteran C.I.A. agent witnesses the awe inspiring view that she sees before her. In a way, the peaceful, serene scene has most definitely a calming effect in a Zen sort of way. Thinking about it, if it were any more Zen for him he would surely be trimming a bonsai tree in here, which she wouldn't put it past him to do.

Her thoughts concerning the calming atmosphere within the cockpit is abruptly ended when she glances at Casing sitting to across from her to her left. She removes the swizzle stickle between her teeth and speaks up.

"I'm sorry I questioned you about backing Shaw's play after admitting to killing Serena in cold blood." said Sarah holding her cup of coffee in her lap.

"Forget about it Walker." grunted Casey. "The past is past and now we got a job to."

As Sarah sits there, she knows that her and Casey's relationship didn't start off on the right foot. They considered each other rivals and the for the most part didn't trust each other in the beginning stages of their partnership. She remembers the fight the two of them had at Weinerlicious when they both suspected each other of killing Dr. Zarno and it ended being Dr. Zarno himself who faked his own death.

In her mind, that fight for the most part helped the two of them form a bond that would grow stronger in the next 3 and half years. The two of them have most certainly grown not only as partners and agents, but as human beings as well. She is much more in tune with her feelings and for her partner it's a work in progress for him but he's getting there she thinks to herself.

"Still, you're my partner and…"

Casey immediately interjected. "You're not going to be sharing your lady feeling are ya?" the grizzled veteran grumbled briefly glancing at her.

"I was." she responded.

"Stop. It doesn't suit you." stated Casey. "You and Bartowski are becoming more and more alike." he grunted shaking his head.

His response causes Sarah to express a hint of smile as she turns her head to face her burly teammate.

"I'll take that as a compliment."

"I wouldn't." he replied. continuing to look straight ahead with his left hand on the control stick while he holds his cup of coffee in the other.

Sarah shakes her head in amusement know full well he cares about the two of them even though he won't admit it out loud. After a few seconds she hears her grizzled teammate once again.

"How is our esteemed pretty boy team leader doing by the way?" he inquired.

"I don't know and truthfully I don't really care." she responded taking a sip of her coffee.

"Good answer." he said expressing a hint of a smirk on his face.

"I haven't heard a peep from him since we got on the plane and took off." said the blonde beauty. "I don't know if that's a good thing or a bad thing."

In Casey's experience, the guy who doesn't say much is far more deadlier than the one who keeps yapping away in a arrogant fashion. To him, Shaw's motives are suspect and considers him to be an unpredictable ally in the fight against The Ring. True, it's not going to easy establishing a strong working relationship but they'll have to for the sake of the mission. Take it day by day and mission by mission he thinks to himself.

"Either way you look at it…" responded Casey. "…he's considered a wild card so let's let stay on our toes." he firmly stated.

"Got it partner." responded Sarah taking another sip of her coffee.

Afterwards, she sticks her swizzle stick back between her teeth and gets up from her seat. She gives her partner a quick nod and soft pat on his right shoulder to where he responds with a soft grunt. Upon hearing that she expresses a grin and then turns to make her exit out of the Casey's cockpit and back into the cabin of the plane to join Travis and her husband.

XXX

32,000 Ft. In The Air - Bird of Prey
Somewhere Over The West Coast
Monday 5:45 p.m.

Shaw sits by himself in another section within the cabin of the plane with a hot cup of coffee sitting next on the table next to him. His previous attempt to procure a cup of coffee would fail because it was a bit too crowded in the kitchen for his own liking. As he sits there wearing a pair of glasses, he reaches over to take a sip and while doing so he's going over intel concerning not only Vilena, but Hugo Panzer as well.

His focus on the papers sitting in front of him is broken with the sudden appearance of Chuck standing a few feet away from him. He narrows his eyes at him wondering why he's standing there.

"What do you want." he said peering back down at the intel on the table in front of him.

As Chuck briefly stands there, he just for a moment didn't recognized their team leader. In his mind, he totally looks like a completely different person with glasses on as if he's secretly a super hero of some kind like Superman. To him, at any moment, he could rip open his shirt and reveal a huge S underneath and as cool as that would be he's there for far more important matters.

"Look Shaw…" he answered taking a seat across from him. "…I just want to know one thing." inquired Chuck.

"What's that." he gruffly stated not making eye contact at all with Chuck.

"Did you have your mind dead sit on killing Serena when you set up for the extraction and retrieval mission at The Grand Ambassador Hotel?" he asked.

Upon asking the question, Shaw leans back slowly taking off his glass and then places them on the table in front of him. He takes a deep breath and intertwining his hands together placing them on his lap as he looks directly at him furrowing his eyebrows towards him.

"What did you think I was going to do Chuck, huh?" he replied. "The less Ring agents out there the better." added the leader of Team Chuck.

"Ring agent or not she was still a human being Shaw." stated Chuck. "My feeling is that she deserved better than that." he quickly retorted shaking his head disagreeing with Shaw's actions.

In that moment, Chuck knows what he did was in his mind a cowardly act because she was restrained and had now way out. She didn't have a fighting chance in hell to escape and Shaw knew that. He didn't give her any options at all and just aimed his weapon at her pulling the trigger without any remorse on his part. It was cold and down right vengeful murder he thinks to himself.

As Chuck says that, Shaw leans forwards. "What make you an expert on what she or The Ring for that matter deserve." he firmly responded. "I have been dealing with The Ring for…"

Chuck immediately interjects. "Yeah, 5 years we get it." he emphsaized. "Look, you and I have never had a problem with each other until you did what you did at Castle. All I'm asking is for you to ease up on the whole Punisher vibe you're giving off here."

"Is that what the team thinks or just you." he inquired.

Despite not asking Casey who would have immediately thrown him out of his cockpit once he stepped in, Chuck knows he would agree with what Sarah and Travis talked about in the kitchen. As much as he's intimidated by the man sitting in front of him he stands his ground asserting himself as the voice of reason who wants the entire team alive and well, especially Shaw even if he's gone off the deep end a bit.

"Pretty much we're all in agreement in this Shaw." replied Chuck. "So do we have an understand?" he added raising both eyebrows.

Shaw remains silent for a moment mulling over what Chuck said to him. From Chuck's standpoint, he can see the tight lipped and nose flaring expression directed towards him but even though it's considered quite unsettling to see he sits there not breaking his reserve. After a few seconds, he hears the team leader responds to him.

"Fine." gruffly responded Shaw. "Is that it because I'm busy here." he said reaching down picking up his glasses and puts than back on his face. He then returns his attention back to the papers in front of him all in one fell swoop.

"Yeah…" nodded Chuck getting up from the chair. "…that's it. I just wanted to clear the air because you of all people needed to hear it." he adds turning around and heading back to where his wife and Travis are seated.

As Chuck disappears around the corner making his way back to his fellow teammates, Shaw peers up for just a brief moment expressing a glaring look towards him and then returns back to the intel that is currently sitting before him.

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