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Chapter 10

Chuck and Sarah vs. Ellie and Awesome 5 – Family and Friends

The Walkertowski-Grimes Place

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"Chuck, let's get back to the story. We can go over security protocols later."

"Right. Next is Casey's Sensei. I don't think there was much to that one."

"That's because you skipped out on wedding planning with the Awesomes."

"I was locked in the Orange Orange."

"That was your fault for letting him out."

"I think he proved later that could channel his inner Casey to defeat his old sensei."

"He did…with your instruction."

"I know the fastest way to push his buttons…lady feelings. The best part of the mission was my MacGyver skills that got me out of the handcuffs at the Orange Orange."

"You know I had to fix the Freon hose myself."

"You repaired it? I bet you filled a requisition form, didn't you?"

"Ok, but—"

"I was simply providing you a good excuse to close the double O for a few days."

"I did appreciate the time off from my cover job. It is so boring."

"I thought so. You're welcome. So, Ellie and Devon, we are sorry we abandoned you during wedding planning with the Awesomes. We had to rescue Casey from a suicide mission against his ex-sensei who was building a ninja army for Fulcrum."

"You guys have an excuse for everything."

"Pretty much." Smile

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"I can't believe they left out the good parts. Casey took out this badass guy who could do this thing to a can…it was so cool."

"Morgan, who are the Awesomes?"

"Awesome's parents Mr. and Mrs. Awesome."

"Wouldn't that be Mr. and Mrs. Woodcomb?"

"No. They may not be as Awesome as the Captain, but it's not awesome to question their Awesomeness."

"Ok, that makes sense."

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"Next was Sarah's mystery date with an older gentleman."

"Sarah, I thought you and Chuck were back together. Or were you cover together but not really together? I'm confused."

"So was Chuck. It wasn't a date. My dad had been released from prison a couple of months previous and decided to visit. Chuck crashed the date. Sorry, I mean he thought he could discretely follow me for my protection from a much, much, much older what was it, scum or was it sleezeball?"

"Yeah, don't try to tail a spy. It doesn't work—especially when you have GPS in your watch."

"Dude, that watch has GPS?"

"No. This watch is special. Dad made it for me. That old clucky watch I had included GPS, two-way communication, and an FM radio."

"Cool."

"So the next morning, I found out that my dad conned a sheik out of close to a million dollars. After reporting it to Beckamn, we found out the sheik had terrorist ties. The next thing you know, we had our new mission."

"Sarah, your dad knows you're a spy?"

"No. Definitely not. He thought Chuck and Casey were part of my crew."

"I can see that, Sarah. With your car, hotel room, and your jobs, I guess con artist makes as much sense as spy, drug dealer and hooker."

"Thanks, Ellie. The cover I was angling for was that I inherited money, but I was embarrassed about it, giving me an excuse to never talk about my past."

"Nah, too obvious." Wink.

"The con was actually a lot of fun. My dad was not a good role model, but he always made things fun. The con was a Lichtenstein."

"A what?"

"We were selling the sheik Nakatomi Plaza."

"What? You can't do that."

"The bigger the lie, the easier it is to believe."

"So you sold Nakatomi Plaza to a sheik."

"Actually Chuck sold it."

"Chuck?"

"Chuck, or Schnook as my father called him, played Lichtenstein, a German billionaire who had fallen on hard times and needed money quickly. I was Miss Applebaum, Mr. Lichenstein's personal assistant and translator, my dad was the guy who made the introduction—the go between, Casey was 'Cop Face', the security guard. The plan was to track the ten million dollar deposit to the sheik's accounts. Unfortunately, my dad let me down and rerouted all of the money so the NSA could not track it. I thought he had let me down. What we didn't know was he had put in the money in Chuck's ATM account because he didn't trust Casey's cop face. The sheik figured out the con and kidnapped my dad, saying he would trade the money for my dad. I wasn't thinking straight and went without the money to rescue my dad. Chuck and Casey saved the day. Chuck showed up in the DeMorgan and we transferred the money back to the sheik, tracking the transfer. Casey showed up for backup, saying he was arresting us, not them, and I shot my dad for a diversion."

"And the sheik stole the DeMorgan, which was the worst possible getaway vehicle. The insurance solved your loan problem with Morgan."

"Wait a second. Sarah, you shot your dad?"

"Ellie, it was just a flesh wound. I was working out some childhood issues."

"The next day, Sarah made up for it. They were going to arrest your dad for embezzling the money. It was a bogus charge because the initial con was not on American soil and let to actionable intel. The later embezzlement was part of a unofficial CIA op. Despite this, he just happened to be walking outside, away from the hotel when the police arrived."

"You know that?"

"Yeah, I ran into him. He told me he knew we really did love each other. He figured out you were some kind of cop. He asked me to take care of you."

"He figured out I was—"

"Not that you were CIA, but yes."

"So if he contacts me again, it probably means he has been arrested. I haven't heard from him, so I don't know if that is good or bad."

"I still think Jack Burton might show up some day and surprise you. His visit did one other good thing."

"What was that, Chuck?"

"It got me thinking about legacies and what is left behind, which got me thinking about this."

"My braclet?"

"Yes. After learning what you came from and what you overcame, I loved you even more. I wanted something to symbolize that and something to show you that I considered you part of my family."

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"I thought my relationship with my father was messed up. I guess a death faking, name changing, superspy/hero dad is better than a conman on the run. What's the deal with the bracelet?"

"I think it was Chuck's mom's. She took off when Chuck and I were kids, leaving Chuck's dad and Ellie to raise Chuck. I don't know where she is now." But Chuck and I are going to figure it out.

"Does everyone have a messed up family?"

"I'm probably the most normal. My parents are divorced, my dad doesn't like me, and my boss regularly defiles my mother. The Awesomes are probably the strangest. They are so awesome it is not normal. I don't know anything about Sarah's mom or Casey's parents. You should ask him."

"I'm not sure I'm ready for that. My mom never said anything. If they were around, she would probably have met them. My guess is they are not in the picture. I see why Chuck is trying so hard to create this family. What's the DeMorgan?"

"It was my car. It was my dream car—a DeLorean—the exact car from of Back to the Future…well except it could only go twenty-two miles per hour without stalling."

"Your dream car could only go twenty-two?"

"I know, but it was a DeLorean. Plus I might, well, sort of, maybe, possibly was making an excuse to not move in with my girlfriend. Buying the car depleted my funds."

"You have a girlfriend?"

"No. Not now. Back then. We moved to Hawaii last year so I could train to be a Benihana chef. In Hawaii, Anna dumped me. She is completely out of the picture now. She came back a few weeks ago, and I realized I have moved on."

"You cook?"

"We I didn't finish my training, but yeah, I can cook."

"You should cook for me sometime."

"Uhhh, Ok."

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"Both of you know something about the Buy More hostage crisis. What you don't know is once again Fulcrum found me, the real Intersect, while looking for Bryce, the fake Intersect."

"I thought that was just some crazy guy."

"No Sis, Ned was Fulcrum. Casey and Sarah snuck in the back from the Castle entrance into the Buy More."

"Why didn't you just stop him? I've seen you in action Sarah. You could have easily taken him."

"Devon, we didn't want to blow Chuck's cover. We thought Ned was harmless. In hindsight, he probably shot off Casey's toe on purpose. The big problem was the LAPD negotiator."

"Right, I remember. Chuck tried to keep you and Casey there instead of letting you go."

"His plan was to get us out of there. The negotiator was also Fulcrum."

"No way!"

"Devon, that's why I told you guys to act. Sarah and Casey were outside and would come after me first, because that was their job. We couldn't trust the police until Ned was neutralized. Everything worked out, though. Morgan provided the distraction. You and Big Mike took out Ned. Sarah stopped the negotiator and rescued me, like she always does."

"You really do mean the bad guys are everywhere, huh Chuck?"

"They aren't really everywhere. They just could be. For example, the next mission involved a grenade at the Buy More because someone wanted to kill Tyler Martin. It was pretty routine for me by that time. We have to protect the target. I don't follow instructions and get into trouble. I jump off of my fifth building. Sarah rescues me. We catch the bad guys. Mission accomplished. Throw in a couple of my girlish screams for good measure."

"The next mission was one of my favorites."

"Why, Sarah, because you thought I died?" Smirk.

Punch

"Ooow!"

"Of course not. That part was awful. I liked the end. When you told me you were my best friend. I had never had a best friend before."

"Oh yeah, that part. Does that mean the Jeffster rendition of Africa is our song?"

"No. You know what our song is. It's I'm Feeling Good."

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"I can't believe they left out my heroic part in taking out the Triad gang and saving the ambassador's life. It's like my best bud doesn't appreciate me."

"Sit here, Morgan, so you can help me finish off this popcorn." I appreciate you.

Gulp.

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"Well that great moment lead to the worst Valentine's Day ever."

"What did you do, Chuck?"

"Ellie, it wasn't Chucks fault. We actually tried to avoid the holiday, but Morgan trapped us into a cover date. The problem was, what do you do on Valentine's Day with your best friend/cover boyfriend who you are desperately in love with but can't do anything about it for fear of reassignment?"

"Oh, I see how that would take the romance out of the holiday."

"Then, Sis, we got a mission in the suburbs."

"Mission? I thought you were watching a house for Sarah's boss. Oh, I get it. Sarah's boss was General Beckman."

"See, we weren't always lying to you. The suburbs were hard because our cover was a married couple, complete with a dog, wedding photos, and rings. Also Sarah was really getting into it."

"It was fun. I got to cook for Chuck and pretend we were a normal couple. I had never had that before."

"But then Beckman ordered me to get with the cougar across the street, I was handcuffed to her bedpost, I downloaded the Fulcrum test images on her computer, and Sarah slapped me."

"I had to sell the wronged wife role. When the whole neighborhood ended up being Fulcrum, Chuck saved me."

"After another Intersect download from Fulcrum, my fourth."

"Chuck was my hero. I wished at the time we could have gone back to our house just to relax."

"If Sarah had told me that back then, I might not have broken up with her again. However I am not talking the blame for this one either. First one, Sarah's fault. Second one, Bryce's fault. Third one, Fulcrum seduction. This one…was Ellie's fault."

"What did I do?"

"Chuck's right, babe. It was your fault. I was there at breakfast."

"Brother, I never thought he would follow through. I was using reverse psychology."

"Sis, that doesn't work when the CIA has a surveillance tab on the cereal box, allowing the girlfriend to hear the whole conversation."

"Oh. I didn't realize. Didn't Sarah want to move in right afterwards? I thought the break-up helped with that."

"Not really. Like everything, it was more complicated. The problem with this break-up was Sarah's next mission. First, I had to listen to her make-out with a Fulcrum mark. Then this guy ended up being a suave undercover MI-6 agent named Cole Barker. Since Sarah and I had just broken up, Cole decided to make moves on Sarah. Later, when Sarah, Cole, and I were captured, Cole found out I'm the Intersect and withstood torture to protect me—the perfect way to win the heart of one Sarah Walker."

"Chuck, Cole and I didn't—"

"I saw you kiss on the Castle security feed."

"Oh, you saw that. Well keep in mind two things. One, I was a recently wronged woman in desperate need of reassurance because my boyfriend's sister convinced him to dump me." Wink. "And two, Cole knew you were the Intersect. I had to exert some control over him. Didn't you see what I said before the one and only kiss."

"No."

"I told him I would 'take care of him' if I had to because he knew you were the Intersect."

"Ouch. No wonder he withstood torture again and took out 12 guys escaping from Fulcrum. He was scared of you."

"I tried to flirt with him a little after he saved my life, to make sure he was going to be loyal. It didn't work though. He figured out that I was in love with you and that I wouldn't leave you behind, even for an exotic vacation."

"So Sis, to fill in the blanks, here… Cole was recaptured by Fulcrum so Sarah was ordered to move in with me for twenty-four hour protection—"

"—which I didn't mind because I got to wake up next to Chuck."

"Speak for yourself. Gorgeous woman that I was in crazy love with, but couldn't do any about it? Do the math. I got no sleep at all that night. The protection was no longer necessary when Cole escaped. Cole helped while we tracked down his captors and the mysterious 'Pegasus.' During the mission, Casey and Sarah were captured. Cole and I went to rescue them. Cole made the mistake of giving me a gun, which resulted in Pegasus accidently being shot and in an ankle cast for me. Cole added a gunshot wound to his double torture injuries. Later he was shot again saving me, probably trying to impress Sarah again."

"Cole impressed me at first, but it didn't take long to realize he was too cocky and was not really that smart. If he were smarter, he wouldn't have gone off like Rambo and been injured so many times. I like smart, regular guy heroes, not cocky Brits that are trying too hard. Of course after Cole left, Chuck broke up with me again."

"Come on, Sarah. You are counting not moving in together as a break-up."

"Yes I am. I was really disappointed. However that was the best break-up of all of them. I actually was a little happy after that speech. You told me you wanted to get the Intersect out and live the life you wanted with the woman you love. It was the first time I saw a serious possibility of living a normal life with you."

"See. It was not a break-up. It was a promise of something better."

"Ok, maybe that one shouldn't count."

"So, Chuck, you mentioned something about getting the Intersect out. Can you do that?"

"Ellie, before Pegasus was killed by Fulcrum, he told me about Orion. Orion was the designer of the Intersect, well at least the really cool parts. The CIA and NSA had been searching for him for years with no success. I decided that in addition to looking for Dad, I would find Orion. While the US Government had no luck, no engineer would hide from proof of his ultimate accomplishment. I figured Orion would want to meet the Human Intersect, and then maybe I could convince him to help me."

"Did you find him?"

"Yes, but that story is complicated (again) and surprising, and we are not there yet. First, I have to show you my plan. I'll be right back."

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"Oh no. Chuck is coming! Quick, hide!"

"Where, Morgan?"

"Uhhhh, closet!"

Slide.

"Morgan, the TV."

"Right. Shhh"

"Hey buddy. How's it going back here?"

"Uh, fine. Just fine, Chuck. Did you need me to help with the story?"

"No. I just needed to get… Hmmm… What's going on?"

"What's going on? I don't know what you mean."

"Let's see. The whole pizza is gone. Two cups. Two popcorn bowls. The blinds are closed. And you are watching the Biography, not Nick-at-Nite or Mythbusters. Is somebody else here?"

"No."

"Good because nobody can hear what we are talking about in the other room. Let me get this. Later, Morgan."

"Later."

"Wait a second. You aren't going to ask me what I am doing with this?"

"No, why would I?"

"Do you already know its importance?"

"It's really cool. I know that, Chuck."

"Morgan, I never remove this from the wall, and you are not curious?"

"Uhhh."

"Morgan, who is in the closet?"

"I don't know what…"

Slide.

"Hi Chuck."

"Alex! You are not supposed to be here! Morgan, Casey is going to kill you!"

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A/N: Coming Next: Chuck and Sarah vs. Ellie and Awesome 6 – The Plan