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Chapter 12

Chuck and Sarah vs. Ellie and Awesome 7 – Choices

The Walkertowski-Grimes Place

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Previously: "Chuck, I committed treason and went rogue with you because I loved you. Unfortunately, you took a year to figure that out."

"My brother can be thick sometimes. So you two were on the run looking for Dad? Why wouldn't the CIA help?"

"Beckman wanted to cut her losses. While she was happy with our results as a team, she was frustrated by the non-disciplined way Chuck did things. Throwing Chuck in a bunker would help her restore control. Chuck did not tell her about his lead because he did not trust us. It broke my heart when he told me, so I took him and left. At first we thought the lead did not pan out, so we found a hotel for the night. The next morning—"

"Sarah, this is my sister. We don't need to talk about that."

"About what? I was going to say Casey found us. What were you going to say Chuck?" Smile

"Uhh…well…see…at this point, umm, Sarah and I had never…you know…and that morning we almost…but nothing happened."

"I wouldn't say nothing. That was our best kiss to date, and our hands could have been censored."

"Sarah, do we really need to talk about this with my sister?"

"You're the one that wanted no secrets."

"But nothing happened."

"Wait, Sarah, you and Chuck were on the run, completely in love with each other, and you still hadn't—"

"No."

"Then why didn't you?"

"Chuck's little bearded friend."

"I should have known."

"Do I need to be here?"

"You're the one who is still friends with him. I still haven't forgiven him."

"I think you just like messing with him."

"Maybe." Smile.

"Well I would have come back with a whole box of condoms if it weren't for Casey. He tracked us down."

"And I kicked his ass again. Fulcrum and its mummy agent who wouldn't die crashed the party. We tried to save Casey, and he rewarded us by locking us up."

"Nice movie reference, Sarah. Just when I thought my future was a cozy one bed cell with the love of my life, the power went out. We escaped and saw security footage with Devon at Casey's place."

"I know this part. I was looking for Chuck. Jeff and Lester showed me some creepy stuff in Casey's locker. He had a key chain that included keys to our place, so I thought I would return the favor. That's when I saw the live video feed to Chuck's room."

"Welcome to my life."

"John showed up and pulled a gun."

"He was probably just trying to scare you."

"Whatever he was doing, he is one tough dude. I threw a bust at him and gave him a full right hook. He barely flinched. I don't know what I would have done if Sarah didn't take him down."

"Next time, honey, use a frying pan. This all sounds like John is one of the bad guys. Can he really be trusted?"

"Sis, you should know something about Colonel John Casey. He always follows orders. The one thing more important to him than orders, though, is loyalty. He was mad at Sarah and me for going off grid without him. After briefly explaining the spy situation to Devon and asking him to cover for us, Sarah and I left Casey tied up and returned to find Dad. Casey escaped, caught up, and actually asked to join up. Sarah and Casey rescued Dad. I got out of the car and found the Fulcrum Intersect that Dad had finished. We were all captured, and Fulcrum activated the Intersect to change a bunch of their agents into superspies. What they didn't know is Dad had reconfigured the Intersect to remove the Intersect instead of uploading it. When Beckman's airstrike hit, we all escaped. I was Intersect free, and we returned to Burbank. Casey covered for Sarah so she wouldn't be punished, and we all went to the rehearsal dinner."

"So you got the Intersect out? But I saw you flash earlier."

"I was Intersect free about a day and a half. The morning of your wedding, you know Casey and I quit the Buy More. Beckman offered me a job as a CIA analyst, which I turned down. I didn't want to lie anymore. I went to the wedding and asked Sarah to go on a vacation with me."

"What Chuck didn't know was I had already been reassigned to work with the next Human Intersect, Bryce."

"Sarah, how could you leave my brother for Bryce?"

"Sis, that's not happened."

"Let me explain, Chuck. That morning, my heart was breaking. Chuck had just rejected a job, which he did not know, would have been on my team. I still was still in the CIA and didn't question orders. Being part of the Intersect Project would've also helped me ensure that Chuck was not pulled back into the spy world. I loved Chuck, but I didn't understand how to deal with my emotions or know what to do."

"Of course, I didn't know that. It really didn't matter because of what happened next."

"I know what happened, brother. You asked Morgan, Jeff, and Lester for a diversion that ruined the wedding. You told me you forgot the rings, but I know what really happened."

"You do?"

"Yes. I never believed you forgot the rings. I saw you and Sarah fixing your clothes right before the sprinklers went off. You picked that morning for a quickie. I couldn't believe you would do that at my wedding, but now that I know you had never…before, I understand."

"I wish that was what we were doing. Instead, I ran into Ted Roark in the reception hall. He had survived the airstrike and threatened to kill everyone at the wedding unless I brought him the Intersect cube. Morgan and Jeffster provided the diversion while I went to get the cube. At Castle, I ran into Bryce. The cube had been moved, but he offered to trade himself for everyone's safety."

"And once again, my old partner came in too cocky. He brought one gun and no back-up. I didn't have any weapons. I should have learned my lesson from our second first date. Instead I had to use some knifes I found in the wedding gifts. Eight knives and one gun was no match for a whole Fulcrum team. Fortunately, Chuck had called for backup. Casey showed up with his special forces team. They neutralized Fulcrum, and your dad knocked out Roark before he could escape."

"Ted Roark and Fulcrum ruined my wedding?!"

"I've been saying, Sis, almost every bad thing that has happened over the past three years can be blamed on the spy world. Some good things can be too, like my girl here. That morning, the government decided to pay me for two years of service. I used the money to organize your dream wedding on the beach, utilizing Casey as wedding coordinator. That was my superpower."

"I can't believe it. The second wedding was perfect. John planned it?"

"In just a couple of hours, using his special forces team. I think he missed his calling."

"Now I feel really bad for knocking him out with a frying pan."

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"Morgan, what is all of this about frying pans?"

"I have no idea."

"What was your diversion for the first wedding?"

"You know those creepy guys from the Buy More, Jeff and Lester, who are being blamed for blowing it up?"

"Yes."

"They have a cheesy two-man band, Jeffster."

"You're kidding. I think Jester would be a better name?"

"I agree. They are a couple of fools. They sung Mr. Roboto as pre-wedding entertainment. Their Roman candles at the end of the show caused the sprinklers to go off. The second wedding had no Jeffster and was outdoors with no sprinklers, so there was no problem."

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"Bryce came to your second wedding, watching from a distance with binoculars. He saw how I looked when I was looking at Chuck, and he realized the decision I didn't know I had already made."

"What was that?"

"I decided that I wasn't going to Zurich with Bryce. I was staying with your brother. Bryce was a pretty good wingman in the end."

"Then why did you hit away the bouquet? I threw it right at you, and Devon's mom said you spiked it away."

"I was freaking out from my decision. During the toss, I still hadn't told Chuck. I did not know how he would react. Later, I was dancing with Chuck and was about to tell him I wanted to quit the CIA and have a normal life with him—"

"—when Dad cut in. Bryce was picked up at the reception to be uploaded with the new Intersect. The guy who picked him up was not CIA. Dad knew this because he also had an Intersect in his head."

"Dad was one of the three guys."

"Yes. He was actually the first. Well maybe the second…"

"I realized that if Bryce was in danger, Casey was probably in danger. Even if I was leaving the CIA, I had to protect my partner, so I left for Castle."

"And since I loved Sarah, I had to help. Dad gave me his wrist computer to help track Bryce. Back at Castle, one of Casey's team was a traitor, working for the Ring. He killed Roark and the rest of Casey's team. Casey had been knocked out. At the Intersect location, Sarah and Casey engaged the Ring team, and I went through the ducts to get to the Intersect room where Bryce was. When I got there, I found Bryce had been shot. Before he died, Bryce gave me something to destroy the Intersect because it was too dangerous."

"So Bryce is dead?"

"Yes. He died the night of your wedding. Right as I was about to destroy the Intersect, I realized I had a choice."

"What happened next is my fault."

"No, Sarah, it was my choice."

"During our dance, I told you that you are a hero, you are that guy. You just had to prove it, and it is my fault. If I had just told you earlier that I wanted to leave the CIA and be normal with you—"

"It didn't matter. You and Casey were captured. Uploading it saved your lives."

"You mean that after Dad got it out your head, you chose to put it back? You really did want superpowers."

"I didn't know what I was getting into. I thought I was saving the information and providing a negotiating position so we all could get out of there. What I didn't know was the new Intersect was different. It did not only include secrets. It also included skills."

"Skills?"

"Think the Matrix."

"What?"

"When the Ring agent pointed a gun at Sarah, I flashed. Suddenly, I knew Kung Fu. After talking out five armed ring agents with only my hands, my whole world changed."

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"Chuck me. He is like Neo?"

"Alex, he can't fly or move at super speed, but basically yes. I'm best friends with the coolest guy in the world!"

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"I thought you two disappeared from our reception for the same reason I thought the first wedding was ruined."

"Once again, I wish."

"We both do."

"The Ring raid was at a supposedly secure CIA facility. The CIA and NSA had to clean up the mess. Beckman took my decision to download the Intersect 2.0 as enlistment into the CIA. I was being sent to Prague for training."

"I was still freaking out. My brand new dream was slipping through my fingers."

"Ooo, Star Wars reference. Nice, Sarah."

Rolling eyes. "I was worried the CIA would change Chuck. I wanted my Chuck, not some Bryce clone, so I came up with a plan. I would create aliases and collect enough resources so in a few weeks we could meet in Prague and run away together. What Star Wars reference?"

"Star systems slip through your fingers? Oh well, maybe we need to watch the series again this weekend. Anyway, in Prague, I blew it. I saw the training facilities that had been created exclusively for me. It was a bit of an ego trip. Really important people thought I could actually do something important with my life, for a change. So in six weeks I met Sarah and told her I could not run away with her."

"I'm glad you didn't, brother. After Mom and Dad, I don't think I could handle you running away forever, at least without knowing why."

"I'm sorry Ellie. I didn't think of it from your perspective. I just wanted to protect Chuck from the spy world. I grew up on the run with no friends. I was aware it would be hard for us never seeing you again. I just had to do something quickly before Chuck changed. By the way, that was break-up number five."

Sigh. "My problem in Prague was I did not explain myself well to Sarah. I did not consider it a break-up. She thought I was choosing the spy life over her. I was trying to choose the spy life in addition to her. Of course I would always choose her. By completing training first, we would both be agents, and we could be together. I just didn't explain myself because if I started talking, would have lost my resolve, and I would have been on that train with her."

"I was devastated. I thought I had lost my Chuck. I thought this new Chuck didn't want me. I thought Chuck was no longer going to me the great guy he is because of me. I did the only thing I knew. I threw myself into missions. Casey and I went after Ring cells."

"So bro, last year you were training to be a CIA agent. What was the bearded, cheese ball-eating bum thing about?"

"Without Sarah, I was a nervous wreck. I couldn't control the physical flashes all the time. Beckman was convinced it was because I was too emotional, because I was not a real spy. She kicked me out. Casey thought I was a lemon, and Sarah would not return any of my hundred or so calls."

"After four calls, I dumped the phone into a swimming pool."

"Wow, you are really hard on cell phones. Is that your third iPhone?"

"Fifth. Occupational hazard. Two were shattered on missions."

"Throwing phones in swimming pools and out train windows is not an occupational hazard. So after hearing from stalker Jeff that Sarah was still in LA, I decided to crash a mission to prove my worth. My appearance was greeted with a punch from Sarah."

"Chuck, it was a slap, and I kissed you first."

"The kiss kind of dazed me, giving the slap the effectiveness of a punch. Then you did that dance with the mark to make me jealous. I came through. I flashed on the Spanish guitar skills, the punch in Mexico, and the zip line because you needed me."

"I think Casey's the one that saved us. He saw Emmett's body in the loading dock."

"Body?"

"Oh yeah, I forgot Casey told you that LargeMart cover story. Emmett shot his mouth off to that Ring agent who was looking for us. He even threatened him. Emmett got himself shot."

"I'd hate to speak badly of him, but wouldn't be surprised if he literally asked for it. After this mission, Team Bartowski was reinstated by Beckman, this time with Casey and Sarah in charge of my training. Now instead of handler/asset rules, there were trainer/agent-in-training rules."

"I didn't care about the rules anymore. I was still heartbroken and pissed at you. I was also scared you would change and I'd be responsible for it."

"You two could have really uncomplicated things if you just talked to each other."

"I tried, Sis."

"He tried in the middle of Carnia's mission."

"Whatever works. I got you to agree to talk, didn't I? That calmed me down enough to flash gymnastics and do the Entrapment laser dodge to retrieve the weapon."

"And set off the alarm at the end, releasing the gas."

"I don't remember much after that, until we were back at Castle and you were requesting a transfer."

"So you don't know exactly what you did that made me request a transfer?"

"Let's see. It was before I fire bombed the fountain. Oh yeah, the burn damage on the fountain was my fault—a diversion so Sarah and Casey could take out Carina's fake fiancé/arms dealer's bodyguards. It was before I gave the emotional speech about Carina and her fake fiancé, which was really about us, that provided a diversion so Carina could get free. It was before our two friends hooked up that evening."

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Did he just say Morgan hooked up with Carina? Maybe Morgan's into the super-sexy spy type. I hope not. Although I can kick a little ass.

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"So, Sarah, what exactly did I do?"

"You blew Carina's cover when I was rescuing you from the gas. She gave me a copy of the security video later. I have it on my phone to review whenever I'm pissed at you. Want to see?"

"Uhhh."

"Let's see…Video out to TV…Select the most frequently played…Here it is."

"Look Sarah I know. I know that you're probably very hurt. You're probably hurt that I didn't want to run away with you in Prague. But I did that, I'm-I'm sorry. You have to know that you were everything that I ever wanted. But how could I do that? How could I run away with you, how could I be with you, knowing what I turned my back on? You know, that what I had in my head could help a lot of people. And you're the one that taught me that-that being a spy is about choosing something bigger. It's about setting aside your own personal feelings for the greater good, and that's what I chose. I chose to be a spy for my friends, and my family, and you. I chose to be a spy because…Sarah, I love you."

"Awww. Sarah, how could you watch that and not forgive him?"

"I did forgive him, Ellie. I still loved him. I just needed time to heal before returning to where we left off. Then, everything went wrong, and we both made some huge mistakes."

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A/N: Thanks to all the reviews who agreed that Bryce was an idiot, ahem, I mean bad spy. The only part of Chuck vs. the Ring I didn't like was Bryce talking about how great he was and how he was on Chuck's side all along. Sometimes, I hope he comes back so TPTB can kill him again. Or maybe Bryce and Shaw should be stuck in an eternal battle to the death, respawning and fighting again. Somehow this idea sounds like Vincent should be involved, but at least he was professional—and a lot more likeable.

Coming Next: Chuck and Sarah vs. Ellie and Awesome 8 – Mistakes