A/N: The Christmas episode! It would have been ideal to have this out at Christmas time, but that didn't happen and I sure as hell wasn't going to wait until next Christmas so we have it now. Hope you like it!

"Hey, have you seen-woah," Casey says, noticing that the person he was talking to in the elf costume was in fact Bela, the person he'd been looking for.

"Shut up, shut up, a thousand times shut up," she orders, pressing her hand against his chest firmly.

"Wasn't gonna say a thing," he says, holding back his laughter as he runs his eyes over her outfit. "You're all fluffy."

"I get paid extra for this, so shut it," she mutters, gasping as he presses his lips against hers.

"Oh my God," Chuck says, staring down at her as the two part. "You actually accepted-you need money that bad?"

"It's the holidays," Bela deadpans, folding her arms across her chest.

"You're a very angry elf," he notes and she rolls her eyes as they turn to the TV. Everyone was watching a car chase, Anna taking bets on what the outcome would be.

"I say he crashes and we end up with a stand off and maybe hostages," Anna says.

"I'm in," Bela says, handing her some money.

"Never gonna happen," Lester interrupts.

"Please, you guys are amateurs this has beat down written all over it," Jeff adds.

"Well it's nice to see everyone's in the Christmas spirit this morning," Chuck says.

"Bartowski!" Big Mike interrupts, dressed in a Santa costume. "Doors open in an hour; round up the freaks have everyone meet me in Santa's village pronto!"

"Great," Bela says as everyone moves into a line.

"This is it, people!" Big Mike says. "D-Day. You ready for war? You got what it takes? Take a sniff, Grimes, tell this band of misfits what you smell."

"Coffee-hazelnut maybe? Uh, glazed bear claw-cream filled perhaps?" Morgan says.

"I'm not talking about my breakfast!" Big Mike yells. "I'm talking about profits. People are lazy; they'll be looking to purchase last minute gifts which is why we raise our prices fifteen percent. We're looking at a record sales day, as long as you people don't screw it up. So don't!"

"Family's here," Bela whispers to Chuck, nodding at the doors.

"Oh, cool," he says, letting Ellie and Awesome in.

"Hey, thank you," Ellie grins.

"What's going on?" Bela asks.

"We decided we'd beat the rush and take advantage of the friends and family discount," she explains.

"Bela, you look awesome!" Devon says, Bela rolling her eyes as he turns to Ellie. "Oh, don't worry about getting me a gift babe; you already did."

"I did?" Ellie asks, confused.

"Yeah, I took it upon myself to since you never know what to get me," he says proudly.

"That's great, what did I get you?" she asks.

"Weekend skydiving trip with the boys in Creston Beach," he grins. "Ten thousand foot freefall-awesome!"

"Chuck!" Big Mike yells. "Santa's village!"

"Yeah-hey, great we gotta get back to work, you kids have fun," Chuck says, Bela following as he makes his way to Big Mike.

"Hey," Casey says, grabbing her arm.

"Mhmm?" she asks, glaring up at him.

"Wasn't gonna say anything this time, either," he smiles. "I'm gonna head to castle, I'll be back by the time the store opens."

"Alright, have fun," she says, smiling as he kisses her lightly.

"Cover," he shrugs.

"Of course," she nods, taking a seat.

"Where's Casey?" Chuck asks, joining her behind the Nerd Herd desk.

"Had to go to castle," she shrugs, looking around. "Are those sirens getting louder?"

They both duck down as a car smashes through the entrance of the store, coming to a stop just before hitting the desk. The driver climbs out of the vehicle, aiming his weapon at the two as they stand.

"Alright, nobody move!" he orders.

"Hi," Chuck says both his and Bela's arms in the air. "Welcome to the Buy More."

"Not good, not good oh boy," the man says nervously. "Okay Ned just calm down, think."

"Guess I get a share of the winnings," Bela whispers to Chuck, reminding him of the earlier bet. He stares at her in disbelief. "What?"

"Hi, hi!" the gunman says. "Uh, my name's Nathan Edward Rhyerson; uh, people like to call me Ned! Sorry about the entrance, could someone please tell me who's in charge here?"

"Chuck and Bela!" everyone yells, pointing to the two.

"Actually, we're not technically in charge," Chuck explains.

"I don't wanna hurt anyone, guys," Ned says to them. "So as long as no one gets brave no one gets shot okay?"

"Okay," Bela nods, glancing around at everyone hiding. "I think we're safe um this store has a very strict no bravery policy."

"Okay, okay," Ned nods. "Everyone, get over there by Santa's Village! Now! C'mon!"

Chuck and Bela slowly begin to follow the others before Ned stops them.

"Uh guys, where's the security system?" he asks.

"It um, it's-just follow us," Chuck says, Bela and him leading Ned to the controls. "It's over here."

"Are there any other ways in and out of the store?" Ned asks.

"Uh, yeah but they're all locked down because we technically haven't opened yet," Bela explains.

"Good, then lock it down," he says, and she quickly enters the security code into the system. Chuck and her exchange looks before turning and watching the cages slide down over the doors.

"That's a terrible picture of me," Ned says, gesturing at the TV.

"Eh, your driver's license photo?" Bela asks and he nods.

"You can put your hands down," he says. "You know truth is I'm not a bad guy once you get to know me."

"When you're not crashing your car into electronics stores and waving a gun around?" Bela jokes

"Yeah," he nods. "Hey I know it's no excuse but I lost my job; all I wanted was to get a few gifts for my kids so we could celebrate Christmas and the next thing you know I'm the next OJ. What am I gonna do, Bela? I mean they're gonna put me in jail, aren't they?"

"No," she says quickly. "No, maybe not you know? Uh, I mean you haven't hurt anyone yet right? So maybe if you give up they'll work out some kind of deal; probation or something."

"Uh, why would they do that?" he asks as Chuck joins the two.

"Look, keep this between us but we know some people," Bela starts, Chuck elbowing her in the side as he shakes his head. "Chuck, it's okay. We know people who can make all this go away as long as you don't do anything stupid."

"Like who?" he asks again as the Nerd Herd desk phone rings. "Who's calling?"

"Uh, that's probably the police maybe they want to know what's happening," Chuck says.

"Well I don't want to talk to anyone, do you think you could answer it?" he asks.

"Yeah," Chuck says before picking up the phone. "Nerd Herd, how can I help you? Uh this is Chuck Bartowski, Nerd Herd supervisor. He wants to talk to you."

Ned shakes his head quickly.

"He doesn't want to talk to you."

"Chuck'll handle it," Bela reassures a nervous Ned.

"He says you should send out a hostage as a sign of good faith," Chuck says.

"Pick me, pick me!" Emmett yells, rushing towards them. "My eighty six year old mother is dying a very rare disease... it's Leucoplaykia and she needs me, her BoBo."

"Uh, okay, fine," Ned says. "Send him."

"Thank you, thank you!" Emmett cries, hugging Ned before running out.

"We're sending someone out," Chuck says before hanging up.

"Uh, so uh, where are these people that can get me out of this?" Ned asks.

"Um," Bela says, biting her lip before Chuck interrupts.

"They're closer than you think," he nods. "Can you excuse us for a minute? I have to have a n-needle daily and Bela's the one that does it for me. I mean the store's locked down so we can't really go anywhere."

"Hey, yeah sure of course," Ned says.

"Thanks," Chuck says, grabbing Bela's hand before pulling her along into the break room. "Be back in a sec."

"What are you talking about?" she asks, confused. "A needle? You hate needles!"

"Well we couldn't both say we needed to use the bathroom at the same time that would be weird!"

"And a needle isn't!"

"About time," Casey says, grabbing her arm and startling her.

"What the hell!" she yells, jumping. "Where did you guys come from?"

"Come on, we're locking you in the castle until all this is over," he says, revealing a hidden door behind the lockers.

"Whoa, whoa, what about Ellie and Morgan and everyone else?" Chuck asks.

"We were instructed to remove just the two of you," Sarah explains. "There's a team coming to extract the rest and they'll be in good hands."
"I'm not just gonna leave my sister behind!"

"There are rules Chuck and we have to follow them!" she says. "Let's go!"

"I understand that there are rules but when it comes to family and friends there's a time to break them."

"I'm with Chuck on this," Bela says, pulling away from Casey.

"Get in the hatch," he growls.

"You're letting your emotions cloud your judgement," Sarah says. "I promise nothing bad will happen now please come on!"

"I can't take that chance," Chuck says, shaking his head.

"Guys?" Ned asks. "Is that you?"

Casey quickly moves the lockers back in place, moving to stand next to Sarah.

"Ahh!" Ned yells, aiming his gun at the two as he walks in. "Chuck, what's going on!"

"Ned, please, please, please don't shoot that gun," Chuck pleads.

"Who are they?"

"They're harmless, they're harmless okay?" Bela explains. "Look they heard your crash and they hid."

"This is my girlfriend, Sarah," Chuck says.

"Hi," she says.

"Hey."

"And this is John Casey, Bela's boyfriend who's even more harmless than she is," Chuck continues.

"John Casey?"

He shrugs.

"Ned, please just uncock the gun," Bela suggests.

"Okay," he nods. "Uh how do I do that 'cause uh truth is I've never used one of these before so..."

"There's probably a button on it like safety or something like that?" Chuck says. "Just push-"

"No, no, no!" Bela and Casey yell the gun firing.

Casey falls to the ground grasping at his bloodied foot as Bela and Sarah stare down at him horrified.

"I'm so sorry!" Ned apologizes. "I'm so sorry, are you okay? I didn't mean to shoot you I promise."

"Oh my God, Casey," Bela whispers, leaning over him. "I have, uh, bandaids?"

"Just get me up," he growls, Chuck and her quickly helping him up.

"We should probably go back out there, let everyone know that we're okay-most of us at least," Chuck says.

"Most of us?" Casey growls.

"It's okay everyone!" Chuck yells as they help Casey out into the store. "It was a mistake, an accidental shooting but Casey is gonna be just fine!"

"Idiot, you owe me a toe Bartowski," he growls before they sit him down.

"You're gonna be just fine, John," Ellie says as Devon and her finish bandaging up his foot. "A lot of people get by with only nine toes."

"I survived three wars without so much as losing a finger nail before I met you Bartowski," Casey growls.

"I'm really sorry about your toe, John," he says. "But we had this situation under control; you're the one that scared him."

He growls, glaring at Chuck a moment longer before looking across at Bela.

She was sitting next to him, chewing on her lip as she stares down his bandaged appendage.

"I'm fine," he says, her eyes flicking up to meet his. He leans over, his hand curling around her neck as he kisses her.

She smiles as they part, her hands covering his.

"What?" he asks confused.

"You're a mess," she chuckles, lightly running her fingers over the many bandages on his fingers.

"Gift wrap," he growls, the two looking up as Devon addresses the circle of employees surrounding him.

"What? Hold on, wait, this is a very, very bad idea okay Ned shot Casey on accident," Chuck explains. "He's not trying to hurt anybody you need to let the police handle this."

"Chuck's right, let the cops handle this," Casey adds as Bela and him join them.

"I know you guys work at a Buy More, but I'm a doctor," Devon says. "I take risks everyday. This is a matter of life or death, someone needs to man up and take action; someone needs to be a hero."

"No, they don't Devon," Ellie interrupts. "Being a hero is being alive to take care of your friends and family."

"Chuck, Chuck, they keep calling you better answer it," Ned calls out, pointing at the ringing phone.

"Yeah, coming right now," Chuck says before turning back to the others. "Don't do anything, do nothing! I'll be right back."

"I'll come with you," Bela says, following Chuck to the desk.

"Hey, hey, I feel terrible about shooting your boyfriend's toe off," Ned says to her as Chuck answers the phone.

"No, no, that's okay," she says, smiling lightly. "Sometime's I feel like shooting him myself."

"He wants to know what your demands are?" Chuck asks.

"I don't know," Ned says. "Uh, I have to think about it."

"Can you call back in like five minutes?" Chuck asks before hanging up.

"So, uh, so what are you gonna do Ned?" Bela asks.

"Well, maybe I should call my wife?" he suggests. "She always knows what to do in these situations.

"Yeah, that's a great idea," Chuck says. "Maybe you could let everyone else make a call, too? Check in with their loved ones, let them know that they're safe?"

"Okay," he shrugs. "Yeah."

"Hey," Casey says, joining Bela. She quickly wipes at her eyes, clearing her throat as she turns her back to him.

"Hey," she mumbles.

"You made your call then?" he asks and she nods, her hand still gripping her phone. "How's your dad?"

"Getting the truck ready for another trip," she says distractedly. He pulls her closer, her head instantly pressing into his chest.

"Sorry," she apologizes, pulling away as she cleans herself up again.

"You're apologizing for crying?" he asks. "Bells, it's okay."

She shakes her head until his hands grip her shoulders, forcing her to face him.

"We're gonna get you out of here," he says. "You're gonna get to see your dad again."

She sniffs, quickly nodding her head.

"I wish I wasn't wearing this ridiculous outfit!" she huffs, resting her hands on her bare stomach.

"Do you get to keep it?" he asks, pulling her closer as she snorts.

"You cannot possibly be turned on by this!" she laughs, gesturing at her clothes.

His eyes run over the costume, a small smile playing on his lips.

"Idiot," she mutters.

He leans forward, slowly wiping away the tears that remained on her cheeks.

"Casey," she whispers, staring into his eyes.

"Hmm?" he asks.

"I... love... you," she mutters quietly, Casey only just hearing her.

He pulls her to him, his lips crushing hers as his hand rests against the back of her head.

"Bela-Bells!" Chuck hisses, interrupting the two.

"Duty calls," she says, quickly disentangling herself before rushing to join Chuck.

"Hey, this is Chuck," he says, answering the phone. "It's Lieutenant Mauser; he wants to know what you want?"

"I want to go home and spend Christmas with my family," he says, Bela biting her lip as she waits for Chuck to talk.

"Okay, alright yeah," Chuck says. "I'm gonna come and open the door right now."

"What?" Bela asks, following him.

"The lieutenant is coming in," he explains, entering in the code. "Are you okay? You're all... have you been crying?"

She clears her throat as he wraps an arm around her, looking down at her with concern.

"I'm fine," she sniffs, shaking her head. "Just got caught up in the moment earlier; my dad says hi."

He kisses her on the head before they both look up as Ned calls out to them.

"Guys, you come back over here," he says, waiting for them to join him. "Okay, I don't want to go to jail."

"It's okay, we're gonna work on that," the lieutenant says. "But in the meantime, what do you say you and I make a trade okay? Me for two of your hostages. You'd make a lot of people out there feel a whole lot easier."

"Yeah," Bela agrees. "In here too."

"Okay," Ned agrees. "Two people can go."

"Okay, good," Mauser grins. "What do you say we start with the injured man? He looks like he needs medical attention."

"I'm fine, I'm good," Casey says, Bela biting her lip as she turns to face him. "Let Bela go."

"You should go, Casey," Devon interrupts. "Your toe could be infected; sorry Bells."

"I'm fine," she smiles.

"Chuck, you've been a good friend to me," Ned says. "So I'm gonna return the favour, I'm gonna let your girlfriend go."

"No!" Chuck yells, everyone turning to stare at him in disbelief.

"Chuck?" Ellie asks.

"Ouch," Jeff says.

"Yikes," Lester continues. "Gonna be a cold Christmas at the Bartowski's."

"Oh no he didn't!" the woman next to Lester says, shaking her head.

"I didn't, I don't-I don't mean I don't want my girlfriend to leave because clearly I would really like for Sarah to leave and be out of harm's way," he explains. "That's not what I'm saying, what I'm saying is that...I'm not your only friend here, Ned. You've endeared yourself into the hearts of everyone here I think we're all friends this is a-we're a family; we've gone through a lot haven't we? So we should all leave, why don't we all leave together!"

"No, just those two," Ned says.

"Okay," Bela says, turning as Casey rests a hand on her shoulder.

"Our team just arrived," he whispers, embracing her. "Don't let Chuck do anything stupid and the rest of us can get out of here without losing an appendage."

"Got it," she whispers, the two pulling apart.

"That kinda sucks," Chuck says, watching them leave before locking the doors again.

"Yeah," she sighs, looking up as Mauser joins them.

"Good to finally meet you face to face, Chuck," he says, shaking his hand. "You did a hell of a job, pretty impressive for a retail jockey."

"I just want all this over as soon as possible," Chuck says.

"So do I, Chuck," he agrees. "So do I."

Bela's eyes widen as she flashes on his watch, revealing him to be Fulcrum.

"Hey, don't worry about it," he says, patting her on the shoulder. "I'm a pro, everything's gonna be just fine. Okay?"

"Okay," she smiles, scratching the back of her neck nervously as he leaves the two alone. "Please tell me you saw that."

"Saw that he's Fulcrum?" he whispers and she nods.

"We need to do something," she says, gesturing at Mauser as he makes his way over to Ned.

"Wait, wait, wait," Chuck says, the two jogging over to him.

"You did a good job," he says. "But I'll take it from here, okay?"

"Yeah, but you know what? Ned is really uptight," Bela explains. "So maybe Chuck and I should go over there and talk to him and tell him that you're taking over; kinda put him at ease so that he doesn't get upset."

"So you guys developed a little trust did you?"

"Yeah," Chuck nods.

"Okay, well yeah good idea."

Bela smiles at him before the two make their way over.

"Listen Ned, you have to listen to me very carefully," Chuck starts. "This guy Mauser? He's no good, he is not a good guy okay we cannot trust him."

"Why not?"

"We have to let everybody out of the store right now," Bela says.

"Well, if I let everyone out then I'm not gonna have any bargaining chips I can't go to jail."

"Okay, look," Chuck sighs. "The people we were talking about, the people who can help? They work for the Government see; they will do anything they can to protect us that's the only bargaining chip you need."

"Ned, you have to trust us," Bela says as Mauser makes his way towards them. "You have to let everyone go we haven't let you down yet, have we?"

"Thanks guys, I'll take it from here," Mauser says.

"Okay," Chuck nods. "Okay."

"You think he'll listen?" Bela whispers, glancing across at Chuck.

"I hope so," he says before turning to her. "So are you okay? I know you were crying before."

"I'm fine," she whispers, shaking her head.

"You sure?" he asks, resting his hand on her back.

"Yeah," she nods. "Just... talking to my dad, and then I said something stupid to Casey; I've got things to fix when we get out of here."

"Yeah," he agrees, frowning as he notices Devon talking to the Buy More staff. "Oh, come on!"

"That's just what we need."

"Hey, hey, what are you doing?" Chuck interrupts.

"Well, we're taking this guy out," Devon explains. "You guys in?"

"No and neither are you this situation is way too dangerous," Bela frowns.

"Please Devon," Chuck says. "If you love Ellie, don't do this."

"Okay guys, you win," he sighs.

"Chuck, Bela," Mauser calls out. "Can I talk to you a minute?"

"Remember, don't be awesome," Chuck says before the two leave.

"Well guys, looks like Ned and I worked the whole thing out," he explains.

"That's great!" Bela grins. "We'll just go tell everybody that we can leave!"

"No, no, no, not just yet," he says. "But soon. First us three need to work something out on our own."

"I don't understand," Chuck smiles nervously, grabbing Bela's hand.

"You see Fulcrum knows John Casey's NSA," he says, the two freezing. "The uh, other girl's CIA. We've lost enough agents to these two; we knew they were here protecting someone we just didn't know who. So we caused a little ruckus, let Ned inside to see who they'd rush and protect. Turns out, they're protecting the two of you."

"I have no idea what you're talking about, Lieutenant," Chuck laughs nervously, Bela shaking her head.

"Do you see Ned over there?" he asks, pointing behind them. "I'd hate to see him shoot your pretty little sister if he thought you were not cooperating with me."

"Look, we're just analysts," Bela says. "Please don't hurt anyone."

"You two are way more than just analysts," he says. "We did background checks on you both, turns out your college roommate and your ex fiancé was Bryce Larkin. The same Bryce Larkin that stole the intersect from us."

"Bryce Larkin is dead," Chuck lies.

"And I'm done negotiating," Mauser says, nodding to Ned.

"Wait," Chuck says, turning to see him cock a gun. "Wait, stop him, stop him!"

"What do you want?" Bela growls after he signals Ned to stop.

"I want to know where Bryce Larkin and the intersect are," he says. "And if I think you're lying, even a little bit, Chuck's sister dies. Where's Bryce Larkin?"

"We don't know," Chuck says.

"Then I'm really sorry," Mauser says, turning around.

"But we know where the intersect is," Bela interrupts.

"Where?" he growls, turning to her.

She turns to Chuck before pulling her hand out of his.

"Bela, no," he whispers.

"It's right here," she says, pointing to her head.

"We both have it," Chuck says quickly. "We both have an intersect."

Mauser stares at the two wide eyed before nodding.

"Alright, this is how it's gonna play out, Ned's gonna release two more hostages; you two. Then you and I are gonna go out and get into an ambulance which will take you to a secure Fulcrum facility where you'll stay."

"I'm never gonna see my sister again, am I?" Chuck asks slowly.

"No," he says. "Well then would you mind if I said goodbye to her please?"

"Okay, but if you say or do anything to call attention to me or the situation, Bela's gonna die," he says, taking a hold of her arm.

She winces, her eyes quickly meeting Chuck's.

"I'll be back," he promises her before making his way over to Ellie.

"The intersect is in your head," Mauser smirks, watching Bela carefully.

She ignores him, keeping her eyes on Chuck.

"Don't you want to say goodbye?" he asks and she stiffens.

"No," she says, shaking her head as Chuck joins them.

"Let's go," he says, pulling Bela back from Mauser.

He nods, leading the two outside.

"It's gonna be okay," Chuck whispers, squeezing her hand reassuringly once they're inside the ambulance, Mauser sitting opposite them.

"How far away is it?" Bela asks.

"We'll be there soon, don't worry," he says before the van stops suddenly, throwing the three about.

"Ouch," Bela groans, pressing her hand to her head as Chuck helps her up from the floor before pulling her from the van.

"Get back here!" Mauser yells.

"You're bleeding," Chuck says, trying not to gag at the sight of blood trickling down her forehead.

"I'll live," she says, quickly looking behind them.

She gasps as Sarah grabs Chuck, her hand covering his mouth.

"Lieutenant Mauser is Fulcrum, so is Ned it was all a set up," Bela says quickly. "Everyone in the store's still in danger!"

"A team is moving in on them right now, they'll be fine now I need you both to run back as fast as you can to the castle," Sarah says calmly.

"I can't leave you alone with this guy!" Chuck says.

"Guys, your safety is more important than mine, now leave!" she orders. "Leave and don't turn back!"

Chuck stares at her before taking Bela's hand, pulling her along quickly.

"What are you doing?" she asks as he stops.

"I can't leave her," he says. "You keep going."

"I'm not leaving you!" she growls.

He sighs, the two of them quietly making there way back over to Sarah.

"Great," she sighs, staring up at the rain. She turns back to see Sarah shoot Mauser.

"Oh my God," Chuck whispers, Bela pushing him back.

"We have to go," she says softly. "Come on, we have to go now."

He nods, slowly turning around before following her back to the castle.

"Hey," Casey says, making his way over to Bela. "What happened?"

She stares down at him from the stretcher, a fresh bandage on her forehead.

"I had an accident," she says, chewing on her lip.

"Are you okay?" he asks, glancing at the paramedic.

"She's fine, just a flesh wound," he says as she jumps down.

"You're soaking wet," Casey says, brushing her hair back behind her ears.

"I'm fine," she growls, shrugging away from him.

"What is wrong with you?" he asks, confused by her behaviour.

"About what I said before," she starts, hesitating briefly. "That I l...l..., you know what I said."

"Yeah, about that," he says, waiting.

"It was a heat of the moment thing," she lies, wringing her hands together. "I mean, if I'd of been near Chuck I would have said the same to him, or Ellie, Devon-"

"Sarah?" he questions.

"Sure, why not," she shrugs. "Thing is, I don't want you to think-what I mean to say is-it didn't mean…"

"Didn't mean anything, I got it," he shrugs.

"To be fair, you didn't exactly say it back," she mutters, and he quickly spins around to face her.

"I thought my reaction was answer enough!" he growls before shaking his head. "No, never mind."

"My head hurts," she whispers, staring down at her wet clothes.

"I'll take you home," he sighs, wrapping an arm around her as Ellie and Devon smile at the two.

"Are you both alright?" Ellie asks, Casey still limping and Bela freshly bandaged.

"We're fine," Bela smiles reassuringly. "We're gonna head home and rest up. It's been a long day."

"See you guys later, take care of yourselves," Devon says, waving to them.

"I'm driving," she says, sliding into the driver's seat before he can protest.

"You have a head injury," he mentions, buckling up as she starts the engine.

"And you have only nine toes, I win," she growls, glaring at him briefly before taking off.

A/N: Poor Bela, you can't really take back those words now can you. Once they've been said, they're out there. And Casey's pretty much admitted he feels the same way too, but these two are just too stubborn. Please review!