New Year's Resolution

My sister has requested the case and team work to be detailed in a smoother conclusion to the story. Since there have been several forms of response to this story as well as another request for more, I decided that no one would be too upset if I chose to make another holiday chapter in conclusion :D

The quarantine ended the next afternoon with the powder being declared not dangerous due to being outdated. As they were released, the team went to their respective homes with relief while Neal walked with some trepidation. He knew that Chuck and the team would be waiting for him so he would have to face them without glass in between or the FBI lurking nearby. How would he be received in private?

As he arrived home he tried to be as normal as he could. It was fortunate that June and Mozzie were out of town with either family events or unknown tasks so that he didn't have to worry about explaining a team of CIA and NSA agents chilling in his apartment.

Opening the door, he got the expected greeting. Morgan had teamed up with Chuck to install a gaming system which was keeping the two of them occupied as they fought against Casey in a military style game. Sarah was perusing through the books and had obviously found a few of his hiding spots because there was no way he was getting them past her. What surprised him was that Chuck had his family with him, including two women that Bryce hadn't met.

It was obvious that the group had settled in to a point of feeling at home because Neal had stood in the room for a few moments before anyone felt the need to speak to him.

Ellie approached him first. "Bryce." He nodded in greeting as she continued. "I'm not going to say that I'm thankful for what you did at Stanford or for sending Chuck the Intersect, but I am thankful that you protected my brother and brought my family back together." She extended her hand to him and continued. "I can accept you as my brother's friend, but I ask that you talk to him before doing anything drastic in the future. He can take care of himself you know, and if it is too much he has the rest of us to help." The last part was said as Bryce took her hand. Unexpectedly, she pulled him into a hug and said, "You do too you know."

For a moment Bryce stood stiff as a board with shock. He hadn't expected Ellie to forgive him, yet alone so easily, and the continuing hug didn't help the surprise at her welcome. After a few moments he relaxed enough to return the hug and thank her for her acceptance.

When she stepped back she had a few tears in her eyes and before Bryce could figure out how to handle the situation he found himself engulfed in the next hug.

"Bruce. Thank you for protecting Chuck back in college. Sending him the Intersect definitely sent our lives into a whirl, but the spin has been awesome. It wasn't all good, but awesome all the same." Devon was enthusiastic and spirited in his welcome. The past was all history and under the bridge.

One of the strange women was the next person to step forward. "We haven't met before. I'm Mary Bartowski, but you might have heard of me by my code name Frost. Chuck told you about how I left when he was little, but he didn't yet know the reason. My cover in Volkoff Industries had been blown and coming home would have brought the whole organization down on my family so I kept the danger away. Stephen and Chuck have shared with me various details about you so I would also like to thank you. You helped my husband and protected my son. If you ever need to talk, I know a thing or two about leaving everything behind to protect family." She didn't move forward for any physical form of acceptance as they didn't know each other, but she used her words to welcome him.

Bryce could deal with that. He'd had enough unexpected hugs already and the situation was awkward for someone who wasn't used to having a loving family environment.

The only unknown adult person left in the room stepped forward. "My dad tells me that you're a good agent who has honorably served his country. He may never say it to your face, but he is proud to work with you. I can't say anything for myself as I have never met you before, but I thought you should know that based on what I have been told about you." There was a muted growl from a crossed the room and the woman simply shrugged. She could see the shock on Bryce's face as he stood there unsure of how to react to that. It didn't matter how annoyed her father was, his friend needed to know that he wasn't as disliked as he thought. "Oh, my name is Alex by the way." She added before moving over to take the control from Chuck.

Even though it was his own home, Bryce didn't know what to do so Chuck took him outside to talk.

"How did you know Chuck?" He hadn't told anyone outside of his FBI team how he felt about being a misfit. Oh, Peter. The agent had given him a look that said his negative feelings would be addressed… only hours before being introduced to the "other Peter." Something was to be expected to come of such a meeting, but he really didn't expect Chuck to get everyone involved.

"The 'other Chuck' in your life said that you didn't feel like you were very welcome in our team. I know things haven't always been that great in our past and I spent a lot of years dwelling on how much I hated you. But, what you need to know, is that I didn't actually hate you. You hurt me with your actions and I didn't understand why you had treated me that way so I lashed out at you.

Morgan has been my best friend since the third grade so we have a long history, but you and I were going to have a long future as business partners and friends. Then you seemed to betray me in the worst way possible to a naïve college boy. It was worse than if Morgan had done it to me. You were more mature so I trusted you to have my back when I needed you." He held up his hand to forestall Bryce's response. "You had my back in ways that I couldn't imagine at the time, but I didn't know that until later. What I'm saying Bryce, is that you are one of my best friends and I never really hated you. It was just a word that I used to express how much I was hurt. Treating you that way was wrong of me, and I'm sorry Bryce." Chuck was leaning forward and looking at Bryce with serious sincerity.

Bryce leaned away and turned to face the view. "Thank you Chuck, I understand your position."

"Then why are you so upset?" He was falling back into his experience on the couch.

"Playing psychologist?" Bryce smirked at him before smiling fondly in amusement. "I haven't ever told anyone, but if you're going to understand why I react the way I do there are some things that you should know.

Chuck shifted his position so that he was sitting in a more receptive attitude.

The smile faltered and Bryce continued. "My father betrayed us and my entire family fell apart. When I was eighteen I learned that my mother had lied to me about everything, down to my own name. Then you and Peter became the family that I choose, my brothers. Since family has always let me down, I find myself looking for how you are going to let me down too. What better ways than to not accept me for being different or actions that saved your life while appearing as betrayals? It's a twisted view, I know, but I can explain it away so that it doesn't hurt so much."

Analyzing that, Chuck summarized his conclusion. "You see Peter and me as your brothers, and as family that we will let you down eventually. Instead of waiting for us to actually hurt you, you perceive ways of distancing yourself that don't hurt as much because you can control them. By extension, our teams are our families and lumped in with us… Yeah that is a bit twisted, but understandable. Your childhood issues were out of your control so you create situations that you can control as a defense against what you expect based on past experience."

Bryce turned away from him like he was trying to hide his embarrassment.

Reaching out to him, Chuck grabbed his shoulder. "Look at me Bryce." When he complied Chuck continued. "Truthfully, I expected you to abandon me at some point. I mean my own parents disappeared into the world at large when I was young, so why wouldn't my friend leave me when my own parents couldn't stick around? You aren't the only person to project your past experiences on the current people in your life. Everyone looks at the current people in their lives with a bias based on the past; some just handle that differently."

Bryce's shoulders relaxed as Chuck understood what he was going through. He knew that it would reach Peter's ears as soon as Chuck got the chance, but perhaps that was for the better. If Peter and Chuck knew something of why he pulled away, maybe they would keep reaching out.

It was awkward walking into the office the next morning. Neal stood in his usual suit and fedora as team Chuck walked in behind him while team Peter looked on for signs of how Neal was doing… very awkward for Neal.

Endeavoring to bypass the congenial chit chat, Neal directed everyone up to the conference room in order to get to work. His efforts didn't stop general conversations as the others paired off behind him, but at least it reduced how much he had to hear. He knew that the general talk about law enforcement, military history, or the sights of the city were all means of the teams merging together while covering Peter and Chuck discussing how to handle him.

Once the teams were set up in the conference room they began to go through their respective information.

Peter filled everyone in on the White Collar suspect that they had been searching for when a lead sent them to an abandoned building. While searching the building for clues, someone set a trip wire off causing the team to be sprinkled with an unknown powder.

Taking precaution against the possibility of a terrorist trap, the team was checked over and ordered into quarantine to ensure that they hadn't been exposed to anything dangerous. The powder was an old and rare poison so it took the medical teams a while to figure out the content. Once they were able to discover what they were dealing with they checked into its potency only to be relieved at its having aged past the point of being dangerous.

Chuck took over and explained the perpetrator's connections to terrorist and why the CIA was after him and his associates.

When the teams were done updating each other about what their agencies knew they began to talk about what direction to take the investigation. As the pictures were being passed around Chuck suddenly went silent and stared at the picture of the abandoned building with a funny look on his face.

"Neal, does this place look familiar to you?" He passed the pictures of the place over to him for closer inspection.

The others quieted down as they wondered what the two were onto.

"Hmm… I didn't look at it for familiarity when we were searching for clues, but now that you mention it. It's one of Orion's safe houses isn't it? The computer would be hidden behind that wall, you can see the usual pieces of his security, and it has the typical simplistic arrangement of the visual elements."

Diana and Hughes were two of the most surprised people in the room. "He exists?"

Hughes took the lead. "I have heard of a spy legend named Orion, but I always thought that he was simply a legend. You're saying that he is real?"

Diana had her own comment. "DC has had rumors of a mysterious agent Orion for years but no one seems to know anything about him."

Exchanging looks, Neal and Chuck decided to share the lead on answering the inquiries.

"He was my father and I was fortunate enough to work with him a few times in the field as well." Chuck was simple in his answer as to whether or not he really existed and how the team knew anything about him.

"Orion contacted me for assistance at one point. Over time he became a mentor to me and taught me a great deal. He was most famous in the field for his engineering skills, as a legendary spy, and for his genius evasion tactics. I am told he was killed in action and died in his Chuck's arms a few years ago." Neal was serious as he recited the facts and took it upon himself to mention Orion's unfortunate demise in an effort to spare Chuck.

There were apologetic glances and accepting nods shared between the White Collar team and Chuck.

"Our condolences for your father's passing, Chuck." Peter verbally made a small acknowledgement but didn't dwell on the unpleasant topic. "So it sounds like someone set a trap for Orion at one of his safe houses only he never triggered it. Then our perp found the building abandoned and decided to use it as a hangout. The two situations may not be connected but we need to proceed with caution just in case."

The talk of the case continued until the two teams broke up to do further research.

Over the following days the two teams worked in tandem using the same office to do their research or working together to use their resources on the streets to gather information.

There was an unexpected form of comradery being created along the way. Morgan, Chuck, and Neal even had a joke playing out a current humor fad.

"I have an army." Neal would say in his most villainous act while either sitting or standing tall.

"We have a Hulk." Morgan would smirk at him like an army was nothing in comparison while lounging in easy confidence.

"I've got a jar of dirt." Chuck would recite the silly phrase in a sing song tone and if he was walking he would throw in a dance like sway to his movements.

Once this routine was started it was something that was to be endured until the nerds no longer saw it as amusing. Sarah smiled fondly, Peter rolled his eyes but smiled to himself, Casey wished for ear plugs, and the rest of the team feigned annoyance even though they were secretly relieved that Neal was being accepted so easily.

The rest of the teams also began to find ways of bonding. Jones and Casey had competitive jokes where they discussed their military services. Sarah and Diana enjoyed girl talk from the perspective of tough agents. Peter, he found himself with a lineup of younger brothers descending through Neal, Chuck, and finally to the youngest in Morgan. They looked up to Peter for help deciding how to handle situations while Peter found himself being drug into youthful nerd games to please the younger men. Hughes picked up a contact in Beckman and they shared updates on how the teams were working together and means of continuing the alliance.

With such teams working together it was not unexpected that they were able to finish the case quickly.

In only a few days the teams were able to figure out that the White Collar case was indeed connected to the CIA terrorist investigation, the lead was a trap, and the operation was bigger than expected. When it came time to make the final arrest, they were more prepared with a three agency taskforce working to complete the case. The FBI provided most of the man power, the NSA took on the main terrorists, and the CIA provided general support.

What no one expected was to find Orion being held prisoner. He was alive and being forced to create a bigger and better version of the Intersect. Orion had done his best in avoiding the machine falling into the enemy's hands, but he was almost unable to avoid it.

Chuck called his family and went with his father to get checked out, Neal set to work on taking apart the computer with Peter and Jones following his directions, Casey led the teams taking the perpetrators away, while Diana and Sarah took care of the teams collecting evidence.

Peter and Jones found themselves further surprised by Neal as they worked with him. First he showed great aptitude in computer engineering, and then four men came out of a secret passageway dressed as ninjas to attack which caused Neal to reveal his abilities in combat. Peter was beginning to suspect that Neal had a lot more to his history with this team of agents than he was letting on.

It was New Years Eve and the teams had closed the case. To celebrate, they decided to get together and bring in the new year as a cohesive group.

Elizabeth quickly threw together a spread at the Burke residence and Peter invited everyone to their home. Satchmo made his rounds through the guest as they arrived before retreating to his bed to observe the gayety from the sidelines.

The setting was warm and festive making it welcoming to those who were new to the environment and a smorgasbord of treats tempted even the little pallet of Clara to take part while a variety of drinks kept the conversation going.

For entertainment, the two teams decided to set up a challenge to see which team was smarter and settle minor taunts that had been going all week. The rules were laid down and the general details arranged before the two split up. It was a game to see who could use a set group of clues arranged in a case to stump the other team before they switched cases and tried to solve the other's case. Each team used past experiences and every advantage to try and stump the other group. Since Neal/Bryce was a member of both teams, he was nominated as referee. He wasn't surprised that the game ended in a draw.

As midnight drew nearer, the conversations turned more emotional and in the direction of the past versus the coming future. Eventually the teams started talking about what they were grateful of in the past year. Chuck was grateful that Neal and his father turned out to be alive after all. Peter was grateful to have his wife, his team, his best friend and little brother, and the new addition of the other team in his life. The others all went through similarly expected reasons to be grateful for the year, and then it was Neal's turn.

Looking at the teams, but focusing on Peter and Chuck, Neal shared what he was thankful for. "I'm grateful for being 'killed' in the past and sprinkled with an unknown powder for the holidays. The first, because it brought me back to playing Neal Caffrey where I got to find my team here, and the second because it brought my other team back into my life. You guys are my family that I choose. Some of you have wondered if my biological family can ever come back into the picture, and they can't. Having been 'dead' in the past was only half of the problem; the other half is that my family is deep between state's evidence and wit-sec. There is a lot that I can't share with any of you at this point, including the mystery to my past with Chuck and his team, but I am thankful that you're all willing to go along for the ride."

Peter raised his drink in a toast. "To a long and happy future with the family that you choose." It was directed to Neal and the promise to be there for him through anything whether he liked it or not. In short, Peter had talked to Chuck and both of them were going to keep reaching out to Neal no matter what the future might bring, he was their brother after all.

Raising their drinks in agreement, everyone present joined in the toast and the promise. It was their New Year's resolution.

Thank you for all of your responses to this story :D