I still don't own Chuck. Not sure who does at this point. Maybe Subway.

This is the story of Chuck and Sarah's eldest daughter Kate's struggles on her own. Janice's political enemies are very willing to destroy anybody that it takes to stop her from becoming president. But they also would like revenge on Team Bartowski for past grievances. Using Chuck and Sarah against Kate – and using Kate against Chuck and Sarah appeals to them.

I'll be sure to post warnings on chapters that have violent or sexual situations. I'm going to keep this T – but I might dance on the edge for a bit.

If you enjoyed this or any of the stories on this site, please take a second and send the author a review.

Phase One

x-x-x-x-x

Kate was wakened by the loud pounding at her door. Well, she was mostly wakened anyway. It was the soundest sleep that Kate could ever remember. She was so groggy that she just stumbled to the door and opened it without checking to see who it was. That alone was pretty foolish. Fortunately, it was her Uncle Casey. He was carrying a paper bag in each arm.

"Rise and shine, sunshine," Casey said with mock cheerfulness. "There'll be plenty of time to sleep once you're dead."

Kate could only groan. That's what Uncle Casey always said to wake them up. Although he always meant it as a joke, it was never funny.

"Katie," Casey scolded as he stepped into the room. "Why isn't the chain on your door? And why would you open it without asking who is there? You're a young beautiful girl living alone in a dangerous city. Do you realize how reckless that is? Do you seriously want to get attacked?"

"I'm sorry, sir," Kate said as she stretched her arms behind her head and yawned. Kate and the boys had begun to call Uncle Casey 'sir' about ten years ago - certainly not because he demanded it. Kate had even forgotten why. It must have had something to do with when Chuck Junior found out what a Colonel was and how he was to be respected. Whatever the reason, it stuck. Casey never made any move to correct them. Truth be told, he sort of enjoyed it.

"Do I have to take you downtown again?" Casey asked in a warning manner. He looked around the room at the furniture that was still sitting in the middle with plastic covering it.

When she turned sixteen, her Uncle Casey had dragged her downtown to Police Headquarters and they spent the day going over police reports of all the women who had been attacked in Los Angeles last night. Kate was stunned at how many there were. It was Uncle Casey's way of telling her to be careful – and even though she could count on one hand the times that he ever said it - how very much he loved her. "No, sir," Kate groaned. "That won't be necessary. You're absolutely right. I was just tired and wasn't thinking. But that's no excuse. It won't happen again. What time is it anyway?"

"It's six," Casey said with an evil grin as he turned to face her for the first time. "I brought you some groceries. Where do you want them?"

"Six?" Kate moaned in horror. That meant it was three in the morning according to her body. This time difference was going to be the death of her. If she didn't get used to Eastern Time soon, she was in big trouble. But if Kate was horrified at the earliness of the hour – that was quickly driven out of her head as she saw the redness in her Uncle Casey's face and realized that he was just recognizing how she was dressed – or more appropriately – how she wasn't dressed.

The silky t-shirt that had served as her night shirt for years was very comfortable – but she was no longer twelve. And it was suited far more for a girl than a woman. It now didn't come close to her navel. Not that it mattered that much - because the material was stretched so tightly and was honestly so old and threadbare, that it really didn't hide anything anyway. Kate suddenly realized in horror that she was, for all practical purposes, standing there topless in front of him. Not even Paul was never going to see her like this. Thank God that she wasn't wearing a thong. But the cotton panties were briefs – in more ways than one. If Kate was asleep before – she was definitely wide awake now. Oh crap. She had even just stretched her arms. That meant she had more than likely just come close to flashing him.

Casey looked like he wanted to die. He quickly turned away. "I'll make us some coffee," he mumbled as he retreated to the kitchen.

Kate could feel the redness rushing up her own neck in record time. "I'm very sorry, sir," she called into the kitchen. Oh shit. She knew that she was surely going to catch hell now – not from Uncle Casey – he was far too embarrassed. He was going to tell Janice and Kate was going to get yelled at for an hour how stupid it was to let a man into her apartment dressed like this. "I'll jump in the shower and get dressed. I'll just be a minute. I don't think I have any coffee." Oh my God. If my mom hears about this… I'm dead meat.

"I brought some," Casey called without turning. "Take your time. I'll be in the kitchen."

x-x-x-x-x

Chuck would usually be seething right about now. They knew damn well that scheduling a six o'clock meeting in Washington was three in the morning on the West Coast. The jerk was clearly doing this on purpose. But today, the joke was on him. Chuck and Sarah had never gone to bed. Well, that wasn't exactly true. It would be better to say that they hadn't gone to sleep. All this talk about a possible mission had Sarah making sure that the intersect was in prime functioning mode. And, so far, it had passed all of her tests – in flying colors.

There were two things that Chuck could never understand about Daniel Shaw. Well, that wasn't exactly true either. There were lots of things that he didn't understand – but they all eventually boiled down to two main things.

Why did everybody think that this guy was such a good agent? Okay, so he led the fight against The Ring. That was a good thing. They had disappeared almost as quickly as they had appeared. If they had ceased to exist – or were just lying low – nobody really knew. Frankly, Chuck was skeptical that their one mission – ten years ago – had crushed them. But that wasn't really the point anyway. From any objective point of view, Shaw's record on actual missions was spotty - at best. He consistently made poor judgments and took foolish chances. He had to be rescued more than once. He even clearly manipulated mission objectives to be undercover with Sarah as newlyweds. That alone made him a crappy agent in Chuck's eyes. But everyone treated him like he was God's gift to the CIA. They made him director, for goodness sake. Even Sarah defended his performance as an agent.

That led to the second thing that Chuck couldn't understand – the one that really drove him crazy. Why did this guy have such a burning thing for Sarah? Okay, so almost all men – and now apparently most boys - had somewhat of a thing for Sarah. Chuck could forgive that. After all, Sarah was as beautiful today in his eyes as she had ever been. But Shaw was, quite frankly, ridiculous. He was overtly actively still trying to get her into a romance – right in his face. And, as much as Chuck hated to admit it – Sarah had never done anything to remotely encourage him. As a matter of fact, she clearly – openly – despised him. But he obviously had some illusion that he was going to someday get her between the sheets – even after ten years of being shot down and a week long hospital stay. He still called her fairly regularly – to brief her on the search for the remnants of The Ring. The excuse was that she was the team lead. Yeah, right. There was an uneasy feel about the situation that had always gnawed at Chuck's deductive reasoning. What was the real deal with this guy? He was clearly missing something. The facts just didn't add up here.

"What do you think that he wants?" Sarah asked as they waited in the Communications Room for the conference to begin.

It had been a while since this room had actually been used for a conference. It was a huge hit with the boys and their friends whenever a ball game was on – and especially on Super Bowl Sunday. And that was just fine with Sarah. Keep all of that sports nonsense in the basement where it belonged. The only girls that ever watched the games were Kate – and sometimes Elise. Elise joining them was also a huge hit with all the boys. She was always great at pretending not to see all of the tongues hanging out. Joe was also great at pretending. Robbie was still a little too young to notice… hopefully.

Thankfully, Chuck Junior and Bryce were sound asleep at this hour – so there would be no need to try and hide anything from them. Besides, they both knew better than to come downstairs unannounced when their parents were down there. Who knew what they might see?

"I'm pretty sure that I know what he wants," Chuck sighed sarcastically.

Sarah groaned as she moved over to sit on Chuck's lap and put her arms around his neck. "Please, sweetie," she pleaded. "I know that you can't stand this guy. He's not my favorite person either. But please don't start anything with him. He is the director of our agency. Let's just listen. We won't commit to anything. We'll be professional. Do me a favor. Promise me that you won't make me sit here and worry about what you're going to say next. For me?"

The twinkle was plain as Chuck looked back at her. "Don't worry," he said. "I'm really too tired to start anything. You've done a great job of convincing me so far. I'd say that I'm almost convinced."

That got the grin that Chuck was looking for. "I'm having a great time too," Sarah said. "It's been a long time since we've gotten that wild. Thank you."

"Thank me?" Chuck asked incredulously. "If I remember correctly - and I'm pretty sure that I do, you've definitely pulled your weight so far."

Sarah got a sly smile on her face. "I'm not talking about the sex, silly," she said. "I'm talking about us. With everything that's been going on lately – it feels great to reconnect."

"Yeah," Chuck teased. "By my count, we've reconnected three times so far. It's been a while since we reconnected in the workout room. And suddenly, I feel like I could use a good workout. Two birds – one stone - what do you say?"

Chuck couldn't see her face – but he could feel her laughing into his shoulder. Sarah couldn't help it. He could always make her laugh. "You're disgusting," she laughed in mock horror.

x-x-x-x-x

Kate set a new speed record getting in and out of the shower. She usually enjoyed taking her time in the bathroom. It was something that she fought with Chuck Junior about constantly. But her mom had taught her how to get ready quickly – when she needed to. So Kate's hair was still a little damp when she walked into the kitchen. She was wearing the relatively conservative light burgundy blouse and darker burgundy skirt and matching pumps that would serve as today's uniform.

Casey was sitting at the table, drinking his coffee, waiting for her. As soon as he saw Kate, he got up and poured her a cup of coffee. "Princess…," he started cautiously as he slid the cup to her without actually looking at her.

Kate knew that she was in big trouble. He hadn't called her princess in years. It used to be her pet name when they were fishing. Casey had always demanded that she learn how to do the icky parts of fishing for herself. He told her that she wasn't actually a princess – even though they maybe always treated her like one. On a fishing trip, she was one of the guys. So now, Kate could bait her own hook and filet a fish like a pro. She was actually better at it than the boys – a fact which came in handy whenever she needed a quick something to rub in Chuck Junior's face.

"You're not a little girl anymore," Casey continued. "I promise that I'll call from now on before I just show up at your door… but please…"

"Uncle Casey," Kate interrupted as she reached out and grabbed his arm. "Please. I know what you're trying to say. I'm very, very sorry. It was stupid. It won't ever happen again. We're both embarrassed about it." She then put her most pitiful little girl pout on her face. "Do you think that maybe we could keep this between us?" she asked hopefully. That didn't work often with Uncle Casey – but she was desperate. Maybe he would have some pity.

Casey looked at Kate for the first time – and actually smiled. "Sorry, Princess," he said. "You did the crime – now you have to do the time."

Kate knew that tone. There would be no sweet talking him out of anything. She had to blink back the tears at the nostalgia. That's exactly what he always told her when she was growing up and he was going to make her clean up her own mess. She might as well just accept it and take her ass kicking from Aunt Janice like an adult. "Yes, sir," she sighed with her own resigned smile as she cautiously sipped her coffee. "You might as well tell me why we're up at this ungodly hour."

x-x-x-x-x

"When are we going to move?" the voice on the phone asked harshly. "Did you see yesterday's straw poll? Casey would win a head-to-head match up by ten points. From an Electoral Collage perspective it's even worse - and she's not even a senator yet."

"Relax," he said sleepily. "Do you know what time it is? Everything is moving according to plan. Phase one is already underway. Our guy is working on the parents as we speak."

"Do you really think that you can break them up?" the voice asked.

"I don't know," he replied. "I can promise you that our guy is going to give it his best effort. He has his own motivations. I guess it depends on how solid their marriage is. At least, we can make them so miserable that they won't be worrying much about their daughter. In a couple of days, we'll move on the boyfriend. By the end of the week, she'll be isolated. Poor thing – all on her own with no support structure. She'll be a wreck. Our gal is getting into position to pick up the pieces."

"This had better work," the voice said. "If it doesn't, we're…"

"Trust me," he interrupted. "Why wouldn't it work? I saw her on CNN a couple of days ago. She's actually quite stunning – in a completely innocent sort of way. It will be fun watching that innocence disappear. Now, how about you let me get back to sleep?"

x-x-x-x-x

"Senator-elect Casey sent me," Casey said. Kate grinned at the tone of his voice. He had taken to calling Janice that as a way of getting under her skin. It was very, very effective. "Something has come up. She needs you to cover her breakfast interview."

Kate knew that Janice was interviewing a candidate to be their new Administrative Assistant this morning. And that was good news. They sure could use one. "What came up?" she asked.

"The ambassador from Spain agreed to meet with her," Casey said. "He's going back to Spain for two weeks this afternoon. This morning is the only time that he had."

That wasn't good news – it was great news. The one major weakness that Janice had as a presidential candidate was the lack of foreign policy experience. Apparently, seducing drug lords in Bogotá didn't really count. So any meeting with an official from another country represented a photo-op that couldn't be passed up. Spain was nice – but it wasn't the real prize. After all, we had pretty good relations with Spain at the present time. France was the brass ring. Relations with France were at an all time low – and the president clearly struggled relating to the French President. As a matter of fact, their seemingly genuine dislike for each other was pretty well documented. If Aunt Janice could come to any sort of personal connection with him – it would come in very, very handy in the campaign. "Yes, sir," Kate said. "That's excellent. Tell her that I'll prepare a press release."

"You'll probably see her before I do," Casey said. "She wanted me to tell you that if you feel comfortable with the candidate, that you should hire her. Get her to start as soon as possible. She'll talk to you later this morning."

"No problem," Kate said.

"Princess," Casey said as he got up and looked around the apartment. "I know that you've been running around the city like a wild thing for the past two weeks. We really appreciate it. Janice has been too. But please take some time and unpack. I'll come over after dinner and help you arrange your furniture. Janice will be in a…"

"I know," Kate interrupted as she walked him to the door. "She'll be in a late party caucus meeting until midnight." Kate suddenly realized that this was probably a pretty lonely time for Uncle Casey too. "I'll tell you what," she said. "My dinner meeting isn't all that important. Why don't I blow him off and take my favorite uncle out to dinner?"

Casey smiled. "We've eaten out a lot lately," he said. "Why don't I come over and make you some pancakes?"

Kate just grinned. Uncle Casey's pancakes were a staple of fishing trips. And truth be told – they were simply awful. Kate actually loved pancakes – but Uncle Casey's – not so much. So why was it going to be her favorite meal of the past two weeks? Kate stepped up and threw her arms around him. She needed that so much. It was a reminder of what she had going for her. In a loveless city – Kate was truly… honestly… and completely unconditionally loved. If Casey was surprised, he quickly recovered. He even hugged back – a little. "That would be fun," she said. "Thank you. I promise that I'll ask who it is before I open the door. Please bring a notarized affidavit confirming your identity. Oh, and don't worry - I'll have lots of clothes on."

As soon as Casey left, Kate suddenly realized that she had over an hour to go before her breakfast meeting. Maybe it would be a good time to call Mom. But then she realized – it was only three-thirty in the morning there. That would never work. She wouldn't do that to her mom. Quickly the devilish grin appeared. Chuck Junior, on the other hand…

x-x-x-x-x

Chuck knew that Sarah was trying to prove a point. He just wasn't sure if the point was to him or to Director Shaw – or both. But whoever it was directed at, she was sitting much closer to him than she normally ever would in a meeting. She even had her arm wrapped around Chuck's back. The twinkle in her eye told Chuck that it wouldn't take too much to get her to kiss him.

Chuck could feel the bile rise up in his throat when his image came on the screen. What was it about these pretty boy types that drove him crazy? Okay, part of it was that it clearly represented the type of man that Sarah was physically attracted too. But it was more than that. There was the dripping arrogance that they carried. Even Bryce and Joe clearly knew that no woman could possibly resist them. Fortunately, he had made friends with Bryce – and Joe was now possibly his best male friend. But this Daniel Shaw had them both beat.

"Agent Bartowski, Agent Walker," Shaw said as soon as he came online. "We have somewhat of a crisis. I'm afraid that I'll need Agent Walker in Washington ASAP."

Chuck bristled. He knew damn well that Sarah hadn't gone by Agent Walker for over twenty years. He was just trying to get under his skin. Sure – he had promised Sarah not to start anything – but how much did he have to take?

Fortunately, Sarah took the bull by the horns. "First off, Director Shaw," she said briskly. "I'm sure that you're well aware that I haven't been Sarah Walker for almost twenty-two years now. I'd appreciate it if you wouldn't refer to me by that name."

Sarah paused and glared until Shaw finally nodded. That alone was a huge victory.

"Also there is the matter of whatever mission you have in mind," Sarah continued. "I'm sure you're aware of the special rules of engagement that we've negotiated. I'm also sure that you're aware of the special circumstances involved with the intersect. Chuck and I are never going to be separated on a mission – ever. I should have insisted on that last time – but I let you convince me that you had the mission's objectives at heart. That's a mistake that I never intend to make again. Bottom line – I'm not going anywhere without my husband."

"Fine," Shaw sighed. "I can use both of you. I'll expect you in my office later today."

Sarah just shook her head. "We have two sons that we have to arrange for," she said. "The very earliest that we could be in Washington would be tomorrow."

"Fine," Shaw growled. "One tomorrow. In my office."

As soon as the screen went blank, Chuck turned to Sarah. "What do you think he wants?"

"Who knows?" Sarah asked with a sigh as she pulled Chuck to his feet. "Let's not worry about that right now. If we're going to Washington, maybe we can stop by and see Katie."

"Where are we going?" Chuck asked as he allowed Sarah to lead him.

"Workout room," Sarah said with a grin. "How about that workout you wanted? You look like you're not totally convinced yet."

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