7A: Chaos
Chaos, that was the best word Peter could think of for the identical triplets he had standing before him. With one hand on his hip, Peter ran his other palm down his face in frustration. Mentally running through what had happened again, Peter was relieved it hadn't gone worse.
As it often went, Neal was undercover and playing his role to trip their suspect into slipping up. While he was doing his job, two other men accidentally stumbled upon the transaction and spooked the operation they were investigating. In reaction, all three had been abducted and whisked to another location through a secret entrance the FBI hadn't been privy to.
Working diligently, Peter and the team had managed to track Neal and his brothers down, mount a rescue, and haul them all back to the office.
There, the brothers had caused quite the stir by their identical appearance. At least they were dressed differently to help keep them straight, and their haircuts also helped differentiate who was who.
Filling out the reports with them, Neal had been able to handle his own work, but his brothers weren't government employees so they had to be helped.
The eldest, Caleb Miller, said he was a sales rep. with a meeting to attend. Based on the address he gave, he'd gotten turned around being unfamiliar with the city and ended up in the wrong place. His information checked out, but Peter doubted someone as smart as Neal would get lost that badly.
Then the youngest, Kyle Spartin, was simply a tourist looking for a video game store. It was at least the loft next door so his mistake was more understandable. Still, what were the odds of both the other triples getting lost and stumbling into their operation?
When the reports and official work were done, Peter was giving the brothers a lift, but not home. He took them to his place.
Neal had noticed the route but hadn't reacted as he continued talking to his brothers about places to get dinner and what his favorites were.
Pulling into a parking place, Peter noticed that Neal's brothers hadn't commented on the neighborhood or their destination. Did they keep in touch or had they visited Neal?
Welcoming them in, the other triplets seemed to easily catch on to where they were as they took off their jackets and hung them up.
"Alright, what's on your mind, Peter?" Neal asked after greeting Satchmo.
Observing the triplets as they all turned to look at him; Peter put one hand on his hip and ran the other palm down his face. "Do you realize what kind of chaos this could have caused? We didn't even know you had brothers, let alone identical triplets!"
While Peter was talking, he noticed that the triplets were starting to look a little odd. By the time he stopped, he realized that Neal's suit was looking a little loose on his frame. "Neal?"
"What?" Neal seemed puzzled as Peter went from angry to confused.
"Your suit, June had her tailor… customize… it?"
Neal's eyes were growing bigger as he realized it was too big for him. "Peter?"
"Are you sure they didn't do anything to you while you were unconscious?" Peter hadn't thought anything had happened, they'd been cleared medically. Still, what would cause this?
"We were unconscious, how should we know!" One of the other triplets snapped at him. He believed it was the youngest, but Peter didn't immediately look to confirm. He was too focused on Neal as he continued to shrink with growing rapidity the smaller he got.
After a few moments, Peter was still standing in shock when he realized that three children were now standing in front of him. Looking them over, all three were down to wearing their shirts and standing in their pile of clothes and oversized shoes. It was kind of adorable, like three little boys trying to wear their father's clothes, but it was wrong as they could no longer fit their own clothes.
The sound of a camera clicking brought Peter's mind back into focus as Elizabeth took a picture of the situation. Then she took another as Neal moved to grip Peter's pant leg.
"I think we need some child-sized clothing and dinner…" she was clearly shocked, but she was recovering faster than he was.
Looking at her with what felt like a shocked expression, Peter had no idea what to do.
Coming into the room, Elizabeth crouched in front of Neal. "Are you feeling okay?"
Peter felt a nod against his leg and when he dropped his hand, it was strange to feel Neal's hair and ear by his fingertips.
Reassuring herself that the boys were okay from the initial shock and shrink, she then decided to ask them what kind of pajamas they wanted. Making their choices, the boys gave her an idea of their tastes in clothes and food. With a list in mind, she stood up to kiss Peter and left on her errands.
Alone with three kids, Peter wished he could have gone with her, but they couldn't transport the triplets this way. Instead, he had to try and figure out what to do with them until she got back.
Looking down, he noticed how Neal still had a firm hold of his pants leg at the knee while he leaned against him in his shirts and vest. Putting a hand on Neal's head to ground himself, Peter ruffled his hair lightly. Then looking at the other boys, he noticed that they had pulled it together enough to begin picking up their clothes. After another moment, Neal released his grip and moved to do the same.
Clearing his throat, Peter tried to find his voice. "Please tell me this hasn't happened before." Once the initial shock seemed to pass, the boys were handling the situation surprisingly well.
"Yeah, because this is normal," one boy, the oldest he believed but it was hard to be certain as they were all wearing white t-shirts with the rest of their clothes neatly folded into three piles on the coffee table.
"What, would you yell at Neal if it had happened and he didn't tell you? It's not like you'd believe him if that were the case." Another snarked at him sarcastically. Maybe that was the oldest and the other was the youngest? Their hair was all flopping down over their eyes.
Stuck for a response, Peter didn't know why the other triplets seemed to have such a negative perception of him. He'd been worried about Neal and that usually came out in anger. Did they not realize that?
Feeling a tug on his pant leg, Peter looked down to see Neal, he believed, looking up at him. He was also wearing his white undershirt and brushing his hair out of his eyes to see. "Can I draw?"
Relieved, Peter agreed to the activity and moved to get paper and writing material for Neal to use at the table. Then he helped him up to the seat before spreading the paper and pens across the side of the table for the kids to use.
Fortunately, the other triplets were interested and joined him with only the request for tape.
Grabbing a crossword himself, Peter sat on the end by Neal and worked between glancing at Neal's drawings while he thought. It was comfortable normalcy since he often did this while Neal sketched random things he could see.
While he was contemplating a military phrase for his puzzle and watching Neal detail one of Elizabeth's vases, Peter jumped as a paper plane hit him in the side of his head.
Looking at the other boys, one was randomly doodling while the other was folding planes. As Peter watched, the boy with the planes launched one across the table that turned and went straight for him.
Catching it on reflex, Peter looked at the plane. It was well-designed and the tail had been adjusted to turn. Was the kid deliberately hitting him with the plane? Shaking his head, he decided it was more likely a coincidence. Passing the plane back, he returned to the puzzle.
A few minutes later, something bounced off of his nose but he didn't see a plane. Glancing around, he saw the same occupations as before.
Pretending to work on the puzzle, he saw the other two boys share a conspiratorial glance before one flew a plane and the other lifted a hidden tube to launch a spit wad at him. So, that's why they wanted the tape and he kept getting hit. It was deliberate after all! His next problem was figuring out what to do about it. They weren't actually kids or his sons so his father's methods of discipline wouldn't work. Jail and such threats weren't appropriate.
Neal seemed to be generally ignoring his surroundings until the latest spit wad bounced off of Peter's nose to roll across his drawings. Putting down his pen and picking it up, Neal then looked up to see Peter's troubled expression before turning to his brothers and glaring.
Peter didn't understand the gibberish that passed between the boys, but he appreciated that Neal seemed to be coming to his defense. It was best to have Neal handle his brothers, especially since he didn't know them.
When the conversation ended, Neal asked if Peter had any paper for recycling.
Working with him, Peter followed Neal's lead to initiate a game. They wadded up pieces of old newspaper and sat around a bucket. Peter was further away since he was big, but the triplets were evenly spaced. Shooting hoops, they counted to see who got the most in while Satchmo was happy to fetch any outliers.
Eventually, Elizabeth got back with a couple of bags of clothes and pizzas. She sent the boys to the bathroom to change into the new clothes and settle their things into the guest room upstairs.
Grateful for reinforcements, Peter kissed his wife before going to work picking up their mess while she set up dinner.
"They give you a hard time?" She asked as she set up dishes, utensils, and napkins for five.
"Neal's been a great help, it was his ideas on what to do, but his brothers have made it clear that they don't like me. They seem to think I just yell at Neal or something." Peter lamented while he piled the planes in a box with the sketches. He pulled a particularly nice one of Neal's aside and passed it to his wife. It was of an heirloom vase she had on the shelves.
Pausing to look at it while Peter returned the trash to recycling, she wondered if Neal would let her keep his drawing.
"Go ahead; you've talked about the vase before so I figured it would be a small payment for putting you through this," Neal said as he entered the room in little gray pants and a blue t-shirt.
Crouching down to hug him, Elizabeth thanked him for the thought and set the drawing on the shelves to put away after dinner.
Passing him the box, Peter asked Neal to put it in the guest room as a place his brothers could keep their things while they were there. "Perhaps the planes can be used in a better way later." He ruffled Neal's hair in response to the crestfallen expression he reacted with. "We don't know each other, it's okay, Neal."
"Still, they shouldn't treat you like that," Neal commented as he turned to haul the box as requested.
Elizabeth looked at him questioningly.
"Spitballs and planes don't hurt, but they're annoying." He shrugged and tried not to think of the words they'd said. Their attitudes weren't friendly towards him.
Frowning, Elizabeth didn't like it, but she wasn't sure what to do about it either.
By the time the triplets were all present, Peter had everything picked up and Elizabeth had the meal ready.
Climbing up onto the seats, the triplets needed help so that they could sit and eat. Using a mixture of books and pillows, Peter and Elizabeth got them situated high enough to reach without being on their knees like they'd done before to play.
Sharing the meal, Peter didn't' feel very talkative but he kept up with what was going on around him. Elizabeth got the boys talking about themselves in general. Neal talked some, but he mostly ate quietly beside Peter. Knowing what he liked, Peter easily passed food with Neal needing almost no conversation.
When they finished eating, Elizabeth sent Peter to walk Satchmo while she cleaned up. Settling the boys in with a movie, she picked up the food and dishes. With Satchmo leashed, Peter was happy to retreat and have some time alone.
Taking a deep breath, he wasn't sure how, but he realized that he needed to report what had happened to the boys. Pulling out his phone, he dialed Hughes.
When his boss answered and instructed him to explain what was wrong, Peter dove in. "The triplets shrunk to the size of kids, something was done to them while they were unconscious." When Hughes struggled to believe him, Peter promised to send a picture when he got home.
It was too strange to have a plan of action, but Hughes promised to research and stop by first thing in the morning with his results.
Thanking him, Peter was glad to garner the assistance of someone more experienced.
Satchmo took his usual time before he was ready to go home. Arriving back, Peter found Neal in the kitchen helping Elizabeth finish up while his brothers watched a movie. Letting Satchmo loose, the dog went to join the boys in the living room. He seemed to hope for pets.
Making himself comfortable at the table, Peter went to work on a case.
After helping Elizabeth with the cleanup, Neal joined Peter at the table and asked which case he was reviewing.
"Yours. Hughes is going to see what he can find and stop by in the morning. I'm going over what we know to see if I can find what we missed." It bugged him, it was his job to keep Neal safe, but he'd failed his friend and his brothers.
"It's not your fault, Peter. I didn't tell you about my brothers since we didn't expect to cross paths, whatever happened was while we were unconscious, and no one expected this!"
"Still, it's my job to protect you and those around our operations which I failed to do this time." He was the boss; it ultimately came back on him as the one in charge no matter why it happened.
"Don't beat yourself up over it. You're doing the best you can in a strange situation. Besides, we both know you do everything you can in the field and are especially protective to make sure we're as safe as possible when undercover. Now you've got my brothers and me here and are looking out for us. I can't complain." Neal stated before he started flipping through the case notes.
Feeling a little better, Peter patted Neal on the back, "Thanks, buddy."
Looking up with a smirk, Neal had a mischievous tone as he added, "Besides, I think being penalized by three kid-sized people including two strangers, is sufficient. I know you're not good with kids or crying women."
Snorting, Peter found himself bantering back and enjoying some of their normal comraderies. "Are you saying your current size depicts your personality?"
"That I'm normally a big kid trying to figure out how to get the cookie from the cookie jar?" Neal glanced up at him.
"No one else in the office plays with a rubber band ball, has a catapult in their desk, or does hat tricks every time they put their hat on. Not to mention your eager excitement at stings." Peter chuckled softly at the childish enthusiasm Neal usually displayed. "You have to admit, you aren't serious unless it's a serious danger or potentially life-threatening situation."
"You have to admit that I boost morale and cheer up the place. It's rather dull, those government white walls, identical desks, and standard attire. Oh, do you know what would liven the place up? I could paint some nice pictures and hang them around!" Neal sparked like he always did when he got a wild idea.
Knowing it wasn't an option; Peter still agreed with Neal that their workspace would look better. "You know as well as I do that you can't go hanging pictures on the wall. It's the FBI, not an art gallery."
"But you know you'd love having examples of my skills handy, just in case," Neal teased.
"I'd rather not need a 'just in case,' I would rather you keep yourself out of trouble." Peter admonished with a grumble. "The chase was fun, but I prefer working with you."
"It does lose some of the excitement, there is no risk to bringing pizza to the van, but I also prefer strategizing with you rather than against you," Neal reassured him with a smile.
Feeling better, Peter pulled Neal into reviewing the case information with him in a more serious fashion.
Based on time and the lack of suspicious things found at either site, it was suspected that the brothers had either been somewhere else in between the known locations, there was more to the second location than had been found, or whatever had been used was easily disposed of. However, their efforts to decipher what might be the cause didn't take long to turn silly.
Rubbing his palms down his tired face, Peter knew it had been a long day for all of them. Sending Hughes his updated notes, he decided to call it a night.
Checking on Neal, his eyes were drooping and his head had started to bob. "You think you can make it upstairs?" Peter wondered how Neal could go from leading the conversation to nearly asleep where he sat.
"Yeah, goodnight," Neal slid off of the chair and stumbled into the next one.
Peter wanted to question his answer but decided to use an excuse to follow Neal upstairs. Going behind his consultant, Peter was glad of his decision when Neal tottered and nearly fell backward down the stairs, "Whoa, buddy." Peter caught him and lifted him up to his shoulder. "I think this being small thing is catching up to you. It's been a long day."
Neal ducked his head into his shoulder against his neck and seemed to fall asleep immediately.
Smiling softly to himself, Peter carried Neal the rest of the way up to the guest room. With one hand he pulled the blankets back before he carefully laid Neal in the middle of the bed. Pulling the covers back up, he tucked Neal in and ruffled his hair softly.
It was touching to see the kid sound asleep and unguarded. With a final shift of his fingers through his hair, Peter moved to turn out the light and leave the door ajar for his brothers.
Going back downstairs, Peter was amused to see his wife locking up around two sound-asleep little boys.
Working together, they managed to settle Satchmo for the night, lockup, and then they teamed up to carry one little boy each. Walking around to the far side of the bed, Peter laid Kyle down and tucked him in much as he had with Neal. On the other side of the bed, Elizabeth was doing the same with Caleb. When the boys were settled, Peter stood with his wife at the door for a few moments. It felt surreal, but they enjoyed the idea of children around the house.
With a last glance, Peter turned the light back out and left the door ajar again. He'd be checking on the boys through the night to make sure they were okay.
Thank you, everyone, for reading, reviewing, and leaving kudos :D
Alrighty, I'll be posting an extra story this week in honor of Quinis' birthday. To work around my schedule, I decided to post the first chapter today giving you two chapters to read, I'll post the rest of Quinis' birthday story through the week as I can, and then next weekend we'll be back to the regular posting with the second half of this short story :D
