A/N: One of our enthusiastic readers, Frank Suppa, posed a question to me. What if Sarah saw that it was Casey who fired the gun killing the rogue agent at the station, and so knew Chuck hadn't. I'm not sure if this has been captured in a FanFiction story before, but the idea appealed to me. One chapter for now, as I am too busy to write more, but I will come back to it at some time.
Thanks to Capt LiL for the beta. Much appreciated.
So, this story starts as an AU version of "Chuck Versus the Final Exam" and is all Sarah's perspective of the events.
Casey Did It
Chapter 1: Testing
This is exactly why I had tried to get Chuck to run with me from Prague, and now I am the one having to make him do something that will change him completely!
I wish now that I had refused to stay to train him to be a spy. I could have refused. I was still CIA, so when Beckman said I had to stay, I should have rejected that and gotten in touch with Graham's replacement for a transfer. So, why didn't I?
Mr. Soulful Brown Eyes, that's why. Even when I was mad at him for rejecting me for the spy life, I still wanted to be around him.
When his rejection of me turned out to be his back-to-front idea of being worthy of me, I thought we'd get together and try again. But, no, he decides to hook up with an IT girl, who seemed to have been manufactured to fit his idea specification:
- Nerd, tick
- Not a spy, tick
- IT specialist who could work with him, check
- Never conned or stolen from anyone, check
- Never assassinated or killed anyone, check
- Brunette, check
- Beautiful, check
- Throwing herself at him, check
What chance did I have with all my flaws?
Of course, now I have made matters worse. I've added Daniel Shaw to my list of mistakes. I bitterly regret sleeping with him that one time when we were in DC, but hell, I was so upset that Chuck was now with Miss Take-Me-Now, and he had. I gave in and regretted it instantly. For the rest of the time there, I stayed in my old apartment, berating myself for that slip-up.
The rest of the trip was miserable too. Discussing what was going to happen with Chuck. I hated every bit of it. I argued against the decision, but was overruled.
We returned and I had to sit next to Daniel on the flight and have him drive me to Castle from the airport. I wish I'd driven there myself, just for some alone time before seeing Chuck. I refused to talk to him all the way. He knew why, even though I hadn't actually told him. I basically sat there dreading when I had to face Chuck.
When Chuck came down to Castle after we arrived back, it was as horrible as I expected.
"Hey, Sarah," he said, smiling at me.
"Hi," I replied. I smiled to hide how I really felt.
"How was DC?" he asked. Just the question I didn't want to answer. "I'm assuming you guys had a lot of fun. Although I... I can't really picture what Shaw does for fun."
I ignored the question and said, "Uh, I'm sorry I didn't call you back, but it was a work trip, and we were in a lot of meetings. Talking about you, actually. About your future."
He tried to talk about Casey now that he had been kicked out of the NSA, rather than ask about what we had been discussing. True Chuck. Caring about others more than himself.
I was telling him that we couldn't help Casey, when Daniel cut that conversation off. "Casey's status is none of your concern. There is business to attend to, however, which very much concerns you." He then handed me my bag, which I had unfortunately not retrieved from his car. I'm sure Daniel did that deliberately, to upset both of us. I could see how that affected Chuck and added it as another regret to my list.
Beckman appeared on the monitor. "Good morning, team. Have you told him anything yet?"
"Told me what?" Chuck asked.
She looked at him. "After much deliberation, it has been decided that you are ready for a mission that will test everything you have learned thus far. A final spy test, if you will."
Chuck acted the fool, as he often did, joking about how good he was at tests. I used to be embarrassed by it, but this time found it upsetting, knowing what the test would lead to.
I had to get him to take this seriously. "Chuck, if you fail to complete the mission, which you'll undertake by yourself, then you'll go back to your old life."
Beckman continued, "But if you succeed, you will be promoted. No more Buy More, no more handlers. Just real missions for a real spy. You will be based out of Rome. Your cover will be that of a billionaire industrialist."
Chuck looked amazed, as I expected. "Seriously? Molto bene! I love it! This is fantastic." He turned to Daniel and I. "We're all going to have to brush up on our Italiano. Do you know what I mean?"
Beckman stopped his rambling. "No, Chuck. Just you. Agents Walker and Shaw will be based in DC and continue to head counter-Ring operations there."
He was stunned and stuttered, "DC? D... DC. Not... not Rome?".
Beckman ended the call with, "You will get your mission specifics tomorrow. Your spy test will start then. Good luck."
Daniel chipped in, "You can do this, Chuck. You can pass this test. It's everything you've been working toward."
"Me... a real spy. In Rome, no less." The smile that crept onto his face cut right through me like a knife. It felt like he'd already forgotten me.
I put on a brave face and said, "Congratulations, Chuck. It looks like you're going to get everything that you always wanted."
I couldn't stay any longer after that. He only knew the goal. Tomorrow he'd face the test. Oh, God! I hope he survives it!
So, now it's got to this point. Chuck is screwing Hannah and I am about to screw his life up completely. Turn him into a killing machine, just like me.
Well, I'm done crying about it. That box of tissues and my pillow last night have soaked all those tears up. Now I am going to put on the mask that I had almost stopped wearing and face him to talk about how this is going to go.
I'd already let myself into his apartment and was waiting for him, sitting at the dining table.
He walked into the kitchen, so I stood up and said, "Morning, Chuck."
He dropped his cup. "Ga... What? Hah... Hi. How... how long have you been here?" Then, he started walking toward me. "Or are you really here? I... I could be asleep right now. I very well could be asleep right now. I have some of the most vivid dreams sometimes..."
I loved his nervous rambling. It made me want to stop him with a kiss, but I couldn't do that. Not today. In fact, now he had a girlfriend, not ever. "Chuck, you're awake. Please sit down. Your mission has started." I passed the folder to him. "This is how a real agent gets missions in the field."
" What, you surprising them in the kitchen? That must involve a lot of travel," he joked.
"Focus, Chuck. From here on in, my role is to observe and report. More of like a proctor than a partner."
He took out the device. "What's this thing?" The lid opened showing the screen, which surprised him.
I started taking notes and he looked up at me. "What... what are you doing? What are you doing? Are you writing something? Are you writing about me? Are you grading me?"
"Uh, think of it more like, recording the experience for history."
The recording started to play back. Beckman must have appeared on the screen. "Good morning, Chuck. Your mission centers around this man, Anatoli Zevlovski. A Russian FSB agent. He's in Los Angeles to meet with a person we believe works for us."
Chuck tried to interrupt and asked, "Who... who 'us', General?"
I had to quickly stop this. I shouldn't have said anything, but I did. "It's a recording, Chuck."
He didn't seem to get it. "What's that?"
Beckman continued describing what was going to happen. "A mole within the CIA, who has been selling secrets to Anatoli, who then sells them to the Ring. This mole is responsible for the deaths of hundreds of civilians and nine of our agents. We have intel that Anatoli is meeting with him, or her, at the Cobalt Hotel and Spa tonight. Your mission is to ascertain the identity of the mole. You will stakeout the hotel's entrance and let Anatoli lead you to the mole." I noted that Chuck kept looking up at me and not really concentration on what she was saying. I rolled my eyes. This was not going well. The recording finished.
Chuck grabbed the device. "Wait! That's all I need to know? How can that be all I need to know? Is there a rewind on this thing? What's the deal? Come on."
When the device self-destructed, he was surprised. "Wow. That just really self-destructed, did it not? That... that's like in the movies. That's incredible. Well, I got it, anyway. Stake out Anatoli and find the mole. Done and done."
His flippancy upset me, but I had to keep noting how he took this.
"Still with the writing. What is this? Like... like the CIA's permanent record? It's just like in junior high."
"Pretty much."
"Really? So... so you're saying that's got all the greatest hits in it, huh? All the, uh, daring escapes, and last-second bomb diffusions, and... and I would hope, uh, all of the world-class stakeout mixes."
"Yeah. Everything is in here," I replied. I smiled, and it was a true smile this time. "We've definitely been through a lot." A lot of happy memories. I stood to get ready to leave, as I was supposed to. "I mean, not... not just us. Casey, as well."
He repeated my words. Then, as I started walking away, he stood, "Uh, hey, speaking of stakeouts... uh, you're going to be at the stakeout tonight, right?"
I stopped and looked back at him "Right. Shaw will quarterback from the Castle."
He said, "But, so, so, this is like, um, our last mission together. Seems like we should do something special."
I didn't want to think about it like that. It hurt too much. "Something special will be you completing your mission and becoming a spy, Chuck."
He couldn't leave it like that, could he? "Of course, of course. I'm just saying... last mission. Kind of makes you think. Old times. Good times. Dangerous, but... but good."
I had to hold back the tears at them ending. "Yeah. It does. I'll see you tonight."
"See you tonight," he replied.
I managed to fight off the tears until I got to my car, then I sat and cried and cried.
At the stakeout, it was even harder to control my emotions.
Chuck had everything set up for the surveillance correctly when I got there, so I said, "Everything looks good. It doesn't seem like you've missed a trick."
"There is one more thing, though." He opened another case. "Ta-da!" It contained boxes of food, a bottle and two glasses. "No one throws a stakeout like Chuck Bartowski. You can put that in my secret file." He poured and handed me a glass. "A little bubbly for you." Then one for him. "And a little bubbly... for me. Uh, so tell me... Do the words, 'sizzling shrimp' ring a bell?"
I smiled, remembering. "From our very first stakeout."
"That's right."
"How could I forget?" He played some music, which also made me smile. "Also from our first stakeout."
All this was making me want to call the whole thing off and kiss him. He made it worse with his next words. "You're going to miss me in DC. You know that, right?"
He'd shattered any good feelings I had at that moment with those words. Tears were threatening now. In a very small voice, I replied, "I know."
I wanted him to stop this conversation and focus on the food, drink and, most importantly, the surveillance, but no, he had to continue, "So, um... So, you and Shaw, you're going to be... living together? Is that it? Like, are you, uh... you guys are real serious, or what?"
I don't know why I didn't just tell him that I wasn't with Shaw. It would have stopped that line of questioning, but it may throw up others. Besides, I didn't want to admit why we weren't together. Chuck was still with Hannah, right? However, mumbling out what I did, certainly didn't help, "Uh, I don't know. It's... it's different."
Of course, he probed, "Different how?"
This was going to keep going. I had to admit it. "Than with you."
"You know, I'm... I'm, uh... I'm..." he couldn't seem to start, and them he got a call. He looked at his phone and said, "It's Shaw." He got up to take the call.
I put the food down. We shouldn't be eating really. I could hear Chuck talking behind me, but I didn't try to guess the conversation. Then, Chuck said, in a louder voice, so that I could hear, I guess, "Yeah, Sarah's right here. She just got here. What a coincidence. Hey, Sarah. How are you?" Then, he lowered his voice, but I heard him say to Daniel, "Thanks for the reminder about the earpieces."
Daniel must have told him to focus, as I then heard Chuck say, "Okay. Talk to you soon. Bye."
He came and sat down, and we both attached our earpieces and I thought we were going to focus, but Chuck started talking again. "What I... what I was going to ask you, uh, a minute ago, or what I was about to say, anyway... was that I've been, um... I've been thinking about what it used to be like between us. Before Prague. And, uh, thinking about what life would be like for us if we'd made different decisions back then. If I had made a different decision back then."
God! I'd been thinking that since it happened!
"Look, I know we couldn't be together before because I wasn't a real spy, but if I pass this test, we wouldn't have to choose between the job and us. If I pass this test, we could be together. That is, of course, if you're willing to give it another shot."
I lowered the binoculars and found that he'd done the same and was looking at me with those eyes that I know I loved, even though I'd never said that. That crap about needing to be a spy had to be discussed, because it was so very wrong, but when he started leaning toward me, obviously wanting to kiss, I could only do one thing. I leaned toward him.
Our lips almost met in what I knew would be a wonderful kiss, when Daniel's words came through the earpieces, breaking the mood completely, "Did you see him? Did you flash?"
We both raised our binoculars to our eyes and Chuck said, "No, I... no, I didn't. Should I have?" I don't know why he added that last bit.
Daniel sighed, then said, "Anatoli's in the hotel. He just swiped a credit card he uses at the spa. How did you miss him?"
We both knew how, but Chuck answered, "I don't know. I... I just did." He stood. "I'm going after him."
Daniel said, "Sarah, give him the glasses."
I called to Chuck, "Wait. Here." I handed the glasses to him. "Put these on. They'll record everything and relay it back to Castle."
Daniel then said, "Okay. Sarah, get back to Castle. You're on your own, Chuck. Now, get in there before the mission and your spy career are over."
Chuck and I were just looking at each other. My heart was pounding. I desperately wanted to kiss him or cry. Or both. The tears were really threatening.
Chuck put the glasses on and gave me a very determined look before saying, "This isn't over."
As he walked away, I didn't know what to think. I was in pain, not physical, but emotional. We'd nearly kissed. I needed that kiss and I think Chuck did too. It felt like someone had ripped my heart out. Again.
When I got back to Castle, Daniel immediately asked, "What the hell happened back there?"
I didn't look at him, but covered, "It wasn't his fault. You've been in the field. Operations don't always go as planned." They don't normally have two people kissing each other, either, but I wasn't going to mention that. I pulled the headphones on to listen to Chuck as we watched through his glasses. He was obviously in a steam room.
The steam was clearing and we could see three others in with Chuck, who started commenting on them being in there with him.
Daniel commented, "It's just Anatoli and his muscle. He must not have made contact yet with the mole. Stay with him."
I had to sit, watch and listen to a series of events that could only happen to Chuck. I probably would have laughed at some of them if it wasn't so embarrassing. Only Chuck would have followed Anatoli in just a towel. I know Daniel was pushing him, but why didn't Chuck quickly change before following him?
He did manage to track him down and entered the bedroom next door. I was guilty of pushing him to go onto the balcony and look into the next room.
The window was slightly open so we could hear Anatoli, as well as see him. The mole was facing away from us, unfortunately. He was the one we needed to identify.
Anatoli was speaking, "Well done. You are about to become an even richer man. We should begin the process of retrieval."
The other man replied, "Change of plans, Anatoli. I'm dealing directly with the Ring now. Your services are no longer needed." He moved in and stabbed Anatoli, then moved out of range.
Chuck stammered out, "Oh, God... Oh, my God... The mole just killed Anatoli."
Daniel quickly replied, "Forget Anatoli. The mole is leaving. You gotta get a look at his face."
Chuck made some weird sound, obviously pretending to be a bird of some sort. Strangely, the man walked to the window to look out. Thankfully, he didn't spot Chuck, but we got his facial details and searched our database for him.
We got him. He was a CIA agent called Hunter Perry.
Daniel smiled for the first time. "We've got it, Chuck. Congratulations."
Chuck replied, "I am a spy." Then, "Oh, no!" We saw him look down at his towel floating down to the ground. His final words were, "I am a naked spy."
Part of me wanted to laugh, but another wanted him to look down at himself. I had to take off the headphones and walk away.
The mission had been a success. However, that was just the first part. More would come, because Hunter Perry was still out there. in fact, Daniel had asked me to take Chuck for a meal in Union Station where I could give him the next task.
I was going to give him a call when he walked into the Orange Orange. He was a bit full of himself, but I couldn't blame him for that. "When should I expect to receive my international spy union card, hmm?"
That made me smile. "You did a great job last night, Chuck. Congratulations."
He stood there and smiled back. "Thank you. I appreciate that. Uh, so, tell me... uh, and this is just, you know, between the two of us, just for the sake of conversation, but, uh... as far as these tests go, do other people usually do as well as I did? Or did I do, like, historically well?"
This was pushing it a bit far, so I ignored it. "Uh, listen, Chuck, I was hoping that you would be free for dinner tonight." I wasn't allowed to tell him it was his next task. Part of the test was how you reacted when receiving it unexpectedly.
"Yeah, of course. In fact, I was actually going to ask you if... if you were free," he replied.
"So, how about Traxx? It's a restaurant down at Union Station."
"Uh, yeah. Yeah, that sounds great. Nothing whets the whistle like the sound of a nice long horn. Forget it. I'm... I'm very excited."
I didn't want that. It would be too much of a come down for him. "Well, don't be too excited."
He leaned over the counter and whispered, "Let me finish. By 'excited', I... I mean, uh, cold as ice, because, you know, now I am a real spy."
As I watched him walk away, I asked myself why I didn't correct him.
A short while later, Daniel asked me to join him to discuss what came next.
"You told him to meet you tonight?" Daniel asked.
I nodded. "I did. So, what's the rest of his mission?"
He said, "With Anatoli dead, there's only one piece left to be cleaned up... Perry. We've arranged for him to meet Chuck at the restaurant."
That made sense. "And Chuck has to bring him in?"
"No. Chuck has to kill him," he calmly replied.
"What?" I was both shocked and horrified. "Chuck has to kill him? You're giving him his Red Test, tonight?" I never expected this. In fact, I thought he wouldn't have to go through a Red Test if he was joining the NSA.
"That's right," he replied.
"Why didn't you tell me?"
He sat there and crossed his arms. "Because you would've said you couldn't be a part of it."
"I can't. I can't be a part of it, and I won't," I declared. "You have to meet him. I can't make him do something like that. I'm not even sure that I want him to be able to do something like that."
"I'm sorry, Sarah, but this isn't about what you want. It's about Chuck, and our finding out what he's capable of."
That was bullshit. Besides, what he was suggesting was worse that my Red Test. "Perry is a seasoned agent, and he is gonna do anything to save himself. And if Chuck freezes, then... then... we could lose him." The thought of that tore my heart apart.
"And that's why you'll be there. If you give him the order, if you tell him to kill Perry, he'll do it."
He didn't let me say anything else. He got up and walked out.
I sat there fuming. This was not right. I had to stop this from happening. I didn't care about following orders at that point. This was about Chuck. If he failed, he'd die. If he succeeded he would die inside. He wasn't a killer anyway, but the Red Test wasn't just about killing, it was an assassination.
I stormed into Shaw's office space, 'That Bastard Shaw' as I refer to him now. "I'm going to put a stop to this!"
"No, you're not," he replied, leaning back into his chair. "This is sanctioned. He has to do it." He leaned forward. "Or are you going rogue?"
"This has to stop. He won't be able to kill. That's why he failed in Prague. Beckman knows he can't do it."
He spread his hands. "She's sanctioned this, Sarah."
"Don't call me that! It's Agent Walker now, you bastard!"
"Or is it Sam?" he goaded.
"Piss off, Shaw!"
"He'll still do this, whether you give him the instructions or not. Do you want him to die?"
I stormed out at that point.
I tried calling Chuck to cancel the date, but he'd gone out on a call and not taken his phone. So, I called Casey.
He launched straight in. "He tells me he's passed his test and is now an agent."
I had to correct his thinking. "Casey, he hasn't passed. He's completed his first task. I thought the next was going to be capturing the rogue CIA agent, but it's not."
"He's going to have to kill him, isn't he?"
"They want me to give him his Red Test. I didn't think he was going to have to do one of those." I was near tears and Casey could obviously tell.
"Walker, don't you cry on me!"
"I want to call it off, Casey. Tell Chuck not to go to the restaurant."
"Disobey orders?" he questioned.
"This is Chuck we're talking about, Casey!" I said, exasperated with him for saying that. He disobeyed orders recently.
"If you disobey orders, someone else will set him up to do this and you won't be around to help him through the aftermath."
I hadn't thought about that, but pointed out the flaw in his logic. "I won't be anyway. If he succeeds he's going to be sent to Rome without me."
Casey was obviously surprised. "Where will you be?".
"I'm being sent to DC with Shaw to continue the fight against the Ring."
"Wow! Hitting him with everything!" He was right.
"If you see him, tell him to call me, please," I begged.
"No. You give him the assignment, but keep an eye on him. Make sure he stays safe. Where is it, by the way." I told him. "I'll be there as well."
"But what if he has to shoot Perry? I'm not sure he would get over it." I did start to sob at that point.
He paused and then said, "He won't do it, but maybe we can intervene."
"How?"
"Dunno yet. We'll find a way." He ended the call leaving me confused.
So, here I sat in Traxx, waiting to give Chuck the orders that would destroy him. I was going to explain that I wanted to stop it but couldn't.
Somehow, I managed to keep myself from tearing up again. I don't know how. I was feeling miserable, though.
Chuck walked up and sat down opposite me. He wasn't wearing a tie, but apart from that looked very smart.
"Wow. You look great. Better than great," he told me. He always said the right thing.
"Thank you. You look great, too," I replied. He really did. It didn't make me smile like it usually did, though. Nothing would.
"Thank you very much. Feel pretty good. Right off the bat, I... I just... I want to apologize. I want to say I'm sorry if I came across a little too strong last night. It's just that, with the way things seemed to be progressing between you and Shaw, I wanted to tell you how I felt, and I..."
I had to stop him. This was too much. I couldn't talk about this right now. "Chuck..."
He looked at me. "I'm doing it again, aren't I? I'm coming across... I'm-I'm... I'm coming across too strong. I'm sorry about that." He didn't stop, though. "Appetizer? Uh... let's have an appetizer. No! What am I thinking? I got to thank you. Thank you. I wouldn't even be here right now if it wasn't for you."
That was like a knife in my gut. "Please don't say that."
He couldn't see how upset I was. He got like this sometimes. So, happy and excitable that he didn't pay any attention to how I was reacting. "But it's true," he stated. And it was. I had gotten him into this mess. It was all my fault.
"Chuck, you're going to want to stay calm right now, okay? I need you to trust me."
He looked a bit puzzled. I could see a smile starting to form. "Why? Are you planning on surprising me with something? Is that what this is?"
God! It really was! "Uh, something like that, yeah." I reached down to get what I needed from my bag. "Your mission isn't over, Chuck. You walked out on me this morning, so I couldn't say anything." He opened the envelope I passed to him and looked at the photo. I continued, "The man in the photo is the man that you ID'd last night. He's a traitor who continues to put civilians and agents, and the nation, at risk. We have arranged for you to meet him here at the restaurant in five minutes time. He knows you are CIA. And he will remain cautious, and probably try to maintain his cover."
I then had to do just what I didn't want to do. I pushed over my napkin and what was within it.
We just looked at each other for a second. I hated this. Then, he flipped up the top of the napkin and saw the gun within it. He covered it again and a look of horror appeared on his face.
"The final part of your mission is to kill him." I couldn't hold back a tear after saying that.
He didn't notice the tear because he was reacting to my words. "Are you being serious right now? Are you kidding me? Kill him here? Now? I can't do that."
I tried to stay calm. "Then you won't become a spy."
"But then... we couldn't..."
I should have agreed with him, to encourage him, but I had to dispel this stupid idea he had. "Chuck, I never wanted you to be a spy. I wanted you as you were. I didn't want this, Chuck." Another tear escaped.
Just like in Prague, he ignored me and started off on the same tack. "Sarah, when all this started, I didn't think I had a chance at ever becoming a real spy. But if I... if I can't do this, then-then... then what'll I be?"
"Then you'll be Chuck, and there is nothing wrong with that, as far as I'm concerned." I looked down. "I've already said too much. If you still want to be a spy, you have to do this. It's your decision." There were more tears now.
Casey hadn't gotten back to me. I didn't know what to do apart from keep my gun ready. If Perry tried to kill Chuck and I could see he was likely to succeed, I'd shoot him myself. Consequences be damned.
I got up to leave him to his decision making. He stopped me. "Sarah, wait. Are... are we absolutely sure about this guy?"
"Yes, Chuck. We are." I took a deep breath. "Your target is Perry. Your orders are clear."
"I don't know if I can do this," he muttered.
I was pretty sure he couldn't. "Then don't, be the wonderful man I know." I really shouldn't have said that. I had to get out of there before I whisked him off to safety. "I'm sorry, Chuck. The decision is yours, Chuck, but please know that there is no turning back. Whatever you choose to do, also decides your future."
I left and the flood of tears were really threatening. I made the mistake of stopping just outside the restaurant and looking back. I couldn't move for a second, taking in his frown and pained look.
I turned and kept moving. The tears came then and pouring down my cheeks.
I sat a short distance away. From here I could actually see both Chuck and Perry who had arrived just after I left. Thankfully, the tears had stopped and I was able to see clearly now.
Then, I saw Perry get up and shortly after, Chuck followed him. I guess they went to the restroom.
That must be where Chuck would kill him. I now hoped so and not the other way around. I couldn't go and save him in there.
I was surprised when, a few minutes later, the two of them came out, with Perry walking just in front of Chuck. He obviously had decided to disregard the order and was arresting the man.
I then heard Shaw through my earpiece. Maybe he was frustrated because I was supposed to keep him informed. "Sarah, what's happening?" I ignored him and watched the two men.
Chuck made a rookie mistake, letting Perry walk ahead of him and pulling away. Suddenly Perry grabbed a woman, twisted, threw her back into Chuck and ran. I now had to follow them.
They eventually exit the station into the train yard. There were a lot of railcars with containers lined up in rows. The two men disappear within this mass.
Shit! How was I supposed to find them, let alone make sure Chuck didn't get hurt?
I ran in.
I still couldn't believe how Chuck and Perry had managed to keep out of my sight. I'm better than this at tracking people. It was almost as if they both knew I was there and were eluding me as much as each other. Mind you, this train yard was good for hiding in, so maybe I shouldn't berate myself too much.
I moved around one of the railcars and suddenly, there was Chuck, holding his gun. I crept closer. I could see he was talking, but I wasn't close enough to hear anything he said. He must be talking to Perry.
I crept closer still, facing in the direction Chuck was. There, kneeling no more than ten feet from Chuck was the man. He was unarmed, so I didn't worry that he could hurt Chuck.
I crept across to the other side so I could see what Chuck did next. Would he shoot the man, and fully join the ranks of killers? I really hoped not.
He was still holding the gun and had it pointed at Perry, but as I looked at his hands, they weren't steady.
I looked up at his face, and as I did so, saw a flash behind him, and heard a shot being fired. I looked at Chuck to make sure he wasn't the target, but he was still standing, now looking shocked. I breathed a sigh of relief. He was ok.
Looking round the end of the trailer, I saw Perry on the floor. He was the one shot.
I guessed who had fired, and looked again, but the person was in the shadows and I couldn't see. I had to know, though. I quickly ran back to the far end of the current railcar, and then ran along to opposite the spot where the shot had come from. As I neared the end of the trailer, I crept along to get opposite the shooter.
Chuck had walked close to that person and was clearly talking to them, but I still couldn't see.
Chuck turned back and walked to the dead man and I saw a shape move in the opposite direction to where I was. Chuck was completely distracted, so I quietly slipped across and followed the shape.
It wasn't long before that shape stopped, so I did too, still way out of sight.
Then, a match was lit and I watched as Casey lit a cigar. So, I was right. Casey had shot the man.
I knew exactly what was going on. Casey knew that Chuck wouldn't be able to shoot and would therefore fail the Red Test. Casey was getting him through. My relief almost overwhelmed me. I nearly gave myself away.
I now had to decide what to do. Should I go along with the deception or tell Shaw that it wasn't Chuck. If I did, then Casey would get in serious trouble. He shouldn't have a firearm, after all. It would also mean that Chuck wouldn't become a spy. As I thought about that, I knew how devastated Chuck would be to fail again.
As I walked on, I thought about what I had been prepared to do. If Perry had pulled a gun on Chuck, I would have shot the man. This was only different because of Casey's status.
When I got back to the main building, I had to call Shaw and let him know the outcome. When Shaw answered the call, I knew exactly what to say and what feelings to express. "He did it. Perry is dead." I had no compunction about lying. It was what I did. I made it sound like the worst outcome I could imagine, which, if it was true, would be the case.
"Great news," Shaw replied. I wasn't sure if he was referring to Chuck's success or how upset that was making me. Bastard!
As I ended the call, I knew this was the right choice. If he'd have failed the test, not only would that cause Chuck more inadequacy issues, but Shaw would berate him and then force him to do it again. This way, none of that would happen.
I had also decided how I was going to help Chuck, as an agent. Wherever he was sent, I was going with him. That meant Rome initially. Selfish, of course. I would continue to be with him, which I definitely wanted, but he would benefit from me using my gun and covering for him.
Beckman wasn't going to agree with this as it disrupted her plans. However, I was not going with the man who tricked me and who I now hated. Chuck needs me and I need Chuck.
I obviously need to talk to him about it. I also need to talk about who fired the shot, so he knows that I am aware. We may need Casey in that conversation, too.
In the meantime, Shaw needs to see me upset with what he thinks happened. That would be easy. I'm a great actress when I need to be.
Beckman was the problem. I may have to admit my feelings to her. Something to discuss with Chuck first. All this needs to happen quickly or I will miss my chance.
Shaw gave me the envelope containing everything for Chuck to receive. "Take it to his apartment for him to find," he said. He looked at me. I had walked in looking upset, but as he gave me this, I shot him a look of distaste. That was no act, I did hate Shaw now.
The new agent finding what they needed was often done like this, but I was going to change things a bit.
When I got to my car, I opened the envelope. In addition to another device with a message from Beckman, there was also a gun, a badge and a plane ticket. I check the latter and made a call, booking a seat on the same flight. I then put the ticket back in and closed the envelope.
Needless to say, I didn't just leave it at his apartment. I couldn't do that anyway or risk Morgan finding it. I sat in the room waiting for Chuck.
I heard him talking before he came in. It was probably with Casey.
He walked in the door and did a double take when he saw me. "Sarah! I was going to call you."
"You don't need to now, Chuck. Sit down, please."
He looked awful. "For someone who is now a spy, you don't look happy," I said.
"Sarah… I…" He was clearly struggling with what to say.
In a quiet voice, I said, "I saw it, Chuck."
He looked panicked now. "You… you saw me kill Perry?"
I held his gaze. "No. I saw Casey kill him."
He looked shocked, but then looked down as the envelope I pushed in front of him. "So, what's this?"
"Beckman and Shaw think you did it. So, you passed the test."
I watched him open the envelope and tip everything out. He opened the device and I heard Beckmen talking, "Good evening, Chuck. Congratulations. You are now officially an agent. Included is a plane ticket to Washington for your immediate final induction and processing. Sarah and Shaw will stay behind to wrap up the Burbank operations."
The device started to smoke.
Chuck looked up at me. "Why, Sarah?"
"Because I didn't want Shaw berating you and then putting you through that again. I also know how you'd take him treating you like that." I reached over and took his hand. "You'd take it badly, wouldn't you."
He nodded and looked down at the items on the table.
After a few moments, he looked at me again. "So, this is it. Tomorrow I leave and will never see you again."
I shook my head. "No, Chuck. I'm coming with you to DC and, if you'll have me, I'll come with you to Rome."
"But… but what about Shaw? And Beckman's orders?"
"Shaw can go to hell and I'm not following those orders," I declared, but I was watching him carefully to see if that was okay with him.
"I don't want you getting into trouble, Sarah!" Typical Chuck.
"Well, I don't care. This is non-negotiable, Chuck."
I loved the smile that formed on his face. "Of course I'd love you to come with me to Rome, Sarah." He paused, obviously trying to decide whether to say more. He obviously decided not to, so I stood up and walked around the table. I pulled him up and, once he was standing, I wrapped my arms around his neck and I kissed him.
We didn't rush to his bedroom, much as I now wanted to, because we needed to talk to Casey.
We walked across the courtyard, hand in hand, and knocked on his door.
Casey was surprised to see me when he opened his door. Then, he looked daggers at Chuck. I guessed what that was about. "He didn't tell me, Casey. I saw you."
Casey let us in and he went toward his chair. I stayed standing, so Chuck did too.
When Casey slumped down into the chair, I started to talk, "Is this what you decided to do after our talk?" He nodded. "I wish you'd told me," I said.
"Didn't want you compromised," he replied.
I snorted. "I was already compromised."
"Wait. You two talked?" Chuck finally asked.
I nodded, but Casey went to town on it. "I talked. She blubbered."
Chuck looked at me. I was irritated with Casey for putting it like that, but it was true. Seemed like the time to confess everything. "Chuck, I didn't want you to have to go through that. I told Shaw it couldn't happen and that I certainly couldn't be the one to order it. He said if I did, you'd go through with it. I thought otherwise, you might get killed. I didn't know what to do, so sought out the only partner I trusted."
"She was going to try to get away with you," Casey told him.
As Chuck looked at me again, I said, "That was one of the options."
"Her killing Perry was another. I didn't know if she'd get the chance, so I came along." Casey then looked at me. "That was why you were there, wasn't it?"
I nodded. "I knew Chuck wouldn't be able to do it."
"He was pulling a small pistol out of his pocket," Casey said.
I was shocked and my knees gave way. Chuck was close enough to catch me and help me to Casey's couch. As I sat there, stunned, I realized that my fears had been right. If it hadn't been for Casey…
I finally managed to speak. "I didn't see that. I had assumed you stripped him of weapons in the restroom."
Chuck blushed, obviously realizing how big a mistake that was. He didn't say anything, but Casey certainly did. "You moron! I didn't know about that." He threw his hands up in the air while shaking his head. "You deserved to die!"
I glared at Casey, but my emotions were a mess. Tears formed again as I thought about what could have happened. "I was watching you when Casey shot, Chuck. I didn't see what Perry was doing." The tears started to escape. "I could've lost you!"
"Cut that out, Walker!" Casey snapped.
Chuck sat down next to me and put his arm around me. "I survived, Sarah. I'm alright." I appreciated that, and it was true. Both that and Casey's words got through to me. Now certainly wasn't the time for tears. There would be time for tears of joy that Chuck and I were going to be together, but that wasn't for now.
I wiped the tears away and got myself under control. Casey noticed and nodded to me. "So, what's next?" he asked.
"I have to go to DC to finalize things before I get sent to Rome," Chuck told him.
Casey grunted and looked at me. "And you going there to be with Shaw," he growled.
"No. I'm not," I replied, looking him in the eyes. "I'm going with Chuck."
Casey raised his eyebrows at that. "Have you told the general?"
"Not yet."
"She'll stop you," Casey said. "You won't even get on the plane."
Shit! He was right.
"Call in sick, so Shaw doesn't question why you're not in Castle cleaning the place out." I stared at Casey for a while before I said anything. He was right about this too.
"Thank you, John. I'm not thinking straight at the moment. That will work. He already knows I'm upset. Then, I can get away."
I turned to Chuck. "I managed to get a seat fairly close to yours. In fact, there are a quite a few empty seats. The two either side of me are empty too. I'm hoping you can come and sit next to me."
His grin lit up the room for me.
I looked back to Casey. "Thank you, John. You've been a great partner. I'll miss you." I walked over and gave him a kiss on his cheek. He didn't look comfortable, but didn't push me away, either.
"Yeah, thanks Casey. You've been a great friend." Chuck held out his hand and Casey did shake it.
"I'll hunt you down if you tell anyone else, but working with you two has been the high point of my career."
Both Chuck and I said, "Aww."
"Get out of here," Casey told us, clearly uncomfortable now he'd admitted that.
When we left Casey's apartment, although I would have loved to spend the night with Chuck, I couldn't. I had to get back to my hotel room to get everything together for me to leave and Chuck needed to do the same. We agreed to meet in the departure lounge.
As I drove away, I was smiling. Today could have been the worst day of my life. Chuck could have been killed. Or he could have actually gone through with it and killed Perry, which would have killed him inside, which then would have killed me inside too, because I had made it happen. Instead, Casey had saved him and I was going with him. We would be together. I was so very happy.
A/N: This is just a start, but different from what we watched. They have to face Beckman yet, in DC, before heading to Rome together. Oh, and Casey will join them in Europe at some point.
As I rewatched that episode, seeing Sarah walking around in that train yard with her gun ready to shoot, I wondered why that was. I don't think it was just for her own safety. Maybe she would have shot the guy herself if she thought he was going to shoot Chuck.
When I can, I'll come back to this and we can see how they get on in Europe. This is not intended as a cliffhanger, so please don't see it as one. Chuck and Sarah will be together in whatever happens. Trust me, Chuck(sters). :)
