TM #267 - In medias res
Note: This ficlet isn't binding to any of the Chuck verse muses mentioned it as they're used without permission but hopefully done justice. This ficlet is very long and probably not one I'm completely satisfied with, but here it is. Also, if you haven't seen episode 2x11, events of it are mentioned in the text so, just a heads up, there are some spoilers.
April 22, 2019
Ellie sat on the couch at the safe house with her head bowed. She was so tired of not knowing what was going on, begging for someone to tell her something.
Agent Thomas Denworth took a seat next to her. He shook his head before addressing her. "Dr. Woodcomb, I understand your frustration. I really-"
"With all due respect, sir?" Ellie interrupted, "I just would like to finally know the truth. Why are my husband and my daughter in danger?"
"It has to do with someone in your life. You see-"
"Someone I knew? Who did I know that was a spy or...whatever other sort of person that would be of interest to you?" Ellie was quite confused.
"Well, I think Agent Carmichael will certainly answer all of your questions. Though...I still don't think it was wise of superiors to allow him to speak with you just yet, but he insisted, several times." Agent Denworth then got to his feet. "He'll be here shortly," he added, before leaving Ellie all by herself once again.
"Why would it be any big deal to this 'Agent Carmichael' anyway?" she asked herself out loud.
While only five minutes had passed, it certainly seemed like an eternity to her. She heard someone approach from behind and didn't bother to turn around. "Let me guess, you're Agent Carmichael?"
There was no answer but she heard someone walk towards her. When the agent took a seat next to her, she turned and upon seeing the agent, she was reminded of Libby's description of the 'angel' that saved her over a year ago. Her jaw dropped and she began to back away from him, her eyes becoming very wide. She began to ramble nervously, "I-it can't be. It can't be. Y-you died. I was at your funeral. Y-you can't be here. Unless...Libby was right. Unless, s-she really saw an angel that day who's here now."
The agent's lip quivered slightly and Ellie continued to tremble. The agent bowed his head and began, "I-I'm not an angel or a ghost or anything. But-"
"Chuck?" Ellie asked, her voice a mere whisper, "I-is it really you?"
Her brother nodded, softly replying, "It's me."
Ellie threw her arms around him, her eyes filling with tears.
"I'm sorry, I'm so, so sorry," Chuck began, as he returned her hug. He became choked up as he attempted to apologize for all of those years of letting her live a terrible lie. "I really hope you can forgive me. I didn't...I didn't want to leave you. I didn't want them to make you think I died. I...had no choice when it happened, I swear."
His sister released from the hug and backed away from her brother slightly. She wiped away a tear from each of her eyes. "What do you mean? And why did that agent that was in here give you a fake last name? Why didn't he just say it was you?"
Chuck sighed. "It's a long story."
She did not want to hear that answer and glared at him. "I have been told nothing-" she began, with noticeable frustration in her voice.
"Ellie, wait," her brother interrupted, trying to calm her down, "I know. All of this...I mean, you must be going crazy. I'm just bracing you...this is going to take me awhile to explain all of this."
Ellie took a breath, calming herself. She nodded, still with noticeable tears in her eyes. Chuck grabbed a tissue box off the table next to him and handed it to her. "Thank you," she said, as she took a tissue and wiped her eyes.
Her brother smiled a bit. "You're welcome." Then his expression became a bit more serious and he began, "I don't expect to you to believe me right away. You'll just have to trust me that I'm telling the truth. I mean...if I were you, I'd have trouble believing me too."
She cocked her head, a bit confused. Chuck sighed and started the story with, "Remember the birthday party for me you gave a little over ten years ago? The one just before I met Sarah?"
Ellie nodded. "I tried to set you up with one of my friends."
"Right...and...it was kinda awkward and all...but moving on. That night, I got an e-mail from Bryce Larkin-"
"Just before he died? Chuck-"
"Technically...he didn't die either. His death was faked as well. I didn't know that right away though."
Ellie looked rather confused but let her brother continue.
"S-so Bryce's e-mail had this riddle to solve and I figured it out and the message loaded. At first I thought it was strange...this series of random images. Some of them a bit scary...people getting shot and stuff. But after a few seconds, I just couldn't turn away. I went in this like trance and the next thing I remember was Morgan waking me up for work. I thought maybe I was hung over or something, especially when I was in the shower and while listening to a news report about a general coming to Los Angeles, I knew where the police were stationed on the 5. I just knew after all these images flashed before my eyes."
"This sounds like something out of a comic book, Chuck," Ellie remarked.
"I know. But everything I'm telling you is the absolute truth."
"So...you have some sort of psychic ability or something?" His sister's expression was a look of complete disbelief.
"No. As it turned out, that e-mail that Bryce sent me was a computer database that belonged to the CIA and NSA. All of the files found a way to become stuck in my brain. And when I saw or heard certain things, a file would load. I'd suddenly know something about someone that way," Chuck began to explain.
Ellie waved her arms signaling him to stop. "I can't believe you'd make up-"
"I'm not!" He shook his head. "Ellie, I warned you going into this it was going to be difficult to believe. But everything I say is the truth. Federal agents came after me soon after that. One I...didn't expect was one right away but sorta...wondered what a beautiful girl like her would want with someone like me. But I agreed anyway. That first date with Sarah-" Chuck stopped speaking when he saw Ellie become wide eyed.
"Sarah is an agent?" she asked, looked rather shocked.
He nodded. "CIA. Like me. You'll see her later on as well and she can show her badge if you want her to."
His sister sighed. "And here I thought you had finally found a girlfriend after all those years of not being able to let go of Jill."
"Sarah and I have an interesting history together. We both were confused about what feeling were real, or if we could ever be together since she technically was assigned to guard me. It took awhile to figure everything out."
"But when you disappeared with Sarah for awhile and made all these excuses...were you actually in danger or something?"
Chuck nodded. "Though...technically, not always because bad guys were after me. Because of the Intersect- that's the computer database I mentioned- being in my head, I was taken on missions to see if I could identity certain bad people. Arms dealers, rouge spies...that sort of thing."
Ellie's eyes went wide again. "So it was just you and Sarah after all these bad people."
"No...it usually was three of us, Sarah, Casey-"
"Casey?! Our neighbor...that guy you worked with?"
With another nod, he replied, "The very same."
She cocked her head, thinking for a moment. "He could be kind of gruff, but I just thought it was his military background. That explains a lot, actually."
"Yeah. Well, Casey wasn't exactly as nice about trying to recover me that night. While Sarah was trying to charm me into giving up any information about the Intersect, Casey and his...I dunno, team, I guess, were basically ready to run over Sarah if they had to and throw me into a van and take me somewhere to force me to talk."
"Why would the CIA have two very different agents try to recover you?"
"Casey isn't CIA. He's NSA. Both agencies may have pooled their data together for Intersect, but there was still some bad blood between them. Basically the reason they were told to do so was because of some information sharing agreement that was put into effect. While was chasing after Sarah and I, Sarah told me about Bryce stealing the Intersect's information. At the time, it was thought he went rouge but it turned out he actually was on a mission to recover it from an enemy agency called Fulcrum. Anyway, long story short, Casey and Sarah were about to have a showdown when I flashed on a building where the general was and I suddenly knew of a plot to murder the general. A bomb was planted in the building, set to go off soon. So Casey, Sarah and I ran to see what we could do to save him. Thankfully, we were able to defuse the bomb and the general was saved."
"That's good."
"Yeah. A short while later, Sarah realized that I basically was the computer and that I wasn't part of some plot to steal the information or anything. Even at the time when it was still thought Bryce went rouge, they believed I was an unwilling part of all this. So...it was decided that while the information remained-" Chuck then pointed to his head and then continued, "Up here, I was going to need to be guarded. So Casey got a job at the Buy More as his cover and Sarah became my cover girlfriend. And from awhile after that, I'd disappear on these missions...basically...giving you some lame excuse as to where I was. I hated lying to you, Ellie. But I was worried if you knew, you'd be a target. Which...eventually...ended up happening anyway."
"So...this Fulcrum group then...are they the ones after us?"
"Yes. They thought I was dead for several years which kept you safe. Actually...the whole faked death thing was because of them. They kept getting closer. That Christmas Eve we were held hostage at the Buy More? They were there and threatened to kill you if I didn't tell them something about the Intersect."
Ellie fell back in shock.
"When I was saying goodbye to you, I thought I really was not going to see you again, Ellie."
"Is that...why you were so...well, why you took things even worse than Devon and I did?"
"Partly. Though I also saw Sarah shoot the unarmed Fulcrum agent in cold blood."
Ellie had no idea how to react to that.
"He threatened to come after us, saying even locked away, my life would be over. When Sarah heard that, she shot him. Of course, when I saw her do that, I hadn't heard anything. We...eventually talked all that out so I understood but still-"
"Not exactly something you wanted to witness," Ellie softly said, with an awkward expression on her face.
"No. Not at all." Chuck could tell Ellie's last remark was due to her shock and thought to continue the story. "And soon after that, there were more threats and the situation just was getting out of control. By the way, remember when I ran into Jill again? Turns out she was a Fulcrum agent too."
"WHAT?!"
"Yeah. As if she didn't do enough to me, she held me at gun point and almost shot Sarah in the back. That was quite a wake up call, to say the least. Luckily, she was arrested shortly after that. But anyway...a few months after the Christmas Eve attempt, Fulcrum was getting impatient with all the failures. And a plan they set in motion was too much for just Casey and Sarah to handle, so for my own safety, I was taken to a secure CIA facility. I had no idea I was being taken there, I swear. I answered a Nerd Herd call like any other work day and a few minutes after looking at this lady's computer, someone approached me from behind, put a cloth over my mouth, and the next then I know, I'm waking up in a tiny room with a bed and a large glass window. I first was scared that it was Fulcrum that finally got me. But I saw Sarah walk in and she sat down next to me on the bed. She...looked pretty sad, actually. And I asked her what was wrong and she told me about the CIA's plan to keep me there as long as they felt I was in danger."
"Did she know about the fact we were told you were dead?"
Chuck sighed. "She didn't want to say anything right away. I asked her what was going to happen since I knew you'd be worried about me being missing. And she finally told me there was a plan put into motion for that. Basically, it would be some staged freak accident."
"A gas main explosion," Ellie finished, nodding sadly. "I remember...I remember when the officers came and told us what happened."
"Oh Ellie, I'm sorry." He put his arms around his sister, giving her a hug. "I swear, I didn't want that to happen. I had hoped maybe I-I'd be able to come back to you. But when Sarah told me I was going to be thought of as dead..." he trailed off, sighing.
Ellie released from the hug and glanced down. "I didn't...take it very well. Devon and I had had to work through things together. I wasn't even sure I was ready....I dunno. But when I found out I was pregnant with Libby...there seemed like there was...I don't know. Like she was going to help me move forward."
"I wish...I wish I was there to see her grow up. I heard about her. Every so often, I'd get information on what was going on in your life. Before Libby though, and right after the...accident? My death? I'm not exactly sure what to call it. But yeah, Sarah would come by and tell me what was going on in your life. Then she was reassigned for awhile and I thought I wouldn't even see her again...but anyway...she came back. It was almost a year later though."
"I can only imagine how lonely it was. And Libby...she's a wonderful little girl. She thought you were an angel when you rescued her from the men that tried to grab her."
"I told her I was that since I didn't know what else to say. But-"
"But, in a sense, you were. And I didn't want to believe it. I couldn't really. No offense, Chuck? But you being able to do what she said you were able to do? I...couldn't believe it."
"I...understand. I mean, when I had started to be trained as an agent, I was...pretty horrible at first. It was almost comical, really. I got better though so I remember showing Sarah a couple of things I learned and she gave me some pointers too."
"So...what's with the 'Agent Carmichael' name anyway?" Ellie asked.
"Oh...that. Well, when we went on my first mission...the one where I had to learn how to tango...or thought I did or whatever....anyway....Sarah asked me to come up with an alias for the evening. So the name I gave her was Charles Carmichael and his back story was he ran his own software company but was successful enough that he was semi-retired. And was going to maybe enter America's Cup. Dunno where that part came in but I guess rich and sailing were somehow in my brain. The name sorta stuck though as I used it on other missions. And since...by then, Chuck Bartowski was, well, dead to the rest of the world, I couldn't exactly return with my actual name either." He bowed his head.
Ellie leaned against her brother as he continued, "I know...we've taken you away from everything. I never wanted you to to be caught up in all of this. But after Libby's near abduction, the agency was worried you might be next. Or they might go after Libby again."
"But Chuck...if they thought you were dead-"
"They did for several years. But...someone found out I was alive and reported back to Fulcrum about it. I escaped a trap that was set for me and that was when we learned my secret was no longer safe. And then there were reports that they'd start going after my family to get me to come out of hiding-"
"What did you know about them coming after Libby?"
"I overheard two Fulcrum agents mention it. I told my superiors about it and they said I was just supposed to pass the word along to someone else to take care of. I did inform others as I was ordered to, but there was no way I wasn't going to be involved somehow. I was a bit late to the scene, I admit. I got there as soon as I could but someone had already tried to snatch her. Seemed the agents posing as the police weren't quite as fast as they were supposed to be," he grumbled.
"The important thing was she's okay," Ellie assured her brother.
"I know. Both Sarah and Casey yelled at me for getting involved. Well Casey more so. I could tell he was pissed since he called me 'Bartowski' like he used to. But anyway...when the order came for you, Libby and Devon-"
Ellie gave a little smile, "Not 'Captain Awesome?'"
Chuck chuckled a bit. "I see you haven't forgotten the nickname I gave him."
"Nope." She smiled again.
He smiled, then continued, "Anyway, the three of you were to be moved to a safe house. And I knew you weren't going to know why for quite some time at least, if ever. I argued for awhile to finally be able to tell you the truth. And, I was finally given the permission to do so."
Ellie nodded. "I'm glad to finally know everything...though I still don't know what exactly to believe."
Chuck bowed his head again, softly saying, "I understand. And...if you still want me around, I'll be here. If you want me to be one of the agents helping keep an eye on you, I'll do whatever it takes to be allowed to do so...even though it breaks several protocols, I'm sure."
Ellie slid away from Chuck and shook her head. "I just...don't know. I'm sorry." She looked up at him. "I'm even...conflicted about knowing you're alive. I'm grateful to have you back, but angry with you at the same time, even though...it sounds like you didn't have a choice at all. And just the thought that you're...well, not quite the brother I remember-"
"What do you mean?"
"I thought you were just...I don't know. Lost? Confused about the direction of your life? I thought you and Sarah were a real couple-"
"We were and weren't."
"I thought that maybe some of those crazy lies you told were hiding something but nothing like this. It's like...I don't even know who you were for a decade or something."
"Ellie, I...wish I could travel back in time and change all this but-"
"I know, Chuck. And I really can't be angry with you but...I just...don't know how to feel right now."
"I understand. It's...a lot to take in. I'll...give you some time to think about everything and talk to," he smiled and continued with "Captain Awesome."
Ellie gave a tiny smile, once again.
"And Libby too," he added. "I won't be far if you want to talk to me again either." He gave her another hug. "I'm sorry, Ellie, I really am."
Ellie nodded. "Thank you...for finally...telling me all this." She released him from the hug and Chuck slowly got to his feet.
"Take care, Ellie. I hope to see you again. I've missed you so much." There was a tear starting to form in the corner of his right eye.
"I have too," Ellie's lip then quivered a bit. "Take care."
Chuck took one last look at his sister before turning and leaving to give her some time to sort out her thoughts.
Muse: Chuck Bartowski
Fandom: Chuck
Word Count (excluding the note at the beginning): 3,382
April 22, 2019
Ellie sat on the couch at the safe house with her head bowed. She was so tired of not knowing what was going on, begging for someone to tell her something.
Agent Thomas Denworth took a seat next to her. He shook his head before addressing her. "Dr. Woodcomb, I understand your frustration. I really-"
"With all due respect, sir?" Ellie interrupted, "I just would like to finally know the truth. Why are my husband and my daughter in danger?"
"It has to do with someone in your life. You see-"
"Someone I knew? Who did I know that was a spy or...whatever other sort of person that would be of interest to you?" Ellie was quite confused.
"Well, I think Agent Carmichael will certainly answer all of your questions. Though...I still don't think it was wise of superiors to allow him to speak with you just yet, but he insisted, several times." Agent Denworth then got to his feet. "He'll be here shortly," he added, before leaving Ellie all by herself once again.
"Why would it be any big deal to this 'Agent Carmichael' anyway?" she asked herself out loud.
While only five minutes had passed, it certainly seemed like an eternity to her. She heard someone approach from behind and didn't bother to turn around. "Let me guess, you're Agent Carmichael?"
There was no answer but she heard someone walk towards her. When the agent took a seat next to her, she turned and upon seeing the agent, she was reminded of Libby's description of the 'angel' that saved her over a year ago. Her jaw dropped and she began to back away from him, her eyes becoming very wide. She began to ramble nervously, "I-it can't be. It can't be. Y-you died. I was at your funeral. Y-you can't be here. Unless...Libby was right. Unless, s-she really saw an angel that day who's here now."
The agent's lip quivered slightly and Ellie continued to tremble. The agent bowed his head and began, "I-I'm not an angel or a ghost or anything. But-"
"Chuck?" Ellie asked, her voice a mere whisper, "I-is it really you?"
Her brother nodded, softly replying, "It's me."
Ellie threw her arms around him, her eyes filling with tears.
"I'm sorry, I'm so, so sorry," Chuck began, as he returned her hug. He became choked up as he attempted to apologize for all of those years of letting her live a terrible lie. "I really hope you can forgive me. I didn't...I didn't want to leave you. I didn't want them to make you think I died. I...had no choice when it happened, I swear."
His sister released from the hug and backed away from her brother slightly. She wiped away a tear from each of her eyes. "What do you mean? And why did that agent that was in here give you a fake last name? Why didn't he just say it was you?"
Chuck sighed. "It's a long story."
She did not want to hear that answer and glared at him. "I have been told nothing-" she began, with noticeable frustration in her voice.
"Ellie, wait," her brother interrupted, trying to calm her down, "I know. All of this...I mean, you must be going crazy. I'm just bracing you...this is going to take me awhile to explain all of this."
Ellie took a breath, calming herself. She nodded, still with noticeable tears in her eyes. Chuck grabbed a tissue box off the table next to him and handed it to her. "Thank you," she said, as she took a tissue and wiped her eyes.
Her brother smiled a bit. "You're welcome." Then his expression became a bit more serious and he began, "I don't expect to you to believe me right away. You'll just have to trust me that I'm telling the truth. I mean...if I were you, I'd have trouble believing me too."
She cocked her head, a bit confused. Chuck sighed and started the story with, "Remember the birthday party for me you gave a little over ten years ago? The one just before I met Sarah?"
Ellie nodded. "I tried to set you up with one of my friends."
"Right...and...it was kinda awkward and all...but moving on. That night, I got an e-mail from Bryce Larkin-"
"Just before he died? Chuck-"
"Technically...he didn't die either. His death was faked as well. I didn't know that right away though."
Ellie looked rather confused but let her brother continue.
"S-so Bryce's e-mail had this riddle to solve and I figured it out and the message loaded. At first I thought it was strange...this series of random images. Some of them a bit scary...people getting shot and stuff. But after a few seconds, I just couldn't turn away. I went in this like trance and the next thing I remember was Morgan waking me up for work. I thought maybe I was hung over or something, especially when I was in the shower and while listening to a news report about a general coming to Los Angeles, I knew where the police were stationed on the 5. I just knew after all these images flashed before my eyes."
"This sounds like something out of a comic book, Chuck," Ellie remarked.
"I know. But everything I'm telling you is the absolute truth."
"So...you have some sort of psychic ability or something?" His sister's expression was a look of complete disbelief.
"No. As it turned out, that e-mail that Bryce sent me was a computer database that belonged to the CIA and NSA. All of the files found a way to become stuck in my brain. And when I saw or heard certain things, a file would load. I'd suddenly know something about someone that way," Chuck began to explain.
Ellie waved her arms signaling him to stop. "I can't believe you'd make up-"
"I'm not!" He shook his head. "Ellie, I warned you going into this it was going to be difficult to believe. But everything I say is the truth. Federal agents came after me soon after that. One I...didn't expect was one right away but sorta...wondered what a beautiful girl like her would want with someone like me. But I agreed anyway. That first date with Sarah-" Chuck stopped speaking when he saw Ellie become wide eyed.
"Sarah is an agent?" she asked, looked rather shocked.
He nodded. "CIA. Like me. You'll see her later on as well and she can show her badge if you want her to."
His sister sighed. "And here I thought you had finally found a girlfriend after all those years of not being able to let go of Jill."
"Sarah and I have an interesting history together. We both were confused about what feeling were real, or if we could ever be together since she technically was assigned to guard me. It took awhile to figure everything out."
"But when you disappeared with Sarah for awhile and made all these excuses...were you actually in danger or something?"
Chuck nodded. "Though...technically, not always because bad guys were after me. Because of the Intersect- that's the computer database I mentioned- being in my head, I was taken on missions to see if I could identity certain bad people. Arms dealers, rouge spies...that sort of thing."
Ellie's eyes went wide again. "So it was just you and Sarah after all these bad people."
"No...it usually was three of us, Sarah, Casey-"
"Casey?! Our neighbor...that guy you worked with?"
With another nod, he replied, "The very same."
She cocked her head, thinking for a moment. "He could be kind of gruff, but I just thought it was his military background. That explains a lot, actually."
"Yeah. Well, Casey wasn't exactly as nice about trying to recover me that night. While Sarah was trying to charm me into giving up any information about the Intersect, Casey and his...I dunno, team, I guess, were basically ready to run over Sarah if they had to and throw me into a van and take me somewhere to force me to talk."
"Why would the CIA have two very different agents try to recover you?"
"Casey isn't CIA. He's NSA. Both agencies may have pooled their data together for Intersect, but there was still some bad blood between them. Basically the reason they were told to do so was because of some information sharing agreement that was put into effect. While was chasing after Sarah and I, Sarah told me about Bryce stealing the Intersect's information. At the time, it was thought he went rouge but it turned out he actually was on a mission to recover it from an enemy agency called Fulcrum. Anyway, long story short, Casey and Sarah were about to have a showdown when I flashed on a building where the general was and I suddenly knew of a plot to murder the general. A bomb was planted in the building, set to go off soon. So Casey, Sarah and I ran to see what we could do to save him. Thankfully, we were able to defuse the bomb and the general was saved."
"That's good."
"Yeah. A short while later, Sarah realized that I basically was the computer and that I wasn't part of some plot to steal the information or anything. Even at the time when it was still thought Bryce went rouge, they believed I was an unwilling part of all this. So...it was decided that while the information remained-" Chuck then pointed to his head and then continued, "Up here, I was going to need to be guarded. So Casey got a job at the Buy More as his cover and Sarah became my cover girlfriend. And from awhile after that, I'd disappear on these missions...basically...giving you some lame excuse as to where I was. I hated lying to you, Ellie. But I was worried if you knew, you'd be a target. Which...eventually...ended up happening anyway."
"So...this Fulcrum group then...are they the ones after us?"
"Yes. They thought I was dead for several years which kept you safe. Actually...the whole faked death thing was because of them. They kept getting closer. That Christmas Eve we were held hostage at the Buy More? They were there and threatened to kill you if I didn't tell them something about the Intersect."
Ellie fell back in shock.
"When I was saying goodbye to you, I thought I really was not going to see you again, Ellie."
"Is that...why you were so...well, why you took things even worse than Devon and I did?"
"Partly. Though I also saw Sarah shoot the unarmed Fulcrum agent in cold blood."
Ellie had no idea how to react to that.
"He threatened to come after us, saying even locked away, my life would be over. When Sarah heard that, she shot him. Of course, when I saw her do that, I hadn't heard anything. We...eventually talked all that out so I understood but still-"
"Not exactly something you wanted to witness," Ellie softly said, with an awkward expression on her face.
"No. Not at all." Chuck could tell Ellie's last remark was due to her shock and thought to continue the story. "And soon after that, there were more threats and the situation just was getting out of control. By the way, remember when I ran into Jill again? Turns out she was a Fulcrum agent too."
"WHAT?!"
"Yeah. As if she didn't do enough to me, she held me at gun point and almost shot Sarah in the back. That was quite a wake up call, to say the least. Luckily, she was arrested shortly after that. But anyway...a few months after the Christmas Eve attempt, Fulcrum was getting impatient with all the failures. And a plan they set in motion was too much for just Casey and Sarah to handle, so for my own safety, I was taken to a secure CIA facility. I had no idea I was being taken there, I swear. I answered a Nerd Herd call like any other work day and a few minutes after looking at this lady's computer, someone approached me from behind, put a cloth over my mouth, and the next then I know, I'm waking up in a tiny room with a bed and a large glass window. I first was scared that it was Fulcrum that finally got me. But I saw Sarah walk in and she sat down next to me on the bed. She...looked pretty sad, actually. And I asked her what was wrong and she told me about the CIA's plan to keep me there as long as they felt I was in danger."
"Did she know about the fact we were told you were dead?"
Chuck sighed. "She didn't want to say anything right away. I asked her what was going to happen since I knew you'd be worried about me being missing. And she finally told me there was a plan put into motion for that. Basically, it would be some staged freak accident."
"A gas main explosion," Ellie finished, nodding sadly. "I remember...I remember when the officers came and told us what happened."
"Oh Ellie, I'm sorry." He put his arms around his sister, giving her a hug. "I swear, I didn't want that to happen. I had hoped maybe I-I'd be able to come back to you. But when Sarah told me I was going to be thought of as dead..." he trailed off, sighing.
Ellie released from the hug and glanced down. "I didn't...take it very well. Devon and I had had to work through things together. I wasn't even sure I was ready....I dunno. But when I found out I was pregnant with Libby...there seemed like there was...I don't know. Like she was going to help me move forward."
"I wish...I wish I was there to see her grow up. I heard about her. Every so often, I'd get information on what was going on in your life. Before Libby though, and right after the...accident? My death? I'm not exactly sure what to call it. But yeah, Sarah would come by and tell me what was going on in your life. Then she was reassigned for awhile and I thought I wouldn't even see her again...but anyway...she came back. It was almost a year later though."
"I can only imagine how lonely it was. And Libby...she's a wonderful little girl. She thought you were an angel when you rescued her from the men that tried to grab her."
"I told her I was that since I didn't know what else to say. But-"
"But, in a sense, you were. And I didn't want to believe it. I couldn't really. No offense, Chuck? But you being able to do what she said you were able to do? I...couldn't believe it."
"I...understand. I mean, when I had started to be trained as an agent, I was...pretty horrible at first. It was almost comical, really. I got better though so I remember showing Sarah a couple of things I learned and she gave me some pointers too."
"So...what's with the 'Agent Carmichael' name anyway?" Ellie asked.
"Oh...that. Well, when we went on my first mission...the one where I had to learn how to tango...or thought I did or whatever....anyway....Sarah asked me to come up with an alias for the evening. So the name I gave her was Charles Carmichael and his back story was he ran his own software company but was successful enough that he was semi-retired. And was going to maybe enter America's Cup. Dunno where that part came in but I guess rich and sailing were somehow in my brain. The name sorta stuck though as I used it on other missions. And since...by then, Chuck Bartowski was, well, dead to the rest of the world, I couldn't exactly return with my actual name either." He bowed his head.
Ellie leaned against her brother as he continued, "I know...we've taken you away from everything. I never wanted you to to be caught up in all of this. But after Libby's near abduction, the agency was worried you might be next. Or they might go after Libby again."
"But Chuck...if they thought you were dead-"
"They did for several years. But...someone found out I was alive and reported back to Fulcrum about it. I escaped a trap that was set for me and that was when we learned my secret was no longer safe. And then there were reports that they'd start going after my family to get me to come out of hiding-"
"What did you know about them coming after Libby?"
"I overheard two Fulcrum agents mention it. I told my superiors about it and they said I was just supposed to pass the word along to someone else to take care of. I did inform others as I was ordered to, but there was no way I wasn't going to be involved somehow. I was a bit late to the scene, I admit. I got there as soon as I could but someone had already tried to snatch her. Seemed the agents posing as the police weren't quite as fast as they were supposed to be," he grumbled.
"The important thing was she's okay," Ellie assured her brother.
"I know. Both Sarah and Casey yelled at me for getting involved. Well Casey more so. I could tell he was pissed since he called me 'Bartowski' like he used to. But anyway...when the order came for you, Libby and Devon-"
Ellie gave a little smile, "Not 'Captain Awesome?'"
Chuck chuckled a bit. "I see you haven't forgotten the nickname I gave him."
"Nope." She smiled again.
He smiled, then continued, "Anyway, the three of you were to be moved to a safe house. And I knew you weren't going to know why for quite some time at least, if ever. I argued for awhile to finally be able to tell you the truth. And, I was finally given the permission to do so."
Ellie nodded. "I'm glad to finally know everything...though I still don't know what exactly to believe."
Chuck bowed his head again, softly saying, "I understand. And...if you still want me around, I'll be here. If you want me to be one of the agents helping keep an eye on you, I'll do whatever it takes to be allowed to do so...even though it breaks several protocols, I'm sure."
Ellie slid away from Chuck and shook her head. "I just...don't know. I'm sorry." She looked up at him. "I'm even...conflicted about knowing you're alive. I'm grateful to have you back, but angry with you at the same time, even though...it sounds like you didn't have a choice at all. And just the thought that you're...well, not quite the brother I remember-"
"What do you mean?"
"I thought you were just...I don't know. Lost? Confused about the direction of your life? I thought you and Sarah were a real couple-"
"We were and weren't."
"I thought that maybe some of those crazy lies you told were hiding something but nothing like this. It's like...I don't even know who you were for a decade or something."
"Ellie, I...wish I could travel back in time and change all this but-"
"I know, Chuck. And I really can't be angry with you but...I just...don't know how to feel right now."
"I understand. It's...a lot to take in. I'll...give you some time to think about everything and talk to," he smiled and continued with "Captain Awesome."
Ellie gave a tiny smile, once again.
"And Libby too," he added. "I won't be far if you want to talk to me again either." He gave her another hug. "I'm sorry, Ellie, I really am."
Ellie nodded. "Thank you...for finally...telling me all this." She released him from the hug and Chuck slowly got to his feet.
"Take care, Ellie. I hope to see you again. I've missed you so much." There was a tear starting to form in the corner of his right eye.
"I have too," Ellie's lip then quivered a bit. "Take care."
Chuck took one last look at his sister before turning and leaving to give her some time to sort out her thoughts.
Muse: Chuck Bartowski
Fandom: Chuck
Word Count (excluding the note at the beginning): 3,382