Chapter Text
15 Forget Me Nots
The tires of the jeep screeched as Cabe pulled into the harbour. Ahead of them lay a port full of yachts but unfortunately, no criminals.
"Cops are a few minutes out. Walter, Bruce, need you" He said, "Toby, need you in case Bruce has any issues… The rest of you, remain alert".
The three men nodded and jumped out of the jeep as Happy, Paige and Sly remained behind. Climbing onto the pier, Cabe drew his weapon just in case, and they moved silently along the wooden deck, trying to find their suspect.
Until Toby's phone rang.
"You're the one who wanted me to keep my phone on!" He protested as their boss scowled at him.
Walter couldn't help but smirk, but a split second later, the sound of gunshots made it drop. Bruce managed to tackle Cabe before he was hit, but the Homeland agent wasted no time in jumping back up and taking off again. Walter immediately followed him, leaving Toby to deal with the other agent as he caught sight of a metal briefcase disappearing through the door ahead.
They had barely got around the corner before more bullets were fired at them, and he jumped back barely in time to not get hit.
In the distance, a train whistle blew.
Cabe cursed, and they took off again.
Ducking into the container yard, they tried to catch up to Gadhi, but he was too quick.
Walter stopped Cabe with his arm, "If we split up, we cover more ground".
"... Alright" He reluctantly agreed.
"Okay".
They took off.
Cautiously glancing around one of the numerous blue shipping containers, his eyes fell on the bright yellow acid barrel just ahead of him. But more importantly, there was a decapitated car side-mirror lying on the ground next to it.
Keeping his head low, he ran across the opening and ducked down behind the barrel, before grabbing the mirror, wiping away some of the dirt, and holding it up. If he got the angle just right-
*BANG* *BANG* BANG*
Walter swore and ran for it.
*BANG* *BANG* BANG*
He threw him down behind another container as Cabe fired back. A moment later, Gadhi's gun ran out of bullets, and he angrily shook it before taking off once more.
"Walter, you all right?"
He nodded, "We got less than two minutes. We gotta get that case".
Chasing after him, again, Walter sighed in relief as Happy pulled up in front of them, effectively blocking the criminal in on three sides. He turned, obviously intended to head back their way, but Cabe raised his weapon.
"Homeland! Freeze! Drop your weapon!"
He backed up to the fence behind him.
"Drop your weapon! Put down the case".
The others climbed out of the jeep and rushed over.
"Set down the case and step away from it!"
The man smirked, obediently lowering his gun, before suddenly taking a step back and flinging the case over his head, over the fence, and onto the tracks behind it.
"No! No!" Toby immediately lunged forward, but Sly held him back, "Toby, stop! It's electrified!"
"Best thing about America?" Gadhi grinned, "The trains always run on time".
He held up both hands and Walter almost snarled. Panting, he tried desperately to think.
"In less than a minute, those nukes are ready to launch".
"If that train runs over the case, the button will depress" Sly continued.
"And millions will die".
The train's born blew again.
"Alright, the fence is electrified. We can't climb it" He started, "Happy, where's the nearest junction box?"
She shook her head, "It's on the other side of the yard. I'll never get there in time".
"It's a quarter mile down and around the fence" Sly added, "Normally, it would take less than two minutes to get down there, but due to the speed of the train, we only have 45 seconds, Walter!"
The switch in the rails clicked into place and suddenly, the train was heading directly for the briefcase. Looking around, Walter saw the exact moment that Happy's face lit up.
"I've got an idea!"
"What are you doing?" Toby called after her, "There's no way that magnet's strong enough to stop that train!"
"And that case is aluminum, it's not magnetic!"
Walter blinked as he realised.
"Of course! The track is lined with intermittent shoe brakes that'll stop the train in case of an emergency. It's activated by electromagnetic coils".
"She's using the magnet to reverse polarities and flip the switch!" Sly finished.
They all watched with bated breath as she controlled the device, the huge magnet swinging over their heads and lowering onto the tracks.
"Time's up... missiles are ready for launch!"
The second it hit the metal rails, the train's brakes screeched, dragging down the incredibly heavy machine as it continued to race towards the briefcase, moment of impact in three… two… one-
"You did it!"
Gadhi watched in furious disbelief, the train coming to a halt mere centimeters away from the briefcase. Then suddenly, with a ferocious snarl, he spun around and threw himself at Walter.
He stumbled back from a solid punch to the face, feeling his lip burst on impact and his head reel and his vision temporarily blackened at the edges..
"Woah! Hey!"
There was a flurry of movement around him, but he was more focused on the terrorist that was currently gripping him by the collar.
"You American idiot! You- You-"
He swung back his fist to punch him again, and Walter only barely managed to turn in time, the blow aimed for his nose glancing off his jaw instead.
"Hey! Let him go, right now!"
"I'll kill you!" He screamed, shaking Walter viciously, "I'll kill you all, just wait and see!"
"I'll wait and see you in jail!" Cabe growled, finally managing to haul the man off of him, tossing him towards the police cars that had just pulled up around them.
Walter stood there, swaying on his feet and somewhat dazed.
"Hey, son, you alright?"
He slowly blinked, before shaking his head against the dizziness and immediately regretting doing so. He stumbled slightly, automatically reaching on to grab onto something, and his hand found Toby's shoulder. The doctor quickly reached out himself to help steady him, and Walter leaned grateful into his hold.
"You okay, 197?"
He paused for a moment to make sure moving wouldn't make him throw up, before nodding.
"You sure?" Toby asked again, "Cause you're literally bleeding from your face, kid".
He reached up to prod at split skin, finding a small cut on his lip and a larger one on his cheek.
"Walter?" Cab questioned.
"... 'm fine" He finally replied, "Just… dazed, I think".
"I'm not surprised; Gadhi has one mean right-hook. You need a medic?"
"Already got one".
Toby gave a dramatic sigh.
"Join Scorpion, he said. It'll be fun, he said. You'll never have to work as a doctor again, he said-"
"Curtis!"
"Yes sir!" He quickly jumped into action, dragging Walter none-too-steadily away from the crowd and towards the huge magnet machine Happy had used to stop the train.
"This bad boy should have a first aid kit somewhere" Toby explained, letting go of his arm to route around inside the door, "It's usually kept under the seat… Aha!"
He dragged out a small red box, and gestured for Walter to take a seat at the edge of the machine. Pulling out a pack of antiseptic wiped, he ripped it open with his teeth, and then started cleaning the blood away from his skin.
"It's been a while since anyone punched you in the face".
"... You say that like it's a bad thing".
"No, no!" He protested, "It just… helps to keep your ego in check".
"I thought that's what Happy was for".
"My ears are burning" She said, walking over, "Whatever it is you think I did, I didn't".
They stared at her.
"... I said you insult me a lot".
She blinked.
"Oh… Well, yea, actually, that one is true. You alright?"
"Fine" Walter said simply, before wincing as Toby pressed against the cut on his cheek.
Happy snorted, "Clearly. Gadhi's got a nice punch".
"It'd be nicer if it wasn't directed at me" He muttered, and she smirked.
"Okay, 197, let me butterfly the hell of this cut, and you'll be good to go" Toby said, opening the pack of bandaids.
Pulling out a thankfully small butterfly bandage, he reached up and carefully stuck it to his face.
"And… there! All done. Just keep the plaster on for a few days and you should be good as new".
"Thanks, doc".
He winked.
"Anytime, kid".
Happy rolled her eyes at them before gesturing back at the jeep.
"We're all packed up and ready to go. Cabe said the launch sequence has been shut down and Gadhi's online communications have been tracked. Interpol's handling the rest… Sylvester also beat the crap out of that briefcase with a sledgehammer".
"What? No! And we missed it?" Toby complained, "That's it, 197! You are hereby banned from ever getting punched in the face again, got it?"
"I wasn't exactly planning to, but yea, sure, got it".
"Good. Now come on, I'm starving".
They headed back to the others who were already climbing into the jeep, Bruce included. Toby called shotgun and raced Sly for the front seat, while Happy slid in the back with Paige. Before he could get any closer, however, Cabe pulled Walter aside.
"You alright, son?"
"Fine".
The agent gave him a look.
"Seriously, Cabe, I'm fine. I've survived a lot worse than a few hits to the face".
"Don't remind me" He scowled, "You need to stop getting into these situations, son".
"You make it sound like I actively go out looking for them!"
His blue eyes were piercing even behind his customary shades.
"Don't you? You're protective of this team, Walt, anyone could see that. They're your family, so you look out for them… And sometimes, I wonder if you put yourself in dangerous situations on purpose, just so they don't have to".
Walter swallowed thickly and lowered his gaze.
Cabe sighed and clapped him on the shoulder.
"I'm not saying to let them get hurt instead of you, son. Just… try to use that big brain of yours more and come up with solutions where nobody gets hurt. Alright?"
"... Alright" He reluctantly replied, "You were, uh… pretty incredible today"
"Only because you juiced my brain" Cabe shot back, "You know, I work out, try to take care of myself… It never crosses my mind that I'm getting older. But you never know how far you slipped down that mountain till you look back up and see where you once were".
He sighed and turned back to him.
"Enjoy your youth while you can, kid. One day you'll blink… you'll be me".
Walter couldn't help but smirk at his dramatics.
"You know, I hate to spoil your moment of self-reflection, but what we did to you wore off hours ago. Your heroics out here… that was all you".
Cabe stared at him, surprised, "... You don't say?"
Finally shoving open the door back at their headquarters, Walter downed the rest of his coffee that Happy had sarcastically bought him as a get-better-soon present, before heading straight for his desk.
"How about we hold off cleaning until tomorrow, huh?" Toby suggested, face planting on the couch.
"I second that motion" Happy agreed.
"Hear, hear" Sly finished, walking past with the sledgehammer still thrown over his shoulder.
Walter watched as Paige started looking for the right files on her desk, clearly wanting to get the paperwork over and done with if not the cleaning. Picking up Bruce's Homeland file, he slowly walked over and held it out to her.
"Thanks".
She went back to searching for something, and he turned to go, before suddenly pausing and glancing back. Seeing Bruce today, seeing all the time he had lost with the woman he loved… It had made him realise a few things.
And besides, if none of this worked out, then he could always blame it on his face still hurting.
"Crazy day, huh?"
Paige laughed, "Crazy seems to be the norm".
She finally found the right paper, and pulled it out from beneath the stack.
"That's an astute observation".
Walter awkwardly ran a hand over his mouth, before wincing as it pulled at the healing wound on his lip.
"Are you okay?" Paige asked, but he quickly waved her away, "Yea, of course, I'm fine. I, um... my assessment of Portland, uh, was, um… not the proper response for your query".
"Oh" She straightened up, "Okay".
"Yea, I thought it might also be useful for you to know that the University of Southern Maine also has, um, solid research facilities… not like UCLA, but solid… so it might be good for Ralph. Also they have oceanography clubs for minors. Uh, average snowfall is 61 inches. There are over 3,000… uh, islands off the coast, so Ralph could explore, and- and- and it also brings in 90% of the nation's lobster, so, you know, crustaceans" He knew he was rambling, but he didn't expect her to laugh, "I'm sorry. Is this… uh, um, f-funny?"
"No. It's just... a lot of facts and figures".
"Of course. I... care about giving you a complete answer to your question".
"Oh, I know" her smile softened, "I know you care".
Walter frowned, confused, and turned to walk away. Then the image of Bruce hugging his long-lost sweetheart flashed before he eyes, and he knew that he'd always regret it if he didn't-
"No. You know, I, um, I care about, um, more than just you having the, um, the facts and- and… full statistics for Ralph" He stumbled, "I, um… I care about Ralph. You were right. I don't, um, I never had a real relationship with my father. And I know I'm not Ralph's, but I- I must serve… a purpose in his life, because he serves such an important, uh, one in mine, and if he left, then, uh… I- I know I said being human wasn't something I wanted. But since I met your son, I- I know that's not entirely true".
He struggled to make eye contact.
"These last few months, I've been... less me. And that's made me a better person. So, no, I don't want him to leave. I, uh… care about him… And you".
Paige stared at him, a hundred and one emotions flickering across her face that he didn't want to even begin to discern, so instead, he turned away for the third and final time.
"Those are the last facts that I have to say. And, well, yea, so... okay".
"Walter?"
"... Yea?"
"I'd miss you, too".
He felt his brain short-circuit.
"Hey!"
Spinning around, Walter felt a smile creep across his face as Ralph ran in.
"Look, Mom. Check it out!"
"Guess who won the science fair" Drew followed.
"No way! That's incredible!"
"And guess what? Billy from class asked me to his birthday. Can I go?"
Paige glanced over at him and Walter felt his heart rate increase.
"You were invited to a party? Of course you can go!"
He reached out to take the rocket from Drew before turning back to Ralph.
"Hey, what do you say we give this engine a kick? I mean... unless you're in a rush to go?"
Paige shook her head, "No… No, I don't want to go".
He had a feeling she wasn't just talking about going home.
"Okay, let's go" He said to Ralph, and the boy grinned before rushing towards the stairs. Walter followed him, leaving Paige and Drew to talk about whatever it was they talked about by themselves, and took the steps two at a time to catch up.
"What happened to your face?"
He automatically reached up to touch the butterfly bandage on his cheek.
"Remember how a bad guy stole the briefcase that the president carries to set off nuclear warheads?"
"Yea".
"Well, we caught him" He shrugged, "But… he kind of punched me first".
Ralph giggled, rushing over to the workbench and pulling out the necessary tools without being prompted. Walter put the rocket on top of the counter, and couldn't help but stare at the frighteningly intelligent boy in front of him.
Paige was right, he wasn't Ralph's father, not by a long shot… but if given half the chance, then… then he thinks that he honestly might want to be.