Chapter Description: Peter's counting down the days until he leaves his job, and he catches up with his parents. They talk about movies, of course.

Manhattan FBI offices. December 19, 2006 - Tuesday morning.

Yesterday Peter was annoyed that his last day at the FBI would be cut short. Today he was grateful. Having most of his meetings canceled meant he'd wrapped up all of his remaining administrative tasks in record time, and there wasn't much left for him to do the next few days.

He spent an hour reviewing the materials he received when he'd started his role in the Organized Crime team. He made note of a few things he could add for his replacement, but those were minor tweaks at best. He certainly didn't feel like he was adding much value.

It was a relief when Henry called.

After the standard greetings, Henry said, "Would you have time to drop by the office for a few minutes in the next day or so? HR would like to get your I-9 ahead of the holidays so they have time to process it before you start working here."

Peter was familiar with the form required by Human Resources departments to prove a person was eligible to work in the U.S., and he said, "I don't have the required documents with me, but I can bring them tomorrow."

"Come by around noon?" Henry suggested. "We can complete the paperwork, show off your new office, and take you out for lunch to celebrate."

Peter agreed. It meant he'd get a break from his workday monotony on Wednesday. "Do you know when I'll get the criteria for selecting the movie?"

"Angela's supposed to talk to our grandparents about it today. I'm wrangling everyone to get their nominations to you. Is it okay if a few stragglers need until Friday morning to make up their minds?"

Since Peter had nothing planned after his 9am exit interview, that sounded perfect. He'd enjoy reviewing the nominations. "Sure. Have everyone send them to my personal email."

"One other thing related to the movies," Henry said. "Could I have everyone also send you the title of a recommended kid's movie? I'd like to collect a list as a nod to the expectant parents."

"Did Neal tell you?" Peter asked. He thought he'd made it clear that Neal wasn't supposed to tell anyone other than Sara yet, but perhaps Henry had overheard them talking about it.

"Tell me what?" Henry sounded baffled. Then a moment later he added, "Wait, is El expecting, too?"

Then Peter remembered. Henry's cousin Angela and her husband had recently announced that they were having a baby, due in June. "Umm, yeah, but it's still really early, so we're keeping it a close secret."

"I won't tell anyone," Henry promised. "Guess we're getting double duty out of that list of kid's movies. And I'll collect the list. Then it can be a surprise for you and El, too."

"How are you going to..." Peter trailed off. "No, I don't need to ask. You're sneaky enough to pull off a surprise for El without giving away the fact that she's pregnant."

"Absolutely," Henry said. "Plus I'll run my plan by Neal. He'll add another layer of sneakiness."

"That should do it," Peter agreed.

Soon after the call ended, boredom started to creep in. He was seriously considering a walk to a nearby newsstand to buy The New York Times so he could work the crossword at his desk, when his cell phone rang again.

This time it was Angela. She'd spoken to her grandparents, who promised to decide on the selection criteria in the next couple of days. "They aren't big fans of email," she explained. "Would it be okay if they called you with the criteria and to tell you the movies they want to nominate?"

"Of course." They settled on Thursday at 10am for the call with Irene and Edmund Caffrey. "I look forward to it," Peter said, genuinely glad to have one more thing to break the monotony of his final days at the Bureau.

"It's been a blast!" Angela enthused. "Last night Michael and I made our selections, and we don't think anyone would guess what we picked."

Peter smiled. "I know what you mean. El hasn't told me her choice yet, but she did let me know my guess was wrong."

"What would you think of making a game of guessing what everyone picked, before the reveal? We could do it on Christmas Eve, before watching the movies on Christmas Day. That extends the fun." They brainstormed how that might work. "But you won't get to play," Angela fretted, "because you'll already know the answers."

Peter assured her that he enjoyed designing puzzles as much as solving them, and he wouldn't feel like he was missing out. He ended the call when he saw Karen Saunders standing outside his office. He crossed the room to open the door. "Karen, what can I do for you?" he asked, gesturing her inside. One of the perks of his job as Section Head was that he had an office large enough for both a desk and a table. He sat at the table, and made note of the fact that Karen closed the door before sitting down across from him.

"I was out sick yesterday," she explained, "so it wasn't until this morning that I heard you're leaving. I'm sorry that we're losing you. I'll admit that at first I wasn't sold on bringing in someone from outside of Organized Crime, but I really liked your ideas. I was looking forward to seeing what you could do with the team."

"Human Resources never reveals who we're competing against, but I heard you interviewed for the job when I did." Peter paused while Karen nodded. "I appreciate how welcoming you were, when you must have been disappointed about not getting the job yourself."

"At first I was, but frankly I was relieved not to be in your shoes when I saw how the team behaved toward you. And now..." She took a deep breath. "William pulled me into a meeting with him this morning, telling me that I'll be in charge until they decide how to replace you."

"Congratulations," Peter said. "You were the obvious choice."

"I'm simultaneously excited about it and dreading it. This afternoon I need to turn my cases over to other team members. Do you have time the next couple of days to go over some things with me?"

"Of course, but you already know the team inside out."

"True, but I'd like to pick your brain about what you think the team should be doing. Plus I have some ideas of my own I'd like to talk through. I'd appreciate your perspective on..." She trailed off, looking up to see someone else standing at the door.

Peter stood and opened the door again. "Tricia, what brings you to Organized Crime?"

"Sorry to interrupt," she said. "This will only take a minute. I was talking to some of our old colleagues, and we'd like to schedule a going-away lunch."

Peter walked toward his laptop, bringing up his calendar more by habit than by need.

"Oh, I should have thought of that," Karen said.

"Well I didn't have a welcome lunch, so I wasn't expecting anything for a farewell," Peter replied.

Karen reddened a bit. "I should have arranged a welcome. I was just..."

"Not really in the mood to celebrate someone else getting the job you wanted," Peter said. "I get it. I just meant that team lunches don't seem to be part of the culture in this group. And since most of them are happy to see me go, I'd rather not hang out together in a restaurant pretending otherwise."

"Not most of us," Karen objected. "I'm sure you have every reason to feel that way. But from my standpoint, it's only a handful that are vocal about resisting change, and a majority who just want to keep their heads down and do the job."

"I've been there," Tricia said. "When I was the runner-up for the Missing Persons lead, I wasn't going to cause trouble, but I also wasn't going to throw a party for the person who got the job."

"You're in Behavioral Analysis now, aren't you?" Karen asked.

"That's right. It's been a great move," Tricia said.

"Do you consult on more than just cases? I'd be interested in your perspective on some of the behaviors in the team."

"Interesting. Case work would have to take the priority, but I'd be open to giving it a try."

"I wish I'd thought of that," Peter said. Maybe there was hope for the team after all. He even looked forward to meeting with Karen about her plans. If he could have a hand in helping the team improve, he'd feel a lot better about his final legacy at the FBI.

###

"Hard to believe the Suit is leaving the Feds. I didn't realize I'd had such a strong influence on him," Mozzie mused. He had dropped by the Win-Win offices with information on one of their cases, and now he was ensconced in the 1960s-themed "groovy" conference room, chatting with Henry and Neal.

"It was a combination of factors that convinced him to leave," Neal said.

"Including the vast superiority of Win-Win," Henry added. Then he changed the topic to the upcoming movie night, complaining that Eric wouldn't tell him the movie he'd selected.

"Sara and I turned it into a game." Neal described their night on the town as characters from their films.

"I can tell you her movie," Mozzie offered.

Neal declined. "It's been so fun teasing each other with clues, I don't want to skip directly to the answer."

"What movie would you pick?" Henry asked.

Mozzie had an immediate response. "Escape to Witch Mountain."

"I don't know that one," Neal said.

"Me, neither," said Henry. "What's it about?"

Mozzie regaled them with a story about two children with extraordinary talents on the run from evil interests who wanted to take advantage of them. It certainly aligned with his distrust of government and major corporations.

Then he added context. "When I ran away from my foster home, I needed a safe, quiet place to plan my next steps. I snuck into a theater that was showing relatively recent kids' movies all weekend. This was the one that pulled me out of my own worries. I identified with the characters. Like me, they were orphaned, and they had to get by on their wits. And they were aliens, which tied into my own sense of alienation."

"I need to up my game when it comes to my nomination," Henry said. "Those details and connections to your life make it much more convincing than what I was planning to say."

Neal agreed. He was making mental notes for his own nomination.

"A good con relies on details and connections," Mozzie reminded them.

"This isn't a con," Henry said.

"No? Whenever there is a subjective element to judgement, there is room for a con," Mozzie noted.

"Wait," Neal said. "Was any of that story true, about the movie marathon when you ran away? Is that really your favorite movie?"

"Was it even a real movie?" Henry opened his laptop to run a search.

"Question everything," Mozzie advised. "Words to live by."

###

That evening, Peter called his parents. He needed to tell them about his new job. Today he finally felt able to keep the focus on how exciting the Win-Win role was, without veering into complaints about the team he was leaving.

They were surprised, of course, but they offered their sincere congratulations. Then he turned the conversation toward the upcoming holiday. This year he and El, with his brother Joe and sister-in-law Noelle, would spend the holidays with the Caffreys in D.C., while Luke and Betty Burke were taking Joe's daughters to the family cabin. The girls had spent Thanksgiving with Joe and Noelle.

After describing his part in selecting a movie for Christmas Day, Peter asked his parents what movies they would choose.

"Gigi," said Betty immediately.

That had been a long-time favorite for her, and Peter chuckled. "I should have known. Have you watched it with the girls? Maybe you should take it along to the cabin."

"It would be lovely to bond over it," Betty agreed. "It's certainly lighthearted enough for a holiday."

"What would you pick, Dad?"

"Well, it's hard to narrow it down to just one," Luke said. "But if I had to, I think it would be The Sting."

"Really? I would have expected you to go with the original Star Wars."

"I'm fond of that one," Luke conceded, "and having a main character who shares my first name has some appeal. But I've always been a fan of Robert Redford and Paul Newman, and I like the twists and turns in The Sting. Just like in life, things aren't always how they seem at first glance."

"Maybe I should pick that one," Peter said.

"You haven't chosen yet?" Betty asked.

"I keep changing my mind. Yesterday I was thinking about Home Alone. Today I'm leaning toward It's a Wonderful Life."

"I suppose that makes sense when you're making a big career change," Betty said. "That sort of thing prompts a person to look back and ponder what-ifs."

"You're right," said Peter. "And I'd rather go with something that's more about looking forward to the future instead of rehashing the past."

"I'm sure you'll find the right one," Luke said.