Role-playing Games

For Neal Caffrey, White Collar's quintessential Peter Pan, the U-boat con must seem like a dream gig. He and Henry are given full license to cavort like reckless and irresponsible pirates. But Neal likes to play fair, and it hasn't escaped his notice that once more Peter's gotten the short end of the stick. As the leader of the team, Peter has to be the responsible one—the designated driver. Wouldn't he rather stow away on the pirate ship?

Warning for spoilers to Harlequin's Shadow

Others might point out that Peter is happy with his role. To all appearances, Peter left Neverland long ago and has no regrets. But Neal chooses to ignore that dreary attitude and takes advantage of the con to entice Peter into role-playing games. Arguably his greatest challenge is to persuade Peter to wear a disguise. It's not easy. Neal has to call upon the lure of science fiction and even then his boss is grumpy. It's only when Peter detects a Viking influence in Travis's disguise that he relents. After the twin U-boat stings are concluded, Peter relaxes long enough to join pirates Neal and Henry in a war council. Although he does his best to fall into pirate mode, he keeps getting distracted by worries that they're enacting Kidnapped instead of Treasure Island.

Neal can conjure up his inner child at the drop of a fedora. To reduce the stress of a con, role-playing is second nature. In Dark Rabbit, he channeled the Swamp Fox. In Harlequin's Shadow, it's Pirates of the Caribbean. But while Neal and Henry happily plot how best to trick Adler, Peter concentrates on finding ticking crocodiles.

Peter would perhaps have had an easier time embracing his inner kid if Neal had chosen a different frame of reference. The world of Vikings is one option, but there is another that could be even more enticing. It's a secret which Neal doesn't yet know but which Peter shared with someone else. Those cowboy songs Peter, Mozzie, and Dean sang in Whispers in the Night weren't chosen by Mozzie. Henry and Neal may dream of being pirates, but Dean and Peter would much rather saddle up for a Western adventure. Will it ever happen? As Kramer would say, the moment appears inevitable.

Harlequin's Shadow on Archive of Our Own
Harlequin's Shadow on FanFiction