Author Notes: Takes place after M:I and before M:I2.

Ethan was suddenly aware that he was awake. He began assessing the situation. In his line of work every awakening was a careful routine. He listened carefully for a few seconds, then when he didn't hear anything out of the ordinary he opened his eyes. He was in the bed where he had fallen asleep after coming back from the mission. It was still dark, so he must have been awoken by something other than daylight or getting enough sleep. Once he was sure the room was empty he got up from the bed silently and made his way to the door. He stood in the doorway to the main area of the hotel suite.

"Luther." he said quietly, as he scanned the room. His eyes fell on his teammate's figure on the couch. He was not moving. Suddenly worried about his friend Ethan started walking towards him, but had only taken two steps when he caught a movement from the corner of his eye. Reacting instinctually he raised his arm and swung around, grabbing the hand that was reaching for him. As his mind took note of how slender the wrist that he was holding was he dragged it forward and slammed it into the wall, the body it was attached to following and letting out a gasp as it hit the wall. Now he saw that his attacker was short and was dressed in tight black clothes that covered everything except the eyes. He was pretty sure it was a woman and the figure seemed familiar.

Ethan grabbed her other hand and pinned them both above her head. He carefully removed the ring and threw it away. Keeping one hand on hers he pulled the mask off her head. Long black hair spilled over her shoulders. He pushed it out of her face. He could just make out her features in the dim light coming through the uncurtained window.

"Meiko," he said flatly.

"Ethan?" She tried to turn around, but he held her hands tight and pressed her against the wall with his body.

"What are you doing here, Meiko?" he asked, not exactly pleased with this surprise.

"I'm on a job," she said defensively. "I didn't know you would be here, Ethan."

"A job," Ethan repeated. "The plans."

"Yeah. They weren't too happy that you and your friend there snuck away with the drive."

"How did they track it here?" Ethan's voice was low, but threatening, demanding an answer, and he held her tighter.

"I don't know. Honest. They called me after. There was mention of some kind of beacon."

How could they have missed it. Luther had checked the drive for any signals. Perhaps the easiness of the mission had made them overconfident and they hadn't been thorough enough. He would have to get Luther to take a closer look once he woke up. In the meantime he had to deal with the problem at hand.

"Don't move," Ethan commanded as he began searching Meiko. He felt over her arms and pulled a few blades from hidden pockets in her sleeves. He ran his hands through her hair, down her neck and along her shoulders.

"Oh, Ethan," she sighed. He continued down her back and found an assortment of small tools tucked into pockets at her waist. "Just like old times, huh?"

Ethan didn't reply as he felt over every inch of her legs, finding a few more blades and darts that he knew had some kind of tranquilizer on them. Her job was usually to get in and out without a body count, so the darts weren't poisoned, except maybe on the rare occasion.

Having removed everything he could find Ethan took a length of wire from the pile that had formed behind him and tied her hands behind her back. He spun her around and pushed her against the wall, his hands on her shoulders. She turned her almond eyes to meet his. Those eyes that had made him lose his mind two years ago.

"Ethan," she said, tenderness in her voice, "I haven't seen you in so long."

He looked away. He wasn't going to fall under her spell again.

They had been assigned to complete a series of missions together. It was a strained partnership between two organizations that would normally be enemies, but were uniting to accomplish something that would be beneficial to both, but neither could accomplish alone. Ethan and Meiko had hit it off right away, focusing on their assigned tasks and leaving the politics to the higher-ups. Their job was to retrieve a series of documents from various targets. Ethan would discover the location of the documents and create an opportunity for Meiko to retrieve the package. She was brilliant with safes and had the stealth of a ninja, leaving behind no trace of her actions, except for the missing items.

After the first mission she had come back with him to the hotel room. He had pressed her against the wall, gazed into those dark eyes tinted with green, and he couldn't help himself. He brought his lips to hers and she responded eagerly, pressing herself up against him. Then he discovered that undressing Meiko was no easy task. But his business was the impossible. and it became like a game for them, a form of foreplay. Even on days when there wasn't a mission she would show up in full gear, and Ethan loved her for it. She was young and wild and it ignited something in him. He still looked back on those two weeks wistfully, wishing he could have just one more night.

"You disappeared without a word, Meiko."

"I'm sorry, Ethan. They said I couldn't see you anymore." She was sincere with sadness in her voice. "They thought we were getting too serious." She grinned and let out a chuckle. "Which of course wasn't true." She hesitated as Ethan looked back at her. "... right?" Her expression fell at the anguish and disappointment in Ethan's eyes. "Oh," she said, looking down.

"Don't move," Ethan said, letting go of her.

"Ethan..."

"Stay there." He was walking back towards the couch, keeping his eyes on her.

"Ethan, let's get away. Just the two of us. It can be just like before."

Ethan stopped and looked at her, momentarily tempted. "What about the job?"

"Forget the job. I want to be with you," she was almost pleading.

Ethan eyed her suspiciously. "You and I both know that you wouldn't leave a job unfinished."

"I would do it for you, Ethan." Her eyes beckoned him, stirring up emotions that he worked hard to keep buried. But it wasn't going to work this time.

"No," he said, steel in his voice. "Stay there and don't move." He picked up a phone from the coffee table.

"What are you going to do with me?"

"Take you back to HQ. Let them figure it out." He momentarily took his eyes off her as he dialed, but snapped back when she moved in his peripheral vision. She had lowered herself and was now sitting with her back against the wall. He followed her outstretched leg to the pile that he had removed from her suit.

"Meiko," he spoke as if to a misbehaving child. She pulled her leg in, giving him an innocent look. He walked up to her, grabbed her shoulders and pulled her up. "I said, don't move." He felt a prick on the side of his calf. He looked down to see her socked foot pulling away, leaving behind a small dart. She always wore these special socks that allowed her to move silently like a cat.

"Meiko." He dug his fingers tighter into her shoulders, stunned and angry.

"You were right, Ethan." She looked him steadily in the eyes. "I always finish the job." Ethan's vision was beginning to blur. "It was nice seeing you again." Her lips curled into a crooked smile. She pushed off the wall and pressed her lips to his. Ethan's legs gave out and he dropped to his knees, his grip on her loosening. "Goodbye, Ethan," she said, and he thought there was a hint of sadness in her voice, but it might just have been his imagination as his consciousness slipped away.