A/N: This is a gift for a very dear friend, and I was very happy to oblige in it. Enjoy!

Chapter 1: The Little Things

"Isabelle James, its a great pleasure to see you."

The raven haired woman smiled at him, her light hazel eyes shining with warmth. "Professor, its a pleasure to see you as well." she greeted, accepting a hug from him as they both sat down at the french cafe.

Miles smiled at the girl, taking a sip of his tea. "How are you dear? Its been such a long time since I've seen you."

Isabelle shrugged, taking off her leather gloves with a sigh. "I've been better, Professor. Works isn't so good for a woman who leads the kind of...occupation that I do." she told him, quietly ordering herself a cup of tea herself.

"I'm sorry to hear that." Miles told her.

She shook her head, her lips curling into a small smile once again. "Don't be, Professor. It's my fault entirely for deciding on this profession. Should have followed mother in the modeling business no?" she asked with a coy smile on her face over the rim of her tea mug.

Miles smiled back at her. "Though I definitely do not doubt that modeling would be a fruitful choice of profession for you, I do believe that your current is something your definitely good at." he told her. "And plus, its a big reason that I have called you here today."

Isabelle raised a perfectly sculpted eyebrow at the elder man. "Oh? And here I thought you were just being a dear old friend, offering to buy lunch and what not." she joked, a chuckle escaping her throat. "Now, what interest do you have of me, Professor?"

Miles sighed and leaned forward, close enough to wear their conversation would go unheard of. "I have a very nice business proposition for you." he told her, his voice in only a mere whisper. "Much like the one from before."

Isabelle cheery disposition quickly turned serious, her smile falling and her eyes turned cold. "Is that so?" she asked, leaning forward also. "Who is it for this time? Dominic I'm presuming?"

He nodded. "Yes. He ran into very serious problems on his last job. Tried and successfully completed inception."

Isabelle snorted at that. "Always knew that man was mad, this is just the icing on top." she sighed. "He's not attempting it again is he? I can't go through that again, Professor, I just can't-"

"No, no." he quickly assured the girl. "Extraction this time. Simple, clean, and the pay isn't so bad either."

"Hm," she sounded, lifting her mug to her lips again. "If its so clean and simple, then why do they need a girl like me on their team?" she asked him.

"Because as of recently they've ran into a few...securities issues." Miles told the woman. "They can't keep taking risk like they have, so they asked me to find the best-"

"Me naturally." she said haughtily.

"Of course," he continued. "And offer you a spot on the team. You get a nice cut of the pay, and possibly permanent work on the team."

Isabelle leaned back in her seat, done with whispering. "I haven't shared my dreams with anyone in years. I certainly haven't been extracting since you and my dear father's glory days." she said with a sigh. "But, I need the work. Modeling has never worked for me."

Miles smiled at her. "So you'll do it?"

"Anything for you, Professor."

Miles sighed in relief and nodded. "Good, I'd hate to see talent like yours go to waste. You're father wouldn't want that."

Isabelle sighed and stood from her seat. "No, my father wouldn't." she said, tossing her purse over her shoulder. "When and where?"

"I'll send the address and time along." Miles told her, standing up as well. "Come prepared, Dominic likes to move hastily."

"Of course he does." she said, bringing him into a farewell hug. "But,?" she began tentatively. "Is Mal...?

Miles shook his head grimly. "No, no... she's not there anymore."

She sighed. "Good. I don't want her hunting me down in his dreams again." she said with another sigh.

Miles smiled gravely. "Give your mother my best regards."

"I will..." she said as she turned to leave.

'What did I just get myself into?'