AN: Hello everyone. I got too impatient and I've decided to just write and let the chips fall. I hope this goes well... Well, this is my first Inception fanfic (Seen the movie twice now) and I wanted to do something with Arthur and Ariadne, since I find them quite adorable. I hope I do the characters justice. It might be a little slow at first because I want to set some things up... heh, so be patient.
Plot: Arthur, Ariadne and co. minus Cobb, adjust to life in LA as they recover from the Fisher-job. Unfortunately, they are tracked down by another team of extractors who want them to work with them on a mission: tracking and killing the only natural Inceptor in existence because she plans to kill the leaders of the most powerful nations in the world. But is everything as it seems?
Warnings: OOC (out of characterness), death, adult language and content
Couples: ArthurxAriadne and slight ArthurxOC
Her breathing was coming in quick, raspy gasps, as if she couldn't pull enough air into her lungs. Which was becoming true enough, her body was becoming weak, the wound caused by Arthur's bullet was beginning to drain her dry. Her face was already pale, legs wobbling slightly, the gun in her hand trembling as she kept it pointed at Ariadne's head. The Mark took another breath, much slower, but still raspy, "This is your... choice Point Man... this ends here... drop the Glock (I think that's the name of the gun Arthur uses in the film) or the Architect dies..."
One Month Ago...
Ariadne stepped out of gate into the terminal, being swept along by the crowds, moving easily deeper into the airport. First stop, immigration. After handing the woman in uniform her passport she glanced around, spotting Cobb behind her, in the next station. Her heart seemed to twist in her chest for the man, would everything work? Would he be able to go home to his kids? But, the moment passed and the man handed back his passport, "Welcome home Mr. Cobb."
She gave Dom a fleeting smile, which he returned before moving on. Next: baggage. She saw the others there, Eams, giving her a wink and an two fingered salute. Yusef, scampering off to the bathrooms. Fisher, fingers busy on the numbers of his phone. Saito, already walking out the doors, the job was done. And... Arthur. He pulled up a cart beside her own, grabbing his bags and placing them on his cart. He didn't glance at her. Of course, they were supposed to be strangers who had simply been on the same plane together. However, the ease with which everyone adjusted to pretending not to know each other, barely acknowledging one another felt foreign and uncomfortable to Ariadne. But as Ariadne moved through the group of people towards the doors a hand brushed her sleeve. The brush had just enough pressure to signify it was intentional, she stopped but a voice said, "Don't stop."
Arthur. She kept walking, "What is it?"
"This your first time in LA?"
"Yes."
"Do you have any idea where you are going to go?"
This did make her stop, her mind had been so full of the job that she hadn't really thought at all about what she was going to do once it was over. Arthur gently prodded her in the arm, she started walking again, "No... I actually have no idea."
"Well, if you'd like someone to... talk about this with..." Ariadne felt a scrap of paper slip into her hand, and Arthur moved passed her. She felt something stir in the depths of her body, an unnamed emotion. As she walked out of the airport she saw Arthur getting into a cab and another one parked behind his, with the taxi driver standing with a sign with her name on it. As she walked up to him he looked down at her, "Are you Ariadne?"
She nodded and got into the cab. "I'm supposed to take you where ever you like, your ride's paid for." The driver let out a chuckle, "I could take you all the way to the other end of the state if you wanted. So, where to?"
Ariadne looked down at the paper in her hand, it bore Arthur's neat handwriting:Omni Hotel: 251 South Olive Street Los Angeles, CA 90012. "Umm... the Omni Hotel please."
A short while later Ariadne stepped into the hotel lobby, the furnishings were elegant. And, seated in an overstuffed armchair, near the windows was Arthur. As she walked further into the lobby he caught her eye and nodded to the front desk, Ariadne walked over and the receptionist gave her a once over before looking down at the list of names in front of her, "Name?"
"Ariadne." She answered automatically, then stopped, would Arthur have booked a room for her? The answer was yes. The receptionist handed her a room key, "Room 308, oh and I was supposed to give you this." Another little slip of paper. This one also bore Arthur's handwriting: Join me at the bar at 3? Ariadne glanced at the clock: 2:30. Just enough time for a shower...
Gordon Smithy sat down at his desk, slipping through the stack of notes his secretary had left for him. But, it was all so... pointless. He wanted out. What had he been thinking? Trying to be mayor of one of the toughest cities in the country? He couldn't do it. He wanted out. True, he'd just won his election and had been Mayor of Los Angeles for less then a month, he should be ecstatic, but he wasn't. Everything seemed to be going wrong, horribly, horribly wrong and he couldn't find the energy to deal with it. He wanted out. He opened his desk drawer, there, underneath a stack of papers was a revolver. It glinted in his hand as the sunlight from the half open blinds behind him caught the gun's metal. He lifted it, putting the barrel between his lips, he wanted out...
Ariadne stepped into the hotel bar, Arthur was already seated, a drink in his hand. He spotted her and waived her over. She sat down, "Arthur what was all that?"
"All what?" He asked, playing dumb, taking a sip of his drink.
"Why did you pay for the cab? And get me a room? I have plenty of money, Saito al-" She stopped when she caught his eye, bitting her lip for a moment, she tried again, "Why?"
Arthur but his drink on the bar, "I didn't think you'd want to waste your first paycheck."
"I would have been fine, I'd just stay some place cheap."
Arthur gave a laugh that seemed to be more of an snort, "Oh yes, a woman, who's never been to this country before, staying alone at an cheap motel in Los Angeles seems very smart." His voice dripped with sarcasm, but his eyes glinted with worry at the thought.
"I would have been..." Ariadne stopped, sighing, "Fine. Thank you... Arthur..."
He nodded and turned to look at her, a small smile glowing on his face briefly, "Your welcome."
Ariadne couldn't look away from him. Then, the two jumped as a man burst through the doors on the other side of the hotel bar, "The Mayor's dead!"
Many people, including Ariadne and Arthur, turned to look at the man, who was panting. He pointed at the TV, "T-t-turn on the news! *pant* They think he c-committed suicide!"
The bartender fumbled for the remote, the screen flickered on, showing a reporter mid-sentence, "-or is dead. Authorities are now claiming that he committed suicide. But, close relatives state that Smithy was energized by the coming election and many are surprised by his sudden death. Another strange incident is the fact that his new secretary; Mary Rossi has gone missing."
Mary Rossi's picture appeared on the screen: she was tan, with blond straight hair that had been pulled back into a tight bun at the back of her head. She was wearing glasses and had business attire on in the picture. "The police would like to question Ms. Rossi about her employer as soon as possible, if anyone has any information on the woman please call the hotline at the bottom of the screen."
The bar around them burst into an outbreak of gossip, outraged remarks, and a few tears. Ariadne looked over at Arthur, he was staring at the screen, brows furrowed slightly, frowning "What's wrong?"
"Hm?" Arthur blinked and looked back over at her, "It's nothing... how would you like to come to dinner with me? I've been here before and I could... show you around."
His distractions worked, Ariadne nodded, smiling.
"What should I wear?"
Marcus Blood was pissed. He'd seen the news and knew that his Extractor had gone AWOL. "God dammit!" He cussed, slamming his fist into his desk, "Dammit, dammit! Shit!" The door to his office opened and a teenager walking in with dirty blond hair handing in his face, a pierced lip and a bar in his eyebrow.
"See the news?" The boy said, his voice a rasp.
Blood sat at his desk and nodded, "You know what this means... she's on the move..." He looked down at the papers on his desk, shifted them to the side and lifted a file, "You know... I think I have the perfect person for our job." He looked up at the teen standing on the other side of the desk, "I need you to track down the family home of Dom Cobb."
"And what are you going to do?"
"Oh, nothing much." Said Blood standing, "Just going to meet an old friend for dinner."
Would appear to desperate if she admitted she spent a longer time working on her appearance before dinner then usual? Ariadne hopped not. She gently brushed her fingers through her lightly curled hair one more time as she looked at herself in the mirror. She was wearing a strapless black evening dress with slight beading detail on the bodice, a simple black purse clutched in one hand, silver bangles on her wrist, silver drop earrings, and strappy black heels. Arthur hadn't told her much about the place, only that dressing nicely would be advisable. With a final glance at her reflection she left her hotel room to meet Arthur in the lobby.
As usual, he was dressed neatly and elegantly, a black suit with a dark green vest and ivory colored tie. His hair slicked back, not a single strand out of place. Arthur gave her a small smile as she approached, "You look nice."
"Thank you. Where are we going?"
Arthur chuckled, "You'll see..."
He lead her out to a cab, but as they climbed in and shut the door they noticed there was a man in the passenger seat. He turned around and smiled, white teeth flashing in the dim light, "Hello Arthur, mind if I join you?"
And... that's it for right now! ^^ I hope this all went over well... I wanted to make it longer, add more detail, but my plot bunnies aren't running at the moment. More like they are dragging themselves forward when I try to think... *sighs* Well I hope to get the next piece out in a few days. Don't be afraid to critique or add in ideas or other input. But, NO flames for this couple please! ^^
Review= Happiness