No matter how hard I try, this fandom won't leave me alone. Please review and let me know if I should continue. If enough people are interested, then I will keep writing and posting the next chapters.

Disclaimer: I sadly do not own Inception.

She watched the bishop topple. She watched it topple over and over. Each time she held her breath in anticipation and every time she was disappointed as it clunked soundly on the desk. This was reality and nothing she could do would change that.

The agitated architect glanced at the textbook in front of her, but all the words blurred together. The red digits on the clock were hauntingly set at 3:30 am and with a sigh she started to the kitchen to brew another pot of coffee. As she waited for the coffee she stared at herself in the kitchen window, barely recognizing herself. The eyes that stared back at her in the kitchen window were brown and empty. She wondered if anyone else could see how hollow she was.

The bleak morning sky was just beginning to be painted with streaks of light. To most it would be beautiful, but to her It was all wrong. There were far too many clouds and the skyscrapers that framed the skyline were much too tall. She cursed all of them under her breath for introducing her to the world of pure creation and then just ripping it from her with no regard to the consequences.

Ariadne grasped the cup of coffee in her hands tightly, as something caught her eye outside the window. Through the darkness she could make out the shilloute of man standing in the bushes, staring straight at her. Ariadne's heart began to race and she pressed her eyes shut, grasping for her totem with one of her hands. She fumbled with the cool metal in her hand, but was unable to pull it out of her pocket. She was frozen in place. Ariadne forced herself to open her eyes, peering into the blackness. Her eyes frantically searched for the shilloute, but were only greeted by the flickering shadows. Her breathing returned to normal as Ariadne pulled the bishop out of her pocket, once again tipping it over. She was going crazy.

Ariadne could not shake the feeling that she was being watched. Every night she would double check the locks on her door and on the way to class she constantly looked over her shoulder. She even considered buying a gun. Her bishop began to wear from constant use. Ariadne wasn't certain of much anymore, but she was sure that reality wasn't supposed to feel like this. You weren't supposed to want to wake up from reality.

The sun was shining bright and the trees swayed with the promise of spring. Flowers were beggining to sprout out from the moist ground and the Paris streets were filled with lovers. Ariadne, however, did not notice any of these changes. All she could focus on were the eyes she knew were glued on her back. She quickened her pace, heaving her book bag higher up her shoulder.

Her footsteps echoed against the cobble streets as she looked around frantically, her mind racing with what to do. She swore the footsteps behind her were getting closer. Panicking, Ariadne dove into flower botique, hiding behind a display near the enterence. She slowed her breathing, peering out the window in the hopes of catching a glimpse of her pursuer. A few seconds later, a tall man strolled by. His eyes scanned the street purpusfully. It couldn't be. There was no way Arthur was the man watching her. But, as she looked again she was greeted with the unmistakable sight of the point man. His hair was slicked back as always and his attire was immaculate.

Before Ariadne knew what she was doing, she was marching towards him, intent on giving him a piece of her mind.

"Arthur" He looked back at the sound of his name and for an instant she saw panic flash across his face. He composed himself quickly and flashed her a dimpled smile.

"Ariadne, what a surprise meeting you here, how have you been?"

"What the hell are you doing?"

"Pardon me." He looked at her innocently and she scoffed at him.

"Don't play stupid with me. What the hell are you doing stalking me?"

"Ariadne I wasn't..."

"Bull."

"It's complicated." He said grabbing her elbow gently "Let me buy you a drink and I'll explain."

She pulled her arm from his grasp and crossed them across her chest. He had some nerve.

"No. I'm not going anywhere with you until you tell me what is going."

Arthur's eyes shifted nervously before landing on her face.

"Ariadne please, trust me."

She wanted to put up a fight. She wanted to protest and hold out until she got her answers. However, something in his voice and expression caused her to reconsider.

"Fine."

"Then follow me. Quickly now."

He grabbed her elbow again and she allowed herself to be dragged along with him. They arrived at sleek black car and Arthur opened the door for her. She slid into the leather interior, and felt her anger dissapating. Arthur was here. He had come back. He started up the car and pulled out.

"Okay start talking" she demanded, not ready to let him off the hook to easily.

Arthur, however, did not say a word. She watched as a small crease formed on his forehead, the only indication that anything was amiss. Arthur pressed harder on the gas pedal and took a corner sharply, lurching Ariadne forward.

"What's going on?"

Arthur took another quick turn and Ariadne was slammed against the door. His eyes were glued to the road, occasionally flicking to rearview mirror.

"Arthur?"

The point man weaved in and out of the traffic and Ariadne slouched in her seat, looking nervously out of the window. What the hell was going on?

After a few minutes of quick turns and accelerations, Arthur's foot let off the gas pedal. The speedometer decreased and Ariadne released her tight grip on the door. He pulled into a vacant parking space and turned off the ignition. The point man ran a hand over his slick hair and sighed.

"I suppose you want to know what that was all about."

"Yes"

"About a week ago I was working a job. It was supposed to be a simple extraction. Everything was going off without a hitch until we aqquired the actual information."

Ariadne tried to ignore the jealous pangs at the mention of the job. Over the months after Inception she liked to believe they were all lying low. She liked to think that they were all taking a break from the world of dreams. It hurt that they hadn't asked her to work with them, that they hadn't needed her.

"Ariadne, are you listening to me?" She nodded her head.

"The information had to do with you." Ariadne tried to process his words. It didn't make sense.

"With me?" Arthur merely nodded. She tried to keep her voice from shaking, but knew Arthur could hear the tremble. "What about me?"

"The man we extracted the information from was a hitman. Our employer wanted to know the target."

The panic which had been buried under the surface for the past few weeks began to rise.

"You're the target Ariadne."