Summary: After finally adjusting back to family life Cobb is forced to take one last job that is unlike anything he and the team have ever done before. Another team has been hired to shift the decision of the same mark and when things start to get complicated; a 6th member is brought onto the team to help sort things out. Meanwhile the team is learning things about each other that are bringing them closer together, especially Ariadne and Arthur. Focus on Arthur, Ariadne, and Eames. ArthurXAriadne and EamesXoc
Note: My first Inception story, but its been more than a year since I posted anything so watch out. I'm not usually a fan of OCs with more major roles but in the case I felt one was needed for multiply reasons that will be revealed as the story progresses but she will not be introduced till later in the story
Disclaimer: I do not own Inception.
Chapter One: Phillipa's Fairytale
The room was dark. Only a little moonlight streamed in from between the blinds and a small night light glowed from across the room. Despite the setting little Phillipa sat up in her bed eyes wide and pleading for another story from her father. He always told the best stories.
"It's late Phillipa and look your brother is already asleep." Cobb glanced at James who was lying across the end of his sister's bed.
"Please, it doesn't have to be long." She smiled and Cobb finally gave in.
"Fine but we must speak very quietly."
"Tell me the story of Princess Ariadne." She whispered. The man could not help but smile as he recalls the first time he told this story. Phillipa had asked for a story about a princess, but refused all of the books on the self. He found himself at a dead end. The only stories he had made up were simply toned downed versions of jobs he had had in the past. He had never told the story of the Fisher job but the thought of it had given him an idea. And so Princess Ariadne was born.
"A long time ago there lived a lovely princess and her name was Ariadne." Phillipa leaned back against her pillows and snuggled into the covers.
"Princess Ariadne was a kind girl and loved nothing more than to stroll through her village looking at the buildings and talking with the people around her. Everyone was very fond of the princess, even if her father was a terrible and mean king.
"One day the King came to Ariadne and told her that she needed to be married. Her suitor would be arriving the next day and they would be married as soon as possible. The princess was not happy and she told her father so. "
"I don't want to marry a man I've never met, Father." She said. "I'd only want to marry a man I love."
"Don't be foolish," the king said and he left the room.
"Well as you can believe Ariadne would not stand for this. That night she gathered a few belongings and a bit of food, using a silk scarf as a bag to carry it, and she snuck out of the castle. She ran for the entire night and well into the next morning. It was only when she was completely exhausted that she finally collapsed in the middle of a wide open meadow.
"She slept peacefully for hours and when she awoke she was no longer in a field but lying on the stone floor of a room. She first believed that she had been caught by her father's guards and was being kept in the dungeons of the castle but there were windows in this room. She rushes over to one and is shocked by what she sees outside. She is in a tower that is located in the center of a huge maze. On lookers had gathered around the edges of the maze and among them was the king.
He called to the Princess. "Ariadne you must come out of the maze, no one has been able to reach the tower."
"I will not." She calls back. "You will have me marry a man I do not love and I refuse." She is struck suddenly by an idea and she knows it's the truth. "The man whom can make it through the maze to the tower is the man I will marry because he will be my true love."
After that many men, from princes of faraway lands to common villagers, had entered the maze only to become lost or to end up back at the entrance. Some who tried more than once claimed that the walls must be moving. Paths that had once existed now lead to dead ends.
The princess was fine in her tower. There were old books on shelves and quills and scrolls she could write on. As for food it seemed her silk scarf refilled its self every night so she would not go hungry.
One day a man from the village appeared at the maze. He was not there to enter it; he was there to study it. He was a very scholarly and only wanted to know how it was possible that a maze that not only appeared out of thin air but that was constantly changing could exist.
The princess watched him from her window for many days. She was curious. Why had he not entered the maze? One day she called out to him.
"Sir why have you not entered the maze?"
"I only wish to study the maze fair princess." Every day he would come and she would call out to him, asking if today he would enter. He would say no but would talk to her about his discoveries. As she talked to him she found that she really wished he would come look for her.
"Would it not be helpful to study it from the inside as well as the out?" She asked one afternoon.
"I do suppose that would farther my research but I do not want to be lost in the maze forever."
"I wish you would try Sir. If you become lost I can assist you to the exit from here. I can see the entire maze from my tower."
The man decided that it could not hurt to try and find the princess. She was kind and intelligent and very beautiful. After speaking to her he could no longer remember why he did not want to enter the maze.
Ariadne watched him from her tower; every second growing more fearful that he would turn back. He never did though. In fact he was having no trouble navigating the maze. It was as if he knew every turn he had to make and in no time at all he had located the entrance to the tower.
"Is this where you let down your hair and I climb to your window, or must I face off against a terrifying dragon first?" The man called up to the window. Ariadne smile down as she shook her head. She left the tower room and traveled quickly down a spiral staircase that seemed to go on much too long. She reached the door and threw it open.
"Hello." She said
"It's very nice to speak to you face to face Princess."
"Well it is very nice to see you up close."
The man reached out his hand and the princess took it. She stepped forward and was finally able to kiss the man who found his way through the maze to her. Her true love. The end.
Cobb looked at his daughter. Her eyes where drooping. He wished her goodnight and picked up James from the end of the bed.
"What's his name?" He heard Phillipa's sleepy voice ask. "You never say the man's name."
Cobb stood in the doorway with a smile on his face. Names weren't his strong suit and usually he used the names of people he knew. Which actually made the answer to this question quite simple, "Arthur."
He could see a tiny smile on Phillipa's face. "That's a good name."
Cobb carried James to his own room. He carefully tucked him in and switched on the night light before returning to the kitchen. Dinner dishes were piled in the sink, he was about to start washing them when there was a knock on the door.
He looked at the clock. It was late, too late for guests.
He checked the peep hole first. He recognized the man outside; not personally but anyone associated in any way with the business world would know the man's face. Jonathan Grey owned Grey Enterprises and as all the things that Dom knew about him raced to mind one stood ahead of the rest; he was ruthless when it came to getting what he wanted. With that thought he opened the door and stepped outside. The door not completely closed behind him.
"May I help you?"
"You are Mr. Dominic Cobb." He stated more than asked. Cobb gave a curt nod. "Then yes you can indeed help me. You are in the business of extraction correct."
"I was. You could say I'm retired now." Cobb said shortly. He already did not like the direction the conversation was heading in. He had not been on a job since the successful inception almost eight months ago and was able to return to his children. He really had no intention of going back now.
"A little young to be retired don't you think."
"The decision was based on priorities not age."
Mr. Grey paused for a moment before pressing on. "Well early retirement aside I have a request for you. A job opportunity."
"I'm not interested."
"I really do wish you would reconsider, I am willing to pay a large amount for your services." Grey said calmly.
"I sorry but my answer will not change. I'm content with my life the way it is and do not need to disrupt it." Cobb noticed a dark car pull up at the edge of the driveway.
"My ride has arrived." He said without turning around. He reached into his suit jacket pocket and pulled out a card. "Contact the number on the back when you change your mind, and you will change your mind." He added when Cobb was about the refuse. Cobb was silent for a moment before taking the card. Truly it was only to get the man away from his house.
Jonathan Grey turned and walked down the driveway. The man driving the dark car had gotten out and opened the back door for him. Cobb only returned inside after the car's tail lights were no longer in view.
He shoved the card into his pocket on his way down the hall. He checked on both Phillipa and James before returning to the kitchen and finishing the dishes. He fully intended to put the entire meeting with Mr. Grey out of his head. It had never happened as far as he was concerned.
Originally the Fairytale was going to be a one-shot but I decided to use it as a way to set-up this story. To show that Cobb has adjusted to a normal life while showing that the focus will be on Ariadne and Arthur despite not starting the story with them.
So please review and I hope you enjoyed chapter one