Tap. T-tap, tap. Tap-tap-tap.

Ariadne was going to go insane. How much longer could this class possiblytake? It had to have been hours, days, weeks since she'd turned in her test (one of the first, as always) and the remaining time left to her in class seemed to be eating her alive. When Ariadne hadn't realized about her forgotten reading book back in her dorm until she was nearly all the way to the bus stop, she had rolled her eyes and assumed that she would have to make do without it. Unfortunately, she was wrong. She should have known herself - Ariadne was not one of those students that could occupy themselves with nothing.

Seven minutes left. How could she possiblylast these last seven minutes? And of course, there was always that one kid that refused to turn in his test a moment earlier than they had to; going back and looking over answers, erasing some in a paranoid frenzy only to re-bubble them back in once again. Which was dandy for them, but a real pain in the ass for the rest of the students, who had been promised a free rest of the period once "all tests were turned in."

Unable to stand it any longer, Ariadne had to do something, she just had to. Reaching down into her bag, she pulled out her notebook and flipped it open to the first blank page she could find, skipping over the physics notes and the other doodles she'd made to herself in bored stupors shared in other classes. Clicking the pen she was holding, the protruding tip now quivered expectantly over the blank page; poised for importance but really having nothing to do. Come on, Ariadne, she thought to herself belligerently. You're the goddamn architect. Design something.

But all she could pull out of herself was a bunch of half-imagined rectangles nestled in sprigs of grass with squares for windows. Honestly, it looked like a child's doodle. Her professors would be ashamed. Giving a barely inaudible sigh and sitting back in her seat, Ariadne assessed her work with a few sleepy blinks, wishing she'd at least brought her thermos of coffee she'd made that morning, now probably ice-cold at home in her coffee pot. Is this really all she was going to be worth today? If so, she would have been better off staying at home in her bed.

It took her a few more seconds to realize what she had drawn - or, rather, that she'd drawn anything of any significance at all. Blinking in surprise, Ariadne found herself leaning forward to examine the drawing closer. It was strangely uncomfortable, as if coming from a long-remembered dream. And in reality, it had - unless that notion itself was a paradox. To anyone else it would seem like the mindless doodle of a bored student, but to Ariadne it actually looked like something. And not just something; some place. Some place which, for Ariadne and the rest of the poor souls who had been down there, was some place very real. This was the Limbo state.

"You never remember the beginning of your dreams, do you? You always seem to wind up somewhere in the middle of what's going on."

A delicate shiver passed down Ariadne's spine, and the world around her tiny little drawing seemed to swell and pitch around her. She traced the indents of the pen lines with her index finger. Maybe if she pressed into them hard enough, she could return. Return to her dreams… Suddenly feeling anxious, an oddly timed wave of panic swept over Ariadne, a sense of stifling claustrophobia. Quickly, she reached into her pocket, searching around desperately for what she sought. And then, she found it; she grasped the tiny pawn that sat nestled there, tightly pinned between the layers of fabric. Taking it out and placing it on the table, she saw her fingers shaking and trembling pathetically. Get a grip on yourself, Ari. The tip of one finger rested softly on the top of the piece, lifting it up off one edge, and then the other, back and forth, back and forth. Pulling back her fingers, she prepared to give the pawn the necessary nudge with her finger.

BRRRRRRRRRING.

Startled by the ring of the bell, Ariadne's finger nudged the pawn over more because of being startled than by proactively hitting it. But the small clack of the weight of the piece tipping was enough for the girl. Ariadne breathed a small sigh as the pawn tipped over just as it should have, with the perfect balance of weight. Blinking rapidly, she finally responded to the sound of the ringing school bell, and looked up to see her Professor standing up and stacking a pile of papers into a neat pile, while the rustle of students packing up and heading out to lunch brought a deafening din to the room that was somehow comforting. Ariadne didn't like the unnerving silence.

"Study guides for final exams will be handed out next week," called Professor Miles loudly, trying to be heard over the bustle. "I hope all of you have been keeping up to date on the comprehensive study."

Swallowing the dry, stinging sensation in her throat, Ariadne took her totem in one hand and stuffed it deep in her pocket, hiding it easily from her Professor, whom she assumed would think she was only tucking away her phone, or an iPod. "S-see you-," she began awkwardly, but her voice cracked so awfully that she cleared her throat to start again. "See you later, Professor Miles," she said with a small wave, giving him her farewell with a small smile. Miles looked up and returned her wave with ease, but the look on his face was disconcerting to Ariadne. Almost as if he sensed her unease.

"Anything the matter?" he asked, raising his eyebrows.

For a split second - one, infinitesimal second - Ariadne had the strangest sensation that Professor Miles knew what her problem was, what she had just been drawing. Almost that she could confide in him. Nervously clutching her notebook, now tucked into her bag, closer to her side, she pressed her lips together innocently and shook her head. "Nope," she replied easily. "Long period, I guess. Pretty tired."

"Well, get some rest," said Miles good-naturedly. "Wouldn't want one of my brightest knackered on her last weekend before final exams."

"No, sir," agreed Ariadne, chuckling. "I'll be sure to do that."

Stepping out of the classroom and into the hall, Ariadne shivered. She didn't like Professor Miles looking at her like that, looking at her with that sense of …what was the word? Understanding? Comprehension? Because that was impossible. Professor Miles couldn't know. Probably wouldn't ever know. But most of all, she didn't like the fact that she had nearly subconsciously drawn the Limbo state on her paper. Not just because Limbo was creepy enough in and of itself, but because it proved that her subconscious mind was still stuck in her dreams. Those particular dreams. And if she was stuck there in the subconscious, she'd have to be extra careful. Ariadne wasn't about to exchange awareness for paranoia, and you could never be more careful, especially now with her newfound talents. She fingered her totem in her pocket as she continued to walk, chewing the side of her lip.

She had to get out more.

A/N: Normally, I don't like riddling stories with Author's Notes, but I just wanted to apologize for this chapter being so short. I'm going to try and make this a "long-chapter" story; I just felt that this "chapter" had reached a natural end, but the next chapter will pick up nearly right where this one left off. And besides...this is just a website, so chapters can be as sodding long as I feel like they can :P