Please see poll on my profile page.

(Con Artists AU)

9:26 PM

Hades had no earthly clue what to do. He was stuck on a plane with the Wicked Witch, one of the most famous con women in the world for at least an hour until this metal death contraption landed in L.A. and he managed to get ahold of the case.

The thing he found simultaneously irritating and hilarious was the fact that Zelena was calmly reading a magazine that was talking about a celebrity feud Panic and his brother had been discussing for over a week now.

If anyone asked him, Tom Hiddleston needed to find a woman that wouldn't drag him into such a pointless argument. Of course, he had no interest in such things.

He tapped his fingers against the armrest, already tense, and Zelena's calm voice almost pushed him over the edge.

"So, Hades..."

He glanced at her, immediately suspicious now.

"How'd you find me?" she inquired, folding the magazine up.

He managed to crack a smirk. "A good con man never reveals his secrets," he said smugly.

"Ah, playing the guessing game, are we?" She leaned towards him, much too close, her gaze almost predatory. "Alright, I'll play," she breathed, smiling as he tensed under the hand she had resting on his knee.

Don't look at her lips.

She pulled back. "There's a theory that if you have multiple explanations for something, usually the simplest is the correct one," she said, pretending as though she'd maintained her position at the window the whole time. "So, let's see...You could have looked for me through the traffic cameras, asked around and followed your leads or..." She trailed off. "Ah. Of course. Tracker in the case?"

He stared, and his incredulous expression confirmed her answer. How...?

"I've been doing this for a while, love," she reminded him. "I knew I was forgetting something. It's in the lining, isn't it?"

At his silence, she nodded to herself. "Need to remember that next time,"she mused.

"What did you drug me with?" he asked.

A brilliant smile spread over her face. "A good con woman never reveals her secrets," she countered.

"Well, it worked fast," he commented. "And you weren't kidding about the headache." Her smile grew wider, until it was almost...prideful?

"Wait...did you make that-whatever it was?" he said disbelievingly.

She bit her lip in an attempt to hide her grin. "You are smart, aren't you?"

His grudging respect for her escalated. "You make your own knockout drugs?"

She smirked and turned away as though she had lost interest in the conversation.

He was a bit stunned, to say the least. With a small laugh, he shook his head. "Christ, and here I was trying to land a partnership with someone else."

"A partnership doesn't seem like your style," she commented.

"Is it yours?"

She went very still. "Why do you ask?"

He couldn't believe he was actually about to try and persuade the Wicked Witch to help him with a job.

"I have someone who's con gold, but I can't do the job on my own," he admitted. "I need, well..." His fingers curled around her wrist carefully, "I need a woman to help me," he finished.

She laughed, turning back. "Am I hearing that right? A man asking for a woman's help?" she said, raising an eyebrow.

He sighed. "Yes," he muttered. "I missed the meeting with the person I was originally going to team up with, because I met you and-"

"-thought you could scam me?" she finished. He nodded, and she grinned. "Oh, the poor girl. Who was she?"

"An old friend. It doesn't matter."

"Oh, come on. Tell a girl something fun. Maybe I know her," Zelena coaxed.

"Persephone Wheatley."

Zelena shook her head. "Never heard of her."

"Well, Jonathan set us up-"

"Jonathan who?" she interrupted, her eyes suddenly lit with true interest.

"Gardner. He's an ass, but he's a friend of Persephone's-"

Something in her expression flickered.

"I'll help," she said.

"Wh-what?" he said, confused.

"With the job. I'll help you."

Trying to recover from her sudden fervor, he stuttered, "Well, what's to stop you from-"

"I won't." She held out a hand. "I'm a con woman, but when I promise something, I keep my word."

Hades stared at her outstretched hand, then uneasily took it.

"We split it, even," she added, gripping his hand with surprising strength. "And you don't tell anybody we're working together." He nodded, still bewildered, and increasingly wary.

"Good," she whispered. "It's a deal, then."

Hades shook her hand, and had a feeling like he'd just made a deal with the devil.


9:39 PM

Finally. She had a clear shot at Gardner. Just because she knew where he was didn't mean she knew how to beat him. He was probably more experienced, and he'd undoubtedly heard what happened to Cora after Zelena'd finished with her.

She couldn't wait til this goddamn plane had landed.


10:21 PM

Hades's face was priceless when she had cheerfully taken the case down from the overhead.

"You've got to be kidding," he muttered. She only laughed and strode out of the plane, with him following behind.

"Do keep up, love."


10:43 PM

The woman at the front desk of the hotel near the airport tried to give them a one bed room, though Zelena insisted on a two bed room.

"What, now that the con's over you're done with me?" Hades teased at the room.

"Don't be too insulted, love. You're one of many," she said, not even looking at him.

His hand found her hip as it had earlier that day, and she tensed instantly. "So sure?" he said, smiling against her jawline.

She pulled away. "Go to bed. You can tell me the details of the job in the morning," she replied curtly, trying not to think about what had happened between them the previous twenty-four hours.

"Suit yourself." He just grinned at her, tossing himself onto the small twin bed.

Damn, his eyes were distracting.

She shook herself out of those thoughts.

She had a job to do.

He was just a means to completing it.

That was what she kept telling herself.

Review, please! I felt pretty iffy about this one, so I'd appreciate a review from anyone who reads this.