Disclaimer: Inception does not belong to me.

"Hey Arthur."

"Who are you?"

"My name is Chris Shaw." A slender, dark haired man sat down at the end of the bed. He was easily in his late forties, if not early fifties. "I'm not a medical doctor. I'm a shrink."

"Great."

"I've come to talk to you about your situation." Shaw leaned forward, and studied the immobile man's face. "I know you can hear me, and I know you can blink. So, here's the deal. One blink for yes, two for no, and three if you want me to stop. Do you understand that?"

One blink.

"OK." Shaw nodded. "Let me ask you this, Arthur. Do you want to die, right now?"

One blink.

"Right." Shaw leaned forward again. "Do you feel as though your future, your hopes, your dreams, everything you ever wanted, has just been ripped away?"

One blink.

"Do you feel that we should just take away your life support, just let you go?"

One blink.

"Thank you, Arthur." Shaw stood up. "I'll be back soon."

"Please don't."

Cobb looked at Eames. "Listen, we have to-" his cellphone rang. "Oh, for God's sake." He clicked it. "Hello?" Suddenly, he stood up. "Mrs Ogilvie? Yes, I'm Dominic Cobb." He looked at Eames, who bit his lower lip. "You and your husband are flying over from Conneticut? Yes, I'm here, and so is Mr Eames, another of Arthur's work colleagues. Ariadne? I-" He swallowed. "I think she's in the bathroom."

He put his hand over the cell and mouthed to Eames. Find her.

Nodding, the Forger got up, and carefully pushed his chair in. Cobb watched him leave, knowing there would only be one place that Ariadne would have gone.

The Architect unlocked the door, and entered the workshop. She inhaled, letting the slightly dusty scent overwhelm her. It seemed only yesterday she'd entered the workshop, after being approached by Cobb after a lecture.

She blinked. Arthur had already been here. Helped after she'd been attacked by Mal in one of her first dreams. And then he'd seemed happy to see her return, after she swore she wasn't going back.

She blinked back a few tears, then straightened her shoulders. She needed to sit down, and start drafting. She knew exactly what she needed to do.

Cobb swallowed as he stood in the airport waiting lounge. He'd never met Arthur's parents, and deeply regretted meeting them under these circumstances. He bit his lip. He had no idea what to say.

He was a parent. The thought of losing one of his children was his worst fear. But how could you explain to two people that their son was still alive, but technically not there? The thought made him shudder.

He looked up. A couple were approaching the lounge. Both were in their mid to late fifties, he estimated. The man was tall, with greying hair and intense dark eyes. The woman was small and slightly built, her hair pulled back. Both were wearing expensive looking clothes, but rumpled.

He knew. He approached them. "Mr and Mrs Ogilvie?"

They stopped. The woman turned to him. "Yes?"

"I'm Dom Cobb." The Extractor felt his voice sounded small and weak, as though he couldn't bear the burden of what he could say. "I'm Arthur's colleague, I'll take you to the hospital."

They nodded, dumbly. Suddenly, Arthur's father offered his hand. "Howard Ogilvie."

Cobb took it, noticing how it was trembling. "Good to meet you." Arthur's mother, he noticed, was keeping one hand jammed firmly into her coat pocket, the other clutching a handkerchief. He swallowed. "Please, follow me."

She drew. She just drew, her pencil flying over the sheets. She knew what she needed to construct, along with detailed mazes so his projections and hers couldn't find them. Their vision of domestic bliss, recreated in order for them to live the life that had been cruelly stolen. Her cheeks flushed with the intensity of the task, and she absentmindedly wound her hair around her finger, pausing for thought.

Suddenly, the door opened. She looked up, startled. Eames was standing in the doorway, a concerned expression on his face.

"Ariadne." His voice was gentle. "Please, we need to talk."

The drive to the hospital was silent. Arthur's parents sat in the backseat, clutching hands. Cobb kept his eyes firmly focused on the road.

As they arrived, Arthur's mother spoke.

"Which wing is he in?"

Cobb swallowed. "Neurological ICU."

"Thank you."

The Extractor parked, and they all got out. Cobb looked at them. Both seemed uncertain.

"Do you want me to-" Cobb paused. But Arthur's father nodded. "Please. Take us to him."

"I know what you're trying to do."

Ariadne flushed, and fiddled with her pencil. "What do you think I'm trying to do?"

"I think you're trying to build a dream world that you can live in with Arthur." Eames looked at her. "And then I think you'll try and find sedative - enough sedative- so you can live in the dream with him for fifty years."

She flushed, angrily. "Well, if you know, why do you ask?"

"Because I think you're-" Eames stopped. "Ari, please. Arthur has suffered a massive trauma. If you do go into his mind, chances are it will not be what you expect."

She looked at him, her eyes narrowing. "Meaning?"

"Meaning his subconscious may not like you being there." As soon as the words were out of his mouth, Eames felt a wave of regret. "It might see you as an intruder."

Ariadne blinked. "No, Eames. He saw you as an intruder." She swallowed, and glared at the Forger. "But Arthur...Arthur loves me. I know he does." She looked at the draft.

"He doesn't want you to do this!" Eames blurted out. "Please, listen to me!"

"How do you know?" Her voice was rising in pitch.

"Because I asked him." Eames looked at the Architect, directly. "I asked him, when I visited him at the hospital. He communicates through blinking. Does he want to go into a dream world with you? No. He wants you to get on with your life, Ariadne!"

"Get on with my life?" Ariadne looked at Eames, real hostility flaring in her eyes. "Arthur is the most important thing in my life. I know that you all want to just give up on him, but I won't!"

She got up, and started walking past the Forger.

"Ari!" she stopped as he called after her. "Ari, its not us who have given up on Arthur. He's given up on himself!"

She swallowed, and turned back to him.

"Well," she said, looking at Eames. "Then I need to change that, don't I?"

"Mr and Mrs Ogilvie?"

Cobb looked up as the male nurse ushered them into Arthur's room. He was lying perfectly still, his eyes closed. His mother approached him, and began to stroke his cheek.

"Arthur," she whispered. "Oh, God, Arthur..." suddenly, she burst into deep, racking sobs. Her husband hurried over, and scooped her into an embrace, cradling her against his chest.

Cobb turned. He couldn't stay. Couldn't intrude on the family's private pain. Then suddenly, he noticed something.

A tear. Trickling down Arthur's cheek. He swallowed, and wiped his own eyes. As he turned, he came face to face with Ariadne.

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