A/N: Just a quick foreword here. As I've mentioned in my now-replaced Chapter 11, someone kindly alerted me to the fact that it had somehow been replaced with a carbon copy of Chapter 9 (I did try to change it late last night when I noticed a mistake in the text, so perhaps my tired brain wasn't functioning as it usually does!), so I apologise to all those who have not yet read the real Chapter 11. It's back up now (assuming it worked!), so to everyone who didn't manage to read it yesterday - well, what are you waiting for? :P

I originally planned on putting this up tonight rather than this morning, but it was 7.30am when, lying in bed, I happened to check my emails on my phone and noticed the review pointing out the error. Of course, being the pedant that I am, I couldn't rest after that! So blame the 5 or so hours sleep I've had if things are still wrong. -.-

12.

Arthur had been sitting alone for the better part of ten minutes, wondering just how long it took for one woman to go the toilet, when he felt someone brush against him. His head snapped up in time to see a man in a dark suit jog past, briefcase in hand, muttering a rushed apology. Arthur was about to turn away when he caught sight of something small and dark on the floor beside his foot.

'Excuse me, sir, I think you dropped something!' he called out, stooping to pick the object up.

It was too late. The man was out of sight, clearly oblivious to his loss. Arthur contemplated handing it in to Lost Property, but not before Ariadne returned. Where the hell is she, anyway? He stood up, his eyes scanning the area, looking for the telltale hint of red that would draw his attention, but there was no sign of her. He had a vague notion that he had already left Cobb's car unattended – illegally, mind – for too long, when the feeling of dread that had been niggling him all afternoon suddenly hit him full force. He felt winded, as though all the breath had been knocked out of him as his mind stumbled over the possibilities.

Nobody took this long going to the bathroom. He looked down at his hands and realised that he was still gripping the small nylon bag that the man had dropped. His hand trembling slightly, he pulled the drawstring open and reached inside.

He didn't even need to look to know what he was holding. The material was soft beneath his fingers, and just a hint of musk drifted up from inside. But he had to be sure.

He felt his heart skip a beat as he looked down at the red piece of cloth now scrunched up in his clenched fist.

For the first time since before he could remember, Arthur didn't know what to do. His heart was pounding in his chest, in his throat and ears, drowning out every other sound around him; his vision tunnelled, focused on the small piece of fabric still clutched in his hand, his fingers tingling under its touch. He could feel his legs beginning to tremble beneath him, his knees weakening as he stood rooted to the spot, trying to process what it could mean.

Ariadne had been taken. That much was evident. But by whom? The man in the dark suit? He obviously had something to do with it. Arthur closed his eyes and tried to picture him, once more grateful for his vivid memory. He would certainly recognise him again, if he ever saw him. That was something, at least.

Now he just needed some help. Dom. It was his only choice. He hated the thought of dragging him into it, just when he was settling down with his kids, but what else could he do? He would simply ask for advice, nothing more.

His mind made up, he grabbed Ariadne's suitcase and hurried out of the airport as fast as his quivering legs would carry him.

Cobb's car was still outside. Arthur noticed a traffic warden peering at it as he edged closer, but he was too quick. Opening the back door, he flung the suitcase onto the seat before jumping in the front and peeling off, the warden's protests falling on deaf ears.

Arthur hardly took his foot off the accelerator until he pulled up outside Cobb's house fifteen minutes later, the brakes squealing as he slammed to a stop. He wasted no time as he sprinted up the garden path and pummelled on the wooden door.

'All right, all right, I'm coming,' he heard Miles' voice call out from the other side. 'There's no need to break the bloody door – Arthur? What's wrong?'

Arthur was too focused to feel the sense of déjà vu that hit him. He brushed past the older man and stormed into the house, all the while calling Cobb's name.

'He's in the garden still,' Miles shouted, hurrying to catch up with him. 'What on earth's happened?'

'It's Ariadne,' Arthur said shortly.

'What about Ariadne?'

Cobb, apparently having heard the commotion, was now standing just inside the back door, frowning at his partner. Arthur knew he didn't need to explain – Dom had already gauged the gravity of the situation.

'Miles.'

'I know, I've got the kids,' the professor said, glancing at Arthur before walking out into the garden and shutting the door behind him.

'What's happened?' Dom asked. 'Did you find her?'

'Yes, at the airport. She was ready to board a plane back to Paris.'

'And? You let her go?'

'No, no, I didn't.' Arthur drew a shaky breath and ran his fingers through his hair. 'Someone got to her. I have no idea who they were, but they left this for me.'

He threw the small black bag over to Dom, who caught it and looked inside. Arthur thought he saw the colour drain from his partner's face as he stared down at the red scarf.

'What the hell do we do?' he said, realising that his voice sounded anything but calm, as it usually did. 'I managed to get a glimpse of one of them, but I don't have a clue who he was or who he works for.'

'Fischer,' Dom muttered, shoving the scarf into the bag and handing it back to Arthur.

'But how? There's no way he could figure out what we did.'

'It's the only explanation. Who else would follow you there and take her?'

'Maybe they were already waiting at the airport for her. Maybe it had nothing to do with me.'

He clung to that belief. He didn't think he could bear the thought that he had been the reason for her capture, that he had failed in his duty to protect her. Hadn't he promised not to let anyone harm her? What would she think of him now?

Dom apparently sensed his discomfort, for he walked over and placed his hand on the Point Man's shoulder. 'Arthur, this is no time to beat yourself up. You're not to blame, all right? You couldn't have known what would happen.'

'But – it's my job – to make sure everyone's safe after a mission. And I've failed. I've failed her, Dom. Maybe they wouldn't have taken her if I'd have just let her get on that damn plane.'

'You can't know that. In fact, she'd probably be worse off if you'd have let her go. She'd be all the way over in France and we wouldn't be able to help her.'

Arthur looked up at him, processing his words, then shook his head. 'Dom, I can't let you do this. You just got your family back, for Christ's sake.'

'Right now, you don't have a choice. We'll call Eames and get him to help, too. I think we're going to need it.'

Arthur opened his mouth to protest again, but was cut off by the sound of a phone ringing on the kitchen table. Both men stared at it for a few moments before Dom answered.

'Hello? Yes, this is he.' Arthur strained to hear the voice on the other end of the line, with no luck. 'I'm listening.'

Cobb's expression dropped as the conversation continued. With a quick look at Arthur, he put his finger to his mouth and pressed the speakerphone button on the handset.

'Now, before you say anything, let me tell you this: I know you had something to do with Robert's recent rash decision to break up the empire.'

Arthur frowned as he listened to the man speaking on the other end of the phone. Browning? What the hell is he doing calling Cobb? Not to mention how on earth he got hold of the phone number in the first place.

'I have no idea what you're talking about, Mr. Browning,' Dom said, his voice even.

'Don't play the fool with me, son,' Browning snapped. 'You may be under the impression that you're the best Extractors in the world, but that doesn't mean you can't be found out every once in a while.' Arthur shared a quick look with Cobb before returning his attention to the phone. 'I have some very skilled men of my own who have identified you as the culprits through various – shall we say – methods.'

'We're supposed to take your word for this? And do what, exactly?'

'Oh, no, you don't have to take my word,' Browning said with a dark chuckle. 'I've spoken to your friends at Cobol Engineering who are simply dying to see you again. Not to mention a couple of associates of yours who, you will agree, are very trustworthy. It was Mr. Thompson here – or should I say, Mr. Eames? – who led us right to the young lady you call your Architect.'

Arthur felt all the tension, all the guilt he was trying so hard not to focus on well up inside of him, seeming to lodge somewhere in the region of his throat. His hands trembled as he clenched them into tight balls and slammed them down onto the table.

'That fucking asshole,' he roared, oblivious to the blood he was drawing from his own palms as his nails dug into the flesh. 'I swear, I'll ring his fucking neck if I ever see him again.'

'Arthur, calm down!' Cobb snapped. 'This isn't helping.'

'Ah, so you do have a friend with you. No doubt the same gentleman my men tipped off at the airport. I hope you liked our parting gift. Arthur, was it? Yes, that would explain her dreams. Quite the knight, aren't we? You're proving a most difficult obstacle, so I'm told.'

'What the fuck are you talking about?' Arthur growled, ignoring the warning glare Cobb sent him. 'If you hurt her – '

'Please, we're not barbarians,' Browning drawled, sounding for all the world as though he were bored with Arthur's outbursts. 'We're just trying to extract the desired secrets from them, just as you would yourselves. And I wouldn't blame your other colleague, either. It's not like he willingly parted with the information, if you understand my meaning.'

'We understand perfectly,' Cobb muttered, grasping Arthur's shoulder to stop him from losing control again. 'So what is it you want from us?'

'Good, now we get to business,' Browning said, a note of triumph in his voice. Arthur gripped the back of the chair in front of him, his knuckles turning white with the effort. 'It's quite simple, really. I want you to go back into Robert's mind and erase whatever damage you've done performing that Inception of yours. Oh yes, I know all about that particular field and exactly what it entails.'

'We still haven't admitted that we were in any way involved with your godson's decision to split apart his business empire. In fact, I didn't even know about it until you told us.'

'I told you, Mr. Cobb, not to play games with me. Or have you forgotten that I currently hold two of your colleagues hostage right now – for want of a better word? One phone call from me and I can have them killed – or worse.' The threat in his words was unmistakable; Arthur closed his eyes against the numerous possibilities – each one worse than death itself – that were presenting themselves to his addled mind. 'Now, as I was saying, I want you to reverse that Inception. If necessary, I want you to perform another one convincing him that breaking up the business is the worst possible thing he could do. My men from Cobol – did I mention they were the ones who provided Robert with his training in the first place? Very handy, they are. And very eager to meet with you both again after your last assignment went awry. I believe they're tracking Mr. Saito down as I speak. You see, it wasn't hard to join the dots together, Mr. Cobb. You all disappear after Cobol hire you to extract certain business information from Mr. Saito – who just happens to be the biggest rival to our company's planned dominance of the energy market – and then my godson, for no apparent reason, decides to do the unthinkable and destroy all his father before him worked so hard to achieve. And then, who should pop back up but a certain Japanese businessman, hosting various parties celebrating who-knows-what because he 'felt like it'. No, Mr. Cobb, we're not stupid.'

Arthur decided the man talked too much for his own good. It was as though he was enjoying spelling out the details of their own misery to them, revelling in his accomplishment.

'And what do you stand to gain from all of this?' Cobb asked after a moment of silence. Arthur envied his composure right then – his own appeared to have deserted him for once. 'How do you even know we can do what you're asking? As far as I'm aware, there's no way to reverse an Inception. If that's even what has been performed on Robert Fischer.'

'Mr. Cobb, I'm only going to say this once, so listen carefully. I have dedicated my entire life to this business. I've sacrificed my own family, neglected my own children, in order to make it succeed. We are this close to achieving our ultimate goal – total energy dominance. And I'll be damned if I'll let some petty thieves ruin all that we've worked for over the years. I don't care how you do it, but you will make Robert change his mind. Otherwise ... well, I don't need to tell you what could happen. It's funny – I always thought dreams were harmless little things that warranted no particular attention. But that was before I found out how important they were to our wellbeing. I'm sure you don't want to see your friends become soulless vegetables, do you?'

Arthur clenched his jaw tight and bit his tongue against the diatribe that threatened to burst from him at any moment. Get a grip! he urged himself, trying desperately to tone out the sound of Browning's disgusting voice. Getting angry at him won't help anyone.

'Oh, and just in case that wasn't enough to tempt you, I have one other condition before I hang up and leave you to decide. If you don't accept my terms – all of them, mind – I make one phone call to the F.B.I. and they'll be knocking on your door faster than you can take a shit on a toilet. I hear your pretty little wife's murderer was never caught. Isn't that right, Mr. Cobb?'

Arthur listened as Dom's breath hitched in his throat. He was staring at the phone as though it were a bomb wired to explode at any second.

'You're a lowlife scumbag,' Arthur heard himself spit out.

'Such hypocrisy from one who breaks the law for a living,' Browning retorted. 'You'll forgive me for taking your words with a pinch of salt.' He paused, allowing the two men to take in everything he had said – if that was even possible. 'I'll give you one hour, and then I shall call back to get your answer. Of course, I'm expecting nothing less than your full cooperation. Otherwise I shall not be held accountable for whatever may happen to your British friend and that charming young lady of yours. Goodbye, Mr. Cobb.'

The phone went dead, leaving Arthur and Dom standing in complete silence. The only thought in Arthur's head right then was a simple one: what the hell were they going to do now?

Yet another A/N!: So! I realise this is a big departure in terms of action from the previous chapters, but I hope you like it nonetheless. Did I not say there would be a turning point in this one? Hmm, I'm sure I did. Well, anyway - let me know what you think, and I'll have the next chapter up either tonight when I get back from cricket, or, if I haven't written more than Chapter 13, then tomorrow. Toodle-pip from me!