Bright, bronze doors opened up with ease and fluidity as Arthur stepped into the massive hotel and made a beeline for the front desk. His appearance, for once, fit right in as his dark suit clashed with those of the various men lounging in the great hall. Bell boys gripped gold bars as they pushed designer luggage hurriedly towards elevators as the owners of the pieces chatted lightly amongst themselves. It was certainly not where one would expect to find a con artist, but he assumed it was part of the reason why the young man had chosen to reside there for a few days. Just as he had suspected, a blond female stood behind the front desk. Her hair tightly wound into a bun and a pair of reading glasses rested over her eyes. She perked up at the sight of him, making him smile internally. Straightening up her posture, she smiled at him, one in which he returned gently.

In his arms, a large gift bag hung effortlessly. A sheer cover and a large bow on the side decorated it as he placed on the counter. For a moment, the blonde's eyes sparkled, almost as if to assume it was for her. Clearing his throat, he leaned forward, making sure to keep his left hand hidden.

"I'm here to visit my friend, Mr. Creston. Could you direct me to his room?" His voice was low and smooth, something he was sure the young female noticed.

Swallowing slowly, she forced her head away and typed something into the computer situated to her side. Watching her intently, Arthur noted her facial expressions. Eagerness. Concentration, and than a frown. "Mr. Creston is resting at the moment. He wasn't suppose to be receiving any guests today." Her voice was dripping with remorse as she looked at him with bright blue eyes.

Despite the news, Arthur kept his posture. "That's odd. He specifically told me a few days ago that I would be welcome to visit. You see, I'm in town for business from the States. I only have today off to see the old chump." Flashing her a grin, he leaned in a tab bit closer. "Could you spare this one time and give me a room key? I'm sure he's just forgotten due to his dental appointment today."

Dark lashes blinked in front of him as the young female deliberated his words. She was torn, it was easy to tell, but Arthur had doubts on what the outcome would be. "Please?" His eyes fell to her tag. "You'd be doing me the greatest favour, Mrs. King."

He almost grinned as she reached downward and grasped a room key. "Thank you, love." Those three words caused a rouge color to sweep across her cheeks before he nodded his head in her direction and grabbed the gift bag. The elevator was thankfully empty, giving him the perfect opportunity to call up the rest of the team. "I've got the key." He told Eames as he pressed the floor button. " Wait five minutes before coming up, I'll meet you guys in room 415." He was replied with a simple 'yes' before his phone was in his pocket and he was exiting the all too extravagant elevator.

Sean Creston's room was basically untouched as Arthur entered. Spotless and just about unlived in. Either that or the hotel had a cleaning service that just wouldn't stop. Locking the door behind him, he quickly pulled his jacket off and laid it atop one of the chairs. The décor was elegant and sophisticated, much the great entrance hall they had set up back down. He made a mental note to remember the hotel's name; it might come in handy with the little vacation his wife was planning. Their mark was sound asleep on his bed, a half drank cup of water and a few untouched tablets to his side. Pain killers. He would be under deep by now, making it that much easier for them to get the information. Gripping the large gift bag, Arthur pushed the cover and bow to the side to retrieve his silver briefcase. The PASIV container rested on the floor, unharmed and untouched, waiting to be put to use.

Rolling up his cuffs, he freed his hands and opened the case. Laying out the connections, he slid one into the sleeping victims arm before a knock on the door interrupted him.

"Are we all set to go?" Eames' British accent echoed through the lavish room as he too pulled off his jacket and fell onto a chair near the bed.

"All set to go. Let's do this quickly. I'm setting the timer for 15. That should give us an hour and a half in the dream." Locking the door behind Yusuf, Arthur sat down in front of the bed. Ariadne leaned against the wall opposite of him and their chemist stood over looking them all. "Ready?" he questioned, his hand hovering over the large button.

"Ready." Closing his eyes, the point man sunk into sleep and allowed the dream to build itself.

-x-

Music pounded and bounced off walls, much like the electric lights as Arthur leaned against the wall of a small hall way. Around him couples were tangled in embraces, dry humping and grinding with no care as he tried his best to keep the disgusted look off his face. The hall he was situated in had a perfect view of the stairs that led up to the prestigious sector of the large club. The place where he knew Ariadne and the mark were at that moment. He didn't like the thought of her being up there alone with him; the man wasn't exactly a ray of sunshine and he didn't trust anyone less than a saint with his wife's presence. Unfortunately, things didn't always go his way and he was forced to stand back and await the signal. Turning his head slightly, he caught sight of a familiar dirty blond, stirring her own drink in boredom as she sat at the bar. He nearly grinned as he watched her frown disapprovingly at her thick heels. Eames was obviously not enjoying his role in the assignment.

Focusing his attention back up the stairs, he watched for any movement or commotion. The dark shadows of the hall had him concealed, so whomever looking down from the top would have a hard time locating him, unless they were sure of where to look. Just as Ariadne was. At the thought of his wife, she appeared in his sight, standing alongside a dapper Creston as the two chatted. From what he could see, their target was getting a tab bit too close to his wife. Call it martial instinct, but the way Ariadne was backing away and flinging her eyes towards his direction told him she was more than ready to get that man out of her sight. Ignoring the rage forming within him, he peeled his eyes away from the sight and walked towards the bar. He didn't bother talking, instead just grabbing concealed Eames' arm and forcefully dragging him out of the club. He almost felt guilty for manhandling the female; although he was well aware that it surely wasn't a woman. Still, his upbringing refused to stop nagging him and he loosened his grip on her. Forcing the 'woman' outside, he backed her up against a wall and locked her in position with both his arms.

"You need to be more aggressive, darling." The British accent was gone and in its place a gentle American one. "Between you and Ariadne, I'd say your wife has more violent streaks than you."

"Keep focused." He gritted through his teeth, backing her harder up against the wall. From the corner of his eyes, the door to the club opened and their mark looked around furiously before spotting them. His eyes darker than the night and his fist clenched with anger, he made a move to pull a gun from his jacket before Ariadne pressed one of her own to his back. "Put it down."

Keeping his grip on Eames/Lily tight, Arthur moved with his free hand and retrieved his own weapon from within his clothes. "You heard her. Drop it." Placing the gun to Lily's head, he watched as the mark's eyes grew wide and a sob escaped his darling's lips. Well played Eames.

"Who are you?" Confusion and fury dripped from his deep voice as he slowly placed his gun on the ground. Ariadne wasted no time gripping it and pulling it from his reach.

"That doesn't matter. What you have to worry about is her brain being blown to tiny portions." His wife seemed to be holding nothing back, as she nudged him forward with her foot and forced him next to the blonde. The dark corner in the backside of the club that they were huddled in was the perfect location for this type of scenario. Little to no movement and complete privacy made threatening their mark easier.

"We'll make this simple for you," the architect turned the safety off as she aimed her gun for his head. "Tell us what we need to know and we might spare you the trouble of cleaning up the mess of her remains."

Arthur wasn't sure whether to be aroused or frightened. He would have never guessed his wife was capable of being so…menacing. Yet there she stood, gun directed at a target, poker face stabled and a stance that screamed she was ready to get shit done. He grinned at her proudly. "Your hiding something." He turned towards the man, his own gun still pointed at Lily. "Something top secret and related to your job."

"Your talking bullshit." The conman replied, unfazed by the question. Or so he seemed. Arthur noted how his eye flinched over to Lily every few seconds, as if to make sure her head was still intact and hadn't been blown off.

"I would have believed you if your knee wasn't shaking." He instantly froze the movement. "And your eyes weren't darting back and forth to your lady friend."

"That doesn't prove anything!"

"It proves everything!" Ariadne spoke up, moving over to the female and knelt before her. Arthur stepped back and pointed his weapon at the male instead. From the corner of his eye, he watched his wife make eye contact with their disguised team mate

"I'd hate to hurt her; she seems like such a sweet girl." Running the tip of the gun across her cheek, he watched as the two females interacted. "I bet that's just her cover though. I bet she's a pain in the ass behind that cute exterior."

Arthur concealed his confusion as he continued to watch the scene in front of him. It seemed Ariadne was having a moment with the female, which he had to remind himself to remember was Eames in disguise. A moment that had the mark uncomfortable and on edge.

"There's nothing I'd like more than to just take this pistol and press it against her temple." Ariadne tilted her head to side, allowing her dark hair to fall carelessly as she kept her eyes focused on the blonde's blue orbs. "But than again, I'd have to shower her blood off of me, and that's your job isn't it?" Finally breaking the intense eye contact, she glanced at the now pale con man.

"You know I can frame this whole incident," she whispered. "I can easily kill her and have the crime blamed on you."

"Liar," he spat through clenched teeth.

A slow smile spread across Arthur's wife's lips. A smile that, if he hadn't known her, would have caused him to stop breathing and run in the opposite direction. A smile that belonged to a character in a sinister story, not the sweet girl who had grown into an even sweeter woman.

"Are you doubting me?" She stood, the smile still planted on her lips. "I love proving people wrong." Her gun swerved to point to Lily's forehead and for a minute Arthur wasn't sure if she would shoot or not. Did she forget that was Eames? That he would awake if she shot him and the plot would become exposed? Had she…lost her mind?

"Don't!" The mark, who was already pale enough from anger and fright, nearly jumped in his spot as he saw her thumb switch. "What do you want to know?"

Ariadne turned slightly and grinned at him; a grin that he returned, although not for the same reason. His Ariadne was still there; behind that dangerous cover, was his wife.

-x-

"Are you bloody insane?" Eames hissed out a whisper as the four of them cleared out of the hotel room and filed into the elevator.

"I'm confused Eames, I was simply working based on imagination." Ariadne spoke from her spot in Arthur's arms.

With Yusuf gripping his briefcase, his arms were free to do what he desperately needed at that moment; to hold his wife. They had extracted their information, leaving Sean Creston asleep just the way they had found him. The gift bag he had used to hide their pasiv holder was in the garbage can at the entrance of the hall and the room key was in his hand, waiting to be returned.

Fifteen minutes. There was no suspicion in the time length he had been up there, making it simple to just drop the key back to the lady at the front desk and meet the rest of the team outside the hotel.

"Imagination, my bloody arse. I almost shit that girl's panties. What the hell happened to you?" Eames refused to let the incident go, which was good for Arthur because he sure as hell didn't want to be the one questioning Ariadne.

"Afraid of a little role-play? Maybe you'll remember that next you try to drag me into a sex shop and embarrass me."

Arthur opened his mouth to exclaim his shock but the elevator opened and he separated from the group. It seemed almost no time had passed from when he had entered the lobby and now that he was returning to it. The blond was still behind the desk, and old men in suits were still lounging around in conversation. "He was far too asleep for me to actually socialize with." He told the receptionist as he slid the room key back to her. "I'll give him a phone call tonight. Thank you for your time." Not waiting for an answer, nor giving her the chance to give him one, he was out the gold doors and slid into a waiting black car.

"A sex shop? Really?" He turned around to face Ariadne who was in the back with Yusuf. "What were you guys even doing in there?"

"I'm still trying to figure that," she answered blankly, glaring at the back of the forger's head.

"Well, did you buy anything?" Yusuf asked curiously, only to be met with the identical glares from the married couple. "Just asking."

"When do we get the money?" Eames asked, changing the subject. "I'm due for a trip back to England sometime soon."

"Somewhere within the next few days." Arthur replied, closing his eyes momentarily. "What's your plan, Yusuf?"

"Back to Mombasa, of course." His matter-of-fact tone caused him to grin. "What about you?"

"He's gonna pack his bags." His wife answered for him. "'Cause I'm taking him to paradise."