Poker Face
Chapter Four-Fever
ShadowHeartofFaith
Disclaimer: I do not own Inception. Christopher Nolan does. I am not making any profit from this story. I do, however, own my OCs.
"You must have forgotten that Eames was going to be here or you neglected to tell me, Cobb. What the Hell?"
The Extractor sighed, a hand running through his now-disheveled sandy blonde hair. "I didn't tell him that you were coming either. I knew that if I mentioned it that neither of you would come." He fixed me with a stare, sucking at his teeth for a moment. "You two are the best. I've never seen a Forger and a Gambit compliment each other so well, Aribelle. I need both of you for this job."
My jade eyes strayed down to my plate as I digested his words. "He won't want to work with me."
"What makes you say that?"
"I left him, Dom. God knows he forced my hand but I did." Blowing my hair away from my eyes, I leaned back in my seat. "I guess it's true what they say about keeping pleasure and the workplace separated. A bit too late but I am learning."
"Aribelle." Cobb laid a hand on my shoulder in that paternal way of his. He was still so much like a father to me. Calling to check up on me, making sure I was taken care of, asking me to play nicely with the other kids. Philippa had the perfect daddy and, for that, I envied her. "He's a mess, Belle. He's been a mess."
"If you mean his shirt-"
"I mean he's a train-wreck."
"Sleeping with anything with breasts and a pulse? Drinking himself silly? Pissing away everything he earns with that bloody poker chip? That's your definition of a train-wreck?" I grumbled, my voice growing louder and louder. Eames was a prime example of a perfectly successful man turned asshole. "Cobb, he started that monstrosity of a transformation when we were still together. Why should he change back? It's a force of habit now."
The older man had a sympathetic expression plastered to his face. "We all learn from reconciliation. Give it a chance."
"Give what a chance?" I groaned, running a hand down my face.
"This. If there's one thing that you should have learned from this line of work, and from me, is how to keep an open mind."
I mumbled in compliance, jabbing at my chicken. Heaving a sigh, I consented. "Fine. I'll talk if he does. Satisfied?"
Cobb cracked a smile. "If you are."
"Oh, I am", I quipped.
The Extractor stood, placing his hands on the tabletop. "Well, you know where everything is. Arthur already put your things in the guest room. Make yourself at home." Leaning down, he pecked my cheek. "Good night, Belle."
"'Night, Cobb", I said softly as he strode from the room.
My stomach turned, my food no longer seeming desirable. Sliding my plate away, I caught sight of the glittering of light that was trapped within the ring. He'd bantered back and forth with Arthur for a moment before retreating back up the stairs, never once meeting my eyes. Two years hadn't blunted any of the tension that yawned between us.
I jumped at the sudden sound of the refrigerator opening. A slight girl with dark hair was rummaging around the shelves, murmuring to herself about something. Her sweat pants were rolled up around her knees and her wrinkled T-shirt and frizzy hair were a testament to her restless night of sleep. She moaned in exhausted frustration which brought a smirk to tug at my lips.
"Top shelf, behind the orange juice", I suggested nonchalantly before turning to examine my fingernails that were bitten down to the quick.
The girl stiffened. Turning to face me fully, her lips turned down in a poorly-masked frown. "I'm sorry", she began, rubbing at her eyes. "I thought I was the only one still awake. I'm Ariadne-"
"Arthur's girlfriend. The Architect", I acknowledged.
She dipped her head once, moving away from the fridge. "So you're the new team member?"
"Aribelle Seelie, at your service", I offered with a flourish of my hand. "Gambit Extraordinaire." My last words were bitten out with an edge of bitterness.
"Gambit?" she yawned.
I nodded slowly, taking in her rumpled appearance once more. She was young. I'd been about her age when I'd been introduced to the world of dream-sharing but my first attempt at inception hadn't been until three years later. What she'd done at the age of a mere twenty-two was nothing to sneeze at. "It's a distraction of sorts. They're best used on Marks that have been trained to withstand extractors. A mind that's been militarized. The idea of a Gambit is to turn the Mark against their own subconscious. It's not an exact science so it's a bit of a gamble when someone tries to use one-"
"Like Cobb?" Ariadne asked, rubbing at her eyes again. "Arthur isn't too fond of Mr. Charles."
"How did that go with the Fischer job?"
The Parisian girl blinked, clearly confused.
"Arthur and Cobb are old friends of mine", I offered in assistance. "We keep in touch. I've been in this business a few years."
"Cobb did mention that you were a contact of his", she consented thoughtfully. "Arthur didn't say much."
"He never does", I chuckled. "Unless, of course, something conflicts with his overly-compulsive planning. On those occasions, it's as if the man swallowed a dictionary."
Ariadne smiled. "Well, he likes specificity." She giggled once like it were a joke. And for all I knew, it may have been. I was the new outsider without Auron and Damen on my side. "But it proved flawless on the Fischer job. He didn't suspect a thing, we even had him on our team on the third level."
"He helped you break into his own subconscious? That is clever."
Gathering my plate, I took it over to the sink, glancing at the glowing numbers over the stove. 12:42. I was not going to be able to sleep tonight and the entire house was so quiet. Ariadne was toying with a pen at the table, her shoulders slumped. "You should try and get back to sleep", I intoned. "Knowing Dom, he'll have us up and working by eight."
The younger girl nodded, sliding her chair back. She yawned behind a pale hand. "It was nice meeting you. Good night."
"'Night." I watched as she turned, padding back out of the kitchen and down the hallway. "Nice girl. I guess Arthur knows what he's doing after all", I mumbled to myself, scrubbing at the plate until I was satisfied with the gleam reflecting off of the china's surface.
My fists knotted into the dish towel that was abandoned beside the sink. Blowing out a breath, I contemplated what to do with myself for another seven hours. Sleep was out of my reach, that was apparent by the thrumming of my heart that seemed to echo throughout my entire body.
My hand slid down the wall as I moved out of the kitchen, the lights dimming down behind me in response. My bare feet slapped against the wood flooring as I meandered through the all-but-silent house.
The silver glow caught my eye as I entered the living room. Beneath the glass-inlaid coffee table sat the PASIV case.
Now, they say we only use a fraction of our brain's true potential. That's when we're awake. When we're asleep, our mind can do almost anything. Cobb's words resounded through my mind, tempting me. I didn't realize how far you'd…progressed.
Crouching down, I pulled the offensive machine out to sit before me. Lifting the case open, I stared down at the intricacy of the mechanisms. It had hardly been forty-eight hours since I'd last seen one. Since we'd failed our last assignment on that damned cruise ship. Since my projection of Eames had shot me through the head, releasing me from the collapse of the dream. But I couldn't dream on my own.
Snaking out one of the cords, I inserted the IV into my left wrist, the fingers of my right hand fiddling with the timer. Leaning back against the plush couch, I let my mind go cloudy before I pressed down on the sedative release. My eyelids fluttered shut while I breathed in, everything going dark around me.
"Aribelle?" The heavy sound of footfalls reached my ears as I opened my eyes.
The room that surrounded me was familiar but not instantly identifiable. I pushed myself up, feeling the rumpled sheets bunch up beneath my hands. The curtains were drawn, blocking out any light from the windows and leaving the room masked with dim shadows.
"Darling, are you home?"
My heart jumped up into my throat. I'd gone down the rabbit hole on this one. I was back in our old flat in London.
"Are you feeling any better, love?"
His muscled form filled the doorway, his dark hair damp from the rainy weather. He was loosening his tie from around his neck as he watched me with an amused smile on his face.
A/N: I'm so sorry for the wait! Work has been insane and I've picked up a second part-time job for the summer so many hours are spent in the workplace and my Inception inspiration was lost for a bit but has returned! I was seriously stunned by all of the reviews and favorites that I recieved for the last chapter. I'm sorry that the cliffhanger was so terrible but I hope it made you curious. I hope you enjoy this chapter too and can stay patient with me just a bit longer.
h2ofan-You are amazing. Thank you for the review and I'm glad you love the story so much!
ameliamarie15-Thank you! I try very hard to keep characters true to who they are during a fanfiction. I appreciate the review.
Lee Mayfair-I love your enthusiasm! I hope the slight meeting was fun to read. And his face would have been priceless, I agree.
ofthewood-Thank you for the compliment on my writing style! It makes me really happy. I hope you enjoy this chapter.
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And thank you to everyone who added Poker Face to a watch or favorited. It means so much to me to have this kind of feedback!