DISCLAIMER: I DO NOT OWN INCEPTION.

Just a bit of fun, this chapter. Not up to my normal writing standards, but this needed to be written. As always, reviews are always read and appreciated. Thanks, and enjoy!

Arthur sat by the kitchen counter, deeply engaged in his copy of the paper. Ariadne stood over the oven, also deep in thought at the creation of a new meal. Arthur was enjoying the peace with his wife, a rare few moments at the end of the evening.

"Alice called," Ariadne said absent-mindedly. "She said that she wanted to come over for Christmas."

"Hmm," Arthur mumbled. "That means she'll bring Eames."

Ariadne smiled over her shoulder. "Of course."

The sound of footsteps running down the stairs caused Arthur to roll his eyes, as he had told both kids many times not to run down the stairs. Soon, Samantha waltzed into the kitchen, and leaned against the counter. Ariadne gave her a smile.

"Sam, have you got enough money for tonight?" she asked.

Samantha nodded and gave her mother a large grin. "Yep. Thanks, Mom."

Hearing the conversation, Arthur peaked over the top of his newspaper. "Where are you going?" he asked, trying to hide the obvious curiosity in his voice.

Samantha turned and gave him an innocent smile. "James Cobb is taking me to the movies."

"Ah, right," Arthur replied half-heartedly, turning his attention back to his paper. It wasn't until he re-evaluated what she'd said that he looked up once more, his eyes slightly wider than before. "...Wait, what?"

Samantha was already halfway towards the front hall. Arthur was quickly behind her, not fully understanding the situation as much as he wanted to.

"Sam? Sweetie, is Uncle Cobb going to be with you?" he persisted.

She turned, and shrugged. "No."

"Phillipa?" he asked, secretly hoping.

"No."

Arthur blinked. "...Just you and...James."

"Yes," she replied, eyeing over Arthur's suddenly tense form. "That is okay, right? Mom said that it was fine."

"...Oh...yeah. Totally...cool," Arthur said, choked out.

Samantha raised an eyebrow. "Dad, are you alright?"

"Yep." His voice was slightly higher than usual. "Just two cousins...having fun."

Rolling her eyes, Samantha leaned against the stairway railing. "Dad, we're not actually cousins."

"I know that." Arthur decided that he needed to swallow whatever it was that he was feeling, and play it cool. "Have...fun," he attempted.

"Thanks." Samantha gave him a smile, one that reminded him of Ariadne's. A sharp, muscial tone echoed through the hallway, breaking the silence between the two. Arthur glared at the door as if it were the entrance to Hell. Samantha stood up straight, and gave Arthur an expectant look. "That's James."

She began moving toward the door, but Arthur placed a gentle hand on her shoulder. "I'll get it, you go get your coat," he offered.

Samantha sent him anonther smile before quickly disappearing up the stairs. "Thanks, Dad," she called.

Arthur took a moment to compose himself before finally moving toward the door. Swallowing, he turned the handle and opened the door, reminding to keep a set barrier between the outside and inside of the house, ready to slam the door shut if necessary.

But alas, it was the familiar blonde boy that he had seen many times before. He'd known James Cobb since his birth, and had endured endless babysitting hours and birthday parties.

James gave him a smile, his blue eyes incredibly similar to his father's. "Hi, Uncle Arthur!" he greeted with a small wave.

"Hello James," Arthur replied, trying to force down his unnaturally stale voice.

"How's life?" James asked politely.

Arthur's arms folded across his chest. "Good. How's Dom?"

"He's good."

"...Good."

The light conversation quickly died a slow, painful death into an awkward gap. James placed his hands in his coat pockets. Arthur knew it was cold, but if he thought it warm enough to take his daughter to the movies, then he could freaking wait outside.

"Hey James!" Samantha suddenly chirped from behind Arthur.

"Hey Sam," James greeted, wearing a full grin.

Samantha leaned up and placed a quick kiss on Arthur's cheek, before rushing out of the door. "Let's go-"

"Wait!" Arthur cried, gripping the door. Both teenagers turned their heads over their shoulders and gave him an expectant look. "...Be back by ten. Nine...eight."

"Dad," Samantha groaned.

"Nine, nine," Arthur sighed in retort, finally letting his head fall in shame.

"Bye Dad!" Samantha called, skipping down the garden steps.

"Love you!" Arthur called. He waited for the return he never recieved, as both youngsters were making their way down the street, deep in conversation. Arthur remained still before a moment, before he gave up and shut the door with a little more force than necessary. He instantly began walking to the kitchen, a little more fire in his steps than normal. He found Ariadne over the stove, frowning into the pot.

"Ari. What the hell was that?" he asked, his voice laced with annoyance.

She looked up. "What was what?"

"Do you have enough money?" he mocked, his voice impossibly high in intimidation of his wife. "Just send her off and don't tell me anything about it," he argued, folding his arms across his front once more.

Ariadne's eyes narrowed, wondering if he'd finally lost it. After a moment, she blinked and let her spoon fall onto the counter before she rushed over and wrapped her arms around her husband's lean frame. "...Oh Arthur!" she cooed. "You think this is a date! How cute!"

"Ari, please," Arthur rolled his eyes. "I know what a date is, I went on a fair few with you. Remember how those turned out."

Ariadne pulled away, her eyes wide in horror. "She's thirteen!"

"If it's not a date, then what is it?"

"Two friends going out for the night!"

Arthur blinked. "...That's it?"

"Yes! I promise." Ariadne gave him a gentle smile and wrapped her arms around his chest. "You don't have to worry about that stuff for a while."

"Oh." His head dropped in embarrassment. "But Eames said-"

"Oh, whatever. You're going to take parenting advice from Eames? He's a child himself."

Arthur nodded. "True."

"If it makes you feel any better, Cobb called and said he was picking them up afterwards."

"Yeah," Arthur scoffed. "After what?"

"After the drug exchange." Seeing the sudden horror in Arthur's eyes, Ariadne giggled. "Relax."

Sighing, Arthur leaned closer into her petite frame. "You're right." A small smirk spread across his face. "Now give me a kiss."

Ariadne barely had time to contemplate what had been said before she was being pulled into a loving kiss by the former Point Man. Wrapping her arms around his neck, she pulled herself onto the tips of her toes, before pulling away. Arthur smirked into her mouth before kissing the tip of her nose.

"What a line," Ariadne teased.

"Got your attention in the first place, didn't it?" he retorted.

Waving him away, Ariadne turned to return to her cooking. "Whatever."