Character Study, by Damalur (PG-13)

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Fandom: INCEPTION
Title: Character Study
Pairing: Arthur/Ariadne
Length: 1,230
Author on LJ: damalur
Author Website: fic memories on author's journal
Why this must be read: What I most love about Ariadne in canon is her irreverance--her smirking sense of the ridiculousness of what they're doing, as well as her genuine enchantment with dreaming and her natural talent for it. She and Arthur make such an interesting ship both for these reasons and because Arthur is so gentlemanly and reserved around her. This fic is short, but it's a fabulously written, wonderful window into Ariadne's mind when she's around Arthur--her frustration with Arthur's staid persona, her desire to tease him, and her love of dreamshare. I love how motivated and professional she is while still wanting to have adventures and smear guacamole in Arthur's hair. Her POV is so delightful and Arthur's courtship so endearing that they transform this fic into much more than just a character study.

October, their first post-reunion job, and they meet quietly at a hole-in-the-wall restaurant in Midtown. Eames suggested the location—what they do is not strictly illegal, but not strictly known to be possible—and Ariadne stifles a smirk when she catches Arthur inspecting the dubious cleanliness of his silverware. She orders nachos, spinach-artichoke dip, a cheeseburger, and a pint of beer, and has to remind herself to swallow before she talks. The guacamole is unrivaled by anything Europe can produce.

"So," she says, "what’s the job?"

"Corporate espionage," Arthur says. She must make a face, because—corporate espionage?

"You have a problem with that?" he asks. Eames snorts into his Mai Tai.

"No! No, I just, it seems so—" She gestures skyward with her fork. "Mundane?"

"It’s a job. It pays," Arthur says, as if she somehow missed that fact. Right now, right now she’s missing the guy who stole a kiss.

"In Altarian dollars?" she jokes, licking a smear of cheese off the back of one finger.

"In Euros," he says.

"It was a—you know what? Never mind," she says, and turns to watch as Yusuf dumps a seventh packet of salt into his water. The Arthur that visited her in Italy, the Arthur that watched as she tipped her bishop over and over again and never saw it fall, that Arthur would laugh at her jokes. This Arthur tips his lips up, as required; she wants to smear guacamole in his hair.

Character Study