InsaneJournal

parker succeeds by stealing the success of others (inafivepoundbag) wrote in colligo_threads,
@ 2010-08-03 19:17:00

Entry tags:

!closed, *log, arthur, eames, parker

WHO: Parker, Eames, and Arthur
WHAT: Getting back inside the library.
WHEN: Around 10PM
WHERE: The Grand Library
RATING: TBD
STATUS: In Progress

The guards apparently had forgotten all about her when she'd left. They were different, this time around. Not quite so plucky. She didn't like it. They kept trying to lock her up. She really though they'd settled this, before. Apparently she was mistaken.

Parker heaved a sigh and slid her hands into the back pockets of her jeans. She peered up at the night sky, taking note of what stars she could see. They weren't aligned right. Not even close. They looked foreign. She frowned and dropped her gaze to the ground. A slight breeze lifted her hair a bit; it made her bangs ruffle. She exhaled sharply through pursed lips.

The library loomed ahead. She'd told the man – Eames – to meet her there. She doubted he was coming alone. She'd considered getting Eliot to come with her. But he would find the whole trip boring, or wind up beat up by the guards. Something. Parker just knew it was better if he didn't tag along. So she hadn't asked but figured, worst case, the guy knew maybe one or two people there. She could get away from three. Four was stretching it, if they were somehow armed. She doubted it though.

Crossing the street to the blaring of horns, Parker ignored the screeching of tires and half-jogged the rest of the way. At the stairs she paused, glancing around. She doubted he, they, whatever, would take too long to show up.

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dream_bigger
2010-08-04 10:32 pm UTC (link)

Eames was worried.

Arthur was... disheveled was too strong a word for it. Incredibly attractive was spot on, but Eames knew now really wasn't the time for thinking like that. Arthur wasn't wearing a tie or waistcoat. His shirt-sleeves were rolled up. His hair, dear god, his hair was not slicked back as usual and it was just long enough that Eames wanted to run his hands through it and... not important right now, because Arthur was not his usual neat self, and he was most definitely not paying proper attention, not even while Eames was telling him about how the suits of armour had treated him for only the fourth time.

He looked up as they approached the library, then looked round at Arthur again. It wouldn't do to let the other man know he'd been keeping a close eye on him as they walked together, so he settled for a spot of obvious mental undressing. "I'll have to ask you out for evening walks more often, if you're going to dress like that. I'll leave a note on the fridge to remind myself, I think," he said with a grin, then put his hand under Arthur's elbow as they started crossing the road.

He could see someone on the steps in front of the library, so he started walking towards the person. Once they were close enough, he put his hands in his pocket and checked his totem out of habit, and then moved to offer his hand to the young lady. "Good evening. You must be Parker, am I correct? I'm Eames, and this delightful creature is Arthur. Arthur, say hello to the nice lady, there's a good chap."

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noimagination
2010-08-04 11:04 pm UTC (link)

Arthur had often wondered, over the course of the few days he'd been in this place, if this was how Mal had felt, before she had jumped to her death from that hotel window. Everything pointed to this world being real, but he couldn't accept it. For all that facts and his totem declared this place reality, nothing about it made sense. And Arthur's mind needed things to make sense.

He knew Eames worried about him, and there was a part of him that found the knowledge oddly comforting. He wasn't Mal, he was hardly going to test the limits of this world by courting death, but it was a relief to know that someone would care if he did. It brought his mind back to nights before Eames's arrival, sitting up late at the table with die and gun in his hands...both loaded...tossing the former with the latter pressed to his head, waiting for the situation to prove a dream so he could pull the trigger. It never did and he never did. But he came back every night.

"If it's you leaving the note, Mr. Eames," Arthur said with just enough condescension to pass for normal, "you'd never be able to read it. I can hardly decide which is more atrocious, your spelling or your penmanship." It felt good to fall back on idle banter, and if Eames was observant, he'd notice it wasn't a rejection of the original suggestion. He did, however, give Eames a look and slip his arm out of his hold. He was hardly a damsel who needed help crossing the street. And if his hand brushed against Eames's as they walked? Well...nobody needed to comment on that.

He slipped his hand into his pocket, feeling the weight of his totem against his palm and knowing, even without rolling it, that it still pointed to reality. He rolled his eyes at Eames's introduction and gave the woman a polite smile. "Don't mind Eames," he said. "He's something of an impossible bastard. But you get used to it...or so I'm told. It's a pleasure to meet you, Parker." He didn't shake her hand. In truth, he wasn't especially fond of physical contact.

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inafivepoundbag
2010-08-04 11:16 pm UTC (link)

Parker didn't know what to think of them. She had thought, when she'd talked to Eames over the message board, that she would be able to get a read from him within a few seconds of actually seeing him. However she really wasn't sure what to make of him, or Arthur, or the whole situation. They hadn't pulled guns on her, which was promising, but they were both definitely... odd, in their own little way. It wasn't something she could put her finger on, though. So she shoved the thought aside and briefly shook Eames' hand. Truth be told, she didn't make physical contact if she could help it, but Sophie had taught her the importance of at least pretending to be normal(ish) and she was going to put every one of those lessons to good use until she had a better idea where she stood with these strangers.

"Hey, nice to meet you both," she finally spoke as she nodded at the man who didn't offer his hand to her. Her own arms crossed over her chest as she studied first Eames, then Arthur. Her greeting had sounded flat. Memorized. That's because it was. Still, neither had run away from her yet so she figured she either was doing an okay job with putting Sophie's lessons to use or they were both too curious about the library to let her scare them off. Either way, the plan was still on.

"This way."

This time when she spoke, her voice was filled with absolute certainty. She turned abruptly on her heel too, arms falling stiffly at her sides as she made her way around the front of the library to the small row of bushes lined across the back of the building. Counting them silently as she passed each one, she found the one she was looking for and stepped closer. Yanking back the branches and leaves, she revealed a small gate. The hole wasn't very big - honestly, it was almost too small for her to even squeeze through. Fortunately though, that wasn't their entrance. Not exactly.

Hairpin already in her hand, she bent with with a twist of her fingers and slid her arm through the gate. Shoulder pressing into the metal, she worked the lock on the inside for a second or two before the telltale 'click' sounded. As she pulled her arm free, she gripped the gate firmly then pulled it open as well. With the gate, part of the wall seemed to disengage itself from the rest of the stones, revealing a door of sorts. Holding it open, Parker rose to her full height and glanced over her shoulder at the two men.

"Watch your step!" she announced as she made her way through the hidden door. A flash of white teeth and a smile that might almost border on psychotic, and then she disappeared from sight with only a faith "Woohoo!" a warning of just how sudden of a drop the first step happened to be.

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dream_bigger
2010-08-04 11:47 pm UTC (link)

Still smiling, Eames watched Parker while she sized them up. She was clearly not used to dealing with people, if her greeting-by-rote was anything to go by, and her body language was screaming for nobody to actually come into contact with her. He was about to start making smalltalk when Parker turned and started to walk round to the back of the library. Eames glanced round at Arthur, before following after Parker.

Normally, Eames would be talking quietly to Arthur as they walked but this time he stayed silent, far more interested in watching how Parker worked. The hidden trick gate mechanism was ingenious, and he was going to be coming back later to work out the trick for himself. Making a mental note of where the gate was, he could only watch as Parker seemed to vanish into the building. Well, now. Wasn't that something?

"Fortune favours the bold, and all that," he muttered, then went in after her.

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noimagination
2010-08-05 04:17 am UTC (link)

The words sounded off. It wasn't in any obvious way and most people wouldn't even notice, but Arthur wasn't most people. His job was all about noticing things, knowing things. Parker spoke like she was reading off a cue card and it, along with something in her eyes when she shook Eames's hand and the way she didn't even try to do this same with him, told him everything he needed. This was a woman who wasn't comfortable with people, not the normal sort anyway, who didn't quite trust anyone. But she was competent, that much was obvious with the change in her tone when she told them to follow her, and more than confident enough. And, in spite of himself, Arthur liked her.

He glanced up, meeting Eames's eyes and quickly looking away, then followed Parker. He watched her, impressed, as she showed them the way in, his gaze calculating and memorizing the way she got the door open. Her smile was a dangerous thing, thrilling in its sharpness, and Arthur felt like he might actually be awake as he watched her vanish. He looked over at Eames and sighed. "Try not to be too foolish, won't you?" he said, even though he knew Eames would ignore the caution.

He bit back a laugh at the sentiment and shook his head. "And there's an exception for every rule," he mused to himself as he followed them in, though fortune did seem to favor Eames. The lucky bastard.

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inafivepoundbag
2010-08-05 12:29 pm UTC (link)

Although it might appear that way, the sudden drop wasn't a straight shot down. It was angled a bit, likely to guarantee whoever used it didn't break their legs when they landed. In Parker's opinion it ruined the effect a bit but also made the breaking in process a bit easier. Plus it was kind of like a giant slide and who didn't like those?

Waving the cloud of dust and dirt that sprang into the air when her boots landed on the ground, the blond stepped away from the 'trap' to make room for Eames and Arthur. She only used the term trap loosely as the room they were deposited into had long since stopped being a feasible holding cell of any sort. At least for her and whoever knew what they were doing.

Knowing they were on a timer and had a minute, tops, before the guards left their post to come check out the break-in, Parker made her way to the cell door and got to work on the lock while waiting for Eames and Arthur to arrive.

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dream_bigger
2010-08-05 10:12 pm UTC (link)

He had expected the drop, given how Parker had vanished so quickly, and when he'd slid down to land on the floor, he was out of the way almost instantly. He moved quickly and quietly over to where Parker was working, not even slightly tempted to wait and smirk at Arthur when he landed in the dirt and the dust, or make some comment about wishing the other man really was that dirty at other times. They were on a job, after all, and he took work very seriously. He could think it all he liked, sure, but he wasn't going to say it.

"How long is too long?" he asked Parker, only speaking as loudly as he needed to, and watching as she worked her way through the various tumblers within the lock. The young lady was good, he noted. Methodical, quick and working with practiced ease. Like watching an artist at work, he mused, making sure he wasn't getting in her way in the slightest.

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noimagination
2010-08-06 08:13 pm UTC (link)

Arthur had been able to tell a lot about the drop from the way Parker and Eames had gone and he landed easily on his feet, immediately settling into his normal role in a group and scanning the area for any potential threats. It was second nature for him, and he didn't even think about it. He was beginning to feel like himself at last, the familiarity of his situation putting him somewhat at ease. And it was probably sad that he only really relaxed when there was something akin to work involved.

He watched Parker working, able to appreciate an artist practicing her craft. She was impressive, and he would love to have someone like her on their team. If she proved reliable, maybe they could turn her into an extractor. They'd need one with Dom leaving the business to be with his family. It was certainly something to consider. "Too long," he told Eames, "is when we get caught and this situation becomes less pleasant."

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inafivepoundbag
2010-08-06 08:43 pm UTC (link)

Peering up from her crouched position in front of the cell door, her arms slid through the bars and fingers deftly working the lock, Parker offered Eames an impish grin. "Forty-five seconds," she answered simply. The telltale click of one lock opening made her shift, her makeshift lock-pick sliding into the lock right above the now open one. "From the time I landed in here."

Tilting her head a bit as though considering, she added, "We're down to about fifteen seconds, twenty tops." Glancing over her shoulder at Arthur, her grin grew a bit. "Or what he just said," she tacked on. The lock clicked open and she stood, shoving the gate out of the way. As if on cue, the ceiling above them began to thud. Loose bits of dirt started to fall, a cloud of dust seeming to slowly fill the narrow corridor ahead of them.

"Here they come," she stated in a matter of fact tone. Another grin and she took in both men with one look. "And here we go." With that she pressed against a stone that was jutting slightly out of the wall then slipped inside the small gap provided. Less than a second passed and she poked her head back out to look at them once more. "Or stay out there and get caught. Your call!"

Then her head disappeared once more as Parker stepped past the narrow crack in the wall and further into the large room just on the other side. She cast a cursory glance at the various rows of books - all of them empty and, she guessed, back-ups for whenever the ones upstairs were filled - and waited for the duo to follow. Or for them to get caught. Like she'd said, it was their call.

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dream_bigger
2010-08-06 11:49 pm UTC (link)

Forty-five seconds for two locks. Tricky, but obviously able to be done. He grinned as the gate swung open, ignoring the sounds from above, and followed after Parker once more. 'Push on stone that sticks out' was added to his mental list of instructions for breaking into the library, and then he stared slightly at the tiny gap she was moving through.

Stay out and get caught? Huh. Easy for her to say, she was on the other side already, and there was also the fact that she was a lot smaller than he was. Not that he was fat. Far from it. He was simply a lot more bulky than Parker or, indeed, Arthur. That settled it. Without even thinking about it, he reached behind him to grab Arthur, intending to push the other man through the gap first. If Arthur went through before him, there was no chance of the Point Man getting stuck behind him. Eames could be selfless when he wanted to be. "Go," he said softly, stepping back to emphasise his point and keeping an eye out for rampaging suits of armour.

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noimagination
2010-08-11 08:52 am UTC (link)

It was practical. It was selfless. It was bloody annoying. Eames clearly hadn't counted on the fact that Arthur took his role seriously, both in and out of the dreams. Being the Point Man meant that he got everyone else out. The idea of going first, leaving Eames to follow, didn't even register for him. He gave Eames a hard look, wanting nothing more than to punch the forger in the face, but Parker was moving ahead and they couldn't afford to be left behind.

"Like hell." He was pushing Eames through the space before he even had time to think about it. It was second nature. Even with this being reality, where the wounds would stay, he wasn't about to leave someone behind. Luckily, they both made it through before the knights got there, and he glared at Eames once they caught up with Parker. "What was that?" he asked him.

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inafivepoundbag
2010-08-13 02:07 am UTC (link)

Parker didn't know what the big deal was. The hole wasn't that small. They both could get through. At least, she thought they could. Maybe not. But, in her defense, she would've broken them out of jail if they'd been caught. Of course it probably would have helped if she'd told them that but oh well. It was a moot point, now. They were all three there. Now - unless the library had changed things up again to keep her on her toes - it was pretty much a straight shot.

Rolling her eyes at the two men, although there was still a faint smile playing on her lips, the blond began to move further into the room only to stop rather abruptly. "Wait!" she exclaimed, both arms shooting straight out at her sides in an effort to keep either man from stepping any closer. She glanced over her shoulder at them. "Something's changed."

Instantly Parker went still, gaze darting about the room until she spotted what she was looking for. Instantly her grin grew and she visibly relaxed. "Oh, this is going to be fun," she said almost giddily. Stooping to the ground, she gathered up a handful of dirt then straightened back up. She held her hand out, palm upward with the dirt safely in it, then blew softly.

As the dirt flew away from the burst of air, red lasers became visible. Only where the dirt touched, of course, but that was more than enough for her. With a thoughtful pursing of her lips, she began patting down her pockets and finally gave a soft 'aha!' of success when she located one of the items she'd snagged at the last second. A small, travel-size bottle of spray-on deodorant. Why she'd grabbed it really was anyone's guess, but odds were it was likely due to this reason right here rather than worrying about body odor of any sort.

Shaking it up slightly, she flipped the lid off and immediately began spraying in front of her. One by one the lasers began to appear and she made a mental map of them. Re-pocketing the spray when she'd finished, Parker glanced back to the two men. "Stay here," she said simply, already backing up a few steps. Her gaze went back to the lasers and, before they could fully fade from sight once more, she took off at a run and dove, headfirst, through the first series of crosses.

Handsprings, back-bends, and an occasional contorting of her body that really shouldn't be possible for someone who wasn't in the circus, and finally she emerged on the other side. Smacking the control panel near the door, thereby turning off the lasers, she motioned for Eames and Arthur. "Come on, slow pokes, before the walls start closing in!" she exclaimed as she wrenched open the door and stepped through it, a soft giggle following in her wake.

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