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Tweak says, "Come along, Pond!"

Arthur (the_pointman) wrote in colligo_threads,
@ 2011-04-09 01:07:00

Entry tags:

ariadne, arthur

Who: Ariadne & Arthur
What: Arthur finally gets home from work so Ariadne can get after him for not revealing his birthday
Where: Their flat
When: Evening
Rating: PG-13 - R at the most
Status: In progress/closed

Usually the consummate workaholic, Arthur had started to feel a bit tired on his last hour of work that night. Might have been from finishing up the last Harry Potter book the night before, or the fact that he didn't have his usual afternoon expresso. Either way, it was the last time he tried that Starbucks Frap in a glass bottle. It didn't even taste that great. But when the clock hit two in the morning, Arthur was halfway out the door.

It didn't take that much time to get from point A (work) to point B (his front door). Maybe six minutes if he took the stairs of his building as opposed to the elevator. Walk home aside, he was thrilled to be sticking his key in the lock. Once in, he locked up and proceeded in taking off his coat, hanging it up nicely. He'd need it dry cleaned sometime this weekend if at all possible. Next came the fingers to his tie, working out the knot until the whole thing hung loosely around his neck. Arthur flicked open the first two buttons on his shirt and moved into the kitchen to get himself a glass of water.

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labyrinthine
2011-04-09 05:17 am UTC (link)

Ariadne didn't always stay up till Arthur came home. Her shifts moved around and sometimes she just had to catch some sleep before heading in early to take deliveries or run errands or whatever. Eames was over most evenings anyway, grading at the table while she plotted blueprints at her drafting table or writing up lesson plans as she sketched impossible things. And sometimes he stayed, and sometimes she went to bed on her own, and that was fine.

But she hadn't really gotten to talk with Arthur since her conversation with Eames on the network due to an unfortunate overlap of work shifts and the moment not seeming right. So she'd kept herself up with a movie and then reading, coming out of her room when she heard him come in.

"Hey," she greeted him softly, padding into the kitchen. "Long night?" It must have been, if he was this disheveled so soon after walking in the door.

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the_pointman
2011-04-09 05:36 am UTC (link)

It was incredibly nice to hear that sweet voice right now. Arthur set down his glass and turned to find Ariadne still awake. He managed a small smile as a few strands of hair seemed to fall out of place, matching the appearance of his clothing. Rumpled was a good word for it.

Closing the distance between the two, Arthur found it too difficult to put up a stoic front. His arms hugged around her middle, his nose leaned down to rest on her bare shoulder (Arthur thought tank tops were lovely for this reason). But it was even more nice to hear the concern in her voice. He closed his eyes as he spoke against her warm skin, his voice tired, "Yeah, last time I go without real coffee. I'm surprised to see you up still."

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labyrinthine
2011-04-09 05:53 am UTC (link)

Sometimes she thought she'd never get used to this, having him muttering into her shoulder and holding her like it was the most natural thing in the world. She kissed his temple and reached up, ruffling a few more strands loose to brush against his cheek. "You skipped coffee? I'm amazed you made it home. Come on." It was too easy to lead him down the hallway to her room, where she pulled him to sit on the bed before kneeling behind him.

Clearly he was completely exhausted, not protesting as she led him around or reached around him to unbutton his shirt. But maybe that meant he would give her a straight answer instead of deflecting as usual.

"I was talking with Eames," she said, pushing the shirt off his shoulders. "It was your birthday and you didn't say anything to me." Not asking why, because Eames had told her his side of it. Just laying it out. She wondered if he would squirm or just shrug the whole thing off.

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the_pointman
2011-04-09 05:44 pm UTC (link)

Arthur mumbled incoherently for a few moments, most of it being unkind words for Starbucks, but he wrapped it up with a much clearer sounding, "Didn't skip it, just didn't have the right kind."

There were no objections as she led him into her room, nor was there any fussing at the way she was undressing him. If anything, Arthur was thankful. He was far too tired to go through the evening grooming process he usually had. If he'd been allowed to, when he had finished his water, he would have passed out on the couch or his own bed in his clothes. He'd hate himself later for it, but he could live with it while he slept. Arthur simply let those small and delicate fingers undress him, and he even made a point to steal a few kisses between.

He woke a bit when she mentioned his birthday and Eames telling her. Figuring he could smack Eames later for divulging the information so quickly, he at least was thankful it was given after the fact, "Yeah, I'm not really big on my own birthday. Haven't been since I was a teen."

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labyrinthine
2011-04-09 06:06 pm UTC (link)

Ariadne managed to get the buttons at his cuffs undone and the shirt tossed away. Her room, her rules, and her rules said that his shirt would survive a night on the floor. Getting him to stand up and take his pants off seemed like too much effort at this point. Instead she slipped her arms around his waist and let her hands rest low on his stomach, tucking her chin into the curve of his neck. Ariadne was tired but she still wanted to choose her words carefully. Everything about being around Arthur made her careful. It was kind of exhausting.

"I wish you'd told me," she murmured. "I would've built you something, just for you, in the Dreaming. Or at least made a card." Perhaps she still would.

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the_pointman
2011-04-11 03:36 pm UTC (link)

Again, Arthur was too tired to fight with her as she threw his shirt, tie and vest to the floor. He could wash them later. Maybe when he made breakfast he could put a few loads in. And then Ariadne was speaking again.

"You don't need to do anything like that. 's not that important." As daunting as it seemed, Arthur managed to stand up to help her get his slacks off. His hands weren't nearly as nimble as they usually were as he fussed with the button and sloppily pulled down his zipper. They came off easy enough though before he sat back down onto the edge of the bed.

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labyrinthine
2011-04-11 05:22 pm UTC (link)

"Yeah, but you're important to me. And it's a card, we're not talking a massive undertaking here." This was immensely frustrating. She laid a hand flat on his back as he sat down again, resting her palm between his shoulder blades. Maybe she should be honest. At least a little. "And I don't like feeling like you don't - like you can't trust me with things."

Ariadne sighed and scooted to the side so she could see his face. "Maybe we should have this conversation when you aren't practically asleep already."

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the_pointman
2011-04-12 03:13 am UTC (link)

It hurt hearing her say that last bit about not being able to trust her. It was true though, even with Eames he still had trouble opening up in some areas, but they had history. Ariadne was so fresh and alive and bursting at the seams. She was anything Arthur could ask for, but there were still things that nagged him in his mind about keeping a distance.

Despite all the sleepiness that had started to overtake him, Arthur reached over and pulled Ariadne into his lap. He carefully tucked a loose wisp of hair behind her tiny ear and rested his forehead against her temple, "I wish I wasn't as complicated sometimes. That I could just let go. It's hard despite how badly I want to be able to do that around you."

Arthur didn't mind too much that he'd just confessed more then just a bit of affection to her. Instead, he simply kissed her cheek and gave it a gentle nuzzle before setting her back down, "Sleep would be good now though."

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labyrinthine
2011-04-12 03:48 am UTC (link)

Being pulled into Arthur's lap was becoming so familiar that she didn't even tense up anymore, just let it happen. They'd have to discuss his tendency to use her height and size against her. Or she'd have to ask Eames to teach her some countermoves. Regardless, Ariadne wasn't going to protest when he was leaning into her and murmuring truths she didn't expect to hear.

It made sense, what he was saying. Part of her wanted to tease him for calling himself complicated; part of her wanted to hold him close and tell him that she loved him and wasn't going to be scared off. She wanted this to be easy like it was with Eames, something comfortable and natural that made her feel safe and cherished, with someone she trusted to not push her away. But Arthur and Eames were so opposite as to invoke cliche, and she couldn't just tease Arthur into a good mood or smirk and poke and know that he'd understand the truth underlying it all. That, she was fairly certain, would not help.

Instead she settled for cupping his jaw in her palm, stretching up and kissing his forehead. "I'll try to be patient," she said, tracing a line down his cheek with her thumb where she knew his dimples would be. "C'mon. Into bed." Another brief, dry kiss to his lips and she was moving away, turning off the overhead light and pulling down the covers before sliding in.

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