InsaneJournal

Tweak says, "here, have a chocolate biscuit"

Eames (legerdemainist) wrote in makebelievelog,
@ 2012-07-13 19:58:00

Entry tags:

ariadne, eames

Who: Ariadne and Eames
What: Nightmares
When: About 0230hrs - 0300hrs, Friday Morning
Where: Their flat
Status: Incomplete

Eames had woke up just after two in the morning, and he knew instantly that he wouldn't be getting back to sleep any time soon. Still, he lay on for a little bit, listening to Arthur's sleepy breathing and half-heartedly willing himself back to sleep. He had work in the morning, after all. After about five minutes, he stopped kidding himself and carefully climbed out of bed, doing his best to not wake Arthur. After pulling on a pair of pyjama bottoms and making a quick detour to the bathroom, he went into the living room and quickly made himself the biggest mug of tea he could cope with.

While the kettle was boiling, he'd dug out one of his sketchpads and his pastels and he was soon settled on the couch, drawing sketches from the trip to the pool the other day; Daniel divebombing far too close to where the girls were talking, Ariadne trying to get everyone to make people-pyramids in the water, Juno's Kraken impression, and Reg, Sev and Daniel all sitting at the edge of the pool with their feet dangling in the water as they talked about God alone knew what, amongst other scenes. He lost all track of time as he got caught up in drawing and shading, and only noticed that something seemed out of place when he reached over to grab his tea. There was a strange noise coming from Ariadne's room, and then a wordless yell followed by what sounded like Ariadne going "No, no, no," over and over.

Putting everything down, he got to his feet and quickly went over to Ariadne's door, opening it a crack to listen and then slightly wider so he could look in and see what was going on. Ariadne was kicking and thrashing at something, and her bedclothes were about to wind up on the floor. She moaned, rather distressingly, and Eames was kneeling at her bedside before he knew what was going on. Grabbing her flailing hand in his, he gently patted her on the cheek with his free hand as he spoke. "Ariadne, wake up. Come on, there's a love, wake up. You're having a nightmare, sweetheart, so wake up," he told her, and kept talking until she reacted.

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redscarves
2012-07-13 09:59 pm UTC (link)

Mallorie Cobb - the real Mal - had been as Arthur had described her. Lovely. The abomination that lived in Dom's mind had been twisted and vengeful, an embodiment of Cobb's guilt and ongoing wish that he could fix the mess he had made of their lives. The Mal that she had encountered was that twisted creature that Cobb's mind had formulated to try and ensnare and drag him past the point of return.

Between memories of the projection stabbing her, limbo, and then of a Reaver running her through and leaving her limp body behind as her failed rescuer dispatched of the creature... Ariadne had more than enough to give her nightmares on a personal note. That wasn't getting into seeing Eames after his beating or the things she had seen amidst the Reaver attacks. She wished she hadn't been a ghost during that time; she knew her mind wasn't as at peace as it once had been. However, this time the nightmare was from the original source of her worries amidst the Fischer job. Mal and limbo.

There were so many ways things could've happened differently. A split moment's hesitation on her part, someone reacting wrong, and - well, she didn't want to think about it, despite her subconscious having seemingly decided otherwise. Being woken up sent a jolt through her system and she stiffened for a split second before realizing where she was and who was holding her hand, waking her. Her voice was soft, her mind figuring it appropriate for the seemingly late (or early?) hour, as she blinked repeatedly and tried to orient herself. "Eames. Was - I talking or -"

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legerdemainist
2012-07-14 05:05 pm UTC (link)

Eames kept his hands where they were for the time being, although he stopped patting her cheek as soon as she started waking up. "Hello, sweetheart," he said softly, "you were just saying 'no' repeatedly, and beating up your bedclothes a lot." He started finger-combing her hair as he spoke, trying to calm Ariadne down as she shook off her nightmare.

"Do you want to get up? I'll make you some tea if you want," he offered, moving back to give her some room but still keeping a hold of her hand.

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redscarves
2012-07-15 08:56 pm UTC (link)

Ariadne pressed her lips firmly together for a few beats, processing what Eames knew about her nightmare and clinging onto the idea she was awake. She wasn't sure why Eames had known and been able to wake her up from her nightmare, but it was the Land of Make Believe. Mallorie wasn't there anymore - and Cobb had long since been sent home, too. It had been a nightmare, nothing more.

Granted, part of her still wanted to check her totem, but it was more a secondary detail. She wasn't past the point of trusting her instincts.

"Yeah." She sat up, giving Eames' hand a light squeeze, before sighing. "Why are you up?"

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legerdemainist
2012-07-17 10:47 pm UTC (link)

He stood up and helped her to her feet, pulling her into a quick hug once she was standing. "I woke up about an hour or so ago, and I was wide awake. Doubt I'll get back to sleep tonight," he told her as he walked back out to the living room, then headed over to the kettle. He dug out his emergency Jaffa Cakes and assorted other biscuits, and took them over to the coffee table before going back and making Ariadne's tea.

"There you go, sweetheart," he said as he set the tea down beside the biscuits, and then slumped back down in his seat once more.

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redscarves
2012-07-18 10:34 pm UTC (link)

Her hand strayed to her nightstand and Ariadne grabbed her totem before following Eames out into the living room. She could feel the balance was right for being awake, so it was tucked into the pockets of her pajamas. She wasn't so attached to the item as to sleep with it on her person, especially since it was hard metal. She wanted to have a bigger faith in her grip on reality than that, too.

After closing her bedroom door quietly, Ariadne made her way over and sat down on the sofa. She leaned back while Eames went about getting tea and biscuits. The architect wasn't sure she wanted either, but she knew she didn't want to go back to sleep. When Eames came in, she had been sitting and staring absentmindedly at the nearest wall. She jumped slightly and turned to look at him, then looked at the tea. "Thank you. Um - doubt there's anything on TV this time of night, is there?" It was only a brief beat before she added teasingly, "And no, Eames, no Lord of the Rings DVD."

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legerdemainist
2012-07-21 08:04 pm UTC (link)

"Hah, no. None of that. Daniel would only appear out of nowhere and insist on watching the whole thing, again"

He shifted about after that, and then sat forward to lift a couple of biscuits off the plate. "I wouldn't have a clue what's on at this time anyway. I tend to draw or try to read when I'm awake at this time," he explained, before grabbing his now relatively cool mug of tea and taking a drink. He didn't actually mind lukewarm tea, especially when it was whatever time it was now, and he drank about half of it in one go before sitting back and looking over at Ariadne.

"If you want to talk about it, I'll listen."

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redscarves
2012-07-22 07:28 am UTC (link)

"No need to have him up at this time of night." Ariadne agreed, nodding and settling down in her spot a little more at Eames' offer. She really did appreciate the offer; the sentiment alone made her feel a bit better, to have the reassurance that someone wanted to hear what was troubling her, to help if they could. She knew it, but having that expressed to her was an equal to checking her totem despite knowing it was reality.

"I have nightmares sometimes. Limbo, Cobb - Mal. Things going - wrong. Other times, Reavers. I think it's just what my subconscious is focused on and decides to - toss out." Ariadne admitted with a small frown, lost in her thoughts in that moment. "It's nothing a coffee in the morning can't fix, but it gets - old. It adds to me feeling unsettled."

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