specification | [01] Well, hello -- Criminal Minds for noc

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[01] Well, hello -- Criminal Minds for noc

Inception.

Arthur had said it couldn't be done and yet here he was, boarding a plane to Prague just hours after completing the unfathomable.

They had just barely scraped through, what with all of the last minute plan changes, and they wouldn't know for weeks whether the seed would take but so far it looked like it had and they were all alive. To be honest, it had been one of the most difficult jobs of Arthur's career and also the most eye opening experience he's had in a long time.

Once Cobb and Fischer Jr had left with their respective parties, Arthur had seen their forger and chemist off. They were a pair who defied the expectations of their profession openly admitted to being together and never working without the other to wherever it was that they would spend their fourth - fifth honeymoon. ("Cabo." "God no, remember last time?" "Nepal? You liked Nepal." "It wasn't Nepal that I liked so much as --" Anyway, you get the picture.)

Once he had seen them off, he watched Ariadne buy her ticket for her return trip to Paris (she did have classes to return to after all) and would be sure to keep in contact with the architect. She had promise and if she chose to continue in dream share, she should work with some of the best.

As for Arthur himself, he booked the first flight he could to Prague. He had a safe house there and he could take a little time off to relax, study what Fischer did and check in with Cobb to see how he and the children were adjusting. He would never work with the extractor again unless in dire circumstances but the whole point was getting him back home to his children. As far as Arthur saw it, he had done just that.

He didn't normally indulge in first class seating when leaving a job - it could draw too much attention but for a fourteen hour flight, after just getting off of a long flight, he didn't feel like sitting in cramped corners with a child on one side and one behind him kicking his chair. At least in first class, that was bound to happen less. For now, it appeared that the chair next to him was empty and he was a little thankful for that. Perhaps he'd get a little sleep after all - well, eventually. Once the adrenaline of what he just helped accomplished wore off.

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Tuck made a face, sitting back in his seat. Yet he sat at an angle, still watching Arthur. "Most of my impressive tricks I can't perform here," he said, thinking about the things he did best.

And then it hit him how it could sound.

"I mean... That is..." He blushed again, ducking his head. "Right. So, without my foot in my mouth... You happen to play paintball?"

Arthur blinked once then twice before he chuckled and ducked his head in response. When he lifted his head, it was with a small smirk of amusement on his lips.

"No, course not. This space is limited," he mused, teasingly.

"Paintball," he asked with a raised eyebrow. "I can't even remember the last time I went -- probably back in high school sometime."

"I shouldn't..." He nearly apologized for what he said and then couldn't help but smile a wide and bright smile when Arthur gave him an opening, and an out, as he had. "Right. Limited space," he agreed with a nod.

"Since high school? So what? Two years," he teased. "You and I ever end up in the states at the same time and we should play."

Arthur laughed when Tuck teased that he had only been out of high school of a couple of years while simultaneously feeling the heat creep up his cheeks. "A number of years -- ten-ish years," he said though it came off questioning. Sometimes, he found it hard to believe it had been ten years since he had graduated high school and how much had changed.

His eyebrows rose a little but he smiled. Arthur didn't truly expect anything like that to happen but thinking about it -- well that would be fun. "We'll have to do that. How much do you play," he asked -- purely out of curiosity.

“Ten? Yeah. Sure, that’s it. Such a baby face,” he said with a smile, enjoying the play between them. It had been a long time since he’d talked with anyone outside of business and now they were bantering and laughing and he was realizing how much he’d closed himself off in recent years.

“There’s a group of us that get together a couple of times a month.” All agents, all taking their real life skills to the game.

"Good genes," Arthur mused with a smirk. Though, to be honest, it sometimes kicked him in the ass. At times, especially when he dressed down and wore his reading glasses, jeans and a t-shirt he could pass as a early twenty-something and would nearly always get carded when buying a drink in the states. He hadn't had much reason to laugh over the last couple of years while on the run with Cobb so this change of pace was nice. To find someone that he bounced off of like this was...refreshing to put it mildly.

"So then you must be really good," he said, looking at him with a grin. He would undoubtedly sure that Tuck would kick his ass.

"You do. Amazing genes," he said, though he kept his eyes up and didn't mean the other kind. Like the denim kind. Well, maybe a little he meant it that way but not totally. "Which is me being suddenly awkward. I haven't talked to a guy like this since high school," he admitted, shaking his head and blushing again.

"I'm amazing, and I'm damn good on the field too."

"Thank you," he said, ducking his head a fraction, his lips curling up in pleasure. It had been a while since Arthur had allowed himself to flirt, to tease, to have this with someone -- if only for the foreseeable next several hours.

"And modest," he remarked with a dry tone but a teasing quirk of his mouth.

In the past he'd dabbled, played on both sides. Right until he became a federal agent and had to play like a normal, even if his job involved stealing, lying and killing. He wasn't working on the books now and, fuck them, he was going to be himself and enjoy himself.

"And handsome. I'm so many things," he teased.

Arthur chuckled. "Somehow, I knew that underneath the smiles and blushing cheeks there would be a cocky man. It was probably the joining me in first class," he mused teasingly. He had to admit, this was a much better way of spending a flight. Least until one of them got tired of the conversation or found something that turned them off of the other. So far -- he hadn't found that.

“Did that come off as cocky? I was hoping for brash and adorable,” he teased, grinning crookedly as he looked away and then back to Arthur. “So, where does leave us? You haven’t argued I’m handsome, we know you are, and we are flirting, aren’t we,” he said, that shyness showing through in asking that question.

“So are you indulging me? If so, do tell me, Love. I’d hate to ruin what could be a charming friendship with my own horrid behavior in front of a dashing yank.”

"A little bit," he said, still grinning and amused. He could see the shyness poking through and chuckled softly. "Yeah, we're flirting," Arthur nodded. "Where do you want this to leave us," he asked, tilting his head a little to look at him. "Want this to be a one off thing -- meet on a flight, flirt, have a quickie in the too small bathroom and call it good? Or something more?" Of which, Arthur didn't have much experience with. Quickies, yes. Long term, relationships -- not nearly as much.

When he heard the word 'love', Arthur's eyebrows rose and felt his lips tug upward. "Dashing and love...," he shook his head with a grin, his ears turning a little red at the endearments. Not that he would admit it of course. "No, I'm not just indulging you." Perhaps at the beginning, a little but the man was endearing and cute...and charming. "I'm enjoying myself talking and flirting with you." Tuck was a handsome man and there was no use denying that in the least.

Well. He hadn't expected it to turn that fast, and Tuck grinned widely that it had. "Well well. Asking for it in the loo? Really? Aren't you a darling thing," he said, shifting back to lean closer. "I suppose that might depend on if we can stand one another for a long flight, doesn't it? If we can, I admit I wouldn't mind having a pint with you back in the states from time to time, without or without the trip to the loo," he added, feeling stronger in this after Arthur had laid it out as he had.

"You are quite dashing. Charming as well. I thought to use pet but doesn't suit you. Ducks preferable," he asked, teasing. "And oddly enough? Love didn't sound nearly as intimate as Darling to my ears."

Arthur bit out a laugh then coughed. "No -- no, I just meant that it's a possibility, what could happen and where others may or may not take something like this to." But -- it had been a thought. Who could blame him - he just finished Inception, he had two drinks under his belt -- okay, one and a half and he was sitting next to a very handsome British man who seemed to be a little bit like Arthur in that he had a job that took him from this place to another.

Arthur picked up his glass and took a drink from it, a long one. He sat it down before glancing over at him. "If we can handle sitting next to each other during a flight like this -- I wouldn't mind having a drink with you whenever we're in the states at the same time." It wasn't his norm -- by any stretch of the imagination but it was nice to have people he could visit when he was in town.

"Ducks," he asked with a small grin. "Hm, that is odd." He was teasing of course. Mallorie Cobb had been the only one to ever call him with any kind of endearment -- well, other than his mother that is. "There have only been two people in my life who have called me any kind of endearment," he admitted.

He nodded as Arthur spoke, nodding through the whole thing even as his grin grew. "Sure. That was it. Because the all your options involve us and a relationship, some of it involving unlawful sex," he teased. "And not once just drinking buddies," he added, unwilling to let this go because he was enjoying himself.

He watched him take that drink, matching him on downing his own. "We should switch to something less bubbley if we're going to keep this up. Though we could save that until next time."

Now there was a next time.

"So we'll keep love, maybe Darling," he taunted, enjoying this talk more than he should have. "Did you have sex with either of them in a plane?"

"Who said anything about it being unlawful sex," he asked with an arched eyebrow. He shrugged a shoulder as thought that answered everything. "Question is, are you interested in it just being drinking buddies," he asked, finding himself amused by the conversation.

Arthur opened his mouth to respond before making a face at the question if he had ever slept with the two. "Fuck no - one was my mother and the other was a close friend." Though, to be honest, he wouldn't have put it past Mal to try that out at some point.

"So you decided that there will be a next time," he asked, raising his eyebrows, the grin never fading from his lips. Arthur could use someone to have drinks with, to get together with and perhaps do more with if it ever came to that.

“Airline bathroom sex is against the law on most airlines,” he pointed out with an arched brow. “Federal law too,” he admitted, figuring it was fairly safe to admit to knowing that. If nothing else, he could say he was busted for it. “Sky marshals get involved and everything,” he added, being honest but enjoying himself. “As for just drinking buddies? No. Though a few drinks before other activities wouldn’t be so bad,” he said, purposefully dropping his voice and trying to sound seductive, right before adding. “Like paintball.”

He laughed at that reaction. “Oh the look on your face,” he said, grinning widely. “You do expressions well, Love.”

Which had Eames nodding. “Of course I have. Haven’t you?”

"If you're caught," Arthur pointed out both amused and intrigued that this man knew all about regulations involving airline bathroom sex. It was, as with most things in his life, something he filed away for further analysis later. Even with all his talk about airplane bathroom sex, Arthur had never been one to do it in such a place. It was too cramped and he spent far too many hours on a plane for his job that it was not that particularly exciting for him. Though, he could see the merit of it.

Arthur chuckled and shook his head as he relaxed in his seat. "I can imagine doing a round of paintball after a few drinks. That would not be a dull game."

He felt his lips quirk up at Tuck's wide and unabashed grin. "No idea what you're talking about. Most seem to have this idea that I'm some sort of android or robot."

"I did," he said without hesitation or pretense. "Besides, we have to see who beats who at a friendly game of paintball."

Oh well, he wasn't expecting this when he took that seat. Someone willing to take on the law and it's loopholes. Very interesting. Tuck couldn't swear he hadn't done such a thing, but it had been a private jet so he wasn't sure that counted. He didn't know it shouldn't be brought up with a potential future lover.

"It could lead to a broken arm too," he said brightly. "It wasn't mine but it could happen," he said, proving that it wasn't hypothetical.

"What makes me think that? Should I explore to find out the truth?"

"Good then. No matter what happens here, we have a date for paintball."

If asked about it, Arthur could say that any other hormonal red blooded man would think of the loopholes around that particular law. Besides, as a criminal and as Arthur, in general, he liked knowing the backwards and forwards of a good portion of the laws that he may or may not be breaking at any particular moment in time. When Tuck mentioned the broken arm part, Arthur's eyebrows arched then chuckled. "It could happen," he agreed with a nod, chuckling. He found it very interesting that his man had brought up the laws regarding it. Lawyer? Marshal? He would have to look into it - see what he could figure out.

Arthur shook his head and just rested his head back. "Didn't say that you would think that - just that's the general consensus from most of the people I work with." His lips spread wide into a grin. "And by explore and find out the truth, you mean...?"

"Yeah, sounds like we do. Have to make plans for when neither of us are out of the country."

"Oh it did. A friend who wanted to add to his mile high miles. One arm stuck in the sink, someone knocked, he jerked and..." And then they had spent the rest of the flight coming up with a good lie about just how FDR had snapped his wrist.

"If you're an android," he said with a smirk. "I'll buy one. Wait, that sounded bad, doesn't it?" It didn't stop him from grinning. "Ask you questions. Stalk you," he said, sounding innocent and going wide eyed.

"Well if it's worth it, we'll work it out. We'll know by the end of the flight."

Arthur's eyebrows shot up at the clip notes story and found it hard not to laugh and instead grinned instead. "Do I need to ask why his arm was in the sink?" Sure there wasn't that much space but -- really? The sink? Okay, it didn't take long before he allowed himself the chuckle. "Sorry," he said, looking at him. "Just, I think his is the first I heard of some major injury from bathroom sex in a plane. Other than the complaints about lack of space.

He ducked his head and crossed his legs at his ankles, giving him a grin. "It did sound a little bad and I think, correct me if I'm wrong, but stalking is probably illegal in at least the lower forty-eight." Perhaps not exactly the truth but still, he was amused by the turn of this conversation. Tuck was a refreshing blend of bold flirtation and shyness and that was something that Arthur hadn't come across in a while.

"We will," he agreed with a nod. Though, to be honest, having a game of paintball would be fun and to see where this went? Oh, that would be fun too.

"Why? I don't know. I don't ask details about his sex life. I have enough of them," he admitted. "Without even trying. Mostly I stumble upon them during work. He's my partner, so there's that. We share a life." In truth he was his best friend. Everything he could want in a best friend. That was something he wanted to have for as long as he could. "He finds a few ways to hurt himself during sex, because he's always trying new ways," he said, blushing as he downed his second glass.

"Oh I'm sure I could over come a officer or three. If the person was worth the stalking, that is," he said with a grin. "Let's stick with questions and talks. I hear that is tried and true," he added.

'If nothing else, I might visit you in another country. I do travel a lot," he pointed out.

Arthur was silent as he considered that and watched Tuck, tilting his head. Partner could mean so many things, especially in Arthur's field of work but again, he was going to wait and look into that a little more once he was in the safe house in Prague. Still, it was interesting to hear Tuck talk about that and watch his facial expressions. He felt his lips quirk up a little. "So, what do you think - should we move onto something a little less bubbly or you okay for the time being," he asked, nodding to their empty glasses.

He laughed and nodded. As could Arthur if he were completely honest. He always made sure he knew where people were that he needed to get a hold of -- just in case. "It is," he agreed. "Usually how people get to know each other anyway."

"It's too bad you're on a job in Prague or I'd say we'd have to grab a drink together," he said, giving him a light smirk. "Just means we'll have to exchange numbers before we step off the plane."

He was still thinking about FDR, about how this was going to be a time before he saw him again. It was what he hated about this job, this part of his life. He had to leave FDR behind. He wondered how long it would be until he got back. Not knowing, that was the hardest. "I think something harder because this shit goes to my head and makes me pass the hell out. I've got limited time and I'm not wasting that."

He paused, realizing what he was saying. "Listen, I may sound creepy but I'm just kind of being a dick. I swear. No stalking. I wouldn't do that to you. Hell, I wouldn't do that to anyone. I like my privacy too," he admitted.

"I... I might be able to find time. Not sure," he admitted, not knowing the extent of the job. "I'll give you my number, you don't even have to give me yours," he said, thinking about what he'd just been saying about stalking. "Then it's all on you if you want to contact me."

[01] Well, hello -- Criminal Minds for noc

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OH GOD! What came into mind was Arthur in a room/paintball field full of agents. LOL!

This has to happen

LOL! Arthur says he disapproves but I love this idea.

Course he does. What criminal wants to be surrounded by federal agents?

Exactly! Not him, that's for damn sure. He's like it'd be the ultimate test.

I love it.

ME TOO!

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