[Fic] Baby, Please Remember Me Once More - Part Five
Title: Baby, Please Remember Me Once More
Author: duckgirlie
Team: ROMANCE!
Prompt: devotion, home.
Summary: “Sorry. I know you? I mean, of course I know you, at least a bit. Your number’s in my wallet. But I don’t know you, not at all.”
Word Count: ~1800 (this part)
Rated: PG
Notes: In case you are wondering, Eames' mother is played by Emma Thompson.
one | two | three | four
“What the fuck was that?”
“We were just -“
But Eames had managed to pull himself out of bed and into his wheelchair before Arthur could finish.
“You said he'd take it well.” Cobb said.
“He should - he did take to it. Eames was the only person in the unit not to throw up the first time, he should be fine.”
“It's not the dreaming that freaked him out, it's the content.” Ariadne pointed out. “You need to talk to him, tell him what we're looking for. Maybe he'll feel better once he understands.”
“Maybe he changed a lot in between this age and when you met him.” Cobb said.
“That shouldn't -“
Arthur cut himself off. This Eames is different. David's probably never even held a gun, let along pointed it at anyone, and he realised he'd made a mistake.
“I'll go talk to him.”
He found Eames outside, another cigarette in his hand just burning away to nothing.
“I'm sorry. We should have told you first.”
“Yeah, you fucking should have.”
They stood in silence for a moment.
“What was that?”
Arthur took a deep breath and sat down on the low wall.
“It was a dream. A constructed dream. That's what we do, all of us. We build dreams, and then people fill those dreams with themselves.”
“What's the point?”
“Because when someone's filled a dream with themself, we can find out certain things.”
“So what? We go into dreams and steal people's memories? That's horrible.”
Arthur smiled sadly. “Sometimes it can be. But you knew we didn't do good things.”
“Yeah, but I thought you meant like, stock market fraud or art theft or something, something... clean. Not like digging about inside people and stealing little bits of them.
“Not little bits of them. Nothing's gone when we're done, they're still the same person, we've just... helped someone else get an idea they wanted.”
Eames slouched down in his seat and lit another cigarette.
“So what were you trying to steal from my mind?”
“Nothing. I promise, we'd - I'd - never go into your mind to try and steal something. We were trying to trigger your memories, see why they might be gone.”
“Could someone do that? Steal my memories like that?”
Arthur sighed. “We don't know. But we had to check.”
“Did you find anything?”
“Nothing conclusive, no. Some of your memories seem to be still there, at least a little, but we still don't know how you lost them.”
“Are there people out there I've fucked over? People who'd want to fuck me up like this.”
Arthur couldn't meet his eyes. “Yes.”
When he looked up, Eames was staring at the ground, his body closed up as small as his injuries would let him.
“I think I'd like you to call my mum now.”
*****
Arthur didn't know how, but Eames' mother was there in less then twelve hours.
He and Yusuf met her in reception.
“Mrs. Eames, I'm sor-“
She cut him off. “Arthur dear, I know it's been years, but it's still Veronica.”
“Sorry, Veronica. I'm sorry about not calling you immediately, but there were a couple of things we had to check before it was... safe.”
She smiled. “I'm not going to ask any questions, you know that. But is he alright?”
Arthur and Yusuf exchanged a glance.
“As far as we can tell, but we don't know everything.”
“Can I see him?”
Outside Eames' door, Veronica paused for a moment to steel herself.
“Is is different?”
“He's younger. Or seems younger, at least. He'll... he'll be glad you're here, he hasn't stopped asking after you.”
There was a brief pause before she raised her hand to push the door open.
“David?”
The second he heard her voice, Eames face just lit up.
“Mum!”
Arthur closed the door behind her. That wasn't somewhere he should be.
*****
David couldn't quite process it - his mum was here - Arthur must be magic or something, because he didn't know how she could have made it over to LA that fast.
She was sitting on the edge of his bed, staring at him, and he waited for her to speak.
“How have you been?”
He raised an eyebrow. “I'm alright, yeah. Aside from the head thing. And the arm thing. Also a leg thing so... I'm alive? At least. I suppose.”
“Yes, you are.” She reached her hand out to brush his hair off his forhead, and normally he hated that, but he let her anyway.
“I have some pictures to show you.”
His mum pulled a small picture album out of her handbag and held it out to him.
“It's not much, just some photographs of your father and me, your sisters and their families-“
David grabbed the book out of her hand. “Mags and Sarah have families?”
She smiled. “They do. Sarah has a son, and Maggie has two daughters.”
He leafed through the photographs, asking her questions about each one.
“That's from Maggie's wedding. She picked the suit out for you and wouldn't let you out of the changing rooms until you'd proved you actually did know how to tie a tie by yourself. And Sarah's wedding - you had to leave before the reception, but you were there for the ceremony, at least.”
“Where's this?”
“That's the cottage your father bought in the peak district. We've been there a few times, but I don't think you've made it down yet.”
“It's beautiful.”
“Is that Sarah's son?”
“Yes, that's Michael. He's three now, he wants to be a racing driver.”
“And these are -“
“Maggie's daughters, Grace and Lila. Grace is six, she wants to be a ballerina, and Lila's four, she wants to be a typewriter, though I think she might be slightly confused.”
Eames grinned and leafed through all the pictures. “It's weird, yeah? I mean, I know these places, they're really obvious, and I can see these people and I know I know them - It's Sarah and Mags of course I know them, but then they don't look right, and I can't quite believe myself that they're the same people I know, yeah?”
“I know, darling. It must be terrible.”
David stopped talking to leaf through the pictures some more. “So, I... I don't have a family of my own yet?”
She reached up to adjust his hair again. “Not yet. I thought there was a chance, a while ago, but no.”
He looked down at the book in his hands, tracing his fingers slowly over the faces in a group photo.
“I'm not in any of these pictures.”
“You're away a lot for work. We don't get to see you as often as we'd like.”
“So, I just... don't come home anymore. Fuck.” He flinched. “Sorry.”
“You're a grown man, David. I can't give out to you for swearing anymore.”
David lay back in the bed. “I just wish I knew what happened to me.”
“I thought it was a road -“
“No, I mean before.”
She squeezed his hand. “You will. Arthur said there's a good chance you'll regain your memories.
At Arthur's name, David looked up. “Can I ask you a question? About Arthur, I mean?”
“Sweetheart, I can't tell you that story. You'll have to ask Arthur for yourself.”
There was silence for a moment, until his mum smiled just a little too brightly.
“So, the last thing you remember is Jilly Fanshaw's giant party? I would have thought that night would be the last thing you'd remember.”
David blushed. “I was kind of mangled, wasn't I?”
“Understandable, in the circumstances, though I can't say I approve.”
“You never liked him.”
“I was quite right not too.”
He fiddled with the blanket over his legs. “Did we get back together?”
She smiled a little sadder that time. “You did. Twice more before he finally broke your heart enough you said no.”
David reached out to squeeze her hand. “I should have listened to you from the beginning, you're always right.”
“Oh David.”
She stood up and wrapped her arms around him, only pulling back when his went slack.
“Are you alright?”
She dabbed her eyes. “I'm fine. New mascara, I must be reacting too it.”
She smiled a little stiffer. “Look, darling, I hate to run away so soon, but there's something back at home that just can't wait.”
“Okay.”
“You don't mind?”
“Well, I wish you could stay, but if it's something important.” He reached out to squeeze her hand again. “You'll be back soon, right?”
“As soon as I can.”
“I love you.”
“I love you too, darling.”
*****
Arthur was pacing back and forth in front of Cobb and the others when Veronica finally emerged from the room.
“How is he?”
“He's okay. Or as okay as can be, anyway.”
She dabbed at her eyes with a crumpled tissue.
“Are you okay? You must be tired, do you need me to drive you to your hotel, or -“
“Arthur.” She placed a hand on his shoulder. “I'm going back to London.”
“But.. but you just got here. He needs you.”
“I can't stay here, Arthur. Not with him like this. If I stay here too much longer... I'm not going to want him back.”
“Veron -“
“Arthur.” She looked him directly in the eye. “That's my baby in there. But he hasn't been my baby for a long while now, and I can't let myself start to hope he stays like this. What kind of mother would that make me?”
“But he wants you here. He needs you here.”
“You'll take care of him for me?”
Arthur took a deep breath. “Of course I will.”
She smiled a tiny smile. “Of course you will. Silly question, really. You always have before, even...”
Arthur reached up to clasp her hand. “Are you sure?”
“Positive.”
She kissed him gently on the cheek - 'thank you' - and walked quietly out the door.
six
Author: duckgirlie
Team: ROMANCE!
Prompt: devotion, home.
Summary: “Sorry. I know you? I mean, of course I know you, at least a bit. Your number’s in my wallet. But I don’t know you, not at all.”
Word Count: ~1800 (this part)
Rated: PG
Notes: In case you are wondering, Eames' mother is played by Emma Thompson.
one | two | three | four
“What the fuck was that?”
“We were just -“
But Eames had managed to pull himself out of bed and into his wheelchair before Arthur could finish.
“You said he'd take it well.” Cobb said.
“He should - he did take to it. Eames was the only person in the unit not to throw up the first time, he should be fine.”
“It's not the dreaming that freaked him out, it's the content.” Ariadne pointed out. “You need to talk to him, tell him what we're looking for. Maybe he'll feel better once he understands.”
“Maybe he changed a lot in between this age and when you met him.” Cobb said.
“That shouldn't -“
Arthur cut himself off. This Eames is different. David's probably never even held a gun, let along pointed it at anyone, and he realised he'd made a mistake.
“I'll go talk to him.”
He found Eames outside, another cigarette in his hand just burning away to nothing.
“I'm sorry. We should have told you first.”
“Yeah, you fucking should have.”
They stood in silence for a moment.
“What was that?”
Arthur took a deep breath and sat down on the low wall.
“It was a dream. A constructed dream. That's what we do, all of us. We build dreams, and then people fill those dreams with themselves.”
“What's the point?”
“Because when someone's filled a dream with themself, we can find out certain things.”
“So what? We go into dreams and steal people's memories? That's horrible.”
Arthur smiled sadly. “Sometimes it can be. But you knew we didn't do good things.”
“Yeah, but I thought you meant like, stock market fraud or art theft or something, something... clean. Not like digging about inside people and stealing little bits of them.
“Not little bits of them. Nothing's gone when we're done, they're still the same person, we've just... helped someone else get an idea they wanted.”
Eames slouched down in his seat and lit another cigarette.
“So what were you trying to steal from my mind?”
“Nothing. I promise, we'd - I'd - never go into your mind to try and steal something. We were trying to trigger your memories, see why they might be gone.”
“Could someone do that? Steal my memories like that?”
Arthur sighed. “We don't know. But we had to check.”
“Did you find anything?”
“Nothing conclusive, no. Some of your memories seem to be still there, at least a little, but we still don't know how you lost them.”
“Are there people out there I've fucked over? People who'd want to fuck me up like this.”
Arthur couldn't meet his eyes. “Yes.”
When he looked up, Eames was staring at the ground, his body closed up as small as his injuries would let him.
“I think I'd like you to call my mum now.”
*****
Arthur didn't know how, but Eames' mother was there in less then twelve hours.
He and Yusuf met her in reception.
“Mrs. Eames, I'm sor-“
She cut him off. “Arthur dear, I know it's been years, but it's still Veronica.”
“Sorry, Veronica. I'm sorry about not calling you immediately, but there were a couple of things we had to check before it was... safe.”
She smiled. “I'm not going to ask any questions, you know that. But is he alright?”
Arthur and Yusuf exchanged a glance.
“As far as we can tell, but we don't know everything.”
“Can I see him?”
Outside Eames' door, Veronica paused for a moment to steel herself.
“Is is different?”
“He's younger. Or seems younger, at least. He'll... he'll be glad you're here, he hasn't stopped asking after you.”
There was a brief pause before she raised her hand to push the door open.
“David?”
The second he heard her voice, Eames face just lit up.
“Mum!”
Arthur closed the door behind her. That wasn't somewhere he should be.
*****
David couldn't quite process it - his mum was here - Arthur must be magic or something, because he didn't know how she could have made it over to LA that fast.
She was sitting on the edge of his bed, staring at him, and he waited for her to speak.
“How have you been?”
He raised an eyebrow. “I'm alright, yeah. Aside from the head thing. And the arm thing. Also a leg thing so... I'm alive? At least. I suppose.”
“Yes, you are.” She reached her hand out to brush his hair off his forhead, and normally he hated that, but he let her anyway.
“I have some pictures to show you.”
His mum pulled a small picture album out of her handbag and held it out to him.
“It's not much, just some photographs of your father and me, your sisters and their families-“
David grabbed the book out of her hand. “Mags and Sarah have families?”
She smiled. “They do. Sarah has a son, and Maggie has two daughters.”
He leafed through the photographs, asking her questions about each one.
“That's from Maggie's wedding. She picked the suit out for you and wouldn't let you out of the changing rooms until you'd proved you actually did know how to tie a tie by yourself. And Sarah's wedding - you had to leave before the reception, but you were there for the ceremony, at least.”
“Where's this?”
“That's the cottage your father bought in the peak district. We've been there a few times, but I don't think you've made it down yet.”
“It's beautiful.”
“Is that Sarah's son?”
“Yes, that's Michael. He's three now, he wants to be a racing driver.”
“And these are -“
“Maggie's daughters, Grace and Lila. Grace is six, she wants to be a ballerina, and Lila's four, she wants to be a typewriter, though I think she might be slightly confused.”
Eames grinned and leafed through all the pictures. “It's weird, yeah? I mean, I know these places, they're really obvious, and I can see these people and I know I know them - It's Sarah and Mags of course I know them, but then they don't look right, and I can't quite believe myself that they're the same people I know, yeah?”
“I know, darling. It must be terrible.”
David stopped talking to leaf through the pictures some more. “So, I... I don't have a family of my own yet?”
She reached up to adjust his hair again. “Not yet. I thought there was a chance, a while ago, but no.”
He looked down at the book in his hands, tracing his fingers slowly over the faces in a group photo.
“I'm not in any of these pictures.”
“You're away a lot for work. We don't get to see you as often as we'd like.”
“So, I just... don't come home anymore. Fuck.” He flinched. “Sorry.”
“You're a grown man, David. I can't give out to you for swearing anymore.”
David lay back in the bed. “I just wish I knew what happened to me.”
“I thought it was a road -“
“No, I mean before.”
She squeezed his hand. “You will. Arthur said there's a good chance you'll regain your memories.
At Arthur's name, David looked up. “Can I ask you a question? About Arthur, I mean?”
“Sweetheart, I can't tell you that story. You'll have to ask Arthur for yourself.”
There was silence for a moment, until his mum smiled just a little too brightly.
“So, the last thing you remember is Jilly Fanshaw's giant party? I would have thought that night would be the last thing you'd remember.”
David blushed. “I was kind of mangled, wasn't I?”
“Understandable, in the circumstances, though I can't say I approve.”
“You never liked him.”
“I was quite right not too.”
He fiddled with the blanket over his legs. “Did we get back together?”
She smiled a little sadder that time. “You did. Twice more before he finally broke your heart enough you said no.”
David reached out to squeeze her hand. “I should have listened to you from the beginning, you're always right.”
“Oh David.”
She stood up and wrapped her arms around him, only pulling back when his went slack.
“Are you alright?”
She dabbed her eyes. “I'm fine. New mascara, I must be reacting too it.”
She smiled a little stiffer. “Look, darling, I hate to run away so soon, but there's something back at home that just can't wait.”
“Okay.”
“You don't mind?”
“Well, I wish you could stay, but if it's something important.” He reached out to squeeze her hand again. “You'll be back soon, right?”
“As soon as I can.”
“I love you.”
“I love you too, darling.”
*****
Arthur was pacing back and forth in front of Cobb and the others when Veronica finally emerged from the room.
“How is he?”
“He's okay. Or as okay as can be, anyway.”
She dabbed at her eyes with a crumpled tissue.
“Are you okay? You must be tired, do you need me to drive you to your hotel, or -“
“Arthur.” She placed a hand on his shoulder. “I'm going back to London.”
“But.. but you just got here. He needs you.”
“I can't stay here, Arthur. Not with him like this. If I stay here too much longer... I'm not going to want him back.”
“Veron -“
“Arthur.” She looked him directly in the eye. “That's my baby in there. But he hasn't been my baby for a long while now, and I can't let myself start to hope he stays like this. What kind of mother would that make me?”
“But he wants you here. He needs you here.”
“You'll take care of him for me?”
Arthur took a deep breath. “Of course I will.”
She smiled a tiny smile. “Of course you will. Silly question, really. You always have before, even...”
Arthur reached up to clasp her hand. “Are you sure?”
“Positive.”
She kissed him gently on the cheek - 'thank you' - and walked quietly out the door.
six