Admittedly, the character of Lara Croft immediately conjures the same images in my mind as she does in most other males.  But I like to think I can get past that, and so I started thinking about this woman who would go adventuring around the world on her own.  Hopefully, I can make Lara Croft more than a texture-mapped pinup.

Thus, the only things I needed were someone to play opposite Lara and a tomb to raid.  Enter the seemingly perfect match, John Talbot, Jr., and an ancient Native American artifact.  Let's see how it goes, then?

"DREAM CATCHER"

by

Eric R. Umali

"Rescue"

Well, this was most certainly _not_ what she had planned.  Dangling some fifty feet above the jagged stalactite floor of yet another cave… hanging at the end of her rope… with no energy left to swing… with the nearest ledge twenty feet away… Lara Croft was pretty angry.

"Next time, Lara," she mumbled to herself, "you bring the good rangefinder to plan the descent."  Taking a deep breath, she began swinging her long legs back and forth, trying to slowly build up momentum.  After a few agonizing minutes, she began to swing.  Lara felt the heavy rope vibrate under her fingers, and didn't have to look up to know it was scraping dangerously against the rocks.  *It had to be,* she thought, *it makes the entire situation perfect.*

Soon she was swinging a wide arc through the dark air, the rock ledge tantalizingly close.  When she was going as fast and as far as she dared, Lara looped the rope around her forearm and unbuckled it from her rappelling harness.  She held her breath and jumped.

Gracefully stretching her lean limbs, she sailed towards the ledge.  A heartbeat later, her fingers felt solid rock.  Another heartbeat and that rock crumbled out from under her.

The fall stretched into an eternity.  She'd heard of people's lives flashing before their eyes, but she'd always hoped she would've had a lot more material to go over.  *But this is just how I thought it would end.  One treasure hunt too many.*

Suddenly, there was the hissing sound of rope unreeling, and then Lara felt herself jerk to a stop, her arm nearly wrenched from its socket.  Her eyes traveled up that arm, to find another hand grasping hers.  The other hand led to an arm, which led to a body-- a man.

Lara looked up into the dark, smiling eyes and sighed.

"I hate being rescued, you know," she quipped.

"I figured I'd take the chance," the man replied, then reached to his belt, activating a control.  The pair began slowly rising.

"What are you doing here, John?"

"I was just in the neighborhood, and thought I'd drop in."  John shook his head.  "You could at least say thank you, Lara."

"You know I hate that, too."

"Then take me out to dinner.  I know a great little place in Tempe…"

Lara sighed again.  "Deal."

*********

Grudgingly, Lara had to admit that John Talbot, Jr. was about the most pleasant dinner companion she'd ever met.  John sat across the small table as he told his story, leaning in towards her conspiratorially.  Only half listening to him, she let her eyes wander over him.

He was still slim and strong as she remembered from the last time they'd seen each other, but he'd begun wearing his hair a little longer than most would approve for a man of thirty-five.  Lara liked it that way-- he looked more like he did when they'd met, although his face wore some well-earned lines from years of archaeological adventuring.  It was his eyes that hadn't changed-- though they were so dark as to be nearly black, they twinkled at Lara as if John were sharing a special private joke with her.  Had it really been so long ago they'd met…?

"… and then I grew the third arm.  Lara, you're not listening to me."

She was shaken from her reverie.  "What?  Oh, I'm so sorry, John.  I was distracted for a moment."

John's voice dropped a bit.  "Remembering old times?"

Lara nodded.  "Has it really been so long?"

"Almost fourteen years since I first met you.  Three years since the last Smithsonian gala."

"Ah, yes-- stuffy people, small talk, and far too little time to catch up with old friends."

They sat musing for a few moments as the waiter refreshed their drinks-- John's whiskey rocks and Lara's fine Chardonnay.

"So," Lara began, "what brings you to Arizona?"

"Same thing as you-- the Dream Catcher."

Lara raised her eyebrows in surprise, but just for a moment. From what she'd heard and what she knew, John was one of the most resourceful men in the world.  "How'd you know where to find it?"

John smirked.  "The same way you did-- The Book of Navajo Tales that was auctioned off a month ago.  It contained a story about an ancient clan, the Dream People, who were swallowed by the earth almost a thousand years ago.  They were never heard from again, taking with them a mystical Dream Catcher that was supposed to be able to make dreams come true."

"Still lecturing, eh, John?  In any case, I know for a fact that you're not the one who bought it.  It was purchased by the Smithsonian Institute."  Lara leaned forward.  "You didn't finally take them up on their offers, did you?"

"Oh, no, no.  But I still have my connections in Washington."

"Ah, yes.  What was her name?  Jennifer?" Lara asked with a smile.

He nodded.  "She also told me that her boss, one Mr. Phillips was visited by a certain friendly brunette not too long ago."

"We all have our ways."

Another awkward pause followed.  Finally, John took a gulp from his glass.

"So, how have you been, Lara?"

"Very well, but very busy."

"So I've heard.  The Atlantean Scion, the Ark of the Covenant… exceptional finds.  You're the envy of every archaeologist in the world."

Lara shrugged modestly.  "I'm an overachiever, what can I say?"

"I remember a time when you weren't."

"Very funny.  But what about you?  Last year it was the wreck of the Argo and the Golden Fleece, wasn't it?  And how goes the search for the Spear of Longines?"

John laughed, and allowed Lara to change the subject. "Slow, boring research-- you know how it is."

"I know you," she drawled, "and you don't _do_ 'research'."

"All right, so I've been traipsing around Europe hunting the damn thing down."

"Now _that's_ the John Talbot I remember."

"Is that so?"

"Oh, yes.  Independent, resourceful-- a man of action.  Indiana Jones and James Bond all tied up in a very handsome parcel."

Lara was satisfied to see the slight blush come to the man's cheeks.

"Flattery will get you anywhere, Lara Croft," he quipped.  "But it won't get me to pick up the check."

"I wouldn't dream of it," she said in her best innocent-schoolgirl voice.

"So," John said, taking another pull of his whiskey, "when are you going back after the Dream Catcher?"

"The day after tomorrow.  I think I'll take a day off, enjoy the scenery, relax."

"Would you like some company, then?"

Lara leaned forward.  "For the day off, or the expedition?"

John leaned in as well.  "Both."

She mulled it over, wondering if he was after more than just an artifact.

"All right.  For old time's sake."

He raised his glass.  "Here's to old time's sake, then."

Lara touched her glass to his with a clink.  "To old time's sake."

**********

After dinner, they took a moonlight jeep drive out into the desert, followed by quick hike that led them to the top of a small bluff.  From their vantage point, they were treated to a breathtaking vista of clear night sky and flat, dry land turned a smoky blue.  They sat together for a few minutes before heading back.

On the way down the bluff, Lara's foot slipped on some loose gravel, and she took John's hand to steady herself.  Without a word, she let John keep it until they reached John's jeep.  They drove in silence back into town.

John walked Lara to the door of her hotel room.

"Believe me, John, I'd offer a nightcap if I wasn't so tired."

He smiled.  "I'll take a raincheck.  When should I pick you up tomorrow?"

"How does an early picnic lunch out on that bluff sound?"

"Like heaven.  I'll be here at ten."

"I'll be waiting," she said, then kissed him on the cheek.

Lara let the door click closed behind her, then dropped heavily to the bed.

*'I'll be waiting.'* she teased herself.  *That was a disgusting display.  You're acting like a bloody schoolgirl.  You always do around that man.*

Lara couldn't argue with herself, so she simply ignored the voice.  She showered, then climbed into bed.

*You always do around that man…*

TO BE CONTINUED…