Disclaimer: Characters and places are not my own.

A/N: I have no idea what the interest in a non-action story about Lara and Bryce is, but after watching the films I wanted to read one and couldn't find any, so I figured I'd write one myself. This is my first Tomb Raider fic and feedback would be much appreciated. Hope you enjoy!

Lara Croft's New Project

Chapter One

Lara Croft returned her twin 45's to their holsters and bounded up the back garden path into Croft Manor. She came upon Hillary in the hall and couldn't keep the sheer enjoyment from her face.

"Ran them all off. Good fun, wouldn't you say?"

The butler raised an eyebrow and gazed over the shattered glass and splintered wood that littered the floor. This little break-in was going to be a nightmare to clean up. And it was becoming all too common an occurrence, as far as he was concerned. But the Lady herself did not seem to share this concern, he noted. In fact, she looked positively cheerful.

"You have always had an interesting definition of 'fun,' Lara."

Lara smiled and pushed a stray wisp of hair from her face. "Now, then, where is Bryce?"

"Having a good cry, I would imagine. Or will be, once he sees what they've done to his computers."

They were walking back toward the ballroom, side-stepping the larger bits of debris along the way.

"I'm surprised he didn't see," Lara commented as they turned the corner, "I thought he was out here when the attack started.

Hillary was puzzled. "I think he was here at one point. I haven't seen him in some time, though. It does get a bit confusing when there's all the smoke and bombs and guns going off."

"Hmm." Lara didn't quite agree. She found it rather easy to keep her focus in situations like that, exhilarating, really, but she did have to remind herself that not everyone felt this way, least of all her two closest friends. They handled it well enough, though, compared to average people. Anything could become normal, she supposed, after it happened enough times.

They entered the ballroom and Lara headed toward the annexed tech room where Bryce's painstakingly set up bank of monitors and equipment was now a pile of shattered and smoldering circuitry and housing. A small grenade of some sort had gone astray during the attack. It had caused an impressive explosion when it contacted with the equipment bank and it would no doubt take weeks to repair the damage.

"Poor Bryce," she murmured but didn't feel too sorry. He would enjoy having a go at all the complex rebuilding and programming, she imagined. It was the sort of thing he tended to complain about but in secret quite liked. They were similar in that way, both needing to be busy at all times.

She kicked at the still-twitching remains of something robotic then froze.

There was a familiar skinny, tattooed arm sticking out from amongst the wreckage.

"Hillary," Lara instructed sharply, "Come quickly. I've found Bryce."

Hillary carried Bryce's limp body quickly to the nearest of the bedrooms, Lara following right behind him. He wasn't sure whether or not he should move him when he was unconscious, but with the computer equipment smoldering and sparking and smoke still so heavy in the air, Hillary reasoned that it was for the best.

His mind marveled briefly over how light a burden Bryce was. Hillary had always been passingly aware that Bryce was a small fellow, the same way one notices that someone is tall or has dark eyes, but he had never really noticed it until now. It seemed that somehow Bryce's strong personality made him come off as larger than he really was. At the moment, with that mouth of his silenced, he felt very small.

These thoughts disappeared as Hillary set Bryce down upon the bed and began assessing his injuries.

"Should I call for an ambulance?"

Hillary glanced up but then immediately focused his attention away. There was genuine fear in Lara's eyes and he couldn't stomach that directly at the moment.

"There will be questions," he muttered.

Lara nodded and folded her arms. "You can help with the immediate injuries, then?"

Hillary was checking Bryce's arm for a fracture with one hand and examining the wound on his scalp with the other. "He's going to need stitches."

"You've sewn me up more times than I care to remember."

The slightest smile passed over Hillary's square jaw, then was gone. "I can take care of that and get him bandaged up, but it's best if he does get a go-over by a professional to make certain there aren't any damages we can't see."

"Dr. Battenly."

"His number is in your office. In the rolodex to the left of your atlas of Cairo and just in front of your gilded throwing knife."

"Right."

Hillary took a deep breath once Lara had gone. It had only been a matter of time before something like this happened. He would never say such a thing out loud, of course. Lara was already taking this situation too much to heart.

He produced a small leather case from his suit jacket and from it took a slim but sharp pair of steel scissors. Then he smiled sadly at the tech. He was going to have to cut away at some of that great mess of hair in order to have a clear area to suture. Bryce was not going to be happy about that.

Bryce awoke with a terrible headache and no idea where he was. As he realized from the wood paneling and classic style of the furniture that he must be in one of the bedrooms at Croft Manor, he fantasized momentarily that it was Lara's room. Perhaps he'd sleepwalked in. But then, if that were true, he wouldn't be alive at this moment. Must not be true, then. Pity. He started to roll over but a hand shot out to hold him back.

"Don't move."

Bryce squinted. "Lara?"

"Yes."

"It's better if you don't move, Bryce." Hillary stepped forward and adjusted a bandage on the tech's forehead.

Bryce frowned up at him, then glared back at Lara. "Would you care to tell me what's going on, Lara-love?"

"You were injured during the attack. It was my fault. I was having too much fun with them. I should have just gotten them out as quickly as possible."

"Ah," recognition entered the tech's expression slowly as he remembered what had happened before he lost consciousness, "Was it the crystal they were after?"

"I assume so."

"Did they get it?"

"Of course not. They'll have to try a lot harder than that. But it was probably for the better that they showed up when they did. I have a feeling they won't be trying again."

"That's a girl." Bryce smiled, then winced slightly at the pain in his head. "What's the damage, then?" He asked, trying his best not to let on to his discomfort.

"The ballroom and main hall will need some straightening up, some glass will need to be replaced, some hedges will need to be replanted in the gardens, five or six computers destroyed, several monitors, Great-Aunt Hilda's china lamps, and of course…one badly injured tech."

"That system'll take weeks to get back up."

"Well, once you make a full recovery, I'll see that you get started on that."

Bryce sneered at this and picked up his arm in order to examine the sling that it was hanging in. The movement caused him pain, though and he decided to let it stay where it was.

"So, what's the damage to me, then? Bum arm, it looks like, an' a headache."

"Concussion," Hillary corrected.

"You also have some lacerations from the shrapnel," Lara added, "a dislocated shoulder from when you fell and what appears to be a fractured fibia, as well as three broken fingers and a sprained wrist . Hillary fixed up what he could and gave you some stitches."

"Thanks, mate."

Hillary nodded and looked away. Bryce could almost swear that he was blushing. The butler had many talents but did not often seem comfortable taking complements on them.

Lara smiled, proud of Hillary as well. "Of course, we've a physician on his way to come have a look at you, just to be certain that there's nothing we've missed, but I believe with Hillary and I watching over you, you'll soon be good as new. You're quite lucky, you know, to have gotten through that explosion with only the injuries that you have."

"Me mum always said I had a thick skull."

"How fortunate for all of us."

"Now, hold up, Lara," Bryce raised an eyebrow as he suddenly thought of something, "You said tha' you and Hilly are goin' to be helping me out?"

"That's right."

"An that it'll take a few weeks?"

"If not a bit more for some of your more serious injuries, yes."

"But you're supposed to be leavin' for Taipei tomorrow."

"Mmm."

He looked at her suspiciously. "So are you plannin' on carting me up in one o' your mad planes and taking me with you like this?"

"Of course not. Taipei will have to wait."

"But the crystal…"

"Will wait."

"Now, that doesn't sound right. Lady Lara does not let things wait."

"When it's a matter of the health of one of my dear friends, a silly crystal and a temple can surely wait. They've been there for 8,000 years. They can wait a few more weeks."

Bryce eyed her, not quite buying her indifference, though secretly, he was rather touched. "But it was your pet project."

"I've got a new project."

"Yeah? What's that, now? You researching something else? Maybe I can help you. Can probably still type with one o' me hands."

"No, Bryce." Lara smiled devilishly. "You are my new project."