A/N: Ok, so this is my first attempt at a fanfiction, actually my first attempt at writing anything, ever. I hope you like it and I don't bore you out of your minds, fingers crossed! Any feedback or comments would be lovely as I would like to know what people think of my writing. so here goes :)

Insanity of a Goddess

Chapter One: Alone

"All men's misfortunes spring from their hatred of being alone."

The rain was hammering down hard on the windows of Croft Manor's gym. The weather had been like this for weeks and gave no sign of stopping soon. This, however, did not bother the young women currently inside the gym.

"Who needs to go outside to exercise?" she asked out loud after executing a perfect swan dive followed by three handsprings and a forward somersault without even breaking a sweat.

Lara Croft had spent the day working out in the gym toning her already athletic body. This had been her daily routine everyday for nearly two weeks and she was growing tired of not having a purpose. Zip had taken his annual one month holiday and was due back in two weeks. Lara, however, was not sure she could go another day being trapped in the tedious routine of waking up, getting breakfast, working out, having lunch, working out again, eating dinner and then working out yet again before retiring for the evening.

She wanted adventure, something exciting. She wanted to feel the thrill of being on the edge of danger and not knowing what was coming round the corner. She wanted the mystery of exploring and finding unknown myths and secrets of the past. Yet for months there had been nothing to catch Lara's attention. Sure, there had been offers, an archaeology dig here, a talk on ancient Egyptians there, but everything seemed dull. Plus she would most likely have to work in a team and answer to someone else. That was something Miss Croft was not very good at, obeying orders.

Tired from the day's activities, she slowly walked through the many corridors of Croft Manor to her bedroom. Winston had kindly left a pot of tea by her bed so she made herself a cup. She then shuffled over to one of her no doubt expensive yet comfy armchairs and stared out of the window into the black of the night. She sipped her tea for a while, enjoying the hot sugary taste. That's one thing people always got wrong about her. Lara Croft loved tea and took it with lots of milk and two sugars. She mindlessly fiddled with her braid as she began to reminisce.

It had been three months since Natla, Avalon and the discovery of her Mother's fate. She had come to terms with her mother's loss, preferring to think of the strong Amelia Croft rather than the mindless zombie she had become. In Lara's eyes, her mother had died when she pulled Excalibur out of the stone dais all those years ago in Nepal. Her mother was not the only person Lara had lost on that particular adventure. Alister's death had hit Lara hard but she had not given herself time to grieve and by the time she did have time to, she already felt she had avenged his death. She did, however miss his sarcastic yet witty comments.

Working independently (minus Zip of course) had never bothered Lara before, yet after finally learning what had happened to her mother, her only remaining family member, and then Alister, someone she classed as a close friend, she felt increasingly lonely. A feeling that only grew everyday day she spent in Croft Manor alone. She slowly began to relax and memories of a time when she didn't have to be alone crept back, of being able to depend on someone and trust them, of those blue eyes...

"What are you doing?" she suddenly thought, mentally shaking herself "look at yourself, world renowned tomb raider and you're sat at home drinking tea, feeling sorry for yourself!" She left her tea half drunk on a coffee table, and walked into her ensuite. She slipped out of her training gear, a pair of black jogging bottoms and a cropped sleeveless vest and stepped under the flow of running water. She let herself relax as the refreshing water caressed her body and she tried to clear her hazy brain. She really needed to get a grip.

Lara slowly began to wake, her body becoming aware of her surroundings. She felt strangely calm and relaxed, not something she usually felt at 5:30 in the morning, when she woke to start training. She turned onto her side and looked at her alarm clock.

"What?" she shouted out loud, sitting upright in bed, confusion dancing across her face. How can it be 10:30 she thought? Her alarm was set to go off at 5:30, she must have slept through it. Then she remembered the dream she had been having, being trapped in an airlock, that arrogant yet attractive American accent and that smug yet seductive smirk. No wonder she'd missed her alarm, even from beyond the grave Kurtis was managing to ruin her plans. She smiled a sad smile but quickly pushed the dream and her memories of him from her mind, not allowing herself to regret. She got up and tied her hair in a loose braid. It had been so long since anyone had seen her with her hair down, it was like it was an intimate part of her now, she felt vulnerable wearing it loose. She headed for the kitchen, a little puzzled with what to do, her routine ruined by the fact she had got up five hours late.

Winston was in the kitchen preparing Lara her breakfast, obviously aware she had slept in as she normally did it herself. A fact that was reinforced due to her attire, she was still in her silk pyjama bottoms and vest top.

"Good morning Lady Croft, I trust you slept well?" Winston asked. Lara could've sworn she saw his lip twitch a little, as if he was having a hard time trying not to smile.

"Morning Winston, I did, very well" she answered slightly embarrassed, Lara hardly ever got up late and Winston was finding this most recent blip rather hilarious. She ate her breakfast quickly, eager to get training and make up for lost time. She got up, thanked Winston and went to leave the room.

"You received a phone call from an old friend of your father's this morning, one Professor Lorenzo Auditore" Winston called after her. This made Lara stop dead in her tracks.

"Zio Lorenzo? Did he say why he was calling?" Lorenzo Auditore was one of Lara's father's dearest friends. He was head of the Greek mythology department at Galleria Dell'Accademia in Venice. Her father had often taken her there with him when he went to see Lorenzo. Lara had grown very close to the old man and saw him as a family member, hence why she called him uncle; she was always pleased to hear from him.

"He didn't leave a message, just asked if you could ring him when you had the time." Winston said while clearing the table of Lara's breakfast.

Lara practically ran to the phone, full of excitement. She found his number in her address book she kept by her phone and dialled.

"Salve?" and old but rich Italian voice replied.

"Ciao, Zio Lorenzo, it's Lara, you called earlier?" she suddenly realised how much she had missed her old friend.

"Ah Lara, bella bambina, are you well?" He always used to call her bella bambina, beautiful girl, and it suddenly made her feel like a child again, young and carefree. Lorenzo had always managed to bring out Lara's fun side.

"I'm good Zio Lorenzo, how are you?"

After the initial pleasantries had ended and Lara and Lorenzo had had a little chat and caught up he explained why he had rung.

"There is a serious matter I would like to talk to you about, per favour. 'Owever it is, how you say, complicato. I would like to talk to you in person, if that is ok. When are you next able to come to Venezia?"

A smile slowly crept across Lara's face, whatever Lorenzo wanted to talk about sounded interesting.

"I can be at the Academia tomorrow morning, shall we say nine o'clock?"

A/N: So there we go, chapter one. I hope you all enjoyed it and are eagerly awaiting chapter two :P Thank you very much for taking the time to read my work, it's greatly appreciated. Feedback or comments would be lovely or if you have any questions just send me a PM. I will post chapter two ASAP!