You really can't believe it sometimes. How a chance encounter in a library lead to a discovery that was better than any archeological find. Sam was one of a kind. Her overzealousness would be the death of you, but you'd figured that out a long time ago. She was your weakness, and yet, it was her that made you flexible. Made you strong. And despite trying to stay away from her in small breaks, mostly to heal the pain, you'd come to appreciate the bittersweet suffering, which was indeed masochistic, but that was the oxygen you needed to survive.
Survival.
The word kept playing on your mind for reasons you weren't quite aware of.
Back in England, you were surviving off wages you earned, adamant in your refusal of the Croft inheritance. But you weren't home anymore, and graduation felt like such a long time ago. It was very begrudgingly that you accepted Sam's offer to fund your expedition into the Dragon's Triangle, a perilous ocean territory inside which you believed Yamatai, once a place confined to Dr. Whitman's lecture theatres, was located. It was strange, but you swore that something inside you kept guiding your every move, as if a magnet was pulling you towards your destiny - whatever it was.
That's how you wound up inside a musty ship bunker, chained to a desk and poring over research, completely convinced that Yamatai was waiting to be discovered just to the east. You knew Whitman would disagree; he always went by the book. The cartographers hadn't mapped out the region accurately enough, and he was of the opinion the ship should head west, but you trusted your hunches. They were usually right. Usually.
"Here's the soon to be famous world archaeologist, Lara Croft, in her native habitat."
Oh God. Not again.
"She's on the hunt for the lost kingdom of Yamatai, home to the fabulous Himiko, mythical sun queen, and, ancestor of yours truly."
You tried suppressing your inevitable smile.
"Sam...this is serious."
"Oh sweetie, I know. I'm just trying to lighten the mood here."
After all this time, you still couldn't help looking up hopefully whenever she used endearments like that. Her eyes were hidden behind a flashy new video camera she'd purchased just for the trip.
"Everyone's so on edge. What are you so worried about?"
You sighed. Hope was nice, no matter how fleeting it was.
"I'm close to something. I'm sure of it. I just don't know if the others will listen. Or...even if they should."
"Lara...you know this stuff better than anyone. Seriously! I'm not just saying this to make you feel better. I trust you, Roth trusts you, you got this. Now let's take a break, ok?"
You turned to face her, silently grateful that someone cared enough to pull you out of the sea of research. You could never save yourself from it, it seemed.
"Ok, ok. And Sam...thanks."
As she slowly walked away, you caught her mumbling something about you not always being "this serious", and that just made you smile again. If it wasn't for Sam constantly saving you, you probably would have been.
Maybe it was time you tried saving her for a change.
A/N: I would gladly go down with the the SS Endurance/am a devoted Salara shipper. Writing this crushed my soul. Though I hadn't seen many unrequited Sam/Lara fics and stupidly decided to contribute. Permission to imprison me granted.
