Disclaimer: I don't own National Treasure
I'm five seconds short of collapsing into a sugar coma, so I want to quickly post this cause I won't be able to tomorrow. Anyway, hope you like! Thank you reviewers, you are amazing! Forgive errors.
Elizabeth moved for the millionth time and cursed the mother of the child two seats ahead. Couldn't she slip that kid some Benadryl or something? She was literally glaring at the back of the seat in front of her as if it would solve the problem.
"Why are we sitting in coach again? We did find a ten billion dollar treasure, or did you forget that small fact?" Riley asked with a grimace, noticing the similar distaste Lizzie had as well. The smell of nasty plane food and cries of spoiled toddler was not at all appealing to his senses.
Lizzie buried her head suddenly into his shoulder, making him tense. "Ugh. I am two seconds away from smacking that floozy mother." She said against him. Riley looked over at the mother who was apparently too busy reading a glamour magazine to settle her child down.
"I can move if you'd like." He told her simply, causing her to giggle. It made him smile despite his annoyed feelings.
Ben, who was sitting next to Lizzie, turned to them. "You're not moving anywhere."
Lizzie looked to her right and saw Ben frowning at their conversation and Abigail staring wide eyed at the child who seemed to have discovered a new octave. Talking was limited after that and an hour later, when the kid finally tired himself out, Lizzie was becoming bored. She hadn't really planned ahead in entertainment for the trip. She was just happy to have gone. She looked over at Riley and noticed him doing some crossword puzzle. She held back a snort.
"So," She drawled out quietly, hoping to not disturb Abigail, who'd fallen asleep and Ben who was nodding off.
Riley glanced quickly in her direction, halting his thinking. "So…"
"What exactly do you think about Aliens?"
NTNTNTNTNTNTNTNT
"Don't mind me," Riley huffed, trying to unload his and Abigail's luggage. Ben and Abby paid him no mind and continued forward to the house. Lizzie moved her duffel bag to her other arm and helped him unload. "Thanks."
She shrugged and continued toward the house. She snickered when he got the heap stuck against the porch steps and grabbed the case out of his right hand so he could manage the rest.
"So, what'd you find?" Patrick asked excitedly as they settled in. "A clue?"
"As a matter of fact we did," Ben told him, "Riley, set up the-"
"Ahem." Lizzie cleared her throat loudly, interrupting her father. He looked at her weirdly as if to say 'what?' and she sighed. "Don't you remember what Riley told you in the car yesterday?"
Riley had expected Ben to forget that little incident, ready to jump at the task, but felt a strange sensation as he realized Lizzie had actually listened to what he said. It was appreciation, he suspected, and he like it. A lot.
"In the car..?" Ben murmured confusedly, ignoring Abigail's pointed look.
"Assuming, Ben!" Elizabeth said loudly. "You are assuming again! Didn't Riley ask for you to ask him? He deserves a little bit of respect, I think."
Ben was not at all happy about being reminded of that, and he was definitely not pleased that Lizzie was so passionate about Riley's respect and whatnot. Of course Riley was his dearest friend, but he didn't like when being corrected or scolded. "Right. Riley could you please open the file of the picture to show my dad."
Lizzie smiled, causing Riley's ego inflate a little bit. "Why, sure Ben. So nice of you to ask."
After setting everything up, Patrick studied the photo with utmost interest. "I can't read the whole thing," He started after a few minutes observing. "but I can tell you that these are definitely pre-colonial Native American markings."
"Easily five hundred years old." Ben said, mostly to himself.
"Easily," Patrick agreed, looking back at the screen and zooming in.
Lizzie looked at the picture and wondered why she was even trying to figure it out. She had no idea whatsoever about Native American markings. She sighed and lifted herself on the table, her thigh bumping Riley's hand.
"I can identify one symbol," Patrick said lowly, pointing at the zoomed in screen. "Look at this. Do you know what that is?"
"A weird pyramid thingee?" Lizzie questioned jokingly as Ben questioned about something scared.
"That symbol is Cibola." Patrick answered, ignoring them.
"Cibola?" Lizzie muttered, "as in-"
"The city of gold…" Ben finished for her, staring off in wonder. "The city of gold."
After absorbing the information, the foursome got together and headed into the living room to research. Lizzie stayed behind, thinking of what had been said. Was there really another hidden treasure? How lucky was she to even be in this chain of events, she mused. It made her think of her life back at her grandmother's.
She bit her lip, her mind back to her childhood house and other family. Was her grandmother worried? Did she even know she was gone? Was she alright? Reluctantly, Lizzie decided to make a call and went upstairs quietly. She sat on her father's temporary bed and crossed her legs while staring at the phone on the night stand.
After a good twenty or thirty minutes of working up the courage and avoiding the task, she picked up the phone and dialed, only to hang up right after. "Ugh, I am so pathetic." She mumbled falling back onto the bed and looking up at the ceiling. I'm sure Grand'Mere is fine. She's probably out on a social dinner party or something at the Club… Yes! That's it! But… what if she's not. I have to let her know I'm okay… I'll just leave a message! A message! Perfect!
She sat up and dialed again, more than relieved no one answered. She could tell her voice was shaky when she spoke but wasn't surprised. Her grandmother had always been intimidating. "Grand'Mere, it's Elizabeth… I uh, I just want to let you know that I'm okay... I also want to tell you I won't be coming back home. I'm sorry I never turned out like you wanted me to be and… I'm sorry if I was a bit of a disappointment…" She paused, not sure on what to add but felt like more should be said, "I don't really know what else to say… Um, thanks for taking me in… Goodbye."
It was much harder than she anticipated it being and she was a little surprised at the weight of emotions she was feeling. Sure, she didn't like her grandmother too much, but the woman did provide and take care for her. She frowned when realizing her eyes were watery and jumped about a foot in the air when she heard someone clear their throat in the doorway.
"Ben!" She exclaimed, feeling her cheeks heat up. Had he heard her little one sided conversation. The look on his face was thoughtful as he walked in the room and sat next to her.
"I guess this would be a bad time to tell you we need to pay a visit to my mother, huh?" He tried joking, not used to these types of situations.
Lizzie smiled slightly, happy he was trying to make her feel better. "Sorry I didn't help," She tried apologizing about her abrupt disappearence.
"Don't be. We didn't find much anyway."
"Just come to the conclusion to visit your mother?" She grinned, tying her hair up to which he nodded and agreed.
"Don't apologize for being who you are." He told her seriously after a small silence while grabbing her hand. "You're no disappointment, and you can do whatever you put your mind to. Look at me, I put my mind to finding the Templar's treasure, and I did."
Lizzie felt her eyes burn again, and quickly wiped the moisture away. She wasn't used to people telling her these things, but she wasn't going to be modest. She liked it. It felt wonderful to have someone say such positive things about her. Without a second thought, she embraced Ben tightly, catching him off guard. He hugged her back though, awkwardly patting her back.
"You're not too bad on this dad thing, you know." She laughed, pulling away.
"I try." He told her with an easy smile. "Now let's go. We've got a City of Gold to discover."
Review? Please? Maybe? :D
Gollum4077: lol Glad I'm here to impress! I'm actually having trouble with my writing because I feel like I do more telling than showing. It's a bit frustrating, but I'm working on it. As for Lizzie's "upfront" attitude, I develop her as I go along. Hope I'm doing well! I like the idea of Riley charming her... *opens Word document and types away* Thank you so much for leaving such great reviews and constructive criticism! It is greatly appreciated!
Rachel Mantegna: So happy to have caused such great reaction! Thank you for reviewing! You are awesome!
horro-zombie-gem: Yay! Glad you liked it! Thanks for revewing!