Disclaimer – I own no one in this story apart from Melissa

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Chapter Ten

- Lara's insecurity -

He awoke a while later, when the room was in utter darkness. He moved his head and realised that Lara was no longer in his protective arms. A few seconds later, when his eyes had adjusted to the darkness, he saw her silhouette against the window, staring straight outside.

Kurtis sat up, the movement apparently alerting Lara to his consciousness, because she began to speak.

"Melissa told me things." She said quietly, almost inaudibly. "About– about… you and her. About you being together… about your prophesy."

"Did she?" He felt his stomach drop.

Lara turned to face him, her face shining with tears in the dim light filtering from under the door. "Is it so, Kurtis Trent?" Her voice was shaking. "Are you to fall in love with Melissa?"

"Lara… what are you–"

"Answer me!" Lara closed her eyes, clearly upset. Experimenting, Kurtis pushed his mind into hers and searched. He found no lingering sparks of physical pain, in other words, the potion had worked on her, which confused him. But she was in emotional pain and that shocked him, her despair, troubling him.

"I do not love Melissa." Kurtis said slowly.

"Will you ever?"

"I don't know. I don't believe in fate. I don't believe in prophesy and even if the prophesy is true, she can't be the Chosen One! How can I love someone I dislike so much?"

"You dislike her?"

"It's her manner," Kurtis shook his head. "I'm grateful for the place to stay but… ugh… to be honest… I don't like her, but I don't dislike her. I don't trust her… it's confusin'."

"I understand," Lara nodded. "That's how I first felt for you. That's what concerns me."

"What d'you mean?" Kurtis stood up. He felt stronger, the malady wiped from his body.

"It's nothing," Lara shook her head and looked back out the window.

"Lara," Kurtis stood right behind her, staring at the curve of her cheek, the tears glistening in the silvery moonlight. She blinked and looked down at the windowsill.

"I'm scared." She admitted. "I'm scared that we'll not find Amanda, I'm scared that Avalon will forever remain closed to us… I'm just so scared." She turned around and put a trembling hand on Kurtis's cheek. "I'm scared of being left alone, please… My Lux Veritatis Knight, don't leave me, don't leave me to find Amanda on my own."

"I wouldn't dream of it,"

Lara closed her eyes again and broke down into grateful tears. Kurtis held her in his arms wordlessly, kissed her hair and began to hum, gently stroking Lara's back until her tears finally died down and she buried her head into his shoulder, holding him close.

He held her that way for a while, his head resting on hers, with his own eyes closed. He imagined a time when all this was over and Lara went back home, but the only problem was he couldn't imagine himself to be there with her. He could imagine her alone, getting out of a black cab, a suitcase in her hand, staring at the walls with hostility. He could imagine her walking to the door and opening it, hesitating before she walked over the threshold. She looked back.

He shook his head, clearing the thought, and slowly, he led her back to the bed, where she fell asleep in his arms, exactly like she did before…

Lara sighed and looked out the window of the cab, seeing her home loom into view. She closed her eyes reflectively and turned her head away, as if not seeing it would make it not real.

The car came to a halt and the driver turned in his seat. "That's twenty quid sixty love." He said brashly and Lara opened her eyes, gracing him with her famous 'If it weren't illegal' look. She reached for her purse and gave him a twenty and three twenty pence pieces. Grabbing the suitcase she had brought with her, she got out the cab, staring at the place she had called home since before she could remember. The place she loathed.

The one place she didn't want to be. Being home told her that she had given up, that she had admitted defeat and Lara Croft did not admit defeat. She shook her head.

Even she couldn't bring people from the grave.

She sighed and walked up the extensive drive, dragging the suitcase with her, thoroughly depressed. Rain clouds were forming above her, matching her hopeless mood.

At the door, she easily pushed it open, knowing that Winston would await her return and would leave the door unlocked in the daytime. She stared at the familiar hall, then turned to look down the drive, forehead creasing. She had thought she had heard… No, perhaps not.

And she walked in.

…When Kurtis woke up however, he had a hard time deciding if it was a dream or not. If he asked Lara and it turned out that it was a dream, she may get freaked out that he was having dreams about her. If not, she may just this he was a tosser for not taking the situation seriously.

He longed for some normality, he knew he shouldn't complain when it was handed to him.

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Thanks to:

Nightwish – Don't worry. Melissa's just a bit ditzy and self-obsessed.

TangoFever – I like updating! Are you complaining? I've tweeked my chapters… nearly all of them and please, continue to review.

Pen-a-holic – I don't wanna have to answer to the monkey!