(Lara and Sam take their new ward Dolma and Reyes' daughter Alicia on a camping/expedition trip. Sam disagrees with what Lara brought for them to eat. Based on a prompt from plastic-pipes on tumblr (Warning: set after What Binds The Soul! Contains some spoilers!))
Alisha is a few years older than Dolma, but the two get along pretty well. It was Alisha's idea to bring the other girl along, and when I saw how interested Dolma was, I couldn't say no. As long as the girls can keep up, then I've no complaints.
It's a sort of test run for Alisha. Camping is nothing new to her, but an expedition is another beast all together. The area we selected might actually yield a discovery, but I don't expect anything more complicated than some pottery or bits of jewellry. But I still remember my very first discovery and sometimes that bit of jewellry can be life-changing.
We reach our campsite just before dark, after several hours of hiking through dense woods and underbrush. Sam has had her camera going the entire time, and now she sets up a tripod so she can record us setting up camp. She swivels it towards me and I roll my eyes, before dumping our tent on the ground.
Everything is brand new. Sam picked out three tents, one for us and one for each of the girls. They're lightweight but durable and designed to keep somewhat cool during hotter weather and somewhat warm when it cools down. They wouldn't survive the winter in Tibet, but they're perfect for a spring camping trip.
I get my tent up in a few minutes. It's large enough for two people. Sam and I each have a sleeping bag but I half expect her to migrate into mine, or zip them together to form one very large sleeping bag. Either way, I'm going to have to deal with her cold feet.
Alisha gets hers up next, and I move to help Dolma but Sam catches my hand. "Let her do it on her own."
She's right, so I have her help me unpack our equipment. Sam has her camera case and I brought along the bare minimum for an expedition - rope and grapples, climbing equipment, a shovel, and a kit with brushes and small digging utensils.
By the time I have camp set up just the way I like it, Dolma has her tent up and I feel myself swell up with pride.
"Okay girls!" Sam claps her hands together and rustles through her pack. "Lara brought some really bad food for us to eat, so I made sure to pack us something good!"
"It's not bad."
"You brought MREs, Lara. Military rations!"
"They're easier to eat, there's a vegetarian option for Dolma, and they don't require refrigeration." I actually quite like them, but Roth relied on them when I was younger and we'd go camping, so I may have developed an affinity.
"Just for that…" Sam pulled out a box of Jaffa Cakes. "One for me… one for Alisha, and one for Dolma. None for you."
"Sam!" I'm horrified and I'm sure it comes across on my face because she's laughing at me. So I stick out my lower lip and pout at her.
"Ooh that's not fair."
They're my favorite and I'm not going to let her get away with not giving me any. I pick her camera up. "Hand over the cakes or the camera gets it."
"You wouldn't dare." Sam holds the box over the camp fire. "You do, and into the fire they go."
"Are they always like this?" I catch Dolma's whisper to Alisha and glance over at them.
"Pretty much." She nudges the Tibetan girl with her elbow. "Welcome to the family."
