Author's note: My other Tomb Raider story Tis The Season has been discontinued. I'm currently working on redoing Sisterly Love. But I wouldn't suggest holding your breath for it. Anywho, here's a new story that I've been thinking about. Enjoy.
Oh and my shiny new website, where you can find tons more of my work is http://mblow0t5.b0x.com
Tomb Raider Vs. Tomb Raider
Alex West parked his car outside of the grand Croft manor and glared up at the structure. He got out of his new vehicle and glanced around the scenic grounds. The race track, the elegant and tall stone walls, the carefully tended gardens. If he wasn't so furious with the manor's owner, he might have enjoyed the settings a bit more.
Slipping his Rayban sunglasses into his jacket pocket, he walked up to the front door of the manor and rang the doorbell. Within a few seconds, the door swung open and Alex was face to face with Hillary, who politely smiled at him.
"Good morning, Mr. West. What can I do for you?" He asked in a cheery voice.
"Where's Lara?" Alex snapped.
"I'm sorry sir, she's not up yet. Would you like to leave her a message?"
Like hell she's not awake yet. The little backstabbing bitch is probably throwing a party right now. . . Without another word, Alex shoved past Hillary, almost knocking the butler over, and ascended the long flight of stairs to the upper rooms.
"Mr. West! You were not invited-!" Hillary objected.
"Shove it, Hillary!" Alex shouted back down to him. He was too angry to heed Hillary's further warnings, especially the ones about Lara shooting him for intruding on her. He was armed, after all. Not to mention that he deserved an explanation for Lara's recent actions. Alex made his way up the stairs and burst into Lara's bedroom.
"Lara Croft!" He thundered. He looked around her room, then spotted her, curled up in bed, with a book laying beside her, still peacefully asleep. "Lara, wake up!" He roughly shook her by her shoulder, then realized that she was sleeping nude.
Alex was studying the bare contours of her back, when suddenly, Lara grabbed the knife that she kept under her pillow, caught Alex by his shirt and pinned him against the bed, pressing the long blade of the knife against his throat.
"Good morning, Mr. West." Lara said, in her soft, accented voice.
Had Alex not be within an inch of his life, he would have been rather please with the situation of being pinned to a bed by a beautiful, naked woman.
"I suppose you have an explanation for this. . . ." She said, studying his handsome features. "Otherwise, Hillary is in need of some fertilizer for his garden."
"Get off me!" Alex shouted, shoving the knife from his throat and sitting up. Lara sat up as well and replaced the knife under her pillow.
"Hm, that was the first time you've ever said that to me." Lara commented. She got out of bed and walked over to her large closet. "So, are you going to give me an explanation for all of this, or do you want me to beat it out of you?" She asked as she selected a white bathrobe from the monochromatic clothing.
"Hold on, Lara, you owe me an explanation!" Alex snapped.
"For what?" Lara asked, slipping into the robe and tying it around her narrow waist.
"For what!? Don't act so damn innocent!"
"Alex, I am very tired and I do not feel like playing guessing games. Either tell me what is bothering you, or I might just test out my new sniper rifle on you." She said, walking over to her laptop computer that sat on her cluttered desk and pressed the power button. She turned back to Alex.
"Well?"
"Alright, fine. Tell me why I picked up a copy of the paper this morning and found out that you have just acquired the Eye of Odin for your personal collection." Alex demanded.
"Hm, because I have." Lara shrugged.
"And that one of my students was found hog tied in his boxers in the snow, near the excavation site?!"
Lara shrugged again.
"Listen Lara," Alex glared, approaching the tomb raider and forcing her back against the table, leaving her no room to escape. "I don't really care about your silly little personal vendetta against me, but how dare you take it out on my students?" He growled.
"Do you really think that you're intimidating, Alex?" Lara smirked.
"Damnit, Lara! Why can't you just leave my students alone?!" He roughly grabbed her arms and shook her.
Suddenly, Lara's knee connected with Alex's groin. He swore and doubled over in pain. Lara placed her hands on his shoulder and shoved him to the floor.
"Do you really want to know why I acquired the Eye of Odin after you publicly announced that the finest student from your new School Of Tomb Raiding would be attempting to recover the piece for the school's private collection?" Lara asked, crouching down beside the fallen tomb raider, then pulling Alex by his shirt, into a sitting position.
"Yes." He said, still wincing in pain.
"Because you have turned tomb raiding into a sordid, greedy business and now you've taken to training high school drop outs to be as corrupt as you and as a result, I'm getting the backlash from this. Now, if you actually trained your students in archeology and not just destroying everything in their paths to get to an artifact and making tombs and excavation sites inaccessible to everyone else, I might just leave your pointless, money grabbing school alone." Lara released Alex's shirt.
"God, did I catch you at the wrong time of the month, or something?" Alex asked.
"No. If you did, you'd be dead."
"Look Lara, I'll do better to train the kids, but come on, do you have to be like this? I did ask you if you wanted to be an instructor. The offer is still open."
"Alex, tomb raiding is an art, not a past time. Especially not to the likes of your students."
"You've never even met any of them!" Alex objected.
"I don't have to. I've already seen a very interesting article about how a group of the underage students used the money they get from you as an allowance to make fake Ids to get into local pubs. Too bad they got caught, hmm, Alex?"
"That was only a few of them, and they were all expelled!"
"Have you lost any students, Alex?" Lara asked, turning to face him.
"No, they've never gotten lost in caves or anything."
"No, I mean, have any of your students ever died."
"No."
"What are you going to do when one does?"
"They're not going to die."
"Oh really? Tomb raiding is dangerous, Alex. I shouldn't have to tell you that. Few people survive tomb raiding adventures and fewer still are able to make a living out of this. But now, you've started luring children, who aren't even completed with school yet, to go get themselves killed trying to get you a few measly artifacts."
"You risk your life for artifacts. . ."
"Yes, I risk my life. I don't risk other's."
"Look, I am going to continue with the school and if you don't like it, I really don't care. You've never done anything but criticize and berate my ideas since I've met you."
"Perhaps because all of your ideas are ridiculous, foolish and are only focused on how much money is in the bargain."
Alex stood and glared at Lara. He had an overwhelming desire to throttle her, but he knew he would never make it off the grounds alive, if he did. "You know, we used to get along so well." Alex said, his features softening as he approached her.
"Yes, we used to." Lara echoed as Alex placed his hands on her waist. She became ridged.
"Why can't we get along again?"
"Because cause you're a greedy, unscrupulous, sell out who will do anything for money." Lara responded, trying to back away from him, but finding his grasp around her waist to be extremely strong. Lara shot him an annoyed look. "I've asked you before, not to touch me." She said, coldly.
"What? Afraid you might like it?" Alex said, mimicking her pervious smirk.
"Since you have wondered this so much, previously, this is one of the reasons that I will not date you."
"Because I know what I want?"
"No, because you're pushy, you're arrogant, you always leap into things without a second thought, you have no concept of common sense and your entire existence revolves around the almighty pound."
"Okay, fair enough. And I happen to find you haughty, pompous, judgmental, you could use an entirely new wardrobe and you snore, sometimes."
"I do not snore." Lara said, crossing her arms over her chest.
"And I have common sense." He replied.
"Alex, is there a point to this conversation?"
"I thought there was."
"Really? What was it?"
"For you to leave my students alone, or come and train them yourself, if you're so upset with how I'm teaching them."
"I think I'll turn down both offers." Lara responded.
"Okay, I expected as much. But how about dinner, next Friday? We could talk about tomb raiding. . . Maybe you could give me a few pointers." He said.
"Don't patronize me." Lara snapped.
"Then come out to dinner with me."
"So our pictures will end up in the paper and it'll get even more publicity for your school?"
"Alright, if that's what you're worried about, come over to my place. I'll cook you a delicious dinner and we can have a nice chat."
"No."
"Polite as always."
"Rot in hell, Alex West."
Alex laughed. "Until next time, my dear." He smiled and left Lara's bedroom. Lara gazed out of her bedroom window and watched him climb into his car and drive away from the Croft manor. She blinked. That encounter was rather odd. First, he showed up, ready to commit homicide, then he leaves, smiling. Lara shook her head. Alex was a strange man.
The tomb raider sat down at her desk and glanced at the screen of her laptop. She looked around her desk for the notes she had taken on the Eye of Odin and it's strange powers of transformation. She had been studying the piece the night before, wondering if she would be able to handle the power of the object if she ever used it. Lara glanced around her desk and discovered the eye was sitting underneath a stack of research books on Norse gods. She picked up the object and studied it for several seconds. She had been so exhausted the pervious night that she had forgotten to replace the artifact in her workshop, on the ground floor. Lara turned the object over and much to her horror discovered a sticker which proclaimed; Made In Hong Kong.
Lara made an outraged cry. Alex! He must have taken the real piece and switched it with the cheap rendition of it when he had pinned her against the table. Lara let loose a stream of swear words and grabbed her portable telephone from its cradle on her nightstand. She punched in Alex's cell phone number and stood impatiently, while the phone rang on the opposite end.
Then, Alex finally picked up. "Hello, Lara." He said, a cruel smile spreading over his face.
"You bastard!" Lara exploded.
"Don't give yourself a heart attack, dear."
"You have the gall to walk into my house and-!"
"Steal something that you stole from me? Why yes, I do. So, how about dinner?"
Lara tried to formulate an answer to the obnoxious man on the phone, but was only able to make a frustrated cry.
"Is that a yes?"
"Alex, if don't return my piece, I hope you know that this means war."
"Come on, Lara. Come over to my apartment and we'll make some sort of peace, eh?"
"No!"
"Listen, let's talk, okay? Neither of us need a full fledged war. Especially when we could work together and get a lot more accomplished."
"You're despicable."
"I do try. So, I'll see you about seven-ish on Friday?"
"Fine." Lara grumbled, not seeing any other option. Besides, if she planed to steal the piece back from him, then she would need to know what kind of security he had.
"Great. And, Lara, please wear a dress."
"Don't push your luck. . ."
Alex laughed. "Good bye, Lara." He hung up.
Lara glared at the phone. She hated Alex West. He always had the most annoying effect on her. Lara always tried to remain calm and in control, especially when it came to men, but Alex always managed to get the better of her, in one way or another. Lara set the phone back in its cradle and looked around the room.
Well, if Alex West wants to play games, then I am going to pull a few aces from my sleeves. . . Lara thought as she walked over to her closet. She pulled a small stepping stool over to her wardrobe and retrieved a large box from the shelf above her normal clothing. She descended the step stool and walked over to her bed, setting the box on her pillows and opening it. Inside the box was a black formal dress that she had received as a Christmas present the pervious year.
Lara held the revealing dress against herself and examined it in the full length mirror in her room. The dress was floor length, with a sexy slit running from the floor to the left thigh. The top was a simple V-neck, which displayed plenty of cleavage. The back was a swooping cut and halted just below where her hair fell to. Lara had laughingly called it her seductress dress when she had first received it. She wasn't laughing now. Lara happily put the dress back into its box, planning out the date with Alex. If there was one thing that she was certain of, Alex would be easy enough to manipulate and although leading him on and using his emotions for her personal gain, might be considered cheating, it was easier than simply killing him.
Lara mentally shrugged, she considered cheating to be a delicate art. And that she had mastered.