Corners

Night was falling as the two bikes tore into Istanbul, two travelers weary from the long drive.

They'd stopped occasionally, but never more than an hour or two at a time. Lara, having existed on little sleep often in her past, took one look at Kurtis to realize that attempting to approach the key then would be stupid, he barely able to keep his eyes open.

They checked into the first hotel they found, and although the proprietor understood Arabic well enough for Lara to convey that she needed two beds, he shook his head, "We are all but full--our only room is a double with a queen. Do you want it?" Lara only sighed before nodding her head; her lack of sleep was catching up with her under the promise of a warm bed.

Not even the growling in their stomachs could protest the welcome of the queen bed. Tired and bedraggled, they crawled into it, letting it consume them with sleep. Kurtis was out with in a moment, and Lara, also weary but still defying sleep, looked at him. His hair was a rumpled mess, his shirt dirty, and his face held the stubble of a three day old five o'clock shadow. He was rough, but once again Lara was surprised by the boyish innocence that surrounded him as he slept, and she found herself falling asleep listening to the patterns of his breathing.

When Lara awoke, she found herself in an empty bed. She reached under the pillows to find her pistol before daintily stepping out of the bed, readying to blow the head off an intruder. She nearly laughed at herself when she heard the sound of rushing water, a telltale sign of Kurtis's shower. Good idea, she thought as she untangled her hair and smelt the sweat it had trapped over the days. Occupied with this difficult task, she didn't hear the shower shut off until Kurtis, shirtless and clothed only in a towel wrapped around his waist, appeared at the door.

"Sorry, I didn't mean to wake you up." He said to her as she jumped off the bed.

"Not at all, I was just waiting for you to finish in there." She said, standing in front of him. She couldn't help but notice the beads of water still trapped on his muscular torso, the scent of his aftershave wafting in the air. She felt a pulse of desire course through her, not unlike the one she'd felt at the Louvre. I wonder, was it really just fatigue? She thought, close to Kurtis, eyes languid and lips slightly parted, welcoming a kiss, which never came.

She heard a rustle as Kurtis moved into the room.

"Sorry, Lara. You're just not my type."

Why that arrogant arse! The nerve! To think I wanted to kiss him! Lara eyes narrowed as she was overcome by fury. "Oh?" She asked, cold and demanding.

"Don't get me wrong. Any guy would be lucky to have you… but you see the thing is…we are two much alike. I can handle a girl like you- believe me, I love to do that. But you don't want to be handled. We both want to be in the driver's seat and refuse to be put on the passenger's side. It wouldn't work out."

Furious, Lara slapped him across the face before stepping into the still-steamy bathroom, heard him mutter 'women' beneath his breath as she stepped in the shower.

Thatcondescending fool! He just assumed that I wanted him Well, you were thinking of it. But still! To just brush me off like that! I'll kill him; I'll absolutely kill him. But he does have a point. But since when is being alike a bad thing?

But what if he's right?

He is right; you wouldn't even let him drive you from Bar. You would always be competing with him, always want to be in control.

Besides, you wouldn't possibly be able to get along with such a cocky brute. The attraction was, after all, purely physical.

By the time her thoughts had come full circle Lara had been through the movements of a shower and was stepping out with a broad grin on her face. She hated being wrong, but it was better when she'd determined that herself. She blew her hair dry before plaiting it, and wrapped the towel around her snugly as she stepped out into the room, where Kurtis was fully dressed and his head bent low, inspecting the painting.

"You know, Kurtis Trent, you aren't my type either. I don't really like egotistical assholes." She watched as his face contorted somewhat, his mouth ready to fire back, but he stopped when he saw her smile, offering a truce.

"Well, then, I guess we are even." He smiled back, as Lara grabbed her clothes and got dressed in the bathroom.

Lara and Kurtis were just finishing a questionable continental breakfast at a local eatery when they decided they had to begin their quest, as it were, for the key. The map on the painting brought them to a small plaza in the small district between the Haghia Sophia and the Grand Covered Bazaar.

The plaza didn't warrant such a name, merely a small square intersected by five small alleyways and centered on a gray stone building. Curiously empty, she and Kurtis were the only ones in the vicinity.

"Well, you were right about it still being a church," Lara exclaimed as she stared at the rather unimpressive building in front of them.

"Uh, Lara?" She heard the fear in his voice, but assumed it was merely hesitation from what they were about to face.

"Oh, come on Kurtis you know it's—"

"Lara!" Kurtis interrupted, more emphatically now. She realized what he was worried about know. Out of the corners of her eyes she could see four of the small alley entrances, and she could tell that large, dangerous looking thugs now blocked three of them. She spun, grabbing Kurtis's hand and making a move towards the last unguarded path, but no sooner had she taken a step than that had been blocked too. She turned to face the Plaza, the men blocking every possible exit; she recognized them as being the same commandos as those in Florence. Still refusing to admit defeat, she turned to face the church. Her situation was grim indeed.

She heard the scuffle at the same time she felt the cold barrel against her head. She could just see Kurtis being knocked to the ground and man handled as the gun was pressed forcefully into her skull.

"Lady Croft, how wonderful to see you again," Marten Gunderson called to her. Lara spun her self around; knocking the commando who threatened her down by kicking out his legs before two more rushed to manhandle her, severely limiting her movements. "Positively Amazonian indeed."

A/N: alright, still not my favorite, but it'll do.

Thanks to NFI for beta reading it!

Akkon- glad you liked Lara's near drowning reaction! thanks for your review!
Ellethiel- thanks for reviewing!
Odd Little Turtle- i'm glad you like Gunderson- he may have a pretty big part in this, we shall see!
Carmie- the interaction there was for you-- you may hate it, i know i said romance. Well don't worry. Kurtis is just to hot not to have some fun with. I just have bigger (and possibly better, depending on your interpretation) plans for him! keep reading!

Thanks for the reviews! keep 'em coming and i'll reciprocate!