REVIEWERS,

As a huge thank you for your feedback (I appreciate the support!), I decided to offer a bonus chapter to those who like the idea of Nathan and Lara together! Though I prefer them as friends, I extended my imagination to write this. Those that wanted them to STAY FRIENDS, this is probably not the chapter for you; you can just assume the story ends with the third chapter (which is what I'm doing in my own mind XD)! And for anyone that likes the Lara and Alex Weiss pairing, you are welcome to check out "The Born Adventurer," a story I wrote a few years ago, after the release of Tomb Raider (2013) and before the release of Rise of the Tomb Raider. I recently tweaked a few details to make it better aligned with the latest game. But anyway, enjoy this chapter of A Stroll Between Two Explorers and like always, feel free to review!

Chapter 4: The Alternate/Extended Ending

Richard Croft's office was absolutely littered with sheets beyond sheets of paper, as well as folders and markers. Diagrams, notated with every single detail, paragraphs with every key word highlighted, and the bright screen of a laptop holding an archive of never ending previous searches all added to the mess.

Amidst the clutter, sat a restless Lara Croft, desperate to find a new direction of research to fix her focus on. She worked long hours through the night, enduring the frustration that came with the task. She hadn't even bothered to this day to clean up the broken lamp from the night the intruder had stormed inside.

Lara abruptly ceased the tapping of her fingers on the keyboard. Her back cracked once when she removed herself from the hardwood floor. She soon returned to the office with a glass of water. As she drank from the glass, she peered at the room as a whole, leaning against her father's desk. It just occurred to her that she missed her small apartment; she disliked the eerie feel of her father's private office, even with all the resources available to her. Delicately placing her glass on the desk, she returned to her work. She flipped through a few pages of her father's journal, still relieved to have gotten it back.

Just as she found her almost rhythmic pacing, Lara heard the clattering of an object just down the hall. "Who the hell is breaking in now?" she wondered, retrieving her pistol from one of the desk's drawers. She then crept into the hallway. Several paintings drifted past her as she slowly moved through the area.

Lara then caught sight of broken pieces of pottery scattered directly below a table that sat along an open window. "I thought I had that closed..." She crouched down to get a closer look at the broken shards before her. The dark blue base paint of the empty vase was complimented by the small golden letters of an ancient script. "One of dad's favorites..."

The next thing Lara acknowledged was the water on the floor, most definitely from the light rainfall outside. Her eyes finally settled upon a trail of droplets, each of them looking like abstract footprints. There was no doubt anymore. Somebody had broken in. Lara straightened up, her adrenaline spiking upward as well.

She followed the footprints into her bedroom down at the end of the hall. The door was wide open, just as she left it. She stepped inside, holding her gun out in front her.

"Lara?" She lowered her weapon and glanced to her right, where her dresser sat. She knew that voice all too well. "You didn't point your gun at me that time. That's progress," said Nathan Drake, who was a stalker in Lara's book at this point. He smirked in that smug way that made Lara desperately want to slap him. She placed her gun on her dresser and turned to Nathan.

"What the hell are you doing here?!" He raised his hands slightly, as though he was trying to reason with her. Water dripped off of his hair and clothes.

"Look, I had no idea you were home-"

"If I was home?! Regardless of whether I'm home or not, there's a bloody front door!"

"I'm sorry...I only meant to leave you this..." He clutched a piece of paper in his hand.

"Don't you know what a mail slot is?" she asked, snatching the folded paper from him. She collected her gun and next headed back to the office. This was it. Lara mentally noted to herself that she would relocate back to her apartment first thing in the morning, where nobody could bother her.

"I thought I'd leave it where you would find it, seeing as you never seemed like one to use the front door either," said Nathan, trailing behind her. He studied her outfit, consisting of a leather jacket that covered her gray shirt, along with her commonplace tan cargo pants.

"Do you ever wear pajamas?" Lara collected a few pages from the floor and placed them on the desk, creating the pile she intended to put together earlier.

"Well, as you can probably see, I have to be prepared for intruders like yourself," she replied with only a hint of humor. "Speaking of which, it's already been a long night and I'd appreciate it if you would leave." There were few people that Lara was comfortable sharing late-night visits with. Sam and Jonah immediately came to mind. But Nathan? His developing habit of reappearing was becoming unsettling to her.

"Aren't you gonna look at that paper?" asked Nathan.

"What is it?" He grabbed it from her, unfolded it, and handed it back.

"It's a new lead. I've been selfish and kept it when you have been nothing but selfless towards me. So, I figured that I owed you this." After initally glancing at the historical document, Lara grinned. All traces of alarm within her began to fade.

"That's not entirely true. I had been trying to get rid of you from the moment we met."

"That was always painfully obvious," Nathan points out while laughing. As Lara turned to place the paper on the desk, her smile faded. The document did indeed possess some very relevant information. Stapled to it was a note from Nathan, telling her what he had pretty much paraphrased: that he owed her this.

"Lara," started Nathan, drifting closer from behind. "Even though you eventually got rid of me, I...I couldn't get you off of my mind. Couldn't stop thinking about you." Lara faced him, surprised to see his very real genuineness up so close.

"You didn't come just to give me this," she gathered out loud. Nathan shook his head in a serious manner before lowering his face towards hers.

"What about Elena?" Lara asked, just inches before their lips touched. Nathan backed out.

"It wasn't working. All we ended up doing was fighting. She...she doesn't trust me anymore..." Lara gazed at the floor.

"That's a shame..." she said in a low voice.

"It is...after all that time. But I know I'll be okay, 'cause all I'm really looking for is right in front-" Lara backed away alongside the desk when he reached for her hand.

"I'm not going to be your rebound, Nathan. Go home and just move on."

"I know you think I'm that guy, but I'm not. I just know what's worth fighting for now. It was never Elena." Nathan took a step closer, prompting Lara to continue to back up.

"This is crazy. We don't even know each other."

"But we do." Lara's eyes locked onto Nathan's. "Just on a different level, that's all," he says. Lara felt her back push against a wall, then Nathan closing in on her.

"What do you say, Croft? We would make a great team."

"I...I-" Lara lost herself in the powerful determination seeping from Nathan. Emotions that she hadn't felt since her early years in college began to grow inside of her.

Nathan took a moment before leaning in and kissing Lara. She gave up her protest and brought her hands up to the back of his head. Nathan responded by positioning his hands on her waist. All the frustration pent up inside Lara channeled into their embrace. Their kisses deepened. Their bodies pressed tighter against each other. Lara's jacket did a fair job at blocking Nathan's damp clothing. At least a minute had passed before they broke apart. They breathed for a moment.

"Wait, how did you find me?" Nathan smiled.

"It isn't hard to locate the manor of a famous family of archaeologists...Do you ever stop asking questions?"

"You've got to ask questions to get answers, Nathan. Everyone knows that."

"True, but have you ever tried just giving into the unknown every once in a while?" His question baffled Lara.

"What are-" Nathan stopped her emerging words with a kiss.

"First, you leave any questions out of your mind." He planted another kiss on her silent lips. "Then, you live in the moment." He proceeded to press his lips to her neck. Lara lost herself yet again, clutching his shoulders with both hands. Just as fast as she lost her grip on reality, she came back, shoving him off of her. Nathan caught his balance and looked at her, his expression marked by both confusion and intensity. Only a few more seconds passed before Lara stepped forward, grabbed him by the head, and forcefully pulled his lips to hers. If they were going somewhere, Lara would lead the way.

She guided Nathan down to his knees, then onto his back. Nathan slid his hand under her shirt and ran it up her back as she climb on top of him. Their lips remained joined for a few more minutes, until Lara pulled away. They stared at each other, their faces almost touching. Nathan raised his other hand to stroke a loose strand of Lara's hair. He traced the outline of her jaw with his fingertips. Lara combed her fingers through Nathan's hair before finally speaking.

"Care to help me decipher some of the script you so generously gave to me?" Lara asked in a whisper. It didn't take long for Lara to be swept back to her wondering mind.

"Yes ma'am." The two of them sat up and addressed the page, after Lara reached up and grabbed it from the desk.

"It definitely looks Greek," explained Lara. "What I've read so far refers to the Divine Source from Kitezh. Hm," she said, squinting her eyes. "Right here is where I'm getting a little fuzzy with the script." She pointed to a few words in the middle of the paper.

"I think some of the modern Greek letters actually directly derived from this ancient Greek text. If you look up the modern dialect, you might find a close translation," Nathan explained.

"Right." Lara shifted her attention to her laptop. She typed a few words in the search box and tapped the Enter key. As she examined the search results, Nathan gently rested his chin on Lara's shoulder. She paused for a split-second before refocusing on the internet.

"Of course! We covered this grammatical structure in school! How could I forget?!" She studied the paper again. "Yes! I remember hearing some Trinity soldiers talking about this! Nathan," He picked his head off her shoulder to look at Lara.

"We could have very well uncovered Trinity's next step!" Nathan grinned

"I thought some of the script was hinting in that direction! I'm glad I brought this to you." Lara offered no response in words, but instead plunged her face in for a single kiss. She pulled back, revealing a brilliant smile that made Nathan's heart pound harder. Lara, held the paper tightly against her chest, clearly thrilled.

"Here I thought you were trying to avoid Trinity," said Nathan jokingly.

"Just direct combat with them. In the end though, I need to do whatever it takes to stop them," replied Lara, shuffling through a bunch of pages. Nathan lied down on his side and propped himself up with his elbow.

"Why go through all the trouble? What do you gain from this?" Lara thought about these questions.

"Well, definitely for worldly knowledge, I suppose. But also for my father. People mocked his 'tales' of the myths he uncovered." She fiddled with the paper in her hands. "After I discovered that he was actually right, I was determined to show the world so. But things changed even more, after finding Kitezh. All that matters is that I know the truth about my father. So, my goal is simply to stop Trinity. For him and myself." Nathan nodded as he listened.

"I can't say the same about my father, whom I know little about to begin with, seeing as my brother and I were taken to a home shortly after my mother had...died." Lara bowed her head as he said this. "But my drive to explore definitely has a lot to do with my family. Unfortunately, doing so has taken its toll on relations within the family." Lara cleared her throat.

"It's nice to be able to talk to somebody that actually understands," she said softly. Her remark triggers a subtle smile touched by gratitude on Nathan's face. He moved to kiss her. Lara lowered her head, stopping him in his tracks. "That moment came and went...you were just happy about the research, Lara. That's all it was," thought Lara. How could she possibly pursue such an intimate relationship with a man whom she was still unsure if she could trust on a more personal level?

"It's late, Nathan." The man solemnly climbed to his feet. "I'll walk you out," Lara told him. Together, they traversed in silence through the manor, until they were standing outside the front gate.

"Well, I guess this is goodbye...again." Nathan's lips formed a slight frown when Lara held out her hand. It appeared that she had no further interest in him.

"Goodbye, Nathan."

"Good luck the rest of your research, Lara." He took her hand and shook it half-heartedly. He didn't even care about the research anymore; he was on the verge of losing the very person that made him feel truly alive after all those years of hardship. He turned and started putting some distance between her and himself.

Though she was finally free of his company, Lara couldn't escape a feeling of dread. She paced for a moment. "Damn it, Lara. You can't let him go again. You can't let go of the only person who truly understands." She took a deep breath and hurried over to him.

"Nathan!" Lara threw her arms around him and kissed him once, barely giving him enough time to react.

"Meet me at the cafe on Main Street tomorrow at 3:00. We have yet to reallyget to know each other." Instead of showing compliance to her request, Nathan simply looked to the sky.

"It's too bad it stopped raining. That's the only thing that would have made that moment more perfect. Would have been living a movie." He rested his eyes back on Lara, a charming smile forming. "But I suppose that this is close enough for me. Goodnight, Lara. We'll talk tomorrow." Nathan gently left a kiss on Lara's cheek before releasing her and continuing on his way.

"Nathan!" He turned back. "I can't promise I won't talk a ton about history," she warned, grinning with slight mischief. Nathan chuckled.

"You know that'll be fine with me, sweetheart." Lara watched him walk away, shaking her head in regards to how silly he could be at times.

She strode back up to the office. Instead of becoming knee-deep in her notes again, however, she simply turned off the dim light in the room. After sliding into pajamas for the first time in what felt like a century, she finally climbed into bed. Allowing her tired eyes and aching bones to rest, she waited for sleep to carry her into the next day. She believed that Nathan Drake could very well make the right difference in her life. Tomorrow would bring the truly mysterious future.

The End