8059/An Invite to Adventure

An Invite to Adventure
Date of Scene:	30 September 2021
Location:	Jonah's Place (Bar and Grill)
Synopsis:	Every Club has to have new members, otherwise its just a Lonely Heart. Mina Murray meets Lara Croft to join the new era Adventurer's Club
Cast of Characters:	Lara Croft, Mina Murray

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Lara Croft has posed:
Its about 8:00pm EST time and the sun is settled down. Its peak dinner time so the restaruant is in full swing. It's about 75% capacity and there is a full wait staff walking around serving folks and a few more seated at the bar at the far end of the place. It has a nice casual atmosphere like this, the place even smelling of great fresh foods, with chatter and lively banter bouncing bteween tables.

Lara Croft is at the bar, she's standing beside it with one hand resting on its corner. Mina would likely have looked her up, or seen her visage attached to the Club's ad, so spotting her should be pretty simple in this moment!

Mina Murray has posed:
The door opens and a young woman dressed darkly steps inside. Black on black on black. And pale skin. Must be some sort of goth. Boot heels scuff softly on the floor, and she keeps the red-lensed glasses on. Her only concession to color.

Back in the day, Mina remembered a Richard Croft. They moved in similar social circles and even did some travelling together. But that was a long time ago. Right now, she's looking for another Croft. After taking a look around, she walks right up to the bar to speek with the barkeep. "Good evening. I'm looking for Lady Lara Amelia Croft, please."

Lara Croft has posed:
The primary bartender behind the bar right now is the big Hawaiian man who owns the place. Jonah Maiava. When Mina approaches he gives her a quick look over before offering her a big friendly smile. "Well, hello there." He says in a rumbly deep voice before he nods once and raises his glass cleaning towel hand up to point down to the end of the bar. "You're in luck." He says. "She's right there, talking to our mutual friend." He indicates the young woman seated at the bar that Lara is standing beside chatting with.

The use of her formal name though manages to break through the ambience and catch Lara's attention. She looks over and up at Mina before the woman is able to even approach, though she doesn't immediately recognize her. A soft smile appears on her lips before she glances to Jonah and back to Mina.

Mina Murray has posed:
Mina Murray smiles back to Jonah, inclining her head in an overly-polite nod. There's a touch of accent in her voice. English, perhaps? If so, she's learned to disguise it quite well all the same. She returns Lara's smile with one of her own, sliding the glasses down her nose with a decidedly teacher-esque look.

"Ah yes, there you are." she quips. "And yes, I do see your father in you. I knew him, back in the day." Wait what? This girl looks to be younger than Lara, if anything. "Could we speak in private, perhaps?"

Lara Croft has posed:
Lara does seem surprised by this from the other woman. She gives a glance to the friend she was talking to at the bar who looks between Lara and Mina, then just smiles and goes back to her drink.

"Oh, why, yes, of course... A friend of my father's is always welcomed for a chat." The British noble states as she turns toward the hallway at the back of the room. "Come along, there's an office here we can speak in." Lara adds as she walks, giving Jonah an eye to let him know...

As they walk away, the young woman at the bar says to Jonah. "How is it that Lara can manage to meet interesting people just by standing in random locations, Jonah?" Which garners a laugh from the big man...

Once in the hallway, Lara opens the door and steps inside. She flicks on the lights and walks a step out of Mina's way before closing the door and muffling the noises out there quite a bit. Another smile is given to Mina then as Lara walks toward the desk, a selection of other furniture sits inside the nicely kept office. "How might I be of service to you, Miss?" Lara asks.

Mina Murray has posed:
Mina follows along, remaining quiet as they walk. Now that they're in a bit better lighting, more details are forthcoming. The long coat is leather, and fine leather at that. The blouse is high thread-count linen and the scarf is silk. The pants aren't denim, but some sort of black khaki fabric.

Definitely not the typical, starving young goth.

"Miss Murray, if you please. But I prefer to be called Mina, and I appreciate your indulgence. Did your father ever tell you of a trip he took to Romania before you were born? He was researching a mystical legend."

Lara Croft has posed:
Lara is dressed in far more simplistic clothing, with drab green hiking pants and a white button up shirt tucked in to them with the sleeves rolled up to her elbows and a sky blue tanktop worn beneath it peaking out from the half-unbuttoned nature of the outer shirt. She takes a seat in the leather chair behind the desk and just sits straight upon it, casually with her hands down below the desk likely palms together from the placement of her arms.

She starts to shake her head at the question about her father. "He had so many stories... I fully blame him for how I turned out, because of them. But that one, doesn't seem to strike any bells within my mind, Miss Murray." Lara says in her calm voice.

Mina Murray has posed:
Mina settles properly in a chair opposite the desk, sitting quite straight for such an informal setting. "Of course." she replies, a warm smile forming. "But following in your father's footsteps is nothing to be ashamed of. In this particular case, he was chasing after rumors and legends. One particularly dark and unpleasant legend, in fact."

Drawing a deep breath, she exhales slowly. "I do not share this widely, and I must ask that you keep this conversation between us. But I am much older than I look. Your father was following an artifact that was rumored to have belonged to a Romanian Count. I was his guide."

Lara Croft has posed:
When this information starts to unfold from Mina, Lara's posture changes. She turns toward the desk more and leans over it just a little. Her forearms come up and cross over the edge of the desk too. She tilts her head as she stares at the other woman with her deep brown eyes. "Now that you mention it, I think I have come across your name in my father's journal." She says.

After a pause, she continues. "In his final few years, my father had become obsessed with searching for sources of longevity. Life restoration. He spent more time searching for it than he did..." Lara trails off there and just gently shakes her head.

"I believe he was hoping to speak to you too... way back then, in those last moments at least."

Mina Murray has posed:
Mina's posture remains formal, although she relaxes noticeably as well. And she nods. "He did, yes. I told him the whole story, unfolding it as we walked those same paths. Your father was, indeed, obsessed with immortality, but I managed to persuade him to follow a different path than the one that was thrust upon me..."

Her voice trails off a bit as she collects her thoughts. "I was still Mina Murray back when the events began, although I later married Jonathan and took his name. As for the Count? I loved him, of course. Madly. I loved him, and then I helped them kill him." She adjusts the scarf, then, snugging it a bit more into place.

"There is a certain dignity in death, after living a full life. I hope that I was able to convince your father of that."

Lara Croft has posed:
Lara is quiet as she listens to the woman speak a bit more about herself. She straightens her head again to watch with a calm expression, she shows a hint of a smile at the bit about loving Jonathan, but it goes away when the touch of killing the Count also came to play in the story. She dips her head in a little nod at it.

But about her father again, she draws in a breath through her nose and parts her lips to exhale it. She looks away toward the door before back to Mina a moment later. "After my mother passed, his obsession was finding a way to bring her back. I'm not... sure anyone could've gotten through to him. So many of his closest loved ones tried... up to the very end." She lets her voice trail off there before she gives a quick faint smile.

"So what do I owe this visit here tonight?" Lara then assks.

Mina Murray has posed:
Mina shakes her head slowly as well. "No. Obsession is not a strong enough word. We talked later after your mother passed, and I could not give him what he wanted. I'm not sure that I would have brought her back even if I could have." She pauses, fiddling with the scarf again. "Not under the same terms as mine. All for the best, in any case."

Mina clears her throat softly, then. "In any case, your father spoke of an Adventurer's Club. Quite fondly, in fact. With you being the current Croft heir, I was hoping that I might petition you for membership."

Lara Croft has posed:
This woman has certainly been a interesting surprise tonight for Lara, to say the very least. Even if she didn't have ties to her parents, there's clearly a story here behind this woman's eyes that is intriguing to the world traveling archaeologist...

"Well. I guess that explains why he wasn't arrested for banging on your door until you answered all his questions." She says with a faint smirk of her father. There's still a fair amount of anger inside her toward him even if there's a lot more sadness beyond the anger.

At the club being brought up, Lara more openly smiles. "Yes, my grandfather was a member of the Adventurer's Club out of London. It was something my father was quite fond of. He used to show me the monthly booklets that were put out by the clubs. I would... well, read them to the moment that they forced off my bedroom lights." She shows a hint of a little grin then.

"You've clearly heard of my intention of rebooting this city's version of the club then? I'd... be honored to have you with it. WE're still in the early stages, but I'm hoping to get it rolling faster and faster if luck and time permits me."

Mina Murray has posed:
Mina smiles a little at the mention of banging on her door. "Your father was persistent if he was anything." she replies. "But you already know that." A pause, then she adds. "And he remained very, VERY fond of your mother, even after she passed."

"I would be honored to work with Richard's daughter on such a project. I am not older than a century and a half, but I am a fearless traveller. And I do collect stories and knowledge in my travels."

Lara Croft has posed:
Lara lets her forearms slip off the desk but she keeps her fingers pressed down against its edge side by side to each other. She gives a quick smile to the words about her parents but lets them lie for now. At the bit more about the club and Mina's interests, Lara cracks a wider smile for her.

"I believe you certainly qualify for membership." She says back to her. "The original Adventurer's Club was ... well, a bit more restrictive with whom they let in, for very dated reasons. I hope to gather a much more diverse crowd in this modern incarnation. The hope is to not just have a place to socialize together, but also to share stories and perhaps hatch new methods of ..." She slowly shakes her head side to side searching for the words. "Exploring this world, and perhaps others too. The world has been rapidly changing of late, I'm sure you've noticed. Seems like there's many other places out there, that likely have ... fantastical myths and legends all their own."

Mina Murray has posed:
Mina's eyes brighten as well, and she's continuing to peer over the rose-colored glasses. "With my history, I must say that I'm quite pleased at the shattering of so many cultural and gender stereotypes in these modern times." she replies, with a touch of a smile as well.

"There is a lot we still don't understand about the ancient peoples who came before us. Did they, in fact, come from other worlds? One can watch public television and speculate, or go out there and search for answers." She settles back, then. "I have always been a woman of action, myself. And I welcome the adventure."

Lara Croft has posed:
The first part there that Mina comments on gets an agreeing nod from Lara. "Absolutely." She says softly to it in response before falling quiet again to listen to the rest.

A quick smile appears on her visage again then. "Well. Ancient aliens is a thing perhaps once largely scoffed and laughed about in such groups as this, but I think its clear that those times have changed. Even the dogmatic nature of the modern archaeologist group cannot deny that now. What with one of the world's mightiest saviors not even being of Earth origins..." Lara nods softly once then and levels her stare over to Mina.

"Once we've gathered a number of new members, I think a meeting is in order. I'd be quite pleased to see everyone we do acquire share a bit about their lives, as I imagine we'll attract a number of unique individuals into this new era. Or, well... I can hope." She then laughs quietly there at the end of her words.

Mina Murray has posed:
Getting more comfortable by the moment, Mina crosses one leg over the other and settles back into almost a slouch. Almost. She smiles a little as Lara elaborates on some of the possibilities, nodding slowly. "I would imagine that we do." she agrees.

So long as they don't call themselves the League of... Too many memories.

"If you don't mind, I will keep an eye out for prospective members as well. In any case, let me give you my number and contact information." And with that, she reaches into her coat to pull out a modern smartphone.

Lara Croft has posed:
The League joke has Lara showing a little smile followed by a quick laugh again. "It's remarkable how hard it can be to come up with a good name for something. Just ask all those websites desperately trying to emulate 'Google'." She quips back at the other across the desk from her.

"And yes, by all means, if you know anyone you think who would belong in this Club, I'm eager to see it happen that they be brought in as well. I believe I have us a very nice meeting spot that will be both secluded, but appropriate for our needs. It'll be... well, I hope it's both educational and fun, quite honestly. Fun for lovers of the past, especially."

Her hands come off the desk then and she starts to do that back and forth looking thing and opening drawrs on the desk before she finds what she's looking for. "And yes, I have some business cards here myself." She states before slipping one out from under a leather journal and then sliding it across the desk.

Once more she smiles to Mina. "I'm looking forward to hearing some of your stories, Miss Murray." Lara then says to the other.