Owner	Pose
Luke Cage	Luke took Lara to the Jamaican restaurant he'd mentioned. The spicy jerk chicken was delicious, and there were a variety of sides that one just doesn't find other places. The food had some heat, but unfortunately so did the restaurant, the air conditioning not quite as powerful as one might have hoped for. But the food did its best to make up for it. The meal over, Luke walks Lara back out and down the Harlem streets. It's an economically depressed area, this part of town. He glances about as they walk along, the sun down some time ago, street lights pushing back the dark of night. Luke had been starting to ask Lara a little about her life growing up. "So, not that I think just because you are a Countess that you grew up in a castle..." he starts back up. Then peers over at her out of the corner of his eye. "You didn't grow up in a castle, did you?" he asks.
Lara Croft	Lara had happily answered any questions Luke had had about her life growing up during dinner, she'd even talked a bit about her college days and her harrowing entry into the life of a notorious adventurer. That part was likely clear to Luke that it was impactful to her, and left a lot of demons inside her. But now, back outside and on the street side, Lara smiles at his question. "It wasn't a castle." She confirms, but then sucks in a breath and has to prepare her next words. "Not, exactly. It is a large home though, its been in the family for generations and has served as the County Seat of Surrey for just as long." Lara pauses then as she looks over beside her and up to Luke. "My bedroom was in a turret tower, however..." Her grin is growing after saying that, because she knows what it likely will mean upon hearing it.
Luke Cage	Luke can't help but flash a little knowing smile across at Lara Croft. "I imagine your father probably thought it would be a way to keep you safe from the boys. Though I think the whole saving the damsel in the tower thing would probably only embolden them." He walks along beside her, the pair taking their time heading back to the bar where Lara's Jeep is parked. "Unless you had a dragon, troll, or similar creature to guard you?" he asks. After hearing some of her adventures, he doesn't seem to put it in the impossible category. Luke glances around the more humble apartment buildings and homes here. "This is probably a far cry from there, then," he says. "Good people though. Once you sift out a few bad eggs anyway," he says, his eyes drifting over to a building for a moment before returning his attention back to Lara.
Lara Croft	Lara raises her cup of tea up that she'd gotten a refill of before they'd left and she sips from the straw. A light laugh comes from the Briton there-after and she looks back over to Luke. "I think I was just starting to enter the phase where the boys would be a concern, when I lost him." She says of her father in a calm voice. "That became more of a worry of the man who took me in afterward, Roth." She says. "He got me in my teenage years. Of course, if he were still here today, I think he'd say that they were nothing but a delight." She smiles warmly to those thoughts. Luke might wonder just how many people who raised Lara are dead now! A look follows what Luke says of the area and Lara has to slightly shake her head. "At its core, the two areas themselves are not so dissimilar. Residential zones from England are mostly the same as they are in the US. Though there's likely more greenery there than there is here." She gives another glance over to him. "I'll show you pictures, so you stop having these grandiose ideas that I come from some sort of medieval wonderland." She chides him playfully then with a sly grin.
Luke Cage	Luke slips hands into the pocket of his hoody. "I'd gladly see the pictures, but I think I might like to cling to my illusions a bit longer about you personally, Britain. Like right now? I'm picturing you in the tall pointy hat with the veil dangling from it," he says in a voice part smooth and part teasing. They turn a corner and just in front of them is a Towncar pulled over to the curb. A driver is holding the door open for an older African American lady who is climbing out, while a black man in a suit comes around from the other side. Luke tenses up just slightly, but before he and Lara can walk past the woman calls over. "Luke Cage. Walking the streets of Harlem with a white girl from, where are you from? Uptown it looks like," the woman says, and though her tone seems perfectly respectful, there is still something in the delivery that makes it a criticism directed at Luke. Luke looks over to her. "Pleasant evening to you as well, Mariah," he tells her, not seeming to plan on stopping.
Lara Croft	Lara is lightly laughing at that description that he places upon her in a cliche princess outfit when they break around the corner and are soon approached by the woman. A look goes from Mariah to Luke, then back to Mariah. The white girl in-question takes the forefront and steps to Mariah to offer her a hand. "I'm Lara, Croft. I've just recently hired Mister Cage to be a security escort on an expedition. I'm from the University." That was true, from a certain point of view. Its sometimes easier to say that than explain she's with SHIELD. She glances back to Luke then. "He's been kind enough to take me on a bit of a tour of the neighborhood here. Its a very lovely place." Her British accent will likely raise even more eyebrows from the likes of Mariah though.
Luke Cage	Luke looks like he wants to say something cautionary to Lara as she steps towards Mariah. Perhaps something in the way of warning about snakebites. But she's already moving forward and so Luke just turns and takes a step forward, staying beside her. Despite her earlier comment, Mariah switches to being all charm and politeness with the slickness of a politician. "Lara Croft, hmm? Councilwoman Mariah Dillard. Well, I suppose I should thank you if any sort of education might rub off on Mr. Cage from you," she says. Mariah turns to look around Harlem. "It is a fine, fine community," she says, making a show of turning around a full circle admiring the town, as if she were trying to curry the favor of the people though there are none to witness it. "Just remember this a place of families. Though we even take in the occasional stray dog now and then," Mariah says without looking at Luke for the final part. She turns then toward the man who it appears must be someone from her staff. "Come, or we will be late for the meeting," she says to him, as if she wasn't the one who delayed them.
Lara Croft	The tone in which Mariah says that little insult to Luke's education isn't missed by Lara, she can tell the two likely have some pretty prominent bad blood. "Its a pleasure to have met you, Councilwoman." Lara says then. She doesn't really add much more onto their interaction then before she nods once when the woman prepares to leave with her assistant. "Good luck at the meeting." She adds, just to be friendly and plant her own flag of friendly intentions so as not to burn a bridge before it was ever even crossed. And with that said, Lara turns back to step back to Luke's side, to wait for the likes of Mariah and her aide to leave. "I take it you failed to serve her the right drink at your bar?" Lara has to ask then as she glances over to Luke again and risks a grin for him to lighten the mood up a bit as she can tell he's a bit put off by that woman.
Luke Cage	Luke watches Mariah and her aide depart, settling back into a slow stride beside Lara. He glances back over a shoulder as Mariah and the man pass inside of an office building of some sort. "Mariah Dillard is part of the Stokes family. They have their fingers in some unpleasant things around here. And she is their most public face and uses her office to project... well, a load of BS is what she projects," Luke says, his voice touched with frustration. "I've had a hand in disrupting a thing or two which, well, there might not be evidence linking her family to them. But I don't really have any doubt there was a connection," Luke says, stuffing his hands back into his hoody. A woman and her daughter walk past. "It's Luke Cage!" the girl says, waving over to him. Luke smiles to her and pulls out his hand to lift it in a still wave back. The woman smiles as well as they continue on past. Luke's thoughts are still on Mariah. "Did I make a comment before about a few bad eggs?" he asks finally.
Lara Croft	Lara is there beside him, walking at their casual pace. "Oh, I see." She quietly responds to the Mariah information given to her. "A crooked politician... So she's convinced the community that she's out for their best interests, but really she's just in it for her own self gains?" Lara looks over to him, she can see the stress it brings to his face and she places her right hand onto the side of his arm. "I'm sorry, Luke. She'll ruin her guise eventually, people like her always do." A look is given back the way they'd come then, but when the voice calls out Luke's name, Lara looks to the girl and smiles at her. "The variety of life is unending in what it yields to us. Quality people, and those that are far, far from quality. But, an undeniable truth is that when we do find the quality ones... its a very nice feeling." She shows the man another quick smile before her eyes go forward again. Up ahead there's the street outside of his bar, and her jeep isn't there. She looks a little confused at first, then starts to walk faster.
Luke Cage	The tall black man seems to appreciate the sentiment and the touch. "Don't see Mariah short. She's out for the gain of her entire family," he says in a wry tone, but with a smile for Lara. They continue down the sidewalk, more cracked and uneven than most areas of New York, as if the funds for repairs are applied less here than in other parts of the city. Luke glances over to Lara at her mention of finding quality people. He gives a small smile before she's looked to him, and looking away just before she looks over to him with her quick smile, the expressions both missed. But Luke does add a soft, "Amen to that." Lara's hurrying step draws a curious expression from Luke as he doesn't realize the cause at first. He quickens his step a little more as well. "Something wrong?" he asks her as they approach where she had parked.
Lara Croft	Lara is several paces ahead of him by the time he catches up with her, she's stopped at the side of the street where she knows she'd parked her Jeep. She's turning in circles to look this way and that. "I parked here." She says to him, motioning to the empty spot, devoid of a black Jeep. She releases a light exhale and takes out her cell phone, its raised up and she tries to bring up the locator software. She hadn't updated it to this new phone, it makes her curse quietly under her breath. She continues to tap frantically on her phone. "Can you see if anyone inside saw someone around it?" She asks him, mildly distracted now as she's all worked up.
Luke Cage	Luke winces as he hears what the situation is. "Black Jeep, right?" Luke asks her. "What model?" He'll wait for an answer before going inside the bar. He comes back quickly, saying, "Roy is asking inside." Luke goes over to the other businesses up and down the block, stopping at any that are open to ask. There are only few residents out tonight. A couple sitting up on a fire escape drinking. And two kids of about ten or eleven, sitting on the front stoop of a door to an apartment. One of them has a handheld video game and they are passing it back and forth.
Lara Croft	"Uh, its a 2026 Wrangler. Black, yes." Lara says back to Luke as she gives him a quick glance. The next several minutes are spent solely on her phone as Luke goes about trying to find information for her, which is greatly appreciated, but she's trying to contact her employers to see if they can get a bead on her car. She also alerts the NYPD as that is standard protocol for this... By the time Luke returns, she's looking back to him, waiting for results from the feelers she put out. She walks over to him, her hands on her hips. She looks up to him. "My gun was inside it." She tells him, her voice filled with the weight of losing such an item. Its not something she wants to have happen. "Not to mention all of my work for the expedition..." A quick look about is had. "Did you find anything out?" She asks him then.
Luke Cage	Luke shakes his head. "No, nobody mentioned seeing anything," he says. "Do you have a tracker in it?" he asks, such things having become even more common in the last decade. Luke glances around the area, and sees the two kids sitting over playing the video game. "Might as well see if they've seen anything," he suggests, and if Lara is up for it, he'll cross the street with her over to where they are seated. They look up as the pair walk over. "Hello," the little girl says while the boy is playing the game. She looks back at the apartment, the screen door is closed but the wood door is open. There are sounds of a TV show from inside. Family Feud from the sound of it.
Lara Croft	Lara's left hand goes up to her forehead where she presses the back of her palm to her skin there. She shakes her head at his question of the tracker. "Its a new phone, a new system. My last phone was hooked up to the vehicle, but that phone fell about thousand feet and smashed against a rock ledge." She looks back to him and shows a sardonic / exasperated expression at the luck of things. "Its worth a shot." She says and proceeds to walk with him. "You know this area far better than I do, obviously. How well would a 'reward upon return' go over here? I can pay to have information that leads to the vehicle's recovery. I wouldn't want to propose such a thing if it wouldn't settle properly here though." She looks for his counsel on that approach here in Harlem... As they near to the children, Lara smiles to them both. "Hello. I'm Lara. I seem to have misplaced my Jeep. It was parked over there." She motions/indicates, then looks back. "It was a newer model, all black. I don't suppose either of you may have seen where it has gone off too, or with whom perhaps?" She asks in an accent the two of them likely have never heard before.
Luke Cage	It is pretty obvious from the way that the two kids look at each other that they know something, but give each other those silent looks as if trying to decide whether they should admit to it. Luke lets out an inaudible sigh under his breath. He had let Lara approach them, but then moves to join her, crouching down to be nearer to their level. "Lara's a really nice lady. And she has things in her car that she needs for work on top of it," he tells them. The girl and the boy look at each other, and the girl starts to say something but the boy's eyes widen and he shakes his head quickly. "What is it, are you afraid of getting in trouble?" Luke asks. The kids hesitate and slowly nods their head. "We'll not tell anyone you told us," Luke says, looking to Lara so she can reassure the kids. The brother and sister hesitate and then the boy says, "Omar took it." Luke hears this and slowly stands up, drawing a breath. "Ok. Thank you very much. We won't let 'em know," he assures them. Luke looks back to Lara. "Chop shop. Over near the La Quinta on 8th street," he says.
Lara Croft	"I promise not to tell a soul." Lara encourages the children alongside Luke. When the name 'Omar' is given, she gives a quick look over to Luke and when he seems to know who that is and where they need to go, she nods once toward him. A moment later and Lara is reaching for her back pocket and approaching the little girl. She pulls forth a small coin with a square shaped hole in its middle and four little dragons around the square hole. "Thank you." She tells the girl and offers the coin. "Give this to your parents, tell them to look it up." Its a rare'ish coin, worth about $500 USD. With that given, Lara turns back to Luke. "Do you know a way to get there in short order?" She asks him, not wanting to have to walk to wherever this 'chop shop' is apparently.
Luke Cage	The girl smiles as she gets the coin. The boy says, "Oh wow, dragons! Let me see it!" And she ends up running in the house rather than letting him see it. The chase is on. Luke watches them leave and then nods his head. "Subway will bring us up right there," he tells her. He nods his head towards a nearby station and begins walking her over there. "There's a chance we might be able to just talk them out of it. I don't really know them first hand, but, there's a chance, you know. Reputation sort of thing." He pauses and glances at her as they head for the subway. "Unless you'd rather go the police route. Though I'd be a little worried about someone getting hurt that way," he says. Which might sound odd.
Lara Croft	Lara is right there beside him with her eyes glancing down at her phone, she'd gotten a text from her friend at work but he had no leads on it yet. She texts back what they'd discovered though. After a second of distracted silence she looks back to Luke whilst they make their way to the subway station. "We'll go for whatever you feel is best first, and police second if needs be. If all else fails, I have my employers to call in. They won't want their information falling into the hands of street criminals, after all. But... that will look poorly on me, if I have to resort to asking them for help. 'Allowing' my vehicle to be taken and all." She shows a frown at that and exhales sharply, a hand shoots up to brush some of her dark hairs out of her face. "I'm sorry this happened." She tells them then, for whatever reason.
Luke Cage	The subway car bounces along, Luke resting one hand overhead on a rail to steady himself beside Lara. "I'm sorry this happened. You come down to my neighborhood, outside my bar, and have this happen," Luke says, shaking his head and giving a sigh. It is just one stop down, and they are soon exiting the subway. They walk along the street past the motel. Beside it is a squat building with a garage-sized metal door for moving larger things in and out. Luke walks over to a side door instead, knocking on it. "We'll try to do it the quiet way then," he agrees. The door opens and the person inside looks the pair of them over. "Need to talk about a car," Luke says. The man frowns a bit, but finally nods for the two to come inside, after a glance up and down the street. Inside the place is a garage. There are two lifts for cars, and enough room for three others to be worked on. As the pair walk in, work gradually stops as they are noticed. A black man with a jagged scar across one cheek walks over. "What do you want?" he asks. Luke glances around as the men slowly gathering in semi-circle in front of them. "My friend here lost her car. Understand you guys have your ear to the ground, might be able to help her find it. Reward for it. Black Jeep," he says, not looking over at her car where it sits in the open. Lara notices one of the men pull a gun from his pocket, chambering a round though keep it down below the hood of the car he's standing behind.
Lara Croft	Whilst on the train, Lara holds onto one of the handrails as well and she looks about the interior of the car, then to Luke. "Its not like I haven't been to neighborhoods in this world with high crime rate before. I should've been smart and had my phone hooked up to it." The security features that being connected to your car these days offer? They're like having your own Batmobile in many ways... "I was dumb." Lara says whilst on their trip... Upon arriving, she's right there beside Luke. Likely looking very out of place in this whole situation. She's a British aristocrat after all, blood of royalty in her veins... She darts her eyes this way and that, to where her Jeep is plainly parked in the open... And to the man prepping the firearm. "I'm a SHIELD Agent." Lara says then. "If I can have my vehicle back, as well as all of my belongings, I won't even think of this place again. SHIELD is aware of where the vehicle is now, and they're going to come down upon this entire facility if I do not give them word otherwise. There's only a matter of minutes left to decide what to do." She motions to the Jeep. "My identification is in the driver's door pocket." She states. "I promise you... if its all returned to me... you'll be left to go on with your business. If its not? Then your business is about to reach its end." This statement is filled with some truths and some falsehoods! But there's enough truths in it for Lara to believe its worth banking on.
Luke Cage	Luke was supportive on the trip. "Not dumb at all. These guys know what they are doing. Probably would have disabled it anyway," he reassures her during the trip. He gives her a gentle touch on the small of the back and a reassuring nod. When they arrive at the chopshop and Lara makes the 'offer', the guys look at each other, some rather uncertainly. One of them breaks out laughing, though the others look at him, still not sure. "Oh come on. Bitch is crazy trying to talk her way out of it," he says. He pulls a gun from the back of his waistband, but walks over to the door. Opening it up he says, "If she's SHIELD then I'm mother-fucking Iron Man, yo." He pulls out the holder and opens it up, finding a badge. "Fuckin' Tony Stark," one of his buddies tells him, though nobody laughs at it. They all look back to Lara and then to each other. The one with the scar reasserts control on them. "We were sold this particular car, you realize? If it turns out we were fooled, that ain't on us."
Lara Croft	Lara stands with her arms folded over her stomach, her eyes are on the others as they start to unravel the truths of her story that she provided them. When they speak of having bought her Jeep she just sighs. "Fine." She softly says. "How much did you buy it for?" She asks them. "I'm not here to be hustled either. I just want my vehicle so I can go on about my night. I know you have a business here, but, this simply was the wrong car to take on this evening. You weren't fooled, you were just sold a SHIELD Agent's car and I can tell that you're all very smart gentlemen, you probably wouldn't have wanted it if you'd known." "So what do I owe you to have it returned?" She's now asking them, giving a sidelong glance to Luke after saying that. She doesn't want to get an outrageous asking price.
Luke Cage	The one with the scar down his face looks like his mind is whirring. Figuring out just how much he can ask before he pisses Lara off to the point she might actually call some heat down on them. He's thinking and looks like he's come up with a price as Luke walks over to where one of the cars is being worked on. He picks up a crowbar used for prying off hubcaps and wheels. There's a moment of tension but Luke doesn't use it as a weapon. He just examines it, gives a little tap on a metal table, listening to the solid metal ping it makes. Luke takes inch thick steel bar in both hands and bends it nearly in half. He glances up as the words die on scarface's lips. "I'm sorry, what was your answer?" Luke asks, setting the crowbar down. "Nothing, you don't owe us nothing. Glad to help out SHIELD," he says, motioning towards the Jeep for Lara to take it. One of the other guys goes over to open up the door so it can be driven out.
Lara Croft	The display that Luke puts on with that bar isn't noticed at first, until she sees the others looking at him bending the bar. She sees the last tail end of it though and then sees the after effects of that bar just bent into a U shape as Luke lets it go again. The result it has on the men before them, holding her car captive, is impressive to say the least. She didn't know Luke could do that... to say the least, he was strong obviously, but even a man with muscles his size couldn't do that without some sort of... power like that of a Superman. Lara doesn't hesitate though, she makes for her Jeep and moves to get inside. She takes her ID from the man beside it and softly thanks him before she'll move to unlock the passenger door so Luke can get inside the vehicle as well. Once they're out of the chop shop? Pulling away, Lara is looking over at him. "That was, impressive." She says to him then. "I think I hired the right security for our trip." She then adds with a light smirk.
Luke Cage	Luke pauses outside the Jeep to look it over. They hadn't had a chance to start work on it yet, from the looks of it. He climbs in then as they drive off. "I thought you did a great job talking our way through it," Luke says. "You're one cool customer, Britain. I can see why SHIELD brought you on," he tells her. Luke rests a hand on the car door, window down and hand resting on the frame overhead. "Figured getting out of there without dealing with transfers or getting money was probably for the best," he says, though his tone is more suggestive of someone who didn't care for the display he made. Luke looks back over to Lara. "Sorry you ran into these problems in my neighborhood. Last thing I wanted for you when you came back," he tells her.
Lara Croft	Lara shakes her head. "The money transfer was going to be troublesome. I'll admit that. I was afraid they'd start to think I was a bottomless pit of wealth." Which is she is, for all intents and purposes, even though she's never touched a cent of her inheritance from her parents. Her own finances from SHIELD and other jobs has made her independently wealthy of that as well. "But its done and over now." She says, glancing over to him as she drives back toward the bar. "Thank you for the help. I would've been in a much different place without you there." Another smile is shown before she looks ahead again. "You'll have to remind me where you live, its already slipped my mind admittedly. I remember you said it was... above a diner I believe?"
Luke Cage	"Above a bar actually," the man answers as he gazes out the passenger's side window. He turns back to her and says, "Nice little neighborhood place. Luke's Bar I think it's called," he tells her with a faint smile. "You know I felt kind of cheesy calling it that. I just couldn't think up a creative name that I liked," he says. "Don't suppose you want to stop up for a drink after... well, all of this?" Luke asks. He pauses and glances over to Lara. "And, yes, that probably would mean parking your car back at the bar," he says with a wry expression. And looking like he doesn't expect she'll be taking him up on that offer.
Lara Croft	Lara listens to this offer and the summary of having to leave her Jeep there again and she just laughs softly. "I probably shouldn't." She says to him. "I need to sync the vehicle to my phone and let SHIELD know that I've found it." She looks over at him then and shows him a big smile as they draw nearer to the bar, only a block away now. "I'll come by again here soon, I'll bring you some details on the trip, so that you know what you're going to need to pack and be prepared, expectations wise." She tells him as she draws the Jeep in slower now, waits for the light. "Its been a fun night though, Luke... to say the least."