Reunion (Indiana Jones)

[RiversD]

Little one-shot re-imagining some scenes from Raiders of the Lost Ark, co-starring Marion Ravenwood as reluctant blesser.

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“Hello, Marion.”

The young woman tidying the bar span around with a look of shock that quickly turned to laughter.

“Indiana Jones. Always knew someday you’d come walking back through my door. Did your voice break a second time, or are you sick with something?”

“Might have picked something up on the journey,” Indy admitted. “Can’t seem to shake it off. How have you been?”

Marion snorted, as though she found the question exasperating. “What are you doing in Nepal, Jones?”

“I need one of the pieces your father-”

Almost without warning, she swung at his jaw and hit, hard. He staggered back, surprised.

“I learned to hate you in the last ten years,” she spat.

Jones rubbed his chin, reflecting that perhaps he should have known better than to lead with that.

“I never meant to hurt you.”

“Bullcrap! You took advantage- are you even listening to me, Jones?”

Jones nodded, but held up a shaking finger as his attention failed involuntarily. He brought his other hand up to shield his face and sneezed.

“h-hh’sschhuh! hh-schh!”

Marion turned away from him and began to clear the tables again. “Gesundheit, I suppose. Now get out of my bar.”

“Look, Marion, I did what I did. You don’t have to be happy about it, but maybe we can help one another out now. I need one of the pieces your father collected.”

He described the headpiece of Ra to her, all the while looking for signs of recognition in her face. Unfortunately for him, she could have been a master poker player if she’d wanted to. Fortunately, she wasn’t in the mood for that kind of game.

“I know it.”

She walked back to the bar with a tray of empty glasses. Jones followed her, frustrated. “What does that mean? Where’s Abner?”

Marion raised her head. She stared at the wall as though she could see straight through it, eyes wide and too bright. “Abner’s dead.”

That stopped Indy in his tracks, at least for a moment. “Oh. Marion, I’m sorry.”

She didn’t move. “Do you know what you did to me? To my life?”

“I can only say I’m sorry so many times.”

“Well say it again anyway.”

“I’m sorry.”

She span away, throwing herself into her work with fresh abandon.

“Yea, everybody’s sorry. Abner was sorry for dragging me all over this Earth looking for his little bits of junk, I’m sorry to still be stuck in this dive, everybody’s sorry for something.”

Jones sighed. “It’s a worthless bronze medallion, Marion, are you going to give it to me?”

“Maybe I don’t know where it is.”

“Well maybe you could find it.” Jones pulled a wad of money from his breast pocket. “Three thousand bucks.”

“Well that would get me back. But not in style.”

“I can get you another two when we get to the states. It’s important, Marion. Trust me.”

She went to hit him again, but he was ready this time and caught her wrist. He pressed the money into her hand. “You know the piece I mean. You know where it is?”

She laughed at his face. “Come back tomorrow.”

“Why?”

“Because I said so. And because sick men need their sleep. See you tomorrow, Indiana Jones.”

 

 

Despite her insistence on ‘tomorrow’, it wasn’t as long as that before the two were facing each other again, this time standing in front of the blazing hulk of the Raven as snowflakes mingled with ash in the air above them.

Marion stamped her feet pettishly. “Well Jones, at least you haven’t forgotten how to show a lady a good time!”

“Boy, you’re something!”

“Yeah, and I’ll tell you what-” Marion was furious now. She thrust the Headpiece in Indiana’s face like a physical reproach. “Until I get back my 5000 dollars, you’re gonna get more than you bargained for! I’m your goddamn partner!”

Indy grinned, and raised both hands in surrender. When it came down to it, faced with Marion there wasn’t much else you could do.

Then, as though his nose was determined to stop him leaving this situation with any dignity at all, a prickling need overwhelmed him. It came on so suddenly that he didn’t even lower his hands, just twisted his head to sneeze over his shoulder.

“hah-SSSCHuhh!”

Marion blinked. “Gesundheit.”

She scowled, seemingly angry at having her outburst derailed. “Smoke getting to you?”

Jones scrubbed at his still-irritated nose with one hand. “Or something.”

“Good. I hope it itches like hell.”

She stalked off down the hill. Feeling that he might possibly have deserved that, Indiana followed.

 

 

Two hours later they were both still awake, sitting awkwardly at either end of a hotel sofa with an overpriced bottle of whisky keeping the peace between them. There wouldn’t be a flight out of Nepal until morning.

Thankfully time and alcohol had taken the edge off Marion’s anger. Indy wasn’t sure if the swollen feeling in his throat owed more to the bar fight or this persistent cold, but it was accompanied by a certain heavy-headed lethargy, and he didn’t feel up to fighting any more.

He massaged a point of tension between his eyes and looked back up to find Marion watching him. Their eyes met, and she asked, off-handedly;

“You break your nose since I saw you last?”

Indy smiled wryly, looking away from her face. “It’s that obvious, huh?”

“Don’t worry about it. It suits you.” Marion leaned a little closer and, reaching out before Indy could realise what she was up to, traced a finger down the bridge of his nose, lingering to tease at the long-healed fracture point.

Indy pulled sharply back, breath beginning to flutter even as he reached up to push her hand away.

“Oh, don’t do tha-ah-” he paused, head turned away from Marion, but still waiting for his nose to make up its mind. He wrinkled it in mild annoyance and, to his surprise, sparked an immediate, powerful reaction.

“ha-SSCHUH! uh. ‘scuse me.”

“Gesundheit. My fault.”

“Hmm. Surprising, though. It’s not ordinarily so reactive.”

She kicked him lightly on the ankle. “Don’t use words like that. You’ll tempt me.”

Indy grinned at her. “Oh yeah?”

Marion rolled her eyes. “How’d you do it?”

“I like to think I have a certain natural allure.”

“Jackass. I meant your nose.”

Indy thumbed the tip of his nose. “Believe it or not, I got into a fight.”

That earned him a sock on the arm.

“You’ll be in another one if you keep playing games with me. Who with?”

“A professor of geology from Cambridge University.”

“You still kidding?”

“No. I disturbed his research site, apparently. He was very upset.”

Marion laughed. “Now I believe you.”

Indy laughed too. He bent forward to reach his whisky glass, but pulled abruptly back again as the motion dislodged some lingering irritation in his nose.

“heh-CHHSSCH!”

It was an abnormally loud sneeze for him, and Marion actually jumped. “Hell’s teeth, Doctor Jones!”

Indiana thumbed his nose bashfully. “Sorry. I think it is the smoke.”

“Whatever.” Moment over, she stood up and stretched lazily. “I’m going to bed. By the sound of that cold, you should too.”

“Well, if you’re-”

“separately.”

 

[Shamaël]

Indiana Jones? Really??? That is such a great idea! And as usual, it's amazingly good... Now I picture the whole scene in my head, and of course my immediate thought is: is this a one-shot or do you think that, maybe, you could... prolong the pleasure with other Indy scenes (from that movie or another)? (You can't see it of course, but I'm looking at my screen - and Jeremy Brett, who doesn't care - with puppy eyes...)

2 hours ago, RiversD said:

“You break your nose since I saw you last?”

Indy smiled wryly, looking away from her face. “It’s that obvious, huh?”

“Don’t worry about it. It suits you.” Marion leaned a little closer and, reaching out before Indy could realise what she was up to, traced a finger down the bridge of his nose, lingering to tease at the long-healed fracture point.

Indy pulled sharply back, breath beginning to flutter even as he reached up to push her hand away.

“Oh, don’t do tha-ah-”

That was, in my humble opinion, the best part of it all. (With the end, of course.) Thank you for this story!

[RiversD]

1 hour ago, Aliena H. said:

Indiana Jones? Really??? That is such a great idea! And as usual, it's amazingly good... Now I picture the whole scene in my head, and of course my immediate thought is: is this a one-shot or do you think that, maybe, you could... prolong the pleasure with other Indy scenes (from that movie or another)? (You can't see it of course, but I'm looking at my screen - and Jeremy Brett, who doesn't care - with puppy eyes...)

Thank you!!

This was a commission piece, so I wouldn't feel comfortable extending it, I'm afraid. Perhaps other pieces will arise in the fullness of time.

If it's any consolation, I have written Indy  before: http://www.sneezefetishforum.org/topic/65363-the-price-of-talk-indiana-jones/ It's an older piece, but I'll leave it here just in case. There might be something buried in my drabble thread too. In any case, thank you very much for your praise! I really appreciate it!

 

[SterlingSilver]

*busts through the door* DID SOMEONE SAY INDIANA JONES.

*weeps openly* Oh my gosh this is amazing. I got onto the Indy train so many years ago, and it's wonderful to get blasts of nostalgia now and again, especially with some re-imagined snez and especially from an amazing writer like you, RiversD!

Some of the my favorites:

On 11/11/2017 at 7:21 AM, RiversD said:

She scowled, seemingly angry at having her outburst derailed. “Smoke getting to you?”

Jones scrubbed at his still-irritated nose with one hand. “Or something.”

“Good. I hope it itches like hell.”

 

On 11/11/2017 at 7:21 AM, RiversD said:

“Don’t worry about it. It suits you.” Marion leaned a little closer and, reaching out before Indy could realise what she was up to, traced a finger down the bridge of his nose, lingering to tease at the long-healed fracture point.

Indy pulled sharply back, breath beginning to flutter even as he reached up to push her hand away.

“Oh, don’t do tha-ah-” he paused, head turned away from Marion, but still waiting for his nose to make up its mind. He wrinkled it in mild annoyance and, to his surprise, sparked an immediate, powerful reaction.

 

On 11/11/2017 at 7:21 AM, RiversD said:

“heh-CHHSSCH!”

It was an abnormally loud sneeze for him, and Marion actually jumped. “Hell’s teeth, Doctor Jones!”

You've gotten their banter down so perfectly, and I love these little in-character, believable moments between them >w< I feel like this is really how it would have gone if the director had the wondrous foresight to give Indy a cold throughout the movie because really, any movie could improve itself with an attractive main character suffering from a cold. When will Hollywood understand this.

[Luisa39]

I love "Raiders of the Lost Ark," and this story was a GREAT idea!

[AngelEyes]

Your writing is as always fantastic!

On 11/11/2017 at 6:21 AM, RiversD said:

She scowled, seemingly angry at having her outburst derailed. “Smoke getting to you?”

 

 

Jones scrubbed at his still-irritated nose with one hand. “Or something.”

 

 

“Good. I hope it itches like hell.”

LOL

 

On 11/11/2017 at 6:21 AM, RiversD said:

“Hmm. Surprising, though. It’s not ordinarily so reactive.”

 

 

She kicked him lightly on the ankle. “Don’t use words like that. You’ll tempt me.”

 

 

Indy grinned at her. “Oh yeah?”

 

 

Marion rolled her eyes. “How’d you do it?”

 

 

“I like to think I have a certain natural allure.”

 

 

“Jackass. I meant your nose.”

LOL

[MoonDuck]

Ahhh this is wonderful! The characterization and writing as a whole are wonderful, and Indy is just <3. Thanks for writing this!

[queenie]

Oh, how lovely. My confused preteen self feels very validated.