Alex's Story Book

Title: The Crown Jewel Affair
Fandom: Young Indiana Jones
Disclaimer: I do not own nor do I profit from these characters.
Rating: G
Author: Alex (alex_cat_45@yahoo.com)
Type: 200 word Double Drabble
Note: This would have taken place when Indy was in England before their trip to Egypt and beyond, around 1909 or so.
Summary: Indy goes on adventure in London with a new friend.

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THE CROWN JEWEL AFFAIR

Young Henry Jones Junior was almost asleep when he remembered that he’d promised the young English boy he’d met that they could try sneaking into The Tower of London and try to see the Crown Jewels. He was still dressed so he threw back the covers and slipped out of the quiet hotel undetected.

It took him a bit to get to the Tower but he managed to confiscate a bicycle that made the trip much faster. His new friend was waiting outside the gate in the shadows for him.

“H-h- hello, Henry,” the boy said as Indy hid his bike in the bushes. The two of them set off, speaking only in whispers as they made their way through the tangle of buildings that made up the palace complex.

Henry was terrified when a guard stopped them. “Sir, aren’t you out a bit late?”

Henry’s companion spoke to the guard, more nervous than afraid. “D-don’t tell Mum. She’d k-kill me!”

The guard winked. “Your secret’s safe, Your Highness.”

They continued on their adventure and did indeed see the Crown Jewels. It was years later that he figured out that the boy he’d known became King George VI of England.

~end~

Last Will and Testament of Henry Walton Jones, Junior

I leave almost all my worldly goods to my son, Henry Walton Jones III. He can do with them as he sees fit. I leave my sense of adventure to the next generation of explorers. Not to sound profound but at 95, it’s allowed. Only by learning about the past will we save our future.

Sorry, Mutt, but the hat is Henrietta’s. She is following in my footsteps and I am so proud of her for that. Go out and find your own Grail, Henrietta!

Signed July 1, 1994
Henry Walton “Indiana” Jones, Junior

Grandfather wrote this on his 95th birthday. The handwriting is spidery and hard to read so his lawyer had it typed and printed also. He lived several more years and even made one last trip to Egypt before he died. I miss him still. The hat is my most treasured possession.

August 14, 1961

Mrs. Jones,

You should have gotten the cable by now that Dr. Jones was injured on the dig in Peru. I also hope that you’ve gotten word that he is well now. The leg was not broken, only a sprain but that is not the matter I am writing about. It would seem that Dr. Jones got into an altercation with an old friend in a bar a few days ago and is now cooling his heels in the local jail, neither he nor the other man will apologize and I fear that both will die of old age in there.

Is there any way that you can come down here or send someone else who can talk some sense into one or both of them? I’m having no luck at all.

Please?

Jack Rogan

Jack was my grandfather’s graduate student assistant at the time and he went on to take Grandfather’s seat at the university when he retired. He is a fine man and recently retired himself. His daughter is my godchild.

September 2, 1932

Henry,

Your father is getting deeper and deeper into his search for the Holy Grail. While I do believe it to be a noble pursuit, I am not sure his obsession is a good thing. Have you seen his Grail diary? I am worried about him. I am not sure that he realizes the actual worth of the Grail if it’s found. There are many who would think nothing of murder to possess such a thing.

I am not even sure I should be concerning you with this. Your father is my dearest friend and I don’t want to see him come to any harm. I simply thought you should be aware that he is at it still and he’s convinced he’s getting closer every day.

Could you at least warn him to be more cautious?

Marcus Brody

January 31, 1954

Ernie,

I read the first reports that you and Mary were dead and was shocked! I am thrilled that this turned out to be untrue. I knew you were made of sterner stuff.

Did I ever tell you about going on safari in Africa as a kid? We went when Teddy Roosevelt was there and I met him, even got to go with him hunting once. Mr. Percival was our guide. Didn’t I read that he was your guide on your first safari?

I was just thinking about meeting you in the war the other day. Do you remember the girl’s name that we both tried to court? I remember more about her grandmother than her. I think I spent more time with the old lady. It’s hard to believe how young we were in those days.

I’m doing more teaching these days than digging for artifacts though I do plan to go to South America later this month. There are rumors of some Egyptian artifacts in a temple in the jungle. I suspect they’re just that, rumors, but I’m not going to pass up the chance to find out.

I hope to get to see you and Mary when you come back to this side of the ocean. It’s been too long.

Take care.

Indy

When I ran across this one, I had no idea who Ernie was. But all the talk of safaris brought to mind an author we’d read in high school, a man who’d loved safaris, hunting and fishing in a way that my grandfather never had: Ernest Hemingway. My father told me that Grandfather had known him since WWI. My English teacher would have liked me better if she’d known my grandfather was a friend of Mr. Hemingway.

July 21, 1969

Dear Mutt,

I know I’m old but I wonder if there are any artifacts on the moon. Think NASA would think I’m crazy if I wrote and asked if I could start a dig? Maybe I could be the oldest man to walk on the moon.

Yes, your mom says I’m crazy for sure.

Looking forward to seeing you and the kids in September. Already have the grill cleaned for Labor Day!

Dad

March 19, 1918

Ned,

I have to tell you about this crazy mission they sent me on. I still am not sure it was even real. In January, I was sent to Romania to find a general who is believed to have attacked a POW camp. I met up with several people who were assigned to go with me. We went to this frightening castle and we found all the POWs who had disappeared. They were all deathly pale and were dressed in tuxedoes and we found them drinking blood from wine goblets.

We started exploring and we saw strange fireballs, heard disembodied voices and finally were captured by the General, who took us all to a laboratory to do God knows what to us! We escaped but were caught and his soldiers, the POWS came after us. Finally we drove a stake through the general’s heart and all the soldiers fell over dead with the most peaceful look on their faces.

Ned, can there be such a thing as vampires? Am I insane? Have you ever run into something you could not explain? I think it is time for me to go home. Or to a sanitarium.

Crazy as ever,
Indy

This is a tale that my grandfather told us every Halloween when we were small and we never believed him. I am sure that the man was really a vampire but it does seem as if something unexplainable happened to Grandfather in Romania.

June 30, 1908

Dearest Anna,

Are you quite sure that you will not change your mind and come back to me? I will never leave you alone as he has done. You are a woman who understands me and my music. You have the passion, my dearest Anna, something that so few truly have. I am sure that I could make you happy. I will make a home for you and your son in Florence, where you shall outshine even the brightest of stars. Your young Henry will have the best education that I can give him too.

Please, please reconsider. I will be coming to America in a few months and would love to see you in New York. I will write to you with the dates and times.

All my love,
Giacomo Puccini

Evidently Puccini fell in love with my great grandmother and sought her hand while she and Grandfather were in Florence. I could not find a reply from her. Though I am sure she stayed with my great grandfather, I would love to see what she wrote to him, if anything.

May 22, 1959

Son,

I am writing this letter at the urging of your mother. There are many things I can never say to you and many things I have no right to say to you since I missed the first 19 years of your life. I kick my own ass every day for that but the past cannot be changed and I don’t want us to be like me and my own father.

I do wish you’d known him. Talk about an obsessed man. He spent most of his life looking for the Holy Grail. He, Marcus, Sallah and I found it too. It was a simple cup, the cup of a carpenter but it really did have power, son. Power like I’ve never seen before.

But I’m getting away from my point. My point is that I’m very proud of you for going back to school. I know you’d rather ride fast on that monstrous bike of yours. Maybe you’ll have time for both. Whatever you want to do is fine with me and your mother but I really, really want you to study archaeology. Don’t tell her I said that.

Your father,
Henry Jones, Junior

January 20, 1936

Indy,

I have been watching as Germany has been growing more and more aggressive under Hilter. I fear that we will soon pay again for our actions after the Great War. I worry for anyone who gets in Hitler’s way. I’d love to know what you think about it.

Have you been to Egypt lately? Your friend Sallah is still in the middle of nearly every dig, I hear. He is an interesting man. I met him when I was in Cairo a few years ago. I have heard that the Germans are looking for any mystical or magical thing they can find. It would seem that they think they can harness these powers for their own ends. I am not sure that I believe in the powers but I do hope Mr. Hitler and his men do not find anything to test out.

I have a new motorcycle that you’d love! It flies like the wind! It’s another Brough Superior. You should get one for yourself! They custom manufacture them and they are quite fast. Mine will go 100 miles per hour. Not quite as fast as those aeroplanes you flew in with your buddies in the war but pretty fast for something on the ground.

I hope to see you sooner rather than later.

Ned

T. E. “Ned” Lawrence died a few months later in a crash on his beloved motorcycle. I’m not sure if Grandfather ever had one but my own father loved them and has ridden one as long as I remember. Grandfather attended Ned’s funeral just before he went back to Egypt to find the Lost Ark.