Summary: A man who passes through time appears on the plateau being chased by another man that wants to keep old secrets hidden. But when the time traveler takes refuge in the treehouse, the explorers have to decide whether or not to trust him and keep him safe from his pursuer. Also, there is a MAJOR Marguerite and Roxton moment in this episode. Thanks all for reading!!!

Disclaimer: I do not own TLW…still…yet I love all of the people who read these stories that I've created and wish could have been put on the TV.

Episode 10 – The Time Traveler

Chapter 1

Charles Marek looked up into a hazy moon at the sky above. His breathing had calmed but his pulse continued to quickly accelerate at every little sound. It had been a long journey for him already and there was much further for him to go. He did not have time to think about that now. He looked down at the address in his hands: 1513 Westminster Lane, London.

He slipped out of the dark alley and down the sidewalk where an old lamppost was flickering. The buzzing made his nerves even more shot as he quickly took a cigarette from his pocket and lit it. The smoke drifted behind him as he quickly walked along, glancing at all of the numbers upon the houses as he passed. He finally reached an old, rusty wire fence before stopping and staring at the house in front of him. Here it was…the place he had been looking for.

He glanced all around him as he unlatched the gate and strode up to the front door. He quietly knocked, but the cobweb laden doors pointed out that no one had been there in years. After not receiving a reply, he jiggled the handle only to find it locked. He grimaced as he realized that he would now have to force his way in. Forcing entry meant noise which could possibly draw a crowd. It wasn't likely that many people were out at 3a.m. but any slight movement could stir the neighbors that were only 50 yards away.

Realizing that he had no other choice, he slipped a long knife out of his pocket and jiggled the lock. The door quickly opened with a small clank and he pushed it slightly open; just enough space for him to slip in and close the door quickly behind him. When he turned around from closing the door, he walked slowly to the stairs being as quiet as possible. But when he got to the foot of the stairs, he froze in panic when he saw a flash of light in the rooms above.

Damn, he must've come in the back, Charles thought as he saw the light get even closer to the doorway. He was just getting ready to react when the man upstairs suddenly appeared through the doorway and stared down at him. When the light hit Charles, he quickly turned and ran as fast as possible.

"Oy, Charles!" the man behind him yelled. Charles didn't turn around or slow down, but instead raced out the door, bailed back over the steel fence, and ran as fast as he could towards the deserted Hyde Park only a few blocks away.

Dammit, he knows now, Charles thought as he kept running. His hat had fallen somewhere behind him and the tuxedo he was wearing was now tattered from the twigs he had caught the sleeves on.

What now…what now…have to get away…have to get to a different time. Hmm…but what time. 2419 would be good. That was when some of the treasure was unearthed from the seabed floor. Yes, he had decided that his best chance was to get back to that time. He flipped the dials on his time turner and raced to a clearing in the park. Once he got to a wide enough area, he pressed his button down on the center of his turner as light flooded all around him. He felt a tug on the top of his forehead and the strange feeling of a hand gripping his arm as he was flowing through time. The last thing he remembered was suddenly being knocked on his feet and closing his eyes...

The Plateau

Veronica, Malone, and Finn walked through the jungle with supplies in their hands. Their supply trip at the Zanga Village had been a good one, but they hadn't had much choice in the matter. Challenger's power of suggestion had left them little room to rebuttal. Of course, he had only suggested that Roxton and Marguerite do household chores even though it was Roxton that often went on the supply trips. Veronica still couldn't get over the fact that the others were hiding something. She had often walked in on Challenger whispering to Marguerite only to find that their communication stopped once she was in earshot. It was really starting to irritate her and Malone noticed that it was beginning to really affect her mood. But seeing Assai had put Veronica into a much more cheerful mood and the three blondes were laughing and joking on their way back to the treehouse.

"It was so good seeing Assai," Veronica commented. "She looks so happy."

"Her belly is starting to get huge," Finn commented.

"That's because she's pregnant, Finn," Malone input.

"I know that," Finn replied. "She just looks even bigger than normal."

"Well the wise-woman in the village does think that she's carrying more than one child," Veronica answered.

"Have you been around very many pregnant women, Finn?" Malone asked.

"Just a couple," Finn answered. "Most people didn't want to bring their kids into the world after most of it was destroyed." There was a small moment of silence as the three thought about the horrid world that Zoth had created.

"Well, maybe bringing you here can change all that," Malone said, trying to sound optimistic. Veronica looked over at him and gave a little smile as they walked along. They all paused as a loud burst of gunfire struck the air.

"You think that was from the direction of the treehouse?" Veronica quickly asked, suddenly tensed and ready to fight.

"That didn't sound like rifle shots," Malone quickly input.

"Semi-automatic hand pistols," Finn replied. Veronica and Malone both looked at her in confusion. "I know my guns."

"That would be a modern-day gun," Malone replied. "Meaning…"

"Someone from the future is here on the plateau," Veronica replied.

"Or they found the weapons," Finn replied.

"Come on," Veronica said as she ran off towards the echoing gunshots. Malone and Finn both looked at each other for a moment with looks of doubt, but quickly ran off after Veronica towards the sounds of the future calling.

The Treehouse

Marguerite was standing outside with a look of apprehension on her face. She had been out all morning, pacing around the treehouse, looking for fruit, hunting along with Roxton, and even looking for some jewels in a recently unearthed area. But as she paced along, she couldn't get those repeating words out of her head, "Are you saying this war may be between me and Veronica." It had been words she had said, but she didn't fully realize their meaning until they were spoken. All of the clues she had been given recently pointed out that there would be some confrontation between her and Veronica…the only question now was when.

As she paced along, she didn't realize that Roxton was staring at her from where he had been chopping wood. His shirt was laying nicely at his feet as the beads of sweet rolled down his dusty stomach. Challenger had suggested chopping some wood to be used as support beams for some modifications to the treehouse floor in his laboratory. Although Challenger wouldn't admit that it may have been a chemical spill, the laboratory had a small burn in it that exposed a section of the floor to the jungle below. So Roxton was going to use the wood to make a patch over the hole. But for the most part, his chopping had been distracted by Marguerite.

She had been unusually helpful that morning. He thought that it may have something to do with the fact that if she was helping him, it would take her out of the treehouse and farther away from Malone and Veronica's questions. Things hadn't been entirely the same between all of the explorers as they realized that Challenger, Roxton, and Marguerite were all hiding things from them. So to keep the awkward encounters to a minimum, Marguerite was now staying as far from them and as close to Roxton as possible. Of course Roxton wasn't the one to complain about the close contact. He rather enjoyed Marguerite's presence and hoped that it would last. She suddenly became aware that he wasn't making sound and was instead staring at her. She turned and looked up at him with those piercing greenish eyes of her as the sun bore down upon them.

"What?!?" she asked a little defensively.

"Nothing," Roxton replied as he walked closer to her. "I was just wondering what was on your mind as you were digging this hole in the ground with your pacing." Marguerite looked down to see that she had made an impression in the earth, but it wasn't a large hole yet.

"You really want to know?" Marguerite asked, seductively as she tried to change the subject. She walked closer to him with her canteen in her hand and leaned up close to him. "I was thinking that…you need a shower." And as she said this, she dumped her water over his head and it ran down his face. He just looked up at her with a wide look of astonishment. But after a moment of two, he shook a little and let the water run completely down him. His hair was becoming a little shaggy and swayed with his shaking. He looked back up at her with a smile as he was about to say something playful, but he stopped as he saw her eyes on his chest. A drop of water had started to move down the center of him, across the dirt that had caked on against his skin. He watched her eyes return to his with a look of wanting as she pretended that her thoughts weren't so focused on him.

He took a step closer to her as she looked a little taken aback, but she did not draw away. His hand came up and wiped the hair away from the sides of her head that were stuck in place from the light beads of sweat coming from her own forehead. He stared at her hair for a moment as she just looked at him with such adoration.

"You know, the others are gone," Roxton quietly said to her. "The treehouse is…empty." Marguerite opened her mouth a little to make a comment, but Roxton made a big smile and turned away from her. He grabbed his shirt and stepped into the elevator. She stood in place for a moment…trying to decide whether or not to go up to the treehouse with him. It was rather hot outside but there was no doubt in her mind that the treehouse would be even hotter. She shook her head a little and smiled too as she walked off towards the elevator and up to the top of the treehouse.

Once she stopped off of the elevator, Roxton turned from the table and looked at her. They both stared at each other for a moment before quickly closing the gap between them and embracing within seconds. With one hand against the back of her head, Roxton wrapped the other around her stomach as he pulled her to him. Her right hand grazed his scruffy skin on his cheeks as she let the worries of the day just fade away…

Coming up…Veronica, Malone, and Finn discover the source of the 21st century weapons but don't get to talk to the new visitor. Later, all of the explorers are in for a surprise as one of the men with the guns shows up at the treehouse begging for refuge from his pursuer. The traveler's tale of why he is on the plateau shocks all of the explorers but also gives them a chance to ask him the ultimate question…does he know what their future holds? And later in the episode, Roxton contemplates asking Marguerite to make the ultimate commitment.