Bedford Connecticut, U.S.A., 1937

Despite his weariness from a long day of teaching Archeology 101 at Marshall College, these few scraps of fabric kept the seat of his pants glued to his chair. The professor released a soft sigh, his weary head resting on his fist as he propped his elbow against the hard wood.

He had tried to study the pieces in his office at the school, but the halls outside his door were noisy and students and fangirls kept entering his office to ask questions. Now in the privacy of his quiet home after hours, he shined his desk lamp onto the fabric, pulling up the blinds to catch the last few hours of afternoon sun.

There were two pieces; one of them he found in Pankot Palace two years ago, the other was found and sent to him by his friend Sallah.

After he had found the Ark of the Covenant last year, there were no new archeological quests for him, and Indiana Jones was growing restless. Remembering the cloth scraps buried in his collection of history, the archeologist had pulled them out in high hopes they would take him on another adventure.

The pieces fit together like a puzzle. From what he could decipher, the puzzle made a map, but half of it was missing. Indiana eased his frustration by pouring a himself a drink.

His gaze swept over the artifact, taking in every detail and uncovering every clue. It was over two thousand years old, he deciphered. An eye was painted in red in the top left corner along with some foreign writing at the bottom right corner. Thankfully, he could read it. "Seek and you shall find... Never look into the..." Along with the second half of the map, part of the script was missing.

Indiana tipped his glass only to discover that he had drained it. The archeologist leaned back in his chair and scrubbed his face. Maybe after a shower and some food, his head would be clearer.

Just then, a rapid, eager knock echoed from his door. A grin brightened Indy's face as he approached the white door and opened it.

On his doorstep stood a young Chinese boy wearing a Yankees baseball cap and a wide grin with a suitcase in his hands.

  "Indy!" the boy exclaimed, dropping his suitcase and launching himself into the man's arms.

  "Hey, Shorty," Indiana chuckled, embracing his old sidekick. While his young friend had grown a great deal since he last saw him, his nickname still rang true. "It's good to see you, kid. Come on in."

Indiana Jones took Short Round's suitcase and led him inside. The boy turned a 360 twice to take in a full view of Indy'a living room. It was cluttered with books and artifacts with enough sentimental value to collect rather than sell.

  "Wow. Nice place."

  "I'm glad you think so since you're staying here for the summer."

After getting the kid situated in his room, Indy took Short Round to the kitchen. He never claimed to be a great cook and neither did Marion, however sandwiches weren't easy to mess up. He removed the plate of sandwiches from the refrigerator and set them on the table before the boy, then poured two glasses of lemonade for the both of them. He had remembered how his sidekick was always hungry and notified Marion, who made the sandwiches for the boy's arrival. As Short Round inhaled the food, Indy realized that it was still true.

Short Round had grown a few inches since their adventure at Pankot Palace in 1935. With the height, the thirteen-year-old had also gained a bit more meat on his bones to make up for the undernourished leanness from his rough life on the streets.

  "So, do you like school?"

  Short Round swallowed before answering, a conflicted expression crossing his face. "It's all right, I think. My English is getting better, but school is no fun."

  Indiana nodded. "School's not going to be as fun as our adventures in Shanghai and India."

  Shorty frowned in disappointment. "I know. I will study hard to be an archeologist like you some day."

  Indy raised a curious eyebrow at this, but he couldn't say he was surprised. "Good. Do you have any friends there?"

  Short Round actually set down his third half-eaten sandwich, his frown deepening. "No. I do not like my classmates very much."

  "Really? Why not?"

  "They..." He struggled with his limited English to find the right words. "They make jokes about my English and the way I talk. They say I come to America ill-ee-gal-ly." He pronounced the word slowly, only partially understanding the meaning. "I tell them you helped me come here, but they don't believe me. They don't think the famous archeologist Dr. Indiana Jones is my friend."

  "Did you tell your parents?"

  A shadow darkened Short Round's face in a way Indy had never seen before. "They are not my parents," he stated firmly.

  Indiana raised his hands in surrender. "Okay. Your guardians. Did you tell them?"

  "No. I can take care of myself."

  "Kid, I know you can. It's just–" he sighed. "Never mind. What about a teacher?"

  "No. Teachers get... get..." He huffed in annoyance at the difficult word he was attempting to use. "...frust-er-ated with me. They no like my English."

  "I'm sorry, kid. Just study hard and things will get better. I promise." He grinned. "One day, you'll be a great archeologist like me and we'll find treasure together like the old days, okay?"

  Instead of lifting his spirits, the young teenager sank lower in his chair. He muttered sullenly in Shanghainese, "I don't understand why I can't go with you now."

  He sighed. "Kid, we've talked about this–"

Saved by the bell, the door opened and a few moments later, Marion Ravenwood stepped into the kitchen.

  "Hey," Marion greeted brightly as Indy rose to welcome her with a kiss on the cheek. "I closed the bar early so I could meet your little friend."

  "Honey, this is Short Round. Shorty, this is Marion Ravenwood, my fiancée."

  "Nice to meet you, Short Round."

  Shorty seemed puzzled, but hid it behind an awkward smile. "Nice to meet you too, Ms. Ravenwood."

  "Call me Marion. Indy's told me so much about you." Then she turned to her betrothed. "I need to change, so I'll be right back. A guy who had a little too much to drink spilled his last on me before I kicked him out." She winked before promptly leaving the room. The two boys could hear her footsteps echoing until they faded.

  "What is a fiancée?" Short Round asked curiously.

  "It means I'm going to marry her soon."

  "Oh." After a pause, the boy then asked, "What happened to Willie?"

  Indiana chuckled fondly at the memory of Willie Scott, a pampered, sheltered singer who tagged along on their adventure in India. She screamed and cried and complained the entire time, but managed to just barely keep up. "You remember her, kid. She wasn't the right woman for me or my lifestyle. Marion, on the other hand... well, just ask her. I'm sure she'd love to tell you about how she helped me find the Ark of the Covenant. Remember I wrote to you about it? Besides, I hear Willie's married to some famous director or something."

As if on cue, Marion reentered the kitchen dressed in fresh blue shirt. Leaving the two of them to get aquatinted, Indy slipped into his living room to stare at the map he had left on his desk. It was like an unscratchable itch in the back of his brain. Deep down, he knew he had to find whatever this map led to.

He overheard Short Round chatting up a storm and he smiled to himself. Marion and Short Round were hitting it off instantly. Marion had been quite eager to meet him after he told her his sidekick was spending his summer break with them.

He glanced up to find that the conversationalists had migrated into the living room with him. Short Round climbed into his chair to take a peek at what his hero was staring at so hard while Marion glanced over Indy's shoulder.

  "What that, Dr. Jones?"

  Before Indy could reply, Marion mumbled, "I've seen this before."

The archeologist straightened, heart thumping with eager hope. Marion quickly turned and approached a closet door. Opening it, she revealed a clutter of artifacts and began rummaging through them. Indy and Shorty exchanged glances as Marion at last found what she was digging for with an "Ah ha!" of triumph.

She handed her fiancé a box with a card tied to it that read, "To Indiana Jones. A new adventure awaits! –Abner Ravenwood."