They came on a school bus full of students on a fieldtrip: two hooded figures, boy and girl as far as anyone could tell. They carried a set of tools that would've passed in ancient Egypt. The boy carried a khopesh and the girl, a staff. They spoke quietly between themselves and made a beeline for the Egypt exhibit, and more specifically, to Ahkmenrah and his tablet which were on display from the British Museum.
The cryptic pair hung around the exhibit for a good long while, chanting so quietly hardly a soul could hear. Afterwards, they walked away from the museum as quickly and silently as they had come, unaccompanied by any teachers or classmates.
No one had been bothered by their presence. As far as most people were concerned, there was nothing to worry about. A couple of quiet teenagers weren't going to cause any considerable harm. But Larry Daley noticed, and he knew the harm that could come from things that people overlook. He wasn't a night guard anymore, but he was a friend to most of the exhibits. If these kids changed anything, Larry would be first in line to help.
Larry made his way to Dr. McPhee as swiftly as he could manage. "Hey, McPhee," Larry greeted the curator.
"Ah, here he is: the king of the museum, come to save us all no doubt," McPhee responded sarcastically.
Larry had long ago learned to tolerate this attitude from the curator. He ignored McPhee's sarcasm and got straight to the point. "Hey, I was wondering if I could stay the night here. I wanted to say hi to everybody."
McPhee clapped his hands together. "Oh, I bet that'd be lovely."
"Yeah, it would be, actually," Larry agreed.
"No." McPhee walked off, leaving his answer hanging in the air. Larry followed him.
"No?" he repeated incredulously. "These guys are my friends."
"You're not a night guard anymore, Larry," McPhee sighed as though he were already exhausted by the conversation. "This museum is a page that you've turned."
Larry could see that he wasn't getting anywhere with the friendly approach. He stepped closer.
"Don't hurt me!" McPhee squeaked.
"What? I'm not—I'm not going to hurt you. I'm trying to tell you that I think something might be wrong with the tablet." Larry told McPhee all about the two chanting figures.
"Oh, what? You think two kids could ruin things with a little hocus-pocus magic?" McPhee challenged when Larry had finished.
"I'm not going to say it's not a possibility," Larry responded seriously. "Look, I'm only asking to stay so I can check on everything."
McPhee paused and sighed. "If you want your job back, you're welcome to stay the night."
"Done." And after three years, Larry Daley was a night guard again.
Larry slipped back into his routine easily. There were a few changes, of course. New traveling exhibits from London were sprinkled here and there. Ahkmenrah's parents, Merenkahre and Shepseheret had joined him on this trip to New York. And Tilly, the British night guard was there.
"This is great. Both of us working at the same museum," she was saying. "Kind of like old times, y'know?"
"Uh, yeah," Larry agreed, not really paying attention to what she was saying. "Old times when you babysat La, I guess."
"Speaking of which, I'm going to go head over there until the sun sets," she announced. "You do whatever it is you're here to do. If you need me, we have walkie-talkies which are really cool. I don't get them in London. Maybe 'cos it's just me there, but it's still pretty unfair."
"Yup," Larry absently responded. "Have fun over by the cavemen." Tilly left without another word, which was undoubtedly a rare occasion.
The sun was just disappearing. The exhibits came to life as they always did with the help of the tablet. So far, so good.
It had been years since Larry had seen all the exhibits alive. He had almost forgotten how much he missed them.
"Rexy!" Larry greeted as the dinosaur skeleton creaked to life. "Long time, no see, buddy."
"Lawrence!" Teddy greeted as he dismounted Texas. "Good to see you lad!"
"Good to be back, Teddy. How is everything?"
"We've been excellent!" Teddy responded. "It's going to be an enjoyable four months." He was referring to the four months the tablet would be in New York. It seemed a shame. Ahkmenrah and the tablet come home only to return in a few short months. Nevertheless, things must go on.
Just as Larry had predicted, it wasn't long before there was trouble. Jedidiah and Octavius drove up in their RC car, which they undoubtedly wasted no time to find. "Well, well, well," Jedidiah began. "Look who's back in uniform. Gigantor himself."
"Hi, guys," Larry greeted. "It's been a while."
"Yes, three years, to be exact," Octavius pointed out. "Far too long."
"I agree," Larry stated.
Jedidiah elbowed Octavius. "Don't forget to tell him about that one thing."
"I was getting to that," Octavius defended himself. "And I was going to break it to him gently."
"Well, you weren't getting to it quick enough," Jedidiah countered.
"Guys, guys, wait." Larry interrupted. "What one thing? What's wrong?"
Octavius hesitated. "We're not quite up to the task of describing it. It's better that we show you. Follow us to the Egyptian exhibit."
Larry glanced at Teddy and they came to a silent, mutual agreement. Whatever it was that was worrying Jed and Octavius, it was no trivial matter.
They both followed the RC car to Egypt. Before Larry even walked inside the main exhibit, he heard an unfamiliar voice. It was definitely a female voice. He couldn't make out exactly what she was saying, but he could tell that her tone was light and mischievous.
When they walked inside, they saw Ahkmenrah and his parents, which was no surprise. However, there was an extra character in the group. She looked Jewish, but was dressed in a golden Egyptian-style dress. She seemed to be about nineteen years old at least. She was rambling on about something or the other. Larry could hardly pick out a word of it.
Ahkmenrah was staring at her in horror, looking as pale as a ghost. Merenkahre appeared absolutely baffled and just a little offended. Shepseheret seemed more confused than both of them combined.
"What is going on?" Larry interrupted the incessant babbling of the foreign exhibit.
The girl spun around to face Larry. "Oh, it's you! The night guard! I was wondering when you would show up, or if you would even show up at all. Of course, I guessed that you had no choice. You can smell when there's trouble brewing, can't you? Something I've noticed about you: you never pass up the opportunity to get into trouble. Did you know that about yourself?"
Larry furrowed his eyebrows. "Who is this?" he demanded. The question was directed at Ahkmenrah, but the pharaoh was still in no condition to speak at all.
"I've forgotten to introduce myself!" the girl realized out loud. "How careless of me!" The girl stood up straight and her voice took on an air of importance. "I am the tablet of Ahkmenrah, pharaoh of Egypt, fourth king of the fourth king. And I have become human."