Thanks for the reviews so far, I'm glad you liked the first chapter! I was pretty worried!

I hope you continue to enjoy, so please let me know what you think!


Chapter 2: Powerless

"You can't do this!" Beth insisted as she followed Doctor McPhee back to his office. Anger filled her as the man didn't turn to her, instead giving a small sigh as he opened the door to his office.

"Miss Agriosa, I am the curator of this museum. I think you'll find I can," he told her.

"I don't believe that," she told him, making him look around. "You're not happy with this either, it's obvious," she accused him. Doctor McPhee flushed at her words, before clearing her throat.

"I'm in charge here, of course I'm happy with it. It was my decision," Doctor McPhee's voice held a warning tone in it that told Beth she was going too far, but she didn't care. Not when it was about several exhibits being moved away.

"Doctor McPhee, how can you-"

"I did not think this was your place to argue," she stiffened when another voice spoke up. Doctor McPhee sighed as Beth looked over his shoulder to see an older man approach. "You are friends with my daughter Marie, yes?" he asked in his cold tone.

"Yes sir," Beth nodded, her fists clenched tightly. She'd only met Marie's father once, but he was a powerful man on the board who did not care much for those below him.

"And you are also the night guard for this establishment, correct?" his eyes were as cold as his voice.

"Yes sir," Beth nodded again.

"Then you will excuse me if I ask why you think we should listen to you," he told her as he adjusted his tie. His cold gaze moved up and down as he took in her appearance. In a pair of shorts and leggings, along with a white shirt under her uniform jacket, and a pair of purple converse, Beth was asking for trouble by not sticking to the uniform. "After all, you're a security guard," Doctor James stated again, a trace of a smirk on his face as he met her eyes again. "It is your job to guard what we see fit to display. This is not up for discussion. We are renovating the museum, and replacing these exhibits with newer, more up to date, more efficient ways for children to learn. Isn't that the point of museums?" Doctor James asked her with a raised eyebrow.

Beth was silent for a moment as she stared at him. She glanced to Doctor McPhee, who looked almost apologetic as he waited for her response. Beth knew it wasn't his choice. He loved the place as much as she did. He took pride in it. When his apologetic expression changed to one of worry, Beth sighed, knowing she needed to answer the board member.

"Yes sir," she answered in a resigned, robotic voice. Doctor James nodded, seeming happy with her answer.

"Good. Now if you'll excuse us, Doctor McPhee and I have some things to discuss," the man told her.

"Yes, go on, your shift is long finished by now. Go on," Doctor McPhee shooed her away, and without a word, Beth turned and walked away. The door shut loudly, and Beth looked at the paper still in her hand. Reading the names of the exhibits that were being moved, tears began to burn at her eyes, and she blinked them back, determined to figure out some way to help.


Beth was growing more and more agitated as all she heard from her phone was the noise of a call not going through. Resisting the urge to smash everything up, Beth deleted the number from her phone.

"So much for keeping in touch Larry," she growled, slamming her phone down on the table. She then opened her laptop, booting it up as she looked at the clock. She only had a few hours left until she had to leave for work, and she had barely slept before getting up to try and contact the only other person who knew about the museum. A quick search online brought up a new number, and she reluctantly dialed it before putting her phone to her ear.

"Hello, Larry Daley's Daily Devices, how can I help?" a female voice answered.

"Hey, I know you probably get a heck of a lot of requests like this, but can I talk to Larry?" Beth requested hopefully, and heard a heavy sigh in response. "Look, I know, everyone wants to talk to the guy in charge, but I really need to talk to him. He's a friend of mine, we worked together for a while and I owe him a lot. Could I even just give you a message to give him? Please, it's really important," she pleaded with the woman.

"What's the message?" the woman asked, a little quieter.

"Tell him Beth called. It's really important that he comes to the museum as soon as he can," Beth told her, wanting to say more but knowing that she couldn't without giving anything away. She added in her phone number as well, thinking that Larry must have gotten a new phone since he last showed up at the museum.

"I'll do what I can, but Mr. Daley does get a lot of calls. I can't guarantee he'll respond," the woman on the other end told her.

"I know. Thanks for helping," Beth smiled weakly, and hung up. She then put her head in her hands. "What am I going to do?" she whispered to herself as tears welled up again, and this time when she tried to blink them away, they just kept coming.


Beth dragged her feet as she walked towards to the Natural Museum, her eyes on the ground as she thought over what she was going to say when she got there. Her stomach churned at the thought of breaking the news to the exhibits. The paper with the list of names burned in her pocket, and her hand kept brushing it, as if she hoped that it would disappear and that this was all a horrible dream.

Closing her eyes, Beth found herself picturing the faces of the exhibits when she told them. They were her friends; her family. Tears burned at her eyes, and Beth opened her eyes again, crossing the road that brought her closer and closer to the museum, where she would have to face them. Her clenched fists shook at the thought. Managing to unclench one hand, she reached into her pocket and pulled out her phone, checking to see if she had any calls. Nothing. Letting out a frustrated growl, she shoved it back into her pocket and breathed out a ragged breath as she rubbed at her eyes furiously. Crying wouldn't help.

For all her power, Beth had never felt so powerless in her life. She was completely at a loss for what to do. Doctor McPhee was unable to argue against the board, and they would never listen to a lowly night guard. Doctor James was right. It was her job to guard what was in the museum. But not in the way he thought. She was guarding them from discovery, from the risk of ending up outside when the sun rose. And now, it seemed, guarding them from change.

A loud rumble of a horn blaring snapped Beth from her thoughts. Looking up and around, she saw a large truck hurtling towards her, with the driver indicating wildly for her to get out of the way. But Beth couldn't. She completely froze up. Her hand twitched as if she considered using her powers, but before she could register anything, a strong hand caught her arm and yanked her back onto the path. The truck barreled past; the driver roaring obscenities out the window at her as he passed, and Beth put a hand to her chest as her heart pounded painfully against it.

"Thank you so..." Beth turned to thank her savior and trailed off when she realised she was alone. A group of teenagers walked past, giving her strange looks, and an old man with grey hair was walking in the opposite direction. "Weird..." she frowned, and turned back to the road that she was to cross. As she recovered from the shock of what had happened, her dread returned.

When she reached the museum, it took everything Beth had to climb the steps and walk inside. Nearby to the desk in the middle of the main foyer, Doctor McPhee stood snapping at parents who let their children attempt to touch the exhibits. Noticing Beth's arrival, he stopped shouting and he switched from looking annoyed to guilty as he caught her eye. Beth just sighed again, and kept walking. She headed down to the small security staff room that only she usually occupied, and tossed her hoodie over the sofa. The day staff were always long gone by the time she arrived. Rubbing her arm, still feeling where she had been grabbed, Beth opened her locker and pulled off her shirt. She lifted a white shirt from her locker and pulled it on over her vest, and grabbed the tie that hung from a coat hook on the back of the locker door.

Once she had shrugged on her security jacket, Beth tied her curly hair back and surveyed her appearance in a cracked mirror that had been there since before she had started visiting the museum. In the very little of her uniform, Beth barely looked like a night guard, but she took her job seriously. Nothing had ever been as important to her. Taking a breath, she closed her locker and slipped her hand into her pocket again to touch the paper. "Time to face the music..." Beth whispered, checking the time.

Leaving the staff room, Beth walked back up to the foyer, locking the front doors; a habit she had picked up after Dexter had gone outside several times. Looking out, she watched the sun disappear beneath the tree-line, and after a moment began to hear Rexy moving behind her. She didn't move at first, and after a moment she felt the rough nudging of the dinosaur's skull against her back. She gave a small laugh, turning around. "Hey boy," she smiled sadly, reaching out and rubbing his head.

"Good evening Miss Agriosa!" Beth closed her eyes and took a breath, willing herself not to cry.

"Hey Teddy," she turned to him, and the President's smile instantly faded.

"What troubles you my dear?" he asked, and Beth fought to contain her tears.

"Can I talk to you for a minute?" she asked, and he nodded, climbing from Texas and following her through the museum.

"Good evening Bet," Ahkmenrah smiled as he emerged from his own exhibit and spotted them. However, his smile dropped as quickly as Teddy's had when he saw her expression. "What is it?" he moved towards her, but Beth veered away, leading them both into the Egyptian exhibit.

"Miss Agriosa, what is wrong?" Teddy asked as Beth kept her back to them. Not trusting herself to speak, she lifted the crumpled paper from her pocket, and turned to the pair, holding it out. Ahkmenrah took it from her, and the two read it curiously.

"What is this?" Ahkmenrah asked when he finally looked up.

"It's a list of the exhibits that are to be moved out of the museum and into storage," Beth's voice broke and tears quickly followed as she saw their stunned expressions. "I'm sorry...I'm so...sorry," she put her hands to her face. "I couldn't do...anything...to help them," she cried, and the two exhibits exchanged worried looks before Ahkmenrah went over to her and wrapped his arms around the guard as Beth finally broke, unable to contain her cries.


I really bully Beth sometimes...ah well, it's for the best!

I hope you liked it! I'll aim to update as soon as I can, but a lot is going on in work at the moment so no idea when that'll be!

Please review!