It was Tilly who broke the news, calling him from London like she did sometimes because she was bored without the tablet and to see how Laaa was doing.

"Ahkmenrah isn't coming back to London," she told him. For a second Larry's heart raced excitedly. Had they decided to permanently house him in New York again? "The board have decided to send him on a world tour. Makes him sound like a rock star, doesn't it?"

"Umm, yeah," Larry replied, secretly devastated by the news. "For how long?"

"His tomb was one of the most intact ever found, so they want him to visit like a dozen cities or so."

That many? Exhibitions ran for months, that meant Ahk would be gone for years.

He swallowed nervously, mentally steeling himself for the bad news.

"How long exactly?"

"It's a seven-year program."

"Seven years..."

He really would be an old man before he saw Ahk again.

"Yeah, here's the thing though. I told them there's only one person qualified to make sure Ahk is safe. He's a priceless treasure and all, you know?"

Yeah, Larry did know.

"Congrats Tilly, you'll have a blast." All those different museums coming to life, and a friend always there to share it with.

"No stupid, I already have a job. I told them because you stole the tablet before, you'd know best how to protect it."

That was actually really sweet of her.

"Nice try, Tilly. Thanks for the effort." But there was no way in hell the board of this museum was ever letting him near Ahk again.

"Technically it's a joint decision between the British Museum and the American Museum of Natural History, but since we hold two-thirds of the exhibition, we should get more of a say. But the American side argued that Ahk and the tablet are the main drawcard, so they should have the final say." Hopefully she was getting to a point soon. "Anyway, it turned out Dr McPhee had the final say and he signed off. I know you had that teaching thing going on, but the job is yours if you want it."

If he wanted it? If he wanted to spend seven years travelling the world with Ahk? New sights to see and cities to explore. And now that Nicky was grown up, there was nothing tying him to New York.

"Hell yes I want it!"

"I thought so," she laughed.

"Where are we going? What museums are scheduled?"

"Oh Larry, you're gonna love it..."

xxx

Larry was deliriously happy until he thought of Teddy and Sacagawea, and of Jed and Octavius. By leaving, he would be denying them each other. It wasn't like he'd made the call to go, but it still took a little of the shine off.

He decided to talk to Teddy first. He knew Teddy would take it best and offer him advice for the others.

"Hey Teddy."

"Lawrence!" Teddy beamed, pleased to see him as always.

"I need to talk to you."

"Oh dear. What catastrophe are we facing this time?"

"It's nothing like that," Larry assured. "Tilly called. She had some news..."

He wasn't sure how to say this. Being happy about it felt selfish.

"The spit it out, man. Face the consequences!"

"Right," Larry nodded. "They're sending Ahk away on a world tour."

Teddy's expression softened, he was a good friend.

"Oh. I imagine you'll be very sorry to see him go."

"That's the thing, I'm going too. They've given me the security job."

"But this is wonderful, Lawrence!" Teddy exclaimed, clapping a hand to his shoulder. "Cheer up!"

"Really? You know we'll be taking the tablet."

"Naturally. Don't fret about us. We all had many years of freedom whilst Ahkmenrah lay trapped. And for you both to share this opportunity, it's marvellous. Don't let the fate of us wax and polyurethane people dampen your spirits. Every day we've had has been a gift. You owe us nothing."

"I know," Larry agreed. "That you're happy for us I mean." Because in regard to owing them, he could never repay the debt.

"Enjoy it, Lawrence. I insist."

He wanted to, really wanted to. Teddy was right, it was an amazing opportunity, and with Teddy's approval, he felt the excitement building again.

"Now," Teddy said. "Let me talk to the others, you go share the happy news."

Like always, the former president knew exactly what he needed.

"Thanks, Teddy," he smiled. "I will."

xxx

When he reached Ahk's exhibit, Larry took a moment, settling against the door frame. The Egyptian was lost in thought, running his fingers over the inscriptions on the walls of his tomb, thinking of home no doubt. Dressed in his traditional robes he was a sight, and Larry just watched appreciatively for a moment, hardly able to believe how lucky he was. There had been times in his life, a lot of times actually, when he felt lost and uncertain, but he finally felt like all that was behind him now.

Ahk turned and spotted him, a bright smile lighting up his face as usual.

"How long have you been standing there?" Ahk wondered, walking over to greet him. They shared a kiss.

"Just long enough to enjoy the view..."

Ahk gave him a quizzical look.

"You're in a good mood."

"Yeah, I've got some news."

"Good news?"

"Very good news," Larry agreed, slipping his arms around Ahk's waist to hold him close.

"Then do tell..."

"You're on the move."

"The exhibition is leaving New York?"

"Yeah. A world tour."

Ahk's smile wilted, and Larry knew what he was thinking so he hurried on. "And guess who's in charge of security?"

Ahk's eyes filled with hope.

"It can't be..."

"Yeah, it can. We're gonna see the world. You and me. Together."

Larry tried to kiss Ahk again, but the pharaoh held him back.

"What about your teaching?"

It struck Larry as a weird question, nothing mattered now but this opportunity. It was the kind of thing people dreamed about their whole lives, love and adventure, but never actually happened. Except it was happening, to him, and there was no way he wasn't going to embrace it.

"Guess I slept instead of going to my exams. Something's been keeping me up at night."

"You failed because of me?"

"No," Larry said, lifting a hand to cup Ahk's face, looking into his eyes, needing him to really hear this. "I came back to life because of you."

"You were going to share our stories with the young people of New York."

"And now I'll share them with the world. I want this, Ahk. And more than anything, I want you. It's our dream come true."

Ahk didn't look entirely convinced, something was still holding him back.

"What about everyone else? We'll be taking the tablet..."

"I talked to them, they're okay. You know where the last stop is?"

Ahk shook his head.

"Cairo."

His eyes grew wide with wonder.

"You mean I can go home?"

"Yeah Ahk, you're going home."

His eyes became glassy and then he was clinging to Larry, squeezing him tight.

"I can't wait to show you."

"And I can't wait to see it, and until then we've got a whole world to explore."

"I love you," Ahk declared. "So very much."

"I love you too, Ahk. I promise you it's gonna be great."