The London night air was crisp, and no fog had formed yet. The
British Museum stood out among the conservatively built offices that lined
the block, and had the appearance of a Roman temple shadowed in sleepy
darkness. Almost everything was covered in that silence in this part of
London. Bankers, Clerks, Investors and the like, they all clocked out at
five. The Museum itself closed an hour later, but two guards always played
sentry around its perimeter.
However, at the moment, they were camped out on the marble steps below the front entrance, both with cigars in their hands, and one, the taller of the two, waving his arms about frantically as he related to his partner an occurrence of his youth.
So naturally, neither of them noticed the two small figures shadow- hopping down the street, nearing the museum in a very espionage fashion. The figures waited until the guards were deeply engrossed in their stories, and darted over the lawn. They reached the side of the museum and approached one of the ground-level basement windows, pausing only for a moment to remove the small wooden figurine that had been lodged in the window's lock. The foggy glass pane swung out on well-oiled hinges and the two burglars slipped inside unnoticed.
Alex fumbled around in the darkness, sending two small crates tumbling in his haste, until the sound of metal squeaking filled the silence and dim yellow light flickered to life. Azana stepped into the lantern's light and giggled.
"Phase One is complete," Alex proudly stated. Azana rolled her eyes.
"You've been reading your mother's spy novels again, haven't you?" Her tone was bemused, but Alex didn't pick up on it. He simply grinned and nodded.
"C'mon," he said, turning and leading them through a maze of recklessly stacked wooden crates of all shapes and sizes. They emerged at the foot of a staircase, and upon ascending that staircase, found themselves face to face with the basement door. Changing the lantern from his right to his left, Alex reached for the doorknob without hesitation, but Azana grabbed his wrist.
"What if there are more patrols?" She demanded. He scoffed.
"There aren't. Mum's too stingy; she already spent a bundle on those new time-release locks." He frowned at the look she gave him. "Trust me!" Reluctantly, she nodded and released his arm.
How cruel of irony, to see to their flawless performance up until that moment, whence the basement door let out a loud, resounding screech in protest as Alex swung her open. Both children froze, hearts in their throats as they waited for the telltale sounds that signaled the approach of the guards.
But no sounds came. Three, four, five minutes passed in aching silence, and finally Alex heaved a sigh. He turned to Azana and winced; she had her hands on her hips and was glaring at him menacingly. She looked very much like his mother when she did that. They both had a piercing gaze. Azana got it from her mother, that, Alex was sure of. In all honesty, he wished he would inherit it from his mother, but dad had already told him 'it was a woman thing'.
"Let's hurry up and get this over with. I don't even want to think about what father would do if we got caught." Azana muttered. She nudged Alex with her elbow to start moving down the hallway. He threw her a frown over his shoulder and began walking at a slow, cautious pace. The dim lamplight flickered over smoothly polished wooden walls, and flashed back in Alex's eyes when it came in contact with the glass cases that littered the entire building.
"You're dad's not that bad," he said. Azana snorted.
"Aye, he doesn't curse, at least, not in English, and he doesn't hit, but I've seen him angry, and it's not a pleasant site." Alex laughed.
"He curses in another language?" He said with a chuckle. She nodded.
"Egyptian," she replied. "At least, I think they're curses. I don't know them, mind you."
"Here it is." Alex lifted up the lamp and the light fell on a large pair of closed wooden doors. Nailed to the wall beside the doorframe was a gold plaque with black letters that read:
Exhibit #15
Nephthys, Goddess of the
Underworld; Items pertaining
To her worship and beliefs;
Found in Lower Nile Region
D. 4,200- 1,100 AD
"Nephthys? Smashing, mum and dad love the gods." Azana grinned.
"Yeah," Alex nodded, "but we're not here to enjoy. We're here to remove an eyesore." The girl raised her eyebrows skeptically.
"Since when are you an expert on eyesores? Have you seen your room lately?" Alex stuck his tongue out, an almost habitual childhood action.
"Just you wait," he muttered.
Fortunately, the double-doors concealing the Nephthys Exhibit were well-oiled and opened in perfect silence. Azana's smile widened as she gazed upon a well-sized room full to bursting with papyri wall-hangings and busts and pottery set on mahogany pedestals. Coins glittered in glass cases, pieces of ancient jewelry and even an original copy of one of the chapters in the Book of the Dead. Alex looked at his companion and rolled his eyes. She looked like she'd just stumbled into a room packed to the ceiling with chocolate and candy.
"Over here," he instructed. He cast the lamplight over a three-foot tall pedestal with no glass covering and a simple cushion to support what it held.
"What is it?" Azana demanded with a frown.
"This is the eyesore." Alex picked it up and held it in full light. It was a rock. It didn't have any special features, other than the fact that it was shaped slightly like a pyramid. It was dark brown, and eons of contact with the outside world had smoothed the entire thing to a near polish and rounded off the corners. Altogether, it was quite unimpressive.
After examining the base-ball sized object carefully, Azana blinked, looked up at Alex and shrugged.
"Take it then," she said, and she turned to investigate something new that caught her attention.
Alex grinned. He dropped the little rock in his pocket.
"Alright, let's go," he said. He looked at Azana and once more rolled his eyes. "I said come on." He grabbed her elbow and dragged her backwards out the double-doors. Once she regained her footing, she slapped his hand away and walked on her own.
"Wait," he stopped. "You hear that?" Azana strained her ears and soon, a subtle, irregular tapping sound manifested.
"What is it?" She whispered, eyes wide in surprise, and maybe a bit of fear. She gravitated closer to Alex and clenched her fists.
Alex grinned. "The radiator; it always does that." Azana turned on him and her fist connected with his sternum. He nearly dropped the lantern, but she grabbed it before he let go. His breath was knocked out of him, and he gave her an utterly shocked gape. She smirked.
"That'll teach you." She muttered, grabbing his elbow. "Now, come on." She dragged him, stumbling, down the hallway, past the glass display cases, down the basement steps, and out the way they came in.
However, at the moment, they were camped out on the marble steps below the front entrance, both with cigars in their hands, and one, the taller of the two, waving his arms about frantically as he related to his partner an occurrence of his youth.
So naturally, neither of them noticed the two small figures shadow- hopping down the street, nearing the museum in a very espionage fashion. The figures waited until the guards were deeply engrossed in their stories, and darted over the lawn. They reached the side of the museum and approached one of the ground-level basement windows, pausing only for a moment to remove the small wooden figurine that had been lodged in the window's lock. The foggy glass pane swung out on well-oiled hinges and the two burglars slipped inside unnoticed.
Alex fumbled around in the darkness, sending two small crates tumbling in his haste, until the sound of metal squeaking filled the silence and dim yellow light flickered to life. Azana stepped into the lantern's light and giggled.
"Phase One is complete," Alex proudly stated. Azana rolled her eyes.
"You've been reading your mother's spy novels again, haven't you?" Her tone was bemused, but Alex didn't pick up on it. He simply grinned and nodded.
"C'mon," he said, turning and leading them through a maze of recklessly stacked wooden crates of all shapes and sizes. They emerged at the foot of a staircase, and upon ascending that staircase, found themselves face to face with the basement door. Changing the lantern from his right to his left, Alex reached for the doorknob without hesitation, but Azana grabbed his wrist.
"What if there are more patrols?" She demanded. He scoffed.
"There aren't. Mum's too stingy; she already spent a bundle on those new time-release locks." He frowned at the look she gave him. "Trust me!" Reluctantly, she nodded and released his arm.
How cruel of irony, to see to their flawless performance up until that moment, whence the basement door let out a loud, resounding screech in protest as Alex swung her open. Both children froze, hearts in their throats as they waited for the telltale sounds that signaled the approach of the guards.
But no sounds came. Three, four, five minutes passed in aching silence, and finally Alex heaved a sigh. He turned to Azana and winced; she had her hands on her hips and was glaring at him menacingly. She looked very much like his mother when she did that. They both had a piercing gaze. Azana got it from her mother, that, Alex was sure of. In all honesty, he wished he would inherit it from his mother, but dad had already told him 'it was a woman thing'.
"Let's hurry up and get this over with. I don't even want to think about what father would do if we got caught." Azana muttered. She nudged Alex with her elbow to start moving down the hallway. He threw her a frown over his shoulder and began walking at a slow, cautious pace. The dim lamplight flickered over smoothly polished wooden walls, and flashed back in Alex's eyes when it came in contact with the glass cases that littered the entire building.
"You're dad's not that bad," he said. Azana snorted.
"Aye, he doesn't curse, at least, not in English, and he doesn't hit, but I've seen him angry, and it's not a pleasant site." Alex laughed.
"He curses in another language?" He said with a chuckle. She nodded.
"Egyptian," she replied. "At least, I think they're curses. I don't know them, mind you."
"Here it is." Alex lifted up the lamp and the light fell on a large pair of closed wooden doors. Nailed to the wall beside the doorframe was a gold plaque with black letters that read:
Exhibit #15
Nephthys, Goddess of the
Underworld; Items pertaining
To her worship and beliefs;
Found in Lower Nile Region
D. 4,200- 1,100 AD
"Nephthys? Smashing, mum and dad love the gods." Azana grinned.
"Yeah," Alex nodded, "but we're not here to enjoy. We're here to remove an eyesore." The girl raised her eyebrows skeptically.
"Since when are you an expert on eyesores? Have you seen your room lately?" Alex stuck his tongue out, an almost habitual childhood action.
"Just you wait," he muttered.
Fortunately, the double-doors concealing the Nephthys Exhibit were well-oiled and opened in perfect silence. Azana's smile widened as she gazed upon a well-sized room full to bursting with papyri wall-hangings and busts and pottery set on mahogany pedestals. Coins glittered in glass cases, pieces of ancient jewelry and even an original copy of one of the chapters in the Book of the Dead. Alex looked at his companion and rolled his eyes. She looked like she'd just stumbled into a room packed to the ceiling with chocolate and candy.
"Over here," he instructed. He cast the lamplight over a three-foot tall pedestal with no glass covering and a simple cushion to support what it held.
"What is it?" Azana demanded with a frown.
"This is the eyesore." Alex picked it up and held it in full light. It was a rock. It didn't have any special features, other than the fact that it was shaped slightly like a pyramid. It was dark brown, and eons of contact with the outside world had smoothed the entire thing to a near polish and rounded off the corners. Altogether, it was quite unimpressive.
After examining the base-ball sized object carefully, Azana blinked, looked up at Alex and shrugged.
"Take it then," she said, and she turned to investigate something new that caught her attention.
Alex grinned. He dropped the little rock in his pocket.
"Alright, let's go," he said. He looked at Azana and once more rolled his eyes. "I said come on." He grabbed her elbow and dragged her backwards out the double-doors. Once she regained her footing, she slapped his hand away and walked on her own.
"Wait," he stopped. "You hear that?" Azana strained her ears and soon, a subtle, irregular tapping sound manifested.
"What is it?" She whispered, eyes wide in surprise, and maybe a bit of fear. She gravitated closer to Alex and clenched her fists.
Alex grinned. "The radiator; it always does that." Azana turned on him and her fist connected with his sternum. He nearly dropped the lantern, but she grabbed it before he let go. His breath was knocked out of him, and he gave her an utterly shocked gape. She smirked.
"That'll teach you." She muttered, grabbing his elbow. "Now, come on." She dragged him, stumbling, down the hallway, past the glass display cases, down the basement steps, and out the way they came in.