Chapter Five
I wake up at around noon, and spring to my feet. Four hours of sleep is good enough, right? I slowly crack open my door. Larry's door is shut, but I can hear Scooby Doo playing on the TV in the living room. I walk in and rub my eyes. Nick is sitting on the couch, also in his pajamas.
"Good morning." I mumble, crossing to the kitchen and searching through the pantry.
"I've been waiting for you to get up! We're going to explore Central Park today."
"Um, okay. Is Larry still asleep?"
"Yep. He doesn't usually wake up until like six o' clock at night."
"Right."
I pull out the box of Special K, and pour it into a bowl. I dump in some milk, grab a spoon, and plop next to him on the couch. We sit in silence for a moment. This episode is about the "curse of the mummy". How fitting.
"Could we leave in twenty minutes or so?" he asks.
"Sure thing."
He punches my shoulder before he stands, purposefully making me spill my spoonful of cereal onto my shirt.
"Asshole."
"Bitchface." he retorts, walking down the hallway with a smirk.
I roll my eyes and finish my cereal. I set the bowl and spoon in the sink and go into my room, pulling out a pair of black shorts and a Cold War Kids t-shirt. I walk into the bathroom, scooping my black hair into a high ponytail and changing my clothes. I throw on some light makeup before I tug on my black converse, grab my phone, and walk back into the living room. Nick is waiting, in jeans, a matching Cold War Kids t-shirt, and a beanie.
I narrow my eyes at him, "Change."
He frowns, "No, you change."
"I'm the guest."
"I live here."
"I look better in it."
"I - oh, fine."
A few minutes later, he reemerges from his room in a simple dark green shirt, casting me a playful glare. Sometimes, we're a little too similar to be considered normal. He opens the door for me and we exit, taking the elevator to the floor and walking out into the warm day. The city is bursting with people. I could sit for hours and just watch all the different people walk down the sidewalk. He leads me down the street for several blocks until we emerge across the street from Central Park. Nick and I pick a trail and set out, admiring the trees, flowers, and people.
"How did you like last night?" he asks.
"Fascinating! I want to find out how the tablet works."
"Believe me, I've already tried."
"But the difference between me and you is that I know how to read hieroglyphics."
"Touché."
We walk in silence until I work up the nerve to ask him the real question on my mind.
"What's up with Ahkmenrah?"
Nicky pauses, "Uh, I'm not really supposed to talk about that."
"Well now you have to tell me!"
"Do you promise not to tell Dad I told you?"
"I promise."
"Fine. So, a couple months ago, the museum exhibits started acting really weird, and Ahk's tablet began to corrode. Dad decided to take it to London, where Ahk's parents were, so they could explain what was wrong with it. We went, and we discovered that the tablet had been forged by the high priest of the royal family under the light of Khonsu, the moon god. Not even Ahk's dad knew everything the tablet could do, but he knew that it was starting to lose its power because it had been away from moonlight for too long. But then Lancelot-"
"Lancelot?" I interrupt.
"Yes, Lancelot. He was one of the exhibits that was at the British museum. He stole the tablet and we had to get it back in time because the exhibits were dying, and we almost didn't. But luckily Dad was able to get it back, and we fixed it, and they all lived happily ever after."
"So why is Ahk upset?"
"Dad told him that he could stay with his parents for the night, but that since the transfer wasn't official, Ahk would get sent back to New York. I don't think he understood what Dad was saying, because ever since he got back, he's been really depressed. He missed his parents a ton, and to get them back and only have them for one night before he was taken away from them probably sucked a lot."
"Yeah. I think it would, too."
We've stopped outside of a sandwich shop. We go inside, and Nick buys us both an authentic Reuben and some chips. We sit in the grass, and I take a bite.
"So? Your first New York City Reuben sandwich?"
"It's delicious."
"Thought so."
We finish the food and throw away the wrappers before we start to head back to the apartment. Nick turns down a different street, and I know right away we aren't going home.
"Where are we going?"
"The museum. I thought you'd like to see it in daylight."
"Sure."
We cross the street to the stately building, and step through the front doors. The museum is bustling with people, but not nearly as many as there are during the night hours. Rebecca is busy at the front desk, but she waves when she sees us. Nick taps out a quick text to Larry to let him know where we are, and then we set off through the museum. It's the strangest thing to see the same exhibits that come to life every night not move. The museum is set to close in an hour, and we spend that time exploring the expansive halls and rooms within the museum. Ahkmenrah's gate is still locked, and I don't want to bother him until tonight anyways. The monkey, Dexter, is hanging in some fake trees. It's obviously been stuffed, so how is it possible for it to come to life every night?
Our hour flies by before Rebecca announces over the speaker system that the museum will be closing, but reopening in a half hour for its night hours. Nick and I make our way back to the front desk just as Rebecca is locking the front doors. Larry walks in from the side hallway we entered from yesterday.
"How was your day?" he asks me.
"Fine. We walked around through Central Park for a while."
"Good."
Rebecca walks over to us, "All ready."
"I'm going to take Alex up to see Ahk. Can you open up on your own?"
Rebecca looks a little taken aback, but smiles and nods anyways, "Of course."
Larry smiles at her and beckons for me to follow him. He takes me up several steps of stairs and around some corners until that secluded hallway looms before us again. He stops outside the door.
"Wait here, okay?"
I nod. He unlocks the gate and steps inside. The sun sinks below the cityscape as a grating noise sounds from inside the exhibit. I hear a rattling, pained breath.
"Goodnight. How are you?" Larry asks.
I hear someone cough, "Is she here?"
There is a pause, Larry is confused, "Alex?"
"Yes."
"Do you… want to see her?"
"Yes."
"I'll be right back."
I hear his footsteps come out to the hallway.
"He wants to see you." Larry says quietly so the pharaoh won't hear.
"Okay?"
"I'll leave you guys alone. Don't talk about his… family… unless he brings it up, okay?"
"Sure thing."
I cautiously make my way into the exhibit. Ahkmenrah is sitting on the edge of his sarcophagus, staring at the floor. It's time to try out my skill.
"Hello?"
His head jerks up, "You speak Arabic?"
"A fair amount, yes." I reply delicately. I have to be careful what I say to him. He's a king, after all.
His sad eyes light up with a spark of interest. His lips quirk up into a small smile, the nicest I've seen from him so far.
"It is good to have someone that speaks my native tongue." he murmurs, rising to his feet.
"Thank you." I reply.
"What would you like to know?" he asks, in English.
I seem to have implicitly gained his trust. It's amazing what language can do.
"Perhaps how you come to life every night?"
The pharaoh chuckles, "A puzzling question, I assure you."
He crosses to the golden tablet mounted on the wall above his sarcophagus. He gingerly picks it up.
"This is my tablet. It was forged by the high priest under the light of Khonsu, and possesses many powers."
It shimmers under the dull light of the exhibit. I can see a multitude of glyphs carved into its solid gold surface. Things about power, eternal life, and the moon. I slowly reach out my hand.
"May I?"
He warily hands the tablet over to me, a look of caution in his eyes. Doesn't he trust me? I grab onto it. My fingers seem to glue themselves to the tablet with an unexplainable current of energy. The glyphs on the tablet glow. An invisible breeze lifts the hair from the back of my neck. A zing of electricity jolts through me, leaving a warm feeling spreading through my veins. I feel very hot. My fingers are tingling. My knees begin to buckle beneath me, my head suddenly feeling very heavy. I can feel myself beginning to lose consciousness. The tablet's light is glowing very brightly, turning my vision gold. I feel as if I'm falling from a skyscraper. The last thing I feel are a strong pair of arms lowering me to the floor.
uh oh I wonder what happened? ;P just for future reference, when the two of them speak arabic it will be in italics (there will also be times where words are emphasized in italics (i.e. What are you doing here?) but I'm thinking that you guys are intuitive enough to tell the difference). hello and THANK YOU to my newest followers/favoriters (yes, that's a word. I just made it up) hannah2088, BrunoMars26 (thank you for following me as well you're the BEST ily), The Shadow Next To You, SchadenFreude95, Giraffadon, Shar82204, 98, Dinosaur Imperial Soldier (thank you for following me as well!), Artemis375, Carly noemy, blushing cinderella, DinoPower, sojun, ashleymariestel, Dark Angel 792, insanefangirlsunite, bookwriter123456, FluffyHanyoEars, MisaxRyu, Lunarose jodes, and theorignalsrizzlesouat1D! wow that's a lot of you. your support is positively overwhelming, thank you so much! please remember to review, favorite, and follow, and I'll see ya next chapter! (p.s. if you're looking for a finished story to read, check out "the First"! it's about Peter Pan and all sorts of magic and stuff, I just finished it and it was my first story ever and if you like NATM I think you'll like it! give it a read and let me know :) much love! 3