➵ 𝐏𝐑𝐎𝐉𝐄𝐂𝐓: 𝐀𝐑𝐄𝐒 [𝐊.𝐓𝐇]

"F*ck everything, but especially f*ck this sword."

"No," you admitted, rubbing the back of your neck, "I still have some last-minute checking to do, but we have until tomorrow night, so-"

Your curator interrupted you. "No, Y/N, tomorrow is totally going to be focused with setting up the displays. If we can't show the sword, we can't wait until tomorrow to figure it out, because then the configuration will be ruined. Finish it,"

You head pounded in protest. "But Ms. Adra-"

She held up a hand to silence you, but before she could speak, her eyes fell over your ragged form, slumped and absolutely exhausted from all the work and stress. Was the internship at the museum worth it? Well, no student had ever been recruited before, but you were always at the top of your class, your brain soaking up information like a sponge. If there was anyone suited for this job, it was you. And paired with your eccentric curator who was always asking people to solve riddles (all of which, you could note with pride, you had been able to correctly answer), there was no better match for setting up the Greek Treasures exhibit than you.

But you were still a young adult, and you needed your rest. Perhaps your boss realized this in that splint second, because she slowly let down her hand and sighed.

"Fine," she relented, tipping her head back so she could glare at the ceiling, "you can go. BUT-" she called just as you had slumped in relief and were basically about to sprint the hell out of there, "-take the sword with you."

...what?

First of all, the sword was the museum's property. Taking something like that home would be an absolute disaster, even if it was for the museum's purposes. And second, that damn thing was heavy, far too heavy for your already-malnourished student body. And be-f*cking-sides, how were you supposed to walk through the streets of this small town with that huge-ass sword without getting arrested?

And yet...you wanted to keep your internship...

"Ms. Adra, I don't think-" you began, but your curator interrupted you once more.

"Not a word. I've read over all of the reports you've given, and if there's even the slightest chance that I'm correct, you need to take the sword home."

What an odd thing to say. Your tired brain didn't exactly follow all the words she was throwing at you, but with the intense look in Ms. Adra's golden-brown eyes, you knew better than to argue further. You turned towards the bronze kopis nestled comfortably in the brown shreds of stuffing within the wooden crate beside you, preparing to pick it up.

The sword itself was a beautiful thing- Greek-styled, and yet long, stick-straight on one edge and comfortably sloping inward on the other. It shimmered and gleamed a beautiful shade of glittery reddish-bronze. It seemed to glow with a light of its own in the dimness of the scaffolded museum room, a pretty red gleam. The handle was ornate, again, straight on one side and worn down, curved into fingerholds on the other. The entire thing was ornate- once studded with diamonds all along the side, now only a few near the bottom remaining.

As your fingers drew near to it, you swore you could feel it humming.

"NO!" Ms. Adra's yell shook you out of your trance as you looked at her in surprise, "Don't touch it, Y/N. You should know better. Take the crate. It's only a short walk to your apartment building, right? You should be fine."

You wanted to scream in protest, but, then again, you wanted to keep your internship. With only a grunt to signal your tired displeasure, you complied, pressing the lid down on the lightweight wooden crate and hauling it up. It was heavy, but it was nothing you hadn't dealt with before.

You could have sworn it felt heavier when you were lifting it by itself, though. But that was ridiculous, because life didn't work that way. It must have been the exhaustion getting to your brain.

"Alright, Ms. Ad- Adra," you couldn't keep the yawn from breaking up your tired sigh as you tilted your head at her in farewell. "I'll be back in the morning to help with the-"

"Don't bother," she brushed you off, waving a hand in your direction as you exited the museum, your head foggy with sleep deprivation and the fact that you would have to stay awake for hours to come, "After tonight, you're going to need all the rest you can get."

A/N: Sorry if it was short, Lovelies. I just wanted to get it out there :)