A B I T T E R S W E E T V I C T O R Y
Thanks to Ahkmenrah and his magical tablet, their problem was promptly solved. All the Pharaoh had to do was mutter a phrase in Ancient Egyptian, and move one of the golden tiles – that was all it took to get all the museum exhibits to magically turn back and walk back to the museum.
Theodosia shouldn't have been surprised, she was a wax figure that came to life all because of the tablet in the first place, yet the tablet's magic still managed to stun her. One moment they were thirty minutes away from a sunny disaster, and with one quick trick, everything was magically fixed.
If not for Ahkmenrah and his freaky magic tablet, practically the entire museum of natural history would have been reduced to ash under the nearing morning light.
It almost seemed too good to be true – the villains had been stopped, and there had been few casualties but the old nightguards as the dust settled (Teddy was split in half and the miniatures had met an unfortunate and unclimactic ending), and now, to top it all off, there was a magical setting on Ahkmenrah's mysterious tablet that fixed the problem of the wandering exhibits like it was the easiest thing in the world.
Theodosia may not have known from personal experience, but a war never wrapped up this easily.
Yet no one seemed concerned but her.
Nick insisted on riding the dinosaur back to the museum – something Theodosia neither condoned nor wanted to do ever again – and when she asked Larry about it, he said, and she quotes, "I don't know that I would call this a war."
Theodosia had been at war with the old nightguards for decades, much longer than Larry who had known them for a total of three days. They may be old and brittle, but you were a fool for underestimating them. Their victory seemed too easy, but Theodosia was comforted by the fact that Cecil was with the Huns.
She hoped they dislocated something at the very least.
Theodosia wouldn't admit it to Larry, but she was surprised he actually managed to outsmart his ex-colleagues. She may hate them, but Theodosia could admit they were clever – more so than her, and definitely more so than Larry (at least, if the key fiasco was any indication of his reaction time.) Yet he had managed to get the best of Cecil using his own sarcastic advice.
Theodosia still wished she had been with Larry when he defeated Cecil, but she was glad it was over. Finally.
Once everyone had returned to the museum, Theodosia left their group in search of her own exhibit.
She hadn't seen the other Spartans all night, and knowing they probably left the museum to explore New York City left her heart thudding. She even looked for the Athenians in the giant foyer, but she couldn't find a single familiar face.
For a while she stayed with Larry who was taking inventory of every exhibit that came back, the others directing them back to their departments so they could be in place before the sun rose. But still, no Greeks. Only a caribou who seemed intent on coming through the wrong set of doors.
"Larry," she said, after watching the door anxiously for ten minutes, "I'm going to find the other Greeks."
He nodded, smiling slightly at her. "Don't worry, Theo. I'm sure their around, they probably went through the loading dock. Why don't you check your exhibit, we got this."
"I hope so," she breathed, squeezing her hands together.
If even one of her family were left to the mercy of sun in the morning, Theodosia would never forgive herself. She tried to remember the magic of the tablet, and the strength of her people, but it didn't quell her anxiety.
She all but ran to her exhibit, ignoring Ahkmenrah's puppy dog stare and Nick's curious gaze. No one stopped her, and once she was out of sight, she broke into a run, hiking up her skirt and weaving her way through travelling exhibits.
But, as soon as she ran into the entrance, they were all waiting, laughing and talking – completely safe. She did a head count, and they were all there. Her family was safe. She shouldn't have expected anything less, the magic of the tablet was powerful, but still, she was relieved her worries were for nothing.
"You made it back," she exclaimed, a grin spreading over her flushed face. "You're all here. Thank the Gods."
Agnes guffawed, shaking her head at Theodosia. "Of course, we did! Who do you take us for?"
"Children of Ares, and strong warriors, of course. I worried for nothing," Theodosia laughed, rushing towards Agnes and throwing her arms around her, crushing her in a hug. "I'm so happy to see you all."
"Ah, youth," Agnes sighed, sharing a look with the other Spartans. "Always so dramatic."
Theodosia let them tease her, and pinch her cheeks as though she was a young child with a wild imagination. Everyone was in good spirits, invigorated by their excursion into the modern world, and Theodosia soaked it up like a sponge. For once, she didn't want to leave the four walls of their exhibit. She wanted to stay, happily talking with her family, Athenians and Spartans alike.
She shared the story of their daring defeat – embellishing slightly on the level of her involvement – but delivering a story that made the other Greeks cheer and holler. She didn't bother mentioning she was on a dinosaur three-quarters of the time, trying to figure out how to get it to listen, rather the version she told had her riding the dinosaur alongside Larry, gracefully hopping off – with no assistance whatsoever – and stopping the old man in his tracks with her sword pressed against his nose. Since none of the other Greeks ever spoke English (even though she suspected they could), chances are the real tale would never resurface.
And Larry should know by now that if he blabbed, she'd gut him.
In return they told her stories of New York City – of the giant tree with the lights, with the people and their strange devices. Theodosia had never seen one, but one of the young Athenian men, Percy, told her they were tiny and black, and the top part of it flipped up so the person could talk into it. He didn't know why they would talk into it, but Korinna suggested it was more magic. Theodosia made a note to ask Larry about the strange, tiny, talking device.
Dawn soon came, and with it, Larry to say his goodbyes and make sure everyone was accounted for. The museum was still a wreck, but at least no exhibits would be out of place. The mess was easier to explain.
"So, everything good here?" he asked as he approached Theodosia, who had been chatting excitedly with Korinna.
She nodded. "Everyone returned, safe and sound. Thanks to you, Larry. I never really, truly thanked you. You're a brave man, not many would do what you did for us tonight. We won't ever forget it."
He shrugged, smiling. "It was nothing. I like it here, surprisingly. I won't have a job in a few hours, but it was fun while it lasted. If I could stay, I would. I really would."
Theodosia's eyes widened and her jaw fell slack.
"Is someone going to take your job?" she gasped. "Is it another evil nightguard? Larry, I insist, you need to learn to fight properly—"
"No, no," he chucked, silencing her, "I'm going to be fired, which means I won't work here anymore. My boss will take one look at the building and relieve me of my title of nightguard, so to say, and then I'll just be Larry Daley. Unemployed."
"So, fighting for your position is not an option?"
"No," he shook his head. "That would get me arrested."
"That's terribly upsetting," Theodosia sighed, sharing a sad smile with her unlikely friend. "I hope that doesn't happen."
"Me too."
"Larry, if you don't come back tomorrow night will you still come and visit us? I won't be able to reply, but I'm awake during the day. Sort of. If you visit, know I'll hear you," she said, sadly. "And bring Nick along, he's a lovely boy."
"Of course," he smiled. "If I'm not banned for destruction of property."
Theodosia shot him a look.
"I'll figure it out."
"Well, until next time, Larry Daley," Theodosia whispered, landing a half-hearted punch to his shoulder. "This is the most alive I've felt in...well, ever."
"Until next time, Theo."
She watched Larry walk away from the exhibit with a heavy heart. She didn't want Larry to go. She didn't want another nightguard. Larry had been a hero tonight, and no one but wax figures and statues would know. No one who walked during the day would believe what he had to say, and he would be labelled a vagrant, rather than a savior like he truly was.
"Theodosia," Helene called from behind her. "It's time."
Theodosia tried to smile, like she always was during the day, when she was wax, but she couldn't bring it to her face. She knew this victory was too good to be true.
a/n: so, yes, I did stick to the two week thing because I haven't written the sequel, but also my bank account got hacked and these last few weeks have been pretty crazy. But here is chapter ten, not a lot of Ahkmenrah and Theodosia, but she's a family gal and she had to make sure the fam was all good. And they are! Yay! I promise the next chapters will be more eventful - or as eventful as I can make them because writing romance for some reason is super hard for me to do, idk.
I hope you enjoy this chapter and again thank you to everyone reading and voting and adding my story to your reading lists - I get so excited every time I see those notifications and I've been following everyone who votes and adds my story to their lists! I don't know how long I can keep that up for, but I'm gonna keep trying.
Hope everyone is having a lovely weekend!!