CHAPTER FIVE

❝The moon, like a flower in heaven's high bower/With silent delight sits and smiles on the night.❞

William Blake

✦✧✦

"I can't believe McPhee didn't fire you," Luna says, looking over at Larry and laughing. "He seemed really pissed."

"He was pissed. That's definitely a good word for it." Larry nods, grinning. "I think he was torn between wanting to kick my ass for the mess and being grateful for how full the museum was."

"So," Nicky says, in a sing-song sort of way, "what about that girl from last night? Rebecca?"

"What about her?" Larry's horrible at faux-nonchalance.

"She's cute." Luna purses her lips to keep from smiling.

"Yeah, I guess."

"Dad, stop." Nicky shakes his head, laughing. "We know you're into her. When are you gonna ask her out?"

"What? No--no, I'm not into her! We work tog--"

"Mr. Daley, we may be young and stupid, but we aren't blind," Luna says seriously, rolling her eyes. "She likes you!"

"You can't keep moping over Mom forever," Nicky adds, nudging Larry's shoulder. "You should ask her out! She seems really nice."

Larry just shakes his head and mutters, "Kids," as he hurries up the stairs to the museum, fumbling for his keys, but Luna knows he's smiling. It's kind of cute, seeing him this way over a girl. It's been over a year since the divorce, and Erica's moved on (to Paul Rudd; I mean, score), so Luna and Nicky have been hoping for a while that Larry would meet someone new.

Larry opens the door, and the minute Luna steps through the door, she's greeted by Teddy and Attila. "Young lady!" Teddy booms, grinning. "Young Nick, and Lawrence! Good to see you again."

"Hi, Teddy," Luna replies, smiling. Nicky bumps fists with Teddy, instead of shaking his hand, and Luna stifles a laugh at the look on Teddy's face.

Attila wraps in her in a massive hug, his furry robe tickling her nose, and says, "LuLu!" It warms her heart to hear the smile in his voice, when just yesterday, he wanted to kill Larry by ripping him to pieces. He's really just a sweet teddy bear in the guise of a brutal warrior.

And then Luna looks under Attila's arm and sees, at the top of the stairs, an Egyptian pharaoh grinning from ear to ear. She pulls away from Attila and waves at him, the butterflies already raging in her stomach.

Ahkmenrah hurries down the stairs and meets her in the middle of the lobby, sweeping her up in his arms and hugging her tightly. Luna's pleased to discover that he smells faintly of almond and cinnamon, and even more pleased--and slightly surprised--when he whispers, "I missed you," in her ear before setting her down. (And this time, reader, even Ahk is blushing.)

Nicky's staring between them, confused, and Luna gives him a look that means "We'll talk about it later." Nicky nods, understanding, and then turns to Larry. "So, we gonna get this party started?"

"Yeah!" Larry claps his hands, grinning, and within minutes, "September" by Earth, Wind, and Fire is playing over the speakers and nearly every exhibit that can walk is in the lobby, dancing, singing, and hanging out.

Attila, the Huns, and Columbus are playing soccer (Columbus is actually pretty good) ; Teddy and Sacagawea are circling the room on Texas, both blushing but smiling anyway; the Neanderthals are messing with the fire extinguishers; Jed and Octavius are wheeling around in a tiny RC car; and Nicky's following them on Rexy's back, a massive grin on his face.

Luna perches on the edge of the front desk, watching it all with a smile. After last night, she went home, slept for about an hour, and then went to school, which, she'll admit, wasn't fun. She hasn't pulled an all-nighter like that in a while. And she's finally come to terms with the fact that the museum comes to life at night. (It took a tiny bit of freaking out, reader, but that didn't last too long.)

Luna's still not sure what the glowing sensation in her chest is, but it hasn't really gone away. It faded when she left the museum, but now it's back in full force. She doesn't know what it means or where it came from, but it's not killing her or anyone else, so she's cool with it for now. Although, she's still not really sure if the whole screwing-with-time thing was a dream or not. (She's hoping it was.)

Ahkmenrah materializes out of the crowd, breathing hard but smiling, and extends his hand to Luna. "Dance with me?" he asks, adjusting his sleeve slightly.

"No," Luna laughs, shaking her head. "I don't dance."

"Then dance we shan't." Ahkmenrah leans against the front desk next to her, then looks up, a glitter of excitement in his eyes. "I have something to show you."

✦✧✦

"Wow," Luna breathes, her grip tightening on Ahkmenrah's hand as she stares up at the glowing constellations. The planetarium, like everything else, comes to life at night--and the stars are playing.

"Beautiful, isn't it?" Ahkmenrah's watching her, gauging her reaction cautiously. (He's a little nervous, reader; it's adorable.)

"It's incredible." Luna can't take it all in at once. Orion's playing fetch with Canis Minor; Virgo's flirting with Hercules; Cassiopeia's braiding Andromeda's hair; and Pegasus and Monoceros are nuzzling noses near the dark side of the moon.

"Teddy told me about it," Ahkmenrah says, sinking down onto the floor to lie on his back. "He said he used to come here every night to get away from the fighting."

"I would, too." Luna lies down, too, next to Ahkmenrah, and watches Hercules flex his muscles at Virgo, who's playing coy and shy.

It's quiet for a long while, just the two of them lying there watching the constellations, then Luna decides she wants to know more about the young pharaoh beside her. "Ahk?"

Ahkmenrah turns his head to look at her, eyes wide. "Hmm?"

"How old are you?"

"Technically, or how old I was when I died?" Ahkmenrah asks with a wry smile. "Because those are two very different numbers."

"When you died," Luna replies, shaking her head and grinning. "Little shit."

"I was just shy of nineteen summers." Ahkmenrah looks almost wistful; Luna wonders if he's remembering when he was alive. "Why do you ask?"

Luna shrugs. "Just curious. And since you mentioned, how old are you technically?"

"Four thousand and twenty."

Luna's not sure what makes her say this, but before she can stop herself, the words are out of her mouth and into the space between them. "You know, you're pretty cute, considering you're four thousand years old."

Ahkmenrah wrinkles his nose into a confused frown. "Thank you?"

The look on his face is so hilarious, Luna bursts out laughing, and so does Ahkmenrah, and the planetarium echoes with their laughter.

When he finally catches his breath, Ahkmenrah sighs and asks, "How old are you?"

"Eighteen," Luna replies. "And that's technically, too."

"Ha, ha." Ahkmenrah laughs dryly, and that sends them both into another wild gale of laughter.

"What's something you've always wanted to try?" Luna asks after a while. Virgo and Hercules are making out now, and it's making her uncomfortable, so she rolls onto her side, propping herself up on her elbow, and looks at Ahkmenrah instead.

Ahkmenrah purses his lips, thinking, and finally says, "Tea."

"Tea?" Luna makes a face. "That's something you've always wanted to try?"

He nods, completely serious. "Everyone was always drinking it at Cambridge. They made it seem like the nectar of the gods. I'd like to see what it's all about. What about you?"

Luna doesn't really have to think about this; it's something that's been on her mind ever since she was a kid. "Live somewhere else. Get out of New York."

"Why?"

Usually when people ask Luna why she wants to leave, it's accusatory, incredulous. They're taken aback that she could ever want to leave such a beautiful city. But the way Ahkmenrah asks it... it's curious, gentle. He's not mad; he truly wants to know. No one's ever asked her 'why' like that.

(In her later years, when someone asks her about this moment, whether it's true or not, Luna will cite this moment as the first time she realized she was in love with him.)

"I just... I know there's more out there than here," she says after a moment. "There's the tiny villages in Scotland, the mountains in Nepal, the canals in Italy... I can't spend my whole life staring at the same old buildings, working in the same neighborhoods, living in the same apartment. I can't live here for sixty years knowing that there's more out there, just waiting for me."

"That's beautiful." Ahkmenrah smiles softly. They watch the stars in silence for a while before he says, "Tell me something no one knows."

"Only if you tell me something no one knows about you." Luna grins shyly at him; she's being more bold tonight than she ever has before. It's kind of cool.

Ahkmenrah nods, thinking. "Once, when I was a boy, I stole a bottle of wine from the kitchens, and I drank half of it before vomiting it all back up into a ceremonial jar in one of the temples. I never told anyone about that jar."

"You're evil," Luna says, laughing. "I didn't realize how evil you were until just now."

"Hey!" Ahkmenrah protests, but he's grinning. "Your turn."

A thousand things cross Luna's mind, but the first thing out of her mouth is, "I can change time."

"What?"

Shit. "I can change time."

"What do you mean?"

"Last night, when we were chasing Cecil," Luna says, her voice suddenly a whisper. Her throat's dry, too. "I kind of...stopped time. And I moved Jed and Octavius back onto the road, and turned Cecil so he'd hit that tree."

Ahkmenrah's mouth forms an O. "You...you did that?"

Luna nods. She was afraid he might react like this, despite the fact that he's an undead Egyptian pharaoh sitting in a 21st-century museum by the power of a magic gold brick. "I don't know how, but it has something to do with that feeling I told you about. The glowing thing inside me."

"It must have something to do with the tablet." Ahkmenrah pushes himself back into a sitting position, resting his arms on his knees and pursing his lips pensively. "Have you ever felt this way before?"

Luna's about to say no, and then she remembers the fleeting memory she had just last night. "Once, when I was really little. I was here with my parents, and I remember the walk home being over in record time."

Ahkmenrah's quiet for a moment, then says, "Does it hurt you?"

She shakes her head. "I just get dizzy and a little nauseous, but nothing bad."

"Then let's not worry about it." Ahkmenrah gives her an encouraging smile. "No one is trying to steal it and we're not in any danger."

Luna was hoping for something along those lines. She's not ready to be told she's the savior of the world or the answer to some prophecy or something. (Because stuff like that only happens in books, right?) She nods, returning his smile. "Okay."

"May I ask you a question?" Ahkmenrah sounds hesitant, but he doesn't break eye contact.

"Yeah, go ahead."

"You and Nicky... you aren't...?" He makes a vague gesture with his hands, clearly at a loss for words.

"Together?" Luna finishes for him, eyebrows raised.

Ahkmenrah bites his lip and nods, clearly bracing himself for the worst.

Luna bursts out laughing. "Nicky and me? Ha! No. Definitely not."

"Really? I mean, I thought--"

"If Nicky and I ever dated, it wouldn't last long. I've got too much of a temper and he can't take things seriously." Luna can't foresee that ever happening. Like ever. "We're just friends, Ahk. We've been friends since kindergarten, and that's it."

"Oh." Ahkmenrah can't hide the relief that washes over him, and Luna feels those butterflies flutter again in the pit of her stomach. "I see."

Virgo drags Hercules behind the Big Dipper, giggling, and they just sit there, watching the stars and occasionally saying something. Often, one of them will glance at the other and then look away, and neither of them can admit to themselves that the other is more beautiful than any constellation in the sky.

✦✧✦

our ship is sailing. *wipes happy tear* how beautiful.

q: what's your favorite color?

a: purple. after seeing it on spencer reid, i'm a changed woman. i will never look at purple the same way again.