New York City was known for a lot of things: Coney Island, the Statue of Liberty, the Empire State Building, pizza,-

"Come on! It's a green light, moron!"

...And traffic. Lots and lots of city traffic.

Larry Daley slammed his car horn for what felt like the thousandth time. "Move it! What are you waiting for?!" A cacophony of other horns blared behind him. Larry rolled down his window and yelled to the driver in front of him. "Learn how to drive, granny! Green means go!"

The driver poked his head out of the car. Larry's anger melted into pure adult fear in less than two seconds. The other man's face was covered in tattoos, a few of which were clearly human skulls. His eyes were bright and almost glowed. His hair was disheveled and matted. Frankly, he looked like a maximum-security convict mixed with a very ugly gorilla.

"Hey man," the driver said in a deep, gravelly voice. "That's really uncalled for."

"...Uh...sorry…"

"There's no need to be like that, you know. I was on the phone with my daughter. She's gettin' a divorce. 'Scuse me if I didn't see the light change."

"Yeah, no, I get it," Larry said quickly, trying to get out of the situation alive. "Sorry to hear that."

"Thank you. Apology accepted. You have a nice day."

The two men stuck their heads back into their cars and a moment later, Larry was back on his way. He took a deep breath, his hand tapping anxiously on the wheel. It had been a rotten day and all he wanted to do was order a pizza and sit on the couch with the TV. Which I can't do, he thought, because I have a ton of papers to grade before Friday.

He'd been a teacher for a few years now at the Ella Baker School in Manhattan. He loved his career, and his fifth-grade class was really great...most days. But this day had not been "most days". This day had been full of one kid punching another at recess, one teacher who thought he wasn't doing a good job, two other children who decided to draw on the bathroom walls, and an entire stack of homework that needed to be graded on the passenger seat.

Scratch that. Make than on the floor under the passenger seat. Larry had braked hard to let an inattentive biker go by, causing the mountain of paper to topple. "Oh, come on. Can this day get any worse?!"

In that moment, pigeon poop splattered onto his windshield

He gripped the steering wheel so hard, his knuckles turned white as he held in a scream. Furious, he drove a little above the speed limit and turned down another road. It took him a minute for him to realize he wasn't supposed to turn yet. Grinding his teeth, he was about to turn around, but paused.

...I'm really close, Larry thought. I guess...I guess I could just go look at it. For old times' sake. It might make today a little better. He took a deep breath and continued down the street. I'm not going inside. I'm just sit in the car and try to relax for a minute.

In no time at all, Larry pulled to the side of the road and parked the car. Outside his window stood a tall, white building with four long pillars on top of the staircase. At the top of edifice were three words etched into the walls: TRUTH, VISION, and the main one, KNOWLEDGE.

The Museum of Natural History.

He sighed. It had been years since he'd stepped foot into the building. He hadn't gone in since he'd quit the last time. Larry had thought about it at times, of course. But he knew he couldn't do that. There would be a different nightguard in his place. It was hard not to go inside sometimes, especially since Ahkmenrah and his Tablet had returned around a year ago. But he knew his days at the night guard were...well, history. The museum had changed him, taught him a lot of lessons. And Larry liked to think he did the same for the exhibits who lived there. But now, they had parted ways and moved on.

He leaned on his door, reminiscing, the horrors of the day beginning to leave. He could almost hear Rexy's triumphant roar as he chased after a small, speeding car, Jedediah at the wheel. He thought about Teddy and wondered how he was fairing with Sacagawea. Larry even found himself laugh a little, remembering loud-mouthed Easter Island head and his obsession with "gum gum". And just like that, his bad day melted away. All he could think about was how many good times he had in that museum.

I wonder, Larry thought as he pulled into his apartment parking lot. If they think about me as much as I think about them?

The first thing he always noticed was his breathing. Or rather the fact that he was able to breath. He could feel his chest slowly move up and down as his lungs filled with air. Which there honestly wasn't much of in the small space.

Ahkmenrah opened his eyes. All around him was complete and total darkness. His breathing started to quicken as fear consumed his mind again. It's going to work, he told himself. Stop panicking. It's worked every time since Larry and Nick released you that night. Just open it up and get out. It's as simple as that.

He reached out into the black, his hands shaking a little. They pressed against the cold, smooth sarcophagus lid and the young pharaoh started to lift it. His mind couldn't help but remembered all those years when he would try to open it, and nothing would happen. All the years where he was locked up, screaming, banging his head on the lid to no avail. Even though so much time had passed, part of him was always afraid it would happen again.

The lid started to budge, and he saw light peek through the small crack. Ahkmenrah couldn't help but sigh with relief as he pushed it off. It clattered to the floor with a loud bang as he sat up. On the walls were hieroglyphics of jackals or images of Ra, one of the Egyptian Gods. Climbing out of the sarcophagus he gave a little smile to the two twenty-foot jackal guards looking at him. "Everything is alright," he told them in Egyptian. "No need to worry." They nodded solemnly and returned to their posts.

A thunderous roar echoed through the museum, making the pharaoh jump a little. I really should be used to Rexy by now, he thought. Sounds like everyone else is up. The nightly party will probably begin momentarily. He walked out of his exhibit and towards the Hall of African Mammals, as he did almost every night. When he got to the staircase, a voice made him pause.

"Pharaoh," Dr. McPhee said loudly, marching towards him. He had bags under his eyes and slightly disheveled hair. "Can I speak with you?"

"Of course, Doctor," Ahk told him respectfully. "How can I be of assistance?"

"I'm assuming you're headed to the Hall of Mammals?" Now that the shorter man was in front of him, the young pharaoh thought he could use a shower. He nodded in agreement. "Well, allow me to save you the trip and let you know your little monkey friend already ran off somewhere," the curator told him. "But, please do me a favor. When you see him, tell him he owes me a new jacket." McPhee pointed to a dark stain on his chest that looked very recent.

Ahkmenrah cringed a little. Dexter… "I'm very sorry about that. I'll make sure to address it." Again.

"You're the only one he seems to listen to. Can't you train him or something?"

It was true, Dexter and Ahkmenrah had formed a strong bond. Ever since he'd been released from his tomb, he and the capuchin had gotten along very well. He'd always had a fondness for animals, and Dexter….well, no one really knew why, but he'd always been very nice to the pharaoh. Almost every night, he would ride around on Ahk's shoulder like a pet parrot. "I'll see what I can do. Again, I'm very sorry about that. Perhaps some warm water would take the stain out?"

McPhee seemed to consider the suggestion for a second. "I'll try it. At the very least, it might do something for the smell." He wrinkled his nose. "Thank you, Pharaoh."

"Is there anything else I can do for you? You look very tired."

McPhee rubbed the side of his forehead. "Believe me, I passed 'tired' a long time ago. It's killing me having to work both the day shift and the night shift. I'm still not having any luck finding a replacement for your...what was it you called him? Protector of Brooklyn?"

Ahk laughed a little. "'Guardian', actually."

"Right, right. My God, if I knew how hard all of this was to run, I would've let up on him. You would think I'd get better at it after almost a year now."

"You're doing just fine, I assure you."

"The dinosaur keeps knocking into things with its tail, the monkey pees on me, the lions tried to eat me the other day, and I swear, if that crazy cowboy crashes another remote control car, I'm going to just, just, I don't know what I'll do, do you know what I mean?" he asked in his British accent.

Ahkmenrah nodded, though he honestly had no idea what he man had been trying to tell him. "Perhaps I'll have a chat with Jedediah after I find Dexter."

"Could you? That'd be a great help. I swear, if I can't find a new night guard soon, I'm going to lose my mind."

"I'm sure someone will come along, Doctor," he assured. "Have a nice night."

"The same to you, Pharaoh." The two started to part ways, but something in Ahkmenrah's mind was nagging at him. He gave in and turned back around. "Doctor McPhee?" The man looked over his shoulder. "When you find a night guard...you'll make sure they won't...I mean, I'm not going to…"

Even though he couldn't finish the sentence, McPhee seemed to understand. He turned to face the pharaoh again, his expression softening. "Of course not. No one's locking you up again, I'll make sure of it. You don't have to worry about that."

Ahkmenrah smiled and gave him a nod before leaving once again. Of course, I don't have to worry, he told himself. Even if someone did try to do that again, I'm sure Teddy or someone would let me out. He knew that was true. They'd all promised long ago that they'd never let that happen to him again.

And yet every night he could never fight the fear that the lid to his sarcophagus wouldn't open.

The young man wandered around the museum, now knowing that Dexter wasn't in the Hall of African Mammals. He just can't stop causing trouble, can he? The poor Doctor has enough to worry about without him causing mischief. We really need a new night guard around here. But I suppose the Tablet does make it rather hard to find someone to fill the position. How many people in New York are qualified to watch over a living history museum?

His thoughts were interrupted by the high-pitched sound. Sure enough, Ahkmenrah spied a small, black car racing down the hall. Jed. He quickened his pace and stuck his foot in front of the car's path, forcing it to stop.

"Whoa, whoa," the miniature cowboy said, looking up at him. "What gives, Ahk?"

The pharaoh arched a brow. "You know very well 'what gives', Jedediah. You are becoming quite a hectic driver. Really, how many of these have you crashed in just this month alone?" He got down on his knees to hear him better. That, and he knew Jedediah didn't enjoy being "talked down" to.

"Two, at most."

"Liar, liar," began Octavius the Roman General from the passenger seat. His helmet was sitting in his lap since he wouldn't be able to fit in the car with it on. "You've destroyed four and you know it."

"Nu-uh!" the cowboy defended. "The one that got crushed by the mammoth don't count. And who's side 're you on?"

"The factual one," Octavius told him. "And I wasn't counting that one. Even without it, you wrecked four cars: the red one, the yellow one, the blue one, and then the striped one last week."

"...Oh yeah. I liked that one," Jed muttered. He looked back to Ahkmenrah. "Well, it ain't all my fault. Lotta things in the museum 're bigger than these cars. They break real quick."

"I'll admit, they are rather fragile," Ahk said. "But you cannot deny that you're a bit of a speed demon. You cannot blame all four cars on their size."

"...A'right," Jed rubbed the back of his neck. "Maybe I been goin'...a lil' crazy."

"A little?" Octavius asked.

"Hey, back off, Octy. You can't even drive."

"I could if you let me. It can't be that hard."

Ahkmenrah cleared his throat to regain their attention again. "All I'm asking is that you be a bit more careful. Doctor McPhee has enough to worry about and frankly, asking him for a new car every other week is not helping."

"Yeah." Jed frowned a little. "Things seemed to go a helluva lot smoother when Gigantor was her, huh, Ahk?"

His mind went back to the years Larry Daley was night guard. "Yes, they did, didn't they? The poor Doctor's stretching himself too thin doing both shifts. But it's very hard to find someone to take a job like this, it seems."

"Indeed," Octavius chimed. "Not everyone can be trusted with the secret of your Tablet."

"...Well...try to be a bit more cautious, alright, Jedediah?" Ahk asked. "I'm a bit worried Doctor McPhee is nearing the end of his rope with you."

"No worries, Ahk. I'll take it slower."

"Thank you. Oh, and you haven't seen Dexter around, have you? He urinated on McPhee's jacket this evening."

"Yeah, actually. Jus' a lil' bit ago by the cavemen. Not sure if he's still there, but you could try it."

"Thank you again. You two have a nice night."

"Anytime, amigo."

"And a good evening to you as well, my liege."

The two miniatures drove off, noticeably slower this time, and Ahkmenrah made his way to the caveman exhibit. He could hear their eager chants and stomping feet from down the hallway. Oh Ra, I hope they didn't figure out how to make fire. That would be disastrous! He jogged over to the exhibit, worried about what he might find. Two of the Neanderthals were hopping around, making loud, "Oooh, ooh, ooh!" noises. The third one, who Ahkmenrah recognized as Laa, was making...Shadow puppets?

Yes, he realized. Laa was making shadow puppets on the wall of his exhibit, thanks to the lighting in the room. No fire, no chaos, just three easily entertained cavemen and...a capuchin!

Ahkmenrah saw him on Laa's back, looking for bugs in his hair. "Dexter," he called. "Come here."

The small mammal looked at him and gave a toothy smile. He jumped off of Laa - who was too busy making a shadow bunny to notice the pharaoh or the monkey - and scampered over to him. He skillfully crawled up onto his shoulder as he did nearly every night. "I've been looking for you," he said, walking away from the cavemen. "And I heard you already had a very eventful evening." Ahk glanced at the animal, who made a sad sound and looked to the floor. "You're making things rather hard for Doctor McPhee, you know. The man has enough to worry about. He does not require a cleaning bill on top of it."

Dexter looked back at him and made small chattering sounds.

"Yes, yes, I'm sure you're very sorry. Why can't you just be a good little monkey? You always behave for me. Can't you do the same for Doctor McPhee? Or at least do your business somewhere else? Perhaps in a potted plant?"

Dexter was quiet before nodding a little. Or at least Ahkmenrah took it that way. He wasn't totally sure Dexter could understand him, but he certainly acted like he did. "Very good. No more peeing on McPhee, or you might find yourself locked up for the night. Understood?" More monkey chatter. "Good."

They walked along for a while, Ahkmenrah talking to the capuchin about whatever came into his mind. The nice thing about having friends that couldn't add to the conversation was that they were very good listeners.

"Good evening, Ahkmenrah," called a female voice. He looked over to see a woman in a bright colored tribal dress with dark, braided hair resting over her shoulders.

"Good evening to you as well, Sacagawea." He smiled. "Are you not going to join in tonight's festivity?" He could hear the loud music blaring from down the stairs. If memory serves, Columbus should be DJing tonight.

"No, I've been looking for Teddy," she explained. "Would you and Dexter care to join me?"

"Why not?" They began to walk side by side. "You know, he's probably looking for you as well."

"Yes," she agreed with a laugh. "Perhaps we should just pick a spot to meet up every night rather than walking around aimlessly until we find each other."

"That might work. Dexter, leave her braids alone. That's no way to behave around a lady."

They searched for Teddy Roosevelt together, making small talk along the way. Over the years, the two had discovered they had a lot in common. For example, both of them were unreasonably contained before Larry had freed them. Ahkmenrah was in his sarcophagus and Sacagawea was trapped behind sound-proof glass with only the bickering Lewis and Clark for company. Also, both of them had long names that people had trouble speaking and spelling. Sacagawea had always very been very kind to the young pharaoh and was always very easy to talk to. He considered her one of his closest friends, along with Dexter, Teddy, Jed and Octavius, and Rexy. Maybe even Attila to some extent.

Larry and his son Nick were on that list as well at one point. But he hadn't seen either of them since they had allowed him to stay in London with his family. That had been nearly four years ago. He'd stayed in London for three years with his parents and Sir Lancelot, but after a while, he realized he missed New York. That was when Tilly the British night guard had arranged from himself and the Tablet to be brought back to the city, and...well, here he was.

None of them knew what happened to Larry, but Ahkmenrah and the exhibits hoped that whatever he was doing now, wherever life had taken him, he was happy. As for Nick...Ahkmenrah missed him very much, actually. He had become very close with the young boy over the years and he almost felt like an older brother to him.

They were back on the lower lever of the museum now, having used the elevator this time. A few of the exhibits had figured out how to use it. "So," Sacagawea continued. "Lewis told Clark that if that was the way he felt, he could-"

"Hey Dum Dum!" shouted the Easter Island Head, a wad of pink gum between his lips. Ahkmenrah and Sacagawea looked at him, "Oh, sorry. Pharaoh Dum Dum. President Dum Dum tell me to say that if me saw you Dum Dums to say he was by the Hall of Miniatures."

"Oh," he said. "Well, thank you." I'm not sure if I should take being called "Pharaoh Dum Dum" as an insult or just a very strange nickname. He decided to let it go as they started walking again towards the Hall. "What were you saying?"

"...I'm not sure," Sacagawea admitted. "Lewis and Clark argue so much, I don't remember which one I was telling you about."

As they approached the entrance to the Hall, they saw Teddy Roosevelt petting his large, brown horse, Texas. "There you are, my dear," he greeted Sacagawea. "I knew that loud-mouthed Easter Island Head would get the message across. You know, perhaps we should just have a set meeting place."

"I was just thinking that on the way. Why not right here?"

"Works for me." Teddy grinned. He finally turned to the other two. "Hello, Ahkmenrah, Dexter. I heard someone peed on Doctor McPhee."

"Yes, we had a chat about that." The pharaoh eyed Dexter again.

"Well, other than that, what've you been up to?"

"Not much. I had a little conversation with Jed about his car crashing habit...I meant little as in it was short, not as in Jedediah is small."

Teddy laughed a little. "Yes, I noticed he's been doing that often. It would be a different story if we made him come up with the money for a replacement."

For the rest of the night, the three of them - plus Dexter and Texas - sat on the floor, Sacagawea leaning on Teddy's shoulder, and talked together. These were the moments Ahkmenrah loved the most. The times where he found himself surrounded by his friends, laughing and sharing stories. In times like this, everything just felt so peaceful.

He wished it could last forever.

A/N: Hi! Thanks for reading! I hope I've got you hooked because this is going to be quite an adventure if you stick with me. I don't know how I got into this fandom, but I promise I am not leaving any time soon. I hope you enjoyed the first bit here and, as always, any favorites, follows, or comments are very much appreciated. Thanks again!