The next morning, I hurt like hell. The pain was even worse than the night before, waking up in the bathroom at the – wait, a bathroom?

                I sat up carefully, head pounding, and made my way to my bathroom. It was still dark, so I flipped on a light. I cringed when I saw my face, and the bruises that had manifested overnight. I shook my head, trying to stop the ringing in my ears. Realizing nothing could be done about it today; I quickly dressed and ate some toast, washing down some painkillers while I drank my tea.

                Heading to the university was the last thing I wanted to do today, but I had to go. Today was my first English Literature class, and considering that that was my major, I should probably attend at least the first class and get the reading list. So I finished my breakfast and put on the most extensive amount of make-up I've ever attempted to hide all of the bruises.

                Pushing all thoughts of the Museum and the night before out of my head, I packed up my shoulder bag and headed out, ready for anything the day had to bring.

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                "...And that is how Shakespeare was inspired to write Macbeth."

                The boring teacher had just finished her boring lesson, the one that not even I could concentrate on. I had been idly playing with my pen for the last half-hour, unable to stop my mind wondering back to the night before. The Museum intrigued me, to say the least – and I had to find out how it worked. You see, that's the thing about being me, I need to know. So as the professor finished her lesson, I decided that that night, I would go back to the Museum of Natural History.

                Packing up the new textbook, I headed out of the school, eager to get home. As I headed off campus, James ran up to me.

                "Hey, Firea...I was wondering about something. Do you think that we could see each other sometime, perhaps for a movie?" He ducked his head, a slightly blush rising in his cheeks.

                I smiled at him, and got him to look at me. "I think that would be lovely, James. But I have to go right now...so I'll see you next class, okay?" I waved to him as I hurried away, almost running to my apartment.

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                I had no idea when the Museum closed, but I decided to shower and head straight over. Figuring that Larry would be there someone, and noticing that there was only about an hour before closing, I began wandering around the Museum looking for Larry. I paused in the Hall of Miniatures, sitting on the bench to watch the frozen figurines fight their stunned battle.

                "I had a feeling you'd come back." Larry walked up, sitting down beside me. "So, you interested in history, then?"

                I sat back against the bench with him. "Yeah, you could say that. I'm thinking of doing a minor in History for my Arts degree. So I signed up for an Ancient Civilizations course, hoping that it would help me decide. I haven't figured it out yet, but I love the content."

                "Good, good. Well, I have a feeling you want to stick around after closing, right?" Larry stood, rubbing his hands together.

                "Yes, I would. Do you have somewhere I can hang out until then?" I stood and grabbed my bag, following him when he motioned for me to.

                "I'll let you stay in the security office for now, and I'll come and get you when everyone's gone. You can follow me around and meet the exhibits then. Now," we arrived at the office. "Do you have any questions about the museum's powers?"

                "Only one: how?"

                "I'll show you tonight, if you want. Also, if you have any homework questions, I'm sure someone here could help you with them. I'll see you in an hour."

                With that, I was left alone in the office to settle myself on the couch. Not wanting to waste any time, I took out my Ancient Civilizations homework and began the assignment on the Roman Empire.

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                An hour later, Larry was shaking me awake after I had apparently fallen asleep with my face on my work. I sat up, shaking my head a little to clear the sleep away. Larry was smiling, leaning over to read my work.

                "Ancient Rome, eh? I know just the guy to help you with that, if you would like," he said, helping me gather up the pages and put them in order.

                "That'd be great, thanks. I swear it isn't boring, there's just too much of it to keep me interested for enormous lengths of time." I followed him up into the Museum again, holding the pages and books to my chest. We ended up in the Hall of Miniatures, and I suddenly found myself stepping around an entire army of tiny Romans!

                "What the hell-" I was cut off as Larry walked over to the view of the Colosseum. He began talking to one of the Romans, as I made my way to sit on the bench and let my papers fall down beside me. I heard a cry of help from the papers, startling me.

                "Hey! That was a mighty rude thing to do, missy," a Texan voice yelled from underneath the work, and the papers began to shift around. Speechless, I began picking up the papers one by one to reveal a tiny cowboy. He pulled both of his pistols, pointing them at me. Larry glanced over and saw the confused expression on my face, quickly coming over to my apparent rescue.

                "Hey, Jed, there's no need to do that. This here is Firea: the girl from last night that I told you about. She came back, just like I said, and she needs help with her homework on Rome. I thought Octavius could help her, you know? And you know what, just chill! She isn't going to hurt you, okay?" Larry had the Roman in his hands, who I presumed to be Octavius.

                "Aw, Gigantor, you ruin all my fun." The cowboy holstered his weapons. "The name's Jedidiah. I hope to be seeing you around some time." I waved to him as he ran and jumped off of the bench. Larry moved some papers out of the way and sat down, setting the Roman down in between us.

                "I am Octavius, milady. Larry has told me that you are in need of assistance regarding my field of expertise." He placed his hand over his heart and bowed his head to me, and I quickly relayed the action back to him.

                "I'm Firea; but you all seem to know that. Actually yes, I would love to have some help to understand what life was like in Ancient Rome." I began moving papers and shuffling them about and Larry helped Octavius to the ledge on the back of the bench. Once I got everything in order, Larry left the Hall, leaving to do his rounds for the night.

                "Ah, Rome..." began Octavius, and I settled back to absorb and learn.

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                Hours later, my homework was finished and tossed to the side; Jedidiah had returned and the three of us were laughing and talking, comparing Rome with the Wild West and then with modern day.

                Larry came in, taking in the scene before him. I was smiling, listening intently to the words spoken by the two tiny men in front of me. And both of them were animated – talking and gesturing with every phrase, making me laugh. Larry smiled, seeing friendship blossom before him. But, he thought, all good things must end sooner or later.

                "Hey, guys," he walked over, smiling at us all. "Sorry to cut this short, but sunrise is only an hour off, and I'm pretty sure you want to get home and sleep a little before tomorrow, Firea." I smiled up at him sadly, knowing he was right.

                "True. I should get home...but is it alright if I come back tomorrow night?"

                "Please, Gigantor? It's been so much fun with someone else here," Jed joined me, and Octavius nodded to him in agreement.

                Larry hesitated for a moment, before letting in. "Fine, fine, you can come back. But be sure to get here and into the security office without being seen. Oh, and don't come out until you hear Rexy."

                "Oh, thank you Larry! I will, I promise," I jumped up and hugged him, glad to have friends in such a strange, new place like New York.

                I said goodbye to Jed and Octavius, and went towards the main entrance. As I walked through one of the hall, I glanced down the corridor and saw a flash of the same golden cape as before. Curious, I stopped and was about to follow it when Theodore Roosevelt rode up beside me.

                "Would you like a ride, milady?" He extended his hand to me, and I smiled and grabbed it, pulling myself up onto the horse. As we rode away, I glanced behind me again, wondering who the owner of the strange cape was. Looking forward again, I settled with asking Larry the next night.