━━ Chapter Two

Shakirat did her best to repair the damage done by Cecil, Reginald, and Gus the previous night. Multiple files had been strewn across the small office like they had had a party, but she suspected that they would pin it on a "monkey". Part of her thought Cecil was referring to Gus, but she would never admit her suspicions out loud. At least not to anyone working at the museum.

The small office was fitted with at least six filing cabinets that stacked as high as the ceiling, but Shakirat couldn't make use of the highest one. They all stood neatly on the left side of the room keeping the door from opening all the way. On the otherside was a large table and stool, which doubled as her desk and examination table. Along the table were all of the 'P' files that she finished organizing first thing yesterday.

She picked them up in her hand and held them in her arms letting out a long sigh. Part of her had hoped the night guards would mature overtime, but that was wishful thinking. She walked over to the small radio and turned on some music only to have 'Hips Don't Lie' by Shakira play. A small smile graced her lips as she got to work.

Time passed quickly as she danced her way through the day. All the while taking gulps from her coffee that was slowly straining away. As lunch rolled round her cell buzzed with the theme from 'Indiana Jones' alerting her to Jacqueline's call. She hit pause before picking up the phone, only to hear the sound of lightsabers crashing on the other side.

"Are you watching Star Wars without me?" Shakirat asked.

The sound of a rattling chip bag was heard over the speaker before Jacqueline responded, "No."

"Liar."

"I needed my daily dose of Anakin Skywalker. Sue me." Jacqueline huffed.

Shakirat rolled her eyes as she poked her peanut butter sandwich, not at all hungry, "Did you finish your essay?"

A groan from Jacqueline's end was confirmation enough. Shakirat remembered how hard her junior year in college was. So close to the last year of endless essays and assignments and yet so very far. The woman also remembered Jacqueline's professor as being one of the worst she has ever had. All of her assignments never matched the exams, so every time she walked through the doors it all came down to blind luck.

"Can you write this last page for me? I feel I will die if I continue."

Shakirat snorted, "You only have one page left? Just push through and use Anakin as your reward!"

Jacqueline laughed, "I thought you didn't like the Chosen One?"

Shakirat shrugged, although Jacqueline couldn't see her, "I can't like a man who in the end becomes obsessed with power over his wife and children's safety."

"He was trying to save her!"

"And what a great job he did! He became the biggest robot father to exist."

"You're just salty because I called dibs."

"I'm very happy with Obi-Wan, thank you."

"Keep telling yourself that."

"I will."

Silence erupted between the two as Shakirat took a bite out of her sandwich and Jacqueline munched on some chips. In the background Shakirat could faintly make out the conversation between Anakin and Padme. If Shakirat was being honest she didn't entirely hate Anakin, but he was still a broken man who tried to fix himself with power instead of the love he had for his wife.

"Can you grab some milk on the way home? We're completely out and I want to make us some french toast tomorrow." Jacqueline asked.

"Of course." Shakirat responded. "Just promise to make me one to go tomorrow. I have an early class at the lecture hall followed by a group project meeting in the afternoon. God only knows what kind of people my professor has paired me up with."

"Sure. I'll see you when you get home."

"Love you." Shakirat said, putting her sandwich back in her lunch box.

"Yeah I love me too."

Shakirat snorted at Jacqueline's response before ending the call with a tap of a button. She looked down at the pile of files stacked in front of her and all she could feel was overwhelmed. It was one thing to finish a bunch and call it a day and another to come back the next day and have to redo it once more. It made her more irritated than she let on and she supposed it was a good thing she could hide her feelings so well.

The girl set to work looking at multiple files on the iron age and letting out a sigh. She smacked on her music once more and with a final sip from her stale coffee continued her work day. As the afternoon turned to evening, Shakirat became more and more aware of how heavy her eyes were becoming, but knew that if she stopped now she wouldn't reach her goal. And she always reached her goal.

She cranked up her music as the sound of Rihanna's "SOS" came on. She swayed her hips as she finished the rest of her work for the day. She knew that if it was going to be tedious work then she would do her absolute best to make it as fun as possible. Which meant lots of Shakira and Rihanna as she finished off her work day in a positive attitude, if only slightly deprived of sleep.


Shakirat finished off her day strong, ending with the letter 'Q', which left her on high. Now she had to hope no one would mess up her work that night as she looked at her office up tight. She threw her scarf around her neck and used the creaking elevator to get to the ground floor. When she exited she found the museum to be less than lively with only a couple elderly pairs roaming the entrance.

She made her way over to Dr. McPhee's office only to hear shouting from within the grand office. She waited patiently outside wishing she was anywhere else but there. Some of the guests waved to her, recognizing while the rest of her time was spent scrolling through her phone. She was reading the news on the royal family when the door opened and Dr. McPhee's head popped out.

"Come in."

Shakirat wasted no time in entering through the arched doorway into a medium sized room filled to the brim with vintage copies of Shakespeare and Edgar Allen Poe. She could spot a few that were real, but some were clearly fake. Part of her wondered if he knew, but she knew better than to ever ask such a question. She valued her job too much.

Dr. McPhee sat down behind his desk and gestured for Shakirat to have a seat. She did so begrudgingly, but with her best customer service smile on. She did her best to keep composed as he sat across from her and yet he made no attempt at starting a conversation. So they sat in silence as Shakirat focused on a pencil that she had found to be very interesting.

"Miss Asad." Dr. McPhee began causing Shakirat to glance up at him. "Have you been made aware as to why I have called you into my office?"

"I have a vague idea, sir."

"Well, allow me to make it clear." He cleared his throat before continuing. "Since being given the position of archivist I have seen your work as less than exemplary. Every morning I come to find it in disarray, as if a monkey could do better than you. I had half a mind to fire you today, Miss Asad. Can you imagine?"

Shakirat didn't know what to say as she sat there. Part of her wanted to bolt and catch the next flight back to Great Britain, but she was too proud for that. She needed a good reference and if she had to throw the night guards under the double decker bus then so be it. She wanted to make a career out of her work at the museum and tweedledee, tweedle do, and tweedle dum weren't going to stop her.

"Sir, I can explain."

"But there is no need. It has been brought to my attention that this was no fault of your own. Mr. Fredricks assured me that everytime you leave your office that it is clean and organized and not at all like the sty is seen each morning. I was rather surprised when all the night guards testified to your organization skills, given your lack of manners."

Shakirat sat there stunned into silence. She was happy that the night guards had told the truth, but she hadn't realized she had been on trial for how the archives looked each morning. Part of her knew had they not confessed that this meeting would be taking a very different turn as Dr. McPhee had pointed out. However, now she was left in wonder. If everything she was doing was meeting his standards, then why was she there?

"Why did you wish to see me sir?"

"To offer you a full time position as Senior Archivist at the Museum of Natural History."

Shakirat had to try not to cheer in front of her boss. Out of all the things she was expecting this was certainly not one of them. She tucked a stray piece of hair behind her ear as she sat forward in her seat. She could tell Dr. McPhee was waiting for her answer, but the idea still hadn't sunk in.

"Miss Asad?"

"I accept." Shakirat finally answered. "Thank you so much for the opportunity to grow."

"I hope you live up to my expectations, Miss Asad." Dr. McPhee stated. "I don't give second chances."

She looked him directly in the eye, "Trust me sir. I've worked too hard to be anything less than exemplary."

"Good. This position will be put into effect beginning the end of your last year. There is no need to overwhelm you now. You are dismissed."

Shakirat left the office without uttering so much as a goodbye. She waved over at Rebecca as she passed her with a group of elderly people. Her friend sent her a small smile as she continued on her way. Shakirat watched her go before continuing out the door and into the cold night air as snow softly fell onto the earth. As she stood there among the frostbitten world she felt the weight of what Dr. McPhee had finally told her to sink in.

Shakirat allowed herself to a small jig in front of the entrance as she celebrated her mini victory. She knew that later that week Jacqueline would force out for a round of shots and bar hopping to celebrate this milestone, but she was content. She was happy in knowing she had a future in the career she had been building for so long. Especially in an area she had come to see as home.

She pulled her jacket closer and hailed a taxi to take her to the mini mart closest to her apartment. The driver did as she asked with a small congrats, knowing the 'jig' all too well. As they pulled away Shakirat looked outside her window with a renewed sense of purpose. All the while her smile never left her lips as a twinkle of new beginnings sparked behind her dark brown eyes.


When Shakirat finally arrived home she wasn't at all amused at the state she found the apartment in. As soon as she opened the door the smell of pop tarts and old popcorn was not a charming smell to hit her senses. When she turned on the small hallway light she saw the trail that led to the couch, where her room mate was snoring away.

Beside her were two more empty coffee mugs than when she had previously left her, making it a grand total of five full coffees that day. Not her record, but not the smallest amount she's had that year. The tv was still on but was now playing reruns of NCIS instead of the glowing view that was Hayden Christensen as Anakin. Although Shakirat was sure that Jaqueline's dreams were full of him.

She turned off the television with the soft smile of Doctor Donald Mallard turning to darkness. She placed the remote on the coffee table and tried her hardest not to gag at the mess. Strewn across the counter were her breakfast, lunch, and half eaten dinner of strawberry pop tart. Shakirat made a mental note to force her friend to clean up in the morning. She already did enough cleaning at the museum that she saw no reason why she had to do so at home. Especially when it wasn't her mess to begin with.

Part of her wanted to whack her with a pillow, but that would make the problem. On top of trying to get an early night she would have to deal with an overly tired and angry Jacqueline. The thought itself didn't sit well with Shakirat, so she left her in peace for now. She moved to the tiny kitchenette to dispose of the groceries before turning off the light.

The girl shivered as she stayed near her kettle as she boiled some tea, being careful not to let it whistle. She grabbed a bag of Earl Grey Tea from the cabinet and let it steep as she went through it mail. Most of them were bills, but there was one thick envelope that had the scrolling calligraphy of Sanem's handwriting. It was sent from Japan. Taking her mug in hand she made her way to the small bed in the corner.

The girl shed her day clothes in favor of her warm pajamas and fuzzy slippers. She pulled her hair up into a bun before climbing into bed lighting a small candle by her bedside table. She allowed the soft lavender to mix with the smell of stale coffee as she settled in for the night. She looked at the thick envelope with a mixture of annoyance and curiosity, glad that Jacqueline had grabbed it for her.

She opened it with a sigh and wasn't at all surprised by the fancy postcard inside from Tonya and long winded journalistic article from Sanem. She looked at the picture of Japan's Cherry blossoms with a soft smile and flipped it over to see Tonya's choppy writing. She detailed the history of Japan and how their flight was, but it focused more on how she missed her daughter. Shakirat genuinely smiled at the decaying blossom petal stapled to it.

However, she had to get up the courage to read the long winded novel from Sanem. For being a world famous journalist and news anchor it was no wonder she had time to write, but she supposed tonya forced her. The first half of the letter spoke of their flight, but it was more on the service and read more like a review than a recount of how it was to go on vacation. The second part was a long analysis, borderline inspection, of their hotel room which was one of the nicest in Japan.

Finally she spoke on the history of Japan and to her it read like all the stories in her history books. Lifeless and full of facts that bear no meaning to how to live in today's society. In her mind she was trying to bring a sense of reality to these practices, but Shakirat saw them for what they were. Each practice, though beautiful in its own right, was that of the past and is to be admired as such. You can cherish the time, but shouldn't wish to live in a time that is not one's own.

She stuffed the letter and postcard back in the envelope and shoved it into her nightstand drawer. She would ultimately forget it was there until in the middle night a couple months from now where she will have her epiphany. Then she would scramble to come up with a reply before shipping it back off to them. Only to get an email scolding her on why she hadn't answered sooner.

Shakirat tugged the covers closer to her body as she shivered from the cold. She had half a mind to go turn on the thermostat, but all she saw was dollar signs. She would rather suffer than have a large electric bill. Instead she blew warm air on her hands and hunkered down for the night. Taking her most recent reading and doing her best to muddle through.

Her professors had recently become obsessed with Egypt and their multiple gods and deities. One of them announced that there would be a quiz the next morning on who the two most famous were. In Shakirat's eyes the tales of Iris and Cleopatra were overrated. If she was to learn about Egypt and its many Pharaoh's overtime she would rather read about a forgotten one. Someone that history had neglected to include among its many pages.

As her eyes grew heavy she drank the rest of her tea with a small swish. She placed the empty mug on her bedside table and did her best to read the rest of the 35 paged chapter. She pulled out her beaten up laptop and typed up her notes while listening to Ludovico Einaudi soft melodies. She knew that listening to classical probably wasn't the best idea, but she didn't want to get rowdy right before going to bed.

As she finished up her class notes for the day she checked her other classes once more before shutting down the laptop and curling up under the warm covers. The sound of Jaqueline's snoring was what lulled Shakirat into a dreamless sleep. She blew out her candle and total darkness encompassed the small studio as the day ended not with a warm sigh, but with a soft snore.