[Returning to a piece of me / Hidden within / Random poetry]

[dark_hekau]

Despite how his tone suggested a busy time spent working for the musuem, Cairo had been very good to Mahaado. His skin was still glowing from the warmth of the Egyptian sun, and the lines around his eyes had faded somewhat. There was almost a new bounce in his step, though he would never necessarily "skip." Not even for Mana's amusement.

And for the

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[redhairedbird]

It had been hectic with both Isis and Mahaado gone, and most of the others had barely stepped in to help Shizuka, almost as if they enjoyed watching her flounder around. She managed to balance the books, she managed to keep the tours going smoothly, but when that last shipment came in, she's completely lost it.

They simply didn't have the room for most of the stuff, and she certainly hadn't ordered it. Where had all these artifacts come from, and what were they intended for?

Now that she thought about it, she couldn't remember seeing the items listed in the books, either. That was probably why it'd taken her by surprise. Nonetheless, she knew she had to figure something out, lest she let Mahaado down entirely. That was something she didn't want to do.

Shizuka was currently in Super Spaz Mode, since Mahaado was stopping by the museum and she hadn't had nearly enough time to make the back room look remotely habitable. So busy was she surrounded by boxes and covered in dust and tiny cuts that she didn't even hear him entering the

[dark_hekau]

Mahaado's content mood toned down to bemused bewilderment as he entered the back room. Never had he seen such a large shipment - no, this couldn't just be one load, could it? Had things piled up so much during the last few weeks?

What had Nakano-san been thinking? Where was the Director anyway? He was supposed to be responsible for this as well, not just his employees. Speaking of the other employees, if they had left Shizuka all alone with this, they would have one righteously irked magician to deal with.

"Oh dear," Mahaado said aloud. "I should have come back much, much sooner." He spotted a familiar flash of red-hair behind some boxes labeled "Pottery: Fragile." "Shizuka?"

[redhairedbird]

Startled by the sound of Mahaado's voice - had it been so long already since they had spoken? - Shizuka gasped, nearly dropping the priceless case in her hands. Clutching it to her chest, she spun, staring at him with wide eyes.

"Don't startle me like that!" she admonished gently as she put the vase down carefully within a box, nestling it amongst scattered packing peanuts. They really hadn't taken much care with a lot of these items, and she was hoping that nothing had been damaged in shipment.

Then Shizuka smiled, obviously pleased to see him, her cheeks flushing slightly. "How was your trip, Mahaado-san?" she asked as she bowed.

[dark_hekau]

"Ah, forgive me," Mahaado said, properly chastised as he gave her a gentlemanly bow. He felt so much at home among ancient, inanimate objects that he sometimes forgot that the living of this modern world sometimes found his passion for the past... a tad strange. He also forgot that he tended to move much more quietly than most, an old habit from his days as a priest.

He smiled back, silently thanking his gods that nothing had happened to Shizuka or his other loved ones while he was away. "Busy," he replied honestly, "but it was good to see Egypt again."