NatM-ficlet: "Running Differently" (Capone, Earheart, Larry; AU)
all typos are my own.
Fandom: Night At The Museum II: Battle Of The Smithsonian.
fic list is here.
AU
Title: Running differently (part one)
(part 2 is here)
(the epilogue is here)
Characters: Al Capone, Amelia Earheart, Larry Daley, cupids.
mention made of: Kahmunrah, Akhmenra, Teddy Roosevelt, delivery horses, the Einsteins, Thinker.
Summary: Capone switches sides, and Amelia Earheart plans ahead.
Note: fb is divine
Reference: none.
note: I have two Chicago muses...and since my Dresden Files muse is AWOL, I had to use the other one for the accent.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Location: Smithsonian Museum:
The sting of that second slap was still sore on his cheek, but Larry wouldn't have complained even if he could get the air to do so, not with Amelia Earheart's lips on his.
And then the cupids started up. Again. When the kiss ended, Larry was about to comment on the marble cupids' choice of song - Titanic's love theme? Really? - when, just as quickly as they had begun to sing, the cupids were suddenly silent. "What?" Larry asked, wondering if the cupids had a secret word that made them stop - the delivery horses up in New York were like that too, so there was precedent.
"Friend of yours?" Amelia asked him.
Larry looked at her, not sure what she meant - until he followed her gaze, and saw who was standing in the entrance to one of thi museum's halls. "Al Capone," Larry said. "What, did Kahmunrah send you to keep tabs on me?"
"Nope," Capone said.
"Then why're you here?"
"Got a question for ya."
"Okay, sh- Ask away," Larry said, not in the mood to tempt fate.
"What's in that underworld of his, ol' Kah Mun Ra's?"
"Well," Larry said, trying to recall. Aside from Akhmenra, the New York Museum's Egyptian community's pretty insular. So he relied upon what he knew from reading history... "Dead people, mostly."
"That ain't good," Capone said.
"Nobody thinks so, ace," Amelia said, "which might be why he's doing it."
"Why?" Larry asked Capone.
"Why what?" Capone replied.
"Why do you care? I mean, you came to life and you started taking Kahmunrah's orders pretty well."
"Anybody ever tell you it ain't healthy to mock me, kid?"
"Not mocking, not mocking," Larry said. "But yeah, sort of."
Capone let that last bit slide. "So you've heard of me, then."
"Yeah, yeah I've heard of you."
"Then you know how I got where I am."
"Sorry," Larry said, "but you'll have to be a bit more specific than that. I mean, do you mean 'get where you are' on the FBI's most-wanted list, do you mean 'get where you are' as a criminal mastermind, or something else?"
"I don't tend to leave my enemies breathing," Capone said. "So if that thing's a door to hell, then I sure ain't helping the loon open it."
"Makes sense," Amelia said. "Question."
"Ask away, doll."
"How'd you get away?"
"Yeah," Larry said. "Won't they notice you're not down there with the rest of them?"
Capone shrugged. "I told 'em what I told 'em, and they waved me off," with just as much indifference as the disloyalty my men're showing me Capone thought to himself, thinking of how one of his more loyal ones had brought in that birdcage and addressed skirt boy as 'boss.' "I'm a man and I have needs."
Amelia stared at him. "You ain't gettin' near my chassis."
"I said I had to take a leak," Capone told her.
"Oh." Amusement lit her face. "Oh." Then slight alarm, "Really?"
"Nah."
"As disturbing as this conversation is getting," Larry interjected, "I have to ask something, Mr. Capone. Are you on our side now?"
"I ain't takin' your orders," Capone told him bluntly. "But no way am I about to let them guys wake up folks I went to a great deal of trouble to put away."
"Great. And no problem, I don't give orders. I might have suggestions, probably will have a number of suggestions soon enough, or eventually - but no orders. I'm not the ordering kind."
"Good. Then we got an understanding. Now where're we going?"
"Air and Space," Larry said. "The Einsteins are there, and they're our best bet for solving this."
"They're watching the windows, nightguard," Capone said.
"So they'll see us leave. Yeah, I can see that'll be a problem. Thanks."
Capone shrugged.
Amelia looked out the window, then at the two men. "Mr. Daley, Mr. Capone, I have the solution."
"All ears."
"Likewise," Larry said. "What's your idea?"
"Disrobe."
Capone shrugged out of his jacket, draping it over one arm.
Larry was still just looking at Amelia. "I'm sorry, but - what?"
"Not me of course," Amelia said. "The two of you. You know more about that tablet than either of us, Larry Daley. So you have to get to the Einsteins. And since they're watching, they'll be keeping a weather eye open for you."
"Got a sharp mind there," Capone said.
Amelia smiled.
"Can't we just trade coats?" Larry asked Capone.
"Have they improved telescopic sights since I was flying?" Amelia asked.
"I was afraid you'd ask that," Larry said.
"Really?" Amelia inquired.
"Yeah, really. Well, okay, more of kinda sorta something vaguely similar overall."
"Oh. Well, unless you have a better plan, Mr. Daley, this is the only way we won't get jimmyjacked."
"Jimmyjacked?" Larry asked.
Capone raised an amused eyebrow but said nothing.
"You in?" Amelia asked Capone.
"Definately," Al told her, sliding out of his shirt and tossing it to land on Daley's head. "We movin' together?"
"We have to - Kahmunrah's expecting us to stick together. If we don't, then the -"
"The game's afoot," Larry interupted. Not something she'd say, but a sight better than jimmyjacked, whatever that is.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
the end
Fandom: Night At The Museum II: Battle Of The Smithsonian.
fic list is here.
AU
Title: Running differently (part one)
(part 2 is here)
(the epilogue is here)
Characters: Al Capone, Amelia Earheart, Larry Daley, cupids.
mention made of: Kahmunrah, Akhmenra, Teddy Roosevelt, delivery horses, the Einsteins, Thinker.
Summary: Capone switches sides, and Amelia Earheart plans ahead.
Note: fb is divine
Reference: none.
note: I have two Chicago muses...and since my Dresden Files muse is AWOL, I had to use the other one for the accent.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Location: Smithsonian Museum:
The sting of that second slap was still sore on his cheek, but Larry wouldn't have complained even if he could get the air to do so, not with Amelia Earheart's lips on his.
And then the cupids started up. Again. When the kiss ended, Larry was about to comment on the marble cupids' choice of song - Titanic's love theme? Really? - when, just as quickly as they had begun to sing, the cupids were suddenly silent. "What?" Larry asked, wondering if the cupids had a secret word that made them stop - the delivery horses up in New York were like that too, so there was precedent.
"Friend of yours?" Amelia asked him.
Larry looked at her, not sure what she meant - until he followed her gaze, and saw who was standing in the entrance to one of thi museum's halls. "Al Capone," Larry said. "What, did Kahmunrah send you to keep tabs on me?"
"Nope," Capone said.
"Then why're you here?"
"Got a question for ya."
"Okay, sh- Ask away," Larry said, not in the mood to tempt fate.
"What's in that underworld of his, ol' Kah Mun Ra's?"
"Well," Larry said, trying to recall. Aside from Akhmenra, the New York Museum's Egyptian community's pretty insular. So he relied upon what he knew from reading history... "Dead people, mostly."
"That ain't good," Capone said.
"Nobody thinks so, ace," Amelia said, "which might be why he's doing it."
"Why?" Larry asked Capone.
"Why what?" Capone replied.
"Why do you care? I mean, you came to life and you started taking Kahmunrah's orders pretty well."
"Anybody ever tell you it ain't healthy to mock me, kid?"
"Not mocking, not mocking," Larry said. "But yeah, sort of."
Capone let that last bit slide. "So you've heard of me, then."
"Yeah, yeah I've heard of you."
"Then you know how I got where I am."
"Sorry," Larry said, "but you'll have to be a bit more specific than that. I mean, do you mean 'get where you are' on the FBI's most-wanted list, do you mean 'get where you are' as a criminal mastermind, or something else?"
"I don't tend to leave my enemies breathing," Capone said. "So if that thing's a door to hell, then I sure ain't helping the loon open it."
"Makes sense," Amelia said. "Question."
"Ask away, doll."
"How'd you get away?"
"Yeah," Larry said. "Won't they notice you're not down there with the rest of them?"
Capone shrugged. "I told 'em what I told 'em, and they waved me off," with just as much indifference as the disloyalty my men're showing me Capone thought to himself, thinking of how one of his more loyal ones had brought in that birdcage and addressed skirt boy as 'boss.' "I'm a man and I have needs."
Amelia stared at him. "You ain't gettin' near my chassis."
"I said I had to take a leak," Capone told her.
"Oh." Amusement lit her face. "Oh." Then slight alarm, "Really?"
"Nah."
"As disturbing as this conversation is getting," Larry interjected, "I have to ask something, Mr. Capone. Are you on our side now?"
"I ain't takin' your orders," Capone told him bluntly. "But no way am I about to let them guys wake up folks I went to a great deal of trouble to put away."
"Great. And no problem, I don't give orders. I might have suggestions, probably will have a number of suggestions soon enough, or eventually - but no orders. I'm not the ordering kind."
"Good. Then we got an understanding. Now where're we going?"
"Air and Space," Larry said. "The Einsteins are there, and they're our best bet for solving this."
"They're watching the windows, nightguard," Capone said.
"So they'll see us leave. Yeah, I can see that'll be a problem. Thanks."
Capone shrugged.
Amelia looked out the window, then at the two men. "Mr. Daley, Mr. Capone, I have the solution."
"All ears."
"Likewise," Larry said. "What's your idea?"
"Disrobe."
Capone shrugged out of his jacket, draping it over one arm.
Larry was still just looking at Amelia. "I'm sorry, but - what?"
"Not me of course," Amelia said. "The two of you. You know more about that tablet than either of us, Larry Daley. So you have to get to the Einsteins. And since they're watching, they'll be keeping a weather eye open for you."
"Got a sharp mind there," Capone said.
Amelia smiled.
"Can't we just trade coats?" Larry asked Capone.
"Have they improved telescopic sights since I was flying?" Amelia asked.
"I was afraid you'd ask that," Larry said.
"Really?" Amelia inquired.
"Yeah, really. Well, okay, more of kinda sorta something vaguely similar overall."
"Oh. Well, unless you have a better plan, Mr. Daley, this is the only way we won't get jimmyjacked."
"Jimmyjacked?" Larry asked.
Capone raised an amused eyebrow but said nothing.
"You in?" Amelia asked Capone.
"Definately," Al told her, sliding out of his shirt and tossing it to land on Daley's head. "We movin' together?"
"We have to - Kahmunrah's expecting us to stick together. If we don't, then the -"
"The game's afoot," Larry interupted. Not something she'd say, but a sight better than jimmyjacked, whatever that is.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
the end