The Gods Have A Sick Sense Of Humor

Disclaimer: I do not own The Mummy and all rights are reserved to the creater of that movie. I do own the story I made up of it, and thats about it.

Cursed yet again...

'They thought they could kill me, Imhotep? I am very much alive, O'Connell, and when I awake from my slumber...' His thoughts were interrupted with the staring eyes of a group of teenagers.

"Look at that thing, isn't it stupid looking?" They pointed to the manikin with the brand name jeans and hooded sweatshirt on. "His face is so creepy." Commented the female teenager in the group. "Oh! He's gonna get you Cindy!" The boys teased the young girl.

"Watch this!" Said one boy as he took his gum he had been chewing and placed it on the manikin's nose, making it look like he had a big green bugger. The group all laughed, then with their attention off of the manikin, headed off to torment something else.

'Note to self, kill all who mocked me first, then O'Connell.' He sat there staring off into space, mind on the past and how his so called love had left him to rot. 'You were not my true love after all. This imprisonment proves it.' The gods had taken Imhotep's soul and put it into a manikin. Only his true love could bring his body back to life. It was a big joke to the gods, 'What is the likely hood of him ever finding love when he is a manikin?' 'Very slim...' Thought Imhotep as he stood in his quiet solitude. 'My body may be motionless, but my mind never stops racing.'

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"I don't know why we even keep this thing around." Came the annoyed tones of a woman looking at the not so up to date manikin.

"Oh I don't know, maybe with a little extra love and care, he'd be as good as new." Said the optimistic voice of another. Imhotep watched as the women undressed him and grabbed some other clothes to replace the old ones with. "First, lets wash him down, he looks a little dull and dusty."

"The stores going to close in 5 minutes. I don't want to work late tonight. You can do it yourself, Tia." And with that the grumpy old employee left the young girl and manikin alone.

"Don't mind her, she's not all bad." Tia said to Imhotep, taking a wet cloth and wiping away all the dust on his arms and legs. "I bet you must have been a real looker when you first came to this store." She commented, taking the cloth and wiping his face. Her eyes looked into his for a moment, a thoughtfulness about them, then placed her attention back on her job.

"So what would you like to wear today? Perhaps be a business man? Or maybe you'd like to be in the athletic department? You do seem to have a nice enough build about you." She said, looking at his body type. "That will have to do my friend." She said, taking out some basketball shorts and a matching jersey. Putting them on in no time, she stepped back and looked at her work. "Blue is a nice color on you. I think crimson would be better though..." She turned her back and walked off to find the same outfit in the color she needed.

'Either way it does not matter, why are you even bothering with me woman?' He thought to himself as he watched her slim figure from behind. 'At least I have something to entertain my vision with...' his thoughts went to a vision of this mortal before him in what today's society called a bikini.

"Here we go!" She said, grabbing what she needed and coming back to the manikin.

"Hope you appreciate all the hard work I did to find just the right one." She said jokingly as she switched his old attire with the new. "Much better!" She said, admiring the look of him. "You're eyes look so much brighter and alive with this color." She stated, that thoughtful look on her features again. Shaking her head to clear her thoughts, she picked up the lightweight manikin and carried him over to the athletic department.

"Now how to place you..." She thought out loud as she sat him down and looked around the area. Finding a basket ball hoop, she placed it in just the right place and brought over the manikin. "Now lets make you look active!" She smiled as she moved his arms up to look like he was about to make a shot. "Now let me find a ball..." She said, moving away from Imhotep and searching the store up and down.

'I don't remember anyone wasting their time on me before. This mortal must have, how do they say? No life.' Imhotep thought as he watched her coming back with a big orange ball.

"Here you go!" She said, making it so that his hands were close enough together to hold the ball just right. "Now don't miss." Tia joked as she stepped back and looked at her finished work. "That'll work!" She announced, happy with her job well done.

"See you tomorrow pal." She said as she turned away and headed over to clock out. Hearing the sound of a ball bouncing off of the floor, she stopped and turned around. "Oh great, now the ball won't stay..." She complained to herself as she walked back over to where she had set the manikin.

He was gone. "Oh god..." She began, mind becoming hysterical, "Oh god..." What the hell happened to her manikin?...This was just too creepy. She was about to just walk away and pretend she never saw him missing when she felt someone behind her.

"Woman..." Came the deep tones of a man. Tia ran away from the voice as fast as her legs could carry her. She could hear the sound of her assailant as she kept thinking in her mind she was going to die. "Please...Oh Please." She kept saying to herself as she ran into the door of security and pounded on the door. "Let me in!"

The door opened quickly as two men looked down at the very panicked face of Tia. "Someone...in the store...tried to get me." She puffed out, breath catching. The officers went past her and headed for the store she had come from. She followed closely behind as they checked for any signs of a break in. They found nothing. When they went back and looked at the security tapes, all they caught was her running and screaming, no other person following behind.

"I'm not making this up!" She began, "I heard something...and the manikin was gone, they stole the manikin!" She said, taking them over to prove to them and herself that she hadn't gone mad.

"See he's...right there." Tia could not believe her own eyes. He was just how she had placed him. Nothing was askew, even the ball was as it should be.

"It's alright miss, working these late hours can cause anyone to hear and see things. Just try not to get too carried away." They said, walking away from her.

"But I wasn't seeing things..." She said to herself, eyes locked onto the manikins. "Was I...?"

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Morning came all too soon for the stressed out Tia as she made her way into work.

"Morning Tia, how was your night?" Asked the other employee who had left her to herself the night before.

"Perfect." Tia lied, walking over to the other and clocked in. "Ready for the day?" She asked, not really caring.

"Ready as I'll ever be." Said the other, "By the way, the manager loves the way you set up that manikin. It's really been getting a lot of attention lately."

"Why's that?" Tia asked, suspicious.

"I don't know, just something about it looks so real life and active. There's been more customers in here because of it." She said, looking over towards the direction of it.

"Why not have a look at it?" She asked Tia.

"Maybe during lunch break…" Tia said, not very enthusiastic about going anywhere near the manikin.

Lunch came all too soon for Tia as she made her way over to the athletic department to take in her work. People really were interested in the manikin Tia realized as she noticed how many more people they had in the store than usual. As she stood there, looking at the manikin with deep thought, she was caught off guard when a hand touched her shoulder.

"Tia!" Came the overly happy voice of her manager. "Great job with this display. In fact, I have a new job for you. I'd like you to do all the displays from now on, I'll pay you three times as much."

Tia looked up into the face of her manager, wrinkled, and slightly overweight. "Mr. Green, I'd love to, but are you sure I'm the right one for the job?" She asked, hoping he'd get it through his thick skull that she really didn't want to do it.

"Positive my dear!" He said, patting her on the shoulder, "You start tonight!" And with that he left her alone, her eyes like daggers digging into the manikin who got her into the predicament.

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Imhotep had never gotten such unwanted attention in his life. 'Just leave me alone you festering scum' He cursed, wishing that damn woman had never bothered with him in the first place. Then again it was her who helped him take that first breath of fresh air. It was also her who had given him the chance to take his revenge on all who had ever betrayed him.

Sadly, his freedom had only last for moments for the woman had ran like hell and brought back men. What else was he to do but go back to being a manikin and watch as they search the store for him, only to find a lifeless doll and a crazy woman.

Imhotep knew she hated him for doing that to her, she might even be fearful of him. Which in some sick way only Imhotep was capable of turned him on like no other. He loved to see the fear in the raging sea which were her eyes. The way her plump, soft lips quivered as she had looked around for him. The way her whole body tensed as he had spoken his first words to her.

Oh yes, he simply loved it. Seeing her now talking with someone brought back the memory of her talking to him last night. As if he really were real. Then when he had actually come to life, she had ran away. Overhearing their conversation, he smiled mentally. 'I will see you tonight, my princess.' He thought, mentally picturing himself putting that same fear deep within her. Oh, the thought was all the sweeter. Knowing that now he was fully capable of doing just as he wished.