Chapter Text
“Where in the bloody hell am I?”
Julia Moriston had always been a girl of science, a girl whose rational mind ruled over every fiber of her being; her conclusions had always been drawn from facts, logic, or whatever she could see with her eyes and touch with her own hands. Emotions were of course a big part of her, and following her heart had sometimes been the best choice, but when it came to events and understanding what was going on, there was no space for speculations that could have led to irrational thoughts.
She had always thought some areas of London looked quite old and out of time and, many times before as she walked through them, she had found herself more than once imagining how they would have looked in the past… it almost felt like she was now seeing it, very clearly. It must have been a dream, a series of images and sounds made up by her sleeping mind creating something too surreal for her rational brain.
Looking around she could see different people, different clothes, different buildings, almost as if she had been transported to a different… time. In fact, even though she couldn’t understand it, for the first time in her life the mere thought of something irrational happening crossed her mind. Traveling through time was impossible.
“Are you alright?” a man said approaching her.
Shock was all over her face as her eyes scanned the man in front of her. The bright red jacket he was wearing was something she hadn't seen in a while, it looked like a Red Coat. She knew Red Coats were still a thing but looking around she began to notice that he wasn’t the only one wearing the bright colored uniform.
“What year is it?” It had been her first thought. The man in front of her might have thought she was mad, however she couldn’t manage to formulate a different answer than the surreal one she was thinking about.
Her rational mind was trying so hard to find something that could be remotely possible without a supernatural explanation, she might have found herself in the middle of a parade or something similar and not notice. How did she even get there?
“I’m sorry what?” His thick english accent and his furrowed brow had been quite predictable, what kind of person went around asking people what year it was?
“I’m sorry, you must think me mad, but I really need to know” she said desperately.
All she could remember was coming home from a normal day of helping her mother with their family shop, taking a slow walk on the street to take a look around, using that moment for herself, without anyone disturbing her with questions or tasks. She was just about to turn the corner of her block when she heard a buzzing sound and a light whistle. She felt her body weak for a split second and felt on the verge of passing out, however, suddenly, she immediately felt better. The dizziness lasted just a couple of seconds before she realized the entire street had changed before her own eyes. That, for sure, was how she had gotten there, but where was ‘there’? Or should she say, WHEN was ‘there’?
“It’s 1781, are you sure you are all right, miss?” the Englishman in front of her asked worriedly once again.
1781. How could that even be possible? The man before her eyes looked dead serious, the setting was immaculate and she was sure no one would have ever taken that much effort in messing with her, if it could even be possible to do it.. Yet 1781 was a bit more than a century before her current year, something that, yet again, her rational mind couldn't quite understand.
"Of course, London 1781. I'm sorry but I tend to forget the year we're currently in sometimes, you know, I always need a few months to adjust after new year's" mentioning London was extremely calculated, as she needed to check if the place was correct at least and if she was indeed still there.
“Of course miss, do you need me to look for someone you know? You look quite lost, perhaps your parents are around, or your husband?” he asked, kindly offering help.
“Oh, no, thank you for your kindness, my uhm- father must be around here somewhere. I was waiting for him but I just remembered he asked me to join him at my fiancè’s house, they must be expecting me." Giving a lot of details wasn’t a clever move, however her instinct made her mention two male figures waiting for her.
Even in her time women weren’t taken quite seriously, let alone trusted. Mentioning that she was wandering around alone or with another woman figure might have put her at risk; in her time being a woman wasn’t easy, and she could barely even imagine how hard it would have been a hundred years before.
“Well, I wish you a good day, miss, stay safe” he answered politely, without questioning her further, which made her mentally thank her English accent for blending in so well in the city.
"Thank you Mister- uhm” she had been raised by her parents in the best way possible, so they always made sure she greeted and thanked people properly, but she suddenly remembered she didn’t know the name of her interlocutor.
“Grey, Lord John Grey, at your service miss, if you’ll ever need me again”