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well chances are i will send it to you first for the proofing, like always. ^^

i can't wait to get it finished. ^^ just gotta find enough time to sit down and get 'er done.

2

Everything was dark. I wasn’t sure where I was or what I was seeing. I heard someone calling me. But I didn’t know who or from where. Something felt warm and close. I could hear a man’s voice. His voice was calming and soothing. I suddenly felt at peace. Like just his voice could make all the pain go away. Then another voice came to my ears. Distant. The soothing voice was talking to me. Warning me. I couldn’t understand the words. The new voice was becoming louder. “Hello? Miss? Are ye alright?” I listened closely to the words, trying to see where they were coming from. I slowly opened my eyes and the light in the room I was in was very dim. I could see a candle on the chest of drawers beside the bed I was in. A man stood over me. He looked to be around my height. He was aged and balding with a pot belly. His scruffy beard wiggled when he asked me again if I was alright. He was the second voice I heard, but who was the first? I blinked a couple of times before adjusting to the light. “Miss? Are ye alright?” He asked again. I slowly turned my head to him. The room began to spin. I think it showed on my face because he looked at me and nodded. “Indeed, you are in need of a cool cloth upon yer forehead.” He turned away from the bed to a small wooden wash basin on a little table to my right. He wrung the water out of the cloth and placed it on my head.
“Wh..where am I?” I managed to croak. He put a finger to his lips and made the shhh noise. I felt the cool cloth on my head and closed my eyes a moment.
“Aye, miss. Ye indeed took a strong blow to thy head. It is a wonder that ye recovered as quick as ye did.” He dabbed at my forehead. “Ye were brought to me by a fisherman returning from travels to the sea. He saw ye laying in the field on the path back and brought ye to town. If I may ask, what were ye doing out there by yerself?” He asked. I tried to sit up. He helped me to do so.
“I am not sure.” I stopped then. I didn’t think telling this guy about a time machine was a good idea. “May I ask where I am and what the year is?” He laughed. I was confused.
“Ye sure ye are feeling well, miss? I can’t recall a person fergettin’ what year we be in.” He chuckled. I still looked and felt confused. “Ye really do not know?” he asked. I nodded slowly. “Well miss, it be the year of our lord, eighteen hundred and eighty eight.” The look on my face must have been something because the man looked at me with wide eyes. “Does something alarm ye, miss?”
“Whoa. That wasn’t expected.” I said. He looked at me oddly.
“Whoa, miss? There are no horses here. Who ye telling to stop?” He asked me. I shook my head, another wave of dizziness upon me.
“My apologies. I did not realize I had received such a blow to my head.” I tried to use my best efforts to speak in old English. Or at least proper English. The man nodded his head.
“Indeed ye have, miss.” He smiled. He dunked the cloth back in the cool water and wrung it out again. I managed to sit up without too much difficulty. He turned back to me. “Miss, ye should be laying down. ‘Tis not going to get better this way.” He said. I smiled.
“I will be fine, good sir. May I ask where it is that I am? I am unsure at the moment.” I looked at him, really unsure of where it was that B sent me. He sighed a little.
“Ye are in a little cabin outside of London. It is just a short day’s walk to Whitechapel. We are on my farm. It is about half a day’s walk from town. Whitechapel is the closest part of London to us. There is a lot of traffic on the waters these days.” He said. My eyes widened. Why did that sound familiar? I thought back. “Ye do not want to be out after dark, though. There’s trouble lurking the streets.” He said. I blinked a couple of times. Trouble in London at night in the eighteen hundreds….my eyelids felt heavy. He smiled at me. “Rest now, miss. Ye are needing your strength.” He said. I nodded and lay back down. He blew out the candle on the dresser and my eyelids grew heavier until they closed and all was inky blackness again.

The sun felt warm and bright on my face. I opened my eyes to bright morning sunlight through the small window behind me. I blinked a couple of times to adjust to the light. The room seemed a little bigger in full sunlight than it had the previous night. The colors of the bedspread seemed to glow in the warm light. Reds, greens and yellows all played happily in the light. Either that or I was on some good drugs. I sat up and felt a throbbing in my face. I looked about and there was a small mirror on the dresser that I hadn’t seen the night before. I carefully got out of the bed and stood. I was a little wobbly, but managed to stand. I then attempted to walk around the bed to the dresser. When I managed to make it over without falling down, I picked up the mirror and looked into it. Ouch. I saw some lovely shades of purple and blue with a tint of green from my left eye to my jaw. What the hell hit me?
“Ah, ye be up now, miss!” came the voice of the man from last night. “I was worried ye wouldn’t wake.” He said, putting down a basket. “Are ye well?” He asked. I nodded. “Ye have seen the mark on yer face then?” He asked. I nodded again. “May I ask what ye were doing out in the field last night? And ye are wearing mighty strange clothes. Where are ye from?” He was asking so many questions. I had no idea how to answer them.
“Um….well….” I was so unsure where to start. His next question surprised me.
“Are ye….a prostitute?” He asked, his eyes a little wide. I looked at my outfit and almost laughed. I had on a tank top with small straps and shorts that came to mid thigh.
“Oh, heavens no!” I laughed. “Sir, I am not a prostitute. Where I come from…these clothes are normal. I am from very far away.” I said, trying to reassure him that he had not brought a hooker into his house.
“And where is home, my dear?” he asked. I sighed.
“It is across the ocean.” I said. He nodded.
“I see. Perhaps the colonies then.” He smiled. “Well, miss. In the chest of drawers ye will find some of my wife’s clothes. God rest her soul.” He said as he made the sign of the crucifix and went back into the other room.
I opened the dresser and smiled. There was an array of clothes. Dresses, underclothes…no pants. I forgot. Victorian England didn’t have women that wore pants. I pulled out a folded dress and almost snickered. It even had a petticoat! I hoped it fit, because there was no way in hell I was going to put on a girdle. I pulled off the tank top and shorts and tried on the dress. A little snug. Better than putting on a girdle. I took in a deep breath. It looked cute enough. It was a rather plain blue dress with ruffled lace at the neck and the base of the skirt. There was a spill of lace at the cuffs of the arms and small mother of pearl buttons down the chest. I looked in the small mirror again. I couldn’t see much of the overall picture, but it felt okay. I wasn’t going to put on the petticoat. I looked in the bottom drawer and saw small high heeled boots. I held one up and snickered. I was not going to be able to put my feet into those boots. I guess my hiking boots will have to do. I was so glad the skirt was long enough to hide the boots. I looked around the top of the dresser and found a small hairbrush. It was made with boar bristles. I ran the brush through my short hair. There wasn’t much I was going to do about the hair. It wasn’t long enough to do anything with. So I tidied it up and found a small hair comb that I pinned some of the locks back with. I looked in the mirror once again and sighed. The face stood out like a sore thumb.
I heard a knock on the doorframe. “Are ye dressed, miss?” He asked. He poked his head in and then entered. He let a whistle out from his lips. “Ye remind me of my wife so much.” He said with a sigh. I turned around to face him. “Aye, it looks lovely on ye.” He smiled.
I thought for a minute and realized something was missing. “Sir, was there by any chance a small key with me when I came here?” I asked.
“A key, miss?” He asked, looking a little puzzled.
“Yes, a key.” I said as I tried to describe the size and shape of the key, I described as much of it as I could remember, including the little button on it. He seemed more puzzled.
“No, miss. There was no key with ye. At least, not that I am aware of. What is the importance of a key of such an odd design?” He asked. I shook my head. How do I explain to this guy that it’s my only way home? He wouldn’t understand. I sighed.
“It is of significant importance.” I said, finally. “It means a great deal to me. I would be quite saddened to lose it.” I tried to sound sincere. He nodded.
“Sorry, dear. It wasn’t with ye.” He looked out the window. “It may still be in the field that ye were found in.” He turned back to me then. “I believe we can search there, if ye like.” I looked at him and smiled.
“It has occurred to me, sir that I do not know what your name is. You have been very kind to me, and we have not shared a proper introduction.” I smiled again. He relaxed a little and smiled as well. “I am Elinore Hoover. I am pleased to make your acquaintance.” I extended my hand. He smiled wider and took it. He carefully placed a small kiss on the back of my hand and released it.
“John Cullen, miss. The pleasure is all mine.” He said. “Come, I will aid you in finding this key ye seek.” He left the room. I began to follow him and realized that I wasn’t used to trying to walk in such a long dress. I picked up the skirt enough to clear my feet and followed him out of the room. The main room of the house was a fair size. There was a small sofa against the far wall to the west. It wasn’t the kind of sofa I was used to. It was definitely old Victorian. For a farmer, he had rich taste. He couldn’t be just a farmer. There were matching chairs with the sofa, strategically placed in the living room. Potted plants adorned the corners of the room and the wallpaper had small peonies on it. Blue and green in color with a vanilla cream background. It looked very tasteful and elegant. On the east wall was a large picture window and the south wall had a beautiful mirror hanging in the center. Around the mirror was a sort of collage of pictures. I walked over to the wall for a closer look. There were pictures of a woman, I would assume to be his wife. Others had the same woman and a small boy. I smiled. They looked so happy. And on the right side of the mirror were pictures of a handsome man. Very handsome indeed. The pictures were somewhat sepia toned, so I was a little unclear on some of the details. He had hair that wasn’t much shorter than mine. It was well styled and was cut off the ears. He had a mustache. It actually looked tasteful. Not the gaudy handlebar ones or fluffy or anything. Just a small mustache. It was trimmed and kept neat. The rest of his face was clean-shaved. I couldn’t tell the color of his eyes though. But they were striking. I focused on the eyes and felt relaxed and calm. And warm…I knew those eyes. I shivered. He wore a black suit. Of this I was sure. I couldn’t help but stare at his eyes though.
“Miss, are ye well?” John asked. I turned back to him, blushing a little.
“My apologies. Were you saying something?” I asked, feeling a little embarrassed. He grinned at me. It was a wide grin.
“I see ye have found my son. Quite a striking lad, eh?” He asked, beaming as a proud father should.
“He is very handsome.” I said, still feeling the flush in my cheeks. He laughed then.
“Come, Miss Elinore. We best be going if we are to search the area during light hours.” He turned and walked to the front hall. I followed him. There was a small table in the hall with a vase of tulips. The same wallpaper adorned the hall. There was a tall coat rack in the corner beside the door. He took off a black hat and placed it on his head. “Would ye care for a hat, miss?” He asked. I almost laughed.
“You do not have to call me miss all the time. Elinore is fine.” I said. I thought about saying Eli, but I thought it wouldn’t fit in this age. I was going to have to get used to my actual name for once. I didn’t know how long I was going to be here for. He nodded.
“Agreed then.” He said as he pulled another hat from the rack. It was a straw hat with a bow and some feathers sticking out of it. “It is a fine hat, if ever I did see one. My wife loved it.” He handed me the hat. I put it on my head. It was a nice fit. I smiled a little.
“May I ask what your wife’s name was?” I tried to make polite conversation as he opened the front door and let in the warm sunshine. I took a deep breath at the clean air that soon followed. It felt refreshing. He had a warm smile on his face.
“Ye remind me so much of my Maria. A wonderful woman. She would do that when I opened the door.” He turned and walked outside the door, waiting for me. I followed, watching my step as I exited. He closed the door behind me and took a deep breath. “Come, Elinore. Let us depart.” He said as he walked down the little dirt pathway. I followed. “Are ye up for a fair amount of walking?” He asked. I looked in his direction and winked.
“Indeed I am. I love a good hike.” I hiked up my skirt and began to walk along side him, matching pace. He smiled and continued his walk. “So how far out do we have to walk?” I asked, taking in the scenery. The grass was so green, and the sky was so bright. I never saw this when I was at home. There was a golden wave of wheat growing not too far off. Must have been August or September.
“Oh, I would say about an hour walk from here. Ye were brought out here in a cart.” I let out a whistle. I was really glad I had my hiking boots. “Ye still up for this?” He asked again. I nodded.
“As ready and capable as you, Mr. Cullen.” I smiled as I said it. He laughed.
“If ye wish to be informal, I insist ye call me John. It is just us, Elinore. We are not in the public eye. I do not care if ye want to call me that. We just need to watch what we say ‘round the townsfolk.”
“Indeed, I would not be so rude in front of company.” I said. We continued the walk in relative silence. I watched the scenery pass by me and felt at peace here. It wasn’t noisy like in California. There were no horns blaring or people yelling curse words. There were no sirens wailing or the constant hum of people talking all around me. All I heard were birds singing above me, the odd sound of a cricket, and the wind rushing through the grass and the wheat. It was truly something to behold.
An hour later we came to the field I was found in. I looked around and pictured what I remembered. My memory was dark, and I recall bright stars and moonlight. There was none of that. The man that was in front of me wasn’t there. And neither was the guy behind me. I looked around and saw vast field for miles. “This be the spot, miss.” John said. I nodded.
“Then I best start searching the ground.” And I knelt upon the ground. He watched me a moment. I looked back up at him.
“Um, I do not recall any lady crawling around on the ground such as what ye are doing, miss Elinore. Is this what ye do at home?” He asked me. I smiled.
“Yeah, I guess so.” I said quietly.
“Beg ye pardon, miss?” He asked.
“Oh, sorry. I do crawl on the ground at times. We do things a little differently back home.” I said, and started feeling through the tall grass. There were no lawn mowers around here. This was a large, open field. Why did I think this was going to be easy? He dropped to the ground beside me and started feeling through the grass.
“Tell me again what ye said this key looked like?” He said, feeling through lumps of dirt and grass.
I described the key again. It was about two inches in length, but I wasn’t sure what the unit of measurement was at this time. Sometimes I wish I had paid more attention to details. I attempted to show him with my fingers how long it was. The hard part was describing to him what the top part looked like. It was an old fashioned key. Definitely nineteenth century in design. But there were two microchips on it and a rubbery plastic button to push. At this time, they didn’t have microchips or rubbery plastic. I somehow managed to explain it to him so he had an idea of what I was talking about.
“It is not like any keys I have seen.” He whistled a little. “Indeed, it is a strange design. I fail to understand why there would be such strange devices on your keys. I have never heard of such a thing.” We continued looking through the grass.
Most of the afternoon was spent crawling around in the field. We came up empty. When I stood up, I felt a little dizzy. Things were spinning around me. I sat back on the ground. John stood over me. “Ye alright?” He asked me. I nodded slowly. I realized then that my head was still hurting, and I had had nothing to eat since breakfast. I thought about that and realized that I was missing a whole day. Or was it a few years? I was becoming dizzier trying to make sense of things. It only felt like a day to me, but here I was in the eighteen hundreds and was thinking about when I had had breakfast! I sighed. John looked down at me. “We best start our walk back. There is nothing here.” He said. I nodded again.
“Indeed. Either of the men that I had encountered could have taken it. I am sure it would have seemed as odd to them as it did to you.” I said, carefully standing up again. He held his arm out for me to take until I was steady again. “Either way, it is lost to me for now.” I sighed again. He held my arm and began to lead me back towards the farm.

Another hour had passed and we had walked with complete silence between us. We came back to the house and walked up the front steps. The house looked like a farm house on the outside. Wood siding, whitewashed. A small front porch with a rocking chair and a wooden table beside it. I stretched a little, and brushed off the dirt from my dress. John opened the door and waited for me to enter. I walked into the house and took off the hat. I replaced it on the rack and walked back into the living room. I thought about that. Is that what they would have called it? Maybe it was a parlor. There were too many terms and my head was still swimming. John closed the door and also replaced his hat on the rack.
“Are ye hungry, Miss Elinore?” He asked me. I looked over at him as he walked into the kitchen. I followed him. “I don’t have any servants or fancy cooking skills, but I do know how to make a few things.” He said, glancing over at me.
“I am not too worried about fancy dinners.” I laughed lightly. He nodded and started to putter with a few things in the ice box. He must have it brought out from town. I don’t see how he can have ice here. “Would you like some assistance in making a meal?” I asked, trying to be polite. He waved a hand at me.
“Nay, Miss Elinore. Since the passing of my dear Maria, I have become the sole worker of my kitchen. Just sit yerself in the parlor and I will call ye when dinner is ready.” He smiled and shooed me out of the kitchen. I stood in the doorway a moment, then walked back into the parlor. I guess he meant the living room. When I walked back in the room, I was drawn back to the south wall. I wasn’t sure why I was drawn to the picture of his son. I never thought to ask what his name is. He didn’t look much older than me. I looked closer. Something didn’t seem right. I knew the clothes were from this era, but for some reason HE didn’t fit. I looked closely at his face. The way he looked, his overall structure. If I didn’t know any better, I would swear that he didn’t fit the era. Or maybe I was just tired and hungry. But he just didn’t look like he was born in the eighteen hundreds. I felt dizzy.
I heard something that made my head turn. I looked around the parlor, but saw nothing. I searched frantically as I heard a strange whisper. The room began to spin around me. I felt nauseous and everything looked like it was flying around me at high speed. Colors started to blend with one another and everything became a blur. I struggled to reach the door to the outside, but stumbled and fell to the floor. Even on my knees, the room spun around me and I could hardly see. I crawled forward, watching everything rock and spin around me. I felt along the wall to the hallway and managed to get to the door. I got up on my knees and struggled with the door knob. Once the door was open, I crawled out on the porch and everything was looking suddenly bright. I felt my way on all fours and fell down the small steps at the end of the porch. I weakly got back on my hands and knees long enough to vomit beside the stairs. Things were still spinning around me. I saw a pair of black shoes in front of me. I tried to look up, and as I did the world went black again.

lol so? what you guys think? i not getting much input....O.o

Just a suggestion (to make it easier to read)

Space out the monologue and paragraphs. The way I usually go is - New thought/paragraph/speaker = new line.

Just makes everything easier to read (and easier to find little mistakes and such) 3nodding

O.o it looks better on my word program.

besides, you criticise me too much, and you no get to read it. XP

indeed. i need the work proofed so that i not screw up anymore. and speaking of screw ups....i went oops because I put in girdle instead of corset! so i had to change that. XP they didn't wear girdles in 1888. it was a whale bone corset. my oops.

lol poor Kaz. ^^