Morning










May 1829


One cannot imagine what I have been through! There I was walking to my English class, when suddenly the ground fell beneath me. Falling through the hole, I presume, I lost consciousness. When I came to, I was in a large canopy bed; my jeans and sweater replaced by a lace white nightgown. Have I mentioned that I absolutely despise dresses of any sort?

Looking around the room, I noticed that it was a large bedroom, with a high ceiling. As I took in the beautifully, furnished room and the large windows with curtains, I heard a knock on my door.
Feeling a bit panicked, I called out, “Come in”, and stared blatantly at the woman who came in with tea and biscuits. She was wearing a maid outfit, although I suspected that she was not dressing to go to the nearest Halloween party. She spoke very formally, left the tray beside the bed and curtsied before leaving. She did not once look towards me, nor did she make any eye contact. My hunger ended my observation and I ate what was offered; tea and a large assortment of biscuits. They were quite delicious and I was soon staring back at an empty tray. As that exact moment, the maid quickly came in to take the tray away. This time, however, she was followed by another woman, although her attire showed that she was in a higher rank than the woman who had brought in my breakfast. Wearing a pale blue muslin dress and white slippers, she glided in the room. She had pale blond hair and blue eyes.

Sitting on the edge of my bed, she explained patiently, that she had found me lying in an alleyway. Taking in my strange attire and my sex, she had me carried to her carriage and had taken me to her house. She had explained the situation that she had found me in to her family, and they had been gracious enough to let me stay until I was conscious. When I asked what had happened to my clothes, she told me that they were stored away, plus the fact that the clothing was far too revealing for a proper lady to wear around town. This got my attention, for I knew that wearing simple jeans and a sweater would not get me lecture in the normal 21st century.

Tentatively, I asked her the date, to which she replied, the 7th of May, 1829. I laughed. Ridiculous, was my first thought, but as her expression stayed solemn and unchanging, my stomach clenched. I ran towards the window and looked out, only to find large green fields surrounding me. The trees were lush, and the grass sparkled with morning dew; you'd think the inner dome of heaven had fallen (‘Birches’ by Robert Frost).
I thought about this for a while. It was a good thing, I suppose, that I was stuck in the 19th century somewhere in the world, since I was missing my English test. But the more I thought about it, I realized that my parents and friends would be concerned at my sudden disappearance. The woman, or more proper, lady introduced herself as Elizabeth Anne-Marie Ashcombe. I introduced myself as Serena Wolfe, and awkwardly copied the curtsy that the maid had performed in front of me. She told me to come downstairs after I was ready, rung the bell and left. Three maids came in bringing in a wide variety of clothes. They prepared a bath for me in a large tub and my muscles finally relaxed. I was prepared for the hot water and the pestering maids, but I was not at all prepared, for the full on grooming that took place afterwards.

Serena