"To put it frankly, I live in the past." The moment I saw those words on the website, I knew they described me, but I never thought how true it might become. That never even crossed my mind, and so I continued in my innocence and naivety for almost another month, a month that I took for granted when really it was all I had left.

I had always been fascinated by history, and the way people lived before modern conveniences and commodities became available. At the age of fourteen I was quizzing my grandmother as to what her childhood had been like; I started to compile a portfolio of all the information she was able to give me, and I used it when writing stories set in that time period.

Ah, yes, stories. I wrote a lot when I was younger. It wasn't that I had nothing else to do, because I did. I took lessons on two instruments and played three others, as well as attending several dance classes each week and studying for my rapidly approaching school exams, desperately trying to keep up while knowing I did need to sleep occasionally. But I always found time to scribble a few pages, and novels grew from the doodles almost without my noticing.

One day when I was almost fifteen, something changed which meant I suddenly had a lot more time to write, and to play music, and to dance ... but not the sort of dancing I had grown used to at my Irish dancing classes, with a thigh-length skirt and a low-cut vest top. Oh no, this dance was disciplined and 'appropriate', with calf-length white practice dresses. I wasn't ready for that.

It wasn't the only thing I wasn't ready for. Let me tell you my story.

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"To put it frankly, I live in the past."

Many thanks to Mod_ist, who inadvertently gave me the idea for this story. (You can find this quote on Malla's profile).

This girl, Elizabeth, had grown used to her comfortable, 21st century lifestyle, with everything it offered her -- freedom, equal rights for women, the Internet, the ability to wear short skirts ...

But one day she finds herself in the year 1895 and suddenly everything is different. Suddenly, she has to wear dresses, she can't learn the subjects she has grown used to, and what's more, the only dance she is allowed to be tutored in is ballet...

Adopted by a wealthy family after being collected from a workhouse, Elizabeth has to adjust quickly to her new life. But with so many changes, only one thing sticks in her mind: how is she going to get home?

A Protag-o-novel (written on-site) ... first draft, but hope you enjoy it!

Delorfinde

updated Jul 29 '10 by delorfinde