Montréal, Québec 1910

Delphine sighs, as she hops from the streetcar and continues towards the office. She'd rather go back home, and repose herself with a filling meal and a good book. Instead, she must return to assist her father.

"Vieille fille." She mutters grumbling to herself. "Vieille fille." Why would this client of her fathers have brought that up? Especially before the construction was completely negotiated?

She wasn't unaware of her status, which was partially by choice anyway. Papa needed her help with the business, especially her English skills, and although turning down two marriage proposals was rare but what else was she supposed to do? She didn't want to be a wife, did not want a child every year until age finally relieved her of that burden, she wanted to study, to learn. By now she was used to her life of spinsterhood, so used to it she could not imagine her life any other way.

It had been six years since the last one, when she'd been twenty - her papa had looked at her in disbelief. Healthy young man, good family, good prospects, and a small but growing business Delphine would have had a hand in running. He hadn't understood.

"Qu'est-ce que je ferai avec une vieille fille?" Papa had sighed, shaking his head.

"Garderas ma dot." Delphine had responded without hesitation. Papa had laughed, despite himself, kissed her on the cheek and sent her back to work. Keeping her dowry was not an issue for Monsieur Cormier, keeping her assistance with the family business was. When she had finished school in Québec with the Ursuline nuns she had begged her father to let her join the order, to continue with her studies - but he had simply shaken his head. He had not spent money on years of education for her only to lose her to the convent. What good would she do him there? At least at home, she was useful.

Nevertheless she found herself hurrying through town before the banks closed to make a deposit for her father, and rushing back. His latest client, Aldous Leekie, did not speak French well and both men had been relying on Delphine to make themselves clear.

She catches sight of something that seems strange, a slight woman dressed almost normally, as she is, but with a device in her hand. She blinks at a quick flash as the woman points it towards a building, before tucking it back into her bag. And what a strange bag it is, Delphine notes, stepping closer to get a better look.

The woman's head is covered by a hat, but she looks around seemingly disoriented. Her dark clothes seem slightly off with the season, either in mourning or terribly lost, Delphine decides observing from a distance.

"Très bizarre." Delphine comments to herself, no one else has seemed to notice and despite her supposed need to return quickly she hesitates, watching the stranger as she pulls a pocketwatch seemingly out of nowhere and holds it up to her face. But not to check the time… instead she holds it barely an inch from her mouth.

"Well I made it." Cosima huffs into the small device, disguised as a pocketwatch. She's overheated, wearing far too many layers for her liking and she's getting sick of these jumps. It was too humid, why her professors had chosen summer for her jumps she'll never know.

The voice from the other side is garbled, "24 hours Cosima. The test isn't done yet."

"It's been eight hours. I took the polaroids, isn't that enough? Come on Scotty, there's like horse shit everywhere. I only have five negatives left."

"24 hours, just like the last jump. I can't reset the system. You know I don't have clearance." Scott's voice is slightly distorted, but at least he sounds sympathetic.

"Why Montreal? Really? It's full of French people. My high school French sucks. And people don't bathe enough and they're all like...hairy and… I want to skip to the 1920s. At least that will be fun."

Scott seems to be increasingly annoyed at his assigned task of monitoring her progress, "It's a metropolitan centre. Largest Canadian city at the time. Just stay out of the way, and keep your hair covered. I'll check in again in another eight hours."

"Yeah.. fine." Cosima sighs as the sound cuts out again, she can see the countdown once again before she closes the pocket watch with a sigh. She's dressed for the era, long skirt, long blouse, everything but the corset she'd passed on. Looking around she sees people milling about the streets, horse-drawn carriages still used by some, as they conduct their daily business. Streetcars still run, and would for another 40-odd years until the gasoline lobby was powerful enough to push for their removal. It was not a rough area of town, they had planned this well enough that she would be relatively safe for her 24 hour stint, though finding a place to spend the night could be challenging.

She catches sight of a woman, walking elegantly down the street towards her, long blue skirt and high necked white blouse. Tendrils of fair curls escape the bun at the back of her head and she seems to be in a hurry. Without a hat, she seems younger, when she turns Cosima swears the world stops for a moment, all she can see is hazel eyes looking back at her, probably taking in her slightly off appearance. She's dressed for the period, and she's done her best to conceal the fact she has dreads - a hat covering her own head. She thinks instantly of the polaroid camera in her bag, and wanting to waste a photograph on this beautiful woman.

The woman frowns, brow furrowing in her direction. Maybe something is off with her costuming, maybe she doesn't fit in quite right. Maybe a dread is sticking out from the bun. Shit, Cosima thinks, wondering if she should find a place to hide.

Instead a sweet voice speaks as the other woman approaches her, "Êtes-vous perdues?"

Cosima stops for a moment, "Umm."

"Are you lost?" The woman repeats in perfect, albeit accented, English.

"Yes." Cosima simply says nodding her head at the beautiful stranger, "I was supposed to meet my uncle, but he hasn't shown up." Her cover story had been predetermined by her professors, she's altered it slightly. She cannot stand the thought of telling anyone she has a husband, for example. Nor does she want to be an oddity, instead she is supposed to present as a young widow, in town solely to visit her uncle and his family.

"What are you looking for?" The woman speaks slowly and clearly, as if she is concentrating on the pronunciation of the words. She looks at her intently, and all Cosima can think about is how beautiful she is, the gentle concern in her eyes.

"I….I can't remember." Cosima manages finally, "I'm Cosima." Forbidden to use her last name by her professors, this is as much as she can volunteer for the moment.

"Bonjour." The woman greets her politely, "Do you need help?"

Cosima hesitates, she does require a place to stay overnight, it would be seven am before her travel marker would activate and she'd be brought back to the present.

"Yes, thank you. Madame…?" She leaves it open, no doubt this woman has a husband, probably a brood of 'enfants' as well. The sooner she forces herself to recognize that, the sooner she can force her mind back to reality. Or at least present day.

"Mademoiselle," The fairhaired woman corrects gently, "Mademoiselle Cormier. Delphine." She smiles reaching for Cosima's bare hand with her own. Pale forearms dotted with freckles and moles.

"I'm not married either," Cosima smiles brightly, "There are far worse things than spinsterhood for me." She wasn't supposed to say that either, or become too involved with anyone she might meet.

"Oui. C'est vrai." Delphine nods laughing, seemingly charmed, "Come with me,"

Unable to think of a reason not to, Cosima follows, her mission temporarily forgotten.

"How old are you?" Cosima eyes her as they climb the stairs to her father's office.

"Twenty-six." Delphine answers without hesitation. Then again, why should she be shy with another supposed spinster? It doesn't make any sense. Cosima smiles at the thought.

"We're the same age." Cosima smiles back, "I work in science."

"Science?" Delphine's eyes widen in wonder, "As a woman?"

"Yes… I um.. went to a women's college to study." Cosima invents wildly. She was not doing a convincing job at sticking to her story. Young widow visiting uncle. It was too late now, Cosima supposed.

"C'est qui?" Jean-Philippe Cormier regards them as they enter the office.

"C'est une vieille amie." Delphine says, "D'école. Elle est venue ici pour visiter son oncle."

"Ah, Bonjour Madame-"

"Niehaus." Cosima says before wincing at the widened eyes, at least it wasn't WWI, her German name should be safe, for now.

"Anglais?" Jean-Philippe regards Delphine only, who nods in response. "Hello Mrs. Niehaus, excuse us for a moment."

"Is Mr. Leekie still here?" Delphine asks, seemingly adept at navigating this world, her small role in whatever this all is.

"Yes I am," The older man winds the corner, "Your father and I were just settling the last few details, would you mind looking them over with me."

"Not at all. I think Cosima will need a place to stay for the night," Delphine informs her father, "Her uncle appears to be out of town."

"How unfortunate." Leekie comments, drawing her attention back to the drafts of his new building, "Now your father told me it was going to take three years to build."

"Oui. Yes, that is correct."

"I think I'm still unclear on the details, would you look them over with me in the office?"

Delphine pastes a smile on her face that does not quite meet her eyes, as the balding man places a hand on her waist and guides her back into the office.

Jean-Philippe regards Cosima with a sigh, "My English is not so good. Delphine helps a lot here. Are you a housewife?"

"A widow." Cosima returns to her story, trying desperately to remember the word in french, "Une veuve."

"Ah, je m'excuse, Madame…" Cormier trails off on what she can only assume are condolences for the loss of her fictitious husband, "Me too, Delphine's mother died five years ago."

"I'm so sorry." Cosima says unable to think of anything else to say.

"Delphine takes care of me now. House. English." He smiles, his hair greyed but his face pleasant, briefly reminiscent of that of his daughter.

"I don't think you should leave your daughter alone with Mr. Leekie." Cosima volunteers unasked.

"Non, Mr. Leekie is client. For much years." Cormier nods, knocking and opening the door to reveal Delphine pointing out lines in the contract, fixing her father's English as she goes.

She's certain, she's caught Cosima twice with that same odd machine while walking to their comfortable home. Whenever she turns around she's convinced that Cosima has just hidden it again. Their home is modest, having only two servants to assist her with household duties. She doesn't enjoy having a lot of strangers around, preferring to keep house herself, to cook herself, to be left alone with the sizeable collection of books she's managed to acquire. To learn and study as much as she can.

Her father has gone for dinner with Mr. Leekie, leaving them to their own devices. It's not unusual for her father to leave her to her own devices for days on end. To return home for a supper and then…? She looks over at Cosima, what does her guest need? And where is she from? Something does not add up in the usual way.

Cosima for her part, walks along the bookshelf, eyes lighting up at several of her books, gesturing excitedly at the sight of a few of them. They aren't that different, this strange girl and herself.

"So what is with Mr. Leekie? He seems…" Cosima lets herself trail off. Maybe she's unsure of what to say as well.

She tries to forget the way he looks at her, his words, 'You're not so old yet, Delphine'.

"Nothing. He… likes me. Maybe too much." Delphine shrugs.

"Strange. He must be twenty years older than you."

"Yes he is. But also, non. Aldous has said things like that for years. Nothing ever comes of it" Delphine tries to draw attention away from it. Why discuss his invitations to dinner, or his suggestions that perhaps she's resigned herself to respectable spinsterhood too soon. But he's made no attempts to formally court her. Nothing of the sort at all.

"He's far too old for you." Cosima says decisively, "Spinster or not."

She's far less interested in that than where Cosima came from. And what she's carrying with her. Delphine leans in curiously trying to get a better look at her bag, "What is that… machine you have?"

"What? What machine?" Cosima tries to look puzzled, but her face gives her away.

"The one in your bag that flashes. That strange pocket watch of yours." Delphine tilts her head, "I've never seen anything like them."

"What if I told you, I'm not from here?"

"I know that."

"I'm from San Francisco, in California." Cosima smiles.

"That is very far." Delphine muses, nodding her head.

"I was born," Cosima pulls to hold her hand between two of her own, "In the future. Many years in the future."

"Quoi? Ce n'est pas possible Cosima."

"I'm just… visiting here. I agreed to be an experiment subject. Someone else is monitoring the results." Cosima smiles again reaching into her bag and pulling out her device, "This is a camera."

"Non, I have seen cameras. I've had my picture taken. They do not look like that." Delphine laughs slightly. Is this a joke? A silly game Cosima wants to play?

"Wanna bet?" Cosima pushes forward slightly so their faces are just inches apart, making her laugh, "Um… do you want to make a wager?"

"Can you prove it?" Delphine asks, shaking her head, "That you're from the future?"

"We're going to do an experiment." Cosima informs her with a grin, "Which should prove something."

"What is it?" Delphine smiles back, experiments remind her of science, of the books she read in school when she lived in Québec City, at the convent school of the Ursuline nuns.

"I'm going to take your picture, and show you. And you'll see that this is really a camera."

"Right here? But… pictures need to be developed. It takes ages." She's shaking her head, but she's smiling.

"Yup," Cosima holds the small machine up to her face and presses a button at the top, there's another flash of light and something slides out of the bottom of the camera a moment later.

"What is this?" Delphine reaches for it, but is stopped by Cosima's hand, taking the flat object by the white border.

"This is your photo, you just wait."

Delphine watches closely, silently as the black square starts to lighten, slowly shapes appear, and then it begins to resemble her face.

"Cosima…" She breathes softly, the small woman, this amazing little woman, is telling the truth. She isn't from here. Not from Montréal. Not from this time.

"Yes?"

Delphine leans forward, fixated, "Tell me about this future of yours."

"Well for starters, women go to universities and graduate schools now. You would have been able to study whatever you wanted. I did. Oh and we can vote, you'll be able to vote in less than twenty years here… I think."

"Yes? What did you study?" Delphine should feel jealousy, instead she is fascinated. What could she have done if she had been permitted to continue to study?

"Biology and chemistry. I volunteered for this - this is an experimental physics project. They wanted someone who couldn't mess with the system. And I can't so it works."

"Could I have studied medicine?" Delphine asks, "Or science? Any science I wanted?"

"Yup. Or anything else you wanted. And you wouldn't be an old maid back home, and neither would I."

"Non?"

"And you can decide not to have children. Like people love each other and get married and prevent them, they have pills and stuff that… oh nevermind that. But mostly people have like 2 kids these days. If they want to. Not like 12 or whatever just happens."

"They can choose?" Delphine blinks disbelief. It was an inevitability of lovemaking here… She thinks of her school friends, many having a child each year. Wouldn't they love to be able to slow things down? Space out the children? Or… not have any at all?

"Yeah." Cosima nods, "Of course they can. Well, it's a bit more complicated, but yes. That's the short answer."

"You chose not to?" Delphine looks at Cosima again, she's beautiful, kind, charming, intelligent. Why is Cosima unmarried? Why…?

"Well, not yet anyways." Cosima smiles, "But I could later if I wanted to, I guess."

"And if I went there with you. I could choose? And choose to study? And I wouldn't have to be a nun?"

"Back home you wouldn't even be a spinster. No one uses that word. Plenty of women marry later or never marry and it's fine. Like, well some people care. But there are always going to be backwards people who don't get it, right?"

Her mind spins, "And people travel through time?"

"No no… this is an experiment. Only 4 of us have ever done that. That I know of."

"If I wanted to keep studying here, je dois devenir religieuse, I'd have to be a nun." Delphine says aloud, "I was going to be, my father forbade it. I suppose I will later, when he dies."

"Why?" Cosima shakes her head, "No.. don't become a nun. That cuts you off from everything… and you'd be like… no."

"I have a dowry, but… my brothers will inherit the business. It is not their job to support me. La vieille fille."

"Old maid?" Cosima shakes her head, "You're not that old yet. If you want to stay here you could still get hitched and pop out ten kids. Or …get a job or study something or… Women are going to college, Delphine, right now in the world, in your time. Not many of them, but they are."

"In 1910? Non, ma chérie, I don't think so, not here, not in Québec. Maybe in your world."

"In any world, Delphine things are changing, in another ten years…" Cosima cuts herself off, "I probably shouldn't tell you this."

"In ten years, I will be thirty-six years of age. I will be an old maid or a nun in a convent."

"Your brothers can't…?" Cosima stammers, "Can't they let you stay?"

"My brothers have their own lives. Wives. Children. This business."

"That's not fair."

"No, it's fine. In a convent I can study, I can learn, I can teach…" Delphine reaches out to squeeze Cosima's hand, to comfort her. Why cannot Cosima understand that there's a freedom to it? That while she'll lose her name, vow poverty and chastity, she'll have freedoms to study, freedoms from marriage or an unending number of children, freedoms to carve out her own life within a convent's walls.

"Yeah… as a nun." Cosima raises her eyebrow unable to hide her disgust.

"What is wrong with being a nun?"

"Nothing… I'm sorry… just. It's not fair. Delphine, right now, there's a Women's Medical College in Toronto. Why don't you go?" Cosima looks at her with a smile.

"Non, my father will not allow that." Delphine shakes her head, "He won't even allow me to return to the Ursulines."

"Nuns?"

"Yes. Nuns." Delphine nods affirmatively, "I went to school there, boarding school. The same school my mother went to before she married my father. They teach young girls and women."

"Okay." Cosima nods, "Let's go do something?"

"Like what?" Delphine laughs, looking around.

"Anything. Show me the best of Montreal 1910."

"Let's go to the cinema." Delphine grins, "Come on." It's nice, she finds herself thinking as she takes Cosima by the hand and leads her back out of the house into the street, to have a friend again. It's been so long. Her friends now have husbands and an ever increasing number of children. Their letters come so rarely these days.

Later, as they giggle their way home on a streetcar, it hits Cosima. It wasn't just that the movie was silent. She had read up on enough history to know that that would be the case.

Delphine couldn't even vote, and yet this was her life. The life she'd been born into. Cosima didn't doubt that the blonde was as intelligent as herself, maybe even more capable of pursuing further education.

"Delphine…?" Cosima is unable to deny her fascination, her draw to to Delphine, the near-instant affection she has for her. It hasn't even been a day.

"Oui?" Delphine answers tiredly, "What is it Cosima?"

"Are you happy here, with your life?"

"What sort of question is that?" Delphine asks, as Cosima turns around to take another photograph with the polaroid, handing the photo to Delphine to allow her to watch it develop.

"An important one." Cosima assures her.

"I wish we had more time. I enjoy spending time with you Cosima, it's the most enjoyable time I've spent since I was in school." Delphine smiles at her.

"Feel like a young girl again?"

"Oui, je suis encore jeune fille." Delphine smiles back dopily, pulling her hand into her lap, squeezing it.

Cosima's heart jumps, does she know what she's doing? Is that why Delphine is a spinster?

"What's that?" Delphine pulls back her sleeve with her finger to reveal her nautilus tattoo.

"It's a tattoo. It's been inked on with needles." Cosima explains simply, raising her other sleeve to display the dandelion on the opposite wrist.

"Is it permanent? Did it hurt?" Delphine traces the lines absentmindedly with her fingers not realizing the delicate torture she is carrying out.

"Yes. And yes." Cosima nods, "I have another one on my other arm."

"That's why you covered your arms… Why are you still wearing a hat? You took it off in the theatre and then put it right back on after…" A strong hand reaches for the brim.

She stops her, "Not here, Delphine. I'll show you back at your house."

"This is hair?" Delphine looks incredulous to see the dreadlocks down. She's tentative, afraid to touch them, Cosima realizes with another small laugh.

"It's a style. I was almost disqualified from this project because of it, but my friend Scott showed them how we could disguise it. Wigs. Hats… it works as long as people don't get too close." Cosima smiles again.

A guest room has been made up, they have few servants - mostly for cleaning, Delphine would have done it herself, like she had at school, but it seems someone had gotten there first.

"Why did you do that?"

"I just wanted to. I thought it would look cool?"

"Cool?"

"Slang that will not be used for a few more decades, it means good. Desirable." Cosima tries a more acceptable word. Period appropriate? How much did Delphine understand? How much could she understand? Could she tell how she felt?

"Ah…" Delphine nods.

"What else do you want to know about the future?" Cosima tries to distract herself, especially from this. From how easy it was to fall for Delphine.

"What is your life like? Tell me all about your world." Delphine demands sitting down next to her with a smile.

One question remains in the back of her mind, how much trouble would she be in if she brought Delphine back with her?

It had been late when she had finally, reluctantly left Cosima to go to bed, praying that whatever had brought Cosima into her life would not let her leave so easily. There was so much more she wanted to show her. So much she wanted to do and say. At the very least, that she would wake before Cosima would be pulled from her life. From this time entirely. She'd only wrapped a dressing gown around herself before hurrying across the hall.

"Cosima." She knocks gently on the door, "Cosima?" The sun was up, surely, it wasn't too late. Please not too late.

She lets the door swing open cautiously, to reveal Cosima, now in the process of buttoning her boots.

"Hey Delphine." Cosima grins, patting the bed beside her, as fully dressed as she'd been the last time she saw her.

"I was afraid you'd be gone already." Delphine admits shyly. Why was she so attached? Why did she care this much? Did it matter? Cosima was a gift. Un ange qui tombe du ciel. Why should she question this miracle, whether it came from God or science?

Cosima smiles shaking her head, "No, not until seven. We don't have long though."

"I… I don't want you to go." Delphine says, "There's so much more to show you. We could take a ride out and you could see how people live in the country. So much of Québec is rural… and so beautiful. Or go to Québec-"

"We are in Quebec."

"The city." Delphine clarifies, "I could show you there, it's the oldest city in North America. It's beautiful…"

"Maybe someday. If I get to come back." Cosima smiles sadly, "Here."

Cosima guides her hands over the camera, pointing it towards herself.

"What…?"

"You're going to take a picture of me," Cosima informs her, "Look through here, frame my face in that box and press the button."

"I can't… I don't know how." Delphine looks through, seeing Cosima's face, it's all so strange. Part of her wants to take this device apart, learn how it works… though then she'd ruin it.

"You can, and do it quickly." Cosima reminds her, "We're on a severe time limit."

Delphine adjusts twice before pressing the button, the last of the photographs coming out of the camera.

"Here." Cosima hands it to her, "This one is for you." She packs away the device and pulls out the pocket watch again, opening the face.

"How long?"

"Just a couple minutes now." Cosima smiles sadly, but even Delphine can tell that she is trying not to cry.

"Take me with you." Delphine suggests finally. To a world where she can study science, and keep her own name and decide if and how many children to have. It all sounds wonderful, and Cosima would be there with her, studying science and teaching her to live there.

Cosima shakes her head, "I can't… I don't know what you're going to do with your life. It might be something really important… I just can't… I'm sorry Delphine."

"But can't you find out?" Delphine asks, "Don't you have all the records? I thought you said you could access all the information in the world in minutes?"

"I did, and I can." Cosima shakes her head, "But I can't read French and what am I supposed to do? Comb through decades of census data?"

"How much longer do you have?"

"A few more minutes," Cosima checks her watch, "I can't reset or I'll risk losing the coordinates. I have to jump back." She sobs out the last words.

She leans forward, to try to comfort the girl somehow, "Can't you come back?"

"I'll try, Delphine." Cosima promises, "I'll try, but there's something you don't know about me yet."

"What? What is it?" Delphine asks, but she never receives an answers, instead she watches Cosima shake, a strange light falling over her, before she disappears in front of her, leaving her with nothing but the strange photograph in her hand.

Slowly she watches Cosima's face appear, tears stinging her eyes as she misses her new friend more desperately than she had imagined.