A Life Out of Time

Chapter One:

It seemed to go all wrong the moment he pulled the lever, and he didn't know why. Nikola had performed this experiment several times already and this had never happened. The machine was pulsing with electrical currents which were getting more and more frequent and more intense. And more dangerous. He stumbled backwards as the radius enlarged. Suddenly there was a bright light in front of him before the machine seemed to sputter out and die.

Before him, on hands and knees was a young woman dressed most peculiarly. She stood up and looked around frantically. She took in his appearance and the room with surprise and confusion. When she looked back at him, she took a slow step forward. "Where am I? ...When am I?" She added as an afterthought, though softly laughed at herself for asking. With the sort of things that has been going on lately, this turn of events caught her off guard, but not off balance. The man in the room with her wore an old style tweed-looking suit; had short brown hair parted just off center and a trimmed moustache. He was tall and wiry, and also had attractive light blue eyes. For some reason, she thought he looked familiar.

Nikola took her in as well. She was in a light sweater and blue pants that he couldn't decipher the material of, though looked like some type of jersey. Either way, seeing the blatant shape of her legs put him off slightly, which he tried to hide behind scientific observations. She also wore a brown leather jacket with odd metal along the pockets. "You are in the basement of Oxford University." He told her with his Serbian accent. "And... it is 1886."

"1886?" the young woman repeated, her eyes going wide. She looked around again, turning on the spot, muttering to herself that this must be a dream.

"Who are you?" Nikola asked, watching her; his heart had started pumping rapidly, if he was right, he'd just discovered something spectacular!

His question shook her out of her contemplation of the machine behind her. "Um... Gwen." She told him. Her accent was peculiar. It had an American quality but with a much more northern tone. Perhaps she was from the Canadian Commonwealth, though even that regions populace didn't have such an accent.

He tried to smile reassuringly. "You do not have a last name?"

Gwen smiled back. "Yes, but... either way, I don't think you need to know it." Her own mind was thinking rapidly, even with the rise of adrenaline in her system.

Nikola tilted his head. "And vaut do you mean by that?"

She took two timid steps towards him. "If this is a dream, then... it's a dream. A last name has no importance, so why would it matter if I give it. But, if what happened what I think happened... I have no real family ties here anyway. Thus I don't think it matters in either case." She tried to explain, but Gwen didn't think it came across very well. If this was real, it was the most exciting thing that had even happened to her in her whole life. Gwen hoped she was in for the adventure of a lifetime; giving no thought, yet, of those she left behind.

"I see." Nikola took a small step back, and then walked around her to check on his machine. He didn't want to put her off by seeming too eager or ungentlemanly. That and he wasn't sure about getting too close until he was certain she hadn't brought anything with her. "And vaut do you think happened?"

Gwen hesitated surreptitiously, and then shrugged as she watched him; making a decision. Figuring it may be already too late anyway. "I think what you may obviously be thinking... that I've come from my time to a different one." She said carefully, quite possibly over thinking her observations. "Might I have your name?"

He banged his hand against one of the devices when it didn't respond. "Nikola Tesla." He watched her take in his name; she'd obviously heard it before, which made him smile. "And you are right. That is vaut I believe. And from your manner and attire, I'd say the future is vare you came from." He took out his handkerchief and used it to wipe his hands.

"Hu." She shivered, even with her jacket, she was suddenly cold.

Unable to help himself, he smiled at her silence. "If you fear altering history, keep in mind that you already have. Just by being here, you may have altered all my vork and research." He sighed, unable to get the machines going again. It will take some time and effort to fix them. And he'd been told that he had already wasted his time with it instead of other things. "And I fear you may be stuck here for a vile." Nikola looked her over, thinking over his options. "And you can not be seen looking like that. I know a few people who can help keep you safe... and secret."

~.

It was a good thing it was night, making it easy for Nikola to smuggle the girl up to the unused lab they used to conduct their experiments. Helen and James were both there, figuring out some of the biological and mathematical aspects of their research. They both looked up when Nikola entered.

"Nikola, I thought you'd gone off to work on your own experiments, why..." Helen began, but then caught sight of Gwen behind him. "Who is this?" She spoke with an elegant, well breed, English accent and wore a proper dress of the times. Her eyes sparkled with intelligence and gentleness, which was somehow enhanced with ringlets of gold-blond hair framing her face while the rest of her wealth of hair was up in a fancy bun. Helen took in the girl's appearance and her eyes widened. "What have you done?" She asked, her cheeks reddening because of what she feared her counterpart could have done as well as the strangeness of the newcomers dress.

James had also looked over the new comer and made his own observations. "What in the world?"

Gwen suddenly felt very exposed, especially with James' eyes on her, so she took a step behind Nikola, without touching him.

Helen smiled beguilingly at the girl. "It's alright. We won't hurt you." She took a step around Nikola and held out her hand. "What's your name?"

"Gwen." She answered, taking the woman's hand.

"Just Gwen?" James asked, looking at Nikola.

Nikola shrugged. "That is all she's v'illing to tell me." He said with a snide smile.

James raised an eyebrow. "Because she's from the future?" He was about as tall as Nikola, though a bit more wiry. His moustache was also accompanied by a full dark beard. His brown eyes were very calculative but kind.

Nikola grinned. "That did not take you long." He commented.

"Mm. Yes." James turned to Gwen and looked her over. He paced a moment, muttering. "Time travel is actually possible, H.G would be thrilled... Forgive me, Gwen, but I would like to know your view of what happened. I take it that it occurred shortly after an activity where you were writing. Your fingers have ink stains, interesting... purple... which I know is currently not provided in our time. Your casual dress indicates possibly a recreational activity... or a school of relaxed dress codes."

Gwen blinked. She pointed a finger at him with a raised eyebrow, mimicking him. "Sherlock Holmes?" she asked.

James grinned broadly. "Actually I am Doctor James Watson, at your service." He tilted his upper body slightly in a short bow.

"I see." Gwen smiled, allowing Helen to lead her into the middle of the room where some chairs were placed. "Yes, it was after school. A few friends and I had dinner and afterwards I was walking to a bus... stop." She trailed off as she realized that they wouldn't know what she was talking about. She sat down on one of the chairs with a sigh. "Ah, on the way there, suddenly I couldn't move and the wind picked up. Dust swirled all around me and I must have dropped my bag. Suddenly there were bolts of lightning all around me and then this large flash. I scrunched down, hoping I wasn't about to die and when everything died down and I opened my eyes, there I was, in... In Nikola's lab."

Sitting down beside Gwen, James tapped a finger on his beard. "If I may ask, what were you taking in your school? Story writing perhaps?"

Gwen chuckled. "No. I don't need a class to write novels. Though a publishing class would be helpful." She commented ruefully. Gwen blushed, a little before answering his question. "I ...was, taking a course for... massage therapy." She finished in a rush. She couldn't remember much of what this time in history was like and didn't know how they viewed such a profession, especially when her own time had its own hang ups on massage therapy.

Helen seemed intrigued. "Really?"

Gwen nodded. "It's actually pretty in-depth in my time. We had to take Anatomy, Physiology, Pathology as well as pharmacology. There are other courses in the curriculum as well, but they pertain more to technique and exercises for patients and treatments." She told Helen, seeing her eyes light up with interest. "I find it all quite fascinating actually."

"I find biology fascinating as well. Do they still limit women to auditing in your time?" She asked, with a bit of angst behind her words.

Pausing, Gwen looked down at her nervously entwining fingers. After a moment's pause, she glanced up through her eyelashes. "I'm scared to death about giving too much information about the future... even the little things taken for granted... I don't know if I should answer that, though I want to." She told Helen, looking back up at Helen's astonishingly blue eyes.

"Of course." Helen replied, contrite. "Forgive me." But something about her expression made Gwen suspect she knew how Gwen was going to answer.

James looked over at Nikola. "We should find a way to get her back to her time."

Nikola shrugged. "It might not be possible. My experiment v'asn't even supposed to produce such a result. We may never get it to reproduce the results of the time travel." He said, though with a smile. "Besides, she is the only proof of time travel I have."

"And do you just plan on presenting her to the professors and academics? Gwen may not be enough to prove what happened, Nikola. And you would be placing her in a potentially dangerous or even isolated situation. I cannot countenance it!" James replied standing and facing Nikola in the girl's defense.

Nikola put his arms up and took a step back in copulation. The quickness of such made James think the young gentleman was not truly serious about using Gwen for his own purposes.

"I'm sure he means well." Gwen commented. "Many people like recognition for an impossible feat." She smiled when Nikola nodded at her in thanks.

"We still have to try." James insisted. "Your presence here may disrupt your future in ways we cannot possibly predict."

"It has already disrupted her future." Nikola told him. "The moment she appeared, everything changed."

Helen shook her head. "You cannot know that." She had a reassuring hand on Gwen's arm. "What's done is done, now we must restrict the amount of impact she has in our time."

Gwen grimaced. "Well, I'm all for making sure digital watches get invented, but that sounds awfully boring." Both Nikola and Helen laughed, but James remained serious. She gave him a pointed look. "Hey, just a minute ago you were championing me from getting made a lab rat for scientists around the world to check out Nikola's claim. Now you are petitioning to put me in a room until you figure it all out? Double standards much?"

All three of them blinked a few times, trying to follow her North American accent on top of her futuristic jargon. Nikola recovered himself first with a light laugh. "I like her. Can ve keep her? Imagine what kind of strides ve v'ould take with her information on the future alone."

"No." James, Helen and Gwen said all at once.

With a smile, Gwen shook her head at Nikola. "I'm sorry. I'm the last person you want to talk to about future technology. I only know how to work them, not ...not invent them. I have enough knowledge to get me by but I am no Phd, or have any doctorates. A lot of the time I go on my intuition or gut. Sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn't. The only knowledge I really know enough to even understand you guys, is biological." She smirked at herself. "I'm sure I would be useless even if I took a chance to tell you about future technology." What was up with her? She couldn't keep herself from over talking; Gwen didn't usually have this problem. She bit her lip and lowered her eyes; a self conscious blush appearing on her cheeks.

"I think even your base knowledge from the future would be a tremendous help to us. Besides, maybe I can sneak you in some lectures and we can audit together." Helen smiled largely with a nudge. She found the girls intelligence to be refreshing and invigorating; even with Gwen's bit of self-consciousness was endearing, though she will have to be coached to talk softer and without letting anyone outside their circle know how intelligent she really was.

"Wait." James interjected. "You're not actually thinking of bringing her into the fold?"

"Why not? She's from the future James! She has no one else here. My father says Sanctuary for All. Give her a chance, James. I'm certain she'll surprise you." Helen defended. "Especially if we cannot get her back to her time. She needs a place." Helen continued. "We'll limit her interaction with people. The professors practically ignore me..."

James sighed.

Then the Serbian spoke up. "Besides, we von't really get much time to work on this problem until break, and that's still a few v'eeks away. Helen can take responsibility for her; make some sort of excuse for the girl's appearance and make sure she's properly dressed." Nikola put in.

Gwen blushed. "I'm not sure if I'd be able to breathe in a dress like that." She said, looking over Helens gown.

Helen laughed. "It's not so bad." She turned to the others. "My father should be made aware of this situation. I will bring Gwen back to my dormitory and write a letter to him to send on the morrow." She stood up and motioned Gwen to follow her. "If you'll excuse us."

As Gwen followed, she turned back to the men. "It was a pleasure to meet you. Good night Nikola, James." And they were out the door.

~.

The next day Helen's letter went out and Dr. Gregory Magnus wasted no time making a cover story and convincing the administration at Oxford into letting Gwen tagalong with Helen to audit classes with her—posing as her close third cousin who had just lost her family and was in need of supervision and guardianship. While Gwen was well beyond her majority, she looked young enough to pass as just passed that age.

Gwen met Nigel and John, who seemed quite amused and taken with the newcomer; like a long lost sister reunited. They felt the pull of companionship that had brought the rest of them together from this girl and couldn't deny it.

"Don't worry, love." Nigel said to her one day at the common hall where they took their breakfast. "I'm sure I can find a way to smuggle ya into some of my classes. If you're interested, o' course."

Stifling a laugh, Gwen nodded and swallowed her food. "I'd like that, thank you." She had to remember to talk softly, as Helen advised. Though it wasn't very hard, the corset, while making breathing a bit difficult, didn't allow the usual amount of oxygen for volume. Gregory Magnus had sent over a few outfits that would fit Gwen; she was close to Helen's size, though with a fuller brazier. She didn't know if she could get used to so much layers or making sure areas of her person didn't show; though apparently there were some exceptions for evening entertainments.

James eventually softened towards Gwen as well. Finding her engaging and a more than able conversationalist. He also found that she observed people as well, though perhaps not to the extent of his own talent; and she had an uncanny knack of perceiving peoples moods. She also had an ever evolving intuition and empathy. The group challenged her, and she was excelling under their tutelage.

Nikola was often seen grinning like an idiot when Gwen surprised or puzzled them. The others assumed he was taking credit for "finding" Gwen and introducing her to them all. She certainly did add an interesting dynamic to the group. While Gwen was by no means unintelligent, sometimes her simpler observations of their work made them look at it differently and sometimes even provide a route to answers they'd been mulling after. She'd even done it a time or two to Nikola, which made him respect her, though perhaps grudgingly.

Their overall acceptance of her may have also to do with the fact that every now and then she massaged out their cramped muscles and kept carpal tunnel syndrome away. She did so with such professionalism it impressed them. Though she hadn't been able to convince Nikola; being a germophobe after all. Gwen wasn't offended, but she was amused; giving him tips so he could do it himself if he cared to.

Helen made a point to give her etiquette and other such lessons when she could; though Gwen could tell that she would rather Gwen teach her the social conventions of her time.

They also let her in on their work concerning abnormal's, most currently their research and experiments on Source Blood, blood from a pure blooded vampire found by Helen's father. While the men refocused their attentions on trying to find a way to send Gwen back to her time, Gwen helped Helen, in her own way, with the refinement of producing a serum. She also sat in while Nikola, Nigel and James or John worked on Tesla's machines.

Once Gwen was more acclimatized to the Victorian era, Helen took Gwen to her home in London to met Gregory.

"Welcome home, sweetheart!" Gregory greeted Helen as they walked in. He hugged her and gave her a kiss on the cheek before turning to Gwen. "So this is my long lost niece I've heard so much about." He teased with a wink.

Gwen smiled. "It's nice to finally meet you Dr. Magnus." She greeted as he took both her hands in his.

He smiled back. "Please, call me Gregory... though in public, Uncle will also do." He patted her wrist. "So, I guess you'd like me to give you the tour?"

Helen grinned. "I thought it only fair. The others got their tour."

Gregory nodded. "This way then." He said, leading them downstairs to his Sanctuary.