Winged Dagger

Lost In Time

I was running for my life on the streets, two sets of footsteps following my own. I didn't know where I was, and neither did in know when this was. The lights of the street bathed the whole place yellow, carriages lined the roads and there was a view of stars that you would never see anywhere in the 21st century. All I knew was that I was scared, and there was blood coating my shirt. I didn't know whose it was.

I glanced back as I ran, and tumbled straight into someone else, who steadied me with a hand.

"My apologies," I said, stepping back and looking up.

"It's alright." He had warm golden eyes and blond hair, and his hand was still on my shoulder. His eyes lingered on my clothes for a second longer, stopping on the blood on my shirt. He looked over my head, and I took the moment to notice a second person who was beside him, dressed in the black tailcoat of a butler. His hair seemed to be black as well, his eyes scrutinizing me.

"Where's that foreigner?"

I tensed, but the man's grip on my shoulder tightened. "Are they bothering you, ma cherie?"

I nodded, looking away. My two pursuers caught up. I looked back to them, and the person with the golden hair let go of my shoulder and stepped in front of me. "Is there a reason you're bothering this lady?"

"She'd fetch a good price."

I felt anger rise in me. If only I still had my knife, I would've left their bodies for the crows to peck over. The butler gently pulled me back as the other man stepped forward, his eyes and demeanor determined.

"What's your name?" asked the black-haired man, successfully pulling my attention away from what I assumed was an ongoing fight.

I considered that question. "Mina Sage," I said with a nod, giving him my nickname. "May I ask your name?"

"Sebastian."

I heard a grunt and made to turn around, wondering who had gotten hurt, when Sebastian grabbed my face and pulled me so I was facing him again.

"Huh?" I asked, wincing slightly as I heard someone fall.

"Where are you from?" he asked, an eye on my clothes. "Are you injured?"

"I'm okay and I'm not from around here," I said, looking at the carriages nearby. "Where is this anyway?"

"19th century Paris," he said, and my heart stopped as my mind finally caught up. So the lights, the carriages, even the stars... it was finally making sense.

"I was in the 21st century," I said, a hand over my mouth. The other man walked over to us, dusting off his coat. "How... what?"

"I suspected from your clothes," said Sebastian, pity etched on his face.

"Sebastian?" asked the golden-haired man, as I turned around to see no trace of the other two men. They must have run away.

"Time-traveler," said Sebastian, as if I had confirmed every suspicion he ever had. A wind blew and I shivered, more from worry than from cold.

The other man looked at me. "How did you come to be here, ma cherie?"

I opened my mouth, ready to answer, but then realized I didn't know. I realized I didn't remember how I came to be here, how I woke up in the streets of the past.

'So you don't remember,' said a voice in my head that I was sure didn't belong to me.

I shivered again. "I don't know."

The golden-haired man's eyes softened, as if he knew I was telling the truth. "Do you have a place to stay? The streets of Paris are not a good place to stay overnight for a young lady."