Dear, Hamilton

A Bad Omen

Angelica and Peggy quickly tug me inside the house, ignoring my obvious confusion and occasion questions. 

"What do you want to talk about?" I ask them as they tug me down the hallway and up the stairs. 

"You'll see," they answer in unison. 

"Why are we going upstairs?"

"Just wait."

"What's the secrecy?"

"Eliza, stop being so impatient," Angelica tells me with a huff as she swings open a bedroom door and leads us inside. 

Peggy nudges me towards the bed, and I sit down on the comfortable mattress before Peggy joins me and sits beside me. Angelica plants herself in front of us, ever the leader and speaker of the Schuyler sisters. 

"Eliza," she starts, and I wince at the way she says my name as if I've done something wrong. "What are you going to say to Mama and Papa about your absence?"

I sit there, momentarily stumped. There was no way I was going to tell them the truth about where I've been, aka the future. Hamilton, I could tell because I absolutely trusted him (and I'll give him credit, he sort of discovered it on his own), but these two... I- I don't trust them nearly as much. I can't trust that they won't automatically think I'm insane.

 I remembered little things with Hamilton, but I only got tiny scraps of memories from my sisters, so I don't know them as much as I do Hamilton. Not to mention, Hamilton has been more forthcoming with me.  

When I don't immediately respond, Angelica waves a hand in front of her in indication for me to say something as she prompts, "Well?"

I cringe a little as I reply quizzically, "I'm going to avoid it altogether?"

Peggy huffs a laugh from beside me but makes no comment. Angelica only frowns. "Eliza, you were gone for three months and came back with no memories whatsoever of your family. You have to have some answer ready for us as to where you were."

I twist my fingers together anxiously in my lap as I think desperately for an answer. "I don't know," I whisper. "I woke up in the woods, clueless. Lafayette can tell you that." 

Angelica's frown only deepens. "Well," she says with barely veiled annoyance, "you can tell us that story, but you can't tell Mama and Papa that. They'll freak out if they discovered you were alone in the woods for even a second."

"Then help me!" I exclaim, throwing out my hands and accidentally hitting Peggy in the face, who lets out a little oomph at the impact.

"Hey!" Peggy protests, rubbing at her nose with a hand. "No need to take your anger out on me!" She puckers her lips into a pout as she regards me with a look of hurt and irritation. 

"Sorry," I apologize with a wince. 

Angelica sighs and says gently, "I don't mean to be harsh, Eliza. I'm just trying to get our stories straight. Have you told Alexander anything yet about where you were?" 

Oh, yes, I told him that I was from the future! I want to shout, but I bottle it in as I answer solemnly, "No, I've been evading any questions on the topic." 

Relief washes over Angelica's face as she nods. "Good. So here's the cover story."

Peggy and I lean forward in anticipation of her words. Apparently, Peggy is just as clueless as I am because when Angelica tells us the cover story, she lets out a little gasp of disbelief. 

"Angelica, they'll never believe it!" Peggy counters vehemently. 

Angelica narrows her eyes at Peggy and crosses her arms as she retorts, "It's the perfect story. Eliza used to always spend time with the Six Nations Indians before she ran off with Ham-" She stops herself short before she can say Hamilton's name, clueless to the fact that I already know we got married.