"Helen, have you dozed off again?"
She looked up, brow furrowing. James was smirking at her from behind his newspaper, having not even bothered looking up from it to give her a disproving look. They were sitting at a small cafe, mere blocks from Oxford. Day time, noon she supposed, sunny for once in a long while whilst the torrential english summer followed them through to the fall. A light breeze blew a few blonde ringlets into her face, and she tucked them behind her ear absently. The cafe smelled absolutely wonderful she noticed, and her stomach did as well as it rumbled silently from behind it's whaleboned cage. James Watson clicked his tongue this time, turning the page of his paper. "And not eating properly either. Really, Helen...you must take better care of yourself. It says nothing about you being a pioneer if you aren't even able to take proper care of yourself."
Her tea sat untouched, luke warm against her palm. She remembered this. A sort of Luncheon with James after they attended class together. Sunny, afternoon, Oxford. This...this was the day that--
"Helen?"
James' voice cut through her thoughts like a knife, his hand warm and large as it covered her own completely. "Is something wrong?"
"N-no..." Something was prettying against her finger, his palm was shoving it down onto her finger. Drawing her hand away, Helen examined the thing...a small golden band, the square diamond smiling back up at her in the noon light. What...?
It was then that Helen Magnus knew that something was wrong, something was...off. Looking first at James, who despite his gesture had continued to read his paper. Oxford was bustling around her, everyone going about on their own business. Quicker than she'd remembered, almost like they were rushed. And no one made eyecontact. Lips were moving, a couple walked down the street arm in arm...but as she watched them cross the street they did not look where they were going, or even at each other. A dangerous thing to do, horses were horribly unpredictable creatures and more than one death had been caused by sheer human ignorance. It might have been just the two of them, she thought...until she watched two more people do the exact same thing. "James..." she started, shaking his arm lightly. "Yes, Miss Magnus?" he responded.
Responded and yet still did not look at her. "James," she said again. Forcefully. "I am listening Helen."
"Then look at me."
"Helen--"
Well, he looked up. Just...not at her. In fact...everyone seemed to look up, and look at. They were all looking at the same thing. Like a knife through butter cut one figure through the crowd, a young woman clearly not savvy to the fact that she had suddenly become the center of attention. Starched white she wore, almost blinding in the way the sunlight hit it. The parasol slung across her shoulder matched. She was close to the two of them, walking just on the other side of the wrought iron fencing that served to box in the patrons of the cafe. What...what is this?
Everything stopped. The woman. The noise. Stock still, until the figure turned, looked directly at her, and winked. "Wake up, Miss Magnus."
Helen was taken aback. "Excuse me?"
"How did you get here, Miss Magnus?"
James stood up, his hand sliding off hers, contracting into a fist at his side. "James...sit down." she told him. He did not listen. "James!"
"Miss Magnus," the woman told her again, pressing herself against the fence, pale arm extending to point at her hand. "Your ring, Miss Magnus."
"What about it?"
"Goodbye, Miss Magnus." The woman continued walking until she turned the corner. Then it was like someone hit play again, the world returning once more to the bustle that had made her so uncomfortable in the first place, now even more so. James sat back down, this time looking at her. "Is something wrong, Helen?"
"No, I--" Wait...Play?
Story Notes:
This is my first fic in a long while, so please forgive me if I'm a little rusty. This fic is inspired by the Chris Nolan film, Inception. After seeing it, this fic popped into my head. I hope you enjoy. Feedback is loved.
Chapter End Notes:
How's that for a short introduction? Again, reviews are loved, they inspire me to continue.