Mrs Sophie Foster-Sencen (Sokeefe Tale of Two Times) - KOTLC

Unfamiliar

~ Future Sophie's POV ~
I'm awake- but not fully awake. My eyes aren't open yet, but something feels off. The room is a bit stuffier, and feels familiar and unfamiliar all at the same time. There's something definitely different...where's Keefe. Did he go down to cook for the kids? The bed feels different too. What's going on? I can feel the light behind my eyelids, daring to sear my eyes if I imagine opening them.
I slowly come to awareness with my body. Something about me feels...younger. Im smaller. Not height wise, just structurally. I've not grown since I was fifteen. I decide to open my eyes, completely forgetting about the light, because I'm stupid sometimes. I quickly flutter them open.
"Gah!"
I groan and roll over on my side, shutting my eyes as swiftly as they had been opened.
"You okay in there?"
Responds a high pitched, squeaky voice.
High pitched...squeaky...I haven't heard that voice in thirty-five years...but who did it belong to? I tried to think through everyone, but I couldn't quite put my finger on it. Well, not until the voice spoke again.
"Sophie?"
It asked, with a tinge of worry and more squeak in the voice.
And that's when it clicked. My eyes widened with fear, tears rimming them. Sandor. I...how...he...that's not possible...I saw him...he...
"Sophie, don't make me come in there to check."
Sandor repeated.
I swallowed.
"I'm good, just looked straight at the light sorry."
I respond, trying to keep my voice steady, and failing a little bit.
"Ok..."
He was definitely suspicious, but that doesn't matter right now.
I look around at the room. It's my room...well my old one. Havenfield. But I haven't slept here in ages. Something's wrong. I stealthily pull my covers off and head to the mirror in the corner of my room where I'm met with the projection of a small girl.
"Ew, you look horrible. What'd you get chewed on by a T-Rex and spit out again?"
Vertina, I recognize.
I haven't spoken to her in decades.
I roll my eyes. She hasn't got any less annoying apparently. Well, maybe she did I wouldn't know. Because in the mirror staring back at me is a slender girl with paler blonde hair (and a horrible case of bedhead) and a youthful face. My eyes are rounder. But that's not possible...
I gulp.
"Vertina..."
I start with the spectral mirror. But then I pause, and realize that she probably won't have an answer, since she's literally a mirror I talked to like once every few months.
"Spit it out."
She responds lazily.
I sigh.
"Nevermind."
I have to figure out what time period I'm in, and I have to be careful not to share too much information. I can't be messing up the past, after all.
I step out of the spectral mirrors range and head to the bathroom to brush my teeth and wash my face. I vigorously attempt to brush out my extremely wild bedhead, and eventually it looks presentable enough and I decide I don't care enough to fix it anymore.
I then head to my closet and change out of my pajamas into black pants and a pale blue tunic. As I fasten a dove grey cape around my neck, I start to think. If I'm here in the past...then is anyone else here?
Last I remember last night I took a medicine to fix up cuts and scratches from my latest adventure from the council, and then headed to bed with Keefe. Nothing I'd done was super out of the ordinary. Was I here alone?
I need to find out. I need to speak to everyone. Use the code words we all came up with hopefully after this time period. I rest on the hope that someone's face will light up with recognition, because I don't work alone and I need to get out of here and back to my time period.
I, in fact, have an important mission from the council tomorrow, and I doubt my past self could handle it. I wasn't particularly super educated on the elvin world, well at least not enough anyway.
Well...let's go see if I can figure out if I'm stuck here alone or not. I burst open my door to find Sandor eyeing me slightly suspiciously. I notice this out of my peripheral vision, but I can't bring myself to meet his eyes. After what happened...I can't...it's too hard. I blink, fighting hard against the tears. I can't act suspicious until I deal with this situation and hopefully expose that I'm not from this time  period. I might have to do something important today, but I don't even know what it's supposed to be.
I look straight in front of me and march towards the stairs, gliding down them with as much grace as I could muster (thanks to Bianca's grace and walking in high heels lessons.)
I needed to focus, not that this sudden grace was inconspicuous. I crossed my fingers, hoping he didn't notice it.
I arrived on the bottom floor to Edaline cooking some desserts and Grady reading a scroll. Today the creatures in the pastures decided to play nice, I noted, blinking hard.
I hadn't really seen Grady and Edaline in some time, and I didn't realize how much I had missed them. I had tried to arrange meeting times with them, but they never worked, between theirs and my assignments from the council. I needed to ask them for this, I needed to know. Being here alone would be a lot scarier...how would I undo whats happening alone? I swallowed the lump in my throat.
"Hey...Mom and Dad..."
I started, uncertainly.
I'm not sure how comfortable I was at this time period calling them that, but they didn't seem to notice or care much.
"Yeah kiddo?"
Grady asked, not looking up from his scroll.
I breathed out a quiet relieved breath, so far I was doing great.
"Can you hail the collective for me by any chance...I just want to speak with them. I'm also going to hail all my friends. This is kind of a matter than needs to be dealt with. Soon."
I mumbled, staring mostly at the ground. My cheeks warmed from embarrassment, this was definitely going to be a long day of trying to explain everything.
Grady looked up from his scroll, and Edaline from her baking. They both didn't seem to be able to settle on words for a few seconds. Edaline was the first to speak.
"Sure sweetie...is everything alright?"
She asked, a shade of worry in her voice, her eyes tinted with concern too.
"Everything's all right"
I insisted.
"I just need to speak with them about a...complicated... matter."
I finished.
"You guys also need to be there."
I quickly added, making sure that it didn't sound like they were excluded.
Grady and Edaline both exchanged suspicious and concerned looks before turning back to me. Grady cleared his throat.
"Sure kiddo. Hail your friends, I'll let the collective know to meet in ten. Is that good?"
I nodded. I turned to walk away, but then pivoted on my foot and cleared my throat.
"I love you guys."
I whispered. I met both of their eyes.
It wasn't like I was never going to see them again...I just wanted them to know. I'm not sure how much I told them I appreciated them at this point in time, and I regret that now. Edaline smiled at me.
"We love you too Sophie."
I smiled back, and then turned to head upstairs again.
I grabbed my imparter out of a drawer in my desk and texted Biana, Dex, Tam, Linh, Keefe, Wylie, Fitz, Marella, and Maruca. I figured I should let them all know (but for obvious reasons kept out Stina. Even after all this time Stina and I still argue a lot, though we have become closer and invited eachother over for get togethers. I just don't think in this time period, or ever, we will be besties.) I told them to all meet at Havenfield in ten. Everyone agreed and then it was settled.
I left to go back downstairs again (followed by just Sandor, and if there were more bodyguards I'm not sure where they might've been.) and met Grady back at the dining room.
"Just hailed the collective, they'll all meet here in ten. You sure your ok kiddo?"
He asked me, with a look of genuine anxiety.
I smiled and nodded.
"I'm fine, I just have to explain some stuff...some super important and complicated stuff. Don't worry, you guys will have to be there too, so you won't miss the update. I'm ok though, I promise."
"Alright,"
He responded hesitantly, not looking totally reassured with the promise.
With that settled, I headed over towards the couch and sat there, fiddling with my thumbs nervously. After all this time, my nervous habits still hadn't faded. I plucked out an eyelash and wished on it, even though I know it's a silly human superstition. I just hope this will all go well. I fidgeted a bit, waiting and waiting and waiting. That's all that's left for me to do, wait. And with the silence, that's exactly what I did. Wait,wait,wait.