In the Land of the Free...[Leeloo_Supreme_Being and Victorian_Virtue]

[Leeloo_Supreme_Being]

The year was 1949 and there was a blur of green and blue passing by the window of a Cadillac 2-door automobile. It was a darling shade of eggshell white. In the sleek vehicle held a happily married couple and they were on their way to their nation’s capital of Washington D.C. . Elizabeth Diane Winters had the car window rolled down with her right hand hanging out, her fingers fluttering in the wind. This was their first honeymoon even though she and Adam had been together for about 3 years. They had had a shotgun wedding due to them both being called to serve for their country, and Elizabeth was excited to spend this time with Adam. They had already been in the area for a few days and had taken up residence at a lovely bed and breakfast in Williamsburg, Virginia.

Their hostess, Mrs. Blackwood, had been absolutely delightful and accommodating if not a tad nosey. There would be mornings where the hoover had perhaps lingered a bit too long in front of their bedroom door. Elizabeth laughed softly as she recalled one particular morning. Adam grinned salaciously as soon as he heard Mrs. Blackwood hovering and began jumping on the mattress with gusto. The bed creaked, shuddered and bumped against the wall. Adam had made all kinds of questionable noises such as groaning, grunting and threw in an occasional curse word. Elizabeth had to cover her hand over her mouth to stifle her laughter when, after two minutes, Adam had groaned to his “completion” and collapsed against the sheets with a wide grin on his face. “You’re incorrigible,” Elizabeth had said, her cheeks beginning to ache with the strain of her smile.

“Only for you, my dear,” Adam proclaimed with a husky undertone. “What say you to making a repeat performance?”

“As long as you promise to last longer than a pitiful two minutes.” Elizabeth winked and laughed, the sound like tinkling bells on a quiet winter morning to her husband’s ears. Without any preamble, Elizabeth found herself tackled and pressed against the bed, the heat of her love warming her from the inside out. It was at the peak of their ecstasy that Elizabeth heard the familiar sound of the hoover outside of their room door. Closing her eyes and resting her head against Adam’s strong chest, Elizabeth chuckled, “Our host is quite the deviant.”

“Adds to her charm, I think,” Elizabeth faintly heard Adam say as sleep enveloped her in its warm embrace.

Elizabeth’s reverie came to an abrupt halt when the Cadillac was pulled to a smooth stop. They had arrived. Adam had tapped the steering wheel a few times in his excitement before jogging over to open his wife’s door. Offering her his hand, he pulled her lightly from the confines of the vehicle and marveled at her beauty. She was glorious in her capped sleeved dress, her hair perfectly styled in victory rolls atop her head with the rest flowing freely down her back. Standing up straight, Elizabeth adjusted her gloves and smoothed out the front of her dress. Everything had seemed to be perfectly in place, just as she liked it. The scenery around them was a sight to behold. The trees were full and strong, the grass dancing with the wind in the air. Elizabeth’s heels tapped against the concrete as they walked and the smells wafted tantalizingly through her senses. She found she wanted to take a stiff brush loaded with her best oil paints and slather them against a canvas to capture this moment.

After a few hours of perusing the varies shops and parks around the capital, the couple had finally made their way to the Lincoln Memorial. And what an experience that was. When Elizabeth had set her sparkling, green orbs on the monument she felt tears sting her eyes in awe. Her system felt overwrought with a heavy weight of thankfulness and sorrow. She wondered briefly what Abraham Lincoln was really like, what kind of presence he must have brought to a room. Walking up a few steps to get closer to the monument, when she noted a strange crevice along the back of Lincoln’s throne. She looked back at her husband and noted he was making conversation with another bystander observing the site. He wouldn’t mind, then, missing her presence for a few more moments. Taking a huge unspoken liberty, Elizabeth rounded around the statue to get a better look at this apparent defect. Well, she would have no way of knowing, since she had no prior knowledge of the construct of such things. It was simply…an eyesore, totally and utterly out of place next to the grandness of it all.

It was then that the strangest thing happened. There was noise. It was all garbled together and sounded more like white noise than anything distinguishable. Elizabeth peeked around the back of the chair, presumably attached the wall of the main structure of the building and noted there was the smallest of spaces. It wasn’t anything miraculous however, the closer she got, the louder the noises became and it sounded like…yelling? Suddenly, it was as if Elizabeth were being turned inside out, being pulled every which way and being slammed against something very hard that wasn’t even there, and yet all of these things didn’t quite convey the sense of elemental terror that threatened to swallow her whole. It was nothing and everything all at once and made her questions who and where she was. Did she lose consciousness? Was this death? Elizabeth didn’t know until she apparently found herself running face first into a wide oak tree. The screeching and garbling sounds were no longer present; it was sounds of nearby chaos that greeted her and the startling sound of a gunshot that rang throughout her being. With a hand to her pulsating forehead, Elizabeth turned towards it.

 

[Leeloo_Supreme_Being]

Elizabeth had a headache. That was the only thing she could discern at the moment. There was too much goddamn noise to make sense of anything else. The subtle boom of presumably a firearm, the cacophony of mixed yelling and screaming. Gasping softly to soothe herself, the woman pressed the heel of her palms across her forehead and tried in vain to settle her scrambled thoughts. Here she was in her day dress that was previously nice and pressed, seated in the mud that had begun seeping into her undergarments. Sitting up straight, Elizabeth nodded once and firmed up to get on her feet and figure out just what the hell was happening.

Before she could muster the strength, two brown and red blurs made their way towards her. Wow, they're moving a bit fast, Elizabeth thought. They were plastered with mud so it was too difficult to truly see what these warriors looked like. It was then, when it was almost too late, that Elizabeth recognized they weren't friendly. Frantically, she searched her person for anything that could be used as a weapon. The next few motions were too much to process so Elizabeth couldn't really decide what had happened. One minute, she was sure she was going to die. The next there was a man, handsome her brain supplied, strong and bloodied and had held out his hand to assist her to standing.

Was she injured? Surely not. All thanks to him. She stood and immediately divested herself of the satin gloves. Elizabeth couldn't have very well properly grabbed anything. Speaking of proper, her state of dress was not as such. What she really needed was a hot bath. The man seemed flustered but Elizabeth couldn't figure out as to why. He had just saved her life and was a right mess himself. He looked like he hadn't bathed in weeks. And considering his next words, she shouldn't have been surprised. "Thank you kindly, sir, but please explain what you said by battlefield?" The woman knew for sure now that she had a headache and she felt nauseous in addition to that as well.

"I must apologize because I think I misheard you by saying it wasn't a place for a woman? How absurd. Who handles the injured then?" This was too much. Elizabeth wanted to go home and see Adam and lay in bed after a steaming bath. Elizabeth realized that while she had voiced her concerns politely and with the appropriate amount of decorum, her tone was much to be desired.

 

[Leeloo_Supreme_Being]

Elizabeth slapped a hand over her mouth to keep from shrieking. This soldier had swiftly bent and took her over his shoulder as if he did this frequently. Trust him? Well, she certainly didn't have to many options to choose from at this point, considering her position. Speaking of which, she was unaccustomed to being manhandled as such and the placement of this man's shoulder under her rib cage jostled her organs and made her nauseous. Elizabeth kicked her legs petulantly and hefted herself around to hopefully find a better place to rest. She wasn't very successful. In fact, she probably angered him with her efforts and made it harder on him to carry her. Well, good.

"Spend the night in the woods? Unacceptable. Put me down right now." Elizabeth grunted and grappled at the waist of this man's slacks? Uniform? Bah, what difference did it make? she thought, annoyed at herself, trying desperately to grab onto something so she didn't fall off. Not that it was very likely, considering the placement of the ruffian's hand. Pervert.

Spend the night in the woods, indeed. It wasn't long before they had reached an acceptable "camp" and she was set down. The motion made her lean against a tree for support. The last thing she wanted to do was make herself sick.Elizabeth couldn't afford the vulnerability it would bring her. Something else he said confused her. Colonial side? Just what in the hell was happening? Elizabeth shook her head and placed her fists on top of wide hips. "Let me see check you for injuries before you get an infection."

 

[Leeloo_Supreme_Being]

Everything was happening way to fast for her to comprehend. This man's camping skills were out of this world efficient and she could see that he did every task in this matter. He gave her food, water, a fire and his coat to keep warm even though she was not oblivious to his wariness of her presence. In fact, she was sure he thought her to be crazy. Her suspicions were confirmed when he stated as such. Pulling the coat over her trembling shoulders, Elizabeth stared incredulously. This guy was the nut. "I did not escape from any asylum you insufferable snake." In retrospect, the woman recognized this probably wasn't the best way to approach him. He was planning on having her locked up. She had to convince him, somehow, that she was knowledgeable in healing.

"Look, kind sir, I appreciate all that you've done for me. Please allow me to repay you." Elizabeth had a look of earnest on her face as she observed him for a reaction. He surely was quite handsome in a sort of historical way. She was sure she had seen his portrait hang in some museum he was that fit.

"I know that you are injured and I promise that I can help staunch the bleeding if you would allow me access to your person." The nurse was determined in her endeavor to be as polite and unsuspecting as possible. Elizabeth wanted to get on this man's good side and see if there were any possible way of him getting her safely to a town. Tilting her head to the side elegantly, her uncontrollable walnut tangles brushed against her freckled cheek and tickled her nose. She could see, faintly, where the soldier was injured on his side, most likely from the harsh kiss of a bayonet. It had left a red turned brown stain on his shirt and Elizabeth decided that the wound was probably scabbed over at one point before all his ministrations had reopened it. In this weather, with no sterile bandages or alcohol, the laceration was sure to become infected. The bacteria would enter his blood stream and poison him, slowly, agonizingly before his organs would fail and he would ultimately succumb to death's sweet embrace.

"In fact," Elizabeth stood with the coat still around her shoulders, "I'll tell you a bit more about myself and how I came to be here as I check your wound." As she spoke, the woman inched closer and closer, nonthreatening in her approach with a soft smile gracing her face.