They follow him.

The walk is quiet as they take in their surroundings. The trees rustle with the wind, and they can feel themselves freezing. Ivy's body has gone so cold that she is unable to walk. Though Maverick offers to help, Mickey insists on carrying her up the hill. They pass the cliffside, leaving the water.

There is a town, which Maverick leads them through. From the top of the hill, they can see the forty or so houses that make up the community. To Alvaro, it looks more like a campground. Each house seems nearly identical, only differing slightly in the placement of their chimneys and the tint of the wood. They are placed much farther apart than the tight buildings of New York City, each having the space for a field, some even having a towering barn nearby.

In the centre of the town is a tall white church steeple. The two houses nearby are nicer, two storeys tall, but none of them threaten the height of the church.

Rather than head west into the town, they dip to the north. They walk past a few trees until they see a cabin, not much unlike the others. Adwin stares up at the structure, trying to digest the sight of something he never thought he could possibly see.

Hubert holds the door. The others file in after him.

Inside, there are nine beds, each cared for with a fresh layer of linens. On each are two sets of clothing (one a dress and the other a suit). There is a fireplace and a small stove off in the corner. The first thing that Tim notices are all the things missing. Walls, a bathroom, and anything else.

"There is a note in the stove since the stove has never been used," Hubert points out. He runs a hand through his wet hair. "I need... I need to go change. And tell people. Don't leave without me."

"Where are you going?" Maverick asks, taking a step closer to Hubert.

The boy doesn't bother answering. He shuts the door behind him, and Flo swears that the cabin shakes.

The others are frozen in the doorway, but Mickey isn't. He moves Ivy over to the bed furthest from the door and lies her down. Her clothes soak the sheets, but Mickey doesn't know what to do about that since everything else here is thick wool fabrics or wood. "Are there any ladies who can help her get out of this?"

Clara looks between the two other girls. One is holding up a dress in disgust while the other is peering underneath all of the beds. She sighs and heads over. "As long as the men promise not to look."

Mickey resolves to hold up the quilt on one of the other beds to give Ivy some privacy.

Since most of the others are still milling about, Maverick goes and retrieves the letter from the stove. He pulls it out, revealing a sheet of parchment, on which one sentence has been written in black cursive. He can't read it, given that his French is awful at best. He recognizes the word the and time.

"Does anyone speak French?" He asks the room.

Flo drops the hideous dress, complete with apron and layers of fabric, and heads over to Maverick. She rests a hand on his wet shoulder and leans over to catch a sight of the paper.

Maverick has never been touched so casually by a woman.

La ---- viendra. Vous n'avez guère de temps.

"Okay, so," sure, Flo speaks French, but that doesn't mean she understands every word. "Something is coming. We don't have much time."

"What's coming?" Bev asks, a smile on her lips. She drags the dry clothing behind the curtain Mickey is still holding and begins to change.

"You make it sound so chipper," Alvaro complains. He knows that he sounds angry, but in his defence, all of his clothes have soaked through. He refuses to change into the new suit, even though he has found an outfit that appears to be roughly his size.

"It could be," Bev says.

"It rhymes with the French word for food," Flo asks, hoping that she is to be of any help.

Maverick sighs and puts the note back in the oven.

Everyone, silently, takes turns changing. Even Flo, after she sneezes once. Alvaro can't remember the last time wore a shirt that buttoned-up to the top, so he leaves half of his chest exposed, unlike the others. He watches as Flo picks up the apron, and then puts it back down again, a small smile on his face.

Mickey continues to hold the blanket up for others. Adwin offers him a quick thanks, which Mickey returns with a harsh glare. Once they are all done, they throw their wet clothing into a corner on the pile of clothing.

"So," Maverick begins, looking around. He tries to keep himself calm for the sake of the others, even though now that he is wearing clothing, he is acutely aware that this isn't a dream. "What's everyone's name?"

"Her name tag said Ivy," Clara says, pointing at the ginger girl. She has fallen asleep in the bed, wrapped up in the itchy but warm sheets. Even in her sleep, she misses the loving arms of the ocean, swallowing her whole.

"And yours?" Alvaro furrows his brow, his smile spreading like an unkept secret.

Clara sees an opportunity and she seizes it. "Miss Clara Bennet."

"I'm Alvaro," he rolls his eyes at her, leaning forward. "Miss Bennet."

Clara stiffens at his lack of informality. Is he really coming on to her on a day like today? Maybe she has actually introduced herself by her legal name, Mrs. Henry Bennet. While it is unlike her to acknowledge that she is married, it is unlike the universe to fill her bathroom with water and to drag her here.

"I'm Maverick Donovan," Maverick cuts in, sensing Clara's unease.

"People in the future go by first names," Adwin offers, looking over Clara's face. "The shift is taking place during my time actually, for the most part. But, we should introduce ourselves by our last names, to blend in with the locals. I'm Adwin Schimt."

Every second that Adwin speaks, Mickey can feel his ears bleeding. Either that, or they are still draining the water out from within them. The accent reminds him of the roughness of his uniform, the only thing protecting him from the knife of a German. The sound overwhelms him, until his voice cuts it. "I'm Gallego. Mickey Gallego."

"I'm Tim," Tim says, straightening his spine. "And I think that the least of our problems is if the locals think we blend in with them or not. What is even going on?"

"Tim what?" Maverick asks. He hates the boy's whining and is more inclined to believe Adwin, who recognizes the unease of a first name.

Tim holds his ground.

"I'm Miss Beverly Carey, but only my Mum calls me Beverly," Bev snorts, ignoring both Maverick and Tim. After all, she is still convinced that this is Heaven, and people don't get to bicker in her ideal world. "Call me Bev. Well, call me Miss Carey if you must. I do quite like using our first names. It feels so taboo."

As Bev rambles on, Clara finds herself finally torn away from the exposed skin on Alvaro's chest. She has never been one to get homesick, but something about Bev's tone reminds her of a place she wants to be, rather than the one she is. Clara had always wanted to move forward, not backwards.

"And I'm Flo McWilliams," Flo's voice is breathy, and it floats around the cabinet. "Sounds like we've all made acquaintances with each other. Now tell me, what's the plan for getting home?"

There is not an answer, so no one answers. Even though no one turns to him, Maverick feels the burden of the response on his shoulders. It had only just occurred to him that he was somewhere else. He has no intention of returning back to his previous mundane life. Not until he has determined that this one is worse.

Bev, on the other hand, is only beginning to believe that she is not in Heaven. This place is just as beautiful and just as mysterious. "We have time to figure that out. We should go exploring."

"I don't want to explore," Tim responds. He blows a strand of hair out of his eyes and crosses his arms over his chest. "I want to go home."

"I'm not in any rush, since my dress has been ruined for dinner," Flo can't decide if Tim has a point or not.

"Ooh, let's go exploring!" Bev declares, jumping up off the bed. She scans the room, until her eyes land on Clara. A girl with hair pined up similar to hers, and with a crease in her brow. If Bev has ever seen a best friend, it's her. She runs up to Clara and begins to pull on her arm.

"Didn't that... didn't he say," Clara cuts in, her eyes flickering to the door, as if she expects the blue-eyed boy to show up at any minute.

"He might not be back for hours," Flo offers, finally looking up. She doesn't have as much of a desire to explore as she might like, but perhaps there is a boutique or something where she can buy a set of sewing needles to save them from the horror of these clothes. Or better yet, a liquor store.

Alvaro strides to the doorway. He catches Maverick staring at him, and so he winks. There, he opens the door and holds it open.

"Well, if we are going to go we ought to make some ground rules," Adwin says, looking across the others. They buzz with excitement, not unlike a classroom filled with some giddy students.

"We shouldn't go at all," Maverick says, although he can't tear his eyes away from the little curls of black hair on Alvaro's chest. It's unlike the privacy of a woman because Alvaro wants him to look, right? Still, Maverick feels his stomach somersaulting at the sight.

"I vote for ground rules!" Bev jumps in, bouncing on the balls of her feet. Beside her, Clara can't help but smile, for a brief second forgetting the blue-eyed boy she had just seen.

Mickey gets up the bed, finally leaving Ivera. He goes and slaps a hand on Maverick's shoulder. "Looks like democracy wins again."

Though Maverick wants to argue, he holds his tongue. The others can run off and explore if they truly want, because they are their own autonomous people and they can do what they want. Even if they are excited while Maverick feels nothing but a sense of dread, he could always be wrong. Besides, all of this could be a dream. "What ground rules?"

"First of all, we shouldn't talk about our own timelines," Adwin says. He pauses to make sure everyone hears his words. "Actually, we should write these down."

"We don't have paper," Clara says. She turns to Bev, and nudges her, trying to get her to slow her movements. Though Clara has never been one for rules, she doesn't want to get off on the wrong foot.

"Why can't we talk about our lives?" Tim demands. Not that he really cares, he just despises the certainty in Adwin's tone. At a time like this, how can any of them pretend to know anything? Now, he is beginning to believe that he slipped in the water and cracked his head open, and this is some comatose state he is in.

"Because the other man said not to." Maverick answers.

"Well, it could also actually mess with the future, and cause all of time to collapse, so even though I want to - believe me, I'm a history buff, this is so exciting - we definitely shouldn't." Adwin tries to keep his answer as simple as possible. He has never appreciated telling someone to do something because you told them so, which is why he offers an explanation, even if the last thing he wants is to get on more toes.

Mickey tries not to think about Adwin anymore. "Second, don't go off without a buddy. Third, don't go too deep into the woods. There could be bears and other things out there, and we are all weaponless."

He doesn't tell the others, but Alvaro looks over at the pile of clothing on the floor, and the gun hidden inside.

"Is that all?" Flo asks, because those rules seem easy enough to break.

"Be back in an hour," Maverick insists.

Before he can finish his sentence, Bev pulls Clara out the open door. Alvaro watches the two run into the forest, holding up their long skirts to step over logs.

"I'm staying back," Tim says.

"Me too," when she was in France, Flo went to a game of poker. She grew quite good at hiding her face. Less good at winning, but still.

Alvaro winks at Maverick and walks out the door. Though Maverick swallows, he follows after Alvaro.

That leaves Mickey and Adwin, partnered together. With one last look at Ivy, lying against the bed, the pair walk out of the door. 

~~~

This is challenging, but I feel like I'm getting a hang of it. Let me know if I did your character dirty (especially Flo and Mickey, who I am still trying to get a bit of a grip on).