Wrong Time Right Place

5 - Percy

The house Callie and the surly young man were leading me up to was quite large by London's standards. The young man Callie introduced as Ian Caldwell pushed open the red front door and stepped aside to let Callie pass through, followed by myself. I stood in the entrance hall as Callie slipped off her shoes, inspecting my surroundings.

It was quite unlike any residence I'd ever stepped foot in before. There was a sitting room off to the right with a large metal fireplace and what looked like leather furniture. Before me was a long, carpeted staircase, and several framed photographs lined the walls leading up to the second floor.

I could hear laughter echoing from another part of the house, but before I could inquire as to who else was present, I received a sharp jab to my shoulders.

"Move," Ian said quietly. "Before anybody sees you."

I quickly followed after Callie up the stairs, doing my best as a gentleman to avert my gaze from her distracting legs. This was one thing I would never grow accustomed to, now matter how long I was stuck in this century. How was it ever deemed appropriate for young ladies to show this much skin?

Callie cut a path down the rather spacious hallway and burst into a room off to the left of what appeared to be a washroom without preamble, saying loudly, "Mikey, we need your help."

"Go on," Ian said, nudging me yet again. "Get in there."

It was quite obvious to me that this young man was not pleased in the slightest at my being here. I supposed I couldn't blame him for this, intruding such as I was, but I really only wanted their assistance in returning home. As much as I had grown to spite London, I wanted nothing more than to return home.

The room I entered was from another world entirely. The only thing I could actually recognize was the bed shoved in the corner, clothes and blankets piled on top of it. Everything else was a mystery. There were colorful pictures plastered on the walls, and also what seemed to be weapons displayed on top of a small wardrobe.

In front of the drape covered window was a desk adorned with large, brightly lit objects. That was the only word my brain could supply as to what the things actually were. Pictures were moving across it, and I could hear the sounds of grunting and shouting and clanging swords coming from somewhere, but I hadn't the foggiest where it originated.

"Geez, Callie," the young man seated in the chair said, pressing something on the object on his desk that caused the moving pictures to pause in their actions. "Think you could knock next time?"

Callie let out a huffy sort of noise I'd never heard a young lady make and said, "Sorry, Mikey, but this is a bit more important than being polite."

"Yeah, nerd," Ian said, pushing the door shut. "We need your help."

The young man Callie called Mikey dropped some sort of rectangular device on the desk and spun around in the chair he occupied, the better to face us. From the way he was slouched in his chair, I placed him to be much taller than Ian. He was wearing spectacles, his hair was quite messy, and the shirt he wore had a picture of a rather buxom young lady with blue skin and large eyes, a sword held aloft in her grip, plastered on the front.

I couldn't decide which was more embarrassing - seeing Callie's legs, or looking at that shirt.

"Who's this?" Mikey said, gesturing to me. "You look a bit lost, man."

"You could say that," Callie muttered, rolling her eyes. "Look, Mikey. I know this is going to sound totally crazy, but just hear us out, okay?"

Mikey propped his elbows up on the arms of the chair and placed his fingers under his chin in a steeple. "Go on."