Monday 7 August, 2150 British Summer Time, London Victoria Station

Unfortunately for Cat McLaughlin, she'd been unable to get the day off for the initial departure from London. But Desmond had agreed that she would be able to join them in Brussels the following day. How she got there was her own business.

In any event, as she had a decent amount of cash on her and decided to get the overnight train from London to Brussels that ran 364 days a year, being transported across the Channel via specially converted ferry, along with other sleeper carriages bound for Paris.

She hadn't quite managed to afford the fare for sole occupancy of the double compartment, so she was going to have share with another woman.

Getting through Customs and Passport Control at Victoria had been relatively quick and she now found herself on Platform 2 at Victoria, looking for the blue and yellow carriage with the destination board 'London-Bruxelles/Brussel'. It wouldn't do to get on the wrong carriage and end up in the wrong country.

Soon enough, she found herself by the carriage in question, where a brown uniformed steward was checking the ticket of a rather young-looking girl with a large backpack. The girl had curly black hair and round spectacles, dressed in a T-shirt and jeans. After a few seconds, she stepped inside the carriage.

Now it was Cat's turn to board.
This message was last edited by the GM at 21:05, Mon 21 Feb 2022.

Cat waited until the bespectacled girl was loaded and the steward was fully free. She dragged her pack forward with a couple shuffling steps almost treading on the stewards foot. Biting her lip she offered a curt apology then sheepishly handed over her ticket.

"This is the carriage to Brussels, is it?" Cat asked as the steward glanced down at the ticket

Casting his eyes up at her, the steward held a brief gaze then simply tilted his head toward the destination board.

"Yes, of course." Cat nodded quickly and the followed the previous girl into the carriage, stepping backward and dragging her pack along. Sh was glad when the steward finally assisted by lifting the pack into the overhead, freeing her to drop into the seat across from the current occupant.

"Hello, I'm Cat." She beamed at the woman across from her. "Looks like you're headed for a long journey as well. What's your name?"

The carriage consisted of nine compartments, each with the ability to sleep two people. They were cosy affairs with beige walls, consisting of a long sofa like seat whose back would become the upper bunk, a small table, and a covered washbasin below a mirror. All but one of the compartments had an interconnecting door that provided a full-length mirror and some hangers had been put against the wall for jackets etc. Toilets were provided at each end, along with a small office for the steward.

It was mostly like the train that she had come down from Scotland, but that one had not been able to switch to 'day' and 'night' mode. At some point in the 90 minutes after departure, their steward would make the beds and could unmake them in the morning if they wished.

A carafe of drinking water with two glasses was provided on the small table, along with a leaflet showing what beverages were available for purchase, prices in British pounds, French francs and Belgian francs.

She also noted that two life jackets were visible. They were going on a ship after all.

The girl placed her pack by her feet.

"Emily," she said. "Definitely a long journey. Frankfurt-am-Main in fact. Where are you heading?"

"Hello, Emily." Cat thrust her open hand towards her, thumb high and rigid. "Just Brussels for this part. From there I'm headed East to Asia. I think then I'll be jumping into a van for the rest of the journey, though. It's all bonkers, really... riding with a bunch of strangers to where ever. I don't much care where we go, as long as it's new and exciting." She cast here eyes about, catching her breath before looking back at Emily. "Enough of that. What's in Frankfurt for you?"
This message was last edited by the player at 04:31, Sun 27 Feb 2022.

Emily took the offered hand.

"My parents," she replied, a Texan accent starting to appear. "My dad is a pilot for Pan Am, so he flies all around the world. Mom lives there, but they decided to send me to school in England. Cheltenham Ladies' College. Have you heard of it?"

Some doors slammed on the train and they heard the guard's whistle. In the distance of this long train there was a toot of a horn and, with a slight jerk, they started pulling out of the station.

"I'm only seeing them for a week, then I'm going to do a tour round Europe. Got this new rail pass thing they're doing this year. A month's travel for £27.50."

She got up and retrieved a pink book from her timetable. Cat recognised it as a Thomas Cook Continental Timetable.

There was a knock on the compartment door. Emily got up, looked through the spy hole.

"It's the steward," she said and opened the door.

"Bon soir, mesdames," he said. "May I take your ticket and your passports? That way, we shouldn't need to bother you during the night. There is also a restaurant car should you fancy a drink."

Cat promptly opened a pocket on her pack, retrieving her passport, then pulled her slightly crumpled ticket from her jacket pocket. Standing, she waited for Emily to present her items first then offered her own to the steward.

After a moment of review, he looked up. "Très bien. I shall have to hold these overnight. There are formalities with the Belgian's to be dealt with. You understand, I hope."

"Oh," Cat bit her lip, a bit uneasy about the request. "I suppose it should fine." She nodded.

"There's a good lass. I shall return them straight away." With a quick nod he went on about his business.

Cat shut the door then spun in place and fell back against it.

"Is that usual? To keep the passports?"

Emily shrugged.

"Then what do you say, Emily? Should we indulge a wee bit of drink to calm the nerves?" She opened her oversized denim jacket, showing her somewhat too short yellow sun dress. "Do you think I should change? I expect we should be safe here on the train."
This message was last edited by the player at 04:24, Sun 27 Feb 2022.

"I'm 17," Emily replied. "I don't think I'm legally allowed to buy alcohol in this country. Unless someone buys it with a meal."

Emily looked around.

"You can get changed in here. I'll pop out into the corridor if you want some privacy. Probably ought to lower the blinds as well. Don't want half of South London to see you, I imagine."

She moved over to the window and lowered the blinds. There was another toot in the distance.

OOC: It was usual to keep the passports pre-Schengen Agreement in Western Europe. Saved passengers being woken in the wee hours by immigration officers. Not so in Eastern Europe, with a 3am wakeup entirely possible when crossing into East Germany.
This message was last updated by the GM at 23:10, Mon 28 Feb 2022.

Cat turned her back to the windows, looking over her shoulder until the blinds were closed. After rummaging through her pack, she pulled out a pair of jeans and a tiny white t-shirt splotched with pink and purple polka dots. She Checking the blinds once again, she dropped her jacket off her shoulders, then quickly changed.

"So, it's a restaurant car. There will be food. If that's all it takes then we can just buy a meal. I worked in a pub while I was still 17, and I drank. No one questioned me. I mean, I guess it was because I worked there, but I only worked there because I just walked in and started waiting tables."

Cat turned around, smoothing her shirt with the flat of her hand and trying to pull the hem down to cover her slightly exposed midriff. After several attempts she gave up and grabbed her jacket.

"Anyway," she lifted her bright grin to Emily, "Let's just take a chance. They have our passports, so you can just say you don't have your identification. Ready to go?"

"I could buy a sandwich, but this is British Rail. You know what they do with sandwiches..."

They made their way down the narrow corridor of the sleeping car, with Cat just avoiding getting a door in the face when a man with a moustache more suited to a Soho cinema stepped outside.

The train jolted a bit, so keeping their balance was a minor challenge, but they found their way up the train to the restaurant car.

A white jacketed BR employee was standing by the counter and he brightened up a bit at seeing two pretty ladies. Behind him, two businessmen were sitting at a table, discussing a newspaper.

With only a quick glance at Emily, Cat stepped up to the counter to speak for the both of them.

"Good evening," she beamed at the white jacketed man. "Two of us for a table, if you  please."

"My pleasure," said the man with a pleasant pip. He lead Cat and Emily to a table just beyond that occupied by the businessmen.

Cat took a chair on the opposite side of the table leaving the closer seat for Emily. She waited as the host held the chair first for Emily, then herself.

"What can I get for you?" he asked as he pushed Cat into place.

"I'll have a small salad and a glass of Cabernet. Thank you." Cat folded her hands neatly on the white tablecloth, still beaming with a broad smile. She held the smile for just a moment before signaling to Emily with a look.

"Burger and chips, along with a pint of Double Diamond", Emily said, ordering one of the more popular bitters in England. At least she hadn't gone for Watney's, otherwise Cat might have lost all respect for her.

"Well, I've already eaten a sandwich and I had fish and chips earlier... but stuffing yourself with food might help you sleep. Or so I read," she continued.

They slowed briefly and out of the window; Cat could see a station. Looked like Beckenham Junction?

It was 10.15pm at the moment. They were due to get to Dover at 11.28pm - currently they were running to time.

A glance at the menu suggested that this was going to cost £1.20 in total. Unless they had desert.

OOC: An early 1970s Wimpy menu: https://www.edp24.co.uk/lifest...rom-the-past-1357352
This message was last edited by the GM at 21:16, Sun 06 Mar 2022.

"So, you've been away at college? I've not been to college. I barely finished high school, to be honest. I don't really think my parents would have let me go away to school. They wouldn't want me going anywhere they couldn't control every moment of my life and every thing I see and hear. They're strict that way. So, naturally, being the proper daughter that I am, I ran off on my own. I've been about in Lambeth for some months now. Not the nicest of neighborhoods, for certain. I'm just barely 18 myself and things were getting a bit scary there. Strange men were watching my comings and goings."

Cat paused a moment to accept the glass of wine from the attendant, then waited until he served Emily her pint and moved on before continuing.

"You're really the first girl my own age I've talked to in some time. Please, I want to know all about college, how your parents let be off on your own and..."

Cat held up a finger, holding the conversation to gulp down almost half her wine the a moment to suppress a cough from drinking too fast.

"Right. And most importantly, did you get to meet any handsome boys?"

Cat stopped right there, looking expectantly at Emily and taking another swig.

"No, it's not college in the American sense... it's one of those public schools. You know, St Trinian's, Greyfriars..."

Emily referred to two boarding schools in popular culture.

"I'm a boarder. This means dorms, matrons and an awful amount of Latin. Veni, vidi, oderam. That's I came, I saw, I hated it. What is the point of a dead language that no-one speaks. French is fine. Very handy. But when I am ever going to order an ice cream in Latin?"

Emily glanced out of the window and then turned back to Cat.

"As for handsome boys... it's a girl's school. All girls. Plenty of handsome boys in Cheltenham, but plenty who see the uniform and think you're a secret nympho looking for a bit of rough..."

She sighed and drunk some of her beer.

"Also, I'm Texan, so there's that one as well. I'm from Fort Worth, I've never ridden a horse in my life."

"Oh well, that's disappointing all around. Why did your parents send you there anyway? I mean, I understand why they would put you in an all girls school, but why send you away all the way to Cheltenham? If they wanted to keep you in a box, like mine did, why not keep you in box in Texas? My parents are all about the Church and I had to live by their plan and God's law. To Mum, that meant marrying me off to the first available unwed parishioner."

Cat leaned in, speaking in a loud whisper that was almost a hiss. "Do you know, she seriously wanted me to marry the Chief Constable after his wife died? He was as ancient as Rome, I swear, and I was just sixteen when she suggested it!"

Cat finished her wine in one go, then brought her glass with a loud 'clack'. If not for her grip about the stem, it might have broken.

"Well, as you can see," she held up her hand showing her bare ring finger, "I am not married and I am not in their box. They would just die knowing that I am going to travel across Eurasia in a van with strangers, including men. I get all giddy imagining how red their faces would get and their heads about to pop." She giggled. "If I get into a jam, it will be their fault."

Cat looked around for the waiter, then waved him over once she caught his eye. She raised her empty glass, shaking it as he approached. He nodded and went off to fetch another.

"But now we're both, you and I, about to see visit new places and see new sights."

After a moment, the waiter arrived with a fresh glass of wine.

"Here's to new adventures," she raised her glass to Emily. "I hope they are exciting and completely unpredictable."

Emily raised her beer.

"To new adventures. Perhaps I'll go in a van as well when I'm done with my education. I'd like to go to university first, though. My parents are looking for me to go to Oxford."

They ate their meal, which was about average - BR did considerably worse cuisine - before returning to their compartment.

Emily asked the conductor to make their beds up and they both stepped outside while he did so. The seats had now been converted to a bunk bed, with sheets, pillows and blankets.

"I think my ticket said I had the top bunk, but if you want it, you can have it," Emily offered.

"No.thank you. I'd probably fall out. I'm much safer closer to the floor." Can plopped down on the lower bunk and stripped off her clothes, turning when she removed her bra. "Pardon me, but I can't sleep in that thing." She found a large tshirt in her bag and pulled
it over her head.

"Do you reckon we'll have reached Brussels by morning?" She tossed aside the covers, slid under then pulled them back over herself."This is a delightful trip but I'm keen to get on with my adventure." She fluffed her pillow.

"Good night Emily."

"Not before you wake up, but definitely before lunchtime. Good night, Cat."

Cat started to fall asleep on the rather narrow bed and was about halfway into a deep sleep when she heard a loud bang outside the carriage. Of metal on metal.

Then Emily letting out a mild oath. The blind was lowered, so she would have to raise it to see what was going on.

When she did, she would realise they were inside a ship's deck and men were moving around to chain the carriages down to stop them moving during the cross-channel journey. It was also warm inside.
This message was last edited by the GM at 22:11, Tue 15 Mar 2022.

Cat sat up straight, supporting herself on both hands with her eyes wide. "What the bloody hell?" She saw Emily peering through the blinds to see what was happening. "What is it? What's going on?"

After hearing Emily's explanation she fell back, hitting her pillow with a plop. "For the sake of all that's holy... How do they expect people in the sleep cabins to sleep. They could have warned us." She threw an arm over her eyes. "I guess I'll just lay here until the ruckus stops."

Cat laid there, drifting off but afraid to let sleep take hold until it was relatively quiet for more than a few minutes. She imagined there would be the same racket when they got across the channel, so tomorrow was going to be a bear. All she could do is make the most of it. Somewhere in her mental complaints to herself she reconnected with sleep, dreaming of trying to sleep and being awoken by clanging and then the conductor and then the breakfast crowd. It was the most exhausting sleep of her life.