Chapter 10 - Journey For the Moon Pt. 1

The more Lilith thought about it, the more sense it made. And seeing as it was the only explanation she could grab onto that even sounded remotely feasible, it was what she believed for the time being. The Silver Moon was the reason she was sent back in time. It had to be. It was something that scientists had no clue about and was the only thing, besides the Avarice Manor, that was there when she was sent back.

It was big and bright and just as she remembered it when she was driving. It dominated the sky, bigger than the sun ever was and even more beautiful. It only appeared for one night but she remembered it so vividly. It was not as bright as the sun, but the pale silver light it cast down was enough to light the streets on it's own.

If the Silver Moon was the reason why she was sent back in time, then she would have to figure out when the next one was coming. With the Silver Moon, it appeared randomly, which was another strange thing about it. Sometimes it would not be seen for two hundred years and suddenly it would appear twice in one century. Maybe if Lilith was lucky, the moon would appear sometime before she would be dead, and so, she went to seek answers.

After a lot of persuasion, which was mostly begging, she had convinced Raymond to let her take a day off. She was even surprised that it worked, and even Mrs. Potts had to step in to coax him, convincing him that Lilith was just a young girl and keeping her cooped up in the manor for weeks on end was not good for her. He agreed after a while, promising that he would be able to find her wherever she went.

Her only guess as to how he figured out her name was because he went to the shop where she had sold the dress. She had to write her name down, seeing as she did sell them something, so they could keep it on record. Lilith wondered if the dress was still there and if Raymond got to see it. But that was not important.

Lilith kept the keys to her apartment in her pocket at all times and luckily, Raymond had not searched her when he detained her. So, her apartment was the first place she went, praying that her things were still there when she got back.

She was sure that her face would be remembered by the townspeople and so she made sure to keep her head low and make sure not to bump into anyone. Explaining why the Duke of their county came to arrest her was not something she wanted to do.

A few blocks away from the library, Lilith reached her apartment. She walked up the stairs quietly and walked down three doors before she reached hers. With slightly shaking hands, she unlocked the door.

Everything was as she had left it.

The sigh that left her body had her slumping against the door. A bright smile crossed her face as she closed the door behind her and quickly went to collect her things. Her bag was heavy from all the money it had and her crown rested gently on the top of it. Gently, Lilith lifted it out of the bag, examining it, brushing her fingers against the jewels.

"Just as perfect as I remember," she said, before placing it back in her bag.

The crown was not cheaply made. Not in the slightest, so it would be able to withstand a slightly bumpy ride while it was in her bag. The crown actually came with a case that fit around the crown like a glove so that it was not damaged in transit.

Lilith also had another bag that had a few clothes that she had bought for herself. It was a duffle bag and she was able to smoothly put everything in it before she left her room. Locking the door behind her, she made sure to be as quiet as possible. Lilith had planned to leave the key, along with some money in the landlord's house. Shoving it through the window would be the best option.

"Victoria,"

Had. Past tense. Looking to her right, her very angry landlord walked up to her.

"It seems that you've decided to come back after all this time. I heard you got yourself arrested. And by the Duke no less." he sneered as his domineering presence loomed over her.

His footsteps seemed to shake the foundation of the building. His splotchy beard coupled with his rancid breath made Lilith reel back. He wore muddy boots and overalls. He really reminded Lilith of a pig.

"It was just a misunderstanding." Lilith said, inhaling as little air as possible.

"And what about my rent? This room was unoccupied for three weeks. I could have made money off of those three weeks but you had the key to this entire thing. And I don't have the money to bust down the entire door just to replace it."

And Lilith is grateful for that. She would rip her hair out if someone like him got his hands on what was hers.

Sighing, she dug into her bag, not taking her eyes off of the landlord, and pulled out some of her money, along with the key. "Here, this should be enough."

Her palm was closed and when he reached his to take the money she dropped it in. Once he was distracted, counting the money in his hand, Lilith passed and went down the stairs as quickly as possible. He had his room and she had her crown. Everything should be settled.

When she reached the road was when he had realized that she was gone and he bellowed after her. Lilith was unsure as to why, since she had paid him good money. But he probably wanted more out of her. Something that was not going to happen. She blended herself into a crowd of people and turned the first corner she found, safely getting away from him.

It was a cheap apartment and he seemed like a decent person in the beginning, but she was glad that this was the only trouble he brought her. If he really got impatient and knocked the door down, she would be done for. He would have sold the crown, and probably used all her money within a couple of days. Then she would have to go to Raymond and beg him to get the crown back for her. Not something she was very willing to do.

Once she got away from her landlord, her next destination was to go to Naulis. Her only way to get answers to when the next Silver Moon was coming. In the modern day, scientists did not know what the Silver Moon was about and so she definitely would not be able to get any answers in 1815. But, she should be able to know when the next one was coming.

Things were different in the past and she needed to ask for directions to the nearest bus terminal. Only, she received a weird look. There were no buses in 1815. That meant that she would need to find transportation that could take her to the next state in the most comfortable way.

Equiron was in the middle of Kathalé, and Kathalé was in the western part of Creona. She would need to travel for at least five hours before she got to Naulis, which was located in the more southern part of the country. And Raymond just so happend to live on the more northern side of the country, which meant that her destination was literally on the opposite side of the country.