I've Been Novelled!

Ella groaned as she blinked herself awake, her head pounding. Ugh... too much coffee last night? Wait, this doesn't feel like my bed. Is this a fever dream? She blinked again, squinting at the ceiling above her. No sleek white ceiling. No familiar hum of the city. Instead, her eyes met the sight of cracked wooden beams overhead. Okay. This is... different.She shot upright, instantly regretting the move as her head spun. After a few moments, the dizziness faded, and she looked down at herself."What in the-" she mumbled, staring at the worn, old-fashioned dress draped over her body. She clutched the rough fabric between her fingers. Cotton? Burlap? Sackcloth? Is this a potato sack?This wasn't her usual wardrobe. Nope. Not even close. Where were her cozy pajamas with the sarcastic cat quotes on them?Ella scrambled to her feet, half stumbling as she noticed her surroundings. A tiny, dingy room. Wooden floors. One dusty window. A sad little table with a chipped cup sitting forlornly on it. She glanced toward the cracked mirror in the corner."Oh, God," she whispered. "Oh no, no, no."The reflection that stared back at her was... not her. She leaned in, her eyes wide with shock. The face was younger-maybe seventeen-with messy brown hair tied up in a haphazard bun. The hands she'd woken up to weren't a hallucination after all. They were smaller, more calloused."I've been body-snatched," she declared to the room, throwing her arms up in the air. "I've actually been body-snatched into... wait. Wait a second."She froze mid-panic as the memories flooded in, uninvited. Eleanor Fletcher. Orphan. Seventeen. Poor as dirt. No family, no future prospects except maybe selling potatoes. Potatoes! she thought in mild horror.Then, something clicked in her mind. Eleanor Fletcher... Her eyes widened further, which she hadn't thought was possible. The flood of memories mixed with a strange familiarity, and suddenly it hit her like a runaway train."I'm in a book," she whispered, almost giddy with disbelief. "Oh my God. I'm in The Duke's Desire."She nearly tripped over her own feet as she paced the room, rambling. "Okay, okay. Let's just-let's think for a second. This is fine. This is totally fine. I've read this book like ten times. I know this world. I know the plot. I know everything that's going to happen. It's... it's my favorite trashy romance novel!"She let out a hysterical laugh. "Except now I'm in it! I'm in the freaking novel."Ella rushed to the window and flung it open, peering outside. Yep. There it was. The quaint little town. The market stalls. The cobblestone streets. It was exactly how the book had described it. Almost too perfect.Her heart sank as the reality set in. "But wait, who am I? Where do I fit in this story?"She wracked her brain, flipping through the cast of characters in her mental catalog. Let's see... main heroine: beautiful, blonde, sweet on the outside but a total snake on the inside. Check. Main love interest: Duke Gorgeous McDreamy. Check. Villainess: heroine's older sister, totally misunderstood and way too fabulous for this storyline. Double check.Then she stopped. Who was Eleanor Fletcher again? She couldn't place the name."Oh no. Oh no, no, no," she muttered. "I'm... a nobody. A literal nobody! I don't even have a plotline! I'm not even a side character! I'm background noise!"She collapsed dramatically onto the bed, flinging an arm over her eyes. "I'm the random extra who probably dies offscreen or sells cabbage in the background. This is tragic."Her thoughts spiraled into a full existential crisis for a solid five minutes. She lay there, contemplating her new identity as an insignificant speck in the grand tapestry of The Duke's Desire. Then, as her panic subsided, a more practical thought crept in.Wait. I still have my brain. My modern brain. She sat up slowly, eyes narrowing in thought. I may be stuck in a throwaway body, but I've still got 21st-century knowledge. I know things these people can't even imagine!A spark of hope ignited in her chest. "I was a genius back in the real world. I can figure this out."She started pacing again, muttering to herself like a mad scientist in the making. "Okay, what can I make that these people don't have yet? Soap. They definitely need better soap. And proper shoes. And-oh, indoor plumbing! These people would lose their minds over toilets."The mental list kept growing. She wasn't just a genius back in her world; she was the type of person who stayed up all night researching weird inventions and building gadgets no one thought they needed until she made them."I could open a shop," she said, snapping her fingers. "I could make things-modern things-and people would freak out over it. I'll be rich! I'll be the Steve Jobs of the 1800s!"Her excitement built with every idea. She could create soaps, sell lanterns, and maybe one day introduce electricity-though that was probably getting ahead of herself. She rubbed her hands together like a cartoon villain. "First things first: start small. Get some money. Buy some supplies. Make soap. Everyone needs soap."She was grinning to herself when a knock at the door startled her out of her scheming. A gruff voice called from the other side. "Eleanor? You're late for work at the bakery!"Her face dropped."Oh no," she groaned. "I have a job in this world? I actually have to bake bread?"The voice outside continued, impatient. "If you're not down here in five minutes, you'll lose your pay for the day!"Ella scrambled around the room, looking for shoes. Okay, first things first: survive as a commoner. Then world domination. Priorities.As she laced up the plainest, most uncomfortable shoes she'd ever worn, she paused to look at her reflection again. "Okay, Eleanor Fletcher, you may be a nobody now, but just you wait. I'm not staying a background character forever. I'm going to turn this world upside down. Starting with-" She glanced down at the shoes in disgust. "Better footwear."She gave herself a nod of determination. "Let's do this."And with that, Ella Fletcher-genius inventor, accidental transmigrant, and aspiring soap mogul-stepped out into the world of The Duke's Desire. It had no idea what was coming.---A/N (Hope you like it)