Chapter Text
She lived an ordinary life, Rose. Well, ordinary if a little disappointing. She'd admit she had it better than some, but knowing it didn't always seem to help. Even with her mum and Ramathan, Mickey and Lorelei, and her own daemon Shekinah, it wasn't enough. That didn't keep her from waking up to a dead-end job and a messy flat day after day after day. And even though she knew that Shekinah couldn’t help being a wolf any more than people could help staring at the two of them in the streets, both knew that it would be better if things were different. She'd gone nowhere and she was there to stay.
But, like most ordinary people, she knew better than to get too introspective, and spent most of her life worrying about a steady succession of other things. Right now, she was concerned about getting the lotto money to Wilson. And she was a little annoyed with it, to be honest. Why couldn't she just go home?
"Why's it me who has to do this?" she complained, as she and Shekinah got out of the lift. "The warehouse is spooky at night. I don't like it." While Henrik's had an open floor plan for the upper levels, the basement was a veritable labyrinth of concrete hallways and doors. The lighting didn't help matters at all, throwing bleak shadows on everything. All it needed to become a proper horror film was creepy background music.
"You shouldn't worry. Nobody's here," Shekinah reassured her. He sniffed the air again, just to emphasize his point. "I'd notice a fresh scent."
Rose smiled, reaching down for a second to ruffle Shekinah's coarse fur. "Yes. It's silly, me being scared."
They started down the hall, but had only gone a few steps before Rose realized. "Wait a minute, you said no one was here?"
"Yes," Shekinah responded, cocking his head in curiousity. "So?"
"So where's Wilson, then?"
Shekinah stopped abruptly. "Oh. He can't have left already, could he? He'd wait for the lotto money."
Rose made a noise of deep frustration. "Ugh. Why did he have to run off?" She looked down the hall, at the various other doors. "Do you know where he went?"
He checked. "I think. Definitely smelling something here." He proceeded toward a storage room, nose to the ground.
Rose sighed in relief as they neared the room. "Shekinah, you're a lifesaver." She never felt lost, not with her daemon.
The wolf froze again, raising his head, ears swiveling like satellite dishes. "Shh," he hissed, poised for attack. "Did you hear that?"
"No," Rose said, uncertain. "I mean, 'm only human," she joked.
Shekinah didn't laugh. "I'm serious. Something--no, someone's out there. And I don't know who."
Rose was starting to get seriously freaked out. And then her daemon hissed, "They're coming!"
A large, black panther daemon came walking past the hall up ahead. It was terribly impressive, that daemon. It didn't seem to notice them, just loping easily along on almost silent paws, tracking something. Shekinah didn't call out or anything, only standing rigidly in front of Rose as if to defend her. That would be more than enough to put off a stranger, hostile or otherwise. Despite her daemon's odd behavior, Rose still wanted to catch the person's attention. Maybe they could help her find Wilson. The words only died in her mouth when she realized there was no person there to ask.
Suddenly feeling very exposed, she bolted for the nearest room, Shekinah close behind her. She pried the door open and shut it behind them. Thus shutting out any light in the room. As she stumbled blindly around, Shekinah jumped up and flicked the light switch.
"Did you see that?" she asked breathlessly, starting to edge away from the door. "Did you see that! My God!"
Shekinah paced restlessly, hackles raised. "I told you to stay quiet!" he growled.
"I did!" Rose kept staring at the door. "What was that?"
"A daemon!" He sniffed the air again, before shaking his head vigorously. "Ugh, can't smell anything here. Too much plastic and metal."
Rose finally noticed the room where they had taken refuge. She shivered. Mannequins were really creepy when they were clustered together like that. "How can that be a daemon? There was no person!"
"Even if you didn't know , I definitely would!" Shekinah replied, sounding vaguely offended. "She smelled really strange, but she was definitely a daemon."
"What the hell is going on?" Rose demanded. Not that she expected an answer, but it needed to be said.
Shekinah finally stopped pacing. "I don't know." His eyes went straight for the door again. "Daemons can be separated. Maybe this one was."
Rose shook her head. People didn't just do that. "They'd have to be a witch's daemon. And she'd be a he, in that case."
"Oh," Shekinah realized. "I don't like the looks of this."
"Me neither," Rose huffed. She ran a hand through her hair. "God, a random guy with a huge daemon sneaking around at night."
Shekinah padded over to her, nuzzling her knee. Rose knelt down to hug him, as if to remind herself that he was still there. They were still whole. "Shh. It's okay," he said. "We'll find a way out. We will." He pointed at her pocket. "Call the police. Call somebody. Not everyone's left yet."
Taking a few deep breaths to make sure her hands weren't shaking uselessly, Rose took out her phone. "Maybe we should call the others first," she heard herself say. "They should know what's going on, they can help us deal with it."
Something fell in the back of the room. Rose scrambled to her feet, trying not to scream. "What was that?" She had to try again to speak properly. "What was that?"
Shekinah looked utterly lost. "I don't know! It's all just plastic and machines!"
Rose didn't even try staying calm. "This isn't funny," she snapped, to the empty room. "Whoever's doing this better stop."
The mannequins appeared completely terrifying at this point, but neither of them could stop looking. So they were watching, if not ready, when the mannequins started moving.
"What--who's doing this? Stop! Stop it!"
The mannequins didn't.
The two started to lurch dazedly toward the door, before breaking into a dead sprint. The mannequins cornered them, herding them away from the door. Shekinah snapped at their heels, trying to turn them back. But he did so with desperation, and the mannequins only staggered robotically forward, making horrible creaking sounds. Soon they had their backs against the wall, tripping over boxes on the messy storeroom floor. Rose wondered morbidly if she'd die first or if she'd see Shekinah fade like golden mist.
The nearest mannequins raised their arms, as if readying themselves to strike. Rose closed her eyes, unable to bear it. She was just waiting now, clinging helplessly to Shekinah, waiting for the trigger to be pulled.
Suddenly, she felt someone grab her hand. A flesh and blood man with bright eyes stood beside her. "Run!" he cried.
Both Rose and Shekinah were far too happy to oblige. They tore off, out of the room. Behind them rang the crack of a breaking pipe. A chill shimmered down her spine. Rose ran faster.
The clunk of the mannequins pursued them down the hall, which was suddenly much longer. Shop dummies lining the halls began moving as they passed. In a panic, Rose gripped the man's hand tighter and willed her legs to go faster. The man lead them to the elevator. As the doors slid open painfully slowly, the thudding footsteps got closer. Screaming internally, Rose dashed into elevator, flinging herself into the farthest corner. The stranger got in soon after. He jammed the "close door" button just as a mannequin reached an arm through the doors.
Shekinah helped tear the arm loose.
"Thank you," the man said, smiling genially, as if he'd been complemented. Rose, her life no longer in immediate danger, suddenly realized how absurd this all was. And that the leather-clad stranger had a strong Northern accent, but that thought could be saved for another time. He seemed to know what was going on. And she had a steadily growing list of questions.
Of course, when she opened her mouth, the first thing that came out was, "You just pulled his arm off!"
He didn't even look her way. "Yep. Plastic." He nonchalantly threw the arm over his shoulder at her. Shekinah snarled, startled. Rose caught it and screamed, half expecting it to shoot her or strangle her or something. It didn't, of course. It was just plastic.
"Yeah, real clever of you," she snapped, still staring warily at him. "But who were they? College students?" Even as she said it, she didn't believe it. She hadn't seen a single daemon in the room.
The man stood by the door, arms crossed. "Why would they be students?"
"I--I don't know!" Wasn't he supposed to be answering her questions? Perhaps if she played his weird little game, he would. "Who else would do this? A witch? I mean, yeah, they've got magic and stuff, but they're centuries old. Why would they waste their time pranking a shop girl? Got to be students. Maybe Gyptians, even. No--those things were probably robots of some kind," she realized. "That's why there were no daemons." It suddenly made sense. Well, except for the weird panther.
The man finally turned to look at her, smiling a little. "Well done there."
"Thanks," she replied, not sure how to respond.
"Completely wrong, of course, but good idea."
Rose, feeling frustrated, snapped, "Well, whoever they are, they'll have the police on them. I'll be telling Wilson about all this."
"Don't think the police'll be much good," the man remarked. "They've already killed a man." The doors slid open and he walked outside, not missing a beat.
Rose and Shekinah stared. "Oh God, that's where Wilson went," her daemon said, with hushed horror.
"Anyway, you won't have to worry about it," the man said confidently, as they exited, "because I am going to get you out of here." He turned to the elevator panel, pushing them to the side. He pulled out this small metal rod that resembled a torch with a blue light.
"But--this--" She got cut off as the buttons sparked. The man turned and ran off again. "Wait! Who are they? What are they? What's going on?"
"Living plastic. Creatures made of living plastic." He kept babbling and running, never running out of breath even as Rose’s lungs began to protest in empathy. "They're being controlled by a relay system on the roof. Which would be a big problem if I didn't come prepared." He pulled out this bulky, ominously beeping device that looked a lot like a bomb.
Shekinah, who'd been on guard the entire time, was almost ready to launch himself at the man now. Rose's alarms were screaming in her head. Before either of them could act, the panther from earlier came running up the hall. "Doctor, stop wasting time babbling to yourself," she snapped. "Where did--and who are you?" she demanded, eyeing the two of them with guardedness.
Oh. She was his. They were separated. Rose was practically quaking, but the man--doctor--just met the daemon's stare evenly."They're with me," he said, simply.
The panther narrowed amber eyes. "Doctor, you had better get the civilians out of here. We don't have--"
"--much time. Thank you, I'm aware." He turned back to Rose. "Anyway, I'm gonna go blow things up and possibly die in the process, but you heard her." He ran up the stairs to the door, pulling it open and ushering her out. "Go. Leave. Don't tell anyone, or you'll get them killed."
Not entirely sure what was going on, Rose half-stumbled into the open air. Dazedly, she looked around her, the night sky a welcome substitute for the concrete. A vague part of her realized she should have been grateful that she was alive.
Just as the door was shutting again, Shekinah yelled out, "Wait! What's your name?"
Rose clapped a hand to her mouth and stared at him. Had he just addressed the man?
The man opened the door again. "Oh! I forgot to tell you--"
"He's the Doctor," the panther said, curtly, "and I'm Eliyre."
"What's yours?" the Doctor asked, shooting his daemon a quick glare.
"Rose."
"Shekinah." He met the panther's glare admirably.
"Nice to meet you," the Doctor said, dipping his head. He held the bomb up again. "Now, Rose, Shekinah--run for your lives!"
The door slammed shut. Of course, they ran. After the first block, the shop exploded into a plume of fire. Their ears were ringing the rest of the way home.