The Impossible Hunter

Chapter Eighteen

Oswin trekked gently along the path, unsure how far or how close ahead the shifters might be.

The biggest thought on her mind as she hiked along was when the shifter would have seen Oswin to take her form, and why - plus how for that matter - the Doctor was plaguing her nightmares. Oswin had never met him before... had she? Oswin had just become a hunter three years ago, and only ever hunted one shifter, which she definitely killed. She hit it once with a throwing star, stabbed it twice for good measure, then burned the body. There was no way that thing could have lived to become one of the two they were hunting now.

Maybe djinn could see into the future? If that was the case, Oswin didn't want to know what this Doctor would do in order to make him her worst nightmare. There was some upside to meeting him here though; the explanation that he was a shifter was a load off her mind in the area of wondering why she thought all the men in her nightmare were the same person.

But why did she feel the need to save him? She was hunting these shifters. One of them stole her face. Oswin didn't feel any sympathy towards him. Because of the Doctor, she couldn't take a nap without drinking dream root tea - which actually made her feel really good - but not being able to fall asleep without taking an hour to prepare it got pretty annoying.

She heard a noise up ahead and quickly slipped behind a tree.

"Clara, I know you're following me," a man called in a Scottish accent.

Oswin tensed up. They knew she was there.

"Oh for crying out loud, what're you still hiding from?" The Doctor called. Oswin slid out from her hiding spot, holding her throwing star behind her back. The Doctor was alone, his back to her, scanning the roots of a nearby tree with a buzzing rod that glowed green at the tip.

"I'm not as cross as you think. I actually need you. How good are you at climbing trees?" The Doctor asked. Oswin just stared. He thought she was the shifter.

"Clara! Time is of the essence! Trees? Do you climb?" The Doctor was waving his hands as though to encourage her to spit it out.

Oswin felt anger starting to well in her heart. That shifter stole her first name too. She was going to enjoy stabbing that bitch to death with a throwing star.

"Did you change you clothes?" The Doctor suddenly asked. Oswin opened her mouth to stutter an excuse, but the Doctor cut her off, "Forget it. Climb this tree! Chop chop! Here take the sonic," he handed her the rod and gestured to a tree at least thirty feet tall.

Oswin looked at the Doctor, then strange rod in her hand, then the tree, and then back at the Doctor.

"Well go on!" He exaggerated his previous gesture to the tree like she was slow.

Oswin was still staring at him, "You're kidding," she said flatly.

"What's with the accent? You gone native already?" The Doctor asked. He shook his head dismissively, "Nevermind that, just get in the tree."

"I'm not climbing a thirty-foot tree for you!" Oswin snapped.

The Doctor rolled his eyes, "It's only twenty-eight! She goes American and suddenly she's too good to climb trees for you!"

"Yes! Accurate assessment!" Oswin retorted.

"Fine then you're going back to the Tardis! For good this time!" The Doctor ordered.

The concentration in Oswin's argument was broken, "The what?"

"The Tardis! Now! Go!" The Doctor pointed in the general direction from which she had come. Was that... The box? Was the blue phone booth called the Tardis?

"I..." She searched for a response that wouldn't blow her cover, "I can't find it. Big forest. Lots of trees. Got lost."

"Well maybe if you climbed a tree you'd be able to see it," the Doctor said. Oswin gave him a pointed glare.

"Fine," the Doctor gave an exaggerated sigh, "I'll take you back to the Tardis, but then I have to figure out why we're here," he started walking quickly in the direction she had come. Oswin followed but was getting a bit nervous. Dean was still in the box. Or worse, he was still trying to break in. Sam was always better at lock picking.

Suddenly a thought struck Oswin; if the Doctor told the other shifter to go back to the Tardis, that meant she most likely ran into Dean. Shit.

Keeping one eye on the Doctor, she subtly pulled out her phone and texted Dean, "Poughkeepsie." The boys had taught her that word; their code for "Drop everything and run."

Oswin's pulse was off the charts as she tried to think of something that would stall the Doctor long enough for Dean to run, without her having to fail at climbing a tree. She drew a blank. The Doctor kept walking ahead of her, and they were close now.

"I think I can find my way back from here," Oswin said.

"Oh no you don't! If the Tardis brought us here, it's dangerous. You can't be wandering off, because I'm not saving you. I'll lock you in the Tardis myself if I have to!" His Scottish accent peppered the words. Oswin was screwed. This guy wasn't giving up. Even worse, Dean wasn't texting back to let her know he was out.

The Tardis came into sight, and Dean and the shifter were no where to be seen. Oswin was relieved, but also a bit worried. Where else would they be?

"Wait!" Oswin blurted. The Doctor turned around and gave her an inquiring look.

"Uh... I..." She panicked, "I'll climb the tree for you?" Fuck.

The Doctor took a step towards her, "No, you won't."

With that he put his hands on both of her temples. Oswin felt her mind grow cloudy and her knees buckle as her eyes rolled back into her head and everything went dark.

....

Aye, don't hate me for another short chapter. I'm SLAMMED with homework. This was meant to be much longer but I had to cut it in half in order to publish something. I didn't want to keep you guys waiting two weeks.

Once again, I'll update as soon as I can. Love y'all! Thank you sah much for almost 900 reads!