stumbled forward. She stuck out her hands to block her fall against the door and felt a lurch in her stomach as her hands passed through the door with no more resistance than the surface of a pool of water. She flailed to regain her balance, failed, and landed hard on the cold stone floor of the passageway.
"Crap!"
It was several long moments before Jin could breathe normally again, and several more before she staggered to her feet, her hands pressed into the small of her back all the while. "Lousy old man... that hurt! Hey, Teacher! Where are you?"
No answer. Jin reached toward the door, hesitated, thought better of it. If he wasn't going to follow her now, that suited her fine. The sooner she was out and away from him, the better. Jin headed back down the passage at a brisk walk. Another moment and she was running. She ran until she was out of breath and had to stop; there was no end to the passageway in sight.
Jin told herself that this was some sort of trick. She could go back to her apartment, back to Pepper Street Legal Aid, back to her life. She wouldn't go down any more alleys or breathe anything Teacher Johnson set fire to. In time she could even forget that it happened, or chalk it up to a bad dream. She would be all right again, and if Teacher came anywhere near her she'd swear out a complaint and have him committed. She could do it; she knew the procedure. Teach the Teacher to mess with her...
"If I say it's not real, it's not real."
Jin started walking again for want of a better plan. She hadn't gone more than a few yards more along the passageway when she heard someone crying.
Fool me once ... "I'm not listening, Teacher. Whatever stunt you're pulling, however you're doing it, I don't care! It's not going to work this time, you hear me?"
Jin took another step and the crying stopped. "There, that's better -- "
"Fix him."
Jin shivered. There was a rustle of movement ahead of her, but she could see very little. No matter, it was not what she had seen that startled her -- the voice had been enough. It sounded like some unnatural mixing of the cry of a lost child and a madman.
"Who's there?"
What approached her then was a living shadow. It was small, maybe three feet high. She couldn't see its eyes, there was nothing but a greater darkness coming toward her out of the gloom, a darkness in the shape of a child. It held what looked like a broken doll.
"Fix him!"
Jin's notion of running around or over or through whatever she met in the passageway died then and there. She stopped. "Stay back!" In that instant the creature's eyes became visible, as if it had only now opened them, only now truly knew that she was there.
"Please..."
Please ?
It was several moments before the word registered, and the change in the voice, but even when it did there was no time to think about it just then. From one instant to the next Jin changed. The hands she held out to ward off the creature turned green, the nails became talons like those of some great cat. She towered over the shadow, impossibly large and, for an instant, she saw herself mirrored in the shadow's eyes. Not as Jin Hannigan, but a green-skinned horned demon, over eight feet tall. Jin recoiled in shock, but there were two screams in the dark passageway and only one belonged to Jin.
What's happened to me ?
Jin stared at her hands in horror. She raised them slowly to her face, felt rough scaly skin, tusks. She felt a roaring in her ears and for a moment the world went dim, and for a moment Jin thought that the light would go out completely and she would never find it again, never find herself again. For an instant Jin hovered there, hesitating between insanity and sheer blind terror as if unable to decide which way to run.
The tears brought her back.
Not her own tears though she knew she must be crying; her face was wet. She ignored that. The small shadow shaped like a child was crying. It huddled on the cold stone floor of the passageway. Jin took a step
"Crap!"
It was several long moments before Jin could breathe normally again, and several more before she staggered to her feet, her hands pressed into the small of her back all the while. "Lousy old man... that hurt! Hey, Teacher! Where are you?"
No answer. Jin reached toward the door, hesitated, thought better of it. If he wasn't going to follow her now, that suited her fine. The sooner she was out and away from him, the better. Jin headed back down the passage at a brisk walk. Another moment and she was running. She ran until she was out of breath and had to stop; there was no end to the passageway in sight.
Jin told herself that this was some sort of trick. She could go back to her apartment, back to Pepper Street Legal Aid, back to her life. She wouldn't go down any more alleys or breathe anything Teacher Johnson set fire to. In time she could even forget that it happened, or chalk it up to a bad dream. She would be all right again, and if Teacher came anywhere near her she'd swear out a complaint and have him committed. She could do it; she knew the procedure. Teach the Teacher to mess with her...
"If I say it's not real, it's not real."
Jin started walking again for want of a better plan. She hadn't gone more than a few yards more along the passageway when she heard someone crying.
Fool me once ... "I'm not listening, Teacher. Whatever stunt you're pulling, however you're doing it, I don't care! It's not going to work this time, you hear me?"
Jin took another step and the crying stopped. "There, that's better -- "
"Fix him."
Jin shivered. There was a rustle of movement ahead of her, but she could see very little. No matter, it was not what she had seen that startled her -- the voice had been enough. It sounded like some unnatural mixing of the cry of a lost child and a madman.
"Who's there?"
What approached her then was a living shadow. It was small, maybe three feet high. She couldn't see its eyes, there was nothing but a greater darkness coming toward her out of the gloom, a darkness in the shape of a child. It held what looked like a broken doll.
"Fix him!"
Jin's notion of running around or over or through whatever she met in the passageway died then and there. She stopped. "Stay back!" In that instant the creature's eyes became visible, as if it had only now opened them, only now truly knew that she was there.
"Please..."
Please ?
It was several moments before the word registered, and the change in the voice, but even when it did there was no time to think about it just then. From one instant to the next Jin changed. The hands she held out to ward off the creature turned green, the nails became talons like those of some great cat. She towered over the shadow, impossibly large and, for an instant, she saw herself mirrored in the shadow's eyes. Not as Jin Hannigan, but a green-skinned horned demon, over eight feet tall. Jin recoiled in shock, but there were two screams in the dark passageway and only one belonged to Jin.
What's happened to me ?
Jin stared at her hands in horror. She raised them slowly to her face, felt rough scaly skin, tusks. She felt a roaring in her ears and for a moment the world went dim, and for a moment Jin thought that the light would go out completely and she would never find it again, never find herself again. For an instant Jin hovered there, hesitating between insanity and sheer blind terror as if unable to decide which way to run.
The tears brought her back.
Not her own tears though she knew she must be crying; her face was wet. She ignored that. The small shadow shaped like a child was crying. It huddled on the cold stone floor of the passageway. Jin took a step
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