Nightshift 34: Rec Field

[got_the_bronze]

[from here]This was a bit more like it. Definitely a different outside area than she'd been earlier. It looked a bit like a football field, but why a hospital would have one of those... Although, why a hospital would be staffed by cats was an equally good question, but New New York had those, didn't it

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[human_sponge]

A few had passed by, and a few were lingering and waiting. It was hard to pick one out of the crowd, but he would have to move on to the others later, once he had gotten this first girl back inside.

He had already let a few slip through his fingers, and he couldn't let that keep up. This one was on her own. Didn't she know how dangerous it was to be out here?

He had been cloaking himself up until now, just watching. He moved up behind her now, letting himself become visible again as he placed a hand on her shoulder.

"Hey," he started, sounding concerned, "what are you doing out here? Don't you know it isn't safe?" He was unarmed, wearing a black jacket, white shirt, and black slacks. If it wasn't for the fact that he had come out of nowhere and wasn't in the normal uniform, he might have been able to pass for any other patient. Maybe he still could.

But if the girl didn't cooperate...

[got_the_bronze]

Rose jumped when what she had thought to be thin air started talking. But it turned out she was wrong - there'd been a man there all along, apparently, she'd just missed him. Unless he could turn invisible or something, which was a bit silly.

"Yeah, I've been warned, thanks," she assured him, smiling. He wasn't dressed like everyone else seemed to be, either staff or, uh, 'patient.' Maybe once you'd been here awhile you got your clothes back, or something? "Does everybody get their clothes back at night?" she asked. That was the other possibility. "I'm new here, I guess they're keeping me in the dark about some things." Wow, that joke was bad even for her. But it was, undeniably, really dark out here.

"Sorry, what was your name? I'm Rose."

[human_sponge]

She kept on talking, words that didn't matter all that much in the end. He had a job to do, and he couldn't let her try to stall just because she wanted to be out here longer. They were close to the way out - if he let her get over that wall, it would be considered a failure.

Peter kept his impatience off of his face, but it was obvious enough in the way he grabbed her arm. "Listen, we don't have time for this. I can't let you stay out here."

He started walking back toward the building with the intent to pull her along, hoping that she wouldn't put up a fight. He could feel all of his power, right at his fingertips, almost asking to be used. There was so much he could do now, so many things he could pull from.

[got_the_bronze]

"Hey!" Rose jerked automatically when he grabbed her arm. "Hey, lemme go!" He was stronger than she was, but she dug her heels into the soft grass, trying to stop him dragging her along. Apparently not everyone here was as friendly as the people she'd chatted with during the day.

"What d'you think you're doing?" she demanded angrily, struggling to pull free of his grasp. "I can be out here if I want!" There might not be any truth in those words - she really didn't know where she was and what was and wasn't allowed. But she knew she wasn't meant to be here at all. She needed to find the Doctor and they needed to get out of here, and that wasn't gonna happen with some scrawny bloke shoving her around whenever she did something he didn't like.

[human_sponge]

"No, you can't," Peter responded with a quick shake of his head. Didn't all of these people realize that they weren't playing by the rules? He ran a hand through his hair, trying to decide how to best go about this. She wasn't reacting the way he had wanted her to, but she hadn't proved to be completely hostile yet. "All of the patients are supposed to stay in their rooms." Suddenly his tone became a little more flat, like the line was rehearsed, or imprinted in his mind.

Super strength. He closed his eyes for a moment, remembered Niki (they had barely known each other, but they had shared the same space once, and that had been enough), and then grabbed for her arm again, this time with a grip that couldn't easily be pulled out of.

He did his best not to crush her arm, but he didn't have perfect control over this ability yet. "Now come with me, to where it's safe," he said, and once again he started to pull.

[got_the_bronze]

That hurt! Rose tried to twist out of his grip, but he had suddenly become very strong, stronger than should be possible for a human. "I don't need coddling!" she assured him indignantly, trying to pull free and failing. "I'm plenty used to places that aren't safe and I can take care of myself!"

If she'd been a little less confused, and a little less annoyed, she might have noticed the flatness in his voice, might even have figured out that this was what the intercom had meant by 'special counseling.' But as it was, she could only see this guy as one thing: a huge prat.

"Get off!" But he wasn't getting off, he was just yanking her along like he was king o' the bloody football field. So she raised one foot and slammed it down hard towards the back of his knee.

[human_sponge]

"That doesn't mean you can break the rules," Peter said, his voice low now, and not similar to the more concerned, genuine tone he had used earlier. His mind was all mixed up, pressed by a need to follow orders.

To use force if necessary.

When she jammed her foot against the back of his leg, it was enough to cause him to stumble forward and let go of her. Figuring she might bolt when given such an opportunity, he recovered as quickly as he could. He spun around toward her and held his hand up. With a small twist of his wrist, he was able to hold her in place using only his mind.

"Don't make this harder than it needs to be," he said, shaking his head. "I can't let you leave this place." If it weren't for him, dogs or whatever else could be ripping her to shreds right now.

He quickly glanced around the area, noticing more patients who were passing by. He needed to get her out of here so he could deal with them.

[got_the_bronze]

The moment he fell, Rose turned to run, but suddenly every muscle in her body froze. She couldn't move at all! How was he doing this?

"What're you doing?!" Rose demanded, getting a bit freaked out now. She struggled against whatever was holding her, but it felt like pushing against cement. It was like being back in the dormant TARDIS, the Doctor trapped in the future, and all she could do was yell at Mickey to push the gas pedal harder. No Doctor, no way to do anything. Trapped. She hated it, hated this feeling.

[human_sponge]

The longer he used this particular power, the more he remembered his first meeting with Sylar, who he had taken it from. It had its adverse effects (as if his mind hadn't been played with enough already) and for a moment he started to lift the girl up. He toyed with the idea of playing with her, closing off her throat passage--

But this wasn't about playing, and soon enough he lowered her until her feet hit the ground again. Peter walked over to her until they were almost face to face, but he didn't let go of his hold. Not just yet.

"Will you listen to me now?" he asked. "I'm doing this for your own good."

[got_the_bronze]

And now he was lifting her off the ground. What was he, tele... telekinetic? That was something out of a superhero movie, not something you found in real life. At least, she didn't think so. But up until a year and a half ago, she didn't believe in aliens, either. Maybe it was some kind of force field. There was obviously a rational explanation, which had nothing whatsoever to do with comic books.

Rose let out a tiny sigh of relief when her feet hit the ground again, but she still couldn't move.

When he walked around in front of her, she could finally get a good look at him. Younger than she'd thought - maybe six or seven years older than her - and thin. With an impressively silly fringe.

"I can decide what's for my own good, so you better back the hell off!" she snapped.

[human_sponge]

Peter didn't see why she thought she was in the position to negotiate, and he didn't respond, too busy trying to figure out how he should get her back into the building. Carrying her would work, but she would probably start kicking and screaming, and there was too large of a chance that he would hurt her in that case.

It was best to stick with the telekinesis for now, even though using it clouded his head.

So, as he started to walk back toward the institute, he kept one hand pointed behind him, toward the girl, to mentally pull her after him. The distance wasn't too much to cover, and it didn't look like anyone else wanted to interrupt, so it should work out well enough, as long as he could convince her to stay inside.

[timedork]

[From here]

The Doctor had been pleasantly surprised when the door he'd gone through proved to lead outdoors, but the satisfaction short-lived, as he quickly spotted a conflict rather than the police box he'd been hoping to find.

He couldn't make out the details, but he had been able to see and hear enough to realize that the young man (who didn't seem to be a patient, or at least wasn't wearing the patient uniform) was actively trying to hurt or otherwise coerce the blonde girl. Maybe this was what Martin Landel had meant by impeding progress or maybe it wasn't, but if the man was hurting the blonde, that put him instantly on her side.

...And it wasn't just because she sounded like Rose, either. No, that had nothing to do with helping the girl. Well... Maybe it had something to do with it, but overall, his decision was based on justice and peace and goodwill. Things like that. Obviously.

He had to wonder, however, as he hurried across the field, why the girl wasn't running. Was it merely an argument between friends? If

[got_the_bronze]

Rose dug her heels in again when he started pulling her after him - this time without even touching her - but it was no use. Something, whether it was really telekinesis or a force field or a thing she couldn't think of, was moving her and she couldn't seem to stop it.

Out of the corner of her eye, she thought she saw someone running towards her, but all her attention was focused on not letting the It's Not Safe guy drag her anywhere she didn't want to go.

What she really wasn't expecting was a hand sliding into hers and a very familiar voice whispering, "Run!" It was the same tone he'd used the very first time she'd seen him (even if it was a bit less Northern now), and it kicked her instincts into high gear. When the Doctor grabbed your hand and told you to run, something was usually about to blow up.

It was at that moment that she felt the stranger's grip on her slacken, and she took full advantage of it to follow the Doctor's lead and dash to the nearest door.

[to here]

[human_sponge]

If there was one thing Peter hadn't expected, it was help. Still, it looked like some patients here had some sense in them, and the man that came to the girl's aid was welcome as far as he was concerned. Especially since the moment Peter paused and released his hold on the girl, she went running off just like that