Skeletal Fears
By Storms-Are-My-Nature
This was inspired by the fic-writing competition on . As I'm not a member, I can't enter, but the criteria sparked my imagination...
Set: after Day in the Death but before Exit Wounds and Fragments. So round about there – Owen's dead, basically. Kicked the bucket. Pushing up daisies (well, not literally...he's still walking around, isn't he?) and yadda yadda yadda. You get my gist.
Janto, Towen, Gwys...all the usual. Slight Gwen-bashing, but only if you look really hard...
Disclaimer: You caught me. I'm actually Russell T Davies in disguise, working undercover...
...please don't tell me you fell for that.
"Halloween, ey?" Owen Harper said as he flopped onto the couch in the Hub.
"What about it?" Toshiko Sato asked, looking over from her workstation. "Going trick or treating?"
The medic snorted. "There's no way you'd catch me going trick or treating!" he claimed. "It's for kids."
Toshiko looked slightly crestfallen. "Oh," was all she could say.
She had planned on asking Owen to go with her, have some fun. But if he thought it was for kids...
"You're right – we're a bit too old for that kind of thing," she lied, hoping it was convincing enough.
"Huh." Owen shot her a disbelieving glance and stood up again, heading into the autopsy bay. Toshiko thought it was bad for him to spend so much time down in that cold, pristine atmosphere, but she wouldn't mention it. It wasn't her business.
"Coffee?" a quiet voice behind her asked. She turned and smiled at Ianto, receiving the cup gratefully.
"Thankyou, Ianto," she said. She always made a point of thanking him for the things he did – it was all too easy to take him for granted.
"Owen in a mood?" Ianto asked suddenly.
Tosh was surprised at his perceptiveness. "Er – yes. You could say so."
"Shame he can't have coffee," Ianto said. "I bet that's what the sulking's about."
"It was about Halloween, actually," Tosh said shyly.
Ianto raised an eyebrow. "Perfect for it, isn't he?" he commented ironically.
"I guess."
He hefted the tray and smiled at her. "Anyway. Got to get coffee to the other two before they get caffeine withdrawal."
"Okay."
Tosh watched him go, before turning back to her computers. Jack wanted the translation programme for Friday, which only gave her two days. Not much to get the whole thing done, but what Jack said went.
Ianto vanished into the vaults after serving out the coffee – it was feeding time for the Weevils.
"My favourite time of the day," he muttered sarcastically to himself as he made his way down into the bowels of the underground Hub, plastic bag of raw meat in hand.
The Weevils were unusually quiet as he entered the vaults. Normally they were throwing themselves at the divide come feeding time, ravenous and growling.
But today was different. There were no boiler-suit-clad aliens hurling themselves at the divides, no furious yells and snarls. All was quiet.
Immediately Ianto was on his guard. He put his hand to his ear, ready to turn on the comms at the slightest thing. He glanced at the CCTV camera in the corner, reassured that he wasn't completely alone.
He wasn't sure why he was so nervous, but something about this set his teeth on edge. The hairs on the back of his neck were standing on end, and his hands felt cold and clammy.
Ianto walked down the central aisle, checking all the cells as he went.
They were all the same; curled up on their sides into tiny little balls and completely silent. Not a whiffle escaped them.
Ianto licked his lips and started down the next aisle. He had nearly reached the end when he heard a clattering behind him and he swung around, automatically reaching for the gun that wasn't there.
A skeleton was standing at the end of the aisle. The poor lighting made it hard to tell, but Ianto was sure that it was a Weevil skeleton. And, more importantly, it was coming toward him, slow and menacing.
Ianto reached his hand to the comms as the lights went out and the comms went dead. His heart started thumping in his chest, as if aware that it was about to be ripped out.
Ianto backed up against the cold wall, staring at the approaching bones in abject terror. He closed his eyes...
Couldn't resist leaving you on a cliff-hanger. Please tell me in your review (please leave one!! –sad puppy eyes-) whether you want me to update this fic next or my other fic, 'Splash'. Let me know!