Author's Note: This is the same leftover work as on my old page from the Ransom Riggs writing contest a few years ago. I didn't win, but I still have this entry saved to my Google Drive, so who really won, huh? You guys, my readers, did, of course!

It's not bad, all things considered, but I did have to step out of my comfort zone a little bit to write it.

This story is NOT Entireverse canon, although I suppose it could be if you squinted hard enough. Nevertheless, I hope you enjoy it.

-The Doctor (Do)

It had all begun exactly two months earlier.

Catriona, most of her friends, and her little sister Morrigan had escaped just as their loop that they had known and loved for decades collapsed into oblivion behind them. Ymbryne kidnapped, the only home most of them had ever known lost to the winds of time, they had traveled the northern wilds of December 1848, Scotland for about a week before ducking into a sympathizing loop outside of Glasgow. Soon, this loop was taken by the Enemy too, and the children were forced to go on the run again, ever southward. Twenty of their number had been taken by the wights, and one was killed by a rogue Cù-Síth in Ayrshire that had stalked them for days as they fled. Eventually, they had made it to Myron Bentham's home in a London loop, where the nine remaining children finally found the solace - and comfort - that they craved.

As Catriona was pushed through the numerous halls by ymbrynes who had escaped the destruction of their own loops, she had found herself gazing at a nearby loop entrance for no reason, the single plaque reading "The Northwoods Room" hanging on a door that was exactly like all others in the Panloopticon. The only thing that differentiated it from its fellows was the hastily-written sign hanging from its handle: FORBIDDEN.

But as Catriona tried to sleep that night, unable to drift off due to the image of the door remaining stubbornly in her mind, she found she was very bad at following orders.

One simple manipulation of electric fields later - for that was her peculiarity - and a moment of confusion when she found two deadbolts in the door instead of the customary single lock, and she knelt at a cold riverside in the middle of a dusky forest, gazing across the slate-gray water as it slowly flowed through the woods. Tall pines and birches rose into the sky and dotted the rolling terrain that reminded her of her former home. It was chilly in this loop, enough for her to see her breath and regret not taking a jacket when she had left earlier. The cold, still air cleared her mind and caused her to think deeply, now that the thrill of disobeying the ymbrynes' orders had worn off: Why had she been drawn to this loop in particular? Why had the door been deadbolted and locked when very few other entrances were? And why did she suddenly feel like she was being watched?

Instantly alert, Catriona began to instinctively aggravate the electrical fields around her as she prepared to defend herself, but she was still unprepared for the unseen attack that came next.

Catriona yelped and threw bolts of electricity everywhere, but this violent creature was too fast. It closed the distance between them much faster than she expected, dodging everything she had to offer. She was suddenly reminded of the Ayrshire Cù-Síth's implacable determination as it ran down Kristian, a memory that drove her to the ground even as this new creature closed in for the kill.

Just before the final bite came, however, another, more massive beast tore out of the woods, swept up the first with a single massive, clawed hand, and retreated into the still-growing darkness nearby. A wet crunching noise like bones being chewed up in a meat grinder issued from the dark and a tiny, still-rational part of her thought, Great, out of the frying pan and into the fire . . . I'm so sorry, Morrigan.

But what came next was not her death. Instead, a muscular young man with dark skin and craggy features edged out of the darkness and into the fading light. He wore nothing but a pair of worn trousers and the pelt of some kind of canine draped over his back, both of which somehow ending up complementing his rugged physique.

Focus, lass, he's still probably going to kill you! Catriona chided herself. She forced herself to more deeply analyze the newcomer - his bestial yellow eyes, his aggressive, yet casual stance, and, she realized with a jolt of confusion, the creature that had first attacked her securely tucked under one of his arms. The creature itself, now that she could see it clearly, was a lot stranger than she expected. It had a row of bone-white spikes running down its back, thick brown hair covering its body, and a weirdly expressive tusked mouth, which was currently showcasing a toothy grin as the young man absently scratched it behind its ears.

"What th' - look, I've had a really rough couple'a days, OK? I am NOT in the mood for gettin' my organs ripped out by yer messed-up - what is that thing, anyway?" Catriona shouted. Suddenly, a glut of questions crammed into her frontal lobe all at once and poured forth without any rhyme or reason. "Who are you? Where are we? When are we? And . . . where, exactly, did you come from?"

The young man scowled. "I could ask you more-or-less the same, outsider. We told Bentham to keep his . . . guests out of our loop years ago. Doesn't he observe the restrictions he's been given anymore?"

Catriona blinked. "Bentham? He's dead, mate. Sorry to break it t'ya."

A look of dread came over the newcomer's face. "Bentham . . . dead? Oh dear." He offered her a hand, which Catriona eagerly took. "Benny Naagloshii. Skinwalker, but please, don't let it frighten you. Unless you're secretly a jackrabbit in disguise, you have nothing to fear from me. This is Rhinelander, Wisconsin, and it's the morning of December 15th, 1893. Always has been. Come, follow me. Ms. Robin and Ms. Lokisdottir would love to meet you, I'm sure."

"But what is that thing you're holding? It almost made a meal out of me face!" Catriona asked indignantly.

Benny turned. "Oh, little Hokie here? He's Miss Robin's hodag. I'm sorry if he scared you, he just gets a little excited sometimes. You don't have them where you come from?"

"Never heard of 'em," she conceded. Benny began walking again, and one last thing nagged at Catriona's consciousness as she jogged to catch up with him. "Wait, Benny!"

"Yes?" the skinwalker answered, not looking back.

"How'd you an' your loop dodge the wights?"

At this, Benny stopped dead, turning towards Catriona once again. His yellow eyes were alight with confusion - and, perhaps, an instinctual, primal reaction of fear. "A wight? I don't think I've ever heard that name before . . . what is a wight?"

FIN