demonic possession? nbd {em!}

[Oswin Oswald]

The first thing that Oswin had done upon her arrival in the TARDIS was immediately commandeer the kitchen for herself. The Doctor rarely cooked, she'd found out, and even though her souffles left more to be desired, that wasn't the only thing she knew how to bake. It wasn't rare to find Oswin there between adventures, passing the time before she and the Doctor were off to wherever they were going to go.

Her hair bound back behind her head and an apron tied around her waist, Oswin hummed snatches of Carmen absent-mindedly, slipping a cookie sheet into the oven. While the Doctor normally stopped in for something, Oswin was mostly focusing on the new (temporary, she hoped, but not for malicious reasons) addition to the TARDIS.

While she hadn't ever been particularly good with children, even Oswin couldn't leave a girl lost in New York City, especially one that had been taken to this place in a way similar to the way she'd arrived in that graveyard. Besides, Oswin had to admit a certain fondness for Em. The girl reminded her of herself at that age, and Oswin didn't really have a doubt that she'd come along with her and the Doctor, if given the chance. Unfortunately, though, there really could be only one companion at a time.

Still, that hadn't stopped Oswin from offering a temporary place on the TARDIS. Em had needed somewhere to go, and she'd had the means. The Doctor hadn't minded either, but he had to be off somewhere right now, because Oswin hadn't seen him all morning. But, the Doctor was unpredictable, so she wasn't thinking much of that. Nope. Cookies were much more important at the moment.

Hopefully, Em hadn't been too overwhelmed by the TARDIS. Loads of people had been, Oswin was sure, and she was only a kid. She didn't come from a land of magic or anything of that sort. Another place in this time, probably. It sounded cruel, really, sending a kid all by herself into a strange place. Thankfully, Em had run into Oswin, who knew the Doctor, who could get her right back home as soon as she liked.

Once he was ready to move on, that is.

[em]

Spending a little time in New York hadn't been such a bad thing. There'd been something that had happened when she first arrived there - something bad - but the memory of it was oddly blurred and faded, though it had only occurred a few days ago. It didn't really bother her much. It wasn't the first time she'd experienced something of that sort; these things just happened as far as she knew. And while being in the city alone had been pretty scary, things had gotten significantly better since then - and that was mainly thanks to Oswin and The Doctor. They were good people, they'd given her a place to stay, and they were going to help her get back home!

That was one thing Em did worry about: how things were going back home. Her parents were probably frantic, and she didn't want them fighting because of her - they fought enough these days as it was. Her older sister, Hannah, would probably pretend she wasn't worried. She always pretended not to care when bad stuff happened, but Em knew she did. It would be okay, she kept telling herself, because they wouldn't have to worry about her much longer. Until then? Em very much intended to explore every inch of her new surroundings - particularly the time machine she was staying in! How cool was that? She bet that none of the kids in her class had ever gotten to experience something like this before!

At the moment, though, Em had something other than exploring on her mind. She was actually looking for a bit of company - her friend, the woman who came from the box, had been oddly...quiet these past couple of days. She kept the box safely hidden out of an ever-present fear that something might happen to it, but her friend had said that it was important that they only talk at night - when no one else was around. Em didn't mind so much right now, mainly because of her newfound friendship with Oswin. It was nice, having someone to talk to who you could actually see - a friend you didn't have to whisper to all the time, who you didn't have to keep a secret from everyone else for fear of being called 'crazy'. And beyond that, Oswin was just plain fun to be around! Not that the Doctor wasn't as well - but he was usually busy, and she'd gotten to spend considerably more time with Oswin during her stay here.

She eventually found the brunette woman in the kitchen - which, Em was beginning to guess, wasn't at all uncommon. "Hey Oswin! Did the Doctor go somewhere? It's all quiet and stuff around here." Em chirped with a cheery smile, before taking in the sight of the rest of the kitchen and quirking her head to one side in clear curiosity. "Whatcha making?" she asked, intrigued. Her mother didn't tend to bake much, being as much of a health nut as she was, so Oswin's habit was a fairly novel one to Em. But she was hardly complaining!

[Oswin Oswald]

At the moment, Oswin was too wrapped up in her baking to notice Em's approach. It was only when the girl spoke when she turned around and flashed her a bright smile. "Hello!" she greeted cheerfully, brushing a strand of hair that had managed to escape out of her eyes. "Couldn't really tell you, but I'd guess he's off tinkering a bit with the Old Girl. The TARDIS, that is." She had been spending too much time around the Doctor, hadn't she? She was beginning to pick up his nicknames for the ship. "Even time machines need a tune-up every now and again."

"Just finished a batch of biscuits. I...think you call them cookies here, yeah?" Oswin wasn't entirely well verse in American slang here, but she was pretty sure she'd gotten that right. Girl genius and all that. "Could make something else, though, if you'd like. 'S basically what I do while not adventuring through time and space." Baking and adventuring. Not a bad life indeed, especially considering what her life had been before. But, Oswin wasn't going to think about that. She'd done very little dwelling on the past even if it was looming over her just a little bit.

"Anyway!" Oswin clapped her hands together and gave Em a winning smile. "Could use some help, if you want me to make something else. Ever baked before?" Too late, Em. Even if she didn't want to bake, Oswin was off and running. Pulling down bowls and various utensils, she set them on the counter and took a peek at what they had left. "Hm. Doesn't look like we're short on anything." Not that they were ever short on anything, usually the TARDIS or the Doctor himself took care of that. Oswin...really didn't want to know how, nor did she particularly care. So long as she actually knew where her milk and eggs were coming from, everything was okay.

"Let's see...could make another batch, I suppose. No harm in making more, we'll eat them all eventually." Oswin's habit of talking to herself hadn't quite faded away yet, and she doubt it ever would. Thankfully, Em was there, so she could fool herself into believing that's who she was talking to. "Flour...sugar..." she murmured to herself, idly naming her ingredients as she found them. "Butter...eggs-" -terminate.

Oswin froze with a soft intake of breath. All right, maybe it was a given that that would pop into her head. It really hadn't been long. But it still sent a chill down her spine. No, no. Not now. Not with Em right there. Get a grip, Oswin.

"Eggs. Right. Sorry, thought we'd run out." It was a lame cover-up for her reaction, but certainly better than nothing.