Title: Life and Love
Authors: Lia (unshakespearean), Emma (does not have an account), Aurora (Aurora Sanders), Brandy (SupernaturalFandom), and Seraphina (The Mad Traveler)
Fandom: Torchwood
Characters: [Gwen, Jack] [Tosh, Owen] Ianto, Rhys, and Myfanwy!
Rated: T
Warnings: Language, and lots of it. Also, major Rhysbashing
Notes: This takes place sometime after Owen is brought back to life.
"Fucking hell," Jack muttered when the goddamn Rift alarm went off again. "That's the fifth time," he said.
"Actually, it's the seventh," Ianto piped up. "I've kept count."
Jack rolled his eyes. "Of course you did," he said. "Well, anyway, we've got to see what the hell that is… Gwen, Toshiko, you're with me. Owen, Ianto, congratulations; you get to stay home. Come on." And with that, he lead Gwen and Tosh out of the cog door.
Gwen rushed after Tosh and Jack out of the Hub. If the rift alarm was ringing seven times, something major had to be going on. It wasn't like it was the minor downward spikes from the time that boy had disappeared — it was major action, larger than the average movement of something coming out of the Rift.
Gwen hoped that nothing happening was going to leak into her life. Or did she? Some things might be convenient.
"Gwen. We've got a major crisis going on right now," came in a call from the police station. Specifically Andy. "Four members of the police force have disappeared."
Who's the fifth? Gwen wondered.
Andy continued on, and it was evident that he was at least a little bit pleased. "And...so has Rhys."
Gwen dropped her phone and it clattered to the floor. "Gwen? Gwen, please say something," Andy said through the phone. "Gwen!"
Jack walked up to her side. "What happened?" he asked. She said nothing, her face turning paler and paler.
Toshiko decided to use her massive intellect and actually, y'know, grabbed the phone to find out what had happened. "It's Andy, right?" she said as she put the phone to her ear.
"Yeah," said Andy. "It's Rhys. He's vanished."
"Oh," Tosh said. "That-that explains stuff-It's Rhys," she quickly repeated when Jack looked at her.
"Oh, shit," Jack muttered, although he didn't fully mean it. Frankly, he thought the world would be better off without that douchebag in it, but he didn't say this.
Dear God, please help me say this without choking, he thought. He wasn't one for prayer, but in this moment, it seemed to apply. "We'll get him back," he said. "I promise we'll get him back." And he pulled Gwen closer to him, knowing that despite the fact that he'd literally rather be stabbed to death multiple times over than bring that fucker back into the world, it was for the better. It would make Gwen happy, and that's what mattered to him.
Gwen let Jack hug her, wondering if he even wanted to bring Rhys back. So many people wouldn't. She'd thought they'd mostly gotten along at the wedding — maybe.
"Toshiko, do we have any way of getting back people who've fallen through the Rift?" Gwen asked her, more in control of her emotions than she'd been before. This was too close to Diane's disappearance for comfort. Despite opening the rift, Owen hadn't been able to get her back. Maybe she'd just gotten lucky with him coming back.
Maybe she was out of luck now. She'd put him in danger so many times, it was surprising he'd lived this long.
"Do you wonder if these attacks are targeted?" asked Tosh, who seemed to be the only one remaining non-emotional in the situation.
"No idea," said Jack. "Ianto, do background checks. See what connects these people, other than the police force since the latest victim isn't on it."
"On it, sir," Ianto said immediately. He went to the computers and began typing in commands. "The first four victims all have multiple connections, but the fifth is a complete outlier. It doesn't look like he's crossed paths with any of them before… There's gotta be something…" He continued typing in commands and sighed. "Nothing. Nothing I can find, except for the obvious."
"There's something obvious?!" Jack exclaimed. "Then why the fuck didn't you say something?!"
"Because I figured you already knew, and didn't want to think about it unless it was the only answer."
"Fucking hell," Jack muttered. "Okay, I lied. It's a targeted attack, but slow. Whoever this is, they're taking a path, and it's only a matter of time before it gets to what-who-it really wants. But getting to is where it ends. It might get to its target, it might come close, but there's no way in hell that I'm letting it succeed. Toshiko, give me that phone," he ordered. Tosh tossed him the phone. "Andy, tell us everything."
"Killing everyone I care about isn't the answer!" Gwen screamed.
Ianto looked over at her. "You...doing okay, Gwen?"
"Obviously she's not, you twat, her husband was just taken into the Rift." Owen snapped.
"It's not just that," Gwen's voice shook. "It feels like there's something in my head."
"Gwen! You didn't by any chance go down into the vaults lately, did you?" Tosh demanded.
"Yes…" Gwen admitted. "A Weevil had gone rogue and Jack and Ianto were out, so it was up to me to sedate it. What's wrong with that?"
"It's just...There was an uncategorized species down there." Tosh answered.
"And you think it was making the Weevil go rogue?" Ianto asked.
"We...don't really know what it's capable of," Tosh looked down at the computer.
"It wants...life. That's all I can understand." Gwen told them. "And I think life means you, Jack."
Ianto cracked a smile. "What the hell is so funny?" Owen snapped.
"It didn't go after me," Ianto said.
Owen didn't pick up on what Ianto meant, of course. "Well, what the hell are we going to do? I mean, we know Gwen's next, but what now?"
"Well, first of all, Gwen's not next," Jack said firmly. "Whatever happens, it's not having her. Or any of you," he added quickly, noticing Ianto's smile widening ever so slightly. He did know what Ianto meant, and he wasn't sure that he liked it. "You said it wants life. How do you know that?"
"It just-it's cold," said Gwen. "It's cold, inside, and-ah!" She winced.
"Gwen? Gwen, talk to me," Jack said, grabbing her shoulders.
"It's like-it's sucking the life out of me," she whispered. "I can feel it…" She shivered, her hands shaking.
Jack placed the back of his hand on her forehead. "Oh my God," he said. "You're freezing. Humans can't survive-"
Her knees buckled and she collapsed, her eyes rolling back into her head before closing.
Gwen felt herself sucked into the darkness. She'd said no, no you can't have Jack, and apparently, the alien's solution had been to take her instead.
She knew if Jack knew that she'd basically sacrificed herself for him, he'd be barging right in. But too many people had died for her already. She was just a mortal person, a former police agent and Jack Harkness was immortal and deserved to stay that way. He'd almost died because of her actions trying to save Rhys before, and she wasn't going to let him absorb the shock waves of everything that happened in her life anymore.
"Gwen!" Jack shouted as he caught Gwen's collapsing form. "Gwen-OWEN!"
Owen ran over to them and felt for a pulse. "She's alive, but she's failing. She's failing fast."
"Stabilize her," Jack commanded. "Stabilize her, and then tell me what to do so I can keep her there. I'm not leaving her."
"Right, we'll save the world, without knowing what we're doing," Owen said snarkily. "Jack, we need her. She's the only one who-"
"She's the only one who's about to die," Jack interrupted. "Stabilize her, and then go with Toshiko and Ianto and take care of whatever the hell this is."
"Fine," Owen said. "Come on."
Owen brought Gwen to the operating area in the Hub, knowing for sure that if he wasn't technically dead, Jack would kill him if he let Gwen die.
After plugging Gwen into an IV and putting blankets over her, her eyes opened. But it wasn't the Gwen he knew.
"This body is weak," came a raspy voice. "She will die if I take control of her. The immortal should know that he is the only option."
"Fine," Jack said firmly. "Take me. Give her back and then take me instead."
"Jack," Owen warned. "Jack-"
"TAKE ME!" Jack shouted. "What do I have to do?"
"You just have to come a little closer; your body is stronger than that of the infernal human… Your body will suffice for the energy I need to survive," the disembodied voice bellowed to the crew.
Jack stumbled over his words, but he kept calm and confident. "If you're going to hurt anyone, it's going to be me; nobody hurts my friends! Tosh, try and analyze whatever is draining her body of energy so we can see if it can be stopped! For now," Jack muttered, "let's see if I can distract it for awhile."
"You said all I had to do was come closer?" Jack asked, picking his head back up, controlling his loud heartbeat.
"Yes. And you'll get your friend back. All I need is you." The voice said coyly, sounding like it was laughing at him.
Jack had to think of something quick, to get everyone out of this situation with no one hurt, but he was drawing a blank, which was unusual for him.
"Jack, if you're going to do something, do it quickly," said Owen. "She's failing. It's taking her faster. She's going to die. She has three minutes at maximum, and then she's gone, and we haven't even thought about the other people who have vanished."
"Yeah, I don't really care about that," said Jack.
"In all fairness, if you bring her back, bringing Rhys back might be a good idea," Ianto pointed out.
"Then go do it," said Jack. "Toshiko, anything?"
"It's literally eating her," said Tosh. "Taking all of the energy her body uses to function and absorbing it. But it's more than usual energy. It's her life force."
"It said it wanted life," said Owen.
"Well, that is something I have a lot of," said Jack. "Fine. Take me, and leave her alone."
"So protective," sneered the voice. "So protective of the human girl, and for what? The thrill of the chase? You'll never win," it said. "You'll never have her."
"Even better reason to take me," Jack said. "End it. End the whole thing, and take me. Leave her alone, and take me." He stepped closer to her. "Ianto?"
"Yeah?"
"Bring Rhys back, and do everything you possibly can to keep them together. I want her to be happy." His voice broke and he bent down to her. "Gwen," he said softly. "You'd better be happy for me. You'd better fucking be happy for me, or I'll be leaving these idiots for nothing."
"Jack, you're fucking mental," said Owen.
Jack whirled on him. "Yeah? Next time Toshiko's dying because some fucking shithead alien is eating her from the inside, and you wish you weren't already dead because then you could take her place, I'll call you mental, and see how you fucking like it."
Owen blushed profusely. "One minute," he said.
"One minute, eh?" Jack said. "One minute." He grinned. "Well, that'll be easy enough."
"What'll be?" Owen asked.
"I can hold my breath for one minute," said Jack, and he bent down and kissed Gwen. As he did, he glowed gold.
"What the hell is he doing?" Owen asked.
"I think he might be saving her life," Ianto supplied as Gwen turned gold herself.
There was a scream, that of the thing inside her, and red flame came out of her mouth, and then her eyes fluttered open.
"What the hell did you do to her!" Owen shouted with a look of disbelief on his face, while looking around at the others, and from their reaction, they seemed it was perfectly normal. Jack became pale, as it seemed he was absorbing the creature that was inside Gwen. He opened his mouth as the wispy and hoarse voice from before came streaming out of his mouth.
"This body shall do quite nicely, it seems it does not break easily…" Suddenly, Jack's eyes became a sickly shade of orange as the voice seemed to wreck havoc on his already diverse system.
"I can't control my body!" He shouted as the voice quickly kept him from continuing his sentence.
"Jack!" Gwen screamed as he started to jerk a little.
"Gwen, no! Stay back!' Owen screamed back at her as she moved closer to Jack, wanting contact.
She looked back at everyone, panic in her eyes.
"Someone save him! Please?" She cried, reaching out for his hand.
"You can't save him now, he's mine." The voice cackled, using Jack as a mouthpiece now, making him jerk a little out of Gwen's reach.
"Leave him alone!' Gwen cried again as she looked back towards Ianto. "Do something. Bring him back to me!"
"You'll never have him," said the voice. "You'll never have him, as he'll never have you."
Gwen's phone rang. "I've got it," Toshiko said nervously. "Hello?"
"It's Andy. Tell Gwen that everyone's come back… even Rhys." Tosh could hear the frown in Andy's voice, and she couldn't help but be cheered. "Are you guys alright?"
"Not really, no," said Tosh. "I'll call you back, alright?" She flipped the phone closed. "The people have been returned," she said. "You let them come back. Why?"
"They were worthless," said the voice. "Merely a way to scare the immortal into surrendering himself. How easily he's bent, all for one stupid. human. child."
"Oh yeah?" Ianto turned to the possessed Jack. "That's where you've got it wrong, whatever the hell you are. Because Gwen doesn't bend him. Gwen sets him straight. Gwen's the one who brings him back to us where he belongs, every time. Every single time." He turned to Gwen. "Gwen, on a scale of one to ten, exactly how much do we need Jack back."
"Ten," said Gwen without a hesitation.
"Alright, now on a scale of one to ten, how much do you need Jack back?" Gwen looked at him. "Don't think about me or anyone else, and don't you even think about thinking about your stupid husband. For once in your goddamn life, think about yourself. How much do you need him back?"
Gwen gulped, but then nodded. "Eleven," she said. The creature stepped back as though it had been hurt. "Eleven. No, twelve. No, thirteen, fourteen, fifteen! Twenty! Fifty! One hundred out of ten! Two hundred!" As she said this, the thing stepped back in pain, collapsing to the ground.
"Say it," said Ianto, softly. "Say it. You know you want to."
"I-I can't," Gwen whispered.
"Yes you can," said Ianto.
"No, I can't," said Gwen. "I can't, because anything I could say wouldn't be anywhere close to what I mean. There's only one way I can say it properly," she said.
"And what's that?" Ianto asked.
For the first time, Gwen smiled. "Toshiko, do me a favor and point a CCTV at me. Right now."
"On it," said Tosh, "but I don't know why you want to-"
Gwen took off her wedding ring and threw it to the ground before stomping on it multiple times. She picked it up again and chucked it at the wall. "Send that to Rhys," she said. "Send that to Rhys. Right now."
Tosh looked at Gwen in awe.
'Are...are you sure, Gwen?' Tosh asked, playing with the camera now.
"Yes, I'm sure. Now, if you don't mind, I have someone to save." Gwen smirked, looking down at Jack, who was still twitching a little, but not as much as before.
"You can't save him." The voice said, sounding weak.
"Yes, I can." Gwen smiled. "Because I love him. Do you hear that, Jack Harkness? I love you!"
Tosh and Ianto cheered, knowing that Gwen needed to get that out, and that it would save Jack in some way or another.
Except it didn't seem to work. Jack slumped down and collapsed, eyes closing. "Jack!" Gwen screeched. She ran over to Jack and shook him. "Jack, please wake up." She felt his neck. "No pulse," she said. "He'll be back. He always comes back."
Except he didn't. If anything, his skin grew colder, his face paler.
"Great," Tosh muttered. "She confesses her love and then he dies. Fucking hell."
"Jack," Gwen whispered, and she began to cry, clutching onto Jack and curling close to him, as though he would wake up suddenly and hold her, telling her that all of this was just a bad dream. "Please come back."
"You could kiss him again," Ianto suggested. "Tends to work."
Gwen leaned up and kissed him softly. "I love you," she whispered again. "Please don't leave me."
Nothing.
Ianto, Tosh, and Owen expected her to scream, to throw something, the way she usually did when she was angry, but she didn't. She sank to the ground and curled into herself, silently weeping.
"Alright, it's my turn," said Ianto. He walked right up to Jack and slapped him across the face. "She's broken," he said, steely calm. "She's broken. Gwen Cooper is crying because she is broken, heartbroken, and she needs you, and if that's not enough to bring you back I don't know what the hell is." He stepped away from Jack. "Come on, Jack," he muttered.
"Goddamn, your slaps are fucking painful," came a weakened but still clear American voice.
Gwen looked up to see that Jack was slowly sitting up. "Now, I believe that I have to deal with a few things," he said. "First of all, it would please everyone to know that whatever the fuck that thing was, is gone for good."
"Yeah, yeah, great," said Owen. "Can we please cut to the bit that actually matters?"
Gwen stared at Jack in disbelief and then started laughing. This was just like him, nothing but business. Jack turned his head toward her and smirked a little.
"What are you laughing at, Cooper?' He asked as he stood up, rubbing his arms, making sure they were okay.
"You. You...little coy bastard!" Gwen snorted, reaching out for his hand so he could help her up.
Owen, Tosh, and Ianto started laughing too, knowing where she was getting at.
"Ya, know. I think the whole figuring alien things out can wait a little while." Ianto smirked, looking back and forth between Gwen and Jack as he helped her up.
"It can NOT wait!' Jack started, puffing out his chest.
Gwen punched him in the arm lightly, smiling at him as she did so.
"Yes it can, you insensitive jerk." She snorted, now crossing her arms.
"What do you want from me? We've got a job to do!" Jack said, throwing his hands in the air, exhausted.
"Dammit, Jack. You sure aren't thinking, are you?" Owen shot at him, smirking now.
Jack sighed, bringing his hands back down to his side as he rolled his eyes. He reached out for Gwen's hand gently, and for the first time in his life, unsure.
"Fine. Happy now?" He asked everyone as he finally grabbed Gwen's hand and squeezed it.
Gwen looked up at him with her bright green eyes and he could feel something tugging inside of him. "Gwen," he said softly. "Oh, Gwen… my Gwen-" He broke off and pulled her close, sealing their lips together, and for the first time in a hundred and fifty years, something finally felt right, like pieces of a puzzle fitting together. The others were right, the aliens could wait. They could wait forever.
Gwen could feel the tears falling free as Jack kissed her passionately, but she wasn't sure whether she was happy or sad or both or neither. She felt her feet leave the floor as he swept her up off of the ground, his lips still pressed to hers.
As much as she didn't want it to end, she had to breathe, so she reluctantly pulled away and nuzzled her head into the crook of his neck, hoping he wouldn't put her down. She could spend forever like this.
Letting her go was never an option in Jack's mind. However, he was tired, and standing with her was becoming difficult. "Ianto, I need a chair," he said.
"Yeah, I thought of that about five minutes ago," Ianto laughed. "Sit back."
Jack sank into the chair, Gwen still snuggled in his arms. "I hope you don't have anywhere you need to be," he whispered, kissing her again very softly. "Because I don't plan on letting you go."
"Nowhere I need to be is more important than being right here." She whispered, playing with the bottom of his shirt.
"I...I think we need to go...do…" Tosh started, looking between Ianto and Owen uncomfortably.
"Do some paper work or something." Owen offered, looking toward the door, hoping for a quick escape.
"Then go. We can handle ourselves." Jack said dismissively, still staring into Gwen's eyes and he reached up and started to stroke her cheek.
Owen, Ianto, and Tosh quickly and quietly shuffled out of the door and left Jack and Gwen to themselves.
"This makes me happy." Jack sighed, resting his forehead onto Gwen's still never breaking eye contact with her.
He couldn't believe that after all this time, he finally found the one person he had been looking for and it was Gwen Cooper, of all people.
"It makes me happy too, Jack." Gwen whispered back, putting her hand on top of his and she leaned her cheek into it. "Kiss me again."
"As you wish," Jack smirked, leaning down to kiss her, this time softly as he tangled his fingers into her hair and pulling her even closer into him.
Gwen sighed into the kiss and wrapped her arms around Jack's neck, tangling her own fingers into his hair. God do I love him, she thought. She could feel her stomach swooping and she closed her eyes lazily, not really kissing back, letting Jack take the lead as he tended to. This was the best moment of her entire life.
Rhys really should go missing more often, she decided.
And then she remembered.
Rhys.
Oh, God. Tosh had sent the footage; he'd surely seen it by now, and he was bound to come storming in-
The sound of the tourist office being whirled through in search of a certain button could be heard throughout the entire Hub.
Gwen froze in Jack's arms, knowing what was coming. Jack heard the noise too, and smiled as he continued the kiss. In fact, he held her tighter and started to kiss harder.
"Jack…" Gwen whispered, trying to pull back some.
"No. He's not ruining this moment for me." Jack growled, tangling his fingers into Gwen's hair and pulling her back to his mouth.
She couldn't help but moan at the pressure of his mouth and kissed back with enthusiasm, no longer caring about Rhys and the fact that he was on his way down.
Rhys, unfortunately for the happy couple, did care. A lot. To him, Captain Jack Fucker Harkness was stealing his wife, and he wouldn't have it. "GWEN!" he shouted. "GET YOUR FUCKING ASS OVER HERE!"
Jack's nostrils flared. "Does he talk that way to you often?" he asked. Gwen nodded. "Well, that's it," he growled again. "He's fucking dead."
"Jack, don't," Gwen said gently, reluctantly scooting off of his lap and holding out a hand to help him up. "Come on. Let's see if we can talk about this-Jack, no-" For Jack had brushed past her, standing up with the thunderous look in his eyes that screamed, you're gonna die. "Oh, God," she muttered.
Jack stormed right into the main Hub and looked Rhys right in the face, stepping closer and closer and staring the shorter, stupider man down. "First of all, I expect you to clean up the mess you made in the front," he said. "This is not your place to destroy. Secondly, you will not yell on the premises unless the world is ending in one way or another, and even then, you are perfectly capable of talking in the volume of a normal human being, and I expect you to do so. Finally, you will not speak that way to or about any of my team, ever, and especially not Gwen, do you understand that? Good."
"Damn," Gwen muttered under her breath. "You could do a killer Ianto impression."
"I heard that!" Ianto called, and he walked into the room. "Need me to escort the… erm… visitor, sir?" he asked.
"Nah, not yet," said Jack. "He doesn't leave until his face is disfigured enough to reflect his personality, and his dirty mouth."
"With all due respect, you really can't talk about having a dirty mouth," Ianto pointed out. "Still, I agree about the disfiguring thing. How exactly are we doing this, again?"
"Hmmm," Jack mused, grabbing Rhys's shirt collar. "Hmmm. I don't think he's met Janet, has he? I mean, if he's going to barge right in, he should meet the residents, eh?"
"Oh, I was thinking Myfanwy," Ianto said with a hint of a smile. "She really hasn't gotten to stretch her wings in so long."
"Okay, let me get this straight," said Jack, also cracking a smile. "Are you telling me that we should strap him to the pterodactyl's-belly, I think, yeah, belly, and we should have his head facing backwards, for sure… face up or face down? I'd say face up. Nice faceful of pterodactyl anus and genitalia. We strap him to the pterodactyl's stomach, his face in her rear, and have her take a fly around the city? Is that your suggestion?"
"That's actually better than my suggestion." Ianto said, cocking his head at Rhys as he smiled. "I was thinking just letting Myfanwy carry him around in her claws and hope she dropped him at some point."
Rhys took a quick step back, looking around, trying to find an escape.
"There's no way out for you, you slimy, filthy, sorry excuse for a human being." Jack sneered, taking another step closer to Rhys, closing the distance between them.
Jack was enjoying seeing Rhys starting to sweat, it gave him a warm feeling in his stomach. It was almost as good as the feeling he got when he kissed Gwen.
"Jack, Ianto, this really-"
"-Shhh," said Jack, using his free hand to gently stroke Gwen's hair. "No need to worry, he'll only suffer minor injuries."
"Assuming you don't count the whole anus-and-genitalia-in-the-face thing, as an injury," Ianto pointed out.
"Well, it's one to the dignity," said Jack. "Okay, major injuries, but Gwen, come on-"
Rhys was getting angrier by the minute. That fucking-he wasn't even sure what Jack was- was stroking his wife's hair and threatening him with pterodactyl whatever the hell they said-
"Pterodactyls aren't even real," he said stupidly.
Ianto snorted. "I think it's time this guy and Myfanwy met," he suggested. "You go take care of that, and I'll make poor Gwen a cup of coffee. She's had a long day." He walked over to Gwen's side and rubbed her shoulder gently.
"I'll gladly take care of him." Jack snorted, quickly stepping forward and grabbing Rhys by the scruff of his neck.
"Jack...please…" Gwen pleaded softly.
"Don't worry, my Gwen. Like we said, he won't be too hurt." Jack said, looking back at her and smiling slightly. "Now, you. Time to come meet one of our favorite pets."
Rhys snarled and tried to get out of Jack's grasp.
"You can't do this to me. And she's not your anything. She's mine." Rhys snarled, before spitting at Jack.
Jack snarled back and his grip tightened around Rhys' throat.
"Jack," Gwen whispered again. She was rapidly becoming afraid of what was going to happen to Rhys - and by extension, to her.
"Ianto," Jack said. "I can't fucking believe I'm passing up this glorious moment, but-I want you to deal with Rhys. I believe that someone of actual importance needs my undivided attention.
"Wow, this is really quite the honor, sir," Ianto said, milking the moment for all its worth as he walked over to Rhys and Jack and grabbed the lack of collar - oh, did that man lack class. "Are you sure?"
Jack let go of Rhys and walked over to Gwen's side, gently stroking her hair again. She smiled. Somehow, the feeling of Jack's fingers in her hair made up for the fact that- everything. "Mmm," she hummed, closing her eyes.
Jack laughed. "You heard the lady," he said. "Off you go, and make sure you get footage."
"Oh, absolutely," said Ianto. "I've already put a camera on him. Don't bother trying to look for it; you'll never find it."
Gwen, meanwhile, was quite content with the knowledge that Jack was passing up an opportunity to tie someone to Myfanwy's abdomen for her sake.
"You're just going to let them do this to me?" Rhys snapped at Gwen as Ianto started to drag him away.
Gwen sighed as she leaned into Jack and looked up at him. She didn't have any words for Rhys, and she knew that he deserved every bit of this.
"You little bitch! How dare you? After everything I've done for you?" Rhys screamed, struggling against Ianto's grasp.
Jack snarled and whipped around to face him.
"Don't you DARE talk to her like that!" Jack roared.
Ianto slammed Rhys into a wall and snarled.
"Say sorry. Right now." He snarled, an inch from Rhys's face.
Gwen trembled. One minute Jack was being so sweet and stroking her hair and now he and Ianto were furious-and Rhys was-Myfanwy-what?
"Gwen? Gwen, sweetheart, are you alright?" Jack came back to Gwen's side and pressed a kiss to her shaking hand. "Did I scare you?" he asked.
"Just-a little confused-I was dead a few minutes ago, remember?" she barely managed to make out. This was all getting overwhelming and frankly a little out of hand. And yes, she was scared.
"Oh, Gwen," Jack said gently, pulling her into a hug. "Ianto, don't worry. Just get our Myfanwy her exercise… oooh, and maybe her lunch afterwards; she does get so hungry after she flies around. Oh, lucky girl. One guy, two functions."
"Jack!" Gwen half laughed, half chastised. "Oh my God, Jack, you can't-"
"I'm kidding," he said. "Shhhh. It's going to be okay." It took a second for him to realize that Gwen was in fact completely out of her head. The thing that was in her head, and then being dead, and then not being dead, and he was possessed and then he was dead and then she brought him back and all of this shit with Rhys. "Ianto, take care of Rhys. Gwen, come on, you need some sleep." He took her hand and led her towards his office. "You can stay on the sofa if you'd like," he offered, "but the bed is far more comfortable."
Gwen finally managed to laugh properly. "I see what you're doing, Captain," she grinned, and then she yawned. "God, I don't even care; I'm just so… so tired…" She slumped back and Jack caught her.
"Ianto, I have no idea how the hell you pulled that off," he said into his comm.
Ianto pulled his trademarked stopwatch out from his pocket and checked it. "Two minutes and thirty-four seconds," he said. "I expected it to be at least three. She's asleep already?"
"Apparently, having been dead accelerates the effect-oh for god's sake, let's do the math later. Do you have the camera on?"
"Yes, sir," Ianto said. His smirk was audible. "Feel free to view the footage whenever you like; I assume you have a sleeping beauty to attend to."
"Did he hear you say that?" Jack asked. There was a loud burst of angry Welsh swearing that most certainly didn't come from Ianto. "I'll take that as a yes."
Jack smirked and laid Gwen down on the bed in his office.
"Go have fun, Ianto. For the both of us." Jack said, knowing that Ianto was playing it out as long as he could.
"Yes, sir. But I'm sure you're going to have enough fun on your own." Ianto said, laughing.
Jack smiled, and gently laid down next to Gwen and pulled her closer to him, enjoying the sound of her snores and finding comfort in them. His mind was grabbing at all the things he could possibly do with her. Then he realized that he was perfectly content in just watching her sleep and didn't need anything else to happen. This feeling was new to him and he didn't know how to process it.
"Oh, Gwen. What have you done? You're changing me, you beautiful woman, you." He whispered, stroking her cheek as he watched her slow breathing.
Gwen sighed in her sleep. She was having a lovely dream. She and Jack were curled up together, and he was stroking her cheek, murmuring about something. He called her beautiful, and there were definitely kisses. And it was absolutely incredible. She had no idea how things could get any more perfect.
And then she heard singing. Soft, beautiful singing, unlike anything she had ever heard, except-it was Jack. Jack was singing… to her. She smiled, but inside her heart was melting, in such a way that a smile barely covered how she felt. Jack was singing to her.
Rhys never sang to me. The dark thought rushed through her head, and there was an echo of his screams as she remembered the pain she'd been through. She wanted to cry out.
And yet she didn't, because in that very instant she remembered the fact that Jack was still singing to her.
I don't want this to ever end, she thought, and the whole scene began to fade into a comfortable darkness.
Jack smiled as he watched Gwen fall deeper and deeper asleep, and decided to rest his vocal chords. Perhaps this could become something he did every night, sing Gwen to sleep…
He smiled at the thought, and closed his eyes, letting himself drift off as well.
Meanwhile, Rhys was struggling as Ianto tied him to Myfanwy's stomach.
"All of this moving isn't getting you out of this, scumbag." Ianto snorted, smiling as he watched Myfanwy get more agitated by the squirming that was going on underneath her.
"You won't get away with this. Any of you!" Rhys screamed, not listening and still trying to get himself free.
"Oh, but we will. We always do." Ianto said proudly, finally getting Rhys tied just right.
He took a step back and enjoyed his handiwork for a moment. Myfanwy was ready for flight, and for the thing under her to be freed from her. Ianto smirked, knowing that he was going to enjoy this much more than he should, but he couldn't help himself.
"Get ready to enjoy your free flight, douche." He said, finally taking a step back towards Rhys, to take a swing at him before he let Myfanwy loose.
Rhys spat blood and his tooth out on Ianto's shoes, smiling the whole time.
"Good luck cleaning that up, I hear blood could be tough to get out." He smirked.
Ianto shrugged, and smiled back at him he took a step toward the wall, which was lined with nothing but buttons. He chose a bright blue one a few places away from the door and pressed it. He laughed as Rhys' jaw dropped when the blood seemed to soak into the floor and disappear.
"Now, I've had enough of you. Time for Myfanwy to play." Ianto snarled, reaching for another button that would open the roof to the sky.
"Fine, but remember, you don't have a button for Gwen's anger when she realizes what you've done to me!" Rhys screamed as the roof started opening and Myfanwy started to stretch her wings open.
There was a scream, and Gwen's eyes flew open. "Shhhh," Jack soothed, brushing the hair from her face. "Shhhhh, it's okay. That was probably just Rhys getting flown around."
"Oh," she said. "He sort of deserves it…"
"Oh, I think he definitely does," said Jack. "And you, my love, need to sleep. You were sleeping so well a few moments ago."
"There was singing," she mumbled. "Someone was singing in my dreams."
"I'm sure that if you close your eyes, you'll hear the song again," said Jack. "Go on, try it."
Gwen nodded and closed her eyes, nuzzling into Jack, who began singing to her again. Almost instantly, she fell back asleep, mumbling Jack's name with a soft smile.
He stroked her cheek and continued to sing, watching with a rush of joy as her face became more and more relaxed. This was his doing. He was having this effect on Gwen, and now she was happy with him, and she was his, and he was hers.
Even ordinarily peaceful Tosh was cheering as Myfanwy got her regular exercise with the absolutely appropriate victim. Jack wondered for a second whether it was really okay to do this to Rhys, but quickly dismissed the thought. Gwen had told him about the way Rhys treated her — refusing to admit he was ever wrong, any substantial interaction ending in a fight. Yes, even if Rhys hadn't physically hurt his Gwen, he deserved this for all the years of forcing her to endure Rhys the Rant.
Myfanwy completed her lap, and sat Rhys down, looking very personally offended by the fact that such a vile human being had been in such proximity to her. She gave a little snort and took back up to the top of the Hub again.
"Well, looks like even Myfanwy can't tolerate him for much longer," Owen said, snorting.
"You know, Owen…" Tosh started saying as Ianto escorted Rhys out with some choice words about how he should leave Gwen and the entire team alone, and slipped him some Retcon.
"Yeah, Tosh?" Owen asked, looking at her. He was, frankly, a little jealous of Jack. He wanted his happily ever after too — deserved it, considering that he was sort of dead.
"Since Jack and Gwen are saying some things that they've always wanted to, I think it's time for me to, as well," She took a deep breath. "I...love you."
Owen gulped. "Tosh-"
"I love you," she said with slightly more conviction, but she was still pretty scared. "And I don't care that you're dead; I still love you."
"Well, good, because I don't care that I'm dead, either," Owen said, grinning, trying to hide his nervousness. He wanted to kiss her then and there. Oh god did he want to kiss her then and there. He wanted to grab her and pull her closer and just smash their lips together like there was no tomorrow, but he was scared. Really, really scared.
He reached out hesitantly to take her hand. He was so close. So close. So close…
"Fucking hell!" he shouted, and he did exactly what he'd wanted to for way too long.
Tosh really didn't want the kiss to end, but unlike Owen, she needed to breathe. They rested their foreheads together for a moment, grinning at each other. Both wondered why the hell they'd waited so long to do this.
"Tosh-" Owen started again.
"I don't care."
"Tosh, listen to me for a second." She swallowed nervously and nodded. "I know you said you don't care, but this," he paused, gesturing at himself, "isn't going to be easy on you. I don't- I don't want to hurt you."
"Owen, do you even know me at all? You really think whether or not you're alive is going to hurt me?"
"I just...Don't want either of us to get hurt. You know me. I never care about people as much as they care about me...And when I do, it gets destroyed," he admitted.
"Listen, Owen," Tosh reached into her pocket and pulled out a crumpled up piece of paper. "This describes some sort of alternate timeline we forgot where you had unrequited love for me. And I know you don't want to give your heart to someone after Diane, but I manage."
Owen stared at her, open-mouthed, as she continued on.
"I've had my heart broken so many times in the past few years. With being forced to stay away from my mother, Tommy dying, Mary turning out to be an alien…" Tosh took a deep breath. "I don't want to be heartbroken anymore. And if you don't want me I won't wait around."
"Tosh. Oh, Tosh…" Owen grabbed Tosh and pulled her to him, burying his face in her hair. "Of course I want you."
Tosh hadn't realized she'd been crying up until this moment. But now she was full blown sobbing. She wasn't sure what to think. There was a part of her that was almost completely sure that this was a dream, that she'd wake up in a few seconds and none of this would have ever happened. But there was that other part, that little tiny bit that thought, maybe. Maybe this was real. Maybe Owen really did love her.
She wrapped her arms around Owen's waist and held on, hoping that if this was a dream, she'd wake up soon because this was already too incredible a fantasy. Any better and the reality would be unbearable.
Owen felt Tosh's arms around his waist and immediately hugged her right back. There were moments where he lost his sense of touch entirely - a side effect of being dead - but now, thank whatever powers that were, he could feel. He could feel the warmth radiating from her body, her head in his chest and her hair in his face, the shaking as she cried in his arms, and it was incredible. He stroked her hair, relishing in the fact that he was finally doing this after years of having wanted to.
I think this is real, Tosh thought to herself as Owen's hand began to gently caress the back of her head, his fingers combing through her hair. He was warm, very warm, which shocked her seeing as he was dead.
Suddenly, he pulled back, gasping. "Oh my God," he said.
"What?" Tosh asked nervously. No! No, and things were becoming so amazing…
"I'm alive," he said. "I have no idea how, but I'm alive."
"But the glove...the glove is gone. What's maintaining the connection?" Tosh demanded, more asking herself than Owen.
"I don't know. I just...it felt like something just broke through. I have no idea." he told her.
"Jack!" Tosh called out. "We have something really important going on here!"
"Nothing's more important than Gwen Cooper." He called back up the stairs.
Tosh laughed and tucked a strand of hair behind her ear. "Well, it looks like we'll have to manage ourselves then."
Just then, golden light started coming from Owen's hands and face. His face was thrown upward and hands out. Tosh felt more tears coming. They'd just told each other they loved each other, and now this was happening.
Owen's face and appearance was changing. Not much. Like he hadn't had a haircut for a few months. And his clothes changed. To the same shirt and pants he'd worn the day of the invasion of the company that had taken Martha.
"Wow. Well. This is interesting…" Owen stated, looking down at his body. "My liver is the wrong color!"
Tosh looked at him. "What the-? Your liver-what?"
Owen maintained a look of confusion for like two seconds and then laughed. "Your face," he said. "Oh my God, that was priceless. You're cute when you're confused."
That was it. Tosh stared at him for a few seconds before running back to her computer and laying her head on the desk, crying. This was too much. She wasn't even sure what was going on, and she could feel her heart shattering. She felt like she was falling through darkness and cold and she wanted so desperately to wake up because this was becoming a nightmare.
"Fuck," Owen muttered as he watched Tosh break down. He walked over to her and laid a hand on her shoulder. "I'm sorry," he said. "I didn't mean to upset you."
"Is it true?" she asked, not looking up. "Are you really alive?"
Owen said nothing, instead carefully lifting her hand and placing it on his chest so she could feel the heartbeat. "Alive," he said. "Completely alive, and with a perfectly fine liver."
"I can't believe it," she whispered. "How?"
"No idea," he said. "No idea. All I know is that you had something to do with it." He pulled her chair out from the desk and knelt in front of her, tilting her chin up so they could look at each other, and the sight was painful. Her eyes were completely streaked red with tears which were still falling steadily, and she was staring at him with the most helpless expression. "You're amazing," he whispered, hugging her. "You're absolutely incredible."
Oh for fuck's sake, just say it, you idiot! said a voice in his head. He wasn't exactly sure where it was coming from, but it didn't really sound like his voice. In fact, it sounded a little bit like Diane's. SAY IT! FUCKING SAY IT!
Yeesh. Gave him a headache. Well, not so little voices tend to be somewhat reliable… sort of… He pulled Tosh closer into him. "I love you," he whispered. "I am completely in love with you, and I think that's what brought me back to life."
Just then, Jack happened to walk back upstairs. "Is something really more important than Gwen right now?" He joked.
Tosh quickly explained the situation with the light, and Jack wrinkled his eyebrows. "Sounds like a Time Lord regenerating."
"But it was triggered by...him telling me he was in love with me," Tosh pointed out. "That doesn't sound like Time Lord regeneration to me. And...he still has one heart."
"Well…" Jack stopped to think. "The Doctor told me about a time when he had a daughter made by a machine. Jenny. He says he ran into her on his further travels, despite thinking she'd died. And she thought that maybe the hope of being able to travel with him brought her back to life. It's just a theory though."
Jack could almost hear the Doctor's voice in his head, declaring how fantastic human beings could be with their feelings.
Meanwhile, Gwen was just beginning to wake up from her nap. She rubbed her eyes and looked around to see that she had no idea where she was. None. Not a clue. She could hear the familiar sound of the Hub generators; that was a comfort. But other than that, nothing, and worse still, she was alone. She didn't want to test her luck finding a way out; she might get lost forever.
"Jack!" she called out as loudly as she could.
The sound of his name pulled Jack from his thoughts. "Gwen's awake," he said, and without another word, he rushed off back towards her.
"Hey," he said once he was back in his room. "Sleep well?"
"Yes," Gwen answered. "I dreamed that someone yelled up something about how nothing is more important than Gwen Cooper. That made for a very nice dream."
"Hmm. Does sound like a very nice dream. And one that's true, to boot."
Gwen laughed and leaned into Jack's chest, where he ran his fingers through her hair. "Oh, and just so you know, Owen is alive now."
"Owen? How?" Gwen demanded. "Jack, don't tell me you found another one of those gloves?"
"No. Seemed to be because of love." Jack shrugged. "Complete mystery to me."
"Well, love won't be a mystery to you much longer," Gwen told him, standing up on her tiptoes to kiss him.
Jack started to protest that love wasn't a mystery to him, but was shut up by her kiss.
And that was just fine with him.
Hey everyone! Lia here! Thanks so much for reading our not-so-little collab! This was a ton of fun to write! Make sure to check the profile for all of our fluffy fanfic and also follow What the Fluff on Twitter WhatTheFluff1 and on Tumblr as whatthefluffproject! (Thank you Emmachu aka emmabirdy for running the tumblr!) You can also follow me 'n my fanfic and stuff on , and on Twitter and Tumblr as unshakespearean, and me personally LiaTheWhovian on Twitter and Tumblr! Okay, shameless self promotion over! As always, love and ducks to the Lone Shippers, hugs to supporters, thanks to Eleonora, Noe, Hanul, and Kizzie, shoutouts to my chosen-sisters, extra special rainbows to all of the collabs because they're fantabulous, and cookies for all! - Lia xx
Oh, look, people! I'm Brandy. I had this tiny little part in this amazing story. But everyone else's part is much better. So, sit back and enjoy some awesome fluff. Because who doesn't love Harcooper? Bye now!
Hey! It's Aurora. You can probably tell I ship Harcooper a lot. I write other fanfictions about Harcooper on my fanfiction account, Aurora Sanders (same username on Ao3). If you want to read my non-fandom writing, search Aurora Sanders on Figment dot com. Thanks for reading and hope you enjoyed :)
Hey, thanks for reading! I didn't do much at all though. It was mostly the other amazing writers that did this. Until the next time, Seraphina Jones
*Note: We're still waiting for Emma (fellow collab) to write us an AN. When she writes it, we'll update so y'alls can see it!*