Home is the Hunter
AN: Here it is, the sequel to 'Oh Captain, My Captain' as promised. Thoughts, emotions and reactions to Jack's return. Hope I do the characters and the actors justice. Title is by Robert Louis Stephenson
Disclaimer: I own half a house & the contents, including a scary amount of books. I have a cat who owns me. Torchwood is nothing to do with me - although I wouldn't say no to receiving it as a present...
xxxXXXxxx
1 - Gwen
xxxx
"He's gone, let him go." - Tosh
xxxx
She leant over, and gave the Sleeping Beauty of Torchwood a kiss he'd never know. With a heart to heavy to contemplate, she turned away from him for the last time. Slowly, deliberately, she walked in the opposite direction from the mogue table and it's unthinkable occupant. Her head was filled with Jack; memories flooding her till breathing was difficult. She could hear Jack's voice, so clearly, so vividly, it was as if he was still in the room, beside her.
"Thank you."
The atmosphere in the room changed, admitting a prescence she knew so well, dimmed, but there.
A gasp, a breath.
She turned back to the body lying still and white on the table. Except Jack wasn't still. His eyes were open, fixed on his upraised hand. Lips were parted, and as she reached his side, the old familiar chuckle filled surrounded her and warmed her in the same way Rhys' kiss had done after he had so nearly been lost to her.
She smiled, eyes moist, and gently stroked his hair back once again. Jack lifted eyes so dark compared to the bloodless skin around them, lips still so pale that her heart clenched. But Jack's eyes were alive, fiery, dancing, hell, any number of different variations on ALIVE! The pale lips stretched into a smile, and as she watched, a hint of colour stole back into Jack's cheeks. He stretches a hand towards her, and she quickly takes it, lacing his fingers in her's.
"What did you do with my clothes?"
Same old teasing tone to his voice, same old priorities. Same old Jack.
"Or did you have me dressed like this for a reason?" he added, with a sly wink.
"Ianto's got them, we were going to send them to a museum." She could match him snark for snark.
"Gwen." Amusement tinged the name, like friends meeting after too many years apart.
"I knew you'd wake up."
Jack nodded. No words necessary. Knowledge made his eyes even darker, haunted. Then the blinding smile returned, the one that could envelope you in a world where you were the most important thing within, a smile which made the troubles seem a little more bareable. A smile Jack dealt out impartially, to anyone who needed that comfort. She wondered suddenly who smiled at Jack in that way.
"Clothes?"
She blinked. Jack's smile had developed into a smirk, and he raised himself up onto his elbows. She grinned back, apologetically, and swung round.
"I left some over here - ready."she reassured him, collecting them from she'd tucked them.
"There's my Gwen." His voice was like chocolate, she thought. Deep and rich, with a hint of bitter if you searched. The voice whose absence had made the Hub a strange place.
"You going to turn around while I get dressed, or do you prefer to watch?"
Gwen lightly punched his shoulder, and hopped up onto the table, side by side with Jack, as he pulled on the trousers and dark blue shirt she'd picked out.
Abaddon was gone, Rhys was ok, Jack was back, and was laughing at her. The world settled, and slipped into it's natural orbit once more. Hand in hand, together, they walked out to find the others.
xxxXXXxxx
tbc
Hope you enjoyed...