Chapter six
A bad case of indigestion
Owen woke up with his alarm, part of him not wanting to be getting up as the rest of the household slept. The early morning shift was the worst, but since Owen knew Jade was there he didn't feel half as bad as he normally would have leaving jasmine alone with Elena.
Putting on something smart, but also comfortable for work Owen made an effort to have one more glance over Elena, when she slept all the worry lines had relaxed on her face, her eyes lightly moved under her eyelids to show she was still in a deep sleep, these were the moments he'd see the woman he married, and not the train wreak that Jack had left behind.
While the house was still in the darkness, little parts of the sunrise would peak through closed curtains and doors; Owen was quick to make a coffee in his travel mug. He really didn't want to be working while Jade and Ianto had such little time in London with them, but then Jade insisted he kept working being he was one of the top doctors of Guys hospital trauma department.
Owen still would freak out with how much Jade could hunt information that she wanted, but he couldn't help but feel she was somewhat the reason he got the job he was working in.
Grabbing something quick to eat from the fridge Owen picked up his coat and keys looking to the cupboard where Elena's medication once was. Part of him didn't know if it was a good idea for her to go cold turkey, another part hoped for Elena to be happy.
Getting the car started Owen inhaled looking to his face in the rear view mirror, he knew he was older, but wasn't going grey, a few crows feet to show for the stress in his life, he was having a moment, just a single moment to think of how he felt about his life after Torchwood, and every time the only thing he missed was the huge pay check at the end of the week.
Jade felt Ianto sleeping behind her, she carefully opened her eyes before seeing they were alone for once, she felt her fingers over her stomach thinking of how many times she was going to put her body through this. It wasn't that she didn't love her children. No they were the world to her, but it still didn't change the fact that she did so much to hold onto a man, a man who she sometimes doubted his commitment to her. Parts of her mind would wonder if the children were the only reason he stayed, or if her really did love her as much as he proclaimed.
Pushing the covers off herself Jade tipped toed out of the bedroom, she could see Owen left his bedroom door open. Jade couldn't help but glance over Elena sleeping, the woman was holding onto a pillow, and Jade slowly closed the door to give the woman some privacy.
The children all stayed in one room, she could see that Phil and Lil were cuddled together, DJ on the other hand was half in his bed, and half out holding onto his sonic screwdriver. Jade smiled to herself, she walked over carefully moving DJ to be sleeping in his bed, and she placed the sonic screwdriver on the cabinet before turning to see that Jasmine was awake and staring at her through the bars of her crib.
For a second Jade jumped, the big brown eyes following her. "Jesus!" Jade didn't want to swear, but the little girl was fucking creepy as shit. "You want to get up?" Jade stepped closer to the crib. She didn't see how a little girl with a perfect blend of Owen and Elena in her face could make her feel this nervous. "Want to come downstairs with me and get some juice?" Jade took each step careful to not wake the others.
Jasmine's eyes still wide, Jade didn't even know if she'd blinked the whole time she'd be edging her way towards the crib, and in the back of her mind making a note to tell Owen that Jasmine was getting too old for a crib.
Jasmine getting to her feet held her hands up for Jade, and the second Jade took Jasmine into her arms she felt the small girl embrace her. Jade could feel this little child that wasn't her own pulling so snuggly on her heart. Jade wasn't really a child friendly person, but then as Jasmine nuzzled her face into Jade's shoulder, Jade couldn't help but feel bad for her.
Walking down the stairs Jade could feel Jasmine holding on lightly, it was funny that if she'd been holding Lil, the girl would be chatting her ear off, but Jasmine kept quiet. Her tiny hands gripped onto Jade's night shirt as she made her way into the kitchen.
Seeing Jasmine's high chair Jade when to put her into it, but Jasmine suddenly gripped onto her tighter, and Jade knew the little girl wasn't ready to give up the human contact.
"Okay, okay." Jade soothed Jasmine, she wasn't the expert on holding a small child and making a bottle of juice at the same time, but somehow she managed.
Ianto was second to come into the kitchen seeing that Jade was sat at the table with Jasmine on her lap drinking juice, a mug of green tea was also on the table with the bag still in the mug. "Morning…" Ianto went over to make himself a coffee, "Does she ever say anything?" Ianto pointed to Jasmine.
"No, I've gotten a few mumbles here and there, but not the same vocabulary as the twins." Jade brushed her hand into Jasmine's blonde hair, she wasn't one to judge, but this wasn't right to have a child this slow in social development.
Ianto knew what Jade was thinking, "Don't be harsh on Owen." He couldn't believe that for once he was trying to stand up for Owen. "He's been dealing with a lot."
Jade wanted to roll her eyes, but kept it to herself feeling her fingers brush through the locks of gold before going back to Ianto. "Well this isn't the child I'd thought Owen would have, but then again I never imagined Owen being a father."
Ianto sat with Jade; he reached over to Jasmine, the girl curling more into Jade. "I see what you mean about the social development." His eyes going back to Jade, "Must not be easy raising a child, and stopping your wife going nuclear."
"I wasn't that bad Ianto!" Elena pulled a bathrobe around herself, and Jade felt Jasmine wiggled to get to her mother.
Jade let Jasmine down as she watched the small girl run into her mother's leg holding on tight. "Sorry Elena, Ianto was just speaking a lot of…" She glanced to Jasmine's big brown eyes, "S.H.I.T." She spelt out.
"It's okay, most the mothers are care group all talk about me like I can't hear them calling me Stepford wife." Elena reached down and picked Jasmine up. "So you guys have any big plans today?" Elena cuddled her daughter while watching Ianto and Jade closely.
Jade broke into a grin, "They don't know shit about you Elena." Her hand covered her mouth, "Sorry."
"It's okay, she doesn't seem to want to talk much, and I've tried and given up." Elena placed Jasmine into her high chair, "so, your plans?"
Jade sipped her tea, "well Ianto got us tickets to London Zoo," She started, and could tell Elena was really listening for once. "Also I think it'll be nice if we take Jazz, she can get to know DJ, Lil and Phil more." Her smile was trying so hard to be a friendly person, and not someone who was scared of their best friend's wife having a relapse and putting a small child in danger.
Elena took in a deep, "Are you sure, I mean you've got a lot of children..."
"It's only one more" Ianto stood up taking a cue from Jade. "Just think you can have the house to yourself, relax and not worry." He placed an arm around Elena's shoulder. "You deserve a rest, being unmediated doesn't seem fun."
Elena yawn, "Well I said to Owen we can do lunch to talk," Her eyes going to Jasmine, she'd not really known how to feel now that her own daughter was staring at her. "Maybe it's good to have Jazz be more social with other children."
"See, don't worry about a thing." Jade got up and brushed her hand onto Elena's hair flattening it down. "Just have a nice bath, relax, and not worry about Jazz."
"What about Owen?" Elena felt panicked.
Jade laughed, "I doubt Owen will mind Aunty Jade and Uncle Ianto treating his little princess for the afternoon." Jade started to push Elena to the kitchen door, "Just got back to bed, and get some more sleep." Her hand was careful to push Elena up the first few steps.
"Yea, I'll go lay down." Elena finally gave up walking back into her bedroom.
Jade exhaled, "Well I think I will be giving Owen a piece of my mind." Jade picked up her tea drinking it quickly, "You better start getting the twins ready."
"Why do I always have to get them ready?" Ianto sounded annoyed; he drank some of his coffee seeing Jasmine staring up at him.
Jade put her mug into the sink turning to face him, "You know fully well that DJ had got getting himself ready down to a T, and the twins are more cooperative with you." She then ran her fingers through her hair, "Plus I gotta shower, and get Jasmine ready, and we aready know how much she loves you." Jade tried to pull her sarcasm back; she didn't know how Jasmine was like to get ready. "So you really want to fight with me fairy boy…"
Ianto looked shocked, his eyes wide, "Really?"
"Fairy…" A small voice came from the place of Jasmine, and Ianto turned to see the little girl giggling.
Ianto let out a sigh, "I'll go get them ready then," His eyes shooting over to Jasmine, "Bloody well is Owen's daughter." He left the room.
Jade watched Ianto as he scoffed off, "Jasmine, you know you've upset uncle Ianto…" She laughed. "You are so Owen's little princess."
Jade felt a lot better, she glanced down to the pushchair with Phil and Lil both arguing over a cuddly toy of a ladybug. Phil seemed to have the upper hand as he pulled the top part. Jade normally would break this fight up, but it seemed it wasn't an aggressive fight, more of playfulness.
"Phil, you shouldn't snatch," Ianto reached down taking the toy, and make Phil's eyes well up in the process. "Why are they always fighting over things, we should of gotten them one each." Ianto added to Jade.
The one thing that Jade started to notice with Ianto was he worried too much. "They weren't hurting each other," She snatched the toy back from Ianto and handed it over to the twins who seemed to not be sure what to do. Lil lightly handing the toy to her brother, while Phil let it fall to the floor. All the fun was taken away once he felt like he was being told off. "See, now look what you've done!" Jade picked it up and placed it into the backpack.
Ianto took a breath through his nose, he could tell that being away from Work, Jade wasn't the woman he first met, and while she was a good mother, she didn't seem to take the role as seriously as he would of thought.
"Mummy don't be upset," DJ walked beside his mother lightly pulling on her shorts, his eyes big looking up to her. "I won't tell you off." He felt her stop walking before kissing her hand.
Jade felt her heart melt looking over her eldest child. "DJ, mummy isn't upset, how can I be sad with such a handsome young boy." She scooped him up into her arms planting a kiss on his forehead. "Now, what animal do you want to see next?" She asked trying to ignore the fact that Ianto wasn't amused by the notion of his children always thinking he was the bad guy.
"I wanna see a lion!" DJ's voice filled with excitement, and he lightly tapped Jade's arms to put him down. He quickly looked over to Jasmine in a pushchair of her own. "Jazz wanna see a lion?" He asked his cousin feeling her eyes looking over his face. "Of course you wanna see the lion." He held a hand out and felt Jasmine take it in her little hand.
Ianto kept quiet as they made their way to the lion enclosure, stopping a few feet away from the glass, Jade could see Ianto's something face. Her eyes kept forward trying to keep calm. "I don't know why you worry so much, they wasn't hitting, or shouting." Jade kept her tone natural.
Ianto kept eyes forward, "Well, you just seem to love letting them do what they want, and not think of the future." Ianto's voice strained to be only a whisper.
DJ could see the look on both parents faces, his head shook before walking slowly away from the pushchairs to get a close look to the lion with all his lionesses, "You poor, poor things." He placed his hands to the glass, "I don't like you all bored in a tiny little space."
Jade tried her hardest not to shout, the twins seemed too occupied with the lions, "I am sorry my eighty hours a week work makes it hard enough to see my babies, so I am so! Sorry! That I don't want the precious little time I have with them, being me telling them off."
"No, it's okay for me to have to be their cleaner, their wet nurse, and their punisher, while all you have is the fun of undermining me." Ianto snorted, "Plus I am your walking slave. Of every kind of slave…"
Jade's eyes narrowed, "Well if you're so hell bent on not having sex, just say it!" Her voice hissed like a cat about to attack.
DJ turned, his eyes going over his mother; she didn't seem happy, maybe she was sad the lions were all trapped. He reached into his pocket taking out his sonic screwdriver and headed towards the door that said, 'authorised personnel only.' He smiled, "Mummy, I'll make you happy."
Jade felt hurt, "Oh, you know, I really am happy to finally see this side of you, cos I am…" Jade stopped talking hearing the sudden screams of terror.
A man rushed passed them in a blind panic, "The lions! Oh god someone let out the lions!"
Ianto could see people all panicking, the lions rushing about and chasing the people who ran.
"DJ!" Ianto and Jade shouted in unison trying to spot their son in the mass of bodies moving to get away from danger.
Jade spotted DJ standing in the enclosure, he was smiling at her with a hand waving the sonic screwdriver. "I make mummy happy…" He smiled as if he'd not done anything wrong.
Ianto rushed in grabbing his son pulling him into his arms. "DJ what did you do?" He was freaked out.
Jade could only keep still, she taken out a device from her purse that put a cloak around the pram making them invisible to any deadly threat, then ran into the enclosure to grab DJ off of Ianto. "Baby why?" She whispered with a soft tone.
"Mummy, you was sad, I thought you wanted to see the lions happy." DJ felt puzzled.
Jade closed her eyes pulling her son close to her chest, "it's okay sweetie, well go get some ice cream." Her eyes were glaring to Ianto. "I think you need to take a walk." Her voice was a deadly whisper.
Owen felt his eyes drift over Elena as she sat on the other side of the table; it was too nice of a day to eat inside as he watched a gentle breeze blow her fringe into her face. Reaching over with a loving hand he pushed the hair carefully behind her ear. "You need to eat something to help with the headaches." Owen could tell she wasn't sure what to have, for the first time in a long time he wasn't going to do the douche thing and order for her.
Elena smiled, "they're not that bad Owen," Her eyes went from the menu to his, she started to really see her husband out of the drug induced haze she was always in. "I'll have the calzone," She pointed out feeling the horrible buzz in her head that wasn't shifting, "Chicken and spinach." She added placing the menu away from her.
Owen smiled, "Sound nice, I think I'll have the same." He could see the waitress coming over. "Two chicken and spinach calzone, and I'll have a water please."
"And I'll have a white wine spritzer." Elena added, her eyes watching the waitress who seemed to keep her attention on Owen.
Owen watched the waitress leaving, "Someone is being adventures today…"
"Someone is enjoying a child free day, and I feel you had something to do with it." Elena picked up the glass of water already in front of her.
Owen snickered, "well, I know it's going to be a while, I just worry…"
"About me, or Jasmine?" Elena's voice cool, she wasn't trying to be argumentative, and part of her wanted to stop feeling like a anchor to her husband, the only man who'd she'd ever truly loved.
"About both of you," Owen reached over taking Elena's left hand, he glanced over the engagement ring he'd picked out, scared she's turn his proposal down. The wedding band they both picked out with their initials etched into the inside of the band. "I won't ever stop until I make up for the things I've done."
Elena let a smile slip, "Owen, promise me from now on you'll stop punishing yourself, we need for us to stop blaming each other for things we can't change." Her fingers interlocked with his. "I love you Owen Harper."
Owen felt his heart swell, "God I love you." Owen closed the gap between the table and with a rough hand pulled Elena into a tender kiss.
A loud beeping broke the kiss as Owen reached to the band of his trousers where his pager was. "Fuck!" Owen glanced over the message, "Emergency at the hospital?" He felt like killing the intern that sent him the message out of all the other doctors in the hospital on shift.
"Do you think it has to do with them lions escaping at the zoo?" Elena asked feeling upset of the lunch date being cut short.
Owen shook his head, "Na, not many major injuries, so it's not my department." Owen inhaled, "Rain check till tonight?"
"I'll have the waitress wrap this up for you to eat as dinner." Elena smiled up to Owen.
Owen grinned, reached down and kissed her forehead, "It's why I love you babe." He grabbed his bag rushing back towards the hospital.
The first thing Owen did when he got to the hospital was to find Lewis, the one thing he told interns was not to page him on his lunch break unless someone was dying, and if they were dead there was no point in paging him. He was a good Doctor, but he wasn't that good.
He found Lewis in a few moments; the man looked lost in his own world, "So what was so important it couldn't wait until I finished my lunch date with my wife?"
A heartbeat passed before Lewis opened his mouth, "I…"
"That would have been me," Jack stepped out of the shadows.
Owen turned to Lewis, then back to Jack, "you're fucking kidding me," His eyes going back to glare at Lewis. "You're a married man!"
Lewis felt his face flush as he fondled with his pager and made an excuse to run away.
Owen couldn't believe it, his eyes were burning a hole in Jack's face, and in that second his fist raised and crashed into Jack's nose.
"Ow!" Jack held the broken nose that was already healing itself, "Is this going to be your standard greeting of me?"
Owen rubbed his knuckles, he couldn't even start to say the things he'd do with his anger towards Jack, but instead shrugged, "Conceding the shit I've cleaned up after you, I think you owe me this much."
"Fair do," Jack let his nose go studying over Owen, "But there is something more important at hand." He pointed towards the morgue. "Like something you've not even notice Owen."
Owen followed Jack, he wanted to be eating his lunch with Elena, he wanted to start building his marriage back, and he wanted all the things that weren't here. "Well since my job is stopping people being in here," Owen pointed out, "I don't have much to do with the morgue Jack."
Jack sighed with a shake of his head, "Owen, Owen, Owen."
"Jack, Jack, Jack," Owen glanced to his old boss; the man really knew how to keep pushing for his own way. "I don't know what you're expecting of me, since I don't deal with dead bodies anymore."
Jack walked over to a body container, opened it and pulled out the slab. On it was what used to be a young girl, the skin looked singed, even cooked. Owen didn't like looking to the mess, but his eyes shot up to meet Jack, "Possible self-inflicted burn from sleeping with a lit cigarette."
Jack shook his head, he lightly pushed the top of the young girl's chest, and without effort the skin caved in to a hollow shell. Owen jumped back at the sight of the girl's skin caving into itself. "No Owen, we are looking at something that burnt her from inside out…"
"Spontaneous human combustion…" Owen whispered, "We both know that is not even a likely event, we both know that…" Owen stopped speaking; he took a big step back. "This isn't the first victim…"
"No Owen, and whatever is doing this isn't going to stop, and it's only going to get worse." Jack felt like he was making a deal too good for Owen to turn down.
Owen took a deep breath, held it for a few seconds before letting out. "Jack, I can't help you with this." He held his hand up, "I don't work for Torchwood, and I don't chase aliens anymore." He wanted to make a very strong point. "So whatever is doing this, you're on your own mate." He patted Jack's shoulder walking away. Stopping for a second he turned around, "Do you ever think of the damage you inflict on the people around you?" He didn't want to hear an answer as he opened the door and walked out; he wasn't going to be pulled into this mess. For once his life wasn't about aliens and horrific death.
Jade walked down the stairs going to the living room seeing Elena watching the news report on the escaped lions. "So I finally got the kids to sleep, and didn't even have to drug them…" Jade see Elena's eyes snap, "Too soon for joke?"
Elena nodded, "You okay?" She pointed to the news report, "You was there?"
Jade shrugged, "DJ was trying to stop me being upset." Jade thought back to getting the children away from the media frenzy, and lose her bad mode. "Elena, can I ask you something?"
Elena scooted over on the sofa, "Sure…"
"The London Zoo has insisted that all locks to the lion enclosure were fully checked and that the escape was an accident beyond their understanding. With only a few with minor injuries London Zoo still have no reason behind the incident."
Jade felt her eyes reach for the remote turning the TV off, "Do you really understand the problems with Jasmine?"
Elena froze, "She's different." Her voice was unsure, "but then I. She's. It's complicated." Part of Elena knew what Jade meant, "I've fucked my own child up!" Her hand covered her face to hide her shame.
Jade was careful to peal Elena's hands away, "Elena you didn't fuck her up." Her voice trying to be friendly, "But you need to understand that Jasmine isn't developing right, and that she's in a very strange place." Jade couldn't hold it back, "She can scare the shit out of me."
Elena bit her lip, her eyes going to the baby photos of Jasmine, "I didn't mean to."
"Well since you've spent most of her life in a drug haze, she's only copying what she thinks is normal." For a moment Jade took Elena's hand. "I don't want to be a bitch, but something has got to give."
"Fucking Jack Harkness!" Owen grunted walking into the living room seeing how close Jade was to Elena. "Am I missing something?"
Jade cleared her throat, "Well, yes."
The door knocked and made everyone turn around, Owen to open up to see a very flushed Ianto. "Can I come in?"
Owen looked confused, "What is this about?"
"I don't want to talk about it," Jade got to her feet, her eyes focused on Ianto who looked different somehow. "I think we should think of dinner." Her voice was trying to change the subject.
Ianto ignored her, "I think we need to talk about the children Jade, I am sick of being the one to say no, the one to be making rules." He kept to his fall height; something about spending an afternoon with Jack did that to him. "I want for once for me to be the fun one, and you to do tell them off."
Jade wasn't amused, "So you want what from me?" Jade felt like if he wanted to rumble, she'd give him a fight. "Because all you want to do is yell at them!"
"Jade he let lions out of the Zoo, he could have been killed, and you talked to him like he spilt his milk on the carpet."
Jade kept still, "He's six years old Ianto, I am not going to be telling him off, he was trying to cheer me up!"
Owen held a hand up, "So you're saying your Son was behind the Zoo thing?" He glanced from Ianto back to Jade. "Great parenting you two are doing…"
Jade felt her burning fire of anger set into full blaze, "Oh don't you even start with me Owen Harper."
Owen raised his eyebrow, "and why not?" He didn't like the day he was having. "If you have something to say, then bloody say it!"
Jade folded her arms over her chest, "Look at your daughter, she doesn't talk, she stares at people, and I didn't even want to start with the lack of any social skills." Jade wanted to push her point.
Owen felt hurt, "Unlike your children that are running a riot and letting dangerous animals run around." He nodded, "There is nothing wrong with my Daughter, and it's your inability to keep yourself protected when having sex to not keep popping out so many bloody kids!"
Ianto and Elena kept quiet, they had somehow joined together to see the fight turn from Ianto and Jade, to Jade Verse Owen.
Jade kept frozen on the spot, her hands itched with the need to hit Owen, "Fuck you!" She yelled before walking out of the living room in a storm.
Jade had grabbed Elena's cigarettes off the kitchen counter with the red lighter that looked like it had gone through the washing machine a few too many times - the cigarette was already in her mouth by the time she excited the kitchen to the back garden, she brought the lighter to her lips and lit it taking a deep inhale from it.
Despite being pregnant, Jade had the occasional cigarette and today at this very moment she was figuring, better to have a cigarette and distress than to not and be carrying a lot of stress on her shoulders...
The grey haze of smoke with a tinge of blue rose up into the air as the evening onset itself fully, the twilight sky was milky as the moon held a small sliver like shape.
"Do not walk away from me." Owen said seriously having followed Jade outside, he never typically fought with Jade but something after seeing Jack this afternoon made him snap a lot quicker.
"There is nothing wrong with my children! You child is creepy and it's all because of her mother!" Jade snapped at him, feeling her face continue to flush hot.
"Excuse me?!" Owen spat in shock looking down at her now, he'd come to be standing directly in front of her in his back garden. "And would you knock it off! You're pregnant - again!" He grabbed the cigarette from her hand and crushed it under his foot after it fell to the ground.
"It's fucking true Owen! Your kid is copying her mother, that's all she's seen is your wife drugged up on a cocktail of pills off in space somewhere most of her life! THAT ISNT NORMAL!" Jade pointed sharply from Owen's face to the house she'd just stormed out of and Owens eyes widened.
"That's a rich observation coming from a woman whose inability to use birth control has her baking baby number four!" Owen glared. "Oh that's right, sorry - we all know you keep pushing out children is due to the fact if you stopped Ianto would come to his gay senses and leave you!"
Owen felt a sting across his cheek as the moment he stopped speaking Jade had taken her hand and slapped him across the face. "SHUT UP!" she yelled at him.
Owen brought his hand to touch his cheek slightly and stepped back. "You're so mad because you know it's true you resort to violence." Owen tried to use a softer tone.
"Fuck you, Owen." Jade glared her heart beating quickly as more anger pulsed through her body and Owen smirked. "It's only a matter of time; you know Jack always gets what he wants." Owen pointed out.
"It's only a matter of time before your crazy wife snaps again!" Jade projected back at Owen, "You know it's going to happen Owen, you just can't place where or when! I just hope you're somewhere close by so she doesn't accidentally push your daughter into oncoming traffic!" Jade went to walk away through the gardens gate but Owen grabbed her wrist.
He looked dangerously at her, "Take that back." He said.
"No!" Jade pulled her arm away from his, brushing it off. "I won't take back the truth."
"Maybe you should just go home!" Owen hissed and Jade looked at him.
"Fine! MAYBE I WILL!" She yelled at him.
"Fucking nutcase," Owen whispered, watching his best friend walk away from him. He rubbed his cheek again his eyes shifting to the house; he couldn't help but wonder if she was right.
Shaking his head and the thoughts that started rolling around inside them, he started to walk back to the house.
Jack didn't know what he was looking for; he knew that something was burning through bodies, each time the deaths getting closer together. He had to stop it before it got to a point where it was taking more victims.
Holding a newton close to his chest Jack was tracking down the energy that was coming from each victim; he knew that it had to be some kind of alien taking host, his eyes not coming off the screen before bumping into something.
"Oh, what a cherry to top my shitty day!" Jade snapped glaring to Jack, she didn't know why, but like Owen she blamed him.
"Whoa Jade…" Jack took a giant step back, if he knew one thing, everyone had a habit of stabbing or punching him in the face. "What brings you out this time of night?"
"I don't have disclose that information with you Jack." Jade kept her tone calm, even if inside she wanted to rip out his eyes.
Jack nodded, "Sorry General Springsteen, or is it Jones?"
"Springsteen," Jade folded her arms, "And," Her eyes trailed to the newton, "I'm assuming you're hunting something." Her voice trailed into curiosity, the one thing of her personality that wouldn't ever change. "Would you like to brief me?"
"Sorry I don't answer to U.N.I.T…" Jack kept trying to follow the signal, but could feel Jade keeping pace with him.
Jade cocked her eyebrow, "Last I checked Torchwood was out of commission," Her voice had the darkest of smugness in it.
Jack froze, he then listen to a random drunk bloke laughing. "Oh, want aloe vera for that burn." He stumbled off to then piss against the wall.
"Jack, you know if there is any kind of alien threat it's just safe to let me take it from here…" Jade was loving this too much, her hands going to her pocket, "So I can help, or take over completely with a simple click of," Jade took out her iPhone going to press a button.
"Fine!" Jack snapped out, "I don't know what it is that I am hunting, but it seemed to be taking human host and burning them out."
Jade took the newton, "So you're using subatomical signals from the victims to lead back to the alien." Jade lips pursed together in thought. "Won't really work as the subatomic matter would have faded quickly, and for all you know you're just tracing the victims DNA partials." Jade took the newton. "you're more likely to find the alien if you change from that, to subtracting the subatomical matter from the existing DNA and then reroute the signal to trace the heat rather than matter and…." Jade grinned. "Your alien is somewhere in the Knights Templar pub." Jade placed the Newton back in Jack's hands, his eyes looking from the screen back to Jade. "You're welcome."
Jack nodded, "God I've missed you!" Grabbing Jade's face kissing her quickly.
Feeling a little put back Jade brushed the back of her sleeve against her mouth, her eyes narrowed. "Really!"
"Well you can stay here, or come with me?" Jack gave her that smile, the smile that took Jade back to running with Jack into the unknown, the man who was her leader and friend. "Well?"
"Oh fuck it…" Jade knew she couldn't stop herself from running with Jack to find herself an alien. She wasn't going to be able to kill Owen, but an alien was a close second.
Jade wasn't used to the bar scene anymore, as she could see people standing around having conversations she even felt a little jealous of the easy lives they lived.
"One way of finding something that doesn't fit," Jack whispered to Jade, "Is to bait them out." He smirked, and he could see a man who was drinking way too fast for a normal person. "Do you mind, I don't think I'm its type…" Jack smirked to Jade.
"Yes, but big, fat and pregnant screams sexy!" Jade bit her tongue, and felt Jack press something onto the back of her jumper. She glanced down to her flat stomach feeling odd. "What did you do?"
"It a chameleon cloak, takes off that unwanted baby bump." He smirked.
Jade punched his arm, "Yeah well I can still feel it!" Jade shook her head, "I'll go figure what this thing is."
Walking pass the mass of women now giving Jade the stink eye, she forgot how other females would look at her when she wasn't a baby making machine, she even missed how her body looked pre pregnancy.
The man looked from his fortieth shot, he could see the sexiest woman in the bar coming towards him, he couldn't figure why he felt himself getting hard as he was gay, but something in him didn't feel right, and as she got closer he couldn't stop the smile.
Jade didn't like this; the man was showing signs of arousal that she didn't really want to notice. "Care to buy a lady a drink…" Jade never notice how much her American accent had come back with her fake flirting.
The man put the glass down, "Well, depends on what the lady is going to do to thank me…" He kept grinning.
The man didn't like this, it was horrible being trapped with no control, and for a brief second he found some courage to pull the drunken thing inside him. "Please help me!" He shouted for only a fraction of a second, he grabbed Jade and threw her back against the bar breaking the chameleon cloak on her.
Jade fell to the floor, her back shooting with pain as the man fell to the ground, she couldn't help but notice the smell, and then the screams.
Jack witness the smoke, the man had already been burnt out, and then to Jade lying on the ground, her hands holding her baby belly looking in pain. He rushed to her side to help as she pushed him away. "Jade I am so sorry."
Jade closed her eyes, "You don't even know how great that felt." Jade finally let Jack help her up, "Just not as spry as I used to be." She then looked to the body. "What do we do now?" Jade asked finally giving into letting Jack take charge of this one.
Jade couldn't understand why she felt so odd; she put it down to being pushed into a bar. He hands brushed her back looking behind her to see Jack waving her off. She said it would be smart to not come into the house with Owen in the mood he was in.
Elena opened the door to see Jade, she stepped aside letting her in, and Owen already had vented his anger out on Elena before going to his local drinking hole.
Not wanting to be involved Elena just smiled, "Would you like a tea?" She asked heading into the kitchen.
Jade let out a long breath, "The night I had, yes please." She sat down rubbing her belly feeling sore, she didn't even notice when DJ rushed through the door jumping into her arms. A rush of relief ripped through Jade as her son hugged her tight. "Mummy are you still mad at Daddy?"
"He's gone to the pub with Owen…" Elena whispered to answer Jade's unanswered question, but Elena knew in this moment in time Jade didn't care where Ianto was, as long as he was away from here.
Jade took the time to study over DJ, "You should be in bed," Her tone was hard to be mean to her little boy's big blue eyes, she couldn't be mad, but part of her couldn't look into them eyes without feeling the pain that his father was inflicted on her. "Come on, you need to sleep little man." She got up smiling to Elena. "I'll be down when I finish putting him down for the night.
"Cool, I'll have your tea ready." Elena went to boiling a kettle and hoping that Jade had calm down from the many fights she'd gotten into that day.
After tucking in DJ, Jade made her way down to see Elena had set up her tea in the living room, she sat down with an awkward feeling glancing over Elena. "I'm sorry about today, you were meant to be relaxing."
"It's alright," Elena sipped her small glass of wine, "I've got to admit it was a strange afternoon." Her eyes were going to Jade touching her stomach. "So, do you and Ianto fight often?"
"No, but then I work too much to fight," Jade sighed, "I guess he's been hiding this from me for a while, and it just exploded." Picking up her tea Jade closed her eyes taking a sip.
Elena drank her wine, "Don't take Owen too serious, he's still the same stubborn git." Elena added with a giggle.
Jade rolled her eyes, "Well I guess we're all a little wound tight cos of Jack." She stopped seeing if Elena would react.
"Yea, he gets under Owen's skin." Elena placed her wine glass down, "So where did you go?"
Jade tried to stop a smile, "I helped Jack track an alien, but we lost it." She shook her head. "Some poor barstard…" Jade didn't even know how the thing got from host to host. Her hands were embracing the tea.
Elena didn't really want to think about it, she wasn't an alien hunting superwoman anymore. She was just the wife of a doctor, mother of an awkward child, and most of all batshit crazy.
Jade woke up alone, she'd glanced to the bed she'd slept with and thought of how it was the first night she'd slept in a bed without being a sleep in it first. Her hand brushed against her bump feeling her baby move, and was wondering if this baby would ever know of mummy and daddy being together.
"Jade!" Jade could hear Elena screaming from outside of the bedroom. Not wanting to move, but the sound of Elena rushing was enough to make Jade see this wasn't a false alarm. "Jade please!" Elena was now crying on the other side of the door.
Getting out of bed Jade wrapped a dressing gown around herself to see the panic on Elena's face. "What's the matter with Jazz?" Jade assuming something must of happened to Jasmine with the way Elena was sobbing.
"No." Elena couldn't stop herself, "It's DJ, he's burning up, and he's not keeping anything down." Her words cut into Jade; she pushed passed Elena to get into the children's room.
One thing Jade was happy is that Phil and Lil were kept away from their brother. DJ lying in his bed, his face was flushed as Jade glanced to the puddle of vomit on the floor.
Elena stepped beside Jade, "I didn't wake you at first, and I gave him some calpol." Her hands brushing her eyes, "But I tried giving him water, but he kept throwing up, and I can't control his fever."
A moment Jade didn't want to believe it, her eyes going to the stairs hearing the door open. She rushed to see Ianto and Owen looking rough from their drinking.
"Ianto," Jade threw herself into his arms. "Our baby, I think he's possessed by some kind of alien!" Her words turned to incoherent sobs of pain.
Owen never thought he'd sober up so fast in his life as he ran up the stairs two at a time to get to the children's room. Elena sat with DJ with a flannel trying to press anything to take away a fever, but the water was evaporating quickly against his burning skin.
"I can't stop it." Elena sobbed, but Owen knelt beside the small boy, he checked his pupils to try and see anything that would respond, "Elena go see Jade," he tried to think what to do.
Elena didn't know how to move, she had a feeling this wasn't good as Owen was trying to force feed DJ water that was turning to steam in his mouth.
Jade stood in the doorway, all she wanted to do was hold he baby boy, to let him know it was going to be okay, but she didn't know. How could she know if these were the last moments of her son's life. Feeling the tears burning, she knew that someone the alien had used her body to get to DJ's, her mind wondered over everything, even if she couldn't of predicted it, it felt like her fault.
"Jack," Jade whispered, "This is Jack's fault!" Her eyes going to her pocket, she felt around for her phone taking it out to dial a number she hoped hadn't changed.
In a few rings Jack answered, and Jade bellowed down the phone, her face stung from all the tears, and knowing there was going to be nothing a hospital could do for her baby.
As Owen moved DJ to a bathtub of ice water, he had to keep the shower and tap running as the room filled with a thick steam coming off of DJ.
Painful as it looked, DJ had seemed to passed into some kind of trance, Jade sat on the edge of the bath trying to touch her son, but the heat was too much.
The door knocked making Ianto and Elena stand together in the living room, both of them couldn't care to see DJ in the state he was in. Opening the door Jack stood the other side, not waiting for an invitation to come into the house he simply followed the steam from the top landing.
Jade's head snapped to the sound of Jack entering the bathroom, she couldn't really see him, but she knew he was there. "Am I too late?" Jack asked Owen.
Owen kneeling on the floor trying all he could to stop the boy from burning out, he could see the little body starting to change to a dark pink, "Jack, what is this thing?"
Pulling Owen out of the way Jack grabbed hold of DJ's tiny body, the pain of his scorching skin made the palms of his hands blister and burn. The pain shot up his arms like flaming knives making him scream in agony.
"Whatever you are, whatever you want. Take me!" Jack screamed, he could tell that DJ's body was losing the fight. "I am better, stronger and I'll last so long." Jack said in an almost sexual voice.
Jade hid her face into the shower curtains, she couldn't witness her little boy, but as she peaked she saw something glowing out of DJ's mouth.
The blazing light shot fast, and as Jack dropped DJ, Owen was quick to catch, even if he wasn't burning as hot, he was quick to rush him out of the bathroom to his office that Jade and Ianto were sleeping in. He always felt happy he had medical supplies at his in case Elena had another episode.
Jack was trashing against the walls, he felt the burning in his throat, the fire moving down into him, and as he tried to have an inner fight, he knew it only hurt because he was fighting it.
Jade ignored Jack's fits, she couldn't stop but rush to see Owen giving DJ an IV drip, her hands touching his skin, it was still hot, but not hot enough to burn her as she found a glass of water pushing it to his lips. A wash of relief as DJ's mouth finally accepted the water as he drank quickly.
Jack felt the finally pull, he could feel the burn, but suddenly it died down. Getting to his feet he could see Ianto looking pale. "I think I won that one." He smirked and turned to see Elena staring. "Might have a bit of heart burn for a while…"
"Gaviscon in the fridge…" Elena moved to go to where DJ was being treated, and Jack couldn't help but think Elena really had lost her deeper feelings of him; it hurt him to think he really did push her to a dark edge that she might not ever fully recover from.
Elena could see that Jade was cuddling her little boy, his skin slowly going to his soft tan, "Is he going to be okay?" Elena hung on the door frame afraid to move into the room.
Jade glanced to Owen, he'd been going over DJ as best as he could in Jade's arms. "He's going to look like he's got a mild fever, I'll give him something to take the pain, and he'll be running around in no time, since it was an alien and not a virus." Owen bit the corner of his lip. "I can rule out any serious damage." He brushed a hand over DJ's forehead tracking his pupils. "I…" Owen stopped seeing DJ blinking up to him.
"Mummy, my tummy hurts." His little voice sounded raspy.
Jade tried to not cry anymore, "You need to sleep little man, you've had a big day, you need your sleep." Her hand brushed his hair back. She thanked everything that he wasn't dead.
Jack stood in the doorway, he could see Owen making sure DJ was okay, Elena standing with Jade holding her baby. "I'm sorry…" Jack whispered.
Jade let go of DJ, she took a deep breath, "No Jack." Her voice made Jack take a step back, but she got to her feet. "I chose to go with you, and I wanted to help." Her hands went into her pockets. "This was my fault too." Her eyes going to her son who looked like he was falling into a natural sleep. "I don't ever want to have my children in this kind of danger again, so you see why I could never come back to Torchwood." She moved going out of the room to let her son sleep.
Owen nodded, "We're lucky he's still alive," He pointed out matter of factly, his eyes going to Elena. "Think we should order pizza?"
"Sure…" Elena went down the stairs, she glanced to Ianto. "Ianto, are you okay?"
Ianto blinked, "Yea, just." He exhaled, "I better check the others." He rushed off, and as the night was over. It seemed like something else was coming out of the dark.