Disclaimer: I own nothing
Chapter Twelve
Three days later, Lily was lying in bed, curled up against Jack in the way that she loved. Jack absent mindedly played with her hair, while she drew light patterns on his bare chest with her fingertips.
She smiled as she snuggled up against him, " I really don't want to get out of bed," she said, " I could just lie here forever. "
Jack laughed - it was a conversation they'd had many times, always with the same result, " I know, baby, but we have work to do. Saving the universe and all that. "
Lily sighed, " Not that I don't love it, but don't you ever get fed up of being the hero? "
Jack looked at her seriously, " Never," he said.
" I should have known," she said, " you just love sweeping in and saving the world. Let me rephrase it then, don't you ever wish we could spend a few more hours in bed? Just ... lying here. This human time goes too quick when you're enjoying it. "
Jack leaned in and kissed her forehead, before pulling her even closer to him than she already was, " It doesn't matter how fast it goes," he said, " we've just got to make the most of it, because we've got ages. "
" Yeah, yeah," Lily said, starting to sit up, " what you really mean it, you're dying to get to work. Sometimes I think you love Torchwood more than you love me. "
Jack rolled his eyes, " Well sometimes I think you love the TARDIS more than you love me. You were only saying last night how much you miss it. You haven't seen your dad in weeks, and you're dying to get back out there into space. "
" Only for a teeny tiny little trip," Lily told her, climbing over him to get out of the bed, and stumbling a little as she did so. It was true that she missed travelling, but she hadn't been in a while, so she decided that she was going to call her dad later, to see if he was free. When she heard Jack laugh at her, she turned around to stick her tounge out at him.
As she grabbed some clothes and went into the bathroom, shutting the door behind her, she heard Jack clear his throat from the other side of the door.
" Listen," he said, " there's something I've been meaning to tell you. "
" Yeah? " she called, carefree.
"It's about Owen," he said, sounding uncomfortable.
" What about him? " Lily asked, suspicious of Jack's tone of voice - in the last few days, Owen had seemed fine to her, though Martha remained in the hub to help him with his duties.
" I think we need to lay him off for a little bit," he said.
Lily yanked open the door, " What? " she demanded, looking at him as she stepped back into the bedroom. " Tell me I heard that wrong. "
Jack met her eyes and refused to back down, growing in confidence, " It's something I've been thinking about over the last couple of days, and I've made the decision. Owen will be relieved of his duties while we run some tests on him and make sure he's fit to work. In the meantime Martha will fill in as medical officer for Torchwood. "
Lily put her hands on her hips, sighing exasperatedly, " Oh Jack, you can't just do that to him. Owen works so hard, and he really wants this. It's not his fault that he's dead. "
" I'm sorry," Jack said, " but this is how things are. Owen's dead, and he needs looking over. We need to know he's completely safe before we can let him work. "
" So you're firing him? " Lily asked, angrily.
Jack sighed, " Look, I get it, you're concerned for Owen. He's your friend. But right now, you can't think of him as Owen. It's just a few tests, and then we'll see what happens. I don't want to fall out about this. "
Lily nodded, keeping her emotions in check, " I don't want to fall out either. I just don't think this is the right decision. "
" But I do," Jack said, " and it's my call. "
Lily looked at him for a moment and then accepted that she couldn't change his mind, and walked past him, towards the door. " I'd better get to work," she said.
As she passed him, Jack reached out and caught hold of her arm lightly, pulling her back towards him. There, he cupped her cheek with one hand and planted a soft kiss on her lips. " Don't be mad at me," he said.
She couldn't help but smile at him, and she loved the way that he didn't want to fall out, because she didn't want to either. " I'm not mad at you," she said as she got on her toes and planted another kiss on his lips, before turning to the door again.
Upstairs, she went staight for the kitchen, and looked in the fridge for something to eat. She pulled out a yoghurt and then grabbed a spoon, sitting on the worktop as she opened it.
She had a spoonfu of strawberry yoghurt in her mouth when the door opened, and Ianto walked in. Lily nodded her head at him, noting the smile on his face.
" Drink? " he asked, heading for the coffee machine.
" Ooh, go on then," she said, watching him get the mugs out, working away with a smile. " You're in a good mood," she told him, a playful smile crossing her face.
He shrugged, looking down.
Lily continued to smile, teasing him, " You're not blushing are you? Why are you in such a good mood? Oh ... was it your date last night? It was, wasn't it? "
Ianto nodded, " Yeah. Yeah, it was. "
" And? " Lily asked, swinging her legs as she threw the empty yoghurt pot in the bin, where it landed perfectly.
" You know," Ianto said, turning to look at her, " my parents brought me up not to pry in other people's business. "
Lily knew he wasn't bein malicious from the look on his face, which was threatening to turn into a smile, " Did they? Well, you should meet my dad - he's not like that. One of the nosiest people you could meet. Though he doesn't call it nosy, of course, he calls it curious. So I'm curious. Tell me about your date. "
Ianto went back to making the coffee, not looking at her as he answered, " I met Cate at HQ in town, we had a couple of drinks and we had a chat, I walked her home and we swapped numbers. "
So you think you'll see her again? " Lily asked, interested.
Ianto raised his eyebrows, " Why the interest? " he asked.
She shrugged, " Why not? I can't help being incredibly nosy - they're my dad's genes. I like to take an interest in my collegues - I've got Jack, Gwen's getting married in a couple of weeks - which I'm suprised I got invited to, to be honest - and Owen and Tosh need to get together. That leaves you. I think you deserve someone. "
Ianto shrugged, " I don't know. All I know is, I quite like Cate, and I'm hoping to see her again. "
Lily nodded, swinging her legs one final time before getting off the worktop and heading for the door. " Good for you," she said as she passed him.
She stopped at the door and turned around to face him, " So when can I tell Jack to expect a double date? " she asked him with that same playful smile.
Ianto looked stunned.
Lily laughed, " Relax, it was a joke. I wouldn't spring Jack on any unsuspecting girl. I think he might frighten the hell out of her, if she's sane. "
Ianto looked at her calmly, " You're saying that any sane girl would be scared by Jack's personality. What does that say about you? "
Lily grinned, " If there's one very important thing you should remember about me, it's that I am very much not sane. "
With that, she was gone, and Ianto shook his head, amused. Lily crossed the hub and sat at her desk, looking at an empty sheet of paper, knowing she had a report to write.
Before she could start it, she glanced up to see Martha standing there.
She smiled at her friend, " Hey," she said, " take a seat. Things have been crazy around here - hasn't really been much chance to talk. "
Martha smiled, grabbed a chair from Tosh's desk - as Tosh was in the medical bay, and swinging it around to sit near Lily, " Aren't things always crazy? " Martha asked, " it feels like all we ever do is run around, chase aliens, save the world, and then do it all over again. "
" That's because that's what we do do," Lily said, " but we both know we wouldn't have it any other way. " After a pause, she added, " so what about my dad - how much do you miss him? Or ... it? The whole time and space travelling with a madman? "
Martha sighed, " Honestly? " she asked, " I miss it sometimes, but then I think about what I've got here, with Tom, and then it goes away. Can't say I wouldn't mind the odd trip into space every now and then. "
Lily nodded, " I know, I know. I love my life here, with Torchwood, and my new friends, and Jack, but I miss it. All the different planets, and countries, and time periods. And my dad. "
Martha smiled at her, " I bet your dad misses you too. He dotes on you - Daddy's little girl. "
Lily shrugged, " I'm going to call him later. Maybe he'll call by and take me off somewhere. That's all it takes, you know - a quick trip to satisfy the itch. "
Sighing and looking across the hub, she saw Jack standing at the office door, looking expectantly at her. She excused herself from Martha and went over to Jack.
" Can I help you? " she asked, propping herself up against the door way.
Jack frowned a little, " I'm going to talk to Owen. "
Lily frowned a little, " And what have I got to do with it? " When Jack looked at her, she rolled her eyes, understanding what he wanted, " Oh, no Jack," she sighed, " don't do that to me. "
He pouted, " Aw c'mon. All you've got to do is stand there, so if Owen kicks off, you can make him shut up. Not that I think he will, but I need some moral support. "
" Moral support," Lily scoffed, trailing one hand along his chest as she passed him to go into the office. She winced when Jack barked Owen's name to make him come into the office.
Jack settled behind his desk, and Lily stood near the door. When Owen walked in, he frowned in confusion at the precense of the pair of them there, and looked from one to the other, before settling on Lily.
" Look," he said, holding his hands up, " I know I'm an attractive bloke, and I've seen you giving me the eye, but I'm really not interested in your kinky threesomes. If it was just you, sweetheart, then we might have a deal."
" Owen! " Lily said, rolling her eyes, " we didn't ask you in here for that. "
Jack cleared his throat, drawing all attention to himself and then leant forwards, clasping his hand together, " I'm sorry things have to be this way," he said, making Lily hate was about to happen to her friend. After a pause during which he gathered himself together, he announced, " Dr Owen Harper, Torchwood Officer 565, I'm relieving you of your duties. "
Owen immediatley reacted as badly as Lily suspected he would, and he groaned, " Bollocks! " he shouted, " Jack, this is bollocks! "
" Hand in your weapon and your security pass," Jack said simply.
" But why? " Owen demanded, " I'm fine. "
Lily felt sorry for him but remained quiet as Jack told him, " Three days ago, you died. We need to examine you. We need to find out what you are - we don't even know if you're human. We need to be certain you're okay. "
" It almost sounds as if you care," Owen said flatly.
" Until I'm confident you're fit for duty, Martha Jones will replace you as Torchwood's new medical officer," Jack said. He stood up, " She's worked out a series of tests and examinations. "
Lily frowned a little, at the way Jack had got it so worked out - for Martha to have all the tests ready, he must have told her at least a day or two ago, which meant he'd kept it secret for that long. Normally, Lily herself could have sorted out the appropriate scans and tests.
" And what if I refuse? " asked Owen defiantley.
" Don't," Lily said gently.
Jack took a sterner approach, " You'll be confined to the cells," he said, " the tests will be done, and if the results show that you're a danger to the team, appropriate tests will be done. "
Owen didn't look pleased, and Lily took a step closer to him, trying to sound as comforting as she could, " Please Owen, we're asking you, not telling you. Let us make sure you're safe, at least. "
Owen frowned, " Lily, you don't think I'm dangerous," he said.
Lily didn't meet his eyes, knowing that he was right, and she answered, " We need to check, nonetheless. "
" So I'm gonna need your gun," said Jack.
Owen glared at him, and Lily felt very guilty as Owen pulled his gun from one pocket and held it out to her, along with his security pass. It was an awkward moment as he held it out, and she met his eyes apologetically as she took the gun and security pass from him.
Owen nodded and looked over at Jack, " How long are Dr Jones' tests going to take? "
" As long as they need to," Jack replied cooly.
" And what the hell am I supposed to do in the meantime? " Owen demanded.
" We always need someone to make the coffee," said Jack simply.
Owen frowned, not liking the sound of that at all, and declined at once. There was a long pause, before Jack raised his eyebrows, and Owen stormed out of the room with a glare set on his face. When he was gone, Lily let out a sigh.
" That was awful," she said, still feeling guilty, even though it wasn't her decision to fire him, but she still couldn't help but feel that if she'd moved faster, she might have been able to stop him from dying in the first place.
" I know," Jack said, trying to be comforting because he knew how much Lily felt for Owen, as her friend, " but all being well, he can have his job back soon. " After a pause, he added, " never mind Owen. How about a smile? "
Lily shrugged.
Jack pouted a little - it was a pout that was just enough to make her laugh and do as he wanted, but not too much that it looked ridiculous." Oh come on," he said with a teasing tone of voice, " I'll start to think you prefer Owen to me at this rate. "
" Now that you mention it, Owen is rather good-looking," Lily said, as if she'd only just thought about it, " I wonder what he's doing this weekend. "
Jack shrugged, knowing that he could play it just the same as she could, " And come to think of it, Tosh is rather pretty. I mean, I know she's pining after Owen, but I could soon rectify that. Any idea what she's doing this weekend? "
Lily shrugged too, " Okay, I get it. Anything I can do, you can do better. "
" Not everything, I suppose," Jack said, as a suggestive smile crossed his face.
She relented and gave him her most winning smile, to which he grinned in return, " That's my girl," he said, reaching out to open the office door for her.
She stopped at the door and reached up on her toes, wishing not for the first time, that she could be a few inches taller, to be rid of the need to stretch up. She planted a kiss on his smooth cheek and then headed back to her desk, fully aware that he was watching her walk away. She turned and looked over her shoulder at him, offering him a smile and then looking away.
She was leant over her desk, head down as she scribbled away at her paperwork an hour or so later, when she smelt her favourite coffee with sprinkles over the top.
She looked up, ready to thank Ianto, and her smile faltered when she saw Owen standing there. She thanked him quietly, though it felt wrong and awkward.
He watched her take a sip and then said flatly, " I suppose you're officially second-in-command now, are you? " he asked, " I mean, deciding who gets hired and fired ... "
The team accepted Lily's authority, and it came naturally that she should be in control. She was just as capable of leading the team as Jack was, though she didn't step on his toes, and left him in charge, since Torchwood had been his for so many years. However, there was never a point where either she or Jack decided she was his number two, it just became accepted anyway.
Lily shook her head, " Look, it wasn't like that. I didnt even know until this morning - he just sprung it on me this morning, and it wasn't my place to argue. He's in charge. "
" Rubbish," Owen said, trying not to get angry as he stopped himself from swearing, " he'd do almost anything you asked him. If you'd pushed it enough, and fought my corner enough, he'd have let me keep my job. "
" No," Lily said, standing up, " don't you pin this on me. "
Owen seemed taken aback by her sudden movement, but he kept looking at her cooly. They kept looking at each other, and Lily finally broke the silence, " Listen to me," she told him, her emotions beginning to get the better of her, " I already feel guilty enough for your death, and I will always feel that way. So yeah, as much as I don't want to think about it, maybe it is my fault that you lost your job, because it could be my fault that you died. I just don't need reminding of that. It's done now, so all you've got to do, is let Martha do the damn tests, so we can check and you and then put you back to work. Happy now? "
Owen was even more taken aback by this, and he kept looking at her, breaking the gaze to glance at the floor, " It's not your fault," he said when he could meet her eyes again, " yeah, you could have jumped in front of me if you'd been a tiny bit quicker, but you couldn't have stopped him firing, and you know it. I'm sorry I snapped at you. "
Lily smirked a little, " Wait, did you actually just apologise to me? "
" So we're alright? " Owen asked, " I'm sorry for getting so mad at you. "
" No," Lily said, " it's got to be hard for you. It's ... it's understandable. But you'll get through this. You're not going to let a little thing like death get in your way, are you? "
Owen said nothing, smiling at her briefly before walking away.
Lily was only just saw down again when she looked up to see Jack crossing the hub, heading towards the conference room. "C'mon," he said, stopping by her desk and holding out his hand.
She held her hand out too and he took it, pulling her to her feet with that smile, and walking towards the conference room. At the door he turned back and shouted for the others to join them, making Lily slap his arm as he shouted right by her ear.
They were all seated around the table when Jack stood up to adress them. " Henry John Parker," he said, putting up a picture of the man on the monitor, " he used to be a looker. Now he's 80-odd, and even I have my limits. "
" You'd better bloody do," Lily muttered under her breath.
They'd each met Parker a couple of times when he found bits of alien equipment, and each time it amounted to nothing, and there was very little trouble, as they confiscated the item in question.
The door opened, and Owen walked in with a tray of drinks, making his way around the room as Jack continued, " He's your basic millionaire collector of alien junk. "
Lily tutted, " Not junk, Jack," she said, " junk is a naughty work. I'd prefer to think of it as space debris. You wouldn't believe some of the stuff you'd find that could be dismissed at junk - dad used to have loads of it in his workshop. And Jack's got a right collection in the office. Once, I found something that looked like some sort of weird se-"
" Thank you baby," Jack said cutting her off quickly.
Owen cleared his throat, " Didn't we file that bloke in the mostly harmless category? "
" Then what's the problem? " asked Lily, looking at Jack, ready for answers, " I seem to miss out on all the fun stuff when I get landed the paperwork. "
Tosh answered, " at 5:17 this morning, an energy spike was detected at Mr Parker's house. I've never seen anything like it before. "
" So what's he gone and done this time? " Lily asked, " should we get down there and check it out? "
" Do you think he's a threat? " Martha asked.
" Hasn't been in the past," Gwen said, waving a dismissive hand, as Owen wiped away a bit of tea he'd split on the table, " we know he's there, but he's no harm. He hasn't let the house much since his wife died - 1986. "
Owen suddenly took a seat around the table, and it felt a bit awkward since he wasn't supposed to be there. " We've been monitoring him for ages," he said, " there's nothing to be scared of. "
Lily took over again, " So," she said, glancing at Jack, who sat back and allowed her to take over, " alien energy pulse. Obviously we've got to check this out. Ianto, Gwen, let's have an inventory of everything Parker's picked up over the last several years - get a bit of backgroud. Martha, medical history please. And Tosh, can we have a schematic of the house? "
Everyone nodded, and started to get to work, leaving Owen sat at the table.
" Hey Gwen! " shouted Jack as the woman left the room, " how's the wedding planning going? "
" All sorted," said Gwen, before wincing, " other than Banana Boat. Arrested in Lanzarote, can you believe it? "
Lily smirked a little, but said nothing, and as Ianto handed her the first sheet of the inventory, for her to look through, she nodded and went to sit at her desk.
" You know, it suits you to be in charge," Jack said with a grin, " almost as much as it does me. "
Lily shrugged, " Well, I wasn't going to say anything, but I am planning to take over when you're not looking. "
Jack shrugged too, " To be expected, I suppose," he said, before heading for his office. Lily smiled as she watched him walk away, and then shook herself to try and focus on the work.
Tosh and Gwen were chatting idly about Gwen's wedding, and Lily had very little interest in it - Gwen wasn't particularly a friend, and although they got on for the sake of the work, she had no strong desire to attend the wedding. Even if she thought it might be fun to attend a human wedding.
She looked up, however, when she heard her name.
" You and Jack will be there, won't you? " Gwen asked.
Lily raised her eyebrows, " I didn't realise we were invited. "
" Of course you are," Gwen said, " you lot are the only people I see day in and day out. I asked Jack, but he wasn't sure. "
Lily shrugged, " You know Jack - likes to play mysterious, doesn't like to decide on his plans until 2 minutes before we need to go somewhere. Jack and you get on very well anyway, so I'm sure he'll go. And by extension, I'll come if everyone else is going. "
Gwen supressed a roll of her eyes, " Glad you're so pleased about it," she said.
Lily didn't retaliate, and instead said, " I'll have to get a dress or something. It's only ... what, two weeks away? "
Gwen nodded and went back to telling Tosh all the details about her dress and the seating plan, though Tosh didn't look particularly interested. Lily was poring over the papers when she saw Owen leave the hub, and though she frowned, she said nothing, knowing it might be best to leave him - he could handle himself.
An hour or so later, Tosh asked Jack if she could take a break, and he agreed. Lily watched her leave curiously, wondering if she'd be going after Owen, and thinking it very likely.
She went over to Jack's office and as usual, walked in without knocking, finding him busy with paperwork, as usual.
" What's going on around here? " she asked him.
He looked up, knowing there was very little he could ever keep from her, and he told her, " Owen asked me if he could make himself useful, so I told him the best thing for him to do was to relax and chill out. When he asked if he was allowed to go home, I just said yeah. Then Tosh asked for a break, and since she was in quite early this morning, it only seemed fair. "
" Do you think she's going after Owen? " asked Lily.
Jack shrugged, " I don't know, but I think if she was, she'd be more likely to tell you than me. Don't girls tell each other everything? "
" Some things," Lily said with a nod, before sighing, " I hope she knows what she's getting herself into. I mean, I want them to get together, but you know what Owen's like. He's hardly the Prince Charming she's looking for. Especially now ... " she stopped and looked at him, " sorry kitten - I suppose you're not really interested in this. "
Jack gave her a smile, " I'm always interested when you're talking," he said, " especially when you start calling me lovely names. I just think you should try not to get so involved. I know you care about them, but you can't just in there every time someone's got a problem. You're not their keeper. "
Lily smiled a little, " I know, I know. " Something occured to her and she told him, " But I don't even know your real name. I mean, there's nothing wrong with Jack, and I know it's your name now, but I don't know what your name was before. "
Jack looked at her, and the moment was now completely serious, " And I don't know yours," he said, " Odd, isn't it? We must know each other inside out, but we don't even know each others names. "
" And that's usually the first thing people learn," Lily pondered, frowning.
They each continued to look each other, and it was now a very poigiant moment between them. Jack didn't look away as he asked, " Shall I tell you? "
Lily replied, " Yes. "
" Then that's settled," Jack said. " Thank you for helping me decide what story to tell you tonight. On the condition that you tell me yours, of course. "
Lily nodded - it was serious for a time lord to impart their real name, and it meant a huge step for the pair of them. Since shortly after meeting him, she'd been convinced he was the one for her, and she was reminded of this constantly.
" See you around, kitten," she said, turning towards the door.
" Yeah," Jack said distractedly as he went back to his paperwork, " in a bit, baby. "
Half an hour later, Tosh came into the hub in a rather bad mood, sitting down heavily and tossing her handbag on the floor. She looked like she'd been crying, and Lily frowned.
" What happened? " she asked gently.
" Owen," she said with a sniff.
Lily frowned at once - she got on very well with both Owen and Tosh, but couldn't accept the idea of Owen making her friend cry. She pulled out her mobile and walked away from her desk, going into the kitchen and shutting the door behind her
When Owen picked up, having seen her name on the screen, he didn't say hello, instead just groaned, " First Tosh, now you. What was the point in coming home? "
" What have you said to Tosh? " she demanded.
" Nothing," Owen said.
" What have you said to Tosh? " she repeated, more forcefully this time.
She heard him sigh, " Not much then," he said.
" Owen, she's a right state," Lily said, turning to look out of the kitchen window at the main hub, where Ianto and Jack were standing together in front of the CCTV that overlooked the hub.
" Fine," he said, snapping a little, " if you're that bothered - yeah, I told her I knew she wanted me, and I thought it was pathetic. Yeah, I said I know she wants me because I'm dead and safe, and I can't go out and shag other girls anymore. Yeah, I told her I was as screwed up as her. Yeah, I made her see me broken - I broke my fingers in front of her. And yes, I threw her out. There you go. "
" Owen! " she snapped, " that's ... how could you? You could at least show her a bit of sensitivity. I know you're struggling with this, but - "
" Struggling? " Owen repeated, " yeah, but do you really know how much I'm struggling? "
With that, the phone went dead, as he ended the call and she was left looking at the blank mobile. She didn't like the way he'd sounded, and she sighed, going into the main hub again.
She picked up the phone again, muttering, " Owen," under her breath as she waited for him to pick up, though nothing happened.
" Lily," Jack called from the monitors, " you were just talking to Owen? You just called him? "
Lily sighed, " Jack, I know you said I shouldn't get so involved, but I can't help it. I - "
" No, come and look at this," he said, pointing towards the screen
She moved forwards to see that Owen was walking around the bay, looking agitated. Then suddenly, he started running. He ran right down the pier, as fast as he could, and then launched himself off it. He landed in the water with a splash, and he kept himself down.
There was no sign of him, and although Lily wasn't worried about his well being - he was dead, he'd hardly drown - she was worried about his state of mind, because he seemed all over the place.
A few minutes later, Ianto raised his eyebrows, " Still there. Impressive. "
Jack folded his arms, and before Lily could ask what they were going to do, he answered as if he knew what she was thinking. " Leave him," he said, " I'm curious to find out what he's going to do next. He's going to have to accept this at some point. "
Lily shrugged and watched the screen for another moment, but there was no further sign of Owen, and she went back to her desk focusing on the Parker thing.
Half an hour later, Jack decided that he was going out there, and left the others to work on putting together enough information on Parker. When Jack came back, Owen was with him, sopping wet and not looking too pleased.
Owen met her eyes as he walked past her desk, and felt embarrassed at the way he'd argued with her about Tosh, and the way he treat Tosh. He looked like he was about to say something, but Lily felt sorry for him and lifted a hand.
" Don't worry about it," she said, standing up, " I'll go find you a towel and you can get yourself sorted out. "
She went into Jack's office and lifted the manhole cover, starting down the ladder to their bedroom and bathroom. She returned with a towel for Owen and tossed it at him, as Jack called for everyone to come into the boardroom.
Once they were all there, Jack looked at Lily, " Do you want to take this? "
Lily raised her eyebrows at him, " You're giving me control? Are you feeling alright? "
Jack just rolled his eyes at her and Lily turned to Ianto, " What have we got? "
Ianto nodded," I've identified a few things he's collected over the last year. We've got a Dogon Eye, a pair of Mykian wings, some meteorites. Some stuff I couldn't identify, but you'd probably know it. An Arcateenian translation of some book. And things that are definitley new. And the energy spikes are getting bigger and more dangerous. "
" We need to get in there," Lily said, glancing at Jack, who nodded.
Tosh started, " I've got a plan of the place. Mr Parker employs a man to run security. There's CCTV everywhere, at least 6 guards, which we could get around, but then there's heat sensors. "
" As in body heat? " Martha asked.
" Yep," Tosh confirmed, " one on every window and every door. "
Lily frowned, " Then we need someone with no body heat. " Her eyes settled on Owen, and one of her manic grins, which only happened when a plan was formulating, crossed her face, " we need a dead man. D'you fancy it? "
Owen didn't answer.
Lily could see no other idea, and she grinned, " Oh c'mon. What have you got to lose? "
Owen looked interested in getting to work again, and all eyes were on Jack. Jack looked at him for a long moment, measuring him up, and then he nodded wordlessly, and Owen nodded back.
It was night by now, and they were all getting ready for the operation.
Jack pulled on his coat and looked around at everyone, " Martha, come to Parker's house with me and Owen. Lily, would you stay here please with everyone else? We'll be in touch on the comms. We need to monitor this. "
Lily nodded, " Just go. We'll be fine. "
Lily, Ianto, Tosh and Gwen waited by the computers in the hub. There was very little conversation from any of them, and no-one knew quite what to say as they were all waiting for some work to do.
When it started, they were watching what was going on through a monitor, and saw Owen move towards the gates, where there were two guards.
" Yeah, talk to him," Lily said, nodding at Tosh.
" Owen? " asked Tosh," the power in the house is supplied from one private generator. There's a back-up unit, but if you take the main one down, you've got one minute twenty of blackout time. "
" Got you," Owen ssid over the comms, " could you take out one of the security blokes? Maybe the big one? "
" Make a phone call," Lily said, as Ianto looked up their profiles and numbers, " I don't care what you say - just get them out of there. Gwen - you're good at this sort of thing. "
Gwen nodded in confirmation and dialled the number of the first guard they came across, and they needed to do it quickly. She put it on speakerphone, " Hello, Mr Taylor? "
Lily could imagine Owen's annoyance that they had taken out the smaller guard rather than the larger.
She felt a little guilty about the way Gwen lied to this man and told him that his wife was in a minor accident and was in hospital asking for him. She knew that she would never have gone along with this before Torchwood, when she'd lived on the strict morals of her dad. Since then, she knew her morals had loosened a bit, and she allowed things to happen even if she didn't like it.
Owen was making his way through the house, towards the electrical box. They watched carefully and in a few swift movements, he had taken out the box and all the electric in the house.
" Good," Lily said, touching her comm, " you've got one minute twenty until the back up generator comes on. You need to get to Mr Parker's room right away. "
" I'm on it spacegirl," he said.
She watched, a little proud, as Owen ran through the house, taking out a couple of guards on his way, and finally making his way to the bedroom.
Inside Parker's bedroom, Henry Parker was on the bed, seemingly asleep, surrounded by various bits of medical equipment.
" Yes? " Parker asked, making Owen jump, as Lily leaned forwards to listen properly.
" It's ok mate," Owen said, " I'm not going to hurt you - I'm a doctor. "
" You're a very violent doctor," Parker said, " I've been watching you. " Lily tried not to smirk at this as Parker waved towards the monitors in front of him.
" Henry Parker, yeah? " Owen asked.
" You're Torchwood, yes? " asked Parker, " did the American send you? "
Lily couldn't help but wish that the american was with her right then, his arms around her, whispering in her ear or playing with her hair. Or just being there.
" They could've sent that Japanese girl," complained Parker, " I like her. Is she on that earpiece thing? "
" Yeah," replied Owen.
" Hello! " Parker shouted loudly, " Just to say that you've got very lovely legs! You could show them off more! "
Tosh looked down, embarrassed, and Lily laughed, nudging her. Ianto rolled his eyes, though amused, while Gwen focused solely on the screen. When Lily turned back to it, Parker was showing Owen a large alien device that looked like a shell and glowed, emitting a hollow sound.
" I named it," Parker said, holding it tightly, " it's keping my alive. You can't take it away! "
" It could be dangerous," Owen warned, taking some readings from it, " we've been detecting some massive readings. "
" It doesn't work though," Lily said, " I've seen one of those before - long time ago, but I remember it," she said, glancing at those she was with.
Owen seemed to be on it, anyway, as he told Parker, " The energy isn't going into you - it doesn't work. The power's just building up inside that thing, but it isn't doing anything for you. "
" You're wrong," said Parker, annoyed, " I can feel it. It's keeping me alive. "
" You've got to listen to me - it's not happening," Owen argued, " there are loads of people's lives at risk. If that explodes, we don't know what the result will be. "
" You're young," Parker told him, " you don't understand what dying is like. "
" Believe me, I do," said Owen, " I really do. "
" There's nothing there," said Parker, " on the other side, nothing. I'm dying. Take away my Pulse and I'm gone. My body is decomposing. "
" You can't stop it, Mr Parker," Owen told him, " I'm sorry, but it's going to happen one day. "
"It'll be dark and I'll be alone," Parker complained.
" It's dark and you're alone now, so what's the difference? " Owen pressed.
" I don't understand what's keeping me here," Parker whispered.
Lily felt quite uncomfortable listening to this conversation, and it felt very awkward - as if she and the others were intruding by listening to this.
They all listened as Owen told Parker there was nothing to be scared of, and that this current quality of life wasn't worth it - the pulse wasn't making things better for him. Parker eventually came around and held the Pulse out to Owen weakly.
" Take it," he said, " just take it. "
Owen took it from him slowly and looked at him, " Well? "
" It's so dark, and I'm all alone," Parker whined.
Owen shook his head, " It's alright. I'm here with you. "
He took the old man's hand and Lily leant back, barely listening anymore - she felt that there was very little that they could do to help now, and they'd got the Pulse, so that was done.
" I'm going to help you," Owen promised.
" If you come back," said Parker, " you can tell me all about Torchwood. Tell me what it's like. I want to hear about the aliens and everything. I need ... I need to know there's more out there. That this isn't all there is. " When Owen didn't reply, he added, " Oh, come on! I'm dying - who am I going to tell, the angel Gabriel? If you come back, I won't tell the Japanese girl that you're still holding my hand. "
" Maybe," Owen nodded.
He stood up and was getting ready to leave when Parker coughed and his monitor flatlined. Owen reached out for the oxygen mask and gave it to Parker, trying to reassure him. Parker wasn't responding and nothing happened.
Lily bit down on her nail nervously and hoped Owen could save the man, though she knew there was little chance- he was old and il.
Owen started chest compressions though he wasn't getting anywhere, and when things were looking the worst, he started to give mouth to mouth. At that point, Lily shook her head at the others and after a moment, Owen stopped, realising that he had no breath to give. It was no good.
Owen sighed and put his head down on the bed, while the others looked on, knowing there was nothing they could do. Lily's eyes drifted towards the energy levels on the screen and she frowned
" Owen? Owen, can you hear me? " she demanded loudly.
" Yeah, yeah," Owen mumbled.
" The energy levels are off the screen - is the pulse doing anything? Owen? " she demanded, as the energy waves grew stronger and stronger, " this is going to explode," she said, " and we can't stop it. "
" It's okay," Owen said," I'm just going to hold it. "
" What are you doing? " Lily asked, frowning.
" Let me see if I can absorb it," Owen said, remaining suprisingly calm about it, " Lily? You're good with alien stuff - what do you think? "
Lily frowned, wondering if it might work, and thought that it had a good chance of working, but couldn't be sure. It was more likely to make him explode with it.
" I ... I don't know," she said carefully, " but there's so much energy coming off. It'll probably destroy you. "
" These things happen," Owen said simply.
" There must be something we can do," Martha said, over the comms, from where she and Jak were outside Parker's house.
Lily frowned - that much energy might kill anyone who tried to absorb it, but she wasn't human. Maybe she could get down there and absorb it herself.
" How long do we have? " Lily asked, looking at Tosh, " I could get over there and absorb it myself. Even if it kills me, I'd come back. Just ... in a different body. "
" There isn't enough time," Tosh said, pointing at the screen to show her, " because if there was, we could just send Jack in. "
They all turned their attention back to Owen, a Lily bit down on her lip, hoping everyone would be alright out of this.
Owen had begun to adress all of his collegues and he sounded completely serious as he said, " Martha? If it destroys me, they're going to need a new doctor. You've got all the credentials: medical skills and a cracking arse. Jack, if you even attempt to bring me back ... well, just don't do it. Gwen, Ianto, spacegirl, it was fun. Thank you. And Tosh? "
Tosh didn't answer him.
" C'mon Tosh," Owen sighed, " answer me. "
" Owen," she mumbled.
" I'm sorry," Owen said sincerely.
There was a pause, before Tosh added, " I love you. "
Lily smiled a little sadly for her friend and laid a hand on her shoulder as they all waited to see what would happen. She was rooting for Tosh and Owen to get together and she wished Owen would just take charge and love Tosh like she wanted him to.
They all waited with bated breath to find out what would happen next, and everything fell silent on Owen's end of the line, as the energy levels started to fall on the screen.
When the energy levels had dropped, and there was still silence, it was looking like the worst, and they weren't sure what to say. Tosh let out a sob, thinking he was dead, and Lily took a breath before asking,
" O-owen? "
After a moment of silence, they were all relieved to hear Owen's voice, " I'm here. I'm fine. "
A wave of relief went through them followed by Jack's commanding voice, " Everyone's safe. We're coming back. "
Lily looked around at the others and then headed for the cog door. Gwen, Ianto and Tosh followed and the four of htem went up to the bay and waited ouside for the SUV.
Lily stood in the cold air, wishing she'd brought out her coat, and waited for Jack and the others, happy that everything was going to be alright now. When the SUV pulled into sight, and stopped in front of them, Lily grinned.
The doors were thrown open, and Owen helped Martha out of the back seat, while Jack jumped out of the driver's side. Martha got out with her cases, which told Lily that they'd called to Martha's hotel before coming back to the hub.
" I'm sorry Doctor Jones," Owen said, looking fine, " there's no vacanies in Cardiff right now. "
" That's okay," Martha said, " I say going to say you're fine, but I reckon you're a hell of a lot more than that. And I've got a boyfriend to get back to. "
Owen shrugged and hugged her, " Thank you. For everything. "
Owen kissed Martha on the cheek and then gave her a hug, as Jack rolled his eyes at them and went over to Lily. Lily just smiled at him and he stood behind her, wrapping his arms around her waist and pulling her against him. She smiled and put her hands over his, loving how warm he was.
Martha said a goodbye to Gwen and Ianto, hugging them both, and Tosh too, before stopping in front of Lily and Jack, not quite sure how to say goodbye to her two good friends.
Lily stepped away from Jack to hug Martha warmly.
" You take care," she said, " give my love to your boyfriend, Dr Milligan ... not that he'd remember me, I suppose ... keep in touch and we'll see you again soon hopefully. "
Martha nodded, " Definitley, yeah. I'll be back, don't you worry about it. Give your dad my love, if you see him soon. "
" It's been so good to see you," Lily smiled, as she'd loved having her friend around again.
" You too," Martha said, " I'll see you again soon. "
Lily nodded and Martha then turned to Jack, " Well ... it's been interesting," she said.
" Oh, it's been fun," Jack corrected, " you know it has. "
Lily watched the pair of them fondly, though this turned to shock when Martha leaned forwards, putting her hands on Jack's shoulders and kissing him straight on the lips for a long moment. Lily stared, and was still staring with a shocked expression when Martha stepped back.
Jack was looking a little dazed and looked at her curiously.
Martha chuckled by way of explanation, " Well, everyone else has had a go. "
Jack laughed too, as Lily folded her arm and tried not to be jealous as she knew she had no reason to be. She watched closely as Jack cupped Martha's cheek and told her seriously,
" You can come back at anytime. "
" Well, maybe I will. One day," Martha replied, tapping her fingers to her head in a saulte, which Jack imitated, before they both laughed and Martha turned away.
Lily watched her leave and get into a taxi, not quite sure what to make of it. She kept looking in the direction that Martha had just left in, feeling shocked about the kiss, until Jack called her name.
She looked at him and he was standing there looking at her with a hopeful expression on his face, while the others looked on, amused.
" You're not going to hold that against me, are you? " Jack asked, holding up his hands in a gesture of surrender, " it's not my fault - you saw her - she just kissed me. I didn't kiss her back. "
Lily wasn't really mad, since it was only a little kiss, but she saw no harm in letting him think she was mad, " You didn't exactly push her away though, did you? "
Jack couldn't think of a reply for that, and stuttered for a moment before saying, " No - look - baby, don't be mad. It was one little kiss - I didn't tell her to do it. I didn't kiss her back. "
Lily said nothing, and with a mischevious grin, Owen stepped forwards.
" Look," the young doctor said, " I think there's only one way to solve this, don't you? "
For the second time in a couple of minutes, they were all taken by supise. Owen moved quickly, turning to Lily and wrapping an arm around her waist, pulling her in.
He paused as he looked down at her, and Lily shook her head at him. " You sneaky little sod," she whispered, " any excuse to get a kiss from someone. "
Owen tilted her head up with his thumb and forefinger and pressed his lips to her. He kissed her with a suprising amount of force, and Lily was too suprised to respond - not that she wanted to anyway, having Jack as a boyfriend.
When Owen released her, he turned to see a furious looking Jack.
" What? " he asked, " you're even now. "
Jack took a step closer to Owen, still looking mad, and Lily couldn't help but laugh at how easily Jack got jealous - she was sure that Owen's kiss only came as a cheeky litle one-off. She knew he hardly had feelings for her.
" I think you should go home, Owen, before you're tempted to kiss my girlfriend again and I'm tempted to do something we might regret," said Jack.
Owen shrugged, " This is the thanks I get for trying to help. All I did was make everything even. "
Lily laughed, earning herself a frown from Jack, and Owen turned away. Jack nodded at the rest of the team, and everyone started to go their seperate ways and leave for the night.
Jack looked at Lily and rolled his eyes, " What am I going to do with you? " he sighed, taking off his greatcoat and draping it around her.
" Let's just go home," Lily said, taking his hand.
Jack nodded, knowing tht the kiss had been nothing, and it was only the same as Martha kissing him. They walked back together happily and once they were in the hub, Jack locked the place up, leaving he and Lily in the office.
Lily shrugged off Jack's trenchcoat and tossed it at him, before she started to descend down the ladder to their room. Jack followed her, and as soon as they were in the bedroom, he took hold of her hands and pulled her to him, hugging her tightly.
Lily smiled, perfectly happy in his arms and as they embraced, he rubbed her back lightly, " How about your name then? " he asked her, " I'll tell you mine when you tell me yours. "
Lily looked up, still in his arms, looking right into his eyes, as they both knew how serious this was.
She pressed herself up on her tip toes and Jack's heart hammered against his chest as his girlfriend's lips pressed against his ear. In that moment, he knew Lily was the most perfect woman in the universe.
TWTWTW
Author's Note: Next chapters will be sontaram strategem/poison sky and the doctor's daughter, which means Lily will be back travelling with her Dad. Donna will be there, Martha will be there. I think I'll have Jack go as well, because we might miss Jack if we go three whole episodes without him.
