Disclaimer: I own nothing
Chapter Twenty-One
The next day was filled with chasing around several weevils on the loose which had to be rounded up but the day after was considerably quieter.
That morning, they were quiet, and Owen was, as usual, the last into work - mangaging to get there half an hour late. Ianto, and Tosh were on their first drink of the morning and were drinking their coffees together while having a chat around Tosh's workstation.
" Where's them two? " Owen asked, approaching the others.
" Jack came along and said he was taking Lily out for a drink," Ianto said, " apparently there's some new coffee shop along the bay that he wanted to try out. "
" What? As if they couldn't get enough coffee from here? " Owen said, shaking his head.
" Change of scenery," Tosh shrugged, " they work here, they live here. It's quiet, so they probably fancied going somewhere else while they've got the chance. "
" Gwen not in yet either? " Owen asked.
" Not yet," Ianto replied, " I've rung her, but I didn't get an answer. "
" How long have those two been gone? " Owen asked.
" About an hour," Tosh shrugged.
" Brilliant," Owen grinned, " they won't even know I was late. "
Ianto rolled his eyes, " That's all your bothered about? Pulling one over on your boss? You get paid a very good wage, and you can't even bother to get here on time. "
" You've nothing to worry about anyway," Tosh pointed out, " I doubt they'll mind you being a bit late. Or Lily wouldn't, at least, and she can always talk Jack around. "
" I'll never figure out why she's got a soft spot for you," Tosh said, shaking her head.
" It's because she's a clever girl and she knows a good thing when she sees it," Owen shrugged, " I'm telling you, she's one small step away from leaving the Captain and moving into my place."
Tosh said, " Aren't you going to be best man at their wedding? "
" That reminds me," Ianto told Owen, " you owe me a tenner. "
" £10? " Tosh asked, looking between the two men.
" Ah, ah, ah, not yet," Owen said, shaking his head, " they haven't actually tied the not yet, have they? "
Ianto told Tosh, " When Lily first got here, Owen was insistant that they wouldn't last two minutes, but I knew how much he loved her from how he spoke about her, so I thought they'd be married within the year. And they will be. "
" Any other little bets going on that I should know about? " Tosh asked, jokingly.
" Just the one," Owen shrugged, " I reckon she'll be pregnant within 6 months. Ianto reckons it'll be much longer, because they're not planning a family. "
" Well, I don't think they've even thought about it," Ianto pointed out.
" They don't have to plan it for it to happen, you know," Owen said, " I'm a Doctor, I know about these things. From the amount of times they sneak off into the archives, or the office, or the hothouse, it's a wonder she isn't already pregnant. "
" Owen," Tosh said, shaking her head, " you're supposed to be her friend - how can you speculate like that? "
" What? " Owen asked innocently, " I'm not saying it as a bad thing. I'm just saying, we'll be over-run by little Lily and Jacks soon. "
" Hardly," Ianto said, rolling his eyes, " let them focus on the wedding, and on being a couple. Never mind you putting thoughts in their heads. "
As Owen started to reply, the cog door sounded, and Jack came storming through the hub, closesly followed by Lily. Jack looked furious, and Lily exasperated.
" C'mon Jack," she sighed, following him, " don't be like that. "
" Don't be like that? " he repeated, not looking at her, " it's alright for you! She thought I was some kind of pervert! Did you hear her? "
" I was sat right opposite you, Jack," Lily sighed, " come on, it's not like she was trying to offend you or anything. You're being ridiculous. "
Jack didn't reply, and he stormed off towards the office.
Owen leaned over to Ianto and muttered, " On second thoughts, put the baby plans on hold for a while. "
" Jack! Oh come on! " Lily called after him, though he ignored her, almost at his office.
Jack wasn't quite there, when Owen asked, " What's up with you two? "
Jack wheeled around looking furious, and Lily threw Owen a quick glare for daring to ask.
" The stupid woman in the coffee shop thought I was Lily's dad! " Jack burst out furiously, as Lily shook her head, wishing he'd calm down - she really didn't see how it was such a big deal - he didn't even look that much older than her, so the woman in the coffee shop must have been stupid.
" What? " Owen laughed, earning himself a very dark look from Jack.
" Well, what did she say exactly? " Tosh asked, raising her eyebrows.
Lily threw a worried look at Jack and replied, " The waitress was talking away our plates and mugs, and she asked us how everything was, and then she looked at me and she said "Is your dad treating you then, today?" "
Tosh giggled a little, but tried to stop herself.
" It's not funny," he said, " she had a point, didn't she? Physically, I'm about 40 years old, and Lily's about 24, but she looks younger. "
" You look younger too," Lily told him insistantly - she knew he knew he did, but he wasn't in the right mood to stop and think about it.
" You do not look old enough to be her dad," Ianto pointed out, trying to be helpful, " besides, when she ties her hair back like that, she looks younger. "
" Yeah," Lily added, " the woman didn't know what she was talking about, did she? "
She moved closer to him, trying to calm him down, and this time he stood still long enough for her to get close to him and put her hands on his waist, pulling her to him slightly.
" She didn't mistake you for my dad, she mistook me for your daughter," she said, in a soothing voice.
" It's the same thing," Jack said through gritted teeth.
Lily rolled her eyes and dropped her arms from him, beginning to get quite annoyed with him, " For God's sake, Jack," she said, hands on her hips as she glared at him - the others watched in interest, since it was very rare that the pair of them argued seriously.
Jack looked at her and she glared.
" Grow up, will you? " Lily demanded, " we've been together ages, Jack, and this is the first person to ever think that about us! One person! You know you look younger than you are. No-one in their right mind looks at you and thinks you're 40! "
Jack didn't reply, but started to look sheepish. Lily wasn't finished reprimanding him.
" And another thing! " she added angrily, " you knew what you were getting into when we got together! I can regenerate, Jack! What the hell are you going to do if I regenerate and end up looking 16? Or Fifty-six? " She took a breath and now spoke more quietly, though still frankly, " It's something you'd have to handle, Jack. It's part of being with a time lord. If you can't handle if then ... then we have to ... to ... "
She trailed off, not sure how to end it, because she knew she couldn't live without Jack now
" No," Jack said, staring at her in shock, " we don't have to anything. I ... I can handle it. I can. "
" Then grow up," Lily said sharply.
The pair of them looked each other straight in the eyes while they calmed down, and after a minute or so of silence, Jack gave her a smile as a peace offering.
" You know," Lily said, with a smirk, " to say you've got a 40 year old daughter and a ten years old grandson, you're not looking bad. "
Jack smiled a little, but looked sheepish, and Lily made the move. She moved forwards and got up on her toes. She laid her hand on one of his cheeks and kissed the other lightly,
" Stop being silly now, yeah? "
" Yeah," he said, smiling at her before heading for the office.
Once he'd shut the door after him, Lily sighed and ran a hand through her hair. " Idiot," she muttered, more to herself than anyone else.
" You alright, sweetheart? " Owen asked, showing the rare display of affection, that only ever came out when he was talking to Lily, and very very occasionally when he was talking to Tosh.
She shrugged, " Like I say ... he's an idiot sometimes. "
Owen nodded, " No arguments here," he said, moving towards her and going in for the hug which he knew she needed. As they hugged, Owen rubbed her back in large soothing circles, in the way he always did when he knew she needed comfort.
" Thanks Owen," Lily smiled as they stepped away from each other, and Ianto and Tosh wore the same expression of shock at Owen managing to be so caring.
Lily smiled as she turned to Tosh, " We're still on for going for the dress tomorrow, aren't we? "
" The wedding dress? " Owen asked.
Lily rolled her eyes at him, " Yes Owen. The wedding dress. For the wedding that I'm having in about 2 months. I need to find the perfect dress to wear. "
" You'd look good in a bin liner," Owen told her with a smirk.
Lily smiled, " As much as I appreciate that, I really could do with something to wear. It could take us ages to find it. Jack said he didn't mind me and you going tomorrow, Tosh, which is lucky, because we were going whether he liked it or not. Ianto, you get a repreive from this one. We can probably do dressing shopping without you. "
" Shopping for women's clothes is not a strong point of mine, I'll have to admit," Ianto said, inclining his head towards her.
Lily smiled at him, and sat down at her desk, pulling a few pieces of paper towards herself.
" Oh, by the way, Ianto," she said, without looking up at him, " are you bringing Cate to the wedding? You've been with her a while now .. I mean .. well, we'd just like to know if she's coming. "
" I think she is," nodded Ianto, " and it's been 6 months. I asked her if she wanted to come, and she said she would, but I'm going to have to tell her about the whole time travel thing. I think she's ... I think she's the one, so I'm ... I'm going to tell her. "
" About Torchwood too? " Lily asked.
" Maybe not just yet," Ianto said, " it'll depend how it goes. I really think she's the one though, so it just feels right, to tell her. She's booked Christas Eve off from the pizza place to come to the wedding. "
" Don't the rest of us get to bring a date? " Owen asked her, tutting.
" You don't," Lily said, putting her pen down and looking at him, " Ianto's been with Cate ages now. He knows whether it's right to tell her the truth about everything. You, on the other hand, have no girlfriend. We're going back in time, Owen, so we can only take people we trust. We can't just take anyone. If you want to date someone who's already coming to the wedding, then that's fine, but otherwise ... "
" Any fit birds coming then? " Owen asked hopefully.
Lily raised her eyebrow, " Do you want to rephrase that, Doctor Harper? "
Owen rolled his eyes, " Which women are coming to your wedding? " he asked.
Lily smiled, " That's better. There's me, Tosh, Gwen, Donna, Martha, Sarah Jane Smith, Jack's daughter and Ianto's girlfriend. Oh and Shakespeare's wife and teenage daughters. And before you ask, Sarah Jane is well in her fifties, I forbid you to go anywhere near Jack's daughter or Shakespeare's wife. Shakespeare's daughters are 16 and 18 - I'd rather you stay away from them too. Oh, and Ianto's girlfriend is off limits. "
Owen sighed, " And Gwen's married, Martha's engaged. That leaves you, Tosh and Donna. "
" Not me! " Lily pointed out, " it's my bloody wedding! "
Owen looked at Tosh, " Looks like it's me an' you then darlin'. "
Tosh blushed and tried to focus on her computer. She clicked a few things and after a few moments of silence between the lot of them, Tosh frowned,
" I'm detected four or five unusual hon-human life forms in the same location outside the city," she said.
" Really? " Lily asked, standing up, " can you track it down to one place? Owen, Ianto, get your coats on, we're going to investigate. "
She swiftly walked away from them, and into the office.
" You alright? " Jack asked her with a smile.
" Yeah," she smiled, " except Tosh is picking up strange lift energy. Four or five of them all together, all localised in the same place. "
Jack nodded, " Get your coat then," he said, " we'll all have to go. "
" That's what I thought," Lily nodded, taking her trenchcoat from the stand in Jack's office. The pair of them left the office together, and Jack told Tosh that she should come too.
" Where the hell is Gwen? " Jack demanded, as Tosh got together her gadgets ready to go.
" Not here," Lily said, standing in front of Jack, and buttoning up his coat for him, as he was too busy talking over her head to Ianto and Owen. When Lily had finished with his coat, she moved her hands to the lapels, and tugged down, pulling him to her.
He smirked smugly just before their lips met, and their lips met in a long kiss, with Jack slipping his tounge through her lips with ease. She smiled against his lips and laid her hands on his chest, gently pushing him back.
He winked at her and took hold of her hand, before telling everyone else that it was time to get going.
They all got into the SUV, Jack behind the wheel and Lily beside him, and the other three behind them in the back. Tosh gave them the location, and they ended up driving to what looked like an large abandoned building on the outskirts of the city.
The five of them got out and in a line, walked towards the building, looking this way and that carefully. Tosh was still using her devices to figure out what was going on, and Ianto had his phone out, calling Gwen.
He got her voicemail and left her a message, " Gwen, we've texted you the location, we're querying four of five signs of life, definitley non-human. Get here as soon as you can. "
" Sure they're not weevils? " Owen asked, looking at Jack, although it wasn't Jack was answered.
" Don't think so," Tosh said, " different energy patterns, can't make sense of it. Not a species we've encountered before. "
" Well let's hope they're friendly then," Owen muttered.
" Ok," Jack said looking around, " Owen, Ianto, go around the other side of the building, check the upper floors. Lily, Tosh, with me. "
They split into two groups, and hurried off towards where they needed to be. Jack and the two women ran into the building, but then slowled down. They pulled out their guns and moved with caution - it was a big building, but the pillars from the floor to the roof meant they couldn't see everywhere, and had to look around carefully.
They knew anything could be here, and the pillars only obscured their view.
Tosh sighed, " I'm getting mirror readings on both floors. Oh wait ... one creature at either end of this floor and one on the next floor up. "
" Ok, split up," Jack ordered
Tosh ran off to the floor upstairs, and Jack grabbed Lily at the waist and kissed her forehead.
" Be careful," he muttered.
" You be careful too," she told him, before they turned away from each oher and walked to opposite sides of the building.
Lily aimed her stun gun carefully, pointing this way and that as she moved - so far she hadn't seen anything, and it seemed no-one else had, since they'd not said anything over the comms.
As she thought that, the comms beeped, and Jack's voice came over, " You know, these creatures are very quiet. "
" Maybe they're sleeping," Owen replied, for all of them to hear.
" Or hatching," Ianto countered.
" Or maybe they're not creatures at all," Tosh said.
Lily moved around a corner and her eyes widened as she saw a little silver box sitting on the floor. Her heart sank as she realised how much trouble they were in, and it seemed Jack had found out the problem too,
" Just explosive devices," he said.
The countdown was on 3 seconds, and Lily knew there was nothing she could do about it. Images went through her mind of one of her friends dying, and Jack being blown to pieces, and the next thing she knew, there was a loud explosion.
All she felt was pain as rubble fell around her and the last thing she knew before her eyes were closed, was the rubble falling on her.
All Lily saw was blackness, and it felt so cold and lonely. She had vague images in her head of Jack being stuck under a pile of rubble, and never being saved from it. Of going through the rest of her life without Jack. Then the rest of her friends wouldn't be safe - maybe some of them had died in this explosion. The dreams floated through her head, not real dreams but vague images.
She didn't know how long it was before she heard voices - real voices - and felt immense pain all over her body. Her eyes couldn't quite find the strength to open, but she felt large weights being lifted off her and heard voices.
" Why isn't she awake? " she heard Jack ask, panicking, " what's wrong with her? What if she doesn't wake up? Oh my God, I can't ... Gwen, I can't live without her. What will I do? look at her - there's blood! " Jack said, his voice cracking, " she's being crushed to death! " "
" Calm down," Gwen said, " she's fine. She probably just passed out. She's got a pulse. She's alive. "
" But look at her! " Jack said, sounding like he was about to cry.
Lily heard Jack groan as he did something - probably attempt to move one of the many rocks she felt above her - and he was muttering to himself about not letting Lily die. She hated the thought of him panicking like that, and she tried her hardest to open her eyes.
Her eyes flickered and the first thing was saw was Jack throwing the rubble aside, looking very tense as he tried to keep himself pulled together. Gwen was nearby, and she was moving some of the rubble aside too.
" J ... Jack," Lily muttered, focusing on him.
Jack whipped around and looked at her, " Oh thank God," he said, smiling in relief as he saw her. " Baby, are you alright? God, I thought I'd lost you. Sweetheart, I'm going to get you out of here, alright, you hear me? Just give us two minutes. "
As Gwen and Jack tried to pull the rubble off her, as did Rhys, who must have been giving Gwen a lift to work when she got the message - she groaned in pain.
" Shhh baby, shhhh," Jack said in a hushed voice, " we'll have you out soon. " He looked at Gwen and Rhys and told them, " I can handle it from here. Find Toshiko - she went to the next floor up. We'll find the boys. "
Gwen and Rhys headed off, and Lily hissed as Jack tried to move another rock, and within a few minutes, Jack was wrapping an arm around her waist and pulling her to her feet.
She winced and gave a hiss of pain as he pulled her into a tight hug, and he immediatley withdrew.
He put his hands on her shoulders looking worried and looked her up and down, " What's wrong? Lily? Are you alright? "
" Stop panicking Jack," she said, shaking her head, " I know how much you care, and I really love that you're so protective, but I'm here aren't I? I'm fine. I think I might have just bruised a rib or something. It'll be fine. I'm lucky. "
" Ooh, my poor Lily," Jack said moving closer to her and gently kissing the top of her head, " you should see the state of yourself. I just want to take you home and look after you. "
" Why, what's the damage? " Lily asked, " other than the dirt and bruises, I assume? "
" Your head," Jack said, reaching out and smoothing her hair down, " it's ... you've got a pretty nasty cut. There's ... well, it dry now ... but there's blood in your hair, and ... " he traced a line down her cheek with his finger, " down your face. "
Lily took his hand away from her face and kissed the back of it softly, " I know how much you worry, kitten, but you don't need to. I love you too much to go anywhere. And what about the damage to you. You look a bit dishevelled, but ... "
" I died. "
" Oh, I'm sorry Jack," Lily sighed, " we're a right pair, aren't we? "
Jack awarded her with half of a smile, and reached out to hug her again, though this time it was gentle and he tried not to press her to him too much, for fear of hurting her.
Lily kissed his cheek and told him, " Come on. We need to find the boys. One of them could be in an even worse state than me. We need to get there quickly. "
They ran off and on their way, Gwen phoned Jack to tell him they needed help getiing Tosh out - she was close to be crushed. The first of their friends they came across was Ianto. Ianto was, much like Lily had been, buried uner a pile of rubble.
" Ianto," Lily called as she and Jack ran over, " Ianto, it's ok, we're here. "
Lily and Jack worked quickly, and tclawed at the rubble, trying to get rid of it all. Lily ignored the pain from her ribs, and worked just as hard as Jack.
" Ok, I'm going to get you now," Jack said to Ianto, " is that alright? "
Ianto nodded.
" Good boy," Jack said soothingly, putting his arms around Ianto and getting ready to pull him out, " ready? One, two, three ... "
Ianto screamed in pain as Jack pulled him out, with Lily's help. Jack set him back on his feet, and Ianto panted and pulled a face.
" You ok? " Jack asked.
" My shoulder," Ianto said, shaking his head, " I think it's dislocated. "
Jack looked at him, " Let me see if I can sort it out. Do you think you can handle this? "
" Yeah," Ianto said, " I ... I think so. "
Lily felt sorry for him and couldn't stand ot see one of her friends in pain. She moved over to him and offered out her hand, " Come on then," she said, " you can hold my hand if you want. "
" He's not a child, Lily," Jack said, rolling his eyes, and wondering when Lily had become so mumsy.
Lily shrugged, " Thought he might want some comfort. " As Jack got ready to pop Ianto's shoulder back in, Lily gently laid her hand on Ianto's back
" Take a deep breath," Jack advised him.
Ianto screamed as the bones crunched and Jack popped his shoulder back into place, and Lily rubbed his back, muttering soothing words.
" Where are the others? " Ianto asked, suddenly becoming himself - straight back to work.
" We need your help to get Toshiko out," Jack told Ianto.
" And Owen? " Ianto asked.
" I'm going to find him now," Lily said.
Ianto pulled a face, " If anything happens, he can't repair himself, you know. "
" I know," Lily said, swallowing, hard, " he can't heal. I'll find him. You two just go get Tosh out. "
" Be careful," Jack called as she headed off.
" You be careful," she shouted over her shoulder.
Lily ran through the building and when she found Owen, she couldn't believe where he was. He saw laid flat on his back, under little bits of rubble, but thankfully not too much. He looked absolutely terrified, and Lily saw that above him, a huge chunk of glass, broken and jagged, was hanging, swinging slightly.
" Lily," Owen breathed when he saw her.
" Shhh, it's going to be alright," Lily said as she approached.
" Jesus Christ, look at the state of you," Owen said as she knelt beside him, wincing. He noticed the wince and asked, " what's wrong with you? "
" Other than the face full of blood, you mean? " she grimaced, " ribs. Think I must have bruised one or something. You'll have to check it out when we get back. But never mind me now ... "
" How are the others? " Owen asked her.
" Everyone's fine," Lily assured him, carefully moving some blocks, throwing up the odd glance to the glass, which she knew would absolutely crush Owen if it fell. Lily quickly worked to throw off all of the rubble and bricks, and once she had, she held out both of her hands,
" Come on," she said, " quickly. "
Owen took hold of both of her hands and she quickly hauled him out of the way, feeling thankful that he was only a skinny little thing.
They'd only just gotten out of the way when the glass fel and shattered over the floor.
" Thanks," Owen said offering her half a smile, " that was ... well, just in the nick of time."
" Never mind that," Lily said, " let's just get out of here before anything else happens. "
By the time they'd hurried out of the building, they met Gwen, Rhys, Tosh, Jack and Ianto downstairs, just outside the building. Everyone spent a minute or so asking everyone else if they were alright, and they started around the corner and away from the building.
" You OK, Tosh? " Lily asked.
Owen looked at her, and Lily didn't miss the concern there. " What happened, Tosh? "
Tosh sighed walking with her arm in front of her limply, " Broken arm, bruised ribs, about an inch away from being crushed by a girder. "
" You were lucky," Owen said, wincing at the thought of it.
" We all were," Ianto said.
" Jack, who's done this? " Gwen asked, looking around at everyone.
" And where the hell's the SUV? " lily asked, as they rounded another corner and realised that their vehicle wasn't there - somehow, this didn't seem like a coincidence - they were attacked by bombs, and then their car was stolen.
Jakc didn't have time to reply, as his wriststrap beeped, and before anyone knew it, a hologram was appearing from it.
Lily sighed, " Oh, no," she said, shaking her head as she thought about it. The last time Captain John Hart had appeared had been nothing but trouble - not to mention the fact that he was her boyfriend's ex-boyfriend.
" What does he want? " Gwen asked, as the hologrom of John Hart formed properly.
" Oh deja vu! " hologram John said, " or did I say that already? Hey team! Course, there might be less of you by now. Don't know if you liked my little gift, Jack. Though of course you can't die. And with all that life, all that time, you can't spare any for me. Oh! Say hi to the family! "
Hologram John pressed a button on his own wriststrap, and hologram of a young man appeared from that. Jack's breath hitched and Lily looked at him sharply, trying to work out what was going on.
" No ... it can't be," Jack said, as Lily moved closer to him.
" Been a long time since you've seen your brother, eh? " John asked.
" Gray," Jack breathed.
Lily stared at Jack, and then back to the hologram of his brother - she knew about his brother. He'd told her one night when the were in deep conversation, and they'd spoken about him since but not much, because Lily knew it was a topic which pained Jack.
She knew that anything involving John Hart had to be a bad thing, and she didn't trust him one bit. All she could think about, was how John had only come back to hurt her Jack, and no-one was allowed to hurt Jack.
Hologram John continued, " OK, here's what's going to happen. Everything you love, everything you treasure, will die. I'm going to tear your world apart, Captain Jack Harkness, piece by piece, including your lovely little girlfriend. Starting now. Maybe now you'll want to spend some time with me. "
The hologram went off and no-one knew quite what to do next.