Jack returns to the team to find a number of changes … Set around Kiss Kiss, Bang Bang and drawing on information from The Torchwood Archives.

Changes

The decision to decline The Doctor's offer was not difficult. Jack had had plenty of time to realise that charging round the universe righting wrongs was not enough for him any more, however much fun it could be. Cardiff in the 21st century was where and when he was needed and where and when he wanted to be. He was going to see through the job he had started so reluctantly a century earlier and be with the team he had missed so much. It was therefore something of an anti-climax to descend on the lift to discover the team missing. All keyed up and ready for almost any reaction to his abrupt reappearance, the sight of the empty Hub had floored him for some minutes. If the TARDIS had not run a check for him earlier and confirmed that the team had made it through his absence – three months not two days as The Doctor had promised! – Jack would have been worried.

Walking through the empty space, he noticed a few changes. Piles of equipment had grown or been moved. The work area had been extended and what had been the Boardroom was now a hothouse full of plants. A semi-circular bench had appeared. Moving up the steps he was relieved to see the battered sofa. And Toshiko's glasses were abandoned on her desk amidst piles of files and artefacts. The team obviously hadn't gone far. The Medical Bay was much the same, just a new examination couch, a more comfortable one by the looks of it. Owen's desk was as messy as usual. Jack stepped into his own office and stopped just inside the door. There were changes in here.

He hung his greatcoat on the stand and looked around. The double doors had been removed, making this less like an office and more like a passageway. The desk had been moved from one side of the room to the other with consequent changes to the position of the filing cabinets and other office furniture. Cautiously, Jack sat in the desk chair and tried it out. He felt on view to the team working on the other side of the glass wall but otherwise it was okay. The desk top looked just the same. His coral growing in its dish, the model Spitfire and his other knick-knacks were in place. In fact, they were exactly where he had left them which surprised him. A quick rummage through the desk drawers confirmed that they were as he had left them too. No one had used the desk in his absence - so why move it?

Jack sat back and drank in the sights and smells of … home. He was home again. After a year of hell he was back where he belonged. The only things missing were a cup of coffee and his team, Ianto in particular. Turning round to the PC which was now behind him, he brought up the situation report. He smiled when he saw they were all out chasing a Blowfish sighting in Whitchurch. They had not encountered one of these while he had been with them so it would be a new experience for them. Unless one had appeared while he had been away. Hesitating he decided not to hare off after them, he could wait to see them. As he had the Hub to himself, he decided to check the mission logs for the past three months and see what they had been up to and settled more comfortably in his chair.

Two hours passed quickly for Jack as he scanned the mission logs and even dipped into the team's e-mails. He could not fail to notice the angry comments about him in the latter. Not surprising and it was a warning of the kind of welcome he was likely to receive when they returned to the Hub. He thought about that and decided that just sitting here waiting would not be his best move, they would really go for him then. Better to meet them on more neutral territory first. And, anyway, they should have dealt with a Blowfish by now. What was holding them up? Donning his greatcoat again and checking his Webley, he confirmed their position and locked it into his wrist controls – regretting that it no longer worked as a teleport – before leaving the Hub through the Tourist Office and hailing a taxi.

The taxi dropped him off at the corner of the residential streets and he walked past the houses, most with one or two lights showing as the families inside settled down to a quiet evening in. At a bend in the road, Jack spotted the SUV and a natty red sports car, the latter was just the sort of vehicle the Blowfish went for; this must be the place. The sound of gunfire made him quicken his pace. Ignoring the open front door, Jack went round to the back of the house and eased up to the patio doors. Peering in, he saw the backs of Toshiko and Gwen. Owen was on the floor looking after someone who'd been injured and at the far end of the room, beyond Ianto, was the Blowfish holding a young girl hostage. Jack stood for a moment taking in the first sight of his team, so grateful they were alive. The Blowfish was talking and Jack listened as he tried the doors and found them unlocked. Making no noise, Jack opened one of them and stood in the doorway, Webley in hand. At the right moment, and taking great care not to hit Ianto, Jack fired and the Blowfish fell to the floor.

The four Torchwood team members turned in slow motion to face him. It was a wonderful sight, their faces unbelieving as they realised it was him. "Hey, kids, did you miss me?"

-ooOoo-

The hotel room door closed behind him and Jack flung himself on the bed, not bothering to remove coat or shoes. He lay on his back staring up at the ceiling. What a day! Blowfish, the so called John Hart, a messy fall and death and almost losing Gwen. Yep, he thought, he was back.

His mind was too active for sleep so he continued to lie there, going over the events of the day. The team had changed in many ways. He was amazed how supportive of one another they were, how well they worked together; it had not been like that before he left. Toshiko was more confident, she'd had no one else to help analyse the alien technology with him gone. She had risen to the challenge so well, Jack was proud of her. He was also proud of Gwen who had become a good leader. She'd be a pain to deal with over the coming weeks and months but he still admired her courage and conviction. But she was engaged, that had shaken him. He couldn't quite believe that dull, staid old Rhys had had the gumption to propose nor that she had accepted. He was pleased for her yet he felt a tinge of regret for possibilities left unexplored for too long. There were even changes in Owen. No longer the sulky outsider, he had been integrated into the team and had come up with a way to save Gwen's life even while nursing a gunshot wound. Changing had made him stronger.

And then there was Ianto, perhaps the one who had changed the most. Jack smiled when he remembered seeing him for the first time, that slow turn to see who had shot the Blowfish and his amazed look. Jack thought there was some pleasure in the look too, relief that he - Jack - was back safe and sound. God, it had been good to see Ianto alive and well and looking so sexy. It was clear that he, like Owen, had been drawn into the heart of the team, was now a fully paid up member who more than pulled his own weight. Jack was pleased, had always been confident of the other man's abilities. Closing his eyes, he pictured the office he and Ianto had searched together, the little quirks that Jack knew so well and which proved the Welshman was happy to see Jack again even if he was being remote at present. He'd agreed to the date too and Jack intended to set that up very soon; he wanted to feel the young man's lips against his, to press his body against that lithe one, to …

Sitting up abruptly, Jack swallowed hard. Best not to think those thoughts just yet. Suddenly warm, he removed his coat and decided he was still too wired to sleep. Checking the room information pack, he located the swimming pool. A dip in cool water and some exercise was what he needed to settle his mind and his body. The hotel was quiet around him as he travelled down to the lower ground, most guests asleep in their beds. Having to relive a day was inconvenient so Jack had suggested they all stay here, to relax and unwind and give him a chance to get to know them again. He hoped it would work. Obtaining swimming trunks from the attendant, Jack changed and then dived into the pool, settling into a steady crawl for a couple of lengths. Resting at one end, he took the opportunity to look around. There was only one other person in the pool, doing the same as him by the looks of it. Jack watched the smooth overarm strokes and admired the slim body as it drew near him and stopped.

"Couldn't you sleep either?" asked Ianto, removing his goggles.

"No." They smiled at one another, both tentative with a hint of shyness. "How about a race? Two lengths?"

"You're on. What's the prize for the winner?"

"Let's decide that later." The suggestive tone and grin were answered with a raised eyebrow but Jack saw the amused twitch to the lips.

The two men started the race side by side, as equals, just how they hoped start a new relationship.