Chapter 4: Small or Big Worlds? Part 1
Once the incident with Lisa was over, Iris had been put into intensive training after she finished healing from her wounds. Owen was especially insistent that she finish healing before she got any proper training done. She was down in the gun range with Jack.
"No way, I will not be shooting at anything." Iris said to the Captain.
Jack just looked at her, knowing that the girl already knew the reason as to why he was still making her learn. Iris glared at him for while, and when she knew Jack would not step down, she let out an exasperated sigh.
"Fine…" She said as she went to him and then picked up a gun, giving him her best intimidating look. He showed her how to use the gun, which, surprisingly, she was good at considering that she never had learned how to use the weapon.
"You're good. But here," he said, and stepped behind Iris, holding the gun.
Iris then immediately had a flashback to when Jack had done this for Gwen. She stepped forward a little bit, feeling a bit nervous and uncomfortable with the situation. Considering that she knew what would happen between Jack and Ianto, this was not what she wanted to be experiencing herself. But Jack did not take any of that as he stepped forward with her, pressing his body against hers to help her with the aim.
Iris felt her heartrate increase, and it felt like her heart would explode. She was so nervous that she wasn't sure what would happen. When he backed out, she let out a sigh of relief. Her aim obviously worsened when Jack had been right behind her like that. She heard him chuckle a little bit, as if he was satisfied with making her so nervous. But she gulped in even more nervousness when she saw Jack pull up the mats for hand-to-hand combat.
Jack saw her eyes widen and smirked. He saw Iris's eyes narrow again when she realized what he was indicating. Sighing, she took her shoes and socks off, getting ready to spar him. It was still tough for Iris to move around so much with the healing injuries, but she managed and had to thank her former tae kwon do years since childhood. It helped her to use her knowledge of pressure points against her enemies, though Owen hated experiencing it first-hand. But when she got distracted thinking about how funny it was to see Owen whine like a baby about the pressure points, Jack swiped her feet, causing her to crash hard into the mat.
Surprised, Iris looked up only to see Jack's face right above hers. Her breath hitched and she stopped breathing from the shock and the mere closeness of Jack's face. She gulped, waiting for Jack to get off of her. She just looked up at him like a deer looking at headlights. At this point, Iris was sure she was blushing bright red.
Jack smirked ever so slightly looking at Iris, who was blushing like madly. He suddenly had an idea, and said,
"Was this ever on your show on Torchwood?"
Iris vigorously shook her head. Jack chuckled and slowly got up, making sure to rub his body on hers in a certain way. He swore he heard her squeak a little. He then just lay down next to her on the mat, tired from the workout.
"Finally…" she said, sitting onto the mat in exhaustion. She proceeded to chug down the water from the water bottle when Jack sat up next to her. Iris drank the water furiously, feeling entirely embarrassed and panicked from the entire experience. She couldn't help but feel a little lightheaded from the encounter, and a tad bit disappointed it didn't go further. That's when she tensed and continued to drink more water, trying to erase all that thought from her head. She was not supposed to fall in love with Jack. That wasn't how this was supposed to work.
"What, you don't like hanging out with me?" Jack asked, smirking. Iris's reaction to the entire teasing was adorable.
Iris slapped his arm, causing the man to rub it in pain.
"What?" he asked, genuinely confused as to why she was hitting him.
"I'm still not happy with you." She said, mainly thinking about how Jack had kissed her.
She didn't particularly hate it, but she didn't necessarily ask for that to happen either. Jack sighed and the two just sat there. When she told him about that, he had felt a little bit guilty. But even he didn't know why he had done that. He didn't even know Iris that well, and something in him just impulsively started kissing her at the moment. He shook that though away and just tried to think about work.
Nobody was to come back to the Hub for a while since the last incident. And as Iris did not have enough money to get a flat for herself and the two couldn't sleep, they decided to help Iris speed up the process of her physical training. But what was really going on in Iris's mind was just the next episode of Torchwood.
Jack distracted her thoughts about the episode when he tapped her shoulder. Iris looked at the man in confusion when she saw him extend his hand for her to help her up. She took it and pushed her weight to her feet to stand up.
"Does it hurt still?" Jack asked Iris.
Iris realized that since she had arrived to the parallel universe, she has had migraines. She wasn't just sure how severe these were, but it hurt a lot. Iris was hoping that there was some type of explanation, but taking medications for the migraines helped. Ianto had been stocking up on them for her.
Jack noticed how close Ianto and Iris had been. As if Ianto relied on Iris to live through each day. The Welsh man was improving greatly, and Jack noticed how familiar Ianto's behavior was. It reflected a past version of himself on Earth. Iris had pointed that out especially for him, telling him that there was nothing that could have potentially been done after Lisa had killed the Japanese doctor.
Iris nodded, while still drinking the water. She noticed Jack frown. All Iris wanted was an explanation for the migraines, but Owen had no idea either, so she decided that the best way to deal with the migraine was to just wait for the Doctor. She believed that there may be a connection between the Time Lord and her arrival to the parallel world. But she wasn't sure just how exactly there could be a connection at all. Sighing, she began to step towards the room she was provided with while she stayed.
She was honestly grateful that Jack had let her join Torchwood, and had not reacted as terribly with the entire cyberman incident, but she was still worried about the next episode. The entire incident with Estelle and all. Iris knew how much Jack cared for the woman, and if she felt anything, she just felt motivated to keep Estelle alive somehow, whatever the means.
But days ticked by, the rest of the members came back for work, and all seemed fine. It was weeks, when one night, Iris couldn't sleep and woke up to head for the kitchen when she hears rustling in the Hub. Ianto had arrived.
"Hey…" she said upon seeing him.
"Hello." He responded while smiling at her.
They had been getting closer and closer, and if anything, Iris was happy to see that Ianto was her friend. He had opened up to her after the incident and they had been able to help each other out with whatever they needed the other person for.
When Ianto headed for his desk, Iris followed, the glass of water utterly forgotten. She tensed when she saw Jack climb out of the hole that led to his room in his office. Her mind raced as she recognized this, and hoped that whatever Ianto was looking for was not strange weather patterns.
But fate seemed to be cruel towards Iris, because it was exactly, what the Welsh man was looking for.
"You shouldn't be here." Jack said in a light tone.
He was saying it to both of them, indicating that it was way too early in the morning for either of them to be working.
"Neither should you." Ianto said, guilt still taking over his voice.
"What ya guys got?" Jack asked, leaning to see the computer screen that the two were looking at.
"Funny sort of weather patterns." Ianto replied.
Jack looked up to see why Iris was so quiet. He noticed how quiet of a person she normally was, but was a little surprised to see her facial expressions were extremely tense.
"Iris? We should talk." Jack said, and headed for his office.
Iris followed after Jack. Once she closed the door behind them, Iris looked at Jack, who had sat down in his chair with a concerned look in his eyes as he took out the flower petal that was all too familiar to both people.
"Do you know what this is?" Jack asked.
Iris nodded and then proceeded to tell him what she remembered about the creatures. She thought about just how much she was able to change in this episode. Especially Estelle, Iris wanted to save her badly. The woman had done nothing wrong, and Iris was set on saving her.
Jack on the other hand, hoped that this event would not lead to more painful situations. The team was just coming back after all. And in truth, he had missed them when they all had taken a break from the incident with Lisa. He noticed how Iris was looking at him, as if she was worried. He chuckled and told her,
"You can go now. I'll be fine."
Iris nodded, when she asked him before exiting his office,
"If Estelle calls, will you let me meet her?" She asked.
Jack nodded, and Iris left.
It felt funny that Iris knew his former lover. Honestly put, he still loved her, but not in the same way as many years before. He was deeply thinking about what could happen when he got the phone call. It was Estelle. He sighed and called Iris over. They were going to go meet Estelle.
Hours later, when Iris and Jack arrived at the theatre, they both heard Estelle talking to her audience,
"I suppose I'm one of the fortunate few who's been allowed to see our little friends. And it's been no easy task. One needs to have the patience of a saint and the blind faith of a prophet. But for me, the long wait has been worthwhile."
Estelle then showed the next slide, finishing her talk. When the audience were giving her a round of appluse, Jack said,
"Wrong. She always gets it wrong."
He looked at Iris, only to see her shake her head ever so gently. It was as if Iris was thinking about something very complicated. The duo then went to Estelle, to whom Jack asked,
"Estelle, when did you take these?"
"A couple of nights ago." Estelle responded.
"Where?" He asked, wanting something a little bit more specific than that.
"In Roundstone Wood." She clarified for the young man who looked like her former lover.
"So not that far from here." Iris said, trying to fill in Gwen's lines, since the woman was not really here.
Estelle then took a better look at Iris, noticing that she spoke in an American accent too. She then hugged Jack a little bit, saying,
"So good to see you again, Jack. Oh look, there's the wood."
"What's wrong?" Iris asked, even though she knew quite well what was wrong.
"Oh, Jack and I have always disagreed about fairies. I only see the good ones. He only ever sees the bad."
"They're all bad." Jack said in reply to Estelle's statement.
"No, I refuse to believe that." Estelle said, a little annoyed with Jack's comment.
Iris stayed silent on the matter.
"Do you have any more photos?" Jack further asked.
"Yes, at home." Estelle replied.
"Right, I need to see them all." Jack said. With that, they all headed for Estelle's place.
Once they were at her home, Iris and Jack brought Estelle's projector and screen inside, which Estelle thanked them for.
"Oh, thank you Jack, Iris. This is Moses." She said, indicating the black cat with the white bib.
"Hello Moses." Iris said quietly.
Iris wasn't fond of cats, but animals tended to make her feel comfortable. So she loved interacting with them. She saw Estelle hand Jack a folder, proceeding to say,
"They're mostly just pictures of the area. Come on, my darling, it's quite time you went outside isn't it?"
She then proceeded to pick Moses up and take him to the garden.
Iris then looked at the photographs on the mantelpiece and smiled.
"This is you isn't it?"
Jack looked at her and then saw that she was looking at the photos fondly. He smiled a little and nodded, though he said out loud, "Sorry. No, that's my dad. He and Estelle were quite an item once upon a time. They were inseparable."
Iris looked at him and set the picture back down and went towards the garden with Jack.
"Estelle, when you next see these creatures you call us immediately, understand?" Jack said.
"Mmm hmm…" Estelle said calmly.
"Night or day, it doesn't matter, just call us. And be careful, it's important to me." He continued.
"But Jack, I've nothing to worry about." Estelle argued.
Iris thought it best to interrupt the two, trying to see if she could change things a little from the television show without hurting the timelines too much.
"Actually Estelle, I have questions regarding about fairies and stuff. And since Jack is worried about you, would it be ok if I stayed for at least tonight and make sure that everything is alright? Jack told me stories about the fairies he knows, and I think my presence here will lessen his worries a bit."
Estelle looked at her strangely, but nodded, looking towards Jack to see what he thought. Jack looked at Iris a little in surprise, and then nodded himself. He wasn't sure what Iris was up to, but it was true that her being there with Estelle would greatly help.
"Just be careful. Please." He said, to both of them.
"Don't worry, I will be here with Estelle all the time. I'm just hoping that she doesn't kick me out because I am too eager about this." Iris said with a joke.
With that, Jack immediately headed towards the Hub, while Estelle showed Iris in again.
"So what is it that you were curious about?" Estelle said as both of them went in.
"Oh! Look at me… where are my manners? Would you like some tea or coffee?" Estelle asked.
"Coffee would be lovely. Thank you so much." Iris replied. And then she glanced at the garden and said,
"Could I look at your garden?" She asked.
Estelle looked at her warmly and said that she could. Iris then headed out and looked at the flowers when she had the funny feeling of being watched. She was walking around the garden cautiously when she suddenly felt dizzy and almost lost her footing.
She grabbed onto the fence and then gathered her breaths, not quite sure about what had happened. Estelle called for her and Iris immediately straightened herself out and smiled, not wanting to worry the woman.
…
Jack, Tosh and Gwen came out of the custody suite looking alarmed. Jack was relieved that Iris had decided to stay with Estelle. For one thing, he was not happy at the following events. He called Iris to make sure they were ok.
"Hello?" Iris answered the phone.
"Iris, you ok?" Jack asked.
"Yeah, we're ok. Estelle is showing me her collections, and blimey, there's a lot. But we're doing fine. I'm still on the lookout just in case. I'll let you know if something happens, alright?" Iris replied.
Jack thanked her and ended the phone call as they headed back to the Hub.
…
Back in Estelle's home, Estelle was placing candles and rock crystals on a table, explaining to Iris what each of them meant. Inside Iris's mind though, she knew that the event was close to happening and she was thinking of ways to prevent Estelle's death, when Estelle murmured,
"Quartzite. The searching stone. Oh, let the energies flow. Help me find them again."
That's when both women heard wings. Estelle got up from her seat when Iris stopped her and made her sit back down.
"I'll go check it. Phone Jack, and hide. Whatever happens to me, don't come out. Got it Estelle? You must not come out. This deals with your safety and my job is to protect you from whatever it is. I will go to find you if it's safe, so don't worry about that."
Estelle nodded and proceeded to go hide while fumbling to call Jack. She wasn't sure how Iris had the courage to face whatever it could be.
In the meantime, Iris headed towards the kitchen window, feeling a small pressure in her mind making her dizzy again. That's when she saw the pair of eyes look at her from the shrubbery before something broke through the glass. Iris quickly ducked and tried to make sure to make herself more obvious so the creatures wouldn't head for Estelle.
Iris heard Estelle finally get in contact with Jack when she heard the woman say,
"Jack, it's me, Estelle."
A pause, and then she continued.
"You were right Jack. There are bad ones. They've come here, and Iris went to look for them. I just heard glass breaking and I don't know what happened. Iris told me to hide, so I'm hiding, but I don't know if Iris is ok."
Another pause, and Iris heard Estelle say yes and lose the connection. But Iris heard Moses yowling outside and hesitated. But after a second, she opened the door carefully and called for Moses quietly so Estelle wouldn't hear her. She didn't want to risk the woman from coming out of her hiding spot.
But when she stepped out, the door closed behind her and Iris swore.
"Shit!" She said as she quickly ran for the door but couldn't open it.
"Where's the sonic screwdriver when you need one?!" Iris muttered in frustration. But that's when she felt very light headed.
She lost footing again like earlier in the day, and then heard the wings.
"Why do you protect the woman?" she heard a voice speak.
Iris froze and said, "Because she's an innocent. She doesn't know anything. If anything, she's my responsibility. So if you came here to harm her, I beg of you.." She said as she slowly turned around,
"I beg of you to leave her alone. You can use me. I don't mind, but don't harm her."
"Interesting, a former Chosen One is begging us to let a woman go." The voice said.
Iris froze again at hearing that.
"What? What did you say? A Chosen One?"
"Yes, you could have been the Chosen One, but you're too old now. That is why you feel so dizzy when we are near. Because you didn't become one of us. So, we will grant your wish and leave the woman unharmed."
And with that, blackness overwhelmed Iris.
…
Estelle heard Iris swear and a slamming of a door. She heard the girl fighting, but then silence followed. She trembled as fear overwhelmed her, that's when she heard Jack's voice as he entered her home.
"Estelle? Estelle! Estelle!"
"I'm here!" She said, and with that Jack came to her room and found her hiding in her closet.
"Oh, you're safe…." Jack muttered and hugged her.
However, Estelle quickly came out of the hug and told Jack,
"Jack, you have to go to the garden and see if Iris is safe. I don't know what it was, but it sounded like she was struggling against something."
She saw panic rise in Jack's features as he hurriedly got up and went to the garden with couple other people. Owen was already there in the garden, looking for Iris, when he found her.
"JACK!" He yelled, as he hurriedly went over to Iris's unconscious body.
He checked for a pulse, and sighed with relief a little bit when he found a faint pulse. He then quickly began applying CPR. From the looks of it, Iris was soaked to the core and appeared as if she had drowned. Her skin was super pale from the cool air the night had been providing.
Jack came to see Owen over Iris's limp body. He noticed how the rest of the ground was dry while Iris was wet. He waited for Iris to come back. He was hoping for her to come back. If she hadn't been there with Estelle, he wasn't sure what might have happened. But when a minute passed, she still wasn't back.
"Come on…." Owen muttered, but Jack took his place in providing CPR.
Owen sat down on the ground, looking at his watch. He took her pulse, and it was getting better, but Iris wasn't waking up.
Suddenly, Iris gasped and her eyes opened as she coughed up the water in her system. She turned to the side as water continued coming up.
"Urgh…" was all she could manage as she lay back down on her back.
Both Jack and Owen took in a breath and sighed from relief. Estelle was there too, holding a hand on her heart. She was scared that the girl might have died. Iris's eyes wandered, and since her vision didn't come back to focus, she asked weakly,
"Estelle? What…happened to her?" She could tell that Jack was looking down at her, holding her body.
"She's safe." He said quietly as Iris's eyes closed when she heard the news.
"That's good." She whispered and she fell asleep from physical exhaustion.
Jack kissed her forehead, and lifted the girl's body. The team then went back to the SUV and Owen immediately assessed Iris's conditions. She was hooked to an IV just in case, and they all waited for her to wake up.
When Iris did wake up, Jack helped her up, and found that the team wanted to ask her questions.
"Did you see them?" Jack gently asked.
Iris shook her head. She only told them what she did know.
"I'm not sure, but I heard a fluttering of wings. And…oh… I saw a pair of eyes. That was the only thing I really saw. Otherwise, everything was a blur. I remember that each time I heard the wings though, I felt super dizzy and I couldn't stand up…."
That caused Owen to look at her medical charts again.
"But you're fine now."
Iris looked at him weirdly, and then said,
"But I felt dizzy whenever I almost came in contact with them. That must mean something doesn't it?"
Then something seemed to click and Iris jolted upright, making her muscles complain. Jack held her hand and helped her to lie back down.
"Jack, they said something to me. That might explain the dizzy feeling." Iris said, looking at her boss.
"What? What was it?" He asked, wanting to know more.
"They said that I was formerly a Chosen One. But I don't have any recollections of the thing. Nothing happened as a kid. So I… oh…"
Iris stopped as she felt dizzy again. Jack looked at her worriedly when the girl grasped her head. Owen looked alarm as he looked at the readings.
"Iris, look at me! You have to focus on me. Stay awake." Owen said in alarm.
But Iris eventually closed her eyes, unable to keep them open as the overwhelming dizziness hit her and made her unconscious.