Torchwood: Divergence
Book One: Dychwelyd

Chapter 35

It was nearly 4:00 pm when Jack wandered from the office, Gwen practically pouncing on him the instant he descended the three steps down to the workstation level.

"How's Ianto?" she asked worriedly, unconsciously reaching out to tug on his shirtsleeve like an anxious child. "Martha said he was in a bad way when they found him."

"It got worse," Harkness sighed, obviously still worried but not so much that he felt he needed to be at the Changeling's side. "He had a pretty significant breakdown here in the room. He was taking on way too much and I wasn't paying enough attention to notice. We worked on relieving the overload, cleaned up from the Blowfish fight, treated the wounds the one inflicted on him, and he got some good uninterrupted sleep for the first time in weeks. I got more rest than I normally do. He's feeling better, a bit touchy still, kind of hung-over I think, but definitely more relaxed than this morning."

"I know our esteemed Dr. Jones recommended that you two get out of the Hub for a bit of R and R," Cooper nodded, glad to hear their friend was apparently improving. "And Rhys helped me take care of that for you. Here... check-in is at 6:00 pm; it's good for dinner, an overnight, and breakfast in the morning. Take Ianto, enjoy the stay, and let the rest of us worry about the Rift for a while."

"Gwen..." the American began uncertainly, glancing down at the paper she held out to him.

"It's mostly for Ianto," she insisted, seeing his reluctance. "But you need a break from Torchwood as well, if only to be with him. It's just one night, Jack... and it's something special for the two of you. You harp on me about taking time for the normal part of my life. Now it's your turn to follow that advice. The two of you are forever, remember? It's not just a bit of fun around the Hub or notch on the grip of your Webley anymore. So, treat it like what it is, and take your annwyl for a nice couple's retreat, yeah?"

Harkness stared at the raven-haired woman for a moment, then smiled and nodded.

"This is great, Gwen, thanks," the Captain stated quietly, folding the reservation confirmation and putting it in the pocket of his Chinos. "Thank Rhys for us. You're both good friends... I'm glad to have your support. I'll pay you back for this tomorrow."

"No, you won't," Cooper countered, raising a warning finger when the man started to insist. "No. This can be Ianto's belated Birthday gift for the past few years. So don't you dare slip the money back into my bank account."

"Okay, okay," Jack chuckled, reaching out to give the former constable a one-armed hug. "Do the others know we're off duty till mid-day tomorrow?"

"Everyone's prepared to cover Rift watch all night, we've got a shift schedule set up," Gwen reassured, returning their leader's embrace. "So, no headsets or mobiles when you two go, yeah? No PDA's, no guns, no Torchwood anything. I'm serious, Jack. You can take the SUV, but once you're at the B and B, this place needs to cease to exist for both of you. As of this moment, you and Ianto are no longer Torchwood team members, you're tourists."

"We're being evicted?" a soft voice queried from the office doorway. "Honestly, Jack, how could you forget to pay the rent? What about the pet deposits for Myfanwy and the Weevils?"

Harkness and Cooper both laughed, turning to see the last member of their old three-person team exit the shadows of the room he'd come through. Ianto was clad in his boots, suit trousers, dress shirt and tie, the black pinstripe outfit's waistcoat and jacket obviously still on their hangers. The shirt was a shiny cotton-silk blend in a shade of pewter grey, the perfectly knotted necktie a glossy length of black-barred scarlet red that they knew matched the absent garments' back and lining. The twenty-six-year-old was neatness incarnate, but his eyes were still slightly puffy and shadow smudged, and it was obvious that his shoulder and gauze wrapped hand were hurting him.

Jack put out his own left hand as the younger man approached, Ianto easily slipping his right into it so their fingers laced together. He was definitely more at ease than he had been for days, a little of the old familiar spark back in his eyes.

"We're being put out for the night like a couple of cats," his partner explained with a grin. "Gwen and Rhys have arranged an offsite tryst for us at the Oak Grove Matron's Bed and Breakfast. We are 100% off duty till mid-day tomorrow."

"It's a late Birthday gift," Gwen smiled, moving to hug the young brunette, careful of his injured arm. "You two go and have a lovely time. Relax and enjoy being alone away from Rift alerts and alien menaces, yeah?"

"Thank you," Ianto murmured, gingerly returning the hug with his sore arm and giving his friend a light kiss on the cheek. "This is a great surprise. I love B and B's... just never have a reason to go. Please tell Rhys that I'm thrilled with the gift."

"I'm pretty happy with it too," Harkness added earnestly before wiggling his eyebrows. "Gives me a chance to give you my gift as well, Tiger Pants."

Ianto blushed slightly, that and the pleased little smile he wore telling Cooper that the "gift" most likely involved a total lack of clothing for the pair, as well as the need for a quiet bed frame on the public overnight.

"Check-in isn't till 6:00," Jack supplied helpfully. "So, we've got time to have some coffee and watch the rest of the team at work."

"I'll be sure to set things up before we leave, so whoever stays late won't have to do without coffee," Ianto reassured, his partner's suggestion reminding him of the important duty. "But you'll have to rely on Lois come morning."

"We'll live," Martha stated as she came down out of the Hothouse and cruised over to the three near the office stairs. "Jack got you patched up okay?"

"He may not be a doctor, but he's quite good at binding things," the Welshman replied soberly, then smiled and displayed his neatly wrapped left hand. "Does all right with gauze and tape too."

"Never had a lesson," the American stated proudly as both Martha and Gwen laughed. "Come on. Coffee and couch time."

The two Hub residents headed for the kitchenette, their fellow team members going back to their regular duties. Gwen glanced over at her friends as they got their hot drinks, smiled when she saw Harkness whisper something in Ianto's ear and kiss the young Archivist on the back of the neck when he chuckled in response. She turned her attention to the array of monitors on her station, resuming the research she'd been doing on a recent Rift related building collapse in the outskirts of Pen-y-lan. From nowhere a fresh cup of coffee with chocolate sprinkles appeared atop the drinks mat to her right, and she looked up to find Ianto stepping back from the area. He smiled at her, a true happy and open smile like she remembered from the days before the ugly Torchwood-India mission. The former PC smiled back, glad to see her young countryman feeling more his pre-456 self and incredibly pleased that she had a small hand in it.

Ianto drifted across to the sofa and claimed a space on the cushions beside an obviously relaxed Jack, the older man unabashedly sliding an arm around his shoulders. Both tensed when the Rift alarm went off, but eased back in their seats to simply watch as Turlough identified the location and nature of the spike, he and Gwen gearing up to take the van and handle the most recent incursion. Harkness wished the two agents good luck and reminded them to be careful, tightening his arm around his partner instinctively.

The main door rotated open then closed, the auto-system activated to monitor the Rift's activity and Martha continued with the tests she was running on a recently acquired alien plant. On the couch behind the workstations, Jack and Ianto relaxed against one another as they sipped their coffee. It was business as usual for Torchwood, but for the first time in years neither one of its two senior most members was entering the fray. And though it struck them both as strange, it was actually a nice change... not likely to happen very often, but nice.

TTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTT

AN: So the boys get a night off, and the rest of the team gets to pull the late shift… Can't help but wonder how things will go for both groups.

Thank you to those reading the story. And thank you to those who have followed, favourited, and reviewed. NM