After Jack and Gwen had gotten the additional footage, Ruby had driven them back to the base, Gwen in the back with more questions than she had gotten answers to. Everyone was gathered in the side room of Jack and Ruby's office, working on the case. Well, everyone but Owen.

Jack was looking over a chart Ruby had done years ago, scanning it. Ruby was at the desk, going over information with Tosh, Gwen was standing in the middle of the room watching either Jack or Ruby, and Owen...well Owen was playing an arcade game.

"So...what's this supposed to do?" Gwen asked Jack, watching what he was doing.

"I'm using satellite tracking data to determine the inward trajectory of the meteorite," Jack explained.

Ruby, without looking up from her paperwork, stated, "He means he's trying to find out where it came from."
"Hey! Sometimes a little technobabble is good for the soul," he replied, glancing back at her.

"So this is a route planner," Gwen commented, glancing at the map.

Tosh nodded. "Not far off."

"Rhys, my boyfriend, is a transport manager," Gwen responded. "He does this sort of stuff. On a slightly smaller scale, though."

Tosh, Owen, and Jack all paused, looking at Gwen. "You have a boyfriend?" Tosh asked.
"Yeah. Have you?" Gwen responded, glancing between them.

"I don't have time with this job," Tosh replied stiffly, looking back down at the paperwork in front of Ruby, just now noticing that Ruby had frozen completely. "Ruby?" she asked softly, but before Ruby could move or even reply, Gwen spoke, turning to Owen.

"What about you? You seeing anyone?"

"You've gotta be joking," Owen replied just as Jack started scanning again. "I can get all the grief I need here."

The realization was slowly hitting Gwen, and she glanced at Jack and Ruby. "None of you have partners?"

Owen nodded. "Just you, newbie."

Gwen paused, glancing at Ruby, joining Tosh in noticing that she wasn't moving. "None of you, really?"

Ruby stood suddenly, making Tosh take a step back at the quick movement. Ruby slipped past Gwen without a word or glance, moving to Jack and taking the scanner from his hand. He glanced down at her, his mouth open to comment when he saw her face. Seeing the stiff expression and focused eyes, he closed his mouth, watching her work.

Gwen stuttered a moment before saying, "I'm not being rude or anything. Well, maybe I am, but, how do you switch off from all this stuff?" Gwen looked from Jack and ruby to Tosh and Owen. "What do you do to relax?"

Jack and Tosh glanced at Gwen for a moment, before turning back to their work, leaving Gwen to look at Owen. He sighed and stated, "I torture people in happy relationships."

The team had moved out of the office, Ruby still looking over the map and paperwork, Tosh and Owen now at their own computers while Gwen and Jack watched. Jack though, was pacing, and glancing at Ruby every so often.

"Gas traces confirmed as Vorax and Suranium," Tosh stated.
"Great. My two favorite gases," Jack responded, glancing up as Ianto came down with a tray of mugs. "Can we do a check and find out what we know about them?"
"I'm all over it, "Owen stated, sitting up properly in his chair as he started typing away.

Gwen glanced at Tosh's computer then, asking, "What's this doing?"

"I've taken an image of the girl from the CCTV footage," Tosh replied. "This cross-checks her face with the UK population." Indeed, the computer was doing just that, comparing random faces to the one Gwen and Jack had grabbed from the alley footage.

Jack smiled at Ianto as he took a mug, watching Ianto then move to Ruby, handing her a mug before muttering something to her. She smiled softly and replied just as quietly, taking the mug. Ianto made the best coffee Jack had ever tasted, and the rest of the team agreed fully, but Ruby preferred a cup of tea to any coffee or soda, and Ianto was more than happy to oblige. Plus, Jack had mentioned to Ianto that she was...stiff, and Ianto knew what that meant- a special tea only brewed on hard days or in hard moments. Ianto never asked why it was needed and made it as good as he possibly could when he was told to. There were some times that both men knew all she needed was to not be asked any questions and given her favorite cup of tea.

"You can't have every face in the UK on there," Gwen stated, furrowing her eyebrows. "That would be against civil liberties, data protection, all that stuff."

Jack piped up then, making Tosh and Gwen turn to him. "Still doing that you instead of we thing." He raised his eyebrows, making Gwen sigh, just as the system finished its search.

"Damn," Owen commented. "A hundred and nineteen suspects? This thing's supposed to give us a single clear match."

"The CCTV was too low res," Tosh replied. "I've tried magnifying and augmenting but it just breaks up. Which means the software can't function properly."
Ianto, now behind Gwen, his tray of the rest of the mugs on the table near Jack, nodded. "It's narrowed the numbers down. I could check through the rest." The team glanced at him. "You know, the old fashioned way. With my eyes."
Gwen gave him a small smile, before turning back to Tosh."What about the fingerprints I took off the alley wall?" she asked.

Tosh pressed a few buttons, revealing the system saying, "No Matches Found".

Gwen sighed in response. "It was a long shot, anyway."

"Just a bit," Owen snarked.

Gwen's gaze snapped to his. "At least I'm trying to do something."
He turned to her and replied, "No, you're trying anything."

Ruby stepped up then, her hands wrapped around her mug. "The CCTV must have picked up her arrival at the club. Tosh, couldn't you reformat the image recognition software to trace her journey backwards via street camera network?"

Jack snapped and nodded, turning to Tosh. "Brilliant."

Tosh nodded as well, turning to her keyboard. "I'll have a go, but it'll take a while to process. Every possible turn on every street corner means hundreds and thousands of probabilities."

Jack glanced at Ruby, who just nodded. "Have a go," he said. "At least we'll know where she started the evening."

Gwen glanced back at Jack, replying, "We could cross-reference that with the addresses of the remaining face matches."

Owen nodded and pointed to Gwen. "Good one, newbie. That's a bit more like it."

Ruby smiled, taking a sip of her tea as she leaned against the wall beside Jack. He glanced at her and muttered, "Better now?"

She nodded and replied, "Much."

He let out a breath of relief, kissing the top of her head before glancing back at Tosh and Owen. Talk of pasts was hard for Ruby, any kind of past- old homes, old memories, schooling...but family and relationships were the hardest. Jack knew why family was hard, that had been easy to figure out, and he had on accident. But relationships...he had never asked about, and didn't have the courage to.

About an hour later, Ruby was in her and Jack's office, pacing as he tapped her pencil on her chin. Papers were spread across the desk, the computer behind her still running tests on the rock. "Can't be there...or there...but then…"

She jumped slightly as a knock sounded, looking to Jack at the door, a soft grin on his face. "You alright, Red?" he asked.

She sighed and ran her hands through her hair. "I don't have enough information. So…"

"That's alright, keep working on it," he replied, glancing over the papers she had out.

It was then Ruby noticed his attire- a full white bodysuit, gas mask hanging off his neck. "Where are you going?"

Jack chuckled and replied, "We found her, and her address. We're heading over now."

"Do you want me to-"

"Only if you want," he interrupted, meeting her gaze. "I know when you're in a mood like this you just...like to keep going."

Ruby blushed slightly, before glancing at the computer, then back to Jack. "If you don't mind, I'll stay."

Jack nodded. "Sounds great. Ianto is making a cup of your 'thinking' tea, and I'll call when we've got updates."

Ruby rolled her eyes but smiled. Ianto, at Jack's insistence, had stocked every kind of tea Ruby liked. There was the blend Jack got from a secret spot for her bad days, a blend for tiring days, a blend for mornings, a blend for overnight jobs, a blend for when she was brainstorming, and more. Ruby always said it was ridiculous, but Jack insisted, and well...she didn't fight him all that much on it.

"Be smart and be safe," Ruby replied.

Jack saluted before leaving the office, smiling a little wider than usual. Part of it was because Ruby was in a better mood, but the other part was because...of what she had said. They rarely left each other's sides, but when they did Ruby always said that phrase- "Be smart and be safe." It surprised him at first, but after a while of hearing it...it made him feel happy. Because while they both knew he would always come back, she still worried slightly. And well...it had been a long time since anyone had worried about him like that. It was nice to finally have it again.

Ruby was ready as the gate opened, the team stepping through with who Ruby assumed was Carys. Jack had called her on the way back, informing her of what had happened, and telling her to get ready.

And boy was she ready. Scanners were up, already working, recordings at full quality, and cell ready.

Owen and Tosh came through first, equipment in hand and tired looks on their faces as they nodded to Ruby before passing her. Next was Gwen, leading a young girl (Carys she assumed), in handcuffs inside. Jack was last, meeting Ruby's eyes before moving around Gwen. "She what you can find out from her," Jack said, moving towards Ruby.

Gwen's gaze followed him. "But aren't you going to help me? I don't know what I'm doing."

Jack paused, glancing at Gwen, then Carys, then back to Gwen. "Usually better if you don't say that in front of the prisoner," he said, before moving to Ruby, the two moving to their office.

Ruby watched Gwen lead the girl to the cells, muttering, "She's so young."

Jack sighed, his arms folded as he watched as well. "I know." As the two disappeared from sight, he turned to Ruby. "Figure anything out?"

Ruby nodded and moved to the desk, which had considerably less paperwork than when he had left. "I've narrowed down the quadrant, but that still leaves too many planets and too many species."

He sighed and glanced at the paperwork, not really understanding much though. Ruby tended to write in shorthand, and sometimes in other languages if she was too caught up in her brainstorming.

"Anything in common that could help?" he asked, glancing at her.

She paused for a moment, before nodding. "Maybe a few things multiple would have in common. I can make a list."

He nodded and stood. "Good, let's do that...I'm going to have Tosh and Owen go back over the original crash site information...see if there's anything else we missed."

"Gwen's interviewing the girl?" Ruby questioned.

Jack nodded, sliding off his jacket and hanging it up. "Yeah, Figure it's a good start, and something simple enough."

Ruby nodded in agreement, both of them stepping out of the office. Jack moved to Tosh and asked about a few things they had gathered, while Ruby moved to the kits, taking out samples and such from Carys's house.

A few minutes went by, two at most, when Owen called out, "Oi, you lot. Treat."

The other three looked up, and Tosh and Jack moved over, only to see a screen with the cell, playing out a live feed of Gwen and Carys making out heavily.
"Whoa," Tosh muttered.
Jack commented, "Wow," making Ruby stand and move over.

"I thought she said she had a boyfriend," Owen said.
Jack folded his arms and replied, "You people and your quaint little categories."

Owen smirked and the three continued to watch. Tosh muttered, as Ruby was close enough to see the screen, "We should really get her out of there."

"Duh!" Ruby yelled, instantly darting down the steps.

Her yell broke the other three out of it, Jack and Tosh running after her.

Ruby got to the cell corridor just as Gwen stepped out the cell, her phone ringing. She answered the call, looking over to Ruby as Jack and Tosh got there. Gwen nodded to the three of them and gave a thumbs up, Ruby nodded as they all turned and went back to the main hub. Tosh went back to her desk, Ruby smacking Jack's chest part way there. "What was that?"

"It was-"

"Don't say a show," Ruby replied, rolling her eyes and going back to the samples.

Jack followed her. "But it was, admit it."

Ruby sighed and met his eyes, stating, "Shows don't involve hormones in the air affecting one of the people to do something they wouldn't do."

Jack stiffened and stood up straight. "What?"

"I felt a hormone shift when I got there," Ruby explained. "Not how it normally is, and not from the Weevil."

"Like...what kind of shift?"

"Like a shift worse than that cologne Owen had," she replied, making Jack curse. "We need to run tests."

He nodded, running his hands through his hair. "Yeah, guess we do." Looking around, Jack furrowed his eyebrows. "Where did Owen go…"

Ruby just shrugged in reply. "Go find him."

Almost an hour later, they were all sitting around the table in the higher meeting room, eating Chinese and laughing. "And she said, if I'd known what he was, I never would have married him," Jack finished, telling Gwen a story of a problem they had taken care of a long time ago."
"She knew. She knew all along," Ruby added.

Owen shook his head. "But she didn't care."

"Until he started leaving black piles of mucus in the bathtub," Ianto continued, everyone laughing.
"Always the big giveaway," Jack responded. "Aliens have no sense of household hygiene."

Just then a small alarm blaised, making them all stiffen. "Shit!" Ruby yelled darting out of her chair and down the stairs. It was a blue alarm light rather than a red or yellow, which everyone knew was a certain Ruby alarm. They didn't know what it was for, or why it was set, only that it was for Ruby.

Jack was up in an instant. "Ruby!" he yelled, but she was too far down the stairs. Sighing, he glanced at everyone else. "We'll be back," he said, before leaving the room and jogging down the stairs.

"Ruby!" Jack called, moving towards their office, where Ruby was typing quickly on their computer. "What is it?"

She sighed and stopped, looking at Jack. "...alert for the TARDIS."

Instantly, he was by her side. "And?"

She shook her head. "Too far away, and…" She pressed a few buttons before sighing. "Gone now."

Jack groaned and kicked the desk, moving away from her. He took a deep breath and rubbed his face. "...why wasn't the alarm set off earlier?" he muttered.

Ruby sighed and rubbed her neck. "I don't know...I'll work it out once this job is done." Jack nodded slowly, staring at nothing as he thought about the missed opportunity.

Ruby slowly approached him, putting a hand on his back. "We'll find him, Jack."

Jack nodded and turned, hugging her tightly. Ruby buried her face in his chest, Jack, in turn, burying his face in her hair, both taking a deep breath and calming down.

-meanwhile-

The door shut, and instantly Owen, Tosh and Ianto looked at Gwen. "So...what've they told you?" Owen asked.

Gwen furrowed her eyebrows. "What about?"

"Themselves," Tosh stated.

"You've all been here longer than I have," Gwen replied, glancing between them all.

"We were banking on you," Tosh responded.

"You're a copper, you're trained to ask questions," Owen commented.

"You don't know anything?" Gwen asked. "About either of them?"

"Not who they are, where they're from," Owen stated. "Nothing. Well...expect him being gay."

Gwen instantly grew more confused. "No, he's not. Him and Ruby…"

Tosh nodded. "Exactly. Owen thinks he's gay, but I agree with you. He and Ruby have too much chemistry for him to be gay."

"But they're not together," Ianto commented. "They've never kissed or anything."

Owen sighed. "Period military is not the dress code of a straight man."

"I think it suits him," Gwen replied. "Sort of...classic."

Owen choked on his beer as Tosh agreed. "Exactly. But Jack will flirt with anything gorgeous enough."

"He just never takes action of the flirtation," Ianto added.

"Well, we know he's from America, right?" Gwen asked, steering the conversation back to information about Jack and Ruby.

"We don't even know that for sure," Owen replied.
"No US citizen by the name of Jack Harkness born in the last fifty years," Tosh agreed.

"And Ruby...we don't know where she's from at all," Ianto added.

Gwen furrowed her eyebrows. "Really?"

Tosh nodded. "Her accent is...different than anything we've ever heard. And we tested it...nothing. No clear match, not even from a specific part of America."

Owen sighed. "We have less on her, but nothing on either of them."

Gwen grabbed a piece of food and leaned back in her chair. "Maybe they're identities are classified."

Ianto nodded in agreement. "Used to be something big in the CIA, both of them. That's what I reckon."

"They must have their reasons for wanting to keep things secret," Gwen said. "Both of them."

"Sure they do," Owen agreed. "...doesn't stop me from wanting to know what they are."

Gwen paused then, hearing a soft sound that she hadn't noticed before. "What's that sound?"

The other three paused, Owen reaching for a remote just as Ruby and Jack came back. Owen pressed a button, pulling up a screen to show Carys crying in her cell. Gwen slowly stood and moved to the screen, before turning to the team. "What are we doing having Chinese while a girl fights for her life?"

Ruby smiled softly, appreciating the woman's empathy. "While we've been eating, Gwen, the computers have been running a full bio-scan on Carys, profiling her blood, metabolism, organs, skin, everything. So we can see what effect the alien's having on her. They've also been taking samples of the air in the cell so we can analyze and changes in the environment around her."

Gwen's jaw dropped at the info, looking at Jack when he added, "Now, is that enough? Do you want more? Cos it gets kinda boring from there."

Ruby glared at him slightly as Gwen shook her head. "You've been hidden down here too long," she commented. "Spending so much time with the alien stuff, you've lost what it means to be human."

Jack and Ruby exchanged a knowing look before they looked back to Gwen. "So remind us," Jack responded.

Ruby nodded slowly and added, "Tell us what it means to be human in the 21st century."

"Alright," Gwen replied, before moving from the meeting room.

Ruby rested her elbows on the table, leaning on her hands as she watched Gwen go.

"...is that why you hired her?" Tosh asked, making Jack and Ruby look to the team. "Because she's...more human?"

Ruby smiled softly while Jack chuckled. "No," Jack stated.

"Gwen is...she has a different perspective," Ruby explained. "All of us here do. Even Jack and I have differing perspectives."

Jack nodded, a smile on his face. "That's why it works so well. And...with what happened with Suzie...we figured it was smart to hire Gwen."

"She's different from Suzie, and has a way of thinking that...might help," Ruby continued. "In more ways than one."

The other three nodded, Owen and Tosh grabbing their food and leaving the room, making their way to their desks. Ianto stood and started to clean, before pausing and looking at Ruby and Jack. "...you two alright?"

He had sensed something...off when they had come back. They were sitting closer together than normal, which was saying something. Jack and Ruby seemed to move around each other seamlessly, as if they knew subconsciously where the other was. That meant they were usually close and in tune with the other. But after the alarm had gone off and they had come back...something had shifted. It was small but noticeable, if you looked close enough.

Ruby smiled and nodded. "Yeah, we're good."

"We'll be better once this is figured out," Jack replied, sighing and glancing at the live video of Carys.

Ianto nodded and turned off the screen. "We'll all be."

A/N: And here we are for another update! This chapter was fun, but the more we get into it, the more fun I have. ;)

Question for this chapter...why does Ruby have an alert for the TARDIS? O.o

Let me know what you think down below! ;)

And now...reviews!

scripturient3201- "I love how their shorthand kind of mimics the doctor and rose. was that intentional? im looking forward to reading more!" The shorthand was kind of intentional. For a few reasons, one being how long Jack and Ruby have been partners. ;) I hope thic hcpater was fun to read too! There's more coming...lots more. ;)

Purplestan- "'Another great chapter I found this rather interesting with the little hints to things." thank you! I'm so glad you liked it, and I hope this chapter was just as fun! I will warn you, the farther along we go, the more hints there will be. ;)

Seen you soon, everyone!