Welcome To Torchwood!
Chapter 3
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Previously:
"Hullo. I'm the Doctor." He grinned manically. "And this…" He turned round and eyed the Paradactols flying above, his hand in a jar, the empty and discarded pizza boxes on the tables, the empty Chinese cartons and the massive control centre with the hi-tech plasma monitors.
"This… this is Torchwood."
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The Doctor was interrupted further by the sound of a mobile going off. He glanced at it, annoyed as Rose dug into her jacket and saw a new message. The Torchwood gang stared, all except for Jack, who was now staring at the Doctor.
"You have a mobile?" Owen asked, once more with incredulity.
Rose glanced up from where she had been about to access the message and stared at Owen. "Um… yeah – this is the twenty-first century, right?" she asked.
"Yeah, but… but…"
Rose turned to Jack for an explanation. He looked at both of them with a grin, leaned down behind Rose and whispered, "I don't think they expect a girl who snogs an alien to have a cell phone."
Rose blushed. "The Doctor started it," she informed him quickly, making Jack laugh.
"I bet he did," he muttered back.
The Doctor wasn't paying any attention as he looked at Rose. "Who is it?" Before she could reply he interrupted, "Oh, and don't say that it's Rickey the Idiot."
Rose shot him a glare. "It's my mum."
The Doctor threw her a disgusted face and rolled his eyes, much to the amusement of all the others present.
Rose sighed and began to read the message aloud. "'Rose, sweetheart, whenever you're taking a break from saving the world and talking to aliens –'" Rose paused to glance up and smile at the Torchwood gang, who were staring at her like she was an alien, then continued: "' - Come down for a cuppa and maybe some chips and bring that Doctor of yours. Make sure it's 3:00 p.m. Monday. Love, Mum.'" She turned to the Doctor with an expectant face.
The Doctor made a face and a whine, shoving his hands into his pockets. "Nooo," he complained, spinning around. "Your stupid mother," he muttered. "Rose…"
Rose just looked at him and raised her eyebrows.
"PLEASE don't make me go to your mum's flat," he pleaded. "We just saw her not two days ago!"
"For all I know, it could have been a year – now stop your whining." The folk from Torchwood were bemused to see a very powerful alien who saved the world on a daily basis beg to a nineteen year-old human girl. They were even more bemused to find that he was getting nowhere. "Doctor, I promise we won't stay for long," Rose said, sighing.
"Fantastic," he said as he grabbed her hand. They started for the mysterious lift, but then Rose turned around.
"Wanna come with us, Jack?" Rose asked, and the Doctor spun around too, having forgotten that there were actually people there – and his very old friend.
"Sure!" Jack replied with a grin, leaping up to join them in a flash. Still, the Torchwood people all stared in surprise at him.
"You still have the guns with straps?" the Doctor asked, unable to hold back a smile.
"You remember!" Jack answered, beaming. "Nah, I dumped them at the Game Station remember? Right before I – "
"It's okay, Jack. No need to go there today," the Doctor interrupted gently.
"Yeah." He turned back to his silent and stunned team. "You coming?" He turned back to the Doctor before anyone could answer. "Can they come?"
Rose replied before the Doctor could open his mouth. "Yes. Definitely."
The Doctor sighed. "Yes," he agreed grudgingly. "BUT – they CANNOT say a WORD."
"Oh, they're very good at keeping secrets, aren't you guys?" Jack answered cheerily.
Still, the Torchwood gang remained silent, just staring.
"What are you trying to do, catch flies?" Rose asked cheerfully to Owen, who was standing there, mouth ajar.
Owen promptly shut his mouth. "Um, no." He coughed, brushing down his hair as he slowly advanced to where Rose was still standing.
"Gwen? You want to come?" Rose turned to the Welsh lady and smiled as she stepped onto the lift beside the Doctor.
"Course. Can't wait to meet your mother," she replied slightly sarcastically, her courage back. She jumped up onto the lift beside the Doctor and Jack.
To her surprise, Rose laughed at her and stepped off of the lift once more. She turned to Ianto, Tosh and Owen. "Are you three coming?"
"Do you two have an eight person sized van?" Owen shot back.
"One, there's seven of us, and two, who needs a van when you have the TARDIS?" Rose asked back smugly.
"TARDIS?" Gwen asked, confused.
"That's right," Rose replied proudly.
"What's a TARDIS?" Owen butted in.
"Not 'A' TARDIS. The TARDIS. My TARDIS," the Doctor inserted.
"And hey, wouldn't your mother say something about seven people popping up into your house in the TARDIS with her daughter and the infamous Doctor?" Jack wanted to know.
"I'm not infamous!" the Doctor protested.
"Jack, the TARDIS can easily fit in the living room, Slitheen tried to kill her twice, manikins almost shot her, she helped shoot a missile, she almost got killed by her Christmas tree, she revived the Doctor with tea, and gets hyper whenever a certain blue box comes over – you think she's gonna flip when five people I know come for tea on short notice?"
"Good point," Jack conceded.
"Can we go already?" Ianto asked, for once in his life impatient.
Everyone turned to stare at him. Was this their quiet Ianto?
"For Argos' sake, come on!" Jack told them, and before hitting the button on the lift, Tosh and Ianto leaped on board. As it slowly began to rise, Owen jumped onto the lift and turned down to Rose, holding out his hand. Rose barely touched it as she experimentally flipped up without any help from him, much to Owen's admiration and surprise.
"Ta," she said anyway, brushing off her hands.
"No problem," he replied, grinning at her. Rose glanced at the cramped lift and caught sight of the Doctor, who was being unmercifully squished by Jack on the edge of it. Rose gave a soft laugh and Owen glanced at her.
"You never said your name," he mumbled, sidling closer to her. Rose would have backed away if she could have.
"Rose, Owen," she told him uneasily, and before he could have the chance to comment, the lift reached the pavement and she jumped off of it. Owen followed.
"This is fantastic," the Doctor told Rose as he jumped off the lift soon afterwards and caught her hand. "Look at this thing! It's brilliant; no one can see you unless you step off of it. We need one in the TARDIS," he murmured.
"You've got to be kidding!" Rose exclaimed.
"Yes." There was a twinkle in his eye as he gave her a half hug, slinging his arm around her.
"Oh, you're terrible."
"You have your moments too, Rose Tyler."
Rose grinned.
"For instance, that bottle of Coke that mysteriously went down my shirt last week?"
"It wasn't my fault that you chose to tell me that you loved me then," Rose protested, beaming.
The Doctor laughed and tugged her over for another hug, planting a kiss on the top of her head. "Thanks to you I still smell like Coke," he muttered into her hair.
"That just means I get another excuse to hug you," Rose replied slyly as she wrapped his arms around his back.
"You don't need one, and you never will," the Doctor teased her – right before he scooped her up and slung her casually over his shoulder. She was now hanging upside down.
"Doctor!" Rose shrieked and everyone turned to look. "Put me down! Now!" She began laughing as she pounded gently on his back, but the Doctor took no heed and continued to walk down to where the TARDIS was, Rose still over his shoulder, laughing and shrieking.
"Please let me go!"
Ianto, Jack, Gwen and Owen began laughing hysterically when they saw this, and Tosh just shook her head, a glimmer of a smile escaping her.
The Doctor looked and found Jack and grinned at him. "I caught a Rose," he called.
"Toss her over," Jack called back, still grinning and heading to them.
The Doctor surprised all of them – even Jack - by obliging his light burden. "Here ya go, Captain," he told Jack, mocking a salute.
"Oh no, I'm going to go round the circle now, aren't I?" Rose joked, being handed to Jack. Jack took her in his arms with a teasing grin.
"I wouldn't mind," Owen muttered to Ianto and Tosh who both pinched him at the same time on both of his arms.
Gwen stood nearby, gazing at Rose and Jack with the slightest bit of envy. She hadn't known Jack for very long, but was already attracted to the strange and mysterious man that nobody knew – except for a nineteen year-old girl! Oh, and maybe that strange alien they both traveled with.
She didn't have to see the three of them together for long – Jack, the Doctor and Rose – to realize that they were close – very close. Still, that didn't explain everything. What had Jack and the Doctor been talking about while Rose had introduced herself? Wasn't she herself at least a tiny bit curious? Or maybe, Gwen thought with envy, She already knew.
Gwen shook herself from her reverie and watched as Jack spun Rose around a few times before finally setting her down.
"I bet you're going to be dizzy," Jack told Rose with his fractured smile.
"Jack, you've changed so much," Rose whispered not for the first time as she gazed up into her old friend's face.
"Tracking aliens day and night do that," Jack told her. "I'm actually surprise how great you look with all that saving the world day in and day out," he replied lightly. "You never said it took the stuffing out of you. And we're just the clean-up crew," he added ruefully.
"I should hope we do more than that," Owen protested, offended.
"It's definitely different when you're with the Doctor," Rose agreed. "He's the difference." She turned and smiled affectionately at her Doctor as he listened to a Tosh technical problem. He noticed her gaze and returned the smile before turning back to Toshiko.
"So… are you two…?" Jack asked hesitantly. He felt like he was allowed to ask; he had treated her as a sister and slightly more than that – it helped that she had never minded. He missed their talks, as random and odd as they might have been.
"Yep," Rose replied, laughing. "Oh, but 'nough about us. Let's go to the TARDIS – Wonder if she's refueled yet?"
Jack frowned. "Wait a minute – your mother wanted you there today, at three. How are we going to make it if the TARDIS is here for a day?"
Rose laughed. "Think about it Jack. The TARDIS is a spaceship, but she also travels in time…?"
"OH," Jack immediately said, sheepish. "Guess I forgot. Sorry, you lost me for a minute there. I'm good."
"Okay, good," Rose replied, smiling and patting his arm. She suddenly grinned, remembering something. "Guess what I can say?"
"What?"
"Raxicoricofallapatorious!"
Jack laughed and went, "Ehhh!" as he held out his arms for a hug. "You remember!"
Rose hugged him back, jumping up and down and went, "Yay, I did it!" She laughed even as she paused and said, "Again."
Jack smiled.
"At least your memory hasn't shorted out on you again," Rose teased him.
"Yeah, wow. You know you haven't been near the Doctor in a while when…" Jack muttered, sending Rose into a fit of laughter.
"That's brilliant!"
"Don't you dare tell him I said that or else I'll make you regret it," Jack replied as he wiggled an eyebrow flirtatiously at her.
Rose blinked. "I'm not your 'Alge', thanks."
Jack chortled. "You remember him?"
Rose sighed. "Yeah, unfortunately. Distracting the guard, remember?" She mumbled something about 'dancing'.
"Don't remind me," Jack replied. "Oh, well, if you remember him…"
Rose raised an eyebrow.
"I'll tell you on the TARDIS, and maybe the Doctor can get it."
"What are you going on about, Jack?"
"You'll find out," Jack replied and they walked over to the TARDIS, the first to arrive. He shoved his hand in his pant pocket and pulled out a small key.
"Jack…" Rose whispered against his arm, behind him.
"I've wanted to use it for such a long time," Jack murmured back. "Now I'm finally able to do so…" He placed the key in the lock and gently and slowly turned it. Rose stepped forward and pushed the door open for him.
"I'll give you some time," Rose whispered as Jack nodded mutely.
He stepped through the TARDIS' main doors and onto the walkway, his fractured smile made whole. He had become so hardened when Rose and the Doctor had left him. Everyone else had left him; why were they an exception? Everyone had left, and he had died alone. Even with the Doctor's explanation of Rose or himself not knowing that Bad Wolf had brought back Jack to life, he still felt deserted.
He grinned when the TARDIS beeped and hrred at him, welcoming him back; happy to see him. Gwen had asked him about his home. The TARDIS was his home, just like she was the Doctor's. Even in the small amount of time of being on this ship, Jack had known immediately that the TARDIS was his friend… just as the Doctor and Rose were his friends. They had been one big happy family. Well…
Jack grinned when he remembered the Doctor and his competitions – mainly over Rose. It had been mostly in jest – at least on his part. The Doctor had been a lot more protective, a lot more serious. Jack was pretty sure Rose had enjoyed their bantering too. Well…
"Hey, girl," he spoke aloud to the ship softly and gently. He had never called the TARDIS 'girl' before. He grinned, because he knew he sounded like the Doctor. He missed the old one, but equally found this new one amusing – if very talkative, cheerful, hyperactive and… hairy.
He spun around when he heard a cough from the open doorway. It was Gwen. His smile was back to fractured as he cocked a small smile at her. "Hey."
"Hello," Gwen said softly.
"Um… I wanted to say something – oh yes. There's a position, now that Susie's – would you like to stick around a bit?"
Gwen smiled slightly. Rose had been right – which meant she knew Jack very well. "Yeah, I think I'll give it a go."
"Good then."
Rose had been right in that regard too. It was good.
"Fine – I'll still need some time – I'll give it a whirl… can I give you a final answer in a few days maybe?"
Jack reluctantly conceded, nodding. "Sounds good. We can do without full staff for a while, after all we've got – " He paused, and Gwen, who knew what he was going to say, nodded her head in agreement.
"We've got them."
Jack nodded absently and frowned.
"What's up, Jack?"
"I hope we have them. I hope they stick around for a little bit longer. I hope – "
"You mean they're not going to stay?"
Jack shook his head slowly and looked up at Gwen sadly. "You don't know about them at all, do you? Besides what you've seen and what you've felt and what you've heard."
Gwen didn't know what he was talking about with the 'felt' bit, but she felt her head nod slowly.
He sighed, frustrated. "The Doctor doesn't stick around. He travels. That's what he does. He goes around with…" he faltered and Gwen felt sorry for him, but her feelings were intermixed with a bit of jealousy. "…He goes around with Rose and they travel, save the world, do whatever. They don't stay. They never stay. Yet another reason why we're here." His voice hardened when he spoke the last sentences, and Gwen felt like she was intruding on something. "And I'm stuck here…" his voice became wistful and Gwen finally understood. He longed to be with them again, traveling to other worlds, out amongst the stars. She didn't even think it was the traveling that he longed to do. It was experiencing it with Rose and the Doctor. He missed them – and the longing would grow if and when they leave without him. Gwen was also pretty sure that the Doctor and Rose would be torn up inside at this as well, but Jack was the only thing that mattered right now.
"We need you here!" Gwen blurted before she could stop herself. "We need you more than… the Doctor… or Rose! We need you… I need you – " Afraid she had said to much, Gwen whirled around and ran out of the strange blue box that was just too weird for her anyway; no matter who was in it.
Jack blinked a few times, totally taken aback. Then he smiled.
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Next Time:
"NO! I will not allow it!" the Doctor protested angrily.
"Rose, it's your choice," Jack told her quietly.
"SHE IS UNDER MY PROTECTION!" the Doctor roared. "She is MY responsibility!"
"You can explain to your mother. Explain to your friends. It's your call." Jack did not turn to the Doctor but remained focused on Rose; he did not lose his calm as the usual hardness entered his voice while he gently tipped up her chin and regarded her with his serious (blue?) eyes.
Rose took a deep breath. What she said next would determine her future – and her life. (Or is that the same thing?)
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MWAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA…
Just remember that nothing is set in stone. XD
Right, so I apologize for being a jerk and going all OOC of Jack and Gwen… more Gwen I think. Toshiko, Ianto and Owen? I have no clue. Only because I'm on the third episode… I realize that Ianto is pretty quiet and keeps to himself in all of these episodes (I think) so I made him speak up a bit, which stuns the gang? Oh, and Owen is trying to flirt with Rose… I guess… and Tosh WAS the one from Aliens Of London! HA HAH! So if you don't agree with that – YOU'RE WRONG!
Heh, sorry for my over usage of dashes and semicolons; they're just so great!
Jack is not feeling his usual flirtatious self, if you haven't noticed.