Doomsday: Post Apocalypse
a Torchwood story
by RoadrunnerGER
Dislaimer: Oh, really! They're the BBC's.
Summary: Ianto comes to Cardiff for a week to help with the archives, but is it as simple as that? Jack/OC, Jack?Ianto
Suspense/hurt/comfort – T – Ianto Jones & Jack Harkness
A/N: Sorry, real life's been crazy lately. Thanks for your patience and to everyone who commented. About the Welshcakes… at the Market Hall they had a lot of variations. I especially liked the coconut ones. Though chocolate is great, too, as is orange or lemon curd… ;) I want a cast iron pan, so I can finally try and make them! But enough about Welshcakes… Enjoy!
Chapter 20 - Trigger
After enjoying his coffee and pastries, Jack spent a couple of minutes contemplating how he should handle the morning meeting. Suzie was there. Only a few minutes before Owen, she came in and went straight to her workstation. She neither acknowledged her colleagues' presence nor stopped by Jack's office. His second in command acted as if she had done nothing wrong and that bugged the captain.
Of course, he could have called her when the alert came in last evening, but he had been so mad at her that he did not care. Then Ianto offered to support them and Jack did not even waste another thought on Suzie. The mission went surprisingly well without her. Jack wanted to rub it in but knew that it would give a bad impression toward the rest of the team.
Deciding to ask her into his office after the meeting, Jack went up to the boardroom, his sign to the others to join him there for the meeting. As he entered, he found mugs and small plates distributed on the table. A moment later, Ianto was the second one to arrive, bringing in a thermos and a plate with pastries. Jack eyed the latter curiously and spotted two more Welshcakes. Delight lit in his eyes and he boldly took both Welshcakes to put them on his plate.
"I'm the boss," Jack declared when Ianto cast him a disapproving glance.
"I didn't say a thing, sir."
"You didn't have to," Jack smirked and shoved his mug toward the Welshman. "Would you be so kind?"
So Ianto filled the captain's mug and his own and sat down in his chair. Toshiko came in next, smiling at Ianto and thanking him for the extra breakfast. Suzie and Owen settled in their chairs without any comment, even though Owen was quick at placing two pastries on his plate as well.
"All right, kids," Jack said, clapping his hands together. "Before we begin… Suzie, I want to talk to you in private after the meeting. Now that that's said, I want to thank you for the successful mission last night…"
"What mission?" Suzie cut in, not the least bit apologetic for missing the action. "Did you call?"
"As a matter of fact, I didn't," Jack stated matter-of-factly. "Everyone else was present, so we went out without you."
"I see," she nodded. "And you want to talk to me alone because you were too bloody stubborn to call me in after I left yesterday?"
Left? You all but ran away. Being put on the spot, Jack fixated her with a death glare.
"Why not tell me now?"
Jack did not budge to the challenge. "Because then I would have to tell you how annoyed I was by your accusations and about my disappointment at your lack of support toward our newest team member."
"Temporary assignment," Suzie replied.
Glaring at her for the interruption, Jack went on, "Especially as Ianto was a really big help last night. He and Tosh developed a plan that led to the neutralization of the threat the two whirlwind aliens posed."
"Ianto was brilliant," Toshiko threw in.
Her comment made the Welshman blush, which Jack found quite endearing.
"Yeah," Owen agreed but could not help but tease, "He knows Wikipedia by heart."
This time, Ianto rolled his eyes.
"Anyway," Jack said, "He did a great job. You all did," he nodded at Toshiko and Owen. "Tosh, did your tracking program find anything?"
"Thankfully not," she told him. "But I'll keep it running to make sure that we really caught them."
"Good. I hope that case is closed then." Jack took a drink of his coffee before he continued, "Now, Ianto, you arranged a flight for Ydris and the tigers, is that correct?"
"Yes, sir."
"Right. Ydris called to tell me that he would come in later with the crates he organized and the forms we need to fill in."
"Okay, sir."
This time it was Jack's turn to roll his eyes, but he did not comment on still being called sir. Instead, he addressed a more serious matter.
"Major Billingham sent me an email in which he informed me that UNIT is going to arrange a memorial service next Saturday and we all will attend…"
"What?" Suzie cut in.
Slowly but surely, Jack got really annoyed with his second in command.
"We are going to demonstrate our respect for the colleagues who died in London," Jack told her firmly. "There's no room for discussion. We're going to London on Saturday." Turning to Ianto, he went on, "We agreed that we will use the opportunity to meet with the survivors to wrap things up there."
Ianto stared at him with open incredulity.
"I'm not sure if I'll be prepared by Saturday," he admitted.
"Well, that's why Suzie's going to help you, right?" Jack said. "At least that's what I recall we agreed on."
His second in command glowered at him but remained silent as she remembered that they talked about it.
"Well, unless you're not feeling up to it," Jack offered Ianto a way out. He was not sure what the sceptical look the Welshman cast at him was supposed to tell him.
"No, that's not it, sir," Ianto said. "But the archives…"
"Don't worry about the archives," Jack shrugged. "I was distracted from compiling the list you wanted anyway. I'll try to have it by this afternoon, all right?"
Beside him, Suzie was fuming. Jack could tell as much, even though she did not comment, and he realized that Ianto noticed it as well.
"Um, sir?" Ianto spoke up because he sensed that Jack was about to change the subject. Anxiety threatened to overwhelm him, but he had to ask, "Do we know by now how many employees have survived the invasion?"
Jack took a deep breath before he answered, "Not every body could be identified yet, but we know by now that twenty-nine members of Torchwood One's staff have reported in or are being treated at the hospital. Two are still in a critical condition."
"I see," Ianto murmured. His stomach was about to do somersaults. Twenty-nine only. Oh, my God! What have we done? And still, it could have been so much worse.
His heart ached for everyone who had lost his life or health or a loved one during the Cyber invasion. Yet even though he grieved with the survivors, he failed to recognize that he was one of them. It still did not quite register that he barely escaped the tower himself, and he had lost his fiancé to the army of ghosts. Were he able to acknowledged his unique status as a survivor of the Battle of Canary Wharf, he most certainly would have guessed that mourning and recovery would still be a long process.
Sensing the tension build, Jack tried to diffuse it.
"Well, there's a possible research project Ianto told me about," the captain said and looked at the Welshman meaningfully. "I'd like to postpone that matter until after the memorial service, though. I'm sure you'll remind me, right, Ianto?"
"Yes, sir," Ianto confirmed distractedly and nodded slightly. First, he did not expect Jack to bring the subject up so soon anyway so this was fine with him, and second, he had other things on his mind right now.
"I think that's all then," Jack declared. "Suzie, I think we said all that needed to be said. You're going to help Ianto with preparing the contracts for One's surviving personnel and you're on vault duty for the weekend. Thank you, everyone."
Suzie glowered darkly at Jack but refrained from venting her anger. Swiftly, she stood and strode out of the boardroom. Toshiko grimaced at her co-worker's behaviour. She liked Ianto and was glad about the friendship that was slowly forming between them, so she could not quite understand why Suzie was being so hostile. She emptied her mug and excused herself.
"Your landlady really knows how to bake," Owen said as he got up, grabbed another pastry, and breezed out of the door.
Slowly, still in thought, Ianto got up and mechanically gathered the used mugs and plates on a tray. He was just about to put the thermos on it as well when he thought better of it and shoved it toward Jack who grinned in response.
"You know, Ianto," the captain began and his grin became wicked as he leant back in his chair, "I told you what would happen if one of those things came anywhere near the Hub, right?"
"Yes, sir," Ianto agreed.
"Well?"
Suddenly Ianto had a lump in his throat. The way Jack slouched in his chair now did not have anything threatening about it. No. Actually, his pose was rather provocative. Ianto found it hard to respond to him in this situation.
"You said you would make me… your coffee slave, sir," Ianto all but croaked.
"I did, didn't I?" Jack smirked.
"Yes, sir."
"For the rest of your life," Jack elaborated, eyeing the Welshman challengingly.
Ianto choked. No, he was not mistaken. Jack had switched to his cheeky self. To Ianto's horror, the way Jack draped his arms over the armrests of the chair and his crossed legs did not fail to work on him. The Captain's grin had become salacious and the sparkle in his eyes testified to his attraction.
"Right, sir," Ianto automatically replied, but he did not think of endless service as coffee boy but of another form of slavery, a much more erotic variety to be exact. The images pushed into his consciousness and he had to shake his head to clear it.
Jack's revenge for the earlier scare?
That thought reminded Ianto that he needed to check on Benny. Even though Jack looked like he wanted to pursue the matter, he asked, "Did Ydris say when he'll come over?"
"No," Jack told him, readily accepting that Ianto backed out of the game.
"Okay, guess I'll know when he arrives then. I'll go back to work now, sir, if that's all right."
"Sure. Go ahead. Oh, and those Welshcakes are fantastic."
Ianto acknowledged him with a nod, took the tray, and was on his way out when Jack lasciviously said, "By the way… I love that suit."
Ianto froze and had to take a deep breath before he could continue on his way.
xXx
At the same time someplace else in Cardiff, Constable Andy Davidson had other problems. His coffee break was interrupted by dispatch, sending him and his partner, Gwen Cooper, to a domestic fight. Neighbours had called in the emergency, reporting screams and other weird noises coming out of the adjacent flat.
When the constables arrived at the address they got, everything was calm. Andy rang the doorbell repeatedly before finally the door opened, revealing a lean twelve year old boy with mouse brown hair.
"Hello," Gwen chirped. "Constables Cooper and Davidson. What's your name?"
The boy just shook his head.
"Is your mom at home?"
The kid eyed her disdainfully.
"No."
"What about your dad?"
"No."
Gwen frowned. What did the neighbours hear when the parents were not at home? And why was the kid not at school?
"We're here to check if you and your parents are all right," she said. "May we come in for a minute?"
"No," the boy said without hesitation.
Gwen was stunned. "We just want to make sure everyone's okay," she insisted.
In the background the constables could hear a commotion and excited voices. Someone else had to be in the flat. They needed to get in.
"C'mon, let us in," Andy told the boy sternly. "What's going on back there?"
"Nothing."
"Doesn't sound like nothing," Andy prodded and pushed slightly against the door. As it swung further back, it allowed the constables a better sight into the hallway and Andy noticed blood on the floor.
"All right, kid, the fun's over," Andy said and took the boy's arm to shove him over to Gwen who wrapped her arms around him.
"Hey! You can't go in!" the kid shouted. "Mom!"
"So she is there then," Andy huffed and exchanged a glance with Gwen to make sure that she stayed and took care of the boy. Then he proceeded down the corridor.
"Mrs. Sandford?" he called out. "Police Constable Davidson! Mrs. Sandford, is everything all right?"
Hearing something bump, Andy decided not to wait for a response.
"Mrs. Sandford, I'm coming in!"
"No!" the boy yelled. "He'll run away!"
"Who'll run away?" Gwen asked, struggling to keep her hold on the writhing boy.
"My pet!"
"Your dog?" Andy pushed and saw the kid shake his head. From inside the other room, he heard more suspicious noises and the high-pitched voice of a woman. She probably was chasing the boy's pet.
Still fighting with the boy in her arms, Gwen moved inside the hall and closed the door. Hearing a scream, Andy pushed the door open.
"Whoa!"
The bedroom was a mess. Feathers from the covers on the king sized bed flew around and everything that once stood on the furniture, alarm clock, bedside lamp, candle holder, flower pot, was now scattered on the floor. Amidst the chaos was a petite woman, strands of her blond hair slipped out of her bun and hung messily onto her shoulders, her makeup was runny with tears, and her forearms bleeding from several scratches. What gave Andy quite a scare, though, was the animal that sat in the middle of the bed.
Its long snout was filled with tiny razor sharp teeth. It bobbed its head, hissing angrily at the newcomer and whipping its tail from side to side threateningly.
"Um… Gwen?" Andy shouted. "We need the animal catchers!"
"No!" the boy screamed and darted into the bedroom. "Mom! I want to keep him!"
"Your pet's a monster!" she sobbed.
Well, the green skinned creature was not exactly a monster in the classic sense, but it did trash the bedroom thoroughly. It just had the size of a chicken, but it seemed to be agile and possess some strength you would not expect in a small animal like this.
"Easy, ma'am," Andy said, carefully putting a hand on her shoulder. "Let's go outside and talk in quiet."
"In quiet?" she frayed. "With that beast under our roof?"
"Ma'am, my partner's calling in help. We'll catch the… bird. Or is it a lizard?"
"He's my lizard!" the boy threw in defiantly. "Don't you hurt him or I'm gonna…"
"Joey Sandford," his mother interrupted him, grabbing his arm hard, "Behave yourself! That beast was here for the longest time! The police will take it!"
"But, mom!" Joey whined. "You said I could keep him! He'll learn! You'll see!"
"No it won't!" she snapped. "It's a lizard, for God's sake. It won't learn to do its business in a box or to leave our shoes alone!"
"But mom!"
As Mrs. Sandford manoeuvred her son out of the bedroom, Andy cast a last look at the lizard that hissed at him again, and closed the door behind them.
"Go! Catch it!" Mrs. Sandford turned to Andy. "The sooner you take it away the better."
"Ma'am," Gwen mingled in. "Calm down, please. Can we sit down somewhere?"
"In the kitchen," she nodded and pushed Joey into the opposite direction. "You'll stay in your room. Got me? If you try to let it run you'll be grounded for the rest of the year."
"Moooom!" he whined again, but banged his head against a brick wall. Mrs. Sandford was truly pissed off and would not take pity on him. Pouting, the boy vanished in his room and smashed the door closed.
"That way," the mother gestured down the hall and took two steps back to lock the bedroom and keep the lizard from escaping. In the kitchen, Andy sat down with her and asked Gwen to wait outside for the animal catchers and call an ambulance as well.
"Ma'am," Andy tried to sooth her when she started to argue about needing a doctor, "Those scratches need to be treated."
For the first time she seemed to notice that she was injured. Incredulously she stared at her forearms and began to cry.
"Joey brought it in," she tried to explain. "It was weak and we didn't think it would survive. Actually, it was quite cute, or rather pretty, with its green skin and the slender body… but as it gained strength it became hard to control. Joey kept it in his room first so we didn't notice. And then it escaped into the living room and made quite a mess." Her distress changed to rage. "You've seen the bedroom! It's a monster!"
Andy let her talk while they waited. About half an hour later the animal catchers arrived. The lizard gave them quite a hard time, flitting from side to side and through their legs. It almost escaped into the corridor and they managed just in time to close the door. They needed about twenty minutes to catch the creature. When they took it outside in a cage, Andy asked them to wait for a moment and had a closer look at the lizard.
It looked familiar. Standing on its hind legs, it really had the size of a slim chicken, light green, long neck, astute eyes. Once more it hissed and tried to bite. Its tail did not have enough space to whip in the small cage.
Flash.
Andy winced at the sudden flash of memory, the sound of a machine gun and the high chirps of animals.
What was that?
Tilting his head to the side, he eyed the lizard intently. It was an extraordinary specimen. He knew that lizards usually moved on all four legs. That this one stood on its hind legs was a little weird.
Flash.
This time it was the slightest sense of how he put a bucket over something. Shaking his head, he tried to make sense of the memory.
"Can we go now?" the man carrying the cage asked. "We've got other things to do."
"Yeah, sure," Andy agreed.
"Are you okay?" Gwen asked.
"Yeah, I'm fine," he assured her, even though he could not quite shake off the weird feeling that he had seen a lizard like that before. The memory was there, but he could not access it. That was really a peculiar feeling. Unwilling to brood further about it, he told Gwen, "Let's wrap this up."
They went back to the kitchen to exchange a few last words with Mrs. Sandford before they returned to their car and called dispatch to let them know that they were back on the beat.
tbc…