Gwen considered taking the sidewalk lift, but that would put Autumn right in the middle of the Hub, and she wasn't even sure if this classified as something Torchwood should look into. I'll go through the visitor's entrance and talk to Jack before I let her in, Gwen decided.
"Why are we going to a tourist information center?" Autumn asked Gwen when they reached the main entrance.
"It's… uh… connected to where I work," Gwen answered. "That's how people get in. Kind of weird, I know."
Autumn nodded thoughtfully and followed Gwen through the door. Although they couldn't hear it, Gwen knew a bell rang somewhere in the depths of Hub, summoning Ianto. Surely enough, they shortly heard a voice float in from down the hall – "With you in a moment!"
"What can I do for –" Ianto started to say as he clambered through the door behind the desk. He stopped mid-sentence when he noticed Gwen. "Why didn't you use the sidewalk –" His eyes landed on Autumn and he nodded knowingly. "Ahh, we have a vistor! How may I help you, miss?"
"Well, I stumbled into Gwen a little bit away from here," Autumn said. Yes, literally stumbled, Gwen thought dryly. Once Autumn had explained her perception filter predicament to Ianto, Gwen added, "So, I would like to speak with Jack about this and see how and if we should proceed from here."
"Yes, well, I would like to speak to Jack as well, but he seems to have disappeared again," Ianto said, clearly annoyed. "I've checked everywhere, and I'm sure he's not in the Hub. I haven't seen him since about six p.m. yesterday."
Gwen sighed. Ever since Jack had vanished off the face of the Earth a few weeks ago (literally, as it had turned out) he had been distant from the rest of the team. It was somewhat common for him to be gone for days at a time. The team often questioned him on where he went and why, but he never spoke a word about it. During his absence, Gwen took on the role of team leader, a position that she had recently been filling quite often.
"Well then, I guess I'll just go ahead and deal with this how I want to," Gwen announced. While she was confident in her abilities as leader, Jack had many, many more years of experience under his belt, and she often liked to consult him before she did something out of the ordinary.
"In that case," Ianto replied, "I'll take your coat, miss –" He paused. "Sorry, I didn't catch your name," he politely inquired.
"I'm Autumn," The young lady said, sticking out her arm. Ianto shook her hand. "Nice to meet you, Autumn. My name is Ianto. And if you'll step right through here…"
Gwen followed as Ianto led Autumn through the hallway behind the tourist entrance and towards the center of the Hub. She always enjoyed the transition from the ordinary and boring and into the spectacular. The sudden change in scenery was not unlike her life – overnight, she had changed from an everyday policewoman into a member of the most top secret organization in the country.
Autumn froze in her tracks as the sliding circular door slid away to reveal the vast main area of the Torchwood Hub. Her gaze wandered across the room, taking in the oddities – the pterodactyl, for instance. She stood there speechless for a few more seconds until Gwen, who had been standing, waiting for Autumn to move, got bored.
"Alright darling, yes, it is a lovely sight, but let's get a move on…" Gwen muttered. She grabbed Autumn's arm, led the girl to her desk, and pulled out her desk chair. After motioning for Autumn to sit in it, she said, "Now, I'm going to gather all my co-workers and you can tell us what's up, okay?" Autumn nodded solemnly.
Gwen then turned towards Ianto. "Go down to autopsy and grab Owen for me, will you? I think he's chopping up another dead Weevil for some reason or another," she instructed.
"And the bossiness returns," Ianto commented. He then smiled and added, "Like clockwork, it is, every time you take the lead."
"Sorry, Ianto, I don't really mean to! Please go get Owen?" Gwen asked sheepishly.
"Of course." Ianto said, turning around to locate Owen.
"What's going on?" Tosh wondered aloud as she walked towards Gwen's desk. "I heard a lot of talking and an unfamiliar voice." Her eyes lit up as she noticed Autumn. "A visitor, how exciting! Why is she here?"
"She's here to tell us a story involving a perception filter," Gwen stated. "Once Owen is here, she'll give us the details. I wanted the whole team to hear it at once, so we don't have to repeat it."
Tosh nodded and went to her desk to grab her chair. Just then, Ianto returned with Owen. "This better be important, Gwen, because you know I don't like being interrupted while I'm dissecting something!" Owen grumbled as he walked towards the group sitting around Gwen's desk. "A visitor?" He questioned, looking Autumn over. "What's this about?"
"Grab a chair and she'll tell us," Gwen asserted. "Tosh, would you take notes? Jack will return at some point, and we'll have to fill him in."
Tosh, who took pleasure in work that the rest of the team members disliked, nodded happily. Gwen grabbed a clipboard and paper off of her desk and wrote a note at the top of the paper. The clipboard was passed from Ianto to Owen to Tosh.
This may turn out to be nothing, but I felt that we should listen to what she has to say. If it turns out to be unimportant, I'll Retcon her and put her back where I found her.
Each team member nodded after reading the message. Once Tosh had received the clipboard, Gwen began to talk. "These are the members of Torchwood," she explained to Autumn. "This is Tosh and Owen, and you've met Ianto and myself." She paused, wondering if she should mention Jack. Autumn will probably be long gone before Jack sets foot in here again, Gwen thought bitterly. It doesn't matter if she doesn't know who he is.
She turned to Owen and Tosh. "This is Autumn. I found her earlier today, talking about a perception filter of some sort. She's going to tell us what happened." She smiled at Autumn and placed a hand on her knee reassuringly. "Go ahead, sweetheart."
Autumn, looking nervous as the four adults all focused on her, nodded and mumbled, "I think I've been tortured."
Author's Note: Don't forget to review!