Sorry about the horrible length between updates! I had massive story block. Forgive me?

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Chapter 4-Formulating A Plan

Having managed to carry Tosh back to Jack's office (which was quickly turning into a mini-Hub), Ianto put her down on the ground as gently as he could manage. Jack set about lighting more candles, in various jars. Owen immediately set about checking Tosh.

"So, what's wrong with her, Mr Medical?" said Jack. He managed to pull off a much lighter tone than he was feeling.

Owen screwed his face up. "I have no idea. It's impossible for someone to have all the possible causes of these symptoms. They'd be dead. Very dead. It's as though that...thing sucked the life out of her. Literally."

Jack sighed.

"Great. Now the enemy has one up on us, plus superpowers? Not fair."

Ianto said nothing, putting a pillow under her head and a blanket on her shivering body.

"How long's it going to take her to regain consciousness?" Jack asked, putting his hand on her forehead to check her temperature. "She's burning up, by the way, Owen."

Owen glared at him. "No, Jack, with my medical degree, I couldn't tell at all. I honestly don't know when she's going to wake up."

Nobody said 'if'.

"Okay, then." said Jack, clapping his hands. "Who's hungry?"

Ianto had managed to find some army-style ration packs. Jack smiled as he opened the little tin, checking what was in the packets.

Owen shook the tin next to his ear. Inside, things rattled. Things that didn't exactly sound out the word 'delicious'. He shrugged, opening the box with a 'pop' noise. After surveying the contents with an expression of distaste, he turned to Ianto.

"Hey, genius? There's no water in here." he said, disgruntled.

Ianto smiled, said nothing and pointed to the box sitting at his feet. Several large bottles of water glistened from inside their plastic bottles.

"Oh." said Owen, shooting daggers at Ianto before continuing to grumble about the rations.

About half an hour later Tosh woke up. She sat up, feverish and shaky.

Owen shot to her side like a puppy.

"Hey. Feeling okay?" he asked, sitting next to her and, wrapping her up in the blanket, pulled her close to him.

Jack noticed the two and gently nudged Ianto with a 'hey, look at the two lovebirds' look. Ianto looked and smiled, shaking his head.

Tosh made a 'so-so' wave of her hand and snuggled into Owen's chest.

"I've been better, I 'spose." she said quietly.

Jack laughed. "Well, I've seen you looking worse." he said. Tosh smiled at him, but Ianto and Owen looked confused. They had no idea about Tosh's life before she came to Torchwood.

"So, how do you feel sick?" asked Owen, reaching for the medical kit-which seemed to have some kind of magnetic connection to him.

"Umm...my stomach hurts, head hurts, my...bones hurt? I didn't know it was possible to hurt in your bones, but it is, apparently. Uh, I think I'm running a slight fever, and my throat's really dry." She twisted her head to look at Owen. "How was that for a medical analysis?" she asked.

He smiled back at her. "Not bad, Tosh. Not bad at all."

Later on, after Tosh had almost drunk an entire bottle of water, Owen had tried the ration packet and spat it out, refusing to eat it ("I'll take starving, thanks."), Ianto had come to the realisation that there was no coffee and slunk into a corner, grumbling about the entire situation and Jack had sat in his chair spinning around, trying to work things out in his head, and wondering what he could swap with other people so he could have the best brain food possible, the Captain called a meeting.

"Okay, team!" said Jack. "Meeting! My office, now!"

Owen sighed.

"Sorry," said Jack. "Force of habit."

Owen sighed again.

"So, okay. Number one most super-duper-ultimately important item on our agenda today." he started.

Everyone in the relatively small space paid attention.

"Who wants to swap with me?" he said, waving a small packet of crackers in the air.

"If the whole time is gonna be like this, I'll kill myself before it's all over." grumbled Owen, as Ianto handed Jack his packet of dried meat and took the crackers.

Tosh patted his shoulder. "If we don't figure out a plan, you won't have to."

Author's Ramblings:

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