Two flash backs and maybe swearing, can't remember. please R&R.
The Truth Now.
Owen, Tosh, Gwen and Ianto leave the hub together, Ianto looking back at Jack as he reaches the cog door and smiles at Jack, Jack returning his smile. They all leave as Phoenix sits in the sofa area and Jack returns to his office, watching the CCTV, making sure that they had all left before Jack and Phoenix spoke frankly. Once he had seen them all leave, Gwen giving Ianto a lift in her car, he sealed the hub off, locking at the entrances and exits of the hub, went to the door and stood by the door of his office and watched Phoenix.
"Have I changed any?" Phoenix asks him, fully aware of the fact the Jack was watching her, she had sixth sense.
"Looking at you, not really. You haven't even aged," Jack tells her, looking over her as she sat with her feet up on the coffee table again.
"You haven't aged much either Jack. Looking good," Phoenix tells him, no expression on her face.
"Are we going to do this then?" Jack asks her and he smiles weakly at her, knowing that he would have to watch what he was saying form now on if what she said before were true.
"You get out the bottle from your bottom right hand drawer and we will talk," Phoenix tells him, putting her feet down, getting up and walking to his office.
Phoenix follows Jack into the office and as he sits down in his chair behind the desk and opening the bottom drawer, Phoenix sits in the chair on the other side of the desk and puts her feet up on the corner of Jack's desk as he pours the whisky into two glasses and hands one to Phoenix. She puts the glass to her mouth and lets a little slid from the glass and into her mouth, Jack watching her every move as he places his glass to his lips.
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Jack takes two glasses of champagne off of the tray that the waiter is holding and hands one to Phoenix. She was wearing a black, long, tight fitting evening gown, flared at the bottom. A beautiful necklace draped around her neck and her hair pinned up and dripping into delicate blonde curls. Jack remembered that he thought so looked amazing, watching her raise the glass to her lips, taking a delicate sip from the glass.
"Eye on the game Jack but may I just say that you look pretty damn fine in that Tux," Phoenix tells him, eyeing him up briefly and her mind then back on the job.
Jack was wearing a black Tux with white shirt and black bow tie. Phoenix had managed to get Jack in a proper pair of dress shoes instead of wearing his usual boots which really didn't go with the Tux and would have made them stand out. His hair was done and Phoenix remembered that he looked rather dashing in what he was wearing.
"You look amazing Phoenix. We should get dressed up more often," Jack whispers into her ear.
"Speak for yourself. The quicker I got out of this the better," Phoenix whispers back, keeping her eye on the person they were looking for.
"I could always help you get out of it if you want?" Jack asks her, a small creeping over her mouth.
"Mind on the job Jack but if it goes well, I will consider letting you help me," she tells him and Jack smiles.
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"So, are you going to tell me what is going on?" Jack asks her as she lays back in the chair.
"Like I said before Jack, something is coming, something that could tear this world apart and I need to help Torchwood. Trust me Jack, I didn't want to be here either but I didn't get to pick. If I didn't come, your team would die and it will take hold of the world, destroying every part of it," Phoenix tells him and a small yawn creeps across her mouth, doing the best she can to hide it.
"What exactly is it that is coming, when and how do we defeat it?" Jack tells her, fumbling with the mouse of his computer, clicking it a few times.
"No-one really knows what it is called, not even the Doctor knows. All we know is that it looks like a black entity, like a big, black cloud but almost ghostly, almost translucent. It has minions though, foot soldiers. They are almost human, captives from worlds it has taken over that destroy the inhabitants of planets it comes across. It holds some kind of control over them, possesses them. We captured one and I tried to get inside it's head but even I couldn't. The Doctor wouldn't even try," Phoenix tells him, taking another sip of Whisky.
"How much do you know Phoenix and I want you to be straight with me for old times sake," Jack asks her, knowing that maybe that might not have been the best thing to say.
"I will forget that you asked me to be honest Jack after what you did. I know more than you could possibly imagine Jack. I know everything about your team pre Torchwood and while in Torchwood. I know what could happen either way, win or lose," Phoenix tells him, the look on her face tells him that she wasn't lying.
"Could it really get that bad?" Jack asks her, taking his hand off of the mouse and turning his full attention to Phoenix.
"Yes Jack. Earth could die and it all starts here," she tells him.
"When?" he asks her and then takes a sip of Whisky almost for the shock.
"In 10 days. That's why I am here now. Give us a little time to work with," she tells him and another yawn creeps across her mouth, the tiredness starting to get to her as she hadn't slept in a long time and the time travel and the energy transfer to the water tower had taken it out of her too.
"What do we need to do?" Jack asks her, knowing that she would know what to do, she had manage to pull his butt out of various scrapes.
"Like I said before, Toshiko needs to work on the hub defences as this will be where we hold the last stand should we need to. I need to work with each member of the team, one on one to start with to figure out which of the weapons would be best suited to each one of them and then we can work as a team. I can't explain it all now Jack but I will offer some protection for the team," Phoenix tells him but what Jack doesn't know is that it could be at her own cost.
"When do we tell the team?" Jack asks her knowing that she had her own plan set out.
"In the morning. Let them get their morning coffee as they are useless in the morning without coffee but then we will take them into the conference room and set things out for them," she tells him and this time, she can't hide her yawn.
"Why didn't you say that you were tired?" Jack asks her standing up from behind his desk.
"Would you have cared?" she asks him, downing the last of her drink.
"Of course I would have cared Phoenix. I'll show you to where you can sleep. Do you want something to sleep in?" Jack asks her, seeing that she hadn't exactly packed anything like clothing or cleaning products so he knew he would have to give her some things.
"If you have anything spare as I doubt you want me to sleep naked," she tells him.
Jack went over to one of his drawers and got her out a t-shirt and some other things, handing them to her.
"Sorry. I don't have any women's clothes or underwear but I could get Gwen to bring you some in," Jack tells her as she turns to leave the office.
"This will be fine until I get my supplies," she tells him and he could tell that she was tired and all her activities had taken it out of her and he didn't know half of it.
Jack leads her to the few rooms that they used if they had to stay over or recovery in.
"I'll leave you to get some sleep. If you need anything, I'll be in my office," Jack tells her with a small intimate smile.
"Thanks," she tells him and lays the clothes on the bed.
Jack leaves the bedroom and Phoenix gets changed into a pair of Jack's boxer shorts and a t-shirt. She gets into bed while Jack goes back to his office, sitting in his chair to start with and then going to bed himself.
During the night, Jack was woken with a start as things started dropping off of shelves. The hub was shaking, shaking all around him and he knew in an instant what was causing the shaking of the hub. He jumped out of bed and throwing his t-shirt on, made his way out of his bedroom via the ladder and out of his office. He runs across the hub and to the room where the shaking was becoming more intense. He opened the door without stopping and saw a long forgotten sight.
Phoenix was laying on her bed, fast asleep and blazing from head to toe. The room shuck as she tossed and turned, burning brighter. Jack went to her bed and sat on the edge and he starts shaking her. He shakes her until she wakes up and she wakes up with a scream.
"It's ok Phoenix. Your safe," he tells her like all those times before and he hated seeing her like that, so helpless, so scared.
"Not again. I haven't slept on so long. I hoped they had gone away," she tells him, his hands still on her shoulders.
"You still get the nightmares?" he asks her.
"They never go away. Not after what I have seen and done. Looks like I won't be sleeping again tonight," she tells him turning away from him.
"I will stay with you Phoenix like I used to. Wake you should you have another nightmare," Jack tells her and she looks at him.
"This isn't like old times Jack," she tells him and turns away again.
He gets up off of the bed, pulls the blanket back and slides in the bed behind her and puts his arm around her.
"This might not be old times but you need to sleep Phoenix or you will burn yourself out," Jack tells her, smelling her hair.
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Jack smells her hair in the fresh breeze of the morning, the smell of passion flower in the air. Her face against his chest, her breath against him. Her delicate but strong arm across his chest under his arm, his fingers running down her arm from her shoulder to her wrist. Her skin so soft and smooth, her natural smell was like fresh flowers in the evenings sun. Her wounded body disappearing under the crisp white sheet. He loved to watch her sleep peacefully. It was rare that she slept and when she did, she had the most terrifying nightmares. Her nightmares made the room shake, even the whole hotel. She looked like an angel when she slept peacefully.