Happy New Year! I am starting 2011 off with a special thank you to all my readers and reviewers. The reviewers get a special mention because they left their names – they are: brionyjae, Marian Locksley, thedeejay, gernumblies, NikkieSheepie, milady dragon, Little Sweet Pea, TV-a-holic and L.A.H.H. If you are a reader and would like a personal thank you then please feel free to leave a review.

Minnie says 'squeak!' (I couldn't be bothered putting her on the keyboard again which I think means 'thank you for all the lovely things you said, and especially for the biscuit.' My other rat, Cassie, is now feeling rather left out, so I might try and let her contribute too at some point. Oh, and thank you to NikkieSheepie for sparking off the first section…

Trouble and Strife

"I think I'm starting to like Owen like this."

Ianto looked over at where Tosh was sat. "What's he up to?"

Tosh blushed. "He's licking my hands."

"Have you been handling food?" Ianto wasn't prepared to accept that Owen had suddenly decided to change his entire approach to life and do something as un-Owen as lowering himself to that level unless it was for his own personal benefit.

"No. I just washed them."

Ianto examined the pair of them more carefully. "Perhaps he has a soap addiction. I never would have considered it before."

"But I didn't use soap, I used…" Tosh closed her eyes in sudden resignation. "I used alcohol gel."

"Well, there you go then. He's just as mercenary as usual." Ianto removed the flailing rat, successfully ending its binge licking. "Trying to get drunk and forget his rodent problems."

"Or maybe rats just like alcohol gel." Tosh pointed out. "I'd better go and wash them again now."

Ianto plonked Owen down on the table and watched him walk away unsteadily. Do rats get hangovers? he wondered. Well, Owen would be having a ball if they didn't.

"Ianto?" Jack strode out of his office. "We should have a visitor in a few - What's wrong with Owen?"

"The usual."

"Hmm?"

"He's had too much to drink. Alcohol gel."

"I thought I'd told you to be responsible?"

Ianto shrugged. "It was Tosh, not me."

Jack nodded, engrossed with the CCTV images of the Plass showing on Tosh's screen. "Look's like our guest's arrived."

Ianto cleared his throat to try and explain. Jack had conveniently vanished.

"We don't know how long it's going to last for, but we're trying to find a way to reverse it…"

"Are you really telling me that that's…?"

"We think so, yes."

Ianto watched Rhys' gaze shift between his wife's unconscious body and the small rat sat in Tosh's hands.

"Would you like to hold her?" Tosh asked kindly.

Rhys held his hands out tentatively and visibly gulped as Gwen stepped delicately onto his arm. "Does she recognise me?"

"I don't know." Ianto replied honestly, as Gwen worked her way up the arm. "It's hard to tell what they're thinking."

Rhys flinched as a set of whiskers brushed his ear. "She's squeaking to me!" He exclaimed happily.

Tosh couldn't help smiling.

Half an hour later it had been agreed that Gwen was to stay with Tosh for now and Rhys departed having received a rather tickly almost-kiss. He had brightened up noticeably.

Ianto shook his head sadly as he fished in his pocket for bread-crumbs. There weren't any there – most likely someone had already found them. "Do you think he'd be that happy if we'd told him that she's that friendly with everyone?"

Tosh smiled. "You mean the little rat-kisses? Minnie used to do those beforehand. They're very sweet." She looked down fondly at the bulge in her pocket.

"Try and remember that she's not really a rat." Ianto warned her.

"I will." Tosh promised.

Tosh didn't think that she'd ever had Gwen and Owen round to her flat before. At least they were in the right state to thoroughly appreciate the mess it was in.

"Hi Tosh. Howya doing?"

"Oh great." Tosh replied into her phone distractedly. "Where's Owen gone?"

"They're not making a nuisance of themselves, are they?" Tosh could practically hear Jack smirking at the end of the phone.

"No, not at all. Owen! Get out of the teapot! Ugh!"

"Is Owen making a nuisance of himself?"

"Owen can't make himself a nuisance: he is a nuisance. Particularly when he's – Gwen! Don't go near that!"

"Enjoying yourselves?"

"I think they've got even less sense as rats than they do normally!"

"What have you done with them so far?"

"Well, they've had something to eat…"

"Did you remember to take the rat food with you?"

"Yes. Not much point though. They took one sniff at it and decided to go for my spaghetti instead. And to fight over it."

"Have you had anything to eat?"

"Not yet. I'm trying to get myself something now, but they keep getting in the w- Owen!"

"What will you do with them after that?"

"You're trying not to laugh, aren't you? I can hear you."

"Of course not."

Tosh sighed. "I thought I might just watch tv or something. The rat book says they're supposed to sit on your shoulder and watch it too."

"Good luck with that."

"Thanks Jack. Bye."

Gwen, apparently, was perfectly happy to snuggle up on the sofa and watch tv. Owen, however, seemed to be a bit more picky about what they actually watched. But he seemed to tolerate QI, even if he didn't think much of listening to the news when Tosh flicked the channel over.

Later she began to see what Jack had meant about Ianto looking after Owen. She was perfectly happy with the idea of getting changed in front of two rats, but when she knew it was Owen sat in the middle of the bed blinking up at her… She moved them both outside.

Ianto had found a shoebox full of shredded newspaper for the night. Fortunately this seemed to be acceptable.

Tosh sank back in bed, trying to ignore the sporadic bursts of squeaking which she presumed were the pair of them arguing. After a few minutes she realised with horror that she'd unthinkingly forced Gwen to share a bed with Owen for the night, and promptly moved her onto her pillow.

"You'd better not move too much in the night." She warned her, before falling asleep.

Anyone up for adding a bit of romance into the mixture? There are definitely a lot of possibilities… Name your suggestions/favoured pairings/whatever and I'll see what I can do,. It's a sort of late Christmas present.