The Captain called me in to his office really early this morning; he said he wanted a 'private chat'. I didn't really know what to anticipate, I never knew whether to take what he said as what it was, or whether to assume there was some underlying innuendo. Whatever I was expecting, it clearly wasn't what happened as I was most surprised when he slid a stun gun across his desk to me and said
"It's yours. Call it an early Christmas present".
I really was quite confused. "And what would this be for Sir?" Praying that he wasn't about to send me off on another Brecon Beacon-esque mission.
"It's for tonight, you and I are on rift watch" He answered grinning "I thought it was high time that I gave you some one on one mentoring"
He said with that familiar, wicked gleam in his eyes that again left me wondering how much I should read into the situation.
I just picked up the stun gun and mumbled a "Thank you Sir" hoping that I hadn't quite reached the blushing stage yet.
It really is getting ridiculous how nervous I still feel around him. But tonight should be fun, although its fieldwork, at least it's not a real gun, and a Weevil is about the most harmful thing you are likely to find coming through the rift. And, as a very big bonus, I will be alone all evening with Jack.
Tosh has got us all decorating the hub for Christmas already. Owen was groaning as he was forced to help me string the lights, but the festive atmosphere has since managed to lighten even his mood. I really do love Christmas, It's the one time of year that family and friends all gather together and to exchange gifts and affection and just enjoy themselves. It's a beautiful tradition. I saw Tosh putting up mistletoe near her desk, I wonder if she hopes that there will be a repeat of last year's events between her and Owen under the mistletoe? I've just sent her an email quizzing her about it.
It appears I may have spoken too soon, about Weevils being the worst thing the rift can unload. 3 people from the 1950s have just come through the rift in their plane. Ok, so they may not be more harmful than a Weevil, but they certainly have the potential to be more hassle. I feel so incredibly sorry for them, being dragged out of their life, knowing they can never return to their families, that they must try and integrate with modern society. They must be terrified.
I missed Jack's standard introductory speech, I wonder if he did the thing where he starts giving everybody complex orders to try and show off? I love it when he does that bit. I was working busily away down in the archives hiding, Owen and Gwen had been having a fight earlier (I think the guilt from cheating on Rhys has finally caught up with her) and everything was very frosty upstairs. I'd been down here compiling a project on the correlation between volume of rift activity and the time of day for so long, that I hadn't even realised that the rest of the team had left to go and round up our lost travellers.
Jack made a point of bringing them down to the archives, usually the tour didn't extend to here, but I think he had guessed this was where I was. I was expecting my standard introduction and sure enough "looks good in a suit" appeared in my description, but the thing that really touched me was the:
"We'd all fall to pieces if it wasn't for him; every establishment needs their own Ianto".
It's quite likely that he was joking, and even if he wasn't he was only being nice, I knew that they could cope without me, but it was still so lovely to hear. Our 3 guests have now been taken over to the Torchwood safe house, where they'll stay until they've established new lives for themselves. I hope they settle in alright, I may bake some mince pies this evening and take them over tomorrow as a sort of house warming.
I took the three of them out shopping this afternoon, now that was a most entertaining expedition. Though, I don't think I'll bother attempting to explain the physics behind the automatic door again, at least not when in the company of lost 1950s travellers in the presence of bananas.
I had to keep a close eye on Emma's spending; she was young, unmarried and still living at home, so I don't imagine she had ever shopped for herself before. She piled her basket high with sweets and other junk, the sensible side of me kicked in and managed to persuade her to buy some 'proper', nutritious food as well. John was extremely shocked at the front covers of those magazines, especially when I told him that one of them was actually a children's TV presenter. I think he's going to find adjusting to 21st century life the hardest. I dropped him off at the stadium before taking the girls home, perhaps I could take him to a match some time?
The shopping trip had reminded me that I still need to buy all of my Christmas presents! I am usually not this disorganised, but whilst working at Torchwood, it is very easy to lose track of life outside of it, you become trapped in as sort of bubble. Well not trapped exactly, you have to love working here to be able to do it, so none of us are trapped, just a bit cut off. I'm really going to need to make some time to buy them, it's already the 18th!
Owen went off with Diane to go and see her plane pretty quickly after I dropped them off; very quickly in fact, he was waiting for her when we arrived back at the house. I think he's developing a bit of a soft spot for her. I wonder how Tosh feels about this. I haven't had time to check my emails yet and see what she replied.
I'd offered to stay with Emma until John got back, but she insisted that she'd be fine. I really wish I had put up a bit more of an argument. John returned to find her swigging from a beer can, that Alisha had given to her and didn't half shout at her, the poor girl. She's gone home with Gwen now; I wonder what she'll tell Rhys.
It was getting late now, and I was still at the hub, making up the necessary documents for our friends to start again, I'd already done one set, but Jack had decided to let them keep their names after John's persuasion, it's nice that they get to hold on to some of their former identity.
Anyway, I had already assumed that mine and Jack's rift watching session would be cancelled, due to the incredible amount of paperwork left to complete and the fact that we were on call to our guests who may need us at any moment (even if it was just to enquire about tea bags). But then Jack came down to the hub at about 9.30 and simply said:
"Get your coat, you've pulled" flashing his beautiful, Harkness grin.
I didn't hesitate to grab both my own coat and his. We headed off to the docks; Tosh's programme had suggested that rift activity was most likely to occur here this evening. We didn't really speak much on the drive there, but it wasn't an awkward silence, to be honest I don't think I could have said anything coherent anyway; his hand was on my thigh the entire journey.
When we got there it was straight to business. I'd never seen anything come through the rift directly before, only had to chase after something that had already escaped, I was surprised at how 'sci-fi' it looked – Literally a blue glowing portal of sorts. At first I was pleased when I saw the familiar shape of an Ood step through, glad that it wasn't something dangerous, but Jack was yelling "Keep back, keep back" which immediately put me on guard no matter how bemused I was.
Then I noticed its eyes, they were glowing bright red. I'd read about this when I was researching them, the legendary doctor once came across a case of this 'red-eye', it turned the Ood against us, made them kill. It made an attack at the Captain, which instinctively caused me to reach for my stun gun. In one quick movement the infected Ood was on the floor, out for the count, and Jack was out of danger.
Not that he seemed pleased I'd just saved him of course: "Ianto, I told you to keep back!" He shouted.
"I know, but it was about to attack you Sir, what was I supposed to do?"
His tone softened then, and he gave me a small and slightly crooked smile. "It still amazes me how selfless you are. I was trying to keep you out of the way I didn't want you to get hurt, after what happened at the Brecon Beacons... I feel very protective of you Ianto." He replied and squeezed my hand.
"I'll be fine Sir I can take care of myself, after all I have had the master class from Tosh and Gwen" he laughed at that.
"As I recall, that ended up with the two of them on top of you attempting to tickle you to death, and you're trying to tell me that you can handle an Ood attack?" He said, teasingly.
"Absolutely" I replied.
"Hmm no, not sure I believe you, you'll have to prove it" He said, grinning as he lunged forward to replicate an attack, although I am not too sure that red-eye causes the Ood to torture through tickling…
Hopefully Jack and I will do this more often, or even if it was Tosh or Gwen and myself it, if all fieldwork was like this then I really think I could grow to love it as much as they all do.
I had a chance to check my emails before I went to bed, Tosh had replied. It seemed silly to be emailing when we work so closely together, but it's been so hectic these last few days that I haven't really seen her. She kind of skirted around the subject, not really admitting to anything, but I think she has high hopes of a kiss under the mistletoe. I still think she deserves better than Owen.
Brilliant, Rhiannon has just rang me this morning saying that she will be spending Christmas with her in-laws. Apparently I was still welcome to come, but I never have got on fantastically with her husband as it is, I'm not sure that spending 12 hours with his nearest and dearest would do me much good if they were all like him. I don't take against people easily, but he doesn't treat my sister as well as he should do. I would have words with him, but he's 6ft 4 and a gym addict… and besides he'd only make me feel guilty for not getting round to see Rhiannon enough anyway 'so how did I know how she felt' etc… I do feel bad that I don't see her regularly, but it's torchwood, it doesn't give you time for a social life, which is why I was looking forward to Christmas this year so much.
I don't know what I'll do now, last year I had… I had Lisa. It was a lovely Christmas, back in London, just me and her, we had a lie in and opened our gifts in bed, then we cooked (well I cooked, she helped) and ate the traditional lunch and spent the afternoon watching Christmas films. I'm so glad that all my happy memories of Lisa haven't faded.
Oh and another dilemma: I still haven't had time to go Christmas shopping!
I should have noticed that something was afoot when I found John behind the counter in the tourist office this afternoon, I'm just too trusting. I believed him about the bus timetables even though I knew that I had them organised in a stand nowhere near the desk. Jack ran a trace on my car (I didn't know that he had tracking devices in our cars!) and found that John had gone home. Home to kill himself.
Sometimes I think Jack gets the blame for all bad things that happen in Torchwood, Gwen and Owen reckon he should have tried harder to stop him. I think Jack did the only thing he could, let him go. John wasn't happy, he had nothing of his former life left here, it was what he wanted. I could see the sadness and self-hatred in Jack's for letting him go through with it though. He puts himself under so much pressure to do the right thing.
Our other two guests have left us now as well; Gwen waved Emma off to her new job, and life, in London this morning. And Owen arrived at the hub a few hours later wearing Diane's scarf, looking almost as if he had been crying. Diane had flown off, attempting to get back through the rift. I hope she's still alive out there somewhere. The whole ordeal has left us all feeling rather depressed, I don't suppose that the party tomorrow will be much fun for any of us. Then again, it's Christmas Eve, and everyone at Torchwood seems to be good a burying away their feelings so we might make it through the day, carrying on as normal.