21

"So… what's your story?" Jack asked, watching Owen shifting things around in his office like Ianto does.

"My father was a doctor, a good one. Worked at the Torchwood Towers… my mother is a bitch that refuses to die… Ianto was another quiet kid like me and we became friends… sort of grew up together." Owen said like it was no big deal "I spent more time in his home than my own. Why he forgives my brain farts. He knows I can't help it, I inherited a fuckwitt gene from my mother."

"And Toshiko?"

"Ianto introduced us" Owen lit up with glee "Told me he met a girl I could not possibly make laugh. Like… I never back down from a challenge so the first time she saw me I was walking backwards with my hoodie on the wrong way around. She laughed. Then I pulled the hoodie off and saw her and knew he had bloody set me up. Wow. Glorious."

"You would have had a different life otherwise" Jak agreed.

"Yeah. My first girlfriend when I was still in medical school, Katie, died and I sort of went on a spiral of booze and self-destruction. He let me get to the stage where I was arrested for being drunk and disorderly. Then he stepped in, made me go to rehab and picked me up" Owen smiled softly as he remembered, like it was a fond memory "He saved my life. Told me… told me I am his brother, and he will always come to save me."

"And he says I have a Hero Complex with my need to throw more Bots at low income sectors." Jack scoffed.

"Come on. Let me show you some photos of us in our youth."

And that is how Jack sort of saw Ianto growing up.

Goddess, he was always cute.

.

.

"What's wrong?"

"Hmmmm?"

"Ianto, what's wrong" Jack repeated, finding the man in his office had been surprise enough without the Sim now fiddling with the paper son his desk. Something was bothering him, clearly.

"Some of the Weevils are missing."

"Weevil?"

"My monsters… you know... the service Bots in the sewers and lower tunnel system. Owen named them Weevils… don't ask. Anyway, over the last couple of days they have been going off line. Like… disappearing." Ianto stopped moving and swung to face him. "Almost a dozen so far."

"Any theories?"

"He suspects a Dead Zone where they lose contact with Mother and shut down out of confusion."

"You don't sound convinced of that" Jack pointed out as he watched Ianto's face and detected a slight grimace.

"No. They have a fifteen-minute window before realizing they are out of range, time to top, turn around and backtrack to where the last spot range was obvious" Ianto replied, "Either there is a large hole that fall into like Lemmings or something down there is taking them. Their failsafes mean they will do anything and everything to reach a contact point again."

"So… what's the recommendation here?" Jack knew Ianto would already have his preferred form of action, and there would be one he would go with first for the sake of peace and to prove the point that it was wrong.

"Owen wants to go Weevil Hunting."

"Oh… OK. Cool. Can I come?" Jack perked up, the idea… rather brilliant really.

"Owen said you can."

"Owen? This is his Rodeo?"

"His what?"

"Never mind… I think I might need new boots" Jack said, taking off as Ianto stood there with shock, the man reduced to a manchild in seconds of learning about a posse being rounded up to go hunting down some lost cows or whatever.

It was sort of cute.

.

.

"Are you sure?"

"Owen… ask me one more time and I might just… oh I don't know… break and change my mind with your power of suggestion."

Owen grinned as Ianto glared at him and Jack saw the brotherly love there. Jack knew the glare could go on for some time… yeah… he's learned a lot lately … so he intervened "Can I sit up front with you?"

Owen looked at him then lit up. "Sure thing partner!"

Ianto rolled his eyes and then as both men got comfortable at the front Jack looked at Ianto "But where will you…"

"Cariad. Sim?"

"Oh. Right. You know I forget. You are… well you. OK. Well… lead on McDuff" Jack waved a hand and Owen gave him a weird look, clearly not as amused by Jack's Old Earth references as Ianto is.

Ianto started to jog effortlessly down the tunnel system and Owner started the flatbed hover to follow as he hoped to fill the tray with weevils, those on the back gripping tighter as they felt it rise, clearly used to the Mad Doctor at the helm.

"Tally Ho!" Owen yelled and Jack started to laugh as they sped down the tunnel after the disappearing Sim.

This was gonna be a fun day… so they thought.