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fandomweekly2021-08-15 07:27 pm
m_findlow) wrote in fandomweekly2021-08-15 07:27 pm
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[#0104] UNWELCOME BEDFELLOWS (TORCHWOOD)
Theme Prompt: #104 - Only One Room
Title: Unwelcome bedfellows
Fandom: Torchwood
Rating/Warnings: PG. Spoilers for Torchwood Miracle Day.
Bonus: Yes
Word Count: 1,000 words
Summary: A reunion of friends becomes a cramped affair.
Gwen pulled the bedroom door shut behind her and Jack could tell she'd been crying but was putting on a brave face now for the sake of the rest of them. Jack hated this so-called Miracle. All it did was tear humanity apart.
'How's Mary?' he asked, concerned about how Gwen's mother must be coping, even more than Gwen herself. They'd kept Gwen's father hidden in the house for so long they'd almost reached a point where they were certain the authorities would never find him, but they were persistent.
As much as Gwen had attempted to alter records for her father, stating that he'd died in the months before the Miracle, still the police kept coming to raid houses, looking for those elusive Category One patients - the dead people who weren't actually dead. Jack wasn't sure where Gwen's father sat on the Category One continuum, but he wasn't dead. Dying perhaps, but not dead. Watching them storm inside an snatch Geraint away from them made Jack feel utterly powerless.
'She'll be okay,' Gwen said, as if trying to convince herself that she too would be okay.
'Bastards,' Rhys grumbled, ignoring the fact that his baby daughter would hear him using naughty words.
'We'll get him back,' Jack promised her, 'and we'll put a stop to this.' He didn't quite know how yet, except that they needed to get into Shanghai. That's where all of this Miracle business had its epicentre. It was something, and something was better than nothing. A renewed fire began to burn inside him.
'Not tonight, though,' Esther told the group. 'Not with all those police roaming the streets.'
Gwen nodded thoughtfully. 'She's right. Too risky to try getting out of here tonight.' Jack could tell how much it pained her to say that. Like him, she was fired up now, ready to take down anyone who stood in her way.
'Looks like it's a sleepover then,' Jack joked, trying to lighten the mood. It desperately needed it.
Gwen stared around the cramped living room space, looking apologetic. 'I wish I could offer you the five star hotel treatment, but…'
Jack gave his best placating smile. 'It's fine.' Mary needed space to grieve and the only other bedroom in the small terrace was room enough for Gwen, Rhys, their infant daughter and not much more. 'I've been trying to convince Rhys to a threesome for years,' he added with a cheeky grin.
'Aye, and the answer's still no, mate,' Rhys confirmed, hugging Anwen close as she gurgled, as if finding Jack's teasing funny.
Jack shrugged. 'See? Can't say I haven't tried.'
'We're fine, Gwen,' Esther assured her. 'We've bunked worse places in the past few weeks. Some of us were just too drugged up to remember them.'
'Hey, I'd been shot,' Jack argued. 'Wasn't my choice to be stuck in a delirium.'
Gwen gave him a stern look. 'Yes. Sofa for you,' she ordered. 'Extra pillows. No argument.' Jack grimaced at the sudden motherly nature. If she sensed he wasn't nearly as healed as he made out, she didn't show it. 'Esther, the armchair is all yours.'
'Oh, and what about me?' Oswald asked, shaking his handcuffed fists at her.
Gwen's sympathetic countenance iced over immediately. 'If you weren't such a vile, untrustworthy piece of shit, I'd have you out of my house this instant and as far from my family as possible.'
'You're not a very welcoming host,' he replied. 'And I did pay an awful lot of money to come visit.'
'How about I show you where I'd stick your money and the end of my gun while I'm at it?'
Jack stepped between them. He didn't want Oswald here either but he had the inside rail on the people who were pulling all the strings. Much as it pained him, Oswald might be useful. Temporarily. 'I'll watch him.'
'Jack, you need to rest,' Gwen reminded him, clearly not having forgotten his gunshot wound.
'I'll be fine. Got any more of those handcuffs lying around the house?' Jack almost wished he hadn't made the suggestion as Gwen returned with her mini arsenal. God he loved that woman.
'Got ones big enough for ankles,' she happily announced. 'Figure you don't really want him that close.'
'And if he tries anything, he's got six foot two and two hundred pounds of me to drag after his sorry arse.'
'I can hear, you know,' Oswald reminded them.
'You waived your right to be acknowledged as a human being the minute you murdered that girl.'
Oswald rolled his eyes and sighed dramatically as Gwen knelt to clip the metal around his ankle. 'Well…here we go, then.' She clicked its brother onto Jack's ankle, tethering the two of them together.
'I'm never gonna look at handcuffs the same way again,' Jack said.
Gwen tried to suppress a grin. 'I'm sure you'll rekindle your love for them eventually.'
Jack gave an experimental tug, making sure Oswald wasn't going anywhere without him.
Oswald frowned. 'I hope you're not one of those sleepwalkers who like to act out their fantasies.'
'Oh, trust me, Oswald, if I wanted to strangle you to death I'd make sure I was awake to enjoy it.'
'I can take first watch,' Esther offered, tucking her ankles up under her on the sofa as Gwen was already bringing out pillows and blankets. 'Let you grab a few hours sleep.'
'I'm not going anywhere,' Oswald said before Jack could reply.
'It's not where you're going. It's what you might do now that you're here that worries me.'
'But I came to see you, Jack. Doesn't that count for anything?'
Jack's eyebrows knit together unhappily. 'No. It doesn't. All of this started with you. I plan on making sure that's where it ends as well.'
Oswald's smile was infuriatingly mocking as he stole a lone cushion and settled himself on the floor next to Jack's leg. It was closer than Jack would have liked to have him. 'Night, night then.'
Title: Unwelcome bedfellows
Fandom: Torchwood
Rating/Warnings: PG. Spoilers for Torchwood Miracle Day.
Bonus: Yes
Word Count: 1,000 words
Summary: A reunion of friends becomes a cramped affair.
Gwen pulled the bedroom door shut behind her and Jack could tell she'd been crying but was putting on a brave face now for the sake of the rest of them. Jack hated this so-called Miracle. All it did was tear humanity apart.
'How's Mary?' he asked, concerned about how Gwen's mother must be coping, even more than Gwen herself. They'd kept Gwen's father hidden in the house for so long they'd almost reached a point where they were certain the authorities would never find him, but they were persistent.
As much as Gwen had attempted to alter records for her father, stating that he'd died in the months before the Miracle, still the police kept coming to raid houses, looking for those elusive Category One patients - the dead people who weren't actually dead. Jack wasn't sure where Gwen's father sat on the Category One continuum, but he wasn't dead. Dying perhaps, but not dead. Watching them storm inside an snatch Geraint away from them made Jack feel utterly powerless.
'She'll be okay,' Gwen said, as if trying to convince herself that she too would be okay.
'Bastards,' Rhys grumbled, ignoring the fact that his baby daughter would hear him using naughty words.
'We'll get him back,' Jack promised her, 'and we'll put a stop to this.' He didn't quite know how yet, except that they needed to get into Shanghai. That's where all of this Miracle business had its epicentre. It was something, and something was better than nothing. A renewed fire began to burn inside him.
'Not tonight, though,' Esther told the group. 'Not with all those police roaming the streets.'
Gwen nodded thoughtfully. 'She's right. Too risky to try getting out of here tonight.' Jack could tell how much it pained her to say that. Like him, she was fired up now, ready to take down anyone who stood in her way.
'Looks like it's a sleepover then,' Jack joked, trying to lighten the mood. It desperately needed it.
Gwen stared around the cramped living room space, looking apologetic. 'I wish I could offer you the five star hotel treatment, but…'
Jack gave his best placating smile. 'It's fine.' Mary needed space to grieve and the only other bedroom in the small terrace was room enough for Gwen, Rhys, their infant daughter and not much more. 'I've been trying to convince Rhys to a threesome for years,' he added with a cheeky grin.
'Aye, and the answer's still no, mate,' Rhys confirmed, hugging Anwen close as she gurgled, as if finding Jack's teasing funny.
Jack shrugged. 'See? Can't say I haven't tried.'
'We're fine, Gwen,' Esther assured her. 'We've bunked worse places in the past few weeks. Some of us were just too drugged up to remember them.'
'Hey, I'd been shot,' Jack argued. 'Wasn't my choice to be stuck in a delirium.'
Gwen gave him a stern look. 'Yes. Sofa for you,' she ordered. 'Extra pillows. No argument.' Jack grimaced at the sudden motherly nature. If she sensed he wasn't nearly as healed as he made out, she didn't show it. 'Esther, the armchair is all yours.'
'Oh, and what about me?' Oswald asked, shaking his handcuffed fists at her.
Gwen's sympathetic countenance iced over immediately. 'If you weren't such a vile, untrustworthy piece of shit, I'd have you out of my house this instant and as far from my family as possible.'
'You're not a very welcoming host,' he replied. 'And I did pay an awful lot of money to come visit.'
'How about I show you where I'd stick your money and the end of my gun while I'm at it?'
Jack stepped between them. He didn't want Oswald here either but he had the inside rail on the people who were pulling all the strings. Much as it pained him, Oswald might be useful. Temporarily. 'I'll watch him.'
'Jack, you need to rest,' Gwen reminded him, clearly not having forgotten his gunshot wound.
'I'll be fine. Got any more of those handcuffs lying around the house?' Jack almost wished he hadn't made the suggestion as Gwen returned with her mini arsenal. God he loved that woman.
'Got ones big enough for ankles,' she happily announced. 'Figure you don't really want him that close.'
'And if he tries anything, he's got six foot two and two hundred pounds of me to drag after his sorry arse.'
'I can hear, you know,' Oswald reminded them.
'You waived your right to be acknowledged as a human being the minute you murdered that girl.'
Oswald rolled his eyes and sighed dramatically as Gwen knelt to clip the metal around his ankle. 'Well…here we go, then.' She clicked its brother onto Jack's ankle, tethering the two of them together.
'I'm never gonna look at handcuffs the same way again,' Jack said.
Gwen tried to suppress a grin. 'I'm sure you'll rekindle your love for them eventually.'
Jack gave an experimental tug, making sure Oswald wasn't going anywhere without him.
Oswald frowned. 'I hope you're not one of those sleepwalkers who like to act out their fantasies.'
'Oh, trust me, Oswald, if I wanted to strangle you to death I'd make sure I was awake to enjoy it.'
'I can take first watch,' Esther offered, tucking her ankles up under her on the sofa as Gwen was already bringing out pillows and blankets. 'Let you grab a few hours sleep.'
'I'm not going anywhere,' Oswald said before Jack could reply.
'It's not where you're going. It's what you might do now that you're here that worries me.'
'But I came to see you, Jack. Doesn't that count for anything?'
Jack's eyebrows knit together unhappily. 'No. It doesn't. All of this started with you. I plan on making sure that's where it ends as well.'
Oswald's smile was infuriatingly mocking as he stole a lone cushion and settled himself on the floor next to Jack's leg. It was closer than Jack would have liked to have him. 'Night, night then.'
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