We Could Be Heroes 24/30
Title: We Could Be Heroes 24/30
Pairings: Jack/Ianto, John/Nick, Gwen/Rhys
Characters: Jack, Ianto, Gwen, Rhys, John Hart and a cast of (probably!) thousands.
Spoilers: Set after Exit Wounds. Sequel to 'Will My Arms Be Strong Enough?'
Rating: Adult - it's going to get very dark in some places.
Warnings: Slash, language, angst, dark themes.
Summary: Back in Cardiff...but was Nick's dream real?
Disclaimer: I'm a student. I don't own Torchwood.
The Master List (as it stands) is here: anduria-trianys.livejournal.com/27610.html#cutid1
~PART THREE~
Chapter 24
The tall figure of the water tower glistened in the early November sunlight as leaves swirled all over the Roald Plass, buffetted around by the wind. It was bitterly cold, though unlike the previous year, there had been no snow around the city, for which everyone was profoundly grateful; last time, the snow had been so deep, hardly anybody had been able to walk past their front door, never mind drive to work. Admittedly, the lack of snow hadn't been for lack of trying on the part of the weather and now it was as if everyone was just waiting for it to hurry up and land!
This was an especially tricky problem when working for an organisation like Torchwood, where getting to places quickly was at the least highly important and, in extreme circumstances, the difference between life and death. Fortunately, Captain Jack Harkness was not the sort of leader to intentionally put lives in jeopardy when they could be saved and he had come up with an alternative means of transportation, if the SUV was impractical or out of use. The fact that this was a rather large boat - he had picked up a bigger model after the original had been sunk on a mission - didn't matter; now that they had a bigger team, they were certainly going to need it, especially if the weather did as it had been threatening to do for a few weeks and took a turn for the significantly worse.
However, that didn't mean that the boat wasn't often used for other, more recreational, purposes sometimes. In fact, at this very moment, two young men were sat together on one of the benches, a thick blanket wrapped around their shoulders as protection from the biting cold as they talked quietly.
~*~
“I just really want to do something for Jack,” said Ianto, sipping coffee from the flask he'd brought with him. “Remembrance Day is always a hard time for him and I want to do something special for him, especially after he's been there for me with everything. But I just can't think of the right thing.”
“What do you usually do with him?” asked Declan. “Do you go to the services with him or lay poppies at the cenotaph or something?”
“Yeah, there's that.” Ianto bit his lip. “But...I don't know, I just want to do something more for him this time, you know? I just worry sometimes that I don't appreciate him as much as I should and I want to do something for him after everything he's done for me.”
A pensive frown crossed Declan's usually cheerful face. “Hmm. Well, there's the usual things; you said that Jack is a real romantic at heart, so you could run him a nice hot bubble bath with candles and give him a massage, or even book the two of you in for a weekend in a spa. Or you could take him to that place in Devon where they do all those sports and crafts.”
“Ashbury Hotel?”
“Yeah. It might be nice for him to have something to do; a time for him to have some fun and get into the open air. Or,” and here, Declan tapped the side of the boat, a reflective smile crossing his face, “you could take him out in the boat for a home-cooked meal and dancing under the stars. A domestic evening with a classy twist.”
Ianto raised an eyebrow at him. “Are you sure this isn't on the list of things you want to do on a date with Emily?” he asked, chuckling. “Oh, don't deny it, Declan - practically everyone in the Hub can see it!” He shuffled closer to his friend, a grin forming on his face. “So...how's it going with her?”
“There's nothing happening between us!” said Declan, flushing bright red as he laughed. “I mean, yeah, she's a beautiful woman and a very good friend and yes, I haven't felt this way since I split up with Lily - shit!” He clapped his hands to his mouth and blushed harder.
Ianto burst out laughing. “So?” he said. “What're you going to do?”
“Do?” Declan looked startled. “Well...I don't know. I suppose I should talk to her...but I'm scared.”
“Scared?” repeated Ianto. “Scared of what?”
Declan sighed. “What if I say something stupid? Or what if I just come out with a joke or something? Or what if I -” but he was cut off by Ianto slapping him across the back of the head. “Hey! What's that for?”
“Declan Hamilton,” said Ianto, shaking his head, “you are one of the biggest idiots I've ever met when it comes to asking people out. For one thing, coming out with jokes is what comes naturally to you. It's a huge part of who you are. For another thing, it's a part of you that Emily loves.” He patted his hand. “So, you need to get your arse into gear and ask her out while you still have the chance. After all,” and here he smiled again, “she's had feelings for you for quite a while, you know.”
Declan started to answer him, but before he could get a word out, the portable Rift monitor in his pocket started bleeping. “Rift activity,” he said, pulling it out.
“Where?” asked Ianto, pulling his gloves back on.
“The Millennium Stadium!” Declan laughed. “Amazing - something, or someone, has managed to land right in the middle of a rugby international!”
~*~
“So,” said Orion, picking himself up off the turf, “this is where you live?” He looked around rather disparagingly. “It's a bit tiny, isn't it?”
Nick stared at him. “You actually think that this is where the entire twenty-first century population lives?” he asked as he helped John to his feet. “Okay, I know the Nova Djinn lived in an amphitheatre, but seriously? There's more of us than this.”
Orion rolled his eyes. “Mind you,” and his eyes fell on the rugby scrum taking place in the middle of the pitch, “I do approve of what I see there. Looks like they're all open for an orgy!” With an impish grin, he sprinted over to the scrum, pausing only to turn back and wink at Nick as he did so.
Nick knew that he should go after Orion and stop him from getting himself into some potentially very serious trouble at this point - attempting to interfere in a rugby game was a very bad idea - but he didn't care. John was his focus at this point, not Orion, and the man was currently clinging onto him, his eyes wide with panic as he trembled before the sight of what he probably thought of as gruesome violence in front of him. He actually screamed loudly when one of the Welsh players was crushed under two of the opposition players.
“Hey,” he said softly, easing the terrified man over to sit in the dugout. The Welsh coach, already annoyed by their sudden appearance in the middle of the game, started to protest, but one mention of the name 'Torchwood' and one look at the state John was in instantly silenced him.
“It's okay,” he added softly, stroking his hand. “It's all right...you're safe now; you're safe.”
“How can people do that?” John's voice was practically a squeak of terror as he watched the rugby. “How can they...crush each other like that and...” he trailed off when a roar of appreciation went up from the crowd. “How can people watch this and not want to stop it?!”
Nick decided now wasn't the right time to mention that, before he'd left, he would have been one of the people watching the game. At this point, as far as John was concerned, it just looked like mindless violence or point-scoring. And while he couldn't deny that, to a degree, rugby was about point-scoring, Nick's gut clenched as he thought about what John could have been through to get so distressed about it.
“It's going to be okay,” he repeated. “Trust me. It's going to be all right. We'll get you home and you can get some rest and then I'll see Jack about getting you some help. Don't worry,” he added when John paled again, “Jack's a good man. We can trust him.”
“It's not that,” said John slowly. “It's just...there's something else - something I remembered from a dream.” He sighed. “I know it might sound far-fetched and...and stupid, but...”
“Go on,” soothed Nick. “You can tell me anything.”
John rested his forehead in his hands. “In that dream where I pushed you away,” he said slowly, “well, I just remembered that I saw myself pushing you away from something. I didn't see clearly what it was, but it was...it was like a mass of darkness - evil - with blazing sockets of fire instead of eyes. It had a whip in its hand...made out of bright white light.” He shuddered. “It was about to attack...” but his voice trailed off.
Nick inhaled sharply. “Me?” he gasped. “It was going to attack me?” He swallowed hard. “What was it?”
“I don't know,” said John. “I just remember pushing you out of its way and then...I took the full brunt of the attack myself. And then...everything went dark for a while, but I felt so...full of life...like something inside me was waking up.” He frowned to himself. “I don't understand why...”
Suddenly, Nick remembered something. “I think I do,” he said quietly. “When we were together, we had a row and...” he sighed, “well, things weren't good for quite a while. But you started taking risks and going out on your own and once you got badly injured. We thought...” and Nick struggled with himself for several moments, “we thought you were going to die. But Jack -“
“Hang on,” John interrupted. “Who is this...this Jack?”
“He's the leader of Torchwood - the organisation we used to work for,” explained Nick. “He can be a bit over-exuberant, but he's a good man. I would trust him with my life.” He sighed. “Anyway, he gave you a blood transfusion - with his blood.” He took a deep breath. “I think that when he did that, he passed the immortality potential onto you, but the attack was what triggered the reaction that made it a reality.”
“He's,” John struggled for a moment, “he's immortal?”
“Yeah,” said Nick. “He's -“ but he was cut off as John suddenly began to shake. At the same time, he registered that the sound of the crowd behind him was changing from raucous cheers to murmurs of irritation and confusion. But even through that, he heard the mutter of one word.
“Torchwood...”
Quickly, he jumped to his feet. “Come with me,” he said. “We can trust these people - they're friends.” He led John over to the stand where the whispers were coming from. Looking up, he saw two men making their way down the steps, each holding a handgun. One of them was tall and skinny with pink cheeks, dimples and wild blonde curly hair and the other, whose back was currently turned as he examined some empty seats near the pitch, was a brunette wearing what looked like a suit. A moment later, however, he turned round and Nick swooned slightly as he recognised him.
“Ianto!” he screamed, rushing over to the stand. “Ianto, it's me!”
Ianto turned sharply at the sound of his name being called. He blinked rapidly as he saw who was shouting at him. “Nick?” he stammered, descending the last of the steps to get a better look.
“Nick!” he shouted and rushed down the stairs and onto the pitch. “Nick, what're you doing here?”
But Nick didn't say a word; he just rushed up and crushed Ianto tightly in his arms. “You're alive!” he gasped, trembling as flashes of his nightmare shot before his eyes. “You're alive; my God, you're alive!” he babbled out as he felt Ianto's heartbeat against his chest. “God, you're actually alive!”
“Hey, hey, hey!” exclaimed Ianto, patting Nick's back in concern. “Nicky, it's okay - of course I'm alive! I'm right here, aren't I?”
“Yeah, but,” stammered Nick, “I thought you were -“ but Ianto cut him off when he suddenly slapped him across the face.
“And now you know what I was thinking,” Ianto said. “God, Nick - where the hell have you been?!”
Nick blinked, confused. “But...but you never expected him to come back,” he said. “And as for where I've been, that's a long story which I will tell you, but not right in the middle of a rugby international match!”
Ianto frowned. “Okay, just a few other questions,” he said, relaxing, but his voice more than a little frosty. “Just a few questions here. Firstly, what the hell has happened to John? He looks as if we're about to attack him or something. Secondly, who is that guy seemingly attempting to have an orgy with everyone in the scrum? And thirdly, what on earth are you wearing?”
Nick sighed. “Okay, I can answer all of your questions with one simple statement,” he said. “It's an incredibly long story. And, thinking about it, I've got a question too - who's the blonde?”
Declan stepped forwards with a broad smile. “Declan Hamilton - Torchwood doctor and part-time fast bowler at your service!” He grabbed Nick's hand and pumped it vigorously. John squeaked and backed away.
Ianto chuckled. “That's pretty much how he greeted Jack when he first met him.”
“He seems very...friendly,” said Nick as he soothed John.
“I think the word you want is exuberant,” said Ianto, laughing. “But he's good fun.”
“Well,” said Declan, apparently, not remotely bothered by the fact that the two men were talking about him, “maybe changing that to one of the Torchwood doctors would actually be more accurate.”
“One of them?” repeated Nick. “How many did you hire?” he asked Ianto. When his cousin answered him, he chuckled. “You mean I was so good it took three new people to replace me?”
“Well, yes,” said Ianto simply. “But there's also the fact that Jack decided that we'd need more than one doctor, considering how much trouble we tend to get into. And, to be fair, he's turned out to be dead right.” He smiled weakly and then blinked. “But anyway - seriously, what the hell happened to you two?”
“Seriously, it's a very long story,” repeated Nick. “But I will say that the first thing you need to do is take us back to the Hub - it is still standing, right?”
“Of course it is,” said Ianto a bit impatiently. “Why wouldn't it be?”
“Well, with the number of times it's gotten destroyed, who knows?” deadpanned Nick. “But, like I said, you need to take us back to the Hub - I need to speak to Jack. Urgently.”
***
Next Time: Nick might finally be back home and Ianto may be safe, but that doesn't stop the shocks coming! Upon arriving at the Hub, he reunites with a very old friend and hears some revelations, one of which devastates him. And just how long has he been away, incidentally?
Pairings: Jack/Ianto, John/Nick, Gwen/Rhys
Characters: Jack, Ianto, Gwen, Rhys, John Hart and a cast of (probably!) thousands.
Spoilers: Set after Exit Wounds. Sequel to 'Will My Arms Be Strong Enough?'
Rating: Adult - it's going to get very dark in some places.
Warnings: Slash, language, angst, dark themes.
Summary: Back in Cardiff...but was Nick's dream real?
Disclaimer: I'm a student. I don't own Torchwood.
The Master List (as it stands) is here: anduria-trianys.livejournal.com/27610.html#cutid1
~PART THREE~
Chapter 24
The tall figure of the water tower glistened in the early November sunlight as leaves swirled all over the Roald Plass, buffetted around by the wind. It was bitterly cold, though unlike the previous year, there had been no snow around the city, for which everyone was profoundly grateful; last time, the snow had been so deep, hardly anybody had been able to walk past their front door, never mind drive to work. Admittedly, the lack of snow hadn't been for lack of trying on the part of the weather and now it was as if everyone was just waiting for it to hurry up and land!
This was an especially tricky problem when working for an organisation like Torchwood, where getting to places quickly was at the least highly important and, in extreme circumstances, the difference between life and death. Fortunately, Captain Jack Harkness was not the sort of leader to intentionally put lives in jeopardy when they could be saved and he had come up with an alternative means of transportation, if the SUV was impractical or out of use. The fact that this was a rather large boat - he had picked up a bigger model after the original had been sunk on a mission - didn't matter; now that they had a bigger team, they were certainly going to need it, especially if the weather did as it had been threatening to do for a few weeks and took a turn for the significantly worse.
However, that didn't mean that the boat wasn't often used for other, more recreational, purposes sometimes. In fact, at this very moment, two young men were sat together on one of the benches, a thick blanket wrapped around their shoulders as protection from the biting cold as they talked quietly.
~*~
“I just really want to do something for Jack,” said Ianto, sipping coffee from the flask he'd brought with him. “Remembrance Day is always a hard time for him and I want to do something special for him, especially after he's been there for me with everything. But I just can't think of the right thing.”
“What do you usually do with him?” asked Declan. “Do you go to the services with him or lay poppies at the cenotaph or something?”
“Yeah, there's that.” Ianto bit his lip. “But...I don't know, I just want to do something more for him this time, you know? I just worry sometimes that I don't appreciate him as much as I should and I want to do something for him after everything he's done for me.”
A pensive frown crossed Declan's usually cheerful face. “Hmm. Well, there's the usual things; you said that Jack is a real romantic at heart, so you could run him a nice hot bubble bath with candles and give him a massage, or even book the two of you in for a weekend in a spa. Or you could take him to that place in Devon where they do all those sports and crafts.”
“Ashbury Hotel?”
“Yeah. It might be nice for him to have something to do; a time for him to have some fun and get into the open air. Or,” and here, Declan tapped the side of the boat, a reflective smile crossing his face, “you could take him out in the boat for a home-cooked meal and dancing under the stars. A domestic evening with a classy twist.”
Ianto raised an eyebrow at him. “Are you sure this isn't on the list of things you want to do on a date with Emily?” he asked, chuckling. “Oh, don't deny it, Declan - practically everyone in the Hub can see it!” He shuffled closer to his friend, a grin forming on his face. “So...how's it going with her?”
“There's nothing happening between us!” said Declan, flushing bright red as he laughed. “I mean, yeah, she's a beautiful woman and a very good friend and yes, I haven't felt this way since I split up with Lily - shit!” He clapped his hands to his mouth and blushed harder.
Ianto burst out laughing. “So?” he said. “What're you going to do?”
“Do?” Declan looked startled. “Well...I don't know. I suppose I should talk to her...but I'm scared.”
“Scared?” repeated Ianto. “Scared of what?”
Declan sighed. “What if I say something stupid? Or what if I just come out with a joke or something? Or what if I -” but he was cut off by Ianto slapping him across the back of the head. “Hey! What's that for?”
“Declan Hamilton,” said Ianto, shaking his head, “you are one of the biggest idiots I've ever met when it comes to asking people out. For one thing, coming out with jokes is what comes naturally to you. It's a huge part of who you are. For another thing, it's a part of you that Emily loves.” He patted his hand. “So, you need to get your arse into gear and ask her out while you still have the chance. After all,” and here he smiled again, “she's had feelings for you for quite a while, you know.”
Declan started to answer him, but before he could get a word out, the portable Rift monitor in his pocket started bleeping. “Rift activity,” he said, pulling it out.
“Where?” asked Ianto, pulling his gloves back on.
“The Millennium Stadium!” Declan laughed. “Amazing - something, or someone, has managed to land right in the middle of a rugby international!”
~*~
“So,” said Orion, picking himself up off the turf, “this is where you live?” He looked around rather disparagingly. “It's a bit tiny, isn't it?”
Nick stared at him. “You actually think that this is where the entire twenty-first century population lives?” he asked as he helped John to his feet. “Okay, I know the Nova Djinn lived in an amphitheatre, but seriously? There's more of us than this.”
Orion rolled his eyes. “Mind you,” and his eyes fell on the rugby scrum taking place in the middle of the pitch, “I do approve of what I see there. Looks like they're all open for an orgy!” With an impish grin, he sprinted over to the scrum, pausing only to turn back and wink at Nick as he did so.
Nick knew that he should go after Orion and stop him from getting himself into some potentially very serious trouble at this point - attempting to interfere in a rugby game was a very bad idea - but he didn't care. John was his focus at this point, not Orion, and the man was currently clinging onto him, his eyes wide with panic as he trembled before the sight of what he probably thought of as gruesome violence in front of him. He actually screamed loudly when one of the Welsh players was crushed under two of the opposition players.
“Hey,” he said softly, easing the terrified man over to sit in the dugout. The Welsh coach, already annoyed by their sudden appearance in the middle of the game, started to protest, but one mention of the name 'Torchwood' and one look at the state John was in instantly silenced him.
“It's okay,” he added softly, stroking his hand. “It's all right...you're safe now; you're safe.”
“How can people do that?” John's voice was practically a squeak of terror as he watched the rugby. “How can they...crush each other like that and...” he trailed off when a roar of appreciation went up from the crowd. “How can people watch this and not want to stop it?!”
Nick decided now wasn't the right time to mention that, before he'd left, he would have been one of the people watching the game. At this point, as far as John was concerned, it just looked like mindless violence or point-scoring. And while he couldn't deny that, to a degree, rugby was about point-scoring, Nick's gut clenched as he thought about what John could have been through to get so distressed about it.
“It's going to be okay,” he repeated. “Trust me. It's going to be all right. We'll get you home and you can get some rest and then I'll see Jack about getting you some help. Don't worry,” he added when John paled again, “Jack's a good man. We can trust him.”
“It's not that,” said John slowly. “It's just...there's something else - something I remembered from a dream.” He sighed. “I know it might sound far-fetched and...and stupid, but...”
“Go on,” soothed Nick. “You can tell me anything.”
John rested his forehead in his hands. “In that dream where I pushed you away,” he said slowly, “well, I just remembered that I saw myself pushing you away from something. I didn't see clearly what it was, but it was...it was like a mass of darkness - evil - with blazing sockets of fire instead of eyes. It had a whip in its hand...made out of bright white light.” He shuddered. “It was about to attack...” but his voice trailed off.
Nick inhaled sharply. “Me?” he gasped. “It was going to attack me?” He swallowed hard. “What was it?”
“I don't know,” said John. “I just remember pushing you out of its way and then...I took the full brunt of the attack myself. And then...everything went dark for a while, but I felt so...full of life...like something inside me was waking up.” He frowned to himself. “I don't understand why...”
Suddenly, Nick remembered something. “I think I do,” he said quietly. “When we were together, we had a row and...” he sighed, “well, things weren't good for quite a while. But you started taking risks and going out on your own and once you got badly injured. We thought...” and Nick struggled with himself for several moments, “we thought you were going to die. But Jack -“
“Hang on,” John interrupted. “Who is this...this Jack?”
“He's the leader of Torchwood - the organisation we used to work for,” explained Nick. “He can be a bit over-exuberant, but he's a good man. I would trust him with my life.” He sighed. “Anyway, he gave you a blood transfusion - with his blood.” He took a deep breath. “I think that when he did that, he passed the immortality potential onto you, but the attack was what triggered the reaction that made it a reality.”
“He's,” John struggled for a moment, “he's immortal?”
“Yeah,” said Nick. “He's -“ but he was cut off as John suddenly began to shake. At the same time, he registered that the sound of the crowd behind him was changing from raucous cheers to murmurs of irritation and confusion. But even through that, he heard the mutter of one word.
“Torchwood...”
Quickly, he jumped to his feet. “Come with me,” he said. “We can trust these people - they're friends.” He led John over to the stand where the whispers were coming from. Looking up, he saw two men making their way down the steps, each holding a handgun. One of them was tall and skinny with pink cheeks, dimples and wild blonde curly hair and the other, whose back was currently turned as he examined some empty seats near the pitch, was a brunette wearing what looked like a suit. A moment later, however, he turned round and Nick swooned slightly as he recognised him.
“Ianto!” he screamed, rushing over to the stand. “Ianto, it's me!”
Ianto turned sharply at the sound of his name being called. He blinked rapidly as he saw who was shouting at him. “Nick?” he stammered, descending the last of the steps to get a better look.
“Nick!” he shouted and rushed down the stairs and onto the pitch. “Nick, what're you doing here?”
But Nick didn't say a word; he just rushed up and crushed Ianto tightly in his arms. “You're alive!” he gasped, trembling as flashes of his nightmare shot before his eyes. “You're alive; my God, you're alive!” he babbled out as he felt Ianto's heartbeat against his chest. “God, you're actually alive!”
“Hey, hey, hey!” exclaimed Ianto, patting Nick's back in concern. “Nicky, it's okay - of course I'm alive! I'm right here, aren't I?”
“Yeah, but,” stammered Nick, “I thought you were -“ but Ianto cut him off when he suddenly slapped him across the face.
“And now you know what I was thinking,” Ianto said. “God, Nick - where the hell have you been?!”
Nick blinked, confused. “But...but you never expected him to come back,” he said. “And as for where I've been, that's a long story which I will tell you, but not right in the middle of a rugby international match!”
Ianto frowned. “Okay, just a few other questions,” he said, relaxing, but his voice more than a little frosty. “Just a few questions here. Firstly, what the hell has happened to John? He looks as if we're about to attack him or something. Secondly, who is that guy seemingly attempting to have an orgy with everyone in the scrum? And thirdly, what on earth are you wearing?”
Nick sighed. “Okay, I can answer all of your questions with one simple statement,” he said. “It's an incredibly long story. And, thinking about it, I've got a question too - who's the blonde?”
Declan stepped forwards with a broad smile. “Declan Hamilton - Torchwood doctor and part-time fast bowler at your service!” He grabbed Nick's hand and pumped it vigorously. John squeaked and backed away.
Ianto chuckled. “That's pretty much how he greeted Jack when he first met him.”
“He seems very...friendly,” said Nick as he soothed John.
“I think the word you want is exuberant,” said Ianto, laughing. “But he's good fun.”
“Well,” said Declan, apparently, not remotely bothered by the fact that the two men were talking about him, “maybe changing that to one of the Torchwood doctors would actually be more accurate.”
“One of them?” repeated Nick. “How many did you hire?” he asked Ianto. When his cousin answered him, he chuckled. “You mean I was so good it took three new people to replace me?”
“Well, yes,” said Ianto simply. “But there's also the fact that Jack decided that we'd need more than one doctor, considering how much trouble we tend to get into. And, to be fair, he's turned out to be dead right.” He smiled weakly and then blinked. “But anyway - seriously, what the hell happened to you two?”
“Seriously, it's a very long story,” repeated Nick. “But I will say that the first thing you need to do is take us back to the Hub - it is still standing, right?”
“Of course it is,” said Ianto a bit impatiently. “Why wouldn't it be?”
“Well, with the number of times it's gotten destroyed, who knows?” deadpanned Nick. “But, like I said, you need to take us back to the Hub - I need to speak to Jack. Urgently.”
***
Next Time: Nick might finally be back home and Ianto may be safe, but that doesn't stop the shocks coming! Upon arriving at the Hub, he reunites with a very old friend and hears some revelations, one of which devastates him. And just how long has he been away, incidentally?