Ficlet: Holding Them Together
Title: Holding Them Together
Author: badly_knitted
Characters: Jack, Tosh, Gwen, Ianto, Owen.
Rating: PG
Spoilers: End of Days.
Summary: While Jack was gone the team would have fallen apart if not for Ianto holding them together.
Word Count: 500
Written For: Prompt 135: Cement at anythingdrabble.
Disclaimer: I don’t own Torchwood, or the characters.
“Gwen’s wrong you know.”
Jack looked up, surprised to see Tosh standing in front of his desk; he hadn’t heard her come in, too busy reviewing reports of everything he’d missed while he was off with the Doctor.
“Wrong? I don’t understand.”
“About leading the team while you were gone. Oh, I don’t mean she was lying or anything, she did put herself in charge, said it was only right since she’s your second in command. She genuinely thought she was running things, but she wasn’t, not really. It’s not as if we need telling what to do, we know our responsibilities.”
“Yes you do.” Jack smiled warmly at his tech expert; he’d missed her earnestness, and her brilliance.
Tosh smiled back. “It’s just, Gwen doesn’t really know everything it takes to keep this place running smoothly. She thinks she does, but… It was Ianto; he was the cement that held us together while you weren’t here. Without him, we’d have all fallen apart, Gwen included. It was Ianto who made sure we got paid on time, Ianto who sent the monthly activity reports where they needed to go, Ianto who nudged us to go home at night then stayed here himself to handle night alerts, calling in Owen if he needed another pair of hands…”
Jack nodded; he could believe it. Ianto knew every aspect of Jack’s job as well as Jack himself did, and he was scarily good at forging Jack’s signature.
Gnawing on her bottom lip, Tosh added, “Anyway, I just thought you should know.”
“Ianto is never less than efficient.” Jack didn’t bother trying to hide the fondness in his voice. “But the cement that held you all together? I’m not sure I--”
“He looked after us,” Tosh blurted, flushing slightly. “I don’t just mean supplying countless cups of coffee or tea, and making sure we all remembered to eat and sleep. There were a hundred little things…” She trailed off, remembering.
“You alright, Tosh?”
She’d almost jumped when Ianto had appeared beside her. It was late and the others had long since gone home; she’d left too, but she’d forgotten her glasses and when she’d returned to fetch them she’d found herself just standing there, staring up at Jack’s empty office.
“I’m fine, I just…”
“You miss Jack. So do I, nothing’s the same without him here.”
They’d talked for hours, sitting on the sofa, and when Tosh had finally left she’d felt so much better.
Then there’d been Owen, bellowing and crashing about in the autopsy bay. Ianto had rolled his eyes and gone down there, and not ten minutes later Tosh had heard the two of them laughing. She had no idea what had been said, but Owen had been in a much better mood afterwards.
As for Gwen, more than once Tosh had seen her crying on Ianto’s shoulder.
“He mediated arguments, handed out little treats, kept our spirits up. He’s the best of all of us.”
Jack nodded. “He is.”
The End
Author: badly_knitted
Characters: Jack, Tosh, Gwen, Ianto, Owen.
Rating: PG
Spoilers: End of Days.
Summary: While Jack was gone the team would have fallen apart if not for Ianto holding them together.
Word Count: 500
Written For: Prompt 135: Cement at anythingdrabble.
Disclaimer: I don’t own Torchwood, or the characters.
“Gwen’s wrong you know.”
Jack looked up, surprised to see Tosh standing in front of his desk; he hadn’t heard her come in, too busy reviewing reports of everything he’d missed while he was off with the Doctor.
“Wrong? I don’t understand.”
“About leading the team while you were gone. Oh, I don’t mean she was lying or anything, she did put herself in charge, said it was only right since she’s your second in command. She genuinely thought she was running things, but she wasn’t, not really. It’s not as if we need telling what to do, we know our responsibilities.”
“Yes you do.” Jack smiled warmly at his tech expert; he’d missed her earnestness, and her brilliance.
Tosh smiled back. “It’s just, Gwen doesn’t really know everything it takes to keep this place running smoothly. She thinks she does, but… It was Ianto; he was the cement that held us together while you weren’t here. Without him, we’d have all fallen apart, Gwen included. It was Ianto who made sure we got paid on time, Ianto who sent the monthly activity reports where they needed to go, Ianto who nudged us to go home at night then stayed here himself to handle night alerts, calling in Owen if he needed another pair of hands…”
Jack nodded; he could believe it. Ianto knew every aspect of Jack’s job as well as Jack himself did, and he was scarily good at forging Jack’s signature.
Gnawing on her bottom lip, Tosh added, “Anyway, I just thought you should know.”
“Ianto is never less than efficient.” Jack didn’t bother trying to hide the fondness in his voice. “But the cement that held you all together? I’m not sure I--”
“He looked after us,” Tosh blurted, flushing slightly. “I don’t just mean supplying countless cups of coffee or tea, and making sure we all remembered to eat and sleep. There were a hundred little things…” She trailed off, remembering.
“You alright, Tosh?”
She’d almost jumped when Ianto had appeared beside her. It was late and the others had long since gone home; she’d left too, but she’d forgotten her glasses and when she’d returned to fetch them she’d found herself just standing there, staring up at Jack’s empty office.
“I’m fine, I just…”
“You miss Jack. So do I, nothing’s the same without him here.”
They’d talked for hours, sitting on the sofa, and when Tosh had finally left she’d felt so much better.
Then there’d been Owen, bellowing and crashing about in the autopsy bay. Ianto had rolled his eyes and gone down there, and not ten minutes later Tosh had heard the two of them laughing. She had no idea what had been said, but Owen had been in a much better mood afterwards.
As for Gwen, more than once Tosh had seen her crying on Ianto’s shoulder.
“He mediated arguments, handed out little treats, kept our spirits up. He’s the best of all of us.”
Jack nodded. “He is.”
The End