Ficlet: Warm And Furry
Title: Warm And Furry
Author: badly_knitted
Characters: Ianto, Jack, Nosy.
Rating: PG
Word Count: 723
Summary: It’s a bitterly cold night, but Ianto and Jack have something better than a hot water bottle to keep them warm.
Spoilers: None.
Written For: cornerofmadness’s prompt ‘any, any, frigid night, warm cat/dog/fuzzy pet of choice,’ at comment_fic.
Disclaimer: I don’t own Torchwood or any of the characters.
It was nothing to do with the Rift, at least not according to Tosh’s Rift monitor program, but in Ianto’s opinion, the temperature in Cardiff had sunk to a new low. It was way below freezing out, everywhere was covered in a layer of ice, and there would probably be an advisory come morning for everyone to stay home if at all possible. The last thing the local emergency services needed was more bad accidents and stranded travellers to deal with.
Up until a few hours ago, Ianto had been hoping Jack would suggest they stay home as well, safe in the warmth of their cosy penthouse flat. But then the power had gone out, and the howling gale raging outside just seemed to be sucking all the warmth out through the walls. If it kept up, soon it would be as cold indoors as it was outside.
They should have been fine, the generator in the basement should have kicked in as soon as the power went off, but it was either out of fuel, had developed a fault, or the sudden drop in temperature had caused it to seize up. Whatever, they had no power, no light, no heat, and no chance of even boiling the kettle for a hot water bottle or two. He and Jack might well freeze to death right there in bed, with every blanket they owned already piled on top of them.
It had been the cold that had woken them, alerting them to the loss of power. Just getting out of bed, braving the bitter cold to fetch the spare blankets, had left them both shivering and they’d burrowed back under the covers as quickly as they could. But by then they were half frozen, the bed was cold, and they’d huddled together, teeth chattering, trying to rub some warmth into each other.
“This is ridiculous!” Ianto mumbled against Jack’s shoulder.
“Tell me about it.” Convulsive shudders racked Jack’s body. Over the past century or so he’d acclimatised to British weather, to a degree, but he’d spent his early years on a world that was mostly desert, and he still hated the cold. Ianto suspected that was the main reason he wore his greatcoat so much of the time. “How can it be this cold? We’re in Cardiff, not the Arctic!”
“You know what Tosh said. Climate change affecting weather patterns, and an ice storm getting pushed further south than usual thanks to the prevailing wind.”
“It’s not getting any thanks from me,” Jack muttered. “Maybe I should fetch my coat from downstairs.”
“That would mean getting out of bed again,” Ianto pointed out. “You haven’t warmed up yet from the first time.”
“It might be worth it. I could fetch a few pairs of socks too. And those jumpers your sister gave us at Christmas.”
“I might even be willing to wear one.” Ianto was cold enough that even the hideous matching green sweaters, each decorated with a large, fuzzy Christmas pudding, suddenly seemed appealing.
While they were still trying to get up the courage to go in search of more clothes to put on, their bedroom door swung open, then closed again, so quietly that neither man was aware they had company until something large and fluffy found its way into bed with them.
“Nosy!” Ianto suddenly felt horribly guilty. He’d completely forgotten that the Fluff was now living with them. It had its own room on the flat’s lower level, complete with bunkbeds. “Are you cold too?”
“Humm,” the alien denied, squeezing in between its human friends, and arranging itself like a cross between a fur-covered body pillow and an enormous teddy bear.
“Oooh!” Jack wrapped his arms around their unexpected bedmate. “It’s so warm!”
On Nosy’s opposite side, Ianto snuggled close, feeling heat radiating out of the Fluff. It was better than any number of hot water bottles, and he tucked his frozen feet under a thickly furred loop of the snakelike body.
“Saved by the Fluff.” Ianto smiled in the darkness; he’d already almost stopped shivering.
In the morning, whether or not the power was back, he and Jack would have to do something about fixing the generator, but at least tonight they wouldn’t freeze thanks to their alien friend.
Forget about dogs or cats; happiness was a warm Fluff.
The End
Author: badly_knitted
Characters: Ianto, Jack, Nosy.
Rating: PG
Word Count: 723
Summary: It’s a bitterly cold night, but Ianto and Jack have something better than a hot water bottle to keep them warm.
Spoilers: None.
Written For: cornerofmadness’s prompt ‘any, any, frigid night, warm cat/dog/fuzzy pet of choice,’ at comment_fic.
Disclaimer: I don’t own Torchwood or any of the characters.
It was nothing to do with the Rift, at least not according to Tosh’s Rift monitor program, but in Ianto’s opinion, the temperature in Cardiff had sunk to a new low. It was way below freezing out, everywhere was covered in a layer of ice, and there would probably be an advisory come morning for everyone to stay home if at all possible. The last thing the local emergency services needed was more bad accidents and stranded travellers to deal with.
Up until a few hours ago, Ianto had been hoping Jack would suggest they stay home as well, safe in the warmth of their cosy penthouse flat. But then the power had gone out, and the howling gale raging outside just seemed to be sucking all the warmth out through the walls. If it kept up, soon it would be as cold indoors as it was outside.
They should have been fine, the generator in the basement should have kicked in as soon as the power went off, but it was either out of fuel, had developed a fault, or the sudden drop in temperature had caused it to seize up. Whatever, they had no power, no light, no heat, and no chance of even boiling the kettle for a hot water bottle or two. He and Jack might well freeze to death right there in bed, with every blanket they owned already piled on top of them.
It had been the cold that had woken them, alerting them to the loss of power. Just getting out of bed, braving the bitter cold to fetch the spare blankets, had left them both shivering and they’d burrowed back under the covers as quickly as they could. But by then they were half frozen, the bed was cold, and they’d huddled together, teeth chattering, trying to rub some warmth into each other.
“This is ridiculous!” Ianto mumbled against Jack’s shoulder.
“Tell me about it.” Convulsive shudders racked Jack’s body. Over the past century or so he’d acclimatised to British weather, to a degree, but he’d spent his early years on a world that was mostly desert, and he still hated the cold. Ianto suspected that was the main reason he wore his greatcoat so much of the time. “How can it be this cold? We’re in Cardiff, not the Arctic!”
“You know what Tosh said. Climate change affecting weather patterns, and an ice storm getting pushed further south than usual thanks to the prevailing wind.”
“It’s not getting any thanks from me,” Jack muttered. “Maybe I should fetch my coat from downstairs.”
“That would mean getting out of bed again,” Ianto pointed out. “You haven’t warmed up yet from the first time.”
“It might be worth it. I could fetch a few pairs of socks too. And those jumpers your sister gave us at Christmas.”
“I might even be willing to wear one.” Ianto was cold enough that even the hideous matching green sweaters, each decorated with a large, fuzzy Christmas pudding, suddenly seemed appealing.
While they were still trying to get up the courage to go in search of more clothes to put on, their bedroom door swung open, then closed again, so quietly that neither man was aware they had company until something large and fluffy found its way into bed with them.
“Nosy!” Ianto suddenly felt horribly guilty. He’d completely forgotten that the Fluff was now living with them. It had its own room on the flat’s lower level, complete with bunkbeds. “Are you cold too?”
“Humm,” the alien denied, squeezing in between its human friends, and arranging itself like a cross between a fur-covered body pillow and an enormous teddy bear.
“Oooh!” Jack wrapped his arms around their unexpected bedmate. “It’s so warm!”
On Nosy’s opposite side, Ianto snuggled close, feeling heat radiating out of the Fluff. It was better than any number of hot water bottles, and he tucked his frozen feet under a thickly furred loop of the snakelike body.
“Saved by the Fluff.” Ianto smiled in the darkness; he’d already almost stopped shivering.
In the morning, whether or not the power was back, he and Jack would have to do something about fixing the generator, but at least tonight they wouldn’t freeze thanks to their alien friend.
Forget about dogs or cats; happiness was a warm Fluff.
The End