Of dead team members, Slitheen eggs, and ridiculous foot chases...

[impossible_thng]

Jack is not looking his best when he walks in. It's not anything about him physically that's really changed - though there is a bit of blood spattered on his face and coat and hands, none of it his. It's his expression, dark and closed-off, and rather pained

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[smithnjones]

((OOC: O_o" Martha insisted.))

She's been gone for three and a half months, which feel more like three and a half years. It's enough to change her. Amazingly, she's skinnier than she was the last time she was here. Her body looks more like a skeleton, but she has Asia and north Africa to blame for that. So many people in poverty already, there was nothing there, just death and starvation and pain and people struggling.

This entrance she's not scared and she's not running. No, she's walking. She's strong and determined and there might even be a little hope shining in her eyes. It's more for the benefit of the people she runs into than herself, but it looks incredibly sincere.

Martha opens the door just a little, seconds after it slams shut, and all she sees is him, "Jack?" It takes an instant to recognize the pain, the blood on his face, that something is very wrong in his expression so she wraps her arms around his neck and kisses him, hard, without another thought.

More happy to see him than she is to be in the Inn.

[impossible_thng]

Jack's startled by the sudden kissing, but his brain is working enough for it to register that it's Martha, and he's never going to shove her away. Not after a good sixty years of missing her. Instead, he wraps his arms around her tightly and kisses back.

And almost immediately loosens his grip when he realizes how thin she is, moving back, though he keeps his hands resting on her sides. "Martha. Are you alright?" Relatively speaking.

[smithnjones]

Martha waves a dismissive hand at his question.

"I'm fine." Relatively speaking. Martha keeps her hand pressed, gently, against his chin. "You're the one with... blood on your face." And that look in his eyes that she doesn't exactly know how to put voice to.

It's not physical pain. So she knows it isn't his blood.

It's probably rather frightening that she can look into someone's eyes and tell the difference between physical and emotional pain.

[impossible_thng]

He laughs softly, a hollow sound, and shakes his head. "It's not mine."

Mostly. Getting shot in the head is a remarkably clean thing for him, even with the headaches afterwards.

"I'm fine."

[smithnjones]

The hollow sound scares her.

She slips her hand into his. "No, you're not."

Martha pulls him, gently, toward the stairs, because she really doesn't want to deal with the inn or anyone else, but him right now.

"C'mon." Her voice is soft, gentle. "Come with me."

[impossible_thng]

He doesn't really respond to her denial that he's fine - because he's not, but that's what you're supposed to say anyway. And he gives her a quizzical look at the request to follow him, but does anyway, because it's Martha.

He'd follow her to the ends of the universe if she asked.

[smithnjones]

Martha takes him to her room.

It's been nearly eight months since she's been to this room. For her anyway. The last time she was in the Inn, she'd slept in Jack's room when she needed to sleep and he'd taken care of her. She wants to take care of him now.

Martha leads him inside to sit on the bed and she settles herself in front of him, thinking up a warm washcloth, wiping the blood away from his face first.

If he's hurting than so is she, that's just how it works at this point.

She'll give him a break for now, immediately after what happened, but she knows how important talking is. Eventually, she'll ask and push him to talk, but not now.

[impossible_thng]

He closes his eyes, leaning into the contact just the slightest bit. He'd missed her. Every wonderful little thing about her, the details that faded until she's there again, and he's reminded of everything he's been missing out on for the past sixty years...

Focusing on that is almost enough to distract him from the fact that Suzie's dead and it's his fault. Not quite, but it's something.

[smithnjones]

When she finishes cleaning off his face, she kisses him softly, and then moves to wash his hands.

Martha frowns a little, smiling rather sadly at him. "At this rate, a shower might be your best bet, I'm afraid."

She needs one too. Desperately. God, just the thought of hot water...

[impossible_thng]

He opens his eyes and smiles a bit. "Probably. Only if you're coming with me."

Because he hasn't seen her in over half a century. Like hell he's letting her out of his sight.

[smithnjones]

Martha laughs, softly.

"Of course." She inclines her head to the right with a little smile. "Bathroom's this way."

Not sure why she says it, because she can't keep herself from grabbing hold of his hand again and pulling him after her anyway. The Inn's nice enough to start the water for them.

"Well. Looks like we've just got to get you out of these clothes." Martha is happy to help. She starts with his shirt, fingers sliding delicately over the fabric at the end and pulling it upward.

Sure, they could think the clothes away, but much more touching happens this way.

[impossible_thng]

Jack smiles faintly and follows her without a second thought, shrugging out of his greatcoat on the way there and leaving it in a heap on the floor. It'll be fine - it's been through much worse.

He lifts his arms to help her with the shirt thing, shivering a little at the feeling of her fingers against his skin. This. He missed this too. A lot.

Once the shirt is off, he can't help but lean in and kiss her lightly, right below her ear, along her jawline. It stands out in sharper definition than he remembers, and she's so thin it feels like he could break her, and it breaks his heart, but the smell of her skin is exactly the same.

[smithnjones]

Martha gasps softly at the kiss, a bright smile across her lips at the feel of his lips on her skin again. She slips her hands around his waist and up his back, tightly, because she can't trust herself to try and take off his pants while he's kissing her like that.

There's not nearly enough focus in her for both to happen at the same time.

[impossible_thng]

He chuckles softly against her skin before pulling back. Not that he minds the way she's gripping his waist and back, but he doesn't want her to... fall over or anything.

"I take it you missed me, then?" Not nearly as much as he missed her, he's sure, but...

[smithnjones]

"Mmhmm." Martha nods, a little bit breathless already. "Very, very much."

She tilts her head to the side with a crooked little smile. "It's not too obvious, is it?"

[impossible_thng]

She needs to smile like that more often. Or in general. Something about it just takes his breath away.

"If I say no, will you believe me?"