Ficlet: Mean Treats
Title: Mean Treats
Author: badly_knitted
Characters: Tosh, Owen.
Rating: G
Spoilers: Nada.
Summary: Tosh decides Owen isn’t displaying the proper Halloween spirit.
Word Count: 569
Written For: m_findlow’s prompt ‘Any, any, using Halloween to offload lollies past their best before,’ at fic_promptly.
Disclaimer: I don’t own Torchwood, or the characters. They belong to the BBC.
Tosh arrived at Owen’s flat with the DVD she’d offered to loan him just in time to see him doling out sweets to a group of scarily costumed Trick or Treaters, probably the children of other people who lived in the building. As they turned to leave, she stepped to one side to let them pass by, glancing into the baskets and buckets of candy they were carrying and frowning at what she saw. The moment they were safely out of sight, she turned on Owen.
“I wouldn’t have believed it if I hadn’t seen it with my own eyes,” she said, hands on her hips, and glaring at him. “I never realised you were such a cheapskate!”
“What? Everybody does it. Waste not, want not, and those little monsters are bound to get a ton of other Halloween candy; by the end of the evening they won’t have a clue who gave ‘em what. Besides, it’s all sugar anyway, and sugar doesn’t go off.”
“If that’s the case, then why are you foisting all your out of date lollipops off on the neighbourhood kids? Why don’t you just eat them yourself?” Owen was a bit of a lolly addict and often had one jammed in his mouth, but because he bought them in bulk he rarely got through them all before their best before date.
“Because I have a more discerning sense of taste than a bunch of sugar-hyped kids, that’s why.”
“So they’re good enough for other people, just not for you?”
“Yep!” Owen smirked at her. “That the DVD?” He reached for the bag.
Tosh moved the bag behind her, out of reach, and took a few steps back. “Oh no! You don’t deserve this, Owen Harper. If you want to borrow it, then you’ll have to go out right now, before the shops shut, get some decent Halloween candy, and throw all those old lollies away.”
“What? You can’t be serious, Tosh! It’s been a long day; all I want is to relax in front of the TV.”
“Whatever you might think, I’m not joking. Halloween is a time for giving, and handing out stale sweets isn’t fair to the kids. If you’re not careful they’ll retaliate and start playing tricks on you. I wouldn’t blame them if they did; I might even help.”
It quickly became clear to Owen that Tosh wasn’t about to back down. She might seem quiet and unassuming, but she was still a Torchwood agent and once she made up her mind about a course of action, she stuck to it like glue. “Fine,” he said grudgingly. “I’ll go, but you’ll have to stay here and deal with any kids that come along while I’m gone.”
“I’m sure I can manage that,” Tosh said with a smile, stepping inside Owen’s flat as Owen shoved his feet into shoes, grabbed jacket, wallet, and keys, and with a put-upon expression on his face, headed for the lift.
Once he was gone, Tosh threw the old lollies in the bin and opened her bag; it was a good things she’d bought a few packets of candy with her, just in case she was accosted by Trick or Treaters along the way. Not that she planned on telling Owen that; let him buy his own treats. It wasn’t like he couldn’t afford to. Maybe next year he’d think twice about being the Halloween Grinch.
The End
Author: badly_knitted
Characters: Tosh, Owen.
Rating: G
Spoilers: Nada.
Summary: Tosh decides Owen isn’t displaying the proper Halloween spirit.
Word Count: 569
Written For: m_findlow’s prompt ‘Any, any, using Halloween to offload lollies past their best before,’ at fic_promptly.
Disclaimer: I don’t own Torchwood, or the characters. They belong to the BBC.
Tosh arrived at Owen’s flat with the DVD she’d offered to loan him just in time to see him doling out sweets to a group of scarily costumed Trick or Treaters, probably the children of other people who lived in the building. As they turned to leave, she stepped to one side to let them pass by, glancing into the baskets and buckets of candy they were carrying and frowning at what she saw. The moment they were safely out of sight, she turned on Owen.
“I wouldn’t have believed it if I hadn’t seen it with my own eyes,” she said, hands on her hips, and glaring at him. “I never realised you were such a cheapskate!”
“What? Everybody does it. Waste not, want not, and those little monsters are bound to get a ton of other Halloween candy; by the end of the evening they won’t have a clue who gave ‘em what. Besides, it’s all sugar anyway, and sugar doesn’t go off.”
“If that’s the case, then why are you foisting all your out of date lollipops off on the neighbourhood kids? Why don’t you just eat them yourself?” Owen was a bit of a lolly addict and often had one jammed in his mouth, but because he bought them in bulk he rarely got through them all before their best before date.
“Because I have a more discerning sense of taste than a bunch of sugar-hyped kids, that’s why.”
“So they’re good enough for other people, just not for you?”
“Yep!” Owen smirked at her. “That the DVD?” He reached for the bag.
Tosh moved the bag behind her, out of reach, and took a few steps back. “Oh no! You don’t deserve this, Owen Harper. If you want to borrow it, then you’ll have to go out right now, before the shops shut, get some decent Halloween candy, and throw all those old lollies away.”
“What? You can’t be serious, Tosh! It’s been a long day; all I want is to relax in front of the TV.”
“Whatever you might think, I’m not joking. Halloween is a time for giving, and handing out stale sweets isn’t fair to the kids. If you’re not careful they’ll retaliate and start playing tricks on you. I wouldn’t blame them if they did; I might even help.”
It quickly became clear to Owen that Tosh wasn’t about to back down. She might seem quiet and unassuming, but she was still a Torchwood agent and once she made up her mind about a course of action, she stuck to it like glue. “Fine,” he said grudgingly. “I’ll go, but you’ll have to stay here and deal with any kids that come along while I’m gone.”
“I’m sure I can manage that,” Tosh said with a smile, stepping inside Owen’s flat as Owen shoved his feet into shoes, grabbed jacket, wallet, and keys, and with a put-upon expression on his face, headed for the lift.
Once he was gone, Tosh threw the old lollies in the bin and opened her bag; it was a good things she’d bought a few packets of candy with her, just in case she was accosted by Trick or Treaters along the way. Not that she planned on telling Owen that; let him buy his own treats. It wasn’t like he couldn’t afford to. Maybe next year he’d think twice about being the Halloween Grinch.
The End