Fic: Finding Torchwood
Title: Finding Torchwood
Author: badly_knitted
Characters: OCs Eddie and Barry, Jack, Ianto, Owen, Team.
Rating: PG
Spoilers: Nada.
Summary: When Eddie bets his new friend that he can do what none of the locals has ever done, it’s an idle boast, but then he succeeds…
Word Count: 1987
Written For: Prompt 089 - Success at fandomweekly.
Disclaimer: I don’t own Torchwood, or the characters. They belong to the BBC.
“Bloody Torchwood!” That was Barry, my new mate. We were having a few beers to unwind after a manic day, while hoping a celebrity or two might pop into the pub we were in since it was only a stone’s throw from the insanely epic Sci-Fi convention we’d been attending.
The convention was the reason I’d come to Cardiff in the first place, and I’d wound up in the queue right behind Barry. We’d got to talking, found we liked a lot of the same things, and had spent the last two days hanging out together, attending panels and hitting up the trade stands looking for choice bits of memorabilia to add to our collections. One of the best things about conventions was mingling with fellow geeks, but all good things had to come to an end. Now the event was over, but I was thinking I might stick around for a while. College was out for the summer, and I didn’t have anything better to do. Maybe I could get a summer job, earn myself a few quid.
Barry’s comment dragged me out of my thoughts, and I felt curiosity stir.
“Torchwood, eh? What’s Torchwood when it’s at home?”
Being a local, Barry knew a ton of stuff I had no clue about.
“Dunno really. Secret organisation, special ops or somethin’. That’s what me uncle says anyway, and he should know; he’s a copper. See that bloke in the coat over there?” Barry nodded towards the bar, where a tall guy in a vintage military coat was downing a pint glass of what looked like water. “He’s Torchwood’s head honcho. There’s a bunch of others work with him. They’re based in Cardiff, but nobody knows exactly where; all anyone knows for sure is they’re a menace. Anything weird goin’ on, you can bet they’re involved. No one likes ‘em.” Barry leaned forward across the table to whisper conspiratorially, “Some folks think they deal with UFO sightings, aliens and stuff.”
“Get out!”
“Hey, I never said I believe it.”
“Whatever.” I watched the guy in the coat as he set down his empty glass, strode towards the door and out into the night before turning back to Barry. Maybe it was the four pints I’d already downed, or maybe it was simple curiosity, I didn’t know, but I heard myself saying, “Y’know, I bet I could find out where their base is.”
“You?” Barry scoffed. “No way! You’re from London, mate, in case you’ve forgotten!”
“So what?”
“So you don’t know hardly anythin’ about Cardiff! You’ve only been here since Friday, and if nobody local can find it, what chance d’you think you’d have?”
“Dunno. Won’t know ‘til I try, will I? ‘Sides, it’ll give me somethin’ to do tomorrow while you’re workin’.” Barry had a job down on the docks.
“Don’t remind me! It’s alright for you, college boy. Most of us poor bastards gotta work for a livin’.”
“Suck it up; least you’re earnin’ a decent wage.” I grinned at him. “C’mon, next round’s on me.”
“Too right it is!”
It was several pints later and nearly one in the morning when I poured Barry into a taxi and staggered back to where I was staying, at a small hotel just round the corner from the convention venue. When I reached my room I collapsed onto the bed, fully dressed, and that was me done for the night.
Despite all the booze I’d drunk, I wasn’t so hungover the next morning that I didn’t remember the events of the night before. A cold shower, a couple of painkillers, and a few cups of strong, black coffee later, I left the hotel to wander the city, keeping a lookout for the guy in the long coat, or the big, black SUV Barry said Torchwood drove around in. The exercise did me good, chasing my headache away and settling my stomach so that by mid-afternoon I was starving. I bought fish and chips and a can of cola, then wandered down to the bay and stood leaning on the railings looking out over the water while I ate.
I was really starting to like Cardiff. The air was way fresher than London with all its traffic fumes, and the people seemed friendly. I’d just finished eating and was wondering where to go next when I saw him, the man in the coat, striding past as if he had important business to attend to. I grinned to myself. Ha! Got you now! Take that, Barry! Dumping my rubbish in a nearby bin, I watched as Torchwood’s head honcho headed down a ramp leading to a boardwalk, where he went inside a little tourist information place, tucked away down by the water.
Soon as he was out of sight, I followed, hesitating outside for a moment before cautiously pushing the door open and peering into the dimly lit interior. It looked like any other tourist information kiosk, with stacks of leaflets on the counter, racks of postcards, and shelves crammed with tourist tat, but aside from that the place was empty. There was nobody there, which was impossible. I knew I’d seen him come in, so where had he gone? There was only one possibility that I could see. Behind the counter was a bead curtain, so I shut the door behind me and went to take a look at whatever might be hiding back there, only to once again be disappointed. The tiny office area beyond the curtain was as empty as the rest of the place. It was as though the bloke I’d been following had vanished into thin air.
I was about to leave when I spotted the very conspicuous big, red button under the counter. I wondered if it might be a silent alarm, but why would a tourist office need one of those? It was doubtful the place made much money. I hesitated, chewing on my bottom lip as I tried to decide what to do, but… what the hell? You only live once, right? Besides, what was the worst that could happen? I’d get arrested for trespassing? Big deal.
Mind made up, I pressed the button, and whatever I was expecting, it sure as hell wasn’t what I got. Almost silently, a whole chunk of the brick wall at the back swung aside! My heart skipped a few beats, and I felt a little lightheaded. I’d only gone and done it, hadn’t I? I’d found Torchwood’s secret base! I could feel myself grinning like a lunatic. This was so cool!
Stepping into the opening, I followed a stone-walled passageway, then turned a corner and got yet another surprise. The tunnel ended at the kind of lift you’d find in pretty much any office building. It was so ordinary and familiar that it looked completely out of place. Maybe I should’ve turned back right then, but I’d already come this far, and I couldn’t bring myself to walk away without seeing the rest. Just wait ‘til I told Barry I’d succeeded where everyone else had failed! And he thought I couldn’t do it! Hah! Maybe I could snap off a couple of photos so I’d have proof. Buzzing with anticipation, I pressed the button to call the lift, figuring I could sneak in real quiet, keep out of sight, take a quick peek, and then get out. The Torchwood folks would never have to know I’d even been there.
Well, that was my grand plan. I dunno, maybe I was still a bit hungover and not thinking straight. I mean, secret base… Bound to have surveillance equipment, cameras and stuff, probably alarms too, right? Only I didn’t think about any of that, too busy congratulating myself on tracking down Torchwood’s lair, so when the lift reached bottom and the door opened, I was caught flatfooted.
As the massive cogwheel in front of me rolled to one side, lights started flashing, sirens blared so loud I had to cover my ears, and five people stopped what they were doing and turned to stare at me. Then the sirens abruptly cut off and a deafening silence fell that was almost worse than the racket of a few seconds earlier. I took my hands away from my ears but didn’t dare move from where I was standing. I wasn’t sure my legs would work.
“Hey there!” came a cheerful greeting from the guy in the coat; to my surprise he sounded American.
“Jack, did you leave the tourist office door unlocked again?” a guy in a three-piece suit asked mildly.
“Relax, Ianto. My Hub, my rules. I saw him watching me, wanted to see what he’d do.”
“Well, now you know. You do understand the words ‘secret base’, don’t you? It’s a bit difficult to maintain secrecy if you keep letting people find us.”
“Says the man who stalked me to get a job.” The American sounded amused.
The guy in the suit didn’t. “That was different; I already knew about Torchwood.”
“Um, maybe I should just leave.” I started inching my way backwards towards the lift.
“So soon? But you only just got here!” The American strode forward, smiling the widest, whitest smile I’d ever seen, and offering his hand. “Captain Jack Harkness. Welcome to Torchwood.”
What could I do? I fell back on the good manners me mum had drummed into me for the past nineteen years. “Er, thanks.” I shook the offered hand. “Eddie Hallam. Um, what’re you gonna do to me?” My sense of self-preservation belatedly decided to kick in and I wondered if my knees were knocking.
“Now there’s a question.” The smile grew impossibly wider.
“Jack, stop it; you’ll scar him for life. Sorry, he’s a dreadful flirt.” That was the guy in the suit again. Ianto, wasn’t it? Weird name. Had to be Welsh.
The American clasped his hands over his heart, a bit melodramatic but whatever. “You wound me. I thought I was a very good flirt.”
Don’t think I’d ever seen a grown man pout until then.
Ianto rolled his eyes. “You’ll flirt with anyone.”
“Jealous?” The pout morphed into a devious smirk,
One eyebrow rose, unimpressed. “Should I be?”
“’Ere, you two, stop makin’ googly eyes at each other; save that for the bedroom, when the rest of us don’t ave to see!” That was the third man in the room, a Londoner, like me. Small world.
“I’m not jealous, but I think Owen might be,” Ianto deadpanned.
“Fuck off, Jonesy.”
“Yep, definitely jealous.”
The playful banter seemed so normal I almost relaxed, but then there was a screech from above, and I looked up…
“Bloody hell!” Something that looked like a flying dinosaur glided by overhead.
“Don’t worry about Myfanwy,” said Jack. “She won’t hurt you. Well, not unless you’re carrying chocolate, then you might have to fight her for it. Now, why don’t I show you around? You’re already here; might as well see it all, and afterwards I’ll have Ianto make us coffee. Trust me, you’re gonna love it.”
I wasn’t sure whether he meant the tour or the coffee, but if the captain was willing to show me around, I wasn’t about to say no.
“Awesome! Lead the way!” Barry was never going to believe this in a million years!
OoOoOoO
I wake up in the small hotel room I’ve rented for the week, my head aching, and my mouth dry as the Sahara. There’s a vague memory nagging at the back of my mind and I try to hold onto it, but it slips away like smoke. Groaning, I drag myself out of bed, check my watch, and find it’s almost noon on Tuesday! Gods, I must’ve got really hammered! Last thing I remember is going out drinking with Barry after the convention, but that was Sunday night. Somehow I’ve lost a whole day!
I swear I’m never drinking that much ever again.
The End
Author: badly_knitted
Characters: OCs Eddie and Barry, Jack, Ianto, Owen, Team.
Rating: PG
Spoilers: Nada.
Summary: When Eddie bets his new friend that he can do what none of the locals has ever done, it’s an idle boast, but then he succeeds…
Word Count: 1987
Written For: Prompt 089 - Success at fandomweekly.
Disclaimer: I don’t own Torchwood, or the characters. They belong to the BBC.
“Bloody Torchwood!” That was Barry, my new mate. We were having a few beers to unwind after a manic day, while hoping a celebrity or two might pop into the pub we were in since it was only a stone’s throw from the insanely epic Sci-Fi convention we’d been attending.
The convention was the reason I’d come to Cardiff in the first place, and I’d wound up in the queue right behind Barry. We’d got to talking, found we liked a lot of the same things, and had spent the last two days hanging out together, attending panels and hitting up the trade stands looking for choice bits of memorabilia to add to our collections. One of the best things about conventions was mingling with fellow geeks, but all good things had to come to an end. Now the event was over, but I was thinking I might stick around for a while. College was out for the summer, and I didn’t have anything better to do. Maybe I could get a summer job, earn myself a few quid.
Barry’s comment dragged me out of my thoughts, and I felt curiosity stir.
“Torchwood, eh? What’s Torchwood when it’s at home?”
Being a local, Barry knew a ton of stuff I had no clue about.
“Dunno really. Secret organisation, special ops or somethin’. That’s what me uncle says anyway, and he should know; he’s a copper. See that bloke in the coat over there?” Barry nodded towards the bar, where a tall guy in a vintage military coat was downing a pint glass of what looked like water. “He’s Torchwood’s head honcho. There’s a bunch of others work with him. They’re based in Cardiff, but nobody knows exactly where; all anyone knows for sure is they’re a menace. Anything weird goin’ on, you can bet they’re involved. No one likes ‘em.” Barry leaned forward across the table to whisper conspiratorially, “Some folks think they deal with UFO sightings, aliens and stuff.”
“Get out!”
“Hey, I never said I believe it.”
“Whatever.” I watched the guy in the coat as he set down his empty glass, strode towards the door and out into the night before turning back to Barry. Maybe it was the four pints I’d already downed, or maybe it was simple curiosity, I didn’t know, but I heard myself saying, “Y’know, I bet I could find out where their base is.”
“You?” Barry scoffed. “No way! You’re from London, mate, in case you’ve forgotten!”
“So what?”
“So you don’t know hardly anythin’ about Cardiff! You’ve only been here since Friday, and if nobody local can find it, what chance d’you think you’d have?”
“Dunno. Won’t know ‘til I try, will I? ‘Sides, it’ll give me somethin’ to do tomorrow while you’re workin’.” Barry had a job down on the docks.
“Don’t remind me! It’s alright for you, college boy. Most of us poor bastards gotta work for a livin’.”
“Suck it up; least you’re earnin’ a decent wage.” I grinned at him. “C’mon, next round’s on me.”
“Too right it is!”
It was several pints later and nearly one in the morning when I poured Barry into a taxi and staggered back to where I was staying, at a small hotel just round the corner from the convention venue. When I reached my room I collapsed onto the bed, fully dressed, and that was me done for the night.
Despite all the booze I’d drunk, I wasn’t so hungover the next morning that I didn’t remember the events of the night before. A cold shower, a couple of painkillers, and a few cups of strong, black coffee later, I left the hotel to wander the city, keeping a lookout for the guy in the long coat, or the big, black SUV Barry said Torchwood drove around in. The exercise did me good, chasing my headache away and settling my stomach so that by mid-afternoon I was starving. I bought fish and chips and a can of cola, then wandered down to the bay and stood leaning on the railings looking out over the water while I ate.
I was really starting to like Cardiff. The air was way fresher than London with all its traffic fumes, and the people seemed friendly. I’d just finished eating and was wondering where to go next when I saw him, the man in the coat, striding past as if he had important business to attend to. I grinned to myself. Ha! Got you now! Take that, Barry! Dumping my rubbish in a nearby bin, I watched as Torchwood’s head honcho headed down a ramp leading to a boardwalk, where he went inside a little tourist information place, tucked away down by the water.
Soon as he was out of sight, I followed, hesitating outside for a moment before cautiously pushing the door open and peering into the dimly lit interior. It looked like any other tourist information kiosk, with stacks of leaflets on the counter, racks of postcards, and shelves crammed with tourist tat, but aside from that the place was empty. There was nobody there, which was impossible. I knew I’d seen him come in, so where had he gone? There was only one possibility that I could see. Behind the counter was a bead curtain, so I shut the door behind me and went to take a look at whatever might be hiding back there, only to once again be disappointed. The tiny office area beyond the curtain was as empty as the rest of the place. It was as though the bloke I’d been following had vanished into thin air.
I was about to leave when I spotted the very conspicuous big, red button under the counter. I wondered if it might be a silent alarm, but why would a tourist office need one of those? It was doubtful the place made much money. I hesitated, chewing on my bottom lip as I tried to decide what to do, but… what the hell? You only live once, right? Besides, what was the worst that could happen? I’d get arrested for trespassing? Big deal.
Mind made up, I pressed the button, and whatever I was expecting, it sure as hell wasn’t what I got. Almost silently, a whole chunk of the brick wall at the back swung aside! My heart skipped a few beats, and I felt a little lightheaded. I’d only gone and done it, hadn’t I? I’d found Torchwood’s secret base! I could feel myself grinning like a lunatic. This was so cool!
Stepping into the opening, I followed a stone-walled passageway, then turned a corner and got yet another surprise. The tunnel ended at the kind of lift you’d find in pretty much any office building. It was so ordinary and familiar that it looked completely out of place. Maybe I should’ve turned back right then, but I’d already come this far, and I couldn’t bring myself to walk away without seeing the rest. Just wait ‘til I told Barry I’d succeeded where everyone else had failed! And he thought I couldn’t do it! Hah! Maybe I could snap off a couple of photos so I’d have proof. Buzzing with anticipation, I pressed the button to call the lift, figuring I could sneak in real quiet, keep out of sight, take a quick peek, and then get out. The Torchwood folks would never have to know I’d even been there.
Well, that was my grand plan. I dunno, maybe I was still a bit hungover and not thinking straight. I mean, secret base… Bound to have surveillance equipment, cameras and stuff, probably alarms too, right? Only I didn’t think about any of that, too busy congratulating myself on tracking down Torchwood’s lair, so when the lift reached bottom and the door opened, I was caught flatfooted.
As the massive cogwheel in front of me rolled to one side, lights started flashing, sirens blared so loud I had to cover my ears, and five people stopped what they were doing and turned to stare at me. Then the sirens abruptly cut off and a deafening silence fell that was almost worse than the racket of a few seconds earlier. I took my hands away from my ears but didn’t dare move from where I was standing. I wasn’t sure my legs would work.
“Hey there!” came a cheerful greeting from the guy in the coat; to my surprise he sounded American.
“Jack, did you leave the tourist office door unlocked again?” a guy in a three-piece suit asked mildly.
“Relax, Ianto. My Hub, my rules. I saw him watching me, wanted to see what he’d do.”
“Well, now you know. You do understand the words ‘secret base’, don’t you? It’s a bit difficult to maintain secrecy if you keep letting people find us.”
“Says the man who stalked me to get a job.” The American sounded amused.
The guy in the suit didn’t. “That was different; I already knew about Torchwood.”
“Um, maybe I should just leave.” I started inching my way backwards towards the lift.
“So soon? But you only just got here!” The American strode forward, smiling the widest, whitest smile I’d ever seen, and offering his hand. “Captain Jack Harkness. Welcome to Torchwood.”
What could I do? I fell back on the good manners me mum had drummed into me for the past nineteen years. “Er, thanks.” I shook the offered hand. “Eddie Hallam. Um, what’re you gonna do to me?” My sense of self-preservation belatedly decided to kick in and I wondered if my knees were knocking.
“Now there’s a question.” The smile grew impossibly wider.
“Jack, stop it; you’ll scar him for life. Sorry, he’s a dreadful flirt.” That was the guy in the suit again. Ianto, wasn’t it? Weird name. Had to be Welsh.
The American clasped his hands over his heart, a bit melodramatic but whatever. “You wound me. I thought I was a very good flirt.”
Don’t think I’d ever seen a grown man pout until then.
Ianto rolled his eyes. “You’ll flirt with anyone.”
“Jealous?” The pout morphed into a devious smirk,
One eyebrow rose, unimpressed. “Should I be?”
“’Ere, you two, stop makin’ googly eyes at each other; save that for the bedroom, when the rest of us don’t ave to see!” That was the third man in the room, a Londoner, like me. Small world.
“I’m not jealous, but I think Owen might be,” Ianto deadpanned.
“Fuck off, Jonesy.”
“Yep, definitely jealous.”
The playful banter seemed so normal I almost relaxed, but then there was a screech from above, and I looked up…
“Bloody hell!” Something that looked like a flying dinosaur glided by overhead.
“Don’t worry about Myfanwy,” said Jack. “She won’t hurt you. Well, not unless you’re carrying chocolate, then you might have to fight her for it. Now, why don’t I show you around? You’re already here; might as well see it all, and afterwards I’ll have Ianto make us coffee. Trust me, you’re gonna love it.”
I wasn’t sure whether he meant the tour or the coffee, but if the captain was willing to show me around, I wasn’t about to say no.
“Awesome! Lead the way!” Barry was never going to believe this in a million years!
OoOoOoO
I wake up in the small hotel room I’ve rented for the week, my head aching, and my mouth dry as the Sahara. There’s a vague memory nagging at the back of my mind and I try to hold onto it, but it slips away like smoke. Groaning, I drag myself out of bed, check my watch, and find it’s almost noon on Tuesday! Gods, I must’ve got really hammered! Last thing I remember is going out drinking with Barry after the convention, but that was Sunday night. Somehow I’ve lost a whole day!
I swear I’m never drinking that much ever again.
The End