Of Blood and Of RetCon- Act 1 Scene 1
Title- Of Blood and of RetCon // AU
Author- skullgirl013, (who else!)
Characters/Parings- Jack/Ianto, Lisa/Ianto, Owen/Tosh, Tom/Martha Rose/Jack and a cast of hundrends! (yes people I am that cheesy)
Rating- 13, will probably get higher as we go along.
Spoilers/Warnings- Hmmmm everything TW and DW could be hinted at, actually scratch that, EVERYTHING TW and DW WILL be hinted at!
As well as that this is based on Romeo and Juliet so if you don’t know the play then BEWARE!
Disclaimer- I do not, nor will I EVER own torchwood or Doctor who, I simply mess about with the characters and do god knows what with them!
I also don’t own Romeo and Juliet, that's owned by the man himself William Shakespeare! I just like to much about with that too haha!
Beta- The ever thorough and all round darling bassair!
Summary- Torchwood Cardiff and Torchwood London are always at each others throats, always have been, always will be.
But, can two men change that?
Authors Note- Ok so this is my first ever AU, and my first ever series, god thats alot of viginties to loose in one go, oh well we'll have to see how this goes, so all comments are really apreciated even if they're just to tell me that this is terrible
Dedicated to bassair, put_that_away, cherry_soup888, 2nd_toshikoand rowanheart24for all being so amazing and being behind me and my writing (no people...don't take it like that...)
Crash!!!!
The Doctor groaned and burrowed under the blankets again. He wasn’t getting up if he could help it, he was too comfortable and unless there was immediate danger he wasn’t moving, that was something he was he was firmly decided on.
There was another crash and the Doctor sighed again.
Only minutes ago the early morning fog had enveloped everything, thick and impenetrable, like a layer of snow covering the ground. But now that peace had been broken, forced apart by the stream of violent sounding noises flowing from outside and The Doctor had to face the fact that his time in bed was over. Still, the blankets of the TARDIS were much nicer than the screaming and constant banging that was coming from outside and he was reluctant to give up this little slice of peace.
The TARDIS nudged his mind, a gentle -if not particularly subtle- reminder of what he should be doing. The Timelord turned onto his other side, as though it would help him ignore her, unfortunately that’s not possible when the creature in question is connected though your mind,
Come on now, Doctor
“But ...but I was asleep!” The Doctor cried, indignantly. If the TARDIS had possessed eyes (which in her opinion was a shame; she wondered what eyes were like) she would have rolled them at the Timelord in front of her. The Doctor may have been over nine hundred years old but sometimes he was just so childish. It was part of his charm, she supposed.
The Timelord shut his eyes and mumbled something incompressible as he curled into a ball.
The TARDIS (who was already pretty agitated by just how close the noise was to her walls) decided enough was enough. The Doctor was getting up whether he wanted to or not. He was going to sort out whatever was happening if it was the last thing she did.
The TARDIS pulled back the covers and the Doctor squirmed as the cold air hit his skin, even through his pyjamas. The TARDIS laughed, the deep sound reverberating through the Doctor’s mind and making him feel a little dizzy. The Timelord pouted at a wall he was facing and the TARDIS tried to stifle her mental giggles.
Now come on, they’ll still be there when you get back
The Doctor gave a martyred sigh, and moved to clamber out of bed. He knew it was in his best interest to do so, he knew if he didn’t the TARDIS would hide all the coffee and leave him with decaf, and he knew she would too -she’d done it before.
The Timelord’s feet hit the floor with a mild thud and he shivered as the air hit him like a barrier.
If you’re lucky they might be warmed
The Doctor sped up considerably after this remark was made.
***
A couple of minutes later a rather bedraggled Doctor appeared through the TARDIS doors and into the main control room, still doing the top buttons on his shirt. The noises from outside were becoming louder and louder the longer the Doctor waited and he knew that he wasn’t going to be able to put it off for much longer.
The Timelord groaned under his breath at the revelation. Why did he agree to this job? He could be anywhere in the whole of space and time and yet he chose to stay on this little rock and play policemen for a bunch of apes? The Doctor shook his head, sometimes even he didn’t understand what went on in his head.
The man in question leant to the side slightly so his forehead was resting against the wall of the TARDIS. He sighed heavily, desperately trying to ignore the racket that was ensuing outside. The TARDIS sighed gently and reached out towards the other telepathist, wrapping the tendrils of her mind around his own, holding him in a sort of mock embrace. The Doctor hummed in contentment as a feeling of warmth enveloped him, flowing into every corner of his body, making every nerve ending tingle slightly. The TARDIS released him slightly, her tendrils skimming over his mind, searching gently for any source of discomfort, other than the stress from the noises coming from outside.
The Doctor sighed happily again; they hadn’t done this in a while, they used to, but then the TARDIS skimmed over something she shouldn’t have done and it all stopped, until now it seemed. When the TARDIS was happy she let him go and the Doctor whimpered in a decidedly unmanly fashion at the loss. He quite liked having the TARIDS in his mind, if done correctly, someone reaching into another's mind is not a breach of someone's privacy and safety, if both agree it can be one of the most wonderful things someone can experience.
Go on now, go be the Doctor, go do what you do best, I’ll still be here when you get back,
“Its the third time this week they’ve done this!” the Doctor muttered unhappily
I know, I know,
The Doctor banged his head against the wall of the TARDIS repeatedly,
Now, now we’ll have less of that.
The Timelord sighed once more, resigning himself to the fact that he had no choice in this, then pushed off the wall and walked over to the door.
“Wish me luck,” he said half-heartedly. The TARDIS’s reply was cut off as he swung the door open and stepped out into the harsh morning light.
The site that greeted the Doctor was not something he had been unprepared for, but that didn’t make it any more welcome.
There in the middle of the London street, were the two Torchwood factions. They weren't being civil, there was no talking with these people (that is unless you count the constant strings of curses) They were locked in a battle, well not so much a battle, that would imply dashing heroes and horses and all that jazz. No, this was just your regular street brawl, with the one exception.
These people were allowed guns.
The Doctor resisted the urge to go and whack his head on the TARDIS door.
He was really sick of this. Every day since Thursday he had been woken up by the sound of screaming and fists. He was almost tempted to just leave and let them get on with this brawling. After all it wasn’t really his problem, but he knew he couldn't do that, there had been enough deaths that he could have stopped, there wasn’t going to be anymore, not if he had anything to say about it.
The fighting continued, the fighters unaware of the Timelord’s presence. They continued to throw punches at each other, many were being thrown by faces that the Doctor had once described as friendly.
People wrestled each other to the floor in order the get the first punch and the Doctor shuddered as he spotted puddles of scarlet liquid creeping across the floor, like some demented river, its tributaries splitting away and coiling around the fighters feet.
The Doctor took a deep breath, preparing to make himself known to the mass of people. But he stopped as he noticed the two heads of Torchwood not far from where the fighting was taking place. Martha was holding onto Tom, stopping him from attacking Yvonne who, on the other hand, looked like she was fighting with herself. The Doctor smiled at Martha.
That's my girl.
The Doctor took yet another deep breath and shouted over the din, dearly hoping that his voice would be heard.
“Rebellious subjects! Enemies to the peace!” Apparently his voice had reached over the noise because every person in the street turned to look at him. All of them with bemused looks plastered on their faces. The Doctor grinned at them all, thrusting his hands into his pockets,
“Sorry, always wanted to say that!” There was pause, everyone looked between themselves as the Doctor made a full circle around the TARDIS, completely at a loss to explain the Timelord’s strange behaviour. When he came round the other side his expression had changed, it was no longer cheery, where there had at one point been good natured cheer, there was anger.
“And you lot!” he called out into the crowd, making his audience flinch. “This is the third time this week!” His audience had the good grace to look a little ashamed at least. “You don’t even know what you’re fighting over!” the Doctor shouted, exasperated. “I bet there's not one person here who can actually tell me!” There was silence, save for the whispers passing between the bystanders on the other side of the street.
The Doctor folded his arms across his chest and walked towards the heads of the institutes. Every face watched him as he passed, their eyes trained on his. As if watching them would give them all the answers, and perhaps they could, if you knew how to read them.
The possessive stance that had once been held by both factions faded as the Doctor reached the leaders of Torchwood. Even their noise died down as he approached, Tom relaxed slightly and allowed Martha to move next to him.
“Doctor I.......”
“I don't want to hear it, Martha” His tone was firm, but not unkind and Martha appreciated that, even in this state of annoyance at least the Doctor had enough composure to be able to treat his friend kindly. That's why Martha took a step back, leaving just Tom and Yvonne. She knew that she had gained that kind of respect from him because he trusted her and she didn’t want to take advantage of it,
Even if Tom didn’t look very happy about it.
There was stretch of silence, no one spoke. It was as if the whole world was holding its breath.
“I want this to stop.” the Doctor growled.
“But I......”
“Yvonne, I don’t want to hear your explanation, I know what you’re going to say and I don’t want to hear it.” The woman in question huffed and closed her mouth reluctantly. “This is to stop, you hear me?” The two nodded meekly, frightened by just how malevolent the Doctor sounded “Good, because if you don’t there will be hell to pay” Everyone’s eyes widened a little at that comment, the Doctor was unpredictable at the best of times, but when he was angry he was simply volatile. They all knew the capabilities that man had, and no one wanted to be on the receiving end of someone who had earned the name ‘The Oncoming Storm’. Suddenly the Doctor whirled around to face the rest of Torchwood
“And that goes for all of you!” He paused before adding under his breath “There’s enough death here, without you lot killing each other as well” The only person that heard that remark was Martha, who smiled sadly to herself before moving back towards Tom and letting him wind one arm around her shoulders, she wished the Doctor would stop carrying the world on his shoulders, but then she guessed when you’ve lived as long as him you do it without thinking, still she didn’t like him torturing himself like this.
“All of you leave, NOW!” Slowly the groups began to disperse.
Martha sighed disparagingly as she watched Yvonne stride away, her arm linked through a member of Torchwood London. She shook her head, silently despairing in the woman's lack of monogamy.
The Doctor shot Martha another smile before striding back towards the TARDIS, as he did he passed a petite, Japanese woman, who was hurrying in the other direction. Martha vaguely heard the sound of the TARDIS door snap shut before the young woman started to talk.
“Martha.....Tom I tried, really I did I promise but I...”
“Calm down, Tosh” Martha said grabbing the other woman's shoulders and shaking gently.
“Sorry Martha it’s just.....”
“You don’t need to apologise” Martha stopped for a second and looked Tosh over “you’re not hurt are you?”
“No, I’m fine Martha” Tosh replied evenly. Martha smiled gently, not sure whether she believed the young woman or not. Her eyes were drawn away from Tosh as she surveyed the scene around her. Even though all the fighters had gone there was still a throng of bystanders watching them.
“Come on,” Tom said quietly to the two women as he followed his fiancé’s gaze. “Lets go somewhere else.” He took Martha’s hand and started to tug her away, gently, she followed and Tosh wasn’t far behind.
***
“So what happened exactly?” Tom said as he took another sip of his coffee, watching for Tosh’s reaction. “Who started all this?” Tosh sighed and looked uneasily into her coffee “Tosh?” Tom prompted gently, Martha in turn rested her head on her cupped hands, waiting for an answer. Tosh looked up
“Well I’d just like to point out that Torchwood London started it!”
“I know, I know,” Tom soothed. ”But who was involved? Who on our side?” Tosh sighed heavily
“Gwen and Donna” She paused “They didn’t mean to, Its just they got into a fight with some of the London guys and well you know what those two are like” Tom nodded his agreement and Tosh carried on “I tried to stop them, I mean really I did but then Sebastian....” Tom and Martha grimaced together, they knew that if Sebastian had appeared then there was no chance of anyone -even Tosh who was an unusually good peacekeeper- from salvaging any remnants of peace from the situation.
Sebastian Jones was a cruel and unforgiving man, who only showed kindness to those in his family or to the people who paid him a high price for it. “And well one thing led to another and ....yeah, you know the rest”
For a while none of them spoke, there wasn’t anything they could say in reply to that, Martha moved her hands so one was lying on her lap and the other was covering Tom’s, he smiled gently in return and squeezed it. The only noises that could be heard in the small coffee shop were coming from the waiter as he pottered around the tables, blissfully unaware of what the people at the table were talking about.
“Where’s Jack?” The other two jumped a little when Martha spoke. Almost as if they had expected that silence to drift between them forever. “I’m glad he wasn’t involved in this, but I haven’t seen him today” A sad look crossed Martha’s pretty features “I haven’t seen much of him at all recently, it’s almost like he's avoiding me” Tom squeezed Martha's hand gently and she smiled at him, resting her head on his shoulder.
“Yeah, Martha I’ve seen him,” Tosh said, choosing to focus her attention on her coffee rather than the couple in front of her.
“And..?” Martha prompted “Is he ok? He’s not ill is he? God he’s probably got some 51st century disease he doesn’t want me to look at or...”
“MARTHA!” Tosh cried. “ Relax, he’s not avoiding you specifically”
“But he is ignoring me?”
“Yes but he’s ignoring everyone. I saw him this morning, he was by the Thames, he just wouldn’t talk to me, it was odd,” Tosh mused, taking another sip of her coffee.
Tom sighed, “I really wish he’d stop doing this”
“What do you mean?” Tosh said, tipping her head to the side slightly in a way that could only be described as adorable.
“Well everyone keeps saying this. They see him, he won’t talk to them and then he goes back to hub and crawls into his hole, then he doesn’t come out until the next day”
“Do you know why?” Tosh asked gently
“I wish I did, but no Tosh I don’t, no one does it seems” Tosh sighed and leant back in her chair, rubbing her hands over her eyes wearily
“Tosh?” Martha asked gently, the other woman looked up at Martha
“Hmm?”
“Would you go look for him?” Tosh opened her mouth to say something but closed it again as she considered the request. “Its just, I know you said he wouldn’t talk to you but your his best friend, if anyone can persuade him to talk its you.”
“Ok Martha, I’ll see what I can do.” Tosh stood up and grabbed her coat from where it was resting on the back of her chair “I’ll talk to you later,” she said as she slipped the coat around her shoulders, Martha stood up and hugged her quickly.
“Thanks for doing this it’s just...”
“You’re worried, it’s ok, we all are, I’ll talk to you later about it” Tosh shot the pair one last smile before heading out of the small coffee shop and into the busy street.
***
There was a wind blowing by the Thames and Tosh was forced to do up the buttons on her leather jacket as she reached the edge.
She and Jack often came here; you could see the entire of London from it, all the way to Canary Warf. This was where Tosh hoped she’d find Jack.
It hadn’t taken her long to work out that there was her best bet. Everywhere else was to obvious, Tom and Martha knew all of their other haunts after all. But Jack, Tosh and Owen kept this place a secret, it was there place, and they planned to keep it that way.
It was here that Tosh first spotted Jack; he was stood, facing the Thames, his grey coat wrapped tightly around himself. He seemed to be staring into the river, as if looking for something hidden within its murky depths. Tosh hurried towards him, he didn’t seem to notice her. And even as she spoke he seemed to only half notice, almost as if his mind was focused on something that didn’t even exist in this reality, which, Tosh mused, was entirely possible.
“Morning Jack,” she said in as cheery tone as possible , even with her teeth chattering again the harsh, unrelenting breeze.
“Is it really only morning?” Jack sighed, still keeping his eyes firmly fixed on the site before him.
“’Friad so. It’s just gone nine”
“Hmm, it seems later than that” Tosh moved over to his side, and tipped her head to the side slightly, as if it would help her to see what Jack was seeing.
“Why’s that?” she asked still staring at the spot Jack was. The older man hurriedly turned to look at Tosh, as if almost afraid that she would see something personal by looking at the same place as him. Well, that wasn’t likely, Tosh decided, all she could see was the Thames.
Jack sighed heavily,
“Everything seems longer when you’re alone”
“Hmm well you have me now,” Tosh said brightly, looping her arm though his. Jack smiled and rubbed her arm affectionately
“That's not what I mean”
“Then what do you mean Jack?” Tosh asked, a little annoyed.
“Well everything seems longer when you don’t have something to make the days shorter doesn’t it?”
“Ah..” Tosh said, the pieces clicking into place “who is it this time?”
“What?!” Jack jumped at Tosh’s words
“Who are you lusting after this time?” Jack huffed and Tosh rolled her eyes and sidled up to him “Come on Jack, I know you too well when you’re like this, now who is you’re lusting after?”
“I’m not lusting!” he said, more than a little annoyed “I’m in love” Tosh rolled her eyes again “It’s just, she doesn't love me back”
“Ooh, it’s she, eh?” she said nudging him playfully, Tosh knew Jack would swing either way given half the chance. But then this was Captain Jack Harkness, everyone knew his preferences. Jack looked at her, annoyed. Tosh sighed and rubbed his arm “Jack love is harsh, it seems so very nice but it’s really not.... take it from someone who knows” Jack smiled gently at her, he knew what she was getting at, he was one of the only people who knew about her crush on a certain friend of theirs.
“Hmm” Jack sighed turning to face her properly “So, you want to get something to eat? We could...” Jack trailed off as he noticed the spots of blood on Tosh’s hand. It looked like it was seeping from under her jacket. Without thinking he grabbed her arm and rolled her sleeve up, she didn’t have time to protest before Jack saw the cut that ran from her wrist to the crook of her elbow, it looked deep and Tosh winced as his finger brushed over it. Jack stared, transfixed for a moment as the blood trickled from out the darkness off Tosh’s body and into the stark light, the crimson liquid running down her nutmeg coloured arms. Before Jack could say anything Tosh wrenched her arm free and rolled down her sleeve.
“It’s nothing,” she said calmly, not looking Jack in the eye.
“Tosh that is not ‘nothing’!” Jack couldn’t keep the anger out of his voice. He was angry at both Tosh’s resistance and the thought that someone, or something, could have done this to one of his best friends.
“Jack, don’t worry about it! I’m fine!”
“No, you’re not! We need to sort that out! How did you get it, anyway!” Tosh looked at her feet, shifting uncomfortably. “Tosh?” Jack probed gently, his previous depression forgotten as he watched his young friend look up,
“It’s nothing,” she whispered, he voice almost lost over the harsh wind “I just.... I tired to stop a fight this morning and, well I think I made it worse” Jack nodded, he had heard the distinct sounds of a fight even from here. “And... well I ended up getting involved and someone from Torchwood London ran at me with a knife, I didn't see who but they caught me” Tosh looked back down at her feet again. Jack sighed and wrapped her arms around the younger woman
“We should get something done about that you know,” he whispered into her hair.
“ I know,” she whispered into his chest. Suddenly the mood changed, Tosh looked up, grinning. “So tell me about this girl” Jack stared at her for a moment, slightly dumbstruck. “Well? Is she blonde? Yeah, I bet she’s blonde, they’re always blonde, with you, if it’s not a man then it’s a blonde” Tosh was musing to herself as she pulled away from Jack, the man put a hand on her arm, “Tosh are you ok?” he enquired, disbelief of her sudden mood swing evident in his voice.
“Mhmmm,” she said, absently, before going back to what she had been saying before. “But come on Jack, do tell....” Jack grabbed her arms gently, Tosh just laughed and shrugged his hands off “come on, Jack, you know you want to tell me about it” Jack sighed
“And you know I don’t” Tosh rolled her eyes
“Come on Jack, you know I won’t leave you alone to wallow unless you do” Jack gave a martyred sigh,
“Her name’s Rose”
“Go on...”
“She’s beautiful, truly beautiful” Jack was looking back over the Thames again. “But she refuses to love anyone ....she says, says its to easy to get your heartbroken, so she refuses to even date anyone”
“So she’s sworn never to marry?”
“Yes”
“Never to have children?”
“Yup”
“So to be blunt she’s basically nothing”
“Ye-...Wait, what!?” Tosh laughed
“Oh come off it, Jack. She’s quite obviously boring, find someone new. Anyone” Jack stared at her, as if she was speaking gibberish. “Come on Jack, there are plenty of fish in the sea. Come find someone new. There are plenty of people who would love to get involved with you” She said with a smirk. Jack rolled his eyes and pushed at her playfully, Tosh dodged and Jack sighed, looking back over the river.
Tosh jumped in front of his vision.
“Aww come on Jack, there are a hundreds of people in London, do what you always do, grab one and-” she blushed “you know what I mean!”
“But Tosh, how can I forget about her? how can you forget about some too beautiful for words” Jack had that dreamy look on his face again, Tosh rolled her eyes and tugged at his sleeve.
“Come on Jack! Don’t blank out on me!” Jack was still staring at the Thames, Tosh huffed “Fine..” she said, in a an airy tone “I’ll have to deal with this cut on my own...” At this Jack snapped out and looked at her,
“Oh no you don’t, come on we’re going to Owen...”
“Now that's something I like to hear”
Ok people, so what do you think? FTL or FTW? Is it worth contiuing? Or should I just pack up my keyboard and go back to writng one-shots?
Author- skullgirl013, (who else!)
Characters/Parings- Jack/Ianto, Lisa/Ianto, Owen/Tosh, Tom/Martha Rose/Jack and a cast of hundrends! (yes people I am that cheesy)
Rating- 13, will probably get higher as we go along.
Spoilers/Warnings- Hmmmm everything TW and DW could be hinted at, actually scratch that, EVERYTHING TW and DW WILL be hinted at!
As well as that this is based on Romeo and Juliet so if you don’t know the play then BEWARE!
Disclaimer- I do not, nor will I EVER own torchwood or Doctor who, I simply mess about with the characters and do god knows what with them!
I also don’t own Romeo and Juliet, that's owned by the man himself William Shakespeare! I just like to much about with that too haha!
Beta- The ever thorough and all round darling bassair!
Summary- Torchwood Cardiff and Torchwood London are always at each others throats, always have been, always will be.
But, can two men change that?
Authors Note- Ok so this is my first ever AU, and my first ever series, god thats alot of viginties to loose in one go, oh well we'll have to see how this goes, so all comments are really apreciated even if they're just to tell me that this is terrible
Dedicated to bassair, put_that_away, cherry_soup888, 2nd_toshikoand rowanheart24for all being so amazing and being behind me and my writing (no people...don't take it like that...)
Crash!!!!
The Doctor groaned and burrowed under the blankets again. He wasn’t getting up if he could help it, he was too comfortable and unless there was immediate danger he wasn’t moving, that was something he was he was firmly decided on.
There was another crash and the Doctor sighed again.
Only minutes ago the early morning fog had enveloped everything, thick and impenetrable, like a layer of snow covering the ground. But now that peace had been broken, forced apart by the stream of violent sounding noises flowing from outside and The Doctor had to face the fact that his time in bed was over. Still, the blankets of the TARDIS were much nicer than the screaming and constant banging that was coming from outside and he was reluctant to give up this little slice of peace.
The TARDIS nudged his mind, a gentle -if not particularly subtle- reminder of what he should be doing. The Timelord turned onto his other side, as though it would help him ignore her, unfortunately that’s not possible when the creature in question is connected though your mind,
Come on now, Doctor
“But ...but I was asleep!” The Doctor cried, indignantly. If the TARDIS had possessed eyes (which in her opinion was a shame; she wondered what eyes were like) she would have rolled them at the Timelord in front of her. The Doctor may have been over nine hundred years old but sometimes he was just so childish. It was part of his charm, she supposed.
The Timelord shut his eyes and mumbled something incompressible as he curled into a ball.
The TARDIS (who was already pretty agitated by just how close the noise was to her walls) decided enough was enough. The Doctor was getting up whether he wanted to or not. He was going to sort out whatever was happening if it was the last thing she did.
The TARDIS pulled back the covers and the Doctor squirmed as the cold air hit his skin, even through his pyjamas. The TARDIS laughed, the deep sound reverberating through the Doctor’s mind and making him feel a little dizzy. The Timelord pouted at a wall he was facing and the TARDIS tried to stifle her mental giggles.
Now come on, they’ll still be there when you get back
The Doctor gave a martyred sigh, and moved to clamber out of bed. He knew it was in his best interest to do so, he knew if he didn’t the TARDIS would hide all the coffee and leave him with decaf, and he knew she would too -she’d done it before.
The Timelord’s feet hit the floor with a mild thud and he shivered as the air hit him like a barrier.
If you’re lucky they might be warmed
The Doctor sped up considerably after this remark was made.
***
A couple of minutes later a rather bedraggled Doctor appeared through the TARDIS doors and into the main control room, still doing the top buttons on his shirt. The noises from outside were becoming louder and louder the longer the Doctor waited and he knew that he wasn’t going to be able to put it off for much longer.
The Timelord groaned under his breath at the revelation. Why did he agree to this job? He could be anywhere in the whole of space and time and yet he chose to stay on this little rock and play policemen for a bunch of apes? The Doctor shook his head, sometimes even he didn’t understand what went on in his head.
The man in question leant to the side slightly so his forehead was resting against the wall of the TARDIS. He sighed heavily, desperately trying to ignore the racket that was ensuing outside. The TARDIS sighed gently and reached out towards the other telepathist, wrapping the tendrils of her mind around his own, holding him in a sort of mock embrace. The Doctor hummed in contentment as a feeling of warmth enveloped him, flowing into every corner of his body, making every nerve ending tingle slightly. The TARDIS released him slightly, her tendrils skimming over his mind, searching gently for any source of discomfort, other than the stress from the noises coming from outside.
The Doctor sighed happily again; they hadn’t done this in a while, they used to, but then the TARDIS skimmed over something she shouldn’t have done and it all stopped, until now it seemed. When the TARDIS was happy she let him go and the Doctor whimpered in a decidedly unmanly fashion at the loss. He quite liked having the TARIDS in his mind, if done correctly, someone reaching into another's mind is not a breach of someone's privacy and safety, if both agree it can be one of the most wonderful things someone can experience.
Go on now, go be the Doctor, go do what you do best, I’ll still be here when you get back,
“Its the third time this week they’ve done this!” the Doctor muttered unhappily
I know, I know,
The Doctor banged his head against the wall of the TARDIS repeatedly,
Now, now we’ll have less of that.
The Timelord sighed once more, resigning himself to the fact that he had no choice in this, then pushed off the wall and walked over to the door.
“Wish me luck,” he said half-heartedly. The TARDIS’s reply was cut off as he swung the door open and stepped out into the harsh morning light.
The site that greeted the Doctor was not something he had been unprepared for, but that didn’t make it any more welcome.
There in the middle of the London street, were the two Torchwood factions. They weren't being civil, there was no talking with these people (that is unless you count the constant strings of curses) They were locked in a battle, well not so much a battle, that would imply dashing heroes and horses and all that jazz. No, this was just your regular street brawl, with the one exception.
These people were allowed guns.
The Doctor resisted the urge to go and whack his head on the TARDIS door.
He was really sick of this. Every day since Thursday he had been woken up by the sound of screaming and fists. He was almost tempted to just leave and let them get on with this brawling. After all it wasn’t really his problem, but he knew he couldn't do that, there had been enough deaths that he could have stopped, there wasn’t going to be anymore, not if he had anything to say about it.
The fighting continued, the fighters unaware of the Timelord’s presence. They continued to throw punches at each other, many were being thrown by faces that the Doctor had once described as friendly.
People wrestled each other to the floor in order the get the first punch and the Doctor shuddered as he spotted puddles of scarlet liquid creeping across the floor, like some demented river, its tributaries splitting away and coiling around the fighters feet.
The Doctor took a deep breath, preparing to make himself known to the mass of people. But he stopped as he noticed the two heads of Torchwood not far from where the fighting was taking place. Martha was holding onto Tom, stopping him from attacking Yvonne who, on the other hand, looked like she was fighting with herself. The Doctor smiled at Martha.
That's my girl.
The Doctor took yet another deep breath and shouted over the din, dearly hoping that his voice would be heard.
“Rebellious subjects! Enemies to the peace!” Apparently his voice had reached over the noise because every person in the street turned to look at him. All of them with bemused looks plastered on their faces. The Doctor grinned at them all, thrusting his hands into his pockets,
“Sorry, always wanted to say that!” There was pause, everyone looked between themselves as the Doctor made a full circle around the TARDIS, completely at a loss to explain the Timelord’s strange behaviour. When he came round the other side his expression had changed, it was no longer cheery, where there had at one point been good natured cheer, there was anger.
“And you lot!” he called out into the crowd, making his audience flinch. “This is the third time this week!” His audience had the good grace to look a little ashamed at least. “You don’t even know what you’re fighting over!” the Doctor shouted, exasperated. “I bet there's not one person here who can actually tell me!” There was silence, save for the whispers passing between the bystanders on the other side of the street.
The Doctor folded his arms across his chest and walked towards the heads of the institutes. Every face watched him as he passed, their eyes trained on his. As if watching them would give them all the answers, and perhaps they could, if you knew how to read them.
The possessive stance that had once been held by both factions faded as the Doctor reached the leaders of Torchwood. Even their noise died down as he approached, Tom relaxed slightly and allowed Martha to move next to him.
“Doctor I.......”
“I don't want to hear it, Martha” His tone was firm, but not unkind and Martha appreciated that, even in this state of annoyance at least the Doctor had enough composure to be able to treat his friend kindly. That's why Martha took a step back, leaving just Tom and Yvonne. She knew that she had gained that kind of respect from him because he trusted her and she didn’t want to take advantage of it,
Even if Tom didn’t look very happy about it.
There was stretch of silence, no one spoke. It was as if the whole world was holding its breath.
“I want this to stop.” the Doctor growled.
“But I......”
“Yvonne, I don’t want to hear your explanation, I know what you’re going to say and I don’t want to hear it.” The woman in question huffed and closed her mouth reluctantly. “This is to stop, you hear me?” The two nodded meekly, frightened by just how malevolent the Doctor sounded “Good, because if you don’t there will be hell to pay” Everyone’s eyes widened a little at that comment, the Doctor was unpredictable at the best of times, but when he was angry he was simply volatile. They all knew the capabilities that man had, and no one wanted to be on the receiving end of someone who had earned the name ‘The Oncoming Storm’. Suddenly the Doctor whirled around to face the rest of Torchwood
“And that goes for all of you!” He paused before adding under his breath “There’s enough death here, without you lot killing each other as well” The only person that heard that remark was Martha, who smiled sadly to herself before moving back towards Tom and letting him wind one arm around her shoulders, she wished the Doctor would stop carrying the world on his shoulders, but then she guessed when you’ve lived as long as him you do it without thinking, still she didn’t like him torturing himself like this.
“All of you leave, NOW!” Slowly the groups began to disperse.
Martha sighed disparagingly as she watched Yvonne stride away, her arm linked through a member of Torchwood London. She shook her head, silently despairing in the woman's lack of monogamy.
The Doctor shot Martha another smile before striding back towards the TARDIS, as he did he passed a petite, Japanese woman, who was hurrying in the other direction. Martha vaguely heard the sound of the TARDIS door snap shut before the young woman started to talk.
“Martha.....Tom I tried, really I did I promise but I...”
“Calm down, Tosh” Martha said grabbing the other woman's shoulders and shaking gently.
“Sorry Martha it’s just.....”
“You don’t need to apologise” Martha stopped for a second and looked Tosh over “you’re not hurt are you?”
“No, I’m fine Martha” Tosh replied evenly. Martha smiled gently, not sure whether she believed the young woman or not. Her eyes were drawn away from Tosh as she surveyed the scene around her. Even though all the fighters had gone there was still a throng of bystanders watching them.
“Come on,” Tom said quietly to the two women as he followed his fiancé’s gaze. “Lets go somewhere else.” He took Martha’s hand and started to tug her away, gently, she followed and Tosh wasn’t far behind.
***
“So what happened exactly?” Tom said as he took another sip of his coffee, watching for Tosh’s reaction. “Who started all this?” Tosh sighed and looked uneasily into her coffee “Tosh?” Tom prompted gently, Martha in turn rested her head on her cupped hands, waiting for an answer. Tosh looked up
“Well I’d just like to point out that Torchwood London started it!”
“I know, I know,” Tom soothed. ”But who was involved? Who on our side?” Tosh sighed heavily
“Gwen and Donna” She paused “They didn’t mean to, Its just they got into a fight with some of the London guys and well you know what those two are like” Tom nodded his agreement and Tosh carried on “I tried to stop them, I mean really I did but then Sebastian....” Tom and Martha grimaced together, they knew that if Sebastian had appeared then there was no chance of anyone -even Tosh who was an unusually good peacekeeper- from salvaging any remnants of peace from the situation.
Sebastian Jones was a cruel and unforgiving man, who only showed kindness to those in his family or to the people who paid him a high price for it. “And well one thing led to another and ....yeah, you know the rest”
For a while none of them spoke, there wasn’t anything they could say in reply to that, Martha moved her hands so one was lying on her lap and the other was covering Tom’s, he smiled gently in return and squeezed it. The only noises that could be heard in the small coffee shop were coming from the waiter as he pottered around the tables, blissfully unaware of what the people at the table were talking about.
“Where’s Jack?” The other two jumped a little when Martha spoke. Almost as if they had expected that silence to drift between them forever. “I’m glad he wasn’t involved in this, but I haven’t seen him today” A sad look crossed Martha’s pretty features “I haven’t seen much of him at all recently, it’s almost like he's avoiding me” Tom squeezed Martha's hand gently and she smiled at him, resting her head on his shoulder.
“Yeah, Martha I’ve seen him,” Tosh said, choosing to focus her attention on her coffee rather than the couple in front of her.
“And..?” Martha prompted “Is he ok? He’s not ill is he? God he’s probably got some 51st century disease he doesn’t want me to look at or...”
“MARTHA!” Tosh cried. “ Relax, he’s not avoiding you specifically”
“But he is ignoring me?”
“Yes but he’s ignoring everyone. I saw him this morning, he was by the Thames, he just wouldn’t talk to me, it was odd,” Tosh mused, taking another sip of her coffee.
Tom sighed, “I really wish he’d stop doing this”
“What do you mean?” Tosh said, tipping her head to the side slightly in a way that could only be described as adorable.
“Well everyone keeps saying this. They see him, he won’t talk to them and then he goes back to hub and crawls into his hole, then he doesn’t come out until the next day”
“Do you know why?” Tosh asked gently
“I wish I did, but no Tosh I don’t, no one does it seems” Tosh sighed and leant back in her chair, rubbing her hands over her eyes wearily
“Tosh?” Martha asked gently, the other woman looked up at Martha
“Hmm?”
“Would you go look for him?” Tosh opened her mouth to say something but closed it again as she considered the request. “Its just, I know you said he wouldn’t talk to you but your his best friend, if anyone can persuade him to talk its you.”
“Ok Martha, I’ll see what I can do.” Tosh stood up and grabbed her coat from where it was resting on the back of her chair “I’ll talk to you later,” she said as she slipped the coat around her shoulders, Martha stood up and hugged her quickly.
“Thanks for doing this it’s just...”
“You’re worried, it’s ok, we all are, I’ll talk to you later about it” Tosh shot the pair one last smile before heading out of the small coffee shop and into the busy street.
***
There was a wind blowing by the Thames and Tosh was forced to do up the buttons on her leather jacket as she reached the edge.
She and Jack often came here; you could see the entire of London from it, all the way to Canary Warf. This was where Tosh hoped she’d find Jack.
It hadn’t taken her long to work out that there was her best bet. Everywhere else was to obvious, Tom and Martha knew all of their other haunts after all. But Jack, Tosh and Owen kept this place a secret, it was there place, and they planned to keep it that way.
It was here that Tosh first spotted Jack; he was stood, facing the Thames, his grey coat wrapped tightly around himself. He seemed to be staring into the river, as if looking for something hidden within its murky depths. Tosh hurried towards him, he didn’t seem to notice her. And even as she spoke he seemed to only half notice, almost as if his mind was focused on something that didn’t even exist in this reality, which, Tosh mused, was entirely possible.
“Morning Jack,” she said in as cheery tone as possible , even with her teeth chattering again the harsh, unrelenting breeze.
“Is it really only morning?” Jack sighed, still keeping his eyes firmly fixed on the site before him.
“’Friad so. It’s just gone nine”
“Hmm, it seems later than that” Tosh moved over to his side, and tipped her head to the side slightly, as if it would help her to see what Jack was seeing.
“Why’s that?” she asked still staring at the spot Jack was. The older man hurriedly turned to look at Tosh, as if almost afraid that she would see something personal by looking at the same place as him. Well, that wasn’t likely, Tosh decided, all she could see was the Thames.
Jack sighed heavily,
“Everything seems longer when you’re alone”
“Hmm well you have me now,” Tosh said brightly, looping her arm though his. Jack smiled and rubbed her arm affectionately
“That's not what I mean”
“Then what do you mean Jack?” Tosh asked, a little annoyed.
“Well everything seems longer when you don’t have something to make the days shorter doesn’t it?”
“Ah..” Tosh said, the pieces clicking into place “who is it this time?”
“What?!” Jack jumped at Tosh’s words
“Who are you lusting after this time?” Jack huffed and Tosh rolled her eyes and sidled up to him “Come on Jack, I know you too well when you’re like this, now who is you’re lusting after?”
“I’m not lusting!” he said, more than a little annoyed “I’m in love” Tosh rolled her eyes again “It’s just, she doesn't love me back”
“Ooh, it’s she, eh?” she said nudging him playfully, Tosh knew Jack would swing either way given half the chance. But then this was Captain Jack Harkness, everyone knew his preferences. Jack looked at her, annoyed. Tosh sighed and rubbed his arm “Jack love is harsh, it seems so very nice but it’s really not.... take it from someone who knows” Jack smiled gently at her, he knew what she was getting at, he was one of the only people who knew about her crush on a certain friend of theirs.
“Hmm” Jack sighed turning to face her properly “So, you want to get something to eat? We could...” Jack trailed off as he noticed the spots of blood on Tosh’s hand. It looked like it was seeping from under her jacket. Without thinking he grabbed her arm and rolled her sleeve up, she didn’t have time to protest before Jack saw the cut that ran from her wrist to the crook of her elbow, it looked deep and Tosh winced as his finger brushed over it. Jack stared, transfixed for a moment as the blood trickled from out the darkness off Tosh’s body and into the stark light, the crimson liquid running down her nutmeg coloured arms. Before Jack could say anything Tosh wrenched her arm free and rolled down her sleeve.
“It’s nothing,” she said calmly, not looking Jack in the eye.
“Tosh that is not ‘nothing’!” Jack couldn’t keep the anger out of his voice. He was angry at both Tosh’s resistance and the thought that someone, or something, could have done this to one of his best friends.
“Jack, don’t worry about it! I’m fine!”
“No, you’re not! We need to sort that out! How did you get it, anyway!” Tosh looked at her feet, shifting uncomfortably. “Tosh?” Jack probed gently, his previous depression forgotten as he watched his young friend look up,
“It’s nothing,” she whispered, he voice almost lost over the harsh wind “I just.... I tired to stop a fight this morning and, well I think I made it worse” Jack nodded, he had heard the distinct sounds of a fight even from here. “And... well I ended up getting involved and someone from Torchwood London ran at me with a knife, I didn't see who but they caught me” Tosh looked back down at her feet again. Jack sighed and wrapped her arms around the younger woman
“We should get something done about that you know,” he whispered into her hair.
“ I know,” she whispered into his chest. Suddenly the mood changed, Tosh looked up, grinning. “So tell me about this girl” Jack stared at her for a moment, slightly dumbstruck. “Well? Is she blonde? Yeah, I bet she’s blonde, they’re always blonde, with you, if it’s not a man then it’s a blonde” Tosh was musing to herself as she pulled away from Jack, the man put a hand on her arm, “Tosh are you ok?” he enquired, disbelief of her sudden mood swing evident in his voice.
“Mhmmm,” she said, absently, before going back to what she had been saying before. “But come on Jack, do tell....” Jack grabbed her arms gently, Tosh just laughed and shrugged his hands off “come on, Jack, you know you want to tell me about it” Jack sighed
“And you know I don’t” Tosh rolled her eyes
“Come on Jack, you know I won’t leave you alone to wallow unless you do” Jack gave a martyred sigh,
“Her name’s Rose”
“Go on...”
“She’s beautiful, truly beautiful” Jack was looking back over the Thames again. “But she refuses to love anyone ....she says, says its to easy to get your heartbroken, so she refuses to even date anyone”
“So she’s sworn never to marry?”
“Yes”
“Never to have children?”
“Yup”
“So to be blunt she’s basically nothing”
“Ye-...Wait, what!?” Tosh laughed
“Oh come off it, Jack. She’s quite obviously boring, find someone new. Anyone” Jack stared at her, as if she was speaking gibberish. “Come on Jack, there are plenty of fish in the sea. Come find someone new. There are plenty of people who would love to get involved with you” She said with a smirk. Jack rolled his eyes and pushed at her playfully, Tosh dodged and Jack sighed, looking back over the river.
Tosh jumped in front of his vision.
“Aww come on Jack, there are a hundreds of people in London, do what you always do, grab one and-” she blushed “you know what I mean!”
“But Tosh, how can I forget about her? how can you forget about some too beautiful for words” Jack had that dreamy look on his face again, Tosh rolled her eyes and tugged at his sleeve.
“Come on Jack! Don’t blank out on me!” Jack was still staring at the Thames, Tosh huffed “Fine..” she said, in a an airy tone “I’ll have to deal with this cut on my own...” At this Jack snapped out and looked at her,
“Oh no you don’t, come on we’re going to Owen...”
“Now that's something I like to hear”
Ok people, so what do you think? FTL or FTW? Is it worth contiuing? Or should I just pack up my keyboard and go back to writng one-shots?