Princes and Pawns Chapter 11

[teachwriteslash]

Chapter 11


The first couple of weeks together, the team spent working with and training the new arrivals. Each morning, Jack would pair off one of the new arrivals with a veteran, determined that all members of the team would know as much about the workings of Torchwood as possible. Gwen’s accusations that he had left them knowing nothing still echoed through his mind and fed his guilt. His original team seemed to understand that Jack was trying to guard against that ever happening again.


They quickly learned that having Owen and Methos work together for long periods was inviting disaster. Despite both of them having medical training, they sparred constantly and the verbal battles often became nasty. Twice, Mac and Jack had to separate them.


The second time, Methos appeared to be trying to strangle Owen. “Okay,” Jack shouted while Mac held the ancient back and Gwen restrained Owen. “Clearly I have to add ‘throttling the staff is Jack’s job’ to the training manual.” He turned to glare at the medic. “I seem to have to instruct every new team member that they can’t actually kill you.”


“What’s a little attempted strangulation,” Owen retorted, shrugging out of Gwen’s hold. “Teaboy shot me.”


“I’ve apologised for that,” Ianto reminded him from where he was standing near Tosh. “Next time, I’ll aim lower and assure selective breeding,” he added, turning on his heel as the others laughed and Owen sputtered angrily.


Tosh, on the other hand, really enjoyed working with all three of the new arrivals, especially after MacLeod mentioned having spent extended time in Japan and Adam showed her exactly how he had defeated her elaborate firewalls.


What nearly caused their first disaster was Gwen’s constant flirting with Mac. Jack might have been relieved that she wasn’t pestering him – especially since she always seemed to misunderstand his attentions – until Ianto alerted him to a potential problem.


“I think Methos may be plotting to kill Gwen,” the Welshman said as he sauntered into Jack’s office.


“Owen plots that daily and I’m sure the reverse is true,” Jack replied, frowning when he realised that the Welshman was empty-handed. “Coffee?” he asked, with his best pleading expression.


“After you talk to Gwen,” Ianto said, crossing his arms in front of his chest. “She’s practically sitting in Mac’s lap and he’s too polite to do anything about it. Methos keeps testing the sharpness of his dagger. He doesn’t like her, and he doesn’t trust her, especially after Owen let slip about their little ‘thing’.”


“Why would he ... never mind, Owen likes to stir up trouble,” Jack replied, shaking his head. “Gwen flirts. It’s what she does; she’s like me in that way. It doesn’t mean anything. You know that. You’ve never worried about it when she flirts with me.”


Ianto laughed a bit bitterly. “What Gwen does with you is not flirting; it’s practically putting herself on a platter naked.” He stopped when he saw the concern on Jack’s face. “The difference is that I know that even if a part of you wants Gwen, you won’t act on it because she has Rhys and you respect that. Methos doesn’t know Gwen well enough to realise that she will always go back to Rhys, because she needs him.”


Jack wasn’t going to argue about a small part of him wanting Gwen; a part of him wanted just about everyone he ever met. He’d acted on many of those impulses, but far fewer had resulted in real relationships of the type he was trying to build with Ianto. There was a difference in how he felt about Ianto and how he felt about Gwen that the Welshwoman would never quite understand. “What do you want me to do?” he asked Ianto, knowing he would not get coffee or anything else until he solved the problem.


“Talk to her,” Ianto responded, walking out of the office and flinching when Jack’s bellow of, ‘Gwen. My office’, echoed through the Hub.


~


An hour later, Ianto was showing Methos the more intricate functions of the archiving software. The ancient Immortal was paying close attention and had one arm companionably draped over Ianto’s shoulders. They both looked up when Gwen stormed out of Jack’s office, grabbed her things and left.


Jack came into the main part of the Hub a moment later, his narrowed eyes causing Methos to drop his arm. “Ianto, I could do with that coffee now. I sent Gwen home to spend some time with Rhys.”


“Probably best,” Ianto replied, straightening his waistcoat. “Coffee, Adam?” he asked.


“I’d like that,” Adam replied with a genuine smile, watching fondly as the Welshman walked away.


He turned back to find Jack standing very close to him. “What the hell?” he demanded, a steely look in his eyes that would have deterred anyone other than Jack Harkness.


“Funny thing,” Jack began quietly, though his voice was harsh. “I was reprimanding Gwen for being rude by flirting with a committed man – your partner. She seemed to think I needed to look closer to home. Of course, I just assumed that was Gwen misreading things, but then I come down here to find you draped across Ianto and looking at him in a decidedly more than friendly way. Now, normally it’s none of my business who anyone sleeps with, but Ianto’s one of my team and he’s young. He’s also had his share of heartbreak. You’ve got MacLeod, and anyone can see you love him, so don’t play with Ianto. He deserves better.”


Methos just stared at Jack, and then shook his head. “Keep telling yourself you don’t care who he sleeps with Jack, and he’ll slip right through your fingers again without a magic reset to fix it.” With that, he turned on his heel and left the main part of the Hub, leaving Jack staring after him.


After his bizarre conversation with Methos, Jack decided that he wanted to give Ianto a true night out – a nice dinner and maybe a film. Tosh agreed to watch the Rift, backed up by their new recruits, provided Owen and Gwen weren’t around to cause trouble. “I’ll call them if I need them,” Tosh said firmly. “But I am not a childminding service.” Laughing, Jack promised her an Owen and Gwen-free night unless the world ended.


Late that night, Jack and Ianto had fallen asleep at Ianto’s flat after a quiet dinner, a film on the sofa, and a couple of rounds of slow, satisfying sex. Jack growled when he heard his mobile chirp. Scrambling out of bed quickly, he found the offending device. His face screwed up at the text.


J- Time we talked alone. Meet me at Bute Dock. A


“Something wrong?” Ianto asked sleepily as he sat up in bed. The sheets pooled around his waist, giving Jack a lovely view of pale skin that made him want to ignore the message, even when his gut told him he couldn’t.


“Just a Weevil alert,” he lied smoothly as he fastened the trousers he’d quickly clambered into. Sitting on the edge of the bed, he pulled on his boots. “Methos is going, but it’s his first time so I want to lend a hand.”


“I’ll get dressed,” Ianto said, moving to untangle himself from the sheets.


“No,” Jack replied, resting a hand on his shoulder and giving it a squeeze. “Stay and sleep. You need it. I’ll come back as soon as we’re done; I promised you breakfast in the morning.”


“You don’t have to ...” Ianto began, but found his reply cut off by a soft kiss.


“I know,” Jack said when they broke apart. “I want to.”


Within a couple of minutes, he was dressed and gone, leaving Ianto smiling bemusedly in a bed that still smelt of both of them.






Next Part

Comments here .