Let the {Games} Begin (Open)

[Gwen Cooper]

“Ok. Be super careful that the armed and dangerous criminal doesn’t get close enough to kiss me. But why is he here? Did you stop him from what he wanted last time. After you were saved, obviously.”

Gwen looked at the screen, thoughtfully. Liz had posed an excellent question. Why was John back? He was a bad penny and if he even thought of hurting Torchwood she would kill him herself and damn Jack.

“I’m not sure. I mean, we stopped him the first two times he came here. The second time was worse. The second time he…” she had to stop doing this. If Liz was going to work with them she needed to know the truth.

Gwen turned her seat, slightly, to face Liz better.

“What I’m going to tell you is all on file, so if anyone asks, you read it. I may never be able to tell you this again because it…” she closed her eyes and took a deep breath. “It hurts.”

“Last time John Hart was here, he brought with him Jack’s brother Gray. Gray had issues, again, you can read the file. He was angry with Jack and tried to destroy everything Jack loved. We lost two of our family that night. Doctor Owen Harper,” she said, pointing at the photo that was tacked to her monitor, “and Toshiko Sato. They were my friends, we were a family. You’ll see how close you will become with us. You can’t help it. You get attached because we can’t ever share what we know with the outside world. So you lean on the people who understand what you are seeing, experiencing and they become your family.”

John was involved in the destruction of Cardiff, all a part of Gray’s plan to hurt Jack. He tried to help us in the end, but Jack made him leave. I will never forgive John Hart, for as long as I live. I don’t know if Jack feels the same way. Suffice it to say that they have a history and it is twisted. John pines after Jack and Jack promptly kicks him like the dog he is. Unfortunately, John gets off on the abuse.”

She thought about Hart and his flirtatious ways. She could see the draw in him but she also knew what he was capable of, or she refused to underestimate what he was capable of. Either way, she trusted him as far as she could spit and Gwen Cooper spit like a girl.

A sound from behind her made her startle. She turned to the stairwell that led to the vaults and paused. Her eyes narrowed but then she smiled. The scent of Jack wafted to her from the forced air that was pumped into the Hub from the vent by the stairs. Even if she couldn’t smell him, the noise they were making was echoing from the stairwell and into the Hub.

She cleared her throat, loudly. “Boys, can we pretend to be professional? If I can’t go home to shag Rhys at any hour, you can’t have little liaisons. Remember, I’m the one trying to get pregnant so if any of us is to be getting a leg over it should be me.” The smile on her face was crystal clear in her voice.

[Elizabeth Wright]

Liz bit her lip as Gwen told the story of her two former colleagues. The pain in the woman’s voice was crystal clear. It hurt her to speak of them, and Liz felt terrible for asking about it. So that was what this job was like. You gained family and way too young, you lost family. It all seemed rather painful, and Liz felt her stomach give a nervous flip as she discovered what had happened to the man who’s footsteps she had been hired to fill.

She had to admit, it didn't give you confidence to find out that you were replacing a dead man.

"I'm so sorry" she said quietly, chewing her lip. the words referred both to bringing it up, and for the deed itself. Losing someone was a horrible thing, and being left on this side to think about it every day, was even worse.

She started as a banging from the stairs brought her from her thoughts, and she spun to face the stairs, relaxing as she heard Gwen's voice from her side, and saw the girls smile.
Liz blushed a little as she realised the culprit of the banging.

[wrenfelidae]

Jack smiled at Ianto when he mentioned Liz and Gwen, pushing his away softly. Of course, being Jack Harkness, the first thought that popped into his mind was why not invite them down with us?; but if he had said that little bit aloud then Ianto would have most definitely gone back up the stairs in a pout and Jack wouldn’t get any.

And the both of them knew they needed each other right about… Jack judged his level of “must have love”, and gauged the percent around 86 or so. He had a few minutes to chat up the girls and pull a ninja move so he and Ianto could move down into the vaults.

He couldn’t wipe the grin off his face before walking out to meet the girls, although he tried, and motioned Ianto to follow. Hopefully, the other man would get the hint that he had a plan. A bad plan, a non-thought-out plan, but he figured you had to try in order to get stuff right.

He cleared his throat and put his hands in his pockets, his braces still hanging loosely against his legs and shirt partly unbuttoned, showing a white wife-beater. It was un-tucked, he looked unprofessional, but right now, he didn’t feel like he should care. Yeah, he was the boss, and Liz was new, she would need to see him take control of situations, be a leader, all of that, but right now… He was pretty content with Liz seeing him this way. And Gwen… well…

Jack looked Gwen over slyly, making sure she wouldn’t be able to see the movements of his eyes. He’d always been attracted to Gwen, even after she had married Rhys (actually, probably more since she’d been married; hitched women were more of a challenge, and Jack Harkness wasn’t afraid to go the distance). But he respected Gwen. And she was happy. So he was content with just looking… besides, he had a handsome eye candy loitering around behind him.

He glanced over his shoulder and Ianto and gave his a quick wink before returning his attention back to the girls. “What’s wrong with a little liaison every now and again?” His smile and guttural laugh were trying to force themselves out, pinching against his cheeks. He looked over at Liz, who was blushing slightly, her pretty pale face tinted rose. Jack lifted his chin at her, eyes hooded. Percent level was now around 90. “She looks like she could use one or two.” He raised an eyebrow and turned back to Gwen, his smile escaping through his forced straight lips. One of his hands slithered from his pocket and moved behind him, motioning towards the staircase down into the vaults. Hopefully, Ianto was paying more attention to Jack's ass than he was the conversation, so he could slip away and Jack could follow suit. But you never knew with Ianto; he could have been intently listening to the babble spewing from Jack's somewhat gravely voice.

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[Gwen Cooper]

Gwen looked up at Jack and Ianto as they entered the main Hub. Jack looked properly debauched and Gwen could see he’d put on his ‘professional you-didn’t-hear-anything face’. Except, he was looking perfectly dishevelled and when he forced himself to not smile, the urge to do so was overwhelming.

Gwen beamed up at him, her large eyes even wider. She missed nothing. She knew that they shared an attraction that could never be acted upon. No matter how much she would love to know what it would feel like to run her hands over his chest, to be pushed up against a stone wall, the full weight of him pressing her back into the brick until it hurt but she couldn’t care because she was too busy being assaulting by his very scent and the tangle of his hair in her fingers. She visibly shook her head from her thoughts, catching the way Jack had looked her over.

“What’s wrong with a little liaison every now and again?” he asked.

She tried to ignore the odd movements his body made, his hands behind his back.

“Nothing wrong with it, only that it doesn’t show a good impression on the young-blood. I’m sure I would have been a bit put-off by you if you hadn’t-” acted as if you had wanted me. Might not have tried so hard to shine in your presence if you hadn’t given me that impression, she thought, quickly before finishing her original sentence, “-behaved yourself.”

She cut her eyes to Ianto, trying to read his usual un-readable face before turning back to Jack. “Besides, aren’t you the one who has always promoted discreet behaviour? If you had been a bit quieter you and Ianto could be halfway through a gorgeous shag and we wouldn’t have been the wiser.” She turned to face Liz and in a loud conspiratorial voice said, “I’ll show you how to use the CCTV. We just lost out on a good show.” Gwen then turned and stuck her tongue out at Jack.