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beckymonsterAct I - Act II - Interval - Act III
All warnings and notes can be found in the Master Post
There was someone sitting in Lisa’s chair when she got into work that morning.
“Oi, you, shift!” she said, brusquely pointing to a spot that wasn’t her chair.
“And hello to you too!” Adeola Oshido muttered sarcastically as she vacated her friend’s desk chair. “Coffee machine out this morning?”
“No, finding rumourmongering best friends sitting at my desk, waiting for me to arrive will do that!” Lisa noted, a smile leavening the sting of her words as she set her handbag and take-out coffee onto the desk.
Adeola did her best to look wounded. Lisa wasn’t impressed. “I wasn’t going to spread rumours, I was going to spread the truth!” she exclaimed, watching Lisa settle into her chair, rummaging through her bag for the necessary details of the day. Hairbrush, mirror, staff pass, phone.
Lisa sighed deeply. “There is nothing to tell,” she commented, her hands stilling in the guts of her handbag for a moment. She looked up at Adeola, who was now perched on the edge of her desk, right by the Canteen’s PAYE forms folder.
Adeola raised an eyebrow. “That’s not what I heard from Sun in Payroll!”
“So you’d rather trust the word of some blabbermouth in Payroll over your supposed best friend?” Lisa sniped, some heat in her voice.
“No!” Adeola replied, meaning it. “Why do you think I’m here?” she asked, crossing her arms over her chest, the fabric of her dark suit bunching up. “Sake of my health?”
Lisa sighed heavily. “Not that anyone’s gonna believe me. Bar Ianto-”
“Bar Ianto,” Adeola parroted, leaning forward.
“It was Captain Jack Harkness of Torchwood: Cardiff and I made him a coffee. It would have been rude not to as I was in there to make one for myself and-”
“And?” Adeola prompted, eager for more.
Lisa shrugged her shoulders. “That’s all I can tell you. American accent, wears an RAF greatcoat and likes well brewed coffee.”
“So you didn’t ask him why he’s here, whether he’s the Captain Harkness that Torchwood: London has records of going back to the late 1800’s? Whether he’s actually met the Legendary Doctor?” Adeola groused, moving her hands to her hips.
“No, because my mother brought me up better than to pepper a complete stranger with unasked for questions, when all they want is a coffee and directions!”
“What am I ever going to do with you?” Adeola asked rhetorically, shaking her head.
Lisa gave the matter consideration for a moment. “Meet me for coffee, usual time?”
Adeola rolled her eyes and nodded. “If I must. Oh! This was on your desk.” she said handing over a handwritten envelope.
“Thanks,” Lisa noted dryly. She slid her finger under the flap to slit it open, pulling out a single sheet of paper.
“Well?” Adeola asked, her curiosity obvious. If she couldn’t find out any more about Captain Harkness, then perhaps she could find out about Lisa’s ‘admirer’.
“Nothing!” Lisa replied, smiling a little too sharply at her friend. The message was intended for her and her alone. An invite to lunch, at noon and could she bring more coffee from yesterday. It was unsigned but Lisa had already figured out who was doing the asking.
“Be that way then,” Adeola noted, no heat in her tone. “I’ll see you at coffee?”
“Coffee then,” Lisa replied contritely. “If it was something important I’d tell you.” she offered as a salve. “You know that don’t you?”
“Coffee!” Adeola replied heading for the door. They were still good.
***
Come noon Lisa was wondering what the blue blazes had possessed her to agree to Harkness' request. By the time she had nipped into the tea room to make the requested flask of coffee,she'd considered chickening out at least twice. Yet something stopped her from hiding in the canteen and propelled her down to the foyer to her meeting with Harkness.
To Ianto, later that night, she'd say it was pure curiosity - to see if the rumours she'd heard about Harkness were all true, if nothing else. It was a truth of sorts.
The cavernous glass and steel foyer of Torchwood: London was packed with smartly dressed office workers and white coated scientists as Lisa exited the lift. Everyone moved with purpose, if their duties and destinations held the safety of the world in their power. In some cases, they did.
Taking a deep breath, she walked slowly into the main space, looking for her lunch date. Wondering again, whether she hadn’t finally gone around the twist.
Lisa spotted an available seat and sat down; all the better to give some respite to her aching feet. Wearing her new stillettos for work had seemed like such a good idea this morning. Now she was regretting it and would be for at least the rest of the week if the screaming pain signals emanating from her feet were anything to go by. Still, she had her ballet flats in her desk drawer and half the plaster counter from Boots there too; so she'd at least be able to get home without leaning on Ianto too much after work.
She was considering the etiquette of pulling her book from her bag when she heard the noise level in the foyer drop, a sure sign that something had caught everyone’s attention. Only a few things could do that and they were usually all bad news.
Lisa glanced around to see what the issue was before she spotted Harkness exiting the lift, two steps behind Director Hartman.
"And I'm telling you again, Yvonne, this whole plan will not work!" Harkness exclaimed, his voice loud and clear over the restrained hubbub of the foyer.
"I don't see why you are so concerned, Jack," Yvonne Hartman, director of Torchwood London asked as she moved with a grace and sureness (on killer black heels, no less) that Lisa could only dream of through the foyer. Nodding in acknowledgement to various staff as she passed. Pointedly not taking much notice of the man walking behind her. "It's not as if we will be needing the services of your motley quartet to clear up after us." She turned to face him, all perfectly styled hair and suit, "Or should that be 'trio' now?"
Even from where she was sitting, Lisa could see the flash of pain of Hartman's barb hit Harkness deep. She winced in sympathy for this strange man with whom she'd shared coffee to and passed the time of day with. Any loss of life in the course of duty was a terrible thing; but it cut him deeper than that. Perhaps she'd ask him about that over lunch; ask who it was what had they had meant to him.
"That was a low blow, Yvonne," Harkness ground out, "Even for you."
Hartman shrugged her shoulders. "Return to Cardiff, captain, I shall call for you when Torchwood: London needs you to clear up after us." she said as she strode out of the main doors into the hubub of Canary Wharf at lunchtime, pausing at the threshold to ease a pair of sunglasses onto her face.
Lisa was so busy watching the byplay that she didn’t realise that there was someone standing next to her until they coughed politely.
“Ianto!” she exclaimed, looking up to see her smartly suited boyfriend standing there. “I didn’t see you.” she explained.
“I could see that,” Ianto noted, a dry note to his tone. “I was wondering if you were free for lunch. Grab a sandwich from Pret and go sit in the park. Enjoy the sunshine while we can. Wimbledon starts next week, y’know.”
It was a tempting offer. Any other day, Lisa would have said yes, but she could see Harkness look her way a questioning look on his face. She nodded before turning back to her partner.
“Ianto, I should have told you this morning, I have a business lunch.” It wasn’t a lie, just giving the truth a bit of a tweak.
Ianto nodded, his expression falling slightly. Lisa noticed the small change, her heart clenching in the process. Again she wondered if she was making the right decision. “I’ll share all the gory details with you tonight?” It wasn’t much of a salve but it was all she had to offer.
He nodded, offering her a small smile. “Chicken Caesar salad for tea?” he asked.
Lisa smiled up at him, resting a hand on his chest. "Why, Mr Jones, you certainly know how to spoil a girl!" she said, smiling widely at him. She was standing him up for a complete stranger and he was happy to cook her favourite dish. Defintely a keeper.
"See you tonight then," Ianto said, a small smile on his lips as he leant forward to peck her on the cheek.
"Same time, same Bat channel!" Lisa replied, dropping her hand to let him walk away from her. She could see Harkness walk slowly toward her as Ianto walked straight past him, giving him a slight nod to acknowledge his presence, since the captain was the stuff of Legend around Torchwood: London.
That in turn caused Harkness to glance back, an appreciative smile on his face before he turned his attention soley back to her. It was then that Lisa remembered one of the rumours she'd heard about Harkness; that he swung both ways, flirting outrageously (at very least) with both boys and girls. The thought made her smile, if he ever tried it on with Ianto, she wanted to be there, with a camera. Photos or it never happened.
"Miss Hallett," Harkness began, nodding his head in acknowledgement.
"Captain Harkness," Lisa replied,returning his greeting. She hefted the stainless steel flask out of her handbag. "I have the coffee you requested."
He smiled at her, a smile that made Lisa think of toothpaste commercials, cool and brilliant, before gesturing to the rapidly opening and closing foyer doors. "Shall we?"
"We shall." She led him, with a smile, into the bright June sunshine.
***
When Jack Harkness said that they would be having lunch in Greenwich Park, Lisa thought he was joking.
He wasn't.
That much was certain by the time he had ushered her into the glasshouse-like heat of the DLR train. She knew she could have protested but innate curiosity stopped. She wanted to know more about this strange man and the member of his team who had died. Kicking up a fuss wouldn't get her that information, whereas improvising would.
A quick phonecall to McKenna helped. Impromptu meeting with Captain Harkness of Torchwood: Cardiff to discuss his team's PAYEs. Middlesborough had cocked it up, blah blah blah. Her boss harrumphed and grudgingly agreed. As she disconnected the call, Lisa wondered what on earth Harkness and his team had done to annoy all of Torchwood: London, even the HR department.
She was slotting her phone back into her handbag when she noticed Harkness's expression. It was as if she'd passed some kind of test; part pleased, part measuring.
"You could have lied, you know," Harkness noted in a conversational tone.
"Could have," Lisa agreed "But given the good weather, bending the truth and saying that I have a meeting is going to go further than lying and saying that I've come down with a stomach bug," she explained as Harkness nodded. "We've got a *lot* of that going on at the moment. It gets worse when there are major sports fixtures or good weather." She shrugged and raised her hands, pointing to herself. "I can get away with that excuse today because I like the shade I am, I don't need to change it," she joked.
Harkness laughed before replying, "someone as beautiful as you doesn't need the embellishment."
Lisa snorted, "I bet you say that to all the girls!"
Harkness' smiled. It was a warmer smile than the one she'd seen in the foyer. "To all the boys too!"
Lisa glanced out of the window, feeling herself heat up with something akin to embarrassment. She'd spoken more out of reflex than anything else. The whole conversation was skirting too close to territory that had no place at work. So she turned to watching the river, residential areas and strangely named stations pass by. "So I've heard," she murmured.
***
Greenwich Park was bustling as much with truanting school kids and office workers sunning themselves on their lunchbreaks as tourists visiting the Old Naval College and the Observatory when Lisa and Captain Harkness walked through the ornate gates.
In other circumstances, Lisa knew she would have appreciated that detail; no one would take any notice of an office drone gone AWOL being accompanied by someone who looked like he had stepped off the set of Pearl Harbour. Well, she would have if her feet weren't killing her; which they were.
Still, she kept it together long enough to direct Harkness to the Queens House and the benches at the back of the complex that looked out from under the Georgian architecture to the sloping hill topped by the Observatory sparkling in the sunshine.
Out of the corner of her eye, she could see Harkness look at her, questions in his eyes. "How are your feet holding up?" he asked, as they sat down on the sun-warmed wood.
"Is it that obvious?” Lisa ground out, surprised that Harkness had noticed. Ianto only ever noticed that she was ever having problems when she started to swear up a blue streak as to just how much agony she was in.
"Only if you've ever tried it yourself," Harkness replied as he patted the pockets of his greatcoat for something.
"You've had occasion to wear four inch stilettos?" Lisa asked incredulously, wondering if she could make it to the Pavilion cafe without crying. After all Harkness had promised her lunch and not only was she in pain but hungry too. It never made for a good combination.
Harkness grinned as he set the rucksack onto the stone floor. "Indeed I have and perhaps one day I'll tell you the full story," he said as he stuck his hand into his pocket and pulled out something that, on first glance, looked like a tin of Vaseline. "But for now, use this on your feet."
"Not before you tell me what it is!" Lisa said, grimacing as her feet screamed in pain as the pressure of being on her feet lifted. The pain didn't abate but simply throbbed insistently.
"I'm not quite sure what it's originally called," Harkness commented as she took the tin from him and turned it in her hands. She'd called it right, it was a Vaseline tin, but one from the 1950s - which kind of fit with the rest of the retro image. What she saw when she opened the tin was nothing like she'd ever seen before.
"It's neon green," she noted quietly. Working for human resources may have meant that Lisa was away from the 'business' end of Torchwood but it didn't mean that she didn't know what their business was.
"But it's safe for humans and it's an excellent cure for minor injuries," Harkness explained, "Owen, who's Torchwood: Cardiff's medic, calls it 'Snotolene'."
Lisa hissed in pain as she eased her feet out of her shoes. Harkness' reputation was for many things but being a sociopath wasn't one of them. If it helped her walk back to the DLR without bursting into tears from the pain, then she was going to take it.
She scooped some of the green goo onto her fingers and leant forward to rub it onto her abused feet. The change was instantaneous. The pain vanished as if a switch had been flipped, instead a feeling of relief remained.
"Oh!" she sighed quietly as she ran her fingers over her now cured feet. "Oh..."
"Told you it was good stuff," Harkness noted as he turned away to pull open the rucksack he had been carrying. "Keep a hold of it, it might come in handy later."
"Thank you." Lisa replied, meaning it. "You're too kind."
Harkness snorted. "Don't think you'll be saying that after lunch," he said as he proffered her a pre-packed sandwich from Tesco. "Torchwood: Cardiff's 'entertainment' budget doesn't stretch to Waitrose, I'm afraid!"
Lisa laughed as she pulled the coffee flask from her bag along with the orange plastic cup she had pinched from the tea room earlier. "Right now, I don't really care, I could eat a horse!" she said, pouring a cup of coffee for him and one for herself.
“You’re most probably wondering why I invited you to lunch,” Harkness noted as he took the proffered coffee with a nod.
“That and wondering why you had to drag me all the way to Greenwich,” Lisa commented as she ripped her sandwich open. “There are plenty of decent places for impromptu picnics at Canary Wharf you know,” she noted as she bit into her sandwich.
Harkness shrugged. “I know the setting isn’t quite what it could be but there are damn good reasons,” he explained as he set the coffee down on the bench between them and opened up his own sandwich.
“Such as?” Lisa asked, curiousity raising it’s head again.
“Such as walls have ears," Harkness noted as he took a bite of his sandwich. "And I'm not just talking about One Canada Square either."
Lisa nodded. "And what those walls hear tends to be distorted as it travels faster than light." she remarked wryly, remembering the scurrilous rumours that Ianto had told her all about last night - the ones that Adeola was so ‘interested’ in clearing up.
A warm, wide smile was Harkness' response. "Nothing you can't handle?"
She smiled back. "Nothing I can't handle. You should take it as a compliment, Captain. Last time the gossip mill went into overdrive like that was...."
"The last time I stopped by Torchwood: London!" he noted, laughing. Lisa joined in the laughter; it was after all, true. "So what did the gossip mill have to say?"
"Variations on the theme of you and I *not* sharing coffee in the tea room but going at it like rabbits in the broom cupboard," she replied, rolling her eyes.
"Oh, I wouldn't say no," Harkness stated, taking a sip of coffee.
Lisa couldn't help it, she started to giggle helplessly. Granted, the Captain was hot but- "I have a boyfriend!" she replied, once her laughter had subsided.
"The hottie in the suit in the foyer?" he asked. Lisa nodded, grinning; she was so going to tell Ianto that tonight. "I like threesomes." She was sure that his reaction would be memorable.
"I'll keep that in mind," Lisa noted dryly. Fit and he knew it, she thought before asking, "So, other than escaping the all pervasive gossip mill and not being heard by the walls, why did you drag me out here?" She shrugged her shoulders, "Not that I'm complaining, it's a lovely day and apart from the aching feet..."
I want to offer you a job.” Harkness stated, cutting her off.
The sandwich that had been in Lisa’s hand fell out of it and onto the stone paving below; an opportunistic husky dog ran over and bolted down said sandwich before Lisa (or its owner) had realised what had happened.
“Beg your pardon?” Lisa replied faintly. She was sure that her hearing was playing up. Harkness wasn’t offering her a job... was he? She was just a lowly HR officer, she wasn't a scientist or a field agent. She was support staff for pity's sake!
“You heard me,” he said calmly. “I’m offering you a job.”
Lisa closed her eyes and took a deep breath to calm herself before opening her eyes again. She wasn’t hearing things, she hadn’t fallen into an alternative reality, she was minus a sandwich but she could handle that.
“What sort of job?” she asked. It couldn't hurt to ask. “And why me?”
Harkness studied her for a moment before he began to speak. “I’m in need of a new Executive Officer, an XO,” he said. “Someone I can trust to deal with the day to day running of Torchwood: Cardiff.”
“Something happened to your team,” Lisa noted as she picked up her coffee, slowly as not to spill it. The pieces fell into place, starting with Director Hartman’s cutting words.
Harkness looked to the ground, not meeting her eyes. “You heard Yvonne taking potshots then.” he observed sadly, turning the coffee cup in his hands. “Her name was Suzie Costello. She was an excellent XO, a good friend and a fine human being. I’ll miss her.”
“She died.” Harkness went on, looking up at Lisa. Answering the question that was on her lips. “It was supposed to be just another clean up operation for Torchwood: London and...” he stopped and turned his head away from her.
“I’m sorry for your loss,” Lisa murmured as she reached out to gently rest a hand on his arm.
Harkness placed his own over hers. “Thank you.” he said sincerely as he gently took her hand into his. He squeezed it for a moment before letting her go and turning to face the Observatory ahead, resolutely placing One Canada Square, known to both of them as Torchwood: London at his back.
"I don't mean to sound crass, but what does an Executive Officer do." Lisa slowly asked, shifting around on the bench to face away from the London skyline. "And more to the point, why me?"
"In answer to the question ‘why you?’," Jack said, draining his coffee, "Lisa Mercy Hallett, born 1982 in Leytonstone, London. Second child of five. No criminal record. Academically very bright, first child in the family to go to university. Upper second class honours degree in psychology from Aston University-”
Lisa dropped her eyes at just how many details Harkness knew about her. Yes, it was all pretty much public record but when a near stranger rattled it off it was... unnerving to say the least.
“Recruited to the Civil Service out of university, you specialized in Human Resources and two years ago, you were headhunted by Torchwood.” Jack cocked his head at her. “Am I missing anything?”
“No,” she murmured faintly.
“As to what you would be doing, come to Cardiff for a couple of days and find out." He reached into his rucksack and pulled out a padded envelope, which he handed over to her. "All the details you'll need"
"You seem very sure that I’ll actually say *yes*." Lisa said as she filed the envelope away in her handbag for examination later. A quick peek had revealed train tickets and printouts. "I have a life here, a good job-"
"That bores you," Harkness cut in. "I read your last evaluation."
Lisa's jaw dropped. "Those are confidential!" she snapped. "Not to mention kept on the most secure parts of the London mainframe-"
"Which my tech specialist managed to get to in about..." Harkness paused a moment before continuing, "Three minutes - she spent more time trying to search out the right candidates for me to speak to than getting past the firewalls."
“There were others?” Lisa asked, curiosity and competitiveness colouring her tone.
Harkness nodded his head with a grin. “There *were*” he stressed, “But now you’ve passed the final test, the job is yours for the asking.”
Lisa shook her head, “Final test?” she asked, “I don’t understand.”
“Do you honestly think that I was really that lost when I stumbled into the tea room yesterday?” Harkness asked.
Lisa considered the question. She shook her head. “I guess not,” she admitted.
“I wasn’t due to be in London until yesterday.” he said. “It gave me an opportunity to see if any of the candidates were worth pursuing.”
Lisa raised her eyebrows “In a manner of speaking!” he amended.
“Of the four I was looking at, you were the only one who actually gave me the time of day and gave me some excellent coffee.”
“Thank Ianto for the coffee,” Lisa noted with a smile, “He’s the coffee expert, not me.”
“Is he now?” Harkness commented, raising his eyebrows, before carrying on. “My team is real small. I need to know that the people I recruit are going to get on with me and the team I already have.”
“That’s a fair call,” Lisa replied, nodding. “So was all of this some kind of follow-on interview?”
Harkness smiled widely at her. “Yup, it was.” he stated. “The lunch date was part to see if you were willing to take a chance and also to see what you’d do in that situation.”
“The situation where you pretty much kiddnap me?” Lisa asked sarcastically.
“Pretty much!”
“I do ask one thing before you sign on the dotted line,” Harkness said, a serious expression on his face.
“Which is?”
“That you come to Cardiff, see it for your own eyes, not through the eyes of the lovely Ianto,” Harkness explained, “There are things you need to see before you say yes.”
Lisa nodded. “That’s fair.” she agreed.
Harkness’ expression was sombre as he nodded. “Let’s just hope that you don’t regret it.”
***
The sun was beating down on Mermaid Quay, Cardiff, as Lisa Hallett walked down the ramp to the quayside bench just outside the ratty old Tourist Office. In one hand she had a take away coffee, in the other a chocolate ice cream cone.
It was the work of a few moments for her to settle herself onto the bench. Coffee, handbag and denim jacket piled up beside her as she pulled her sunglasses down over her eyes and settled down to enjoy her ice cream.
Any of the tourists walking by to catch the ferry into town would have seen a beautiful black woman, dressed in a brightly coloured tea dress and white plimsolls, enjoying the sun, the view of Cardiff Bay and her ice cream.
What they weren’t to know was that she was also lost in thought over what she had seen and heard earlier in the day.
A heavy tread on the wooden quay told her that she was not alone. Without turning her gaze from the Bay, Lisa lifted the takeaway coffee up and proffered it to the interloper.
“Thank you.” the interloper replied politely, taking the offered coffee before sitting down next to her.
“It’s from the little coffee shop up on the main parade,” Lisa commented, nibbling on the cone of her ice cream. “I know better than to buy you Starbucks.”
“It looks like penalties for England again in the football,” Ianto Jones noted as he sat down next to her. He was comfortably dressed in chinos and white t-shirt, cotton bikers jacket slung over his arm; presentable but not overly smart. “I overheard it on the radio that they had on in the office.”
“Do I look bothered, Ianto?” Lisa asked, turning to face him, peering over the rim of her sunglasses.
He smiled at her, a beautiful boyish smile. “No, but I know you like to be aware of these things.”
“More like you enjoy gloating.” she shot back. “Save it for Monday, after they lose, sweetheart,” she mumbled before taking another lick of ice cream.
“Or to taunt everyone in archives and research with it over the e-mail,” he commented as he took a sip of coffee.
“Ianto Jones, you can be a nasty bugger when you choose to be.” Lisa noted, shaking her head, her words leavened by the warmth in her tone.
“I thought that was one of the reasons why you love me.” he commented as he leant towards her.
“You have your moments,” Lisa noted as she turned her head to kiss him gently on the lips, “Not many of them, but you do have them.”
“Coffee and Empire Strikes Back quotes, doesn’t get much better than this,” he said, putting his arm around her.
“I’ve made a decision,” Lisa announced as she felt the cool drip of ice cream run down her hand.
“You’re going to accept the captain’s offer,” Ianto said placidly,
She paused and stared at him for a moment, her hand halfway to her mouth so she could lick the melted dessert off her fingers,
“Am I that bleedin’ obvious?” she demanded.
Ianto shrugged and offered her a small, placating smile. “Only to those who love you.” he said, pulling a hankie out of his pocket. “You made your decision when the captain explained about the island.”
Lisa took the hankie with a nod and a smile. “Ianto, I...” she paused, scrabbling for the words to express what she had felt at what she’d seen, “I can’t stand by when I know I can help.” She glanced down at the hankie in her hand before stuffing it under a shoulder strap and licking her fingers, Ianto wrinkled his nose up in mock disgust, which made her laugh uproariously, sending the seagulls flapping away.
“I’ve always known that... there were ‘loose ends’,” she said slowly, her tone serious. Picking her words so very carefully, lest anyone overhear their conversation, “You’d hope that those who make the decisions would make... allowances,”
“Not so much,” Ianto commented, taking her hand into his and squeezing it gently. He knew exactly what she meant. He had seen the records; of Torchwood: London’s encounters with aliens and with ordinary people who had gotten into extraordinary situations through no fault of their own. It didn’t make for pleasant reading.
“And yet, there are those who do make allowances” Lisa mused. “And I want to get involved.”
She’d made her mind up the moment the Captain had told her about Flat Holm and about the work that Torchwood: Cardiff did. Picking up the pieces left behind by London but also running the hospital/hospice/centre for those who were too broken to return to the lives they had before. It wasn’t pretty and she sure as hell wasn’t a nurse but someone had to help those who London callously regarded as ‘collateral damage’. Might as well be her.
“So, when are you going to tell him?” Ianto asked, staring out at the Bay.
“When I’ve spoken to you,” she said, looking down at the pier. This was the part that she’d been dreading from the moment that Harkness had offered her the post. Discussing her future with the man she wanted to spend the rest of her life with.
A future she might have to consider without him by her side.
“Then I’d better have made my decision by then too,” Ianto said, sipping at his coffee.
Lisa frowned. “What decision?” She couldn’t remember Ianto being given any different information than she had been. Yes, Harkness had invited him to accompany her. As a member of Torchwood: London, Ianto was entitled to visit Cardiff if he so wished and if Cardiff were in agreement. That and he made for an excellent tour guide of his home city.
It was Ianto’s turn to look away. “You know there was a letter addressed to me at the hotel’s reception when we checked in yesterday?”
Lisa nodded, it had struck her as being a bit strange but not out of the ordinary. She had done it herself for visiting consultants and other dignitaries.
“Well, it was Captain Harkness offering me the post of archivist and general support manager for Torchwood: Cardiff.”
“I didn’t know they needed one!” Lisa blurted out, she shook her head and squeezed Ianto’s hand. “What does a general support manager do?” she asked, her professional curiousity kicking in.
“Apart from take orders from the executive officer?” he asked.
“Well I can vouch that you do that well enough!” Lisa commented, grinning like a fiend but waving at him to carry on with what he was saying.
“I think his exact words were, when we talked about this earlier were: ‘To make fantastic coffee and look good in a suit’ He told me that I came recommended,” Ianto noted dryly, “You wouldn’t happen to know anything about that do you?”
Lisa threw a hand up (the other still held her nearly eaten ice cream) “All I told him was that you were the coffee specialist, not me,” she said. “As for the suit, he saw that for himself!”
Ianto dropped his head but Lisa could see the tell-tale flush flowing up his cheeks.
“Lisa, he really wants you to say ‘yes’, I can only go on what you’ve told me about the pay and conditions but he wants you to take the job,” he counselled. “I’m being recruited as an incentive.”
She shook her head as she finished her ice cream. “He really didn’t have to do that,” she noted. “I was ready to say ‘yes’ the day he asked!”
“I had kinda guessed that but I still wanted to make sure that you both played nice with the other children and you knew what you were letting yourselves in for ”
Lisa and Ianto both turned towards Captain Jack Harkness, striding towards them from the Tourist Office.
“And the verdict is?” Lisa asked, peering over her sunglasses at him.
“The jobs are yours,” Harkness replied, opening his arms expansively.
“I’m saying ‘yes’ only if she does,” Ianto deadpanned, gesturing to her.
“That’s because your job is dependent on her saying ‘yes’!” Harkness commented, “Though if you make coffee like that all the time, I will come to London and kidnap you anyway. Lisa?”
She took a deep breath before replying; almost as if she was preparing herself to dive off the highest board at her local swimming baths. Just like she always did before she did something that she knew scared her but was going to do it anyway.
“Yes.” she said, loudly and clearly. Not caring if the crowd outside the ice cream parlour could hear her. “I accept your offer.” she added, holding her hand out to shake on the deal.
Harkness took her hand, holding it in a firm grip. “Welcome to Torchwood: Cardiff.”
Act II
All warnings and notes can be found in the Master Post
There was someone sitting in Lisa’s chair when she got into work that morning.
“Oi, you, shift!” she said, brusquely pointing to a spot that wasn’t her chair.
“And hello to you too!” Adeola Oshido muttered sarcastically as she vacated her friend’s desk chair. “Coffee machine out this morning?”
“No, finding rumourmongering best friends sitting at my desk, waiting for me to arrive will do that!” Lisa noted, a smile leavening the sting of her words as she set her handbag and take-out coffee onto the desk.
Adeola did her best to look wounded. Lisa wasn’t impressed. “I wasn’t going to spread rumours, I was going to spread the truth!” she exclaimed, watching Lisa settle into her chair, rummaging through her bag for the necessary details of the day. Hairbrush, mirror, staff pass, phone.
Lisa sighed deeply. “There is nothing to tell,” she commented, her hands stilling in the guts of her handbag for a moment. She looked up at Adeola, who was now perched on the edge of her desk, right by the Canteen’s PAYE forms folder.
Adeola raised an eyebrow. “That’s not what I heard from Sun in Payroll!”
“So you’d rather trust the word of some blabbermouth in Payroll over your supposed best friend?” Lisa sniped, some heat in her voice.
“No!” Adeola replied, meaning it. “Why do you think I’m here?” she asked, crossing her arms over her chest, the fabric of her dark suit bunching up. “Sake of my health?”
Lisa sighed heavily. “Not that anyone’s gonna believe me. Bar Ianto-”
“Bar Ianto,” Adeola parroted, leaning forward.
“It was Captain Jack Harkness of Torchwood: Cardiff and I made him a coffee. It would have been rude not to as I was in there to make one for myself and-”
“And?” Adeola prompted, eager for more.
Lisa shrugged her shoulders. “That’s all I can tell you. American accent, wears an RAF greatcoat and likes well brewed coffee.”
“So you didn’t ask him why he’s here, whether he’s the Captain Harkness that Torchwood: London has records of going back to the late 1800’s? Whether he’s actually met the Legendary Doctor?” Adeola groused, moving her hands to her hips.
“No, because my mother brought me up better than to pepper a complete stranger with unasked for questions, when all they want is a coffee and directions!”
“What am I ever going to do with you?” Adeola asked rhetorically, shaking her head.
Lisa gave the matter consideration for a moment. “Meet me for coffee, usual time?”
Adeola rolled her eyes and nodded. “If I must. Oh! This was on your desk.” she said handing over a handwritten envelope.
“Thanks,” Lisa noted dryly. She slid her finger under the flap to slit it open, pulling out a single sheet of paper.
“Well?” Adeola asked, her curiosity obvious. If she couldn’t find out any more about Captain Harkness, then perhaps she could find out about Lisa’s ‘admirer’.
“Nothing!” Lisa replied, smiling a little too sharply at her friend. The message was intended for her and her alone. An invite to lunch, at noon and could she bring more coffee from yesterday. It was unsigned but Lisa had already figured out who was doing the asking.
“Be that way then,” Adeola noted, no heat in her tone. “I’ll see you at coffee?”
“Coffee then,” Lisa replied contritely. “If it was something important I’d tell you.” she offered as a salve. “You know that don’t you?”
“Coffee!” Adeola replied heading for the door. They were still good.
***
Come noon Lisa was wondering what the blue blazes had possessed her to agree to Harkness' request. By the time she had nipped into the tea room to make the requested flask of coffee,she'd considered chickening out at least twice. Yet something stopped her from hiding in the canteen and propelled her down to the foyer to her meeting with Harkness.
To Ianto, later that night, she'd say it was pure curiosity - to see if the rumours she'd heard about Harkness were all true, if nothing else. It was a truth of sorts.
The cavernous glass and steel foyer of Torchwood: London was packed with smartly dressed office workers and white coated scientists as Lisa exited the lift. Everyone moved with purpose, if their duties and destinations held the safety of the world in their power. In some cases, they did.
Taking a deep breath, she walked slowly into the main space, looking for her lunch date. Wondering again, whether she hadn’t finally gone around the twist.
Lisa spotted an available seat and sat down; all the better to give some respite to her aching feet. Wearing her new stillettos for work had seemed like such a good idea this morning. Now she was regretting it and would be for at least the rest of the week if the screaming pain signals emanating from her feet were anything to go by. Still, she had her ballet flats in her desk drawer and half the plaster counter from Boots there too; so she'd at least be able to get home without leaning on Ianto too much after work.
She was considering the etiquette of pulling her book from her bag when she heard the noise level in the foyer drop, a sure sign that something had caught everyone’s attention. Only a few things could do that and they were usually all bad news.
Lisa glanced around to see what the issue was before she spotted Harkness exiting the lift, two steps behind Director Hartman.
"And I'm telling you again, Yvonne, this whole plan will not work!" Harkness exclaimed, his voice loud and clear over the restrained hubbub of the foyer.
"I don't see why you are so concerned, Jack," Yvonne Hartman, director of Torchwood London asked as she moved with a grace and sureness (on killer black heels, no less) that Lisa could only dream of through the foyer. Nodding in acknowledgement to various staff as she passed. Pointedly not taking much notice of the man walking behind her. "It's not as if we will be needing the services of your motley quartet to clear up after us." She turned to face him, all perfectly styled hair and suit, "Or should that be 'trio' now?"
Even from where she was sitting, Lisa could see the flash of pain of Hartman's barb hit Harkness deep. She winced in sympathy for this strange man with whom she'd shared coffee to and passed the time of day with. Any loss of life in the course of duty was a terrible thing; but it cut him deeper than that. Perhaps she'd ask him about that over lunch; ask who it was what had they had meant to him.
"That was a low blow, Yvonne," Harkness ground out, "Even for you."
Hartman shrugged her shoulders. "Return to Cardiff, captain, I shall call for you when Torchwood: London needs you to clear up after us." she said as she strode out of the main doors into the hubub of Canary Wharf at lunchtime, pausing at the threshold to ease a pair of sunglasses onto her face.
Lisa was so busy watching the byplay that she didn’t realise that there was someone standing next to her until they coughed politely.
“Ianto!” she exclaimed, looking up to see her smartly suited boyfriend standing there. “I didn’t see you.” she explained.
“I could see that,” Ianto noted, a dry note to his tone. “I was wondering if you were free for lunch. Grab a sandwich from Pret and go sit in the park. Enjoy the sunshine while we can. Wimbledon starts next week, y’know.”
It was a tempting offer. Any other day, Lisa would have said yes, but she could see Harkness look her way a questioning look on his face. She nodded before turning back to her partner.
“Ianto, I should have told you this morning, I have a business lunch.” It wasn’t a lie, just giving the truth a bit of a tweak.
Ianto nodded, his expression falling slightly. Lisa noticed the small change, her heart clenching in the process. Again she wondered if she was making the right decision. “I’ll share all the gory details with you tonight?” It wasn’t much of a salve but it was all she had to offer.
He nodded, offering her a small smile. “Chicken Caesar salad for tea?” he asked.
Lisa smiled up at him, resting a hand on his chest. "Why, Mr Jones, you certainly know how to spoil a girl!" she said, smiling widely at him. She was standing him up for a complete stranger and he was happy to cook her favourite dish. Defintely a keeper.
"See you tonight then," Ianto said, a small smile on his lips as he leant forward to peck her on the cheek.
"Same time, same Bat channel!" Lisa replied, dropping her hand to let him walk away from her. She could see Harkness walk slowly toward her as Ianto walked straight past him, giving him a slight nod to acknowledge his presence, since the captain was the stuff of Legend around Torchwood: London.
That in turn caused Harkness to glance back, an appreciative smile on his face before he turned his attention soley back to her. It was then that Lisa remembered one of the rumours she'd heard about Harkness; that he swung both ways, flirting outrageously (at very least) with both boys and girls. The thought made her smile, if he ever tried it on with Ianto, she wanted to be there, with a camera. Photos or it never happened.
"Miss Hallett," Harkness began, nodding his head in acknowledgement.
"Captain Harkness," Lisa replied,returning his greeting. She hefted the stainless steel flask out of her handbag. "I have the coffee you requested."
He smiled at her, a smile that made Lisa think of toothpaste commercials, cool and brilliant, before gesturing to the rapidly opening and closing foyer doors. "Shall we?"
"We shall." She led him, with a smile, into the bright June sunshine.
***
When Jack Harkness said that they would be having lunch in Greenwich Park, Lisa thought he was joking.
He wasn't.
That much was certain by the time he had ushered her into the glasshouse-like heat of the DLR train. She knew she could have protested but innate curiosity stopped. She wanted to know more about this strange man and the member of his team who had died. Kicking up a fuss wouldn't get her that information, whereas improvising would.
A quick phonecall to McKenna helped. Impromptu meeting with Captain Harkness of Torchwood: Cardiff to discuss his team's PAYEs. Middlesborough had cocked it up, blah blah blah. Her boss harrumphed and grudgingly agreed. As she disconnected the call, Lisa wondered what on earth Harkness and his team had done to annoy all of Torchwood: London, even the HR department.
She was slotting her phone back into her handbag when she noticed Harkness's expression. It was as if she'd passed some kind of test; part pleased, part measuring.
"You could have lied, you know," Harkness noted in a conversational tone.
"Could have," Lisa agreed "But given the good weather, bending the truth and saying that I have a meeting is going to go further than lying and saying that I've come down with a stomach bug," she explained as Harkness nodded. "We've got a *lot* of that going on at the moment. It gets worse when there are major sports fixtures or good weather." She shrugged and raised her hands, pointing to herself. "I can get away with that excuse today because I like the shade I am, I don't need to change it," she joked.
Harkness laughed before replying, "someone as beautiful as you doesn't need the embellishment."
Lisa snorted, "I bet you say that to all the girls!"
Harkness' smiled. It was a warmer smile than the one she'd seen in the foyer. "To all the boys too!"
Lisa glanced out of the window, feeling herself heat up with something akin to embarrassment. She'd spoken more out of reflex than anything else. The whole conversation was skirting too close to territory that had no place at work. So she turned to watching the river, residential areas and strangely named stations pass by. "So I've heard," she murmured.
***
Greenwich Park was bustling as much with truanting school kids and office workers sunning themselves on their lunchbreaks as tourists visiting the Old Naval College and the Observatory when Lisa and Captain Harkness walked through the ornate gates.
In other circumstances, Lisa knew she would have appreciated that detail; no one would take any notice of an office drone gone AWOL being accompanied by someone who looked like he had stepped off the set of Pearl Harbour. Well, she would have if her feet weren't killing her; which they were.
Still, she kept it together long enough to direct Harkness to the Queens House and the benches at the back of the complex that looked out from under the Georgian architecture to the sloping hill topped by the Observatory sparkling in the sunshine.
Out of the corner of her eye, she could see Harkness look at her, questions in his eyes. "How are your feet holding up?" he asked, as they sat down on the sun-warmed wood.
"Is it that obvious?” Lisa ground out, surprised that Harkness had noticed. Ianto only ever noticed that she was ever having problems when she started to swear up a blue streak as to just how much agony she was in.
"Only if you've ever tried it yourself," Harkness replied as he patted the pockets of his greatcoat for something.
"You've had occasion to wear four inch stilettos?" Lisa asked incredulously, wondering if she could make it to the Pavilion cafe without crying. After all Harkness had promised her lunch and not only was she in pain but hungry too. It never made for a good combination.
Harkness grinned as he set the rucksack onto the stone floor. "Indeed I have and perhaps one day I'll tell you the full story," he said as he stuck his hand into his pocket and pulled out something that, on first glance, looked like a tin of Vaseline. "But for now, use this on your feet."
"Not before you tell me what it is!" Lisa said, grimacing as her feet screamed in pain as the pressure of being on her feet lifted. The pain didn't abate but simply throbbed insistently.
"I'm not quite sure what it's originally called," Harkness commented as she took the tin from him and turned it in her hands. She'd called it right, it was a Vaseline tin, but one from the 1950s - which kind of fit with the rest of the retro image. What she saw when she opened the tin was nothing like she'd ever seen before.
"It's neon green," she noted quietly. Working for human resources may have meant that Lisa was away from the 'business' end of Torchwood but it didn't mean that she didn't know what their business was.
"But it's safe for humans and it's an excellent cure for minor injuries," Harkness explained, "Owen, who's Torchwood: Cardiff's medic, calls it 'Snotolene'."
Lisa hissed in pain as she eased her feet out of her shoes. Harkness' reputation was for many things but being a sociopath wasn't one of them. If it helped her walk back to the DLR without bursting into tears from the pain, then she was going to take it.
She scooped some of the green goo onto her fingers and leant forward to rub it onto her abused feet. The change was instantaneous. The pain vanished as if a switch had been flipped, instead a feeling of relief remained.
"Oh!" she sighed quietly as she ran her fingers over her now cured feet. "Oh..."
"Told you it was good stuff," Harkness noted as he turned away to pull open the rucksack he had been carrying. "Keep a hold of it, it might come in handy later."
"Thank you." Lisa replied, meaning it. "You're too kind."
Harkness snorted. "Don't think you'll be saying that after lunch," he said as he proffered her a pre-packed sandwich from Tesco. "Torchwood: Cardiff's 'entertainment' budget doesn't stretch to Waitrose, I'm afraid!"
Lisa laughed as she pulled the coffee flask from her bag along with the orange plastic cup she had pinched from the tea room earlier. "Right now, I don't really care, I could eat a horse!" she said, pouring a cup of coffee for him and one for herself.
“You’re most probably wondering why I invited you to lunch,” Harkness noted as he took the proffered coffee with a nod.
“That and wondering why you had to drag me all the way to Greenwich,” Lisa commented as she ripped her sandwich open. “There are plenty of decent places for impromptu picnics at Canary Wharf you know,” she noted as she bit into her sandwich.
Harkness shrugged. “I know the setting isn’t quite what it could be but there are damn good reasons,” he explained as he set the coffee down on the bench between them and opened up his own sandwich.
“Such as?” Lisa asked, curiousity raising it’s head again.
“Such as walls have ears," Harkness noted as he took a bite of his sandwich. "And I'm not just talking about One Canada Square either."
Lisa nodded. "And what those walls hear tends to be distorted as it travels faster than light." she remarked wryly, remembering the scurrilous rumours that Ianto had told her all about last night - the ones that Adeola was so ‘interested’ in clearing up.
A warm, wide smile was Harkness' response. "Nothing you can't handle?"
She smiled back. "Nothing I can't handle. You should take it as a compliment, Captain. Last time the gossip mill went into overdrive like that was...."
"The last time I stopped by Torchwood: London!" he noted, laughing. Lisa joined in the laughter; it was after all, true. "So what did the gossip mill have to say?"
"Variations on the theme of you and I *not* sharing coffee in the tea room but going at it like rabbits in the broom cupboard," she replied, rolling her eyes.
"Oh, I wouldn't say no," Harkness stated, taking a sip of coffee.
Lisa couldn't help it, she started to giggle helplessly. Granted, the Captain was hot but- "I have a boyfriend!" she replied, once her laughter had subsided.
"The hottie in the suit in the foyer?" he asked. Lisa nodded, grinning; she was so going to tell Ianto that tonight. "I like threesomes." She was sure that his reaction would be memorable.
"I'll keep that in mind," Lisa noted dryly. Fit and he knew it, she thought before asking, "So, other than escaping the all pervasive gossip mill and not being heard by the walls, why did you drag me out here?" She shrugged her shoulders, "Not that I'm complaining, it's a lovely day and apart from the aching feet..."
I want to offer you a job.” Harkness stated, cutting her off.
The sandwich that had been in Lisa’s hand fell out of it and onto the stone paving below; an opportunistic husky dog ran over and bolted down said sandwich before Lisa (or its owner) had realised what had happened.
“Beg your pardon?” Lisa replied faintly. She was sure that her hearing was playing up. Harkness wasn’t offering her a job... was he? She was just a lowly HR officer, she wasn't a scientist or a field agent. She was support staff for pity's sake!
“You heard me,” he said calmly. “I’m offering you a job.”
Lisa closed her eyes and took a deep breath to calm herself before opening her eyes again. She wasn’t hearing things, she hadn’t fallen into an alternative reality, she was minus a sandwich but she could handle that.
“What sort of job?” she asked. It couldn't hurt to ask. “And why me?”
Harkness studied her for a moment before he began to speak. “I’m in need of a new Executive Officer, an XO,” he said. “Someone I can trust to deal with the day to day running of Torchwood: Cardiff.”
“Something happened to your team,” Lisa noted as she picked up her coffee, slowly as not to spill it. The pieces fell into place, starting with Director Hartman’s cutting words.
Harkness looked to the ground, not meeting her eyes. “You heard Yvonne taking potshots then.” he observed sadly, turning the coffee cup in his hands. “Her name was Suzie Costello. She was an excellent XO, a good friend and a fine human being. I’ll miss her.”
“She died.” Harkness went on, looking up at Lisa. Answering the question that was on her lips. “It was supposed to be just another clean up operation for Torchwood: London and...” he stopped and turned his head away from her.
“I’m sorry for your loss,” Lisa murmured as she reached out to gently rest a hand on his arm.
Harkness placed his own over hers. “Thank you.” he said sincerely as he gently took her hand into his. He squeezed it for a moment before letting her go and turning to face the Observatory ahead, resolutely placing One Canada Square, known to both of them as Torchwood: London at his back.
"I don't mean to sound crass, but what does an Executive Officer do." Lisa slowly asked, shifting around on the bench to face away from the London skyline. "And more to the point, why me?"
"In answer to the question ‘why you?’," Jack said, draining his coffee, "Lisa Mercy Hallett, born 1982 in Leytonstone, London. Second child of five. No criminal record. Academically very bright, first child in the family to go to university. Upper second class honours degree in psychology from Aston University-”
Lisa dropped her eyes at just how many details Harkness knew about her. Yes, it was all pretty much public record but when a near stranger rattled it off it was... unnerving to say the least.
“Recruited to the Civil Service out of university, you specialized in Human Resources and two years ago, you were headhunted by Torchwood.” Jack cocked his head at her. “Am I missing anything?”
“No,” she murmured faintly.
“As to what you would be doing, come to Cardiff for a couple of days and find out." He reached into his rucksack and pulled out a padded envelope, which he handed over to her. "All the details you'll need"
"You seem very sure that I’ll actually say *yes*." Lisa said as she filed the envelope away in her handbag for examination later. A quick peek had revealed train tickets and printouts. "I have a life here, a good job-"
"That bores you," Harkness cut in. "I read your last evaluation."
Lisa's jaw dropped. "Those are confidential!" she snapped. "Not to mention kept on the most secure parts of the London mainframe-"
"Which my tech specialist managed to get to in about..." Harkness paused a moment before continuing, "Three minutes - she spent more time trying to search out the right candidates for me to speak to than getting past the firewalls."
“There were others?” Lisa asked, curiosity and competitiveness colouring her tone.
Harkness nodded his head with a grin. “There *were*” he stressed, “But now you’ve passed the final test, the job is yours for the asking.”
Lisa shook her head, “Final test?” she asked, “I don’t understand.”
“Do you honestly think that I was really that lost when I stumbled into the tea room yesterday?” Harkness asked.
Lisa considered the question. She shook her head. “I guess not,” she admitted.
“I wasn’t due to be in London until yesterday.” he said. “It gave me an opportunity to see if any of the candidates were worth pursuing.”
Lisa raised her eyebrows “In a manner of speaking!” he amended.
“Of the four I was looking at, you were the only one who actually gave me the time of day and gave me some excellent coffee.”
“Thank Ianto for the coffee,” Lisa noted with a smile, “He’s the coffee expert, not me.”
“Is he now?” Harkness commented, raising his eyebrows, before carrying on. “My team is real small. I need to know that the people I recruit are going to get on with me and the team I already have.”
“That’s a fair call,” Lisa replied, nodding. “So was all of this some kind of follow-on interview?”
Harkness smiled widely at her. “Yup, it was.” he stated. “The lunch date was part to see if you were willing to take a chance and also to see what you’d do in that situation.”
“The situation where you pretty much kiddnap me?” Lisa asked sarcastically.
“Pretty much!”
“I do ask one thing before you sign on the dotted line,” Harkness said, a serious expression on his face.
“Which is?”
“That you come to Cardiff, see it for your own eyes, not through the eyes of the lovely Ianto,” Harkness explained, “There are things you need to see before you say yes.”
Lisa nodded. “That’s fair.” she agreed.
Harkness’ expression was sombre as he nodded. “Let’s just hope that you don’t regret it.”
***
The sun was beating down on Mermaid Quay, Cardiff, as Lisa Hallett walked down the ramp to the quayside bench just outside the ratty old Tourist Office. In one hand she had a take away coffee, in the other a chocolate ice cream cone.
It was the work of a few moments for her to settle herself onto the bench. Coffee, handbag and denim jacket piled up beside her as she pulled her sunglasses down over her eyes and settled down to enjoy her ice cream.
Any of the tourists walking by to catch the ferry into town would have seen a beautiful black woman, dressed in a brightly coloured tea dress and white plimsolls, enjoying the sun, the view of Cardiff Bay and her ice cream.
What they weren’t to know was that she was also lost in thought over what she had seen and heard earlier in the day.
A heavy tread on the wooden quay told her that she was not alone. Without turning her gaze from the Bay, Lisa lifted the takeaway coffee up and proffered it to the interloper.
“Thank you.” the interloper replied politely, taking the offered coffee before sitting down next to her.
“It’s from the little coffee shop up on the main parade,” Lisa commented, nibbling on the cone of her ice cream. “I know better than to buy you Starbucks.”
“It looks like penalties for England again in the football,” Ianto Jones noted as he sat down next to her. He was comfortably dressed in chinos and white t-shirt, cotton bikers jacket slung over his arm; presentable but not overly smart. “I overheard it on the radio that they had on in the office.”
“Do I look bothered, Ianto?” Lisa asked, turning to face him, peering over the rim of her sunglasses.
He smiled at her, a beautiful boyish smile. “No, but I know you like to be aware of these things.”
“More like you enjoy gloating.” she shot back. “Save it for Monday, after they lose, sweetheart,” she mumbled before taking another lick of ice cream.
“Or to taunt everyone in archives and research with it over the e-mail,” he commented as he took a sip of coffee.
“Ianto Jones, you can be a nasty bugger when you choose to be.” Lisa noted, shaking her head, her words leavened by the warmth in her tone.
“I thought that was one of the reasons why you love me.” he commented as he leant towards her.
“You have your moments,” Lisa noted as she turned her head to kiss him gently on the lips, “Not many of them, but you do have them.”
“Coffee and Empire Strikes Back quotes, doesn’t get much better than this,” he said, putting his arm around her.
“I’ve made a decision,” Lisa announced as she felt the cool drip of ice cream run down her hand.
“You’re going to accept the captain’s offer,” Ianto said placidly,
She paused and stared at him for a moment, her hand halfway to her mouth so she could lick the melted dessert off her fingers,
“Am I that bleedin’ obvious?” she demanded.
Ianto shrugged and offered her a small, placating smile. “Only to those who love you.” he said, pulling a hankie out of his pocket. “You made your decision when the captain explained about the island.”
Lisa took the hankie with a nod and a smile. “Ianto, I...” she paused, scrabbling for the words to express what she had felt at what she’d seen, “I can’t stand by when I know I can help.” She glanced down at the hankie in her hand before stuffing it under a shoulder strap and licking her fingers, Ianto wrinkled his nose up in mock disgust, which made her laugh uproariously, sending the seagulls flapping away.
“I’ve always known that... there were ‘loose ends’,” she said slowly, her tone serious. Picking her words so very carefully, lest anyone overhear their conversation, “You’d hope that those who make the decisions would make... allowances,”
“Not so much,” Ianto commented, taking her hand into his and squeezing it gently. He knew exactly what she meant. He had seen the records; of Torchwood: London’s encounters with aliens and with ordinary people who had gotten into extraordinary situations through no fault of their own. It didn’t make for pleasant reading.
“And yet, there are those who do make allowances” Lisa mused. “And I want to get involved.”
She’d made her mind up the moment the Captain had told her about Flat Holm and about the work that Torchwood: Cardiff did. Picking up the pieces left behind by London but also running the hospital/hospice/centre for those who were too broken to return to the lives they had before. It wasn’t pretty and she sure as hell wasn’t a nurse but someone had to help those who London callously regarded as ‘collateral damage’. Might as well be her.
“So, when are you going to tell him?” Ianto asked, staring out at the Bay.
“When I’ve spoken to you,” she said, looking down at the pier. This was the part that she’d been dreading from the moment that Harkness had offered her the post. Discussing her future with the man she wanted to spend the rest of her life with.
A future she might have to consider without him by her side.
“Then I’d better have made my decision by then too,” Ianto said, sipping at his coffee.
Lisa frowned. “What decision?” She couldn’t remember Ianto being given any different information than she had been. Yes, Harkness had invited him to accompany her. As a member of Torchwood: London, Ianto was entitled to visit Cardiff if he so wished and if Cardiff were in agreement. That and he made for an excellent tour guide of his home city.
It was Ianto’s turn to look away. “You know there was a letter addressed to me at the hotel’s reception when we checked in yesterday?”
Lisa nodded, it had struck her as being a bit strange but not out of the ordinary. She had done it herself for visiting consultants and other dignitaries.
“Well, it was Captain Harkness offering me the post of archivist and general support manager for Torchwood: Cardiff.”
“I didn’t know they needed one!” Lisa blurted out, she shook her head and squeezed Ianto’s hand. “What does a general support manager do?” she asked, her professional curiousity kicking in.
“Apart from take orders from the executive officer?” he asked.
“Well I can vouch that you do that well enough!” Lisa commented, grinning like a fiend but waving at him to carry on with what he was saying.
“I think his exact words were, when we talked about this earlier were: ‘To make fantastic coffee and look good in a suit’ He told me that I came recommended,” Ianto noted dryly, “You wouldn’t happen to know anything about that do you?”
Lisa threw a hand up (the other still held her nearly eaten ice cream) “All I told him was that you were the coffee specialist, not me,” she said. “As for the suit, he saw that for himself!”
Ianto dropped his head but Lisa could see the tell-tale flush flowing up his cheeks.
“Lisa, he really wants you to say ‘yes’, I can only go on what you’ve told me about the pay and conditions but he wants you to take the job,” he counselled. “I’m being recruited as an incentive.”
She shook her head as she finished her ice cream. “He really didn’t have to do that,” she noted. “I was ready to say ‘yes’ the day he asked!”
“I had kinda guessed that but I still wanted to make sure that you both played nice with the other children and you knew what you were letting yourselves in for ”
Lisa and Ianto both turned towards Captain Jack Harkness, striding towards them from the Tourist Office.
“And the verdict is?” Lisa asked, peering over her sunglasses at him.
“The jobs are yours,” Harkness replied, opening his arms expansively.
“I’m saying ‘yes’ only if she does,” Ianto deadpanned, gesturing to her.
“That’s because your job is dependent on her saying ‘yes’!” Harkness commented, “Though if you make coffee like that all the time, I will come to London and kidnap you anyway. Lisa?”
She took a deep breath before replying; almost as if she was preparing herself to dive off the highest board at her local swimming baths. Just like she always did before she did something that she knew scared her but was going to do it anyway.
“Yes.” she said, loudly and clearly. Not caring if the crowd outside the ice cream parlour could hear her. “I accept your offer.” she added, holding her hand out to shake on the deal.
Harkness took her hand, holding it in a firm grip. “Welcome to Torchwood: Cardiff.”
Act II
