antigwenallies | Fic: Exchange Program (Part 4)

Title: Exchange Program: Parts 4

Rating: PG-13?

Notes: Gwen bashing yet not Gwen bashing. Figure that one out. Badly_knitted gave me a good idea in her review about Gwen's childhood, I hope I did it justice.
Warning: Possibly language.

Spoilers: At the moment, none.

Summary: With Torchwood anything is possible. In this case, Torchwood Three had the chance to meet a very interesting woman.

To Part 2 and 3: http://community.livejournal.com/antigwenallies/166316.html

4. Breakfasts and Jack

After being introduced to the whiskey bottle the night before, and drinking a bit more then the alternate Gwen wanted, Rhys woke up with a headache and a clear recollection of what happened the night before. He slowly sat up in bed and made a face, his mouth a bit dry, and looked around the room while running through his memories of the previous day. Went to work, came home, started dinner, talked to Ianto, picked up Gwen… His mind came to a screeching halt as he heard the sound of someone in the kitchen of the flat and what could have been whistling, but he knew Gwen avoided the kitchen and never whistled. It was at that moment he stumbled from bed, still in his clothes from the previous night, and out into the main area of the flat.

“Didn’t pick up Gwen. I picked up her alternate self and then ranted, then the whiskey, recounting everything I knew about Gwen and her family.” He muttered to himself as he peered into the kitchen and seen the slightly older woman making French toast with a pot of coffee that was nearly finished brewing. “You cook?” he asked in shock as she turned her head to glance at him over her shoulder and laughed.

“Man cannot live on take-out alone.” She sagely told him, bringing the spatula up in a mock salute, before she turned back to the pan and picked up the last piece and placed in on a plate with a pile of six slices. His eyes followed her movement and seen an open carton of eggs sitting by a half-gallon of milk. “Do you want eggs and bacon as well?”

“Scrambled and no.” Rhys answered as he backed away from the kitchen to sit down on the couch, still dazed. “She cooks. She actually cooks.”

“I also did some laundry so I could clean my clothes, since none of the clothes your Gwen has fits, and took whatever was in the hamper.” Gwen stated as Rhys heard an egg being broken followed by the hiss of the contents hitting the hot pan. At that moment Rhys’s mind just shut down and he slumped back on the couch and stared at the ceiling, enjoying the first morning in years where his Gwen did not roll him out of bed to make her breakfast.

“So this is what it feels like to have a nice, lazy morning.” He whispered with a grin, relaxing as Gwen began to whistle again.

Ianto had opened the tourist office at the usual time and had been checking the brochure stock on the counter when the door opened. He glanced up and seen the alternate Gwen, dressed in her clothes of the previous day, chuckling as Rhys was laughing. “Thanks for the copy of those recipes, I look forward to trying them and passing them on to my friends.” Gwen told him as he grinned and stuck his hand out, which she accepted.

“I’ll look up a few of those dishes you told me about, unless you make another visit.” He stated and turned to leave. “Take it easy, Olen.” With that he left as Gwen turned to Ianto and noted his surprised look.

“Good night?” Ianto asked her as she grinned.

“One of the more relaxing I’ve had. Makes me wish I had met him before.” She wistfully told him as he motioned for her to follow him down into the Hub. “What about you? Boring night or were you out getting your daily exercise and then some?” she asked with a snicker as they entered the main area of the Hub, which was still silent since none of the usual systems were booted up and no one was in at that time of the morning.

“What are you implying?” he asked, his tone rather cold as he turned just enough to glare at her from the corner of his eye. Gwen was unphazed, which meant she ignored it by looking up at any space above Ianto’s head.

“Any number of things, what do you think I’m implying?” she countered and cheerfully waved at Myfanwy, causing the prehistoric creature to tilt her head to the side at the simple gesture. This caused Ianto to grit his teeth and stalk off to get everything going so that Tosh could finish the final part of her analysis of the device that brought alternate Gwen to their world.

“I hope you did that on purpose, since he tends to make instant decaf as a punishment.” Jack stated as she turned and seen him standing in the doorway of his office, hands on his hips, with an amused smirk curling his lips.

“I already had my coffee today and I said nothing bad.” Gwen protested as she held her right hand up. “I solemnly swear on the life, and my obsession with pineapples, that is was only a simple question. It could have meant a range of things, from the typical chasing of something to a nice tumble between the sheets for a couple days.” His eyebrows went up in surprise at her blasé comment.

“Pineapples?” he asked, focusing on that aspect out of everything else she said.

“I can’t tell the story as well as the chief archivist of the Agency, he actually told me that I am forbidden from telling it unless he was there for the sensational reenactment he does.” She answered and looked away from him, deciding that it was more interesting to stare at the now glowing computer screens at Tosh’s workstation. “Also, he tells the story because I leave things out.”

“Why do you assume we have a relationship in this world?” Jack asked as she turned back to him, quirking an eyebrow in challenge as she crossed her arms. It was then Ianto emerged from the kitchen, drawing Jack’s attention as Gwen still stared up at him for a moment longer and then turned to where Ianto was leaning over Tosh’s chair and entered the needed codes to login to the network. Rolling her eyes she turned back and seen that Jack was still staring at Ianto and smirked.

“Because you and I both know, Captain Harkness, that you are whipped.” Gwen dryly told him as his attention quickly turned back to her with a surprising look. “Maybe ‘whipped’ is the wrong term, but I would like to discuss a few things with you while I can.”

“Come on up then.” Jack stated as he turned and entered his office again as Gwen glanced over her shoulder and seen Ianto turned had around and was watching them. She uncrossed her arms but brought a hand up and saluted the Welshman before making her way up to Jack’s office and shutting the door after she entered.

When she turned from the now closed door she seen Jack sitting in the chair behind his paper covered desk, elbows on the edge and hands clasped in front of him. “How was your night with Rhys?” he asked as she sat down on the chair in front of his desk.

“Enlightening and refreshing.” Gwen answered as she rested her hands in her lap and stared at him. “My first impression is that Rhys is a man of a dying school, since it would be wrong to say a ‘dying breed’ with everything we have both seen. Dinner was great and the conversation as well.”

“What did you both discuss?” Jack asked as he slipping into a serious look, one that Gwen had only seen when his team was threatened during the Harold Saxon Ordeal.

“I asked him about your Gwen, in an attempt trying to get a feel for who this young woman is and how different we really are.” She answered without looking away as he nodded. “Mr. Harper’s greeting statement yesterday told me all I needed to know about a general view of her among her co-workers and Rhys grew up with her. The first question I have for you is what did you see in her to forgo the usual Torchwood policy on hiring?” Jack bit his bottom lip and just stared at her for a minute or two before he looked away.

“What is your impression of her, first of all?” he asked as Gwen took in a deep breath.

“She lives in her own little world and tends to ignore people around her, blinded by her own desires, and I am basing that on the fact that she still has yet to tell Rhys about her job at Torchwood. Also, in my opinion, she is definitely stringing him on.” Gwen began as she brought her right hand up, holding only her index finger up. “She is probably very delusional, Rhys told me that she talks about you constantly and that you ‘need her’ as a voice of reason. The worse I can assume is she calls herself the ‘heart’ of Torchwood.” With that said she held up a second finger. “From a good many other things he told me, most of which I do not think I have the right to tell you since they were told to me in confidence, she thinks that all of her decisions are right and everyone should cave in to her.”

“Any other way to back that up?” Jack asked, gritting his teeth in an attempt to not defend one of his colleagues.

“He told me that her parents prayed for children and the only child they could have was your Gwen, in which case she grew up a pampered princess that never woke up and realized that she was only a typical person. Her downfall is that she never thinks about the consequences because her parents always bailed her out at that point.” Gwen listed off as she held up a third finger.

“That is a rather bleak view.” He muttered as she let her hand drop back into her lap and shrugged. “I will defend her on one thing, she is the heart of this team and we do need her.”

“Why do you think she is the ‘heart’ of this team?” she asked in a rather challenging tone as Jack glared.

“I—We forgot what exactly we are fighting to save here.” Jack began as he stretched his arms above his head and laced his fingers at the nape of his neck. “She has a relationship outside of Torchwood…”

“Which she is destroying the more she ignores and takes advantage of Rhys’s goodwill.” Gwen cut in as the corner of Jack’s lips twitched.

“…as well as many friends that she meets on a regular basis.” He finished as Gwen’s eyebrows went up.

“From the pictures I seen in their flat, those friends are actually Rhys’s friends unless she is camera shy.” She dryly added as Jack let out a hiss of a breath from between his clenched teeth.

“She has become the voice of conscience, of reason, around here.” He declared as Gwen let out a bark of laughter, shifting her hands so that her hands were on her knees and she was leaning forward while laughing. “What?” he demanded as she lifted her head enough, biting her bottom lip to stop from laughing.

“You may want to re-evaluate that answer. The fact that Mr. Harper greeted me upon my arrival by asking what your Gwen ‘screwed up now’ means that you are missing the big picture when it comes to the dynamics of your team.” She told him while lacing her fingers together and resting her chin on her knuckles.

“Then enlighten me, Ms. Cooper, since you seem to have all the answer.” He snapped as he abruptly leaned forward and glared at her.

“You are the leader of Torchwood Three and your real life experiences out weight practically every other person around your, most of all your leadership skills.” She pointed out with a smile. “You experienced, first hand, the changing times of this world and I bet you never hid from the people when you had a choice.” She boldly told him, hoping she wasn’t royally destroying her argument against his declaration about his Gwen. “Look at your team, Captain Harkness, they trust you with their lives and they trust your decisions even if they may not like the outcome. In reality you, Captain Jack Harkness, are the real heart of this team.”

“What?” he practically shouted as she sat straight up and stared him down.

“You brought together three different people from three different ways of life to work together for a common goal. If you had not found them, recruited them, and spent painstaking hours ensuring they were safe and prepared would they be a part of this team? Would they have met and actually got along?” she asked getting to her feet and glaring at him. “They go out of this place every night, every day, and meet people on the street and see things that inspires them to continue working towards the safety of this world. They do not study alien technology and weapons, alien beings, or take the risks they do being around the Rift for Gwen bloody Cooper! They do this because you asked them to take that risk.”

“I can’t be!” he protested and got to his feet so that he felt on the same level as she was.

“You are!” she practically shouted and slapped him, swearing that the sound had to have echoed throughout the place. “Wake up, Captain Harkness, and quit thinking inside the box! You deny your true self and then you go and sell yourself short, because of this you are missing everything that is in front of your face and your denial is going to hurt you worse then anything in your immortal life.” She hissed from between her clenched teeth as she turned on her heel and stalked from his office, leaving him staring in shock at where she had been standing.

Tosh had been sitting at her computers, going through the final work up on the device, when she heard the raised voices in Jack’s office and then a slap. She turned and seen alternate Gwen stalking from Jack’s office with a dark look on her face. “Those are my final thoughts on the matter!” she shouted over her shoulder and stalked over to where Tosh was and looked down at the device.

“What’s going on?” Tosh asked as Gwen paused and glanced at her and sighed, looking a tad bit embarrassed about her sudden outburst.

“Our discussion of my impression of your Gwen, Captain Harkness was not too happy.” Gwen admitted and then leaned down and hugged Tosh, ignoring the other woman’s squeak of surprise. She hoped to throw Tosh off just long enough to enact her hare-brained scheme, since she felt it was time for her to go before Jack recovered from his shock to argue the matter further. “Don’t doubt yourself, Ms. Sato, promise me that.”

“Why?” Tosh asked in a daze as Gwen let her go and took a step back before she grabbed the device, activating it, and disappearing as Jack ran from his office. A moment later their Gwen stood, looking to be in the middle of a full rant, pouting with her hands in fists at her side.

“How dare they ignore what I was ordering them to do! I am the leader, my name was on the door and all of the papers and those people were specifically asking to speak to me!” their Gwen shrieked while stomping her foot as Tosh pushed her chair a few feet away from her as Jack sighed and brought a hand up to pinch the bridge of his nose.

“Tosh, when Ianto returns from whatever work he threw himself into could you tell him to come up to my office?” Jack asked her as she nodded as Gwen turned to him, still pouting. “You have the day off, go talk to Rhys about your alternate future self.” He told her with a dismissive wave and stepped back into his office and shut the door behind him.

It was a major blow to his ego that a woman, who was only in their world for barely a day, knew his co-worker of nearly a year better then he did.

To Part 5: http://community.livejournal.com/antigwenallies/167373.html

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

Date: 2009-10-06 06:21 am (UTC)

From:

janiemc.livejournal.com

no subject

This is so much fun, thanks

Date: 2009-10-06 09:52 am (UTC)

bk_forever

Hee Hee! Jack got put in straight on a few things! Alternate Gwen certainly sees things more clearly, probably because she's an outsider, not part of the team.
Thanks for the mention =) Yes, Pampered Princess, that's it exactly! Wrapped in cotton wool, not expected to be responsible for anything. Makes me wonder how she ever became a police constable, since she seems incapable of following orders. I loved her rant, expecting people to do as she tells them just because her name is on the door, even though she doesn't belong there and has no idea what's going on! Hope alternate Gwen's words have an impact on Jack and on Rhys, who should find someone who appreciates him. He'd be a better Torchwood operative than Gwen! Is there going to be any more?