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[LOG] Hangover Cures

There were a lot of things John Watson was used to handling on a very small amount of sleep. He'd been deployed overseas, dealing with bombings and attacks and explosions - he'd been shot, for crying out loud! All of that, however, paled when compared to living with someone as brilliant and as infuriating as Sherlock Holmes. John felt pushed to his limit on more than one occasion, running around London, solving mysteries and crimes, and then coming back to find that he still needed to get groceries, tidy his room, entertain the newly bored Sherlock...

Well, it didn't exactly leave much room for napping. He found himself overtired more often than not, and today was especially harsh, as he was now dealing with a hangover so massive, it put all others to shame. And, as much as he wanted to crash and burn for a few hours in his room, he knew that Sherlock would be along soon enough to draw him out on another adventure. So, when the Welsh bloke - Ianto, he figured, because it was the name that stood out as the most Welsh in his memory - offered an escape route, John had leaped at the chance.

So, there he was, having dug around to find someone to take him to Cardiff - though, was it even the same Cardiff as he was used to? He'd told them who he wanted to see, and that's where he'd been taken, so. Only time would tell if this was his world or not. (And how strange it was to take that concept at face value!) Now, in the Plass - he'd been to Cardiff once, a long time ago, so it was practically like new - John dug out his phone and opened a text to the number he'd by now stored in his address book.

...Right, this wasn't Sherlock he was dealing with. He could call. Rolling his eyes at his own idiocy, he sent a call to Ianto to let him know he was by the (obnoxious? a little) fountain in the center. After all, it was the easiest landmark to be noticed by.

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Jack cocked his head to the side. "Well, yeah. I guess you could say we're kind of like the UKBA. But, well. Mixed with MI5. We're kind of the only line of defense here, so. If something comes up, it's pretty much on our shoulders. And UNIT, but there's way too much bureaucracy involved there for the two of us to really have any sort of affiliation. We're private run, paid for by the crown, don't have to follow orders from anyone else and we'd like to keep it that way."

Jack shrugged. "But yeah. I mean, you don't seem to be much of a threat. I can spot the military background from here, so I know that I can at least trust you for that. I figure, well. Why not? Since you're here."

Ianto tried his hardest to soften just how strong Jack was coming off, there. "Well. What he means to say is that... Jack's my boss. He's sort of the one in charge in all of this. So, if he's given you permission, then yeah. It's alright to show you around. Whether to the cells, or to Myfanwy, or...to the archives," which was exciting, but definitely less so than aliens or dinosaurs. "It's up to you, though," he said, although Jack probably wasn't going to give him a choice, now that he had a chance to show off.

While John wasn't familiar with UNIT, he had the gist of Torchwood now, and now he could move on to feeling slightly put out that his soldier's attitude hadn't completely dissipated. Not that he wanted it to, it was just one of those things people noticed right away, if they knew what to look for. Sherlock had, and now Jack. He was being blunt and really, so was Ianto, but at least it was better than trying to dance around the issue. (Though, that would be hard, being that the issue was the still open secret passageway.)

Really, though. He'd be an idiot to say no to the chance to see what they were talking about. He'd also be an idiot for saying yes, but that was the cautious part of him that was slowly letting go as his life went on, farther and farther away from Afghanistan.

He decided to say as much. "I'd be a bit of an idiot to say no, don't you think?"

Jack shrugged. "Sort of, yeah. I mean, it's not every day that you get a chance like this. It's not every person that I mess up in front of and accidentally let slip what Torchwood is exactly. You should be feeling lucky now, kid," Jack said, using the term despite the fact that, well. Jack really didn't look at that much older than John himself, if he even looked older at all. He started back the way he'd come, through the corridor, before calling after him, "C'mon then! We'll go down to the main level together, and then Ianto can show you around from then."

Ianto sighed as Jack turned the corner, before turning to John. "I'm... I'm sorry about this. Well, Jack, and all of this. I, ehm. I really hadn't intended for Torchwood to come into this at all. It's a bit too late now, though. Best not keep him waiting, he hasn't got the best patience out there, I'm afraid."

"Kid?" John mouthed as Jack turned back to head down the corridor, raising his eyebrows and looking at Ianto. He probably didn't want to know. It was just one of those quirks people had, and of course Jack had to be older than him; he was, after all, a captain.

"Neither had I," John said in response to Ianto's comment about Torchwood, smiling a little awkwardly, but still amused. "But, it's better than any of the alternatives I had, so." He waved for Ianto to lead the way almost out of instinct, and partially just because he didn't think he'd like being boxed in by the two other men. Who worked with aliens. In Cardiff. He really was never getting over that fact. "They never have patience, I'm afraid," he said, meaning captains in general, but really. It could be a reference to anything about Jack, who just seemed to be that... type.

Ianto shrugged. "Yes, well. Probably because you didn't jump at the chance to follow him down into his secret base from the start, but. Really, that makes you smart. He just thinks it's silly because he knows that there's nothing to be wary of down there." Ianto paused, blushing as he realized what he probably sounded like. "Ehm, we've worked together for a while," he said, explaining himself. "Jack's not really too hard to figure out, once you spend enough time around him."

Ianto led them on and into the corridor leading to the lift, in which Jack was standing, waiting for the two of them to join him. "Dare I ask what sort of alternatives you'd thought up?" Ianto asked, with a small, crooked smile. He realized it did look a bit odd, not knowing about Torchwood. Dingy little tourist office by the bay, absolute dump on the outside, while a man dressed in designer suits with the most expensive coffee machine ever working inside. Yeah, there was probably something very off, there.

John clasped his hands behind his back, smiling vaguely because it was either that or turn into a confused, babbling idiot. John was much to dignified to do that again, that was for sure. "I can see that," he said, "I doubt he'd trust people you invited over for coffee into the secret base, after all, if you two didn't know each other well."

Refraining from hesitating as he moved to the lift, John gave Ianto a backwards smile and said, "Serial killer? Assassin? An alien yourself? Pick any of them, I probably thought it."

Ianto smiled back at him. "Ah well. Not really, no. Just a teaboy. A teaboy that works for a top secret organization that defends the planet against alien threats, but. A teaboy nonetheless, honestly."

"Don't let him lie to you," Jack called out, from inside the lift as the two joined him. He pressed the button for the main level after he was sure the two of them had safely entered, and the lift lurched downwards, as Jack continued his thought. "He does much more than serve coffee. He pretty much runs the place, honestly. I'm the public figurehead, but without him, well. We'd probably be swimming in takeout boxes by now, and I guarantee you that the pterodactyl and the Weevils wouldn't smell half as fresh as they do."

Ianto blushed. "I try my best," he said, hoping Jack'd leave off the compliments from then on. It was hard not to preen, when they were coming from Jack, and he was hoping that John wouldn't catch on to the fact that he and Jack were... Well, whatever they were to each other. He didn't really want it to be apparent that they had anything closer than a flirtatious boss and employee relationship, he supposed. John seemed to be alright with Jack and his attitudes, but. Ianto didn't want to make the other man feel uncomfortable, or anything. He still wasn't used to this whole thing. It came in waves, when he questioned it, and this was definitely one of those questioning times.

While John wasn't completely oblivious to the fact that there was something going on between Jack and Ianto, he really didn't think too much about it. He was too preoccupied with listening to what Jack was actually saying, and with thinking about what he was getting himself in to. He could have just gone to Starbucks. He probably should have just gone to Starbucks. Oh, who was he kidding? This was probably the most excitement he'd had all week, aside from the random spots of mystery and intrigue Sherlock managed to turn up for them.

"Don't worry," he told Jack, giving Ianto a rather casual smile, "I'm fairly sure I'm going to have to second guess everything from now on. You don't think there's a Torchwood in my world, do you?"

Jack grinned at him, shrugging. "Who knows. I guess the only way you could find out is if you went looking for our little tourist office down by the Bay on your side of things. Or well, just really ask anyone on the streets if they've heard of Torchwood. If we're there in Cardiff, they'll point to the Bay. Of course, Torchwood London's in Canary Wharf, which might be a bit closer to home, given your accent."

Ianto stiffened. "If there's a Torchwood London in your world, you want to stay as far away from them as you can. They're not like our branch here in Cardiff. They're a lot more regimented. A lot less understanding." He looked up, feeling he owed an explanation as to why the mention of it made him so uncomfortable, but he couldn't quite manage it. "Ehm, they were my former employers."

"Torchwood London kind of went down in flames," Jack said, stepping in to do the explanation for Ianto. "Literally. We're kind of the only branch there is left, Torchwood Cardiff." He smiled. "Big job for such a little operation, really."

John took in everything that the two said, most of it getting only a cursory examination before being filed away for later. He was a bit surprised at Ianto's tone when he talked about Torchwood London, giving him a curious look as Jack explained the situation with Torchwood as an organization. "Don't worry," he said finally, "I doubt I'm going to have the time to investigate secret government organizations in Canary Wharf. And, so long as I don't mention it to Sherlock..."

He made a face, because he knew that he wouldn't have to say a damned thing to the other man. There'd be something in his posture or the way he blinked that gave him away, somehow. "Well, nobody will be doing any investigating what-so-ever. And I doubt I'll be going out to Cardiff any time soon." He paused, then said, "The... Cardiff from my world. This is a bit more difficult to talk about than I'd have thought."

Ianto smiled, shaking his head. "It's fine, really. You'll get used to things like this, I suppose. I... What with my job, I haven't really been able to do that much worldhopping, and when I do, it really isn't to anywhere quite as confusing to talk about as this, so. I don't suppose I can really understand, but. In any case, yeah. It's probably better if you don't go poking around Cardiff. Especially if there is a Torchwood there, and well, if they're not quite as friendly or accommodating as we are."

Jack rocked on his heels again, his hands stuffed in his pockets, stepping forward as the lift lurched to a halt at the main level and then opened to the passageway leading to the cog door. He ushered the other two down it towards the large copper structure, punching in a few buttons on his wrist strap before the alarms sounded, and the cog door started to roll open, revealing the Hub beyond. Jack led them to just inside the door, smiling and making a wide gesture. "Welcome to Torchwood, then, John."

"Not exactly the way I like to start my week off, infiltrating an alternate universes' secret agency in my own universe," John said in response to Ianto, finding that making dry comments was working wonders for his mental health at this current point. "I think we'll keep with just the one, yeah?"

Jack had the airs of a man who thought he was very impressive. John knew plenty of people like that, in the military and in civilian life, and most of the time it was all hot air. Of course, most of the time - all of the time, rather, they never had a remote control for a giant cog door on their wrist, and if they ever had one, it probably wouldn't open up into a secret government operation, much less one dealing with aliens.

So, John would allow Jack all the airs he wanted. Stepping through the open door, he looked around, then up, then around again. The workstations, the catwalks, the huge ceiling - the admittedly sort of "deep underground lair" sort of feeling - it was all a bit much. And so, he resorted to humor once more.

"...You really like being this impressive, don't you?" John asked Jack, sounding, of course, more than a little awestruck.

Ianto smiled in response to John's comments. Honestly, he was usually the one making the dry comments and little snippets of humor in an attempt to try and make himself feel a little better about the situation he'd been thrown into, so he knew exactly how John was feeling there.

"Yeah," he said, with a nod. "That might be wise. We're probably more than most people can handle by ourselves, really. Best not get too carried away." He followed the pair of them out to the main section of the Hub, rolling his eyes when Jack opened the cog door with a flourish.

At John's comment about being impressive, Jack grinned broadly at the other man. "You know, you're not the first one to say something like that to me," he said, grinning mischievously. Ianto rolled his eyes and blushed. Lord have mercy, Jack was in prime form.

"Right," he said, stepping up into his role of tour guide. "This is the main section of the Hub. It's where most of the business that we deal with happens. Research, cross-analysis, what have you. Jack's office is up there," he said, motioning to the glass doors beyond the computer stations, "and there's a med bay down those stairs over there. The armory is across the way, and over in the corner over there is where my coffee machine usually sits, when people aren't breaking it and making me make the repairs," he said, shooting a look at Jack, who shrugged, but did look a bit sheepish about that fact.

"In the middle, there's the rift manipulator and the invisible lift. The cells and the archives are down that corridor to the left of the armory, and up that ladder to the right," he said, pointing it out, "is where Myfanwy's probably sleeping right about now." He realized it was a lot of information that he'd just thrown at the other man, but well. Best get it all out and just go from there, he supposed

It was a lot of information, true, but John was used to that sort of thing, so he took it in a stride, hands behind his back and eyes following every motion of Ianto's hand, directing themselves in whatever direction Ianto didn't gesture in when they had the time. It was all filed neatly away, well, as neatly as John could make it - he tried very hard, really, to be at least a little like Sherlock, but some things weren't in his capabilities, and that was a sad fact.

"Myfanwy's the... pterodactyl, yeah?" he asked after a moment, realizing he hadn't even asked, and also that he'd managed not to completely butcher the name. "...How many of you are there?" he added as an afterthought, because he couldn't remember if he'd even asked that. "It's a bit big for just the two of you."

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[LOG] Hangover Cures

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