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m_findlowTitle: Herbal essence
Fandom: Torchwood
Characters: Jack, Ianto
Author: m_findlow
Rating: PG.
Length: 1,000 words
Content notes: none
Author notes: Written for Challenge 128 - Gardening at ![[community profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/community.png)
fandomweekly
fandomweeklySummary: A strange old woman gives Jack a gift.
'That's new,' Ianto said, pointing towards the high street shop on their left as he and Jack wandered back to their car. It had been a dull morning by Jack's reckoning, but the walk was nice enough.
'A florist.'
Ianto hummed in disagreement. 'More like a mini garden centre.'
'Mini is right.' It was about big enough to house a two-man travel agency and not much more. 'Ianto Jones, is this your subtle way of trying to get me to buy you flowers?'
'Of course not. I was merely pointing out an incongruity in the ever-changing retail landscape of twenty-first century Cardiff. However, those daffodils are very nice.'
'Not a dozen long-stemmed roses'? Jack's words were teasing. Ianto knew that Jack was useless at romantic gestures. Emotionally obtuse, was the exact phrase he seemed to remember Ianto using to describe him. Oh well. So what if he wasn't great and saying and showing how he felt. It hadn't stopped them yet.
Ianto grabbed a bunch from the pot on the footpath and smirked. 'Save those for my birthday.'
Jack followed him into the shop, casting an eye around the narrow, crammed shelves. There wasn't a pretty posy or a splash of brightly coloured cellophane wrapping in sight. Truthfully, it was just a mass of ugly, uninspiring plants. The daffodils must have been ordered by mistake. Small wonder they were out in the street, offered up for a quick sale. The woman behind the counter was equally old and withered.
Ianto was reaching into his pocket for his wallet when Jack stopped him. 'No, let me pay. It's what a gentleman would do, right?'
'If only we had one of those,' Ianto quipped.
Jack let his eyes roll as he fished around in his greatcoat pocket for a five pound note, wrapping his hand around it and handing it over.
'Read your future for you?' the woman asked as she prised the note from his hand and kept hold of him in a way that was slightly uncomfortable and a little creepy.
'What, is this just a side gig for you?' Probably brewed potions out the back as well.
The woman ignored him, ran one gnarled finger down his lifeline and then let go of his hand. If she was the real deal - and so few were - she'd have seen how long his life line was and run for the hills. Jack's immortality was a kind of magic even they didn't like.
'I have just the thing for you,' she said, tottering over to a shelf and pulling down what had to be one of the ugliest plants on it. It was all furry tendrils and more brown than green. 'Put this in your garden. Steep the leaves in boiling water when you get sick.'
Jack plastered on a charming smile to cover the disconcerting feeling in his gut. 'I'll take my chances with the NHS. But thanks.'
'We're not really gardeners,' Ianto added more politely. 'Workaholics, you know.'
She pushed the plant at Jack, forcing it into his arms. 'Take it.'
Jack tried foisting it back on her. 'We don't wanna buy it.'
'No money, just take it.'
Jack felt Ianto's hand on his elbow, a sure sign that he was about to be manhandled. 'Thank you. And for the daffodils.'
Creepy old bat, Jack though, reluctantly cradling the thing as they left.
'You're not seriously going to put that thing in our garden are you?' Jack asked as he dumped it on the back seat, giving it an unimpressed look.
'Well, I'm not leaving on the kitchen sill. You never know, maybe it blooms into something beautiful.'
Jack frowned at the sad looking plant. 'I seriously doubt it.'
A few days later, Jack could scarcely get himself out of bed. Something had sprung up out of the blue and knocked him for six, yet Ianto, thankfully, seemed unaffected. It didn't seem to be contagious, but Jack was miserable all the same.
'Owen's still clueless,' Ianto said, reading the latest analysis of Jack's bloodwork from Owen's email. 'You really don't do things by halves, do you?' He paused and stared out through the window at their courtyard garden. 'I wonder…'
Jack could see where this was going. 'No way,' he told Ianto. 'You are not brewing that thing up and making me drink it.'
Ianto folded his arms. 'A woman who claims to be a fortune teller gives you a medicinal plant just days before you fall gravely ill from an unknown malady?'
'Don't do it.'
'What's the worst that could happen?'
'It could kill me.'
Ianto smirked. 'At least you wouldn't be sick anymore.'
Ianto came back half an hour later with a large mug in hand. Jack didn't care how bad he felt, he was not drinking that unless it was coffee.
'It doesn't smell bad,' Ianto said in offering the mug across.
'No way.' Jack heaved a cough and flopped back into the pillows, groaning.
'Way,' Ianto insisted, slipping a hand under Jack's head and holding it up so he could sip.
It might not have smelled, but it still tasted bad, but Jack found himself too weak to fight against it. Swallowing was the path of least resistance. Fortunately Ianto only made him drink half. After that, he felt some of his fever subside and he drifted off into deep dreamless sleep.
'Just admit it worked,' Ianto said, amazed by Jack's miraculous recovery the next day. 'Owen is having a field day running samples in the lab. You know how much he loves botany.'
'It was just my natural immune system,' Jack argued. 'The plant had nothing to do with it.' He felt great, but nothing got him down for long.
'If you insist,' Ianto said, watching Jack carefully over the top of his coffee mug. 'All the same, I think I'll be spending a little more time cultivating our little patch from now on. At least I know where to get some good gardening tips.'
'That's new,' Ianto said, pointing towards the high street shop on their left as he and Jack wandered back to their car. It had been a dull morning by Jack's reckoning, but the walk was nice enough.
'A florist.'
Ianto hummed in disagreement. 'More like a mini garden centre.'
'Mini is right.' It was about big enough to house a two-man travel agency and not much more. 'Ianto Jones, is this your subtle way of trying to get me to buy you flowers?'
'Of course not. I was merely pointing out an incongruity in the ever-changing retail landscape of twenty-first century Cardiff. However, those daffodils are very nice.'
'Not a dozen long-stemmed roses'? Jack's words were teasing. Ianto knew that Jack was useless at romantic gestures. Emotionally obtuse, was the exact phrase he seemed to remember Ianto using to describe him. Oh well. So what if he wasn't great and saying and showing how he felt. It hadn't stopped them yet.
Ianto grabbed a bunch from the pot on the footpath and smirked. 'Save those for my birthday.'
Jack followed him into the shop, casting an eye around the narrow, crammed shelves. There wasn't a pretty posy or a splash of brightly coloured cellophane wrapping in sight. Truthfully, it was just a mass of ugly, uninspiring plants. The daffodils must have been ordered by mistake. Small wonder they were out in the street, offered up for a quick sale. The woman behind the counter was equally old and withered.
Ianto was reaching into his pocket for his wallet when Jack stopped him. 'No, let me pay. It's what a gentleman would do, right?'
'If only we had one of those,' Ianto quipped.
Jack let his eyes roll as he fished around in his greatcoat pocket for a five pound note, wrapping his hand around it and handing it over.
'Read your future for you?' the woman asked as she prised the note from his hand and kept hold of him in a way that was slightly uncomfortable and a little creepy.
'What, is this just a side gig for you?' Probably brewed potions out the back as well.
The woman ignored him, ran one gnarled finger down his lifeline and then let go of his hand. If she was the real deal - and so few were - she'd have seen how long his life line was and run for the hills. Jack's immortality was a kind of magic even they didn't like.
'I have just the thing for you,' she said, tottering over to a shelf and pulling down what had to be one of the ugliest plants on it. It was all furry tendrils and more brown than green. 'Put this in your garden. Steep the leaves in boiling water when you get sick.'
Jack plastered on a charming smile to cover the disconcerting feeling in his gut. 'I'll take my chances with the NHS. But thanks.'
'We're not really gardeners,' Ianto added more politely. 'Workaholics, you know.'
She pushed the plant at Jack, forcing it into his arms. 'Take it.'
Jack tried foisting it back on her. 'We don't wanna buy it.'
'No money, just take it.'
Jack felt Ianto's hand on his elbow, a sure sign that he was about to be manhandled. 'Thank you. And for the daffodils.'
Creepy old bat, Jack though, reluctantly cradling the thing as they left.
'You're not seriously going to put that thing in our garden are you?' Jack asked as he dumped it on the back seat, giving it an unimpressed look.
'Well, I'm not leaving on the kitchen sill. You never know, maybe it blooms into something beautiful.'
Jack frowned at the sad looking plant. 'I seriously doubt it.'
A few days later, Jack could scarcely get himself out of bed. Something had sprung up out of the blue and knocked him for six, yet Ianto, thankfully, seemed unaffected. It didn't seem to be contagious, but Jack was miserable all the same.
'Owen's still clueless,' Ianto said, reading the latest analysis of Jack's bloodwork from Owen's email. 'You really don't do things by halves, do you?' He paused and stared out through the window at their courtyard garden. 'I wonder…'
Jack could see where this was going. 'No way,' he told Ianto. 'You are not brewing that thing up and making me drink it.'
Ianto folded his arms. 'A woman who claims to be a fortune teller gives you a medicinal plant just days before you fall gravely ill from an unknown malady?'
'Don't do it.'
'What's the worst that could happen?'
'It could kill me.'
Ianto smirked. 'At least you wouldn't be sick anymore.'
Ianto came back half an hour later with a large mug in hand. Jack didn't care how bad he felt, he was not drinking that unless it was coffee.
'It doesn't smell bad,' Ianto said in offering the mug across.
'No way.' Jack heaved a cough and flopped back into the pillows, groaning.
'Way,' Ianto insisted, slipping a hand under Jack's head and holding it up so he could sip.
It might not have smelled, but it still tasted bad, but Jack found himself too weak to fight against it. Swallowing was the path of least resistance. Fortunately Ianto only made him drink half. After that, he felt some of his fever subside and he drifted off into deep dreamless sleep.
'Just admit it worked,' Ianto said, amazed by Jack's miraculous recovery the next day. 'Owen is having a field day running samples in the lab. You know how much he loves botany.'
'It was just my natural immune system,' Jack argued. 'The plant had nothing to do with it.' He felt great, but nothing got him down for long.
'If you insist,' Ianto said, watching Jack carefully over the top of his coffee mug. 'All the same, I think I'll be spending a little more time cultivating our little patch from now on. At least I know where to get some good gardening tips.'
