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m_findlowTitle Home for Christmas - Part 23
Author/Artist m_findlow
Length/Size of work 678 words
Summary Ianto wanted Jack home for Christmas, but got Jack’s home instead.
Rating PG
Warnings None
Other content notes Using Prompt #19 - Tangle
Fandom Torchwood
Pairing Jack/Ianto
Disclaimer Torchwood sadly doesn’t belong to me, but I treat it better.
Jack paused at the top of the stairs that lead down to the basement. He peered into the dark depths but couldn’t make out either Ianto or the candlelight he’d taken with him. Perhaps Ianto hadn’t even gone down there at all in the end. He began down the stairs anyway. If there was any chance of getting some power restored to the house that would no doubt raise him in the esteem of his lover at the very least.
The bannister under his hand felt grainy with accumulated dust and, as he took the steps one by one, he could hear someone moving down ahead of him, making out the dull outline of Ianto as he closed the gap between them. He took one more step down and the wooden stair underneath his boot gave an almighty creak. He realised too late that his proximity and having not announced himself had startled Ianto, and that Ianto was spinning around at the sudden noise, quickly losing his balance.
Jack rushed down another two steps to attempt to stop him from falling, reaching to grab for him to arrest his movement, but something snagged his own foot, and before he knew it, he was toppling over as well, taking Ianto down with him. The tumble down the stairs was a painful one as Jack’s limbs managed to clip every hard object along the way until his inertia came to an abrupt halt as he hit the bottom. He was dazed for a moment until he realised that Ianto had come off second best, breaking some of his fall, and possibly a few bones to go with.
‘Are you okay?’
‘I was until you came bungling in,’ he said, though it lacked any vitriol. ‘Bruised but otherwise okay. You?’
‘Pride’s taken a battering,’ Jack replied.
‘I should have known it was you, but all I clocked was a dark shadow suddenly looming from behind and then that awful creak on the stairs. Stupid to think it was someone, or something, else.’
‘I didn't mean to give you a fright, I was only coming to check on you. Something grabbed my leg.’
Ianto reached down between their bodies and felt the thing that had assaulted Jack. ‘Feels like a bundle of old rope, or maybe a net. Why would you leave something like that on the stairs to trip over?’
Jack struggled, dusting off his arms and torso. ‘I’m reserving the right to blame whoever owned this place before me.’
‘Well, things are just going from bad to worse, aren’t they?’
‘Hey, at least when you dropped the candle it just went over and didn’t set fire to anything.’
‘Struggling to see how that’s a good thing.’
‘You really are a sad sack when you’re sick.’
‘Well, if you can’t be a miserable git when you feel like rubbish, when can you? God, how on earth did we manage to get this tangled up?’
‘I know you’re into kinks but ropes are a bit much, don't you think?’
‘Maybe if you’d let me have the torch... ‘
Jack gritted his teeth. ‘Maybe if you hadn’t stomped off in a huff I would have had a chance to give it to you.’
‘And maybe if we both weren't idiots, we’d never have been in this mess to begin with.’
Jack conceded that was probably true. They were both stubborn at the best of times. ‘Sorry.’
‘Me too.’ Ianto managed to disentangle them, helping Jack to his feet, not for the first time tonight. He retrieved his candle, which had rolled onto its side but was otherwise still lit. Ianto held it up against the fuse box first, peering into it and plucking out the fuses one by one. ‘Nothing amiss here.’
Jack moved around to the backup generator and kicked the side of the fuel can by its side. ‘Empty,’ he declared, before heaving a sigh. ‘Well, can’t say we didn’t try. Out of juice and out of luck. I think you were right before. We’re definitely on the naughty list this year.’
Author/Artist m_findlow
Length/Size of work 678 words
Summary Ianto wanted Jack home for Christmas, but got Jack’s home instead.
Rating PG
Warnings None
Other content notes Using Prompt #19 - Tangle
Fandom Torchwood
Pairing Jack/Ianto
Disclaimer Torchwood sadly doesn’t belong to me, but I treat it better.
Jack paused at the top of the stairs that lead down to the basement. He peered into the dark depths but couldn’t make out either Ianto or the candlelight he’d taken with him. Perhaps Ianto hadn’t even gone down there at all in the end. He began down the stairs anyway. If there was any chance of getting some power restored to the house that would no doubt raise him in the esteem of his lover at the very least.
The bannister under his hand felt grainy with accumulated dust and, as he took the steps one by one, he could hear someone moving down ahead of him, making out the dull outline of Ianto as he closed the gap between them. He took one more step down and the wooden stair underneath his boot gave an almighty creak. He realised too late that his proximity and having not announced himself had startled Ianto, and that Ianto was spinning around at the sudden noise, quickly losing his balance.
Jack rushed down another two steps to attempt to stop him from falling, reaching to grab for him to arrest his movement, but something snagged his own foot, and before he knew it, he was toppling over as well, taking Ianto down with him. The tumble down the stairs was a painful one as Jack’s limbs managed to clip every hard object along the way until his inertia came to an abrupt halt as he hit the bottom. He was dazed for a moment until he realised that Ianto had come off second best, breaking some of his fall, and possibly a few bones to go with.
‘Are you okay?’
‘I was until you came bungling in,’ he said, though it lacked any vitriol. ‘Bruised but otherwise okay. You?’
‘Pride’s taken a battering,’ Jack replied.
‘I should have known it was you, but all I clocked was a dark shadow suddenly looming from behind and then that awful creak on the stairs. Stupid to think it was someone, or something, else.’
‘I didn't mean to give you a fright, I was only coming to check on you. Something grabbed my leg.’
Ianto reached down between their bodies and felt the thing that had assaulted Jack. ‘Feels like a bundle of old rope, or maybe a net. Why would you leave something like that on the stairs to trip over?’
Jack struggled, dusting off his arms and torso. ‘I’m reserving the right to blame whoever owned this place before me.’
‘Well, things are just going from bad to worse, aren’t they?’
‘Hey, at least when you dropped the candle it just went over and didn’t set fire to anything.’
‘Struggling to see how that’s a good thing.’
‘You really are a sad sack when you’re sick.’
‘Well, if you can’t be a miserable git when you feel like rubbish, when can you? God, how on earth did we manage to get this tangled up?’
‘I know you’re into kinks but ropes are a bit much, don't you think?’
‘Maybe if you’d let me have the torch... ‘
Jack gritted his teeth. ‘Maybe if you hadn’t stomped off in a huff I would have had a chance to give it to you.’
‘And maybe if we both weren't idiots, we’d never have been in this mess to begin with.’
Jack conceded that was probably true. They were both stubborn at the best of times. ‘Sorry.’
‘Me too.’ Ianto managed to disentangle them, helping Jack to his feet, not for the first time tonight. He retrieved his candle, which had rolled onto its side but was otherwise still lit. Ianto held it up against the fuse box first, peering into it and plucking out the fuses one by one. ‘Nothing amiss here.’
Jack moved around to the backup generator and kicked the side of the fuel can by its side. ‘Empty,’ he declared, before heaving a sigh. ‘Well, can’t say we didn’t try. Out of juice and out of luck. I think you were right before. We’re definitely on the naughty list this year.’
