Slashthedrabble Challenge 485 - Free as a bird

[m_findlow]

Title: Free as a bird
Fandom: Torchwood
Characters: Ianto/Jack
Author: m_findlow
Rating: PG
Length: 500 words
Content notes: none
Author notes: Written for Challenge 485 - Mountain at slashthedrabble
Summary: Jack isn't the only one who likes high places.

Ianto sat on top of the hillside and closed his eyes as the breeze rushed from the very bottom of the valley, all the way up to the top, rippling through his hair. It wasn't a sunny day but it felt fresh and invigorating all the same. Would that he could stand out here forever and just enjoy the spectacular view of the undulating greenness for miles around. Out here there was nothing that needed cleaning or putting away, nothing to fix, no phones, no emails. Just peace and tranquility.  

'Thought I might find you up here,' Jack said, cutting through the peaceful atmosphere. He sounded a little out of breath. Hardly surprising. The trek up to the very top was brutal on the legs, all rocky ridges and slippery grass, and quite an incline for even a seasoned rambler, but the prize view at the top was well worth the effort.

Jack came over and sat down next to him, stripping off his coat and laying it over both their legs. 'Not a bad vista,' he said.

'Not bad at all,' Ianto agreed. 'Hard to believe I almost gave it away.'

'I wouldn't have let you,' Jack said. The inheritance of the land had been a complete surprise; some crazy distant relative of Ianto's. Turning it into a refuge for some of Torchwood's visitors had been a brilliant idea on Ianto's part.

As the thought passed, something rushed up in front of them, soaring into the sky. He caught the briefest glimpse of golden feathers but it was the long tail that trailed behind it that was most visible. He smiled. The creature didn't have a name, but it was as close to a description of a gryphon as any picture he'd ever seen. If they didn't really exist then this was a remarkably similar cousin.

He watched as it soared above the valley, the updrafts filling its huge feathery wingspan as it glided with ease. She was such a shy creature by nature that since settling here in the sanctuary, they hardly saw her. She hunted and fed herself, having made a nest somewhere in the cavernous hillside. Seeing her in flight was a rarity and a treat. She was such a beautiful creature. She seemed to fit perfectly into the vista like she belonged here. It was a relief that she didn't have to be locked away in a cage. No creature deserved a life behind bars.

'This why you came up here?' Jack asked.

'I didn't know she was up here, but seeing her is definitely a bonus.' There was something so wonderful about seeing a creature enjoying their freedom, knowing they were completely safe from the outside world.

'We should give this place a name,' Jack said.

'It already has one. Cwm Noddfa.' Sanctuary Valley.

'No, I mean the mountain. Like Ianto's Peak or something.'

'That's a terrible name for such a pretty place.'

'And yet not so terrible a name for someone so pretty.'

Comments

[bk_forever]

Awwww! Jack's right though, Ianto is very pretty =D

Sounds like a beautiful place, a real sanctuary for displaced craetures.