Fffc Bingo Card - Spooked

[m_findlow]

Title: Spooked
Fandom: Torchwood
Characters: Ianto, Jack
Author: m_findlow
Rating: PG
Length: 1,000 words
Content notes: none 
Author notes: Written for Bingo Card Prompt 67 - Under at fffc
Summary: The hub's latest resident gets spooked and it's Jack's job to look after it. 

The layer of dirt that was sticking to Jack's hands as he lay on his stomach on the floor was almost enough to gross him out. God knew what Ianto would have done in his position - probably had a mental breakdown. How did it get so bad down here? Jack wondered. He suspected he already knew the answer. There were just some parts of the hub that Ianto had conceded defeat on, and the back corner of Jack's office, with its pile of clutter from the last fifty years was an excellent candidate. Even Jack rarely visited those items and as they were sitting almost behind the door that was for the most part always open, nobody noticed quite so much that a layer of lint, dust and dirt was gathering there, possibly with the intention of one day becoming sentient and plotting to take over the entire planet. 

He heard Myfanwy squawking as she wheeled around the hub, flapping her great wings. 'Would someone please get her to shut the hell up!' he yelled, before realising that was a colossal mistake, brought on by his frustration at the whole situation. He bit down on the inside of his cheek as hard as he could as punishment. He'd had everyone on strict orders not to make any sudden loud noises or movements that might frighten their latest addition to the hub. 

The Grimble, a tiny round creature with four invisible legs hidden under a mountain of pale pink fur had so far had a rough time since arriving in Cardiff. They'd found the thing huddling behind a set of bins in the commercial end of the city, filthy and sopping wet from the rains that had fallen all day and night. It also smelled terrible, leading Jack to suspect it had started its journey in the sewer and then migrated. The poor bedraggled creature hardly looked pink at all when they collected it, shaking and shivering. Since it came from a world that had no predators whatsoever, arriving here would have been a real culture shock. 

Jack had been clear that they were to treat it with kid gloves until it could acclimatise to its new surroundings, and that meant keeping things at a low volume. 

Of course, that rule had been broken pretty quickly, since his team were unaccustomed to working in silence, and the poor thing needed a bath and some medical attention. Ianto had pulled out a hair dryer to spare the Grimble from a ferocious toweling, and whilst the noise had been upsetting at first, the Grimble quickly adapted, enjoying the warm air fluffing out its fur, justifying it entirely. 

Since then they'd all taken turns fussing over it - the fate of all creatures deemed cute and cuddly - until Jack had rescued it from their clutches where it could quietly take in its new circumstances from a small ratty cushion on the corner of Jack's large desk. That had been, of course, until a certain other resident had decided to play up. 

Myfanwy was rarely ever any trouble these days. She knew the rhythm and cadence of the team as they came and went at odd hours of the day and night. So long as she was fed at reasonably regular intervals and provided with fresh bedding every so often, she was content to nest up in her eyrie and to go out at night when she felt the need to stretch her wings and supplement her diet with some fish - usually stolen right off the crates of the trawlers as they came in to undock their loads from the nightly catch. With a new player in the hub attracting their attention now, she seemed to have taken umbrage and was determined to remind them she was here. 

The Grimble had immediately gone into flight mode as Myfanwy lurched down from her nest, casting a great shadow over the hub as she screeched her displeasure. It bolted from Jack's desk and went for the closest sanctuary it could find, wedge deeply under the huge freestanding communications panel. 

'I'm sorry, sir,' Ianto said, jogging up to the doorway and sounding out of breath. 'I don't know what's gotten into her.' 

'Jealousy, that's what,' Jack replied, trying to reach under the panel but finding his arm wasn't long enough and that the Grimble was right at the back against the wall. 'What chance a tiny little ball of candy floss has against a giant flying lizard I'll never know.' 

'I'll open up the tunnel hatch and let her outside for a bit. I'll go play with her so she doesn't feel so left out. Maybe some extra chocolate too.' 

Jack half ignored him as he tried to coax the Grimble back out. 'You do that.' On another day he might have told Ianto not to reward bad behaviour. Thankfully dinosaurs - even the sweet tooth, dark chocolate loving kind - had no interest in sugary treats like candy floss, but this poor little guy wasn't to know that. 

Over the course of the next two hours Jack and the rest of the team tried absolutely everything to encourage it to come out, and that the danger had passed. They cooed quietly, offered food and even played little games on the floor that might pique its curiosity, but nothing was making it budge. Jack didn't want to leave in case it decided to finally go wandering on its own. The hub was a dangerous place for a curious little alien, so he stayed where he was, lying in the field of dust bunnies. 

Someone shook his shoulder gently and whispered his name. 'Jack.' He opened his eyes to find he'd been dozing, but that there was also something pink and fluffy snuggled in the crook of his elbow. He guessed it figured if it was safe enough for Jack to sleep, it was safe enough to come out. 

'Didn't think you'd want to sleep on the floor all night,' Ianto whispered.