Title: Taking Charge
Fandom: Torchwood
Author: badly_knitted
Characters: Ianto, Tosh, Gwen, Owen, Jack.
Rating: PG
Word Count: 418
Spoilers: Kiss Kiss Bang Bang.
Summary: Following the message on his VM, Jack’s taken the SUV, leaving the rest of the team behind. Someone’s got to sort them out.
Content Notes: None needed.
Written For: Challenge #157: Whistle.
Disclaimer: I don’t own Torchwood, or the characters.



They’ve barely got Jack back and already he’s gone swanning off on his own again, after getting a message through his wrist strap. It’s obvious the man in the hologram is someone their newly returned leader knows, not that he bothered to tell them anything before dashing off in the SUV, leaving them without transport and twiddling their collective thumbs. Thanks a lot, Jack! Him and his bloody hero complex!

Ianto looks at his teammates and despairs. They’ve been leaderless for over three months, with Gwen and Owen frequently arguing over who’s in charge and butting heads at every opportunity. By some miracle they’ve managed to muddle through and keep Torchwood running despite the leadership battle, with Gwen giving orders in the Hub and Owen sort of taking charge in the field, although for the most part they’ve all just ignored any orders and simply carried on with business as usual. It’s not as if they need telling how to do their jobs, especially not by people who have no real understanding of exactly what anyone else’s job entails.

Then Jack returns and takes back the reins, and the moment he leaves them on their own the others go to pieces, milling around helplessly, not knowing what’s going on and without a clue as to what they should do next. Tosh says she can track Jack, but as usual, Gwen and Owen are too busy complaining about Jack’s behaviour to pay any attention to her. How they ever got anything done while Jack was AWOL is a complete mystery.

Shaking his head in disbelief over how useless the people he works with really are, Ianto takes charge of the practicalities of their situation once again. Why is he always the one who ends up sorting them out? They’re all supposed to be intelligent adults but they don’t act like it.

Right, to business. It’s all very well that Tosh can track Jack, but Jack’s got the SUV and a head start; the first thing they need is transportation, which is easy enough to acquire. Sticking two fingers in his mouth, Ianto’s gives a truly ear-piercing whistle that temporarily silences his teammates, simultaneously flagging down a passing taxi. There, problem solved.

As they pile into the taxi and settle into their seats, Ianto tunes out the renewed bickering, staring out the window beside him and rolling his eyes. Honestly, it’s a good thing he’s here, running everything from the background, just like always. They’d be completely helpless without him.


The End