Title: Blue ribbon baking
Fandom: Torchwood
Characters: Ianto, Jack
Author: m_findlow
Rating: PG
Length: 2,304 words
Content notes: none
Author notes: Written for Challenge 316 - Prize
Summary: Ianto is torn over what to choose and needs Jack's help.


Jack eased the window down to let the fresh air in on his drive home. It was only a few minutes away but he still enjoyed these few minutes commuting between work and home. No matter which direction he looked, all he saw was spectacular scenery. There was just no getting sick of a view like that.

It was kind of strange, the way they'd settled down here. They hadn't really planned on staying anywhere too long. They'd never lived anywhere permanently other than Earth, having since spent years travelling and working all across the galaxy, but there was something about this planet that had encouraged them to stay and put down some more permanent roots - at least for now.

Perhaps it was the climate, always mild even through winters and summers with only the occasional heatwave or sprinkling of morning snow. Maybe it was the way the houses were built so similarly to those on Earth, with their front porches, weatherboard exteriors and lots of cosy rooms. Or maybe it was just the beautiful lake that almost all the properties looked out on, surrounded by mountains in this perfect little pocket of nature away from the big cities. The geography lended itself to the idea of a gated community where no gates were needed. Everyone here, human or not, was friendly without being overbearing. They knew all their neighbours, which is something they couldn't have said about their house in Cardiff. People there kept to themselves and preferred to satisfy themselves with rumours and curtain twitching rather than speak with their neighbours. That was especially true when Jack and Ianto had been the source of most of the rumours. It was hard not to when Torchwood had so often followed them home. Their being the public gay couple of the street was hardly news at all in comparison to most of the other excitement their presence generated.

He could see all the reasons why Ianto had been happy to settle here for a while. They'd done a lot since leaving Cardiff and maybe it was time for them to just enjoy a little bit of quiet life. Not that they weren't still working, but it wasn't the frantic pace or the long hours that had dominated their earlier years.

Jack could tell Ianto was in the kitchen just by the smells that were drifting from the house as he pulled his car into the drive. He cast a look back over his shoulder at the blue water rippling just a few dozen yards away, sighing contentedly. The sky behind the mountains was lavender and slowly deepening as twilight set in. He could get used to this quiet life for a good long while to come. The rest of the universe could wait a few more years before they headed back out to explore it all.

Pushing through the door, the scents that had tempted his nose outside now hit him full force. He could smell butter and spice and sweetness lingering thick in the air before finally rounding the corner and finding his husband in the kitchen. He slipped his arms around Ianto from behind as he was still concentrating.

‘Hello,’ Jack purred, waiting for Ianto to turn around in his arms and greet him with a kiss. He wasn't disappointed as Ianto's arms snaked around his neck and pulled him in close for the kiss. The consistency of domestic life, with all its habits and routines, gave some enjoyable consequences. Whichever of them came home after a day of work was welcomed in exactly the same way. It was certainly an aspect of home life that Jack relished.

‘You've been baking,’ Jack murmured as he finally broke off the kiss. ‘What's the occasion?’

‘Do I need an occasion?’

‘No.’ They were both adept in the kitchen but baking had always been Ianto's domain. Jack helped out but Ianto was the master of all things sweet.

Jack hugged him close as an excuse to get a proper look over his shoulder to find out what he had to look forward to. Ianto was determined to make him fat. Less chaos and danger in their lives was forcing Jack to be more considerate about what he ate, because all the rich food they were whipping up in their kitchen was definitely having an impact on his waistline. He didn't like to admit it but he was a few pounds over what he should be and his abs were not as defined as he might have liked. Not that Ianto would care if he got a little pudgy, but he didn't want to wake up one day and find he'd swollen up like a balloon thanks to all their home cooking.

Jack didn't know where to begin. There were just so many delicious things littered all over their kitchen benches, housed in containers or set on plates. There was lemon drizzle cake, chocolate brownie slice, gingerbread cookies, cherry coconut loaf, and malted rum balls. There were even more things that Ianto had dreamt up using local produce - Sparcan spice biscuits, Angelfruit and custard flan, and Sugarnest meringues. And there was Jack's favourite pineapple upside down cake, all gooey and caramelized. It was also a rare treat since pineapples were hard to come by and heinously expensive in this part of the universe. With a very generous dollop of cream, Jack could easily have eaten half of it right here and now.

‘Honey, I don't know if you know this but I don't think we could possibly eat all of this,’ Jack said. ‘What possessed you to bake so much stuff?’ Not that he was complaining. He'd make a good go of it, even if that waistline was in even further jeopardy as a result.

‘They're doing a fundraiser bake sale to upgrade the local community hall.’

Jack pulled back so he could see Ianto properly. ‘A bake sale? Since when do they do bake sales?’

‘It was an idea floated at the meeting you missed yesterday. More of a fresh produce market sale, really. Everyone contributes whatever they can and all the proceeds go to the fundraiser. Since we don't grow anything apart from a few herbs in the garden, I thought our contribution could be baked goods.’

Jack took another look at the cakes and goods on display. ‘I don't think they meant for you to single-handedly do all the fundraiser baking.’

Ianto smiled at him. ‘I wasn't planning on it. They're awarding prizes for the best baked goods on the day. And prizes for the other categories too, like biggest vegetables, best handmade goods. It'll be like a local show day, I guess. They'd never really heard of the concept but I think I explained it well enough. They were very excited about it by the end. And they liked the idea that it could be an annual thing. I was just trying to figure out which of these things I wanted to make to enter on the day.’

Jack chuckled. ‘Since when are you the competitive type?’ Ianto wasn't known for big noting himself and the idea of entering a competition - even a baking one - caught him by surprise.

Their little community had never done anything like this before. They weren't the crazy kind of people who whispered behind each other's backs about who had the best kept lawn, or whose Arranga Night decorations and lights were too gaudy and ruining the rest of the neighbourhood. People were just nice and looked out for one another. If your lawn was a little scruffy, that was okay, and if you got super excited at decking the house in festive lights that could be seen from across the other side of the mile and a half wide lake, that was okay too. But he had to admit, having a show day was a great idea. People were great at making their own stuff. They had to because they were so far from the closest cities. There were no big supermarkets or department stores here, just a few small shops that sold locally grown goods. Jack had initially been skeptical they could survive in such a sleepy little place without all those consumer items they'd come to take for granted, but they'd settled into a simpler life much more easily than he imagined. It turned out they really didn't need most of those things after all.

Ianto slipped out of Jack's embrace to skirt around the kitchen counter, inspecting his handiwork. ‘I just thought it might be nice to be known for being a dab hand in the kitchen.’

‘I think we make an enigmatic enough couple without adding any extra hidden skill sets into the mix.’ People knew they did work for the Shadow Proclamation, albeit it in a reduced capacity these days. They were rarely away from home for more than a few days if they had an assignment that required them to hop back in their spacecraft and go somewhere. The rest was done remotely, though they'd hired a small office in the main township where they could work, providing separation from their home lives. It was mostly diplomatic work - mediation, reviewing treaties and trade agreements, assisting in negotiations. Only occasionally did they get asked to get involved in more serious matters, having already done their fair share of arbitrating violent conflicts in years gone by.

Their chosen profession of trying to spread peace and equality throughout the galaxy was looked upon favourably by the township who had welcomed them with open arms. That they sat on the local township council even after only having been here a year was testament to their standing in the community. And now Ianto was bringing Earth traditions to this quaint little place. It was fast becoming home and Jack strangely didn't mind that one bit.

Ianto chewed his lip thoughtfully. ‘Still… what do you think? I mean, obviously the pineapple upside down cake stands out just because of how hard it is to get them, but is that just showing off? Maybe something more locally inspired. There's that vanilla bean cake with the lavender husk syrup I haven't tried yet. Those lavender husk seeds are all over our garden even though I keep pulling them out. Maisie down the road showed me how to grind them properly so that you don't get the bitter parts when you make the syrup out of them. She gave me her cordial recipe to try.’

Jack cast a critical eye over Ianto's spread of options. He seemed really keen on putting his best foot forward but how did you choose between all of these delicious options? Jack would have rated them all first prize if he was the judge, and he wondered who on the council would be tasked with the decision. Maybe he could put his hand up. He was an expert tongue when it came to food.

Ianto reached around him and hugged him from behind. The sensation of Ianto's arms across his tummy reminded him that he should be watching his calories, not looking for excuses to increase them. He was going to have to find a way to fit more exercise into his schedule.

‘Any ideas?’

He wanted to agree that the pineapple upside down cake was a good option but then again, he also liked the fact that it was their special thing - the thing Ianto made him because he knew how much Jack loved it. If he started showing it off, people were going to ask him for the recipe and then everyone would be able to enjoy it. Maybe that was selfish of him, but he liked having a little piece of Ianto that was all his.

His eyes fell over the plate right at the end of the bench, well away from the rest of the delectable delights. Jack pointed. ‘What about those?’

‘Welsh cakes? No, I just made those out of habit for us to have with a cuppa at the office.’

Jack reached over and snaffled one. Ianto made the best Welsh cakes. They were so simple yet Jack could taste the salty butter they'd been grilled in and they had just the right amount of extra fine sugar sprinkled over the top so they were sweet but not too sweet. Nothing reminded Jack of where he'd been and where he'd come from more than this understated little miner's treat. ‘You should enter these,’ Jack announced. ‘Nobody else will have ever seen them before. They're about as uniquely Ianto Jones as you can get.’

‘Boring old Welsh cakes,’ Ianto replied.

‘Blue ribbon Welsh cakes,’ Jack insisted. ‘Trust me. The best things are the simplest. And if you're worried about nobody going near them because they've never seen them before then have a plate of them for sampling and more for selling. You'll make a killing. They'll have that community hall upgraded in no time.’

‘Maybe I should quit work and set up a bakery. Although, I wouldn't want to put the local bakers out of business. Maybe a specialty cake shop. We don't have one of those around here.’

Jack grinned. ‘Maybe you should. Just no pineapple upside down cake. That's mine.’ He took a Welsh cake and hovered it near Ianto's mouth, waiting for his husband to take the bait and bite down on it.

‘Maybe just once a year for show day,’ Ianto suggested, chewing thoughtfully. ‘We could call it the limited edition Jack Harkness Special pineapple upside down cake.’

Jack scoffed the remaining Welsh cake, grinning. ‘I think I may have created a monster.’ If Ianto moved into baked goods for a living, he was definitely going to need a strict exercise regime. A ten mile run around the lake every morning at an absolute minimum!