Fanfic - Another Day at the Office

[cornerofmadness]

Title Another Day at the Office
Author Cornerofmadness
Disclaimer -- Russel T. Davies owns all
Summary Another day, another alien invader.
rating - teen
Pairings Jack Harkness/Ianto Jones
Warning -- none
Word Count 574
Author’s Note written for fandom_stocking’s 2018 edition and written for auroracloud. Happy Holidays.

X X X



Jack panted, squeaking to a stop. Damn, Eglwys Gadeiriol Tyddewi - St. David's cathedral -was huge, and the Smimats were small, almost weasel-like but rapacious. He leaned against a column bearing a faded full body portrait of King Henry the IV from centuries before. Catching his breath, Jack took off again. Somewhere inside the cathedral Ianto was battling the Smimats. Hearing Ianto bellow, Jack ran full out. He found Ianto near the somewhat crumbling reposed statue that marked Rhys ap Gruffydd's burial within the Cathedral walls.

Ianto was firing a blaster from Stowe at two of the Smimats as they ran up the wall. They turned to ash, trickling down the grey stonework. "Nice of you to show, Jack."

"Always." Jack glanced around but saw no more of them in the area. "I know there's at least two more. Any thoughts on where they might have gotten off to?”

“It would help if the cathedral wasn’t ridiculously big,” Ianto grunted.

And it was huge, highly decorated and slightly off plumb because it slowly sank into the boggy ground it had been built on so many centuries before. There were countless places for something as small as a Smimat to hide. They might look sort of cute but they could strip a man to bone in minutes, which is why they couldn’t let them escape. However, it was also the reason unease nibbled at Jack’s resolve. He knew Ianto – and the team in general - were always at risk but some deaths were worse than others. He didn’t want to lose sight of Ianto again only to find him with a couple of Smimats grinning out of his ribcage at Jack.

A low squealing noise drew their attention. Ianto pointed down a corridor. "Sounds like it came from the choir."

Jack nodded. "Together then."

The choir area was gorgeous with carved seats called miseries, which Jack assumed were so named because of the carvings and how small the seats were. Pretty to look at, miserable on the back. He spotted one of the Smimats near a misery carved with a majestic Green Man face. He zapped it without damaging the chair.

Nails on stone alerted him but even as he turned, Jack knew it was too late. The last Smimat launched itself at him but Ianto anticipated it, blasting it to dust before it could maul Jack.

"Thanks." He grinned at Ianto who smirked back.

They slowly checked the huge structure to be sure they had gotten them all. Jack sagged into a pew afterward, "I miss the good old days when I wasn't chasing space weasels through a medieval church."

Ianto snorted, sitting next to him. "Indulging in a bit of Hiraeth?"

Jack mulled the Welsh word. Was he romanticizing the past? "Yeah, probably. Ready to get out of here?"

"So very ready. Want to go to the Farmer's Arms for a pint? That Felinfoel Double Dragon they had last time was nice."

"Mmm, sounds great." Jack pulled Ianto in for a kiss ending only when they were both breathless. He stood and held out his hand.

Ianto took it and they exited the pews. A well-earned beer sounded like the start of a very good evening. Jack knew how it would end. He couldn't wait.

Author’s Note- Saint David’s Cathedral is an amazing place and the Farmer’s Arm is where I went for a pint the last time I was there. Nice pub.