Bring Him Home: Chapter 7
Nov. 11th, 2010 07:55 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
galadriel1010Title: Bring Him Home
Chapter Title: Chapter 7
Challenge/Fest: Schmoop_bingo (card 3)
Prompt: Coming Home from a Long Trip
Rating: G
Dedication:
Summary: One of Jack's missions has gone badly wrong, and Ianto has had to go to be with him, leaving 18-year-old Mica to babysit her young cousins and keep them distracted.
Characters: Mica Davies, Andrew Harkness-Jones, Mirabelle Harkness-Jones, Jack Harkness, Ianto Jones, mentions of other canon and non-canon family
Contains: Fluff, family and friendship, cookies, a kitchen disaster, cricket and children.
Disclaimer: Torchwood and its environs, occurrences and persons belong to the BBC. The original characters have disowned me.
Andrew hitched his bookbag higher on his shoulders and smiled at his friend Sarah. She was telling him about her cat, but he wasn't really listening, already looking past her to the school gate for his dads. He couldn't see them amongst the crowd of other parents, but he knew they were there. Dad had promised that they'd be there.
Someone crashed into his side and he looked down to see Belle wrapping her arms around him and grinning widely. "I got a star!"
Sarah leaned forwards to look around him. "Hello Belle."
"Hello Sarah!" Belle beamed at her and Sarah stuck her tongue out. "Our dads are home."
"Oh?" she looked up towards the gate, following Andrew's gaze. "Where did they go?"
Andrew shrugged and wrapped his arm around Belle's shoulders to ease her through a group of his classmates – he was in the top year, and they were all big enough that they could hurt Belle by accident. They'd never do it on purpose, though; Belle was too sweet, and Tad was too scary. "Dad got in trouble, and Tad had to rescue him."
"That's so sweet," Sarah sighed.
"Daddy!" Belle ducked out from Andrew's arm and hurtled towards a gap in the crowd where she'd just seen Dad appear. He stepped to the side, inside the gate but out of the way of people trying to get in and out, and crouched down with his arms open. Belle threw her arms around his neck, chattering excitedly, and he tightened his grip around her and swept her up, swinging her legs to make her laugh.
Andrew ran after her, his bag bouncing on his back and Sarah close behind, and ducked under Dad's offered arm to hug him. "Heya Dad."
"Hey Monster," he ruffled Andrew's hair and hugged him again. "Hello Sarah."
"Hello Mr Harkness." She smiled up at him. "Welcome home."
"Thank you. I'm glad to be home."
Tad came through the gate behind Dad. He looked tired, somehow, but he was smiling and happy to see them. Andrew slipped out of Dad's grasp and buried his face in Tad's chest, hiding a growing smile. "Hello."
"Heya cariad," Tad smiled down at him. "How was school?"
He shrugged and looked up. "Not as good as hometime."
Sarah spotted her mum and hurried over to her, waving over her shoulder, and Dad put Belle down to walk so that he could take her hand once they got through the gate to cross the road. Andrew held onto Tad's hand tightly, keeping close and enjoying the feelings of safety that Tad always gave him. His hands were big and strong, soft in some places and hard in others, but never rough – always gentle, even when he did something he shouldn't, like standing on the chair to get into the cupboard yesterday morning. Dad and Tad were just the same like that, they would never hurt him.
Tad squeezed his hand and he looked up at him, smiling sheepishly. Fingers brushed through his hair and he leaned into them happily. "What are you thinking?" Tad asked.
"I'm happy you're home," he answered.
"I'm happy we're home, too," Tad told him. "We missed you."
He lifted Tad's arm so that it draped over his shoulder and smiled when Tad tightened his grip to hug him closer. "I love you, Tad."
"I love you too, Andrew." Tad squeezed his shoulder, and Andrew looked up to see Dad on his other side, carrying Belle piggy-back again. He knew that they had to go away sometimes, to have adventures and save the world like the people in Dad's stories. But Andrew knew that they'd always come back here, because they loved him, and they loved Belle, and they loved each other. And that was all he needed.
Andrew watched Tad's hands cutting and buttering bread for Belle, and Dad's hands gesturing to add emphasis to the story he was telling. It was another story about people he used to work with, before he met Tad, friends who he never saw any more. It made him sad, Andrew could tell, but he liked to talk about them. Andrew thought that they'd probably died, like his mum, but Dad still remembered and missed them. Dad had promised him that he'd always come back, and that he'd never leave Andrew alone, and he believed him, because Dad would never break his promise.
Tad's finger brushed his cheek and he blinked, swinging his head around to smile sheepishly at Tad. He just smiled softly, though, and tapped the tip of Andrew's nose. "You're thinking."
"Yep." He turned his attention back to his dinner, comparing his own small hands to Dad's and Tad's. One day he'd have big, gentle hands too, and he'd look after people with them. "Listening to Dad's story."
"You'll make him big headed," Tad teased, but he didn't mean it. He'd been listening to the story too, Andrew could tell. Tad always loved Dad's stories, except when he was in them. Those were Andrew's favourite stories, though, so Tad always let Dad tell them, even though they embarrassed him. Tad was like that, but Dad seemed to love stories about himself (not as much as he loved the stories about Tad, though.) "How's your dinner?"
"It's nice." He smiled and gestured with a chip to prove it. Tad laughed and wiped a smear of ketchup off his cheek. "Oops."
"Messy," he chided. "You take after your dad."
"Hey!" Dad protested. "We get bonus points for enthusiasm, right?"
"Always," Tad assured him.
"That's alright then." Dad smiled softly and launched into another story to entertain them, and Tad pulled that face again that said that Dad was silly, but that Tad loved him anyway. Andrew swung his legs under the table and enjoyed his dinner. Everything was absolutely okay.
Coda
Chapter Title: Chapter 7
Challenge/Fest: Schmoop_bingo (card 3)
Prompt: Coming Home from a Long Trip
Rating: G
Dedication:
Summary: One of Jack's missions has gone badly wrong, and Ianto has had to go to be with him, leaving 18-year-old Mica to babysit her young cousins and keep them distracted.
Characters: Mica Davies, Andrew Harkness-Jones, Mirabelle Harkness-Jones, Jack Harkness, Ianto Jones, mentions of other canon and non-canon family
Contains: Fluff, family and friendship, cookies, a kitchen disaster, cricket and children.
Disclaimer: Torchwood and its environs, occurrences and persons belong to the BBC. The original characters have disowned me.
Andrew hitched his bookbag higher on his shoulders and smiled at his friend Sarah. She was telling him about her cat, but he wasn't really listening, already looking past her to the school gate for his dads. He couldn't see them amongst the crowd of other parents, but he knew they were there. Dad had promised that they'd be there.
Someone crashed into his side and he looked down to see Belle wrapping her arms around him and grinning widely. "I got a star!"
Sarah leaned forwards to look around him. "Hello Belle."
"Hello Sarah!" Belle beamed at her and Sarah stuck her tongue out. "Our dads are home."
"Oh?" she looked up towards the gate, following Andrew's gaze. "Where did they go?"
Andrew shrugged and wrapped his arm around Belle's shoulders to ease her through a group of his classmates – he was in the top year, and they were all big enough that they could hurt Belle by accident. They'd never do it on purpose, though; Belle was too sweet, and Tad was too scary. "Dad got in trouble, and Tad had to rescue him."
"That's so sweet," Sarah sighed.
"Daddy!" Belle ducked out from Andrew's arm and hurtled towards a gap in the crowd where she'd just seen Dad appear. He stepped to the side, inside the gate but out of the way of people trying to get in and out, and crouched down with his arms open. Belle threw her arms around his neck, chattering excitedly, and he tightened his grip around her and swept her up, swinging her legs to make her laugh.
Andrew ran after her, his bag bouncing on his back and Sarah close behind, and ducked under Dad's offered arm to hug him. "Heya Dad."
"Hey Monster," he ruffled Andrew's hair and hugged him again. "Hello Sarah."
"Hello Mr Harkness." She smiled up at him. "Welcome home."
"Thank you. I'm glad to be home."
Tad came through the gate behind Dad. He looked tired, somehow, but he was smiling and happy to see them. Andrew slipped out of Dad's grasp and buried his face in Tad's chest, hiding a growing smile. "Hello."
"Heya cariad," Tad smiled down at him. "How was school?"
He shrugged and looked up. "Not as good as hometime."
Sarah spotted her mum and hurried over to her, waving over her shoulder, and Dad put Belle down to walk so that he could take her hand once they got through the gate to cross the road. Andrew held onto Tad's hand tightly, keeping close and enjoying the feelings of safety that Tad always gave him. His hands were big and strong, soft in some places and hard in others, but never rough – always gentle, even when he did something he shouldn't, like standing on the chair to get into the cupboard yesterday morning. Dad and Tad were just the same like that, they would never hurt him.
Tad squeezed his hand and he looked up at him, smiling sheepishly. Fingers brushed through his hair and he leaned into them happily. "What are you thinking?" Tad asked.
"I'm happy you're home," he answered.
"I'm happy we're home, too," Tad told him. "We missed you."
He lifted Tad's arm so that it draped over his shoulder and smiled when Tad tightened his grip to hug him closer. "I love you, Tad."
"I love you too, Andrew." Tad squeezed his shoulder, and Andrew looked up to see Dad on his other side, carrying Belle piggy-back again. He knew that they had to go away sometimes, to have adventures and save the world like the people in Dad's stories. But Andrew knew that they'd always come back here, because they loved him, and they loved Belle, and they loved each other. And that was all he needed.
Andrew watched Tad's hands cutting and buttering bread for Belle, and Dad's hands gesturing to add emphasis to the story he was telling. It was another story about people he used to work with, before he met Tad, friends who he never saw any more. It made him sad, Andrew could tell, but he liked to talk about them. Andrew thought that they'd probably died, like his mum, but Dad still remembered and missed them. Dad had promised him that he'd always come back, and that he'd never leave Andrew alone, and he believed him, because Dad would never break his promise.
Tad's finger brushed his cheek and he blinked, swinging his head around to smile sheepishly at Tad. He just smiled softly, though, and tapped the tip of Andrew's nose. "You're thinking."
"Yep." He turned his attention back to his dinner, comparing his own small hands to Dad's and Tad's. One day he'd have big, gentle hands too, and he'd look after people with them. "Listening to Dad's story."
"You'll make him big headed," Tad teased, but he didn't mean it. He'd been listening to the story too, Andrew could tell. Tad always loved Dad's stories, except when he was in them. Those were Andrew's favourite stories, though, so Tad always let Dad tell them, even though they embarrassed him. Tad was like that, but Dad seemed to love stories about himself (not as much as he loved the stories about Tad, though.) "How's your dinner?"
"It's nice." He smiled and gestured with a chip to prove it. Tad laughed and wiped a smear of ketchup off his cheek. "Oops."
"Messy," he chided. "You take after your dad."
"Hey!" Dad protested. "We get bonus points for enthusiasm, right?"
"Always," Tad assured him.
"That's alright then." Dad smiled softly and launched into another story to entertain them, and Tad pulled that face again that said that Dad was silly, but that Tad loved him anyway. Andrew swung his legs under the table and enjoyed his dinner. Everything was absolutely okay.
Coda
