Fic: An Important Night
Jun. 18th, 2026 06:30 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
badly_knittedTitle: An Important Night
Author:
badly_knittedCharacters: Jack, Tosh, Ianto, Gwen, Owen.
Rating: PG
Word Count: 1333
Spoilers: Nada.
Summary: It’s the second Friday in June, which means it’s National Movie Night, and Jack doesn’t want anything to spoil his plans this year.
Written For: Weekend Challenge at
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1_million_words.Disclaimer: I don’t own Torchwood, or the characters.
“Toshiko!” Jack called out, bounding down from his office and over to the tech genius’s workstation. “Please tell me the Rift is going to be quiet tonight!” He looked at her pleadingly. “Pretty please? With melted chocolate on top?”
Tosh turned to her boss with a sigh. “That’s not how it works, Jack.”
“Sprinkles then? Whipped cream? Those little sugar flowers, or the edible ball bearings?”
“And that’s not what I meant. You can’t bribe me to make the Rift behave. It does what it wants, on its own schedule, which I can’t even begin to guess at. As much as I might like to, I can’t guarantee a quiet night. If that’s what you want, you’d have better luck turning your phone off and hiding in a remote cabin, somewhere no one can find you.”
“Can you at least check? See if it looks like it might be quiet?”
“That much I can do, but no promises. What’s so special about tonight anyway?” Tosh looked up at Jack, curiosity piqued. “Do you and Ianto have plans?”
“Well, yes and no.”
“It can’t be both, Jack. You either have plans or you don’t.”
“Or, our plans are contingent on whether or not the Rift is going to behave,” Ianto said, joining them. “It’s the second Friday in June, and Jack is desperate to celebrate National Movie Night. We missed out last year, because that was the night we got that pair of Vandralls dumped on us, and we spent the entire night trying to keep them from destroying half of Cardiff. Jack renamed them the Vandal twins.”
Tosh winced. “I remember that. I spent the entire night erasing everything that had been picked up on CCTV and security cameras. It was a nightmare.”
“Not to mention how many people we had to Retcon. So please, just tell us that won’t happen this year!” Jack begged.
Ianto frowned. “Surely even we can’t be so unlucky as to get another pair of amorous Vandralls through the Rift. That’s not the sort of disaster that happens twice, not unless the universe really has it in for us. Which I wouldn’t discount.”
“Shhh!” Jack hissed. “Don’t give the universe ideas!”
Ianto shrugged that off. “Anyway, most of the damage they caused was because they were treating each other as rivals, while trying to mate with everything that stayed in one place long enough. Well, anything red, anyway. It was a good thing the Royal Mail’s post-boxes are sturdy, but that tomato red mini cooper didn’t fare so well. The Vandralls practically ripped it apart. The last thing we need is a repeat of that incident.”
“It doesn’t seem likely, thankfully, but that doesn’t mean we’re completely off the hook. There are plenty of other things that could happen.” Jack leaned over Tosh’s shoulder. “How does the Rift forecast look?”
“Probability of Rift activity in the next twenty-four hours is currently nineteen percent, but you know as well as I do, that could go up or down throughout the day. It’s too soon to be sure whether we’re in for a quiet night or not.” Tosh tapped a few more keys and put a graphic up on one of her monitors. “The best I can do is keep an eye on it for you.”
“Thanks, Tosh.” Ianto smiled at his friend.
“So, what are you going to watch for National Movie Night? Anything special, or are you just going to pick something later?”
“Right now, the choice is between the Matrix trilogy, the Alien movies, and Despicable Me.” Ianto managed a wry smile. “Which means we’ll probably be watching something else entirely, because when the time comes, Jack won’t be in the mood for any of them.”
“Ooh, we could watch the Fifth Element! That’s always fun! Or that one with the fish!”
Ianto rolled his eyes. “See what I mean? Grasshopper mind.”
“How do you put up with him?”
“Some days, just barely. He has his good points though, so I persevere.”
“Well, good luck with tonight. Sounds like you’ll need it.”
“You have no idea.” Ianto headed for the kitchenette to make the first coffee of the day. All he could pray for was that Jack wouldn’t get his hopes crushed for the second year in a row. If he did, he was going to be unbearable.
The fact that he could watch movies any night of the year when they weren’t busy with work was irrelevant, in Jack’s mind. The important thing was to watch movies on the correct night because then the act of movie-watching took on a special significance. Like not putting clothes on when it was Work Naked Day, or taking the houseplants for a walk on July 27th. Jack took such things seriously; he liked to feel he was doing his part. It was one of his… quirks, Ianto supposed.
Fortunately for Ianto’s sanity and a peaceful home life, the day passed relatively uneventfully. There was a Rift event just after lunchtime, but the only thing that came through was a battered cardboard box crammed with reels of cotton, bits of lace and ribbon, and some old zip fasteners. Not the most thrilling find, but far better than having something alive and uncooperative dropped in their collective laps.
Jack swung by Tosh’s desk and checked her screen. “How does it look now?”
“You can see for yourself, can’t you?” Tosh tucked loose hair behind her ear. Probability of Rift Activity over the next twenty-four hours now stood at a mere seven percent. “Don’t count your chickens though. There’re still a few hours to go.”
“You should join us tonight!” Jack beamed at her.
“Oh, I couldn’t, I don’t want to be in the way.”
“You wouldn’t be. National Movie Night is strictly about watching movies, eating popcorn and other suitable movie-watching snacks, and drinking… well, whatever. Soda, beer, wine, anything that won’t interfere with watching movies. The whole team should come! What’s better than a group of friends getting together to watch movies? That would be perfect!” Jack turned and shouted across the Hub, “Movie Night at Ianto’s, seven tonight, everyone’s invited! Bring your own drinks and snacks.”
Ianto emerged from the kitchenette, eyebrow raised. “You’re inviting the whole team to my house without asking me first?”
“I did say they’d have to bring their own snacks,” Jack pointed out. “I’m not expecting you to cater for everyone.”
“How considerate of you.”
Gwen breezed past. “Thanks for the invite, Jack, but me and Rhys are going out to dinner.”
“Dinner? On National Movie Night?” Jack sounded appalled at the very thought.
“It was the only night we could get a reservation.”
“Probably because everyone else will be watching movies,” Jack huffed. “Owen?”
“Got better things to do with my time than sit around with you lot watching stupid movies.”
Jack pouted. “Doesn’t anyone around here care about being part of a global event?”
Ianto had some doubts that National Movie Night could be considered an event of any kind, never mind a global one, but he would never say so. Jack could be a bit touchy on the subject.
“Looks like it will just be you, me, and Tosh,” Jack said, turning to their friend. “Unless you have other plans.”
Tosh shook her head. “No, I wasn’t doing anything special tonight. I’d love to join you, if you’re sure you don’t mind.”
“Good, then we’ll pick up takeout on our way home, have dinner together, and watch movies.” Jack pointed to Tosh’s screen. “Look! Probability is down to three percent! It almost never gets that low! This has to be a good omen. The universe approves!”
A few hours later, Jack, Ianto, and Tosh were settled on the sofa in Ianto’s living room, big bowls of popcorn close at hand, and the first movie already starting. Ianto could only hope nothing would happen to interrupt the evening’s entertainment. Just this once, it would be nice if things could go to plan.
The End
Tosh turned to her boss with a sigh. “That’s not how it works, Jack.”
“Sprinkles then? Whipped cream? Those little sugar flowers, or the edible ball bearings?”
“And that’s not what I meant. You can’t bribe me to make the Rift behave. It does what it wants, on its own schedule, which I can’t even begin to guess at. As much as I might like to, I can’t guarantee a quiet night. If that’s what you want, you’d have better luck turning your phone off and hiding in a remote cabin, somewhere no one can find you.”
“Can you at least check? See if it looks like it might be quiet?”
“That much I can do, but no promises. What’s so special about tonight anyway?” Tosh looked up at Jack, curiosity piqued. “Do you and Ianto have plans?”
“Well, yes and no.”
“It can’t be both, Jack. You either have plans or you don’t.”
“Or, our plans are contingent on whether or not the Rift is going to behave,” Ianto said, joining them. “It’s the second Friday in June, and Jack is desperate to celebrate National Movie Night. We missed out last year, because that was the night we got that pair of Vandralls dumped on us, and we spent the entire night trying to keep them from destroying half of Cardiff. Jack renamed them the Vandal twins.”
Tosh winced. “I remember that. I spent the entire night erasing everything that had been picked up on CCTV and security cameras. It was a nightmare.”
“Not to mention how many people we had to Retcon. So please, just tell us that won’t happen this year!” Jack begged.
Ianto frowned. “Surely even we can’t be so unlucky as to get another pair of amorous Vandralls through the Rift. That’s not the sort of disaster that happens twice, not unless the universe really has it in for us. Which I wouldn’t discount.”
“Shhh!” Jack hissed. “Don’t give the universe ideas!”
Ianto shrugged that off. “Anyway, most of the damage they caused was because they were treating each other as rivals, while trying to mate with everything that stayed in one place long enough. Well, anything red, anyway. It was a good thing the Royal Mail’s post-boxes are sturdy, but that tomato red mini cooper didn’t fare so well. The Vandralls practically ripped it apart. The last thing we need is a repeat of that incident.”
“It doesn’t seem likely, thankfully, but that doesn’t mean we’re completely off the hook. There are plenty of other things that could happen.” Jack leaned over Tosh’s shoulder. “How does the Rift forecast look?”
“Probability of Rift activity in the next twenty-four hours is currently nineteen percent, but you know as well as I do, that could go up or down throughout the day. It’s too soon to be sure whether we’re in for a quiet night or not.” Tosh tapped a few more keys and put a graphic up on one of her monitors. “The best I can do is keep an eye on it for you.”
“Thanks, Tosh.” Ianto smiled at his friend.
“So, what are you going to watch for National Movie Night? Anything special, or are you just going to pick something later?”
“Right now, the choice is between the Matrix trilogy, the Alien movies, and Despicable Me.” Ianto managed a wry smile. “Which means we’ll probably be watching something else entirely, because when the time comes, Jack won’t be in the mood for any of them.”
“Ooh, we could watch the Fifth Element! That’s always fun! Or that one with the fish!”
Ianto rolled his eyes. “See what I mean? Grasshopper mind.”
“How do you put up with him?”
“Some days, just barely. He has his good points though, so I persevere.”
“Well, good luck with tonight. Sounds like you’ll need it.”
“You have no idea.” Ianto headed for the kitchenette to make the first coffee of the day. All he could pray for was that Jack wouldn’t get his hopes crushed for the second year in a row. If he did, he was going to be unbearable.
The fact that he could watch movies any night of the year when they weren’t busy with work was irrelevant, in Jack’s mind. The important thing was to watch movies on the correct night because then the act of movie-watching took on a special significance. Like not putting clothes on when it was Work Naked Day, or taking the houseplants for a walk on July 27th. Jack took such things seriously; he liked to feel he was doing his part. It was one of his… quirks, Ianto supposed.
Fortunately for Ianto’s sanity and a peaceful home life, the day passed relatively uneventfully. There was a Rift event just after lunchtime, but the only thing that came through was a battered cardboard box crammed with reels of cotton, bits of lace and ribbon, and some old zip fasteners. Not the most thrilling find, but far better than having something alive and uncooperative dropped in their collective laps.
Jack swung by Tosh’s desk and checked her screen. “How does it look now?”
“You can see for yourself, can’t you?” Tosh tucked loose hair behind her ear. Probability of Rift Activity over the next twenty-four hours now stood at a mere seven percent. “Don’t count your chickens though. There’re still a few hours to go.”
“You should join us tonight!” Jack beamed at her.
“Oh, I couldn’t, I don’t want to be in the way.”
“You wouldn’t be. National Movie Night is strictly about watching movies, eating popcorn and other suitable movie-watching snacks, and drinking… well, whatever. Soda, beer, wine, anything that won’t interfere with watching movies. The whole team should come! What’s better than a group of friends getting together to watch movies? That would be perfect!” Jack turned and shouted across the Hub, “Movie Night at Ianto’s, seven tonight, everyone’s invited! Bring your own drinks and snacks.”
Ianto emerged from the kitchenette, eyebrow raised. “You’re inviting the whole team to my house without asking me first?”
“I did say they’d have to bring their own snacks,” Jack pointed out. “I’m not expecting you to cater for everyone.”
“How considerate of you.”
Gwen breezed past. “Thanks for the invite, Jack, but me and Rhys are going out to dinner.”
“Dinner? On National Movie Night?” Jack sounded appalled at the very thought.
“It was the only night we could get a reservation.”
“Probably because everyone else will be watching movies,” Jack huffed. “Owen?”
“Got better things to do with my time than sit around with you lot watching stupid movies.”
Jack pouted. “Doesn’t anyone around here care about being part of a global event?”
Ianto had some doubts that National Movie Night could be considered an event of any kind, never mind a global one, but he would never say so. Jack could be a bit touchy on the subject.
“Looks like it will just be you, me, and Tosh,” Jack said, turning to their friend. “Unless you have other plans.”
Tosh shook her head. “No, I wasn’t doing anything special tonight. I’d love to join you, if you’re sure you don’t mind.”
“Good, then we’ll pick up takeout on our way home, have dinner together, and watch movies.” Jack pointed to Tosh’s screen. “Look! Probability is down to three percent! It almost never gets that low! This has to be a good omen. The universe approves!”
A few hours later, Jack, Ianto, and Tosh were settled on the sofa in Ianto’s living room, big bowls of popcorn close at hand, and the first movie already starting. Ianto could only hope nothing would happen to interrupt the evening’s entertainment. Just this once, it would be nice if things could go to plan.
The End
