OTA

[im_torchwood]

After John Hart, after Gray, Jack couldn't be in Cardiff. He was Torchwood now, not just what he did but who he was, and he had a small crisis and had to get away. Although he'd broken with London's Torchwood after the incidents at Canary Wharf (which it seemed the population had either forgotten or written off) Jack found himself in England's jewel. He was ready to make a new start. And, he reckoned, the Doctor would probably visit London before Cardiff if truth be told.

He'd settled into the subterranean Hub that Alice and Emily had worked in. It had been long forgotten in favor of the building of steel and glass that had been built atop it. Bloody Torchwood...they were supposed to be secret. He'd made his contacts and had put himself to work. But even Jack needed to eat.

He had all of the city to choose from and rather than just go to a pub Jack stood on the sidewalk looking at his mobile reading Yelp reviews. There was a place just down the block and around the corner. Yelp was good and all but he kind of wanted a real opinion so he looked up from his screen and he smiled at the first person whose eye he caught.

"Excuse me...do you know if this place is any good?" he asked, showing the screen. His American accent immediately marked him as a tourist, even though he wasn't.

Comments

[im_torchwood]

"Oh, you know...this and that," he grinned. "The engine's a V8. If I had an open road I could impress you with how fast we can go. Not that impressive on the streets of London, though."

[whispersoflove]

As they rounded a corner and were almost immediately stuck in a traffic jam, Anael frowned slightly in amusement. "I can see how it would be difficult."

[im_torchwood]

Jack laughed at the creeping traffic and nodded.

"This is something I'm going to have to get used to, I imagine. Not a lot of traffic jams in Cardiff."

[whispersoflove]

"Really? I thought traffic jams had become universal," Anael remarked, lips slightly tilted up.

[im_torchwood]

"Not like this. You have to be patient, but there are some places, like London, where it just doesn't pay to drive," Jack chuckled.

[whispersoflove]

"You're saying we should've walked," Anael stated, leaning back in his seat and showing no sign of impatience.

[im_torchwood]

"I'm saying we might have gotten there faster," he said. "One day...one day they'll take care of this congestion. You mark my words."

[whispersoflove]

"I'm marking," Anael confirmed with a grin. "Is that something else you've faith in?"

[im_torchwood]

"Yeah, exactly," he smiled, but that was another lie. Not faith, for Jack it was merely the truth f history that hadn't yet come to pass.

[whispersoflove]

"I have to admit, it would be nice," Anael stated as they got stuck behind a red light, right when he thought that they might drive through.

[im_torchwood]

"The future is so full of potential. People think...people think the world is going to hell, and I'll concede it has its problems, but on the whole? The future is good," he said with certainty.

[whispersoflove]

Anael could not help but smile at the obvious sentiment, the faith behind these words, and there was warmth in his voice as he replied, "No, I don't believe the world is going to hell at all."

[im_torchwood]

"An optimist?: he asked.

[whispersoflove]

"I suppose every true optimist would call himself a realist," Anael replied after a second's thought, and smiled over at Jack. "Someone with faith in men." They were wonderful creatures, and Anael could see why God Loved them so.

[im_torchwood]

"I've known a few pessimists who said they were realists," Jack replied, finally going on the green.

[whispersoflove]

"I've known more pessimists than optimists who called themselves that," Anael admitted. He supposed that was telling, in its own way.

[im_torchwood]

"Isn't that sad? I think that's sad," Jack said. "But I think even the most die hard pessimist has hope.

[whispersoflove]

"No," Anael said, frowning as he thought it over. "I think there's a desolate place beyond hope, that some poor souls reach." He blinked out of it, and smiled a little. "Sorry. I didn't mean to..." He had fought too many of his brothers. He knew the reality of that place, without hope, without faith. That place of darkness and despair.

[im_torchwood]

"It's all right," Jack said softly. "I think I know exactly what you're talking about."

[whispersoflove]

Anael looked at him in silence for a few seconds, empathy clear on his features. "I'm sorry. That you do."

[im_torchwood]

Jack sighed softly and gave a nod.

"I think I have a unique perspective," he said. "And I'd tell you more...but that's classified."

[whispersoflove]

"Talking to you is full of dead ends, Captain," Anael remarked, but there was no reproach in his voice. Instead, he was thoughtful.

[im_torchwood]

"I'm sorry. It's the way it is," he shrugged. "For what it's worth, I'm being as honest as I can be."

[whispersoflove]

"I believe you," Anael agreed, a small smile briefly twitching up his lips. "It is... appreciated. Very much." He wished that he could use the same tactic, but saying that anything was classified would be, in itself, a lie, and he did not know how to apply the strategy to his own situation.

[im_torchwood]

Traffic let up and Jack took the turn onto the street that would take them to the Eye. It loomed before them, reaching to the sky and lit up bright in the night.

"It's beautiful, isn't it? I love the London skyline. I always have."