Veritas Tectum // Moxxi

[Guest]

Gwen was utterly wrecked. She had no further leads on who was behind the Torchwood explosion, though she was still sticking stubbornly to her belief that the government had some sort of hand in it. Which was part of the reason why she was keeping herself off the CCTV, moving through bloody London like a ghost and keeping shop in a warehouse flat in the dock yards, makeshift computers and systems set up from stolen materials working double to triple time to try and find two people who were dead a few times over, and could very well be so permanently this time.

All the same, when it came to Owen and Tosh, Gwen flatly refused to give up the search until she saw the bodies for herself. That said, months of hard living and constant hiding had made for a toughened, almost bitterly tired woman. She was running very low on funds by this point and getting a job under falsified information was going to be a treat she just didn't want to cope with. Every now and again the utter dreariness of this entire situation started to weigh a little too heavily and once in awhile Gwen found herself right where she was now, seated in a dark corner of an even darker pub sipping some questionable lager and pretending, just for a moment, that her entire world wasn't crashed down in shambles around her. Better a shoddy beer than a mental breakdown.

She would not reach out to Rhys. She was dead to him, had been even before the explosion when she left him alone with a wee baby, but God was it tempting when the loneliness really hit in. When the harshness of reality struck her and it occurred to her she might never find her colleagues, that she might be caught by the people who did this in the first place, it was sorely tempting to reach out for a phone just to hear his voice say hullo on the other end.

Shaking her head, Gwen took a longer draft of her beer just as a rather striking woman strode into the bar, nattering into her phone. Gwen thought nothing of it, beyond the fact she seemed a bit too put together for a rundown place like this, and returned her attention to the mug in her hands and the thoughts on her mind.

[The Queen of Hearts]

Normally, the Queen of Hearts would be found in much classier bars than this. This place couldn't even be classified as a bar. More of a pub. But she'd been craving a drink all day and this was the first place she'd come upon. She wasn't going to be picky right now. A drink was a drink.

Getting out of her TARDIS, she adjusted her outfit. Her darling ship was once again masquerading as a red sports car. It seemed that it was her favourite 'default' disguise. Moxxi thought that her ship just couldn't bear to be outdone by her flashy owner. Sauntering into the bar, Moxxi's phone rang and she dug around in her hip-satchel for it before checking the caller ID and grinning.

"Did you get my list of demands, Owen?" she asked teasingly as she brought the phone to her ear. "You know I won't come around until they're met." She was teasing, and she was sure he knew it. The brunette grinned as she listened to his reply. "Don't care. Strawberries are a must. I'm sure you can find some somewhere. Plus cherries if you're really eager. Oh," here she lowered her voice just a smidgen, "and I expect you to at least be shirtless by the time I get there, Harper." She laughed at his retort, shaking her head as she sauntered up to the bar. "I'll be there in an hour-ish. See you, sugar." With that she hung up and put her phone back into the satchel on her hip.

Dropping herself down onto the bar stool, she gave the bartender one of her charming grins. "Evening. Could I have a cherry vodka cocktail? Any kind will do. Surprise me," she added with a playful wink at the man, who simply gave a gruff mumble in assent before beginning to prepare her drink.

Moxxi turned around, appraising the bar's inhabitants. No one appealing, but she really shouldn't be all that surprised, given the dinginess of the place. But it had alcohol (and more importantly her absolute favourite alcohol), so she wasn't complaining. She wouldn't be here long anyway. Just have a drink or two, flirt her way into getting a couple of bottles to take back to Owen's for cheap, and then she'd be out of here.

"Thank you," she sing-songed with a smile as the bartender pushed a mysterious cocktail into her hand. Most people would have been wary, but not Moxxi. The more mysterious - the more fun. She took a drink of her ruby-red drink and smiled. Tasted good. She'd have to find out what it was; she'd just found a new favourite to add to her (already huge) list.

[Guest]

Gwen had never been the sort of woman to listen in to people’s private conversations intentionally. She had been brought up properly thank you very much, though of course her police training had taught her to be keenly aware of her surroundings and to always be on alert. One really could not tell when a brewing argument was going to turn to an all out brawl if one simply paid attention to the corner they were sitting in after all. Being able to read people was essential on the job. A little less so since joining Torchwood, but still a necessity. These days, observation was an essential part of staying alive, so naturally the fact the woman very clearly stated the name Owen got Gwen’s attention.

Lifting her head up a bit but not looking over, Gwen refused to acknowledge the fact there were literally thousands of men in the world by that name as she eavesdropped subtly on the call, keeping her gaze on the table rather than the woman. It was a playful and personal conversation from the sounds of it, but Gwen knew that Owen was more than a little promiscuous. As soon as she thought this, the woman dropped another name. Harper.

Owen Harper.

That was her Owen then, her Owen on the phone. It had to be. Oh but hope was a sickening, cloying thing wasn’t it? She could be wrong – it could be anything – but she’d be damned if she didn’t try and find out for sure. Pushing her mug aside, Gwen got up quickly and strode over to the woman at the bar, now drinking some red mix thing that looked a little out of place in a pub like this one. Just like the woman herself, really.

”Excuse me,” Gwen opened, not bothering with any pleasantries this evening, not when it could be a lead back to one of her friends. ”I couldn’t help but overhear,” That much, at least, was somewhat true considering the quiet of the pub and the brashness of the woman before her, ”But were you just talking to Owen Harper? Doctor Owen Harper?” She stressed, praying that it was him and hoping to God she wouldn’t have to retcon this woman. She was running dangerously, dangerously low on those pills and there was no telling what trouble might find her next.

[The Queen of Hearts]

”Excuse me, I couldn't help but overhear...” a voice began and the Time Lady turned to look at the speaker. Of course she couldn't. The pub was deathly silent, as if the whole population of it had gone into mourning this evening. And it wasn't as if the entire conversation had been spoken in whispers either. Moxxi was certain that the entire place had more than a little inkling of what she had in store for Mr Harper later on tonight.

"The one and same," the Queen of Hearts replied with a nod, looking the stranger up and down. She was pretty enough and she didn't look angry, which was always a bonus. More than anything she seemed...curiously worried. And maybe a tad hopeful.

Moxxi patted the seat next to her, indicating for the woman to take a seat and gestured for another drink, giving the barkeep a dazzling smile of thanks as he pushed an identical cocktail to hers to the stranger. "Friend of yours? Lover?" The Queen of Hearts had a very bad habit of somehow managing to sleep with people's lovers. Not that she actually tried to - the single ones were much more fun but still it happened. She just really hoped that it wouldn't be the latter; she wasn't in the mood to get slapped by a jealous mistress tonight. But given the fact that the woman didn't yet look like she wanted to rip Moxxi's heart out yet over the phone conversation she'd overheard, the Time Lady had big hopes for the former of the two.

Taking a sip of her drink, she extended her hand to the pretty Welsh (or so she assumed by the accent) woman and gave her a smile. "The Queen of Hearts, at your service. And before you ask what happened - I saved the good doctor. Hadn't meant to, but I did. Can't say I regret it." Not only was it nice knowing that she'd actually helped save a life, Owen was also tonnes of fun to have around. Both with and without clothes on. "Bit of a long story that, but the short version is he's alive and well. And back to his former self, at least from what I can tell..."

[Guest]

Gwen’s heart rate picked up in a stuttering leap as it was confirmed that it was, indeed, her Owen that the woman had been talking to. For the first time in months, Gwen slid into a seat beside someone not only without a second of hesitation, but with an immediate and almost desperate eagerness. At the questions, she shook her head a bit as though to deny both options, even as she stated, ”He’s a colleague of mine,” to avoid any awkward explanations. It was more than that however – the truth was Gwen had become somewhat reticent with information when it came to discussing anything remotely close to her. Loved ones, she had learned, were not only her greatest weakness, but also the quickest and most sure fire weapon to be used against her. The distance she placed between herself and Owen by calling him a colleague was an automatically protective measure, more than it was a desire to keep Owen from having to deal with a disgruntled lady friend.

Her mouth had barely opened, the barrage of questions she desperately wanted and needed to ask frantically arranging themselves in her mind, when the woman carried on and answered the most important ones without a moment’s hesitation. Despite herself, Gwen felt tears prick at her eyes upon the confirmation that Owen was not only alive, but he was safe and well. The hope that gave her for Tosh was crushing, but for the moment, she focused on the relief that flooded through her for Owen.

”Thank you,” The first words she managed to speak were breathy, and not at all what she anticipated, but they were perfect. As though her mind had figured out what her heart wanted to say without helping her connect the two herself. Smiling shakily, Gwen fought to get control of her emotions even as she carried on, ”For saving him, I mean. You – you have no idea what that means.” Gwen took a moment, her throat aching with emotion and making it difficult to speak. She looked away, needing to hide how overcome she was getting, before she looked down at the bar and stated firmly, ”You saved a good man, ma’am. An extraordinary man.”

Turning her gaze back to the Queen of Hearts – she was not about to question that name, not now – Gwen managed a more casual smile, wrangling herself under control as she asked, ”Where is he? I haven’t seen him since – well, I’ve been looking for him.” She corrected quickly, not about to get into the Hub explosion if she could help it. ”Was there a woman with him? Asian, very pretty? Name of Tosh – Toshiko?” Even in the wake of relief for discovering Owen was truly alive, Gwen was not willing to lose focus on Tosh. Both of her friends were important. Both of them had to be found. No matter what.

[The Queen of Hearts]

Moxxi took a long sip of her drink before looking back at the pretty brunette. Her green eyes widened, seeing her all teary like that. "Oh hey now..." She reached out to give the woman's shoulder a comforting pat and gave her a smile. Wow, if this was the kind of gratitude she got, maybe she could try rescuing people more often. Like that Doctor fellow she'd heard so much about. She must really care about him... Moxxi made a mental note to tell Owen about this meeting when she saw him; if she ever managed to catch the woman's name, that was. "It was the least I could do. I couldn't leave him like..." she trailed off, knowing the other would understand. At the 'extraordinary' comment, Moxxi couldn't help raise an eyebrow slightly as she took a sip of her drink. Yeah, 'colleague' my butt... But she wasn't about to ask questions. She didn't particularly like knowing about the ex's of her current lovers. So the less said and found out about that aspect, the better. As that old Earth saying went - ignorance was bliss.

"He's back at work. I dropped him off at...where's that place again?" Moxxi frowned in thought. A city beginning with a 'c' and his work began with a 't'. Something to do with aliens. Other than that she had no idea. Oh what was it? Torchlight? No, that wasn't it. But something incredibly similar... The brunette took a long sip of her drink as she tried to remember. It was right on the tip of her tongue, too!

"Cardiff! That's the one," she finally uttered triumphantly. "And he's back at Torchwood. No idea what happened there but apparently it's all back up and running again," she explained with a slight shrug. "Back to doing his doctory stuff. Examining and saving alien species or whatever it is he does..." He hadn't talked much to her about his job, so she had zilch idea as to what he did there. But given that he was a doctor, she figured that saving people came into his agenda.

At the woman's next question, the Queen of Hearts shook her head. "Sorry sugar. It was just him," she told her apologetically. "Like I said, his rescue was a bit of an accident - I hadn't actually gone looking for him. Now, I'm never one to advocate hope when the circumstances are so bleak but...maybe someone else managed to get there before me...?" Or maybe her TARDIS just refused to save two people at once, but for some reason Moxxi doubted that. If two people were in such danger, she was sure that the ship would try to get them both. "[b]Another colleague of yours?[b]"

[Guest]

Gwen gave the woman a somewhat shaky smile as her shoulder was gripped reassuringly, and she made a deliberate effort to reign her emotions in even as she nodded to show her understanding. It would take a very dark soul to be willing to abandon someone in that kind of scenario, after all.

She had just been about to ask where Owen was, when the Queen of Hearts mentioned dropping him off at work. Instantly alert, Gwen leaned forward, about to ask a slew of questions - had Owen joined Torchwood Six? Was he working at a hospital again? - when the last thing Gwen would have predicted was announced, causing the Welshwoman to close her mouth (almost with a snap) and stare a bit.

Finally, after a moment, Gwen responded, "They rebuilt Torchwood? In Cardiff?" All this time she had been hunting through London, certain that if her teammates had survived they would have realized the connections and come here in search of the ones behind the Hub bombing. In all her efforts to find them, she didn't once think to just keep watching Cardiff.

Oh did she feel righteously foolish now. Shaking her head to clear away the anger at herself that was swiftly rising, Gwen clenched her fists a bit as it was confirmed that Toshiko had not been with Owen at the time of his rescue. She gave a slim smile to show her appreciation for the attempt at reassurance, even as she replied, "Yes. We were all a part of the same team."

Sighing, Gwen looked toward the bar a moment, then back to the woman and asked, "I don't suppose you could do me a favor? I haven't got my phone on me," She hadn't carried a phone since the Hub explosion - too easy to track the GPS system - "Could you let Owen know I'm about? Just tell him you spoke to me - to Gwen. That's all." She wasn't about to say where she was, or where she was headed. Even know, Gwen wasn't taking any risks. Her Torchwood may be rebuilt, but there was still an advantage to the government believing her dead with the old one.

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