FIC Torchwood (drabble) - "Hairshirt"

[fajrdrako]

Title: Hairshirt
Fandom: Torchwood
Characters: Jack
Challenge: challenge: r.e.m. titles
Rating: G
Disclaimer: Not mine, no claims, all property of the BBC.
Notes: Spoilers for "The Doctor Dances". Cross-posted to my LJ and tw100.


Hairshirt

Jack lived with his unrevealed crime.

On a rooftop overlooking Cardiff, Jack remembered the London blitz; an alien ambulance he thought was safe, carrying a plague that almost eradicated mankind. If the Doctor had not been there, humanity would be extinct. If the Doctor had not saved the world, Jack's carelessness would have destroyed it.

If ever he felt arrogant, if ever he forgot what he'd done, it was time to wrap the memory around himself like a hair shirt.

Memory was his penance, and he would be paying the debt he owed forever.

His crime: endangerment. His sentence: immortality.

Comments

yes

[lauradi7.livejournal.com]

Maybe instead of drabbles they should be called nutshells (as in, "That's Torchwood era Jack, in a nutshell.")

Re: yes

[fajrdrako.livejournal.com]

Glad you agree, and approve.

Nutshell - yes, I agree. That's what I'm trying to do with the drabbles, grab some significant aspect of a character or a relationship, and highlight the meaning in it. Going for the core.

Sometimes it works better than at other times.

[donutsweeper.livejournal.com]

I always felt Jack was quite affected by that con. Excellent use of the challenge to explain it.

[fajrdrako.livejournal.com]

Thank you.

I usually consider the events of "The Empty Child/The Doctor Dances" in terms of Jack's relationship with the Doctor - how meeting the Doctor changed his life. But that's only part of the story: the real change was internal, and freely chosen, driven by guilt regarding what he had almost caused to happen. At the end of "The Doctor Dances", Jack was prepared to die to expiate his mistake.

Guilt can be a strong incentive to become a hero. It wasn't just the Doctor's example that changed him.

[donutsweeper.livejournal.com]

Exactly! We are scarily in sync far too often regarding our Captain Jack/Torchwood opinions....

[fajrdrako.livejournal.com]

Nothing wrong with that! I think we understand Jack rather well.

[kimsrants.livejournal.com]

ok, completely off topic but: I know what i slashy i want from you. Instaed of a lame "surprise me" and not being able to confess my fannishness, I will confess. you need first to watch HBO Rome because seriously, if The Doctor is going to be there those are the Roman's I need to see. Those are the Romans he needs to be with.
And you know what they say: When in Rome; Do the Romans.
Oh please let him do the romans.
I'm finding it very hard not to literally squee at work.

[fajrdrako.livejournal.com]

You want the Doctor slashed with a Roman? Do you care whether it's Nine or Ten? I have seen some episodes of Rome - Marc Antony springs to mind, or Caesar. (Caesar is always my favourite.) Or, hmm, Titus or whatshisname. (It's been a while since I watched.)

I did read a very cool story slashing Captain Jack Harkness with Rome's Marc Antony (James Purefoy), enjoyed it very much.

Anyway, yes, writing this would be a pleasure....

[kimsrants.livejournal.com]

Well, the doctor will be in rome, it seems only natural that there may be a hook up. I give you free reign of who to slash to whom, I just want to see one member of the Doctor Who cast get slashed with one member of the Rome cast.

Caesar for me was always incredible, but Titus Pullo and Lucius Vorenus kept me coming back to the show. I think i may need to see that fic about marc antony and Jack.

damn this job has me reading far too many fics.
-k

[fajrdrako.livejournal.com]

The story I was thinking of was Erogatio (http://misspamela.livejournal.com/174261.html) by misspamela.

Okay, I'll make a point of watching Rome - if and as I can find it. It idd like Titus Pullo and Lucius Vorenus (insofar as I saw them).

[raissad.livejournal.com]

Spot on! :)

[fajrdrako.livejournal.com]

Glad you agree. Maybe the immortality is a blessing after all: giving him expanded time to deal with a sense of guilt that is bigger on the inside than the outside.