Fanfic - Counting Stars 12/17 [Torchwood: Jack/Ianto]
A/N: Hmm, a little confusion last chapter about the timeline, I believe. I reckon the problem is there's so much original stuff I'm adding, you forget what I've already done of canon. On top of that, the timeline I'm using - definitely not official, or what other people in the fandom have come up with - means I had to tweak a few things like the timing of Reset. So. Here it is, for the curious:
Season 1
Everything Changes
third week June 2007
Day One
June 2007
Ghost Machine
June 2007
Cyberwoman
end June 2007
Small Worlds
second week July 2007
Countrycide
July 2007
Greeks Bearing Gifts
August 2007
They Keep Killing Suzie
August 2007
Random Shoes
October 2007
Out of Time
17-24 December 2007
Combat
end December 2007
Captain Jack Harkness
January 2008
End of Days
February 2008
Season 2
Kiss Kiss, Bang Bang
June 2008
Sleeper
June 2008
To the Last Man
20th June 2008
Meat
mid-July 2008
Adam
August 2008
Reset
20th-27th/28th August 2008
Dead Man Walking
August 2008
A Day in the Death
end August 2008 (begins 3 days after Reset)
Something Borrowed
second week November 2008
From Out of the Rain
end November 2008
Adrift
14th-21st February 2009
Fragments
February 2009
Exit Wounds
end February 2009
Also, the fall of Torchwood London took place around the beginning of May 2007; Ianto joined Torchwood Cardiff in mid/end-May, about a month ahead of Gwen - simply because I really don’t think he could have kept Lisa hidden longer than a couple of months. Jack was around the Hub too much for that to be feasible.
You'll notice there are big gaps of months between some of those episodes. I skipped over them in the first season, but the second season will see me filling them in with my own invented incidents, cases, that sort of thing. They're my set-up for those changes that are coming our way, so... pay attention. =D
A/N 2: I can has reviews?
Part One
Part Two
Part Three
Part Four
Part Five
Part Six
Part Seven
Part Eight
Part Nine
Part Nine
Part Ten
Part Eleven
It took three days for Ianto to come to. Jack didn’t move from his side except to eat, use the bathroom, and shower - and make a quick call to Martha to ask her a question. Owen had inserted an IV to keep Ianto going, and a catheter after the first day. Jack kept him clean with sponge baths. It was clear that Owen was frustrated with his inability to help, but Jack assured him that this wasn’t a problem any doctor could fix, then returned to tending his unconscious lover.
He kept up the mental contact, constantly pulling Ianto’s mind forward, not letting him shrink back into the background. It was a slow process, but the shields were starting to go back up, and Jack took the opportunity to interlace his own shields with Ianto. It would be a lot more difficult for them to block each other out from basic emotions that way - probably a good thing, given how much of a martyr Ianto had proven to be.
On day three, Ianto woke up. His throat was parched and swallowing hurt, but no sooner had the thought crossed his mind than he felt an ice chip at his mouth. He obediently parted his lips and sucked tiredly at the ice, letting the cool liquid wet his mouth and throat.
“Morning, sweetheart.” It was Jack’s voice, and Ianto felt lips brush his forehead. “Want to open those baby blues for me?”
It took far more energy than it should have required, but Ianto finally managed to pry his eyes open. Jack had an unusually peaceful expression on his face, and Ianto realised that he could still feel Jack’s mental presence in his mind, woven through and around him. It worked both ways - he didn’t remember anything from when he’d been out of it, but Jack had evidently pulled Ianto through his own mind as well, with the result that their shields were well and truly interconnected.
It felt comforting.
“What happened?” Ianto croaked.
“Your shields broke,” Jack told him, reaching up to cup Ianto’s cheek, running a thumb over the arch. “Lots happening in there that I didn’t know about, hm?”
Ianto didn’t even have the energy to blush. Jack half-smirked, then offered him another piece of ice.
“Budge up a bit, I need to check the port,” Owen said. Ianto turned his head with an effort and realised the whole team was in the room with them. He supposed that under any other condition, he’d be embarrassed, but the complete relief he saw in their faces just made him feel ridiculously good about himself.
“That’s better,” Jack laughed. “Feel that?”
Ianto did. The slight pressure on his mind was achingly familiar.
Don’t ever keep me out again, Jack said, simultaneously opening his mind to Ianto. His meaning was plain; he was more than willing to share any and all of his secrets, so long as Ianto never shut him out again.
“Okay,” Ianto whispered. There was a sting in his hand as Owen slid the IV out and pressed a cotton swab to the spot, sticking it down with a band-aid after a few moments of applying pressure. The doctor worked in silence, letting Jack feed Ianto ice chips until a little more colour came into his cheeks, and he was able to swallow without pain.
“Were those dreams or memories?” Jack asked, keeping his hand on Ianto’s cheek. He didn’t need to elaborate. The flashes he’d seen while Ianto was unconscious had terrified him to his core, and Ianto could clearly sense that emotion.
“Felt like memories,” he confessed. “But they’ve never happened. I think.”
“They did,” Jack told him quietly. “You just don’t remember. No one else does, only those of us on the Valiant.”
Ianto thought about that. “The ship,” he guessed. “During that year?”
The other three were clearly confused at what they were hearing. Gwen looked between Jack and Ianto, obviously longing to ask what they were talking about.
Jack nodded. “I called Martha to ask her - she said you found her in Shanghai. She was bleeding to death and you saved her life.”
“I’ve never even been to Shanghai,” Ianto mused.
“I don’t think you were missing much, at that point,” Jack said bleakly. “That was a few months before the end. I only saw the footage, but it wasn’t pretty.”
“But it rewound itself,” Ianto said. “Why am I remembering this?”
“You remembered bits of it when you saw me, that first time,” Jack murmured. “Things we said to each other back then. You repeated them word for word, Yan.” A crooked smile. “What you said - that was what kept me sane, so believe me, I remember.”
Ianto swallowed. “So it’s because -”
“You have a good memory,” Jack filled in. Ianto blinked tiredly. “But all that confusion was weakening your shields.”
“It was the Pharm,” Ianto said, closing his eyes. “All those creatures, all that pain. I couldn’t keep it out.”
“And yet you held on all this while,” Jack said, shaking his head. “You amaze me every day, Ianto Jones.” He leaned forward and kissed his young lover, nipping lightly at his lower lip. “I hate to ask this of you now, but you need to get to your safe space and rebuild your own mindscape. There’s only so much I could do for you.”
Ianto made a vague sound of acquiescence, already falling asleep again. Jack followed the threads of Ianto’s mind, losing hold only when Ianto reached his safe space. Knowing that Ianto had made it there allowed Jack to relax, knowing it was true, healing sleep this time, a rest that would allow him to mend his tattered mind.
Jack leaned back and stretched, then glanced at the others, a wry grin tugging at his lips. “I’m guessing you want explanations,” he said.
“That would be a good place to start,” Gwen said pointedly.
Jack stood up, reluctantly letting his hand fall away from Ianto’s face. “Come on then,” he said. “Outside, he needs his sleep.”
“Jack?” Tosh asked quietly as Gwen and Owen led the way out. “He’s going to be okay, isn’t he?”
He smiled warmly at her, wrapping an arm around her shoulders in a loose hug. “Yeah, he is,” he assured her. “Should be up and back to normal in a day at most.”
Tosh sighed in relief, then gave Jack a brilliant smile. “Thanks,” she said, leaning into his hold. He squeezed her shoulder reassuringly, tapping a brief question on Ianto’s mind. What can I tell them?
It took a moment for the response to come. The less the better, but I’ll leave it up to you.
Done. Sleep well.
“Here,” Jack said, steering Tosh towards the sofa. “Might as well be comfortable for this.” He let go of Tosh and sat down, nodding for her to sit next to him. She did so, kicking off her shoes and curling up beside him. Gwen and Owen pulled a couple of chairs closer and made themselves comfortable.
“Okay, Jack,” Gwen started. “What’s going on here? You’ve been stonewalling since this started!”
Jack frowned. “Don’t misunderstand,” he said sharply. “Most of this is between me and Ianto. I know you lot have been worried,” he added, glancing at Tosh. “So I’ll explain what happened, but you should know right now I’m not going to tell you everything.”
“I - I just wanted to help, Jack,” Gwen said, looking hurt. He sighed and nodded.
“Fair enough,” he said. “Quick overview - back when I left to find the Doctor? That was a year for me that I was gone. Some things happened and Earth was all but destroyed. We managed to destroy the paradox machine, which reversed the temporal anomalies, and set time back to one year before. Everything that happened… didn’t. Only those of us in the centre of the time storm still remember it.”
“Was Ianto there?” Tosh asked, eyes wide.
“Nope,” Jack said, but wasn’t able to get any further before Owen jumped in.
“Then how come he knew?” he asked.
“Because I told him,” Jack said patiently. “I needed to talk to someone about it, and Ianto’s been gold about it.”
“But he’s remembering things,” Tosh said slowly, thinking frantically.
“Yeah,” Jack said. “He’s got a good memory, and - well, when I first came back, he was remembering bits and pieces of that year. Shouldn’t have been possible, but -” He shrugged. “And it seems meeting Martha’s kicked that off again, and he’s remembering things I wish he didn’t have to.”
“Was it that bad?” Tosh asked quietly.
“Earth was on the verge of mass extinction,” Jack replied simply. The other three stared at him in disbelief, but it was Owen who finally asked the question they were all thinking.
“What about us?” he asked. “What happened to us?”
“I have no clue,” Jack said. “I wasn’t in a position to talk to anyone or do anything. Ianto managed to contact me near the end and he said that all of you had died. And - he died too, just before we managed to - stop things. I’m guessing,” he said, pausing to frame his words properly. “That Torchwood was deliberately targeted in the first wave of attacks. He knew we were best equipped to fight back.”
“Who?” Gwen demanded.
Jack shook his head, eyes clouding. “Forget it,” he said. “I’m done with that topic now. So on to -”
“Jack!” Gwen interrupted in exasperation. “Can’t you at least tell us who -”
“We are done with that topic,” Jack said, voice hard. She fell silent abruptly, face flushing in anger. Tosh hesitantly patted Jack’s knee, relaxing only when he did.
“So on to what happened with Ianto,” Jack said, as if no one had said anything. “You remember he’s telepathic.” They all nodded, though Gwen was still red. “He’s also empathic. Now, he’s had enough basic training to give him an idea of what he’s capable of, and he’s smart enough to have figured the rest out himself, once London went up in smoke. I also have telepathic abilities, and when I linked with Ianto to talk to Callista, we forged an accidental mental bond.”
“You what?” Tosh asked in surprise.
“Forged an accidental mental bond,” Jack repeated. “We have no clue, either. It wasn’t hurting either of us, and it was convenient, so we decided to leave it be. Thing is, when Owen died -” Jack shot Owen an apologetic look at the cavalier phrasing. Owen shrugged it off and nodded for him to continue. “Ianto was understandably kind of upset. On top of that, his empathic abilities were picking up all the pain those creatures at the Pharm were suffering. You heard him just now - that’s when his mental shields starting failing, and that’s pretty dangerous for someone as strong as he is.”
“Dangerous how?” Owen asked. “Anything we could’ve stopped?”
Jack shook his head. “Stop that,” he chided. “There’s nothing we could’ve done. Me, maybe,” he added thoughtfully. “If I’d noticed. But the thing is, Ianto decided I had enough on my plate, and so he blocked everything he was feeling from me.”
“He didn’t want to worry you further,” Tosh guessed, and Jack smiled at her.
“You always were the smart one,” he said affectionately. “Yeah, except since we were linked, blocking me meant draining his shields. So - lots of things, all piling up, until I made the mistake of pushing him about why he was blocking me. Last straw, etcetera. His shields snapped and all that input snapped back into him.”
“Like backlash?” Owen asked.
“Right,” Jack said. “Everything slamming into him all at once. Sensory overload, which is why he collapsed. When the shields broke, his attempts at blocking me also failed, which set off a cascading failure of my shields.”
“Which is why you also collapsed,” Tosh realised.
“Yeah. It was just an echo of what he was feeling but -” Jack made a face, then sighed. “It was a lot. Anyway. I’m guessing the shock of it snapped him straight into his safe space - ah, telepathic jargon, never mind - but he was still too much in distress to start rebuilding his shields. So the past three days I’ve been pulling our shields back together, buffering him enough that he can get back into his mindscape safely.”
“Safely,” Tosh repeated. “What do you mean by that?”
“He’s empathic and telepathic, and his shields were non-existent at that point,” Jack said patiently. “Think about it. The moment he emerged from his safe space, he’d be inundated with empathic input from everything around here - all of us, the aliens, the people walking up there. He’s got a very wide range, and all of that would be hitting him at once. Again. On top of everything else. He’d have to hide in his safe space until his natural shields started forming. Body’s defence, you know, it tries to protect itself, but that takes time. I just built the basic shields for him so we wouldn’t have to wait so long.”
“And he’ll be okay with that?” she asked uncertainly. “I mean, it seems like an awful lot to fix…”
“It is,” Jack acknowledged. “But he’s strong, and he knows what needs to be done and -” He tilted his head to the side, as if listening, then smiled. “And he’s already out of his safe space and is fixing everything that was damaged.”
“What kind of damage are we talking?” Owen asked, frowning.
“Nothing permanent,” Jack said. “Ianto generally has a very structured mind - it’s a necessity, or he’d never be able to control his abilities. What’s happened now is like… like… okay, imagine a tornado ripping through a house. It’s in pieces, a complete mess. I’ve put up the basic structure of the house for him, and now he’s fixing up the interior.”
Nice analogy, Ianto murmured. I like it.
Thank you, Jack replied, preening mentally. All right there?
Yep. Tosh wants to know how long it’ll take.
“A day at most,” Jack replied, despite not having heard Tosh’s question. “He works fast and he’s done this before.”
Oh, yeah, Ianto said ruefully, a memory floating through Jack’s head - a cave, self-imposed restraints, mental agony, a slow trek home. He sat bolt upright, nearly flinging Tosh off him.
“That’s what you were talking about!” he exclaimed indignantly. “And you let me think - oh, revenge is in order, Yan.”
“What?” Gwen asked, bewildered. Jack sank back against the sofa, glancing at Tosh apologetically.
“Nothing, just something Yan said,” Jack said, waving it off. “He tricked me, the little minx.” The grin tugging at his lips belied the complaint though, and Tosh laughed.
“It’s one of those things we don’t want to know, right?” Tosh asked. Jack’s grin broadened in response, and she shook her head. “Yeah, it’s one of those things,” she repeated.
“Okay, we’re done here,” Jack said, clapping his hands together as he sat up. “You guys want to get back to work? Gwen, you need to leave now, right?”
“What?” she asked, startled.
“Wedding plans?” he asked, raising an eyebrow. “I thought you said Rhys wanted you home early today?”
“Oh!” she exclaimed, looking at her watch and leaping to her feet as she scrambled to get her things together. “Oh damn, was that the time? Bloody hell! Sorry, you lot, have to run!”
“Go right ahead,” Owen muttered. “Jack, if there’s nothing else, I think I’m gonna go home too. And before you ask, yes, I’m caught up on work. It’s amazing what insomnia’ll do you for.”
“Go ahead,” Jack said, and turned to look at Tosh enquiringly.
“I have a few programs running,” she said sheepishly. “I thought I’d stay until those finished. Shouldn’t be more than an hour.”
“Don’t push yourself too hard,” Jack admonished her. “I’m going to go sit with Ianto in a bit - you’re welcome to join me if you want.”
“That’d be nice,” she said awkwardly, then impulsively darted forward and hugged Jack briefly. “Thanks.”
“Thank you,” Jack murmured as she dashed off. He could suddenly understand why his Ianto was so fond of her - she was quite like him in so many ways, enough that Ianto saw her as a sister, even more than he did his blood sister. She was family to him, just like the Halletts were. Like Jack was.
Oh well. Just one more reason to be happy about his decision to get Tosh out of that UNIT cell.
True to Jack’s prediction, Ianto was up and about that evening, well after Tosh had left. Jack greeted him with a long kiss, completely ignoring Ianto’s mental protest of Stoppit! I’m absolutely positive my breath could kill a Weevil at this point! Wending around Ianto’s mind assured Jack that his shields were fully functioning again, and that there was no lasting harm from the damage he’d recently taken. Jack took the catheter out and packed away the medical equipment Owen had left out as Ianto stretched lazily in bed.
I’m presuming you want a shower, Jack murmured.
God, yes, Ianto replied fervently.
Come on, our room, Jack said, chivvying Ianto out of bed and supporting him as he got used to standing again. Better than the common showers.
Join me? Ianto asked, absolute delight suffusing his mental voice. The strength of the emotion puzzled Jack momentarily, until he realised what he’d just said.
Yeah, he laughed. You think I’ll voluntarily be leaving you any time soon?
Suppose not. I am sorry, Jack, Ianto said. I never meant to worry you like that.
I know, Jack said. And it’s just you, isn’t it? Always looking after me even at your own expense. But no more, okay? We look after each other. Two-way street.
All right, all right, Ianto mock-grumbled. Jack helped him down the ladder, watching to make sure his lover didn’t slip. In a matter of minutes, they were both in the shower, and Ianto was sighing in bliss at the feeling of the hot water striking his stiff body.
“Good?” Jack asked, reaching around him to squirt out a good handful of liquid soap. Ianto didn’t even bother dignifying that with a reply. Jack slopped the soap onto Ianto’s back and started lathering up, managing to draw a whimper of pleasure from him. Ianto’s muscles were just beginning to relax, and Jack used the opportunity to dig his hands in, giving Ianto a bit of a massage while washing him.
Ianto let Jack continue for a few minutes before pulling away, turning to face Jack. “Okay, you’re going to put me back to sleep if you keep doing that,” he insisted when Jack protested.
“I could always try and wake you up,” Jack suggested, petting Ianto’s cock, which demonstrated a definite interest in the proceedings.
“Been a while,” Ianto said, looking down. Jack looked delighted.
“Well, I’ve missed that,” he said, then looked up at Ianto. “Missed you.”
“I promise that if my shields ever break again, I’ll take you with me,” Ianto said solemnly, and was promptly slapped on his arse.
“Idiot,” Jack said, but without any bite. In the next moment he yelped and jumped, very nearly slipping and falling.
“Thanks, I try,” Ianto replied smugly.
“You just pinched me!” Jack accused.
“Very well spotted,” Ianto congratulated. “I suppose that’s why you’re the boss.”
“Evil,” Jack muttered. Ianto grinned and pulled Jack closer, returning the favour by kneading his shoulders.
“Completely tense, of course,” he sighed. “You’d tell me if you want my hands to work their magic, wouldn’t you? Or, you know, if you just want a massage.”
Jack laughed in surprise. “Can’t have both?” he asked, kissing Ianto’s ear. Ianto ran a soapy hand over Jack’s arm and chest, tracing the lines of his muscles. There was just something about a wet, naked Jack Harkness…
“Oh, absolutely,” he murmured, turning to the side and taking a step back, spreading his legs for balance and bracing himself against the wall as he tugged Jack to him. Jack moved closer to him, their cocks sliding together.
“Careful,” Jack said as their feet slipped in the water and soap suds.
“I just want -” Ianto muttered, fingers dipping between their bodies and finding their cocks. “- That.”
“Oh, yeah,” Jack breathed as Ianto wrapped his hand around both their cocks. A thumb ran over the head of Jack’s cock, tugging the foreskin back briefly and toying with the flesh. Jack whined and thrust into Ianto’s hold pointedly.
“C’mere,” Ianto mumbled incoherently, his head dropping onto Jack’s shoulder. Jack pressed in flush against Ianto’s body and wrapped an arm around his waist, supporting them both as he nibbled on Ianto’s earlobe. Ianto fisted their cocks and set up a slow, steady rhythm. It was Jack who came first, with a strangled moan in Ianto’s ear and a full-body shudder.
“God,” Jack whispered as he came down from the high. Almost immediately, he noticed that his lover hadn’t come yet, and nudged Ianto’s hand away to take over. Another couple of minutes saw Ianto gasping Jack’s name as he came in long, hard pulses. His knees trembled but Jack’s arm remained steady around him, and after a moment he was able to catch his breath and steady himself.
They stayed in the shower just a little longer, kissing languidly and exploring each other’s bodies. The touches weren’t deliberately sensual, but by the time they were out of the shower they’d both come again. Ianto’s tongue, Jack thought as he dried his lover’s hair, could do things that were probably illegal on some planets.
After just about four days in bed, Ianto was in no mood to go back to sleep. Jack was more than capable of going a night without sleep too, so the two of them got dressed and headed out into the city. They stopped by a convenience store and bought sandwiches and drinks, and took a slow walk around as they ate.
The peaceful stroll was rudely interrupted, however, when a naked Weevil bolted across the park right in front of them. Naked usually meant a fresh victim of the Rift, but their instruments hadn’t picked up anything. They discovered why when they finally caught up to the Weevil.
“Jack,” Ianto said, his gun trained on the creature. It blinked at them guilelessly.
“Yes, Ianto?” Jack asked, staring at the Weevil.
“Please don’t tell me the Weevils are breeding,” Ianto said.
“All right, I won’t tell you,” Jack replied. “Uh. Hi there, kiddo. Your parents around?”
The young Weevil tilted its head to the side, then plopped to the ground and opened its mouth.
“Uh,” Jack said. Ianto tentatively opened the outermost layer of his empathic shields and reached out to the Weevil, which twitched and stared directly at him.
“I think it’s hungry,” Ianto said.
“So long as it’s not me it’s eating,” Jack muttered. “Cover me and I’ll spray it.”
“But it’s a baby,” Ianto protested. “The sprays are configured for adult doses. What if we hurt it?”
“You have any better ideas?” Jack asked. Ianto stared at him helplessly, then shrugged.
The Weevil made a high-pitched sound that made both Jack and Ianto jump. When it realised it had their full attention, it opened its mouth again expectantly, trilling inquisitively.
“Never heard a Weevil make that sound before,” Jack muttered.
“Um, Jack?” Ianto said slowly. “Cover me and let me try something?”
Jack glanced quickly at Ianto before returning his gaze to the young Weevil. “Okay,” he said, stepping off to the side, still holding his gun on it.
Feeding the Weevil bits of a sandwich was kind of an unorthodox way of getting it back to base, but it worked. They used the emergency entrance, which opened into a secluded area and was therefore perfect for transporting aliens without being seen by the public. The Weevil was very cooperative and obediently followed Ianto, eagerly snapping up the pieces of meat Ianto tore from his sandwich filling and threw to it. The careful mental nudges helped guide it along, and they eventually managed to get the Weevil into the Hub.
Janet started crooning the moment she saw the baby, pressing up against the door. The baby seemed to want to get in with her, so they put it in and watched. Janet tucked herself around the baby and they snuggled together in a corner of the cell, rather uneventfully dropping off into the trance that seemed to be the Weevil equivalent of sleep.
“Owen’s going to go nuts,” Jack said, grinning.
“He can take care of them,” Ianto said. “Do baby Weevils need anything the adults don’t?”
“Who knows?” Jack replied, steering Ianto out of the lower levels. He sneaked a grope while Ianto was distracted, then skipped out of the way when his lover tried to retaliate. Ianto mock-growled at him and headed up to the kitchens.
“Pity you couldn’t have piped some caffeine into me,” he said whimsically.
“I think Owen would’ve protested,” Jack said, cautiously coming up behind Ianto. Above them, Myfanwy screeched. “And I think the overgrown bird misses you.”
“Want to let him out for the night?” Ianto asked.
“Sure,” Jack said. “Bring the coffee up.”
Ianto took his time with the coffee, making sure the brew was just right. He added some whipped cream to Jack’s, then brought both cups up to the roof of the Millennium Centre. It was a path everyone on the team was familiar with. The broad roof offered them a good view of the city and unobstructed reception for various alien gadgets, while simultaneously making it hard for people to see them from the ground. Ianto and Tosh in particular had done a lot of late-night testing on the roof.
“Thanks,” Jack said, accepting the cup that Ianto held out. Ianto sat down next to him, looking up and just catching sight of a dark shape wheeling overhead.
“How many calls tonight, you think?” he asked idly, sipping at his coffee.
“Cloudy night,” Jack pointed out, scooping up some whipped cream on a finger and licking it off. “And I’m keeping him near, so if we’re lucky, none.”
“Lucky,” Ianto repeated. “Sure.”
Jack grinned and shuffled over closer to Ianto. “First time for everything.”
Ianto took another mouthful of coffee. “I don’t know,” he said slowly. “I think I’m luckier than any man has a right to be.”
Jack seemed to realise it wasn’t an empty, flirtatious statement, that Ianto was thinking about his accidental introduction to Torchwood, meeting Lisa, his escape from the ruins of Torchwood One, being accepted by Jack, not being executed or Retconned after what he’d done, finding what he had with Jack, all of it.
“So am I,” Jack replied, then hastily took a gulp of coffee. Ianto suspected he hadn’t meant to say that, but the words warmed him nonetheless.
They finished their drinks in silence, watching as Myfanwy soared in circles around them. It had only taken two supersonic corrections from Jack’s wristband for the pteranodon to realise that he shouldn’t stray too far, and now he was sticking obligingly close. Eventually deciding that he didn’t need to keep too close a watch on the prehistoric creature, Jack turned to watching Ianto. The clouds were blocking most of the moonlight, but the ambient light from the city was more than enough to illuminate his lover.
And Ianto was beautiful in the dusky light.
“Hey,” he said, nudging his lover. Ianto turned to look at him with a heartbreakingly sweet smile. Jack pulled himself up and held a hand out for Ianto. “Dance?” he asked hopefully.
“If you sing,” Ianto replied, taking Jack’s hand.
“What, you like my voice that much?” Jack asked teasingly. Ianto thought about making a joke, but instead nodded simply. Jack’s mouth snapped shut and there was a peculiar look in his eyes as he looked at Ianto.
“Any requests?” he asked, beginning to move. Ianto fell in with him, following his lead easily.
“Not really, no,” Ianto said. “Go on then.”
Jack shrugged lightly and launched into a simple version of “Easy to Love.” It required some improvisation, since he was singing without accompaniment, but he pulled it off well, and moved immediately into “Heaven,” and then a couple of songs that Ianto didn’t recognise. They were all love songs, and after the fifth, Ianto couldn’t resist pointing out to Jack that he was getting soppy.
“What can I say,” Jack replied. “You bring out the best in me.”
Ianto snorted and bit Jack’s ear in retaliation. Jack squawked in indignation and spun Ianto out from him. “Well, fine then,” he huffed. “If you’re going to be that way -” And then he launched into a rollicking jig that had Ianto howling with laughter in seconds.
“What?” Jack asked in indignation, mock-frowning at his breathless lover. “Even that’s not good enough? What more can I do for you, Jones-Ianto-Jones?”
Ianto wheezed in reply.
“Oh yeah, that’s a possibility,” Jack said thoughtfully, and before Ianto could get out anything coherent, Jack had pulled him into a waltz… to the tune of “Waltzing Matilda.” Ianto joined in once he’d caught his breath and the two danced across the roof of the Millennium Centre, singing in bad Australian accents, with Myfanwy circling overhead and the city of Cardiff sprawling out before them.
It was brilliant.
The baby Weevil, unlike Janet, was thoroughly unimpressed by Owen. Owen sulked the whole day. Ianto politely didn’t laugh. Jack wasn’t quite so restrained.
Tosh stuck close to Ianto whenever he ventured out from the archives. It didn’t take a genius to realise that she’d been badly shaken by his collapse, and so once he’d gotten in a couple of hours work in the archives, he returned to the main area. It didn’t make a difference whether he used his laptop in the archives or near Tosh’s workstation, after all.
Strangely, he got in almost two hours of solid work before anyone asked him a question. Not so strangely, it was Gwen who did the asking.
“All right then, Ianto?” she asked, smiling at him. He glanced up and gave her a brief smile.
“Yes, thanks,” he said. She sat down next to him, looking like she was searching for the right words to use. He bit back a sigh and put on his best professional face.
“Ianto,” she began. “I was -” Then she seemed to lose her nerve and asked, “Ah, what have you been doing?”
Ianto turned the screen slightly so she could see it. “Just getting some of the old records on the computer system,” he said. “It’s just transcribing, really.”
“What records?” she asked, puzzled.
“At the moment, February of 2002,” Ianto told her. “Everything from One, Two and Three - and by the way, Jack?” he called out. Jack glanced over from where he’d obviously been listening. “Two has horrible record-keeping abilities. I’d venture to say they’re worse than yours.”
“Take it up with Archie,” Jack said, grinning. “He scares me. Funny old man.”
Ianto shook his head disapprovingly. Gwen was still looking confused.
“But - where are the files you’re working with?” she asked. “If you’re transferring paper records to the computer…?”
“Good point,” Owen said, leaning against Tosh’s workstation. She was looking somewhat flustered by Owen’s presence, yet intrigued by the line of conversation. “Sure you’re not surfing porn there, tea-boy?”
“I’m not you,” Ianto shot back immediately. “And I can remember what needs to be typed up, Gwen.”
“What, from 2002?” she asked in disbelief.
“Yes,” he said shortly.
“Jack did say he’s got a good memory,” Tosh put in. “Why are we even talking about this anyway?”
“Oh -” Gwen began, then stopped. “I was just curious, really.” She smiled at Ianto. “Sorry. Think I’m a little nervy about the wedding, I keep poking my nose everywhere to distract myself.”
“It’s all right,” Ianto said. He waited till she’d turned to leave, then added, “I have total recall.”
“What?” Owen sputtered. “That’s not in your files!”
“Well, no,” Ianto conceded. “I hacked my records and took that out. It - changed the way my telepathy worked. I didn’t want the higher-ups at One to take too much of an interest in me.”
“Bad things happen to people Hartman gets interested in,” Jack added, spinning around in his chair.
“So wait, you had hacking skills even before I started teaching you,” Tosh said, amused. “No wonder you picked things up so quickly!”
Ianto shrugged lightly. “Just basic knowledge, really. They didn’t have a reason to look deeper, or they’d probably have spotted it.”
“Sure,” she said in a deeply sceptical voice. Jack couldn’t quite suppress the chuckle, and Ianto promptly flicked his mind reprovingly.
Ow! Jack complained.
Behave, Ianto said mercilessly. Jack pouted.
“So, you’ve got… what, photographic memory,” Gwen said slowly. “Is that why - your memories -” She stopped and stood there looking supremely awkward until Ianto decided to take pity on her.
“We suspect it’s why I tend not to forget things I’m supposed to have forgotten,” he allowed, glancing over at Jack. “Generally it’s easily handled, unless I leave it too late, organising my thoughts.”
“Which is what caused… that?” Gwen asked, waving her hands vaguely.
“Yes,” Ianto said. “And if I’ve quite satisfied everyone’s curiosity?” He raised an eyebrow. Gwen had the decency to blush as she nodded and hurried over to her table. Tosh just grinned at him, realising that the impatience wasn’t directed at her.
Ianto went back to work, though he found himself rather distracted when Jack decided to start singing in his head. He put up with it for a few minutes before tapping on Jack’s mind.
A little quiet? he asked.
But I’m bored, Jack whined.
I’m positive I gave you paperwork to fill out.
… Like I said. I’m bored. Besides, you don’t like this song? ‘Well I’d say I’m in a pickle, me cash flow doesn’t trickle, there’s nothing in me pocket except lint. There’s no bread for me butter, me best friend is the gutter, d’ya get the bloody picture, boys, I’m skint!’
The hilarious thing was that since he was singing mind-to-mind, Jack was able to pull up his memory of what the accompanying music was supposed to be like. Along with Jack’s singing (in a perfect accent!), Ianto also had an enthusiastic fiddler playing in his head. He really couldn’t be expected to keep a straight face under those circumstances.
The eraser bounced off Jack’s head, but that didn’t stop the maniacal grin splitting his face. Ianto tried and failed to glare at Jack, who winked and finally shut up. Thankfully, no one seemed to be paying attention to their by-play, and Ianto turned back to his work with a smile on his own face.
The next few weeks were fairly quiet, and the team was actually able to leave on time each evening instead of staying back late. Ianto quietly moved all his possessions into Jack’s room (fairly little, actually - his book collection took up the bulk of the space, and Jack had allowed him to commandeer a separate room in the Hub for them) and left his flat. Only Tosh realised his living arrangements had changed, and that was only because he had to explain to her why they couldn’t do their movie nights at his place anymore. She was disturbingly happy to realise where he was now living.
Gwen, in the meantime, was driving everyone insane with her developing nervous twitches. The upside was that she got a lot of work done while trying to think about anything other than her imminent wedding. Jack let her go out on more calls and routine checks than he normally would have, if only because it seemed to let her work off all the excess energy she had.
“I wasn’t this bad when I got married,” Jack complained quietly to Ianto as Gwen asked (badgered) Tosh to teach her a few more computer skills.
Ianto’s lips twitched. “I somehow doubt Rhys is as flustered as she is,” he murmured in response.
“You never know,” Jack said. “Might be worse.”
“Then I’m staying far away from him,” Ianto said. “Do you think she’ll settle down when she’s back from the honeymoon?”
“She’d better,” Jack said. “She keeps going on this way, she’ll burn herself out in a few months.”
“Are weddings that nerve-racking?” Ianto wondered. “I don’t recall Rhiannon being that nervous.”
“Are all you Joneses so laid-back?” Jack asked.
“Laid-back is not quite the word I’d use to describe my family,” Ianto said dryly. “Rhiannon is… ah, rather excitable.”
“Reckon it’s the aftershave?” Jack asked, and grinned at the very flat look Ianto gave him. “What about the others?”
“Rhiannon gets it from our Mam. And Dafydd has a bit of a temper,” Ianto said. “Possibly why I took to the Halletts like I did. They’re the exact opposite. Very laid-back, as you put it.”
“And me?” Jack asked, pouting.
“Perfect balance,” Ianto told him, leaning in to steal a quick kiss while the others weren’t looking. Jack held him in place when he tried to pull back. Ianto resisted for a moment, then gave in and deepened the kiss.
Thank you, Jack said, as they finally parted. He nuzzled Ianto’s cheek briefly before relaxing his hold, giving Ianto the chance to step out from his arms. Ianto stayed right where he was, making Jack grin.
“Hey, lovebirds,” Owen said from behind them. Ianto thought of something anatomically impossible for Owen to do. Jack swallowed a laugh.
“Yeah?” Jack asked.
“I was just going through some of the tests I did on that dead alien we found last week,” Owen said. “I think the fluids in that internal sac might have some healing properties, if you want to have a look at it.”
Jack looked intrigued and Ianto smiled as he stepped away. “I should be getting up to the tourist office myself,” he said when Jack frowned. “Besides, if you and Owen are both getting anywhere near dead aliens with a tendency to spew liquids when touched, I’m staying far away.”
“Traitor,” Jack muttered, but followed a smirking Owen back to the medical bay.
Ianto retreated up to the fake office to at least maintain some semblance of a cover. A couple of lost tourists did wander in looking for suggestions as to where to visit. Ianto offered brochures, sold maps, marked trails and pointed out all the good nightclubs, all while wearing a professional smile. The couple left looking happy, but Ianto thought that if he had to really do that all day, he might just go insane.
He played salesman a few more times that day as other customers came in looking for souvenirs. One mentioned seeing a really big bird of some sort a few weeks before - “pity it vanished before I could take a picture, it was huge and I couldn’t make out what species it was,” she said, and Ianto smiled sympathetically and said it really was difficult getting good photos of the wildlife, wasn’t it? He had to hide in the attached kitchenette to get the hysterical laughter out of his system before he could return to his post again.
There was a customer in the shop when the call came in, so Ianto guiltily redirected it to Tosh. It was one of Gwen’s contacts anyway, so it wasn’t like he was sacrificing any of the relationships he’d spent so long cultivating. As a result though, it wasn’t till later that he found out Gwen had insisted on going out on the call.
“Jack went along to keep her in one piece, and good luck to him,” Tosh said, who was evidently far more frazzled by Gwen’s incessant questioning than Ianto had suspected. Ianto wordlessly offered her a piece of chocolate which she dove into with gusto.
“Thanks,” she sighed around her mouthful. “Anyway, hopefully they won’t be too long.”
“It’s been too quiet these past few days,” Ianto said glumly. “I predict the world will have to be blown up sometime this week.”
“Gwen will have kittens,” Owen chimed in. “Not, you know, ‘cause the world’s ended…”
“But because the wedding would’ve been interrupted,” Tosh filled in, grinning. Ianto couldn’t quite hide the tiny smirk on his face.
“I would say that with any luck, the wedding will go off without a hitch,” he said. “But we all know what happens when someone says that.”
“Something gets fucked five ways to Sunday,” Owen said.
“One more day,” Ianto sighed. “Just one more day of silence.” He glanced at their monitors. “Please.”
“How long is Gwen going to be away on her honeymoon anyway?” Tosh asked.
“A week,” Ianto said. “She’ll be back on the twenty-fourth.”
“And she’d better have the wedding jitters out of her system by then,” Owen grumbled. “She’s driving me up the wall.”
“She’s just nervous,” Ianto said, not quite sure why he was defending her.
“She’s scared,” Tosh amended.
“Shouldn’t be bloody walking down the aisle then, should she?” Owen asked cynically.
“Her decision,” Ianto said. “Hers and Rhys’. And unless she plans on leaving him at the altar, they’re getting married tomorrow, whatever happens.”
Ianto sipped at his water as he watched them. There was a very melancholic look in Jack’s eyes as he danced with Gwen, a look that was matched by the wistful longing radiating from his mind. If he was being honest, Ianto had felt a moment of sheer panic when he’d felt that particular emotion coming from Jack, especially given the fact that he was dancing with Gwen at her wedding. Then his brain kicked into gear and he’d realised that the emotion wasn’t connected to Gwen, but to something else. What he couldn’t figure out was what that something else was.
He finished his water and looked around. It was one thing being open in front of the team. It was another to deliberately out himself here. Absently, he rubbed at the left side of his jaw, remembering angry eyes and loud voices. Being outed wasn’t always a good thing. And yet - and yet -
He didn’t want the rest of his life (however much that was) to be dictated by the past. Not anymore.
Besides, he knew everyone here was getting Retconned anyway. Bit of a coward’s way out, but it was a start.
He stood up, straightened his clothes, then headed over to Jack and Gwen to cut in.
He didn’t miss the way Jack’s eyes flickered over in the direction Gwen had headed, or the minute sigh as Jack turned back to him.
It occurs to me that I lied earlier, Ianto said conversationally.
Oh?
When I said my dad was a master tailor, Ianto said. He wasn’t really, even if he did take over a master tailor’s shop. It was my grandfather who was the master.
So why did you say it was your dad? Jack asked curiously. He seemed to have been at least temporarily distracted from whatever was bothering him.
Habit, Ianto confessed. I was never close to my father. And it seemed to me like I ought to be, so I got in the habit of substituting ‘dad’ for things I actually did with my grandfather. Not fair to my poor Taid, but…
So how do I know which one you’re talking about? Jack asked.
What makes you think there’s a way to tell?
It’s you, Jack said. There’s a way.
Ianto smiled a very small smile. If I say Tad, it’s my father. If I say Dad, it’s my grandfather.
Noted, Jack said, leaning into Ianto with a sigh. Time, Ianto thought, to bite the bullet.
You seem sad, Ianto murmured.
Mm, Jack hummed. Jealous, I think.
Of Gwen?
Yeah. Her and Rhys. They’ve got - they can do this.
Ianto mulled that over for a moment. Somehow, he didn’t think Jack was talking about the difficulties a same-sex couple would face in their society. And we can’t. We can’t promise each other forever.
Jack’s grip tightened, and he altered his grip to allow Ianto to lead instead. Ianto slid into the change seamlessly, guiding Jack around the dance floor, ignoring everyone else around them as he waited for Jack’s response.
I want to, Jack said finally. Which scares me. And makes me so happy, you have no idea. And so - I don’t know what I’m going to do without you, Yan.
Live, Ianto replied immediately, chancing a look up into Jack’s eyes. Please, cariad. I need to know you’ll be all right when I’m gone.
Jack held Ianto’s gaze for a moment, then looked away, tucking his head against Ianto’s neck. That’s… not a promise I can make, Yan, he whispered. You mean so much more to me than anyone else ever has. I don’t - I just don’t know -
Ianto stayed silent. There was really nothing else he could say in response.
“Janice Bentworth,” Ianto said as he set down the cup of tea. Jack gave him a small smile, spreading the photograph out on his desk.
“You remembered her name?” he asked.
“You put a copy of the wedding announcement in that book,” Ianto said.
“Right,” Jack said, shaking his head. “It was way back - just before I found out about my slight problem with death. I thought I might as well settle down, fake a life.” His eyes clouded. “I didn’t love her, exactly. I liked her well enough, and she was looking to marry, and it was…”
“Convenient,” Ianto supplied, and Jack nodded somewhat despondently as he arranged the photographs together and put them away. “Somehow,” Ianto added carefully. “I doubt you would have married her if you weren’t at least half-way fond of her.”
Jack smiled ruefully. “I don’t know,” he said. “Maybe. I wasn’t always a very nice guy, Ianto. Probably a good thing I didn’t meet you sooner. I wouldn’t have deserved you.”
Ianto leaned down and kissed the side of Jack’s forehead. “Doesn’t matter now, does it?” he asked. “What matters is who you are now.”
Jack reached for his tea, sipping it thoughtfully. “Yeah, guess so.” He looked up at Ianto over the rim of his mug. “And that I’ve got you now.”
“Yep,” Ianto said sincerely. “Always.”
Part Thirteen