Fic: A Change in the Weather
Title:A Change in the Weather
Author: AoiTsukikage
Rating: PG-13 for now
Characters/Pairing: Jack/Ianto primarily
Chapter: 1/10(?)
Word Count: 2529
Spoilers: Everything up to Episode One of Miracle Day
Summary/Warnings: Sequel to ‘Hitting the Ground Running.’ AU for Miracle Day.
Disclaimer:: I, unfortunately, do not own these characters, no matter how sad that makes me. I do, however, promise to return them when I'm done with them. :)
In Which Gwen Can Drink Regular Coffee Again, The World is in Trouble Once More, and Myfanwy Remains the Best Guard Dog Ever
“ ‘Miracle Day.’ That’s what they’re callin’ it: ‘Miracle Day,’ Andy announced as he stared as his computer, clicking on something while the rest of the team milled about the rebuilt Hub.
“The day nobody died,” Ianto nodded, carrying an armful of files over to Tosh who accepted them with a smile.
“Correction: the day people stopped dying,” Jack swept by him, coat flapping about his legs, and leaned over Andy’s shoulder. “And according to this the human race has less than half a year left before the world descends into a state of animalism. And I’ve seen that happen before; it’s not pretty,” Jack told them all with a grimace.
I don’t want to know, sir.
That’s for the best.
Jack met his eyes and Ianto returned his smirk.
“Bloody ‘Miracle Day’,” Owen muttered from the lab, coming up the stairs with what looked like an alien heart held between two cooking tongs. “Bloody day couldn’t have bloody happened that night at the bloody Pharm, could’ve it? Of course not. Sodding ‘Miracle Day,’ he stomped away and Ianto had to hold back a laugh.
“Somebody’s rather bitter, isn’t he?”
“I’m a zombie. I’ve a right to be!” Owen yelled back.
“Anyway, back to task. What’s this got to do with us?” Gwen pulled them back to the topic at hand, staring at the computer screen. “Yes, it’s odd, but there’s no evidence it’s alien.”
“It could hardly be anything else. Gwen, people just don’t stop dying out of the blue,” Andy looked at her incredulously and she shrugged.
“Well, we’ve got enough problems. I still don’t see…”
“Somebody’s been snooping through your old police files, Gwen,” Tosh said and suddenly Gwen was very interested.
“What? Why?”
“No idea. I’ll do a little snooping of my own,” she adjusted her glasses and stared at the files, clicking away before nodding. “There. At exactly the same moment as the last death on Earth occurred the word ‘Torchwood’ appeared as an e-mail on every computer in the CIA offices. They’ve been looking us up ever since and, since you’re the only one with a family, you must be the easiest to track.”
“Tosh?”
“The e-mail’s already been deleted and all traces of the word ‘Torchwood’ wiped from their system,” Tosh said, smiling at the Captain who gave her a nod.
“Excellent. Knew I could count on you. Now, our little snoop, do we have a name?”
“Hang on, I’m tracking who’s looked up Gwen Cooper in the last few days…here we go, her name’s Esther Drummond, she works for the CIA…”
“And why are they lookin’ us up?” Owen was standing behind her, hand resting comfortably on her shoulder as Tosh smiled up at him.
“It’s a ploy for attention,” Ianto surmised, staring intently at the screen. There was no other reason for it, really. “After the 456 incident Torchwood became known worldwide, and we’ve been fairly quiet since then but…think about it: strange things happening, who’re the first people the world will think of? Add to that the fact that, so far, we’ve not done anything and they’ll be trying to recruit us.”
“But they’re American. They can solve their own bloody problems,” Gwen fumed and Owen gave her a smirk.
“Looks like I’m not the only bitter one now, eh, love?”
“It’s my life,” Gwen exclaimed, waving her arms. “It’s my life and she’s got no right to look at it!”
“You’re right. And she obviously knows too much. I think it’s time to pay Esther Drummond a visit,” Jack had a glint in his eyes that Ianto didn’t much care for but he knew better than to confront the man in front of the entire team.
He’d wait until later.
“Jack, Esther’s from America…”
“So book me a flight to America,” Jack turned on his heel and walked briskly to his office, Tosh opening up an airline website and starting to look for flights.
Ianto would give him a few minutes.
But then he really needed to talk to him.
000
“You’re going alone.”
“…Yeah,” Jack shrugged, digging through his desk. “Got any Retcon handy?”
“You’re flying to America to make somebody lose their memory,” Ianto should have known, really, but sometimes Jack still surprised him.
“I’ve got to, Ianto. She’s learning too much. And that’s why I need to go alone; the less people she meets the less chance that she’ll find a way to counteract the drug,” Jack was still digging through his desk so Ianto grabbed a bottle of pills from his pocket and passed them over, Jack grinning in thanks as he placed them in his own pocket.
“And yet you’ve nominated yourself, perhaps the most memorable person on the team, to go.”
“It’s safer…”
“It’s safe for all of us, Jack, or have you forgotten?” Ianto glared at the older man and Jack paused for a moment, his eyes darting around before he sighed and dropped his chin to his chest.
“I don’t want to think about it. It seems like the perfect gift, too good to be true, and it is. You’ll all live forever…I’ll never lose my team…but…”
“But in six months the world will be a wasteland,” Ianto finished quietly for him. “I’ve accepted the fact that I won’t be around forever, Jack.”
“I haven’t. And I don’t want to even think about you being immortal because all it’s doing is giving me false hope,” he gripped Ianto’s arms rather tightly, Ianto blinking at him in surprise.
“I promise we won’t go out of our way to take on danger, Jack,” Ianto said gently. “Besides, people with their heads blown off and bullets through their hearts may be alive now, but I’m guessing they’ll die the instant this ends. And I rather like my body in one piece, thank you very much,” he lowered his eyes and smiled rather coyly and Jack pulled him close, kissing him deeply.
“Mm, I rather like your body the way it is, too,” he whispered against Ianto’s lips, deepening the kiss until they were clutching at each other.
“Hate to break up the goodbye kiss, lads, but here are your tickets,” Owen placed them on the desk before leaving the office, muttering about ‘showoffs and coffee boys who have a bed and can’t be bothered to use it’.
“Sorry,” Jack’s eyes were brilliantly blue as he smiled at Ianto. “That was probably out of line.”
“Probably,” Ianto agreed. “But I think they can handle it. You’re off, then?”
“Tosh got me the first flight out so I’d better run,” he agreed. “I’ll find Esther and do some snooping of my own, but I shouldn’t be more than a couple of days.”
“Not to sound sappy, but the bed always feels cold when you’re gone, and you don’t even sleep more of the time,” Ianto pointed out and Jack just smiled and ruffled his hair. “And be careful!”
“No need,” Jack winked and left the office, Ianto watching him go and wondering why, when he has never worried about Jack’s safety, he suddenly felt like he really, really needed to.
He walked back to his station, opening some files and seeing a rather suspicious e-mail from the hospital (all outside e-mails and phone calls still go through him), but when he clicked on it his eyes widened.
“Gwen!”
“Yeah?”
“Your father’s in the hospital.”
000
“Is he alright?” Tosh asked later when Gwen came back from visiting him, looking a little haunted.
“Of course he is. Nobody’s dying, remember?” she shook her head and gladly accepted the coffee Ianto gave her, inhaling deeply before taking a long sip. She’d been suffering, he knew, when she was pregnant with Anwen.
And yes, his decaf coffee was pretty decent if he had to say so himself, but nothing compared to the real thing.
“So it’s a good thing in this case,” Andy sighed.
“Good how?”
“Well, if the heart attack was bad enough to kill him, we’ll never know. And his heart’s still beating, right? He’ll be right as rain even after this is over. Can’t say the same for those blokes on the telly who got caught in that car bomb,” he shuddered. “I wonder if the pieces somehow find each other?”
“Disturbing,” Gwen told him shortly. “So, what’s the plan? We just wait until Jack gets back?”
“Not much we can do,” Tosh admitted. “People aren’t dying. That’s truly all we know, and until we find out who’s behind this it’s going to be difficult to counter it. The 456 at least let us know they were here.”
“First creepy children, now unnatural life. I’m starting to yearn for the days it was just Weevils,” Ianto rubbed his temples and stared at Tosh’s screen, his mind still churning. “And it doesn’t help that I’m worried for Jack.”
“Jack’s been immortal forever. Why worry now?” Owen snorted and Ianto tried once again to come to terms with it in his own head.
“Because…because the world’s turned inside-out. We used to be mortal and now we’re not. What if…”
“Oh, God. No,” Gwen shook her head, eyes wider than normal, and Ianto nodded. “No. Ianto, he can’t be. He can’t be.”
“What if he is, Gwen? It’s just…he’s wanted death for so long that now…if he has the chance…”
“He wouldn’t do that, mate,” Owen slung a casual arm around Ianto’s shoulders and pulled him close. “He’d never. Not with you still ‘ere and living.”
“I’d like to think that, Owen. Of course I would. But…”
“No buts,” Tosh said firmly. “You’re keeping him here, Ianto. And as long as you’re around he’s going to be just fine.”
“Thank you,” Ianto told them, smiling, but in his heart he was more worried than ever.
Jack loved him. He knew Jack loved him.
…But he also knew that there was a very real possibility Jack loved death more.
And that was not a happy thought.
000
Jack came back in late evening on the second day, sweeping into the flat as if he’d never left and hanging his greatcoat up before grabbing the always-full coffee pot and pouring himself a full cup.
“Mm.”
“Missed the coffee?” Ianto, in his sleep-wear, smiled as Jack inhaled the coffee and sighed in a way that had several not-very-clean pictures scrolling through Ianto’s mind.
“Coffee, yes. And you,” he took a sip before pulling Ianto into his arms.
“I take it Esther remembers nothing?”
“Nothing at all,” Jack promised, kissing him lightly. “But she managed to get to somebody before I could get to her…a CIA agent by the name of Rex Matheson who, coincidentally, was on the same flight I was on. So I think we can expect a visit from him in the next couple of days. Oh, and I’ll have to tell Owen I used his name as my fake FBI cover-up,” he winked.
“Owen Harper is a far more common name than your own, to be sure,” Ianto nodded.
“I would have used yours but I’m horrible at faking a Welsh accent. At least Owen could be an American name,” Jack grinned, kissing Ianto again, and Ianto pressed up against him as Jack winced.
“Jack? What’s wrong?”
“Nothing.”
“You’re lying,” Ianto narrowed his eyes, hoping Jack would feel intimidated enough that he’d talk about it, and it seemingly worked before Jack pulled him in close and said, very softly, “I’m not healing.”
“What?” Ianto gasped, all of his fears coming to light in those three words.
“Somebody found out about me and tracked me when I went to meet Esther. Somebody with a bomb strapped to their torso. I grabbed her and we jumped out the window and landed in a fountain, but…” he stepped back and unbuttoned his shirt, sliding his braces down before pulling up his undershirt, revealing raw, bruised skin marring his side.
And Ianto couldn’t even form words, because this…this…it had been a day at least and it looked like it would on a normal person, and that just wasn’t right. And he could feel Jack’s pain, a dull ache, but Jack was in pain so often that he tried to hide it from Ianto when he could but he feared the shock of it was causing Jack’s shields to be less than effective right now.
“Jack…”
“Did you know? When you told me to be careful, did you…”
“I just…I had a bad feeling. I’d suspected that maybe…but to know…”
“I don’t want to die, Ianto,” Jack said, and that rather surprised the younger man. “I don’t. Not while you’re alive. I’d never leave you.”
“The others tried to tell me that, but…”
“It’s the truth,” Jack cupped his cheeks, staring deep into his eyes. “I’m tired of life, there’s no denying it anymore. But you and Gwen and Tosh and Owen and even Andy, you make it worth living. And I’d just be plain selfish if I took the easy way out now.”
“Jack, I think, out of all people, you can afford to be a little selfish,” Ianto said honestly, mouth twisted in a wry smile.
“Maybe,” Jack smiled back. “But that doesn’t mean I’m going to be.”
“I’m grateful. Really,” Ianto tangled his hands in Jack’s thick hair and kissed him fiercely. “Now, too sore to receive your ‘welcome back’ gift, sir?”
“Never.”
000
Ianto watched the man stumble across the Plass, a crutch under one arm and a bloodstain growing on his shirt.
It wasn’t a concern, though.
Not anymore.
“Hey! Hey you! You know where a guy could find Torchwood around here?” he yelled and Ianto smiled because, yup, definitely their guy.
“Rex Matheson, I assume?” Ianto reached to steady the man as he almost pitched head-first to the ground and the other grunted in affirmation. “Ianto Jones.”
“You’re one of them!”
“Indeed I am. If by ‘one of them’ you mean ‘Torchwood.’”
“I’ve been lookin’ for you,” the man was panting, looking rather horrible, and Ianto decided that, unable to die or not, Owen really needed to take a look at him.
“Come on, then. And I’d take you the long way ‘round but since you’re standing on the entrance…” he stepped up beside the man and the paving stone began to lower, Ianto smirking inwardly at the other man’s surprise.
It never failed.
And Ianto had worried that, after the bomb, the Invisible Lift wouldn’t function properly anymore but the Doctor had assured him on his last visit that when the TARDIS left her mark, she left her mark, and removing one shoddy paving stone wasn’t going to change that.
Myfanwy swooped over as they went lower, causing Rex to exclaim, “What the Hell is that?”
“That’s a pteranodon,” Ianto shrugged. “And it’s a ‘she’”.
The man continued gaping until they’d reached the floor, Ianto stepping off of the stone and moving to stand behind Jack where the rest of the team had assembled. Rex, it had to be said, looked rather intimidated.
And he should be, Ianto thought.
He should be.
“Rex Matheson?”
“Yeah,” Rex swallowed and stood up straighter, trying to project confidence as he shook Jack’s hand.
“Captain Jack Harkness. Welcome to Torchwood.”
Notes:
1. Yes, I’m back! Do you remember me? No? Hi anyway!! So, a lot of people had asked back when I finished this fic if I’d be continuing it through the fourth season and I wasn’t sure, but after seeing the first episode I got a lot of ideas and decided to, so I hope you’ll stick with me :D
2. Updates will be weekly, probably, because I obviously need to see an episode before I write about it. I also put the number of chapters in question marks because I assumed one chapter per episode but we’ll have to see…
3. I also didn’t end with the team being taken to America because I need to see how it plays out before I decide who I actually want to go to America.
4. Also, Jack referring to himself as ‘FBI Agent Owen Harper’ had me making a very strange noise that was not-quite-a-laugh and not-quite-a-sob and I was VERY glad I was alone when I saw that.
5. Um, that’s about it. Let me know what you thought :)
Author: AoiTsukikage
Rating: PG-13 for now
Characters/Pairing: Jack/Ianto primarily
Chapter: 1/10(?)
Word Count: 2529
Spoilers: Everything up to Episode One of Miracle Day
Summary/Warnings: Sequel to ‘Hitting the Ground Running.’ AU for Miracle Day.
Disclaimer:: I, unfortunately, do not own these characters, no matter how sad that makes me. I do, however, promise to return them when I'm done with them. :)
In Which Gwen Can Drink Regular Coffee Again, The World is in Trouble Once More, and Myfanwy Remains the Best Guard Dog Ever
“ ‘Miracle Day.’ That’s what they’re callin’ it: ‘Miracle Day,’ Andy announced as he stared as his computer, clicking on something while the rest of the team milled about the rebuilt Hub.
“The day nobody died,” Ianto nodded, carrying an armful of files over to Tosh who accepted them with a smile.
“Correction: the day people stopped dying,” Jack swept by him, coat flapping about his legs, and leaned over Andy’s shoulder. “And according to this the human race has less than half a year left before the world descends into a state of animalism. And I’ve seen that happen before; it’s not pretty,” Jack told them all with a grimace.
I don’t want to know, sir.
That’s for the best.
Jack met his eyes and Ianto returned his smirk.
“Bloody ‘Miracle Day’,” Owen muttered from the lab, coming up the stairs with what looked like an alien heart held between two cooking tongs. “Bloody day couldn’t have bloody happened that night at the bloody Pharm, could’ve it? Of course not. Sodding ‘Miracle Day,’ he stomped away and Ianto had to hold back a laugh.
“Somebody’s rather bitter, isn’t he?”
“I’m a zombie. I’ve a right to be!” Owen yelled back.
“Anyway, back to task. What’s this got to do with us?” Gwen pulled them back to the topic at hand, staring at the computer screen. “Yes, it’s odd, but there’s no evidence it’s alien.”
“It could hardly be anything else. Gwen, people just don’t stop dying out of the blue,” Andy looked at her incredulously and she shrugged.
“Well, we’ve got enough problems. I still don’t see…”
“Somebody’s been snooping through your old police files, Gwen,” Tosh said and suddenly Gwen was very interested.
“What? Why?”
“No idea. I’ll do a little snooping of my own,” she adjusted her glasses and stared at the files, clicking away before nodding. “There. At exactly the same moment as the last death on Earth occurred the word ‘Torchwood’ appeared as an e-mail on every computer in the CIA offices. They’ve been looking us up ever since and, since you’re the only one with a family, you must be the easiest to track.”
“Tosh?”
“The e-mail’s already been deleted and all traces of the word ‘Torchwood’ wiped from their system,” Tosh said, smiling at the Captain who gave her a nod.
“Excellent. Knew I could count on you. Now, our little snoop, do we have a name?”
“Hang on, I’m tracking who’s looked up Gwen Cooper in the last few days…here we go, her name’s Esther Drummond, she works for the CIA…”
“And why are they lookin’ us up?” Owen was standing behind her, hand resting comfortably on her shoulder as Tosh smiled up at him.
“It’s a ploy for attention,” Ianto surmised, staring intently at the screen. There was no other reason for it, really. “After the 456 incident Torchwood became known worldwide, and we’ve been fairly quiet since then but…think about it: strange things happening, who’re the first people the world will think of? Add to that the fact that, so far, we’ve not done anything and they’ll be trying to recruit us.”
“But they’re American. They can solve their own bloody problems,” Gwen fumed and Owen gave her a smirk.
“Looks like I’m not the only bitter one now, eh, love?”
“It’s my life,” Gwen exclaimed, waving her arms. “It’s my life and she’s got no right to look at it!”
“You’re right. And she obviously knows too much. I think it’s time to pay Esther Drummond a visit,” Jack had a glint in his eyes that Ianto didn’t much care for but he knew better than to confront the man in front of the entire team.
He’d wait until later.
“Jack, Esther’s from America…”
“So book me a flight to America,” Jack turned on his heel and walked briskly to his office, Tosh opening up an airline website and starting to look for flights.
Ianto would give him a few minutes.
But then he really needed to talk to him.
000
“You’re going alone.”
“…Yeah,” Jack shrugged, digging through his desk. “Got any Retcon handy?”
“You’re flying to America to make somebody lose their memory,” Ianto should have known, really, but sometimes Jack still surprised him.
“I’ve got to, Ianto. She’s learning too much. And that’s why I need to go alone; the less people she meets the less chance that she’ll find a way to counteract the drug,” Jack was still digging through his desk so Ianto grabbed a bottle of pills from his pocket and passed them over, Jack grinning in thanks as he placed them in his own pocket.
“And yet you’ve nominated yourself, perhaps the most memorable person on the team, to go.”
“It’s safer…”
“It’s safe for all of us, Jack, or have you forgotten?” Ianto glared at the older man and Jack paused for a moment, his eyes darting around before he sighed and dropped his chin to his chest.
“I don’t want to think about it. It seems like the perfect gift, too good to be true, and it is. You’ll all live forever…I’ll never lose my team…but…”
“But in six months the world will be a wasteland,” Ianto finished quietly for him. “I’ve accepted the fact that I won’t be around forever, Jack.”
“I haven’t. And I don’t want to even think about you being immortal because all it’s doing is giving me false hope,” he gripped Ianto’s arms rather tightly, Ianto blinking at him in surprise.
“I promise we won’t go out of our way to take on danger, Jack,” Ianto said gently. “Besides, people with their heads blown off and bullets through their hearts may be alive now, but I’m guessing they’ll die the instant this ends. And I rather like my body in one piece, thank you very much,” he lowered his eyes and smiled rather coyly and Jack pulled him close, kissing him deeply.
“Mm, I rather like your body the way it is, too,” he whispered against Ianto’s lips, deepening the kiss until they were clutching at each other.
“Hate to break up the goodbye kiss, lads, but here are your tickets,” Owen placed them on the desk before leaving the office, muttering about ‘showoffs and coffee boys who have a bed and can’t be bothered to use it’.
“Sorry,” Jack’s eyes were brilliantly blue as he smiled at Ianto. “That was probably out of line.”
“Probably,” Ianto agreed. “But I think they can handle it. You’re off, then?”
“Tosh got me the first flight out so I’d better run,” he agreed. “I’ll find Esther and do some snooping of my own, but I shouldn’t be more than a couple of days.”
“Not to sound sappy, but the bed always feels cold when you’re gone, and you don’t even sleep more of the time,” Ianto pointed out and Jack just smiled and ruffled his hair. “And be careful!”
“No need,” Jack winked and left the office, Ianto watching him go and wondering why, when he has never worried about Jack’s safety, he suddenly felt like he really, really needed to.
He walked back to his station, opening some files and seeing a rather suspicious e-mail from the hospital (all outside e-mails and phone calls still go through him), but when he clicked on it his eyes widened.
“Gwen!”
“Yeah?”
“Your father’s in the hospital.”
000
“Is he alright?” Tosh asked later when Gwen came back from visiting him, looking a little haunted.
“Of course he is. Nobody’s dying, remember?” she shook her head and gladly accepted the coffee Ianto gave her, inhaling deeply before taking a long sip. She’d been suffering, he knew, when she was pregnant with Anwen.
And yes, his decaf coffee was pretty decent if he had to say so himself, but nothing compared to the real thing.
“So it’s a good thing in this case,” Andy sighed.
“Good how?”
“Well, if the heart attack was bad enough to kill him, we’ll never know. And his heart’s still beating, right? He’ll be right as rain even after this is over. Can’t say the same for those blokes on the telly who got caught in that car bomb,” he shuddered. “I wonder if the pieces somehow find each other?”
“Disturbing,” Gwen told him shortly. “So, what’s the plan? We just wait until Jack gets back?”
“Not much we can do,” Tosh admitted. “People aren’t dying. That’s truly all we know, and until we find out who’s behind this it’s going to be difficult to counter it. The 456 at least let us know they were here.”
“First creepy children, now unnatural life. I’m starting to yearn for the days it was just Weevils,” Ianto rubbed his temples and stared at Tosh’s screen, his mind still churning. “And it doesn’t help that I’m worried for Jack.”
“Jack’s been immortal forever. Why worry now?” Owen snorted and Ianto tried once again to come to terms with it in his own head.
“Because…because the world’s turned inside-out. We used to be mortal and now we’re not. What if…”
“Oh, God. No,” Gwen shook her head, eyes wider than normal, and Ianto nodded. “No. Ianto, he can’t be. He can’t be.”
“What if he is, Gwen? It’s just…he’s wanted death for so long that now…if he has the chance…”
“He wouldn’t do that, mate,” Owen slung a casual arm around Ianto’s shoulders and pulled him close. “He’d never. Not with you still ‘ere and living.”
“I’d like to think that, Owen. Of course I would. But…”
“No buts,” Tosh said firmly. “You’re keeping him here, Ianto. And as long as you’re around he’s going to be just fine.”
“Thank you,” Ianto told them, smiling, but in his heart he was more worried than ever.
Jack loved him. He knew Jack loved him.
…But he also knew that there was a very real possibility Jack loved death more.
And that was not a happy thought.
000
Jack came back in late evening on the second day, sweeping into the flat as if he’d never left and hanging his greatcoat up before grabbing the always-full coffee pot and pouring himself a full cup.
“Mm.”
“Missed the coffee?” Ianto, in his sleep-wear, smiled as Jack inhaled the coffee and sighed in a way that had several not-very-clean pictures scrolling through Ianto’s mind.
“Coffee, yes. And you,” he took a sip before pulling Ianto into his arms.
“I take it Esther remembers nothing?”
“Nothing at all,” Jack promised, kissing him lightly. “But she managed to get to somebody before I could get to her…a CIA agent by the name of Rex Matheson who, coincidentally, was on the same flight I was on. So I think we can expect a visit from him in the next couple of days. Oh, and I’ll have to tell Owen I used his name as my fake FBI cover-up,” he winked.
“Owen Harper is a far more common name than your own, to be sure,” Ianto nodded.
“I would have used yours but I’m horrible at faking a Welsh accent. At least Owen could be an American name,” Jack grinned, kissing Ianto again, and Ianto pressed up against him as Jack winced.
“Jack? What’s wrong?”
“Nothing.”
“You’re lying,” Ianto narrowed his eyes, hoping Jack would feel intimidated enough that he’d talk about it, and it seemingly worked before Jack pulled him in close and said, very softly, “I’m not healing.”
“What?” Ianto gasped, all of his fears coming to light in those three words.
“Somebody found out about me and tracked me when I went to meet Esther. Somebody with a bomb strapped to their torso. I grabbed her and we jumped out the window and landed in a fountain, but…” he stepped back and unbuttoned his shirt, sliding his braces down before pulling up his undershirt, revealing raw, bruised skin marring his side.
And Ianto couldn’t even form words, because this…this…it had been a day at least and it looked like it would on a normal person, and that just wasn’t right. And he could feel Jack’s pain, a dull ache, but Jack was in pain so often that he tried to hide it from Ianto when he could but he feared the shock of it was causing Jack’s shields to be less than effective right now.
“Jack…”
“Did you know? When you told me to be careful, did you…”
“I just…I had a bad feeling. I’d suspected that maybe…but to know…”
“I don’t want to die, Ianto,” Jack said, and that rather surprised the younger man. “I don’t. Not while you’re alive. I’d never leave you.”
“The others tried to tell me that, but…”
“It’s the truth,” Jack cupped his cheeks, staring deep into his eyes. “I’m tired of life, there’s no denying it anymore. But you and Gwen and Tosh and Owen and even Andy, you make it worth living. And I’d just be plain selfish if I took the easy way out now.”
“Jack, I think, out of all people, you can afford to be a little selfish,” Ianto said honestly, mouth twisted in a wry smile.
“Maybe,” Jack smiled back. “But that doesn’t mean I’m going to be.”
“I’m grateful. Really,” Ianto tangled his hands in Jack’s thick hair and kissed him fiercely. “Now, too sore to receive your ‘welcome back’ gift, sir?”
“Never.”
000
Ianto watched the man stumble across the Plass, a crutch under one arm and a bloodstain growing on his shirt.
It wasn’t a concern, though.
Not anymore.
“Hey! Hey you! You know where a guy could find Torchwood around here?” he yelled and Ianto smiled because, yup, definitely their guy.
“Rex Matheson, I assume?” Ianto reached to steady the man as he almost pitched head-first to the ground and the other grunted in affirmation. “Ianto Jones.”
“You’re one of them!”
“Indeed I am. If by ‘one of them’ you mean ‘Torchwood.’”
“I’ve been lookin’ for you,” the man was panting, looking rather horrible, and Ianto decided that, unable to die or not, Owen really needed to take a look at him.
“Come on, then. And I’d take you the long way ‘round but since you’re standing on the entrance…” he stepped up beside the man and the paving stone began to lower, Ianto smirking inwardly at the other man’s surprise.
It never failed.
And Ianto had worried that, after the bomb, the Invisible Lift wouldn’t function properly anymore but the Doctor had assured him on his last visit that when the TARDIS left her mark, she left her mark, and removing one shoddy paving stone wasn’t going to change that.
Myfanwy swooped over as they went lower, causing Rex to exclaim, “What the Hell is that?”
“That’s a pteranodon,” Ianto shrugged. “And it’s a ‘she’”.
The man continued gaping until they’d reached the floor, Ianto stepping off of the stone and moving to stand behind Jack where the rest of the team had assembled. Rex, it had to be said, looked rather intimidated.
And he should be, Ianto thought.
He should be.
“Rex Matheson?”
“Yeah,” Rex swallowed and stood up straighter, trying to project confidence as he shook Jack’s hand.
“Captain Jack Harkness. Welcome to Torchwood.”
Notes:
1. Yes, I’m back! Do you remember me? No? Hi anyway!! So, a lot of people had asked back when I finished this fic if I’d be continuing it through the fourth season and I wasn’t sure, but after seeing the first episode I got a lot of ideas and decided to, so I hope you’ll stick with me :D
2. Updates will be weekly, probably, because I obviously need to see an episode before I write about it. I also put the number of chapters in question marks because I assumed one chapter per episode but we’ll have to see…
3. I also didn’t end with the team being taken to America because I need to see how it plays out before I decide who I actually want to go to America.
4. Also, Jack referring to himself as ‘FBI Agent Owen Harper’ had me making a very strange noise that was not-quite-a-laugh and not-quite-a-sob and I was VERY glad I was alone when I saw that.
5. Um, that’s about it. Let me know what you thought :)