Fic: Vizzini's Rule (94/105)
Title: Vizzini's Rule, Chapter 94
Rating: R
Warnings: More bad language (Ianto's a little upset)
Spoilers: Season One thru Captain Jack Harkness (1x12)
Disclaimer: Torchwood and all its wonderfulness belong to Russell T. Davies and the Mighty Beeb. Just goofin' around! All ©’s to Catherine Tregenna for dialogue and situations borrowed from Captain Jack Harkness - no infringement, only worship intended.
Summary: In which Ianto and Jack have a little chat…
Notes: Bonus chapter today. Big hugs to all you lovelies who have been reading and commenting! This is for you!! :D
Previous Chapters
Vizzini's Rule: Chapter Ninety-Four
Somehow Ianto managed to eat his dinner and converse with Tosh, but he felt like something had switched off inside him. Everything felt far away, as if it were happening to someone else.
After Tosh had finished talking through her ordeal in 1941 she had mercifully changed the subject to more mundane topics and Ianto was able to chat easily with her once more. When she broached the subject of his romantic life as she always did when they had dinner, Ianto simply deflected the question with one of his own and neatly avoided the issue.
They were just stepping out of the pub when both of their phones started ringing.
“It’s Jack,” they said simultaneously.
Tosh laughed and then immediately sobered when she read the text. “Looks like the rift is spiking again. Nothing major, but Jack wants me to come back in.”
“Same here,” Ianto said as he flipped his phone closed. “Shall we?” he asked, offering her his arm.
“Why thank you,” she said teasingly.
They walked the short distance to the Hub in companionable silence. When they arrived Jack apologized for calling them in.
“It may be nothing, but I thought if you were still close by it couldn’t hurt to take a look,” he explained.
“Better safe than sorry,” Ianto said. “What would you like done?”
Jack looked at him oddly, as if sensing something was amiss with Ianto. “Well, let’s see what Tosh’s readings say and then if we need to head out to investigate, we’ll do that.”
“Righteeo-o,” Ianto said cheerfully though he was cringing on the inside. Rightee-o? Who talks like that? “I’ll just go make sure we’ve got some spare clips,” he added and hurried to the armory.
He banged the drawers open and closed as he gathered together extra ammunition for Jack’s Webley. He tried not to think about a few weeks back when he and Jack had been together in the small room or a few days after that when Jack had fucked him while they watched the footage. That’s right, fucked, not made love or even had sex. Fuck. It’s all we ever do. Part-time shag, fuck-buddy, convenient piece of arse, it’s all the same, nothing, it’s all nothing. He took a deep breath and shook his head to end that train of thought. He grabbed blindly for some extra clips for his gun and then found the drawer with Tosh’s ammo as well.
When he returned to the Hub, Jack was leaning on the back of Tosh’s chair as they looked at the reports on the monitor.
“Not too bad,” he heard Jack say as he approached. “Is that everything?”
“Seems to be,” Tosh replied. “I’ll feed this into my PDA so I can keep an eye on it.”
“Good idea. I’ll take Ianto and go see what, if anything came through. You can go on home, Tosh. Thanks.”
“Sure. You want an extra hand out there?” she offered.
“Nah,” Jack said, catching Ianto’s eye. He smirked. “Ianto and I can handle it together.”
Ianto forced his lips into an answering smile and turned away from the invitation in Jack’s eyes.
~ * ~ * ~ * ~
Forty-five minutes later, Ianto was gasping for breath. He wiped the sweat out of his eyes and tried to focus. Jack was pounding behind him, making everything shudder and shake. Ianto’s legs felt like jelly but he was close, so close.
Almost there, he thought, come on, come on!
“Ianto!” Jack cried out.
“Almost,” Ianto groaned. “Don’t stop! I need… I need…” He couldn’t finish the sentence. With a wordless cry Ianto burst through the door at the top of the stairs and stumbled out onto the roof. The alien they’d been chasing was speeding across the loose gravel. It had led them on a merry chase for blocks and then dodged down an alley which led to an office building. They had followed it up the metal stairs of what felt like the tallest building in Cardiff, always a step behind. “Jack! It’s getting away!” Ianto cried out.
He heard the door open behind him, slamming into the wall as Jack joined him on the roof.
“Don’t let it get to the edge!” Jack yelled.
They both dove for the alien who gave them a little wave and then stepped off the roof into the nothingness below.
“No!” Ianto cried as he closed his hand on empty air. “Dammit!” He rolled onto his back and lay there panting. “What… the hell… was that?” he asked Jack between gasps for breath.
“A Lemmate,” Jack said. “They have a… sort of internal… teleport that engages… when they jump…” he explained between gasps of his own. “God, I’m… out of shape.”
“Stairs are… the worst,” Ianto agreed. “God, how many flights was that?”
“Twenty-five,” Jack said with certainty.
Ianto turned his head and squinted at Jack. “You counted?”
Chuckling, Jack replied, “No. Cardiff Tower,” he explained, pointing at building beneath them. “You’ve probably never used the back entrance. I come up here a lot to think.”
Ianto rolled his eyes. “You and your high places,” he said as he got slowly to his feet. “Well, that was a waste of time,” he commented. He brushed off his suit the best he could.
“Not completely,” Jack argued. “We stopped it from looting that store and chased it out of town. Hell, with as inaccurate as their teleports are, we may have chased it out of the country.” Jack stood up as well and walked up to the edge. He stared out at the skyline with a thoughtful look on his face. “It’s so different and yet so much the same,” he murmured.
“The same as what?”
“Before,” Jack said quietly.
Ianto felt the cold settle around his heart again. “Back in 1941?” he asked sharply.
“Yeah,” Jack said in that same dreamy voice. He sighed. When he turned around, Ianto could see tears in his eyes. Jack blinked them away quickly and smiled that bright, fake smile that never fooled Ianto. “But hey! I’m here. You’re here.” He stepped forward and put his hands on Ianto’s hips, canting his own hips forward in a teasing manner. “What do you say? You ever been fucked 262 feet in the sky before?”
Ianto flinched at his choice of words. “You’re joking.”
“Not at all. I’ve been dreaming of having a sweet piece of your ass since I woke up this morning, might as well make the most -”
Ianto balled his hand into a fist and let it fly. Jack was on the ground in a second, rubbing his jaw and looking surprised.
“Ow! What the fuck, Ianto?”
“Owen was right,” Ianto snarled at Jack. “That’s all I am to you.”
“What? What are you talking about?” Jack asked as he got to his feet and stood several feet away from Ianto.
“I know , Jack.”
“Know? Know what? What the hell are you talking about?”
“1941. Captain Jack. How there’s no one. How I’m no one.” Ianto’s voice broke on the last word, making him even more angry for letting Jack see how much it hurt.
“What do you mean?”
“Tosh heard you, Jack! She told me all about it, in great fucking detail. ‘Poor Jack, isn’t it sad that he’s all alone?’” he spit out.
Jack’s face went white. He reached out a hand to Ianto who stepped back. “God, Ianto… I… it’s not what you think.”
Ianto let out a sharp bark of laughter. “Which part is open to interpretation, Jack? The part where you kissed him in front of a hundred people? The part where you didn’t want to leave? The part where you told him there’s no one in your life? Is there more? Did you fuck him too?”
“Dammit Tosh,” Jack muttered.
“Don’t you say that!” Ianto yelled, taking a step towards Jack. “Don’t you dare blame her! She went through hell to get you back! I went through hell here! Trying to figure out what you would want me to do, what was right, having to choose between the world and you, knowing I might never see you again, while you sat around moping over some other man.”
“It wasn’t like that,” Jack said with a pleading note in his voice. “You don’t know the whole story -”
Ianto crossed his arms and stared daggers at Jack. “So tell me.”
TBC in Chapter Ninety-Five
Rating: R
Warnings: More bad language (Ianto's a little upset)
Spoilers: Season One thru Captain Jack Harkness (1x12)
Disclaimer: Torchwood and all its wonderfulness belong to Russell T. Davies and the Mighty Beeb. Just goofin' around! All ©’s to Catherine Tregenna for dialogue and situations borrowed from Captain Jack Harkness - no infringement, only worship intended.
Summary: In which Ianto and Jack have a little chat…
Notes: Bonus chapter today. Big hugs to all you lovelies who have been reading and commenting! This is for you!! :D
Previous Chapters
Vizzini's Rule: Chapter Ninety-Four
Somehow Ianto managed to eat his dinner and converse with Tosh, but he felt like something had switched off inside him. Everything felt far away, as if it were happening to someone else.
After Tosh had finished talking through her ordeal in 1941 she had mercifully changed the subject to more mundane topics and Ianto was able to chat easily with her once more. When she broached the subject of his romantic life as she always did when they had dinner, Ianto simply deflected the question with one of his own and neatly avoided the issue.
They were just stepping out of the pub when both of their phones started ringing.
“It’s Jack,” they said simultaneously.
Tosh laughed and then immediately sobered when she read the text. “Looks like the rift is spiking again. Nothing major, but Jack wants me to come back in.”
“Same here,” Ianto said as he flipped his phone closed. “Shall we?” he asked, offering her his arm.
“Why thank you,” she said teasingly.
They walked the short distance to the Hub in companionable silence. When they arrived Jack apologized for calling them in.
“It may be nothing, but I thought if you were still close by it couldn’t hurt to take a look,” he explained.
“Better safe than sorry,” Ianto said. “What would you like done?”
Jack looked at him oddly, as if sensing something was amiss with Ianto. “Well, let’s see what Tosh’s readings say and then if we need to head out to investigate, we’ll do that.”
“Righteeo-o,” Ianto said cheerfully though he was cringing on the inside. Rightee-o? Who talks like that? “I’ll just go make sure we’ve got some spare clips,” he added and hurried to the armory.
He banged the drawers open and closed as he gathered together extra ammunition for Jack’s Webley. He tried not to think about a few weeks back when he and Jack had been together in the small room or a few days after that when Jack had fucked him while they watched the footage. That’s right, fucked, not made love or even had sex. Fuck. It’s all we ever do. Part-time shag, fuck-buddy, convenient piece of arse, it’s all the same, nothing, it’s all nothing. He took a deep breath and shook his head to end that train of thought. He grabbed blindly for some extra clips for his gun and then found the drawer with Tosh’s ammo as well.
When he returned to the Hub, Jack was leaning on the back of Tosh’s chair as they looked at the reports on the monitor.
“Not too bad,” he heard Jack say as he approached. “Is that everything?”
“Seems to be,” Tosh replied. “I’ll feed this into my PDA so I can keep an eye on it.”
“Good idea. I’ll take Ianto and go see what, if anything came through. You can go on home, Tosh. Thanks.”
“Sure. You want an extra hand out there?” she offered.
“Nah,” Jack said, catching Ianto’s eye. He smirked. “Ianto and I can handle it together.”
Ianto forced his lips into an answering smile and turned away from the invitation in Jack’s eyes.
~ * ~ * ~ * ~
Forty-five minutes later, Ianto was gasping for breath. He wiped the sweat out of his eyes and tried to focus. Jack was pounding behind him, making everything shudder and shake. Ianto’s legs felt like jelly but he was close, so close.
Almost there, he thought, come on, come on!
“Ianto!” Jack cried out.
“Almost,” Ianto groaned. “Don’t stop! I need… I need…” He couldn’t finish the sentence. With a wordless cry Ianto burst through the door at the top of the stairs and stumbled out onto the roof. The alien they’d been chasing was speeding across the loose gravel. It had led them on a merry chase for blocks and then dodged down an alley which led to an office building. They had followed it up the metal stairs of what felt like the tallest building in Cardiff, always a step behind. “Jack! It’s getting away!” Ianto cried out.
He heard the door open behind him, slamming into the wall as Jack joined him on the roof.
“Don’t let it get to the edge!” Jack yelled.
They both dove for the alien who gave them a little wave and then stepped off the roof into the nothingness below.
“No!” Ianto cried as he closed his hand on empty air. “Dammit!” He rolled onto his back and lay there panting. “What… the hell… was that?” he asked Jack between gasps for breath.
“A Lemmate,” Jack said. “They have a… sort of internal… teleport that engages… when they jump…” he explained between gasps of his own. “God, I’m… out of shape.”
“Stairs are… the worst,” Ianto agreed. “God, how many flights was that?”
“Twenty-five,” Jack said with certainty.
Ianto turned his head and squinted at Jack. “You counted?”
Chuckling, Jack replied, “No. Cardiff Tower,” he explained, pointing at building beneath them. “You’ve probably never used the back entrance. I come up here a lot to think.”
Ianto rolled his eyes. “You and your high places,” he said as he got slowly to his feet. “Well, that was a waste of time,” he commented. He brushed off his suit the best he could.
“Not completely,” Jack argued. “We stopped it from looting that store and chased it out of town. Hell, with as inaccurate as their teleports are, we may have chased it out of the country.” Jack stood up as well and walked up to the edge. He stared out at the skyline with a thoughtful look on his face. “It’s so different and yet so much the same,” he murmured.
“The same as what?”
“Before,” Jack said quietly.
Ianto felt the cold settle around his heart again. “Back in 1941?” he asked sharply.
“Yeah,” Jack said in that same dreamy voice. He sighed. When he turned around, Ianto could see tears in his eyes. Jack blinked them away quickly and smiled that bright, fake smile that never fooled Ianto. “But hey! I’m here. You’re here.” He stepped forward and put his hands on Ianto’s hips, canting his own hips forward in a teasing manner. “What do you say? You ever been fucked 262 feet in the sky before?”
Ianto flinched at his choice of words. “You’re joking.”
“Not at all. I’ve been dreaming of having a sweet piece of your ass since I woke up this morning, might as well make the most -”
Ianto balled his hand into a fist and let it fly. Jack was on the ground in a second, rubbing his jaw and looking surprised.
“Ow! What the fuck, Ianto?”
“Owen was right,” Ianto snarled at Jack. “That’s all I am to you.”
“What? What are you talking about?” Jack asked as he got to his feet and stood several feet away from Ianto.
“I know , Jack.”
“Know? Know what? What the hell are you talking about?”
“1941. Captain Jack. How there’s no one. How I’m no one.” Ianto’s voice broke on the last word, making him even more angry for letting Jack see how much it hurt.
“What do you mean?”
“Tosh heard you, Jack! She told me all about it, in great fucking detail. ‘Poor Jack, isn’t it sad that he’s all alone?’” he spit out.
Jack’s face went white. He reached out a hand to Ianto who stepped back. “God, Ianto… I… it’s not what you think.”
Ianto let out a sharp bark of laughter. “Which part is open to interpretation, Jack? The part where you kissed him in front of a hundred people? The part where you didn’t want to leave? The part where you told him there’s no one in your life? Is there more? Did you fuck him too?”
“Dammit Tosh,” Jack muttered.
“Don’t you say that!” Ianto yelled, taking a step towards Jack. “Don’t you dare blame her! She went through hell to get you back! I went through hell here! Trying to figure out what you would want me to do, what was right, having to choose between the world and you, knowing I might never see you again, while you sat around moping over some other man.”
“It wasn’t like that,” Jack said with a pleading note in his voice. “You don’t know the whole story -”
Ianto crossed his arms and stared daggers at Jack. “So tell me.”
TBC in Chapter Ninety-Five