Torchwood Giftfic -- In Hiding
Title: In Hiding
redismycolour Challenge: Day Twenty-Three
Date Written: 1/28/09
Rating: PG/K+
Word Count: 665
Fandom: Torchwood
Characters/Pairings: Jack/Ianto, OCs
Spoilers: None
Warnings: None
Author Notes: Written for totally4ryo's Time After Time 'verse, which is all sorts of amazing awesome astounding and should be read by everyone.
We bury our love in the windsory grave
Along came the snow, that was all that remained.
But we stayed by its side as the days turned to weeks
And the ice kept getting thinner with every word that we'd speak.
The Ice is Getting Thinner
Death Cab for Cutie
As much as he loved his children, Ianto knew it was always a mistake to have them help out in the Archives. They tried, he knew, they really did. They wanted to be just like Daddy and Taddy and help save the world, even if it meant just doing a bit of filing.
When they were bored and hyper and everyone was busy, Ianto would sometimes take them down anyway and give them what he knew were harmless bits of tech to file away. It distracted them, and they usually ended up playing with odds and ends on the floor, six-year-old Stephanie making up stories as she went and two-year-old Ifan laughing hysterically at his older sister.
When that didn’t distract them, they would help, which was where the real trouble would begin. Reports would end up in K that should be in C, things would be smudged and suspiciously wet around the edges (Ifan still liked to put his fingers in his mouth before touching things) and in the end Ianto would lose his temper and the kids would wibble and Jack would have to sweep in and be the big damn hero.
In their defense, alphabetical order was a tough meal for kids their ages. Even Harkness-Joneses.
One day, when the natives were getting restless, Ianto brought them down into the archives and let them roam about in the room he was working in, keeping half an eye on his work and half an eye on the kids. He wasn’t looking when he heard Stephanie’s little voice.
“Taddy, look at what Ifan found!”
The kids, because they were smaller, could wiggle their way into tighter crevices than their fathers and find all sorts of treasures. Hoping it wasn’t a rat or something equally disease-riddled, he turned and found his son looking down at a small wooden box curiously.
“Ifan, give that here,” Ianto said, holding a hand out. “Carefully.” He’d never seen the box before and he was fairly sure that it was Earth construct, but he could never be sure. The little boy tiptoed towards his Taddy and handed the box over gingerly.
Ianto undid the latch carefully and opened the lid. Inside were a few pictures - some with Tosh and Owen, and one lurking snapshot of him and Suzie before she went mad. A vivid purple tie, one of Jack’s absolute favorites, they’d had some fun with that one. And clanking against the heavy wood at the bottom was a little gold circle.
His old wedding ring.
“Taddy, this looks like you!” Stephanie was saying, holding up a picture of his and Jack’s first CP. “But you look different.”
Ianto moved to sit on the floor, pulling his children into his lap. Ifan looked up at him with solemn eyes, waiting for his Taddy to explain, while his daughter was restless and impatient for an explanation like her Daddy.
“You know that Daddy is special, right?”
Both little heads bobbed in agreement at various speeds.
“Well, Taddy is special too. You see, Taddy used to be human, all the way.”
“Like Auntie Livvy and Seleny?” Stephanie asked.
Ianto nodded. “That’s right, sweet pea. Like Olivia and Seleny and Trenton and Allan. But one day, a long time ago, I died.”
Ifan’s little eyes started filling with tears and he grabbed at Ianto’s shirt. “No, Taddy!”
He wrapped his arm tighter around his son, kissing his forehead and rocking him back and forth. “It’s okay, baby boy, it’s all right. I’m alive now, see?” He took a little hand and put it against the pulse in his neck, letting the tiny fingers feel the thrum of life.
As Ianto calmed the little one down, Stephanie touched the picture. “Daddy must have been really sad, so he hid these away,” she said sadly.
Ianto smiled at her and smoothed her hair back from her face. “I bet he was.” He kissed her nose. “We should go and find him and cheer him up.”
redismycolour Challenge: Day Twenty-Three
Date Written: 1/28/09
Rating: PG/K+
Word Count: 665
Fandom: Torchwood
Characters/Pairings: Jack/Ianto, OCs
Spoilers: None
Warnings: None
Author Notes: Written for totally4ryo's Time After Time 'verse, which is all sorts of amazing awesome astounding and should be read by everyone.
We bury our love in the windsory grave
Along came the snow, that was all that remained.
But we stayed by its side as the days turned to weeks
And the ice kept getting thinner with every word that we'd speak.
The Ice is Getting Thinner
Death Cab for Cutie
As much as he loved his children, Ianto knew it was always a mistake to have them help out in the Archives. They tried, he knew, they really did. They wanted to be just like Daddy and Taddy and help save the world, even if it meant just doing a bit of filing.
When they were bored and hyper and everyone was busy, Ianto would sometimes take them down anyway and give them what he knew were harmless bits of tech to file away. It distracted them, and they usually ended up playing with odds and ends on the floor, six-year-old Stephanie making up stories as she went and two-year-old Ifan laughing hysterically at his older sister.
When that didn’t distract them, they would help, which was where the real trouble would begin. Reports would end up in K that should be in C, things would be smudged and suspiciously wet around the edges (Ifan still liked to put his fingers in his mouth before touching things) and in the end Ianto would lose his temper and the kids would wibble and Jack would have to sweep in and be the big damn hero.
In their defense, alphabetical order was a tough meal for kids their ages. Even Harkness-Joneses.
One day, when the natives were getting restless, Ianto brought them down into the archives and let them roam about in the room he was working in, keeping half an eye on his work and half an eye on the kids. He wasn’t looking when he heard Stephanie’s little voice.
“Taddy, look at what Ifan found!”
The kids, because they were smaller, could wiggle their way into tighter crevices than their fathers and find all sorts of treasures. Hoping it wasn’t a rat or something equally disease-riddled, he turned and found his son looking down at a small wooden box curiously.
“Ifan, give that here,” Ianto said, holding a hand out. “Carefully.” He’d never seen the box before and he was fairly sure that it was Earth construct, but he could never be sure. The little boy tiptoed towards his Taddy and handed the box over gingerly.
Ianto undid the latch carefully and opened the lid. Inside were a few pictures - some with Tosh and Owen, and one lurking snapshot of him and Suzie before she went mad. A vivid purple tie, one of Jack’s absolute favorites, they’d had some fun with that one. And clanking against the heavy wood at the bottom was a little gold circle.
His old wedding ring.
“Taddy, this looks like you!” Stephanie was saying, holding up a picture of his and Jack’s first CP. “But you look different.”
Ianto moved to sit on the floor, pulling his children into his lap. Ifan looked up at him with solemn eyes, waiting for his Taddy to explain, while his daughter was restless and impatient for an explanation like her Daddy.
“You know that Daddy is special, right?”
Both little heads bobbed in agreement at various speeds.
“Well, Taddy is special too. You see, Taddy used to be human, all the way.”
“Like Auntie Livvy and Seleny?” Stephanie asked.
Ianto nodded. “That’s right, sweet pea. Like Olivia and Seleny and Trenton and Allan. But one day, a long time ago, I died.”
Ifan’s little eyes started filling with tears and he grabbed at Ianto’s shirt. “No, Taddy!”
He wrapped his arm tighter around his son, kissing his forehead and rocking him back and forth. “It’s okay, baby boy, it’s all right. I’m alive now, see?” He took a little hand and put it against the pulse in his neck, letting the tiny fingers feel the thrum of life.
As Ianto calmed the little one down, Stephanie touched the picture. “Daddy must have been really sad, so he hid these away,” she said sadly.
Ianto smiled at her and smoothed her hair back from her face. “I bet he was.” He kissed her nose. “We should go and find him and cheer him up.”