Moonlight and Lusting 17/? Therapy
Jack's worried about Ianto and doesn't know what to do, so he calls someone who can help.
This Chapter rated PG-13.
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“So you told Rhiannon?” Owen asked as Ianto handed him a coffee.
“Yeah we did last night in fact,” Ianto confirmed. “We also told Elder Harold Jones at the same time.”
Owen sipped his coffee enjoying the taste and aroma. Casually he asked, “How did they react?”
“Rhiannon was stunned but very supportive; she even told us she had miscarried once too. She really understands what Ianto and I are going through. Harold understands and is being supportive too,” Jack explained.
“That’s good,” Owen replied, “You’ve got a network of supportive family and friends, now the trick is to make sure you and Jack utilize it. If you have questions or you start feeling overwhelmed emotionally talk to one of us. Remember, we can’t help if we don’t know what’s going on.”
“We will,” Jack promised. Looking at his watch he said, “I’ve got a conference call with the PM so I’ll see you later,” he said to them before kissing Ianto lightly on the lips and then heading into his office. Owen headed off to do an autopsy and Ianto went down into the archives to put the latest work case files away. After working steadily for a few hours Ianto stood up to stretch his long legs. He paced back and forth near his desk as he read the latest case report one last time; it was about some alien tech which had come through the rift only to appear on a children’s playground. Jack and he had arrived to discover a young boy playing with it. The colour had drained from Jack’s face when he saw what the boy was holding and he immediately coaxed the boy into giving him the tech. Once he had the tech in his hand, Jack had swiftly walked back to the SUV with Ianto without saying a word. After placing the object in one of their strongest containment boxes and activating an additional force field around it, Jack let out a sigh of relief as he leaned against the SUV.
“Jack, are you okay?” Ianto asked in concern.
“I am now,” Jack replied reaching over to Ianto and pulling him into a hug briefly.
“What is that object you took away from the boy?” Ianto asked. “It almost looked like a toy, but by the way you reacted I assume it is a weapon.”
“It’s a bomb,” Jack explained. “It’s deliberately designed to look like a toy so a child will pick it up. If the kid had started tossing it around it would have activated and then exploded. The boy would have been reduced to a nothing but a red mist.”
“Red mist?” Ianto asked not quite certain what Jack meant.
Jack grabbed Ianto’s hand in his before explaining, “He would have been blown into such small fragments he’d have been nothing more than a spray of red mist covering a twenty yard radius.”
“Fuck,” Ianto said in shock. “What kind of beings would do that?”
“I’ve seen the weapon used before by alien land grabbers when they tried to force a human colony away from their homes because they wanted their land. This kind of activity was and is considered a war crime by the Shadow Proclamation.”
“I should bloody well think it would be,” Ianto said. “Should that even be in the armory?”
“No, it’s too unstable. I’ll take it to the old abandoned quarry and blow it up using the remote-controlled robot Tosh created.”
Ianto closed the case file and put it away. H was glad Jack had exploded the bomb at the quarry. His thoughts turned to Jack. Jack was slowly getting better emotionally. His crying jags were less frequent and he had even smiled and chuckled last night when he’d learned why She always wanted to chat with Ianto after talking on the phone with Jack. Oh sure he’d cried a few times with Jack, but he hadn’t really examined his own feelings too closely. Owen said Jack had been about five to six weeks pregnant when he’d miscarried. Ianto wondered what their child looked like at five to six weeks of development and sat down at his desk and booted up his computer. A quick Google search led him to a web site with photos of babies in various stages of development. Clicking on the week five category he was confronted by several photos of a five week old fetus. Still a bit blobby, but arm and leg buds were visible, the head was taking shape and the heart was fully functional. A sob escaped Ianto’s throat surprising him. When did he start crying?
“Oh Ianto,” Jack said quietly. He had finished his phone conference and come downstairs to ask Ianto out to lunch only to find his life mate sobbing over photos of a fetus. Jack couldn’t even look at the pictures, so he closed the browser and pulled Ianto into his embrace. “You shouldn’t torture yourself like that; it doesn’t help.”
Ianto relaxed into Jack’s embrace inhaling his mate’s unique scent which helped calm him down. He eventually pulled away from Jack and retrieved his handkerchief from his pocket and wiped his eyes. “Sorry, I didn’t think about what I was doing; obviously a very bad idea.”
“Yes it was,” Jack agreed tears filling his own eyes. “Come on let’s get out of here for a walk and some lunch.”
“Good idea,” Ianto replied drying Jack’s tears as well. They walked around the bay for awhile before stopping at a pub for some fish and chips.
“Are you alright Ianto?” Jack asked stealing a chip from Ianto since he had already finished his own.
“I’m better now, thanks to you,” Ianto replied.
Jack didn’t quite believe him, but he didn’t want to push Ianto while they were in public. “Good,” he said. “Let’s head back to work.”
They returned to the Hub. Jack went to his office and Ianto made a fresh batch of coffee. Once Ianto had served the others their latest caffeine fix he went to Jack’s office and handed Jack his favorite blue and white striped mug filled with his aromatic and tasty brew. “Tosh asked me to help her with one of her programs this afternoon so if you need me I’ll be at her work station.”
“Okay, but I want to spend the evening with you so let’s leave at five,” Jack replied.
“Rift permitting,” Ianto reminded him. He leaned down and kissed Jack. They enjoyed their kiss for a moment before pulling apart.
“You better get going before Tosh comes looking for you,” Jack chided.
“Right, see you later,” Ianto said.
Jack watched Ianto leave his office and go join Tosh at her work station. Once Ianto and Tosh were obviously focused on their task Jack pulled his mobile out of his trouser pocket. He hesitated for a moment then punched in the speed dial code.
The phone rang a couple of times and then a woman answered. “Hello, Jack - what’s up?”
“Hi, Rhi,” Jack answered. “I’m worried about Ianto.”
“He seemed okay last night; has something happened?” she asked.
“I found him at his desk this morning looking at a web site which shows what your baby looks like at different times during a pregnancy. He was crying when I found him,” Jack said. “He’s been so focused on taking care of me he hasn’t let himself grieve properly. I tried talking with him during lunch, but he just said he’s okay. I don’t know how to help him,” Jack admitted.
“I’m glad you called Jack. Ianto always takes care of others and neglects to take care of himself properly. I think I know how to help Ianto, but I need to call Harold in to help. Are you alright with that?” Rhiannon asked.
“It’s okay to have Harold help, Rhi,” Jack answered.
“Good, I’ll call Harold right now and then call you back. Hang in there Jack.”
“I will; thanks Rhi.” They said goodbye and ended the call. Jack hoped Rhiannon’s idea would help Ianto.
The Rift remained quiet through the afternoon and Tosh told Jack her Rift predictor program indicated it would remain quiet until midday tomorrow. Jack and Ianto left promptly at five and walked home to their flat. They had only been home ten minutes before someone knocked on their front door.
“I’ll get it,” Jack said. He opened the door to find Rhi had arrived with Johnny and the children in tow as planned. Jack let them in saying, “Ianto looks who’s here!”
“Rhi, what are you doing here?” Ianto asked.
“Checking up on you two,” Rhi replied as David, Mica and Johnny followed her into the flat. The kids hadn’t seen Jack and Ianto since the Weevil attack.
Mica tugged on Jack’s arm and he picked her up and hugged her. “Uncle Jack, are you okay now?” Mica asked.
“I’m doing better pumpkin,” Jack replied.
“Good,” Mica said kissing him on the cheek.
“You guys are heroes!” David said to Ianto and Jack.
“Thanks David,” Ianto replied. “I think your mum’s a hero too and you and Mica were very brave.”
“I can’t thank you two enough for what you did for Rhiannon and the children,” Johnny said. “And I’m sorry to hear your surrogate miscarried.”
“That means a lot to us Johnny, thanks,” Jack replied. Another knock on the door interrupted their conversation. “I’ll get that,” Jack said.
“Jack, what’s going on?” Ianto asked.
“One second,” Jack said opening the door and letting Harold Jones come inside; he was carrying pizza boxes.
“Sorry I’m late but I had to wait for our order,” Harold explained heading for the dining room.
“Will someone please tell me what’s going on here,” Ianto demanded getting a little frustrated.
“It really quite simple, Ianto,” Harold replied setting the pizza boxes down on the dining table. “This is a pack intervention.”
“Intervention - for who?” Ianto asked looking confused.
“For whom and the answer is you,” Harold countered. “Listen, let’s all sit down and I’ll explain everything.”
Ianto looked like he was going to refuse when Jack gently touched his arm. “Please Ianto, just give us a few minutes and Harold will explain.” Ianto saw the concern in Jack’s eyes and relented.
“Alright, but Harold better have at least one meat feast pizza,” Ianto grumbled. Once everyone was seated and the pizza was served, Harold began his explanation.
“Jack is worried about you Ianto so he called Rhiannon and voiced his concerns. After discussing you with Jack, Rhiannon also became concerned and called me and we came to a decision.
“Oh, and what decision is that?” Ianto asked raising his eyebrow and getting a little defensive.
Harold simply said, “That you, Ianto Jones, have been so concerned with Jack’s well being you’ve neglected your own emotional health. Fortunately, Jack is doing a little better and realized today that you needed some help, which is why we’re having this intervention.”
Jack reached for Ianto’s hand and held it in his own. “Ianto, you’ve taken such good care of me through all this and today I saw how much you’re still hurting from the loss of our baby and I didn’t know what to do to help you so I asked for their help. Please let them help you and me,” Jack begged.
Ianto was deeply touched by Jack’s words and the love he saw in Jack’s eyes. Jack had asked for help and their family and pack hadn’t hesitated in responding. He kissed Jack softly on the lips. “Thank you Cariad for seeing my pain even though I tried to hide it from you.” Turning to his family and pack he added, “I am grateful you all responded to Jack’s call; Harold, what did you want to do?”
“Now that we’ve all eaten, I thought we’d simply go to Bute Park and have a good old fashioned Howling ceremony.”
“Wow, I haven’t attended a Howling ceremony since Tad passed away,” Ianto admitted.
“Ianto, why don’t you and Jack go change into some comfortable clothes, and then we’ll head out,” Rhiannon suggested.
Jack and Ianto went and changed into jogging bottoms tee shirts and hoodies while Rhiannon and Johnny cleared the remnants of their pizza dinner from the dining room. Ianto and Jack rode in Harold’s car and Rhiannon, Johnny and the children followed in their car. They drove to a secluded area of the park and got out of their cars. It was late and this part of the park was deserted.
“So what’s involved in a Howling?” Jack inquired unsure what to expect.
“I guess you could sort of think of it as a Lycan form of keening; vocalizations with or without words to express our sorrow,” Harold explained.
“Is there anything I need to do?” Jack asked.
“I’d like you to sit on this bench with the children and observe at the beginning. This is not a formal ceremony; there’s no right or wrong way to do this, so if you feel the need to express yourself at any point, please do so,” Harold said.
“Come on, Uncle Jack,” David said leading him over to the bench. Mica sat in Jack’s lap and David sat next to him. Johnny and Rhiannon disappeared behind some trees while Ianto and Harold screened themselves behind some other trees. After shedding their clothes they morphed into their lycan forms before stepping into the little clearing where Jack and the children were waiting. Harold’s lycan form was slightly taller and slimmer than Ianto’s with dark brown fur although there were streaks of gray fur on his face sort of matching the graying of his temple area and side burns in his human form. Johnny’s lycan form was shorter and stockier with light brown fur. Ianto and Rhiannon were easily recognizable with their auburn fur; her lycan form was smaller and more feminine a perfect counterpoint to her brother’s strong masculine lycan form.
“We gather to mourn the loss of Jack and Ianto’s baby,” Harold said. “This was no one’s fault, this kind of tragedy simply happens sometimes. However, the pain of loss is just as deep for Ianto and Jack and for their family and our pack.” Harold then raised his head to look at the moon and stars and began a lycan howl in a deep bass voice.
“I will never get to hold you my baby, but I will always love you,” Ianto said with tears in his voice. He added his rich, baritone howl to Harold’s. Soon Rhiannon’s alto howl and Johnny’s tenor howl joined with Harold and Ianto’s.
It was so beautiful, sad and moving; there were tears flowing down everyone’s faces. Jack was startled when David and Mica started howling too even though they weren’t old enough to be able to transform into lycan form yet. Mica got off of Jack’s lap and she and David pulled him over to the others. Ianto placed his hands on Jack’s waist and Harold placed his hand on Jack’s shoulder. Rhiannon and Johnny picked up David and Mica. Their howling continued for several more minutes until finally only Ianto’s voice remained. Once he felt he had fully expressed his deep sorrow he stopped howling and pulled Jack into his embrace.
Jack had a lump in his throat and couldn’t say a word so he simply leaned into Ianto’s embrace taking comfort from his life mate’s strong presence. One by one Rhiannon, Johnny and then Harold left briefly to morph back into their human forms and get dressed. “Ianto, it’s getting late and we need to get the children home,” Rhiannon said as she picked Mica up again.
“Thank you so much for setting this Howling up; it’s helped me tremendously,” Ianto said hugging his sister and niece. Johnny and David hugged him and Jack too and then they headed off to their car.
Ianto morphed back into human form and got dressed. Harold drove them back to their flat. “Thanks so much for helping with the Howling therapy Harold. You were right I wasn’t taking care of my emotional needs,” Ianto admitted.
“I was glad to help, Ianto. Kudos to you Jack, for realizing Ianto needed help and for reaching out to us for assistance. Goodnight you two,” Harold replied.
“Goodnight Harold and thanks for everything,” Jack said. They watched as Harold drove off and then they went into their flat. Jack locked the door and turned off the lights while Ianto headed to their bedroom. Quickly they stripped down to their boxers and climbed into bed.
“Thank you, Cariad for realizing I needed help and getting it for me,” Ianto said as wrapped his arms around Jack.
“You’re welcome,” Jack murmured. “We’re going to get through this aren’t we?”
Ianto kissed Jack slowly. “Yeah, we’re going to get through this together, Cariad,” Ianto agreed. Jack snuggled closer tucking his head against Ianto’s chest and closed his eyes. They fell asleep in each other’s arms.
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A note from socalrose: What did you think of the Howling therapy. Do you think it worked? Comments and questions are always welcomed!
This entry was originally posted at http://socalrose.dreamwidth.org/5683.html. Please comment there using OpenID.
This Chapter rated PG-13.
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“So you told Rhiannon?” Owen asked as Ianto handed him a coffee.
“Yeah we did last night in fact,” Ianto confirmed. “We also told Elder Harold Jones at the same time.”
Owen sipped his coffee enjoying the taste and aroma. Casually he asked, “How did they react?”
“Rhiannon was stunned but very supportive; she even told us she had miscarried once too. She really understands what Ianto and I are going through. Harold understands and is being supportive too,” Jack explained.
“That’s good,” Owen replied, “You’ve got a network of supportive family and friends, now the trick is to make sure you and Jack utilize it. If you have questions or you start feeling overwhelmed emotionally talk to one of us. Remember, we can’t help if we don’t know what’s going on.”
“We will,” Jack promised. Looking at his watch he said, “I’ve got a conference call with the PM so I’ll see you later,” he said to them before kissing Ianto lightly on the lips and then heading into his office. Owen headed off to do an autopsy and Ianto went down into the archives to put the latest work case files away. After working steadily for a few hours Ianto stood up to stretch his long legs. He paced back and forth near his desk as he read the latest case report one last time; it was about some alien tech which had come through the rift only to appear on a children’s playground. Jack and he had arrived to discover a young boy playing with it. The colour had drained from Jack’s face when he saw what the boy was holding and he immediately coaxed the boy into giving him the tech. Once he had the tech in his hand, Jack had swiftly walked back to the SUV with Ianto without saying a word. After placing the object in one of their strongest containment boxes and activating an additional force field around it, Jack let out a sigh of relief as he leaned against the SUV.
“Jack, are you okay?” Ianto asked in concern.
“I am now,” Jack replied reaching over to Ianto and pulling him into a hug briefly.
“What is that object you took away from the boy?” Ianto asked. “It almost looked like a toy, but by the way you reacted I assume it is a weapon.”
“It’s a bomb,” Jack explained. “It’s deliberately designed to look like a toy so a child will pick it up. If the kid had started tossing it around it would have activated and then exploded. The boy would have been reduced to a nothing but a red mist.”
“Red mist?” Ianto asked not quite certain what Jack meant.
Jack grabbed Ianto’s hand in his before explaining, “He would have been blown into such small fragments he’d have been nothing more than a spray of red mist covering a twenty yard radius.”
“Fuck,” Ianto said in shock. “What kind of beings would do that?”
“I’ve seen the weapon used before by alien land grabbers when they tried to force a human colony away from their homes because they wanted their land. This kind of activity was and is considered a war crime by the Shadow Proclamation.”
“I should bloody well think it would be,” Ianto said. “Should that even be in the armory?”
“No, it’s too unstable. I’ll take it to the old abandoned quarry and blow it up using the remote-controlled robot Tosh created.”
Ianto closed the case file and put it away. H was glad Jack had exploded the bomb at the quarry. His thoughts turned to Jack. Jack was slowly getting better emotionally. His crying jags were less frequent and he had even smiled and chuckled last night when he’d learned why She always wanted to chat with Ianto after talking on the phone with Jack. Oh sure he’d cried a few times with Jack, but he hadn’t really examined his own feelings too closely. Owen said Jack had been about five to six weeks pregnant when he’d miscarried. Ianto wondered what their child looked like at five to six weeks of development and sat down at his desk and booted up his computer. A quick Google search led him to a web site with photos of babies in various stages of development. Clicking on the week five category he was confronted by several photos of a five week old fetus. Still a bit blobby, but arm and leg buds were visible, the head was taking shape and the heart was fully functional. A sob escaped Ianto’s throat surprising him. When did he start crying?
“Oh Ianto,” Jack said quietly. He had finished his phone conference and come downstairs to ask Ianto out to lunch only to find his life mate sobbing over photos of a fetus. Jack couldn’t even look at the pictures, so he closed the browser and pulled Ianto into his embrace. “You shouldn’t torture yourself like that; it doesn’t help.”
Ianto relaxed into Jack’s embrace inhaling his mate’s unique scent which helped calm him down. He eventually pulled away from Jack and retrieved his handkerchief from his pocket and wiped his eyes. “Sorry, I didn’t think about what I was doing; obviously a very bad idea.”
“Yes it was,” Jack agreed tears filling his own eyes. “Come on let’s get out of here for a walk and some lunch.”
“Good idea,” Ianto replied drying Jack’s tears as well. They walked around the bay for awhile before stopping at a pub for some fish and chips.
“Are you alright Ianto?” Jack asked stealing a chip from Ianto since he had already finished his own.
“I’m better now, thanks to you,” Ianto replied.
Jack didn’t quite believe him, but he didn’t want to push Ianto while they were in public. “Good,” he said. “Let’s head back to work.”
They returned to the Hub. Jack went to his office and Ianto made a fresh batch of coffee. Once Ianto had served the others their latest caffeine fix he went to Jack’s office and handed Jack his favorite blue and white striped mug filled with his aromatic and tasty brew. “Tosh asked me to help her with one of her programs this afternoon so if you need me I’ll be at her work station.”
“Okay, but I want to spend the evening with you so let’s leave at five,” Jack replied.
“Rift permitting,” Ianto reminded him. He leaned down and kissed Jack. They enjoyed their kiss for a moment before pulling apart.
“You better get going before Tosh comes looking for you,” Jack chided.
“Right, see you later,” Ianto said.
Jack watched Ianto leave his office and go join Tosh at her work station. Once Ianto and Tosh were obviously focused on their task Jack pulled his mobile out of his trouser pocket. He hesitated for a moment then punched in the speed dial code.
The phone rang a couple of times and then a woman answered. “Hello, Jack - what’s up?”
“Hi, Rhi,” Jack answered. “I’m worried about Ianto.”
“He seemed okay last night; has something happened?” she asked.
“I found him at his desk this morning looking at a web site which shows what your baby looks like at different times during a pregnancy. He was crying when I found him,” Jack said. “He’s been so focused on taking care of me he hasn’t let himself grieve properly. I tried talking with him during lunch, but he just said he’s okay. I don’t know how to help him,” Jack admitted.
“I’m glad you called Jack. Ianto always takes care of others and neglects to take care of himself properly. I think I know how to help Ianto, but I need to call Harold in to help. Are you alright with that?” Rhiannon asked.
“It’s okay to have Harold help, Rhi,” Jack answered.
“Good, I’ll call Harold right now and then call you back. Hang in there Jack.”
“I will; thanks Rhi.” They said goodbye and ended the call. Jack hoped Rhiannon’s idea would help Ianto.
The Rift remained quiet through the afternoon and Tosh told Jack her Rift predictor program indicated it would remain quiet until midday tomorrow. Jack and Ianto left promptly at five and walked home to their flat. They had only been home ten minutes before someone knocked on their front door.
“I’ll get it,” Jack said. He opened the door to find Rhi had arrived with Johnny and the children in tow as planned. Jack let them in saying, “Ianto looks who’s here!”
“Rhi, what are you doing here?” Ianto asked.
“Checking up on you two,” Rhi replied as David, Mica and Johnny followed her into the flat. The kids hadn’t seen Jack and Ianto since the Weevil attack.
Mica tugged on Jack’s arm and he picked her up and hugged her. “Uncle Jack, are you okay now?” Mica asked.
“I’m doing better pumpkin,” Jack replied.
“Good,” Mica said kissing him on the cheek.
“You guys are heroes!” David said to Ianto and Jack.
“Thanks David,” Ianto replied. “I think your mum’s a hero too and you and Mica were very brave.”
“I can’t thank you two enough for what you did for Rhiannon and the children,” Johnny said. “And I’m sorry to hear your surrogate miscarried.”
“That means a lot to us Johnny, thanks,” Jack replied. Another knock on the door interrupted their conversation. “I’ll get that,” Jack said.
“Jack, what’s going on?” Ianto asked.
“One second,” Jack said opening the door and letting Harold Jones come inside; he was carrying pizza boxes.
“Sorry I’m late but I had to wait for our order,” Harold explained heading for the dining room.
“Will someone please tell me what’s going on here,” Ianto demanded getting a little frustrated.
“It really quite simple, Ianto,” Harold replied setting the pizza boxes down on the dining table. “This is a pack intervention.”
“Intervention - for who?” Ianto asked looking confused.
“For whom and the answer is you,” Harold countered. “Listen, let’s all sit down and I’ll explain everything.”
Ianto looked like he was going to refuse when Jack gently touched his arm. “Please Ianto, just give us a few minutes and Harold will explain.” Ianto saw the concern in Jack’s eyes and relented.
“Alright, but Harold better have at least one meat feast pizza,” Ianto grumbled. Once everyone was seated and the pizza was served, Harold began his explanation.
“Jack is worried about you Ianto so he called Rhiannon and voiced his concerns. After discussing you with Jack, Rhiannon also became concerned and called me and we came to a decision.
“Oh, and what decision is that?” Ianto asked raising his eyebrow and getting a little defensive.
Harold simply said, “That you, Ianto Jones, have been so concerned with Jack’s well being you’ve neglected your own emotional health. Fortunately, Jack is doing a little better and realized today that you needed some help, which is why we’re having this intervention.”
Jack reached for Ianto’s hand and held it in his own. “Ianto, you’ve taken such good care of me through all this and today I saw how much you’re still hurting from the loss of our baby and I didn’t know what to do to help you so I asked for their help. Please let them help you and me,” Jack begged.
Ianto was deeply touched by Jack’s words and the love he saw in Jack’s eyes. Jack had asked for help and their family and pack hadn’t hesitated in responding. He kissed Jack softly on the lips. “Thank you Cariad for seeing my pain even though I tried to hide it from you.” Turning to his family and pack he added, “I am grateful you all responded to Jack’s call; Harold, what did you want to do?”
“Now that we’ve all eaten, I thought we’d simply go to Bute Park and have a good old fashioned Howling ceremony.”
“Wow, I haven’t attended a Howling ceremony since Tad passed away,” Ianto admitted.
“Ianto, why don’t you and Jack go change into some comfortable clothes, and then we’ll head out,” Rhiannon suggested.
Jack and Ianto went and changed into jogging bottoms tee shirts and hoodies while Rhiannon and Johnny cleared the remnants of their pizza dinner from the dining room. Ianto and Jack rode in Harold’s car and Rhiannon, Johnny and the children followed in their car. They drove to a secluded area of the park and got out of their cars. It was late and this part of the park was deserted.
“So what’s involved in a Howling?” Jack inquired unsure what to expect.
“I guess you could sort of think of it as a Lycan form of keening; vocalizations with or without words to express our sorrow,” Harold explained.
“Is there anything I need to do?” Jack asked.
“I’d like you to sit on this bench with the children and observe at the beginning. This is not a formal ceremony; there’s no right or wrong way to do this, so if you feel the need to express yourself at any point, please do so,” Harold said.
“Come on, Uncle Jack,” David said leading him over to the bench. Mica sat in Jack’s lap and David sat next to him. Johnny and Rhiannon disappeared behind some trees while Ianto and Harold screened themselves behind some other trees. After shedding their clothes they morphed into their lycan forms before stepping into the little clearing where Jack and the children were waiting. Harold’s lycan form was slightly taller and slimmer than Ianto’s with dark brown fur although there were streaks of gray fur on his face sort of matching the graying of his temple area and side burns in his human form. Johnny’s lycan form was shorter and stockier with light brown fur. Ianto and Rhiannon were easily recognizable with their auburn fur; her lycan form was smaller and more feminine a perfect counterpoint to her brother’s strong masculine lycan form.
“We gather to mourn the loss of Jack and Ianto’s baby,” Harold said. “This was no one’s fault, this kind of tragedy simply happens sometimes. However, the pain of loss is just as deep for Ianto and Jack and for their family and our pack.” Harold then raised his head to look at the moon and stars and began a lycan howl in a deep bass voice.
“I will never get to hold you my baby, but I will always love you,” Ianto said with tears in his voice. He added his rich, baritone howl to Harold’s. Soon Rhiannon’s alto howl and Johnny’s tenor howl joined with Harold and Ianto’s.
It was so beautiful, sad and moving; there were tears flowing down everyone’s faces. Jack was startled when David and Mica started howling too even though they weren’t old enough to be able to transform into lycan form yet. Mica got off of Jack’s lap and she and David pulled him over to the others. Ianto placed his hands on Jack’s waist and Harold placed his hand on Jack’s shoulder. Rhiannon and Johnny picked up David and Mica. Their howling continued for several more minutes until finally only Ianto’s voice remained. Once he felt he had fully expressed his deep sorrow he stopped howling and pulled Jack into his embrace.
Jack had a lump in his throat and couldn’t say a word so he simply leaned into Ianto’s embrace taking comfort from his life mate’s strong presence. One by one Rhiannon, Johnny and then Harold left briefly to morph back into their human forms and get dressed. “Ianto, it’s getting late and we need to get the children home,” Rhiannon said as she picked Mica up again.
“Thank you so much for setting this Howling up; it’s helped me tremendously,” Ianto said hugging his sister and niece. Johnny and David hugged him and Jack too and then they headed off to their car.
Ianto morphed back into human form and got dressed. Harold drove them back to their flat. “Thanks so much for helping with the Howling therapy Harold. You were right I wasn’t taking care of my emotional needs,” Ianto admitted.
“I was glad to help, Ianto. Kudos to you Jack, for realizing Ianto needed help and for reaching out to us for assistance. Goodnight you two,” Harold replied.
“Goodnight Harold and thanks for everything,” Jack said. They watched as Harold drove off and then they went into their flat. Jack locked the door and turned off the lights while Ianto headed to their bedroom. Quickly they stripped down to their boxers and climbed into bed.
“Thank you, Cariad for realizing I needed help and getting it for me,” Ianto said as wrapped his arms around Jack.
“You’re welcome,” Jack murmured. “We’re going to get through this aren’t we?”
Ianto kissed Jack slowly. “Yeah, we’re going to get through this together, Cariad,” Ianto agreed. Jack snuggled closer tucking his head against Ianto’s chest and closed his eyes. They fell asleep in each other’s arms.
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A note from socalrose: What did you think of the Howling therapy. Do you think it worked? Comments and questions are always welcomed!
This entry was originally posted at http://socalrose.dreamwidth.org/5683.html. Please comment there using OpenID.