[RL WITH SULU AND MCCOY]--backdated to the 29th

[torchwoodteaboy]

Ianto wasn't sure whether he was grateful that Sulu was able to carry him or not. On one hand, he really couldn't walk without passing out anymore, so he supposed it was really for the best that Sulu was as strong as he was, but at the same time...it was rather embarrassing, to be carried through the hallways of the Enterprise, having people that

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[torchwoodteaboy]

Ianto looked up at McCoy, nodding. If Jack or Gwen did show up there, he honestly hoped that McCoy might be able to do something for them too. Because it was like he said--they were suffering from serious emotional and physical trauma, especially Jack, so. It would be nice for Ianto to know that there was someone that Jack could lean on that wasn't, well, himself. Just in case...

But no. He wasn't going to think like that. McCoy was going to do his best here, and Sulu was going to be there for him in any way he could and so was Jack and they were going to beat this. They had to beat this. There was so much more that Ianto wanted to do. He was only 27 years old, he still had all the time in the world, it seemed, if he just got past this.

"Yeah, I. I know I've got Sulu, and I've got you. And I'm grateful for that, sir, really I am. Anything you can do to help me and my people, I. It's certainly not necessary, but. I'd be grateful if you could. Torchwood...Torchwood is an amazing job, but. We've really been put through the wringer, lately. Not just me, all of us." He shot McCoy a pointed look that he hoped only the doctor could see that said Sulu had been too, so go easy on him here, okay? before turning to look at both of them. "I'm... I'm willing to do anything and everything I can here to get better. I've got people counting on me to do that, and..." He looked to Sulu. "I can't let them down. Not now. Not like this."

[takeitoutofpark]

Sulu smiled at Ianto, pleased that the optimism that had shown itself a little the night before was starting to come through again. It was good to hear the determination in Ianto's voice; despite how physically sick he was, at least now Sulu could tell that his mind was still sharp and focused on the solution.

"You keep saying you're terrible at optimism, but you've been doing pretty well so far," he said with a small grin, before looking to McCoy with a more careful expression. "Between us, though... Jack has been taking a lot of this pretty badly. And I haven't even talked to Gwen..." He felt a little guilty about that, since he did like her, but he'd been occupied with Jack and Ianto and all of this. It was hard to tear himself away from it.

[bornsnarky]

"Ah, because you're human and can't do everything?" McCoy asked wryly. "Point Jack my way, okay? I'm not saying I can fix everything, but at the very least I can be support for him from outside Torchwood. Because it looks kinda like Mr Sulu here has wormed his way into the situation."

He squeezed Sulu's shoulder, making it clear that he had sympathy for him, then he met Ianto's eyes meaningfully. "Ianto, I'll do what I can for everyone involved. Just keep talking, okay? If you keep telling people what's wrong, we can do something about it."

[torchwoodteaboy]

Ianto smiled softly back at Sulu, at his comment about his optimism. He would speak up to say that he had an excellent role model and support system from which he could draw this optimism, and that without it, without Sulu, he would be just as terrible as he was making himself sound. But McCoy was there, and Ianto really wasn't sure that this was the time or place to say that, so. Instead, he said, "I...I try."

"And I will," he said, to McCoy. "I will try to talk more. I... I can't let something like this happen again. Can't... I can't do this to my friends again, let alone to myself. So. I... I will change. I just." He looked to the doctor. "I need to get better, first. I. I need to beat this. And for that...I need your help. So I'm going to ask you honestly here, Doctor. Do you think you can do this? Because if you can't... I need to go on and find someone else who can. Honestly, do you think...that you can do this? Or that...something can even be done about this at all?" He looked at the other man openly, honestly, gripping Sulu's hand for the support that he needed to ask that, the support that he needed in case McCoy's news wasn't what he wanted to hear.

[bornsnarky]

McCoy'd had to give more than his share of bad news over the years. It never got easy. Watching hope warring with terrible fear in someone's eyes.

Fortunately, this was not bad news. He finished running a quick bloodwork analysis on his padd, then looked up, nodding. "I can't promise a complete fix," he said crisply. "I don't know enough about this yet. But I can definitely substantially improve how you're feeling, and I am confident that I will find a long term fix."

[torchwoodteaboy]

Ianto looked to Sulu as he said his next words. "I... If there isn't a way to completely fix this, then so long as we can treat the symptoms, get me back to as close to normal as we can... So long as there's that, then. I'll. I'll be happy. But. I'd appreciate your input on this too," he said, this time addressing Sulu, even though he'd been looking at him the whole time anyway. "Yours and Jack's."

He turned to McCoy again. "Doctor. If... If something happens, if you need permission to do something, and I'm not able to give it. Jack or Sulu. I'm giving the pair of them the right to make it for me. And... If for some reason, they're unavailable, then. I give you permission to do anything that you think you'll need to to fix things. I..." He blushed. "I'm not sure if that's how it works, anymore, needing permission for things, but that's how it works back where I from, so. Yeah. Is that alright?"

[takeitoutofpark]

It was almost shocking how strange it felt to have that outside source telling him that yes, there might be a solution. He hadn't expected it to feel weird - it never had before. But after this past month... He found himself smiling a little, first at McCoy and then at Ianto as he said, "I trust whatever Dr. McCoy chooses to do, Ianto. I don't think Jack will oppose it, either. Even if it isn't a long-term fix, even if it's no cure." It would be better than this, at least. And Sulu didn't even think about the idea that it'd just be putting off the inevitable, because damn it. Things worked out on this ship. That was how the Enterprise worked, with some kind of insane, beautiful improbability drive. And the fact that Ianto was giving him equal standing with Jack only bolstered his mood, even if the terms were dire.

[bornsnarky]

McCoy took in their reactions and added them to his mental list of "Signs That Hikaru And Ianto Are Impossibly Young And Have Been Through Too Much". He said gently, "We'll get there. Ianto, things are similar these days about consent. Most Fleet members have something on their file, but obviously that doesn't apply in your case."

He lifted a hypo. "I'm gonna have to take some blood, and a couple other samples. In spite of what you may've heard, it doesn't really hurt. That okay with you?"

(OOC: please feel free to NPC him taking samples etc, with whatever amount of pain you deem fitting!)

[torchwoodteaboy]

Ianto nodded, barely even flinching as McCoy took a blood sample from him, moving around to take other samples as well. He looked to Sulu, grinning a little. "You know, you made medicine and injections in this time sound a lot worse than they actually are. Obviously, you've never experienced 21st century medicine, before," he said, with a smile, trying not to move around too much as the doctor did his work.

He turned, watching McCoy for a second, wincing a bit as another sample was a little less mild than the others. "Then again," he said, "I suppose that this could be a lot more unpleasant if the doctor decides to make it be that way." He turned to look up at Sulu again. "At least it's not a hospital, though. I'm kind of glad that it's different enough not to remind me of the fact that...well, that's still kind of what this place is, technically. But I mean...for one," he motioned to the monitors behind him, taking his readings like magic, without even being hooked up to anything. "How does that even work?"