Getting Caught 2/8
Title: Getting Caught (Chapter 2/8)
Authors:
the9thdoctor and
leofuller
Pairing: Jack/Ianto
Rating: 15ish
Spoilers: Season 2 up to 'Sleeper' only. Inspired by one of Ianto's lines in that episode.
Summary:
It was SUPPOSED to have been a joke, just a passing comment to lighten the mood... but then Gwen had gone and taken it seriously, and now Ianto has to deal with an overly concerned ex-policewoman, Owen's latest moneymaking scheme, a pack of crazy Weevils and a boss who really shouldn’t be encouraging them all quite so much…
Chapter 1
Chapter II
The next day, it took slightly longer than usual for the entire team to gather in the conference room. Everyone looked worse-for-wear with the exception of Jack.
“So, what's up with the bloody Weevils then?” asked Owen, throwing himself down in one of the chairs and looking between Jack and Ianto suspiciously.
Jack shrugged. “No idea. Never seen them act like that before. Maybe it's a one-time deal... Perhaps they got lost?”
Owen snorted. “Lost? That’s ridiculous.”
“We’ll keep an eye on it, but there haven’t been any more reports since last night so it looks like we got them all. Toshiko, I need you to compile whatever data we have on multiple sightings, see if there’s a pattern.”
Tosh slid a file across the conference table to him. Jack looked impressed.
“Nice work, thanks Tosh. Okay everybody, we need to keep on top of this, but otherwise just …carry on. ”He waved a hand to dismiss the team. “Ianto, any chance of a coffee?”
Ianto brought the coffee in a few minutes later. Jack closed the office door behind him.
A quick glance through the glass wall confirmed Ianto’s suspicion that the rest of the team were still observing their every move. “I believe that what you’re doing is known as 'stirring', sir.”
Jack broke into a large grin.
“You think?” he asked, taking a sip from his mug. “I don't know about that... Whatever would give you that idea?”
Ianto rolled his eyes. “You appear to be deliberately giving everyone the impression that we're up to much more than drinking coffee up here, sir. Do you really think that's a wise idea?”
“Of course it is. I like to make sure my team runs smoothly, they have to have something to gossip about apart from alien invasions...”
“I would prefer it if they weren't gossiping about ME though, sir.” replied Ianto, mildly, as he wondered if lowering the blinds on the office windows would make the situation better or worse.
“They're gossiping about me too, Ianto.” said Jack, pleasantly, folding his arms above his head.
Ianto decided to leave the blinds where they were, if they could see precisely what was going on in the office, then they wouldn't be able to make things up. Instead, he straightened a photo on Jack's wall. When he turned round again, Jack was wearing a decidedly dirty grin.
“What?” asked Ianto, wondering if he wanted to know the answer.
He gestured out the window, “I was just wondering what we could do that would look perverted from their perspective...”
“Bloody hell, they’re not…are they?” Owen dropped his pen.
“No. They can’t be…” Tosh picked up the pen as it rolled towards her and handed it back to him.
“What?” Gwen came over to see what they were looking at. Owen gestured to the office.
“Holy …”
“Yeah …”
There was a long moment before they all realised at once that perhaps they really shouldn’t be watching.
“Anyway …”
“I’ve got to, um…”
“Do you think…?”
And then Jack closed the blinds.
It had taken Ianto several hours to stop laughing totally. After what Jack had deemed an appropriate length of time they had both emerged from the office. Nobody seemed to want to look either of them in the eye, and unsurprisingly all three of them darted out of the main door as soon as they were able.
Ianto wandered back into the main room holding his clipboard. Jack was sitting at Owen's desk, clicking away at his computer.
“What are you doing?” asked Ianto, straightening a few pieces of paper on the coffee table.
“I find it amusing that no matter what happens, Owen still seems to think that he's capable of completely deleting his IM transcripts.”
Ianto dropped the clipboard on the desk next to Jack and bent down to peer at the screen.
“'It's been half an hour... What are they doing?'” he read.
“It gets better...” said Jack, scrolling down.
Ianto raised an eyebrow. “I never thought Tosh even KNEW words like that...” he remarked.
“Bit of a surprise, isn't it?”
Jack closed the IM window and turned in the chair to face Ianto. “Are you... ummm... You planning on staying here tonight?”
Ianto took a step backwards.
“I …hadn’t really thought about it.” He lied. Jack looked disappointed. “I’m not leaving yet, though, I’ve still got things to do.” They looked at one another for a moment, and then Ianto turned and headed for the kitchen.
Jack frowned, and remained sitting at Owen’s desk until Ianto came back into the main part of the hub and started emptying the bins.
“Have you signed the reports I left on your desk, sir?”
Jack stood up. “What have I said about calling me sir?”
“We’re still at work.”
“Outside work hours.”
“I’m working, even if you’re not.”
Jack took the hint and went up to his office to complete his paperwork.
Half an hour later, he stuck his head out of his office doorway.
“Ianto?”
Ianto appeared silently from wherever he had been working.
“Yes?”
“Do you want to get something to eat, since we're both still here? Pizza or something?”
“If you like, sir... Not pizza though. How about a curry? We haven't had that for a while.”
“Sure, I think there's a number about here somewhere...”
“It's pinned to the board.” replied Ianto, moving towards the office. Jack noticed he wasn't wearing his jacket any more and had rolled up his shirt sleeves.
Jack swallowed. “What do you fancy then?” he asked.
Ianto smiled. “Bit of a leading question, that, sir... But I'll have a vegetable Balti.”
Jack nodded and turned towards the menu.
Ianto had vanished off to the Tourist office to wait for the delivery, which left Jack sitting in his office. He wondered what he would have to do to convince Ianto to stay the night. As nice as it might be to have Ianto in his bed, he was going to try his hardest to do this right. There was always the sofa.
“One vegetable Balti, one chicken Jalfrezi, one pilau rice, six chapattis, two poppadoms and a little pot of that mint sauce that nobody ever eats.” Jack unpacked the takeaway onto the conference table.
“Owen eats it.”
“Owen eats anything.”
They’d eaten takeaways together hundreds of times over the regular lunch time orders and the many evenings when the team had stayed late into the evening. Some evenings it had just been the two of them, but never like this.
Jack was only too aware of the charged undercurrent. Things had changed since he’d returned from his travels with the Doctor, and he didn’t know what Ianto’s expectations were. He wasn’t entirely sure that he was clear about his own.
Jack looked up at Ianto arranging plates on the table. "Thanks for staying." he said.
Ianto glanced up at him and back down at the plates. "I had things to do..."
Jack scoffed. "Lots to catalogue? ”
"Lots to clean up. Nobody else is going to do it just because I'm out in the field more these days."
"No matter what happens, Owen will still leave half-eaten pizza lying about. I think you should get used to it..."
Ianto tucked a napkin into the collar of his shirt and transferred a spoonful of pilau rice to his plate. "I got used to it a long time ago. I'm just saying: that's why I stay late. To clean up after the rest of you."
Jack was silent for a moment. "You've said that before..." he said. "Did I ever tell you I'm sorry?"
"For being untidy? No, I don't believe you did."
Jack scowled. "You know what I mean, Ianto... and I am. Sorry, that is..."
Ianto concentrated on arranging his food for a moment. "Where did you go?" he said eventually, without looking up.
Jack put his fork down. He had been expecting something like this. "You really want to know?"
Ianto met his eye. "I really want to know."
Jack sighed. "I met the right kind of Doctor." he replied, fully aware that he had given that precise vague answer before.
Ianto sighed, and his shoulders dropped slightly. "So you said." He returned his attention to his food, and started to eat.
It was at that point that Jack realised he had said the wrong thing. He wiped his mouth on a napkin and folded his arms. "All right then. You worked for Torchwood One..."
Ianto looked up and nodded
"Canary Wharf?"
Ianto closed his eyes for a moment, and a flicker of pain crossed his face. He nodded again
Jack unfolded his arms, scooped a forkful of curry into his mouth and chewed thoughtfully. "And I thought you were a bright boy, Ianto... The right kind of *Doctor*?"
"We worked that bit out, Jack. The CCTV footage from the day you... left... matches pretty conclusively with the records we have on the Doctor."
Jack stared at the man in front of him, innocently ripping up a chappati. "You knew?"
Ianto sighed and rested his elbows on the table. "Of COURSE we knew, Jack. We're not stupid, we wouldn't last long here if we were. We just don't know what our leader was doing with Torchwood's Enemy Number One." He sighed again. "Just another layer to the mystery who calls himself Jack Harkness..."
Jack closed his eyes. "I've been around a long time, Ianto. A VERY long time... You shouldn't believe everything the files tell you."
"It's the only information I have to base my opinions on."
"The Doctor is nothing like that...Well, sometimes he is." Jack reached for the bottle of wine Ianto had thoughtfully bought from the kitchen and poured himself a large glass. He had the feeling he might need it. "Torchwood is based on some pretty outmoded ideas... What have you heard?"
"Torchwood was founded to protect against alien attacks - and the Doctor is listed in the Charter as an enemy and a threat. Every recorded sighting of him has occurred during some kind of trouble, and he nearly always leaves a mess behind him."
Jack shook his head. "You don't understand - whatever mess he leaves behind is nothing compared to what would have happened... While I was away..." he stopped there, aware that he had said too much already. Ianto wasn't ready to know what happened on the Valiant, not if he was still toeing the party line on the Doctor.
Ianto threw his fork down. "That's right, Jack," he snapped, "I don't understand. I don't understand the truth because you don't trust me with it, you don't trust any of us." He pulled his napkin out of his collar and threw it on the table. "I'm tired of being lied to. I'm tired of being told that I'm stupid because I can't read your mind and I don't know all the secrets." Ianto pushed his chair back and stood up. "If you don't want to tell me, don't tell me. But if you feel you have to keep secrets from me, then... then what's the point?"
Jack looked up at Ianto. His decision as to explain had been made for him. He didn't want Ianto to leave. "Fine. I'm from the Fifty-first century..." he began.
Ianto sat down again
Suddenly, Jack found he couldn't keep eye contact with the young man in front of him. He looked down at his plate. "I was a Time Agent, like John, but I guess you worked that out."
"He did sort of give that away... although I still don't know what a Time Agent is. Was. Will be..."
Jack bit back a laugh. "Yeah, time travel plays hell with the correct tenses..."
There was a flicker of a smile from Ianto. "Jack...?"
"Ianto?"
"What's a Time Agent?" Ianto tried a more direct approach.
"Pretty much what it says on the tin... You know, like James Bond, only with more tentacles."
"No, Jack, I don't know. Maybe it's common knowledge in the fifty-first century, but I've never had the chance to read the tin." Ianto's frustration was evident. "If you can't tell me what a Time Agent is, then at least tell me what it means in terms of who you are."
"Fine." Jack held up his arm. "This is a Vortex Manipulator... Correction, this is a BROKEN Vortex Manipulator. I used to use it to travel through time and space, collecting things that might be useful and hurting the bad guys..."
"Saving the Universe. Funny, John didn't strike me as being one of the good guys, given the way he tried to kill us..."
"That was a long time ago. We've both changed a lot since then..." Jack smiled bitterly. "In opposite directions."
Ianto nodded slowly. "So... how did you get here? Why did you stop saving the universe with the Time Agency, and start saving Earth with Torchwood?"
"The Time Agency... did something to me, and I have no idea what. I couldn't stay with them any more - I couldn't stand not knowing what they might have made me do. They stole two years of my life... I, uh, went freelance."
"They stole two years of your life? How is that possible?"
Jack shrugged. "They have the technology..." he said with a grin. "Sorry. Didn't mean to quote bad sci-fi at you... But they do have their ways and means. Where do you think the idea for Retcon comes from?"
"So they wiped two years from your memory?"
"Not quite... They TOOK them - I'm never gonna get them back... But that's not the point... I left the day I found out. Took my trusty Manipulator and got out of there. Then I got into some pretty bad shit. ”
"Go on."
"It was getting a bit tricky to earn a living. I stole spaceships for a while, but that doesn't pay very well. Finally hit on the idea of 'Intergalactic conman'..."
"Smooth-talking your way into anything, I suppose?"
"Pretty much!" Jack laughed. "I was good at it too. Made a LOT of money, and almost as many enemies... Then I stopped."
Ianto frowned slightly. "Why?"
Jack reached out for his glass and took a deep swallow. "That is a whole other story. And you're going to have to wait for another night... I don't want to lose my air of mystery all in one go, now do I?"
"Still a conman, then."
"Just a different type."
"You still try to smooth-talk your way through life."
"Why give up on a winning strategy? Now, how about you?"
"What about me?"
"Are you sure you're okay?"
"I'm not sure how finding out that you made a living from lying to people is supposed to make me able to trust you..."
"I promise I'll explain, I really do, but just not now." replied Jack, reaching a hand across the table towards Ianto. "Not now..."
Ianto looked down at Jack's hand for a long moment before he reached out and tangled his fingers through the other man's.
Jack sighed in relief. "Thank you."
"You are going to tell me the rest of the story..."
Jack nodded. "I will... but not now."
Ianto nodded. "Okay."
Jack gripped Ianto's hand a little tighter. "It's late."
Ianto managed to twist his wrist enough to see his watch without loosening Jack's fingers. "It is. I should go home."
"That's not what I meant, and you know it, Ianto... Stay with me?"
Ianto closed his eyes briefly and shook his head. "I can't."
"Please? It doesn't have to be... It isn't a come-on here. I want you to stay. I need you to stay..."
"I said I can't, Jack. I don't know who you are."
Jack took a deep breath and let go of Ianto's hand. "One day you will..."
"I need to know that you're not a conman any more, Jack. I need to be able to believe what you say."
"I know. I understand..." Jack rubbed a hand over his face. "Believe me, I understand... Ianto?"
"Yes, Jack?"
Jack stood up and moved away from the table. "Don't take this the wrong way, but if you're going to leave... You should leave now."
Ianto stood up and tucked his chair neatly under the table. "I'll leave you to clear up, then."
Jack didn't reply. In fact he didn't move until after he heard the hub door clang shut behind Ianto. Then, with a shout of anger, he swept the remains of their meal onto the floor of the conference room and stalked out of the door.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~
Chapter 3
Authors:
the9thdoctor and
leofuller
Pairing: Jack/Ianto
Rating: 15ish
Spoilers: Season 2 up to 'Sleeper' only. Inspired by one of Ianto's lines in that episode.
Summary:
It was SUPPOSED to have been a joke, just a passing comment to lighten the mood... but then Gwen had gone and taken it seriously, and now Ianto has to deal with an overly concerned ex-policewoman, Owen's latest moneymaking scheme, a pack of crazy Weevils and a boss who really shouldn’t be encouraging them all quite so much…
Chapter 1
Chapter II
The next day, it took slightly longer than usual for the entire team to gather in the conference room. Everyone looked worse-for-wear with the exception of Jack.
“So, what's up with the bloody Weevils then?” asked Owen, throwing himself down in one of the chairs and looking between Jack and Ianto suspiciously.
Jack shrugged. “No idea. Never seen them act like that before. Maybe it's a one-time deal... Perhaps they got lost?”
Owen snorted. “Lost? That’s ridiculous.”
“We’ll keep an eye on it, but there haven’t been any more reports since last night so it looks like we got them all. Toshiko, I need you to compile whatever data we have on multiple sightings, see if there’s a pattern.”
Tosh slid a file across the conference table to him. Jack looked impressed.
“Nice work, thanks Tosh. Okay everybody, we need to keep on top of this, but otherwise just …carry on. ”He waved a hand to dismiss the team. “Ianto, any chance of a coffee?”
Ianto brought the coffee in a few minutes later. Jack closed the office door behind him.
A quick glance through the glass wall confirmed Ianto’s suspicion that the rest of the team were still observing their every move. “I believe that what you’re doing is known as 'stirring', sir.”
Jack broke into a large grin.
“You think?” he asked, taking a sip from his mug. “I don't know about that... Whatever would give you that idea?”
Ianto rolled his eyes. “You appear to be deliberately giving everyone the impression that we're up to much more than drinking coffee up here, sir. Do you really think that's a wise idea?”
“Of course it is. I like to make sure my team runs smoothly, they have to have something to gossip about apart from alien invasions...”
“I would prefer it if they weren't gossiping about ME though, sir.” replied Ianto, mildly, as he wondered if lowering the blinds on the office windows would make the situation better or worse.
“They're gossiping about me too, Ianto.” said Jack, pleasantly, folding his arms above his head.
Ianto decided to leave the blinds where they were, if they could see precisely what was going on in the office, then they wouldn't be able to make things up. Instead, he straightened a photo on Jack's wall. When he turned round again, Jack was wearing a decidedly dirty grin.
“What?” asked Ianto, wondering if he wanted to know the answer.
He gestured out the window, “I was just wondering what we could do that would look perverted from their perspective...”
“Bloody hell, they’re not…are they?” Owen dropped his pen.
“No. They can’t be…” Tosh picked up the pen as it rolled towards her and handed it back to him.
“What?” Gwen came over to see what they were looking at. Owen gestured to the office.
“Holy …”
“Yeah …”
There was a long moment before they all realised at once that perhaps they really shouldn’t be watching.
“Anyway …”
“I’ve got to, um…”
“Do you think…?”
And then Jack closed the blinds.
It had taken Ianto several hours to stop laughing totally. After what Jack had deemed an appropriate length of time they had both emerged from the office. Nobody seemed to want to look either of them in the eye, and unsurprisingly all three of them darted out of the main door as soon as they were able.
Ianto wandered back into the main room holding his clipboard. Jack was sitting at Owen's desk, clicking away at his computer.
“What are you doing?” asked Ianto, straightening a few pieces of paper on the coffee table.
“I find it amusing that no matter what happens, Owen still seems to think that he's capable of completely deleting his IM transcripts.”
Ianto dropped the clipboard on the desk next to Jack and bent down to peer at the screen.
“'It's been half an hour... What are they doing?'” he read.
“It gets better...” said Jack, scrolling down.
Ianto raised an eyebrow. “I never thought Tosh even KNEW words like that...” he remarked.
“Bit of a surprise, isn't it?”
Jack closed the IM window and turned in the chair to face Ianto. “Are you... ummm... You planning on staying here tonight?”
Ianto took a step backwards.
“I …hadn’t really thought about it.” He lied. Jack looked disappointed. “I’m not leaving yet, though, I’ve still got things to do.” They looked at one another for a moment, and then Ianto turned and headed for the kitchen.
Jack frowned, and remained sitting at Owen’s desk until Ianto came back into the main part of the hub and started emptying the bins.
“Have you signed the reports I left on your desk, sir?”
Jack stood up. “What have I said about calling me sir?”
“We’re still at work.”
“Outside work hours.”
“I’m working, even if you’re not.”
Jack took the hint and went up to his office to complete his paperwork.
Half an hour later, he stuck his head out of his office doorway.
“Ianto?”
Ianto appeared silently from wherever he had been working.
“Yes?”
“Do you want to get something to eat, since we're both still here? Pizza or something?”
“If you like, sir... Not pizza though. How about a curry? We haven't had that for a while.”
“Sure, I think there's a number about here somewhere...”
“It's pinned to the board.” replied Ianto, moving towards the office. Jack noticed he wasn't wearing his jacket any more and had rolled up his shirt sleeves.
Jack swallowed. “What do you fancy then?” he asked.
Ianto smiled. “Bit of a leading question, that, sir... But I'll have a vegetable Balti.”
Jack nodded and turned towards the menu.
Ianto had vanished off to the Tourist office to wait for the delivery, which left Jack sitting in his office. He wondered what he would have to do to convince Ianto to stay the night. As nice as it might be to have Ianto in his bed, he was going to try his hardest to do this right. There was always the sofa.
“One vegetable Balti, one chicken Jalfrezi, one pilau rice, six chapattis, two poppadoms and a little pot of that mint sauce that nobody ever eats.” Jack unpacked the takeaway onto the conference table.
“Owen eats it.”
“Owen eats anything.”
They’d eaten takeaways together hundreds of times over the regular lunch time orders and the many evenings when the team had stayed late into the evening. Some evenings it had just been the two of them, but never like this.
Jack was only too aware of the charged undercurrent. Things had changed since he’d returned from his travels with the Doctor, and he didn’t know what Ianto’s expectations were. He wasn’t entirely sure that he was clear about his own.
Jack looked up at Ianto arranging plates on the table. "Thanks for staying." he said.
Ianto glanced up at him and back down at the plates. "I had things to do..."
Jack scoffed. "Lots to catalogue? ”
"Lots to clean up. Nobody else is going to do it just because I'm out in the field more these days."
"No matter what happens, Owen will still leave half-eaten pizza lying about. I think you should get used to it..."
Ianto tucked a napkin into the collar of his shirt and transferred a spoonful of pilau rice to his plate. "I got used to it a long time ago. I'm just saying: that's why I stay late. To clean up after the rest of you."
Jack was silent for a moment. "You've said that before..." he said. "Did I ever tell you I'm sorry?"
"For being untidy? No, I don't believe you did."
Jack scowled. "You know what I mean, Ianto... and I am. Sorry, that is..."
Ianto concentrated on arranging his food for a moment. "Where did you go?" he said eventually, without looking up.
Jack put his fork down. He had been expecting something like this. "You really want to know?"
Ianto met his eye. "I really want to know."
Jack sighed. "I met the right kind of Doctor." he replied, fully aware that he had given that precise vague answer before.
Ianto sighed, and his shoulders dropped slightly. "So you said." He returned his attention to his food, and started to eat.
It was at that point that Jack realised he had said the wrong thing. He wiped his mouth on a napkin and folded his arms. "All right then. You worked for Torchwood One..."
Ianto looked up and nodded
"Canary Wharf?"
Ianto closed his eyes for a moment, and a flicker of pain crossed his face. He nodded again
Jack unfolded his arms, scooped a forkful of curry into his mouth and chewed thoughtfully. "And I thought you were a bright boy, Ianto... The right kind of *Doctor*?"
"We worked that bit out, Jack. The CCTV footage from the day you... left... matches pretty conclusively with the records we have on the Doctor."
Jack stared at the man in front of him, innocently ripping up a chappati. "You knew?"
Ianto sighed and rested his elbows on the table. "Of COURSE we knew, Jack. We're not stupid, we wouldn't last long here if we were. We just don't know what our leader was doing with Torchwood's Enemy Number One." He sighed again. "Just another layer to the mystery who calls himself Jack Harkness..."
Jack closed his eyes. "I've been around a long time, Ianto. A VERY long time... You shouldn't believe everything the files tell you."
"It's the only information I have to base my opinions on."
"The Doctor is nothing like that...Well, sometimes he is." Jack reached for the bottle of wine Ianto had thoughtfully bought from the kitchen and poured himself a large glass. He had the feeling he might need it. "Torchwood is based on some pretty outmoded ideas... What have you heard?"
"Torchwood was founded to protect against alien attacks - and the Doctor is listed in the Charter as an enemy and a threat. Every recorded sighting of him has occurred during some kind of trouble, and he nearly always leaves a mess behind him."
Jack shook his head. "You don't understand - whatever mess he leaves behind is nothing compared to what would have happened... While I was away..." he stopped there, aware that he had said too much already. Ianto wasn't ready to know what happened on the Valiant, not if he was still toeing the party line on the Doctor.
Ianto threw his fork down. "That's right, Jack," he snapped, "I don't understand. I don't understand the truth because you don't trust me with it, you don't trust any of us." He pulled his napkin out of his collar and threw it on the table. "I'm tired of being lied to. I'm tired of being told that I'm stupid because I can't read your mind and I don't know all the secrets." Ianto pushed his chair back and stood up. "If you don't want to tell me, don't tell me. But if you feel you have to keep secrets from me, then... then what's the point?"
Jack looked up at Ianto. His decision as to explain had been made for him. He didn't want Ianto to leave. "Fine. I'm from the Fifty-first century..." he began.
Ianto sat down again
Suddenly, Jack found he couldn't keep eye contact with the young man in front of him. He looked down at his plate. "I was a Time Agent, like John, but I guess you worked that out."
"He did sort of give that away... although I still don't know what a Time Agent is. Was. Will be..."
Jack bit back a laugh. "Yeah, time travel plays hell with the correct tenses..."
There was a flicker of a smile from Ianto. "Jack...?"
"Ianto?"
"What's a Time Agent?" Ianto tried a more direct approach.
"Pretty much what it says on the tin... You know, like James Bond, only with more tentacles."
"No, Jack, I don't know. Maybe it's common knowledge in the fifty-first century, but I've never had the chance to read the tin." Ianto's frustration was evident. "If you can't tell me what a Time Agent is, then at least tell me what it means in terms of who you are."
"Fine." Jack held up his arm. "This is a Vortex Manipulator... Correction, this is a BROKEN Vortex Manipulator. I used to use it to travel through time and space, collecting things that might be useful and hurting the bad guys..."
"Saving the Universe. Funny, John didn't strike me as being one of the good guys, given the way he tried to kill us..."
"That was a long time ago. We've both changed a lot since then..." Jack smiled bitterly. "In opposite directions."
Ianto nodded slowly. "So... how did you get here? Why did you stop saving the universe with the Time Agency, and start saving Earth with Torchwood?"
"The Time Agency... did something to me, and I have no idea what. I couldn't stay with them any more - I couldn't stand not knowing what they might have made me do. They stole two years of my life... I, uh, went freelance."
"They stole two years of your life? How is that possible?"
Jack shrugged. "They have the technology..." he said with a grin. "Sorry. Didn't mean to quote bad sci-fi at you... But they do have their ways and means. Where do you think the idea for Retcon comes from?"
"So they wiped two years from your memory?"
"Not quite... They TOOK them - I'm never gonna get them back... But that's not the point... I left the day I found out. Took my trusty Manipulator and got out of there. Then I got into some pretty bad shit. ”
"Go on."
"It was getting a bit tricky to earn a living. I stole spaceships for a while, but that doesn't pay very well. Finally hit on the idea of 'Intergalactic conman'..."
"Smooth-talking your way into anything, I suppose?"
"Pretty much!" Jack laughed. "I was good at it too. Made a LOT of money, and almost as many enemies... Then I stopped."
Ianto frowned slightly. "Why?"
Jack reached out for his glass and took a deep swallow. "That is a whole other story. And you're going to have to wait for another night... I don't want to lose my air of mystery all in one go, now do I?"
"Still a conman, then."
"Just a different type."
"You still try to smooth-talk your way through life."
"Why give up on a winning strategy? Now, how about you?"
"What about me?"
"Are you sure you're okay?"
"I'm not sure how finding out that you made a living from lying to people is supposed to make me able to trust you..."
"I promise I'll explain, I really do, but just not now." replied Jack, reaching a hand across the table towards Ianto. "Not now..."
Ianto looked down at Jack's hand for a long moment before he reached out and tangled his fingers through the other man's.
Jack sighed in relief. "Thank you."
"You are going to tell me the rest of the story..."
Jack nodded. "I will... but not now."
Ianto nodded. "Okay."
Jack gripped Ianto's hand a little tighter. "It's late."
Ianto managed to twist his wrist enough to see his watch without loosening Jack's fingers. "It is. I should go home."
"That's not what I meant, and you know it, Ianto... Stay with me?"
Ianto closed his eyes briefly and shook his head. "I can't."
"Please? It doesn't have to be... It isn't a come-on here. I want you to stay. I need you to stay..."
"I said I can't, Jack. I don't know who you are."
Jack took a deep breath and let go of Ianto's hand. "One day you will..."
"I need to know that you're not a conman any more, Jack. I need to be able to believe what you say."
"I know. I understand..." Jack rubbed a hand over his face. "Believe me, I understand... Ianto?"
"Yes, Jack?"
Jack stood up and moved away from the table. "Don't take this the wrong way, but if you're going to leave... You should leave now."
Ianto stood up and tucked his chair neatly under the table. "I'll leave you to clear up, then."
Jack didn't reply. In fact he didn't move until after he heard the hub door clang shut behind Ianto. Then, with a shout of anger, he swept the remains of their meal onto the floor of the conference room and stalked out of the door.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~
Chapter 3