Fanfic - Sixty Minutes An Hour 3/4 [Torchwood: Jack/Ianto]
All right.
First part had 29 comments. I entered a happy!spazzy state of being and updated early.
Second part has 36 comments. I’m beyond happy!spazzy now. I’m not sure what exactly I’d describe it as, but it’s loud and bouncy and annoying to everyone around me.
Now, either I should proclaim my joy at getting comments (and update early) more often, or my beta’s right and I’m gaining a Following. If the latter’s true, I’m one step closer to my plans of world domination.
Or, you know, you people are just that amazing. ♥
Part One
Part Two
Suzie shot herself, but not before shooting Jack. As a result, his newest team member knew something about him that the others didn’t. Ianto didn’t think that was very fair, especially given how the other two were obviously starting to really look up to Jack… but he was hardly going to bring that up just then.
“Big hero, swanning in and saving the lot of us,” Ianto murmured.
“Couldn’t save her,” Jack said quietly.
“Not everyone can be saved,” Ianto said.
“I should have seen what the Glove was doing to her.”
“You’re not omniscient either,” Ianto said. “She couldn’t cope. That’s sad, but it doesn’t make it your fault.”
Jack sighed into Ianto’s chest and didn’t say anything else.
“Gwen’s flirting with me,” Jack said, sounding vaguely disturbed.
“Oh?” Ianto asked distractedly. He topped up the water in the coffee-maker, then set it to run and turned to look at a perturbed Jack.
“Yeah,” Jack said. “With intent.”
Ianto raised an eyebrow. “Dear me.”
“I flirt with everyone,” Jack said. “People know that. They don’t flirt back… with intent, anyway.”
“I’d like to point out that she doesn’t, in fact, know you,” Ianto said. “And in this time period, flirting tends to be for the sole reason of trying to get someone in bed.”
“So jaded,” Jack tutted. “I’ll lay off. Hopefully, she will too.”
Ianto smiled. “You can try,” he said. “I’ve learned not to underestimate the depths of people’s obsessions with you.”
“That was the one stalker!” Jack protested.
“Faeries,” Ianto said. “I don’t think anything good will come of this.”
“No,” Jack said, subdued. “But I have to go look into it.” He took a deep breath. “Estelle - I used to know her. When she was younger. She was -” His voice broke.
Ianto held him until he fell into an uneasy sleep.
“None of them are talking to me,” Jack said. “What would they have done, that’s what I want to know.”
Ianto plucked the brandy out of Jack’s hand and replaced it with a glass of water. “Nothing different,” he said. “That’s why they’re busy hating you now. You did what they didn’t want to, but knew they had to. You’re a convenient target. But that also means it’ll pass. Once they accept their own guilt, they’ll realise you couldn’t have done anything else.”
Jack looked up at Ianto through bleary eyes. “Stop making sense,” he said, and downed half the water in one gulp.
“My apologies,” Ianto intoned solemnly. “I’ll just leave you to sulk in your alcoholic haze, shall I?”
“No,” Jack said immediately, grabbing Ianto’s hand and pulling him down onto the sofa to sprawl over Jack. “Stay?”
Ianto sighed and pressed a kiss to Jack’s neck. “You are so lucky you don’t get hangovers,” he muttered.
Jack smiled. Odd - he’d thought he’d forgotten how to do that.
Shouldn’t be more than a couple of days, Jack had said. I’ll be back soon, he’d said. Don’t hold any wild parties here without him, he’d said.
Wild parties. Ianto watched the news unfolding on the television. He reached for his phone yet again and dialled Jack’s number.
“Captain Jack Harkness here. I’m probably off saving the world right now, so leave a message and I’ll get back to you.”
“Hullo, sir. For the seventh time, please call back as soon as you can. Or just drop me a message. Just - let me know you’re okay.”
Two hours later, his phone beeped at him.
Sender:
Jack
Received:
04:41; 19/07/07
I’m fine. G shot in gut, T bruised & cracked ribs, team alive. Just left G&T at hosp, sending O home now. See you soon. Need a hug.
When Jack came in through the door, he was greeted with a hot coffee, a long hug and a relieved kiss.
“I missed you,” he murmured against Ianto’s lips. Sighing, he broke away just long enough to put down his empty coffee cup. “So much. Was so glad you’d never had a reason to go out there.” He reached out and pulled an unresisting Ianto back into his arms.
“Was it really what they were saying on the news?” Ianto asked timidly. “Cannibals?”
“Yes,” Jack said. “The entire village, every ten years.”
Ianto shivered and pressed in a little closer. “My village was nothing like that,” he muttered.
“Probably because you were sane,” Jack said. “Gwen - she needed to know why, demanded to talk to the guy, the leader. He said it was because he liked it.”
“Not quite the answer she was looking for,” Ianto said.
“Things like this, there are never any answers,” Jack said bitterly.
Ianto kissed his shoulder, then pushed away. “I’ll draw up a bath for you,” he suggested.
“Shower,” Jack said, shaking his head, suddenly desperately needing to feel Ianto, skin on skin, unmarred and whole. “Join me?”
“Of course.”
“I don’t understand. I mean, I thought I was a decent boss, all around.”
“You are.”
“Then why did Tosh betray us like that?”
“Love makes people do funny things.”
“Was she in love, really?”
“Who knows? But believing you’re in love is just as powerful. And it’s easy to believe that when you’re lonely.”
“Suzie did what?”
“I think maybe I suck as a boss.”
“What did the rest of your team do?”
“Pulled together. Managed to get a line through to Swanson for some help. She’ll never let me live that down.”
“Why?”
“Had to tell her we were trapped in our own base.”
“… You’re right. She’ll never let you live that down.”
“See?”
“Anyway, the team did fine, right?”
“Yeah.”
“So what makes you think you’re a bad leader?”
“I - I was so ready to blame the Glove for Suzie’s suicide. I didn’t think it was her.”
“Are any of us ever ready to believe the worst of those we care for?”
“I should have seen.”
“How? You might be immortal, sir, but you’re still human.”
“Am I?”
“Did it hurt when Estelle died? When you lost your men to the faeries, when you had to give Jasmine up? When Suzie killed herself, killed you? Were you angry, hurt, confused, when you encountered those cannibals? Did you want to kill them for hurting your team? How did you feel when you walked in on New Year’s and found that the first team leader you liked unreservedly had killed his entire team?”
“… Why are you asking when you know the answers?”
“Because those answers mean you’re human.”
“So you’re waiting on the Doctor to show up?” Ianto asked cautiously.
“He might have answers for me. About what caused this, and how to reverse it,” Jack said. He kissed the tip of Ianto’s nose. “Don’t want to keep outliving the people I love.”
Ianto made a noncommittal sound. “Will you come back?”
“To you?” Jack said. “Of course I will.”
“Okay,” Ianto said, closing his eyes. “That’s all right then.”
Jack opened the door to the flat and stepped inside quietly. Ianto was asleep on the sofa, curled up around Jac the dragon. Beady black eyes stared at him accusingly from within the circle of Ianto’s arms. With a soft sigh, Jack locked the door, then padded over to sit down on the floor next to Ianto.
It had taken a while for the worst of the smell to fade from him, and he still thought he could smell engine fumes on his skin. Taking a shower meant using more energy than he felt like he had, though, so he leaned his head against the sofa, near Ianto’s stomach, and tried not to think.
“Sir?” Ianto asked groggily.
“Hey,” Jack whispered. “Sorry I missed Christmas dinner.”
“S’okay,” Ianto said, yawning as he sat up, nearly dropping Jac. Then he caught sight of Jack’s face. “Oh. What happened?”
“Have I ever told you how amazing you are?” Jack asked.
“Not lately,” Ianto said cautiously.
“Well, you are,” Jack said. “People who come through the Rift don’t always do so well. Especially the aliens, you know. And you were from way over two centuries in the past, and you still managed to adapt. And you’re doing so amazingly well now.”
“Mostly thanks to you,” Ianto pointed out, shifting closer to Jack. Jack took the silent invitation, resting his head against Ianto’s thigh.
“Mostly thanks to yourself,” Jack countered. “All I did was set you up, talk to you on occasion.”
“It helped,” Ianto said. “Probably more than you know. Just knowing there was someone out there who knew where and when I’d come from…”
“But you never relied on me for anything really,” Jack said. “You fought through all that yourself. That,” he added reflectively, “is more than some people can do.”
“I’ll take a wild guess here,” Ianto said. “One of those three couldn’t deal?”
“John,” Jack said. “Killed himself in Tosh’s car. I couldn’t talk him out of it, so I sat with him while he did it.” He closed his eyes.
“Oh, Jack,” Ianto whispered. “Why do you always insist on punishing yourself like that?”
Jack didn’t answer.
“Like dog-fighting, only worse,” Jack groused.
“First rule of fight club,” Ianto said, passing Jack the wet plate to dry. “You don’t talk about fight club.”
“Second rule of fight club,” Jack said. “You don’t use Weevils in fight club.”
Ianto tapped Jack’s nose reprovingly, leaving behind a smudge of soap. “Not quite right. Was everyone all right in the end?”
“More or less,” Jack said. “Owen’s not really dealing well with losing Diane, I think. Don’t know what I can do for him.”
“Nothing,” Ianto said. “It’s something he’ll have to figure out for himself. And you ought to stop thinking that you can fix everything if only you try hard enough.”
Jack leaned over and very deliberately rubbed the soap on his nose off on Ianto’s shirt.
“1941.”
“Yep,” Jack said. “I can’t believe I met the real Jack Harkness there.” He smiled sadly. “He had such a thing for me.”
“Doesn’t everyone?” Ianto asked rhetorically.
“And so nervous about showing it,” Jack said with a shrug. “But he got up the nerve to ask me to dance before the others got us back.” He frowned. “Though I’m not happy with how they did it. Not happy with Owen at all, no.”
“I suppose we’ll be seeing the fallout of that soon enough,” Ianto said, running a hand down Jack’s arm comfortingly.
“Yeah,” Jack said, leaning into Ianto’s touch. “You know the funny thing about meeting the real Harkness? Why I stuck to the ballroom, even though he was there? I was nervous about running into myself there.”
“Yourself?” Ianto asked.
“I’ve been there before,” Jack explained. “In that time. It was around then that I first met the Doctor and Rose, actually. Anyway, couldn’t risk meeting myself, right? Timelines. Wibbly-wobbly, timey-wimey.”
“Whatever that means,” Ianto said.
“A phrase that got away from the Doctor,” Jack said. “I’ll have to show you the videos one of these days. Personally, I think all this incomprehensible stuff is what the Doctor likes to say when he has no clue how things work either. Just making it up as he goes along.”
Ianto smiled. “Sounds a bit like you.”
“Hey!”
“You’re up early,” Jack said, scrubbing tiredly at his hair. It had been a long night of Weevil-hunting.
“There are UFOs over the Taj Mahal,” Ianto told him.
Jack was suddenly a lot more awake.
“Captain Jack Harkness here. I’m probably off saving the world right now, so leave a message and I’ll get back to you.”
“Evening, sir. I know you’re busy saving the world - literally, I reckon - but when you’ve got the time, could you drop me a message letting me know you’re all right?”
“Captain Jack Harkness here. I’m probably off saving the world right now, so leave a message and I’ll get back to you.”
“So… it’s been a day since whatever was happening has stopped. I’m presuming, rather optimistically, that that means you’ve stopped it, and not that we’re in the calm before the storm. I expect you’ve got lots of work to do now, but I’d appreciate a quick call. Or a message. Nothing fancy, I’d just like to know you’re all right.”
“Captain Jack Harkness here. I’m probably off saving the world right now, so leave a message and I’ll get back to you.”
“I’m guessing you’re not all right. I doubt you’d have let me go this long without at least an ‘I’m fine, can’t come home yet’ sort of message. I… I’ve been sitting here wondering all sorts of things, really. About what could possibly be keeping a man like you down. Whether it’s an injury, and if so, what kind. Or if maybe it’s something else altogether. I’m wondering now if you’ve found your Doctor and gone off with him. I suppose I wouldn’t know, not until you got back. It’s not like I could go waltzing into the Hub to look for you. Well, I could, I have your pass-codes and all. But I don’t think your team would appreciate that, and I don’t much appreciate being filled with bullets, myself. I’m rambling now, so I’ll just stop here. I miss you.”
“Captain Jack Harkness here. I’m probably off saving the world right now, so leave a message and I’ll get back to you.”
“I’m tempted to go get drunk except the once was more than enough for me. Never dealing with a hangover again, thanks. Anyway, Jac’s been spending nights in my bed again. He’s very comforting to hold. Makes me feel like you’ll come back eventually. That’s what I’ve decided to believe. Until then, I think I’ll just leave you messages here, as and when I feel like it. Until your inbox fills up, anyway. Miss you.”
“Captain Jack Harkness here. I’m probably off saving the world right now, so leave a message and I’ll get back to you.”
“Terrible day at the university today. Seems like people are just starting to come out of shock now, and bitchiness is apparently the default coping mechanism of most of the staff. For once, I didn’t stay late. Came home and had a coffee. Then I had another, on your behalf. Don’t worry, I’ll make you some of the good stuff when you get back. I miss you.”
“Captain Jack Harkness here. I’m probably off saving the world right now, so leave a message and I’ll get back to you.”
“Just got back from a late-night run to the supermarket. They had this big display of sports drinks on sale, horrid neon pink things. Pink liquids, honestly. I suspect it might be alien. At any rate, I got some of those chocolate biscuits you love and I hate. Was home and unpacking before I realised that they might go to waste. So here’s the deal, yeah? If you’re not back in five days, I’ll give them to Mrs Gracie next door. That is, if I can find a way of looking her in the face without blushing. She always gives me this really knowing look every time she sees me. I blame it all on you and your ability to make me scream… Which I clearly haven’t done in a few days, might explain that concerned look I got from her when I got back… I miss you.”
“Captain Jack Harkness here. I’m probably off saving the world right now, so leave a message and I’ll get back to you.”
“I’m wearing the collar, just so you know. I think I might wear it out more often. Reminds me of you. Have to figure out what sort of care it needs, though. You always took care of that… Should have paid more attention. Dry-clean only, I suppose? What am I supposed to tell the drycleaners when they ask? Ugh, I miss you.”
“Good morning,” Ianto said, not letting any of his tiredness seep through into his voice. “Cardiff University, Astrophysics Department, Ianto Jones speaking. How may I help you?”
“You could find a reason to go to the Plass now?”
“Jack!” Ianto yelped, dropping his pen.
“One and only,” Jack said. “I just - woke up. I’d like to see you.”
Ianto glanced at his watch. He’d find a reason to leave. He always did. “See you in a bit then.”
He wound up taking a personal half-day, and hurried down to Roald Dahl Plass. Jack was standing near the water tower, face tilted upwards as if he were basking in the sunlight.
Ianto just barely managed to slow his pace to a slightly more dignified walk. Sadly, there was absolutely nothing dignified about the way he walked straight into Jack, burying his face in Jack’s neck and clinging desperately to him.
Jack wrapped his own arms around Ianto and kissed the top of his head. “I’m so sorry, baby,” he whispered. Ianto shook his head mutely.
“Come on,” Jack said, walking Ianto back towards the Tourist Information Centre. Ianto didn’t question the move, even when Jack brought him down into the Hub. It was empty, though - evidently the team had gone out somewhere. From somewhere above them, a pteranodon screeched. Jack brought them into his office and let go of Ianto just long enough to temporarily disable the internal security cameras, and erase the footage already captured of Ianto.
“I died,” Jack said. “Abaddon fed off life energy, so I let him overdose on me. Only just came back.”
Ianto flinched and attempted to burrow into Jack’s side.
“I’ll always come back,” Jack promised, one arm around Ianto’s shoulders, the other one tracing idle patterns on Ianto’s back.
“I know,” Ianto said at last. “It’s just - the not knowing.”
“Is that harder to deal with?” Jack asked.
“In a way,” Ianto said. “Because I know you can’t stay dead. And if you can’t, then what’s stopping you coming back home? Just because you can’t die doesn’t mean you can’t be hurt. And I’ve got a vivid imagination.”
Jack tugged Ianto in for a kiss. “I know,” he said against Ianto’s lips. “And I’m sorry for worrying you.”
“It’s okay,” Ianto said shakily. “I suppose I should get used to it.”
“You shouldn’t have to,” Jack said pensively. “With anyone else, it wouldn’t even be a question.”
“Yes, it would,” Ianto said. “It’s just a different kind of worry. Every husband worries about his missing wife. Every parent worries about their child going missing. That doesn’t change, no matter the time period. Or reason.”
Jack smiled sadly. “No, it doesn’t.” There was a moment’s pause, and Ianto could practically hear the subject being dropped. Jack slid a finger under Ianto’s collar and tugged half-heartedly at it. “I like this, by the way.”
Ianto shrugged. “Thinking of getting a tag for it,” he said, lips quirking upwards. “Property of Jack Harkness?”
Jack laughed. “There’s a thought. But there’s somewhere else you could put that particular phrase.” He let his hand drop deliberately to Ianto’s crotch, cupping the burgeoning erection.
Ianto rocked instinctively into his touch, pulling Jack down for a hard kiss. It was quick and dirty and yet Jack found the time in the midst of it, to hold Ianto in a way that never failed to melt his insides. Afterwards, Ianto seated comfortably on a sated Jack’s lap, they spent a few long moments in thoughtful silence.
Then the hand-in-a-jar on Jack’s desk started glowing.
Letting go of Jack had been one of the hardest things Ianto had ever had to do.
To distract himself from the sudden gaping hole in his life, he threw himself into his work. He was getting noticed by all the right people, publishing a fair number of papers, making a reputation for himself even at his age. Still, some evenings it was just - difficult - to concentrate. Those nights, he went out.
Any night other than a Saturday night, he had a number of distraction techniques organised. Jack had organised a gun licence for Ianto a long time ago, bypassing half the usual requirements in the process. The reason for that licence usually went unsaid between them. Ianto used to go to the range to brush up on his skills every couple of months, but now he took to going weekly. Often enough, at any rate, to become known as a regular there, and to forge tentative friendships with a few of the other regulars and staff. They took to teaching him a few tips and tricks to help him out, and he wound up getting into arguments with them as often as not, about stances and techniques.
His marksmanship improved greatly. He didn’t think he’d ever have the kind of pinpoint accuracy that Jack displayed so casually, but he was certainly proficient enough to hold his own. Still, a gun would never be something he’d be completely comfortable wielding.
So those nights when the guns reminded him too much of Jack and of violence and of the things he wished Jack didn’t have to confront, he went running. He took a different route every time, in the process learning more about Cardiff’s backstreets than he’d ever wanted to know. There was something about the mindless repetition, putting one foot before the other, sneakers pounding on asphalt, that was soothing.
And then there were Saturday nights.
Dr Owen Harper had an unfortunate tendency to spend every Saturday getting thoroughly pissed, always at the same bar. Jack kept Retcon in the kitchen cabinets. Ianto combined those two facts in ways that Jack had probably never suspected him to be capable of.
On those Saturdays when he was feeling edgy, Ianto would drive to Owen’s favourite bar. He’d wait till Owen was half-sloshed, then casually saunter over and introduce himself. He’d make a few comments about the girls in the place, strike up a sort of camaraderie with him. Once Owen had gotten a couple more drinks into his system, Ianto would start with the leading questions.
“So where d’you work?”
“Nearby. Not interesting.” (That, at least, was what the words appeared to be after Ianto translated the alcohol-fuelled slurring.)
“Is work ever interesting? Mine’s a complete bore. Boss is impossible to work with.”
“Hah, mine’s worse.”
“Mine keeps expecting everyone to do what he says, but he never does any work himself.”
“Mine hits on anything with a pulse.”
“File a sexual harassment suit.”
“Never go anywhere.”
“Hm. Mine takes two month’s vacation every year, and the rest of us get a week’s.”
“Hah! Mine just buggered off god knows where without telling us!”
“Mine’s despotic.”
“Des-wha?”
“Despotic. None of my colleagues like him at all.”
“We like ours though.”
“He doesn’t sound very nice.”
“Hey! He’s nice, Jack’s nice, nicest guy in the world!”
“Is he now?”
“He shaved me.” (Ianto mentally substituted ‘saved’ for ‘shaved.’) “After me Katie died. Shaved us all. ‘Cept Gwen maybe.”
“Your colleagues think that way too?”
“Yeah. Yeah. Maybe. Yeah.”
“Well, all right then.”
“But he shouldn’t have buggered off like that.”
“… Are you pouting?”
Having worked whatever information he could out of Owen, he’d slip half a Retcon tablet into Owen’s drink. That would be just enough to erase his memory of that night - which, given the amount of alcohol he’d imbibed, he wouldn’t think twice about. Ianto’s contrived meetings with Owen revealed to him that the team was working through some anger (at Jack’s having left), guilt (for betraying him in some way, but no amount of alcohol got that out of Owen, and it wasn’t like Jack had had time to explain everything to Ianto), frustration (at not knowing what to do because Jack had run everything) and determination (to have things organised for when (if) Jack got back).
At least they seemed to be pulling together. They did seem rather short-handed, though. Ianto had taken to strolling through the Plass as often as he could, and whenever he caught sight of one of the three Torchwood members, they inevitably looked exhausted.
But not near breaking. He’d recognise that look if he saw it. He’d worn it, once upon a time.
The Tourist Office was open. Ianto considered that for a moment, tapping the bouquet of flowers he was carrying against his chin. Then he gave in to the little imp on his shoulder and entered.
“Oh!” said the slender Japanese woman behind the counter. “I mean - um, welcome?”
Ianto smiled at her. Toshiko Sato, of course. He recognised her from the photographs Jack had shown him. “Afternoon,” he said. “Tourist Information Centre, right?”
“Right,” she said nervously. “But if you’ll pardon me saying, you sound Welsh - what can I do for you?”
“I am indeed Welsh,” Ianto said. “And I was hoping to pick up a few suitably Welsh souvenirs for a friend who’s come up from Australia.” He gestured with the flowers. “I’ve got flowers for her mother - I thought I’d get her a plushie or some such.”
“Oh,” Toshiko squeaked, looking around. Ianto didn’t bother to do the same. The cover wasn’t any more convincing now than it had been when Jack had been around.
“Seems like you’re waiting on new stock or something?” he asked, raising an eyebrow.
“Yes!” she said. “Yes, that’s it. Um. We don’t get much funding.”
Ianto sighed. “Pity, that. I don’t suppose you have any ideas where I could get some souvenirs?”
“I, uh -” she said eloquently.
“I’ll have a look around elsewhere,” Ianto said diplomatically. He glanced her over. “It’s probably very tactless of me to say this, but you look very tired…”
“Lots of work recently,” Toshiko said. “Uh, trying to talk people into, you know, um, helping us sort out the tourists.”
Ianto smiled. “Can be a bit of a pain dealing with bureaucrats at times,” he said. “Here.” He plucked a yellow rose out of the bouquet and gave it to her. She accepted it in a bit of a daze. “For a beautiful lady.”
He left the Centre (passing by a pizza delivery man on the way, which explained why it had been open) before Toshiko could quite marshal her wits again. He even waited until he’d left the area altogether (and was halfway to his foster mother’s place with the bouquet he’d impulsively picked up for her) before he deigned to laugh.
It was in the middle of June that he got the call.
It was also in the middle of a meeting. As such, he let the call go to voicemail. Once the meeting had ended, he checked his inbox and waited only so long as the first two words took to reach his ears, before disconnecting and dialling a familiar number.
“Hullo, sir,” he said.
“Hey, Ianto,” Jack said, voice warm but tentative. “Got my message?”
“Well,” Ianto said. “I suppose you could say that.”
“What’s that supposed to mean?” Jack asked warily.
“I got it,” Ianto said. “But I only got as far as ‘Hi, Ianto,’ before I hung up and called you.”
A laugh. “Right. So. Uh, guess you’re at work?”
“Right in one,” Ianto said. “I’ll be home maybe around eight.”
“Okay,” Jack said. “I’ll, um. Be there. Or something. Should go see where the team’s gone off to. Shouldn’t take this long to find a blowfish, right?”
“I imagine not,” Ianto said. “Unless it’s on drugs.”
“They always are,” Jack said. “Ianto?”
“Yes, sir?”
“Are we, um, good?” Jack asked.
“Why wouldn’t we be?” Ianto said.
“Just - you know. Four months.”
“We’re good, sir,” Ianto said, a small smile on his lips. “I won’t deny I’ve missed you, though.”
“Me too,” Jack said. There was a touch too much desperation and fervency in his voice. Something, Ianto thought, had obviously happened.
“I’ll see you later,” Ianto said. “Why don’t you go track down your errant team in the meantime?”
“Okay,” Jack said. “Okay. I’ll see you later.”
“Of course.”
Three hours had never felt so long.
Jack was collapsed on his bed when Ianto got back home. He stood there looking at the mottled bruising all down the older man’s back for a while, then quietly padded off to his own room. He hung up the light jacket he was wearing, and changed into a pair of sweatpants. Shirtless, he headed into the kitchen to put the kettle on. The collar was a reassuring weight around his neck.
While the tea steeped, Ianto tossed together a few sandwiches using some leftover roast meat and cheese. He ate one of the sandwiches quickly while pouring and sweetening the drinks. Then he carefully arranged the cups and food on a tray, and headed into the bedroom.
He thought for a moment, then set down the tray well away from Jack, before attempting to wake up his lover.
The flailing limbs weren’t really a surprise, and Ianto very prudently removed himself from their immediate vicinity. It took a few long seconds for Jack to register who it was in the room with him.
“Ianto,” he finally managed to get out, wincing as he sat up properly.
“Evening, sir,” Ianto said. “Have you had dinner yet?”
Jack gave him an incredulous look.
“I made sandwiches,” Ianto said, gesturing. He pulled out a pillow, plumped it up, and propped it along the headboard. “Lamb and cheese. All there was, I’m afraid. I’ll need to go shopping tomorrow.”
“No questions?” Jack asked, leaning against the pillow gingerly.
“Well, there is a burning question I have,” Ianto admitted, bringing over the tray. “Are you up to fucking me tonight?”
Jack laughed. “I’m always up for that,” he said, leering playfully at Ianto.
“Excellent,” Ianto said, rubbing his hands together in mock glee. “Eat up, then. You’ll need your strength.”
“So really,” Jack said, settling the tray on his lap and picking up a sandwich. “No questions? You don’t want to know what I’ve been doing all this time?”
“You’ll tell me if you want to,” Ianto said, picking up one of the cups of tea for himself. “That’s good enough for me.”
Jack gifted him with a small, sweet smile. “I don’t think I can talk about it just yet,” he said. “It was a little over a year for me. I spent most of it dying.”
Ianto slid a little closer to Jack on the bed.
“But you know, it’s actually been a day for me since I called you?” Jack said.
“And here I could have sworn it was only a few hours,” Ianto said.
“Another time thing,” Jack said. “As if I hadn’t already escaped one time paradox. Anyway, an ex of mine showed up wanting help.”
“And?”
“Tried to get rid of him, but he spun this tale about cluster bombs,” Jack explained through a mouthful of bread and meat. Ianto decided against scolding him, just this once. “Turned out it was just a scam in the end. Tossed the bomb through the tear in the Rift and it exploded and sent us back in time by a day, to when the tear had first formed.”
“Complicated,” Ianto observed.
“I guess,” Jack said, shrugging. “He shoved me off a building. John Hart, I mean, my ex. Used to be my partner in the Time Agency.”
“Ah,” Ianto said. He set his empty cup down on the tray. “Makes sense now.”
Jack smiled. “Yeah. We got caught in a time loop once. Two weeks, over and over for five years. Fantastic at first, we got to do a whole bunch of things we couldn’t have done otherwise. But after a while we really wanted to kill each other.”
Ianto laughed. “Couldn’t get away from each other, could you?”
“No,” Jack said, drawing out the word. “Plus, you know, he was always a bit annoying. Good sex, but other than that -”
“Should I be jealous?” Ianto asked archly.
“I’m different now to what I was then,” Jack said. “John - doesn’t appeal, not anymore. And by the way, you don’t have to be jealous of anyone for as long as you’re alive.”
Ianto smiled slightly and lay his head down on Jack’s shoulder as Jack polished off the last of his food and tea. With a contented sigh, Jack put the tray onto the bedside table, then rolled over onto Ianto.
“Now then,” he said. “You mentioned something about fucking?”
They were both up early the next morning - Ianto, because he needed to get to work to study some of the fresh results the team had just gotten in, and Jack, because Ianto was up.
“So,” Jack said casually, watching with darkened eyes as Ianto slipped on his collar before buttoning up his shirt. “Want to come work for me?”
Ianto paused. “I’m sorry,” he said. “I could’ve sworn you just asked me to come work for you.”
“I did,” Jack said.
“Thought you were dead set against that?” Ianto enquired, buckling his belt.
“I was,” Jack said. “But you want to, don’t you?”
“Oh yes,” Ianto admitted. “I’d love to be part of the team, but not if it’ll bother you.”
Jack sighed. “Terrifies me,” he said. “You still up for no fieldwork, just Hub-based and archival stuff?”
“Perfectly fine by me,” Ianto said.
“Because when I was talking to the team before,” Jack said. “It seemed like a lot of their problems could have been solved if they’d had access to some of the older data from the archives. Stuff that hasn’t yet been computerised. Only, none of us have time to put it together.”
“I am rather obsessively organised,” Ianto pointed out.
“I know,” Jack said, smiling. “So, how about it? Want to come get our archives in order, keep us all organised and up-to-date?”
“Glorified office boy,” Ianto said. “Sounds lovely.”
“Was that sarcasm or honesty?” Jack wondered out loud.
“Bit of both,” Ianto said. “I’ll give in my resignation today.”
Jack beamed at him.
All the same, they had to wait a month before Ianto could leave his job. A lot happened in that month, including the discovery of an alien sleeper cell and Tommy’s re-awakening and subsequent departure. Toshiko, Jack told Ianto glumly, hadn’t taken that too well.
Every Sunday, the team usually met up in the morning to discuss any new developments that might be of interest. The first Sunday of July, Jack waited until the rest of the team was done, then stood up and cleared his throat.
“Starting tomorrow,” he said. “We’ll be having a new team member.”
They stared at him in consternation.
“His name’s Ianto Jones,” Jack said. “He’s going to be our new Archivist.”
“Why can I hear the capitalisation in that word?” Toshiko asked.
“Because anyone who can make sense of our archives deserves a little recognition,” Jack told her, grinning broadly as Toshiko shrugged in acceptance. “So, Ianto. He’s twenty-five years old, and thus far, has been working at Cardiff University. Honours in Astrophysics, and doing research in that field with a team there. Anything else you’d like to know?”
“Why him?” Owen asked bluntly.
“Because he’s smart enough to follow what Tosh talks about and sarcastic enough to cross swords with you,” Jack said, leaning on the edge of the table. “And he already believes in the possibility of aliens, but unlike our usual quacks he wants to prove that scientifically. Plus,” Jack added with a wink. “He’s cute.”
“Of course he is,” Owen sighed.
“Are we not doing the usual tests then?” Toshiko asked cautiously.
“Nope,” Jack said. “He knows how to keep his mouth shut. I’ve known him for a while now, was thinking about bringing him in even before I - left.”
“Are you sure about this, Jack?” Gwen asked. “What happened to all the secrecy stuff?”
“Have to get in fresh team members every so often, right?” Jack said. “How do you think you got in?”
Which seemed to settle it. Jack knew his team would reserve judgement until they’d met Ianto for themselves, but he wasn’t worried. None of them knew Ianto’s secret weapon… and once the rest of the team had had a taste of Ianto’s coffee, they’d all be in his thrall.
On the seventh of July, Ianto began his first day at work. He and Jack arrived at seven. Toshiko, Jack explained, usually got in around eight, and Owen and Gwen would arrive at some point before nine.
While they had the Hub to themselves, Jack brought Ianto down to the archives. Ianto had passed by them plenty of times before, but he’d never stopped to examine the place in any great detail. It would need… a lot of work.
“I’ll pay you extra,” Jack said, looking around.
Ianto made a vaguely horrified sound in response.
“Well,” Jack said. “Think of it as job security.”
Ianto gave him a thoroughly dirty look. Jack smiled apologetically.
“I was wondering,” Jack said. “This isn’t in your official duties, but would you be willing to take over things like feeding the Vault residents? Don’t do overtime - just take the time out from the archival work, and it’s okay if that’s slowed down as a result - but it’d free the rest of us up for more fieldwork. We can actually go out in pairs that way, be safer.”
“It’s fine by me,” Ianto said. “How about I’ll just handle all the day-to-day things? Do that first thing in the morning, then work on the archives after?”
“Sure?” Jack said. “It’s a lot more work than it sounds like.”
“I’ll let you know if it’s too much,” Ianto said. “I’m rather looking forward to it, actually.”
“Okay,” Jack said, smiling. Above them, the entrance alarm blared. “That’ll be Tosh,” Jack said. “Want to go say hi?”
“I wonder if she’ll recognise me,” Ianto mused out loud, and despite Jack’s prodding, steadfastly refused to explain all the way back up.
As it turned out, Toshiko did recognise Ianto, if her “It’s you!” was anything to go by.
“Hullo,” Ianto said, stepping forward to shake her hand. “Nice to properly meet you. Ianto Jones.”
“Toshiko Sato,” she said, automatically taking his hand. “You’re the one - with the flower -”
“Mm, yes,” Ianto said. “Mind, I wasn’t expecting all this.” It wasn’t exactly a lie; he hadn’t been expecting Jack to allow him to join, after all.
“Well, thank you for the flower,” Toshiko said, blushing slightly. “It was just what I needed.”
“Flower?” Jack asked curiously, leaning against Toshiko’s workstation. “What’s all this about, then?”
“It was while you were - gone,” Tosh said, throwing Ianto an awkward look. “Um, I was up in the Tourist Centre waiting on a food delivery, and he came in looking for some souvenirs.”
“Ah,” Jack said, giving Ianto a smile rich with amusement. Ianto gave him a perfectly bland look in response. “And the flower?”
“Had a bouquet with me, for Eleri,” Ianto said. Jack nodded. “Ms Sato looked a bit stressed, so I gave her a flower out of it.”
“Just Toshiko,” Toshiko interrupted. “Or Tosh, everyone calls me that.”
“Ah, all right,” Ianto said.
“And really, thanks for the flower,” Toshiko said. “Been a really long day and I was completely out of it.”
“Such a pretty girl deserves flowers every day of the week,” Jack declared grandly.
“I’ll put it on your expenses then, sir,” Ianto said, arching an eyebrow.
“My personal expenses,” Jack said. “My brilliant girl does deserve a nice bouquet. Or would you prefer something else, Tosh?”
“What?” Toshiko asked, blushing. “You’re - I mean, I don’t need anything.”
“But I want to give you something,” Jack said, pouting. “And it’ll be flowers unless there’s something else you want more.”
“I’m told you can’t go wrong with flowers and chocolate,” Ianto said. “Of course, that’s usually romantic advice, so I’m not sure how applicable it is here. Would you like some anyway, Tosh?”
“No, really, I don’t need anything,” Toshiko insisted, her face nice and red now. The entrance alarm saved her from any further interrogation.
“Huh, they’re early,” Jack said, watching as Owen and Gwen entered together. “They never come in this early.”
“Curious about Ianto, I expect,” Toshiko said, smiling at him. He shrugged minutely, and straightened his fitted blazer as Gwen and Owen came over.
“You the new guy, then?” Owen asked, glancing Ianto over.
“Ianto Jones,” he said politely, holding out a hand. Owen shook it perfunctorily.
“Doctor Owen Harper,” he said.
“We’ve met,” Ianto said, enjoying the way Jack startled.
“Say what?” Owen said. “No, we haven’t. I’ve never seen you before in my life.”
“Well, you were rather, shall we say, tipsy,” Ianto said dryly. “At Bar Farsight? You threw up on me.”
“Um,” Owen said, his face reddening slightly. Jack was trying and failing to hide his laughter behind his hand. Toshiko wasn’t faring much better.
“No hard feelings,” Ianto assured him.
“Don’t tell me you’ve met Gwen as well,” Jack said, grinning hugely.
“Can’t say I have,” Ianto said, turning to the last member of the team.
“Gwen Cooper,” she said, smiling in amusement.
“Pleasure,” he said, then glanced around. “I was just going to go get some coffee going. Anyone want some?”
Jack clasped his hands together and gave Ianto his best pleading look.
“Other than you, sir,” Ianto said.
“The truth comes out,” Jack said. “I really only hired you for your coffee.”
“See what you’ll be saying when I’ve taken over this place,” Ianto said. “Everyone knows the secretaries are always the ones in power.”
The team laughed at that, and Jack was pleased to see that they were already relaxing around Ianto. When Ianto returned with his magic coffee, he cemented his position there as far as they were concerned.
No one wanted to get on Ianto’s bad side and lose out on the coffee.
Part Four
First part had 29 comments. I entered a happy!spazzy state of being and updated early.
Second part has 36 comments. I’m beyond happy!spazzy now. I’m not sure what exactly I’d describe it as, but it’s loud and bouncy and annoying to everyone around me.
Now, either I should proclaim my joy at getting comments (and update early) more often, or my beta’s right and I’m gaining a Following. If the latter’s true, I’m one step closer to my plans of world domination.
Or, you know, you people are just that amazing. ♥
Part One
Part Two
Suzie shot herself, but not before shooting Jack. As a result, his newest team member knew something about him that the others didn’t. Ianto didn’t think that was very fair, especially given how the other two were obviously starting to really look up to Jack… but he was hardly going to bring that up just then.
“Big hero, swanning in and saving the lot of us,” Ianto murmured.
“Couldn’t save her,” Jack said quietly.
“Not everyone can be saved,” Ianto said.
“I should have seen what the Glove was doing to her.”
“You’re not omniscient either,” Ianto said. “She couldn’t cope. That’s sad, but it doesn’t make it your fault.”
Jack sighed into Ianto’s chest and didn’t say anything else.
“Gwen’s flirting with me,” Jack said, sounding vaguely disturbed.
“Oh?” Ianto asked distractedly. He topped up the water in the coffee-maker, then set it to run and turned to look at a perturbed Jack.
“Yeah,” Jack said. “With intent.”
Ianto raised an eyebrow. “Dear me.”
“I flirt with everyone,” Jack said. “People know that. They don’t flirt back… with intent, anyway.”
“I’d like to point out that she doesn’t, in fact, know you,” Ianto said. “And in this time period, flirting tends to be for the sole reason of trying to get someone in bed.”
“So jaded,” Jack tutted. “I’ll lay off. Hopefully, she will too.”
Ianto smiled. “You can try,” he said. “I’ve learned not to underestimate the depths of people’s obsessions with you.”
“That was the one stalker!” Jack protested.
“Faeries,” Ianto said. “I don’t think anything good will come of this.”
“No,” Jack said, subdued. “But I have to go look into it.” He took a deep breath. “Estelle - I used to know her. When she was younger. She was -” His voice broke.
Ianto held him until he fell into an uneasy sleep.
“None of them are talking to me,” Jack said. “What would they have done, that’s what I want to know.”
Ianto plucked the brandy out of Jack’s hand and replaced it with a glass of water. “Nothing different,” he said. “That’s why they’re busy hating you now. You did what they didn’t want to, but knew they had to. You’re a convenient target. But that also means it’ll pass. Once they accept their own guilt, they’ll realise you couldn’t have done anything else.”
Jack looked up at Ianto through bleary eyes. “Stop making sense,” he said, and downed half the water in one gulp.
“My apologies,” Ianto intoned solemnly. “I’ll just leave you to sulk in your alcoholic haze, shall I?”
“No,” Jack said immediately, grabbing Ianto’s hand and pulling him down onto the sofa to sprawl over Jack. “Stay?”
Ianto sighed and pressed a kiss to Jack’s neck. “You are so lucky you don’t get hangovers,” he muttered.
Jack smiled. Odd - he’d thought he’d forgotten how to do that.
Shouldn’t be more than a couple of days, Jack had said. I’ll be back soon, he’d said. Don’t hold any wild parties here without him, he’d said.
Wild parties. Ianto watched the news unfolding on the television. He reached for his phone yet again and dialled Jack’s number.
“Captain Jack Harkness here. I’m probably off saving the world right now, so leave a message and I’ll get back to you.”
“Hullo, sir. For the seventh time, please call back as soon as you can. Or just drop me a message. Just - let me know you’re okay.”
Two hours later, his phone beeped at him.
Sender:
Jack
Received:
04:41; 19/07/07
I’m fine. G shot in gut, T bruised & cracked ribs, team alive. Just left G&T at hosp, sending O home now. See you soon. Need a hug.
When Jack came in through the door, he was greeted with a hot coffee, a long hug and a relieved kiss.
“I missed you,” he murmured against Ianto’s lips. Sighing, he broke away just long enough to put down his empty coffee cup. “So much. Was so glad you’d never had a reason to go out there.” He reached out and pulled an unresisting Ianto back into his arms.
“Was it really what they were saying on the news?” Ianto asked timidly. “Cannibals?”
“Yes,” Jack said. “The entire village, every ten years.”
Ianto shivered and pressed in a little closer. “My village was nothing like that,” he muttered.
“Probably because you were sane,” Jack said. “Gwen - she needed to know why, demanded to talk to the guy, the leader. He said it was because he liked it.”
“Not quite the answer she was looking for,” Ianto said.
“Things like this, there are never any answers,” Jack said bitterly.
Ianto kissed his shoulder, then pushed away. “I’ll draw up a bath for you,” he suggested.
“Shower,” Jack said, shaking his head, suddenly desperately needing to feel Ianto, skin on skin, unmarred and whole. “Join me?”
“Of course.”
“I don’t understand. I mean, I thought I was a decent boss, all around.”
“You are.”
“Then why did Tosh betray us like that?”
“Love makes people do funny things.”
“Was she in love, really?”
“Who knows? But believing you’re in love is just as powerful. And it’s easy to believe that when you’re lonely.”
“Suzie did what?”
“I think maybe I suck as a boss.”
“What did the rest of your team do?”
“Pulled together. Managed to get a line through to Swanson for some help. She’ll never let me live that down.”
“Why?”
“Had to tell her we were trapped in our own base.”
“… You’re right. She’ll never let you live that down.”
“See?”
“Anyway, the team did fine, right?”
“Yeah.”
“So what makes you think you’re a bad leader?”
“I - I was so ready to blame the Glove for Suzie’s suicide. I didn’t think it was her.”
“Are any of us ever ready to believe the worst of those we care for?”
“I should have seen.”
“How? You might be immortal, sir, but you’re still human.”
“Am I?”
“Did it hurt when Estelle died? When you lost your men to the faeries, when you had to give Jasmine up? When Suzie killed herself, killed you? Were you angry, hurt, confused, when you encountered those cannibals? Did you want to kill them for hurting your team? How did you feel when you walked in on New Year’s and found that the first team leader you liked unreservedly had killed his entire team?”
“… Why are you asking when you know the answers?”
“Because those answers mean you’re human.”
“So you’re waiting on the Doctor to show up?” Ianto asked cautiously.
“He might have answers for me. About what caused this, and how to reverse it,” Jack said. He kissed the tip of Ianto’s nose. “Don’t want to keep outliving the people I love.”
Ianto made a noncommittal sound. “Will you come back?”
“To you?” Jack said. “Of course I will.”
“Okay,” Ianto said, closing his eyes. “That’s all right then.”
Jack opened the door to the flat and stepped inside quietly. Ianto was asleep on the sofa, curled up around Jac the dragon. Beady black eyes stared at him accusingly from within the circle of Ianto’s arms. With a soft sigh, Jack locked the door, then padded over to sit down on the floor next to Ianto.
It had taken a while for the worst of the smell to fade from him, and he still thought he could smell engine fumes on his skin. Taking a shower meant using more energy than he felt like he had, though, so he leaned his head against the sofa, near Ianto’s stomach, and tried not to think.
“Sir?” Ianto asked groggily.
“Hey,” Jack whispered. “Sorry I missed Christmas dinner.”
“S’okay,” Ianto said, yawning as he sat up, nearly dropping Jac. Then he caught sight of Jack’s face. “Oh. What happened?”
“Have I ever told you how amazing you are?” Jack asked.
“Not lately,” Ianto said cautiously.
“Well, you are,” Jack said. “People who come through the Rift don’t always do so well. Especially the aliens, you know. And you were from way over two centuries in the past, and you still managed to adapt. And you’re doing so amazingly well now.”
“Mostly thanks to you,” Ianto pointed out, shifting closer to Jack. Jack took the silent invitation, resting his head against Ianto’s thigh.
“Mostly thanks to yourself,” Jack countered. “All I did was set you up, talk to you on occasion.”
“It helped,” Ianto said. “Probably more than you know. Just knowing there was someone out there who knew where and when I’d come from…”
“But you never relied on me for anything really,” Jack said. “You fought through all that yourself. That,” he added reflectively, “is more than some people can do.”
“I’ll take a wild guess here,” Ianto said. “One of those three couldn’t deal?”
“John,” Jack said. “Killed himself in Tosh’s car. I couldn’t talk him out of it, so I sat with him while he did it.” He closed his eyes.
“Oh, Jack,” Ianto whispered. “Why do you always insist on punishing yourself like that?”
Jack didn’t answer.
“Like dog-fighting, only worse,” Jack groused.
“First rule of fight club,” Ianto said, passing Jack the wet plate to dry. “You don’t talk about fight club.”
“Second rule of fight club,” Jack said. “You don’t use Weevils in fight club.”
Ianto tapped Jack’s nose reprovingly, leaving behind a smudge of soap. “Not quite right. Was everyone all right in the end?”
“More or less,” Jack said. “Owen’s not really dealing well with losing Diane, I think. Don’t know what I can do for him.”
“Nothing,” Ianto said. “It’s something he’ll have to figure out for himself. And you ought to stop thinking that you can fix everything if only you try hard enough.”
Jack leaned over and very deliberately rubbed the soap on his nose off on Ianto’s shirt.
“1941.”
“Yep,” Jack said. “I can’t believe I met the real Jack Harkness there.” He smiled sadly. “He had such a thing for me.”
“Doesn’t everyone?” Ianto asked rhetorically.
“And so nervous about showing it,” Jack said with a shrug. “But he got up the nerve to ask me to dance before the others got us back.” He frowned. “Though I’m not happy with how they did it. Not happy with Owen at all, no.”
“I suppose we’ll be seeing the fallout of that soon enough,” Ianto said, running a hand down Jack’s arm comfortingly.
“Yeah,” Jack said, leaning into Ianto’s touch. “You know the funny thing about meeting the real Harkness? Why I stuck to the ballroom, even though he was there? I was nervous about running into myself there.”
“Yourself?” Ianto asked.
“I’ve been there before,” Jack explained. “In that time. It was around then that I first met the Doctor and Rose, actually. Anyway, couldn’t risk meeting myself, right? Timelines. Wibbly-wobbly, timey-wimey.”
“Whatever that means,” Ianto said.
“A phrase that got away from the Doctor,” Jack said. “I’ll have to show you the videos one of these days. Personally, I think all this incomprehensible stuff is what the Doctor likes to say when he has no clue how things work either. Just making it up as he goes along.”
Ianto smiled. “Sounds a bit like you.”
“Hey!”
“You’re up early,” Jack said, scrubbing tiredly at his hair. It had been a long night of Weevil-hunting.
“There are UFOs over the Taj Mahal,” Ianto told him.
Jack was suddenly a lot more awake.
“Captain Jack Harkness here. I’m probably off saving the world right now, so leave a message and I’ll get back to you.”
“Evening, sir. I know you’re busy saving the world - literally, I reckon - but when you’ve got the time, could you drop me a message letting me know you’re all right?”
“Captain Jack Harkness here. I’m probably off saving the world right now, so leave a message and I’ll get back to you.”
“So… it’s been a day since whatever was happening has stopped. I’m presuming, rather optimistically, that that means you’ve stopped it, and not that we’re in the calm before the storm. I expect you’ve got lots of work to do now, but I’d appreciate a quick call. Or a message. Nothing fancy, I’d just like to know you’re all right.”
“Captain Jack Harkness here. I’m probably off saving the world right now, so leave a message and I’ll get back to you.”
“I’m guessing you’re not all right. I doubt you’d have let me go this long without at least an ‘I’m fine, can’t come home yet’ sort of message. I… I’ve been sitting here wondering all sorts of things, really. About what could possibly be keeping a man like you down. Whether it’s an injury, and if so, what kind. Or if maybe it’s something else altogether. I’m wondering now if you’ve found your Doctor and gone off with him. I suppose I wouldn’t know, not until you got back. It’s not like I could go waltzing into the Hub to look for you. Well, I could, I have your pass-codes and all. But I don’t think your team would appreciate that, and I don’t much appreciate being filled with bullets, myself. I’m rambling now, so I’ll just stop here. I miss you.”
“Captain Jack Harkness here. I’m probably off saving the world right now, so leave a message and I’ll get back to you.”
“I’m tempted to go get drunk except the once was more than enough for me. Never dealing with a hangover again, thanks. Anyway, Jac’s been spending nights in my bed again. He’s very comforting to hold. Makes me feel like you’ll come back eventually. That’s what I’ve decided to believe. Until then, I think I’ll just leave you messages here, as and when I feel like it. Until your inbox fills up, anyway. Miss you.”
“Captain Jack Harkness here. I’m probably off saving the world right now, so leave a message and I’ll get back to you.”
“Terrible day at the university today. Seems like people are just starting to come out of shock now, and bitchiness is apparently the default coping mechanism of most of the staff. For once, I didn’t stay late. Came home and had a coffee. Then I had another, on your behalf. Don’t worry, I’ll make you some of the good stuff when you get back. I miss you.”
“Captain Jack Harkness here. I’m probably off saving the world right now, so leave a message and I’ll get back to you.”
“Just got back from a late-night run to the supermarket. They had this big display of sports drinks on sale, horrid neon pink things. Pink liquids, honestly. I suspect it might be alien. At any rate, I got some of those chocolate biscuits you love and I hate. Was home and unpacking before I realised that they might go to waste. So here’s the deal, yeah? If you’re not back in five days, I’ll give them to Mrs Gracie next door. That is, if I can find a way of looking her in the face without blushing. She always gives me this really knowing look every time she sees me. I blame it all on you and your ability to make me scream… Which I clearly haven’t done in a few days, might explain that concerned look I got from her when I got back… I miss you.”
“Captain Jack Harkness here. I’m probably off saving the world right now, so leave a message and I’ll get back to you.”
“I’m wearing the collar, just so you know. I think I might wear it out more often. Reminds me of you. Have to figure out what sort of care it needs, though. You always took care of that… Should have paid more attention. Dry-clean only, I suppose? What am I supposed to tell the drycleaners when they ask? Ugh, I miss you.”
“Good morning,” Ianto said, not letting any of his tiredness seep through into his voice. “Cardiff University, Astrophysics Department, Ianto Jones speaking. How may I help you?”
“You could find a reason to go to the Plass now?”
“Jack!” Ianto yelped, dropping his pen.
“One and only,” Jack said. “I just - woke up. I’d like to see you.”
Ianto glanced at his watch. He’d find a reason to leave. He always did. “See you in a bit then.”
He wound up taking a personal half-day, and hurried down to Roald Dahl Plass. Jack was standing near the water tower, face tilted upwards as if he were basking in the sunlight.
Ianto just barely managed to slow his pace to a slightly more dignified walk. Sadly, there was absolutely nothing dignified about the way he walked straight into Jack, burying his face in Jack’s neck and clinging desperately to him.
Jack wrapped his own arms around Ianto and kissed the top of his head. “I’m so sorry, baby,” he whispered. Ianto shook his head mutely.
“Come on,” Jack said, walking Ianto back towards the Tourist Information Centre. Ianto didn’t question the move, even when Jack brought him down into the Hub. It was empty, though - evidently the team had gone out somewhere. From somewhere above them, a pteranodon screeched. Jack brought them into his office and let go of Ianto just long enough to temporarily disable the internal security cameras, and erase the footage already captured of Ianto.
“I died,” Jack said. “Abaddon fed off life energy, so I let him overdose on me. Only just came back.”
Ianto flinched and attempted to burrow into Jack’s side.
“I’ll always come back,” Jack promised, one arm around Ianto’s shoulders, the other one tracing idle patterns on Ianto’s back.
“I know,” Ianto said at last. “It’s just - the not knowing.”
“Is that harder to deal with?” Jack asked.
“In a way,” Ianto said. “Because I know you can’t stay dead. And if you can’t, then what’s stopping you coming back home? Just because you can’t die doesn’t mean you can’t be hurt. And I’ve got a vivid imagination.”
Jack tugged Ianto in for a kiss. “I know,” he said against Ianto’s lips. “And I’m sorry for worrying you.”
“It’s okay,” Ianto said shakily. “I suppose I should get used to it.”
“You shouldn’t have to,” Jack said pensively. “With anyone else, it wouldn’t even be a question.”
“Yes, it would,” Ianto said. “It’s just a different kind of worry. Every husband worries about his missing wife. Every parent worries about their child going missing. That doesn’t change, no matter the time period. Or reason.”
Jack smiled sadly. “No, it doesn’t.” There was a moment’s pause, and Ianto could practically hear the subject being dropped. Jack slid a finger under Ianto’s collar and tugged half-heartedly at it. “I like this, by the way.”
Ianto shrugged. “Thinking of getting a tag for it,” he said, lips quirking upwards. “Property of Jack Harkness?”
Jack laughed. “There’s a thought. But there’s somewhere else you could put that particular phrase.” He let his hand drop deliberately to Ianto’s crotch, cupping the burgeoning erection.
Ianto rocked instinctively into his touch, pulling Jack down for a hard kiss. It was quick and dirty and yet Jack found the time in the midst of it, to hold Ianto in a way that never failed to melt his insides. Afterwards, Ianto seated comfortably on a sated Jack’s lap, they spent a few long moments in thoughtful silence.
Then the hand-in-a-jar on Jack’s desk started glowing.
Letting go of Jack had been one of the hardest things Ianto had ever had to do.
To distract himself from the sudden gaping hole in his life, he threw himself into his work. He was getting noticed by all the right people, publishing a fair number of papers, making a reputation for himself even at his age. Still, some evenings it was just - difficult - to concentrate. Those nights, he went out.
Any night other than a Saturday night, he had a number of distraction techniques organised. Jack had organised a gun licence for Ianto a long time ago, bypassing half the usual requirements in the process. The reason for that licence usually went unsaid between them. Ianto used to go to the range to brush up on his skills every couple of months, but now he took to going weekly. Often enough, at any rate, to become known as a regular there, and to forge tentative friendships with a few of the other regulars and staff. They took to teaching him a few tips and tricks to help him out, and he wound up getting into arguments with them as often as not, about stances and techniques.
His marksmanship improved greatly. He didn’t think he’d ever have the kind of pinpoint accuracy that Jack displayed so casually, but he was certainly proficient enough to hold his own. Still, a gun would never be something he’d be completely comfortable wielding.
So those nights when the guns reminded him too much of Jack and of violence and of the things he wished Jack didn’t have to confront, he went running. He took a different route every time, in the process learning more about Cardiff’s backstreets than he’d ever wanted to know. There was something about the mindless repetition, putting one foot before the other, sneakers pounding on asphalt, that was soothing.
And then there were Saturday nights.
Dr Owen Harper had an unfortunate tendency to spend every Saturday getting thoroughly pissed, always at the same bar. Jack kept Retcon in the kitchen cabinets. Ianto combined those two facts in ways that Jack had probably never suspected him to be capable of.
On those Saturdays when he was feeling edgy, Ianto would drive to Owen’s favourite bar. He’d wait till Owen was half-sloshed, then casually saunter over and introduce himself. He’d make a few comments about the girls in the place, strike up a sort of camaraderie with him. Once Owen had gotten a couple more drinks into his system, Ianto would start with the leading questions.
“So where d’you work?”
“Nearby. Not interesting.” (That, at least, was what the words appeared to be after Ianto translated the alcohol-fuelled slurring.)
“Is work ever interesting? Mine’s a complete bore. Boss is impossible to work with.”
“Hah, mine’s worse.”
“Mine keeps expecting everyone to do what he says, but he never does any work himself.”
“Mine hits on anything with a pulse.”
“File a sexual harassment suit.”
“Never go anywhere.”
“Hm. Mine takes two month’s vacation every year, and the rest of us get a week’s.”
“Hah! Mine just buggered off god knows where without telling us!”
“Mine’s despotic.”
“Des-wha?”
“Despotic. None of my colleagues like him at all.”
“We like ours though.”
“He doesn’t sound very nice.”
“Hey! He’s nice, Jack’s nice, nicest guy in the world!”
“Is he now?”
“He shaved me.” (Ianto mentally substituted ‘saved’ for ‘shaved.’) “After me Katie died. Shaved us all. ‘Cept Gwen maybe.”
“Your colleagues think that way too?”
“Yeah. Yeah. Maybe. Yeah.”
“Well, all right then.”
“But he shouldn’t have buggered off like that.”
“… Are you pouting?”
Having worked whatever information he could out of Owen, he’d slip half a Retcon tablet into Owen’s drink. That would be just enough to erase his memory of that night - which, given the amount of alcohol he’d imbibed, he wouldn’t think twice about. Ianto’s contrived meetings with Owen revealed to him that the team was working through some anger (at Jack’s having left), guilt (for betraying him in some way, but no amount of alcohol got that out of Owen, and it wasn’t like Jack had had time to explain everything to Ianto), frustration (at not knowing what to do because Jack had run everything) and determination (to have things organised for when (if) Jack got back).
At least they seemed to be pulling together. They did seem rather short-handed, though. Ianto had taken to strolling through the Plass as often as he could, and whenever he caught sight of one of the three Torchwood members, they inevitably looked exhausted.
But not near breaking. He’d recognise that look if he saw it. He’d worn it, once upon a time.
The Tourist Office was open. Ianto considered that for a moment, tapping the bouquet of flowers he was carrying against his chin. Then he gave in to the little imp on his shoulder and entered.
“Oh!” said the slender Japanese woman behind the counter. “I mean - um, welcome?”
Ianto smiled at her. Toshiko Sato, of course. He recognised her from the photographs Jack had shown him. “Afternoon,” he said. “Tourist Information Centre, right?”
“Right,” she said nervously. “But if you’ll pardon me saying, you sound Welsh - what can I do for you?”
“I am indeed Welsh,” Ianto said. “And I was hoping to pick up a few suitably Welsh souvenirs for a friend who’s come up from Australia.” He gestured with the flowers. “I’ve got flowers for her mother - I thought I’d get her a plushie or some such.”
“Oh,” Toshiko squeaked, looking around. Ianto didn’t bother to do the same. The cover wasn’t any more convincing now than it had been when Jack had been around.
“Seems like you’re waiting on new stock or something?” he asked, raising an eyebrow.
“Yes!” she said. “Yes, that’s it. Um. We don’t get much funding.”
Ianto sighed. “Pity, that. I don’t suppose you have any ideas where I could get some souvenirs?”
“I, uh -” she said eloquently.
“I’ll have a look around elsewhere,” Ianto said diplomatically. He glanced her over. “It’s probably very tactless of me to say this, but you look very tired…”
“Lots of work recently,” Toshiko said. “Uh, trying to talk people into, you know, um, helping us sort out the tourists.”
Ianto smiled. “Can be a bit of a pain dealing with bureaucrats at times,” he said. “Here.” He plucked a yellow rose out of the bouquet and gave it to her. She accepted it in a bit of a daze. “For a beautiful lady.”
He left the Centre (passing by a pizza delivery man on the way, which explained why it had been open) before Toshiko could quite marshal her wits again. He even waited until he’d left the area altogether (and was halfway to his foster mother’s place with the bouquet he’d impulsively picked up for her) before he deigned to laugh.
It was in the middle of June that he got the call.
It was also in the middle of a meeting. As such, he let the call go to voicemail. Once the meeting had ended, he checked his inbox and waited only so long as the first two words took to reach his ears, before disconnecting and dialling a familiar number.
“Hullo, sir,” he said.
“Hey, Ianto,” Jack said, voice warm but tentative. “Got my message?”
“Well,” Ianto said. “I suppose you could say that.”
“What’s that supposed to mean?” Jack asked warily.
“I got it,” Ianto said. “But I only got as far as ‘Hi, Ianto,’ before I hung up and called you.”
A laugh. “Right. So. Uh, guess you’re at work?”
“Right in one,” Ianto said. “I’ll be home maybe around eight.”
“Okay,” Jack said. “I’ll, um. Be there. Or something. Should go see where the team’s gone off to. Shouldn’t take this long to find a blowfish, right?”
“I imagine not,” Ianto said. “Unless it’s on drugs.”
“They always are,” Jack said. “Ianto?”
“Yes, sir?”
“Are we, um, good?” Jack asked.
“Why wouldn’t we be?” Ianto said.
“Just - you know. Four months.”
“We’re good, sir,” Ianto said, a small smile on his lips. “I won’t deny I’ve missed you, though.”
“Me too,” Jack said. There was a touch too much desperation and fervency in his voice. Something, Ianto thought, had obviously happened.
“I’ll see you later,” Ianto said. “Why don’t you go track down your errant team in the meantime?”
“Okay,” Jack said. “Okay. I’ll see you later.”
“Of course.”
Three hours had never felt so long.
Jack was collapsed on his bed when Ianto got back home. He stood there looking at the mottled bruising all down the older man’s back for a while, then quietly padded off to his own room. He hung up the light jacket he was wearing, and changed into a pair of sweatpants. Shirtless, he headed into the kitchen to put the kettle on. The collar was a reassuring weight around his neck.
While the tea steeped, Ianto tossed together a few sandwiches using some leftover roast meat and cheese. He ate one of the sandwiches quickly while pouring and sweetening the drinks. Then he carefully arranged the cups and food on a tray, and headed into the bedroom.
He thought for a moment, then set down the tray well away from Jack, before attempting to wake up his lover.
The flailing limbs weren’t really a surprise, and Ianto very prudently removed himself from their immediate vicinity. It took a few long seconds for Jack to register who it was in the room with him.
“Ianto,” he finally managed to get out, wincing as he sat up properly.
“Evening, sir,” Ianto said. “Have you had dinner yet?”
Jack gave him an incredulous look.
“I made sandwiches,” Ianto said, gesturing. He pulled out a pillow, plumped it up, and propped it along the headboard. “Lamb and cheese. All there was, I’m afraid. I’ll need to go shopping tomorrow.”
“No questions?” Jack asked, leaning against the pillow gingerly.
“Well, there is a burning question I have,” Ianto admitted, bringing over the tray. “Are you up to fucking me tonight?”
Jack laughed. “I’m always up for that,” he said, leering playfully at Ianto.
“Excellent,” Ianto said, rubbing his hands together in mock glee. “Eat up, then. You’ll need your strength.”
“So really,” Jack said, settling the tray on his lap and picking up a sandwich. “No questions? You don’t want to know what I’ve been doing all this time?”
“You’ll tell me if you want to,” Ianto said, picking up one of the cups of tea for himself. “That’s good enough for me.”
Jack gifted him with a small, sweet smile. “I don’t think I can talk about it just yet,” he said. “It was a little over a year for me. I spent most of it dying.”
Ianto slid a little closer to Jack on the bed.
“But you know, it’s actually been a day for me since I called you?” Jack said.
“And here I could have sworn it was only a few hours,” Ianto said.
“Another time thing,” Jack said. “As if I hadn’t already escaped one time paradox. Anyway, an ex of mine showed up wanting help.”
“And?”
“Tried to get rid of him, but he spun this tale about cluster bombs,” Jack explained through a mouthful of bread and meat. Ianto decided against scolding him, just this once. “Turned out it was just a scam in the end. Tossed the bomb through the tear in the Rift and it exploded and sent us back in time by a day, to when the tear had first formed.”
“Complicated,” Ianto observed.
“I guess,” Jack said, shrugging. “He shoved me off a building. John Hart, I mean, my ex. Used to be my partner in the Time Agency.”
“Ah,” Ianto said. He set his empty cup down on the tray. “Makes sense now.”
Jack smiled. “Yeah. We got caught in a time loop once. Two weeks, over and over for five years. Fantastic at first, we got to do a whole bunch of things we couldn’t have done otherwise. But after a while we really wanted to kill each other.”
Ianto laughed. “Couldn’t get away from each other, could you?”
“No,” Jack said, drawing out the word. “Plus, you know, he was always a bit annoying. Good sex, but other than that -”
“Should I be jealous?” Ianto asked archly.
“I’m different now to what I was then,” Jack said. “John - doesn’t appeal, not anymore. And by the way, you don’t have to be jealous of anyone for as long as you’re alive.”
Ianto smiled slightly and lay his head down on Jack’s shoulder as Jack polished off the last of his food and tea. With a contented sigh, Jack put the tray onto the bedside table, then rolled over onto Ianto.
“Now then,” he said. “You mentioned something about fucking?”
They were both up early the next morning - Ianto, because he needed to get to work to study some of the fresh results the team had just gotten in, and Jack, because Ianto was up.
“So,” Jack said casually, watching with darkened eyes as Ianto slipped on his collar before buttoning up his shirt. “Want to come work for me?”
Ianto paused. “I’m sorry,” he said. “I could’ve sworn you just asked me to come work for you.”
“I did,” Jack said.
“Thought you were dead set against that?” Ianto enquired, buckling his belt.
“I was,” Jack said. “But you want to, don’t you?”
“Oh yes,” Ianto admitted. “I’d love to be part of the team, but not if it’ll bother you.”
Jack sighed. “Terrifies me,” he said. “You still up for no fieldwork, just Hub-based and archival stuff?”
“Perfectly fine by me,” Ianto said.
“Because when I was talking to the team before,” Jack said. “It seemed like a lot of their problems could have been solved if they’d had access to some of the older data from the archives. Stuff that hasn’t yet been computerised. Only, none of us have time to put it together.”
“I am rather obsessively organised,” Ianto pointed out.
“I know,” Jack said, smiling. “So, how about it? Want to come get our archives in order, keep us all organised and up-to-date?”
“Glorified office boy,” Ianto said. “Sounds lovely.”
“Was that sarcasm or honesty?” Jack wondered out loud.
“Bit of both,” Ianto said. “I’ll give in my resignation today.”
Jack beamed at him.
All the same, they had to wait a month before Ianto could leave his job. A lot happened in that month, including the discovery of an alien sleeper cell and Tommy’s re-awakening and subsequent departure. Toshiko, Jack told Ianto glumly, hadn’t taken that too well.
Every Sunday, the team usually met up in the morning to discuss any new developments that might be of interest. The first Sunday of July, Jack waited until the rest of the team was done, then stood up and cleared his throat.
“Starting tomorrow,” he said. “We’ll be having a new team member.”
They stared at him in consternation.
“His name’s Ianto Jones,” Jack said. “He’s going to be our new Archivist.”
“Why can I hear the capitalisation in that word?” Toshiko asked.
“Because anyone who can make sense of our archives deserves a little recognition,” Jack told her, grinning broadly as Toshiko shrugged in acceptance. “So, Ianto. He’s twenty-five years old, and thus far, has been working at Cardiff University. Honours in Astrophysics, and doing research in that field with a team there. Anything else you’d like to know?”
“Why him?” Owen asked bluntly.
“Because he’s smart enough to follow what Tosh talks about and sarcastic enough to cross swords with you,” Jack said, leaning on the edge of the table. “And he already believes in the possibility of aliens, but unlike our usual quacks he wants to prove that scientifically. Plus,” Jack added with a wink. “He’s cute.”
“Of course he is,” Owen sighed.
“Are we not doing the usual tests then?” Toshiko asked cautiously.
“Nope,” Jack said. “He knows how to keep his mouth shut. I’ve known him for a while now, was thinking about bringing him in even before I - left.”
“Are you sure about this, Jack?” Gwen asked. “What happened to all the secrecy stuff?”
“Have to get in fresh team members every so often, right?” Jack said. “How do you think you got in?”
Which seemed to settle it. Jack knew his team would reserve judgement until they’d met Ianto for themselves, but he wasn’t worried. None of them knew Ianto’s secret weapon… and once the rest of the team had had a taste of Ianto’s coffee, they’d all be in his thrall.
On the seventh of July, Ianto began his first day at work. He and Jack arrived at seven. Toshiko, Jack explained, usually got in around eight, and Owen and Gwen would arrive at some point before nine.
While they had the Hub to themselves, Jack brought Ianto down to the archives. Ianto had passed by them plenty of times before, but he’d never stopped to examine the place in any great detail. It would need… a lot of work.
“I’ll pay you extra,” Jack said, looking around.
Ianto made a vaguely horrified sound in response.
“Well,” Jack said. “Think of it as job security.”
Ianto gave him a thoroughly dirty look. Jack smiled apologetically.
“I was wondering,” Jack said. “This isn’t in your official duties, but would you be willing to take over things like feeding the Vault residents? Don’t do overtime - just take the time out from the archival work, and it’s okay if that’s slowed down as a result - but it’d free the rest of us up for more fieldwork. We can actually go out in pairs that way, be safer.”
“It’s fine by me,” Ianto said. “How about I’ll just handle all the day-to-day things? Do that first thing in the morning, then work on the archives after?”
“Sure?” Jack said. “It’s a lot more work than it sounds like.”
“I’ll let you know if it’s too much,” Ianto said. “I’m rather looking forward to it, actually.”
“Okay,” Jack said, smiling. Above them, the entrance alarm blared. “That’ll be Tosh,” Jack said. “Want to go say hi?”
“I wonder if she’ll recognise me,” Ianto mused out loud, and despite Jack’s prodding, steadfastly refused to explain all the way back up.
As it turned out, Toshiko did recognise Ianto, if her “It’s you!” was anything to go by.
“Hullo,” Ianto said, stepping forward to shake her hand. “Nice to properly meet you. Ianto Jones.”
“Toshiko Sato,” she said, automatically taking his hand. “You’re the one - with the flower -”
“Mm, yes,” Ianto said. “Mind, I wasn’t expecting all this.” It wasn’t exactly a lie; he hadn’t been expecting Jack to allow him to join, after all.
“Well, thank you for the flower,” Toshiko said, blushing slightly. “It was just what I needed.”
“Flower?” Jack asked curiously, leaning against Toshiko’s workstation. “What’s all this about, then?”
“It was while you were - gone,” Tosh said, throwing Ianto an awkward look. “Um, I was up in the Tourist Centre waiting on a food delivery, and he came in looking for some souvenirs.”
“Ah,” Jack said, giving Ianto a smile rich with amusement. Ianto gave him a perfectly bland look in response. “And the flower?”
“Had a bouquet with me, for Eleri,” Ianto said. Jack nodded. “Ms Sato looked a bit stressed, so I gave her a flower out of it.”
“Just Toshiko,” Toshiko interrupted. “Or Tosh, everyone calls me that.”
“Ah, all right,” Ianto said.
“And really, thanks for the flower,” Toshiko said. “Been a really long day and I was completely out of it.”
“Such a pretty girl deserves flowers every day of the week,” Jack declared grandly.
“I’ll put it on your expenses then, sir,” Ianto said, arching an eyebrow.
“My personal expenses,” Jack said. “My brilliant girl does deserve a nice bouquet. Or would you prefer something else, Tosh?”
“What?” Toshiko asked, blushing. “You’re - I mean, I don’t need anything.”
“But I want to give you something,” Jack said, pouting. “And it’ll be flowers unless there’s something else you want more.”
“I’m told you can’t go wrong with flowers and chocolate,” Ianto said. “Of course, that’s usually romantic advice, so I’m not sure how applicable it is here. Would you like some anyway, Tosh?”
“No, really, I don’t need anything,” Toshiko insisted, her face nice and red now. The entrance alarm saved her from any further interrogation.
“Huh, they’re early,” Jack said, watching as Owen and Gwen entered together. “They never come in this early.”
“Curious about Ianto, I expect,” Toshiko said, smiling at him. He shrugged minutely, and straightened his fitted blazer as Gwen and Owen came over.
“You the new guy, then?” Owen asked, glancing Ianto over.
“Ianto Jones,” he said politely, holding out a hand. Owen shook it perfunctorily.
“Doctor Owen Harper,” he said.
“We’ve met,” Ianto said, enjoying the way Jack startled.
“Say what?” Owen said. “No, we haven’t. I’ve never seen you before in my life.”
“Well, you were rather, shall we say, tipsy,” Ianto said dryly. “At Bar Farsight? You threw up on me.”
“Um,” Owen said, his face reddening slightly. Jack was trying and failing to hide his laughter behind his hand. Toshiko wasn’t faring much better.
“No hard feelings,” Ianto assured him.
“Don’t tell me you’ve met Gwen as well,” Jack said, grinning hugely.
“Can’t say I have,” Ianto said, turning to the last member of the team.
“Gwen Cooper,” she said, smiling in amusement.
“Pleasure,” he said, then glanced around. “I was just going to go get some coffee going. Anyone want some?”
Jack clasped his hands together and gave Ianto his best pleading look.
“Other than you, sir,” Ianto said.
“The truth comes out,” Jack said. “I really only hired you for your coffee.”
“See what you’ll be saying when I’ve taken over this place,” Ianto said. “Everyone knows the secretaries are always the ones in power.”
The team laughed at that, and Jack was pleased to see that they were already relaxing around Ianto. When Ianto returned with his magic coffee, he cemented his position there as far as they were concerned.
No one wanted to get on Ianto’s bad side and lose out on the coffee.
Part Four