Fic - Stuck On The Slow Path
Title: Stuck On the Slow Path
Author: szm
Pairing: Jack/Ianto
Rating: G
Written for the Timestamp meme (feel free to go and leave me a prompt).
Prompt by vipersweb It didn't start like this - after Parting of Ways (let me know if this is just too darn difficult.)
“I give life”
Ianto heard Rose’s voice in his head, and Jacks gasp mingled with his own. He held himself very still, trying to adjust to the sensation of being alive when he was sure he’d been dead. Jack moved across his peripheral vision and ran his hand though the pile of dust that was all that left of the Dalek that had killed them. Jack looked up at Ianto shock clearly etched on his face. Slowly Jack broke into a grin; he wiped his hand on his trousers and offered Ianto his hand. Ianto took it and was pulled up and into a hug. He clung to Jack. He remembered the sound of the beam and the smell of burnt flesh and ozone. He remembered Jack falling and the gun being re-aimed at him. He remembered hoping Lisa was okay. He remembered dieing.
The sound of the TARDIS’ engines drifted towards them and Jack was suddenly gone, racing towards the sound. Ianto chased after him but they were too late. The TARDIS was disappearing from view as they arrived.
Jack just slumped to the floor. Ianto had never seen anyone look so utterly broken.
**
You would think that it would get easier. The amount of times Jack had come back from the dead, it should get easier. But it didn’t.
His lungs filled with air and he let out a startled gasp as he noticed the bottle sticking out of his stomach. No prizes for guessing how it happened this time then. He braced himself and pulled the bottle out, tossing it across the alleyway. That was when he noticed the two women at the other end of the alley.
He smiled at them and started on the crude innuendo that was usually so good at chasing people of this time away. Particularly the relatively high class ladies these two seemed to be. Of course he had to revise that opinion when the first blow landed. Jack, still groggy from death and alcohol, stumbled hard into the wall behind him.
Which promptly exploded. Jack was hit on the back of the head by the concussive force of the blast and a large piece of wall. He died again.
When Jack came round this time he was lying on a hard surface. It was gently rocking which indicted some kind of ship. He opened his eyes to see Ianto sitting not far away reading a book.
“Welcome back, Captain,” he said calmly, licking his finger and turning the page
“Where am I?” croaked Jack.
“On an Abbey Line freight ship out of Cardiff bay. I’m afraid I don’t know the heading. There’s a canteen of water to your left.” Ianto turned the page again.
Jack groped for the canteen; bringing it to his lips and gulping down nearly half in one go. “Get them to turn the ship round.”
“You know better than that Jack. Too much money riding on this trip. They can’t just ‘turn it around’. Besides you need to stay out of Cardiff for a while.”
“I need to find the Doctor,” replied Jack stubbornly.
“He left us Jack. Throwing yourself at the rift isn’t going to change that. I told you we need to stay away from Torchwood. I don’t know about you but I don’t want them to start testing our apparent immortality.” Ianto licked his finger again to turn the next page of his book. Jack ripped it from his hands and threw it across the dimly lit space. It skittered across the floor into the shadows.
“There’s got to be a reason. He wouldn’t just leave me… us. And I can avoid Torchwood, I’m not stupid.” Jack was aware that his voice was rising in volume.
Ianto rose to his feet, crowding into Jack’s space and poking the other man in the chest with his finger. “I’m not having this argument with you again Jack. He. Left. Us. And you were trying so hard to avoid Torchwood. Getting drunk all over Cardiff and spouting off about how ‘the Doctor’ was going to fix you? That is not in any sense ‘lying low’. Who do you think the two women in the alley were? If I hadn’t come in when I did…” Ianto trailed off.
“I’m sorry Ianto, I have to find him. I have to know. Even if the answers not something I want to hear.” Jack spoke softly watching Ianto’s face. The younger man searched Jack’s eyes.
“You’re going back to Cardiff?” he asked, even though it wasn’t a question.
Jack nodded. “I have to,” he repeated quietly.
“I can’t Jack. I can’t hang around just hoping he’ll come back. I’m not going to do that to myself. I’m not going to be there to bail you out again.”
Jack grinned. “You said that last time.”
Ianto’s features set into a familiar stubborn pattern. “This time I mean it Jack. Please stay away from Torchwood. Please.”
Jack pulled Ianto into a hug and they sat together on the floor. Jack pointedly not making any promises.
“I was enjoying that book,” admonished Ianto gently.
Jack chuckled, pressing a light kiss to Ianto’s forehead. “I’m sorry.”
“No you’re not,” countered Ianto with a smile.
“How long are we going to be on this boat then?” asked Jack. Trailing kisses over Ianto’s face.
“Ship,” corrected Ianto automatically. “And I really have no idea. I didn’t have time to check the heading. Torchwood has the power to stop all the ships leaving the harbour. We had to get away before that happened.”
Jack hummed his agreement in the back of his throat as he leaned in to kiss Ianto properly. Ianto kissed him back and it was amazing, like kissing Ianto always was. Jack wished in that moment that it was enough. That he could just travel the slow path with Ianto and not need with every fibre of his being to know why he’d been cast aside.
But he did. He needed to find the Doctor, to know why, or he’d never find any peace.