Title: Filling the Emptiness
Author: SmilingKitsune
Summary: Ianto and the blonde's conversation and what happened after Jack and Gwen left.
Disclaimer: I don't own the characters; if I did I'd have taken better care of them then RTD.
"Are you alright?" Amber asked stunned, jumping up to help him into a seat.
"Fine, I'm fine," he replied waving off her concern grabbing gratefully at the coffee she'd had waiting for him. "It wasn't what I'd expected but the issue has been dealt with," he informed her after taking a hearty, refreshing sip noting her doubting look.
"So, it was really…?" she didn't really finish asking still unwilling to believe what she'd seen but he nodded knowing what she was asking after. It was a common reaction he was coming to find and he didn't blame them.
His only issue was the familiarity he held with his cases, like he'd done this before, but surely he'd remember?
"How long have you been doing this?" she asked casually waving a waitress over to order a bagel.
He gave a small amused smile. "Not long. I woke up not too long ago from a coma and was wandering around feeling like I was missing something— important and just kind of… fell into it. It filled that empty spot and now it's my main focus."
She looked at him surprised. "Mr. Jones, you don't mean to tell me they are more common then I'm thinking are you?" she asked almost horrified.
"Oh, but they are although they aren't all bad. Just last week I went to a crash site and met with a lovely race known as the Lethidges. They were very polite and extraordinarily beautiful. I helped fix their transportation and they continued on their way."
She stared at him in awe.
"The 21st century is when everything changes and we have to be ready," he said as if it was an explanation.
She chuckled, "Now you sound like a bad sci-fi movie."
He felt surprised by his own words, "I have no clue where that came from," he confessed to her.
She waved it away," But really, aliens are a common occurrence?"
"Yes, there are apparently several organizations that are designed to especially deal with them. My own movements were noticed recently and one such group tracked me down. I now work as a freelance agent for them, when not busy otherwise, to look into some rumors and handle delicate situations better dealt with by one person than an army," he informed her.
She quirked an eyebrow, "Should you be telling me this?" she asked teasingly.
"Who are you going to tell Ms. Unit Soldier?" he asked half-amused.
"What gave me away?" she asked interested.
He shrugged and finished his coffee, "Tell your superiors I expect my paycheck sometime soon, my hospital bills are starting to grow," he told her standing up giving a small nod to conclude the end of their meeting.
As he entered the streets his phone rang and he deftly opened it, pressing it to his ear as he weaved through the crowded streets. "Yes?"
"This is he," he proclaimed after a moment's pause.
After several minutes of listening he gave a determined nod of his head. "Do you know where the Café Blue is? Good, good. Meet me there tomorrow. We'll discuss this more then and if I fully commit then we'll discuss payment. Yes, tomorrow morning then. Until then."
He slipped his phone back into his pocket whistling tunelessly, he had something to look into now he thought anticipating his next moves. He could use some of his local contacts to send out probes on the probability of this being a real case, he mused thoughtfully. The whistling changed to a Glenn Miller song for some reason and he felt a pang.
He'd lied to Amber.
Not all the emptiness had been filled but alien hunting helped and with that thought he moved on determined. He'd find it someday, that one thing that'd fill the rest of the emptiness.
The End