AN: Written as a request from a friend for the help_haiti auction to raise money for the Haiti victims.
This is set in my Blood Series verse but a long way in the future after all things link to the Torchwood series have passed. I've also been careful not to include anything spoilery for the rest of the Blood Series that's still to come in Year of Blood or the following sequels.

Chapter One

The space port swarmed with people, and not all of them human. Alien life was a common sight and half the moon's colony was populated by non humans. Jack Harkness stood to one side of the arrivals lounge, watching the flow of passengers make their way through the doors.

Last time he'd been there he'd been seeing Ianto off; it hadn't been a fun occasion and he hated saying goodbye to his mate. He'd not expected to be back until it was time to pick Ianto up again, but he was and he was about as happy about it as he had been the last time.

Someone in the government had ordered him to pick up a VIP; him specifically, so he couldn't even pass the task to one of his team members. To say was irritated at the instructions was an understatement; no one had had the balls to order him around for centuries. He wasn't sure who the other had come from, only that it held the Government's seal so it was legit. But as soon as he figured out who had sent the orders, he would be having serious words with them.

He didn't even know who he was supposed to be meeting. For a while he had hoped it would be Ianto, but as the shuttle landed the fuzzy feeling through their bond - brought on by being so far away from each other - didn't change. Ianto wasn't on the shuttle; which only made his mood worse if he was being honest. The only thing he'd been told was to be there at a certain time; Jack had gotten there early and, since his arrival, two shuttles had come in and still no one had approached him.

He assumed whoever he was going to pick up knew what he looked like, or he could be standing there all day and still not find them. He was a pretty well known face on Earth; most people would recognise him, even if they couldn't remember why he looked familiar.

He was the man whose 'ancestors' introduced alien life to the world and brought Torchwood out into the public's awareness. The man whose 'ancestors' had been running Torchwood since it became public and was one of the most powerful and influential men on the planet. There were even rumours of genetic manipulation since he, his father and his grandfather all looked strangely identical.

Jack never could understand why people wouldn't believe what was right in front of them. Ianto thought it was hilarious, especially since he managed to use his 'masks and shadow' tricks from the old days to merge into the background and often go unnoticed by the public. Dexter, Arabella and the others tended to just stay out of the spotlight better than Jack did. But, being head of the Torchwood organisation meant that there was only so often he could get away with hiding - and it apparently wasn't enough.

The Government weren't that stupid, at least; they knew exactly who Jack and Ianto were. Just as they knew who the high ranking Pirask were. That was another reason why being ordered around had pissed Jack off.

Jack jumped in surprise as a delicate hand came to rest on his arm. He'd been so lost in thought that he hadn't been paying attention to the arrivals and never noticed the woman approach His eyes snapped up and he was surprised to find himself looking into a pair of achingly familiar eyes.

"Hello, Uncle Jack," she smiled softly.

"Lizzy?" Jack blurted out in surprise, "What are you doing here?" he asked, pulling his fifteen year old 'niece' into his arms. She'd grown so much since he'd last seen her. He'd been working at Christmas the year before, so he hadn't seen her for almost two years. Sure, he'd talked to her on the vid phone several times since then, but it wasn't the same.

"Can we go somewhere to talk? Please, Uncle Jack," Lizzy asked nervously.

"Of course. But I'm supposed to be meeting someone here," Jack replied, scanning the area to see that most of the crowd had gone. With dawning realisation, he turned back to stare accusingly at Lizzy.

"I hacked the system, told them I was someone else. I didn't want there to be any trace of my coming here," Lizzy said, rocking on her heels as she tried to look innocent; Jack was sure she'd learnt that from Arabella.

"I knew I'd live to regret the day Ianto and Dexter taught you how to use a computer," Jack muttered, ignoring the way her eyes lit up in pride and amusement at the compliment.

Jack eyed her for a moment. "You're fifteen, Lizzy; you shouldn't be here on your own." He could tell that something was wrong and she was trying to hide it.

"I know, Uncle Jack. I'm sorry, but it was important and I really needed to see you."

Jack sighed, glancing around at the crowded port, "Let's go. I know a nice little coffee shop we can stop at and you can tell me what the hell you're doing here."

Jack and Lizzy sat themselves down at one of the outside tables; Jack subtly activating a privacy bubble around them, knowing it was the right thing to do when Lizzy smiled at him in gratitude.

Jack watched as she sat quietly, watching her stir her hot chocolate, seemingly lost in thought. There was an sadness in her young eyes that bothered Jack; he hated that he didn't know what had caused it, and it didn't look like she was ready to tell him about it. She reminded him so much of her father; quiet and collected, always keeping her problems to herself, trying to sort them out on her own before she even considered asking someone for help.

To look at her though, she was the spitting image of her mother; long white-blonde hair and pale skin, which was kept pale by living on the moon. But it was her father's eyes that looked out at Jack from under her fringe. It was her father's personality she had taken on, which Jack was eternally grateful for; he couldn't stand her mother. Henever had and it wasn't hard to see the feeling was mutual.

When Ianto had come home from work one day and told him he'd met someone, Jack had been happy for his mate. Ianto hadn't had a relationship outside of Jack for almost a century; not since his last husband had cheated on him and run off.

Ianto had dated and worked with the woman for four years, before proposing. Then he'd introduced Jack to Cathalin and the hatred between them was instant.

Unfortunately for Jack, Ianto had already fallen for her and he wanted his mate happy, so he put up with her or simply avoided her, spending his time with Ianto when she wasn't around. With current anti-aging technology, the Pirask could stay with their human husband or wife for around twenty years, before needing to fake their death and disappear. Jack could share Ianto with a woman he hated for a mere twenty years; he would have his mate for millennias and she might have hated Jack, but she clearly loved Ianto and she treated him well.

Then the shielding project Ianto and Cathalin had both worked so hard on was transferred to the moon colony; meaning Ianto, Cathalin and five year old Lizzy had to move as well. Jack had stayed on Earth to make things easier for everyone; everyone except him. Ianto and his family could live happily without the tension that him and Cathalin being in the same area caused, and Ianto expected Jack to find himself a partner to keep him company until they could be together completely again. But he hadn't found anyone, so when Ianto moved away he found himself alone. He'd dated a few people over the years, but nothing lasted more than a few months.

Every year he'd go to the moon for Christmas, Cathalin would tolerate him on the day, then she and Lizzy would go to spend Boxing Day with her friends; all the while thinking that Ianto was at work and Jack had flown out in the morning. Jack never left until the evening and Ianto never worked, which gave them the day alone together - usually in an expensive hotel in a neighbouring colony. Ianto would fly down alone to Earth for their mating anniversary and their most recent wedding anniversary, under the pretence of work so they could be together. The rest of the time they would have to keep their relationship simmering through vid calls or brief visits, but usually Cathalin was there and they couldn't truly be together.

It wasn't enough, but it was all they could have with them having their jobs and lives on separate 'planets'. Ironically, Jack got to spend more time alone with Lizzy who had been coming to stay with him for a week every school break. Apparently, Cathalin didn't have a problem with Jack near Lizzy, only Ianto; Jack suspected he'd slipped at some point and given his feelings for Ianto away, which was why Cathalin hated him so much. She clearly saw him as a threat. Lizzy, however, had always seen him as her favourite uncle and she was more like a daughter to him than a niece.

"So, have you got somewhere to stay tonight, or did you plan to crash with me?" Jack asked when it seemed like Lizzy wasn't ready to start talking.

"I was thinking you might like some company while I was planet side," Lizzy grinned teasingly at him, glad to be away from the topic of her reason for visiting.

Jack sipped his coffee; it wasn't bad but he still missed Ianto's. "What makes you think I need company? Dana could be over tonight," Jack replied.

When Lizzy laughed, Jack was relieved to see it was genuine. "Uncle Jack, Tad bet Dexter £200 that you were 'working' over Christmas because you and Dana had broken up and you didn't want to have to tell him yet."

"Oh, he did, did he?" Jack muttered.

"Yep, and then he took us out for a nice dinner a week later."

Jack continued to sip his coffee for a minute. Of course Ianto would have figured it out; he never could hide anything from his mate. Jack glanced over the rim of his coffee mug to see Lizzy looking at him smugly; she'd gotten that look from her father too it would seem.

"You're welcome to stay with me-,"

Lizzy smirked.

"-as long as you tell me what you're doing here,"

Lizzy's smirk dropped.

Jack eyed her as she stirred her hot chocolate, once again lost in thought. "Tad's in trouble, Uncle Jack; he needs your help. He's getting careless at work and he's not sleeping, I'm worried he's going to get himself hurt. I just don't know what to do to help him."

Jack smiled at his niece; as far as she knew her father was a normal human just like her mother was. When she was a little older, Ianto would make the decision to tell her the truth about him or not. Jack had seen Ianto stubbornly get drawn into one of his projects before; he did look after himself just not to human standards. Using blood to keep him and his Rask nourished and healthy meant he needed less sleep, but Lizzy didn't know that.

"Lizzy you're still a kid, it's not up to you to look after your parents. Sometimes they just need to sort things out for themselves. Your tad's tougher and smarter than you've ever seen him," Jack began, trying to ease her worries.

"I know my tad, Uncle Jack! It's different this time since the accident; he-," Lizzy began, only to be cut off as Jack's phone rang. Jack cursed, reaching into his jacket pocket and answering the phone, he listened to the worried voice on the other end before answering and ending the call with a frustrated growl.

"Damnit! I'm so sorry, Lizzy; I've got to go," Jack said as he stood and slipped the house keys into her hands. Leaning over he pressed a kiss to her forehead, "I'll bring home something for dinner tonight, and I promise I'll call your tad; but I'm sure he'll be fine. He's got your mum to take care of him, after all."

Lizzy stared after Jack as he ran off down the road, his coat swirling around him. Sad and confused tears clouding her eyes as she watched him go. "How can you not know? I sent you the letter can you not know that Mam's dead?" she whispered to herself.