Jack sat on the deck of the Valiant and looked out over the horizon. UNIT had finished getting the Master's overrides down and they would be landing soon. He still couldn't believe that the entire year had reversed itself. He heard someone come up behind him and sit beside him. He knew it was the Doctor before he spoke. "I can take you to him. Prove to you that he is actually alive."
"I don't know who you're talking about," Jack said, never turning his gaze to the Doctor.
"Ianto," the Doctor said as Jack closed his eyes. "The Master took great pleasure in displaying what he did to that young man. It was on all the monitors. I saw him kill your Ianto. I saw you scream out his name. It was the only time the Master broke you. I knew he must have been someone special. You wouldn't have reacted that way if it had been me."
Jack got up and walked over to the edge of the deck. The Doctor followed him and put a hand on his shoulder. "Ianto Jones, survivor of Torchwood One and Canary Warf."
Jack finally looked at the older man. "How did you know that?"
"I met him," the Doctor explained. "After Rose was sucked through the void, I saw him wandering through the halls. He was a bit dazed. He had blood on his suit. Kept saying it wasn't his, it was Lisa's."
Jack closed his eyes again. "Lisa was his girlfriend. She was converted by the Cybermen, only they didn't finish the process. He took her to Cardiff and kept her in the basement of Torchwood Three. She got loose and I had to kill her."
"But not him."
Jack just shook his head. "I should have. Torchwood protocol states that if an employee commits a betrayal like that it's an automatic execution. I couldn't. Deep down inside I understood why he couldn't let her go even though he knew she wasn't Lisa anymore. And, God help me, I was already falling in love with him."
The Doctor looked at him for a moment. "You really are in love with him. I never thought I would see the day when Jack Harkness fell in love."
Jack smiled a little. "Neither did I. After the Game Station I made a point not to fall in love. I knew it would hurt too much to watch the person I loved wither and die while I stayed the same. I've already lived through Ianto's death once, Doctor. I'm not sure if I can do it again."
"Can you live with not seeing him?" the Doctor asked as Jack started to cry. "Can you honestly stand here and tell me that you can walk away from that young man and never tell him that you love him? You've been given a second chance, Jack. Not all of us are that lucky."
"You never told Rose?"
The Doctor just shook his head. "I had a chance. Burnt out a sun just to say goodbye, but I talk too much. I ran out of time before I could tell her. Imagine that, a Time Lord running out of time."
Jack looked at the sky. "There's something else I never told him. Something I never told you either, come to think of it."
"Jack, I already know about 51st Century physiology. What happened before you jumped onto the side of the Tardis?"
Jack told him about the events that led up to him hearing the engines of the ship he had been waiting for. The Doctor decided that he would accompany Jack back to the HUB. They dropped Martha and her family off in London, then they went to Cardiff.
Ianto was heading towards the tourist office when he thought he heard the Tardis. He had heard that sound before, so when they had searched the CCTV to see what had happened to Jack, he knew his Captain had gone with the Doctor. He went over to the perception filter and waited. He let out a breath he didn't realize he had been holding when Jack stepped into view. Before he knew what was happening, he was in the older man's arms.
Jack's hold on Ianto was so tight the younger man was almost unable to breathe. "Jack, let him go," he heard the Doctor say. "He needs to breathe."
Jack released Ianto and looked at him for a long moment. Then he kissed him. Ianto was surprised by the passion in the kiss, but he couldn't pull away. When they finally parted, Ianto looked at the Doctor. "Doctor."
"Ianto," the Doctor said with a slight nod. "Jack needs to talk to you about quite a few things. I think the only place you will be able to do so without interruption is if you come back to mine. Is anyone expecting you?"
Ianto touched his comm.. "Tosh, I've been delayed. No everything is fine. I'll let you know when I'm coming back to the HUB. I'll tell him."
Ianto looked at Jack. "She saw you on CCTV. She told me to tell you welcome back and that she will distract the others."
Jack nodded and the Doctor led them back to the Tardis. Ianto resisted the urge to comment on the fact that the ship was bigger on the inside. Instead he chose to focus on Jack. "Where did you go?"