"We can't have secrets, Jack. It won't do any -"

"That's kinda rich, don't ya think?"

Ianto glared, his jaw set. "That's kind of low, don't you think?" he bit out, then turned on his heel and marched smartly out of Jack's office.

Jack sat, glaring at the door, steaming as if he'd been locked in argument with it instead of with Ianto. Ianto knew better, without a doubt, and yet he'd helped divulge Torchwood's top secret operation. Ianto seemed to be taking it all rather calmly, believing that it was going to 'come out' eventually, but Jack was incensed.

Ianto was supposed to be on his side, damn it! If he had to have constant clashes over ideology with Gwen, he needed Ianto's calm, level-headed presence – which naturally meant agreement with what Jack knew was for the best.

Jack hated the thought that Ianto might be growing away from him.

Not that that explanation made the slightest bit of sense, of course. Not after the kind of sex they'd been having lately…. The kind that was going to drop to none, thanks to this argument, Jack thought morosely.

And he was right. For the next two days neither of them spoke to one another except when absolutely necessary and then only in purely professional tones. Two days during which Jack began to wonder when his little bunk had got so big, and why his afternoon coffee wasn't perking him up quite so much. Two days when the Rift decided to take a holiday, leaving everyone at loose ends and looking for excuses to get out of the Hub and catch up on all the real life they never had time for (well, except Owen…). Two days that made Jack start thinking his injured pride over the secret of Flat Holm needed to develop the same healing ability as his body.

…

On the third day, the Rift was apparently making up for lost time. The team were run off their feet in five directions at once. Owen, naturally, got the Weevil round-up assignment, and Tosh was sent out after the suspected piece of alien tech that had dropped in on Llancarfan, while still coordinating with the rest of the team on their whereabouts and what to expect when they got there. Gwen didn't need too much coordination out in Groes-faen to investigate a suspected alien artifact black market, but Jack going to deal with a Blowfish issue in Caerphilly and Ianto hunting down an unidentifiable 'amorphous blob' in Abergavenny needed to be kept appraised of where their quarries were headed.

Jack didn't have much trouble finding the Blowfish, though getting it to cooperate was, as usual, trying. Ianto's 'blob', on the other hand, was more elusive. It seemed to appear and disappear from the radar, though its path was still discernable along a trajectory.

Finally, Ianto hit upon the right turn and spotted the blob at the far end of the narrow alley.

"Oh, shit…," Ianto breathed.

"Ianto?" Tosh called in over the comms.

"Uh… I think I know why it was amorphous," Ianto responded.

"What? Why?"

"It's… uh… not a single entity," Ianto whispered. "It's… well… dozens. All clumped together. Although, I presume it un-clumps to travel. And I'd really rather not find out. I think they're asleep. Or something."

"Clumped together?" Tosh asked, trying to understand what Ianto was describing.

"Yep."

"What do they look like?" Jack broke in urgently, before Toshiko could ask.

"Um…. Roughly? Frog-like. Individually. Not much of a description when they're all stuck together, though."

"Frog-like?"

"Sorry. I meant 'toad'. Rougher skin, bulgier eyes. Rather large. Bit bigger than a saucer but not as large as a dinner plate."

"Get out of there."

"What?"

"Get out of there!"

"Right. Perhaps I should have said 'why'. What, as in, what exactly am I facing? Why, as in, why do I need to get away from it?" Ianto was already cautiously backing away from the toad-blob, but it was always nice to know from just what he was retreating.

"JUST DO IT!" Jack roared over the comms. "Why the hell can no one just listen to me?!"

Ianto felt his jaw setting much as it had several days earlier during their argument. "For your information, Captain, I happen to be getting away from this thing as quickly and quietly as I can without disturbing it or drawing its attention," Ianto retorted. "And it might actually be helpful to know what I'm dealing with. Sometimes details are incredibly useful in these situations!"

"The only detail you need right now is get away from it," Jack growled. "You can catalogue the damned thing when you're safe!"

Ianto didn't respond for a long moment, then he whispered over the comms, "It's noticed me."

"Then run!"

Ianto took a couple of steps backward, then turned and fled when the toad-blob began to come unstuck into dozens of individual creatures. He'd nearly reached his car when one of the toads leapt for him and just managed to graze his shin. Ianto put on a burst of his own and dove for the car door handle, wrenching it open and slamming the door after himself. He wasted no time double-checking that none of the toads had clung on to him or otherwise managed to get into the car.

"I've made it to my car, but they're already clinging to the windscreen," Ianto reported. "I won't be able to see to drive like this. Will the wipers do any good?"

"Not unless you've replaced the wiper fluid with arsenic," Jack snarked. "Don't do anything. Stay exactly where you are. I'm coming."

"Won't be the first time I've heard that," Ianto grumbled.

Ianto found himself getting bored waiting for Jack to come rescue him from the mutant toad-blob creature, so reached over to the glove compartment where he kept several blank report forms (amongst other necessities). He was about halfway through filling out the report when he realized that his left ankle was a bit itchy. He reached down to adjust his sock, thinking it had bunched up against his heel as he ran, and found the flesh around his shin to be warm and swollen.

"Bollocks," Ianto whispered succinctly.

…

By the time Jack arrived, Ianto's leg was throbbing.

"Ianto," Jack called in over the comms, even though he was standing just outside Ianto's Audi, "don't open the windows or doors for about five minutes."

Without waiting for a response, Jack started fired a substance from a gun fitted with a pressurized tank. It enveloped the car in a cloud and Ianto wasn't sure he should even breathe too deeply inside the vehicle. As the vapor began to dissipate, the toads visibly wilted and began pulling themselves away from the car, struggling to return to their blob formation before falling dead on the pavement.

"How ya doing in there?" Jack asked.

"Been better," Ianto gritted. "I think one got a brush at my ankle. It's swollen and hurts."

Jack's end was deeply silent for a moment. "How swollen?" he asked.

"Um… rather."

"Do you have anything to reduce swelling in there?"

"Ice, no. Antihistamines, yes. Paracetamol, but that might not do much for the swelling."

"Take the paracetamol for now. It's safe to open the door now. Let me see what we're dealing with."

Ianto dry swallowed a pill from the mini-chemist supply he kept with the blank report forms and cautiously opened the driver's side door, checking for toads and sniffing at the air. He brought with him the shoe he'd removed, the report he'd started on, and his keys. "I don't think I can safely drive," Ianto admitted as Jack came around the car.

"Doesn't matter. I'll bring you back for the car later. Let's go, I want Owen to have a look at the swelling." Jack started toward the SUV but Ianto didn't follow. Jack glanced back. "Do you need help?"

"I don't need help. I want to know what the hell attacked me. You see, I started working on the report, but I'm tired of calling them toad-things or toad-blobs."

Jack took a long, deep breath. "I need to get you back to the Hub," he explained as patiently as possible. "I'll tell you all about the toads on the way, alright? Right now, if I don't get you an antidote in… oh, 30 minutes, that poison is going to end up throughout your body. Now, can we go, or do we still have a domestic sort out here?"

"This is not a domestic," Ianto muttered, but hobbled quickly to the SUV.

Jack opened the tailgate and rummaged around the supplies kept in the back. He got in behind the wheel and handed a cold-pack and elastic bandage to Ianto. "Wrap that onto your ankle," he said shortly.

Ianto complied silently.

"They're called Bufotreides," Jack said, firing up the engine, switching on the blues, and pulling out at speed. "If they'd swarmed you, you'd have been dead in minutes. They secrete toxin when they feel provoked, which doesn't take much. I lost two sergeants in the Time Agency to those things."

"I should have driven," Ianto moaned, grasping the dash as Jack swung around a corner and nearly sent the SUV into a rollover.

Jack just gritted his teeth and floored the accelerator.

…

"Looks like you'll live, Teaboy. I recommend drinking more water than coffee for a few days. Wrap the ankle, but make sure it's loose enough not to cut off circulation. Keep off it as much as possible. Ideally, you'd keep it elevated above the heart, but you're too much of a workaholic for that and I doubt all your work is done on your back. And you'll be a lot more comfortable switching to trainers. I'm even authorized to give you a note telling your boss you need to break the office dress code for medical reasons."

Ianto rolled his eyes. "Any other recommendations?"

"You might want to ring your five-a-side squad and let them know you're out for this week's match."

Ianto pushed himself off Owen's exam table and gingerly tested his weight on his left foot. He looked up the stairs and sighed. Getting around the Hub was going to be a real annoyance for a while.

"Here," Owen said, opening a cupboard and passing Ianto a cane. "Should be fine in a couple days. Keep using that cream. Tell me right away about that swelling if it gets worse or if you get any palpitations or anything."

"Thanks, Owen," Ianto said, carefully making his way up the stairs. "I'd make you a coffee or something, if, you know…."

"Yeah. Forget it. Appreciate the thought. Just avoid toads from now on, huh? They don't turn into princes."

Ianto debated going directly down to the archives to finish his report. He knew Jack was watching from his office and was trying to avoid glancing up at him. Jack was obviously still mad at him and he wasn't in the mood to discuss it. Ianto ducked down the tunnel and hobbled along on his sore leg toward his sanctuary.

He'd nearly reached the security door (such as it was in Torchwood 3) when Jack called his name. Ianto took a deep breath and turned.

"I'm fine. And I'll rest, I promise, as soon as I -" Ianto stopped short when he realized how upset Jack looked.

"I'm sorry, Ianto. You were right, and I'm so sorry I didn't listen to you. I just get so caught up in these stupid power-struggles with Gwen and I forget that I'm not always right and I don't always know best and sometimes other people can see things I can't…. I can't expect you – any of you – to fly blind out there. If I know something about what you're facing, I need to communicate it. Maybe not to the world, but definitely to my team. You had no idea how much danger you were in and you couldn't have formulated the best way to retreat because I didn't tell you anything other than 'get out'."

"Jack, it's -"

Jack held up a hand. "There's more. I'm also sorry for the way I've been acting to you the last few days. My behavior has been uncalled for. And that's my idiotic pride. I hope you can forgive me."

Ianto hobbled over to Jack and pulled him into a hug. "You're forgiven if I am. I'm sorry, too, Jack. We should have talked more about it. Of course, I knew you would be stubborn about it. But I also knew Gwen was going to turn into a liability if she didn't find out sooner than later. You know how she is. I am on your side, Jack. Always. And I'm sorry I scared you today. I know well enough that if you're saying run, that's all there is for it."

"Forget the report for now. Please. Let me take you home, run you a bath, make up to you?" Jack entreated, holding Ianto close to him.

Ianto rested his head on Jack's shoulder. "I really wanted to finish that report. But Owen said I should keep my ankle elevated, and as it's a medical matter…. I don't know of any way to make up to you lying on my back though."

Jack snickered and held Ianto tighter for a moment before laying a deep kiss on him. "Maybe we should fight more often if we get to make up."

Ianto shook his head. "I'd rather skip the fighting and just get to the making up. Except… no more naked hide-and-seek unless we're on lockdown, yeah?"

"Or at yours," Jack suggested.

"Mine's too small. No good hiding places."

"Exactly," Jack grinned. "I don't even have to cheat there."

Ianto rolled his eyes. "Just take me home already."