Mom, Dad, I'm Not Dead Yet

Disclaimer: No ownage going on here!

Summary: Ianto decides that it's a good time to let his family know that he's not actually dead anymore. So, to help him out, Ianto brings Jack along. Ianto/Jack. Donna/Doctor. Part in the "Immortal Janto" series. (Minor) REVISIONS!

I realized, after I published this story (and "Love Lifts Us Up Where We Belong") that I forgot to include Rhiannon, Ianto's sister, who was introduced in "Children of Earth," so I went back and made a few edits to include her. Don't hate me!

Yep, you read that right. Ianto's revealing to his family that he's not really dead. Of course, who better to bring with him than his equally-immortal/the reason why he's immortal and not dead lover, Captain Jack Harkness.

And now, onward to our regularly scheduled Janto awesomeness.

Ianto was biting his lip. That was never a good sign.

The crisp Welsh morning had dawned clear and bright. Jack had thought that it was as beautiful a morning as any he had seen, here in Cardiff. Granted, everything was looking a whole lot better, especially now that Ianto was back in his life.

Still, that didn't over-ride the fact that Ianto was clearly nervous about the task at hand. And, to be perfectly honest, Jack couldn't blame him.

In all of his years, Jack had never had to tell his parents that he wasn't actually dead.

He was actually very glad that the Doctor and Donna had gone to Chiswick for a visit to Donna's family, taking the TARDIS and the twins with them. That way, Ianto couldn't chicken out and go hide back in their room, though Jack honestly wouldn't mind spending more time there. But still, the quiet of the TARDIS wasn't there for Ianto to hide in, though Donna did promise that they would be back in time to "drop in" on the Jones family for lunch. Donna really wanted to meet her adopted brother's biological family.

Jack smiled at the memory of Donna mother-henning Ianto. He didn't dare tell her that being a mother-hen to Ianto was technically his job now. He was fully planning on easing that one on Donna. She did have her own sonic screwdriver (the Doctor had built her one, extra special) and Jack had long since learned the use of a sonic screwdriver.

And, Jack noted, there was no way that Ianto was going to hide at Gwen's. As much as he liked Rhys, Ianto had confessed that it was weird being around Gwen. Jack had sensed it too, but he honestly didn't care what Gwen thought about Ianto's sudden return to his life.

He grabbed Ianto's hand.

"You have to do this, Yan," he said. "For your family's sake."

Ianto sighed and nodded. "I know. I just can't imagine what'll go through their heads when they realize that they spent the last five years of their lives grieving for me and moving past that grief when I'm still alive and kicking."

His Ianto was so precious sometimes. Jack kissed him on the lips.

"They'll just be so damn happy to see you again! I know I was. Still am, for that matter."

That certainly did the trick. The blush that crossed Ianto's cheeks was a good sign of that.

Squaring his shoulders, Ianto adjusted his trench coat just a bit. Once that was done, he reached out and rang the doorbell of his parents' house. Jack felt him drop his hand and frowned. There was no way that Jack was going to let him go through this without his touch. He grabbed Ianto's hand and held on tightly.

They shared a look and Ianto gave him a bright smile, silently sending messages with his eyes.

It was then that the front door opened, revealing Gladys Jones, Ianto's mother.

A shocked gasp cut through the air as she saw her clearly-not dead son standing on her front door step.

"Ia-Ianto," she managed to say, weakly, stepping back.

"Hello, Mam."

Gladys gasped for air, her hand on her chest, as her husband, having heard her shock, came to investigate. He too stopped short, face contorted in a look of disbelief, at the sight of his son, supposedly dead, now clearly alive. Jack saw, in that moment, what Ianto might look like, in far too many years to come.

"Ianto," Stuart Jones said, solidly, though surprised. "You're – you're alive!"

Jack nudged Ianto's shoulder, pushing him forward some, reluctantly letting go of his hand.

"Yeah, I am, Tad." He cautiously stepped into the house. "It's kind of a long story."

"A long story!" his mother exclaimed, finding her voice. She gestured to him. "You're dead!"

Ianto bowed his head for a moment, hiding his smile. Recovering, he looked at his mother. "I got better."

"This isn't funny," his father shouted. Jack saw the anger, pain, and sorrow in Stuart's eyes. The grief was still close to their hearts. "Our son is dead and here you are, playing tricks on us, making us believe that he's still with us."

The wince from Ianto reverberated in Jack. He was about to open his mouth to defend his lover but Ianto beat him to the punch.

"Mam, Tad, it is me, Ianto, your son. I was dead, but I came back." He squared his shoulder, glanced quickly at Jack for comfort, and continued. "I died because of a virus that the 456 had released. You buried me. But I wasn't totally gone." He had their attention now, though Jack could see both Gladys and Stuart simmering beneath the surface. Ianto came by his nature honestly. "See, I had this thing inside of me, a little thing, a tiny little bit of the Time Vortex, and it changed me. It made me immortal, but it didn't kick in until after I died and, even then, it took a few days for my body to convert to immortality. But it's there, still there, and I cannot die, because of it."

Jack stepped up behind Ianto and put his hand on Ianto's waist, kissing his ear. Ianto leaned back against him for comfort.

His parents watched them cautiously.

"Is it true?" Gladys asked, looking to Jack now, as if for confirmation. "Any of it?"

There are times when Jack knows that the truth is the most important thing and, whether it hurts or not, the truth has to be shared at these times. However, this is one of those times when the truth will bring more happiness than it does pain.

He nodded. "Yes, ma'am, it's all true, and so much more. I should know." Jack squeezed Ianto's waist and heard Ianto chuckle, as if in anticipation of what he's going to say next. "I'm the reason why Ianto's immortal in the first place."

Gladys raised her eyebrow and, in that moment, Jack finally got that neither of Ianto's parents were all that surprised at the obvious intimacy shared between him and Ianto.

"See Mam, Tad," Ianto explains, "the thing about the Time Vortex is that it's easy to pass it from person to person through . . . intimate relationships. Jack here has a piece of the Vortex in him because it was put there by someone who wanted him alive when he was dead. And, well, he gave me a piece of it to me a long time ago."

"Along with a whole lot more," Jack added, grinning broadly, watching his parents squirm at the implications. Ianto blushed and then Jack added, belatedly, "Including my heart."

Stuart looked between the two and sighed. "So you're Jack Harkness, then?" Jack's eyes widened. Ianto's father chuckled. "You think that Ianto didn't tell us about you, all those years ago. 'Course he didn't say that it was serious between the two of you."

"Oh hush, Stuart," Gladys said, tears filling her eyes, as she stepped towards her son. "Our baby boy's alive. Isn't that enough?"

And that was that.

Ianto entered into his mother's embrace, hugging her tightly, before hugging his father. Moments later, Jack found himself entwined in a warm, motherly embrace.

"Thank you," he heard Gladys whisper, "for bringing Ianto home to us."

He smiled and whispered back, "Ianto brought me back, Mrs. Jones."

The woman laughed weakly. "If you're going to be in a relationship with our son, Jack, you had best call me Gladys."

Jack was going to say something but was interrupted as three figures came walking up the front walk of the house and stopped in full view of the open door as Ianto, having heard their footsteps, turned. His eyes widened and a brightly smile crossed his face.

"Ianto!" a young woman's voice rang out and Jack turned in time to see Ianto stagger as a girl, who was obviously related to him, bowled into him. "You're back!"

"Rebecca!" Ianto exclaimed.

That must be his other sister, Jack decided, smiling. She resembled Jack enough to be a relation, but took more after Gladys, whereas Ianto looked like Stuart. Jack looked at the other person, the tall man. He too looked like Ianto, though he had a bit more height and Gladys' hair coloring. Rhiannon, he knew, on sight. The woman's face split into a bright, if knowing, grin as their eyes met. She, at least, understood that Jack had something to do with Ianto's sudden return to life, even if she didn't know the full extent yet.

Clearly reluctantly, Rebecca pulled out of her brother's embrace and both turned to her other siblings.

"Didn't I tell you Ianto would come back, Gavin, Rhiannon," she said pointedly. "He wasn't dead."

Gavin studied his brother for a moment before smiling. "I guess I should have listened to you, little sister."

Jack smiled wistfully as the brothers hugged. They reminded him of the family and the brother that he had long since lost.

As Ianto pulled out of his brother's embrace, he bashfully looked at Rhiannon. "Did you miss me, Rhi?" he asked quietly, tentatively.

She grinned broadly. "Of course I did, you blockhead!"

The two laughed and embraced each other tightly, making up for their lost years.

Moments later, Ianto was at his side, hand slipping into his and, before Jack knew it, he was being pulled into embraces by the Jones siblings.

And three hours later, when they'd moved into the sitting room, where Ianto explained his story, including Torchwood and some of his (more tame) adventures with the Doctor, the doorbell rang yet again. Jack rose to open the door, waving Gladys back into her seat with his most charming smile.

"Don't worry," he said, "if it's who I think it is, they won't be surprised to find me here."

He wasn't wrong.

Donna and the Doctor were wearing matching grins, though the Doctor's borders on madman, as Wilfred Mott and Sylvia Noble stood behind them. The twins peaked out up at him with quizzical eyes.

"Ianto and his family are in the sitting room," was all Jack managed to get out before Geoff and S.J. attached themselves to his legs. He laughed and managed to hobble-walk to the side to let the rest of the family inside, his hands around the twins.

"Kids," the Doctor said, eyes narrowing slightly, "what are you doing to Jack?"

Geoff looked up at his father. "Trying to get a hug. Uncle Yan says Uncle Jack has the best hugs."

Jack's grin brightened. "And Uncle Yan is right. Now, if you let me go, I can give you a proper Uncle Jack hug."

Both obliged and he stooped down, opening his arms for them. As they threw themselves into his arms, he chuckled and picked them up, swirling them around in a circle, getting a few giggles of delight from the two.

"What's going on in here?" Ianto asked as he walked into the foyer. A grin had already worked its way across his face as he saw who was standing there.

"Uncle Yan!" S.J. cried gleefully at the sight of her other uncle. The little girl wiggled her way out of Jack's arm and bolted over to Ianto, who more than happy to scoop up the girl and hug her tightly, kissing her on the cheek.

"How's my favorite girl?" he asked.

The girl in question giggled, burying her face into his shoulder. Jack smiled at the sight of that, his heart aching in the hope that, one day, it would be their child that Ianto is holding.

Ianto looked to the rest of the people gathered in foyer.

"Hello Doctor, Donna." The pair greet him in return. He looks past them and smiles at Sylvia and Wilf. "So Donna dragged you along as well, I see? I should have expected no less from my sister."

"Oh you!" Donna exclaimed, shooting him a playful look.

Wilf laughed. "We wanted to come. After all, Donna was raving about how excited you were to see your family again."

"And we brought some food, since that's the hospitable thing to do," Sylvia added. Jack grinned. He had to like this woman. Despite what he had heard about her from Donna, she clearly had sense, as he now saw the two large bags of food sitting at her feet. Donna obviously didn't get all her generosity from her father.

"Uncle Jack, I helped make the brownies!" Geoff told Jack.

Jack looked at the boy in his arms and laughed. "Is that so? Did your mum tell you that brownies are my favorite?"

"Come on," Ianto said. "I'll introduce you to my family."

"That'll be lovely!"

And so, the Jonses, the Nobles, and the TARDIS crew became one odd family over the course of a very interesting lunch.

Okay, maybe not the best Janto story out there, but it was definitely necessary in the series. Tell me what you think?

I'm definitely going to be continuing this series. After all, there's so much to be done, detailing Ianto and Jack's new life together! Look out for more lovely Janto stories to come.