Title: Jack's and Ianto's Private Archives – Season 2

Between dream and reality (2/5 parts)

POV: from Jack's point of view. (And a small part from Sam's)

Characters/ pairings: Jack Harkness, the Doctor, Martha and the Tardis.

Rating: PG-13

Spoilers: only if you've never watched Doctor Who and Torchwood. (Silly grin)

Summary: The Year That Never Was is over, but Jack is still on the Valliant, it's cleaning time.

Disclaimer: The usual, I don't own what you'll be able to recognize, the rest is all mine.

Beta: czarina_kit ty

...

Jack was sitting staring at his meal tray in the officer's restaurant, and was now playing with the chilling potatoes mash. The funny thing was while he was starving he couldn't bring himself to eat.

"May I?" Sam asked.

Sam was the security chief and he happened to be the highest ranking officer amongst the survivors: the Veterans of the End of the World, as Martha would call them. Sam used to be his friend-before all hell broke loose-or at least a guy with whom he had worked in the past, one of his contacts within UNIT.

"I'm sorry," he said, sitting down without waiting for an answer.

"Sorry?"Jack mumbled not even bothering to look at his interlocutor, struggling to understand why Sam would be sorry. As he had said, Sam had done his best to limit the damage, and it was true. But in this attempt Jack had often served as fodder: while the Master was playing with him, the mortals were safe, at least for the time being.

"The big guys want to know about the resistance leader's identity... His full name, and whatever you know about him ... Because just 'Jones' is a bit useless."

This got Jack's attention, he lifted his gaze from his plate to search for Sam's eyes. Jack had no problem looking the man in the eyes, but knew it wasn't the same for Sam, even if he was once again doing his best to conceal it.

"Why?" Jack asked. "This never happened, the resistance never existed, and they are all dead," he added.

"You know very well this last part is not true. They're alive, they don't know and will never know, and I'd say, in the end, they're the lucky ones."

The lucky ones. He'd been forced to watch when Tosh, Rhys and that young cop whose name he couldn't even remember were executed before his very eyes. As for Ianto...

"They're interested in his potential, they said," Sam said drawing him back in the present. "I think they want to offer him a job."

"Too late," Jack replied taking a mouthful of mash.

"Too late? Why's that?" Sam asked worriedly.

"Cause you're little thief is already working for me," Jack answered with a satisfied grin.

"Thief?" Sam caught on, realising what Jack had just said. The Master used to think, for some reason, that something was going on between Jack and this Mister Jones.

The man had displayed an arrogant bravery facing the Master where most men couldn't even manage to disobey him. With a handful of men he had managed to sort the only real resistance cell, proving to be efficient by helping Martha Jones in her wandering around the world.

The day Jones was arrested in London with what was left of his team the Master was overexcited, as sure as he was that Jack and this guy were lovers. The mad Time Lord had set up for them the kind of little show he enjoyed: on one side of the large conference room Jack properly chained, on the other Jones and his team.

The master himself executed the two women, an Asiatic and a tall brunette, as well as the men. Jack was fuming, but as usual he tried to conceal it under sheer effrontery. That day, however, more than any other, it didn't feel right. Jones was more successful at luring in every one, displaying only disdain to the Master's face.

When the Master asked him about his feeling for Jack, Jones had raised an inquiring eyebrow before confessing that they were merely playmates.

"Really?" the Master asked coming by Jack's side to put the sonic screwdriver he used as a taser against Jack's neck. "Are you sure?" he asked again sending a pain through Jack's spine than even he was unable to bear.

"What do you want me to say?" Jones said with the same contempt he'd shown before.

"In fact, it's so not much about saying than it is showing," the Master replied.

Jones raised a scornful eyebrow and waited for the Master to tell him what this was about.

"I want a kiss, a passionate one, like you Humans do."

"You'd better kill me right now," Jones replied.

"Oh. You get me wrong, not me," the Master said with a distasteful grin. "Him."

As Jones seemed to consider the request, the Master again pointed the screwdriver at Jack's neck, the immortal kneeling beside the Time Lord still trying to regain his breath.

"Okay," Jones said walking to pull up the Captain into what looked like a passionate kiss, until he released him to grab the Master who had stayed a bit too close. The Master was perfectly subdued, Jones threatening to break his neck.

"Kill him!" Jack had yelled. "Kill him now!"

"Release him," Jones had demanded in response.

That had been his only mistake, but it was his last. He should have listened and obeyed Jack's order. As everyone else, Jones hadn't paid much attention to Lucy, the Master's wife, who looked like a junky. Before anyone realised, she had picked up the screwdriver rolling at her feet and shot Jones' shoulder with it. And it was over.

"The truck with the cybermen inside," Jack said, dragging Sam out of his memories.

"The man who stole our lorry? That man was the one who stole our lorry after Canary Wharf?"

"Yep!"

"I thought you said..."

"That he was not going be a problem again?"

"Yes, that's what you said."

"In fact, believe it or not, I figured that a guy who had the nerve and skill to steal a truck out from under UNIT's nose might had have potential."

Of course, Jack didn't mention the hiding a cybermen right under his nose for weeks part.

"I should go," Sam said, as he had spotted the Doctor coming toward them. He stood up, respectfully greeting the Time Lord before leaving the place.

"Captain."

"Doc."

For once, he had stayed instead of running away as he usually did. Jack had insisted he stay and help until the situation had been sorted at least a little. The Tardis was in a very bad state and needed to be taken care of anyway

"How is she doing?"

"She has been viciously raped and she still hurts, Jack," the Time Lord replied sadly. "However, she's worried about you, she's calling for you."

"Didn't you say she was running from me when she took us to the End of Time? That she couldn't stand the aberration I became?"

"I may have misinterpreted," the Doctor replied with a somewhat confused grin.

Just like the others, the Doctor seemed to have problems looking him in the eyes, but in this case Jack wasn't sure what to think of it. Was it because he was wrong, or was it because he had taken everything that had been done to him without complaining?

The Doctor was still standing there, waiting, hands deep in his trousers pockets, dancing from one foot to the other with impatience or discomfort, possibly both.

Jack knew the Doctor had suffered his part during that much too long year, and didn't want to bother him. He'd managed to ate three spoons of his mash; it was more than he had these last days.

They walked side by side to the deck where the Tardis was waiting. They walked in silence like two exhausted veterans of a battle won over a price almost more than they can bear. There was just nothing to say, nothing useful or meaningful.

Since Jack had forcefully ripped down the paradox machine from her, he had not tried to come aboard the Tardis. The Doctor stopped by the doors letting Jack walking in first. The Captain, as always, felt like a kid standing there in this doorway staring at the beeping bridge. He waited making sure he was accepted, a faint but welcoming purr answered his worry. He gently stroked the wall at hand in an attempt to reach the Tardis' mind.

*Tashee,* he called her, wondering if the Doctor had figured out, he had known her name for a long time.

The purr deepened bringing tears to Jack's eyes. He would have sworn he had no more left.

"I better go and have a look at what they are on about in the conference room," the Doctor said from the threshold. "Be quiet and don't do anything I won't," he said with a knowing smile before leaving them alone.

To be continued