1.

Ianto Jones woke feeling warm and comfortable. He breathed in deeply and peeked at his alarm, the bright red digital numbers telling him it wouldn't go off for another hour. He rubbed the sleep from his eyes and pulled the duvet up higher around his shoulders, rolling around to doze for a few more minutes ... and coming face to face with Jack smiling at him in the grey early morning light of December. He was lying stretched out on the other side of Ianto's bed, fully clothed and with one hand under his head, completely relaxed. And even though this wasn't an unusual sight, it was unexpected this morning. Jack had left yesterday evening, intending to check on the Hub and spend the night there.

Ianto blinked. "What are you doing here?"

Jack winked at him. "Waiting for you to wake up."

"Why?"

"So we can have hot, rushed 'We really need to get to the office soon' sex."

Ianto had been afraid of that. When Jack wanted to talk, he called. When he wanted sex, he came over. Which had been fine until now, more than fine. But then the time travellers had come through the Rift and one of them had committed suicide in front of Jack and then, there had been Christmas. Christmas Eve and Boxing Day, which Ianto had spent with Jack, had been lovely. And during that time, something in him had shifted, making it hard to really relax around Jack. He'd forced himself to, though, because Jack had needed him to. Two days, he'd sworn himself. Two days only and then he would change things.

But now, lying face to face with Jack, it became hard to hold himself to that promise. "We spent the last two days having sex," he tried an excuse.

"Tired of me already?" Jack asked.

That wasn't the problem at all. More the opposite. Ianto forced a smile. "How did you get in anyway?"

"I have a key."

"I never gave you one."

"Sure you did."

Ianto raised an eyebrow. "I gave one to my boss for emergencies. I didn't give you a key to use in case of being horny."

Jack grinned wickedly, his blue eyes having regained the sparkle they'd been missing over the last few days. "Define emergency." He leaned over and kissed him, pulling him closer at the same time. Jack's lips were warm and gentle, one leg hooking over Ianto's hip to keep him near, his hand running through Ianto's hair and down his back.

Arousal curled in Ianto's stomach, too used to Jack's body against his, and he had difficulties finding his resolve. Finally, he managed to whisper into the kiss, "We really need to get to work."

Jack smiled down at him, his hand working its way underneath the duvet. "No, we don't," he answered. "The alarm hasn't gone off yet." His grin brightened when his hand closed around Ianto's cock. "So we still have some time."

Ianto drew in a sharp breath and gasped, cursing himself for his weakness. Knowing he couldn't win this argument, though, swearing it would be the last time, he answered, "I guess we do."

xxx

Ianto hadn't been in the Hub for two days. Almost as if the Rift was willing to give them all a break, Christmas had gone by without a hitch in the Rift alert system. Or maybe the time travellers coming through had calmed it for a little while. Ianto didn't really care what the reason was. He was just glad that it hadn't come to any alarms, simply because they'd all needed a break.

Especially Jack and Owen.

It had been late on the 24th of December that Jack had shown up at Ianto's flat, bringing groceries and DVDs. Ianto had been surprised but unable to really take in the implications since Jack had quickly started to strip him. The next two days had been spent listening to music and watching movies and cooking. Jack had made them a real Christmas dinner that they'd shared with Tosh while Gwen had her own dinner with Rhys and Owen ignored their invitation.

Ianto was well aware that he should be happy after having had two days of Jack's undivided attention, but he wasn't a fool. He knew that Jack hadn't really planned to spend Christmas with him, at least not all of it. But John Ellis's death had hit him hard and whenever a death did that, Jack wanted to receive proof that he was welcome somewhere, that someone who cared was still alive, that he could receive the physical comfort he needed somewhere safe. It had been that way after Estelle's death, after the rescue mission for Matthew had failed and now John Ellis. Jack had always come to him and Ianto had always welcomed him ... but something had changed now. Suddenly, Ianto had realized something, as if he was looking at himself from the outside ... and he'd felt pity. For himself. Even though their sexual relationship was casual for Jack, it wasn't to Ianto. It hadn't really bothered him before, unsure if he could really commit to anything at the moment no matter what he felt towards Jack anyway, but now ...

The door alarm startled him from his thoughts and he looked up from his position at the coffee machine in the kitchen niche, realizing that Jack's cup of coffee had probably been done already for quite a while. He sighed resignedly and poured the lukewarm coffee down the drain to start anew. While the machine started grinding away, his eyes found the cogwheel door and he was a bit surprised to see Owen stumble in this early. "Good morning," he said.

Owen's head turned in his direction, clearly startled. Even from all the way on the other side of the cavernous main Hub, Ianto could see that his face was pinched, a hang-over all too clear. Owen muttered something and crossed the distance to his and Tosh's desks to drop his bag beside his chair. He rummaged around his drawer, finally finding a pair of sunglasses he donned against the bright glare of the Hub's lights. "Coffee," he said hoarsely.

Ianto forced himself to reign in the barb that was just trying to escape, telling Owen off for being impolite. Owen had lost someone too, just like Jack. Ianto had allowed Jack to grieve in his own way and now he had to grant Owen the same favour. But Owen's grief was more destructive than Jack's and his angry sadness started to play havoc on Ianto's untrained empathy. He started to feel just as sick to the stomach, just as angry and sad. He made a mental note to call Archie later and set up an appointment for training. This would become dangerous soon. His empathy had never before affected him so much, but, as Jack had explained to him, once fully woken, it couldn't be put back in a box without proper training and Jack's strong feelings over the last few days hadn't helped.

With Owen and Jack's cups in his hands, Ianto crossed the main Hub. He set Owen's cup down on his desk and put a hand on his shoulder.

Owen just shrugged him off. "Leave me alone."

"You should go home," Ianto said softly.

Owen looked up at him, his sunglasses unable to hide that he'd been crying a lot. Ianto was surprised just how much Diane leaving seemed to have affected Owen. "Been home. There's nothing to do but drink and I can't find a girl willing to shag me and I'm not desperate enough to pay for it, yet, so work it is."

Ianto cleared his throat and said, "You reek of alcohol. If Jack smells it-"

"Fuck Jack," Owen answered angrily and then grinned bitterly. "Right, you're doing that already."

Whatever response Ianto would have found to the snide remark, it was interrupted by Jack's clipped voice. "Owen. My office." He remained standing in his office door for a moment longer, then went back inside, his movements silhouetted by the windows.

Owen pulled a face in his direction and Ianto felt a wave of resentment emanating from him. He closed his eyes and swallowed, taking back control and banning the emotion into the background. He had to be strong now, because if Jack and Owen argued, it would only get worse.

xxx

Jack knew this wouldn't be easy. He didn't want to send Owen home, knowing that work was a good therapist sometimes, but in this case, there was no other choice. As soon as Owen had entered the base, Jack had seen that he wasn't ready to return to duty. But Owen wouldn't accept that, maybe even hoping to start an argument to release some of his grief and anger.

Now, he saw Owen glare at Ianto before reluctantly following Jack's order and coming into his office. Jack had dimmed the lights and Owen reacted by taking off his sunglasses, accepting that Jack wanted to make eye contact. Jack awaited Owen from his chair behind his desk and he started talking without giving Owen a chance to, "You had two days to pull yourself together."

"You said I should come in today." Owen's voice was low, dangerously calm.

"I expected you to come back to work with a clear head."

Owen looked at him for a long moment, his hands turning to fists. "Two days," he finally said derisively. "What did you expect? Is that the time you need to get over the death of someone you …" He stopped and Jack saw him swallow. Apparently, Owen was unable to say it out loud, to admit to having loved Diane. Maybe he felt silly. He hadn't known her that long after all and falling in love on first sight was a romantic notion that wasn't accepted in this century - everybody longed for it but nobody believed in it.

Jack knew better. He'd known the second he'd seen Estelle, he'd known - but denied it - when Matthew had given him his very first shy smile, when Theresa had berated him for bumping into her at the store, when ... he'd known.

Jack took a deep breath, steeling his resolve. "No, I didn't expect you to shake it off just like that. But you should be able to show enough responsibility and call in, tell me that you need more time."

"I don't need time, Jack, I need to work."

"Not like this, you aren't." He got up and put his hands on his hips, coming around the desk. "Hung-over and tired, you could make a mistake if there's a medical emergency or if we're in the field. I won't risk the others because you can't admit that you're not ready yet."

"What are you going to do?" Owen asked with a scoff. "Fire me?"

"Suspend you, put you on medical leave … for your own good."

Rage hit Jack in the face like a slap. Owen's strong empathy had always played havoc on Jack's mild empathic tendencies, leading to many arguments between them. The anger now directed at Jack made his own irritation at the situation stronger. He took a deep breath, trying to reign himself in.

Owen didn't even seem to notice the shift in Jack's mood, unaware of his ability. "You can't put me on suspension for medical reasons. I'm the medic."

Jack looked at him with narrowed eyes. "Owen, this is hard on you. I get that." He softened his voice. "She meant something to you."

Owen gripped the back of the chair he was leaning on, his knuckles turning white. "Don't you dare tell me how I feel!"

Jack looked at him, swallowed against Owen's pain clogging up his throat. "Go home."

"Make me."

"Don't tempt me."

Owen snorted. "I want to be here. You can't just ban me because my sad face makes you sad as well."

Jack gave a sigh and stepped closer. "Owen, I just want to help you."

Owen recoiled from him. "No, you don't. You want to get rid of me!"

"That's not true!"

"Really?"

"You're not the only one who lost someone dear to him, Owen!" Jack hadn't intended to bring up John. Their respective relationships to Diane and John could hardly be compared. But he was running out of arguments fast.

Owen's anger was building up again, Jack's hands balling into fists as well. Owen pointed one finger at him. "You can't exactly compare that. You didn't shag John." He smiled cruelly. "Even though … maybe you-"

"Enough, Owen!" Jack snapped. "Go home or I swear, I will force you and if you come back before I tell you to, I will retcon your scrawny ass back to kindergarten. Do we understand each other?"

"Just throw Retcon at the problem, why don't you, Jack?" Owen answered, just as loudly. His voice was breaking, though, and tears had gathered in his eyes. "Fuck you!"

Somewhere in the Hub, pottery was breaking but Jack refused to look out the window and make out the source of the noise.

Owen's intense gaze held him captive, demanding to be heard. "See if I come back at all!"

"See if I care!"

Owen stared at him as if Jack had slapped him and immediately, Jack felt sorry. "Owen-"

"Fuck you," Owen repeated, softer than before and left, slamming the door as loud as he possibly could. Jack saw him hurry past the workstations and down the short flight of stairs to the cogwheel door and slumped back on his desk. He uttered a curse and kicked the chair Owen had leaned on, gaining some satisfaction from watching it clatter to the floor.

Then he took a deep breath and left his office to look for Ianto.

xxx

Jack knew that it would be difficult to have two empaths on the team, especially considering that the abilities of both of them were very strong. But they were so different as well. While Ianto kept his emotions tightly to himself, projecting in gentle waves barely noticeable, Owen was a whirlwind, projecting strongly and sudden and with such force that you couldn't help but adopt his emotions as your own.

Ianto, once trained, would be better equipped for using his empathy in a positive way to support their work. Owen was too impulsive for that, so Jack had never told him about his ability. He'd always thought that it would be possible for Owen to live with his empathy unknowingly, but he was slowly coming to realize that there might be no way around him receiving some training.

Even just to make it easier on Ianto, who - as an empath - suffered most under Owen's onslaughts.

Jack shoved his hands in his trouser pockets and stopped in the kitchen niche, ceramic crunching under his shoe. Myfanwy gave a screech, chasing around the towering sculpture in the middle of the room and probably looking for fish in the pond beneath her. Usually, she was asleep during the day, waking up in the early evening. The noise must have woken her from her slumber and now she was in a mood. Jack glanced at her, then back down at Ianto. "You woke the pterodactyl, you get to feed her later," he tried a joke.

It fell flat, though.

Ianto looked up at him from his crouching position and then quickly averted his eyes again, continuing to pick up shards of mugs and plates. "I got angry."

Jack sighed and crouched down as well, folding his hands. "Owen projects strongly."

"I noticed," Ianto replied. "It wasn't just him, though."

Jack really hated to sound like a broken record, but he had to say it. "It was a mistake to start training on your own, without proper supervision. Now your mental abilities are off-kilter and you're not just able to identify emotions around you, you receive them and feel them without being able to shield yourself."

"I'm sorry, but ..." Ianto swallowed, brushed a hand through his dark hair. "I'm sorry. Don't be angry."

Jack let out a breath and tried to calm himself. "I'm not angry, I'm worried. You risk your own health and sanity doing stuff like that, Ianto. We had all the time in the world to get you to Torchwood Two for some training, now I will have to send you as soon as possible and with all the things going on with Torchwood Four and Owen, I really can't afford to spare you."

Ianto stared at Jack pleadingly. "I can do this. I can keep it under control."

Jack shook his head. "You think you do, but there's only so much emotion you can take before bubbling over and when you do, you'll project to everyone around you." He took Ianto's chin gently, looking him in the eye. "I've seen a whole army commit suicide because one empath couldn't take the war."

"Again," Ianto said, "I'm sorry, but it's done now."

Jack sighed deeply and nodded. Then he started to help Ianto collect shards. "I suspended Owen."

"I thought as much. He was angry, but also sad and ... disappointed."

"I know." Jack rubbed his forehead. "I know." He sighed deeply. "I'll probably have to get him some training as well."

They didn't speak while they collected the rest of the shards. Finally, they were done and Ianto straightened. "Would you like a coffee, sir?" He took a mug out of the coffee machine and frowned at it before pouring the coffee in it down the drain. "I'll make a fresh one."

"Thank you," Jack answered and leaned back against the kitchen counter. He watched Ianto work the machine, waiting until he stilled and watched the coffee fill the mug to take his chin again, tilting his head in his direction. "I probably didn't say it before but I had a wonderful time on Christmas." Ianto smiled and Jack swallowed, feeling his chest tighten painfully. He fought it down, seeing Ianto's eyes widen for just a second, and clamped down on the warm feeling inside him.

It was like watching the light fade in Ianto's blue eyes. He cleared his throat and turned away, wiping the counter. "You're welcome."

Jack crossed his arms, feeling guilty. He knew about Ianto's strong feelings for him and even though there was barely anything he'd rather do than act on it, he'd promised himself not to. Over the last few weeks, the feeling of soon being reunited with the Doctor had strengthened. Maybe it was wishful thinking but he didn't see himself able to honestly commit to a relationship with Ianto at the moment when it would end with hurting him. He cleared his throat. "Anyway … I'm sorry for hogging your time on Christmas. I hope you'll spend New Year's Eve with your family."

Ianto's face darkened and he answered, "Seeing that they don't know I'm even alive, I don't think I will."

Jack stared at him in disbelief. "You still haven't been to see them?"

"It's not that simple."

"Why not? They're your family. They think you're dead, Ianto."

"Jack," Ianto said, handing him his mug, "believe me: My sister prefers me to be."

With that, he walked past Jack, muttering something about a broom. Jack stared after him, dumbstruck. It had been months since Canary Wharf, months since Lisa died ... he wondered what could be bad enough to keep Ianto away from the only family he had left.