A/N: New chapter for you lovely people I've had some trouble distinguishing between flashback and present day, I did try to put lines in the last chapter but they all disappeared, so I decided on present day is in italics and the normal is the dream/flashback sequences :P

I also wanted to put across here that Jack had his reservations about children (and I guess after his experiences I wouldn't blame him), but he gets better later on I promise you :P Thanks for reading again Thank you for those who have reviewed my last two chapters And please review again? :P

"You have no idea, Gwen…"

She placed a mug in front of him "Drink."

"Because tea now solves all our problems?…"

She gave him a withering look "Just do as you're told…drink that, then I'll make up the bed. You look exhausted, when was the last time you slept?"

"I don't want to sleep…" He didn't know for sure what would be in the next dream, but he knew what was coming.

"You're going to bed. You look like you haven't slept in weeks."

He sighed as his head hit the pillow half an hour later, Gwen had his best interests at heart, but she didn't know.

He found himself sat at the dining room table, looking perplexed at a saucepan of boiling water on a tea towel in front of him. He remembered now; steaming open the letter.

"Dear Mr Jones,

My husband and I were pleased to receive your letter about Ethan and would really love if you came to see him. I would have called, but a letter demands a letter back in my opinion.

I'm going to try and work through the questions Nina asked, so if I forget something you'll have to excuse me. Me and my husband live just on the border of Newport, we've fostered for quite a while now; we have three other foster children, Dan's our oldest, he's fifteen, Beth who's ten and Ryan who's just turned seven. Ethan's our youngest, he got placed with us around four months ago, but he's doing fine. He's not too confident, but can hold his own being the youngest in a house of four children, other than that he's quite shy, he loves dogs, especially our Elsie, and our piano, which he's constantly banging at.

I'm sure Nina already told you how the process will work, but just incase she didn't, it usually goes along the lines of; visits for a few months to see how you get along, he'll make visits to your home, if it all goes according to plan he'll sleepover and then we'll go from there until he can eventually move in with you, but it'll probably seem a slow process.

Nina has our details and has been in contact with me so we can hopefully arrange a visit in the next week or so.

Yours,

Julia and David Allen"

Jack didn't feel right rummaging in Gwen's cupboards, his nerves were getting the best of him; as he saw the light turn on upstairs he pulled out a chair, sitting hurriedly.

"Hi, Jack."

He smiled genuinely "Robyn…what are you doing up?"

She opened a cupboard, pushing aside tins and boxes, pulling out a jar and moving across to the fridge. She shrugged "Heard you up. Didn't want you sat down here by yourself." She set a pan on the hob "Want something to eat? Some toast?"

He nodded slightly "Thanks," He stood up, fishing the plates out and setting them on the counter next to her. She turned and smiled, he smiled back, surprised; although he would whirlwind in and out of their lives countless times, she still looked at him as she did when she was two. She'd cut her hair a lot shorter since the last time; although, he supposed, a lot would have changed in the two…maybe three years he'd been gone.

"Where's Ethan?"

"At home…" She frowned at him "I couldn't have him with me if I didn't really know where I was going to stay and when I was going to be back."

She hummed "He could have stayed here, with us…"

He poked her gently in the side before throwing an arm around her shoulder "I promise I'll get him to come and see you soon; he's just busy, his job and all that."

He stared at her as she bit her lip; she frowned "What?"

"Nothing…you look so much like your mum."

She scoffed "I'm nothing like my mum…"

"Trust me, you're more like her than you think, you should have seen her in her Torchwood days. Gwen could take down an alien in no time flat."

"Really?"

He hummed "I remember when Tom was born; she was back out the next week." She looked at him in disbelief "I didn't let her go out obviously, I sent her back home, but she put up one hell of a fight about it; put it all down to hormones I guess."

Julia wasn't at all how Jack expected her at all, in her early forties, slim shouldered with dark blonde hair that fell neatly around her collarbone. He squirmed uncomfortably as she smiled and wrapped him up in her arms just oozing motherhood. He couldn't help but ask himself if she was real with her cut off apron tied in a bow around her waist, stopping short of her knees; he'd been expecting a short, grey haired woman with a round face, resembling Ianto's mother.

"Come through, come through," He wondered whether her face hurt, the woman didn't stop smiling "This is my husband, David." She put a hand on his shoulder as he stepped forward to shake their hands, pushing his glasses up and rubbing a hand over his face. "This is Dan… and Beth," She took them through to the lounge, it looked a lot less the model home and more a family home now, there was toys and magazines on the floor, a cardboard box fort at the end obscuring the window and two children sat cross legged on top of the coffee table. They were far too busy playing on a games console to pay any attention whatsoever to the guests or to Julia who told them 'for the thousandth time' not to sit on the table; Beth, an obvious tomboy was taking great pleasure in beating her foster brother three to one at the football game.

"Want a cup of tea? Coffee?" David looked between them

"Tea would be good, thanks."

Jack looked from the children to David "Same for me, please."

It was a warm, custard yellow kitchen with a large window over the sink overlooking the garden, different vegetables rested in a basin, waiting to be washed.

Julia pointed out of the window "There's Ryan and Ethan; Ethan's the one in the blue t-shirt." Jack followed her gaze, Ethan was just how he looked in the photo, his black hair bounced along with him and he ran unsteadily as only a child would to the end of the garden, keeping a tight hold on a stuffed brown dog in his hand. Ryan, as Jack guessed, was almost an exact opposite, with milk-white hair and a strong-set jaw that he hadn't yet grown in to. They chased each other around the garden for a while until Ethan fell laughing into a shaggy brown dog that was nestled sleeping on the back porch; her ears shot up and she nudged her nose gently against his ear in recognition before letting her head drop again. He hadn't noticed Julia call the boys inside until Ianto nudged him in the side, reaching out for his arm.

"Ethan was so slow." Ryan laughed and poked Ethan in the side; Jack smiled at the indignant frown he gave him "What's for dinner?" He stood on his tiptoes to look into the sink

Julia ignored Ryan, she noticed Ethan was staring intently at the men at the other end of the kitchen; she crouched down to him, putting a hand on his back "Jack and Ianto are here to see you Ethan." He just nodded, putting a hand around her neck and pulling a thumb into his mouth "Well…say hello then…" She pushed him forward slightly and he removed the thumb from his mouth, extending his hand to them.

"Hello."

Ianto smiled excitedly at Jack, crouched down and shook his hand; Ianto was by far a lot better with children. Jack stood rooted to the spot as he extended a hand to him, that thumb had just been in his mouth; but, for whatever cosmic reason, it didn't seem to matter to him as it usually would have.

A/N: Thanks for reading again and please review