Fandom: Torchwood/Dr. Who
Characters/Pairing: Jack/Ianto also starring Gwen, Rhys, Martha, Donna, Rose, Mickey, Jackie, Pete, Martha's family and mentions of the Doctor.
Disclaimer:I don't own Torchwood or Who all belongs to RTD and the BBC
Warnings: Spoilers for all Torchwood and Who so far S1&2 Torchwood and s1-4 Who
Some boy kissin', a very naked Cpt. Jack Harkness(AGAIN he wont keep them on!) and one swear word.
Author's Note: Sorry if the characters are off. If they are please tell me and I'll fix them. Especially if Ianto and Jack start to get pathetic. I hate when Ianto gets written like a pathetic whinge.
I know I promised plot but this was quick-you can't have it both was peoples!! I was a bit nervous about angsty Ianto I really didn't want him to turn into emo Ianto. But I think it's OK.
Jack Harkness was brooding.
Well in all honesty Jack Harkness was sulking but as Jack Harkness was much too dashing and heroic to sulk he preferred the term brooding.
Ianto Jones was not so sensitive to his boss's heroic nature and so when Jack got into the passenger seat of the SUV beside him the first words out of his mouth were;
"Why are you sulking?"
Jack's response was a series of mumbles the only coherent words of which were;
"Gwen…Bloody Torchwood…" and "Spatula."
Ianto raised his eyebrows slightly at the last one but said nothing and decided that he probably didn't want to know what exactly Gwen had planned for that spatula.
Leaving Jack to his dark mutterings he turned his attention to getting them out of Roald Dahl Plass; why Jack insisted on being picked up at the perception filter despite the Plass being pedestrian access only, Ianto would never know.
It didn't take long for Jack to come out of his foul mood and within half an hour he was regaling Ianto with Andrew Lloyd Webber's greatest hits. Not that Ianto minded in the least. Jack had a great voice; rich and strong, not that anyone else heard it much. He sang only when he thought he was alone or more recently when he was alone with Ianto.
--
The first time Ianto had heard him sing had been before Lisa had tried to destroy the world, before he had almost destroyed the world, before Jack had saved him from himself and from his past.
He had been in the archives late one evening finishing reorganising L-N after the mess his predecessor (he suspected it was Jack) had left it in, when he had heard that rich voice wafting from the communal showers that were used mostly when the team had been contaminated with some form of radioactive gloop.
He had proceed to the shower room cursing Owen under his breath for obviously leaving the radio on in the shower room despite Ianto leaving numerous post-its on his desk reminding him that water actually conducted electricity and that any electrical equipment in contact with water could lead to the Hub's power short circuiting and triggering an automatic lockdown.
Ianto sighed through his annoyance; he really thought that child's 'Electricity & Me-Sparky's Dos & Donts' pamphlet had done the job.
So expecting a non-descript plastic radio he was extremely surprised when he rounded the corner to find a very naked, very wet Captain Jack Harkness in all his glory singing his heart out.
Of course the polite thing to do at this point would have been to back slowly out of the room, the Hub, the Tourist office, into his car, back to his flat where he could get it out of his system. Alone.
But for some reason Ianto had stood there like an idiot gaping at his boss with thoughts that had absolutely nothing to do with alien artefacts or correct filing procedures running through his head and the file he was carrying placed strategically over the front of his trousers.
Jack had just opened one eye and grinned in that lecherous manner he had.
"Wanna get my back for me?"
That had been the first time Ianto had betrayed Lisa. It hadn't been the last but as firsts went it was pretty damn good.
--
Jack glanced across at Ianto anxiously. They were about half an hour away from London at with each passing mile Ianto's grip on the steering wheel got a bit more intense. At this point he was sitting so rigidly that Jack knew that if the SUV were to crash he'd break ever bone in his body. That was not an encouraging thought.
The silence between them had gotten more and more tense since Jack had grown tired of singing and spent 20 minutes flicking through radio stations before Ianto had very pointedly reached down and snapped the radio off with a flick of his wrist.
Jack was getting nervous. Jack did not like silence, even when he was alone in the Hub he'd invariably have some Glenn Miller on as background noise. And tense silences were his least favourite silences. Generally he tried to break them with an innuendo laden joke. It was worth a try;
"So this hotel.."
"Don't" Ianto shut him down sharply.
"Don't what" He asked innocently glancing over and seeing Ianto's body language if anything was more rigid than it had been 45 seconds ago when he'd last checked.
"Don't try and break the obviously awkward silence with some smutty innuendo." He gave a half smile at Jack's slack jawed surprise. "It's what you do Jack. Don't worry I'm not at all upset with you. Innuendo is not needed at this juncture. Save it for quipping smartly at your nemeses."
"Ianto, darling, I will never run out of quips." Jack stated in an overly dignified voice tossing his head in a dramatic manner and grinning over at his lover, then frowning when Ianto's expression didn't change.
"Right that's it tell me what's.."
"London." Ianto said shortly his gaze intent upon the road.
"Yes Ianto we are going to London." Jack threw Ianto a confused look "Are you just realising this now or…"
"Jesus Jack" Ianto sounded infinitely exasperated "You can be incredibly thick when you want to be." He was swallowing nervously and Jack watched the rapid bob of his Adam's apple intently.
"This is – well" Ianto took a deep breath and Jack could see he was very close to panicking.
This was very unlike Ianto Jones. Ianto Jones was calm and collected and oh so very smooth but over and above everything else Ianto Jones was eloquent. Ianto Jones was master wordsmith with a quicksilver mind who could manipulate words with an elegance that left Jack breathless.
Not that Ianto was a loud mouth or said much at all but when he did he could arm himself with just a few select words to make Tosh rest and eat in the middle of her latest 'project', to cut Owen down before he said something so hurtful there was no going back. Ianto's words could drag Jack back from a precipice of despair or ignite a passion in him he had thought long dead.
Ianto's words could smooth ruffled feathers, garner the favour of notoriously difficult authority figures, could even on occasion halt the almighty stubbornness of Gwen 'Pit bull' Cooper.
Ianto's wry observations and sarcastic humour had saved them from the darkness their job inevitably brought upon them and grounded them when emotions were running high.
If Jack was certain of one thing in his immortal life it was that if the world all suddenly turned to shit, Ianto Jones would be there and summarise the situation with a single sentence, a wry smirk and an air of long suffering patience for the ineptitude of mere mortals who couldn't understand the complex art of making mind-bending coffee.
This was why at this moment an incoherent, stuttering Ianto Jones was enough to set alarm bells going in Jack's head.
"Ianto.."
"Canary Wharf" The words were rushed before they could be retracted.
Realisation dawned. Jacks sighed slightly "Ah.." He placed his hand very gently on Ianto's thigh. Ianto's eyes were glued to the road and he was focussing on it so intently that Jack was quite sure he wasn't seeing the motorway in front of him at all.
"Ianto pull the car over."
"Jack I'm Fine." Ianto spit out testily.
"Pull. The. Damn. Car. Over."
"Fine!" And with an uncharacteristic display of temper Ianto wrenched the wheel and brought the car sharply off the road and into the hard shoulder in a manoeuvre that left the cars behind them honking their annoyance.
They both sat in stunned for a moment the only sound in the SUV was the harsh sound of their breath.
"Ianto.." Jack began cautiously.
"I'm sorry Sir." Ianto cut across him his hands still glued to the steering wheel, staring out the windshield his face a carefully crafted blank mask that Jack was all too familiar with. "That was unprofessional."
Jack frowned in annoyance. He reached over and very carefully placed one hand over Ianto's tightly coiled fingers. With the other he reached up and turned the other man's face towards him. Carefully directing Ianto's face until they were facing each other, Ianto's eyes were downcast, a slight crease between his brows.
Jack released a soft breath. "Ianto."
Ianto glanced up at him and Jack gave a wan smile.
"No one expects you to return to London after 2 years completely over what happened. Especially not me." He added when Ianto's frown deepened.
Ianto opened his mouth to argue but Jack placed a delicate finger on his lips.
"No arguments Mr Jones. You are to take all the time you need to process where you are going and what is about to happen. Because I know for a FACT" he continued stubbornly when he saw Ianto intended to interrupt again.
"I know for a fact that you did not take full advantage of the counselling offered by UNIT and I also know for a fact that if you insist on bottling up all that emotion and terror it'll backfire on you in a big way."
Ianto nodded a little miserably but didn't break eye contact which Jack took as a positive sign so he forged on.
"You are one of the strongest men I know Ianto- I mean how many people could deal with aliens? How many people could catch aliens whilst looking amazing in a suit? Not many. Why do you think I encourage casual dress in Cardiff? And to survive the Cybermen AND the Daleks and then carry on in the alien-catching business after all that. You Ianto Jones are a marvel."
A tiny smile tweaked Ianto's lips.
"If at any time you are in any way overwhelmed or nervous or terrified or just plain furious you are to come and tell me. Do I make myself abundently clear? I can make that an order!" He added when Ianto hesitated and he was rewarded by an almost imperceptable nod.
"So we are agreed that if Mr Ianto Jones is in need of any TLC of either a physical or emotional nature he will seek out Captain Jack Harkness at once for immediate attention? I'm telling you Ianto you haven't had TLC til you've had the unique Harkness blend of TLC."
"As long as its absolutely nothing like your unique Harkness coffee blend I reckon I'll be just fine." Ianto agreed with a smirk and Jack was relieved to see the frightening deadness leave his eye.
"Cheeky bastard" Jack growled at him and leaned in to plant a comforting peck on his lips.
He was therefore surprised when Ianto grabbed the back of his neck and pulled him into a desperate, needy kiss.
"Thank you Jack" Ianto whispered as they broke apart his eyes quiet and serious and shining with gratitude.
"Anytime" Jack replied quietly and he leaned back in his seat as Ianto straightened his tie and started the SUV once more.
"Anytime" He repeated to himself as he watched Ianto pull the car back onto the motorway his shoulders more relaxed and his grip on the steering wheel easy and casual. "Anytime at all."
Please review they really make me more happy than they should.
Thanks a million to everyone who has reviewed so far. It makes me really want to write more.
Again criticism is more than welcome!
Cheersies! :D