Mirror Image

Disclaimers: Torchwood is not mine. It is owned by BBC One, and created by Russell T. Davies.

Summary: They say that mirrors reflect your own self, and shows you exactly who you are. But what if you and your reflection were two different people? He had found out the hard way. Now, Another Ianto is wreaking havoc in Cardiff while the Real Ianto is finding a way to stop this.

Author's Notes: Painfully short. Will update again soon to make up for crappiness. The upcoming chapters will focus more on Ianto, just so you'll all know. =)


Chapter Eight: Dramatic Exits

Ianto was quite displeased with himself after the whole dramatic charade he managed to pull off that morning. He thought it completely naïve and tasteless, and he felt he almost destroyed what he was trying to make the other see—that he was as capable, mature and trustworthy as he should be.

But perhaps it wasn't that bad. After all, he didn't want to stray far from the real attitude of his Other Self. A display of slight annoyance and emotional blackmail sounded like something Cadell would do. Ianto was just anxious to know whether it worked or not. Him being him, the whole concept of it was highly unprofessional for his taste.

Well, he mused, so was shagging the boss during work hours, but I consider it a different matter.

He slapped the wet rag on the table and sat on the bench, drawing a deep sigh. Torchwood… he rested his elbow on the table top and leaned his head against his knuckle. I wonder what they're doing right now.

~.::.~

"You're not going to get any grub by just glowering at me, you know," Cadell sighed as he waved the bar of Dark Chocolate in the air. This, however, still had no effect to the dinosaur standing right in front of him, raising her wings in defense.

"Come on, it's melting, you stupid minger," he seethed. He looked around him to check his teammates in case they had heard him. He looked back at Myfanwy and grumbled. "If you're not eating it then I will." The threat didn't seem to work, either, as he watched her take off and circle above him like a vulture would to a dying prey. If it went on like this, they'd start thinking he's the one with the problem, not the pterodactyl. He started to wonder what it would take to trick even Myfanwy to thinking he's still the same Ianto they knew.

Or, at least, make her trust me in some way, he thought.

Then, an epiphany.

He remembered how his dad had taught him 'trust calls,' as they had dubbed it, so training pterodactyls would be much easier. It only worked on some creatures, however, but it was worth a shot. He cupped his hand over his mouth, aligning the middle finger across the front set of teeth so it lay in the middle of the top and bottom, and then stretching the side of the mouth with his ring finger. After pressing the top and bottom lip on the middle finger, he blew out a long, deafening whistle. This catches the attention of not only Myfanwy, but the rest of the team as well. They spun around in their chairs and rushed to where the sound had originated. At the same time, Myfanwy swooped down screeching towards Cadell who, in alarm, shielded himself with his forearms.

"What's going on?"

"Is it the rift?"

"Is it an alien?"

"Are the machines going down?"

"Was that an emergency alarm I didn't know about?"

"Ianto—?"

They pause on their tracks and inquiries as they see, before them, Myfanwy nestling her head on the crook of Cadell's neck, biting on the Dark Chocolate he had on his hand and cooing in satisfaction.

"Wow," Tosh marveled as she neared Cadell. "Was that a pterodactyl call you just did?"

"Where'd you learn that?" Gwen questioned as she moved closer as Tosh had.

"Uhm," Cadell started, glancing nervously at Jack who had his gaze fixed on Cadell full of expectancy for his answer. "I just tried it. Didn't know what I was doing, really."

"Aw, that's just adorable, love," Gwen giggled as she stroked the back of Myfanwy.

"Could you make her do something else, Ianto?" Tosh asked.

Owen, jealous of the attention Cadell was getting from the girls, grumbled and crossed his arms. He quickly recovered, smirking, and remarked, "Maybe it made her think you're her mam." He chuckled. "I wouldn't blame her. Just by looking at you makes me doubt your bloodline."

Cadell glared at the medic and smirked at Tosh and Gwen. "Actually, I may have a trick up my sleeve." He put Myfanwy down and blew a long whistle and 2 staccato beats an octave lower before pointing at Owen. Owen, unknowing of what will become of him, merely raised an eyebrow.

Myfanwy growled before darting towards Owen screeching.

"Motherfu—" he only managed to mutter before running away from the flying creature. His screaming of expletives was drowned out by the laughter from Tosh and Gwen who both patted Cadell's back in awe before heading to their stations to continue their work.

Cadell was about to do the same when he felt a strong hand grip his arm. He turned his head to look at Jack.

"So, tell me," Jack started. "How did you learn all that?"

Cadell had supposed Jack would ask him sooner or later and had managed to formulate a lie.

"Well, sir, lots of things you can find in the Archives, there are."

"So why didn't you use them before?" Jack pressed further, releasing his grip.

"Well, Myfanwy trusted me enough, so it didn't quite matter. But ever since she started acting strange, I thought I'd give it a go."

For a while, Cadell had thought Jack wasn't going to buy it, but when he broke into an amused grin and said, "Always full of surprises, aren't you, Jones Ianto Jones?" Cadell knew he was still playing the game.

"Being in Torchwood, surprises have become a fad. Wouldn't you agree, sir?" He replied.

Jack moved closer. "You seem to be quite the expert on the subject."

"Like you would never imagine. You're trying to kiss me, aren't you?"

Jack laughed and took a step backward. Cadell stared at him and leant forward, pressing his lips against the Captain's. He pulled back and saw the bemused grin on Jack's face. "Like I said; always full of surprises."

Cadell smirked and kissed him again for, after all, he needed to get used to being affectionate towards the same gender before he goes ballistic with Jack's sexual advances.

~.::.~

Ianto snapped a plastic spoon in half, glaring into space and gritting his teeth.

"You okay, mate?"

Ianto blinked and saw Dan, the awkward fellow he had met when he applied for his job, trembling in intimidation. Ianto gave a half-smile and nodded his head. "A thought just occurred in me, is all."

"All right," he said quickly, before continuing where he had left off.

Ianto looked thoughtfully at the broken spoon on his hand. What was that feeling at the pit of his stomach when he wondered about Jack and his Other Self kissing? Jealousy? Impossible, he told himself. He had seen how Jack flirted with Gwen, and Gwen batting her eyelashes at him back. Then, he didn't mind. He had been told by Tosh how Jack and the Real Jack had kissed when they had gone through the Rift. It saddened him because, at that precise moment, he had shot Owen on the shoulder with all due respect to Jack's orders, but even so, he didn't mind. He had watched that wretched Captain John Hart kiss Jack in front of the team before leaving through the Rift. He had hated him with every fibre of his being, and maybe, admittedly, puked inside when he watched them kiss, but even so, he didn't mind.

That was how much he respected Jack's personality and inclination to do these things. And, of course, his 51st century pheromones.

But what did he feel when he thought about his imposter and Jack together? What raced across his mind when he snapped the plastic spoon in half? Why, after all the compromise and acceptance, did he finally feel the foreign presence of the green-eyed monster?

"Are you sure you're all right? You look like a cat on hot bricks."

Ianto looked at Dan once again and smiled. "I am."

Dan furrowed his eyebrows in skepticism.

Ianto started to stare off into the distance once again. "Just—" he paused, uncertain of the words to describe the situation, "—missing someone."

"Well, don't miss her too much, mate," Dan warned, gaining enough courage to start a full-blown conversation with him.

"Why's that?"

"Because you just broke a plastic fork. Continue doing so and our daily pay would end up in the charges for utensils. Now I don't mean to offend you, mate, but I would rather have my hard earnings provide me something to chew on and not something to aid me in so. Oh, and your hand is bleeding."

~.::.~

When Ianto arrived home, he was surprised to find Italian take-out on the Dinner Table. He almost choked when he suddenly yearned for Chinese.

"What's all this?" he asked Nathan who had just entered the room eating a slice of Italian bread with butter spread.

"Dinner."

Ianto rolled his eyes. "Blimey, I wouldn't have guessed." He took his seat with the tomato pasta laid in front of. He began wolfing down the plate before Nathan could even speak.

"I just wanted to, er, thank you for the breakfast a while ago," he said as he watched the pasta lessen with every blink of an eye. "So I thought I should handle our dinner."

Ianto coughed and wiped his mouth with a table napkin. "Thank you. I appreciate it."

"And, er…" Nathan stood from his chair and got a box that lay atop the counter before taking his place beside Ianto. "I also wanted to apologize."

Ianto looked inquisitively at the box on Nathan's extended hand. "Apologise?"

"You're absolutely right," he said. "I should, as a—" he paused, hesitant to continue.

"A?" Ianto pressed.

"—a friend—" Nathan paused to look at Ianto's reaction. He only received a look of attentiveness, relaxing his nerves. "—support your decisions. As much as I feel it to be so, I'm not the one who is responsible for your course of action." He laughed in spite of himself. "We're the same age and yet we both acted quite the contrary. I should accept the fact that you're finally acting as you should; it's about time I do too." He motioned Ianto to get the box.

When he did, he opened it and stared skeptically at the eyeglasses he found inside.

"I noticed that you weren't wearing your lenses as often as you used to," Nathan reasoned. "I figured that perhaps you lost it that night when they found you in a warehouse."

Shit, Ianto winced, completely forgetting about that small detail of Cadell wearing glasses.

"What?"

"Nothing. But it's green."

"Well, green is your color."

Ianto stared at him.

"Want to try it on?" Nathan asked, examining the lenses for dust particles.

Ianto smiled and replaced the cover. "Maybe later." He put the box down, making a mental note of replacing the lenses with fake ones which he'll have to scavenge for. "Thank you, Nathan."

Nathan sighed and looked fondly at the box.

Ianto noticed this and asked him what was wrong. Nathan merely flinched, saying it was nothing. Ianto politely nodded and stood, stacking the plates, utensils and glasses together to put in the sink.

"I just remembered," Nathan started. Ianto paused and looked at him. Nathan sighed and continued, "I just remembered; you always used to call me 'Nine.'" He laughed. "It's silly, but I think I miss it."

"Nine?" Ianto repeated, confused as to how it came to that.

"Yes," Nathan replied, slightly disappointed at how he thought the other had forgotten. "We met in Second Grade. You couldn't pronounce the 'th.'"

Na'un, Ianto thought, Nein, Nine. Interesting. "And it stuck throughout the years."

Nathan's face brightened and he nodded. "Of course, it stopped when—" His eyes suddenly widened, and his expression shifted, turning dark and serious.

"When?" Ianto questioned.

"I'm sorry," Nathan managed to mutter before turning around and briskly walk away.

Ianto stared in confusion at the empty spot where Nathan had been and scratched the back of his head. Later, he'll find himself quite amused at how the both of them are fond of walking out on each other.


Further Author's Notes: Read and review? :D