A/N: alright, chapter eleven. It's a lot longer then the other chapters, sorry about that. But I really wanted to show how Jack connected with Tara and Kit and it took a lot to do that. And I tossed in a few surprises too. So enjoy!
Disclaimer: Of course I don't own anything Torchwood related.
.
.
.
Jack had to admit in the beginning, he really wasn't sure about spending the day with Ianto and his adolescent relatives, but as he got to know the two children, he found himself feeling comfortable and content.
Kit had apparently taken quite a liking to him, always sitting on Jack's shoulders as they walked around outside the grounds of Cardiff Castle.
Jack had learned quite a bit about Ianto's family and his life during college from Tara, stories about family members that the two children loved spending time with like Kit's father Alistair, and their Grandpa Ashtor.
Ianto would just sit and listen to the children talk with Jack, or else add just a comment or two depending on the subject.
Jack got the feeling he was trying to gauge just how well his young relatives were getting along with Jack without him getting in their way, and all the while, Jack felt affection for Ianto well up inside him as he got to know more about his personality.
It appeared he was falling for an interesting young man with an intriguing family and he had no idea what to do about it. He'd never fallen so fast for anyone, and nor had any of the landings been as hard when the realization had dawned on him.
But Jack just kept himself occupied by keeping the children entertained.
.
"So, what do you two plan on doing for your birthdays?" Jack asked as they sat at the table in Ianto's flat eating dinner.
He had been surprised to discover that Tara's birthday was just two days away, with Kit's being the day after.
"Uncle Ianto said he'd take us up to Caerphilly. I wanted to go see that castle too." said Kit.
"And for my birthday we're gonna go see the Cardiff university choir and symphony orchestra at the Millennium centre." said Tara with a smile.
"Oh, you like choirs?" Jack asked, somewhat surprised by the children's birthday decisions.
"I love orchestra. I play the violin like Ianto and daddy." she said proudly. "I'm not as good yet, but I'm trying!"
"You're getting very good Tara." said Ianto. "Very impressive for a child your age."
"So you play the violin and you're a computer hacker?" Jack asked her.
Tara blushed.
"Yes and if you get into my archives one more time I'll set up a virus that will fry your laptop." Ianto warned pointing his fork at her.
"Hey! Leave my computer alone! It took me a year to build it!" Tara protested.
"Then maybe you should stop hacking into places you shouldn't. Don't think I didn't hear about you hacking into the Iranian government's nuclear program, or the Navy's personnel files."
Jack almost choked on his pasta.
"You hack into military and government sites?" he asked astonished.
"Yeah. It's not hard, like I hacked into this weird group called UNIT. They really don't like you guys."
"Tara, stay away from them, we don't need them to come kidnap you and keep you in prison for the rest of your life." Ianto said sternly.
"He's right Tara. You should be careful what you get yourself into." said Jack, definitely not wanting to see the precious little girl in a Unit prison. He had felt bad enough with Tosh which was a big part of why he rescued her. "They mess with us enough as it is, we don't need your family to get involved with them."
"Tara, you've gotta stop doing this. It's bad enough that we have assassins in the family." Ianto pointed out.
Jack spit out his pasta and the three starred at him. "Did you just say you have assassins in your family?"
"Uncle Tanner's an assassin." said Kit. "He works for the CIA."
"And our cousin Matt's an underground assassin." said Tara. "With the other weird ones."
"The dysfunctional ones." Ianto sighed. "Tanner's a hyper active tap dancer that's been on Ritalin since he was five, Tommy is a manic depressive suicidal maniac that loves cake, and Kenny has severe OCD and he has to flick a light switch five times after any assassination and God forbid you make him loose count, because then you have to drag him away."
"No offense but, what is wrong with your family?" Jack asked staring.
"We're family." Kit shrugged. "It doesn't matter who or what your family is, as long as they love you and take care of you."
Jack let Kit's words sink in, the boy had a point, family is family as long as they loved you. But that didn't mean a family couldn't be weird.
"Look at it this way." Ianto said, braking into his thoughts. "Only in our family can you find people to relate too about almost everything."
"That is a plus." Tara agreed.
"Almost everything huh?"
"Absolutely." Ianto confirmed.
Jack just chuckled and shook his head. He'd like to see someone that could relate to him any day.
After dinner the two children watched a movie before Ianto got them settled in to sleep on the couch.
Jack watched with a smile as the two yawned and settled down, curling up under their blankets before quickly falling asleep.
"I think the two wore themselves out today." Jack whispered as Ianto stood beside him in the doorway to the bedroom.
"I think you wore them out." Ianto said, with a smile, leaning against him.
Jack just chuckled and shook his head.
It was true that he had run around with the children all day. Literally. After lunch they had gone to the park and Jack had found himself climbing trees and chasing the two around in a vigorous game of tag till the three of them had fallen into the grass laughing and exhausted, Ianto watching them with a smile from a park bench beside them.
Jack had certainly grown attached to the two children that day and he quickly understood why Ianto wanted him to tag along with them. It made him feel so much better.
Of course, in the back of his mind he was still trying to figure out how to tell Tosh and Owen about Suzie, and now he was stuck trying to figure out his feelings for Ianto.
He was surprised when Ianto gently ushered him into the bedroom.
"Let's let the two of them sleep." Ianto said quietly as he shut the door. "And you need sleep too Jack, you have to go back to work in the morning and tell Tosh and Owen about what happened."
"Ianto, you know I don't sleep much." said Jack sitting down on the bed.
"That doesn't mean you don't need to rest."
"And what are you going to do?" Jack asked.
"Go to sleep." Ianto shrugged as if it was obvious.
Jack watched as Ianto went into the bathroom before returning in a pair of sweat pants and a t-shirt.
Then Ianto just climbed under the covers beside Jack and immediately began to doze off.
Jack let out a heavy sigh and took off his blue shirt and braces before laying down beside Ianto on top of the covers.
"Penny for your thoughts?" Ianto asked sleepily, rolling over to look at him.
"I was just thinking about something, that's all."
"Obviously. What about?" Ianto asked, gently running a hand through Jack's hair.
Jack found himself putting his arms around Ianto's slender waist, holding the young man tightly. "I was wondering how I was going to tell Tosh and Owen what happened last night." he fibbed. He knew that what he was really thinking of was the young man in his arms and how to figure out his feelings about him.
"Right…." Ianto murmured curling up against Jack's chest. Then, as if voicing Jack's thoughts he asked "Jack, what is this…. With us?"
"That's a very good question Ianto." he said, not letting go of him.
"I mean, if this were just a friendship with an occasional casual shag, that'd be one thing, but I don't think that 'friends with benefits' cuddle, or try and comfort each other the way we do."
"Does it bother you?" Jack asked, curious about Ianto's answer.
"Not really, it just makes me wonder…. A lot I suppose. I mean, I'm quite content," he paused as if contemplating what he had just admitted. "I don't know what your feelings are on the matter though."
"I feel quite content myself." Jack admitted.
"So then….."
"What do we do right?" Jack asked.
"Exactly." Ianto admitted.
Jack sat and thought for a moment. He really had feelings for this young man that had grown over the months they had worked together, he felt an attraction to Ianto that he'd never felt with anyone before and he would love to see where the feelings would take him, he just didn't know how Ianto felt about him.
"I must admit, I feel quite attracted to you." he finally sighed. "I just don't know how you….."
"If I said the feelings were mutual, what would you say?" Ianto asked quietly.
What would he say? Jack almost wanted to jump for joy, but instead he smiled and curled up closer to Ianto. "I'd say I'm lucky, if I could just figure out where to go from here." he admitted. They sat in silence for a moment, neither speaking, both of them just listening as their hearts beat against the other's in sync with one another. Then he got an idea, a bit odd for him but an idea none the less. "What are you doing with the little ones tomorrow night?" he asked.
Ianto looked up at him, confusion on his face.
"I'm dropping them off at my sister's tomorrow. They're going to have a sleep over with David and Mica since they're all around the same age."
"What time do you plan on dropping them off?" he asked.
"Around six, why?"
"Well, if the rift is as quiet tomorrow as it was today, how about dinner? You and me?" he asked somewhat nervous.
Ianto stared at him. "Dinner? As in… are you asking me out?" he asked slowly.
"I guess that's the simple way to put it." Jack agreed.
"Well…. I… I guess." Ianto shrugged. "Needless to say I've never been on a date with a man before, but…." Ianto paused and took a deep breath. "Why not?"
"Good, then we'll meet at the plass around six thirty." he said, thrilled that the young man had agreed.
"I honestly didn't know you did dates Jack."
"I don't normally. But then again, this really doesn't feel like a normal relationship does it?" he asked.
Ianto chuckled and kissed jack on the cheek. "No, I suppose it's not." he agreed.
Jack smiled and kissed Ianto on the lips, but he was somewhat surprised when Ianto pulled him closer, deepening the kiss.
The two kissed passionately for several minutes but as Jack was about to reach under Ianto's shirt, the young man stopped him.
"As much as I'd love to see where this is going Jack, we have two little ones in the next room, and the only bathroom is in here. We don't need one of them to wake up in the middle of the night and find us in a compromising position." Ianto said breathlessly.
Jack couldn't help but chuckle. "I suppose your right." he sighed.
Sure enough, as if on cue, there was a quiet knock on the door and Kit peeked in.
"What's wrong Kit?" Ianto asked softly as they sat up.
"I had a bad dream uncle Ianto." Kit whispered.
"Well, why don't you come here and talk about it Kit?" Jack asked.
Kit walked over and hopped into Jack's lap.
"So, what did you have a bad dream about huh?" Jack asked softly.
"I had a really bad dream about daleks and cybermen!" the little boy said. "Like, I managed to get away from the cybermen but then the big scary black dalek came after me saying he was gonna exterminate me and…. And, he got almost got me! Then I woke up." he said shyly, looking down at his lap.
Jack and Ianto glanced at each other somewhat worried.
This boy really had been there for Canary Wharf, and he obviously came out fairly scarred from the incident.
"It's alright Kit." said Jack gently running a hand through Kit's hair. "No cybermen or Daleks here. The doctor sent them back into the void after the battle remember?"
"I know, but that doesn't mean I'm not still scared of them." Kit protested.
"I know. Trust me kiddo, I know." he agreed. "I'm still scared of daleks."
Kit looked at him, wide eyed in curiosity. "Why are you scared of Daleks? You can't die!"
"That doesn't mean I don't get scared of things. The first time I ever died, a Dalek killed me." Jack admitted. "And it was one of the scariest moments of my life."
" 'Ow'd he kill ya? Did it do that weird brain scan thingy or did it shoot you?" Kit asked softly.
Jack grimaced. "I didn't know they could scan peoples brains. I guess I should consider myself lucky that I was shot instead."
"That's how they killed Dr. Singh." said Kit. "I think now there's only about ten of us out of the twenty eight that survived."
"Technically speaking Kit, they didn't count you. Little Khristopher Khristopherson is among the dead remember?" Ianto said softly.
"Oh yeah. So… I'm a dead kid?" Kit asked.
"How'd you manage to get records in another country then?" Jack asked curiously.
"My mother has friends in the new identities department of the CIA." said Ianto.
"The new identities department? Seriously?"
"It's real, they just don't mention it." said Kit.
"There's only about five people that work in it. And they're really quite odd." said Ianto. "But they are very good at making up cover stories."
"Well now I know where you get your skills from."
"Why are Daleks so dangerous?" Kit asked suddenly.
"Umm, because they kill people." Jack pointed out.
"But I don't get it, why do they look so stupid?" he asked. "They look like a rejected trash can with a whisk and a plunger. Why is a lame trash can so dangerous?"
Jack actually found himself chuckling. "You know, you've got a point Kit. They do look pretty dumb for something so dangerous don't they?"
"Have you ever seen what's inside a Dalek?"
"No. Why?" he asked wondering what the little boy was talking about.
"They're just a dumb little alien that looks like a funky octopus. A dumb little octopus like alien in a trash can and they're dangerous enough that they can destroy the cybermen."
"How did you see what a dalek looked like on the inside?" Jack asked curiously.
"Cause I saw what was left of one after a cyberman destroyed it."
"Then you've got more knowledge on the daleks then Torchwood Kit." Jack said. "No one else I know, actually knows what a dalek looks like on the inside."
Kit finally smiled a bit.
"Anyway, are you ready to try and go back to sleep?" Ianto asked Kit, gently tugging the boy's sleeve.
"Yeah, I'm ready to go back to sleep." said Kit with a nod. "Thanks for talking to me guys. Goodnight."
Jack and Ianto said good night and watched as Kit left the room.
"Well, you handled that well." Ianto said with a smile. "You'd actually make a good dad someday,"
"The sad thing is it took me over a hundred years to get to this point, and even then, there are times that I'm just as immature as any child." he said with a laugh.
Ianto chuckled, then leaned in and gave Jack a gentle kiss on the lips. "Let's go to sleep Jack, it's getting late."
Jack just smiled and hugged Ianto before laying down with him. Before long he found himself comfortably drifting off to sleep.
.
Several hours later Jack awoke with mixed feelings about the day. He was somewhat upset because he knew today he would have to tell Tosh and Owen about what had happened with Suzie. But at the same time he was a bit excited, because he had done something unusual for him. He had asked Ianto Jones out on a date and Ianto had said yes.
He looked down at the young man beside him and smiled. Normally he'd never let someone get so close to him, but something about Ianto had gotten to him, had gotten under his skin and into his heart.
After a moment Jack sighed and got up, gently moving Ianto's head which was resting on his arm. He smiled when Ianto curled up against his pillow.
Ianto really was adorable when he was peacefully asleep.
After a moment he headed into the bathroom to get ready for work. It take him long since all he had to do was put on his shirt and braces, but as he was using his fingers to comb through his hair there was a quiet knock on the bathroom door.
"Jack? Are you almost done? I kinda gotta go!" Tara whispered through the door urgently.
Jack chuckled and walked out of the bathroom. "All yours Tara."
"Thank you!" she said.
Next thing Jack knew the door was closed. He chuckled and shook his head before walking out into the living room where Kit was still sleeping on the couch with the blanket pulled tightly around him. He had no idea how but the two children had gotten into his heart just as quickly as Ianto had. He was going to miss them when they headed home.
Jack then saw Tara's laptop open on the table.
It was quite advanced for such a young child, and impressive if Tara really did build it herself. What she had been working on though showed something quite surprising. Complicated molecular formulas and models filled the screen.
"Hey! Snooper!" came a voice from behind him.
Jack turned to see Tara smiling at him. "And what exactly are you working on?"
"I was helping my brother Niles with his latest Chemistry project."
"Is your brother studying advanced bio chemistry in college?" Jack asked.
"No, he's trying to figure out a formula to help Aldair stop drooling. Because of his drool no one will share a bed with him anymore." Tara shrugged.
Jack just arched an eye brow at her. "So Niles studies this for the heck of it?"
"It's not like Niles can go to college, he's only ten." said Tara as if it was obvious. "His last great achievement was that he made Miss Sapphire's fur hypoallergenic. It took him four months to develop but he did it."
"What's Miss Sapphire? A bunny?"
"No, she's a tiger. Gosh, don't you know anything about us?" Tara asked. "So, you going to work?"
"Yes…." he said slowly totally perplexed by the young girl.
"Can I go with you?"
Jack was somewhat startled by the question. "Why would you want to go?"
"I want to see where Ianto works." she said innocently.
"Yeah. Sorry, but knowing what you can do makes me a little weary about that answer." he said.
"Okay, I just wanna talk, that's all." she admitted. "Can I come? Please?"
"Let me see what Ianto says." said Jack, then he headed back into the bedroom and gently shook Ianto awake.
"Morning already?" Ianto grumbled.
Jack chuckled softly and gently kissed Ianto's forehead. "Morning already." he confirmed. "I've got to go. Tosh and Owen will be in soon."
"How are you getting to work? You don't have the SUV." Ianto said, as if just realizing the fact.
"I'll take a cab."
"Okay." Ianto said with a tiny yawn.
Jack just smiled and gently ran a hand through Ianto's hair which looked a bit fluffier then usual. "By the way, Tara wanted me to ask if she could come with me."
"Oh no." Ianto mumbled. "That means she wants to talk to you."
"Is that a bad thing?" Jack asked, sitting down beside him.
"Don't underestimate Tara just because she's small. She's really very overprotective."
"Oh, so she wants to make sure that I take good care of her big brother huh?" he said, suddenly realizing.
"Yup."
"What happens if she decides I'm not good enough?"
"While I don't think that's going to happen, if it ever did, she's likely to call our older brothers who are more overprotective then a guard dog. If they're willing to travel cross country to go after someone that hurt one of our siblings, I don't doubt that they'd hop on a flight to cross the ocean, and they're not exactly diplomatic about it. Most of my siblings are the kind where you make one of the other's cry and you'll find yourself with a bloody nose."
"Geez, I'll keep that in mind." Jack muttered, not wanting to cross Ianto's older family members.
"Anyway, you can take Tara with you as long as you keep an eye on her, don't let her near the archives, or the computers for that matter, and introduce her to Tosh. I think the two will get along wonderfully."
"Alright, I'll be sure to do that. Is there any paperwork you need me to start?" he asked.
"Not that I can remember, but I'm sure I'll find something for you to do. Are you sure you don't want me to get up and drive?" Ianto yawned.
Jack smiled and shook his head. "You look like you could use a bit more sleep, and Kit's very content right now. I'll take Tara with me and I'll see you in a couple of hours."
"Okay." Ianto sighed contently, curling his arms around his pillow. "See you in a couple of hours."
Jack leaned down and gave Ianto a gentle kiss before getting up and walking out of the room.
"So, can I go? Can I, can I, can I?" Tara asked as Jack closed the bedroom door.
"Yes you can come with me." he said with a tiny smile. "But your brother said stay away from the archives, the computers and your not allowed out of my sight."
"Got it." she said with a smile.
"And please don't send your older brothers after me."
"Ianto didn't say that." she said.
"No, but he warned me what could happen if you suddenly didn't like me."
Tara giggled. "I like you just fine." she said. Then she went and grabbed her clothes before heading into the bathroom.
After a few minutes Tara came out and Jack chuckled. "You're quite the nerd aren't you Tara?" he asked seeing her.
Tara was wearing a frilly skirt with a pair of purple braces and a purple and white checkered tie with matching stockings and hot pink trainers.
"Yeah, I'm a nerd, what of it? It just means I'm smart and I look good in corrective lenses." she said with a smile as she closed he laptop and put it in a bag. "And I learned my nerdy style from the best. Ianto's friend Angela."
Jack couldn't help but laugh. "Well there's nothing wrong with being geeky." he said. "Now are you ready? We have to go catch a cab."
"All ready." she said grabbing her coat and scarf, "let's go."
Jack just smiled and grabbed his coat before following Tara out the door.
The cab ride had been interesting as the two talked about everyday things, and more things along the lines like magic and aliens.
"So tell me, why does Aldair need help with a drooling problem?" Jack asked after they grabbed themselves some breakfast.
"He needs help because he's got that nasty thick drool that actually makes your pillow stick to your head when you sit up."
Jack paused as he took a sip of his coffee. "What is Aldair again?"
"He's a very odd anteater." she said, munching on a muffin as they walked across the plass.
"Must be." said Jack as he walked towards the water tower.
"So, how do we get in?" Tara asked.
Jack smiled and took her hand, "We'll use the invisible lift. It's the fun way to get into the hub." he said leading her over to the stone. He pressed the button on his wrist strap to lower the lift and Tara grabbed onto his coat when they started to move making him chuckle. "Welcome to Torchwood three Tara."
Tara looked around in awe, keeping a tight grip on Jack's arm. "Oh wow!" she whispered. "It's amazing!"
Jack smiled and helped her off the platform before walking over to the cog door and turning on the lights.
"You live in here?" Tara asked, walking over to him. Then she paused. "Is…. Is that a hand? In a jar?"
"Yup, that's a hand in a jar." he confirmed.
Tara just stared at it. "It's a hand in a jar." she repeated. "You're weird."
"I'm weird? I'm not helping a ten year old chemistry whiz figure out how to stop an anteater from drooling." he laughed. "Come on Tara, why don't you come sit in my office with me?"
Tara followed him into the office and hopped into one of the chairs in front of his desk making herself comfortable as he hung up his coat.
"So you and my brother are really good friends huh?" she asked opening her laptop.
Jack paused for a moment.
Ianto was right, it was the dreaded overprotective sibling talk.
"Yeah, why?" he asked sitting down.
"Just curious." she shrugged. "So what's this thing on your desk, it looks like an odd piece of coral."
"It's a piece of Tardis coral. In about six thousand years, I'll be able to carve a time machine out of it." he said with a smile.
"That's a long time to wait." Tara said.
"I've got a long time to live sweetheart." he admitted.
Just then, the hub alarm sounded and he saw Tosh and Owen walk in together.
"Mornin' boss!" Owen called.
"Morning Jack!" Tosh said walking to the office, but she stopped when she saw Tara. "We're recruiting children now?"
"Of course not." Jack said. "This is Ianto's little sister Tara. Tara, this is Miss Toshiko Sato."
"Hi miss Sato." said Tara smiling at Tosh.
"And Tara, Ianto said something about apologizing to Tosh?"
Suddenly Tara turned bright red and looked down at the floor. "I'm sorry I almost destroyed your computer system last month Miss Sato." she mumbled embarrassed.
"Are you telling me you were the hacker?" Tosh asked disbelievingly.
"I was just curious, honest. I didn't mean to stir up trouble. But I hacked into my daddy's computer and used it to hack into your archives. I didn't realize that daddy's computer was strong enough to destroy your computer. Really I didn't." she said honestly. "I was just so used to using my simple computer to hack into the CIA and FBI that when it couldn't hack into yours I got curious, so I used my daddy's computer and it was made for hacking, I just didn't realize that if I didn't time things right it'd destroy everything."
"You hack into the CIA and FBI?" Tosh asked.
"According to Ianto she's the family hacker." Jack said, actually somewhat amazed by Tara's confession.
"How old are you?" Tosh asked her.
"I turn nine tomorrow."
"And you're that good?"
"I'm good enough." she shrugged.
"Hey Jack, where's Suzie and the tea boy?" Owen asked walking in. "And who's the shrimp."
They were all surprised when Tara growled threateningly.
"Why do the children in your family growl?" Jack asked with a sigh remembering when Kit growled at him the day before.
"It's habit." Tara muttered. "And don't call me a shrimp!"
"Alright, I apologize." said Owen holding his hands up in mock surrender.
"So where are Suzie and Ianto?"
"Ianto will be here in a bit. Suzie…." Jack paused unsure of how to word it. Not sure of what to say. "It turned out Suzie was the murderer. She took her own life the other night." he said softly.
Tosh and Owen stood silent in the doorway.
"Now do you see why I wanted her to stop using the glove?" Jack asked. "Look at what happened to Suzie. It drove her to the point that she became a murderer. We should never have messed with resurrection, it's a dangerous thing and now I hope we've all learned our lesson on this."
"And to think we supported her in this matter." said Tosh softly. "We're sorry Jack."
"Her body's in the morgue yeah?" Owen asked.
"Yes, but I don't think you need to do an autopsy Owen." said Jack. "There's something a little more important that I want you to focus on today."
"and what's that?"
"Ianto's nephew Kit. He's bringing him in later. I want you to check the kid out Owen. Kit was rescued from Torchwood London. Apparently they kidnapped him off the streets and experimented with him because he's some super genius. His Aunt says he's okay, but I want you to scan him for other things just to make sure."
"Torchwood London experimented on children?" Owen scoffed in disgust. "How low can you get?"
"Well from what I hear it was only him, but still."
"I'll give the kid a thorough check up." Owen confirmed.
"And I promised you won't use any needles unless absolutely necessary." Jack pointed out.
"Wouldn't dream of it. When they get in, just send them down to the autopsy bay." he said, then he headed downstairs.
Jack turned to ask Tosh something just to see her and Tara already chatting away at her station, looking at whatever was on Tara's computer. He smiled as he stood up and walked over to them.
"Wow, Ianto wasn't kidding when he said you two would get along wonderfully."
Tosh and Tara smiled at him.
"Tara's as good as me Jack." said Tosh excitedly.
"And Miss Sato actually understands what I'm talking about!" said Tara with equal excitement.
Jack just chuckled. "Well then I'll leave you two girls to whatever your working on, just remember what your brother said Tara."
"Got it!" said Tara.
So Jack went back to his office, keeping an eye on the main area as he began some paperwork for the day.
.
.
.
A/N: okay, so now we've got Tara in the hub and Jack and Ianto going out on a date. If you guys like it, let me know and I'll start writing up the next chapter! I appreciate everyone's reviews! Thanks guys!