In to the fire we all go.
There was a grunt as John peacefully came. Mark was too far gone in his own pleasure having been ahead of John in his ending. But that didn't mean he minded the little extra bit of friction that followed his climax. If anything it made it more relaxing, slowly to be brought down to John's easy movements between his legs. It was slow tonight; they were being tender after last night's "little" blow up. It didn't bother Mark, he was so tired, and Grey exhausted him to bone weary. And New Guy (what he was calling the baby) was making him nauseous again, he couldn't keep his lunch down, so when John went extra slow and affectionately tonight it was a relief.
"I love you," He purred as John rested on top of him slightly out of breath. They were a little slick with sweat for the room was a little warmer than normal so for an added extra, John blew puffs of cool breath on Mark's chest.
"I love you, enough to let go if that is what you want." He was content to get whatever part of Mark that the man wanted him to have. It was enough to hear the words and know they were true. John was so afraid that this independent Mark was going to run, that he had made up his mind after Mark ran out last night to let go.
Mark snickered a bit as he rubbed his hand through John's damp hair. "I don't want you to let go, just let me decide things for myself. You know what really got me was I realized that my life was always in someone else's hands. Jack when I was young, Loyalwin when I was a slave, and Asher when I was, well, still a slave. Then you moved in. I was still with Jack as a means of support. It was like I never had a chance to just be. Only that little space in time before I met you that I was in charge of my life." He sighed sensing John's hurt at his words.
"Lovely, I'm sorry for being in the way, I just want you safe. Grey may seem like he understands and maybe even accepts what you said to him, but he is still not to be trusted. I just made a suggestion for the best way to test him. Even though it upsets me that you didn't want to listen and I have my apprehension about you changing the rules of the game, I support your decisions. I won't stand in the way." He settled his head on Mark's chest, listening to his heartbeat. It matched his.
"John let's get married at the end of the week. I checked with Jack, we could leave for the weekend. Ianto is going to work with Grey the rest of this week until Monday. They'll take care of the Twins for us. How about it? Please?" Mark ran his fingers under John's chin to coax his face up.
John's eyes met the deep brown eyes where he saw himself reflected and reached for a kiss. "Anything for you, I'll do anything." He still had his fear that Mark would run away again, but at least currently they would be joined.
Three days later.
Strange it as it was the images of Tosh before him didn't move him to regret, they played all around him as he sat in the cubical hooked up to monitors while he was forced to listen to her voice with head phones. But he knew what they were trying to do. Grey used this himself on weaker ones as a way of toughening them up so when they had to do a job, they felt nothing. Those images were not as pleasant as the pretty woman in front of him; they were bloody and horrific to the eye. He like those better, but as much as he wanted to imagine the things he should have done to this Tosh, he changed his body's reactions and mind's processing of the information to show remorse. It worked as Ianto, how he wished he had killed him when he had the chance, told him it was all right if he needed to let out how he felt.
Grey hated Ianto. He was everything his brother shouldn't be with. It bothered him that Blue would have chose someone as stupid as the pale, thin Welsh native on a planet that should have never had all the chances it had at surviving. Somehow, this thing, this over the top butler was alive and constantly in his brother's trousers it would seem. Married, civil partners, to Grey his brothers "partner" was nothing more than a trained monkey doing tricks to please his master.
But he smiled at Ianto, actually complimented him on his shirt color. If it must be down to flirting to get trust, then he would lay it on thick though the dorky second in command of this lame organization. The deed was repulsive to him. But Grey had a plan and the more it looked like he was changing into a 'good boy" the better chance he had to get to the Hub's main frame, activate the Rift and let the Black Market in. Somehow he knew his Master was watching him from the hell he sent the Phuriest bastard to. It didn't bother Grey; it was the last test he had before he could leave, kill the one that made you. It was slow and painful with many sharp objects screwing the grand hulking form of the one that had taught him so much. One of those important lessons was survival. He needed to use the last lesson to get away. Like Andy was tossed when his usefulness was over, Grey was at the end of his life with the "monsters" so it was kill or be killed. His crucified Master's husk pinned to his workshop's wall like a stuffed trophy warned the others of his kind that Grey was now free and now untouchable.
They created him after all did they really want anything less?
Andy was breeding stock, but from the story he told, his Master had called them a mated pair. In terms that meant that Andy was not property but a kind of partner. It must not have been the ruling of the race to allow the "marriage." Otherwise Andy would be at his Master's house running it and raising their children. By now there would have been many. So why did one of the "monsters" find it necessary to take a simple mating under orders to that extreme? Grey couldn't figure it out why it happened until he took in the sight of Andy, he was worth holding onto; his Master must have seen that. But why not push the issue? He was a pilot that was Supreme Being on the "creatures'" ladder of casts. His rank was the only one that could pilot the Mechanoids. This made Andy's child an important one. Not only was he going to be of high rank, but also he was half human.
"I don't know why I was sentenced to death. My Master said that his kind said the child would be contaminated if I lived." The now Mark told him this the other day.
Still for Grey it was a mystery. But despite what Mark had told him about John, and knowing Mark's experiences and John's traits Grey was still not sure if he could 100% hate Mark. He was still Andy, warm and loving. It was just that there were so many tainted parts he wasn't sure if he could save his childhood friend from this life around him. Now he was with child, pathetic spawn from John's weakened seed. It was a mess, so it all needed to be cleared up if anything remotely useful was to come out of this whole event.
He thought all this as the devices picked up his tears and the fact that his emotions were now registering remorse for killing the stupid cow. The last of the movies died off, he still sobbed as Ianto handed him some tissues and a glass of water.
"If you are hungry or you would like to rest that can be arranged." He smiled at his brother in law, still feeling a little ill when he thought of this beast killing the beauty that was Tosh.
"I didn't realize that she was a person, I was taught that we were all nothing. So I just killed her, she was in the way, she wasn't, and it had nothing to do with her! I killed her because I could. I am a monster, like the ones that raised me." He collapsed on to the floor rocking back and forth as if the scared little boy had returned.
A quick check of the instruments showed he was indeed telling the truth. Ianto fell in front of him and gathered the young man in his arms. He rocked him back and forth saying everything was going to be fine.
Grey smiled into this thing's chest and thought. "Yes it will be fine. When I take you out of here away from my brother and sell you for a nice profit in the 51st century. I would like to die with my Master's race when the Black Market finishes the job there and here as well."
Jack was impressed with the breakthrough that Ianto had brought about. He grabbed the Welshman, threw him in the car and sped to Mark and John's wedding. He didn't want to miss it and they needed a few witnesses. Mark didn't want a big deal like "Janto's" was. Jack scowled at the name. The team was using it way too much lately. Even Anna loved to use the word to piss Jack off. That was just a small way of repaying him for the April Fool's joke.
"Jack slow down," Ianto warned. "If we have an accident we won't make it." He looked at his hotshot husband and smiled.
"Why is it always the cute ones that nag? Ianto, I know what I'm doing. I'll be care…" He swerved to miss a giant skeleton that just appeared before them. The speed that they were traveling coupled with the hitting of the curb flipped the SUV as it went sliding into a storefront. The image disappeared.
"They're late!" Mark tapped his foot on the tile as the receptionist typed. She had been glaring at the pair since they got there. It was getting late and they were the last ones in the office. She shook her head and went back to her laptop, curly blond hair bouncing with the moment of her slim fingers.
"Lovely, they are probably busy. But you're right and they are not answering their phones. They may have stopped for a quickie somewhere." He wrapped his arm around his pregnant husband.
"They don't do quickies, Ianto said Jack likes it long. Gods, I don't want to know about their sex life. Why do I know about it? Because I have listened to the noise they make for the last three and a half years. Jack said it was soundproof; that was a lie, he wanted me to hear them, and Nick has to as well. Thank goodness the kids' rooms are farther away." He bit a hangnail and spit it on the floor.
The receptionist looked up for a moment at the sound and went back to her writing.
Mark didn't like the way she was looking at them. They seemed to be a distraction to her. Also she didn't seem to cotton to the male pairings. Just about everyone that came in here that was male/male was getting a evil eye from this curly hair bitch that thought she was better then everyone because she typed on a laptop for a living. Mark squeezed John's hand super hard the next time she looked up at them with that higher than thou look.
"Ouch! Mark that hurt. What is wrong?" It was then that John saw the death glare in Mark's eyes. "Lovely?" He questioned.
She was looking at them again.
"Just what the hell is your problem?" He yelled at the top of his lungs. "What? You hate homosexuals or something?" He challenged her.
"Oi! I don't have to listen to that mouth. Get Out!" She went back to type.
"No we have an appointment today. Don't tell us to leave, we have every right to be married." Before John could figure out what triggered Mark's anger with this woman, Mark was up at her desk. He slammed his fist down at the front loudly causing the woman to jump out of her seat. A door to the magistrate's office opened at the noise.
"Mrs. Brown what is all the fuss out here about?"
She looked at her boss. "This man just threatened me. The two of them have been sitting here most of the afternoon just watching me sir, I was just about to call security." She went to reach for the phone.
Mark grabbed the receiver tossing that and the phone into a wall. "Oh, there will be none of that." He wagged his finger no at her.
It was then John smelled the strong hormones coming from Mark's body. "Sir, I'm so sorry, he is just upset. We were supposed to be married but our witnesses never showed up. He has low sugar problems and I think my partner here needs some air and a candy bar. If you send us a bill we will pay for the phone." John pulled at Mark holding him by the arms.
Mark was stronger than John right at that moment. He pulled out of John's grasp and with one swift he cleared the desk of all of its belonging. The magistrate gasped while retreating to his office, locking the door leaving Mrs. Brown in the care of the two crazies.
It wasn't for long until the police showed up led by none other then PC Andy Davidson.
"Oh great, bloody Torchwood, am I going to have to believe that something spooky is here and that you lot were sent to investigate it." He looked at the faces of the two. But what surprised him the most was Mark. He turned white as sheet and fainted.
"Sorry Andy, we have a situation here. Mark isn't himself. It has to do with 51st century birds and bees." John whispered as Andy helped him get Mark to a chair.
"What, like you, Jesus, what is it with you two? Starting a farm or something? I'll talk to these two. You just get him home. If you were waiting for Jack, there has been an accident. He is at the hospital with Ianto. He made a bad turn and flipped the SUV. They are both all right, just shaken up. Gwen and Rhys are bringing them home. Do you need help getting him there as well?" Andy shifted his head at Mark.
"God like anything else could go wrong today. Thank the cosmic joke they are all right. We were waiting for them. No, I think he is coming to. Come on Mark, let's get out of here."
"But what about our marriage? You knocked me up! You had better marry me." John slung his lover over his shoulder and half carried; half walked him out of the office. Then there was the walk home. John Hart man of a millions ideas, hailed a cab.
"I'm sorry." Mark said as he rested his head on John's shoulder. "I guess I should have been aware of the mood swings, now I'm starved. Jack and Ianto hurt, this is not a good day." As the hormones kicked in he began to cry.
"Hey there, Lovely, it is okay. You really can't help it. But just in case we will have Anna take a look at you." He snuggled up next to the sobbing wreck.
"Oh so she can have a chance to talk to you. God, you're going to run off and cheat on me aren't you? It is my fault for being such a brat. I'm losing you." He grew more agitated and was near inconsolable before they reached the house.
"You know that isn't true. Driver, that is the place, the one with the white fence."
"Yes sir, and if I may add, he seems to need some sleep. Just take him to bed. Funny my wife acted that way when she was going to have our third. Drove me nuts, but in the end it was worth it. I love her so." The older man with the black cab turned to tell John the amount.
"Thanks." John nearly coughed at the way the man saw Mark's behavior and compared it to his wife. He gave the man the cab fare and tipped him double the amount.
"Thanks, sirs, any time you need a cab just go look up old Dave here. Bless you!" The cabby got out to help the young men out and open the gate for them.
He turned once to look at the men and the house as if sizing it up before walking back to the cab. On his way he said something into his watch. "I found the home address. I am returning to base." He got in his cab and drove off as Gwen's car rounded the corner.
"That's odd?" Gwen squinted at the plate on the cab as it faded out of sight.
"What's odd the fact that was the strangest accident I ever had, or that Ianto's bruise on his forehead is the shape of Africa?" Jack nipped at Ianto's nose.
"Great! Just what I wanted a map on my forehead. I know what you mean, Gwen. That wasn't a standard cab. Well let's go inside and see what other surprises await us. Dan had better found something." He groaned slightly as he stood up from sitting in the car.
"Easy, I'm coming to help," Jack bolted out of his side and ran to Ianto.
"Oh my night in shining armor." The smile was not meant to be snarky, Ianto really thought that way sometimes. "Not every one can heal like you."
Jolein and Leon bounded out of the house straight for Gwen and Rhys. Leon looked up at his uncles and frowned. "Papa is being sick again. I heard Daddy say that they almost got arrested. Uncle Ianto, why do you have Africa on your forehead?"
Jolein just giggled, hugging onto Rhys' leg with her casted arm and good one.
"Arrested? Well this I got to hear. Come along map head, Leon, read on Uncle Ianto's forehead where the treasure is buried." Jack smiled, as Ianto couldn't help but laugh. He like Jack was far aware that things that didn't add up as they normally did. It was going to be a long night and not the way Jack liked to spend long nights. This one wouldn't end in sex.
End Part 12 TBC