A/N: alright, so this is kind of a random chapter I just had to get out before I move onto Fragments. I figured we'd all like to meet Nate, and get to know Tucker just a little bit better, so we'd have a nice light chapter before the insanity ensues... not like I'm saying this chapter isn't insane mind you. Anyway, enjoy!

Disclaimer: I don't own Torchwood. But I do own Nate and Alistair!

.

.

.

The next morning it was somewhat routine as Jack found himself being woken up by Ianto for work. But he couldn't help but notice that Ianto was already looking much better after a decent dinner and several a night's sleep. Even Tosh and Gwen noticed that Ianto was doing better when they headed into work.

The only problem was his knee was still bothering him so Owen had wrapped it up and told him to stay off it as much as possible which he did, because after making coffee, everyone gladly took their own cup before he retreated to the archives.

"Well he's definitely looking better." Owen said, sitting in Jack's office with him.

"Stella brought stew for dinner and he was asleep around eight thirty so he got plenty of sleep." Jack admitted.

"And you apologized?"

"I did apologize and it was like a lot of tension was finally gone." he said honestly.

"Well that's definitely good. I still want you to keep an eye on him though."

"I will Owen."

Just then Ianto poked his head in the office. "Owen, do you still have some extra strength sedative that's suitable for humans?" he asked.

Jack and Owen gave each other worried looks.

"Yeah, why?"

"Good, Jack I need to borrow Owen for something of a family emergency."

"What, the gay dog get loose and bite someone?" Owen asked.

"No, Nate's kind of gone off the deep end and his wife Mary ran out of the sedatives the doctors gave him, because he's had an unusually nutty month."

"Nate? The one your Uncle Travis said belongs in the loony bin?" Jack asked slowly.

"The one and only nutcase himself. Care to come meet him?"

"Will I regret it?" Jack asked slowly.

"Is he hurting people?" Owen asked.

"No, he's just being crazy which usually results in him hurting himself." Ianto said honestly. "But Mary did say something about hurrying before he wears a hole in the floor since he's already gone through the rug."

"I'll go get the med kit." Owen said standing up and walking out of the office.

"Do you care to come along? Alistair and Tucker are there, Mary and Nate live just five minutes away from here."

"Why not?" Jack shrugged. "Why are Alistair and Tucker there?"

"No idea. But I figured I'd introduce Tucker to Stella and Russell considering he has no friends of his own back home, just siblings."

"Sounds like a plan." Jack said, standing up. He walked over and hugged Ianto, gently kissing his forehead. "How are you feeling?"

"Decent." he admitted with a tiny smile.

"Good. So… what is Nate like besides being crazy?"

"You ever see that old American show, 'the A-team'?"

"A couple of episodes over the years, why?" Jack asked slowly.

"Imagine the crazy one, Murdoch, only….. Worse." Ianto said with a smile. "Hence why he terrified me being my navigator."

"Okay, I'll keep that in mind." Jack said with a tiny nod.

After a few minutes the entire team took the short walk from the bay to a flat on the estate on the other side of mermaid quay.

"Okay, so why are we all tagging along?" Russell asked.

"Where are we going anyway?" Gwen asked.

"To help an old friend of mine."

"That may or may not need a heavy sedative." Owen chimed in.

"No gay dogs?" Gwen said with a giggle, picking on him.

"No gay dogs, just an insane B-17 navigator that looks like he's only in his forties." Ianto admitted as he knocked on the door.

After a moment a flustered middle aged brown haired woman answered the door. "Oh thank God you're here Ianto, and you brought reinforcements, with guns I hope."

"No! That will only make him worse remember?" Ianto said quickly. "If he feels his life was threatened then he gets that scary laugh."

"True. Alright then, come on in."

Jack honestly had no idea what he was expecting when he walked into the house, but he knew it wasn't the scene before him.

Sitting on one couch in the living room was Alistair and Tucker, Tucker sitting with his knees against his chest, his head cocked to the side as he starred into space, and another man sitting in the recliner. But on the floor was a man in a straight jacket lying on his side, spinning around in circles laughing like crazy.

"Hey Welsh boy! Bout time you got here." the man in the recliner said with a smile.

"Hey Danny." Ianto said in greeting.

"Dare I even ask what happened here?" Owen said slowly.

"We were watching singing in the rain, but we got as far as the make 'em laugh bit with Donald O'Conner where he spins around on the ground, and Nate just decided that it looked like fun." sighed Alistair.

"He's been like that for the last three hours." said the man named Danny.

"Good lord." Ianto sighed, limping over to the man on the floor. He sat down right in the man's path, stretching his sore leg out.

After one final spin Nate ran into Ianto, stopping him, then he looked up with a smile.

"Hey hey! Welsh boy! What are you doing here?" he laughed, somehow attempting to sit up.

"Apparently you're driving poor Mary up the walls, so she called for help. Do I need to get my friend to sedate you?"

"No! But can you unbuckle me please?" Nate begged.

"Give me one good reason why I should." Ianto said stubbornly.

"Because I've calmed down?" Nate suggested with a smile.

Jack jumped slightly when Nate's wife Mary gently touched his arm.

"Go ahead and make yourselves comfortable, there's plenty of room." she told everyone.

So they all made their way into the living room and found seats.

After a bit more pleading Ianto seemed to give in. "Fine, but one wrong move and Owen get's permission to shoot you with a tranquilizer dart usually meant for weevils." Ianto said spinning him around and unbuckling the straight jacket.

As soon as the last buckle was undone Nate let out an excited shout making everyone jump as he spun around and threw his arms around Ianto's neck in a very over exaggerated hug.

"Okay, now I'm good." said Nate sitting up with a smile and a sigh.

"Wow, you really did wear through the rug," Ianto said, looking down at a large hole in the rug.

"Yes, yes I did, and now I get to buy Mary a new one."

"I thought you just replaced this rug last month after you found the zippo lighter you insane pyro." Danny sighed.

"Yeah, I do stupid things, that's why Mary had the carpet torn out and the rugs put in. I can just keep replacing rugs."

"This man is officially nuts." sighed Owen.

"It's Nate, that's about all you can use to describe him." said Ianto.

"He makes Alan look average." Jack said honestly.

"Even the Tardis thinks he's crazy. My dad's Tardis, thinks that Mr. Baskins is crazy." Tucker sighed, shaking his head.

"Did I mention that we discovered the Tardis talks to Tucker?" Alistair said as Jack starred at the boy. "That's usually why he sits with his head tilted, he's listening to her."

"The kid hears the Tardis? Does his dad know?"

Tucker finally straightened out his neck and smiled at Jack. "Of course dad knows. It's how I communicate with him."

Jack just chuckled and shook his head. "Oh the things I learn in this family." he sighed.

"So wait, you're an alien Tucker?" Tosh asked surprised.

"Half. I'm half human, half time lord." Tucker admitted with a shy smile.

It was then that Jack saw that Tucker appeared to resemble the tenth doctor quite a bit. His smile was the same and his hair was brown and messy just like the tenth's. The main difference, Jack noted, was that Tucker obviously had an American accent, but he also had a much softer voice making him usually the quiet and shy one of the family.

As everyone started talking and trying to figure out Nate, Jack watched as Tucker went back to staring into space, his head tilted to the side.

"Stella, Russell, why don't you two introduce yourselves to Tucker?" Ianto told the teens who were sitting on the floor with him.

The two stood up and sat on each side of Tucker who was suddenly so surprised he managed to spin around on the couch and fall backwards onto the floor.

"You alright there Tucker?" Jack asked, looking down at him as he slowly sat up.

"I was taken by surprise." he admitted.

"No offence Tucker, but you're not as social as your dad are you?" he inquired.

"No, no I'm not. I would like to be, but I'm not." Tucker said honestly. "I get picked on enough without making any social interactions. I don't need to make it worse by attempting to make friends."

Stella and Russell glanced at each other before smiling.

"Uncle Alistair, can we take Tucker with us for the rest of the day?" Stella asked.

"Yeah, we've got a great group of friends to introduce him to." said Russell.

"Nope, no way, I don't do social." said Tucker shaking his head.

"Good grief, you're more anti-social then Ianto ever was." Gwen sighed.

"Go on Tucker. You need to actually get out once in a while." Alistair said.

"But everyone picks on me Alistair!"

"Our friends are usually the ones that get picked on." said Russell.

"Yeah well you haven't really been picked on till you're picked on by everyone in the school including the special education kids." Tucker huffed.

"Ouch, that's a tough one." Jack admitted. "But why not try Tucker?"

"Think about it Tucker, maybe trying to make friends in another country will make all the difference." Ianto admitted.

"I made friends here and according to your dad the universe thinks I'm wrong." Jack pointed out.

After a moment Jack decided to take Tucker outside for a walk, curious as to why the son of such a charismatic, sociable man, didn't want to socialize.

"So then, why does everyone pick on you, huh Tucker?" Jack asked after they had walked down James street in silence for nearly five minutes.

"Cause I'm odd. I sit in class with my head to the side, scribbling away on my paper without looking and I'm an A+ student. No one likes me, I scare my teachers every year. Jack, my mom didn't even want me. She called me a freak when I was ten and left me alone at a hospital because she didn't want me." Tucker sighed. "I'm picked on enough at home, I don't need to be picked on abroad too."

"Tucker, Stella is part of your family now and she's not the type to let anyone pick on you anyway." Jack pointed out.

"I know she wouldn't, but her friends might."

"Nah, they're not the type. If they were they wouldn't be her friends because they would pick on her because of the color of her eyes, and the fact that she has two fathers."

Tucker let out another heavy sigh. "I guess I'm just feeling a little more defensive of myself then usual." he admitted with a shrug.

"And why is that?"

"I kinda….. Came out of the closet to mom, and dad, and Alistair."

"So, you're gay?" Jack asked slowly.

Tucker nodded slowly, keeping his eyes on the sidewalk. "I feel weird enough already. I'm a half alien kid who acts unusual, hears my father and his time machine in my head, and now I've finally admitted I'm gay."

"Tucker, I'm from another planet three thousand years in the future, and I've been attracted to aliens of all sorts. You're not that unusual." Jack said reassuringly. "So what made you realize?"

"I've never really liked girls." he shrugged. "Well I mean, I never really felt attracted to any. But there was this new kid in class and he was really cute, but of course everyone else in the class warned him to stay away from me."

"You'll find someone. Trust me. I was lucky I met Ianto. He accepts me, and trust me, I'm far from normal."

Tucker finally chuckled slightly.

"So did you tell your father?"

"I told the Tardis." he admitted.

"But not your dad?"

"I told dad too." he said honestly.

"So, what did your dad say?" Jack asked curiously.

"I told him I just wish I could be normal and he told me that I'm lucky I've got what little bit of normalcy I do compared to him. He did say one of his former incarnations was supposedly attracted to men. Of course that just reminded me of how weird I was again."

"He doesn't care though, does he?"

"Nope. He just said I'm his son and he loves me anyway. He said maybe next summer I can travel with him for a little while."

Jack chuckled softly. "Be prepared to run, a lot." he said honestly.

Tucker giggled a little. "I already am." he said. After another moment of silence Tucker let out a heavy sigh and smiled at him. "Thanks for talking to me Jack. I do feel a little better now."

"You're welcome Tucker. I know what it feels like to be an outcast, so if you ever need someone to talk about that's family, but not quite in the family, I'm here."

Tucker laughed. "Got it. Of course I guess I could always come to you for advice when it comes to sexuality."

Jack smiled. "I've got some weird stories to tell." he said honestly.

"Not in detail please." Tucker said quickly.

"No way. I'll keep it PG-13 at most." he agreed with a grin.

"Okay, just making sure. Be honest, how many aliens have you 'shagged' as they say here in the U.K."

Jack laughed. "Couldn't tell ya. I lost track over a century ago."

Tucker rolled his eyes with a chuckle. "Sexual deviant I see."

"How old are you now Tucker?" Jack asked curiously.

"Seventeen. I turned seventeen in March."

"Ah. Just making sure you're not too young to hear some of this stuff."

Tucker laughed again. "I'm no baby, that's for sure." he said with a grin. "Excepted compared to you and my 900 year old dad."

"Compared to us, yes, you are a baby."

"So then, what is one race you've been with on another planet?"

"Hmm…. Good question. I don't really remember all of the names. There was this race of green skinned humanoid like aliens. They were interesting."

"Green skinned humanoids. I'll have to ask the Tardis about that later."

Jack smiled at the boy. "So, do you want to try and hang out with Stella and her friends? They're not a very big group to be honest, and one of the boys, he's seventeen like you, I think his name is Kale."

Tucker let out a sigh. "I might as well. At least if it doesn't work out, I'll never see them again and be a whole half a world away."

"Try having some confidence in yourself Tucker. Confidence can make all the difference. Just ask Ianto. Or your dad for that matter. Of course, when it comes to confidence your dad's a little full of himself. Not like I'm not, but I've gotten better."

"My dad's nine hundred years old, and your over a hundred and fifty, that gives you some rights to be overconfident occasionally."

Jack found himself laughing. "I like the way you think Tucker! Of course, being part time lord, you'd think you'd be a bit overconfident at times. They appeared to be that type of race."

"Nah. Why bother? Then I'll just be a stuck up odd ball who doesn't fit in. I'd rather be the silent one."

"I guess when you put it that way then I can see your point." Jack agreed. "Anyway, let's get back and make sure that everyone's okay considering the state of Ianto's odd friend."

"It's really kinda weird to sit watching 'Singing in the Rain' with a man on the floor in a straight jacket." Tucker said. "Then he saw the bit with Cosmo Brown spinning and he went, 'Ooh! That looks like fun!' and he started spinning on the floor and he never stopped."

"Everyday that I have Ianto in my life, something else surprises me." he said honestly. "Like meeting you and finding out you're the doctor's son."

"The Tardis said she wasn't running away because you were wrong though. Dad felt that, she felt guilty for what Rose did to you. That's why she tried to run away."

"Well I saw the end of the universe because of it. Not the best place to go on a vacation." he said, somewhat surprised by the revelation. "So you talk to the Tardis huh?"

"It's funny really. It's like…. Having a nanny, only she's in my mind. It sounds messed up, but she keeps me focused and out of trouble."

"I would say I've heard stranger but….." he paused and Tucker smiled.

"My dad's time machine has a soul and she takes care of my mind, I don't know if there's much in the world stranger then that." he said shaking his head with a smile.

"You sound like Stella when I ask if she was alright with having two dads." Jack said honestly.

"Oh? What did she say?"

"She looked at me like I was crazy and said 'you and dad chase aliens, I run the cover story, and I'm a sorceress from the 1700's. Somehow I think having two dads is the least of my worries.' In the end she did have a point."

"I guess that is a bit odd." Tucker agreed.

After a few more minutes the two made their way back to the flat where they found everyone where they left them, talking and laughing, but Ianto was stretched across the couch, his head in Alistair's lap, completely asleep.

"What? Was he that tired?" Jack asked, sitting in front of the couch.

"I made him take a nap." Alistair said.

"Apparently Alistair here can put tea-boy to sleep by snappin' his fingers." Owen said. "So we let him sleep while I debated with Danny and Nate on which was the better nick name for him since I call 'im tea boy and they call 'im 'welsh boy'."

Jack just shook his head and smiled as Ianto wrinkled his nose in his sleep.

"I think he's had a decent nap." said Alistair with a smile.

Jack watched as Alistair snapped his fingers and Ianto began to squirm as he woke up. But suddenly he sneezed right in Jack's face. Jack just starred as Ianto starred back while everyone else laughed.

"I'm…. sorry?" Ianto said sheepishly, trying to hide a grin.

"No you're not." Jack pointed out.

"You're right, I'm not." Ianto laughed.

"I suppose I deserved that after this last week." he sighed, wiping the snot off of his face.

"At least he doesn't sneeze as bad as Lulu." Alistair chuckled.

"If any human could sneeze as bad as an elephant then we've got issues."

Nate just let out an insane burst of laughter as he rocked back and forth.

"You sound like a hyena." Jack mumbled.

"I know! It took a lot of practice!" Nate said proudly.

"Remind me again why you're friends with this guy?" Gwen asked.

"You wouldn't think it, but B-17 Navigators save lives when you get separated from the rest of the squadron. That and one time when I thought I couldn't land, I ended up landing as quick as possible to get away from him despite the shock of almost being shot in the head." Ianto admitted, making Nate laugh even more.

"Shut up Nate! You're laugh is annoying!" Danny grumbled, throwing a pillow at the man's head, making him laugh more. Then he turned to Ianto. "You know, now I regret us not throwing him out of the plane as we flew over enemy territory."

"Well you could always feed him to Janet yeah?" Owen suggested. "Oh wait, he might make her sick with all of the loony bin medications they put him on."

"That doesn't work well, you threaten his life and he get's the scary laugh that makes Alan sound sane." Ianto said.

"That's just wrong." Jack sighed, remembering Alistair's son and his diabolical laughter.

"Anyway, I say we've been here long enough. It's about time for us to get back." said Ianto standing up.

"Right, Mary?" Owen called to the woman who was in the kitchen baking something.

"Yes dear?" Mary asked walking out.

Owen handed her a bag a syringes and a medication bottle. "Extra strength sedatives so he doesn't wear down the carpet again." he explained. "How do you live with this man out of pure curiosity?"

"I'm the only one that could. I used to be one of his nurses in the psychiatric hospital." she admitted with a smile. "They discovered he wouldn't hurt the female nurses and I was the only one stubborn enough to take him."

"That's why I love you Mary!" Nate said with a smile. "No one else keeps my mental breakdowns to a minimum of two a month and you actually unbuckle this thing occasionally!" He held up his arms which were still in the sleeves of the straight jacket as he sat on the floor like a child.

"Some days he's like a normal middle aged man, days like today, it's like having a five year old in the house." she pointed out. "That's why Danny lives next door."

"And why I occasionally disappear at lunch time." Ianto admitted, and Jack just shook his head with a smile.

He always did wonder where Ianto went when he suddenly turned up missing from the hub at random moments.

After saying goodbye everyone left, Alistair returned to his hotel, and Tucker was shooed off with Stella and Russell to meet their friends.

"You're family is nuts Tea-boy!" Owen said as they returned to the hub.

"Well technically speaking Nate's not family," Ianto pointed out. "Alistair and Tucker are my brothers though."

"Who were your first brother and sisters there? Like living with you in California?" Tosh asked curiously as Ianto plopped down on the couch.

"James was my first brother, then Tim, and then our first sister was Ray Ray." he said with a smile.

Jack starred. "Ray Ray?"

"Her name is Rachel, but we call her Ray Ray. Long story really. She's one month younger then me and she works at the Pentagon in D.C. Some heavily classified something or other." he said with a wave of his hand. "She played softball in school, was a pitcher like me, and in all honesty I am more scared of her pitches then anything. When you've got a softball coming at your head at sixty five miles an hour, it's down right terrifying. She's one of the overprotective sisters."

Jack tried to imagine a large softball being pitched so fast and shook his head. That was something he was more then happy to avoid.

After their interesting day out Jack was more then content to just spend a quiet evening at home with Ianto, the two of them quietly resting on the couch.

"Jack?"

"hmm?" he mumbled. He had been slowly dozing off during their movie.

"What did you and Tucker talk about? While you two were walking?" Ianto asked curiously.

"Just…. Stuff." Jack shrugged. "He needed a little confidence boost."

"You know, Tucker's always been somewhat anti-social. He loves a social surrounding, just never liked to socialize. But he's never been so guarded like he was earlier." Ianto said thoughtfully.

"Well apparently he just came out of the closet to your parents and Alistair." Jack said quietly.

"Ah." After a moment Ianto smiled. "Good for Tucker. I'm proud of him."

"He asked me how many aliens I've shagged over the years." Jack said with a tiny chuckle.

"You didn't tell him did you?"

"I said I lost count." Jack shrugged,

"Okay. I don't think dad would appreciate you giving Tucker sex advice."

"I don't think his father would either." Jack admitted with a smile, as he ran a gentle hand through Ianto's hair. "Anyway, it's getting late, let's get to bed."

Ianto slowly got up as Jack turned off the television before they headed into the bedroom together for a peaceful night's sleep.

.

.

.

A/N: okay, so Nate's obviously gone well over the deep end, and Tucker, well I do hope to find a way to bring Tucker into Torchwood a little more. Anyway, like I said, a nice light chapter before Fragments and exit wounds. So I hope you enjoyed it and then we'll see what I came up with for two of the darkest episodes outside of CoE. So let me know what you think, and hopefully I'll get back into my writing flow.