9

Jack and Ianto knew he had to do this. For the vessel. The crew. Their kids but as the time grew to leave they found themselves holding hands, standing in the lift staring at one another. The desire to touch too strong and it was a wonder they were not caught by member of the Collective mid-fumble when the doors opened, only to close again as the old man waiting to enter the life stood motionless as the two men kissed in front of him, oblivious to their sudden audience.

As the door closed the man said to himself "Sweet. Young love, eh?"

Ianto had walked with Jack to the planetary jumper, his fear now starting to show as he struggled not to touch Jack in fornt of the others. He stood as Jack talked quietly to one another; his fear brimming over as Jack glanced over at him and Ianto saw a moment of fear reflected before Jack grunted and turned away.

"JACKIE!"

John Hart was swaggering towards them, his arms out and his grin wide "You roped into this too?"

"Johnny" Jack smiled softly accepting the hug as he sighed and knew this was not good if they were both mustered for this. Clearly they had tried to contact the planet to no avail and now this was more than a 'Looksie' and more of a 'fuckit' and both men shared a look that said they knew they were about to be dumped chin deep in shit.

"Glad you could all make it. We are going on a mission of extreme importance. Planet 58 is one of the Collective's star terra-planets boasting prime stock and the meat is considered superior due to the high mineral deposits in the soil that the creatures graze on. So far we have been unable to raise anyone, but this could be a communication problem, not necessarily a 'all dead' scenario. Until we get down there we will not know the full lay of the land" the General boomed, then looked over to notice Ianto standing to one side.

"And who are you?"

"My husband. Our children are in the Collective's care for now" Jack said calmly "Ianto is also a First Lieutenant who can fly the large G6 carriers. If we need an evac of multiples including stock then he will no doubt be the captain of that vessel."

"Really? First Lieutenant…"

"Harkness-Jones sir" Ianto answered, the soft voice making John swing to gape at him then back to Jack with open glee. Jack glared at him and then looked away as Ianto added "I am familiar with combat flight, I have evac'ed under fire before so a rescue flight will be an efficient task for me."

"Ah… I remember you now. Ianto. Right?"

"Yes sir, I remember you as well" Ianto bowed slightly at the waist then returned to his at ease stance like this was no big deal but the man now looking from the podium at him knew damned well who he was addressing, even if the rest of them didn't.

"Good. At least someone will have our arses for us" the General huffed nodding as he turned to address the men again "So… Costello… are you ready?"

"Ready Sir, and it's Suzie in flight."

"Of course. Suzie. Ms Sato will be our Mother for this and Medic Harper will be coming along for the flight in case we have survivors in need of medical assistance. Of course… we hope for the best and prepare for the worst, correct Jonesey?"

"Correct Sir" Ianto said blinking slowly as words he once said to that man are parroted back. Only this time Ianto was not holding a compress to said man's head as he took over flight of a large space jumper. The General smiled softly at the man who had saved his life and the life of his crew that day, comforted that they were on firmer ground than he had first thought.

"Actually… I think now I know you are on board, I would like to amend this. We go down and Jonesey here takes his Big Bird to orbit. Quickest escape if needed, better extraction time. I saw him scoop an entire Planet Hover into the holding bay without going lower than two feet off the ground once"

Jack looked slightly alarmed and blurted out "We have children."

"I will be fine Cariad" Ianto said softly, still nodding to the General "I will not set foot on the surface at any point. The good General here knows I do not much like the sound those things make."

"No… last time we had to do a snatch and grab as I recall… you shot the bloody lot of them with the sub Sonics, the smell of them on fire is not for the faint hearted" the General laughed "But by god, you were savage."

"A man is only as strong as his actions" Ianto said sagely "Actions can sometimes mean more than talking about it. No need to go back over last events sir… as we know… each and every recon is different and this time you will have my husband by your side, not my wife. Ironically… he is worth more to me as a mate than as a crew member."

"Yes. If that magazine cover is anything to go by, you seem to like this one a lot more than your last" the General said.

"I do sir. Pease don't get him too messed up... he is so pretty after all" Ianto quipped and everyone burst out laughing, including Jack who fought the urge to go over and hug him.

John Hart glanced between the two men and canted his head as he wondered how the hell that had happened, not like they were people who move in the same circles. Jealously now crept in as John glanced back at the handsome man in his dress blues.

A waistcoat.

He was of the higher tier?

Now John knew this was unusual as Jack NEVER looked twice as those in the higher tiers. This one… this one had something to him though and as John stared at him Ianto turned to face him and John saw it.

A predator.

"Oh my" John said softly to himself as Ianto blinked and turned away, breaking the link that John had felt.

Ianto was not a higher tier.

He was Top tier.

Ianto was High Blood.

Oh my.

What the hell was he doing with Jack?