7

Miss Mae went in the night, the morning light bringing the first little kitten cries of a newborn that filled the house. Ianto was out of his bed and gone before Jack was fully awake and he took the moment to lay in Ianto's spot smelling his pillow before rising to follow him with a grin.

"Oh wow… she's perfect" Ianto was gushing happily, his hands clasped together "So dainty. Oh Mae, you are such a good mother."

Emma was there, calmly helping and comforting as she let Ianto know in her actions that he had made the right decision bringing her into his family unit. She was so happy in the place, so settled as she smiled across at Ianto who asked her "where is Dickie?"

"I think with Charlie, isn't he?" Henry said as he looked over his wife's head, his kissing not done yet.

Jack patted Ianto's shoulder, "Stay with them, I will go make sure the kids are ok and see if they want to eat. I can make porridge."

"Thanks Cariad" Ianto said, leaning back for a gentle kiss goodbye.

Emma watched this and felt something in her gut shift as the happiness filled the room. She was so glad he found someone and so sooooo glad it was someone Ruby would have loved too. Jack was so gentle and comforting, almost feminine at times in the way he fussed on Ianto and the kids allowing Ianto to be a strong man without needing to show it. At other times Jack stank of testosterone.

Jack wandered out to the barn and looked for the boys, finding the stalls for their horses empty. Huh. He walked around to the corral expecting to find then lunging the horses together, only to find an empty pen.

Jack stood there confides, where the hell were they?

Then he checked the tack room and found the spaces where the saddles should be. Fuck. Really? Today of all days the little shits took off? Then came the true horrible realization as he looked around with his hands on his hips.

Pearl was gone too.

.

.

"Are you sure we should not have told them?" Damien asked, sitting high in the saddle as he rode alongside the 'Other Boss' as they called Jack behind his back. Also, they sometimes called him 'The Captain' as they all knew he had been a regulator during the wars, clear not only in the old coat he wore or the gun at his hip that could have been his father's… but in the way his eyes scanned.

"Ianto is so excited about the baby, this smash from excitement to fear will display itself as anger and they might get found by him, their arses paddled and then Ianto will feel terrible once the anger wears off" Jack explained.

"Ianto? Angry?" Damien snorted.

Jack glanced at him "Ianto feels… deeply. He hides it behind politeness and calm but underneath he is a mess of emotions and second guessing. Ianto didn't have the kindest childhood, he felt from a very early age that he was in the way. Not good enough for this world and the children were the final moment that he felt he had purpose"

"I cannot imagine Ianto as a child. Are you sure he did not come out fully clothed in a three piece with that voice to explain that he was not satisfied with his treatment so far?"

Jack laughed as he swung the whip at his friend. No. Jack didn't use the whip on the horse, it was to whip back any livestock who got too close as his horse was nervy. They followed the tracks from the kids with ease, Jack relieved to see at least that Pear was in the saddle with her brother, only two horses travelling.

Up ahead they saw them and Damien called out, moving his horse faster as Jack's slowed and Jack felt a terrible sense of falling as both boys looked back at him with wide eyes full of fear.

"Boys?" he called out "Where is Pearl?"

"We don't know Dad… we are looking for her" came the reply that made his gut now find the soles of his feet

"WHAT?"

"We were tending the horses and noticed that she was gone… we didn't want to be in trouble so we saddled the horses and followed her but it's gone dry here" Charlie said like it was nothing at all for his baby sister to be lost in the worlds "Her last track is here."

Jack gaped "Wait… you saw that she was gone so you took the time to saddle horses and follow instead of running after her?"

"Well.. it made sense at the time" Dickie shrugged as he backed up his friend.

"Right. And that will work when you exiling why your sister was eaten by a Blue? They are up on the ridge ya know" Jack asked, his anger now making him shake as he slid from the saddle to examine the tracks. He had to admit, the boy had a good eye, but he missed the continuation Jack could see so he started to run along the trial leaving the horse with them.

"Scale of one to ten?" Dickie asked Damien with wide eyes.

"Fifty?"

"Shit."