Torchwood: Divergence
Book One: Dychwelyd
Chapter 30
Gwen picked at her evening tea, still thinking about what had happened that morning. Yes, they'd had a few more minor Rift spikes throughout the day, but they'd been fairly routine. Simple things that she and Jack and Ianto had handled dozens of times when it was just the three of them, all wrapped up in short order with minimum fuss.
But Ianto had been just a little off since the incident at St. Mary's. He'd said that Jack had apologised, had smiled and joked at lunch, been spot on during the missions later in the day. Yet he'd still seemed a bit unsteady, almost hesitant around their leader. She'd asked if there was something wrong, but the twenty-six-year-old had insisted he was fine, simply thinking about a practice schedule to better hone his Changeling skills.
"What's wrong?" Rhys prodded, tapping the back of her hand to get her attention. "Something bad happen at work?"
Cooper blinked and focused on her husband, realized he'd already finished his own meal, put the baby to bed and washed up most of the dishes.
"Come on," Williams prodded evenly. "Is there a problem at the Hub, or is my cooking that bad tonight?"
"Sorry..." his wife sighed, taking a final bite of rather chilly Chicken Verde. "Some fuss between Jack and Ianto. They both swear it's sorted, but Ianto's not acting quite himself now."
"Trouble in Paradise?" Rhys queried, only half joking.
"Maybe..." Gwen murmured, frowning. "We found out today that Ianto can die and stay dead. If Jack's love falters badly enough, it could drive Ianto to committing suicide with the blade he used on Jack at the firing range. That's the one thing the Scieron won't bring him back from, because it means our fearless leader has broken the promises he made."
"You worried Captain Cardiff's changed his mind?" her husband asked seriously, his frown matching hers.
"No, he's just inattentive and self-absorbed sometimes, though I think he gets the point now," Cooper stated with a shake of her head. "But something's still eating at Ianto... there's this little spark of fear in his eyes that wasn't there before. He hides it well, but I've seen it more than once since their upset this morning. What bothers me is that he won't talk to me about it. I get the feeling he's scared I'll take it to Jack... and that worries me most of all. He's been so focused on not keeping any secrets from Jack since the whole Lisa incident years ago; it kind of scares me that he seems to be hiding something now."
"Right then," Rhys nodded, rising from the table to take her plate. "Hit the sofa, I'll bring you some chocolate ice cream. We'll watch that wild bird video I got for Eb, and call it an early night. Tomorrow, you go to work on our boy Ianto, keep at it till he talks or the problem goes away, yeah?"
Gwen couldn't help but smile. God, how well he knew her. She stood up, moved to put her arms around her spouse and kiss him hard.
"Run away with me, handsome," she breathed as they parted.
"Would do," Williams grinned, sliding her now cleared plate into the sudsy water in the basin. "But I'm married see, have a baby and all. And my wife's a relentless woman; she'd never give us a moment's peace."
"Then I guess the ice cream will have to do," Cooper chuckled, heading for the lounge.
Rhys was right. She'd keep a close eye on her friends; try to catch Ianto alone whenever she could. She'd either pry the truth from him or the situation would resolve itself. And if she found out Jack was still being a selfish, insensitive bastard, she would throw him in a cell naked and let him stew till he came to his senses.
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AN: Short one, so I'll take pity on you and post a second this round…
Thank you to those reading the story. And thank you to those who have followed, favourited, and reviewed. NM