Torchwood: Divergence
Book Two: Adferiad

Chapter 8

Ianto had turned up to fetch Gwen, sat in the SUV with it running to discourage her from changing her mind about leaving the house, then called her mobile to warn that she had ten minutes before he came in after her and caused a terrible scene in front of the neighbours. The former constable had turned up after seven, hair damp from the shower, coat zipped to her chin and dark glasses hiding her eyes. She'd murmured a subdued greeting, buckled up and tried to look small, apparently having expected some sort of scolding. But Ianto had simply gotten the big vehicle underway and headed northeast.

After about five minutes, Cooper had realised that they were driving away from Cardiff Bay and turned to cast an uneasy glance at the twenty-six-year-old behind the wheel. She hadn't asked where they were going, but she'd become more and more nervous the farther they'd gotten from the base. And when her teammate had finally stopped the SUV, she'd wondered exactly where the hell they were. They'd come to an incomplete ten storey apartment tower, pretty much in the middle of nowhere, possibly around Cyncoed. A weathered sign indicated a work halt months ago due to permit violations, and some of the unfinished walls bore graffiti tags.

Ianto hadn't said a word, he'd simply left his long coat on the seat, come around to open her door, offered her a hand and then lead her up inside the building to the half-finished roof. And there they stood in the cold November wind, hands still linked, the cloud hazed early morning sun doing little to warm the damp air.

"I'm sorry I gave you nightmares," Ianto apologised, drawing his friend's gaze. "That's not what I intended to do… I just wanted you to have your answers."

"I wish I hadn't asked," Gwen confessed, the words from the diary pages still haunting her. "Rhys told me… he told me to not think of it as an ugly thing, but as a really sad love story that took two years to find its happy ending. And I tried… I did. But I couldn't stop thinking of how you and Jack and all those poor office workers suffered, how slow it really was. And every time I'd close my eyes, I'd see Rhys and Ebrill and my parents all dying that way…"

Her words broke off in something like a sob, and her friend squeezed her hand in his then pulled her over to put his arms around her.

"And… and you…" Cooper struggled to continue. "You suffered even more… because you blamed yourself… Blamed yourself for all those people dying… and for hurting Jack… for abandoning him… And he still blames himself for losing you… It was cruel of me to ask you about it…"

"Don't cry, Gwen," Ianto urged comfortingly. "Come on… pull off the dark glasses and look me in the eyes."

Reluctantly the raven-haired woman complied, could see deep shadows and pain in the young Welshman's gaze, but iron-willed determination as well.

"Jack was right," Ianto stated evenly. "We have to let it go and move on. Will it always hurt so much to think about it? Yes… I'm sure it will. But it can't weigh us down forever. Yes, I followed Torchwood tradition and died young in a terrible way trying to save others, just like Owen and Tosh. If I hadn't though, I wouldn't have had the chance to do the things I can now, or be with Jack through eternity, or try to protect the rest of Torchwood from meeting that expected ugly fate that I did.

"I wouldn't have gotten to see Jack's eyes light up like a little boy's at Christmas when I took him off the Stadium tower the other night. Or know without a doubt that he honestly does love me. What happened at Thames House was worse than horrific. But if it hadn't happened, so many of the good things in the world for me now never would have existed. So, don't cry for it and don't let it prey on your mind. It's my burden to carry. Mine and Jack's."

He paused for a moment to hold her at arms' length and step them both sideways over to the edge of the roof.

"Turn 'round," the Changeling directed quietly, moving to put his arms back around his friend and hold her tight as she docilely faced away from him, his wings manifesting in the misty, early morning light. "Take a deep breath, and let it all go."

With the last word, Ianto stepped off the unfinished building, carrying Cooper with him. His wings slowed their descent to a gradual drift, before he used them to gain a little altitude and glide around the near side of the incomplete apartment complex. The former constable in his arms had given a small shriek and grabbed at his hands when he'd first launched them both into the air, but he could feel her relaxing, smiled when she tipped her head back against his left shoulder to watch is wings, eyes wide with wonder. He smoothly veered past the small grove of trees at the edge of the stalled construction site, angled toward the SUV and spilled enough air through his feathers to let them make a soft landing a few yards from the vehicle as his wings melted away.

Gwen simply stood where she was for a moment when he set her on her feet and let her loose. Then she turned slowly, her green eyes bright and free of tears, a huge smile spreading across her face. She flung her arms around the young Guardian's neck and kissed him on the cheek, then backed away laughing in obviously giddy delight.

"That was brilliant!" Cooper cried, putting her hands to her cheeks as though trying to hold in the sensation of the moist wind against her face as they'd descended.

"And never ever would've happened if things had gone differently two years ago," Ianto pointed out evenly, motioning his friend toward the SUV where he put his coat back on over his heavy cable knit grey turtle neck before taking the driver's seat. "How do you feel about a trip past the bakery for some of Jack's favourite brownie bites? Take them back to the Hub, make some fresh coffee, hope we missed any Rift spikes?"

"Yes to everything," Gwen smiled, reaching over to quickly squeeze her fellow Countryman's left hand as he started the vehicle. "Thank you for making me feel better, Ianto. I just wish I could do more for you and Jack when things get you down."

"Sometime when we've had a rough night, we'll call you into the Hub late for a Meat Feast and beer, yeah?" Ianto smiled. "Tell horror stories about Brecon Beacons, the Black House, Agnes, and all sorts of terrible things."

"Just like old times," the former PC laughed. "I would so enjoy that."

"We'll call it a pending date then," the twenty-six-year-old behind the wheel declared, glad he'd been able to undo the damage he'd unintentionally inflicted on his companion's psyche. "Just don't let Jack get started about a three-way game of naked hide-and-seek."

"If I ever said yes, he'd drop from the shock," Cooper teased with a giggle, pulling her dark glasses from her coat pocket and donning them again as the sun made a full glaring appearance past the mist and clouds in the east.

Thinking he'd likely do the same, Ianto laughed and turned onto the road that would head them toward Torchwood's favourite bakery and then home.

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AN: Ianto being Ianto, will always want to make things better for his team mates no matter what.

sandysan2013 – Yes, Gwen has a habit of turning things around to be about her, and Ianto could have let her stew. But that's not how Ianto works. He'll always try to offer comfort if he can and act like whatever happened doesn't bother him. But even he has a breaking point. With luck, Gwen will never push that far. It won't be pretty if she does.

Thank you to those reading the story. And thank you to those who have followed, favourited, and reviewed. NM