HI all, another update for today. I hope you like the conclusion of this little adventure. Please review and let me know what you think. Also for those of you who aren't Torchwood fans, the title comes from a line John Hart says the first time he's in Torchwood.
Note the Sarcasm Pt2.
"Colonel, I've found a gap in the security screen, it's in two minutes time and I can only sent three people through it with Promethius transporters. The next gap won't be for another ten minutes after that," Sam explained.
"All right," Jack tapped his radio. "We need combat gear down here now," he ordered and seconds later vests and weapons appeared beside the group. "Teal'c and I will go with the doctor over there, in case anyone's injured."
"Jack-"
"Daniel I know you want to go in there," Jack cut the archaeologist off before he could protest. "You and Carter can come in with the next group, along with what's her name over there. No arguments."
Daniel didn't look happy, but he backed away without argument and while Jack was always nervous about Daniel giving in so easily, he had to hope it was because the other man understood why he had made this decision.
They geared up and before Jack could blink they were appearing inside the hub.
"Where are we?" Jack asked Owen moments before a loud scream touched their ears.
"This way," Owen directed and headed down a corridor, Jack and Teal'c following close behind. They reached the main area of the hub and Jack looked up at Captain Harkness' office in alarm. He could see Ianto trussed up to the ceiling, screaming at the top of his lungs, while a man stood behind him, smiling gleefully around a bleeding nose. He couldn't see the Captain, but he could hear the man screaming at the bleeding man to stop.
"You stay here," he ordered Owen who glared at him angrily.
"I don't take orders from you!" he snarled.
"Are you special forces trained, kid?" Jack demanded.
"No," Owen replied reluctantly. "But this is my base and I know that man very well. I'm not going to sit here while you go up there without me, not a chance."
Jack wanted to snarl the boy's head off, but he knew there was no time. "Fine, just do what I tell you," he snapped.
"I'll think about it."
Jack rolled his eyes and went about issuing orders.
XX
Ianto's world had narrowed to the feeling of pain coursing through every nerve ending in his body. He was pretty sure his voice was about to go and if he didn't pass out soon he'd be very surprised. He could hear Jack screaming in the background, all but begging John to leave him alone; but of course the maniac wasn't listening. The pain cut off abruptly and he heard the sound of a gun being cocked. He heard several shots fire, along with several cries of pain from, Jack before he felt the barrel push against his forehead. He opened his eyes to find John, shaking with anger, blood still dripping from his very misshapen nose, holding the gun to his head.
"You know what, I will kill you. What do I need you for anyway, I have Jack over there to torture for as long as I live. You're just a useless hip attachment really and would only cause me trouble."
"Don't like it so much when things don't go your way do you, Hart?" Ianto asked with a mocking smile. If he was going to die he'd make his last words a sarcastic jab at John. "Jack will never love you. You're a homicidal maniac who looks like a gerbil, and honestly, who'd love that? You can kill me all you like it won't change anything, so why not just turn the gun on yourself and be done with it. Believe me, it'd be far less painful than trying to make Jack Harkness feel anything but a passing fancy for you. I've learnt that lesson, I would have thought you'd have learnt it by now too."
"You're wrong!" John roared.
"Am I?" Ianto asked mockingly. "Well, I guess you'll find out for yourself soon enough."
"You'll still be dead!" John spat.
"Yeah, but at least I went to my grave with enough self respect to know I deserve better. You'll never be able to say that."
John growled loudly and stepped back, raising the gun up to fire.
Ianto closed his eyes, allowing his thoughts to wander to Daniel. He mentally apologised to the lovely archaeologist for being another person to leave him. The man had lost so many people already, he'd really hoped not to add to the number. Although honestly, in their line of work, it really was fools dream. He thought about the man's beautiful blue eyes, his soft, caring voice and sent a thought out to the universe even though he knew there was no way the man would hear it, 'Daniel, I love you.'
A metalic sound echoed through the room and Ianto's eyes snapped open in time to see John's body shaking as electricity coursed through him. A moment later he fell to the ground and Ianto looked round to see Teal'c moving up the stairs toward the office, Zat in hand.
"Teal'c," Ianto breathed in relief as the jaffa stopped in the doorway and General O'Neill and Owen appeared beside him.
"Nice shot," the General praised looking down at John.
"I'm afraid I had to step outside the parameters of your plan O'Neill," Teal'c reported, glancing round at O'Neill.
"I think I can live with that." Teal'c inclined his head. "This time." The Jaffa paused in his head raise and cocked an eyebrow at O'Neill.
They were making their way toward Ianto when a green mist, sparking with blue bolts of energy, flew out of John's body and headed for the ceiling.
"What the hell?" O'Neill asked.
"Shoot it," Jack gasped from his bindings, and Ianto looked over momentarily to see a bullet hole slowly closing up in his throat, before looking back at the misty creature. Teal'c fired his zat at the cloud several times and it dispersed into wisps of nothingness.
"And that was?!" O'Neill demanded looking over at Jack.
"A vengeance spirit," Jack replied as Owen came over to unchain him and Teal'c did the same with Ianto.
"A vengeance what?"
"They're energy beings that attach themselves to ordinary people, find something that's bothering them, and warp it until that person can't see anything but a bloodthirsty desire for revenge. They help that person find a way to gain that revenge and feed of the pain and suffering it causes in others. When at last they've used their host as much as they can and/or the target of said person's revenge is dead, they leave the host and move on. The person remembers nothing about what they've done," Jack explained, thanking Owen for freeing him. The doctor then headed over to Ianto and ordered Teal'c to bring him down to the medical bay while Jack dug some restraints out of his desk and secured John's hands.
Ianto allowed Teal'c to take most of his weight, which the Jaffa was thankfully more than capable of doing, as they made their way through the hub to the medical bay, both Jacks close behind.
"So you mean to tell me, someone could cut you off at an intersection or steal your parking space and this thing could jump into your head and make you kill them for it?" O'Neill asked incredulously as Owen directed Teal'c to lie Ianto down on the bed.
"That's right," Jack replied
"Does that happen often?"
"Not so much here," Jack replied, "There aren't a lot in this time, however, there are more than a few patients in psychiatric wards around the world who've killed people and claim to have no memory of the event. We've never caught the spirit leaving their body to know for sure, but it wouldn't surprise me if they were involved. By the way, how long does that stun last on your weapon?" he asked.
"Depends on the person," O'Neill replied and Jack excused himself back up to his office to retrieve John Hart. He returned with him moments later and dumped him on the floor at the top of the stairs where they could watch him, securing his bonds to the staircase and removing the vortex manipulator from his wrist.
Owen ran the scanner over Ianto, not bothering to ask how he was feeling which was probably for the best, Ianto wasn't sure how he'd answer. O'Neill's hand suddenly flew to his ear and he listened for a minute before saying, "Yes, he's just getting checked over … Are you? … Okay, tell Tosh and what's her face with the eyeliner to bring you all to the medical bay … righto." He turned to look at Ianto then. "Sam, Daniel and what's her face are here now, they've got Tosh and another fellow out of the cell they were in and they're bringing them up."
Ianto closed his eyes and nodded, a relieved sigh escaping him. He couldn't describe just how desperately he wanted to see Daniel right now. He heard the sound of running footsteps moments before Tosh and Daniel appeared at the top of the stairs with the others.
"Ianto," Tosh and Daniel called out together, Tosh's coming out more like a sob. They ran down the stairs toward him, but Owen stopped them with a hand up.
"Wait, I'm scanning him," he ordered watching the screen in front of him. Ianto looked at Daniel whose beautiful blue eyes were boring into his, full of worry, relief and impatience. His hand was fidgeting by his side, obviously wanting to reach out and touch Ianto. It took what felt like forever and Ianto was about to leap off the bed into Daniel's arms when the doctor finally announced that he was done. Tosh dove on him first and Ianto gasped as the fabric of her jacket touched the metal discs on his skin.
"Sorry, are you all right?" Tosh asked, tears shining in her lovely brown eyes.
"Yeah, it's these things, anything that touches them is amplified and your jacket is just a bit rough," Ianto explained gently as she eased back, looking apologetic.
"Sorry," she said softly, reaching out to squeeze his hand.
"It's okay," he reassured her, squeezing back.
"I'm really glad you're okay," she said. "We could hear you down there and …" she trailed off, the tears spilling over.
He reached out and gently stroked her face with his thumb. "I'm okay," he promised her and she nodded to him before pulling away and apologising softly to Daniel. He nodded to her and she ran over to where Teal'c was standing, throwing herself immediately into the Jaffa's arms.
Daniel approached cautiously, although Ianto could tell it was a tremendous effort not to just leap on him. Ianto pushed himself up into a sitting position and reached out for the archaeologist, wanting desperately to be held by the other man. "Am I going to hurt you if I get too close?" he asked worriedly.
"I don't care," Ianto told him honestly. Daniel removed the tack vest, crossed the distance between them and pulled Ianto into his arms. Ianto cuddled into him, burying his face in the other man's neck and glad that the fabric of his shirt was soft. Daniel stroked his hair softly and Ianto burrowed deeper into the archaeologist's hold. They didn't speak, there wasn't anything that needed to be said. He knew Daniel had been worried about him and was glad he was all right, just as Daniel probably knew he'd been terrified and desperately wanted comfort.
"Ianto, I'm afraid I have some bad news." Owen's voice broke into their moment and Ianto asked what it was without looking up from Daniel's neck. "The discs can't be removed, they've attached themselves to your nervous system and removing them would cause irreversible damage."
"So I'm going to spend the rest of my life walking around with these things in my body?" Ianto asked, feeling sick at the prospects.
"I'm afraid so," Owen replied.
"So what about when I have to put clothes on again? I can buy soft fabric all I like, eventually anything rubbing against these for a long period of time is going to drive me mad."
"You get covers for them."
Everybody in the room looked up to find John Hart awake and looking down into the medical bay.
"They can be quite a lot of fun if used the right way, but of course, heightened sensation all the time was a drawback to the design, as was the possibility of remotes accidentally effecting the wrong implants. So the same people who made them designed covers to go over the top. They protect the wearer from constant rubbing contact, block remote signals to the discs and protect the devices themselves from damage that may occur from accidental knocking and the like. They were made of an insanely strong metal, I'm pretty sure even weapons fire couldn't penetrate it. I have one on my ship … which is where by the way? Actually forget that, how did I get here? Why am I tied up? Why can't I breathe properly and why do you all look like you want to kill me?"
"We do," Teal'c replied and John looked down at him.
"Well hello there, big fellow. Whatever I did to upset you I apologise, I assure you it wouldn't have been on purpose."
Ianto wanted to cry, why did life have to keep throwing this rubbish his way. "It's okay," Daniel soothed, whether just in general or because he could feel Ianto trying not to lose it Ianto wasn't sure. "It's going to be all right."
"Why do I have a control panel for those discs on the back of my hand?" John asked and Ianto tensed. He'd completely forgotten about that. He pulled back from Daniel to see Jack reefing John forward and pulling the panel off the other time agent's hand.
"Tell me what does what?" Jack demanded.
"How much range does it have?" Ianto asked, interrupting Jack's question.
"A kilometre maybe," John replied.
"Will destroying it do anything to me?"
"No, you just won't be able to use it anymore."
"Fine, give it to me and I'll destroy it!" Ianto ordered.
"No, I'll take care of it after you leave," Jack replied slipping the panel in his pocket. "That way you're out of range in case it does effect the discs."
Ianto studied him for a moment, wondering if there was an ulterior motive to the man's offer. He dismissed it as unimportant however, figuring it wouldn't matter anyway. He'd already decided he was never going to come back here. "Fine."
"All right, that's settled then. Doc, is he fine otherwise?" O'Neill asked.
"Yes, the discs simulate sensations in the wearer, they haven't harmed you physically at all," Owen replied directing the answer to Ianto who nodded.
"Right then, let's get you out of here," O'Neill suggested, moving to help Ianto off the bed. He tapped his head set, "Promethius we're ready to go whenever you can get us."
A few moments later they appeared in the Promethius' transporter room and Jack was directing the technicians to send them all to different locations. Tosh was staying with Ianto and Daniel while she was there and they'd extended the invitation to Teal'c as well so the two could be together somewhere off base. The four were beamed down together just inside the apartment and Daniel directed the couple to their room before helping Ianto into his.
"What do you need?" he asked as they reached the door.
"A shower, but I want you to come with me," Ianto replied honestly.
"Of course I will," Daniel agreed helping him into the ensuite. He turned the taps on and helped Ianto undress before shucking his own clothing. They climbed into the shower and Ianto dove under the spray that was a little hotter than he'd usually like, particularly when it hit the discs, but right now felt just perfect. He wanted to scald and scrub the feeling of this day off his skin.
Daniel soaped up a cloth and handed it to Ianto before repeating the action with another one and running it over Ianto's back. It felt heavenly and Ianto abandoned his own washing momentarily to enjoy the sensation. When he was scrubbed clean and had washed his hair thoroughly he all but fell into Daniel's arms, holding the archaeologists tightly against him.
"I was so worried about you," Daniel whispered.
"I was completely terrified," Ianto admitted.
"What did he do to you?"
Ianto hesitated for a moment, deciding whether to tell Daniel the whole truth or not.
"You don't have to tell me if you're not ready," the other man's soft voice assured and it was this that made his decision for him. It was safe to tell Daniel everything, the other man would never judge him or pity him for it. So he told him everything, and even though his body was shaking slightly at the end of it all he felt better knowing he hadn't had to keep any of it inside.
Daniel listened silently and when Ianto was finished he helped him out of the shower, helped dry him off and got them both into a pair of warm pyjamas that thankfully didn't rub too much on the discs. He tucked them into bed and wrapped his body around Ianto's, helping to quell the shaking, if only slightly.
Ianto snuggled into him, feeling safe and content. He really loved this man and he told him, so leaning up to kiss his jaw.
"I love you too," Daniel replied, returning Ianto's kiss with one to his hair. It took a long time for Ianto to fall asleep, the pyjamas were soft but they still felt incredibly weird against the discs. Eventually he did though, content in the knowledge that Daniel would be there when he woke up.
XX
Several nights later found Jack appearing in Captain Harkness' office in the Torchwood hub where the immortal man was waiting for him. "Captain." The word was as much a question as a greeting.
"General," the Captain greeted in return. "How is Ianto?"
"Alive, that's about as much as I can tell you. The kid does a good job of keeping his feelings to himself when he wants to," Jack replied.
Harkness nodded, "Yeah, he was always good at that." He reached behind him and pulled a small bag from his desk. "This is for him," he said. "It's the cover for the discs. Fairly straight forward to use, but there's instructions in the bag in case there's any confusion."
Jack took the bag. "I'm sure he'll appreciate it."
The Captain nodded. "I was going to ask you the other day but decided it could wait at the time; does our alliance still stand? I know one of your provisions was that no further harm come to Ianto due to my relationship history, and while it was through no fault of my own John is an ex which places this situation in that category."
"I'm aware of that," Jack replied. "I will admit I considered it, even asked Ianto what he thought."
"And what did he say?" Harkness asked.
"That the alliance between us was too important to break over someone like John Hart. And while he's more than a little pissed at you over the whole thing, he knows it wasn't your fault," Jack replied.
"That's good, tell him thank you for me."
"He also said that unless it was absolutely necessary he would never set foot in the hub again, which is what you ultimately wanted so I guess that will make you happy."
"Yeah, it's what has to happen," The immortal man replied with a nod, although Jack could see the sadness in his eyes. "He and that other guy, Daniel, are they…?"
"Not yet, but none of us think it'll be long," Jack replied honestly, knowing it would hurt the other man but seeing no reason to lie. The captain should be happy the man he loved had someone to care for him.
Good, that's good," Harkness replied looking away.
"What happened to Mr Hart?" Jack asked, wanting to change the subject.
"He's in the dungeon at the moment. I'm still trying to decide what to do with him," Captain Harkness replied. "What happened wasn't really his fault and he does feel bad about it. That being said he doesn't exactly have a stellar past."
"Well, neither do you," Jack said off handedly and Harkness gave him a poisonous glare.
"Let's not start that again," he growled.
"Well what can I say, Captain, it's the truth. Just look at your ex in the dungeon."
"Are we ever going to have a conversation without you insulting me?" the immortal man demanded angrily.
"Probably not," Jack replied truthfully. "But that's half the fun isn't it?"
"You know I could come to your base and insult you too," the captain threatened.
"You'd never get into my base," Jack countered with a superior smile.
"Is that a challenge, General?" Captain Harkness asked.
"No, a challenge is something you might actually be able to achieve," Jack returned mockingly, tapping his ear piece and ordering them to beam him back. "Toodles," he said with a smart ass grin, watching the hub disappear in front of him. He grinned as he ordered the engineers to send him back to the base. If nothing else his conversations with Captain Jack usually amused him
XX
Ianto stared in the mirror for several moments, turning this way and that to see how the cover fit. The cover went over the discs but touched the skin around them and left a gap between the cover, which was metal on the outside with a soft, gel lining, and the disc itself. It then wrapped around his chest and attached at the back with a futuristic buckle that conformed to his body shape and tightened or loosened as he moved. It was odd, but not the worst thing he'd worn in his life and he was sure he'd get used to it eventually. It certainly beat the way the discs felt without it.
He pulled his shirt back on, sighing when there was no fabric rub, and headed out to the dining room where Sam, Jack, Janet, Cassandra, Paul, Daniel, Tosh and Teal'c were sitting chatting while they waited for dinner to cook. Daniel had offered to go into the room and help him with the cover when Jack arrived with it, but Ianto had declined wanting to sort it out himself before letting Daniel see it.
He asked if anyone wanted anything before taking his seat next to Daniel when the offer was declined. Dinner was great and the company was fantastic as always. They ended the night together with a few games, all child friendly for Cassandra, although she was quick to remind them that she was a teenager now, before the group headed home to bed. Teal'c and Tosh offered help clean up, but Daniel and Ianto declined so the pair headed off to bed leaving them alone. They worked through it quickly and when they were done Daniel grabbed Ianto's hands and pulled him close.
"Did the cover work out all right?"he asked.
"Yeah," Ianto replied. "It's designed to move with me so it's not restrictive or anything. It's a bit weird, but I'll adjust."
"Is it helping?" Daniel asked.
"Yeah, a lot actually. I can't feel anything at all on those spots at the moment. That being said I haven't gone out of my way to touch them through the metal either," Ianto replied thoughtfully reaching up to touch one of the spots where a disc sat. He didn't feel anything at all, but that was far better than what it was like before.
"Anything?" Daniel asked.
Ianto shook his head. "No, I didn't really expect there to be anything though. I'm just glad the whole hyper stimulated bit is over."
"Does it sit pretty flat to your skin or…?"
"Oh, here." Ianto pulled his shirt over his head and let Daniel see the cover for himself. The archaeologist studied it closely, asked Ianto's permission to touch it, which Ianto granted, and finally moved around behind him to get a proper look at the clasp.
"It certainly seems well designed," he commented.
"Yeah. I imagine the implants weren't cheap and the price charged would have given the manufacturers plenty of money to play with when it came to creating the covers," Ianto mulled aloud.
Daniel hummed in agreement before falling silent and after a few moments Ianto turned slightly to look at him. He was looking at the cover but his eyes were unfocused, as if he were thinking rather than focusing on what was in front of him.
"Daniel?"
"Sorry, I was thinking," Daniel apologised, seemingly snapping out of wherever his thought process had taken him.
"About what?" Ianto asked curiously.
Daniel shook his head, "Nothing, don't worry about it."
"No, tell me, it's okay," Ianto coaxed turning around to face him properly.
"I was just wondering what kind of sick mind it would take to use something like this as a torture device," Daniel replied, looking thoughtful and more than a little disturbed. "I mean torture is supposed to be unpleasant for the recipient and pain is an awful thing to endure, but at least it's a …a clean kind of torture, if you know what I mean. Hurting someone gives their body and their mind a direct message, that person wants you to suffer so they're going to cause you pain. Not nice in any way, but also relatively easy for the mind to process. Something like this could be used to do what John tried to do to you, to make a person feel what should be a pleasant sensation when they don't want to feel it…" he trailed off and Ianto nodded.
"It's not a nice experience that's for sure. I dealt with the pain all right. I mean it was awful, but like you said it was expected. When he did those other things to me … that was when I got scared. He started touching me and … I tried to think about other things, to take my mind off what he wanted to do to me. Normally, when you want to escape something awful you go to a happy place in your mind. I couldn't do that because you're my happy place and I wouldn't allow what he was doing to me taint my thoughts of you. I thought about Tosh and the others instead but … the distraction wasn't as strong so it didn't work as well, the feelings just kept coming at me. So I definitely know what you mean," he said, turning his thoughts back to the present before his memories consumed him. "I would have taken being tortured for months if it spared me one more second of the other experience."
Daniel pulled him into his arms and held him tightly, running a hand gently over his back. "I'm sorry I couldn't be there to help you sooner," he said softly. "I wanted to come in first with Jack and Teal'c, but the transporter could only manage three at a time with the gap Sam found in the barrier and that had to be Jack, Teal'c and Owen. I understand why … it didn't make it any easier though."
"It's okay, I understand why too. Besides, as much as I just wanted to be in your arms through the whole thing, I would never have wanted you to see him torturing me. I'm sure Jack just wanted to spare you from that too."
"Yeah, you're right," Daniel agreed. "I didn't like him for it at the time, but he's a good friend."
They held each other for another few minutes and Ianto's mind wandered to everything that had happened over the last couple of days. One thing this experience had shown him was just how short and cruel life could be. The other thing it had shown him in, glaring detail, was how very much he loved Daniel and how badly he craved having the other man in his life and not as a friend anymore. It hadn't been that long, not really, but he was ready now … well, as ready as one could ever be to move on.
"Daniel."
"Yeah."
"Have we waited long enough?" Ianto asked, hoping the archaeologist would understand the question. He felt Daniel tense slightly in his arms before pulling back to look at him with searching eyes.
"Are you ready?" he asked softly.
"Yes," Ianto replied, searching the other man's eyes just as thoroughly.
"Are you sure? You've been through something pretty traumatic and that can mess with your feelings."
Ianto shook his head, "No, it's not that. All this experience did was drive home just how much I want to be with you, how much I love you. If you're not ready though I-"
He was cut off mid sentence by the archaeologist's lips on his own. He kissed back enjoying the sensation more than he could ever describe. "I love you too," Daniel whispered when they parted. "And I think I'm as ready as I'll ever be. I don't want to let you go right now, I want to hold you forever."
"You won't get any complaints from me," Ianto replied, sucking in a sharp breath when Daniel's hands floated down his sides, stroking the bare skin. He slipped his own up Daniel's hips and crept them under the other man's shirt as Daniel brought his lips down to Ianto's neck.
"I've been reading a lot lately," Daniel whispered between kisses.
"About what?" Ianto asked breathlessly.
"About all the things I want to do with you," Daniel replied. "I wanted to be ready."
Ianto smiled. "I appreciate that. Although I think I'd be a pretty good teacher and the best way to learn is really through hands on practice." he pulled back and slipped his hands into Daniel's. "Don't worry, we'll take this a slow as we need to." he kissed Daniel gently and pulled him down the hall to his bedroom.
XX
It was later that night that Daniel awoke to the sound of a phone buzzing on the night stand. He glanced round to see that it was Ianto's and reached out gently to avoid waking his still sleeping lover who was curled up on his chest. He didn't look to see who it was before answering.
"Ianto's phone."
"Oh, hi, sorry, is Ianto there?" Daniel thought he recognised the voice and pulled the phone back to see the caller ID. When he found his suspicions to be correct he pulled the phone back to his ear.
"Yes, he's here, he's asleep. Is this important, Captain? Because I'm not waking him up unless it is."
"I just wanted to see if he was all right and if he sorted out the cover okay."
Daniel felt Ianto stir and he looked down to find the other man's eyes open and looking at him curiously.
"Oh, looks like you're in luck, he's just woken up. I'll pass you over." He handed the phone to Ianto. "It's captain hormone, do you want me to give you some privacy?"
"No, it's all right," Ianto replied sleepily, taking the phone and putting it to his ear. "What do you want, Jack?"
"I wanted to make sure you're okay and you sorted the cover out all right," Jack replied cautiously.
"It's midnight here, Jack, you couldn't wait for this until the morning?" Ianto asked.
There was silence on the other end of the line before Jack spoke again. "I don't know what to do about John."
"What do you mean?" Ianto asked.
"I'm not sure what to do with him," Jack repeated. "I know he wasn't responsible for what happened to you, not really, but if he hadn't been so caught up in the idea that you'd stollen me, or whatever, the spirit may have taken him somewhere else, so in that regard it was his fault. I don't know what to do with him now. Do I keep him locked up, let him go, or feed him to a weevil?"
"Why are you asking me?" Ianto asked.
"Because you were the one he hurt the worst. You're the one with sensory discs permanently in your chest because of him. It's only right that you should have a say in his punishment. And because you're usually the one I would ask about these things," Jack replied.
"Not anymore I'm not," Ianto reminded him and he was surprised by the lack of bitterness he felt about that. "And you don't want me making this kind of decision right now, Jack. Or maybe ever, considering it's John Hart we're talking about. I am never going to feel anything but animosity toward him, I thought you of all people would know that."
"I do," Jack replied.
"Then you know it's not a good idea. I'd vote the weevil option, every time," Ianto told him honestly.
"Weevil?" Daniel asked him with a curious frown.
"Yeah, remember I told you about Janet back at Torchwood," Ianto reminded him.
"Ah, yes, I remember now. They sound nasty."
"Jack hold on a minute," Ianto said, dropping the phone into his lap and looking up at his lover. "He wants my opinion about what to do with John Hart," he explained.
"And one of the options is feeding him to a weevil?" Daniel asked.
"Yes."
"I like it," Daniel replied and Ianto let out a huff of laughter.
"What happened wasn't his fault, I know that. But my hatred of him is too strong from the first time we met him, I can't be objective in this," Ianto explained.
"Are you willing to sentence a man to death over that hatred?" Daniel asked seriously and Ianto thought about it.
"Right now I would, but I know I would regret it down the line. Even if he is a homicidal maniac," Ianto told him truthfully. "What would you do?"
Daniel shook his head. "I wasn't joking about the weevil, Ianto. He hurt you, badly, I can't be any more objective than you can," the archaeologist replied earnestly.
"Yeah, I guess you're right. My hatred of him stems from what he did to my previous colleagues not me." Ianto thought about it for a while longer before picking up the phone and putting it to his ear. "You still there, Jack?"
"Yes."
"Don't let him go, he's too dangerous and unpredictable. I won't ask for his death, I won't have that blood on my hands or ask you to have it on yours, but I don't think he should just walk free either. Is there an intergalactic penal colony you can send him to or something?" he asked.
"I'll look into it. Thank you for your input and I hope you're okay."
"I am, thank you," Ianto replied and hung up the phone.
"Are you all right?" Daniel asked as Ianto dropped the phone back on one of the bedside tables.
"Yeah," Ianto replied honestly. "John Hart will always be a sore spot for me. He would have been, even if we hadn't met again."
"What did he do?"
Ianto sighed. "Lied to us, double crossed us, tried to shoot Tosh but Owen got in the way. Paralysed Gwen and left her in a shipping container to die. Threw Jack off a roof before he knew about the whole not staying dead thing. Nearly got Gwen blown up. You know, all the usual fun stuff."
"Did he do anything to you?"
Ianto shook his head. "He took my radio and told me Gwen, Tosh and Owen were dying so I'd leave him alone with Jack and run back to them. Pointed a gun at my head, but no, nothing physical. I think the terror that the only people I'd ever thought of as friends were dying is what got me the most. If not for that, I may not hate him so much."
Daniel nodded, "I can understand that." They were silent for a minute, each lost in his own thoughts. "Do you want to try and get back to sleep?" Daniel asked.
Ianto smiled and leant over to kiss the other man. "Maybe not right away," he suggested with a grin. Daniel grinned back and pulled him into another kiss, lying back down on the bed and bringing Ianto with him. Ianto kissed him for a while before trailing his lips down lower, kissing and nipping at the skin of his lover's throat before moving lower. Daniel watched his journey down until Ianto gave him a naughty grin and took his full length into his mouth causing him to throw his head back and groan.
Neither of them realised Tosh had gotten up for a drink of water. She grinned to herself as she passed their door on her way back to her own room and the sexy, naked man she had waiting there for her. Maybe she could wake Teal'c and convince him that another round was a good idea.
XX
End of Chapter
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