79

Christmas Eve and here he was in the bloody Receiving Room at Balmoral of all places the phone call coming about an hour after their rude morning awakening, at least Jack was happy as he got his right royal seeing to before the right royal phone call and now stood grinning next to Ianto in the right royal house.

Ianto mentally scolded himself for being so Owenish but it was bloody early, the sun barely peeking over the horizon and wee Tuck still asleep in his Taddy's embrace.

"Ah, they are ready for you if you will just hand over the bundle we can…." The man's voice waivered as Ianto bared his teeth and snarled.

"This bundle as you call it is our baby" Jack said with annoyance "For fucksake, don't you do any homework anymore?"

"Potty mouth Uncle Jack" a voice called and he spun to face Her Majesty as she moved towards them as if floating in that regal way she does, "Naughty in front of the queen too."

"Ah muffin!" Jack crooned, "They called our baby a bundle."

Jack's pout was epic and she made a small noise as she rushed to sit and pat her knee for the baby. Jack laid him in her lap and she carefully undid the swaddling to find a snoring little Jack child. The upturned nose giving away Ianto's involvement.

"Ahhhhhhh" her hands flapped as she tried not to give in to the urge to cuddle and instead she settled for stroking his little head of hair, the dark waves flicking around her fingers lovingly. "Perfect."

Ianto settled too.

She nodded and Ianto rushed to retrieve his child, rebinding him and placing him in the little Moses basket to carry through and Jack entered with the queen on his arm, talk stopping as everyone stood politely waiting for her to sit. No one even noticed Ianto behind them placing the basket on the floor under the chair Jack was standing beside and when they all sat Ianto sat in a chair by the wall, his eyes firmly on his most beloved things in the whole universe, together at the table.

"They have obviously been around for longer than we thought" one was saying as if resuming an earlier conversation. Ianto found that extremely rude as did the queen who pursed her lips.

"Well, the earliest comments about them are the Egyptians" another said with a soft sniff, "Seems they were here when the pyramids were built."

Ianto canted his head and watched as the queen canted her head too, flicking through a file and he saw one beside him so he started to read as well, an involuntary snort of amusement escaping as he read some of the thoughts on their impact on humans.

"Something funny?" a man with medals worn like confetti demanded.

Ianto glanced up and then rose to address the table, as a polite person does and her majesty nodded her approval for him to speak.

"Xenomorph and Predators have battled for centuries, this planet was populated by the Predators so they might have a fine hunting ground for their young to hone their killer instincts. Not only were their slave race placed here to flourish when their natural plant was threatened, their need to hunt Xenomorph led to the ancient Mesopotamians and such sacrificing some of their people for the good of the hunt each …seven? I think seven years if I can remember the hieroglyphics on the ship walls, look you need not fear the Predators. They could wipe you all out without blinking, they choose not to because you are their …well….pets?"

Silent staring as Ianto looked to either side of him.

"You speak like you know a bit about them, Torchwood right?" another asked and Ianto bowed politely as Jack introduced themselves as Torchwood Cardiff.

"Well Torchwood Earth of we are going to get picky Captain" the queen purred and Jack shrugged as he said he was not about to argue semantics with such a pretty lady.

"How many are there?" another demanded, "How do we kill them?"

"We are Legion" Ianto replied as he bristled, "We are everywhere."

As if to hone the point Maddy and Hoddor stepped away from the wall they had flanked Ianto by and let their cloaking fall away. The room became silent as an art installation.

"Humans are ours" Maddy said slowly, "We brought you here from the stars far away and gave you this planet so you might evolve and become. We do not come to kill what we tried to save. Those you left behind perished at the claws of Xenomorph. We mourn those we also lost to get you safe. Those who died for you are remembered in our songs. Do not fear the one with the big stick, for the shepherd only wishes to keep his flock alive. Fear the wolf circling the flock, we are here to protect you not eat you. We hunt."

Silence.

Ianto turned to smile at the queen and that was when his son decided to make an entrance, a lusty cry alerting them to the bundle under Jack's chair as the huge Predator lunged for it.

The only sound as she lifted the baby to her shoulder was a pen that rolled noisily across the glass top of the table to land on the carpet.