A/N: Oh dang…! I'm so, so sorry about the delay! (winces) Real life got a little hectic AND I've been wrapping up some other projects. BUT, now it's FINALLY updating time! Hooray?

Thank you so, so much for your reviews and support! I hope that you know how much they mean to me. (HUGS)

Awkay, because I've already kept you waiting too long… Le's go! I truly hope that this turns out worth the wait.

Calm Before a Hurricane

It had been a very, very tough day. Jack didn't die but he came dangerously close to losing pretty much his entire team. His one and only comfort was that at least Ianto was safe at the Hub.

By the time Jack finally stumbled in, after announcing that the others had no business showing up for two full days unless it was the end of the world, night had fallen long since. The lights, however, were on. He frowned, looking around. "Ianto?" No reply. His stomach twisted although he knew that the worries were ridiculous. "Yan? Where are you?"

That was when Jack noticed something that brought a smile to his face. Left to Ianto's desk were two extremely delicious looking sandwiches, along with a bottle of sparkling water. There was also a note, written in the Welshman's familiar handwriting.

'Don't you dare come to bed on an empty stomach.'

Jack ate obediently although he didn't exactly feel hungry. The horror images of the past few hours were still plaguing his mind. As soon as he was done he headed towards his bed, unsurprised to find it already occupied. A wide grin appeared to his face, chasing away some of the shadows in his eyes.

Ianto had probably fought a long and brave battle but eventually exhaustion had won. The Welshman was sound asleep, curled up with one hand pressed against his twenty-one weeks pregnant belly. What really caught Jack's attention, however, was what lay underneath the other hand. It was a book about pregnancy, describing the experience from week to week. The Captain couldn't stop his heart from fluttering, just a little bit.

He knew that Ianto still had a lot of fears and insecurities when it came to the pregnancy and parenthood in general. Several of them were very well justified. And although Jack hated himself for such selfish thoughts for a long time he'd been terrified out of his mind that the archivist would decide against keeping the baby. But this… This was definitely a positive sign. It felt incredibly good to see Ianto opening up to the idea of parenthood in his own small way.

Unable to stop himself Jack approached and pressed a small, stunningly tender kiss to Ianto's forehead. He didn't realize that one of his hands pressed gently against the younger man's stomach. Someone else did notice.

Jack froze completely when he felt what could only be described a thrust, aimed at his hand with a stunning amount of force. When the intrusive limb refused to budge the motion repeated itself. Then again. Jack's eyes widened while a comical expression took over his face.

"I do appreciate the humor of this situation", a sleepy voice murmured, carrying a thick accent. "But… Would you mind moving your hand? You're over-stimulating our daughter."

Jack stared at Ianto, still feeling a little overwhelmed. "She's… I just…"

Ianto smiled softly. "I know. I've felt it for a few weeks, now. Thought I'd keep it a secret until she'd be able to surprise you, too."

Jack swallowed thickly, focusing firmly on Ianto's slightly swollen belly. Memories that he'd fought hard to leave behind stung as they resurfaced. "I… remember the feeling", he murmured, not quite sure if he wanted the other to hear or not. "It's amazing." The experience in a whole had been… well, unpleasant. But he did love this part.

Most people would've asked too many questions. But Ianto wasn't most people. And instead of invading memories that Jack wasn't quite ready to share yet the Welshman shifted, making a little bit more room for him. "Just lay down. You're exhausted and so am I. You can continue harassing our little princess tomorrow."

Jack couldn't resist a smile. "Princess, huh?" That was certainly a step forward from Peanut.

Ianto snuggled closer with a demanding little growl. "Let me sleep. Or else, I swear…"

Jack silenced the threat with a long, passionate kiss to the younger man's lips.

In a few minutes Ianto was fast asleep once more. Jack couldn't find rest. Instead he pulled the archivist closer, as much as humanly possible. He found himself imagining what their daughter would look like, how she'd fit in to their bizarre Torchwood family. He found himself imagining a family. And somehow that was one of the most terrifying things he'd ever faced in his entire life.

It didn't take long before the girls caught on that Jack could feel the baby kicking. He made it all too obvious with his inability to stop brushing Ianto's stomach on occasion, especially when he needed a little comfort or a distraction. From thereon it was a mad game of them both trying to feel the movements as well and Ianto doing his best to escape the unwanted attention. The baby also seemed to try and avoid their approaches. The silly little contest was finally resolved when Ianto was twenty-four weeks along.

Tosh arched an eyebrow when she walked by the coffee machine to see Ianto standing there, rubbing soothing circles on his belly with a frown. He seemed a little paler than usual but also surprised. "Is the little one giving you a hard time?" she inquired.

Ianto's frown deepened. "I think she's making backflips. Or doing yoga. She's… never done anything like this before."

Tosh approached almost cautiously. She could tell that Jack was watching them from his office and knew from experience that upsetting Ianto would upset the Captain. And none of them wanted the over protective Captain to get upset. "Can I…?"

She fully expected Ianto to refuse. He'd never been exactly comfortable with physical contact, after all. She wasn't sure which one of them was more surprised when he nodded instead.

Wasting no time Tosh approached still and slowly, tentatively, placed her hand against the still barely visible swell. Nothing. She was already about to pull her hand away when she felt it.

A bizarre fluttering that soon turned into what felt like caresses.

Ianto chuckled breathlessly. "That's new. You should feel the kicks she throws at Jack."

For a few moments Tosh could only stare. Then, slowly, a wide smile appeared to her face. The motions underneath her hand continued, as though the baby had sensed her delight. "That makes it official, then", she declared a little more proudly than she'd intended. "I'm her favorite aunt."

"You are." And then, as though something remarkable hadn't just happened, Ianto focused on what he'd been doing before the baby began to act up. "So, coffee?"

Jack knew that the pregnancy hadn't been exactly a smooth ride for Ianto. And he was also painfully aware that he wasn't always exactly the perfect boyfriend. If a boyfriend was what he was, anyway. And on the day Ianto hit week twenty-five he decided that it was high time to make up for it. They needed a break from all worries and horrors, anyway.

Harkness style.

Well, Ianto wasn't exactly relaxed when he led the blindfolded man. A hand was squeezing Jack's wrist so hard that it made him want to wince. "Where are you taking me?" the Welshman demanded, futilely attempting to make his tone sound light. "Would I have needed my gun?"

Jack smirked. "Doubt it. There won't be a lot of people to shoot at." And that was when they reached their destination. A nearly childish little smirk took over the Captain's face while he began to take off the blindfold. "Besides, I was aiming towards making this a pleasant surprise."

Ianto blinked twice, adjusting his eyes. And then gasped loudly. Were the man's eyes a little moist? Hormones at work, definitely. "Jack…!"

They stood on one of Jack's favorite rooftops. In one of the places the older man had never, ever shared with anyone before. It opened a baffling view to the city. In the dark of a fast approaching night the streets below spread like rivers of gold. With how high up they were the noise of the rest of the world was barely even a background noise.

It was just the two of them in their own little world.

And there, just a few steps away, was a picnic basket. Jack had been careful to choose his lover's favorite special treats. Including strawberries and whipped cream. The miraculous things Ianto could do with whipped cream…!

Jack glanced towards the younger man. He grinned proudly at what he discovered. "Can I assume that you like my little surprise?"

Ianto didn't say a word. Instead the Welshman kissed him, with such feral passion that it quite literally made Jack's heart skip a couple of valuable beats. And then he was responding, with such fervor he couldn't remember feeling ever before. And considering the years he'd lived that was saying a lot.

That evening they made love right there on the rooftop, with only the stars as their witnesses. So what if the roof was too hard and the chilly wind bit both of them? It was their very own little perfection. And even if the whipped cream never got to meet the strawberries it was certainly put into a good use.

The race against time began with something as simple as a small dizzy spell.

One moment Ianto was working at the achives like he did almost every single day. Focusing on three things all at once, which was also nothing unheard of. And then the world swayed unpleasantly around him.

Ianto gasped and slammed his hand against the nearest wall, so hard that his knuckles turned white. His knees buckled and it took all his willpower to remain standing. But he won the battle. Eventually. Which didn't make the black spots dancing in his line of vision any less unpleasant and disconcerting.

Ianto's still spinning head buzzed while he attempted to sort out his thoughts. Jack was away in a important, very unpleasant meeting. Good. The Captain wouldn't have to know about this. Yet, at least.

Ianto took a deep breath. He was pleased to discover that the floor wasn't trying to disappear from underneath his feet anymore. Small mercies… His finger wasn't quite steady while he tapped on his ear com. "Owen? Do you…?" He cleared his throat. "Do you have a moment?"

A quick inspection revealed what Ianto had already been suspecting. His blood pressure was elevated to far from acceptable numbers. Owen frowned at the discovery.

"I'm going to take some blood samples", the doctor announced in a tense tone. The look aimed his way wasn't exactly pleased. "Don't tell me that this was the first warning sign you've had. No offence but you looked like hell. And I knew that I should've kept a closer eye on your weight."

Ianto didn't look at the other man, instead focused unhealthily intently on the process of his blood being drawn. "I've had a few headaches. And I've been tired. But… It's the other pains that I've been worrying about."

He could feel Owen's eyes on him. "Other pains?" The doctor groaned. "Why do I have a feeling that I'm not going to like this…"

Ianto took a deep breath and gritted his teeth. "It's… my back, and my pelvis. The baby's growing and… It feels like she doesn't quite fit anymore." He held a small pause, fearing that his voice might break if he'd continue too soon. "My body… I can tell that it's trying to adjust but… It doesn't do so quickly enough." He took a deep breath, feeling the baby moving inside him. As though she'd been attempting to offer him comfort. "I'm a 21st century human, Owen. I wasn't… designed for… this." Finally he managed to gather his courage enough to look at the doctor. The expression he found certainly didn't offer any reassurance. "The baby's going to grow a lot during this third trimester. Will my body be able to handle it?"

Owen gulped. Loudly. "Honestly?" There was a moment of uncharacteristic hesitation. "At some point we may have to consider how long you'll be able to carry the baby without being torn to shreds." The man shifted with discomfort. "You really should tell Jack about this…"

Ianto shook his head instantly. "Tell him what? That our baby may be killing me? No!" He shook his head again for good measure. "We'll… We'll figure this out somehow. He doesn't have to know." He wasn't about to make Jack choose, not over this.

Owen sighed heavily. The doctor rubbed his face harshly with both hands. "He's going to go ballistic when he finds out. You do get that, don't you?"

Ianto brought a hand to his belly. Savoured the feel of the life growing inside him. And wondered if he was out of his mind. "Then we'll make sure that he won't find out until it's too late to go ballistic."

John Hart was confident enough to claim that he was a tough man to find. Especially when he didn't want to be found. And with his track record he could list a quite impressive amount of people that he really, truly didn't want to be found by.

He'd been lucky remarkably long but even his luck was bound to run out at some point.

He was just about to down a yet another drink when a much too familiar presence made him stiffen. It was soon followed by the about last voice he wanted to hear. "John… fucking… Hart. You know, I could almost imagine that you've been avoiding me. Such is very insulting." A hard hand was placed on his shoulder. "It's your luck that I'm in a forgiving mood."

John gritted his teeth painfully hard. Then finally consumed his drink before deciding to test both his voice and his luck. "What do you want?" His tone was almost flat. He had no idea how he managed that.

"What I want… is to make someone suffer." Gray's hand patted him, uncomfortably close to his crotch. "And you're going to help me do that, aren't you?"

TBC

A/N: Oh man… This sooooo isn't good news! (winces) Poor Ianto! And what happens when Jack finds out just what the pregancy is doing to him? And what about this other threat looming on them…?

Thoughts? Rants? There's a box down below juuuuuuuust for those. (Oh, I'm so not hinting anything!)

I've really gotta go now. I really hope that I'll see you guys next time!

Take care!

Guest: I'm thrilled to hear that you enjoyed it! (BEAMS) Heh, we'll see what they shall name their bundle of joy. Let's just hope that Gray won't steal that opportunity from them…

Colossal thank yous for the review!

TJ: Awww, of course I will! I really hope that what's to come turns out worth the wait.

Massive thank yous for the review!