FALLEN ANGEL PART TWO

DREAMS ARE BUT WISHES, THE NIGHTMARES ARE WHAT YOU REALLY WANT.

Jack was more than a little dismayed to discover that Ianto was not at the Hub when he arrived. Owen was and Tosh were already doing a local search for his mobile phone when Jack stepped in through the roller door. He glanced between his two colleagues.

"He didn't arrive?"

Tosh was tapping away at her keyboard. "I've got him on the CCTV now. He's heading this way."

"Owen as soon as he gets in I want him checked over." Jack ordered as he marched up to his office.

A few minutes later and Ianto arrived looking as orderly and blank faced as he always did. He offered up a brief smile as he hung up his coat and began walking in the direction of the kitchenette.

"Coffee?" There was no hint of anything amiss in his voice.

Owen followed him and hovered at the doorway. "Yeah, I'm sure Jack and Tosh would love one, but you're having a medical exam first."

Ianto froze and turned to face him as if seeing his dead colleague for the first time, his eyes narrowed in open curiosity. Owen felt like he was being undressed.

"What? Have I got dribble on my chin or something?"

Ianto appeared to gather his thoughts and flashed a grin in the medic's direction. "No, of course not. Well I guess I better follow you down into that pit of yours hadn't I."

Owen lead the way down into the autopsy bay and Ianto perched himself on the metal table and pulled off his Jacket and tie, placing them neatly at his side.

"Jack said you have a bit of a funny turn this morning." The comment slid out with practiced ease, Owen knew how difficult it was to get Ianto to talk at the best of times.

Owen, help me...please Owen...please get it out!

Ianto smiled, pushing down the screaming in the back of his head. "I'm just tired Owen. I had a bad nightmare. It freaked me out a bit. Freaked Jack a bit too." Not too much evasion.

"I see. What about running out of the SUV in the middle of the road?" Owen secured a blood pressure cuff around Ianto's arm.

Ianto flushed with apparent embarrassment. "Oh, that."

"Yes, that. Jack rang me right after you did it. I tried ringing you but you weren't answering your phone." He took the BP reading and removed the cuff. Owen then took his wrist to check his pulse. He was a stickler for doing these things by hand, diagnostic machines were never an exact science and even though his sense of touch wasn't all there he could feel the vibrations under his fingers much more than he used to be able to. Perhaps his body's way of compensating. Ianto was watching him closely. Owen found himself feeling uncomfortable under his gaze again.

"Lost it, must have dropped it when I got out of the SUV, Jack'll kill me."

"You're going off topic Ianto. What happened this morning?" Owen was writing down his observations now.

"I lost my temper Owen, plain and simple."

Owen turned at the sharp edge in Ianto's tone. "Coming from anyone else here I wouldn't bat an eyelid, but from you? Have you and Jack had a falling out?"

Ianto's laughter was not entirely reassuring. "No, I woke this morning from a bad dream, puked up in the bathroom. I'm tired Owen, it's been ages since I had some time off and I guess it just got to me."

Owen wrote this down, he then stuck a thermometer in Ianto's ear.

"Any dizziness, headaches, nausea?"

Ianto shrugged. "Apart from this morning? No, really Owen. I'm just tired and as Jack rightly pointed out to me this morning I've been working too many hours lately."

Owen grabbed his penlight and shone it into Ianto's eyes and Ianto baulked to get away from the light.

"Sit still, I need to look."

Ianto reluctantly complied gripping the edge of the exam table and forcing himself not to growl his displeasure. He could smell the death on Owen as he drew near and Ianto inhaled deeply. Owen noticed but didn't comment as he shivered when he stepped away.

"Fine, just need a blood sample then you get to your coffee machine."

Ianto rolled up his right shirt sleeve. "Of course."

Owen made his way up to Jack's office charts in hand and went in closing the door behind him. Jack was sipping on the remnants of his mug of coffee as Owen settled himself down in the chair in front of Jack's cluttered desk. He passed the manila folder over to Jack but the older man just put it down.

"Tell me."

Owen folded his arms.

"Not much too tell really. He's blood pressure is slightly elevated, his heart rate is up a bit and he's running a low grade fever. Probably suffering from Torchwood Stress Syndrome plus a lack of decent sleep and a crappy diet." Owen said.

"But?" Jack knew there was more, there always was. It went with the job.

Owen shifted in his seat. "But. OK, this is...well I can't really say a medical observation. He's just not...well just not himself."

Jack's eyebrows climbed into hairline. "That's about as unscientific as it gets Owen, care to elaborate?"

"He made me uneasy. It felt like he was the one examining me."

"It's definitely Ianto?"

Owen nodded. "According to our internal bio sensors, DNA and fingerprint. Nothing seriously untoward showed up, but he is showing signs of tiredness, irritability, a little light sensitive, raised BP...None of it is out of the ordinary. It's my gut Jack, it's telling me something is off. You know him better than the rest of us, what do you think?"

Jack picked up a pen, fiddled with it then put it back down. "Apart from that thing in the SUV this morning, he's pretty much normal. Ianto is never good first thing in the morning though." He added with a smile.

Owen shook his head. "Stop right there, Harkness."

The mood sobered again. "So what's the plan Doc?"

"I'm going to recommend he take a week off and get some rest, a holiday somewhere warm and sunny, he's way too pale and review him in a couple of weeks time."

Jack nodded. "Sounds like a plan...Thank you Owen."

"You might wanna try talking to him Jack. He trusts you. If there is anything personal going on, its best we know." Lisa was never far from the back of Owen's thoughts as far as Ianto was concerned.

Jack seemed to understand. "I'll do my best. In the mean time I need to track down his missing mobile."

"Tosh did that, she hit the remote transmitter and deleted everything on it and fried the sim card, it's scrap plastic now." Owen was grinning. "She really is bloody smart that girl."

"You're telling me, you've only just noticed?"

Owen gave him a withering look. "Fat lot of good it's going to do me now."

"I'm not sure Tosh would agree with that sentiment."

"Leave it right there Harkness, that is not a conversation I want to have."

Jack threw his hands up in mock exasperation. "What?"

Ianto was working at his desk in the archives when Jack found him. He was pretending to work anyway. Truth was he was looking through the many tantalizing things down there. He sensed rather than saw Jack's presence and turned nonchalantly to face him, his hands shoved into his pockets. Jack smiled, but it hitched briefly when he noted the loosened tie and top button of his lover's shirt undone. Ianto never allowed such imperfections no matter how sexy they were and they were definitely a turn on.

"Jack?" It was almost a whisper.

Without even thinking Jack took a pace forward noting the darkening, lustful look upon Ianto's face.

"Ianto. I just talked to Owen."

Ianto stepped further into the light his body mere inches away from Jack and Jack could feel the heat radiating off him, he felt himself drowning in that fiercely intense gaze and swallowed, now at a loss. He never felt like this around anyone. He was always the one that made other people this way. It was crazy even his knees were weakening. He felt Ianto's fingers ghost down his arm.

"What did the good doctor have to say then?" His voice was like organza silk against his skin, sliding over him. Jack was stared at his lips as he spoke, licking his own lips. God he was damned hot. Instinctively Jack leaned in, parting his lips for a deep kiss, holding his breath and.....

Ianto swung away laughing. "Oh no you don't Jack! I've got work to do."

Jack rolled his eyes and clenched his fists in frustration in the most Iantonian way imaginable, that boy is seriously rubbing off on me. He let out a shuddering breath.

"Bastard, that was not fair." He eventually got out.

He could see Ianto's eyes glinting with mischief as he readjusted his tie back to its pristine usualness.

"I'm only learning from you Jack." The intensity had dropped out of his Welsh tones. "So seriously, what did Owen's exam reveal? Possession? Bodily co habitation? I'm a weevil in disguise?"

God, Jack! Can't you see it? Jack! It's not me Jack, please! It's not me! Please don't hurt him, not him please....I'm begging you not him.

Jack was chuckling now. "You are becoming such a tease, Jones Ianto Jones."

"Who me?"

The faux innocence just made Jack laugh even more. "Owen wants you to take a week off, I agree with him. Go home and get some rest, have a holiday. Something like that."

Ianto appeared to think about that for a moment and then he smiled again. "Ok, I can't argue with that, but shouldn't we wait until Gwen gets back?"

Jack shrugged. "She'll be in the day after tomorrow. I'm sure we can manage for a couple of days. You deserve the break, I should have made you take one ages ago."

"Well then. I'll head home then."

Jack was a little surprised at the lack of protest but let it pass. "I'll see you tonight then?"

Ianto brushed past him, just enough for them to make brief physical contact and Jack grabbed his arm and pulled him close their faces inches apart. Ianto's fingers were in his hair, eyes searching Jack's so intently that Jack struggled maintain the contact. He was hard and he just wanted to take his lover there and then, but something held him back. There was a fire in Ianto's eyes that he'd never seen there before, the lust was back with overwhelming force, but they stood motionless staring at each other until finally Ianto lightly brushed his lips with a chaste kiss, barely touching his over sensitive skin. It burned through every bone in Jack's body, making him ache with desire. It was beautiful and frightening at the same time.

"Just make sure the world doesn't need saving first, my Captain." And Ianto was gone, leaving him gasping for air.

Owen was right, that definitely wasn't his Ianto. Jack wasn't sure whether to be pleased or not at that point.