Trading Places

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Chapter 7- Connor and Becker

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Down Time

Becker watched as Connor danced with Jack in the crowded club. Well, he used the word danced very loosely; flirted with, even mated with, would have been a better description. Both Connor and Jack had tried to get him to dance but he was quite content to remain with Ianto. He wasn't quite the showman that Jack and Connor appeared to be; they were enjoying being the centre of attention. It seemed that Ianto wasn't either.

"I don't dance," the Welshman had said when Jack asked.

Jack had turned to Connor and slipped an arm around his waist, flashing one of his trademark grins.

"Looks like it's just you and me," he said, leading Connor out into the mass of dancing people.

Soon, the two of them were pressed together, moving in time to the music, hands all over each other. Connor's arms were around Jack's neck, Jack's on Connor's waist. Becker took a drink from his beer bottle, his eyes never leaving them.

"If we don't get them out of here soon," Ianto commented, "we could be collecting them from the police station."

Becker nodded in agreement; the risqué show out on the dance floor was beginning to draw attention. He was pretty sure that Jack and Connor knew it too, just as they were completely aware of the effect it was having on Ianto and Becker. Connor caught his eye and whispered to Jack, making him look their way as well. The older man stroked his hands slowly down Connor's lower back, eventually settling on his arse. When he used this to drag their bodies closer together, Connor rocked his hips against Jack's.

Jack smiled, leaning in to claim Connor's mouth in a deep kiss. Becker drew in a breath and shifted in his seat, his jeans getting uncomfortably tight all of a sudden. He glanced at Ianto and saw that he wasn't the only one looking strained.

"We really should stop them," Ianto said, somewhat reluctantly, his heated gaze turning to Becker. "Before they get themselves into trouble."

Becker smiled. "This is why I don't let Connor drink," he joked.

Ianto laughed. "I don't think that excuse holds up for Jack," he said. "He's always like this."

Their respective partners, still dirty-dancing and kissing, cast another 'you want us to stop, come and get us' look their way and Becker grinned.

"I wonder if they'd like a taste of their own medicine?"

"Oh, definitely," Ianto replied, moving around the seat until he could slip a hand around Becker's neck to pull him down for a kiss.

Out on the dance floor, Connor looked over in time to see Becker's hand slide along Ianto's thigh, lips locked, Ianto's fingers threading thorough Becker's hair at the nape of his neck.

"Damn, that's hot," Jack said, following Connor's gaze and knowing that they had been out-manoeuvred.

Not that he minded and, from the look on his face, neither did Connor. This had been a contest from start to finish, of how far they could tease their lovers before they snapped, of what they could get away with. Now it seemed that Becker and Ianto were retaliating.

"Maybe it's time to go, yeah?"

Jack nodded, pressing one last kiss to Connor's lips before they began weaving their way through the other dancers to collect their partners.

The short walk to Ianto's flat seemed to take forever. It didn't help that they couldn't keep their hands off each other, making their journey slower. When the door finally closed, however, Ianto backed Jack to the wall, plastering his body against the other man's and kissing the breath out of him.

"Bloody tease," he muttered after he finally drew back. "'Should teach you a lesson for tormenting me like that."

Jack's eyes shone with interest. "You promise?"

Connor and Becker had already disappeared as soon as they came in, but they followed the sound of voices to find the two of them in their room. Standing in the doorway, Jack watched as Becker slowly stripped Connor of his shirt, hands getting to work on his jeans as they shared a wild, passionate kiss.

"Didn't anyone ever teach you to share?" he asked.

Becker turned and grinned. "No."

"Spoilsport," Jack grumbled, pouting. He leaned back against Ianto, who smiled.

Connor saw the sparkle in Becker's eyes and held out a hand to the two men in the doorway. He'd never seen Jack move so fast. He ushered them into Ianto's room and, seconds later, there was a pile of clothes on the floor. When he saw Connor's expression, Jack glanced behind him and smirked.

"Ianto's bed is bigger," he said, and proceeded to demonstrate exactly why that had been important.

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Becker awoke pressed between Connor and Ianto, wondering vaguely where he was. Ianto's room, of course. He heard a rustling sound and raised his head far enough to see over Connor's sleeping form. Jack was getting dressed as quietly as he could. When he saw Becker, he paused.

"Where are you going?" Becker whispered.

Jack came back to the bed so that he wouldn't have to speak loudly and wake the others.

"There was a rift spike a little while ago," he said, indicating to the wristband he wore. There was a tiny light blinking on it. "I thought I'd go and check it out."

Becker started to get up. "I'll come with you," he said, but Jack refused.

"It's only small, probably just the usual flotsam coming through." Jack finished fastening his boots. "I'll call if I need any help."

Relenting, Becker lay back down, getting comfortable again as Jack left the room, closing the door softly behind him. It was 4am, far too early to be getting up, especially after not getting much sleep the previous night, and he was kind of glad that Jack told him to stay here. Ianto was still curled against his back, breathing softly, sound asleep, as Connor cuddled in closer to his chest. He dragged the covers back over them all and closed his eyes again.

When he woke the next time, it was to the feel of gentle fingers roaming down his torso. He opened his eyes and saw Connor watching him intently, a smile on his lips.

"I thought you'd never wake up," he said.

"Well it's hard to sleep when someone is-" Becker's breath caught as Connor's hand found its target under the covers, "doing that," he finished.

Connor grinned. "Yep, that's what I was hoping for." His fingers moved to Becker's sides, tickling him until he squirmed away.

"Right, that's it." Becker rolled them so quickly that, before Connor knew what hit him, Becker had him on his back, arms held above his head. He paused suddenly, glancing to either side. "Where's Ianto?"

"In the shower."

"Not any longer," Ianto's voice announced as he wandered in with a towel around his waist and began getting his clothes out. "Have you seen Jack this morning? I usually find him lounging around on the sofa if he can't sleep but he's not there."

Becker shook his head. "He left at about 4am. Said there had been a rift spike and he was going to investigate."

They were in the kitchen, waiting for Connor to finish getting dressed, when Ianto's phone began to ring as he was making coffee. Becker watched the reaction on his face as he listened to the caller, the frown creasing his forehead, before he hung up. Abandoning the coffee, he went and got his coat.

"What's wrong?"

Ianto just headed to the counter to get his car keys. "I'll explain on the way, but we have to go. Can you get Connor?"

Five minutes later they were in the car, speeding along the streets. Connor, still putting his boots on, his jacket and bag dumped on the seat beside him, looked over at Ianto.

"Are you going to tell us what's going on?"

"It's Jack," Ianto said. "The call was from the hospital. Jack was mugged earlier, stabbed."

Becker turned in his seat. "Is he alright?"

Ianto's gaze stayed on the road. "He was pronounced dead twenty minutes ago, which is why we have to get there quickly."

"I should have gone with him," Becker murmured. "He said not to, but I should have insisted. Maybe I could have done something…"

Ianto shook his head. "Don't feel guilty. He won't blame you, trust me."

But Becker couldn't shake the guilt, the knowledge that had he not been so selfish, wanting to stay in bed, Jack might still be alive. He glanced at Ianto, wondering why the man was so calm. Maybe it hadn't sunk in yet. If it had been Connor who had been taken from him, he would be in pieces right about now. Ianto, however, seemed completely indifferent.

"Are you alright?" he asked.

Ianto frowned. "Why wouldn't I be? It's not like he'll be gone for long." At which point it dawned on him that he had forgotten to mention one crucial fact. "No, you don't understand; he isn't dead. Well, he is, but only temporarily. He'll come back, but they don't know that. We need to get to him before they start autopsies or lock him in a morgue freezer."

Becker could see his own confusion reflected in Connor's expression.

"What?"

By this point they were pulling into the hospital car park and Ianto was out of the car before he got an answer. Becker and Connor followed him as he headed for the reception desk.

"I'm Ianto Jones," he told the young receptionist. "I received a call saying that Jack Harkness had been brought in."

Her eyes widened as she recognised his name. "I, um, I'm so sorry. If you'd like to take a seat, I'll just call Dr Malhotra."

Ianto shook his head. "I already know what happened, I just want to know where he is."

It took a few minutes- she insisted on calling the doctor who had been on Jack's case- before they were finally shown through. Jack had already been taken down to the morgue, any belongings he had on him handed over to the police as evidence. He was lying on a table, a green cotton sheet over him. Dr Malhotra reluctantly explained that there would have to be a post-mortem carried out, due to the nature of his death.

"Can I have a few moments with him?" Ianto asked. "He's, I mean, was, my partner. I'd like to say goodbye."

As soon as he was out of the room, Ianto heaved a sigh of relief and dragged the cover off him. Jack's skin was almost white, and despite what Ianto had said, he looked dead to Becker. Connor went forward, hesitantly leaning closer.

"Are you sure-"

Connor jumped back as Jack's previously-lifeless body suddenly opened its eyes and took a deep, gasping breath. Ianto ignored him, checking Jack over carefully before casting him a relieved smile.

"Bloody hell!" Connor backed into Becker, who was standing behind him. "You were dead. You were! How the hell did you do that?"

Jack sat up on the table, leaning into Ianto's arms. "It's a long story. I'll tell it to you sometime but I think we'd best be getting out of here." he looked up at Ianto. "I don't suppose you've brought me any clothes?"

Ianto handed him a carrier bag and Jack tossed the sheet aside as he got off the bed. The doctors had handed his clothes over as evidence as well, leaving Jack naked in the cold room.

"I liked that coat," Jack grumbled.

Ianto sighed. "I'll see what I can do."

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Ianto managed to clear up the mess at the hospital by pulling rank and informing them that Torchwood were taking over the investigation. As far as they were concerned now, they had made a mistake with the identity of the victim, that it wasn't Jack Harkness but a member of Torchwood staff. The same thing couldn't work with the police, however, as they already knew who Jack was. Those few officers in the know about Jack's rejuvenation abilities assisted in removing the paperwork and altering records as though he had never been there.

"Ianto, you are a star!" Jack declared as Ianto handed him the evidence bag with his blue military coat in.

"So what were you doing down town?" Ianto asked. "That's where the police say you were found."

Jack dropped into one of the chairs around the conference table in the Hub. "Just as I told Becker earlier. There was a rift alert so I went to check it out."

"What was it?"

"Trouble," Jack informed him. "Unfortunately, that damn kid took the artefact I collected when he jumped me."

Connor frowned. "What was it? The artefact, I mean."

"A crystal box, about so big," he said, indicating with his hands the approximate size. "I recognised it as soon as I saw it; it's a spatial prison."

"Containing what, exactly?" Ianto wanted to know.

"Death." He glanced around at the others. "Let me put it this way, the last time one of these beings got loose in this world, it brought with it the Black Death."

Connor sighed; there were times when he missed the rampaging dinosaurs.

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To Be Continued…