"Ianto, I think something's happening to me."
If Ianto had been mildly worried before, he was bordering on terrified now. Once the words had been released, Lisa let go of her mask and let him see all of the fear and anguish she had been holding inside.
Ianto's heart was racing and he couldn't move; couldn't make his mouth work to comfort her or ask what she meant.
"Tell us." Jack's voice was gentle from Lisa's other side. "Maybe we can do something to help; something to stop it - whatever it is."
Lisa's grip on Ianto's hand loosened slightly and he could see her consciously trying to centre herself. Knowing that she would probably need his support for this conversation, he tried to do the same. Although he was still shaken on the inside, he offered her his best encouraging smile. She smiled back tremulously.
"I… it's…" she started hesitantly. "I don't know."
"Take your time," Ianto said, finally finding his voice. "And don't worry about not making sense. Just explain it as well as you can."
"It… I don't know how to describe it. It's… the first time it happened… well, I think it was the first time anyway. Maybe it was… but no, I think it was the first time…"
She shook her head very gently as she tried to gather her thoughts into some sort of coherence. Ianto's thumb stroked across the back of her hand, a small silent gesture of his support.
"The first time I know for sure was a few weeks ago. It might have happened before then and I just didn't realise it, because it's felt stronger and more definite every time." Although Lisa's voice sounded calm, the look in her eyes and the minute trembling of her fingers told Ianto she was far from it.
"The first time what happened?" Jack asked softly.
"It's… I… It was like… It was like there was someone else in my head."
Jack and Ianto shared a worried look over Lisa's head. That didn't sound good.
"What do you mean 'someone else'?" Ianto prompted, meeting her eyes again.
"There were just these… these thoughts in my head, and they weren't mine. They didn't feel like mine. It's just… weird. I don't know how else to describe it."
"It was like something - or someone - was taking over your thoughts, is that what you're saying?" Jack asked, growing more and more worried by the second.
Lisa nodded hesitantly.
"How do you know?" Ianto asked quietly. "What are the thoughts like?" When Lisa's gaze darkened, he hurried to clarify and comfort her. "You don't have to say if it's too hard to describe; only if you feel you can tell us."
There was a long silence, and Jack and Ianto had almost decided that Lisa wasn't going to be able to explain it, when her voice broke through the quiet.
"They were harsh. Cold. I'd go so far as to say… emotionless."