First off: Thank you to everyone who has read, reviewed, favorited/alert listed this!! And a HUGE Thank You to Kitsa for talking me through various scenarios while I got my head around what I wanted to write. (I am sorry I broke my promise to kill Dekker… he did deserve it, but hopefully losing forty years of his life was enough of a penance for most folks, considering his obsession with the 456. I really don't know why Ianto had to die in the cannon version, while Dekker survived, unless it was just to prove that the good guys don't always make it to the end.)

Secondly, although I "skipped" over Tim and Abby's wedding here, I do plan to write it. It will most likely end up as a multi-chapter piece in "More Short Stories".

More of Jack and Alice will be posted in "Short Stories." The order of events will be kept updated in my profile.


Thank you again for reading!

I am so very glad that so many of you have enjoyed this so much…
it's been a harrowing emotional ride at times, but in the end, it was also very satisfying.


Epilogue:
Three Months Later
(early December, 2009)

"Children begin by loving their parents;
as they grow older they judge them;
sometimes, they forgive them
"

Oscar Wilde


Sam looked up when the middle aged brunette came into the Tourist Information Centre. He didn't know why exactly Jack had insisted that the Information Centre be rebuilt and reopened, unless it was just the Captain's way of keeping him where he could keep an eye on him. If that was the case, Sam didn't mind at all. He loved working for Torchwood, even it was mostly doling out brochures and directing tourists to the nearest loo, accepting pizza deliveries and occasionally running to Starbucks.

He smiled at his newest customer. "Good morning, Miss," middle aged ladies seemed to like it when he called them that. "How can I help you today?"

The brunette returned his smile. "I'm looking for Captain Jack Harkness."

Sam almost stopped smiling. Jack always told him when he was expecting somebody. "Erm... no one else is here right now, maybe I can help you?" he asked hopefully. He reached under the counter and hit the button to let the Captain know that he needed to tune into the internal security feed for the office, right now. It was one of the newer instalments, one of the new safety precautions. Not quite a panic button, but it made him fell better.

"I know about Torchwood." Both her tone and expression seemed kind, but…

The phone rang. Sam excused himself politely; it was the line from downstairs. Just the same he answered the way he always did, "Good morning, Millennium Centre Tourist Information Centre, this is Sam speaking. How may I help you?"

Jack bit back his snicker. "Send her down, Sam. It's ok. She's my daughter."

Sam's eyes widened; he'd heard, of course, but… "Yes, Jack, right away," he said quickly. He hung up the phone. "I'm so sorry, I didn't know you were…" he cleared his throat nervously. If she'd just identified herself… but he supposed she had her reasons. "There's a lot of construction going on downstairs, Ma'am. Please watch your step," he said as he hit the button to open the new secret passageway. "The lift isn't operational yet, I'm afraid," he added in an apologetic tone. The truth of the matter was that the Hub was still a mess. The Plass had been rebuilt first, to hide what was going on underneath.

"That's quite all right," Alice favoured him with a bemused smile. She wondered when her father had started adopting strays, because that was just what he reminded her of, a stray puppy that had wandered in off the street. She'd never known him to be that kind hearted.

But when have I ever really known him, she wondered, as she picked her way carefully down the steps. The sound of construction in progress greeted her even before the huge cog door rolled aside; she recognized it as the same one that had been there when she was a little girl. Her mother had told her once that nothing could ever get in or out of that door… apparently she'd been right.

The amount of damage on the other side of the door was staggering. There was yellow 'caution' tape up everywhere, delineating clearly the only safe paths through the work… the debris. She'd only visited the Hub a few times as a child… the sudden memory of riding on her father's shoulders while someone laughed caused a wave of happiness to rush through her. It was followed just as quickly by a stab of pain. There had been a time when she was little that things had been so good, at least to a child's mind. But then it had all shattered, she and her Mum had new names and she didn't see her father again for so long…

A shadow moved over the floor; her breath caught in her throat when she looked up and saw the pterodactyl gliding by overhead. It circled once, looking at her as if it was trying to decide whether or not to tolerate the presence one more human in its territory.

"Her name's Myfanway," said a familiar voice. Abby, Alice connected a name to the face. "Don't worry, she's friendly," the dark haired American added.

"She is not friendly," said a man with the Australian accent. Alice didn't remember his name… he didn't stop to chat anyway, he was carrying a big box towards a set of white tile stairs that headed further down into the Hub.

"You're just sore because she doesn't like you," Abby teased after him. She turned towards their visitor. "Jack asked me to take you to his office," she motioned for the woman to follow her. "Watch your step," she cautioned as they made their way through the construction.

"I'm surprised to see a real crew down here," Alice remarked.

"Tell me about it," the other agreed. "But I guess somebody had to build this place to begin with," she added with a shrug. She had no idea how the crew was getting in and out. They weren't coming in through the tourist office and the lift from the Plass wasn't working yet. But Jack was Jack, so he must have some other way… besides, it was either that or they would have to roll up their own sleeves and start laying bricks and pouring concrete themselves. Not that she couldn't do it, but Abby just didn't see most of the rest of her teammates in hard hats.

They were handling all of the 'sensitive' work, of course. Tim, Mickey and Sara were reconstructing the Rift Manipulator; it had been little more than pieces when they finally dug it out. She was working on a new security system that should prevent anyone from ever getting a bomb into the Hub again, as well as rebuilding the Rift monitoring system. The programs were all still on the server, but the equipment had been destroyed.

Bobby had the medical bay and Ianto was digging out the archives. More of it had survived than they'd expected, thank goodness. Gwen and Wendy were helping Jack catalogue the alien tech to make sure that everything was accounted for in the debris.

"He should be up in a minute," Abby said to Alice, once they reached Jack's office. It wasn't where it used to be; since they were rebuilding the interior practically from scratch anyway, they were making some changes to the Hub's layout. There was going to be a real lab for one thing and a bigger medical bay with a separate autopsy room, so live patients wouldn't have to be treated on the same slab that Bobby used to examine dead ones. "Can I get you anything?" she asked before leaving Alice there alone.

"No. I'm fine. Thank you," she forced a tight lipped smile. It wasn't that she didn't appreciate the gracious attitude, she just didn't understand it. In the other woman's place, she was sure she would have a million questions for her… but Abby just nodded and said that if she did need anything she should feel free to ask.

Alice watched her departure and wandered over to her father's desk. She smiled. It was a cluttered mess of paperwork, bits and bobs, a few framed photographs… two coffee cups, both empty. The bookshelf behind it was in no better shape. "You won't win any awards for neatness, will you Dad?" she mused aloud as she walked around the desk to run her hand over the soft wool of the coat hanging on the wooden stand behind his chair. She remembered being fascinated by it when she was a little girl… it was like that coat was a part of her father's personality, a part of him.

She turned back to his desk—and stopped short when she got a clear look at the photographs grouped there, right where he could see them when he looked up from whatever work he did while sitting in the worn, padded chair. (She would never know exactly how many second hand shops and antique stores Ianto had been in and out of looking for just the right office furniture for his partner.)

Alice picked up one of the photographs; it looked like a school portrait. The boy was about Steven's age. He had dark hair and bright blue eyes, her father's dimples… there was another picture in which her father's partner was holding a baby, a little girl if the pink bonnet was anything to go on. A third photograph pictured the same little girl, perhaps a few months older, with the boy from the first picture…

The sound of heavy boots on hard concrete drew her attention away from the photos on her father's desk. He stood in the doorway, carrying two coffee cups. The look on his face was one of guilt. It answered the questions she had buzzing around her head as clearly as any words ever could have, but she asked the first of them anyway.

"Dad? What is this?"

"Their names are Jason and Seren," he handed one of the cups of coffee towards her.

She accepted the mug. "Are they…?"

"Mine."

She opened her mouth and then closed it again. She took a sip of coffee… Ianto must be in somewhere. Her father had never been able to make a decent cup of coffee.

"This isn't how I wanted you to find out," he told her.

"He looks the same age as Steven, Dad."

"He is. Alice…I didn't have him until just a couple of years ago," he began, as if that somehow excused him for not telling her about Jason. She looked angry. "I know that's still a long time not to have said anything, but I just… I didn't know how to tell you."

"Who's his mother?" her tone was tepid.

"If you want to get technical, I guess I am."

"What? Dad, please…" she wasn't in the mood for him to be flippant.

"I carried both of them," he told her seriously.

"You…you what?"

He motioned her towards the trio of over stuffed chairs tucked up into one of the corners of his office. They were Ianto's idea, so there would be some place comfortable for people to sit. At the moment, however, he doubted that anything was going to make either of them any more comfortable. After his daughter sat down, he took the chair opposite her.

"What do you mean you carried them?" Alice prompted him.

He took a sip of his coffee. This really wasn't the way he'd ever imagined this particular conversation going. "How much about me do you know?" he started by asking.

"Only what Mum told me. Which isn't much," she added when he gave her a questioning look.

"I was born in the fifty first century," he paused. She looked startled, but she nodded, accepting his statement as fact. He supposed that shouldn't surprise him. "By that time any couple or triad or whatever will be able to have children that biologically belong equally all parties in the relationship. Including most sexually compatible non-human species."

She paled. "That's still thousands of years from now, Dad. That doesn't explain…" she seemed unable to say their names.

"I had Jason a long time ago, by my personal time line. With…with my first partner," he paused to sip his coffee. He would hardly categorize his relationship with Jason's other father a partnership, but legally that's what had been. Emotionally, he knew it had been one-sided. Someday he would see Roan again, and he would ask him why he'd put up with everything he had.

"His name was Roan," Jack told his daughter. "When he died… when he died my mother, your grandmother, brought Jason here. She wasn't looking for me, but she found me anyway."

Alice swallowed. Took a moment to digest his words. Sipped at her coffee. "And the little girl?" she inquired at length.

"Seren as much Ianto's as she is mine, but I carried her. I already had the… it was easier for me since I'd already had Jason."

"How?"

"I have a friend. He took us to another time… another planet. Someplace where that kind of procedure is routine."

"And… you never…you never thought to mention any of this?" she demanded in an incredulous tone. "All this time I thought… I thought you were alone, Dad. I thought you didn't have anybody, that's why you wanted to be a part of mine and Steven's lives so badly. But you're not alone. Not only do you have a husband you have… you have children."

"That doesn't mean I don't love you. I have always loved you, so much. You and Steven. Losing you, losing your mother…"

"You walked out on me!"

"Alice…" she knew better, he knew she did. Lucia had told him to get out, to stay away. She'd changed their names, gone into hiding… as if that could have stopped him from finding them.

"You could have fought her, Dad. You could have fought for me! Instead you just walked away and… and you started another family. You started another life as if we'd never existed at all," she choked back a sob. This wasn't the conversation she'd wanted to have with him. "I have to go," she stood up.

He got to his feet as well. "Please don't—not like this."

"What difference does it make?" she asked. He had his own family to go home to, he didn't need her… he hadn't needed her…

"I never meant to hurt you, Alice, or your mother. She told me to get out so I did. I thought—I thought it was for the best."

"It was best for you."

He swallowed as the knot tightened in his gut. "It hurt me too."

"How…how much of this did Mum know? You… having babies… time travel…" her voice trembled. If he said he hadn't told her she would hate him… but if he had…

"She knew where I was from. When. I didn't tell her about Roan and Jason because they were so far away, that I never expected to see them again. I was stuck here on Earth, Alice, I had no way to get home. I've lived a long time," he reminded her, trying to make her understand. "I've lived so many lives. I never lied to your mother about that. I never lied to her about anything."

"You've spent your whole life running out on people, haven't you?"

"I can't go back, I can't fix the things I did wrong with you and your mother… if I could I would do so many things so differently. I loved her. I love you. The fact that I have other children doesn't change that, Alice. It never could."

"Are there any more?" she asked softly, still unable to look at him, unable to make eye contact.

Jack closed his own eyes a moment. He shoved his hands into his pockets. "About a hundred years before I met your mother, I was married to a woman named Laura. We had two daughters. Then she died."

"What happened?"

He shrugged. "The details don't matter any more. Her sister raised the girls. I never… I saw them, but they didn't see me."

"Did Mum…?"

"She knew."

She took a deep breath. Let it out. "She never told me…she never told me anything." She felt as betrayed by her mother as by her father, for all the things neither of them had ever told her. "Why didn't you marry her, Dad?"

"I asked. She said no. Alice…" he took a step closer but the expression on her face stopped him from reaching out to her.

"I…I need some time to think. This is too much all at once."

"Whatever you need. I'll be here. I will always be here."

She smiled just a little at the irony of his words, she couldn't help it. "I love you, Dad, I really do. I just… it's hard having someone like you for a father."

"I know. I'm sorry."

"Don't be sorry," she turned, started to leave…but then hesitated at the door. She turned back around to face him again. His expression was difficult to read, but she knew he was hurting too. She knew he loved her, he always had. "Steven misses you," she told him.

"I miss him too," he made no attempt to hide the hopefulness of his tone.

"Maybe… maybe… holiday break starts soon. If you'd like to take him for the afternoon or something...?"

"Just let me know when's a good time."

Alice nodded. "I'll call you."

"Thank you."

A/N: