Joe awoke with a start, covered in sweat and with a panicked cry on his lips. He lay frozen, his heart pounding as he struggled to comprehend what was happening. This was definitely not his own bed that he was lying in, and the walls of the room were the wrong colour. They were a pretty blue colour, where his own room was supposed to be white.

This was not his room, he remembered. It was someone else's room, in someone else's home. His breath came in a ragged gasp as he finally remembered the night's events. His Yan toe had taken him away from the bad place; away from the bad people who only wanted to hurt him.

He started to sit up, wincing at the dull ache that flared briefly throughout his body. It wasn't anywhere near as bad as it had been the night before, but he still took care when easing himself out of the bed. Joe paused only to gather up his blanket and dog before wandering over to the window and peering out through the curtains.

It was just past dawn, and the window faced the rising sun, giving Joe a mesmerising view of a red and orange hued sky. The brightness of the sun caused him to squint a little – it had been a very long time since his eyes had been exposed to natural daylight. As he watched the sky gradually lightening, and the colours fading into a clear blue, he felt tears burn his eyes as, somewhere deep within his own subconscious mind, it registered that he wasn't dreaming. This was real.

He stood there for a long time, just staring out as the world beyond the window grew bright and alive. He was so engrossed in the vision before him that he didn't realise he was no longer alone until he felt movement beside him. Joe started a little in fright, but relaxed again when he recognised the boy who had given him food and drink on their arrival.

"It's incredible, isn't it? I remember my first morning waking up here after Mum saved me. Could hardly believe it, that I was free."

Joe stared at him, puzzled. His comprehension was still limited, and he had no real understanding of the word 'free'. Luke smiled up at him reassuringly.

"Do you want to come downstairs with me, and get some breakfast? You can have some of my Cocoa Pops, if you want."

Joe had no idea what Cocoa Pops were. In his experience, breakfast meant toast, fruit and Gage's pancakes… although, he couldn't help a tiny shudder that went through him as he was reminded inadvertently of his last experience having pancakes. He was hungry, though, and his stomach growled loudly in response to the suggestion of food. Luke laughed, and gently took Joe's hand in his own, as though he could sense Joe's uncertainty.

"C'mon, come with me. Let's go get something to eat."

Ianto was in the kitchen with Sarah Jane when they walked in, and Joe quickly crossed to where Ianto stood by the coffee maker.

"Good morning," Ianto greeted him with a smile and a hug. "How are you feeling?"

"Better," Joe confirmed, clinging to Ianto for perhaps a moment longer than strictly necessary. "Still sore… but better."

Sarah Jane came over and gently ran her fingers over Joe's arm.

"I must have been exhausted last night myself. I could have sworn this arm was broken."

"You weren't wrong," Ianto told her quietly as he ushered Joe to sit at the table. "It was broken, but I'm guessing it wasn't a bad break. It's almost completely healed. I might still give him something for the pain, though, once he's had breakfast."

"Cocoa Pops!" Joe burst out abruptly, and Ianto raised an eyebrow.

"You don't even know what Cocoa Pops are."

Joe looked across the room at Luke, who grinned and pulled a large box out of the cupboard. When Joe looked back up at him hopefully, Ianto couldn't help but chuckle.

"All right. Cocoa Pops it is."

"Ianto, is it going to upset him if we pour milk on the cereal?" Sarah Jane asked in a low voice, and Ianto's face fell.

"Probably. Perhaps he can just have them dry…"

"You can't do that!" Luke burst out. "Half the point is being able to drink the chocolate milk at the end. Look…"

He pulled a bottle of milk from the fridge and brought it to the table, where he poured a large glass. Then, with Joe watching warily, he drank more than half the contacts in one long swallow. By the time he put the glass down, the fearful and worried look on Joe's face had been replaced by one of new realisation.

"See?" Luke said. "It's okay. It's good."

"Okay," Joe echoed, visibly relaxing. Luke filled a bowl with Cocoa Pops and milk, and handed Joe a spoon. Soon, boy and man were engrossed in eating the cereal.

"Your son is very smart," Ianto murmured, and Sarah Jane smiled proudly.

"Thankyou. He's a special boy. Tell me, Ianto, does Joe remember anything about himself yet? Anything at all?"

"No… Just fragments, really. He remembered yesterday that his name isn't really Joe, but at the same time he can't remember what his real name is. He's starting to talk more freely, though. He's trying hard to think for himself."

"That's quite a leap forward."

"Yes, it is. He's doing well, considering how long Torchwood had him locked away."

Sarah Jane glanced towards the table, and burst out laughing. Luke had lifted his bowl and was drinking the left-over milk. Joe had tried to emulate him, but had tipped the bowl too far and ended up with the contents all down his front.

"Joe!" Ianto cried out, feeling embarrassed and annoyed at the same time. "Look at you! You've spilt it all over you. That's a fine way to behave when you're a guest in someone else's home."

It came out sounding a little harsher than he'd intended, but his nerves were already frayed with worry. He really needed Joe to behave like an adult, and not a child.

"Ianto, it's fine," Sarah Jane said quietly, noticing the way that Joe's face fell at the chastising.

"No, it isn't," Ianto growled. "I don't even have a spare change of clothes for myself, let alone for him. He just can't go making messes like this!"

A loud, hiccoughing sob snapped Ianto out of his growing tirade, and he looked around to see large tears rolling down Joe's cheeks.

"I'm sorry," Joe choked out. "Sorry, Yan toe. Please don't…"

He trailed off, shaking and struggling to control the sobs.

"Don't what?" Luke asked, puzzled.

"Please don't take me back," Joe managed to blurt out before he dissolved into a fresh wave of tears.

"Oh gods," Ianto groaned, feeling sick as he realised his mistake. "Cariad, no, of course I'm not going to take you back there. Don't cry, Joe, please…"

Ignoring the sticky mess that was saturating Joe's top, Ianto pulled him into a fierce hug. He couldn't help but be bemused at the difference between Joe now, and the Joe who had killed Branton and Bourke so ruthlessly. Looking at Joe now, it was hard to imagine him being capable of killing a bug, let alone two grown men. And yet that was where he was at, mentally and emotionally – unable to control his emotions, and fluctuating wildly from one end of the spectrum to the other as a result.

Not for the first time, and not for the last, Ianto found himself wondering what Joe had been like as a mature adult in complete control of his own emotions.

"I'm sorry, love," Ianto murmured as Joe cried into his shoulder. "I'm so sorry. It's not your fault."

He sensed movement, and glanced up to see Sarah Jane had pulled a chair around to sit close. Her expression was one of concern and sympathy, and Ianto was relieved to see all doubts gone.

"You were right to come with him, Ianto. He needs you. All of this would have simply been too much, otherwise."

"I'm not so sure that it's not too much anyway," Ianto said bitterly. "For him and me. We really weren't ready for this, but I can't help wondering when there might have been another chance. Plus, it terrifies me to think what they would have done to Joe for killing Bourke and Branton."

"You did the right thing," she assured him, "and we'll do everything we can to keep him safe until the Doctor comes back. But Ianto, have you thought about what you're going to do once this is all done with? Because you must know it won't be safe for you in London."

"I have family in Wales," Ianto murmured. "I'll go to them for as long as I need to." He drew back slowly to look at Joe. The tears had ceased, but he was still looking very sorry for himself. "Joe? C'mon now, look at me."

Slowly, Joe raised his eyes to look at Ianto.

"I'm sorry," Ianto told him gently. "I shouldn't have growled at you."

"Not mad…?" Joe asked hesitantly, and Ianto smiled warmly at him.

"No, I'm not mad at you. I promise. Now, how about we get you cleaned up?"

"Bubble bath!" Joe burst out suddenly, hope lighting up his eyes. Ianto grimaced.

"You might just have to put up with a plain bath today. I didn't have time to get the bubble formula from the bathroom before we left."

"You've been giving him bubble baths?" Sarah asked in amusement. Ianto smiled and shrugged.

"I wanted to make it fun for him. Give him something to look forward to. He can cope without it for now, though."

Sarah Jane eyed Joe's disappointed expression, and smiled.

"Well, it just so happens that I have a bottle of bubble bath mixture tucked away for special circumstances, and I think this definitely qualifies. Luke, you show Ianto and Joe to the bathroom, and I'll go and find it."

Ten minutes later, Joe was bathing happily while Ianto washed his tee-shirt.

"If you'll give me sizes," Sarah Jane told him quietly, "then I can go out and buy each of you a few changes of clothes."

Ianto looked thoroughly embarrassed at the thought.

"I can't let you do that! The money… My account will probably be frozen by now. I have no money to give you…."

A hand came to rest on his shoulder, silencing his protests, and Sarah Jane spoke quietly.

"Did I say I expected you to pay me? I don't. And before you go there, it's impolite to ask a lady about her financial circumstances."

Ianto reddened even more, but the look on his face was one of capitulation.

"Sorry, Ma'am. It's just that when I started looking after Joe, there was no one else I could turn to for help or support. Now, there seems to be people everywhere willing to help. It's all a little bit much to take in."

"I understand. And, enough of this 'Ma'am' business. It's just Sarah Jane."

Ianto sighed softly, and his shoulders slumped in defeat.

"Thankyou, Sarah Jane."

She smiled warmly at him.

"It's my pleasure."

Silence fell, and Sarah Jane watched carefully as Ianto fidgeted nervously over the washing machine. She was just getting ready to ask what was wrong when he spoke of his own accord.

"Do you really think he'll be willing to take Joe with him?"

She didn't need to ask who Ianto was talking about. It was fairly obvious.

"I believe he will, if only to find a safe haven for him. You have to understand, Ianto. The Doctor is wonderful, but he can also be so very cruel. You say you believe he left Joe behind. I don't doubt that you're right, but as to the actual circumstances? We can't possibly know what they were."

"I can't accept that Joe did anything to be warrant being abandoned."

"Neither can I, but you and I both know how perspectives can differ. Perhaps to Joe it might have seemed like abandonment, but maybe the Doctor thought he was performing an act of kindness in leaving Joe behind. We can't possibly know for certain until we actually find him."

Ianto stared down at his hands, either unwilling or unable to look her in the eye.

"Are you trying to say that the Doctor might not be willing to take Joe with him?"

Sarah Jane sighed.

"I don't know what will happen. I suppose that all I'm trying to say is that the Doctor can be extremely unpredictable, and we need to be prepared for that."

"Joe has been a prisoner of Torchwood for nearly one hundred and seven years, Sarah Jane. Whatever the Doctor thought he was doing when he left Joe behind, it doesn't justify that. He has to make this right. He's the only one who can."

"I don't know about that," Sarah Jane said with a sad smile as she reached over and squeezed his hands gently. "I think you're doing a pretty good job yourself."

He managed a weak smile, but any further conversation was stifled when Luke's voice suddenly reached them.

"Wait! Stop! At least put a towel on!"

Ianto and Sarah Jane exchanged startled looks seconds before Joe burst into the laundry, dripping wet and covered randomly with soapy bubbles, and absolutely stark naked.

"Joe!" Ianto exclaimed, feeling his face heat up with embarrassment. "What on earth…?"

"Jack!" Joe burst out, an expression of wild excitement lighting up his face. Ianto's breath caught as he instantly realised what his charge was telling him.

"Jack? Your name is Jack?"

His charge nodded wildly.

"I remember. They called me Jack. It's Jack. I'm Jack!"

There was no last name forthcoming, so Ianto assumed that was all he remembered thus far. He watched bemusedly as Joe… No, he chided himself. As Jack stood there in all his naked glory, with the biggest grin Ianto could ever recall seeing on his face.

He was waiting, Ianto realised suddenly, not just for verbal acknowledgement, but an obligatory hug into the bargain. Something that Ianto was simply not mentally prepared to do while Jack stood there, butt naked.

Luke had appeared behind him, towel in hand and an amused smirk on his face. Ianto took it and wrapped it quickly around Jack's waist.

"C'mon, Joe…"

"Jack!"

"Sorry, Jack. C'mon, let's get some clothes on you, and then we can celebrate. Okay?" He smiled apologetically at Sarah Jane as he herded Jack out of the laundry.

"Sorry about this. Won't happen again."

Sarah Jane didn't even attempt to suppress a grin as she watched Ianto and Jack exit the laundry.

"Don't be." Once they'd gone, though, she turned to her son. "Do you know what triggered that memory, Luke?"

"I'm not sure," Luke answered with a shrug. "I was talking to him while he was in the bath, and I started to tell him about the Slitheen. He got really quiet at first. But then suddenly he yelled out 'Margaret', and the next thing I know, he's climbing out of the bath and running down here to find Ianto."

"Slitheen?" Sarah Jane mused. "I wonder… Oh well, it's of no consequence now. Luke, do you think you could stay here with Ianto and Joe while I go out and get them some extra clothes?"

"Sure Mum. And it's Jack, remember? Not Joe."

She laughed softly.

"You're right. I must try to remember that. Oh, and perhaps you'd best call Clyde and the others, and tell them today isn't a very good day to visit. I think the less people who know that Jack and Ianto are here, the better off we'll all be."

"Was I bad again?" Jack asked tentatively as Ianto bustled him back into the bathroom. Ianto paused to look him directly in the eye, and smiled softly.

"No, you're not bad, Jack. Not at all, and I promise I'm not mad at you. I'm just not sure how I can make you understand that you can't just walk around with no clothes on, and letting everyone see you naked!"

Jack looked down at his own body, clearly puzzled.

"Why? Is something wrong with me?"

"No! Gods, no. Why would you ask that?"

"But… why don't you want to look at me?"

Ianto felt his face heat up again. There was a loaded question…

"I like you, Joe…"

"Jack."

Ianto rolled his eyes.

"Sorry. I like you, Jack, but you still need to wear clothes. And no, there's nothing wrong with you. Please, just try to understand. We usually only let other people see us without clothes when we love them."

Jack looked quizzically at Ianto.

"Well… I love you. Do you love me?"

Ianto felt his stomach drop. How the hell had they gotten to this point?

"I… I'm not talking about love between two friends, and that's what we are, Jack. We're friends. No, I mean love between two people who want to spend the rest of their lives together."

"Forever?" Jack asked, his brow furrowing as he struggled to grasp what Ianto was trying to say. Ianto reached up to gently grasp Jack's shoulders.

"Look, don't worry about it, okay? All that's important is right here and now, and all you need to know is that I'm going to take care of you. I promise you that much."

Jack's face fell.

"You… don't love me?"

The confusion and hurt was more than Ianto could bear to see in Jack's face, especially knowing that Jack probably didn't fully understand what he was asking. He lifted his hands to cup Jack's cheeks, and leaned in to press his lips lightly to Jack's.

"I love you, Jack. Now stop fretting, and let me find something for you to wear."

Half an hour later found Jack sitting with Luke in the lounge room, watching television. Jack wore Ianto's sweater, while Ianto was wearing a jumper that Sarah Jane had bought for Luke to grow into. It was a bit of a tight fit, but Ianto wasn't complaining. He supposed that as long as they didn't need to cut him out of it, it wasn't that big a deal in the grand scheme of things.

He was alone for the time being, keeping watch over Luke and Jack while Sarah Jane went clothes shopping for them. He'd ceased objecting, mostly because they really did need at least a couple of changes of clothes – especially if Jack was going to prove to be a messy eater.

And of course, measuring him for clothes sizes had turned out to be an amusing exercise in itself, as Jack had turned out to be quite ticklish in some places. Ianto still found himself smiling at the memory of Jack giggling madly, and wriggling in a mock attempt to escape.

Fresh laughter interrupted his train of thought, and he looked in on Jack and Luke to check they were okay. Both man and boy were watching what looked like a Looney Tunes cartoon, and were laughing raucously at the images on screen. Chuckling to himself in amusement at their simple delight, Ianto retreated to the kitchen and was just getting ready to brew a fresh pot of coffee when the phone rang.

"I've got it!" Luke called out, and bounded through into the kitchen. Ianto watched with a mixture of concern and curiosity as Luke answered the call.

"Hello…? Brigadier! No, Mum's not here right now… Oh. Uh… Yes, sir. He is. Just a moment." He covered the mouthpiece of the phone, and turned to Ianto. "It's the Brigadier, Ianto. He wants to talk to you."

Ianto took the phone, puzzled and more than a little bit nervous.

"Hello…?"

"Ianto Jones, I presume?"

Ianto knew from what Sylvia had told him that the Brigadier was retired from UNIT, but the man's voice gave away no hint of his mature age. His voice was strong and authoritative, and had Ianto wanted to stand to attention.

"Yes, sir. I'm he."

"Good. A mutual friend asked me to contact you, as it's rather too dangerous for her to do so right now."

"Sylvia," Ianto murmured.

"That's right. Heard from her early this morning. Seems you and your… friend have sent Torchwood into quite an uproar."

Ianto felt a rush of pride on hearing that. He had to admit that he quite liked the idea of Torchwood in an uproar. Underlying that, though, was a greater sense of dread. He was terribly afraid for the friends who had aided their escape, and for the wrath that Yvonne Hartman was sure to bring down on them if they were recaptured.

"Should I be worried?" he asked, trying to sound nonchalant. On the other end of the line, the Brigadier laughed.

"Yes, you should be worried, boy. And I personally don't like the fact that you're putting Sarah Jane and her boy at risk. Although, I suppose I can't complain, since I'm the one who put you on to her in the first place."

Ianto bit his tongue, and told himself sternly that at least the Brigadier had the humility to accept some degree of responsibility. Instead, he asked a question that was weighing heavily on his mind.

"Sir, did Sylvia tell you anything about the people who helped us?"

"I'm afraid not… except for one. Does the name Tomas mean anything to you?"

Ianto felt sick.

"Yes, it does. He helped us to escape last night. He gave me his car so that we'd have a chance at getting away."

"Well, apparently he is currently in Torchwood custody, awaiting interrogation."

Ianto couldn't quite hold back a low groan. Even coming from Archives, he knew what that meant. In Torchwood, interrogation inevitably equalled torture.

"Go to ground, Mr Jones. Take him, and hide for as long as you can. The best you can do now is hope to wait it out."

"That's not going to be easy, sir."

"No, but if you value your lives, you'll do it. This is no game, boy. People are going to die. You'd just better make sure it isn't you getting the bullet."

Ianto rubbed a hand over his eyes. He could feel the distinct beginnings of a headache.

"That's not a comforting thought."

"It wasn't meant to be. It's the cold, hard truth. Now, Sarah Jane will be moving you both tonight to a new location. I don't know where to, nor do I want to know. I just want to give you a warning. Whatever you do, do not try and contact anyone. Not family, friends or colleagues. You have to become a ghost. Both of you. Manage that, and you may just survive this."

"Sir… how much do you know about him?"

He deliberately avoided using Jack's name, purely for safety's sake. The Brigadier answered in a slightly subdued tone.

"About as much as anyone else in Torchwood does. You may not be aware of this, but there was a brief period in the 1970's when Torchwood and UNIT actually cooperated with each other. I was brought into the loop regarding him, and I was permitted to observe him a few times as well. The way they treated him disgusted me, but I had no authority to stop it. Not to mention that he would have been no better off in UNIT's custody. In the end, I just let it go and could only hope that someone might come along who saw him as a man, and not just a freak of nature to experiment on."

"If they learn you're helping us now…"

"Yes, well, I know how to be careful. See that you do the same. Now, put the boy back on the phone. I need to speak with him."

Ianto barely heard Luke's side of the ensuing conversation. His head was spinning with what he'd just heard, and the one thing he was certain of was that UNIT was to be feared as much as Torchwood. Both institutions clearly saw Jack as a sub-human entity, and they had to be kept away from him at all costs.

He had no idea where Sarah Jane planned to take them once night fell, but he fully intended to take the Brigadier's words of warning to heart. He and Jack would go to ground, and disappear. He just hoped and prayed that the Doctor came soon, because he honestly didn't know how long he could keep Jack hidden away before the forced seclusion became just another form of imprisonment.

tbc...