They had been monitoring the bug situation and had no leads. Jack was pacing up and down the conference room floor. The other three sat at the table.
"If someone sent them surely they will wonder why they never came back." Ianto added to few things that had been said.
"Yes but they could be an accident, not meant for this planet. They could have been an experiment or the creator will expect losses they sent through a swarm and as we saw one didn't 'hatch' they could assume that the whole batch malfunctioned."
"What if they come after them?" Gwen asked.
"Then we'll be ready." Jack said menacingly snapping the barrel of this Webley revolver into place.
The rest of the day was spent setting up warning systems if anymore bugs turned up. Louise had wired one into the main frame of the rift predictor program so they should be able to be warned about half an hour in advance of any activity concerning the mechanical creatures. Louise headed up to Jacks office after she'd finished.
"Right that's all set up we should get some warning if they try to go back through the rift."
"Good, that's good." She nodded.
"Anything else you need me to do or can I get off for the night?"
"No nothing else." She turned and started to walk away, "actually..." he paused as she turned to look at him "Lieutenant, I'd really appreciate it if you stopped flirting with my staff!"
"Jack I will stop flirting with your staff the day you do! Ok?" she walked away before he had time to answer, Gwen who had just walked up to the office looked up at him her eyebrows raised and lips pursed in an expression that had that-told-you written all over it!
"Good night Ianto." She flashed him a smile as she passed him, he stumbled slightly and Louise caught the top few files that had slid off the pile he was carrying. "Careful," he looked at her and she said just for Ianto to hear, "you should get Jack to do his own paperwork you know." Winked at him and carried on walking across the Hub. Ianto carried on walking down to the archives to file his papers. He didn't hear Jack follow him down into the extensive dark tunnels that made up the Torchwood archives. Ianto put the papers onto of a filing cabinet and started to find the correct place to put them, the top file read.
Lieutenant. L. Jones
He opened the file and was about to start to read it when a voice behind him made him jump.
"Still doing paper work I see." He almost dropped the file he quickly closed it opened the filing cabinet draw he dropped it into the appropriate place.
"Well there is a lot to do sir." He went back over to his pile of files and started to quickly put them into their appropriate cabinets.
"Are you alright Ianto?"
"Yes sir."
"Can we please drop the Sir now Ianto?"
"I don't know Jack can we?" Jack looked at Ianto surprised and in the split second Ianto took Louise's advice. "You know what Jack, do your own paperwork." He said pushing the files into Jack's hands, he walked past him and back out of the archives, he was fed up of being the first one in in the morning and the last one to go at night, he walked over to the wall that concealed the Lieutenants ship and knocked on the door.
"Come in," called her voice, it was muffled behind the door. He pushed it open and popped his head around. He round and couldn't see her then he heard a crash of something hitting the floor and he looked over at the control panel to see Louise under it screwdriver in mouth, fiddling around with some wires. She took the screwdriver out her mouth and looked over at him. "oh Hi Ianto, come on in I was just doing some maintenance work. What do you need?" he walked over to her and leant against the edge of the control panel. He let out a long sigh. "that was a big sigh what's bothering you Mr. Jones?"
"Everything." He said and she had no idea what to say back so she didn't say anything. "and I just told Jack to do his own paperwork!" he sounded mortified. She started to laugh,
"Oh Ianto that's hilarious, I'm sorry it is."
"I've never seen Jack look so surprised in all my time at Torchwood!"
"Bet he's used to always getting his own way."
"Yeh I suppose he is I can't believe I did that." He laughed a little.
"To be honest Ianto I can't believe it either!"
"Hey you told me too!" she slid out from under the control panel; she stood up and grabbed a cloth off of the side wiping her hands on it.
"Yeh I did and I meant it I'm also very impressed you did it but I never thought you would!"
"I think that's a compliment!" Ianto said pacing round the control room.
"It is Ianto, I am sorry but I do wish I could have seen his face." Ianto didn't say anything, "Come on Ianto cheer up."
"I know it is funny." They started to laugh together.
"Next time remember my advice may not be the best to take!"
"Yes but you know everything, your advice is the best."
"Don't say that!" she looked at him astonished.
"It's true though isn't it, you do know everything."
"No not everything!" she shook her head, wishing she did know everything.
"Yes you do, I like knowing everything, I've not read your file yet but I do archive the CCTV." She stopped what she was doing and looked at him.
"Ianto I'm sorry."
"Don't worry about it, but I know what you said...about...about me, about how you have to find a Jones how you need to find you bonded partner."
"Ianto you don't need to think about that."
"Yeh I do, I just need to ask. Would your partner have a choice?"
"What do you mean choice?"
"As in if a Jones started to fall for you, could that constitute as a partner."
"What are you saying?"
"I'm saying that you say the change would be gradual could that change be say some admiring then slowly becoming friends with then falling for you?" she thought about what he was saying, he was right. He was right. She looked at him and nodded.
"Yes technically, yes that could happen." She swallowed. His face brightened a little.
"I just thought that I'd throw that idea out there!"
"Right yes, Thanks Ianto." He looked at his watch.
"Right I'd better get off!"
"I'll see you tomorrow."
"Good night Lieutenant." She shot him a look. He smiled. "Sorry...Louise." She laughed as he walked towards the door. As he left she leant back against the control panel think over what Ianto had just said and what John had said as well.
TWTWTW
Jacks head snapped up, he felt weary as if he'd just woken up, he looked around as Ianto walked towards him, from the main entrance.
"Good morning sir." He handed Jack a coffee. "Busy night?" he looked down at the piles of paper work Jack had stacked in front of him.
"You could say that, and what have I told you about calling me sir?"
"Not to, sir." He smiled and turned around heading towards the blank expanse of wall that concealed the Lieutenants TARDIS. Jack watched him walk over and knock where the door was; he opened the door and went inside.
"Good morning!" Ianto called cheerily, heading cautiously thought to Louise who was still curled up in her bed.
"Good morning Ianto." He saw her smile widely as he entered.
"Sorry for waking you, I can come back in a minute if you want." he shied away a little seeing her in bed. She noted his hesitation. He looked in, she was wearing what looked like one of Jacks shirts, but it was too big to be one of Jacks he thought.
"I wasn't asleep, don't worry come on in! Sorry I'm not dressed yet."
"No it's alright I just bought you a coffee and a blueberry muffin I know there your favourite." He smiled slightly, walking over to her and handing her the coffee and muffin. She smiled at him as she took them.
"Thanks, you care to join me?" she patted the end of her bed; she was sat cross legged under the covers. He hesitated again and then sat on the edge of the bed nervously.
"I don't bite you know, even though I am surprisingly hungry this morning!" he relaxed a little as she took a sip of her coffee. "Perfect as usual." She praised him. "Go on, Relax! Its 6am why are you in work so early? Kick back a bit!" he smiled, "I'm serious, kick your shoes off and lean on the back wall, its warm some of the heating pipes run through that wall!" he did as he was told, smiling at the way she gestured with her hands as she spoke, she was right the wall was warm, not cold like it looked! The bed was soft and she smiled as he lent back sipping his coffee.
"You sleep well?" he asked trying to break the silence. She broke a bit of the muffin and ate it, offering some to him, he took a little.
"Well enough… Ianto I have a confession to make." He looked at her surprised.
"The other night, when we where sat out on the bench, I… I don't know how to explain it but I froze you and looked into your mind." He looked pretty horrified, but didn't say anything. "I'm really sorry, I didn't look at your personal thoughts or memories, just the Torchwood information and ok I know some of those are personal and private in fact I know all your thoughts and memories are but I needed to know about Torchwood and Jack." He looked into his coffee.
"Right, so you only went out with me to look into my mind about Jack and Torchwood." He looked up at her. "You just wanted to know about Torchwood and Jack." He repeated. He sound upset but not because she'd delved into his thoughts.
"No I went out with you because I wanted to, it was just an after thought, and Jack saw me do it on the CCTV and was cross and I thought it best I tell you."
"You used me to get to Jack."
"What no, no I'd never do that Ianto that's not why I told you." He looked up at her.
"Then why did you tell me?"
"Because I wanted to apologise because I respect you and I intruded on your memories, your private thoughts and so I wanted to offer you a chance to do the same to me." He looked at her confused. "I respect you Ianto and what I did was wrong and I'm sorry." He didn't say anything.
"Can you do it again?" he looked at her.
"What?" she didn't understand.
"You went in to my thoughts and memories and read them; I want you to see them all." It hadn't been the reaction she'd been expecting.
"Why?"
"I want to tell you everything, but some of it's too hard to tell."
"Ianto if I do this it can re awaken memories that could hurt you again, ones you've buried."
"That's fine, and I can look at yours?" she nodded.
"Just let me get dressed." he started to shuffle off the bed.
"No its ok, my clothes are in the wardrobe, I'll be right back." She threw the covers off her and slid off the bed. She'd been wearing a long blue shirt in bed and a pair of soft blue shorts, Ianto looked at her, seeing her legs, soft and pink but horribly scared, some of the wounds barely healed. He watched as she quickly ran out the room. No wonder she was always in trousers, he wondered what had caused them and if Jack knew. He made her bed and then sat back down. She was only gone 5 minutes she ran in bare foot, carrying some socks and her boots, dressed in her usual, he knew her coat was hung up on the door of the TARDIS. She practically jumped onto the bed.
"Cold floor!" she wriggled her toes. He smiled.
"Right, I want you to see everything. I need someone else to understand." He looked at her, his eyes betraying how much he needed her to understand him.
"Ok, I'll make a connection and then you can move though my mind and I though yours, if you don't want me to see something, just imagine a door." Ianto nodded but she knew she'd find very few. She shuffled closer to him, like she had with Jack, this time it felt different. With Jack, she'd felt she had to be guarded, with Ianto she didn't. He sat nervously as she got closer, placing her hands on the side of his face. He watched as she closed her eyes, he felt as she pushed into his mind. She relaxed as she felt him move into hers. This time she had no intention of hiding her guilt and sadness, she let him in entirely.
TWTWTW
He sat there awhile his head in his hands, she wasn't sure what to do so she just sat there, she'd seen all that had happened to him, everything. His Father, Lisa and Jack, She felt so sorry for him and then she'd seen how he'd died it burnt her insides just thinking about it. He'd looked into her mind, all of if she'd let him in and now didn't know what to do. She'd only found one door in Ianto's head and she had not wanted to go into it she hadn't even tried to persuade him to let her in. He'd seen most of her life but he'd broken the connection a few minutes ago in the horror of what he'd found.
"Ianto?" she asked tentatively she couldn't cope with the silence anymore.
"You died for your planet, to save the universe, to save earth." He looked up at her his eyes wide with the horror she'd been through.
"No I died doing my Job." She looked him in the eyes. She'd never talked about her time in the war, not to anyone. She'd be captured early on in the first war and she had had no intention of telling the others she fought with what it had been like.
"No you could have given in but you didn't."
"Ianto I don't really want to…" she trailed off but he understood.
"Your body heals and comes back to life, so why are those wounds still open?" he looked at her legs that where now covered in black denim.
"They are a little more than your average cut or bruise they will heal in the same time severe wounds on your body would." She felt tears prickling her eyes.
"You have lived through so much." His voice faltered. "Fought for so long and the man you love just dumps you here without a word. How can you bare so much pain and not let it show."
"Because I don't love him anymore and it's not as painful as some of the other wounds that have been inflicted on me."
"It's because of him they tortured you. He was all they wanted and you suffered because of it because he wasn't there."
"Ianto," she put her hand on his arm in a comforting manner. "You'll find that you'll do anything to protect the people you love. Even if it means dying to save them, I'm sorry I really am. I shouldn't have let you see that. It was a lifetime ago. Two lifetime's ago!"
"No I wanted to know, I'm glad I know." He looked up at her again and tried to smile.
"I'm glad you know too." She leant over and pressed her lips to his and he thought he heard her murmur a quiet thank you. He didn't react, except closing his eyes. When he opened them, she had gone. He carefully moved off of the bed, looking round the room. He walked out carefully and saw Louise through the small gap between the door and the door frame that lead to her office. She was sat at her desk head in hands; he wanted to go see her but knew she didn't want to talk right now. He made his way back out into the Hub Jack was still sat at his workstation battling through the paper work he had left him with last night.
"Leave it Jack I'll do it." He felt guilty for the stunt he'd pulled last night leaving him with it all last night.
"No you where right I should do my own paperwork." Ianto loved how stubborn he could be sometimes.
"Yes I was right but I can still do it in a quarter of the time!" he pulled Jacks chair back and pushed it away across the Hub Jack didn't try to stop it. He chuckled slightly.
"Alright Ianto I'll give in gracefully!"
"You never give in gracefully sir!" Jack laughed and left Ianto to it. He knew he would have it done in 15 minutes if not less.
Please review. I know some people may not like where this is going which i understand. i just wanted to tell you why i'm thinking of takin git in a new direction.
Russel T. Davies killed off ianto to make the point that torchwood operatives die young. i also think he did this to show, like with the doctor, everyone jack loves he loses and that immortality is in some ways a curse so as much as i love jack and ianto, i am with Russel in showing that Jack loses everyone he loves, just not through death or though vindictiveness. I'm trying to give the story a twist worthy of such a wonderful couples split. i hope you understand. please keep reading as it may still change. Thank you.
Please review. xxx
