This is being written in collaboration with my talented friend nightchild78. We are having fun bouncing ideas off each other, and sharing in the excitement of watching this story unfold!

Special thanks to Rose Malmaison for making the image to go along with this fic!

Categories: NCIS/Torchwood

Rating: M

Characters: Tony DiNozzo, Leroy Jethro Gibbs, Abby Sciuto, Tim McGee, Ziva David, Dr Donald Mallard, Jimmy Palmer / Jack Harkness, Ianto Jones, Toshiko Sato, Owen Harper.

Pairings: Tony/Gibbs, Jack/Ianto, Tosh/Owen.

Warnings: Swearing, slash, Mpreg, explicit sexual situations.

Spoilers: Set during the 6th season of NCIS and after Children of Earth for Torchwood. Mentions of the episodes SWAK, Boxed In, Hiatus Part 2, Escaped, Singled Out, Bury Your Dead, Chimera and Requiem for NCIS and for the episodes Cyberwoman, To the Last Man, Dead Man Walking, A Day In the Death, Exit Wounds as well as the whole of season 3 of Torchwood. Miracle Day never happened.

Disclaimer: We don't own these characters. We just like to play with them.

RENASCENCE RENASCENCE RENASCENCE

Owen felt like his world was closing in on him. He wanted to curse the fates for once again cruelly ripping his happiness away from him.

Tosh had made peace with her imminent death. There was no illness, no injury, no pain. She had simply grown gradually weaker, feeling her life force gently leave her body. She knew she was nearing the end.

For the past three days, Tosh lie comfortably in her bed, more at peace with what was to come than those close to her. Just the previous day, Gibbs had to gently steer Abby out of the room before she became too hysterical. For all of her good intentions, Abby's overly emotional nature wasn't exactly calming.

Now, with 16 year old Imogen at school, and their NCIS friends at work, the house was quiet; whisperings of death seeming to echo within its walls.

Owen sat dejectedly on the living room couch; alone with his thoughts.

They had known from the beginning that it would happen sooner or later, yet it didn't make it any easier now that he was forced to confront the harsh reality.

Owen felt devastated, and he didn't want Tosh to see him like this. For now anyway, he could take comfort in knowing that Ianto, Jack, Tony and Gibbs had been watching over her. Still, Owen hated himself for hiding away from the death that Tosh was so bravely facing.

"Hey, Owen."

Owen looked up to see Tony slowly walking towards him, before carefully taking a seat beside the ghost.

"Thought you might be tired of brooding alone." Tony's statement was light hearted, sounding very much like a joke. But there was real concern in his eyes as he studied Owen's face.

"You wanna talk about it?"

Owen's expression was one of gratitude. He was appreciative of Tony's good intentions. But there was nothing Tony could do to help. There was nothing anyone could do.

"I'm losing her again, Tony. After I brought Tosh back the first time, I was just so shocked by what had happened. So happy to get that second chance. And I enjoyed every second of our time together. Believe me, I never took a moment of that time for granted..."

Owen's voice trailed off, as his memory relived every smile, every touch, every whispered "I love you." His lips briefly turned up into a smile before quivering back down into a mournful frown.

"With her, I wasn't just a dead man walking. I was truly alive. I felt things. I felt her. I never gave much thought to the end of our time together. What it would mean. But I understand now. This is goodbye. I mean, this is really goodbye, forever! We'll both be dead, but Tosh is going to cross over into whatever is waiting on the other side. And me? I'll be stuck here, kept apart from her, for God knows how long. Maybe for all eternity. Maybe I'll end up like Jack, stuck here forever while she's helplessly waiting for me on the other side."

Owen heaved a shaking sigh.

"I don't want to lose her."

Tony took a deep breath through his nose, putting a supportive hand on Owen's shoulder.

"I'd like to take a moment to point out the fact that I'm a man who has given birth to a child. Having a conversation with a ghost."

Despite his sullen mood, Tony's statement managed to elicit a small chuckle from Owen.

"My grandmother - also a man - is an immortal from the future who has traveled through space and time," Tony continued. "My best friend and the woman you love were both brought back from the dead - by you, I might add! We don't give a second thought to any of these facts. This is our normal. But to most people, it's pretty amazing! What others would call miracles, we call reality."

Owen shrugged, a small grin gracing his features. "I hadn't really thought much about it. Not for a long time. But you have a point."

"Oh, I haven't gotten to my point yet," Tony said, shifting slightly on the couch for a more comfortable angle. "This family we have, this home we share...it was all made possible because you refused to let Tosh go. You gave her back years of her life she never would have had otherwise. And so many good things have happened to all of us since then." Tony leaned forward, locking eyes with Owen. "Look, I don't understand how any of this stuff works. But I think that, if you were able to bring Tosh back to you from the dead, there's still a chance that you could do it again. Or maybe it could work the other way."

Owen sat frozen, pondering the significance of Tony's words. "You... you're saying..."

Tony nodded solemnly. "There's only one way to be sure. Either way, it looks like a win-win solution."

※

Owen led the way, with Tony and Gibbs following close behind as he entered Tosh's room. Ianto sat at the foot of Tosh's bed, while Jack leaned casually against the wall, arms folded. The three of them were casually chatting as if nothing had changed. And, while Tosh's voice was small and raspy, she appeared in good spirits.

Tosh had been very specific in her requests: No goodbyes and no tears. She didn't want her final days to be mournful. She wanted them instead to be filled with the laughter and lively conversation that so often rang through their home.

So when Owen stepped into Tosh's line of sight, there was no "where have you been?" No admonishing look. No reproach of any sort. There was simply love in her eyes. She knew how hard it was for Owen. She knew he needed time by himself, and that he would come to her when he was ready. So there was no hiding her happiness and relief when he finally stood watching over her.

"I'll leave you to it," Ianto whispered, standing up and offering Owen his spot at the foot of the bed.

Owen nodded his thanks, sitting down and taking hold of Tosh's hand. She didn't look sickly at all. Actually, there was a peaceful glow to her. She seemed serene. The only indication that something was "off" was that she looked paler, and as if she might fall asleep at any moment.

Tosh smiled up at Owen, then turned her gaze to their four companions. Here they were; three couples, hit hardest by the fates, who had overcome unthinkable obstacles to find happiness together.

This gathering of people who had come to mean so much to one another didn't speak of the painful loss that was likely to come. But Jack, Ianto, Gibbs and Tony took comfort as they watched Owen with Tosh, knowing that the strength of their love could bring about miracles. It had before. They saw no reason why it shouldn't again.

"Tosh," Owen whispered, lightly brushing a hand across her cheek. "Thank you."

Looking up into Owen's loving gaze, Tosh understood that with those two words, her beloved was communicating so much more.

"Thank you for making me feel alive, even in death."

"Thank you for the security of your love."

"Thank you for loving me, even when I was an insensitive bastard."

"Because of you, I have learned kindness. I am a new man. I am changed."

"...because of you."

...and Tosh's heart understood every word.

"How are you feeling, love?" Owen asked, leaning in closer, so that he was nearly lying down, his face just inches from Tosh's.

"I'm fine, Owen. Just tired, and a bit cold," she tried to reassure him, clearly downplaying her predicament.

"Well, we can't have that now, can we?" Owen said, a barely concealed quiver in his voice.

Lifting back the covers, Owen lay down on top of Tosh, wrapping her up in his loving warmth, just as he had for a year in the morgue at Torchwood's former Hub in Cardiff.

Realizing what Owen was about to do, Jack took a step forward to stop him. But Ianto gently held him by the arm and shook his head.

"Don't, Jack. You'd do the same, and you know it."

Jack pulled Ianto's body closer to him, planting a gentle kiss on his cheek and nodding slowly. Tony, now seated in a nearby chair, alternated his gaze between the couple on the bed and Gibbs, who gave his hand a reassuring squeeze.

The scene that unfolded before them was unlike any they had ever witnessed. A warm, golden light enveloped Tosh and Owen. As it did so, Owen's expression relaxed from grief into relief. Somehow, it seemed that they both knew what was to come.

There was a comforting energy present as their two bodies seemed to become one within the light; a light which consumed them, until they disappeared within its honey glow.

As the light slowly faded, Tosh's voice could faintly be heard echoing throughout the room.

"Be well, my family," she whispered.

And then, they were gone. Tosh's body, which had been living on borrowed time for about seventeen years, finally faded away. All that now remained of her mortal coil was a thin layer of golden dust on the sheets.

For several minutes, there was a stunned silence. Everyone was torn between grief and happiness. They had just lost two of their dearest friends. And yet, Tosh and Owen weren't really lost. They had gone to their final home, together.

Jack finally stepped forward, slowly and deliberately, taking a seat on the bed. It still hummed with Tosh and Owen's energy, and he took comfort in the peaceful vibrations that energy sent through him. He knew that they were safe and happy. They were where they needed to be.

Jack felt the bed dip beside him as Ianto took a seat, placing a hand on the older man's lap. Jack squeezed Ianto's hand, and they exchanged a wavering smile.

As they saw Tony and Gibbs approaching, Ianto and Jack scooted over slightly, making room so they could join them on the bed where Tosh had slept for so many years. The bed where she and Owen had made the most of the second chance they had been given, and where they had finally left their company.

Tony reached out his arms, and the four men huddled in together for a hug. Feeling the calming energy, an energy that had been so strongly associated with Tosh, they were at peace.

"Goodbye, my friends," Jack whispered. "And thank you."

(Author's note: I hope you're not too upset about Tosh dying. But I think this was actually a very uplifting chapter. Now you know that Tosh and Owen cross over together. Owen won't be left behind after Tosh's passing. Their souls ascended as one!)