Torchwood: Divergence
Book Three: Rheoleiddiad

Chapter 36

The unit started to cycle, steadily lowering the temperature inside of it, and Harkness had to keep telling himself that in a little while they'd open the panel and the one loved would be okay… not frozen forever and sealed in the Vaults with so many others he'd had to lose over the years.

"Jack…" Turlough's voice sounded strangely tinny to the immortal, and he barely felt the young alien's hand on his arm. "Sit here… you're breathing way too fast. Try to take some slow, deep breaths. Ianto'll be fine in there, I promise. But he'll have kittens if he finds out you went mental the second the panel sealed. Thanks, Martha…"

The Captain felt a brief sting against the side of his neck, then a split second of vertigo before a wave of obviously drug-induced calm swept through him.

"Just a little Valium," the redhead beside him reassured. "You'll likely metabolise it in ten minutes of less, but it seemed more polite than a sharp slap. Try to relax, take some good full breaths and stay down, yeah?"

"I've put so many friends and teammates in these things," Jack confessed, tears welling in is eyes as he stared at the window in the top panel that he could see his partner through. "Sealed them away forever in the Vaults. It was hard burying Tosh, would be so much worse with Gwen. Even still, I always intended to keep Ianto here with me this way, dreaded having to do it to him someday. Hoped he'd be old and grey when it happened. Then thought it never would when the Hub was bombed, and just ran instead of doing anything when he was taken from me in London. I know it's not forever this time, but…"

His words trailed off into silence, but his expression said it all.

"Being in command is never easy," Turlough sympathised, carefully checking and adjusting the chamber's controls. "No-one can really understand that until they've done it. Having to handle casualties, bury friends and lovers, lose people your position made you responsible for. The wounds that can leave rarely show, and they hurt all the more because of it. But you're lucky enough this round to have him come back out alive… and likely willing to listen if you need to talk about it."

"He's got so many things weighing on him right now," Jack balked, never taking his eyes off of Ianto's face. "There's no way I could justify burdening him with my hang-ups on top of that."

"I don't think he'd consider it a burden," Turlough pointed out with a tiny, knowing smile. "I think he'd see it as trust and a chance to comfort the one he loves."

He made a final adjustment to the cryo unit's main panel, then started for the stairs.

"It'll turn off automatically and sound a quick alarm as soon as his core temp registers at 36.5°," the young Trion native advised. "Just sit with him. He'll know you're there and can hear you fine if you want to talk to him. Tell him you love him and try to relax. yeah? Martha's across the Lab from you and I'm right upstairs if you need anything."

The Captain nodded, shifted the stool closer to the cryo chamber and rested his left palm on the clear window above his partner's barely moving chest. Just as he opened his mouth to begin speaking however, his mobile rang and he answered it purely out of habit, putting it on low volume speaker mode.

"Harkness," he stated distractedly, his gaze still on the young Welshman inside the ever-cooling casket beneath his hand.

[You don't know me,] an unfamiliar voice began after an uncomfortable pause. [But my wife swears you've got her brother holed up in downtown Cardiff. That he's not dead like we were told, but really sick and crippled or something, and doesn't want her burdened with it or people to see him now. But there's been an accident and she really needs to talk to him. So, I want to know if Ianto Jones is actually alive and there with you.]

"How did you get this number?" Jack countered, silently cursing in several languages.

Either the Retcon hadn't worked on Rhiannon Davies back in October so she remembered that Ianto was alive, supposedly unwell, and in Cardiff… or the shock of her daughter's death had dredged the memories up past the chemical block. The only saving grace was that she'd apparently taken the hint and hadn't come hunting her sibling until now.

[From the Heddlu,] Johnny Davies replied easily. [Talked to the PC I dealt with a couple years ago when I found that big black SUV the local brats nicked from Ianto last he was at our place. Told him it was an urgent family matter and I needed to speak to the owner, he gave me your name and mobile number. So, is Ianto there or not?]

"He's in treatment at the moment," the Captain hedged, looking through the cryo chamber window at his trembling partner. "He had a recent set-back and isn't doing very well right now. It sounds like this is pretty emergent though. If you don't mind, I'll have you ring this number again and leave your contact information on the voice mail. I'll have him call once he's stable enough to talk later today."

[I can do that,] the man on the other end of the line agreed. [So, he is alive then. You the Yank he'd been lettin' shag him before things went to hell two years ago?]

"Yeah," Harkness admitted openly. "I'm his partner first and boss second. So, I hope you can understand that I'm very protective of his well-being, and try to shield him from anything that might worsen his condition. Which means it may not be till early evening when he's able to return the call."

[Just so's he does,] Davies insisted gruffly, his voice a little less steady now and the sound of weeping becoming audible in the background of the call. [Tell him his sister needs to hear from him, yeah? I'll leave our number on your mobile.]

"I'll be sure he contacts you," the immortal American promised, dreading how the young Welshman might react to talking with his family right now, especially after trying so hard to distance himself from them. "Goodbye, Mr. Davies."

He ended the call, switched his mobile to go straight to voicemail before pocketing it, and focusing on Ianto's face once more. Somebody among the local constables was going to get a serious down-dressing for giving out his number, but that could wait. At the moment he needed to concentrate on helping his lover through this crisis.

"Ianto," Jack called evenly, leaning close to the glass. "Your sister knows you're still alive, buddy. The Retcon didn't work or something broke through it. She really wants to talk to you when you're feeling better. It'll be okay… I'll stay right beside you whatever happens, yeah? We'll get your fever down; let you rest and see if you're up to calling her tonight."

He could see tears sluggishly trickling from beneath his beloved Archivist's closed lids, the younger man's expression an exhaustion dimmed echo of the lost child look that always tugged at his heart.

"Don't cry," Harkness tried to soothe. "You'll get frostbite around your eyes in this thing. Besides, I can't do anything to dry them or kiss them away right now. I know this is all way too much to deal with at once. But I'll make it better somehow, I promise."

"I… know…" Ianto managed to whisper, his words barely audible past the noise of the cycling chamber and the thickness of the shatterproof glass above his face. "Still… still scared…"

"Scared of talking to your sister?" the Captain asked, grimacing sympathetically when the younger man gave a tiny nod. "Don't worry, buddy, I won't let her yell at you or anything. We'll take it nice and slow."

"Have… to be… face to face…" the fevered twenty-six-year-old breathed shakily. "Rhi… Rhi'll think… I'm just dodgin'… if she doesn't see… see me ready t' drop…"

"I'd feel more able to protect you if we meet in person," Jack agreed, but hesitated to commit. "But I'm not sure you'll be up to going out someplace for that."

"Pierhead…" Ianto suggested weakly. "Mrs. Carver… She'll let us… come after hours… Just call her…"

"Fair enough," Harkness nodded. "I'll set something up for early evening. Right now though, you need to just relax and let your temperature drop so you can heal. Otherwise, you'll be too sick to meet with anyone. Do you want me to stay and tell you about the time I made the mistake of taking Tosh Weevil hunting? Or would you rather just have me leave you in peace for a bit?"

"Tell… tell me about… the Leviathans again…" the cryo-bound Changeling requested softly.

"Ah, bright lights and water ballet in space," his lover half-smiled, settling closer to the humming casket.

Martha had been watching the two during the strange phone conversation and after to be sure there wasn't going to be a problem. As the Captain began the tale of the Gilgamesh Leviathan migration he'd seen, she gave a sigh of relief and turned back the analysis she was working on. Hopefully having Ianto reconnect with his family would be a good thing, and not make the situation go from bad to worse.

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AN: The journey to Ianto being reunited with his family has begun.

Apparently the site is having that e-mail bollocks going on again and Notifications aren't making it to people. I can only apologise and hope you'll check the site for chapters until they resolve the issue this time.

Thank you to those reading the story. And thank you to those who have followed, favourited, and reviewed. NM