Torchwood: Divergence
Book Three: Rheoleiddiad
Chapter 49
Gwen gaped, then trudged over to the table by the couch with her wastepaper bin and an expression like a put-upon child. Looks like the bit of fun was over.
Still, she couldn't help but giggle as she fielded the paper wads, pointedly displayed a serviette and chocolate bar wrapper she picked up along with them. Finally, she held out the bin like Oliver asking for more gruel, waiting for Ianto to drop his empty juice bottle into it before rushing it back to her workstation and quickly sitting down. She smiled innocently, then lobbed a heavy silver ballpoint pen at the Changeling across the deck as soon as he closed his eyes once more. Which he caught out of the air instead of deflecting it, and promptly slipped it into the right hip pocket of his trousers.
"Wondered where that had disappeared to," the young Welshman commented with a raised brow.
"If I pay you £10, will you do that again?" Turlough asked, blue eyes sparkling. "Then chuck it back at her?"
"Only if she's not near anything breakable," Ianto replied equitably.
"I'm not moving from this chair," Cooper insisted, making a show of patting the various monitors and other fragile items surrounding her.
"Coward," the redhead at the next station smirked.
"Wife and mother," Gwen corrected with a smug smile. "And I'd like all my bits just as they are, thank you."
She didn't see that Jack had taken the wrapper from the bandage out of Martha's hand, crumpled it into a tight ball and passed it to his lover. Eyes still closed, the Scieron Guardian threw it at his co-worker and struck her right above the bridge of the nose.
"No bloody way," the one-time constable blurted in wide-eyed shock, having barely registered the motion and been helpless to dodge the projectile. "With your eyes closed?"
"You're a loud breather," Ianto claimed with a tiny smile. "I said I was decent at shooting blind."
"Absolutely brilliant, more like," Martha stated, almost as surprised as the raven-haired woman who had been the target. "Can you do that, Jack?"
"Not even on a bet," the Captain smiled, giving Cooper a 'don't tickle the dragon' look.
"That's so unfair," Gwen pouted, ignoring the warning. "I mean, the Scieron made it so you don't gain weight, don't age, don't stay dead, then added wings and sodding battle training on top of it. And as if that weren't enough, you get Jack as a bonus."
She'd meant it as a joke… mostly. But knew that wasn't how her young countryman took it by the way he flinched and paled.
"I'm not serious," the former PC quickly called. "Honestly, mate, I'm only fooling with you."
Ianto nodded; however, his breathing didn't slow down and he made to push up off the couch, his eyes mirroring panic and hurt.
"Slow and deep," Harkness coached, catching a hold of the younger man and pulling him close. "Try to match me, yeah?"
It took several minutes, but the American did manage to help his partner get his breathing back under control and avoid a seizure.
"I… need to go clean up," the Changeling murmured after a few more minutes of relative calm. "Be right back…"
He rose slowly, but managed to make it to the office without mishap once he was on his feet. Jack scrubbed at his face with both hands, then rose as well.
"I'm gonna go change my shirt, try to get him to lie down again for a while," the Captain stated evenly. "I'll tackle my mounds of paperwork while he rests, then we'll see how he feels at dinner time. Till then, keep doing what you are. Gwen, don't take this personally, yeah? He is so hypersensitive right now because of everything with his niece, too loud of a sneeze could set him off. It's gonna take some time for him to recover from all the emotional trauma the last thirty-six hours have dumped on him, but he'll get there same as he has in the past. So, just accept the occasional meltdown and move on."
The rest of the team members present all nodded, and their leader made his way to the room beyond his office. His beloved Archivist was in the en suite splashing cold water on his face and pointedly taking deep, steady breaths. The twenty-six-year-old grabbed a hand towel to dry off with, folded it back over the bar when he was done and ran a comb through his hair, then turned to face the older immortal who was pulling a new vest from the dresser nearby.
"I think I'll give Rhi a call now rather than wait," Ianto breathed as he emerged into the bedroom. "At this rate, I'll either forget to do it or wind up too tired to care."
"Okay," Harkness nodded, grabbing a clean button-down from the wardrobe before stepping close to give the younger man a comforting kiss. "I'll be shuffling papers at my desk and trying to look busy. If you need me, just shout."
The young Welshman murmured his agreement and sank down on the edge of the bed, accessing his mobile's contact list and choosing the entry labelled "Davies", turning it to speaker as it rang. His partner slipped out and closed the door to a crack just as the line picked up.
[Ianto?]
"Hi, Rhi…" Jones replied quietly. "Jack told me that David had a question. I take it he's feeling a little better?"
[He's doing alright,] his sister stated solemnly. [Better for being home. How are you? You were awful pale when you left the hospital, looked like you could barely stand.]
"Tired still, but improving," the Changeling reassured vaguely. "I… think Jack and I should stay back a bit tomorrow though. Funerals are hard enough. I don't want to make things worse if I get sick and have a seizure. We'll just keep off out of the way, yeah?"
[The family's supposed to put mementos on the casket, but if the services might make you sick, you don't have to come,] Rhiannon insisted, sounding both worried and disappointed. [Honestly, Ianto… I'd rather have you well than anything. And I know it's short notice, didn't expect everything to get set up so fast considering how long it all took with dad and mom. Johnny and me had to call everyone to let them know, because the obituary won't even run until morning.]
"I'll be there, Rhi," Ianto stated firmly. "I need to be. I won't be right beside you is all. I'll just come over when you need me to put something with the flowers, yeah?"
[That's fine,] Davies sniffled, taking a deep breath. [Having you there at all is more than enough. Especially with everything you and Captain Harkness have done already. Now… let me get David. He keeps telling me he wants to talk to you again after this morning. Whatever you said to him really did wonders, sweetheart.]
There was a pause and some random shuffling on the other end of the line, giving the young Guardian a chance to take a couple deep breaths of his own and try to relax the muscles he could feel bunching in his shoulders, back, and stomach. Then is nephew's voice came over the phone.
[Uncle Ianto?] the boy called uncertainly. [Mom says your boyfriend told her that when you were first sick, your heart stopped a couple time and the doctors had to start it again. Does that mean you know what it's like to be dead? Is it scary? Will Mica be afraid all alone?]
For a moment Ianto couldn't make his voice work, found it difficult to breathe past a sudden sharp pain in his head, throat, and chest. But he forced himself to swallow hard, and tried to answer his nephew very carefully.
"Yes," the struggling Changeling finally managed, his voice strained. "I know what it's like to die, David. I… was so sick for so long though… I don't remember much. But I don't think Mica is scared… and she doesn't hurt anymore."
[When you were at Hospital this morning,] his nephew half-whispered. [There was red light in your eyes once. I saw a dog like that, Uncle Ianto. A skinny little black and white, with red light for eyes… it's how I found Mica. It went to sit by the tyre, crawled under the car with me, like it was trying to help her too. I looked for it when the firemen made me move back, but it was gone and nobody else saw it at all. Do you think I really just imagined it? What does the red light mean?]
"I… I've heard that people… see the red light… in things…" Ianto stated haltingly, his breathing slipping from his control and his heart rate picking up as tears burned his eyes. "When… when they need help… the most. It… it guides and comforts them… I've seen it too…"
[Oh… I was afraid to tell Mom,] David breathed over the line. [I thought they'd take me back to Hospital. Uncle Ianto? You don't sound so good.]
"Just… tired…" Jones hedged, desperate to end the call. "Can… can you tell your mom… early… goodnight for me?"
[Will you come tomorrow?] his nephew asked hopefully.
"I promise…" the young Guardian vowed with a stifled gasp. "Nos da, David…"
[Nos da,] the boy replied and the line shut down.
Ianto shakily turned off his mobile, slid it onto the night table to avoid dropping it as he tried to get his breathing back under control. He didn't want to bother Jack again; the man had been doing little other than babysit him for two days. But he was afraid and hurting, upset with himself for lying to his nephew, confused by what the boy had seen after the accident, and selfishly wanted to be in his lover's arms. As he started to gasp in spite of his best efforts not to, he felt intense heat consume his body and a distinctive red haze bloomed to cover his narrowing vision.
*Be at peace, Child of My Knife,* a familiar Scieron voice whispered soothingly in his mind. *Your words hold more truth than you know. We do sometimes find the means to guide those in terrible need, and will always be here to do the same for you. Your annwyl comes… let him comfort you, Frân Arian. It is not a burden as you fear, but a brand that keeps the fires of life and love burning in his heart.*
"Just breathe, Ianto," Harkness was saying as the world returned for the eternal twenty-six-year-old, his voice breaking slightly. "Please breathe… Everything's okay."
Ianto took deep, shuddering breaths, more than content to let himself be held as the spasms from the seizure faded to a fine trembling in all his muscles. Everything was going to be okay… eventually.
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AN: The day has been rather a rollercoaster for Ianto… and they haven't even had to face the funeral yet.
RL is interfering with me in every way possible. My apologies.
Thank you to those reading the story. And thank you to those who have followed, favourited, and reviewed. NM