Bring Him Home: Chapter 5
Nov. 9th, 2010 02:01 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
galadriel1010Title: Bring Him Home
Chapter Title: Chapter 5
Challenge/Fest: Schmoop_bingo (card 3)
Prompt: Crying
Rating: G
Dedication:
Summary: One of Jack's missions has gone badly wrong, and Ianto has had to go to be with him, leaving 18-year-old Mica to babysit her young cousins and keep them distracted.
Characters: Mica Davies, Andrew Harkness-Jones, Mirabelle Harkness-Jones, Jack Harkness, Ianto Jones, mentions of other canon and non-canon family
Contains: Fluff, family and friendship, cookies, a kitchen disaster, cricket and children.
Disclaimer: Torchwood and its environs, occurrences and persons belong to the BBC. The original characters have disowned me.
Ianto knew that Jack was watching him closely, because he was watching Jack closely. They'd stayed in the temple to reconfigure the teleport machine so that the UNIT squad could use it to investigate the other side and, hopefully, convey a cease-and-desist message to whoever was there, but now they were finished and just about to head back to the hotel to sleep before they were taken back to the airport. What annoyed him most was the fact that Jack hadn't needed to be here at all. A competent team from Mexico City, or New York if they really needed specialist skills, could have told them exactly what Jack did, and would have been able to find the teleport without setting it off and endangering anyone. But as happened so often these days, the small local team had stumbled on something beyond them and called for the highest authority figure, and their superiors at the head office had signed off on it and brought him over without the follow-up and support that should have been able to return Jack to Earth in under five minutes.
Someone touched his arm and he startled, stilling his instinct to shy away when he realised it was Jack. He gave him a tired smile and nodded past him. “All sorted?”
“Yeah.” Jack squeezed his arm and tugged on it. “Come on, you need sleep. You look shattered.”
Jack's hand slid down his arm and Ianto spread his fingers so that Jack could lace his between them. He smiled and tightened his grip. “I missed you.”
They got outside into warm sunshine instead of cold LED light and Jack was still looking paler than usual. The other end of the teleport was a containment cell, but the facility it was in seemed to have been abandoned for a long time, so he was tired, shaken and hungry but, thankfully, unhurt. Ianto tightened his grip further and led him down the worn stone steps to where a pretty young corporal was waiting with a jeep to take them back to the hotel. Commander Fernando had arranged for food to be sent up to their suite, so they spent the journey in silence, holding hands and watching the rainforest outside the vehicle, and didn't speak until they were in the dining room, studying the spread that had been laid out for them with some confusion. “I think we might have to take a picnic,” Jack joked. “I hope you're hungry.”
Ianto swallowed and nodded. He'd picked at his food on the plane, wolfed down a sandwich when he got here and eaten half an apple before he went to put his things away before he crashed out. Eating hadn't seemed important, really. “Yeah...” He closed his eyes and shook his head and the world swayed around him.
Jack's arms tightened around him and Ianto dropped his cheek onto his shoulder, wondering when Jack got across the room like that. He clenched his fingers in Jack's shirt and breathed in deeply, calming breaths that smelled of home and safety and not having a panic attack as the last day caught up with him. Jack held him close with one arm and rubbed smooth circles on his back, trying to calm his shaking. “Ianto? Oh sweetheart, I'm sorry.”
He choked on a laugh and tightened his grasp, shaking his head against Jack's shoulder. “I'm okay.” He wasn't, not if Jack was calling him 'sweetheart', but he would be now that he had Jack back. Closing his eyes he leaned into Jack more and let Jack guide them down to the floor where they couldn't fall any further. “Sorry.” Jack sighed and kissed his temple, letting his lips linger there. Ianto's breathing and heartrate were steadying, and his shaking had calmed a bit at least. He could feel it now with Jack's solid strength to compare it to, and it was probably terrifying Jack, although he was stronger than Ianto and wouldn't let on. “Just... exhaustion.”
“Just exhaustion?” Jack sighed wearily and shifted Ianto so that he could lean against the wall and Ianto could curl up in his lap. “I think it's a bit more than that.”
Ianto shrugged and concentrated on taking deep breaths. There was delayed shock, and hunger, and definitely exhaustion all rolled into one and topped off with anger at the incompetence of the UNIT team who brought them out here. They hadn't needed a doctor to diagnose him with Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder, but it had helped them to get a handle on it and keep it under control. Sometimes, though, his control slipped; it would be a while before he could sleep through the night after this. “I'm getting there,” he said at last.
“Okay.” Jack guided him into a sitting position against the wall and wiped away his tears before Ianto could, brushing his fingers along Ianto's cheekbones with lingering tenderness and kissing away his tear tracks. “Do you feel better for that?”
“A bit,” he admitted, successfully forcing himself to meet Jack's eyes, although he was less successful at not feeling ashamed. “Sorry.”
Jack sighed again and picked Ianto's left hand up in his own, rubbing his thumb over Ianto's wedding ring. “Look at us. We've seen so much, enough to send other people beyond mad. But we're still here. You're still here. You have nothing to apologise for.”
Smiling, Ianto raised their joined hands and kissed Jack's knuckles. “I delayed you eating.”
“Fair point,” Jack laughed. He reached out and cupped Ianto's cheek in his free hand, brushing the pad of his thumb over his temple when Ianto nuzzled into his palm. “How about you get yourself into bed and I'll bring us some food through?”
He nodded and let Jack pull him up, then framed Jack's face in his hands and leaned in to kiss him gently. “I'm glad you're back.”
“Thank you for coming for me.” Jack looped his arms around Ianto's waist and swayed him to some silent music. “You shouldn't have had to, and we will bash heads together when we're done. But thank you.”
“I'll always come for you, Jack.”
“And I'll always come back to you,” Jack promised him. Next chapter
Chapter Title: Chapter 5
Challenge/Fest: Schmoop_bingo (card 3)
Prompt: Crying
Rating: G
Dedication:
Summary: One of Jack's missions has gone badly wrong, and Ianto has had to go to be with him, leaving 18-year-old Mica to babysit her young cousins and keep them distracted.
Characters: Mica Davies, Andrew Harkness-Jones, Mirabelle Harkness-Jones, Jack Harkness, Ianto Jones, mentions of other canon and non-canon family
Contains: Fluff, family and friendship, cookies, a kitchen disaster, cricket and children.
Disclaimer: Torchwood and its environs, occurrences and persons belong to the BBC. The original characters have disowned me.
Ianto knew that Jack was watching him closely, because he was watching Jack closely. They'd stayed in the temple to reconfigure the teleport machine so that the UNIT squad could use it to investigate the other side and, hopefully, convey a cease-and-desist message to whoever was there, but now they were finished and just about to head back to the hotel to sleep before they were taken back to the airport. What annoyed him most was the fact that Jack hadn't needed to be here at all. A competent team from Mexico City, or New York if they really needed specialist skills, could have told them exactly what Jack did, and would have been able to find the teleport without setting it off and endangering anyone. But as happened so often these days, the small local team had stumbled on something beyond them and called for the highest authority figure, and their superiors at the head office had signed off on it and brought him over without the follow-up and support that should have been able to return Jack to Earth in under five minutes.
Someone touched his arm and he startled, stilling his instinct to shy away when he realised it was Jack. He gave him a tired smile and nodded past him. “All sorted?”
“Yeah.” Jack squeezed his arm and tugged on it. “Come on, you need sleep. You look shattered.”
Jack's hand slid down his arm and Ianto spread his fingers so that Jack could lace his between them. He smiled and tightened his grip. “I missed you.”
They got outside into warm sunshine instead of cold LED light and Jack was still looking paler than usual. The other end of the teleport was a containment cell, but the facility it was in seemed to have been abandoned for a long time, so he was tired, shaken and hungry but, thankfully, unhurt. Ianto tightened his grip further and led him down the worn stone steps to where a pretty young corporal was waiting with a jeep to take them back to the hotel. Commander Fernando had arranged for food to be sent up to their suite, so they spent the journey in silence, holding hands and watching the rainforest outside the vehicle, and didn't speak until they were in the dining room, studying the spread that had been laid out for them with some confusion. “I think we might have to take a picnic,” Jack joked. “I hope you're hungry.”
Ianto swallowed and nodded. He'd picked at his food on the plane, wolfed down a sandwich when he got here and eaten half an apple before he went to put his things away before he crashed out. Eating hadn't seemed important, really. “Yeah...” He closed his eyes and shook his head and the world swayed around him.
Jack's arms tightened around him and Ianto dropped his cheek onto his shoulder, wondering when Jack got across the room like that. He clenched his fingers in Jack's shirt and breathed in deeply, calming breaths that smelled of home and safety and not having a panic attack as the last day caught up with him. Jack held him close with one arm and rubbed smooth circles on his back, trying to calm his shaking. “Ianto? Oh sweetheart, I'm sorry.”
He choked on a laugh and tightened his grasp, shaking his head against Jack's shoulder. “I'm okay.” He wasn't, not if Jack was calling him 'sweetheart', but he would be now that he had Jack back. Closing his eyes he leaned into Jack more and let Jack guide them down to the floor where they couldn't fall any further. “Sorry.” Jack sighed and kissed his temple, letting his lips linger there. Ianto's breathing and heartrate were steadying, and his shaking had calmed a bit at least. He could feel it now with Jack's solid strength to compare it to, and it was probably terrifying Jack, although he was stronger than Ianto and wouldn't let on. “Just... exhaustion.”
“Just exhaustion?” Jack sighed wearily and shifted Ianto so that he could lean against the wall and Ianto could curl up in his lap. “I think it's a bit more than that.”
Ianto shrugged and concentrated on taking deep breaths. There was delayed shock, and hunger, and definitely exhaustion all rolled into one and topped off with anger at the incompetence of the UNIT team who brought them out here. They hadn't needed a doctor to diagnose him with Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder, but it had helped them to get a handle on it and keep it under control. Sometimes, though, his control slipped; it would be a while before he could sleep through the night after this. “I'm getting there,” he said at last.
“Okay.” Jack guided him into a sitting position against the wall and wiped away his tears before Ianto could, brushing his fingers along Ianto's cheekbones with lingering tenderness and kissing away his tear tracks. “Do you feel better for that?”
“A bit,” he admitted, successfully forcing himself to meet Jack's eyes, although he was less successful at not feeling ashamed. “Sorry.”
Jack sighed again and picked Ianto's left hand up in his own, rubbing his thumb over Ianto's wedding ring. “Look at us. We've seen so much, enough to send other people beyond mad. But we're still here. You're still here. You have nothing to apologise for.”
Smiling, Ianto raised their joined hands and kissed Jack's knuckles. “I delayed you eating.”
“Fair point,” Jack laughed. He reached out and cupped Ianto's cheek in his free hand, brushing the pad of his thumb over his temple when Ianto nuzzled into his palm. “How about you get yourself into bed and I'll bring us some food through?”
He nodded and let Jack pull him up, then framed Jack's face in his hands and leaned in to kiss him gently. “I'm glad you're back.”
“Thank you for coming for me.” Jack looped his arms around Ianto's waist and swayed him to some silent music. “You shouldn't have had to, and we will bash heads together when we're done. But thank you.”
“I'll always come for you, Jack.”
“And I'll always come back to you,” Jack promised him. Next chapter
