Friday morning and Jack was trying to find his Archivist, who had left his reception in a Marie Celeste state and disappeared from the face of the Earth.  Yes, that would indeed be Jack overreacting.  His team rolled their eyes and got on with their work.

“Tosh!  I need better coverage,” Jack demanded, prodding at the CCTV controls.

“He does this,” Toshiko responded crossly, slapping Jack’s hands away.

“He does?”

“Usually his timing is better, but this is something Ianto does.”

“Where the hell is he?”

“Mermaid Quay.”

“But…”  Jack gestured helplessly to the monitors.

“If he can find the blind spot, so can you.”

Jack raced off and Tosh tried to settle herself down, only for the hairs to prickle on the back of her neck.  She warily turned to find Gwen and Owen glaring at her.

“I am making, under threat of torture,” Owen scowled at Gwen, “the effort of all efforts to support the love-struck twat and now you sell him out,” Owen accused.

“Don’t talk about Ianto like that,” Toshiko objected.

“Great.  Now you protect him.  Bit late to…”

“Are you blind?” Toshiko snapped.

“We’re trying to stop Jack being a nuisance,” Gwen explained.  “I promised Ianto, and I’ve let him down.”

“Too late to worry about that.  It’s moved on.”  Toshiko turned to her wonderfully uncomplicated computer and quietly, indiscriminately despaired of the people around her.  “Open your eyes.”

…

It took Jack precisely twelve minutes to find Ianto.  Once he had he was able to take a few deep, calming breaths and approach him at a less frenzied pace.  Ianto didn’t notice him, probably, Jack thought, because he was three-quarters frozen to death.

“Ianto?”

“Hmm?”

Jack pressed himself to Ianto’s back and wrapped his coat as far around them both as it would go.

“Why are you out here freezing your balls off?  They’re nice balls, we might need them at some point.”

“I’m trying to wake up.”

“There’s an unsubtle difference between feeling refreshed and suffering hypothermia.”

“I forgot my coat.”

“That tired?”

“I didn’t get much – any – sleep last night.”

Jack held Ianto tighter.

“’Cause of me?”

“Obviously.”

“Want me to take it back?  Create a plausible excuse as to why I was talking outta my ass?”

“Can you?”

A few attempts passed through Jack’s mind.

“Nothing you’d believe.”

Ianto’s head tilted back onto Jack’s shoulder.

“If I close my eyes I’ll go to sleep.”

“Want to take the rest of the day off?”

“No.”  Eyelids drooping shut, Ianto turned and pressed his icy nose to Jack’s neck, smiling at the shudder it caused.  “Why are you here?”

“I took a call for you when I was in the reception.  An extremely pleasant young lady named Teresa informed me that your tickets are overdue for collection.”  Ianto said nothing.  “Tickets for Vienna.  For you and Captain Harkness.  Travelling the twenty-ninth of December.”

“I hadn’t forgotten.  I just thought it wasn’t going to happen.”

“You went ahead and booked.  After the way I treated you, the things I said.”

With an effort, Ianto brought his head up and turned in Jack’s arms.

“You were lashing out.  I don’t blame you.  We all say inexcusable things sometimes.  Wasn’t I going to watch you die and dance on your grave?”

“There’s still time for that,” Jack grinned, and Ianto nodded sagely.

Ianto was blotchy with the cold, nose red, lips white, eyes scrunched shut as he focused on the blissful amount of heat Jack was sharing.  Jack thought he was gorgeous.  Plus he’d booked for Vienna despite Jack being a disaster area.

“Teresa confirmed the accommodation.  One room.  One double.  Is that all they had left?”

“No.  But I did think about pretending it was.”

“Are we going?”

“I d’know.  Are we?”

“I want to.”

“You want to?”

“I do, I want to.  So…?”  Ianto nodded again, burying his face in the crook of Jack’s neck.  Jack reached up and stroked the back of his head, fingertips dragging through his hair.  “Want to grab a few hours sleep in my quarters?  I won’t bother you.”

“I’ll sleep here,” Ianto murmured with a dozy giggle.

Keeping an arm around him, Jack persuaded Ianto to walk; they paused outside the Tourist Office.

“I’ll pick up the tickets,” Jack insisted.  “You get some sleep.”

“I’ll be fine.”

“Sleep.”

Ianto went inside and, without sparing a glance for his colleagues, went to Jack’s office and down into his sleeping quarters, removing his jacket and shoes, loosening his collar and tie before sinking onto the bed and stretching out with a contented groan.

When Jack returned he took a quick glance downstairs and, satisfied that Ianto was warm enough judging by the way he was sprawled, was as good as his word, no bothering in any capacity.  He sat at his desk and…that was it.  He didn’t work, didn’t talk, ignored messages and phones.

“What’s he doing?” Gwen asked Owen after luring him to where Jack couldn’t overhear.

“Nothing.”

“That isn’t nothing, that’s…something.”

“He’s doing absolutely nothing.”

“But it’s the way he’s doing it.”

Gwen caught Toshiko’s eye and beckoned her over.

“What do you think?” Owen asked, furtively gesturing to Jack.

“I think…”  Toshiko studied Jack for several minutes.  “That he’s on guard.”

“He’s…what?”

“Look at him.  Ianto was exhausted earlier, he’s obviously downstairs sleeping, and Jack’s guarding him.”

“Guarding him,” Gwen laughed.  “No, he…”  She took another look at Jack.  “Oh, my God, that’s exactly what he is doing.”

“He’s doing nothing,” Owen insisted.

“Nothing…but guarding Ianto.”

“I accept he’s slightly off his rocker since he got back, but he doesn’t have to protect Ianto in here, and he knows that.”

“He knows that,” Toshiko agreed, “but I doubt he knows he’s doing this.”  Owen was shaking his head and Toshiko felt obliged to spell out what she was thinking.  “Look, we don’t know anything about Jack: we don’t know where he’s from, when he’s from, regardless of the scans that suggest he’s human, we don’t really know exactly what he is.  This might be perfectly normal behaviour for his own time and place.”

“What are you saying?  That whatever Jack is, he’s evolved to the point of sitting outside his cave with a club in his hand, protecting his missus?”

“Owen, I have no doubt that your vision of a utopian future consists of two-hundred channels of telepathy TV, personal jet-packs, and fully-tactile cyber-sex, but for most people their lives are enhanced by having someone close to share their experiences and achievements with.  Perhaps, where Jack’s from, it’s hard to find that person, so if you do find them you become a little…overprotective.”

“You know…” Gwen began thoughtfully.  “If this is something instinctive kicking in, it explains a lot about Jack’s behaviour recently, all that stalking and—”

“What?  What have you thought of?”

“You said he probably doesn’t know he’s doing this.  If it’s instinct rather than intellect, where does that leave us?  We get in the way and…?”

Toshiko pulled a pained face.

“I see what you mean.  If we’re perceived to be interfering, or obstructing, it could get pretty nasty.  Like when Jack turned his gun on Owen the other day, that was senseless.”

Gwen remembered and frowned.

“Do you think Ianto’s affected too?”

“No.  Ianto just wants to shoot Owen because he irritates him beyond all reason.”

“I’m standing right here,” Owen pointed out.

“I’m not telling you anything you don’t know.”

“Should we say something to Ianto?” Gwen asked.

“He’s probably better off thinking this is just one of Jack’s quirks.”

“Could we talk to Jack?”  Toshiko looked at Gwen as if she was mad.  “No, maybe not then.”

“This time next week, Ianto will be out of here,” Owen reminded them.  “I know it sounds callous, but it won’t be our problem anymore.”

“It could be a long week, Owen,” Toshiko told him coldly.

“And if there’s one thing we’re not short of around here,” Gwen concluded, “it’s guns.”

…

Ianto woke after nearly four hours, stretching and yawning and trying to wrap his mind around how he got here when he had a vague memory of falling asleep outside, by the bay.  Jack, obviously.  He checked his watch and thought it was a pity he hadn’t slept longer, at least until everyone else had gone home.  Luring Jack down to join him was a far pleasanter thought than climbing up that ladder and re-entering the real world, but the ladder it was, and Ianto put on his shoes and jacket before ascending to Jack’s office.

Jack looked around as he emerged, standing to help straighten his jacket and tie and generally primp.

“We’re being watched,” Ianto said under his breath.

“When aren’t we?”

“It doesn’t bother you?”

“Not as long as they keep out of my way.  It bothers you,” Jack observed.  “Want me to get rid of them?”

Ianto shook his head.

“I’ll make some coffee.  See if I can kick start my tolerance.”

“If you use any word of more than two syllables I want to kiss you.”

“Not with them watching.”

“I knew you’d say that.  It’s why I told you rather than made a move.  Do I get points?”

“Probably.  Damn, sorry, three syllables.”

“If I send them away can I do what I like?”

“There’s probably a name for your erotic fascination with the accent.  If not…”  Ianto paused for thought.  “Celtipervitude.”

Jack chuckled.

“Five syllables.  That’s almost enough for instantaneous orgasm.”

Ianto yawned again and gave a sleepy shudder.

“Right.  Coffee.  Wake up.  Coffee.”

“There won’t be an audience, but will there still be excuses in Vienna?”

“Did you pick up the tickets?”

“Yes.  Answer the question, Ianto.  Please?”

Feeling horribly exposed, Ianto started to leave, but mainly so he could pause in the doorway and turn his back on his colleagues in the peanut gallery.  His now private smile was lethargic and sexy.

“No excuses.”

…

It was good to see Jack looking so happy, Ianto thought later, after he’d finished the latest round of coffee and snacks and made his way back to the Tourist Office.

At the computer he checked his personal mail and knew he’d have to reply to the post from Human Resources at Torchwood One, get the last minute details regarding his transfer in order.  He’d provisionally accepted an offer of accommodation in London and now just had his house to sort out, but he wasn’t about to sell it if there was any chance of Jack wanting to live there.  Semi-live there.  Pop in occasionally.  Whatever.  He also didn’t want to ask Jack if he’d thought about it at the risk of upsetting him.  There was no way Ianto wanted to hurt Jack, however difficult their situation became, and he wasn’t fooling himself about the last week in Cardiff being an easy ride.

His move was planned for the sixteenth, which would give him a few days in London to acclimatise himself to his new workplace before taking a fortnight off for Christmas and New Year.  Despite his resolve about leaving Cardiff, he knew he’d be back for most of the holiday, and then there’d be Vienna, the thought of which filled him with excitement and trepidation.  Great sex and fight after fight.

“Ianto, I need you to coordinate us,” Jack told him as the team sped through the reception and out.  Jack poked his head back around the door.  “I apologise for not taking you out to get you killed.”

“Thank you, Sir, you’re forgiven,” Ianto smiled.

Jack dashed in, practically pulled Ianto over the counter for a kiss, then dashed out again.

Ianto locked up and headed into the Hub, thinking of great sex and fight after fight.  Great sex, fight after fight, and then…no more Jack.  At least not within arm’s reach.  Phone sex might feature heavily until Jack got bored and moved on, because Ianto was sure he would.  Whatever the accent, a voice on the phone was no contest for a real body in your bed.

The reasons for the move away seemed obscure now, especially when Ianto thought of how painful his new start would be.  No Jack, no Toshiko, no Gwen, he’d probably even miss Owen in a poor mental health way.  London, associated with some of the most horrific memories a man could bear, beckoned.  He settled in front of Toshiko’s computer, switched on his headset, and reanalysed why Torchwood Glasgow had been such a duff prospect.

…

The hunt for the alien technology that kept pinging all their sensors proved long and frustrating, but eventually the team returned triumphant.  Well, as triumphant as anyone could be having secured what looked like a futuristic safety pin with a button threaded onto it.

They ate Chinese in the boardroom and discussed the gadget’s potential applications, trying to avoid the possibility that it was, in fact, a futuristic safety pin with a button threaded onto it.

“People will always need safety pins,” Jack insisted, and who could argue with his wealth of often pointless knowledge?

Toshiko took the pin away to play with, Gwen and Owen left for the night, and Ianto cleared up while Jack watched him so intensely anyone would think he was performing the dance of the seven takeaway menus.

“Am I particularly entertaining tonight, Sir?”

“I am adoring you,” Jack told him.

“Oh.  Well…  That’s nice.”  Ianto continued to potter and thought about the question he had to ask.  No time was better than any other.  “I don’t suppose you’ve had time to think about the house?”

“Actually, I have,” Jack smiled.  “And I want to be there.”

“So…”

“But only with you.”

“That’s…  Only with me,” Ianto concluded with a sad sigh.  “Jack…”

“If you don’t leave right now, I’m going to throw you onto that table and…”

Ianto was already gone.

…

Jack sent Ianto a text at ten that evening:

‘Take the weekend off.  Get some rest.’

Ianto sent back:

‘xxx’

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